#and they move a lot too I’m sure. they’ll wake up on the opposite end of the bed or on the other’s pillow instead of their own

[poison-into-positivity]

it’s established in canon that stede takes up most of the bed when he shares it with someone else, HOWEVER ed strikes me as the kind of person who would not mind and just sprawl out on top of him. Like ye olde weighted blanket

[yutahoes]

CEO's Favorite Intern

main characters: CEO! boyfriend! ex-sugar daddy! Yuta Nakamoto, intern! university student! girlfriend! ex-sugar baby! Y/N  (feat Accounting Department manager! supervisor! Mark Lee) word count: 4.4k words  genre: fluff, suggestive summary: Working in the same company as your boyfriend is hard enough. Being an intern in your CEO boyfriend's company is difficult. warnings: sugar baby-sugar daddy themes, suggestive, age difference, jealousy, a whiny baby Y/N, lots of kissing, failed ending (I tried) based on an ask and a part two of this fic. Writing has been really rusty lately but I hope you'll like this simple fic. And please leave feedback if you can.

You desperately searched for your name in the list of the students and their assigned company, praying that you would be put in a known company. You weren’t the best student in class. You were even convinced your teachers don't even know who you are so being in decent company would be a blessing enough. You saw your name followed by four other names but the company's name made you wide-eyed. 

Nakamoto Corporation. 

Your boyfriend’s company. 

Of all the companies there are, why there? Maybe your boyfriend has something to do about it. 

You raised an eyebrow at him while eating your steak. He kept on saying that he doesn’t know that they’ll put your name on the trainees assigned in their company but you’re not buying it. You know how sneaky Yuta is. He just chuckled at you, “Don’t worry, baby. I won’t give you any special treatment even if you are my most favorite intern.” 

But that is not what you were scared about. You were scared to fail. And it will all be embarrassing because you might fail in front of your highly esteemed boyfriend. 

Even if you go to the same company, you make sure to wake up earlier than your boyfriend and prepare for the internship. You cannot be late and you have to look at least presentable for your first day. “Are you going to wear that at work?” You glanced at the black pencil skirt and dark blue button blouse that you were wearing, nodding. “I’m so glad you’re going to my company.” He started getting his bath towel, “Wait for me. I’ll drive you to the company.”

“You can’t.” You immediately retorted while putting on the cross earrings he gave you as a gift. He stopped in his tracks, staring at you in confusion. “It will be weird to see the CEO and the intern coming to work together.” You explained and he blew on his bangs as if frustrated. “I’ll go first.” He was about to say something when you made your exit to the door. 

The commute was hard. Why is his apartment so far from his office when he goes there every day? The bus was crowded and you hated how your feet were hurting because of standing up. You even had to push outside the bus to get out of your stop. And even if you luckily survived the bus ride, you still have to walk so far to enter the company building. 

Even if you have been dating Yuta for a while now, it is your first time coming to his company building. You knew he had a decent business, that the corporation he had started years ago is booming in the industry but this is just too much. Now, you just felt an unbearable amount of pressure to do well in this internship. 

“Hi,” a guy greeted, smiling widely at you. “I’m Mark Lee, are you Ms. Y/N?” he asked and you nodded, confused as to why he was asking that. “I’m from the Accounting Department,” he started before offering you his calling card. So he works here? “I’m tasked to show you around.” You nodded. Maybe you’ll be working under his supervision. But he looks so young, probably the same age as you or older but not too much. He told you that your other schoolmates were assigned to different departments while you were assigned to Accounting. 

He showed you around, making sure that you would have an idea where certain offices are since they’ll probably ask you to move around. When you reached the department, you understood why. Seated opposite your desk is a woman in - probably - her late forties, then another woman looking stern with a drawn fine line of an eyebrow. Another man who was wearing thick glasses and had white hair can be seen inside the room. And there’s Mark Lee who looked like an outcast in the group of four people in the department. 

Not only do you feel that you’re an intern with how they order you around but you also feel the generation gap whenever they ask you how to print or edit the files or even input a certain figure using the computer. It hasn’t even been the whole day yet you’re already so frustrated and tired. How can Mark keep up with this every day? 

If there is one department that needs interns, that would be Accounting. Mark needed someone he could ask for help with. 

And you made sure that you’ll be of great help to Mark. 

You were so busy helping around that you forgot one tiny detail, the CEO of the company. The four people were standing up, greeting him politely when Yuta entered the Accounting Department. There’s an obvious tension in the air like they’re terrified of him. Is your boyfriend bullying his employees? And they’re even older than him. Is that even an appropriate work environment? “I’m just here to check on the financial report.” You watched as the youngest of the group handed him a folder with shaking hands, “Is this double-checked? I don’t want to see the same mistakes as the other reports.” You purse your lips at that. You did see a lot of mistakes when you rechecked the file but it was almost all small typographical errors or plain mistakes in the input of the formula.

Mark nodded. “Miss Y/N helped a lot in double-checking the file.” Yuta glanced at you before nodding. What was that? When he left the room, the four had a collective sigh that amused you. Are they that scared of Yuta? 

You’re not that good in Math, it’s still a mystery why you were put in the accounting department. But seeing how the employees of the department interact with the CEO, you realize you might have been in the right department. 

“Are you hiring new employees?” You asked Yuta while eating dinner. Since you both just returned from work, you settled on Chinese take-out. “I think the accounting department needs more people,” You licked the sauce of the noodles from your finger before continuing, “Younger people.” 

Yuta handed you tissues but before you could wipe the remaining sauce on your fingers, he took your hand and licked the sauce for you. “You’re actually in the wrong department. My instruction is that they should put a guy in accounting.” You glared. So he’s aware that accounting has one of the toughest jobs in his company? “Do you want to transfer to my floor? My secretary can train you.” 

You shook your head, “I thought you wouldn’t give me special treatment.” The guy only gave a hearty laugh. “I’m fine in the accounting department, Mark needs more help than he can get.” 

You thought the CEO was getting back at you with your decision. He kept on returning the files your department sent to his office and kept on checking even small mistakes. You even thought that it was his way to see you in his office but once you handed the folder to his secretary, you would just wait for the returned file in his office lobby. 

It was Mark who assured you that he's usually like this. Accounting is one of the most important departments in the company. They are in charge of finances coming in and out of the company. Indeed a small mistake can change everything. But if Yuta is aware of that fact, why put only four people in the department? It can use a lot of people, younger people. 

If there is something that you’re getting from this experience, that is an immense respect and admiration for Mark Lee. He’s always smiling, and always patient with his older co-workers. He never gets mad and is always speaking cheerfully. Maybe he’s an angel sent to Earth. And he deserves a raise for all his hard work. 

“You know ever since you started your internship, all you ever talk about is Mark Lee” Yuta noted one Saturday morning. You were having breakfast in a posh and private waffle shop near your place. 

Your fork stopped midair and you purse your lips at his words, making sense of it. You were always with Mark. You work together. Of course, you’ll talk about him. “He’s such a hard worker. I think your company will crumble without him.”  

“Then, should I promote him?” He definitely deserved that. And Mark will surely be super happy if that happens. But if he gets promoted, he’ll leave the accounting department. “Or should I just wait for you?” Yuta took a bite of his waffle chicly. 

“Wait for me?” 

“When you start your position in the company.” 

You blinked twice before cocking your head to the side in confusion, “What position?” 

“I’m still thinking about it but maybe a COO.” Your eyes widened in surprise. That is a huge position. You know how employers tend to employ interns especially if they did a good job. But a COO? That’s a high-ranking position, next to his. “Why do you look surprised?” Because that is a huge title for an intern. “Half the company will be yours if we get married, Y/N.”

You stood up in surprise. You didn't know if that was because of the huge fortune coming your way or the fact that Yuta had planned on marrying you. This relationship just started as a sugar daddy-sugar baby one. He needed a companion, you needed money. True, it drastically evolved after some time. But talking about the future, getting married to him is something that you felt farfetched. Yet, here is this topic.

Yuta smirked against his coffee cup. “Sit down, baby.” He ordered in a commanding tone as you shakily obeyed him. “You shouldn't be surprised. When I asked you to be my girlfriend, I already had marriage in mind.” He put down his coffee cup before cutting your waffles into tiny pieces, urging you to eat. “That’s why you need to do your best in this internship, graduate, and wear your graduation gown.” He stared at you, dark orbs pulling you in which made you gulp the lump in your throat. “Then prepare your wedding gown.”   

It must be the talk with Yuta that you dreaded going to work. How can you work as an intern for a company you’ll soon be managing? Is this Yuta’s plan all along? Did he purposely ask for you to be assigned as an intern at his company? 

Your schoolmates, who were interns of the same company, were all spouting compliments on their experience as interns of the Nakamoto Corporation. If the CEO decides to absorb them into the company, you will be managing them in the future. 

This may not be for you. 

Can you resign as an intern? Is that even possible? 

If you cannot do that, maybe you can just quit as Yuta’s girlfriend. 

That would be easier. 

You didn't have any motivation to go to work but Mark already looked worried the moment you stepped foot inside the office room. "Y/N, you have to help me," he said, a strain in his voice evident. 

Wait, what happened? Is he about to cry? 

You have never rushed work before, maybe running to get to class on time is the only time you decided to move faster. You were almost surprised when you finished the report Mark had asked you to do. You didn't know you could type so fast. The senior colleague’s file of the monthly report was corrupted from her flash drive and they could not open it. Luckily, Mark saved the copy from last month and retyping is easy. The department also had to present to the CEO in half an hour which added to Mark’s panic. 

Mark was fidgeting outside the conference room. “I’m not a great presenter,” he said more to himself, “But I have to do this for the sake of my co-workers in the department.” You nodded. It hasn’t been a month but you already saw how frustrating it is for Mark. How did he endure this workload for this long? Mark is such an angel.

You tapped his shoulder, smiling warmly at him. “You’re doing great, Mark.” 

He returned the smile, “Thank you, Y/N.”

A cough can be heard followed by the secretary of the CEO excusing himself to enter the board room. A side glance was all the CEO could give you both. The side of his lips frowning. “The CEO is in a bad mood,” Mark noticed, which made you nod. “Let’s hurry inside.” 

It was your first time watching your boyfriend at his work. True, you have watched him in video meetings looking all serious. But seeing him in this board room, managing his employees who are significantly older than him stirred something inside you. How come everything Yuta does is such a turn-on? Your gaze would fall on the leather watch on his wrist to the evident veins on the back of his hand, wanting him to touch you in that part that’s getting wetter by the second. Your eyes trailed north to his dark necktie, wanting that material wrapped around your wrist as he gave you immense pleasure. Watching the tip of his pen tapping his lower lip, made your mind drift off to what those lips can do. Fuck, you badly want him and you’re still clocked in for two hours here in the office. When your eyes met his, he raised an eyebrow before looking away.  

He probably knows the effect he has on you. 

When your department was called, your attention focused on your colleague. You smiled at Mark, tapping his shoulder to encourage him as you sat down in front of the laptop, volunteering to help him with the technical stuff. Your teamwork is rather dynamic and the presentation of the monthly investment goes on smoothly. You would give small smiles his way, proud that he did amazing despite his low confidence in his speaking skills. He’s just amazing in this job. 

“Since the investment remains stagnant, what do you think should we do Mr. Lee?” The CEO asked, startling you. His tone was different from the other presenters. Mark looked like a deer caught in headlights, his eyes wandering around as if asking for help. 

You raised your hand and muttered, “Sir,” You called which made the CEO look at you. “Isn't that question supposed to be directed to the marketing department?” 

“I’m not asking your opinion, intern.” Even the room got silent at his cold tone. Why is he suddenly like this? “Mr. Lee?” 

You didn’t even hear what Mark said in the shock of what happened. Is Yuta usually like this to interns? Maybe your boyfriend is such a huge bully. 

When the other department was called and the interns did share their opinion, he gave a warm reaction to them. Even if the employees were doing a terrible job in presenting or the interns kept on making mistakes, he never made the same reaction as when he shouted at you. Is he mad at you? Does he hate you? 

Instead of going home early, you found yourself drinking with your colleagues from the accounting department because of your bad mood. The senior workers kept on telling you that it was normal, Yuta is always like that. But no, you cannot. Not when you feel that it’s unfair. How can he treat his employees like that? How can he shout at you, an intern, in front of the other employees? And why only you? 

“The CEO is probably extra grumpy because he didn’t get laid.” One of your co-workers claimed that you dropped the glass you were holding. Mark was already at your aid, wiping the table and handing you tissues to wipe yourself. “Rumors are saying that he has a younger girlfriend.” 

You felt your heart stammer in your chest. There are rumors about that? Do they know that the girlfriend is you? Or is there another girlfriend that you aren’t aware of? Is he cheating on you? 

Maybe that’s why he’s cold to you in the office. Maybe, he wanted to push you away. 

Well, who would ever want an intern as a girlfriend anyway? 

All these thoughts running in your mind, and the fact that you had some drinks, made you unaware of the bicycle on the sidewalk. If not for Mark pulling you back, you wouldn’t even realize that you almost got hit by a vehicle. “Are you still thinking about what the CEO said?” You shook your head. Surprisingly, it isn’t about that anymore. It’s worse than that. “Don’t take it to heart, Y/N. I think the CEO likes you.” 

You gave him a timid smile, stopping to walk in front of your apartment building. Now, you just wanted to lie down and rest. “That’s nonsense.” You tried to shrug, “Have you heard how he shouted at me?” 

“He’s strict with you because he saw your potential,” Mark claimed but you shook your head. “And you have become his favorite intern.” 

You chuckled lightly. That’s impossible. You must be so drunk that you have been hearing things from Mark. “Thank you, Mark. This is my stop.” He glanced at the tall building before nodding, “Take care on your way home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” You didn’t hear any word coming from him and just went inside the building. 

The lights were off when you came inside the apartment so you clicked on the light switch to illuminate the light on your way to your room. You almost jumped in surprise seeing Yuta seated on the couch, turned to where you are. “It’s late,” he said in a low voice. “Did you drink?” He stood up, walking to where you are. “On a work night?” 

“I’m not drunk,” you tried to counter but your words are slurring, “I spilled beer on myself.” You stopped when he held your forearm to help you balance but you slapped his shoulders which made him groan. “I shouldn’t be talking to you.” 

Yuta chuckled, pulling you closer to him. “Are you mad because of what happened earlier?” You rolled your eyes and he held your waist. “You told me not to give you any special treatment.” 

“But that was too much!” You shouted. “Are you like that to everyone or just to me? Do you hate me?” 

If not for Yuta wiping the tears from your face, you wouldn’t know that you’re crying. “Baby, I’m sorry.” He said in a soft voice and if possible, pulled you closer. “I don’t hate you, I would never hate you.” Then why was he mad at you earlier? “And to be honest, I hate myself more.” You stared at him in surprise. Why would he? “I let my jealousy take over my emotions.”

“Jealousy?” 

He gave you a small smile before kissing your forehead. “You and Mark, smiling and touching each other.” Your eyes widened at that. What? Mark Lee? But you work with each other and it’s just shoulder pats. Yuta kissed your nose, “I hate that you’re so pretty and those guys at work kept looking at you.” Then he kissed you on the lips, a quick smack but still surprised you nonetheless. “I hate that those pretty words coming out of your lips turn me on so much.” Wait, what? 

“You have no idea that when you said sir earlier, I wanted to bend you in the conference room and make you shout that same word repeatedly.” 

You sobbed, bawling your eyes out. It was now his turn to get startled. “I thought you were pushing me away.” You cried, “I thought you didn’t want me anymore.” 

But he just pulled you closer, hugging you tight. “I’m sorry, baby" he kept on whispering. “That's the contrary actually.” He tried to calm you down by pressing butterfly kisses along your neck, fingers trailing on the skin under your shirt. "I want you so much, it's crazy." He kept on kissing your exposed skin, opening the buttons of your blouse. “You reek of beer, let’s get you cleaned up hmm?” 

Maybe it was the intoxicated state you’re in but you let Yuta pamper you that night. He was so careful while giving you a bath, rubbing your skin while whispering how your idea earlier was right and that your department did a great job. He listened intently to how you tell him how stressed you are with your job. 

In contrast to his gentleness while taking care of you was his roughness in bed. You kept on moaning the word ‘sir’ and he would thrust in you in the roughest way possible. “I love you,” he whispered against your ear, lying beside you. “I’m sorry.” 

A chuckle escaped your lips, eyes closing as the tiredness loomed on you. “Since you got laid tonight, maybe you won't be that grumpy tomorrow.” You only heard Yuta laugh in response. 

—--

You were so sore the next morning that you begged Yuta if you could take the day off. But since you’re an intern, without any special treatment, he didn’t let you. He helped you, though, by volunteering to drive you to the company. You were anxious the whole time you were inside the car. What if someone sees you with him? A CEO and an intern together is a bad image for a company. But you found out that Yuta has a special parking area, hidden from other employees. 

Yuta only gave you a couple of minutes to walk ahead of him so no one could see the two of you together but he caught on to you while walking to the elevator. The employees greeted him and he gave a wide smile, greeting them as well. When you reached the office of the accounting department, the senior workers were all whispering about how the CEO was in a very good mood today. “He probably got laid last night,” the senior colleague claimed and you lightly smiled. That was so absurd but it wasn’t wrong. 

The day isn’t that busy but you noticed how Mark kept on moving from one place to another. He kept you inside the office, retyping documents, while he ran the errands to the other departments. When you took a break on the office terrace, you found out why. “Rough night?” He asked while handing you a cup of coffee. “You were limping on the way in. You’re lucky they didn’t notice you.” 

It was embarrassing. Is Mark really that observant? He turned around, back leaning on the ledge, as you sipped on the coffee he gave. “So how rough did your boyfriend take you last night?”  

Isn’t that too much to ask? “You don’t know if I have a boyfriend.” He raised an eyebrow, looking as if you got caught. 

Mark laughed before raising his head to point at someone by the window and you were surprised to see the CEO looking at you, arms crossed. “He looks like he’ll kill me. You might not have done so well last night.” he joked with a light chuckle. 

You glared at him, “How did you know?” 

“I wasn’t that sure at the start but after the CEO had been too strict on the department, I kind of put two and two together.” He claimed then smiled, “And you live with him, don’t you? You cannot afford that luxury apartment, Y/N.” Is Mark that smart? How did he find out about that? “Don’t worry, I won’t tell a soul that we have an office romance. But I have to tell you something…” 

Your phone rang, and Yuta’s name was seen on the screen. Mark gave you a nod to answer the call, “Tell Mark Lee that Lee Haechan from marketing is looking for him.” Yuta said that confused you. Why didn’t he just call Mark? When you relayed the message to the guy beside you, he was smiling from ear to ear while telling you that he’ll see you later. You asked who Lee Haechan was and Yuta quickly answered, “His boyfriend.” 

Your eyes widened in surprise while looking at Mark. Boyfriend? You didn’t know Mark had a boyfriend. And a co-worker? Is that what he was supposed to tell you? “Wait, how did you find out?” 

“Company rumors.” Your boyfriend listens to rumors in the company? “And I know how ecstatic Mark is whenever he gets assigned to the Marketing Department.” Now that he mentions it, he does look more excited about working with that department. An office couple. How exciting. 

“But wait,” You claimed, turning your back to the ledge that you’re face to face with the CEO. “Are you that jealous of Mark that you always watch him? How do you know that he gets ecstatic working with marketing?” 

You can see the smile forming on your boyfriend’s lips, “I know Mark before you do, baby.” A light chuckle can be heard. “Besides, before you came, he was my favorite intern.” So Yuta does have a favorite intern. And maybe that’s why Mark confidently said those words to you last night. Does this mean you’ll have the same route as Mark? 

“I thought I wouldn’t get any special treatment?” 

“You won’t. You still have to work hard and complain about how shitty your boss is.” You rolled your eyes but you knew there was a grin on his face. “But you automatically qualify as the COO so whatever you want to do with the company in the future is all in your hands.” That was such a position from being just an intern. Why does he keep on pushing you in that position? “Or the wife of the CEO. I won’t complain.” 

You chuckled. There’s no doubt he’s a man with authority. “The wife of the CEO sounds much better. A total jump from being an intern.” 

You saw him smile from the window. “Ask for the monthly report and bring it to my office,” he ordered, then winked your way. “Let me hear the complaints of my favorite intern.” 

You smiled then put down the phone before walking your way back to the accounting office. 

Being the CEO’s favorite intern isn’t so bad at all. 

[dragon-kazansky]

Tea for two | Helmut Zemo

Requested by anon

Sequel to Tea for you

Zemo made the tea as he always did. The boys had got a lead and it was important they went and checked out the area. Of course, Zemo was going with them.

He was only making one cup today. The boys were insistent they had to leave soon.

After what Bucky did the other day, Zemo had begun to leave a Turkish Delight with your cup. It felt like he was completing his deed by doing both.

Once the tray was settled on the coffee table, he left with the boys. They were gone hours. Apparently it was a false lead, but Sam had picked up some information that may be useful. They would leave first thing tomorrow to check it out.

When they came back to the house, Zemo walked over to the tray. The tea was obviously cold now. He stared at the brightly coloured liquid.

Why was he still holding onto hope?

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. He didn't need let his emotions get the better of him here.

You're dead. You're not coming back.

His fists clench in his gloves, the leather creaking ever so slightly from the motion. His heart will never heal.

Helmut picks up the tray and takes it over to the sink, tipping the cold tea away and washing the cup delicately as always. Once it's crystal clean, he holds it up and runs his thumb over the side. Even in the moment he wishes beyond belief you would come here and take it from him.

He sets the cup down and goes to bed.

Sam has them all up early. He wants to leave as soon as possible, but Zemo insists on pouring the tea as he always does. Sam sighs and tells him to be quick, he knows what this means to Zemo, but they can't waste too much time.

Zemo goes to get the teapot, but their morning is interrupted by Walker. John storms in like he owns the place and points at Sam.

"You know!"

"Hey, relax man."

"You know where they are." Walker got a little too close to Sam.

"We think we might know. There is a difference."

Bucky steps in, "back off."

Zemo sighs and puts down the teapot. He walks over to where the commotion is happening and comes to Sam's aid.

"We have information. You let us take you to where we think they are, you leave us to our own investigation," Zemo offers.

"If they're there, we are not wasting time talking to them. We need to stop them," Walker hissed, his eyes focused on Sam.

"Hell no, we do this my way. Go in guns blazing, they'll flee before we even have a chance," Sam states. "Be smart about this."

"I am smart."

No you're not. Zemo could almost hear your voice. He resisted a smile. Oh, the fun you would be having if you were here.

"Fine, let's go." Walker spat.

Teapot neglected, they leave the house. It pains him to leave without doing his little ritual, but time is of the essence. He's sure you would forgive him.

Hours. They're gone hours. All day, almost. The sun will be setting soon, that's for sure.

They enter the safe-house. It's quiet as they all go their separate ways. Zemo instantly goes over to the sofa, relaxing into the cushions. He was so tired. Tired of Walker, tired of all the fighting that ensued today, tired of being lonely.

He sighs and sits up, maybe he could have some tea with you now. It's later than usual, but it would still count.

He goes to get up, but something catches his eye. The tray he uses is sitting in front of him and a little note is resting on it. He leans over and pluck the note from where it sat.

'I missed your tea today'

He sat up straighter. What was this? It looked like your handwriting, but thats5not possible. Had Sam or Bucky done this to spite him? A cruel joke it would be, but when would they have had time to do it? Zemo had been with them all day.

Maybe I have finally lost my mind.

He stares at the neat handwriting. His heart is calling out to you and it hurts. He holds the note to his heart, his fingers squeezing the paper.

I need you.

He falls asleep right there on the sofa, the note crumpled up in his chest.

The next day, he pretends nothing happened. He had woken up before the other two and prepared the tea as he always did. This time he stared at your cup as he drank his own. That note was a sick joke and he hated it.

Do not give me hope where there is none.

He was stirred from his hopeless wishing when Sam came into the room. The other man stood opposite from where he sat, looking at him.

"We, uh, should go now. I think Karli is making a move."

"Right." Zemo places his half empty cup down next to yours and stands up. He goes to grab his coat.

The building has very people in it when they arrive. It's almost as they had been expected to arrive, which didn't sit right with Zemo. This could put them at a disadvantage.

"Keep your guard up."

They stepped carefully through the halls, looking into each room. There was no sign of anyone. Eventually they had come to the courtyard. It was closed in by the building, too many convenient spots to be ambushed from above.

"I don't like this," Bucky muttered, eyes moving from one spot to the next.

Sam was jumped from behind seconds later. Flag Smashers came out from every direction. Zemo held up his gun and began to shoot, any of them would help fulfil his work.

Bucky was fighting off to of them, Sam used his wings to his advantage, but the fact that Zemo was armed was concerning to him.

"You have a gun?"

"Of course I do, you didn't think I was coming here unprepared, did you?" He shot a few more bullets, two of them hitting his moving target. He just had to finish the job.

A shield flew past, knocking out the man he had shot.

Great, Walker was here.

Zemo chose to ignore the oncoming headache and closed in on the Flag Smasher, he aimed for the head. However, before he could take his shot, Walker was on him. He had grabbed Zemo from behind, using his arm to lock around his neck and pull him backwards. He pushed Zemo to the ground and held the shield up, so ready to get rid of him.

Walker suddenly fell the ground unconscious.

Zemo looked up to see someone impossible.

"It can't be."

You were standing over him, a gun in your hand. You had whacked Walker pretty darn hard with the butt end.

"Hello stranger."

Zemo had to be dreaming. You couldn't be here, you just couldn't!

You hold out your hand. It looked so real. His hand reaches for yours. He flinched when his fingers touch your own. He thought they would just pass through or tour would disappear entirely, but you curl your fingers around his wrist and pull him up. He stands.

"You not going to say anything?" You ask, softly.

"How?"

You smile and reach up, caressing his cheek. His tears fall. You were really here in front of him. The Baron leans into your touch, a gasp escaping his lips.

"I'm here, my love, my Liebling."

He loses his composure and envelopes you in his arms, holding you to him like a lifeline. He buries his face into the crook of your neck. His quiet cries break your heart, but you had expected this much.

He believed you to be dead.

All this time, all those years, he had been alone.

"How?" He asks again.

"I'll tell you later, but we should probably leave." You pull away to look at him. "Look at you, still handsome as ever," you chuckle.

He smiles before he pulls you in to kiss you. It was long overdue and he needed this. He needed you. You melt against him, focusing only giving him what he wanted.

Sam clears his throat.

You both pull away you smiling at each other. Helmut reaches for your hand, you give it a little squeeze.

"Apologies."

"Who is this?" Bucky asks, looking at you.

"This is Y/N."

"Know each other, do you?" Sam is trying to grin. He saw exactly what you two were up to while he and Bucky fought off the masses.

"Something like that," Zemo replies.

"I think I'm owed a cup of tea, Helmut." You look at him.

"About that, how did you know? That note..."

"I've been watching over you since you got out of prison. I was watching over you back when you were tearing the Avengers a part."

"I thought you were dead."

"I'm sorry, Helmut."

He brings you into his arms again, holding you close to him.

"I forgive you."

You cling to him.

"Wait, this is who you keep making tea for?" Bucky asks.

You nod at him when you pull away from Zemo once more.

"Thank you for the Turkish Delights, by the way. That was you, wasn't it?" You ask him.

Bucky looks a little startled.

"Uh, yeah."

"Maybe we should go back and catch up. I have a lot of time to make up for." You look at Zemo.

"I want to hear everything," Zemo says, smiling.

"I won't leave out a detail."

Zemo keeps a hold of you as you all leave. He was never going to let go of you again. He had lost you once before and it was the worst pain imaginable.

Not even Walker's headache, when he wakes up, will be remotely close, and that will hurt a lot.

You are reunited with the one person you love the most. Happy doesn't even cover it.

@ajeff855 @moonstuffsteve @sky-writes-stuff @lieutenantn @lostghostgirl94 @friday18eo @yaskna

[barbarianprncess]

did you mean it?

read on ao3.

It’s a total of 3 significant events that led to this, her forehead knocked against his, breaths heavy and mingled, eyes wide and hearts bleeding.

It’s a total of 3 significant events that led to this, her forehead knocked against his, breaths heavy and mingled, eyes wide and hearts bleeding.

The first event isn’t really an event at all. It’s a prologue, necessary context to truly understand the monumentalism of this moment. It’s the memory of her eyes, piercing and reproachful, being the first thing that he saw after losing his mother. It’s shared trauma and oreos while they’re young and naive. It’s truces and training and growing up too soon together. It’s stargazing and stupid jokes saving eachother in every possible way. It's the culmination of the years Percy spent growing, learning, and being with Annabeth, and the unknown and therefore repressed feelings that came with it. Feelings are like the sea in that way, they don’t take well to being restrained. Percy has found that you cannot box in oceans or sentiments, they always find a way to spill over and out, with no regard for the destruction left in its wake.

The second event is Dionysus deciding on a whim that the inhabitants of his camp are ‘uncultured pests’ and taking it upon himself to set up a field trip for campers to the Ancient Greek Cultural Center in New York. (Percy thinks it’s really just to distract kids that were still shaken up about the battle at camp and the losses it caused. But, Dionysus would never say so. He’s far too proud to admit to caring for the children he’s been assigned to look after.) Argus loaded all the kids he could fit into the strawberry vans, as Chiron listed all the reasons this was a terrible idea. As it turns out, his worries were in vain as miraculously, no monsters attacked, and no mortal asked too many questions. No, instead, the only hitch in his plan was the glaring inaccuracies of the Center sending Dionysus into a fit of rage. He ranted for so long, their 2 hour long field trip ended up lasting until the place closed.

Event the third is the ridiculously long line leading to the mens room at the rundown gas station they’ve stopped at, causing Percy to traipse into the woods, deep enough to know that no one other than the squirrels were watching, and pee there. Unbeknownst to him, Annabeth had decided to take a quick walk in the forest as well, (in the opposite direction of his peeing endeavor) with the purpose of clearing her head. Both returned to the parking lot after 10 minutes, with no truck in sight. The gas station lights are turned off on the inside and the door sign has switched decidedly to closed. They look at each other in disbelief.

“Percy?”

“Yeah?”

“Uh...did they…”    

“They didn’t. They wouldn’t.”

“I think they would.”

“They would never-”

“I have pretty solid evidence to the contrary.” Annabeth deadpans, casually letting her hair loose and hopping on top of the miniature gas machine for motorcycles.

“But, how did-”

“No Argus.” Which means, no all-seeing eyes to double check the headcount. Percy begins to pace.

“Okay, but-”

“Two trucks.” Both of which are probably assuming Percy and Annabeth are on the other.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, gods.”

“Leave them out of this.”

“Those fuckers.”

“Which ones?” She asks. He looks up and she’s fighting a smile. He pointedly doesn’t notice the way her mouth curls up, or the way her hair falls around her shoulders and down her back, or how pretty she looks lit up by the neon red lights of the gas stations prices, which apparently doesn’t turn off when they close.

“Do you know something I don’t?”

“I know lots of things you don’t.”

“Ha-ha. I mean about how to get out of here.”

“Ohhhhh, let me think.” She wrinkles her nose in faux concentration, tilting her chin up towards  the sky. Percy is too annoyed to think it’s adorable. “Nope, not a clue.”

“Your phone?”

“Left it on the truck.”

“Iris message?”

“Percy, it’s dark as shit.” The laughter she’s been holding in comes pouring out. Nevermind that he feels his chest sigh in relief at hearing it for the first time since their quest, this is serious.

“You’re laughing.”

“Just a little.”

“You’re telling me, you don’t have a brilliant plan to get us on a truck.”

“Yes.”

“So, we’re stuck here.”

“Yes.”

“And you’re laughing?”

“You’re just really funny when you’re stressed.” She giggles. He can’t remember the last time she giggled. He missed it. He hates her.

“Oh my gods.”

“Okay, okay, look, I’m sorry. We’re halfway to camp right?” He nods. “I’m sure they’ll figure out we’re missing before they get all the way back to camp, but let's say, worst case scenario, they don’t-”

“Not helping-”

“And they make it the rest of the way back to camp. It took us four hours to get to the center, which means camp is two hours away, so if they make it the two hours back to camp before they realize we’re missing, and they drive back up-”

“C’mon ‘Beth, you know I suck at math.”

“We’re stuck here for five hours at most.”

“Five hours?”

“And that's if no passing cars let us use their phones to hurry the process up.”

“Five hours.”

She’s laughing again. “Seriously, what is so funny?”

“It’s just-” Her cheeks are red and she’s very poorly attempting to suppress her smile. “You’ve been calm in so many life or death situations, and being stuck at a gas station is what finally breaks through.”

“It’s nighttime.” She stares at him for a moment and then she’s laughing again, full bodied real laughter, and he's laughing too.

And it’s as if this gas station became their own personal Ogygia, an oasis, a resting place for them to be stupid kids again. And they don’t talk about the battle, or Rachel, or the volcano, or any of the million things set on tearing them apart. They talked about his mom getting serious about his new boyfriend, about Tyson’s underwater adventures and Grover’s searching shenanigans.

They smack talk with no real heat about who the better fighter is (Oh please, Seaweed Brain, I've been training since before you could tie your own shoes.), and argue about which ancient hero had the greatest journey (Hercules, are you kidding? Did you even read the myth?). They break into the gas station for snacks (What the fuck, Annabeth, where’d you learn to pick a lock? No, I wouldn’t prefer you break the glass, you psycho. Oh my gods, can you really break the glass?), and dissolve into giggles as they try to fit five drachma into the cash register.

They end up back outside sitting on the gas machines facing one another from three feet away.

“Your mom called me the other day.”

Percy, who’d been lazily squinting up at the murky sky, searching for any sign of stars, whipped his head to look at her. “What?”

“She called me on the phone. We talked for a bit. She said she wanted to make sure I was alright.”

“That sounds like something she would do.” He sighs and hops down from the machine, turning away from her, hoping to hide his blush from the dim light. “She cornered me on one of my off weekends, asked what was going on with us.”

“Oh.” He hears the shifting of fabric and assumes she followed him in sliding off the gas machine.

“Yeah.” It’s silent for a long time before she responds.

“What did you say?” She asks, her voice smaller than it was moments ago. He hears her scratching at the flat metal top of the machine. “When she asked, what did you say?”

He runs his finger through his hair, and one gets caught in a particularly large snarl. “Doesn’t matter.”

“It matters to me.” She whispers and gods he’s terrified but he really doesn’t have a choice when her voice wavers like that. Her words shake and every ounce of his being tells him to do whatever it takes to soothe it.

“I said we were fighting. That there wasn’t one sole reason for it, just a bunch of little reasons. I told her that I scared you when I….went away for two weeks last summer. And that you didn’t like bringing Rachel on your quest. I told her that we….. disagree about how to best handle Luke. That I probably wanted to protect you more than I wanted to listen to you.” She laughs softly and he blames what he says next on her laugh. It is the catalyst for everything that follows.

“I told her that we’d be okay. Because no matter what happens I’m always gonna love you.”

He hears her breath catch. He doesn’t have to look back to know she’s turned to face him fully. “Did you mean it?” She calls. He doesn’t answer. The words haven’t caught in his throat, they’ve spontaneously combusted in his vocal chords and he doesn’t think he’ll ever speak again.

The sound of gravel crunching gets closer until suddenly she's beside him, and he didn’t tell his torso to twist toward her, he thinks she might just be his center of gravity.

“Did you mean it?”

She’s looking up at him, and her hair smells like lemons, and her cheeks are pink, and her eyelashes go on for miles, and her sunspots are better than stars. And it’s as if she pulls the words right out of him, he’s hypnotized by everything about her.

“Of course I meant it.”

She exhales and closes her eyes and while he mourns the loss of the sight, his body moves on it’s own accord again and he’s edging closer and closer and she opens her eyes and here they are.

Their noses brush, and this time he closes his eyes, and their noses brush just so, and…

Whoa.

He was wrong, it wasn't just those three significant events that to her forehead knocked against his, breaths heavy and mingled, eyes wide and hearts positively bleeding. It’s clear he’s been waiting his entire life for this moment at this shitty gas station.

Waiting for this. Waiting for her.  

They kiss for a moment or an eternity, and they fit. His hands are on her hips and hers clutch at his shirt before sliding up to his throat, and it’s like his soul is whispering, oh there you are.

And then she’s pulling back, so she has just enough space to shake her head without disconnecting from his forehead.

She's breathless when she whispers, “This is a bad idea.”

His hands trail up and down her forearm of their own accord, and when he whispers back he’s breathless too. “Yeah, really bad idea.”

Her hands slide up from his chest to his shoulders, and then she’s kissing him again, with purpose, and he’s kissing back like his life depends on it because he thinks it might, thinks if he lets go of her he’d die on the spot.

It seems his theory might get tested when she pulls back again just far enough to whisper against his lips, “Is it always like that?”

He kisses her again, once, twice, because he can’t help it and whispers back, “I don’t know, you were my first kiss.”

He’d released any serious hold he had on her the moment she hesitated, but then she’s rocking back up to meet him halfway and his entire body thinks thank the gods. He actually sighs his relief into her mouth, as his hands desperately reach for her face, some fingers tangling in her hair, and their lips are magnets, opposites that don’t have a choice but to pull together. Despite how much he wants to keep doing this forever, he has to tell her.

“I don’t wanna lose you, again.” He means not ever, but he figures she understands the severity in his voice. She’s running her hand through his hair, and his slide up and down her back, and she knocks her nose against his as she answers, “I know, me either. I’m confused, this is confusing me.” And she tilts her chin just so, like she did a million years ago, and this time he kisses her.

They kiss for an infinity, he gets to taste her laughter when she giggles at the absurdness of it all, and it’s better than ambrosia. He kisses her until he doesn’t know anything else, until his entire universe is Annabeth Chase, with her cheeks and her curls and her lips. She is everything.

And then headlights penetrate their universe, voices bring an end to their infinity, and Chiron is speaking but it’s nothing, it’s all white noise because she’s no longer in his arms, and his center of gravity is being ripped away and he hears someone ask, “What’d you guys do?”

He’s still looking at her face when she answers, “You know, tried not to strangle each other mostly.”

But, she looks back before she turns all the way around and her gaze is charged and her lips quirk with the secret they share.

He is so screwed.

[mostlycompetentwriter]

Domesticated Drabble

Pairing: Bang Chan x Y/N

Genre: Marriage AU; Sequel; Drabble

Warnings: So. Much. Fluff. (small smut scene at the beginning); language

Request: 

A/N: Finally finished this one! Please enjoy another taste of my favorite AU!

5 Years Later

“We’ve got five minutes,” I whispered against the pulse point on Chan’s neck, the throbbing vein pumping hard as he panted for breath from above me, eyes shut tight together as he moaned.

“I’ll blow at any second,” Chan cursed, laying sloppy kisses wherever he could reach while fucking me hard and fast.

“Your cock feels amazing,” I practically purred, digging sharp nails into the milky white skin of his back, legs closing in around his waist to keep him close. 

“Oh, sweetie, you’re laying it on thick this morning, aren’t you?”

I clenched a vice-grip around the length pumping inside me in response, sending Chan’s hips stuttering against my own. “I’ve got kids in the next room who can wake-up at any second. Excuse me for trying to inflate your ego.”

“That’s not the only thing inflating,” Chan gasped, curling his fingers through mine.

“You’re gross,” I huffed, closing my eyes and throwing back my neck as best as I could in this position: laid out under my husband, orgasm approaching at a meteoric-level speed, and sweat coating my skin in a delightful sheen as the muscles around my abdomen worked overtime to milk Chan for everything that he had before the moment was ruined by my kids. 

I half-expected them to burst into the room unannounced at any second, oblivious to their parents fucking in much of the same way that created them in the first place. Locked together with limbs intertwining, sucking in each other’s air, and kisses rough and demanding. 

Fuck it had been far too long since Chan and I had last done anything even remotely this intimate, and it was still necessary for us to go at it as fast as possible to prevent unwanted eyes from accidentally catching us at the height of our passion. 

I couldn’t help but glance at the clock, realizing that we had been fucking for almost ten minutes, and the alarm had been set for 7:00 AM so that I could somehow wrestle my kids together for their first day of school. 

Damn, this is gonna turn out to be a very long day.

“Are you close?” I asked Chan, connecting our lips for a sweet kiss since I personally knew that they were a weakness of his.

“Yeah,” he said, features collapsing into a look of pure concentration as a guttural moan found its way crawling up his throat to release itself at the same moment when I could feel his release emptying into the condom separating us from complete skin-to-skin by a thin layer of latex.

But I insisted on wearing them now.

“You’ll cum too, sweetie,” Chan whispered, laving his tongue across the pad of his thumb before reaching down to connect with my clitoris, drawing rough circles in random patterns to snap the physical breaking point: holding my tongue to prevent myself from screaming as I rode the waves of pleasure until nothing was left but a delicate haze and the sensation of Chan’s cock still stuffed inside my spent pussy.

As it turns out, aftercare with Chan was the equivalent of my husband spewing my praises while insisting on letting his cock soften completely before pulling out: cock warming at its finest.

“Do you plan to pull out?” I asked him, smirking when he whined and buried his face into the side of my neck.

“It’s been a while since we’ve been like this,” Chan remarked.

“The kids need to get up soon,” I said, although there was a sleepy pull weighing down my eyelids. A good fuck tended to wear me out. “They’ve got their first day.”

“Yeah,” Chan agreed, but he made no effort to separate us. In fact, I could imagine us both easily falling back to sleep.

“You’re coming right?” I asked around a yawn. “To their Kindergarten orientation or whatever the hell they call it.”

“Of course,” Chan said, and he finally lifted his head from my shoulder, gaze soft as he took his time to explore my features. “I can’t miss that.”

“What? Watching the teachers drag them away for the first day of the education system they’ll be stuck in for the next thirteen years?”

“You have a way with words, sweetie.”

I grinned. “Maybe I’m just using words to deny the weirdness of my kids starting school and making me feel like I’m 100 years old.”

“It feels like they were just born,” Chan agreed, and he slowly rose himself into a sitting position, climbing out of bed to give me the best view of his naked ass.

“Your ass looks great by the way.”

“Thanks,” Chan snorted, reaching for a pair of black slacks from the floor. “I’m taking a shower.”

“Fine,” I groaned. “I guess I’ll go awaken the sleeping monsters.”

“Let the chaos begin,” Chan announced, closing the bathroom door behind him as I reached down deep into the reserves to muster enough energy to finally get out of bed.

At the risk of sounding too long-winded, the best way I could describe my twins was with a touch of irony. Because, despite looking identical to one another, my girls couldn’t be more opposite in terms of personality. 

Leah, the eldest by one minute, was boisterous, loud, and unapologetic when it came to being herself. She was the epitome of a social butterfly, jumping from one person to the next and asking questions that occasionally raised a few eyebrows because of their brazenness.

Her sister, Rose, was nothing like that. In fact, Rose hardly spoke at all, choosing to listen instead, and offer her voice only when she truly felt the need to include it. Of course, side-by-side, they were another thing altogether, far too energetic for me to handle.

This morning was no exception, chasing Leah around the house because she refused to change out of her pajamas, questioning me relentlessly on why it mattered that she had to change.

“I should wear what I want!” she insisted, and I had nearly lost my patience with her until Chan entered the room, and he was one of the only people who could talk through to Leah.

Him and Felix, of course.

Before Felix moved out, he and Leah were practically inseparable, and I could see her uncle’s influence in a lot of different ways.

“You want to look your best to make new friends, right?” Chan asked her, and after a laughable look of concentration, Leah nodded and allowed me to change her into a much more suitable dress.

“There,” I grumbled, turning my attention to Rose who was more willing to be dressed.

“Let’s go have breakfast, yeah?” Chan whispered to Leah, and she smiled and giggled at her father as he took her hand and led her into the kitchen. 

I scoffed at how easy he was able to manage her, glancing at Rose who was even more quiet than usual. “Aren’t you excited for your first day?”

She shrugged, looking down at her hands. “I don’t want to leave you.”

I could feel my heart breaking at her sweet words, cupping her face between my hands as I tried to reassure her that she would still see me in the afternoons and evenings. “It’s just a little break,” I said, but I knew that Rose was harder to convince.

In the meantime, Chan and I worked together to have both twins fed and ready to leave the house, packing them lunches for school before ushering everyone out the door because we were teetering on the edge of being too late. 

At least Chan had the wherewithal to warm-up the car, and it gave us more time to fasten everyone into their car-seats before pulling out onto the main road, speeding into the downtown district with the clock ticking away. “Well, at least the other parents will think we’re irresponsible.”

“I’ve got this,” Chan said, and I shivered as he toed the gas and grazed just going over too fast. 

“At the risk of getting a ticket-”

“Relax, sweetie,” Chan interrupted, reaching over to take my hand. “I’ll handle everything.”

“Uh-huh,” I murmured, glancing up into the rearview mirror to see Leah and Rose engaged in their learning tablets. Even if they were a few minutes late, my kids would still be the smartest. I had made sure of that, spending countless hours with them reading as many books as I could buy, digging out paper and pencils to practice their names and alphabet letters, and reading tons of online articles about the best methods to ensure your child’s early learning set them up for the most success.

Right? So what if we were a little late.

“Mommy? Why can’t you both stay with us at school?” Rose suddenly inquired from the backseat.

I sighed, turning around to face her. “Mommy and Daddy both have to go to work, okay? We’ve already had our turn at school.”

“Our turn?” Chan chuckled, and I pivoted in my seat to glare at him.

“That’s the kind of language we should be using with them!”

“Did you read that from an online expert?”

“As a matter of fact, I did!” I huffed, and I caught his smile, letting me know that he was just messing around.

“I just want them to do well,” I whispered, and his expression instantly softened at the sound of my tone.

“You’ve done so well, sweetie,” Chan reassured me, squeezing my hand even tighter as he turned into the school’s parking lot, finding an empty spot near the back.

Immediately, I was at the back door, reaching inside to help Rose out of her seat, spinning her around to help her with her brand new bookbag. “There,” I said, once her attention was on me again. “You’re ready.”

“I don’t know...” Rose trailed off, and her eyes held all the uncertainty of a five-year-old who was used to staying at home with her parents and uncle. Not the unfamiliar presences of her peers. 

“Hey,” I said, kneeling down to meet her gaze straight-on. “I know it seems scary, but I promise that you’ll really love it. I was the same way too on my first day, but my mom gave me the same advice, and guess what? She was right. I ended up loving school, and if there’s a little piece of me in you, then I know that you’ll have so much fun that you’ll forget all about your mommy and daddy.”

Rose’s eyes grew bigger, shaking her head in a manner that was quite endearing. “I won’t ever forget you.”

“I know, sweetheart,” I said, pulling her close for a hug as Chan and Leah emerged from the other side.

“Everything okay?” Chan asked, looking between me and his daughter.

“Just fine,” I said, ruffling Rose’s hair before standing tall again. “Let’s go inside.”

The classroom was already full of students, and I was glad to see some parents lingering, which meant we weren’t as late as I had thought.

“Told ya,” Chan snickered, and I gave him a playful glare before turning my attention to the approaching teacher: an older gentleman with a head of pepper and salt colored hair and kind eyes.

“Hello,” he said, addressing me first. “I’m Mr. Park.”

“Hi,” I said, accepting his handshake. “These are my daughters: Leah and Rose Bang.”

“Ah!” Mr. Park remarked, glancing down. “I’m excited for our twin students! Please, have a seat wherever you’d like.”

“Go on,” I encouraged them when I caught their matching looks of insecurity. “You have each other,” I added, reaching down to wrap their fingers together, giving them one last smile before Leah bravely led her sister further into the room, selecting an empty table near the back.

“Well, it’s so nice to meet you,” Mr. Park said, and I noticed that he had grown a little too close, gaze lingering for far too long. 

“Yes,” I agreed, “And this is my-”

“I’m Chan,” my husband interrupted, inserting himself between me and Mr. Park with a brusque movement. “The father.”

I rolled my eyes at his tone, watching as Mr. Park hesitated before nodding and shaking Chan’s outstretched hand. “Nice to meet you.”

I smirked, waiting until Mr. Park had moved on before leaning in to Chan. “What was that, dear?”

Chan scoffed, searching the room for a moment. “He was flirting with you, sweetie. What did you expect me to do?”

“Well, it could be from our morning romp, but it kinda turned me on.”

Chan raised a suggestive brow at my comment, but I gave him a cheeky smile in response before walking in the direction of Leah and Rose’s table. “Look at you two,” I remarked. “I think you made a good choice.”

“I like seeing outside,” Leah said, and I nodded and tucked away a wayward strand of hair. 

“You’ll both stay together, right?”

I received synchronous nods in response, and there was a lot of relief on my end knowing that my girls would be just fine. 

“We’ll be here to pick you up at 2:00,” Chan said, pointing to the analog clock above the door. “Okay?”

Two more nods. “Remember to have fun. You’re gonna learn so much, and maybe you’ll even be smarter than daddy.”

I managed to elicit two laughs in response to that, and Chan chuckled as he wrapped an arm around my waist. “Be good, alright?”

“Yes, daddy,” Leah replied diligently while Rose nodded her head, attention drifting to a book sitting at the edge of the table.

I smiled knowing that she was showing interest, and then I realized that there was a deeper part of me that was having just as much trouble leaving the girls as they were having with leaving me and Chan. But the other parents were starting to leave the room, and with one more exchange of our goodbyes, Chan and I were walking away from our girls, keeping our own hands locked together as the door closed behind us.

“Woah,” I sighed once we were outside in the hallway. “That was harder than I expected.”

“It’s a big step,” Chan said, and he wrapped an arm around my waist to pull me closer. “But they’ll be okay because they’re ours.”

“Oh,” I laughed. “Is that so?”

“Of course,” Chan said, giving me a perfectly serious look before a smile overtook his features, and any previous doubts were vanquished by the sincerity in that smile, and I knew that as long as I had Chan, then nothing would ever be too difficult to overcome. 

[bakugohoex]

you asked for horseface reqs? 😼😼 n e ways let’s spice it up w some angst okay reader and jean have had feelings for each other for a reaaallyy long time but they won’t admit it (especially the reader because she’s scared she’ll get hurt if he loses him one day) but the time when she finally admits her feelings it’s when she gets killed trying to protect jean from an attack during the marley arc

“this might be the end for me, but jean, oh god, jean you meant everything to me”

pairing: jean kirschtein x female reader

cw: angst, language, last kiss, violence and some season four stuff but i haven’t read the manga so this is from the information of wikia, go cry please 

word count: 2200+

a/n: someone sent a similar request so i incorporated this one with that one as well, if you guys want to see the request here it is, it is quiet similar, i dislike writing angst but i was sad so i thought it was a good time to write it

summary: in which you and jean have had crushes on each other since the first day you met, instead of admitting your feelings, you both waited till you knew you’d have a secure future, and the invasion of liberio, in your final minutes you confess it all

↞ back to attack on titan masterlist

Wildflowers bloomed from the soil, the sun peaked through the fog and the birds chirped loudly at the sound of shouting. The first time you met Jean Kirschtein, the sound of Shadis headbutting the brunette, he held his face after his cocky remark of joining the military police. You stood firm lazily gazing at him, there was something to him, you didn’t know what it was, but he had something to him. You thought you two would never become friends, but instantly becoming friends with Armin and Marco you seemed to be surrounded by those who would be in the top ten.

You never wanted to join the military police, they were all scared little freaks who only cared about money and living a secure life. There was no fun it, you had been with Jean, when Marco had been found dead. He collapsed right on top of you and instantly knew that you two were bound together, the feelings of hurt seeing Marco dead in front of you.

It wasn’t something you ever wanted to see, and you never wanted to see one of your comrades die ever again.

He looked at you after the body count of Trost had been announced, “I’m joining you in the survey corps.”

You were shocked to say the least, the man who had been adamant on joining the military police had switched sides out of vengeance from what you could assume. You went up to him, your hand cupping his face, “I know you want to avenge Marco, but make sure you’re doing this for yourself.”

“I know.” He spoke quietly, his face nuzzling into your palm, you stood there feeling fresh tears come out of his eyes. Tears fell out of your own, as you both stayed there crying and holding each other, needing the comfort after your friends death.

The four months went by quickly, with Eren turning into a titan, finding out about Annie, Berthold and Reiner. It was a traitorous act and you wanted to kill them all, it was the only thing that filled your mind once you had found out about it. But there was something more you had now, you spent more and more time partnered with Jean and every day you seemed to fall more and more in love.

You were aware that you had prominent feelings from the boy, the first time these feelings erupting the second day of training when you got partnered up. He had helped you with a technique that you had seen Annie do. Not only were you surprised by his help but also how he engaged in your life when you talked about your past. He wasn’t the cocky bastard he had been the night before and you fell for him instantly, the way even though he seemed selfish he still cared and especially after being a leader in Trost you began to admire him even more.

You both grew closer and closer and evidently; the rest of the survey corps had noticed your feelings. Often teasing you both any possibility they could get, you both acknowledged something was there but never acted upon it. Feelings and emotions, it got in the way of fighting Titans, and the risk of losing one another in a relationship hurt more than it would if you two remained friends. There would be nothing holding the two of you back when going to fight Titans. But even then, you both still pined and worried for one another when you got separated.

It remained both your thought process for the next four years until the raid on Liberio occurred, the day that you regretted not confessing it all. The corps had all arrived in Marley and the raid had begun, both you and Jean had grown into warriors, with no mercy and a mission to get on with. The two of you were on separate sides, you prayed he would be fine, remembering a conversation that had had hours prior.

“Y/n, can we talk?” Jean spoke away from the group, he was so much taller than you now, his brunette hair a lot longer and the rugged look he had made you fall even more in love. Even after six years everything about him made your heart melt.

“Sure.” You were wearing the new black gear, it fitted you perfectly and Jean tried to not admire you.

“I just want to say good luck, I know we’re on opposite sides which never occurs with us but stay safe.”

You laughed at his consistent hesitance to speak, “come on Jean, you know me, I wouldn’t die without you by my side.”

You spoke light hearted but he looked at you tense, “don’t die at all without me.”

“I pinkie promise I won’t die without you.” You put your pinkie out, he rolled his eyes taking the pinkie.

You let go first walking back, “I love you Y/n.” He whispered, it wasn’t audible, and you would’ve never heard it.

You were alongside Mikasa, both of you fighting the Marleyans together, you noticed the Cart Titan, its jaws wide to eat any of you guys up. You were shocked having not seen it in years now, that wasn’t the only shock you got hearing a rumble at the sound of the Beast titan appearing, it looked even taller than the first time you had seen it. It came even more closer and closer towards you both, you saw its arm come closer and closer to you and Mikasa.

You both barely missed his arm swing, before you felt it again, your stomach churned as those around you went full throttle at the Titan, you attached your ODM gear onto its arm that had kept swinging. You thought you had somewhat of chance, but you didn’t expect to see him grab onto the gear with his other hand.

Holding you in mid-air, you could feel the air being squeezed out of you. “P…please.” You tried pleading, kicking and screaming, all you could think about was the promise you made to Jean. “I’m not going to die.” You shouted, feeling your bones being crushed, you grabbed one of the blades, dragging it down his hand, you slid down, out of his grip. You choked needing air, Mikasa grabbing you to help you up.

“Y/n, we need to get to the other side.” You nodded, moving to the other side you tried to stay out of the Beast titans way, seeing as your comrades got shot down.

You finally saw Eren in titan form, knowing you were close to where you were supposed to meet. You saw Jean swing past a smirk on his face, but as he saw you a worried look at how damaged and disbelieved you looked. You knew you’d have to explain later, the way he looked at you melted your insides. Even after the many years he still saw you as the prettiest girl alive and would do anything for you.

You stared at the boy, but what you hadn’t realised whilst being in the air was how the Beat titan had charged towards you. Jean noticed shouting your name, but you heard nothing, feeling the Beast titan, grab onto you, this time you had nothing. You were vulnerable, you saw Jean come up trying to rescue, instead of crushing you, it instead threw you into a building.

Tears filled your eyes whilst in the air, you felt like you had been punched in the gut, before hitting the building, your insides bleeding and the way your side and legs were met with slits from the building that conveniently had sharp spikes in it. You slid down from the roof your body limp as you felt nothing. Just as you were about to reach the bottom, Jean swung past grabbing you before you were out.

“Y/n, Y/n, come on wake up.” You heard Jean speak as he took you into an alleyway. “Y/n, come on.”

The pleading nature of him being heard but you were unconscious and unable to move, everything hurt, and you refused to open your eyes and move. Your body was deteriorating, and you could feel every bit of it. “Y/n, come on, our promise, you said you wouldn’t die without me, don’t die on me.”

You heard it all, you wanted to say you were okay. But you weren’t, you were dying in front of him, he had tried to help stop the bleeding, but being crushed and thrown around, your body was failing on you.

You woke up, everything hurting, still in the alleyway, Jean looked at you, his hand in yours. “Y/n, don’t move, it might hurt.”

You started to cough, he was about to let go of your hand to get some water from his side, but you grabbed his hand softly, “Jean, i...I’m going to die.”

He looked at you shock on his face, “Y/n, you…you’re fine, don’t say that.”

“Jean, the beast…” You stated to cough again, but you kept a hold of his hands preventing him from leaving, if these were your last moments then you knew you’d want it to be with Jean. “…the beast titan, he crushed all my bones, I’ve lost too much blood and this.”

You gestured to your now exposed side seething in blood and your legs that had been attacked by the hooks, the pain engulphed you and you needed something to preoccupy your emotions.

“Y/n, we’ll get to the walls, and they’ll…they’ll save you.”

“Jean.” You spoke softly, he saw how you looked more frailer and weaker every time you spoke. “Promise me, you’ll win and…and you’ll continue on with your life”

“Y/n, we’ll win.” Tears had formed in his eyes at how weak you had gotten. “and we’ll live a life together, you won’t die.”

A single tear went down your face, “Jean, I love you and I regret not telling you.”

He looked down at you, trying to wipe the tears that had formed on his own face before wiping the tears that had erupting from your face, “I love you too.”

“Fuck, it hurts.” You muttered. 

“Y/n, how can i…I help?” He didn’t want to admit you were about to die but if you were going to die, then he would make sure he remained by your side.

“Can you kiss me?” You asked, he tried to stop the tears, your hand had gotten colder, and the blood had seeped through the cloth that he had used to stop the consistent blood pouring from your body.

He helped you sit up right, sitting on his body, as you lazily looked up to his face, you spoke softly at the boy. “this might be the end for me, but jean, oh god, jean you meant everything to me”

“You were my world.” He whispered before the pain was becoming even more unbearable and you knew you had minutes at most.

His hands went to cup your face as he kissed you softly, bringing your mouth to his own it was everything you had ever dreamt of and so much more.

Memories filled your head, your first meeting with the boy, the countless times you were partnered up and then the time that would remain with you forever. The day when you had reached the ocean, you were glad you had experienced the sea, having played in the water with the boy. You remembered how you both had gotten soaked and how you continued to mess about, all the years of memories filled you in one single kiss.

Your hand rested on his cheek as you kissed back, your body dying on you ever so quickly, rubble poured from above, he let go softly looking at you, love and hope filled his eyes. He needed you to be okay, ideas in his head of how to help you, but as you spoke again, “I love…”

Nothing. No more words came from you and they never would. He would never hear your laugh, your voice, your scolding. He’d never feel you kick or hit him, never feel your soft touch on his. You  slouched onto his neck and a shout erupted from the man’s voice and even more tears flooded his face. Everybody had heard the screaming he held your dead body in his arms, the blood on his gear and body. He didn’t care, you had died in front of him and as he kept a hold of you, he could see the Eldian air craft, grabbing your body in his arms, he held you using his gear to get onto the ship.

You were gone forever, and he never got to ask you on a date, never got to kiss and show his love for you every day. He regretted never telling you, and as he brought you on the ship, he was met with every single person who had stuck by his side. You were in his arms limp and cold, they stared as his knees fell through, your body on the ground, eyes closed and face cold. He mourned the loss of the only person who he truly loved, he hadn’t protected you and now he had nobody.

i’d really appreciate if you guys could leave a like, reblog or comment, thanks x

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@samusimp @alaina-rose13 @crispychannie @underratedmage @jennammaee @cathy8taffy @sugacious @moonlightaangel @kat-su-ki @effmigentlywithachainsaw @swankiifiied @susceptible-but-siriusexual

[vennilavee]

stormy skies

pairing: levi x reader, and baby kaiya

summary: it’s not the first time you’re home late from work.

word count: ~2260

warnings: a shitty boss, some cursing

a/n: wrote this because i couldnt sleep last night due to the current us election... enjoy

***

Levi peeks his head into Kaiya’s bedroom, and sees her fast asleep in her bed. She’s surrounded by pillows, her lion stuffed animal, as well as her butterfly, shark, and flower pillow. It’s been about an hour since she fell asleep for her afternoon nap. 

He thought he heard a noise on the baby monitor, but it was nothing. Just her shifting in bed.

Her face is squished into the pillow and Levi can’t help the small upturn of his lips at the sight.

Kaiya’s already almost two years old, and neither you nor Levi can quite believe it. Levi claims that she’s the spitting image of you, but you claim the opposite.

You’re both right.

Levi’s career allows for him to work from home for most days. You and Levi had spent the better part of two weeks setting up his office, back when you had first moved into your new home. Before Kaiya was born. He has two monitors on his mahogany desk, a sleek keyboard and an even sleeker mouse with his laptop plugged into the dock.

A photo of you and a photo of Kaiya sits next to the monitor on the left, and a photo of the three of you next to the monitor on the right. The baby monitor is in front of him, just in case Kaiya wakes up before she is supposed to.

He’s eager for Kaiya to wake up and for you to come home, and he puts his glasses on to get to work and hopefully end his day early.

***

Levi shoves a hand in his hair, expelling a deep sigh as he logs out of work. He stretches his arms and his legs, only to be alerted by a slight vibration from his phone.

It’s a text from you:

angel: gonna be late today… levi: again? angel: yes :(

Levi sighs to himself, waiting a few seconds before replying.

levi: ok, be safe 

It’s the third time this week, and he’s lost count of how many times you’ve come home late over the last few weeks. At first, it hadn’t bothered him. But then it became a habit. And then Kaiya was asking for you during dinner.

That was the first of a few fights. They usually ended with you promising that you’d be better about it and draw the boundaries you needed to draw.

And yet… 

Levi hears Kaiya waking up on the baby monitor, her soft coos and calls of ‘daddy’ and ‘mommy’ nearly echoing in the silent room. He turns the monitor off and walks upstairs to her bedroom, where he finds her sitting up. Her smile is sleepy and she makes grabby hands for him with her stuffed lion tucked under her arm.

“Daddy,” She beams at him.

“Slept well, Kai?” Levi asks and she doesn’t reply, instead tucking her face into his neck. Levi brushes his lips over her forehead as he carries her downstairs. She’s still warm from her nap, grey eyes blinking sleepily. 

Levi gets started on dinner with Kaiya on his hip and feeds her spoonfuls of sauce and bits of meat here and there, which she accepts eagerly. She smiles widely with her nose scrunched when she likes it. You’d claim that her smile is identical to Levi’s, but he disagrees.

He’d tell you that everything good about Kaiya comes from you.

Levi gets lost in his thoughts of you, wondering if you’re on your way home. He’s having trouble remembering the last time you both had gone to bed together without the melancholy of your work schedule hanging over your head.

He sighs. Kaiya hears him and looks up curiously.

“Daddy?” Kaiya says, patting his cheek, “Mama?”

“Mama’s comin’ home late, kid,” Levi says, “Again. Do you miss her?”

Kaiya lets out a sigh suspiciously similar to his.

“Yeah. Me too, kid.”

***

By the time you come home, it’s well past dinnertime. Levi had left out a plate for you, but by now, it’s cold. You kick your heels off and place them in the closet neatly, grimacing at the covered plate on the dinner table and your empty living room.

You can almost taste Levi’s disappointment. But you just want to see Kaiya, you know she’ll be able to cheer you up.

What a shitty day. Shitty week. Shitty month. With every day that goes by, you’re getting closer and closer to telling your boss to shove his foot up his ass. 

You immediately head into Kaiya’s bedroom, where you’re certain Levi is telling her a bedtime story. You’re not even sure what time it is- is she asleep? Are you too late?

You hate bringing the smell of work home, preferring to change into comfy clothes before greeting Kaiya and Levi with a kiss. But you can’t wait, not tonight. Not when you know that Levi is upset with you and when you miss Kaiya so much that you ache.

“Kaiya?” You whisper, “Kaiya, baby?”

“Mama!” Kaiya squeals, looking up from the book that Levi’s reading to her, “Hi, mama!”

You kneel next to her bed and open your arms for a hug. She jumps into your arms happily and you kiss her cheeks and her forehead as she giggles wildly.

“I missed you, baby,” You mumble, holding her close, “So much.”

You pull away and cup her cheeks tenderly, rubbing with your thumb. Kaiya only looks at you with the same disarming silver eyes that belong to Levi. Her eyes are soft when she looks at you, her grin bright and toothy.

“Daddy, story,” Kaiya says, pointing to Levi.

“Can mama join?” You ask quietly, looking at Levi.

“Don’t be stupid. Of course mama can join,” Levi murmurs, patting the spot next to him.

You don’t even admonish him for saying ‘stupid’ in front of your daughter and he says nothing about you wearing your work clothes in his daughter’s bed.

You kiss the corner of Levi’s mouth, taking his hand in his as he continues to read to Kaiya. He squeezes your hand every so often, listening to the way Kaiya gasps and giggles at the story. Levi doesn’t tell the story with much fanfare or gusto- he tells it just the way Kaiya likes. With the always present dry intonation of his voice.

You think it’s Kaiya’s favorite sound in the world.

Kaiya points at the picture in the book and giggles, looking up at you for confirmation that you can see what she’s pointing at. You hold her hand and laugh with her too, melting at the way her smile holds your world in it.

After a few more pages and a few more laughs, Kaiya begins to grow tired. She rests her head against your arm, stifling a yawn. You rub her back to lull her into sleep but she tries to stay awake.

“Are you sleepy, Kaiya baby?” You coo, kissing her forehead.

She doesn’t reply, instead closing her eyes. It only takes a few more forehead kisses and back rubs for her to fall into deep sleep. You smile at Kaiya and look at Levi, offering him a small smile as well.

“Did you eat?” Levi asks, nudging your shoulder and gesturing for you to get up.

“No, I put it in the fridge. Not really hungry. Just want to be with you and Kaiya,” You murmur.

Levi gives you a long stare and pinches the bridge of his nose.

“Don’t be stupid. Go eat. I know you probably haven’t eaten since noon. Because of your shitty boss,” Levi says pointedly.

You sigh, heading into your bedroom to change out of your work clothes and wash up before heading downstairs.

He doesn’t join you.

You eat quickly, somewhere halfway between enjoying and savoring all of the flavors and barely chewing so that you can go upstairs to talk to Levi. You wash the dishes in the sink quickly before double checking the locks and heading to your bedroom.

Levi’s in bed, reading a book and casts a look of acknowledgement to you. It feels odd, devoid of his usual affections. You know why. Because he’s upset with you.

You curl next to him, cupping his cheek to get him to look at you. Levi sighs heavily and casts his book on the nightstand.

“Your job is fuckin’ shitty,” Levi says without missing a beat, “Kaiya misses you. A lot.”

I miss you. A lot. The words hang in the air.

“I know, I’m sorry. I hate it,” You whisper, crumbling under his scorching gaze, “I didn’t want-”

“So? What are you gonna do about it?” Levi asks flatly, voice full of ice, “It’s your dream job, right?”

It unnerves you.

“Levi,” You say hollowly, “Don’t be like that-”

“Not bein’ like anything,” Levi says easily, “Your daughter fuckin’ misses her mama. This is the first time you’ve tucked her into bed properly in who knows how long- she asks for you all the time, always asking for her mama. And where is her mama? At work-”

“Levi,” You beg quietly, “Levi, stop-”

“How many times are we going to have this conversation?” Levi says hotly. You raise your eyebrows when you hear the emotion in his voice. He’s clearly been thinking this for quite some time.

“I’m sorry,” You plead, taking his hands in yours.

He pulls them away from you and your lips part in a surprised ‘o’. You’re quickly confronted with how much you’ve been hurting him.

“Levi, I’m gonna fix it. I swear- I’m gonna fix it, I’ve already talked to my boss a-and told him I can’t do this anymore-” You blubber, tears forming in your eyes.

“Can’t do what anymore?”

“The late nights-”

“Yeah, they’ll stop for what? A week? Then start back up again,” Levi scoffs coldly, “You promised you’d fix this. So fix this.”

“Levi- stop,” You mumble, “You’re being mean-”

You can’t help it- you start to cry harder, fat tears pool in your dark eyes and roll down your cheeks, as your bottom lip trembles. You let out a loud sob and turn away from him, not able to meet his eyes. Levi blinks at you, almost nervously. 

“Shit,” Levi says under his breath, “Shit-”

He wipes your tears from your cheeks and pulls you into his chest, his chin over your head. His arms are tight around you, heartbeat lulling you into calm. Neither of you say anything for a few minutes, despite the apology on the tip of his tongue.

Levi hates seeing you cry, especially when he is the cause of your tears. But he knows, even if his words were cruel, the problem still exists.

It takes a few minutes for you to breathe and for your sobs to reduce to sniffles. 

“I’m trying, baby,” You mumble, “I told him I need to scale back. But- he’s just so, fucking-“

And then you start to cry again. Levi wonders if there’s more to it than you’ve been saying. He wonders if there’s more of a problem than just late nights. Levi rubs your cheek with his thumb, giving you a few more minutes to gather your thoughts.

“Is something else going on?” Levi asks, most of the heat gone from his voice.

You’re quiet again, looking up at him. Trying to figure out how to allow the words to bubble up and leave your throat.

“What is it, angel?” He asks, cupping your chin for you to meet his eyes.

“He’s just so,” You sigh, “He’s so… mean. He talks down to me sometimes when we have group meetings- and I don’t even realize until the meeting’s been said and done. God, I hate what a boys club it is there. 

Oh, and his favorite is that one guy who always steals credit for the work that I do- and he said he’d dock my bonus if I didn’t start picking up the slack, but I am, I’m picking up everyone’s fuckin’ slack and all I’m good at doing is hurting you and hurting Kaiya- and I n-never wanted to be like that. 

I never wanted to be the person who put their career in front of their family. I should be able to have both, but not- not like this.” Your rant ends with a fresh wave of tears threatening to spill over.

“Angel,” Levi breathes, kissing your forehead, “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I thought I could handle it,” You mutter honestly, “But I can’t. I need to get out, Levi.”

“I’m sorry I yelled at you,” Levi says, pressing his forehead to yours.

“You didn’t. It’s okay, I get it. I get it.”

“I should’ve helped you. Not yelled at you.”

“How could you know? I didn’t say anything,” You scoff, slipping your hand under his shirt to rub his chest. You missed him, and this.

“Thought we said no secrets,” Levi says lightly, “No more. We’ll figure it out.”

“‘M not working for most of next week. I need a break,” You say, pressing yourself closer to Levi.

“Good. We’ll figure it out, alright?” Levi says and squeezes your hand. He dips his head for a kiss, and you can taste the sweetness of his unsaid apology.

“You, me and Kaiya?” You ask with a small smile.

Levi nods, quelling your fears with a series of featherlight kisses that deepen quickly. His hands wander your ribcage, holding you close and warming you up from within. Silver eyes melt into your brown, and you’re reassured by his steady strength.

You’ll be okay. You, him and Kaiya. You’ll be okay.

tags: @simpingmaize

[avengerscompound]

Moving On - Chapter 4

Moving On: A Falcon & Captain Marvel Fanfic

Masterlist PREVIOUS //

Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing:  Sam Wilson x F!Reader, Carol Danvers x F! Reader

Word Count:  2107

Rating:  E

Warnings:  Smut (MF, oral sex, vaginal sex, accidental exhibitionism/voyeurism)

Synopsis:  You thought Sam Wilson was the love of your life.  You had planned to do it all with him - marriage, kids, see the world.  Even when you’re life gets turned upside down, and you both end up international fugitives, he’s there by your side.

Then Thanos comes.

When Sam is one of the many turned to dust, leaving you alone and pregnant, you don’t think you’ll ever stop grieving.  Yet, everyone tells you that Sam would want you to move on and live your life - that he’d want you to be happy. Gradually you open your heart up to another.  Carol Danvers has lost people too.  First her daughter, then her wife.  As the two of you lean on each other, feelings grow and you move on together.

So what happens when Sam is returned to you?

Chapter 4: On the Run

It is strange how quickly your whole world can change.  One minute you’re planning a wedding and living in the Avengers Compound in Upstate New York, an official agent for the Avengers.  The next you’re considered a war criminal and you’re on the run with your fiance and three other people, one of them who happened to be Captain America.

It had been like a slow-motion car wreck watching everything go wrong.  First, there was a completely unnecessary fight against your friends in the airport because no one wanted to listen to each other.  Then you’d been arrested by people who you’d once considered not just friends, but family.  Then you’d been shipped off to some secret supermax prison in the ocean for enhanced individuals with no trial, even though you weren’t enhanced.  Then Steve Rogers had busted you out and you’d ended up on the run.

You were with Sam though, and you’d rather be with him on the run knowing you were on the right side of the fight than safe in New York alone.

You’d all been trying to make the most of your time working as vigilantes.  There had been a lot of alien tech ending up in the hands of criminal organizations and Steve had been leading your little band of merry men to go and get it back.

Things weren’t easy for any of you.  There was a lack of money coming in and everyone had had to quickly withdraw their entire savings before the government blocked all of their accounts.  Thankfully Steve’s pension from the army had accrued a lot since he’d been lost at sea, but he hadn’t been able to withdraw all of it.

It had meant that a lot of the income came down to you, as out of everyone - you were the least recognizable.  Yes, there were alerts out for you, but you were a spy - you knew how to disguise yourself and you knew where to find under-the-counter work when needed.

The trick was never staying in the same place for long and returning to countries that didn’t sign the accords.  Even those weren’t safe for long - Ross was not above sending people into countries illegally to detain people who he was hunting - Bruce Banner was a testament to that - but they were safe for a little while and meant that once a month rather than sleep in the stolen Quinn, you could splash out and get a hotel.  Although you were pretty sure that Wanda was often sleeping in hotels - with Vision most likely - anytime she said she needed to have some alone time.

You woke up and stretched on the cold metal floor of the Quinn, your spine popping loudly.  Sam shifted in close to you, his arm draping over your sternum and his hand resting on your neck so his fingertips lightly caressed your jaw.  “Was wondering when you were gonna wake up,” he murmured.

“Is it late?”  You asked, blinking your eyes in the dark of the jet.  There was light coming in through the cockpit window, but it was low and you couldn’t tell if that was because it was early or just overcast outside.

“Not particularly,” he said, his hand running down your neck and over your collarbone.  “You just normally sleep like shit in the Quin.”

“Who says I didn’t,” you grumbled, rolling in toward him, and breathing him in.  There was an acrid sting to his scent thanks to the fact that neither of you had showered for a few days.  You were all due for a trip to somewhere remote with beds and good water pressure.  Steve had said maybe going back to Wakanda for a few weeks was in order.  He didn’t like to go too often because T’Challa had already extended himself above and beyond anything that was fair to ask of him just by harboring Bucky.  But it had been over six months since any of you had been there, and you had accumulated a lot of alien technology that you knew Shuri would love to get her hands on.

Sam chuckled and his hands ran down to yours, linking your fingers together, and playing with the engagement ring that sat on your finger.  “What if we just get married in Wakanda?”

You looked up into his eyes.  They looked black in the dim light and when he smiled at you, the corners of them crinkled slightly.  “I’m not sure that’s what you really want,” you said.  “Don’t you want Sarah to be there?  And the kids?”

Sam frowned.  Sarah’s kids had been two and four years old when you’d gone on the run and every month that he missed of their lives hurt him.  He’d been sending money back to his sister to keep the family business running back when you’d both had actual jobs, but these days he was barely scraping by himself.

He sighed and nuzzled into your neck.  “I just want us to start our lives together.”

“I know, but life had other plans,” you said.  “I love you and I don’t need to get married to know that.  It’s not going to change anything.  We will still be on the run and we won’t be able to build a stable life and have kids.”

Sam sighed and leaned his forehead against you.  “I know, but I want you to be my wife.”

“I am your wife,” you said.

“Not legally,” he said.

“We don’t do anything legally at the moment,” you said, playfully.  When Sam didn’t laugh, you sighed and wrapped your arms around him.  “Sam,” you said.  “If you really want to get married in Wakanda, I’ll do it.  I’m sure I can get something nice to wear together, and Nat and Wanda can be my bridesmaids.  I’m sure given how close we’ve all gotten they would be who I’d have picked anyway.  Just like I know you’d have Steve be your best man.  But I know you.  This isn’t really what you want.  You want the big wedding down in Louisiana like you always planned.  With the catering done using fish that were caught by your family’s trawler and you want AJ and Cass to be our little ring bearers.  And I know… I know that if you do this - if we get married in Wakanda without Sarah, she’ll murder you. She will murder you and then disown you post humus.”

Sam started laughing.  “Yeah, she will.”

“Sam, I love you.  I’m yours, no matter what,” you said.

“I know,” he replied with a sigh.  “I know we’re doing the right thing now.  I mean - Tony can get all on his high horse about how important the accords were, but he still broke them immediately.  That fucking kid he brought to the fight is still breaking the accords and living his best life.  I just… I wish we could have both.”

“So do I,” you said.  “I hope they come around, but I’m scared that the thing that makes them realize how wrong they are is gonna be real bad.  Like; world-ending bad.”

“Yeah, me too,” Sam said.  “Which is why I’m doing this.”

“So, what do you want to do?  You asked.

“I guess… we can wait,” Sam relented.  “But maybe we can see if there’s any way we could do something small that we could sneak Sarah to?  Like … she goes to the Maldives and who just happens to be there getting married?”

“They’ll be watching her,” you said.

“Yeah, I know,” he said.  “But we can look into it.”

“Yeah, okay,” you agreed.  “We’ll look into it.”

Sam leaned in and kissed you deeply.  You wrapped your arms around his shoulders and pulled him down on top of you, so the full weight of his body pressed down on the cold metal floor of the jet.

Sam groaned softly and rolled his hips, his cock starting to harden against your thigh.  “Where’s Steve?” you mumbled against his lips as he continued to kiss you.  He was currently the only unknown factor as Wanda was on another of her ‘retreats’ and Natasha was dealing with some ‘personal things’ that she wouldn’t tell the rest of you about.  He pulled back and smirked down at you.  “Why?  You want him to watch?”

“No,” you giggled, smacking his arm.  “I want the opposite of that.”

Sam laughed and nuzzled at your neck, pushing his hands up under your sleep shirt. “On his morning run.  Just you and me, baby.”

You kissed him again - more frantic this time, and your hands dug into his shoulders.  Sam began to squeeze and massage your breast as he ground down against you, sending a warm buzz through your body.  He began to move down your body, taking his time to both undress you and kiss every part of you.  By the time he was crouched between your spread legs, your whole body prickled like a live wire.

He gripped your thigh with one hand and reached up and began massaging your breast with the other as he dipped his head down and began lapping at your cunt.  You moaned and arched your back, gripping his bicep with one hand as you reached over your head with the other.  A hot current ran through you as Sam focused on your clit, sucking and nipping at it as he squeezed your breast.  He moaned into your cunt, the sound sending vibrations through you.  You slowly fell apart under him, writhing as a coil of hot pleasure wound itself tightly in your core.  Sam thrust two of his fingers inside you, and as soon as they hit that sweet spot inside you you cried out loudly and came hard, your whole body shuddering as your orgasm crashed through you.

Sam sat up onto his knees and looked at you.  “Gonna have to be a little quieter,” he said tapping your thigh.  “Steve’s got pretty good hearing you know.”

You scrunched up your face.  “Maybe you need to gag me.”

Sam chuckled and bit his bottom lip as you got on our hands and knees.  Even on the bedroll, your knees were going to hate you after this, but right now you didn’t care at all.  Sam moved up behind you, held onto your hips, and thrust hard into you.  You stumbled forward a little but managed to catch yourself on the cargo trunk in front of you.  He began to fuck you hard immediately, not even waiting to steady yourself.  You cried out and clenched around him as it felt like a hot shard tore through you.

Sam leaned over you, kissing your neck and shoulder, as he put his hand over your mouth.  “Hush now,” he growled in your ear.  “You don’t want to wake up the whole forest.”

You moaned into his hand and opened your mouth, letting him push two of his fingers inside for you to suck on.  He railed into you, his hips moving quickly and erratically as your bodies slapped together.  You tried to bounce back on him, adding to the pleasure coursing through you, but it wasn’t long until your arms gave out and you were helpless under him as your orgasm built.

As his hips began to stutter, Sam wrapped his arm around your waist and began to rub your clit.  It was all it took for the dam inside you to burst.  You buried your face in your arm and cried out as you came, clenching around Sam’s cock.  He began to thrust even more erratically as he chased his own release and with a jerk and a low groan he came, releasing inside you.

You let yourself flop completely on the floor, breathing heavily and feeling a little high on endorphins.  “You think Steve is out there and heard us?”  You asked as Sam lay back down next to you and kissed your shoulder.

“Caught the tail end of the show!” Steve yelled, his voice muffled through the jet walls.

You and Sam both broke down into peels of laughter and you hid your face in Sam’s chest.

“Get a move on, would you?!” Steve yelled.  “We have a lot to do today.”

You laughed even harder and Sam held you close, pressing a kiss to your forehead.  “Come on, duty calls,” he chuckled.

You let him help you up and the two of you both started cleaning yourselves up the best way you could.  You hoped to god that Steve would say it was time for a break soon, but in the meantime, you were glad you were here with Sam.

// NEXT

[bahorell]

Les Amis (& co.) and what they’re like camping

Enjolras: Is kinda scared of the woods. Also he’s that guy that really has a hard time putting his phone down because “I just have to respond to this one email”. “Yeah give me one second I’m dealing with a work thing”. “omg did you hear about what’s happening in Canada? It’s horrible those poor people” “Enj the point of this is to get away from everything for a couple days” “Right I know…”. So if there’s even one bar of service they gotta go find a different place. When he isn’t on his phone he’s very active in all his friends activities. He’s not super outdoors-y so he mostly tags along when other people do things. He’ll have Baz or Courf take him on rides on their paddle boards. He’ll tag along when Chetta and Ferre go on hikes. He’ll be Feuilly’s little helper person when Feuilly’s working on building the fire. Or he’ll just hand out with people at camp or on the beach of the lake/river and just talk.

Combeferre: Loves camping because of all the bugs and critters! Found the tiniest little frogs on the shore of the lake one time and made everybody look at them. Brings plant and animal and bug ID books with him and will take little leaves or flowers and stick them in the pages of the book when he thinks he found a match. He doesn’t usually snack too much when he’s at home but when he’s in the woods he is always eating something and it’s really when he’ll let himself just go balls to the wall with the junk food. The only thing he doesn’t really like about camping is that he doesn’t get to go on jogs in the morning because he’s smart enough to not run into the woods in the middle of nowhere with no service by himself.

Courfeyrac: Has an inflatable paddle board that he bought! He likes to play lifeguard and will paddle around to all his friends who are swimming and give them rides to shore. He likes to share his paddle board with his friends but he didn’t have enough money to buy a super super fancy one that has a large weight capacity so usually if someone else is on it with him it sinks into the water enough to stress him out. Also he shares a big tent with Combeferre and Enjolras and he likes to sleep in the middle of the two of them.

Joly: Invested in a super super cute small teardrop camping trailer a couple years ago. It’s easier for him to get in and out of than a tent or god forbid a hammock (Bahorel has to lift him into it then Joly wants to get in one… this is also partially because Bahorel sets up all the hammocks and they are p much impossible to get in unless you are also 6’7”) The inside of the camper is just a bed and the back hatch opens up to cabinets and drawers and a counter and stuff that makes a nice little make shift kitchen. He’ll set up the camp stove and the cooking area right next to it. He’s not super involved in any of the cooking it just gives him less stress when the food area is organized and the table legs are on a flat surface.

Jehan: Jehan tells the ghost stories. They aren’t very good at telling ghost stories so nobody really gets scared (except for Marius and if they’re really doing a good job Enj will get a little spooked). They also wake up with the sunrise so they’re up and ready to start the day at like 5am… and they really aren’t quiet about it so they manage to wake up 2/3 of everybody else at camp. Has more dietary needs than other people so when every one gets together to build a grocery list and meal plan for the trip they’ll make their own list. They really don’t mind because they HATE sharing snacks so having their own little baby cooler all to themselves is the best. Bousset: Somehow manages to have the most amazing balance and can get on and off Bahorel or Courf’s paddle boards like it’s nothing but when he gets in the canoe with anybody they somehow always tip it over within like 20 seconds. He is the opposite of Jehan he’ll sleep until like 2 in the afternoon if one of them doesn’t come to wake him up. He’s also usually in charge of getting all the booze together for the trip bc he’s very aware of what everyone likes to drink. He takes turns with Chetta sleeping in the trailer with Joly since not all three of them can fit. When he’s not sleeping in the tent he’s sharing a tent with Grantaire.

Feuilly: Fire guy. Loves the fire. Is always excited for the sun to go down so he can start the campfire. Will not take his eyes off the fire. I mean seriously. They once played never have I ever and when it got to be his turn they timed him to see how long it would take for him to realize it was his turn bc he was too busy staring at the fire to pay attention (it was a solid 4 minutes). Sleeps in a tiny little one person tent that would make anybody else claustrophobic but he LOVES it. He does set up a hammock right next to Bahorel’s. He doesn’t sleep in it but the two of them will take naps together in their hammocks. He also has to dowse his body in SPF 10000000000+ because he’s the whitest person ever, and somehow he still manages to get a sunburn on some part of his body.

Bahorel: He’s the guy thats super picky about the camp spot. “eh i mean this one is cool but it’s a little too close to the other campsite and I don’t wanna be that close to other people thats the point of this trip is to get away from everybody.” “This one WOULD be perfect but it doesn’t have good access to the lake so it’s gonna be hard for those of us that have boats to get down there” “Bahorel the boat ramp is like 1/8 of a kilometer away we can just walk down to that…” “i mean we COULD… but it just kinda sucks” Also Bahorel has this super nice hammock system with like a bug net and a rain tarp, he will not sleep on the ground because he is scared of bugs and also the baby boy likes getting rocked to sleep. He always follows Feuilly around when he’s looking for a place to put his tent and he’ll set up his hammock right next to him. And he WAILS to Feuilly when they get back home because his SKINCARE ROUTINE GOT MESSED UP FEUILLY OHHH MY GODDDD

Grantaire: Not super big on camping but if he’s with his friends he’s having fun. There’s something about being in the woods that makes him quiet… but not in a sad way. He feels really peaceful when he isn’t dealing with a bunch of people in a big city (Even tho he loves the city). He always brings stuff so that he can draw or paint the mountains or his friends on the lake but he usually doesn’t get enough time to really make anything more than a sketch. He’s not scared of water but he avoids going in the lake if it’s not a part of it that’s deeper than his tummy. He won’t get in the boats unless there’s a lot of coaxing (usually by Enj)

Marius: LOVES being in the woods. I mean really loves it. Surprisingly it’s usually Marius that sends out the text to the group chat that’s like “hey is everybody free in a couple weekends? I wanna go camping!” He just really doesn’t like going by himself or going with just one or two people. He wakes up super early as well and usually will sit with Jehan and share coffee waiting for everybody else to wake up. Sometimes the two of them will go on a little walk together. He winds down pretty early in the evening though since he wakes up so early and is usually ready for bed by like 8:45pm. He’s also that guy that wants to eat all the berries on the bushes they walk past and has almost given Combeferre a heart attack like 7 times.  

Eponine: She’s… alright to camp with. She gets kinda grumpy in the mornings because of how cold it is but she warms up (both temperature wise, but also her mood) once she’s eaten and it’s gotten warmer out. She really just likes to lay in one of the communal hammocks and read book after book. She’ll also tag along with Gavroche on a lot of his little adventures. When she’s not with Gavroche or letting Combeferre show her all the little bugs and cool plants he found, she just sunbathes. For HOURS straight. Going camping for her is just a really long fun weekend to get her tan on.

Cosette: She’s so fun to camp with!! She’s like… the best person to camp with. She always does the planning and researches everything there is to do at and near the campsite. She knows all the hiking trails nearby and what areas have service and which ones don’t. She knows which campsites have lake/river access. She also makes the best camp coffee. It’s really the only time she drinks coffee unless it’s like… finals week or she’s got an early flight or something. She also ALWAYS has to tell her dad where they’re going. She shares her location and route with him on the drive there and texts him to let him know she’s about to lose service and texts him the second she has a bar of service. He’s just very protective and she wants to make sure that he knows she’s safe. Plus if anything DOES happen he knows where she’s going and can come save the day.

Musichetta: She sleeps like the entire time she’s camping. She’ll wake up in the morning and move from her tent or the camper and go lay in one of the communal hammocks near the fire ring and doze off with her hot chocolate… which she has spilled a couple times. Once it warms up a little she’s walk down to the lake or river and lay down, get her tan on, and take a nap. One of her favorite things is to go on hikes with Combeferre. He’s one of the only people in the group that can keep up with her. If they go with other people usually by the time they reach the end of the trail the rest of the group is about 2 miles behind them. One of the best parts of camping for her is going home and showering after not showering for like 3 or 4 days.

Gavroche: Spends the entirety of the first day trying to find the perfect tree to put the perfect swing on. He also likes to try to find any big rocks near the campsite and go bouldering and run around on top of them. He still really has that childhood curiosity about everything and no fear. He’ll run off trail trying to find deer or elk. If he doesn’t get back home with a couple scratches or bruises he doesn’t consider it a good camping trip. He also will swim out to Bahorel’s paddle board and Bahorel will grab him out of the water and throw him back in. Gavroche thinks it’s the most fun thing in the world even though he’s growing really fast and it’s taking a little bit more muscle every year for Bahorel to throw him as far as Gav wants him to.

[dontcallmecarrie]

in the hypothetical case that thanos, and the snap, happens: would justin get dusted? how would his surviving loved ones/acquaintances react to him being gone?

Going right for the jugular, I see.

Okay then...ooh boy, that would be a mess.

First, let me preface this with the fact that this situation could only be hypothetical, because in NHDD the Avengers are going to actually be a team instead of a hot mess and even if we were to stick closer to what happened in the MCU, Cabal would step up and get shit done and save the world— which would be hilarious on a number of levels, since, again, League of Supposed-to-be-Evil-but-just-Mostly-Vibing, but not the point.

Also, for the purposes of this thought exercise, only one person's getting snapped, on the basis of "more drama that way". Warning for suicidal ideation and thoughts, and lots of survivor's guilt.

.

So, okay. Um.

Remember how Justin Hammer and Tony Stark are foils? Since both are the only sons and heirs to their families, and end up being the CEOs of their respective corporations in the defense industry? [So's Ivan Vanko, for that matter, though for different reasons.]

If Thanos were to go "I'm going to cut everything in half", then...I think you see where I'm going with this, especially since Tony's life was part of the deal for the Time Stone.

...it would not be pretty.

Especially since this Justin's greatest strength is his charisma, he's unintentionally weaponized his status as the mom friend and has unironically spent practically his entire life supporting everyone around him, pushing them to be the best version of themselves they can be— he's very, very well-liked and respected, and would be sorely missed. To say the least.

...I don't think Spider-Man even needs to be dusted, for the Snap to nearly break Tony.

I mean, that's his rival, one of the only constants he had left in his life, has been there for almost as long as he could remember— and he was gone.

Just because Tony failed.

Just because Tony trusted the team to...

Justin was gone.

.

This Tony's more proactive than in canon, and when he gets pushed, his knee-jerk reaction is to push back.

So when this happens?

The minute the shock wears off and he remembers that time travel is a thing, you can bet he's going to find a way to fix it, or die trying.

No waiting for the team, no trying to move on— he'd made a mistake in trusting them, fine, he'd learn and move on and fix it. One way or another.

.

Victor von Doom survived.

Survived a bloody civil war, survived a decimation some were calling a Snap—

And then he found out who didn't, and almost wished he hadn't.

.

Ivan Vanko clung to his anger.

It was just about the only thing that kept him from going, kept him from falling into despair because the man who'd given him another reason for living was gone and he didn't know why he'd survived but so help him, he was going to make whatever entity was responsible pay.

...after he made sure Victor didn't kill himself, because dammit, if he was going to change the world and probably invent time travel, then he'd need all the help he could get.

.

It still didn't feel real.

Bucky had been in the middle of some of the worst of the fighting, had seen people crumpling into dust before his eyes, but... part of him still expected to wake up, for some reason.

To call him and get something other than his voicemail, to...

It didn't matter anymore.

He still had a granola bar stowed away in his pocket, of that brand Justin always kept on hand even though it was incredibly overpriced and it was probably nothing more than crumbs at this point— but he couldn't find it in him to throw it away.

.

Loki is the one who sees it happen. Is the one who has to make the calls afterwards, to let the other survivors know what happened.

Is the one who has nightmares about it, every time he closes his eyes and there's something cruel about his last memory of Justin to be of his confusion and fear and horror— instead of who he had been.

Loki...

Knows there's another way.

He is now one of the last surviving experts in magic on Earth, and while temporal magic was a nightmare and a half to even think about, it cannot be worse than what he has to live with now.

So he rolls up his sleeves, grabs every single notebook he'd ever filled out about arrays and sigils and runes, and sets to work.

.

Ivan dragged Victor out of his stupid castle with absolutely no opposition from the guards, which was alarming on a number of levels.

Victor's scarily silent, listless, and doesn't resist him even as he shoved him into the car and drove off. He just... goes along with it, which is so far from the man Ivan knew it was a special sort of terrifying.

So he broke the silence, and didn't bother with his brain-to-mouth filter as he made his way to one of the safehouses Justin had spent way too much time gleefully picking out furniture for.

"Okay, so I'm going to need your help, you're the one who knows magic and Loki's never shut up about how you get ideas he'd never thought about and I have no idea how temporal bullshit would work if we mix technology with magic but—"

A glance tells him that it was working— Victor's gone rigid and there's a spark in his eyes that hadn't been there before.

It wasn't much, but...it was something.

.

Loki entered a house that was a storm of pens, paper, and ink. Journals were scattered across the floor in different languages, and there was an ungodly tangle of red string and thumbtacks along the walls.

"You're using the wrong rune if you want stabilize that array," he called, and both Ivan and Victor whipped around to face him.

"Trying to figure out how time travels works?" Ivan asked, looking more haggard than he'd ever seen him— not that he could say much, considering— and he nodded.

"Good, join the club. The ideas that went bust are in that corner, if it's our calculations or we didn't draw something right, let us know? Because I have no goddamn clue how we're doing this."

.

Bucky had stopped by just for a safe place to sleep.

He had not expected the place to look like a bomb had gone off at some point. Or for Justin's friends to all be crowded around the kitchen table, bleary-eyed and nursing something probably overly caffeinated as they talked about something that flew way over his head.

"What's going on?"

The answer gave him pause.

...and then he remembered another genius with that exact same goal, and had an idea.

.

Tony had not expected to be kidnapped from his lab, but if he had, he would have expected to have woken up in, say, a cave. Maybe an abandoned warehouse, or some house dozens of miles from civilization.

Not a house that was a mess of paper, sticky notes, and sharpie just about everywhere he looked. Actually...weren't some of those his notes?

And then someone— not someone, Justin's friend— noticed he was awake, and said, "So you're researching time travel? Join the club."

.

...aka Tony and the entirety of Cabal join forces to right a wrong.

Screw acceptance, these guys are stuck at the bargaining stage of grief and if there's no known way to go back and undo the Snap, then damn it all they'll invent one.

One way or another, they'll fix it.

[blossom-hwa]

Prologue (CHAN) - |Breathe, and Live|

And so we begin the fluff :) Enjoy single dad chan!

Pairing: Chan x fem!reader

Genre: fluff, angst, slice of life, single parent!au

Triggers: allusions to sex

Word Count: 1.7k

Chan is lost, so lost, and sometimes it feels like the walls are caving in. But he’ll make it, he knows. He has to, for the two little boys cradled in his arms who he loves more than anything he has in the world.

SKZ Masterlist | Breathe, and Live | Touching Stars (TBZ teacher!au)

She tells him at precisely five fourteen in the afternoon, voice dead but panicked, on a crowded bus full of people, words crackling over the phone.

“Chan, I’m pregnant.”

The walls are silent. His laptop, too, since he paused the track to pick up the call. He can’t speak, can’t breathe. It deafens him. It squeezes at his head, pounds against his temples, fills his ears with static buzzing.

His vision blurs. Something rises in his throat.

Chan thinks he might throw up.

How? his mind screams. He’s always been careful, always used a condom. She takes birth control, takes the pill every morning after. It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t fucking make sense.

But you can never be sure, the rational part of his brain unhelpfully supplies.

The droning voice of his old sex-ed teacher back in Australia fills his mind. “The only way to be sure is to practice abstinence.”

Back then, he’d snorted quietly in the back with his friends, elbowed them and smirked and didn’t bother paying attention to the rest of the lecture. What was the point, anyway? Chan may not be as cautious as his parents – the impulse decision to stay in Korea for university, even after his family moved back, is proof of that – but he’s tried to be careful with this. Cautious, respectful, caring.

That kind of thing would never happen to him.

Somewhere, somehow, he hears her saying his name. Between the noise in the background and the ringing in his ears, it’s muffled. Disjointed.

“Okay,” he manages to choke out. “Okay.”

What else can he say?

Her voice sounds hoarse now, even over the tinny phone speakers. She’s crying, or on the verge of it – Chan’s known her long enough recognize the catch in her words that signals the lump in her throat. “I – Chan, I don’t –” She gasps. “I don’t think I want to keep it.”

It takes a moment to understand. But the minute he does, there’s only horror. Sharp, clear, precise. It pierces his chest, breaking through the foggy cloud of his brain.

He wants to scream, yell at her, how could she think of that? How could she not want to keep the child that’s depending on her?

But his sister’s voice cuts through his swirling thoughts. “No uterus, no opinion.” Hannah’s dark eyes, quiet but challenging, flash across the restaurant table, voice cutting through the debate going on across from her. “You don’t own anyone’s body but your own.”

He’d agreed then. He still agrees now.

So he takes a deep breath and tries to understand. They’re young. Stupid. He’s in his last year of university, she’s on a gap year. They’re barely old enough to function in society on their own. It’s understandable. And more importantly, it’s her body. Her choice.

Another deep breath, a bit shakier this time. He settles his mind. “Come home first,” he says quietly, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. “Come home first. We’ll talk about it then, okay?”

There’s a sniff on the other end. “Okay,” she breathes. “Okay.”

The call ends. Chan sits still for a moment, staring at some random section of the wall, thinking but not really seeing. The paint is peeling. The lights are glaring. The university studio, the place he thinks of essentially as a second home, suddenly feels cloistering. Unwelcoming. It feels like some disgusting, warped metaphor for his life.

He buries his head in his hands and tries to breathe.

. . .

Chan can barely face her parents. It’s not that he doesn’t want to. He really wants to tell things upfront, give them his apologies and promise that he’ll do anything to help them out, but they just look at him with smoldering, narrowed eyes. There’s no endearment in her mother’s expression anymore, no quiet pride in her father’s, as though he was another son. There’s only hatred. Disgust. Disappointment.

With a thick tongue and embarrassment coloring his face, he swears up and down that they used protection. She doesn’t say anything, just looks down with a sort of hopeless expression on her face and occasionally nods or shakes her head in accordance with what he’s saying.

They blame him. That much is certain. Privately, Chan thinks that’s a little unfair, but given that the woman bears the brunt of the pregnancy much more than the man, he lets it go. It’s understandable. After all, he blames himself a lot, too.

His parents act a little better. They’ve known him for all twenty-one years of his life, known how he always tries to treat people with respect, with care. Chan can still hear the disappointment and worry in their hushed voices over the phone, but it’s okay. It’s better than hatred.

She doesn’t want the child, she makes that clear. Her parents don’t want it either. They want to adopt it out.

On the other hand, Chan, well… it’s fucking hard. He’s barely finished with university, barely gotten started with his life. And he’s in the damn music industry. Unless he makes it big, there won’t be a lot of opportunities to sort out his life.

But he wants the child. Even though it’s going to be difficult taking care of her through the pregnancy, then making a path with the baby in tow, he wants it. He doesn’t want to give this up.

So they settle. She’ll have the baby. Once it’s born, she’ll take care of some of the bills if she can. Otherwise, Chan is the guardian.

It isn’t so bad, not at first. There’s the morning sickness to contend with, but they live together. It isn’t too hard for Chan to take some time to take care of her. They make the doctor’s trips together, and seven weeks into the pregnancy, they find out they’re having twins.

(Well, Chan is having twins. Her face screws up just the slightest amount, not in disgust but not in something nice either. Chan elects to ignore it and focuses on his own happiness.)

He works like a madman, sending off tracks to companies, submitting others for homework. He performs when he can, picking up any possible extra paychecks. She works, too, so money isn’t an issue yet. Chan also thanks all the higher beings above that she’s on a gap year, so he’s the only one adding homework to the equation.

The storm starts brewing in the fifth or sixth month, maybe. They’re having two boys, and they like to remind her that they’re there. She doesn’t feel well a lot of the time and has the crankiness to prove it. Still, she helps when she doesn’t have cramps, though she does complain about the weight gain.

But the number of nights where they’re up at odd hours only increases. The boys like to kick. Their mother wants to scream. Chan doesn’t even think he has a brain at this point – any cells up in his head have just been pounded to mush.

On one bad night, when she’s almost crying of exhaustion and the babies won’t stop fucking moving, Chan brings out his laptop. His fingers fly over the keyboard, tweaking soft beats, changing notes, composing a short little melody.

It’s rough, nothing substantial, something completely opposite from the polished tracks he makes for class. No lyrics. There’s just a simple piano melody backed by some guitar chords and it’s probably not going to do anything to help but Chan’s this close to just ripping out his hair and screaming for the entire city of Seoul to hear. He has to try something.

He almost deletes the track by mistake and has a mini heart attack, but he saves it with shaking fingers and brings the laptop over to the bed. She’s lying there, hair a mess, eyes red, but there’s some relief in her gaze as he puts the device on the sheets next to her and hits play.

It works. It fucking works. The babies slowly stop kicking, and she eventually falls asleep.

For just a moment, Chan sits on the edge of the bed and takes in the calm, soaks in the silence broken only by the track playing softly in the background. He rubs his eyes once, twice, clears the fog that obscured his vision.

Maybe he can do this. Maybe he can raise these two kids, even if he’s the only parent they have. Maybe there’s the tiniest fucking chance in the world that he can really be a good father, someone for his children to look up to and love. Maybe there’s a chance that he can really have this family.

Four months later, she gives birth to two healthy baby boys. Jisung is born first at 11:58 p.m. on September 14, while Yongbok comes next at 12:11 a.m. on September 15.

Chan holds them close as soon as he’s able, in awe of their tiny faces, their tiny limbs and tiny eyes.

How did he manage to create such life?

“Give them English names,” she says tiredly, her voice barely a whisper. She looks at them too, a bit sadly, with some care, but distantly. “They’re yours.”

A tinge of bitterness spikes in his chest, but it dissolves as he looks back into the faces of his two boys. She’s right. They are his. So he decides on Peter for the baby beginning to wake on his left arm, and Felix for the boy still sleeping soundly on his right.

She’s up and out of the hospital in a matter of days. A week later, she moves back into her parents’ home, leaving Chan standing in the doorway of their apartment, two babies in his arms.

“We’ll make it together,” he whispers, watching her car disappear down the street. “Together.”

Jisung makes a little gurgling sound. Felix scrunches his nose.

The tiniest of smiles slides across Chan’s face. Yes. They’ll make it together.

He takes a breath, then heads back inside.

If you enjoyed, please don’t forget to reblog and leave a comment to tell me what you thought! Thank you for reading and have a lovely day <3

(1 reblog = 1 prayer for Chan, he’s going to need it :/)

[pregnant-piggy]

Summer Games - four

Blaise Zabini x reader

masterlist

warnings: no pronouns used for the reader, mentions of food

A/N: the final part! I had a lot of fun writing something so light and without much drama and I hope you all liked it too! One more thanks to @omgrachwrites​ for the writing challenge and congrats on your milestone again -xxx-

written for @omgrachwrites​​ writing challenge with the prompts: ‘I can’t have this argument with you again.’ ‘But—’ ‘No, I’m done.’ and ‘Sorry… your hair was in your face… thought  I should move it so I could see you better.’

word count: 4.0k

Small rays of sunshine were peeking through the cracks in the curtains, lighting up the room Blaise was lying in. He rubbed his hands over his face and let out a sigh.

He was excited for today, to finally hear what team had won the Summer Games, but he was also disappointed that this was the last day and he had gotten nowhere with you. It was just like it had been at Hogwarts—there was flirting and joking and catching the other staring, but neither of you had ever done something beyond that and Blaise was afraid there was nothing more to it.

Groaning he got up from his bed and with little eyes he searched for his clothes. Draco was still asleep in the bed next to Blaise’s and Blaise figured that he wouldn’t wake any time soon. Last night you had told your friends that they didn’t have to get up early and Blaise knew that Draco would take full advantage of that by not coming out of bed until absolutely necessary.

Blaise sneaked downstairs silently, trying not to wake anyone. He was sure that you were awake already, but he didn’t know if your grandparents were still sleeping and he didn’t want to wake them. However, when he stepped into the kitchen he found your grandfather sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in his hand, reading the papers.

‘Morning,’ he greeted Blaise and this one nodded back. ‘Sleep well?’

‘After Draco shut up, yeah,’ Blaise said.

‘He talks a lot?’

‘He whines a lot,’ Blaise huffed and then he shrugged. ‘You learn to tune it out after a few years.’

Your grandfather chuckled and looked up from his newspaper. He nodded to the backdoor with somewhat of a grin on his face. ‘y/n’s outside.’

‘Thanks.’ Blaise shot the man a smile and left through the door, stepping into the backyard of the house.

The garden was your grandfather’s terrain. It was full of flowers and plants everywhere, making it feel like you stepped into paradise when entering the place. Bees were circling above the brightest flowers, creating a little symphony with their buzzing. There was a small path through the plants that led to a little patio in the back of the garden, where you were sitting on a bench with a book in your hand.

You belonged in that paradise, Blaise realised. The green and flowers around you complemented you, making you even more beautiful than Blaise thought you could get. You looked so soft and delicate it made his heart sore and all he wanted was to look at you.

That, however, seemed a tad creepy to him, so instead he walked the little path and sat down next to you. You looked up from your book and smiled at him.

‘Look at you, awake so early in the morning,’ you laughed and closed your book.

‘What can I say? You’ve infected me,’ Blaise shrugged. ‘It’s your fault, really.’

‘No, I think that subconsciously you just wanted to spend time with me,’ you said, pricking Blaise in his chest with your finger.

‘Of course, and it has nothing to do with Draco’s weird snoring at all,’ Blaise said sarcastically and you rolled your eyes, giving him a little shove. ‘Don’t roll your eyes at me!’ he cried. ‘It’s really annoying!’

Blaise brought his mouth to your ear and started to make snoring noises. You shivered at the weird feeling and tried to get away but Blaise wrapped his arms around you and held you close. Goose bumps formed on your arms and the more you tried to get free the more Blaise pulled you closer.

‘Blaise, please, stop!’ you screeched and placed both your hands on his chest to push him away.

Finally he pulled back and looked at your flushed face. You were staring back at him with a laugh on your face and your hands still on his chest. Suddenly Blaise became aware of how much he wanted to kiss you now you were so close. He could see sun reflecting in your eyes and the shine on your eyelashes. You were so close and it would be so easy to lean into you.

It costed Blaise all his strength to let go of you and avert his eyes.

You let a sigh fall from your lips when you pulled your hands away. Blaise’s body ached to get close to you, but he knew he wouldn’t until it was clear where exactly you were standing. He didn’t want to cross any lines if it meant ruining your friendship.

You got up from the bench and extended your hand to Blaise.

‘Come on,’ you said with a smile. ‘The others won’t be up soon, let’s do something fun.’

/\/\/\

An hour later you were walking with Blaise through the village as it was waking up. You had gone to Hank’s and now you were walking with his delicious cherry pastries in your hand. Though you loved the pastry, unfortunately it also meant that you couldn’t hold Blaise’s hand.

Having fun with Blaise was easy. You always had something to talk about, jokes came naturally and he understood you even when you couldn’t articulate your thoughts. When you were with Blaise time always passed too quickly and more than often you wished you had just a little longer with him.

You and Blaise sat down on a bench opposite of the library you were at yesterday and watched the people walk by in silence while you ate the cherry pastries.

‘Do your grandparents know we’re wizards?’ Blaise eventually broke the silence after he finished his pastry.

You nodded. ‘Yeah, they do. It’s kind of hard to hide something like that from them,’ you said, licking your fingers. ‘But we don’t really talk about it. They know about Hogwarts a bit, but not much more.’

Blaise looked at you and raised his eyebrow. ‘So if they know about magic, why’d we spent the entire week like muggles?’

You burst out in giggles and shook your head. ‘I thought it’d be fun,’ you shrugged. ‘We’ve just had seven years of Hogwarts, why not be a muggle for a week?’

You turned to Blaise and he chuckled softly.

‘What?’ you asked suspiciously.

‘There’s jam on your face,’ he smiled.

‘What? Where?’

You brought your hand to your cheek and tried to feel for the jam, but Blaise pushed your hand away. With big eyes you stared at him as he rested the palm of his hand on your jaw and wiped the cherry jam away with his thumb. It was as if your heart was beating out of your chest as he held his hand on your face a little longer, the heat radiating from his fingers.

Blaise cleared his throat and he quickly looked away, cleaning his finger with a napkin. You snapped out of your stare and looked at the side of Blaise’s face. He had been so close and your heart still hadn’t calmed down.

Pansy had told you time after time that Blaise liked you and a big part of you wanted to believe her, but it was at moments like these when he pulled away that you started to doubt.  And now you were done with the doubts.

Carefully you placed your hand on Blaise’s hand. ‘Blaise—’

However, before you could continue, Blaise took both your hands in his and he looked at you.

‘Tell me to stop and I will stop,’ he said and waited for a moment. When you said nothing he continued. ‘I need to tell you something. Something that’s been on my mind for years, but I’ve never had the guts for to tell. I’ve played this scenario over and over in my head, and sometimes it was good and sometimes it was bad—really bad.’

You stared at Blaise, waiting in anxiety. One part of you knew, suspected, what he was going to tell you, but you refused to get your hopes up. No matter what happened, you wouldn’t walk out one friend less; you would never let heartbreak get in the way of your friendship with Blaise.

‘I like you. Like a lot. And I’ve always been too much of a wuss to admit it, but this last week I’ve… I’ve started to think maybe you’re feeling the same way,’ Blaise confessed and pointed his hopeful eyes at you. ‘Which is why I’d really appreciate it if you said something right now…’

Before you could help it, a big smile spread on your face. A warm fire kindled inside of you, spreading the heat through your entire body. You took a deep breath and shifted a little closer to Blaise.

‘I like you too, Blaise,’ you admitted and relief fell from Blaise like a breath he was holding. ‘And I too, have been a wimp, too scared to confess.’

Blaise brought his face closer to yours and let out a nervous laugh. ‘Guess we’re both cowards like that.’

You were so close now that your noses were almost touching. His breath was hot on your lips, inviting you to come closer. There was a sheepishly happy grin on your face, and you feared it would never leave your mouth again.

‘Can I kiss you?’ you breathlessly asked, looking into Blaise’s dark eyes.

‘Please.’

Then his lips were on yours. Soft, sweet, pouring with feelings that had been bottled up for so long. His hands were somewhere in your waist or on your back—you didn’t know. All you could feel were his lips and the euphoria in your body, exploding with sparkles.

You did not ever want to let him go, but eventually you reached the end of your breath and had to catch some air. There was a stupid smile on your lips and Blaise was wearing the same grin. Slowly you kissed him again, and again and again, until your lips were bruised.

The feeling you had, was growing inside you with every minute you spent in Blaise’s arms. It made you warm and giddy, but you wouldn’t want it any other way. It was addicting, perhaps even dangerous, but it felt so right. Every moment now was a moment you wanted to saviour.

You rested your head on Blaise’s shoulder and he pressed a kiss on top of your head, lightly squeezing you into his side. ‘You know Draco and Pansy are gonna be awake soon?’ he asked. ‘And they’ll be looking for us?’

‘I don’t care,’ you mumbled and moved your head to look up at Blaise. ‘I way rather be here with you than deal with a grumpy Malfoy.’

‘Well, to be fair, anyone would,’ Blaise chuckled and he earned an elbow in his side.

‘You know what I mean,’ you said.

‘Of course, darling,’ Blaise smiled and he kissed your forehead. ‘I love being here with you too.’

/\/\/\

The field had been built the same as the first day of the festival, with little booths on the side and a stage in the back. Next to the stage stood a large wooden board, empty of any text other than ‘leader board’. On the stage stood a band, admired by the few people who were standing near.

The festival-site was already full of people waiting for the results. Blaise recognised some other Foxes, including Mica and Ivanna, two of the people who had been in his and Draco’s team for the scavenger hunt. Mica was standing with their friends close to the stage, shouting something to the lead singer, and Ivanna was sitting at the picnic tables in the middle of the field, with her baby and partner.

The sun was starting to its way down in the sky, as it was approaching late afternoon already. An immense surge of happiness hit Blaise as he walked onto the festival field with your hand in his and his two best friends trailing next to him. He looked to his side and a big smile spread on his face unconsciously when he saw your beautiful face was complimented by the golden streaks of the sun. It made you look like the angel he believed you were. He knew you were too humble to ever take that compliment, but Blaise would take all the time he had with you to convince you.

‘What are you looking at?’ you asked once you’d caught Blaise’s stare.

‘You,’ he simply said.

You huffed lightly and hid your face on Blaise’s shoulder. He chuckled and pressed his lips to the top of your head, earning a scoff from Pansy.

‘You’re all cute and stuff,’ she said, gesturing to your and Blaise’s hands. ‘But if you’re gonna be like this the entire time, I might puke. So keep the cheesy stuff to yourself, okay?’

You laughed and pushed Pansy’s shoulder. ‘Fine,’ you sighed. ‘But for the record, you’re the one who wanted us to be together.’

Pansy rolled her eyes and said nothing, but her smile gave her happiness away. She really was happy that Blaise and you were together, and just her reaction to the news this morning was enough proof—she had leaped from her chair and thrown herself at you when Blaise and you had walked hand-in-hand into the kitchen. So no matter how much she said she hated to see the two of you together, Blaise knew that his friend was only happy for him.

As was the same for Draco. He was never really one to openly show his real feelings, but even he had formed a joyful, and one might even say proud, grin on his face when he had seen you and Blaise. Of course, he would never admit it, but that smile was enough for Blaise.

‘So what do we do now?’ Blaise asked you, once your group had made in in the field.

‘The scores won’t be revealed till later this evening,’ you answered. ‘So we have some time to do fun things!’

‘Like what?’ Draco scowled, looking around the field, his eyes sticking to the people in front of the stage. ‘I’m not gonna dance, if that’s your plan.’

You laughed and shook your head. ‘I promise I won’t make you dance, but there are plenty of other things to do! Come on!’

You led your friends past all the booths, introducing them to some of the villagers they hadn’t met yet or having them try some local food.

The afternoon was spent by playing games—such as tossing bean bags, popping balloons and Pansy and Blaise even took a shot at apple-bobbing—and eating all the delicious treats the people of the village had made for the festival. Hank was back with his cherry pastries, ‘the last ones of the season’ he had said, the baker had made big sausage rolls that Draco refused to try, and Francis, owner of the greengrocery, sold large, juicy apples. Most time, however, was spent at the candy-booth. Aroon, the person behind the stall, sold many different kinds of sweets, from soft caramel toffee and butterscotch to colourful lollies and jelly beans in so many flavours it could compete with Bertie Botts every flavour beans. You bought a little bag of fudge, Pansy had a go at exciting looking round, chewy candies, Draco went for the peppermint-chocolates and Blaise bought hard candy in a nicely decorated glass jar.

All content with the purchases, you sat down at the picnic tables in the middle of the field and rested your feet for a while. While the sun was lowering on the horizon and you were all eating the sweets you had bought, you filled your friends in on the people around you.

‘That’s Mr. Kendall; he’s come to live here a few years ago but he’s never really mingled with his neighbours. It surprises me he even is here. Oh, that’s Kailey. I met her two years ago on a trip to London in a pub with my parents. We got to talking and found out we both have family living here—hey! Kailey, hi!’ You waved enthusiastically at Kailey and she smiled back, with her arm around another girl. ‘That must be her girlfriend, Irene. And, see that old woman over there? That’s Mrs. Mavis. My grandfather had a huge fight with her last year that lasted from the summer to Christmas. I don’t even know what they were fighting about, but I do know that she refused to give in even when the whole village stood on my grandfather’s side.’

Blaise, who was sitting opposite of you, rested his chin on his palm and watched you as you continued to ramble about everyone around. While you started a story about Miss Withinger and her naked cat, Blaise smiled as he watched how you fervently moved your hands and pulled faces along with your words. He could just watch you for hours and he wouldn’t be bored. You had something so lively and comforting inside of you and at moments like this, it shone through, like the sun breaking from the clouds.

You caught Blaise staring and shot him an easy smile. He opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by the music stopping. Turning around, he saw a tall, dark woman that he recognised as the head of organisation step onto the stage. She cleared her throat and the field with people fell silent.

‘Good evening, everyone!’ she said and flashed her white teeth as she smiled. ‘It is my pleasure to share with you the results of the fifty-sixth Summer Games!’

The woman started telling how the results would be revealed and Blaise scanned around the field. Between him and the stage was the homemade dancefloor and it was filled with participants of the Games. Many of them Blaise didn’t know, for he hadn’t met everyone during the games, but he did see a few familiar faces. Halfway between the stage and the picnic tables stood the Sly Foxes’ team captain, Alysia Gemeti. Blaise had only spoken briefly with her after their spat at the soccer games the first day and he had avoided her mostly. Although he wanted his team to win, of course, he felt that, with how Alysia had treated you, she didn’t really deserve the victory.

On Blaise’s right, at one of the other tables, sat Raoul with both his dads. The boy wasn’t really listening to the woman and was, just as Blaise, looking around the field. When he saw Blaise a big smile broke on his face and he waved at him. Blaise waved back and laughed when Raoul made a face like he’d fall asleep.

A big man close to the stage was roaring with laughter and Blaise felt a pang of anger in his stomach when he realised who it was. It was the man who had pushed you over in the soccer game. Blaise hadn’t seen him the rest of the festival and the man hadn’t apologised to you at all.

Before Blaise could anger himself more, however, the woman on the stage caught his attention as she was walking towards the board, where two men had gathered below.

‘And now the moment we have all been waiting for so long!’ the head of organising announced. ‘Starting with the last place! Drumroll, please,’ she said to the drummer on stage. ‘Fourth place goes to… the Raging Angels!’

There was a collective groan from the Angels and a modest applause from the other teams.

‘Well done, Angels! With forty-two points you were so close to being in third place,’ the woman on stage continued. ‘However, that place is taken, with forty-five points, by… the Oiled Machines!’

Blaise watched the man who’d tipped you over slam his fist on the table and curse to whoever was listening around him.

‘They don’t deserve that,’ Blaise whispered as he turned around to his friends. ‘They were awful players!’

You took Blaise’s hand over the table and gave it a soft squeeze. ‘I know, but I’m long glad they didn’t win,’ you whispered back. ‘They did three years back and they were insufferable the next festival.’

The applause for the Machines was a lot softer than for the Angels, but Blaise didn’t know if it was because the people didn’t want to applause for them or because they were too anxious for the next results.

‘Two teams left!’ the woman on stage said and her eyes cast over the crowd on the ground. ‘The Sly Foxes—’ a loud cheer erupted from the Foxes on the dancefloor ‘—and the Red Titans—’ all the Titans, including you and Pansy, shouted at the mention ‘—are battling for the victory. It was a tight race, with both teams neck-and-neck throughout all the games, but eventually the scavenger hunt set the difference.’

The woman gestured at the board, where the Angels and Machines’ scores had been placed at the bottom. One of the men hung two little boards with ‘53’ and ‘57’ on the bigger board.

You were still holding Blaise’s hand over the table and he tightened his grip. ‘Good luck,’ he muttered to you and you smiled back.

‘With four points difference, the winners of this year’s Summer Games are… the Red Titans!’

The loud cheering that erupted from every Titan around was almost as loud as the cheering of the entire Hogwarts student-body at a quidditch match. You and Pansy jumped up from your seats and shouted and embraced each other. You joined the rest of the Titans, screaming and laughing in euphoria.

‘Well, they did it,’ Blaise laughed and he patted Draco on his back. ‘Just like they said.’

‘Just like they said,’ Draco nodded and although he had lost there was a smile on his face.

All of the Titans went to the stage where you all received a plastic medal. The team captain, Wyatt Holm, got a big trophy and he victoriously held it above his head, roaring like a madman.

Music started to play again and Draco and Blaise watched as you and Pansy celebrated your win with the team. People came up to congratulate you and when finally the crowd became a little less busy, the sky was already turning dark. The band played a slower song and as couples started to dance on the dancefloor, Blaise walked up to you and put out his hand.

‘May I have this dance?’

You threw your arms around Blaise’s neck and laughed. ‘Of course.’

For a while you swayed in silence. You were resting your head on Blaise’s shoulder and he had his cheek on top of your head. Your hand fit perfectly in his and as you twirled slowly around, Blaise could only think that this was what he wanted forever.

You hummed softly along to the music and Blaise felt the vibrations in his chest. He looked down at you and the smile made its way to his mouth without him trying.

After a while you looked up and tilted your head to Blaise. ‘I like this,’ you said softly, like loud words would ruin the moment.

‘I like you,’ Blaise said back and you smiled.

‘I like you, too,’ you whispered and bumped your nose with Blaise’s.

You giggled and that was enough for Blaise to give into the moment and forget everyone around him. He captured your lips in a kiss that was sweeter than all the candy at the booth combined. His heart fluttered and he could have stayed in the moment forever, if it wasn’t for the music to change.

Laughing and with hot cheeks he pulled back from you. You started to dance to the new music and quickly you were joined by Pansy, who brought Draco along. He said he refused to dance, but you took his hands and swung him around on the dancefloor. Pansy took Blaise’s arms and danced around next to you and Draco, who couldn’t help the big smile on his face.

‘I told you the Summer Games would be fun!’ you yelled as you threw your head back.

Blaise looked at you and Pansy and Draco, and he had to admit you were right; the Summer Games were fun.

- - - - - - -

taglist

general HP: @harry-pottery-barn​​ @potters-heart​​ @kingalrdy​​ @missswriter​​ @figlia–della–luna​​@sexysirius​​ @awritingtree​​ @bi-andready-tocry​​ @lilulo-12fanfiction​​ @ananad1​​ @treestarrrrrrrr​​ @your-hispanichufflepuff​​ @thefandomplace​​ @theeicedamericano​​ @girllety​​ @moonstarrnghtsky @swearingsolemnly​​ @weasleydream​​ @secretsthathauntus​​ @amixedwitch​​ @izzyyy-1​​ @gryffindorgirl​​ @kitkatkl​​ @catching-the-train-to-hogwarts​​ @nyotamalfoy​​​

MASTERLIST

[ssa-montgomery]

every night I'm dancing with your ghost

Word Count: 1781

Summary: JJ is still struggling with Emily's "death" and keeps having nightmares, Emily is there to comfort her.

Characters: JJ x Emily

Warnings: Angst, LOTS of angst, canon level violence, Emily's "death" scene, blood, hurt/comfort

A/N: I would like to start this by saying, I'm sorry. Another Criminal Minds request! I may have gone a little overboard with the angst with this one but this is where my mind went as soon as I read the request and I just had to write it. Feel free to send me some fluffy prompts to make up for this xD I hope you enjoy it either way!

Prompt: “You’re okay. Breathe. Just breathe. Open your eyes. Come back. it’s okay. It’s over now. You’re okay. Wake up. Please wake up. Don’t do this to me. I love you so fucking much. Come back.”

Feedback is what motivates me to work so please let me know what you think! Reblogs are also greatly appreciated.

Taglist is open!

Masterlist

JJ broke away from the group following a faded map on the old warehouse wall down a corridor towards the opposite side of the building. She had entered with the rest of the team, following quickly behind the SWAT team that cleared the path in front of them but she was now only vaguely aware that there was anyone else in the building with her. Her mind was focused on one person and one person only. She wasn't even aware of her own actions as the fear took over every sense in her body. The sound of her footsteps echoing off the high walls and the hammering of her own heartbeat in her ears drowned out every other sound in the building. Her mind raced through every worst-case scenario and it felt like no matter how much she tried she couldn't slow down enough to draw a proper breath into her lungs. She skidded around a corner, grabbing at the wall to balance herself before she took the steps in front of her two at a time. She didn't flinch -not even taking a second to acknowledge it - as a sharp pain shot up from her ankle that she had landed on awkwardly when she hit the ground. Any pain was just something she could focus on after she'd found Emily. That was the one thing she was certain of, she needed to find Emily. Before it was already too late.

There was the sound of something heavy crashing to the ground at the end of the hall and without a seconds hesitation, JJ sprinted towards the noise. Her heart hammered against her ribs feeling like the pressure could break them at any second as she fought with the heavy metal door that led to the source of the sound. Finally, the door gave out under her weight and swung open. JJ stumbled inside and took in the room in front of her. She saw the source of the crash, a broken table that lay splintered on the floor. Then she stopped, everything finally catching up to her now that she had stopped running. The fear of the sight in front of her paralysing her.

"I need medical now! I need medical in the basement." She practically shouted into her earpiece as she rushed towards the shattered table. This couldn't be happening. It couldn't be real.

Emily was collapsed on the floor next to the wreckage her chest heaving as she grasped at her stomach. One of the splintered pieces of wood was pierced through her skin, her blood soaking through her shirt. As JJ got closer she could see that she was fighting to stay conscious, she wasn't sure if she even knew she was in the room with her. When she finally reached her side she dropped to her knees seeing now just how bad her injuries were.

"Hey Em, it's me. It's JJ." She said, choking back the tears that threatened to spill over. She tried her best to keep her voice steady to calm Emily and reassure her that she was there with her as she took her hand in hers lacing their fingers together.

"JJ." Emily smiled weakly, her voice was shaky and it was clear it was taking most of her energy to speak. JJ squeezed her hand tightly but when Emily tried to do the same she barely flexed her fingers. She was losing her strength too quickly. "It's too late JJ, let me go."

"No, no don't say that. Emily it's going to be okay. I've called for medics and they'll be here soon. The rest of the team knows where we are, okay? They're going to be here soon and you'll be okay." JJ nodded frantically, she didn't know who she was trying to convince, Emily or herself. She took her hand that had been resting against her side and cupped her cheek, stroking the skin. The blood on her hands left streaks on her face where her fingertips touched her skin. Emily turned her head into the palm of her hand and JJ could feel how shallow her breath was as it brushed against her skin.

"I love you JJ." Emily's voice was quiet now, barely above a whisper. JJ almost felt her lips against her palm more than she actually heard the words she was saying. She was struggling to keep her eyes open now and no matter what she tried she couldn't get her to stay focused on her anymore. JJ's hand closed around empty air and when she looked down she saw that Emily's hand had slipped from hers. When she looked back up to try and convince her to take her hand again her eyes were closed.

"Emily? Emily no, no, no! You're okay. Breathe. Just breathe. Open your eyes. Come back. It's okay. It's over now. You're okay. Wake up. Please wake up." JJ sobbed trying to hug her as best she could in this awkward position, pulling her body closer to her. "Don't do this to me. I love you so fucking much. Come back. Please come back to me, I'm so sorry Emily."

"JJ! JJ wake up it's me!"

JJ shot up straight, her hands grasping at the duvet underneath them as she snapped her eyes closed against the harsh, bright light flooding the room. She blinked trying to fight against the light burning her eyes and gather her surroundings. Her adrenaline from the fear was still coursing through her body making her recoil from the hand touching her arm. She was disoriented and it took her a few moments of trying to control her breathing to recognise the voice that was pleading with her to calm down, trying to reassure her.

"Emily?" She panted, her mind finally slowly enough to let her focus and register that it was Emily sitting on the bed next to her. Emily placed her hand back on her arm and once JJ was certain it was really her, that she was really here she surged forward and wrapped her arms around her as tightly as she could. "I was so scared, Emily I thought you were - I thought-"

JJ stumbled over her words growing frantic again as she tried to explain everything to Emily. She could feel her chest tightening and the only thing that was keeping her somewhat sane was Emily's arms around her. Emily pulled her closer against her chest and let her bury her face into the crook of her neck as she cried. She rubbed her shoulder in circles hoping the steady rhyme would start to calm as she gently shushed her. Once JJ's crying began to slow she pressed a kiss to her hair before pulling back to meet her gaze.

"You're safe now JJ, it's okay. It was just a dream." Emily promised wiping away the tears streaming down her face. She hated seeing her so upset like this and all she wanted to do was make her feel better.

"No Emily, that's the thing. It's not just a dream because it actually happened and I just keep reliving it." JJ choked out with a shake of her head. She turned away from Emily's gaze as she started to explain it. The nightmares had been getting better ever since Emily came home from Paris and it had been a while since she had one this bad. "I keep having that awful dream of you lying on that warehouse floor dying while there was nothing any of us could do to help you."

"But just remember how that situation ended JJ, I didn't die. I'm right here with you." Emily moved to sit next to JJ, forcing her to look her in the eyes again as she ran her fingers through her hair and pushed it off her face. "There was something you could do to save me from that situation and you did. You were there for me and you were the reason I survived all those months alone in Paris. You can't keep blaming yourself because the team didn't find me sooner, because you couldn't change how it played out. It's not fair to you."

"I just feel like there was something more I could have done, maybe if I had just gotten to Quantico sooner. Maybe if I'd found more information." JJ sighed bringing her knees up to her chest as she slipped back into that old habit of blaming herself for everything that happened.

"Oh sweetheart, no. Don't, don't do that to yourself. I made my decisions and I am the only one responsible for that. You did absolutely everything you could and I couldn't love you more for it." She reassured her, wrapping her arms around her shoulders again.

JJ nodded then, finally letting herself relax for the first time that night. She let Emily pull her into her side and melted at the contact breathing in the smell of her perfume to ground herself. Emily had always been a source of comfort for her and no matter what was happening she was there to help her through it, she always had been. She'd never loved someone as much as she loved Emily.

"Come on, let's get you back to bed. It's late. Do you want some tea to help you sleep?" Emily asked gently stroking her cheek - that she was sure was now red and puffy from all her crying - as she waited for a response. Her eyes were filled with a warmth that put JJ at ease when she stared into them.

"Yes please." JJ's voice was hoarse from screaming out Emily's name in her sleep, followed by the crying which she was sure didn't help. Emily nodded at her with a smile and untucked her from her side as she stood up from the bed. She turned to walk out of the room towards the kitchen but she felt something tug at her wrist. When she looked back over her shoulder she saw that JJ was holding onto her wrist, running her thumb over the back of her hand. "Thank you, Emily."

"Of course, that's what I'm here for. Always." Emily said leaning down to press a kiss to her lips before leaving to get her cup of tea.

[wisteriashouse]

falling (ii). 

pairing: rengoku kyoujurou x reader

genre: dark

word count: 6184

remarks: this was so un-fluffy and its probably what i’ve struggled most with writing to date skdfgd as usual, please like, comment or reblog if you like it <3 

ii. into your trap

One mistake is all it would take for everything to come crashing down.

That’s what had happened to the man before you, the man whose blood you’d spent hours scrubbing out of the carpet until every bit of crimson had been washed away. Because of a single moment of greed, he’d stolen a coat off a customer who’d ended up as the demon’s next meal - and that very coat had been a dead giveaway to the demon slayer investigating the disappearance of his relative. You wouldn’t be like that, you remind yourself, a tray in your hands as you make your way down the corridors of the brothel. You would never let a moment of emotion cloud your judgement and cause you to slip up. You can’t afford to.

It's all just for survival. That’s the reason why you’re the only one still alive today.

The rest before you have all been devoured. 

Shifting your tray to one hand, you take a deep, slow exhale and smile, curving the corners of your mouth up at just the right angle. The mask you’ve perfected over years of deception falls seamlessly into place. You raise your hand to the door.

“Rengoku-san?” You knock, raising your voice to a bright and energetic timbre. “Are you still asleep? May I come in?”

Rengoku Kyoujurou. The man with burning conviction in his eyes. The demon slayer here to destroy the only life you know. The person who you have to kill with your own hands.

The demon you serve isn’t a fool, in fact, far from that - it is more than aware of the power and skill a person would have to possess to earn the title of a Pillar, and it knows that it has no chance of winning in a direct confrontation with him. That’s why the task has been relegated to you. Demon slayers might know breathing techniques that allow their physical prowess to surpass even demons, but that’s the very flaw with their training - that they’ve been taught to battle demons, and only demons. 

You, on the other hand, are very much human, with the ability to slip between the gaps in their guard, the chink in their armour - the kindest ones have always the easiest to fool, after all.

Which is why you’re taken by surprise when there’s no answer from within. Wary at the lack of response, you rap your knuckles against the door once again, more urgent this time. Worry gnaws at your insides - what if he’s somehow already discovered the truth of this place, and has decided to flee before you can accomplish your task? The thought of the consequences you’d have to bear turns your stomach, and your knocking turns slightly more urgent. “Rengoku-san? Rengoku-san, are you inside?” 

“Is there something you need from me?”

You whirl around in surprise at the voice, heart leaping into your mouth. Behind you, Kyoujurou stands in the hallway, bathed in the early morning light streaming in through the open windows. When your eyes meet his, he smiles at you in greeting, lips curving up naturally in a radiant grin. “It’s a beautiful morning today, so I went for a walk to watch the sunrise!”

“That sounds lovely.” You tell him with a smile of your own, relief seeping into your bones - he’s none the wiser than he was when he first stepped into the brothel, and you intend to keep it that way until you slit his throat. Holding up the tray in your hands, you’re quick to observe the way his eyes fall first on the plate of roasted sweet potatoes cubes - so you were right about the scent you picked up on him when he saved you from falling yesterday. “I was about to bring breakfast up to your room, but I didn’t think you would be awake this early. I’ll get up earlier next time so you can eat before you start your day. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, you know!”

“There’s no need to force yourself to wake up early for my sake!” Kyoujurou laughs, stepping over to slide open the door to his room for you. “Please, come in!”

The bedding has already been kept away in the oshiire, his few belongings neatly arranged on the low table in the corner of the room. When Kyoujurou moves to clear them so that you can put the tray down, you catch a glimpse of several sheets of paper with scribbles all over them, a stray black feather peeping out from under the corner of the tatami. 

Your eyes narrow at the sight. The kasugai crow might turn out to be a problem, almost as bad as having unintended witnesses, but you have plenty of ways to ensure its message never gets back to the demon slayer corps, just as you had done with the previous one. 

For now, the crow is the least of your worries - it’s nothing compared to the danger the man before you poses.

Completely oblivious to the thoughts running through your mind, Kyoujurou gestures at the table with a hand. “Feel free to put it down here!”

Your smile is painted back onto your face the very instant he glances at you, as easily as a brush dancing across paper. “Please excuse how simple it is. The potatoes aren’t cut very well, so they might not be evenly cooked.” You say, dropping your voice to a more shy, apologetic tone, just like how the entertainers from last night had tuned their instruments. “It was a little difficult to use a knife, so forgive me for that.”

Your words seem to jolt Kyoujurou into remembering the events from yesterday, and his eyes instantly dart down to inspect your hands as you set the tray down before him. They’re bandaged lightly with white gauze, something that you’d gotten up early to do this morning, and yet even with them on, making the potatoes convincingly uneven had still taken you multiple attempts. “Don’t worry about the potatoes. I’m sure they’ll taste wonderful, if your cooking last night was anything to go by! Do your hands still hurt?” Kyoujurou’s gaze is soft and filled with concern as he looks up at you, and you glance away with an appropriate degree of shyness in response. 

“The scalding was a little more severe than I expected, but that was my fault. You don’t have to worry about it!” You reassure him, and as expected, he only gets more concerned when you try to brush off his kindness. “It’s just a minor inconvenience, and the worst that’ll happen is Masako-san’s nagging.” You sigh wistfully, the words murmured softly under your breath. “Ahh… I wish we had more hands in the kitchen here. It would be a lot easier to handle the cooking.”

From the way Kyoujurou’s eyes glance up at you, he’s heard every word you said.

You’ve set your trap.

“Well, I suppose that’s just how it is! It’s totally alright, though, I’ll just make do with what I have!” You smile energetically at the man sitting before you, although from the troubled expression on his face, there’s still more that he wants to say. “What I am sorry about is that you might have to wait for a while to have the meal I promised to make for you. I want to be in a good condition when I cook for you, so that you eat only my best!” 

He seems taken aback by your enthusiasm for a moment, before his smile widens. “Take all the time you need!” Kyoujurou says kindly. “I’m sure that I can wait.”

From the way he beams at you, you’re confident that he knows nothing of your true intentions - relieved with how you’ve been doing so far, a silent sigh of relief leaves your mouth. Rising to your feet, you give him a small wave. “Well then, I’ll be going first. You can just leave the dishes here, I’ll come back for them later-”

“Have you eaten?” Kyoujurou asks.

The sudden question takes you by surprise. Preparing the sweet potatoes had taken longer than you’d thought it would, so you had quite forgotten about your own food in your rush to bring Kyoujurou’s food to his room. “Well, no, but I’m sure I can find something in the kitchen-”

“If you are available, then please eat with me!” He gestures opposite him at the table. You clutch the tray tightly in your hands while your mind races. Offering to let you sit with him at the table, to share his meal with you, does he perhaps suspect that you’ve tampered with his food?

Cold sweat prickles at the nape of your neck, but you fight to keep your voice light. “Oh? Did I make too much food for you to finish, Rengoku-san?” 

Rengoku Kyoujurou, the man who holds your very life in his hands, only smiles warmly in response to your question.

“Food always tastes better when shared!” He explains to you jovially. There is no sign of any hidden intention or agenda in his gaze, his eyes clear and honest. His smile turns a hint amused as he regards you. “And was it not you who said that breakfast was the most important meal of the day? You should take care of yourself too!”

You take a seat in front of him, glad to have a reason to hide your shaky knees. Calm down, calm down, you repeat to yourself in an attempt to slow your racing heart. He hasn’t noticed a thing. Don’t panic and give yourself away. “I suppose I did,” you say, smiling at the man opposite you as you raise your chopsticks to take some natto for yourself. Kyoujurou grins and immediately reaches for the sweet potatoes, popping them into his mouth. This time, when he begins to exclaim ‘delicious!’ once more, you let yourself breathe, chewing slowly on the food in your mouth.

Everything, you think, as you watch Kyoujurou compliment your cooking with vigour, is going smoothly.

 On the second day, just as you’d planned, Kyoujurou joins you in the kitchen after breakfast.

At the sight of him grinning at you in the doorway, you feign pleasant surprise and gratitude by clasping your bandaged hands over your mouth, eagerly welcoming him into your kitchen. Behind you, the door to the meat storage is locked tight with a padlock, hidden from view with several crates of spices to mask the smell. 

He doesn’t have a clue that his fellow slayer’s head sat on your kitchen table last night.

By your estimates, you have roughly a week to kill Rengoku Kyoujurou, probably less. You’ve stayed up for the entirety of last night after your meeting with it, wracking your mind for reasons and excuses to get him to stay - but regardless of how many lies you might be able to manipulate him into believing, he will eventually figure out that Yugou Fukuzashi isn’t coming back, and when he does, you know his suspicion of this place will increase hundredfold.

That would make your job a whole lot harder, so with the deadline of a week hanging over your head, you set the first part of your plan to lower his guard around you into motion.

While you’ve heard of the near supernatural strength of the demon slayers, you’ve never actually met one in person aside from Yugou Fukuzashi (who by the time of your encounter had already been dying from blunt force to the head, courtesy of the man whose mistake had gotten you into this mess in the first place). However, you have no doubt that any of them, much less Kyoujurou, would be able to overpower you with ease. All you have on your side is your identity as a human and your cunning.

You’ll just have to make the best of what you have.

Hence, you think it’s more prudent to take things slow - like a spider approaching the prey wandering onto its web, you cannot allow yourself to move recklessly, or you’ll get caught in your own threads and fall to a demise of your own creation.

Kyoujurou fumbles with the knife at first, when you set him to work scraping the scales off some tuna, and part of you almost hesitates if you’ve gotten the wrong man - surely no Pillar trained in swordsmanship would be so awkward holding a blade. Still, you correct and guide him patiently, and he progresses under your tutelage faster than you expect. With his help, you finish lunch preparations slightly earlier than you expected to, leaving both of you with a small window of free time to sit down for a bit of a break.

“You learn fast, Rengoku-san.” You comment brightly as he sits at your kitchen table, his fingers drumming idly next to a dark stain in the tabletop. At your compliment, he pauses to grin, clearly pleased.

“Well, I had a good teacher.” He says and you laugh, picking up the knife you’d be using to put it aside. On the surface of the cold steel, the reflection of your smile is twisted, distorted. Casually, you lean forward. “Well then, how about letting your teacher give you a little test?”

Kyoujurou blinks, the corners of his mouth twitching up into a smile. “Sure!” He agrees, amicably. “What test would you have me participate in?”

You rise to your feet. “Close your eyes, it’s a surprise.” You urge. For a moment, Kyoujurou holds your gaze, before his eyes slip shut slowly, his breathing slow and even. “Yes?”

Your hand drifts along the shelves, your fingers coming to rest against the lid of a tightly sealed jar, tucked out of sight in a corner. There’s no label on it, but you’re more than familiar with the substance that lies inside. You’ve used it plenty of times now, after all.

Cyanide.

Should you try it now? With Total Concentration Breathing, a demon slayer should be able to slow the spread of poison by slowing their circulation, but you have no idea how effective it will be on a man of Kyoujurou’s caliber. Chewing on your bottom lip, you hesitate, torn between wanting to get your job done as fast as possible and worrying that you might fail.

If you do fail, you’ll be as good as dead. He wouldn’t even need his sword, with the strength in his arms alone, he could probably tear your head clean off your shoulders.

The thought makes cold sweat slide down the back of your neck.

“Are you going to make me taste test something?” Kyoujurou asks curiously, and your hand jerks off the jar in an instant, so quickly you almost knock the bowl adjacent to it onto the ground. “Should I continue to keep my eyes closed?”

“Of course! Patience, Rengoku-san.” You say, trying to hide the tremble of your hands, even though you can see his eyes are still firmly shut. The demon had warned you about the demon slayers’ strong survival instinct, but this should be just coincidence… mere coincidence, that must be it. Still, because you’re wary now, you turn away from the jar on your shelf. Not now.

 Reaching for the fruit basket instead, your shaking fingers close around a fruit and you turn back to hold it to Kyoujurou’s nose. A guileless smile still sits on his lips, as if he has no idea about the internal turmoil churning deep in you at the very moment. You take a deep breath and swallow, eyes fixed intently on his face.

“Guess what this is.” Kyoujurou’s nose twitches slightly for a moment, brows furrowing as he attempts to place the scent. Barely a second later, a triumphant grin passes his lips and he states his answer with full confidence. “Peach.”

“Wow, you’re good at this.” You say, exchanging the peach in your hands for something else. Kyoujurou beams excitedly at the praise. “Here, what about this?”

“Sweet potato!”

“Right again. What about this one?”

You hold up a mushroom under his nose, and instantly you see his lips pull into a frown. “It… doesn’t smell good. I seem to remember Kochou telling me something about this scent before…”

All of the hairs at the nape of your neck prick at once and you press your lips, trying your best to subdue the feeling of terror churning in the pit of your belly. “Of course it doesn’t.” You say, forcing your voice to take on a light, innocent tone. “Open your eyes.”

Kyoujurou opens his eyes slowly, staring down curiously at the mushroom you have in your hands before his eyes widen in shock. “[name], put that down, that’s poisonous!”

You lick your lips, taking a deep breath to calm yourself down. “Of course it’s poisonous.” You hum lightly, waving the mushroom at him. “The first rule of cooking that my student should learn is to never eat things you don’t recognise, especially when it comes to mushrooms and berries. This is the death cap, probably one of the most poisonous mushrooms in the country! I’m surprised you could recognise it by its scent.”

He nods, listening intently. “Most people wouldn’t, but I have a… friend who is a pharmaceuticals expert! She deals with all manner of poisons and their cures, so I have some knowledge about them.” He tells you, and you have to contain your sigh of frustration. This new tidbit of information makes your job a whole lot harder.

“You have a lot of… interesting friends.” You make sure he sees you toss it into the bin before he can ask you what lethally poisonous mushrooms are doing in your kitchen.

Kyoujurou only grins. “They’re all very honourable people! I am blessed to have met each and every one of them!” His smile widens as he looks at you. “It is my fortune to have met someone like you here as well!”

You stare at him in the middle of taking a seat opposite him, taken completely off guard for a moment. “What?”

“When I first got here, looking for my friend, I was actually rather concerned about him! He’s investigating something dangerous, you see, so I was sent to provide him with some support.” Kyoujurou explains, and your hands fist the cloth of your hakama under the table. “Since there is nothing for me to do but wait, I thought that I might spend the next few days in worry! However, cooking with you makes time fly by, so thank you for that!”

You bite your lip at his words, before you smile at him, trying to ignore the uncomfortable feeling that has suddenly lodged itself in the back of your throat.

“It’s my pleasure, Rengoku-san.”

That night, after Kyoujurou has long gone to bed, you stand over the table the two of you had sat at together this morning, knife in hand as you slice carefully at the fish on your cutting board. The fugu meat falls away in clean chunks, but the meat isn’t what you’re after - reaching inside, you pull out its inner organs with a pair of tweezers, putting them in a bowl next to you, careful not to get any on your gloves.

It takes much longer than cyanide to extract, but it’s over a thousand times more potent. Only twenty five milligrams of it is needed to kill an adult man, according to your experience. The victim first experiences paralysis of the muscles, before the poison moves to the diaphragm and the muscles of that move the ribs, ultimately leading to failure of the lungs. The victim then dies from asphyxiation.

Without his lungs, all his Total Concentration Breathing will be rendered useless.

Tetrodotoxin is a water soluble toxin, it is odourless and tasteless, and most importantly, there is no known antidote to it.

You set down the knife. One of the eyeballs you’d removed stares at you from the bowl, accusation in its shiny, bloody depths, but you swallow and pick up the bowl anyway, moving towards the distiller to extract what you need from its contents.

“It’s nothing personal, Rengoku-san.” You mutter to yourself.

It’s just a matter of survival here, after all.

On the second day, the robbery happens.

Or rather, well, it attempts to happen.

You had planned to collect some ingredients from your usual vendor outside the gate, dropping slight hints to Kyoujurou here and there when he’d been helping you with dinner preparation the day before. The moment you stepped out of the back door of the brothel, you had found Kyoujurou already waiting there with his usual bright grin, the early rays of the breaking dawn setting him alight in a blaze of red and gold.

This time, you could not bring yourself to feign surprise, instead smiling and telling him of your gratitude as the two of you began walking down the street. Due to the early hour, the red light district is oddly quiet, empty streets almost peaceful except for the occasional drunkard reeking of alcohol stumbling from one tavern to another.

The third time you see Kyoujurou wrinkle his nose at the smell, you turn to him, head tilted.

“Are you not fond of alcohol?”

He shakes his head, and out of the corner of your eye, you see that his usual smile has dimmed. “Alcohol muddles the mind and dulls the reflexes! It would compromise my capabilities.” Kyoujurou tells you, as the two of you walk side by side. You steer him into a narrow side alley, your shoulders brushing against each others. “I prefer not to drink unless the occasion calls for it, since I must always be at my peak physical condition at any given time.”

You let your mouth pull into a confused frown. “Why would you need to be-”

Something steps into the alley in front of you, blocking out the sunlight and casting long shadows across the ground. You glance up to see two ruffians standing in your path, leering grins on their faces. Your footsteps falter, before coming to a stop completely. Next to you, Kyoujurou does the same.

“Oi.” One of the men call, his sneer only growing. “Pay up! Don’t you know that you’re stepping on our territory?”

Kyoujurou frowns at their words, turning to whisper into your ear. “Are we intruding on their territory?” He asks, and you shake your head, stepping forward to confront them.

“This is a back alley behind Momoshizu.” You say, your voice level as you point at the brothel right next to them. “Unless you’re a dog guarding the back entrance to a brothel or a stray cat chasing rats for a living, you don’t have territory here. If you want to extort money from someone, do it outside the walls of the pleasure district.” Your eyes narrow. “Penniless trash like you don’t belong here.”

“[name]!” Kyoujurou sounds aghast at your barbed words, but you lean back to whisper to him. “If you give in even a little, they’ll start harassing you for more. It’s better to turn them down from the start.”

“Yes, of course,” Kyoujurou says, brows furrowed in worry as he regards the two men before you, “but this could turn out dangerous, wouldn’t it be better to call the law enforcement instead?”

“Well, yes, if there was any law enforcement in the first place-”

A low chuckle interrupts the two of you, and you turn around to see one of the men pulling something from his pocket. Silver glints in the early morning light and you take a step back, eyes widening. “Rengoku-san, they have a knife!”

Kyoujurou’s face is impassive, and for a moment you wonder what he’s thinking about when he suddenly smiles again, his usual grin returning to his face as he rests a hand on your shoulder. Its weight and warmth brings with it a certain peace that leaves you stunned. “It’s alright, there’s no need to worry!” He booms, almost radiant in the shadowed alley. Gently, he nudges you behind him and steps forward protectively, shielding you completely from their sight with his large frame. “You have me! I promise I won’t let any harm come to you!”

Come with me, a soft, poisonous voice echoes from the edges of your memory. It’s a cold, frostbitten night, but the blood on your hands is so, so hot. I won’t let any harm come to you. Come with me, little human. I’ll fill your stomach and give you a place to sleep. You just want to live…

Don’t you?

Bile rises in your throat, but luckily for you, Kyoujurou isn’t looking at you, his eyes trained on the men before you instead, his back straight and head raised. Bitter resentment at the fates gnaws at you, your hands clenching tightly into fists.

On that cold night, why couldn’t you have met someone like Rengoku instead?

“Kindly move out of the way.” You hear Kyoujurou say. His hands remain calmly by his sides, neither in a defensive nor offensive stance. “The alley is not large enough for the two of us to pass at the same time.”

“Hah?” The ruffian holding the knife steps closer so that he’s in Kyoujurou’s face, their noses almost touching. Still, Kyoujurou does not make a move to remove the knife from him. “Do you need your ears cleaned, idiot? I said, this is our territory. You’re the one who needs to pay up, scum!”

“I repeat, please move aside, or I will have to use force.” In spite of the insults being thrown in his face, Kyoujurou’s tone is still firmly polite, but now his words are edged with steel. “I do not wish to hurt you.”

“Hurt us? You’re making me laugh here, man.” The ruffian spits in his face, pressing the point of his blade to Kyoujurou’s throat. 

“Rengoku-san!” You exclaim, in shock, yet Kyoujurou still doesn’t move, hands pressed solidly to his sides as he looks at the man in the eye, dead calm. 

“Get the other one, too. That fucking mouth needs some payback. If we sell her, we might be able to get some money out of that too.”

Your eyes widen. The man’s partner turns his gaze on you, and he grins, pulling out a knife as well. Biting on your lower lip, you take a step back.

“Rengoku-san?” You reach out to tug at his sleeve. “We should probably run-”

Your fingers close around empty air.

Hours later, you’ll sit in your room, playing back your memories of this moment and yet still have no idea what you’ve just witnessed. All you see if a blur of orange, and then suddenly the man who was holding his knife to Kyoujurou’s throat is flat on his back, hands empty of any weapons. You’ve barely begun to shift your gaze when you see that the second man has already met with much the same fate, and for a moment, you can only stand there and stare in horror when you realise just what you’ve been tasked with killing.

He’s a monster.

Kyoujurou stands over them, not a strand of hair disheveled or out of place, the rise and fall of his shoulders still even and calm - he doesn’t look like he’s moved an inch. 

You have to kill him? Someone like him? Impossible. Your hand clasps over your mouth to contain your voice before it can flee your throat, eyes wide. No, no, no. You’ll die if you try to take him on. But if you don’t, you’ll...

Rows of jagged teeth fill your vision, crimson blood splattering over the carpet, a looming grin on the walls-

“It’s alright now!” A gentle voice cuts through your panic, and you look up to see Kyoujurou standing over you. You didn’t even realise when your legs had lost their ability to keep you standing, your behind planted in the dirt and your knees weak. With a reassuring grin, he holds out his hand to you. “Come, stand!”

You stare at his outstretched hand for a moment before tentatively placing your own hand in his. He pulls you to your feet, his other hand supporting you gently. “Are you hurt?”

“No.” The words are wooden in your mouth. “You protected me, after all.”

Kyoujurou grins at you. “That’s good to know!” Turning back to the two men still groaning on the ground, Kyoujurou holds up the two knives. “I’ll be taking these now.” His voice is stern. “I don’t want to see the two of you threatening innocent people again. Understood?”

Nodding frantically, the two men pick themselves up and scramble away, almost falling over their own feet in their bid to escape. As he watches them go, Kyoujurou lets out a sigh and pockets the knives in his sleeves, shaking his head. “Truly terrible, that people would try to hurt others this way for their own benefit.”

You swallow at his comment.

“Unbelievable.” Compose yourself. Taking a deep breath, you affix a smile onto your face once more. “Well, now I see what you mean by needing to stay at the peak of your physical abilities. You’re very strong!” You say, trying to lighten the mood. It works, because Kyoujurou lets out a laugh at your words, his eyes crinkling as he smiles.

“I’m flattered!” He says cheerfully. “Now, shall we get going? There’s still lunch to prepare, after all!”

The sun is steadily climbing up the sky when you look up at it, and you yelp, tugging at his sleeve. “Oh no! Hurry, Rengoku-san! We’re late!”

The two of you run through the streets of the red light district together.

“You didn’t warn us about him!”

You hold your breath at the sound of the door being thrown wide open, exhaling in an attempt to stay calm. Turning around, you pick up a ceramic jar of sake from next to you. “It’s a nice night out, isn’t it?” From the open window, you can see the full moon hanging in the sky outside.

“I don’t have time for your nonsense.” One of the two ruffians from this morning snarls. You pause in opening the jar to compose yourself, before you invite him into the room with a wave of your hand.  

“Sit down and we’ll talk.” You say, pouring out three cups of alcohol. Both of them glare at you from opposite the room before they stomp up to you, unceremoniously sitting themselves onto the ground and scowls still painted on their faces. “Here, have a drink. I make the alcohol at this brothel myself.”

They don’t touch their cups, eyes full of mistrust as they stare at you. With a sigh, you shake your head.

“I’ll take the first drink, then.”

They watch you warily as you pick up a cup on your own, taking a long sip to enjoy its taste before placing the cup back down on the table. So different from Kyoujurou, you wonder to yourself, remembering the time you’d offered him wagashi during your first meeting and he had downed all of them without a second thought. Now that you think about it, you probably should have struck at that very moment. Evil truly expects evil from others.

“I want out of this job.” The first man snaps the second you put down the cup, grabbing a cup of sake from the table and taking a gulp. His partner, in contrast, downs the entire cup in an instant. “And I want compensation.”

You pour both of them another cup. “I can agree with the first one.” You say, trying to keep your voice even. “Not with the second.”

“You didn’t tell us that your target was going to be a fuckin’ monster!”

The two of you eye each other for a moment, neither willing to budge. Behind him, his partner picks up his refilled cup and downs it once again

“You never asked.” You answer. Your voice only wavers once. “Furthermore, you didn’t even manage to kill him. The only thing the two of you were good for was your acting, and even then kabuki dancers would have done a better job.”

“What the fuck was the point of the entire staged robbery anyway?” He snaps, knocking back another cup of alcohol. “If you meant for us to kill him, you wouldn’t have…” 

The man’s eyes darken in realisation as he says it, his arm reaching across the table to grip at the collar of your clothes, yanking you forward hard so that the two of you are face to face. Your ribs knock painfully against the edge of the low table, but you don’t let your gaze leave his, forcing your expression to stay neutral.

“You were playing us the entire time.” His voice is a low, raspy snarl. “You knew we weren’t going to be able to kill him.”

You don’t reply, but your lack of denial is more than confirmation enough for him.

He hurls the cup at you. You barely manage to duck in time and it only clips your shoulder, its contents dripping all over the front of your kimono. The slight, bitter scent of almonds permeates the air. “I’m going to kill you.” He snarls, getting to his feet. Like this, he towers over you easily. “You’re going to regret messing with the wrong type of people, missy.” 

He shoves you hard and you go crashing to the ground painfully with a yelp, your head knocking against the corner of the table and you see stars flash before your eyes. Before you can regain your balance, he swings one leg over your hips, pinning you down to the ground and before pulling another knife from his sleeve - this time, a sharp, single edged blade that could easily slice your neck to ribbons.

He presses it against your throat, and you swallow, trying not to tremble and cut yourself on the edge of his blade. You don’t know how you’d explain such a wound to Kyoujurou tomorrow.

“Now,” his breath is rancid, his knee pressing painfully into your hip - you know bruises will form there tomorrow, “I’m going to show you what exactly happens when you waste our time like this, you fucking-”

“Fujita!” 

The grip on your robe loosens ever so slightly as the man whips around to glare at his partner. “I’m talking here, man, what the hell do you...” his partner is writhing on the tatami mats, clawing at his throat, desperate, breathless screams leaving his mouth. “Saburo! Saburo, what’s happening to you?”

You shove him off you with all your strength and he topples to the ground with a heavy thud. Shaking your head as you stagger to your feet, you wipe at the stain on your kimono before eyeing it with disappointment. “This is going to take ages for me to clean now.” You exhale as Saburo flails wildly, choking on air as he attempts to breathe. Fujita whirls around to stare at you. 

“What did you do?” He roars, but when he tries to stand, he staggers to the side, nearly falling before he manages to catch his balance. His eyes go wide, and he looks up at you in horror. 

“Poison in your cups, but not mine, of course. It would be a waste of alcohol to poison the entire jar.” You say wearily, picking up your own cup from the table and taking another sip. “Cyanide, if you want me to be specific.”

Fujita chokes, grasping desperately at his own throat, before he stumbles and falls onto his knees, eyes wide with terror. You watch as the knife falls from his hands and clatters onto the tabletop. Saburo is already still, aside from the occasional twitch. “The two of you made useful test dummies, I suppose. Well, I could pay the two of you for that… but you won’t have much need for money in a few moments, anyway.”

Still, Fujita tries to claw his way to the door, struggling to put one hand in front of the other as he fights to force air into his lungs. You watch him for a few moments and wonder if you should have used a higher dosage instead to finish him off more quickly. Picking up the jar of alcohol, you cross the room in three quick strides and bring it down on his head with all the force you can muster.

The heavy ceramic jar of alcohol shatters the second it connects with the back of his skull, and Fujita crumples to the ground one final time. For a moment, the room is silent except for the sound of your heavy breathing, and when you look down at your hands, a shallow cut bleeds red over your palm before the blood falls to the tatami below in little, crimson drops.

Looking at the mess before you, you can only shake your head and sigh.

“It’s nothing personal.” You say, out loud. “You tried to kill me, after all.”

The corpses on the ground have no reply.

[thewatermelloncat]

Backstage (Rosénali CH 7)

CH1, CH2, CH3, CH4, CH5, CH6

Summary: With the production date looming closer, the friend group pulls together to get each other through rehearsals.

Boarding School AU

Kinda Pastel/Punk AU

Author’s Note: Be on the look out for links to extra stories within the chapters.

Warnings: Swearing

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

The next morning Rosé awakes to her door gently closing. Panic should course through her at the sight of another figure in the dark room but even half-asleep she easily makes it out to be the shape of Denali.

“Nali, what are you doing here this early?” Rosé asks as she looks at the clock on her phone. “My alarm doesn’t go off for ten minutes.”

“Go back to sleep, Rosie” Denali says softly, picking up Rosé’s phone and deactivating the alarm. “Mik and Liv are bringing breakfast to us.”

Rosé hums in confusion.

“Mik’s idea” Denali explains as she sits down in the desk chair. “Just get some more sleep.”

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

The next time she wakes, it’s to the door opening and quiet whispers traveling inside.

She closes her eyes again and pulls in a breath to wake up a little more.

“Morning” she mumbles as she rolls onto her side. Blinking her eyes open and facing the doorway Mik and Liv just walked through.

“Good morning” Liv reflects sweetly.

“Morning, gorge” Mik says.

“Hardly feel gorgeous at the moment” Rosé admits, pushing herself up off the mattress and running a hand through the tangles in her hair.

Denali huffs a laugh at the comment and throws Rosé her hairbrush from the desk.

She catches it and works away at her hair while Mik and Liv divvy out the breakfast they’ve collected. Mik complaining about how Liv wouldn’t let her near the coffee sachets.

“I think that’s fair, Mik” Denali says after Liv explained that Mik has a science test first period.

“Are you feeling better, Rosé?” Liv asks sweetly as she hands her a bowl of cereal.

“Yeah” Rosé answers quickly. “Thanks for letting me sleep in and doing… all of this” she gestures a hand around the room.

“Really you should thank Mik. It was all her idea” Liv says.

“Don’t bother. That just makes it awkward!” Mik calls out, leaning into Rosé’s view from behind Liv. “It’s just a friend thing.”

“Well, I still appreciate it… all of you” Rosé smiles awkwardly at them.

“It’s not a problem, Rosie” Denali finalises. “And it’s probably best if you don’t start your week falling asleep in class.”

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

Rosé didn’t fall asleep in class; not even nearly over the next few weeks. Bringing breakfast to each other became like a tradition. There was no official roster but they would figure it out as they went.

Liv and Mik found out about Rosé’s job – which Liv had secretly suspected for a while – and after each of her night shifts it would be her turn.

Though Denali was normally an early riser, they pressured her to sleep in if they saw she was getting tired from all of her dance rehearsals. And Mik benefited correspondingly in their shared room.

They also made sure to share it around with Liv so it would be fair, although she never asked for it.

“Rosé you’re the fucking best!” Mik groans appreciatively as Rosé hands around takeaway boxes of leftover pancakes the morning after she had mentioned that she was craving them. Though she hadn’t thought anything would come of it.

“Had to be eaten” Rosé shrugs as she sits down, cross legged on the floor of Mik and Denali’s room. “Just wish we could use the microwave in the kitchens.”

“These are so good anyway, Rosé” Denali says through a mouthful as she reaches for another pot of syrup.

“We could use a hairdryer” Mik suggests.

“No” Liv warns quickly, completely prepared to physically restrain Mik if she tried.

“Would that even work?” Denali laughs and they launch into a debate.

Liv trying to calmly shut it down before Mik does something stupid. Rosé happy to sit back and watch it, not thinking that it would work but also not exactly opposed to Mik doing something stupid.  Denali arguing that she doesn’t know how scientifically plausible it is and Mik trying to reason that the only way to know is to try. Though it’s all for nothing as Mik finishes her pancakes before the argument is over.

“I’m so glad that this is just a half day” Denali says as she ties her shoelaces, getting ready for class.

“You won’t be saying that when they let us know what disappointments we are during rehearsal” Mik drones warningly about the first complete run-through of the production that is due to start after lunch.

Denali shrugs with a dismissive hum. “I get to miss out on English, so I don’t care.”

“Do you not like being in classes with me?” Rosé feigns offense, clutching a hand to her chest.

“You know that’s not what I meant” Denali scoffs as she stands up from the floor to follow the rest of the group out the door.

“Well, for the record, I don’t like being in class with you either” Rosé pretends to ignore her, turning her nose up playfully as she stalks down the hallway. The other’s following suit and rushing themselves off to class.

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

As far as first full rehearsals go, it wasn’t too bad. Sure, they had been given many things to improve on but nothing too harsh. Mik hadn’t forgotten the single line that she had, and Denali’s dance troupe all had smooth transitions. Of course, Denali twisting her ankle when her roller-skate hadn’t wanted to come off after her solo hadn’t been a highlight.

“Ms Visage’s critique about your harmony being off is bullshit” Rosé says to Olivia as they step out of the auditorium and head back towards the dormitories.

“Thanks, but you don’t have to say that” Liv says but smiles anyway.

“Honestly” Rosé stands by it. Knowing that Olivia takes critique harder than most.

Suddenly they are cut off by Mik gasping dramatically. “You are limping!” she directs at Denali who is trailing slightly behind.

“It’s fine” Denali maintains. “It’s a twist not a sprain.”

Mik shakes her head throughout her speaking and when Denali stops, she demands, “get on my back.”

“Mik, I’ll crush you” Denali laughs as the smaller girl turns her back to her, readying her hands out to catch her legs.

“No, you won’t. I’m stronger than I look” Mik affirms.

“Even if you are, her feet will still be on the ground” Rosé teases Mik before offering to Denali, “here, jump on mine.”

For a moment Denali stays where she is as Mik moves away from her, happy for Rosé to take over the task of carrying her. At her friends all looking at her expectingly, she gives in, laughing as she jumps up on Rosé’s back.

“Where are we going?” Mik asks when they take off walking again.

“Go to my room, it’s closer” Rosé directs.

“Ooh, Mik, we should go to the office and get some ice” Liv suggests and without saying a word Mik bounds over to join her and they head off in another direction.

Rosé laughs softly when she feels Denali hang her head against her shoulder.

“It’s not even a big deal” Denali groans at the fuss everyone is making over her. Feeling Rosé’s shoulders continuing to shake as she laughs.

“Just let them do it.”

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

“I think it’s sweet that they have a separate performance just for friends and family, but I kinda wish they had that one last” Denali says from on top of Rosé’s bed with an icepack under her ankle.

“Yeah, I get that” Liv acknowledges, sitting cross-legged on the floor. “Get the nerves out of the way first.”

“People have been saying that for years, but I don’t know why they haven’t changed it” Mik mentions as she slowly spins around in the desk chair.

“They spin some bullshit about every performance having to be just as good as the others – treat every one like it will be your last and all that” Rosé drones from further down the bed than Denali, lying looking up at the roof with her knees hanging off the end.

“Mr Piane?” Liv asks.

“You had that speech before?” Rosé looks toward her, and Denali figures that it’s one of their vocal tutors they’re talking about.

Liv raises her eyebrows in a knowing look before she turns to Mik. “When are your parents getting here?”

“Couple of days before, I think. But they’ll leave the day after” Mik answers. “What about yours?”

“Opposite from you: come the day before, leave a couple after. Denali?”

“Day before, leave late the day after” Denali answers.

“Have you heard back from your parents, Rosé?” Liv asks considerately.

Rosé shakes her head and Mik immediately changes topic to what she overheard two girls gossiping about the day before.

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

The ongoing conversation hadn’t been halted by Rosé’s phone buzzing but it is at her dramatic groan after reading the message.

“What is it?” Denali asks as Rosé lazily rolls off of her bed.

“I need to fill in someone’s shift at work.”

“Can’t someone else do it?” Liv asks.

“We were going to do homework together tonight” Mik adds.

“I know, I know” Rosé repeats as she gets her things together. “But I’m missing a lot of my usual shifts with rehearsals and the performance next week.”

Around the room various hums sound off as signals that her point is fair enough.

“You guys can stay in here, I don’t care” Rosé says as she shoulders her bag.

“Okay, just let us know how you get on” Denali asks.

“Shouldn’t be late. Think it’s only a single shift” rosé explains before she steps out the door. Leaving them talking about whether Mik is nervous about getting everyone ready for the full dress rehearsal tomorrow.

Later that night when she stumbles back into her dorm, her feet sore from standing, she’s halted at the sight of her books stacked neatly on her desk. On top sitting a page of science notes written out by Olivia and another of English notes in Denali’s handwriting. Then she smiles.

CH8

[wannabe-fic-writer]

Natasha Romanofff x Reader : Thin Line

Summary: You’re wild and free. She’s strict and trained. You and Natasha are polar opposites and it drives her crazy. Each move you make annoys her to no end. But, there’s a thin line between annoyance and adoration.

Rating: 18+ Violence, Mentions of Death, and Smut

Side Note: This is the final chapter of Thin Line. Before you read I’d like to thank you so much for reading my fic and I’m assuming if you read this far you like it. Fee free to stick around for the many fics and imagines to come. Love You 3000❤️

Chapter 11

They had been flying for hours. Sam fell asleep, almost instantly, after he got on the jet. Wanda had fallen asleep an hour after Sam, her mind had been reeling far too much for her to settle at first.

Steve was piloting(technically the jet is in autopilot so he wasn’t) but that didn’t steal his air of authority. Bucky having just been left in Wakanda.

And Natasha.

The red head had firmly planted herself in a seat near the jets door an hour after boarding.

Steve spoke to her before then. He knows how much she loves you and had to make sure she was one hundred percent on board with leaving. She assured him she was.

While she still stands by that, her heart was seemingly screaming at her, aching at your absence and her decision to leave.

Those feelings is exactly why, for majority of the flight, she had been staring at a picture. The only picture she ever bothered to hold on to: one you had taken on your second date.

****Flashback****

“Natasha, babe, we fight lunatics and terrorists for a living, and you’re telling me you’re scared of a rollercoaster?” You stood beside her with a teasing grin, the large metal contraption in front of you.

She rolled her eyes and mushed your face,“ I’m not scared of anything. I just don’t want to get on.” Her eyes then skeptically watched passerby.

You, noticing that she was slipping into Widow mode, grabbed her hands and pulled her closer,“ what if we,” you stretched the word and looked around,“ go to the beach instead.”

She’s still hesitant. It’s not often that she subjects herself to being out in the open like this, but you had pouted and fucked her into giving in. Turns out your adorable face mixed with a mind blowing orgasm was the perfect kryptonite.

“Come on Natty,” you tried one more time,“ just for a couple minutes. I don’t want our date to end just yet.”

Once again, you pulled a pout, eyes softening just enough to make her groan and look away.

“Fine, fine,” before you could cheer she added,“ but only for a couple of minutes.”

“Perfect.”

The two of you had walked off Coney Island and down to the beach. You took her to, what looked like, the only secluded spot, and pulled her into your lap on the sand.

With the sun ending it’s appearance in the sky, stars scattered above you and pink and orange streams painted across the horizon.

“Picture time!” You exclaimed childishly, whipping your phone out, and holding it up.

“No.” Her quick response halted your actions.

Leaning back to look at her, you asked,“ do you not want to remember this moment?”

“I’ll remember.” She assured.

“But I might forget. This picture is for me!” You then smushed your lips on to her cheek and took the picture, but not before she could cover her face.

The stupid grin she pulled hidden by her hands.

****End Flashback****

Despite her not wanting to take the picture, she stole it from you the moment you had it printed off.

And now it sat in her hands, the top corners dogeared from her fidgeting.

She needs this picture, just in case. In case you don’t find her clues. In case you can’t crack her password and encryption. In case she never sees you again, intentionally or not.

She needs her memories of you.

“Romanoff!”

Her eyes linger on the picture, before she’s pocketing it, and going over to Steve.

“We’re ten minutes out, mind waking Sam and Wanda?”

Natasha simply nods and sets off to do just that. Her hand rests on Wanda’s shoulder, gently shaking the young witch.

“Maximoff, wake up.”

Wanda has never been much of a heavy sleeper so she wakes with that little effort, saying a small, sleepy, “alright” with a rub of her eyes.

Sam however doesn’t wake as easily. The gentle shaking just makes him mumble “five more minutes mom,” before drifting back off. Harsher shaking makes him groan and complain, rolling over to face the inside of the seats.

Natasha decides to just roll him off the chairs.

His body slams on to the floor and that just barely wakes him up. Still laying on the ground, he yawns and rubs his eyes with his fist.

“Wilson get up, we’re here.” Steve’s stern yet gentle voice says.

This has everyone moving to get the few things they did have.

Here is a safe house in Spain.

Steve had lifted a list of them from paper files at the compound, crossing referencing with the ones listed on the computer files. He narrowed it down to a few that could only be found on paper and took them.

It didn’t mean they were completely untraceable, but it would take a lot more than a look up to find them.

The small group walks through a span of woods were the jet is hidden, to the safe house. Before entering they survey the area.

Upon finding nothing, they go inside.

Feeling just the slightest bit safer, everyone slumps sigh exhaustion.

“We’ll move in the morning just in case someone managed to find us, but for now everyone rest up.” Steve’s voice rings over the small group with the same commanding tone he took with all the Avengers.

Everyone nods and heads into opposite rooms, except Natasha and Wanda, both seemingly frozen in the loss of the people they love.

It’s the brunette Witch who breaks the sad silence,“ do you think they’ll forgive us?” 

Natasha feels the tears spring into her eyes.

Leaving you was the last thing she wanted but the decision has been made. She can’t take it back now. She’s also a fugitive at this point.

“They’ll forgive us.” She tries to assure,“ hell they probably don’t think we need to be forgiven. Just,” the red head takes in a deep breath and places a gentle hand on her friends shoulder,“ shower, get some rest, you’ll feel better in the morning.”

Despite her saying that, she doesn’t believe it. Why should she when she knows it won’t work. 

Not having you is like not having her heart or soul, no shower or sleep could ever make that feeling better.

It’s why she cries the second she’s out of the shower and in her room. The tears she managed to hold at bay pour from her eyes as she nearly curls into a ball on the small couch. 

That sadness, however, is short lived.

“Awe, don’t tell me those tears are for me Pretty Girl.”

She hadn’t know what this felt like. To have her hope be fulfilled. Truthfully she’d never really had hope before but she hoped in you and this- this euphoria, it feels amazing.

She left you clues and you followed them because why wouldn’t you? She’s the love of your life and you’d be damned if you just let her get away.

You found her. Her trust in your intelligence was well placed. As was her trust in your feelings for her.

Wiping her nose with the sleeve of your (stolen) shirt, she sniffs, and looks up at you. Green teary eyes meet yours and you smile at how beautiful she is even when sad.

“You’re so annoying Y/L/N.”

You step closer, taking her deathly delicate hands in yours. The warm smile you pull still manages to be cocky in some way and it drives Natasha crazy.

Pulling her up and into your arms you say,“ as if I’d let you slip away.”

Her eyes are roaming over your body just to ensure that you’re actually here,“ I was hoping you wouldn’t.”

Natasha wraps her arms around your waist and hugs you to her. You return the hug, breathing in that cinnamon and vanilla scent you had begun to miss over those few hours.

But Natasha knows you, and she knows you won’t let the silence last, which is why she’s already smiling and shaking her head when you break it.

“How could you not, I’m fuckin awesome.” You over dramatically wink at her.

The red head rolls her eyes, a small laugh on her lips as she starts to walk away from you.

“That was a moment, and you ruined it.” She points out.

Feigning shock, you press a hand to your heart,“ I would never!”

Your heart soars as she laughs once again, sound lighter than the last. This beauty has been through a lot of shit recently and to make her smile and laugh despite it all is an achievement worth the highest medal.

Before you can step closer to her there’s a knock at the door.

Natasha quirks an eyebrow before going to it. Cracking it, she peeks outside, befor stepping back and fully opening it.

“I’m sorry for bothering you I just, I think I’m going mad. I keep hearing Y/N’s voice and I can feel Vision as if he’s right beside me.” Your witchy best friend stammers out the second she’s inside.

Your eyes widen,“ oh shit, Vision.”

Neither Natasha or Wanda have time to react as you’re out the window already.

Wanda blinks a couple times to not sure if this is real or if she has in fact lost her mind. One glance at Natasha’s uncontrolabbly smiley face and she knows that was actually you.

Her slight joy is wiped away as she realizes her presence just scared you off. That’s what she thinks anyway.

She’s proven wrong when you step back through the window, this time followed by Vision phasing through the wall.

“Tada!” You whisper/yell, hands gesturing to the red android.

“Viz.” Wanda’s shocked response whispers through the room.

“Wanda.” He smiles back with a nod.

“Wait!” You ruin yet another moment.“ Before you two get all lovey, I’d like to hug my best friend.”

Arms wide you step closer to Wanda. Her magic flickers through her eyes in fear.

No, she’s not scared of you, she’s scared that you hate her. That you’re disappointed in the choice she made to side with Steve.

“Uh Wanda, this is getting awkward.” You murmur.

“You don’t hate me?” The Witch asks, barely above a whisper.

“Woah! Hate? I could never hate you kid, I love you. And I’m not holding anything against you. We all did what we thought was right. I’m just really glad you’re okay.”

At that the brunette throws herself into your arms, wrapping her own around you tightly.

Her body relaxes the instant she’s in your arms. The comfort of your warmth is an unbelievable contrast to the cold of her cell on the Raft. The gentleness of you hand on the back of her head nothing like the harsh presence of her shock collar. Your hold tight but not restricting like her straight jacket.

“Please tell me they didn’t use that shock collar on you.” You whisper, praying they didn’t hurt your best friend.

She doesn’t answer. She can’t. Not when there’s the smallest of a burn mark on her neck, reminding her of the sharp sting of the electrocution.

And you know they did. It’s why you to tighten your hold just a little and blink away your tears.

“I’m strongly tempted to go back and kick their asses”

The girl immediately pulls back, brown eyes staring into yours. Your girlfriend also looks at you, waiting for an explanation.

“No. No more violence, please.” She whispers.

For the first time sense he came in, Vision speaks.

“I agree with Agent Y/L/N. They deserve reprecutions for their actions toward you.”

Wanda steps from your hold and over to Vision. Her hand just barely cups the androids cheek.

“That’s not necessary. I’m here, I’m safe now,” she pauses,“ and I’m with you.”

You don’t think you’ve ever seen Vision smile, until now.

It’s faint but it’s there, and it’s all cause of the girl in front of him.

“You guys are cute.” You smile.

Luckily the android can’t blush, or he’d be redder than his skin. Much like Wanda, who’s cheeks blaze.

Natasha rolls her eyes,“ okay, Wanda, Vision, I’m sure you two want privacy and rest.” She gestures to her door.

They both nod and leave with a smile to you and Natasha.

“You just kicked th-”

She shuts you up with a fierce, burning, loving kiss. Hands on both sides of your face, body flush with yours.

“You’re so very annoying.” Her lips brush yours with each word.

Grinning like mad, you pull the red head over and to the bed.

Once she’s in your arms, you sigh contentedly,“ I may be annoying, but you love me.”

Silence.

A deep breath in and a sigh out.

“Yeah,” she smiles softly to herself. Wiggling her body closer to yours,“ I do love you.”

*****

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