#also i love the 'full of sand' so stupid

[webonchin]

Tw! For pregnancy, belly (not kink or spicy...)

messing around a bit and I ended up drawing Dream expecting just because mhh yhea why not , thinking if I should share it here or not(bc i'm shy), someone will like it or not, either way the full actual drawing is below the cut

He looks pretty like that ...

I blame the great dreaming authors in this fandom who have baby fics! (Affectionately)

The whole pregnancy thing has always been a big ick in general for me (I have a phobia wow lol) but consuming content related to what I like that deals with it has helped me to not stress so much...And going back to the topic, I don't know the idea of ​​characters who have a bad relationship with paternity, either due to loss, separating, growing up,etc. experience having the opportunity to start a family on your own (not necessarily "biological" as they say) is something very comforting for me ,also non-human pregnancy can be a very interesting topic *thumbs up*

[gayabeilles]

my house is STINKY send post

[xenteaart]

you are not difficult

pairing: chan x reader (i wrote it with idol!chan or producer!chan in mind, but it can fit any au, really) word count: no idea but it's short genre/warnings: er, angst, hurt/comfort, implied suffering w depression, implied history of SH. also implied shitty ex. so PLS keep that in mind before you read. also, it's all good in the end. author's note: it's a self comfort thing y'all but i hope you like it too.

it was yet another night where everything felt too much and you kinda hated yourself for it. bad day, maybe some hormonal imbalance due to a certain time in your cycle, history of mental illness — it's hard to put a finger on the exact cause. you're sick of trying, anyways.

chris was, of course, right there for you, and as you were falling apart in his arms, your entire soul was aching so bad that it made you want to crawl out of your own skin. it's usually like that, everywhere in your body like some sort of extreme inflammation, except physically you're perfectly fine.

"'m sorry…" you blurt out somewhere between your sobs and cries, still unable to hold eye contact with him.

"baby, you have nothing to be sorry for," chan shakes his head and keeps rubbing circles into your back, just between the shoulder blades where the ache feels the most excruciating.

"kiss me?" you squeak. almost pathetic, honestly, but it's always been your way of checking, whether he still wants you. whether he still loves you and desires you, even at your lowest, even with your mascara all smudged over your cheeks, eyes puffy and red, lips slightly irritated and swollen. even when there's a gaping black hole where the heart is supposed to be.

chris doesn't even question it, really. he simply leans in and gives you a long sweet kiss full of both a partner's tenderness and a lover's lust, so, so willing to do whatever it takes to calm the thunderstorm inside your mind and ease your struggle.

the kiss doesn't really satisfy you, the feeling is still there.

"sorry," you whisper again as you breathe out into chan's lips but the intimate contact doesn't last long. chris frowns and makes some distance between you two to look into your eyes.

"why? baby, why do you keep apologizing?" he sounds gentle but still slightly frustrated.

"i dunno? cos 'm difficult? for bein' difficult?"

there's a silence as he blinks a few times, processing and putting two and two together.

"just because it was difficult for them to love you and take care of you, doesn’t make you difficult. you are not difficult. like, at all," he puts on his serious tone, the one he uses for you when you can't see the obvious and he has to remind you.

you don't really know what to say to that, so you keep playing with the tissue paper in your hands, ripping it apart piece by piece just to keep yourself busy and focused on something other than the burning ache in your chest.

"dealing with mental health isn't easy, that one is true, baby, but it's so easy to love you. you are easy to love. even now, looking so small and in pain but it's still you, and my duty as your boyfriend is to take care of you when you can't. and, hell, you're one of the most capable people i know, so please just let me hold your hand through it once in a while, yeah?" chan speaks slowly and quietly, as if to make every single word sink in, tenderly forcing it into your stupid lovely brain that refuses to cooperate sometimes.

chris feels safe. he feels like lighting up a cookie scented candle after a long day at work. he's the feeling of the ocean timidly licking at your feet and burying them deeper into warm wet sand. chris is the first sip of coffee in the morning and the cold side of the pillow at night. he's everything worth living and trying for.

"thank you," is the only thing you manage to say, but in the way you lean back into his embrace he's able to read a lot more.

"do you want a nice mug o' hot chocolate and some fairy bread, baby?"

this question makes you hiccup and sob once again. you nod and nuzzle closer into the crook of his neck.

[pomefioredove]

First of all, love your writing it always makes me do a flustered happy giggle. And for the flirty prompts could you do Leona with "I can't stop thinking about you."?

THANK YOU and also ohohoho

summary: "I can't stop thinking about you" type of post: short fic characters: leona additional info: romantic, reader is gender neutral, reader is not specified to be yuu, fluffy and sappy

You were persistent, he'd give you that.

After months of brushing you off, ignoring you, avoiding you, and giving you some not-so-subtle threats, Leona was beginning to think you actually did want him to sand you.

It was almost as if you liked him, or something.

How stupid, he had thought. No one actually liked him. His classmates respected him, his own family tolerated him at best...

But no one seemed too bothered with actually getting to know him.

Except for you, that is.

Perhaps, then, that was the reason he started reading the little notes you'd leave under his pillow, keeping the little handmade things you gifted him.

It was adorably naïve.

He'd stay up late, reading and rereading your messages, wondering how hard one would have to hit their head to consider pursuing him as a friend.

A school full of herbivores, and you wanted him.

Leona would let you ask questions, and he would answer them patiently. He'd even ask a few of his own.

He let you braid his hair once, and it felt nice, though he would never admit that aloud.

Soon, his name on your tongue sounded natural, as if it were meant just for you to say, and he wondered if you felt the same about him.

You were persistent, and then patient.

Even at his worst, on the days where the world was too loud and he couldn't even get up for fear of reminding himself that he was still him, you were there.

You never gave up on him, no matter how difficult he was, and he was surely difficult. Leona thought it was annoying, and, suddenly, he couldn't live without it.

He felt sick around you. He knew what it was, but he wouldn't say it.

Not out loud.

"I can't stop thinking about you," he murmurs one night, your hand held delicately in his, as if he were still afraid of scaring you off.

You say nothing, not that you need to.

Instead, you give his hand a firm squeeze, holding it tighter.

You were never scared.

[7s3ven]

HATE YOU, LOVE YOU. aonung x fem! r

[ full masterlist ]

IN WHICH... Aonung has no future mate; as a last resort, he is set to marry the eldest Sully daughter. The only problem is that their hatred for each other runs deep.

Notes: Omatikaya! Sully! Reader, somewhat enemies to lovers (I tried), swearing, age isn’t mentioned but aonung + you are like mid/late teens, no use of y/n, oldest sister (same age as aonung but kiri and tuk and maybe lo’ak are younger than you), one bed trope, arranged marriage

—

You didn't like Aonung from the start. He was rude, egotistical, and overall an entirely unpleasant person to be around.

He could say the same about you. He had always had it out for you from day one. The moment you arrived with your family, Aonung had disliked you the most out of the bunch.

He always found Kiri strange and Lo’ak and Neteyam insufferable but you were the bane of his existence. He almost despised you. The way you walked, talked, and acted released an anger inside of him that felt foreign.

He watched as you strutted around in beautifully beaded loincloths, smiling at the boys who stumbled past you with awestruck expressions. They loved you, he did not.

"Are you sure it's not just jealousy?" Roxto uttered as Aonung's ears folded back at the mere sight of you.

Aonung scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Me? Jealous of her? No way." He scrunched up his nose. "She's a stupid tree hugger." Roxto's eyes darted from Aonung to stare at you. You were sending Aonung an angry glare after accidentally overhearing him.

"A tree hugger, Aonung? At least I don't accidentally swallow sea water every five minutes." You hissed, your thin tail swishing in fury. Aonung returned your glower. "Don't forget how I can easily beat you to a pulp."

Aonung especially hated how you always picked fights. You were nothing like Kiri and Neteyam, who were calm and tried to avoid conflict for their own good. Aonung theorised Lo'ak got his fighting spirit from you. Yet, as shameful as it was to admit, Aonung also knew you could and would beat him in every brawl. Your sharp tongue and quick reflexes always managed to cut him down to size every time.

You lifted a brow as you watched Aonung flex his hands to suppress his frustration at your words.

"You talk like a big boy, but we both know how that'll end." You poke his exposed chest, ears flicking in annoyance. You tilted your head, almost daring him to make another move.

He clenched his jaw, tongue running over his teeth. He knew he should have walked off the moment you approached him, but he didn't. He was regretting it now. You had a spark in your eyes, a telltale sign of you preparing to beat him into the ground.

"Is that a threat, skxawng?" Aonung stepped closer, staring down at you.

"Yeah, you scared?" You retorted with a smirk as your tail flicked in amusement.

Aonung sneered at you. The sight of your lips curved into a smirk did something to him. His pulse quickened, and he couldn't tell if it was because you made him angry or because your pretty face was so close to his.

"As if." Aonung jeered, quickly turning around. You watched him leave, disappointed he hadn't put up a bigger fight. Arguing with Aonung and seeing his shocked face at your quick insults were the highlight of your day.

“Y/N!” You heard Kiri call out for you. You glanced over your shoulder, waving at your sister. “Father is looking for you. I think it’s urgent.” You sighed, ears flopping.

“Coming.” You slowly drawled. The warm sand shifted under your feet as you turned. You fell into step with its Kiri, feeling her curious gaze burn into you.

“What were you two arguing about this time?” Kiri questioned. She could tell by the aggravated look on your face that you had recently spoken to Aonung.

“He’s an idiot.” You muttered, baring your fangs, “I don’t know how anyone can stand him.”

Kiri hummed, her lips curving into a teasing smile. “And yet you always find a way to talk to him.” You shot her a glare in response.

You saw your father, Jake Sully, standing at the entrance of your family pod, pacing back and forth. He lifted his head, looking a little more relieved to see you.

“Father.” You greeted him, looking around curiously. Your mother, Neytiri, stood in the corner of the pod but there was no sign of your two brothers and Tuk. You tilted your head.

“Good luck.” Kiri whispered in your ear. You whipped your head to face her, eyes wide.

“What?” You whispered, panic growing in your chest. Why was Kiri wishing you luck? Had you done something to anger your parents? They had grown used to your squabbles with Aonung to the point where they looked past it.

But you had not punched him, not gotten into any impulsive fights, or caused any trouble. So what could you have possible done?

Your racing thoughts were cut short when Tonowari cleared his throat. Your gaze shifted from him to his wife, Ronal, who stood beside him with her usual calm demeanour. It was Aonung, however, who caught your attention. He stood on the sidelines, equally as confused. Your lips immediately curled into an unimpressed sneer. He mirrored your look, folding his arms over his chest.

The silent exchange of glares were your normal routine now.

Tonowari clearing his throat snapped the two of you back to reality. He shared a brief look with Jake before ushering both you and his son inside the pod. Jake, Neytiri, and Ronal all stood in front of you while Tonowari remained behind, ensuring neither you nor Aonung had the faintest idea of making a run for it.

You and Aonung stood side by side, shoulders brushing. You would have immediately stepped away if it wasn’t for Tonowari keeping you firmly in place. His hand finally slipped off your shoulder as he walked to join Jake, Neytiri, and his mate.

You watched the four of them carefully, eyes narrowed.

“Aonung.” Tonowari addressed his son first, “You have yet to find a mate.” You turned your head to suppress your snickers.

“I don’t think he ever will.” You uttered, rolling your eyes. “And I don’t think I can help with whatever… love problems he’s dealing with.”

“Hush, daughter.” Neytiri snapped, “This is no joking matter.” Your ears straightened up at her harsh tone. She rarely ever spoke to you like that.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Aonung lower his head to hide his mocking grin. Though, he received the same treatment.

“Do not smile, Aonung!” Ronal exclaimed.

You and Aonung locked eyes, wondering what you both had done to end up here. Your tail nervously swished and it took immense control to still it.

“We have been discovering this matter for weeks now. Jake Sully has made it clear that he has no intention of leaving so suddenly.” Tonowari finally spoke up again. “This decision has been carefully considered and, as a last resort, we must take it.”

Your stomach dropped as Tonowari’s gaze landed on you. It quickly flickered to Aonung, who immediately stiffened.

“Y/N.” Jake stepped forward. You tensed, feeling lightheaded all of a sudden. Your father’s expression was firm and you could tell he wasn’t exactly thrilled about the decision Tonowari was referring to. “Your mother and I have discussed it at lengths and we do not want to pressure you into such things but it must be done. For the good of both the Metkayina clan and our family, we have agreed that you two will become a mated pair.”

Your ears loudly ring as your heart almost came to a stop. You and Aonung? A mated pair? You could barely stand being in a five metre radius of each other. How could you be expected to share such proximity?

“Him?!” You exclaimed, pointing a finger at Aonung. “Could you not have chosen anybody else?!”

“Father, Mother, I cannot marry this tree hugger! She will kill me in my sleep!” Aonung shoved you away.

“You will learn to get along.” Ronal’s calm voice pierced the chaos.

“But I hate him!” You shouted, ears pinning against your head.

“And I hate her!” Aonung added, his eyes pleading for his parents to reconsider their choice.

“And that’s the way it’s meant to me!” You both screamed in unison.

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Well, based on that little in-sync thing you two have going on, you should get along just fine.”

Ronal shooed the two of you away so they could discuss private matters. You gladly left, relieved to be free of the suffocating atmosphere.

“This is all your fault.” Aonung hissed as he passed you. You loudly scoffed, reaching out a hand to tug on his tail.

“My fault? It’s your fault that you don’t have a mate! Now I have to consider a future with you of all people!” You pushed him aside, your tail slapping his leg to prove your point.

“Well, maybe if you didn’t fool my family into thinking you’re some kind of prissy princess then we wouldn’t be in this situation!” Aonung fired back.

“Oh, look at you. Using big words now. As if you’re any better. You treat other girls decently but when it comes to you, you look like you wanna drown me!”

You heard a quiet hiss slip past Aonung’s slips. “That’s putting it kindly. The things I’d actually do to you are much worse.”

You paused, looking over your shoulder with a disgusted face. Aonung immediately realized his mistake. “That sounded a little more sexual than I intended.” He muttered, “But you get my point!”

“I don’t speak buffoon, sorry.”

“Did you know about this?” He grasped your wrist, pulling you back. You groaned, turning so fast your braided hair almost hit you in the face.

“You think I’d be this angry if I knew? If I knew about the arrangement, I would have been long gone before they announced it to us! Now let go.” You attempted to pry your arm from out of Aonung’s grip but he didn’t falter. “I said let go, jerk!” Out of instinct, you slapped his face. Hard.

His grasp loosened and you were able to free your arm. “Weirdo.” You whispered under your breath as you stormed away. You let Aonung a fuming mess as he held a hand over his cheek. It was turning red from your harsh slap.

Aonung bared his teeth. You had slapped him. Out of everybody you could’ve have hit, you chose him. He watched your retreating figure, teeth clenched out of annoyance yet a blush still spread over his cheeks.

You made the mistake of telling Tsireya after not being able to find Kiri to confide in. Tsireya then told her Metkayina friends who shamelessly spread the gossip. After that, the word of your betrothal spread quickly. Aonung barely had time to return to his own friends before they patted him on the back and laughed.

“You tamed the wild Sully girl!” One exclaimed. Aonung deeply frowned.

“It’s not like I want her to be my mate anyway.” He grumbled. Both you and Aonung were stubborn and hard-headed, preferring to do tasks your own way instead of asking for help. Perhaps that was why the two of you always clashed; because you were too similar for your own good.

You didn’t show your face for the rest of the day. You were stuck in your family’s pod, arguing with your father and trying to change his mind. Your attempts were fruitless.

“I’m going for a walk.” You scoffed, quickly walking away. Nobody tried to stop you. Kiri called out your name but Neytiri gently hushed her.

“Let her clear her mind.” Neytiri uttered.

You wandered along the sandy shore of a nearby beach, tail lashing in fury and kicking up sand as your frustration bubbled up. You raked a hand through your long hair, the village lights getting fainter the further you walked. You picked up a rock, angrily hurling it into the cold ocean.

“Great, now you’re destroying our beaches. That was a sacred rock, you know.” Aonung’s presence behind you only made things worse.

You glared at him. “Cut the bullshit.” You kicked up a flurry of sand at him.

“I’m not joking. Maybe if you retrieve the rock, my parents will call off the deal.” Aonung watched in amusement as you actually slipped into the water, disappearing below the surface. You returned a moment later, the wet rock in your hand. Beads of water trickled down your exposed skin and your hair stuck uncomfortably to your face.

“Here.” You dropped the rock on his foot, grinning as he jumped.

“Ow! That hurt!”

“I know. It was supposed to.”

Aonung let out an exasperated sigh. He crossed his arms over his chest, his usual sign of annoyance. “You aren’t special, you know.” He muttered. You resisted the urge to roll your eyes at his words. His biting remarks meant nothing to you.

“Oh, what a shocking revelation. How did you come to such a conclusion?”

Confusion clouded Aonung’s face before he shook his head. “And you speak weirdly.”

“No. You’re just dumb.”

Aonung clicked his tongue. “I’m trying to be nice and you’re dropping rocks on me.”

“If that was you being nice, I’ll pass.”

The constant bickering reminded Aonung that no matter how hard the both of you tried, you just couldn’t see eye to eye.

There was a moment of silence. Aonung slowly shifted to stand beside you, keeping a respectable distance but close enough to see you out of the corner of his eye.

You were pretty, especially in the moonlight. The moon bathed your face in a soft glow, your freckles shining like the constellations spread out across the starry sky. Aonung’s gaze subtly travelled to the sharp curve of your jaw and the way your head was proudly tilted. Your long braids swayed in the gentle breeze.

Aonung glanced up at the dark sky, eyes trailing over the glittering stars before flickering back to your face. And yet, no star shone as brightly as the freckles dotting your cheeks.

Your beauty was infuriating. How could someone so alluring be so argumentative?

Realising he had been staring for far too long, Aonung quickly refocused on gaze on the sand below.

“You were staring.” You flatly said, ears tilting in amusement.

Aonung merely scoffed in reply, crossing his arms defensively. “In your dreams.”

The sound of the waves softly crashing against the shore was comforting as you slowly kneeled down. The usual harshness in your doe eyes was replaced with something gentle as you became suddenly enamoured by the seashells at your feet.

“How do you feel about the arrangement?” Aonung joined you on the ground with a heavy sigh. He leaned back, his arms supporting him, and stretched out his legs. You peered through your lashes, staring at him, before softly scoffing.

“Bullshit.” You whispered. “You should already have a mate by now. Why do you not?”

Aonung shrugged. “I don’t want anyone here. None of the girls appeal to me. They will simply love me to elevate their status.”

“You’re getting serious. Using big words.” For the first time in history, you smiled at Aonung. It was barely visible, the corners of your mouth barely twitched, but he saw it.

“I want someone who likes me for me. Who doesn’t care about my status.” Aonung’s hand sifted through the grains of sand before he glanced over to see what you were doing. He was taken aback when he locked eyes with you. You were still staring at him while fiddling with an intricate shell.

“How cute.” You replied. Aonung watched as you stood up, brushing the sand off your skin. “I must go now. My family will be wondering where I am.”

You didn’t bother saying good-bye to Aonung. The words would have felt bitter in your mouth. Aonung let you leave. He picked up the shell you had left behind, twirling it around in his hands.

The truce between you and Aonung didn’t last long. By the next day, you were back to your usual routine; arguing nonstop until one of you surrendered.

It was the afternoon when you were finally free of Aonung. You watched Ronal as she worked, occasionally pausing to explain steps to you. An important job of being Tsahik was healing and since Neteyam was always the first in line, you had never bothered to learn. You were second in line and confident you would not have to take over for Neteyam. You were organising herb leaves when Aonung stepped into the hut, a shallow jagged cut running across his shoulder. You halted your actions.

“Y/N.” Ronal beckoned you over with a simple call of your name. She instructed you to hold Aonung’s shoulder down but the moment your cold hands brushed against his skin, he hissed.

“I don’t want her touching me!” Aonung exclaimed, pushing your hands away.

“You two will be doing a lot more than touching when you are mated.” Ronal huffed, lightly slapping her son for his petty behaviour.

Aonung turned to give Ronal a horrified stare. “Mother!” He shouted. “You know I would never do such actions with a tree hugger!”

You loudly clicked his tongue, delivering a sharp jab to his cut. He yelped in pain. “Jerk.” You grumbled.

“Spoiled brat.” Aonung quickly replied.

You opened your mouth to retort but you were quickly silenced by Ronal. “Enough!” The Tsahik exclaimed, glaring at the both of you. “I do not care how you two get along but the fate of this clan is in your hands. Do not disappoint me.”

“She’s not even Metkayina.” Aonung mumbled, huffing. He winced as Ronal disinfected the cut on his shoulder.

“Metkayina or not, it has been decided. You will accept it.” She sent a firm look your way, “Both of you.” She quickly wrapped Aonung’s wound. “You are dismissed.” She said, turning to you. “Aonung, spend time with her. I do not need your petty rivalry getting in the way.”

Aonung frowned but he didn’t not have the courage to defy his mother. He quickly grabbed your wrist, pulling you out of the healing hut. “Where do you wanna go?” He muttered, uninterested.

You kicked his shin. “I don’t know. You’re the one dragging me.” Aonung didn’t reply. He simply tugged you towards whatever destination he had chosen in his mind and you merely followed him. “I’m really hoping you’re not a serial killer now.” You voiced as you followed him through the thick vegetation.

“I would have killed you first if I was.”

You rolled your eyes at his response but you couldn’t muffle your small laugh. At least he got your sense of humor. Aonung’s ears twitched at the sound of your light giggle, suddenly wishing he had heard it sooner. Maybe he would have stopped targeting you if he knew your laugh was so pretty.

He pushed past the last leaf to reveal an area of the beach you had never seen. You tilted your head, intrigued by the warm sand and the light of the sun reflecting off the clear water. Aonung finally let go of your wrist but you found yourself missing his touch more than you despised it. You pushed the thought to the back of your mind.

“I’ve never seen this area before.” You uttered, stepping forward. There were more seashells littering the ground and you eagerly crouched to glance at them. Aonung pretended not to pay you much attention as he stepped into the water, letting the ocean lap as his warm skin. He watched you from the corner of his eye as you grinned down at the shell you were holding.

“You like shells?” Aonung questioned, wondering why such a thing could make you look so happy. You lifted your head, nodding. You had never seen such things in the forest. It was all leaves, trees, and dirt. The sea shells were a delicate difference.

“I used to like acorns.” You said, showing Aonung a necklace that had a large acorn nut hanging over your chest. Aonung’s lips pulled into a thin line as he bit back a bitter comment.

“Strange.” Was all he said before turning his head. Your interest in acorns and shells was… odd, yet it was also a little cute to see your eyes sparkle over such simple trinkets. Aonung stiffened at his thoughts, quickly shaking his head to get rid of them. He looked back a moment later to find you gone.

He assumed you must have run off when he wasn’t paying attention but he felt something grasp his ankle. He didn’t have time to react before he was pulled down. When he swiftly resurfaced, he heard your quiet snickers.

“That was not very nice.” He groaned, taking a hand through his now wet hair. You merely shrugged, showing that you didn’t regret it one bit.

“Payback for the time you dragged me around with your ilu.”

Ah, Aonung had forgotten about that.

You lay on your stomach in the shallow water, body pressed up against the sand. The water engulfed you while your head perched above the surface, perfectly dry now.

As Aonung attempted to wring the water out of his hair, his gaze suddenly flickered to your face. He found himself noticing things he hadn’t before, like how the four most obvious freckles on the side of your face formed a square and the way a few strands of curled hair framed your face. He felt his breath hitch and he subconsciously took a step back.

“Ew, were you checking me out?” Of course, you had to ruin the moment with a loud scoff.

“As if.” Aonung growled, kicking droplets of water your way. In response, you grabbed a handful of wet sand, flinging it at his chest. You mockingly poked out your tongue at him, a gesture he had seen Kiri do often. Ah, so she got it from you.

“You’re making it very hard to be nice.” Aonung hissed. You almost laughed. Him? Being nice? The word nice wasn’t in his vocabulary.

“If that’s you being nice, I’d hate to see what mean looks like.” You teased. Aonung angrily huffed.

“The deal between our families isn’t off.” He grumbled, “So, we’re stuck together. You could at least try!”

“Hm. That’s the smartest thing you’ve said all day.”

Aonung dunked your face into the water as retaliation. You gasped, spitting out a mouthful of water. “Jerk!” You screamed at him.

“See! You aren’t even trying to be nice!”

“That’s because you shoved my head into the water, dumbass!”

Aonung sat himself beside you, a little too close for comfort. “Personally, I don’t want to be stuck with an angry mate.” His gaze raked over you. “My mother said compliments always work. So, uh… I like your hair?” His statement came out as more of a question. You stared at him, unimpressed. You quietly sighed.

“Fine.” You groaned. Your eyes flickered to him, searching for something to compliment him on. “I… um…” You clicked your tongue before pressing your lips into a thin line. Finally, you spoke up again. “I like your eyes.” You choked out.

“What do you like about my eyes?”

“That’s not fair. You didn’t describe why you like my hair.”

“I like it because it’s bouncy and no matter what you do with it, it’s always styled perfectly.”

You suppressed the urge to snarl at him. “Your eyes are blue.” You muttered, “I like blue. They are… different from the yellow eyes the Omatikaya possess. The blue matches the ocean and I like the ocean.”

You saw Aonung’s lips curve into a teasing smile. “See? That wasn’t so hard.”

“I feel like I’m going to be sick.”

You returned to your family pod tired. Trying to see eye to eye with Aonung was far more exhausting than anyone let on. It wasn’t only your personalities that clashed. He seemed to hate everything you loved.

You liked seashells. He did not.

You liked heights. He did not.

You liked a specific type of fruit. He despised it.

You were ready to collapse on your mattress but you halted when you saw your parents packing your things. “Uh… what’s going on?” Your asked, tail lashing. Neytiri simply smiled at you.

“I know this sudden… arrangement is hard on you, daughter. Kiri has offered to stay the night with you in a separate pod so you can gather your thoughts.” Your bag was shoved into your arms. You narrowed your eyes, a little suspicious, but you were too tired to argue.

“Okay.” You slowly said. “As long as I have somewhere to sleep, I don’t care.”

“It’s the one at the end of the village. Hurry now.” Neytiri quickly ushered you away. You sighed, lugging yourself towards the pod that sat a little isolated from the rest of the village.

“Kiri, I don’t see how this is supposed to help.” You groaned as you walked in, hearing loud rustling. Kiri must have arrived before you. But your gaze landed on someone who was definitely not Kiri.

“You’re not Tsireya.” Aonung sneered.

“And you’re not Kiri. What the fuck did you do this time?” You hissed.

“Tsireya told me she wanted a sleepover… I had to agree because I owed her a favor.”

“My mother told me Kiri would be sharing the pod with me.”

Suddenly, it clicked. The two of you had been tricked by your own family. You were thinking of storming back into the village but your mother wouldn’t be very pleased. You were already on thin ice for punching a Metkayina boy last week.

Begrudgingly, you dropped your heavy bag. “It’s only one night with you.” You muttered but it was more to reassure yourself. You looked at the only bed in the middle of the claustrophobic room. “I call dibs on the bed.” You jumped on it before Aonung could retort.

“Well, I’m not sleeping on the floor.” He tried to push you off but you stood your ground.

“Neither am I.” You seethed. You glared at each other before Aonung scoffed. You grabbed a pillow, dividing the already small bed into two smaller sections. “You stay on your side and I’ll stay on mine.”

“Fine by me. As if I’d willingly want to be close to you.” He rolled his eyes in that infuriating way he always did when he thought he had the upper hand.

You shot him a scathing look before slipping under the covers, lingering on the far edge of the mattress as though it might save you from the awkward proximity. Aonung climbed in on the opposite side, keeping as much distance as possible. It was already night, the moonlight shining through the cracks of the fabric covering the entrance. You and Aonung fell into an uncomfortable silence, broken only by the sound of the ocean waves gently lapping against the shore outside.

You closed your eyes, ignoring the growing tension. You fell into a peaceful slumber, your chest slowly rising up and down as your dreams were filled with the familiar sight of the forest.

The next time you opened your tired eyes, it was morning. You slowly blinked before noticing a warmth around you. You shifted, the feeling of something firm against your forehead. You froze, almost letting out a shrill scream. You were pressed against Aonung as he gently rocked you, still fast asleep. His arm was draped over your waist, keeping you close, while his tail wrapped itself securely around your leg.

You attempted to wriggle free to avoid an awkward conversation when he awoke but his arm pulled you closer. “I’m not a teddy bear, you buffering buffoon!” You slapped his shoulder. He stirred, eyelids slowly fluttering open. The first thing he saw was your angry face. His grasp on you loosened yet he didn’t immediately withdraw like you expected.

“I told you to stay on your side!” You exclaimed, punching his chest. The hit did nothing to harm him. If anything, it only amused him.

“I did!” He fired back, “You’re the one who turned around and attached yourself onto me!”

“I did not!”

“Did so!”

Accusations flew from both of your mouths and yet you were still pressed closely against each other. “Ugh! Get away from me!” You finally pushed him away, rolling to climb out of the bed. But you miscalculated and you ended up falling to the floor with a loud bang. Aonung was immediately at your side, not wanting to be responsible for your possible concussion.

He helped you up, which was the most gentle he had ever been. For once, his tight grip didn’t cause an aching bruise.

“I’m fine.” You snapped at him as he pressed something cool against your throbbing forehead.

“Stop being so stubborn.” Aonung forced you to sit down, noticing how you couldn’t stand without swaying. He left the pod without a word. You assumed he was fed up with your attitude. You didn’t expect him to return two minutes later while you tended to your headache, medicine in one of his hands and a beautiful shell in another.

“I, uh, found this.” He grumbled, holding the shell out for you. “It reminded me of you.” It was a pastel blue with speckles of yellow painting it. You stared down at it, studying the shell’s shape.

Aonung cleared his throat, his cheeks suddenly feeling hot. You saw how his face flushed with color as he almost nervously fidgeted with his hands. “Do you… like it?” He asked, “Because I can take it back if you hate it. I don’t really care. I knew you’d hate it anyway.” He reached out to take the shell back but you instinctively pulled it away.

“No… I like it.” You whispered, growing protective over the shell.

Your gaze drifted down from Aonung’s bright blue eyes to his necklace, a piece of jewellery with intricately woven string that held a tooth in the middle. He was… relatively good-looking. His arm band, adorned with shells, was wrapped tightly around his bicep. Aonung had a sort of rugged beauty to him, shaped by the relentless ocean and the harsh tidal waves.

“Are you checking me out?” Aonung used your own words from yesterday against you. You merely huffed, a mix of amusement and frustration swirling inside of you.

“As if.” But your words came out quiet. You glanced down at the shell once more, trailing a finger over it in curiosity.

Perhaps Aonung wasn’t so bad after all. If you managed to look past his aggravating and obnoxious tendencies, he wasn’t exactly the worst person you could be stuck with.

[strawberryblue-blog]

Summer love —Pablo Gavi.

summary: Spending the summer with your friends had always been something you loved but this time something is different, especially with Pablo.

warnings: none. cute/fluff, soft, friends to lovers, lots of kisses.

words count: +2.4k

The starry summer night shone over your heads as your friends laughed at the small campfire they had made. It was the summer vacations and all your friends had decided to come to Pedri's house in the Canary Islands where the best summer nights were spent.

After several hours of drinking, chatting, bathing in the water and returning to the campfire, the night was finally coming to an end. Some were falling asleep on the sand while the others were fooling around about anything. It was already too late and you were starting to feel a little tired. You had spent most of the day out and about, in the sea, running around, drinking, playing stupid games, enjoying the night.

"I think it's time to go to sleep" you warned getting up from your place. The others looked at you confused.

"Boringgggg" Ferran complained mockingly and they laughed.

Some of them were drunk and would probably wake up here sleeping (or not sleeping at all). Normally when they came here the first few nights were spent awake enjoying their youth, doing everything but sitting still. It was like coming back to life after months in college or focused on football for them.

In response you stuck your tongue out in mockery as you laughed. Your eyes focused on your friends, trying to get their attention to see if they wanted to go back to the house.

Fermín and one of your friends were near the shore, making out for quite a while now. Ferran and Pedri were hugging like two drunks laughing with each other, Fer was still chatting with some of the girls. Pablo and Hector were also chatting with each other. While the younger ones Lamine, Nico and three of your friends, were running around the sand with the ball on their legs.

"I'll go rest, you guys can stay" you said laughing at their complaints.

"Do you want us to go with you?" one of them asked. You denied, you didn't have beds assigned yet but you didn't care who you got to sleep with since you guys always used to come here and sleep with anyone.

You wave to your friends while wiping your sandy butt, your gaze drifted to the guys and you got a weird smile from Pablo, he was the one you had the least relationship with of the group but you liked him, maybe because you had never had the chance to get to know each other enough. So you quickly smiled back at him before turning your back to walk away from them, the house is a bit far from the beach so you walk carefully so you don't hit anything.

A sigh leaves your mouth as you feel the summer breeze you love so much, finally with your head free and at ease. This place was perfect. You arrive at the house in a matter of minutes and go upstairs to the room where your things are, you need to take a quick shower before you go to bed. You are full of sand and a little wet from the last time you dove into the water.

When you finish showering, brushing your teeth and drying your hair a bit, you wrap yourself in the towel to go out and get dressed. As you leave the room, you jump a little in fright when you see a figure sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor as he plays with his feet.

Pablo.

His head comes up and he finally sees you coming out of the bathroom. You smile a little as you look into his eyes.

"Hi" he says barely.

"Hi you" you greet him with a smile.

Your wet feet walk carefully around the room dodging young man who follows you with his eyes. You hold the rolled up towel tightly to your chest, covering yourself and feeling embarrassed for being like this. You smile nervously as you take the clothes out of your suitcase, thinking you'll have to change in front of him or go back to the bathroom, it's a little awkward especially since Pablo keeps looking at you like nothing. You should have taken your clothes to the bathroom but you forgot, you weren't alone in the house to walk around like this but you thought you were alone here or that one of your friends would show up but not Gavi.

After an awkward silence you turn to him. You bite your lip as you feel his deep gaze on yours. He hasn't said anything yet but your cheeks start to heat up for some reason. Why? You've never felt self-conscious around him or any of the guys.

"I wanted to bring the boys but they are refusing to come back inside" he mumbles stretching his shoulders back.

You laugh at his words. Of course they are. They won't come until the sun hits them hard in the morning, if it were up to them they'd still be partying until New Year's Eve.

"It's the first night, they'll sleep after the fourth" you say laughing as you deny and Pablo laughs a little too.

Silence returns and your gazes are still glued together but you remember that you are still only wearing one garment (and not at all secure). You clear your throat and wrap your hand around your chest.

"Close your eyes" you ask him as you take the clothes in your hands.

He looks at you confused with his eyebrows raised.

"I have to change..." you stammer pointing subtly at yourself.

He doesn't seem to mind and goes back to roaming your body with a look that makes you shiver. He barely relaxes his lip and you hide a sigh when he finally nods indifferently. Hadn't he noticed that you were practically naked? The expression on his face made you doubt. He didn't care that you were like that, he came into your room, watched you for minutes and now didn't seem to care if you changed in front of him.

A tingle ran down your spine at the thought that you were closer than you had ever been. It was the third time you had come to this place, your friends were friends of Pablo's friends, you used to go out, have dinner, hang out, all together but you had never felt like this with him.

Gavi sighs bringing his hands to his eyes and covers them without complaining. When you make sure he's not watching, you take off your towel and run your underwear down your legs quickly. You grab the oversized shirt and quickly pull it on covering your body as you try to hide your discomfort and nervousness.

"Will you stay here?" you ask as you approach the chair and lay out the wet towel.

You clear your throat after noticing the question. How awkward. Fuck. It's like you're inviting him to stay. He lifts his shoulders.

"Can I stay here?" he says looking at you.

"Sure" you agree without any problem, finishing arranging the clothes on the bed and floor, trying to act normal.

You weren't embarrassed that he's staying but it was kind of weird. Normally you guys used to be friends as much as any of the other guys, though you had never gotten as close to Pablo as you did with Ferran, for example. Still, you didn't mind sleeping with him, or Ferran, Pedro or any of the guys or your own friends, it's not like it was a big deal, you were all trusting enough to sleep in the same bed and you were friends.

After watching you finish settling in, Pablo gets up from his spot. He takes off his shoes and his beach pants leaving him in his underwear and t-shirt. You don't look directly at him, but you can see his pale, beefy skin out of the corner of your eye, making you bristle. You bite your tongue and crawl into bed without saying anything, without even looking at him. You don't dare. Your belly flutters as you feel him open the sheets beside you and climb into bed with you.

"Are you... having a good time?" he questions after a while.

You know he's staring at the ceiling and so are you, they're far apart and still. You relax your dry lips as you feel a shiver run through you at the sound of his strong, honeyed voice.

"Yes, I love it here" you admit nostalgically. "Do you?" you also ask.

"Yeah, it's great" he sighs and you nod.

It's a little uncomfortable, you have to admit, but it doesn't feel bad either. You're curious to know why he wanted to come here... there are five other rooms and a super comfy couch. But you don't dare ask. The smile he gave you at the campfire comes back to your head and your cheeks catch fire. What's wrong with you? You look like you're suddenly fifteen again.

Again, there is an overwhelming silence. You can only hear their quiet breaths in unison. Pablo sighs deeply and you bite your lip staring at the white ceiling as if it were a work of art. Why are you so weird? You think to yourself as you turn your body around with your back to him so you can get more comfortable. Your body relaxes as the sheets embrace you and you gasp with pleasure as you feel the softness in your limbs, today had been a long day and you were looking forward to going back to bed to rest. You feel how the softness of the mattress helps your senses to relax little by little and you try to fall asleep.

A movement makes you shiver as Gavi's body rolls between you and settles behind you. His leg brushes against yours and you swallow nervously. One of his hands grabs you around the waist and pulls you close to him, your back is pressed against his chest and you gasp as you feel his warmth invade you. However, you say nothing. You don't refuse. You don't run. You don't move.

Your eyes slowly open again and his hands embrace your body, his legs touch yours and you caress him a little. It's a pretty comfortable position, you have to admit. His body hugs you from behind, his hands wrap around you and for some reason... it feels good. Too good.

It may sound cliché and even ridiculous but it's the first time someone hugs you like this. So delicate, so warm, so different.

Your heart starts to race when you feel on your back how his heart beats fast, maybe because of his daring to hug you or maybe because he's nervous. You don't know but what you do know is that you are. Your palms sweat and your pulse races, as if you're having a mini seizure.

His face sinks into the hollow of your hair and neck and you hear him sigh. Your hand moves and stays on top of his, enveloping it. Shit.

You are paralyzed. You just grabbed his hand. Like an idiot. Why did you do that? What will he think now? He'll think you're an idiot. You just held his hand like it was... romantic.

You quickly let go and bite your lips nervously. But your heart stops when Gavi takes your hand again and puts it under his, wrapping it around him, like you did before. Only this time it's him who takes it.

Fuck.

It's fucking romantic. And you don't even have feelings for him, do you? You fight your thoughts when you think of all the times you felt shy under his gaze. For all the times you found him looking at you while you danced, sang, or played at the campfire. For all the times you felt weird around him because for some reason, Pablo made you feel different from everyone else.

Did you like him? Sure, Gavi was good looking. Everyone would like someone like him. But you liked him differently. Like he was the only guy you wanted to get his attention. Like he was the only guy you wanted to be noticed, looked at, touched.

You gasped. You really liked him. But you could only confirm it now when his body was behind yours and his hands were touching you. Damn it.

«You liked him and you liked him a lot»

You know he's awake, you can hear him sighing behind you. You bite your lip when unconsciously your body slowly turns towards him. Gavi seemed to be waiting for him, because he himself helps you turn around with his hands on your waist.

When your eyes meet his, the world stops. The little light from the window enters and focuses directly into his eyes, illuminating his glow in them. You feel your belly contract and you want to kiss him. You want to touch him. You want to have it. Pablo watches you delicately, his fingers squeezing your back, as if encouraging you to come closer and you do.

One of your hands cup his face and you bring your lips to him, slowly and softly. When they touch, your belly roars. You don't even move, you just want to feel what they taste like. They are wet and taste sweet, warm and soft. A few seconds pass and his hands on your back, pulling you to him to kiss you. Strong and passionate. Needing your lips, as you need his lips to reciprocate.

Your hands encircle his neck and you pull him close to you, feeling his hard chest muscles on your chest. You kiss fiercely but deep and delicate. His skin feels warm from underneath yours and you gasp as his tongue enters your mouth. It's the best kiss you've ever had. Damn. You don't even take time to breathe properly when they part in a matter of milliseconds you take his lips again.

Desperate as if it were a drug. Kissing him hard and sure. Your stomach is a dance of butterflies, your body trembles and you're dying to feel it. No one had ever kissed you like this, no one had ever made you feel like this. What had changed now? Clearly it wasn't just the fact that Pablo liked you. There was something else. Something deeper in you that you still couldn't figure out.

His hands lift you up and help you sit on top of him, while they continue kissing. It's not sexual at all. It's just different. That's not to say you don't want to touch him in that sense, of course you do. But for now it's enough for you to kiss him. His lips are addictive, tentative, warm. You want him to kiss you until you're breathless. You want his arms to hold you. Hold you.

When your lungs beg for air, you part and your foreheads are pressed together as you sigh for air. His eyes fall into yours and he smiles as he licks his lips savoring the taste of you still on them. You gasp desperate for air. His hands taste from your thighs to your back and he caresses you while yours are on the sides of his neck.

"You are" he kisses your lips. "Fucking" he kisses you again. "Gorgeous" he kisses you again with each word.

A shy smile seems on your lips and you kiss him soft and wet again. You are lost in his mouth, in his gaze and in his caresses. You can't tear yourself away from him. It's as if you've been waiting for this your whole life but never dared.

Is that why you wanted to come back to this place after the last time? Because like no one else you had hoped to return to the Canary Islands to see your friends. Although you weren't sure if you wanted to see your friends... or you wanted to see Pablo.

"You made my life fucking hard, nena" he mutters in agitation. "I wanted to kiss you since two summers ago, since I saw you at the airport, while you were dancing at the bonfire, while you were laughing with your friends, at every moment" he confesses and your heart squeezes.

"Why didn't you?" you question in his eyes.

"Because I didn't know if you felt the same" he says and your breath catches.

You also didn't know if he felt the same and for that reason you never approached him that way. Although you weren't that aware of your deep feelings for Gavi either. At least until tonight.

"Then do it now" your hands go around his face.

"Oh yes. You'll get tired of me, nena" he laughs nuzzling his nose against yours.

"I don't think so, Gavi" you say laughing before crashing your lips against hers again.

[flowerfreya]

Cancelled

So whats been going on in the tiktok space is a NFL players wife attacked a content creator because the content creator didn’t like her wedding dress. 

This is what would happen if an NFL player and his wife attacked you on social media because you nicely stated that you didn’t like her Met Gala look. 

Simon is also a content creator but his niche is building things from wood , like furniture and just films it. 

Pairing: Simon "Ghost" Reilly/Reader

“She’s not even on theme which is worse because the dress is cute '' , you pause and point up a photo of the WAG you are critiquing. 

“I know she didn’t pick this outfit since she is being sponsored by Coach but when they ask her the theme, she laughed and then walked off”, you shake your head and roll your eyes just to show your audience that you are annoyed with that. 

You finish filming the video , edit it , and then post it. Once you post it you try to get away from your phone because you will obsess with the statistics of the post which is good for no one. You go down to the garage to bother your boyfriend. You poke your head through the door, “Are you filming?”. 

He looks up from sanding the piece of wood, “Yes, but I don’t care”. You skip over to him and give him a hug and a kiss. You and Simon are totally different people , opposites. You like to go out and try new things and he likes to stay at home and would rather eat the same thing for dinner everyday. That’s how you met , you have to go to the grocery store everyday because you can never do a month of grocery shopping even if you wanted to. Simon only goes to the grocery store once a week, on Tuesday, it took you a couple of weeks to get his routine and once you did. You made it your business to run into him and make sure he knows who you are. 

You really didn’t need to because he follows you on social media , he doesn’t even like fashion but your voice is so soothing and calming that he doesn’t even care what you talk about. 

“I just posted a video , you should like and comment” You say shooting your eyebrows up, he always likes your videos and comments and repost them, you love that he supports you unconditionally.

He looks down at the phone, his lips pursed, and forehead creases. Something is wrong. You look at his phone over his shoulder and see the comment from the wife that you made a critic on. 

>>What an evil person you are, I hope that no one ever talks about you ever in that way. I loved this dress and even if it wasn’t on theme.

And then you see that her husband commented on the video with the same thing she said. Literally word for word. 

Oh god , oh god. The video already has 50,000 views after only 10 minutes. People are agreeing with her and saying that you attacked her, which you don’t think that you did , all you said was that it didn’t go on theme. Like, how does that mean your evil. That doesn’t even make sense. 

You look over to Simon , your eyes widening motion your hands in a what the fuck motion. 

“What do I do ?”, your frantic and maybe getting closer to having a full blown breakdown. “Oh go- , oh go-, I think I’m going to throw up”, you start pacing back and forth. You didn’t think that it was a big deal , for god sake you only have 11.1k followers, you just started to be able to monetize your videos. Oh god, you're going to lose followers, your income all because a stupid video. You of course are going to have to delete the video which sucks because you worked hard on that video. 

Hands grab your shoulders and stop you in your tracks, “Calm down”, he gives you a quick peck which kind of shocks you out of the breakdown you are having. 

“This will blow over , you know how the internet is”, you nod your head even though you don’t feel like it will.He is rubbing his hands up and down arms , trying to get you to calm down, “Let's take a break from the internet for tonight, let's make dinner together and drink some your favorite wine, how does that feel”, that does sound nice a little break would be good and when you wake up in the morning it will be fine. 

~

Everything was not fine, the video has 1.1 million views and 20,000 comments , you don’t even know where to start. You're overwhelmed and when you're overwhelmed you cry. And you did not want to be the person that cries about social media but here you are crying about social media. 

Simon is trying to make you feel better, he made you breakfast and then you guys went on the lake. You know he's trying to distract you but it's not working. You just want to delete the video but Simon won’t let you, in fact he thinks the video is great, doesn’t help that he loves the way you talk and doesn’t know a lick of what a Met Gala is. What he doesn’t appreciate is how people are talking about his wife, in fact it's pissing him off that this jock had the balls to comment that unironically on his wife’s video that she worked so hard for. He thinks of a solution when you're taking a nap because you’ve been crying all day. 

When you wake up from the nap and take a look at your phone, you are surprised to see that the comments have turned positive and have nothing to do with the video in question. 

>>Ugh to have a man like that , I would never leave the house. 

>>Omg they are so goals 

>>I didn’t even know that they were together, and I can’t believe the furniture man is married.

You click on the video that you are tagged in and you see Simon sitting in the garage with all his tools in the background. He threatens the NFL player not with a lawsuit but bodily harm on the internet , which you hate to admit is doing it for you. He talks about how if your wife can’t take criticism then she needs to get off the internet. He ends the video, “Don’t make me have to talk in videos again, or you won’t like”. It’s probably the hottest thing you've ever witnessed or seen or heard. Your husband defending your honor on the internet where anyone could see, you store that in the back of your mind for some material because it is definitely doing it for you. 

You find Simon in the kitchen , eating a sandwich , like everything is normal. 

You go up and hug him from behind, “You didn’t have to do that”.

“Yes, I did”.

“Thank you”, you whisper quietly, you don’t know what you were going to do if things didn’t fizz out, you hate being the center of attention and god forbid you were about to cancelled. 

“Get in the bedroom” you pull him from the seat. 

“I’m going to suck the life out of you”, you spank his butt as he walk to the bedroom.

[icemankazansky]

Top 5 Iceman Kazansky eras

Oh my God, this is inspired.

Lessee.

In chronological order:

USNA Valedictorian and Most Valuable Player (Varsity Lacrosse and Intramural Sex) Era

Work hard, play hard. Ice did his share of grinding in high school, excelling in academics and balancing as many extracurriculars as possible, but now he's out of his family home, and he can come into his own. Between his Navy work and the extra rigors of playing Division 1 sports, as well as the natural effects of aging, Ice is going to bulk up, lose his puppy fat, and get Stupid Hot. Now that he doesn't have the confines of being a minor living with your parents, he's also going to have the opportunity to slut it up properly. I love this for him.

Top Gun Era

Waist: Snatched. Patience: Nonexistent. He's the best, he knows he's the best, and he's looking his best. Cannot stop serving cunt for a single second. This man is a 24/7 cunt buffet with a heart of gold and a smile made of actual sunshine.

Hot Shot Era

For several years after TOPGUN (probably at least a decade), Ice is going to spend his life as an active duty pilot, in demand and the best of the best. He gets to prove his mettle, hone his skills, and fuck Maverick in aircraft carriers and exotic locales all over the world. I believe they refer to these as glory days. You're doing amazing, sweetie.

Dad Jeans Era

As he ages and is promoted away from flying full time, Ice is going to be less competitive as a reflex. That razor's edge he's maintained so long is going to get sanded down, and he'll become more comfortable with his place in life and the people with whom he shares it, and be more comfortable going without that icy mask, be more comfortable showing his softness. He's going to buy some sweaters. He's going to take some vacations. Maybe he'll pick up some hobbies. He'll buy a bird feeder. He's going to go full DILF.

Growing Old Together

A well-earned retirement for the man who was one of the world's best pilots, one of the highest-ranked military leaders in the world, and an Olympic gold medalist in sex. Sweater Ice is going to enter silver fox mode. He's going to retire and relax for five fucking minutes. He's going to learn to use Do Not Disturb mode on his phone. He's going to install a porch swing on the front porch of his forever home with Maverick. He's going to read books for pleasure, savoring them slowly the way he hasn't been able to in years. He's going to join the AARP and get discounts at restaurants once he's able to eat normally again after cancer and chemo. He and Maverick are going to take long vacations together, just the two of them, doing things they've wanted to do their entire lives. It's well deserved, Admiral.

[yoursinfulurges]

Serpentine

Martell!Reader x Aemond Targaryen

Summary: "Perhaps I will be the first to to prompt such obedience from you... To make you bow. To bend you... To break you..."

The reader rides a giant snake bc why not.

Your ethnicity is not specified.

Also apologies in advance as I stray heavily from accurate information. I mainly used Dorne and the Martells as a place holder so this is my own narrative. For the sake of this story Dorne is it's own independent land. Viserys isn't dying in this fic because he needs to catch a break so all is right except for the classic disfunction Targaryen family. I might make this a series but right now it's a oneshot.

Word Count: 6k

༺━━━━━━━━━༻༒༺━━━━━━━━━༻

The air laid heavy today as the undying heat of the desert dunes takes it's toll on you. Tearing your eyes away from the sea horizon your gaze wanders to the Sunspear port, small and far away but still so clearly visible to your bedroom tower. With uneasiness, your focal point lands on a large black ship bearing the Targaryen house symbol. Bold and imposing painted proudly on the black sails. You wonder if they were already in the castle, not knowing how late of the hour the ship got here, just that when you awoken it was miraculously there. As a Warrior Princess you pride yourself in never letting your nerves get to you but as of this moment you were a mess of anxiety, succumbing to all the ill thoughts and worries that sparked restlessness within you.

It felt stupid to be so choked up about such a frivolous thing, you always knew this day was going to come and that it was expected of you. But to have it be under such unexpected terms was gut wrenching. All your life you knew that you would never marry for love and you were alright with that, but you had at least hoped it was to somebody you were familiar with. And by familiar you did not mean this. The Targaryens were your rival house, or so it had been.

In attempts to amend old wounds your father had promised your hand to the second born prince of King Viserys Targaryen. A union that neither you or Aemond had expected, as it seemed rather out of place. Dorne is the least populated of the Seven Kingdoms and your people differ both culturally and physically from all of Westeros. So a marriage proposal from the well esteemed house Targaryen to the Martells appeared to be a myth of the First Men.

Although you weren't one to engage in pessimistic thoughts, arguably it made more sense for you to be married off to an Allyrion or Blackmont. Established noble houses of your region. The Targaryens were barbaric outsiders with tendencies to take whatever they want by bloodshed, they pave their own way with fire without regards for others. Luckily it isn't in your nature to bend and be trampled on so easily. It was known to all that your bloodlines were never meant to cross fates. The tale of how the silver haired angel fell from her grace off her dying dragons back, was a victory Dorne relished greatly in. It was a momentous triumph for history that proved the power of your people and the Martells. Aegon conquered all of Westeros but Dorne.

Some would say that there is no greater threat to the Targaryens than your bloodline. And you agreed, they had their dragons and you had your sand snakes, one venomous bite is enough to kill seven full grown dragons. Admittedly, it was a smart political move, although unforseen. A union with such bravado would surely strengthen both houses, and serve as a great threat to those who dare challenged the crown. You did feel a sense of pride not only in your house but in yourself as well, as the good of the realm rested on you.

But truthfully you were hesitant and weary, praying to the gods all goes well. As great as this union was, it also served to be quite dangerous, and can potentially be one of the most foolish mistakes all of Westeros had ever seen. If you aren't able to get along well enough, or even tolerate Aemond then goodwill will be lost and all of the realm will be set on fire. You would never purposely encourage war, but you had your own ways of living. And you understood greatly that you were far more fortunate than many women in Kingslanding. That being said, you intend to fight for your honor and dignity by all means necessary. Regardless if whether or not your husband turned out to be quite a piece of work.

You understood the true reason for your marriage, despite it being poorly concealed behind optimistic words from King Viserys. You would make it a point to yourself to do your best to serve your duty. But above all that must come your freedom and rights. Those are values you cannot afford to sacrifice. Although you doubt that the King would be malicious enough to pour honey into your fathers ears, only to set you up to be treated badly. A part of you wondered if there was any veracity to his words.

In his letter he emphasized the silent disdain your families both had for eachother, and he that wanted to put an end to things. If that is his true intentions or not was unclear, but you are not so easily trusting. You had never witnessed this so called fued between your families for yourself, having never left Dorne before. But you've heard stories of how defiant your uncles have been in court. Purposely refusing to bend the knee to the crown in their own kingdom, which of course prompted a rightful murder in your opinion. It was disrespectful and improper so therefore justified, and you were never fond of your uncles. However, this of course gave your father grounds to loathe the Targaryens. But he was much more cordial than his brothers, as he was a forgiving man.

To say that you were anxious for your husband-to-be's arrival was an understatement. You knew that your cultures varied so vastly, so what if he deemed what you were wearing improper? It was quite scandalous by the Crownlands standards but they were in your kingdom now. And truthfully it would be highly improper and frowned upon for them to chastise you in anyway. Not that you cared if they did, you had your own way of dressing and by your standards this was your idea of dressing for the occasion. You had decided to wear white instead of your house colors, it was a sign that you welcome them and were ready to accept their customs. Funnily enough, white was the color of purity and you represent anything but. Your dress was a simple one in your eyes. Soft and long in material adorned with a cape. Floral embroidery decorated the bodice of the dress, and around your waist tied a svelte sylphlike rope, casting a certain refinery to your aura. The neckline plunged low and the gown displayed two meticulous slits down the front, showcasing your thighs.

While yes it did seem rather unseemly to the unfamiliar eyes, you were not going to sacrifice your comfort and culture for the sake of decency. There was a reason to be in so little layers, the sun and heat of sahara was unkind. Sighing in content your eyes wanders over to your bed, landing on a sheathed dagger. You had put it out earlier and was originally planning on bearing it but decided not to with the advice of your mother. Scoffing at her words that rang so vividly in your ears you picked up the weapon. It was light and delicate, well as delicate as blades can get. The knife shined a pure sterling silver, unlike any other color you've seen before, well complementing your dress. It was curved in shape, mimicking a claw of sorts and the hilt was marbled with the texture of pearls. Beautiful, it was a fitting weapon for a princess of your stature. Disregarding your mothers words, you fastened the dagger around your waist, thus completing your outfit. If they dared say anything about your obscenity you would cut their tongue out of their mouth.

"Princess? They are ready for you." A member of your fathers small council alerted. Breaking you from your trance, his voice muffled slightly by your bedroom door.

The walk to the throne room was agonizing, though you held a strong and cold demeanor to the passing eye, inside you were dying. With sweaty palms you fear your head was going to explode by the amount of worries that whirlwind within it. You know little of the man you are said to marry, only hushed whispers that had managed to travel past the narrow sea. Being aware that he was a warrior, much like you, though he has little to no experience in the battlefield. You also knew that he rides the largest dragon in all of Westeros and unfortunately because of it he only has one eye. You were rather impartial on that fact, whilst yes your father did stress on you that the match wasn't ideal because of it, truthfully you did not care. After all, what's a missing eye to someone who has disfigured and tormented so many. You've had your fair shares of experience, as much as your father would allow you, but at this point you have seen it all. Honestly you were just glad to receive a match that's the same age as you. And although your views on Aemond could differ based off your judge of his character, as of right now you have yet to meet him. So it would be unjust to already discriminate against him, time would only tell if he warrants such behavior and you had plenty of patience.

Aemond however does not. His family arrived at Sunspear late in the hours of the night and were met by the King and Queen only. They were then prompted to their own rooms to get some much needed rest. All throughout the morning he has yet to see a sight of you and it was well beyond noon at this point. Now Aemond doesn't consider himself an impatient person, but when it came to meeting his soon-to-be wife he was in a particularly rushing mood. Not that he let his excitement showed, truthfully he didn't know why he was eager to meet you. Perhaps because he had long been awaiting this day since before he lost an eye. The good old days, when his childhood youth was once filled with the anticipation of receiving his own dragon and his own wife. Of course as time came the matter began to feel so subsequential, but back then that was all he ever truly cared about. Maybe in his young mind, having both a dragon and a wife meant that he was as equally masculine and worthy of the Targaryen name as his brother and nephews.

Though it was never that simple, no matter how much he tried to prove himself to his brother, he was always the lesser than. Getting picked on and berated for letting a bastard sully him. Being tormented with the idea that his wife would see him as hideous, or worst fear him. Aemond was a strong man, but he was also human and it is human for him to be insecure. What if you didn't like him? Yes he viewed this marriage as not ideal but what if you harbored animosity? Snapping out of his thoughts by his dear sister elbowing him, he turned to Helaena to wonder what prompted her discordant. It wasn't like her to be so... aware of the real world, as nicely as Aemond would put it. She nervously diverted her eyes, nodding towards towards the door and it was that moment that Aemond realized.

By the gods you were beautiful...

Ascending from the stairs was a young women unlike any he had ever seen before. And as you near Aemond found himself nervously clenching his fists. Despite showing such anxious stature, he beared no expression, contrary to his true feelings. For a moment his breathe quickened as you bow before his mother and father, gaze trailing over your exposed thighs. Scolding himself silently, he tears his eye away from your body. It was perverted for him to blatantly stare, especially since this was your normal. You probably didn't know sexual you appeared to look right now. Not that he complained.... Stop... That was how your people dressed, it would be improper to think so vile about their princess. Inhaling sharply, he keeps a steady feature as he listened to his mother greet you. Taking your hand in hers, she began to drag you over to where he and his siblings stood.

"This is prince Aegon." His mother introduced. Watching the way his brother blatantly ogled at your body, an unfamiliar feeling began to brew in his chest. He didn't like that his brother was looking at her like that, especially since she was to be his wife.

"Princess Helaena." Alicent nodded to her daughter, observing the way you smiled gently at her in acknowledgment.

"Please to meet you princess." Helaena bowed, her words timid but you returned the greeting.

"And this is prince Aemond... your betrothed."

Aemond watched your reaction carefully, taking in the way that you smiled and bowed to him. You appeared nice enough, though he didn't know what he expected. Perhaps for you to scowl and throw a fit? With this close of a distance he was able to get a good view of your face and indeed you were beautiful. But it all meant nothing if you were going to reject him. Testing the waters, Aemond takes your hand in his, curtly leaning in close as he brings your digits to his lips. Keeping a locked gaze at your expression as he places a chaste kiss on the area above your knuckles. You felt soft...

"Pleased to meet you, my princess." He spoke lowly, registering the way that you smirked in satisfaction, no alternative emotions in sight.

"The pleasure is all mine, your grace." Aemond looked at you with such scrutiny as you spoke. Trying to find hints of disgust or animosity through your porcelain mask yet as he took in every detail of your face he found no trace of abhorrence.

But behind your doe eyes there was something there, something he could not quite place. It was unfamiliar in every sense and he didn't know how to decipher it. You were giving him a knowing look as if you two both shared a sacred secret with one another. And although Aemond did not know what prompted this emotion, he desperately wanted to know more.

Much of the evening was filled with merriment and mirth as the hatred that once squandered friendships faded away. Your father and the king talked of many things alike and began to realize that in truth it was time to mend things. The tension between your families was long in the past although unavoidable between you and Aemond. He couldn't understand why he was so drawn to you but everywhere you went he followed. Watching silently like a predator stalking it's prey as you conversed with his sister. He didn't mean to be so stand offish. Truthfully he wanted to have a little privacy away from his family to get to know you more. There was very little room for you both to talk without intrusion. Whilst yes, the thought of being unsupervised with you may be a little unbecoming, he liked it that way. Perhaps only then, when he corners you, will he get to uncover the reasoning for your unbidden stares.

There was something rather vulgar beneath those siren eyes as you looked at him with sharp conviction. The way your vision would haze and cloud with interest, lips curling in a sly smirk displaying ardor. You were teasing him...

Throughout the evening you both danced around one another till eventually it turned into a game of cat and mouse. You moved with such precision and allure that Aemond found himself awestruck and wanting more. It was exciting to him. He admired how you carried yourself with such elegance and high importance, seeming almost unearthly. They say Targaryens are closer to gods than man, but your very existence challenged that claim. You had vanity, that was plain to see. Your moves are convoluted and don't go unnoticed by him, carefully articulating around the labyrinth of walls he built up. You were the embodiment of serpentine and he didn't know what scared him most. The fact that he is so ready to welcome you with open arms, or the fact that you were aware of your power over him.

Aemond, in principle, is not used to the physical manifestation of feelings. And yet here he was now, standing in the middle of a fucking desert, longing for affection. Or perhaps he only enjoyed the thought because it involved you touching him. There was something so genuine about you, something so raw and potent with rapport. He saw it while you were speaking with his sister, you treated her like anyone else and that was rare to see. You had an affinity for empathy and a way with words like no other, you knew just what to say to his family. That was impressive in it's own right.

It became glaringly obvious now to Aemond that the you had a gifted touch, you were able to make anyone feel like the rarest gem in the world. Yet in truth no diamond is brighter than it's maker. To Aemond you were a paragon of the finest jewels. The sapphire of his eye. He knew it was unhealthy for him to get so attached to you so quickly but how could he not. All his youth he had been waiting for this. Having grown up alone, watching everyone get the things he wanted and now here you were. You were his, he's never had anything that was completely fully his...

"Forgive me I didn't know anyone would be in here..." Aemond spoke lowly, breaking you from your trance as you tore your eyes away from your book.

"This is my private study, my prince... You are free to join me if you wish." The hour was late and nearly all of the castle has gone to bed already. All but you and Aemond... Welcoming him to sit with you over the fireplace as you set your literature aside. This would be interesting...

You both didn't speak for a moment as you feel his presence quickly approaching. Straightening your nightwear as you feel him sit across from you on the untaken armchair. You lift your graze to finally meet his stare in an act of bravery, breath halting for a moment... He made you nervous in every sense imaginable as he held your gaze in confidence.

Aemond Targaryen was gorgeous in such a violent way. You only began to observe it now. There was something so fierce and daunting about his face. Porcelain yet warrior-like, rivaling the beauty of Old Valyria. The prince had a certain vainglory to him. Silent but raw, untamed, and unchallenged. He was unlike any man, the son of war worthy of the iron throne. Strong nose that contrasted his expression well. Dainty lips that utter soft spoken words like whisps.

In secret you wanted them to articulate sweet nothings in your ear...

You did not know where these overwhelming feelings channeled from. But as his hold bore into you, it evoked a touch of insecurity. You felt like he was looking at your very core, past skin and bones and at your morals. Never in your life had you ever gazed at such man. His features preforming one great symphony. A constellation of trauma and abuse in the form of a scar kissed his skin, creating a myriad of Venus. It became painfully evident now that he brought something out in you. Gods be good...

He stared at her with a soft gaze, admiring the way the lit fire illuminated her skin. Openly, he thought you beautiful, although majority of the men here can also say the same thing. Yet as he looked at you more Aemond found himself really seeing you. That enchanting aura faltering just a little bit. You looked vulnerable right here, right now in this exact moment. You looked human. And he thought it was beautiful. The more he sat there the more content he got with this union, you were a fine match. Perhaps it was alright to be vulnerable....

Aemond doesn't say anything for a few more moments, simply gazing at the you as he licks his lips. While you could see yourself in his eye, you wondered what he was truly seeing to look at you like that. Like you were carved from the finest of diamonds and bathed in gold, like if you were to touch him he'd crumble– a careful mix of admiration and fear. Time starts to still and the atmosphere around you began to form tension. Suddenly the fireplace mutes, fading into nothing but hushed crackle as the two find themselves at a standstill. It was just you and him in your sacred little world... No one else... All turns irrelevant as you become intoxicated with eachothers presence.

"Tell me about yourself princess." He spoke, breaking the silence that overtook the room. Pausing for a brief moment to let his gaze wander from your face. Well..... this was improper indeed... The clothes you wore were foreign to him but he gathered it was your nightwear. Temperatures here hot here, it made sense for you to wear very little at night, not that he complained. It was captivating... the garment didn't look like a dress, but rather a two piece that was interwoven together with three long panels covering your modesty. The color was rather fitting on you, a darker grey than the dress you wore earlier almost appearing silver. Sitting with your thighs exposed in a leaned back and slack manner, Aemonds focus leaves your skin and meets your face once more. Breath hitching as your smirk widens. You had caught him looking...

"Forgive me for being so crass, but I'm not one to soften words. My people are very blunt individuals and I dislike small talk so allow me to have some clarity." Your words were honey to his ears, he wasn't entirely fond of small talk either, but your inquiry made him nervous.

"Please, never bite back your tongue when you are with me, what do you wish to know?" Aemond spoke after some time, leaning back to cross his leg over the other.

"What are your views are on our marriage and if you intend to honor our union."

"I'm not following..." Confused he urged on.

"Do you.... intend to stray from our marriage..." His eye widens at that, shocked that you would ask him such question. But it was only fair...

"I know that is straight forward and unseemly but please allow me the peace of knowing now, as it less complicates things later on..." Ah'  he said within the confinements of his brain, finally understanding the meaning of your words. Aemond looked down in deep thought, trying to find the right words to say to you. He was a territorial man, possessive in every way so this question striked a certain nerve in him. He wondered why you would even ask that, unless you already had a lover.... He didn't like that thought. That could not be.

"I would never purposely hurt our dignity like that. Truthfully I find it foolish. I am a man that values duty above all, and tis my duty to be your husband and unite our kingdoms. I have seen what infidelity has done to my family, the strain it puts on my mother... I never want to be the cause of her pain by fathering bastard children. So perhaps it is best we stay true to one another." Satisfied with his response, you let out a faint 'hm' before turning away.

"So I've heard... Thank you for enlightening me." You spoke as you stared in great thought at the fire, though he can see a faint smile on your lips.

"Has word of my bastard nephews been so vastly spread that it reached the shores of Sunspear?" He pressed on, now an accompanying smile spreads on his lips, mirroring his companions expression. You laughed at that, a sound Aemond declared he liked.

"People talk, prince Aemond, naturally word would get around." You spoke teasingly, stopping for minute just to admire one another. Calmness falling over you both, as you sat still unbidden just gazing into eachothers rarity.

"Hmm... Tell me, do you intend to honor our union?" Aemond spoke, his voice sounded rougher than before, and you think he may have even rolled his eye. Smirking to yourself as you began to understand that he was a possessive man.

"Of course. I believe in fair playing fields, and getting even. So if you do not provoke me then I will not act out and provoke you. If you are loyal then I will be loyal." In a quick motion he was up his chair and standing directly in between your thighs. You peered up at him through your lashes, the smirk pulling at your lips growing by the second.

His heart sits heavily between the two of you, weeping for your touch, yearning with such want, such need. He swears when your eyes echoes his wants, tempting him to indulge you through curled lashes. The man condemns himself for feeling so reckless, so needy, he had never felt this way before... Felt so much desire towards another individual. He knew this was bad, a distraction but if you were a sin, he'd happily walk into the gates of hell. And at that he surged forward. Breathing a shaky sigh as his hand wrapped around your neck, squeezing tightly.

You whimper at the pressure, your small hands flying to hold his arm but it was no use. He laughed lightly, pushing your head back onto the armchair, almost taunting you. Your back arches lightly, trying to push yourself up against him, whining when you couldn't. He leans down over you, his face so close as he lifts his knee onto the chair. Placing it directly in between your thighs, almost touching your heat.

Oh how badly he wanted this...

"Is that a threat my princess?" Aemond says directly in your right ear, his thumb leaving your neck to roughly graze your lower lip. You don't meet his eyes, choosing to look at somewhere else. You fear if you looked at him you'd lose the remaining composure you had left. He didn't like that, roughly turning your head to meet his face.

"No. I'm merely stating that I refuse to be subjected. Tis' not in my nature to bend the knee. Especially not to Targaryens. I understand that it is our duty to get along but who knows how this marriage ends up playing out. The Martells have stood unbowed, unbent and unbroken for centuries. You may burn me, but you will never make me kneel." You say through a heavy chest, trying desperately to get the words out even though you sounded much needier than intended.

It’s was hot, almost unbearable, and you wondered if whether or not it was the scorching heat of the sun, or just your own body feeling all flushed. Deciding it was the latter since the introductory was highly unlikely. You waited for him to speak, looking sharply at his lips. His eyelids flutter. Never in a million years would he have expected to be driven to the brink of insanity by the mere thought of someone’s lips. Nevertheless, you came along to put all of his bravado to shame. He felt like a young boy again, experiencing all of his firsts once more but this time, it was not with a lowly prostitute under Aegon's urge. No, he was entirely in control and the feelings were infinitely better, you were a goddess. Temptation lulled together with passion and possessiveness. Emotions being cradled by divinity in it's arms, it was all so intense. He wanted more of it...

"Perhaps I will be the first to to prompt such obedience from you, princess..." Aemond whispered, placing his forehead over your own as his finger tips trailed over the exposed skin of your waist. You shiver lightly and he laughs, closing your eyes as his hands get lower and lower...

"To make you bow in submission." He draws smooth circles on your hips. You felt warm, it was all too much but you didn't want him to stop. You liked the way he was speaking so close to you, liked the way he touched all over your body.

"To bend you..." Your eyes open lightly as you began to feel him lift your right thigh up onto the armchair. Looking at him as he says the words so slowly, watching as he positioned your body.

"To break you." He does the same to your left thigh, and it was at this point on you began to realize that he had spread your legs wide open. Fuck... The situation now dawning on you. This wasn't right... not until you were both married...

"You forget yourself, Aemond." You remind him, eyes locked on the visible bulge on his pants.

"Perhaps I do, there is a fire in you and it amuses me." Channelling the words deep in his throat as he grabs ahold of your jaw, forcing you to look up at him and away from his desire.

"Would you like to keep being amused?" Smirking lightly, a playful veil over takes your features.

"It's too soon my sweet." Aemond nods. If it were any other day he would have taken you, right here, right now. But it was far too soon, you had just met today and his mother would have his head if he bruised you this early on. He was not a gentle man, the world would know if he fucked you.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Aemond scoffs at that, watching you turn away. He straightens up, but still keeps his leg in between your spread thighs.

"Oh do you not? Then please tell me, how do you plan on amusing me?" Lightly guiding your chin with his fingers to look at him once more.

"With my lips of course."

"We can't touch eachother but there's no saying we can't share a loving kiss, or perhaps a kiss more than loving..." You smile lightly and he mirrors your expression.

"Now that I can condone." And at that he leans forward to cup your face and takes your lips in his. Holding his wrists once more, you smile into the kiss. Maybe this union wouldn't be all that bad... You're getting quite content with being by Aemonds side.

Next part

Authors Note:

I want to make this a little mini series perhaps, like you and Aemond's wedding and consummation, your children being born, you meeting Vhagar and him meeting your giant snake etc. Let me know what you guys think. I also did not edit this beforehand lmao. I'm not overly proud of this story but it's a good way to revive my Tumblr and branch out from the MCU. I'm taking requests in my inbox!

- Armoni

[persephoneflowerpetals]

the "i am the sand guardian, guardian of the sand" "poseidon quivers before them!" "FUCK OFF!" vine but hades and s/o because of your beach day headcanons lmao if s/o gets sunburnt hades also gets an excuse to throw hands with apollo despite the leap in logic but he's a villain and he causes problems on purpose so it's fine

OMG YES I LOVE BOTH OF THESE IDEAS 🤣👏

Fr Hades and his s/o are just a couple of adorable goofballs on the beach lol! ❤️

Also Hades finding out his s/o got sunburn and confronting Apollo like:

(link to the full video by odditiesmaybe on yt lmao it’s hilarious)

But seriously he will totally throw hands with Apollo just because his s/o gets sunburnt and Hades just likes to start shit because he’s a villain lmaoooo

And Apollo’s just like “Hades…that’s not how that wor—“

“I DON’T CARE! IF YOUR STUPID SUN BURNS MY PARTNER AGAIN I SWEAR TO MYSELF I’LL SMITE YOU!”

“Yeah…okay…😒”

[placeinthemiddleofnowhere]

Gotta be a moron to wanna be a fighter

Pairing: König x Reader

Summary: You’re determined to find out why everyone thinks König is so scary, afterall he’s just some guy that’s taller than most people right? He’s probably harmless! Well, he’s a little scary, but you still like him anyway.

(No use of y/n or mention of gender/race)

Warning: Drinking, sex references

AN: Thank you for being so patient, this chapter has been a long time in the making 💕 Everyone's lovely comments and beautiful art have been giving me LIFE so thank you so much for continuing on with me! Also after this chapter there will be a Chapter 5.5 so to speak that will essentially just be filth without plot so people that read the series for fluff don't need to read it 😇 and people that want more will be indulged 😈 Enjoy! x

Part 5 of A Rocky Start - Full Masterlist Here

-☠️-

It was stupid, you were both aware of it. You’d get in trouble and be marked for life as liabilities if anyone found out, if even so much as one person saw you both and reported it back to Price. Reality was though, that neither of you could bear the thought of ending things. Sprinkle in a little hubris and it was a recipe for thinking you were above it all.

You felt secure in your hiding spot, shrouded in the bodies of the oblivious people around you, protected by the roar of the ramping conversations. Though, when it came down to it, it was more like you were the oblivious ones. All cuddled up close and murmuring to each other through an exchange of soft kisses and sweet promises that you could only hope were more than a shared dream. 

You’d leaned as far off the stool as you could, magnetised to him. Body brushing up against König every chance that you could get, running your fingers along his scar torn arm, blinking syrupy slowly up at him and simpering like an idiot. It felt like catching snowflakes in the winter. It felt like König would disappear at any moment, the dream would shatter and he’d fade away and so you had to cling to him like an anchor to keep him in place. 

You’d never felt so needy before. Especially not for someone that you held so much tension with, so much mixed emotion. Even under it all, under the whole whimsy of making plans and talking about booking quiet hotels out in the sticks, letting your heads float in the clouds, you could feel the heavy weight of the words you’d yet to let goof. What remained from that night when things had gone wrong.

No matter how much you’d thought about it, you struggled to come to a clear conclusion in your head. A way to navigate past it all - the shifting sands of your feelings. On the one hand some of it still disturbed you and gnawed at the edges of your mind and on the other, you couldn't bring yourself to think that you were much better, that you had the right to criticise him. 

You hated to think of him holding onto it all and internalising the words you’d spat out in a moment of panic. You’d made him out to be a monster while your hands were just as bloody as his, you’d acted as if yours dripped righteously because you’d killed your quarries quickly. It was hardly fair - though none of the situation really was.

That’s how you found yourself struggling to speak when König had finally taken the helm and steered you out of calm waters. He wasn’t going to let things go on without some assurance, he needed something from you. Needed to know it wasn’t going to fall apart. 

“Almost sounds like a fantasy doesn’t it?” König said, gazing up from his drink and back to you.

“What? Getting some time away together?”

“Mhmm,” he mused.

“We could do it you know,” you smiled. “I…actually really want this.”

He regarded you for a moment with a tilt of his head, his sculpted face set in a stony marble contemplation. He looked like he knew exactly what he wanted to say, but he couldn’t open his mouth past a small pout. He was trapped in silence until he finally took a breath and smiled weakly. 

“If we really were to do it…if we really did plan a trip together, spend the weekend away, then I need you to be honest with me. You have to tell me how you really feel about what happened.”

Now it was your turn to pause. You knew where this was going - it was inevitable. You just wished that it wasn’t and you could remain suspended in your little bubble for the rest of time, cuddled up and without a care. Even when you knew that would have been selfish, because it was easier for you to forget what happened, easier for the person that caused the hurt to move past it. 

Realistically you were never going to do that to him. Responsibility weighed heavy and it wouldn’t just disappear, you had to take a hold of it and tell König how you really felt. The only way over was through. You just had to hope that he’d have the same view on it all, that he would want to work with you on it. 

“You have to understand,” he said quietly, speaking again before you could settle on the right words, “you are the first person that I’ve had feelings for in a very long time. When you told me the other night that you thought I was acting with you, that i was this- this monster of a person, and pretending I cared, it really hurt me. Even despite the kiss we shared that night, and the things we’ve talked about even now…I need to know that you won’t run from me again. I can’t stand the thought of us taking things further and you turning your back on me because there’s a repeat of what happened - it would break me this time.”

It would break me this time.

It was like an icy wave rising out of the depths and drowning you. The cold hard realisation that you’d had more of an effect than you’d realised. König now worried - even after you telling him that you missed him more than anything - that you’d leave him just like that. Even when that was impossible. You’d agreed to meet him even after all that had happened for gods sakes, you were risking your career for him, you were ready to face Price’s wrath just for the chance to see him again and make up for everything. You weren’t giving him up.

“I don’t think you’re a monster König, I never did - even when I said all those things to you… but it’s like I said earlier, my mind isn’t completely clear on it all. There’s still things about that night that make me uncomfortable, I still don’t like picturing you doing things like that and- and well…the laughing - that still gets me,” you said with a sigh, trying your hardest not to break eye contact. “But no matter what though, no matter what has happened and what will happen - I know that I want to work through it with you. I don’t want to run, I want to be right here. I want you to trust me. I know that I fucked up telling you that I thought that badly of you and I know it’ll take some time for you to feel like you’re secure, but we can both reassure each other, yeah? We can navigate through it together because- well because it’s like you said. You have feelings for me and I- uh- I…care about you too, so so much. So much. I won’t let anything get in the way of that.” 

His face was a melting pot of emotion. The curve of his lips wobbled between a grimace and a small smile and his jaw kept clenching and unclenching as he processed what you said. He turned the words over in his mind for a minute, his face giving nothing away as he zoned out into the middle distance, transfixed on the rainbow array of bottles behind the bar. 

“So how do we move past it?” he breathed.

“I suppose we just try to talk about it more…I’m not sure it's something I’ll immediately forget about, but then I guess you won’t just forget about what I did either,” you mumbled. “We can learn from each other though, and understand each other’s perspectives. Like I said before, we can work through it all. If you want to.”

He nodded and studied the bar again, thinking deeply for a second. König’s face still didn’t betray anything, he was so good at wearing masks he barely needed the cloth to cover what he thought. His hard jaw was set and his pale blue eyes were haunting a deep space far from where you both sat. 

It was only when he finally grabbed your hand again, when he wove his work beaten fingers through yours that you knew it would be ok. You knew that he wanted this just as much as you, no matter what. He barely even had to say it, but he did, the words like honeysuckle petals softly tickling at your ears. 

“Yes, I think that you’re right. We can do this together,” he murmured, gripping your hand tightly. “You and I will make this work any way that we can. I’ve never wanted anyone like this before and I won’t give you up for anything, not for Price, not for Ghost, not for the world. You’re mine…and I will do anything to keep it that way.”

-☠️-

Barely a week after that night, you found yourself checking into a quaint little hotel in the middle of nowhere, attempting to ignore the Price shaped shadow that stained your peripheral vision. You’d packed yourself into the car and driven off with your hold all, not stopping to look back. It almost felt like you were going back to base again, as if you’d taken on another mission and you were going through the motions, that helped for most of the journey. 

It was only when the car had crunched into the gravely drive that it finally sank in that you were really going to meet König. There wasn’t going to be any interruptions or distractions, you didn’t have to silently walk past him in the hallways and feel your chest sink knowing that you couldn’t acknowledge him. It was just you and him, unfettered by rules and boundaries. 

In the mouth of the hotel reception, you’d muttered out your details to the stuffy looking woman behind the desk. She’d given you the same feeling some people must have when checking into a prison sentence. She clicked over to you in her perfectly pressed grey jacket and skirt and demanded to know if you had a booking. Her eyes roved over you, her lips pinching together when she asked why you were visiting, and you said you were just taking a trip away with a friend. She didn’t seem to like that very much. Her papery worn hand had stopped scratching down your details in her book, then she’d proceeded to continue again after a brief but unmistakable sigh. 

She was onto you. She didn’t even know you, but even she knew you were up to no good. Her beady eyes certainly betrayed her as they narrowed behind her thin gold framed glasses.

The Captain Price in your mind took on a more solid shape, made your hand shake and jingle the keys that you’d been given. What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Sergeant? You had no idea what you were doing, reason had been abandoned for a far more attractive proposition. It was only there at the desk that you realised the full weight of your decision, trying to stay calm in front of the glaring figure before you. 

You’d only gotten to leave after being strictly warned that you weren’t to disturb the other guests ‘should you and your friend spend much time in each other's rooms’. You’d nodded with a thick gulp and attempted to smile as you slunk away from her, dreaming up that she was on the phone to Price just as you were out of sight.

You were being ridiculous. 

You sighed and trailed your eyes along the yellowing floral wallpaper as you passed it, laughing softly as you realised how paranoid you were being. It was no use worrying about Price now, you’d already committed to the trip, so why torture yourself with seeing him in every nook and corner? With that in mind you walked a little more confidently across the soft pink carpet, eventually making your ascent up the groaning old stairs, keeping yourself focused on not tripping up on the runner rods. One step at a time, soldier, you’ll need those legs to lean on when you’re scrubbing toilets. 

The room you’d ended up in was exactly as you’d pictured it after seeing the rest of the hotel. It was as if you’d stepped into the past, something straight from the 1920’s with its old decor and unplaceable draft that permeated throughout the room like it was an extra feature. 

The bed looked older than you. The kind that would squeal and shout traitorously at every little movement you’d make and was topped with lacy white sheets complete with multi coloured floral quilt - it clashed with the wallpaper of course. Though it worked with the equally ugly rug in the centre of the room, mangled and worn with age, reaching out its frayed tendrils; almost touching the little desk off to the side and the wardrobe next to it. The bathroom wasn't much better either, all avocado coloured porcelain and tiny enough to accommodate a hobbit and not much more. 

It made you wonder how König was going to cope, his almost seven foot frame was going to be like something from Alice in Wonderland. You smirked at the thought and tossed your hold all on the bed, freeing your hand up so that you could fish out your phone and text the number you kept under - mother. Your Latest act of subterfuge. A way to receive messages from König without being found out. You really did feel like a kid again. 

You

You’re gonna love this place, big guy ;) 

Mother

Any more back chat about my choice and you can go another week without me

You

I’m JUST saying…it’s tiny to *me* so take that as you will 

Mother

Size isn’t everything dear ;) 

You

You’re so fuckin lame dude 

Mother

Is that any way to talk to your mother?

You found yourself cackling at his response and clamped your hand over your mouth, not wanting to draw too much attention to yourself already. The old harpy downstairs probably already thought you were both having a secret affair or something, the last thing you needed was to draw more of her ire. It wasn’t like you could go and explain to her that neither of you was spurning a partner back home, and that you were actually hiding from your Captain turned father. So really it was totally fine for you both to be sneaking around in the countryside together!

She didn’t seem like the type that would like that explanation either anyway. 

No. Reality was, you were part of one of the most elite task forces in the world, and there you were hovering above a frilly old bed about to wait for your crush coming home like a propaganda poster. When will my would-be forbidden boyfriend return from Austria? You snorted at the thought and dove into your bag, rustling around in search of your tablet. Things were bad enough without you waiting at the window with your metaphorical tail stuck in alert position - excited for König and fearful of Price and the paranoid possibility of him having a tracker on you both. 

Fuck that. You watched TV and tuned out the tinfoil hat thoughts as best as you could manage.

You didn’t have to wait long in the end anyway, not if you were honest with yourself. König had announced his arrival with a thud and an ‘ow, oida!’ and immediately you knew your man had arrived. It seemed unlikely anyone else would be in the corridor, you assumed, banging their head and shouting in German. 

Wouldn’t you know it, once you’d poked your head out of the parapet of your room door, you’d laid your eyes straight on him. You emerged from your hiding place and watched as König rubbed his head and looked at the doorway like he’d square up to it. A tiny laugh escaped before you could cover it up when you realised you’d been right all along; the place was far too small for him. 

Though he’d never admit to it - that you were sure of. He’d be folding himself in half before he’d admit to being wrong. You’d figured that out when you’d originally questioned his choice in hotel and destination. It screamed home for the geriatric: spend your last years here together, but he wouldn’t hear of it. König had been absolutely adamant he wanted a little old fashioned place out in the countryside, said it was good to stay out of the way of everyone and grant yourselves some privacy, height restrictions be damned. 

“Having trouble there, handsome?” You smirked, looking him up and down appreciatively. 

He whirled around and faced you, eyes going wide as he realised you’d been watching him. Almost instantly you were admiring him, trailing your eyes over his outfit and his perfectly exposed face. 

König was wearing his neck warmer much like usual, though it had been drawn down around his neck - likely to accommodate the nosy old gal downstairs. It fit well enough with the rest of his outfit, tan brown work jacket, white shirt and beat up jeans and boots, but it looked a little odd in the warmer weather. You could only imagine how suspicious she’d been of him, masked up and german, likely two marks against his name. She’d be calling the authorities on you in no time, the neighbourhood watch would be descending down on you from their helicopters if you misstepped even slightly.  

“I’m doing just fine, thank you,” König sniffed, leaning his arm up against the top of the doorframe.

“Really? Sure you don’t need a lil pillow or something to strap to your head? Would be a shame if you came back from your time off with brain damage,” you giggled. 

“Maybe I’ll avoid it by leaving early then shall I?” he teased, narrowing his eyes. 

“Oh c’mon, you know you can’t resist all this” you smirked, tilting your chin. “Besides, it must’ve taken ages to get that big head of yours through the front door, you can’t possibly want to leave already!”

Ignoring the string of muttered German that followed your comment, you closed the gap between you both. Before you could chicken out, you put your arms around him, embracing his big warm body like an oversized plush. König’s muscles tensed at first, reacting like you’d tased him, but he quickly relaxed, letting his own encompass your body before he kissed the top of your head and turned your mind rosy. You could swear you saw blushes of pink cross your vision, eyes clouding while your head went fuzzy.

“Missed you,” you whispered, nuzzling into his chest. “Again.”

“Mhmm, I’d say I did too, but you’ve been so condescending with me,” he murmured, descending into laughter when he caught you glaring up at him. 

“Don’t be mean!”

“Alright, alright. I missed you too! Of course I did,” he relented. “Though I think you should be nicer to me, you did make me sacrifice going back to Austria after all.”

He sighed dramatically and suddenly it was your turn to roll your eyes. He’d been trying everything to get you to go to him, but for you it was no dice. The absolute last thing you needed was for Price to see the big Austrian stamp in your passport and turn the national colours in fury. The thought alone was enough to have you going wide eyed and stiff. 

“Well I suppose I can be nicer,” you grinned, reluctantly pulling away from him. “We have got two days together, so I’ll have to convince you to stick around somehow.”

“Two whole days, my my,” he said with raised brows. “What are we gonna do with all that time?”

“For starters - hang out without a paparazzi of base personnel waiting to report on the gossip.”

“Not that that will stop them talking. I caught MacTavish over my shoulder trying to get a look at my phone the other day,” he said, shaking his head.

“Really? Did he say anything to you?” You asked, concerned that you’d have to tell him to knock it off somehow without being figured out.

“I stared back at him and he almost died of fright when he finally looked back at me,” he chuckled, his evil laugh making an appearance. “Didn’t stick around long after that.”

“For fucks sake, Soap,” you snorted. “That man’s about as subtle as a canon. Stupid prick.”

“Well what else can you expect from the 141?” König teased, preemptively retreating backwards toward his open doorway. 

“Oh, you think you’re a big man firing insults then running away do you?” You asked, folding your arms across yourself. 

“Sneaky, please - Im a very big man,” he tittered, cocking a finger gun at you as he disappeared with his oversized rucksack. “I’ll come over to your room in a minute!” 

Your earlier assessment was true enough - he was fucking lame. But nevertheless he was the man that you were risking it all for.

“Good luck getting in!” You called, retreating back to yours.

Not that it’d actually be a challenge. You’d gone as far as to ignore a direct order from Price, ignored your own wavering doubts about the darkness that he was capable of and you’d driven five hours just to see him. When it came to König you were a goner. And it was only getting clearer with time. 

-☠️-

König had indeed managed to worm his way back into your presence, no matter how much you tried to joke that you were barricading yourself in your room. However, with the promise of a scenic walking route and pub food courtesy of him, you found it in your heart to forgive his earlier comment, giving him a stern look on your way out. He was only forgiven by a slim margin you’d told him. 

However as you’d set out and begun to stretch your legs and ease out the travelling aches, you found yourself more and more surprised by how much you were enjoying yourself. The air had cleared and something in the knots of your stomach had come undone. You were Shocked that you were able to forget all about Price, all about the hazards of being together. As if work were just something from a persona that you’d shed. All responsibility and worries scattered in the breeze that shook the tall grass. 

It was easy to share his company too. It didn’t feel awkward or like you had to say anything at any particular time. It was natural, just like it was before, when you could talk to him without the threat of Price giving you the sack. Though it struck you like a slap to the face when you realised that it was one of the few rare moments you’d had to talk to each other without being a spectacle, without people watching and commenting. No Soap to tease you about it, no Ghost to pass his judgmental gaze over you both. 

That was what made it truly special, it was something just for you both. The place itself turned out to be pretty special too, it was lovely. You had to give König that - even if his hotel was haunted by its judgmental keeper. 

The trail was fairly flat, and took you through fields and backroads with only a few sloping hills here and there with plenty of streams that babbled in the backgrounds of your conversations. Eventually you’d come to a little bridge and stopped to take in the view, looking out over the cold spray of the miniature waterfall tumbling down into the river below and past the mossy banks. It rollled down the yellow-green expanse, snaking off somewhere way out to the horizon line. 

It was both a noisy, but pretty backdrop that allowed you to get plenty of sly glances in while König was distracted. Your eyes had been tracing his profile like you were trying to paint him. He’d caught you no doubt, the smile that played on his lips told you that much, but he hadn’t made any attempt to stop you looking. He kept staring at the water and had let the quiet lull in your earlier chat remain still. 

“I’ve always wondered…do you stare at lots of people like this? Or am I special?”

You blinked back at him and felt blood pool in your cheeks, racing with the rushing water. 

“Who says I’m staring at you,” you murmured, leaning against the worn wooden railing. “There’s actually a very nice tree that I’ve been admiring.”

“Oh a nice tree, hmm? I must say, I’ve been compared to a tree many times, but not an awful lot of people call me nice,” he mused, teasingly nudging your shoulder. 

“Just me and your mother?” you smirked, firing a shot back at him. 

He widened his eyes and tilted his head like a puppy, putting his hand on his chest as if he were pulling the spear you’d buried there out of himself.

“I can’t believe you’re bringing my mother into this!”

“Well, I assume she thinks you’re nice…Sure sounds like it anyway,” you said with a coy smile.

“And by that you mean…?” he asked, eyes narrowing on you. 

Your throat could’ve gone dry from the heat in König’s eyes and suddenly his intense gaze felt all too similar to the shake of a rattlesnake's tail. Had you been trying to insult him, you’d have let it die on your lips, but it wasn’t what you were thinking of doing at all. What little you knew of his past, you knew that wasn’t the sort of thing that would go down very well.

“I mean that - judging by the way you sound on the phone to her - she likes to dote on her little precious baby König,” you said with a smirk, “I can always tell when you’re on the phone to her.”

The lit fuse was snuffed out in an instant, and the look in his eyes faded from a warning and into a question. He paused a moment before he spoke again. 

“I don’t know whether to be more perturbed that you’ve been listening in on my calls, or if I’m much more interested in finding out how you can tell.”

“I haven’t been listening to your calls! You always answer your phone in front of everyone because we’re all ‘savage’ non German speakers,” you laughed, finally returning the nudge he’d given you earlier. “You make it sound like Price has me spying on you!” 

“Maybe he does,” he chuckled dryly, turning to you now. “Maybe you’re perfectly fluent in German and you’re an excellent double agent.”

“Damn it, you’ve caught me! I better tell the guys to come out of the bushes now. Quick Price, get down from that tree before you fall out of it,” you laughed in return, calling out to the fake 141 like they’d really come free from their hiding spots. 

König shook his head at you saying something about you being silly under his breath, and turned back to the water again. His body shook the fence with his weight coming to rest on it, one arm propped up so that he could reach up and hold his face in one hand, clearly not used to having it bare as he subconsciously stroked the spot where his neckwarmer would come to. He looked distant for a second, only a fleeting moment, until he swivelled his head back to you and looked at you curiously, raising his brow. 

“What is it that makes you say my mother dotes?” he finally asked, giving you a small smile. “If you really are the uncivilised non-german speaker that you claim to be.”

“First of all - you’re so rude. Secondly, its how you talk when you’re on the phone to her, even if it is in German,” you said pointedly. “Your voice always goes all soft and quiet and reassuring like you’re always trying to soothe her…Oh! And you do that thing where you answer all gentle like - ‘hallo, mama’.”

König bit his lip and held back the smile that tried to burst loose. 

“Is that really how I sound to you? Like I’m greeting a dying animal? I can’t imagine that’s very attractive.”

“It’s not like that! Your voice goes all sweet and cute,” you replied defensively, sidling up against him.

“Sweet and cute? Niemals! I am not sweet, nor cute,” he huffed, staring you down and rising to his full height. 

“You’re very sweet and cute, actually,” you huff, giving his cheek a rub before you can think twice. 

Suddenly you’re trapped between the railing and König, the wood creaking out in protest. His heavy chest trapped you fast against him and his arms locked on either side of you, straining as his hands grasped the wood tightly. His hair had fallen over his face and shadowed his eyes, giving them a menacing glint as he continued to look down at you. 

“Am I still sweet and cute?” he whispered lowly. 

You felt your face burn and your breath shudder. Tremors wracked their way through your legs and you fought to stay on level ground as he forced you down. He wasn’t being either of the aforementioned things you’d said, but he wasn’t being very scary either…

“I’m not scared of you König,” you murmured, breaking the tension and tucking back a rogue strand of his hair. “I still think you’re very sweet.”

He rolled his eyes, sighing down at you like a weary god.

“I’m not.”

“Yes you are,” You grinned. “You’re sweet to me all the time! Always making sure I have my tea and get to watch my movies even when you’re fidgeting like hell. You booked this hotel just so that we could spend time together without being in trouble at work. You watch out for me, you make me feel safe. You’re so sweet.” 

He sighed again.

“Ugh, very well then…I  suppose if you really enjoy the whole cute thing I should lean into it more, hm?” he said, a smile slowly creeping across his face. “What do you think, my precious angel? You want me to be sickly sweet with you now? Hm? My Schnuckiputzi? Schnuckiputzihasimausieerdbeertörtchen, my-”

König’s voice purred sweet and high pitched, sounding several levels of unfamiliar as he kept you smushed against the fence with his hand locked to your jaw. His lip jutted out thickly and his eyes went dopey, talking to you like you were a little kitten that he was trying to charm into his lap. It was too much for you, you were overcome with laughter and crying out as he kept up his assault, only pausing when you tried to cover his mouth with your flailing hand. 

“Oh my god, you have to stop,” you wheezed, pushing against him. “No more!

“But I’ve barely even started, Schmusebär! I could go on forever,” he laughed, voice muffled by your grasp on him.

“No, please, it’s too much!” you protested.

“Oh, so you’ve had enough? You don’t like the cute thing anymore?”

“I like when you’re cute like you, not cute like that! That’s gross,” you giggled, giving him a playful shove.

“Ok, ok! I’ll dial it back. Anything for my sweet little flower.”

You’d given him a warning look, but he didn’t look in the least bit intimidated - one of the hazards of going out with a guy built like König, he wasn’t going to be scared off by you. Although, you supposed that might’ve been a good thing too. 

At the very least he’d stopped after that and you’d enjoyed the rest of the walk in peace. Both of you had become transfixed by the sprawling deer-filled fields and the birds that flew in perfect formations shrieking above your heads. They clouded the skies and brought with them a cold wind that had begun to bite through your clothes and had you leaning into König. Your body brushed against his one time too many and eventually he just rolled his eyes and took your hand in his, firmly dragging you closer so that you could absorb his warmth. It had your heart stuttering for a few beats, still in disbelief that you were really there with him. 

-☠️-

After the walk you’d both found a place for dinner, a pub that seemed to have the same interior decorator as your hotel by the looks of it. It had the potential to be trendy with its exposed brick and old iron fireplace, though it was covered in doilies and old horrible paintings and florals - much the same as the hotel. 

Despite the gross decor, the food was delicious and the drink even more so after your long winding walk. König had ordered himself a feast, getting a steak pie, chips and mac and cheese, claiming that anything else would have him starving later on. Meanwhile you’d sat with an amazed look as you took slow bites of your burger; watching him devour all his. 

“You think that I just got to this size by magic?” he’d asked, taking a big gulp of his beer. “It takes a lot to maintain this.”

“I’m not judging, I’m just amazed that you’re actually eating all that,” you’d noted, reaching across the table to steal a bit of mac and cheese. 

“Hey! You didn’t ask if you could have any.”

“Well that’s what you get for going to dinner with someone called Sneak,” you’d chastised.

He’d made a joke about sneaking out and letting you pay for it all, but even after that you’d both melted into the warmth of the fireplace and ordered a few more beers; feeling pleasantly tipsy by the time you had decided to pay. 

The wallpaper was growing fuzzy as you’d stared ahead at it and the patterns that had been so clearly defined before were getting lost in the dim light. Your eyes flicked between the swirling shapes and staring over at König, getting lost in the features of his shadowed face, listening out to the consistent rattle of the table as König’s leg gently bounced. Your mind felt hazy, your thoughts danced like the flames reflecting throughout the room, intermingling with the tingles at the back of your skull.

I want to touch him.

I want to trace those scars, I want to feel the curve of his nose and hold his chin in my palm.

I want to hold him, I want to sit in his lap. 

I want all of him.

“Is someone a little bit of a lightweight?” he’d teased, noticing the way your eyes drooped. 

Your mouth dropped open for a second, feeling heavy as an anvil until you were able to shake yourself out of it. Everything was still fuzzy, your body felt light as a feather and cumbersome all at once. How is he able to talk in full sentences? It hadn’t occurred to you that him being almost twice your size might affect his tolerance, making it far superior to yours. 

“Not a lightweight,” you grouched, “Just- just sleepy.”

“Mhmm, I noticed that too, Bierleiche” he laughed, the sound booming rich as pure vanilla in your ears. 

“No more names!” you pouted.

“Alright, I won’t call you any more names, but I won’t buy you any more beer either. Let’s get you back.”

You’d protested at this, not really all that passionate about getting to sit up in the stiflingly warm little stoop, but not wanting to part from him quite yet. You knew for a fact that he’d be a gentleman and try to leave you and frankly, you weren’t in the mood for it. You weren’t in the mood for that at all.

However, even despite your moaning and grousing, König got you to your feet and held you up against him until he got you to the hotel. Your feet had marched noisily down the street and you’d loudly commented on the pretty stars in the sky on the way over, but as soon as you’d reached that front door it was like an instinct had flared up inside your body and you were quiet as a mouse. Even drunk, you knew not to bother the old crone that surely waited in the shadows, looking for any excuse to jump out at you.

It wasn’t until you were safely in your room, where König was depositing your flailing body into bed that you finally reneged on your vow of silence. He’d turned to leave, his hand coming down on the door handle and reminding you of a judge's gavel ready to end your time with him. You whined, scrabbling at the sheets so that you could sit up and called out to him. 

“König! You can’t go.”

“I think you’ll find that I can,” he’d snorted, tossing you a measured look.

“But, I don’t want you to,” you moaned, patting the bed next to you.

“I thought you were sleepy.”

“I was! Then we w-walked through the cold and it woke me up a bit,” you shrugged, hiccuping through the middle of your sentence. 

He sighed and tilted his head, seeming to arrive at a fork in the road. Knowing this was the case, even with your addled mind, you pulled the covers back and patted the spot next to you, doing your best to try an angelic smile. Although, it couldn’t have been half as sweet as you’d wanted it to be with your glazed over eyes and dopey grin. 

“I’m not going to do anything with you like this.”

You gasped, clutching at your neck as if there were pearls there to grasp onto.

“I’m shocked that you would incuse me of something like that!”

“Incuse?” he chuckled, letting go of the door handle.

Victory was yours. 

“I just want you to come cuddle with me for a minute,” you clarified.

He narrowed his eyes, folding his arms over his broad chest like he could scare the truth out of you. Though you were full of liquid confidence and it didn’t matter what he did, you just wanted to feel him close and have his warm body next to yours. You needed to have him for all the time that you could, grabbing onto every little moment.

“If I come over there I don’t want any funny business,” he warned. 

A light could’ve buzzed above your head, the pretend halo that you tried to manifest lighting up the room before him. 

“Cross my heart, no funny business,” you simpered.

He laughed at that and finally came over to you, shucking off his boots after you’d grumbled about shoes on the bed. He let you fold over onto him, curling up like a croissant in his arms and settling easily into your nook between his arm and chest.

Even in your clouded mind, the moment was etching itself into your core memory. The smell of hops and cold fresh air, the feel of his big arms wrapped around your body, the softness of his chest and the cotton T-shirt he wore, the feel of his zip scraping your fingers as you carelessly moved your hand to his sternum. It all compounded, had you feeling like you were in a dream, the fuzziness of your head trying to tell you that’s all it was.

“This is real isn’t it?” you asked, furrowing your brows as you put a little pressure on his chest, testing to make sure it really was him. 

“Did you take shots while I was in the toilet or something?” he laughed, bouncing your head with the force of it through his body. 

“No! It’s that - I just - I can’t believe we’re really here. It’s like you said before - It’s like a dream. And we made it come true.”

He was quiet for a second and tentatively placed his hand on the back of your head, running it over your hair and down your back. The motion completely distracted you from his silence, calming you completely and making you feel as cosy as a lap dog. Suddenly the tiredness was simmering back through your body, melting you like butter. 

“I’m happy too,” he finally said, his voice wavering a little. “Happier than I’ve been in a long time.”

“Really?”

“Why do you sound so surprised?” he asked, laughing fondly.

You shrugged with what little movement you could muster, pasted to König’s side, and bit your lip. It’s not like you wanted to lie there in a moment of pity and self deprecate, but you hadn’t had the easiest time of it together at that point. You were surprised that he was able to say that it was one of the happiest times of his life.

“Things have been hard. I guess I’m still just shocked that you’ve made such an effort to be with me. It probably would’ve been easier to pick up some someone back home and live a nice little un- umconplimicated life with them,” you said, struggling to even wrap your mouth around the word. 

Your head rattled as König’s chest bounced again, his chuckle echoing out across the room. It had you burying your burning face deeper into him, trying all you could to be able to hide your complete embarrassment. You’d prayed that it wouldn’t make him leave, make him think you were too away with it to continue on with the conversation. 

However, by that point König was quite tired too. His inhibitions were lowered and he wasn’t in the mindset to leave you alone. Instead he just rubbed your back reassuringly and sighed out the last remnants of his stolen breaths, before his body regulated and his chest rose steadily and surely again. 

“If I’d ever been capable of something like that I’m sure I would’ve tried it a while ago,” he finally said.

You frowned and, now that you were composed, swivelled your head so that you could see his face. Your eyes veered away from their place on his chest and landed straight on him, straining to see the distant look in his eyes. You bit you lip. 

“How not capable?” you murmured, still battling with recalling how to speak. 

“You remember when you first tried to talk to me surely?” he smirked, absentmindedly stroking your hair. 

“I remember…you were all grumpy, didn’t wanna talk,” you smiled, blinking slowly up at him. 

“I was just so surprised that you were talking to me, I didn’t have anything to say back. It took me off guard that I didn’t have to put on any kind of a front for you to approach. That’s usually how it goes for other people - no one comes to me unless I start pretending, unless I stop being myself, unless I make myself smaller and superficial. It’s exhausting, and I can’t maintain it for very long.”

“But then you offered to make me tea,” you reminded him, face feeling bright with the memory. “You were nice - next time I saw you.”

“I promised myself that if I saw you in the kitchen again that I would make up for appearing so rude. Then you got flustered and stared at me alot, and acted ridiculously cute and forced me to watch Rocky; so now, because you charmed me, here we are. I’m doomed to do your bidding, doomed to follow you t-”

“Hey!”

You batted his chest and did your best to sit up, clambering up his body, huffing and puffing until you were face level with the summit of him. 

“I did not force you!”

“You gave me an order,” he shot back with an eyebrow raise.

“Yeah, well you better be grateful you got that order because otherwise you wouldn't have gotten to see a cinnamonatic masterpiece!”

“Cinnamonatic? Is that how it’s said?”

“Shut up,” you groaned, collapsing back down on him, nuzzling into his collarbone.

He laughed breathily and let you settle back into him, holding you against him like a little bird that might fly away. His arms were wrapped tight around you now, and you cocooned into them, growing more and more comfortable and heavy. 

“König?” You asked quietly, breath fanning onto his neck.

You felt him shiver gently, shifting in the bed.

“Yeah?” he sighed.

“I think that most people would really like you if you were actually yourself around them. You don’t have to act around people, y’know?”

He lay there quietly, letting your words hang in the air like deadweight above your head, at first you thought that he might’ve fallen asleep, not really registering you. Though when you turned your head to look up at him, he turned his down, looking over to you soundlessly. Even in the dark, you knew his eyes were filled with a blur of memories and feelings he hadn’t even begun to tell you about yet - the things that had made him who he was. 

“One day I’ll get you to tell me why you do it,” you vowed to yourself, whispering faintly into the dark.

“Tell you what?”

König’s hearing was, as ever, sharp as a cat’s. He sounded gruff as he answered, like you were veering into territory he wasn’t going to let you explore yet. Though you were just drunk enough that you weren’t too afraid to push a little further, testing the boundaries. 

“All the things that made you afraid to be yourself.”

“Oh gott,” he sighed.

“What?”

“I left Austria and somehow still ended up in bed with Sigmund Freud,” he chuckled.

“Don’t deflect!” you moaned, yawning sleepily. 

“Apologies doctor,” he said, putting on a fake serious voice. “Perhaps I can start off by telling you about how difficult it was being moved from Austria to Germany when I was little, and tell you I was ruthlessly teased for my silly accent until I started changing it. Then we can move on to the difficult relationship I had with my stepfather and perhaps finish off with you telling me it all sounds rather like I want to sleep with one of my relatives.”

“You got teased for your accent?” you gasped, emotional and tipsy enough to almost shed a tear at the thought of little König being bullied. 

König had a habit of divulging little snippets about his past that he’d laugh about, but lamentably very little of them were ever very funny or good stories. That didn’t stop him though, tittering away as he’d told you about someone chasing him with a knife, or when he’d broken his arm after getting ganged up on in a school yard fight or even when he’d been threatened with being kicked out of the house if he didn’t go get a job - the reason he’d joined the German Army. 

“Oh don’t get all upset about it,” he groaned. “It was a very long time ago.”

“But why were people were being so mean to little König,” you protested, so choked with emotion you were speaking about him like a little cartoon protagonist. “I don’t like the thought of people being so mean to you, all your stories from when you were young are so sad!” 

“Oh you’re such a bleeding heart, how ever did you make it into the military?” he sighed, petting your head like you were little more than a mewling kitten. “Would it make you feel better if you knew that little König grew up to be bigger and taller than all of those assholes and showed them why they shouldn’t have messed with him? Would that help?”

You sniffed and thought about it for a second, imaging his sharp defined bone structure all soft and round with unshed baby fat and those hard narrowed eyes of his all sleepy and dark. He would’ve made quite the sight when he was younger you thought, the kind of face that needed to age into who he really was. A face that’d picked up scars and blemishes like little medals that appeared in certain lights. 

“It helps a little,” you huffed, running your hand up and down his chest, sliding your fingers over a rumple in his shirt. 

“What would help more? Would it help if I was cute again, would that make things better?”

“No, don’t you dare!”

“Are you sure, Schmusebär? I think it might make you feel better if I remind you that you’re my sweet perfect little baby-”

“I’m better! I feel better!” You groaned, desperately trying to cover your ears with your hands. “Not again!”

He was giggling mischievously to himself, clearly very impressed with his newfound torture technique, clutching at his chest as you wormed away and hissed at him to stop. He bit his lip and folded his arms behind his head, looking thoroughly pleased even while he stopped laughing. Apparently he was quite the gloat when he was self satisfied, and yet this - as you were to find out - wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. 

“What does Schmusebär even mean?” you sighed, screwing your face up as you waited to find out. 

“Schmusebär? Hm…it means cuddle bear,” he yawned, sounding like an old hound. 

“Aw…that actually is kind of sweet.”

“Oh? I’ll have to make sure I avoid using that then.”

“König!” you whined.

-☠️-

Going back to base after those two days together was hell. You’d hoped that König might end up being sent off somewhere else for a time. You’d practically prayed that KorTac would be needed elsewhere for once and that there was something more important than Ex Nihilo. However as with everything else your luck never struck. You were forced to remain in the same confines as him - trying  not to let your face completely betray everything that you’d gotten up to in your time together. 

However, König didn’t seem to have that agenda. Oh no. He wasn’t worried about revealing too much at all. 

About a day after you’d gotten back, you’d been training in the gym with Ghost, getting ready to be sent off on your next mission. You’d hardly even seen König at that point and after your first few hours of trying to avoid shitting yourself - thinking that someone somehow would’ve spotted you both together - you’d relaxed into the fact that everything was fine. Nobody knew about your secret rendezvous and no one ever would. Your heart could definitely resume its regular pace instead of the dizzying frenetic dance it’d decided to beat to.

You’d been running on the treadmill, maintaining a steady speed and focusing on the slap of your feet coming down heavily on the rubber - keeping time with your music. You breathed steadily, in and out, and kept your gaze mostly forward - occasionally watching to see what Ghost was doing as he piled on more and more weight to a barbell. It was therapeutic, the perfect way to forget about your little indiscretion and feel good about seeing Price next. You were practically back to normal!

All until you spotted König in the doorway. 

His dark eyes peered out at you from over his neck warmer and he had his arms folded just below the logo of his old Rammstein T-shirt. It was the same one he’d worn on the second day of your trip, the same day you’d spent holed up in your hotel room trying to find a way to take said shirt off. That wasn’t even the worst of it. When you’d glanced below the shirt, you’d come close to tripping like a cartoon when you noticed his grey sweats, ever so close to cardiac arrest. Even before he’d done anything, before he’d even properly come into the room, he was fucking you up. 

“Need something?” Ghost growled, noisily dropping the weight he’d been lifting to the ground. 

“I was going to workout,” König replied, voice sounding sour as it always did with your team. 

“Stop standing there staring like a spare prick and come in then.”

Neither man said anything after that. König narrowed his eyes at Ghost, his arms appearing as if they wanted to fly forward and choke the Lieutenant out. However, in a stunning display of restraint, he kept them at his side and walked over to the weights, depositing himself at the opposite side of his enemy. He was keeping Ghost in his eyeline, and regrettably you as well. 

Your heart had noticeably started beating faster, though it had been a while since you’d upped the setting on the treadmill. Your feet pistoned hard on the whirring machine and you were starting to feel every step, your chest aching as your breathing pattern was thrown off. You panted hard and slowed the setting way down into a bare minimum walk, grasping for your water bottle like someone crawling through the desert. 

With König’s antics you’d forgotten all about the evil red numbers that flashed on the screen in front of you, screaming out that you were falling behind your goal. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was ensuring your feet didn’t trip over each other now that you weren’t looking where you should be while you ran. Your eyes had just about popped out when you caught sight of him laying on the benchpress, you couldn’t seem to turn away, too transfixed by his powerful lifts and heavy breaths. 

After a few sets his arms were already beginning to bulge and before you could stop yourself, your mind wandered off to remembering your weekend together. The feel of his ropey arms as they supported your weight and held in you in place, thick and veiny from the effort of all the…activities you’d been getting up to. You shook your head and gulped when you almost felt your right foot falter, just about toppling your entire body like a badly built jenga tower. 

“Sneak!”

You whipped your head around at the shout and looked back at Ghost like a deer in front of a combine harvester. He’d caught you looking. You took a beat before you took your airpods from your ears, shakily setting them down onto the tray so that you could hear your Lieutenant clearly. 

“Yeah?” you asked weakly.

“Come spot me.”

Ghost had never asked for you to spot for him before. Frankly, the last thing that Ghost needed was for you to spot him. You were confident he could lift five of you in a pinch, however, you knew he wasn’t really asking because it's what he needed. He knew that you needed to keep your eyes off König - especially while Price was likely to be hanging around. 

You walked over and loomed over Ghost, nervously making sure to keep your eyes on him as much as possible.  It wasn’t like you could help them wandering a couple times, admiring the way König’s shoulder blades bunched and how his arms swelled out of his T-shirt like they were tearing free. His breath and Ghost’s intermingled, both battling for your attentions, Ghost only winning because you were sure he’d rat to Price if you were being too obvious. 

Though, when Ghost finally sat up, that’s when König decided to fight dirtier.

“Pub later?” Ghost asked, his voice disappearing somewhere in the fuzz of your mind. 

Your lungs closed off, forgetting how to expel air, holding tight onto the breath you were supposed to let go. A swell of static took over your head and your teeth ached from clenching hard watching König stand up and take his shirt off. His uncovered body betraying the signs of all that you’d done on your second day at the hotel. The distressed and unmistakable scratches that you’d littered on his back, already turning pink as they’d begun to messily heal. 

“Sneak?”

You weren’t listening to Ghost anymore, you were too busy fuming about König being so obvious. How could reveal his back like that in front of Ghost, what the fuck was he trying to prove? Your fists balled up with anger and you narrowed your eyes at him, trying to hold onto what you felt so that you wouldn’t fall to the embarrassment of knowing that your superior could see your handiwork on König’s back. 

“Fuck sake! C’mon.”

Ghost took you away, coming up behind you and shoving your back, manhandling you into the corridor. This was too familiar, you’d thought to yourself. It was just like the mission, you were going to get in trouble again, and this time it was all over - no more warnings. Everything that you’d thought was supposed to be ahead of you flashed before your eyes and you tried not to let the tears that were gathering break loose from the dam. 

Your focus trained back on ghost and your nostrils flared faster than they had while you were running. You sputtered for a second, figuring out what to say. Though, you didn’t know what to say, had no idea how to explain yourself. 

“Are you alright?” Ghost asked softly. 

You frowned, feeling as if you were suffering from a head wound. He looked down at you with soft cow eyes and touched your shoulder gently. What the hell was happening? 

“Alright? I- I’m ok,” you breathed, voice lilting as if you were asking a question.

“That was fucking classless that,” Ghost sighed.

“Classless?” you repeated, heart stopping as you wondered what he was talking about. 

“Yeah. Taking his fuckin’ kit off and showing you he’s been fucking someone else is a low blow, Sneak. You don’t have to pretend you don’t care with me. I won’t tell anyone, not about something like that.”

Oh. My. Fucking. God. 

You paused for a minute, mind catching up with what Ghost just said. He thought that König was trying to make some kind of point, to show you that he was over you. A garbled laugh tried to crawl free from your throat, but you choked it down and looked away, trying to think about anything other than the colossal misunderstanding that was taking place. 

“Yeah, I um- I… I’ll be fine, Ghost… but um- maybe I could use a minute, y’know? I’m gonna go for a shower and sort myself out and I’ll uh- I’ll see you at the pub later, right?”

He still looked concerned, but his brows lifted a little. After another reassuring pat on the shoulder he sent you on your way and walked off, leaving you stumbling back to your room like a rambling tumbleweed. You were in complete disbelief at what just happened. 

Not only did you get away with your forbidden weekend away together. Now all the guys were going to think König was fucking someone else. The perfect cover. 

You screamed with laughter into your pillow once you got back, completely disbelieving that somehow things were working out for once. Luckily for you, luckily for König especially. It was that thought that sobered up and had you narrowing your eyes at the wall in front of you. 

König was in big trouble.

Next Part Here

[big-tiddy-bi]

This is part 2 of the Danny yelling at the justice league fic. It was going to be a one shot but @phoenixdemonqueen called one of the lines I wrote cool, and I started squealing, flapping my arms and jumping around my kitchen so I had to write more <3 also hydrate or  diedrate

Tw for body horror, idk if it counts but better safe than sorry <3

——————

Greek mythology has many myths on of which is Theseus and Pirithous. Pirithous full of hubris decided, with the help of Theseus to kidnap the goddess Kore and try to forcefully marry her. Before they can enact this honestly genius plan, that was sarcasm by the way, her husband traps them in chairs with snakes and leaves them there for the furies to torture.

Most stories have a lesson And the lesson of this one is very important. Don’t Be Stupid, Stupid. 

Currently John Constantine was trying and failing to tell the justice league. “Are you fucking stupid” and deadman told them “to fight someone from the infinite realms is suicidal”.

After Danny’s stunt most of the non-magical justice league wanted to hunt him down to “set the record straight”, when they said that John and deadman left the room.

On the day the justice league stated in the email, they stood at a sign stating “welcome to Amity, the most haunted place in America”.

One of the most loved groups of people, the justice league walked through the city like ghosts. They were used to stairs and whispers, but usually of worship and maybe small insults but not like this. Could feel the distain in the air, like the city itself was trying to strangle them.

A tall blonde teen in a varsity jacket screamed at them to leave, that they weren’t wanted, but with much more explicit language.

Flash tried to make a joke, and the resulting glare from the rest of the league could have killed him on the spot, and several of the residents through things at him after they heard him.

They walked up to the building that held mayor’s office. Batman’s face was unreadable, unlike Superman’s whose expression told all his feelings of worry.

In the building they heard several voices, on of which matched phantom, ridiculing the mayor. Who just kept sighing in utter annoyance.

Wonder Woman opened the door to the office to be met with a comedic scene. Phantom floating in one corner of the room flipping of the mayor, who was also flipping him off in return. A goth girl with vine tattoos trailing from her wrist up her arms was slipping some papers onto the table, with the title mandatory vegan in bold letters while the mayor was distracted. two boys one with a tattoo around his eye similar to the eye of Ra, the other had on a shirt that said “I know all your secret identities, don’t test me” both sitting on beanbags playing a video game that was projected on of the walls of the office. one girl with beautiful curly hair was coming through the window arms filled with take out bags, a couple from a Chinese restaurant and the others a fast food place. A woman with red hair was helping her in, holding a tray full of drinks.

All of them turned their heads in unison, phantom and the two tattooed individuals eyes glowing green. the mayor and the redheaded woman’s glowed green.

The window person finished coming through, and set the bags down on the mayor’s desk next to the drinks. The pulled a toxic green knife from behind her back, the redhead woman got into a defensive position her cheeks torn open so she could her hundreds of teeth, razor sharp. The mayor leaned forward in his chair, placing a hand on his desk, mouth turned up in a grin, showing of his sharp canines.

The red headed boy quickly moved to the back of the room, while his video game partner stood up, holes appearing on his body, one of his eyes rolling back into his head leaving another hole, all dripping with sand. The goth woman slowly grew liken and moss in her shoulders, it slowly crawled up one side of her face, she opened her mouth and vines sprung from it, wrapping around her head ripping her skin a flower came out replacing her face.

Phantom was the worst, he grew into a vaguely human shape thousands of mouths opened up on his body, some in other places around the room.

Phantom asked in a distorted voice “ were our warnings not enough for you?”

Batman spoke up “we came here to” but he was interrupted.

The sand being spoke this time. Angerly “ to gravel at our feet for forgiveness, to beg in a futile attempt to win back fame?”

Batman responded again “no, we are here” but he was interrupted again this time by the flower woman

“Without our permission, without the permission of the public, you governed by none.” The flower petals began to pulse “ you who could be saving people, come here to plead like dogs praying for table scraps” she yelled.

“We are here to talk” Batman finally got to say.

The redheaded boy responded this time. “ Bruce Wayne, these actions are unbecoming of you”

The entire justice league was taken aback. “Don’t be surprised” the redheaded woman said “you and your kin’s bodies may be living, but you belong to death the same as us”

“Let’s hear them out” the mayor said “after that you can end them in anyway you wish” he was bluffing of course, none of the heroes on team phantom would ever kill someone, but the justice league didn’t need to know that.

The curly haired woman spoke “ so, if you want to talk then talk”

Superman answered this time “ we never got your messages, we only found them while cleaning out the servers”

What sounded like every voice ever heard replied “what do you mean” the voice, voices? Sounded surprised.

“Exactly that” Wonder Woman answered.

“Someone hacked into our system and deliberately hid all communications from amity” the flash continued

Phantom appeared behind Batman. Intangible hand going into his throat and wrapping around his trachea “if you are lying, I will destroy each of your families”

Phantom floated through Batman to get back in front. In the blink of an eye everyone was back to normal.

“Tell us about this breach” the mayor said crossing his arms. “ so we can take care of it”

————————-

Tell me what you think <3 this is my first part two

@skulld3mort-1fan @mynameisnotlaura @justwannabecat @jotaroslooseeyebrowhair @thegatorsgoose @yjfk @learning-to-fly-on-my-own @iglowinggemma28 @bleuyellow93 @aconitewolfsbane @fox-sama97 @catmeowbored @stargirl1331





[julilovesyou444]

pictures of you ~ bill kaulitz

background ~ you and your boyfriend were partying at a club when someone comes up to you to return your wallet. you quickly find out that it’s not your wallet, and it is infact your boyfriend’s. what you find in there makes you love him all the more.

warnings ~ NSFW!!!, praise, sub!bill😋kinda ?, oral male recieving, mentions of drinking , a bunch of bad bad stuff😄

a/n- english isnt my first languange so if there are any mistakes I’m sorry😪 okay im ngl some English words are so weird. like what is dick ???? cock??? what kind of words are that😭 lol im sorry- also this is literally my very very first time ever writing anything like this so I definitely have room for improvement, dont flame me 🙁

~

I was at the club on a Saturday, with the one boy I truly loved. We had been dating for around six months, and it had been some of the best time of my life. I was dancing on the dance floor, waiting for my boyfriend to get our drinks and come back. I watched as he ordered our drinks and began to wait for the bar tender to make them. He looked so pretty. I was already a little drunk but I was able to convince Bill that I was just going to have one more drink and then be done. Our hotel was right down the street and we didn’t have any plans for tomorrow, so I figured why not.

Someone tapped my shoulder. I turned to see a girl. She looked a little high, and her makeup was so cute and glittery.

“Hey girl! I think this is your wallet.”, she yelled over the loud music, pushing the wallet into my chest, forcing me to take it. Before i could protest, she disappeared into the dancing crowd. I looked around, a little confused. I didn’t even bring my wallet, so it definitely wasn’t mine. I opened it to try and figure out whose it was. I quickly found out why she thought it was my wallet. Where there was supposed to be an I.D, there was a picture of me. I was kinda drunk so I didn’t even process what was happening. I just wondered how this person got a picture of me. I looked through the wallets, only finding some credit cards and a little bit of cash. Then I checked the last little slot and found an I.D. I pulled it out and immediately smiled. It was Bill’s. How could I be so stupid? Of course it was my boyfriend’s. I put the I.D back in and then went to pull out the picture of me to get a closer look. I soon discovered that the picture of me was not just a single picture, there were many. Pictures of me playing guitar, doing my makeup, at the beach, laughing, sleeping, dancing, etc. my heart was so full of love for him. on the back of the photos, he wrote cute little captions and the date.

“sweet girl playing in the sand 6/7”

“sleepy angel 7/10”

“could listen to her laugh on repeat 3/4”

I put all the photos back into the wallet. I couldn’t believe how incredibly sweet my boyfriend was. I wanted to give him all the love in the world because he deserved it. He was genuinely the best thing that ever happened to me. I wanted to hug and kiss him into oblivion. I loved him more than anything, and it felt the absolute best to know he loved me too. I looked up to see him approach me with our drinks and his adorable smile.

“Hey, love, I have our drinks- wait I was looking for that!! I had to use the cash in my pocket for these!”, Bill exclaimed, motioning to his wallet. His smile was so bright and it made me feel all warm inside, knowing someone as beautiful as he was loved me.

“You keep pictures of me in your wallet?”, I questioned. His smile began to fade into an embarrassed look, like I had caught him doing something he wasn’t supposed to. His cheeks flushed and he looked down at his feet for a second.

“Yea.”

I gently grabbed his jaw and moved his head up to look me in the eyes again. I smiled so he knew that I wasn’t upset for whatever reason he thought I was.

“When did you even take these and print them all?”, i asked, petting his hair and gazing up at him.

“Oh, well, I took them with that digital camera I got for my birthday a couple years ago. And I’ve been taking and printing them for a couple months now, Tom had to teach me how to print them small enough to fit into my wallet. I had to buy special paper so that they would be shiny, y’know?”, he nervously chuckled as he rambled. I looked at him with pure admiration and love.

“Why do you have them?”

“Well, I just like to have pictures of you I guess. I wish you were with me all the time, but obviously you can’t be, so it’s just nice to have little reminders of you that I can take everywhere with me. It’s stupid, I know. When I’m at the studio all day, or when I’m on tour and i dont see you for a couple days, i just miss you a lot so I look at the pictures of you. Its kind of embarrassing that you found them…”, he said, clearly flustered.

“Bill, baby, it’s not stupid or embarrassing at all. It makes me feel so loved and so good to know that you like me enough to keep pictures of me in your wallet because you miss me or wish I was with you. I don’t think you understand how much I absolutely love you, and how badly I want to show you right now.”

A smirk grew on his face, especially at my last sentence.

“Finish your drink and then we are going back fo hotel.”, i said, taking my drink from his hand. I began to drink it, extremely fast. He watched intently, realizing exactly what you wanted to do. Bill chugged his drink too. I looked him up and down as he did so.

I grabbed his hand and lead him out of the club, he followed close behind like a lost puppy.

The cold whipped against our faces as we swiftly walked over to our hotel. We sped walked into the lobby, and despite how fast we were going, Bill still said hello to the old woman who sat behind the check-in desk. That’s just how sweet he was, practically tooth-rotting.

I pulled him into the elevator and pushed the button for our level. I looked over at Bill, who was clearly excited. He was swinging out interlocked hands back and forth, looking anywhere in the elevator but me. As soon as the doors shut, I pushed him against the wall and pulled his face down so our lips could meet. I was pressed up against him, kissing him hard. He squeezed my hand, which was still holding his. I heard the elevator ding so I pulled away. His eyes were full of desire.

I guided him over to our room, holding the door open for him. He mumbled a quiet, “thank you, baby” before stepping in. I was fast to go in too, putting the “do not disturb” sign on the knob before hastily shutting and locking it. I turned over to Bill, who had already kicked his shoes off and was now sitting patiently at the end of the bed.

I took my heels off and began to walk over to him, antagonizingly slow. I watched as his eyes scanned my body, chewing on his bottom lip. I climbed on top of him with each of my legs on the outside of his, straddling him. I put him hands on each side of his jaw and used my thumbs so caress his cheeks.

“you make me feel so good all the time, bill. you’re the most caring person I know. that’s why I want to make tonight about you. I want to take care of you and make you feel good, exactly the way you do for me. Can i do that tonight, please?”, I said softly. He swallowed hard and nodded quickly.

“I need words, baby.”

“Yes, yes please.”, he said in a rushed tone.

“Good.”, i smiled before leaning in and ever so gently kissing him. It was a kiss from pure appreciation. I deepened the kiss, using my hands to pull him closer to me, if that was even possible. I ran my fingers through his hair, tugging at it ever so slightly. I knew how much he loved it. I began to start slowly grinding myself against him, and in no time, I could feel a tent in his pants start to form. I loved how quickly I could make him hard. He pulled away, breathing hard.

“Please, I- I need you.”, he said in between pants.

I smiled and nodded. I got off of him and started to unbutton his jeans. I grabbed the sides and slowly pulled them down, revealing his black boxers that you could clearly see his erection through. It looked like that was already a little wet spot on them from pre-cum.

“are you excited, sweet boy?”, i cooed.

“yes, please, I need you to touch me.”, he hastily replied.

I pulled them down and watched as his errction sprung up. just the sight of it made me flustered.

I licked a long stripe up the underside of his length and heard him gasp. I decided to stop teasing and began to bob my head up and down on him.

he threw his head back and gripped on the sheets. His chest was rapidly rising and falling as i continued to go down on him. I could tell he was trying to refrain himself from being loud. little noises still managed to escape his throat. he repeated my name over and over again in tiny moans.

I pushed my head all the way down so his tip hit the back of my throat. I watched as his eyes rolled to the back of his head. I came up for a breath of air before going back down and deep throating him once again. I felt him start to twitch in your mouth, showing me he was close. I started to swirl my tongue around his tip while my hands took care of the rest of it. his hands got tangled in my hair but he didn’t push my head. I bobbed my head down a couple more times and listened as he whimpered. he kept muttering little praises to me. I knew he was about to finish. He looked a little sweaty on his face.

“ugh- please, keep going, princess. I’m almost there.”

I hummed in response, which just about threw him over the edge. he bucked his hips up into me, craving every last bit of satisfaction he could get. he finished in my mouth and i swallowed. he loved when I did that, said it was the “sexiest thing ever”. he watched as i did, his eyes fixed on my face. i climbed up to him and cupped his face. I kissed him very gently. I pulled away, but our foreheads were still connected. His eyes searched mine, and I could tell that he found whatever he was looking for in them. The little grin on his face told me so.

“i love you.”, he whispered.

“I love you too, Bill.”, i whispered back before giving him another kiss. I pulled back and admired him for a second.

I thought about how everyone deserves someone like Bill. Just not my Bill. I was forever grateful and knew I would be forever in love with my one and only, Bill.

[draculasfavoritewife]

No Word For Hero

Summary: You love him and the way he will always be your protector, but sometimes facing the truth is the most terrifying thing of all.

Pairing: Din Djarin x fem!Reader

Warnings: Nightmares and discussions of death. The one-two punch of angst and fluffiness all in one. This one is a fair bit more somber than my other Mando stuff.

Another trope I will never ever get tired of -- the "having a nightmare while sleeping with your partner" routine! 🥳 Gets me in my feels every time, particularly with a character like Din who (to me at least) canonically also has frequent nightmares. I first drafted this one a couple summers ago as a result of all my feelings after that big moment in "The Marshal", as I'm sure will be obvious.

*Translations of less common words/phrases in Mando'a at the end

It's coming, exploding up from beneath the billowing sands, looming over everyone, titanic, monstrous, ravenous....

...He turns to you, ever so briefly, tilts his head in that meaningful look you know all too well...that damn look that means he's going to play hero again.

Damn his altruism.

When is he going to stop?

You already know that answer, too. It lurks forever in the back of your mind, awake or asleep, always whispering there, a constant venom ever deepening its grasp around your heart until one day the cold reality finally breaks it.

He'll stop when he finally doesn't come back to you.

When he's at last granted the warrior's death you know he desires.

Only then.

You can't even scream as he disappears down the dragon's throat, too frozen with horror to make a sound....

You bolt upright, gasping for breath, damp hair clinging to your face and tears running down, their salty tang sharp on your lips.

Stupid nightmares.

"Go away," you mutter, rubbing harshly at your eyes. "Just stop."

The cot is small, realistically much too small for two adults, and your distress is painfully evident to the man sharing it with you, whose arm has just been violently dislodged from its place around your torso.

"Bad dream?"

He sounds tired. He hardly ever sleeps through a full night at the best of times, and even then it's rarely a deep sleep.

If the old saying "sleep with one eye open" were actually true, Din would be its personification.

You curse your overactive mind a second time, for disturbing his precious few moments of rest along with your own.

"I'm fine." You don't lie back down, instead pulling your knees up to your chest and wrapping your arms tightly around them. Normally you find his quarters chilly, but the adrenaline coursing through your veins makes the room suddenly feel close and stuffy.

He shifts against you in the dark, no doubt to study your posture. "You don't sound fine."

You sigh. "I will be. You should try and get some sleep, Din."

You hear him lean back into the wall, a long exhale betraying stiffness somewhere in his muscles.

You've offered him the side of the bed that's not right up against the wall, but to your surprise he actually likes to be pressed closely between your body and the solidness of metal at his back.

You suspect it gives him a sense of security in a life that holds so little for him.

"I'm sorry I woke you," you add before he can speak again.

"You didn't." His revelation is cool and distant, as if his lack of rest means nothing to him. "I haven't slept at all tonight."

You turn to stare at him in dismay, only to be met with the void of deep darkness. "Why didn't you --"

"What? Wake you up to tell you I can't sleep?" Somehow you know he's shaking his head at you. "That fixes nothing, Cyar'ika. My sleep was disturbed since long before we met." His voice softens as he reaches for you, his large, comfortingly familiar hand stroking down your side. "But when I have you in my arms, listening to your breathing, I can at least find some peace. And that is often enough."

You let out another shuddering breath and gaze out into the dim compartment, the images from your nightmare replaying over and over behind your eyes like a holovid stuck on loop.

"I think I need some air," you murmur.

"Take my shirt, then." You're grateful he doesn't try to stop you; he knows you were taking care of yourself for a long time before you two struck up your partnership. He trusts you to look out for danger.

"Vor'e, Cyare." You slide from the bed, his fingers trailing away from your hip as you break from his gentle touch. He watches as you blindly take his shirt from the pile of clothes left on the floor and pull it over your head, pausing only to grab a vibroblade before exiting his quarters.

"I'll come back," you promise softly.

And the words sting deep down as they leave your lips, knowing that one day, one of you might not be able to keep that promise.

The night is cool and clear on this planet, and the breeze smells like living growth from the thick woods nearby. It's a far cry from the dust and smoke of so many of the worlds you've stayed on before, and soon you start to calm down, heartbeat returning to normal and perspiration drying at the wind's light touch. Everything is peaceful around you, the night birds calling and water flowing somewhere behind the trees.

Not for the first time, your thoughts stray towards the impossibility of trying to stay somewhere like this place, to drop everything you know and carve out a life on a frontier planet somewhere. You and Din and Grogu, living modestly and secretly away from the prying eyes of the Imperials or the Jedi, pretending at normalcy....

There's the key word.

Pretending.

You've played many parts since you lost your buir so many years ago. Dancer in the clubs of the Core worlds, thief, animal wrangler, pilot, hired gun. You could adapt, you feel fairly certain. It's the skill that's most reliably kept you alive this long.

But Din....

He's so deeply entrenched in his upbringing. His honor, and the hunt, mean everything to him. Whatever else he tries to be, he will always be the Mandalorian first and foremost. The Way runs through his veins, thicker than blood, and the fierce heart of a warrior beats beneath the beskar.

It's why he will ultimately always make sacrifices to keep those under his protection safe.

It's who he is. His identity.

The reason that one day he might not emerge from the belly of the beast in triumph.

And you love him, exactly the way he is. You'd never ask him to change.

But Maker, sometimes the knowledge of what that means hurts deeper than any physical wound.

So you stand there at the edge of the woods and let the tears come, let the sobs wrack your body as you bury yourself deeper in his comforting shirt, praying that the day never comes that all you have left are memories and clothes that smell like him.

Eventually, your grief runs its course and you can breathe once again. The crunch of footsteps in the damp grass warrants a side glance, but as you thought, it's only your beroya, come to check on you, no doubt.

"You've been out here a long time," he remarks.

"Had a lot on my mind."

He encircles you in his arms from behind, chin resting in the dip of your shoulder. You're surprised that he didn't replace his helmet to come out here, but sunrise is still a long way off.

"I'm usually the one with the nightmares," he teases softly. "This one must have been rough. Want to talk?"

You find his hands at your waist, interlock your fingers with his.

"I lost someone. Someone very important to me."

Turning slightly so you can rest your cheek against his, you kiss the very edge of his lips. "It scares me, Din."

He's quiet for some time, and you try to imagine the expression on his face.

"I'm sorry," he finally whispers. "I can't give you anything but my word that I will always try my hardest to come back to you. That is what fuels me, ner'kar'ta. The fire in my blood, the strength in my bones, is knowing that I need to make it back for you. But I realize that it is a double-edged blade. Because it also means I would give everything, to keep you safe in the end."

"I know, Din. I remember what my buir used to tell me, you know, how we have no word for 'hero' in our mother tongue, because to be Mando'ade is to risk all for the ones you love. I know I'm so selfish." You turn all the way around at last, hiding your face in his bare chest. "But I accept your vow. And it will have to be enough."

Collecting yourself and finally raising your haunted gaze to his, you manage a small smile. "But I will fight for you, Din Djarin. Death will find one hell of a struggle when it finally comes for you, I can promise you that."

"There's my girl." The fond grin in his voice is audible. "Now, will you come back to bed? It's getting lonesome in there."

You let him lead you back to the ship, and the sigh of the wind now seems to promise to whisk your fears away for the time being.

The door slides shut behind you, and you shiver, realizing all of a sudden just how cold you are. His shirt is a welcome barrier against the biting chill, and you wonder how he was able to get along without it outside.

"Cold?" he asks.

"Yes." You reach out for him, wordlessly begging for his warmth.

He sidesteps you and folds his arms across his chest. "Take it off," he demands, and indicates the shirt with a nod, husky voice brimming with humor and a shade of something hungrier. "Or I will."

You hug the worn fabric closer to your body and shake your head mutinously. "But it's the only thing keeping me warm!"

"So you've chosen the hard way." He crosses the small space in a couple of long strides and starts to tease the garment off of you, bit by agonizing bit. "And how dare you let a piece of clothing do a man's job."

"You're making me cold again," you complain as he pulls you into bed with him, the hunter retreating back to his lair to finish off his fortunate prey.

"Then honor dictates I repair the damage I've caused," he hums, and you surrender to the bliss of being completely enveloped in his embrace. Din has always run hot, ever since you started sleeping together, and his warmth and familiar weight are so much better than any sweet dream of yours could be.

In the here and now, he's still alive, and he's still yours.

There will be no more tears tonight.

"Better?" he growls into your throat.

You run your fingers through his thick curls, sighing at the way he always manages to banish all of your dark thoughts away. And maybe now there will even be time for him to get some sleep before morning as well.

"I am now."

Vor'e = Thank you

Buir = Parent

Beroya = Bounty Hunter

Ner'kar'ta = My heart

Mando'ade = Child of Mandalore

[munsonsreputation]

HITS DIFFERENT ('CAUSE IT'S YOU)

steve harrington x fem!reader

word count: [7.6K]

warnings: warnings: no use of y/n, exes to lovers, cursing (plenty), angsty, mentions of alcohol and reader throwing up, reader and steve arguing (just a bit), angst mixed in with humor (my personal fave), reader crying (she does a lot), mis communication, uses of a home phone and answering machine, stupid idiots confessing their love &lt;3

summary: you never would have thought that steve harrington could ever break your heart...after all, he was all that you wanted. however, after a sudden breakup you find yourself struggling to move on from him. moving on was always easy for you to do, but you just don't understand why you can't get over steve. after a night out with nancy and robin you question if love really is a thing or if it's just a complete lie.

Two weeks.

Fourteen days.

The most grueling three hundred and sixty-six hours of your life, and here you were sat at the bar with your best friends on either side of you. The two of them buying you drinks and talking shit about your ex-boyfriend to try to make you feel a little better.

But in all fairness, it’s the best you felt in those two weeks, so you’d take a night full of shots and half-drunk euphoria over one full of tears and sadness in bed.

“Another round?” The bartender glided over with a smile on his unshaven face as he compiled the shot glasses on a plate.

You swung your head, cringing as you bit down on the lime slice to chase the vodka burning your throat. The three of you were on a roll, drinking ever since you entered the club without a care for stopping.

Nancy hiccuped in, looking between you and Robin, knowing you should cool it on the drinking, “M-maybe some water?” she requested as the two of you nodded in agreement.

He laughed freely at all three of you girls’ halt on shots. “Coming right up,” he spun around, grabbing a few waters and clean glasses.

Robin turned her eyes towards you, her fist lazily reinforcing her head as she could feel the alcohol slowing hitting her, “Are ya having fun?”

“Hmmm…” You pretended to think for a moment before putting on your best smile, “’course I am, you know I always have fun with you two.”

Robin and Nancy shot a concerning look at each other while you were distracted by the water pushed towards you, downing the glass.

They knew things weren’t easy for you, at least right now. They had spent the last few days trying to convince you to go out and try to have fun in hopes of helping you get over the untimely breakup. After spending the first week locked up in your apartment, wallowing, they had tried to get you to come out and get some much needed girl’s time.

And for a minute they thought that they had cracked you, getting you to tag along at the beach, but unfortunately the experience just made you feel worse about yourself. Seeing too many happy couples splashing in the water or writing each other’s initials in the sand around a big heart—you were totally broken hearted.

Nancy and Robin had to practically drag you back to your apartment, a sobbing mess. What they didn’t know was that the last date that you and Steve went on was to that exact beach. Memories of you and him running barefoot across the sand and splashing each other with the salty ocean water.

Thankfully, you had gotten your shit together, or at least tried to for tonight. You were grateful to have friends who were so committed to making sure you were ok in times like these. But they could also see through the facade. You hadn’t mentioned his name all night. The first in the last couple of days where all you could think and talk about was him.

“I know, but you can also talk to us about anything you’re feeling,” Nancy started, her hands coming up to warmly caress your shoulder, “We’re always gonna be here for you.”

You inhaled, eyes glittering with a sheen of salty liquid and a genuine smile creeping onto your face as you threw your arms around her neck and pulled her into a hug. You could hear the muffled laughter of Robin’s voice behind you through the music, feeling her wrap her arms around the two of you and join in on the hug.

“I love you guys.” You murmured, feeling their smile and giggle on your skin, reciting it back to you before they stretched away.

Again, the bartender stood behind the bar, arms crisscrossed over his rib cage as he rose his brows towards you, “So what did he do? Cheat or ghost you?”

Your eyes squinted at him, evidently taken aback by his intrusion as you set your glass down, “W-what?”

He snickered inwardly, leaning closer to the bar, nearly face to face with you before you scooched back, “No group of girls just comes to a club on a Friday night crying for no reason, y’know?”

The bartender tried to be silly, laughing at himself and towards you and your friends like you’d even give him a giggle. Instead, you wanted to reach over the table and give him a piece of your mind. That yeah, maybe you were here sitting at a bar crying over Steve Harrington, but Steve would never cheat or ghost you.

Never.

But before you could even begin explaining that to him, Nancy cut in. Both of her palms resting on the surface as she pushed herself forward, face to face with the man, staring him down and watching him cower.

“Look it’s none of your business. We’re here to have a good time, not to explain ourselves to an eavesdropper.” Her voice spiked with firmness, standing her ground while the bartender smirked, holding his hands up in defense, and backed away.

You felt a squeeze on your shoulder coming from Robin who gave you an encouraging smile, but you could tell that beneath that she was worried for you. Most times you wouldn’t hesitate to put someone like him in his place for being so invasive, but these days it just felt like you didn’t have the energy for anything, let alone picking fights with strangers.

Nancy settled back comfortably into her chair and you mouthed a “thank you” towards her, and all she did was shake her head and give you those comforting eyes that let you know that she would’ve done it either way for you.

You didn’t want to feel like you needed to defend yourself, but part of you wished that you didn’t have to be here in the first place. That if Steve didn’t break your heart, you’d just be with him and the rest of your friends back at your apartment watching a shit-load of movies until you fell asleep.

But instead you were here, moping and trying to numb away your pain with drinks, like a goddamn rom-com. Except your prince charming wasn’t going to waltz in any minute and beg for your forgiveness.

You wished you could’ve just spent your night forgetting this interaction with that stupid bartender even happened, but as swiftly as the privacy came, it died once again with him invading your personal bubble.

A tray of freshly poured shots slid its way towards you, along with the cough of the man who gained your attention. “The shots are on the house and it’s my bad…I didn’t mean to make you girls angry.”

You took a deep breath, shoulders dropping heavily, only reaching for a glass and toasting it up to him, “It’s whatever…no hard feelings, dude.”

With that you chugged the alcohol, not bothering to even chase it with lime or salt, like you had been doing all night. Nancy and Robin did the same, mumbling a “thank you” to the man and taking their own shot.

He should’ve left it at that, but of course just like any other man, they always had to go and ruin it.

“Buuut…” his tone condescending with just that one word alone, “love is a complete and utter lie anyway so try not to think so hard about it.”

His lips twisted up in a smirk as if he had just played you, but you were really just not having any of it anymore. You weren’t sure if it was the alcohol beginning to really kick in and give you an edge or if you were really just ticked off, but you didn’t think twice before reaching for Nancy’s half-full cup of water and chucking the rest of it at the man.

“You’re such an asshole!” You slurred noisily followed by the gasps of the other bystanders who watched it unfold.

“Oh, my god!” Robin shrieked, clamping a hand over her mouth as she watched the man completely lose his shit over some water.

It all happened so fast, and you really were about to go across the bar and throw every single drink at this man just so you could release all this pent up sadness and frustration, but something stopped you. That familiar tune beginning to play over the speakers. That song that was Steve’s favorite blaring in your ears and it just made you want to cry.

You never would have thought you’d ever throw a drink into any person’s face. Never ever. Sure, you’d fantasize about it, and wish you could to ever rude person you met.

But you never did…not until tonight.

You don’t know what overcame you, but it all just felt so wrong.

Nancy quickly helped you up out of the barstool, while Robin exhanged a few curse words and thrown middle fingers at the man before following you two outside of the club before you would have been escorted out by security.

You couldn’t control the sobs that were leaving your mouth and tears slipping down your cheeks. This isn’t what you wanted at all, and this wasn’t how the night was supposed to play out.

You had it all planned out in your head.

You three would just spend the night drinking your worries away and dancing to overplayed club music until your feet hurt and you would have to hail a cab barefoot down the street.

But of course, nothing was ever how it was supposed to be.

“Here, let’s sit,” Nancy suggested, wandering a few blocks away from the place and helping you sit down on the curb.

“Oh honey,” Robin murmured, coming to the other side of you and wrapping her arms across your shoulders, “Don’t listen to that prick. He has no idea what he’s talking about!”

Nancy ran her palms up and down your arms, trying to warm you up from the chilly night air, “Mhm! He’s probably just angry because he’s never been in love before.”

With your breath uneasy, you lifted your face from your hands, revealing the mascara smeared cheeks where the salty tears continued to pour.

“Love isn’t a lie! It can’t be…”

You looked at them in disbelief like this breakup was so catastrophic…because it was and it was painting you blue. The kind of messy and discolored shades of every blue fusing together and turning your soul into grey goop.

You were a mess.

Nance gulped, not really sure of what to say because your emotions had never got this bad. Back in the first week of the breakup, she and Robin would hold you while you cried and told them how lonely you were, but this was something different.

“A—and no one is saying it’s a lie! Love isn’t a lie, hun.” She told you, stroking your hair back from where it was sticking to your wet cheeks.

You couldn’t help collapsing into Nancy’s lap, hiding your face and hands on top of her where you wept violently. She felt the strings tugging on her heart, watching you break down, rubbing circles on your back to try to get you to calm down.

Her eyes narrowing towards Robin and mouthing, “say something to make her feel better!”

Robin wasn’t so good with these emotions, either. Smacking her hand on top of her forehead and opening her mouth to try to form words, but she struggled a bit, but not before Nancy smacked her leg lightly, begging her to say something quick.

“Y-you know…ummm love isn’t a complete lie…it’s just that ummm, you know sometimes things just don’t work out, but when you meet someone and it feels right, you just know…you know that it’s love.”

You rocked your head in your hands, your heart being pulled in a million different directions, yet still falling apart because you knew that you only ever had that feeling with Steve. He was the person who felt right. And you feared that it was always going to be him.

Nancy and Robin continued rubbing reassuring circles on your back, and you even felt the warmth of a Robin’s jacket being draped across body. There was no good reason as to why your two best friends should be doing this right now. And you probably wouldn’t have blamed them if they had just left you here to fend for yourself because you were a total mess and you really felt like your sadness was contagious—infecting them and ruining their night.

They had their own significant others, Jonathan and Vicky, who probably would have given them a better night than tonight. At least, they had people coming home to them, probably thinking about what they were up to, maybe something fun and looking forward to receiving one of those drunk calls asking them to come and pick them up. But no, they were here, already sobered up and comforting their heartbroken wreck of a friend.

“B-but what if it’s really a lie?” You hiccuped quietly, withdrawing your head from Nancy’s lap, and struggling to swipe away at the never ending puddle of tears.

Robin adjusted her jacket over your shoulders, hugging you firmly and Nance doing the same on the opposite side.

“Don’t think like that, babe…you know you’re a total romantic.” Robin replied

You sniffled, glancing over at her with a crushed presence, “I don’t know a-anymore, maybe love just isn’t meant for me,”

“No, no, no, don’t say that.” Nancy scolds gently, moving to hold on to your hand where you take a shaky breath and look up at the sky.

You wished that there was a shooting star, just so you could make a wish and rewind time. You were so pathetically drunk yet sober off your ass and feelings right now.

“It’s true! Maybe Steve will find a new girlfriend who will give him the world and take my place and love him the way that I—”

You swallowed thickly, not even wanting to finish that sentence because it made you so sick. Your senses were just filled with all things Steve and even when you closed your eyes to try to forget about it, all you could visualize was Steve laughing and kissing another girl who wasn’t you.

It was your deepest fears coming true in the bounds of your imagination, yet maybe it was true. Maybe Steve already found someone else who was better than you, the girl who you could never be. Maybe he was already moved on, meanwhile you were letting him make a mess and a fool out of you.

It made you sick.

The lump in your larynx rose despite your attempts to swallow it, and out of nowhere your hands forced outwards, shoving Robin and Nancy away, while you jerked forward and threw up on the street.

“Oh, Jesus.” Nancy sighed, hastily rising up and backing away to give you a minute.

Meanwhile, Robin clenched one hand over her mouth, while the other gathered your hair and held it back for you.

“Yup, just let it all out.” She mumbled, grimacing as you continued to do so.

Nance searched around, catching a payphone a short walk away, “I’m gonna call her a ride and try to find her some water.”

“Be quick, please.” Robin hailed out before she jogged off to the payphone.

She really didn’t know who to call, and for a second she contemplated Steve, but after everything that had happened tonight, she didn’t want to put you in a situation that you quite literally weren’t ready for.

Jonathan would have been an option, but she knew her boyfriend and at this hour he was probably dead asleep and would not wake up.

Then there was Vicky, which would have been a great option, however she still didn’t have her license and the last thing they needed was for her to get pulled over for not having one.

So she dialed the numbers, hoping that the person would be up and willing to come into town to pick you up.

“C’mon, c’mon, please, pick up.” She tapped her foot impatiently and the phone continued to ring, for a moment she was about to lose all her hope and hang up.

But thankfully, he picked up, “Munson residence, what can I do for you at this hour?”

Nance could practically feel the smirk on his face once he answer, “Eddie, you need to get your ass down here before she quiet literally drops down drunk on the side of the road.”

There was a heavy sigh before she heard some shuffling in the background, “I’ll be right there.”

How Nancy got a bottle of water from the same bartender that you threw a glass of water at was kinda funny, but nevertheless you were thankful. You were half drunk, drowsy, propping your head on Robin’s shoulder while Nance occasionally prompted you to drink some more water, trying to get you to sober up quickly. But what you really needed was an aspirin and your bed.

Thankfully, after what felt like the longest twenty minutes of your life, you could hear the sighs of reliefs coming from Robin and Nancy as they followed the white van coming closer down the street.

“C’mon, hun, time to get up,” Robin declared, wrapping one of your arms across her shoulder and Nancy did the same, trying to get you up on your feet without you flopping down.

“What the fuck!” Eddie hollered out the passenger window, hitting the brakes and placing the van in park before getting out.

You heard him, more than saw him, due to the fact that you were still buzzed, but could barely raise your head to meet his eyes. Instead, just seeing a distorted view of his converse that he always wore.

“Now’s not the time for a tangent, Edward—fuck!” Nancy winced, struggling to keep you up.

“Jesus Christ, just give her to me,” Eddie sputtered, drawing your full weight and essentially lugging you to the passenger side of the van where Robin opened the door wide.

He turned to the two girls, looking at them seriously, “Before she goes in, did she already throw up?”

Nancy nodded, pointing to the side of the road where your barf still stayed in a pile that made everyone want to gag, “Like everything in her system.”

“Okay, I’ll get her home safe and make sure she calls you before she heads to bed,” He told them and they nodded, watching Eddie gingerly place you in the passenger seat and buckle you in.

“Feel better, babe, we’ll talk to you in a bit.” Nancy exhaled, giving your thigh a pat while Robin opted for a kiss on the forehead before shutting your door quietly.

You could only barely hear the conversation that the two girls and Eddie were having outside. Their voices a subdued murmur, not wanting to disturb your journey to sleep, but also not wanting you to hear them explain the situation that had happened that lead up to this. But you really paid them no mind, just resting your head back against the cushion and listening to the low music that played.

It was only a few more minutes before Eddie finally got into the driver’s seat, glancing over at you. “Ready to go?”

“Hmmm.” You uttered, keeping your eyes tight and feeling the van begin to move.

You weren’t really sure where things stood between you and Eddie, considering the fact that he was closer to Steve and even let him crash at his trailer after you two had broken up and you kept the apartment. You weren’t even sure if Eddie liked you all that much. After all this time dating Steve, he was one of the friends that was hard to read.

Sometimes he’d be super friendly and other times he’d be a little closed off. It just depended on the day, but you had a feeling that you were the last person that Eddie wanted to see tonight.

“I’m sorry for making you drive all the way down here for me…I-I should’ve just told them to call me a cab—”

He grunted, swaying his head and peeping over at you shortly, “And what if that cab driver was a creep? Just—just consider it a favor and let it be done.”

“D-do you hate me or something?” You opened your eyes, looking at him blankly.

“Don’t be ridiculous, you dated my best friend since like forever…I can’t hate you.” He chuckled to himself, but still you didn’t seem convinced.

“But we’re broken up now, so technically you can hate me.” You responded, pushing yourself to sit up rather than slouch.

He looked over at you, perhaps thinking you were about to yack again, but you just looked at him, waiting for a response.

“Look,” He sighed heavily, “You made Steve really happy, the happiest I’ve ever fuckin’ seen him in our whole friendship. There isn’t a goddamn reason for me to hate you for doing that. If anything, I owe you because him being that happy made him a better friend, alright. So stop thinking that I hate you, because I don’t.”

You were a little shocked to be honest, because Eddie never really got deep when it came to you. So maybe Eddie really didn’t hate you. That at least made you feel a little better.

When you didn’t respond, Eddie spoke again, hoping that you would at least say something for the rest of the drive.

“You know, Steve isn’t doing so well, either. He’s still crashing at my place and when I got the call from Nance tonight, I contemplated telling him it was about you, but…I don’t think right now either of you are ready to talk at three in the morning.” He snickered, smiling a bit when he saw you scorn jokingly and brush back your hair.

“And so, what did you tell him?” You marveled out loud, turning your eyes to the road, “That you had to deliver some weed?”

“Maybe, something like that.” He shrugged feeling so predicable.

Eddie honestly didn’t know what to make of this whole situation. A part of him feeling a little bad for not telling his best friend that his ex-girlfriend was totally wasted and needed a way home. But he also understood that you were really vulnerable right now and to tell Steve would blow the whole situation out of proportion and probably would’ve made everything between the two of you even worse.

If there was any hope for reconsolidation, it would be best for the two of you two meet when you weren’t wasted and the other worried out of their mind about your wellbeing.

The drive to your apartment wasn’t long or as awkward as you thought it was going to be. It was actually quite comfortable. Eddie made jokes every once in a while when you got too quiet, wondering if you were about to throw up and that he would never forgive you if you threw up in his van.

“Home sweet home.” Eddie announced, guiding you into your place and shutting the door behind you.

You flickered the lights on, cursing at the sudden brightness that only made your head hurt even more than it already was. Eddie looked around that the space and a lot of the areas were bare after Steve had packed up his things with him. It wasn’t a complete mess, but there were boxes of tissues scattered around the coffee table and kitchen area. And there seemed to be more wine bottles behind the kitchen—your way of coping.

“I’m gonna get out of these clothes. Just grab anything you want to eat or drink if you’re hungry.” You waved off, stumbling towards your bedroom to grab a fresh pair of clothes to change into.

Again, with your energy so depleted you just didn’t have it in you to take the time to shower, so instead you opted for a makeup wipe, brushing your teeth, and changing into sweats.

“Here she is.” Eddie spoke with a half full mouth of cereal, passing the phone to you once you came back out to the living room.

You rubbed at your eyes, yawning loudly, as you placed the phone beside your ear, “H-hello?”

“Hey hun, you feeling a little better?” It was Robin on the other line.

“Just a little, gonna take an aspirin and head to bed…and look, I’m sorry for—”

“Nope!” She cut you off quickly, “don’t apologize, sometimes it happens, but I’m just glad that we were there to make sure you got home safe.”

You nodded, drawing a deep breath, “Yeah, thanks for that too.”

Robin could sense the tiredness in your voice and knew it was time you head to bed.

“Get some rest and I’ll call you tomorrow ok? I love you, sugar!”

You laughed faintly at the kissy noises she made, “Love you too, Robs.”

When you hung up the phone, your eyes followed the ruckus taking place in the storage closet beside the kitchen. You got up, seeing as though Eddie has pulled from the bottom layer of your paper towel tower and caused a few to come plummeting down.

“Sorry, you were all out of some in the kitchen.” Eddie apologized while you bent down, helping him pick up a few rolls and stack them back up.

But something peeking out behind the stack caught your eyes, a dark blue piece of fabric that had been wedged behind it. You rose your brows, tugging at the garment until it came out into view and just like that you wanted to cry all over again.

It was the stupid blue bucket hat that Steve had been wearing on your last date at the beach.

You couldn’t remember why it was there to begin with, but it was just like another memory of him seeping back into your life. You had thought that he packed away everything, all his clothes, his little trinkets—leaving no trace of himself behind, yet this stupid hat was still here.

“A-are you ok?” Eddie asked slowly, watching your eyes being to water, and you went stoic.

You sniffled, shaking your head, and rolling your eyes at yourself for being so dramatic. “It’s the hat that Steve wore on our last date.”

“Oh…umm, I’m sorry.” He said, cursing at himself for being so clumsy and causing you to find it.

You shook your head, lips sealed closely as you tried to breathe through your tears, “No, it’s fine, I just thought he took everything with him and now it’s just like, right in my face and it sucks.”

“I-I can give it back to him if you want?” Eddie offered, holding his hands out ready for you to want it as far away as possible, but you didn’t hand it over.

Instead, you wiped away your tears, shaking your head again while you examined it, “I’ll keep it…you know, for memory and whatnot.”

He didn’t question for how weird that must sound, but instead reached forward and wrapped his arms around you, giving you a hug. One that he knew you probably needed. The one that he rarely gave you when you two were friends. If this breakup was hard for Steve, it was even harder for you, and just by the looks of it, he could tell that was true.

“You rest up and feel better tomorrow, alright?” He said, pulling away from the hug and looking at you through your teary eyes.

Your lip quivered, trying to control the sobbing from happening because you knew Eddie couldn’t be of comfort like Nancy and Robin. He told you goodnight, before giving you one last hug and letting himself out. It felt lonelier than usual, locking up the place and heading to your bedroom where you couldn’t even find it in yourself to sleep on Steve’s side of the bed.

You always stayed on your side, wishing that he was there to fill that empty space. To just hold you tight and tell you that everything was going to be fine.

And so maybe his side of the bed was still empty, but you still had a small piece of him there with you. With that, you clutched that stupid hat close to your chest while you faced towards his side of the bed. Tears still slipping and being soaked up by your blankets as you cried yourself to sleep.

Sleep seemed to be the only place where you’d find an ounce of peace, but only for a little, because as soon as a dream would begin, it would only end in a nightmare that woke you up. It was no different, except for the fact that this time you dreamed of that beach, the one where you and Steve walked hand in hand, telling each other anything.

It felt so real, seeing him there and feeling his hand against yours. His laughter was still contagious, just as much as his smile was. Then, like that…he just disappeared, like he had been swept away in the current.

You were left on that beach all alone, feeling the warmth of the sun piercing through your skin like a death by a thousand cuts and the sand beneath your feet burning you with each lonely step you took.

“Fuck,”

Groaning, you looked at yourself in the mirror. Hair disheveled, eyes swollen with bags under them, and you totally looking like you just had the life sucked out of you from the night before. You knew that it wasn’t acceptable even if you were so heartbroken. You spat out the mouthwash and immediately got into the hot shower, trying to scrub off any memories of last night and let it go down the drain.

You pulled on some fresh clothes, hoping that a little bit of self-care would make you feel better and tackle on the rest of the day, despite you waking up at nearly noon, but the effort was what mattered.

Walking into the living room, you passed the home phone, noticing the alarming amount of red numbers flashing, indicating you had some messages that Robin and Nancy probably left after calling you all morning. And you were right, more than half were from Robin and Nancy, calling and checking in, telling you to call them as soon as you got the message, and if you didn’t that they’d be stopping by to check on you.

You pressed play on the next message, already assuming it was one of them, but it wasn’t.

“Hey, sorry, I know you’re probably still asleep and you have a massive hangover, but I might have accidentally told Steve about what happened last night and now he’s—”

“Fuck!”

Your eyes enlarged at Eddie’s message and you immediately picked up the phone, dialing his number and hoping you could get him to retract that statement he passed on to Steve because you really didn’t want him to know you were crying over him last night.

One. Two. Thee. Four. Five rings and still he didn’t pick up.

He was probably telling Steve everything about last night and how reckless you were. Throwing a drink in a stranger’s face? Throwing up on the side of the road? Being so wasted you couldn’t even lift yourself off the ground? And for godsake, sobbing over that stupid hat?

You were totally done for.

Sitting on the couch with your face in your hands, you were in disbelief.

How could Eddie just go and spill about what had happened?

You thought he was your friend?

Maybe that was just all a part of his plan?

What if Eddie only accepted giving you a ride home so he could tell Steve about how you were handling the breakup, only for him to make fun of you for how stupid you’ve been acting?

“God, I am such an idiot!” You shouted at yourself, shaking your head in your hands, before hearing the familiar key turn in the door.

It was obvious Nancy or Robin with their spare key you gave them. It had been hours since they left the message and they were here to check on you. Thank god they were because you felt like you were going insane and you didn’t know if you could do it alone.

The high-pitched squeak that came from the knob turning prepared you for your friends who would probably bombard you with questions before you got to tell them anything. You were ready for it, hearing their shouts of, “why didn’t you call?” or “we were worried sick!” but you didn’t hear that.

Instead, you heard the familiar footsteps of the person you could never mistake. He always had a way of walking, especially when he tried to tiptoe because he didn’t want to wake you up. The floorboards creaked a little, and you heard a hiss and then you turned your head.

It was Steve.

You stood up, hands glued to your side where you stared at him, not knowing what to say or how to feel. He looked like he felt the same, standing there and looking around in order to avoid the prolonged eye contact you knew he couldn’t hold.

“What are you doing here?”

You tightened your lips, staying still with your arms crossing behind your back. You pinched and pulled at your fingers trying to get yourself to stabilize your heartbeat that felt like it was pounding out your chest.

Steve stuttered for a bit, really contemplating if he should have knocked instead of using his key, but he was worried out of his mind and thought that you were passed out in the bathroom choking on your own vomit. But obviously he was wrong and now he looked like a total creep, breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment.

You rocked your head at him somewhat, prompting a response that came faster than he could formulate the words in his head.

“I, uhh, I didn’t mean to break in but, Eddie told me what happened—” He paused, squinting his eyes at himself, as he backtracked, “well, actually he didn’t really tell me, I forced him to tell me or else I would have flushed the rest of his stash because I knew he was lying.”

This son of a bitch.

Steve shook his head, cursing at himself for getting carried away, “Anyway…he told me, and I just wanted to come here and check on you because you never really get wasted like that, and I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

Your jaw clenched in a way to try to block the tears from sliding, because if you didn’t have the strength it in you, you would’ve sunk down onto the floor, breaking down and telling him that you were in fact not fine at all.

“I’m fine…can we just pretend like this didn’t happen?” You spoke under your breath, stepping away and trying to pick up random things lying around in order to avoid looking at him any longer.

He sighed, kicking off his shoes, and faltered behind you. “Why are you being like this?”

You rolled your eyes, brushing past him and throwing away the stray wrappers into the trash bin, “Like what?” you countered, still not meeting his views.

“Avoidant and stuff. You just keep acting like you want nothing to do with me.” He huffed, bending down to meet your stance.

Now that ticked you off and made you snap your head back towards him, eyes shooting daggers at his boldness.

“If I remember correctly, you’re the one who wanted nothing to do with me and packed up your things and left.” Your voice dripping with a mix of resentment and hurt as you brushed past him harshly and made your way back into the living room.

His mouth opened in an “o” not knowing how to respond to that, because he really did do what you said, but it wasn’t what he meant.

“J-just let me explain myself alright, I swear that was the last thing I wanted to do—”

You let out a sarcastic laugh, biting your tongue. “Yeah, sure, I guess everyone just breaks up with their significant other for no reason.”

He threw himself down onto the couch, tugging at his hair, “There was a reason, alright! I was scared…terrified that you wanted more in life but didn’t know how to tell me and I was just holding you back.”

That was the first time you had ever heard this explanation. For the past two weeks, the only thing that kept replaying in your mind was Steve sitting you down in this very living room and telling you he wasn’t sure if it was working out anymore and wanted you to venture out into the world. That was it. No other deeper explanation or closure, just those words, and the scene of you frozen on the couch with tears in your eyes as you watched him pack and leave.

Right now, you were frozen in front of him, standing with your arms crossed and tapping your foot against the wooden floors, not knowing what to say.

He was the one who spoke, letting up on his hair and resting his hands on his knees instead, “And, you know, I’m not doing too well either, I still think of you and worry about what you’re doing and if you’re—”

You turned your nose up, voicing cracking as you cut him off, “And all I do is cry every day and I don’t understand why…why I can’t just pick up the pieces that you left here and move on.”

Steve knew you like the back of his hand, and that familiar croak in your throat let him know that you were only seconds away from crying, but still he didn’t stop you. He knew that there was so much that you needed to say and after the way that he had left, it was only right he sat here and listen to you.

“It’s…it’s like I’m just waiting for a bus that never comes—”

He furrowed his brows, “Are you using metaphors right now?”

You looked at him in disbelief, sighing as you threw your hands out in the air and nodded, “Jesus Steve, yes, I am, ok! I’m using fucking metaphors because I’m trying to tell you that I’m still in love with you and I don’t know if I’ll ever stop.”

He followed you, pacing the space in front of him, back and forth, with your fingers running through your hair as you spilled your guts out to him.

“I don’t get why I’m like this and I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Why can’t I just accept the fact that you broke up with me and move on with my life? And the funny thing is, I should be able to! I should be able to just rip the bandaid off and act like an asshole and pretend you and I never existed!” You turned to him, swallowing thickly as you laughed to yourself, hating the situation you were in right now, but you never stopped talking.

Then you looked up at the ceiling, tugging at your own roots as you continued.

“I mean, for fuck’s sake, in the 8th grade Ben Pritchett broke up with me right before winter formal and I thought that it was going to be the end of the world because I thought he was the love of my life. I thought that I was going to spend the rest of 8th grade miserable and crying my eyes out over him, but I didn’t!”

You looked at him with a hopeless smile and you could see a glint of his own, wanting to laugh at how ridiculous you sounded for comparing him to your 8th grade boyfriend.

“I moved on with my life! Just like that!” You snapped your fingers and watched him blink a bit, “But with you,” your fingers pointed and you stared at him unsure, you shrugged your shoulders, “with you I just can’t…”

The waterworks began, and you finally didn’t care about staring at him for so long. If you could, you would jump into the ocean of his eyes because of how they made you feel. That even if you were standing here ranting to him about unnecessary shit, his eyes still brought you that sense of relief that you had been dying to feel for the last two weeks.

Steve moved forward gradually, taking your hands and holding them, rubbing circles on the tops of your skin, while you closed your eyes and bit back a sob. You let him keep his hands on yours, not daring to back away or drop him because you didn’t know if this was going to be the last time, and if it was you wanted to make the moment last as long as possible.

“I—I see you everywhere…every corner of this apartment, in all the faces I see—I see you. Everything leads back to you for some reason. All of these fucking questions that I’ve been asking myself. Why can’t I get over Steve? Why is this heartbreak hitting me differently than the one I experienced when I was thirteen?”

You squeezed on his hands, opening your teary eyes to see him through the film of salt, “Because it’s you, Steve…I’m still in love with you and I can’t get over you.”

That four letter word: Love. That’s all that he needed to hear, and it’s the word that had been dying to come off your tongue again. You loved Steve with every single ounce of your being. As if he was a drug running through your veins and you needed him to survive. You needed the one person who believed in you when no one else did.

You needed Steve, but you were terrified that he didn’t need you anymore.

“You didn’t listen to my message did you?” Steve asked quietly, letting go of one of your hands and bringing them up to wipe away at the tears on your cheek.

“W-what?” You ordered dumb-founded, feeling as though Steve didn’t hear that whole monologue that you just made up out of nowhere.

He grinned lightly, withdrawing his hand from your cheek and blindlessly, reaching over to the phone and clicking the play button on the leftover messages you had left.

You felt your breathing stop when you heard his voice echoing through the staticky speakers. There was no way that Steve called you last night. You had played the messages on your machine, and all you got were messages from Nancy, Robin, and Eddie. But you also forgot that your outdated machine sorted your messages from new to old, meaning Steve must have called while you were out last night.

“Hey, it’s me….I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to pick up the phone and call, maybe it’s because I’m a little scared that you’re going to delete it once you hear my voice, but I just really have a bunch of things to say and I guess it’s better now than never right?”

You fastened a hand over your mouth, whimpering quietly into it, while you shook your head, not believing that you could have missed this. If only you had stayed home last night, you would have been there to pick up the phone and talk to him. Steve clutched your other hand still, pushing up his glasses that fell down the bridge of his nose while he watched your reaction to the rest of his message.

“I’m an idiot for the way things went down and I should have explained myself better, but you know…I suck at communication—but that’s still not the point! I made the biggest mistake of letting you go like that and just assuming that’s what you wanted because I know deep down it’s not….it’s probably the last thing you ever wanted, and it’s all my fault.”

There was a pause, him clearing his throat and sniffling as he was crying softly.

“But I’m going to make an even bigger mistake if I don’t tell you that I’m still in love with you. That yeah, I might be the dumbest guy out there for letting go of the most amazing girl, but I’m not about to lose her if there’s still a slight chance that she might still feel the same. I love you and I don’t think I’ll ever stop.”

Then he hung up the phone with a loud clank.

And as quickly as Steve had broken your heart, he soon patched it back together. There was a softness to your eyes now, like you had accepted everything. And Steve looked like he was awaiting for any sort of reaction good or bad, due to your silence.

“I-I don’t expect you to take me back that easily. I mean after all I’m an idiot but I just hope that—mph!”

You clutched his face, pressing your lips against one another, feeling like a wave of happiness washing over you the second you got to be this close to a feeling that you thought that was almost gone forever. Steve didn’t hesitate to move his lips against yours, pulling you closer to him until you were toppling on top of him, and lost in everything that was you and Steve.

“You’re an idiot..but mine.” You muttered against him, feeling his smile creeping against your skin before you laughed, kissing him again.

And again. And more times than you can count.

Relishing him and forgetting about the sadness. And sure, maybe you were equally the idiot who took him back too easily, but if there was one thing that the two of you were sure of, it was that this kiss and this love hit a little different because it would always be you two.

A/N: My first full length fic since i've been back!!! im super proud of this one and want to thank @translatemunson for giving me the idea <;3 i love you effie!!!! hits different is also one of my favorite songs and i wonder if taylor really did scrap it off the face of the internet because it's going to be in the Barbie movie--what do you guys think??? anyways, again thank you all for the outpour of support and reblogs, comments, and likes would be greatly appreciated!!! 🌃🕯💘

leave a comment and let me know if want to be added to my taglist!!

taglist: @translatemunson @kennedy-brooke @manda-panda-monium @tvserie-s-world @givemeth @steveharringtonswife @astolenkiss @loving-and-dreaming @awkotaco24

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is:  @wynnyfryd! Wynnyfryd has 34 fics in the Stranger Things fandom and all of them are in the Steddie tag!

i don’t know, you figure it out

Plot Holes

biting you biting you biting you- oh! kissing you!

Satanic Ritual: DO NOT WATCH!!

She's got some of the FUNNIEST writing in this fandom, and it's very snappy too like. She's an editing demon for sure, she can take a concept that I'd think would take paragraphs to explain and find the right words to make it hit just as hard with like, two sentences. I also really really love how descriptive her metaphors are, really visceral sometimes, and she's really good at writing realistic life events but still making them fun to read about even when it's about like, devastating shit. The sex she writes is also intense as hell! -- @griefabyss69

Below the cut, @wynnyfryd answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

I am but a humble bisexual — I see two beautiful brown-eyed men makin’ beautiful brown eyes at each other, I go a little insane for two years. It is what it is.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

late-night moments of quiet hopeful hesitant intimacy over a shared joint or cigarette. Thin wisp of smoke between them, stars dancing in their eyes. Yeah. YEAHHHHHHH 

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

This isn’t really a trope so much as a dynamic, but I love a good dipshit 4 dingus dialogue-heavy scene. Don’t get me wrong, I think Eddie and Steve can both be very smart and knowledgeable in their areas of interest/expertise, but these are two young dudes with no access to the internet. I love letting them be confidently incorrect dumbasses. Just ‘yes and’-ing each other’s stupidity while an exasperated third character begs for mercy.

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

Well, this question is impossible and furthermore rude. This question came into my home and didn’t take its muddy boots off. This question never mailed me a thank you letter for my lovely wedding gift. That blender was expensive; the absolute nerve. No but seriously, I think The Lathe by palmviolet is going to stay with me forever.

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

I’m a big fan of doing canon divergence from different jumping off points — the beauty of having characters live in the same small town their whole lives is that you get so many great opportunities for these “what if our paths crossed sooner” moments.  I have some very loose notes for a S3 fic where Eddie is the movie theater employee who finds Steve and Robin in the bathroom after they escape the Russians, and I also have an old WIP set between S1 and S2 where lifeguard Steve rescues Eddie and then spends the summer teaching him how to swim. Would love to revisit those after I finish the trailer park AU (which I will be referring to as TPAU because my fingers are tired and because ‘toilet paper au’ makes me laugh.)

What is your writing process like?

Uhhhhh. 😂 I mean, for TPAU, basically just insert the scene from Dune 2 of Paul’s first sandworm ride: I’m shaking I’m sweating there is sand in my nostrils and I am surely about to die— oh wait, maybe I’ve actually got this? Am I actually doing it? Oh shit, look at me go!   For one-shots I like to use a more structured outline and bracket method. I start by dividing my doc into numbered scenes, with each scene getting a notes section and a prose section, like this:

This format gives me a lot of freedom to switch up the order of scenes and to move between scenes so I avoid writer’s block. I can also jump ahead to scenes I really want to write without making a mess of my outline. Once I have something written in the prose section of each scene, I go back and work on replacing each bracket with prose until there are no brackets left. Lastly, I create a new blank doc and copy the prose over in order so I can read the full fic and work on edits from there.  

Do you have any writing quirks?

I have been known to abuse a semicolon. And an em dash. And a conjunction at the start of a sentence. Yes, I do have ADHD.   I’m also a lyricist, so I feel like my prose tends to stray into poetry territory pretty often.

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

When I’m finished! Which is probably why I tend to stick to one-shots; I get impatient and want to post stuff the second it’s ready.

Which fic are you most proud of?

‘i don’t know, you figure it out’ for SURE. I’ve never written a fic this long or stuck to a writing project this consistently in my life. Like ever. The last time I even came close was my first NaNoWriMo when I was 16, which was, uh… years ago, plural, and I’ll leave it at that. 😂

How did you get the idea for i don’t know, you figure it out?

“There’s a dead rat on his doorstep.” That’s it. That first sentence/scene popped into my head while I was bored at work, and then I started thinking, “hey, you know what? I don’t know that anyone’s ever done a fic where Max and Steve trade places for S4; that might be fun.”  And then NaNoWriMo was coming up, so I thought it would be cool to try live posting a fully improvised fic every day for a month to see how many words I could write. And then this tragic wet cat version of Steve Harrington grabbed me by the throat and took over my whole life.

When writing Satanic Ritual: DO NOT WATCH!!, what was something you didn’t expect?

How SAPPY these two got!! My god, boys, I’m trying to write smut over here, stop having a beautiful existential crisis! (I blame Briston Maroney for that though lol, I think I listened to ‘Body’ like 1400 times that month.)

What inspired Satanic Ritual: DO NOT WATCH!!?

@inklessletter posted this totally gorgeous art of Steve and Eddie recording themselves kissing, and I promptly lost my mind.  

What was your favorite part to write from biting you biting you biting you- oh! kissing you!?

This exchange: Steve: “What? I’m just asking!” Robin: “You’re being embarrassing!” Steve: “No, you’re just embarrassed. There’s a difference.” Like it’s just so them lmao

How do/did you feel writing i don’t know, you figure it out?

You know when you set out on a long hike in the summer and three hours later your calves are screaming and you’re covered in sweat and your sunburn’s starting to itch and this one horse fly won’t fuck off and your cell phone doesn’t even get service out here so literally WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO YOURSELF, and then you climb that last hill and look out on the most beautiful landscape you’ve ever seen in your silly little life? Basically that.

What was the most difficult part of writing Plot Holes?

Ooh, that one was fun! The only real difficulty was trying to keep it to a microfic because the concept could definitely be fleshed out to a full story — @griefabyss69 and I were joking around about “what if someone did ‘plot hole’ for the @steddiemicrofic prompt fill?” and then that fic just fell out of my head in about 15 minutes. 

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

For sure! I’m currently super proud of the graveyard scene in the most recent update of TPAU — I don’t write true horror often, but I love horror so it was really fun to give it a try! Favorite line from any fic is probably this reference to ‘You’re Divine’ in my fic Monsoon Season because I love uncomfortably-aroused prude Eddie, and his internal monologue cracks me up every time I think about it: Freddie Monsoon’s debut novel is called The Fourth Chime, and it is, as far as Eddie can tell, the first installment in a series of unapologetically filthy fuck fests about a man whose lover gets flung into an alternate dimension during an apocalyptic event and miraculously returns as some sort of… sexy bat-boy with a fucking horse dong and a bite kink. Critics are calling it “the most romantic novel of the last decade.” It’s me; I’m Critics.

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

My main project right now is finishing TPAU if it kills me, but beyond that, I have a few one-shots for @subeddieweek in the works, including a collab with @griefabyss69 that I’m so so SO excited to share. It’s hot, it’s funny, I can’t wait for y’all to read it. 

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

First of all, as @wormdebut would say: I think you’re pretty. Thank you so much for all your hard work! I love this blog, and I love answering questions <3 Secondly: - Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. - Toss cubed sweet potatoes and parsnips, sliced sweet onion, and fresh garlic in a mix of olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary, and then spread in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet.  - Bake for ~40-45 minutes. (Potatoes and parsnips should be soft without being mushy when you poke them with a fork.) - Prep your sauce: I made a dijon drizzle situation by mixing olive oil mayo, a dash of dijon mustard, lemon juice, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a splash of water, but you could also add a little dab of hot sauce, bbq sauce, or different mustards. Basically just grab like four condiments out of your fridge and play around with the flavors you like until you make a mix that’s thin enough to pour. - Drizzle roasted veggies with sauce. - Enjoy a very tasty side dish (or do what I did and eat the whole sheet as a meal like some sort of parsnip goblin because you were too lazy to make the main dish after chopping all those veggies) okay thank you love you byeeeee

Thank you to our author, @wynnyfryd, and our nominator, @griefabyss69! See more of Wynnyfryd's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!