#answering them asks to keep myself busy waiting for the chapter

[hollandorks]

haven

battinson! bruce wayne x f! reader

chapter fifteen

Summary: After the sudden deaths of her mother and grandmother, y/n is forced to return home to Gotham…and to the man who broke her heart three years ago. Back in Bruce Wayne’s inescapable orbit, she vows to get to the bottom of her former best friend’s new cold personality. But Bruce’s secrets aren’t what she’s expecting.

a/n: Will I remain posting regularly? That remains to be seen by everyone, myself included....Because every single time I say something, I end up accidentally not posting for weeks. Anyways, enjoy!

Series Masterlist

word count: 2.7k

Two nights later, all Bruce could think about was that Alfred had been right. 

He should have told y/n the truth while he had the chance.

“Where are you going?” 

A full day had passed since y/n found the picture in the elevator, and she half-expected Bruce’s voice to be a dream when she turned around. She hadn’t slept much, except for a brief few hours where her body literally had shut down and forced her into unconsciousness. Fear was her constant companion, but now, when she turned to see Bruce standing behind her with his arms crossed, anger cut through the fog of fear like a spear of flame. 

She mirrored his stance and crossed her own arms. “I’m going to let it slide since we’re all stressed, but try to boss me around again and see what happens.” 

Both of their jaws were clenched tightly shut. 

Bruce’s eyes narrowed. She could practically hear the words come out of his mouth, That’s not an answer. 

“I asked Gordon to come up,” she finally said, caving, though the anger still simmered below the surface. The nerve that Bruce Wayne had to barely be home, to barely care about her, and still try to boss her around all the same. She was this close to punching him in the face or pushing him down the stairs. Or maybe she would pour ice cubes in his bed next time he was asleep. “And if you’re going to bother me every single time I’m next to the fucking elevator, think again.”

Bruce relaxed marginally, completely ignoring her barbed comment–which was probably for the best. She had no energy left to really fight, anyways. 

Most of that energy had gone towards a preliminary article she had just submitted about the Gallo family. She hadn’t released any details about her involvement with them, merely reporting the fact that they were trying to make a move on Gotham. 

She had debated doing the article at all. Was it better to pretend like nothing was happening? Was it better to keep her head down and wait for it to resolve itself, whether because of Gordon and the Batman or through the Gallos finally getting to her? 

But then she realized that the people of Gotham deserved the truth, or at least as much of it she could get away with. She was already a target, but she didn’t need everyone else knowing that. 

So she had simply decided to send an article to print that Gotham was on the brink of another mob takeover, just like all of the business with Falcone and Maroni and everyone else who had corrupted their city. 

If only half of the city shared her views, y/n knew that they wouldn’t be happy with someone else trying to worm their way into their city. Gotham might be a shithole, but it was their shithole. 

The moment she had hit send, it had hit her. 

She didn’t want to be a sitting duck. She wanted to do something about it. She wanted those bastards gone. She wanted the work Bella Real and the Batman and cops like Gordon had done in the last year to stick–or at least have the chance of doing so. 

She had called Gordon, told him she wanted to talk over some things, that she needed company anyways. 

And now there she was, staring down the man who had broken her heart, waiting on Gordon to arrive on the elevator behind her. 

“Gordon and I are going to have a private conversation,” she said pointedly as the elevator doors slid open behind her. 

“Y/n,” Gordon said in greeting, but she still didn’t turn around. She and Bruce were still in the middle of their standoff. “Mr. Wayne. Good to see you again, at least under more…normal circumstances than last time.” 

She raised an eyebrow at Bruce. She could tell he wanted to argue, wanted to stick around and stick his nose even further into her business. But after a long silence, he inclined his head and said, “Detective,” before turning and disappearing back the way he had come. 

Once Bruce was safely out of earshot, she gave Gordon her full attention and said what had been on her mind the past couple of hours. Or, if she was being completely honest, the past several days.

“I want you to use me as bait, and I don’t want you to argue about it. I want you to help me actually figure out how to get rid of these motherfuckers.” She crossed her arms again for good measure.  

Gordon sighed, long and loud. She expected an argument or a lecture or a combination of the two. But instead, all he said was, “We better bring our other friend into this discussion.” 

–

“Absolutely not,” was the very first thing the Batman said when she laid out her plan. 

“Yeah, well, as I like to point out to certain other people in my life, you’re not the boss of me. I’m going to do something stupid with or without your help, because I am fucking sick of this. Alright? I can’t live like this.” She shivered as a particularly brutal gust of wind cut through her. 

They were on top of the signal tower. She and Gordon had decided together that it was easier to smuggle her out than it would be to smuggle Batman in. Besides, she didn’t want those two parts of her life mixing. God forbid Bruce find out what she was up to. She was arguing with him enough already. 

Not to mention the fact that she didn’t want to disappoint Alfred, or cause him any more stress than she already had. 

The smuggling had taken a willing female detective–a nice woman in her late thirties name Lori Ayers–trading places with y/n. They were relatively the same height and build luckily enough, and Detective Ayers was already assigned to the security on Wayne Tower. An outfit switch, a fake detective badge, and lots of praying later, and there they were. Y/n had asked Gordon and Ayers if she could have a gun, but both of them had practically shouted no in her face. 

Gordon held up his hands, ever the peacekeeper. “Listen, man, I’m not saying we should put her in any unnecessary danger, but–” 

“The whole idea is unnecessary danger!” The Batman cut in. His voice echoed in the darkness of the night around them. 

Gordon continued as if he hadn’t spoken. “–but all I’m saying is that we aren’t any closer to catching these guys. None of us are. So if we can do something we know will draw them out…why not do it?” Gordon gave her a wry look. “And, like she said, it’s probably better to have us for backup before she does anything stupid on her own.” 

Y/n gave Batman a triumphant look as if to say See? I’m right. 

She studied him while he worked his jaw in annoyance. Was he sick of looking out for her? Because she was certainly sick of needing to be looked out for. She wanted to end it. 

“Fine,” he said, the word a growl he spat out. She tried to resist pumping her fist in the air, she really did. He gave her a Look with a capital L that had her lowering it immediately. “But let me just–let me follow this last lead, alright? If it doesn’t pan out, we’ll make a plan. Give me tonight before you do anything stupid.” 

She nodded eagerly. “Great, fine. I needed to get out of the house anyway.” Gordon was also giving her a Look. “What?” she said a bit defensively. 

“You’re awfully upbeat for someone who wants to offer herself up for bait to the mob.” He raised one dark eyebrow above the frames of his glasses. 

She shrugged. “Well, I have cabin fever, so this helped my mood immensely. Plus, the end is in sight. It’s about to be over, one way or another.” 

Later, when she thought back to that moment, she would wonder if she had jinxed it. Or maybe she was simply jinxed all along, one thing leading to another, leading to its inevitable end. Leading to the only possible way it could play out. Her luck, ever since stepping foot back in Gotham–and even before then, ever since Alfred had knocked on her apartment door–had been nonexistent. 

“One last lead,” Batman repeated, holding her gaze steadily for once. Something ran through her like an electric current at that look. Like he was trying to tell her something. 

“One last lead,” she said, crossing her heart for good measure. “I promise I’ll be good.” 

Gordon chuckled like he didn’t quite believe her. “Alright, let’s get back.” 

“I’ll follow you,” Batman said, interrupting her thoughts of how she was going to get Gordon to sneak her past Bruce and Alfred both. She hadn’t told either of them she was leaving, and she didn’t want to think about what they would say to her if they found out. It would only make her life that much harder. 

Her ride back with Gordon was mostly quiet. 

“Where did you get this fake badge anyways?” she asked when Wayne Tower’s doors finally came into view. She toyed with it, noting all the ways it looked like the real deal. Maybe she could hold onto it…just in case. 

“Confiscated it from a kid caught forging all kinds of stuff, including badges she used to get classified materials.” 

She. Interesting. Sounded like somebody y/n would like to hang out with. 

She didn’t say any of that out loud, however. All she did was hum and put the badge back on her belt. 

“And no, I won’t give you her name,” Gordon said. Their eyes met and they both laughed in tandem. 

“Fine, fine. I might be able to find it on my own anyway.” She winked. 

They parked in an alley where Gordon or the other detectives on stakeout duty usually parked. As they stepped out into the cold air, Gordon’s phone rang. 

“Just a second,” he said, stepping further towards the mouth of the alley. “I have to take this. Don’t move.” He pointed at threatening finger at her. She held up both hands in surrender. 

He needn’t have worried–the sound of an approaching motorcycle reached her ears as Batman pulled into the alley behind them. The noise reverberated off of the building walls for a moment before abruptly shutting off. Gordon locked eyes with him, inclined his head, and then answered the phone while striding towards the street ahead. 

“So,” she said casually to Batman as he stood broodily in the shadows. “Think I could have been a detective in another life?” She struck a little pose in her smart, borrowed business suit and trench coat, imagining the fake badge glinting in the low light. 

Batman made a noise that could have been a scoff or a laugh. “Sure, except you would have been fired for repeatedly breaking the rules. And laws.” 

She laughed delightedly. “You’re probably right.” She definitely had chosen the only profession that suited her nosiness and penchant for getting into trouble, something Bruce had pointed out years ago. 

“I’m definitely right.” 

They were closer together than she expected, the toes of their shoes almost touching. She wasn’t sure how that had happened. It was if they had both been drawn in by the other’s gravity, invisible and inevitable. He stared down at her for a moment before, of course, turning his face away. 

“There you go again,” she murmured as she memorized the line of his jaw. “Scared to look me in the eyes.” She reached out and poked his stubbled cheek gently. He froze, but didn’t make a move to step away. 

“I’m scared for you,” he said in an equally soft voice that sent shivers over her skin. “I don’t want you to have to offer yourself up. I don’t like thinking that I might not be able to keep you safe.” 

Y/n felt each of his words sink into her like rocks in a deep lake, sinking down and down and down until they settled at the bottom, heavy in her stomach. She was staring up at him now, their breath mingling, and he was finally, finally looking back. 

She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. 

Instead, she did the next best thing. 

She stretched up onto her toes and kissed him. 

He went so still she immediately knew she had overstepped–and had overstepped badly. She quickly pulled away, face on fire, eyes straining to find anything to look at other than the rejection in his eyes. Stupid, that was so stupid. Just because he wanted her safe didn’t mean that he wanted her to kiss him. 

But before she got too far, his gloved hand caught her arm and tugged her closer. And then he was kissing her.

She inhaled deeply, her stomach doing somersaults in a way it had never done before. She was flying above Wayne Tower yet still somehow firmly rooted to the ground. It was like she could finally breathe again and yet somehow she was gasping for breath. His lips were gentle. One of his hands cupped her elbow while the other splayed across her upper back. She wished he had his gloves off, like that moment in another alley on another night. She wanted to feel his skin against hers. 

Then he was gone, a full step away. 

She couldn’t help it–her fingers traced her lips in a daze. 

They were staring at each other, both breathing slightly heavier than they had been before. 

“Alright, let’s go,” Gordon called from behind her somewhere. She couldn’t bring it within herself to care if he had seen or not. Her and the Batman were still staring at each other, in their own world, a seismic shift between them. 

“Goodnight,” she said, her voice low and raspy with want. 

“Be safe,” was all the Batman said as he watched her go. 

Gordon didn’t look at her like he had just seen them kissing, but she felt as if it were written all over her face. 

“Crime never sleeps,” he said to her as they walked the short distance to the doors. His head was constantly swiveling, searching for danger, and she knew a certain vigilante was watching from the shadows as well. 

Her entire body was electric, every nerve ending on fire, heat settling in her face and chest and lower, too. 

For once, she wasn’t wondering about who the Batman was. Her mind had been rendered totally blank by one kiss. She wasn’t even thinking about how he wasn’t Bruce Wayne, like every other kiss of her life. 

Instead it simply felt…right. 

She blinked and they were somehow inside. 

“Blake, can you escort Detective Ayers upstairs? I have to go to a crime scene.” Gordon gave Blake a long, searching look. Y/n knew that the moment the security guard looked up, he would recognize her. 

Sure enough, he did. His face did something complicated before he realized what Gordon said and stammered out, “S-sure. This way, Detective, um, Ayers.” He hit something on the computer keyboard, scrambling, having to hit whatever button it was a second time. 

“See you later,” Gordon said to her, the words full of meaning. 

She turned towards him and nodded. “Goodnight.” 

It felt stupid, pretending to be someone else in the lobby of her home, but they still didn’t know who had breached security two nights earlier. She knew it was better to be safe than sorry, but Blake knew who she was. What was to stop whoever worked for the Gallos from recognizing her as well? She imagined their pub, Maverick’s, covered in hundreds of stalkery photos of her. 

Gordon waved over his shoulder as she and Blake stepped into the elevator. As soon as the doors slid closed, y/n relaxed a bit. Everything was almost over. 

And she had kissed the Batman.

A smile grew on her face before she could stop it. 

When she glanced up, Blake was watching her. 

His upper lip and his hairline were beaded with sweat and he was much paler than normal. 

“Are you okay?” she asked, wondering if maybe he was sick. Something in her gut shivered with warning. 

“I’m so sorry–” he said, the words choked. “I’m so sorry. They have my sister.” 

That’s when she saw the glint of a needle in his hand.

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[whimsyfinny]

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: Charlie discovers the Winchester boys to be struggling with keeping the bunker tidy, looking after themselves and being able to do their job simultaneously. Luckily she has a friend who’s from a Hunter family that is in need of work and can help them with research. Or so she thought that’s what her job would be. When Dean sees your more domesticated side, his head won’t stop swimming with all the wrong ideas.

Slow burn, enemies to lovers, smut

Warnings: None (Yet) in chapters to come there will be smut (and lots of it) and possible violence/blood/gore

Chapter Word Count: 668

—-MDNI—-

A/N: My first Supernatural fic so I hope it doesn’t suck ass. Only proof read by myself, so pls let me know of any errors so I can correct! Also I know at this point in the series Dean is more serious, however I love pre-Hell Dean so imma bring some of those vibes in here. This is also posted on my AO3.

——————————————————————

I’m Not Your F*ckng Maid

-Prologue-

Dean was awoken with a slam inches from his face and he sprung to life, almost losing his balance before he realised where he was. He’d fallen asleep at the table with his face in a book and surrounded by heaps of paper - many of which he hadn’t even started to read through yet. Blinking awake and gaining his bearings, he heard a familiar voice ring through the room.

”You boys are disgusting, how do you live like this?” The older Winchester finally looked up to see Charlie lifting a plate of half eaten, day-old pizza whilst kicking several beer bottles aside so she could pull out a chair and take a seat next to Dean, who was pinching the bridge of his nose.

”Yeah well, we’ve been a little busy recently if you haven’t noticed,” his voice was gravelly from the sleep. Charlie put down the plate of old food and sat down, worry crossing her face as she looked at the man next to her. She knew they’d been under a lot of pressure lately with their work, so much so that the brothers were starting to neglect themselves. It had been months since they’d eaten proper food that wasn’t instant or take-out, they rarely went outside, always locking themselves away in the bunker to do research and the bunker itself was getting cluttered with bin bags and pizza boxes. Not to mention the piles of laundry that she’s noticed slowly starting to form its own ecosystem in the washroom.

“Yeah I get that, but you really have to look after yourselves. When was the last time you ate a vegetable?”

Dean scoffed.

“Yesterday, obviously,” he gave her a look like she was from another planet, and she rolled her eyes.

“The pizza sauce doesn’t count, Dean.”

He looked puzzled, raising an eyebrow, “Why not?”

Before she could even humour him with an answer, Sam emerged, rubbing his eyes.

“Oh hey Charlie, when did you get here?” His voice was equally as gravelly as Deans, so she assumed he’d also just woken up.

“Five minutes ago.”

“She called us disgusting Sam. And she said the sauce on pizza isn’t made from vegetables,” Dean gestured to Charlie like she was the fool as he looked up at his younger brother who now stood across from him on the other side of the table. Sam went to open his mouth to respond, but closed it again quickly and furrowed his brows, clearly unsure how to reply to his older brother without opening a can of worms. Charlie huffed.

“You guys need to sort yourself out. I only dropped by because I hadn’t heard from you for a while and thought you might’ve worked yourself to death. I can’t stay long because I’m meeting a friend for a drink. She’s already at the diner waiting for me”

“A friend?” Dean wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and the redhead smirked.

“I wish, sadly she’s into dudes,” she paused, a thought crossing her mind, “Come to think of it, she’s actually looking for work, you guys might be able to help.”

Dean and Sam shared a glance.

“She’s a hunter?” Sam asked.

“Not exactly. Her uncle was, so she knows about stuff, but from what I know she was just a research girlie,” Charlie peered at the mess of papers on the table, “and it looks like you could use the help.” She looked between the brothers as they stared at each other, like they were having some sort of unspoken conversation. A few moments passed before Dean slapped his hand on the table and stood up.

“Sure ok, but we’re coming with you today to meet her,” he went to grab his jacket from the back of his chair, an eagerness in his movements before Charlie put her hand out to stop him.

“Great!” She grinned, before raising her eyebrows and pointing to them both, “but first you guys have got to shower, because I can taste your BO from here.”

——————————————————————

Up Next

Chapter 1

[greatooglymooglyyy]

The Last Ride Chapt. Three (AU Cowboy!C.Sturniolo)

series masterlist

summary: when spoiled and sheltered city girl Y/N finds herself in running in the wrong crowd, her dad gives her an ultimatum. it's either spend the summer of her gap year on her uncle's ranch or face being cut off and finding a job. just when she thinks it can't get any worse, she meets Chris, the brooding farmhand who thinks he knows her type. but as the summer goes on, they both realize there may be more to the other than meets the eye.

requested and advised by @rootbeerworshiper

contains: strained parental relationship, flirting, sexism, 1.8k words

a/n: this my work, do not replicate it. do not repost as your own. this is such a filler chapter y'all but i think we needed some character development

“You have anything else for me today?” I ask Chris as I yank off my work gloves and shove them in my pocket. He shoots me a quick glance over his shoulder before he goes back to unloading the truck.

“Did you fill the watering-”

“Yes.”

“Did you walk the fence to see-”

“Yep. And told Uncle there was a loose spot by the north pasture.”

Chris turns and studies me for a second before his mouth pulls up in the ghost of a smile. “Well, alright then, little miss farmer. You can go.”

“Thank god.” I sigh in relief at having survived my first week and spin to leave before tossing Chris a curt, “Have a good weekend.”

He nods back at me in recognition, opening his mouth like he wants to say something else before apparently thinking better of it and turning back to the truck.

*******************

I can’t believe that I’ve become a person whose most exciting plan on a Friday night is a long bubble bath. But I’m not even mad about it. After a week of chasing down animals and lifting feed, I have muscles aching that I’ve never even felt before. Not even after pilates.

When I’m done soaking away my sorrows, I get dressed and head into my room. But before I can follow through on my plan to sleep for approximately the next 22 hours, my phone begins to ring.

I know before I even look down that it’s my dad and I sigh deeply. I’ve been dodging his calls and texts since I got here, using work as an excuse, but he knows I have weekends off. Flopping onto my bed in defeat, I slide the bar over to answer.

“Yes, Dad?” I try to keep the bitterness out of my voice but the pause in his response tells me I failed.

“Hey, honey. I was just, um, calling to check in on you. How’s the ranch?”

I give a sarcastic laugh. “Yeah, it’s great. A dream.”

There’s silence on both of our lines for a few beats as we each wait for the other to give in.

“Look…” Dad starts, his normally strong voice wavering a bit. “I just wanted to tell you…”

I wait as he trails off, hoping he’s about to open the door for us to get over this but he seems to bail out on his original thought.

“... I wanted to ask how you’re doing on cash. There are some cool shops in town. Don’t just rot inside all day while you’re there. Here I’ll transfer something to your card.”

Disappointment floods over me as my bank app notifies me of a deposit. “Cool. Thanks.”

We say an awkward goodbye a few minutes later and I throw my phone on the bedside table. I turn off my lamp and stare up at the ceiling, deep in thought. As I drift off to sleep, I can’t help but wonder if my dad and I will ever have more in common than just money.

*******************

I take his advice and take my uncle’s truck into town to explore. The experience of driving a pickup truck is every bit as humbling as I expected it to be, especially with the loud backfiring. But when I pull into the parking lot for the shopping strip, I see that I fit right in for maybe the first time since I got here.

I step into the first clothing store I see, a cute little boutique with pink cowboy hats in their window. It’s pretty busy when I enter so I stick to browsing the walls, smiling to myself at the section of belts with huge buckles.

I pick up a shirt that says “Say howdy, stay rowdy” intending to take a picture but sit it down when I remember I don’t really have anyone to send it to.

A pretty girl in a camo Chevrolet hat taps me on the shoulder and gives me a friendly smile when I turn. “Hi! Can I help you find anything?”

“No thank you...” I glance down at her nametag and return her smile. “...Abby. I’m just looking.”

She nods and leans in close to whisper. “Girl, I really just came over to say how much I love your purse. It was all over my vision board this year.”

I laugh at this and look down at my Marc Jacobs tote bag. “Do you want it? I hardly ever carry this one.”

Abby’s eyes widen and she shakes her head quickly. “No! I couldn’t-”

“Girl, seriously. It’s no big deal. I open the bag and pull out my wallet and lip gloss, having not even bothered to switch the rest of my belongings over this morning, then hand her the bag.

She takes it slowly as if she’s sure it’s a trick and then beams at me. “Thank you so much! That’s way too sweet.”

We talk for a few more minutes, exchanging socials before her boss comes around the corner and calls for her.

“Ugh.” She groans, rolling her eyes. “Let me get back before he has a cow. Don’t be a stranger, okay? Text me.”

I promise I will and leave the store, hiding a smile.

As I start making my way over to the next boutique, the door to the ice cream shop bursts open and a small girl runs out. She just may be the cutest kid I’ve ever seen in my life with her huge blue eyes and pigtails that curl delicately at the ends. The girl skips my way, her little hand holding a cone, and almost bumps into me. She stops short and smiles up at me sweetly. “Sorry!”

I smile back, squatting down a bit. “No problem, honey. I love your shoes.”

At the compliment, her face brightens up even more, stepping back to show off her cowboy boots better. “Thank you! My brother got them for me. They have my name on the side, look. E-V-I-E. Evie!”

I laugh and nod my head. “Very cool, Evie.”

The ice cream door opens again and a familiar frame steps out. “Little girl, what have I told you about walking away from me?”

I raise my eyebrows as Chris comes over and places a hand on Evie’s head. Without my permission, my eyes trail themselves over Chris' outfit, taking in the rare sight of him out of work clothes. Somehow he looks even better than usual in his simple white tee tucked into his jeans, a gold chain hanging casually around his neck. He’s got a cowboy hat in his hand and he pulls it on, adjusting it as he looks up and finally notices me. His brow furrows in confusion as he looks between the two of us. “Scotch?”

I wave awkwardly and smile. “Hi.”

Evie looks up at me blinking slowly. “Your name is Scotch?”

“Y/N.” Chris and I say in unison, making heat creep up my skin.

“This is Mr. Buck’s niece, remember?” He adds, looking down at Evie who nods. With them standing next to each other, the resemblance is striking and I can't believe I didn't make the connection immediately. His eyes dilate with love when he looks at her and I can't help but grin at their sweet bond.

Chris looks back over and me and raises his brow, reaching out and tugging my sleeve. “Ain’t it a little hot for this?”

I scoff and gesture down at myself, smoothing a hand over my faux leather jacket. "You do what you must for the look,” I say with fake cockiness and he laughs. “Why are you always hating on my style?”

He grins, clicking his tongue. “Believe me, Scotch, the last thing i'm doing is hating.” I raise an eyebrow and he adds a quick, “I mean, it don’t make me no nevermind is all.”

My lips pull up in a smirk and the moment stretches on for a bit too long as he holds my eye contact until Evie taps her foot and interrupts. “Why are you looking at her so funny, bubba?”

We snap out of it and look down, Chris giving her a confused look. “What are you on about?”

“Like your eyes are sparkling. It’s weird-”

“Okay! We gotta go. Let’s have a little chat about strangers on the way.” Chris cuts in, taking her hand to lead her away. “See you Monday, Scotch.”

“See you.”

“Bye Y/N!” Evie yells over her shoulder. She turns back to Chris lowering her voice only slightly. “You’re right. She is pretty.”

“Shh-”

Oh wow. My heart does something funny but I ignore it and cross the street, deciding to head back home. As I walk past a group of boys my age, someone lets out a low wolf whistle and I turn in disgust.

A boy with the greasiest mullet the world has ever seen runs over from his group of friends and starts walking backward beside me.

“Well, damn girl. You gotta be the finest thing on this side of the Mason-Dixon. Where they been hiding you at?”

“Jesus. Does that usually work for you?” I say, picking up my pace a bit. He grins, clearly taking my tone as a challenge, and steps into my path so I stop walking. “Get out of my way.”

“Oh c’mon on, darlin’. They don’t let y’all smile in the big city?” The boy flashes me what I’m sure he thinks is a sly smile and leans in closer, running his eyes down my body. “Let a country boy give you a reason to.”

I scoff and cross my arms, opening my mouth to give him hell, when Chris appears behind him and claps a rough hand on his shoulder.

“How about you take a few steps back, man?” Chris suggests, setting his jaw around his toothpick and giving the boy a dark look from under the brim of his hat.

He seems to wilt immediately under Chris’ gaze, cutting his eyes from his to mine. “My bad, bro. Is this you?”

I narrow my eyes, annoyed that the only thing stopping him from harassing me is another man. “Or maybe I’m just a girl who isn’t interested?”

Chris lets the boy go, stepping closer to my side. “You heard the boss, Mason. Why don’t you go mack on your girlfriend?”

He smacks his lips and puts his hands up. “Whatever man. I was just being nice. She ain’t even all-”

Chris levels him with a dangerous stare and he snaps his mouth shut. “Watch your mouth.”

Mason rolls his shoulders back in forced nonchalance and heads back over to his boys who yell out taunts and ooos.

“I could have handled it,” I say stubbornly, looking over Chris’ shoulder and noticing Evie waiting a few feet away.

“I know you could have.” He replies without hesitation. “I don’t think there’s much you can’t handle.”

He doesn’t wait for my response, spinning on his heel and heading back to his sister. I stand there and watch them fade down the street, forcing down a smile as my understanding of who Chris is shifts in my mind.

🏷️/ @sturniolho @sttzee @tillies33ssss @miloisdone1 @sstvrnioloo @junnniiieee07 @sturnioloslurps @mrsmiagreer @asturniolos

@teapartyprincess4two @whicked-hazlatwhore @sukiipjs @accio326 @sturniolosmind @imfromthediningtable @rootbeerworshiper

[dragon-kazansky]

When the raven calls

Morpheus x Female Reader

You, his raven, die protecting Jessamy while rescuing the Dream Lord. When Morpheus returns to his realm, he mourns your loss, only to find a stranger waiting for him in his throne room. The stranger claims to be you, now in human form. He doesn't understand, but his raven will always watch over him.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Chapter Eleven - All together now

☆☆☆

The knock on your door is firm but also cautious. You can tell he is hesitant. You know it's him before he even speaks.

"Go away."

For the first time ever, Morpheus doesn't know how to feel about you. You've never spoken to him like that before. You've always welcomed him. Now he senses your disdain toward him.

"Can we talk?"

You don't answer him. Morpheus feels hopeless right now. Upsetting you was something he never wanted to do. Ever. Not since... Not since he realised just how he felt.

He gently rests his head against the door and sighs softly.

"I did what I had to do. Gault will learn her lesson, and she will return one day. I did not think this would upset you so much."

Morpheus is startled by how quickly you open the door. You glare up at him, eyes still glistening with tears.

"Upset me? You've hurt me. How dare you send Gault away like that. She was trying to protect the boy. She wasn't harming anyone."

"She was keeping Jed in a lie. It is not our job to protect them from their waking lives." Morpheus tries to tell you.

"I know that much. God, you're so... difficult!"

Morpheus stares at you.

"You punish people just because they dare say no to you. How can you be so happy about that?" You look at him desperately. "Gault. Nada. Neither of them hurt you. Just your pride."

Dream clenches his jaw. He didn't expect this personal attack on him.

"I hate that I care so much. I hate that... that I can't do anything to fix any of this. I hate... that I feel the same way she did, and yet you're letting me go about my business."

"You feel the same way?" He asks, unsure of what you're referring to.

"I'm not the way you made me. Not any more. I changed. You're not punishing me for being different."

"Your case is different."

"Is it? Because it doesn't look it to me. Gault wanted to be a Dream. I think that's beautiful. You denied her that wish and sentenced her to the darkness." You wipe at your eyes gently. "I don't like being human any more..."

Morpheus feels his heart break.

You turn back into a raven. "I won't need this room anymore. I'm going to stay a raven. So, forget everything. Forget me stupid emotions and... and the clothes and the ice cream, and all that stuff we did."

You fly past Morpheus and disappear into the palace.

Morpheus stands there with his thoughts.

☆☆☆

You had gone to the library to seek comfort in Lucienne. She wasn't surprised to see you back in your raven form. The main reason you had stayed in your human form so long before was because Dream had asked you to stay like that.

She could see he was particularly fond of you as a human.

Still, she said nothing and let you keep her company. After all, Lord Morpheus had been quite clear to her about her place in the Dreaming.

It seemed everyone was having issues with the stubborn king.

Matthew comes flying in quickly and lands on the table beside you and Jessamy. You look at him.

"I don't know how she did it, but Rose just got Lyta pregnant."

"What?" Lucienne looks at him confused.

"Apperantly it happened in her dream, and when Lyta woke up-"

"She was still pregnant."

"Very much so," Matthew confirms.

"Then it's starting." You say. Lucienne nods.

"Rose is weakening the walls between the realms."

"You gonna tell the boss?" Matthew asks.

"No." Lucienne says.

"No?"

"It's none of my business."

You caw softly and step a little closer to her hand, pecking her finger gently with affection.

"Uh, since when?"

"Since Lord Morpheus reminded me that I'm merely a librarian and should concern myself with my books from now on." Lucienne tells him.

"He said that?"

"He's being an ass." You scoff.

Matthew is surprised to hear speak badly about him. He had always assumed you looked up to the guy. You had always been so fond of him and talked very highly of him before.

"What is wrong with him?" Matthew asks.

"Nothing is wrong with him. He's always been this way." Lucienne explains. "He's juat been away so long I'd forgotten. He's determined to deal with the vortex and the missing Arcana by himself. Without anyones help. So any news must be reported directly and exclusively to him."

"Okay. But can I keep you in the loop?"

"You'd better not. In his Majesty's current mood, he could banish us to the Darkness." She sighs. "As he did Gault."

"All right, fine. I'll go back to spying on Rose. But you should make up with him. Both of you."

"I should make up with him?" You ask, almost laughing.

"Yes. Now's not the time to be fighting, not when there's a vortex getting people pregnant and runaway Nightmares doing God knows what."

You sigh. "I'm not going to talk to him."

Matthew caws.

"I'm going to help you." You say.

"Huh?"

"With Rose."

"Is that a good idea? You wanna tell the boss first?" Matthew asks.

"Nope."

Before either Matthew or Lucienne can say anything, you fly off. Matthew turns to Jessamy, who had been quiet this whole time.

"What is happening?"

Jessamy looks at him. "They're having their first fight."

Lucienne looks at her. "I see."

"I don't." Matthew caws.

"They're in love." Lucienne says softly.

☆☆☆

You sit outside the window of Rose's room. You can see her talking to Lyta about dreams. Lyta wants to live in her dreams with her husband and the baby.

Rose's phone rings, and she answers it. You can't hear the other side, but you can tell Rose is talking to Jed.

She knows where he is.

You could go there and keep an eye on Jed.

Someone knocks on her door and you decide to leave.

You fly off.

The location in question is a hotel. It may be three hours away from Rose, but with your access to the Dreaming, it did not take long at all. You land in a tree opposite the hotel and decide to stake it out.

☆☆☆

Morpheus is in his throne room looking at his broken windows. Something is happening in the Dreaming. Quakes. Violent shaking, leaving damage behind.

Something was wrong.

"Loosh? You in here?" Mervyn comes in but stops when he finds Morpheus. "Whoops. Oh, sorry, boss. I was looking for Lucienne. See ya." He tries to leave.

"Wait." Morpheus stops him. "Why were you looking for Lucienne?"

"Oh, well, we just had some minor seismic activity and a little, you know, damage i wanted to report." Mervyn says.

"Then why not report it to me?"

"Uh, because you're busy? While you were away, Lucienne started taking care of that stuff, so I figured... why bother you when-"

Morpheus looks displeased. "Mervyn, if the Dreaming has been damaged in any way, I will be the one to address it."

The whole place shakes again. The window cracks even further.

"Oh, for crying out loud. You want me to fix that for you? Or will it just keep happening?" Mervyn asks.

"It will not keep happening because I will find the cause of the disturbance, and I will eliminate it." Morpheus declares. "Thank you, Mervyn."

"Uh, you're welcome."

Morpheus looks back at the window in thought. He then walks away, heading to the library.

He walks through the aisles with books under his arm. He walks with determination and then stops when he reaches where Lucienne is.

"Lucienne?"

"My Lord."

"I have come to return these..." He hands the books he was carrying. "And to assess the extent of the damage from the recent disturbances." He looks around. "Have... you any idea as to what caused them?" He asks.

"I assumed it was you, sir."

"Me?"

"Making further improvements to the realm... now that you're back."

"Lucienne, when we last spoke, I did not mean to imply that your efforts beyond the library are without value."

"Oh?"

"I really wish to relieve you of responbilities with which, had I been here, you would never have been burdened."

"I see."

"And... in that time, did you experience any... similar seismic disturbances?" He asks slowly. He speaks carefully.

"I did not."

"Have you any... theory as to their origin?"

"Speaking strictly as a librarian? I do." She says. "But you won't like it."

"Go on."

"I know you're waiting to see I'd the vortex will lead you to The Corianthian and Fiddler's Green. The way she led you to Gault."

"She may yet still." He says.

"Yes, but while you're waiting, she's putting cracks in the foundation." Lucienne sighs.

"Rose Walker has visited this realm before and done no damage. This is something else, something new."

"Perhaps. But if there is something new in the Dreaming and you did not create it, how did it get here? This is the vortex. I assure you."

Morpheus thinks it through.

☆☆☆

Dream stands at your door. He hadn't brought himself to dismantle the room after what you said last time he spoke to you. In fact, he hadn't seen you since that conversation.

He felt sad. Sad that he had upset you. Sad that you had refused your human form. Sad that he didn't stop you from leaving when you got mad at him.

He wanted to talk to you, but he knew you weren't in there. "What am I doing?" He asks himself.

Morpheus walks away.

I'm sorry. He wanted to say.

Morpheus decides to give you your space and go deal with whatever is happening on his own. He can make things up with you later.

He finds himself in the dream of Lyta Hall. Rose is there, too. As is Lyta's deceased husband.

He needs to fix this.

"What do you think?" Matthew caws.

"Tell Lucienne she was right about the source of the tremors, and that I'm taking care of it."

He walks down to the house.

☆☆☆

You see Rose climb out of a car that just pulled up. There's a man with her. One you recognise immediately, though he didn't always look like that.

"Hm."

They head inside the hotel. You look around and then fly down to the ground, landing on two human feet. You won't get far going inside as a raven. You head for the entrance.

When you get inside, you don't see Rose or the man she was with. You sigh and look around the lobby. It's busy.

You don't even notice The Corianthian who had come inside because he thought he saw Jed run down the hall. He noticed you though.

It just hasn't clicked who you were yet.

He goes back outside. You walk further into the hotel.

Gilbert had seen and heard some things he would rather have not. He walks out of one of the rooms and frowns. As he turns, he catches a glimpse of you. Something clicks.

He knows you are.

He goes to call you, but you walk away. He panics. Gilbert heads back to the lobby and leaves a message at the front desk for Rose. He then leaves the hotel.

He needs to see Morpheus.

☆☆☆

Back in the Dreaming, Morpheus enters the library looking for Lucienne.

"Lucienne?"

"My Lord. There's something I must tell you." She comes out from between two shelves.

"And I will listen." He says. "But first, you must let me tell you you were right. The vortex was responsible for the damage to our realm, and I was... wrong to risk our safety in the hope that she would locate the missing Arcana."

"You were not entirely wrong, sir." She days to him. "She's found them both."

"What? The Corianthian and Fiddler's Green? Where? How do you know?" He asks.

"Fiddler's Green told me."

Gilbert comes into view and joins them. He looks at Morpheus with shame. He bows his head and looks back up at Dream.

"Apologies, lord, for having left."

"Why? Why did you leave? I trusted you. You were the heart of The Dreaming."

"No, sir. You were the heart of The Dreaming. And you were gone." Gilbert tells him. "I was curious. And it turns out that life as a human contains substance I never even imagined when I was here. Which is why I've returned because... he's murdering them."

"The Corianthian?"

"He appears to have built up a cult of worshippers who kill for pleasure, endangering the waking world and the life of a friend called Rose Walker."

"The Corianthian has found Rose Walker?" Morpheus asks, needing to know for sure.

"Yes." Gilbert looks confused.

"Can you imagine the damage he could do with someone like Rose?" Lucienne says, looking at Dream.

"You must tell me where they are."

"I thought perhaps you knew." He said. "Your raven is there, at least, I believe it was her."

Morpheus' heart sinks.

"My raven...?"

"Yes. Although, she appears to be human now." Gilbert wad rather confused. He didn't know you could do that.

Your name falls from his lips.

"No..."

Lucienne looks at Morpheus with worry. She knew you had gone to see Rose, but it didn't dawn on her that you would go so far. Now you were close to The Corianthian, too.

Morpheus leaves the library immediately.

☆☆☆

You see no sign of Rose or of Jed. You decide they must be upstairs somewhere. As you turn back around to head for the lifts or elevators as they call them in this country, you find yourself face to face with The Corianthian.

"Well, hello."

"Oh dear..."

☆☆☆

@missdreamofendless

@kpopgirlbtssvt

@sitkafay

@snowsatsu

@ladyofdreaming

@thoughtsfromlayla

@modest-irish-goddess

@mystic-mara

@dreamingblueberries

@littlemoistcarrot

@simpingdeadcharacters

@bluespecs14

@modest-irish-goddess

[cassiachales]

Journal Entry Four [[And Grayson Hawthorne’s Lips] Yes, His Lips]

note: still can't belive the amount of love this silly little self-indulgent fanfic is getting. y'all are the reason i write <33 this chapter is also *slightly* longer than the others taglist: @f4iry-bell, @never-enough-novels, @reminiscentreader, @dahliawarner, @lanterns-and-daydreams

Saturday– It’s been four days since I last saw the reason I bought this journal. Xander’s been demanding to know what happened on Wednesday, and though I really want to tell him, I want to keep that moment to myself. A secret between me and a certain Hawthorne. I’m busy wondering what we are. Acquaintances? Friends? Something with bigger feelings? I don’t know and that keeps scaring me. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Sometimes, you wish you didn’t like guys who wear suits and have dry conversations.

But you can’t help it. 

Xander’s on the floor, his hand on his forehead. “Why didn’t the pebble work?”

“Wait, so you were the one who put the pebble there?”

“I thought it would work.” He moans. “It should’ve worked.”

You don’t tell him about how Grayson’s fingers were on your waist and how they still left a phantom touch.

You don’t tell Xander about what Grayson said.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── “How do you do this to me?” ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

And you can’t get his voice out of your head. Low and seductive and you can still feel the featherlight touch of his lips at the curve of your ear.

Grayson’s been ignoring you. When you arrived at Hawthorne House that morning, you’d seen him.

You’d almost said hi when he brushed past you as though he didn’t know you, and Xander had seen it.

“Someone give that guy a dose of happiness.” Jameson had said, his hands around Avery’s shoulders. 

And now, Xander was busy moping about how his attempts to set the two of you up had failed miserably.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── He asks me that question as though I know the answer.  The only answer I want to ask is: HOW DOES HE MAKE ME WANT HIM?? Yes, he’s attractive. Yes, he’s absolutely amazing. And yes, I might be a little bit in love with him. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

You get up from the floor, patting Xander’s head. “I’m gonna go get you a drink.”

He groans. “I hate drinking.”

“You definitely look like you need one.”

“I do, actually.” Then he perks up, as though there’s another idea in his head.

“Xander, don’t you dare–”

“Grayson’s office has the best scotch and wine.” He begins, ignoring you. 

“I am not getting whiskey from his office.”

“Oh, you definitely are.”

“I am not.”

“Do you want a chance with him or not?”

Obviously, you do. But that doesn’t mean you’re going to go to Grayson Hawthorne’s office and get a drink from there.

“You are going to go get your own drink.” You say, crossing your arms. “I am not going to go into that prick’s office.”

“Gotta love how he developed from being a hot guy to a hot prick in your eyes.”

“Who said I still find him hot?”

You didn’t care if people called you petty. If Grayson would ignore you, you would ignore him.

Simple.

Xander gets up, nudging your side. “At least get the whiskey.”

“You’re a drunkard.”

He shrugs. 

You sigh.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── I am definitely the dumbest person on the planet for actually going to the office and getting the whiskey. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

You walk down the corridors and go up staircases before you find his office.

You knock.

“Come in.” He says, and his voice sounds as though he’s half asleep.

You can’t help but wonder when, exactly, he’d actually slept through the night.

Opening the door, you step in, and when his eyes meet yours, they’re in surprise. 

He says your name.

And god, you love the way your name rolls off of his tongue.

“You’ve been ignoring me.” You whisper. You didn’t mean to talk to him about that, but the words escape you.

“Not on purpose.” He whispers back, getting up from his chair. The desk is littered with papers and he looked half-buried in them.

“It seemed like that when you just walked by me like I was nothing.”

“You could never be nothing, Not to me.” He says, and he walks towards you before his back straightens and he looks away.

Until then, until he looked away, you’d believed you could have actually been something to him.

Now?

You feel as though someone is going to take a hammer to your heart.

“How dare you say I could never be nothing and then look away? How dare you play with my heart?” You say. You’re fuming, you can’t believe that you were falling for a man like him.

Until you see him quiver. His eyes are mad and his whole body is shaking, like he wants to say something but the words just won’t come out.

He walks to you, your chests almost touching.

His hands are quivering when they’re on your arms, touching you with a featherlight touch, as though he can’t quite believe you’re real.

“Why can’t I think straight when you’re with me?” And then he says your name, and you’re falling.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── He looked at me like I was the only person alive. Like I was the reason his heart was beating. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

“Whenever I look at you, I cannot think. Whenever I see you smile or laugh, I feel the sudden urge to join you. Whenever I hear your voice, I feel like I am a damned man and you are my only chance at salvation. How? How do you have such an effect on me? Why is it that you are the only person who crowds my mind? Why can't I help but want to be with you? Why do I want you? 

I don’t know. I don’t know why–or how–you consume my thoughts. I have never been able to give my heart but to you? When I am with you, I want to give you all of me. I’ve never been so unsure of my feelings, and then you came along.

I think I love you. I think I am hopelessly in love with you.” Your name rushes from his lips like it’s a prayer.

You can’t breathe.

His lips are nearing yours, and then they stop when they’re a finger’s breadth away. 

“I’m afraid that if I kiss you now, I’ll never feel like stopping.” He says, his voice in a low whisper. “But I’m also afraid that if I do not kiss you now, I’ll never be able to think of anything else.”

For two seconds, the two of you stay still.

Then: “Can I?”

The barest of nods.

His lips are on yours and you feel like you’re on fire.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ── Oh, no, I’m not writing the rest of it down. I’m afraid someone will find this and read this journal and just because of that, I am not writing anymore. But I will say this: his lips are extremely soft and his kiss is like a secret that he never wishes to give away. ── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Journal Entry Three

[stargirlposts]

El Malo

Chapter 3

I sat on my bed that night looking at the moon through my window. Tony is a good man and he loves me and maybe I can love him, but I have doubts. Fuck. I’m such a bad person.

It's been six weeks since Oscar got out. I've been keeping myself busy by working at my sister’s beauty store and avoiding Oscar. And I’m doing a pretty good job at avoiding him, if I do say so myself. I was finally walking home after I finished helping my sister with her store when I spotted Jamal, Ruby, and Monse.

“Monse!” I shouted her name with a smile and sped up to greet them.

“Hey, when did you get back?”

“I just got back today, hey do you know why Ruby and Jamal aren’t talking to Cesar, he tells you everything cause these shitheads won’t tell me anything” She walked next to me to look at Jamal and Ruby with an eye roll. Just when I was going to answer, we heard someone blasting their music and when we turned to look, it was the familiar red impala coming down the street.

Ruby shook his head, “We can’t tell you what Cesar said.”

“Fine, then I’ll ask myself”

She walked on the street and stopped right in front of the Impala, forcing Oscar to stop the car.

“Hey, you crazy!”

I turned to Jamal and Ruby.

“What did Cesar say?” I asked. I was curious to know why Monse was so upset and why they weren’t talking to him.

“Cesar said he hit it” I gasped and turned to look at Monse leaned over talking to Oscar.

“Jamal!” Ruby yelled and Jamal quickly covered his mouth with his hand. He turned to me”, look just don’t tell Monse”

“I won’t, but you know the truth always comes out, I’ll talk to-“

“Hey Y/N! Get in the car, I’ll take you home”

I turned to look at Oscar and crossed my arms.

“No, I’m perfectly fine with walking.”

Cesar turned to look at me with desperation in his eyes. I sighed and bid my goodbyes as I got in next to Cesar.

Oscar drove me to his house and asked me to stay for a while. But I declined and told him I was gonna pass to the bathroom and get some of my stuff, although I left out the second part. I was only gone for six weeks and the house is already a mess. Ugh, men. By the time I walked out, I saw Cesar sitting on the couch and Oscar sitting behind him on a crate, with Monse standing in front of him.

“We can go inside-“ Oscar cut him off by clearing his throat “, But uh if you wanna sit on my face, you gotta put that mouth on pause so I can concentrate”

All of the Santos laughed and he fist bumped Oscar. Poor Monse had the look of humiliation on her face.

“What the fuck? You put him up to this didn’t you!”

“Hey,” Oscar stood up and tried to get in my face “,don’t start shit.”

“Fuck you Oscar”

I was beyond pissed. How dare he try to intimidate me in front of his puto friends. I wanted to release some steam by hanging out with my friends but they were on the clock so that was a no and my mom went to visit family in Mexico, so I’m in a house all by myself . You must be wondering what happened to Tony. Let’s just say he could see I wasn’t Interested and he wasn’t mad. He told me he loved me and he’d be willing to wait for me when I realize Oscar ain’t shit.

I was watching tv in the living room when I heard movement in my room. I could feel my heart start racing. I sped tip-toed into the kitchen and grabbed a knife. I stood beside my closed bedroom door and waited for whoever was in there to come out. My heart sped as the door opened and I put the knife against the throat of the perpetrator. Only it wasn’t, it was Oscar. I let out a sigh of relief.

“What the fuck Oscar? You could’ve knocked on the door”

I walked to the kitchen with him following behind me and put the knife away.

“What are you doing here?”

“Came to talk.”

“ I don’t have anything to say to you’’

“Haven’t seen you with that guy”

“What’s it to you?” I asked as I leaned on the kitchen counter. I watched as he stepped closer to me.

“I failed you a thousand times, yet you’re still mine”

He walked closer so our chests were touching, he held my chin up gently forcing me to look up at him.

“He seemed sincere unlike my flaws, but I’m the bad guy you don’t stop loving. You’re like Cinderella and he’s the pitiful fool and even though I’m not Prince Charming, I’m still the love of your life”

My eyes started to water and I tried to look down but he wouldn’t let me.

“Oscar- please”

“I love you, Y/N”

I felt a tear run down my face and Oscar leaned his forehead against mine touching my nose with his.

[tojiscumdumpster]

CHAPTER TEN - READER

⠀ ⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀ ⠀✧ summary page

 I shouldn’t be nervous. I’ve been on plenty of first dates before, so my dating life isn’t completely non-existent. It’s just been a while. But the men that I have gone out with haven’t been Toji Fushiguro. 

 Okay, so maybe I am a bit nervous. 

 Despite all the small interactions me and Toji had these past two weeks, I still find myself overthinking about our date. 

 I mean, everything should go fine, yes? What difference would it make if this wasn’t considered a date and just another spontaneous meeting? 

 It’s not, Y/N. 

 I know, but it feels different because we agreed to get to know each other. This man, that I barely know yet feels awfully familiar, manages to put butterflies in my stomach. He kisses me in a way that feels light, and holds me possessively to make me feel like I’m his. And I may be looking ahead of myself, but I wouldn’t mind if he considers me that. 

 Something about Toji feels right, like I’m almost positive everything will go well between us the more we open up. But Toji isn’t the only one who feels skeptical about this either. 

 The last time I felt this quickly about someone, I ended up getting my heart broken. That someone being, Nanami. 

 And knowing me, if I fall in love, I fall hard. . . I want that same sentiment. Nanami gave it to me, but it wasn’t consistent and it didn’t last. 

 Toji? Well, my heart might be taking a risk if I end up falling in love with a single dad who’s a widow. Let’s also not forget I’m his son’s high school reading teacher. 

 A lot of what ifs, maybes, and mishaps can happen between us. However, I’m willing to see what happens. 

 I can’t allow my hesitancy to prevent me from trying because there’s just something about Toji Fushiguro that I get enough of. 

 While I was finishing up getting ready, I heard a knock at my door. 

 “Seven-thirty. Oh, he’s early,” I mutter to myself, looking at the time. 

 Before I go to answer, I take a quick look in the mirror. 

 Toji didn’t tell me where we’re going or what we’re doing, but I took the hint of him saying I need energy to not wear anything too formal or heels. 

 So my outfit is simple. 

 I feel really pretty wearing a white ruffle crop top that sits off my shoulders and pairing it with a russet brown high slit skirt. 

 I kept my makeup natural, but went a little bolder with my lips by coating them with a brown gloss. And my hair? The wash-and-go I did a few days ago is still on my side, so I just fluffed out my curls with a pick. 

 I was too busy admiring myself in the mirror, I almost forgot Toji was waiting for me.

 Quickly I grabbed my purse and phone to answer the door and I couldn’t prevent my mouth from spreading into a smile upon seeing him. 

 Can this man get any finer? 

 I’ve never dated a man where we had a huge age difference, let alone twelve years, but it seems like I was missing out because who knew forty-two could look that good. 

 “It’s nice to see you again, Mr. Fushiguro.” Immediately his masculine, amber and woody musk scent permeates my senses. Then, I take in his appearance. 

 How his physique fills out the white sweater and black jeans he’s wearing makes me wet beyond measure. Especially when I know what he looks like underneath. Well, at least not all underneath. 

 But it looks like I’m not alone with admiring how one looks. 

 Toji hasn’t said a word to me. He barely acknowledged that I spoke to him, however, the look in his eyes…how he’s staring at me, studying my body and what I’m wearing…

 If he keeps looking at me like that, I can guarantee you I’ll say fuck this date and pull him into my apartment. 

 I’m very tempted, too, since it’s been a while. 

 “I’m assuming I dressed up nice?” I asked suggestively. 

 “You’re beautiful.” Not you look, but you are. 

 His admission makes my cheeks hot. 

 “Thank you,” I replied while tucking a curl behind my ear. “You came early, I see.” 

 “Hope that’s okay? Just didn’t feel like waiting another thirty minutes.”

 It’s more than okay. 

 “You’re fine.” 

 He gives me a small smile. “Ready to go?”

 “Yeah, let me just grab my things-” If I said I wasn’t nervous, I would be lying because I already have my purse and phone in my hand. “Actually, never mind. I have everything I need.” He gives me a curt nod and waits for me to lock my door. 

 As we’re walking toward the elevator, Toji’s hand rests on the curve of my back like it’s second nature to him. And it could just be the natural thing to do, guiding me through the halls, despite this being my apartment building. 

 But it’s those small gestures that are most effective to me. 

 I show little to no reaction to what his hand on my bare skin does to me. How it transfers warmth to my body and spreads goosebumps across it. It feels good. 

 Territorial and protective. 

 I’m not sure where this night with Toji will take me, but I’m ready to see. 

 Never in a million years would I ever deem Toji Fushiguro to be the type to plan a picnic. Yet here we are. 

 For a man that claims he’s not looking for a relationship, he sure is making it hard for me to not fall in love with him, especially in this setting. How the sky is a perfect shade of midnight that’s accompanied by the stars and moon, makes it more intimate. 

 The night isn’t too cold. A soft breeze and lingering heat from earlier today. 

 Though, what’s making this scenery better is Toji’s pale complexion that contrasts perfectly with the time of day. To think his rich shade of green hues would be complimented the most in the sun, here I am at night being proved wrong. 

 “A picnic, Mr. Fushiguro? Seems pretty intimate. Don’t you think?” I opted to break the silence because if I stared at this ridiculously attractive man, he would’ve noticed if he hadn’t already. 

 A small smile curves on his face. “I don’t like being around people when I don’t have to.”

 “Oh. Is that your only reason?”

 “No, I wanted you alone to myself because I don’t need a fucking server in our faces every two seconds asking if we need refills or a dessert.” 

 Alone time with you is what I’m worried about. 

 In more ways than one, Toji has shown me how territorial he can be, and it does not work in my favor when I happen to be turned on by it. 

 I clear my throat. “Hm, I see.”

 “Besides, pretty sure my cooking tastes much better than whatever restaurant I would’ve taken you to.” I watch him unpack a few bento boxes and plastic cups to fill our drinks with. He opted for apple cider and I’m completely only with that, given the fact that Toji doesn’t drink. 

 He continues, “I hope you don’t mind Japanese food.”

 “Absolutely not. That’s the only thing I miss about my ex, and one of the many things I miss about living in Japan. The amount of cuisines I had access to,” I tell him. “It’s so fresh and savory.”

 While I ramble about my love for his culture’s food, I notice a tick in his jaw and his blank expression. Am I…

 “Sorry, am I talking too much?”

 “No,” he deadpans. 

 “Why the sudden change-”

 “Your ex. This is the second time you brought him up. On top of that, you said you miss him.”

 It completely slipped my mind that I have mentioned Nanami twice in my passing conversation with Toji. 

 Way to freaking blow it, Y/N. You haven’t had a relationship with anyone else in years and here you go bringing up your ex-fiancé while you’re on a date.

 Has dating always been this nerve wrecking?

 “I didn’t mean to-”

 “Make me jealous?” He interjects. Those were not the words I was going to say. 

 “No? Why would I try to? And why would you be?”

 “Why would I be jealous of another fucker experiencing you?” He asks sarcastically. “Miss L /N, I’m sure you can figure that out.”

 He’s… jealous? There’s no way this should be turning me on right now, but of course my thighs subtly rubbing together couldn’t make it more evident.

 “I’ll be more cautious.”

 The tension and dead silence between us is thick, but not in a bad way. What I’ve come to learn about Toji in all our interactions is that he's an open book. Whatever’s on his mind, whether it’s something sexual or about his personal life, he tells me. 

 Those hues that remind me of the rainforest, jade and earth like, tells me. They hold power, darkening while leisurely ogling my body, slowly trailing up and down my curves until they meet with my eyes once more. 

 Whenever Toji looks at me like that, my heart pounds against my chest and sensation builds between my legs. He has no shame from looking at me with such animalistic hunger. 

 It… entices me. 

 Does he not know what this does to me?

 “Why are you looking at me like that?” I ask breathlessly. 

 “Like what?”

 “Like you want to devour me.”

 All Toji does is trace his bottom lip with his tongue and hums. 

 Gosh, I need this man so fucking badly. 

 “How was your day?” He chooses to ignore my question. A first from him, actually. 

 I tuck a curl behind my ear. “It was fine. Work was work.”

 He sighs. “Wish I could say the same.”

 “Something happened?”

 He takes the apple cider out of the chiller and pours a glass for me before pouring one of his own. Our fingertips graze and a touch as simple as that has chills running down my spine. 

 “The owner sold the club to a new fucker and it seems like the gods are fucking with me.” 

 “How so? The new owner is a douche?” I ask, causing him to let out an incredulous chuckle.

 “More than that. The-” He stops short of sentence, contemplating if he wants to tell me what’s on his mind. 

 “You don’t have to tell me, Toji. It’s okay,” I reassure him. 

 “No, it’s fine. It’s just—thinking about my life back in Japan puts me in a shitty mood.” 

 I place my hand on his thigh to give him a comforting squeeze. Again, we sat in silence for a bit until he decided to tell me about what happened at work. 

 My expression remains neutral while Toji tells me about someone from his family that disowned him is the one who purchased the club. Apparently a cousin he didn’t know even existed. 

 He doesn’t go too much into detail about his family history, but my stomach is filled with disgust hearing that his uncle is practically forcing the kids to get married and make babies. All for the sake of fucking keeping a generation alive. 

 Yet my heart breaks for Toji knowing that’s the type of environment he grew up in. 

 I can tell that definitely affected his fathering to Megumi. 

 “Oh… wow. That’s-”

 “Sad?” He attempts to finish for me. 

 “No. Well, I mean, yeah. But I was going to say how shitty your family is. You didn’t deserve that.”

 He chuckles, stuffing a rice ball in his mouth. “How do you know what I deserve?”

 “I don’t, but it’s definitely not trauma from people that’s supposed to love and protect you.”

 Toji stops chewing for a moment, like he’s trying to process what I said, but quickly gathered himself together. 

 “That’s how they treat the fuck up.”

 I grab his chin to hold and force him to look at me. “Hey, what did I tell you about being kind to yourself?”

 His eyes slightly widen while locking with mine as if he’s in disbelief from what I said. Or I don’t know, maybe because I grabbed his face. 

 It might’ve been bold for me to do that, especially knowing Toji is affected by my touch as well, but I refuse to hear him belittle himself like that. 

 I’ve had my fair share of pain over the years, but it isn’t nearly enough or comparable to what Toji had or has  to endure. 

 I just hate seeing the people I care about talk down on themselves. And despite us barely knowing each other,  Toji Fushiguro is definitely on my list. 

  His face softens. “You bossing me around now, Miss L /N?” The tenderness and earnestness in his voice makes my stomach flutter. 

 “If that’s what it takes to get through that big head of yours, then yeah,” I answer, playfully letting go of his chin to push his face away. I attempt to take a sip of my apple cider, but Toji latches onto my hand to hold against his lips. 

 “Okay,” is all he says. That simple response that spreads warmth beneath my cheeks and has me internally squealing like a little girl in a candy store. 

 Thirty minutes into our date and I already want to be lovey dovey with him by showering him with kisses. 

 I can only imagine how long I’ll have until I can no longer control myself. 

 The time goes by smoothly with Toji and I. After eating his delicious food and having comfort conversations, I’ve never felt more relaxed. 

 It’s been awhile since I felt this way, like the world doesn’t exist. That’s what happens when I’m around him. We just… talk. More so, me, and he does all the listening, occasionally putting his input or talking about himself. 

 I’ve learned a lot about Toji within these past few hours. His guilty pleasure in gambling, which I don’t mind because betting on horse races is pretty normal. Being able to witness Toji yelling like an obsessed fan is a sight worth seeing. 

 However, I think my favorite part of our conversations is seeing how his face lights up and softens when talking about his son.

 Usually, he tells me what pains him when it comes to his relationship with Megumi, but this time, I’m gifted with the happy moments Toji remembers. 

 Like when he was born or even down to the first word he spoke in English. I wish Toji had my eyes so he could see how he looks whenever he talks about him. 

 Despite his current strained relationship with his son, I know Toji is trying his best to be a father to him. I can’t help but look at him with such affection. 

 “Why are you looking at me like that?” The smile on his face makes me believe he’s mocking me when I asked the same question earlier. 

 “It’s a crime for me to look at you?”

 “With those eyes? Yeah,” he answers, continuously massaging my thigh. 

 I giggle. “And what kind of eyes are mine?”

 “Brown. Beautiful. Soft. Pretty enough to make a fucker weak in the knees.” He tells me this with no hesitation and it catches me off guard.

 I’m lost for words.

 “I… just enjoy hearing you talk, especially about Megumi. It feels humbling.”

 He hums. “I think having a kid makes you feel that way. I truly was a fucking train wreck before I met his mother and had him. Enough motivation to be better. To do better.”

 “Can I know more about her?”

 By how his hand stops midway while rubbing my thigh, I know he knows who I mean by her.

 Instant regret hits me because I feel like I overstepped a boundary. Toji doesn’t look at me, but there’s a smile on his face. I quickly spew out an apology, however, he reassures me that I’m okay. 

 “It’s not you, just… not now. Maybe another time,” he says, resuming his massages. “C’mon, Y/N. I know better than to talk about my late wife while I’m on a date. Cut me some slack.”

 I place my palm against his cheek to rub his flesh with my thumb. “I know she meant a lot to you.”

 “Yeah, she did… But I think I have another person who’s starting to mean something to me, too.”

 “Yeah?” I question, smiling. “Who?”

 “My son’s reading teacher. She’s fucking hot and has a nice ass.” I playfully swat his chest, earning me a hearty chuckle from him. “Just being honest.”

 “Whatever.”

 “Yeah, whatever?” I don’t know where it started, but suddenly Toji leaned forward, leaving but a breath away from kissing.

 I look at him through lidded eyes, altering my attention between his irises and his lips. No drinking has been done, but I feel drunk off his energy. 

 How he looks at me. Talk to me. The way his hand goes up and down my thigh slowly, intimately, creeping closer to my center that I know is currently pooling wetness.

 Toji Fushiguro knows the effect he has on me. He freaking made me come from just drying humping. Every night I visualize him between my legs, licking and sucking until I’m writhing above him. To fuck me so passionately and aggressively with his cock until I’m begging for more.

 I want him to imprint my insides. I want to be desired and worshiped by this man. I can’t help but look deprived by fisting his sweater to pull him closer to mouth to kiss, only for him to rear back and taunt me. 

 He tsks. “Why are you so fucking needy? Hm?” His hand cuffs my face, digging his fingers into my cheeks to purse my lips. “Always whimpering. You know what that shit does to me?”

 “Because I want you.”

 “Where do you want me? Here?” I arch into him and whine from feeling his hand hike up my skirt to palm my pussy. 

 I nod with such eagerness.

 “You call this string, panties? I can easily rip these off and eat that sweet fat pussy right now.”

 “Can you?” I ask, sounding like I’m losing all senses. Toji answers me by pulling my thong to the side to thumb my clit. 

 It’s almost embarrassing how wet he finds me considering he hasn’t barely touched me. My grip on his sweater grows tighter, bound to leave wrinkles the more fervently he rubs circles around my clit.

 He flicks faster, my soft moans and wetness being played with fills the space between us, being only audible for him to hear. 

 Toji drags his nose along my neck, inhaling my scent and leaving open mouthed kisses. Along the way, my fingers slip through his dark locks to tug him closer. 

 And to think Toji would continue to tease me without inserting his fingers inside of me, his fingers sinking inside of my pussy says otherwise.

 “Ohh…” I breathed. 

 “Fuck. . . How long you been wet for me like this, princess?”

 I clench around his fingers at the pet name. 

 He begins pumping in and out of me while leaving love marks across my flesh. His fingers… they’re so thick and the perfect length to deliver pleasure. They stretch me, and I feel desperation pricking my skin at wanting to feel his cock inside of me, too.

 I latch onto Toji’s face to meet mine and force our lips together. I couldn’t take not kissing him because kissing him feels like everything has stopped around us. I know all I need is to taste him to know that I’ll be okay. 

 He chuckles into my mouth, which I’m guessing due to my neediness and boldness, but that soon turns into groans I happily devour. 

 “Toji,” I gasp, breaking our kiss for some air with nothing but a string of saliva connecting us. 

 “As much as I enjoy hearing you moan my name, stop talking.” It’s like déjà vu because I immediately think about the first night we kissed and I told him the same thing. 

 Toji is addictive. I can’t stop saying this. How he sucks on my tongue possessively and bites down on my bottom lip, damn near drawing blood, has me wanting to submit to him. 

 He’s the type of man that could tell me what to do not because I allow him, but for the reason he knows that he can. 

 I want him to have his way with me. I want him to keep thrusting his fingers in my pussy until I come and moan his name uncontrollably. 

 God, who knew fingering could feel this good. 

 “A little faster, Toji,” I muffle through our kiss. 

 “Trying to boss me around? How can I say no,”—his pace picks up and finger fuck me harder—“when you fucking sound like that?”

 I instinctively raised my hips and spread to have his digits pump deeper inside of me. His thumb finds my clit once more and I shudder beneath him. My hands claws into the flesh of his scalp, making it clear I’m close to my orgasm.

 We kiss for a bit longer before he starts showing attention to my face, peppering his lips softly across my cheeks. The gesture, it feels… unlike him. 

 Not that I expect Toji to only be rough with me, but for him to be this tender while finger fucking my pussy… I’m bound to fall in love with this man. 

 “You sound pretty. Moaning for me. Saying my name like that’s all you know in that little teacher brain of yours,” he whispers, kissing behind my ear. An airy chuckle escapes his mouth that furthers the libido that’s pumping through my veins. “This pussy is so fucking tight. You sure you could take me, baby girl?”

 “Toji, yes. Just fuck me… Please.”

 He shakes his head. “Not here, sweetheart. I want you spread out on the bed when I’m balls deep inside of you. I want to hear the bed creaking when you’re riding my cock, and see those pretty titties bouncing in my face.” The more he speaks to me in this timbre is only aiding my near release. “But don’t worry, Miss L/N. I’ll take care of you tonight with just my fingers. Got this fucking pussy soaking and squeezing the fuck out of me. Just keep sounding sexy like that for me. Okay?”

 Fuck... I feel myself coming. He slows down his thrust and applies more pressure to my throbbing clit. I match his movements by circling my hips around his fingers. 

 Toji’s voice alone is enough to make me orgasm, and it hits me hard. The nerves of fire I had coiled in the pit of my stomach finally unleashes and has me moaning louder than usual, with a few breaths being stuck in my throat.

 Coming this hard just from being fingered and talked to so passionately with such obscenity, I’m a crying mess. And in the midst of my release, I squirt. Something I’ve never done before.

 He chuckles, “Good girl. Good fucking girl. You always messy like this?”

 “Oh–Oh, God… Toji… I–I don’t know. Why does this feel so good?”

 “I said I was going to take care of you. Right?” T0ji removes his fingers from my pussy, taking his time to collect enough of my arousal in his hand to bring to his face. He raises his hand in the air and separates his fingers, groaning at the sight of my wetness gleaming under the moonlight.

 Toji brings his hand to his nose and deeply inhales my scent, pleasurably exhaling while sucking my juices off his fingers.

 “You taste fucking good, sweets.”

 Sweets. Hearing him call me that does even more to me than being called princess. 

 Now, I feel even more desperate for Toji, completely losing my senses and busying my hands trying to unbuckle his pants. I want him. I crave him. Am I needy? Yes, although I don’t remember ever being this way, but that’s what happens when you’re finger fucked by Toji Fushiguro.

 “Easy girl,” he rasps, latching onto my wrists to halt my erratic movements. “As much as I enjoy watching you being so desperate for me, I don’t want you to feel obligated-”

 I cut him off. “No, I just want your dick inside of me.”

 “Fuck, you’re making it hard for me, Y/N.”

 “You are. I’m making it easy for you,” I argue.

 He clasps onto my chin to place the sweetest kiss on my lips. My body relaxes and I feel content with tasting myself on him. “Not like this… Okay?”

 “Okay,” I answered, giving him a small smile.

 “So… you’re a squirter? We’ll have to push you like that again.”

 If it wasn’t for my dark brown complexion, I know my warmth would show. “Please don’t remind me.”

 He throws his head back and lets out a laugh that has me joining him. “Nothing to be embarrassed about, sweets. It’s sexy.”

 After being cleaned up by the travel size wipes I keep in my purse, Toji and I lay together and talk for hours under the midnight sky. 

 As I said before, Toji is a beautiful catalyst that I’m ready to get to know.

 The familiarity I feel around him is compelling. And I’m aware that we agreed on something casual for now, but after tonight, I don’t think that would be possible for me.

PREVIOUS CHAPTER | NEXT CHAPTER

discussion question #6 — nothing really pertaining to this chapter, but how are we feeling about the story so far? im honestly enjoying it. i do apologize for the long update. next chapter will be out in a few weeks and it'll be a timeskip, about a month or so. thank you for reading and i'll see you next time ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶

[floras-imagination]

Robbers, forever? 🖤 matty healy x reader

CHAPTER 1

series masterlist

summary: Y/n and Matty break each other's hearts multiple times over the years, yet they find themselves unable to stay away from each other... and this is the beginning of their love story 🖤 authors note: This story is inspired by some of my fondest memories shared with an ex (but I've made some changes to better align the story with Matty's character), and each chapter is accompanied by poems I've written about that relationship. I've posted them on my poetry blog, so just click on the links you'll find in the chapters:) Hope you enjoy it as much as I do 💘 (i think it's so cuuuute) word count: 2,6 k warning: y/n struggles with a restrictive ed in the first few chapters (but it's just kinda mentioned in the diary entry at the beginning)

August 2012

Dear Diary, I wish I were stronger. I wish I could beat this illness, but I just can't. Every time I try to recover, I fail. I've been doing so well in the last few months, but it's always the same. As soon as I'm doing better I mess it up again. Why do I keep lying to myself? "I'm in control." "Just one more day." "I can stop if I want to." But I never do. A day turns into a week, and suddenly weeks have passed, and I can't control it anymore.

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

Y/n sat in her living room, having some dinner while watching the news. As she glanced at her phone, she noticed an incoming call from an unknown number.

After considering it for a moment, Y/n became curious, so she decided to answer. "Hello?"

"Y/n?", a male, familiar voice asked.

"Matty?", she asked slightly confused, immediately recognizing the man on the phone.

"Surprised?"

"Uhm... yeah, kind of, I guess. Haven't heard anything from you in ages. How've you been?"

Matty and Y/N have known each other from school. After they graduated a few years ago, they sometimes still bumped into each other in town, enjoying a nice chat and updating each other about their busy, somewhat messy adult lives. Though their paths seemed to cross every once in a while, they never really tried to stay in touch.

"Great, actually," he answered. "George and I got a bit bored, so I was wondering if maybe you wanna hang out with us?"

"Hang out with you?"

"Yeah, we'd pick you up."

"Okay, let me get this straight," the girl stated. "You and George got bored..."

"Yep."

"and out of all the things you could do, you chose to ask me if I want to hang out with you?"

"Now what's wrong with that?" Matty asked, as if it was the most normal thing in the world, to call someone you have never called before, asking them to hang out on a casual Thursday.

"Well, I don't kn... Wait! Where did you get my number from?"

"Doesn't really matter, does it?"

"It does matter somehow."

Suddenly, the sound of a car horn made Y/N jump.

"Nah. We're here by the way. You're coming?"

"Matty! It's 9:30; I'm already in my pajamas!" she exclaimed.

Matty laughed. "I don't care what you're wearing."

"And who even gave you my address?"

"Just get your ass out here!" he snickered into the phone. "Now!"

"You're insufferable!"

"Yeah, I know," he shrugged it off with a smirk.

"Give me at least a sec to put some clothes on." Not waiting for an answer, she hung up. Despite her confusion about Matty's suspicious call, she changed into a pair of jeans and a hoodie, quickly grabbing her jacket and keys as she went downstairs to leave the house.

Matty sat on the passenger seat of George's car, his arm casually dangling out of the open window. "Hi, Y/n!" he greeted her with a big smile on his face, causing y/n's bewilderment to grow.

"Hi, Y/n!" George called from the drivers seat.

"Hi...", she hesitantly answered, shyly waving her hand toward his direction.

"Come on, get inside!" Matty said excitedly.

"Matty, I still don't kn..."

"Sshhh!" he cut her off, pressing his index finger on his lips. "It'll be fun. I promise."

Y/n opened the door and placed herself on the backseat, putting on her seatbelt as George started the engine, ready to drive off.

"How are you Y/n?" Matty asked.

"Uhm.. fine, I guess. Bit tired. I have work tomorrow."

"Are you still working as a nurse, Y/n?" George asked.

"Yes, I am. How's your music thing going?"

"Absolutely amazing", Matty answered immediately. "We're currently working on our first album. It's gonna be a fuckin' banger, isn't it George?"

"Oh, definitely!", George added.

"That's cool. I'm so happy for you guys. Can't wait to hear it," Y/n grinned.

"You're gonna be the first to hear it when it's done.", Matty beamed.

George shook his head, trying to hide a chuckle as he glanced over to the overly excited Matty. "What?" Matty reacted.

"Nevermind," George now laughed.

Matty shook his curls out of his face. "Idiot."

"Where are we driving?" Y/n asked as she slowly got more comfortable in the presence of her old classmates.

"I don't know," both Matty and George stated in unison, looking at each other as neither of them had a clue about their destination.

"Maybe we can park the car over there," Matty pointed towards and empty parking space he randomly saw.

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

After George parked the car, Matty quickly left the car to open the door for Y/N.

Their gaze locked for a moment, as she looked up at him from her seat "Uhm.. thank you," she chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're welcome," he waved it off. "Don't mention it."

George rolled his eyes at Matty's silly behaviour. "Ouch!" he squeaked, as Matty stabbed him with his elbow.

"Ah look! A church," Matty stated as the three of them were heading towards one of the city's churches. "Quite stunning, isn't it?"

"It's just a church, mate," George raised an eyebrow at his best friend.

"Shall we sit down on that bench over there? Hope I won't go up in flames. Wouldn't that be fun, huh?" Matty asked.

A slight chuckle left Y/n lips, as she realized that going outside with Matty and George wasn't as bad as she expected. She was actually glad that she picked up that call. A little bit of distraction from her mind and her self-destructive thoughts had been long overdue.

"Do you smoke, Y/n?"

"Nah, it's disgusting."

George threw his head back in heavy laughter before patting Matty's shoulder, who looked at him in his usual clumsy way.

"What is it with you today, George?" Matty asked, shaking his head. "You're acting kinda weird."

"Me? No idea what you're talking about," he kept on laughing.

Y/n was still standing in front on the bench, while only the two boys were sitting.

"Anyway," Matty looked away from George, turning his face toward Y/n. "You know you can actually sit down here beside me." Matty said as his curls were dangling in his eyes again. He pushed them aside with his hand as he continued, "We don't bite, you know?"

"Well, I certainly won't," George still couldn't get over whatever he was laughing about. "But I wouldn't be so sure about Matty."

Matty kicked his foot against George's. "I'm sorry about him. He's usually not like that."

"It's okay, I'd rather keep standing. I just wish I knew what he's laughing about, so I could join in," the blonde girl chuckled.

"No, I think it'd best if he kept it to himself", Matty said with a pointed look at George, his tone firm, implying he should refrain from sharing the source of his amusement. "... wouldn't it, George?"

"Ookayy... this is... weird," Y/n said while observing the two musicians, trying to figure out what was going on.

Matty knew why George was enjoying himself this much, but he didn't want anyone else to know, especially not Y/n. He instantly started to regret that he had told his long kept secret to his best friend earlier that day, since George was on his best way of ruining Matty's well-thought-out plan.

George cleared his throat as he finally pulled himself back together. "Mh, mh...," he hummed. After lighting his own fag he handed the lighter over to Matty so he could light his.

Y/N watched as he blew the smoke out, which slowly meandered all over his face before evaporating into the cold, dark night. As he slowly opened up his eyes, their glances met for a second but she looked down at her feet immediately, to avoid having any more eye contact.

"I kinda miss going to school with you guys," Matty informed them. "Do you miss it too sometimes?"

"Nah, certainly not," George answered, but Matty's eyes were fixed on Y/n.

"Yeah, I do," Y/n chuckled. "Do you know who I miss the most?"

"No, who?" Matty asked, before he quickly added "Ah, no, wait! I know it!"

Y/n raised her eyebrow, waiting for his answer.

"It's me!"

George and Y/n looked at each other before bursting out in laughter.

"Oh damn, Matty. I wish I had an ego as big as yours," Y/n snickered.

"Yeah, well... okay. Who is it then?", Matty shrugged.

"It's Mr. Miller. I kinda miss his bad jokes"

"Haha, yeah, he was such a pervert, though."

"Yeah, I know. That's what made it so funny," she answered.

"I mean, he was only that funny because his jokes were so bad. Ridiculous." George added, slightly chuckling under his breath.

"Wait... doesn't he live over there?" The girl turned around, pointing towards a house across the street from the church.

"Uhm..," Matty thought for a moment before he continued "Yes! He does! He told us about the annoying chimes of the bell tower right in front of his house, didn't he?"

"Yeah, he did. Wow, that's amazing. Come on, let's see if he's home," not even waiting for a response, she started to make her way across the street to Mr. Miller's house.

"Y/n!" Matty whisper-screamed, "Are you insane? It's half 10. He's probably in bed already, shagging his wife or something."

George laughed at Matty's words. "I'm in. This is fun. Come on Matty. Don't be such a wimp." He stood up from the bench they were sitting on, walking over to Y/n.

Matty was still sitting on the bench, his arms crossed in front of his chest like a little kid left behind by his parents.

"Matty!" Y/n turned around to call him once again. "Get your ass up!"

Matty rolled his eyes before he got up, slowly strolling over the street to where is friends stood.

"Who's gonna ring the doorbell?" George asked, looking at Matty, who immediately responded in denial. "Don't look at me like that! I won't do it."

"And you want to call yourself a man? Pathetic." Y/n snapped in annoyance.

Surprised but kind of impressed by her answer, the two boys looked at each other and shrugged.

"I'll do it then," y/n informed them before she rang the doorbell at Mr. Miller's front door.

After waiting for a few seconds with no answer, she decided to ring the bell again.

"I think no one's home.", George said.

"I told you he's under his wife!", Matty stated.

Y/n chuckled as she looked at Matty to respond "Yeah Matty, you might be right. Let's leave then."

"I'm always right. Don't know why no one's ever listening to me," he said as they walked back to their bench across the street.

Now it was only George who sat down again, while Y/n and Matty stood in front of the bench.

"Imagine..," y/n started as she turned around to face Matty "like what if they were really in there..."

"They were!" Matty interrupted her. "Believe me."

They both chuckled in unison at their silly and dirty imagination. As Matty sought eye contact again, she tried to cover up her mouth with her hand, feeling a bit insecure. This time, she didn't look away but locked her gaze with his, looking up at the curly-haired man. Suddenly, something seemed to click in her. The sound of his laughter touched her soul like rays of sunshine, covered in sweet melodies. Like the myelin sheath of axons, allowing them to reach her ears even faster than the speed of light. She didn't yet know that this exact moment would change her life forever. That this exact moment was the start of a series of memories she would never get rid of. She didn't yet know that if a magical creature offered her to relive one day of her life, she would unhesitatingly choose this one.

If she had known all this, she probably would have held onto this moment longer. Maybe her question would have been something like 'Can we stay a bit longer?' or 'Can we make this night last forever?'

But instead, she said "Can we go home now? I'm kinda freezing, and I have to get up very early tomorrow."

"Yeah, sure thing," Matty said. And even though he wanted this rather intimate moment between the two of them to last forever or at least a little bit longer, he slowly loosened his gaze from hers. "George? Come on, off we go."

George stood up, and they slowly walked back to the car, neither of them saying a word. It seemed as if something magical lingered in the air. George had noticed that something had happened between Y/N and his best friend — something that changed the entire atmosphere around them, adorning it with a sweet, metaphorical scent.

🖤[poem 1]🖤

As Matty was about to open the car door, Y/n stopped him. "Look! There's a firefly!"

"Where?" Matty asked, wildly looking around.

"Right there, in your hair," she pointed up to his messy curls. "Wait, don't move." She carefully reached out her finger to his hair, trying to let the little firefly crawl onto it.

"It's so cute, isn't it?" she asked, showing him the insect on her finger.

"It is. I've never actually seen one before. Have you?" he asked while admiring the glowing creature on Y/n's finger.

"No, I haven't."

"Look, there's another one," Matty stated as he pointed his finger in the air next to Y/n's face.

Just a few seconds later, they found themselves surrounded by hundreds of fireflies, their gentle glow illuminating the dark night around them.

George was already sitting in the car as he rolled down the window, curious why his friends were still standing outside of the car. "What's going on out there?" he asked.

Done admiring the fireflies, Y/n and Matty got in the car. "Man, you missed out on something. About a million fireflies were out there!" Matty exaggerated.

"Oh really? I see them all the time in my garden," George answered casually as he started driving.

"You must be kidding!" Matty stated in surprise.

"No, like literally almost every single night!" he laughed and kept on driving towards Y/n's house to drop her off.

🖤[poem 2]🖤

🖤[poem 3]🖤

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

When George stopped the car in front of Y/n's house, she unbuckled her seatbelt, getting ready to leave the car.

"So, uhm... it was nice to hang out with you, guys," Y/n said.

"Yeah..." Matty started before he was cut off by George.

"Yeah, Y/n. I'm pretty sure Matty liked it too," George teased, wriggling his eyebrows.

"Thank you, George," Matty rolled his eyes at him. "But I think I can speak for myself, can't I? I'm a big boy, I suppose." He turned around to face Y/n in the backseat. "So, yeah. I loved it. It was fun. Maybe we can hang out again at the weekend?"

"Yes, I'd love that," she shyly smiled in response.

"Great."

"Okay. Well, goodnight then," she said, opening the door to get out of the car. "See ya, guys!"

"Bye, Y/n!" George waved.

"See ya!" Matty called out of the open window as she was already out of the car, opening her front door, waving goodbye with a smile on her face.

After she disappeared into the house, Matty immediately turned around, confronting George. "You fuckin' idiot!"

"What? What have I done now?" George laughed.

"George, I'm telling you...," Matty warned him. "If you ruin this..."

"I won't ruin anything, mate. I think you need to settle down a bit. Tonight went quite well, didn't it?"

"Yeah... Yeah, I think so," Matty looked outside the window, his tired head resting on his hand, his mind replaying the evening's events like scenes from a movie...

_____________

Let me know what you think xx

[igot-sarang-ggg]

Jolyne's Teacher Pt. 1 (Teacher reader x Jotaro)

Masterlist | Chapter 2- Panic

Small Summary: It's a new school year, you're a third grade teacher at an elementary school in Florida with Jolyne Cujoh being in your class. You thought most of the teacher reports regarding Jolyne were lies or jokes but they turned out to be true. Jolyne likes to do things on her own even showing up to the schools annual Open house by herself. Seeing as she was by herself you take back to her house and meet Mr Cujoh for the first time. You and Mr. Cujoh seem to hit if off after a few months of talking… but you can't help but notice some bizarre things keep happening around the Cujoh's

Small mentions: SPOILERS, Jotaro gets divorced sooner then what is stated in manga

Chapter 1- Open House

A new school year had just begun which means new students and new names to learn. We had a meeting on Friday since school starts again on Monday. "Did you get Malcolm Sanchez this year?" A lot of the teachers were asking who they got this year and how lucky they were that they didn't have so and so students. I normally keep to myself when it comes to that talk, but, "Hey Y/n did you get Jolyne Cujoh this year? I had her for second grade."

"I do, why?" A few teachers that were listening chuckled and laughed, "Jolyne is quite the hand full."

"Be careful with her."

"I heard she starts fights with other kids for no reason."

They started to gossip about her and her family, "The father is a good for nothing husband that's why his wife left him-" I decided to walk out and not listen to them. You never know a family's circumstances so you can't judge them so quickly. If Jolyne is the type to do those things then it might be for a reason.

**A month later**

"And that is how you divide..." I turned around to look at the rest of the class, "Any questions?" A few students raised their hands, and I called out to them and answered their questions. I'm a third-grade teacher for room 203, "I'll be doing separate tutoring at the table in the back tomorrow if any of you are still having trouble with math. The bell is about to ring. Please make sure to pack all of your things away and take your math packet with you today so you can practice at home."

They all got up from their seats and grabbed their belongings from the cubbies, "Ah I almost forgot. Alright, class listen up." I clapped my hands to get their attention, "Remember today is Open house at 6 pm at the school. It's a chance for your parent to meet your new teacher. When you come to the school go through the main office and then come to my classroom. I can't wait to see you all later tonight." The bell finally rang, "Have a great rest of your day class! Those of you who are taking the bus can go and those that are getting picked up, stand in line in front of the door and wait for me."

I noticed one of my students Jolyne Cujoh looked upset as she stood in line she was in the back of the line. "Morgan start opening the door! Jolyne is something wrong?"

"I can't come to the open House today... my dad is busy working." She looked upset about not being able to go. I locked the door to the classroom. "It's okay if you're not able to come... Trust me nothing special ever happens at an open house." I chuckled, "I know but... you're one of the best teachers I've had so far and I want to be there today."

"Okay... well, do you have any other realities that can take you?... What about your mom or grandparents?" I looked at Jolyne who was looking down at the ground as we walked to the car pick area. She went quiet, did I ask the wrong question? "My grandparents live in Japan and New York, plus... my mom and dad aren't together anymore." Shit, what do I say now? "I'm sorry to hear that Jolyne... Well, maybe Annie's parents can take you tonight. You two live near each other so maybe you could go together." Jolyne lit up at the idea I gave her.

"I'll go ask her parents! Thank you Ms. L/N." She waved goodbye and entered the car with Annie I waved back to them and made my way to my car.

I forgot the other teachers had spoken about Jolyne's parents being separated due to the father working so much that he doesn't have time for them. But instead of taking Jolyne with her, she left Jolyne with her father, and he doesn't have time a lot of time to spend with her. I feel bad for her she probably spends most of her time alone at home or at a friend's house. Poor Jolyne.

I went home changed my cloth and got ready for the meeting. As I arrived at the school I saw someone sitting in front of the classroom door, "Jolyne, what are you doing here? Where's your father?" She was sitting alone, "He couldn't come he got stuck at work."

"Did Annie's parents take you here?" Please tell me they did! "No... I came here by myself." I blinked a few times trying to understand the situation at hand, on the inside I was screaming and panicking. A child walked alone to school and probably no one knows where she is... great... and its raining to it off... just what I needed to start the open house, "Okay, Jolyne I want you to stay by my side for the night. If anyone offers to take you home you tell them no, okay?" She nodded, "Good, let's go inside the others should be coming soon."

As the other students and parents entered the room I kept calling Mr. Cujoh's number, but no answer. I'll have to leave a voice mail since it's already six pm and I need to start the meeting, "Hello Mr. Cujoh this is Y/N L/N I'm Jolyne's Third-grade teacher. It appears Jolyne had made her way to the school to open house. She is here with me in the classroom at the moment. When you can please call back at this number." I hung up taking a deep breath, hopefully, he gets back to me soon. "Welcome to today's open house, I'm Ms. L/n, it's nice to meet you all..."

After speaking and presenting myself to the parents, I made sure Jolyne stayed within eyesight she sat at her desk and was drawing while I talked to some parents and answered any of their questions. Some of the parents gave me their contact information and then left. Now it was just me and Jolyne in the class. "Jolyne, this is your father's phone number, correct?" I showed her the phone number, "Yeah, that's his number." I might have to drive her home if no one calls or comes within the next ten minutes. Luckily I live nearby so it's not much of a hassle.

I called his number again, "Hello Mr. Cujoh, It's Y/N L/N Jolyne's teacher again. The open house is over and I can't stay any longer in the school since the main office is closing soon. I'll be taking Jolyne home, hopefully, we can talk by then, See you soon." I was about to hang up when Jolyne took the phone from my hand, "Jolyne!" She started laughing, "I'm okay dad, Ms. L/n is really nice and she'll make sure I get home safely! Bye, dad! He's gonna be so mad when I get home!" I chuckled taking the phone from her and hanging up. "Alright, let's go to your house."

Pulling up to the driveway there was a car that was parked, that must be Mr. Cujoh's car. We both got out and walked to the front door. I held an umbrella covering us both. I felt something touch my hand, it was Jolyne she held onto my hand as footsteps can be heard from inside. The door swung up and a tall man stood in front wearing a white sleeveless turtleneck, his hair looked a bit messy, "What is it?" His voice sound upset and angry, he looked so intimidating that I didn't know what to say to him. Our eyes meet causing me to flinch and look at Jolyne, "Jolyne!" He bent down hugging Jolyne in his arm and then let go. "Where have you been?! Do you have any idea what time it is?!" He took a deep breath, "Go to your room, we'll talk later."

Jolyne waved goodbye as she walked in. Her father watched as she left us alone. "Thank you for bringing her here... Ms..."

"L/n, Y/n L/N. It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Cujoh I'm Jolyne's teacher. She came to the school's open house today." His eyes widen, "I'm so sorry about that... please come inside it's raining you could get sick." He moved to the side allowing me to enter, "Thank you." I walked into his house, he closed the door. Taking a look around there were quite a few pictures of Mr. Cujoh and marine animals. "I'll have to repay you for today. I'm so sorry for all of this." I could tell he felt embarrassed by this even though the tone of his voice says otherwise. "It's fine... It's actually the first time I've ever had a student do that. It's sweet seeing a student to support their teacher." I smiled to myself as I followed behind him.

"Still, I can't thank you enough. Jolyne... She's very special... to me." As we walked in there were a few pictures of him when he was younger with a group of friends and pictures with Jolyne. "Here," I was busy looking at the pictures in the house that I didn't notice we were in his office room. I looked down at his hands he had two twenty-dollar bills. "This is for gas money and as a thanks." I lightly pushed his hand away, he looked at me confused, "Don't worry about it Mr. Cujoh. I live near the area so it was no trouble at all." He put the money away.

"Well do you drink? I can take you out for drinks this weekend if you'd like." Is he asking me out?... No, he's just being nice. "I'm not much of a drinker... how about some coffee, I know this nice coffee place nearby. We can meet there on Saturday morning."

"Yeah, sure. I'll pay for your coffee then. Maybe you could tell about how Jolyne is doing in class." I smiled at him, "Yeah, defiantly." He cleared his throat, "It's getting late you should be heading home, I bet your partner is worried about you." I showed him my hands, "I'm not married... Divorced."

"Sorry, I didn-" I cut him off, "Don't worry about it. Anyway, let me give you my personal number. The number I was calling you with before is actually my work number." He gave me a pen and paper, and I began writing my number and name down. "Call me on Friday night so we can make plans for the time we'll meet."

"I'll call you Friday then." We walked over to the door, "Were you calling my phone before?" I was about to leave, "I did but you didn't answer." He sighed, "My phone ran out of battery, and star... Never mind. I'll see you on Saturday then." He opened the door for me, "Drive carefully and get home safely."

"Will do. Bye, Mr. Cujoh." We said our goodbye and I headed home. If today's event I just wanted to sleep it off.

Series Masterlist

[dutifullylazybread]

just found you, i see a lot of pre and post family with the teefs. what about during? and directly after? how do they care for their partner during pregnancy? especially if its a diffcult one? and afterward when their partners body has changed and maybe they're less confident about the extra weight, softer body, the extra rolls and teh stretch marks that wont go away? how does each bachelor help or make it better ir suddenly realize that is even wrong to begin with? what if they accidentally something bring out that newly found weakness in their partners confidence? ( sorry if youre busy i know you got stuff to do- i just figured youre the person who could slam dunk these thoughts i had)

Have I... GOTTEN TO THE POINT WHERE I CAN JOIN THE TIEFLING HEAD CANON SQUAD???????

ADDED 4/26/24: This might be a rough list, but I hope you all enjoy!! ❤️

OKAY. I GOTTA ADD CAL. I'M ADDING CAL. THIS SWEET MAN IS A TIEFLING BACHELOR AND DOES NOT HAVE ENOUGH FAN CONTENT... YET.

And thank you for bearing with me--I know that this ask was sent in a hot minute ago! I'm hoping I answered all of your questions; I got to a point of this sitting in my drafts where I just felt bad about how long it had been there, so I tried to be thorough but I wanted to get this out sooner rather than later. I mostly worked on this when I had a few spare moments between chapters, and then I said "screw it. This is getting done. TODAY."

So, for Cal, Rolan, Zevlor, and Dammon--let's go!

DISCLAIMER - I do not have children myself, nor have I ever been pregnant. So I shall do my best!

JUST IN CASE - A CONTENT WARNING: While writing these head canons, I did refer to the tiefling's partner as "you." If reading about being pregnant makes you uncomfortable for any reason, please be aware and be kind to yourself. I have zero doubt in my mind that I will be creating another head canon list, so if you need to pass or wait on this one, that's absolutely okay. Your mental health is important.

Cal

While Cal's partner is pregnant, he will do absolutely anything and everything to make sure they are comfortable. To say that he is doting is putting things very mildly.

He will make your favorite meals, will go out and get whatever you are craving (late night runs--not a problem), will rub your swollen ankles.

Too hot? He's asking Rolan for a cantrip scroll to fix it. Too cold? He's already piling you with blankets.

Are you feeling sick and nauseous? He's already prepping something for you to eat/drink that doesn't have an offensive smell.

And if it's a hard pregnancy? I don't see him leaving your side. If he does, he has Rolan create a sending stone set for the two of you so that you can reach out to him for anything and everything.

Honestly, he doesn't get far enough for him to even use the sending stones. He is looking for anything and everything to make the pregnancy easier on you. If he wasn't a light sleeper before, he is now because he doesn't want you to lay there in pain.

There may be points where he feels helpless because while he can do things to try and alleviate any physical discomfort, there are just times when he might just grasp at straws.

And, in situations where he can't alleviate your physical discomfort, he will do what he can to distract you.

He keeps his stress managed well enough, but that doesn't mean he won't snap at Lia or Rolan if he is too anxious. If he does get openly frustrated with them, it takes both off guard.

I also think he just holds you. A lot. Part of that is to comfort you, and the other part is to assure himself that everything will be okay.

If his partner is dealing with body image issues after giving birth, I see him being confused. You? The most enchanting person he has ever known?

Cut to him kissing you and holding you whenever possible. He'll ask Lia and Rolan to watch the baby whilst the two of you go on outings when your health permits. If it helps you to hear it, he'll remind you how lovely you are. Frequently. Hourly. Every five minutes? Not quite, but close enough.

Personally, I don't think his doting goes away after the pregnancy. And, if it is too much, it might make you feel like he views you as helpless.

If you give voice to this, he goes into immediate mediation mode. He will be extremely apologetic. He loves you and never wants you to think he perceives you as anything other than the phenomenal person you are.

Rolan

Ugh. My beloved.

He might be more stressed about having a child than you are.

He never anticipated being a father, and that might be for 15+ reasons, but he feels drastically unprepared (even if the pregnancy was planned).

He reads every. Single. Book. On pregnancy. He is the parent who gives himself nightmares when he reads about birthing complications.

Every sign of discomfort that you show is a catastrophe on the horizon.

And if it's a difficult pregnancy? Yeah. Dial that up by five notches.

He is preparing for all worst-case scenarios.

If it weren't for Cal and Lia keeping him in check, he would be safety-proofing everything in the tower.

He crafts sending stones so you can call for him if you need anything. ANYTHING.

But also, he starts shadowing midwives and asking lots of questions. If the worst were to happen and you couldn't reach a professional, he wants to be there to help you.

After giving birth, I see him splitting his anxiety between your health/recovery and the baby's overall well-being.

"The baby sneezed. That might indicate five different lethal illnesses. I'm fetching the cleric."

This is another situation where you, Cal, and Lia might have to remind him that, yes, babies do sometimes sneeze, and not everything that lands in the diaper spells doom.

Rolan might not initially understand why you're feeling self-conscious about any weight gain. Of course you're lovely. Also, isn't that what happens with pregnancies? (His words--not mine).

He assures you that you're lovely, but words might not be enough here. He might shove his foot in his mouth while trying to make the situation better.

But the best thing for him to do is remind you, repeatedly, that you are lovely. And that might not have been something he was accustomed to even saying to you prior to you conceiving. He would assume you knew that he was attracted to you.

It honestly might be the strangest (and most endearing) thing to have him say "You look very lovely today. Yes, even with the baby's spit up on your shirt."

Zevlor

*nervously staring at the tiefling I am the most unsure about writing.*

*cracks my knuckles and cries because it hurt like hell*

Zevlor has been through some of the most heinous things that can be thrown at someone. He is a seasoned soldier. A Hellrider. Surely he can help his partner through pregnancy. After all, there were plenty of soldiers in the barracks who has pregnant spouses. He's heard enough stories that he feels prepared.

He survived the Elturel's Descent. It's possible that he helped safeguard someone who was in the middle of giving birth or guided expecting parents to safety. Maybe he had to fight off the devil's skulking the streets if they caught wind/heard that person enduring birthing pains?

So maybe, he thinks, he has already seen some of the worst births ever. Maybe, he thinks, in this time of relative peace, in this home that he and his love have created, it'll be easier?

My personal headcanon for Zevlor is that he put EVERYTHING into being a Hellrider/paladin. It was his life. It was his every breathing moment. And when he became an oathbreaker, it destroyed him. His life was devoted to protecting others, and he feels that he failed in the worst of ways possible.

He certainly had friends and very possibly family that he would see on occasion, but I think that, if you didn't fight alongside him/live in the barracks too, you very likely didn't see much of him.

So maybe he has heard a great deal about pregnancies. And maybe he knows about the complicated ones--just a bit. But he himself is at a loss for when his partner tells him that they are pregnant.

Is he excited? Absolutely. Is he terrified. Oh yeah.

Regardless of how complicated the pregnancy is, he is nervous. He is worried that he will slip up in all the ways that matter, and he is terrified of letting you down.

He's a soldier though, and he prepares for everything.

He has additional blankets and pillows next to the bed.

Hot and cold compresses are ready to go.

He makes sure that he accounts for your cravings whenever shopping.

He has medicine for when the pain is severe. And when the medicine doesn't cut it, he tries his best to distract you--his mileage varies.

And this man adores you. So after the pregnancy, if you are feeling self-conscious, he will worship your body.

Dammon

I could see Cal and Dammon both being very doting, but Dammon would be juggling the forge and helping you.

If you spent a lot of time in the forge with him prior to pregnancy but find that being in there now makes you feel ill, he will absolutely feel lonelier. He is definitely the sort of person who gets very absorbed in his work, and I think this makes him feel guilty. Especially if he feels like him being there could have made things easier for you.

He becomes a meal prep king. Will cook several comfort meals for you to eat while he is working.

Massages swollen ankles and feet and anything else.

While he might have worked later hours in the forge before, he makes a point to wrap things up sooner to spend evenings with you.

That doesn't mean he isn't nervous--you're about to have a child, and he does worry if there will be enough money.

He worries that if he does slow down, commissions will dry up, and then where will that leave the three of you?

If the pregnancy is difficult, he feels guilty for leaving you alone and looks for hundreds of ways to make things easier.

Eventually, he creates a small sitting space for you near the doorway to the shop itself. It's not so close to the forge that you'll be uncomfortably hot or so close that the smell will make you sick, and he sets up a small tarp to create some shade.

If you helped Dammon in the forge before the pregnancy, he is likely hesitant to have you come back and immediately help. Especially if the birth was difficult.

But what you need, more than anything from him, is time

And Dammon wants to be a parent who is present in your life and the baby's, so he does everything to be there.

But money is still a stressor. And he might worry about you being in the forge again. So he's stressed on all fronts.

And while I don't see him commenting or changing how he treats his partner because of weight change, I do see him being VERY reluctant to have you work in the forge with him.

And this may lead to an argument. You know he is stressed about commissions and being there for you and the baby, but you still want to help.

So Dammon dials it back several notches and agrees that you know your body best. So long as you feel comfortable working in the forge, and so long as you listen to your body, the two of you can start it from there.

And it gets easier to balance the forge and child rearing. While the baby isn't allowed close to the open heat/flame until they fully understand why they must be careful (and until their lungs are developed), you and Dammon create a small swing/play area nearby.

[mamadoc]

Hello! I posted the last chapter of my current Chenford fanfic. Here’s a snippet to wet your palate.

When they parked at Tim’s house, he couldn’t stop himself and leaned over to give Lucy a kiss. Then he reached into the back seat to grab their Thai food, while Lucy grabbed her duffel bag and backpack. Tim opened the door and gave Lucy another quick kiss. “I’m just going to put this food in the fridge,” he said as they entered the house. “Don’t go anywhere.”

Lucy hummed her response as she toed off her shoes and set her things down by the door. She looked around Tim’s house again, remembering the evening they spent there together two days ago. Then, she felt her phone buzzing and pulled it out of her pocket. She scowled at the name on the screen, but she decided it was in her best interest to answer the call since she was going to keep calling if she ignored it. “Hello?”

“San nin faai lok [Happy New Year],” the voice said with a harsh tone.

“San nin faai lok. Gung hei faat choi, muqin [Happy New Year. May you be prosperous, mother],” Lucy responded in the nicest tone she could manage.

“I thought it would be best to call you instead of waiting any longer for you to call me. I didn’t even hear from you on Christmas,” Lucy’s mother said.

“Duibuqi [Sorry]. I got snowed in on my way back from Denver on Christmas Eve. Then I had to go to work as soon as I got back to LA. But I sent you gifts that you should have received by Christmas,” Lucy said kindly.

Tim heard Lucy speaking as he moved back into the room. He scrunched up in face in confusion as she spoke in Chinese. He could feel the tension coming off of Lucy from the phone call, so he thought he would do what he could to make her feel more comfortable, and he also wanted to convince her to get off the phone as soon as possible. He moved behind Lucy and wrapped his arms around her middle. She relaxed back into him and sighed as her mother spoke.

“So, you’re using your job as an excuse again. Is that what I’m hearing?” Vanessa Chen asked.

“It’s not an excuse, Mom. I was just busy with work that day,” Lucy said defensively. “Did you have a good holiday?”

Tim could sense that this uncomfortable phone call was not getting any easier, so he upped his game a little bit and started kissing and nibbling at Lucy’s neck to convince her to be done.

“It was fine. We met with your grandmother and Aunt Amy. And we were with them again last night to celebrate New Year’s Eve. You didn’t call then, either.”

“Duibuqi [Sorry]. I had a couple parties that I attended yesterday, and I was busy. But I’m talking to you now. Did you have a nice New Year’s Eve?” she asked. She swatted at Tim who was so distracting that she was having a hard time continuing her conversation. He responded by moving from the right side of her neck to the left side.

“It was fine. Your Aunt Amy insisted on making dinner instead of ordering dinner. But her lotus root soup is never seasoned well, so I had to fix it. Then her dumplings were undercooked. And her bao weren’t pinched properly.” She huffed. “I should have just offered to make dinner myself.”

“Duibuqi [Sorry]. I’m sure she was trying to do something nice for you, so you didn’t have to do all the work.” Lucy swatted at Tim again because he had found just the right spot and made her gasp in the middle of talking to her mother.

“It’s fine. It’s all over now. Your grandmother was asking about you. Even if you want to continue to be disobedient and rude to your parents that doesn’t mean you should ignore your grandmother.”

“Yes, mother. I’ll make sure to stop by soon,” her last few words went up significantly in pitch as Tim had gone back to her sweet spot again to nibble and suck a little bit harder. Her eyes rolled back to her head, and she slumped back into Tim a little bit more.

“Lucy? What are you doing?” she said accusatorily.

“Hmm? Oh. I… I was just…” she struggled to find what she wanted to tell her mother as Tim’s fingers crept under the edge of her t-shirt and spread out across her belly pulling her further into him and not letting up on her neck at all. “I was just enjoying a cup of tea, and… and it… it was just a little hot.” Tim chuckled into her skin, and Lucy tried ineffectively to swat at him again.

“The tea was too hot?” she asked, confused.

“Yes. I’m very, very hot right now. I mean… the tea. The tea is very hot,” Lucy said a little breathlessly.

Tim laughed softly into her skin at her slip up, and then bit the area he had been sucking on, making Lucy involuntarily release a high-pitched squeal. Her unoccupied hand came up to cover her mouth in surprise.

“Lucy?”

“Duibuqi [Sorry]. I must have burned myself on the tea. I’ve gotta go. Bye,” she said quickly, hanging up the phone. She heard her mother start to say something back before she ended the call, but she just couldn’t continue the conversation any longer. She let out a breath, her hands falling down to her sides. Then she spun herself around to face Tim, her hands on her hips.

For a moment, Tim was afraid she was upset, that he had gone too far. But Lucy’s face softened quickly as she said, “What was that?” she asked with a laugh. “You’re impossible!” She paused for a second and then said, “That’s the most… interesting phone call I’ve had with my mother in a long time.” Her hand came up to the spot on her neck that Tim had focused on. “I’m fairly certain I’ll soon have a mark to match yours. Are you happy now?”

“Not quite,” he said grabbing her phone. He walked further into the house and disappeared down the hallway. Lucy followed him for a few steps, but she wasn’t sure if it was okay to continue to follow him or not. A moment later, she heard a series of a few beeps and then the sounds of a door clicking open and shut. Tim reappeared a few seconds later with a smug look on his face.

Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. “Did I just hear you lock our phones into your gun safe?”

“Umm hmm,” he said, pulling her close to him again. “Nothing else is more important right now than you and me.”

Read more here. https://archiveofourown.org/works/52514971/chapters/135896581

[chansroomsblog]

This is a part of a Wattpad SKZ fan fiction I am writing. Want to read more chapters? Give me some writing ideas.

The dorm was complete chaos and I was right in the middle of it. Clothes and shoes decorating every surface, plates of food left out on the counters and dining table, and all eight boys sitting on the couch facing the television.

Knocking hadn’t received an answer so I had walked in and came face to face with the mess the boys of the K-Pop group, called Stray Kids, seemed to think was suitable living conditions. I was a little surprised because the condition of their dorm was a complete opposite of the recording studio they often worked in.

“Han, why are your shoes right in the doorway? You don’t even wear this pair!” I asked as I walked towards the couch.

I had to keep my eyes on the floor to prevent myself from falling on my face.

“I was planning to wear them today but I changed my mind before I left.” said Han.

“Did you guys have to record today? The new album is coming out next month, right?” For whatever reason, what I had just said made all of the boys turn to look at me at the same time.

“How are you our manager and you don’t know the release date of our album?” asked Lee Know.

“You are constantly recording a song whether it is for an album, an episode of SKZ-REPLAY, or just for the fun of it. How am I supposed to know when you are releasing an album?!” They are always so busy so how am I supposed to keep up with everything they do?

“That’s true but didn’t you decide the date of the release?” Considering Bangchan’s repsonse, I remembered what I needed to tell them the other day.

“I forgot to tell you guys but someone else is taking over the decision making for release dates. It’s too much work for me to do when I am always having to check and see if you are living in a house or a barn.” Lee Know and Hyunjin rolled their eyes at what I said so I glared at them both. They were part of the reason the dorm looked like this!

“Well, she does have a point. Start picking everything up while I start on dinner.” Felix started walking towards the kitchen but I ran after him. I grabbed him by the shoulders, turned him around, and guided him back towards the living room.

“As amazing as dinner cooked by our wonderful Felix sounds, let’s keep the kitchen in one piece, ok? You can make brownies for dessert when I’m done!” Felix glared at me but he laughed soon after. I smiled at him and went back into the kitchen.

I connected my phone to the Bluetooth speaker on the counter and started playing Drive by Bangchan and Lee Know. As if I summoned him, Chan came into the kitchen seconds after the song started.

“Why do you always insist on playing the songs with insinuating meanings when you come here?” Chan asked but then he realized what he said. I smiled because I knew I had won!

“So you finally acknowledge that Drive isn’t about driving?” I grab some pasta from the pantry and turn around to look at him. He shifts on his feet and I can tell he is about to say something.

“Have fun making dinner.” Chan says and then leaves the kitchen. I laugh, knowing that I won this battle but he won’t let me win it again. He refuses to acknowledge the true meaning of the song.

I boil some water and then put the pasta in as I survey the kitchen. While I wait for the pasta to finish cooking, I wash the dishes that are in the sink. One of the dishes on top is a pan that Felix must have made brownies in. I shouldn’t have told him to make them for dessert. All of the boys eat too many brownies but I’m not one to talk. Felix’s brownies are a guilty pleasure of mine!

After I finish the dishes, I go back to the pasta when Hyunjin walks in and he goes towards the sink. Just as he is about to wash his hands, I see that they are covered in paint!

“Hyunjin!! Wash your hands in the bathroom sink. I need to drain the pasta and I don’t want it covered in paint. And when did you start painting something?” I ask as I turn back towards the pasta to turn off the water.

“Changbin is in the bathroom and he is taking forever so I have to use this sink. To answer your other question, I just got an idea of something to paint and I didn’t want to forget.” Hyunjin takes his hands away from the sink and starts to walk out of the kitchen towards the bathroom after he heard the door open.

“While you are back there, call everybody for dinner! We are having spaghetti.” Hyunjin looks back at me and nods before walking down the hall and calling everybody for dinner.

After draining the pasta, I finish making the spaghetti and I see I.N walk into the kitchen.

“I.N, can you set the table?” I ask.

“Sure but can you ask Changbin if I need to set a place for him or if he is going to the gym?” I stood up fast and went towards the entrance to the kitchen.

“Changbin! I thought we were eating together, why are you going to the gym?” I see him right as he is about to walk out the door. He turns around and sets his bag on the floor.

“I guess I can go tomorrow. Chan will probably be able to go with me then.” Changbin walks into the kitchen and I go to Chan’s room.

I knock on the door and he calls for me to come in. I peak my head in to see him on his computer.

“When are you not on that computer? If that computer goes missing, it’s like your entire life will end! Come one, dinner is ready.” I roll my eyes and he closes his computer as he gets up. I walk out the door and he follows behind me laughing.

“That’s because there will be no albums for years if that computer is lost. I have written songs for this coming album years ago and they are all on that computer!”

Chan follows me into the kitchen just as Lee Know yells “Hurry up! I’m hungry!”

I roll my eyes (I seem to be doing that a lot these days but it is definitely because of their attitudes) and walk towards one or the empty seats by the head of the table. Chan sits in the seat next to me but I realize that there is no food on the table. I must have forgotten to fix the plates.

“Let’s fix our plates and eat.” Just as I say it, all of the boys rush to the stove where the pot of spaghetti is. Han is the first one to the stove and he fixes a plate for himself and then Lee Know. Lee Know smiles at him, slaps his butt, and then they go back to the table to sit next to each other. I swear they are always together and I still don’t know why Lee Know is always slapping someone’s butt. It’s funny though!

Seungmin fixes food for himself and then for I.N. It’s adorable how he always looks out for him. I know Seungmin wanted to be the oldest member to have a lot of little brothers but at least he got I.N.

By the time we all make it back to the table, Changbin is almost done eating and he is fixing a second helping for himself. Felix and Hyunjin are talking about matching rings they want to get as if they don’t already have enough. Seungmin and I.N are just now sitting down to eat. Lee Know is showing Han pictures of his cats.

Chan is halfway through his food when he turns to me and whispers, “You might not realize this but all the kids have become happier with you around. You seem to bring an air of ease with you and it relaxes all of them when work gets too stressful. Thank you!” He turns back to his food and then starts talking to Hyunjin on his left but he doesn’t realize how his words impacted me.

Chan might think that I helped them but my life has been made so much better just by being around them!

I smile knowing this isn’t the last day I can spend with them like this!

[theladyofdeath]

Lady Death's Lover {II}

Lady Death's Lover Masterlist & Summary

19th Century Period AU Nesta x Cassian Secret Affair / Enemies to Lovers / Forbidden Romance Fanfiction / Characters from Sarah J Maas / ACOTAR Based on a prompt sent in by anonymous

A/N: I'm sorry I waited until, like, midnight to post this. As the school year approaches, I find myself in a constant state of panic and stress. Haha. Anyways, thank you for reading the prologue and chapter 1! I love seeing your feedback. This chapter is fairly light in the way of trigger warnings, but as always, know that this story contains the following. Thank you for reading! x

TW: marital abuse, sexual content, language, depression, alcohol abuse

This story is for readers 18+. Mature readers only. Content should not be read by anyone under 18.

Nesta

The gown I’m wearing cost more than what my sisters, father, and I spent in a year on clothing only a few years ago. It’s a stunning deep blue that brings out my eyes. The skirt is full and the bodice is laced in beads that sparkle when they hit the light. A braid crowns my head and the bruise has faded on my cheek enough that the powder covers it. 

I wait in the foyer for Tomas who seems to be taking his sweet time. It takes a certain level of disrespect to keep someone waiting for an extended period of time, but it’s the least of the cruelties that my husband inflicts upon me. 

Just when I’m ready to board the carriage alone, Tomas comes down the grand staircase dressed in his finest. He is handsome, only a few years older than myself. He’s wearing his full evening dress, and even I, who loathes him, has to admit that he looks fine in tails. I hate it, hate that he’s handsome, hate that I have to hang on his arm all evening instead of gracing the dance floor. 

The carriage ride is silent. We sit on opposite benches, facing one another. We’ve nearly reached our destination by the time he speaks.

“How was your afternoon?”

His words are so sudden that it makes me jump. I clear my throat. “Fine, I suppose. I went to the dressmaker and had tea with Gwyn and Emerie.”

He cringes at the informal use of my closest friends’ names. I rarely see them and know that Tomas disapproves, even if he’s never said it outright. “Lovely, dear.”

I do not progress the conversation, I simply let it drop and stare out the window once more. 

When the coach stops, we are sitting in front of a grand townhouse. It’s massive, larger than our own home in town. I’ve not been here before nor do I know the owner. It’s one of Tomas’ many business partners, the names of whom I don’t bother to memorize. 

Nonetheless, the home we enter is beautiful. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen and I’m mesmerized as I cross the threshold. 

Everything is black, but it is elegant. Among the dark interior, there are paintings of the night sky, murals on the ceiling of the famous starlight of Velaris. White roses are strung throughout the hall, the stark petals leading to the ballroom, where people are gathered and a string quartet plays. 

“Beautiful,” I breathe, allowing myself to be dragged by Tomas.

“Hmm? Oh, yes.” It’s clear he’s not paying attention to me, but right now I don’t mind. “Chin up. Back straight. Don’t speak unless you’ve been asked a direct question. Think wisely about your answers before you voice them.”

I don’t respond. A sudden, familiar emptiness fills my core.

We round the ballroom until we’re gathered with a herd of people I don’t know but Tomas seems to. My arm remains looped through his and I smile, completely charmed, as voices surround us. The conversation is nothing more than muddled noise that I ignore as my eyes scan my surroundings. I watch as gentlemen ask the young ladies of Velaris to dance. I watch as they take to the floor and follow the commonly known steps while the music plays jovially from the platform near the corner. 

I envy them. I used to love to dance, used to come alive as the music played. Even now, I feel it in my bones while the quartet plays and I feel nothing but dread as I remain perfectly still, side by side with my husband. I don’t show it, though. The smile remains plastered on my face and I nod politely as each new person is introduced to me.

“Care for a smoke, Mandray?” 

Tomas looks at me and frowns, but I smile politely. “Don’t worry about me, my dear. I’ll get a drink and stand with the other married ladies.” 

He thinks for a minute, but then he nods and his arm slips from mine, giving me a sudden sense of freedom. I know he doesn't like leaving me alone in a room full of people but to decline an offer would speak of a weakness in both our marriage and his manhood, so he leaves me be. 

True to my word, I walk toward the refreshments table and grab a filled champagne flute. The bubbles tickle going down my throat and I can’t help my foot as it begins to tap along with the tune. 

“Lovely, isn’t it?”

I spin around, nearly flinging the fillings of my glass over the rim as I do so. A man stands behind me, tall and broad-shouldered, smiling kindly. His hair is long, which I find ridiculous, even if it’s pulled back neatly at the nape of his neck. He’s handsome, but not as a gentleman should be. He looks as if he should be working by the docks or in a lumber yard, perhaps in the mines. He looks more like a man that would live in my old village, not a member of high society. 

“The music?” I ask, and he nods. “Yes. Beautiful.”

I turn away from him, back towards the quartet. I watch as they expertly handle their instruments. 

“Would you care to dance?” 

My back stiffens as I turn to face my intruder once more. “Pardon?”

“Dance?” he asks, and his hazel eyes are lit with humor. “You know…what they’re all doing out there. Having fun.” 

Fun.

That was a word I haven’t heard in a long while, a word I haven’t felt. The offer is tempting and part of me wants to say yes, just to feel alive for a few minutes. 

“I’m married,” I say, simply.

He stares at me. Blinks. “And?”

My brows, I swear, shoot up into my hairline. “And…that means I cannot dance with you.” 

“Does it?” he asks, and a stupid, cocky little grin lifts the side of his mouth. “I don’t recall reading that in the rulebook.”

Knowing full well there isn’t a rule book, I feel my eyes narrow. “You, sir, are awfully inappropriate.”

“It is not inappropriate to ask a Lady to dance.”

“But it is to ask a married woman. Now, if you’ll excuse me, Mr…”

“Nazari. Lord Cassian—”

“Yes, well, thank you for the offer but I obviously must decline.” I hand my half-emptied glass to a passing server and go to step around Lord Cassian. 

He steps in front of me. “I did not catch your name.”

“My name is not yours to know,” I say, and try to step around him yet again.

He follows me once more. “Please do not make me endure the rest of the night without us being properly introduced.”

I take a deep breath, trying my best to keep my cool. “Lady Mandray.” 

That cocky smile of his fades, and he’s left staring at me looking completely unsettled. “You’re married to Tomas Mandray?”

“I am,” I say, the words feeling hollow as they leave me. 

He nods and bows his head. “Very well. I apologize for the disruption of your evening. Enjoy the music.”

Before I can reply, he’s hurrying far away from me. It seems my husband has the same effect on strangers that he does on me. 

His reaction makes me think a little better of the man I just met, as awful as that may seem.

I do not join the other married women. They don’t seem to like me all that much and I honestly don’t care for them. The conversations are meaningless and I don’t care to answer over and over again how soon we’ll be having children. I wish Emerie and Gwyn were here. Although they’re at some of the events that I’m dragged to, they rarely come to the balls. They are not married nor are they looking for husbands, claiming and content to be spinsters, but that is what drew me to them in the first place, their freedom even in society. 

So I stand here, close to the refreshments even though I’ve given up my glass. I watch young gentlemen and ladies dance, watch as they smile and laugh and move freely to the music. And I can’t help when my eyes find Lord Cassian as he speaks with another young lady across the hall. His body is so relaxed, his smile so easy, and I loathe him for that.

Jealousy is a bitch and it’s all I seem to be feeling tonight. Jealousy, and loneliness.

…….

Cassian 

“Would you like me to introduce you to Mandray?” 

My smile falters and I clear my throat. “Of course. Eh, let’s hope that the fact that I tried to charm his wife doesn’t ruin his impression of me.”

Beside me, Azriel snorts. Rhysand’s lips form a tight line. “You hit on his wife?”

“I didn’t know she was his wife,” I mutter, crossing my arms. “I didn’t know she was anyone’s wife. I saw a pretty woman. I asked her to dance.”

Rhysand’s eyes narrow. “Why do I feel that wasn’t the end of the conversation?”

I sip from my champagne.

Pretty isn’t exactly the word I’d use to describe Lady Mandray, but I can’t tell my brothers that she is, by far, the most terrifyingly beautiful woman I have ever crossed paths with. Traditional beauty had been thrown out the window and replaced with a cold, intricate beauty that was unknown to society and the world beyond. The type of beauty that was Lady Mandray could not be replicated. No, I wouldn’t tell them that. That would be inappropriate and although I love the inappropriate most of the time, being inappropriate with the man I’m attempting to invest with to boost my fortune seems to be crossing a line.

“Well, let’s hope his wife remains quiet and no one overheard,” Rhysand says, shaking his head. “It would be just like you to cause a scandal at my event, of all places.” 

“No scandal, just a misunderstanding,” I assure him. At least, I try to. The look in his eye tells me to watch myself for the remainder of the evening. I try not to let that piss me off as I take another drink. 

Just as I’m about to ask Rhys to make the introduction, I see a familiar face out of the corner of my eye and a slow smile spreads across my lips. There’s someone I could have fun with and cause no scandal.

None that hasn’t been spread before, anyway. 

“One dance, then I’ll meet Mandray.” I’m moving before the words are out of my mouth. I move around the outskirts of the dancefloor, tossing my drink aside on the way, until I’m stopping behind a long-legged blonde in a red dress.

I bow. “Miss Morrigan.”

She’s turning, eyes narrowed, before I stand back at full height. “I swear, every time you call me that it makes me hate you just a little bit more.” 

“You don’t hate me.” I grin. “If you hated me, you wouldn’t accept the dance I’m about to offer you and we both know that you can’t say no to a dance with me.” 

With a roll of her eyes, she takes my outstretched hand and we join the other dancers as a quadrille begins. It’s not the best dance for conversation but we seem to carry one anyway without caring about those around us. 

“You’re late,” I say, as the music becomes lively. “I didn’t think you were going to show.”

“Missed me?” she asks with a wink. “You missed tea this past Monday. Maybe I was angry with you.”

We come together and spin around as I ask, “No, I just figured you were holed up with someone you weren’t supposed to be again.”

Her eyes grow bright as we part and the softest shade of pink tinges her cheeks. She looks around to make sure those closest to us didn’t hear, but I know they didn’t. It takes a few seconds for us to come back together, but when she does she says, “No, that was last weekend. Tonight I just felt like arriving late so that everyone would have to look at me as I entered.” 

It worked. It always did. Mor was stunning, beautiful to everyone who looked her way. She took my virginity, and I took hers, when we were teenagers. It was awkward and horrible and I lasted no more than twenty seconds. It took her a long time to convince me that such a horribly awkward experience wasn’t what opened her eyes to realizing that she didn’t like men at all in such a way — a fact that only a few of us know and keep secret in her honor. Me, Azriel, Rhys, our friend Amren. We’ll keep that secret until we no longer walk this earth. 

But, it’s nice to know that she finds someone to spend her time with every now and then. I want to ask about the mystery woman that she spent the weekend with, but it’ll have to wait until Monday’s tea time. 

The dance ends a minute later and we all take our bow, then I’m sweeping her to where Rhysand and Azriel are in deep conversation with a group of young ladies. Mor’s arm loops through mine when I see her. 

Lady Mandray is watching me, and I can tell she’s pissed that I caught her. I offer her a smile, but maybe it comes off a bit too cocky because her pursed lips seem to amplify. She quickly turns on her heels and exits the room, which leaves me confused and strangely aroused. 

Mor catches me looking and leans in closer. “And who is that?”

“The wife of Lord Tomas Mandray,” I answer, my smile fading. “Met earlier tonight. We didn’t hit it off.”

Mor gasps, patting my arm. “Lord Cassian Nazari didn’t instantly sweep a woman off her feet? My, my. You must be getting old.”

I shoot her a look that makes her grin widen, but we say nothing more as we reach our destination. I fall into the chaos that consists of the ladies of Velaris desperately wanting to charm a man into becoming their husbands until we politely dismiss ourselves to find Lord Mandray. 

We find him in a smoke-filled room full of gentlemen and Rhysand makes the introduction. We talk for no more than two minutes before he’s called away, apparently a much sought after man of high society. 

After those two minutes, I deduce two things.

One: investing with him will make me more money in a month than all my tenants combined make me in a year. 

Two: I would hate to be the woman married to that asshole. 

[somejazzinthemorning]

tightrope. 03

Pairing: Carlos Sainz x Original Female Character Warnings: Language Word Count: 7.241 Previous chapter: 02.

Drowning myself in work is my go-to coping mechanism for more than half of my problems.

I'll either resort to racing or tracing brand strategies in an attempt to avoid having to face whatever problem throws my way and, that night, being 11 pm on a Wednesday, my laptop and the small whiteboard on my desk became my saving grace.

Despite the burning eyes and my aching back, after hours sat at my desk, my mind was still racing, high on whatever feelings the brush of his lips had evoked in my body. I fell asleep to the memory of his eyes and the velvet lips.

There was no way to escape it. We were already falling.

I woke up late, the next day.

My phone had a full wall of notifications ready to present me. A single text in the middle of the dozens of work-related emails, most of them answers to the ones I’d written during the night and scheduled to be sent in the early hours of the work day. I only realised I was smiling, probably high on my own expectations, when I felt my smile drop, after seeing who sent the text. Amanda. Not him.

“those updates on the project at 3 am??? r u okay?”

“sorry! i remembered to schedule the emails, but forgot about the notes on the project.” "got some good work done, tho”

"need to take a moment to reread all of your incoherent notes” "all that rambling is… wow” "BUUUUUT come to the office” "the things from the berlin store just arrived, you will love them”

"can’t make it today” "send pics!”

"come tomorrow, then! ill get churros for breakfast”

My phone went back to the nightstand and I pulled up the comforter, wrapping it around myself in an attempt to find some security and calm of mind. I peered out from under the comforter, staring at the dark room, only lightened by some streaks of light created from a gap in the blinds. I was still tired from the night, and my mind scrambled from everything we had shared.

Eventually, I left the bed. My mom was downstairs, and a copy of Shadow of the Wind rested on the kitchen counter while she cooked lunch. Frank Sinatra played on the old record player in the living room and the music continued to stretch around the house as we ate together. Luckily, her birthday party was keeping her busy; busy enough that she didn't remember to ask me about the dinner from last night.

Truth be told: I'm a terrible liar. I would never be able to escape her questions.

At the end of the day, I met Rocco for a workout, in a nearby gym. He was waiting for me, leaning against the reception counter, teal Puma t-shirt paired with an amused smirk; I knew he was more than ready to put me through my paces. And I was right. It only took me a couple of exercises to lay on the floor, panting and sweating."Have you thought about what you're doing next season?" I looked up, in the direction of the voice. Rocco was standing in front of me, holding my water bottle.

I sat up straight and extended my hand to grab it. "Not yet," the water was cold and refreshing. Just what I needed. "Maybe a third year in the Challenge and," I paused to breathe. "You know, the reserve seat. Not ideal, but yeah."

He frowned, sitting down on one of the plyo boxes near me. "But yeah?"

"Yeah. Works." I answered, laying back down on the green turf. The small fake grass ticklish on my legs and arms. "Not much, but it's racing."

"I think I'll pretend you didn't say that."

"Why? It's just how it is."

He cleared his throat, the deep sound making me open my eyes and stare at him again. "Up," he commanded, refusing to help me get up. I brought the hand I'd just held up to the floor, to help me get up.

"I thought we were done," I said. He didn't even need to say anything to make me understand that we were, in fact, not done. "Are you mad?"

“Annoyed,” he turned back to me. “What the heck was that answer? Of course, a third year in the Challenge and a reserve seat in WEC are not ideal. I was hoping for a real answer, not some… whatever that was.”

“It’s the reality,” I shrugged. Instead of turning back and going back to do whatever he was about to do, he just kept looking at me. Not the conversation I was hoping for today.

“You had a plan. What happened?” He asked.

“Nothing happened. I had a plan. And it’s going as it’s possible.”

"Excuses, Eva," Rocco exclaimed. He stepped forward and looked me in the eye. "You have a plan. You know what you want. And you have the talent."

“Congrats, you just solved gender inequality.” I gave him an ironic thumbs up, my mind still scrambled from the efforts of the workout and the encounter from last night. This kind of conversation was not what I wanted.

“You’re more than capable of getting a decent seat next year.”

“As we know,” I wiggled my finger between both of us, “It’s a tough path. Being capable won’t get me a seat. ”

“Locking yourself in an office keeping track of TikTok trends will?” I sent him a look. He held up his hands in defence. “You’re making excuses. There are other drivers fighting for the same things as you are and they are not taking no for an answer.”

“Neither am I.”

"Come on," he chortled, eying me carefully. I could tell that he wanted the best for me, but I was not really in the mood to discuss this at the moment. "When was the last time you actually planned something for yourself, and not just some new fashion designer or boujie vegan chef?"

I felt a little bit of annoyance creeping its way up my spine. I had been pushing myself so hard for the last few months, and I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed with all the pressure.

“Can we focus on the races I have left to win?” I asked, my voice taking on an exasperated tone. “We can talk about this after I win this championship?”

“Sure.” He bent down to grab a 15 kg power bag from the floor and dropped it off at my feet. "This wasn't planned, but that self-pity is annoying me."

“A punishment?" I took my hands to my hips, a light chortle abandoning my lips. "Burpees and never-ending lounges? That's what you think I need right now?"

"No, no burpees," he said, his grin widening. "But maybe a few extra lounges wouldn't hurt." He was clearly enjoying this. I rolled my eyes and glanced down at the power bag in front of me.

“It was not—”

He cleared his throat, cutting me off, and I went silent. Then, looking at him, I saw that he was grinning at me once again, content. Yeah, it was self-pity. Yeah, the future is scary, especially when you’re a 25-year-old woman in motorsports and your career seems to be stuck.

I took a deep breath and bent over to pick up the bag, the cold weight of it dragging my body down to the ground. Rocco took a few steps back and then motioned me with his head to start.

"Andiamo," he said. “20 steps back and forth. Three series.”

So I did. I started lounging with the bag, back and forth across the green patch of turf on that side of the gym, trying to keep a steady pace. With each step, the pressure of the bag weighed me down. I kept going, pushing forward and gritting my teeth against the pain. When I finally reached the twentieth step, I dropped the bag and breathed out, my body aching from the effort.

By the end of the third series, I had pushed my body to its very limits and back. I sunk down onto the cool grass beneath me, feeling the relief of the softness beneath me—my muscles aching and my body dripping with sweat, my hair matted to my neck and temples.

Rocco sat near me, guiding me through a couple of moves, helping me to loosen my tight muscles and stretch out my body. Despite the big (and somewhat threatening) muscles he had a gentle touch.

“What’s on your mind?”

"Hm?" I frowned, my eyebrows furrowing together as I closed my eyes, feeling his hand pressing down on my thigh, pushing it firmly against the hard floor. I could feel the pain radiating through my body, but I tried to focus on the sensation of his grip.

“You always complain this hurts,” he said. I opened one eye. Now, I could feel the pressure from his grip. Probably something shifted on my face because he instantly asked, “Now it hurts?”

"It hurt before, I was just distracted." I shook my head, closing my eyes again and focusing on the sensation of his grip. “I’m free to feel like shit when things go badly." I let out.

“Things are not going badly,” he sighed, leaving my leg and switching to the other. “You’re simply letting yourself fall behind.”

I took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly, my head falling back against the floor. I stayed there for a few moments, my heart pounding against my chest and my thoughts racing a million miles per hour. When I finally opened my eyes again, I looked up at Rocco, this time because I felt my thigh burning with discomfort, he was still looking at me, waiting for an answer.

"Too much." I glanced below while patting his arm. He raised an eyebrow, implying more pressure. "Ei!" I scrunched my nose. He just arched a brow. Sadistic fucker. “What? Are you going to hurt me until I hold someone at gunpoint and ask for a seat?”

“You talk like you don’t have good offers, Eva.”

“What is a good offer? Driving against 19-year-old boys in Formula 3? It’s humiliating.”

“W Series?” He suggested.

“I want to race with men and show people I can win against them.” I sat down. Rocco took his hands from my legs. My muscles tingled with the same intensity my thoughts did. “I like the Challenge because I’m showing them I can do it. But the team does not have a budget to race in other series. And I can’t be a reserve forever. So I can do another year and hope things change.”

“See? You’re choosing to fall behind.” He took a deep breath, understanding my frustration. "You can always look for sponsorship," he said, his eyes focused on the floor. "You have the talent, the connections—"

“I spent my teenage years sending letters and desperately trying to talk to people. You saw how that went.”

“You have results to show them, now. In two weeks you’ll have a championship.” I dragged my hands over my face. Instant regret. Both my hands and face were tingling with the same intensity my thoughts did. “W Series will give you exposure. Will give you points. You need points..”

“Why are you so interested now?” I arched an eyebrow, feeling a bit suspicious. “The year is long. Anything can happen. A lot can change.”

“I just don’t see you planning ahead.” He deadpanned, his expression unreadable. “What if you can’t do another season of the Challenge? Will you be content with just being a reserve in WEC?”

“Why so many ifs?” I asked, still feeling a bit apprehensive.

“Motorsports are unpredictable,” he replied, his voice steady and sure. “I’ve been around long enough to know that. And I’m your coach, not just a trainer. It’s kinda my responsibility to do this.”

“Nah, I’m not having it.” I paused, still not entirely convinced. “Do you know something I don’t?”

Rocco just shook his head. The dark strands of his hair moved in unison. “Eva—” He shrugged. I could see the wheels turning in his mind. Whatever he was about to say, it seemed like it wasn't completely true. "One," he continued; his tone shifting. "I don't want to be left without a job when you get bored of racing." I threw my towel at him, though I knew he was only joking. Unfortunately, he dodged it. "Two," he continued, "you're racing like a pro. You should race with the pros."

At least, in one thing he was right. I was racing like a pro.

On the other hand, I was not acting like one.

My team and my dad, the main sponsor, were the only support I had. Despite having other offers, none met our expectations. I had been a third, fourth, or fifth driver for too long. I had spent too much time in the garage, running simulations, and taking part in test sessions. Years of it. Each of these experiences had demoralized me.

Racing in the Challenge, learning with my team, taking time to understand the car and driving it to a podium made sense to me. Standing in the garage and hoping for someone to get food poisoning or COVID was not only morally wrong but also quite dull.

“Did you make this whole drama when Rio told you he wanted to stop racing and just go to college and become an engineer?” I asked, getting up from the floor and picking up my towel, still lying on the ground.

“It was worse actually,” my trainer said, following me. “I think I almost killed him when he told me.”

“We make quite the pair, don’t we?”

He smiled and nodded. “Yes, you do. Your poor father has his hands full with you two.” We stopped walking when we reached the locker room. “Go have a shower and get some rest.”

The second I reached my locker and opened the wooden door, I reached for my phone, looking for a message that hadn't arrived. Pathetic. A part of me considered taking the initiative and being the one to call or text him but, to be honest, what was left for me to say?

I had already told him everything by asking him not to kiss me and I might have told him even more by refusing to let go of him.

The office smelled of churros, so I knew Amanda was around. Either that or someone else had the same idea as her.

Familiar faces smiled back at me as I crossed the corridors and the work areas until I finally reached the common area and took one of the available seats. Since I had chosen to work remotely, and only visited the office casually for occasional meetings or when I needed a place where I could focus, I wasn't given an office.

The room was filled with the buzz of people chatting and the occasional laughter, making me feel a bit out of place. I knew most of them (read: I knew their names and which projects were under their purview), but rarely talked to any of them. Amanda, one of my friends from college, and the one who had introduced me to this agency was the only one I regularly talked with.

I sat down in my chair and pulled my laptop out of my bag. After talking with Rocco yesterday, I decided to take action on my career and spent last night looking at emails and reading my dad's notes on the sides of those he considered important enough to print. So, when I opened my laptop, my screen showed me my Notion board, which honestly felt like a showcase of my own failures. Not the first thing I wanted to see that morning.

A knock on the glass divider of the office made me lift my head up and find Amanda on the other side of it. A beautiful purple jumper highlighted her beautiful curves; her hair was pulled up in a ponytail. In her hands, a white box.

I waved at her.

“Vamos,” she motioned with her head. “Before anyone tries to steal these from me.”

I smiled and grabbed my laptop, zipping it up before getting up and walking towards her. “You know I have an important weekend ahead, right?”

She laughed, opening the box. “A churro won't weigh you down, don't worry.”

I took one of them and walked near her to the cafeteria. The morning light was soft, and the day was not too warm. Ideal to sit on the balcony and talk for a while. So, that's what we did. I grabbed coffee for both, while she walked outside.

The sunshine on my skin was just a slight warmth as I leaned on my chair, and the smooth breeze of the morning cooled off my skin. Traffic sounds in the background, the ruffle of chairs and the occasional bark of one of the dogs playing on the balcony of the start-up that shares the building with us.

While having a sip of her coffee, I noticed Amanda's eyes widening, and I could practically see the bell ringing in her mind. Instantly, my brows were drawn together. Brace yourself, Eva.

"So, I heard on Twitter dot com…" I rolled my eyes at the last part, and despite provoking a small chuckle from her, she didn't stop talking and her gaze still remained twinkling mischievously. "Carlos was in Mugello last weekend."

Oh, for fucks sake.

"If that's what Twitter says, it must be true."

"Yes. So," she paused. Her head tilted slightly, honestly looking like a pup who saw a threat in the distance. "Did you two talk?"

I shook my head; my fingers busy on the handle of my mug, desperately trying to seem unbothered by the question. "Nah, we didn't talk."

"You sure?" She asked, her eyebrows raised in suspicion.

"Yes, I'm sure," I said, my voice steady. "It's not like we're friends or anything."

"That's too bad," she murmured, a hint of disbelief in her voice. "It's not like Carlos and your brother are still like, the best of friends and maybe— maybe he went there to visit him and you end up talking?"

I sighed. "Stop it."“You're a terrible liar, Eva.” Amanda said bluntly, her gaze intense.

“Amanda,” I said, my voice stern and my eyes piercing. "Stop it."

“So, you talked.” Amanda gave me a knowing look. "I knew it. I saw those tweets and I realised we had barely talked this week, and that only happens when you're too busy overthinking. And then boom, I woke up to dozens of notes made at 2 am? You always go to bed early." She crossed her arms, her gaze still intense. "Come on, just tell me what happened. If it’s not him, it’s anything else. That worries me too. I'm here for you, no judgement."

I sighed. "Fine," I said, setting my mug down and leaning back on the chair. "We talked. A lot. We actually had dinner."

Amanda's gaze softened, but then she frowned again. “Dinner? The three of you?”

“The two of us.”

"Just the two of you?" Amanda's eyes widened in surprise, lips smiling brightly. I nodded to her question. "What did you talk about?"

A part of me wanted to end it there. The other part of me needed some guidance. And Amanda was a friend, she always had good advice. On the downside, she loved to gossip. But we were friends. Guidance. But gossip.

I shrugged. “Just normal things. Racing.”

“Okaaaay, that’s good.” At this point, her lips were curving up like she was the one having dinner with him. I couldn’t decide if her reaction annoyed me or made me happy. "So, what now? Are you going to keep in contact with him?"

I shook my head. "I don't think the dinner changed anything.” Liar.

“Eva,” she propped her elbows on the table. “You’re a terrible liar. Spit it out. What happened? If you don’t want to talk about it, tell me that. Just don’t lie.”

Talking about it would make a big deal. A bigger deal, actually. I dragged my hands over my face, tired and confused. Thinking about it was challenging enough and I truly didn't want to transform all my confusion and emotions into words. Amanda, on the other hand, couldn't hide the fact that she wanted the truth, her gaze so strong it almost made me melt over the iron (and obnoxiously red) chair I was sitting on.

So I told her. Every single detail. From the glorious vision of him under the bright lights of my garage, which for a second made me feel like I was living in an alternate world, through the call at dawn, to his gauze under the beautiful sunset glow. His warm, velvety lips brushing against mine. I told her about the “I think I might have loved you, too”, and the way that even in my dreams I couldn’t seem to forget his scent when he hugged me goodbye.

I felt so exposed, so vulnerable, as I spilled my heart out onto that small table, and when I finished all I could hear was the sound of her sigh. A ridiculous rom-com kind of sigh.

“I just feel like we messed it up because of pure desperation,” I said, crossing one leg over the other and looking around. “He messed it up. I think we just missed each other so much we… I don’t know. Got confused on the feelings?”

“He messed up?”

“I didn’t kiss him back. I just asked him to please, don’t.” It was more ridiculous saying it out loud now than when I recalled the moment in my mind.

“You’re even stupider than I thought,” was her answer. I arched my brow. “The guy cooked for you, at his place, told you he “thinks he loved you too” and tries to kiss you and now you’re mad because he didn’t text you?” She paused. “What the hell will he say? Of course, he won’t text you. What would you say to someone after being denied a kiss? Text him yourself.”

“No.”

“Why not?” Why not? I asked myself the same question. Because I can’t trust him to stay. Better, because I can’t trust him to not leave. “Don’t be stubborn, come on. Just by looking at you, I know you’re dying to get that kiss.”

“Can’t we go back inside and talk about work?”

“Oh, no, missy.” She shook her head. “Those AB tests can wait. I want to talk about you and how you’re so dumb you might lose the chance of your life.”

“You’re exaggerating. As always.”

“Eva.” She was stern, her eyes burning on me. “He was your best friend. At least try to mend that friendship. Even if you don’t want anything else. Whatever the reason.”

I sighed, bowing my head in defeat. Amanda had a way of making me see sense, even when I didn't want to. "And if I can’t see him as a friend but still can’t give a step in the other direction?”

“Then, you give it time. Just don’t give it too much space.” She got up from her chair. Mug on one hand. The empty white box on the other. “Remember how that worked up last time.”

Fact one about Amanda: she was probably the most curious person I knew. Any arguments in the office, celebrity rumours or gossip of literally any kind she knew by heart, down to the last detail. And while that was remotely irritating, especially at exhausting times, like during Amber and Johnny’s trial, or when (especially when) the news broke about Pique and Shakira's divorce, it could also be a blessing. At least from my point of view. Perhaps all the stories contributed to her having a broader view of relationships and, as a result, being so good at giving advice. Fact two: there was no one more insistent than her, so, evidently, she couldn’t leave the office without reminding me to text him.

It was 5 pm, and I was utterly absorbed in the presentation for the new restaurant. I was head down, consumed by the details of culinary and marketing analytics, and, to tell the truth, my mind was so focused on this project that I couldn't really think of anything else.

Amanda was getting ready to leave. Jacquemus purse over her shoulder and a strong pink lipstick on the place where a less saturated one had been during the day.

“You stay?” She asked me.

“Aham,” I briefly made my eyes leave the screen to look at her. “I need to finish this. Next week I’ll be too busy.”

“You leaving for Italy on Monday?”

“Tuesday,” I corrected her, my eyes going back down to the laptop. “Don’t want to leave this to the last minute.”

“Okay. I’ll try to have a look at it before you leave. Also,” my eyes went up again. “Send the man a good luck text.”

I sighed, rolling my eyes at her. "He doesn't need my luck text.”

Amanda nodded, her eyes still twinkling mischievously. "Okay, send him a whatever text, then. An emoji. Like his Instagram story.”

“I’m afraid liking his story won’t work.” I leaned back on her office chair, which I had taken in the middle of the day when she needed to leave for a meeting and left me to use her small office.

“Text him, then. Anything. I wouldn’t let Carlos Sainz escape, but you do you, babes,” she shrugged, turning her back to me to walk to the door.“Enjoy the weekend. Besos!”

“Bye!”

I didn’t text him. Of course. In the same way, she was insistent, I was stubborn.

Actually, let me rephrase it.

I didn’t text him then.

Mid-afternoon, Rio had called inviting me to dinner, and when I asked about the kids, he told me he had booked a nanny, so they would stay home. It was either business or pleasure. I didn't need to ask; as soon as he mentioned my dad was invited, I knew we'd be discussing business. And after Rocco's worries last night, I knew it was partly my business, too.

My nerves were on edge as I prepared to leave the office. They only worsened as I neared the restaurant - a way too fancy place for a Friday dinner with the family.

Crossing the sidewalk, my heels clacking on the cement, my head spinning from the long hours in front of my laptop, and the anxiety building in my chest, I looked inside. My dad was seated at the end of the table, with an empty seat to his right - the seat I was supposed to take. Marjorie was already waving at me. Smiling politely to the man standing at the door, I said, "They're waiting for me." He nodded and let me enter.

My eyes drifted to their table, and I allowed myself a few seconds to study the mood. They were laughing, but my palms were still sweating as I settled in for what would surely be an uncomfortable conversation.

"Sorry, traffic," I said, punctuating my apology with a kiss on each of my parents' cheeks. "Am I too late?"

"No, no," my dad said, his voice warm and comforting. "Your brother was about to tell me something, but you just distracted him. Go ahead, Fabrizio."

I turned to him, curious.

"I'm sure we can wait a bit more. Just... after the food," he said.

"Why are you so nervous?" Marjorie asked, her violet fingernails softly laying over his arm in a gentle caress. "It's something good," she said to me. "Don't worry."

"Are you pregnant again?" my mom asked.

"No! No, no!" my sister-in-law responded quickly, her voice almost echoing in the room. Even Rio seemed surprised by her rapid response. "It's Rio's news. Not mine."

“After the food, then,” my father said.

“I hate it when I do that,” I muttered to my brother, grabbing the menu from the table and letting my eyes drift through the print. “You haven’t ordered yet, right?”

My dad shook his head. "We were waiting for you.”

I glanced at the menu one last time before setting it back down. My dad's hand called for a waiter and, after the young man left, the conversation resumed. As usual before any Grand Prix, the race weekend was the matter on the table and, that night specifically, Carlos' penalty was the urgent matter. Ferrari had the pace and Carlos had the skill, but as I sat there, hearing my brother and dad's input on how wise the choice had or hadn't been, my attention diverged to the DNF he had suffered in Austria, less than two weeks ago. Vivid images of the flames engulfing the car, the heartbreaking words on the radio, and the cheers that echoed through the crowd as his teammate stepped onto the top step filled my mind.

One feeling the glory, the other one consumed in ruin.

“Good luck out there this weekend.” "Don’t pull another Austria. That one was scary.”

Done. I’d texted him. For better or for worse, it was done. And I didn’t have time to put the phone back in the purse before it vibrated again in my hand.

“Thank you. I really need it.”

I checked the time.

“Shouldn’t you be resting?”

“I’m resting." "Listening to my teammate rant about food, but resting.”

“Why? Did you tell him about the cheese-less pasta you tried to feed me?” “If I expect Leclerc to teach you something is how to cook pasta."

"He’s a terrible cooker.” “I’m better learning it from you.”

"I’ll be sure to give you a lesson someday."

"I'll hold you to that."

  "What are you smiling about?" Marjorie asked, my attention immediately being grabbed from my screen to the table.

"Nothing, sorry," I said quickly, tucking my phone back into my purse. "Amanda just texted me about the work I was finishing.”

"Ah, Eva, if you put that effort into racing…" he said, as the waiter came back with our food. I tried to ignore him, especially because there was no use fighting back his comment.

Even with the food on the table and the anticipation to find out about Rio’s news tugging on my chest, the conversation didn’t go further from Formula 1. My dad, a lifelong Italian Ferrari fan and a very biased Carlos supporter was ranting over the lack of professionalism he was sensing from the team and how the choices they repeatedly made ruined not only the drivers but the prestige of the team. Nothing new. Rio and I have been listening to the same tirade for a long couple of years and nothing seemed to change, even after the amazing start to the season the team had.

“I had my reservations at first, but you could be a nice fit for the team, actually”, my dad said, pointing at Rio, with the knife he was using to cut his steak. Rio looked confused at him, and then, at me. “Have they given you an answer?”

What?

For a moment, I felt like I’d fallen on a different table, a completely different conversation. My gaze shifted from one to the other, confused by my father’s question.

“Who’s they?” I asked. Marjorie was biting her lip; her violet fingertips on my brother’s arm, once again.

“Ferrari,” my father responded, clearly stepping over my brother’s feet. Rio seemed bothered; clenched jaw, restless fingers that Marjorie tried to calm by positioning hers over. “Are those the news?” He asked him.

Rio nodded, his jaw unclenching and his lips transforming to a slight grin. "Yep. They offered me a job." He looked around the table, his gaze caught mine for a second but quickly left again. “I need to let them know my decision until Monza.”

“You applied for a job at Ferrari?” I asked. Honestly, I was so confused I couldn’t piece all the things together. “We’re doing so good at the Challenge, you could have waited for just one m—”

“Eva.” My dad interrupted me. The strong stern voice pulled my attention. The authority value of his words over the sweet comforting voice of the beginning of the dinner. The mood had definitely shifted “Wait? You’re the one that’s always urging the team to aim for higher heights.”

"Exactly. The team won't do that without Rio."

"But your brother will. And so will you." I tried to interject but with no success. He continued before I even had the chance to talk. "You can't possibly think your brother would stay with the team knowing he could have this huge opportunity."

"I didn't know about any opportunity." I was replying to my father, but my eyes were directed to Rio. "What about the team? And the Challenge?" I inquired.

"In less than two weeks, the championship will be over. I have no doubts you will win it. You're just losing time there," my father's tone was bothering me, but the fact that he was still cutting his steak as he talked was really aggravating my temper.

Rio, on the other hand, didn't react. His expression didn't even shift. He remained silent, eyes shifting between mine and dad's face. In his silence, though, he was telling me much more than he thought.

"This is not a formality," I said to my father. "Can you please look at me while you talk about our future?"

Finally, he put down his cutlery and remained silent for a few seconds. Deep blue eyes looked up at me, cold and serious.

"There's no future for you if you're afraid to take a serious step," he said finally. "I won't let your brother get stuck in the Challenge when I know he can do so much more. I won't let you make him fall behind because of you."

"Because of me?"

"Why else would he stay at the Challenge?" I stayed silent, feeling my fake sense of confidence being stripped away with the weight of my dad's question. The answer that my conscience gave me was selfish and I refused to say it out loud. I was afraid of staying alone, rather, I was afraid to see Rio flying solo in the higher aims I ambitioned for me and not being able to carry along. Only if he waited, we could jump up together. "Why would he choose anything less than Formula One?"

"So, you have it decided, then?" I asked Rio. "How did that even happen?"

His tongue crept in between his lips, eyes wandering on my face, afraid to reach my eyes. It was making me nervous. Not just because he was about to leave me, but because he didn't tell me about it, prior. My dad knew about it. He even thought that I knew about it. And like a lightning bulb lighting up on my head: Rocco knew it, too.

"It was proposed to me. The job. At Silverstone, a few weeks ago." Even though Rio was stuttering, and his words barely constructed a sentence, piece by piece it all fell together. "Apparently, Carlos talked to someone about you. About the Challenge. And he mentioned me, my results..." he explained. "Carlos invited me there for the Grand Prix and surprised me with an interview."

Why didn't it surprise me? Carlos. The “right time”, of course.

"Your results? Why hide this from me?” I asked, looking around the table. “Clearly, everyone else knows.”

“I wanted to tell you, but didn’t get the chance to do it.”

“But what?” I asked, half defeated, half annoyed. Angry, even. There was so much going on inside me, I couldn’t think straight. “You just said you had the interview in Silverstone. Weeks ago. You had plenty of opportunities.”

“I knew you would snap and react like this,” Rio tried to justify himself.

“Snap? I’m not—” I paused and took a deep breath. At this point, I was seething with anger. “I’m asking questions. I’m not… snapping.”

“You should be happy for me,” I would if I didn’t feel betrayed. “I know you well enough to know that you would react… badly to the news. Especially if you knew Carlos was involved**.**”

Even though his name was blinking on my head, in bold red letters, I tried to set apart his involvement in this story. So, I carried on,

“And you’re just going to do it? Leave the team, the whole project and ditch us? Without even consulting me?”

He shrugged. “I’m consulting you now.”

“This is not a consultation, Rio. Please.” A pause. “This is you telling me what you’re going to do, without even considering my opinion or the team that’s behind your great results.”

“Go ahead.” He made a gesture with his hand. “What’s your opinion, then? You are the one that’s always telling me to aim higher. This is my dream. Always has been.”

“What? Formula One? I thought your dream was to drive in Formula One. Or was that before you noticed you’re a shitty driver? Enlighten me.”

“Eva, enough,” the deep voice cut me off.

I felt like I was going to burst. I wanted to scream, to cry, to express my anger somehow. But my dad's stern gaze kept me in my place. I felt completely helpless and unheard.

“You’re being ridiculous,” said Rio, cutting through the silence. “Childish, even. Ungrateful.”

“Ungrateful? I’m not the one leaving.”

“Why does leaving need to be bad?” The question settled in for a second. “Grow a bit, and maybe you’ll get some good opportunities too.”

“Sure, maybe then my friends will get me jobs, too. Is that what you mean?”

“Enough.” My dad's fist hit the table, loud enough to silence us, but not to the point of attracting too much attention.

My gaze lingered on his clenched fist on the table. I nodded, forcing myself not to say anything else. I placed my napkin on the table and got up, making sure my chair wouldn’t make any noise when pushed back. Before turning around, I paused briefly, my gaze now resting on my brother. “Good luck with your new job.”

  *

  It didn't surprise me when I saw Carlos fly through the track the next day, setting amazing times in the qualifying session, despite the penalty waiting for him for the race. He was dancing with the car, tracing beautiful lines within the colourful ones Paul Ricard was known for. Carlos would start P19 the next day, only ahead of Magnussen, who also had a back-of-the-grid penalty.

I traded the interviews for a dip in the pool and lingered there for the remainder of the afternoon. Perhaps because I was not the best person to have around that day, my parents had left just before lunch and didn't get back until after dinner. Alone, with music echoing throughout the house and the crippling anxiety the events that week had provoked, I felt myself get lost in the doubts and uncertainties.

My phone rang when I was already getting ready for bed. On my nightstand, the name Carlos appeared over an old photo of both of us. Like I couldn't control it, I walked to the phone and sat on the bed. I let it ring a few times before picking it up.

“Hi,” he said. I just looked through the window, to the dark backyard. “No good luck text today?”

“Guess not.”

“And why's that?”

“Did you know Rio had an interview to work at Ferrari?”

“Yes...?” He paused. “Is that a problem?”

“Did you know he got a job offer?”

We both fell into a moment of silence. A long sigh stretched through the line. I closed my eyes, not sure what to expect from the conversation. The next time his voice was heard, it was more serious.

"Can we stop asking questions instead of answering them?"

"The timing is funny," I said. "Just that."

"What do you mean?"

"You coming to Mugello? Was that a coincidence?"

"Eva, what?" Carlos was silent for a few seconds. "Don't make this into a drama," he said. "Rio is talented and if he got a job offer it's because he earned it. The things are not remotely related."

"I'm not complaining about him getting the job."

"Then what are you complaining about?" Carlos asked.

"That it took you years to finally come back and talk to me and it happened just when he got a job in your team. Did you really want to talk to me or did he make you do that?"

"I didn't do it for him," Carlos said. "I did it because I wanted to see you."

"I wish I could believe you."

"And why don't you?"

"It's been three years. Coincidences don't just happen."

I could hear him breathe. Silence weighed down my chest. He wasn't denying it. He wasn't telling me why he was there, that night. "Can I see you this week?" He asked me, before a long sigh.

"No."

"I'll be in Maranello for a few days." I bit my lip, shaking my head to the void. "You'll be in Imola, right? I can go there—"

"I don't want to see you." I talked over him and then paused for a brief second. "Don't show up there, please. It's an important week and I don't really need more distractions."

“Eva, por favor.”

“Good luck tomorrow.”

I put my phone away and let myself sink into the bed, feeling nothing but the warmth of the comforters on my skin and the instant sense of security that came over me. I allowed my eyes to close and my mind to drift away, and before I knew it, a prayer for Carlos came into my thoughts.

I prayed for strength for both him and me, for us. I knew that, whether we were on or off the track, we would need to find a way to get through whatever was to come.

Next Chapter: 04.

Thank you for your support in the previous chapter! Carlos will become a more present character in the future. Pinky promise. Don't abandon me until that happens, please! <3

[revnah1406]

Operation Kingslayer: 2/?

Warning!: This chapter contains specific violence, and a detailed description of torture methods.

(All locations and places that appear in this Fic are fictitious and based on the Ghost Recon Wildlands video game)

OCs:

Hannah "Sparrow" Clayton - @revnah1406

Alyssa "Aly" M. - @alypink

Captain Arjun - @welldonekhushi

Mandy Macfie - @alidravana

Charlotte "Jade" le Jardin - @sleepyconfusedpotato

(I'll bring more OCs soon!)

- Operation Kingslayer's playlist here! 👀✨

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___________________

Ch: 2/?

The sound of the helicopter's blades was the only thing that could be heard in the dark Bolivian sky. Inside the chopper, Jade observed the landscape that was presented below her feet, several meters below. Dark mountains full of forest and jungle, deep valleys, and huge swamps.

"Bolivia is a country with a great diversity of landscapes. Surely we will have to visit many of them during our stay here" Aly's voice was heard through Jade's headphones.

She looked at her partner who was sitting next to her and nodded. "I have a feeling we won't just have to fight the cartel" Jade commented looking into the deep forests of huge trees.

"Wolves, jaguars, piranhas, giant snakes and a huge number of alligators…" Sparrow who was sitting in front of Jade sighed also looking in the same direction as her. "Let's just say it's not going to be a walk in the park"

"Have you been to the Bolivian Andes, Sparrow?" Aly asked.

"No... I don't know this region of the Andes... But I was in Chile with my older brother and in Argentina by myself, where I climbed Aconcagua a few years ago..." answered Hannah.

"We're getting closer, the meeting point is a few clicks away" Mandy's voice came over the radio. She was flying the helicopter at a low altitude, avoiding the skyward glances of hostile onlookers.

"Copy that, Macfie," Arjun replied.

As everyone left that bar ready to take down a second drug cartel, Laswell made one last call to Canada. They were going to need a reliable pilot, Nikolai and Isobel Williams were too busy working with Farah and 141. So their only option was Mandy Macfie. They had worked with her on many occasions. Mandy had saved the team's lives on more than one occasion, always arriving at the most opportune moment to perform an emergency extraction.

"Prepare your belongings. Bowman will be waiting for us at the indicated safe house, but we better not trust ourselves, we don't know what we'll find, so keep your weapons up and the trigger ready. We will enter through different points, Sparrow and I will enter through the main entrance announcing our arrival. Jade and Aly, you'll be in the back in case the situation becomes compromised."

Everyone nodded to Captain Arjun's instructions. They began to organize and load all the belongings. They were going to be alone in Bolivia against an entire cartel. The only thing they could take was what would fit in their backpacks and tactical vests. Ammunition, provisions, first-aid kit, weapons... Everyone carried at least two long weapons that they carried on both sides of the backpack, a sniper rifle and an assault rifle. In addition to their pistols and the knives of preference for each one.

What would define their life, their home and their survival would be carried on their back or in their vests. Unlike the Las Almas Cartel whose headquarters were in Las Almas city, the Santa Blanca Cartel was spread throughout Bolivia. Having bases and headquarters in various regions and provinces of the country. They didn’t have external support for the moment either, it was the five of them against an empire. So they would have to move fast and carry light luggage.

"I have visual on the landing zone," Mandy announced.

"Copy! We'll get off the chopper in two" said Arjun.

Jade nodded as she finished packing her Karambits into the small of her back, Sparrow screwed the silencer onto the barrel of her sniper rifle, and Aly finished checking that the mini surveillance drone's hardware was in good order.

"We're ready," Hannah said determinedly.

Arjun nodded "Okay, get ready to act. Keep your radios on at all times."

Mandy landed the chopper in a clearing on top of a hill a few hundred yards from the safe house, everyone waiting for the chopper's engine to go silent, watching outside for any possible threats. The forest was quiet, the night was dark, only the silhouettes and shadows of the trees could be seen.

"Come on." Arjun ordered getting out of the helicopter followed by Aly.

Before leaving, Sparrow stuck her head in through the cockpit door.

"Thanks for the ride." Sparrow bumped fists with Mandy.

Macfie smiled and nodded again. "Always a pleasure, Sergeant."

Jade also appeared who offered Mandy a pistol.

"Stand by until we make sure everything is calm. If you hear shots, prepare the engines"

Mandy nodded and accepted the gun. She checked the bullet cabin, making sure it was loaded.

"You have to be alert, for the moment the entire territory of Bolivia is considered hostile. If you hear something or see something that we haven't reported, shoot" Jade advised.

"Copy that, be careful out there."

They both went outside, Arjun and Aly standing guard, pointing their rifles at the tree line and the house.

"Ready to board," Sparrow announced, grabbing her weapon as well and touching her captain's shoulder indicating that she was right behind him.

The moment Jade's boots came down from the helicopter and touched the ground, they all started moving towards the safe house. It looked like a hunting cabin in the middle of the woods. It was made of logs and stone, had a front porch, and small windows. There seemed to be a dim light inside.

They all moved in formation, muffling their footsteps on the ground. When they got to a close distance Arjun waved for Aly and Jade to part ways. Both women surrounded the house, avoiding the windows and watching the corners, always with their weapons raised. They reached the back door and waited for the other two members of the team.

Arjun and Sparrow approached the porch. Hannah peeked out of one of the windows, looking inside. It looked like a hunting cabin inside too, everything had a very rustic feel to it. It was in the dark, the only source of light was a lamp on the table, it seemed to illuminate some documents and plans.

"There's no one… but I have visuals of possible useful intel" she said through the radio attached to her vest.

"Get ready, on my signal we board" Arjun ordered, moving to the side of the door. "Sparrow, do the honors."

Hannah returned to her captain, stood in front of the door, waiting for the order.

Arjun pushed the button of his radio. “now”

Hannah kicked the door hard, Arjun came in raising his rifle pointing in all directions.

By the second team. Jade slowly opened the door, signaling for Aly to wait and watch her back. Aly nodded and stood in the doorway, eyeing potential blind spots in the cabin's interior layout.

Arjun was the first to enter, pointing in all directions, watching his steps. Sparrow followed, gun raised. They found no one in the room.

"Hall clear" Arjun reported

"Captain." Sparrow called to him.

Arjun turned to the sergeant. Sparrow was looking at a huge proofing board on the wall just above the fireplace. There were photographs, maps with marked places, transcripts of telephone conversations, coordinates, newspaper clippings…

"Looks like Bowman has been doing her job…" Sparrow muttered.

"This will make things easier." He answered.

Arjun walked over to the table where a study lamp illuminated some plans for unfamiliar installations. He was going to comment something else but a slight sound was heard, perhaps it would have gone unnoticed by someone normal. But as soon as he heard it, he raised his rifle in that direction.

Sparrow was quick to react when she saw her captain raise his weapon.

A woman was at the door leading to the corridor. She appeared to be in her forties, with blue eyes and blond hair. She was pointing a pistol at both soldiers.

"I suggest you get out of here or the consequences will be fatal." The woman threatened.

"You are in no position to make demands, ma’am. Put the gun down." Hannah ordered.

Arjun aimed between the woman's eyes, he discovered the small detonator that she was hiding in the other hand.

"You underestimate me" The woman smiled confidently.

A karambit poked out from behind the woman and rested its curved point on her throat.

"You underestimate us" Arjun replied as Jade slowly pushed the knife towards the woman's throat, without saying a single word.

There was the sound of a loaded rifle, behind Jade and the Woman. Aly was taking aim from a distance, in the darkness of the hallway.

The woman smiled wryly and raised her hands slowly in surrender.

"Alright, you got me. We don't have to figure out how this situation will be resolved."

"Are you Karen Bowman?" Arjun asked without lowering the gun.

The woman looked at him, studied his stoic expression, and finished by nodding slowly.

"You must be the ones Kate sent me."

Arjun gave a slight nod, ordering Sparrow to lower her weapon. Hannah compiled but the guard kept her up. Jade put the knife away and Aly stopped aiming, moving closer until she was next to her partner.

"I didn't expect you so early." Bowman commented, putting the gun in the waistband of her jeans.

Arjun bowed his head "We go where we are called"

Bowman nodded "is it just you four?"

"For now...we have a pilot too." Arjun mentioned.

Aly switched on her comlink "Mandy, it's all clear, we've found Bowman."

"Roger, I'm on my way." Mandy replied.

"So…" Bowman paced the room, examining each of the members. "Laswell believes that you can take down the Santa Blanca cartel…"

"That's why we're here, right?" Sparrow raised her chin but kept a serious expression.

Karen raised her eyebrows and tilted her head slightly. "It remains to be seen what you are capable of"

Jade started flipping through the evidence board.

"This is from the previous task force?" She asked, looking at all the information.

"That's right. Months of research." Bowman sighed "I'd better bring you guys up to speed. The sooner we start, the sooner we can take down these sons of bitches."

"Entering the house" Mandy's voice came over the comms.

"Copy, Macfie. You may proceed inside" Arjun replied.

The pilot entered the safehouse. Sparrow gave her a slight nod in greeting. Mandy moved closer to her, scanning Bowman and the situation with her eyes.

"I have a feeling it wasn't the best welcome." she whispered.

"You have a good feeling" Hannah replied.

They both returned their concentration to the CIA agent. The team surrounded the table while Bowman went to the proofing board and tore off a few photos.

"The Santa Blanca empire is supported by four main pillars."

Bowman posted a photo of a man who looked like a Christian bishop, with a huge golden Cross hanging from his neck and a serious expression, then a second photo of a somewhat ostentatious-looking young man smirking into the camera.

"The First Pillar: Influence." Bowman began to explain "Santa Blanca’s trying to win the love of the Bolivian people, they fill their brains with false promises and lies." She pointed to the man dressed as a bishop promising the locals the entrance to paradise and the eternal and divine forgiveness of God if they collaborated with the Cartel. The drug traffickers are great devout Christians, but above all they have a special fondness reserved for "La Niña Blanca."

"La Santa Muerte…" Aly murmured.

Bowman agreed.

"This is one of the first ways they have to win over their followers. The other is by following in the footsteps of Pablo Escobar, building houses for the poorest neighborhoods, giving aid to families... in short... creating a good image of the cartel. Everything to sweep the shit under the rug and avoid prying eyes."

The CIA agent put another photo on the table. It showed El Sueño shaking hands with a man who was dressed as a military general.

"The second pillar is Security. El Sueño has been in charge of reducing the military and police forces of all Bolivia based on bribery. So do not expect support from the government or the army."

"What about the rebels?" Arjun asked.

"The rebels are a large group of Bolivian guerrillas who have been fighting the cartel for years. Pac Katari is their leader, I know him well, but you will need a good victory if you want to earn his respect and trust. He will not welcome you with open arms at first. I advise you to make yourselves heard, that the voice spread among the Bolivian people, and that your deeds reach their ears. Only then may you get rebel support."

"So…if we do their job, we will get their attention?" Sparrow rested both hands on the straps of her vest.

"The rebels are also in charge of helping those most in need in Bolivia. If you locate stores of supplies, weapons, ammunition, fuel... mark them with location beacons. So that the rebels can find them, it is also a good way to announce that you are their allies." Bowman replied.

"And the other two pillars?" Jade asked.

Karen nodded and placed another photo on the table, this one showing a very beautiful woman with a little girl by her side. The photo appeared to be taken from inside a car. The woman and the girl were walking through a wealthy neighborhood surrounded by bodyguards.

"The third pillar: Smuggling. This woman is the mastermind of all smuggling operations. You could not imagine what she is capable of inventing to be able to get cocaine across the borders. She manages to send and export to more than sixty percent of the entire globe. They didn't earn the title of one of the biggest cartels in the world just like that."

Bowman took two more photos. It showed a very old man, wrinkled, graying hair, brown skin, and sun-spotted. And in the other, a young man in his early thirties with features similar to those of the older man.

"And finally, the fourth pillar and the base of the entire Cartel: Production. Bolivia has been a great producer of the coca plant, for cultural and medicinal uses, but it was illegal. Although with the arrival of Santa Blanca it has become massive The cultivated fields are full of forced laborers."

"Labor slaves." Mandy gritted her teeth.

Bowman nodded again.

"The trafficking and kidnapping of people is an open secret. Santa Blanca claims to ensure jobs for all Bolivians but they only force them to work until they die. The cartel blames the rebels for the Bolivian deaths, trying to give them a bad name."

Bowman put her fists on the table.

"If we can knock down one of these pillars, we can shake the cartel and make Santa Blanca weaker."

Arjun looked at his team for a few seconds, then looked back at the CIA agent.

"Where do we start?" Arjun asked decisively.

Bowman dragged two photos to the center of the table with her fingers.

"We'll start with Production." Bowman began to explain.

Aly took the photograph of the older man and looked at it carefully.

"He is Rodolfo Yana. But everyone knows him as "El Yayo", unlike the rest, he is Bolivian, he is about seventy-three years old, but don't let his age confuse you. He is the main cocaine producer for Santa Blanca. Before El Yayo was a coca union leader but his ambition brought him to work with Santa Blanca. He is willing to work with the Cartel in order to protect his people and their customs. Thanks to Santa Blanca, Coca crops are legal and they are protected. Many say that he is a traitor, others define him as a true survivor."

Aly passed the photo to Jade, who stared at it for a while.

"This is our first objective?" Jade seemed somewhat confused, she didn't expect to have to go after someone so old.

Bowman agreed.

"El Yayo is a great defender of culture and traditions. At first, El Yayo got stable and well-paid work for many cocaleros in Bolivia. People treated him as a savior for giving work to so many people. But the demand for Cocaine for part of Santa Blanca just grew and grew. Good paying jobs turned into forced labor." Bowman sighed "El Yayo is a man who prefers to make agreements than use violence. So maybe we can negotiate with him…"

"How did we get to him?" Arjun asked.

Bowman put the second photograph next to the one of El Yayo.

"This is his grandson, Gonzalo Yana, he is about 25 years old, they call him El Emissario. He is the manager and head of production of cocaine. His grandfather knows how to grow coca, and he knows how to process it. He is actually a spoiled child. He is arrogant, carefree and does whatever he wants, hoping that his grandfather or other underbosses will bail him out. Don't be distracted by his behavior, Gonzalo is a genius when it comes to processing coke. With the knowledge inherited from El Yayo and his master's degree in chemistry is capable of processing the purest cocaine on the entire market."

"How did we find him?" Jade crossed her arms.

"To get to El Yayo, you first have to find his grandson. It will be our trick to find him." Karen explained, "We had Gonzalo caught by the balls a few months ago, but he fled the country like the coward that he is. Luckily we know that he returned to Bolivia a few days ago, knowing that the old task force has been taken off the game board." and taking into account that he cannot leave the production of Cocaine unattended. El Emisario or The Emissary believes that he is now safe and that he can return to business without problem." Bowman paused. "Now we just have to find it. We know it's in Ocoro, but going door to door into every cocaine lab in the region would be a waste of time. The cat would never catch the mouse."

"I can check all the radio and phone stations and channels in the area. Maybe I can intercept something." Aly suggested.

"That's why I love you, Aly." Sparrow joked. 

"Might be a good start. Let's get to work then" Arjun said, beginning Operation Kingslayer.

"Let's go for that bastard"

___________

The helicopter was flying over the Ocoro region. The night was moonless, it was the perfect time to act. Sparrow loaded her assault rifle. Arjun was at her side readying his gun as well.

"Okay, let's go over the plan. Aly, you're going to overwatch from a high point with the help of the surveillance drone. Keep the sniper rifle ready, I'm sure we'll need it. You'll be the one preparing our entrance."

"Got it" Aly was sitting in the cockpit together with Mandy. She had the exact coordinates on her laptop. Thanks to hacking and intercepting the radio channels in the Ocoro area, she was able to listen to a conversation with Gonzalo Yana and was able to triangulate his exact location.

"Sparrow and I will board through the first floor, while Jade will enter through the roof. We will take Gonzalo Yana out through the roof"

"Roger." Jade responded by assuring that the blade of her knives was properly sharpened.

"Okay, we'll look for Gonzalo Yana, remember that we need him alive. If the rest show resistance, you have full permission to shoot."

"We are arriving." Mandy's voice blared over everyone's comms.

"Understood! Everyone get ready"

When they reached the agreed point, they all prepared to slide down the rope. Sparrow leaned back into the cockpit.

"We are ready."

Mandy nodded. "Go carefully."

Sparrow gave Mandy a fist bump and patted Aly on the shoulder.

"Be our eyes, Aly." Sparrow smiled confidently.

Aly smiled and nodded.

"I'll watch your back"

"Sparrow let's go!" Arjun was ready to go down the rope.

"Copy, Captain!" She turned to her two companions "take care of yourselves, my ladies." the sergeant said goodbye.

Jade, Arjun and Sparrow slid down the rope.

When they all reached the ground Mandy piloted the helicopter to get Aly into the most suitable position to observe the facility from a distance but also to be close enough for her to connect to the main network and work her magic.

The team wasted no time, and began moving in formation. Taking care not to make noise.

The Ocoro region was a rural area. Mountainous, with small forests and numerous cultivated fields. The team walked a little further until there was an old industrial warehouse between the trees. There were huge outdoor spotlights illuminating the darkness of the night and a wall enclosing the restricted area.

They reached a high position to be able to observe the facilities well. The darkness covered them and prevented them from being seen.

"What do we have here…" Sparrow muttered, taking out the binoculars. "There are few entrances. Four floors, I suspect they will have a few more floors in the basement." The sergeant began to explain "Small windows and concrete walls… it's like a fucking fortress."

"Containment measures? Guards?" Jade asked. Who began to enlist her gear  to be able to make her entrance. Putting the silencer on her pistol and securing her bulletproof vest.

"There are a couple of machine guns stationed at the main entrance, snipers on the roof and in the watchtowers. Heavy armored guards at each corner, they wear ballistic helmets, we won't be able to take them out with one shot."

"leave them to me"

"Alyssa what is your status?" Arjun spoke into the comm.

There were a few seconds of silence.

"In position and waiting."

Aly was about 300m away, in an elevated position and perfect for providing overwatch. She was lying on the grass with the sniper rifle slung over her shoulder, peering through the rifle's telescopic sight. Next to her was the drone ready to be sent and the laptop that showed on the screen the synchronization with the central electrical system had been completed.

"Do you have visual on the target?" Arjun asked.

Aly looked through the windows of the building. Until she finally found a lighted window on the top floor.

"I have visual on Gonzalo Yana. Fourth floor, last room on the right."

Sparrow pointed the binoculars in the same direction.

"Affirmative. I see that bastard." Sparrow confirmed.

"Alright. Whenever you want Alyssa." The captain spoke.

Aly looked away from the scope for a moment and focused on her laptop, typing for a couple of minutes.

"Starting attack in three, two, one…" Aly hit the button "Lights off. All security systems disabled"

And suddenly, all the lights that illuminated the facilities went out. Everything was left in complete darkness. The guards outside were confused and kept alert for a long time. Until one of them mentioned that it was a simple blackout, and that it was normal in this region.

The team waited until the guards calmed down and went about their business, waiting for someone to fix the electrical system.

"Jade." Arjun whispered.

The named one nodded, clutching her pistol with the silencer attached in one hand and a karambit in the other.

"Good luck" Sparrow spoke "We'll be waiting"

Jade smiled and patted Hannah's shoulder before walking off down the hill. Stealthily approaching the entrance of the facility.

When she reached it, she put her back to the wall and waited silently for the guard to get close enough. She adjusted her grip on the handle of the knife, and when the guard was at appropriate distance, Jade clamped a hand over his mouth and buried the knife in his neck, between his shoulder pads and helmet. Carefully she dragged the body to a safe place so they wouldn't find it. But as soon as she put the body on the ground, another guard appeared walking casually without noticing what was happening around him. But he would end up noticing if he kept advancing in the direction of Jade. She wasted no time, grabbing one of the knives from the dead guard's tactical vest and throwing it with such precision at the guard that the knife sliced ​​through the air to slam into the second guard's face. The man fell backwards like a sack full of stones.

Jade sighed quietly in relief. Wasting no more time, she hid the second body next to the other and continued advancing. Jade melted into the shadows, using only her knife.

She would stab a guard in the neck and with two silent shots finish off the second. The bullets were always perfectly accurate, one in the bulletproof vest and one in the face. It ended with the vast majority of narcos who were standing guard abroad. She took care of those who were positioned behind the fixed machine guns and those who guarded all the entrances. And nobody noticed what was happening.

Jade was cleaning the blade of her knife on the clothes of the corpse of one of the guards, when she spoke through the comms.

"Aly, the sniper on the watchtower could compromise my position. To the east."

It didn't take long for Aly to aim the sniper rifle where Jade indicated.

"Got him"

As soon as he was in her sights, she held her breath, made some final calculations, and pulled the trigger. The enemy sniper disappeared into the darkness after being shot in the chest.

"Enemy sniper is down." Aly reported on the radio

Jade was able to continue creeping through the darkness around that drug lab until she found an emergency ladder that led to the roof. She climbed them carefully so that her boots did not make noise against the metal of theladder, she knew perfectly well that company would be waiting for her up on the roof.

When she got to the top, she saw two snipers walking around on the roof. Light-footed and keeping low, she took down the first sniper without a problem, but the second one apparently turned around ahead of schedule. Jade had to react quickly, with the pistol pointed at his chest and fired a couple of times. The sniper's bulletproof vest retained both bullets even though both shots nearly sent him to the ground.

The MI6 agent pounced on him when she saw that he was trying to communicate by threadbare. Jade wasted no time in pulling out her knife and making two quick slashes, the guard was able to defend himself by covering his face with both arms. Jade took the opportunity to kick his stomach hard, making him lose his balance and make him drop the sniper rifle to the ground.

The angry guard lunged at her, but Jade was faster and dodged without a problem. They kept up close combat for a while, the sniper throwing hard, heavy blows, while Jade moved nimbly, brandishing her knife, slashing across his arms. She would shift the knife from one hand to the other, changing the position of the curved blade, and every time she found a gap to get through his guard, she would not miss the opportunity to try and stab in the neck. In the end she managed to slip over the side and quickly rolled across the ground and made a quick, deep gash behind the knee. The man fell to his knees because the tendons could no longer support his leg.

Jade wasted no more time, she was tired of playing. With her other hand she drew a second karambit and using all her strength stabbed just below his jaw. The curved blade of the knife pierced the roof of the mouth while the first knife slashed across the throat.

When Jade pulled out the knife the soldier fell to the ground bleeding to death. She wiped at the blood splattered on her face, then hit the button on her communicator.

"I'm in position." He announced looking at the corpse of the guard.

"Roger that, I'll let Macfie know so she can have the helicopter ready for extraction" Aly replied.

While Jade dealt with the guards outside, Sparrow and Arjun moved through the compound, ready to enter through a back door that led to the facility's warehouse.

Arjun cleaned the blade of his knife on the dead guard's clothing while Sparrow stood guard, making sure no one approached them unnoticed. The captain managed to pick the lock on the door and opened it carefully.

"Come on, Sergeant." Arjun whispered.

Sparrow followed him into the facility.

The building was dark as expected. Both soldiers moved through the corridors in silence, Arjun taking the lead while Sparrow brought up the rear. Thanks to the silencers they eliminated any hostile people they encountered.

"Shoot carefully, there are civilians in the laboratories" Arjun said.

"Roger"

They found the stairs and went up to the second and then the third floor, leaving not a single living guard behind. They entered a room that appeared to be a communications room. There were computers, shelves full of documents, and radios with different comms channels. Some guards could be heard talking on the radio.

"First and second floors are the laboratories… The third is the offices?" asked Sparrow, puzzled. "This is not a normal cocaine lab…"

Arjun returned to her when he was sure the room was clear.

"This is a gold mine, we could get information from here." Arjun commented. "Sparrow, make a Backup copy of all the files on the mainframe. Alyssa can process the data later."

"Ok."

"Arjun, Sparrow! The guards have found one of the corpses." Aly announced agitated. "They're starting to go up the stairs!"

"Bloody hell… we should have hidden the corpses better." Sparrow cursed.

"We didn't have time for that, our priority is Gonzalo Yana…" Arjun leaned his back against the wall right next to the window and leaned out slightly to see what was happening outside. The guards seemed to be flustered, looking out the windows of the building and running all in one direction.

"Jade, what's the situation outside?" Arjun asked.

"Everyone is very nervous, they are entering the building." Charlotte replied.

"Understood. Aly, how much time do we have?"

"A minute at most." she answered.

"Fuck…"

"Sir, Gonzalo Yana will escape if we don't hurry." Sparrow nervously said, shifting her weight from her leg.

"I know." Arjun closed his eyes and pondered for a few seconds what to do. They couldn't leave without the information from the central computer, and neither could they leave without Gonzalo Yana. So he only had one option left. Trust his teammate. Arjun knew full well what Sparrow was capable of. It was not their first mission together, he was aware of the skills of the sergeant and that he could entrust the fate of the mission to her.

"Captain." Sparrow eagerly awaited further orders.

Arjun took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

"Focus on the computer and make sure you extract all the useful data. Client lists, contraband, locations of other labs…everything." Arjun walked towards the door. "Make sure they don't kill you, sergeant."

"And what are you going to do, sir?" Sparrow asked.

"Jade, get ready." Arjun ordered over the comms and then looked at his sergeant "I'm going to get that rat out of his hole." Arjun left the room and without wasting any time ran towards the stairs leading to the top floor.

Sparrow wasted no time too, pulling out an external battery to power the computer and a flash drive from one of her vest pockets, and began backing up all the files.

Gunshots could be heard inside the building, surely Arjun had engaged in combat with the remaining guards on the upper floor. Sparrow ignored her desire to go help her captain and watched as little by little the percentage bar on the computer screen filled up.

"Sparrow on your six!" Aly's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

Hannah spun around as she saw a huge soldier lunge at her with a knife. Sparrow had to drop her weapon to use both hands to prevent the knife from plunging into her face.

Sparrow was between the table and the attacker. She used all her strength to get that guy off her. She pushed him away from her and punched him in the nose. The guard swayed slightly, holding the bridge of his now bleeding nose.

"Puta zorra…"

Sparrow wasted no time, as the man lunged at her again, Sparrow raised her fists, punching him again in the face and then in the ribs. She moved swiftly across the room, dodging the knife that the man swung dangerously from side to side. Sparrow had to admit that this man was tough to beat, no matter how hard she hit him, it seemed as if he wasn't affected. Even though his face was covered in blood.

Sparrow took a quick look at the computer, five percent left for the backup to finish. She had to hurry, she had to finish this jerk and get back to Arjun as soon as possible.

"Come on… I can last all day." Sparrow waved a hand, signaling for him to come closer to continue the fight and further anger the guard.

She was walking slowly back towards the window. As the guard ran towards her to punch her in the face, Sparrow dodged quickly, managing to get behind him. As the guard turned back to her, Hannah kicked him in the chest. Causing him to stagger a couple of meters away from her.

The man was ready to attack again, but suddenly, a sniper bullet broke the window glass and went through the guard's head. The man collapsed on the ground lifeless and staining the ground with his own blood.

Sparrow smiled at the corpse at her feet, then looked at the hole in the window.

"What would I be if it wasn't for you Aly?"

Aly watched through the scope of her sniper rifle as Sparrow waved to her from across the room. She smiled, happy to see her friend safe.

"You know it's always a pleasure to watch your back, hermosa"

Sparrow looked away from the window when she heard the notification that the backup had finished. She rushed to grab the flash drive and the battery, then grabbed her weapon and ran to the top floor.

Along the way, she encountered several enemies and didn’t hesitate to shoot. She finished with any obstacle that was found along the way. When it came to dealing with firefights, there was no better soldier than her. She eliminated all the guards until she went up to the fourth floor.

Suddenly Sparrow, between the shots, saw Gonzalo Yana being thrown into the air, out of a room. Arjun came out soon after, his expression completely serious. For a moment Hannah felt sorry for that Narco, when Captain Arjun was angry, he was a scary man.

Gonzalo Yana began to flee in the direction of the stairs that led to the roof. But it seemed like Arjun didn't care, in fact he cared more about taking down the remaining guards in the corridor. Using only his pistol, a knife and a perfect aim, he finished off all the guards. When silence finally reigned in the place again, Sparrow was finally able to get out from behind the wall that she used as cover.

"Are you okay sergeant?" Arjun asked, although he didn't physically show it, he was worried about Sparrow.

"Affirmative sir." Hannah hurried over to him. "What's with that asshole?"

Sparrow was still confused, Arjun had let Gonzalo Yana run away.

"The Rat is cornered. Let's go for him"

Arjun walked up the stairs leading to the roof in no hurry. While they watched the Narco run up them so fast that he almost tripped more than once. Arjun didn't need to chase him, he knew exactly how this was going to end. It was like when a murderer knows that he doesn't have to waste energy running, he knows perfectly well that he will find you, no matter where you hide.

Gonzalo Yana banged open the door leading to the roof, but as soon as he stepped outside. The point of a karambit landed on his neck, so stealthily that the man seemed to him that he had been cornered by a ghost. He was petrified with fear.

Jade held the knife to the target's throat when Arjun and Sparrow appeared on the rooftop shortly after.

"We have the target." Arjun announced through the comms.

"Roger, Macfie is on her way." Aly replied.

"Who are you?!"

"You're not the one asking the questions here, kid" Arjun replied with a sinister tone.

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into! Do you have any idea who I am?!" Gonzalo Yana seemed to be on the verge of hysteria.

"Oh, we know that very well… Sparrow, knock him out."

"It will be a pleasure"

___________

When Gonzalo Yana woke up. He found himself tied to a chair in a small room with no windows, just a light bulb hanging from the ceiling above him.

There was a red-haired woman sitting in a chair similar to his. But she wasn't tied down, in fact, she had a grim look on her face, kept silent, deep in her own thoughts.

"We don't have to make this any more complicated than it already is." Arjun's voice was heard behind Gonzalo.

The captain had his back against the wall and his arms folded.

"Don't waste time lying or hiding information from us. It will only make it worse."

"I would rather die than tell you!" Gonzalo Yana seemed to want to hide his fear behind his anger "You are naive! You don't know what you are getting into…"

Arjun ignored the Narco's words, kept calm and kept talking.

"Rodolfo Yana." Arjun mentioned the name of El Yayo. "Where is he?"

It took Gonzalo a few seconds to understand what they were asking of him.

"The old?" He laughed "No, you'll never find him. Listen amigo…you're not aware of how deep this shit hole is. You're just foreigners who think you can come here and remove all the shit and get out of it unscathed. The simple fact: If you touch a single hair on my head, you’ll mark a cross on your back. La Santa Muerte will come for you and will hunt you until the end of your days."

Suddenly Arjun grabbed Gonzalo Yana's hair and pulled his head back, forcing him to look into his eyes. The light from the ceiling made Gonzalo only see a dark silhouette of a man.

"I think you already disappointed me. You already were, not to me but for everybody. Because of your "pathetic" self.. decided to choose this path with your family who had nothing to do but to cause suffering." Said Arjun, in a tone capable of making anyone's skin crawl "we are not what you see... we are not what you think. I could snap your neck right now and end your poor, pathetic life. But no, you have a much bigger purpose.." Arjun brought his face close to Gonzalo's "when we're done with you… you'll wish I'd snapped your neck."

Gonzalo Yana had not realized that he was sweating and trembling the moment Arjun let go of his head.

Arjun walked towards the door, but before leaving, he patted Jade on the shoulder.

"It's all yours" and left the room.

When he stepped outside the safe house, he found Sparrow, Aly, and Mandy waiting outside. Crickets could be heard in the bushes and a cool breeze blew gently.

"There is no turning back." Arjun mentioned. "Jade will get us the information we want."

Aly sighed in concern. "Jade is good at what she does, she's an MI6 agent after all but…this will affect her."

Sparrow nodded, agreeing with her.

"If we hurt Gonzalo Yana…" Mandy had a serious expression like everyone else. "We will send a clear message to El Sueño."

"Sir…I understand this is a covert mission. But we really don't know where we're going. We don't know what El Sueño is capable of." Sparrow spoke. "You saw how many guards there were in just a cocaine lab in the middle of nowhere."

Arjun nodded understandingly. "I'm aware, Sergeant. I'll talk to Laswell, maybe he can pull more strings. But for now, we're the only ones who can stop this madness."

"And what about the Rebel forces?" Aly asked.

"They will be considered hostile until proven otherwise. Although Bowman is an old friend of Laswell's, I don't trust her." Arjun crossed his arms and looked at his boots "We'll figure something out. But for now, we're dealing with this jerk."

Meanwhile, inside the Safe house, Jade and Gonzalo Yana were left alone in the room.

Jade was silent, she was terrifyingly calm. There was no emotion on her face.

"We can do this by hook or by crook." She began to explain. "I just need you to tell me a place and a time."

"If you think I'm going to tell you where my grandfather is. You're so wrong, puta."

Jade spent some time studying the man's body language. He was scared, but he hid it well. His hands were restless despite being tied. He kept his head up and still but his eyes were unable to maintain eye contact with Jade.

"We know that you recently returned to Bolivia, and we know that you have conversations with your grandfather. He is always the one who has to save you, right? You always end up in trouble and make El Sueño angry. But Rodolfo Yana is always there to protect you." Jade explained.

"That doesn't matter…you're not going to get me to talk. It doesn't matter what you do." Gonzalo Yana smiled sideways.

Jade nodded a few times and sighed. She got up from her chair and walked over to him.

"I see you made up your mind."

She rested her hand on Gonzalo's temple and looked at him for a few seconds.

"I will ask you a question. And you must answer honestly." Jade spoke again "Where is Rodolfo Yana?"

"Fuck you, pendeja."

"Wrong answer"

Jade pressed into the space between the eyebrow and the eyeball.

"AAAAAAAAAH!"

Jade closed her eyes and continued pressing on one of the most painful points in the body, there are many nerves in that area and it causes great pain and discomfort when pressing on it.

The screams echoed through the room, so loud that surely the people outside could hear them.

"Let's try one more time." Jade eased the pressure but didn't pull her hand away. "Where is Rodolfo Yana?"

Gonzalo was breathing heavily, he looked like an animal. But still he said nothing. He kept silent.

Jade, getting no response, pressed again. The screams resounded throughout the place.

The interrogation began to be a game of tug of war, Jade asked questions, and Gonzalo did not answer what she wanted. It seemed a bit like a game of cat and mouse. But this time the Cat played with the mouse until he died from exhaustion.

"Please! I don't know! I don't know!"

"No I don't know's. Just answer my question. It's easy, come on."

The game continued, gradually escalating until Jade decided to use more effective methods. She didn't want to come to this, but he gave her no choice. It was time to pull out nails, Jade started with the toes. She wrapped the toe with a rubber band to reduce the flow of blood, neither too tight nor too loose, she wanted Gonzalo Yana to see the blood but not bleed to death. Then with a toothpick she inserted it between the nail and the finger.

Gonzalo Yana screamed in pain. The nail was separated from the toe. Jade looked at the Narco once more waiting for an answer but he just whimpered. So she ended up ripping it off.

Gonzalo was dying, tossing and turning in his chair. He seemed like an animal dominated by hysteria and fear.

"Please, please! I already told you I don't know!"

"If you so much as breathe another 'I don't know’, I will rip another one of your nails. Think. Remember. We could do this all night." Jade stayed calm. 

The hours passed, until finally the cat caught the mouse. The screams stopped instantly.

Everyone waited outside. Sparrow paced back and forth like a caged lion. Arjun was thoughtful with his arms folded. Aly was trying to clear her mind and ignore what she had been hearing for hours trying to decipher the information Sparrow got from the lab's central computer. And Mandy going through the topographic maps of the area.

The door to the Safe House opened. Jade came out wiping her hands on a bloody rag. She approached Arjun without saying a single word and handed him a piece of paper with the exact location and time where Rodolfo Yana could be.

Then she left, without saying a single word. She entered the forest and disappeared into the darkness and the undergrowth.

"Jade…!" Aly tried to follow her but Mandy stopped her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Sparrow walked over and shook her head. She knew that Jade needed to be alone. She had to collect her thoughts and deal with her internal struggle.

An internal struggle that the whole team had.

[thatsmzbitchtoyou]

Pretty Pointy Smile FINAL Chapter 5

This is set in more of like the 1950-60s/ish time period.

Warnings: eventual smut, physical assault, a gun, a lion attack

“There you are, Bucky,” Y/N called out.

Tomorrow had come too quickly for Bucky.  He had been so excited to get back into doing the act and now he was dreading it.  He’d have to touch her, hold her, feel her against him, act like he was yearning for her when it was definitely not an act.  He had not slept well after his self care yesterday, and was still feeling the shame, sexual frustration and exhaustion.

“Where have you been?  I haven’t seen you since yesterday just before the sides,” she asked as she caught up to him as he entered the big tent for practice.

“Oh, I just uh, wasn’t feeling great…didn’t sleep well,” he said offhandedly, trying to keep walking.

“Oh, well are you sick?  Still need some time to heal?  We can wait–”

“No, no I’m fine.  Let’s do this,” he answered in a short tone.  Y/N looked taken aback but didn’t say anything.

“We’re here!” the carnies called out as they wheeled the large cage out, the red curtain already pulled aside.  

“Okay, well, let’s practice.  I’m sure we’ll be fine but it’s been a while so I just want to make sure we have our blocking still memorized and the timing is still down pat.  Any questions before we start?” Y/N was all business as she got into position.  Everyone shook their heads and she turned around as Bucky got himself inside the cage.

“Ladies and gentlemen!  After a brief escape attempt, we have wrangled our next act back home to us.  I came across him on my travels through Transylvania…” Y/N continued the beginning speech.  Everything went off without a hitch, the carnies doing their part and Bucky acting the part just not as passionately as usual since it was just rehearsal and he didn’t want to strain his voice or body before the show.  When it came time to pounce on Y/N and hold her against him he paused.

Y/N waited with her hand stretched out, an expectant look on her face as she stood with him in the cage.  Her face morphed into one of concern as she took a step forward.  “What’s wrong?” she whispered.  “Did you forget something?”

“No,” Bucky said quickly.  He still didn’t move, his body freezing while his mind was screaming at him to keep going.  The carnies around the cage were shifting their feet, looking back and forth between the two of them confused.  

“Okay, well come on then.  Come get me,” Y/N instructed him, her fingers moving in a come here motion.  

“I…” Bucky was freaking out.  “Um, excuse me,” he said and walked around Y/N and out of the cage, running off towards the personal tents.

“Bucky?” she called out after him.

Bucky was cursing himself as he sped along until he reached his tent.  This was nothing new, they’ve done it plenty of times together before, just because you had a moment of weakness doesn’t mean you can’t keep going business as usual, just be a professional, he thought.  He ran his hands through his hair and jumped when a hand pulled his tent door back suddenly.

“Bucky, what the hell was that?” Y/N scoffed at him, her breath slightly labored like she’d ran after him.  “What’s going on?”

Bucky just blinked at her, his mouth hung open as stared at her.  His hands were wringing themselves together as he kept himself as far away from her as possible in the small tent.

“Buck?” Y/N said softer, her tone nothing but concern.  She slowly took a step towards him, her hands up as if in surrender.  “It’s just me.  You can talk to me.”

“I can’t,” he whispered, his eyes shutting tight as she stepped closer.

“Why not?” she whispered back.  She was close enough to reach a hand out and cup his cheek, her thumb caressing the skin under his eye.

“I can’t…trust myself,” Bucky bit out, keeping his eyes shut and his hands turning into fists at his sides.

“Trust yourself with what?  The act?” 

“You.”

“Me?” Y/N sounded scared.  He didn’t want her to be scared, especially of him.  “You can’t trust yourself with me?  Why?  Did I do something?”

Bucky’s eyes shot open.  “NO!  No, you didn’t do anything,” he quickly corrected.  “It’s me, it’s just me.  I…” he pulled away from her hand on his face and tried to distance himself to the other corner of the tent, steeling himself.  “I saw your sideshow yesterday.”

“O-kay…” Y/N prompted him, her eyes narrowing.

“And I…it, it just um, made me feel, a lot of things and I…” Bucky felt like throwing himself off the nearest tower.  

“It made you feel…excited?” Y/N ventured, a slight smile playing on her lips.

“Yeah, it made me feel excited.  And I have been feeling uh, different with you, for a while.  I did something kind of dumb yesterday and now I’m feeling embarrassed and touching you is turning out to be very hard today because of it–”

“Bucky, you’re rambling,” Y/N laughed as she approached him again.  “You don’t need to be embarrassed.  It’s a little provocative, I get it.  You don’t need to worry about touching me.  We’ve done this multiple times before.”

“I know,” he said defeatedly.  “That was before I–” he stopped himself, a hot blush coloring his cheeks as he looked away again.

“Before you what?” Y/N asked, cornering him in the tent, making it so he didn’t have anywhere to go and would have to physically move her if he tried.  “Did you feel too excited?” her voice dropped, her eyelids half drooped as she moved closer.  Bucky’s eyes widened at her sudden change in demeanor, and he felt himself nodding at her question.  “Did you run off and…take care of yourself?” She asked in a teasing tone.  Bucky gulped loudly and nodded again.  “You were thinking of me?  As you relieved yourself?”  Bucky’s gut dropped as he felt his cock starting springing to life in his pants.  He tried to minutely turn away so she wouldn’t see or feel it but it was too late as her eyes swept over him, an eyebrow upturned when she caught sight of the tent in his pants forming.  “Dirty boy,” she teased, her hand reaching out and touching his arm, her fingers running up to his shoulder then scratching down his chest with her nails.  Bucky’s breath hitched.

“You want me?” Y/N asked as her middle fingernail drug over his nipple.  Bucky’s hips jerked, his hands still at his sides in tight fists, his head dropped down watching her.  His eyebrows were scrunched up in the middle, his bottom lip pulled in by his top teeth, his fangs dangerously poking into the skin.  He nodded his head as he looked at her, his eyes begging her to do more.

“Then come to practice.  And maybe, if you’re really good at your first show back, then you can touch me in all the ways you thought about,” she leaned forward and planted a kiss on his clavicle, then turned and left his tent.  

Bucky was being tortured.  For the next few hours he fought everything in him not to just pick Y/N up and take her back to her tent to have his way with her.  She kept teasing him.  Through practice when he held her to “feed” she pushed her ass further into him and quietly praised him so only he could hear.  The show that night had a great turnout as word spread quickly in the town that the vampire act was back, and without missing a beat while he “fed” from her she gripped the hand around her neck harder then reached around and gripped his thigh with the other.  It nearly made him buckle but he somehow was able to keep himself upright.

After they left the main stage and were getting cleaned up Bucky watched her get changed, openly ogling her.  She was so pretty as she put on a show for him as she washed the blood off, fixing her hair, stripping out of the blood stained clothes into the bustier that showed off more of her tattoos, all while staring him down.  She gave him a wink as she finished and swayed her hips while walking back out to the ring.

Bucky helped backstage until the show was over, then quickly made his way to her tent, trying to not be too obvious to those around him about where he was going as they said hello and congratulated him on a great first show back.  He snuck his way into her tent and sat himself on her bed as he waited.  He felt like a lovesick puppy, waiting for his treat for his good behavior.  She had him fully whipped, wrapped around her fingers, besotted and insanely aroused.

After some time he heard the rustling of footsteps in the grass outside, then Y/N’s hand reached through the tent door and pulled it back, walking in still in her bustier outfit.  She took a look around and on seeing Bucky sat patiently on her bed gave him a lopsided smile.

“Hey you,” she greeted him, slowly walking towards him.

“Hey,” he greeted her back, a small smile plastered on his face.

“You did so good, Bucky,” she praised him as she urged him to sit back further on the bed, then straddled his lap.  Bucky felt the air whoosh from his lungs as she settled over his groin, her hands stroking his face.  “That was probably one of your best performances.  I wonder why?” She teased him as she started littering kisses across his face, featherlight touches on his forehead, his nose, cheeks and the corners of his mouth, hovering over his lips but never quite touching them.  His hands dug into her hips as a way to ground himself.

“Y/N please,” he begged, his lips chasing hers, “I can’t take it anymore.”

“Can’t take what?” Y/N licked the side of his mouth, making him whimper.  

“This is torture,” he mumbled, his hands pushing against her lower back to try to force her to be closer to his face to kiss her.

“Isn’t it fun?” She laughed lightly, her fingers scratching the stubble on his chin then one hand looping around the back of his neck and forcing his head to the side so she could suck on his neck, kissing and licking up his jugular to his earlobe, giving it a nibble and a soft suck.  

The noises falling from Bucky’s mouth were inhuman sounds he didn’t recognize. “Y/N…I’ve never, ooh, I’ve never done this before,” he said quickly while he still had the frame of mind to do so.

“That’s okay, love, I’ll take care of you,” Y/N promised him, her lips coming back to his face.  She finally took hold of his cheeks and kissed him.

Bucky’s body reacted immediately, his kiss desperate and needy, letting out a low groan deep in his throat, his hands suddenly on her ass and pushing her against his crotch.  Y/N’s mouth opened, her tongue poking at his lips until he opened his mouth and she tasted his tongue, his fangs nicking her tongue every once in a while.  She pulled back after a particularly rough nick, touching her tongue with her fingers and seeing blood.

“I’m so sorry,” Bucky panicked at the sight of the blood.

“I’m not,” Y/N moaned, licking the blood off and diving back in for another bruising kiss.  The tangy iron taste made it all the more erotic as their tongues swirled and she sucked and nipped at his lower lip.

Y/N could sense Bucky’s hesitation as his hands twitched on her ass, wanting to touch her more but unsure.  She pulled his hands up toward her chest as she kissed him, placing them over her breasts and urging him to touch.  He pulled away from the kiss and dropped his gaze to her chest as she helped him knead the soft flesh.  She started pulling at the straps behind her to release the bustier she was wearing, and when she freed herself from the confining garment tossed it to the side and let Bucky roam her body.

Bucky stared at her exposed upper body, his fingers tracing the tattoos and his eyes flicking back and forth between her breasts.  He gently massaged them, his thumbs rubbing over her nipples making her arch her back into his hands and lightly gasp.  He brought his head down to kiss her left breast, then stuck his tongue out and swirled it around that nipple.  Y/N’s fingers gripped his shoulders as he licked and sucked at it, his fangs poking her every once in a while, the sharp pains making her dig her fingernails into his skin.  He repeated his actions to her right breast then kissed and licked up her chest and throat.  

Y/N silently pulled at his shirt, helping him rid himself of it then pushing him to lay back on the bed.  She stood from his lap and started stripping the underwear and short bloomers she had on for her costume.  “May I?” she gestured towards his trousers, her fingers looping over the belt.  He nodded quickly.  She undid his belt, unbuttoned the trousers and dipped her fingers below the band of both those and his underwear, pulling them down and off as he quickly kicked off his shoes.  They were finally completely naked and drank up the sight of each other.

Y/N knelt in front of him by the bed, her fingers snaking up his thighs until she reached his cock and gripped him gently.  Bucky moaned as his eyes fluttered shut.  She leaned forward and gave him a small lick at the tip, making his hips jerk and his hands grip the blanket beneath him.  “Sensitive?” she teased him, giving him a broad lick from the base of his shaft up to the tip, then wrapping her lips around the head and giving him a firm suck.  Bucky tensed as he willed himself not to immediately cum on the spot.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered, leaning up on his elbows to watch her.  “I don’t know if I’ll be able to last, angel face.”  Y/N hummed and smiled at the pet name, still giving his cock firm pumps with one hand and the other scooping his balls into her palm and playing with them.  “Fuck!” he whimpered again, his head falling back.

“You’re so handsome like this, Bucky,” Y/N praised him before sliding him back into her mouth and bobbing her head up and down, taking in as much of him as she could.  Bucky’s hands flew to her head, his fingers tracing down her jaw and feeling himself in her throat as she bobbed.  

“Oh fuck, holy shit!  I’m gonna…gonna…” Bucky could feel himself finishing quickly, trying to not let it be over just yet before he had a chance to be inside of her.  It was just so good he couldn’t stop it.  Y/N felt his balls tightening and quickly popped off his cock, stroking him as he came, the white spurts coating his stomach.  She smirked as she watched him, helping him get it all out before she wiped her hand on the carpet below and joined him on the bed, leaning on her elbow next to him as he calmed down.

She reached over and skimmed his jaw with her fingers.  Bucky smiled at her, licking his lips as he regained his breath.  “Wow,” he said simply, his eyes hooded and his hips shaking a bit.  “But, you didn’t get to…” he looked at her horrified.

“You can help me now, and we’ll see where you’re at then,” Y/N giggled at his concern.  Her hand traveled down her body to her pussy, her fingers dipping between her lower lips.  Bucky watched her, sitting up quickly.  “Give me your hand,” she said as she laid down.  Bucky obeyed and she took his hand to reach it down to where her other hand was.  She maneuvered his fingers to where she wanted them and showed him what to do.

“You got it?” she asked quietly, watching his face for any negative reaction.  

“Yeah, I think so,” Bucky said with a furrowed brow as he focused on the task.  His fingers slowly rubbed her lips and his thumb flicked her clit, making her gasp and arch her back.  “Was that right?”

“Yeesss,” she moaned, “keep doing that.”

Bucky smiled as he gained a bit of confidence and did it again, working her up until she was writhing beside him.  Her body was angled towards him as he rubbed her in all the right places, one hand holding his wrist that was near her pussy and the other wrapped around his neck as he dipped his head to kiss her.  He pushed a finger inside of her and made her keen against him.  He thrusted that finger a few times then added another, making her sputter as she breathed rapidly.  

“Oooohh, just like that!” she said, her voice raising as she bucked her hips into his hand.

“Yeah?  You like that?  I wanna make you feel good, angel face,” Bucky smirked, switching from rubbing her clit to flicking it quickly as his fingers thrusted in and out of her, slightly curling in with each thrust.

“Oh fuck, ugh!” Y/N’s eyes rolled back as she threw her head back, her legs shaking as she convulsed in his hand, liquid spurting from her that he didn’t know what it was but felt himself hardening again as he watched her cum.

“Good girl,” he praised her, slowing the thrusting of his fingers until she calmed down.  He pulled his fingers out and looked at the liquid on them, bringing them up to his mouth and licking them tentatively.  Y/N watched him, fighting back a smile as he tried it, and upon deciding he liked it, put both fingers in his mouth and sucked them clean.

“God, Buck, you’re a fast learner,” she groaned, her eyes closing and a goofy smile on her face.  She looked down at him and saw his cock throbbing.  “I want you in me, do you wanna try?” she asked, looking up at him.

His eyes fluttered closed again, “Fuck yes.”  He quickly climbed on top of her, settling between her legs and hovering his body over hers.  His eyes raked over her naked form as his hands traveled from her ankles up to her hips.  “Do you have, um, something to uh, cover up?” he asked suddenly, looking unsure.

“Yeah, in the top drawer of the vanity, in the wooden box,” she instructed.

Bucky jumped off the bed to the vanity, pulling out the box and returning back to Y/N on the bed.  She giggled at his excitement and took the box from him, opening it and pulling out contraception she’d stocked up on just in case.  His eyes bulged at the amount she had in there but pretended like he didn’t see it.  She quickly unraveled it and slipped it on him, making him groan as she gave him a few pumps with her hand, then pulled him close.

“Just take your time, Buck.  I’ll be okay.  You got me all ready, just slide nice and easy,” she told him as he gripped his cock and nudged the tip towards her entrance.  “That’s right, rub it all over, you got me so wet, love.”  Bucky slowly pushed the head of his cock into her, the stretch making them both groan lowly, then he pushed further little by little, always making sure she was comfortable while also trying not to blow immediately.  It felt like her pussy was suffocating him in the most delicious way.  He finally bottomed out, panting as he tried to breath through it so he could make it last for both of them.

“Bucky…oh you feel so good,” Y/N sighed, her hands running up and down his arms as her legs hooked themselves behind his back.

“Don’t–ugh, don’t move, don’t move,” he begged, his head falling into the crook of her neck.  “I…fucking hell angel, so tight,” he gritted his teeth.  After a few moments he experimentally pulled back and thrusted in, making Y/N whimper.  “Shit, you feel so good.  Feel like heaven.  You’re so good to me,” Bucky rambled on as he looked down and watched her take him in then leave a creamy mess as he pulled back.  The sight had him groaning again.

“My love…” she whispered, her hands now running through his hair and scratching his scalp.  “Please, go harder, faster.  I can take it.”

“I’ll try,” Bucky said, gritting his teeth again as he planted his hands on either side of her head.  He pulled back sharply then rutted into her harder.  It made her whimper louder against him.  He watched her face as he did it again, then again.  As he got the hang of it and started a rhythm she pulled him in by his ass with her ankles behind him, giving the signal she wanted more.  “Okay, angel, you got it,” he chuckled darkly, then held her head by the back of her neck with his left hand and intertwined his right with her left hand.  He set a brutal pace, fucking her harder and faster.  Y/N arched her back, her voice raspy with a steady stream of guttural “uh, uh, uh” falling from her lips.  She reached down between their bodies and started rubbing at herself.

“Oh shit, you close?  Yeah?  God, you’re so beautiful,” Bucky moaned, his eyes watching her every move.

“Bucky…yes, Buck…love…AH!” Y/N cried as her orgasm hit her suddenly.  Her legs tightened around his back as her hands latched to the back of his neck and pulled at his hair.

“I’m gonna…squeezing me so hard…FUCK!” Bucky came just after her, his hips jutting forward as he caught himself on his elbows before falling on top of her.  He nuzzled the crook of her neck again as he gasped for air.  Y/N’s hands softly scratched up and down his back as they lay together.  She turned her head and kissed the side of his face.

“You are so good, Bucky.  That was so good.  Took such good care of me.  My dirty boy.  So big…” she continuously praised him, making him rut against her.  He smiled against her neck, his fangs grazing against her skin and making her shiver.

“That was all you, angel face.  Good god…” he tapered off, still trying to catch his breath.

“Was that really your first time?  You’re a natural,” Y/N complimented him as her hands scratched up his back and into his hair.

“Ha, I’m just happy I was able to not lose it immediately,” he chuckled.  Y/N laughed with him as they snuggled.  Bucky felt himself softening and slowly pulled himself out of her, making them both groan quietly at the loss.  “What now?” he asked, slightly fearful of this being the end.

“What do you want to happen now?” Y/N rallied back.

“Well, I’d like to make you mine, for as long as you’ll have me,” Bucky answered honestly, his arms tightening around her.  He looked at her to gauge her reaction, his eyes pleading.  Y/N stared back at him with a small smile on her face.

“I’m all yours, lover boy.  And you’re all mine.  I don’t share,” Y/N smiled wide but there was a clear threat in her eyes with no room for argument.

“Yes ma’am,” Bucky agreed quickly as he flashed a fangy grin.

***

“...I came upon him on my travels through Transylvania…”

Bucky cracked his knuckles as he waited inside the cage, stretching out his neck before he banged his fists against the bars and growled loudly.  This was their last show before a well-needed break was coming up for the circus since the summer was ending and the school year beginning soon.  They would lose a lot of their crowds and so usually took a month or two off before going to warmer parts of the country to keep performing in the autumn and winter months.  As much as he loved doing the show, Bucky was excited for some time alone with Y/N to relax and make love as much as possible.  

The screams and shouts invigorated him as he roared and gnashed his teeth at the crowd.  Y/N joined him in the cage.  He held her firmly against him as he “fed” from her, his hand tightening on her throat, a promise for later that night.  She ran from the cage and locked him in.  “Azrael!” Y/N yelled, reaching her hands out to hold his face.  Bucky froze, eyes wide, blood dripping from his face, his grip softening on her throat.  “Until next time, my love,” Y/N said forlornly, and this time, planted a long, passionate kiss on his bloodied mouth.  It caught him by surprise.  They’d never done this in rehearsal before.  He let himself get lost in it for a moment before she pulled away then pushed him harshly through the bars, making him fall back and look at her in shock.  She winked at him, a reminder to stay in character, and ever the performer she was then twirled around to the audience, threw her hands high in victory and smiled a bloody grin as they applauded her survival of the beast.  Bucky quickly roared again, punching the cage floor.  As they wheeled him away he smiled a creepy, bloody-fang-dripping smile.  God I love this job.

**picture is from Pinterest, it's AI so "artist" or "creator" is unknown**

I hope you all liked this one! It was a fun idea. Let me know if you have any requests or ideas that you'd like to see.