#and yeah Jess did give her this idea and I love him but this was kinda stupid | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lauronk · 3 months

Note

I was watching a movie (that one with natalie portman) and I got an Idea. A ficlet where joel is a professional hitman (or a retired one) and ellie is his daughter. She loves him, and he is devoted for her. He is wrapped around her little finger and he knows that.

What he doesn't tell her tho? he actually killed her father for his client. He only realized there was a baby in the house when it was too late. The truth eats him alive everyday, but he will never tell her. Never.

hi anon! thank you for this prompt, it fully latched into my brain and derailed the other stuff i had planned on working on lmao i hope you enjoy!

(this time baby) i’ll be bulletproof

length: ~2.6k words

tags: pov joel; joel & ellie; modern au; death/murder; brief mentions of blood; tess is alive; kidnapping; ellie’s whole life is a lie she just doesn’t know it; joel’s a hitman so what do you expect; joel’s also a great dad, what did you expect; no beta we die like david

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Gentle finger squeeze on the trigger. Exhale.

The target drops before he even realizes he’s been shot, a small pool of blood gathering on the carpet underneath his head. The man had been nice enough - not that he’d realized it - to leave his window open, so there wasn’t even the shattering of glass to alert anyone. He’d be found in an hour or so, when his wife returned home from her nail appointment, and by then, Joel would be long gone.

Sometimes he regretted the path he’d wound up on, the way his life had diverged from everything it should have been. Joel could look back and pinpoint exactly where the fork had occurred - his daughter, a victim of the wrong place at the wrong time, one man so bent on vengeance he didn’t care who he’d hurt in the process.

He had been the first one Joel had ever killed. Twenty years later, and he hadn’t stopped.

Only difference was, now he got paid for it, and handsomely at that.

The television is still on when Joel opens the front door, and he pauses, hand on the knob. It’s entirely too late for anyone else to still be awake, and he turns his head towards the dark hallway that branches off the living room towards the back of the house.

He makes sure he makes a fair amount of noise in the process of taking off his shoes and hanging up his keys. His pistol he secures in the safe over the fireplace, making sure it’s locked again before he slides the wall panel back in place. The TV he shuts off, and he pours a glass of water before finally making his way down the hall to the second door on the left.

“Ellie?” Joel knocks gently before pressing a hand against the door and nudging it open.

She gives an exaggerated deep breath, and Joel chuckles, stepping all the way into her room. He can make out the shape of her under her covers, curled on her side, a faint hint of moonlight trickling through the window.

The glass of water he deposits on her nightstand - he knows she’ll want it later - and lowers himself carefully to sit on her mattress near her hip. Her breathing picks up and then slows again, like she thinks he hasn’t already caught on.

“C’mon, baby,” Joel shakes her shoulder gently, his voice teasing. “I know you ain’t sleepin’.”

Ellie rolls over, blinking at him owlishly. She even brings a hand up to rub her eyes, widening them comically like she’s surprised to see him. “Dad?”

“TV didn’t shut off all the way,” Joel tells her helpfully, snorting when her hand immediately falls from her face and her head flops back dramatically on her pillow.

“Fuck.”

He tucks the comforter around her a little more tightly, brushing a stray piece of hair back from her forehead. “Yeah.” Her hand comes up and wraps around his wrist, squeezing gently. “You’re pretty busted, kiddo.”

Ellie shakes the hand holding his, waggling his arm around. “Why do I even still have a bedtime? I’m fourteen. Dina and Jesse don’t have bedtimes.”

He shakes his arm right back, eliciting a small giggle from her. “Dina and Jesse ain’t been caught sneakin’ out recently, have they? Maybe that’s got somethin’ to do with it, hmm?”

Ellie huffs, but she doesn’t argue. She had been busted after all, caught down at the neighborhood pool with some other kids by Marlene, the HOA president, and brought to his door dripping wet at one a.m. Bedtime and curfew had been reinstated after that, and Ellie had three more months of probation from him before it would be lifted.

It didn’t feel good to do - he’d struggled with punishing Sarah at all too - but it let him give free rein to some of his paranoia, gave him an excuse to keep her locked in the house a little more. It wouldn’t last forever - nor should it, Joel knew well and good that Ellie needed to go out and live her own life - but while she was still young enough, he’d shield her from everything he could.

Sarah hadn’t made it to fifteen - Joel was determined to see that Ellie did.

“Get some sleep, baby girl,” he tells her softly, brushing his fingers back and forth across her forehead in the way he knows will soothe her to sleep best. It’s worked since she was a baby, and sure enough her eyes are already drifting closed. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Waffles?” Ellie mumbles, rolling on her side and burying her face into her pillow.

Joel smiles down at her, feeling that same tug behind his heart that he has every time since he first held her. “Yeah, baby, we’ll do waffles.”

This time, her breathing deepens out naturally, mouth falling slack, and Joel bends forward to press a kiss to her temple. “Dream somethin’ good,” he whispers, same as he does every night. He ain’t superstitious - can’t afford to be, in his line of work - but he’s always been afraid that the nights he hasn’t been around to tell her, she’ll have nightmares.

Joel shuts the door behind him, padding back through the living room to double check the locks on the doors and windows and set the alarm. When he’s sure they’re as secure as can be, he makes his way back down to his room. He can’t fight the urge to open Ellie’s door one more time and peek in on her; she hasn’t moved, not that he expected her to.

His own room is dark, blackout curtains preventing even a hint of moonlight coming in. He’d wanted to put the same curtains in Ellie’s room for safety, but she’d put her foot down - I need to see the fucking sun, Dad - and Joel had relented. Her room faced the backyard, and they had no neighbors on that side, just a tall fence with motion sensors spaced carefully along it.

Joel doesn’t bother with a lamp, instead making his way straight through to his bathroom and flicking on the light there. As always, he avoids the sight of his reflection, instead turning his back on the mirror and flipping the handle on the shower. He cranks it as hot as he’ll be able to stand and tugs off his clothes, tossing them into a small pile on the floor. He’ll have to do laundry in the morning, get the first load going before Ellie’s awake.

The bathroom is already filling with steam by the time Joel steps under the spray, the water immediately stinging his skin like a thousand small needles. It immediately starts to soothe the aches in his body though, and Joel turns slowly until it’s beating between his shoulder blades.

He’s getting too old for this. Fifty-six, with nearly twenty years of it under his belt. He’s still deadly, sure, one of the best to ever do it as Tess so frequently tells him.

But his recovery times are slower, his reflexes dulling. His already damaged hearing in his right ear is only getting worse.

He’s not far from being a liability - he knows what they do to liabilities.

And he’s got Ellie to think of.

Joel rotates again, sticks his head under the water and lets it sluice down over his face.

He’ll bring it up with Tess soon, Joel thinks. He doesn’t know what the protocol is here - few in his line of work live long enough for it to be a consideration - but they’ll work something out. Better for him to get out now, after a damn near perfect record, while he’s still got enough health and energy to spend with his daughter.

Better that than him getting old and slow, getting sloppy and getting caught.

He shuts the water off and tugs the towel around his waist. The rest of his evening routine he does by rote - dressing, brushing his teeth, turning down his bed - and by the time his head hits the pillow, Joel’s able to slip straight into sleep.

He doesn’t usually dream when he sleeps - a side effect, he’d guess, of the way he lives his life. Maybe there’d been nightmares at first, flashes of the lives he’d taken, faint remembrances. But those had stopped with enough time and blood, and his sleep became peaceful again.

Not this night, though.

The hallways stretching before him is dark and long, shadows stretching out like fingers, and Joel walks silently as close to the wall as he dares. The floor is less likely to squeak there, but too close to the wall and he’ll brush against a frame or hanging, send it crashing to the ground. Easiest way to get caught, if you’re stupid.

And Joel Miller ain’t stupid.

The first two rooms - a study and a guest room - are clear. Tonight’s unfortunate soul is a widower, a man whose increasingly large debts to Joel’s employer were beyond the point of repayment. Nothing left to do but put the man out of his misery, leave the murky back-end of liquidating the man’s assets to the techies. His only job was making it look natural.

The third room is the master, a four poster bed in the middle, the target in question asleep under the covers.

It’s almost absurdly easy, and Joel leaves the body behind with a mental note to ask Tess for something more challenging next time. He doesn’t know what it says about him that this murder felt boring, but he doesn’t bother dwelling on it.

This is who he is now.

Joel does a final check, sweeping the hall with a flashlight to make sure he left no trace. He’s just clicked the light off when he hears it - a muffled sound of some sort, coming from the only door he hasn’t checked.

Joel advances, feet light, and draws his pistol as he approaches the door, turn the knob slowly with a gloved hand. A faint beam of light meets his eyes, and Joel blinks, inhaling slowly to keep his heart rate low as his eyes adjust.

The sound echoes again, and Joel pushes the door open carefully, pausing when the hinges emit the faintest squeak. Nothing stirs inside, no other sound follows.

Might be a dog or cat, Joel reasons with himself. Wouldn’t be the first time.

After another moment of stillness, he nudges the door open further, eyes scanning back and forth over the room. Taking in the bookshelf, the night light, the tall dresser, the —

The crib against the wall.

Joel’s hand falls limp next to his side, pistol dangling from numb fingertips.

He doesn’t do parents. He’s made that clear to Tess and her bosses a thousand times over. He’ll kill just about anyone, but not if they’ve got kids, and especially not if those kids still live at home. Tess knows - she knows - that’s a hard line for him. So either he was lied to when given the file, or their intel had been bad and they hadn’t known.

But there is - a chubby hand lifts from the crib - there is a baby in the crib. A small, now orphaned child.

Joel orphaned them.

He tucks the pistol into the back of his jeans and takes a careful step closer. And then another, and another, until he’s right next to the crib, hands gripping the railing as he peers down.

Bright brown eyes are staring back up at him, chubby cheeks framing an open mouth. The blanket covering most of her body reads Ellie.

“Ellie,” Joel repeats softly. “‘s that your name?”

A chubby fist waves up at him as if in response.

He should leave. He needs to leave. The job’s done, and the longer he stays here the longer he risks getting caught or leaving behind a trail.

But Ellie is staring up at him from her crib, rosebud mouth opening and closing and little babbles escaping.

He should leave.

But instead Joel bends down, hands carefully scooping underneath her back until she’s cradled against his chest. She rests there easily, something like a contented sigh - if he thought babies could make such a noise - escaping her. The warmth of her against him has something in his chest fracturing, splintering, breaking wide open. All the pieces of him seem to realign, and without thought Joel bends down to pick up her blanket. There’s a nearly full diaper bag by the door, and Joel snags that too.

Ellie doesn’t stir against him as they exit the house through the back and Joel winds them through the trees lining the back of the property. He doesn’t have a car seat, he realizes. He’ll need to get one of those - for the time being Joel lowers himself to sit in the backseat of the car with Ellie still held against him.

He’ll call Tess, Joel decides, back of his finger stroking gently over Ellie’s cheek. She can come get him, get someone else to get his car out of here. She’ll be mad, probably more than a little freaked out, but it ain’t for her to worry about.

Ellie’s his.

She stretches a bit, a small fist making contact with his neck. Immediately Joel starts to rub her back, low voice murmuring in her ear.

“It’s okay, baby girl. I got you.”

Joel blinks awake, the familiar sight of his ceiling coming in to focus above him. He doesn’t dream about the night he found Ellie very often, but every time he does it’s as clear as if it had just happened.

A glance at the clock on his nightstand shows it’s nearing on eight, which means Ellie’ll probably be up soon.

He totes his laundry basket down the hall to the laundry room, hitting the power button on the coffee maker when he passes. He’ll get the laundry going, his coffee made, the waffle batter started. And then they can have breakfast together, figure out how they want to spend their Wednesday. It’s summer, so Ellie’s out of school, and he’s off for the day.

Joel strolls over to the window facing the backyard as he sips his coffee, waffle batter made and sitting in the fridge. He’d moved around a lot before Ellie - hazard of the job - but he’d wanted her to have stability, safety. It made it trickier, meant he could take fewer jobs, but he’d stashed up enough money to make that less of a concern.

Tess had predictably lost her shit when she’d found Joel in the back of his car, Ellie snoozing against Joel, but within a matter of hours he’d had a crib and enough supplies to last two weeks. Within three days he’d had a birth certificate listing a dead woman as Ellie’s mother and Joel as her father. Any trace of her in the target’s house had been swiftly and carefully eradicated.

And Ellie had never known about any of it. If Joel had his way, she never would.

A yawn from behind him has Joel turning around, smile spreading across his cheeks at the sight of Ellie shuffling across the living room towards him in her pajamas, hair tousled and eyes half-open. She all but collapses against him, head thunking against his chest as she yawns again.

“Waffles?”

Joel chuckles, dropping a kiss to the top of her head. “C’mon, sleepyhead, let’s get you some waffles.”

There was nothing more important to Joel than his daughter. And nothing he wouldn’t do to keep her from learning the truth.

#somehow i wrote another short thing #idk how this keeps happening #anyways i hope you enjoy #hitman au #this time baby i’ll be bulletproof #the last of us fanfiction #tlou fanfiction #joel and ellie #the last of us #fic prompt #fic request

45 notes · View notes

bella-rose29 · 1 year

Text

Idiot ~ Anthony Lockwood x f!reader

Requested by anon:

Hii I want to request Anthony Lockwood×fem!reader, with childhood bestfriends to rivals to lovers with the miscommunication trope, but also a happy ending with both of them being together. So the plot could be like, they were childhood best friends but then when Anthony's family died he later wanted to start the business, but she thought that he was out of his mind because she was scared about him being in danger, but he thought she just didn't think he can handle it so they got into an argument and she left. After that, they started hating each, later she joined Fittes as an agent, so he was even more angry. So they became rivals in the ghost hunting business. Then they got put on a mission later, and idk she gets injured and his like "who did this to you," but they're still enemies, even though the whole time there is sexual tension between them. This request is super chaotic, so just make your own plot with these elements, I guess. I'm not good at describing plots, I will be happy with whatever you write, but please let them have a happy ending and be together. Also, could you try to make this as long as you can because there aren't as many Lockwood fics as there should be.

I might have changed some bits a lil bit and probably spent way too long talking about their childhood, but hopefully this lives up to your expectations anon! (Please let me know if it doesn't though)

Word count: 9.5k exactly (holy shit this is insane i had way too much fun with this)

Warnings: swearing, violence, fighting, descriptions of injury, mentions and descriptions of Lockwood's family dying/being dead, major spoilers for the books (and the show), some stuff probably doesn't make sense (like at all), i might also have misremembered and made up some things but we'll go with it, Lockwood is actually kind of a dick for some of this oops, he gets better i promise, hospitals, mentions of being on morphine (for the pain), references to Lockwood being depressed, they're idiots in love.

Tag list: @anathemaloren, @augustisintheair, @avdiobliss, @dangelnleif, @el-de-phi, @karensirkobabes, @mitskiswift99, @mrsklockwood, @mrsyixingunicorn10, @ran23sblog, @superpositvecloudshipper, @t2sh0, @taygrls, @tournesol77, @wandamaximoffbae, @wordsarelife

As always, let me know here if you'd like to be added or removed from the tag list!

It was nearly 3am and Y/n L/n had had enough.

She was exhausted, weary, worn out, and pretty much any other synonym for the word 'tired', and she just wanted to go to bed, but Anthony Lockwood had other ideas.

"Give it here, come on!"

Y/n groaned, then half-heartedly chucked the bits of paper at her best friend from where she was lying on the floor of his living room. Jessica laughed, despite also losing to the 5 year old boy at Monopoly, and shook her head at his greedy smile as he counted the money. How he had ever managed to get the two of them to agree to play with him, Y/n didn't know, especially since she'd not really been paying attention when the rules were explained. But then she saw how happy he was at the idea of playing with the two girls, and Y/n knew she could never make her best friend sad.

She did really want to go to bed though.

Jessica Lockwood appeared to notice Y/n's droopy eyes, and quietly spoke to her brother, stifling a laugh at his pout when she told him they should probably stop.

"But we aren't done yet!"

"I know, Anthony, but you've definitely got the most money, I'm sure of it. You're going to win no matter what, so I think we should let Y/n/n go to sleep, yeah?"

"Oh..." he'd noticed his friend's demeanour now, and felt immediately bad for making her stay awake. "Alright then. Y/n/n?"

"Mmm?"

"You ready to go to bed? 'Cause Jess says I won, so I reckon we can go up now."

"Mkay," she murmured, too sleepy to answer in proper words. Going up to bed was a haze, and she only really woke up when she stubbed her toe at the bottom of the stairs (Anthony hadn't told her that was there, despite saying he'd guide her). She was sure she brushed her teeth, Jessica would have checked, and they were all already in their pyjamas, but the only other thing she remembered before dropping off completely was seeing Anthony's face on the pillow next to her, already snoring lightly.

~~~

Y/n couldn't remember most of Anthony's sixth birthday now, what with all the memories that came in between, but she did remember his joy at receiving her present.

He'd spent the majority of the morning since Y/n and her family went next door gloating about how he was finally six, and now he was old enough to do so much more than Y/n (who was still five). She'd rolled her eyes, laughing when he did victory dances all around the house, and laughing even harder when he fell over while doing one of the previously mentioned dances.

They'd run away and hidden in his room in the attic after collecting plates of cake, and Y/n made sure to pick up her carefully wrapped present on the way up. He'd noticed immediately that she was carrying it, of course, he was far too observant to miss it, and had demanded that she let him open it right then and there. Initially she'd refused, feeling shy and worried that he wouldn't like it, but he'd given her one of his secret smiles, one of the ones reserved specifically for her, and said "Please?" so sweetly she caved.

He placed the cake to the side, then spent a good minute unwrapping the gift, being oh so gentle with the paper in fear of breaking it. When he saw the item inside, his smile burst out, bright and blinding, and Y/n felt her own smile form on her face, pleased at his reaction.

"Do you like it?" Nerves were still coursing through her, but they left her body when he raised his head and met her eyes.

"I love it, Y/n/n," he whispered, lifting the picture frame all the way out of the wrapping. She'd convinced her parents to print the photo off, and then spent hours making a frame that would fit it perfectly, complete with lolly sticks and stickers, trying to make the best gift for the best friend she'd ever had.

The photo was the two of them the previous Christmas, bundled up in ridiculous festive jumpers and sat in front of the Lockwood family tree in the hallway, presents surrounding them. Their parents had insisted on a photo before they ruined the area with rubbish everywhere, and the two of them could barely contain their excitement. There was a slight blur to them, a testament to their energy, but their smiles were so wide and they were hugging so tightly Y/n knew it was the perfect photo to give him.

"Where did you even get this? I thought your mum hid the camera?"

Y/n giggled at his comically wide eyes. "I just asked her, silly. I did have to do some chores but I didn't mind, it was worth it."

She barely had time to move her plate of cake out of the way (she hadn't eaten any in the last few minutes, far too focused on Anthony's reaction) when he surged forward, bringing his arms around her in a crushing hug.

"Thank you," he said, although it was muffled since his head was pressed into her shoulder.

"Anything for you, Ant, anytime."

They stayed there for a while, just hugging on his bed and revelling in each others' presence, both knowing that Y/n had meant her words.

~~~

When Anthony had to fight his parents' ghosts, Y/n had cried.

He was crying too, since he'd seen them die less than a day ago and now he had to keep them dead, but seeing her best friend in so much pain had made Y/n cry harder.

Anthony was trying to push back the tears so that he could see, so that he could fight, and Y/n hated that he was doing this on his own.

She had been kept in her room by her parents, the adults being too scared for their daughter's safety to let her go and help Anthony, and she was watching him through her bedroom window. Despite the tears streaming down her face and the sobs racking her body, she could tell he was crying (or trying not to) because of the way he was hunched into himself, as if by making himself smaller he could make everything stop. His body was shaking too, heaving with silent cries as he fought off the two ghosts in front of him. Why they were in his back garden, Y/n wasn't sure, since they'd died on the road in an explosion a few minutes drive away, but she was only six, and didn't understand much anyway.

She wasn't sure how long she sat there, perched on the window seat with her gaze fixed on the boy next door, but she knew that it was far past her bedtime when he finally stopped them, and she woke up with her face stuck to the window, tear stains on her cheeks.

Realising it was light again, Y/n hurried to get dressed, tearing down the stairs and into the house next to them, knocking rapidly on the front door. It swung open a few moments later, revealing Jessica, who smiled sadly at the small girl in front of her and waved Y/n in.

"He's in his room," she said quietly, voice raw from crying.

Y/n nearly tripped countless times climbing the many stairs, and by the time she'd made it to the attic she was out of breath. Pushing his door open, and going up the last few steps (seriously, why were there so many steps?) she froze at the top when she saw him curled up under his bedsheets, shaking with near-silent cries.

"Anthony?"

She heard him sniff, the sound gross and snotty, and then he turned his body around to face her, and Y/n felt her heart break in her chest.

He clearly hadn't slept all night, eyes red from crying and lack of sleep, and he was struggling to keep back the fresh tears that threatened to break through.

"Oh, Ant."

Y/n rushed to the bed, climbing to sit next to him and pulling his head into her lap, brushing her fingers through his hair.

They sat like that for hours, long after Jessica brought up some toast for the two of them, and even when Y/n's back hurt from the headboard and her legs were numb from having his weight on them, she didn't stop stroking his hair, soothing him silently.

When he finally sat up, wiping his eyes and blowing his nose (Y/n made a mental note to put her clothes in the wash as soon as she got back home), she pulled him back in for a hug, both of them sat up this time.

"Thank you, Y/n/n."

She remembered the last time they'd done this, hugged on his bed while he thanked her, but this time it wasn't happy.

"Anything, Ant. Anytime."

~~~

"Ant, don't be stupid!" Y/n giggled, watching him climb the tree.

"I'm gonna get you an apple," he shouted, smiling down at her. "You're gonna love it, I promise!"

He'd just been reaching out for one, bright red and shining, when they'd heard a crash from inside his house, followed by a scream. They'd frozen where they stood, Y/n on the ground and Anthony in the tree, and then suddenly they snapped into action, scrambling to get inside and find Jessica.

They tore up the stairs (somehow Anthony had caught up to her, despite having been up the tree), and he pushed open her bedroom door just in time to see the ghost.

"NO!"

He moved before Y/n did, grabbing a spare rapier from the dresser and moving to fight, hoping to save his sister.

Y/n moved, but backwards, taking a step back out onto the landing, her hand on her mouth.

"Anthony."

He had pushed the ghost back, and was picking up a net.

"Anthony."

He had thrown the net over the broken pot, wrapping it up securely.

"Anthony," she said, eyes fixed on the bed.

"What?" His eyes were wide with terror as he turned to look at her, evidently scared that she was in danger, but when he followed her finger that pointed to the bed, he choked.

"No," he croaked hoarsely, and Y/n felt terrible for making him realise. "Jessica? Jessica please wake up. Jessica. Jessica, this isn't funny. Jessica, please. Jessica."

He kept on like that, repeating her name and asking her to wake up, but Y/n knew that she wouldn't. She moved again then, over to where he stood, rapier hanging limply in his hand. It had only been three years ago he'd lost his parents, why did he have to lose someone else that he loved? Pulling him into her, she let him sob into her shoulder (difficult, given his growth spurt).

Y/n knew at that point that she wouldn't ever leave him.

~~~

"You what?!"

"I'm starting training," Anthony replied, not looking up from where he stood at the kitchen counter, buttering toast.

"But... but why?"

"Because," he shrugged. When he didn't expand on it, Y/n sighed.

She was worried about him.

He'd been vacant, hollow, since Jessica's death, and although he tried to smile and make everybody think that he was doing just fine, Y/n knew her best friend better than that. She saw the bags under his eyes, the lack of joy and mischief that used to reside in his gaze.

"Because what, Anthony?"

"Look, I'll be fine. This guy called Nigel is gonna train me, and then I'll be an agent, and I can keep you safe."

"I can keep myself safe, idiot," Y/n huffed indignantly, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair.

"I know, I just want to be extra sure that you'll be okay. And everyone else."

"We're nine, Anthony. You went to a funeral a week ago and already you're talking to agents?"

"Yes. I'd like it if you came with me, obviously, but if you don't that's fine too. I'm doing this anyway, with or without you."

That hurt.

They always did everything together, so why was he talking like this?

"Fine. I'll talk to my parents. You need protecting too, dummy."

She'd broached the subject that night at dinner, expecting them to say no.

"Are you sure you want to do this, darling?"

"Yep," she said, stabbing some peas with her fork.

Her parents shared a look.

"Alright. Just promise us you'll be careful, and you'll pay attention in your training, yeah?"

Surprise made Y/n jolt, sending peas skidding across the table. "I can go?"

"Yes, but you have to promise us-"

"I promise!" Her parents chuckled, shaking their heads in a way that reminded Y/n of Monopoly and a late night.

~~~

Training was horrible.

Everybody was mean to her, just because she couldn't run as fast as the others, or move as quickly with a rapier.

"Look at her, she's gonna die within minutes!"

"Nah, she'll never make it that long. On the plus side, if she's in our group we only have to run faster than her!"

"Won't be too difficult!"

Y/n scowled at the whispers, making her way over to Anthony. She huffed, plopping down on the bench next to him and glaring at the girls.

"What's up with you?"

"They're being mean about me. Saying I'll be useless in the field."

"Aw, Y/n/n, they're stupid if they think that. You'll be amazing, I'm sure." He nudged her shoulder with his, smile working its way onto his face. Y/n couldn't help but smile back; his was too infectious. "You'll prove them wrong, I'm sure of it."

After that day, Y/n worked ten times as hard on the practical elements, a new intensity coming into her training with the other agents. She sparred against Anthony when they got home, blunt rapiers clashing in her back garden while her parents cooked dinner.

Within a month, she could beat pretty much everyone she trained with, the only exception being Anthony. He'd shown a skill with the rapier from the very beginning, and his long body made him graceful in a fight. She'd nearly beaten him a few times, but then he'd had a fire light in his eyes and he'd push her back, focus deadly as he forgot everything but the fight. She grew scared in those moments, and had stopped trying to beat him, afraid that he'd forget who she was and hurt her.

~~~

When they were fourteen, Y/n broke her promise and walked out on Anthony Lockwood.

He'd started a business, his own goddamn agency, in his own goddamn house, and he'd wanted her to work with him. She barely recognised the boy that stood in front of her the day he asked her; he was a shell of the best friend she used to have. He was vacant still, and she just wanted Anthony Lockwood back.

"Please? It'll be so much better if we're working together! You can come and live here, and your parents are still next door so you're not too far away, and we'll go on cases together, and it'll be great!"

Y/n had shaken her head, fear creeping up her spine. He'd grown a death wish recently, and although he vehemently denied it, she'd seen how he didn't seem to care about his personal safety when on cases led by the trainers.

"Anthony, you can't do this, please. You're gonna get hurt," she pleaded, hoping he'd come to his senses. If he wasn't so broken, she'd say yes, gladly, and work with him as they had always planned they would. But he was broken, and this job could destroy him.

"What, do you think I can't do it?" His brow furrowed in confusion, and Y/n could practically feel his guard start to go up.

He'd never done that with her before.

"It's not that, I just don't want you getting hurt. You're my best friend, Ant, and I don't wanna lose you."

"You won't lose me," he'd raised his voice slightly, pushing off of the kitchen counter as he got defensive. "You've seen me," he swept an arm out, referencing the training missions. "I'm the best agent they've got, and we both know it. I won't get hurt. I'm too good for that."

Y/n scoffed. "Do you hear yourself, Anthony? Do you realise how arrogant you sound? Because that's gonna get you killed." She'd raised her voice too, to match his, and she jabbed a finger into his chest.

"Arrogant? You think I'm arrogant? I thought we were 'best friends'?"

"Why did you say it like that?"

"What?"

"'Best friends', like we're not. You did little finger quotes like it was sarcastic."

"You always do this! Make something out of nothing!"

"What?" Her eyes narrowed. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"You tell me! You're the one saying I'm gonna get killed when I'm the most skilled agent we know! Why can't you just trust me?!"

"Because you will, Anthony! You will get yourself killed, and I can't let that happen! You can't start a company, just join Fittes, or Rotwell!"

"Fittes? Rotwell? I'd rather eat my own foot than join one of them! You just think I'm not capable of any of this, don't you? You think, that because my family is dead, I can't do this, because I should be grieving instead. Well I have grieved, and if you don't want to stay, then you can leave. I don't want you here if you're gonna keep being like this. Come back when you've sorted your attitude out." He turned his back, busying himself with making a cup of tea.

Y/n stared at him, mouth open in shock and tears threatening to fall.

"Prick. You're the one that needs to sort your attitude, not me."

She left then, grabbing her bag from the chair and scribbling a 'fuck you, Lockwood' onto the paper cloth on the table.

~~~

A year later, Y/n was working a job, and was actually somewhat happy.

She'd joined Fittes after her argument with Lockwood (she stubbornly refused to call him 'Anthony' until he'd apologised to her), and had been put in Quill Kipps' team. He was nice enough, arrogant and conceited at times, but Y/n put that down to his failing Senses and the stress of being team leader, since he was alright the rest of the time. He was more like an overworked teacher on a school trip with a bunch of primary school kids, and the bags under his eyes really added to the image.

It was a minor threat, Type One ghost that was giving an old lady the creeps, but they'd been waylaid on their way back to Fittes by a group of ghosts in the park, and two figures struggling to fight them all. There had to have been around twenty to thirty ghosts (all Type Ones, but they were angry), and when Kipps wondered aloud who would be so daft as to take them on, Y/n sighed, knowing exactly who would do it.

The Fittes team had jumped in, using the remainder of their flares and energy to help, and Y/n found the source, securing it quickly and efficiently. Mass graves were never fun, and this one wasn't much better. Spreading the silver net over the area, Y/n stood, careful not to jostle it.

"We don't need Fittes coming in, thanks, we were perfectly fine on our own."

"Sure," Kipps snorted. "Because being completely surrounded by ghosts and nearly dying is being perfectly fine. Give it a rest, Tony. Go back to your house and leave the agent work to the professionals, yeah?" Y/n rolled her eyes as she got closer, but she couldn't help but agree with what her leader was saying.

Anthony Lockwood looked terrible.

She had no idea who the other boy was (although he did look vaguely familiar), but he at least didn't look like he was on death's door.

"Y/n?"

She raised her eyebrows (she still couldn't figure out how to raise just the one, despite practicing for hours).

"Lockwood."

He flinched, almost imperceptibly, but she knew him too well to miss it. Nobody else noticed.

"Why are you... Are you working for Fittes?"

"Yes." He wasn't getting more out of her, not until he apologised. Kipps was looking between the two of them, as was the other boy with Lockwood, both clearly confused.

"How do you know each other?" Kipps asked.

"We were-"

"We were neighbours. Didn't talk much outside of that." Her tone was bland, and her face nonchalant, and she turned to leave. "Has somebody called DEPRAC?" Ned nodded, waving the radio in his hand.

"Said they'd be two minutes. Should be here in a minute."

"Perfect. Can we get that tea now, Kipps?"

He hesitated, obviously still unsure about what was going on. "Sure. We'll drop the other Source off first though, yeah?"

They left, and although Y/n could feel Lockwood's stare on her back, she didn't turn around.

~~~

It was a month later that Y/n saw Lockwood again, and it was almost the same situation. Her team had been patrolling the streets, making sure the area was secure, when they'd seen magnesium flares going off. They'd rushed in, and Y/n had scoffed when she caught sight of the long black coat and flashy moves.

"Outta the way, Tony!"

The Fittes team had made quick work of the Type Two, bagging the Source and claiming the reward. Y/n felt a little bad about the money, but at the same time Lockwood needed to learn how to get control over the situations he put himself in if he wanted to keep the reward. He seemed to take on the cases that were ridiculously out of his reach, and if Y/n was speaking to him she'd guess that he was trying to prove a point.

She and her team were warming up in a cafe afterwards, one of the late night ones that opened specifically for agents, when Lockwood and his coworker walked in. The pair breezed past, and when the other boy had smiled apologetically at them and given Y/n a little wave, she remembered who he was.

"George! Wait, it is George, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah," he scratched the back of his head, and adjusted his glasses on his face. "I wasn't sure you remembered me, to be honest."

"I knew I'd seen you before, it just took me a bit to remember where from. Also it was dark the last two times we saw each other, so that won't have helped. Anyway, how are you?"

They chatted for a while, George shifting the piles of paper he had in his arms.

"Do you need to put those down?" she asked after he readjusted them for what seemed like the millionth time.

"I should probably get over to Lockwood, actually. I'm pretty sure he's burning holes in my jumper right now."

"Oh, he's glaring at me, don't worry."

"Why would he be glaring at you? You're lovely," he questioned, confused. "I thought you were just neighbours anyway?"

"Yeah. We had an argument a while back. He was a knob."

"Oh. Yeah, I can see that he would be." George nodded in understanding. "I should definitely go and join him though. We've got all this to get through," he held up the papers slightly, and Y/n smiled up at him.

"Well good luck, George. See you soon?"

"Probably the next time you save us. Lockwood has a death wish apparently. Doesn't let me research for long enough," he complained, shaking his head as he turned and left. Y/n had been right. Lockwood was being reckless, and he'd get himself, and quite possibly George, killed.

She and her team were just finishing up, with Kipps paying the bill and her other teammates standing with him at the till, when Lockwood came over. Y/n had stepped outside, breathing in the cold night air, and when she heard the door she instinctively turned to look, expecting her coworkers.

"Oh. It's you."

"C'mon. Don't be like that, Y/n."

She snorted. "You know you're proving me right, right? You keep throwing yourself into situations you can't win in, and you're going to get yourself killed."

"I'm not proving you right," he started, frown forming on his face. He'd had another growth spurt, she realised. He'd stepped closer to her, out of the way of the cafe door so that other agents could enter, and now he towered over her.

"Yes, you are. Stop being a dick, Lockwood, and realise that you're going to get yourself seriously hurt someday."

"Since when was I Lockwood to you?"

"You know when."

"True. Lovely message, by the way. Great parting gift."

"Yeah, well you were being an asshole, and it felt fitting to write 'fuck you'."

He muttered something under his breath, too quiet for her to hear.

"Excuse me?"

"I said, 'Yeah, I bet you'd like to'," he repeated, louder this time, meeting her eyes with a smug smile on his face.

"Grow up, Lockwood."

"That's not a denial."

Y/n turned to him, looking him dead in the eyes. "Yes it is." She tried to sound threatening, but that was difficult when he was nearly a whole head taller than her. She was saved by her team coming out of the cafe, and she shoved her hands in her pockets, hunching her shoulders against the chill.

"You alright, Y/n?" Kipps asked, concern for his colleague appearing on his face.

"Yeah, fine. Let's go."

~~~

Those meetings kept happening, and it was beginning to frustrate Y/n.

Lockwood had started being more flirty, as if he actually enjoyed getting on her nerves, and the past year had been exhausting.

It was the same every time.

Y/n's Fittes team would be patrolling, or coming back from a job, or heading to a job, when they'd see two figures, or their flares, or hear their shouts, fighting an incessant number of ghosts. The group would jump in, joining the fight, and somehow Y/n and Lockwood ended up next to each other. She was certain he engineered it that way specifically so that he could irritate her with his comments, and that just irritated her even more. What he said was always the same thing, too.

"Do you come here often?"

"We have to stop meeting like this."

"What are you doing after this?"

When she told him to shut up and focus on the job, he'd ignore her, or answer with something just as bad.

"Make me."

"I'll stop talking if you join me later."

Both of those were said with smug smirks and winks, and Y/n went home to her crappy flat close to the Fittes building (she couldn't stand being near him after the argument) every night wondering what the hell had happened to her old best friend.

The last case had been particularly annoying.

The same routine had occurred, but this time there were three of them.

Y/n was surprised to see the girl, but as soon as she saw her fighting she decided that she liked her. She was feisty, and from what Y/n could tell, didn't take any of Lockwood's shit. She looked like the sort of person Y/n would be friends with, or at least get along with, like with George (they had limited contact outside of saving them).

But then the Fittes team had helped, and Lockwood hadn't come near Y/n.

She was glad in some ways, it meant she didn't have his incessant flirting in her ear, and she was glad, until she looked to see where he'd gone.

He was side by side with the girl, and they fought together like they'd been doing it their whole lives. For some reason it annoyed Y/n, despite the fact she'd sworn to block out any feelings for Lockwood other than annoyance and hate, and she grumbled the rest of the night. Kipps picked up on it, and questioned her.

"What's up with you? Surely you'd be happy that Tony left you alone?"

"Yeah, I am. It's something else, don't worry."

"Alright... well, don't let it get to you too much, yeah? We need you focusing on missions, you're too good at what you do."

Y/n nodded, flushing slightly at the compliment.

They made it to the cafe just as Lockwood and Co did, and Y/n bristled at seeing the three of them laughing together.

Well, at seeing Lockwood and the girl laughing together.

George she was just happy to see, he was always nice to her back when he worked at Fittes, and when they passed each other in the Archives or finished jobs together, and she didn't think she could ever be mad at him.

Lockwood and his new colleague, however, she could justify.

"Oh, hi!"

Ugh, she was nice. That made disliking her even harder.

"Hi," Y/n forced a smile, hoping it didn't look too fake.

"I'm Lucy," she said, coming closer to Y/n as the two of them trailed behind the others.

"Y/n. How long you been working with him then?"

"Uh, about a week? Do you... do you not like Lockwood or something?"

"What makes you say that?"

"You just... said 'him' like you wanted to rip his head off."

"Oh. Well, that's one thing I wanna do to him."

Apparently Lockwood tuned in to their conversation at that specific moment, because he turned around, smirk already in place.

"What are the other things you want to do to me, Y/n? I'd love to find out later. My place or yours?"

Y/n scoffed, pushing past him to join her teammates. Behind her she heard a thump, followed by a small "Ow!" Assuming that Lucy had hit him, Y/n smiled, and started liking the girl again. Maybe she wasn't as bad as she originally thought.

~~~

It had been nearly two years since Y/n had first met Lucy, and her second impression of the girl had stuck.

They'd saved Lockwood and Co far too many times since the girls had first met, but Y/n didn't mind. She enjoyed seeing Lucy and George (and Lockwood, but she wouldn't tell anyone that), and if getting involved and having to suffer Lockwood's chatter meant that the three of them lived another day, Y/n would gladly take that sacrifice.

Y/n and Lucy met up regularly in the down time that they both shared, either at Y/n's flat, or in a cafe or shop somewhere. Sometimes George came along, having snuck out under the pretence that he was researching at the Archives, and the three of them had lengthy chats about pretty much anything. Lockwood came up in conversation a lot, of course, given he was something they all had in common, but Y/n always steered away from the subject.

Tonight, however, she wasn't getting let off the hook.

"Why do you always do that?" Lucy asked, stuffing a chip in her mouth. They were sat on the floor of Y/n's tiny kitchen, take away boxes of food in front of them.

"Do what?"

"Whenever Lockwood gets mentioned you start talking about other things. Why do you do that?"

Y/n shrugged, eating some of her own food. "'Cause he's a knob and I don't want to think about him more than I have to?"

"He's always flirting with you though, and you always flirt back."

"Thanks for the observation, George. And I do not flirt back!"

"Oh you totally do, like earlier, right, he was saying something about how your uniform really compliments your complexion or something, and you look really good in it, and you said, wait, George, you take over, I need a drink," Lucy spoke.

"You said 'thanks, I look better without it', and winked at him. I had to physically push him out of the way of a ghost because he was stood staring at you like an idiot."

"He always looks like an idiot," Y/n mumbled, cheeks going red.

"George is right, he's actually gonna end up hurting himself if you two don't get on with it soon."

"He's at risk of death anyway! And get on with what?"

"Snogging," Lucy said, at the same time George said "Making out."

Y/n stared at her friends, hand pausing halfway to her mouth, chip in between her fingers. "What?!"

"Seriously, there's so much tension I could slice it with my rapier. Just stick your tongue in his mouth already."

"Lucy!"

The girl just shrugged. "We are seventeen, you know that right? I know people who've shagged at seventeen. I'm honestly surprised the two of you haven't yet, which is why you need to get on with it."

"That would be... no, that's too weird."

"Why is it weird? He's your old neighbour, you had an argument about something petty probably, and now he's flirting with you 'cause he's realised how hot you are. If he doesn't kiss you I will, just so I can say I kissed the hottest girl I know."

"Aw, thanks Luce. I'd rather kiss you than him, to be honest."

"The bar is low. He's punching."

"Definitely. You alright George?"

"I don't understand girls," he replied, having been quiet the last few minutes while Y/n and Lucy went back and forth. "What did you argue about, anyway? Because you've held a grudge against him for at least three years now and I have never known why."

"Was it petty?"

"No, Lucy, it wasn't petty." Y/n sighed, taking a break from eating. "He... We were fourteen, just finished all of our training, and he told me he wanted to start his agency."

"That is kinda petty though."

"Lemme finish. I don't know how much he's told you about his family," she paused, looking at the other two.

"Not much, but we know they're all dead."

"Yeah, and he showed us Jessica's room."

Y/n raised her eyebrows. He'd kept that room stubbornly locked since she'd died.

"Right. Well, a week after her funeral, he told me he wanted to start training to be an agent. We were nine, and he was definitely not okay at all. Anyway, we did it, and then like I said, when we'd finished, he told me he wanted to start an agency in his house and he wanted me to join him. He was still not himself, and I was just worried that he was going to end up killing himself. Hell, he'd almost hurt me a few times in training. We were the top two in our academy, so we ended up fighting together a lot. But he'd get... intense. Focused. But not in a good way. It was like... he saw anyone he was up against as a ghost, and he wanted revenge for what had happened with his family. We argued about the agency. I told him something about how if he did it he'd just end up hurt, because I knew him and I knew that he wouldn't think he had anything to live for. He took that to mean that I thought he was incapable, and he told me to leave and that I could come back when I'd fixed my attitude."

The three of them sat in silence for a few minutes, Y/n staring at her take away box in her lap, George and Lucy absorbing everything she'd told them.

"Fuck," Lucy finally said, breaking the quiet.

"Yeah."

"Wait, so you weren't just neighbours?" George asked. "You must have been closer than that if you knew him so well."

"Best friends. We're the same age, and our parents had lived next to each other since before we were born. Just made sense really that we were friends."

"Does he know? That you were worried about him?" Lucy questioned.

"Probably not. Should have guessed it though, given how close we were. I mean, he's seen me ugly cry at funerals, and they weren't even my relatives, they were his."

"Maybe you should talk to him? I know, I know, he needs to apologise for being a knob, but you were fourteen. I mean, it's three years on and he's still the mental age of a five year old, but talking might help?"

"Anyway, Lockwood's hopeless when it comes to women. Completely clueless," George added.

"How would you know?" Y/n frowned, not liking the way her heart clenched at the idea of Lockwood talking to other girls.

"Because he hasn't done anything about you, and you're probably the most amazing girl that's ever going to get a chance with in his life. Maybe he's intimidated by you."

"He's not getting a chance. Not like that. Don't look at me like that, Luce. If I don't kiss him that means I'm kissing you."

"Oh, alright then. I'm fine if you don't wanna make up with him," she replied, cheeky smile appearing on her face.

They left the topic alone after that, moving on to other subjects, but Y/n couldn't help but think about the boy with a death wish.

~~~

It was only a week after her evening with George and Lucy that Y/n had to help save Lockwood again (it was so ridiculous she was almost entirely convinced he came unprepared just so that he could see her).

"Miss me, darling?"

"In your dreams, Lockwood," she shouted back at him, dodging a Type Two. She gritted her teeth as she hit the ground, jagged rocks digging in and pain shooting through her side. Rolling, she stood again, panicking for a moment when she realised she'd dropped her rapier.

"Here you go, darling," Lockwood said, appearing out of nowhere with her rapier. "Do I get a reward for returning your belongings?"

"Yeah, you do, actually," she replied, getting close enough to him she could feel his breath on her face. "You get to not be stabbed by me. Duck." He did, almost immediately, and Y/n threw a flare at the Spectre behind him. Lockwood popped back up, somehow still smiling despite the utter carnage surrounding them.

"If I got hurt, would you visit me in hospital?"

"Yeah, to finish you off."

He laughed, and Y/n turned away so he couldn't see the blush rising on her face at the sound. As she did so, she caught a glimpse of something that definitely wasn't dead rummaging around where she had thought the Source for the cluster was.

Relic men.

"Lockwood?"

"Yes, my love?"

"Relic men, over by the Source. What are we gonna do about them?" She hadn't taken her eyes off of the two figures that were crouched by the oak tree, afraid that if she moved her gaze they would run off. When Lockwood only cursed, she panicked, wondering what was wrong. Normally by now he would have charged in to the fight, all guns blazing. Why wasn't he doing that now? Had he suddenly realised that she was right? Because this was really terrible timing if he had. "Lockwood?" Her voice had gone up in pitch, fear making it quiver. Relic men were nasty, and a lot harder to deal with than ghosts. Ghosts she'd been trained for.

"We're surrounded by them. They're blocking all reasonable exits."

"Shit. Okay. What about unreasonable exits?"

"What?"

"You said they're blocking all reasonable exits, yeah? So what about the unreasonable ones? Could we get out anywhere else?"

"Uh... there's a gap in the fence over there," he pointed. "But that would mean letting them have the Source. It's too powerful, we can't let that happen."

"Ugh, okay, hang on. Go and tell the others, just in case they haven't noticed."

"What about you?"

"I'm keeping an eye on these two, make sure they don't get away. I'll try and get closer, but there's a lot of Type Ones in the way."

"You'll be okay?"

"If I die you can take me on a date."

"That's... what? That doesn't make sense."

"Take it or leave it, Lockwood. Get a move on."

He left, casting a last look over his shoulder at her before disappearing into the night to find the others. Y/n felt unease creep up her spine, and she gripped her rapier tighter, her other hand hovering over the remaining flares in her belt. The relic men were still digging, and a few of the ghosts had noticed the disturbance now, moving over. Y/n frowned, a thought occurring to her.

Relic men waited until the ghosts were gone.

So what were they doing here, now? Why endanger themselves? Before she could think on it further, she felt the air shift behind her and ducked to the left just as a fist appeared in the space her head was in mere seconds ago.

Shit.

She pulled herself back up, readjusting her grip on the rapier and taking a quick glance over to the tree. Seeing the two relic men still there, Y/n whipped back around, ducking again just in time to miss the next punch. The man pulled out a knife, the edges jagged, and a wicked grin came over his face. Y/n gulped, then parried his attacks. He was relentless, swinging and then swinging again immediately after, never letting up on her. It was all she could do to keep her arm upright and strong enough to block him, and the ache in her side from hitting the ground earlier was turning into a throb that wracked her body with pain. The relic man noticed the weakness, and his grin grew wider, broken teeth showing. He became even more frantic in his attacks, and Y/n felt herself stumbling backwards over the grass. The floor was uneven, and she tripped, crashing onto her back. She got her rapier up in time to hold off the relic man's knife that had carved a path through the air to cut through her head, but he was stronger than her, and his blade was edging closer to her face. He was only using the one hand, and Y/n realised a split-second too late that his other hand was reaching for his belt, where a second knife was strapped. Her eyes widened in recognition briefly right before he plunged the blade into her side, and she let out a scream.

The pain was all-consuming, and it took everything in her to keep her rapier up, the shockwaves coursing through her body. She took a hazy note of the fact that he hadn't pulled it out yet, which was good, but her vision was blurry, which was not so good. At least if the knife was still inside her body then she wasn't losing too much blood. Her grip weakened, and she saw the other knife jolt towards her face before it disappeared, the man being flung backwards into the bushes in a flash of light. Lucy appeared, hair wild and filled with leaves, her own rapier in hand. She crouched down, pressing a hand to Y/n's cheek and checking if she was okay.

"Threw a flare at him, should knock him out for a while. LOCKWOOD! HURRY UP! Sorry, I told him to get his ass over here just now, but he's stuck with some ghosts, and they're-"

"Lucy?"

"Yeah?" Her voice was hopeful, glad that her friend was conscious enough to speak.

"Please stop talking."

"Y/N!"

She winced at the shout, and Lucy moved over to make room for Lockwood. Y/n rolled her eyes at the cuts on his face, and the gash on his arm. "You can't help yourself, can you? Gotta throw yourself into danger headfirst."

"Shut up. Can you sit?"

"Did you just tell me to shut up? Anthony Lockwood, do not tell me to shut up when I could be dying."

"Y/n, please, don't do this. Can you sit?" His voice was insistent, desperation seeping into his expression, and his glare was convincing enough that she tried to sit up. The pain in her side was too much though, and she ended up half-slumped against a tree. "Who did this? Y/n? Who did this to you?" His tone was lower now, with something dangerous in the background.

"Lucy hit him with a flare. He's over there somewhere." She waved in the general direction she'd seen him disappear in. "Anthony, where are you going?" He froze, looking down at her from where he now stood. The full moon was behind him, and he looked otherworldly in the silver light.

"Lucy will stay with you, okay? Just hang on. I'll be back in a minute. Don't die on me now, Y/n/n." He softened a little at the last part, trying to convey a million emotions in a few words.

"Wait, I'm staying here?"

"Yes, Lucy." And with that he left, stalking in the direction Y/n had pointed him in.

"You alright?"

"Brilliant, thanks Luce," Y/n replied, and then she promptly passed out.

~~~

A soft beeping woke Y/n up, and the harsh light above her and the sterile smell in the air immediately told her that she was in a hospital.

That didn't explain the warmth in her left hand though.

Blinking as she adjusted to the bright light, she turned her head to the left, and had she not been drugged up on painkillers she would have reacted much more quickly and jerked away.

But she was drugged up on painkillers, so instead she just stared at the boy asleep in the chair next to her bed.

Anthony looked peaceful when he slept, he always had, but he didn't look particularly comfortable right now. His right hand was holding her left, and he'd managed to pull one of his long legs up onto the chair, bracing his forehead on his knee while his left arm dangled off the side of the armrest. Yeah, he couldn't be comfortable like that. She squeezed his hand lightly, but he didn't wake. A nurse came in, and upon seeing Y/n awake, smiled.

"Your boyfriend must love you a lot. He hasn't left your side since you came in. Rode in the ambulance with you too, which he wasn't meant to. Paramedics said he was very insistent and needed treating anyway, so they let him. He's been really worried about you." Y/n was on too much morphine to fully comprehend what was going on, and her brain had stopped working properly at the word 'boyfriend' anyway.

"Oh," was all she said, and the nurse smiled, going through her checkups. Y/n drifted in and out of consciousness for half an hour before Anthony woke up.

He blinked a few times, just as she had, stretching like a cat, long limbs going everywhere but never removing his hand from hers. His grip only tightened, and when he saw her watching him with a small smile on her face, he returned it.

"You're awake."

"No, I'm dead," she deadpanned. "Obviously I'm awake, idiot. If I died I'd have to go on a date with you."

He frowned. "Would that really be so bad?"

"Yeah. You should be going on a date with me, not the other way around."

He laughed lightly, more an amused exhale than anything else. "You are so drugged up right now."

"Yep," she replied, popping the 'p'. His thumb was stroking across her hand, and Y/n wondered if he knew he was doing it.

~~~

"Ugh, do I have to live at yours? What's wrong with my house?"

"You live on the fifth floor and there aren't any lifts. You were also specifically told not to climb too many stairs."

"Yeah, but your house has almost as many stairs as my apartment building, so what's the difference?"

"The difference is that I can look after you here, because I live here. Don't touch that, it's still healing, and- ow!"

"Oh shit, sorry. It looks healed."

"Yeah, well you're not the only one that got stabbed, alright? Here, let me get the door."

Anthony sprung up the last step, fishing the keys out of his coat pocket and unlocking the door. Y/n followed behind, wincing when the movement up the stairs put pressure on her wound. She'd been in hospital for two weeks once she'd woken up, and had been told to stay at home until she was properly healed. Anthony had taken on the role of carer immediately, and the nurses had all mentioned (multiple times) what a good and loving boyfriend he was, looking after Y/n the way he was, despite his own injuries.

Neither of them had denied it.

Once inside 35 Portland Row, Y/n took a look around, and was surprised to see that it had barely changed in the last three years.

"Right. Tea? I think George has just put the kettle on."

"Anthony?"

"Yeah?" His smile was tentative, clearly not wanting to scare her off when she'd just started calling him by his first name again.

"Please don't make me sleep on the sofa. Because that looks like the same one your parents got when we were four and I remember how uncomfortable that one is." She pointed to the sofa in question, and he shook his head.

"No, you're not sleeping there. What sort of a boyfriend would I be if I let that happen?" he joked, and Y/n felt her heart flutter at the idea. "You can sleep in my bed, alright? It's only one flight of stairs, which will hurt, but it'll be good for you to get the exercise in, make sure you're healing properly."

Y/n frowned. "Where are you sleeping if I'm in your bed?" She half expected him to say that he'd be right next to her, but he smiled softly again.

"Sofa. No, don't look at me like that, I've slept in worse places."

"What worse places? Ant, you've got to look after yourself! God, you're gonna give me a heart attack one of these days."

She started making her way up the stairs, huffing from the effort. She was tired, despite having spent just over two weeks lying down, and it was already late in the evening.

"It doesn't matter, alright? Just... let's just get you to bed, okay?"

"You're sleeping in a bed, and that's that."

"You are so stubborn sometimes."

"So are you!" She made it to the half landing, and hobbled over to the door she remembered being Anthony's. "You still in here?" At his nod, she pushed the door open, going over to the bed and sitting on the edge. "Seriously, this bed is big enough for the both of us. I'm not letting you sleep on the sofa, Ant. It's super uncomfortable."

"Won't that be... I don't know. Won't that be weird?"

"Why would it be weird?"

"Because we haven't... we're not... you don't like me and I'm scared you're going to murder me in my sleep."

"You... what? Uh... okay. I'm not gonna murder you in your sleep, Ant. One, that's completely dishonourable. I would do it while you were awake so that you could look into the eyes of your killer. Two, I do like you, I just also need you to apologise. For what you said."

"You want me to apologise? I was just defending myself, because I was hurt by what you said. You made out like I wasn't capable and that stung, because you'd always been my biggest supporter."

"Oh for fuck's sake, Anthony. I wasn't saying that at all. I was worried about you because you weren't yourself after Jess died. You were... I don't know. You weren't you, and it freaked me out when you said you were starting an agency, because it's a crazy thing to do! You sort of became a shell of my best friend, and disappeared, and I was worried that you would die and I would lose you because you wouldn't care about living anymore. I know that you are perfectly capable of fighting, and you're one of the best swordsmen I've ever met, but you're an emotional wreck, Ant."

He was quiet for a bit, staring into space as he thought about her words. Y/n sighed, lying down on the covers and closing her eyes.

"I'm sorry." She felt the bed dip next to her as he sat down. "I'm sorry. I said some horrible things to you and you had every right to leave. I don't have an excuse for what I said, and if you want to leave tomorrow morning then I'll help you move into your flat again. But I just... I'm sorry, Y/n/n."

Y/n sighed again. "I don't want to go. I've missed it here," she admitted. "And yeah, you were an idiot and an arse, but you're my idiot, alright? You have a lot of grovelling to do as well." He nodded rapidly, and a secret smile spread on his face, one of the ones he showed her and nobody else.

"Your idiot?"

"Yes, Anthony. My idiot." They smiled at each other, soft and gentle. A thought occurred to Y/n, and her brow furrowed. "What happened after I passed out in the park? All I remember is you looking murderous and asking who stabbed me."

"Oh, right." Anthony looked away, blush creeping up his neck.

"What happened?"

"He's not coming after you again, if that helps. Or anyone. DEPRAC completely purified the area."

Y/n gaped at him. "You killed him?"

Anthony shrugged. "He hurt you, badly, and you could have been killed. If Lucy had been a second later..." He trailed off, eyes clouding over slightly.

"Ant?" Y/n pushed herself up into a sitting position, wincing at the stab of pain that shot through her in protest.

"Hmm?" he turned to look at her, and his eyes went wide when she slid an arm up around his neck.

"Lucy and George think that we need to make out."

"They, uh... they what?"

"They think that we need to make out."

He swallowed thickly, eyes flickering between hers, trying to figure out what was going on. When he spoke, it was in a hoarse whisper.

"What do you think?"

"I think we should listen to them. They're normally right about things. What about you?"

"Uh... okay?"

Y/n hesitated, suddenly unsure.

"Ant, do you want to? Because if you don't that's totally fine, I just assumed that you felt the same as me, and we were both fine with the hospital thinking that we're dating, and I genuinely really like you, and I probably love you-" she was cut off by his lips on hers, slightly chapped but still soft.

"I do want to, I'm just hopeless around girls, especially the ones I've loved since I was about ten." He'd barely pulled away, his nose brushing the side of hers, breath fanning over her lips.

"George was right about that too, then," she murmured, kissing him again. "He said you were hopeless with women."

"Thank god. I thought he knew I've been in love with you for years."

"Oh you're in love now, are you?"

"Started about seven years ago, but sure." He pushed forward again, bringing a hand up to cup her cheek as he kissed her softly and slowly.

"Is that why you flirted with me?"

Anthony flushed, nodding slightly. "In my defence I am completely hopeless with pretty girls, and I wanted to know if there was any chance of you sharing my feelings."

Y/n kissed him again, short and sweet. "I love you, Anthony Lockwood. Just look after yourself more, yeah?"

"I love you too," he replied. Y/n prodded him in the side.

"And?"

"And I'll look after myself more," he said, smiling. "Anything for you, anytime."

They kissed again, for longer this time, exploring each other and being mindful of their injuries, and Y/n thought she could happily spend eternity wrapped up in his arms

"You're definitely not sleeping on the sofa," she said when they paused for air a while later.

"If you say so," he smirked, wiggling his eyebrows. She smacked a hand against his chest, face going red at his implication.

"Not like that, idiot."

"Your idiot," he smiled, pure joy on his face as he pecked her lips.

"My idiot," she replied, mirroring his grin.

#anthony lockwood x reader #anthony lockwood #lockwood and co #lockwood netflix #lockwood & co #lockwood x reader #lockwood x you #anthony lockwood x you

242 notes · View notes

shizukateal · 1 year

Text

In honor of Across The Spiderverse going digital, here's the Beyond the Spiderverse Prediction Bingo!!!!

Explanations below the readmore:

Spider Ham's Chekov Hammer: simple enough to guess, I'm just really waiting for that to pay off, preferably over Miguel's head.

Spider Noir and Hobie get along: just some good ole' fanservice.

Miles G. is actually a dork (he's just better at hiding it. mildly): Wow, great introduction Miles G.! Very suspenseful and intimidating!! Let's see how long you can carry that demeanor without breaking.

Margo / Miles (Miles G.?) / Gwen Love Triangle (Pavitr is annoying about it): Pass the popcorn everyone. How resentful will be Miles when he meets Gwen again? Is getting the spider-band together enough for him or is it just the first step into making amends? Maybe he feels more grateful towards Margo (and Hobie) and will give Gwen (and Peter B.) the cold shoulder for a while. Will Miles G. also enter the ring? Maybe this one really cute comic by @bubblypinkfreak will become true.

Jess Drew Subplot (baby is born?): REAL interested in finding out why Jess would ever follow an asshole like Miguel. Also she deserves more plot relevance. And fanart. Aaaaaand I kinda want to see her husband too.

The Spot Collapses in on himself: Gonna be honest with you, people, I have no idea how they'll fight him, this just seems like the cleanest solution.

Miguel's actually just as much of an anomaly as Miles: My own personal theory, not really based on anything concrete beyond some flags I get from Miguel and some stuff I'll explain later. Basically, I think Miguel's projecting on Miles, and that's part of why his beef towards him is so intense. The only explanation I can think of is that he destroyed his original dimension, not just the one with his daughter in it, and the serum we see him take is what keeps him "stable" and "belonging" to Nueva York. Or you know, maybe just the watch, but the serum is more sus to me.

Gwen Stacy Fall Subversion: Either Gwen completes her character arc by saving Miles from falling to his death or she saves herself, thus breaking her karmic cycle of getting fridged.

Meows Morales cameo?? Pretty Please???: C'mooooon he became instantly popular and he's adorable!!!!! <3 <3 <3 bonus points if multiple miles help out to fight against Miguel's squad later.

We spend some time on Hobie's dimension: No idea how the plot would get there, but the concept art of Hobie's dimension is fire and I want to learn more about him <3 <3 <3 tell us why you almost gave up the mask, darling, and did you kill a cop in your dimension? <3 why would you feel bad about it? <3 <3 <3 <3

Gwiles Morales (he hates that name): Apparently this is how some of the staff called him. Poor guy.

The Spider-Band fights Earth 42's Sinister Six: For those who don't know, they control Earth 42, as confirmed by the art book. Nothing better to sweeten Miles G. to our heroes' side than taking care of them. Bonus points if one of them is explicitly a fascist and Hobie and Noir punch him together.

Miguel Bites Someone: bonus points if it's hot as fuck. Sorry but it's true.

Lyla's the real bad guy (beyonder): I'm gonna let moviebob do the heavylifting here. Could tie to that personal theory I explained above.

Peter B. vs Miguel fight redemption: ok this one I'm biased for because I personally find Peter B. more morally culpable than Gwen in their whole drama with Miles seeing as he's the adult with a kid. But also yeah, good chance for him to redeem himself in Miles eyes (or not! maybe Miles wants more from him that just standing up to a bully) and take Miguel down a peg. Bonus points if he looses a leg, because apparently that's something that happens in Spidergirl's comic.

Prowler!Hobie somehow: Not saying our Hobie will turn into the prowler, just that the connection will be addressed somehow. Idk man, it just feels like positioning Hobie as another mentor for Miles is very deliberate.

Miles feels guilty about Earth 42: Juicy source of drama between him and Miles G. as well as a free character arc about how responsibility is more than just cause and effect.

Miguel tries to redeem himself by dying but Miles won't allow him to: Miguel O'hara has several problems, and I speculate they all come from his self-obsession. Everything about the spider society is about him erecting structures dedicated to his pain to turn himself into the martyr holding reality together. So if he's finally proven wrong, it seems pretty in character to me that his idea of making amends would be to do the same thing one last time for "the right cause", being the diva he is and how he thinks you can sacrifice one person to save everyone else and all. I don't think Miles will allow that, though. Bonus if the scene parallels the one in into the spiderverse when Miles returns Peter B. home.

That one @cheezthatboiii comic / Mileswitch: because what's the point of having a twin if you can't fool people about it?

Gonzalo/Gonza Morales: The correct alternative to Gwiles if anyone during production has braincells or is latine.

Margo Subplot (family issues): confirmed in the artbook that she ended up having more plot relevance than originally planned, and even if that wasn't the case she deserves it. And more fanart.

The Spot is defeated with kindness: Ok. Before I said that I don't know how the Spot could be defeated with violence, but maybe that's not needed? He is clearly a foil to Miles after all, and I think it would do him (Miles) a lot of good to practice some radical empathy, even on someone who kinda doesn't "deserve" it. This isn't so much about him being ""redeemable"" (fandom has ruined that whole concept) so much as how much empathy the narrative is willing to grant him.

Jeff meets Gonza before Miles reveals to him that he's Spiderman. He's confused by having 2 sons: this just feels to me like the most probably sequence of events given the franchise's usual use of bathos and subversion of expectations.

Spider Support Network Finale: No more spider society authority "correcting" the multiverse, every spider-person gets a watch so their friends can come over and lend a hand and prevent as many deaths as possible.

Aaron 42 gets severely injured/dies: I don't want this to happen, it just seems like a way of trimming some fat in the cast and getting some more drama from Gonza.

166 notes · View notes

vclvetfleur · 1 year

Text

Obedient Chapter 16

Summary: After your talk with Roman, Jess gives him some friendly advice. And Logan is now deciding on who to throw under the bus for the scandal. Based off of S2 E10 and S3 E1

TW: Mental health issues, NSFW (oral) 18+

Word Count: 4.6K

Notes: Sorry again for the slower updates. Bigger things are being planned for the story so bare with me.

Chapter 16: ken is def bd

Jess had just gotten back onto the yacht after making a trip out to the land to just explore. She saw Roman as he sulked. Roman had decided to just remain by himself, avoiding others, trying to distract himself from the massive fuck up he had put himself through. Jess would’ve never thought she’d do this for Roman in a million years, but she couldn’t help herself. She slowly walked to Roman, hoping not to startle him. “Hey, you guys talk?” She asked him.

Roman removed his sunglasses, looking at Jess completely defeated. “Fucking yeah- uh- yeah we did. She doesn’t wanna hear it.” He decided to open up rather than push. The trip to Turkey had made Roman realize the way he pushed and didn’t talk about his feelings really put him in difficult situations. Any day could be his last.

“I’m sorry- what happened?” She sat down, trying to get all the details. There was no way she was going to get any of these details from you. Roman blew air out, trying to recollect every detail of the conversation to only cut it short enough. “Well- she said she doesn’t love me anymore. That it was before.” He tried to slowly remember all your words. He heard Jess scoff, rolling her eyes. “Bull-fucking-shit.” Jess lightly laughed to herself at how ridiculous the idea was. She had sat right next to you and was lying down. She saw your gaze behind your sunglasses. They were constantly on Roman. You just wouldn’t stop staring. You panicked and nearly had a meltdown because of his trip. You isolated yourself from the court hearings because Roman didn’t need you there. You mentioned him a lot. You would just bring up a funny thing Roman did weeks ago while hanging out with Jess or remember little moments that reminded you of Roman. You were still very much deeply in love with him. Whether you admit it or not.

“Yeah- well, that’s what she said. Uh-so, she said I can’t be forgiven easily. And this could never be what it was.” He shrugged, playing with the corners of his sunglasses. He fidgeted a lot while talking. He just stared off, trying to calm his thoughts. He didn’t know how you did it for him so easily. “That’s just- honestly, it’s just y/n telling you to chase. Just bug her. She’ll scream and yell at you, but trust me, she wants you to chase. She loves to lie about ‘leave me alone’, but as soon as you do, she’s not happy you didn’t run and slam her doors down for her to forgive you. She’s an attached avoidant. It’s her way of- don’t even fucking know.” Jess shrugged, trying to explain your personality to Roman. Jess has seen you do this with everyone; Friends, boyfriends, and family. You would scream at your friends, go hide, and then expect them to come to you. But when they didn’t you told Jess and villainized them. You expected your family to eventually come back. You don’t want them back anymore. The timing has been too long.

“I’m just glad you made y/n actually happy for a bit. I would hate for her to lose that. Despite my distain for you Roman.” Jess admitted. Roman appreciated the sentiment. “Fucking whatever- uh while you’re here and y/n isn’t. Can you get me a beer or something?” Roman teased. Jess flipped him off before leaving him alone. Roman now knew you better. He wasn’t going to let up.

The entire family was set at the table, including the older staff and you and Jess. Roman had made sure to save you a spot and fill the rest of the table up before you had come in with Jess. You took your seat next to him, waiting for Kendall and Logan to make their entrance in. “So, do you think they’re throwing little Greggy into the ringer?” Roman asked the table. Greg shifted in his seat, looking around nervously. “Hey man, not fucking cool- okay? I mean- just...” But he was cut off once Logan and Kendall entered. Roman just laughed at Greg’s anxieties being so present on his face. Logan had finally announced who would take the blame and have to step away from the company. Kendall. No one could speak. The air felt thick, and it felt as though even though all our hearts raced, they were all matching. Your stomach felt disgusted. You looked at Kendall, sympathizing for hearing Roman beginning to protest for his brother. He was the only one to do so. No one wanted to sacrifice themselves to Logan or the company. It was better if Kendall dealt with it then them because… well, it wasn’t them. Roman felt like it wasn’t fair. He couldn’t let it happen. Someone else was responsible and Kendall should have no part in being blamed for it.

But Kendall already accepted his fate. In fact, he stepped up to it. “Hey, it’s okay. Guys, you’re off the hook.” He cleared his throat as he put a napkin in his lap. No one was going to be able to eat after this. You had completely lost your appetite. Roman couldn’t believe what had just happened. His older brother, someone he saw being set up for greatness has just taken a nosedive. Roman leaned in and asked Kendall “You okay?” He couldn’t trust Kendall’s judgment. He knew how much the company meant to him. And for him not to be a part of it anymore, Roman knew it would destroy Kendall.

Kendall tried to put on a brave face and lied about being fine. But everyone knew this was going to become a spiraling downward spiral for Kendall. He was nothing without Waystar. His whole life was set up for Waystar. You put a hand on Roman’s shoulder, trying to relax him Everyone just then began to ask for themselves. Roman and Shiv didn’t bother to ask for themselves. Just kept quiet. Before Logan announced the new Chief Operating Officer.

Roman.

He was shaken at all the news being through his way. He was happy, but so devasted at the same time. He just let out a heavy breath, unsure what to do or say.

Shiv took the news hard. Roman didn’t even want to believe the news, assuming he’d be watched over by Frank. But Logan promised it was the real deal. Roman was now COO. It was finally the real deal. His dad hadn’t been lying to him this whole time like everyone said. It was never Shiv. It was always him. He wasn’t too stupid or incompetent.

Kendall looked at Roman as if he had been stabbed in the back a thousand times by all his loved ones. It was the position he was meant to hold, now given away to his younger brother. Roman looked at him, unsure of how to accept the news, but told Logan he could do it. Kendall let a smile shine, before retracting it. Despite his failure, he was happy to see his younger brother be able to step up. He had faith in Roman. But Roman couldn’t accept it, but Kendall reassured him it was great. That he was happy for him. Kendall pushed everyone to go on with the dinner. But there was a kind of silence. Roman couldn’t eat. He just watched as everyone's forks and knives hit the plate, making that god-awful sound. You just tried to keep Roman calm enough on the outside. You breathed in and out slowly for him, having him follow your league in a quiet way so no one noticed what you both did. But Jess noticed. “Congratulations Rome, you deserve it. Really.” You whispered to him, taking a bite of your food. He nodded, finally deciding to eat after watching you eat. Dinner was awkward. Barely anyone spoke except Kendall and Logan from time to time to ease the awkwardness. But once everyone was finished, they scurried away into hiding like roaches with a flashlight on them. It was as if they’d be next to get the news they didn’t want to hear. Roman could barely move though. He was the last one there with you. You stayed for emotional support. “Hey- come on, let’s get up, alright?” You encouraged him. He was in a complete haze. You grabbed his arm, standing up and tugging. “Come on Rome- it’s alright, come on.” You continued. He just looked up at you, you weren’t sure what he was feeling. His face told you nothing. “I-uh- I finally fucking did it.” He laughed anxiously. He rubbed his face with one hand, roughly going over his jaw and mouth. “I mean- like- what the fuck was that, right?” He continued to just laugh nervously. You forced him up and tried to drag him to his room. “Do you think he was fucking with me? I mean seriously. You can weirdly read him. Do you think he was lying or-“he was ranting. His mind was going too fast. He couldn’t slow down. “Roman- I think he was serious. Now come on. Let’s just get you to your room. You can celebrate there.” You tried to redirect him. You fortunately got him to his room, but Roman could not stop talking about what just happened. He told you everything you just witnessed as if he recounted it to someone who wasn’t there. The door finally shut as you finally let go of Roman.

“I mean- just- y/n I mean come on- you saw that, right?” He reached out for you to comment on his success. But the door shut, leaving all of his excitement out the door as it finally hit him. “I fucking need you.” His mind spoke, before grabbing you once again, pressing you into him. He forced his lips on yours. You froze, not sure you were ready for this just yet. You pushed at first before finally giving in to Roman’s demands. You pushed his body against the wall, your hands roaming his body. His hands stopped yours, not sure if he was comfortable enough to let this go far enough. He pulled away, looking down at you, trying to catch his breath. “You still do like me.” He began to tease, leaning down to kiss you once again. You pulled away.

“Don’t remind me of what a bad idea this is.” You stood your ground. He nodded, watching you carefully.

“But- you didn’t want me back? Not even for a bit? Even if you were trying to get me to fuck you?” He questioned you. You rolled your eyes, denying it.

“Shut up, this is just your little ego boost now that you’re COO.” You denied your feelings towards Roman. He shrugged, knowing somewhat that it was true. Despite being sad about Kendall, the ego boost it gave him completely drove him wild. “Oh yeah- cause- y’know. It makes this so much hotter; don’t you think? You don’t wanna fuck the potential CEO?” He tried to tempt you. He might not fully be there, but he was willing to push his boundaries with you tonight. Especially since you were pissed at him. It was some way to gain control of himself.

The position of COO gave him confidence like no other. It was such a difference since 2 days ago after being taken advantage of in Turkey. He went from a hostage to a COO. You laughed at him, not trying to admit how much you did want him as badly as he did. You had gone months without touching him in any kind of sexual way. You went weeks without even seeing him naked or just in his boxers. You hadn’t allowed yourself to do anything with anyone else either because you weren’t sure it would feel right to do that to Roman. So, you obtained from everything, other than your own hand and toys. And a bit of fantasy you had.

“Oh yeah- cause I’m the slut who’ll fuck the next man in power.” You said in a sarcastic tone. Roman eyed you down before making a proposal to you. “Uhh- do you actually wanna do this though? Just- can we turn the fucking lights off while you just- I don’t know do whatever the fuck.” He never knew how to ask about these kinds of things properly. His sexuality was such a difficult thing for him to get into.

You looked at him, contemplating. “Well- I just-“ You thought, looking at him.

The desperation was apparent on his face. He wanted to be touched by you. He wanted to actually feel whatever you were willing to give him. But if he could avoid any discomfort of looking at himself along with other issues, he wasn’t ready to address.

The look he gave you, nearly pleading to be touched and loved by you, drove you to your decision. You walked to the wall, flipping the light switch off, and turning the lights off as Roman had asked you. You were lucky enough to be able to find his body. It wasn’t completely dark, there was some ability to make out what was in front of you. Your eyes would adjust soon.

Roman grabbed you, excited, but nervous to finally be able to do what everyone else did without it feeling like a chore. He wasn’t willing to actually go through with everything, but anything would be good. “Just tell me whenever you want to stop, okay?” You checked in with him before proceeding. You grabbed his hand and led him to the bed that remained in the middle of his yacht suite. You sat him down, straddling his hips. You sat down, grinding your hips against his, feeling him get hard almost instantly.

You pressed kisses down his jaw and neck, making sure not to leave marks. You didn’t want people to see their new COO with brand new marks on him with only the possibility being a few people that actually gave it to him. His mouth was closed shut, letting hums out. His body tightened as he felt pleasure taking over from simple kisses. It felt nice. He was comfortable enough. “Do you wanna take my clothes off or…?” You tested his boundaries. He nodded quickly, grabbing the end of your shirt before pulling it over your head and throwing it off somewhere. He hesitantly placed his hands on the curves of your waist, feeling them move slightly as you continued to grind into him. You tried to get yourself off in some way. You leaned down, kissing him. Your lips moved together softly, taking this slowly. You moved your hands down to his shirt to remove it before he stopped you. You removed your hands and placed them away from the end of his shirt. You moved yourself away from his lap, moving his legs apart. You leaned down, not breaking the kiss as you got down in front of him. “Tell me when to stop. You reminded him. You kissed down his jaw to his clothed chest before moving away. You laid your head on his thigh. He stared intently, nodding slowly to let you know he was okay to move on. You nodded back before undoing his hands for him. You nearly removed his pants before he stopped them at a certain point. He laid back, propping himself up on his elbows. He wanted to watch you. He hated the sight of himself but adored the sight of you. “You’re so fucking gorgeous.” He praised you, running his fingers through your hair. Your hands moved towards his cock before pulling it from under his boxers. You looked at Roman again, asking for consent to move forward. Your guidance helped him a lot more than he had expected. Without it, he would’ve stopped nearly immediately. “Touch yourself.” Roman demanded in a soft tone. He didn’t want to sound too controlling, but the neediness in his voice gave away the urgency of how much he wanted you to. You obeyed, licking your fingers before slipping them into the waistband of your shorts. You pressed your fingers against your clit before licking your other hand and stroking Roman at the same time as you touched yourself. His head threw back, biting his bottom lip to keep quiet enough. He couldn’t show off how desperate he truly was to finally be touched by someone. You picked up the pace, watching his reaction getting quicker and more dramatic. He never stopped you though. His head came back to watch you.

“Uh- fucking-uh just- fucking blow me or something.” He tried to get his thoughts in line but was too distracted by your touch. It was intoxicating. You giggled at how much of a mess he was. He needed you so badly. “Don’t fucking laugh.” He seemed almost offended. He held your head in his hand, not pushing or shoving you. Just following whatever he had seen in some kind of porn video he had seen, assuming this was right. “How bad do you need it though?” You asked, slowing down the pace, and pressing a kiss onto the tip. His body twitched, not expecting it to be so sensitive. “Really really fucking bad. Now please- just…” He begged before you finally did as he asked. Your lips wrapped about him, bobbing your head down and up. His lips were slightly separated as he let soft profanities slip through his mouth and whimpers. You picked up a quicker pace, learning what he liked very quickly. He wasn’t too hard to guess. His mouth hung open, his breathing getting heavier the closer he got. He finished quickly, embarrassed immediately as he did. He hid his face in a pillow and humiliated with himself. He wasn’t able to last longer than a couple of minutes. You got up, washing your mouth out, unsure how comfortable Roman would be to receive kisses from you afterward. You came back to see him sulking about being basically sexually inept.

“Hey-…” You sat on the bed, removing the pillow from his face. “Did you have fun at least?” You asked. He nodded, sighing.

“Yeah- Sorry- I just- Sorry I can’t fuck you properly.” He muttered the words out quickly. You let out a stifled laugh, shaking your head.

“Awe shut the fuck up. I had fun. Come on. It was sexy.” You tried to cheer him up. Despite not being able to even get yourself off, it was rewarding watching Roman enjoy himself enough. You planted a kiss on his cheek before getting up to turn the lights on.

“Did you- did you like it though?” Roman asked, insecure about his own abilities. You turned and nodded. “I had the best time Roman. It’s a huge step. I’m proud of you regardless…” You admit, planting another kiss on his lips. “Do you want me to stay over?” You asked. Roman nodded, moving himself to give you enough room on the bed. You scooted in, undressing into just a shirt and underwear before you got in with him. He stayed quiet, finally holding you again for the first time since Dundee. That had to be about 2 weeks ago at this point. He was just glad to finally have you back here with him. He wasn’t going to fuck this up anymore.

You both had fallen asleep fairly quickly.

When Roman woke up a deep set of emotions began to finally sink in. He was COO and Kendall was now going to take the blame. He had taken the job his brother had been waiting for his whole life. And it was all over for Kendall. Roman was conflicted. He was so excited and happy about the position but upset with his brother. This was an injustice done to Kendall. But they were going to have to do a press conference to push out the news. He wasn’t sure if the public would even accept him being COO. His reputation wasn’t the cleanest. He didn’t look fit for the job. But he felt he could do it. You made me feel like he could for the past couple of months. He was grateful for you.

Kendall had been sent out to the states while the rest of the family stayed back. Jess had left with Kendall, and she assured me Kendall was still keeping her on. She assumed he was going to need her for other ventures he might be planning to do.

You felt your stomach turning as you were watching the press conference. It felt sickening. Almost like watching a Shakespearean tragedy but modernized. “I can’t fucking believe this is actually real…” You whispered to Roman. He nodded, biting on his fingernails. He couldn’t either. Everyone watched as if it was watching a slaughter happen on camera. Kendall finally came into the frame before finally talking into the tens of microphones. You leaned in forward, anticipating his announcement.

Kendall then turned against his statements, trashing his father and the company on live television. He had notes set up. Roman got up and rushed to the common room that kept Logan and Shiv. You ran after him. “Fuck…” You murmured. You couldn’t tell if you should be happy or angry at Kendall. You were upset he would ruin his brother's new position, but glad he was standing up against Logan.

Logan watched, feeling a sense of pride. Kendall finally learned the game that Logan has been playing for decades. “We have to go…” Roman whispered to you. You nodded and followed his lead.

“I can’t- holy fuck- fuck- fuck-fuck!” You couldn’t believe what you watched. Roman stayed quiet. He was annoyed he ever felt sorry for the fucking asshole. This was his plan the whole time. He didn’t want to give up the COO position because he was trying to do good by their dad. He wanted to spite his father, even if it ended up hurting Roman too.

Roman’s memories of Kendall putting things before him, rushed to the front of his mind as Roman ranted to you about what an inconsiderate loser he was. How he never truly cared. How Kendall was a psychopath.

“I mean- what the fuck? Right? I mean he encouraged me for getting the COO position. And then he goes and does this? Is he fucking insane? Is he trying to put me in fucking jail or something? I’m too gorgeous to go there. Fuck no. Fuck that cunt.” He couldn’t stop ranting. It really hit you that he put everyone in the company in trouble. Anyone slightly involved could go to jail. This wasn’t just a feud. This was a war to Kendall.

“Ken’s not gonna send you to jail…” You tried to ease Roman’s thoughts. He rolled his eyes, shaking his head. “No- no more defending that cunt. Kendall isn’t some sweet little no chin having sensitive latte sipper. He’s just as fucking crazy as all of us. He’s doing this out of some crazy drug-induced fucking psychotic break.” Roman called it out. But you weren’t sure if that was truly the case. Kendall did seem to have a lot of regrets and a lot of emotions towards the victims and the incidents that happened.

A slam on the bedroom door occurred, startling both of you. “Roman- get your hand out of your fucking pants and let’s fucking go.” One of the staff called out. You grabbed your stuff and rushed out. You got a look from everyone as they were just down the hall. Why would your stuff be in Rome’s room? Logan was too busy to focus on his son’s relationship with his assistant, not that Logan had any room to talk.

You had gotten into the helicopters, landed in a landing strip, and waited for the private jet to finally arrive. What a fucking nightmare. They didn’t even know where we would fly to and had no pilot for another idea.

Roman tried to ease his father, only getting insulted. Poor Hugo had to be stuck in a car with him. You frantically were texting Jess for updates. All she could tell you was that Kendall was completely out of his mind right now. She thought he was having some kind of midlife crisis. You both passed over information to each other, worried about where this would end.

But Jess thought Kendall was justified, while you were severely on the fence, especially since Roman could potentially see jail time for this.

You decided to stay out of all the discourse, unsure if it was any of your business.

Logan had been scarily silent. He wasn’t yelling anymore. Just genuinely curious and delirious. He had decided to call Kendall. That’s when the threatening began, and he was back to regular Logan. You overheard everything, rushing to Roman. “Hey-uh- how you holding up?” You asked.

“Uh- well, my brother is a drug addict mentally ill man who wants to ruin us and my dad an angry delirious….” Roman began to whisper so Logan would hear. But he cowered under his father. Everyone did. Roman just fed into Logan’s game and tried to discredit Kendall.

“Uhh- I don’t know if this could help… But I’ve been texting Jess all day and she’s been texting me things we could use against Kendall.” You prompted, catching Logan’s interest. He raised an eyebrow and asked you to read the texts out loud. You nodded quickly, grabbed your phone, and read the texts out loud. “Ken is off his meds….. ken is going fucking nuts again…. I think naomi is feeding this fucker coke again there’s no fucking way….. uhhhh….. ken def is bd…. He’s hitting rock bottom….” You tried to pick out the texts and even handed the phone to Hugo to read them. “We could use this. This could be a source. Someone close to Kendall. It could work.” Hugo admits to Logan. Logan tried to think it through before finally deciding. “Whatever we could use on the ungrateful fucking bastard.” Logan grumbled under his breath.

Logan walked off, leaving you, Roman and Shiv alone. “Uhh- I-I-I don’t know why I just fucking did that…” You deeply regretted your decision. You put Jess up there now. Jess was now involved. Holy fuck. Oh no. Fuck FUCK FUCK FUuuuucCKK. HOLY FUCK.

“It’s alright. We gotta bring this fucker down.” Roman tried to settle it. “No! I- I don’t know why I involved Jess. Holy fuck… Oh god…” You panicked. Shiv got up quickly, wrapping her arms around you. She shushed you and tried to keep you from spiraling. “Shh- hey this is business. I’m pretty sure Jess knows that. You’ll be alright.” Shiv tried to remind you. “I mean look at Tom. You basically cooked him alive twice and he still thinks you’re a great asset.” Shiv tried to remind you. You nodded, trying to reason with yourself. Maybe this could be fine. It’s not like Jess was going to hate you. Kendall needed Jess. He was acting crazy anyways. He was crazy. You’ve seen how he’s been for the past couple of weeks. He’s gone insane.

Staff had been making calls constantly, trying to find some way to keep this calm. Roman tried to settle his emotions with jokes or insulting Kendall while Shiv kept to herself, trying to soothe herself. You just texted Jess, she was your one way to always relax.

You were scared to see where this was going to end.

Notes: Did people not like the last chapter? I barely got any attention on it and I thought it was a pretty good one.

Chapter 17

#succession #succession hbo #roman roy #hbo succession #roman roy fanfic #kendall roy #shiv roy #succession fanfic #roman roy x reader #roman roy x you #siobhan roy #tom wambsgans #greg hirsch #logan roy #connor roy #fanfiction #fanfic

156 notes · View notes

justagalwhowrites · 1 year

Text

Lavender - Ch. 18

A night out at the speakeasy leads to an unexpected connection. A continuation of Lavender Ch. 1-17 found on Tumblr here.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader (broken up), Tommy Miller x Female Reader

Warnings: SMUT :D unprotected p in v sex (wrap it up!) and Tommy being an absolute flirt. No use of Y/N. Minors DNI, 18+ only!

Length: 4.8 k

Saturday, May 15, 2010 - Six Months Later

“I need more than a drink,” Lucy put her head on the front desk of the clinic with a groan. “I need at least 2. Probably five.”

“I think they have that,” Andrew said, smiling a little. “Pretty much the whole draw.”

“That one guy was such a dick,” she propped her chin on her fist. “Why did I decide to become a nurse again? Why did I think this was a good idea?”

“Because you made career choices before the world ended and then stuck it out?” You said, sitting on top of the desk behind the counter.

“Yeah being a nurse wasn’t exactly a walk in the park then, either,” she grumbled. “This is my problem, I’m basically an addict, I get one REALLY GOOD patient and then I act like that fixes alllllll the assholes…”

“Sounds like dating men,” Marta joined your little group from the exam area. “Lee is finishing up with the final patient and then we’re free. We’re so close, guys. So close I can taste it.” Marta glanced over at you and groaned. “Aw, Doc, you got changed? You look all cute and shit? That’s not fair!”

“Hey,” you replied. “I have nowhere else to wear the cute dress. You have dates. I have speakeasy night with my coworkers, just give me this.”

“You could have dates too, if you wanted,” Jess was perched on the other side of the horseshoe shaped desk, Andrew squarely between you in his office chair. Her feet were in his lap. “All you’d have to do is just say yes to one of the guys who talks to you or actually ask someone out.”

“Yes but why should I when I have you lovely people, all our patients and Petri dishes in the lab to keep me company?” You smiled. Andrew and Jess shared a brief look. You tried to not roll your eyes. Mostly because they’d given you a lot of leeway in the past almost year since you and Joel had split up. Especially when you got back from your trip outside the QZ.

You hadn’t even bothered to go home that night. You walked straight to Andrew and Jess’ place, knocking on the door and trying to not cry until you were inside. Andrew was the one to answer and you fell into him, burying your face in his chest as it felt like you were cracking open with the pain of it.

“You were right,” you choked out as he pulled you inside. “About what he did out there, you were right…”

“Oh, honey,” he wrapped his arms around you the best he could with the backpack in the way, kissing the top of your head before tucking you below his chin. “I’m so sorry. I wish I was wrong. I really do.”

You slept there that night, Andrew sandwiched between you and Jess, other people and the safety that came with them the only thing that let you rest.

You’d managed to avoid Joel since you’d returned. It had been half a year since you last saw him that night at the QZ fence. There were signs of him, though. He was usually on your mind somehow, not that you were happy about it.

A few weeks after the trip, you passed Tess on your way to look for a few more books and CDs at the underground sellers’ shops. She didn’t notice you but you noticed her. It looked like she’d gotten into a fight, she had a black eye and gash at her throat. You frowned.

“Tess?” You changed direction to follow her. “Tess!”

She turned and looked surprised that you’d talk to her for a moment before meeting you in the middle.

“Doc,” she looked you up and down. She had a tendency to do that, you noticed. She liked to evaluate things. Like she thought you might have changed since she last saw you. “Good to see you.”

“You too,” you smiled. “Look, I’m happy I ran into you, I’ve been thinking…” You glanced around and tugged her off to the side of the road. “You and Tommy and… everyone, you’re still making runs, right?”

“Not taking you out there again,” she shook her head. “Joel was pretty firm on that…”

“No, that’s fine,” you waved her off. “I just… You know that saying ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?’”

“Sure,” she shrugged.

“Well there’s only so much I can do for you if you guys come back already hurt, down a lot of blood, all that jazz,” you said. “But if I gave you some basic trauma supplies, showed you how to use them…”

“You’d do that,” she said it more than asked it.

“Of course,” you frowned. “Why wouldn’t I?” She didn’t say anything else, so you just pressed on. “Could you plan to come by my apartment sometime this week, late? I can put together some kits, show you what to do for common injuries…”

“Wednesday?” She asked.

“After 10:30,” you said. “Should give me time to get home from the clinic.” You were surprised to learn that you actually kind of liked Tess. She showed up to your apartment not long after you did. Wednesday had been a rough one and your shirt was still bloody, deciding to prioritize getting the blood out of your hairline instead of changing your clothes.

“Doc,” she said by way of greeting, her eyes drifting to the blood on your shirt and back up to your face, strand of bloody hair still in your fingers.

“Sorry,” you said, giving an apologetic smile. “Had to do a field amputation today without anesthesia, it was a mess… I’m making tea, want a cup?”

“I’ll take tea,” she said, coming in and sitting at the table. You got your still bloody hair out of the way and quickly pulled the shirt off before grabbing a t-shirt out of the drawer and pulling it on.

“Sorry,” you smiled apologetically again. “I just really needed to get at least some of that blood off me…”

You put the tea on the table and grabbed the kit you put together, giving Tess a crash course in trauma stabilization 101.

“So were you a military doctor when this shit started?” She asked after you packed the supplies back up.

“Oh God no,” you laughed. “No, I was a biology teacher. I was finishing up a pre-med degree though, and I’d always wanted to be a doctor so I was just reading everything I could find to get a jump on med school. I got here, they were setting up medical facilities with all of one doctor so he trained me.”

“And how’d you meet Joel?” She was sitting back in he chair, watching you. His name made your stomach clench.

“You could ask him,” you said, looking at the almost empty tea cup.

She scoffed.

“You are an off limits topic,” she said. “For both Miller men, as it happens. Joel doesn’t answer, Tommy says it’s not his shit to say. Joel got back from the trip with you, said nothing for three days and then pretended that nothing happened.”

You nodded slowly.

“And you don’t like not knowing,” you said. She smiled.

“Exactly.”

You signed, fidgeting with the mug.

“I met Joel in 1999,” you said. Her eyes went wide. “It’s why they called me Kid, I was just 20 back then, still in college.”

“Jesus, you were a kid. He still a grumpy asshole then?” She laughed. You laughed back.

“Very rarely,” you said. “Punched Tommy in the face at a bar once because Joel was being an asshole and Tommy called him on it. Though I made him watch ‘When Harry Met Sally’ and he actually liked it. Tried so hard not to laugh at the fake orgasm scene he choked on his beer.”

She laughed at that. She told you about some of her life before, too. Spending summer on a lake with her husband and son, a mishap when renovating their basement that left a giant splotch of paint over the new linoleum that they’d never been able to properly clean up. You got both of you beer.

“I was never sure who the outbreak was worse for,” she said. “People like me who had a life going that got ripped away or people like you who never really had a fucking chance at one.”

“We all got screwed,” you said. “Sometimes I think we all died back then, everyone who’s left is just a ghost of what they would have been otherwise.”

“And you still wear ribbons on your braids,” she nodded to your hair. You glanced down, the blue ribbon splotched purple where the blood had splattered it. You smiled a little.

“There are very few things that make life worth it anymore,” you said after a moment. “And life is too short to not wear the damn ribbons.”

You knew they were using the trauma kit supplies. Tess would show up every six weeks or so, asking for a resupply. She’d even asked for a new euthanasia kit once. You almost had a panic attack before she had the chance to tell you that it wasn’t Joel or Tommy, just a traveler they’d run into who couldn’t bring themselves to turn their gun on themselves. But you hadn’t needed to come pull a bullet out of any of them again, so you were counting their trips as a success.

“Alright kids,” Lee came out from the exam area, lab coat still on. “We are all set, they’re getting dressed and then we are out of here!”

“I’m going for the jukebox as soon as we get there,” Marta said. “No one try to stop me!”

“Oh God,” Andrew groaned. “You’re going to make us listen to the Backstreet Boys all night aren’t you?”

“Think they’re still alive out there?” She asked. “Just performing for some QZ on the west coast?”

“Imagine if they’re infected,” Jess said. “You’re just walking down the street and then bam, attacked by a Backstreet Boy…”

“This,” Andrew looked up at her. “This is why I love you.”

Walking to the Speakeasy with everyone reminded you a little of college. It helped that you were wearing a sundress like you’d worn so much in Texas. It helped that the weather was warm and the sky was clear. Mostly, it helped that there were people laughing. You weren’t sure if your memory was just selective but it seemed like people just didn’t laugh anymore.

There were some tables in the corner of the speakeasy that were open and you pushed them together, sitting down with your back against one of the walls. It just felt better that way.

“Beer?” Andrew looked to Jess. She nodded and he turned to you. “Beer?”

“I’m thinking a 1996 left bank Bordeaux, something with some good body to it,” you said, thinking.

“Yeah, so beer?” He smiled.

“Yes please,” you smiled back.

“I only put on two songs,” Marta sat beside you. “So, Andrew, Mr. ‘If it’s not rock and roll it’s not music,’ will only have to suffer for so long.”

“And if only we could get him to suffer in silence,” Jess mused.

You laughed and Andrew brought beer and you sat drinking with your friends, forgetting for a minute that it was the end of the world.

“Doc?”

You turned to see a slightly familiar face. You frowned for a moment, trying to place him when it clicked.

“Oh my gosh, Tim?” You asked. He smiled, nodding. “Holy cow, you’re so… adult!”

He laughed. He was a student from your first year as a teacher in the QZ, finishing high school in 2007. You hadn’t seen him since.

“Yeah, I’m 21 now,” he smiled proudly. “Doesn’t really matter much now but still, cool to say.”

Bitter Sweet Symphony started playing and he held out his hand.

“Wanna dance?” He asked. “I think the statute of limitations of you as my teacher are up.”

“Fuck it,” you shook your head. “Why not?”

“Yeah!” Marta whooped. “Getting Doc on the dance floor!”

You flipped her off and she laughed as you followed behind him.

Tim, you were happy to know, was doing alright for himself. He had a girlfriend he was crazy about. He was stuck working for FEDRA, of course, but he was doing some engineering work.

“All because you made me interested in science,” he said, one hand at your waist, the other in yours. “So, thanks for that.”

“You’d have gotten there eventually without me,” you smiled. “But I’ll take some credit for your success.”

The song changed to something you didn’t recognize, something fun and upbeat. His face brightened.

“Mind if I spin you?” He asked. “Always wanted to try that.”

“I am in the dress for it,” you smiled a little. “Go for it, kid.”

He clumsily twirled you under his arm until his fingers slipped out of yours and sent you spinning across the dance floor. You were laughing so hard you couldn’t breathe and he took your hand again just as you saw Joel, watching you from across the bar.

Your laughter died and your breath caught in your throat. Seeing him was like seeing a ghost. It took you a moment to understand why but then you realized it. Since November, you’d thought of the Joel you knew as though he were dead. He’d died with Sarah, back in September, 2003. He’d never made it to Boston.

You’d mourned him in a way. You’d put the few clothes he’d left at your place into the floorboards with your stash - those weren’t his, after all - but left the picture of him, Sarah and you on your nightstand. That Joel wasn’t a killer. That Joel hadn’t blamed you for it. You’d taken to charging your old cell phone, reading back through texts with him and with Sarah that were still stored there every night before you fell asleep. There was a voicemail, too, one from a week before you visited the last time.

“Hey Baby,” he’d said. “Think I fucked up the time difference again, must still be out with Louisa… Anyway, missin’ ya. Call me when you’re home safe. Love you.”

That Joel was dead and the man he’d become was staring daggers at you.

“Doc?” Tim said.

“Mind if I cut in?” Andrew said.

“Good to see you, Tim,” you managed to turn and smile at him. “Glad to know you’re doing well.”

“Take care, Doc,” he smiled, leaving you with Andrew. He pulled you into his arms and put his mouth near your ear.

“Here’s what we’re gonna do,” he said quietly, holding you tightly to him so you had no choice but to sway with him. “We’re going to stay out here for this song and we’re going to have a great time. And then we’re going to go back to the table and drink the beers that Jess is getting us right now.”

“I just…”

“Nope,” he cut you off. “We’re not doing that, we’re not going to run away because that fucker showed up. We’re going to stay here and we’re going to have fun in spite of his ass. Got it?”

You just nodded.

“Good.”

You weren’t paying attention to the music, the feeling of Joel’s eyes on you drowning out almost everything else, Andrew’s hands on you seeming like the only thing tethering you to the earth. You let him guide you back to the table, a fresh beer sitting in front of your seat.

“Hey Doc!” Jess said brightly. “So an amnesiac walks into a bar. He goes up to a beautiful blonde and says ‘so… do I come here often?’”

It took you a second and then you laughed, the spell of Joel’s eyes on you snapping. And life continued on. Until a Texas drawl appeared over your shoulder.

“Scuse me.” Andrew’s eyes narrowed as you looked behind you, Tommy standing there. “I was really hoping I could get you onto the dance floor.”

“Me,” you said, incredulous.

“Well I try to make a habit of getting the prettiest girl at the bar to give me the time of day,” he smiled. “So I’m just hopin’ you’ll cut me a break for old time’s sake.”

“Look,” Andrew said, but you cut him off.

“Why not,” you said. He smiled - that fucking Miller man smile - and offered you his hand. You took it and he pulled you to your feet and toward the dance floor. Linger was playing. He put his hands at your waist and your arms went around his neck, swaying in time.

“So Kid,” he smiled. “How’ve you been?”

“Good,” you said cautiously. You could feel Joel’s eyes on you.

“I feel like you’re doubtin’ my good intentions,” he said.

“If Joel sent you to talk to me, you can tell him to fuck off,” you said.

“That asshole?” He scoffed. “He about ripped my arm off when I said I was going to ask you to dance, he doesn’t want me doin’ this. You think that’s the only reason I’d come talk to you?”

“Maybe not the only reason,” you smiled a little.

“Wasn’t joking about gettin’ the prettiest girl at the bar to give me the time of day,” he smiled back. “Got news for you, any bar you’re in? That’s you. I just have to talk you into it now.”

You rolled your eyes and shook your head a little, smiling anyway.

“You’re still such a player, aren’t you?” You teased.

“Nah, just a charmer,” he said.

“How’ve you been?” You asked.

“Well as can be expected,” he shrugged. “Roommate’s a dick but…”

You snorted and he smiled broader.

“I told him he was a fuckin’ asshole for what he did to you, you know,” he said after a moment, face turning serious. “He was also a fuckin’ dumbass but he’s always been a dumbass. It’s the asshole shit I can’t stand.”

“Let me know if the message ever sinks in,” you said wryly.

“That’ll be the day,” he scoffed.

The song shifted, something soft and slow. He tugged you closer and your cheek leaned into his chest. You danced quietly for a bit.

“I wanted to ask you out, back in the day,” he said eventually, his lips close to your ear.

“Really?” You glanced up at him, not wanting to move your head.

“Joel told me you were ‘off limits,’” he laughed a little. “Course I didn’t know that was because he wanted ya but…”

“Damn,” you joked. “Dibs really put you off, huh?”

“If I’d known it was just dibs it wouldn’t have,” he replied.

The song changed to Black Magic Woman and he stepped back from you a bit.

“Now, see, I might have had some ulterior motives,” he smiled sheepishly. “May have put this on the jukebox in hopes I could get you to dance to it with me…”

“I don’t know how to dance to this,” you laughed, moving to head back to your seat, hand still in his. He caught you and pulled you back against him.

“I do,” his hand went to the small of your back, pressing your hips against his. You swallowed. “Just gotta follow my lead, pretty girl.”

He took the lead, his hips pushing against yours, moving in sharp rhythm. You could feel him through his jeans. His legs nudged yours in the right steps, your breasts flush against him. His eyes traced your face, lingering on your lips.

The song felt too short, the two of you coming to a stop in the middle of the dance floor, bodies still close together.

“How ‘bout a drink?” He smiled.

“Sure,” you smiled back. He laced his fingers with yours and led you to the bar, just catching a glimpse of Joel standing up and storming off as you did.

Tommy joined the table with your coworkers, pulling up a chair close to yours, one hand on the small of your back. Marta asked how you knew each other and immediately latched on to the “we’ve been friends for 11 years” thing to get stories out of him like the time he tried to teach you to grill and you accidentally set the thing on fire and seriously considered pushing it into the pool to put it out.

“We’re gonna head out,” Andrew said before he leaned in to kiss your cheek goodbye, whispering in your ear as he did. “You OK?”

You just nodded and he left with Jess. You realized then that they were the last of the party to leave.

“One more drink,” Tommy smiled. “Just you and me.”

“Well if you’re going to twist my arm about it,” you smiled back.

The bar was emptying out, just a few stragglers left on the dance floor. Tommy got you both a whiskey on the rocks, sitting next to you in a booth, putting his arm around your shoulders. You propped your feet on the chair across the table from you and leaned your head on his chest, swirling the whiskey in your chipped glass. The ice clinked.

“Missed seein’ you,” he said after a minute, taking a drink. “You always just… Made shit better. It’s all brighter with you.”

“You’re sweet,” you smiled a little, taking a drink. “And I’ve missed seeing you, too.”

Closing Time came on and Tommy laughed.

“We can take a hint!” He yelled over your head before finishing his drink. “We’re goin, we’re goin.”

You laughed, polishing yours off, too, before getting up. You could just barely feel the alcohol in your head, far from drunk and just on the edge of tipsy.

“C’mon,” he said. “I’ll walk you home.”

“You know, I walk home on my own late at night most days,” you said, following him out of the bar, anyway. “Always ends up fine.”

“Humor me,” he smiled, holding out his hand. You smiled back, taking it. He tugged you close to him, setting an easy pace.

You talked about random things you missed about Austin, laughing when you mentioned your favorite second hand clothing shop downtown near campus.

“Isn’t that just shopping now?” He teased.

“Oh you know it’s not the same,” you laughed. “I got this great dress there once from the 70s. I think I only wore it once, to a wedding, but damn did it make my boobs look fantastic. One of life’s great regrets is the fact that it’s rotting away in my closet in New York.”

“Damn,” he shook his head. “Now one of my great regrets is not seeing that dress…”

You laughed, stopping at the door to your building.

“This is me,” you half smiled.

“How about I walk you up?” He asked. You raised your eyebrows. “I know I know, but how often do you walk home from the clinic with a few drinks in you?”

“I’ve treated you, do you want to know the answer to that question?” You teased. He laughed.

“Well those times, I wouldn’t have to feel guilty if somethin’ happened to ya,” he said. “Let me walk you up.”

“If that’s what will help you live the dream, Miller, far be it from me to stop you.”

You opened the communal door and led the way upstairs, stopping by your apartment.

“See?” You teased, after unlocking your door but leaving it closed and turning to face him. “So eventful.”

He leaned his arm against the door frame, caging you in on one side. His eyes dropped to your lips before going back to your eyes.

“Still think you’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen,” he said quietly, his free hand delicately lifting your chin toward him.

“Tommy,” you breathed. His hand slipped from your chin to the back of your head, his thumb still along your cheek.

“Want me to stop?” He asked, moving closer.

You swallowed.

“No,” you said.

“Good,” he said. “Neither do I.”

He kissed you then. Soft, gentle, his lips parting just enough that you could taste the whiskey on his breath. He leaned his body into yours, the hips that had been moving with yours on the dance floor pressing into you a different way now. A familiar ache sparked low in your stomach as you reached up to wrap your arms around his neck.

You weren’t sure how long he kissed you, but after a moment, he pulled back, a little breathless.

“Why don’t we go inside?” He said softly.

“Yeah,” you nodded, opening the door behind you.

Things moved a lot faster then. His hands slid the straps of your dress down your arms before your door was fully closed. He reached to lock it while you fumbled with the buckle of his belt. His lips were on yours, his tongue slipping into your mouth, his hands ranging over every inch of skin they could reach before sliding your dress down to pool on the floor. You pulled at the buttons of his shirt until you were able to shove it off and he quickly unclipped your bra. He looked down at your bare chest, panting for breath a little.

“Damn,” he said. “Don’t regret not seein’ the dress anymore. This is so much fuckin’ better.”

He stepped out of his boots quickly and you unbutton and unzipped his pants. You kicked off your sandals and he tugged your panties down, leaving them on the floor as you pulled him against you toward your bed. He paused, your legs against the bed, his hands holding you gently.

“You sure you’re good with this?” He asked.

“Just kiss me, Miller,” you said. He wasted no time obliging.

You pulled him onto your bed with you, his weight settling easily between your thighs. He slid a hand down your body to your pussy, softly tracing your clit for a moment before pressing his fingers against you, working you in slow, longing circles. You moaned against his mouth, rocking your hips against his hand. You felt him smile against your lips.

Tommy slipped a thick finger inside you, exploring you, the tip brushing your inner walls until he found the spot that made your toes curl. He added another finger, working both of them against the place inside you, adding his thumb to your clit until your back arched and you came with a loud moan around him.

“Fuck, gorgeous,” he pressed his lips to your collar bone. “Gonna need you to do that again while I’m inside you… you’ve got me fuckin’ desperate for it…”

“Then get inside me,” you panted, reaching between your bodies to take his cock in your hand. He was thick, hard, not so long that you were worried about whether or not he would fit but long enough that you knew he would fill you. You worked him up and down, spreading the wetness from his tip over him.

“Tryin’ to kill me, I swear,” he said, slipping his fingers from inside you to himself, brushing your hand away. He lined himself up with your entrance, pressed his lips to yours and thrust into you.

The stretch was immediate, a sharp but pleasant burn as he sank into you. He moaned against your lips and you rocked your hips against him, making his movements stutter.

“You trying to make me cum before I’m even inside you?” He gasped. “Fucking hell, girl.”

He thrust the rest of the way inside you in one quick, hard motion, making your back arch, pulling a delicious moan from your lips. His arm slipped below you, pulling your torso flush with his as he began to fuck into you, his thick cock sliding out to just the tip before thrusting back against your back wall with every stroke. You clung to him as his lips found your throat, your breasts, his hard length moving faster, more forcefully every time. The tip of him was hitting the spot inside you with every movement, your second orgasm building fast.

“Fuck, I’m going to…” you managed. He thrust harder, your sentence ending in a strangled cry.

“Won’t last when you do,” he gasped. “Where can I…”

“I’m on the pill,” you said quickly.

“Thank fuck.”

He picked up the pace, holding himself deep inside you every few strokes, your body tightening and coiling around him until you felt the taught band of pleasure snap, your core pulsing around him.

“Oh fuck, oh fuck…” he groaned, thrusting two more times before collapsing on top of you, both of you limp and gasping for breath.

He pressed his lips to your throat, still deep inside you, and you saw the picture frame with Joel and Sarah on your nightstand out of the corner of your eye. While he was distracted, you reached up and silently set it face down before wrapping your arms around the man in your bed.

A/N: THAT'S RIGHT GUYS SHE'S GETTING WITH BOTH BROTHERS AND JOEL FUCKING HATES IT. This has been building since literally day one of this story lol. Tommy has had a crush on her FOREVER and now it's finally paying off - for him and for us (because we get the drama of it)

I have a taglist, so if you'd like to be included, just comment below! Thank you so so much for reading and following along. I hope you enjoy the drama and the angst! Love you all!

Taglist: @paleidiot @ayamenimthiriel @ginger-swag-rapunzel @drewharrisonwriter @flugazi @pedropascalsbbg @taoyuji @starstruckmusiciansartghost @splendsay @bigboiseason123 @jpbplvr @ashleyandring @mrsyixingunicorn10

#fanfic #joel miller x female reader #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #smut fic #tommy miller

273 notes · View notes

panvnsleake · 4 months

Text

random hfjone aus ill probably never make content about (I just noticed a bunch of these are mainly about betrayal. whoops)

bassy, after being treated as a living being on the plane and then being disregarded like nothing by jess (she probably got another instrument or something), throws a riot and teams up with whippy creamy (who conveniently got bought by jess a bit ago) to overthrow humanity. except for jess. bassy keeps her around because she feels extremely betrayed but still loves her

one of the S3 contestants (probably Owen because. more angst :3) ends up in la salle d'attente and meets airy. They become good friends and explore universes together using the radio. Airy becomes a lot more empathetic and emotional too. in one of their multiverse trips they stumble across Airy's world and find liam. Liam is of course super pissed at airy and lashes out at owen for even interacting with him in the first place. I think it's best if you use your imagination from here guys :3

circle learns about what Charlotte did and has a crisis because he looked up to her and she's actually nothing like he thought she was. OR circle connects the dots and figures out all wounds heal when someone dies and gets revived. so of course he kills charlotte (with good intentions but still). Charlotte becomes a lot more distant from circle onward.

bryce hallucinates about Stella and Liam a lot. These hallucinations somehow tell him how to escape and he gets everyone out of the plane. yay for braces !!

julien starts a cult revolving around liam. I mean he did kind of save him from being stuck in la salle d'attente forever so yeah. also he murders someone who sounded VERY similar to airy (maybe like a brother of his or smth)

stone is actually evil and he leads Liam through a path where he KNOWS he will fail to stop airy and will end up worse than how he would've ended up if he just. had stayed on the plane forever

you're free to do something out of any of these ideas if you want,,,it'd be nice if you give me credit for the idea tho. I like being credited :3

also please give me a word or phrase to base the next chapter of dasani bottle and green bean off of because my brain is NOT braining for the fanfics. like I want to write but I don't know WHAT. UGRHHRHHR

#hfjone #onehfj #hfjone au #I am NOT tagging all the characters

30 notes · View notes

simpcityy · 1 year

Note

I just thought up this request I don’t know if ur requests are still open but I can wait if they aren’t (no pressure!) k so my idea is Miguel Ohara x reader where the reader has powers similar to klaus from the umbrella academy they can talk to the dead and when they first see Miguel they just know he’s lost someone and he’s still grieving and later on they comfort him over it, maybe Gabrielle’s spirit shows up and gives him the closure he needs

Thank you so much Anon for being my ever first request! I made sure to make it my best writing ever! Enjoy!

Our Little Secret (Miguel O'Hara X Ghost Seeing! Spider-Person Reader)

Quick Background: Reader can see the dead; they can see and talk to them, but they do it in private in case other people think they are going crazy. Reader can also have the ability to let ghosts possess them if they require their assistance.

Word Count: 2.5k

Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel or any of its characters!

Warnings: A bit of sad stuff, ghost, comfort in the end! (H/N) means hero name. Use of (Y/N), Ghost Briella

Spanish Translation (Since there is a lot and I want you to understand the short story, so it goes up top for this post) 1. Lo siento: I'm Sorry 2. Gracias: Thank you 3. Qué? ¿Cómo conseguiste eso: What? How did you get that? 4. Nunca: Never 5. Tú? Puedes ver a los muertos: You? You can see the dead? 6. Suficiente!: Enough! 7. Mi sol: My Sun 8. Mi mundo: My world 9. Yo también te quiero: I love you too 10. Mi sol, lo siento mucho por ser la razón por la que no puedes cruzar: My Sun, I am very sorry that I am the reason you can't cross over. 11. Prometo que cambiaré, y seguiré tu consejo, sé que debe dolerte verme solo. Además, creo que encontré a alguien que podrá hacer lo que me pedistes: I promise I will change, and I will follow your advice, I know it must be painful for you to see me alone. Besides, I think I have found someone who can do what you asked me of. 12. Ve a la luz, Mi Sol: Go to the light, my sun. 13. Muchas gracias: Thank you so much. 14. Muy bien, es un trato: Alright, it's a deal.

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

You walked around the Spider Society Headquarters following Jess, a woman you met not long ago. You try to concentrate on what she was saying only to be distracted by the number of ghosts lingering around the base. “So many dead uncles. And relatives” You whisper before paying attention back to Jess. “What was that?” She turns around. “Nothing! I just said there are a lot of Spider people, it’s amazing.” Chuckling nervously, you continue to follow her. She stopped to talk to a couple of young Spiderlings. You patiently waited and tried to ignore the ghost calling for you.

“Can you see me?”

“Can you help me please!”

You tried to shut them out, controlling your breathing but their pleads for help only made your heart ache. You wish you could help them all out but there is only one you and so many ghosts still stuck in the world. Those who need help to pass over to the light, but you knew better. It would be impossible to help all the ghosts. Sometimes this power of yours, is a curse but you push those negative thoughts away. “You alright?” Jess placed a hand on your shoulder. Finally, the voices of help were gone. Nodding, you smile at her “Yeah. So, when do I get to meet the big boss?” You fixed your mask a bit, patiently waiting for her response. “Speaking of that, I was just informed Miguel’s back, so follow me.” She guides you down the hall. You followed, still spotting a few ghosts lingering around the halls. You did your best to look past them but, in the end, they always know. Your eyes glanced over to the door, you could tell right away that room was filled with sadness, devastation, overall, you know behind that door someone was grieving a loss.

Once the doors opened, your eyes scanned around the room. Whenever someone is grieving, there is always a ghost attached to them. Any negative emotions bring either good or bad ghosts. After scanning the room, you find nothing and focus on the tall and muscular man which you presume was the leader of this whole function. Seeing he was the only person in the room, you knew he was the vessel of all this negative emotion. Once he turned to look at you, you were right on the nail. You could tell right away he’s grieving a loss of someone dear to him. Composing yourself you smiled at him “(Y/N), also known as (H/N)” You introduced yourself before watching a figure turn around the corner quickly making something fall down. You quickly webbed the item before it fell and broke. “Woah, nice reflexes there.” You looked up to see a small woman appear in front of you. “Um? Thanks” you say looking back where the figure has run off. “Lyla, I didn’t call for you.” Miguel glances at his AI. “Ahh Come one, I just wanted to meet the new recruit.” She then appears on your shoulder taking a selfie with you. “This one is for the memories!” She then disappears. You only stood there trying to take in everything that was happening at once. "Lo siento* Lyla is my AI, and she can be a bit…much” Miguel mutters before grabbing the item from you placing it on his desk. “I um…it’s alright. I’ll get used to it eventually.” You look past him trying to see if you can see the figure again before giving up seeing nothing. Looking at him, all you can see is a man who lost something or rather someone. “I wanted to thank you for letting me in the team…I didn't know there were so many spider people out there…I don’t feel alone…mostly.” You say to him, knowing no one else in the spider society can see ghosts like you. Unless they haven’t found them, it’s only you so far. “More threats are coming so it’s important to expand the Spider society.” Miguel walked around you. “I’ve been monitoring your fighting ability and I have to say I’m impressed. We need more people on the team like you.” ‘Wait? Did he just say monitoring me?!’ You thought before thanking him. “Thanks, it’s years of practice of being a spider hero.” You looked over to his screen seeing him watching each Spider person's missions. ‘Does he know I see ghosts if he’s been watching me?’

After the brief introduction with your boss, you walked around the empty hall to head to the cafeteria before stopping to see a small head poking before they let out a childish gasp hiding back. Looking around, you quickly walk over “no no!” You whisper, “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you.” You looked around the halls before hearing a small voice behind you.

“You can see me?”

Turning around you are met with a young girl, kneeling down, you smile at her nodding. “Yup I can see you...and you were that troublemaker who knocked the item off.” You gently poke her nose only for your finger to go through her. She still giggled before nodding, “It was an accident” She whispers. “It’s fine, I know young ghosts like you have a hard time using your little ghost powers” You assure her before looking around making sure no one else was walking by. “I heard there is a lounge room near here, think you can guide me so we can talk more?” You smile as she nodded quickly, guiding you to the room. Once you made it, you peaked in seeing it empty and walked in. “Okay, let’s start with this, my name is (Y/N)” You sat on the sofa and looked at her. “My name is Gabriella, but you can call me Briella, it was what my Papa always calls me” She sat next to you, but her body hovered over the couch. “That’s my next question, is your father, Miguel?” When Briella heard his name her eyes showed admiration, nodding quickly. “Yes! He’s the best and I know he’s trying his best.” She puts her hands up showing how much he was the best. You smiled at her love for Miguel, “Perhaps…that's what prevented you from moving forward…ever thought of crossing over?” You didn’t want to pressure her into crossing over, every ghost was different, some cross over right away and others take their time. Briella thought for a moment, “Yes…but I haven’t seen the light.” She looked at you with her eyes tearing up. Panicking you tried to rub her back but once again your hand went through. “No no, it’s okay, it just means there is something or rather someone preventing you, your father” You explained to the young girl. “Want my help?” You asked as she nodded her head quickly.

“Okay, this is what we need to do.”

It’s been a week and finally, you were going to set the plan. You were slowly getting the hang of ignoring the ghosts in the HQ. You would have your private conversations with Briella in the lounge room. Becoming friends with the girl, you felt bad for her. She feels so alone here with the rest of the ghosts not minding her as they were busy trying to find a way to cross. She was ecstatic to call you a friend. Sitting on a table at the cafeteria, you spotted Jess carrying a heavy pile of folders. “This is our chance, meet me at your father's office” You whisper out to Briella before getting up. “Here let me help Jess” You quickly took the folders from her. “Is this going out to Miguel? I can take them; you need some rest after all.” You assure her. Jess chuckles “I owe you one, my back is killing me!” She chuckles before sitting down. “Be careful, it’s pretty heavy” She calls out as you walk out of the cafeteria. “You don’t say” You grunt at the weight leaning slightly to the right before fixing yourself.

You walked through the door to Miguel’s office. “I have folders for you!” You called out to him seeing him working up on the platform. You pant heavily once you set them down on a desk. “How can she be so strong?” You mutter referring to Jess. She didn’t seem to have trouble holding these files. “Gracias*, leave them there.” He doesn’t bother turning around. You look over to Briella who nodded her head. ‘Alright, we’re both ready’ you think before sitting on the desk next to the folders. “I have a question” You called out. “And?” He kept working on the screens. “How much do you know about me? Seeing you’ve been watching and all.” This got his attention, he stopped and turned around glancing down at you from his platform. “What? Why do you ask?” He jumps down landing in front of you. You kept standing there, “Well, I was reading these” You pulled out a file with your name. “ Qué? ¿Cómo conseguiste eso*?” He tries to take it from you, but you pull it away in time. “A little friend help me” You smile under your mask hearing Briella giggle. Miguel only rubbed the bridge of his nose, “Hobie” He mutters. You shake your head, “No but there is one detail you missed about me, a power you forgot to add.” You opened the file reading it. “Reading this makes me look too normal like any other spider person…I wish I was like that.” You mutter thinking back to all the ghosts' pleas of help you had to ignore. “I never miss anything, Nunca*” He watches you reading your file before caging you in grabbing the file from you. You let out a gasp before composing yourself, thank God for the mask covering your face. “Well, I can see the dead” You mutter looking at him. “Tú? Puedes ver a los muertos*” He lets out a sigh, “I don’t have time to play games” He looks at you, frowning. “It’s the truth…” You slip under him trying to keep it safe for Briella eyes, but you have to admit, she has a good-looking dad but right now you had better things to do then eye her father up and down. “Your daughter, Gabriella, is here with us.” You watched him as he stayed silent and next thing you know; you were slammed to the wall. “suficiente*!” He yelled as his hand pushed your shoulder roughly into the wall. You grunt letting him, he has years of grief pent up, you give him the pass for today only. You watched as Gabriella gasp panicking and appears next to you whispering something to you.

“You don’t know anything! She’s long gone!” He yells pushing you more into the wall. You only look up to him “Mi sol*” You whisper out in pain. He stops “What was that?” He pulls his hand away from your shoulder. “You would call her Mi Sol when in reality she’s your world but calling her Mi mundo* was odd for her, so you stuck with Mi Sol” You looked over seeing him shocked. Miguel backed away before looking around “Mi Sol?” He calls out in the open. “She’s behind you” You walked away from the wall and stood next to Briella. “She’s standing next to me; she reaches around my waist” You called out her height. Miguel looked at your waist then moved his head over. Gabriella smiles seeing her father was looking at her, well though her since she wasn’t visible to him. “Briella would you like to?” You asked her but she shakes her head. “What?” Miguel looks at you. “I asked if she wanted to possess my body so she can speak with you, but it seems she doesn’t want to. So, I’ll be the interpreter” You smile at him.

You and Miguel sat on the ground as Briella converse with her father through you. “Tell him I love him so much!” She smiles. You chuckle and look at Miguel, “She says she loves you so much.” Miguel looks so much better to you; he was smiling for once ever since you met him. His smile was contagious, it even made you smile for no reason. “Yo también te quiero*” He looks at the empty spot near you. “Oh! Tell him to be happy, that soon I will be crossing over. When I do, I want him to find someone who loves him as much as I do! Someone who will look after him for me…like you.” You quickly turned to her “ W-What?” You looked away before translating to Miguel, “She says to be happy, that soon when she crosses over, she wants you to find someone who loves you as much as she does...someone who will look over you while she’s gone.” You repeat leaving out the last part making Briella cross her arms pouting. You let out a quiet chuckle watching her reaction. Miguel looks over at the empty spot again, “Mi sol, lo siento mucho por ser la razón por la que no puedes cruzar.*” He begins as Gabriella looks at him carefully, paying attention. “Prometo que cambiaré, y seguiré tu consejo, sé que debe dolerte verme solo. Además, creo que encontré a alguien que podrá hacer lo que me pedistes*.” He says while looking at you. You were busy looking around the office to give them their space till they needed you again for translation.

You look over seeing a light, “Briella…it’s time” You smile walking over to them. “Is it the light?” Miguel gets up looking at you. You nodded, “It’s time for her to cross.” Miguel took a deep breath in and looked over at the direction you were looking, “Ve a la luz, Mi Sol*” He whispers. Gabriella walked over to it, stopping in front of it. “Tell him I love him, and I will miss him...also thank you (Y/N)” She smiles before going in. You watched as the light disappeared, “She said she loves you and that she’s going to miss you.” You look over to him only to feel his arms around you. “Thank you…Muchas gracias*” he whispers into your shoulder. You felt his tears staining your suit, you rubbed his back. “It's no problem.” You whisper back. Pulling back, it quickly wipes his tears before looking down at you, “This needs to stay between us” He steps back a bit. You smile “I was about to say the same, keep that ghost power out of the files for me…I don’t need all the spider people asking me if I can see their dead uncle or something” She sighs. Miguel lets out a deep chuckle. It felt nice seeing him happy, hearing his chuckle and seeing that handsome smile. “Muy bien, es un trato.” He pulls his hand out, you grab it shaking it.

“It’s our Little Secret.”

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

Author Notes: Thank you so much Anon! I hope this was something you were thinking of! Sorry if it's a little long to all of you. Remember to check out the poll I have going on! It's a 100 follower Special. Also...THANK YOU EVERYONE! I have reached the 100 Follower goal on this day (07/07/23). Remember to stay hydrated and to keep on simping (Simp City Population: 110 💕) Thank you for the likes and reblogs! Please reblog so others can be aware of my works! ILY 💕

#miguel ohara x reader #miguel o'hara #miguel ohara fic #across the spiderverse fic #miguel o'hara x y/n #miguel ohara x fem!reader #request #answered asks

144 notes · View notes

corrieguards · 1 year

Note

Hiya! I loved your Toast fic, that was so cute! I love your writing and I was wondering if I could ask for a fic based on the fluff prompt #7 “You did all this… for me?” with Rex? Maybe reader does something nice for Rex because he deserves it 💙 I don’t want to be a bother, though!

A/N: Hey beautiful!! Thank you sm for this request, it's never a bother to write for my bby Rex💙

I am so sorry for the delay, this fic has consumed me and I've been nit-picking at it for weeks. I'm still not entirely happy with the result, but I didn't want to keep you waiting any longer!

P.S: Here's a link to Toast my echo x reader fic mentioned above, in case you wanna check it out <3

Cold Nights and Pretty Lights

Captain Rex x reader Summary: Finally back on Coruscant, Rex makes his way to your place, intent on spending the night there with you. Little does he know, you have other better plans for him. Word Count: 2k C/W: fluff, fluff and more fluff Prompt: "You did all this... for me?" prompt list my masterlist

The jolt of the LA-AT landing on solid ground almost brings tears of relief to Rex’s eyes.

Kriffing finally.

He was supposed to have been back on Coruscant weeks ago, but this particular mission had dragged on and on endlessly. When he found out they were finally coming home, the very first thing he did was send you a hurried comm to let you know. And now that he was planet-side, all he wanted to do was hold you in his arms and never let go again.

He stumbled out of the ship, his boot catching on the ledge in his haste to get out. A muffled chuckle behind him made him straighten up, sending a glare over his shoulder.

"In a hurry, Captain?" Jesse teased, stepping out of the gunship pointedly gracefully. Rex raised an eyebrow in warning, turning to face him fully and getting ready to defend himself, but Jesse beats him to it, holding a hand up to stop him.

"Just tell her I said hi, will you?"

Rex flushes, opening his mouth to reply but deciding it's not worth it, settling on just shaking his head fondly instead, a look of mock annoyance on his face to cover up the blush.

"Keep yourself out of trouble, trooper," he says over his shoulder as a cab pulls up on the curb, "and try not to get picked up by the Corries again"

Jesse puts on a shit-eating grin, sending him a salute and a cheeky wink. "No promises, Captain."

---

When the cab pulls up next to your house, Rex is surprised to see you already waiting outside, leaning against the wall with a soft smile.

The sight of you automatically brings a smile to his own face. He tosses a couple credits to the driver, eyes still glued on you as he scrambles out the cab.

Your smile widens as he jogs over, pushing off the wall as soon as he’s close enough and laughter bubbling as he wraps his arms around you.

You return the hug, squealing in surprise when he picks you up, twirling you around a couple times before finally setting your feet back down on the floor.

"Maker, you have no idea how much I missed you," he whispers, his hands falling to rest on your hips.

You giggle in response, balancing on the tips of your toes and reaching up to peck his lips, pulling back far too quickly for his liking.

“Missed you more, Captain."

You give him a cheeky smile before wriggling out of his hold. He frowns, going to reach for you again, but you're already walking over towards your speeder.

"Are you… going somewhere?"

"Yep," you chirp happily, clambering into the seat. "And so are you."

He raises his eyebrows at you, smiling slowly. "Oh really?"

You turn the speeder on, and a low hum fills the air. "Yeah, really," you wink, jerkin' your head back to the seat behind you. "Hop on trooper."

He chuckles, shaking his head at you but climbs on behind you anyway.

His arms loop around your waist when you pull away from the curb, gripping tightly as you weave in and out of the Coruscant lanes with practised ease. You feel his breath on your neck as he rests his chin on your shoulder, smiling when you feel him press a kiss to your cheek.

---

The traffic is a distant hum in the background when you pull up next to the roof of one of the construction buildings on the outskirts of the bustling city.

Here, the neon lights are dimmer but still bright enough to be able to see each other clearly, the light of the moon mixing with the bright colours to bathe you both in soft light.

You clamber off onto the roof, offering a hand to Rex with a cheeky smile. He lifts a brow at you.

"Isn’t that what I’m supposed to do?"

You merely shrug, moving your hand closer and he chuckles in response, grasping your hand anyway and stepping down beside you. He makes a quick glance around the building, taking it in.

It’s not entirely finished, with scaffolding still standing in a couple of places and railing missing from the edges of the roof.

"Is this legal?"

"Probably not," you shrug, tilting your head and smiling teasingly. "Why? You're going to back out on me, Captain?"

"And miss out on being here with you?" He grins, pulling you in by the waist and nuzzling his nose to yours. "Not a chance, meshla."

Giggling, you let him hold you a few seconds more before pulling back again, leaning over to grab your bag for the speeder. You go to sling it over your shoulder, but he stops you, grabbing the strap and swinging it over his shoulder instead.

You send him a grateful smile, followed by a peck on the cheek, before grabbing his hand and leading him around the corner.

He stumbles behind you, trying to keep from stepping on your heels as you drag him behind you excitedly. He collides softly with your back when you stop abruptly, his free hand moving to your shoulder to steady himself.

You move to the side, still holding his hand and eagerly watching his face as he takes in the view in front of him. His mouth parts in surprise, his hand loosening its hold on yours.

You’ve chosen a small corner of the roof with a ledge that overlooks the city, far enough away from everything that it’s private and secluded. There’s a small blanket set up on the floor, a couple cushions sitting on it with a big fluffy blanket folded up beside them.

He watches as you walk over to the scaffolding behind, hands disappearing as you reach around it, a quiet click echoing before a handful of tiny lights you’ve strung on the frame come to life, bathing the little corner in a soft warm glow.

"So, what’d you think?"

You turn to look at him expectantly, and it’s in that moment - your eyes shinning and skin bathed in the soft twinkle of the fairy lights - that he’s struck with the sudden realisation of just how stunningly beautiful you are.

He stares at you, faintly aware of you waiting for him to answer but not quite managing to formulate a response, his thoughts too busy with just how utterly smitten he is for you.

His lack of reaction makes you doubt yourself, with your feet shifting nervously.

"We can just go back home if you prefer. That’s fine too.

He blinks a couple times, quickly coming to his senses and shaking his head "No, of course not. I- It just surprised me, that’s all."

"Oh. Are you sure? I mean I know it's not much but-"

He chuckles, his hands coming up to cup your cheeks, stopping your nervous ramblings.

"It’s perfect meshla. I love it."

You smile shyly, avoiding his gaze as a blush spreads on your cheeks. "I just... well, I know you’ve been working really hard lately, and the last mission was a real kicker, and l- I just thought you would like this..."

You trail off, glancing up at him through your eyelashes. He’s looking down at you like you’re the most amazing thing in the whole kriffing galaxy.

"You did all this... for me?"

"Of course," you reply immediately, like it was an obvious fact. "Why wouldn’t I?"

He’s still staring at you with the same look on his face, his head shaking slightly in disbelief and a smile slowly spreading on his face. You’re about to ask him what's wrong when he loops his fingers in your belt, yanking you closer and leaning down until your foreheads bonk together gently.

"I love you so damn much, y’know that?" He whispers against your lips, his hands galling to your waist and squeezing. You giggle, arms coming up to loop around his neck before muttering a smug reply.

"Yeah, I know."

He rolls his eyes playfully, pinching your waist in retaliation and making you jump.

"Wow, I confess my undying love for you, and that’s all you’ve got? 'Yeah I know.'" He pitches his voice higher on the last couple words in an attempt to imitate your voice.

You scoff in mock offense, slapping his chest. "That is not what I sound like. Besides, you already know I love you, Rex."

He hums, smiling cheekily and winking.

"Yeah, but it's still nice to hear you say it."

You return the smile, rolling your eyes playfully before stepping up on your toes and bracing your hands on his chest to keep balance. Leaning up to kiss his cheek, you start to speak between kisses

"I" you move to the other cheek, pressing a kiss there too.

"am utterly" a kiss to his forehead.

"and completely" a gentle peck his nose, before you're moving to his lips, whispering the last words against them

"In love with you."

You close the gap, pressing your lips to his in a soft kiss. You feel him smiling against your lips as he kisses you back, his fingers threading through your hair and cradling the nape of your neck.

When he pulls back, you’re met with his eyes fixed on yours, crinkled at the edges and so full of undeniable love that it almost makes you blush.

"Now that was more like it."

You groan, rolling your eyes fondly, and push a hand to his chest. He chuckles, catching your wrist and pulling you in for a tight hug.

You soak up the closeness for a little longer, your face pressed up against his chest so tight that you can feel his heart beat on your cheek. He presses a kiss to the crown of your head, playfully tapping his fingers against your butt to get your attention.

"C'mon, let's sit down before it gets too cold."

Reluctantly, you pull away, keeping your hand in his as he drags you over to the blanket. He sits on the edge, feet dangling off and thighs spread wide. He looks up at you, patting the space between his legs and pulling you toward him.

Smiling fondly, you let him pull you down, settling between his thighs and resting your back on his chest. He loops his arms around your stomach, pulling you in closer and pressing a kiss to your temple.

You twist slightly, making grabby-hands for your bag that's been left discarded to the side. Rex chuckles, leaning over and stretching his hand far enough to curl them around the strap and pull it closer

As soon as it's within your reach, you stick your hand inside it, the sound of glass clinking echoing as you pull out a bottle of booze. You push it into his chest, smile bright enough to rival the neon lights.

“For you”

He holds it up so the lights you strung up behind shine on it, illuminating the writing as he squints his eyes, reading the label. A grin spreads on his face when he realises what it is.

“Correllian Whiskey?”

You nod enthusiastically, winking at him “Your favourite”

His chest rumbles against your hand, a hearty chuckle bubbling out of him. He places a tender kiss on your forehead whispering a thank you against your skin.

Cracking the bottle open, he takes a generous swig of the amber liquid before silently handing it to you. You accept it gratefully, sipping and cringing at the burn as it goes down your throat.

Setting the bottle down with a soft clang you snuggle back into his strong chest, sighing contentedly and tangling your fingers with his, squeezing tightly.

You shiver slighly and before you know it, he's unfolding the blanket, throwing it over his shoulders and bring it around to wrap around you too.

"Better?"

"Much better" you smile, pecking his lips "thank you"

Toothy grin spreading on his face, he tucks the blanket around you tighter, pressing a wet kiss to the side of your neck and making you giggle.

A comfortable silence fills the night air, just the hum of traffic and the sound of sound of your synchronized breathing.

You nod towards the view of the city, eyes following the colourful light of the endless stream of speeders zooming by. Even this time of night, the city was full of life, ever bustling with activity.

"It’s pretty, isn’t it?"

Rex hums distracted, pressing a kiss to your cheek and you smile, rolling your eyes.

"You’re not even looking, are you?”

You feel him shrug against your back, his thumb brushing softly over your knuckles and smile evident in his voice as he whispers into your neck

"Something far prettier s’got all my attention right now."

---

tag-list: @techs-feral-wife @nekotaetae @rain-on-kamino @dalu-grantkylo @sleepingsun501 @softsunburstlove @lucyysthings @plotlessvoid @clonesimp @dangraccoon @ct-9902 @sinfulsalutations @hellhound5925

join my tag-list

#my fics #captain rex #captain rex x reader #captain rex x you #captain rex fluff #tcw #clones #star wars

263 notes · View notes

nymphbunnyys · 2 years

Note

How will Asa, Bo, Michael, Jason and Jesse react to the fact that their girlfriend already has a child?

This is kind of adorable and the idea of such scary men with such little beings kills me. All of these will have the kid as a female because…. I don’t know, but scary men with the sweetest little girls is too cute to me.

I’m doing peepaw Myers because… yes. May be a bit out of character for him but I’m sorry he deserves some love man.

Michael Myers

- if I’m being honest at first Michael ignores your kid completely. As much as he can I mean.

- he.. loves you, yes. But it’s not his, and even if it was I doubt he’d pay much attention to it either. But he’d never put your kid in harms way and he’ll remind himself to be extra careful when he’s around them.

- he won’t admit it… but the kid starts to grow on him. One night, you’d manage to get Michael to actually sit down with you and your daughter for dinner, his fists sat completely still atop the table, eyes burning at the food that your daughter decided not to eat.. to which Michael did the same. He refused to eat. You knew your daughter had a fondness over who she called “mommy’s big monster” she was always at his heel, tugging at his sleeves, trying to get him to play games with her. Fuck she even called him daddy on occasion. But he refused.. silently blowing her off every time. Until now.

- the phone rang endlessly, annoyance running through your demeanour as you left the table to pick up the phone, answering to your daughters father. Michael knew by now that the conversations had always ended horribly, and so did your daughter.. His eyes averted back towards her, watching as she sulked at the piece of chicken in front of her. He blinked before watching his hand grab his fork and take a bite into his chicken, nodding with a soft smile on his face. This was unlike Michael. This wasn’t Michael’s usual characteristics. But something about the way your daughter sat.. oh so sadly over hearing mommy fight over the phone. Too many memories were brought back to him and he was determined to not let her feel those things. He softly leaned over towards your daughter, grabbing her fork instead and eating a piece of her chicken, his eyes burned into hers watching as they lit up with shock causing him to widen his eyes and open his mouth pretending to shocked. A soft giggle left her lips, little hands pressing into his white beard to push his face away.

- he chuckled quietly. Letting out a grunt of satisfaction And the two ate together. Don’t worry they sat with you to eat too.

- he probably sits in his recliner with her once he’s grown more attached. She’ll be curled up, little legs on either side of his sides head full of messy hair, thumb in mouth and comfy on his chest while they watch her favourite Disney princess movie under a warm blanket. It’s a cute site, such a vile monster with such a sweet little angel, something about her brings a soft side out of Michael not even one you could bring out.. and he’s alright with it.

- he could get used to this.

Bo Sinclair

- he really doesn’t care too much, he’s definitely a bit nervous whenever you’re daughter is around, he knows her dad isn’t in the picture so he feels like he’s got some shoes to fill and it freaks him out.

- his nerves more or so come from his own problems. It being, he’s afraid he’ll be like his own father. Even though your daughter isn’t his.. the first day he met her he felt like he had some responsibility over her, felt some sort of protection over her. So yeah.. his fear of turning out like his dad and treating your daughter the way he was treated haunted him for a while.

- Bo loves her like she’s his own honestly. He’s always carrying her, making sure she’s eating properly, giving her baths, taking her on rides outside of the town.

- Bo has a set rule that every Friday It’s “daddy daughter day” that means no one’s else is allowed to be with the two. He’ll get her dressed and they’ll go on a trip to the park, go to her favourite stores. Get her favourite snacks, have picnics, whatever she wanted really.. Bo spoiled her rotten. And it was always the best day ever.

- your daughter is glued to him like super glue. Most nights you can’t even sleep properly because the two take up the whole bed. She follows him everywhere he goes even into his garage. Little does she know.. she’s a big help when luring victims in. All Bo has to do is pick her up and set her on his hip, and she’ll have the victims gushing over her cheeky little smile.

Jason Voorhees

- big boy is very scared. Not of the kid but.. just. Being around your kid? Like I said, big boy. He’s big. The fear of knocking your kid over, or doing anything to harm them is utterly terrifying to him.

- mask stays on if she’s ever around. He’s too scared of making her scared of him it’s the last thing he wants, for your kid to be scared of him and you hate him for it.

- he’ll take her on fishing trips. When the cabin is silent and no campers are around he’ll drag the old boat his momma tucked away in the old storage shed, getting your daughter to help him push it into the lake. Even though her little arms couldn’t actually push the boat he’ll make sure she knows she did most of the work, pointing towards her arms to show her how strong she is.

- it’s a tight fit for him, his legs are tucked towards his chest and his arms are struggling to move around as the boat can’t really carry him but he makes sure your kid as enough space to sit comfortably. Holding her little fishing rod with a happy smile on her face.

- I think having your kid around makes him.. also feel like a kid again. Except, a happy kid. She heals his inner child. Most nights, he’s fallen asleep with her, he’ll be cuddled in her little bed, her pink and purple blanket covered over his shoulders while she snuggles close to him under the blankets, book in hand while she reads him her favourite bed time stories. He won’t sleep until she’s asleep just so he can make sure she’s safe.

- he likes to bring her things. Wether Jason be out tending to campers he’ll always come back with something for your daughter. Teddy bears, jewelry, stories the children kept around the camp, and so on. He’d even make her things. Now he wasn’t really crafty but he did his best. Making her dolls out of sticks and so on.

- safe to say he loves her very much. He’s her big teddy bear. And she’s his little teddy bear.

Chromeskull/Jesse Cromeans:

- Now. I know I said Bo spoils his s/o’s daughter but Jesse. Now that is different. Your daughter is spoiled spoiled. Gifts whenever she wants, whatever she wants, wherever she wants. Now he doesn’t just spoil her he spoils you both rotten. Your his girls, he’s gotta spoil you both.

- he’ll 100% have tea parties with her. Once work is out of the way he’s home sitting in her chair with a pink tutu too small but he’ll manage, nails painted pink and a pretty princess crown atop his head. His large hands will grab the cup and bring it to his burned lips, pretending to sip whatever she decided was in the cup.

-“aren’t I a pretty princess?” The text to voice would come through the phone as you laugh softly at his comment, watching your daughter nod quickly and wrap her little arm around his shoulder, sitting happily on his lap while her other hand place eyeshadow on him.

- he probably met her really young, so she kinda grew up thinking he was her dad. And he was more than happy to take part in that role. so it’s safe to say she’s a pretty big daddy’s girl.

- you’re a bit hesitant to let Jesse bring her to work, but he keeps her in the office sat directly on his lap and that’s where she stays. While Jesse has meetings with Preston, your daughter is playing with Jesse’s blazer, giggling quietly at how angry Preston sounds. Jesse softly scuffing at her reactions.

- she runs around with his mask. You have to tell her to be careful as the mask is quiet heavy, if she trips and falls Jesse would have a heart attack then and there, freaking out like a paranoid mother.

The collector/ Asa Emory

- he’s a bit.. distant from your daughter. I’m not sure Asa is really a family man. But he try’s? For you.

- he’s strict. She’s not allowed near his office. She’s not allowed to touch his things. She’s not allowed physical contact with him. She’s not allowed… really anything to do with Asa. He’s cold towards her, and as much as it pisses you off part of you can’t really blame him?

- Asa had.. a pretty traumatic childhood and due to who he is now, bringing that upon yet another person I don’t think he could handle it. Especially someone so young.

- although he has his rules, he isn’t always like that. He’s very much the same as he was with you. He was cold, there was rules and then.. they were slowly forgotten about. He came around. Slowly, but surely.

-it’s different with you of course, and he still turns a cold shoulder towards your daughter from time to time, but he’s began to bring her things. A porcelain doll as of recently made its way into your daughters room. Sat perfectly atop her dresser, she wore a baby blue dress, hair blonde and curly, eyes bright blue. Her lips were cheery red along with her blushing cheeks. She looked, kind of like your daughter. Maybe it reminded Asa of her?

- when bringing it up he’ll refuse that he did it, get mad at you even for thinking he’d do something like that. God y/n you know how he feels about your daughter why would he give her things? But he’s wrong, he knows he’s lying, though he’s not a family kind of guy there’s a part of him that really does care about her. But he scares her, and he knows he does. He’s scared to hurt her, so keeping himself distant is his way of trying to not scare or hurt her.

- but he does open up more. One night you left the two alone, begging him to watch her as something came up for work and you really needed to be there. She had already been in bed so it wasn’t entirely a big deal. Until it was. She woke up an hour or two after you had left, leaving Asa sat completely still and quiet on his sofa listening to your daughters feet softly tiptoe towards him.

-“Asa..” he slowly looked over his shoulder, his knuckles turning white from gripping onto his jeans. She rubbed her eyes softly, letting a soft yawn escape her lips. “Yes.” He uttered, trying to keep his voice down not wanting to alarm her. “You think… you could read me a story” she paused quickly looking at him properly. “Please.”

- fuck. How could he say no..

-so he stood up slowly, walking past her towards her room, stopping once he stood in her doorway and looking back at her. “Well come on. Let’s get you to bed bug” he may have shocked himself with the sudden nickname, but he only told himself it was a way to soothe her.. no other reason at all. Her smile melted him, watching as she hurried past him and hopped into her bed, grabbing onto her cockroach plushie. Yeah. Honestly you thought they’d get along considering her love for bugs but because Asa never paid any mind to her, he never really noticed till now. His eyes searched her room carefully not fully realizing her slight obsession. Books about bugs, bug plushies, a butterfly in a jar, etc.

- maybe she wasn’t so bad..

965 notes · View notes

whatwouldsylwrite · 1 year

Text

hockey!Abby x dancer!reader pt8 (end)

pt 1 pt 7.75

Abby gets injured during practice.

Tags: modern au, fluff, fem!reader, shy reader, reader is into sexy/girly dances, Abby is a sweetheart, switching pov. Swearing (a lot of), kissing.

Notes: inaccurate display of: hockey player's injuries (it's not the most common one, but I'm not hurting Abby's pretty face); american health system - i just decided if it's so expensive they probably give you everything at the hospital? google didn't really help here, so sorry if it offends anyone.

A/N: that's all, folks! This is the last part of this story. Thank you all so much for reading it and enjoying it with me! The story was pretty fluffy and I wanted to give it some balance, so this part happened. I hope you'll like it as well.

But as I said before, I'm going to write some blurbs about them, so this is not their last appearance. (currently I have like 5-6 ideas for them, and half of them are requests that I really liked but didn't have time/mental space to write).

Thank you again! <3

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

"You know what, Abs?" Manny asked while they were changing for the practice. "I could really use some love advice."

Abby scoffed and raised her eyebrows at him, not really sure what the fuck he meant by it and why he even needed it.

"Love advice? Do I look like the Elle girl advice column to you?"

"You got your chick somehow, yeah? So you probably did something right."

"Do you want to ask your weather girl out?" Abby finally put two and two together. She knew they were friends with benefits, but she didn't expect Manny, of all people, to catch feelings. "Man, you fucked up."

"Come on, share your lady loving wisdom."

"Just be honest with her. It will only get worse if you keep it bottled up." Abby shrugged and put her helmet on, eager to escape Manny and his strange love problems.

"That's how you got (y/n) to date you?" Manny asked with suspicion while they were going on the ice for the warmup.

"I asked her on a date. Do the same." Abby said sharply and skated away. She wasn't going to deal with Manny's uncertainties when everything was resolvable if he'd decide not to be a coward.

Something was…not right with the way Abby's right skate slid on ice, but Abby couldn't really understand what and didn't pay any mind to it, thinking she was just imagining things and getting paranoid. She thought if she just willed her mind to think her skate was fine, it'd actually become fine.

And it was fine during the first half of the warmup, so Abby decided she was just overthinking and seeing things that were not there. Eric instructed them on the group warmup and Abby gladly got into the position, ready to kick her teammates' asses. Everything was just the same, she skated as fast as she could, getting past her pretend opponents and scored a few times.

And then everything wasn't just the same.

Abby was doing a hockey stop when something happened and suddenly she was falling on the ice with the speed of a fast hockey player, her head, shoulder and knee hit the floor so hard and painful she didn't even notice the real problem yet. She groaned and sat up immediately, while Manny skated to her, worried.

"Abs, are you okay?"

"Shit." Abby groaned as her head spun a little. She moved her shoulder to check if anything serious happened, but it was mostly fine. She started to stand up, but when she put weight on her right foot the pain shot through her body and she actually let out a short cry as she fell on her ass. "My ankle, fuck, I can't stand on it." Abby said, panting from sudden pain that wasn't going away.

Everyone was coming to them to check if everything was alright, and Abby hated it, hated having attention in a moment of weakness, hated that people got worried.

"You need a doctor." Manny said and motioned to their teammates to help him get Abby up.

Him and Jesse pulled Abby up and let her put her weight on them as they skated her back to benches. Abby tried to close off from everyone emotionally, but Eric's disgruntled face made her irrationally upset. Boys helped her sit on a bench and Abby started untying her skate on the right ankle with a rush, hoping to prove she was fine and she just twisted it and everything was going to be fine.

"What happened?" Eric asked in a tense voice.

"I have no fucking idea." Abby growled and took her skate off, examining it.

The fucking screw. The fucking screw fell off and her blade was unstable and that was why she felt off on the ice the whole practice. Abby wanted to smack herself in the face - she always checked her skates, she knew it could happen, it was a fucking rookie mistake.

"The blade got unscrewed." Abby said way too neutral.

"You didn't check your skates before you went on ice?!" Eric erupted, annoyed and angry. "Anderson, are you five?"

Abby didn't say anything, because she didn't have an explanation why she forgot to check, she couldn't even understand it herself.

"Amazing." Eric huffed. "Abby, the next game is in a week, what the fuck are we supposed to do now?"

"I just twisted my ankle." Abby bit back. "I'll be fine in three days."

Abby took the second skate off and stood up to prove her point, but she immediately sat back down as she felt her ankle just sinking down to her foot as if nothing was keeping it in place.

"Yeah no shit you twisted it." Eric rolled his eyes. "Fucking hell, Abby, the whole fucking season will go to shit now because you didn't fucking check your skates."

"Don't be dramatic." Abby rolled her eyes, but his words were getting to her. She knew her ankle wasn't twisted - it was more serious, and she wouldn't be on ice for god knows how long, and she was one of the best in their team, people were relying on her, and now she let them down.

"Come on Abs, you need to go to the hospital, it doesn't look good." Jesse pointed at her already swollen ankle.

"Yeah I know." Abby bit back and Jesse just rolled his eyes in return, refusing to deal with her shit.

"I'll drive you. Come on, let's go pack your bag." Manny said too cheerfully, knowing what a bitch Abby could be when something was out of her life order. Eric just huffed and went out of Manny's way.

Abby didn't say anything and let Manny support her as she hopped all the way to the lockers on one leg. They didn't talk and Abby was glad - she really didn't want to discuss the whole situation. She clumsily changed her clothes while Manny waited and chuckled when Abby swore in irritation.

"Ready?"

Abby glared at him and Manny just laughed, taking her bag in one hand and supporting Abby with the other as they slowly made their way to Abby's car.

Fuck, she couldn't drive anymore. Abby felt her chest tighten from her frustration, but she kept it to herself. Manny took her driving seat and started the car.

"Maybe call (y/n), let her know what happened?" Manny suggested carefully.

The thought of worrying you almost made Abby cry from anger - not only she let her team down, but now she couldn't take care of you the way she wanted, and even more, you'd be the one to worry about her and take care of her, because she knew you wouldn't leave her alone and let her lick her wounds in peace, you were just as caring as she was.

Abby opened your chat, going for an easy option - she couldn't handle hearing your concerned voice and managing her emotions at the same time right now.

to: dancing queen

I hurt my ankle during practice

Manny is taking me to the hospital

Abby sent her messages and locked her phone, not sure now if she'd be able to handle your concerned texts. She tapped her fingers nervously and Manny looked at her, curious.

"You texted her?"

"Yes."

"Good." Manny turned the wheel. "You know Eric is an asshole, right? He talks shit all the time."

"But he is right, if I'm not on the ice the whole team is fucked."

"Fuck you, we can play just fine." Manny laughed. "If we always relied on you then what's the whole point of the team? I promise you, I'll personally put these pucks for you while you're home. Each one of them is going to be for you, Anderson."

"Yeah, I don't think there's going to be a lot." Abby snorted, getting some sense of normality back with the way they bantered. Manny hit her shoulder playfully and she laughed a little.

Her phone buzzed with the notification.

from: dancing queen

r you okay?

I mean

Obviously not

But how bad is it?

Abby felt her heart clench in her chest with how typically you your texts were.

to: dancing queen

Can't step on my foot, i need to get an x-ray

from: dancing queen

this sucks :(

I'll come to your place tonight

If it's okay

to: dancing queen

Ofc

Abby typed it, but she wasn't sure if it was a good idea: she wanted you to comfort her, but the thought of you seeing her being weak made her feel ashamed. She couldn't say anything else to you now, her head was not in the right space anymore, so she locked her phone until she got a new notification.

from: dancing queen

Text me when you get your results, ok?

to: dancing queen

Yes ma'am

from: dancing queen

Love you ❤️

we'll figure it out

to: dancing queen

Love you too

Abby took a sharp breath to keep her tears at bay, trying to ignore your last message: she was supposed to say these things to you, she was supposed to take care of you, to soothe you and fix your problems, not the other way around, and if she just fucking checked her fucking skates nothing of this would have to happen.

Manny didn't try to talk to Abby anymore until they came to the hospital.

The whole ordeal didn't take a long time: they quickly got Abby's information, the doctor looked her ankle over and sent her for an x-ray, all professionally uncaring, just like all doctors were. It kept Abby grounded, the familiar place and familiar attitude of her father, all calm and all-knowing, like everything was manageable and fixable and nothing was truly a disaster.

Manny helped Abby to get to the x-ray room and after that they just stayed and waited for a doctor to come and tell what was wrong with her ankle. Abby already knew he'd say it sprained, and she knew it meant 3 weeks of not leaving home and not stepping on her foot, a few days of RICE, and a bunch of fucking problems and a nasty recovery.

Fuck she felt awful.

The doctor came and said the same thing - she sprained her ankle, no movements, put the ice on, wear compressions and keep the foot on something higher than her body position. Abby knew all of it.

The doctor gave her two options for her ankle: either a cast or a heavy duty ankle brace, which was a much better option, so Abby got her brace and a pair of crutches.

Abby looked at them with a heavy heart: she knew how useful they were and how much her life would be better with them, but for some reason she felt like they were the last thing that just cemented the thought that this was it. She was going to be dependent on other people, and she would be taken care of, not the other way around. And it made her feel weak, and she hated it. Her independence and self-reliance was something she just couldn't let go of, and this situation was forcing her to let go, and it was making her angry.

Abby accepted the crutches and it took her a few minutes to get the hang of it, but it was so much easier to move now and Abby felt relieved - at least she didn't need Manny to help her walk now. She was wrong - the crutches were not the last nail in the coffin with her independence, they were the thread that kept her independence alive.

from: Abby

My ankle is sprained, but it's not too serious

Manny is driving me home rn

You looked at your phone and sighed from relief: you were worried Abby's ankle might be broken, or worse, her ligaments fully torn. The sprains were nasty and annoying, you knew it from experience, but it was manageable and it didn't leave you fully immobile, which was a plus you get to appreciate after you get immobile.

to: Abby

I'm relieved it's not broken

I'm on my way

You already packed your bag with everything Abby'd need for her injury, including some snacks that could lift her mood up. You suspected she was upset but didn't want to show it or even talk about it - in these months you've been together sometimes it was a struggle to support Abby emotionally because she wouldn't share what was bothering her. Not every time, but she had some touchy topics and she'd be grumpy for a few days, processing it by herself, but trying her best not to be a bitch to you because of it. You appreciated that and didn't pressure her to talk to you, but sometimes you just felt like you didn't give Abby enough support.

It was cold outside, but Abby's hoodie kept you warm under your coat as you waited on the stairs of Abby's apartment building for her to come home. You put your cold hands into your pocket and waited until you saw the familiar car pulling over.

Manny was driving, and you felt like it was wrong, but you were really thankful Abby had someone to take care of her and help her when you weren't around. You came closer to the car while Manny helped Abby get out of it, handing her her crutches.

"Hi." You said gently and hugged Abby as carefully as possible. She couldn't return your hug, her arms supporting her weight, but you didn't expect her to. "How are you?"

"Fine." Abby said in a blank voice, but you didn't comment on it - she was definitely not in the mood and it was justified.

You looked at Manny and he just rolled his eyes, definitely telling how much not in the mood Abby was.

You decided not to ask any questions until you got Abby comfortable and safe, so you made some small talk with both of them, trying to bring Abby back from her head. She was keeping up with the conversation, but you saw how slowly but surely she was getting pissed off because it took her so long to climb the stairs. After a flight she just handed her crutches to Manny and started jumping over the stairs, holding to the railings as she went. It was indeed faster, and after ten minutes you were finally home.

"Thanks man." Abby said when Manny put her bag down on the floor.

"That's nice to hear." Manny smirked and patted her shoulder. "Get better, Abs. Make your ankle your bitch and heal it."

Abby chuckled and you hugged Manny goodbye.

"Thank you for taking care of her." You said quietly.

"That's what friends are for. She gave me love advice, I gave her a ride to the hospital. Good night, ladies."

Abby let out a long sigh and started taking her coat off. You did the same, and when all street clothes were taken off, you followed Abby to the hall, patiently waiting for her to move. Abby sat down on the sofa and you sat beside her, taking her hand in yours.

"What did the doctor say?"

"The ligament isn't torn fully, but it won't heal fast." Abby said, her voice just a little tense. "Three weeks at home."

You opened your bag and took a bottle of chocolate milk you bought for her.

"That's to cheer you up a little." You smiled and got a small, faint smile in return, but it was more than enough for you. "Okay. I've been through this shit before, so I bought some things that can make it easier and faster."

You took a few tubes and showed them to Abby, who was still grumpy and tense.

"This is from the bruises, because they're going to be big, this is a painkiller but actually has some repair effect, and these are vitamins that can help with healing."

You laid it all on the sofa and Abby looked it over with the most blank face you saw in all this time you knew her, and it was making you anxious.

"You also need to put something cold on it right now, it'll help with the swelling."

"Yeah, I fucking know, I'm a fucking med student." Abby rolled her eyes and you froze, immediately shutting up.

That hurt. You swallowed the lump that suddenly got stuck in your throat, wounded by Abby's tone and her irritation with you when all you wanted was to help her and take care of her.

There was a tense silence and Abby shut her eyes in guilt as the situation dawned on her, but before she could say anything you started talking despite the lump in your throat and pain in your chest and shaking hands.

"Abby, don't talk to me like that. I know you're upset, but please don't take your frustrations on me." You said in a surprisingly steady and strict voice. You didn't deserve to be treated like this, especially by your girlfriend, especially when you were trying to take care of her.

Abby looked guilty, but her face got closed off for a moment as if she considered shutting you out, and you felt like something was dying inside of you because of it.

"Fuck, sorry." Abby sighed with guilt, not looking at you, clearly too vulnerable for her liking. Something eased up in you after you heard her voice: she was trying to resolve this, and this what actually mattered. Abby looked at you, finally, with guilty puppy eyes and it calmed you down a little, knowing she wasn't turning it into a fight. "I just- fuck."

You got closer to her, taking her hand in yours again. You put your feelings away for now, fully concentrating on making Abby feel safe to open up.

"Hey, I understand." You said in a gentle soft voice. "Been there. We can talk about it if you want, or you can vent. It's fucking annoying, isn't it?"

Abby shut her eyes tightly, her jaw tense - she was trying so hard to keep calm and not cry. She even turned away from you, embarrassed of her weakness, but you were patient.

"Yeah." She said in a strained voice, her crying bubbling up in her throat.

You hugged Abby carefully and the dam broke. Abby sniffled and silently cried in your arms, all frustration and guilt from the day getting out as you caressed her head and shoulders, soothing her. Abby relaxed against you, fully leaning on you not physically, but emotionally.

"It's so fucking annoying, the stupid screw fucked everything up." Abby said in a hoarse voice somewhere in your neck, her tears hot on your collarbones. "And fucking Eric just kept saying shit how we'll lose now because I'm not going to play."

"Asshole." You huffed. "Fuck him."

Abby chuckled halfheartedly and stayed in your arms for a few minutes, calming down, her head getting clearer.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you." Abby said in a small voice. "This whole thing sucks."

"It does." You kissed the top of her head. "Abby, I'm not scared of your anger or any negative emotions, okay? You can fuck this whole room up and I'll cheer you on, but don't fuck me up because of it."

You were shaking but your voice was steady. You knew Abby needed to hear that, and you needed to show her your limits, so even if your anxiety was going through the roof as you were saying these words, they needed to be said.

"'m sorry." She said again, now even more guilty.

"Thank you." You kissed her forehead. "It wasn't okay, but we're okay." You said just as gently as before and Abby hugged you tighter.

You were still a little shaky, your heart still ached, but you weren't mad anymore. You kissed her forehead again, the desire to soothe her growing by the second.

"What happened?"

"My blade got unscrewed. I felt that something was wrong, but ignored it. So I went for a stop and my skate broke down."

"Oh god." You imagined Abby falling on the ice and you felt awful. "Does anything else hurt?"

"Shoulder's bruised I think."

"Okay. What if I run you a bath, then we will sort out all the medicine and then you'll rest? I'll order some food if you want."

Abby suddenly got very aware of how hungry she was.

"Yeah."

"Cool." You kissed Abby quickly, happy she was letting you take care of her.

Abby felt shy for some reason, waiting for you to run her a bath. She wasn't used to anyone taking care of her, so it made her feel useless and confused, but in a good way. Abby felt awkward just waiting, she wanted to do something, so she started stripping while you fixed the water temperature. Her right shoulder was bruised, but it didn't really hurt to move it.

"Okay. So, as a sprained ankle veteran, I have some tips." You said comically and Abby smiled. "I know you're tough and strong, but don't try to get inside in one go. Sit on the edge and then slowly turn around."

Abby huffed - that should have been obvious, but she also wanted to get in the bath in one go because she was not a little bitch, so you caught her there. The pants were tricky to take off, but you helped Abby with it, sitting her down on the edge as you tugged them all the way down. The brace was lying on top of Abby's clothes and you looked over her swollen ankle.

"My poor baby." You cooed and kissed Abby's cheek. Abby huffed, embarrassed, but deep down she enjoyed you babying her like this. "I can tell you something that I'm not supposed to tell you."

Abby got in the bath carefully, relaxing and letting the long sigh out.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I usually get so fed up with hopping, I start putting my weight on my ankle after a week. It's a bad idea, so don't do it."

"I think you told me that so I could do it." Abby chuckled.

"Well, I know you'll get fed up with it, so I thought I could get you to not stand on your foot for at least a week." You smiled bashfully.

Abby's mood was going up a little as you talked to her. It felt almost normal, as if you were just hanging out.

"Can I wash your hair?" You asked, shy, and Abby felt her chest bubbling up with affection. She squeezed your hand and nodded.

You moved behind her and started massaging her scalp tenderly, and Abby relaxed, enjoying your fingers in her hair. Abby always got sleepy when someone was playing with her hair, and after this awful day your hands felt like a blessing, lulling her worries and anger away. You were so careful and gentle, so fucking loving Abby wanted to cry and to pray to whatever deity that made her stay at the dance studio that day.

"Close your eyes, baby." You said quietly and Abby obeyed, letting you wash the shampoo away. She felt like with this shampoo something nasty went away, something that made her want to tell you to fuck off a half an hour ago when you were so kind to her. Abby couldn't deal with kindness very well, especially when she felt weak. Abby always reacted to people caring about her with anger, like a wounded animal that attacks a helping hand thinking it’s there to kill it. Abby hated pity, and kindness tore her apart and made her achingly vulnerable, but she was safe with you. You were handling her shit with care and love and she snapped at you in return and she wanted to cry again now.

"I'll never be mean to you again." Abby said nearly choked up by her shame, but she wanted to say it out loud, to promise this to you.

"Baby." You said in a fond voice and Abby felt like she was on fucking fire from you being so gentle when she was vulnerable. She couldn’t actually say anything in return, her emotions, positive and negative, were making a molotov cocktail in her chest, burning through her as your fingers tenderly went over her body.

After bath you helped Abby dry her hair and change, and then you were both back on the couch while you explained some things to Abby about living with a sprained ankle that she probably didn't know, like wearing high socks with a brace because it would hurt otherwise. Abby put some ointments on while you went to get her high socks, and then you ordered some food while Abby put the brace on. Abby sipped her chocolate milk, so pleased with having something sweet to boost her mood. You really knew her, didn't you?

"I'm going to be super unpleasant, but you need to email your professors." You said, and Abby groaned. She forgot about her classes, and now it would be such a pain in the ass to keep her grades in check while she would be at home.

“Oh yeah, my profs are going to kill me.”

“Not if I kill them first.” You said, completely serious, and Abby laughed. You looked like you were ready to kick her professors’ asses if they’d even think about not accommodating Abby now. “I’m serious, I’ll hunt them down if they give you a hard time.”

“Doll, you won’t hurt a fly.” Abby cooed at you and enjoyed your stern expression that made you even more cute.

“I usually don’t have a good enough reason.” You shrugged. “I could be downright nasty if I wanted to.”

Abby, who's seen you telling people off, decided not to argue with that.

“Do you want me to stay the night? Or would you prefer to have some space?” You asked carefully, and Abby got upset like a baby from the thought that you might leave, so she grabbed your hand and pulled you closer.

“Please stay.”

This night Abby fell asleep in your arms as you hugged her from behind, her head tucked under your chin. Your breathing was deep and steady and Abby felt like your little form was protecting her from every worry, every self-deprecating thought, soothing her desperate anger, calming her sea storm like some kind of ancient goddess, turning her violent waves into a quiet tide as your gentle hands caressed her skin.

Abby was safe with you in a way she wasn't safe with anyone since she was a small baby, and she seared this feeling on her heart, not letting herself ever forget how you made her feel.

"Hey, (y/n)." Abby called quietly, not sure if you were awake.

"Mhm?"

"I'm going to marry you."

You laughed quietly and kissed the top of her head, and Abby let you think she was just joking, but she knew that one day she'd buy a ring and get on one knee in front of you and make you hers for the rest of your lives, because you were the one for her.

#abby anderson x you #abby anderson x reader #abby anderson #abby tlou #hockey!abby

206 notes · View notes