#anyway I have qualified for some food benefits

[jennhoney]

I think the state of Iowa just sent me a, ~have you considered getting married because that would solve all of *our* problems with you Jennifer~ letter.

[wack-ashimself]

Since I can not legally say 'in a free country' the words "I want to kill the USA president*" I will say this:

I hope every billionaire dies. And I don't care: I hope it's a drawn out (but not long), excruciating, impossible to cure, they are immobile AND incapable of communicating, death. LET THEM GOD DAMN SUFFER 10000x over what they have done to humanity. Maybe for their next couple lifetimes till the lesson sticks.

I hope every person who took or is taking bribes a billionaire dies. Legal or not (cuz it isn't moral any time). Same way they did.

I hope everyone who supports billionaires dies. Quickly. Idiots don't deserve to suffer.

Because I, myself, and millions of others are probably gonna starve to death due to billionaires. So if I die, I want ALLLLLL THOSE MOTHER FUCKERS TO DIE WITH ME.

So I heard they were requiring work requirements for food stamps. NOW. RIGHT NOW. During one of the largest unemployment times in ALL USA HISTORY, AND during what is now called the 'silent depression' which has been PROVEN WORSE than the great depression!

WHICH IS INSANE.

I have never in my life thought 'we should make the poorest most vulnerable PROVE they are poor, and EARN their FEW benefits.' NEVER ONCE. And I have had some dark, cruel, sick thoughts thru my life. BUT NEVER THAT.

Maybe cuz I grew up poor. Maybe cuz I had poor friends. Or maybe we are born on a shared planet, AND OWE NO ONE FOR THAT. NO ONE. Not a single god damn person owns this planet but we pay rent to them, cuz we were CONNED into believing it.

Anyways, they require EIGHTY HOURS A MONTH. Or you're disqualified**.

And either you have to have a job job (that, btw, YOU CAN NEVER QUIT. Seriously. It says that! You have to have a GREAT reason for leaving. FORCED LABOR. AND you can NEVER volunteer to take less than 30 hours a week if you got more than that. WTF?!)

You can VOLUNTEER for FREE work. So in other words, DO NOT GET PAID, but, get enough money in a month from food stamps for about....3 weeks. I have NEVER ONCE in my life had food stamps last the whole month. Not even when I was in CA 10 years ago. Indentured servitude, anyone?

OR you can do work training programs thru the state, to teach you USELESS SKILLS that fucking high school should have taught you. Again, UNPAID.

So 2 of the ways they want you to work is to work for free, never getting beyond just to QUALIFY getting enough food from food stamps for a couple weeks. GENIUS! <fucking morons>

But 80 hours. Mandatory. Every single month. (Btw, isn't that cutting into the BEST times of the days for me to apply for and interview for jobs? IDIOTS!)

Hey-I don't mind applying for jobs, interviews, and telling you all about them. I got tons of proof I am trying to get into the work force. I am trying to make an effort. I like security, go figure.

But I have been unemployed OVER TWO YEARS. Only THREE INTERVIEWS in those 2 years. NO JOB OFFER YET. Closest I got was a job interview requiring a covid jab, and there's no god damn way in hell you're forcing me to do something to my body in order for a job. FUCK OFF. MY BODY, MY RULES. Other they wanted me to sign an arbitration agreement, which ALWAYS FUCKS THE EMPLOYEE. It is NEVER to your advantage; they were created so LEGALLY you can't sue your employer. THAT IS IT. Seriously; look into it.

I would already be DEAD, not exaggerating, if not for the food stamp program I have right now.

So now I have to apply for ANY job, take ANY job, and have to stay there till I die or I won't get food? Never moving up? Never earning more money (cuz the second I do, I LOSE food stamps, costing me even more money?)

Even if I am mistreated to the point I am suicidal?

I genuinely would rather die than enable this evil abusive system. Sincerely.

But I'm not going to do so without a fight. And maybe taking out a billionaire or so with me. Cuz it doesn't matter how much power, protection, and secrecy they have. With enough time, thought, and planning, one bullet isn't that hard to meet it's target. Ha....and if you're smart enough, it's food poisoning anyways. They're SO fucking arrogant, they forget who makes their food and does all their work for them. <And if they get paranoid enough, they'll just quit eating and starve to death, like me.> ;)

They're pushing me to the edge, and I swear, I don't push back. I bring them down the cliff with me...if only so they can't do it to another.

So let's do this. Let's see who blinks. I have NOTHING to lose; you have EVERYTHING to lose, rich bitches.

*I promise, like they want to make homelessness illegal, and they made that solider who lit himself on fire an 'enemy' cuz he believed in anarchy (which SIMPLY means NO RULERS), they will start arresting anyone anti state. Which is ironic: if I was in jail, I'd be promised more food and shelter security, FOR FREE, paid for by the taxpayers (and costing them SUBSTANTIALLY more), than if I remained in my current situation. Oh, and don't forget, largest for profit prison population used as SLAVES. So they gain 2 ways: state pays them to imprison them THEN they get to use them as cheap labor. THIS IS AN EVIL GOD DAMN SYSTEM.

**Again, if I just went out, and knocked up ANY random woman, and she gave birth, I would be promised food stamps, no work, instantly. Love that catch. Bring a child into the world you can't afford, and we'll feed YOU. But if not, starve to death if you can't find work***. Every single thing is broken.

***This just made me realize...if you were working even...70 hours a month, they would require you to volunteer for another 10 to get food stamps. What if the volunteer work only occurs the same hours you're at your job? Jesus fuck, did NO ONE think this thru in ANY way!? It always fucking gets worse...

<Do you think even a billionaire does 80 hours a month in work? FUCK NO. But we BAIL THEM OUT every god damn time.>

[loominggaia]

I MUST know more about minotaur milk. How is it made? How is it harvested? Who is buying this? Is it weird to drink it? Can it come from male minotaurs? Is it really good for you? What does it taste like? Is it expensive? Is it the same as cow's milk? Sorry for all the questions I just have to know lmfao.

Don't worry, those are all great questions!

How is it made/harvested?

There are private companies that run minotaur-milking facilities. And no, it's not like some weird porno thing...I imagine it's similar to a blood donation clinic. Eligible minotaurs go in at their leisure, get tested for disease, then get hooked up to a milking device and chill until they're done. They're probably paid depending on the amount of milk produced. Minotaurs naturally over-produce milk and often don't know what to do with it, so earning a few bucks to get rid of it is win/win.

Who is buying this?

The biggest consumers are actually orphaned babies. Minotaur milk is unique because it's a "universal milk", meaning it's well tolerated by all peoples. Even baby gorgons and cecaelia can use it as a food source, despite being non-mammalian species. It is also well tolerated by sick and elderly adults.

Hospitals, orphanages, and nursing homes buy a lot of minotaur milk. But it's also sold in stores and pharmacies to the general public. In some regions it's marketed as a "health drink", and some dishonest companies claim it can do all kinds of things it really can't (like build muscle instantly, increase sex drive, cure diseases, reverse hair loss etc.) In other regions, it's marketed as a protein supplement or just a regular beverage.

Is it weird to drink it?

This really depends on the culture. There are some cultures that wouldn't dare drink this stuff, even if their life depended on it. There are others who don't think twice about it, it's just a normal drink like any other. There are some cultures that consider it weird unless it's for medical purposes. It's highly individual, everyone has their own opinion.

Can it come from male minotaurs?

I guess technically, some male minotaurs may be able to lactate. But this is not the norm, and they wouldn't be able to produce enough to sell. Nor do I think the milking clinics would accept males anyway. Everything on the market comes from females only.

Is it really good for you?

Minotaur milk is very dense in calories and fat. If you're already overweight, it's not something you should consume. But if you're trying to gain weight or recover from an illness, then yes, it's quite helpful. Hospitals give malnourished babies minotaur milk instead of their native species' milk because it fattens them up quickly. It's dense enough to feed even heavyweight species like ogres and centaurs.

Of course, its nutritional value also depends on the health of the minotaur who donated it. Healthier minotaurs produce healthier milk. These clinics will not accept any random crackhead minotaur who stumbles through the door...I imagine there must be some quality assurance in place.

What does it taste like?

Probably very neutral? Nobody is drinking it for the taste, I'll tell you that. It's consumed mainly for its health benefits, real or perceived.

Is it expensive?

It can be cheap or expensive, depending on many factors. Current supply and demand, shipping distance, the company distributing it, the store selling it, etc.

Is it the same as cow's milk?

No, I think it's quite different. Cow's milk is poorly tolerated by many people across all species. Meanwhile, even the lactose-intolerant can drink minotaur's milk without problems. Cow's milk probably tastes better though!

That concludes the lesson. Congratulations, you are now a qualified Minotaur Mommy Milker(tm)! Here is your totally real and legit certificate:

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Read the Series

[mariacallous]

There’s something annoying about ebt… when paying you MUST do wic first, then ebt, then any other method. A few weeks ago I had a couple struggling to pay and having me void things and we got a bit of cash and what was on their debit card off… and then she said oh i have a little on my ebt card. That wouldn’t have been impossible to fix, void the other payments and start again but then some nice lady paid for their groceries.

That’s not the most annoying thing. The most annoying is the new insurance benefit cards that cover some food. I’m sure the company sends some literature about what is and is not covered but it must be super vague or all corporate speak. Sushi is covered, organics aren’t. You have to use ebt before you use it but you don’t know what’s not covered until the damn transaction is over! Even a mid transaction print of the receipt is unhelpful, the notation is only after it over. 🤯 one time i got lucky and they only had 2 items not covered and we could guess and compare the total and just do a separate order but good god. At the very minimum we need classification on the receipt during the order so we can void the offending products.

Anyway…. cutting aid is the devil. When I got my zoo job I made $9/hr but I was full time so I qualified for nothing, even with my insurance premium kicking me below the threshold. Fun!

Some of that is due to the checkout/inventory software and system used by the store, but also because what is and isn't covered by the various assistance programs can change quite often, and particularly depending on any state programs or supports (for example Minnesota has cash programs available for families and single adults who meet the criteria, and that can be used like a debit card or "real" cash and is issued on the same card used for SNAP benefits).

The SNAP gross income limit for a single person is $1473, and they do take rent and utilities into account when calculating both eligibility and the benefit amount.

[juukai]

cool, coolcoolcool. I had a big post explaining a lot of things but tumblr ate it for some goddamn reason and I’m. I’m so fucking stressed and tired and defeated, whatever. 

I need help. desperately. my water will soon be shut off, I have about $40 to my name and I have so many bills past due and my mortgage due in a few days. I’m unemployed, I am driving for delivery apps as I can but that barely puts food in my mouth and keeps my pets fed, and I am applying for any job I’m remotely qualified for and plenty that I’m not. my roommate is unemployed and doing the same as me. I’ve tried offering commissions where I post my art, but only a single scammer has contacted me. I recently spent a night in the er and got a fun shiny new diagnoses that’ll keep costing me money and has been known to kill poor people who can’t keep up with the raising costs of medications and supplies. 

so here I come, hat in hand, not sure what else to do. I’ve already been filing for unemployment, they haven’t made a decision. ebt finally decided I qualified for emergency funds, then didn’t send out a card for me for over a week and a half and recently decided any benefits are on hold anyway because they don’t want to overpay me. I haven’t even gotten the card yet, not sure why they’re already worried about that and also I promise the small amount you approved me for isn’t a gross over-allowance of benefits. 

anyway anything is appreciated. I’m not asking for help for free, I will draw you things if you even want it. I thought about a patreon but like. I can’t even get commissions so what would be the point. here’s my insta and my paypal.

paypal

instagram/pinned commission post

[nickgerlich]

Speed Matters

A couple of days ago I wrote about the latest in robotic food prep, but in the context of that blog, I also mentioned how Texas A&M University students were now receiving Amazon purchases by drone. And I thought, “Well, it’s about time.”

How much time? Nine years, to be exact. So much for speed. And it is such a monumental thing today that Amazon is making headlines as it rolls out their fleet of MK27-2 drones in both College Station Texas and Lockeford California.

And just for fun, I drilled back—waaaay back—in the archives of The Daily Blog to find what I wrote about it all on 3rd December 2013. People were laughing at Jeff Bezos for his seemingly preposterous idea. Rednecks were salivating at the prospects of shooting these things out of the air. Naysayers had dozens of reasons why they would never work.

Bezos was both right and wrong. They eventually did come to fruition, but he estimated it would only take three or four years to work out the kinks, paramount of which was gaining FAA approval. But now he’s cleared for takeoff.

Of course, there are still some limitations. Packages are limited to five pounds. And while maximum speed is a jaw-dropping 50mph, they only have a 12km range. That’s 7.2 miles in American, or basically a 3 1/2-mile radius from the warehouse. And that’s only on days without precipitation.

Only pre-screened items qualify for drone delivery, which means no breakables. Amazon beefs up the shipping materials anyway, because it is dropped from a height of 12 feet. Heat sensors will stop the delivery if the drone senses a dog waiting below. Or a redneck.

As if these new launches weren’t enough, Amazon has also announced the replacement of this model, a smaller, lighter unit that can also fly in the rain. The new MK30 will go into service in 2024, which is not all that far away.

Drones are the future of delivery, in spite of the fact that Amazon is also rolling out the first 1000 Rivian EV delivery vans it has purchased from the new startup. They plan to have 100,000 of them within a few years. While these new vans will be cheaper and cleaner to operate in the long run, drones offer last-mile advantages that push them over the top. They make it easier to deliver small purchases as fast as humanly possible, faster even than sending out a driver who must then deal with traffic, lights, and the lay of the roads. After all, vans can’t travel as the crow—or drone—flies.

It’s not just speed, though. If overall vehicular traffic can be reduced, the benefits will be significant. Congestion will be reduced, as will emissions. The environment can thank Bezos later.

Of course, it’s not just Amazon joining the drone party. Once Bezos announced his intentions, others took note and started making their own moves. Among at least 10 companies with plans to utilize drone technology, two notables are FedEx and UPS. The same benefits will accrue to them.

It’s not hard to imagine where this is all going. DoorDash and Uber Eats could just as easily use drones, especially if there aren’t liquids involved in the delivery. I could run outside to the fountain to wait for my lunch to be delivered. Plus, I won’t have to tip the drone.

Pharmacies could also benefit, along with the people relying on meds. Instead of having to venture out, or, once again, have a delivery driver, prescriptions could be whisked to their recipients. I doubt any of those parcels would come close to five pounds.

The low-level airspace is going to rapidly fill up in the years ahead. I hope that the drones to come have radar of some kind to keep there from being mid-air collisions. Given time, I’m sure this will all be figured out. It may be longer than sooner, though, just as Bezos found out.

But in the end, speed really does matter.

Dr “Mine Drone Business“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

[stillgottaeat]

You may be broke, but you still have to eat.

Hi. This post is going to act as an introduction to my blog. I'm going to hope it takes off and that you found it just when you needed it most. As it stands, I'm just setting it up, but eventually, I want everything to link back here.

If you're not really interested in me, my stories or ideas, that's fair. [Click here to get to the guides and recipes.] If the link doesn't link, it's probably because I haven't sent it up yet. Anyway - here's the FAQs.

What this blog is:

This blog is the result of me being broke as fuck for most of my adult life and growing up in a working class family. There are times when I've had to eat spoiled, sometimes actively rotting food just to make ends meet. I'm ABSOLUTELY NOT saying that you should or need to do this because you're struggling. In fact, by creating this blog, I hope to prevent it. If you're down to your last dollar and you need to make it last as long as you possibly can... I want to help by sharing the things that I've learned from my personal experiences. I want to do it in a way that is easily accessible to most people and doesn't blame or judge.

In essence, it's meant to be a guide for how to cheaply prepare meals for yourself and your family on a tight budget.

I think that food is a basic human right...not just for sustenance, but for our overall wellbeing. Food should be enjoyed and shared amongst family and friends. It should be good and good for you.

Cheap ≠ Crap.

What this blog isn't:

This blog isn't a political statement or a one-size-fits-all solution. You may need to adapt some of the recipes and tips to suit you and your particular situation. These are just ideas and things that I've made work.

This also isn't a financial advice blog. I won't be dealing with numbers and cost breakdowns. I'm really not qualified for that.

Who are you?

I'd prefer to stay largely anonymous. Not for sketchy reasons, I promise. I just don't really feel like sharing more about my personal life online than I already have/inevitably will in the future. Here's what I am willing to say:

You can call me anything you like, but I'll mostly go by "CJ"

I am part of the LGBTQ+ community, specifically being bi/pan and transgender. I use he/him pronouns and identify with classically masculine gender roles/language.

I live in northwestern Canada, so a lot of the things I talk about and suggest will be centred around how things are here. If you'd like to suggest something that could be helpful to those in other countries, I'd love to hear about it.

I'm white, straight/cis-passing, able-bodied, and have no chronic health conditions. I can't speak to other peoples' experiences and I acknowledge that I benefit from biases, history, and systems that not everybody can. If you see it; tell me. I want as many people as possible to benefit from what I'm trying to do here, not just people like me.

I Missed Something/Let's Talk:

My ask box is open for the foreseeable future. Shoot me a message. I don't remember all the ins-and-outs of Tumblr, but I remember they introduced a chat system a few years ago. That works too. I think.

I'll update this post if anything new arises, but for now, that's all I have to say!

[the-firebird69]

It's a huge number of people here just sitting here and flipping them off and requesting all sorts of crap it's been a lot of trouble I think it's good you do what we want. Tommy I've seen to be irate and lost his ass kick and people don't really care so what's going on now and there's some real massive b****** here these women just don't know how to shut up they get beat up really badly

-this is more people getting laid off now and it is from the fish and game department it had $20, 000 Wednesday 10,000 were laid off Thursday and today they laid off $5,000 and they're wondering around trying to enforce fishing game stuff and use the other people it's disgusting there morons and that's basically all the time you're constantly hiring because of it and they will not shut up about their s*** so we go after them

-another group that is getting laid off in a big way are those who are instructors seminars and part-time courses in college this is a huge number of them that are not qualified or under qualified and they're going away meaning that they are not going back to work on Monday and in the state of Florida there are about 50,000 nope 300,000 and they laid off $150,000 of them today and see around really doing nothing so but come Monday to probably lay off the rest of them and it's a lot of work but they're doing it.

-other groups are being laid off and fired huge numbers of them and minorities are taking their jobs and right here right in front of them they're saying it too and they got mad at the Chinese food place and made a slight mess in the toilet with towels with outlets and some pudding it was not that bad. And yes actual minorities are here send me them in the skies a bunch of the people in the restaurant were but for real it is happening Charlotte county is not where it's prevalent but it's all everywhere else Miami is swamped Tampa and Sarasota is being swamped and Max are coming in too because of that.

-it's huge I'll cry as against us and our son and really it's not justified in the full of crap so people catch up to him and they say stuff and really turns into a nightmare for them and they're doing it and it's ridiculous.

-there's a massive number of people being laid off from Charlotte county transportation now it's like 80 bus drivers and only 10 of them do the work so they're laying off 70 of them and the other 80 I mean the other 70 are not coming into work anyways and they don't get a paycheck if they don't work but they have to just continue their benefits they're not doing anything those tons of customers huge numbers of people need rides and they won't do it and I'll tell you what it's very obnoxious work it's right in the heat of battle is fine and Tommy f is kind of fried and he goes around and says it too cuz I'm kind of fried and just kind of do stuff so he says and a lot of people are it's just way too much stuff for people it's good to know her son says cuz he's not fine but exhausted the bus times then let me figure it Friday after that it's hoping it's not too bad it's terrible

We're going to publish now so we don't lose it

Thor Freya

I like what I'm seeing and working your hands after you pick your nose and your nose it's a good deal you better not do that near me I'll kick you out of the car and he says smiling I won't be picking my nose after this the only opportunity you have to come here in disguise and try and catch me picking my nose in your car so I might take them off on that

Hera

Some pictures of those because stuff is not coming out of there and it blows it seriously and he said that he can close it so fast and hard it actually hurts when it hits his skin and we checked it and it's like 30,000 miles an hour or something so he's trying it's just not working great

Olympus

[oldageandtreachery]

Monday

They took 3 of the computers away in the halfway house... now we have 2 computers shared for like 100 people. They say they are doing some kind of investigation and that they won't be back for "quite a while" so this is going to kind of suck until I get approved for a smartphone and computer of my own :|

Went to WELD this morning. Seems like a surprisingly good program. They have all sorts of training opportunities. They offer a bunch of different services and have staff who can assist in navigating what benefits you qualify for and all sorts of stuff. Seemed super chill and helpful, most of them have served prison time or at least been arrested and avoided prison time etc.

Mom came by today and we went and hung out at Goodwill. It was fun and I got some stuff I needed. Goodwill prices suck now though :| I used to always go to Value Village but there isn't one near here. Goodwill used to be pretty good as well but now at least half their stuff I could just buy new online for cheaper without even waiting for a good sale... Had to look around quite a bit to find some stuff that was priced in a worth buying range. Got a brand new Contigo travel mug for $4, couple pairs of new looking Dockers pants for $9.99 each, closet hanger rack thing for $2.99, and a foldable laundry thing for like $3. Most of the other stuff I was looking at was not cheaper or only barely cheaper than just buying it online at regular price. Almost everything was more expensive than a good online sale.

We stopped by a "coffee shop" on the way back called Hello Em, fantastic place highly recommended. Staff were nice, coffee and food were both delicious, prices were totally reasonable. Place has a great atmosphere filled with Vietnamese art and the history of "little Saigon" which is what the area of Seattle it is in is called. Had no idea Vietnam is the #2 coffee producer in the world. Anyway phenomenal quick little place with great atmosphere.

[springatito-moved]

MALL AU CHARACTERMASTERPOST... THING. i love masterposts if u cant tell lmao.

this is just basic rundown of whos involved, where they work, and some details abt how they act in the au. stuff might be subject to change ? maybe? idk.

tommy: build-a-bear. legally too young to be working there but he lied and no one really cares. likes to hang around sapnap, q, or eryn during his breaks because he sees enough of wilbur at home. banned from yankee candle for trying to eat one & helping sapnap steal.

tubbo: food court. somehow a manager at all the places except mcdonald’s. everyone thinks hes lying about this. except quackity who knows. he & q are adoptive brothers but he lives with SBI bc q isnt able to care for him rn. hes fine with it and they see movies together a lot anyway.

ranboo: hot topic/vera bradley. works full days but usually part-time at each place. good friends with wilbur at ht and enjoys his discount. super close with techno at vb and is super awesome at selling purses to old ladies.

wilbur: hot topic. manager. not completely qualified but he tries. pretends theres a rivalry between him and q. there is not. has sole custody over tommy. complains abt the amount of anime/disney/marvel stuff being sold all the time. no one listens to him when he does this.

techno: vera bradley. just kinda needed a job and they were the first to call back. actually kind of enjoys it. super close with ranboo.

phil: kiosks. runs basically all of them bc george never does his job. likes to buy anime things at hot topic. wilbur hates him for it. also sort of a fatherly-ish figure to wilbur & tommy.

quackity: spencer’s. manager. srsly the best salesman ever. is also abt 2 seconds away from killing all the customers. likes to trick ppl abt where things are and send them to The Back. steals things from ht to get wilbur in trouble. tubbo’s adoptive brother. has far too many piercings. dating sap n karl.

charlie: spencer’s. quackity’s long-time friend. helps keep him calm. a lot of people like is presence so he sells things pretty well. doesnt dress at all like you’d think a spencer’s worker would dress.

fundy: spencer’s. asstant manager. anxious a lot. originally worked at ht with wilbur but thought spencer’s had better benefits for his needs. likes to watch the fish at the pet store. quackity’s emotional support most of the time. he doesnt mind.

foolish: spencer’s. would rather work at the lego store but his application was denied. likes his co-workers enough to stay. likes to stack things in the store to look fancy. it often gets ruined though. doesnt have the energy to stop gnf’s shenanigans.

sam: build-a-bear. manager. yes he knows tommy is too young. no he doesn’t care. acts like a dad to q. q doesnt mind. intimidating but good with kids.

karl: disney store. manager. exactly who you’d expect to work there. super good with kids. awesome with convincing parents to buy things. sometimes gets distracted watching whatever movie is playing. has some memory issues so he doesn’t often work the register. steals plushies from the george’s kiosks. dating sap n q.

sapnap: disney store. exactly who you WOULDN’T expect to work there. originally worked at vans. chose to work at the disney store when he met karl. actually really likes it. banned from yankee candle for trying to steal. likes to hang out with tommy on his breaks. dating karl n q.

george: kiosks. hes literally never even at his post. he’s either bothering sapnap or quackity at all times. likes to mess up the inventory at their stores so they have to fix it.

dream: she doesnt even go here. literally, he doesnt work anywhere at the mall. why is he always there? who knows. hangs around sap n george a lot. complains about tommy. it never gets him anywhere though.

eret: sephora. the king of sephora. good friends with wilbur before working at the mall. wil pretends eret “betrayed” him by not applying for ht. spends a LOT of money at build-a-bear.

hannah: yankee candle. manager. super efficient with marketing & sales. was the one who banned tommy and sapnap. likes to decorate the store for every holiday. adored by all.

niki: food court. works at a bakery stand at the food court. lets her friends use her employee discount. except wilbur because she thinks its funny. buys a lot of temp hairspray dye at spencer’s.

ant: pet store. manager. mostly works with the mammals like rabbits and cats. knows the store like the back of his hand. literally never anywhere else. knows karl & q’s cat’s foods off the top of his head and often saves them supplies behind the counter.

boomer: pet store. works with the reptiles & aquatic animals. likes chill with punz a lot of the time. almost exclusively wears frog clothing. 

callahan: pet store. mostly does stocking & inventory stuff. tina’s favorite person. super close with dteam as well and gives them store discount.

puffy: food court. manager of mcdonald’s. everyone calls it mcpuffy’s atp bc shes always working there up front. dream’s favorite person to complain to. hangs out with skeppy & bbh a lot.

connor: disney store. friends w/ karl since they were kids. doesn’t really like working there but needs the job anyway. mostly does inventory to avoid customers.

tina: disney store. asstant manager. absolutely adored bundle of energy. often themes her outfit after a diff disney character each day. helps with the kids events every two or so hours. adores callahan and claimed him as her bestie from day one. also loves hanging out with hannah.

eryn: lego store. right next door to tommy. helps with some of the show builds around the store. knows basically everything about all the products.

jack: apple store. tech wiz. usually can be found at niki’s bakery stand. complains a lot. tried to get tommy fired once as a prank but is now banned from build-a-bear. 

ponk: candy shop. works full time on his own. super efficient anyway and doesn’t need anyone else. has a weird relationship with sam that neither of them know how to name. big fan of sour candies. 

punz: gamestop. only works there for the discount tbh. lets sapnap use it as well. hangs around boomer a lot. has dreams of being a beekeeper but isnt quite there.

purpled: spencer’s. super hard working but hates interacting with other people besides punz, hannah, and boomer. would kill q given the opportunity. worked at gamestop with punz until he turned 18 when he transferred to spencer’s. he regrets it every day but is too stubborn to bail out now.

skeppy: swarovski. really uptight tbh. bbh’s best friend. banned sapnap upon personal request so he wouldnt go in and stare at engagement rings for three hours. really knowledgeable about gemstones and can answer basically every question.

aimsey: coffee shop. knows all the gossip. has a rivalry with tubbo after he tried to steal their job. here for a good time, not a long time.

bbh: owns bakery right outside the mall. sapnap’s adoptive dad. really sucessful and wanted sap to work with him but is happy as long and sap’s happy. skeppy’s best friend. often the subject of quackity’s pranks. 

cpk: secret shopper. but also friends with everyone so it’s not that much of a secret. gives everyone flying colors all the time. even george.

[agustdakasuga]

Between the Bloodshed | Chapter 7

Genre: Mafia!AU, Angst, Romance, Fluff

Pairing: OT7 x Reader

Characters: Doctor!Reader, Gangster!Namjoon, Gangster!Seokjin, Gangster!Yoongi, Gangster!Hoseok, Gangster!Jimin, Gangster!Taehyung, Gangster!Jungkook

Summary: Being a freelance doctor, this was just supposed to be any other job, helping a private client and taking care of him through his recovery. But you were not expecting to get caught in something so much darker that would change your life entirely.

Going with your parents to an event, you didn’t think to meet some familiar faces there. And finally, the 7 boys get to see the family that you refused to speak about. 

Warning: This story is fictional and has nothing to do with real life events or the actual members of BTS. It may contain depictions of violence, blood shed/ gore and mentions of abuse. Please read at your own discretion.

The dreaded friday morning finally came. Your mother had spent the whole night before on the phone with you, squealing excitedly about the dress she chose for you. 

“I’ll see you tonight, Kookie.” You stroked his head, making sure the rabbit had enough food and water for the day. Adjusting your hair in the mirror, you cringed slightly at yourself, clad in a light blue sundress your mother always liked. You slung your bag over your shoulder and headed out the door. 

“Can I have a coffee to go, please?” You ordered. The maid bowed and scurried off to make your regular iced coffee order. 

“Woah.” Jungkook came down. 

“One word and you’ll be unconscious.” You grumbled. He choked, whistling innocently instead. 

“Have a nice day, agashi.” The maid placed your to-go container on the counter. You nodded your head and took a sip. When you turned to head to the front door, you saw 7 pairs of eyes staring at you. 

“What?” You hissed. 

“Nothing.” Taehyung shook his head. You rolled your eyes, walking to the front to wear your shoes. 

“I’ll be back tonight.” You mumbled, giving a backwards wave before leaving the house. Your father was already waiting by his car for you. You gave a small wave and headed over. Without a word, your father just gave an acknowledging nod and entered the car. That was your relationship, strictly professional. Frankly, you were thankful for that. 

“Your mom is very excited for you to visit.” He said as he started to drive. 

“I know. Work gets busy so it’s hard to stop by.” You shrugged, putting your seatbelt on. 

“This family seems well off.” He commented. 

“Well, I’m sure you’ve heard of them. They aren’t exactly hidden from public eye in terms of their achievements and wealth. 7 young men, rich beyond belief.” You scoffed. 

“I do know them, do you?” 

“I would like to think I do. Working for them has been a pleasure, so far. For young men, they keep things very professional.” You said. Your parents always tried to convince you to work in a normal hospital, they always believed your skills should be displayed for others to see. 

“You declined your mother’s invitation for that surgical seminar?” 

“She has other surgeons under her that are equally, if not more, qualified than me. It’ll benefit them better if one of them were elected to go instead of me.” You explained. Your father pursed his lips. 

The car pulled up to the house. It wasn’t a mansion but it was still a rather big property that your parents owned. 

“(y/n)!” Your mother ran out to greet you with a hug. 

“Omma.” You hesitantly wrapped your arms around her. She chuckled, pulling away as she held your hands in hers. Patting the back of your hands, she led you into the house. 

“You look healthy.” She complimented. 

“Thank you.” You gave a small smile. There was an array of dishes on the dining table, ready for you to arrive for a meal. You went to help bring the bowls of rice out. Even if it was awkward with your parents, it was nice to have a sit down, family style meal. Your parents sat opposite you, together, while you sat across the table. 

“The car will be picking us up at 7pm.” Your father said. You nodded your head, chewing the end of your chopstick to stop yourself from saying something you would regret. 

“Stop that, (y/n). It’s a bad habit.” Your mother scolded. You removed the metal from your mouth, picking the foods instead. 

“That’s a nice bracelet.” Your mother smiled. 

“Oh, yeah... Just a token gift from a friend.” You shrugged it off. Through the rest of the meal, you listened to your parents talk about what they have been up to at work, in an attempt to persuade you to work with them. 

“You didn’t accept my invitation for that seminar. It’s prestigious, (y/n), that’s why I want you to go.” Your mother said. 

“One of your surgeons under you would benefit better from it than me, omma. Besides, I’m under a contract to work with my client now. It wouldn’t be responsible of me to just leave for a two week seminar like that.” You scoffed, putting a scoop of rice into your mouth. 

"Have you spoken to your brother recently?” Your father asked. You shook your head. Your brother didn’t live in Korea, he lived in the UK with his family. 

“Well, he has been helping with a lot of big cases in the queen’s court. They may even fly him to the States to give a seminar to some prestigious universities.” He informed. 

“I see...” Your brother wasn’t a doctor like you but he was a big-shot lawyer that worked on tons of famous court cases. 

“He says he wants to visit in a few weeks. You should be here so we can have a nice dinner together. Jumin might want to have the baby here.” Your mother said excitedly. 

“Oh, really...” You weren’t really interested at the thought of your sister-in-law having her second child here. 

“And you can help too.” 

“Omma, I’m working, I told you. I can’t be here just to take care of her new born.” You sighed. You loved your sister-in-law but having to live in a house with her, her new born and your nephew while your brother is here, will be torture for you with your parents constantly telling you how much greater they are compared to you. 

RINGGGGGGG

“Sorry, work call.” You stood up and stepped aside to answer your phone.

“Hello?” 

“Am I interrupting? You just sound like you’re having the time of your life. ” 

“Ha... ha... sure. But no, you’re to interrupting, you called at the perfect time, actually. What’s up? Someone dead or close to being dead?” You asked. Jimin laughed at your joke. 

“Unfortunately, no. Yoongi hyung is complaining about pain so I just wanted to ask if there is anything I can give him.” 

“Well, considering my medicine safe keys are with me, there’s no much you can do. Oh wait, Jin has a spare set. You can get him to open it. Look for the green bottle labelled ‘Celebrex’ or celecoxib. Give him one and that should be enough until I come back tonight.” You instructed. 

“Wait, how come only Jin hyung gets to have a spare set of keys?” 

“As the oldest, I would trust that he is responsible enough to not have a feast with my pills.” You scoffed.

“I’m hurt that you don’t think we’re responsible enough.”

“That doesn’t make me feel guilty at all. Anyway, let me know how Yoongi is. For now, ask him to wear his sling.” You told Jimin. You wouldn’t mind Yoongi having to call you home to help him. 

“He’s still able to curse at us so we should be fine.” 

“Bummer.” You mumbled. With another laugh, Jimin hung up. You sighed, returning to the table. 

“Your dad just got called in for an emergency.” Your mother informed as she cleared up the dishes. You nodded your head, watching your father put his coat on and grab his work bag. With a small wave of acknowledgement, he slipped his shoes on and left. Your parents were both workaholics, they were always highly praised for their work ethics. 

“So, any partners yet?” Your mother asked as you helped her with the dishes.

“Omma, you know I’m not looking for anyone now. I’m very much involved in my work like you and dad.” You said. 

“But still, with our busy schedules as residents, your father and I were able to get married and start a family. If not, you and your brother wouldn’t even be here.” She let out a small laugh. 

“I know. But oppa already made you a grandma with Jisung (nephew), with another on the way. There’s no rush for me.” You shrugged. 

“It’ll still be nice.” 

“I’m gonna rest in my room for a little bit.” You dried your hands and headed up to your room. Conversations like these with your parents were just suffocating and tiresome. 

“I need to get out of this.” You changed out of your dress and slipped on some shorts with an oversized hoodie. 

BEEP BEEP

‘Jimin said you’re having the time of your life. - Hoseok’

‘Yes, I am. And are you supposed to be texting me when I’m off duty? A little unprofessional, don’t you think, Mr Jung? - (y/n)’

‘If you can do wellness checks on us, I can do it on you too. But if you need saving with a ‘medical emergency’ to come back to the house, I’m sure I can injure someone for you. Maybe Jungkook or Jimin can take the bullet. I’ll make sure it’s not fatal. - Hoseok’

‘It’s just visiting my parents. I think I can handle it. But I’m oddly touched that you’re willing to do that for me. Someone kissing a*s here? - (y/n)’

‘With you? NEVERRRRRRR. - Hoseok’

“(y/n)? I wanted to show you your dress that I picked out for you.” Your mother was at your door. Leaving your phone on your bed, you went over and opened the door for her. 

“Look.” She unzipped the cloth covering and revealed the dark blue dress that she picked out for you. It was off shoulder with a flowy skirt. 

“It’s nice.” You forced a smile. 

“I knew you would like it.” She grinned, patting your head. Going to your closet, she hung it up, digging through whatever shoes you had left behind to match the dress. She placed the shoes at the bottom of the dress. 

“I trust that you can do your hair and make up on your own?” She raised an eyebrow. 

“Of course.” You shrugged. 

“Tonight, it’s a gala event to celebrate the approval of a new health campus to be opened. Governors, sponsors and potential candidates for the board of directors will be attending. It’s a rather big event. A lot of big names will be there so naturally, a lot of press ” Your mother informed. You nodded your head, wondering if you would see 7 familiar faces there as well. 

“Your father is a potential candidate for the new psychiatric unit head.” She continued. 

“I’m sure he would love for you to be under him. He can definitely get you a good position under his team. Or you could be under my team when I make the move over.” She looked at you. 

“Wait, both of you are moving over to this new health campus?” You asked, completely ignoring her persuading you to work under them. 

“That’s the plan.” She shrugged. 

“But you’ve been with Korea University Hospital for like... ever. And dad’s already in the board of directors for Seoul Institute of Mental Health.” You frowned slightly. 

“Well, when a better opportunity comes up, means it’s time to move on.” Your mother place her hand over yours. 

-

You had done your hair, neatly braiding it and pinning it up. Sitting in front of your vanity, you did some light make up on your face, finishing off with some shimmering lip gloss. 

“Time to change.” You went to your closet and fished the blue dress out fo the cloth covering. You slipped it on, smoothing down the skirt with your hands and staring at your reflection to make sure that nothing was out of place. Your parents would want everything to be pristine for a good impression.

“(y/n)! Are you ready?” Your mother called. 

“Coming!” Picking up your shoes in your hands, you carried your small bag and headed downstairs. 

“I knew it was a good pick.” Your mother clasped her hands together with sparkling eyes as she saw you approaching. Even your father nodded in approval at your appearance. 

“Thanks.” You murmured. 

“Let’s go.” Your father held his arm out to your mother, who hooked arms with him, and walked out. You simply walked behind them silently. A limousine was ready on the drive way with a driver standing there, opening the door for the three of you to enter. You sat opposite your parents, your hands resting in your lap. Your fingers fiddled with your bracelet. 

“Sir, madam, agashi.” The car came to a stop. Through the tinted window, you saw a row of reporters ready at the entrance of the building. You took a deep breath as the chauffeur opened the door. 

“We’ll answer a few questions then head in. Just smile and answer things briefly.” Your father said to you. You nodded and stepped out. 

“Mr (y/l/n)!” Reporters called out. 

“Is it true that you’re a potential candidate for the new health campus’ psychiatric department?” You stood by the side, a small smile as your father answered questions. 

“Right this way.” The security cut off the questions after a few minutes. You let out a sigh of relief. 

“Let’s go say hi.” Your mother didn’t let you out of her sight, dragging you to meet old men that possibly decided her and your father’s future job positions. All you could do was smile and shake their hands. 

“(y/n), you remember Jaewon?” Your mother smiled, bringing forth a young man in a suit to you. You internally rolled your eyes, here we go. Every event you went to seemed to be a matchmaking opportunity for your mother. She would be very delighted to wed you off. 

“Jaewon?” You tilted your head. 

“He was in my cardio-thoracic team but went to the States 5 years ago for a partnership.” She reminded. 

“Ah, yes.” You smiled and shook his hand. You’ve seen him a few times. Your mother had even invited him over for a couple of meals when youw ere still living with her. 

“How are you, (y/n)? You look amazing.” He complimented. 

“I’m doing good, thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself. I’m glad you still speak Korean fluently.” You raised your eyebrows. 

“(y/n)!” Your mother sent you a disapproving look while Jaewon blinked but laughed, nodding his head. Soon, you saw your mother abandoning you to join your father, leaving you to converse with Jaewon.

“Where are you working now?” 

“Private.” You said, taking a glass of champagne and sipping it. Jaewon nodded his head. 

“Right, you worked with private clients right? As like their in-house, family physician. I know your mother told me that you weren’t comfortable working in a public place. So you turned down a lot of good job opportunities at prestigious hospitals.” Jaewon sipped from his own glass. You frowned slightly, what exactly was he hinting at? 

“What you hear from my mother is what she thinks she knows about my job. Anything to try and convince someone to persuade me to work under them.” You chuckled. 

“That’s not-”

“Sorry, may I interrupt?” A new voice came. There was whispers and murmurs around you. That voice was all too familiar. 

“I was wondering if I was going to see you here.” You smirked, turning around to face 7, all too familiar, men. Jimin winked at you while Hoseok flashed his blinding smile. Jaewon looked confused. 

“Of course we would be here. Sponsors are the main invited guests, you know?” Yoongi spoke first. 

“You know them, (y/n)?” Jaewon asked. 

“Know them? I live with them. Unfortunately.” You rolled your eyes. Jaewon’s eyes widened at your statement. Jungkook placed his arm around your waist, staring Jaewon down. 

“I told you about the touching.” You glared at the youngest, elbowing his ribs. Still, he didn’t lose his composure and just calmly moved away. 

“Well, bye!” Namjoon gave a friendly smile before pulling you away. You gave Jaewon a backwards wave, following the boys to another side of the room. Once you were away from most of the crowd, you let out a sigh of relief, shaking your head while the boys just gave you amused smiles. 

“When you said you had friday night plans, we didn’t expect to see you here, doc.” Jin smiled. 

“Let’s just say, I didn’t come here willingly.” You snorted. 

“Are your parents sponsors?” Taehyung asked. 

“No, they aren’t. They’re supposedly part of the new health campus’ head department team so they’re here to butter people up.” You crossed your arms. The boys weren’t surprised by how honest you were.

“But you look nice.” Jimin smiled. 

“Stop or I will stab your eye. Also, how’s the shoulder Yoongo?” You changed the subject. Yoongi shrugged his good shoulder and you nodded your head with a small smile. 

“(y/n).” Someone called. 

“Dad.” You turned to see your father. He raised an eyebrow and you sighed, walking over to him. 

“I didn’t know you were friends with our sponsors? They’re one of the new campus’ biggest sponsors, you know? Young entrepreneurs with big names.” Your father said. You shrugged. 

“I don’t know if I would call them friends. But they’re the clients I’m working with now. Honestly, didn’t even know that they were coming or that they were sponsors.” You blinked at him. Your father nodded, turning on his business smile before walking over to the 7 young men. They all shook hands with your father, exchanging formalities. 

“I had no idea my daughter was working for the family.” He laughed. 

“Yes, she’s one of our best employees. It’s a pleasure having her work with us.” Namjoon complimented and you mentally scoffed. 

“She could use that talent in a hospital but refuses, sadly.” Your dad joked and you rolled your eyes.

“Shall we get some food?” Jungkook offered. You nodded and headed over to the buffet table with him and Taehyung, leaving your dad to talk to Namjoon and the others. 

“This is boring.” Taehyung complained. 

“You would think that with how many events you guys have been to, that you’re used to all this. I haven’t been to many and I am.” You shrugged, picking up a piece of cheese and putting it into your mouth. Taehyung and Jungkook laughed, they knew you hated being here from the moment they saw you. 

“Shall we get out of here?” Jungkook wriggled his eyebrows. 

“I would actually like to live another day so count me out. I’m here only for my parents and I plan to see to that until the end of the night.” You stated. Taehyung handed you a glass of wine. 

“(y/n), I was looking for you.” Your mother came. You placed the glass down, stepping away from Taehyung and Jungkook. 

“What’s wrong, omma?” 

“You... know them?” She cast a brief glance to the two young men behind you, who had now been surrounded by other young girls that wanted at least half of the attention they gave you. 

“My current clients.” You shrugged. 

“I see... Only clients?” 

“Yes, omma. You know I don’t mix business with personal relations. Everything is strictly professional.” You assured her. She nodded her head. You couldn’t tell if she was relieved or disappointed by what you said. 

~~

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[yourfavisanmspeclesbian]

not a request but I wanted to know if there is a term (that isn't gold star lesbians/exclusionists) that differentiates between m-spec and non m-spec lesbians? I support and believe any and all m-spec and a-spec lesbians and their identities <3 I just wanted to label myself to specify my attraction as a lesbian doesn't include men, but that I support those that do and their nuance. If not that's fine! Have a good day <3

if i can be honest here, just plain 'lesbian' should do just fine as a label for you without anything to qualify it. i think it's just worth accepting that a label can mean two things; attraction to women and/or lack of attraction to men.

(and this honestly applies to mspec lesbians, too. it's just that a lot of us indicate that we are mspec lesbians to make that fact more explicit)

⚠ however, a label you should stay away from claiming is 'vixenamoric' which was a reactionary bad-faith label coined by transmisogynists, biphobes, and lesbian separatists in 2019-2020 when mspec lesbian discourse was reintroduced to social media...

and just some food-for-thought (you're more than welcome to ignore everything after this point but i'm using your ask as an opportunity to comment on this further)... if you're looking to coin your own term with this specific "lack of attraction to men" definition, you might benefit from asking yourself what the threshold for 'men' is. because there are plenty of nonbinary people who identify as men (whether that's partially, or as a multigender person, etc.)

this is something i've brought up before when discussing this 'label war' between mspec lesbian identities and so-called 'normal' lesbian identity: it's difficult to split hairs over who you're Not attracted to and it seems futile for anyone to make all these rules for themselves about things which are inherently messy and nuanced...

like, if a self-identified not-attracted-to-men lesbian is in a relationship with a multigender lesbian whose gender is sometimes 'man', does their partner being a man for a period of time suddenly cancel their relationship? do these hypothetical people have some sort of rule between them stating that their relationship is null and void if one of them is a man? do they have some sort of gender-quantum, wherein their lesbian relationship is still considered 'valid' as long as the multigender lesbian is a man for less than 30% of the time? despite their mutually strong, personal bond to the label 'lesbian', should these people 'just identify as bi already' and be asked to label themselves differently even if they don't really want to?

or maybe - [gasp] - they’re just. two lesbians in a relationship and they don’t draw boundaries around whether they ‘count’ as lesbians or not based on arbitrary fine details and technicalities. (like, is that not exhausting? like... aren't people tired of trying to scrutinize something that's this vast, messy, nuanced, and individual? why draw boxes? it's like trying to hold liquid with a piece of cloth, you know what i mean..) anyway...

not even the 'mspec lesbian' inherently means that the person claiming it is attracted to men. definitions for any queer identity label are self-defined. even the 'specific' ones.

[robininthelabyrinth]

i loved your mingjue/jiang cheng fic so much! if you're inspired, maybe something about the wedding or their siblings reacting?

sequel to this 

--

In their defense, neither Nie Mingjue nor Jiang Cheng were especially good at being romantic – and anyway it wasn’t supposed to be a romantic arrangement in the first place.

It was an arranged marriage for political benefits. Unlike his parents, Jiang Cheng wouldn’t be so foolish as to get his heart involved when it came to one of those.

Sure, now that matters had been arranged and the contracts all signed, they were able to relax a little and spend time together as friends and future spouses rather than as mere allies, sitting together late into the night and speaking freely instead of making excuses to avoid saying the wrong time.

And yes, obviously Jiang Cheng was significantly more invested in showing Nie Mingjue around the Lotus Pier – around Yunmeng generally, even. After all, it wasn’t just politeness now - Nie Mingjue was going to be the second master here, just as Jiang Cheng would be second master at the Unclean Realm; that was what they’d agreed on, an equal balance that respected both of their commitments to their homes.

As for why Jiang Cheng made a point of taking Nie Mingjue’s hand into his when they walked around – well, that was just logic, too. Jiang Cheng didn’t especially enjoy the physical touch of strangers, which would be an impediment to marriage, but he was determined to make this arrangement between them work.

And for someone like him, who wasn’t naturally talented, that meant –

“Practice,” he said, putting his hand into Nie Mingjue’s.

“Practice,” he reminded him when they sat by the dock, until Nie Mingjue yielded and put his arm around him.

“Practice,” he said pointedly, raising his face for a good-night kiss.

“It’s nice to meet someone else who appreciates practice as being worthwhile in its own right,” Nie Mingjue remarked a little later, while they were waiting for Jiang Cheng to remember how to breathe. “My brother is always complaining that there’s no point to training day in and day out if you’re just doing the same things over and over again, but there’s no other way to build a strong foundation. Don’t you agree?”

Jiang Cheng nodded, pressing a palm to one of his cheeks, which were red for some reason. Probably the same reason his heart kept beating too fast – really, this was why he needed to practice. If he collapsed every time they engaged in the smallest bit of physical intimacy, this marriage would be called out as a sham immediately by anyone who saw them, and Jiang Cheng wasn’t willing to endure what his parents had.

Luckily, Nie Mingjue seemed to feel similarly on the subject, and raised no objections to Jiang Cheng’s proposed approach. Best of all, he didn’t do anything in the other direction, either: no silly romantic gestures Jiang Cheng would be required to match, no secret expectations that Jiang Cheng would inevitably disappointed.

No: when Nie Mingjue brought him gifts, they were practical ones, like a new sheath for Sandu or more ink when he was nearly out. Once he’d brought him an assortment of snacks typical to Qinghe, since they’d agreed that any visit by Jiang Cheng would have to wait until the Lotus Pier was a little more stable, but that was practical, too: it wouldn’t do for him to get sick from the local food once he arrived.

Nothing romantic.

Just like Jiang Cheng wasn’t romantic, either. Getting up earlier than usual to train alongside Nie Mingjue was just courtesy, and spending time together doing paperwork until he fell asleep on Nie Mingjue’s shoulder was just properly allocating the little free time they had.

Neither of them were romantic, and it was a relief.

Jiang Cheng had always lived in fear of having to try to sweet-talk someone, but luckily Nie Mingjue found the poisonous lash of his tongue far more amusing – anything even remotely resembling an endearment made Nie Mingjue look lost and awkward, which was about the same for Jiang Cheng.

It made it much easier.

It did also, Jiang Cheng later admitted, make it a lot easier to miss.

-

“Do you two ever talk about anything other than reconstruction?” Nie Huaisang moaned, his head under his hands. Jiang Cheng had come for his first visit to Qinghe, a short weekend jaunt when his existing plans had been unexpectedly cancelled and the Lotus Pier progressing nicely even without constant supervision. “This is the most boring dinner I’ve ever attended. Ever!”

“We talk about cultivation, too,” Nie Mingjue pointed out – quite justly, in Jiang Cheng’s mind.

“That’s not better, da-ge!”

“I like talking about cultivation,” Jiang Cheng offered. “And reconstruction.”

Nie Huaisang gave him a look that suggested he’d betrayed their ancient friendship (which Jiang Cheng wasn’t sure several months of suffering Wei Wuxian’s presence next to each other qualified as, but whatever). “Have you ever talked about anything else?”

“…the war?”

“Hopeless,” Nie Huaisang declared.

Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes over his head at Nie Mingjue, who just looked amused. “I’m going to sleep; I just flew the whole way here,” he said. “And don’t forget that you promised you’d show me around in the morning, Sect Leader Nie.”

“Of course, Sect Leader Jiang. You can meet me by the western training grounds when you wake up; we can leave once we’ve finished morning exercise.”

Jiang Cheng nodded, the plan sounding good to him. He stood up and tapped Nie Mingjue on the arm pointedly in warning – they’d agreed on a signal that indicated when a gesture for physical affection was welcome, since both of them were war veterans with a tendency to spook at unexpected gestures that came too close – before leaning down to claim his good-night kiss before heading out.

“You can show me your fans tomorrow as well, Huaisang –”

“Stop right there!” Nie Huaisang shrieked. “What was that?!”

Jiang Cheng blinked at him. “A…blatantly dismissive offer to let you torture me with your stupid fans for a shichen or so even though I clearly don’t want to?”

Nie Mingjue snorted. He really did find Jiang Cheng funny, and Jiang Cheng still found that bizarre.

“Not that! The kissing! You kissed my da-ge!”

“Well, yes,” Jiang Cheng said. “We’re getting married. It’s important to set up habits early to –”

He was about to explain the idea of practice, but Nie Huaisang seemed disinterested in that, jumping up from his seat and waving his hands around about why he hadn’t been informed yet.

In fairness, Jiang Cheng highly doubted Nie Huaisang understood the idea of practice in any form, so it was probably just wasting his breath.

“Stop fussing,” Nie Mingjue said. “I’m going to let you help plan the wedding.”

“That isn’t the point! You should have told me!”

“Am I required for this conversation?” Jiang Cheng asked.

“No, he’s just making a fuss.”

“I am not. And, no, Jiang-xiong, but thanks for offering – I’ll have words for you in the morning, probably. I can’t think of any right now.”

“Words?”

“Threatening words of some variety,” Nie Huaisang explained.

Jiang Cheng thought that was fair enough, given that he was marrying Nie Huaisang’s beloved brother. “Tomorrow, then. Good night, Huaisang, Sect Leader Nie.”

“Why do you still call each other by your titles?” he heard Nie Huaisang complaining as he left. “You’re going to get married…!”

Because we’ve only just become engaged and change is hard, obviously, Jiang Cheng thought, rolling his eyes.

Nie Huaisang really just didn’t understand things sometimes.

-

Jiang Yanli made a point of visiting the Lotus Pier on a regular basis, her doting new husband in tow, and Jiang Cheng was there to greet her every time.

This time was no different, and he showed her around the most newly rebuilt areas before bringing her back for lunch.

“When are you two going to give me happy news?” he said, aiming for teasing but mostly coming off grumpy. “You’re already married – there’s no reason to wait to have children.”

“Give it time, A-Cheng,” Jiang Yanli laughed while Jin Zixuan rolled his eyes but generally looked too happy to protest. “What about you, though? What’s your happy news?”

Jiang Cheng blinked at her, running through their conversation so far in his mind. He’d updated her on all the important things: the new pier district, the housing for war veterans, the new orphanage…he’d even mentioned the new dam they were constructing.

Had he omitted something?

“Your neck,” Jin Zixuan said.

That didn’t exactly clarify anything, and Jiang Cheng looked at him, utterly bewildered.

Jin Zixuan covered his eyes. “You have a mark on your neck,” he said. “It doesn’t look like an insect.”

Jiang Cheng got up to go look in the mirror, and sure enough, he did. It would have been covered by his collar, but it was a hot day and he’d been sweating, so the collar had dipped down just enough to show.

“Oh, that,” he said, making a mental note to tell Nie Mingjue to aim a little lower next time.

Jiang Yanli laughed, but Jin Zixuan’s expression looked a little more serious, and a moment later he asked Jiang Yanli if she happened to have any of that particular delicacy he’d enjoyed last time. She did, and she excused herself from the room to go get it.

Jin Zixuan turned the serious expression onto Jiang Cheng. “If it’s not anything serious, tell Yanli now. She’s convinced that you’re marrying whoever it is that left the mark on your neck, and I don’t want her to be disappointed.”

“Of course I’m marrying them,” Jiang Cheng said. “Who in the world would I allow that close to my neck if I wasn’t planning to –”

That was about when he remembered Jin Zixuan’s father and broke out into awkward coughing as he frantically searched for a subject change. “While you’re waiting for jiejie, why don’t you try some of these pastries?” he tried. “They were brought over from Qinghe.”

Despite the obviousness of Jiang Cheng’s conversational dodge, Jin Zixuan’s expression eased significantly and he looked happy again. “No, that’s fine. That’s good! What’s her name?”

“Sect Leader Nie,” Jiang Cheng said.

“No, not the one who brought you the pastries – the person you’re marrying.”

“Sect Leader Nie.”

“No, I meant –”

“I’m answering your question.”

“…oh.”

Jiang Yanli came back shortly with the little delicacy and looked surprised at how Jin Zixuan looked as if he’d been punched several times in the face – without any swelling, though, so it hadn’t actually happened. “What’s the matter?”

“He’s being weird over the fact that I’m marrying Sect Leader Nie,” Jiang Cheng said with a scowl. “I don’t know why.”

“Sect Leader Nie?” Jiang Yanli said, putting down the tray. “Oh, he seemed very nice. Do you like him?”

“I think we’re well matched?” he said, a little hesitantly. Like was such a strong word, after all. “He’s refreshingly low-key.”

Jin Zixuan muttered something incoherent under his breath, possibly something about Baxia not being low-key in the slightest, but Jiang Cheng ignored him.

“I’m sure he’ll make you very happy,” Jiang Yanli said, with a slight touch of their mother’s steeliness in her eyes suggested that he’d better. “Have you started planning the wedding yet?”

“No, not yet. We’ve drafted the contract, but we’re taking a little bit of time to make sure we’re compatible before proceeding with the details.”

“Good idea,” she said, and the memories in her eyes were the same as his – they both loved their parents dearly, but that was not a marriage experience either of them wished to repeat. “Well, let us know when you make the official announcement and we’ll toast to you.”

“I won’t tell my father ahead of time,” Jin Zixuan put in suddenly. “I promise.”

“…thanks,” Jiang Cheng said, not entirely sure what the point of the offer was – Jin Guangshan would find out eventually, one way or another – but aware that Jin Zixuan was trying to do something nice. “I appreciate it. Jiejie, would you like to try some Qinghe delicacies? Sect Leader Nie left them behind when he left.”

“I most certainly would.”

-

There were various phrases Jiang Cheng could live his entire life without hearing, and The Yiling Patriarch just attacked the Nie sect delegation was probably one of the top ones.

He ran over at once.

Luckily, Wei Wuxian was not, in fact, attacking the Nie sect; he was mostly just yelling at Nie Mingjue, who hadn’t even drawn Baxia and mostly looked (if you knew him well enough to read the gradation of scowl on his face) as if he was trying very hard not to laugh. That was probably why Lan Xichen, who was standing nearby with his stone-faced brother at his side, didn’t seem inclined to interfere, though he mostly looked confused.

“What’s going on here?” Jiang Cheng snapped, striding up to them. “Wei Wuxian..!” No, Wei Wuxian’s explanation wouldn’t make any sense. “Sect Leader Nie, Sect Leader Lan…?”

“I’m taking advantage,” Nie Mingjue said. “Apparently.”

“Of what?”

“As far as I could determine from the shouting, the answer would be – you, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan Xichen said.

Jiang Cheng stared. “Of – me?” He looked at Wei Wuxian. “What? How? For what?”

Normally he’d dismiss such a charge out of hand, but for all his recklessness, he could usually trust that Wei Wuxian usually had his best interests in mind…but on the other hand, Jiang Cheng really couldn’t imagine Nie Mingjue doing anything underhanded like that.

Besides, if he wanted something from Jiang Cheng, he could just ask.

Wei Wuxian crossed his arms, still glaring at Nie Mingjue. “He knows what he did.”

“Good for him, but that’s not really helpful to me, is it?” Jiang Cheng said, throwing his hands up. “It doesn’t exactly seem like Sect Leader Nie to be cheating me; I’d appreciate some facts.”

“Oh, I’m not cheating you,” Nie Mingjue said, and he was distinctly cheerful now. “I’m taking advantage of you.”

Jiang Cheng’s brow barely had time to wrinkle in irritation and confusion before Nie Mingjue added, “Sexually.”

Jiang Cheng had never had his emotions shift from irritation and rage into sheer hideous embarrassment so quickly before. “Wei Wuxian!” he howled. “That had better not be it!”

“He went into your tent last night!” Wei Wuxian argued. “You were already asleep at your desk, and he kissed you –”

That sounded a lot more like Nie Mingjue than the idea that the man was somehow cheating him. After all, Jiang Cheng had arranged for him to visit that evening, only to fall asleep before he arrived – it was only reasonable that Nie Mingjue keep up to their agreed schedule of good night kisses…

Huh, Jiang Cheng’s cheeks were red again.

“It’s fine,” he said. “I don’t – it’s fine. I don’t mind.”

“What do you mean you don’t mind? You can’t go around giving your first kiss to whoever wants to take it –”

“First off, that’s a bit hypocritical from the man who’d come back singing the praises of his ‘secret admirer’ in the forest after the Phoenix Mountain hunt,” Jiang Cheng said, because he was petty and because it made Wei Wuxian splutter (and Lan Wangji twitch for some reason – probably disapproval). “Secondly, what makes you think that was my first kiss?! Because it wasn’t!”

“Oh yeah? Who was your first kiss with, then?”

“…also Nie Mingjue, as it happens,” Jiang Cheng allowed. “But that’s because we’re getting married! He’s allowed to kiss me!”

“He’s not allowed to – wait. Married?! Since when?!”

“That is a very good question,” Lan Xichen interjected, looking thunderstruck. “Da-ge, you’re getting married?”

“Yes,” Nie Mingjue said. “We haven’t worked out any of the logistics of the ceremony yet because Huaisang can’t make up his mind about which method to use to pick an auspicious date, so I didn’t bother telling anyone.”

Jiang Cheng thought that that sounded perfectly reasonable – no point in claiming time on people’s calendars before they’d even selected the date – but Wei Wuxian seemed to be even more offended.

“Why didn’t you tell him? Aren’t you proud of getting married? Don’t you want the whole world to know?” he demanded.

“Weren’t you against this just a moment ago?” Jiang Cheng asked. “And he just said why. It’s not like I’ve been going around telling people, either.”

Now Wei Wuxian was glaring at him. “Does shijie know, at least?”

“Of course she knows –” Since that incident last week. “– and she’s fine with it.”

“...oh. She is?” Wei Wuxian abruptly deflated. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was going to,” Jiang Cheng said, exasperated. “But we didn’t pick a date yet. It’s not like I thought you would have trouble clearing your schedule to attend, what with your – your – your corpses and your radishes and all that.”

“Corpses and radishes,” Nie Mingjue echoed. “Fascinating.”

“You know, I haven’t been to Yiling in years,” Lan Xichen said thoughtfully. “That would seem to be appropriately neutral ground for an announcement of this magnitude, don’t you think?”

Jiang Cheng hadn’t even thought of that, but that would be perfect – everyone would have no choice but to come peacefully, and he’d be able to have his shixiong (however technically distanced) present. And, even better, he would be socially obligated to invite the person who hosted the announcement of his wedding to the wedding itself, no matter what his reputation was.

He turned to look at Wei Wuxian, who was gaping. “You want me to host…I wasn’t even officially invited to this gathering! I had to crash it!”

“And next time you won’t,” Nie Mingjue said. “It’s settled, then. You should probably go get ready.”

Jiang Cheng thought to himself that he’d never seen Wei Wuxian look so surprised – by anything, ever. He wasn’t sure it was possible for him to look any more surprised than he currently did.

Pleased with himself, and with Nie Mingjue, he leaned over and kissed his soon-to-be spouse.

Oh, huh.

Apparently it was possible.

[flames-bring-a-ton-of-ash]

Every Breath You Take - Loki x Reader

Summary: Loki has been stalking you for weeks, and you have no idea why. One night, he decides to claim what is his.

Characters: Loki x female reader

Words: ~6300

PLEASE HEED THE WARNINGS!!!

Warnings: Explicit smut, explicit language, stalking, dub-con and/or non-con smut (depending where you draw the line between those), breaking and entering, choking/breath play, fear kink, power dynamics, humiliation, praise kink, basically Loki being a dominant mother fucker

Author’s Note: Major song inspiration for this is “Every Breath You Take” by Devil + Winter. Yes, I know it’s a remake of an older song, but I looove that specific cover so much.

This might officially be my favorite oneshot I’ve written thus far, so I hope y’all enjoy!

Every Breath You Take

Glancing at the clock, you puffed out a breath at the late hour. It might be Friday, but you had refused to leave the office until all weekly projects were completed by their deadline, as well as a few extras that you wanted to finish ahead of schedule. You had snagged a government job, and there was no way in hell that you were going to slack off or cause anyone to second guess whether you were the most qualified choice. 

Sending off an email to your supervisor with the attached completed work, you gave a triumphant grin before logging out of the computer system, grabbing your purse, and hightailing it for the elevators. Thoughts of a long, hot bath followed by curling up on the couch with delivery pizza and a sappy movie were beckoning, and after a week full of working early mornings and even later evenings, you deserved it. 

Exiting the elevator and crossing the lobby, you waved and said goodnight to the evening security guard. He was unsurprised to see you leaving so late and wished you a good weekend. The sun had set hours ago, but the street was still semi-lit from the city lights, sections of darkness broken by circles of lamp light, car headlights, and the muted glow of lit windows. 

And yet, he still managed to hide within the shadows. 

You wouldn’t have even noticed, if it weren’t for the fact that he had been an unfailing constant lately. Each time you exited the office, even if it was just to run down the street to the nearest food truck, he was there. Standing right across the street from your work building, intense stare fixed in your direction, tonight was no exception. 

The first time it had happened, you had been sure you were hallucinating. Especially because no one else seemed to notice the tall figure, pedestrians passing by with no acknowledgement. It was as if he didn’t allow anyone to see him. Just you. 

Habit made you glance across the street again, and sure enough, the shadowed outline of his lean form was still waiting between the patches of light. It was as if he had molded them to his own benefit, wrapping the night around himself so that only the inhuman flicker of his eyes glinted at you out of the darkness. 

Loki, the God of Mischief, had been silently stalking you for weeks. And you had absolutely no idea why. 

Starting down the street, you felt his presence as a prickle on the back of your neck. He was there as you walked a block over to the bus stop, and it was only when you were safely on board and in a seat that the sensation disappeared. You breathed a heavy sigh of relief, knowing he was gone. The reprieve was short-lived, since you also knew that he’d already be there when you got home. 

Sure enough, once the bus exited the city and stopped near your block, the sensation of being followed returned. You walked quickly up the front path of your suburban home, hands shaking slightly as they fit the key into the front door. He never came too close, never followed you across the threshold, but the idea that he could made your mouth run dry. Once you were inside with the door closed and deadbolted, you went around double checking all the windows and the back door. Yep, still locked. 

Peeking out between the blinds in the living room, your eyes scanned the moonlit yard, looking for movement. You didn’t see any, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t out there, lurking. For the millionth time you contemplated reporting him, but also for the millionth time you had no idea who exactly to tell. It wasn’t like you were highly-ranked enough to have Mr. Fury or the Avengers on speed dial. And the police would think you were having a mental break, since it seemed as though Loki could cloak himself from being noticed, even when in the middle of a crowd. 

You had just started working for S.H.I.E.L.D a couple of months ago, as a low-level data interpreter. To say you were at the bottom of the totem pole was accurate, but you were prepared to work hard to elevate yourself within the organization. Sure, you’d never be an actual agent or spy, but there were upper level positions within your department that would one day have your name on them. You weren’t about to jeopardize those possibilities by creating waves while still in your probationary period, especially since you doubted your by-the-book, no-nonsense supervisor would do anything other than laugh in your face if you tried to tell him that a friggin god had chosen to follow you around. Hell, even your own family would probably assume you were overworked and delusional.  

Which meant that you were stuck dealing with the issue of Loki yourself...and so far your grand master plan had been trying to ignore him in the fervent hopes that he would get bored and leave you alone. 

Though he was impossible to totally ignore, you had made some progress with not lying in bed awake all night, staring at the ceiling and fearing the moment he’d decide to come inside the house. You still did this for about half of the night, but hey, progress. When he had shown no interest in crossing that boundary, you wondered if you were supposed to feel more terrified at his lack of intent, or safe with the knowledge that he was lurking around the house like your own personal security system. 

And while you had at first been too scared to leave the office for lunch knowing he was out there, after a week of huddling in your cubicle you had been furious with yourself. It had been a piss-poor day anyways, and you had barely made it to an 8am meeting on time thanks to forgetting to set your alarm the night before (probably because you had been too busy stressing over the god lurking outside). Deciding that enough was enough, you had walked outside with head held high, ready to march down the street to the nearby deli. He had been there, of course he had, piercing gaze immediately zeroed in on you the moment you exited the building’s doors. 

Lack of sleep and frustration making you feel bold, you had actually stopped and glared black at him. It was the first time you had been assertive enough to acknowledge him without any visible fear, and you were damn proud of yourself. 

That pride had quickly turned to ash when the corners of his mouth curved slowly upwards, lips parting to showcase a sadistic smirk that caused your heart to drop into your ass, legs doing a 180 and practically sprinting you back into the building. Turns out you hadn’t been that hungry, after all. You had left the office for lunch a few times since then, but always kept your eyes pointed down at the sidewalk, never daring to nonverbally challenge him again.

Now, after checking for the umpteenth time that all the blinds were closed, you went through with your evening plans, the hot bath relaxing tense muscles and greasy pizza filling your soul as much as your stomach. And when you crawled into bed a few hours later and drifted off to sleep, you almost forgot about the powerful god who was stalking your every move. Almost…

~  ~  ~

Startling awake a few hours later, you sat up in bed and grabbed for the bedside lamp, flicking it on. Eyes squinting at the sudden brightness, you scanned the room with a pounding heart, relief washing over you at seeing that the corners were empty. It was just a dream, you soothed. It wasn’t real…

Said dream had been filled with flashing green eyes, lips twisted into a cruel grin, and a large, powerful form pinning you to the bed. 

Licking bone-dry lips, you got out of bed and headed down to the kitchen for a glass of water. You didn’t turn on any other lights, both because you knew the layout of the house well enough to navigate it in the dark, and in hopes that your movement wouldn’t alert a certain visitor who might still be in the vicinity. 

The microwave clock showed that it was a little after 3am, which meant you had only gotten a couple hours of sleep before the raven-haired god had once again disrupted your life. There were enough windows with moonlight streaming in through the blinds that you had no trouble navigating the kitchen. Not wanting to open the fridge and risk him seeing the light, you grabbed a glass out of the cabinet and went over to the sink, glancing out the small window above it but seeing only an empty yard. 

The glass was half full when you felt every hair on your body stand up in warning. All those blinds had been shut earlier. You had checked them multiple times before going to bed. Your eyes flew back up, breath catching in your throat at the sight. Only seconds ago the view of the yard had been empty, but now…

Loki was standing mere feet away, on the other side of the glass. Moonlight lit up his features, the pale unblemished skin giving off an eerie glow as his emerald eyes burned into you through what, suddenly, felt like a pathetic excuse of a barrier. Shock and fear made your suddenly shaky fingers loosen their grip on the fragile water glass, causing it to fall into the sink and shatter. The noise was like a gunshot to your frozen state; you jumped and screamed in alarm before realizing the sound wasn’t from the window. Eyes jerked down to the sink, where pieces of glass lay scattered and sparkling in the dim moonlight. When you looked back up again, Loki was gone. 

Suddenly, a wave of anger flowed through you, heating your blood and overtaking the fear long enough for you to make what, looking back, was a really fucking stupid decision.

You were so done with his shit, done with living in constant hypervigilance and fear because some god had decided to play with you like a bug in a jar. Without allowing yourself to fully process the stupidity of what you were about to do, you went over to the back door, opened it, and stormed out onto the porch. 

Breath puffing with adrenaline, you glanced to your right, where Loki had previously been standing. Instead, there was only empty air. This served to piss you off more, as it was obvious that he was just toying with you. Well, you were done with the games. 

“Listen up, asshole!” you shrieked at the empty yard. “I don’t know what your problem is, but-” you cut off abruptly as logic finally caught up to anger. Your brain was frantically waving a big, red ‘this is a really stupid idea’ sign and telling you to get back inside. 

The flames of rage quickly fizzled out, replaced by an icy wave of fear when the asshole in question suddenly appeared in the middle of the yard, seemingly out of thin air. He stood silent and still as the night, all-black Asgardian clothing molded to his tall and proud form so that he blended in with the shadows.

You felt, more than saw, his eyes trail slowly down over your body, expression unreadable in the dim moonlight. You were suddenly very aware that you were only wearing a lavender tank top and grey sleep shorts, bare toes curling against the cool wood of the porch. The sheer vulnerability of your situation kicked-started the flight response, and you took a slow step backwards, not wanting to lose sight of what your survival instinct classified as a wild and unpredictable predator. 

The plan failed instantly when Loki burst forward, black cape fluttering out around his form as he strode across the yard. You weren’t sure if he looked more like a fallen angel or avenging demon, but the effect was enough to jolt your body into motion as you turned and sprinted for the still-open back door. 

Crossing the threshold, you felt a small spark of relief, thinking how he never came inside, that you just needed to get the door closed and…

He hit the wood with such force that you were thrown into the kitchen, stumbling back against the opposite wall when he stepped inside. His gaze zeroed in on you as he lifted one booted foot and kicked the door shut.

The loud slam made you jump, vocal cords suddenly coming back online as you opened your mouth to scream. He moved so fast that you didn’t even have time to consider fleeing, his hand cutting off the scream before it even left your throat. He slammed you into the wall, his palm so large that it covered the entire bottom half of your face and effectively cut off your oxygen. His other arm caged you in, palm flat against the wall right beside your head, making you feel utterly trapped. Eyes widening with terror, you clawed at his hand, fighting to breathe. You might as well have been an insect trying to stop an incoming shoe with all the difference your struggles made. 

“You will be silent. Attempt to scream again, and I will choke the life out of you. Understood?” 

His low, dark voice made you shiver with fear, but you were so desperate for air that you would agree to almost anything at this point, and so nodded frantically up at him. His eyes narrowed for a few moments, as if assessing your reliability, before sliding his hand down so that it lightly encircled your throat and anchored you to the wall.

Gasping in blessed oxygen, you panted up at him with heaving breaths, eyes shifting back and forth as you tried, and failed, to come up with an escape plan. If you thought he had been intimidating from a distance these past few weeks, it was nothing compared to the vision of him up close. He practically buzzed with power as his lean, muscular frame towered over you, the ebony-clad chest and shoulders blocking any view of the kitchen and back door. The fingers at your throat flexed slightly in silent warning, as if he could read your thoughts and was reminding you that escape was futile. 

You looked up at him, still in shock and trying to process the fact that a literal god was in your kitchen. And not just any god, but one who had terrorized your city, made a crowd kneel at his feet, and declared his intent to rule the planet. His arrogance was legendary, his powers terrifying. And you were so, so fucked. 

Glancing up, you took in his face, semi-shadowed in the moonlit kitchen. Flawless porcelain skin showcased features sharp enough to cut glass, your eyes scanning over his sternly clenched jaw and lips pressed into a tight grimace. They gave off a coldness that sent a shiver down your spine, but then you looked up past his straight, regal nose and found the blazing heat of his gaze. He was watching you intently, those cruel lips curving up the slightest bit at your obvious perusal.

Horrified to have been caught staring, your eyes quickly lowered, taking in the expensive fabric that covered his tall, powerful body. You felt him bend down, every muscle tensed in fearful anticipation when his face stopped right beside your own. You could practically feel the effort he made to reign in his strength, the capability for violence coiled tightly right below the surface of his skin. Still too scared to lift your eyes, you heard as he slowly inhaled through his nose before exhaling through his mouth, so that warm breath ghosted over the side of your neck and caused goosebumps to erupt across your flesh. 

Holy crap, had he just sniffed you?!

He gave a dark chuckle at the noticeable shudder that ran through your body in response to his actions. The hand at your throat moved up to tightly grip your chin, tipping it upwards until your eyes fluttered up as well and were ensnared by his gaze. 

He was taking you in, noting your eyes dilated with fear and mouth slightly parted as your chest heaved to take in panicked breaths. He seemed to catalog all of your reactions with a piercing intelligence, as if storing away the knowledge for later. 

“Do you fear me, human?”

The low, rumbled words shouldn’t have been enticing, but you’d be lying to deny the stirring low in your gut that resulted from his voice whispering in your ear. It actually took a few seconds for the question itself to filter through your brain. Unable to nod with his fingers still gripping your chin, you instead gave a soft, breathy, “Yes,” which caused him to smirk.

“Good girl.”

Okay, now that definitely caused a reaction, your body heating up at the mixture of fear and praise he provided. Dear god, what is wrong with you?! Scream, fight, do something!

As if he could read the thoughts in your gaze, he clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “Ah ah, little one. You’re not getting away until I allow it.” 

Attempting one last ounce of bravery, you asked in a pleading voice, “Why are you doing this?”

His eyes lit up, as if he were impressed that you dared to question his motives. The fingers at your chin loosened slightly, his eyes watching as he moved a thumb slowly back and forth across your lower lip.

“This planet is exceedingly uninspiring, and I have found humans to be particularly boring. So I had to obtain entertainment in one form or another, didn’t I?”

Well that sure wasn’t the answer you had been expecting. All the weeks of following you around, scaring you to within an inch of your life as you tried to figure out what reasons he had for singling you out, and it was all because he was bored?

You were grateful to feel a spark of anger return at his callous response and utter disregard for what he had put you through these past weeks. Looking back later, you’d think that he had verbally poked at you on purpose, had wanted you to showcase a bit more fight to add to his entertainment of the situation. 

Through gritted teeth, you said, “If we’re so boring, then why waste your time following me around?”

His fingers trailed back down over your throat, and for a moment you thought that your words had been a fatal mistake, that this was when he decided you weren’t worth the trouble and strangled you. Instead, his fingers flitted over the pulse in your neck, pausing there as if to measure its beating, before gliding further down and across your delicate collarbone. 

“I said humans were boring.” The tips of his long, cool fingers slid underneath the right strap of your tank top, pushing it towards your shoulder. “I didn’t say that you were boring.” 

Shocked into silence, you felt the fabric being dragged down over your arm, the neckline lowering with it so that the top swells of your breasts were visible. You felt like a rabbit caught in the hunter’s crosshairs, too scared to move outside the involuntary trembling that started in your knees and traveled up the length of your legs and torso. 

“Please,” you whispered, staring up at him helplessly, beseeching him to let you go. Wanting this to all just be a dream in which he would suddenly disappear and you would wake up in your warm bed. 

“Begging already?” he taunted. “But we’ve barely begun.”

With that, he grabbed the neckline of the tank top and yanked, the fabric no match for his inhuman strength as he literally tore it from your body. The cool air hitting your bare nipples was what thrust you into action, as you reached up to shove against his shoulders with all your might, hoping to make him stumble back long enough so that you could dart to the side and make a run for it. 

Instead, you might as well have pushed against a stone wall, even the adrenaline-laced strength not making him retreat so much as an inch. The only reaction your action caused was him to huff out a dark laugh of amusement before he flung the tatters of the tank top to the side and leered down at your exposed flesh. 

You watched, wide-eyed, as a large and surprisingly warm palm cupped your breast, testing the weight of it. The whimper that left your throat was purely out of fear, you told yourself, and had nothing to do with the sensation of him pinching your nipple between two of those slender and graceful, yet powerfully masculine, fingers. 

“What delightful noises you make, pet. I’m eager to learn how many others I can wring from your lips.”

Oh god, this couldn’t be happening. The whole situation was too surreal, too overwhelming. Your brain couldn’t compute all the mixed signals it was getting from the rest of your body. Thighs trembled with fear and the desire to run, but your traitorous nipples were hard as stone, and not just from the chilly air. 

Loki noticed as well, of course he did. He was a master of lies, and of reading them in others, so there was no way your body was going to fool him. A pleased look lit up his eyes, and the emerald blaze was too much, causing your own to squeeze tightly shut when he leaned in close. 

The words were whispered from mere inches away, and they brought with them a pang of arousal that shocked you to the core. “Don’t fight it, girl. You were made to be ruled, to be owned. And I’m going to make you mine.”

You gave a little sob in response, but didn’t argue, didn’t struggle. Not even when the hand at your breast continued its pleasurable torment while his other hand left the wall to trail down over your ribs and waist until it met the top of your sleep shorts. The tips of his fingers hooked inside the fabric, and with one graceful movement he shoved both shorts and panties down over your hips, so that they fell in a pile at your feet and left your body completely bare. 

“Step out of them,” he commanded, fingers dancing softly along your hip bone. 

Frozen with indecision, your breath came in audible gasps as the mixture of fear, anxiety, and burgeoning desire made your head spin. The headstrong and independent mentality that was so self-ingrained insisted that you fight him to the very end. But there was another part of you, a hidden and previously unknown part, that wanted to do as he said. Wanted to give in and submit. 

Before you could find out which side would win, the hand at your breasts leapt back up to your throat, the movement so quick that you barely had time to register it before your oxygen was cut off. Eyes flew back open in panic, but before you could even attempt to struggle, the long fingers of his other hand caught and held your wrists tightly together, effectively trapping you once again.

His face lowered directly in front of your own, his straight, white teeth bared as he snarled, “I said step. Out. Of. Them.”

At this point, you’d do just about anything he asked if it meant being able to breathe, and so obediently lifted first one foot and then the other out of the shorts and underwear. He used his own booted foot to shove the fabric so that it slid across the floor off to the side, but didn’t yet let up his grip on your throat. 

Your vision was growing spotty from lack of oxygen as you choked and squirmed in his grip. He looked delighted at this, his gaze dropping down to watch your body’s involuntary twists and jerks before lifting back to your face. 

“You’re a willful little human, I’ll give you that. But from now on, when I give an order, I expect you to obey. Do I make myself clear?”

You nodded desperately, and when that didn’t seem to satisfy him, sputtered out a barely audible, “Yes”. 

“Sorry, pet, I didn’t quite catch that. Try again.” 

Certain you were about to pass out, you put all remaining energy into gurgling out another attempt of the word. It must’ve been enough, because he whispered ‘good girl’ at the same time his grip loosened, allowing you to cough and gag as your lungs frantically filled with air. 

His hand stayed in place this time, splayed across your throat in silent warning, as his other palm released your wrists, coasted down the front of your body and, without any hesitation, delved between your thighs. When you tried to close them, he used his own leg to wedge yours back open, pressing his erection into your hip and making it clear where this was heading. 

Those cruel yet seductive fingertips ran along your slit before dipping into the humiliatingly apparent wetness and spreading it up to your clit. He gave a hum of male satisfaction at your pleasured gasp, exploring your body in a way that made both shame and desire heat your skin. The tip of his finger teased at your wet opening, barely dipping inside. Your hips bucked, and you didn’t know whether it was an attempt to get away or move closer. 

His voice was more raspy than before, when he asked in a condescending tone, “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you, my pretty little girl?”

You hoped he didn’t notice the way your pussy clenched onto the tip of his finger when he called you ‘his’, but judging by his groan, he had. 

Slow, achingly slow, he pushed his finger inside you, the long digit reaching places that your own hands never could. Your head fell back against the wall with a soft thud, baring your throat to him, as desire officially overtook the will to escape. 

“Yes, that’s it,” he cooed, the thumb of his other hand tracing over the rapid pulse that beat in the side of your throat. “Show how you belong to me.”

His words should’ve scared you, and they did in a far-off and hazy kind of way, but you were more focused on how he was pushing a second finger inside you. He rubbed them with knowledgeable precision against the sensitive front wall, making you cry out when they found your g-spot. And when his thumb also started rubbing quick little circles on your clit, you decided that maybe belonging to him wasn’t such a bad thing, after all. 

He continued that way, relentless, his breaths coming in heavy puffs against your cheek as he finger fucked you roughly until the tension between your thighs coiled into a tight spring of need. Whimpering, you dimly realized that your hands were grasping desperately at his arms and your thighs had fallen open wide of their own accord. 

“There you go, pet. Take your pleasure, be a good little girl.” The hand at your throat tightened slightly, just enough to make you have to work a bit harder to draw breath. “And then, I’m going to fuck you...and I’m not going to be gentle about it.”

The orgasm slammed into you unexpectedly, and it was unlike any you had previously experienced. The combination of his praise and threat, along with the motions of both his hands, sent your body soaring. Your cries were hoarse and strained from his grip at your throat, and your legs shook as you came all over his hand, his eyes flaring down at you with delight as your body convulsed against him. 

He removed the hand from between your thighs, lifting his wet fingers to your lips and ordering you to open them. Still drunk off the orgasm, you did so without hesitation. 

“Suck them clean. Taste your own desperation,” he purred, teeth nipping sharply at your ear as he ground his hips against you.  

Once he was satisfied with your work, he removed his fingers from your mouth with a pop before reaching down to his crotch and starting to undo the fabric. You watched in silent awe as he removed just enough of the unearthly clothing to release his thick cock, the head a dark red and already glistening with precum. Despite your recent orgasm, you still felt a bit of apprehension, knowing it was going to be a tight fit. He gave it a few firm strokes with his fist before he grabbed your hips and twirled you around so that you were facing the wall, his feet pushing your legs open even wider, spreading you out for him. 

It felt so taboo, his still fully-dressed, muscular body pressing into your naked back, his bare erection bobbing between your spread thighs. He was so tall that when the hand at your throat pushed upward, forcing your head to tip back until your face was parallel with the ceiling, he was able to lean down over you and make eye contact. You tried to look away, but his fingers pressed into your windpipe in retaliation. 

“Eyes on me, girl. I want to see that little look of pain in your eyes when I press into you.”

Your eyes widened at that, causing him to chuckle. The tip of his cock notched at your opening, but he didn’t press forward, drawing out the tension of the moment. 

“Who do you belong to?” he taunted. 

Licking your lips with both anticipation and nervousness, you whispered, “You.” 

He made a deep, approving noise in his throat. “Yes. Say it. Say my name.” 

“Loki,” you answered with a cry, as he started to press his cock forward, your body twisting as it struggled to adjust to the wide head. 

“No no, don’t tense up,” he hissed. “Take it. Take it all.” 

With that, he pushed inside you with one long, slow thrust. You felt the slight burn as your body stretched to accommodate every thick inch. It must’ve shown in your face, because his lips curled into a smirk at the same time as he groaned deep in his chest, the sound vibrating against your back. 

“Mmm, you suffer so beautifully for me. Look at you, taking all of my cock like a good little girl.”

The bastard knew what his words did to you, panting out a chuckle when he felt you involuntarily clench around him in response. Your hands were braced against the wall, back arched as he grasped your throat and hip with his hands and impaled you on his cock. You felt so full, so utterly overtaken when he ground his hips into your ass, as if to see just how deep he could go. 

He withdrew slowly before thrusting back in, quick and harsh, causing you to cry out with the sharp pleasure-pain. He did it again, pulling his hips back agonizingly slow until the tip of his cock was resting at your entrance. He paused for a moment before pushing back inside, as if to recreate that initial claiming thrust. After doing this about half a dozen times, he stopped teasing and set up a steady and deep rhythm, each thrust sending sparks throughout your entire body. 

Your eyes had started to flutter shut, but his hand cutting off your air caused them to reopen and focus up at him, his chiseled features hovering over you in the dim light, gaze searing down into your own. This time, you didn’t panic, didn’t tug at his arm, just stared up at him with desire-glazed eyes and let him do as he wished. You could practically feel his approval of your surrender, his fingers loosening long enough for you to draw a few breaths before tightening again. 

“You’re so pretty like this, surrendering to me,” he growled through bared teeth, once again letting up on your throat so that you could gasp in air and let it out with a moan. “Every breath you take is mine. Every gasp from your lips, every flutter of your pulse...it’s because I allow it. And now, I’m going to fill up this cunt and claim it as mine.”

Your whimper was cut off as his hand tightened once more, hips picking up the pace as he thrust brutally into you, his balls smacking your clit and fingers pressing so deeply into your hip that you knew there would be bruises to match the ones at your throat. The edges of your vision were starting to become fuzzy when he let up for the last time, his hand lowering from your neck to run over your breasts, tweaking the nipples until you whined before continuing downward. 

When his fingertips zeroed in on your clit, you let out a pleading noise which, under other circumstances, would’ve made you ashamed at how needy it sounded. You weren’t sure what exactly you were begging for, but you did know that he was the only one who could give it to you. The harsh bite of his cock dragging against your sensitive inner walls combined with the fast and skilled movements of his fingers drove you up to the edge, forehead dropping to the wall as you moaned uncontrollably, his answering grunts sending shivers through you. 

The hand gripping your hip came up to wrap in your hair, pulling your head back so that you were once again looking up at him, and you couldn’t help but think that he was one of the most glorious creatures you had ever seen. His features looked as wrecked as you felt, cords in his neck standing out with stark relief in his pale, moonlit skin as his jaw clenched tightly, eyes focused unwaveringly on you. It was one of the most intensely intimate moments of your life, his piercing gaze breaking you wide open with nowhere to hide. 

You started shaking uncontrollably, body balanced right on the knife’s edge of pleasure and wanting so badly to fall over into the abyss. His lips twisted knowingly as your pussy started to flutter around his cock. 

“Yes, that’s it. Come for me.” The hand between your legs pressed in harder, moved faster. “Come for your god.”

As if the words were the final push your body needed, the orgasm flowed through you. It wasn’t as volatile a punch as the first one; instead, it drowned you in waves of blissfully intense pleasure that drew soft cries from your lips, the sound mingling with his own strangled groan. Leaning down, hand still fisted in your hair, he bit into your shoulder as he came. You felt his warm cum filling you as he did just as he promised, and claimed you as his. 

Mind floating from the high of your orgasm and body trembling with little aftershocks, you felt his hips slow then still, his mouth moving from your shoulder to lick a trail of sweat that was running down the side of your neck. Whimpering, you couldn’t stop your hips from pushing back into his, grinding onto the softening cock that was still buried deep. 

He hummed with approval, his hands running up over your sides, tracing your body with possession for a few long moments as both of your bodies calmed. Taking your earlobe gently between his teeth, he whispered, “You’re mine now. Anytime I want you, anywhere I choose. Is that clear, kitten?” 

Part of you wanted to deny him, wanted to find the strength to fight back, now that the orgasmic stupor was starting to lift. Instead, your body responded of its own accord, head nodding with submission. 

His lips pressed softly to your temple, making you gasp at the gentle touch. You realized dazedly that it was the first kiss he’d given you all night. 

“Good girl.”

The words were said a moment before his body moved away, his cock slipping wetly from your body. The cool air hitting your back made you immediately miss his body heat. You turned around, unsure what to do or say next…

But he was gone.

The back door was slightly ajar from him disappearing into the night, leaving you standing there, naked and shivering, his cum starting to trickle down the inside of your thigh. Grabbing your shorts and panties, you put them on before finding the tatters of your tank top and holding it to the front of your chest. Walking over to the door, you closed it with a click that sounded unnaturally loud in the empty kitchen. 

You went around to the windows and re-closed the blinds, stopping at the last one to glance out into the yard. It was empty, completely undisturbed, but you knew he hadn’t gone far...and that he wouldn’t be gone for long. 

Leaving the broken glass in the sink to deal with in the morning, you grabbed another one, filled it with water, and headed for the staircase. As you tucked back into bed, body already sore in places that made your skin heat with the memory, you thought back over his final words. 

You’re mine now. Anytime I want you, anywhere I choose. 

You wondered when he’d return to make good on his promise...and as you drifted off to sleep, tried to ignore the dark part of you that hoped it would be soon.

~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

Afterword: This is meant to be only a one shot. I know, I know, I left it very open-ended. But I like to leave something to the imagination, so y’all can create your own fantasy idea of what might happen to “you” next ;)

[collecting-stories]

Forevermore - c. 06 - JJ Maybank

Summary: With your parents away, JJ spends some quality time at your house.

A/N: Sorry there was a longer gap between these chapters.

You Are Ok Masterlist | Outer Banks Masterlist

✞ I never really ever, ever felt so at home before ✞

Your parents had a long list of rules that dictated every waking moment of your house. Rules that told you what to wear, what to eat, what to read, what to watch, who to spend time with. But one rule that had never even been added to the list was “no boys in the house”. It had never been necessary before, no boys at all was the general and, always upheld, rule for you and your sisters. Telling you not to allow them in the house didn’t even seem like a possibility to your parents and probably never would’ve seemed like a possibility to you if you hadn’t met JJ.  

Timothy left on the weekend, promising to be back for your birthday in a month,  and your parents left the day after, headed to South Carolina for a couples’ church retreat that your father was guest lecturing at. You had convinced your father, before you had even met JJ, that you could stay alone for the short week that they would be gone. Though technically, now, you weren’t alone.  

“Okay, we’re starting with the basics.” JJ announced, carrying a bowl of popcorn and two sodas into the living room, setting them down on the coffee table. You were sitting on the couch, blanket wrapped around your body, a baggy t-shirt serving as clothing because you didn’t want to wear a dress but didn’t have any pajama pants or shorts to wear.  

“What qualifies as ‘the basics’?” you asked, opening your blanket enough that JJ could get underneath with you, pulling your legs over his lap. He’d borrowed Pope’s laptop to watch movies with you, since your parents didn’t own any sort of technology, television included. Your parents had phones and there was a landline but that was about as far as it went.  

“Disney movies, even I’ve seen disney movies.” JJ replied, though admittedly it had been later in his childhood that he’d seen them. “We’ll start with my personal favorite...actually, not a disney movie just an animated movie, whatever...it’s called Balto.”

“Is that a dog?” You stared at the screen as JJ clicked on the icon for the movie.

“Yeah, it’s a movie about a sled dog.”  

“A sled dog?” You laughed, brushing his hair back so that you could kiss him before the movie started and he shushed you to listen. Your hand went to the back of his head, your eyes on the TV as you ran your fingers through the hair at the nap of his neck, absentmindedly leaning into him more.  

JJ had brought a whole backpack to your house, stuffed with clothes for the long weekend that both of you fully intended for him to spend at your house. Ever since you had mentioned the trip to JJ, and the possibility of him staying, you had been thinking of the implications of that. What expectations did he have for the week? You thought about asking him directly, or even asking Kiara or Pope, surely they would be able to tell you something about the girls that JJ dated before you.  

It wasn’t like you had any illusions about them. You weren’t jealous or insecure about any of his past girlfriends, or hook-ups. John B had indicated that JJ had never really done the ‘dating thing’ before you, which had you wondering what exactly he might expect out of you before you realized that he really didn’t expect anything. But whether he’d dated anyone seriously in the past or not, and whether that should have intimidated you or not, you were fairly neutral about it. JJ was your boyfriend and he loved you, he’d said so, and you weren’t worried about anyone else.  

“You know I’ve never watched a cartoon before?” You chanced mentioning, whispering the words to him as the dog on screen talked. There were a lot of things you hadn’t done before meeting JJ.  

Some things you weren’t interested in. The smoking didn’t bother you but you had no desire to try it, you’d given beer one go at a party that JJ snuck you out to but it tasted disgusting and you had nearly spit it back out. You’d tried soda and coffee and fast food and a slurpee from the 7-11 near the pawn shop. You wore jeans and a dress that was far more revealing that you’d ever considered a dress could be, and a bathing suit. You had let Kiara do your makeup and you liked it but weren’t terribly interested in doing it again. There were physical things too, just sitting next to JJ was something you had never done before, let alone kissing him.  

You thought about sex but hadn’t mentioned it to JJ, unsure if you should. The only sex talk you’d ever gotten from your mom had been when she told you that premarital sex was the ultimate sin and women who engaged in it ended up with unwanted babies. The basic understanding you’d come away with was that sex was intended simply to produce children for your family and to keep your husband happy and that he would, inevitably, guide you through it. You had trouble imagining Timothy guiding you through anything even remotely intimate.  

It wasn’t that you didn’t feel comfortable bringing up the subject to JJ it was just that you weren’t sure you were supposed to. You’d thought about asking Kiara but then felt kind of embarrassed about it, would she understand or think it was lame that you were asking about sex with her best friend. You weren’t even sure you were ready to have sex with him, whatever ready meant.  

“You okay?” JJ asked, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear, “you kinda zoned out.” He’d answered you about the cartoon thing but when you said nothing else he’d looked over, only to find you staring at the TV almost trance like.  

“Just thinking.” You replied. He had put the movie on cause it was his favorite and you wanted to watch it with him but you couldn’t help your mind from going haywire the longer you sat there.  

“Anything you wanna share with the class?” JJ asked, tucking the blanket around you more when you leaned into him.  

“I don’t know,” you really weren’t sure. You assumed, figured, he must know that you’d never had sex. It had to have crossed his mind at least once. Was he waiting for you to mention it to him? Was he just waiting to mention it or was he uninterested?  

JJ nodded slowly, tilting his head down to press a kiss against your collar where the large shirt had slipped to one side. You look at the TV screen, absentmindedly worrying your bottom lip between your teeth. JJ’s hand on your thigh returned some sense of gravity to you, drawing your attention away from Balto’s quest and back toward your boyfriend who was watching you with the sweetest blue eyes you’d ever seen.  

“What do you think about us having sex?” You asked suddenly, the overwhelming urge to confront the elephant in your head making you blurt out the first thing that came to mind.  

To his benefit, JJ looked somewhat startled by the question. It wasn’t one anyone had ever asked him before. He’d dated before and definitely had sex before, but he’d never had an actual conversation about it, not like that. “I uh, did you want to?” JJ asked, clearing his throat a little uncomfortably. He wasn’t completely sure what to say. He had definitely thought about having sex with you, he spent a lot of time thinking about you.  

“I don’t know...” you repeated, shrugging. “My mom told me having sex before marriage was evil. But she says that about kissing too.” You replied, pressing a kiss to his lips as an example.  

“I don’t know about evil,” he laughed, “John B’s a little more sentimental than me when it comes to sex but...I mean, you shouldn’t do anything you don’t want to.”

“I’m not really sure if I want to or not, I don’t have any experience...” you admitted, “it’s easy, with small stuff like soda and pants but, it’s harder to separate what I believe with what my parents believe when it’s stuff like that. I spent so many years being told that sex is something sacred for a husband and wife but...I don’t know if that’s something I truly believe.”  

JJ leaned his forehead against yours, kissing your cheek. “I would never, ever do anything you didn’t want to.”  

“I know that.” You replied. “Sorry for ruining Balto.”

“That’s okay, now whenever I watch it, I’ll just think of you wanting to have sex with me.” JJ teased, squeezing your leg just above your knee and making you laugh. You pressed a kiss to JJ’s neck, hiding your face so he couldn’t see you.  

“I love you.” You mumbled, lips brushing against his skin as you spoke.  

He tightened his grip on your waist, pulling you as close to him as he could, practically onto his lap as he kissed your forehead, “I love you too.” He replied.  

You practically jumped off his lap when a knock sounded on the kitchen door, “shoot,” you huffed, closing the laptop as JJ stood up.

“Who is it?” He asked, already grabbing the soda bottles and popcorn.  

“It’s Josiah. He promised my dad he would stop over and check on me.” You explained, keeping your voice down as you grabbed a skirt from the laundry off the kitchen, pulling it up, “go in my room.”

“They sent your brother over? I can’t believe your parents’ don’t trust you.”  

“I literally have a boy in the house!” You whispered, shoving him down the hall toward your room.  

The minute you heard your bedroom door shut you went to the kitchen, letting Josiah in, “sorry, I had the door locked,” you said, hugging your brother as he stepped through the door.  

“That’s alright, I forgot my key anyway. What’re you up to?” He asked, walking further into the house.  

“Laundry, mostly, I finished some homework for mom.” You shrugged, crossing your arms under your chest and glancing down the hall. “So yeah, just hanging out.”

“Man, it’s so quiet here without anyone else.” Josiah commented, “used to be loud no matter what.”

“Oh yeah, but that was all Eli and Robert.” You replied, “I was always an angel.”

He laughed, “yeah sure.”  

Josiah hung around for close to an hour, helping himself to left-over dinner in the fridge and talking about his kids with you, before he finally decided that it was getting late and that you were okay to spend the rest of the night by yourself. By that point you were almost 100% positive that JJ had probably skipped out. You would’ve definitely skipped out if you had to spend an hour sitting in someone’s bedroom while they talked about kids with their older brother. Once you’d locked the door behind your brother you headed to your room, expecting to find it empty. Instead, JJ was sitting there on the top bunk of the beds, reading your KJV bible.  

“You really love that top bunk huh?” You laughed, closing your bedroom door behind you.  

“Absolutely.” He replied, “this stuff is crazy, by the way.”  

“King James is...difficult to understand.” You said, pulling off the skirt you’d put on when Josiah got there and climbing up the ladder to the bunk bed. “I’m not sleeping up here with you, by the way. I have a perfectly good bed down there.”

He smiled, leaning over to kiss you, “I’m staying over?”

“You told me you were staying over, don’t act like it’s a surprise.” You laughed, nudging his side.  

JJ held the book on his lap, wrapping his arm around your waist and pulling you against him. He set his chin on your shoulder, pushing the book over so that you could see it to. “Here, explain this shit to me.”

“I don’t think you’re supposed to call the bible shit.” You said, turning your head so you could kiss him. “I like this.”  

“Sitting on the top bunk?” JJ asked.  

You rolled your eyes, “I mean, getting to spend time with you like this. Not having to worry about my parents or anything.”  

“We should keep doing this.” he replied, “my dad’s got a boat, the Phantom...I’m gonna take it after graduation and head down the coast. You should come with me.”

“Leave? Everything?” You asked. There were only two options and you had known that since you started to develop feelings for JJ. You could break ties with your family and hope that this thing with JJ was real enough to survive or you could walk away from him and marry Timothy and move to Nashville.

“I know it’s a...a lot.” JJ said, “but I just want you to be happy.”  

“I am, right now.”  

“Think about it. We could figure things out, find work somewhere.” He suggested, kissing your shoulder.  

You smiled, leaning into him more but not replying. Your gut reaction was to agree immediately, say that you wanted to go with him anywhere but you didn’t want to rush into anything. This week would be enough for right now.  

-

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[wouldduskwood]

Descendants of Despair Part 28

I wandered through to the bedroom to find Jake staring at the computer screen in mild frustration. “Yeah, not feeling the phone thing when you’re just through here.” I mumbled. Jake turned and smiled at me, capturing me in his arms. “I agree, having you here is far more pleasing.” He murmured softly.

“Okay, here’s the situation, I’m wired as fuck right now. Biting my tongue doesn’t always come easily. Also, I can’t remember the last time I ate and we have yet to find clear escape routes. I think we need to remedy some of this stuff, before I go completely nuts.” I sighed, hating to show any form of weakness.

Jake nodded solemnly. “I get it, I’m finding it hard to concentrate on this and making stupid mistakes. We need to sort the food situation out pronto." “I can go into Duskwood and pick something up?” I suggested, only partly joking. “No deal, we go together or not at all.” Jake responded with finality. “Okay, but you stay in the car where cameras can’t pick you up and I get in and out. Deal?” Jake nodded again. “Okay, but we order online from some place near here but not Duskwood. You go in and pick up, that’s it. We can’t get much, I don’t have a lot of money.” Jake sighed, embarrassed. “Yeah, money isn’t much of an issue.” I shrugged. “We order what we need and I pay for it in cash.” Jake looked at me, cocking his head to the side in apparent skepticism.

I sighed, “ I don’t trust banks with that much information about me...oh surprised?” I grinned, seeing his eyes widen briefly. “Very little of my money is used through banks...only what I want people to find actually. I withdraw a fair bit of money whenever I can. I purposefully use machines close to casinos to give the illusion of a gambling problem, but in actuality I keep the money in various envelopes with different quantities. A few days before I had to take off, I had gathered it all into my backpack. I kind of suspected I'd need to leave sooner rather than later. I guess this is a habit I picked up on the street. Hidden cash in various portions. If someone robs you on the street, they usually stop when they find something. If you spread it out in various places, they won’t find it all. Anyway, I guess I feel comforted having cash. It will also be helpful now, right?” I prodded Jake.

“Wow, you really are perfect aren’t you?” he grinned. “I have been busy racking my brain with how I will raise enough money to keep you alive and here you are sitting on money that will save us.” I smiled. “I think it will be plenty to keep us going for however long we need. There is a little less than $200,000.” This must have taken Jake by surprise as he stepped backwards momentarily.

“That much?” he croaked.

“Yeah, I spent a bit after I left the last place I was staying, on clothes and shit, but there should be enough here for as long as we need.”

“Uh, not to sound ungrateful or anything, but is it all...legally obtained?” Jake questioned. “It’s just...they can trace the serial numbers…”

I smiled and paused before responding. Jake looked at me questioningly. “Okay, yeah it is all legal. See, I told you I became qualified in teaching and technology. Well...I kind of found a little bit of a loophole. See, many international families want their children to learn English through a qualified English as a first language teacher. So, I found that if you...taught in a more relaxed and fun style than what the children were used to in their home land...well they tended to enjoy it more. They learnt fast. They also told their parents how great it was. Many of these families respect teachers and the market is massive, so they pay well...they also get their friends involved. Well, once I had a few networks set up, I worked out I could get more money if I taught more than 1 kid at a time, so I organised online classes. Parents were happy, their kids were happy, they were learning English and I was receiving full tutoring rates for every single child I had...no matter how many I taught at a time…I was pulling in a fair bit of money, even with taxes taken out, until I stopped recently to focus on you and Hannah…The other benefit was, I could do it on the run. I had tried once, ya know, to have a normal life. Began a normal job teaching and quit soon after as my past caught up to me.”

Jake shook his head slowly. “You are even more incredible than I ever thought before. Maybe it is no wonder I fell in love with you. You are perfect.”

I smiled then prompted Jake once more “So, groceries and essentials?”

“Come here and help me order,” he murmured, as he sat on the floor and pulled me onto his knee. We spent several minutes playing the happy couple as we browsed stock and picked out the various things we needed to survive. It was momentarily peaceful, but soon my phone was buzzing, notifying me that I had not yet escaped from my obligations to Duskwood.

“Fuck off,” I groaned out loud.

Jake grinned. “They won’t give up, you know.”

“Can I say ‘Be right back, after I have done some fine shagging?’ I questioned innocently, partly serious. I didn’t think it deserved the belly laugh it got from Jake.

“No you cannot!”

“But it would be conversation stopping!” I pointed out

“Or rumour starting!” He countered. “Fine,” I sighed. I opened the Groupchat and once again ignored the messages to pen my own.

GROUPCHAT

MC: I am going to get groceries. I need food and sleep. I promise I’ll talk to you later.

MC is offline.

“Take this, before I throw it.” I asked Jake then headed for the car, with Jake following close behind. “Once you go into the store, you take this back. I’ll field their comments. You focus on the task at hand, but I need to know I can track you if something does go wrong.”

I nodded weakly. It was taking some getting used to, having someone so concerned for my safety...and my own feelings of having someone I cared for more than myself.

“Jake. I love you.” I murmured quietly, partially trying not to be heard. Jake smiled, kissed my lips softly, then pulled on his mask and handed me my cap. “Time to cover up again, my Princess, and never forget, I love you more than life itself.”

Part 29