#and now I'll be giggling like a teenager girl while going to bed

[sillystanleystuff]

If you receive this, you make somebody happy! Go on anon and send this to ten of your followers who make you happy or somebody you think needs cheering up. If you get one back, even better! <333

[love-jelly]

RIGHT HERE.

sypnosis: you're soft for yuuta. more than you should be, considering that he's spoiled with your endless mounts of affection, basking him in the purity of your love.

contents: slight yandere!yuuta, cunninlingus, fingering, porn with plot (?), pet names (baby, pretty baby, etc)

word count: ~2.1k

a/n: i don't think i've ever wrote this much in my life, especially for a fic!! i lightly (barely) proofread this so if it sucks.... well, hopefully it doesn't. i listened to right here by chase atlantic for this fic because it reminds me of yan!yuuta sm so you can listen to it while reading if you want! i hope you enjoy !! minors dni. ageless / blank / minor blogs will be blocked if seen interacting!

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yuuta is never far from you, always a step ahead, always ready, always a steady presence in your life, from your teenage years to now.

how could you not be soft for him, knowing he's the only person that's ever stayed in your life? laying in bed with him, twirling the locks of hair that have started limiting his vision, an energy of tranquility enveloping the room that you both inhibit. a sudden call from your phone causes vibrations and loud rings that shake the peace that you both felt prior. you sit up tiredly to answer, sighing.

"hello?" you answer, not bothering to check who called. no one usually ever calls you at this time of day.

"are you down?" a voice you recognize emerges from the voicebox of your phone, demanding an answer to her sudden question. it's your best friend.

"down for...?" a confused tone is prominent in your voice.

"is yuuta hogging you again?" she jokes but you still see yuuta furrow his eyebrows at the comment. "read the groupchat! are you down for a girl's date today?"

"ohh, i didn't see the notifications, let me see." even before checking the messages, you know you don't really feel like going. today's your first day off in forever and you really wanted to spend it with yuuta but when you see the all uppercase texts clearly exhibiting extreme excitement from your best friends, you put your phone back to your ear. "i'll go."

your friend squeals excitedly, "okay!! text you're going in the groupchat, all the girls are finally free today to get together!! i can't wait to see you all again! see you later!" and promptly ends the call.

you turn back to yuuta, his eyebrows still furrowed. you smile softly and gently press your fingertips to his face to rid him of the wrinkles. "i'm sorry, baby, i know you wanted to spend all of today with me... i'll make it up to you, i promise."

his face relaxes but his eyes are still troubled. "it's okay... when are you leaving?"

you check the groupchat one more time, filtering through all the messages including exclaims of excitement to search for the details. "it starts at 2:30pm so i should leave at 1:30... which means i should start getting ready at 11:30 max. it's 10:00 so we still have time together."

yuuta pulls you back into bed, wrapping his arms around you and noses his way into your neck, making you giggle slightly from the ticklish feeling.

yuuta lightly bites your neck, leaving a light indent of his teeth. only slightly satisfied, he stares at it before he gets up, leaving you in the receding warmth of the bed.

frowning slightly, you call out "where are you going?"

'show her she only needs you', the devil on his shoulder whispers.

he hums. he turns backwards and picks you up gently, taking you with him. he kisses your cheek softly. "breakfast." he answers.

_____________

you softly groan into your closed fist. this was your weak point. yuuta, with his messily but cute tousled bedhead, shirtless, and cooking (especially when its your favorite breakfast). you had forgotten how badly this scene made the pit in your stomach ignite.

"hm?" his eyes flit over to you for a second before settling back onto the food in the pan in front of him, hiding a small smile that you don't catch.

you sit up quickly, adjusting your legs. "nothing, love!" your voice sounds tight and somewhat strained.

he knits his eyebrows together, "are you sure?" he glances at you, for longer this time before focusing back on the hot pan.

"yes..." you trail off, your eyes laser beamed at how he grips the pan handle and spatula. the tight grip of his hand on the pan.... then on your thigh.... then onto your waist....

shaking your head abruptly, you smile as you see yuuta plating your food. how could you think of your sweet boyfriend like this? poor yuuta, just wants to cook you breakfast... but the filthy thoughts continue to plague your mind.

his tongue flicking the fork (getting the remnants of the food left on it), a tongue you feel between your legs often.... his fingers wrapped around the fork (to feed you, of course), fingers you feel inside you often... you're in a daze, staring at him with the hungriest look yuuta has seen in your eyes in awhile. it's not his fault you've been so busy that you can't spare time for him and that you both haven't your fill of each other in awhile.

your running rampant thoughts are interrupted by the conspirator of your current fantasies himself when yuuta swipes at the side of your mouth to rid you of some crumbs and move them into your mouth.

and you can't catch yourself fast enough. your tongue darts out and collides with his finger and he pauses, frozen. in your starved haze, you grab his hand to pull him closer, sucking on the tip of his finger. now in his own mind-fogged state, he hyperfixates on your plush lips wrapped around his thumb and retracts it to replace it with him index and middle finger.

sliding his fingers into your mouth, he lightly presses down on your tongue. "you're so pretty..." he says, his eyes watching your eyes water.

taking his fingers out, he pulls you into a hard kiss. with teeth clashing and tongues dancing, he easily picks you up and carries you back to the bedroom.

in the bedroom, yuuta's rough with you. dropping you on the bed, watching you bounce on the bed for a second until he follows you, crawling on top of you. he quickly rids you of your flimsy tank and boy shorts, smiling smugly as he sees the wet spot in your panties. he kisses you your lips to your waist, sucking hickies along the way as if he's drawing a trail from his favorite place to kiss to his favorite place to make you cry out in pleasure.

when he reaches your waistline, he looks up at you. "you're so gorgeous" he whispers as he pulls apart your legs. you smile gently, it's so yuuta to compliment you in any situation.

your smile, however, is quickly contorted to a face of pleasure when you feel a light and wet pressure at your core. yuuta always knows exactly how to make you feel good, like he knows you better than he knows himself, like he crafted you himself.

his tongue makes quick work of your folds, lapping at the juice that leaks out of your pretty cunt, making you shut your eyes and cry out from the stimulation. diving into your hole and nudging your clit with his nose, you both simultaneously moan, him from your taste and you from the stimulation. your hands quickly find purchase in his hair, slightly pulling it to ground you while yuuta works on you, worships you like you deserve. through the pleasure, you find it in you to, somehow, open your eyes.

you can never get enough of this sight; yuuta's blown out pupils dizzy and drunk on your slick, slacked jaw taking in whatever your messy cunt gives him, and hair messy from your pulling and pushing. he's not usually a messy eater but with your cunt gushing out sweet elixir, what is he but a hopeless man amidst with a goddess- his goddess?

"y-yuu" you choke out, one hand pulling his hair and the other holding one of his hands tightly. "yes, love?" he kisses your clit, making you gasp at the sensation.

"need it!" you cry out right as he thumbs your clit to replace his lips.

"hm? what do you need? use your words, baby." he knows you, knows you can beg better, knows if he says the right words and pushes the right buttons, you'll crumble prettily, all for him.

the tips of your ears feel like they're burning, your cheeks like they've been set alight. "need to cum... please make me cum."

and just like that, yuuta feels like he's been set on fire, the match being your words. "well why didn't you just say so, baby?"

with that, he pushes two fingers into your weeping cunt and licks at the sweet delicacy you present to him. with the added stimulation of his long fingers that curl just right that it bumps into your g-spot, it doesn't take much for you to reach the edge.

yuuta knows your signs and tells. he knows when you open your legs a little wider, thighs start twitching, moans get a little whinier and right when he says "cum for me, pretty" you'll come undone like a lovely scroll depicting his ultimate downfall; you. and you'll go lax, all the tenseness in your body dissipated as if it was never there in the first place. your lips will open to let out the final and loudest moan, the melody of his hymn in which he worships you. your body shakes as he tongue-fucks you through your orgasm, from the intensity of it rocking your core.

when you've fully come down from your high, he kisses his way back up to your lips, following the same trail of hickies he embedded into your skin prior. once he reaches your lips, he crashes your lips together like you're his oxygen (you are). you taste yourself but you don't care as you greedily devour whatever he gives you.

"can i put it in, baby?" he begs softly as if he didn't just devour you like his life depended on it and a whine present in his voice like you would ever tell him no.

"put it in me, yuu."

he pants heavily as he slowly slides his cock into your leaking cunt. "so good- so perfect for me-"

loud rings come from your phone, startling you both.

"ignore it." yuuta whines, still slowly sliding into you.

"yuu- let me pick up- f-fuckk hold on- yuu!" you smack him lightly on his chest and he looks back at you sadly, looking like a kicked puppy. "it could be important! hold on."

you answer the phone quickly, before the phone rings loudly again, "hello?"

"where are you, girl? you're not usually late!" your friend exclaims.

you quickly rip your phone away from your ear to check the time. 3:00pm. "oh my god."

yuuta, still looking like a kicked puppy, mouths 'what?'

still in shock that you lost track of that much time, you whisper-yell "i'm late to go to the girl's date!"

yuuta starts sliding himself in more as he whispers back, "don't go... stay with me."

"hello?" a voice from your phone disrupts you two.

"oh um... i-i got wrapped up in something..." you watch yuuta as he mouths at you 'say something came up, say you can't go anymore'. you can't exactly say you want to go either, especially when he's pleading with you like this and already sunk his cock halfway into your more honest cunt.

"oh... well, are you still coming? everyone's here tonight!"

weighing your options (get an amazing orgasm, maybe two or three actually, or hang out with some of your best friend who you haven't seen in awhile), you decide.

"i'll g- ohh." yuuta, seeing you were about to leave him, shoves the rest of him into you, bottoming out and mouths 'don't leave me'. your moan goes unnoticed by your friend, thankfully.

"you're coming? eek-!!"

noticing your boyfriend's neediness and noting your own wants, you quickly respond. "ah no- um, something came up. i'm actually a little occupied right now so-"

yuuta visibly perks up at your decision and you smile softly.

"awww, okay. i hope everything's alright! come to the next get-together, alright?"

"mhm, yeah, of course. i'll be there next time." you promptly end the call after exchanging goodbyes.

"i'm glad you're staying... with me." yuuta smiles, an unfamiliar emotion you've never seen in his eyes.

"of course-" you're cut off by his abrupt thrusting and you release a whiny moan.

"shhh, let me make my pretty baby feel good." he kisses your face and threads your hands together.

he pulls you into a hug and with his face hidden to you, yuuta finally lets out the smile he's been holding in all day long. and he thinks:

'i win.'

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if you enjoyed this, please reblog and/or consider following me!

a/n: i've been having the worst (best) yandere yuuta brainrot ever, something about it feels so canon. but omg this is my first time actually writing full on smut so please give me feedback/constructive criticism!! also i'm a virgin. CAN U TELL??? LOL hopefully not. but hopefully you enjoyed!! thank you for getting this far :)

[azzo0]

Katsuki misses when his daughter was younger, and he could fix her boo-boos with a bandage and a kiss. He could carry her in his arms, clean the scrapes she received while playing at the playground, smack on a cute Hello Kitty bandage, kiss it and get her to giggle. But now that she was older, she did not have scratches and scrapes to worry about. Her boo-boos came in other forms- Boys and heartbreaks, to be specific. 

He'd just come home from work to find his daughter cuddled into you, the teenager bawling her eyes out because some stupid guy she was seeing dumped her for no apparent reason. His heart shattered, watching her wipe her eyes with hiccups leaving her chest. He didn't enter the room. He just stood there, and his daughter caught his eye, quickly looking away and burying her head in her mother's hair. 

You shot him a pointed look, reminding him not to say something that would make her cry even more. Bakugo's fists clenched on his sides, crimson eyes bubbling with anger. His daughter peeked at him, wondering if he was mad at her. Her heart sank when he turned around and left. 

"Now Papa's mad at me too," She sniffled. 

"No, he's not," You stroke her hair, trying to calm her down. "Just give him some time, alright?"

"Mhm..." She lets you comfort her some more before you leave. 

She buried herself under the blanket and scrolled through her socials, blocking that dumb ex of hers from everywhere. Maybe Papa did know best after all. Maybe she should've listened when her father said the guy didn't give him good vibes. She sighed and pushed the phone under her pillow, trying to go to sleep to escape all the tears.

Just as she started to drift off, she heard the door open a creak and poked her head out of the blanket to see her father standing in the doorway with a plastic bag in hand, still in full hero gear.

"Can I come inside?" He asked. She sat up and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders, nodding. 

Katsuki shuffled to her bed and cleared his throat, taking out all his daughter's favourite snacks from the plastic bag, "Erm- thought you'd like some... saw your favourite chocolate, so I bought that too. There's some of that crappy ramen you like. It's shit, but I'll allow it for now."

His daughter can't help but smile at him. So that's why he left without a word. To get her snacks and try to cheer her up. Or so she thinks, "Thank you, papa."

"'S nothin'" He stared at her awkwardly, not sure what to do next. He knew just snacks wouldn't fix a broken heart. He opened his arms for her, and she shifted closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Bakugo can't remember the last time he held her like this. It's been a while. This reminded him that no matter how old she was, he'd always be able to hold her like his little girl. He kissed her forehead and wiped tears from her eyes. 

"Don't waste yer tears, squirt," He said, "That asshole ain't worth yer pretty tears. Now open the snacks. I wanna try some."

Bakugo grins when she breaks into a goofy smile and opens a packet of spicy chips. He doesn't really eat this stuff, especially before dinner, but he'll make an exception for his little girl. He takes a chip and pops it into his mouth, glad she is smiling now. He held back a smirk when he thought of how she'd be rolling on the floor laughing when she saw her ex come to school with a bandage on his nose and a bruise on his cheek. 

Sure, he did not know how to fix her boo-boos anymore, but he sure did know how to beat the shit out of people who gave her the boo-boos. Even if it was a teenage boy far younger than him.

[chrissdollie]

dad!matt or dad!chris u choose :)

let me tell youuu-- matt is a girl dad! i guesss i could see him with boys but i cant stop thinking of tough matt with little princesses who dress him up for tea parties 🥹

when they're babies, he's always taking pictures. especially when u dress them up in cute fits with matching head accessories :(

gets pissed off whenever nick or chris (more chris tho) swear infront of his kids !!! he does not give a shit, they could both be babies, but he'd worry about it being their first word lmaoo.

"shit, they're so cute." chris grins, tickling both girls gently. cut to matt smacking his arm aggressively

pretends to fight them LMAOO one of your girls is really tired but refuses to go to sleep, so you pull out the big guns-- your husband. u guys know how he always has beef with the camera? 😭😭 he swings (much more cautiously) at the chunky baby and when she jabs his shoulder, he winces dramatically in pain. this tires her out and she eventually falls asleep right next to her daddy

they won't stop crying one night, you're on the verge of breaking down with them and matt gets out of bed, walks over to the crib, picks both of them up (their sobbing winds down a bit), and kisses your lips. "i'll be back in a few. get some sleep sweetheart." and walks out of the room

you didnt wake up all night. and like your husband promised, he was right next to you in bed, snoring softly.

he has a hard time saying no for sure. its sunday and the kids have school tomorrow but they wanna go out. "daddy can we go to the park?" he shakes his head, "dinner's soon, baby, maybe next weekend" both of your girls pout and shrug without arguing, but still! he has to give in

pushes them to be social. he'll be at the store and ask one of them to ask someone where the tripods are or something. she does it without a problem because matt's teaching them that they don't have to be so nervous like he used to be

now in their pre-teens, they're starting to explore the world of beauty. "daddy." your oldest taps matt's shoulder who's on facetime with nick on the couch. "can you ask mommy if i can use some of her makeup?" she plays with her fingers impatiently. he raises a brow. "you don't wanna ask her?" to which she shakes her head. "she might say no to me, but she'll say yes to you."

he chuckles lightly, "baby, why would she say no to you?" and she just shrugs. "i dunno." her answer made herself realize that there's no reason not to ask. so with confidence, she nods to herself, and skips away to find you

one night, you're braiding their soft hair while humming a song the three of u like. the girls sing the lyrics aloud, causing you to giggle and start singing with them. it's a really girly song by the way, so when matt stumbles into the room and the girls plead him to sing along to 'call me maybe', he looks at you with a goofy look to which you grin. he mocks you dramatically before joining in hehehe

now you think your girls are very mature teenagers. they've both already had the sex and drugs/alcohol talk. anyhow one night, you and matt are getting it on in the bedroom (the door is locked!). you thought you were being quiet, but was proven wrong when you heard both of them giggling to themselves outside of your room. matt hears too and pauses his movements altogether. you whine quietly before he whispers a small "shh" and turns his head to stare at the door. "go to sleep!" he yells, hearing them run away laughing. and he gets right back to work when they're gone, pretending that never happened LMAO

[goldenwilliamson]

more than friends | leah williamson

a/n: please send any recs you have my way! probably most comfortable writing for leah, lucy bronze, mapi leon, and some of the matildas. but feel free to send anything through and i'll see how i go x

pairing: leah williamson x reader

summary: reader and leah both play for arsenal and england. reader and leah get together after being friends for many years, but they decide to keep it a secret from their teammates. they don't do a very good job though.

word count: 1.2k

You and Leah had been teammates for several years now, playing together at Arsenal, and representing England together since you were just teenagers. It was a strictly platonic friendship as for most of this time you were both in relationships with other people. More recently though, since you were both single, you'd helped each other through your breakups, and had become closer than ever.

You didn't see it coming, but you started to feel yourself developing feelings for your old friend. At first you brushed it off, telling yourself that it was just platonic love. You loved hanging out with Leah, you always had. Upon some reflection though, you started to realise that your feelings were deeper than friendly affection. Every moment with Leah started to carry a new weight. You began to replay every conversation and every touch over and over in your head, dreaming that she would admit she was also harbouring hidden feelings for you.

One night while away on international duties you were rooming with Leah, as you had since you were in U17's together, and after a day of training and team dinner you had sat down on the end of Leah's bed. You decided it was time to tell her. With your heart in your throat, you tried to suppress your anxiety and mumbled your way through a romantic confession. She had laughed at first when you told her, then opened her arms.

"Come here," she told you.

As the two of you embraced she said, "You know, I've been meaning to tell you the same thing."

"Really?" You looked at her, not quite believing it.

"Yeah, but I was too bloody scared, I'm glad you're braver than I am," she said.

You two had spent the rest of the night talking about realising you had feelings for each other, and giggling about how you had both been so scared to act on it. The conversation was sealed with a kiss that made you both wonder what had taken you both so long to get to this point.

While you were ecstatic about having your feelings reciprocated, both of you were nervous to break the news to the girls that you played with. Within teams there is a very unique dynamic that everyone settles into, and you didn't want to do anything to disrupt that. Both of you were also very individual players, and you didn't want your relationship to become a defining part of your football. This was something you both agreed on, as you both felt your relationships with teammates in the past had influenced your play on the field more than you would have liked. Especially once people in the public knew about it.

So you and Leah decided that you would keep it between the two of you for the time being, until you were both 100% ready for it to become a public thing. However, the development in your relationship didn't fly under the radar in the way that you both had hoped it would.

There were whispers among your teammates, people noticing the lingering touches between you and Leah, and the way you looked at each other with such love and adoration every time one of you were speaking. You both were glowing, and the girls knew you too well. People online too had started speculating purely based on some brief interactions you guys had on the pitch.

It all came out one night when a handful of the Arsenal girls were around at Kim Little's house for some dinner and drinks. Leah found it hard to contain her loving touches, letting her hand rest on your leg when you guys were on the lounge, or rubbing circles into your back as you stood around the kitchen counter chatting.

Pizzas were spread out across the dining table for everyone to help themselves to. You grabbed two plates, making up one for yourself and one for Leah. She was speaking with Jen in the backyard when you carried it out to her.

"Here, Lee," you hand it to her and she took it from you with one hand, allowing her other hand to pull you into her side so she could kiss your forehead.

"Thanks baby," Leah said, your heart swelling at the unexpected display of affection.

Your eyes shoot to Jen's face, noting the smirk, and the realisation dawning upon her.

"Oh, are you two...?" Jen asked immediately, knowing what was going on.

You looked at Leah, shaking your head, knowing you couldn't keep it a secret any longer. She nods, and you nod, and you both look back at Jen.

"Yeah," You both say, affirming everyone's suspicions.

"God, Beth was trying to say that there was something going on, but I was saying nah nah, if there was they'd tell us," Jen said, scoffing.

"Bloody Beth, she knows us too well," you say a bit too loudly, alerting the girls inside the house to your conversation.

"You called?" Beth says.

"You knew about this," you says, motioning between you and Leah.

"Oh!" Beth says, seeming caught of guard, "So this is a thing then?"

Leah chuckles, unconsciously letting her arm snake around your waist, "Yeah mate."

"Oh my god," Beth exclaims, sheer joy spreading across her face, "My sweeties, I've been waiting for this."

"What have you been waiting for?" Steph asks, stepping into the conversation.

"Cats out of the bag then," you say, laughing.

"What are we talking about?" Kim calls from across the room.

"Okay, since everyone would like to know," Leah says, raising her voice to invite everyone into your conversation, "Y/N and I are together, we have been for a couple of months."

"Hey, I told you!" Steph says, turning back to point at Kim.

"You love birds were so obvious, why'd it take you so long to tell us?" Beth asks.

You and Leah both look at each other, suddenly unsure of how to answer that question. It all seems redundant now.

"We didn't want it to change anything," you explain.

"You worry worts, as if this would change a thing!" Beth tells you both.

"Thanks Bethany," Leah smiles.

"You guys are perfect for each other, we've all been saying it for ages," Steph says, making everyone laugh.

"It's true, you know," Kim adds in her two cents.

"Thanks guys, sorry we didn't tell you," you say.

"Don't be sorry, we're just happy for ya," Jen says, wrapping her arms around both you and Leah.

"Alright, alright, this is getting sappy. Why don't we sit down and eat," Leah suggests.

"Please," you agree, desperate to have the attention off of you.

The girls all agree too, and you move inside, finding seats on the lounge and on the floor as you dig into the pizza. As everyone is distracted by the food and the game on the telly, Leah leans into you.

"I'm glad we told them," she says.

"Me too," you say, and now that you can kiss Leah without any inhibitions, you do.

You can feel the room fall into silence as you do so before Jen says, "That'll take some getting used to."

"Better get used to it quick Jenny," Leah says, kissing you again, and then planting several kisses all over your face for good measure.

[imawholeassmood]

What's in a Name

"Oh rao, I can't believe it." Kara works to contain her excitement as she nears the tiny shadowy figure stalking her in the unkempt grass outside her apartment. "This is really happening," she squeaks, "the cat distribution system has finally picked me."

The little void peers up at her with mischievous green eyes, it's backside wriggling with anticipation. Kara crouches and waits for the impending attack.

It comes with a burst of energy that burns hot and fast, then fizzles just as quickly as the black cat halts it's attack and stares at Kara with all the regret and panic of a teenage girl who just told her best friend she's in love with her. Not wanting to scare the cat, Kara hesitates, but the thought of this little cutie spending another minute on the streets compels her to scoop it into her arms and promptly rub her nose into its face.

"Right," she says and holds the cat at arms length, a quizzical gaze on its face. "Bath first."

***

Kara takes care to get the water temperature just right. Scratchy does not appreciate the effort. Claws scrape against her skin as Shadow fights against her, desperate to escape the soapy water. Kara hadn't actually found any fleas on Toothless during her physical exam to evaluate the cat's condition, and for that, she was grateful. She couldn't stand the idea of this baby being in any worse condition. A little prick digs into her finger and she mumbles, "ok, not Toothless."

She rinses the last of the suds and begins to wipe Bones with a towel. While the fight may have ended, Kara can't help but think it's a temporary reprieve, if the look on Merlin's face tells her anything. Those green eyes bite through her, clearly plotting revenge. Kara thinks it might be a good night for an all night movie marathon.

She wraps a dry towel around the still scowling cat and a tiny paw pokes out of the opening near its head, trapped like it got stuck mid escape. A disappointed huff let's out from the wet nose and Kara giggles at the adorableness.

"Here," she says," let me help you with that." She works to tuck the paw in the towel but not before dropping a kiss on the pink toe beans. "Beans," she tests the name. The cat throws a scowl at her. "Well if you have a name you prefer, feel free to share it."

The cat meows at her, and it draws a laugh from Kara whose whole body relaxes and swells with love. She drops a kiss on the furry forehead.

"I'll work on my pronunciation."

***

With Noodle cleaned and dried and now hiding under Kara's bed, licking herself to perfection, Kara works on preparing what amounts to a small buffet for each of them. She sets the takeout boxes on the table for herself and a plate of various wet and dry cat foods on the floor for Zephyr.

"Dinner's ready," she calls out, then wonders if she should take the plate to the bedroom instead. Building trust with cats sent by the universe can take time, and Kara's mind spirals with thoughts of what horrors Anubis might have endured while living on the streets. She's halfway to planning Calypso's catio to ease the transition from rugged outdoor cat to spoiled house cat when she spots the dark figure lurking along the wall. Kara freezes.

She debates her best course of action - does she offer her hand with a pspsps or do nothing? They stare at each other. After a moment where nothing happens, Kara averts her eyes, sending her gaze to the ceiling where she spots a spider in the corner. Great she thinks, let's hope Raven doesn't have an appetite for arachnids.

Kara's pulled from her thoughts by crunching near her feet. She sneaks a peak and sees Shuri ferociously air chomping a mouthful of dry food. A face-splitting grin splashes across her face.

After watching Potsticker test each of the offerings, finishing all but two samples, Kara once again attempts to build rapport.

"You don't have any allergies do you?"

Xena cocks her head and looks at her. Kara swears if this cat were human, there'd be a quirked brow to go along with that look.

"You're very expressive," she muses. "I wonder what you're thinking."

Unice meows at her, and Kara wishes she spoke cat.

***

She's struggling to stay focused on the movie with Ripley hiding away somewhere in her apartment. Kara hasn't seen the cat for hours and worries the progress she thought she made at dinner might have just been her hopeful imagination.

By the time breakfast rolls around, Kara's convinced Peony is plotting to kill her. Neither of them slept. Kara kept an eye out with her x-ray vision and noticed Nala spent the entire night exploring, poking and prodding with her pink-toed mitts at every window, door, latch, hatch, or moving part that might lead to a way out of the apartment. Every few hours, Jynx would check on Kara, looking almost annoyed to find her awake and looking back.

Kahlua's nowhere to be found when Kara's ready to head out to CatCo. She unlocks the door and calls out, "I'll be back soon, Calliope."

A flash of black streaks across the room and knocks into Kara's legs as soon as the door cracks open. Kara catches herself and stumbles into the hallway. Mittens is running around the hall, knocking into door after door. At the end of the hall, she stops in front of the elevator, looks it up and down, then turns back to Kara.

Little Yoda's ribs vibrate with heavy puffs and her eyes are wide. Kara approaches her slowly.

"It's ok, Izzy," she purrs. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Green eyes dart around. As if realizing there's nowhere to go, the fight leaves her.

"I know you're scared," Kara says, "this is a new place and we're still getting to know each other. But, if you'll give me a chance," she swallows, "I promise you will never again know a day without love."

The look on Dotty's face softens and it melts Kara's heart. The cat looks back at the elevator one more time before walking towards Kara. Grace, with all her regal elegance, brushes against Kara's ankle. It's the greatest moment of Kara's life.

***

"What is that?" Alex asks when Kara arrives at the DEO.

"This," Kara says, straightening herself and hooking her thumbs behind the shoulder straps at her chest, "is Griffin." The name is met with an immediate meow of objection. Kara looks down at the cat strapped to her chest then looks back up to Alex. "We're still deciding on a name."

***

It goes like that for a week with Kara toting the cat around with her. Bumblebee tries to run away at least once a day and continues to deny Kara's ideas for names. The day Dino curls up with Kara while an episode of Golden Girls plays on television is the day Kara thinks her heart might explode out of her chest.

With Athena's head buried in the crook of her neck, Kara strokes gently along her side.

"I love you, Tess," she breathes into black fur. A soft thrum purrs against her.

***

Kara enters the DEO panicked and sick with fear.

"She's gone, Alex," she manages to say through garbled, teary heaves. "I have to find her."

"Who?" Alex says and squeezes Kara's arms both to steady her and calm her.

"Ma'am's," Vasquez interrupts, "you might want to see this." She holds out a remote and turns on a television.

A news report shows an aerial view of a glass skyscraper with a large "L" emblazoned on the face. The ticker reads "Missing CEO found safe."

Before Alex or Kara can ask, a commotion stirs near the door. Agents scurry and someone yells, "you can't go in there."

Alex straightens herself to face the approaching party and sets a hand on her hip holster.

Kara wipes tears from her soaked cheeks.

A woman with alabaster skin, jet black hair, and deep red lips marches straight towards her. The tailored black suit commands the attention of every pair of eyes. Pale pink heels clack against the linoleum. Kara swallows the lump in her throat.

The woman stops inches before Kara, uncaring of the weapons pointed at her. Green eyes bore into Kara.

At long last, red lips curl into a smirk and a strong eyebrow quirks. She moves her head next to Kara's, so close Kara can feel the warmth of her breath against her ear when she purrs the words, "my name is Lena."

[lewsnumerounofan]

party foul (jeremiah fisher x reader)

summary: so what if you're in love with your best friend, jeremiah fisher? one drunk kiss won't change anything. right?

notes: not biblically accurate conrad, teen drinking, kissing, 3k words, reader previously dated co**ad, angst/miscomm., not proof read at all

+ part 2

+ i never keep the same tense i'm so sooryim gooo fuckjuhnbsorry oh my god and dw abt the header image!!!!!! it's okay!!!!!

kissing jere was easy.

it was the first thing you noticed. how easy it was to let his lips slant over yours, to tilt your head back at the greedy request of his hands, to forget about the party and conrad and the house.

it was just him and the feel of his mouth on yours.

you hadn't expected this, to say the least. in fact, you'd been bracing for an awkward and mostly miserable night. ever since conrad and you had split back in june, things had been awful. the breakup had been bad itself--getting ditched at prom without explanation was one thing--but watching conrad get back with nicole a week later was even worse.

so you were pleasantly surprised with yourself when you decided to go to the fisher's goodbye party, despite whatever tension there might be between you and conrad.

if you were being honest with yourself though, you mostly had jeremiah to thank. you two had been best friends since childhood, but ever since his brother had broken your heart, jere had been there for you. all the time, really. he'd drive down on weekends to check up on you. and when susannah had gotten worse, you'd driven up to make sure he was eating and sleeping too.

so of course he'd been able to convince you to come stay, waving off your concerns about conrad. i want you there, he'd said. i really want you there. and so you'd come. you arrived late, tired from the hours of highway driving. already the house was packed with hap hazardously parked cars and drunk teenagers. the music was loud even on the warm streets outside, and you couldn't help but feel excited as you pulled your bag out of your car and started towards the party.

taylor was the one who opened the door for you. she launched herself into a hug, giggling and shrieking as you two swung around.

"oh my god. you have no idea how happy i am to see you," she yelled, dragging you into the crowded house.

together you fumbled upstairs, eventually breaking into one of the larger rooms. various assortments of air mattresses and water beds covered the floor. jere had called you as soon as they'd gotten back from the boardwalk about julia's suprise moving. it wasn't often you heard him so... defeated.

"you can drop your stuff wherever," said taylor, "but the one in the corner is jeremy's."

she didn't even bother to hide her grin as you slapped her arm. nothing, not even your best kept secret, made it past taylor.

"shut up. you can't say anything to him or i swear i'll kill you," you promised, only half joking.

"oh please. he hasn't stopped talking about you the whole trip. it's disgusting."

you tried not to smile at that--jere talked about you? i mean, he'd called you just about every day for the last few months. more, on days when things were hard. but still, you felt almost nervous at the thought of seeing him now. of what it might be like between you.

your thoughts were cut off by a shout of your name. running into the room was belly. well, not running--rolling.

"oh my god bell what are you wearing?" you asked. it was too late though, because she was wrapping you up in a wobbly, crushing hug.

"roller skates? duh? they're an old pair of susannah's," she said.

you'd missed belly. she looked fucking adorable in her little vintage number, and you hugged her again just because. over her shoulder you could see steven grinning, and conrad too. you waved to the later while steven strode over, ruffling your hair before taking your bag from you.

"long time no see, city-girl," he said.

"yeah yeah yeah. just be nice to my bag, okay? it's got some very delicate presents," you said. steven raised his eyebrows but did as you said, placing your bag onto the bed taylor had indicated earlier. jere's bed. taylor and steven met eyes and winked--uh oh. the last thing you needed was them trying to set you up with your best friend. your best friend who you're in love with, something inside you said. you tried your best to strangle it.

"hey."

this time it was conrad, who was sporting a pair of atrocious sunflower sunglasses on the top of his head.

"hey. i like the glasses," you said, doing your best to smile. it was weird to talk like this to him. you were so angry and embarrassed and sad because of him for so long, and now there was just... nothing. and it felt okay.

"uh, yeah. nicole--nicole got them for me."

he looked sheepish, blushing in a way that used to have you fawning. now you just did your best to nod, saying, "well, she's certainly got a good eye for fashion."

you were saved from the conversation by steven's cough. he stood by the doorway, impatiently waving you towards the party.

"cmon guys, can we hurry this up?"

"yeah, gimmie one sec," you promised. returning to your bag you pulled out the liquor you'd secured on your way there, the bottles heavy in your hands.

"see," you said, turning back to your friends, "presents."

-

downstairs was even louder than you thought it would be. belly had gone all out for the party--strobe lights blared in every room, a kegger was set up outside, and a dj (was that cam cameron??) was spinning in the living room. you had to admit it: you were having a good time. a really good time. except for, that is, one thing. or person, really. jere was nowhere to be found. he'd even missed out on the group shots you, steven, taylor, belly and conrad had downed first beside the pool and then by the kitchen. jeremiah never missed group shots.

a little more than drunk now, you pushed off from your spot on the counter to find your bestfriend.

"city-girl, where you going?" asked steven.

"i'm gonna go find jere. i haven't seen him since i got in."

"i'll come with you," a voice spoke up.

it was conrad, who looked between you and the floor nervously. you didn't miss the questioning looks that pass between taylor and belly. you shrug at them--a little nervous, but not enough to turn him down in front of all your friends.

"uh, yeah sure."

so you and conrad made your way back through the party, scanning couches and corners for jeremiah. by the time you hit the stairs you were both sweaty and annoyed. you had come all this way to see him, and all of a sudden he'd disappeared.

"he's not picking up any of my calls," said conrad, pulling his phone away from his ear.

"me neither," you admitted, letting yourself swing around the banister to sit at the bottom of the staircase. cautiously, conrad gestured to empty landing beside you.

"mind if i join?"

you nod, scooching over to make room. conrad looked bigger than last time you'd seen him. he looked stronger too. for a while after susannah died he'd looked like a corpse--pale and skinny and only half there. even you could admit you were glad to see him doing so much better.

"hey, look i didn't really tag along to search for jere," conrad said, glancing back at you. shocker.

"i uh," he cleared his throat, "i mostly just wanted to apologize. for how things ended. i know i messed up really bad and i wanted to say i'm sorry."

in the hazy blue and purple's of the dance floor below, conrad's steel-blue eyes were genuine. for the first time that night they held yours steadily.

"i was hurting, and let myself fall on you for comfort even when i knew you weren't who i wanted. who i needed. and it wasn't fair to you. i know that now, and i'm sorry it took me so long. i'm really, really sorry."

huh. you hadn't really expected that one either. but it was nice to hear him say those words. you liked conrad. he was a good guy who'd had a rough hand delt to him. and yeah, he hadn't done right by you. but like susannah had always repeated:

"no harm no foul," you said, and let yourself smile at him. he looked relieved as he smiled back, no doubt recognizing the reference to his mother.

"you're happy now, i take it? with nicole?" you ask.

"yeah. more than happy, actually. don't know what i did to deserve her."

you're happy for him, in that moment. really happy.

"what about you? you finally stopped messing around and admitted your feelings to jere?" he asked.

"huh?" you drop, mouth open. there's no way.

"what," he chuckled, grinning harder at your shocked expression, "like it's not obvious you two are crazy for each other."

you can feel the blush spreading across your cheeks now, stomach skipping at his words. so they all knew, you realized. does jere?

"he doesn't--you didn't tell him, right?" you said, panic rising.

conrad shakes his head, still looking amused.

"no, but he'd be a fool not to see it. you guys are perfect for each other. really."

"thanks, conrad."

and you mean it--it's been months of awkwardness between you. and now you just feel... good. you feel like you've got your friend back. so you lean over and hug him, letting yourself remember that before your fling you were friends, and returning back to it feels comforting and warm.

"thank you, for hearing me out. i'm glad we can be back to normal now," he said into your shoulder.

"friends again?" you ask.

"definit--"

"what the fuck?"

-

it's jeremiah. he stands at the top of the stairs, eyes wide. he's wearing the ariana grande merch you'd gotten him. he looks the same and yet--

and yet something in your chest fizzes and your stomach starts running circles as you look at him. you missed him. and not because he was your best friend.

"jere--it's not what it looks like," said conrad.

and then you realized he did look different. the jeremiah you knew was always grinning about some secret joke, or making fun of belly or steven. he never looked... betrayed like this. and he certainly never looked at you with disgust. with anger.

"what the fuck are you guys doing?" he asked again, but this time he didn't even look at you.

"nothing, jere. we were just talking," said conrad.

you cringed at his words. they might be true, but they sure didn't sound good.

"yeah, sure," laughed jere. you'd never heard him laugh like that. it made your skin prickle.

"c'mon, you know i'd never do that-" conrad started.

jeremiah was faster though. he was up in conrad's face in a second, pushing him into the wall. you'd never seen him like this. he wasn't an aggressive guy; even when the brothers fought it was never violent.

"don't fucking lie, con. you were just waiting to take her back weren't you? waiting until you knew it'd hurt me the most, huh?"

you felt his words viscerally, like they were being penned onto your skin. hurt him the most? it was the closest to a confession you'd gotten, but it all felt wrong.

by now, partygoers on the main floor had started to notice the commotion. people were pointing, some even starting to pull out their phones. great.

"jere," you called. he paused, bright blue eyes on you. even now, fighting with his brother, jeremiah looked beautiful. maybe you had had a bit too much to drink.

"jere, please let it go. conrad isn't a part of this," you murmured. though you didn't break eye contact, you could see his hands loosen around his brother's shirt in your peripheral. jaw clenched, he heeded your wishes, giving a final shove to conrad before breaking away. he walked quickly down the stairs and into the throngs of people below.

"jere, wait up!" you call, desperately trying to follow the broad shape of his back through the crowd. jeremiah didn't bother trying to accommodate your smaller strides, and you almost lost him a few times in the packed house.

"would you please slow down? jere," you said again. by now you were out of the house, dodging pool floaties and scattered drinks. the blonde made no indication of hearing you as he kept striding towards the beach.

"jeremiah!"

finally he whipped around. he still looked mad--the set of his jaw, the notching of his eyebrows--but under all of it, he just looked sad. you hated seeing him upset, and you hated knowing you might've been the cause of it.

"jere, please. what's going on?" you asked, this time softly. he was close to you now. you could see his heavy breathing, could smell the perfume he always wore.

"how would i know. you're the one who's looking all close with your ex--my brother--conrad," he spits. he swallows hard, like he's checking himself.

"it was always you and conrad. even when we were kids it was that way. i was stupid to think it could've been any different."

he turned away from you, gaze hard. oh, jere. you have no idea, you thought. it was him--how could he not see that? how could he really think it was conrad you cared about?

you couldn't deny it any longer: you loved jere. and you definitely weren't about to let him walk away thinking otherwise.

quickly, without letting yourself dwell on it, you grabbed jeremiah's hand. he turned back, eyes wide. and you kissed him.

kissing jere was easy.

it was the first thing you noticed. how easy it was to let his lips slant over yours, to tilt your head back at the greedy request of his hands, to forget about the party and conrad and the house.

it was just him and the feel of his mouth on yours.

and then everything was static. everywhere he touched you--the long, lean press of his body to your front, the sharp slide of his jawline under your palm, the firm press of his hands at your waist. every sense was filled with him and his warmth and the way he smelled.

you were gasping into the kiss, hyperaware of the small noises he made when you pulled on his curls. of just how tall he was, how much he had to lean down to hold you like this.

you barely broke away enough to say, "jere, nothing happened with conrad. we were talking about you-"

"don't care," he said, voice rough. because he was too busy lifting you onto one of the wooden boardwalk rails, muscled arms flexing in the distant party lights.

you barely had time to settle before he was kissing you again, sloppy this time, like he owned your mouth and wanted you to know it. you felt hot everywhere, as his hands pulled apart your thighs and he crowded his broad body into you.

you'd kissed once before for a game of truth or dare. it had been sweet and short, and you both had been teased about it for years afterwards. this was different.

wholly different, you realized, as jeremiah's lips sought out the hot skin of your neck. there was no place except where he touched you; the noise of the party, the lull of the waves on the beach, the quiet way he murmured against your skin.

"jere," you said, because there was no room in your mind for anything or anyone else. he hummed as his canines bit lightly at your ear. jere.

greedy for more, you took one of the tan, strong hands holding your face and brought it lower, lower until it rested over your frantically beating heart. jere had pulled away to watch your ministrations, cursing softly as his hand fell over your chest.

"you sure?" he asked, and his voice sounded hoarse.

"yeah, course jere. it's you."

something behind his eyes sparked at the trust you promised. it's always been you. kissing you once more, gentler this time, jere let his hand run up and under the vintage bathing suit top you'd stolen from your mom for the party.

skin on skin, jeremiah was soft and warm. he was breathing heavy as you as he felt you up. forehead to yours, gaze keen as he watched you pant and squirm.

"this okay?"

you could only nod, eyes drawn tight at the sensation. he kissed you again, his touch more confident as you clung to his shoulders.

you'd messed around with conrad a few times. it had felt good. fun, even. but he'd never had you reeling like this, never made you feel like everywhere he touched was fire. that feeling was reserved for jere.

and as his thumb circled your nipple and his teeth pulled at your lip, you realized you were burning and there wasn't anything you could do to stop it. best friend or not, jere was the only one who could make you feel like this. ever.

you pulled away from his mouth. he looked concerned, and you could feel him move his hands away from you.

"sorry if i..." he started, blue eyes near scared as he watched you.

"no, jere it's not that. it's, it's just that i-"

"hey, there's my man! where the fuck were you dude?"

it was steven. fucking steven. on his arm was taylor, who grinned manically when she saw your mussed hair and blushing expression. please not now, taylor. please don't mess this up any more.

but drunk as they were, the pair didn't notice your nervous expression. instead, steven laughed and said, "so did you finally tell her you're in love with her or what?"

-

jere's face dropped. whatever softness you'd shared moments earlier was gone. his mouth set flat, hands that had been mapping out your body now closed into fists.

"fuck you, steven."

taylor's eyes were on you now, finally recognizing the tears you tried to blink away. with a hand on his chest she held steven back, some wordless communication passing between them. if you hadn't been feeling your own heart break you would've been trying to tease them about it.

instead, you chased after jeremiah's retreating figure.

"jere, will you please listen!" you called. but he was stubborn--you knew this better than anyone. one more time you tried, shouting his name over the stupidly loud party.

he whipped back around, blue eyes sharp.

"just stay away from me, okay? why don't you go find conrad to wipe your tears," he snapped. for a moment, jere looked shocked at his own words too. but then he was shaking his head, tearing his gaze away from yours as he continued through the crowds towards the house. away from you.

and this time, as people collapsed into the space all around you, their yelling and singing drowning out even your thoughts, you knew there was no use calling for him.

[myths-tournaments]

Awful Characters Round 2 Part 1 (2/8)

Propaganda under the cut!

IANTHE TRIDENTARIUS

Her number one hobby is ruining every person's that she knows life. Her second hobby is being soooo slutty about it despite looking like a literal wet rat. Her third hobby is having an extremely unhealthy relationship with her twin. Her other hobbies include cannibalism, wearing a maid outfit, being extremely convinced she is the main character, the badboy sexy love interest and the villain. 'Why', you may ask. Well, the answer is, for shits and giggles #justgirlythings i, aswell as literally everybody else in the fandom have gone through the pipeline from hating her to desperately wanting to fuck her. expect for i still fucking hope she dies and doesn't come back for good. (that would literally solve all of everybody's problems) as god intended (EXPECT FOR. one of her hobbies literally is gaslighting god) She is fucking horrible i will love her until i die and even after that

parks and recs jean ralphio voice she's the woooorst!! The moment she learns she has to kill someone to become a Lyctor (aka a more special necromancer), she doesn't hesitate to kill and cannibalize the guy who has been her cavalier since childhood… cavalier who she also totally bullied as kids, she was allowed to choose one guest for her and her twin sister's birthday party each year, and she would always pick whoever she thought her cavalier didn't want to see there! While other characters are shown to regret the process of becoming a Lyctor (which involves someone close to them dying)/were forced into it because of circumstances, Ianthe has absolutely no regrets, she believes she did what she had to do

The author once said of Ianthe: "I don't think she's been nice to anyone, if she has I'll go back and change it." She killed and ate the soul of someone she has known all her life so that she could become a necromantic saint and tormented him plenty before that. General negging, ganging up against him, always inviting people he didn't like to their birthday parties. She doesn't regret killing him. I think she is repulsed by the idea that his digested soul is affecting hers. She helped her crush lobotomise herself so she would be in Ianthe's debt, and later lied and said she didn't see the corpse of a woman her crush killed under her bed (why did she do that? I do not know). She has a bone arm because her original arm was cut off, she hated the replacement so her crush cut THAT off and grew her a new one out of just bones. She had it gilded and only after that did she decide to help her crush deal with the person who had been repeatedly trying to kill her. She wants so badly to be the main character but people keep interrupting her villain monologues.

she has her own content warning tag

She's such a bitch to everyone all the time, she causes nothing but problems, she tries to do a villain speech but fumbles it because her tummy hurt, she is the awfulgirl of all time

THE SKULL

he is an evil ghost who used to be an assistant to a mad scientist gravedigger. accomplice to murder and torture and general evil scheming. now he lives in a jar and is besties with a teenage girl. and by besties i mean he encourages her to kill people and constantly cheers when her friends almost die. overall a silly little decapitated head <3

It is literally a skull in a jar. (More context if you don’t know the books/show: it’s a ghost source that’s been trapped in a silver container so it can’t escape. And it’s exceptionally powerful which means it can actually communicate with mc.) It frequently encourages the mc to commit various morally reprehensible acts such as homicide (she never does). When it was alive, it was a teenage boy who was apprenticed to an evil scientist.

[donaweasley]

A Walk in the Dark

Pairing: George Weasley x Fem!Reader

Plot:

After an awkward incident involving your one and only crush George Weasley, he tries to sort the uncomfortable situation out. But will it lead to some revelations or...just a heartache?

Previous chapter: Everything is Fair in Love and War

Warnings: Teenage, high school fluff.

Read time: ~10 mins

Note: I've assumed that the reader is 14 years of age here but you're free to put in any number you like! And you can put the reader in any house you wish to!

Next story in the sequence coming up!!

The morning was eventful, with Fred, Ron, Ginny and Molly of all people, assuming that George and (Y/N) had shared their first kiss in the redhead’s room while the rest were downstairs. Yes, pretty much embarrassing, given the fact that the visitor was buried deep in her humongous crush on her said best friend. And disappointing, too, given that George was furious at them, which subsequently made her conclude that he was repelled at the thought of any kind of romance with his best friend.

The rest of the day was awkward. (Y/N)’s heart was wearing a frown but she had to keep her bubbly personality up to show everyone that she didn't give a damn about who thought what about George and her. She did, to be honest, give a damn...or two...quite a lot, actually. George had calmed down but she found him being slightly uncomfortable around her. She attributed it to her own dejected mind, and called it a figment of her imagination.

After dinner that night, when they were all seated in the living room, George slipped in to sit beside his bestie for a brief moment.

"Wait until everyone's gone", he breathed into her ear. His warmth, once again, aroused those tickles in her stomach which had taken the poor girl almost all day to quieten.

For the rest of the night, she couldn't focus on the conversation anymore as her head was muddled with questions as to why he might have asked her to stay back.

Why?

"You okay, (Y/N)?" She almost jumped out of her seat when Ginny called her.

"What? Yeah. Yes. I'm okay. Just...just thinking that I haven't called my parents for two days now. I should call them tomorrow. Can you please remind me?"

"Yup. Okay!" She smiled reassuringly.

"Great! So we're all going out tomorrow evening", Ron's face brightened up.

As the night grew older, the group of friends became more and more tired, and most of them eventually retired to bed. Had (Y/N) not been on the verge of imploding, she would have probably fallen asleep on the couch.

The twins and (Y/N) were usually the last to go to bed. So, there they were, seated on the floor near the couch. Fred was just about to jump to another topic when George stopped him.

"Fred, you go, I'll be coming in a while", he said.

Fred stared at his twin as if the latter had grown another head.

"After what you did this morning, I don't owe you an explanation. I owe you a prank. Pulled on you", George clarified before Fred could ask anything.

This made her giggle.

"Fine, I'm going but..." Fred tried to feign a tragic face.

"That's okay, brother, I won't make out with her", the younger twin put an arm around (Y/N)’s shoulder.

"Hey!" Thoroughly embarrassed, she tried to give him an offended look.

"What? You want me to make out with you?"

She just prayed that neither of them would see the heat creeping up her ears.

"Shut up, George. It's not funny."

Fred sat there staring at the duo with furrowed brows while George and (Y/N) chuckled nervously.

"Alright, then", Fred finally spoke up, "I'll leave. (Y/N), I hope that you won't break my heart." Very theatrically, the older twin put a hand over his chest.

"I'll remember, drama queen!"

With a quick hug, Fred left her with his brother but not before glancing at them over his shoulder with a wicked smile plastered on his face. And once again, George and (Y/N) descended into that uncomfortable silence.

"So?" She broke the silence.

"So..."

George pondered for a while.

"Care for a walk?" He finally said.

"Now? This late?"

"Don't worry, I won't bite", he winked, and she melted into a puddle beside him. It was a relief that he didn't notice.

Probably. Hopefully.

"It's not your bite that I fear, mister. It's the...dogs...and other..things", She said quietly.

"You mean, ghosts?"

"Shh!"

George laughed. "You forget that you're living with a ghoul here!"

(Y/N) shuddered at the mere thought of it. She had never seen it although the sounds and the stories were enough to scare the shit out of her.

"Really?" George was still laughing, "after all these years of living with ghosts at the school, you're still scared?"

"They are ghosts of Hogwarts! They are a part of the school. Okay, I'll go. Let's drop this topic. Right. Now."

"Alright! But I can't guarantee anything."

"Guarantee what?"

"Well...y'know...about what we might meet on the way."

"Shut up! I'm not scared! I'll have you by my side!" She wrapped an arm around his.

"Aha? What if I am not me...?"

"Shove off!" She pushed him away. "I'm not going anywhere with you!"

George was laughing. "Okay! Okay! Come."

He pulled her up and gently pushed her towards the door.

It was refreshing outside. The moon was a thin curve against the clear starlit sky. The cool breeze and the quietude soon made (Y/N) forget the events of the day and the turmoil in her mind calmed down a bit. But as soon as George stepped beside her, her “stupid” mind - as she called it - transformed the entire scenario into a romantic one.

Ugh!

"It was getting stuffy inside", George smiled.

"Yes, it was...kind of. … Tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"Why you brought me here, of course."

"Why? Can't a guy ask his best friend out on a walk?" He feigned hurt.

She rolled my eyes, "Of course, he can. But you forget that I know you only too well to know when you simply need a walk and when you're bursting to say something."

He smiled sheepishly, "Caught me, huh?"

"As always!"

"Okay", he inhaled deeply, and the butterflies in her stomach started fluttering violently in anticipation.

"This might sound odd. No, it's definitely going to sound odd", he chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck.

Oh, those usual signs of nervousness! But why is he nervous?

Inside her head, a voice was screaming in anticipation, "Oh! C'mon, just say it Georgie!!"

"Okay, look. What happened in the morning...y'know with my family saying those weird things and all...well, you're not mad, are you?"

"What? No! Not at all!" She tried to sound absolutely casual. "Why?"

"No, it's just...it was awkward, and..."

"And?"

His tongue darted out to wet his lips, "I noticed that you were a bit off after that. So..."

"Oh!" She had to come up with a lie, and quickly. "I was just thinking that...umm... it's so much fun at your house, and I'll have to leave in 5 days. Yeah. That was what made me sad." She gave him her widest smile.

He smiled back, clearly not convinced at the flimsy explanation, "You sure?"

"Yes. Of course." She noticed him looking suspiciously at her, and so she looked away.

"You looked somewhat uncomfortable yourself. All okay?" She smartly diverted the questions towards him.

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine”, he replied nervously.

"You sure?" She tried to mimic him.

George laughed, "Yes. It's just that", he stopped walking, "I was worried about what you might be thinking. You looked slightly upset."

He was looking at anywhere but her, and shifting his weight on his feet. "I don't want to lose my best friend, y'know", he finally looked at her after a pause.

"Best friend", She thought. "I wish I were a little more than that to you, Georgie."

"You won't", She smiled and took his hand in hers. "Never." She held out her pinkie towards him.

"Pinkie promise?" He laughed. "Really?"

"Umm, yeah! Let's say this is our version of the unbreakable vow."

"Okay", he locked his pinkie with hers, "done!"

"Done!"

They both laughed. And then somewhere in that happy moment the laughter faded away and was replaced by silence. A comfortable silence where only their eyes and smiles spoke. For a moment (Y/N) thought that she saw the same love in his eyes as she held for him.

But no. That’s impossible. He has just confirmed it himself. I’m his best friend. Only his best friend.

She decided to act before her emotions got the better of her.

"Let's go", She tugged lightly on his little finger which was still locked with hers.

"Oh!" His smile dropped, "You're sleepy?"

"No. I just...I don't know. You want to stay here longer? I don't mind. It's pretty nice out here anyway"

"No, it's okay, we can go. No problem. Besides, who knows what might be lurking in the shadows." He looked around with a frown but his eyes shouted "mischief".

"Ha ha! You can't scare me, Weasley. Besides, I have my best friend with me. He'll protect me", She smiled at him.

"Yeah, you can count on that", he wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

I wish you knew what you're doing to me, Georgie!

"So", he spoke in that peculiar tone which was always followed by a mischief, "I remember you saying that you are not afraid of...my bite!"

For the God-knows-how-many-times that day her ears heated up again.

"Where are you headed exactly?" She asked him with furrowed brows.

"Just saying", he shrugged, "what if I'm a vampire in disguise? See, I have brought you this far from home, on a dark night, in the wee hours. And I'm so attractive that you couldn't say no to me. Now", he leaned closer, "what if I grow fangs and-"

She punched his chin.

"Ow! You little villain, you!"

"Oh! Did the little, weak human hurt the mighty vampire?"

He groaned.

"Now stop that acting, and let's go home before they start thinking that we have gone off snogging again."

At this, George straightened up and forgot all about his drama. (Y/N) raised a brow at him. Smiling sheepishly, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder once again, and they started off towards the Burrow.

"You know, George, if you try to scare me once again, I'll bite you."

George chuckled, "I wish!"

"What?" She froze.

"What?" His eyes were as big as saucers.

(Y/N) stared at him. "What did you just say?"

"What did I just say?" He gulped nervously. "I said 'you wish!'. Yes, I said 'Hah! You wish!'"

"Noooo..." She was sure she heard something else.

"Oh! (Y/N), you're hearing things. What else would I say? Come now, let's get inside before you start seeing things."

He pulled her towards his home which was now only a few more steps away. His words were still ringing in her ears. She looked up at him. Even in the dark, she could make out the tint of pink on his cheeks.

What the hell is going on?

They stepped inside, and George carefully locked the door.

"Care for some snacks?" He asked a bit nervously.

"Nope. I'll just get some sleep."

"Yeah. Me too."

He walked her till Ginny's door.

"Alright, good night, mate", he held out his fist.

"Good night", she punched it lightly.

Instead of heading upstairs to his room, George still stood there as if debating with his thoughts. Both the twins and (Y/N) usually hugged before going to bed but given the incidents of the day, it wouldn't be a surprise if they were having second thoughts.

After watching George's unrest state for a few seconds, she decided to drop her guard and take action.

"Hey", she touched his arm, "come here."

She wrapped her arms around his waist. It seemed to work instantly because she felt him relax. The next second, his long arms had her enveloped in a bear hug, swaying her lightly.

"Thanks", he smiled when they pulled apart.

"Idiot!"

"What? Why?"

"Nothing. Now go. It's pretty late."

He stood there, waiting for an explanation.

"Goooo!" She turned him around and pushed him.

He laughed, "Okay, as you say. Good night!"

"Good night", she smiled.

That night, (Y/N) went to bed with a heavy heart, knowing that the boy on whom she had been crushing for so many months now, sees her only as his best friend.

That night, George went to bed wondering if he had let go of the only chance of conveying his feelings to the girl who he had been in love with for over a year now.

***

Taglist:

@olivetheoryx @yep4nai @scram1326 @ariaterum @persephone13 @gimme-gimme-georgie-weasley @nunanuggets @lolhelpimtired @madmadgirlperson @dontfallinlovelol @r4ttusr4ttus @emilykolchivans @queerponcho @loveforweasley @turvi @lovers-111 @waitforiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit @justafangir1 @the-holy-trinity-l @minatozsana @baddiebbarbietngz @moomscore

[lavender-romancer]

Poison   

Part One  Draco Malfoy x Hufflepuff Reader  Cho Chang x Hufflepuff Reader (unrequited) CW: angst 

You and Draco had been together for around a year but as you both approached 7th year you could no longer see him the same way as before  

”*°•.˜”*°•. ˜”*°•. ˜”*°••°*”˜.•°*”˜.•°*”˜.•°*”˜

Draco was suffering in his own head. Unable to unload anything inside it on anyone else, unable to ask guidance from the one person he trusted the most. The pressures from his father had turned him into someone who he wasn't, sure when he was younger he would tease or push people around but he wasn't evil. The mere fact he was conflicted about his past decisions proved he wasn't who his father wanted him to be. Being with you had made him into a better person, a more forgiving person who wasn't easily led by petty arguments. But now…you hardly talked to one another. 

"He's going to end it with me, I'm sure of it." You vented to Cho in potions with a miserable look on your face. 

"You don't deserve to be ignored or at the least disregarded, I know it was good before but sometimes things happen for a reason, Y/n." Cho reasoned and you had to agree with her, you deserved a better partner.

"Can't imagine myself dating again, I mean I don't know if hat I expected from a teenage relationship but it was more than this." You buried your head in your jumper and Cho giggled. 

"You're quite dramatic when you're lovesick aren't you?" She teased and you rolled your eyes.

"I've just got to stay strong I think, not show him that it's getting to me otherwise he wins." You took a deep breath and sat up straight. 

"Exactly! You're better than that." Cho encouraged you and you got back into your experiment. 

Leaving the class you were chatting to Cho as you saw Draco in his all black suit walking the other direction. He saw you and stopped dead in his tracks. 

"Hey Y/n," Draco said with a small smile. 

"You okay?" Cho asked and you nodded, "I'll see you later then?" She gave you a comforting hug before walking off. 

"What do you want or need, Draco?" You asked with a huff.

"What's wrong? You've been off with me all of this term." He asked, pulling you into an empty classroom.

"Me? Are you seriously asking me what's wrong with me?" You scoffed and sat down on one of the desks. 

"You've been behaving all moody for a while and I have no idea why." Draco looked like he rolled his eyes and you could have laughed at how pathetic it was. 

"Maybe it's because you don't speak to me anymore? Maybe it's because you don't want me anymore? Or maybe, just maybe, I've realised you're not the center of my life anymore and it's not that bad." You hissed back at him with a look in your eyes he'd never seen before. 

"Look I know I've been distant but it's not because of anything you've-" 

"Oh I know, I know it isn't my fault because I haven't done anything wrong. But if you don't want me grow some fucking balls and tell me, yeah?" You walked past Draco and out of the classroom. 

Draco didn't know where to go from here, he just leant against one of the desks and breathed. He felt it was all his body would allow him to do at this point, the way you looked at him was seared into his mind- the true hatred. You could never know the reasons he was so distant but, Draco didn't want to let you go either so he was stuck in a sort of ethical limbo. He couldn't be honest about his connection to the Dark Lord without the possibility of you telling someone. It wasn't worth the risk. 

"I can't believe this is real, it still seems insane that I'm in bed with you." You told Draco as you leant on his bare chest. 

"In what way?" Draco looked puzzled. 

"Because you fucking hated me before, plus…I wasn't your biggest fan either." You laughed and Draco rolled his eyes in his classic way. 

"I don't know if I hated you, I think I teased you because I found you attractive but I was so awful with girls it just came out like that." Draco rubbed his hand up your arm to your hair, playing with it absentmindedly. 

"Well, everyone definitely thought you hated me." You looked up at him with a shit eating grin and he pulled your hair slightly. 

"I can always go back to the teasing if you prefer it?" He asked, "And who's 'everyone' including?" 

"Cho, the Golden trio, Seamus, Susan, Luna-"

"Alright, so a lot of people. God, you have too many friends." Draco smiled and you hit his chest playfully. 

"Just because I have more than two friends doesn't mean I have too many, you're just jealous that you can't make any friends at all." You turned around and leant on your elbows, looking at him as he raised an eyebrow. 

"Is that so?" He asked and you nodded before Draco tackled you to the bed, pinning your arms as you both giggled. 

"I'm sure this will be the best thing for you, eventually." Cho said softly as she held your hand, your eyes were glassy but no tears seemed to form. 

"Maybe, I think it's just that I've existed with him or thinking about him for so long that it feels odd that it might end. It feels wrong to be in this position." You took a deep breath and looked at Cho, trying to smile as she looked at you supportively. 

"You'll get there, I promise you it will get easier day by day you'll realise you don't need him to get through the day. Look how well you're already doing." She gave you the warmest smile and you couldn't help but blush because it made you feel so warm.

"You're right. I need to just…learn to live with it and not dwell. I mean, I have you and I have my other friends so what could really be that bad." You squeezed Cho's hand and sighed. 

"Come on, we've both got quidditch practice." Cho smiled. 

Flying together made you both feel so connected, like you'd always known one another. Even though you didn't play together, some houses would do a general practice every so often where anyone from any team could come along. You were looping around each other, bright smiles on both of your faces as you chased one another and messed around. 

"If you two can stop flirting, we can get down to some actual practice!" Roger Davies yelled from just below you. 

"Flirting? What are you on about?" Cho asked with a pink tinge to her cheeks you couldn't ignore. 

"Oh come on, if you two can't see it you're blind." He called back before flying to the ground. 

"No-no idea what that was about!" Cho stuttered as she also headed towards the ground. You had a puzzled look on your face before flying down to the rest of the group on the ground. 

Draco entered the room of requirement with a little bird. Even though he had so much to accomplish…you were the only thing on his mind. You distracted him from all tasks, not that he didn't welcome distraction from the awful task before him. He'd been trying to repair the vanishing cabinet for about 9 months now and even with the advice from Borgin he hadn't got any closer. There was no way of getting the cabinet to Borgin and Burke's but Draco had no idea if the incantation was even working, every live thing he put in there would come back dead. It wasn't even as if Borgin could apparate into the room of requirement, but Draco didn't have time on his hands. It was why he had been so stressed recently, or really the past 6 months at least and he knew you had felt it. But how could you know? How could you be told what had happened? Draco knew that you wouldn't be on his side of the inevitable war, so what was the point in telling you? 

As he looked around the room packed with relics from the school's past, he couldn't help but remember all the times the two of you had snuck into it. Making out whilst you should've been in potions or fucking in a free period, Draco saw you everywhere in this place and it only made him more eager to get out. He placed the little bird he had seen in the corridor in the cabinet and shut the door. The bird's tweets could be heard as well as the little scratches when it would jump around on the wood, Draco felt guilty about using the bird but he had to try again with something living.

"Harmonia nectere passus," his wand was lifted as he chanted the incantation but there wasn't the familiar whoosh sound, he could still hear the bird "harmonia nectere passus," he repeated and there were no more noises.

After a few moments he repeated the chant again but even though there was a woosh he heard no tweeting. Opening the cabinet the bird lay dead, unmoving and lifeless and Draco couldn't handle it. He stepped backwards after shutting the cabinet and sat down on a rough looking chair before bursting into tears. 

You walked towards the Hufflepuff common room, pausing to groan at the fact you had to tap on all the barrels once again to enter. When you were in first year you got it slightly wrong and got covered in vinegar so you were sure to get it right even if you were in an awful mood. When you walked in you went over to one of the cacti stands and smiled as they danced with their arms moving up and down. The common room was full of plants and due to your love of them you couldn't imagine a place you'd feel more comfortable. 

You dreamed one day of owning a country house with sprawling ivy all over it (even though it ruins the brickwork) and large gardens you could tend to. Your Muggle mother used to always take you to the allotments in the posher part of your town even though you lived on the other side. Falling in love with plants was easy when you felt so calm and fulfilled after being around them, you had never felt so at peace in your life. Being around plants would be so important to you when you eventually left school, living in a city felt almost impossible to you. 

Draco used to love listening to you discuss your favourite flowers, or ways to pot different plants and how fertiliser impacted growth but always made sure to tell him to never use peat fertiliser. He used to laugh because it wasn't as if he was ever going to use any fertiliser anywhere in his life. You felt as if you were yearning for those times, yearning for everything he made you feel. Draco made you feel at home. Being without him for so long was taking a toll on you because you weren't used to it, even an afternoon without one another was surprising. Draco had met your mother for God sake, not that you could meet his parents but either way you were so close with one another- it seemed unimaginable that you could be apart from now on. 

Maybe he was your poisoned tree? Infecting all other facets of your life until he took over your psyche and your life with it. Making you progressively weaker as the poison took control over your existence as you were controlled by his actions. For God sake you couldn't do anything without thinking about him, or what he would've said in that situation. He was everywhere you looked and you didn't have to see his face to know it. Why couldn't he just tell you what was going on? You believed that he loved you, you really did so you didn't think he was cheating but, it was something. Something so big that he didn't feel he could tell you. There were always rumors about the Malfoy family but you never really entertained them as real, what if there was some truth in them? Were they all death eaters? That eventuality was suddenly becoming more and more of a reality. You needed to clear your head so you headed towards the only place you knew you'd be alone- The room of requirement.

next part

[heartlandians]

Filling Empty Spaces (Amy/Mitch), part 240

Mitch and Amy find an unexpected connection due to absent lovers. Set around season 11->.

A/N: I didn’t have a beta for this story, so hopefully there won’t be too many grammar errors.

****

Amy was sat on the porch and watched as Georgie and Wyatt entertained Lyndy on the lawn after breakfast.

The little girl ran around as fast she could, giggling so much that she could barely control the shaking of her body, because the teenagers "threatened" to tickle her if they were to catch her.

Since Amy barely had any energy to move herself around, she appreciated the help Georgie and her boyfriend provided right now. Amy knew she was lucky to have her family close in situations like this, and she never let herself forget that.

When the screen door screeched open on her right, Amy turned her head to look at the older couple stepping out.

Lisa was carrying a cooler and Jack had his fishing gear with him.

"Aw, would you look at that..." Lisa commented to both Jack and Amy, a wide grin on her face. "It seems like Lyndy's enjoying herself!"

"Yeah", Amy said, turning her eyes back toward the kids and smiled. "She's absolutely loving it."

Jack watched the chase happening at the lawn, a smile spread wide under his moustache, but then got a little more serious as he watched Amy wrapped in her light blanket.

"You sure you'll be okay with us going to the fishing cabin...?" Jack checked, worrying. "We'll be back before bedtime", he added, hoping it would ease the possible protest.

"Oh, I'll be fine", Amy tried assuring them. "I don't want to keep you hostage just because I'm low on energy. You deserve a break. Besides, I have Lou and Georgie around to help with Lyndy."

"You do", he agreed. "But remember, if they get tired, you can always call your dad. He ought to do something too..." Jack added, muttering.

"You make it sound like he hasn't done his share", Lisa scolded her husband. "He's helped", she reminded.

Lisa knew that Jack and Tim had their rivalry going on, but she had to give credit to Tim for taking care of things while Amy had been in the hospital; not only with some of the ranch chores, but also with some of the paperwork and phone calls.

Even though he could be selfish at times, Lisa admitted, Tim loved no one else as much as he loved his kids. She also didn't want Amy to think that Tim couldn't have cared less when his daughter was in a coma, because it was the exact opposite.

"Yeah, well he could always do more..." Jack talked under his breath and walked closer to Amy to give the top of her head a kiss. "Take it easy, will you?"

"I promise", Amy said, smiling. She then glanced at Jack's fishing equipment. "I thought you were going to go check on the property..." she added, her tone slightly teasing.

"Well, we are, of course", Jack said, adjusting the gear against his shoulder, "but I've never passed an opportunity to go fishing when I've gone there - and I'm not about to change that now."

It sounded like Grandpa, Amy admitted. "Okay. You two enjoy yourselves."

"We will", Lisa replied, looking giddy as she got down the stairs and walked toward Jack's truck. Jack soon followed her.

They loaded the bed of the truck with the things they were carrying, then hollered their goodbyes to everyone before getting on their way.

The sound of gravel under the tires faded out the further they got.

"I'm so out of shape..." Wyatt whined and slowed down his running while holding his palm on top of the left side of his upper body. He could almost feel his heart jumping out of his chest. "I didn't realize a kid could be that fast... Brick's fast, but nothing like that..."

"Yeah, it's hard work", Georgie agreed, equally out of breath. Her cheeks were hot pink from the exhaustion. "We should get something to drink. Or how does that sound, Lyndy?" she asked from her niece.

"No!" said the little girl, giggling. It seemed like she was eager to show them she wasn't falling for their ruse, even though it wasn't actually a trick.

""No"?" Georgie repeated, laughing. "Come on - game's over!" she chimed and walked toward the girl, sending Lyndy into another set of hysterics without meaning to.

"You get her, Georgie, I'm wiped..." Wyatt breathed, rolling on the grass.

Georgie laughed and tried to pull him back up, but the young man was too heavy for her. "I can't do it alone! She's too fast!"

"Someone has to stop her... But it isn't going to be me..." Wyatt played it out like a pivotal moment in a play where the hero - in this case, Georgie - would find the necessary courage to face the task that seemed impossible.

Amy enjoyed the entertainment happening in front of her like a theatre performance, but her eyes quickly noticed Lou in the distance, walking out of the barn with Remi tailing her.

When Amy's big sister eventually reached the porch too and the dog laid next to her feet, Lou sat down on the bench.

"How's the loft looking?" Amy asked since Lou had been working on it since yesterday. "Is it ready for Georgie to live in?"

"Yeah, it's all cleaned up and the furniture has been arranged like Georgie asked", Lou said, rubbing her knees nervously. Her tone was bittersweet.

Amy could feel more than superficial stuff coming. She didn't have to wait long.

"I know it's the best option to have your kid live so close to rest of your family, but it's still hard to believe she's this grown up..." Lou commented, while simultaneously watching how Lyndy and Georgie were using the vegetable garden as a maze.

"Yeah, well, it's a good, careful first step for her", Amy knew. "I mean, I should know; when I went to Europe, I realized just how little I knew about being on my own - and it showed. This is some responsibility but not too much. And like you said, if ever she needs anything, I'll be close-by."

Lou nodded.

"I know", she said softly, but it didn't make it any easier to have her oldest daughter flying out of the nest this fast. "It just still surprises me to find myself in this position already at my age. But then again Georgie was few years older than Katie when she came into our lives, so... of course it was bound to happen sooner than I originally expected when I first became a mother."

"Speaking of... have you heard from Katie and Peter?" Amy asked, knowing Lou's younger daughter was visiting Peter in Vancouver now that they were closer to B.C. and not in New York.

"Yeah, we talk every day. They're loving spending time together", Lou said, missing Katie but at the same time knowing how much Peter appreciated having his turn in parenting. "I don't know... Time just goes by so fast. I miss Georgie and Katie being younger, I miss feeling like I'm needed..."

Amy looked at her sister. "You are needed. And you've been taking such good care of me too now. I owe you so much."

"Nonsense. You don't owe me anything", Lou said, shaking her head.

"Well, I appreciate you", Amy wanted to say at least.

"Thanks..." Lou said, smiling.

Over the years, much to her surprise, Lou had come to realize that there was a big nurturing side to her, so looking after others came naturally.

But she also knew that when it came to helping Amy now, she had her selfish reasons too. Guilt was one of them. But she just didn't know how to talk about it with her sister.

"So... you talked to Mitch yet?" Lou asked, instinctively lowering her voice even though she didn't need to; if Wyatt or Georgie were to hear something, it wasn't going to be a big reveal for them anymore as they already knew about Amy and Mitch.

Amy sighed. She was disappointed to state her answer, but at the same time she felt like things were just mostly out of her control right now.

"You know how this house is... Paper thin walls. And I can't really wander off from the ranch to give him a call either yet. So... no."

Lou nodded, drifting into her thoughts.

Meanwhile Amy felt like changing the topic.

"Not that I'm in any hurry to get you out of here, but... I assume you coming back to Hudson was always going to be temporary", Amy began, bringing Lou out of her head. "Have you thought about when you'll be going back to New York?"

"Oh, I don't know yet. I have not set any date", Lou admitted, fiddling her bracelet. "Nicole and Henry's been asking too, but... I've come to realize that family comes first. So I'll be here till I'm needed."

"Then you'll never leave", Amy pointed out.

Lou hummed and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, come on. You've come to your own already when it comes to taking care of the business and... well, soon running this ranch", the older sister tried to encourage Amy. "And as for Georgie... she will be fine here."

Amy taking over was going to be something that would take some time to get used to - for all of them - but it had been the plan for a while now.

Amy sighed, looking unsure.

"I don't know... I was insecure about that even before the accident, let alone now that I'm still recovering", she admitted. "How will I know if I'm ever going to be able to do it?"

"No one's ever fully prepared for anything. And besides, you have people to help you, don't you?" Lou reminded. "You don't have to do it alone. There's Cassandra, Trace, Georgie, Jade... I'm sure you can hire more help, if needed."

"I know. But the problem with my line of work is that I am the service I'm selling. I'm not saying I don't need the others to help me - because I do - but... none of those others are Amy Fleming. They're not the Miracle Girl everyone wants", she spoke, her tone now lower. "And who even knows if I'll even be either..."

She could feel her hands shaking again and she cradled them together, tugging them into her lap, hoping to stop them from trembling.

"You'll figure it out", Lou tried to cheer her up. "It's only early days."

"Yeah... I hope so", Amy said, almost tearfully. "I don't want to let anyone down."

She had already been through so many changes, she didn't need this to be one of them too. Her work created so much of the base for her life that she didn't know how to live without it.

Lou squeezed her shoulder lightly. "You won't."

Amy appreciated the gesture.

They sat in silence for a while till Amy wanted to voice something.

"I've been meaning to ask... with Grandpa handing me the reins of this place... you don't feel bitter about it, do you...?" she asked, hoping that changing the subject slightly would help her keep herself together.

Lou glanced at her.

"Me? Running a ranch?" she said out loud, as if Amy was telling a joke and she had to make sure she had got the punchline right.

Amy shrugged.

She didn't want to limit Lou's options, even in theory. Despite Lou not having much interest in the ranching or horse business, Heartland had always been her home too, so her sister had a right to this place every bit as much as she did.

"The whole aspect of this-not-being-my-dream-or-passion aside, I have life elsewhere. Going back to New York has made me realize how much I've missed it. I mean, I've visited the place every now and then, but that's different", Lou shared.

For Amy it was always hard to imagine Lou in New York, simply because she had never really seen her life there. But the way she spoke about it let Amy know how much she meant every word she said. Amy herself would probably talk similarly about Heartland if she was living elsewhere.

Lou then went back in years by recounting past experiences.

"When mom died and things had to be taken care of here, I felt myself being drawn back to New York constantly, but eventually figured it would have been too selfish of me to just leave you guys handle everything on your own... So, I stayed and tried to build my life here. And I'm glad I did, because I've had all these amazing experiences and I've become close with everyone again, but... things have evolved since then."

Amy nodded, understanding that.

"If New York's your place, it's not selfish to want to live there", she wanted to say. "You pushed aside your dream for a long time, for us. It's time for you to live it out now. I know what you mean when you say that you were needed here, but I hope you know now that - and I say this lovingly - you don't have to be here for things to move forward."

"See?" Lou pointed out with a smirk. "You do have some trust in yourself", she said, feeling smug about how she had basically proved to her sister that she was capable of things if she so wanted.

Amy sighed, humming.

"Well, I'm certainly going to try", she promised. "But... not now. I'm tired - again. I think I'm going to take a nap."

"Okay", Lou said, nodding. "Lunch time's at one, so set your alarm."

Amy got up.

"Thanks. -- Will you be able to handle Lyndy?" she checked when the girl was still full of energy no matter how long Georgie kept chasing her.

"Yeah, we'll be fine. Don't worry about us", Lou assured, waving her hand dismissively. "Have a good sleep."

"Okay. Thanks, Lou", Amy said as she started to make her way inside.

****

Falling asleep was not a problem with Amy these days as her brain got overworked so easily and her body was still trying to regain back the energy that was needed for light physical activity.

It was the waking up that Amy found hard.

It wasn't "the calm coming to" that had once been the case, but more like some sort of panic that dialed her body into overdrive in the matter of seconds.

She jolted awake as if she had sensed something alarming happening around her, except there was nothing like that going on; she was safe in her own bedroom and it was quiet in the house.

Well, outside the alarm that she had set before getting on her bed blaring, trying to wake her up.

Amy turned it off and rolled back on the bed, sighing.

It took a while for her to calm herself down. She hated feeling like this, because reasonably thinking she should have been well rested after napping. But instead, her body was afraid of not being able to wake up ever again and it left her feeling uneasy.

Thankfully, the smell of something good cooking in the kitchen gave her an opportunity to distract her and get up to see what Lou had prepared for the them for lunch.

Amy removed the light blanket on top of her and got up, rubbing her eyes and running her fingers through her hair as she passed the open door and entered the hallway.

"Something smells good", Amy commented when she made her way toward the kitchen.

What caught her attention next was the table that was set only for two people.

Why only two, she wondered. Had Wyatt, Georgie and Lyndy gone out? Maybe for ice cream?

But as she eventually arrived to the kitchen, she saw Mitch standing in front of the stove and it seemed like he was the one preparing the lunch.

Amy froze and stared at him as he turned around when he heard the steps coming closer.

He smiled cautiously.

"Hey", Mitch said after killing the heat on the stove.

"Hey..." Amy replied. "Am I-- Is this a dream?" she wanted to know.

Mitch let out a light chuckle. "Not that I know."

Amy blinked her eyes few times to make sure. But Mitch didn't disappear.

"What... what are you doing here?" she asked, looking around, almost like she was being pranked.

"Well, Lou said I'm welcome to come over", Mitch explained. "Something about Jack and Lisa being gone for the day."

Amy thought about it.

Lou. Of course.

She had asked about Mitch earlier and had now made this happen.

"And where are the others...?" Amy tried to assess the situation as the house was quiet and she couldn't see anyone outside either.

"They went to Maggie's for lunch", Mitch informed her. "Lou told me that you haven't really had an appetite. I was hoping maybe I could change that. I made you-- uhm, us lunch."

"Well, yeah, nothing really tastes--" Amy began talking as if no time had passed, because it always felt so easy with Mitch, before she realized.

She shook her head a little.

"No, wait, what are we doing? -- How are you?" she wanted to know about more pressing matters.

Mitch looked at her, and Amy could see his eyes getting glossy. He smiled, but there was a hint of sadness in his gaze too.

"Better now", he said shortly and there was a slight crack in his voice. "And you?"

"I'm okay", Amy said, feeling mix of emotions. "I've been meaning to call, but I just..."

Mitch raised his hand gently. "Don't even worry about it. It's fine. You've been... through a lot. I'm the last person you should have thought about."

Amy hummed. "Funny you should say that. You were actually the second person I thought about after waking up. Lyndy, of course, being the first", she admitted.

"Of course", Mitch said, smiling. It was strange - but nice - to hear that Amy had thought about him at all.

They stood steps away from each other even though both of them felt the pull toward one another. But the situation was so delicate that neither of them didn't know what they were supposed to do.

For a while all they could hear was the fading sizzling of the food and the clock's rhythmic ticking on the wall. Maybe if they listened hard enough, the beating of their own hearts.

"Can I..." Mitch then braved the awkwardness. "Can I hug you...?"

Amy nodded. "I'd like that."

Mitch walked closer and Amy met him halfway before they almost crashed into each other's arms. Mitch buried his face immediately against Amy's hair, letting out a shaky breath, while Amy felt her sudden sobs wetting parts of Mitch's t-shirt.

She had not expected this type of release, but then again the expectations over their reunion had been building up and now she had no reason to hold anything back anymore.

"I'm so glad you're safe", Mitch whispered so close to Amy's ear that it almost felt like he was in her head. "I was so afraid we'd lose you..."

"I've missed you so much..." was all Amy was able to let out before getting into another fit of sobs.

Mitch began stroking her back with big, slow movements.

"It's okay... You're okay..."

[scarisd3ad]

Superstar | football player! Joel miller x popstar!reader

Five - end game

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Warnings - mentions of sex/allusions to sex but no actual smut.

A/N - this is the closest thing I’ll ever write to smut cause I’m obviously not good at even alluding to it lol.

Summary - when you find out about a certain football player showing up at your tour you decide to reach out just because of all the dating rumors, but what if thoughs rumors turn into reality?

‘I wanna be your end game’

I look up at him, my eyes open wide with complete shock. "Do you really?" I ask. I want him to be honest. While I appreciated his kindness, I couldn't let him kiss me out of pity. I longed for him to kiss me because he felt the same way about me as I did for him. "f'course why would I have kissed you?" I stare down at my feet, unsure why I assumed he'd kissed me without reason. "Dunno" I murmur.

"Still need me to take you home?" His eyes meet mine as his left hand gently intertwines with mine. The touch sends shivers down my spine, and my heart starts to thump against my chest, so fast that I thought it was about to burst out of my ribcage.

"Ye-yeah, sure," I whisper.

As his car pulled up at my house, my heart raced with anticipation. I could feel my cheeks flush as he leaned in to give me a goodbye kiss. After he left, I closed the door slowly, savoring the sound of the latch clicking shut. I couldn't help but let out a sigh as I slid down to the floor, feeling like a lovesick teenager. Thoughts of him, his touch, and the way he made me feel filled my mind. My heart was still racing with the same intensity as when he kissed me. It was all so unexpected; I didn't expect him to go for a woman like me. I was 26 years old; I had no experience with kids, and I still partied like a 22-year-old at times. I thought he'd want someone older, more mature. A woman who would be not only an excellent and appropriate aged lover but also an amazing mother for his girls. A woman his mother would want him to date.

As I sink into the softness of my bed, I let out a heavy sigh and feel my head gently rest against the fluffy pillow. My mind is consumed with thoughts of Joel, his face, and every detail of our last conversation playing on a loop in my mind. I couldn't get him out of my brain. The week following the kiss was all about Joel and I. it seemed like I was at his house every day, for dinners, for lunches. Sometimes there was no good reason he just wanted me there. Every night I ended up in his bedroom, sprawled out on the bed with his lips on mine, and his hands roaming my body desperately.

-

I lay on his bed with my head resting against his chest. His hand rests against my hip, rubbing small circles against it with his thumb. "You wanna come to my game next Friday?" he whispers. My heart stops. Did he want me at his game? Couldn't I end up being labeled as bad luck if they didn't win? Would I accidentally distract him? I look up at his brows curling into a tight furrow. "You want me there?" I mumble, and he nods with a chuckle "Course, need my girl there cheerin' me on." My heart skips a beat. His girl, I was his girl. I was Joel, fucking Miller's girl. I giggle as I nod. "Sure-sure I'll go."

-

I'm in a black minivan with Joel's mother and his two daughters. As I sit in this car, I can't help but wonder how I ended up here. How did I become the girlfriend of an NFL player? It all seems so surreal. And now, just two weeks into our relationship, I find myself in the car with his mother and children. I can't help but feel a mix of excitement and anxiety as I try to make sense of it all.? "I hate football," Sarah murmurs as her arms cross over her chest. I couldn't say I had any interested in football until I was in the bed of a cowboy's player.

We were all decked out in the cowboys' signature blue and silver colors. I had on a letterman-style jacket that had Joel's last name and jersey number embroidered on the back with a white shirt underneath. While both his daughters have matching smaller versions of their father's jersey. "I like it," Ellie says with a shrug. "Can you take me home early, Grandma?" Sarah asks as the car pulls into a parking space. "No, ma'am, we need to support your father," Sarah groans and crosses her arms across her chest before leaning herself back against the black leather seat.

I'm a ball of nerves, nothing more, nothing less. I can't stop thinking about what people will think, what his fans will think. We've been 'public' for at least a month or two, but this is different. Football fans are big on ritual, big on bad luck, and good luck. What if I became bad luck to them? All of my other boyfriends were actors or singers like me. I've never dated an athlete. This was uncharted territory. I've been to my previous boyfriend's premieres, and concerts, but never a game. I didn't know what to do. Did I watch silently? should I pretend to be interested in the game?

I pop each one of my fingers, a nervous habit I picked up from my father during my early childhood. "Grandpa says that'll give you arthrit-Arth-riti..something," Ellie says with a final sigh of defeat as she gives up on saying the word arthritis. "Ellie," Juliana says sternly. "I was just saying," Ellie mutters. much like her sister, she crosses her arms over her chest with a pout on her face. "I wanna go home Grandma," Ellie mutters as tears pool in her eyes. I wince. I already know what the next 10 to 30 minutes are going to be like, kicking, screaming, and tears. "I thought you like football," Juliana says as the car pulls into the private parking lot next to the stadium. "I don't anymore," she whispers as a single tear falls down her cheek as her grandma began to unbuckle her from her car seat.

"No! no! I don't wanna! I wanna go home!" she screams as she kicks her legs and tries pushing her grandma's hands away. Sarah winces as she quickly unbuckles her seatbelt and hops out of the car with me. "No! let me go! I wan- I want daddy!" she screams. Juliana pulls her out of the car. Juliana has her arms wrapped around Ellie's torso as she slams the car door shut. Ellie is kicking her little legs against her grandmother's stomach and legs as she tries to escape from Juliana's grip.

"We don't need to bother your father with this right now!" Juliana hisses as she places Ellie back onto the ground. "The-then I want Uncle Tommy!" Juliana tightly grips Ellie's arm and whispers something quiet but harshly close to her face, causing Ellie's tears to stop immediately.

-

Once we got into the stadium, we immediately head up to the skybox and got comfortable while fans filed into the stadium. Ellie's pouting in the chair next to me while Sarah was hidden away in a corner, playing on her grandmother's phone. Like I've said numerous times, football wasn't my thing. I didn't understand one thing the entire game, but I played along, cheering when Joel's team scored, and acting sad when the other team scored. But I was hyperaware of the fact that it looked like I didn't know football.

I grew up in a football household, but never cared much for it. While my male family members sat on the couch cheering and booing to a football game during Christmas and Thanksgiving, I was hidden away with a guitar in my hands strumming along as I made up songs in my head. I cared more for music than anything growing up.

Throughout the game, Joel is looking up at the skybox, smiling and waving with a lovesick look on his face. It even extended to his teammates, who also joined in on waving up at me.

Ellie was sitting in my lap as the game ended, finally getting over her sad pouty face and getting into the game. I could tell she liked football more than Sarah did, obviously. Joel had mentioned her liking soccer while Ellie was more of a football girl. but both kids were athletic. Ellie did peewee softball, while Sarah did soccer. They obviously got that from their father and uncle.

I chatted with a lot of Joel's teammates' wives the whole time. Most of them were a few years older than me, but that was expected. I was used to being around lots of older people by now.

"Come on, let's go see your daddy and congratulate him," I whisper as I urge Ellie to hop off my lap. We all make our way down to the locker room to meet up with Joel. both girls' hands were clasped in each one of my hands as we walked out of the skybox.

When we got into the locker room, both girls were immediately running towards their father. He's now dressed in a pair of jeans and a cowboy's tee-shirt (at this point, I'm convinced that's all he owns). "Daddy!" they both squealed as they launched themselves towards him. He kneels, letting both girls run into his arms. "You won, you won, you won!!" Ellie chanted as she jumped up and down excitedly. "Yeah, yeah," he chuckled as he pressed kisses to both his daughters' heads.

About 2 seconds later, Ellie is pulling out of Joel's arms and towards one of his teammates. It's no surprise to me that Joel's girls have a close relationship with his teammates. They probably spend a lot of time together not only on the field but off too, so it's no surprise to me that they treat each other like family.

Sarah trails behind her sister, walking up to a man 2x larger than they were. He had dirty blondish hair and the bluest eyes I had ever seen. He was the stereotypical high school football player. Now it's my turn to hug Joel. I walked up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me in. "good job," I muttered into his neck. I could smell the freshly smelling body wash and shampoo that had just washed off his body maybe 10 minutes ago. "you look good tonight," he whispered.

"Yeah?" I ask, head cocking to the side a bit. Before he can even get an answer out, he's pressing his lips to mine. A couple of his teammates hoot and even whistle, which makes him pull away from me and flip them all off. "Alright, we're gonna head out. Have a nice night." Joel's mother says as she talks both girls' hands in hers. "Bye Daddy!" both kids shout as they follow after their grandmother.

My brows curled into a furrow as I looked up at Joel. "Where are we going?" he shrugs as he takes my hand. confusion swirls around in my thoughts as he leads me through hallways with little to no people. There are only a few who just greet us with quiet smiles or small waves. Thank God I didn't think I could talk to anyone else today.

"Seriously, where are we going, Joel?" I ask once we're settled into his car. "Just driving around," he whispers as his hand sits on my thigh comfortably.

-

I hum as I lean my head back against the headrest. It seemed as if there were paparazzi on every single corner, each shouting their own nonunique questions. we just smile and pose for pictures. Joel's hand still rests against my thigh, lightly massaging the supple skin. "The kids aren't home tonight. Wanna come over?" he whispers, leaning close to me as the light flicks into a dark red color. His hot breath fans across the shell of my ear, the coffee still lingering in his breath from earlier that day. "Hmm, Dunno Ollie, he doesn't like being alone," I muttered.

Ollie was just a baby, maybe a year or two old at most. He's known nothing but me and the 2 friends who ever stop by my house. He's never alone for more than 2 hours, maybe 4 at most. I've always brought him along with me while traveling. If I didn't show up, he'd be confused. He'd think I had abandoned him!

I know it's childish, possibly even sensitive to think that my cat would be heartbroken if I left him alone for a night, but to me, he would be heartbroken. Images of him sadly meowing around the house before settling into my empty bed upset me so much that I couldn't even imagine having a nice night without feeling guilty.

"We can go pick'em up. "I know the girls would be happy to find him waitin' for them tomorrow morning" I think I've fallen even more in love if I could even do that. He cared so much about my anxieties that he offered to let my cat, who could tear apart his entire house, stay over just so I could too.

Ollie was like my child and, knowing that Joel knew and validated my cat parent, anxieties about leaving my baby alone for more than 4 hours felt amazing. past partners haven't cared a lot about the pets I've owned. Andy did, obviously, because we adopted Ollie together. we both went into a little shelter up in New York one day 2 years ago. I could still remember what the lady who stood at the front counter looked like. How she greeted us with a friendly smile and led us to where the cats were held.

In the last kennel area sat the tiniest gray kitten, who was maybe 3 months old. The woman had told us 'Yeah runt mama didn't want it, so the foster parents gave him to us' That little runt became Oliver, which was later shortened to Ollie. Ollie was our child; Andy adored that cat, and I always felt a little guilty that Andy didn't see him anymore. But Ollie was my cat, my name was on the adoption certificate and, to be fair, Ollie did like me a little more.

"Really?" I ask, head cocking to the side a bit innocently. I've had two other separate relationships after my breakup with Andy and neither man was like Joel. By the end of Andy and I's relationship, I had grown accustomed to being in a relationship that drained all the life out of me. He became physically and emotionally distant and I just thought that was what happened after being in a relationship for so long.

He couldn't stand people asking him about me during the press. He couldn't even stand my name being said in the media half the time. It was like he didn't know he was dating someone famous, or maybe he had convinced himself that I wasn't, or that he was a bigger star than I was. The other two men named Harry and Tom, were both fine. They both had faults, but so did I. Harry, and I's relationship ended over him thinking the entire thing was just sex, and Tom we just didn't work out. But both relationships didn't last more than 2 months.

Neither man cared much about my family or my life. I think they both sought after me for fame. Though both were in either the music industry or acting, both couldn't handle being with a woman who the media referred to as a 'global superstar'. they got with me because I was a 'global superstar' but couldn't handle the fact that I was, in fact, a 'global superstar'. but Joel embraced it, he liked the public hand holding the kissing he was okay that I was a little more famous than him, he was okay with the questions, and he didn't act like I didn't exist when my name popped up in a conversation.

I couldn't blame Andy for wanting a private relationship. Everyone wants some type of privacy when it comes to romance, but I just didn't want everything to be hidden. Just because both of us were famous didn't mean we couldn't be normal people if we wanted to. We could've held hands on the street. He could've kissed my cheek while out for dinner, but he never did. It was like he was ashamed of me in some sort of way.

Sometimes I'd hear him talking shit about me while off on set, like I was a high school acquaintance instead of his girlfriend. His costars would tell me how he said I was too much, or too little, or just an absolute bitch. I never truly shook it off. I'd try to, but it never truly went away. It was always buried deep within me like a scar on my heart, and each time I'd hear another insult, or he'd push my hand away or ignore me, another one was added until I couldn't take it anymore. By the end of that relationship, I couldn't even tell if he loved me or hated me, so being with Joel was a change. He cares so much that it's mind-boggling.

"of course," he says as he turns down the street that leads to my house. I ask abruptly, "Why?" it shocks me when I say it because I didn't even mean to ask out loud. He chuckles a quiet "Why?" as his left brow raises. "Cause I want to spend some time with you, and if Ollie can't spend the night alone, just bring him along. I don't mind," he whispers. He's turning into my driveway when I ask, "Can you come help me, y'know get the stuff he'll need for the night?" he nods muttering a quiet "Yeah sure" before we're both unbuckling our seatbelts and walking towards my front door. His hand is quick to grab mine. His much bigger hand makes mine look extra small compared to his, despite my hand being way bigger than even just small.

His thumb softly caresses the top of my hand as I pull my key out of my pocket. Using my unoccupied hand, I unlock my front door and push it open. Ollie immediately greats me with high-pitched meows as he takes turns rubbing up against our ankles. "Hi Ol's," I coo as I crouch down to pick Ollie up. he lets out a quiet meow as I lift him off the ground and raise him above my head. "Hi handsome, hm. Did you have a good day?" I coo as I press him against my chest before standing up to my full height once again.

Ollie meows, as if he's responding to my question. "Yeah?" I place him on the ground. "Let's go find your stuff," I whisper. Joel and Ollie trail behind me as I walk up to my room. Ollie had his very own bag that came along with us whenever I traveled. It contained a small portable litter box (and a small bag of litter) food and water bowls, toys, and food. It's a larger duffel bag that tended to get heavy as more and more things got added to Ollie's must-haves list.

After a while treats ended up being thrown in the bag, as well as a small little barrier I could put up in hotel rooms so he wouldn't destroy the whole room, and brushes after I learned I needed to brush out Ollie's coat at least once a day. The barrier plush the litter, litter box, and bowls got heavy after a while. That's why Joel was here. To carry it.

"Should I bring some clothes? y'know, to sleep in and stuff?" I ask. He shrugs "If you want but you can just sleep in my clothes, but maybe some clothes to wear tomorrow" I nod, agreeing as I walk over to my closet. I picked out a pair of white sweatpants and a cute band tee before folding it up and throwing it in Ollie's bag.

"All right, I think we can leave," I said as I finally successfully got Ollie into his carrier. I let out a soft sigh of relief as I lift the carrier off of my bed. "alrighty let's go," Joel mutters as we begin to make our way out of my room. Ollie meows from the carrier as his little paws force themselves through the metal door.

Once we're in Joel's car, Ollie's carrier is in the back seat, but he makes it known that he is uncomfortable the entire ride there with loud cries for help. "Ollie baby, we can't let you out yet" I'd coo trying to comfort him but deep down I knew he didn't understand one word I was saying and was fully convinced he was getting kidnapped by some stranger. But once he is released into Joel's house, he makes himself at home on his large spacious couch, completely forgetting about his worries about being kidnapped just a few quick minutes before.

I set up the travel litter box and food bowls before Joel and I made our way up to his room. At first, I was concerned that Ollie would be confused and think I was leaving him at some randos house, but once he was on that couch it seemed as though all his thoughts had floated away. Joel's hands are immediately all over me once his bedroom door is closed. When his lips touched mine, it was like nothing else mattered but him and I. Everything else disappeared. "god Joel, it's like you haven't touched me in a year" I giggle before he pulls me into a heated kiss. He grunts into the kiss as he pushes me down onto his bed.

His lips trail down my neck, and then to my chest before we're very rudely interrupted by scratching at the door and loud cry-like meows. Joel groans as he debates fully ignoring the cat and continuing his attack on my neck and chest. I almost convinced myself to ignore Ollie too until there was one more loud cry and a few soft scratches. those few scratches pull me back into reality. I can't just leave him out there. "sorry Joel," I mutter as I push him off of me. I give him an apologetic frown as I stand up and walk over to the door. I open it and Ollie struts in like he owned the damn place. He lets out a few happy chirps as he rubs his head against my calf.

We ended of our night a little unexpectedly. The night was supposed to be a little more intimate. but instead we ended off our night with soft sweet cuddles while Ollie was curled up at the end of the bed. I can't help but think that I might like the cuddling better. the domesticity of cuddling up in a large comfy bed with my boyfriend while my cat is purring at our feet sends butterflies to my stomach and warmth to my cheeks.

Taglist

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[watercolor-hearts]

There's this post about Charlos and their baby on a yacht and in my reblog I mentioned I might write a story inspired by it. Now I'm here with it. It's really short, nothing really happening in it, sorry for it.

Carlos/Charles • 545 words • parents Charlos • domestic fluff

-

“You drive the boat, I'll take care of our baby,” Charles said as Carlos and he stepped onto the yacht on a nice summer day with their baby girl, Amélie in Charles' hands. The baby was curiously looking around in the harbor with her big eyes which she got from Carlos.

“She likes it when you carry her,” Carlos smiled, giving a little kiss on his daughter's neck, making her giggle.

“Well, since you've shaved your chest, she can't find a grip on it.”

“I've learned my lesson” Carlos laughed, taking his t-shirt off when they arrived on the deck, “Since you don't have chest hair you won't experience this little lady's incredibly strong grip on it. Consider yourself lucky because you'd shed some tears as a result.”

“She once found my hair, so I have some experience with it. Strong little lady, that's for sure. Right, darling?” Charles asked his daughter, lifting her up a bit and instantly regretting it as Amélie grabbed his hair again. “Oh no! Oh no! Let go of Daddy's hair, darling!” Charles asked but she didn't listen. “I need help, Carlos.”

“Papa to the rescue,” Carlos smiled as he stepped closer, slowly getting the little girl's hand off Charles' hair. “You need a toy in your hand, darling, we don't want to make daddy bald this soon. I've put your favorite in the diaper bag,” Carlos said, fishing it out of the bag on Charles' side. “Here you are,” he gave it to her, making her smile before putting the toy in her mouth. “Don't throw it in the water.”

“We won't go close to the water,” Charles told their daughter, “We don't want to give your favorite toy to the animals in it. We'll watch how Papa drives the yacht and play a little.”

While Charles talked to their daughter, Carlos started the yacht and maneuvered out of the bay. “I'll feed her when she becomes hungry, you can go and swim then if you want to. The water's nice.”

“That'd be nice of you,” Charles smiled, giving a quick kiss to Carlos, “She loves it when you feed her and then put her to sleep. You're good at it.”

Carlos looked at Charles and then at their daughter in his hands. He still couldn't believe they're a family now. “I think... I think that's how we bond. You play with her a lot while I'm at work, and then in the evening I feed her and put her to sleep. That's our moment. I talk to her and tell her my favorite tales because it seems like she likes them. And then she usually drifts off easily. And then... I don't want to put her in her baby bed. I like it better when she's on my chest and I can hold her. She'll grow up so fast...”

“She's already so big,” Charles tried not to let the tears find their way for themselves because they were there to enjoy the day and not to cry because of hormones and parental moments, “But she'll always be our baby girl,” Charles said in a thin voice, kissing Amélie's head softly. “Even when she'll be a rebellious teenager, hating us for calling her our baby.”

“She'll understand it later.”

[traumadumpwriter]

Heavy trigger warning! This story includes heavy themes of ab*se, r*pe, self h*rm, mental illness and violence.

You can check out the other chapters by going on the Freedom tag on my page!

All likes and comments are massively appreciated

Freedom: A John Shelby mini fic

Chapter five: 5889 words

The next day, Alice woke up completely ecstatic for the evening ahead. She got dressed and made breakfast quickly, leaving plates out for everyone before heading straight to Ada's. The family would soon all be awake and downstairs before the food could get too cold and although it may not have been as good as her usual fresh breakfasts, Alice felt too nervous to wait around for John and make conversation with him.

The woman was giddy like a teenager and the anxiety of going on a date was hitting her hard.

"It's been a long bloody time, what if I've lost all my moves?" She had worried as she hopped on the tram to Ada's, her mind racing and body alert. Every minute, she looked over her shoulder in fear of seeing Jones or one of his associates. But luckily, she never did and soon made it to the dingy apartment.

"I wasn't expecting to see you today. Is everything okay?" Ada asked after welcoming Alice in, always expecting the worst.

Karl was sat on her hip, fussing as she gently rocked him. It was clear on Ada's face that she hadn't slept much and so Alice headed over to her as she answered.

"Yeah everything is great.. Do you want me to rock him for a bit? You look shattered."

Ada's face filled with relief and she quickly handed Karl over to Alice before collapsing onto the messy bed. He soon settled into her arms, gurgling and giggling up at her as she began to baby talk to him. The girl had an indescribable amount of love for Ada and Karl, still quite shocked by her best friend being a mum. The last time she'd seen her before coming back to Birmingham, she was a sweet yet rebellious seventeen year old girl. Now she was a grown woman, just like Alice, and that pained them both.

"Thank you." Ada finally huffed, still lying face up on the bed. "He does love his auntie Alice."

"And his auntie Alice loves him." She cooed before turning to her friend with a straight voice. "Where's Freddie? You look like you haven't slept for bloody days."

"God knows! Fighting for the bullshit bloody cause somewhere! I haven't heard from him in days! Who even cares at this point anyway?" She groaned.

Alice gently put Karl into his crib, who immediately started whining, but ignored it and headed over to the bed.

"No! See! Now he's upset again!" Ada groaned, going to sit up but Alice stopped her.

"He just wants attention. Let him whine. He'll be right back in Aunties arms in just a moment." She comfortingly said. "Right now we need to talk about you and what you want."

"Is that why you came over?" Ada scoffed. "To talk about my shitty marriage? Surely not."

"Well actually I came over because I need to buy a nice dress and John gave us some money to-"

Ada immediately shot up straight at her brothers name.

"What do you mean John gave us some money?"

"He gave me some money for a nice dress and shoes and you to get whatever you want I guess. Girls day on him he said." Alice handed Ada her note, seeing her face soften and then immediately tighten again, this time with a mischievous grin.

"So my brother is taking you out on some kind of date and you need a dress for it? Since when has this been a thing?" She chuckled.

Alice headed back over to Karl, rocking him on her hip to stop the whining before bashfully answering.

"I don't even know, we kissed some weeks ago and then last night I basically told him to man up and ask me out, so he did." She replied, earning a laugh from Ada. "Now he says I need to get some nice clothes for a nice restaurant tonight, so come on. I'll get Karl ready while you sort yourself out."

Ada beamed up at her friend, knowing that John had wanted her for years and feeling extremely pleased for him. Out of all her brothers, he would be the one to treat her right and she knew that.

"Okay, I do need to get some clothes for Karl, he's already growing out of the ones I bought a month ago!"

—————

The two woman and Karl spent a couple hours in the city centre, going to all sorts of shops and trying on all sorts of clothes.

Alice hadn't bought herself anything with money in a long time, let alone an item of clothing. And this was her first time ever buying a luxury item of clothing. She tried on many dresses, all the meanwhile receiving either extremely excited or brutal feedback from Ada on how each one looked.

"No one wears that neck shape anymore, are you trying to look like a nun?" She had teased as Alice looked the dress up and down.

"Yeah it's almost like I was locked away and kept out of the fashion loop for nearly six years, isn't it?" Alice scoffed back, making Ada feel guilty until the girl sent her a cheeky smile.

"Nah you're right though. Let's go somewhere else. I wanna look... seductive for your brother tonight."

"Eww." Ada groaned, pushing Karl's pushchair out of the shop, but soon they were both giggling again as they headed into the next boutique, everyone clearing their path for the Shelby sister.

As lunchtime hit, Alice still hadn't found a dress she liked, sitting in a bakery cafe and complaining about it.

"I just don't get it. They're beautiful dresses, so why don't I feel beautiful in them?" She groaned before taking a bite out of her cake. "Mmm these are fucking good though."

"Maybe it's just because you're not used to seeing yourself looking so.. done up. After all those years, it's probably messing with your brain a bit." Ada sent her a soft look as she cut up Karl's food. "I mean I'm surprised you're even willing to do half the things you've been doing."

"Like what? Relatively functioning as a human being?" She teased, earning a scoff from her friend.

"Stop acting like what happened was just this minuscule thing that everyone can just brush over. It's amazing that you're even alive, you've got to give yourself more credit... I mean choosing a job at The Garrison of all places, if it were any other person I think she'd be terrified of men forever."

"I still am slightly terrified of them." Alice quietly admitted. "But I can't let myself be.. I have to be strong and unafraid. That's the only way to survive. Or else he wins."

Ada knew there was no use questioning the girl and her method of dealing with things, instead reverting the conversation back to shopping and the baby talk they were engaging in with Karl.

"I've got everything I need, with change to spare. There's one more dress shop down here, maybe when you look at these ones; try to remember that you're the beautiful Alice fucking Shepherd. Not whatever he made you be."

Ada's words definitely helped, boosting Alice's confidence as they tried on the next few dresses, actually feeling like they belonged on her this time. She wasn't just some impoverished, grubby girl poorly masquerading in a rich person's dress; she was a beautiful, enticing woman who deserved to wear something to match that beauty.

A long sleeved, turquoise dress suddenly stood out on the rack to her. The material was soft, covered by a symmetrical mesh pattern with the occasional line of sequins sewed in. It's v shaped neckline and low cut back would be slightly ever so revealing, as would the skirt that cut just at her knees, but at the right level where it wasn't too scandalous.

Once she tried it on, she was set on buying it, only encouraged by Ada's excitement as the tailor sewed in the waist for a tighter fit, accentuating her hourglass frame. Even the grumpy shop owner complimented her; claiming "if that dress were made for anyone, it's you."

The shoe shopping was easy, almost any sexy pair of black heels being satisfactory - as long as the heels weren't too high. Ada and Alice used to confidently strut around in three inch heels when they'd sneak out at night as teenagers and whilst Ada retained the trait, Alice hadn't worn heels in years. She secretly feared that she wouldn't be able to walk in them - feeling as if it would show her weakness; the forced change that she'd been through. But instantly upon walking along the cobbled street, her strut was as perfect and confident as ever before, putting a small spark in her belly and a grin on both her and Ada's faces.

—————

Now Alice was sat on Ada's bed as she styled her hair, Karl finally falling asleep and leaving the two women with some comfortable quietness whilst they discussed the night ahead.

"You know, I still can't believe you've been snogging one of my brothers and didn't tell me about it until today!" Ada snickered from the bed, a glass of wine in her hand. "That is so Alice fucking Shepherd of you!"

"What does that even mean?" Alice turned to her for a second before focusing back on the grubby vanity, attempting to style her hair. "I've heard so many people say that yet no one has ever explained it."

Ada took a sip from her glass and sat up straight before answering with a smile.

"In this instance it means you're unpredictable and maybe ever so slightly scandalous." Both of them giggled at that. "But I guess for other instances it would mean other things."

"Like what?" Alice said.

"I don't know like if someone were to attack everyone in the room because they were stopping her from slitting her wrists with a rusty fucking-"

"Okay, okay I get it." She cut off her friends retelling of the story with a playful side eye. "So if someone does something completely irrational, unpredictable and potentially scandalous or violent - you'd call it an Alice Shepherd."

"Yeah, pretty much." Ada answered shortly, causing the two women to giggle again.

"Anyway, that wasn't the original point. The original point was that you're going out with my fucking brother! That's so gross!"

"I think it's quite sexy actually." Alice teased before taking a sip of her brandy, Ada fake gagging in response.

Another hour passed of them drinking and chatting, Alice even using some of Ada's makeup to "properly doll herself up" as the woman had put it. She felt the nerves in her stomach getting worse by the minute, although the drink did calm them a bit.

It was at seven o clock, on the dot, that a car horn came from outside. The two woman turned to each other ecstatically before Alice rushed out the door, instantly feeling more relaxed when she saw the handsome man leaning cooly against his car.

"Wow. You really did get your moneys worth with that dress didn't you." John said, quickly eyeing her up and down before making eye contact and sending a cheeky grin. "Fuckin' gorgeous you are!"

"You're not looking too bad yourself you know?" Alice shot back although she was secretly going crazy with butterflies. "That a new suit or something? I don't see any blood on it."

He opened the car door and gestured for her to step in, looking gentlemanly until he rolled his eyes and teased her back with "You're not one to talk about blood stains."

She scoffed but nonetheless took his hand as she stepped up into the passenger seat, he soon beside her in the drivers. His hands went straight to a compartment by the wheel, pulling out two cigarettes and a lighter, casually chucking them on to her lap.

"Well let's hope I won't be getting any blood on this tonight." She took one of the cigarettes and lit it as John started to drive.

"There won't be no blood. Not tonight." He quickly ran his eyes along her again before focusing back on the road. "Definitely not with you looking like that."

The drive into the city centre was short but full of flirting, both of them growing more giddy by the minute.

John had been hyping himself up all day for this night, letting it stew in his head until it started to wind him up. However, as soon as he laid his eyes on the woman - a comforting grin pasted on her glowing face - he felt his anxiety fade and a feeling of awe and relief overflowing him. Her teasing didn't make him nervous, instead it made him more excited to be around her, constantly intrigued by what she'd say next.

Once they reached the restaurant though, her teasing stopped. Instead she was silent as she looked around at the gilded pillars and crystal chandeliers.

"This place is super fancy, John!" Alice whispered, looking around at the artistic decor in disbelief. "Are you sure this dress is nice enough? I feel underdressed."

The way her eyes looked up at him, looking so innocent as she showed a slip of insecurity, made his body stir and he moved his arm so that it was gently gripping her waist.

"Yes. I promise that dress is more than nice enough." He spoke quietly with a chuckle in a way that brought her comfort.

Some heads turned as they were walked to their private booth; either enamoured by the presence of a Shelby or the beautiful woman strutting alongside him. They were both aware of the stares but unbothered; John feeling proud to be seen with such an enticing woman whilst Alice was focusing on the glamour of the room she'd found herself in, never before having set foot in such a high class place.

Once they reached their table, Alice immediately started talking; awe still evident in her eyes.

"John, this is the poshest place I've ever been! Look at all these paintings and the architecture! Do you come here often?"

"Every so often with the boys, yeah." He replied, picking up the menu and quickly skimming through it before handing it across the table. "What do you want?"

As her eyes scanned the menu, they got wider by the second, each price getting higher than the last. She knew that John could afford it, but she couldn't help but feel slightly guilty at the thought of him spending that much money on her. If it was any other man, she would've gone for the most expensive option with no hesitation and felt nothing about it. But John made her soft and as much as she hated it, she also loved it.

"It's so expensive here, I don't know-" Alice started to speak unsurely but John interrupted her.

"Stop it with the humble shit. You're Alice fucking Shepherd, you're worth every penny I spend tonight and every penny after, you got that?" He was playfully dominant, in a way that made her want to submit but naturally she fought back, quickly switching back into her confident role as her brain had been trained to do so.

"Okay." She winked, looking through the menu again.

John hadn't taken his eyes off her since they sat down, seeing her posture, tone and position change with each of her mood swings. He was starting to be able to read her; when her self esteem would suddenly drop to when her false defences would just as quickly come up. It made him think about all the time he'd spent intimidated by her as a kid and how it was all just an act then too; that Alice fucking Shepherd was never really the big, bad wolf everyone saw her as. She was just a scared kid - just like he was.

That intense trail of thought was cut off though by the sound of Alice telling her order to the waitress, John following by saying "Just get me the usual."

The waitress didn't take long to bring their drinks; a bottle of wine and a bottle of whiskey. Both of which were quickly opened and being sipped on.

"So, how was shopping with Ada and Karl? I've heard he's a big fan of you." John said.

"It was really good actually, thank you. I think she needed it more than I did, bloody Freddie leaving her all by herself with Karl. I ought to give him a piece of my bloody mind when he comes back." She started to ramble before seeing the amused grin forming on John's lips, playfully glaring and saying "How about you, how's your day been?" before he could tease her.

"Been a slow one, was mostly at the shop, thinking about what dress I'd be seeing you in tonight." He grinned.

"You're a really big fan of this dress aren't you? Did you even notice the hair or the shoes?" She rolled her eyes but also with visible amusement.

"Yes I did in fact, I even noticed the bit of rouge or whatever you ladies call it on your face. And that black shit around your eyes." He paused for a moment before continuing. "It looks good."

The playful flirting fired back and forth all throughout dinner, a game of sorts being played of who can make who react the most. It was a game that Alice used to play masterfully with almost every man she encountered, but John was a fair match - another thing she found riveting.

"I thought there was going to be dancing." She scoffed, putting her cutlery down as she finished her dish. "Where's the dancing John?"

"If you want to dance, get up and dance." He scoffed back at her with a grin. "Go on!"

"You're the one who said we'd go dancing! Why don't you dance!"

"Because I won't look half as good as you doing it." He put his cutlery down and gestured for a waiter to come over as he spoke. "And anyway, I thought maybe that you could do some cooking and we just dance together like that one night, you're a good cook after all."

"What, tonight? After all this food we've just eaten?"Alice shot him a confused look.

"No obviously not tonight. Another night." He send a cheeky smirk, earning a fake gasp from Alice.

"So we're going on another date are we?"

"I recon so, don't you?" The smirk had fallen slightly and she could tell that he was serious, maybe even slightly nervous.

She raised her eyebrows with a grin, her eyes locking with his as she replied "Yeah I do recon so."

His cool facade instantly resumed and he finished his drink, pouring himself another one before speaking again.

"So how come you're so good at cooking now? Can't remember you ever being in a kitchen if it weren't to bother someone." He chuckled. "All that time away must've taught you that at least."

Alice too poured herself another drink before speaking, a flicker of painful memories momentarily flashing through her mind.

"Well one of the only things I was let out to do was cook. The other women taught me some things I guess, even though they were a bunch of bitches. And it's not like I ever got to eat much of what I made, if any at all." Her gaze settled onto the glass in her hands, her body freezing as she talked - a completely different atmosphere enveloping the table as John intently listened, taking note of the empty stare she displayed; like a soldier retelling a war story.

"He did it on purpose, to make me cook the food, have to smell it and plate it up for everyone.. and then maybe get someone's scraps if I'm lucky... I would sneak food sometimes but when I got caught.. I-" Her breath caught in her throat and like snapping out of a trance, her body started to move again, bringing the glass to her lips and taking a big gulp before finally looking up at John's face.

"Can we go? I want to get a big bottle of something and go drive around in the country. I want to be outside and feel free. Does that sound stupid?" Her voice was barely above a whisper, shocking John with the sudden emotion she was visibly burdened by.

"I-I'm sorry. I just-" she started to stammer but John cut her off, putting his hand on her knee under the table.

"What you sorry for? That sounds like a great idea! Let's do it now!" He grinned, instantly soothing her anxiety.

As they left the restaurant, picking up two bottles of wine and a bottle of whiskey as they did, he continued with his excited front despite his mind starting to wander back to violence, desperate to kill this man and any other who'd dare hurt Alice.

His arm stayed wrapped tightly around her waist from the table to the car, feeling protective but again also having pride for being seen with her as the envious eyes scanned him.

Instantly upon getting in the car, Alice opened one of the wine bottles, chugging from it in an attempt to get her teenage confidence back.

"Did I actually, really just nearly cry in front of a man on a date? This can't be right." She thought to herself. "I'm Alice fucking Shepherd.. But I don't even know who the fuck that is anymore."

"So any particular place in mind?" John chuckled, watching her as he lit a cigarette, his mind also racing despite his cool demeanour.

"Anywhere. I just want to feel free." She quickly answered back before continuing to chug the bottle. He thought for a moment before taking it from her hand, earning a sharp look of confusion from the girl.

"Look Alice, I'll take you anywhere." He moved a hand to cradle her face, her eyes instantly softening. "But it's not gonna make you feel free."

As much as Alice knew his words were true, she hated to hear them and resumed her previous glare; pushing his hand from her face so that she could look away, fearful of showing him real emotion.

"What is then?" She bitterly muttered, turning to face the window. Only for a second though as his calloused hand softly reconnected with her cheek, bringing their eyes together again.

"I wish I could tell you, but shutting off and going all moody definitely won't." He said in his comforting tone that couldn't help but bring a smile to Alice's face.

"See look how beautiful you are when you smile!" He grinned, only making her smile widen and her face start to go pink.

"Is that a blush I see? I think I've won this round." John chuckled as he finally started the car, moving one hand to rest on her thigh as soon as the vehicle was in motion.

"Yeah sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night." Alice shot back with a giggle, pretending not to notice the strong hand wrapped gently around her sensitive thigh.

A few moments of silence passed until John decided to continue the conversation from earlier, determined to get some real answers as to what had happened to her.

"So anyway, you were saying.. what happened when you got caught taking food?" His hand moved from her thigh to the gear stick, his eyes on the road ahead.

A heavy sigh left Alice's lips and she grabbed the bottle again, much to John's annoyance.

"Drinking ain't gonna make it go away. It's just gonna make you like Arthur." He tutted.

"I know." She shortly replied before softening again. "I just.. I need you to promise that you won't think of me differently. Not as tainted or disgusting. You promise?"

John turned back to her with sincere eyes. "I promise." 

As soon as she started to tell the story, her body stiffened and her voice went dull as it had earlier.

"Well, he would usually just beat me up, force himself on me." She began instantly sending a shiver down John's spine.

"I don't think there was one time I actually said yes to him putting that thing in me. Most days I spent locked in this tiny caravan, or chained up just outside it with the dogs.. He found that real funny and his friends did too." Her gaze was fixed on the view out the window and her grip on the bottle tightened, taking another heavy swig before she continued.

"They put out cigarettes on me, whipped me with the metal tips of their belts, cut me and carved me, just for their own sick pleasure. He even let them all take turns with my body.. that was the worst punishment of them all."

Despite the numb, dissociative spell she had put herself in when she'd started talking; her eyes began to water and her voice began to shake, the tough fortress falling with every word. John on the other hand, was having the realisation that whatever she went through was far worse than he'd ever imagined, possibly worse than what he'd seen at war, and perhaps pushing her for answers was a cruel thing to do.

His hand moved back to her thigh in an attempt to comfort, instead making her flinch as her body relived the trauma and all of a sudden there were thick trails of tears running down her face - much to her embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. You probably think I'm so weak and disgusting now-" she began to stammer but John cut her off, parking suddenly so that his eyes could focus on her instead of the road.

"Alice, you are the furthest thing from weak and disgusting I have ever seen. Don't say that about yourself." He moved his hand from her thigh to cradle her face, gently wiping her tears with his thumb.

In front of him was the injured lamb that he'd suspected to be hiding inside the hungry wolf, although maned and bleeding much more than he'd ever imagined. It was a sight he found himself shocked to see - much like the night she ran into the road and catapulted herself back into his life - he knew he needed to comfort her now, make actions later.

She was blushing deep red, feeling so vulnerable and yet so secure in John's hands, his words being more comforting than he could ever know. Yet for some reason, more tears fell from her eyes and a sob escaped her mouth as she became more emotional by the second. John reached over to hug her before realising the impracticality and jumping out the car, pacing to her side and opening the door before enveloping her tightly as she fell into his arms.

"That man is a sick bastard and I'm going to see to it that he and every other fucker who ever laid even a finger on you, gets their fucking heads bashed in. Okay?" He spoke quietly in her ear, trying to maintain a soft tone but some words being laced with palpable venom, something he quickly swallowed down upon realising it probably wasn't too comforting to a woman scarred by violent men.

She just continued to sob into his arms, appreciating the sentiment but knowing Jones and his men were impossible to track down. It wasn't like she hadn't already told the stories to Ada, crying her heart out over a shared bottle of vodka, but for a reason she couldn't place, telling John was an extra level of emotion to deal with.

It was upsetting for him too as he knew not what to say to console her, feeling her shake with every quiet sob into his chest.

"Alice Shepherd, you are so fucking strong and beautiful. The most strongest and most beautiful woman I've ever bloody known, you know that right?" He softly spoke, rubbing circles into her back with one hand while loosening the other arm, hoping she'd look up at him.

Still, her face stayed glued to his chest, feeling embarrassed for him to see any more tears. John knew that - as he'd said before; certain things Alice did were very predictable.

"Come on, I wanna see those beautiful eyes." He whispered. "And I wanna hear your voice too. I wanna hear your laugh, I missed that when I was in London."

That surprised her, sparking a small light in the dark storm inside of her head.

"Really?" She looked up with wide eyes, the innocent little girl she never got to be slipping out for a second.

"Yes, really." John smiled, moving a hand to stroke her face again as he found himself completely enamoured by her in the pale moonlight - her tear stained eyes glistening and her nose pink.

"Well I guess I missed your laugh too." She sniffled, the corners of her lips starting to rise.

"You guess?" John shot back with a chuckle, earning a giggle from Alice which he immediately reacted to by proclaiming "See! That's what I want to hear!" only earning more giggles from the girl. "Like bloody music to my ears!"

"God John, you're really something else aren't you?" She smiled with a small sniffle, dabbing her wet eyes with the edge of her sleeve.

"I'm something else? Please, you're Alice fucking Shepherd. Don't ever forget that." He grinned, placing another kiss on her forehead before going to step back. She stopped him though, grabbing his hand as she placed her lips on his.

The kiss was a short one, but it was enough. They were soon back in the automobile, drinks in hand as John drove out of the city, determined to give her the best night possible.

Once John had finally reached the countryside; parking up in a random field, Alice immediately jumped out of the car with an excited giggle. She had finished one of the wine bottles during the drive and now had the second one in her hand, something that John had stopped protesting once hearing her story.

It was clear to him that she just wanted to completely forget it and never talk about it again - atleast for that night - and so he didn't ask any more questions about her husband or the experiences with him. He didn't really want to know anymore anyway; not if it wasn't the details necessary to find and kill the men.

Instead, their conversations had drifted to humour and flirtation - Alice's eyes drying up and her mood seeming as if nothing had even happened.

The moon was at its peak in the star filled sky, lightly illuminating the land. John got out of the car slower than Alice, chuckling at her excitement. He was also drunk, although not as much, and watched as she took off her heels and gently placed them on the hood of the car, her face continuously beaming as she did it.

"Why you taking them off for? It's just a bloody field, surely you've been in many." He stepped over and loosely draping his arm around her waist.

She turned to him with a grin, the stars reflected in her awe filled eyes.

"I have, but now I can do this."

Before John could ask what, she suddenly took off running, whooping and happily punching the air as she did. It took him a moment to react, confused for a second as her laughter echoed across the empty field.

"She's always gonna be a fucking nutter." He thought endearingly "God, I'm fucking whipped aren't I?"

The man chuckled to himself before taking off running after her, joining in with the whooping and laughing. They did this for a bit of time until John stopped, heavily breathing whilst watching Alice now just spinning around in circles.

"How long did you want to do this for?" He asked, prompting her to finally stop spinning and dizzily look at him.

She was too heavily breathing, chuckling in between her breaths as she stumbled and oo fell, laughing even as she hit the ground.

"I think I'm finished now. Just haven't been able to do that in a long time." She laid flat on the grass and looked up at the sky. "The grass feels different when you actually want to be in it."

John looked at her for another moment, seeing how content she was with just the simplest pleasure giving his gut a certain satisfaction.

"I'm sure it does." He said quietly, lowering so that he was sat down next to her.

"Do you wanna know what feels even better though?" Her voice was laced with amusement.

He laid down flat so that he was too looking up at the sky before answering "Go on, tell me."

Not a second passed before she was suddenly straddling him, running her hands along his chest with a smirk. It shocked him slightly and he almost let out a small gasp when he first felt the pressure of her crotch against his. He quickly relaxed again though, sitting up with a grin and putting his arms around her waist as she began to pepper his neck with kisses.

Slowly, she lead up to his lips and started to softly gyrate her hips against his. He immediately kissed back, his hand starting to grip her waist as the grinding intensified. They did this for a minute before finally breaking apart, their eyes intently staring into each others.

As soon as he made the eye contact, it became clear just how intoxicated Alice was and snapped him back to the reality of their earlier conversation. Doing this with her would be a huge betrayal of trust, it would be taking advantage of her in the most vulnerable state he's ever seen her in - something that she would surely hate him for in the morning. So, as much as he loved how she felt, his cock pleading with his brain to shut up, he placed a hand on her shoulder and stopped her.

"You're fucking wasted Alice, I'm not going any further." He chuckled at her confused expression.

"Oh!" She pulled away entirely. "Do you not want to?"

He could see that she was about to get off of him, so he quickly put his hands back on her hips with a comforting smile.

"Of course I want to... I just don't think it's a good idea right now."

For a second, Alice felt a pang of rejection, but his calm tone sobered her mind slightly and she realised that he was right for many reasons. As much as she wanted him; to please and submit to him, there was a part of her that still felt fearful of that and everything it could mean, and so she nodded in agreement.

"Maybe when we're sober, aye?" John winked and pecked her forehead, earning a small giggle from the girl. "You've gotten me far too drunk and now I've got to drive us home! You're a naughty girl Alice!"

"You don't have to drive us home anytime soon! We just got here!"

(Dress inspo loosely based on image although you can imagine it how u want but I think this style is true to the era)

[leaderpinhead]

Ramshackle Ghost - Nightly Walk

He heard the small noise when he drifted past the closed door. He stopped for a moment, briefly debating whether to ignore the sound or address it. The other ghosts were waiting for him in the lounge, plotting their next course of action since Crowley had forbidden them from running off their two new living dorm mates. It didn’t mean they couldn’t have a little fun at the expense of the living, especially the amusing monster. 

Another noise—an unmistakable groan—made him stick his head through the door. The mirror hanging directly across from him above the fireplace reflected the glow of his specter form. On the bed, the blue flame of the monster cat’s ears cast elongated shadows. The monster slept peacefully, mumbling under his breath about bats flying around a classroom. The larger body on the bed shifted with an almost jerking motion. Another groan sounded, sounding almost like a small puppy whimpering. 

He drifted through the door and hovered near the bed. Should he…wake the girl? He scratched beneath his hat. He hadn’t done much with the living in a while. The students on the campus tended to avoid Ramshackle Dorm (except the weird one that had started visiting late at night to comment on architecture), and him and the others weren’t like the other ghosts on campus. Crowley had offered them a position on the staff a long time ago, but they had preferred to pull pranks on the students instead of educate them. He had no idea what had drawn all three of them to Night Raven College, let alone Ramshackle Dorm, but it certainly wasn’t to foster the intellectual growth of teenagers. 

The girl moaned again and added a bit of thrashing beneath the blanket. Figuring there wasn’t much else he could do, he carefully poked at her exposed arm. “Hey, wake up.” 

Her face wrinkled, but she continued tossing and turning. He poked her again. “Come on now. There’s no reason to be so stubborn.” 

He prided himself on being a pretty resilient to jump scares at this point in his afterlife, but he wasn’t above admitting he jerked backwards when the girl shot straight up off the bed. She slowly blinked, and he had to question if she was even awake. The girl had that glazed look in her eyes that said she clearly wasn’t fully conscious. He drifted closer to the door. 

Her eyes suddenly snapped in his direction. The glaze lifted from her gaze, and she roughly rubbed her knuckles into her eye socket. Her voice was punctuated by a small yawn. “Did you...need something?” 

He drifted back towards her now that her attention was on him. He gave a small shrug. “You were getting pretty restless in your sleep. I could hear you all the way out in the hallway.” 

She slowly blinked. The monster cat giggled in his sleep and flopped closer to the girl’s leg, curling up around her knee. She absently patted the monster’s back. “Sorry about that. I’ll try to be more quiet.” 

The statement didn’t altogether make him feel comfortable, but what was he supposed to say? He wavered back in the direction of the door. “It’s fine. Just, uh, go back to sleep?” 

Instead of agreeing with his tentative suggestion, the girl slid out from beneath the blankets. Her bare feet lightly padded against the floor. She grabbed the oversized jacket draped across the back of the chair in the corner of the room. “I don’t feel very tired anymore. Maybe I'll go on a short walk.” 

The dark circles forming under her eyes said another story, but it wasn’t the first time he had seen her leave the dorm in the middle of the night. One night, he had even been curious to see exactly what she was up to, but she had just walked the length of the campus back and forth until the sun began to peek over the horizon. It was a clear case of restlessness if he had ever seen one. 

He drifted closer to the door again. “Well, in that case...” 

“Do you want to go with me?” 

The invitation was sudden, and he was left momentarily speechless. When the girl paused in front of him, obviously waiting for his answer, he gave a stilted shrug. “Sure?” 

The girl nodded. He followed her down to the first floor, pausing outside the lounge to see if the others were there. When he didn’t see them, he continued following her out the door into the dark night. The lack of light didn’t seem to bother her since she was able to navigate the path without tripping. 

They walked (well, he drifted) in silence for most of the walk. She didn’t seem to have much of a destination in mind because they circled around the main street three times before silently staring across the sports field at the horse stables. 

Their silence didn’t break until he pointed out a toad hopping across their path. “Careful where you step. You never know when a toad might be a student in detention.” 

The small joke made her exhale a surprised laugh. “Is turning students into toads a common punishment?” 

“It was all the rage a few years ago,” he said. “Then they started putting out studies on how excessive transformations stifled emotional and mental development in teenagers. You would have thought it was the end of the world by the way some of the professors at the time reacted.” 

She laughed again. They circled around the library, crept past the Mystery Shop, and lingered a while outside the botanical gardens. He had started to think she would spend the rest of the night walking when she finally led them back to Ramshackle. 

She paused midway up the steps to the dorm. “By the way, I don’t think I ever caught any of your names.” 

He shrugged down at her. “We don’t really go by anything. A lot of ghosts don’t have many memories of their past lives. You’ve got a few exceptions, but for the most part, what’s really remembered are strong emotions.” 

Her head slightly tipped to the side. “You don’t even have a name you go by?” 

He shrugged again. “Some ghosts will pick a new name. Some of them just go by the title of whatever position they’re in. We don’t work on the campus, and we never really bothered to think of names.” 

Her eyes slightly narrowed. “What am I supposed to call you then?” 

“Call me anything you want.” He drifted towards the dorm. “I don’t really mind.” 

The girl hummed. Her shoes clopped across the porch into the dorm. He felt like they were done with the end of their little excursion and turned to tell her so. He paused under her scrutinizing gaze. Her brown eyes brightened. “You look like a Lu to me—short for Lucas. How does that sound?” 

He drifted for a moment, turning the name over in his head. It didn’t sound...bad? He had long forgotten the name he once went by, so it wasn’t like it would hurt to adopt a new one. He tipped his top hat to her. “Sure. That sounds rather nice.” 

She grinned up at him and held out her hand. “It’s settled then. It’s nice to properly meet you, Lu. I’m Yuu.” 

Lu grasped Yuu’s hand. “Nice to properly meet you, Yuu.” 

Yuu’s smile widened. “I look forward to sharing Ramshackle Dorm with you and the other ghosts.” 

A loud yowl from upstairs interrupted them. An equally loud thump followed. “Human! Where are you? How dare you just leave me here to be attacked by these dumb ghosts!” 

Lu heard the others boisterously laugh and could only imagine the prank they had managed to pull. He lightly chuckled at Yuu’s loud sigh. “I can already tell this school year will be something else.” 

“That’s about as reassuring as the headmage promising to send someone out here to fix the leaking pipes in the bathroom.” 

Lu chuckled and followed Yuu up the stairs where they found the feline monster spitting blue fireballs at the other ghosts, who had obviously made a game out of the attack. After calming Grim down, Lu proudly introduced himself to the others by his new name. The other two swarmed above Yuu, demanding her give them names as well. 

The next morning, they flew around the campus introducing themselves to the other ghosts as Howie, Dougie, and Lu of Ramshackle Dorm. 

[loganofthenorth]

forget "creepy little Victorian ghost girl"

i want "polite teenage Victorian ghost girl who was murdered in the middle of the night along with her siblings because of their parents' own ignorance towards the nanny who was so clearly waiting to kill the children"

"Please, don't be mad. I'm terribly sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." The transparent girl apologized. "Who are you?" Merida whispered, stepping back. She wondered if she should call Harold, her husband. Then again, he'd probably tell her she was seeing things and to go to bed.

"Alex... Alexandra, Ma'am." The girl replied, bowing her head as her braided hair hovered above her shoulder. "Alexandra Dall. I... I was just hoping... If it wouldn't be too much trouble... Could my sisters and I listen as you tell Layla her bedtime story? We used to hide in her closet to listen, but now she always keeps her closet door open to keep out monsters. It's alright of course if you'd think she'd be too scared of us. I can always just make up a story, but you tell stories so much better than I do." Alexandra requested, keeping her head bowed.

Merida could hardly believe what she was hearing. A ghost was asking to listen in while she read her daughter a bedtime story... The girl was so polite, it was such a difficult request to refuse, but... "I'll have to ask Layla first." Merida stated, hesitantly walking towards her daughter's room. Her eyes didn't leave the ghost as she walked down the hall, watching for a change in the docile behaviour.

"You... Ask her what she wants?" Alexandra asked, looking up in surprise. "Of course. It's important to make sure she is comfortable with it." Merida confirmed. "Oh..." Alexandra stated, her tone mournful and taken aback. "Guess your parents didn't do the same for you?" Merida asked, her caution softening. "No, Ma'am..." Alexandra answered. "I'm sorry to hear that." Merida replied before entering her daughter's room.

Layla had been tucked into bed by her father, and wore a bright smile as she held her favourite book in her hands. "Robin Hood and His Merry Men? Again?" Merida questioned as she sat on the end of the bed. Layla nodded eagerly. "Alright." Merida chuckled, accepting the book.

"Now, I have something I want to ask you." Merida began. Layla tilted her head, waiting for her mother to continue. "There are some other little girls that would like to join us for reading a story. Are you okay with that?" Merida asked, deciding that was the best way to word it. Layla nodded eagerly, and Merida smiled. "I should warn you, they're ghosts. Is it still okay?" Merida warned. Layla thought for a moment, considering this. She then nodded again, a little more hesitantly. "Alright. Alexandra? You and your sisters can come in now." Merida called.

After that, four ghosts floated into the room, and Layla watched nervously, hiding a little under her blanket, as they flew slowly into the room and sat cross legged on the floor. All the girls, wearing beautiful dresses, neatly styled hair, and wounds in their chests sat still and properly, not saying a word.

"You're all very well behaved." Merida praised, trying to hide her own nerves with a smile. "Thank you Ma'am." The girls replied, not in unison, some said it slower or faster than others. Layla giggled a little and lowered her blanket. She pulled on her mother's sleeve excitedly, urging her to read the story. "Alright, alright." Merida chuckled. And so she began to read.