#and my face is super warm for no reaso

[dragon-hoard]

oh I am absolutely experiencing The Agonies right now

[fatbiatchforever]

Lies (Pt. 2)

Just wanna quickly say thanks to everyone who liked the previous one and all the support. Hope you guys like this one and feel better lol.

Taglist: @sapphirebarnes @mrsnikstan

"Bucky?"

You rubbed your eyes to adjust to the light seeping in from the hallway and let out a yawn.

Bucky smirked as he leaned against the door frame. "Someone's excited to see me."

"No, no, I am." You pulled on his wrist and opened the door wider to let him in. You chuckled as you turned back, noticing Bucky's eyes darting around the room before finally settling on you. "First time in your own home?"

Bucky's tense face softened into a shy smile. "Just missed the place."

You closed the distance between, wrapping your arms around his neck and pressing your lips softly against his. "Not me?"

Bucky's hands snaked around your waist, pulling you closer. His breath was warm against your face. "I could show you how much I missed you."

Leo's barks startled you, causing you to jump out of Bucky's hold. By the looks of it, Bucky was just as taken aback.

You walked over to your dog to soothe him. "Leo, it's okay, it's Buck." But Leo wasn’t having it; he lunged toward Bucky, his barking getting louder by the second. It stopped only when Bucky pushed him down and muffled his mouth.

"BUCKY!" you screamed, immediately trying to push him away from Leo. But what were you against a super soldier? Especially when Bucky’s eyes had that eerie focus that scared you. Leo's whimpers filled the apartment, along with your pleas. "Bucky, please, stop, you're hurting him."

As though Bucky snapped out of a trance, he stepped back, walking away from you and your dog. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I did that."

You gently lifted Leo's face, searching for any scratches or injuries that Bucky's metal arm might have caused. Leo got up and hid behind you, his whimpers breaking your heart. "Why would you do that, Bucky?"

Bucky gulped and looked down. "His barks were ringing in my ears."

You took a deep breath, balling your shaking hands into fists. "I don’t know, Leo never acts this way. He's always so happy to see you."

You noticed Leo walking to the side of the couch, where he usually hid when Bucky wanted to take him out for morning walks.

"You still shouldn't have done that," you hissed at Bucky.

Bucky nodded before walking to your room and closing the door behind him.

---

It had been a few days since Bucky returned. He seemed fine after a shower, almost like the incident had never happened. Leo stayed away from Bucky every chance he got, even though Bucky tried everything to get closer to him.

Still, it was so unlike him in every way. He was always quiet, but since he’d been back, he’d been even more silent. Whenever you caught a glimpse of him, he seemed frustrated, but the moment he noticed your gaze, his eyes would light up and his lips would curve into a smile. His usual kisses and lingering looks felt heavier than usual. 

You wanted to chalk it up to the aftereffects of a tough mission and him trying to hide it from you, but you needed to know what was going on. So you went to your main source.

"Sam!"

You hugged him, then stepped back to look at his outfit. "Why are you in a suit? I'm not pitching you another Captain America Lube Line."

Sam sighed. "And thank God for that. I need to be at an event in an hour, and they said I needed to look smart. When do I not look smart?"

"Uhm, probably when you agreed to a Captain America Lube Line. There were just so many options."

"I didn’t agree to it; my assistant did. How many times do I have to say it before you guys believe me?"

You laughed. "Thanks for coming."

Sam straightened up in his chair. "Of course. Why your office, though?"

"Only place I don’t have to worry about Cap fans or Bucky. Would’ve called, but I know better than to ask about missions over the phone."

"What did he do?"

You sighed. "Nothing, really. He had a freak-out with Leo, but after that, he's been fine. It's probably nothing, and I'm worried for no reason, but..."

"If he’s not okay, he’ll try his best to hide it from you," Sam interrupted.

You nodded.

"The mission was good. Everything went well, and he seemed fine."

You let out a shaky breath. "Okay. I was afraid you’d say that."

Concern etched onto Sam’s face. "Afraid?"

You looked up at him. "I know he looks fine and is acting fine too, but something feels off, Sam. It’s just frustrating that I can’t figure it out. It’s frustrating that Bucky seems to be putting on a show."

"Did you talk to him?"

You scoffed. "Obviously, but he said he’s fine. Everything’s good. He lost his house keys too."

"Y/N—"

"Sam, I know it could happen to anyone, but Bucky knows where his spare key is. When I asked him about the keys, he didn’t even mention thinking about getting the spare one."

Before you could spiral further, Sam stopped you. "He probably forgot about it. All of us forget things, that’s normal. Bucky does have hard times after missions. It could be that, or he’ll end up telling you what’s wrong in a day or two. You’ve just got to let him come to you."

You nodded. "Yeah, you’re right."

Sam sighed. "Listen, if you’re worried, I’ll talk to him tomorrow, see if anything seems weird to me."

You smiled. "Thank you, really."

"Of course. Let me know if there’s anything else you need me for. I need to leave to look 'smart.'"

You laughed. "I’m sure you can pull it off."

"If you need me, you know you can—"

"Yep, yep, I know."

---

"Y/N?"

You turned to the voice at the door and smiled. "Hey."

"Hey, what are you doing?"

You wiped your hands on the side of your apron and walked toward him. "I made dinner for us. Thought I'd surprise you with a home date."

You laughed at Bucky's confused look before guiding him to his chair.

"I know things have been weird since you came back. I just want us to forget about the weirdness and go back to the way things were."

Bucky smiled before he pulled you to sit on his lap. "I want that too. I love you." Just as he leaned in for a kiss, you pulled away. "Sorry, the steak’s going to burn."

You rushed back to the stove and plated everything. Bucky opened a bottle of wine as you placed the plates on the table and sat across from him.

"This looks amazing, sweetheart," Bucky praised.

"Dig in!"

You watched as Bucky took his first bite and sighed in delight. "Mmm, so good."

You laughed. "You're so silly."

You both ate in silence, exchanging shy smiles each time one of you caught the other staring.

"You know, you still haven’t told me any stories from the mission. You always love telling me about them." You pouted.

Bucky intertwined his fingers with yours. "I'm sorry, must have slipped my mind. The mission was good. I got all the intel I needed. Hydra was a bitch as usual, surprise, surprise."

You laughed when Bucky rolled his eyes.

"Do you remember me talking about Triple S?" Bucky asked.

You shook your head.

"Ah, well, they’re trying to do something with the super soldier serum again."

You nodded and finished your glass of wine. "Want more?" you asked as you got up to get another bottle. "Nah, I’m fine."

You retrieved another bottle from the fridge and opened it. "You're a good Bucky."

Bucky laughed. "A good Bucky? You're already slurring your words, sweetheart. Should you be drinking more?"

You shook your head and pointed at him. "No, I meant what I said. You look just like him."

The drop in his expression sent a chill down your spine.

"You don’t know what you’re talking about." The change in his tone was alarming, but you knew you were getting close, so you prodded further.

You laughed. "I know Bucky better than I’ve known anyone my whole life. And if you really were him, you’d know that Bucky would never share mission details with me. Or call me sweetheart."

Your heart pounded as the man stood up, slamming his fists on the table, his eyes burning with anger.

"A plus on the looks, but you’re nothing like my Bucky."

He lunged toward you, his metal fingers wrapping around your neck. "What did you do?" The man who looked just like your husband asked, his tone so low it was easily masked under your heavy breaths. "Tell me where he is."

He laughed as he increased the pressure around your neck. "I know there are people coming, Y/N. Call. Them. Off."

"Tell me where Bucky is," you choked out, your fingers gripping his wrist, trying to focus on your breathing.

"You’re forgetting that I can snap your neck right now." He increased the pressure and pushed you up before slamming you into the wall. You shrieked in pain, feeling the blood trickling down your face. "Even if they find him, he’ll come back to find his wife long gone. Do you want that? Do you want your husband to find you torn apart limb for limb, huh?"

Before you could reply, you heard a crash, and you fell to the floor. You slumped against the wall, gasping for breath, barely able to see as blood clouded your vision, and all the noise around you made you dizzier.

Your body felt weak, your head pounding with pain. You struggled to keep your eyes open. You heard Sam’s voice. You heard him calling your name as if he were miles away, but you could see bits of him in your blurred vision.

Before you slipped into unconsciousness, all you could manage to say was, "We have to find Bucky."

[xxnaiaxx]

Chapter 10: Let Me Try

Hi, lovelies! We've reached the end of the story! I've had fun writing this bit as it helped me get through my breakup. I appreciate all those who have taken the time to read the story and hope you all liked it!

XOXO

Words: 1.2k ~

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

The morning light creeps in through the blinds, your head pounding from the night before. Though you hadn't gotten majorly drunk you had always been such a lightweight. “Good morning,” Natasha whispers in your ear. Her morning voice, its raspiness drove a flutter in you, and though you knew you shouldn’t you nuzzled yourself deeper in her neck grasping her tight. She snaked her arms around your waist as she released a soft chuckle at your clinginess. The both of you lay in a comfortable silence, though your head is running a million miles an hour not at all helping with your hangover. You knew that this closeness with Natasha would have to end, but for right now, just now you wanted to enjoy the warmth of another body in your bed. “Did you sleep well?” she asks. “Mhm.” She gives your forehead a quick peck before looking at the time, “It’s almost noon, we should get up before everyone starts to look for us.” You nod your head against her chest, not releasing your grip on her body. “Y/n,” she says with a smirk that you can’t see, “That means you can let go of me.” You shush her as her volume makes your ears ache, “Too loud.” You lease your grip on her and grab the pillow next to you, covering your head to block out the light. She gets out of bed, grabbing one of your oversized shirts to cover her body as she searches for painkillers to help with your hangover. “Here,” she reaches her hand out to you, two Advil and a cup of water. “This’ll help.” You smile at her as a thank you before taking the pills and laying back in bed. 

Hunger begins to creep up on you later in the day, Natasha had run off to train. You decide to shower before making your way into the kitchen, where a certain with is making a Sokavian dish. “Hi stranger,” she says and you give her a warm smile while glancing around the room. She looks at you suspiciously,  her eyebrow quirked. “Is everything alright Y/n?” you just smile and nod. “You and Nat disappeared last night,” her words immediately trigger flashbacks from last night’s shenanigans, you didn’t notice she had quickly taken a peek into your mind. “Oh, my god!! You slept with Nat!” your eyes widened as you look around the room to ensure no one else had heard your best friend’s big mouth. “Wands get out of my mind!!” She drops the spoon she was holding to walk around to you, “You slept with Nat!” She repeats this time softer as a smile creeps onto her face. “Yes, okay yes. I did sleep with Nat. We were both a little drunk and it kind of just happened!” She smirks, “How was it?” You lightly smack her shoulder and shake her head. “What?? A girl is curious.” You sigh and think back to being in bed with Nat, “It was amazing… bu-but it won’t happen again.” Her eyebrows come together in the middle in confusion, “If it was amazing why wouldn’t it happen again?”

“It just can’t Wands.” Her excitement softens as she sees the confused yet scared expression on your face. “You’re afraid.” You nod in agreement on the verge of tears, “Oh, Y/n,” she says softly as she wraps her arms around you in an embrace. 

“Morning,” says Natasha and the super soldier as they walk into the kitchen. “Morning, Y-,” she attempts to say to you before realizing you’re already out of the room. She looks at Wanda for a hint as o your behavior but is only found with Wanda also walking out to avoid giving any answers about you. 

You had spent the day avoiding Natasha. You knew she was looking for you as others had informed you, so you had changed your schedule so she wouldn’t find you where you normally would be. 

Natasha found it odd that she hadn't been able to find you all day. Her gut told her it was on purpose, though she was having trouble finding the reasons why when the night before had been great and the morning as well. She attempted to speak with Wanda, though it was no use because Wanda was your best friend and only kept telling her to be honest with you. She had no idea what the witch meant, Natasha had always been honest. Feelings were not her strength but she knew with you she would have to try, she had never felt this way. Never craved someone's touch before you. She knew there was one place where you could not escape her. 

After a long day, you decide to destress by taking a warm bath with some instrumental of Taylor Swift. Afterward, you do your skincare and decide you’ll read your favorite book before bed. You jump as you exit the bathroom, “Nat what are you- Jesus you scared the shit out of me.”

“You’ve been avoiding me,” she says sternly, but you could see a bit of hurt in her eyes. 

“I-,” you stutter as your brain scrambles to find an excuse. 

“Y/n,” she stands from her bed to reach you, her hands rubbing down to yours. “I don’t know what love is, I’ve never allowed myself to experience it but-”

“Nat,” you try to stop her but she cuts you off. 

“Just listen… please. I’ve never allowed myself to experience it but I know what I feel for you is more than what I’ve felt for anyone. Last night, it wasn’t just a fling. It meant something to me Y/n.”

“Nat we can’t. I can’t,” you say as a tear breaks its way. 

“You can’t what?”

“I can’t hurt you, I can’t hurt again in that way. You’re my friend and I care too much to ruin what we have. I always will.”

“Y/n I’m not going to hurt you, I’ll do everything I can to protect you, to learn with you. I’m not asking you to love me Y/n, just let me try to be the one for you like I know you’re it for me.” You look in her eyes for any sign of dishonesty or doubt and are found with none. She brings her hands up to cup your face, “Just let me try.” You nod in agreement, you have had feelings for Natasha since the day you saw her on TV before you were an Avenger. You had let your fear of a relationship guide you too much. Even though you wanted to protect what you had with her, you knew that letting your fear drive you would be the reason for which you lose Natasha. So you decided to try again, it was no doubt you loved her, and she loved you the same.

“I need to hear you detka, say it for me.” She brings your forehead to hers.

“I love you, Natasha Romanoff. I don’t need you to say it back. I will try this with you because I love you.” You nod against her, she lets out a smile before bringing your lips together. The night ends just as it did before, your bodies intertwined and your hearts at peace with the confession of your love.

[withered-rxse]

Eddie's weird.

Okay, that might be super obvious, but there's a specific explanation Steve has for thinking that.

Eddie's not weird for liking metal, or playing DND, or speaking in theatrics, no.

Eddie is weird for a multitude of other things.

He bites his friends. He'll be super happy to see Gareth or Dustin and then CHOMP!

Right in the shoulder.

Eddie also collects the weirdest shit Steve has ever seen anyone collect. And that's something, because Robin collects glass bottles and paperclips.

No, what Eddie collects is bones. FUCKING BONES. Steve could go on and on about how weird and disgusting that is.

But despite this weird stuff, Steve can't help but love him. He has fallen so hard for Eddie and all these weird quirks about him.

God, what he wouldn't give for Eddie to be so happy to see Steve that he just... Bites him.

Not even sexually! Just so ecstatic to be face-to-face with Steve that he just chows down.

Steve also loves Eddie's obsession with bones. Sure, it's absolutely weird, but the way Eddie lights up like a Christmas tree when he sees a piece of spine or rib on their walks around the lake just warms Steve's heart.

It got to the point Steve would pick them up just to give to Eddie or plant on their route for the day, all so he could see that sunny bright smile and the sparkle in those beautiful brown, doe eyes of his all over again.

When he told Robin about his tendencies to go out of his way to see Eddie happy like that, she quickly chalked up that Steve was in love. Steve sputtered and gawked with the freckles on his face and neck being cradled by a rose red, but he knew she was right. That was the only way to explain it.

Rationally, at least.

Robin pushed him to confess to the weirdo, and he almost did! But Steve doesn't know how. He's normally so suave and charming, but Eddie leaves him breathless. Red. Confused.

Which brings Steve to right now.

~•°×_-*~

"Fuck I can't get this right!" He crumpled another paper and dropped it into the bin behind the counter.

Robin is sat on the counter, kicking her legs and picking at her cuticles while letting out a long, annoyed sigh.

"It can't be that hard, Dork. You just have to tell him how you feel." She lectured.

"Uh huh..." Steve drew out, "Mind putting your money where your mouth is? I don't see you doing the same with Vick."

Robin looked guffawed, and she was opening and closing her mouth repeatedly, trying to close her lips around the right comeback. But she couldn't find a snarky remark to make. Steve was right.

Surprisingly.

"Oh shut your mouth, and get to writing." Robing finally grasped something and her leg bounced a bit more rapidly.

Steve groaned and slapped the pen down on top of the paper, "Can't you write it for me? It was your idea in the first place."

Robing shook her head, "Obviously not. One, they're your feelings, not mine."

She held up her pointer and counted the reasons on her hand, "Two, I'm not suave! I'm super awkward! And I don't even like guys, and I can never find the right words and..." She waved her hand around nervously and she got off track quick.

Steve's eyebrow quirked. Robin had a tendency to ramble, so he was patient with her.

She cleared her throat once she realized she was rambling and held up a third finger, "And third, Eddie can tell the difference between your and my handwriting, easy. He'll think it's a joke and laugh it off and get both his and your feelings hurt."

"So.." she trailed off, "Yeah, no. This is all up to you, Stevie."

Steve grumbled again. She was right, again.

"But I don't know what to say!" He reasoned.

"Neither do I, Dingus! This is why you're doing it. You've got more dating experience than me." Robin waved her arms around like a maniac, Steve smiled and shook his head.

"With girls, Rob," he cleared up, "I have zero romantic experience with men."

Robin chortled, "You think I do?"

Steve shrugged, but she had a point. They were both helpless when it came to dating men, just for two completely different reasons.

"Well chop chop, Steve! You only have so much time before you can't confess anymore because one of you loses interest!" Robin flicked him on the forehead and picked at his brain figuratively.

Was Eddie also interested in Steve? Is he wasting time? Shit. This is so hard....

~•°×_-*~

A/N

Thought I would give writing a try on Tumblr! Hope you like it, let me know if you'd like a part 2.

[lottiebagley]

Stuck in the middle- Oliver Wood

You know what she said to me? She said, "You're a player, aren't you? And I bet you got hoes" I said, "You don't know me like that I just go with the flow, oh, oh"

Oliver Wood was a confident boy. He knew he was good looking, he knew he was talented, he knew he was smart, he knew he was charming, most importantly he knew almost all the girls in school wanted him. All of this combined gave him his natural flirty manner. He was the kind of boy to send girls winks across classrooms, to tease them with a flirty smirk the first time he meets them, to never see the same girl more than a handful of times.

She seemed to be the one girl he couldn't get. She was beautiful and smart and kind and funny. She was the girl every boy fancied. She was the one girl he wanted to take home over summer break, to fall in love with, to be with.

They'd been friendly since first year, having always had mutual friends. She'd always been pretty and as an anxious 11 year old he had never had the nerve to talk to her so they'd smiled in the corridor. He made the quidditch team and with that his confidence grew, he finally had the nerve to start talking to girls in a romantic way by 3rd years but she was always just a little out of his league.

In 4th year it began. A tension over them constantly that drove their friends insane. They would flirt constantly, they would steal glances when the other wasn't looking but they never actually made a move. She always thought it was a joke, she didn't let herself think for even a second he could be serious. She didn't want to end up just another one of Oliver Wood's dates crying too their friends in the bathroom because he didn't ask them on a second date. He thought there was no chance on god's green earth she liked him back, he flirted with her constantly and yet she never took him seriously, he couldn't drop anymore hints.

"There's the most beautiful girl in the whole school," Oliver calls, watching as she enters the corridor he was standing in, his attention drawn from the twins who he had been chatting with.

"Hi boys," She grin to the three friends, "How was your summer?" She directs the question to the twins. Having already made flirty chit chat with Oliver the evening before.

"Quite alright, flew that car Ron and Harry arrived in to surrey and back," George grins excitedly

"Shit! how was it?" She asks, chatter between the three take overs and Oliver watches with a smirk and a lovestruck look in his eyes. Taking in her tight school shirt and short skirt, the way her Gryffindor tie hangs loose around her neck and her knee heigh socks make his mouth water a little. He watches the way her eyes light up with excitement, the way she tilts her head back when she laughs, the way she tucks her hair behind her ear.

"I should get going, don't wanna be late to the first class of the year," She smiles

"Of course, see you at practice later," Fred grins

"I'll walk you to class," Oliver offers, pushing himself off the wall he had been leaning on. She turns to him with a small smile and almost looks like she's going to accept his offer before the smile switches to a smirk

"Shouldn't you be walking Kirsty to class? or Mille? Or Hannah? Or Ellie? Or"

"Okay, I get the point," Oliver groans

"You have plenty of girls Oli, you don't need me,"

"But your my favourite," He smirks, she smiles, an overly sweet smile

"That's a shame for you," She grins, shooting him a wink before turning and striding down the corridor.

"Hard luck mate," George chuckles, clapping his hand around a disgruntled looking Oliver's shoulder.

She said, "You can't fool me like that You're gonna leave me on read" I said, "Why don't you try me on out I know you wanna be friends"

"We're friends right?" Oliver's voice questions as he plops himself down on the loveseat she's sat in. She looks up from the book she had been reading to look at him

"What are you trying to trick me into saying?" She questions

"No tricks," He assures, raising his hands in surrender

"I would label us friendly acquaintances," She shrugs, he nods pausing for a second to think "Careful there Oliver, I can see the cogs turning in your head,"

"I think we should be friends," He announces

"And why is that?" She questions

"Well, we have been in the same friend group since we were 11-"

"It's a big friend group,"

"But it's the same one. We play quidditch on the same team and I like being around you so I think we should be friends,"

"I know you Oliver Wood. I see the way you  behave. You flirt with girls, make them feel super comfortable around you, you ask them out on a date and then you never talk to them again. So no, I don't want to be your friend just so you can start ignoring me and feel like you won," She retaliates

"Okay. I know my reputation with girls kind of makes me seem like a prick,"

"More than kind of,"

"I really do want to be friends with you though. I think we could get on great,"

"Okay fine. Friends," She agrees, he smiles brightly, a grin that makes her heart warm a little.

"Friends," He confirms

But friends turn into sleepovers And sleepovers turn into love Love turns into jealousy And now we both fucked up

In the two months that follow the two become close. They have a lot in common and it's easy to spend time together. He makes her laugh and she can't help the butterflies in her stomach when he smiles at her.

"Percy Weasley wants to kill you," She announces, bursting into his captains office, he looks up from the papers on his desk with a smile that makes her melt

"Cute PJs," He teases, she rolls her eyes, entering the room fully and closing the door behind her.

"You're lucky to get to see me in such a great outfit," She taunts, he lets his eyes fall up and down her body. Taking in her fluffy pj bottoms and large sweater, the outfit complete with a pair of koala slippers. He would swear on his own life that she looked beautiful.

"That I am," He grins, watching as she gets comfy on the sofa in the corner of the office "Why does dear old Percy want to kill me?" He asks, standing from his chair and crossing the room to sit next to her. He tries to push away the thought that anyone else interrupting him when he was trying to plan practices would infuriate him, that anybody else barging into his office without knocking would make his blood boil. Tries not to think about how every minute he spends with her makes him want her more.

"So I went into your dorm, which in itself is some weird trigger for him, obviously you weren't there but he thought you were in my dorm and so he had a fit about you being out past curfew and so I ran away cause his screeching gives me a headache,"

"Any reason you were visiting my dorm?" Oliver smirks, wiggling her eyebrows and laughing when she shoves his shoulder lightly.

"Just wanted a chat. Couldn't sleep," She answers honestly. She isn't quite sure why even a few hours without seeing him makes her miss him so much. He pauses for a second, not sure how to respond and she starts talking again, uncomfortable with the silence after admitting to that "You shouldn't stay out here so late, you need to sleep more," She instructs. He smiles at her, rolling his eyes before glancing sighing, deciding to ignore her statement.

"I'm glad it was me you wanted to see. That you couldn't sleep and I'm the one you wanted," He speaks quietly like  the words are just for her even though no one else is there. It makes her heart skip a beat and she scolds herself for being so weak around him.

"Can I tell you a secret Oli?"

"Anything angel," He grins, subconsciously they're moving closer and closer to each other, a weird need to feel the other person's body pressed to there's.

She thinks for a second that she's going to regret what she's about to say. But one look at his hair that's messy from him running his hand through it, at his tired and lazy smile, at his eyes that shine despite the dim lighting erases all the doubt in her mind.

"I always want to see you. Recently, it's like two minutes away from you is too much," She admits. Glancing at the ground to avoid seeing his reaction.

He feels his heart skip a beat, reaching his hand out to cup her jaw, moving her head gently to force her to look at him. He thinks that in that moment if he doesn't kiss her he will regret it forever and so he leans in slowly, she flutters her eyes close and he is so close he can feel her breath fan across his face

"Baby! There you are,"

They both jump apart at the sound of a new voice and the door bursting open. Oliver wants to tell Kirsty Stevenson to fuck off. She shouldn't barge into his office. More importantly she's just ruined everything. He was going to kiss her and he was almost certain she wouldn't have pushed him away.

"What do you want?" He snaps, not bothering to look at her. Instead looking at the girl in front of him and watching how she seemed to sink into herself, seemed to recoil away from him, sees the hurt flash in her eyes.

"You were supposed to be meeting me outside my common room," Kirsty chimes.

She looks like she'd put in an effort. Her hair curled and makeup done, a short skirt and a low cut top for the midnight date.

"I'll go," The girl mumbles, standing up and leaving the room before Oliver can stop her.

He's quick to rush out after her, leaving a confused Kirsty in his wake.

"Angel! Wait! Please can we talk? I don't want to argue with you!" He's calling after her as he jogs to catch up to her fast walk. Gently grabbing her hand in his.

She stops and turns to look at him but tugs her hand out of his. Oliver sighs, they were relatively touchy despite being only friends and normally she would happily let Oliver hold her hand.

"I'm sorry, I never meant for that to happen," He speaks genuinely

"It's fine Oliver," He cringes a little, she hadn't called him Oliver in weeks.  "Honestly, maybe it's a good thing. I mean we are just friends and we shouldn't have been about to kiss. I said that we were just friends for this very reason and I shouldn't have considered that changing. Don't be sorry you are totally in your right to be having dates and girls and all of that. It's fine. I'm fine. We are fine," She rants, he watches as she scrunches her face as she talks like she's trying to stop herself from crying. "Get back to Kirsty. I'll see you around," She adds.

She turns to walk away and he wants more than anything to follow but knows it's the last thing she wants.

'Cause we're stuck in the middle of lovers and friends (Lovers and friends) And we're losing every part of the benefits (Losing benefits) You hurt me more than I ever knew (Than I ever knew)

But it's shitty 'cause I'm doing the same to you

Oliver feels his blood boil. He's sat at a table in the three broomsticks with two of his close friends, Max and Harvey his eyes fixed on the girl a few tables away.

"So, you finally going to tell us why there's no date today?" Harvey questions Oliver. They were part of a large friend group, she was in it too, and they were used to Oli spending Hogsmeade trips with whatever girl he felt like.

"Just wasn't feeling it," He shrugs

"So it has nothing to do with Adrian Pucey and his date?" Max teases, eyes moving to see the girl sat under Adrian's arm, both laughing happily.

"Course not," Oliver grunts, the other two boys laughing at him.

Oliver thought what would hurt the most had already happened. Walking up to the girl as she was giggling with some of the other girls in her friend group three days, they had remained friends after the night in his office still talking everyday, he had asked what the girls were so giddy over and his heart had stopped when she announced she had a date with Adrian Pucey.

"But seriously? Pucey of all people?" He questions his friends with a dirty look in the Slytherin boys direction.

"What's wrong with Pucey? Apparently he's a gentleman and all the girls think he's fit," Max shrugs, knowing Oliver's problem with Pucey was that he was not him.

"He's an arse," Oliver argues.

If he thought hearing the boy had asked her out hurt, watching as she laughed at what he was saying and leaned into his touch felt a thousand times worse.

"Maybe you should have worked up the nerve and asked her out rather than occupying yourself with girls you don't even like that much," Harvey points out. Other than Oliver, Harvey was the guy she was closest with. Thinking of his as a brother and he always looked out for her.

"Fucking obviously I should have," Oliver groans.  He looks back to the table and the sight makes him want to die on the spot.

It hurts worse than being knocked off his broom by a bludger. Worse than hearing her all excited about a date with someone else. Worse than watching her blink back tears he caused.

She's sat three tables away, making out with Adrian Pucey.

She said, "Are we exclusive or not?" I said, "What do you wanna do? Seems like you love me a lot" She said, "Can we stop the joking And take me seriously" I said, "I'll try my very best But we'll have to wait and see"

"We need to talk," She demands, barging into the boy dorm. Oliver looks at her in surprise. His hair damp from the shower he just took and a towel hanging low on his hips. He smirks at the way she suddenly becomes distracted by his toned chest before letting out a deep breath and forcing herself to look at him in the eyes again.

He goes to reply but his cut off by Percy "You shouldn't be in here! This is the boys dormitory," The Weasley boy lectures, eyes a sharp glare in her direction

"I need to talk to Oli," She shrugs

"This is kind of a private conversation Percy. Could you leave?"  Oliver adds, the boy scoffing

"No. It's my dorm. You're not having sex in it. Again." Percy groans

"We aren't going to have sex Percy," The girl snaps

"We could if you want," Oliver smirks

"This is a serious conversation," She snaps at him before turning back to the Percy "Please leave?"

"No. I am a prefect. I'll chaperone you to make sure nothing funny happens," He announces, sitting down on his bed.

"Fine. Oliver, what the fuck are we doing?" She questions, turning back to the boy

"I don't know what you mean,"

"Don't play dumb with me. I know you threatened Adrian to stop talking to me because Marcus Flint told me. I don't even care that much because clearly it's not him I want," She rambles a little and Oliver feels his heart glowing at the insinuation it's him that she wants. "But you can't ruin all my options and then be seeing a million girls yourself,"

"I know," He admits

"So?" She questions. He sighs, he knows that she's who he wants. That no one else could ever come close to her and yet he can't bring himself to say any of this. Oliver Wood was not the boyfriend type.

"I don't know,"

"That's fine. Just think about it and let me know," She seems dejected and he feels guilty. She'd barged in expecting this to go very differently. He nods, wishing he could find his voice and tell her he didn't need to think. He knew he wanted her. And yet he couldn't bring himself to do it.

She slips out of the room silently and Oliver groans, throwing his head back in frustration.

"You're stupid," Percy comments

"Yeah. I know,"

'Cause talks turn into sleepless nights And sleepless nights turn into love Love turns into impatience And now we both fucked up

He finds himself unable to sleep for what feels like the millionth night in a row but is actually only a week. Pulling his duvet off his body and heading into the common room. He's surprised to see a figure sat on the sofa, his confusion growing when he realises it's her.

"It's late," He comments. It had been a week since she asked him to work out what he wanted and they had spoken a little but no where near as much as normal and only in a group setting. It was like before and they both hated it.

"Can't sleep," She shrugs, staring into the dying fire.

"How long?" He questions, he knew she had problems falling to sleep sometimes and that they were usually a phase

"Couple of days. It's annoying. We have a match tomorrow and I just know I'll be exhausted,"

"You'll still play great. You always do," He compliments, still lingering a few feet away.

"You can sit if you want," She offers, seemingly loosing all her confidence when she quickly follows it with "You don't have too, obviously. Like if you're going out or something,"

"I'd like to," He assures, sitting down next to her on the sofa. A comfortable silence settles over them for a few minutes.

"Why're you up so late?" She questions

"I'm thinking. Can't turn my brain off,"

"Well, it isn't used to the whole thinking thing," She teases, he rolls his eyes, shoving her side lightly. His laugh dying in the air when his whole body seems to wake up at the feeling of her.

"I'm not a boyfriend kind of guy,"

"I know," She nods, letting out a sigh "I wish I could be some one who could do a casual thing cause I want you and I just-" she cuts herself off with a sigh. He nods, understanding exactly what she meant.

"I want so badly to say I'll make it work but I don't want to hurt you," He explains. She nods slowly.

"One kiss? Just to see what it could have been?" She questions, he smiles gently.

His lips feel warm against her and they fit together perfectly. His kiss feels like coming home and having her right there with him, having her lips on his makes Oliver feel whole. He knows he's being stupid, to not let himself have her but the last thing he wants is to hurt her and he doesn't trust himself to not hurt her.

He pulls her closer, without breaking their lips apart for even a second, until she's straddling his hips. His hands holding  her as close to him as humanly possible as her hand in his hair.

She pulls away breathless and Oliver doesn't ever want it to end.

"One day, I really hope I get to do that again," He admits

Got me stuck in the middle of lovers and friends And we're losing every part of the benefits You hurt me more than I ever knew But it's shitty 'cause I'm doing the same to you

She's hungover. Her head pounding and a sense of nausea settled in her stomach. They won the quidditch match and with victory comes a party and with a party comes a nasty hangover.

She rolled out of bed mid afternoon and trudged to an old classroom that is never used anymore that her friend group often hang out in. Grabbing a book to read while she's there.

Old desks had been charmed into sofa's and the group was so large they could rarely all find seats together in the common room and had students from other houses in, having a little room to themselves was just easier.

"There she is," Harvey grins, moving to make space next to him on a sofa, she gladly takes the seat, and shoots him a smile.

She joins in the discussion of the night before, allowing her best friend to force her to drink plenty of water. She certainly wasn't the worst hangover present but it would still do her a load of good.

Oliver enters the room a while later, a look she can't place on his face. His eyes scan the room before they land on her and he sighs, shooting her a sorry looking smile before settling in a seat on the other side of the room. She wonders for a second why he's chosen to sit so far away, lately they always seemed to sit together.

Her question is answered within seconds "So, how was your evening Wood?" Max teases from his arm chair

"Good," Oliver nods, trying not to draw any attention to himself, wishing the conversation would move on

"Oh come on. Where's the details? You hooked up with Riley Adams, she's fit," Max starts rambling about the Ravenclaw girl from the year above but to the girl the world seems silent.

She feels her heart break a little. She has no right to be angry. He told her he couldn't be in a relationship and she respected that.

But she wanted him. In every sense of the word. Having to hear he was sleeping around made her want to cry and his guilty eyes avoiding looking at her didn't make it better. Neither did her friends sympathetic smiles or Harvey telling Max to shut up.

The conversation is moved along quickly to something unrelated and she's standing up. Wanting to be as far away from Oliver Wood as possible, her best friend quick to follow her.

Stuck in the middle Stuck in the middle with you Stuck in the middle Stuck in the middle with you

Oliver finds himself missing her instantly.

Two weeks without speaking to her makes him feel like he's going insane.

He sees her in class. At practice. Hanging out in the same group.

So close he could make everything normal. Could talk to her. Could have her back in his life.

Every time he tries to, every time he approaches her between classes, tries to talk to her, tries to tell her that he knows he is stupid and that he wants her and nothing will ever change that and he wants to think with his heart and not his penis. That he knows he can trust himself to be a loyal and good boyfriend because fucking hell she was already his priority in life. She made his world turn and without her nothing made any sense. She walks away.

She avoids him like the plague.

Never allowing him close enough to talk to her.

He watched from afar as she seems heart broken. He watches as she seems like she hasn't slept in weeks. As she blinks back tears when a girl talks to him, not knowing he sends them all away as fast as he possibly can.

He misses her and he knows she misses him but she won't let him close enough to do anything about it.

Because fights turn into making up And making up turns into love Love turns into forever And that scares both of us

When he finally gets her alone he is absolutely adamant he is not going to let her slip through his fingers again.

"I was wrong" He states, standing in the doorway to the quidditch changing rooms with a look of determination in his eyes.

She turns around, only clad in sports shorts and a Gryffindor jumper and god he thinks she's an angel in front of him.

"I was wrong for a really long time. I was wrong to sleep with Riley when all I wanted was you. I was wrong to compare them all to you like they ever came close. I was wrong to think I'd be a shit boyfriend to you. Because I wouldn't. I would be a fucking incredible boyfriend because I would be doing it for you. I'd be the kind of guy who walks you to every class, who brings you flowers, who makes sure you're drinking enough water. I'd be the kind of guy who doesn't even think for a second about anyone else because you're it. You are all that matters to me. I'm scared to commit myself to someone because I never did but I never did because I've wanted you for so long and before now you were never an option. But you are now, at least I hope you are. And I would choose you a million times because it's everything to me. I know that I've hurt you and you've hurt me and it's been a lot but I want you and I pray that you want me back,"

"No sleeping with anyone else? No weird in between?"

"No, not for a second more,"

She walks towards him, arms wrapping around his neck to pull him down to her and lips on his in an instant.

None of it mattered anymore. Because he wanted her and that's all she ever needed.

'Cause we're stuck in the middle of lovers and friends And we're losing every part of the benefits You hurt me more than I ever knew But it's shitty 'cause I'm doing the same to you

**

Masterlist

[tumblunni]

I had a really weird dream involving Dr Maddiman. Its a shame i can barely remember any of it and also it seems i woke up before it ended? Like i just had this overwhelming sense that allll the plot threads were gonna be wrapped up any second now and then BOOM awake. So just a whole bunch of random stuff happened with no real explanation at all.

It was some sort of post apocolyptic setting i think? Humanity was in these small isolated cities fighting against some sort of invading army but we never actually saw the aliens themselves. And some part of my brain was like "it makes sense its the same rules as a hairdresser and the design takes cues from a pack of AAA batteries". I have NO idea what that means! So basically everythibg was super vague and undescribed and dream-me just had a sense of already being a long time fan of this series and knowing enough to fill in the gaps. Apparantoy this was some sort of adaptation of a thing id already seen, but id been told the ending was different and more accurate to the manga? Also i wasnt actually a person watching this show i was still the protagonist of the show yet i acted like i'd been reincarnated and relived this week a million times or something

ANYWAY the way dr maddiman comes in is that he was some sort of 'brilliant but dangerous' expert the government had hired to help our fight against the aliens. It wasnt really explained why he was.. yknow.. maddiman. Like is this meant to be that ghosts also exist in this sci fi universe? Was he a half alien hybrid instead of a yokai? Was it just human maddiman with the personality of yokai maddiman due to ptsd...? In any case he didnt seem entirely tethered to the laws of reality and nobody knew exactly how he pulled off all his scientific miracles. He was treated as the only guy who could understand the mindset of the aliens, but that also made him dangerous because he trapped in the delusion of everything being okay and fun and happy and he often did evil things by accident while having good intentions. But they didnt have anyone else who'd cracked the code of the alien weaponry so they had to put up with him. He was just sorta assigned a crack team of secret agents whose job was Be The Old Man's Friend So We Dont All Die. Dont let him realise how the world is all destroyed and such, just play along with his goofyness and try and remind him to do his important work while dancing around why its important. it was super creepy how he was locked up and gaslighted like this!! And he was all 'oh im sure when im done with my ultimate experiment i can go home to my wife and kids' and yeah it was implied here that the same backstory applied :( 'distract the old man and validate his false opinion that his family is still alive and waiting for him' :( poor sci fi madds :(

Oh also for some reason he seemed to be wearing elements of Adventure era Dr Eggman's outfit? But just the general style of the coat and the wearing goggles that he never actually uses. And he had a very warm and cuddly autumnal colourscheme

Anyway i was part of the Super Secret Grampa Cherishing Division whose job was to act as his assistant but also secretly be packing a bazillion weapons to neutralize him if he poses a danger to humanity. But i started to genuinely care for the guy and question the 'any atrocity is permitted for the sake of saving the world' philosophy of my bosses. Also it was just very weird how it was this post apocolypse alien fighting action thing yet i didnt see ANY OF IT cos this story was confined to this one laboratory. It was surreal hearing about all this stuff happening offscreen!

I think Maddiman's main project was some sort of dimensional transport thing using salvaged alien tech? It was just a door in his lab that usually led to a closet but if he got it working itd teleport us straight to the alien base and save the world. And a lot of it wasnt explained but i got this great sense that itd all come together with a great twist ending evebtually but then i woke up before i got that far. Same for the reveal of this maddiman's new sci fi backstory and soooo many other dropped plot threads. Alas!

So anyway: closet. Closet with one of those bead curtain things cos i was thinking about them when i fell asleep. It was supposed to be a teleport but when it malfunctioned it had really scary negative effects warping people's biology and stuff. I remember one of the test subjects was sent in for a five day trip to a specific alternate dimension but then when they came back itd been several years and theyd had to survive in a deadly wasteland and been mutated into a hellbeast. And maddiman had a huge breakdown because he felt like his recklessness and optimism towards this experiment had caused this mistake to happen, and he'd never realized just how awful the consequences could be. He was babbling motor mouth discussing theories for where it went wrong and there was something like 'we'd only tested it for one day trips and assumed that just programming two of them would equal two days but actually with each additional number on the screen it multiplies the days by 3" And there was something about like...the bead curtain was the machine rather than the door itself? Like trying it on a bunch of different doors around the lab to try and find a way to cure this person.

And there was some sort of artificial intelligence computer with the personality of an adorable lil girl, who helped maddiman do calculations and stuff. She missed the mistake in this calculation cos her concept of linear time and the limits of human organs was kinda undeveloped. She only existed within the realm of numbers after all, and didbt even have functionality to record footage of her human friends's faces. No idea wtf a human looks like! So maddiman was lost in his desperate grief of potentially accidebtally killing or at least mentally scarring a person and the government would probably kill them now if they saw they were a super mutant. And he was sobbing and begging this AI to help, his last resort was her maybe being able to see a brainwave that he'd missed. But she was freaking out cos she didnt even fully understand why maddiman was crying let alone what to do to fix it. Eventually she did manage to find a solution theough some simple different logic thing that she had from her perspective as a computer. And that person was saved but still traumatized and maddiman had a moment of realizing just how high stakes everything was and freaking out. He was like 'whats wrong with my head, why didnt i notice that, why was i so reckless, why cant i seem to grasp basic human logic that i need right now" Having a big existential crisis of 'wait how did i even get in this lab, where's my family and why do i seem to have superpowers'. Protagonist mission: hide all the goddamn mirrors to avoid this weird ghostgramp (...aliengramp??) from realizing he's dead (..or an alien??) and losing control of himself. And everyone was running around talking about 'containment procedures' and poor maddiman didnt know that if his panic attack continued he might just straight up be killed for outliving his usefulness. So the protagonist was desperate to help him calm down and it sucked SO MUCH cos they had to lie about his past and weave the web of deception around him again for his own safety. In the end they just hugged him close until he calmed down, and all the other employees were like GASP THEY ACTUALLY TOUCHED THE EVIL DANGEROUS SUPER EVIL MAN and protag was like 'i am 1% away from slapping the next bitch who insults this grandpa'. And it was super depressing cos once he'd calmed down he seemed to start forgetting that anything bad had ever happened?? And he was really panicking and scared cos he didnt understand why he was forgetting, and he knew he had to cling onto something important but he didnt know what. And then five minutes later he was back to haha cheerful nothing is wrong and i love doing my fun science in this room im never allowed to leave. And protagonist was crying the tears that this poor gramp wasnt allowed to cry :(

Also actually i think maybe he was a ghost AND an alien? Like he was a scientist who died in some sort of tragedy back when the aliens first invaded, but along the way he'd been infected so his body got back up as a twisted combination of human and inhuman. And this was something unique to him, like he just happened to have a genetic mutation in his blood that was totally undetectable in life but happened to mix unpredictably with this alien virus to turn him into a hybrid instead of just killing him. So the government was very interested in finding a way to replicate this and create new supersoldiers, as well as just taking advantage of this dude's confused mental state that granted him a unique understanding of alien tech that made him more effective than other scientists. And, of course, also made him easy to manipulate :(

And i also had a feeling that maybe his backstory was mixed up with Adventure dr eggman? Like here it seemed he had a daughter instead of a son, and she had a similar death to Maria Robotnik where she was assasinated by the government he worked for, and it tipped him over the edge. I think Maddiman-alien-scifi-dude originally died trying to save her from being used in some sort of experiment? Like she was already dying of a disease and thats why maddiman took this job to have access to powerful government technology to try and look for a cure. But when the whole alien apocolypse happened, the evil government decided to use her for experiments cos she was 'basically dead anyway'. Theyd just lie and tell maddiman she died of her illness. So this was how they found out that this particular family's bloodline had a mutation that let them form a viable hybrid with alien dna. They were turning this poor kid into a monster in the basement while lying to her dad about her being dead! And maddiman was about to commit suicide from having no reason to live anymore, with the hell of this apocolypse world and the false impression that his kid was already dead. But somehow monster-daughter sensed this or something and broke out of containment to try and save him, and when he saw her he was able to recognise her even in her twisted state. So when the soldiers gunned her down in front of him and fed him some lies about this not being his daughter, he just completely snapped. He tried in vain to fight back and take down as many of them as possible in revenge, but well he was just a simple round dad with no ability to fight a government. So he was unceremoniously executed along with his kid and they shoved the bodies back in the lab to continue testing. "Damn that overemotional science dad, he made us execute our most valable test subject! But at least this way we can analyze his corpse to see if the mutation is passed down on the patrilineal side." But at some point during the fight, monster-daughter's blood had splashed on her dad and gotten into his bloodstream. So the seemingly dead body suddenly got up out of the morgue and started sucking people's blood or something. And this led to the current situation where they have him locked up cos he's a valuable test subject but also hey he has 100% reason to kill all of us and we're screwed if he remembers his past. Also i think the computer AI thing was his subconcious attempt to recreate the personality of his daughter even if he couldnt remember she'd ever existed :(

Anyway at some point things escalated and there was this final showdown versus both the invading aliens and the evil governmebt guys. I think there was some corrupt greedy politician dude who stole maddiman's teleporter tech and sold us out to the aliens cos he wanted money and power or something. And probably predictably the aliens just threw him off a bridge after he gave them the thing, because seriously even this evil army thinks these government dudes are too evil!

So this big actiony event was happening and Maddiman was freaking out like 'no no no i cant leave the lab everyone wpuld be mad at me, i dont even know what its like outside this room' even when he was in the middle of being attacked by aliens. He was forced to face his repressed memories to survive, and he naturally had a massive fuckin freakout! And i think maybe when protagonist character was trying to protect him he accidentally lashed out with his powers and hurt them, and he was so horrified thinking another person he cared about was gonna die because of him. Protagonist was like 'dont worry gramps its just a scratch' but he'd already freaked out and run away into the battlefield to his heavily implied death.

BUT THEN at some sort of moment of dire need, he came back all powered up and re-memoried and was like 'i have every reason to despise humanity but im not gonna let more children die because of these damn corporate monsters (and also literal monsters which are infinately less scary)" And he did some sort of great sacrifice to save the protagonist at the cost of his own life, and it was super dramatic falling from a building into a lake of fire or something. While sobbing and smiling peacefully thinkibg "did i atone for my sins? Will i be able to see my family again?" As his smiling face sunk beneath the flames and the protagonist cried out into the abyss...

Aaaaand then i dont really know what happened in the big battle and i also never found out wtf the solution was to fixing the transporter thing or how the aliens invaded or any of the million plot points that were non gramp related.

I just remember that when we all saved the day and defeated the baddies we found that maddiman had actually survived and it was a big hugs reunion. He was like "OH YEAH i totally forgot i literally already died once and regenerated from it, and this was the entire start to my story. My bad!" *shrugs inexplicably not dead arms*

So yeah in summary im glad my brain summoned up a universe where my favourite sad granddad is literally immortal now, but also why did it torment him with an even sadder plot than his original one