#after we got our rooms we (me / my mom / two of my neighbors )

[joelswritingmistress]

Neighbors With Benefits: Part 1 (Joel Miller x f!reader)

Part of the #hotdilfsummerchallenge (I will be adding more and tag the Masterlist) Thank you @hellishjoel for putting on this contest. It's a lot of fun!

Pairing: Joel Miller x f!reader

Word count: Roughly 5000

Warning: Dilfy smut, age gap (23 & 42)

Mid-June, 2024. The first summer back home upon college graduation. You knew there would be an adjustment period and while you didn't necessarily feel unhappy, there was a strangeness that left you with feelings you couldn't quite pinpoint. This was your childhood home, your hometown, your room - but still, somehow it felt foreign.

You hung up the maroon cap and gown that showed off the primary color of Texas A+M, the college where you had spent the last four years studying your ass off to get a degree in criminal justice. At twenty-three years old after spending the last few years in a little off-campus apartment with some friends, you were feeling both aggravated and nostalgic upon returning to your parents' house in the suburbs. They were great and you got along just fine; but the freedoms that had gone along with renting your own place were now reeled in a bit tighter. At the very least you knew your mother would likely stay awake on the nights you were out late. Still, you appreciated how much they cared about you.

You moved to your bedroom window and flung it open to let in some air to get rid of the stuffiness that lingered in the house. Immediately, your eyes landed on a man next door standing behind a grill as smoke filtered up above him in a faint, little cloud. He flipped a burger with a pair of metal tongs and took a sip from what looked like a bottle of beer.

"Hey, honey."

You jumped at your mother's voice as if you'd been caught doing something wrong. "Hey." You pressed your eyebrows together and motioned out the window as she entered the room. "Who's that?"

"Oh, I guess it never came up in conversation," your mother said with a shrug, "That's our new neighbor. He moved in back in January."

You glanced back out the window.

"He’s a bit too old for you,” she teased with a laugh.

You whipped around and made a face. "I'm not... I'm not checking him out. I'm just asking why there's a stranger in the Wilsons' backyard." You smirked and raised your eyebrows, "Maybe if my mother told me things I wouldn't have to play detective."

"Isn't that what you got your degree in criminal justice for?"

You chuckled, knowing she would most certainly outwit you in a verbal battle. "And I'm 23 years old. No one's too old for me anymore."

"Well, in that case I hear they just built a nice, new nursing home down the road with plenty of widowed men. I can drive you there if you'd like."

You let out a hearty laugh. “I’ll pass."

The two of you giggled and your mother continued, "Will you be joining your father and I for dinner tonight? We were thinking of just going to Chili's and then heading to a play at the little theater downtown. The kids are putting on Grease."

You smiled as your phone vibrated with a text from your best friend. "It's Holly."

"So, I guess the answer is going to be no," your mother suspected. She smirked and got the hint. “Keep in touch.”

"Okay," you agreed and then cleared your throat when she turned to go. "Mom, what's his name?"

"Huh?"

"The neighbor," you went on, "I should probably introduce myself since I'm going to be a resident of 45 Harding Drive again."

"Joel," her mother replied, "Joel Miller."

Your parents left soon after and so you wandered out to the back steps, waiting for them to take off first before popping open a beer. The ice cold beverage tasted better than normal because of the incoming summer heat that was supposed to really strike the following morning. With a content sigh, you leaned your elbows back on the top step of the set of four that led from the back door into the oversized backyard.

"Jennifer?" a deep, scratchy voice made you jump for the second time that night. You put a hand on your chest and glanced off to the side when you realized a man had called out your mother's name.

The neighbor, you thought, feeling your stomach knot up.

You cleared your throat and rose to your feet, leaving the beer on the top step. "No… I’m (Y/N)." You took a few steps in his direction though he made his way almost all the way to the steps.

"(Y/N)?" His features became clear when he stepped into a small, back light beside the door. The man flashed a friendly, boyish grin from beneath a trim beard. "Tim and Jen’s daughter?"

You looked down sheepishly and smiled before lifting your eyes to meet his stare. "Yeah."

He’s hot, your inner monologue informed you, as if your cheeks hadn't suddenly grown hot.

His eyes shifted to the beer and his grin widened even more before he extended a hand. "I'm Joel... your neighbor."

"Nice to meet you." You gave a closed-mouth smile and took in his appearance, consciously telling herself not to stare. His plain white t-shirt showed off his broad chest and shoulders

Joel cleared his throat. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"It's fine," you assured him and then cleared your throat, "Do you want a beer or something?"

A smirk twisted onto his face., "No thanks. I was actually just coming over to see if I could borrow some butter."

"Oh..." You glanced over your shoulder at the back door and then back to Joel.

"You don't have to," he said reassuringly, unable to keep the grin from his face. "You don't even know me yet so-"

"No.” You cut him off, "No, it's fine."

"Are you sure?" Joel's voice cut through you like a knife and he kept his eyes firmly locked on yours.

You nodded, unable to look away for a moment and then waved him inside.

"Don't forget your brew here, honey." He reached down and scooped up the beer as you flung the back door open.

You smiled again, "Thanks."

Joel nodded and followed you in, before glancing around at the modest but modern kitchen. "You, uh... you even old enough to drink this shit?" He motioned to the beer.

You rolled your eyes, "I can show you my ID if that makes you feel any better." You flung open the refrigerator, "I know my parents are going to treat me like I'm in high school again."

"Well... they're just trying to protect you," Joel said. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-three." You glanced over her shoulder at him, somewhat pleased to catch him staring - or so you thought. It prompted him to look elsewhere.

"Here." You removed a stick of butter and crossed the room to hand it to him. When the butter landed in his hand you decided to be bold and didn't immediately let it go, "How old are you?"

He chuckled before holding a wicked smirk and again held her captive with his playfully intense eyes. "How old do you think I am?"

You stared back, somewhat used to gaining control over the guys you had dated or been interested in in the past. Already, this time you felt a bit outmatched and part of it was your instant attraction to him. When Joel took one step in her direction, you swallowed hard and gave a random answer.

"Thirty-two?"

Joel laughed a little louder, putting a hand on his stomach. He ran the other hand through his messy brown hair and pointed. "You're so full of shit."

You smiled at him, "I was thinking more of thirty-eight, thirty-nine."

He sucked his teeth and gave you a look up-and-down before smiling wide again. When he didn't say anything in response you flat out asked, "Am I right?"

"Forty-two," Joel finally informed you after a long pause.

"Over the hill then?"

He snickered and then motioned to the fridge, "Ya know... I will have that beer if you don't mind."

You smiled before reopening the fridge to fetch one for him. When you placed a bottle of Bud Lite in his hand he used the counter to pop the top rather than twist it. When the dented bottle cap fell to the floor and danced in circles for a moment you glanced back up to find him continuing to stare as he took a long swig from the bottle.

Joel wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "Your dad going to notice that a few of these are missing?"

"They're mine," you informed him, "And I'm not-"

"A kid, I know..." Joel rolled his eyes now and the two of you shared a laugh, "Believe me when you're my age you'll love that someone will accuse you of being younger."

"I'm sure I will."

He reached down and scooped up the cap from the ground and then held it out in his palm. When you went to reach for it he closed his hand and smiled playfully.

"I'll take it," Joel offered, "Don't want you to get caught drinking these things when your parents come home." He continued to tease you about your age.

"You know, I could've guessed you were fifty."

He laughed out loud. "Smart mouth on you," Joel flashed his index finger at her with the hand that held the bottle, "I like it."

You looked down and laughed again, feeling your cheeks grow hot again from his remark.

"Anyway, I should be getting back." Joel continued to smile, almost triumphantly and winked. "It was nice meeting you."

"It was nice meeting you too.”

He held your gaze for an extra second, forcing him to smirk a final time before heading out the back door.

"Thanks for the beer," he said casually, "I'll see ya around."

8:15 pm - the following evening

"Sorry I couldn't make it out last night," Holly said to you. The two of you sat side by side at barstools down at one of the local bars in town. "My boss can be a real pain in the ass sometimes."

"It's fine. I had the house to myself so I kind of just had some time to chill and binge watch some old shows."

"Sounds terrible."

You laughed and shrugged. "It was alright."

"Well, here's to... summer?" Holly raised her martini glass and you tapped her beer bottle gently against it.

"To potentially the weirdest summer of my life."

"Why's that?"

You shrugged, "I don't know. Being back home doesn't feel so 'at home' anymore."

"Give it time." Holly sipped her drink, "In a month it'll feel like you never left."

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"Hey, it's not so bad. I'm here." She smiled and raised her eyebrows, "Jill and Molly should be home within the week too. We can get the old crew back together before we all get real jobs and have to do shitty adult stuff."

"I'll drink to that," you agreed, taking a longer swig of the beer. You sighed and began to peel at the blue Bud Lite label, letting your mind drift to the night before with Joel. You envisioned him snapping the cap off the top of the beer bottle, using the counter. A smile crossed lingered on your face.

"Ooohh... someone's checking us out," Holly commented, "Or maybe they know you..." Her eyebrows pressed together and she motioned using her head toward a table in the corner of the bar.

"Oh shit." You couldn't contain your response but realized it must've sounded out of place.

"What?" Her friend asked, "Do you know him?"

"That's my neighbor," you informed her, "New neighbor."

Joel smirked and gave a wave but quickly entertained a conversation he was having with two other men at the small, corner table.

"He's kind of a Dilf."

You snickered and shrugged, unable to take your eyes off of him. When Joel glanced back in your direction you looked away and quickly took a sip of your.

"You think he's hot," Holly suspected with a laugh.

"What?" You shook your head, "No... I mean he may have some Dilf qualities or something like you just said but…” The sentence drifted off.

"Mm-hmm..." She continued to stare at her friend with playfully accusing eyes.

"Stop," you joked, "I just met him last night."

"Last night?" Holly perked up, "And..."

"And what?"

"You tell me."

You laughed again, "He came over to the house because he needed some butter."

"More like some sugar," she winked and glanced up toward a television that had a baseball game on in front of them.

You let out a hearty laugh and shook your head.

"He keeps looking over here." Holly’s voice perked out, "Oh! He's getting up," Holly whispered, stalking him for a moment with her eyes.

You glanced over and felt your stomach twist in knots when he headed in their direction.

"So you are over twenty-one," Joel cracked a wide smile and tapped the back of her chair as he continued to walk by.

"Twenty-three," you called after him, smiling wide.

He glanced over his shoulder, winking once before continuing on around a corner toward the bathrooms.

You let out a sigh and Holly turned back around.

"What the hell are you waiting for?" her friend asked. Before you could attempt to plead your case Holly went on, "He's hot... and he's totally flirting with you."

"He's not flirting with me."

"That was a Frank Sinatra-worthy wink."

You shook your head, laughing again. "Where do you come up with these things?"

"You're glowin. You're crushing on this guy. Who cares if he's your neighbor. Get on that."

"He's forty-two," you lowered your voice.

Holly raised her eyebrows and glanced toward the doorway where Joel had just walked through before returning her attention to her friend.

"Forget it." You sipped your drink and tried to pretend like you were nterested in the game on the television.

"At least admit you're crushing."

She turned to her and shook her head, "Fine... he's hot. Okay?" You focused on the screen for as long as she could and tried to pretend not to notice when Joel rounded back into the bar. You let out a deep breath as he crossed behind you and felt a rush when he came up beside you to flag down the bartender.

"Another round?" the middle-aged bartender asked, already reaching for a beer.

"Please,” Joel said with a nod, "You can put it on the tab." He turned to you, "Any interest in playing darts over here?" He nodded toward a dart board in the corner.

"Sure."

"Don't feel obligated." He forced your eyes back to his and continued to stare into them.

"I don't." You felt that intense paralysis again and couldn't turn away. When the bartender came back with the round of beers for Joel, you felt relieved and let out a breath.

"Get these two what they want," Joel added to the bartender, "Next round's on me when you finish those."

"Oh, you don't have to-"

"It's fine. I owe you one from last night." He headed back to the small table with his friends and Holly finally snapped you out of your daze.

"I thought you just gave him butter," she whispered with a giggle, "What was last night?"

You swallowed hard and rose to your feet, prompting Holly to do the same. "I offered him a beer and he took it," she said, "It was nothing... believe me. If I had anything interesting to share I would tell you."

Your legs felt heavy as you crossed the dark bar that was scattered with only a handful of other people. While the two other men began collecting darts and erasing the chalkboard to the side, Joel stood staring with his elbow on the table. For a moment everything else was in the background and you could only focus on him.

Shit... Any wit she had going for her had betrayed her. The instant, intense attraction you had to him was completely clouding your judgment. You felt like you were about to enter a wolf den, though you didn't at all mind playing the part of Little Red Riding Hood.

The anxiety-ridden feeling you had had leading up to the game of darts diminished as the night went on. You played a few games, swapping teammates several times, beginning with a 'boys versus girls' theme and then pairing off randomly when one game ended.

"He's going to fuck it up, you watch," Joel taunted as his friend lined up, closing one eye as he released the dart, only sending it clunking off the board and to the ground. "You didn't even hit the fuckin' board." His words drew laughter from everyone and the man that missed stumbled to retrieve it, chuckling as he went.

"I'm fucked up," Skip, the older robust man, remarked as he struggled to pick the dark up from the floor.

"Ya think?" Joel joked, continuing to sip on his beer.

"It's about time I get this man home to his wife and let her deal with him," the other man, Charlie, chuckled from behind a pair of alcohol-induced crimson cheeks. "Can't hold his liquor."

Skip huffed a breath and closed his eyes with a hand on his head. "The old lady's going to be mad at me. Especially when I tell her we've been hanging out with these lovely ladies." He motioned to you and Holly, laughing at himself and making the others do the same.

"I'd leave that part out if you knew what was good for ya," Charlie informed him with another laugh. "Come on Skippy. It's past your bed time."

"Game over?" Holly asked you.

"I guess so." You raised her eyebrows and smiled.

"Charlie, you guys to get home?" Joel asked.

"It's just a quarter mile down the road," Charlie waved a hand. He smiled, "Good night ladies."

"Goodnight," you both said at the same time before Holly turned to you.

"I'm heading to the bathroom. Be right back." She raised her eyebrows, noting it would give you and Joel a moment alone and you tried to play it off coolly.

"Okay." She watched a moment as Holly made her way down the bar and around the corner.

"Hope I didn't kill your girls night," Joel said.

"No." You turned back to him and leaned an elbow on the table, "We were just bored. Had to get out of the house."

"Mmm..." He slid back down into a seat and you took upon herself to join him as you waited for Holly.

Joel leaned both elbows on the table to straddle his beer, "You're probably used to night clubs filled with young guys just dying to buy you a drink. This has to be fuckin' lame."

"I was over that scene by my junior year," you told him with a laugh as you shook your head. "They were all the same with their cheesy cologne and gelled up hair."

Joel huffed a laugh and took a sip of his drink. "Sick of that shit huh?"

"Very." You mirrored his position and continued to sip on the beer you had been milking for the better part of an hour, "I'm kind of over the party scene... and the being at home scene."

"You've been home for one fuckin' day." He raised his eyebrows, "Get over it. You're saving money."

You nodded, "Yeah... yeah you're right."

"I know I am." He smiled, a charming arrogance radiating out of him.

When your phone buzzed in your pocket you jumped and quickly removed it, finding a text message from Holly.

I'm getting in my car. Snuck out the back. Have fun. You'll thank me later.

When you looked back up Joel was grilling you with his eyes. You wondered if he had managed to read the message or not. You cleared her throat. "Holly," you said simply.

"You guys need to go?"

You opened her mouth to speak, still unsure if he had seen what your friend wrote but decided to chance it and lie. "She... got sick. She's on her way home."

"She okay?"

You nodded. “Just a little embarrassed I think and decided to go." You took a sip to buy yourself some time in case he asked any more questions. When he didn't you tried to change the subject. "This place is dead."

"What's so bad about the college scene?" Joel asked.

"Huh?"

"The young guys, the night clubs..."

"Oh... nothing, I guess." You cleared her throat feeling like he was trying to read your mind. Again, your face felt flush with heat and you continued, "They're just... all the same. There's no appeal anymore. When I was eighteen I thought it was cool sneaking into bars and all that." You smiled and shook her head before looking him in the eye. "This is more my speed."

Joel stared back and didn't immediately say anything.

You almost couldn't take the quiet stalemate. The sexual attraction for Joel burned in your chest and in that moment, in the quiet corner of the bar, it was hard to fight it. All the same, you felt like you had to be reading his body language correctly in assuming he was feeling something too. Still, the fact that he was your older neighbor, who you didn't know very well, lingered in the back of your mind.

Getting involved with Joel would satisfy your instant craving for him but beyond that you knew it could only lead to making both of your lives more complicated.

"I'm going to go to the bathroom," you told him, when you couldn't contain your feelings any longer. It was the only thing you could say without leaping across the table and initiating a make-out session that played out animalistically in your mind.

"You gunna disappear on me too?" he joked, though you could see there was a hint of seriousness in his piercing eyes behind the wicked smile that hadn't left his face all evening.

"Not a chance." You felt embarrassed by the bold nature of your words, but took a deep breath and made the long walk across the bar into the restroom area. When you pushed open the door you felt relieved that no one else was in there and quickly made your way to the sink to pat some water on her face. You let out a breath, leaning both of her hands on the counter and then took in your appearance to make sure you was satisfied with the way you looked.

I'm being ridiculous, you thought. I'm too old to feel this out of control over a guy... or a man.

Joel was a man. He wasn't at all like the college boys you had been surrounded by who loved to crush beer cans on their heads, brag about how many consecutive beer pong games they'd won and worst of all when they threw the cheesiest lines at you and your friends to try to get laid. Joel didn't have to say or do anything in particular. He could simply look at you the right way and you found yourself ready to obey any request or demand he threw your way.

I’m in over my head, you thought, but I don't care.

You took in another deep breath and felt like you had the quick break that you needed to hold a sensible conversation with him without the constant interference of your out-of-whack hormones.

"Okay," you whispered to yourself and fiddled with your hair before pulling the door open to head back into the short, dark hallway. When Joel rounded the corner at the same time from the bar both of you stopped abruptly.

His eyes stalked the length of your body before finally re-settling on your gaze.

"Checking to make sure I didn't bail?" you joked, nervously laughing just after. Your tongue danced along your bottom lip, and you couldn't help but look him up and down the way he had just done to you.

Joel swallowed hard, tipping his mouth up into a half-smirk before walking past the men's room door in your direction.

You didn't have time to process all of the questions in your mind because he marched up and planted his lips against yours, immediately penetrating them with his tongue as his hands successfully shoved you up against the door to the women's room. It opened a few inches beneath the force.

You felt an explosion of adrenaline filter through your body as you kissed him back even more savagely than in your daydreams.

Joel pushed the door all the way open with one hand, not separating himself from you as he gripped your ass with his free hand and pushed his hips firmly against yours.

You tangled a hand in his hair, kissing him back with a heated passion that you didn't bother to try masking now that he had initiated the fantasy that had been playing out in your mind since you had him.

He moaned into your mouth before taking a breath and crushing his lips back against yours. Your back collided with the tile wall at the back of the bathroom, and you arched your neck as he began to ravage you, sliding a hand down the front of your pants while gripping your face with the other to kiss you hard again.

It all was happening so fast. You struggled to keep up but couldn't process a conscious thought when his first two fingers slid inside of you.

You bit down on your lip in a break in the kiss and spread your legs wider to give him more access.

Joel left a single kiss on her lips and spoke against them in a husky whisper, "Let it out honey," he kissed you again, "Let it out."

You knew the bar was nearly empty and there wasn't another woman that had been there. Even if there had been you didn't know that you would have cared. When his fingers twitched, arcing perfectly in his technique to make your entire lower body shiver with pleasure, you groaned.

"Fuck Joel," your whined his name, desperate for his tongue to dominate your again as he continued to finger you relentlessly until you felt like you were going to explode.

Joel's arousal heightened when he traced your lips with his thumb of his free hand, prompting you to take the tip of it into your mouth.

"God," he closed his eyes relished in the feeling, pushing his fingers deeper into you.

You whimpered again, writhing beneath his touch and attempted to reach for the belt buckle on his pants. "I want you."

He removed his hand from beneath your slick panties and placed his hands against the wall on either side of you as you managed to undo his buckle and shove his pants down off his hips.

Instinctively, you dropped to your knees, taking in as much of him as you could. Joel moaned and bucked his hips once as he grasped the back of your head with one hand. You looked up, watching his head fall back as his closed eyes pressed shut tighter. Joel allowed you to have your way with him as you continued to go down on him like you might never get another opportunity to do so. "Fuuucckk." He drew the word out, encouraging you to continue as he grabbed a fist full of your hair. "Ohh shit..."

Had anybody walked by the door there would have been no way to mask what was going on. Joel didn't hold back and felt an additional jolt of pleasure when you stroked him with your hand before quietly demanding him to come.

He opened his eyes, letting his mouth hang open as he glanced down, making eye contact with you as you engulfed him again.

"Jesus..." Joel's eyes closed and he felt an unmistakable buildup brewing below his waist. He couldn't ask you to stop, not when he was on the verge of exploding. "I'm gunna come." He shouted the words so loud that you thought for sure that someone had to have heard your encounter from somewhere in the bar. Still, you didn't let up and allowed him to push deep into you, gripping the back of your head with such force that you couldn't have separated your mouth from him if you tried.

He groaned, not attempting to hold back what he was feeling, alternating different curse words in between uneven breaths that ultimately left him panting as you finished him off. With a final breath he released your hair, letting his hand drop toward your face as you wiped a hand across your mouth and slowly rose to your feet.

Joel stood there for several seconds, breathing heavy with his pants at his ankles and a hand still on your face. When he finally came down off the high enough to speak, a chuckle left his mouth and ran a hand through your now-messy hair. "Shit honey... you didn't get yours." He let out another breath and then retrieved his pants from the floor and straightened out his appearance.

"It's alright," you told him with a sly smile, noting the heat that was still brewing between your legs.

He huffed another breath and adjusted himself over his pants before regaining your gaze. Joel smiled and drew his thumb gently under your eye, "Mascara's running. Sorry honey."

You closed her eyes as he continued to wipe the stray makeup away from your face. When you reopened them, Joel sported a half grin and he raised his eyebrows.

"Guess I fuckin' owe ya one."

You snickered, pleased to know that he wasn't at all expecting this to be your only encounter. "Yeah... you do."

Joel took a final, deep breath. "Well... you know where to find me."

"Next door."

"If you see me outside come on over to... borrow some butter or something.”

"Butter..." You snickered and then swallowed hard when he took a step toward her and slid a hand back down the front of your pants.

Joel touched his lips to yours as he spoke and this time gently began to massage up and down your wet center. When your mouth twisted up in a smile and you closed your eyes again he grinned and removed his glistening fingers. "It's a shame this is going to go to waste. Too bad you're so damn good at giving a blowjob. I had all the intentions of fucking you but I could just not ask you to stop.”

"Damn," she said quietly, but smiled, praying he might have it in him to continue.

Joel smiled, reading the disappointment on her face. "I'll be in and out tomorrow," he claimed, "You see me and you feel like bringing me over some butter…”

"I think you’ll definitely need some."

He looked down and made his way to the sink to wash his hands before turning to her with a smile. He ended the night the same way he had the night before, "I'll see ya around."

CLICK HERE FOR PART 2

[adrienneleclerc]

Missing Journal

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x Hispanic/Latina! Reader

Summary: Charles reads Y/N’s journal and finds out she has a crush on an F1 driver.

Warning: the usual spellings and grammatical errors, inaccuracies of pretty much anything involving F1

A/N: kinda based off season 1 episode 3 of Austin and Ally. However, instead of reading the journal about Y/N’s crush and thinking it’s about him when it’s actually someone else, Charles would read it and think it’s about someone else when in reality it’s about him. Does that’s make sense? Cool. Also, i always put Hispanic/Latina because I don't know what you prefer to be called and because this does exclude Spain, Haiti, Brazil, and other Latin American countries that don't speak Spanish.

Y/N and Charles have been friends for a long time, but so have Y/N and Lando. Y/N moved from the states to Monaco and became neighbors with Charles, ultimately becoming friends, but she also participated in Junior Karting with Lando, befriending Lando and Max Fewtrell.

It is safe to say Y/N has been friends with the three of them for a very long time and she is so grateful because she always felt like she didn't belong since she isn't European like them. But she has Logan as well, even if they aren't super close. She splits time between Charles and Lando. If Lando thinks McLaren is going to do soemthing interesting, he invites Y/N to Woking. Something interesting happening at Ferrari? Charles is bringing Y/N to Maranello. Y/N loves travelling (the Sagittarius in me) so it works out perfectly.

One day, Y/N's apartment was flooded because of poor plumbing and Charles offered her a place to stay. When her apartment was clear, both of them decided it was better if they were roommates since she was the better cook and that brings us to today.

Y/N was sleeping in her room peacefully when she felt someone shake her awake and she saw Charles standing over her.

"If you are going to kill me, can i at least eat first?" Y/N asked sleepily.

"Y/N, wake up, they changed our flight to Imola." Charles said and Y/N sat up in her bed.

"What do you mean they changed our flight? Don't we fly priavte?" Y/N asked.

"Yes, but Fred wants us to be in Imola earlier so we have more time to go over strategies so get dressed, sweetie, we need to go to the runway." Charles said. Y/N's heart fluttered at Charles's nickname for her. She tries to think nothing of it because he is a Libra after all, he is very affectionate towards her and Carlos as well. She got out of bed.

"Okay fine, but get out." Y/N said, pushing Charles out of her room to get dressed. She packed a dufflebag with 5/6 outfits, pajamas, anything she really needed for a 5 or 6 day trip more or less.

"Whatever you say, love, I'll buy us something to eat on the way there." Charles said outside her door. The last thing Y/N packed was her journal, she likes writing down everything about her travels since she writes travel articles for Hello Monaco (don't know if there is a traveling section, lets pretend). But she also writes about her love life or lackthereof. Y/N washed her face and got dressed in her comfortable clothes. When she left her room, she sw Charles on the couch with his small luggage.

"Alright, lets go. Are we stopping by the bakery?" Y/N asked.

"Of course. I'll wait outside while you order the pastries, I'll give you money." Charles said.

"Thanks, lets go." They left the apartment and got into Charles's car. Charles parked outside the bakery and Y/N got out of the car, ordered pastries, getting herself a warm cookie croissant (THEY ARE SO GOOD, my mom needs to buy more from the market) and whatever Charles gets. She gets back in the car and Charles starts driving away.

"Can you feed me, honey?" Charles asked. Y/N broke off a piece of the pain au chocolat and fed it to Charles, his tongue and lips touching her two fingers holding the piece of pastry. She felt butterflies in her stomach and decided to just hold the oain au chocolat and have him bite it but... "No, no, i can't drive like that, just feed me like you did before." Charles said and thats exactly what Y/N did.

Now of course Charles knew it wasn't necessary for Y/N to feed him like that, but he loves the intimacy of this gesture. So having her feed him like they were boyfriend and girlfriend even though they are not was great thing in Charles's book. Especially considering his feelings for the Hispanic/Latina queen by his side. Y/N finished feeding Charles the pastry and licked her fingers that were covered in chocolate because no one wastes chocolate here. They were playing music in his car, just vibing, singing along, Y/N finished her cookie croissant, and they were just talking until they made it to the airport runway where their private jet was, with Carlos waiting by the jet.

"Por fin! Por qué se demoraron tanto?" Carlos asked.

"Güey, relájate, teníamos hambre, queríamos comer en el camino." Y/N said, getting her dufflebug out of Charles's car, Charles gets his suitcase out too.

"I don't like it when you call me güey." Carlos said.

"I picked up Mexican slang from Pato that time he was in Woking with Lando. I miss Pato, i gotta text him." Y/N said, entering the jet with Charles and Carlos trailing behind. She sits down. "I'll never get used to this, I grew up lower middle class."

"Well your friends are F1 drivers and we invite you everywhere." Charles said.

"And I thank you for that, honestly. My boss loves my hotel reviews, thanks for paying for my room by the way." Y/N said.

"Of course, it's no big deal." Charles said.

"What i don't get is why we have to fly if the drive is just 5 and a half hours." Y/N said.

"But by plane it is an hour." Carlos said. "That mean we have more time to relax, work on strategies, go clubbing." Carlos says.

"We are not clubbing before media day." Charles warned him.

"Fine, que pesado." Carlos said and Y/N giggled.

The flight itself was bearable, Y/N fell asleep and Charles was watching her with a smile on his face.

"You should tell her you like her, mate. Because this" Carlos says gesturing to what Charles was doing. "Its getting creepy and concerning."

"When the moment is right i will tell her." Charles said.

"Okay then." Carlos said, putting his headphones.

When the jet landed, a chauffer took them from the airport to their hotel. When they arrived at the hotel lobby, Y/N saw Lando and Oscar on the couch, Lando was on his phone while Oscar talked to Logan.

"Lando!" Y/N shouted, running to where Lando was.

"Y/N!" Lando exclaimed, standing up from the couch to hug his best girl friend. "How was your flight? Are you hungry?"

"Nah, I'm fine, I had a cookie croissant before the flight so i should be good." Y/N said.

"Nonsense, you should have a proper breakfast. Osc, you wanna go out for breakfast?" Lando asked the Australian.

"Yeah sure." Oscar said. "Lets get our keys and we'll head out." As soon as everyone got their keys, they went to their rooms which are all on the same floor, WAGS obviously roomed with their partners, Y/N had her own room and she place her dufflebag there. She knocked on Lando's door and he opened up.

"Should i change." Y/N asked.

"Nah, you're fine. You ready to go Osc?" Lando asked Oscar, who was talking to Logan

"Yeah, lets go, catch you later, Logan." Oscar said goodbye.

"I'll talk to you later my fellow American!" Y/N exclaimed as she left with Lando and Oscar. Charles was observing their interaction.

"Jealous?" Carlos asked right behind Charles startling him.

"You scared me, mate. But i am not jealous." Charles said.

"You might want to unclench your fist then." Carlos tapped on Charles's fist and he releases.

On their free day, Y/N was writing down the name of the restaurant/cafe they went to, reviewed the food, the atmosphere, how much the food was.

"Y/N, do you have to review everything?" Lando asked.

"Yes, how was your food?" Y/N asked.

"It was good." Lando said.

"Do you think it is worth the price?" Y/N asked.

"I say yes but I think if you were wokring class, definitely not." Lando said.

"Thank you. What about you, Osc?" Y/N asked.

"I mean I've had better in Monza, but its still good." Oscar replied and Y/N wrote it down.

"You gentlemen have been great help." Y/N said.

"Will you be in the Ferrari hospitality this time or will you be coming over to McLaren?" Lando asked.

"I can't say yet. I'll probably arrive at the paddock with Charles, hang around his hospitality halfway during the break inbetween free practices and then go over to you before the second free parctice starts." Y/N said.

"Yeah, that sounds like a plan. You coming to media day or are you going to be sightseeing?" Oscar asked.

"The hospitality gives me free food so I'm going to media day because i don't like sightseeing by myself." Y/N said.

"You just want me to pay." Lando said.

"You have the money to pay for me! I don't see the problem." Y/N said.

"She’s been like this since I joined F1.” Lando told Oscar.

“I do the same with Charles, don’t start.” Y/N said.

(This scene was written before I found out what happened in Imola)

It was media day and Y/N was repping McLaren at the paddock, it made Charles feel a certain way.

“Stopping staring.” Carlos said.

“I can’t help it, they’re acting like a couple and I don’t like it.” Charles said.

“At least she’s not wearing his number.” Carlos tried to cheer him up, Charles was going to answer him when Y/N came up to him.

“Have you guys seen my journal?” Y/N asked.

“How does it look like?” Charles asked.

“It’s a mini blue notebook with my name in rhinestones, my friend decorated it for me.” Y/N said,

“We haven’t seen it, love.” Charles said.

“Fuck, what am I going to do?” Y/N asked worriedly.

“Relax, it’s just a book.” Carlos said.

“It is NOT just a book, it is my diary and work journal all rolled into one, i write ALL my personal stuff in there, if anyone else reads it, I WILL DIE.” Y/N said.

“Maybe you should start taking notes on your phone.” Carlos said.

“Like I’m going to listen to a colonizer.” Y/N snapped. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it. I mean you do come from colonizers but i should call you that, it’s not your fault.”

“Ya relájate. We’ll look for it.” Carlos said.

“Thank you! I was basically in every hospitality today so I gotta ask around.” Y/N mentioned.

“Why were you in every hospitality?” Charles asked.

“Well i run an F1 TikTok account too so I was just hospitalities. I hope no one has read it.” Y/N said before running off.

“Do you think she’s overreacting?” Carlos asked.

“Her mom said she was born a drama Queen.” Charles said shrugging. “I’m gonna go talk with Max.” Charles said, leaving Carlos, Charles entered the Red Bull hospitality.

“Hey Charles, where’s Y/N? I found her notebook.” Max said,

“That’s great! Where did you find it?” Charles asked.

“She left it on the couch when she was talking to Checo. Do you know why she was going mental about this?” Max asked, giving the notebook to Charles.

“Apparently there’s a lot of personal stuff written in here.” Charles said and that’s when he got an idea.

“No.” Max said immediately.

“You don’t even know what I was going to say.” Charles said.

“You are not reading it.” Max said.

“Why not?” Charles asked.

“Because Y/N would probably murder you.” Max said.

“What Y/N doesn’t know, won’t kill me.” Charles said opening Y/N's journal.

"You act as if you were married. Well, what does it say?" Max asked, looking over Charles's shoulder to read what it says.

"Apparently Y/N has a crush on someone on the grid." Charles says. He kept reading. "And that guy is not me, looks like she has a crush on Lando." Charles sighed, closing the book.

"I haven't finished reading it." Max says, taking Y/N's journal to keep reading. "Okay, she could be talking about anyone, it doesn't necessarily mean she likes Lando." Max said, reading over the journal entry.

"Really? 'We've known each other since we were kids', Lando and Y/N have done karting together. 'I could easily get lost in his eyes, his accent is adorable, we spend so much time together and the gestures he does with me are so intimate, it's almost as if we are already togther but we are not', who else could it be, Max?" Charles asked.

"Okay well everyone on the grid has an accent to Y/N except of Logan. I have seen Lando lead Y/N places with his hand on her lower back. Maybe you are right, Y/N has a crush on Lando." Max said.

"Oh well, I lost my chance, let me just give Y/N her journal, I'll see tomorrow before free practice." Charles said.

"I thought we were going to play videoames later tonight." Max said.

"Not anymore mate, I have to talk to Pierre and pout about losing the love of my life to a child." Charles said.

"He's only 2 years younger than you." Max said.

"He is a child!" Charles shouted before leaving the Red Bull hospitality with Y/N's journal in hand. We was walking around the paddock when he spotted Y/N on the phone.

"Si mami, estoy comiendo bien, te lo juro. Mami, luego te marco, mi amigo Charles quiere hablar conmigo, te quiero mucho, bye." Y/N hung up the phone and put it in her bag. "What's up?"

"Oh I found your journal." Charles handed Y/N the journal and she took it happily.

"Thank you so much, you're the best, where did you find it?" Y/N asked.

"Oh in Red Bull, Max found it on the couch." Charles said.

"I'll thank him when i see him. Are you doing anything tonight? I wanted to visit the Aryton Senna statue and since I know you're a fan.." Y/N was cut off by Charles

"Sorry, I'll be with Pierre since Kika couldn't come." Charles said

"Oh, well maybe after free practice tomorrow?" Y/N asked hopefully.

"I don't think so, I'll talk to you tomorrow, Y/N." Charles said leaving Y/N in the paddock and she walked to the McLaren hospitality where Lando and Oscar were playing Uno with some of the mechanics.

"Hey, Y/N, when we finish this round, we'll leave." Lando said.

"Yeah, thats fine." Y/N said and she sat on the couch. Once the game was over, Lando drove her back to the hotel.

"Did you find your journal?" Lando asked.

"I did, Charles and Max found it." Y/N said.

"Then how come you don't sound thrilled that you have your journal back?" Lando asked.

"Because Charles was acting weird, like he said he didn't want to see the Aryton Senna statue." Y/N said.

"But Leclerc is a big fan of him." Lando commented.

"Thats what i said!" Y/N exclaimed.

"Leave him, maybe tomorrow will be better." Lando commented.

Unfortunately, that was not the case, her Friday and Saturday were spent in the McLaren hospitality, she was now watching qualifying on the TV (Q3) and she saw something awful happen, Lando and Charles were fighting for P3, their wheels were touching and everything and it got so bad that now Charles’s front wing and Lando’s rear wing were damaged when Q3 finished. Y/N ran to Lando’s garage to see what happened.

“Bro, what the hell were you two doing?” Y/N asked.

“You should be asking that to Leclerc, I don’t know what is wrong with him, he’s been on my tail for all of quali.” Lando said.

“Don’t worry, I will.” Y/N said storming the Ferrari hospitality and she spotted Carlos. “Cabrón, where’s the other cabrón?”

“He’s in the driver room.” Carlos answered and Y/N bursted into the driver room, Charles was shirtless.

“What the hell, Y/N?!?” Charles asked, putting his shirt back on and Y/N locks the door.

“We need to talk.” Y/N said.

“There is nothing to talk about.” Charles said.

“The hell there is! You’ve been acting weird since Thursday, you haven’t invited me to the Ferrari hospitality, you didn’t want to come with me to see the Aryton Senna statue, it’s like you changed when…” that’s when Y/N realizes what must have happened. “You read my journal!” Y/N yelled, she picked up a pillow and started hitting him. “How fucking dare you!”

“How dare I? How dare you?” Charles asked, blocking her hits.

“Excuse me?” Y/N asked, halting her action,

“You heard me! I Can’t believe you like Lando. Lando? He is so immature!” Charles shouted.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Y/N asked.

“Your journal entry! ‘we spend so much time together and the gestures he does with me are so intimate, it's almost as if we are already togther but we are not’, you spend so much time with Lando, who else could you be writing about?” Charles asked and Y/N just stared at him.

“Mas menso no puedes ser! It’s you, Charles! I like you, you ridiculously oblivious moron!” Y/N exclaimed and now it was Charles’s turn to stare.

“You like me?” Charles asked shyly.

“I love you! We were neighbors, we are roommates, we spend so much time together that I developed feelings for you. Now please say something.” Y/N said,

“I like you too. When I thought you liked Lando i went crazy.” Charles admitted.

“That’s why you were acting like that in quali! Lando was kinda mad,” Y/N said,

“Yeah, sorry about that. But now that I know you like me…you coming to the Ferrari hospitality?” Charles asked.

“Of course I will.” Y/N said.

It was the Grand Prix and Y/N was in the garage with the red headphones one watching from the monitors.

It was a tough race but Charles made P1 and Y/N couldn’t be any prouder. When Charles “parked” the car at his spot, he saw Y/N standing with Free and the rest of the team so he got out from the car and kissed Y/N. They pulled away and smiled.

“Sorry, I got caught up in the moment.” Charles said, laughing.

“Does this mean we’re dating.” Y/N asked all giggly after her first kiss with Charles.

“Of course we’re dating, Mon ange. You are my girl, and now we are paddock official.” Charles said.

“So when are you taking me out on our first date?” Y/N asked.

“As soon as I’m done with the post race interview.” Charles said, kissing her one last time.

The End

It took forever to write but I hope y’all like it, thanks for your patience!

[pickingupmymercedes]

Ways to say "I love you" part 2 - Lewis Hamilton

I think we all deserve a little something after the horror we went through in today's race ❤️

warnings: mentions of blood, accidents and bit of angst

wordcount: +2k

important: again, each drabble was writen as a snippet into different moments with Lewis. Special thank you for my 💗 anon for helping with some of the ideas

As always, my asks are open for corrections, ideas and just to chat too!

Over a cup of tea

“We need to talk this through, before it blows in our faces, Lewis” Serious expression on your face as you handed him the cup of tea on the balcony of your apartment overlooking London.

“Mhmm, we do?” He questioned confused.

“Yes…what exactly are we?” You couldn’t look him in the eye as you questioned him, too embarrassed you weren’t sure if what you felt the night before was real, even if come the morning he was still there, as he had been for the past two months.

“Those words last night meant nothing to you?”

“They meant the world, actually”

“But you don’t feel the same?” The confusion now passed on to him, forehead scrunching as he questioned if he hadn’t read your relationship right, and your body responding before your head could think it through as you reached for the hand he willingly let you take.

“I… I need to feel safe to say it back.” You responded after a few awkward seconds of silence as he waited for your response.      

“I want you, if you’ll have me. I really do love you. And you don’t need to say it back now, just let me know if this relationship is for real, because I want it to be.” He said looking into your eyes, anxiously waiting until you lifted your head to give you a smile.

“Thank you for understanding” You said buried into his neck as you took the tea away from his hands and brought him closer.    

Over a bottle of wine

“Found board games!” You excitedly exclaimed as you walked back into the house. Tiny feet stomping away and reaching you in seconds.

“Is there Monopoly? Uncle Lew said we could be here for daayssss” Willow was the first one to start taking the boxes as you handled her and Kaiden the pile you had just borrowed from the nearest neighbor

“Are they still stuck in New York?” You asked Lewis just as he set his phone down.

“Earliest forecast is tomorrow night, possibly” a concerned look to him as his mom and sisters got stuck in a snow storm on their way from England to Colorado.

“Guess we have these two to ourselves then”  

“Granny said it’d be good practice for you to take care of us” Kaiden chirped in but not fully aware of the shock in Lewis’ face at the remark.

“It’ll be fun when there’s two more girls to play with” This time Willow getting you to choke on the water you were drinking.

“Why two girls?” Lewis amusedly asked, aware you were still trying to hold the laughter in the kitchen

“Dunno” She simply shrugged as she helped her brother set up the game.

“Two girls, huh?! You know people say I’m a girl dad…” He brought back the subject as he picked up the mess left in the living room, a glass of wine open on the kitchen counter and two glasses already in your hands as you approached him after putting the kids to bed.  

“I think I’d be happy with that” Your soft smile easing the tension you felt in him as he mentioned kids with you for the first time, handing him his glass and dragging him to sit down on the sofa for a bit.

“I think I’d prefer a boy then a girl, you know, so he could be there for her.” He said after a bit of silence, almost as if he was pondering what would be best order, and you could feel the yearning to have kids of his own in his voice.  

“I agree with the internet people on that one, you’re too much of a girl dad, babe” You set your drink on the side table, cuddling closer to his chest as he pondered on his glass.

“Doesn’t really matter, honestly, just one would be more than enough. As long as I got you too”

As an apology

“What the hell was THAT for?” You threw your handbag and phone all the way across the kitchen island as you looked at Lewis standing at the door, an annoyed look to him.

“That guy shouldn’t have approached you” His mind still on the tall blue-eyed dude that tried to buy you a drink at the club.

“I can handle myself you know?! Never had the need for a knight in shining armor…” all your anger gone as you realized how absurd that sounded when said to your knighted boyfriend, a smile cracking the tough face you were fighting hard to keep.

“I love you, okay?! You may not need to be saved from a monster but you’re gonna have a knight by your side regardless.”

Taking the cue, he reached for you and brought you close by your waist, tucking one side of your hair behind your ear while using his other one to caress your check.

“Yes sir.” His sweet eyes turning into dark one as he heard you whisper the title and felt your hands rummage through his back. 

As a hello

You smelt his cologne before he walked back into the room from the bathroom, woody and citric tones overcoming your senses as a light tug at your exposed breasts demanded your attention back.

“Hey darling, you done there? Sure you don’t anymore?” The little fingers of your month-old baby girl clutching your fingers as you softly redirected her small mouth back to the spot her eyes wildly looked for.

“Gosh, I love you two so much” His remark a common occurrence in your daily routine in the bubble of nappies, changes and feeds your lives had turned into those past weeks, in the dead of the cold but sunny winter in Monaco.

“Hello to you too, hot stuff” he smiled back as you checked his toned abs adorned by the towel in his waist, sitting by your side in the headboard of your bed, hands caressing your thighs.

“You sure you’re going to be okay here this weekend?” Concern written all over his features as he stroked your daughter’s tiny legs.

“Your mom’s here, my mom’s here, we’re gonna be just fine Lew.” His eyes searching for any doubts in your mind.   

“I’m only a call away, okay?!” He whispered as he kissed your head, enjoying the last moments he would have with his little family for a few days before yet another season began. 

With a shuddering gasp

It’s funny how time really is relative, you thought as you slowly watched four cars pile onto each other in a traffic jam that had just about three other cars in front already. You weren’t even paying attention to the road before, only really looking up from your phone when your car suddenly swerved right and hit the grass on the side of the road.

“Are you okay y/n?” His whole body hovering over yours, hands already unbuckling your seatbelt as Lewis tried to grab your attention.

“C’mom babe, we need to get you out of the car, now” He tried again but you couldn’t respond back, still in shock from the near miss, your hands a wobbly mess as he squeezed it.

“I’m carrying you outside, okay?!” He didn’t even wait for a reply before lifting you like you weighed nothing, examining you in the process to check for anything hurt while he carried you to the rest of people waiting by the road.

It took a while, more than a few minutes for your eyes to start focusing back on your surroundings. He was knelt right in front of you, worry all over as he asked again and again if you were hurt.

“You saved us” You gasped quietly as your eyes finally reached his, his hands cupping your face the second he heard you, your lips already on his as you felt his arms taking you into his body.

In a letter

You’d been, since the beginning, the one he wanted, comings and goings through the years hadn’t been able to diminish the electric pull he felt whenever he saw your smile light up the room, even from afar. But as if the universe liked having a laugh at their expenses, time and time again you’d both find your lives going in complete opposite directions. So, as he sat in his desk writing his vows, he could only be amazed that by some miracle he had found his way into your life and into your heart.

“ … So, I vow to be your lover, companion, partner and ally. Through what may I promise to always be there. I might not have the answers or tools but I’ll walk with you, through the darkest of valleys or at the summit of our dreams.

I love you for you, because you give me the chance to be my truest self, because when you’re around I know we’ll find our way through. I love you, and from the moment I learned that, I’ve been giving it my all to be worthy of you.”

When the broken glass litters the floor

“Fuck, why did I do that?” Your exclamation coming out a bit louder than expected as your eyes started to water from the sharp pain in your hand, blood already dripping from the gush on the palm as you looked to the pieces of the glass on the floor.

“Babe? What’s happened, what was that noise?” His voice coming from just outside the bathroom door, fidgeting with the lock to try and get in.

“Please, let it be a good timing” Was all you could whisper to yourself, the knot in your throat almost suffocating you, the reality of it all too much to comprehend or process, your feet automatically swerving the glass and blood on the floor to get to the door.

“I hope you don’t have anything important going on in the next months” you said just as his eyes tried to scan you and the bathroom. His features with confusion all over as you handled him the stick with the 2 lines on them.

“What’s… but the doctor said…really?” You watched as all types of emotion tumbled across his eyes, overwhelmed an understatement to what you both felt at that moment.

You nodded just slightly after a few moments of his eyes questioning yours, the start of a smile forming on his lips as his arms reached you and engulfed you in a hug, crashing your injured hand in the process.

“Ouch, hand” He froze as you winced, putting two and two together, looking to the blood and the remains of the glass and seeing the injure on your palm for the first time.

“I do hope this kid takes after you and isn’t as clumsy” You pointed as he sat you down at the tub to check the cut. His smile reaching all the way to his eyes as he chuckled and looked at you.

“Nah, I hope this kid is every bit just like you.”

With no space left between us

You could feel his movements as he opened the parachute and brought you two back down to safe land, but nothing managed to tear your eyes from the immensity of the sky. There was infinity as long as your eyes could see and you were nothing in comparison, your thoughts long lost to the smallness of human race.

“You were awfully quiet up there, you good?” His voice a bit dry from the wind, your bodies tightened together as the guys got you both out of the mess of ropes.

“I think I’m still processing how small we really are” You answered almost to yourself, still trying to comprehend what you had just experienced.

“Another go at tandem is due then?” You saw the smirk in his face as you turned to look at him, his arms still very much wrapped around you and his fingers circling in your forearm.

“Thank you for dragging me out here, but how did you know I’d like skydiving?!” You reached back to his arms while they strapped you out of the seat, holding him closer, still with the ghost feeling of the wind around.

“I love you… that’s how I knew you’d love it.” He said to your hair as he held you to him, smug face as he reveled in the feeling of you.  

From very far away

The speakers blasted the victory song as each of the three drivers on the podium sprayed champagne around, everyone drenched and smiles thrown left and right, laughs being heard all the way around the Monza podium.  

As Lewis stood by the edge of the platform, he lifted his trophy at the sea of Tifosi, as a way to show appreciation for the support so far on the season and at his new home race, dedicating his win to them.

Turning to the pitlane he also pointed his trophy to the Ferrari team, scanning the crowd he found you at, just by Fred and Anthony, tears flowing down and a gleaming smile that could light up his entire soul. You tried mouthing something to him but he couldn’t quite make it out in the overwhelming state you were all in.

“I love you” he said to you, from the top of the podium, knowing that whatever it was you were saying, and whatever it was that happened, could be answered and resolved with those three words.

[hearteyesforjoel]

Good to be Home

DBF!Joel x Fem!Reader

Summary: Freshly graduated from college, you’re back home in your old neighborhood. Your parents throw a party to celebrate you coming home, as well as Joel’s 36th birthday. What happens when the tension breaks between you and Joel?

Warnings: MDNI 18+, no outbreak, smut smut smut, pwp, age gap (reader is 24, Joel is 36), kinda rough, praise kink, daddy kink (i went a little feral here sorry), reader is called ‘good girl’, oral (m receiving), slight choking, spitting, unprotected p in v (do better than them and wrap it), nipple play, creampie, hair pulling, slight cockwarming?, mentions of reader being insecure, talk of makeup? i think that’s everything, let me know if i missed something!

Word Count: 4.2k (oops)

Finally. After all the blood, sweat, and tears you poured into your work, you’re finally done. No more early morning classes. No more noisy roommates. It feels good to be back in Austin. With the window down, a warm breeze hitting your face, you feel excitement bubbling within to see your parents after the excruciatingly long semester. Pulling into the driveway, you see the garage door open, your dad inside working on his car. Putting your car in park, you hop out to greet your father.

“What, no welcoming party?”, you say with a smile as you enter the garage of your childhood home.

Your dad turns to you with a warm smile, wiping his hands on a dirty rag, “Oh, honey, it’s so good to see you! Your mother and I have missed you!”, he says, pulling you into a tight hug. “How was your drive, sweetheart? You doing okay?”, your dad lets you go, turning back to his work under the hood of his car.

From inside the house, you hear another familiar voice, “Is that my baby? Oh honey, I’m so glad you’re home!”. Your mom comes into the garage, barreling into you with a loving hug. Oh how you’ve missed being home.

Pulling away from you, your mom walks to drags you over to your car, ready to help you unload your things. “Come on honey, let’s get you settled in. Your father and I need all the help we can get for the barbecue tonight.”

Lugging a duffel bag over your shoulder, you turn to her with your eyebrows furrowed in confusion, “Barbecue?”

This time, your dad speaks, “You got it, kiddo. A little ‘welcome back’ party right here in our backyard.”

“Now, dear, don’t forget about Joel!”, your mother turns to you, “We’re having two parties in one! One for you and a birthday barbecue for Joel.”

Joel. Joel fucking Miller.

It’s been ages since you’ve seen him. Living only a few houses down, he and your father became quick friends when your family moved into the neighborhood. He and your father discussing cars while you played with Sarah in the backyard. Sarah was only about four years old at the time, always wanting to spend time with you. You were never much of a kid person, but Sarah was sweet and easily entertained, so you didn’t mind when Joel would ask for you to babysit during his longer workdays. Besides, how could you say no to him? Even though you were just a teen when you first met him, you couldn’t deny the small crush that bloomed for him. And now, a college graduate, 24 year old grown woman, you still can’t shake the butterflies in anticipation of seeing him again.

You just know that man has aged like fine wine.

“Kiddo, are you there?”, your dad pulls out of of you thoughts, your mind clearly elsewhere.

Shaking the sultry thoughts away, you bring your mind back down to earth, softly smiling at your parents, “Sorry, just excited to see everyone again. It’s been a while”. It’s not like you were lying. You can’t wait to see your old neighbors and childhood friends.

And Joel.

——————————————————————————

It’s nearing 5:30pm when you hear the first few guests arrive. Sitting at your vanity in your room, you apply the finishing touches of your lipstick, hoping the color catches his eyes. You stand to walk to your closet and begin to think back to the last time you saw him.

It was the day you were leaving home, leaving your friends and family. Filled with nerves for this new step in your life, you were in your room, giving it a once over for any of your belongings you may have left behind. Even at the age of 19 you felt bad for leaving your childhood stuffed animals alone at home while you went off to college.

“Hey, darlin’. Thought you’d be out of here already”, a familiar deep voice that made you swoon every time it graced your ears. Joel stands at the entrance of your room, hands in the pockets of his jeans as he leans against the doorway. You give him a shy smile as you turn to him, your stomach doing cartwheels at the sight of his big brown eyes. He gives you that signature sweet smile of his, glancing around your nearly empty room, “So, you excited? Ready for this new life experience?”.

Looking down at the floor, you shrug, “Yeah, I’m ready. I’m just-you know, just a little nervous, I guess. Just thinking about how I’m going to miss all of you.” It was the truth. As excited as you were, this was brand new. You’d have to make new friends, meet new people, learn a new routine. To be honest, it was scary.

Joel frowns slightly, pushing himself away from the doorway and walking towards you. “Darlin’ hey, look at me”, he says as he gently holds your chin between his thumb and pointer finger, bringing your eyes to meet his. As you meet his gaze, you feel like your heart is going to stop. You’ve never been this close to him, to see each and every small freckle and wrinkle on his face. His eyes soften as he speaks gently, “I know this is scary and new, but you’re going to meet new people, make so many new friends; hell, I’m sure you’ll even go to plenty of those dumb college parties”, his last few words making you giggle. Joel smiles softly, his eyes scanning over your face, “I promise you, you’re going to have a great time. And you’ll have plenty of opportunities to come visit us. Just try not to miss me too much, ‘kay sweetheart?”, he says teasingly with a wink.

Butterflies erupt in your stomach, his gaze bringing heat to your cheeks. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. Besides, it’ll be nice to have a break from all that boring construction talk between you and my dad”, you say with a slight smirk.

Joel rolls his eyes jokingly as he drops his hand from your face, wrapping his muscular arms around you in a hug, his head resting on top of yours, “Shut up, you know you’ll miss me”. You wrap your arms around his toned torso, breathing in his scent. Fuck, you were really going to miss this.

Bringing yourself back to reality, you remove your dress of the night from its place in the closet, putting your look together. Not too short, but not exactly modest either, the dress stopping at your mid-thigh with a small slit. Little floral patterns adorn the dress, the deep neckline subtly showing off your breasts. After brushing through your hair, not a single stand out of place, you spritz yourself with a bit of perfume. Glancing at your reflection, you smile. As you’ve gotten older, you’ve grown to love yourself, love your body in a way that you didn’t when you were younger. As a teen, you were very insecure, unsure of yourself and your place in this world. But you’ve grown. Now, staring at your reflection, in your cute little black dress, you know your guests will see that you’ve grown up. You know he will see.

——————————————————————————

Walking out into the backyard, the warm Texas air engulfs you, making you thankful for choosing the breezy dress. You scan the area, seeing a mix of familiar and new faces. You have no doubt that the whole neighborhood is currently in your backyard.

“Oh my god, it’s you! You’re actually here!”, you hear from across the lawn. You’d recognize her adorable face anywhere. Without skipping a beat, Sarah is running up to you, wrapping her lanky arms around you in a tight hug.

“Sarah? Who are you and what have you done with my little best friend?”, you say teasingly, surprised at how much she’d grown while you were away. You pull away from the hug and hold her shoulders in your hands, “Look at you! I can’t believe how grown up you are! You have no idea how much I’ve missed your face!”

Standing next to you, Sarah loops her arm through yours, walking through the crowd. “Oh come on, I haven’t changed that much. You know who’s actually gotten older though? You should see all of my dad’s newly sprouted gray hairs”. Dragging you along with her farther into your backyard, you both approach your dad, manning the fiery grill.

Looking up, your dad grins at the two of you, “There’s our guest of honor! Everyone’s been waiting to see you, kiddo”.

Sarah looks around the area, eyebrows furrowed, “Speaking of, have you seen my dad? He was just here”. Looking over behind you and Sarah, your father tips his head towards someone.

“Ah, there’s our birthday boy!”

Turning to look over your shoulder, you see him. You finally see him and-

Fuck he’s aged beautifully.

A beer in each hand, Joel approaches the three of you, handing off one of the beers to your father with that Joel smile, “Please, my bad back already reminded me of my birthday”. As he glances at Sarah, he makes eye contact with you and does a double take, surprised to see you, “Is that who I think it is? In the flesh?”. Sarah untangles her arm from yours, stepping aside so Joel can properly greet you. “Come on now, darlin’. Bring it in, I know you’ve missed me”, he said teasingly with a light smirk, already reaching out to you for a hug.

Your heart skipping a beat with anticipation, you smile sweetly up at him. You want to say something back, give a retort about how old he’s getting, but you’re at a loss for words. He’s absolutely fucking breathtaking. “Long time no see, old man. Happy birthday, Joel”, you say as you wrap your arms around his middle, his arms holding you tightly to his chest, his head resting against the top of yours. He’s still as muscular and toned as he was the last time you saw him.

Pulling away from your embrace, Joel looks down at you, smiling softly, “Thanks, sweetheart. Good to have you back”. As he steps away from you, subtly and almost too quickly to catch, his eyes rake over your body, and back up to your chest. Meeting your gaze, his eyes darken, jaw clenching as he tears his eyes away from your body to help your father with the grill. Your focus stays on his figure, taking the time to get a good look at him. He’s wearing an old pair of jeans, clearly worn out from years of use, and an old t-shirt he’s worn a million times. But even then, he still looks fucking amazing. Even after the few years you’d been away from home, he still manages make your stomach flutter. Except this time, things feel different. A good kind of different. You’ve always had a soft spot for him, a special place in your heart, a small crush, if you will. But tonight, tonight, your stomach isn’t the only thing that’s fluttering for him. Taking in his toned figure and tanned skin, his calloused hands and graying beard, you already feel your underwear becoming wet, just imagining how his scruff would feel against your thighs.

Breaking you out of your thoughts, your father calls out to you, “Honey? Could you be a doll and grab another beer for Joel and I? This heat is no joke, am I right?”.

As you’re about to make your way to the cooler, you decide to put on a little show just for Joel. Walking to the cooler full to the brim with assorted drinks, you subtly sway your hips, bending over just enough to give Joel a small peek at your lacy panties underneath your short dress. You walk back to the two of them, beers in hand, ready to add fuel to the fire. “Here you go, daddy”, you say to your father, handing the beers to the two men at the grill, giving Joel an innocent look.

Bingo.

Clenching his jaw, body going tense, Joel gives you a stern look, clearly not happy with your teasing. Next to him, your father couldn’t be more oblivious, his focus only on the flames in front of him, “Thank you, kiddo. Why don’t you go say hi to some of the neighbors, I’m sure they’ve missed you too”. You smile sweetly at your father in agreement, giving Joel one last sultry look before heading across the lawn of the backyard to mingle.

——————————————————————————

It’s been about an hour since you set your plan in motion, eyes continuing to catch Joel’s as you catch up with some of your friends. Anytime you laugh, you lay your hand softly on your chest, catching him in the act of ogling your body. While sitting down, listening to stories from your neighbors about what you’ve missed, you cross your legs, exposing your upper thigh. Each time, you look over to Joel, his face set with a hardened expression. This night is going better than you could’ve hoped for.

You’re in the middle of a conversation with one of the newer neighbors, making small talk about the town and neighborhood. All of a sudden, you feel someone come up to you from behind, large hand on the small of your back. “Meet me upstairs. Bathroom. Five minutes”, he whispers roughly into your ear, giving the new neighbor a small polite smile before heading inside. You take in a short breath, unable to think of anything else, your mind clearly fuzzy from the anticipation of what’s to come.

You excuse yourself from the conversation, fibbing that you need a glass of water. Stepping inside the house, all is quiet, a stark contrast from the volume of the many conversations happening in the backyard. No one seems to be left inside the house, you notice, as you make your way up the stairs. As you approach the bathroom door, you can feel your heart beating wildly, like it could burst out of your chest at any moment.

You knock lightly on the door, palms sweaty in anticipation. The door swings open, suddenly you’re being dragged inside and pushed against the now closed door, a soft ‘click’ following. He locked the door. Arms barricading you between his body and the door, Joel leans in, eyes dark and filled with lust, “Now, you wanna explain the shit you pulled out there, darlin’?”

Mission accomplished.

Feigning innocence, you look up at Joel and shrug your shoulders, “I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about”. Both of you breathing heavily, the air between you thickening, you could cut the tension with a knife.

Joel lightly scoffs, rolling his eyes, “Cut the shit, sweetheart. Giving me those eyes, teasing me in front of everyone. What happened to the innocent little girl you were?”. His words rough and demeaning, you can already feel yourself soaking through your panties.

Smiling sweetly at him, you place your hand on his chest, lightly fisting at his shirt, “Grew up, I guess. I’ve changed. I’ve learned things. Ya know, I had the real college experience”.

With furrowed brows, Joel stares back at you, the cogs in his mind turning, “Tell me you don’t want this. We shouldn’t be doin’ this. You have any idea what you’re dad would do to me if he found us like this?”. Gently, he places his hand against your neck, ever so lightly squeezing, holding your gaze.

Chest rising and falling with each heavy breath, you pull him closer by his shirt, titling your head up to brush your soft lips against his chapped ones, “Trust me, I know what I want. And what I want is your cock down my throat”.

The air between the two of you shifts, Joel’s body tensing. Suddenly, his mouth is attacking yours, Joel’s grip slightly tightening against your neck. His roughness only making you a whimpering mess, sliding your hands down to his belt loops, pulling him impossibly closer. Biting your lip, Joel pulls a gasp of air from you, only to slip his tongue into your mouth, exploring you. Tasting you. The passionate kiss becoming sloppier, both of you already drunk on one another. Pulling away for air, you look up at Joel with a knowing smile, slowly sinking to your knees, “Let me show you what I can do. I wanna make you feel good tonight, daddy”.

Joel’s body shudders, breath hitching as he watches you unbuckle his belt. Gently, he brushes his fingers through your hair, a stark contrast from his rough grip on your neck, “Go ahead, baby. Show daddy what you can do with that pretty little mouth of yours”. You unbutton his jeans, pausing to palm over his hardness through the denim. Joel lets out a low groan, breathing heavily. Unzipping his jeans, you pull them down to his knees, his cock begging to be freed from the confines of his briefs. Softly, you palm over his erection through his underwear, lightly kissing and nipping at his hips. Joel pulls at your hair, tired of your teasing, “Come on, baby, quit your teasin’. People are gonna start wonderin’ where we are, and I’m not leaving until I’ve been inside that little cunt”. His words going straight to your bundle of nerves, you squeeze your thighs together, eager to please him. Sliding his briefs down, you finally come face to face with his cock.

He’s a fucking monster. Mouth nearly drooling, you grip the base of his girthy shaft, kissing his swollen, leaky tip. With wide, innocent eyes, you stare up at Joel, taking in the sight of him completely at your mercy. Without warning, you take him into your mouth, hollowing your cheeks around him. You moan softly, trailing your tongue over his veiny cock. Pulling off of him, a string of saliva connecting your lips and his length, you pump your hand up and down, licking and sucking on his swollen tip. Above you, Joel is nearly fighting for his life to keep the noises in, eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he holds your hair in a makeshift ponytail, “Atta girl, there you go. Make daddy feel good”. His praise going straight to your core, your slick pooling in your underwear. Sliding your mouth down his length, you slowly begin to take more and more of his cock in your mouth, his tip hitting the back of your throat, your eyes watering. He’s definitely the biggest you’ve ever had. Breathing in through your nose, you lower your mouth all the way down his length, nose tickled by his public hair. The tip of his cock hitting the back of your throat, Joel growls, his grip on your hair only tightening. He pulls you off of his shaft, manhandling you by your hair, forcing you to look up at him, his other hand gripping your face, “Open that pretty little mouth up for me darlin’, be a good girl”. Without skipping a beat, you open your mouth, drool and precum on your lips. Surprising you, Joel spits into your mouth, groaning as he watches his saliva hit your tongue. Gripping your face, Joel’s dark eyes hold your gaze, “Be a good girl for daddy and fucking swallow it”. Not having to be told twice, you swallow his saliva, whining as you do so. You open your mouth again, showing him you swallowed.

You’ve never done anything like this before, nothing so erotic, but you crave more.

Rocking your hips against nothing, you whine, “Please, Joel. Please just fuck me, I can’t fucking take it anymore”. You feel like you could cry, you’ve never wanted something so bad in your lifetime. Yet here you are, on your knees in front of Joel in the guest bathroom.

Shaking his head, Joel tuts his tongue, “No darlin’ no, I’m not fuckin’ you until you say it. Come on, baby, beg daddy to fuck you”.

Your brain is so fogged with lust, you feel like you’re going to snap.

“Please, daddy. I need you fuck me so good until I’m begging you to stop”.

Without needing more, Joel helps you stand up, pushing you against the bathroom counter, facing the mirror. Your lips puffy, cheeks red, thank the makeup gods your mascara is waterproof. You lean over the counter, gripping the marble in anticipation. Gripping your hips, Joel pulls you against him, leaning your torso to lay on the counter. With this angle, he had a perfect view of your ass, the lace covering where you need him most. Lifting your dress up around your waist, Joel takes a second to take you in. To get a good look at you. Then, without warning, Joel pulls your panties to the side, spitting on your now exposed cunt. You gasp, the cool air hitting your overheated body. Joel growls, watching as his spit slides down your slit, bringing his fingers to slip through your folds, finding your bundle of nerves. You moan out, feeling yourself getting wetter. “Please, I need you inside of me. I promise I’ll be a good girl for the rest of the night, just-fuck, please! Please just fuck me already”, you beg him, needing a release.

Joel brings his leaky tip to your folds, spreading your slick against his length, “Don’t worry, baby. Daddy’s gonna a make you feel better”. With ease, he slips his tip in your entrance, you’re pussy dripping for him. Slowly, Joel sinks the rest of his cock inside of you, his girth stretching you. As he slides in, inch by inch, you feel every ridge, every vein. Finally, he’s all the way in, his pelvis pressed against your ass. Both of you moaning out in unison, your walls gripping his cock tightly. Joel grips your hips, you know you’ll be bruised in the morning, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. Sitting up enough to look at Joel through the mirror, you whine, “Please give it to me, daddy”. Not needing to be told twice, Joel whispers out a small ‘fuck’, pulling nearly all the way out, then slamming his cock back into you at a brutal pace. The bathroom is filled with pornographic noises, skin slapping against one another while you continuously whine in pure ecstasy.

While fucking into you, Joel slides one hand around your waist, pulling you up against his chest, holding you tightly. You reach behind you, gripping Joel’s curls as he buries his face in your neck, muffling his groans of pleasure. With a particular sharp thrust of his hips, you moan out loudly, not caring if anyone caught you. Joel brings one of his hands to rest against your mouth, drowning out your whines and whimpers. His other hand finds itself on your chest, pulling the neckline down just enough to expose one of your breasts. With a grunt, Joel grasps your tit in his large hand, pinching your nipple between his thumb and pointer finger. You roll your eyes back, pussy clenching against his cock as he continues to pound into you from behind. Your whimpers progressively get louder behind his hand, your begging muffled, clenching your eyes shut at the stimulation. “What was that, baby? Do you need to come? Come on, ask daddy nicely. Be a good girl, darlin’”, he grunts into your ear, his thrusts getting faster and sloppier.

You toss your head back, grip on his locks tightening, “I need to come, ple-fuck, please, can I come, daddy? Let me come on your cock, please, I’ll be your good gi-ugh, I’ll be your good girl! Just please, please let me-oh fuck!”. Without warning, Joel brings the hand that was on your breast to your clit, rubbing fast, tight circles.

Groaning into your neck, Joel’s pace quickens, his cock twitching as your cunt clenches around him. Finally, you snap, your climax taking over all of your senses, your walls constricting around Joel’s cock. Biting down softly on your shoulder, Joel growls into your skin, hips snapping into yours, cock twitching inside you as his load coats your walls. As he works you both through your high, your legs begin to shake, moans turning into soft whimpers. Thrusts coming to a complete stop, Joel holds you tightly against his chest, kissing up and down your neck as you attempt to catch your breath. You both stay like that for a minute, his cock still inside of you, seed dripping down your thighs.

With one last kiss to the neck, Joel pulls out, causing you to whimper at the emptiness. He calms you, “I know, darlin’, I know”. You felt so full, so content. You hated feeling empty of him. You just know you’ll never be able to have enough of him. You lean against the sink, legs still shaky from your activities. Pushing your panties back into place, Joel smirks, knowing you’ll be walking around in your own backyard, his come still leaking out of you. Pulling you away from the counter, Joel turns you towards him and into his chest, placing a small kiss on your forehead. Unlocking and opening the door, he checks to make sure the coast is clear, ushering you out first, “Come on, pretty girl. We gotta cut the cake”, he says with a grin.

You’re so happy to be home again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

okay my lovelies it’s FINALLY posted, i’ve been so busy lately, but i’m glad it’s out here now :’)

i’m also ovulating rn so i got carried away OOPS <3

lmk if you’d like to be added to the taglist or if you have any requests!

taglist: @joelslegalwhre @reddedmiller @janaispunk @amyispxnk

[janeyseymour]

Hey babe it’s me, I know I’m the greatest😭 but let’s get to the point. What if we got a one shot of Melissa thinking about popping the question 💍to reader and she talks to Barbara about it and she looks back on all the time she spent with El and reader and ultimately decides to do so.❤️❤️

Im a sucker for happy endings bro ✨✨

Love Thy Neighbor, Two Families Become One- pt 2

PART 1

WC: ~3.15k

That night, Melissa dreams of a life where you are officially her wife and Ellie is officially her daughter. That dream that shifts into a sort of hellish nightmare where both Gary and Jared are there, and she’s doing everything that she can do to protect you. And then it flickers into a dream where you aren’t around anymore, and because Ellie isn’t officially her daughter in the eyes of the law, she ends up back with Jared. 

That dream is terrifying enough for her to wake up breathing deeply and making sure that you were still breathing before going to silently check on Ellie in her room. The redhead lets out a sigh of relief when she confirms that it was indeed just her imagination running wild.

When the two of you wake up for the day, she’s a bit more lovey than she usually is. Her hands don’t leave your body, whether that just be holding your hand or a hand settled on your hip and squeezing lightly. There are more kisses pressed to your head than a normal day. When she and Ellie come back from the grocery store while you stayed home to clean, they both come home with flowers for you. While you aren’t complaining, you are a bit curious as to why she’s being so romantic today.

“Is it my birthday and I forgot?” you ask as you hold both bouquets of flowers.

“No, you’re so silly Momma,” your little girl giggles from next to your girlfriend.

Melissa’s lips are on your own softly. “We just thought Momma should know how much we love her.”

“Well, thank you,” you smile against her. Then you lift your daughter onto your hip and pepper her face is kisses while she squeals happily. “I love you both too.”

As you’re getting ready for bed that night, Melissa texts her work wife.

We gotta talk tomorrow morning.

About? Barbara texts back almost instantly.

You’re still awake?

Well, I was falling asleep…

Sorry. We’ll chat tomorrow?

I’ll ask again… about?

Y/N, Ellie, and me.

Oh lord, what did you do Melissa?

Nothin. Just… please?

Meet me in my room tomorrow morning after you’ve stopped for coffee.

When the two of you head in for work on Monday, Nonna’s words still haven’t left Melissa’s mind. The three of you walk into the school hand in hand, Ellie’s backpack slung over your girlfriend’s shoulder.

“Little girl, you have to hang with your momma this morning,” the redhead tells your daughter. “Mom has a meeting.”

“You do?” you furrow a brow. “On a Monday morning?”

“With Barb,” she tells you. “To talk about insurance and how all of that stuff is changing.”

“Auntie Barb?!” Ellie asks excitedly. “Can I at least come say hi and give her a hug?”

Melissa almost says no, but those puppy dog eyes are strong and she relents. “But very quickly.”

“Wait, insurance is going to be changing?”

“There’s a possibility,” she tells you, although you don’t know that she’s referring to the fact that it might change because she’s contemplating asking you to marry her.

“Should I sit in on this meeting?” you ask her, concerned.

She shakes her head. “You just worry about El, and I’ll fill you in later.”

“Okay,” you sigh as you drop your things in your room. “Where are you meeting her?”

“Just her classroom after we get our coffees,” Melissa says.

After you’ve gotten your coffees, the three of you head down to the kindergarten wing. Ellie, of course, sprints ahead yelling Barb’s name as she goes.

“Auntie Barb!” Ellie is giggling and clinging to your girlfriend’s best friend by the time you both catch up with her.

“Baby girl, not that I’m not happy to see you, but where are your mothers?”

“Hey,” you chuckle from the doorframe. “Sorry to crash your meeting, but Ellie wanted to run in and say hi.”

“Well she knows Auntie Barb is always here to say hello to and give a snuggle,” Barbara chuckles as she releases your daughter.

“Alright, El,” Melissa looks at your daughter. “You got to say hi to Auntie Barb, now I gotta talk with her.”

“Can’t I stay?”

“I think you’ll have more fun with Momma coloring in her room,” your girlfriend says.

Ellie contemplates this for a moment before nodding. She runs to the redhead and hugs her tightly before taking your hand and pulling you off down the hall.

Your girlfriend watches the two of you make your way down the hall before she closes the door to the kindergarten room. 

“Well?” Barbara looks to her work wife curiously. “What on Earth could you have done that would require us to talk without Y/N and Ellie here?”

“I took them to meet my mom and Nonna,” Melissa states. “And Nonna told them that they were family and that Ellie was an honorary Schemmenti.”

“That’s great news,” the kindergarten teacher states.

“And now, I’m thinking about asking them to become official Schemmentis.”

Barbara gives your girlfriend a look in shock. “Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I thought that you didn’t want to get married again though, and Y/N seems perfectly content with that,” the woman says softly.

“I said that it would take a freaking miracle,” Melissa says. “And they… they are that miracle.”

“That’s great though, Melissa,” Barbara tells the redhead. “Why did we need to talk about this?”

“Because… I need you to tell me that I’m not insane for thinking this and throwing caution to the wind again for her,” the second grade teacher says quietly. “I- I never thought that I would consider getting married again.”

“Well, why are you?” Barb asks.

Your girlfriend folds her arms over her chest as she perches herself on one of the tables. “Because I love those two more than I’ve ever loved anyone… Nonna and my mother adore them, called them family and honorary Schemmentis. And then, that night I had a couple dreams about them.”

“What were they?” the kindergarten teacher inquires.

Melissa sighs softly. “I had a couple… one where Y/N was my wife and Ellie was my daughter, another where Jared came back and I couldn’t protect Y/N, and then… the last one was… something happened to Y/N, and because I wasn’t legally Ellie’s mother, she went back to Jared kicking and screaming.”

“Oh,” Barbara sighs quietly.

“That one had me so shaken that I checked that Y/N was still breathing and that Ellie was asleep in bed.”

“That makes sense, Melissa,” the kindergarten teacher says.

“Well? What do you have to say about this?”Your girlfriend asks.

“I think the answer is right in front of you, and you would be a fool to not follow your heart,” Barb states. “Y/N has been nothing but wonderful for you, Ellie already calls you her mother… you have already laid down the foundation for a beautiful marriage.”

“What if it’s too soon though?”

“When you know, you know,” Barbara says smugly. “Think about it.”

“Thanks,” Melissa smiles. She heads out after that, knowing that the kiddos will be coming in any second.

When lunch time comes around, Melissa makes her way into the staff room and has your meal out and ready for you when you get there. You sigh as you settle yourself in your chair and lean your shoulder on her head.

“Thank you,” you whisper.

She presses a kiss to your temple with a soft chuckle. “Happy Monday?” she offers.

“It’s Monday, that’s for sure… Roman started off the day spilling my coffee all over the floor and shattering my mug, so I’m exhausted.”

“Well, I can fix that,” your girlfriend laughs quietly as she stands from her place and heads for the coffee machine. She pulls another mug from the cabinet, and while the coffee is brewing, her eyes linger on you.

You’re half asleep as you bring your lunch to your mouth, but she can’t help but think that you are the most beautiful woman in the world. She gets so distracted just looking at you that she doesn’t notice the coffee is ready.

“Babe, stop staring at me,” you tell her.

She shakes herself out of her trance. “Sorry. You’re just… wow.”

“I don’t have any makeup on, and I’m in your old Eagles sweatshirt,” you roll your eyes. “I probably have bags under my eyes actually.”

She hums as she brings you the new cup of coffee, leaning down and kissing your cheek. “You’re stunning, and I won’t hear anything else.”

That day after school, the two of you take Ellie to the park like you do on any day that allows for the little bundle of energy to run around and tire herself out. You find Melissa watching Ellie with a sparkle in her eye, not that that isn’t uncommon, but there’s something different about the way she’s watching her today.

“What’s got you lookin’ at her like that today?” you ask as you squeeze her hand.

Melissa smiles fondly. “Just… thinking about how much that little girl has grown and changed, and how she’s changed my life for the better.”

“We’ve been through a lot,” you smile softly.

Ellie is put to bed, and for once, you’re not entirely exhausted. So, you prepare for bed before heading out into the living room with two glasses of wine. Melissa is in her spot, glasses on the tip of her nose and looking at her phone with a soft smile.

“What are you looking at?” you ask as you sit next to her.

“The album I have of you and El,” she tells you as she wraps her arm around you and pulls you practically in her laugh.

There’s a picture of Ellie’s seventh birthday up. Ellie’s eyes are wide and filled with so much love for your girlfriend as she grins at the camera, holding up the toy that your little girl had so desperately wanted but you couldn’t afford.

“I can’t believe you spoiled her as much as you did that day,” you roll your eyes.

She shrugs. “Have you ever seen the kid so happy though? It was worth it.”

You swipe over, and there are about a million pictures and videos of your daughter at the park running around with the sweetest smile on her face.

“This one’s my favorite,” Melissa sighs with content as she lands on a selfie of the three of you. Ellie was in her favorite lavender shirt, Melissa was wearing that salmon colored shirt you adore, and you were in your overalls looking exhausted but filled with so much joy.

“I look like a mess,” you roll your eyes.

“Do you remember that day?”

“Yeah,” you chuckle. “That was while we were moving in and I was at the end of my rope.”

“Momma! Please!” Ellie had pleaded with you, but you were in no mood to go out into the world after an afternoon of lugging all of your things across the hall or down to the storage unit a block over. “Please! I just want to go to the park!”

“Elizabeth,” you sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose with your thumb and forefinger. “I already said no.”

“But please! I just want to play with you!”

“Elizabeth, you are on thin ice,” you warned, but she didn’t relent, and that finally got you to blow over. “Elizabeth Ruth! To your room, now!”

Your little girl, never used to being reprimanded, immediately burst into tears. And something inside of you broke too. Melissa came out from where she was rearranging her closet to make room for your things at the sound.

“What- what’s happening?” she asked as she lifted Ellie onto her hip and guided you to the couch.

“Momma- Momma yelled at me!” Ellie wailed into your girlfriend’s shoulder.

“I- I didn’t mean to!” you had cried right back into her other shoulder. “I- This has all been so hard, and I’m exhausted, and I just don’t have the energy to take her down to the park today!”

Melissa blew out a breath. This was all over going to the park?

“Momma telled me to go to my room, but I don’t even have a room yet!” your daughter whimpered.

“I’m sorry, El,” you apologized. “I’m sorry I lost my temper on you… that was not okay.”

“It’s okay, Momma,” your little girl forgave you quickly as she sniffled the last of her tears away.

“Why don’t we do this,” Melissa started. “I’ll take El down to the park and play with her while you get a nap in?”

“N-no,” Ellie shook her head into the redhead’s neck. “Momma said no.”

“Go,” you whispered. “Take her, have fun, and I’ll be in a better mood when you come back.”

“R-really?” your little girl peered at you from her place in Melissa’s lap. You nod, but your daughter doesn’t make any moves towards the door.

Eventually, with lots of promises that it really was okay, Ellie went with your girlfriend out the door and towards the park. 

You relaxed into the cushions of the couch, but you felt absolutely terrible for snapping at your child. So, about ten minutes after they leave, you too headed down to the park.

You stopped at the coffee shop down the street from your house, and you grabbed your girlfriend’s favorite, your drink, and a lemonade for your little girl. You found them almost as soon as you entered the gated area of the playground, and Ellie was giggling with glee as Melissa pushed her on the swing. Your daughter’s eyes lit up at the sight of you.

“Momma!” Ellie squeaked as she pointed at you.

Melissa turned in your direction, slightly confused. “Babe?”

“I thought I should come down,” you told them. “I’ve been so high strung lately, and I figured maybe I should just come down and spend a nice afternoon with my girls.”

“Really?” Ellie squealed as she continued to swing.

You nod and take a seat on the playground equipment next to her. You started to pump your legs, and soon you were in sync with your daughter. Melissa just chuckled as she continues to push Ellie.

“Momma! you never swing with me!”

“That’s because I’m always the one pushing you while Mel takes videos,” you laughed. And when you looked over, Melissa was indeed filming you both swinging.

It was a bit before you got off the swing, and the three of you ended up finding a nice little patch of grass that you could settle on. Ellie sipped on her lemonade while you drank your coffee. Melissa pecked your cheek before pulling out her phone and holding it out in front of her. She snapped a picture of the three of you, cheeks kissed with the sun and high on life.

“That was a good day,” she smiles softly. “It was so nice seeing you just be free for a little bit.”

“We should do that again soon,” you tell her quietly as you sip on the wine in your glass.

The two of you go through her pictures, reminiscing on all of the good times. 

“Do you remember this one?” she asks you as she shows you a picture of you and Ellie dozing on the couch.

“Oh god,” you groan. “I was exhausted that day.”

You don’t know what hit you, but the kids wore you down that day. And after school, you collapsed onto the couch and pretty much refused to move. Melissa started on dinner for that night while Ellie curled up in your lap and started to drift off too.

You only woke up when your girlfriend snapped a picture of you, trying to be sneaky.

“Dammit,” she mumbled as the shutter sound rang out from her phone.

“Did you just take a picture of us?” you asked as you blinked awake. 

She shrugs. “You guys are just so cute. I can’t help it.”

Eventually, the two of you head into your bedroom, and you fall asleep against your girlfriend rather quickly. But sleep doesn’t come easily for Melissa. She’s reminiscing on the time that she’s spent with you. All of the good, the bad, and the ugly. She remembers the first time she told you that she loved you.

The two of you had a night to yourselves, your parents offering to watch Ellie so you could spend some quality time together.

“This was really nice,” you smiled at her as she drives through the city to pick up Ellie.

She nodded and brought your hand to her lips. “It’s always a nice time with you… I love spending time with you.”

“I do too,” you whispered as you leaned over the middle console to kiss her cheek.

She pulled up to a stop light and turned her head to kiss you gently. 

“Honey, why are you stopping? You never stop,” you ask.

“Because I want to look at you when I tell you, I would even say… that I love you.”

Your eyes went wide. “What?”

“I love you,” she said again, just as softly and just as genuine as the first time.

You couldn’t help but kiss her again. “I love you too,” you mumbled against her lips. 

She remembers the first time the two of you had made love. You were beyond nervous, claiming that you were in no shape to be seen naked after having Ellie- that it’s been too long since you’ve been with someone knew- your only body was Jared. She didn’t care- she worshipped you that night.

She remembers the night that she met you. She can still see her first glance at the two of you in her mind. You looked beyond stressed, Ellie was in meltdown mode, and yet she somehow still knew that the two of you would become two of the most significant people in her life.

She remembers all of the good, and all of the bad. How you get giddy at the sight of her. How her heart broke for you when you would cry over your failed marriage. The way that you celebrated the case against Jared. That time that you had your doubts in the relationship and tried to run away, only to come falling into her arms that night telling her that you were terrified of giving someone your heart again, only for it to be shattered- she promised you that she would never, ever do that to you. 

She reminisces about it all, and by the time that sleep takes her she’s decided that she is indeed going to ask you to marry her… so long as Ellie is okay with it. You, and your little girl, are worth everything to her.

TAGS: @schemmentis @thesapphictimelady @marvel210 @itisdoctortoyousir @morgana-larkin @thesamesweetie @doesthatsuggestanythingtoyou @marvels--slut @gwennybriggs @megamultifandomtrashposts @lemz378 @http-sam @melissaschemmentisbranzino @imaginesmultifandoms @sexysapphicshopowner @lilfartbox1 @maybe-a-humanbean @imlike-so-gaydude @sapphicxrat @a-queen-and-her-throne @sunsol-22 @notinmyvocab @melanielaufeyson

[allthingsfangirl101]

Extreme Proof – Steve Harrington

Tumblr Request by theamunsonsworld

My heart sank into my stomach when I looked up and saw Nancy Wheeler walking up to the ice cream counter. My stomach turned when I realized that it was Steve's turn at the cash register. I couldn't help but watch their interaction. They seemed. . . Perfect.

Steve and Nancy always seemed perfect. His smile was different. His laugh was different. His whole demeanor and attitude were different when he was around his ex-girlfriend. And I couldn't help but wonder why he settled for me.

I knew Steve and Nancy when they were dating. Well, I didn't know them know them. I grew up with them. I was in the same grade as Nancy and lived next to Steve and his parents. After they broke up, I could instantly tell that it had a bigger effect on Steve than it did on Nancy. She quickly moved on. He didn't.

Later that year, I started working at the ice cream shop within the new mall. I ended up being trained with Robin. Two months later, I trained Steve. It took him almost a week to recognize me as his neighbor. Once he made that connection, he put more of an effort into being nice to me. It wasn't until one night when the three of us got high while pretending to complete inventory that things finally escalated between us.

~ • ~

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Robin giggled. Her laughter made Steve and I laugh.

"Probably not," he shrugged.

"Definitely not," I corrected. "But who cares?!"

All three of us started laughing harder. All of a sudden, Robin jumped up and ran into the other room complaining about being hungry. I looked over at Steve, both of our laughter stopping. I cleared my throat and turned away from him, taking a puff. Without looking at him, I handed the blunt to him. He took it but didn't let go of my hand.

"I'm really sorry, Y/N," he whispered.

"For what?" I asked, forgetting why I wasn't looking at him.

"For forgetting you," he explained, his voice still soft.

"Steve," I sighed, finally pulling my hand out of his.

"Y/N," he quickly said, stopping me from walking away. "We spent our entire childhoods living right next to each other. I constantly looked over."

"You did?" I said, even though I had told myself not to respond.

"Every time I looked over at you, you guys always looked so happy," he said, maintaining perfect eye contact. "You ate dinner together. You watched movies together. Your dad helped you with your homework. You spent every weekend helping your dad with yard work and helping your mom with housework. I was so jealous."

"Why?"

"You guys did everything as a family," he said. "And all I wanted was to be a part of it."

"A part of it?" I repeated. "Why would you want to be a part of my. . ."

Steve leaned over and cut me off by pressing his lips to mine. My mind was too cloudy for me to make any sense of this. So, instead of making sense of it, I gave in. I started kissing him back and things slowly escalated. We probably would've gone the whole way if Robin hadn't literally fallen into the room.

~ • ~

After that night, I didn't work the weekend. Another teenager asked for extra hours and I gave up mine. Monday, when I finally went back to work, I walked in and instantly made eye contact with Steve. Before either one of us was forced to fill the awkward silence, I went to the back room and found my name tag. I turned around and was about to walk back out when I suddenly wasn't alone.

~ • ~

"Steve," I gasped. "I was just. . ."

He cut me off by grabbing my hands and pulling me closer. "I think we need to talk."

"We really. . ."

He cut me off again by pressing his lips to mine. I was clear-headed and still didn't hesitate to kiss him back. As our lips moved in sync, I let out a small chuckle. My laugh made Steve slowly break the kiss.

"What?" He asked with a small smirk on his face.

"I seem to see a pattern developing," I teased.

"And what pattern is that?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"From what I can remember from last Thursday," I smiled, "you seem to only kiss me when you want me to shut up."

"First of all," he started to list off, "there are worse ways to tell someone to shut up. And second, that's not the only reason I kissed you."

"Really?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Of course it's not," he whispered. "The truth is Y/N, I have feelings for you."

My heart jumped into my throat as Steve stared at me with soft eyes. "You do?" I whispered, not sure what else to say to him. "Since when?"

"Since we were kids," he said simply.

"All that time?" I stuttered. Steve smiled as he reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.

"All that time."

~ • ~

Things changed after that. Steve took me on lunch dates, rearranged his work schedule so we were on the same shift, and even came by the days he didn't work and I did. As good as everything was for us, I couldn't shake this feeling that something was hovering over us. It didn't take long for me to figure out what was hovering over us.

When it got too painful to watch Steve take Nancy's ice cream order, I turned around and instantly grabbed the broom from the storage closet. I kept my back to the counter as I swept the floor. When I was done, I instantly started cleaning tables.

"I thought I was on cleanup duty," Robin said. I didn't dare turn around. I didn't want to watch Steve make Nancy's ice cream sundae. I heard Robin sigh before she grabbed my hand. She took the rag and tossed it onto an empty booth before dragging me to the small lounge we had back behind the counter.

"Talk," she demanded.

"About what?"

"Don't play dumb," she sighed. She lowered her voice as she continued, "I know what you're thinking, Y/N. Steve is not in love with Nancy."

"It's just. . ."

"He's not," she cut me off. "Steve and Nancy happened a long time ago. He's so much happier now, Y/N. Now that he has you."

"I can't help but. . ."

"What?" She pushed me when I didn't continue.

"I can't let go of the feeling that Steve still has feelings for her," I confessed. I looked up and saw Steve and Nancy still talking at the counter. "See?"

Robin turned around and sighed when she saw my boyfriend talking to his ex-girlfriend. "I'm sure you're reading into it," she stuttered. "I mean. . ."

I didn't hear whatever excuse she was struggling to come up with. Instead, I went to the back freezer and started unloading random things. I jumped when two arms wrapped around me.

"You know I love you, Robin," I said, trying to tease, "but not like that."

"Ha ha," Steve laughed sarcastically as he spun me around. His smile faltered when he saw the look on my face. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," I cleared my throat. "Why wouldn't it be?"

I walked away and reached down, picking up a tub of our new flavor that's been selling fast. Steve walked over, gently grabbed it out of my hands, and placed it back on the shelf.

"What's going on, baby?" He asked, his voice lowering to a whisper.

"It's nothing," I stuttered, matching his tone.

"Robin told me."

My stomach dropped. I pulled my hands out of his and instantly wrapped my arms around myself.

"Baby," he sighed, gently grabbing my arms and pulling me closer. "We've talked about this. There is nothing between me and Nancy anymore."

He started to lean in to kiss me, but I gently stopped him. "We should get back to work," I said softly. I started walking out of the freezer, but he grabbed my wrist.

"No," he said firmly. "Y/N, we need to talk about this. We have talked about this. I know you think you aren't good enough for me, but, baby, you need to get passed those insecurities."

"Get passed them," I scoffed, stepping away from him. "Like it's so easy. Tell me, Steve, how easy was it for you to get past your insecurities with high school and being known as Steve "the Hair" Harrington? Not so easy, huh?"

"That's not fair," he sighed.

"You don't get it," I said, my voice breaking. "Nancy. . . She's. . . Nancy Wheeler is everything that I'm not."

"Except for one thing," Steve quickly interjected. "She isn't the girl I want to be with. She's not you, Y/N. And I want to be with you."

"You have to try to understand, Steve. This isn't easy for me. I mean. . . I've never had a serious boyfriend before and. . . Seeing you with her. . . It's not easy on me, okay? It just. . ."

"What?" He asked a little too harshly. "Try and explain it to me, Y/N."

"I can't," I whispered. "And if you can't understand it then. . ."

"Then what?" He sighed, clearly losing his patience with me.

"Then maybe we shouldn't be together."

Before he could agree with me or fight for me, I turned on my heels and ran. I ran out of the ice cream shop, out of the mall. When I got outside, I stopped for a brief second and let out a small scoff.

It was raining.

"Of course," I mumbled. I looked around, my eyes landing on the payphone. I ran through the rain toward the payphone. I grabbed some coins out of my pocket and called my brother.

"Speak!" He answered.

"Eddie," I said, my voice breaking.

"What happened?" His whole demeanor changed. "Y/N, what's wrong?"

"I think. . . I think Steve and I just broke up."

"What?!" I covered my mouth to muffle my sob as Eddie continued to angrily mumble. "I swear I am going to. . . It'll be the last thing. . . I'm gonna kill. . . Wait, what happened?"

"Nancy came into the shop today," I said, my voice shaky.

"Y/N," Eddie sighed. "Steve is not still in love with Nancy. It's all in your head."

"But you didn't see them together, Ed," I instantly defended myself.

"Look," he said gently, "I know you've had your issues with your self-confidence and with constantly comparing yourself to Nancy Wheeler, but, you gotta stop. It doesn't matter that Steve and Nancy used to have a thing. He's not with her anymore."

"He's with me," I cut him off. "I know. I know. But it's not like it was his choice."

"What are you talking about?"

"She broke up with him, Eddie," I said, my voice dropping.

"So?"

"That doesn't mean he stopped loving her."

"Y/N," he sighed. "I believe Steve when he says he doesn't love Nancy anymore. Why don't you?"

"Because why would he want me?" I yelled, finally letting out all my insecurities and frustrations. "I'm boring, Eddie. I don't have any friends. All I do is go to school, come home, do my homework, and go to bed a 9. Why would Steve "the Hair" Harrington fall for someone as boring as me? I'm not smart. I'm not funny. I'm not beautiful. I'm not enough for him, Eddie. Why does no one else understand this?!"

I slammed the phone back onto its receiver and turned around. Usually, Steve takes me home from work, but I had to get out of here. I saw the bus at the bus stop and instantly started running towards it in hopes of catching it.

One minute I was running through the rain. The next, I was falling. As I landed, I hit my head hard. I tried to think. I tried to sit up. I tried to move, but it was like I was frozen. Soon, the world started to spin. It wasn't long before the darkness took over. But right before it did, I thought I heard someone yell my name.

"Y/N?!"

* * * * *

I woke up a little while later being warmer than I was when I first fell asleep.

"I told you, Eddie," I heard my Uncle Wayne sigh, "she hit her head pretty hard. She may be out for a couple of more hours."

"She's awake," I heard Steve say with a small chuckle.

"How do you. . ." Eddie didn't finish his question when he turned around and saw me watching them. I was back in my room and the three of them were standing in the doorway.

I smiled when Eddie ran to my side. He was already sitting next to me and holding my hand by the time Uncle Wayne walked into my room.

"How are you feeling, kiddo?" He asked me.

"Okay," I shrugged. "I think. I mean. . . I'm a little confused."

"You slipped," Steve said, his voice softer than normal.

"What?" I stuttered.

"You were running toward the bus," Steve explained as he slowly walked into my room. "With the rain and the puddles, you slipped. I walked out of the mall right as you fell. I ran over to you, but you were barely conscious."

"Oh," I said under my breath. Suddenly, a thick tension fell between the two of us. If it wasn't for that tension, I would've laughed when Uncle Wayne hit Eddie's arm.

"We'll give you two some privacy," he said as he practically dragged Eddie out of my room. As soon as it was just us two, Steve sat on the edge of my bed.

"We need to talk about this," he said softly. "I can't stand the idea of you thinking you're not good enough for me."

"I just. . ."

"Please," he gently cut me off. "I need to say some things and I need you to hear them, okay? You are enough for me, Y/N. You are the perfect girl for me. I know you struggle with my and Nancy's friendship. If I could make it better for you, I would. The only way I can start to make it better is to tell you that I am completely, one hundred percent over Nancy Wheeler. I am also completely, one hundred percent into you. I don't know why you think you're not enough for me, but you are. You are enough, baby. No one is better for me. You make me extremely happy. You make it so I don't have to be fake. If I'm not happy, you know it. If I'm struggling, you know what to do to help me. I promise, Y/N, there is nothing between me and Nancy. Not anymore. Not ever again. I haven't had feelings for her for a long time. You make me happy. There is no one in this world I would rather be with than you."

With tears streaming down my cheeks, I grabbed his face and pressed my lips to his. He instantly wrapped his arms around me and kissed me back. Every insecurity, every worry, disappeared as we kissed. Steve broke the kiss, both of us breathing heavily.

"I don't just want you," he whispered. "I love you."

"I love you too," I said, my voice breaking. My smile fell as I continued, "I'm really sorry, Steve. I never should've. . . I shouldn't. . . I was wrong. I should've believed you when you kept telling me you were over her."

"It's okay," he soothed. "But next time, promise me that you'll talk to me if you ever feel something like that again. Please, baby. Promise me."

"I promise."

Steve smiled as I pulled him toward me and laid down. That night, I fell asleep with Steve's arms wrapped tightly around me.

[satansapostle6]

X

Josh Futturman has always had a crush on his beautiful coworker, the sharp, sexy scientist he thought he could only dream of talking to.

Warnings: Mature themes/language. Smut. Oral(F receiving). Fingering. Praise kink. Slight degradation. Slight choking.

(Minors DNI.)

Part Eight: Gift Exchange

“Are you sure you wanna go to my house? Not, like, a Taco Bell parking lot, or Guantanamo Bay, or something?” Josh asked hopefully for the umpteenth time even after they had arrived. “You really don’t have to meet my parents on the first date.”

“I’m sure, Josh,” Brynne laughed as they got out of the car. “Besides. I like meeting people’s parents. Especially when they’re nice.”

“You say that, until they start trying to convince you to move in.”

“If they show me your baby pictures, I’ll rent a U-Haul.”

“Oh, God,” Josh sighed, dreading the interaction as he unlocked the front door.

Josh opened the door for Brynne, as the two of them entered the house to find that the Futturmans were hosting a small get-together, which Josh had completely forgot about until now. Everyone was looking at them; Josh’s parents, the neighbors, and Josh’s Uncle Barry.

“Hey, Joshy!” Diane got up to greet him, as Gabe followed her. “Is this the famous Dr. Brynne?!”

“Mom!” Josh complained, mortified.

“Hi,” Brynne smiled, shaking both of their hands.

“Welcome, Brynne,” Gabe Futturman smiled warmly, “Nice to meet you! You’re always welcome at the Futturman house.”

“Thank you,” she smiled warmly. “It’s so nice to meet you. Josh has told me so much about you,” she teased him.

“All good, I hope?” Gabe chuckled.

“Yeah!” she lied.

“Oh, you’re so beautiful!” Diane exclaimed, “Could I get a picture of the two of you later?”

“Mom!” Josh gasped.

“Yeah, sure!” Brynne nodded.

“Come meet everyone, Brynne,” she led them over to the guests, “I’ve been telling them all about you!”

“I’m so sorry,” Josh whispered to her.

She just laughed as his parents led them into the living room.

“Everyone, this is Josh’s date, Dr. Brynne Johansson,” Gabe introduced her. “She’s the head of the research department at Kronish Labs.”

Josh was horrified at his parents’ lack of subtlety.

“Hi, happy holidays,” Brynne waved to everyone.

“Awooga,” Josh’s newly divorced uncle, Barry, stared at her.

Josh made a face, disgusted by the behavior.

“Just a warning about Uncle Barry,” he whispered, “You’re gonna want to avoid him right about… two whiskeys ago.”

“Duly noted,” Brynne murmured as they sat down, joining the party.

“Brynne, these are our neighbors, Melinda and Julius Seneca,” Gabe introduced the couple as they waved kindly. “And this is Josh’s uncle, my brother, Barry.”

“Well. How you doing?” Barry slurred as he jumped up to shake her hand.

“Uh…” Brynne looked to Josh for help as he mouthed a hasty apology. “I’m good,” she grimaced as she gave him her hand.

Josh watched in horror as his Uncle Barry took her hand, raising it up to his lips to kiss it, mouth still open.

“Oh,” she smiled, trying her hardest to be polite for Josh’s sake. “I take it you had a Philly cheesesteak for lunch?”

The bald man chuckled deeply, eyes still locked on Brynne.

“Barry,” Josh’s father sighed at his brother,

“What?” the drunk man asked defensively.

“Leave Josh’s girlfriend alone,” his mother chimed in.

“Mom! Oh my God!” Josh complained, at a loss for words.

“What?” she questioned.

“Come on, you two. Have a seat,” Gabe smiled invitingly.

Josh tried to cover his look of distress with an attentive smile.

“So, how did you and Josh meet?” the neighbor, Melinda Seneca, asked curiously.

“Oh, it’s not that interesting,” Josh assured her with a chuckle.

He looked to Brynne, gauging her expression off the look on her face to make sure that she was okay, which he had now made a habit of doing.

“We just met at work.”

“Yeah, so Brynne, I hear you’re a doctor?” Julius asked.

“A doctor of science, yes,” Brynne clarified.

“Really? At your age?” his ears practically perked up.

“Julius,” his wife laughed, embarrassed.

“No, it’s okay,” she gestured, “I got my PhD when I was twenty-three.”

“Wow. That’s impressive,” the man nodded. “You just be some kind of genius.”

“Not really,” Brynne laughed.

“No, she is,” Josh insisted with a grin, kindly resting his hand on her back, “She’s the head of the research department at Kronish Labs,” he said proudly.

“Wow,” Melinda smiled.

“Then what’s she doing with a janitor?” Barry asked from the corner with a mouth full.

Everyone slowly looked at him in horror, as Josh swallowed awkwardly.

“Barry!” Gabe said, aghast.

Josh’s parents looked at one another awkwardly, unsure of how to handle the situation. The Senecas seemed equally uncomfortable.

“You apologize to Josh right now!” his father yelled.

“No, Dad, it’s okay,” Josh avoided his gaze.

“No, it’s not. You don’t talk to family like that,” his father insisted.

Brynne looked at Josh sadly, seeing the way the comment affected him.

“Hey,” she whispered, taking his hand.

Josh looked up at her in surprise, touched by the gesture.

“We don’t have to stay down here if you don’t want to,” she whispered.

“Yeah,” Josh said quietly, clearing his throat as they stood. “Mom. Dad. We’re going upstairs.”

“Joshy,” his mother said as she stood, feeling sorry for him.

“It’s okay, Mom. We’ll come down in a little bit,” Josh told them, turning to the neighbors, “See you guys later.”

He took Brynne’s hand as the two of them walked up the stairs together, heading up to Josh’s room as he closed the door, sighing as he flopped onto his bed, sitting with his face in his hands.

“Hey. You okay?” Brynne asked, sitting beside him.

“Yeah,” he sighed, stopping to look at her, “I’m fine. I just… needed a break.”

“I guess we’re both having the same kinda night,” she pointed out, earning a small smile.

“Brynne?” Josh said finally.

“Yeah?”

He sat up straight, just staring right at her.

“I think you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Stop,” she chuckled, only half meaning it.

“No, really. I just had one of those… moments. You know?” he asked.

“What kind of moments?”

“I don’t know,” he thought, “Just one of those kind of things where you’re just feeling like shit, and then you stop, and you look at something… Like a butterfly outside, or a kid laughing, and you just… You realize the beauty in things. I saw it. In you.”

She smiled as she caressed his face with her thumb. “You’re very, very adorable,” she told him. “And I like you. More than I’ve ever liked anyone after knowing them only this long.”

“That… That makes me really happy,” he allowed himself a smile. “Are you happy?”

“Yeah, I think I am,” Brynne chuckled softly.

“Good. I like making people happy,” Josh nodded.

“I’ll make you happy,” she told him, resting a hand on his thigh as she leaned in, pausing for a moment.

Josh froze, looking her in the eye, too afraid to move. He thought he might spook her, like a deer in headlights. But her resolve seemed to be strengthening. Taking the bewildered expression on his face for an enthusiastic ‘yes’, she pressed a kiss to his lips, the two of them existing purely in the moment.

Brynne threw her arms around his neck, losing her hands in Josh’s hair as he sighed with contentment. He tentatively pulled her closer to him, gaining confidence as she allowed him to hold above her waist.

It was a beautiful kiss, exactly what Josh had imagined. The kiss was deep, but not inherently making out. It was sweet, but not one-dimensional, and charged, but not dirty. Josh knew it was the kind of kiss that only existed in books and movies. He felt as if this right here could’ve been his happily ever after.

Regretfully, he pulled away, looking her in the eyes just to double check that she was enjoying it.

“I like you so much,” he breathed, looking at her in the most precious manner.

He was adorable like a puppy, looking up at its master for approval. Brynne realized he truly did just look happy to be there.

“Joshy!”

Josh nearly jumped up at the interruption, his mom opening the door with a plate made up of charcuterie items.

“Mom! What the hell!” Josh exclaimed, as Brynne just sat there awkwardly, offering her a smile.

“I just came up to bring you guys some snacks,” Diane Futturman said, politely leaving the plate on Josh’s desk. “I thought you might be hungry, after that fancy party, you know how they always just serve finger food...”

“Jesus fucking Christ, Mom! What the fuck! Please knock next time!” Josh cried in embarrassment. “We’re trying to talk!”

Brynne studied him, trying to determine whether or not he was okay.

“Okay, okay, honey, I’m sorry,” she apologized, hurrying out of the room to leave them be.

Josh looked incredibly guilty after realizing what he’d done.

“Oh, God,” he sighed, returning to his sulking on the bed. “Fuck… I shouldn’t have reacted like that. Fuck!”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” Brynne agreed. “But you can just tell her that. I’m sure she’d understand.”

“I guess,” Josh murmured, not seeming comforted. “I just… Never thought I’d be one of those assholes that yells at their mom.”

“So why did you become one of those assholes?” Brynne Johansson asked helpfully.

“I don’t know, I just panicked,” he groaned. “I just… We were having such a nice moment, and I was afraid that ruined it. Like you thought me living with my parents was weird, and you never wanted to see me again.”

“I’d be a pretty shitty date if I did,” she pointed out. “I definitely am not the kind of person who’d be bothered by that.”

“No, I know you’re not,” Josh sighed. “I just… Fuck, I just wanted everything to be perfect.”

“I know,” she nodded, “But did you ever stop to think that maybe, at the moment, everything is?”

That was more than enough for Josh to allow himself to enjoy the rest of the night.

“Why don’t we start over?” Brynne suggested, trying to put him at ease.

“Yeah, starting over… That’s a good idea,” Josh nodded. “What, what do you wanna talk about?” he asked.

“Why don’t you give me a tour of your room?” she asked him, standing up to look around. “I’ve always wondered what it looks like.”

“Really?” Josh nearly shouted in excitement, quickly realizing he sounded like an excited eleven year-old boy as he cleared his throat. “…Really?”

“Yeah,” she nodded, slowly tracing the shelves with her finger. “What’s this stuff? It looks cool.”

This, naturally, launched into a ten minute spiel by Josh about all the different collectibles and other valuable items he owned. As he spoke, his eyes would light up and his mouth would curl upwards in an endearing smile. Brynne could see just how adorably passionate Josh was, and how truly excited he was to actually have someone who genuinely wanted to listen to what he had to say. It only made her want him more.

Brynne gladly allowed Josh to show her every nook and cranny of his room, and explain every item that inhabited it, taking it all in with pleasure. It must’ve been thirty minutes before he came to a conclusion, but she definitely didn’t mind. As Josh took a moment to rearrange the things displayed on his desk, Brynne observed the way he fearfully kept his eyes on the desk as he bent down, trying his best not to stare up at her.

Observing him, Brynne thought it would be best if she took the initiative herself.

“This is where I keep all the old stuff,” Jost explained as he organized the drawer under his desk.

“What’s that?” Brynne asked, easily maneuvering her zipper.

“What’s what?” Josh asked distractedly, still concentrated on his desk.

“What’s that? On the floor, behind you?” she asked him.

Josh frowned, not sure off the top of his head what she was referring to as he turned around, kneeling on the ground and looking at what had been behind him. He didn’t recognize the object at first.

“Wait, what is that?” he asked himself out loud, picking it up, “Is that…?”

He very slowly looked petrified with eyes wide like saucers when he saw her.

“Oh. It’s… It’s your dress,” he said in a panic, his heart beating faster than ever before.

He looked up at her from where he was kneeling on the floor, unable to speak.

“Is this okay?” she asked calmly.

“More than okay,” Josh looked her up and down hungrily, “Hachi…”

“If you say ‘machi’…” she warned.

“Sorry,” he apologized hastily, “Sorry. It’s just… you’re not wearing a bra. Or underwear,” he thought out loud.

Josh was stunned, to say the least. Not only was this beyond what he would’ve imagined, it was also like something right out of his imagination. A small part of him still thought he might be dreaming, or hallucinating from inhaling too many cleaning products at work.

“Wow,” he stared, barely able to process. “You… You’re a goddess,” he spoke softly as his eyes savored every inch of her body.

“When does the worship part come in?” she wondered with a grin.

“Right fucking now,” he gasped, desperately grabbing at her thighs.

His hands squeezed her thighs as he knelt in front of her, face buried between them as he silently wished for this to never end. Josh happily nipped at her thighs with eager, scattered kisses, sighing into her soft skin as he indulged in her. Even where he was, her skin smelled like the heaven he’d first experienced when she got into his car.

He pressed excited little kisses all over her skin, never tiring of it at all.

“I could die right now,” Josh sighed, voice breathy with ecstasy.

“Maybe we don’t have to die to know what paradise is like,” she remarked.

“Maybe not. But just in case, I know exactly what I want my last meal to be.”

Josh looked up at her, eyes wide with a strange innocence as he silently begged and pleaded with her to take control. Brynne sat down on the bed behind her, leaning back as she crossed one of her legs over the other. Before he could stop himself, Josh threw himself on the ground in front of her black high heels, which were still on her feet. This, he thought, made everything even better.

Josh whined impatiently as he sloppily placed his kisses all the way up her body, from her ankles, to her calves, to her thighs, to right above her navel. Everywhere but the one place he really wanted to be.

Observing him happily, Brynne softly brushed her hand over his hair, watching him look up at her as he moaned impatiently.

“Please, Brynne, please, please, please,” he begged her.

“What?” she asked somewhat teasingly. “What do you want?”

“Please, can I, please… I really wanna eat your pussy,” he pleaded, his voice thick with an irresistible whiny quality, “Can I, please?”

Brynne raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“That’s what you want?”

“Oh, more than anything!” he begged her with his hands resting on her thighs. “I’ll do anything! Please, Brynne, please… I wanna make you feel good.”

He looked like a starved man, hungry for anything at all.

“You really want to?” she asked him.

“Yes, please, I’ve never done this before,” he confided, “I mean… I’ve done this, but not that,” he explained himself.

“Go ahead,” Brynne murmured, amused as she played with his hair.

He couldn’t believe what was happening. He was really about to eat Brynne Johansson’s pussy. Beyond pleased with her approval, Josh excitedly parted her legs, kissing the sensitive skin on her inner thighs as he closed his eyes, savoring every moment of it. She sat back, watching him as he teased, caressing and squeezing her thick, pillowy thighs as his kisses slowly became more wet and more aggressive.

Finding it made things even easier, Josh rested her knees on his shoulders as he dove in, liking the feeling of her thighs closing in around his head in pleasure.

“Please,” Josh begged her, “Just fucking suffocate me.”

Brynne felt she could only oblige as he got tantalizingly close to where he needed to be, suckling on her lower stomach right before he pressed a hard kiss right against her clit, locating it with impressive ease. The feeling was surprising and tingly as he made contact with the bundle of nerves for the first time. Brynne roughly grabbed a handful of his brown hair, signaling to him that he’d done a good job as he groaned.

“That feels so nice, Josh,” she cooed, her voice alone enough to make him finish as he instinctively rutted into the bed.

“Fuck,” he gasped, looking her right in the eyes.

“You wanna do a good job for me?” she asked him.

“Yes, please,” he moaned, “Please… Let me be a good boy for you, I’ll do anything. Whatever you want,” nodded vigorously.

She closed her legs around him as he sloppily licked up and down the sensitive area, maximizing her pleasure as he began to gently tease the opening with his middle finger. Brynne sighed with relief as he finally closed his mouth around her clit again, sucking relentlessly as he stared up at her, his eyelids heavy with pleasure. He was about as pussy drunk as he could get.

She pulled him in by the hair, forcibly holding him there as he sucked on her clit with sleepy eyes.

“You’re such a good boy for me, Joshy,” she gasped in excitement.

Josh could’ve passed away from how lucky he felt. He’d never even been able to imagine himself in this position, or imagine her in this position, come to think of it.

“You’re a fucking goddess,” he hummed against her center. “I’d do anything for you. You’re a princess. Fuck, please come on my face,” he insisted.

“You’re so desperate for me, it’s so fucking hot.”

Brynne held him close to her as she threw her head back, gasping aloud as he inserted his finger. The way he dragged his finger downward as he entered her made her feel even more full. She laughed softly as he instinctively continued doing the same thing, dragging his fingers downward as he shamelessly ate her out.

“Fuck, you’re such a good boy,” she hissed.

“Yeah, that’s right, I’m your good boy!” he nodded, tongue flicking against her clit as he desperately played with her g-spot. “Fuck, you’re so fucking wet, I don’t deserve this! I’ll be your good boy! I’m your good little boy!”

Josh continued to stare up at her as he licked up and down in slow, torturous stripes, curling his fingers inside of her.

“You’re mine,” she sighed, beginning to choke him with her thighs.

“That’s right, I’m your good boy!” he whined into her. “You can do whatever you want to me! I’ll love it!” he promised.

“Such a good little boy, fuck,” she murmured, feeling herself getting close to a climax as her hand moved from his hair to around his throat, “You’re my good little slut.”

“Yes! Fuck! Yes,” Josh moaned loudly as he sucked, ecstatic at the feeling of her hand wrapped around his throat, “I’m your slut! I’m your little slut, all yours!”

Brynne tightened her grip on his throat, watching him as his eyes practically rolled to the back of his head.

“Fuck,” he lapped his tongue against her hungrily, “Come on my face! Please come on my face! Come all over my tongue!” he whined.

“You’re such a dirty little slut. Such a good little slut,” she breathed.

Slowly, she came to a finish, watching him grow excited as she grew even wetter.

“Good boy,” Brynne laughed, watching him in disbelief as he lapped it all up, enjoying every second of it.

He was high on her praise, forgetting the idea of shame entirely as he cleaned her up completely, not leaving a single drop. He looked up at her, eyes widened. He sighed exhaustedly, his eyes growing heavy as he was finally satisfied with himself.

“Did I do a good job?” Josh asked hopefully.

-

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

Part Six

Part Seven

Part Nine

[xomakara]

The Man Next Door

(re-posting from my old account seulrinnie-rinrin/xomakara-secondary)

SUMMARY | San is your brother’s friend and your next door neighbor. Despite the constant bickering, you can’t deny the attraction between you both.

PAIRING | San/Reader

GENRE | non-idol!San, smut with no plot, unprotected sex (wrap it up everyone!), fingering, vaginal sex

RATING | Mature

LENGTH | 4602 words

AUTHOR’S NOTE | Hi and hello. Enjoy~

"Can you stop that infernal noise?!" You pounded on your neighbor's door as you heard the sound of power tools once again. The banging went on and on. "Damn it, I've asked you a dozen times to turn down your shi..."

The door burst open, your angry glare landing on a grinning face. "You know, Y/N, I don't say shit about the noises you make when you're working on your remo..."

You cut him off before he could finish. "I want it quiet! And I mean really quiet!"

"Well, damn." He crossed his arms in front of himself and leaned against the doorframe, obviously amused. "And here I thought you were going to storm into my place and grab my tools."

You let out a groan and ran a hand through your hair. "You're so annoying San. If I wasn't so pissed off at that loud ass thing over there I would kick your fucking ass."

He burst out laughing. "See? You like me after all. What if I said no?"

"Can we not?" You let out a sigh. "Please, can I have some quiet?"

"Why? You have a guy over or something?" He raised an eyebrow, knowing you didn't get a date often enough for anything like that to be true.

"What's it to you, huh? Jealous?" Your mouth twitched up slightly as you tried to hold back a smile.

"Hell no, I'm just curious, is all." He held up his hands defensively. "So who is he? Your boyfriend?"

"Fuck off, San." You rolled your eyes. "But if you wanted to know, my parents are visiting me and I would appreciate it if you kept the noise to a minimum. Once my parents leave, then we can start our bickering like usual."

"Is that a promise?" His eyes glinted mischievously.

"Fine."

He gave you one last leer before turning around and closing the door behind him. You made your way back to your condo next door, your parents curiously giving you looks from the living room where they sat watching TV.

"Is everything alright with your neighbors?" Your mom inquired as she took a sip of her tea.

"Sorry about that. San is remodeling his place right now." You replied, your cheeks growing hot as your dad snorted softly.

"How romantic." Your mother commented wryly.

"Mom, please." You rolled your eyes and waved your hands at them. "He's like the most irritating person ever and-"

"You're still arguing with him, Y/N?" Your brother walked out of the bathroom. Seonghwa gave you a strange look before taking a seat next to your mom.

"Seonghwa, I swear I am going to kill that man." You mumbled angrily as you rubbed the bridge of your nose. "Of all people, how did your friend end up being my neighbor?"

"It's destiny." Your brother replied cheerfully, causing both of your parents to laugh. "It was meant to be. You two should go out together. There's nothing wrong with trying."

"Mom! Tell Seonghwa to stop it." You glared at your mother.

She giggled as she continued talking to Seonghwa. "Yes, love. Your sister and San should get together. How many times has he looked at her?"

"A lot." Seonghwa smiled as he watched your face grow redder.

You groaned as you got out of your chair and headed towards the kitchen. "I hate my life sometimes."

"Oh come on. If you hate the thought of going out with San, then why don't you just find an actual boyfriend?" Seonghwa pulled you back by the waistband of your pants. Your mouth fell open as your gaze landed on your brother. He gave you a smirk as he started pulling you back towards the couch. "I think Yeosang is single..."

You turned to your parents. "Mom, Dad. Please tell your precious son to stop hooking me up with his friends. It's getting old and I swear I will hit him if he tries this again."

Your parents chuckled as they shook their heads at you. They knew that your brother was just doing it because he loved you. He didn't care if you ended up liking them or not. All he cared about was that you found someone special to spend time with and make memories with.

They weren't stupid though. After all, you hadn't dated anyone seriously since breaking up with your first serious boyfriend. If he wanted you to settle down soon, then it only made sense that he'd try to set you up with a good looking guy with good family values. One that wouldn't cheat on you or be too needy. That's what your brother had always told you.

San.

Despite him irritating you to no end, he was a good guy. A kind-hearted person that would never intentionally hurt another person. You knew that because even when he was teasing you mercilessly, you couldn't help but see the soft side of him. It was impossible not to, especially when he was being sweet. And sure, you couldn't deny being insanely attracted to him either. His voice, those ridiculously perfect lips, his gorgeous eyes... Everything about him screamed sexy, and the way he treated you when you were alone with him made you weak in the knees.

"Y/N? Are you okay?" Seonghwa placed a gentle hand on your shoulder.

"Yeah. Just give me a second." You closed your eyes and took a deep breath. Opening your eyes again, you looked up at your brother. "Do you think it's a bad idea to ask him out?"

"Oh? Do you perhaps like San?" He raised an eyebrow, and then started to laugh as he saw the look of horror cross your face. "Kidding, Y/N! Of course you do. I don't think he'll mind the fact that you've been crushing on him since high school."

"I have not been crushing on him since high school!" You exclaimed defensively.

"Uh huh. Tell yourself that. Because I'm pretty sure he noticed." Seonghwa chuckled. "Do you have dreams about him too?"

"Stop it." You groaned.

"No really. I won't stop until you admit it." Seonghwa smirked.

"I'm going to punch you in the face when Mom and Dad aren't around." You grumbled, glaring at your brother.

"So...?" He grinned mischievously. "What are you going to do?"

You groaned as you got out of the couch. "Mom, Dad. Don't stop me when I throttle my own brother. Seriously."

They laughed as you stalked towards the door. Grabbing your phone off the counter, you slammed the door behind you and headed towards San's place next door. San was outside washing his car when you walked out. His head shot up when he saw you standing there, and you immediately felt your face heat up. God, it was hard not to blush every time he caught your eye. As much as you hated admitting it, San was incredibly attractive. But even more than his appearance, it was his personality that got you. His humor, his kindness, and the way he teased you constantly...

God, you wished you were less awkward around him. You spent so much time daydreaming about what it would be like to kiss him and spend the night in bed with him, that it had become difficult to function normally around him, hence the bickering with him over the years.

"You okay there, Y/N?" He spoke softly as he came closer to you.

You shook your head, a small smile on your lips. "It's nothing. Just Seonghwa being annoying as always."

"Ah, Seonghwa." San let out a laugh. "Trying to matchmake yet again?"

"Shut up." You muttered under your breath.

His smile grew wider as he moved in front of you. "Who was it this time? Jongho? Mingi?"

You shook your head. "Yeosang."

"Really?" He raised an eyebrow, surprised.

"Really, really." You sighed. "I told Seonghwa that I'll beat him up the next time he tries to butt into my love life. So that means I owe him a beating."

San cocked his head to the side as he studied you. "Hmm... A chance to hit Seonghwa for you. That does sound fun."

"Feel free to beat him up. He is your friend after all." You shrugged and shook your head. "Anyway, I came here for something else. Seonghwa won't leave me alone unless I ask you this...Do you...Uhm...Think it's a bad idea to ask you out?"

His smile grew bigger as he pulled you close to him. "Oh my god, I can't believe I have to hear you asking me this question already. We've been friends for years, what makes you think it's a bad idea?"

You frowned and bit your lip. "I just feel like it might cause problems between us... Ugh." You huffed and looked away from him. "Nevermind. Forget I asked."

"It's fine. Really." He placed a gentle finger under your chin and gently tilted your head upwards. "It's perfectly normal to want to ask a friend out. And I know you like to look at me when you think no one's around. Even if you pretend you don't, I know you do."

"I swear one of these days I'm going to beat you up instead of Seonghwa." You mumbled as you stared into his eyes.

He let out a laugh. "Are you going to start fighting everyone you meet now? It's cute. Kinda."

You blushed slightly and quickly looked away. "Stop flirting with me. You're making me lose focus."

"I wouldn't dream of it." He winked at you before releasing your chin and stepping away.

You crossed your arms and glared at him. "So... Will you go out with me?"

"Maybe." He smiled cheekily.

Your jaw dropped and you widen your eyes. Was that a yes? "W-what?!"

"Shh. Be patient." He winked at you. "Just wait for my answer."

"But-"

"One. More. Minute." He smiled. "And then you can say whatever you want."

"Seriously, you guys need to just make out already." An annoyed voice called from inside the house. "You two drive me crazy sometimes."

"Oh, dear God." You mumbled under your breath. "Seonghwa is coming out now."

"Hello, loverboy." Seonghwa laughed as he walked out of your condo. He patted San on the back. "I take it that my crazy, violent sister asked you out?"

"Yeah. She kinda did." San chuckled, reaching for your hand and intertwining your fingers with his.

"Well, I suppose it's better late than never." Seonghwa smirked. "Still though, it's about time you guys went out."

You rolled your eyes, a small smile on your face. Seonghwa wasn't exactly wrong. In fact, he was right. You had gone out with your friends and tried dating other people without success. But honestly, there was something missing in those relationships. Something that you felt only with San. Sure, he was a huge flirt, and he was usually joking around whenever he saw you. But it was more than that. You could always tell how genuinely happy he was to see you. How excited he was when he saw you smile. And his caring nature... He put you first in everything. Always putting you before himself. He always wanted to make sure you were safe and taken care of, before thinking of his own needs.

The fact that he was super hot didn't hurt either.

You squeezed San's fingers tightly, wanting to convey to him how much you cared about him. You also wanted to show him how happy you were that he agreed to go out with you. For some reason, you felt nervous that he might say no, despite the fact that you both knew you wanted each other. You knew he liked you. Hell, you liked him too. He was the only person who seemed to understand you, who knew how to push your buttons and get under your skin.

"Y/N, why are you squeezing my hand so tight?" San laughed.

"I'm not." You mumbled, slowly letting go of his hand.

Seonghwa burst out laughing. "Sure you are."

"Ha ha." You smirked. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date with this very handsome man." You turned to San and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"I'm going to show you how to properly kiss later." San laughed, his arms snaking around your waist.

You grinned and wrapped your arms around his neck. "Can't wait."

It was a Saturday afternoon and you were relaxing on the couch while watching a movie with San. You had to admit that you felt a bit nervous being wrapped in his arms, but you couldn't deny the butterflies flying around in your stomach every time he touched you.

"Are you feeling alright?" San asked you softly. You hummed in response and looked away. "Is there anything wrong?"

"Do you really want to know?" You rolled your eyes playfully. "It's like I've lost my mind or something."

"Losing your mind doesn't mean that you've lost your ability to speak." He lightly poked you in the nose.

"And yet you still manage to insult me, Choi San." You snorted. "Fine. I'm just freaking out."

"Why?" He asked, concerned.

"Because..." You sighed and ran your hands through your hair. "There are so many things I'd like to do with you...Things I've fantasized about doing since high school."

"Oh? What kind of things?" He smirked.

You bit your lip nervously. "Like...kissing you senseless. And sleeping in your arms all night. And waking up next to you... You get the picture."

He leaned in and pressed his forehead against yours. "Okay, okay. I'll make all of those things come true."

Your heart started racing as he pulled back and held your gaze. For a second, you thought he was going to kiss you, but he quickly moved away, giving you a smile instead. You couldn't help but frown a bit. Ever since you agreed to go with San, he had yet to really kiss you and you weren't sure why. Sure you, kissed. A peck here and there but it wasn't nearly enough. You longed for the moment when he finally did kiss you, fully and passionately. But so far, he had refrained from even trying. Maybe you were expecting too much. Perhaps you should just go with the flow. Let things happen naturally.

Right?

Later that night, you found yourself in bed, staring at the ceiling.

This is stupid. I should stop thinking about him and just sleep.

You scolded yourself. You've been doing it for years and nothing bad happened, so what's stopping you now?

Sleep. You need to sleep.

Closing your eyes, you tried to ignore the fact that San's face kept flashing before your eyes. You attempted to block out the memory of his soft lips touching yours, your hands running through his silky hair and the way his muscles flexed beneath your touch.

Focus. Sleep.

Nope.

You sat up in bed and grabbed your phone from your nightstand.

If I can't fall asleep, I may as well text him and try to talk to him. At least it will occupy my mind for a while. Right?

It only took you a couple of minutes to compose a message to San. You closed your phone and tossed it onto the bed next to you. Not two minutes later, your phone vibrated and you jumped at the unexpected sound. Picking up your phone, you read San's reply.

San: What did you want to talk about? Can't sleep? I'll hold your hand until you doze off.

A goofy grin spread across your face as you read his reply. Your heart skipped a beat at the sight of his name and it was difficult to suppress the butterflies fluttering in your stomach. Before you realized it, you were typing another message to him:

You: Hard to sleep when all I could think about is kissing you senseless. Tried to count sheep. Didn't work.

Minutes passed and you got a notification telling you that San replied. You hurriedly unlocked your phone and opened his message.

San: What else were you thinking about? Want to share them with me?

You reread his message and a wide smile appeared on your face. It only took you seconds to type it out.

You: Weird thoughts of you.

San's reply came almost instantly. Your cheeks flushed red as you stared at the screen.

San: What kind of thoughts? Sexy ones?

Before you knew it, you typed out another message.

You: Want to know what they were about?

San immediately replied. His response made you blush again. Your breathing picked up as you stared at your phone, waiting for his response.

San: Give me details. Now.

Slowly moving your thumbs, you typed out your reply.

You: Thoughts of your fingers running down my body. Fingers that would eventually find their way inside me.

A few minutes passed before you received a reply. You peeked at your phone anxiously, wondering if he was done responding. When the message alert popped up, you couldn't hide your surprise.

San: And in these thoughts of yours, did you like my fingers? Because I would love to use them...All over you.

Wow. Just wow. That sent chills down your spine and it took everything you had to remain focused on the topic at hand. Thinking about how good his fingers felt made you imagine how it would feel to be underneath him, feeling his strong arms wrap around you as he pinned you down. Oh god, you couldn't stop thinking about it. In fact, the thought alone sent shivers down your spine. You barely noticed when San responded again.

San: Yes. You liked them. More than you ever imagined possible. I'd like to make those thoughts become reality. One day. Soon. Please?

You bit your lip, before responding.

You: Kiss me first and then I'll let you do whatever you want.

San replied a minute later.

San: Whatever I want?

And you proceeded to write the next part.

You: Whatever you want. From the way you touch me to the way you taste me.

Several moments passed and San's reply came through. Your eyes widened as you read his words.

San: Why don't we make our fantasies come true? Tonight. Come over here. Now.

Letting out a small laugh, you pushed yourself up and headed towards his place. It took you but seconds to reach his condo, but you didn't waste any time once you arrived. You knocked on the door loudly, anxious to see him. A moment later, he opened the door and you felt your heart rate pick up. Without saying a word, you flung yourself into his arms, wrapping your legs around his waist and pressing your body firmly against his. He returned the hug fiercely and placed his hands gently on your hips, deepening the kiss.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he broke the kiss and rested his forehead against yours. You pulled away and looked into his eyes. The intense look in his eyes was making you feel slightly dizzy and nervous.

"Is this okay?" You whispered softly.

He brushed your lips with a thumb. "Never knew that you wanted me this bad."

You smiled and wrapped your arms around his neck. "I do. I've wanted you forever."

His hands snaked around your waist, pulling you closer to him as he kissed you again. You moaned in pleasure as he deepened the kiss. After several minutes, he pulled away from you and smiled. "Come in."

With one last lingering kiss, you reluctantly pulled away and entered his home. After closing the door and taking your shoes off, San pushed you gently against the wall, holding you firmly by the hips. His mouth hovered above yours as he watched you, trying to take in every little detail. Finally, he lowered his head and planted another soft kiss on your lips.

The kiss was brief, but it left you panting. You brought your hands up and pressed them against his chest, enjoying the gentle rhythm of his heartbeat. Slowly moving your hands up his back and around his neck, you pulled him closer to you.

"I want to do a lot more than just kiss tonight, Y/N." San said huskily.

"Yes." You whispered back. "I want to do more than just kiss too."

San's lips left yours and trailed down your jawline, leaving wet kisses along the way. Finally, he stopped at the base of your throat and slowly nipped your skin, causing you to moan softly. Leaning in, he kissed the spot where he bit you and you whimpered. "Don't make me wait anymore, Y/N."

You reached up and grabbed his shoulders, keeping him in place as he continued to tease you. Slowly licking up your neck, he lingered on your pulse point and teased you with feather light kisses. "San... Please..."

As if reading your mind, he gripped your chin tightly and lifted your head. His eyes met yours and you saw desire blazing behind them. Gently brushing his lips against yours, he lifted you up and carried you to the bedroom, leaving a trail of kisses behind him. Once in the bedroom, he kicked the door shut and began undressing you as soon as he set you down on the bed. Your shirt flew across the room and landed somewhere on the floor, followed by your shorts, bra and panties. His lips pressed against your skin, eliciting soft gasps of pleasure from you. You squirmed under his touch, desperately wanting more.

Suddenly, San pulled away and his hands grabbed the hem of his shirt, lifting it up. His eyes remained fixed on yours as he revealed his bare chest. With one swift motion, he pulled his shirt over his head and threw it aside. You could feel your breath catch in your throat as you gazed at his muscular torso. You reached out and caressed his abs lightly, enjoying the soft feel of his skin beneath your fingertips. You pulled at the waistband of his sweats and soon had them off of him, tossing them to the side.

You didn't have to ask twice; San immediately rolled over on top of you and pressed his lips against yours. He pinned your wrists above your head, covering your body with his own as he kissed you passionately. Moans escaped from your lips as his tongue slid past your lips, plunging into your mouth. After a few moments, he pulled away and stared at you with hooded eyes.

"Do you want me, Y/N?"

"Yes." You whispered softly.

"Tell me how badly you want me."

"Very badly."

San leaned forward and sucked on your bottom lip, gently biting it before letting it go. "Good girl." He said, kissing you again.

Again, his lips left yours and moved down your jawline, leaving wet kisses on the way. He trailed his kisses lower, stopping at the hollow of your throat. His hot breath fanned across your skin as he licked your skin. His fingers suddenly clasped your breasts, squeezing them roughly. Your nipples hardened under his touch and a low moan escaped your lips. You arched your back, pushing your breasts further into his hands, craving more.

San's hands dropped from your breasts and trailed down your sides, coming to rest on your hips. One hand trailed slowly down your thigh and pressed against your pussy, making you gasp. "You're wet, Y/N." He said in a husky voice. "You're so wet for me."

Unable to form coherent sentences, you simply nodded your head.

"Touch yourself." He commanded. Sitting up, you placed your palms on your thighs and used them to spread your legs wider. You glanced up at San and found him staring at you with lust filled eyes. "Touch yourself, baby."

With shaky hands, you tentatively touched yourself, moaning softly as you ran your fingers along your clit. You gasped at the sudden rush of pleasure that coursed through your body as you began to finger yourself. The pleasurable tingling quickly turned into a throbbing ache between your legs. When you felt the telltale sign of your orgasm approaching, you slipped two fingers inside yourself, stretching your pussy wider.

"Fuck, baby." San let out a moan as he watched you pleasure yourself. "Tell me how you're feeling."

"So fucking close." You managed to say. "Please, San... I need you inside me."

"I'm not gonna make you wait much longer." San groaned. His gaze softened as he gave you a slow smile. "But for now... Let me watch you finish yourself off."

Normally when you touched yourself, it never felt like this. But the combination of watching San's eyes glaze over with desire and having him watch you touch yourself, intensified the pleasure tenfold. The pulsating ache became even stronger and before long, you felt yourself begin to tense up.

"San...I can't hold back..." You moaned, pulling your hand away from your wet pussy. You felt a burst of heat rush through your body as your orgasm ripped through your body, sending wave after wave of pleasure coursing through your body. The force of your climax caused your knees to buckle and San instantly rolled over, supporting you with his arms. His gaze fell upon your flushed face, a content grin plastered on his face.

"That was beautiful, baby." San said, kissing your forehead. "God, I've been waiting all night to hear you call out my name."

"San, I need you now." You pleaded softly. "Please."

"Yeah, baby." He breathed heavily. "I know."

In an instant, he sunk into you, filling you completely. As soon as he did, your eyes fluttered closed and you held onto him tightly. The overwhelming sensation of him finally being inside you sent tremors of ecstasy coursing through your body. You cried out as he slowly thrust himself into you, setting a steady pace. Each movement was a reminder of how perfect this man was for you and how lucky you were to have him.

"Fuck, San..." You let out a moan.

He gently stroked your hair as you clung to him, murmuring loving words in your ear. Together, you rode the waves of pleasure as your bodies intertwined. Your hands grasped onto his back, relishing in the gentle contact of his skin. Every touch made your heart race faster and soon you were reaching the peak again. You moaned his name as your orgasm crashed over you, causing you to squeeze him tighter. As you neared your release, you felt San begin to shudder beneath you. You opened your eyes to find his gaze locked on yours.

Slowly, he buried his face into your neck and let out a loud groan. "Y/N... Fuck... Baby... I'm gonna cum."

You tighten your grip around him, urging him on as he poured everything he had into you. For a moment, nothing else existed but you and him as your bodies clung together, relishing in the blissful afterglow. After several moments, you released his back and lay there in silence, trying to catch your breath. As your breathing slowed, you felt San's weight shift slightly, rolling over onto his side. With a smile on your face, you turned your head and nestled into his warm embrace. He pulled you closer to him and placed a soft kiss on your temple.

After several moments, he spoke softly in your ear. "Did all your thoughts and fantasies come true, Y/N?"

You laughed quietly. "Every single one."

He grinned and kissed your cheek. "Mine too."

[strniohoeee]

Abscond

Pairing: Matt Sturniolo X Female Reader

Synopsis: Matt and Y/N had that cute innocent teenage love, but what happens when Y/N’s life is flipped upside down; and he’s the one that got away?🫂

Warnings⚠️: None….hope you enjoy this one tho…she cute or whateva🤭

Song for the imagine: The One That Got Away-Katy Perry

Never planned that one day

I’d be losing you

In another life

I would be your girl

“Is that the last box?” My mom asked me as I walked into the front door

“Yes finally, never realized how much stuff I had” I said walking up the stairs to my bedroom

“Well you were away for a good 5 years” she said laughing

“True, didn’t feel like I had so much stuff though” I said laughing

“I’ll let you unpack, and I’ll start some dinner” she said walking away

“Okay! I’ll be down in a few” I said walking up to my room

I stepped into my room placing the last box down….god this room needed some major upgrades. Can’t believe this is what my room looked like when I was 16…who did I think I was

I started to unpack some things, mainly my clothes and some trinkets.

“This room is such a disaster” I said looking around and laughing to myself. I can’t believe my mom left my room the same since I was 16….shes so weird.

I headed down to eat and chat with my mom after I cleaned up some more.

“Mom why’d you leave my room the same” I said laughing

“Well with your father getting full custody, and me knowing your father, and him not wanting you to come here, or me to go there I wanted to keep the memory of you from the last time I would see you” she said smiling

“Yeah dads a dick….Im so glad to be back home. I just missed Boston so much, Arizona is utter crap” I said laughing and drinking some water

“The east coast is better” she said laughing with me

“We have so much stuff to catch up on, and so many things to do” I said getting emotional

“I know. I can’t believe my babies 21 I can not drink with you” she said taking a sip of her wine

“Can’t wait for our drunk nights laughing and crying about random shit” I said

“Those are the best times” she said nodding her head

I had finished eating, and helped my mom clean up the kitchen

“Alright I’m going to head upstairs, and clean up some more, and unpack” I said kissing her on the cheek

“Okay baby, and if you need help let me know” she said drying her hands

“Will do” I said smiling at her before heading back upstairs

I got upstairs and started throwing all my stuff I didn’t want in trash bags for donation, putting more of my clothes away, and putting my new stuff out where my old things were.

I was pretty much done, and I decided to put my shoe container under my bed, I lifted up the skirt of the bed

“Oh god so much dust” I said making a grossed out face

I decided to get the broom and sweep underneath, I was sweeping when all of a sudden two Polaroids flew out from under my bed

“The fuck?” I said leaning down and picking them up, wiping the dust off of them

It was two Polaroids of Matt and I from when we were 16…. Holy shit…

My brows furrowed. When I moved to Arizona I swore I packed these, but I couldn’t find them after days of tearing my room apart

My dad never liked me talking about or speaking to boys, so I assumed he found them and threw them away. I held so much anger towards him for that….and the whole time they’ve been here.

I flipped them over and on the back of the left one it said

“Don’t forget about me I love you-Matt”, and on the right Polaroid it said “be us against the world, in another life I would make you stay”

All my memories started flooding back of Matt and I

Flashback

I was neighbors with the Sturniolos my whole life, but never spoke to the boys. I was always so scared, but one day when I was 13 my mom threw a party and invited them, the triplets and I immediately became friends.

We went to the same high school, and had most of the same classes together. They were the best things to have happened to me. By the time we were 16 I started to realize that I may have liked Matt, but was always so scared to tell him

One night I was just so fed up of never saying anything to him, so I got up and walked over to their house, texting Matt to meet me outside

“Hey Y/N are you alright?” He asked shutting the door behind him

“Yeah I’m good, I’ve just been thinking about some things” I said smiling at him

“Oh? Tell me” he said walking down the steps

“Walk with me?” I asked

“Yeah let’s go” he said following me

“So uh I’m not sure how to put this, and I’m not sure that you’ll feel the same way, but Matt I really like you” I said looking over at him

“Like, like me like me, or like me as a friend?” He said confused

“No Matt, like I like you. I have a huge crush on you” I said getting shy

“You do?” He said looking at me

“Matt YES” I said looking at him

“Y/N….I have the biggest crush on you too” he said smiling

“You do?” I asked confused

“Yes! Hasn't it been obvious?” He said

“No not really” I said laughing

“Well I do” he said pulling me in for a hug

From that moment Matt and I started dating, spending every second together. There was nothing but laughs, long conversations and overall innocent love you see in the movies.

“Hey Y/N, could I kiss you?” Matt asked me one night while we were watching a movie in my living room

“Yeah….ive never kissed anyone before though” I said getting nervous

“Me neither” he said also getting nervous

“Okay, so this could be a learning curve for us” I said laughing to break the awkwardness

“Uh yeah” he said getting shy

Matt had turned towards me, and leaned in kissing me first. It took me a few seconds to register what happened, and then finally I kissed back.

My stomach exploding with butterflies and fireworks…I never wanted to leave this moment. Matt had pulled away, and from that day on he couldn’t keep his lips off of me, but then again neither could I.

Everything was going good for 6 months, before my mom came home one day stressed and crying

“Mom? What’s going on” I said looking at her

“Baby….im so sorry” she said looking over at me and crying

“Mom what’s going on you’re scaring me” I said getting worried

“Y/N your dad won custody of you” she said looking down

“What? I’m 16. How does he magically get custody of me now?” I said getting upset

“I know baby trust me I tried to fight it, but he’s got a better rep than me” she said shaking her head

“What that’s not true! You’ve been here for me and where has he been? Gone nowhere to be seen…..I can’t believe this” I said shaking my head and letting out a sigh

“Trust me I know. I tried, but they don’t care they just look at his perfect record” she said wiping her eyes

“So what now?” I said scared of what she has to say next

“You have to go move with him” she said avoiding eye contact

“IN ARIZONA?? NO” I said raising my voice

“You don’t understand. We have no choice” she said

“This is so unfair. I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave you, and my friends and I don’t want to leave Matt” I said starting to cry

“I know you don’t, and I’m so sorry that you have to do this, but there’s no other choice” she said shaking her head

“When do I leave?” I asked

“Two weeks” she said looking down

“TWO WEEKS! I don’t even get to finish the school year, or properly say bye to my friends and boyfriend” I said shrieking

“Y/N…..this hurts me too okay” she said

“I can’t believe dad…” I said rolling my eyes

I waited till the very last day to tell Matt and his brothers. I couldn’t spend two weeks with them knowing that we’re all hurting while we’re hanging out. So I much rather just tell them the night before I’m leaving. I can’t be here to see their pain

The night before I was leaving I texted Matt asking if I could come over, and he said yes. I walked over, and he let me in

“What’s going on?” He said noticing my demeanor

“I have to tell you and your brothers something” I said sniffling

“Okay yeah we’re in Chris room” he said

We went up to Chris room, and they all looked concerned

“What’s going on? You’re freaking us out” Chris said

“I’m moving…..to Arizona….with my dad” I said avoiding eye contact

“WHAT?” They all screamed

“Yeah I know, he won custody, and now I have no choice” I said crying

“This is bullshit” Matt said

“Trust me Matt I know” I said shaking my head

“When do you leave?” Nick asked

“Tomorrow morning…my flights at 5AM” i said

“What? And you didn’t bother to tell us sooner” Matt said

“I know okay. I just couldn’t sit here and see us all hurting, so I rather rip the bandaid off now, and not have to see the hurt in your eyes” I said wiping my tears

“I can’t believe this” Matt said

“Will you visit?” Nick asked

“I have no clue, my dads like a drill sergeant….he hates my mom, and he will probably hate me too. I’d be lucky if he lets me visit for the holidays” I said

“This is fucked” Chris said

“Very….” I said

“Well instead of being sad let’s try to make these next few hours memorable for you” Nick said smiling

That night we watched movies, and shows and laughed and ate snacks and took pictures and videos to always have one another

“Y/N let’s take Polaroids, so you’ll never forget me in Arizona” Matt said

“I could never forget you” I said looking at him

He pulled me in and snapped two Polaroids of us, writing on the back, and handing it to me

“I love you so much” he said pulling me in for a hug and kiss

“I love you too Matt” I said smiling at him

Later on that night I went back home and packed up the last of my things that I would be carrying with me. I thought I put the Polaroids in my bookbag, but what actually happened was I didn’t close the pocket, and they fell out when I put my bag on causing them to fall under my bed…..

It was 3:00am and my mom was in the car waiting for me. I looked at my room one last time

“I guess I’ll be back one day” I said shutting the light off and closing my door

I walked outside to see Matt and his family talking to my mom

“We’re going to miss you so much” Mary Lou said pulling me in for a hug

“I’m going to miss you guys too” I said sniffling

I hugged all of them, and waited to hug Matt last

“Matt I love you so much, and never forget about me” I said letting a tear slip

“I could never” he said letting a tear slip as well

I pulled him in for a hug, and kissed him

“I guess I’ll see you when I see you” I said to them

“Bye Y/N” they said

As I got in the front seat I waved

“Love yall” I said before getting in

My mom started to drive off as I stared into the side view mirror…..my whole life just gone down the drain….and now I have to start a new life in Arizona with my dad

We had gotten to the airport, and this was my first time flying alone, so I was nervous

“You’re going to be okay baby, I love you and let me know when you landed okay? Call me every single day please” She said letting tears fall

“Don’t cry mom” I said pulling her in for a hug

“How can I not? You’re leaving me” she said

“I’ll be okay, I’ll call you everyday and I love you too” I said before getting out the car

“Love you baby” she said and I shut the door walking to my new life

My dad was an absolute asshole. All we did was fight and yell and bicker. He never let me see my mom. I never went back to Boston, and at 17 when I graduated he put me in a private college. I could’ve left, but by that point I had so much fear in my heart because of him.

I had gotten two jobs so I could save and move out, and go back to Boston. I only did three years of college before dropping out. My dad was fuming, but I was 21, and I was ready to see my mother again

I hadn’t really kept up with the triplets because I didn’t want to endure that pain, but about a year ago I saw they were really famous on youtube. My tik tok page has become full of videos of these people I used to be so close with, and my ex Matt.

It was so crazy to see, but yet again we never spoke to each other for these 5 years.

Flashback Over

“God this is crazy” I said examining these Polaroids of us

I went downstairs to my mom

“Hey mom look what i found” I said shaking her the Polaroids

“Holy shit, you and Matt” she said looking at the pictures

“So crazy how fast 5 years can change everything” I said

“Man yall had such cute innocent love” she said smiling at the pictures

“Yeah I never talked to them again after i left” I said

“Yeah I know they’re mom always asked about you, you know they're super famous on social media now. They were just on tour last I spoke to their mom” my mom said

“Yeah I’ve seen it on my social media pages….its so crazy” I said

“You know Matt’s super cute now” she said winking at me

“Mommmm stop” I said laughing

“I’m just saying, you know You should see if they’re home I know that they live half in LA and half here because of their job” she said

“Mom I doubt they’d remember me or care because it’s been so long” I said rolling my eyes

“You act like you’ve been gone for 20 years, they will remember you” she said laughing

“I don’t know. I feel like we grew apart at this point, so would they really care to see me?” I said

“I’m sure Mary Lou always said they asked about you! Go on” she said shooing me

“Okay” I said giving up

I decided to walk over to the Sturniolos house, knocking and getting super nervous about who would open the door.

I heard walking, and suddenly the door was opening up

“Hi” I heard Mary Lou say as she opened the door

“Hi Mary” I said smiling at her, she looked at me a little confused before suddenly her eyes got wide

“Y/N??” She said shocked

“Yes!” I said smiling at her

“Oh my god! Look at you! You’re all grown up. My god it’s been so long” she said pulling me in for a hug

“I know…. 5 years and 6 days to be exact” I said pulling away from the hug

“Please come in” she said waving me in

We walked to the kitchen where I sat at the island

“Jimmy! Come look who’s here” she yelled

Suddenly Jimmy came in from upstairs

“Holy shit!” He said smiling at me and pulling me in for a hug

“When did you get back?” He asked

“About a few hours ago actually” I said

“Man the boys prayed every day you’d come and visit” he said

“Yeah I know….my dads not the nicest” I said shaking my head

“I figured it was him” Mary Lou said

“Are you back for good?” Jimmy asked

“Yes! I’m back for good” I said smiling

“Oh wait till the boys hear about this” she said

“It’s so insane how fast 5 years go by” Jimmy said

“I know I was saying the same thing earlier….i'm just so glad to be back home” I said

“We are too! Man this is amazing” Jimmy said

“I should call the boys” Mary said, I assumed she meant FaceTime, and that they were back in LA

“They’ll be so happy to see you” she said

I smiled at her, and right before she went to call one of them, the front door opened

I heard three deeps voices laughing and talking

“Oh well never mind they’re home” she said

“We’re in the kitchen” Jimmy yelled out

Chris walked in first with Nick behind him, and then Matt behind Nick

“What the fuck” Chris said looking at me as he stopped in his tracks

“Is this real life?” Nick said looking at me

“Y/N?” Matt said looking at me with a shocked expression

“Yeah” I said smiling at them

The End

Alright guys I hope you liked this one, and lmk your opinions and if I should make a part 2 TEHEHE🤭🤭 love yall so very much, and always thank you for the support and love 🥹🖤🖤

-J💅🏽

[lyrenminth]

Over the rain

Rainy days in Oregon were common during October, and you loved it when you had your big cozy boyfriend in bed, spooning you from behind.

But that wasnt the case today. Justin was mad at you, and you were mad at him. Everything started when you offered and interview in a friend podcast and he got mad because your started talking about your relationship with him. You did not say anything controversial really, it was the contrary but since he was extremely private he got upset, and you were fed up with that.

"Are you really giving the cold shoulder because I said good things about our marriage in a podcast?" you asked, standing in front of him. He was red from anger and did not want to look at you. Justin's anger was silent. "You know it is not for that reason" he argued back, voice low. "I don't want people noses in my marriage"

"Really? What's wrong with sharing that I have a happy marriage?" you snapped, raising your voice. "If this is about your privacy, don't worry but as the wife in the relationship I have the right to share whatever I want"

"I don't want you talking about me in those podcasts" he replied, coldly.

You laughed, incredulous. "Ok, another thing?" he rolled his eyes at your sarcasm. "You can't tell me what I get to say or not" you argued, feeling sick.

"We decided to keep things private!" he said, raising a little bit his voice, something uncommon.

"And they are Justin! Nobody knows a thing about our relationship besides that we are married. It was a two minutes conversation and you are making me feel awful about it" you said, your voice sounding watery "If you don't want to talk about the marriage, why did you marry me?"

"You know is not about you" you shook your head at his words, and went upstairs "I'm not going to apologize for saying that I have a great and supportive husband, that's nuts. I need time off"

You went to the bedroom to cry alone, because the feeling was choking you. You understood he was a private person, you understood you had an agreement, but why did it hurt so much? You wanted to share your hapiness and he didn't like it. After forty minutes, you wanted to talk to someone. You changed your clothes and put on a raincoat, the weather was gloomy but it was safe to walk outside. Your mom's house was twenty minutes away, and a walk could help to clear your mind.

Happy with your decision, you went out. Justin was in the living room, catching tape on mute. When he saw your fit he raised his eyebrows, stealing a glance at the window, the cloud were gray and heavy. "Were are you going?"

"To talk about our marriage with the neighbor" you said, snappy. You felt bad instantly but couldn't backtrack.

"There is a storming coming, you shouldn't be out" he ignore your snarky comment.

You grabbed an umbrella and the keys. "It is ok, Justin" you assured him. "I will call you"

You leave the house, and during the first ten minutes the weather was ok, then it became a fucking storm.

*******************************************************************

Justin was worried. Very worried. He couldn't watch the tape or pay attention to anything that wasn't the storm outside. The wind was harsh and so the rain, he realized you didn't took the car and he got a little scared. He was a asshole for arguing with you over the podcast. It wasn't a popular podcast, and it was true you only talked about the marriage like four minutes but he got mad anyway. He remebered you sad face when you went upstairs, you were heartbroken.

He rubbed his eyebrow and called you again. Nothing. There must be something with the signals. Maybe you were at your mom's house, you must. He called your mom, then your dad, nobody answered. The desesperation he was feeling wasn't normal. Why he didn't stop you?

He didn't want to think in the worst scenario. You were to precious to him, he didn't want to lose you...to hurt you.

Tha rain was pouring so heavily he couldn't see anything two meters ahead. He but a hoodie on, and grabbed an umbrella and the truck keys. He hold his breath all the way to your mom's house, in the short walk from the car to the door he got wet. He rang the bell, several times until your mom, opened the door, surprised to see him

"Hi, is Y/N here?" he asked, anxious.

"Yes, get inside, I'm going to bring you something to dry yourself" she said. Justin went to the living room, and you were there. Sitting down, with a blanket over your legs, a mug between your hands, and your beutiful eyes looking at the T.V, they were a little bit red. You were crying. Your hair was darker as if wet. When he cleared his throat, your gaze fell on him, your eyes widening with surprise.

"Justin? What are you doing here?" you almost dropped your mug at the sight of you tall husband looking all tousled and damp.

"I want to see you're fine" he said.

"But...there is a storm outside. Did you drive here?" you asked, incredulous.

"Yes, I did" your mom appeared with sandals and a blanket for Justin who thank her politely.

"I'm going to leave you talk" she said, with a warm smile.

Your mom knew you and Justin discussed, but you never told her the reason. It was a private bussiness.

You were frozen in your place as he approached you.

"I'm sorry" he said. You held your breath. "I shouldn't have gotten angry. You-you can share your hapiness over our marriage, even though you aren't happy now" he sounded so sincere and regretful.

"It's ok" you eyes started getting watery. How much you loved this man was beyond explanation. "I'm not angry anymore" He sat next to you, and you put the mug over the tiny table near the couch. "You are my husband, I choose you" he closed his eyes, feeling the words hit.

"Thank you" he said, opening his green eyes, showing a glimpse of vulnerability he didn't show often. You hugged him, an without much words, everything was fine again. Because the things between Justin and you were simple, honest, raw.

[zerobaseonefics]

enchanted ㅡ ricky

ricky x gn!reader

genre : fluff, fake dating.

warnings : none <3 shout out to my 🐇 anon and to @mins-fins cuz he seemed excited to read it yesterday 🤭

"ricky, stand up-"

"i said i would beg! i'm begging"

you sighed heavily. growing up as ricky neighbor, you two ended up being great friends. your parents knew each other so your families often did thing together, such as going to holidays, picnics and these kind of things. it is know to everybody that ricky's family was wealthy, and yours was just as much as your parents became business partners over the year.

"come on, i don't wanna go with them, and you have no one to take you there. if we go together, our parents will let us be!"

rich people problem, i guess... once a year, your parents' business partners organized a ball for their kids. it was not just a little dance for shit and giggles, no, it was just so the kids can meet together, fall in love and make their life with someone from a wealthy family. ricky and you grew up going there every year. when you were younger, your parents never pressured you to have a partner to go there. however, around a certain age, you better have one if you don't want your parents to be the laughing stock of town. ricky and you decided years ago to never go together, otherwise your parents would imagine things and think you're a couple. at that time, you didn't have those hidden feelings you have for each other like you have today.

and now, you guys were eighteen, going nineteen, and you had to take someone with you. the problem is, you were absolutly bitchless, and ricky's parent were forcing him to go with someone he couldn't stand.

"ricky, i would've gone with you if our parents weren't friends. you know damn well they won't stop teasing us with it and think we're in love or something."

"and? is it worse than you not pulling and me being forced to go with that goblin??"

"don't call people goblins, i already told you that's mean!" you choked, hitting his arm

"well i don't care!" ricky whined before letting his head fall on the kitchen table you guys were sitting at.

you were thinking about it, and yes, your parents thinking ricky and you are a thing wasn't a problem for you. at least, it was not worse than seeing someone else at ricky's arm. but you knew you will not be able to stand your parents thinking you guys are in love when you were convinced ricky didn't like you back.

suddenly, ricky got up.

"what if we tell our parents that we are dating, and then we break up after the ball so they leave us alone."

"i mean...that could work."

"so you're fine with it?"

the blonde looked at you with eyes full of hope, waiting for you to say yes. you let yourself a few seconds to think, before sighing.

"screw it, i guess that's a nice plan."

a huge smile on his face, ricky took your hand and dragged you with him to the door.

"mom, i'm taking y/n on a date, i should be back around 6!"

"what?" you said in a choked voice to make sure she couldn't hear it.

"you're dating y/n??" she suddenly appeared, her head peeking out of her room.

"i didn't know how to tell you, but yes, we've been dating for a few weeks now", ricky said confidently as you were turning red.

"oh my god! is it why you didn't want to go with my colleague's daughter?"

she started rambling about how happy she was about the news, and ricky had to cut her off gently for you two to go. he opened the door, not letting go of your hand.

"okay, so what do we do now..."

"we're going on a fake date."

"is it really necessary? our parents are not with us, we don't have to go that far."

"don't worry about that, it's to imbue us with the couple vibes."

and ricky took you on a date. once, and twice, and a third time again before the ball. and it never felt fake, not even once. or maybe you were just delusional? at least, that's what you were thinking, not knowing ricky was having the time of his life pretending to be your lover.

the night of the ball, ricky came to pick you up. you were surprised when you saw his cheeks turn crimson red when he saw you all done-up. it wasn't that hot tonight, why was he like this? (well you're a dense bitch) (i'm sorry) (let me go back to my serious narrator persona wait)

the feeling of taking you to the dance was bittersweet for ricky. you two have planned to fake your 'break up' to your parents after the ball. it means it was the last time he could take your hand, pass his arm around your waist or your shoulder to take you closer to him, look at him with obvious love in his eyes with the excuse of faking it so you won't be unconfortable.

everyone joked about how they knew you two will end up together since you were young, and they congratuled you on finally being a couple. but both of you knew the truth, and it's why it didn't please you as much as they thought it would.

the evening was going smoothly as you both tried to joke around and enjoy the moment.

now, the time has come. the most awaited moment by the people your age that were going to the ball was slowdancing, as cliche as it sounds. you watched the other kids as they got up with excitement with their partner to dance. the song playing on background was enchanted by taylor swift. tugging on a piece of your clothing, ricky tried to have your attention. you turned to face him.

"you're comfortable with doing this? we're not obliged to do it if you don't want to, you seem hesitant about it." fervently, you shook your head to deny his allegations.

"no no! it be weird if we didn't do it, right? and i'm comfortable, since it's you."

ricky tried to restrain his smile as he got up from the seat you two were on. he gave you his hand, waiting for you to take it in yours.

"can i have this dance?"

you laughed at his act.

"i would love to", you admitted, putting your hand in his. he took it to his lips to plant a kiss on it, still in his gentleman act.

and here you were, on the dance floor between all those stupid rich kids, your arms around ricky's neck as he was holding your waist, slowdancing. the blonde haired boy bent a bit to whisper in your ear, pulling you closer.

"can you believe we're breaking up tomorrow?" he mumbled in a teasing tone, making sure no one but you could hear him.

"don't bring this up, i'm your lover for at least... three more hours", you answered in the same volume.

"you know, now that i think about it, our parents are probably gonna freak out when we tell them we broke up."

"that's true, and we're gonna have to tell everybody here that we're not together anymore."

"seems tiring."

you simply nod, and ricky straightened himself up to look at your eyes. there was something special about the way he looked at you, something you couldn't explain. little did you know, that same thing was shining the same in your eyes, and ricky started to think that maybe his feelings were mutual.

"you're making me feel so weird right now." ricky confessed, which made you frown. you hummed in confusion, waiting for him to continue.

"do we really have to break up?"

"i mean, we're not gonna pretend forever... right?"

"it felt right to me. how was it for you?"

"how was what?"

"me being your boyfriend."

it seemed like a joke to you at first, but the more you observed his face, there was not even a pint of playfulness. he was dead serious. you didn't answer because you were taken aback, so ricky continued.

"i loved being your boyfriend, even if it was all an act. i might be wrong, but i feel like it wasn't that bad for you either. please let me take you on a real date at least once and if you don't like it, let's just forget about it."

"i don't think i can forget about it."

was is it a rejection? did he ruin everything by confessing? ricky let his head down in shame, cold sweat running down his back. suddenly, he felt your hand on his cheek, and he looked back up to you. you quickly kissed his lips.

"i would love to date you for real this time", you said, as enchanted was coming to an end. he beamed befofe leaning back to yours lips, and he was now the one kissing you.

[wordsaresimple-imnot]

Pen pal's - Bill Guarnere x F!Reader

Summary: Bill's childhood friend and neighbor writes him a letter after Henry is killed. They keep writing each other throughout the war, but following the events after Bastogne Bill sends a final letter that might end their future before it can really start.

Warnings: she/her pronouns, reader goes by childhood nickname, angst (mentions of war & healing from injuries), does have happy ending.

A/N: I have the biggest respect for the real life heroes of WWII (and all other wars, past & current), this work & all other works is based on the actor(s) and character(s) portrayed in the Band of Brothers series.

A/N pt 2: Full transparency, this one sorta got away from me but I let my creative muse take over and here we are. I was sitting on this idea for a minute and honestly, I love how it turned out. Hopefully y'all like it too! Comments, likes, and reblogs please!! Thank you!

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It was two weeks after Henry passed when a letter arrived for Bill. He didn't recognize the handwriting, but he knew the return address by heart. It was the house right next door to his childhood home. His suspicions of who it was from was confirmed once he started reading it.

Billy, I've spent the last week trying to figure out something comforting and eloquent to say but all I can come up with is; I'm so sorry about Henry. I can't imagine how you feel. I can't do much to make you feel better over there but I promise to help your mom and sisters with anything they need. You all have been a second family to me my whole life. I pray you stay safe and come home soon. Pip. P.S. I found this picture in one of my old journals and it made me smile. I hope it can do the same for you.

Bill flipped over the photograph that had been included and did, in fact, smile. It was three young kids laughing at the camera, completely covered in mud. He was pulled from the memory of that day when a hand grabbed the picture away from him.

"Henry, Billy, and me." Luz read the back of the picture out loud before flipping it around. "Who's the girl?"

"None of your business." Bill grabbed the picture back and stuffed it in his breast pocket, sending Luz a glare.

Not being fazed at all, Luz leaned over and skimmed at the letter Bill was still holding. "Billy? Who's Pip? Same girl from the picture?"

"Who made you the new Nixon around here? Fuck off, will ya."

"What's got Gonorrhea's in a twist?" Toye asked as he joined the two of them.

"Got some letter and picture from a girl." Luz wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"What, girl's not your type anymore?" Toye smirked at Bill.

"Both of you's, shut the fuck up. It's a neighbor I grew up with. She's like family."

"She cute?" Toye asked at the same time Luz said, "Is she single?"

"She's nothing to you two's or I'll break your jaws." With a final glare Bill folded up his letter and walked away. Toye and Luz smirked at each other, knowing this wouldn't be the last time they pissed him off about this mystery girl.

~~

Pip dropped the remaining pieces of mail on the ground and rushed to her room, eager to read the letter addressed to her in messy handwriting. She knew she was smiling like an idiot as she read it, but she didn't care.

Pip, I appreciate you reaching out and taking care of ma and the girls for me. I couldn't ask for anyone better to watch over them. You're picture did make me smile, something I haven't done much of lately. I can still hear our ma's chewing us out over ruining your dress. Said Henry and I were keeping you from being a 'proper lady'. And if I remember correctly your response was you'd be one "when pigs fly". Thanks for reminding me of happy times. Don't be a stranger. Billy.

Two weeks later, another letter arrived.

Pip, I saw a field with some horses in it today and I thought of you. How you always wanted to live just outside the city with some land to have a horse and lots of dogs. I hope you get to have that one day. Maybe I'll come by and visit when you do. Billy

The next day as Pip made to leave the house to drop her response off at the post office, she ran into her mother.

"Where you off to in such a hurry?" The gleam in her eye and glance down at the letter in Pip's hand made it obvious she already knew the answer. Pip decide to play along since she was an only child and her mother needed to fuss over someone now and again.

"Just sending a letter back to Bill." She'd stopped calling him Billy out loud to people, but that's who he'd always be to her.

"Yes, I saw he'd send another letter. His poor mother doesn't even get back to back responses that quick. Lucky girl." She mused, smiling at the blush forming on Pip's cheeks.

"It's not like that, we're just old friends."

"Of course. Well, check with his mother and see if they have any mail to send out along with yours." Pip nodded, gave her mother a kiss on the cheek and practically sprinted out the houses before any more questions or observations could be made.

~~

Bill couldn't figure out why he was so anxious after sending that second letter to Pip. She was just his neighbor, a life long family friend, like a sister... Well, not entirely like a sister. Henry always saw her like a sister, taking her under his wing and becoming the big brother she didn't have. His sisters saw her as an older sister, someone to play dress-up with and get boy advise from. But him...he'd never really seen her as that. She was family, absolutely. But not his sister.

When her response came, he wasn't sure if his anxiety got worse or better as he ripped it open.

Billy, I would have loved to have seen that field (although, maybe not during war time). I'm surprised you remember that, I think we were seven or eight when I came up with that idea. I never told you but I always imagined you'd live right next door to me and we'd see each other everyday, like we always did before this war. No matter where I end up, I'd still like you to visit. Pip

"Another letter from your 'family friend'?" Toye jumped down into the foxhole next to Bill.

"Why you sayin' it like that? She is a family friend. And what do you care who I get letters from?" Bill grumbled, folding his letter up and stuffing it inside his jacket.

"Luz said her name was, Pip. What's that about?" Toye asked, completely ignoring Bill's grumpy mood and response.

Bill gives a loud sigh, knowing that Toye isn't going to drop it and by extension neither will Luz until they've discovered everything to do with her.

"It's a nickname. Short for Pipsqueak. She was always this tiny little following me and Henry around back home."

"Sounds annoying." Toye says offhandedly, looking at his companion out the side of his eye. He see's a small smile form on Bill's face.

"At first, I guess. But honestly, it became so normal I never really thought about not including her in things." There's a long stretch of silence as they keep watch, then Bill speaks again. "She's family, but she's not my sister. Never has been. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, it does." Toye lights up a cigarette, passing one over to Bill. "Should tell her that someday." Bill doesn't respond, just lights up the cigarette and pulls a long drag from it.

~~

The weeks and months that follow are filled with countless letters sent back and forth. There's no declarations of love or detailed accounts of the war, just two people sharing memories or tidbits about their days.

Pip would fill in the blanks about what was going on with his sister's love lives; who was a bum, who seemed nice, who looked weird. Once she gave him the play by play, as she could remember it, of a dinner at his house with the whole family, her, her mother, and a new beau his sister Marie was dating. His name was Paul, but said to call him Paulie. Pip and his two younger sisters, Bianca and Isabella, were on the verge of giggles all night because his voice sounded so much like a parrot and they wanted to ask him if he wanted a cracker. Then there was the shameful cooking lesson their mom's tried to have with Pip, that resulted in five burned pies.

Bill would tell her about the country side they'd go through and different animals he would encounter. He'd also tell her about the guys and stupid shenanigans they'd get up to. How getting shot in the ass started to become an Easy Company right of passage. When he meets Babe, he tells her about another Philly kid that grew up not far from them and how he's alright. He tells her about a game of darts he played with Babe as his partner, against a George Luz and Buck Compton, saying how they lost but he knows if she'd been his partner they would have won because they always make a great team.

They share memories from their childhood, some including Henry some with just the two of them. When she comes across them, Pip sends old pictures of them for him to have. One he becomes especially fond of is them at 16; they're at the local fair, he's holding a huge teddy bear he's just won above his head with one arm, the other is thrown over Pip's shoulder and she's got her arms wrapped around Isabella's shoulders as the younger girl is standing in front of her. They're all smiling, but only Bill and Isabella are looking at the camera. Pip is looking straight at Bill.

He got a lot of ribbing and questions from the guys when that picture came, but he just told them all to 'fuck off'. By this point it was common knowledge that Bill did, but didn't, have a girl back home. The guys loved to annoy him but truly they were happy he had someone, not all of them did.

Slowly, almost naturally, the letter's started becoming more intimate. Not sexually but emotionally. Greetings went from Dear, to Dearest, then Darling, eventually landing on "My Billy/Pip". Signatures would mix some type of variation of "Love, your Billy/Pip" and "Always yours, Billy/Pip". There still hadn't been any type of declaration of feelings, but they'd often write each other about the future and things they wanted to do or see together. They were always together no matter the plan or idea that popped in their heads about life after this war.

Then one day, in a forest in the dead of winter, everything changed.

It had been months since Bill and Toye were shipped back to the hospital for their surgeries and rehabilitation before getting to go home. Months since he'd last responded to one of Pip's letters. He knew, she knew what had happened as he'd written his ma letting her know he was okay after a telegram went out about his injury from the army. He couldn't stand the idea of her being worried sick about him, not after what happened with Henry.

Pip never mentioned the accident, just kept her letters light and full of the day to day happenings. But they always ended the same way, "P.S. Take your time, I'm here when you are ready and I'll always be yours." Each new letter was like a dagger in his heart. He loved her, so much so that he was planning to ask her to marry him when he thought he'd be going home a whole man. But now, how could he ask her to be with him when he wasn't all she deserved?

One day, he grabbed some paper and a pen and started his own version of a Dear John letter.

~~

Pip was both relieved and terrified when she got a letter from Bill. He hadn't responded since being sent to the hospital to have his injury tended to. When his mother had gotten the telegram, all the army had said was that he was injured and being sent out immediately to their primary hospital. After what happened to Henry, she was in a terrible state so Pip pitched in as much as she could while wanting to breakdown herself. Soon enough a letter from Bill himself came and explained the situation as best he could and what was going on, but ultimately letting his mom and sisters know he was already. They'd all cried together when they read that. She waited weeks but no letter arrived for her. As time went on, she accepted that he needed time to heal and figure things out, so she kept sending him updates on his family and things in town, praying that one of them would trigger some type of response. Now she held one in her hands and she didn't know what it would contain.

Sitting in her room, she opened the letter and with each word felt her heart breaking.

My Pip, I am sorry I have not written. Truthfully, I have not known what to say. I know you must have gotten updates from my ma on my condition and I suppose that was the cowards way of letting you know and again, I am sorry. I didn't think this was how I would be telling you this but, I love you. I'm so damn, madly in love with you it's all I can think about lying here. But I can't keep this going any longer. You deserve someone not scarred, literally and emotionally, from this war and the horrors that have leaked inside me. I want you to have everything you've ever dreamed about. I just can't be the one to give it to you. I will love you till my last breathe. Love you always, Billy

With her letter crumpled in her hands, Pip curled up into her bed and cried until there was nothing left to come out.

~~

Bill knew he should feel lucky. Hell, he was the luckiest damn bastard he knew of right now. He was finally home after being away for years, seeing the worst of human nature, eating a home cooked meal surrounded by his mother and sisters that he'd missed terribly. But there was still a large aching hole in his heart the shape of the girl next door. He'd been home for a month and they'd yet to run into each other. He wasn't sure if he could handle seeing her after the letter he'd sent, but that didn't stop him from praying for just one glance.

His sisters had seen her a few times since he'd been home, but every time he asked how she was they just shot him a glare and changed the subject. They obviously knew enough to have picked her side and he couldn't blame them.

"You're awfully quiet tonight, William." His mother's voice brought him back to the present. "Everything okay?" He suddenly felt like a child again under her critical gaze.

"Yeah, I'm good ma." He slapped on a quick smile, which dropped quickly at hearing Bianca and Isabella snort and cough at the end of the table. "What's up with you two?"

"They're tired of you lying. We all are." Marie sent him a cold look.

"I'm not lying about anything." He clenched his jaw to keep his temper in check. These were his sisters, not the boys, he couldn't react like he wanted.

"Yes, you are. Pip is too. You're both miserable. We see it everyday. Just admit you made a mistake and apologize." Marie turned fully to face him and gave him a look that challenged him to deny any of it.

Before he could say anything, his mother cut in. "Girls, go to your rooms. I wanna speak with William. Go on." She gave them her no nonsense look when they didn't move fast enough. With a few grumbles they all left the room and the silence that over took Bill and her was tense.

"Ma, I don't want to talk about it." Bill sighed, leaning back in his chair.

"You don't have to speak, just listen, yeah? You're my child and when you have a child you pray that they find happiness and have all of their dreams come true. It sounds foolish, but that's the truth. Throughout the years, I've always believed that your happiness lie with Pip and when you started writing each other I knew I was right. Every time she would relay some story you wrote her or say "Bill said this, Bill said that" it was like looking in a mirror to when I first fell for your father. Once you've had a great love, you recognize it in other people. Now, looking at both of you all I can see is myself after your father passed. A sorrow that settles in the bones and your soul and never quite goes away. I know you had the best intentions in mind when you did, what you did, but if it's slowly killing you both inside was it really for the best?"

Bill couldn't bring himself to meet her eyes, too afraid he'd completely break down, so he stared at his plate and fiddled with the table clothe. Eventually his mom got up, gave him a kiss on the cheek and left him alone with his thoughts.

~~

Two days later, Pip stood at the back door of the Guarnere house. She'd promised Bianca she'd help her pick a dress for her upcoming dance and after much back and forth, and almost tears, had agreed to come to their house only because Bianca swore Bill would be gone. As she entered the kitchen, she called out to Bianca but didn't receive an answer. She walked further into the house, heading towards the living room still calling out.

"Bianca? Anybody? Hello? I swear if she stood me up, I'm gonna kill her." Just as she finished her though out loud, she stopped dead in her tracks. In the middle of the room stood Bill on his crutches, holding her favorite flowers in one hand. Every time she opened her mouth to say something, she couldn't think of anything and closed it again. Eventually, Bill broke the silence.

"Don't be mad at Bianca, I bribed her to get you over here. I understand if you don't want to hear anything I have to say and walk out, but if you give me a few minutes I swear you'll never have to see me again if that's your wish." Hesitantly, Pip walked into the living room and followed Bill's lead by sitting on the sofa. Slowly she took the flowers from him and laid them in her lap, meeting his eyes.

"I've been practicing what to say all day, but can't seem to remember a damn thing now." He gave a humorless chuckled, clenching and unclenching his hands to steady himself. "What I did, all of it, is unforgivable. I...All I could think about in that hospital was all the things I wouldn't be able to do with you. All the things I might not be able to give you. I believed I was doing what was right, by pushing you away so you could find someone else. But underneath all of that I was scared too. Scared you'd see me now and think less of me. Would always look at me with pity in your eyes and I'd never be that great man you deserve. Now, I'm scared I've lost the only person that matters. Every day since I sent that letter, and especially since being home, it's felt like a wound is festering inside me and I can't fix it. I know I've hurt you, and I'll never forgive myself for that, but if you can just give me a chance to make it right I'll spend forever making it up to you."

Bill would've given her his beating heart if she asked for it. The longer the silence stretched, the more he was sure she would say goodbye. He held his breathe as one of her hands, shakily raised and cupped his cheek. She had tears in her eyes.

"How could I possibly look at you and think less? You've been everything I ever wanted since we were kids. And now everyone knows what I always knew, that you're a hero and a great man. We've had each other backs for forever, I don't think we should stop now. I don't care if we can't do certain things the way we talked about, we will find new ways to do them. All I want, all I've ever wanted, is you by my side. I'll accept your apology under on condition."

"Anything." His answer was immediate.

"Kiss me." The words were barely out when he pulled her closer to him and pressed his lips to her, firmly and with all the passion he had inside him.

Bonus scene: 6 months later

Everyone seemed to be having a good time; drinks were flowing, people were dancing, and in the corner taking a break from mingling, the bride and groom were sipping champagne and sneaking kisses.

"When can we leave?" Bill mutters, nipping her bottom lip quickly.

"I spent all day getting ready, I'm wearing this dress as long as possible." She half joked, taking a sip from her flute.

"I never said you had to take it off." Bill whispers in her ear, smirking at the blush on her cheeks.

"Control yourself and I'll let you take it off, however you want." She shoots him a wink and then grabs her purse, pulling a small box out of it. "Here, I have a gift for you."

Bill raises an eyebrow, taking the box from her. "What is it?"

"Just open it." She smiles at him.

Bill pulls the top off and pulls out a little figurine, laughing instantly. It's a small pig with wings attached. When pigs fly. He looks back and her and cups her cheek.

"I love you, Mrs. Guarnere."

"I love you, Mr. Guarnere."

[bumblesimagines]

Our Flickering Light

Part 2

Request: Yes or No

~~~

"You ever been this far from home?" 

"Ellie."

"What? I'm just asking!" 

There was something humorous in the way Ellie and Joel treated each other. The exasperation that weighed heavy on Joel's face whenever she so much as opened her mouth and the smugness that twinkled in her eyes when she saw Joel roll his eyes or purse his lips in annoyance. (Y/N) couldn't blame him much. The moment Lincoln had disappeared out of view, Ellie had leaned forward and shoved herself between the two seats, firing off question after question. For a girl with the fate of the world resting solely on her shoulders, she sure had a lot of energy and excitement. (Y/N) wondered if he'd been like her back then. Full of curiosity and awe.

"It's fine, Joel." (Y/N) dismissed with a soft chuckle and a wave of his hand. Joel glanced at him, furrowed brows full of uncertainty and even a hint of a warning of what was to come if he gave Ellie the green light to ask questions. (Y/N) smiled at the older man and Joel looked back at the road, his eyes flickering to the rearview mirror. He gave a small nod and Ellie beamed, once again wedging herself between the seats and making Joel click his tongue in disapproval. 

"So, have you?" Ellie asked, her dark brown eyes wide and full of barely contained curiosity. 

"I wasn't born in Lincoln, Ellie." (Y/N) chuckled at the quiet 'oh' that fell from her lips and her cheeks flushed pink from embarrassment, one finger lifting to sheepishly scratch the side of her head. "My mom and I were originally from Frederick, Maryland. We were able to get to the Baltimore QZ before it began turning people away. It's how we met Frank. We stayed there for a good... Jesus, I don't know, four or five years?" 

"Why'd you leave?" Ellie blinked and cocked her head to the side, loose strands of her hair swaying over her pale skin. (Y/N) noticed Joel glance over Ellie's head, just as curious as the girl he'd previously scolded. (Y/N) exhaled through his nose and gazed back out to the long road ahead.

"It fell. None of us really knew why, but Frank said the day before it happened there'd been rumors about a breach in one of the walls that FEDRA couldn't be bothered to fix. The next day the QZ was in utter chaos. People were either panicking, stealing, getting trampled, or getting shot down by soldiers. Frank and his neighbor, Kelly, got us and we fled the QZ with a few other survivors." (Y/N) explained solemnly, the screams of citizens attempting to find safety still ringing as clear as day in his ears. "We traveled a week by foot trying to get to Boston since THE Philadelphia QZ only lasted two years and they were never able to clear any part of New York City to get one set up. We were a group of ten but by the time we got to Lincoln, it was only Frank, my mom, and me."

"Wait, so, you could've been in Boston with us? And you were born before the outbreak? But you look so young!" Ellie gaped at him and Joel snorted quietly, the muscles on his face straining to keep him from smiling at her words. 

"I'm only twenty-nine, Ellie." (Y/N) laughed and her eyes widened further. "I was nine when the outbreak happened."

(Y/N) watched the teen boys bounce the basketball around in the road, their laughter echoing down the street and mixing in with the distant sound of honking. His mother stood by the dining room table with her phone in hand and pressed against her ear, reciting the address to the pizza place staff member. Her other hand ran circles around the barely there bump and her attention jumped between answering questions and looking at the clock. 

"Can I go outside?" (Y/N) asked into his folded arms, his legs beginning to ache from standing at the window for so long. The basketball slammed into the board and bounced off the rim of the basket. A chorus of groans and laughter followed. "I'll stay in the driveway."

"It's dark out, sweets. Those boys will be heading to bed soon, anyway." Rose said as she set her phone on the dining table and approached him, her hand reaching out to rest on his shoulder. She smiled warmly down at him. "I'm sure if you ask Jonah tomorrow, he'll teach you how to play, alright?"

"Okay." (Y/N) sighed. "When is Brent-"

There was a sudden, distant explosion outside, close and loud enough to make the windows in the house shake and set off car alarms throughout the neighborhood. The neighborhood boys outside shouted and screamed in surprise, their long game of basketball abruptly forgotten in favor of turning around to watch a firey cloud rise into the air. Rose instinctively brought (Y/N) closer to her and grabbed the curtain to tug it further from the window. 

"Oh, my god," She whispered and took his hand, clutching it tightly as they left the kitchen and opened the front door, stepping out onto their porch. (Y/N) could hear the porch swing still creaking from the force of the explosion and he leaned into the skirt of his mother's dress, peeking out from behind her legs. "Jonah, Tyler, you boys okay?! The rest of you need to get home right now!" 

"Was that the gas station?" Jonah asked, holding his basketball tight to his chest as the rest of his friends scrambled to collect their things and call home. Tyler wasted no time in running across the street to his house and quickly heading inside the small house while his aunt's car blared in the driveway. 

"You boys get to your parents, now!" A new, deeper voice boomed from next door and (Y/N) peered around his mother to look at their next-door neighbor, an intimidating veteran whom Brent enjoyed calling a 'hermit'. (Y/N) hardly ever heard him speak seeing as the man, Steven, spent most of his time out hunting or locked away in his run-down, unkept house. Steven turned to them, his white tank top soaked in sweat, and he hurried down his creaky porch steps to approach them. 

"Steven, what's going on?"

"Rose, sweetheart, get your boy and pack some things, alright? There was a national alert on the radio-" Another explosion, one closer to the city. 

(Y/N)'s body began to tremble and he clung tighter on his mother. Rose spun on her heel and hauled (Y/N) up into her arms, everything in his sight becoming a dark blur of their familiar living room and hallway. She set him down in front of his bedroom door and hurried inside, her swift hands snatching his school backpack from the floor and turning it upside down so everything inside clattered to the floor. She grabbed fistfuls of clothes from shirts, pants, and underwear before stuffing the free pockets of small books and toys. 

"Here, baby, here." Rose returned to him and he stuck his arms through the gaps, feeling the straps weighing heavily down on his shoulders. (Y/N) watched her head down to hers and Brent's shared bedroom and heard her rummage through things as she'd done in his bedroom. Tears pricked the back of his eyes and he quickly wiped them away with the sleeve of his pajamas. He faced his bedroom again and approached his toy box, lifting the top open and sorting through his toys until he found Mr. Flops, his old favorite stuffed bunny that he'd hidden away after hearing some boys make fun of Gracie in class for still having a teddy bear. 

"(Y/N), sweets, come on." His mother stood in the doorway with a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. She extended her hand out toward him and smiled encouragingly, wiggling her fingers until he took her hand again. Rose moved down the hallway again and reached the front door before stopping to scribble something down on the notepad she kept by the key holder. (Y/N) tightened his grip on her palm when they stepped outside and spotted Steven hauling some things into the back of his truck. 

"Hurry, Rose!" He called and (Y/N)'s eyes widened at the sight of the shotgun strapped to his shoulder. Rose sighed quietly, locking the front door and gliding down the steps with her son in tow. She took the two bags and squeezed them into the small backseat, ensuring they'd remain still and not squish (Y/N) at any rapid turn during the ride.

"Where are we going?" He asked tentatively and peered up at his mother.

"I-"

"Shit," Steven hissed, and (Y/N) turned around to see Tyler rushing out of his house only to trip on the last step and fall into the grass by the driveway. His aunt staggered out of the house after him, her body movements jerky and weird, both limp and stiff. Tyler scrambled on the grass that had been wet by the sprinklers only minutes before the first explosion, the slippery grass preventing him from getting back on his feet. "Get in the truck, now."

"It's just Becca, Steven," Rose said breathlessly, her hands reaching out toward her son to pull him close. 

"No, sweetheart," Steven sighed and lifted the shotgun, pointing it directly in Mrs. Gorman's direction. His finger slipped over the trigger. "That's not her anymore."

"What happened to Steven?" Ellie asked gently, her head fully propped up on her fist as she stared at him, completely engrossed by the story. A grimace had appeared on Joel's face toward the end, an all too knowing look passing over his dark eyes. The panic, confusion, the way the world turned upside down in a matter of hours... it was something the new generation of children like Ellie never got to experience. Instead of knowing the joy of running around freely, of visiting different cities and states. All they knew was the fear and death that followed.

"I don't know," (Y/N) admitted softly. "But knowing him... he's probably still around trying to help people."

"I bet he and Joel would've been buds," Ellie said, slumping back in her seat and wiggling closer to the window, propping one arm along it and staring out at the passing scenery. (Y/N) exhaled in amusement and glanced at Joel when the older man rolled his eyes, still as silent as always. What a pair they made. A young chatterbox and an older man who could spend days without speaking. But it was part of his charm, in a way. Silent but always observing, always watching over everyone. 

"Looks like a gas station up ahead," Joel murmured gruffly, pointing out the tall sign in the distance. (Y/N) could see abandoned cars scattered around, many of them long overtaken by nature. The station itself appeared in similar conditions, worn down and overgrown. No sign of infected around. "We'll pull over for a little while and get some gas. Use the bathroom if you have to. We ain't stoppin' until we need to again, alright?"

"Yep." Ellie sighed, reaching for her backpack and slipping her arms through the straps.

Slowly pulling over and stopping the truck, the three hopped out of the truck and surveyed their surroundings. Joel cautiously stepped forward, fingers tightly wrapped around his pistol and his head on a swivel, turning sharply whenever he heard the faintest sounds. (Y/N) shifted around the strap of his sniper rifle and walked toward the gas station, hearing the soft patter of Ellie following after him. He pushed the dirty glass door open and peeked inside, waiting for movement or noise before stepping inside fully and looking around the store. It appeared largely empty and scarce, anything still up on the shelves or fallen on the ground either rotten or useless. 

(Y/N) headed further into the store and purposefully kicked a can, listening to it rattle against the tile floor and fall into silence once it hit the wall. Nothing. No sound of any animals scurrying to hide, no infected crawling out from the darkness. For safe measure, he checked each room, only finding a long-decayed corpse in the storage closet and a caved-in bathroom. With no urge to release his bladder, he turned toward Ellie and smiled. "Seems safe enough. If you need to go, go ahead. Holler if you need or see anything, 'kay?"

"Gotcha." Ellie nodded and returned the smile, sliding the backpack off her shoulders and walking further into the bathroom. She set her backpack on the sink and glanced at him as he turned to leave. "Good luck with Joel." She told him with a playful grin and unzipped her backpack.

Chuckling, (Y/N) nodded and headed back into the store, checking behind the register for anything they'd need before leaving the store completely and heading toward Joel who'd taken it upon himself to siphon gas from the old cars. (Y/N) adjusted the rifle's strap again so it hung at his side instead of his chest and squinted through the glaring sun to watch Joel work. "Ellie's using the bathroom." He informed him, hearing a soft hum of acknowledgment. 

"(Y/N)..." Joel began with a heavy sigh, pushing himself off his knee and picking up the gas canister from the ground. His lips pressed together, his tilted toward the ground as his brows furrowed once more. "I'm... I'm real sorry about your folks. They were good people." 

"And so was Tess." (Y/N) added softly and Joel's features hardened into a grimace, his head turning away from him and his chest rising and falling with a heavy sigh. He made no move to respond or even acknowledge her but (Y/N) could see the pain etched all over his face. He could see the sorrow and pain Joel fought desperately to swallow down and ignore until it faded. "She had a good heart."

"Yeah." Joel forced out and inhaled sharply, his grip on the canister tightening. (Y/N) stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Joel's shoulder, feeling the man tense at his touch and become rigidly motionless. He could only feel Joel's chest moving with each quiet breath until, after a minute of nothing, his arm moved, sliding around (Y/N)'s body loosely at first before tightening with every emotion Joel had long buried under his hardened exterior. His forearm pushed against (Y/N)'s back, pressing them tightly together as Joel buried his face into the crook of (Y/N)'s neck. In a soft, muffled yet pained voice, he spoke, "I miss her."

"Frank used to say that you honor people by living for them... by living because of them. Who else will keep their memory alive is not us, Joel?" (Y/N) told him gently, rubbing his fingertips into Joel's shoulders.

"You are..." Joel interrupted himself with a soft chuckle as he leaned back, "Far too young to be sounding so old."

"I can't help it." (Y/N) smiled, dropping his arms from Joel's shoulders and crossing them over his chest. "You should've seen the books Bill and Frank had me reading." 

"Yeah, I bet half of it was some crazy conspiracy shit." Joel snorted, his shoulders lightly shaking and a rare genuine smile spreading across his face. He had a breathy sort of withheld laugh, one that made him wonder how it'd sound when he found something especially funny, and the type of smile that made wrinkles form around his eyes. 

"You have a pretty smile, Joel. You should do it more often." (Y/N) complimented, running his hand over Joel's bicep affectionately before dropping his hand to his side and turning around. He approached the next car down the line, dipping his arm in through the window of the car and popping open the flap. He wiped his hand clean of dust and dirt with his pant leg before unscrewing the cap for Joel. He stepped aside, finally taking note of the still man. "Joel?"

Joel blinked, gaze darting over to him and flickering toward the flap. "Right. Thanks." He cleared his throat, long legs moving toward the car. He kneeled down beside it, glancing up briefly when Ellie stepped out of the store and began walking toward them. She stood beside (Y/N) and looked down at Joel, watching him begin the siphoning process. 

"We have to do this every hour?" Ellie questioned, one brow arching questioningly. It was easy to forget she hadn't been alive when cars were driven freely down the street instead of armored vehicles or tanks. She hadn't even known how to put a seatbelt on.

"Gas breaks down over time. This stuff's almost water." Joel explained. "Back in the day, we'd drive 10, 12 hours on one tank. You could go anywhere."

"So where'd you go?"

"Pretty much nowhere," Joel inhaled deeply, releasing that air into the tube. A few seconds later, gasoline poured into the other tube and down into the canister. Ellie blinked and perked up, that familiar curious twinkle appearing in her eyes again as she leaned her head forward to get a closer look.

"How does that work?" She asked, taking another step closer. 

"It's a siphon," Joel answered, looking up at her and being met with a blank stare. "It's when... liquid travels against gravity... because pressure-"

"You don't know," Ellie stated simply and giggled when Joel shot her a look. Sticking her hands in her pockets and spinning around to face (Y/N), she tilted her head. "Do you know, (Y/N)?"

The man in question blew a raspberry and shrugged. "Uh... Billy taught me how to do it once a long time ago. Something about gravity, pressure, and elevation. I was like fifteen. I didn't really get much of it but I think Joel was on the right track, actually."

"Exactly." Joel raised his brows at Ellie, almost sassily in fact, and turned his attention back to the tubes. Without having to look up at Ellie to see her expression, he spoke again. "No wondering."

Ellie clicked her tongue and tilted her head up toward the sky, lips pursing defiantly but her feet remained planted on the ground. (Y/N) couldn't help but smile, his eyes catching the wicked grin that sprung out on Ellie's face. She lowered her head and slipped her backpack off, placing her backpack on the hood of the next car with a soft thump. "This is your fault, then." Ellie laughed mischievously and tugged a book free from her backpack.

"Uh-oh." (Y/N) laughed, and then laughed again when Joel's face fell into disbelief and misery. Ellie proudly held No Pun Intended: Volume Too in her hands and loudly cleared her throat as she tossed the pages open. (Y/N) dug his teeth into his bottom lip, a few giggles escaping him as he awaited to hear stupidly cheesy puns and watch Joel's misery intensify. 

"'It doesn't matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.' " (Y/N) snorted at Joel's silence. "No Pun Intended: Volume Too by Will Livington. Volume too, you get it? Too? Like, t-o-o?"

"Jesus." Joel exhaled heavily, staggering up onto his feet as giggles left Ellie. 

"'What did the mermaid wear to her math class?'" Ellie looked up from the book at Joel, a slow grin spreading across her face. "'An algae bra!' Get it? Like algebra?" 

It took another horrible pun and a burst of giggles for Joel to tell Ellie to wait in the truck while he finished getting gas. The satisfied look on her face and the mischievous smirk spoke volumes as she headed for the truck with a skip to her step. After a few more minutes, the canister was full with gas and the two men returned to the car. (Y/N) climbed back into the passenger seat, setting his rifle between his legs alongside his backpack, while Joel filled the gas tank and set the canister in the back.  The truck rumbled to life and Joel drove them back out onto the road where lines of cars had been forced out onto the edges of the road. 

"Must've been some truck," Ellie said, propped up on her knees to watch the cars they passed by. 

"Yeah, they used to stick big-ass plows on 'em and clear the roads for their tanks and such," Joel explained grimly, glancing at the cars until the lines ended.

(Y/N) stared out into the vast emptiness around them, a stark difference from the forests he'd grown up around. He felt Ellie fiddling around in the backseat, searching around until she pulled out a cassette tape and had Joel insert it, an old country song pouring out from the speakers that (Y/N) vaguely recognized. Ellie continued her search and (Y/N) noticed her dip suddenly behind his seat, the sound of papers crinkling filling his ears. 

"Got somethin' else. It's, uh, light on the reading, but it has some interesting pictures-" 

"No, no, no. Put that back." Joel demanded and (Y/N) shifted in his seat, immediately spotting the athletically built shirtless model on the cover. His face immediately heated up and he turned back around, covering his mouth to stifle the embarrassed laughter that left him. "Ellie- Ellie, that is not for kids."

"Oh, my god. I didn't need to see that." (Y/N) whispered. "Throw that away, Ellie. It- It's not for your eyes-"

"Hold your horses! I wanna see what all the fuss is about!" Ellie laughed, continuing to flip through the pages. "Why are all these pages stuck together?"

"Ellie." 

"I'm just fuckin' with ya." Ellie giggled, smacking Joel's shoulder with the magazine before lowering the window and tossing it out into the wind. She slumped back in her seat and rolled the window back up, more laughter escaping her lips until the sights they passed captured her attention. 

They continued driving down the countryside, passing by a multitude of things. From a bison herd to an old overgrown rollercoaster, they drove until the countryside faded into lush forests and roads slowly overgrown with foliage that led to formerly populated areas. They stopped for gas one more time, listening to a few more puns from Ellie that had Joel contemplating his life and (Y/N) cracking up before hitting the road again. (Y/N) enjoyed looking out the window and imagining what the towns must've looked like before nature retook what was once hers. Of course, from time to time they'd pass old machinery where the army had attempted to fight back, whether against the infected or people, (Y/N) couldn't be sure but an uneasiness filled him whenever he spotted a tank or armored truck. 

"Alright, that's enough for today," Joel murmured, turning the truck onto a grassy field and into a thick forest with tall trees where they'd be hidden away from anyone passing by. He parked the truck once satisfied with the spot and got out, collecting the small stove and setting it down on the ground while Ellie explored their camping spot for the night. 

Stirring around the contents from a Chef Boyardee can, (Y/N) poured even servings into three plates and sat back against a mossy rock to eat. For an expired can of ravioli, it surprisingly still tasted good, though his thoughts drifted back to Bill's cooking. He pushed around the ravioli with his fork, idly listening to Ellie and Joel chat about their meal and plans. He couldn't help but think about them, about their last days spent together, about the short and sweet wedding. The urge to eat numbed quickly.

"Here, Ellie." (Y/N) murmured, scraping the remainder of his meal onto her plate and wiping his plate clean to use another time. (Y/N) stood up from the rock and tucked the plate and utensils away. He could feel Joel's stare burning a hole into his back and gave the man a smile to soften his worry. It hardly helped so (Y/N) focused on getting their sleeping bags out of the truck as the sky above them began to darken with night fast approaching. 

With two lanterns, he sat one down between Ellie and Joel's sleeping bags and took the last one for himself. "I'll keep watch." He told them, slipping the rifle strap around his shoulder and patting Ellie's head as she lowered down to wiggle into her sleeping bag. She swatted playfully at his hand and chuckled, pulling the pun book and a flashlight out of her backpack before using it as a pillow. Joel glanced at him and stiffly nodded, settling into his own sleeping bag and watching him walk a few feet away. 

(Y/N) leaned back against a tree trunk and set his lantern down by his feet, taking the strap off his shoulder and holding the rifle. His eyes trailed down the gun until they found the words engraved just above the trigger. B&F. His thumb ran over the rough letters, pressing into them until they left an imprint on his skin. He took a deep breath and raised his head, scanning the area around him. With everything falling into darkness, he was left to depend on his hearing for any sign of something amiss. But all he heard was the rustling of leaves above him and the occasional call of an owl. Fabric rustled behind him and the light from Ellie and Joel's lantern faded, leaving him with his thoughts while they dozed off into slumber.

About twenty minutes passed before he heard the fabric rustling again and peered over his shoulder to see Joel's dark figure getting up. Likely off to use the bathroom, he assumed and looked forward again, rubbing his thumb back and forth over the letters. His teeth nibbled lightly on his bottom lip and he could feel hunger slowly creep in, poking around as it made its presence known. A twig behind him snapped and he turned, finding Joel approaching him. 

"You should be sleeping."

"And you should've eaten." Joel lifted his brows and took his wrist, placing two granola bars and an apple in his hand. He nodded to them and carefully took the gun from him, surveying the area in a glance before looking back at him. "Eat. I'll keep watch 'til you're done."

"Joel-"

"Eat." Joel urged gently, a surprisingly soft look falling over his features. "I have to take care of you, too, alright? Stop actin' stubborn and eat."

[ellesthots]

Fateful Beginnings

XI. “lying through teeth”

parts: previous / next

plot: you have a tense visit with old friends that culminates in a hotheaded confession. Bruce Wayne decides his first official public appearance.

pairing: battinson!bruce wayne x fem!reader

cw: 18+, sexuality

words: 2.6k

You woke up the next morning to brightly colored curtains and walls. You shot up in bed, startling a creature at your feet to jump up. It was Walter, and you were in your childhood bedroom. The sheets were from when you were a tween, some bright pink floral bedding that your dad had pulled out of the back of the closet. It smelled slightly musty, but Walter quickly fuzzied it up and made it feel like home. He crawled up to you with a yawn and stretch, and you pet his head as you gathered your surroundings. You weren't in someone else's bed. It wasn't dungeon-like. You heard your mom and dad talking out in the living room and heaved a sigh of relief.

Your phone on the bedside table vibrated, and you checked it. 1:38 in the afternoon. You rubbed the sleep out of your eyes and wandered out to the living room, your feet immediately rendering that they were back at home safe and sound. Your parents greeted you with delight as they had hands on the door—your mother had a new walker. She's not that old yet. God. I should have asked to see her scans yesterday. "We'll be gone until dinner, talking with the neighbors. I told Margaret about the anonymous donor and oh my, all the neighbors are gathering to celebrate!" With that she and your father bid you adieu, letting you know there were leftover pancakes from breakfast in the fridge.

Margaret. Mar. You took your phone out of your pocket and sent her a text. You hadn't told her you were leaving yet, but you weren't super close, and it had been on a whim... Hey, so sorry to let you know this over text but I left back to home yesterday. My mom's health is having some issues so I had to move quickly. How are you doing back there?

After eating some cold blueberry pancakes you slumped over in a dining room chair to think ahead to your mostly empty day. Walter wandered around behind you until he found his food bowl and went to town. If he followed his usual pattern he would curl up in his bed near the couch and go into a food coma for the next few hours. You smiled. What a cutie. You opened your phone again, this time to call your friend Lara. She answered on the very last ring. When you told her you were back in town, she responded sheepishly. "Uh, we thought you wouldn't be in town this early. We wanted to plan a homecoming party for you with your parents but we hadn't gotten around to it." 'We' referred to your friend group: Lara, Gabbi, and Rose. You didn't believe her when she said she was planning a party—you didn't even know if they were really your friends anymore. You'd tried to reach out so many times while you were in Gotham, but you'd only received enough responses to fit on one hand. All short, staccato, to the point. "Miss you!" and "Sounds good!" were the only type of responses your group of friends since high school had left for you since you'd left the city, though you started to wonder if they ever gave you things besides pleasantries at all.

You asked if the group wanted to go get coffee now, and after another hesitation she agreed. "Gab and Rose were just on their way to meet me to go to thrifting, but that can wait." It didn't sound like she wanted to wait, but nonetheless you planned to meet at 2:30. You showered, put on some clean clothes from your luggage, and grabbed your old bike to ride over. You had sold the car you'd gotten senior year of high school to pay for the flight to Gotham two years ago.

At 2:31 you pulled up to the local coffee shop. Sat on a patio table were Lara, Gabbi and Rose, all on their phones with drinks mostly empty when you pulled up. Had they been waiting here? Had they already been here? "Hi, sorry, we couldn't wait and already got our drinks." Lara smiled over her phone and gestured toward a grande chai latte sat across from her. "We got you a chai since you probably don't have a paycheck yet."

You held back a wince. Backhanded. You remembered another reason why you'd left which you'd tried hard to forget: your friends were... callous. They didn't have much of a filter, nor show much interest in anything outside of their own interests. Gabbi and Rose gave subtle waves when you sat down across from them, eyes still glued to their phones. Rose gasped and showed something to Gabbi, who gasped alongside her. "Ugh. That douche."

"How was your time in the big city?" Lara put her phone down while the other two chatted to look at you. At least Lara, however disinterested she could sound, tried to be an attentive friend. She'd had dreams of going to Harvard Law after you'd both binged Legally Blonde sophomore year of high school, but she'd missed the deadline senior year after a particularly bad bout of the flu. Now she worked a the local flower shop and somehow secured a local exchange student boyfriend, of which they were now three years strong. You put your chin in your elbows and sighed. "It's more dangerous than I thought. And also more boring. I think Gabbi and Rose would really like it there, it's more for partiers I think. I don't know, I never really found my place." You noticed Lara's eyes start to glaze over and shifted the subject. "But uh, I officially turned in my last paper for my degree! So as soon as they send in my certificate through the mail I'm done!" You forced a smile and Lara did the same. "Good for you." Her tone was sickly sweet and you once again hid a wince.

There was an awkward pause for a few moments until Lara cleared her throat and absently asked what your paper was on. Without thinking much of it, you responded. "I was going to do it on Bruce Wayne, but he stopped halfway through the interview."

Gabbi, Rose, and Lara all gasped in unison, and the former threw their phones onto the glass table. "OH MY GOD," Gabbi shrieked. "You've met Bruce Wayne?" By the way their faces lit up it was as if Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift or Beyonce had just entered the room.

"Did you hook up with him?"

You frowned. "I, I didn't need to sleep with him to get the interview,"

Gabbi, who had asked the question, furiously shook her head. "No," she said with an eye roll. "Because he's a billionaire?" They all stared at you with big, bright eyes. You had their full attention for the first time in your entire friendship. It hurt you, but you tried to hide it and quickly change the subject. "No, I'd never,"

Rose interrupted with a laugh. "No way, I'd do him in a second. Did you see the photos of him shopping today in Gotham? He looks ripped." The three women laughed to themselves and started loudly talking about their fantasies. "I think he likes cowgirl, how could he not? I don't think I could do doggy, he's just too fucking hot. I'd want him to remember my face too, no way."

"He's got to be a dom. He's not letting anyone on top of him."

"He's too jacked to just do missionary. He probably has some crazy sex dungeon."

"Ooh a REAL LIFE CHRISTIAN GREY! Holy fuck Lara I never thought about that!"

Why couldn't they see the flames shooting out of your ears? "He's not even hot, guys," You rolled your eyes and sat back with your arms crossed. "I don't understand the hype. He's... no."

"Come the fuck on, Y/N, he's the hottest celeb right now." Rose was rolling her eyes at you now, while Gabbi glared at you. "What's your problem?"

You threw your hands in the air, exasperated. Your voice rose as the tension in your body became unbearable. He's not hot. He's not cool. He's just Bruce fucking Wayne. He would be no one if it weren't for his fucking mountain of money. "You all couldn't care less about my life. About me, about my school." Hands slammed on the table as you shoved your chair back. They jumped, gasping. "Y/N!" They chastised. It didn't matter, the words were already pouring out of your mouth as unconsciously as vomit. "The first time you all really look at me, pay me any fucking attention, is when you think I might have fucked Bruce Wayne. I'm done."

"Fuck off, everything just has to be about you." Rose snarled. You were already on the way to your bike but spun around at the sound of them getting back to their phones, more furiously now. Nothing with them had ever been anything but themselves. They'd never paid you mind. They kept you in tow because you were too nice. Someone who could always be a shoulder to cry on. Someone to run errands with. Someone to rant to about the other friends in the group.

"You know what?" Fists balled at your sides. Your face was twitching at their audacity, at all the adrenaline shoving through you, making you a live wire. "I did fuck Bruce Wayne. And fuck you."

The flash of cameras haunted him as he slammed the door behind him. Alfred had stared at him peculiarly when he walked in, noticing the Dior and Prada bags in his fists. He wanted to press Bruce on what he planned to do with the clothing (the boy never went out unless he was forced to) but decided to wait and watch it all unfold. Unfold it had; as Alfred sought a snack in the kitchen later that evening, Bruce had walked out in a sharp Prada double-breasted suit, adjusting his cufflinks and shaking out his arms before standing in the entryway. "What do you think? Is this a good Bruce Wayne?"

The question struck Alfred, and he hadn't answered for a good few seconds. Why was he acting like Bruce was a character? He went towards that curiosity. "You look like yourself in a suit." To which Bruce responded with a short huff and looked at the ground. "I just, I need more separation from Batman. I don't want anyone able to suspect me." His answer made well the confused storm raging in Alfred's brain. No one had ever recognized Bruce before so he'd never had to grapple with that possibility. Along came someone who had, and now he was outfitted in silhouettes he'd only hoped Bruce would grow into. Tears sprung to his eyes; he could tell the boy noticed, but all Alfred did was nod. He imagined Martha seeing her boy all grown up now, looking sharp and mature. "Makes sense, right then."

Bruce holed up in the basement scribbling into his journal. Got designer clothing today. Hated it. Needed to. Creating more separation from myself and Batman. Another close call would lead to some difficult decisions I don't want to make. I still have work to do here, and I don't want to go into hiding earlier than planned. Suddenly fear and anxiety gripped him. Maybe this could just be a one-off. Bruce Wayne hardly seen again, per usual. He could have just gotten the suits to update his sizing, maybe his butler didn't get his sizing right and he had to do it himself. So he had something to wear to the city hall meetings. No, he couldn't do Alfred like that. He'd just wear it to the next meeting. Change around the Batman suit, make it a full face covering: no lips, eyes behind colored mesh. He could sneak platform wedges into the boots somehow to make him considerably taller, to further throw people off his trail. His eyes heavied with sleep from the weight of the exposure today, but he still needed to go out as Batman.

Before he could, however, he needed to empty the earbuds and contacts he'd worn to shop. They were filled with recordings from earlier, something he'd done in case he needed to look back at anything later. You never knew when crime would strike in Gotham, and sometimes he only had a few seconds to make an ID. He plugged them into their chargers where they immediately began streaming data to his screen. He skimmed through it mindlessly for a minute, hearing nothing besides screaming paparazzi and the clicking of cameras. A clustering of voices from a throng of onlookers he'd passed through, desperately asking for a photo, an autograph, a million dollars. He'd strolled quickly past, paying them little mind beside passing greetings... and a mumble. Rewind.

Mumble.

Rewind.

"Might be a new member in the club."

He could barely make out the gruff, low vocals. The club? Then an even softer, quieter response. Unreachable.

Rewind. Vocal increase. Isolate. Max volume.

"Think we can trust him?"

After that point you had entered the store and were no longer in reach. Which club? Had you heard those voices before, or was this new? The last thing you heard before getting out of reach, disappointingly, was the first man scoffing. "The prince of the city? He's more of a fed than the cops."

Bruce immediately went to his contacts to replay the footage. He roughly matched the timing of the words to men barely in his periphery—but nothing close to making an ID. If it hadn't been for the damn cameras... he could have been more vigilant. Being in public exhausted him more than any single night shift. He started scribbling more musings. No trust with public. Become less of an enigma. A partier? A Yachter? Own room at the clubs? Separation and infiltration. Talk of a club. He reviewed the footage again with neurotic focus.

As far as was possible to tell from the fish eye footage, they were suited. The only type of people who wore suits in downtown Gotham were rich. The type of people who couldn't be touched; the business district was up north, far enough away to not get mugged by partygoers the moment something valuable was visible. They had to be people that couldn't be messed with. The type of people who receive a bad look one day and have your head the next. The clubs. The dinners. These people weren't a part of the mainstream party scene; they were in the club within the club, Penguin types. Bruce groaned and tossed his pencil across the table. He didn't want to do this, and after today he realized he'd have to sacrifice more of Batman than he thought if he would have the energy to get through the day as Bruce Wayne.

He pulled up the Gotham event page and marked down every listed event to his calendar. How was he going to explain his sudden personality shift and movement into the public arena? Questions swirled and dizzied his mind. He could only do so much in his cape; now he had to create another mask. And his first big event would be Gotham University's graduation ceremony.

[bro-atz]

at some point, we grow up

in which: you and minjae are neighbors and grew up together not being able to stand each other, only for feelings to change as you got older

pair: minjae/gn!reader (brief moments of junmin/gn!reader)

word count: 6k

content: fluff, childhood friends, enemies to not really enemies?? (friends to lovers??? enemies to lovers???), barely friends, love triangle andioop, high school romance, kissing, one-sided crushes, love thy neighbor

apply for the permanent taglist here!

“Hey, it’s my turn to build the castle!”

You snatched the tiny shovel from your friend, only for him to snatch it right back. Upset, you complained to his mom. “Auntie! Minjae won’t let me build the castle!”

“Minjae, it is Y/N’s turn, so give the shovel back,” Minjae’s mom came in clutch.

“But this is our sandbox, and it’s in our yard. Y/N lives next door,” Minjae said, making somewhat of a valid point.

“Okay, but you suck at building castles. If I do it, then at least we’ll have an actual castle that won’t fall apart in two seconds.”

“I’ll crush your castle in one second, then.”

“Auntie!”

That’s was pretty much how most of your childhood went: playing in the backyard with your next door neighbor, Minjae. The aunties in the neighborhood liked to joke that the two of you would grow up and get married, but they’d immediately take it back when they saw you chase Minjae around the neighborhood with a worm on a stick or a ball of mud. Minjae was also afraid of heights, and you used that to torment him whenever he was being mean or annoying by grabbing one of his shoes then climbing up a tree so that he couldn’t get it, thus earning the nickname of monkey (well, Minjae was the only one who ever called you monkey).

On your way to school, you would never, ever sit next to him on the bus. He was a popular kid, so he sat in the back of the bus. You, on the other hand, wanted to get off the bus as soon as possible, so you sat in the very first seat. Sure, you were neighbors and would play together after school, but that didn’t mean you had to be friends with him in school. Honestly, you wouldn’t even categorize Minjae as being a friend. He was a last resort— someone you tolerated just enough that you would let go of whatever grievances you have with him in order to avoid a boring day at home.

Minjae seemed to be the same way. At school, he wanted nothing to do with you. When it was time for recess, he and his friends would be on the court playing basketball while you and your friends would play on the playground swinging from the monkey bars or going down the slide or just sitting on the swing waiting for the wind to push you. Even if you both were in the same homeroom, you would keep your distance. He didn’t want people knowing he was your neighbor, and likewise you with him.

There were eleven houses on your block, and the families on the block would gather for potlucks every so often. You and Minjae were the oldest out of all the kids. The rest of the kids were younger than you by a year or two difference, but when you’re a kid, a year is such a huge difference. You and Minjae never wanted to interact with the younger kids because they were so young and obnoxious, and the two of you had more experience in life. That being said, you hated that there was no one else for you to really hang out with at those dinners.

Usually, during these dinners, the families would be busy eating and chatting in the dining room while the rest of the kids would sit in the living room, eating and talking or watching TV. The younger kids always wanted to play while the older kids opted to watch TV. The two of you would sit together— but not too close— and just watch whatever was playing in silence.

The running joke during these dinners was that you and Minjae were going to end up together (which wasn’t really refuted by the time you both entered middle school because you stopped chasing Minjae around with bugs), but you and Minjae still got annoyed by the teasing to the point where the two of you stopped hanging out after school— heck, you both had to walk home after school, but you never walked together even though you were next door neighbors. That being said, you would still reluctantly keep each other company at these stupid neighborhood block dinners.

“Dude, you’re breathing so loud. Shut up,” you told Minjae at one of the dinners while kicking his leg.

You both were in your final year of middle school. The other kids were in their own world as per usual, and you and Minjae decided to watch a movie as per usual, but Minjae was breathing too loud for you to watch the movie.

“I’m not breathing loud. You are.”

“Am not!”

“Are too!”

The two of you started kicking each other while yelling insults at each other.

“Do you have a problem with watching a movie silently or something? Just stop breathing for a second!” you said with complete annoyance.

“Your nose is the one that keeps whistling! Remind me to tell auntie to make you get plastic surgery— that should also help fix your ugly monkey face,” Minjae shot back.

“You’re the ugly one, mop head! If you won’t stop breathing, then I’ll make you stop breathing!”

You got Minjae in a headlock and pinned him to the ground, hoping that if you choked him hard enough that he’d stop breathing and you could watch the movie in peace.

“Ew, get a room,” one of the boys commented as he looked at the two of you.

“Shut up, Hyunwoo,” both you and Minjae spat out.

“Aw, you both are synced up and everything. You’re totally meant to be,” Sumin, one of the more chaotic boys of the group, teased.

“Bro, I will make you stop breathing, too,” you warned him.

“Ha, I’d like to see you try!”

Next thing you all knew, everyone worked together to tear you and Sumin apart. You had your hand around his neck while he had your hair bunched up in his fists. Jinsik, Sumin’s best friend, was pulling Sumin away while Yujun, one of the youngest boys, worked on getting his fingers out of your hair. Junghoon, Hyunwoo’s best friend, and Hyunwoo pulled your hands away from Sumin’s neck while Minjae had his arms wrapped around your waist and tried to pull you away that way. Hunter, Seeun, and Yechan, the other younger kids of the group, were busy laughing at the whole scene.

“You both gotta stop before the parents see, guys!” Yujun rationalized.

Reluctantly, the two of you released one another. You glared at Sumin, who responded with a stink eye. You lunged at the annoying-ass boy again, but Minjae was still holding you back.

“F— Minjae! Let go!” you nearly swore as you tried to wriggle out of his grasp.

Immediately, Minjae let go, earning a look of disgust from you.

“See? Meant to be,” Sumin teased once more.

“I’ll kill you!”

The rest of the night consisted of the other eight boys trying desperately to keep you and Sumin away from each other.

One day on your way back from school in the wintertime, it was snowing outside. You, like an idiot, forgot to bring a scarf or a hat to protect yourself from the snow. Snow didn’t bother you like that, but it did make your hair wet, and you always got sick after walking outside in the cold with wet hair. You stood by the exit and sighed deeply before walking outside into the winter wonderland.

After two minutes of walking in the snow, your hair was covered with thick chunks of snowflakes. You brushed the snow out of your hair before it could melt when you suddenly felt something land on your head— a hat. You looked to your side to see Minjae walking right next to you bundled up in his winter jacket, his face buried in a knit scarf.

“Thanks...” you mumbled while you put the hat on properly. “I’ll return it to you later.”

“No, that’s for you. Mom made it for you and told me to give it to you. I kept forgetting,” Minjae said roughly.

“Oh… Tell her I said thanks.”

“Will do.”

After the conversation ended, you thought Minjae was going to walk ahead to maintain some distance between you two, so you were surprised to see that he was walking right next to you. You didn’t want to say anything because, while you didn’t really care for his company, it was nice not walking home alone for once. The entire walk home, you both were completely silent while listening to your own music with your own ears buds in both ears, but you kept each other company.

High school was pretty much the same as elementary school. You thought you and Minjae had gotten closer since middle school, but he went right back to his old ways after middle school ended, but you weren’t bothered because you had your own friends and the two of you didn’t even have classes together, so you really weren’t upset that the distance between you two grew. Well, that’s how it was freshman year. Sophomore year, however, things changed.

There was a new family that moved into the block. There was an older couple who moved out— they never had a kid, so your group didn’t change— but the new family had a son named Junmin. He was in the same year as you and Minjae. You briefly interacted with Junmin at the first block party that he attended, but other than the parties, you had no real reason to interact with him.

Minjae was already on the school basketball team freshman year, so when Junmin joined the team sophomore year, the two of them immediately befriended each other. They would sit together on the bus ride home (whenever they didn’t have practice) all the time and talk and laugh while you sat elsewhere talking to some of the other kids in the neighborhood. Even when the three of you got down at the same bus stop, you would just walk home without acknowledging either of them, your headphones blasting music in your ears to make you seem like less of a dick. However, that dynamic only lasted the one semester. It was the first day of the spring semester classes that your world changed.

“Good morning, Y/N,” Junmin greeted you one morning.

He plopped into the seat and sat right next to you. Despite the fact that you had headphones in, you could still hear him. It was too early in the morning for you to react in a timely manner, so you sat and stared at him in bewilderment before responding, “Good morning…”

“Is it okay if I sit here?”

Junmin asking that question well after he got comfortable in the seat was kind of pointless, and while you didn’t really want him to sit next to you, the bus was already moving. You had no choice but to nod. You turned away from him and turned up the volume of the song you were listening to, hoping that he would get the hint and not talk to you. Even though you were listening to music on full blast and you were looking out of the window, Junmin wanted to talk.

“Y/N, I have a question,” Junmin patted your shoulder lightly, trying to get your attention.

With a heavy sigh, you paused your music, took your headphones out, and gave him your somewhat complete attention. As much as you didn’t want to talk to him, he wasn’t a bad kid, so you didn’t want to be too rude to him.

“Why don’t you ever sit with us in the back?”

“Who? You and Minjae?”

“Yeah. We’re all neighbors, after all. Sumin, Jinsik, and Hyunwoo also sit with us.”

“First of all, it’s too early in the morning to deal with all of Sumin’s screaming—”

Right on cue, Sumin laughed loudly, giving you a slight headache.

“That’s fair,” Junmin acknowledged while rubbing his ringing ear.

“And second of all, we’re not friends like that. I’ve never been friends with anyone in the group like that,” you explained.

“Is there a reason why?”

“…No. That’s just how our lives unfolded. None of us are too bothered by it.”

“Why don’t you try to be proper friends with us? It’ll be fun,” Junmin encouraged you.

“And talk about what? I don’t play basketball or watch the games, and we don’t even have classes together. There’s nothing to really talk about with all of you,” you sighed, wondering why Junmin was trying so hard to make all of you guys be friends.

“Okay, fine. But I’m sure you and I can find something to talk about.”

“Like what?”

“Um… What song were you listening to just now?”

You showed him the song, and he immediately gushed on and on about the artist. The two of you ended up discussing music the rest of the bus ride to school.

The two of you got off the bus and walked towards the building together, only to see Junmin get whisked away by the boys.

“Bye, Y/N! See you later!” he called while waving as his friends dragged him away.

You waved in response, an amused smile on your face.

Minjae, meanwhile, decided to grill Junmin as they entered the school through a different entrance.

“Why did you sit by Y/N today and not us?” he asked.

“I mean, we all live on the same block, so why not be friends?”

“You barely talk to Y/N at the block parties, what do you mean?” Sumin furrowed his eyebrows.

“I mean, like… Well… I think we—”

“Guys, get the hint. Junmin has a crush on Y/N,” Jinsik pointed out while rolling his eyes.

“Really? On Y/N?” Hyunwoo was shocked.

Junmin couldn’t even deny his feelings— his face was already bright red. He nodded, and the group immediately erupted into debates about you. Minjae, on the other hand, kept quiet. He was baffled. Why did Junmin have a crush on you, the weird kid who chased him around with a bug on a stick, the crazy kid who tried to fight him, the kid who barely talked to him? He just couldn’t imagine anyone having feelings for you of all people.

You didn’t realize that you, Junmin, and Minjae all had lunch at the same time until you bumped into Junmin— you were with your friends, and the bell rang so you were off to your next class.

“Sorry— Oh! Y/N! You have lunch this period, too?” Junmin was mildly surprised to see you.

“Yeah, you too?”

“Yep.”

“Hey, Y/N,” Minjae put his arm over Junmin’s shoulder, nearly knocking the boy down.

“Hi, Minjae…” you were confused— why was Minjae talking to you?

“Do you still wear that hat my mom gave you?”

You were seriously weirded out. Minjae never talked to you in school, and now he wanted to know about what clothes you wore? “Yeah, I wore it to school today.”

“I thought I saw you wearing it. My mom has another one she made for you. I’ll give it to you later.”

“Okay…? Uh… Bye, Minjae. Bye, Junmin.”

You waved and immediately started walking to class, your friends squealing beside you.

“What’s with you guys?” you asked.

“Junmin is totally into you,” one of your friends said.

“No, Minjae likes Y/N,” another friend stated.

“OMG, what if Y/N is trapped in a love triangle? This is so cute, I’m so jealous!” a third friend added their opinion.

“Stop. Minjae’s just my next door neighbor, and Junmin lives on my block. We’re just neighbors,” you shot down their delusional theories almost immediately.

“Well, if you had to choose between them—”

“No, neither. I’m good. Come on, we’re going to be late for class.”

The bus rides to and from school confused you. Not only was Junmin sitting by you, but Minjae was as well, which ultimately led to Sumin, Jinsik, and Hyunwoo to sit by you all. You barely talked while the rest of the boys screamed about something or the other, but you did feel a little closer to them. You didn’t know how you felt about that, but it wasn’t so bad being friendly with them.

 When February came around, your friends teased the shit out of you. They kept saying that Junmin or Minjae would bring you something for the most romantic day of the year, and that they both would compete to get you the better present. You kept telling them that no, that was not going to happen, but at lunch, Junmin approached your table.

“Y/N,” he said as he handed a tiny bag of chocolate truffles to you. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

“Th-thank you…” you mumbled while taking the present from him.

Just as quickly as he arrived, Junmin disappeared, leaving your friends to squeal. You tossed the chocolate into your backpack.

“Alright, ladies. If Minjae also gives Y/N chocolate, then I win the bet,” one of your friends said.

“Well I definitely lost… Can’t believe it… I thought Minjae would give Y/N chocolate first,” another friend said.

“See, I told you Junmin would give Y/N chocolate first, and I still think that Minjae isn’t interested,” the third friend said with a grin.

“Why are you betting on my life?” you asked with a sigh.

“We’re betting on your love life—”

“Nonexistent. I don’t have one, and I don’t want one, so stop it,” you said, hoping that you shut down their betting pool.

The bus ride home that day was quiet. Minjae and Junmin were at practice, and somehow, Sumin, Jinsik, and Hyunwoo all managed to get detention together. You treasured the quiet bus ride and had a peaceful time on your way home.

It was snowing when you got home. Snow in February was a little weird, but global warming messed with everything, so it didn’t surprise you anymore. You watched the snow flutter to the ground as you sat at your desk and finished your homework for the night before heading into your living room to sit and watch TV.

The doorbell from the backyard rang around seven in the evening. Mildly annoyed, you went to the backyard to see Minjae wearing his winter coat and scarf. Before you could even unlock the door, Minjae gestured for you to meet him by the sandbox in his backyard. You, completely annoyed by that point, grumbled to yourself as you wore a jacket and boots— it was still snowing outside, but you didn’t think you’d need a hat because you didn’t plan on being outside for more than two minutes.

“What is it?” you asked Minjae as you trudged through the snow.

“Here,” he held out a bag. “For you.”

“Uh, thanks?”

You took the bag from him and waved, assuming that you were good to leave, but Minjae grabbed your hand. He took the bag back and took out whatever was in it before placing it on your head.

“I told you my mom made you another hat. Try it on.”

He held the bag for you as you put the hat on properly. It fit nicely, and it was a rather cute hat.

“Tell your mom I say thanks, then,” you nodded, a small smile on your face as you appreciated the hat.

Minjae nodded. He handed the bag back to you and uttered a small “bye,” before shuffling back to his house. The bag seemed empty, so you wondered why on Earth he left you with the bag. You realized why he did when you got home— there was a tiny tootsie roll in the bag.

You sat in your room, the two chocolates in front of you. You stared at them in confusion. You were about to overthink the chocolates, but then your mother called you into the kitchen. You tossed them into a random drawer in your desk and made your way to the kitchen, completely forgetting about the chocolates.

The rest of the year was annoying, and as was the fall semester of your junior year. Minjae constantly greeted you in the halls whenever you saw him, but it was never in a, for lack of better terms, normal way. Sometimes, he’d make monkey noises and then say that he was doing his impression of you, or he would intentionally run his shoulder into yours, and sometimes he would slam your locker shut just as you opened it.

Junmin, on the other hand, didn’t get to see you as often. His classes were always on the opposite side of the school, and he didn’t even have lunch with you. Because of this development, all of your friends “flipped to Team Minjae”.

“Y/N, face it. Minjae is totally into you,” your friend said to you while walking through the halls, moments after Minjae rammed his shoulder against yours.

“No, he’s not. He used to do this to me all the time when we were kids. This is how he is,” you said while rubbing your shoulder— the impact hurt a little, not going to lie.

“These are things that boys do to their crushes, though. Maybe he liked you when you were kids.”

“Absolutely not. He always destroyed my sand castles and…” you couldn’t think of other things he did to you because you would hold a bug and chase him around before he could do anything to you— preventative measures. “Anyway, we’re childhood friends… No, not even friends. We’re neighbors. That’s all we’ll ever be.”

Junior year meant you could drive home, so you didn’t take the bus anymore. You didn’t see either Minjae or Junmin when you got home, which was always somewhat of a relief because you were tired of seeing Minjae at school. Junmin, on the other hand, wasn’t bad. Seeing him was never irritating.

You shook your head. Why were you thinking about those boys in the first place when they didn’t hold a special place in your heart? They weren’t worth the thought. You had other things to think about, like your grades; not boys, and definitely not the neighbor boys.

“Y/N!” Minjae called your name while you walked through the halls.

“God…” you muttered under your breath before turning to him and asking loudly, “What do you want, Minjae?”

“Come here,” he walked towards the stairwell.

Reluctantly, you did as he said and joined him in the stairwell. “Okay, what is it?”

He closed the door to the stairwell. You narrowed your eyes. What was he doing?

“I have something I want to tell you.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

Minjae took a step towards you, and you immediately took a step back. He was definitely acting weird. He kept walking towards you, and you kept walking backwards away from him, only for your back to hit the wall. Your eyes darted back and forth as he pinned you against the wall. His face was so close to yours that you felt like you could count each individual, surprisingly gorgeous, eyelash of his.

“I like you, Y/N. Go out with me,” he said quietly but not so quietly that you couldn’t hear him clearly.

“Minjae, stop messing around.”

You tried to push him away and leave, but he grabbed your arms and pinned them above your head to the wall. One hand holding your arms and his other hand pressing against the wall by your hip, Minjae said, “I’m serious, Y/N. I like you. I really fucking like you.”

Your eyes went wide— you’d never heard him say the f word before. Your heart raced as he leaned in, his lips nearly brushing past yours…

Then, your alarm went off. You sat up immediately, your forehead breaking into a cold sweat. What the fuck was that dream?!

You couldn’t face Minjae normally after that dream ever again. You did you best to avoid him at any given moment in the day to the point where you just carried all your textbooks with you so that you wouldn’t have to stop at your locker. Your friends didn’t realize that you were trying to avoid him, so they just assumed that Minjae lost interest. At least your love life was no longer a topic of discussion within your group.

You did a good job in avoiding him until the block party. You couldn’t believe that you had to face him during the party, and it made you nervous as hell. Your heart was already fluttering before you even saw the guy. How on Earth did one measly dream make you crush on a boy that was mean to you all through your childhood?

The party was at Junmin’s house that time. Your family was the first to arrive at the party, which thankfully meant that it was just you and Junmin.

“Hey, I haven’t seen you in a while,” Junmin greeted you with a smile.

He was sitting in the living room flipping through channels. You took a seat next to him. “I know, right? How’ve you been?”

“Busy. Practice got so much more intense now that we’re on varsity.”

“We?”

“Yeah, me and Minjae.”

Your heart skipped a beat. Even the mere mention of his name freaked you out. You hated that.

“How have the games been?” you asked, desperately trying to return your heart rate to normal.

“We’re doing well this season! You should really come for one of our games. We have a home game next week.”

“I don’t know… I’m not a huge basketball fan…”

“You won’t know if you don’t try. At least come for me? Please?”

Junmin stared at you with the most adorable puppy dog eyes, making your heart flutter. Unable to deal with his cute face, you nodded, his eyes immediately sparkling after.

“Promise?”

He held out his pinky.

“Promise.”

You locked your pinky with his.

Even when Minjae arrived at the party, you didn’t realize, nor were you bothered by it. It had just been so long since you had seen Junmin that the two of you talked the entire night. Minjae didn’t even approach the two of you because he had no idea what you both were talking about.

“They’re so cute together, aren’t they?” Minjae heard the aunties talking.

“They are! It would be so cute if they started dating.”

“Can I tell you ladies a secret?” Junmin’s mom approached the women. Minjae, still within earshot, heard Junmin’s mom say, “Junmin’s liked Y/N for a while. Hyunwoo’s mom told me.”

“Why Hyunwoo’s mom?”

“Because Hyunwoo can’t keep a secret.”

Minjae frowned. He had no idea that Junmin was still into you like that. With a shrug, he walked away from the gossiping aunties and hung out with the other boys, leaving you and Junmin to talk the rest of the night.

And lo and behold, the aunties spoke the ship into existence. After you promised Junmin that you’d go to the home game and followed through with your promise, Junmin was delighted. He asked you out that night after their school won— you both were walking back to your car, and he asked you when you got to your car. He was ecstatic when you said yes, but he didn’t kiss you. No, he hugged you, told you that he’d text you about taking you on a date, and left to get into his own car.

Your relationship with Junmin lasted the rest of your high school lives. You went to every single basketball game, you both took turns driving to and from school, and he even took you to prom. Your first kiss happened during your senior year homecoming, and, well, progressed to be more intimate as time went on.

Junmin made you completely forget about your brief crush on Minjae, so when you met them at the games, you talked to Minjae normally. Minjae, on the other hand, distanced himself, using the excuse that he hated romance as a reason to keep away (not that you cared about the justification).

When the three of you graduated, the aunties wanted the three of you to stand together and take a picture. You wrapped one arm around Junmin’s and leaned into him, Minjae standing awkwardly next to you.

“What are you doing? Come here,” you stretched your arm out for Minjae and linked arms with him.

Minjae ears went red, and his face turned a dusty shade of pink. Nonetheless, he kept his arm linked with yours, and the huge gap that was between the two of you disappeared. The pictures turned out great with all three of you standing near each other with wide smiles on your faces. The pictures were so good, in fact, that you didn’t even notice that in one of the pictures, Minjae was looking at you longingly despite the fact that he was standing right next to you.

After you graduated from college, you decided to go home for a couple of months. You were tired from studying and just wanted a little break before starting to work. Also, living rent free didn’t sound too bad, and you missed your mom’s cooking. So many reasons to go home.

Being home, though, you were worried about running into Junmin. The two of you broke up the first year of college because long distance wasn’t working out for the two of you. There weren’t any hard feelings, but Junmin did find a new significant other, so you didn’t want to interact because you were completely and utterly single.

Since you had nothing to study for and no work to do, you found yourself wondering what to do with yourself. So, one day, you laid down in the grass in your backyard and just stared at the sky. You thought about how simple life used to be and thought about what you did as kids to pass the time. Sure, there was the sandbox, which Minjae’s mom got rid of the second all the kids on the block went to college, and there was a park nearby, but that definitely wasn’t all of it. You were thinking about it so hard that you didn’t even realize someone had approached you, their head moving over you and blocking the view.

“Y/N?”

���Jesus!” you sat up immediately, nearly screaming. “Minjae! You scared the shit outta me!”

“Sorry,” Minjae apologized, although he didn’t sound sorry in the slightest. “Mind if I join you?”

You patted a spot of grass next to you, Minjae promptly sitting there. The two of you sat in complete and utter silence. The sound of the wind and the birds filled the silence, but for some reason, it just made you even more aware of the fact that you didn’t even know what to talk to Minjae about. So, you laid back down in the grass and stared at the sky. Minjae mirrored your actions.

“What are we looking at?” Minjae asked, being the first one to break the silence.

“Well, I was thinking more than looking…”

“Thinking about what?”

“About how we used to the pass time as kids. Like, other than the sand pit and the park, what else did we do?”

“You would steal my shoe and climb up a tree so that I couldn’t get it because you knew I was afraid of heights,” Minjae responded almost immediately.

“Oh, right,” you couldn’t help but laugh. “I did use to do that, didn’t I? Are you still afraid of heights?”

Minjae didn’t respond, making you laugh harder. You sat up and clutched your stomach as you laughed your ass off. Minjae sat up too, a small frown on his face.

“Come on, it’s not easy to get over a fear…” Minjae pouted.

“No, you’re right,” you agreed as you wiped tears from your eyes— you laughed so hard you started crying. “I’m sorry for laughing.”

“That’s okay.”

You stood up and held your hand out to help Minjae up. After dusting your pants off, the two of you walked to the neighborhood park. You sat on the benches near the basketball court and continued talking.

“Do you still play basketball?”

“Not competitively, but for fun, yeah.”

The two of you talked about very surface level things, but your conversation stretched out and kept going and going. You never realized you could talk to Minjae for so long, but the two of you weren’t children anymore. You grew up, and with growing up comes different conversations.

Both of your families ended up having dinner together, his parents grilling you about job prospects and your parents with him. By the end of the exhausting interrogative dinner, you and Minjae stood outside on the deck. It was pretty dark outside, and the only thing to illuminate the area were the porch lights of all the houses.

“Did you hear about Junmin?” Minjae asked tentatively.

“Yeah… I mean, good for him. He’s a nice guy,” you said with a sigh.

“What about you?”

“What about me what?”

“Are you seeing anyone?”

You burst out laughing. Hearing those words from Minjae’s mouth was so foreign, and you never ever thought he would say that phrase to you.

“What’s so funny?” Minjae looked at you with concern.

“No, it’s just— You sounded almost like an ex-boyfriend,” you explained after calming down. “But, no. I’m not. Are you?”

“I mean, I am an ex-friend that is a boy,” Minjae mumbled, but you didn’t hear him. Louder, he answered your question, “No, I’m not either.”

“Why not?” the words flew out of your mouth.

“What do you mean why not?” Minjae asked with a laugh. “I just never found someone that I really liked.”

You nodded— it was the same for you after you broke up with Junmin.

The two of you went silent. The only thing you could hear were the buzzes of grasshoppers and cicadas. From inside the house, your mothers were looking at your backs.

“Remember when we used to say that these two would get together?” your mom whispered to Minjae’s mom.

“Yes, I do… Do you think they will?”

“Maybe… Should we keep watching?”

“I don’t see why not.”

The two of you were unaware that your mothers were watching you— your backs were still facing them as Minjae spoke softly.

“I have something to tell you.”

Your mind immediately flashed back to the dream you had about him, and memories of crushing on Minjae flooded your brain. You felt your face heat up as Minjae turned his entire body to face you. He didn’t take a step towards you like he did in the dream, but he did scoot the tiniest bit closer to you.

“Remember when you and Junmin started dating?”

You were not expecting him to say that. Your heart calmed down slightly, and you nodded in response.

“Well, back then, right before you two started dating, you came to watch our game for the first time. My heart skipped a beat because I thought that you came to see me even though I knew you were there because he asked you to come… And I kept thinking about how nice it would have been if you were there for me and not him…”

Your jaw dropped. Was Minjae… Confessing?

“I don’t even know when I caught feelings for you, Y/N… All I know is that whenever Junmin talked about you, I’d get annoyed, so I’d annoy you. I liked when you gave me your attention, and when you started avoiding me—”

“You knew I was avoiding you?” you interrupted.

“Of course I did. You’re not as subtle as you think. I don’t know why you were, but I decided to lay off because I thought you were upset with me. I didn’t want to upset you…”

Empty noises left your body. You didn’t even know how to respond to that revelation with anything other than the truth.

“Seeing you with Junmin was hard… I kept wishing I was him…”

“Minjae…”

“Tell me something, Y/N. Did you hate me back then?”

You had to tell him the truth. “No...” you bit your lower lip and looked down. “I avoided you because… I had a crush on you… And we grew up together so I thought it was weird and that I shouldn’t have been looking at you like that…”

“So you didn’t avoid me because you hated me?”

“I hated you when we were kids, but I never avoided you when we were kids.”

Minjae bit back a slight laugh. He smiled with relief, and your heart raced. He had the same face he did when you were younger, but he looked so much more attractive now, like he grew into his features. You felt your heartbeat louder when Minjae leaned into you.

“Y/N, I have something I want to tell you.”

God, your dream was happening. Your high school dream was coming to life.

“Yeah? What is it?”

“I like you.”

He reached out and cupped your cheek, your face instantly heating up.

“Can I take you on a date sometime, some place?”

This was so much nicer than your high school dream, to say the least.

“I would like that.”

“And… Would it be okay if I kissed you right now?”

“I would really like that…”

Minjae couldn’t help but smile. You felt his hand snake around your waist and pull you even closer to him. Your hands rested on his shoulders as he brought your face towards his, his lips brushing against yours.

This time, you didn’t wake up— you were awake, and this very real Minjae was actually kissing you. The first kiss was soft, but the second was passionate, desperate. His hold on you got tighter, and he kissed you as if he was trying to make up for lost time. Butterflies filled your stomach. When his lips trapped your lower lip and sucked lightly, you felt the world spinning. He leaned into you and kissed you harder, both of his arms around your waist. Your hold on his shoulders was weakening— the more he kissed you, the more your mind went blank.

Yet, when he released your lips and moved back, you leaned towards him wanting more. You moved your hands so that they held onto his neck and pulled him towards you again. His lips were addicting, and you wanted more of him. But, he kept making little comments in between the kisses.

“I like you, Y/N.” Kiss. “I seriously like you.” Kiss. “I like you so much.”

He tried to kiss you again but you covered his lips with your hand and said, “Shut up. Do you have a problem with kissing without talking or something?”

“No, monkey.”

“Monkey?!” you slapped his shoulder. “If I’m a monkey, then you’re still a mop-head.”

“I’ll be your mop-head,” Minjae rubbed his nose against yours lightly. “And you’re my monkey.”

“Don’t make me put you in a headlock.”

“Kinky.”

“Minjae!” you gasped, your face immediately heating up.

“I’m kidding! Just kidding,” Minjae laughed at your red face and hugged you.

You hugged him back and sunk into his warmth and familiar, natural scent. And when he leaned back to look at your face, you kissed him quickly, smiles blossoming on your face, then his.

You both finally turned towards the house to head back inside, only to see your moms and dads watching the whole scene unfold with popcorn in their hands. The two of you immediately separated, the two of you now completely embarrassed.

“See, we told you that you’d end up together!” Minjae’s mom said with a laugh.

[raging-feminism]

Hello, I am a 13 year old girl living in 2023, I’ve always been passionate about feminism and equality. I honestly just want everyone to get along, but I know that’s not happening, so I’d just like to use this blog as a way sexism has affected me as a girl in society now, thank you.

Ever since I was little gender norms have been pushed down my throat, I’ve been bullied all my life, and sometimes it would end in violence towards me. If a boy were to hit me, shove me, grope me, harass me, constantly call me slurs, online bully me, etc, I was told it was just boys being boys, and that they liked me. Whenever I would say anything to anyone I would be called a snitch, or a prude. A nagger. Love that for me! I’ve always wondered how boys harassing me every day of my life, calling my the r slur and a lesbo, telling me I should slit my wrists, saying I deserved to be raped for the way I dressed or the way I talked, was just boys being boys.

I remember when I was 8 years old, there was this one kid that would not leave me alone, I was in 3rd grade at the time. Everytime we had partner work it would be “Boys, pick a girl to work with.” He always chose me, it was 3rd grade, we all were and still are young, there were a bunch of blocks in a bin in the back of the classroom. He would sit me behind a table and throw blocks at me while I did his work. I didn’t tell the teacher for 4 months, when I told her the response I got was “He must like you! Isn’t that adorable?” I still remember the way she looked at me in awe, after I literally came to her crying with bruises all over my legs and arms.

2 nights ago, my parents had a Christmas party. They wouldn’t let me stay in my room, but I have severe anxiety and panic disorder, and find it hard to be around people. I was kinda just sitting on my couch the whole time. My neighbors son is 10 years old. He kept sitting down on the couch with me, which was awkward and scary for me, but I didn’t do anything because it was just a normal human interaction I can barely handle. He kept getting closer, eventually he just kept groping my tits. I kept asking him to stop but he wouldn’t so I just got up and hung out with my friends and some other random kids and neighbors, everyone got really energetic and it made me anxious, so I left again. At this point my neighbor had groped me about 7 times that night, he came up to me on the couch and started humping my leg, I kept moving but he just kept getting up on my knee and humping me. I get he’s 10, but it’s nasty. I told my dad, his response? He laughed and said “isn’t he a fucking rizzler? Gonna get all the girls when he’s older, lighten up. He doesn’t mean anything by it.” When I get really anxious I get physically sick, I threw up in the bathroom and stayed there until our neighbors left. I love my neighbors, the mom and two daughters are so sweet, and I don’t want to hate the son, but I do. The dad is a genuine criminal and is on the run from the police at the moment, I’ll probably get into that and what he’s done to me in another post. This is all im writing for now. If you read this, thank you. Please be honest, am I overreacting?