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poolwiseliving01 · 3 years

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Pool shop near me

AstralPool CTX Pool Pump:

Pool shop near me and CTX pool siphon has been intended to serenely address the issues and pressing factors needed by your pool and spa gear. You can depend on the CTX's solidness as it is produced using top notch materials and parts and is intended to create more noteworthy effectiveness and decrease commotion levels. This pool siphon can be utilized for in-floor cleaning frameworks, spa jets and other requesting applications dependably.

Highlights and Benefits :

Accessible in three distinct sizes to meet your application

Fuses an enormous build up pot requiring less upkeep

Interfaces with the Genus regulator framework

Decreased working commotion

Produced using quality parts

AstralPool FX Pool Pump:

The FX series siphon from Astral is intended to convey the force you need to move enormous volumes of water around while keeping up with commotion levels down. An inbuilt non-return valve kills switch revolution of the impeller in high-pressure circumstances guaranteeing dependability.

The FX Pump is reasonable in the event that you require a siphon for an over the ground pool shop near me or for warming frameworks. They give the peaceful, solid and productive exhibition that you search for in a siphon while fulfilling the needs of all the necessary hardware.

Features and Benefits

1. Accessible in 6 unique sizes to meet your gear needs

2. Calm activity

3. Intended for use as a sponsor siphon where overwhelmed attractions is conceivable

4. Hair and build up pot is superfluous

Hayward Pool Pumps:

In case you are searching for a pool siphon that is reliable and has extraordinary execution, Hayward pool siphons will give you simply that. With a full scope of variable speed, elite and medium head siphons lead the way in energy effectiveness, including Australia's initial 9-star energy appraised pool siphon. Haywards siphons are outfitted with rock solid engines for cool, calm, and proficient activity. Designed constantly to face the present most requesting establishments, our siphons set the norm of execution for pool, spa and cascade siphons. I thing Hayward is a good pool pump because Hayward set the norm for worth and greatness with this item. The siphon's plan is for all sizes and sorts of inground pool and spas. The Super Pump's impeller includes a higher stream rate with utilizing less drive than different siphons available.

Hayward Salt and Swim Pool Chlorinator:

Ideal for new or existing pool shop near me to 90 000 liters, theHayward Salt and Swim sets another norm in salt chlorine age with it's position of safety, low stream and low salt prerequisites. The Salt and Swim will likewise speak with your siphon during help capacity to guarantee run times compare with required chlorine levels.

features and advantages:

Low profile, attachment and play control box and minimal cell for simple retrofit establishments.

Low stream prerequisites permits the chlorinator to work even at energy saving siphon speeds.

Low salt prerequisites – 3500 ppm which is what might be compared to a touch of salt for each liter.

Consummately appropriate for sodium chloride, magnesium chloride and SoftSwimTM treated pools.

It's astonishing what "somewhat" salt can do to improve your pool insight.

Insnrg VI Premium Chlorinator:

The Insnrg VI Premium Chlorinator has exceptional highlights that will guarantee your pool stays more secure to swim in and simple to work. The Insnrg VI Premium Chlorinator is finished with pH and chlorine sensors which fit perfectly into the chlorination cell. These consistently measure the pool water conditions and naturally balance the measure of Hydrochloric Acid and Chlorine needed for your pool.

The Insnrg VI Premium Chlorinator likewise has inbuilt GPO attachments to work extra gear, for example, pool lights, water highlight siphons or spa blowers. Besides, you'll have the ability to work up to 3 separate valve actuators to make changes at the dash of a catch. Bluetooth Mesh innovation likewise permits proprietors to control their Insnrg gear together for an excellent encounter. There have been numerous ways and techniques delivered and elevated to disinfect your pool water however not many are as powerful, protected and solid as a salt or mineral chlorinator. For your pool to be protected to swim in, green growth and microscopic organisms should be killed. The chlorinator cell right away eliminates green growth and microbes as the pool water goes through the cell yet furthermore, it makes a leftover sanitiser level which stays in the pool water, killing toxins as they enter the water in any piece of the pool. The Insnrg Vi Premium Chlorinator consolidates every one of the advantages from Insnrg's mainstream Ni Chlorinator while adding some novel highlights that will make your pool simpler to keep up with, more secure to swim in and a fantasy to work. You will be the jealousy of your loved ones!

ZX Cartridge Pool and Spa Filter:

Minimal in plan, the ZX cartridge doesn't need a discharging line so they are ideal for spots or circumstance where wastewater removal or water limitations are in power. With the utilization of antimicrobial components your pool or spa will be microscopic organisms free and require less upkeep.

Key highlights and advantages

1. Oil filled pressing factor measure for exact readings and long life

2. Simple to eliminate top – takes off delicately while loosening up the enormous lock ring

3. Self lock on lock ring forestalls over fixing and secures position to forestall inadvertent extricating

4. 3 channels and 1 outlet empower simple position and substitution of more seasoned cartridge channels

5. Barrel association associations empower simple help and substitution in future

6. Less support required

7. Antimicrobial components utilized for cleaner water

8. Adaptable design

9. Accessible in 6 unique sizes

ZX Cartridge Pool and Spa Filter:

In case you are after a superior filtration for private and little business pool then the Astral FG fiberglass pool channel ought to be your best option. All parts of the channel have been intended to coordinate with superior siphons and improve the siphon execution, permitting quicker filtration utilizing less energy.

1. Features and advantage :

2. Huge limit and higher stream rates

3. Quality parts

4. Simple cleaning

5. Fiberglass tank

6. Accessible in a scope of sizes to meet your filtration necessities

Cantabric Media Pool Filter:

AstralPools CA Media Filter is 100% planned and made in Australia from the most progressive infusion trim and get together cycle of any channel. Designed constantly for high strength, long life, ideal stream rates and simple establishment and administration the CA Media channel range offers the best benefit for cash channel range which is intended for extreme Australian conditions.

Features and advantages :

Premium 10 sidelong under channel intended for low pressing factor misfortune which requires less influence utilization for ideal stream rates One of a kind under channel guarantees powerful discharging in less efficient water Completely infusion formed for high strength and longest life

Appropriate for Sand, Viron Glass and other channel media Interesting lock ring gets valve in only seconds and empowers quickest and least expense support and establishment.

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thefallennightmare · 5 years

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Just Friends

Pairings: Joe Jonas and Reader

Warnings: slight angst, swearing here and there. FLUFF.

Summary: Joe and Reader have been friends since they were just out of diapers. Reader has sat by and watched Joe fall in love with someone that wasn’t here. What happens when someone gets in between them?

A/N: This was a request so I hope whoever sent it in loves in and I did it justice for you!

“No. Absolutely not, Joe. I can’t ask you to do that.” I gnawed on my bottom lip.

“C'mon! It’ll be fun! I haven’t seen you in almost six months. I miss my best friend!” Joe’s ecstatic voice rang through the other end of my phone.

My lip was now raw from all the chewing I had been doing the last half hour while mulling over Joe’s offer.

“It’s a lot to ask,” I reminded him.

His soft voice scoffed. “If it bothered me, I wouldn’t have offered.”

I sighed before running a hand through my hair I knew he couldn’t see. “I don’t know how long it’ll be for.”

“More time for us to catch up.” He spoke.

The soft tone in his voice brought a smile to my face.

“Joe, honestly I don’t think I can afford the trip. It’s not to LA; you’re in Australia!” I admitted.

“It’s covered. All of it.”

“No way! I will not-.” I started.

“Y/N, the offer you sent for your dream house fell through and your lease is up. You need a place to stay. Pack your fucking bags because you’re coming to Australia and staying with me. I don’t care for how long.”

Even through the phone, I knew he was smiling from ear to ear; the one where the sides of your eyes crinkle

The one I loved so much.

“Are you sure?” I questioned once more. “I really don’t want to impose on you and Sophie.”

“She’s at our place in LA for work so it’ll be just us.”

I tried to stop the beating of my heart when I thought of Joe and I all alone with a quiet cough.

“And she’s fine with this?”

“She’s the one who suggested it.” Joe admitted.

After we said our goodbyes, I let out a sad sigh while looking around my now empty apartment, having moved all of my belongings into storage. A week ago I had put an offer in on a house that unfortunately fell through at the last minute, after I had ended my lease with my apartment complex. Which is where Joe had came in.

My best friend.

My savior.

My first kiss.

My first and only love.

I had known all of the Jonas brothers since elementary school and we all had basically grown up together. I was there through the rise and fall of The Jonas Brothers, never opting to leave their side.

Even though the brothers had decided to go their own ways, I still stayed in contact with all of them. I visited Kevin when his daughter was born, Nick came to my college graduation, and Joe; well it has been a long time since we had seen each other. We were incredibly close, thicker than thieves, however when Sophie and him got engaged our entire friendship changed.

The texting and phone calls went from every day to once a week if I was lucky. The late night face times ceased immediately after word got out about his and Sophie’s engagement. And the monthly visits to see each other were almost unheard of anymore. I knew it was all because of Sophie.

Joe loved her, I understood that, but my heart still broke knowing I had lost my best friend all because of a past we shared; a past that couldn’t really count as a past together.

We were each other's first kiss. It was the last night of summer vacation before we started our freshman year of high school and we both didn’t want to start the year off being the only kids that hadn’t had their first kiss.

So we made an agreement; we would be each other's first kiss and afterwards, never talk about it again. Throw the memory in a lock box while swallowing the key.

But the memory of his soft lips on mine, the way they moved together in sync, and how warm and full my heart fell never left. I knew Joe had told Sophie about that night and that was the reason why she couldn’t trust us together.

Could you blame her, though?

Forcing the thoughts and memories out of my head, I decided that I needed to finish packing whatever belongings I could bring with me before getting on the plane to head to Australia.

Knuckles tapped against the heavy wooden door, hands shaking with nerves as I waited for the man on the other side of the door to open it. My body was racked with the anxiety of seeing my best friend for the first time in over six months.

Locks clicked away as the door opened, the smile on the other end instantly warming my heart.

“Y/N!”

“Hey Joe,” I smiled.

I walked into his open arms, my own wrapping around his back and felt the heat of his body radiate off into me.

“How was the flight?” Joe questioned while motioning me inside and taking my bags from me.

I knew it was pointless to argue, saying I could take my own bags, so I followed him inside and down the hall towards his living room.

“I slept the entire time,” I lied.

Truth was, I couldn’t stop my knee from bouncing with nerves as I thought about my time alone with Joe. I wasn’t sure how long I was going to be here with him but I made a promise to myself; if we even crossed the line of friendship, I would hop on a plane and go stay with my parents. And I really did not want to do that.

“Are you hungry at all? I can throw some burgers on the grill,” Joe suggested.

“I’m fine right now,” I ran my hands over my leggings.

There was something unreadable in the air between us and it broke my heart. It had only been six months since we’ve seen each other but it felt like Joe and I were spending time alone together for the first time.

“We could watch a movie?” Joe nodded towards the couch.

Nodding, we both sat on the couch and I quietly waited for him to choose a movie. After choosing something random, we both settled in and watched in silence for quite awhile. I was paying attention to the television that I hadn’t noticed Joe staring at the side of my face.

“Why are you staring at me and not watching the movie?” I asked, finally looking into his eyes.

His eyes were intense as they looked over my face. “You’re uncomfortable.”

“No I’m not,” I bit my lip, hoping to mask the lie.

Joe scoffed. “Bullshit. Look at the amount of space between us.”

Looking to my left, I counted the amount of couch cushions between us; three.

“What? Did you want to cuddle?” I teased with a small laugh.

Joe’s face twitched, a look of hurt flashed in his eyes. “No but damn, Y/N. You’re acting like this is the first time we’re hanging out.”

I shrugged. “Can you blame me, Joe? We haven’t seen each other much since you’ve gotten engaged. It’s hard to act like we used too.”

“That’s why you’re uncomfortable? Because of Sophie?”

“We can’t exactly have our flirty comments or talk about our past, Joe. It’s not fair to her.” I reminded him.

His mouth opened but closed when his phone went off, the ring indicating that he was getting a face time call.

“Hey babe,” Joe smiled huge at the woman on the screen.

The woman who I couldn’t hide the jealousy from.

Sophie.

“Hey you! What are you doing?”

“Hanging with Y/N. She got in about an hour ago.” Joe turned the phone towards me.

“Hey Sophie,” I waved.

The beauty radiated off of her, even through the phone, and I cursed at myself for not changing out of my large sweater and leggings. I was seeing Joe, the least I could do was look somewhat attractive for him.

“Y/N! How are you? I heard about your offer falling through, I’m sorry!”

Even through her chipper voice, I knew she was not happy at all that I was here, alone, with Joe.

“Yeah, it sucks. But don’t worry I won’t be here for long. Just a couple of days. I think Joe would come find me if I turned down his invite to come see him. Again.” I smiled towards him.

“Soph, I gotta go. I’m going to take Y/N around town and show her some of the best spots.” Joe spoke, turning the phone back to his face.

“I’ll let you guys say goodbye,” I spoke on deaf ears.

Grabbing my bag, I followed Joe’s instructions to where the guest room was while trying to ignore the way they talked to each other; so lovingly.

“What do I wear,” I muttered while rifling through my clothes.

After finally decided on a black strapless sundress, I made my way to the guest bathroom, vowing to let the awkwardness between Joe and I to not stop us from catching up.

“Joe, where are we going?” I laughed following behind him.

“Just follow me. Careful, the rocks can get a bit slippery.” Joe reached behind him for my hand.

Hesitating only for a moment, I latched my fingers with his own as we walked down a steep hill for a few more feet before coming to a stop underneath a rock type cave. The peaceful sounds of waves crashing rang through my ears as we sat underneath the rock.

“This is one of my favorite spots. I come here a lot to think,” Joe admitted, staring out into the ocean.

“It’s beautiful.” I smiled, letting the calming aura encase me.

Joe had taken me to lunch at a small diner in town, one that he knew he wouldn’t get recognized, and afterwards we had walked down the boardwalk before stopping here. During our lunch, we pushed away the uncomfortable tension and caught up for the last six months. We joked and laughed like the way we used too, just with less flirting.

My heart hammered in my chest when the large smile crossed Joe’s face when I had told him about the time I was recognized by one of their fans.

“I don’t know how they even knew it was me! Nick posted me on his Instagram story the week prior while he was at my graduation and now I'm famous for knowing the Jonas Brothers.”

“That’s not the only reason why you should be known for, Y/N. I’ve told you countless times, your writing will get you where you need to be.”

“No one wants to read my poems or songs.”

“I do.”

The sounds of the waves brought me back and I looked over to Joe.

“Have you talked to your brothers recently?” I asked.

Joe gave a small shrug. “It’s been a few weeks. We’ve all been busy.”

“Really? Cause that’s not what Nick tells me,” I said with squinted eyes.

Joe’s face fell. “You and Nick talk?”

“Why wouldn't we? We’re best friends.”

He smirked while looking at his hands. “I deserved that.”

Quickly bumping my shoulder with his, I gave him a small smile. “I’m giving you shit, Joe. I know that our lives have been crazy lately.”

“That’s still not an excuse not to call or text. You were closer to me than Kevin or Nick, I shouldn’t have stopped talking to you.” Joe admitted.

“So,” I urgently changed the subject, not wanting to bring up this issue, “Nick told me that you guys are writing some music again?”

“Yeah, Kevin and I flew out to Nick for a weekend and wrote a few new songs.” Joe smiled, finally looking away from his hands.

“I’d like to hear it some time,” my voice spoke softly.

Joe remained silent while he pulled his gaze away from the ocean waves and locking his eyes with me. His breath hitched as our gaze burned with each other, the unspoken words getting stuck in our throats.

“Can I take a picture?” Joe requested.

Nodding with a small smile, I scooted a bit closer to Joe as he reached his phone out in front of us, taking a couple quick selfies before pocketing his phone again.

We remained in our spots, arms brushing against each other, and I resisted the urge to move a strand of hair out of his face that blew with the wind. Joe, however, raised his hand and placed a lone strand of hair that fell out of the messy bun and wrapped it around my ear.

“I missed you, Y/N.” He breathed.

“I’ve missed you more, Joe.”

“That is not how it happened!” I exclaimed with a loud laugh. “I did not want to be the only girl at that party that hadn’t played seven minutes in heaven so I made up an excuse to leave. I did not throw up all over Claire Sorrenson.”

Joe took a large drink of his beer before placing it on the table in front of us.

“Really? All these years, I thought that’s what happened! That was the talk of the school for months!”

“Trust me, I know.” I grumbled while crossing my arms over my chest.

I had been at Joe’s for over a week now and in those days we had grown so close that it was almost as if we never stopped talking.

Joe also posted a picture of us to his Instagram the other day with the caption, My best friend for the last 24 years. If anyone wants her @, hit me up and you can slid into her DM’s.

All jokes aside, my heart fell into the pit of my stomach when I realized I would always be in the friend zone with Joe. If he had any feelings for me, they vanished the second he had met Sophie.

Thankfully, Joe hadn’t given anyone my Instagram, my DM’s staying empty, but that still didn’t cure the ache in my chest when I looked a little too fondly at the way he smiles or the longing stares at his bare back as he worked out in the living room last night.

“I can go to a different room if you want.” The sweat on his broad chest glistened in the moonlight.

“No, you’re fine. You’re not bothering me.” I licked my suddenly dry lips, drinking in the sight before me.

Now tonight, we had decided to sit on his back patio while nursing a few beers and talking about our high school days.

“I never knew how much Claire hated you,” Joe spoke about his ex girlfriend.

I scoffed. “Of course she did. When she found out about us being each other's first kiss, she made my life hell all through high school.”

His features softened. “I think she wasn’t too happy knowing that you kissed better than she did.”

A blush crept along my cheeks and I couldn’t hide the smile as I thought back to the memory.

“Oh c’mon, Joe. We both know how awkward that kiss was! I was so nervous that I almost busted your lip cause I smacked you with my mouth too hard.” I cringed.

“After we shook out the nerves, the kiss wasn’t that bad,” Joe admitted with a sly smile.

“I still wish it went a lot smoother than it did.”

“You know,” he stated while sitting up in his chair, “I’ve always wanted to try that kiss again.”

“Wh-what?” I stuttered. “You’re drunk, Joe. You don’t mean that.

Joe only shrugged before opening another beer. “It’s true.”

Silence fell between us as I brought my jacket closer to my chest, trying to warm up my body that was already on fire with the thought of Joe and I kissing. Biting my lip, I looked over to him and was taken back a bit when I realized he was already watching me.

It could have been the alcohol or the way Joe was staring at me that was giving me all the courage in the world to say these next few words, knowing it could end our friendship; for good.

“We could try it again, if you want.”

Joe blinked, desire pooling in his stomach, and his tongue rolled slowly over his bottom lip while placing his drink down on the table next to the other empty cans

“Sure,” he agreed, “Only if you promise not to throw up on me.”

He couldn’t hold back the smile and laughter that erupted from his throat before leaning back into his chair, arms clutching his chest.

Anger filled me when I realized that Joe was joking, truly not wanting to kiss me. I held back the tears as I stood up, tossing the blanket that lay at my legs towards his face.

“Fuck you, Joe.” I seethed.

“Wait, you’re actually mad? I thought we were joking!” Joe reached for my hand.

Snatching it away, I turned on my heels to leave but stopped in my tracks when I saw the new figure standing in the doorway to the patio.

“What’s going on here?” Sophie asked with a small laugh.

“Babe, I didn’t know you were coming!” Joe exclaimed while rising to his feet.

“I wanted to surprise you guys,” she gave Joe a small kiss on the cheek then looked over in my direction. “Y/N, are you alright? You look like you’re about to cry.”

Joe forced himself to stop gawking at Sophie and searched my eyes. Tears brimmed on the edge, ready to flow at any given second.

Looking down at the ground, I shook my head. “I’m fine. I’m going to head to bed. See you guys in the morning.”

“Y/N…”

Ignoring Joe’s pleads, I pushed my way past them and into the house, finally letting the tears fall. Embarrassment clouded my vision as I hastily packed my bags, deciding that I couldn’t be here anymore. Joe knew how I felt about him and now with Sophie being back, I needed to leave. I wouldn’t let myself be the third wheel.

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were serious..’

Ignoring the first text from Joe, I zipped up my bag with force before setting it by the bedroom door. As I sat on the bed, ready to look for plane tickets home, another text popped on screen.

‘Are you mad?’

“No shit,” I scoffed.

Swiping away the new text, I searched for a few more minutes before finding a flight home for tomorrow.

‘Please talk to me.’

After another text from Joe, I decided to shut off my phone and crawled into bed, praying that I could leave tomorrow without anyone noticing.

“Soph, I don’t know where it is. I haven’t seen it.”

“I left it here before going to L.A and now it’s gone!”

Opening my eyes with a groan, I pulled the pillow of my face hoping to drown out the loud voices.

“Are you sure you didn’t leave it at the other house? I thought you were going to get it resized?”

“Yes, today!”

“It’s okay, we’ll look for it.”

“I bet Y/N knows where it is.”

At the mention of my name, my eyes snapped open. After throwing the covers off, I stumbled out of bed, a slight hangover pounding away in my head and I slowly walked towards the angry voices. I came to a halt in the kitchen when two sets of eyes landed on me.

“What’s going on?” I asked with a small yawn.

Joe gripped Sophie’s hand to keep her in place. “Sophie can’t find her ring.”

“Wait,” I was now wide awake, “You think I know where it is?”

Joe could hear the questioning tone in my voice so he quickly shook his head. “We’re not assuming anything, Y/N. We’re only wondering if you’ve seen it.”

“I haven’t,” I said sternly.

Sophie had remained silent so Joe tugged on her hand. “I told you. Why don’t you go check our room again.”

Averting my eyes as the shared a kiss, I heard Sophie’s footsteps descend down the hallway, leaving Joe and I alone.

“I texted you,” he muttered while stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“I know,” I revealed.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I looked out the large bay windows towards the ocean below and remembered the day Joe and I spent the entire night down on the beach, just talking. Letting out a shaky breath, I readied myself to let him know that I was heading back home, wherever home was I didn’t know but I did know that I had to leave here.

“Joe, I’m-.”

“I knew it!”

We both looked over our shoulders towards Sophie, who had reentered the kitchen with a deep scowl on her face. The anger radiated off her and I sunk low, fearing that I would be on the receiving end of her wrath.

“Did you find it?” Joe questioned.

“Yes, in Y/N’s bag!”

“The fuck?” I grumbled.

Joe looked from Sophie to me, hurt flashed in his eyes. “You took her ring?”

“Excuse me? She went through my things!” I yelled while pointing to Sophie.

Sophie slammed the ring down on the counter. “Answer the question, Y/N!”

My mouth mimicked a fish as I tried to understand what was going on. Sophie was accusing me of stealing her ring and Joe believed her?

A loud scoff left my lips and I held up my hands. “I didn’t touch your ring, Sophie. Why would I steal it?”

“You’ve been mooching off Joe for years so it wouldn’t surprise me if you were going to sell it for money,” Sophie shrugged.

My gaze sliced into her. “I’ve worked hard for my money, just like you and Joe have. I don’t need anything or anyone to help me.”

Feeling the tension rising between us, Joe softly spoke up. “Sophie, are you sure you didn’t misplace it in the guest room?”

“I found it in her purse, Joe!” Sophie exclaimed.

“Y/N,” Joe turned his body towards me, giving me his full attention. “Did you take Sophie’s ring?”

“No, I did not.” I fumed while shaking my head.

“Why was it in your purse?” His brows raised to his hairline.

Scoffing, I opened and closed my fists at my side a few times trying to keep my anger in check.

“I don’t know, Joe. Ask her!” I nodded towards Sophie.

“I’m asking you.”

My heart shattered when I realized that he didn’t believe me; Joe believed his fiance. And in that moment it was clear, no matter what the situation was, he would always choose Sophie. No matter what we went through together or the memories we shared, I was nothing compared to her. I wasn’t the one that had the ring on my finger.

“Joe, she needs to leave.” Sophie’s voice demanded.

Broken eyes landed from her to Joe. There was a part of me knew that it was all bullshit. Joe had loved me, not in the way I wanted him too, but he considered me family. Along with his brothers. Even though I had already planned on leaving, I knew that he wouldn’t ask me to leave because Sophie asked him too.

“I can get you a flight home,” Joe spoke after a few beats of silence.

Biting my bottom lip to stop it from trembling, I shook my head. This time, I let the tears fall from my broken eyes, allowing Joe to see what his choices did to me.

Gathering whatever pride I had left, I started to walk out of the kitchen but froze, the nagging thought pressing against my skull; begging to be asked.

“You actually believe her?”

Joe ran a hand through his long locks. “She’s my fiance, Y/N.”

“And what am I?” I sobbed.

Not bothering to be embarrassed anymore on this trip, I forced myself towards my bags that Sophie had brought out into the hallway. I felt their gaze hard on backs as I quickly gathered my things and walked out of their home and away from someone that used to be my best friend; my love.

“Thanks for coming!”

I smiled while wrapping my arms around some of my former classmates in a hug before motioning towards a table farther down the yard, letting them know to help themselves to any food or drinks.

Eyes watched as more groups of people filled my backyard, conversing amongst each other as music silently played through the speakers. The sun was just beginning to set, the warm hues of yellow and orange cascading across the freshly cut grass and the bare skin of my legs. The bottom of my dress blew softly in the wind as I walked over to my phone that rested in its place on the speaker, playing music that echoed around us.

“Y/N!”

Turning on my heels, I smiled over to the two new men that entered through the fence, closing the door behind them.

“Nick! Kevin! I thought you guys couldn’t make it!” I exclaimed.

“We wouldn’t miss you housewarming party! I’m glad this one worked out,” Kevin smiled after we all shared a hug.

“Me too. The last one wasn’t the one.” I looked over towards the small two bedroom ranch that I called home the last month before looking back at Kevin and Nick. “I thought you guys had other plans.”

“We canceled them,” Nick shrugged.

I handed them each a beer with a small laugh. “You canceled your plans for little old me? I bet they weren’t too happy.”

“Joe will get over it,” Kevin waved me off.

At the mention of Joe, my heart sped up and I swore they could see it pounding against my chest through the fabric of my dress.

Tucking my hair behind my ear, I wiggled my bare toes through the grass. “Was he upset?”

Nick gave me a puzzled look. “About you not inviting him to your party?

When I nodded, Nick continued. “A little bit. He still doesn’t understand why you won’t talk to him.”

“Does he think I’m supposed to forget what happened?” I questioned with a hint of attitude. “He believed that I stole Sophie’s ring; his fiance.”

Kevin opened his mouth to speak but shut it when Nick elbowed him in the side. They shared a look which caused me to point at them.

“Do you guys know something I don’t?” I wondered.

“Oh hey, mom’s here. Let's go say hi,” Nick pulled Kevin along with him.

Letting out a laugh, I stood dumbfounded that they were hiding something from me. They definitely knew something I didn’t but it wasn’t up to them to tell me what it was.

For the next couple hours, I made my rounds to different groups of people to thank them for coming and accepting their good wishes. By now, the party had ended and after waving off Kevin and Nicks help and promises of seeing each other soon, I was left alone to tidy up the mess.

Or so I thought.

“Would you like some help?”

Jumping while clutching my chest, I turned around and came face to face with the man behind the voice. His brown eyes watch me intently as I set down the bag of garbage on the ground.

“What-how did you-why are.” I stuttered.

A smile pulled at his lips before he walked closer to me. “Nick and Kevin told me about the party. I’m sorry I couldn’t come earlier.”

I glared at Joe. “I never invited you.”

“I know but I still wanted to see you,” he admitted.

I ignored the way his words warmed my inner core and stood my ground. “Sorry but I have a lot of cleaning up to do. You can show yourself out.”

“Y/N,” Joe started.

“Don’t,” I warned turning my back to face him again. “I don’t have the time for this.”

Joe held his hands up. “I can help you.”

Sucking my lip between my teeth, I looked around the mess and after mulling over it for a few seconds, I gave in and nodded.

“Just don’t try to talk to me,” I warned.

We both worked together in silence, cleaning up the mess, but no matter how hard I tried to keep my attention on the work, I couldn’t help my lingering gaze that fell on Joe. It had been months since I left his house an embarrassing mess and I hated to admit it that he looked really good. His hair was incredibly shorter and his chin and cheeks were covered in dark stubble.

Once my yard was back to how it looked before the party, I wiped my hands on the front of my dress and after a lot of consideration, I motioned towards my house.

“Would you like a tour?” I asked Joe.

He hesitated for a second before nodding.

I felt his presence behind me as we both walked inside my house and after a few minutes of showing all of the rooms, I came to a halt in front of my bedroom door. Ignoring the thoughts of us together in bed, I nodded towards the living room.

“We can head back to the living room if you want,” I suggested.

“You're not going to show me your bedroom?” Joe questioned with a sly smirk.

The desired pooled in my belly and with shaky hands, I nodded. My room was nothing special, just a king sized bed with two end tables and a dresser with a variety of pictures scattered all over it.

Joe walked over to the dressed, smiling at the different pictures but his fingers froze as the grazed over one particular picture.

“I didn’t know you had a picture of this,” Joe spoke while showing me the picture.

It was when we were younger, right after the rise of the Jonas Brothers and we were sitting on the edge of the stage. It was right before their first concert of their first tour and his arms were wrapped around my shoulder, smiles large on our faces.

It was also the moment that I realized I was completely head over heels in love with Joe. I knew that I had feelings for him but up until that moment, I always thought it was a crush.

“Of course I do. It’s one of my favorite moments.” I admitted with a smile.

Joe nodded before setting the picture back on my dresser before sitting on the edge of my bed. He let out a few deep breaths while running his hands over his jeans.

“I know you didn’t want me here but I needed to talk to you.” Joe started.

“You could have called me,” I reminded him.

“But you weren’t answering your phone,” Joe continued, “So Nick and Kevin wanted me to come with them earlier but I had something I needed to do.”

I swallowed thickly. “What was that?”

Joe patted the empty spot next to him on the bed and after quieting the thoughts in my mind that this was a very bad idea, I sat down right next to him.

“I was wrong to not believe you. You’re my best friend and I didn’t take your word for it.” Joe admitted.

I remained silent, not knowing exactly what to say.

“I thought I was being a good fiancé by listening to Sophie but in the end I was being a shitty friend.”

“Joe,” I started.

“I should have known she was lying. She never liked the idea of us alone together. She was jealous of our relationship that she would have done anything to end it.”

Joe finally looked away from his hands and landed on my confused expression.

“I found out she was lying a few weeks ago,” he answered my silent question.

“How?” I asked.

“She told me. I guess the guilt of seeing how sad I was the last couple months broke her heart,” Joe informed.

“Sucks for her,” I muttered under my breath.

Joe slowly placed his hand on my leg, warmth spreading through my body. I did my best to ignore the butterflies in my stomach as his gently squeezed my thigh.

“Did you tell her you were coming here?”

Joe shook his head which caused my brows and nose to scrunch in confusion.

“She’s going to be pissed.”

“I don’t need to tell her where I’m going or who I’m seeing anymore. We broke up,” Joe admitted.

I blinked at him surprised. “Wait, what?”

He nodded. “We broke up last week.”

“Why?”

It was a stupid question, I knew that. I should be jumping for joy and screaming from the rooftops that him and Sophie broke up but a part of me wanted to hear it from his lips.

His sweet, plump lips that were practically begging to be kissed as I caught myself staring at them.

“She pushed us apart, in more ways than one. I couldn’t let her do that again.” Joe squeezed my thigh.

“You choose me?” I sputtered. “Over Sophie?!”

“This whole thing made me realize something,” Joe spoke so soft that I had to strain my ears to hear.

“You’ve been with me from the start, even before we made it big, and even then you stayed by our side; my side. I’ve had these blinders on for years when it came to my feelings for you. I thought all of the random hook ups and finding Sophie, getting engaged, would make my feelings for you go away. But they never did. I couldn’t lie to myself anymore; or to you.”

“What are you saying?” I questioned with a shaky breath.

Our eyes pulled together, connecting with almost a magnetic pull, and the rise and fall of his chest made me realized that Joe was nervous for whatever he was about to tell me so I placed my hand over his, letting him know that it’s alright.

“I love you, Y/N. And not in a best friend kind of way. I’m in love with you,” Joe grinned the smile that I fell in love with all those years ago.

My heart soared through my chest, I was sure Joe could see it pounding through the skin. Biting my lip, it failed to hold back my own smile.

“I love you too, Joe. And not in a best friend kind of way. I’m in love with you,” I repeated his own words back to him.

Joe’s soft hand cupped my cheek and I leaned into it.

“Mind if we try that first kiss all over again?” His breath fanned across my lips.

“You don’t even have to ask.”

There was only a slight hesitation from us before Joe pressed his soft lips against my own, moving together in sync. My hands ran up his chest, wrapping behind in neck, while his one wrapped through my hair as the other cupped my chin. His tongue rolled over my bottom lip causing me to deepen the kiss.

The sparks that were there all those years ago during our first kiss were still there only now it was fire running through my veins and warming up my core. Joe’s hands ran down my back towards my hips and lifted me into his lap with ease.

“I love you,” he mumbled against my lips, pulling away for a few seconds to pronounce his love for me.

“I love you too,” I groaned while running my hands through his hair.

Reluctantly, Joe pulled away from me and placed a soft kiss on my forehead.

“That definitely blew our first kiss out of the water.”

I giggled. “Hey, I love our first kiss.”

Joe laid back on the bed, pulling me into his chest. His lips brushed the top of my head while he squeezed my shoulder. The beat of his heart relaxed whatever nerves I had left as I wrapped my arms around his middle, pulling him closer to me.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to realize what I wanted,” Joe apologized.

“All that matters is that we’re here now; together.” I said with a giant smile on my face.

#Joe Jonas #Jonas Brothers #Nick Jonas #Kevin Jonas #Joe Jonas x reader

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new2fivesauce · 4 years

Text

Please Don’t Regret Me - 6. The L in CALM

Words: 3141

No Warnings.

This feels like a filler chapter instead of what I had intended to be the last. So with that being said, there will be one and final chapter of Please Don’t Regret Me and I hope this one doesn’t suck to much. Thanks!

The early morning’s first rays of sunlight eased their way into Nelle’s LA hotel room. The drum and bass heavy beginning notes of The Black Keys’ Dead and Gone startled Nelle out of her sleep.

“Fuck” she groaned as she tried to turn her stiff body towards the nightstand where her phone was continuing to play the alarm. Through her hazy and clearly hungover mind, she wondered why she couldn’t move her lower body. It wasn’t until she looked under the covers through groggy eyes to see an arm was holding her down by her waist. Her amber eyes followed the arm to the rest of the body. Luke was turned to her, blonde curls covering his face, light snores excelling from him. She heaved his arm off of her and made haste with shutting off her alarm. Her head was pounding as she got up from the bed. She held onto the nightstand when her body swayed gently, her balance totally askew. It was almost like a Ninja Warrior obstacle course just to get to the bathroom.

Nelle emerged from the bathroom almost an hour later. A towel wrapped around her head, another around her body, her mind now somewhat clearer than it had been when she first opened her eyes. She tiptoed around as she got dressed, brushed the tangles out her hair, and did concealer around her dark circles. Just as she had started packing up her belongings, Luke began to stir in his sleep. She froze mid action while putting last night’s clothes in her luggage.

She hadn't realized she was holding her breath until he positioned himself into a more comfortable spot.

Suddenly, Luke startled awake. Nelle jumped and squeaked in surprise but he hadn't seemed to see or hear her. Luke rubbed his eyes quickly, then used his hands to pat the comforter around him.

"Nelle?" He uttered in complete sadness and confusion, his head hanging down. Nelle cleared her throat and the blond boy in front of her shot his head up so fast he almost hit it on the headboard. He smiled lazily in her direction as he ran a hand through his curls. "Hey." He said.

Nelle returned the greeting and tried to smile back but she was sure it came out as a grimace. Luke didn't even seem to notice. He was just in awe of the girl who he had spent the night with. Even when she excused herself to gather something from the bathroom, he made sure to keep his eyes on her. It took a few times of Nelle folding clothes and walking around her room for Luke to finally become aware of what was happening.

"W-what are you doing?" He stuttered. She finished folding a white t-shirt that Luke immediately recognized. She put it down gently on top of a small pile of clothes at the edge of the bed.

"My flight is at 12. I'm about to head out. Don't worry though, the room is good until two, but if you need it for longer, just call the front desk. My card is on file; It’ll be fine." She said so nonchalantly that Luke could only gape at her. She gestured to the folded clothes. "Change of clothes." She added. "This was still in my suitcase from the last tour."

Luke scoffed. If Nelle heard it, she pretended not to. "I'm returning your Zeppelin shirt too." Her eyes flickered to the white shirt that was on top of the stack.

When Luke didn't say anything, Nelle took it as her cue to leave. She hated being late, especially to the airport. As she turned to her suitcase, Luke finally spoke.

"So that's it then?" He questioned, in anger. He wished he hadn't slept naked because he felt this was a conversation he needed to be standing for. He didn't know where his clothes were and he didn't want to seem like a klutz getting out of bed so he stayed put.

Nelle halted just a bit away from the bed and faced the singer.

She shrugged her shoulders. "Isn't that all you wanted?" She knew it wasn’t, but she felt that that was all she could give him at the moment. He was a fucking celebrity and with the release of Youngblood, he was more popular than ever.

Nelle immediately regretted her comeback as soon as Luke's blue eyes closed and he turned his head away to compose himself.

"I have to go. I never said I was going to stay." Nelle tried to reason.

Luke eyed her suspiciously though his eyes looked like glassy orbs through the tears he was struggling to hold in. "So you’re not even going to try to make this work?

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to make work, Luke.” she calmly stated but her hand tightened on the handle of her suitcase. Luke shook his head. “If you have something to say… then just say it. I’m not going to try to figure you out or put words in your mouth.”

When Luke didn’t say anything, just stared at Nelle with the coldest blue eyes she’s ever seen, she turned away and left.

-----

**3 months later, New York**

The months had passed slowly and drab. Winter always felt so long, so cold, so depressing… If anyone would have told Nelle that after Christmas, New York went from magical to just another cold day, she would have hopped on the first plane to Australia… but no one had and she had missed her chance to visit her family. This wasn’t her first Christmas that she’d gone without spending it with her family, but all those other times, she’d at least had “the boys.”

She sighed as she waltzed around her kitchen, putting the finishing touches on her and Sasha’s spaghetti dinner. Sasha would come prancing in any minute now from yet another photo shoot. Nelle had kept busy since returning from tour with her online Yale classes, a few small side jobs as a book intern, manager at a coffee cafe, and a PA at several various businesses, but nothing ever stuck. She wasn’t going to lie… she missed the touring. She thought retirement from the music world would be relief. Now all she had was this itch to zoom to and from places, literally schedule everything down to Michael’s next breath, use her customer service voice on asshats who thought they knew better, and best of all, spending every second of her time with four of the noisiest, fartiest, annoyingest boys.

Her thoughts lingered on Luke for a brief moment. She tried not to think too much about him. After leaving him naked in LA, they had shared a few intense, mostly one word, text messages and then zilch. He couldn’t find the words to express his feelings, which confounded Nelle because he was a damn songwriter and had written all these love songs for the band, yet, when it came to expressing how he felt towards her all he had to say was You should have stayed.

She wasn’t necessarily heartbroken, but she ached for him and his hair and his scent and their late night conversations and Brooklyn Nine-Nine marathons and dumb pranks on Calum.

Nelle was plating their food when she heard the lock of her apartment door jiggle and then turn loudly. Sasha dashed in, her heavy winter coat already falling off her body as she went through the door. Sasha slammed the door behind her, dropping her purse, phone, and whatever else onto her coat.

“Hey Hey!” she greeted quickly as she ran towards the bathroom in Nelle’s bedroom. “Sorry! Subway took forever! And you know how I feel about public restrooms!” Nelle heard Sasha call out from the distance. She chuckled as she went over to pick up her friend’s items from the floor.

Plates full of spaghetti and meatballs, glasses of wine, and the next episode of Gossip Girl was ready by the time Sasha emerged from the bedroom. She walked slowly in a daze and plopped down on the sofa next to Nelle. Nelle grabbed the remote from next to her and was about to start the show, when her friend quickly took the remote from Nelle.

“If you want to watch something else, just say so… I thought we were going to start season four today.” Nelle grumbled before slurping a forkful of noodles in her mouth. Sasha didn’t respond, just reached into the hoodie she’d put on in Nelle’s room, and pulled out two boxes.

It took more than a second or two for Nelle to realize what she was looking at.

“I wasn’t snooping, I swear!” Sasha began. “I was just looking for a tampon… and I found these.” Sasha looked down at the boxes of pregnancy tests she was holding. “Is there something you want to tell me?” she asked cautiously, taking a quick glance at Nelle’s stomach and back up to her amber eyes.

The brunette sighed as she placed her plate of food down on the coffee table. She sat up straight afterwards facing Sasha, her best friend and closest confidant…

"I'm sorry." Nelle started, dropping her head. Her waves tumbled forward, covering her embarrassed face. "It was just a scare. I panicked when it was nearly two months since having my period and I might have missed a day or two of my birth control while we were on tour. I bought a ton of tests and took like three of them.

"I got mixed results and I went to the doctor. She confirmed that I wasn't and the positive ones could have been faulty or expired tests. Turns out CVS doesn't always toss their expired pregnancy tests.

"I changed to an IUD though. So that's a plus. No kids for me for another five years… maybe. But I didn't tell you because it was nothing to worry about. And I didn't want to deal with the reactions."

Nelle nervously looked up, peering through her hair to peek at Sasha. Sasha was still as stone, almost like a Greek statue.

"My reactions?" Sasha questioned, her head slightly tilting to the right.

Nelle nodded.

"Yeah… you know… the mixed reactions of disappointment in whether you are or aren't or happy because you are… or aren't. I came out negative and I was happy. I just… I don't know." Nelle hung her head again, defeated. "I just didn’t think it was anything to tell and honestly, I forgot to throw away the extra tests."

Sasha shrugged her shoulders. Nelle could see her friend trying to work her situation in her head and thought that the subject was dropped when Sasha started scarfing down her food and the next episode of Gossip Girl.

It was halfway into the episode that Sasha suddenly paused the show and turned to Nelle, her eyebrows furrowed deeply with concern.

"Okay, I'm fine with your decision to not have told me. I'm sure if you were, it would have been different circumstances blah, blah, blah. I'm curious though. Why would you think you were preggo though? I haven't seen you with anyone in… well… forever. And I know you didn't hook up with that Daniel guy."

Nelle shrugged her shoulders, leaving a confused expression on Sasha’s face. Sasha then looked around the room suddenly, trying to find anything out of place or something that didn’t look like Nelle’s interior style.

“You haven’t had sex in ages… probably since you were in One Direction tabloid news for dating Zayn… Are you seeing someone?! Please don’t tell me it was a roadie guy!”

Nelle laughed, shaking her head at the same time at her friend’s ridiculous accusation.

“No, it was not a roadie… Honestly, I didn’t think anything was going to happen. We’re so restricted about our feelings, but the tension is always there. I thought before I departed the first time, with us rooming together all the time, maybe one of us would finally spill the beans about our feelings, but it never happened. Then Ash had his party and Luke was just there. Maybe it was the drinking or maybe in that moment… or moments, if you know what I mean, I just didn’t care. But we haven’t really spoken since. I kind of did walk out on him. He wanted me to stay, but I didn’t want to. He makes it seems like I owe it to him to stay and follow him around everywhere; could be because I did that for fucking years… but that was my damn job. It wouldn’t fucking hurt him to do the same for me. He’s just as capable of following me across the country as I am for him.”

Nelle gulped in some air, not sure where the sudden rush of words had come from, but Sasha had nothing to say in that moment. All she could do was gape at her. Her mouth wide open, her eyes almost popped out their sockets.

With a hand over her mouth, Sasha mumbled “shit” about five times, then let out a laugh. The girl cackled for a minute, making Nelle scoot away from her awkwardly.

“Fuckin’ hell. Nelle… fucking Luke?!” Sasha began, a short chortle escaped her mouth again. “I knew it. You were acting hella weird on the plane ride back. You totally ignored the group chat when Ash sent that pic of those lacy undies asking Who the hell had sex in my laundry room?!. Any time Cal facetimes and Luke is in the background, you suddenly have something to do in another room. You stare at his texts for waaaaay too long before typing something and then deleting it only to answer back with one or two words. I should have paid more attention. Fuck, dude.”

“It was one night, Sash. It was the best fucking night ever. And I don’t know what to do. I’m acting like he barely exists because he can’t tell how he feels about me. I see it on his face, I see it in some of his actions, but he can’t ever just tell me ��Nelle, I like you… like I like you, like you!’” Nelle felt a hard lump in her throat and tried to sniffle it away. “I lied to you when I said that he didn’t write any songs on Youngblood about me. Calum confirmed half that shit is about me, written and recorded that very day I quit on them.”

Sasha reached over, taking Nelle’s hands in her’s. She pressed on them gently, rubbing small circles with her thumbs for comfort. Her eyes were sympathetic.

“I’m sorry, kid.” she said softly. “I don’t know how I can make this better.”

----------

**Australia**

It was December and the start of summer. Calum sighed as he adjusted himself on his couch, another episode of some documentary he had on for noise had just begun. He wondered how his girlfriend was faring. He knew New York was cold and he hadn’t understood why she was so insistent on remaining there for the holidays, but he sensed maybe it had to do with not wanting to leave Nelle by herself.

Speaking of Nelle, he had barely talked to her in the weeks since she had left LA after Ashton’s party. She wasn’t cold-shouldering him. He knew there was something keeping her distant, he just couldn’t pinpoint it. He had asked Sasha, but she had no idea herself either.

Calum looked towards the wall that separated his side of the duplex he shared with Nelle. Another sigh escaped his lips before there was a knock on his front door. Calum lazily swung his body off his couch. He adjusted his basketball shorts before opening the door.

Luke, curls a long, yellow mess, dark circles under his eyes, wrinkled clothes, was on the other side of the door. Calum didn’t say anything, just stepped aside to let the taller fellow in. Calum, like every other day that Luke came over in this state, went to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water while the blond made himself comfortable on Calum’s couch.

When Calum returned to the living room, Luke had taken over the couch he had been on, switching the channels on the television. He set the glass on the coffee table in the middle of the room. Luke eyed it, but made no attempt to take a drink.

This was becoming a new norm for them since they returned to Australia. Ashton still remained in LA and Michael was doing some traveling for another week, not sure where his next stop was going to be.

“How was therapy?” Calum asked, starting small talk, as he took the couch adjacent to the one Luke was laying on. Luke shrugged his shoulders. “Did you even go?” he asked, concerned.

“Yeah.” Luke answered softly, not letting his eyes flicker off the TV. “Same as last week. Doc says I’m in a void since we’re not touring. I don’t know how to keep myself busy.”

Calum raised an eyebrow, letting his eyes roam his friend’s attire. Luke was wearing a t-shirt that he recognized from Nelle’s wardrobe, shorts that were extremely wrinkled, and a pair of converse with unmatched socks.

“Did she also comment on how you haven’t changed out that outfit for two weeks?”

Luke scoffed. “I washed it, asshole.”

Calum snickered with a shake of his head.

The two didn’t say much afterwards; they watched whatever sitcom Luke had put on. Luke was drifting into a nap, when Calum’s phone vibrated on the coffee table, startling him. Calum chuckled at him before grabbing his phone to see who was contacting him.

Sasha’s name followed by a pink heart emoji appeared on his screen. He was concerned and confused. Because of the ten hour time difference, it had been a bit hard to communicate between the couple. Sometimes Sasha was barely waking up and Calum was going to sleep or vice versa. It had been difficult to find a time that suited them both. He swiped his phone screen to open the message.

Cal… I figured out the problem.

Nelle and Luke slept together. Ash’s party.

Calum gulped, a rush of fury came and went so fast followed by surprise, annoyance, and finally calm. No wonder Luke has been acting so weird and always looked at Nelle’s side of the duplex with such damn longing.

He peered up at Luke from over his phone as he sent a quick text back.

he’s here now. wat do i say?

Sasha’s reply came faster than Calum had anticipated.

You better get him here now with a bouquet of roses and fucking love letter the length of the equator and he better BEG on his hands and knees for the requited love of Eleanor Padilla.

#luke hemmings #luke hemmings imagine #5 seconds of summer #5 sos imagines #5 seconds of summer imagines #5 seconds of summer imagine #5sos #calum hood #ashton irwin #michael clifford #please dont regret me

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brattyfics · 4 years

Text

A/N: Hi, guys! Below the cut is a short excerpt of a story with all original characters that I’m working on. I’d love it if you all took a look at it and let me know what you think. I’ve chosen not to include a summary because I want to see how it translates to someone who has no idea what it’s about. Are you the right amount of curious or does it feel like something is missing? Do you have an idea of where this is going? Do the original characters translate as real people? What genre do you think this is? Romance, mystery, drama, crime? Hint: It’s all four.

“Everyone has a plan until they get hit.”

A famous fighter said as much seven years before she was even born, but Michaela Webb had never related to anything more. He referenced boxing matches, but the words applied to life in general.

Every day of life was a fight, some more than others.

Sandwiched between two broad shouldered men, Michaela waited impatiently, her hands rubbing her thighs in an attempt to soothe herself.

The goons had all but kidnapped her from her condo an hour earlier, forcing her into the backseat of the armored Suburban while they confiscated her phones.

Both phones were locked in the glove box a few hundred feet away from where they sat in the spacious conference room of an Atlanta hotel. She wished she had at least one of them, if for nothing but to have something to focus on other than impending doom.

Her insides were a jumbled mess of conflicting emotions, each stronger than the last. She felt panic, but tried to shove the bubblings of it in her chest down with logic. Like a math problem, scenarios played out in her head, all with different steps and outcomes. She was a problem solver by nature, but for once all the possibilities didn’t excite her. This wasn’t like reviewing code or experimenting with materials. This was life or death.

Her sister’s fate.

Mariah Webb was her better half: outgoing, ambitious, daring. The Yin to her Yang. Everything Mariah wasn’t, Michaela was, and vice versa. As fraternal twins, they chose to celebrate their differences, but Michaela knew her younger sister would be better served in her place at that moment.

The stocky giant to her right offered his hand.

“Stand.”

She took it, legs straightening just as a dozen more men joined them.

Three tall men brought up the front, the rest fanning out behind them in diamond formation.

The man in the center of it all emerged through the human shield to sit at the large, oval-shaped table. The table was big enough to accommodate them all, but no one else dared to join him.

To the untrained eye, Alexei Volkov was boringly average. He stood around 5’8” with a fit body for his mature age. His light brown hair was always meticulously cropped into a cut popular with men his age, and he kept his greying beard clean shaven.

He could pass for the owner of a pastry shop, or even a professor to a person who didn’t know any better, but behind his beady eyes was the truth.

Killer. Captain. Authority.

The expression on his wrinkled face turned her stomach. He wasn’t happy, but neither was she.

“What do you want?”

Alexei had lived in the States for over twenty years, but his accent was unmistakable.

The Russian community in Atlanta was small, and they were a clannish group that stuck together. Alexei himself did not associate with outsiders. He didn’t have to because he had foot soldiers to do that for him.

The Webb sisters were a special case.

A flick of his pale wrist and she was being guided forward to join him at the table. Her eyes studied the detailing of the table cloth as she took her seat, bracing herself for whatever came next.

“My partner is missing.”

His eyebrows rose.

“Your sister?”

“Yes.”

His wrist flicked again, a wordless signal to continue.

“I woke up this morning and she was gone. Nothing in her room has been moved, but her keys are gone. Her car is still in the parking garage. I asked to see the footage but there was nothing caught on the cameras. She would have told me or at least texted me if she had left voluntarily. Someone took her against her will.”

“You say nothing was moved. Maybe she forget this time and somebody picked her up. What about friends? Or a boyfriend?”

She shook her head.

“I checked. No one has heard from her.”

“That is problem.”

The cramping in her stomach intensified but she nodded her agreement.

“What are you going to do about it?”

The question stunned her.

What did he expect her to do about it? She was a software engineer, not a detective or a gangster with the resources or skill set to find a missing woman.

Micheala had asked for the appointment with Alexei, not the other way around. It wasn’t something she had done before, so she expected him to be hesitant, maybe even suspicious, but she didn’t expect him to ask her that.

She chose her words carefully.

“I came to you because this is your area of expertise.”

The corner of his mouth lifted. It was the closest thing to a smile she had seen out of him but she wasn’t sure she liked it.

“Is it?”

Micheala did her best impression of Mariah, straightening her back and raising her chin.

“Well, it’s certainly not mine.” There was no room for weakness or uncertainty. She would be firm. She would demand what she wanted. “My job is to supply you with Skeletons. Your job is to make sure I can continue to do that without issue. Right?”

She understood she was toeing the line, especially with a dangerous man like Alexei, but the situation called for it.

“Connect dots for me. Your sister isn’t home, so you can’t do job. Am I understanding?”

“No, I don’t think you are—“

“Your job is to deliver every week. I don’t care where she is. You are smart girl. You understand business. I pay you, give you protection. You give me product.”

She heard the thinly veiled threat very clearly, but it didn’t change anything.

“It’s not that simple.”

Frustration seeped into his voice.

“Why not?”

“Mariah and I are partners. True partners. She handles half of production, and I handle the other. I can’t do it without her.”

“So I have my men come help you, then you deliver to me in three days like normal.”

“No.”

“No?” His stoic men seemed to visibly shudder at the word, but his face never changed. “I think I’m not understanding you again.”

He was giving her a chance to cower, to backtrack and change her answer.

Her confidence was slipping, but she didn’t let it show.

“One of us handles the programming. The other handles the assembly of the devices. Neither of us knows how to do what the other one does.” She was purposefully vague about the division of their labor.

“I thought I heard you first time. This is no good. Not smart.” He tapped the side of his skull in aggravation.

She bit her tongue.

It had been done intentionally.

Government agencies, politicians, war criminals, corner boys, and the wealthy one percent all wanted to get their hands on a Skeleton of their very own.

Word spread in exclusive circles from Atlanta down to Miami, up the coast to New York, and then across the country to Los Angeles. Within a few months, they were supplying international clients in Canada, the United Kingdom, and even Australia. Demand surpassed supply, and they had to create a new business model that was sustainable. Skeleton hopefuls needed a reference from an existing Skeleton user before they paid the large bounty it cost to buy in.

Nothing made a product more sought after than labeling it exclusive, and someone thought they had found a way to skirt the system by abducting Mariah, but they were wrong.

Their mistake would cost them.

Michaela would fight for her sister until she couldn’t anymore.

She kept her tone even.

“So, what are you going to do about it?”

GENERAL TAGLIST

@woahitslucyylu @briannab1234 @sheeshgivemeabreak @breakingnewsin-no-oneasked @angelreyesgirl @blessedboo @glimmerglittergirl @apantherinmypastlife @brownsugarcoffy @marvelmaree @starrynite7114 @scuzmunkie @thewarriorprincessxo @sadeyesgf @pearlkitten33 @imanerdychubbyqueen @literaturefeen @ourlittlesecretsoveragain @everyhowlmarksthedead

#original characters #oc #original character

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sparklingskz · 6 years

Text

across the world | lee felix

▸ anon requested: Can you write an enemies to lovers au with Felix?

▸ genre: fluff, angst, enemies to friends to lovers lol

▸ pairing: reader x felix

▸ description: you and felix were best friends, suddenly you move across the world and things end badly. Now you’re back, and moving across him.

▸ word count: 3.5k

▸ warnings: swearing, alcohol

▸ a/n: thank you for requesting!! this one’s a bit longer uwu btw I’m almost sure this is gender neutral but if something slipped please tell me!!

“Felix? Is that you?” you said in a surprised tone.

The man in question was standing by his door, keys in hand ready to unlock it. He was the same boy you remembered, only with more freckles and with light brown hair instead of the dark shade he sported in school. However, his expression exuded coldness towards you, not the welcoming gaze you were used to seeing in him.

Felix and you were the absolute best friends in high school. Of course, each of you had a small group of other friends, but neither of you were as close with them as you were with each other. You met in 10th grade, when you were assigned partners during a class you both hated, and bonded over that. You were inseparable since that moment; you shared secrets, did a lot of stuff together and partnered in class all the time.

Along the way, you don’t know exactly when, you noticed you had a tiny crush on Felix. Just a teeny tiny crush, which you would bury deep inside of you and never act on it as to not ruin your friendship. You never changed your attitude towards the boy as to not expose yourself, but always, in the back of your mind, was this voice freaking out over the tiniest of touches, smallest of smiles and the lock of your gazes.

That way the last year of high school came around, and your school had a tradition of setting up a dance during the last day of school, to celebrate the end of another year. People often went to the dance with a partner or with a group of friends, and, in all honestly, you didn’t know who you would be going with.

Of course, your first thought was Felix. Would it be weird? Would he discover you had a crush on him if you asked him to go to the dance with you? He hadn’t commented anything about the dance around you, so you didn’t know if he was going with someone either. That was until you overheard one of your classmates talking in the hallway.

“Yeah, I’m probably going with Felix to the dance. It’s going to be so much fun!”

Then and there, your heart broke just a little bit. You continued walking, desperate to just get to your next class and forget about the stupid dance.

You were in your seat, taking out your notes when you feel someone tap your shoulder. You turned around and saw Hyunjin, one of the boys from your friend group.

“Hey y/n, do you have a partner for the dance?” He said while smiling.

“Nope.” You answered, emphasizing on the “p”.

“Not going with Felix?” He inquired, tilting his head.

“Apparently not.” You sighed.

He thought for a second. “Well, how about we go together? In a super friendly way, of course.”

You pondered your options. Showing up at the dance alone while Felix was having fun with his partner, or go with Hyunjin, who was your friend and a super cool guy to spend time with? You’ll take the second one, please.

“Okay, I don’t see why not.” You said while throwing a smile in his direction.

“Cool, I’ll text you the details.” He said just when the teacher entered the classroom, and you turned around in your seat to face the front.

You wouldn’t let a stupid crush defeat you.

While the days until the dance decreased Felix still hadn’t said anything about his partner, so you didn’t mention you were going with Hyunjin. That was until the day before the dance, when he was hanging out in your house and he brought it up.

“Hey, what time should I pick you up to go to the dance?” he said nonchalantly.

You froze. “Uh, what do you mean?”

“What I just said?” He said in a “duh” tone.

“We’re going together?” You inquired.

“I assumed so? We’re best friends.” He said as it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Hyunjin invited me, so I’m going with him.” You said, almost dreading his reaction.

Felix just looked at you, and suddenly stood up. “I’m going home.” He picked up his stuff and headed for the door.

“Hey! Felix, wait!” You said. “Why are you so mad? I thought you already had a partner!”

“No, y/n. I was always thinking of you. Have fun with Hyunjin.” He said before closing the door behind him, and you felt that he took your heart with him.

The day of the dance, you and Felix ignored each other the whole time. You tried to not think about him and have some fun with Hyunjin, but every time you seemed to forget you saw the freckled boy standing there with his friends, or dancing.

What you felt the worst about was one thing, though. You hadn’t told him about an important detail in your life, because you were waiting to do it at your house the day before the dance, but he left angrily.

You were going to attend college in America, not in Australia.

You didn’t want to leave without talking to Felix, so you approached him before the dance ended. It didn’t matter if he was mad at you, he was probably going to be even madder now.

“Um, Felix?” You said cautiously.

He turned around. “What?” You almost flinched at the coldness of his tone.

“I need to tell you something, and I’m so sorry for leaving it for the last minute.” You took a deep breath. “I’m leaving Australia in a few days, I’m attending college in America.”

You saw the flash of confusion and hurt in his eyes. “And you’re telling me now?” he emphasized the last word. “I thought we were best friends, y/n. Best friends who told each other everything. Now you couldn’t even tell me you were going to a whole different continent? I was hoping we’d still be able to talk and see each other, even if we were in different colleges! Now you’re going to be away for years!” he said angrily.

“We can still talk-“

“I don’t want to talk with you.” He interrupted, and left.

A few days later, you flew to America and went to college there. You really liked your campus, you made plenty of friends but you missed good old Australia. That’s why, four years later, you returned to your country, having finished your studies and graduated.

A few days after you came back, you had found and rented a cute one bedroom apartment (with a bit of your parent’s help, of course) that was close to your new job, and had just finished moving in when it happened.

You hadn’t seen or talked to Felix since you fought at the dance all those years ago. That was, until now.

You were leaving your apartment to do some grocery shopping, when you saw your neighbor just about to open his door. This was your first time meeting him and he looked about your age, so you wanted to make a good first impression.

“Hi, I’m your new neighbor, y/n.” You introduced yourself.

The boy turned around, and was about to answer when he froze.

You froze too.

“Felix? Is that you?” Hesitance was clear in your tone.

He stared at you for a few more seconds, but then it seemed like he got out of a trance and quickly opened his door and closed it behind him.

You stood there, still frozen in place, not processing you had just seen him. You often thought about Felix while you were in America, the prospect of seeing him again always in the back of your mind, but you never imagined it was actually going to happen.

Now you’d have to live knowing he’s there, just a few footsteps away from you, but probably not wanting to see you. You thought about just knocking on his door, but he’s most likely in the same state as you, only more shocked. You’d give him time, but as apparently you were neighbors now you’d probably see him again sooner or later, and when that happened you’d try talking to him. Yes. Good plan.

Turns out the next time you saw Felix was rather sooner than later. You were walking down the stairs to go get some mail you received, but stopped at the end of the staircase when you saw your old friend standing in front of the mail boxes, reading his mail. You internally debated if you should go over there or not, but it was a perfect opportunity to talk to him.

You stood next to him, took a deep breath and spoke.

“Um… Hi.” You said, taking out your mail and pretending to analyze it really hard.

You felt Felix turn to look at you, and you looked back.

“Hi.” He said, kind of coldly. Hey, it was a start.

“So…” You started saying. “I’m back.”

Perhaps that was not what you should have said. “I can see that.” He said closing his mail box harshly before turning on his feet and heading up the stairs quickly, probably towards his apartment.

You sighed and closed your mailbox. It was going to be extremely difficult to regain his confidence, hell you didn’t even know if he even wanted to be friends with you again. However, that didn’t mean that you weren’t going to try.

That’s why the next time you saw him, you tried to have an actual conversation with him. You were both entering the building, Felix obviously trying to walk quicker than you to avoid conversation.

“Hey Felix?” You said catching up to him.

He sighed. “What do you want, y/n?”

You were about to say something along the lines of “don’t you think it’s weird that we live in the same building and are next door neighbors?? haha insane right”, but the only thing you could muster out was a small “I missed you…”

Felix sighed again. “I missed you too, y/n. But I suffered so much when you left, in less than a day I lost my best friend in the entire world. When I saw you again the other day, all the memories came crashing back, and I don’t know what to do about it.”

“Let’s talk then, let’s be friends again.” You said hopefully.

“I’m afraid not, y/n.” He said.

Before you could even ask him why, he quickly entered his apartment. You entered yours, and wondered how a simple misunderstanding and a trip to another continent damaged things so bad between you two. Come to think of it, it wasn’t fair to him that you didn’t tell him you were moving, but you thought you two would keep talking while you were away. The dance messed it all up, and you were still paying for it.

However, you were an adult now, and there was a simple way to forget about your problems: alcohol.

Felix was sitting on his couch watching a movie when he heard it: the sound of a bunch of objects hitting the floor and a loud “Fuck!” coming from the hallway. His curiosity got the best of him and he got up to open the door and peek outside, and he definitely did not expect to see what he saw.

There you were on the floor, clumsily picking up the things that fell out of your bag.

“y/n?” He said hesitantly. “Are you ok?”

You turned your head to look at him. “Uh… Yeah. Perfectly fine.”

Felix immediately knew you were a bit drunk.

“Are you drunk?”

“What? Me? Of course not.” You said as you tried to stand up, almost falling down in the process, but Felix quickly reacted and caught you before you could fall over. He steadied you on your feet and let go.

Felix sighed. “Where are your keys?”

You patted your pockets. “Uh… I was searching for them when everything slipped out… But here they are!” You held them proudly in one hand.

“Okay, now open your door.” Felix said.

You took the keys and tried putting the right one in the lock. This was apparently very difficult given your dizzy state, which is why Felix gently took them from you and opened the door.

The second you entered your apartment, you took off your shoes, put your bag down and threw yourself on the couch. Felix just stood in the doorframe, watching amusedly.

“You should go sleep in your bed, y/n.” He said tiredly.

“But it’s soooooo far.” You retorted.

Felix just chuckled and helped you stand up, guiding you to your bedroom, which was easy for him to find as his apartment had the same layout as yours.

“Don’t you want to change into something more comfortable?” He said, looking at your night out clothes.

“Uh… Probably.” You said while going over to your closet, not without a bit of difficulty.

“I’ll leave you to that.” Felix said, while he went to the kitchen to get you a glass of water.

He waited until you changed and then left the glass on your bedside table. Why was he even doing this? Taking care of you? After everything that happened?

“Okay, I’ll be going now.” He said.

You turned to look at him. “I’m so sorry for everything Felix… I was so horrible for doing that to you. I cared so much about you, hell, I still do. Please, I want to talk to you again.” You started saying, almost pleading.

Felix sighed. “We’ll talk when you’re sober.” He retorted, and left you alone.

When you woke up the next day, your head was pounding. You weren’t that drunk the night before, just enough to forget about Felix and have some fun. You vaguely remember Felix helping you in your apartment, and shame crept over you. You weren’t glad he saw you in that state, but another part of you was happy he helped you.

After freshening up a little and eating breakfast, you decidedly went over to Felix’s door and knocked. It wasn’t too early, so you were sure he was home. A few seconds later the door opened, revealing the freckled boy.

“Oh.” He just said.

“Uh… Hi.” You started saying nervously. “Firstly, I came to say sorry you had to see me like that yesterday… I wasn’t thinking correctly. Secondly, I wanted to say thank you for helping me, you didn’t have to do that but you did…”

“It’s no problem.”

You took in a big breath, and just started talking. “You know, Felix, the last thing I expected when I moved here was to live right across from you, my best friend, or well, my ex best friend. But I’d like to think it was for a reason, you know? You were the only person I was truly close to in high school, I appreciated your friendship so much. I know it’s going to be difficult, but there’s nothing I want more in the world than having you back. So please, can we fix things?”

Felix looked like he was taking in all your words. “Come in.” He suddenly said, stepping apart to let you into his apartment.

“Thank you so much.” You said as you stepped inside.

The both of you sat down in the sofa, plenty of distance between you. The air was tense, so you spoke first.

“Again, I’m so sorry I left Australia so suddenly. I should’ve talked to you first.”

“Yeah, you should’ve. But I still have some fault in everything that happened. The both of us shouldn’t have assumed things, but we did and now we’re here, years later.”

You smiled a bit. “Yeah, we’re whole adults now.”

Felix went silent for a bit, and then spoke. “It was so difficult seeing you again, y/n. I thought you were out of my life for good.” Sadness was evident in his tone.

“But now I’m here, and I’d like to make things right. Maybe we could hang out so we can catch up? There are lots of things to tell, I assume.” You said hopefully.

Felix looked deep in thought. You knew you were pushing your luck here, but if he said yes, you’d be able to fix things.

“Okay, let’s try that.”

You smiled brightly, happiness flooding your body. “Thank you. How about we go to my apartment, I make some lunch, and we can talk?”

“I don’t see why not.”

Things were surely weird at first. Felix was sitting on one of your kitchen stools while you cooked, and he was mostly in silence while you talked about your adventures in university. After a while though, it seemed like he gave up on the cold exterior and started talking too, putting you up to date on his life.

Once you finished cooking and served two plates, you sat down and continued talking. You couldn’t believe how much you had missed him, from the way he spoke to his smile. You felt at home with him, even after years had passed.

You both shared anecdotes from your time apart, talked about the new friends you made, your actual jobs, and reminisced over old high school stories from when you were best friends. That’s when the air got a bit tense, as you started talking about how close you were.

“You know…” He started saying. “I want to apologize for treating you badly the first few times we saw each other here. It was probably unnecessary.”

“No, I get it. I suddenly disappear from your life and now I’m back, you have every right to be upset.”

He stayed silent for a moment. “I’m not upset anymore… I want you back in my life y/n, now that we talked I realized how much I missed my best friend, and I won’t let the opportunity of having you back again slip from my fingers.”

You smiled widely. “That makes me so happy to hear.”

The next few weeks consisted of you going to work and hanging out with Felix. Both of you came over to each other’s apartment’s all of the time, sometimes staying over for dinner or just to watch some TV and talk. You were so glad to have your best friend back, and thanked the universe for making you live right across from him. However, along with the happiness you felt, something else returned.

That was, you were slowly realizing your crush on Felix was coming back. Every time he talked or smiled you fell a little deeper, plus his attitude didn’t really change so your dumb high school crush didn’t have a reason to leave either, even after all these years.

The thing is, you weren’t really sure of what Felix felt towards you. You know you just started being friends again after the awkwardness of the first encounters, but you have grown really close these past weeks. You have a slight feeling he may like you back, just a tiny bit. It may be the lingering stares, the small touches or the wide smiles, but you didn’t want to get your hopes up, even when your heart sped up whenever these happened.

One day, you were both sitting on his couch, a boring TV show playing in the background while you talked about anything and everything, as you used to. After a few moments of silence, Felix spoke.

“You know,” he started saying. “I used to have the biggest crush on you in high school.” He finished with a small giggle. “That’s why I was so mad we weren’t going to the dance together.”

You froze. Did you hear that right?

“You- you did?”

“Yeah…” He scratched his neck. “I mean, we were always together and you’re amazing, how could I have not had a crush on you?”

Maybe it was time to come clean too.

“Well, you’re not the only one because I used to have a crush on you too.” You said, probably blushing.

“Wait really? Why didn’t you say anything!” he exclaimed, hitting your arm playfully.

“Why would I?” you laughed. “I wasn’t sure you liked me back, I wasn’t going to go and ruin our friendship.”

“We’re so stupid.” Felix laughed. “If only we said anything…”

A tense silence filled up the room.

“Fuck it.” You heard Felix mutter under his breath. “y/n, I think I still have that crush on you. Or at least it came back after seeing you again.”

You sat there frozen for a few seconds, processing his words. Then you also decided to say fuck it and leaned forward to press your lips against Felix’s.

You felt as he was shocked for a few milliseconds but then immediately reciprocated the kiss, putting his hands on both sides of your cheeks. It was just the press of your lips against each other, but the way your heart was racing showed how much you have been anticipating this.

You broke apart after a few seconds and looked into each other’s eyes, Felix’s hands still on your face. You could see every one of his freckles from this close up, he was so beautiful.

Felix smiled. “Do you want to go on a date with me?” he said.

You smiled back. “There’s nothing that would make me happier.”

1K notes · View notes

cilliansaccent · 5 years

Text

The Peaky Designer - Cillian Fanfic, Chapter 11

Hello, welcome back. Below is the next instalment of my fanfiction!

Leave a like or a comment if you liked it, or if I can do anything better! Please, it would mean the world and to understand if anyone is enjoying my writing. Also, sharing/reblogging would be even better.

PLEASE READ:

I will not be including Cillian’s family as it’s kinda weird since he has children lmao. Just a mention of his parents and a previous lover.

I will indicate in a chapter if there is smut in the beginning and before the actual scene!!

I will add trigger warnings if there is any!!

There is a variety of levels of swearing during a chapter, I will not hold back, everyone swears.

The timestamp for the Fic is now 2016 and onwards!!

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Background: Gabrijela Babic is a Croatian girl from Sydney, Australia. She is born in the year 1991 on the 24th of December. She studies a Fashion degree in a University with a major in Game Design as well. Her teacher in the fashion designer class managed to nail an Internship on the set of Peaky Blinders with the shows very own Costume Designer, Allison McCosh. There, she travels to London for under a year to learn how to be one, working alongside the actors as well the man she admires, Cillian Murphy. But, her platonic feelings for the man begins to grow into something more, and she wonders whether she should pursue them or let him go for fear of her strict parents and her three older brothers…

Characters:

Swantje Paulina as Gabrijela Babic (swalina on Instagram)

Cillian Murphy

Word Count: 1,917

!!Warnings!!: None. All Fluff.

Date: December 2016

Chapter Name: Twenty-Five

Brief Chapter Outline: It's the 24th of December. Gabrijela's 25th birthday. Cillian treats her to a wonderful day all dedicated to her.

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By the following morning, Cillian had left early. He wrote a letter to her before he left, stating where he had gone. He made sure to leave the spare key so she could lock up if she left. But she was more than welcome to stay as long as she wanted.

He smiled at her sleeping form, he leaned down and kissed her head and pulled the sheets up higher. He wished he could stay and hold her. But he knew he would get that chance very soon. He turned and left to head up to Manchester for some meeting with the cast and the crew. Before he had some other matters he had to do with some certain people for the coming new year and beyond.

Gabrijela woke up some hours later, stretching across the now cold bed. "Hm... Cillian?" She sat up and rubbed her eyes. She spotted the letter on the bedside table and grabbed it and read it.

She giggled to herself, "You cutie." She said. She spent the morning in bed, going through her phone. Ignoring more messages from Logan.

She finally got up and freshened herself in the bathroom, made breakfast with whatever he had in the pantry and watched some telly.

By afternoon, her phone rang and she saw it was Cillian, "Hi." She hummed.

"Hello, darling." He replied, his voice cheery. "Still at home?"

"Yep. I ate all the food, stealing half of your clothing and that fluffy throw you have on the couch." She teased.

He laughed, "Go ahead. I know where to find you." He said in a way her toes curled.

"Naughty." She giggled. "I'm gonna head back to my apartment soon, I'll keep the key on me in case I need to come back when I miss you." She said, playing with her hair.

"I'll be back by Sunday night. Then I'm off till mid-January. So you got me all to yourself when you leave." He said.

"Okay cool. My plane leaves on the 5th in the afternoon." She said softly.

"I'll be taking you there." She could hear the sadness in his tone, but it was bound to happen. She had to go back.

"I must go, darling. I'll call you later tonight, yeah?" He asked.

"Yeah. I'll be waiting." She smiled, "Bye, Cillian."

"Bye-bye." He said and hung up.

The week was slow, she had caught up with some of the friends she had made. Logan tagged along, but she kept conversation with him short. It was clear he was pretty broken over the whole thing and tried many times to talk to her. Eventually, she gave in, despite her heartbreaking she invited him for dinner. They talked and mended their wounds before they finished the night with a good session of finishing off Supernatural. He stayed the night and she was glad they could part as good friends.

Sunday night, Gabrijela made a grand meal before Cillian came home. Lasagne with plenty of cheese that she managed to find from his hometown. Red wine she found in his wine rack, which was his favourite.

She set the table up and lit some candles, put on some romantic music. She was dressed in a suede green skirt with a split at the thigh, then a white off the shoulder crop top with flared sleeves. Beneath it, she wore a newly bought lingerie set that consisted of a strapless lace bodice with a floral design with a matching thong.

She went to the front door, waiting beside the stairs as the door unlocked and Cillian walked in with his suitcase. He looked up and gasped softly, "Gabrijela." He gave her a charming smile as he pulled the suitcase in and left it beside the door as he shut it. He took off his beanie he wore.

"Hello, welcome home." She cupped his face and kissed him sweetly.

His arms wrapped around her and hugged her tightly, one hand placed between her shoulder blades as he tipped her back.

"I could get used to this greeting." He murmured against her lips as he pecked them again.

"Good. I plan to do this often." She helped him out of his coat and hung it over the wooden railing on the stairs.

"And the smell..." He sniffed, "You cooked?"

"I did. Come on." She took his hand.

"Damn. Gabrijela... You didn't need to." He saw what she had done.

"I wanted to. You've been busy all week. It's only fair for you to come home to something delicious." She giggled.

"You mean yourself or the food?" He pulled her close.

"Cheeky man." She kissed him again. "Let's eat."

The night was cozy and they ended it with a glass of red before the fire. She had set up the living room with pillows all around and a throw. Despite the romantic mood she had set out and a plan to do other things, she could see Cillian was tired and managed to get him to get comfy and sleep.

It was her turn to hold him before she also drifted to sleep.

Birthday Girl

Cillian surprised her morning with a gift. She giggled as she sat kneeling on the floor, "You didn't need to." She said.

"Hush. Open it." He said, kneeling in front of her. Music played in the background.

She first read the letter and her heart melted. It was very sweet and beautiful. She unwrapped the wrapping then popped open the box before she let out a gasp.

"Cillian, oh god..." Inside the box was a gold chain, with a fairly large opal with such vibrant colours. The pendant was of a sunburst, and within the points were smaller pieces of opal. "Oh my god. It's beautiful." She cried, a hand over her mouth. Then she looked up at him and threw her arms around his neck.

He smiled and hugged her, "Do you like it?"

"Cillian. I don't like it, I love it! It's perfect! God this must've cost you so much. God. Cillian. It's stunning." She was in a total loss for words. "You really got a keen eye." She added. She had eyed the pendant a while back, and he must've picked up how much she loved it.

"Let me put it on." He said and took the box. He pulled the chain out and went behind her as he laid it around her neck.

His fingers brushed the nape of her neck, she reached up to touch the pendant gently.

Cillian kissed her bare shoulder, "You deserve so much more." He murmured, and she turned to him. His heart melted at her beautiful smile and pulled her in for a kiss.

"I best get ready." She giggled and stood. "Thank you again, Cillian."

"Don't thank me. You don't need to." He said and she giggled and hurried upstairs to change. She had already packed her bags for the next couple of days, and some presents she managed to buy for his family.

She changed into a wine-red turtle neck jumper tucked into a high-waist black and white checkered pant and white trainers. She made sure her necklace was visible before she grabbed her bag and headed down.

Cillian had chosen to dress in black jeans, a blue sweater and then a black leather looking jacket on top with a checkered pattern within.

"Cutie." She said and stepped close, kissing him sweetly.

"Beautiful." He smiled and kissed her cheek as they made their way out.

Taking the Tube, they got off at Westminster Abbey before they got onto a boat to have breakfast on the Thames.

Once they arrived back, she was all giddy from the ride.

"Really good food. Where are we going now?" She asked.

"You'll see." He said and they walked until they reached Trafalgar Square. He took her towards the museum.

"Cillian, no." She gasped. She had wanted to go here, but she never got the chance to. Lucia didn't like these things, but she did.

"Gabrijela, yes." He drawled out, laughing at her reaction.

"You are spoiling me too much!" She stayed close to his side as they entered the building. They wandered around, admiring the paintings, and Cillian took some stylish photos of her. He still found it odd from the angles and close up's she wanted but he enjoyed it either way.

When she was standing before a large painting, he swept her in his arms and kissed her.

She smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck, "What was that for?" She asked as they broke apart. Some old ladies gave them odd looks.

"Cause I wanted to." He rubbed his nose against hers.

She sighed in delight as they finished their tour of the museum. Next stop was Waterstones across the Square. After some new books she bought, they headed up to Oxford Street and Bond Street for the rest of the afternoon.

"I honestly don't know how I'm gonna fit this in my suitcase." She said as they headed home in a taxi. "I hope it's not gonna cost me if I go over the scale."

"You can always send things back." He said.

"True. Maybe I'll do that. God knows what else I'll find in Cork." She laughed.

They took a quick stop at her apartment so she could drop off the things she had bought today. She made sure she had everything locked up and her valuables were kept at his home. Everything else was just clothing.

Back into the taxi, they continued on.

It began to pour when they got to the front door of his house, they were lucky to have clear skies all day.

Gabrijela started up the fire and turned on the lights on the Christmas Tree and the lights in the window and outside.

Every year she would go to midnight mass with her family, not once she had missed it. And tonight she would do it despite being exhausted and needing to be up early tomorrow.

They had dinner before the fire, Cillian cooking. Then she refreshed herself and off to church they went. Cillian wasn't big on religion but he had thought the ceremony was nice. As well as her singing.

They retired for the night, cuddling in bed. She was dressed in one of his shirts.

"Today was perfect." She said softly.

"I'm glad you liked it. I tried to squeeze in everything you mentioned you liked to do." He ran his fingers along her back.

"You did an amazing job, Cillian. I cannot believe you would do all that for me." She looked up at him.

"I care a lot for you and I... I wanted to make you feel special today." He kissed her softly.

She melted into the kiss, "I really like you, Cillian. Like a lot." She admitted softly. She wasn't ready for the three words, yet.

"I really like you to, Gabrijela. More than anyone and anything." He held her hand to his chest.

She smiled and laid her head down on his shoulder, the pendant resting between her breasts. Warm and safe.

Like how she was right now in his arms.

She wasn't sure how she was going to feel when she would have to leave him behind. But she didn't want to think about that right now, she would remember the moment and enjoy it while it lasted.

Sleep overtook her and she had a smile planted on her face all night long.

#cillian murphy #peaky blinders #thomas shelby #fanfiction

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seulserenity · 5 years

Text

Christmas miracle - Taeyeon scenario

[a/n] The prompt was “Sometimes I wish I could just fall asleep and never wake up.”

[also this was one of the hardest and longest to write and sorry for the errors it’s so late and I’m tired okay? Go on read it, enjoy :) ]

24th December 2019

You received a few strange texts in the lead up to Christmas from one of your close friends Taeyeon but after conferring with Sunny you both put the sad texts down to it being that time of year. Christmas time was always tough since the 18th of December 2018, tough on every shawol and idol in the community but especially Taeyeon struggled to cope during the winter months.

Shortly after this text, she left you on read; of course you worried and fretted over Taeyeon but you also had an entire extended family to visit for Christmas so it couldn’t be helped that you had little time to spare to try and do a manhunt of Taeyeon. You drove back to your family home in Ulsan for the holidays, cousins from all over Asia and Europe flocked in with Aunts and Uncles and all your time was spent cooking, catching up, entertaining kids and visiting old friends. The lead up to Christmas you’d been manically shopping with some of your friends in Seoul and tying up loose ends there, you gave your presents to the members of SNSD you were close with and hid Taeyeon’s in her flat so she could find it on the 25th of December. Normally you went home for the festive season so this wasn’t anything new but this would be the first year Taeyeon would be alone in her flat instead of the family home in Jeju; her mum had been insistent that Taeyeon join them on the family trip Hayeon had organised to Australia but since that would mean leaving before Jonghyun’s death day Taeyeon was reluctant to go. Every single year since 2017 Taeyeon had always gone at 11 pm on the 18th of December to sit with Jonghyun for a while, the SHINee members and fellow SM label mates knew of this and out of respect for the senior singer they left that slot of the day exclusively for Taeyeon to sit without disturbances and just pay her respects and it had become a sort of routine for Taeyeon now, one which she wasn’t about to break.

Sunny unfortunately also went to California during Christmas for the first time in years which meant that Taeyeon truly was alone. Taeyeon had seemed happier this year, over time wounds close even if they leave a scar they'll be a bit less painful than they once were and for Taeyeon this was true. She'd thrown herself into concerts and variety shows as well as finding new hobbies to entertain herself and it was almost as if the pain could be suppressed for her; the last time you'd caught up for coffee (just the two of you in your favourite Starbucks) she had been smiling and had put on weight which made you glad that she was healthier and happier. It seemed surreal the improvement she’d been able to make in such a short time and especially seeing how fast paced her life was, not only was it amazing for you to see this progress as one of her close friends but also because you were very much caught in the feels for the petite blonde. Sunny had noticed it when Taeyeon first introduced you to her members and she’d jumped on the chance to DM you later about it; in fact the friendship had bloomed from there and Sunny soon became your go-to life guru. From meeting Taeyeon you’d gained two best friends and a huge ass crush but you were so thankful (maybe not so for the crush) since beforehand you hadn’t been the most outgoing girl in the city.

Five minutes of rest. That was all you got, after scrubbing the house clean and then taking a nap you had five minutes before the chaos returned and so reaching for your phone you sent a message to Taeyeon.

You hoped this little message would reassure her, even a small text could do wonders when you felt truly miserable and it wasn’t long now at all until the 25th of December after which you would head back to Seoul for the New Years celebration with some city friends. Taeyeon only really had to hold on for two more days until boxing day given it was currently the 24th and after lasting the past week and a half alone it didn’t seem much more to you until at least one of her friends would be back to spend time with her. No more than 2 minutes after the text was delivered, the front door thudded open and little feet padded towards you in a horde; this had to be the best part about returning to your family home, when you saw all the little kids. You could vividly remember when they were all born and how small they had been then and now looking at how mature they’d become and how much they’d grown since you last saw them. It felt like a mother’s pride and for a brief second you wondered what it would feel like with your own children one day, images of Taeyeon with your baby cousins flashed through your mind and try as you might to forget or dispel them it seemed they were super-glued to the idea of future children. Insistent hands pulled your sweater and tugged you back into the snug living room, your mind fully focused on the kids you rose from the chair and followed the rest of your rowdy bunch to the table leaving your phone in the armchair.

Dinner was a lively affair as always; hands would tangle over one another to reach various dishes along the long glass table and small mouths chewed noisily, in a way the children reminded you of the shikshins you’d come to be familiar with. Sooyoung and Yoona had the same vivacity and enthusiasm to gobble up plate after plate as the little ones, even the way they grinned as they shoveled food in was eerily similar. That pang came back of wanting to see all of your Seoul crew again but looking around the table at the old and young who all bore shining faces, it became harder to want to leave this haven. Your childhood had felt much like a bubble; surrounded by the theme parks and awe-inspiring landscapes it had been a thriving environment. Both you and your younger brother had visited the mountain and caves, hauled your tiny bodies through museum after museum and spent most of the summer at the beach which in hindsight was a very idyllic lifestyle to grow up (especially in compared to some of the children you’d seen in Seoul). Seeing the difference had made you grateful for the childhood you’d had and you felt it was only right to maintain visits with your parents consequently, your parents had given you an amazing childhood and the least you could do was pay them back by not being an absent child as an adult. It was so quiet without the little ones here and there were no doubts in your mind that your mother and father must get lonely at some times of the year, your brother came as often as he could but being a firefighter it was rare for him to be able to get long holidays so you became the torch bearer so to speak.

Dinner evolved into coffees and after eights, the children were headed to bed by now and you closed their door and headed down with your aunt, excusing yourself to grab your phone before joining the adults in the dining room. The phone lay in the armchair buzzing repeatedly, your brothers contact name flashed on the screen and once the name had stopped flashing a series of frantic texts were sprawled across your baymax lock screen. You dialed your brother back and put him on speaker so you could scroll through the possible hundreds of texts received while you were gone, his gruff voice chimed through greeting you.

“Noona, I was trying to get a hold of a you. Taeyeon-noona was sitting on the roof edge of her flat block, well she still is. We’ve been here for over 3 hours trying to talk to her and help her, policewomen tried also. Could you possibly drive over here and help us?”

Without even replying you hung up on him, texting a quick :

I’ll be there Jaejin. Xx

You rushed to grab your coat and the KIA car keys before unlatching the front door. Hearing the latch slide across bolt alerted your mum and she practically teleported to the hallway to confront you about where you were going not even 12 hours before Christmas Day.

“Jaejin needs my help to get someone off the edge of a roof eomma, I can’t refuse that because then what kind of noona would I be? You raised me to always be good to others and to lead by example.”

“It’s Taeyeon isn’t it?”

“How..is this a parent thing or like..”

“Sweetheart, you don’t need to lie to me. Okay so she couldn’t survive one holiday alone but I won’t hold anything against her for it. She is one of your closest friends and besides she deserves a Christmas miracle I guess. Go get your girl tiger.” Whispered encouragement and a sneaky wink pushed you over the threshold.

“ You’re not..mad or even..upset by who I am?” Choked words fell out of your mouth.

“ GO Y/N Y/L/N! WASN’T THIS AN EMERGENCY? YAH. I AM STILL YOUR MOTHER AND I DEMAND YOU GO HELP HER INSTEAD OF FAFFING OVER THESE TRIVIAL MATTERS PABO!”

Cold slender fingers opened the door and bundled you in, warm kisses on your cheeks before the ignition started and the KIA rolled out of the driveway. Even halfway down the road you could still see her small form waving at you and with newfound determination you stepped on the acceleration pedal. The entire drive to the airport you’d spent singing with Urban Zakapa through all of their second album then occasionally calling your brother for an update on Taeyeon and before boarding you’d texted your brother to pick you up in precisely 1 hour and 50 minutes.

During the flight you’d napped and tossed and turned around in your seat, horrible scenarios ran through your mind and you forced yourself to focus on photos on your phone instead. Dorky photos of your family and friends showed up one after another and you eventually scrolled onto the day you and Taeyeon had gone to an aquarium. That dork had worn her nemo onesie the whole day and the two of you took the weirdest (but for Taeyeon adorablest) photos as you walked through the tank exhibitions. Even now on the flight the flurry of happiness and giddiness rushed through you from that day, such vivid memories were always there on your day trips and in your 1 hour and 40 minutes you mentally gave yourself a pep talk. Her life was filled with all of these wonderful memories, scrolling through your KaoKao talk chat it was obvious from the many selfies with others that Taeyeon was the object of many of her friends endless love. Not only amongst friends and family was Taeyeon adored but by men and women and children alike all over Korea; despite her protests she was the nation’s idol and their shining star.

Fuelled by the desire to keep the one you loved alive and to prove to Taeyeon that she wasn’t alone and that people loved and cared for her you eagerly headed to passport security once exiting the plane before virtually running to your brother at the arrivals lounge.

Both of you hopped into his slightly larger Hyundai and headed to the flat block. The drive over felt solemn and rap reverberated softly throughout the car until you reached the tall grey building. Firemen and officers greeted you as you walked through the hallway; the elevator ride was smooth and Mamamoo’s “Taller than you” was played through speakers. Your brother and you lost composure the minute the diss track started playing, any calming and respectful atmosphere that was created evaporated in that elevator. The level before the roof opened and you stepped out, Jaejin waited before the doors to the roof and gave you and Taeyeon some space. For that you were thankful because it was going to get heavy and deep real quick.

Stepping out on the roof was a slap to the face, you thought you were past all the suicide scares but here you are. Her thin legs were resting on the concrete, arms wrapped around herself as one would before dropping down a chute and the slightest breeze would sway her form.

“boo” you whispered with a chuckle,

she laughed back. It was hollow and short, clearly your crappy joke wasn’t gonna fix this.

You walked over to the edge and stood next to Taeyeon and slightly behind her, one hand swung back to greet yours and soon she was gripping onto you for life. The way she gripped so tightly made you reconsider whether she actually did want this or whether it was a desperate plea for help, it felt as if even if she dropped she would float. Paper Taeng as she was known and now you saw why, lithe legs and arms looked weightless but Taeyeon treated them like dead weights. Hunched shoulders and a droopy frame was how she sat and you thought that must be how you look when you walk given how much your mother scolded you on posture.

“Yeonnie, I- well, there was a call. You were in danger and I know you needed help so I hopped on a plane to help except now I’m here I don’t really know where to start. Do you want to- Only if you’re comfortable, to talk things through? Is it better to just drag you away from here or what works best?”

“Serenity, remember my tattoo? That’s what I want, I’m a walking hypocrite you know? I want to be with you all, I want to hang out with you lot. I don’t like being excluded but I also want to be alone, sometimes the darkness hits and I can’t face being around people no matter how much I crave for it.”

“Why don’t you try forcing yourself out, I know its tough bu-”

“It’s so tough, y/n you can’t feel it or know it unless you’ve been there. I cant just force myself out of my flat heck sometimes I wish I could just fall asleep and never wake up.”

You unfolded your fingers and pulled her back into your arms, she sighed deeply and unevenly. Your hands ran soft soothing circles on her thighs and exhaled too; both of you sat there for some time. Traffic and street vendors hustled below and you both listened to the unaware city goers down below; you hummed a lullaby in her ear still softly drawing circles on her thighs. Her soft body relaxed against your front as the familiar lyrics drifted into the night sky.

아리랑, 아리랑, 아라리요...

아리랑 고개로 넘어간다

나를 버리고 가시는 님은

십리도 못가서 발병난다.

청천하늘엔 잔별도 많고

우리네 가슴엔 희망도 많다.

저기 저 산이 백두산이라지

동지 섣달에도 꽃만 핀다.

Taeyeon closed her eyes and hummed with you, the traditional melody floated off and the two of you just rested on the rooftop for a while. The atmosphere was calm and serene,

that was what Taeyeon had wanted. Serenity.

You hauled her off the edge and she helped by swinging her legs round too. Arms looped around your neck and your hands fell to her waist to support her standing, bless her she didn’t look like she was warm enough to stand after all this time on the cold roof. Your hands around her waist and her hands around your neck but neither of you could look the other in the eye. Awkwardness crept in and Taeyeon started humming baby shark, it was a defense mechanism you knew but in that moment after the drama of the whole evening it made you laugh. You threw your head back laughing and heard Taeyeon’s ahjumma chuckle echoing too, your heads pulled back to normal height at the same time and as you looked at her babyish face you became sucked in. Possibilities of universes where she’d kiss you or tell you that it she’d be yours ran through your mind and you got lost in the contours of her face but a brief kiss on the cheek and a hand tugging yours soon brought you back to the reality.

“Wait, this hand-holding, is this gonna be like permanent? Because I don’t know if you realise Miss Kim but this is bad for my heart and-”

“Shush Miss y/l/n, not everything fits in a box.” Her dorky grin was back on her face and for now at least she would be okay.

Christmas day was shaping up to be the best one of your life you thought.

#taeyeon scenarios #kpop scenarios #writing #angst #christmasmiracle #taeyeon #kimtaeyeon #snsd scenarios

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koala-soap · 5 years

Text

Content In Your Presence

Chapter Three

Pairing Foreign Reader X Japanese Shouto Todoroki

Summary Moving to Japan seemed like the only option left open to you, to escape your rapidly increasing problems that latched themselves onto your life back in Australia. As if to cut it off, wipe everything off the table, and have some sort of a new start for yourself, despite the guilt that stuck to you like rust. Through getting lost at airports, loosing luggage and being surrounded by a foreign language, moving to Japan managed to weasel it’s way into being the best decision of your life, thanks to someone you met on the balcony next to you: a sweetheart called Shouto Todoroki.

A lovely story about a foreigner falling in love with a Japanese sweet heart, and all your adventures and mishaps together.

。。。。

With it now being your second official day in the county of Japan, it made you glad to have some sort of responsibility to busy yourself with; give yourself the feeling of being productive, rather than sitting in your small apartment slurping on roasting hot noodles from a cheap plastic cup bought from a petrol station. For the next three weeks, you were had a small and simple job, and that was to water that nice old lady’s plants every weekend during her absence.

Having no clue on how to tend to flowers or any type of plant didn’t stop you though, and having this quaint little responsibility beat ending up working long shifts in a dull super market or a little sweaty fast food place crammed with oil and fat fingers. This way, you got to help someone out and have cool breeze in your face.

But that’s enough of that, because as of now, you stood at the end of what seemed like a maze of numbers, welcome mats and corridors. Just earlier, you had set off on a mission following the bright blue line on your phone guiding you to the address, and now that the short elevator ride was over, it was time to find the correct numbered door.

Your phone now sat snug in the tight pockets of your jeans, as concentrated eyes swayed from either side of the hallway, in search of a two digit number that kept repeating in your mind.

After a minute of wandering past countless doors neighbored with mats and boots and even small plants by them, a door with the number ‘38’ etched into it’s golden plate popped up on your right. Like a switch being turned on, the rigorous eyes on your face lit up like that of a Christmas tree covered in shining tinsel; and just like was planned, a cold metal key was left lying lonely under the scratchy welcome mat for you to let yourself inside.

It slid smoothly into the lock, and the door had slowly opened up to a colorful apartment inside. Unlike your own, there were colors all around. The couches that first greeted you when you entered had multiple knitted blankets flopped over their sides, bright tins of various cooking ingredients lined up against the kitchen counter, and strings of rainbow beads draped down in front of the sliding door opening up to the giant city outside. There was also a smell of soothing incense singing around in the air.

“ Dude, my apartment sucks. ” You mused to yourself with a chuckle.

The air outside was crisp and refreshing, the large green watering can in your hands quickly filling with water sprouting from the hose on the wall.

The white cap that hugged your hair kept the sun’s warm rays out the way, and only when the can was half-way filled did you rotate the creaky tap and attempt to pick it up. Water sloshed around inside and rounded out the top onto your slippery hands, trickling like a gentle shower head over the tiny succulents shortly after. Your strained hands held the water source over each plant pot, with greedy soil who slurped every drop up into its dry dirt.

Once all were happy and watered, the dripping green can sat happily in its spot by the coiled hose, and your hands rested on your hips to admire the view in front of you. However, once your wet hand reached up and around the back door’s handle to pull it back, it made you skin grow cold despite the shining sun when it laughed in your face that it was indeed… locked.

“ Oh, come on, please, no.” It ignored your desperate plead and sat smugly closed in its place. Whimpering and with eyebrows screwed together in exhausted worry, you gently placed your head against the cold glass. “ Am I supposed to sleep out here? Like, c'mon…”

After tugging on it, thinking it may just be jammed, you realized it certainly was not. You stood staring at the furniture mocking you from inside also, rapidly going through your options. Fujiko was away for the entire weekend, hence why you were here in the first place, and climbing down was only a job for super heroes since you were on the fourth floor. You couldn’t call the apartment’s reception either, since it was abandoned for the weekend.

Once the panic settled in, you were left to sit on the balcony floor waiting for god to answer your prayers for the door to just magically open. The sight of the neighbor’s matching sliding door caught your eye, and you peeped through the thin black railing and thought about asking them for help.

Being the positive soul you were, you decided to give it a go. So long as they were home and weren’t an axe murderer, what could go wrong?

A small sigh filtered out your nose to prepare yourself with whatever was about to happen, but it really was the only thing that you could do in this situation; calling the fire department sounded a bit too dramatic to you, and Fujiko was over two hours away enjoying time with her kids and grandchildren.

Your wet hand gripped onto the thin railing and you looked over to the matching balcony just in front of you, pondering how to get their attention without being excessively loud.

Your body strained to stretch as far over the railing to swerve your eyes past the door blocking your view, one thong covered foot lifting slightly off the tiles. When a sudden noise busted through your concentration, it was a quick struggle to not fall over the side and onto the busy streets below.

Flinging your head around, you see a young male stepping out his sliding door with a concerned but unsure look on his sleepy face, a hand flicking rouge strands of bed hair from it. The stranger was still clearly in pajamas from the baggy shirt and shorts, but his lively eyes suggested he’d been awake for a while.

He eyed your strange situation. “ ねえ。。だ。。だいじょぶですか？[ Hey.. Uh.. Are you okay ? ] ”

“ はい、はい、だいじょぶ。[ Yeah, Yeah, I’m fine. ] ” Once you popped your cap off, ruffling the hair off your sweaty forehead was a relief. An uncontrollable fit of nervous laughter jumped from your lips, and out of nervous habit, scratched the tips of your sweaty ears. You really didn’t like speaking Japanese to native people, in fear of them judging you. A wave of English words gushed through your mind, and you realized your vocabulary wasn’t good enough to explain yourself.

“ しょくぶつに、あの。。[ I’m here to.. water.. plants and uh… ] ” Your eyebrows sank together, and your hands waved about in circles to think of words. His gentle eyes follow your finger to the glass door. “ たちおうじょう [ Stuck . ] ”

Despite his empathetic gaze, you giggled relentlessly with unimaginable embarrassment at yourself with a hand clamped over your mouth. He’s silent for a few moments, eyes internally arguing over a decision before saying with only an impressively small amount of an accent, “ Do you speak English ? ”

The sheer look of absolute shock slapped into you was honestly priceless, and for a measly second, the strained laughing ceased for a second from behind your hand. It was as if the cogs in your brain had come to a complete stop and malfunctioned right in front of his eyes, and shocked eyes stared at him for a while, though clearly impressed. Just like your own, a very faint chuckle of nervousness left him. The hand on your face quickly shot down, and your eyebrows arched up to make your smile naturally kind as can be. “ Yeah! Oh my god, that was so strange, your English is so good! ”

The stranger’s eyes scrunched to make way for his shy smile. The beginning of your excited outburst was a little too fast for him to understand, but he got the end. “ Thank you. Were you saying the door is… stuck? ” The small pause he took was for him to shift through various English words until he landed on the correct one.

Two delicate hands placed the white hat back on your hair, and you giggled again when thinking of your horrible attempt of communication earlier. “ The key’s inside and I locked myself out here… Rookie mistake, I know. ” You chuckled.

“ Ah.. ” He nodded knowingly while his brain whirred about inside to try remember what 'rookie’ meant, but found nothing. The rest made sense to the stranger, anyhow. “ Okay, uh… hm. ” He seemed stuck for what to do as well, just as you were.

Fiddling with the tip of your left ear, face scrunched in thought and you looked at the handle. “ Can we pick it ? Or is that just in the movies ? ”

He puffed out a breathy chuckle, and scratched his head. “ Maybe.. You have uh.. それなんだった？[ What was it? ] ” Quiet Japanese mumbling made his eyebrows furrow, and then pop up when he got the word and made a motion with his fingers to show what he meant. “ A pin ? Bobby pin? ”

You shook your head with a face full of apologetic guilt. The young man lent back to peer into his house and said, “ Hang on. ” Before hopping inside and making a bunch of thudding sounds.

He reappeared with a small grey box resting in large hands, patches missing reflective metal from being scratched off with what seemed like age. It clanged with tools inside, and he crouched down to open it on the floor of the tiled balcony. Things clanged against each other, until a small and thin metal tool that slightly resembled tweezers lifted out in his hand. “ I’m pretty sure this open locks… I promise I’m not a part time burglar, though. ” He smiles, and grunts to stand back up.

“ I’ll take your word for it. ” You joke back, and he quickly reaches a hand past his door to grab a screwdriver from a cabinet. “ Are you a mechanic or something? You have so many tools. ”

He quietly chuckles for a second with the tools in his hand. “ No, I’m not that cool. I’m studying to be a doctor. I just have them for convi- convin- convinience ? ”

You reassured him of his English with a nod paired with kind eyes, and he smiled shyly. “ Now how should we do this ? ”

Agreeing to letting him hand over the tools for you to try was apparently a big mistake, because even after a while of him leaning over the railing to observe your confused fiddling and directing you, the lock still remained stuck in its place. The pieces of metal in your fiddly fingers wiggled around inside the key hole, and were lifted or twisted depending on what the kind stranger told you to do. It remained hopeless though, and you stood defeated with the lock laughing at you.

“ This is so freaking hard. ” You mumbled mostly to yourself, tongue stuck out to assist in balancing the tools in the intricate place you had them.

“ Would like me to help? It’s fine. ” He offered, and soon enough, Shouto found himself hanging off the edge of his balcony railing, one hand in yours for balance as his leg reached out for the neighboring railing with his butt sat uncomfortably on his. The gap was only about half a meter wide, but the rock hard concrete and racing cars beckoned his body to fall.

The second foot with a large sandle weakly hanging from it leaped from the metal underneath it, and with a few stumbles, the tall man had succesfully made it to the other balcony with all four limbs. You let his hand go, and winced when you caught a glimpse of the busy streets below.

“ You okay ? ” A voice couldn’t sound more worried than yours, but the stranger simply kicked his dad sandles off and sighed out all the suspense that grew inside him.

A confident nod made your nerves ease themselves. “ Yeah, yeah, don’t worry. ” He panted heavily and switched from the gap he just leaped across to the shaken young lady in front of him again. “ Easy peasy lemon squeazy. ”

You snorted, and soon both got back to opening the stubborn door.

“ 愚かなロック。。[ C'mon, you stupid lock.. ] ” It was after five minutes that both of you realized he wasn’t much better than you. He did manage to get something in the lock to click, so whatever that was was hopeful. The man currently stood hunched over, hair flopped anywhere it desired, hands delicately twisting the tools with the tip of his tongue poking out. The screwdriver was angled ever so perfectly, and the other tool was twisted to the left carefully. Both you and him jumped at the sound of a rather loud click coming from inside the door, and he decided to risk it and put his hand around the handle.

He pulled on it, and it slid along the hinges to reveal the prize inside. Shouto sighed with exhaustion and grinned with triumph; you were jumping around excitedly.

A tsunami of relief crashed down onto you, so much so you could melt and cry. This generous stranger had just wasted forty minutes and jumped a balcony for you, and now you wouldn’t have to sleep out there for two days. “ Yes! Oh god, you did it! Thank you so much! ”

He nodded, just as triumphed as you. “ No problem, my morning was rather boring to begin with. ” He breathlessly chuckled. “ Now I can say I jumped a balcony. ”

“ You sure can, my god. ” You laughed as well, “ I’m [______] by the way. ”

You both shared a chuckle over the fact you were just doing this now, after the chaos had happened. The stranger pocketed the tools with grey, oily fingers and said with a heavy accent and smile, “ I’m Todoroki Shouto. ”

#shouto #shouto todoroki #japan #australia #shouto x reader #todoroki x reader #shouto todoroki x reader

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chinawof · 5 years

Text

McHemsworth: A Birthday to Remember...

Date: 13/01/2020

Location: Australia

Summary: McHemsworth decide to retake the pregnancy test China couldn’t work out the result of...

Warning/s: N/A.

Characters: @chinawof & @hemsworthitmate

They were quietly eating pizza on the balcony that morning, in the Australian sun. It was his birthday, and he got whatever he wanted today. China was people watching those down on the pavement below as she idly chewed on her slice of just cheese pizza when she heard his awkward tone and the sound of him putting something down on the table.

“Um, Chi?” He sets the test down on the table.

“Hmm?” Her eyes stayed locked on someone passing by for a moment.

“My dad asked about it. Delta brought it to him.”

“About what? The chewing book?” She’s still idly eating her pizza and hasn’t looked over to the object on the table.

“The test.” He then grabs a slice of pizza and sets it onto her plate with the test on top of it. “This. She took it to my dad.”

She didn’t look at him, but then saw the test being set right in front of her, and bit back the curse on the tip of her tongue. “Oh. That.” Chi sighs, “Sorry, I didn’t think she’d... well, find it.”

“It was in her bag.” He rubs his face and sighs. “It’s fine, I’ll dispose of it.” Liam grabs the slice of pizza along with the test.

“It was in the trash can.” China corrected him, thought maybe he hadn’t realised she had taken the test. “Sorry, I’ll apologise to your dad.”

That’s when he really looked at it. Processing what Papa Hemsworth probably said to him. “Are you pregnant?” He asked, still staring at it. “I guess I’m just confused because I thought we were doing this together.”

China’s hand raised to scratch at her neck uncomfortably. “I couldn’t work out what it said?” She admitted, and then saw his face, still staring at the test. A sigh left her lips, Chi bringing her hand to rest over his, “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to bother you with it.”

He looked to his hand and then to her relaxing just a smidge. “Dad said to get another. A proper one. He couldn’t remember either. That getting a test from a doctor is best.” Liam looked to her and nodded. “It’s never a bother.”

Chi listened and nodded, “I mean, we both thought that I wasn’t but maybe that is a good idea.” Her eyes still refused to meet his looking at the test in his hand ashamed his poor dad had to know about this, “I know, I know, I don’t know what I was thinking really?”

“Both? You still took it. Never mind, doing it without me.” Setting the test back on the table, “Your mind will never be at ease unless you know.” He stands up and goes to wash his hands. He took a picture of the test on his phone and then kisses her on the head. “Are you coming to get another or shall I do it alone?” He asked, checking his pockets for his keys.

She felt terrible; honestly hadn’t thought she would hurt his feelings by just wanting to reassure her mind that she wasn’t pregnant, and now she couldn’t take it back or change that. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She let out softly, ignored the way her eyes watered up softly. “I can come with you, it’s fine.” She dusted her hands off, and stood, leaving their meal sitting on the balcony table barely touched.

He made a face though there was a smile. “I mean it hurt a little. But I know you. You do things on your own.” He checked around the corner knowing already that they were about to leave. Liam looked back to China, “I am cool with you doing it by yourself. You just need the resources. Like the box,” he laughs, “Plus, now my mind needs to be at ease because Dad thinks we are, too.”

China was still a little ashamed of what she had done and couldn’t shake the hurt look in her eyes, “I don’t know what I was thinking.” She admitted, giving a small shrug of her shoulders. “That would be useful. I couldn’t work out what that said, and I didn’t know how long you had to wait, or if I’d done it right,” She rambled on, nerves clear, hand threaded into her hair as she rubbed at her scalp. “He thought what?” Suddenly the hurt was gone and there was stun on her face.

Liam stayed quiet when he felt Dora at his leg. He took her leash from her mouth and connected it to her collar. “I didn’t believe him when he saw it, but then he said something about two lines or a plus sign. Delta!” Liam shrugged. “It’s a 50% chance you could be with child.”

And all of a sudden she felt a little nauseous at that very thought because as much as she had taken that test, she didn’t expect it to come back anything other than a negative. Her eyebrows knitted together, and she stood there just staring down at the floor as Delta padded over to get her own leash ready for a walk, feeling completely useless. “I-” China shook her head, “I can’t be.” She tried to reason, knowing her parents would kill her if she was.

Liam noted China’s sudden hesitation. He fixed up Delta’s leash before standing back in front of China. “Exactly.” He lifted her chin so she could see his eyes, “We are getting a test with a box and the test telling us with words to confirm that. My dad isn’t a doctor and he hasn’t had a child in 30 years.” He chuckled, “Not the best judgement, you know? So we get a new test, okay?”

She was definitely nervous now, because other than her two interfering sisters no one else had actually believed that she might be... well that. Chi bit on her bottom lip, finding her chin moved by his delicate touch to bring her eyes to meet his. There was a beat, before she made herself give a nod of her head. “Yeah.” And then another bit of distance before she gave him a forced smile and blinked away her stare. “Yeah, you’re right.”

He knew no matter how hard he tried to convince her with words that she wasn’t that it wouldn’t ever be enough. He knew that getting a new test was better than her dwelling on it alone. And though it killed him to feel the wall she was building up between them, he took her hand and kissed it. “Let’s go girls.”

Her mind was a whirlwind of panic, thoughts of what she could tell her parents, how she’d have to deal with it, and suddenly she had to remind herself there was no use worrying before they even knew. She didn’t feel different, and so she knew they weren’t, but seeing it written would help stop her fears. China gave a small nod of her head before she squeezed his hand reassuringly. “Thank you.” She whispered before she bent to take Delta’s leash.

They walk to the store in nervous quietness, the pups enjoying their stroll along the warm Australian streets. Chi was just thankful it wasn’t too hot out or too crowded as it was early morning. As they got to the store, the pair of them entered with the dogs close to themselves to keep them from making any trouble, and found their way to the pharmaceuticals aisle.

Liam looked dumbfounded over the amount and different types of tests there were.

Chi glanced at his face and knew he was feeling the same as her, “You and me both, okay?” She reached for his hand and held it, feeling overwhelmed too.

“This one.” He says finding the box. Delta and Dora were being good pups in the aisle. “I don’t remember the box but I remember this stick.”

Chi gave a small shrug, looking the box over. As long as it had words and not some cryptic line system, she didn’t care. “Sure, that looks like it’ll work.” She huffed some hair out of her face.

“Want me to get two?” He asked, though reading the box it said it was pretty clear and accurate.

She mulled it over for a second, but reasoned two of the same result would be far more convincing than just one of that result, so she nodded. “It’ll probably help confirm or deny it, yeah?” She said, though it was almost a question, and didn’t realise how dry her mouth suddenly was.

Liam slightly smiled before grabbing the second box and putting them underneath his arm. He then reached into his pocket and pulled the small pouch he carried with treats for the dogs out. He handed it to her along with Dora’s leash. “I’m going to pay for this, you treat them. It’ll take your mind off of this.”

China took Dora’s leash and put it on her arm near Delta’s, both pups were sitting patiently at the sight of the treats. She gave a nod and a smile to Liam, “Thanks.” She let out a nervous breath before she put her focus on the pups, leading them from the store to the front before she gave them their treats and some affectionate strokes. He was right, it calmed her a little, if nothing else.

Liam had grabbed some of her favourite candy and added it to the other things he was getting, too. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it but he knew she was getting overwhelmed. As he made it to the front of the store with them, he pulled out a Laffy Taffy. “What kind of teeth can you buy with a dollar?”

The pups were laying on the sidewalk lazily eating their treats and waiting for papa to return. China was knelt so she could stroke their fur. She didn’t hear him exit, but heard his voice and stood. For a moment so distracted she didn’t realise he was telling her a joke until she saw the candy in his hand, and she gave a smile that was a lot more natural. “I don’t know, what kind of teeth can you buy with a dollar?”

He made a face trying to figure out the joke laughing as soon as he lifted the flap revealing the answer, “Buck teeth.”

His laugh was infectious and after a moment she found herself laughing too, a hand over her mouth, to cover the soft chuckles, but her eyes definitely giving their normal sparkle again. “Your mom should apply to be a joke writer for them.” Chi suggested, knowing how much Leonie would love that joke.

Her laugh brought his eyes back to her and for a moment they felt like them again. “I’m sure she had. She probably sends these in with fake names,” he said laughing at that thought. Every joke he read from them sounded like one she would say. “You ready, my love?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.” China replied with a laugh, honestly, she loved it when Leonie took the time to send her a text with a joke every now and then, or messaged to see how she was. She was beginning to feel like a real part of the family. Chi looked to him at his question and gave a nod, “Yeah.” She answered, though her smile softened, it still stayed as she made sure she had the pups leashes. “I think they’re all treated out for now.” She confessed, knowing she’d pretty much emptied the bag whilst distracting herself from the thought of those tests.

“Well, there is more jokes in here.” He chuckled as he looked into the bag. He then looked to the pups and back to her, “All the treats?” Liam asked smirking a bit. He found it cute that even though she was in this weird state of mind she was still able to be herself enough to give them treats. Even if it was too many. As he led them on the short walk back to his home he thought about the tests in the bag he carried. Would his and her life suddenly change because he wasn’t careful enough? Will her parents be okay with it? He thought about his conversation with his dad. “I’m sorry my dad knows about the tests.” Liam said as they finally reached his home. “But we are going to find out it’s nothing to worry about, okay?”

China let him talk because it was comforting to hear his voice as they walked, the dog’s leashes in her hold. She nervously chewed at her lip, but tried to keep herself upbeat. “They enjoyed them?” She answered, referring to the dogs treats. Dora and Delta especially seemed smug and happy with themselves thanks to their treat goldmine. The mention of his dad had her sighing gently, “It was my fault. I should have realised Delta would see it as a toy. I’ll apologise to him, I promise.” There was a gentle nod of her head, “Yeah, and then we enjoy Australia and your birthday.” Chi smiled.

“Do you remember when you said I shouldn’t over treat them?” He raised an eyebrow before shaking his head. “You’re their favourite today. I promise you that. But mine always.” Liam followed her sigh with his own. “Not necessary. But we should probably make sure there isn’t more in like our suitcases or something.” They reached his door and he stuck the key in letting the dogs find their water bowl. He turned to her, “Exactly. We are going to enjoy this time together. You and me.”

“Sorry.” She apologised with ease and a hand locked into her hair as the pups wandered inside. She was just a little out of it with all the thoughts of this at the moment. China bent and took the leashes off of the two dogs letting them have their freedom before she joined Liam. “That is probably a good idea. I’ll call and see if they hid any others, no worries.” But now they had something else to tackle. China let her hand find his giving it a squeeze before she kissed his knuckles softly. “You, me, our pups,” She smiled, “The perfect family life.”

Liam gazed at her lovingly as she took his hand because for the first time since he brought up that test he felt that wall come down. A reminder that sometimes she can be as independent as she wants to be as long as you're still by her side supporting her. He leaned in and kissed her forehead before wrapping his arms around her just to let her know that he intended to still be right here when she needed him. "Our little family." He repeated before pulling away. He played with the ends of her hair before going back to the task at hand. He lifted up the box from the bag and examined it. "Do you want to do this before we see my entire clan?" He asked curiously, figuring that if she found out the answer before hand she'd be more focused to enjoy their time with his family.

She gave a smile. Their perfect little family.... she mulled it over. Would a little one really be such a bad thing? Other than her parents and perhaps God hating her, the idea did sound nice. China suddenly wasn't sure what she wanted the test to say, or why. Her eyes looked the box over as his did, too. "I don't know. I don't want to take away from today, Liam... what if it's something we don't want to know right now?" she knew it was a stupid thing to worry about, but suddenly all the worst case scenarios came to her mind. What if they weren't and they wanted to be? And what if they were and didn't want to be? The overwhelming feeling was back and she couldn't help the worry on her face as she wrung her hands together with nerves.

"Well," He began rubbing his hand around his chin as he thought for a moment. Yes, it was his birthday and yes he was going to see family. But even he knew that she would still think about this test as well as he would. "To be honest, I forgot what day it was. But," He thought about the possibilities with this test. Was he ready? Was she ready? "What do you want right now? If that test says positive, what would you want?"

She didn't want to give him an answer she was unsure of herself, but the, "I honestly don't know," tumbled from her lips far too easily, "How about we just have your day? Celebrate you, and when we get back tonight we deal with this?" She gestured to the test, "I'm ninety nine percent sure it's going to be negative anyway, Liam. And your family must be waiting."

He licked his lips, nodding just a little as he thought about her 'don't know'. He thought about all the reasons she would be hesitant and took a deep breath slowly letting it out as he came to the conclusion that maybe she was right. Maybe it's completely negative. Maybe having a kid right now was what she wanted. "Okay. If that's what you want to do. We'll do that," He said smiling a bit.

She let her hand reach out to hold his again, "We're a team, we decide things together. What do you want to do?" If he wanted to do those tests now, she would. She just wanted him to get to enjoy his day, and was already conscious she had taken so much of his time thanks to Delta thinking the first test was a toy. "Please. Just be honest with me?" China asked, almost pleaded.

"I think we should take it." He watched her face for a moment before continuing. "Only because I feel like we would enjoy ourselves more by getting it out of the way. Not that it's a bad thing to wait..." He looked down squeezed her hand lightly. "If it’s negative then it should be swift and easy." He felt Delta brush past him and he could see her sit next to China. "And if it's positive then I'll freak out and be happy with you until we decide what is the best thing for us. Because I know we can do it."

China listened to his words, and as much as she didn’t want to take those tests, she knew he was the logical one of the two of them right now, and that was what she needed. There was still a sense of hesitation about her, but she nodded after a moment and swallowed hard. “Okay, we will then.” Chi gave him a smile that was nerve filled, but reached her hand out to take the bag and test from him. “I’ll bring them out to you? I won’t look... I promise.”

He wasn’t sure if she would agree and he would have been okay with it otherwise. But he knew how her mind would have been on it all day. He smiled back to her just as she took the bag from him, “Yeah. You can do that. I’ll be right outside the door so you won’t have to go far.” He pecked her lips quickly before escorting her to the restroom. “It’s going to be okay.”

To say she was nervous was an understatement, but she didn’t want to let that show. China gave him her best fake smile, “I know.” She reassured him, a squeeze to his shoulder before she headed inside of the bathroom to do what she needed to do. She took her time, which was probably a good and a bad thing. Sat on the toilet lid for a while and read instructions over and over so she didn’t do anything wrong. It must have been fifteen or twenty minutes before she even bucked up her courage to actually take the tests in the same fashion as the one yesterday. But, soon enough, there was a little progression bar on the two digital screens of the tests, and she knew they were calculating an answer for her. China washed her hands and walked outside to him holding them, a slight shake to her hands as she did so. “Sorry. I didn’t want to do them wrong.” She set them down and ran a tense hand through her hair.

Liam did exactly as she said and stayed outside that door. When he realized it was taking long he just sat down quietly. He thought many times to knock on the door and ask if she was okay but figured she would be. Both dogs had found Liam and knew something was different. Delta brought Liam a book and Dora parked it right next to them as Delta climbed into his lap. He passed the time just by doing that. Liam looked to her just as she walked out, carefully setting Delta back on the floor where she sat and looked up to China. He then looked at his watch knowing he probably had few more minutes left or he was just as nervous as her to look at the test. He squeezed her shoulder just as she had before walking to look at the tests she had rested on the counter. He watched it just as the progression bar changed into a word. One word. That's all it took for him to suddenly feel like his life was about to change again. But he knew this was for the better. "I'm going to be a papa?" He asked slightly choked up but there was a cheerfulness about it that you just couldn't miss it. He turned to China suddenly taking in her tense figure. "Is that okay? Are you okay?" He asked unsure what to feel unless she was okay with it.

She didn’t go over to look at them, once she set them down. Instead one hand pressed into her hair tensely, the other on her hip as she paced. Delta looked at her concerned but didn’t try to go and settle the nerves she was feeling which China was thankful for. It wasn’t until his words met her ears that suddenly everything felt more real. Her whole body felt suddenly drained of blood, and the stun was clear on her face. She rushed to where he was, and saw the word displayed on the test. “Oh, God.” China let out, a hand going to her mouth.

Liam quickly grabbed a glass and filled it with water from the fridge placed it near her. "China, talk to me. What's on your mind?" He asked suddenly trying to figure out how this happened. He was extremely careful every time. Though he shook his head, smiling a little. "Drink up."

She tried to take some deep breaths to calm herself but her eyes were locked firm on the tests and the very clear word. God, she liked not knowing better, she was mentally cursing Sisi and Lauryn for starting this rigmarole. “My parents are going to kill me.” She muttered out and tears were in her eyes. China had never disappointed her family before but could feel their judgement already, knew the lectures coming her way, and she didn’t know what to do about it all. Was this her punishment for asking him about kids a couple weeks ago?

Liam nodded his head as he leaned against the counter. He has two brothers so a lot of things he did were always 'my parents are going to kill us' moments but he knew China's parents were different. Different than his and he respected them fully. And he felt guilty for putting her into this situation. Given her religious views he knew abortion just wasn't on the table, which he was grateful for. Still, he was unsure anything he suggested would be to her liking. "I'm not saying we have to, but we can wait,” he was beginning to feel bad for suggesting to do the test now. At least with later she could have gone straight to sleep. "Wait to tell anyone. Until we figure out the next step. Like you moving in with me. For good. And a place in Atlanta. So they can see we are making steps and not mistakes."

Panic was rife in her mind and it wouldn’t shake, what if they didn’t didn’t accept ‘steps’? What if they tried to tear her away from Liam? Or worse, what if they shut her out completely? She could feel the meltdown coming and tried to still it with some of the water he’d given her, her hands on the counter to make sure she didn’t end up as a puddle of a wreck on the floor. “No one?” She liked that idea which was a shock in itself because China was never one for keeping a secret. “I’m so sorry, Liam.” Chi apologised without looking to him. Her eyes still hadn’t left those tests, “I didn’t want to put you in this position.” Suddenly she wanted to go back in time to when they didn’t know and today was going to be a good day.

"Not a soul." He said taking her hand and pulling her back into that embrace he had her in before she took the test. She was apologising and he was the one who asked her to take the test. "Shhh. No. This was me. I'm sorry." Though he knew it would be agree to disagree conversations. "You're blessing me with the best gift any man could ask for." He paused wishing he could look at her but he knew to wait. "I don't know why this happened now, but I know God wouldn't have put you on this path if he didn't think you could handle it. And we will find a way to tell your parents. Together."

China let herself melt a little into the embrace because it felt safe and it felt like home. She wished it eased her worries, but it didn’t, and she knew the only way to do that was for her to work everything out, and today wasn’t going to be one of those days. She suddenly wished she wasn’t miles away from home and could turn to her sisters like she used to, or Nafessa; Nafessa always had the answers, just someone who would be able to reassure her the world wasn’t going to end and things would be okay because she knew already that Liam would tell her that, but suddenly her family and job were on the line here. She didn’t realise she had been silently crying in his hold until she felt a small pawing at her leg, Delta obviously very concerned herself about Mama’s well being. It was enough to make her snap out of it for now at least because it wasn’t her day, and they were meant to be celebrating. She pulled away and wiped her eyes softly, “Your family’s going to be waiting for us.” She let out weakly.

Liam held on as long as he could. He pulled out a handkerchief, pulled China’s face toward his, prepared for more tears that were ready to fall. “It’s my birthday. They can wait a little longer.” He said with a wink, “Besides, I want to make sure you’re okay first. You and these pups and...” He paused as he glanced to her stomach before finding her browns again, “...this baby are my main priority. Especially right now.”

She was a bit of a crying mess, but China was trying to hold herself together, even when more silent tears fell. "Exactly. And here I am ruining it by being a mess." She tried to draw in a deep breath and make all her feelings go away, but he mentioned /the baby/ and everything came back to her once more. How could they have been so stupid? Why hadn't she taken Nafessa's advice about birth control? "It could still be wrong." She offered, mostly to herself than to him. "A doctor knows best, right?" There was a slither of hope in her damp browns that she was holding onto, the fear of her parents knowing overwhelming any feeling she had of Liam being /just right/ and a baby being a good thing for them.

Liam took the small cloth drying up the tears as they fell, shaking his head, “No you’re not. You, my love, couldn’t ruin anything,” he said calmly, and encouragingly. It was true. No matter what she always kept his head and day afloat. No matter the situation. “Then we will set an appointment. We can do it today even. I just want to make sure you’re okay.” He let his hand fall from her face to find her hands, squeezing them gently.

She listened, and let his words sink in, trying to understand them, even if it felt like she was here ruining his day. It felt too soon for kids, but they had no choice if those tests were right. “Not today.” She breathed out softly, ashamed eyes looking away from his. “Let’s just enjoy your birthday, please?”

Liam would have celebrated his birthday any other day if it meant he could help clear China’s mind, but he felt the sadness as she looked away and knew this was what she needed. “Okay. Let’s go get ready.” He kissed the top of her head before making his way to the bedroom to change for something lighter. He turned back to China, “I love you.”

She watched him go to the bedroom and looked at the tests on the counter one more time. There was still a sadness lurking in her eyes. China debated throwing them in the trash, but wasn’t sure if Liam would be upset by that, so she wrapped them in a napkin and tucked them in her handbag for now to spare Delta finding them and running through the house with one. She met him upstairs with her face drier, and her denial as best in place as she could get it. “I love you, too.” Some birthday it had been for him.

A freshly changed Liam met with China with a smile on his face. The mother of his child. That was all he could think about. But he wouldn’t mention that to her. He stole a kiss before hugging her, “It’s my fucking birthday. Let’s celebrate.” He laughed, hoping his vibes were infectious enough to bring her spirits back up again.

She was slightly stunned by his kiss and hug, but welcomed them after a moment. When he spoke, China couldn’t help give a soft laugh. He seemed more chipper, and she wouldn’t let her own mood ruin his day, so she made sure to keep on smiling knowing she could dwell on things later. Chi let an elbow nudge him gently, “It is, happy birthday, old man.” She teased.

Liam pretended that her nudge hurt him a lot. He leaned over groaning and holding his side before popping up to say, “gotcha!” though he knew she didn’t believe it for one second. He sat on the bed, holding her hands as she stood in front of him. “You literally can say in a conversation with your friends, ‘Well, I gotta go, my old man is waiting on me.’” Liam made a face like ‘that sounded better in my head than the way it came out’ before he laughed again.

She watched him with the most motherly look she had, hands on her hips, her face an expression of pure ‘I am not buying this shit’ just blinking and waiting for his dramatics to finish. God, she’d make a great mama one day, if only she’d accept it. When he popped back up, she quirked an eyebrow, but her stern look fell with the look of the happiness on his face, and him taking her hands, leading her toward the bed. “Oh my gosh, I’m never going to say that.” She laughed gently.

“You can though.” Liam looked to her kissing her hands in the process. “You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever met.” He began shaking his head to signal that he wasn’t done, “Before we go out with my family, I just want you to know that I am forever grateful for you. I am here for you. No matter what.” He said tossing her hands behind his neck so he was hugging her stomach. He wasn’t sure if she would listen to what he was about to say, but he hoped she would. “I’m grateful for you, too.”

China’s smile was more natural as she listened to him, knew he was doing his best to reassure her that he was in this for the long haul with her, and it helped a little. She was still worried, but she was glad he was there with her. Him hugging her stomach took her by surprise, and she teared up at hearing his soft words, quite obviously to the baby... their baby. China threaded her hand into Liam’s hair, letting him know she was okay with this, for the time being. And though she was still unsure and scared beyond belief, she let out a soft, “We’re grateful to have you, too.”

For the first time that day Liam felt like things weren’t out of place. And he knew that after today that China might shy away from the idea of motherhood. But at least he had this moment. This moment he would get to share with his son or daughter when they got older. All Liam knew was it was one birthday that he would never forget. Liam pulled away to look to China kissing her lips softly before resting his forehead onto hers. He wanted to tell her that she was going to be a great mom whether she believed it or not but he figured to wait until she came around to the idea of that child actually growing within her stomach.“You ready?” He asked licking lips ready to just kiss her again. After all, it was his birthday and he wanted to enjoy it with her any way he wanted.

She welcomed the moments of quiet, let him kiss her and enjoyed the safe feeling of him and his presence, before they had reality to go back to and a family for him to see. China looked herself up and down; knew she’d rushed in getting dressed, and cried a bit of her make up off, she gave a shrug as she looked back to Liam. “I don’t look a mess, do I?” She asked. “I could get changed?”

He leaned his back, taking in her frame biting his lip with a small chuckle. “I think you look beautiful.” he continued to smile, though he knew she no longer believed him. “we could” he pulled her close kissing her softly just as he had before. “just kiss a little.”

As he pulled her closer to him, China let out something that was half a squeak of surprise and half a gasp. She didn’t have the time to scold him for doing that, found herself practically pulled over, her feet so unsteady she ended up sitting on his knee as they kissed. “Family,” Chi said when they broke apart for a moment of air, “Gotta go.” She informed him.

He knew she was right but he kept his stare on her before throwing his head back and sighing. “Let’s go” he said looking back to her, pushing her hair behind her. “Dora! Leash!” He called out keeping his eyes on his fiance, smile slowly creeping on his face.

#(f2f: mchemsworth.)#(share my everything | mcclaimed.)#(as soon as I saw you; I knew a grand adventure was about to happen | baby c.)#(McH: Australia 2020.)

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sanvers-supercorp-is-wayhau-blog · 5 years

Text

Tonneau Covers

You have purchased a pickup truck. This is a great car. Its main advantage is endurance and unpretentiousness. This is a car for all occasions. But the owners are interested in the question - what to do with an open body? This issue becomes especially relevant when it rains, snow falls or leaves fall. After all, they have to be carried in the back of their pickup truck, and then also removed. But this is not the worst. Worst of all, nothing can be left unattended in an open box. After all, it can easily be stolen. And sooner or later, the owners of pickups come to the conclusion that you need to somehow close the body. Nowadays, a lot of options are offered. These are for Toyota Tundra https://truckpowerup.com/best-tonneau-cover-for-tundra-crewmax. Let’s try to figure out which ones we have.

1. Where are you from and why

Very often in the car markets of our country you can find universal cars. One of these is a pickup. It falls under category B and less often C. This is a light truck that combines unpretentiousness, carrying capacity, cross-country ability, comfort. And therefore there is nothing surprising in the fact that now very many choose this particular car. But ten years ago, a pickup truck was considered a car for farmers. But today he finds his fans among the city dwellers. Automobile manufacturers in America and Europe are very actively filling our market with various pickup models. And if earlier we often saw such cars only in American films, now more and more often you can see a pickup truck on our roads. And its SUV options make it even more popular.

2. Types of Kung

Sooner or later, almost all owners of pickups come to the conclusion that installing a kung is not a whim, but a necessity. This is the most popular way to cover a pickup truck. It is believed that capacity increases with it, and it perfectly protects the load. But, despite its large size, it does not so much increase capacity. It contains a lot of small things, but overall things simply will not fit there. This is not a common name for a car accessory. The word “kung” is just an abbreviation: a unified body of zero (normal) size. Manufacturers of different countries have their own names kunga. In Europe it is “hard top”, in Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand - “canopy”, in America - “cap”. Kungs can be divided into several types. We will focus on such: Full Boh, Star Box, Canopy .

2.1 Full Box

This type of kung gives the pickup a sporty elegance. But its functionality is not lost at all. This kung visually smoothes the angle between the cabin and the trunk. Thanks to this, your car becomes more stylish and takes on a complete look. The main advantage of Full Box is its tight key cover closure. This protects the body and cargo from damage and guarantees its integrity and safety. And also moisture, dirt, dust and other garbage do not get inside. Inside the Full Box there is a boot light . The back door opens thanks to gas springs. This allows you to keep the door open and subsequently provides convenient loading and unloading of luggage. This type of kung is made of plastic, and it is equipped with roof rails for luggage. The front part of the kung is equipped with brake lights and an aerodynamic arc, and is attached directly to the car body. The back is designed to open and close.

2.2 Star Box

For those drivers who want to make their pickup truck attractive and significantly change their appearance, they can’t find a more suitable accessory. Star Box is made of very durable fiberglass. This kung increases body volume, and is also a full-fledged part of your pickup. Its tailgate window and side windows are tinted. Mounting Star Box on the pickup body occurs without drilling. The body structure is not violated. This is done thanks to special fasteners, and the cabin sits well on the sides. The life of this kung is increased due to the fact that the inner part is very resistant to damage.

2.3 Canopy

Those drivers who need a simpler option should choose Canopy. This is a simpler version of the kung in comparison with the previous two. But it should be said that a car with such a kunga model looks like a real SUV. To install Canopy, you do not have to warp the body in any way or drill. And all because Canopy has a special installation package. It greatly simplifies installation, while without any harm to the body. This kunga model is equipped with a rear door and a handle with a lock, spoiler and panoramic side windows. The rear door opens with a gas shock absorber.

3. Material

A very wide range of materials is used in the production of kungs. The choice can be made from fiberglass to steel, and even aluminum. Recently, it is noticeable that compositions that combine steel structures and plastic are becoming increasingly popular. The inner frame is made of metal, and externally the kung is already covered with plastic. This tandem of steel and plastic protects your body from corrosion , deformation and increases the durability of the structure.

3.1. Kungi from plastic

A very large number of body parts of modern machines are made of plastic. Plastic is very light and technological. The most economical solution for pickups are precisely plastic kungs. But at the same time they quite effectively carry out their functions. Plastic kungs have their advantages. These include low thermal conductivity, versatility, maintainability, as any minor damage can be repaired with polyester resin. But there are also disadvantages. The main disadvantage is that a full back door is simply missing, this role is played by tempered glass, shock absorbers and locks.

3.2. Steel Kung

For the manufacture of steel kung using the method of cold pressing. The main advantage of steel kung over plastic is their strength. SAMMITR is the only metal kung producer in the world. This company is located in Thailand. For metal kung there are no temperature restrictions. The metal doesn’t care what the temperature is outside, and the plastic becomes prickly and brittle at temperatures below twenty degrees. Steel kungs are very reliable, durable, because metal does not lose its properties after a while, which can not be said about plastic kungs. They are also very durable, their metal casing can withstand higher loads. Nothing can happen to metal unless it is scratched during shipping. The steel structure is very strong, and therefore allows you to load the kung from above.

3.3 Aluminum kung

Such kungs are suitable for those drivers who use their car for traveling long distances, for traveling or for robots in difficult conditions. Aluminum kungs are extremely hardy and durable, which contributes to the transportation of goods on the roof. They are not afraid of shock, temperature changes, vibrations. They are not a replacement for plastic. This is a completely independent product.

4. Covers for a body

You can not omit such a question as a cover for a pickup truck body. This is a good alternative to kung. Lids for the body are well suited for the transport of small loads, they can also give your car personality and perfectly protect your load. The modern market offers a lot of options for pickup covers. For example, vinyl three-section tents, covers made of different materials that open at different angles, metal shutters and much more. They differ in strength. Some may have a thickness slightly larger than that of the awning, and some can withstand two ATVs if they can withstand the sides of the car, but that’s another matter. The lid gives the pickup a sporty look. Lids are fastened on the sides of the pickup with clamps. Covers for a body have a lot of advantages. This is the safety of the contents of the body, and the protection of the cargo from bad weather conditions, and the ability to use the lid as a platform for transporting cargo. But there is a drawback. Perhaps he is only one: a long installation and dismantling.

5. How to choose?

You need to choose a cover for your pickup very carefully. It is necessary to take into account many points: is the cover chosen well that protects the body from dirt and is it airtight; Does the tailgate block Is the lid locking mechanism complicated? whether there are spare parts for the cover, such as shock absorbers, hinges, locks, gasket and others; whether the cover is securely attached to the body; is the cover durable and how resistant is it to loads, shock, vibration and other aggressive influences; whether a large load can be transported from above on the lid; and also easily whether the cover chosen by you can be removed if necessary. Make your choice right!

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fineline-live · 6 years

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Ghost • ghost!cth

Title: Ghost

Reader Pairing: Y/N and Calum

Rating: so angsty but fluffy oh my god yEet

WARNINGS: talks of death and small mentions of suicide and depression

Description: Moving into a new house by yourself sounds fun until you have to deal with the unwanted guest.

Fiddling with the keys in my shaking hands, I stared at the door. This was it. I was moving into my own house after barely turning 19. I had a steady job, my own car, my own house. I felt successful and I was still young. I finally found the right key on my key chain, shoving it into the lock, and walking through the door. The house was cozy, only one floor. There were two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and a laundry room. It was small, but perfect for myself. I stood in the wide living room, smiling to myself, my imagination running wild on how I was gonna decorate it. There was already furniture and boxes in the house, my family helped me move most of my stuff in a few days ago. I paced around the living room, reading the boxes, wondering where to start first. My mouth started to get dry, the house being a little warm, so I looked for my dishes box. I found the box with the cups in it, opening it, and pulling out a glass cup. I walked down the hall a little to the kitchen, turning the corner and walking straight over to the sink. As I was about to turn the water on I heard something move. I turned quickly, launching my glass in the direction of the man sitting at my island counter, a confused look covering his face. The glass flew right through him, hitting the island and shattering to the ground.

“Who the fuck are you?” I said, my voice laced with confusion and anger, fear not even a thought on to why someone had broken into my house and how long he’s been here. He got up from the stool slowly, inching forward by a few steps. “You can see me?” His voice was soft, laced with some sort of accent. I was still stuck in bewilderment, confused by his sentence. “I just tried to throw a fucking cup at you, of course I can see you. Why wouldn’t I be able to? A better fucking question is how in the hell did that cup just go through your stomach?” A wide smiled spread across the boys face, his chest starting to fall up and down with his excited laughs. “HOLY FUCK YOU CAN SEE ME!” He danced around in circles, pumping his fist through the air, my eyes about to pop out of my skull. Who the fuck was this kid? He had golden cinnamon colored skin, deep brown eyes with dark purple bags under them, raven hair with blonde streaks through the front, and plain black skinny jeans with a white t-shirt and checkered vans. Was he attractive? Yes. Did I know why he was in my house yet? No. Was I still wondering why that glass went through him? Definitely.

The boy still danced around in circles, small shouts of excitement racing through him. “Yo,” I called out. He didn’t even acknowledge me, just kept cheering to himself. “Dude, what the fuck. Why are you in my house?” He stopped dancing around, catching his breath and looking at me with a big smile. “Whew! Oh my god. This is awesome!” I still stood confused before yelling. “WHY ARE YOU IN MY HOUSE? WHO EVEN ARE YOU?” He laughed loudly, clutching his stomach. “My name’s Calum. And frankly, I don’t have a good reason for that besides that I thought I’d get used to the silence, figured I might as well live on my own if no one was gonna see to me.” I leaned against the counter, utterly confused by the boy. “So you broke into a random house?” He shrugged. “I’ve only been here for a week.” I rubbed my temples beyond disoriented. “So let me get this straight, you wanted to live on your own so you broke into a random house because no one wanted to see you?” “Couldn’t see me,” He corrected. I started laughing. “Bro, what kind of drugs are you on? Are you homeless? A runway? Are you in trouble? Should I like call the police or something?” He shook his head smiling. “It’d be useless. They wouldn’t be able to see me. My own family and best mates couldn’t even see me.” I tried to wrap my head around the words, wondering if there was a hidden meaning. “What do you mean they can’t see you?” He leaned against the island and shrugged, nonchantly smiling. “I’m dead.”

I started laughing, throwing my head back. “What’s so bad that you had to fake your own death, man?” He shook his head with a smile. “No, deadass. I’m dead. My ass is dead. This ass? Dead.” He said, turning around and pointing to his back jean pockets. “Oh, so you’re also a comedian. Good one, now get the fuck out of my house.” He kept his back to me with his head turned. “Legit, dude. Touch my ass.” I scoffed at his words, not sure what to do. “No! What the fuck?” He shrugged his head down. “Seriously. Touch my ass, your hand will go right through.” I shook my head, crossing my arms tight. “I’m not gonna touch your ass, man.” He shrugged and turned back around so his chest was facing me. “Your loss.” He crossed his arms, copying my position. I tilted my head towards my chest, trying to hold onto the information. Finally I lifted my head, smirking at him. “So, you’re like Calum the friendly ghost?” He rolled his eyes, a groan leaving his throat. “If I was still alive, that would become the reason I’d off myself.” I chuckled at his statement, trying to think of what to say. “I promise, Im dead. If you want proof try to touch me.” I looked at the boy skeptically, he was definitely real. He had to be. I could list off every detail of him, it was all so real. Sure, he had a pale look to him, but maybe he was just ill or something.

Hesitantly I took a step towards him, then another, and another. I reached my hand out as did he, our fingertips brushing, my hands just feeling a cold chill, but no contact. “What. The. Fuck.” I whispered, my body still remembering the cold feeling it just encountered. “Told you, I’m dead.” I just sat with my mouth open, running my fingers back and forth through his palm, shivers running down my back. Most people on the first encounter with a ghost would scream and run away, but with Calum? I felt almost drawn in? Confused and needing to know more? Almost as if I could help him pass on? Is that what ghosts do? “So why’re you here then? In my house?” He sighed, watching my fingers pass through his hand. “After I died, I went home, not realizing I was dead, I guess. I screamed my mum’s name, my sister’s name. Neither of them could see or hear me. No one I’ve come across lately can. And then you walk in and throw a cup at me and it’s the first sign of human interaction I’ve had in over a week. I saw the for sale sign, figured it would be a while until someone moved in, so I thought Id make myself at home until then.” I pulled away from the boy’s hand, still looking as real as ever. I didn’t say anything besides analyze his features once more. He was easily attractive, but obviously dead nonetheless.

He sighed, pushing himself off of the counter. He walked towards the living room, not even bothering to say anything else to me. “Where are you going?” I called out. He looked around the living room and gestured to my stuff. “Someone moved in, now I gotta go find a different house.” I could feel myself become almost... sad? I didn’t want the beautiful stranger to leave just yet. “You don’t have to. Stay.” I said softly, leaning against the doorframe from the kitchen to the living room. He tucked his hands in his pockets, his shoulders drooping as his eyes looked at me curiously. “Seriously?” I nodded my head. “I just moved in, I need someone to keep me company while I unpack. I’m Y/N, by the way.”” He smiled softly, nodding his head towards the boxes. “So, Y/N. What room first?” I smiled at him and grabbed a random box to the kitchen, leading him back that way. We talked for hours, getting to know each other, and where we both came from. I learned he was originally from Sydney, Australia, a long ways from the California home we were in now. He had a sister named Mali-Koa, and three best friends named Ashton, Michael, and Luke. He played instruments and soccer, football as he called it. He loved dogs and was beyond irritated that I didn’t bring my old dog from home along with me to live here. I also learned that he was 19 as well, but never pressured anything about his death or how he died. I’ve never met a ghost, so I wasn’t sure what would offend him. I started to really get along with Calum, laughing at his jokes and his phrases, a smile never leaving my face.

Weeks passed, seven to be exact. Me and the ghost boy had become best friends, always talking when I’d get home from work, he’d sit at the dinner table with me while I’d eat, or sit on the couch and watch tv together. A soft cold weight would be wrapped around my shoulders, Calum somehow figuring out how to gain more power within himself to start getting some sort of force on things. He had started sleeping in my bed alongside me, a small weight making the bed dip on his side, causing a smile on my face everynight as it got heavier. His body was still airy like gas when I’d pass through it, the chill becoming less cold every day. It was safe to say that I had some sort of feelings for Calum, but I was too scared to admit it. How insane would it be to tell a ghost that you had feelings for him? How insane is it to actually like a ghost? Everyday my feelings got stronger for him and his beauty and shitty jokes. I couldn’t get enough of him.

Today I came home overly stressed from work, clients that I worked with today just being complete assholes and made my day terrible. I walked through the doorway, slamming the door shut on the way. “Y/N! YOU’RE HOME! COME CHECK THIS OUT!” I heard Calum’s voice yell from the kitchen. I smelt something like food wafting through the air, overly confused. I walked through the kitchen doorway to see Calum with a pot cooking on the stove. “I made spaghetti! I did it! I don’t know how! But I concentrated enough and I made you food. Isn’t that fucking sick?” He had the widest smile on his face, his cheeks a rosy color from being so excited. I giggled softly, a small smile taking over my face. “That’s amazing, Cal. I’m proud of you.” His smile faltered a little as he looked at me, a loud clanking sound of the spatula falling through his hand and hitting the floor. Spaghetti sauce was everywhere on the floor, Calum looking overly upset. “Shit, Y/N, I’m sorry. I forgot and wasn’t focusing and-“ “Cal, it’s okay.” I laughed lightly, walking over and setting the spatula in the sink, grabbing paper towels and cleaning the floor. I threw them away and grabbed a plate and fork, dishing myself up some of the pasta. I took a bite of it, leaning against the counter and moaning softly. “This is amazing!” He smiled softly, a blush covering his cheeks. “Thanks. It’s all I remember how to make besides toast if I’m being honest.” I smiled at him and nodded my head giving him reassurance on the food. I sat down at the island as he stood across from me and rested his chin on his hands.

“Are you okay?” I nodded my head as I took another bite of food. “It was a long day at work. Overly fucking stressful.” He nodded understandly, watching me eat what was left of the pasta since I didn’t get much. “Wanna talk about it?” I pushed the plate away from me, rubbing my hands against my eyes and then threw my head back. “It’s just so fucking stupid. Like I wish I could quit my job and just fucking kill myself or something. Throw myself in front of a car.” I closed my eyes and stared at the ceiling as Calum spoke up softly. “Been there, done that.” I opened my eyes and looked at him, his eyes staring at his hands. “What?” My voice was soft, scared of ruining the topic. “It’s how I died. Well how I think I died anyways.” The boy looked up at me, his eyes dull and not the pretty brown they always were. “I, uh, was really depressed. I dropped out of high school, quit my job, a bunch of this shit. Just kinda prepared myself to not exist anymore. Then one day I went to an overpass, jumped off and was hit by a car. Either a semi or bus. It was a 40 foot drop. I don’t remember the impact. I think I died the second I hit the car. It’s all kinda blurry after I jumped.” I felt my eyes well with tears. Calum, my calum, the love of my life, tried to kill himself and succeeded. He was so hurt and depressed that he killed himself. I felt bad about my earlier comment. “I’m sorry, Cal. I didn’t know. I wouldn’t have made the comment if I knew.” He shrugged, “It’s okay. I mean, if you think about it, if it never happened, I never would’ve met you and felt what it was like to really be in love, even if it’s too late.”

I felt my breath hitch in my throat. Did he just say he was in love with me? “Love?” I asked quietly. He just nodded his head, no shame to his previous sentence. “I’ve been so fucking afraid to tell you I love you thinking that you would’ve thought Im weird, and now Im here knowing that you love me and holy fuck.” He just chuckled, walking around the island to me. He kept one hand sitting on the island, the other tight to his side. He leaned his head close to mine, I could feel his breath fanning over my face. It was warm, not his usual cold. His eyebrows furrowed, focusing on something on my face. “Are you okay?” I asked with a small laugh. “I’m just trying hard enough to focus so that when I kiss you my face doesn’t fall through yours,” He chuckled, his eyebrows softening and his eyes crinkling. Without noticing my actions I leaned in quickly, cupping his face and kissing him. His lips were soft, and his skin was warm. His cheekbones were hard, but his skin so smooth. He felt nice, something I wouldn’t wanna ever let go of.

Then he pulled away crazily fast, I could almost hear his heart beating. His eyes shot open, and in front of my own eyes I watched as he dissipated into thin air in the matter of a second. Gone before me. I felt my eyes start to gloss over, so overwhelmed and confused, having just kissed the boy I was in love with, and it felt so real. So fucking real. But he was gone.

A two weeks had passed without Calum. The house felt silent and empty. It didn’t feel like home anymore. Without Calum’s dip in the bed at night along with his heavy breathing, or the movies we’d watch every night with the heavy weight on my shoulders of his comfort. It was all gone. And what left along with him was my feeling of comfort, safety, and most importantly reassuring love. I had taken the last week off from work, saying that I was ill, instead my mental health deteriorating and constant sobs of missing Calum echoing throughout the vacant halls. I couldn’t help but feel as if I was the reason he left, I moved to quickly and he became uncomfortable. Whatever the reason, I’d never find out. It was only 10 am, and I finally trudged out of bed to go make myself a cup of coffee. I was in a pair of fuzzy socks and pajama shorts along with a shirt Calum said he loved on me. It was an oversized The Maine shirt, saying he used to own one just like it. The coffee was finished, and I walked into the living room with it, sitting down on the couch and covering my legs with a blanket Calum and I had bought together on an impulse Target run. I had finally gotten comfortable, settling in while slowly sipping my coffee as there was a knock on the door.

I groaned, setting down the cup on the coffee table and flipping the blanket off of me. I drug my feet towards the door using both of my hands to open it. I rested against it, one hand on the doorknob inside, and the other resting on the side. In front of me stood a pretty girl, gorgeous golden cinnamon skin, blonde wavy hair, the prettiest gap between her two front teeth along with her wide smile that could only make me feel as if I’ve seen it before. “Can I help you?” I asked softly. Her smile widened. “Are you Y/N Y/L/N?” I nodded my head, the prettiest accent ringing through my ears. “Your name was my brother’s first words when he woke up two weeks ago. He got discharged from the hospital today, said he had to see you.” I cocked my head at her words, beyond confused. She looked back at the black car in my driveway, the passenger door opening and a man getting out of it. He kept his face down, not sure what to do. He walked up towards the front porch steps and stood before the first step, eventually looking up and staring into my eyes.

“Calum.”

“Hey, princess.”

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mamabearcat · 6 years

Text

Keys To Her Heart Ch 1

I was going to post a saucy snippet of an upcoming chapter, and then realised that I’d only ever posted a link to this story on fanfiction.net. Sooooo, I’ll be posting the first three chapters on Tumblr, and adding a Masterpage link. This is a Fairy Tail Modern AU set in Australia, with a touch of the supernatural. Mostly NALU, and will definitely be M rated. Lucy is in research mode, ready to write her first historical book, and has no time for Natsu, the hot fire fighter who has a side hustle hosting ghost tours. Together, they end up discovering more than they bargained for!

CHAPTER ONE

Lucy Heartfilia glanced up from signing the cheque to find the real estate agent leering at her… again. She disguised her distaste with some difficulty, and handed the cheque to him over the desk. Mr Everlue put it into his pocket.

"So, what did you say brought you up to the mountains for a month my dear? A romantic interlude perhaps?" He leaned towards her and winked in a conspiratorial way. Lucy looked at him uncomfortably, shifting in her seat.

"I didn't say", she said raising her chin impatiently, but trying for a pleasant tone. "I'll be working."

"Ah, that's right, the book, on… bushrangers, did you say?"

"Yes", said Lucy, wondering if it would be rude to turn and march out of the office immediately. There was something about this man that made her feel inherently uneasy. But she needed to stay in Rose Cottage for her research, and this slimy man was the managing agent. Turning her gaze around the office, she caught the sympathetic gaze of the blue-haired receptionist on the front counter, and immediately felt a little better.

"Well, if that's everything I have to sign, I really need to get going, Mr Everlue", said Lucy, reaching down for her small backpack. "I still need to drive the rest of the way up the mountain, and it's getting dark."

"That is true, my dear. I did offer to escort you, and the offer is still open…"

"It's not a problem, Mr Everlue" Lucy replied hurriedly, rising from her seat. "I'm sure I'll manage."

He handed her a small bunch of keys. "Well, you can't say I didn't try", he smirked. "And you have my business card."

"And I'll be sure to call you if there are any problems", she answered, picking up her heavy backpack and turning to leave.

"You might change your mind after spending a few nights up there alone. I'm told the cottage is decidedly… spooky… after dark. You might need some company. Who knows what might be up there, lurking, just…

Lucy turned her gaze toward him and fixed him with an icy glare. He had the decency to look a little abashed.

"I stopped believing in fairy tales a long time ago, Mr Everlue. If you'll excuse me, I have a lot to do."

She turned and walked briskly out of the office, the bell on the shop door tinkling merrily as it closed behind her. As she turned, Lucy caught a momentary glimpse of her reflection in the real estate shop window. Her long golden hair was still confined in the thick braid she had put it in this morning, and her old leather jacket, checked buttoned shirt, jeans and boots, although clean, were looking decidedly scruffy. Her round, plain glasses magnified her brown eyes in her pale face, which were currently narrowed in an annoyed expression. Mr Everlue chose that moment to give her a final wave, wriggling his fingers at her, which did not improve her mood.

Lucy hurriedly swung her body around and stomped down the hill, slamming straight into something tall and solid. She immediately fell backwards with a thump, and felt the wind slam out of her, and her glasses fall from her face. There was nothing she could do but sit on the ground, like an open-mouthed fish, trying to gasp in oxygen.

"Are you alright?" a gravelly male voice asked. A blurry face appeared in front of her, and she felt someone kneel next to her, rubbing her back, trying to help. "This ain't an asthma attack, is it?"

Lucy shook her head dumbly, still trying to draw in breath, and finally managed it, making a most unladylike whooping sound as she did so. She moved her hands around beside her, trying to find her glasses, and her hand came to rest on a muscular leg clad in faded jeans. She felt her glasses being put into her hand by one much larger, and warmer than her own.

Lucy slid her glasses onto her face, to find herself focusing on the greenest eyes she had ever seen. They seemed like they would usually be crinkled in enjoyment and laughter, even though at the moment, they looked concerned. The rest of the face was equally striking, with high cheekbones, a generous mouth, and an unruly shock of dark pink hair. The owner of the face was still rubbing her back, and now that she was breathing, she felt a wave of embarrassment begin to wash upwards from her toes. Why was she always so clumsy!

"I'm fine", she snapped, trying to get to her feet quickly, a little too quickly. She lurched sideways, and the owner of the green eyes rose quickly and steadied her with his hands on her upper arms. She found herself staring directly at his broad chest, and had to tilt her head to look up into his face. Her stomach did a little flip flop, as his mouth curved into a smile, one that went all the way up to his eyes.

"You don't sound fine. Are you sure you're not hurt anywhere?", he said gently. She took a deep breath, and after trying to smile back unsuccessfully, shook her head, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. She'd been in the mountains for fifteen minutes and had already managed to look like a total klutz in front of the most attractive man she had ever seen.

The piercing gaze of his green eyes seemed to scorch her, increasing the turbulent feeling in her stomach, and she turned her face aside, only for her eyes to rest on the taut muscles of his arms underneath his grey t-shirt where they had flexed to steady her. She wondered what it would feel like to be pulled into an embrace inside those strong arms. She immediately gave herself a mental slap and looked away, down towards her own scuffed boots. 'For heaven's sake, pull yourself together Lucy, what are you, a love-sick teenager!' she thought, and said aloud, "I'm sorry, I was in a hurry to get somewhere, and I just wasn't looking where I was going. Thank you very much for your help."

Green eyes dipped his head downwards, trying to catch her eye, and continuing to smile, said "It was my pleasure". He took her small hand in his own and shook it briefly, and then continued on his way up the hill, whistling cheerfully, his hands resting nonchalantly behind his head.

It took all Lucy's self-control not to turn around immediately to see if the view of him from behind lived up to the one at the front. After a few moments, she gave up the struggle and turned. She was rewarded with the view of dark pink tousled hair, wide shoulders, a narrow waist and muscular legs which seemed made to wear blue jeans. His stride was purposeful, but unhurried, and she allowed herself the pleasure of watching him for a few moments before a movement of his head made her quickly turn and scurry in the opposite direction. Just because he was built like a statue of a Greek god didn't give her the right to stare at him, like a piece of marble in a museum. And he was definitely not made of marble. She remembered the warmth of his thigh underneath her hand, the way he had firmly rubbed her back. Oh, and that smile… She gave herself a mental shake; she had no time for romance, even if he was interested. And of course, he wouldn't be. Beautiful people like him were never interested in her. She was the good girl, bookish, polite Lucy Heartfilia, who always kept her head down, and never did anything unexpected.

She continued down to the corner, where she had parked her battered pale blue Volkswagen beetle. A large furry white head with pale blue eyes was hanging out of the back window, and she could hear a strong curved tail beating a happy wagging rhythm against the cardboard box of groceries in the back seat. Her husky Plue gave a short sharp bark of approval that she was back, and did his best to wriggle his excitement within the confines of his dog car harness. She hopped into the front seat, and couldn't help turning to smile at him. When she had picked him up at the pound only two short years ago, he had been a tiny white ball of fluff, shivering in fear. Now he was a rambunctious ball of furry energy that constantly kept her on her toes. Life with a dog as big as Plue was never dull.

"Ok, boy, time to hit the road. Straight up the mountain, no pit stops until we get there. Rose Cottage, here we come, ready or not". She glanced over her shoulder to see the happy doggy grin on his face, and paused to give him a good scratch between his ears. "This is going to be our year Plue, the year we make all our dreams come true."

Lucy pulled into the overgrown driveway, at the very end of the curving mountain road. She was glad she had driven up the thin winding road for the first time before dark. Although it was sealed, there had been a sheer drop on one side, and it was difficult to see exactly how far down the valley floor was, filled as it was with tall eucalyptus trees and tree ferns, and she had no desire to find out for herself by plummeting over the edge. She got out of the car, and undid Plue's safety harness. He immediately jumped down, and started a sniffing exploration of the overgrown garden.

"Don't go too far!" Lucy called, as she balanced the box of groceries on one hip, while slinging her backpack over her other shoulder. She walked up the three steps at the front of the wooden cottage, and sniffed appreciatively at the small sweet-smelling yellow climbing roses that covered the posts of the front veranda, almost disguising the peeling white paint. She put both the backpack and the box down, and fumbled in her front pocket for the keys.

A big plain silver key opened the old lock with a little effort, and she opened the front door. A faint waft of lavender greeted her as she walked into the hallway. She peeked into a small bedroom on the left, with a quilted double bed, and old rocking chair and a cedar wardrobe, and then turned to see its twin on the other side of the hall, with two single beds and a carved cedar chest.

An exploration further down the wooden hall revealed a snug sitting room with faded but comfy looking red velvet armchairs on an old Persian rug, either side of a fireplace that included a small combustion stove and a supply of chopped firewood. She continued walking into a small wooden kitchen, painted pale yellow, with a scrubbed pine table and chairs. Off the kitchen was the bathroom, where an old white claw foot bath took pride of place in its dark green tiled surroundings. Although the furnishings were faded and worn, they gave the cottage a very homey feel. Lucy immediately felt a connection with the cottage. It felt like she was meant to be here, like the cottage had been waiting for her.

She stepped out onto the back veranda, and gasped at the view. At the end of the sloping lawn, past a little clump of birch trees, she could see the garden drop away into a rocky valley, giving her a view of distant farmland far below. The mist was beginning to gather as the sun set, lighting it with a rose and tangerine hue. The sunset intensified the earthy colours of the sandstone escarpment, and she heard the bell like call of a lyrebird from somewhere nearby. Lucy could smell the strong clean scent of eucalyptus and tea tree, and she took in a deep breath of air. She could feel the stress of the long drive from Sydney ease, and a tension that she hadn't realised she carried seemed to drop away from her shoulders.

A sudden howl and yelp from Plue had her bolting back into the house. It was late autumn, but there still might be snakes around that would not tolerate the inquisitive nose of a boisterous husky. Plue might be large, but he was just an overgrown puppy, and during his short life in the city, he had never come across a snake. She grabbed a handy broom from the kitchen as she skidded past, just in time to see Plue back out of the main bedroom, with his tail between his legs.

Lucy cautiously peered around the bedroom door, the broom held out in front of her like a sword. A cautious sweep under the bed and behind the door revealed nothing scarier than a few dust bunnies, and she was about to drop her guard when a movement caught in the corner of her eye made her heart beat in double time. She whirled around, just in time to see a small blue-grey cat, the colour of smoke, leap up from the top of the bed head and squeeze itself through a small slightly open window she hadn't noticed upon her first inspection. It paced backwards and forwards on the window ledge in the last rays of the sunlight for a few moments, purring and rubbing its face against the window frame, gave them a cursory glance with its almond shaped yellow eyes, and then jumped down into the garden. Lucy stood up on tiptoe to gently push the window shut with the broom handle, and turned to face Plue, who was looking decidedly embarrassed.

"Oh Plue", she laughed, scratching him between his furry ears. "We've both made fools of ourselves today". Her mind went back to a pair of piercingly green eyes, and a gentle smile, and amazingly warm hands that rubbed her back. A firm muscular leg under her hand, disconcertingly male, all male. She shook her head, as if to shake the memory out, and then said in a decidedly no-nonsense tone, "Plue, we have work to do."

It took no time at all to go out to the car to retrieve her suitcase and unpack the contents into the wardrobe, and after lighting a fire in the small stove in the sitting room, she moved on to the kitchen, putting away the groceries. A small leaflet remained in the bottom of the box, and she snorted as she picked it up and began to read.

"Join Natsu Dragneel, your ghost host with the most, as he entrances you with tales of misfortune and mayhem. Hear accounts of long-gone residents who can still be seen in numerous locations around the town. The stories you'll hear come from years of research, personal accounts and hauntingly real-life experiences.

Visit historic FairyTail Inn. Who's playing games in the cellar when the sun goes down? Is it the spirit of five-year-old James still looking for a friend, or is it the Grey Lady, still waiting for her walk down the aisle? See scary sights like Magnolia Cemetery, the final resting place of early settlers and convicts who succumbed to tuberculosis…or was it final? End your journey with a visit to Caddock's Leap Lookout. The Leap has a long history of paranormal activity. In 1870, the bushranger Mad Dog Caddock, leapt from the cliff rather than be captured by local law enforcement, and he is now believed to haunt the area.

Comfortable shoes are recommended so that you don't become dead on your feet during the brief walking portion. Dinner at FairyTail Inn is included in the price of your tour."

Lucy shook her head. There was no way that she believed in this sort of rubbish, but it would give her a head start to hear some of the local history this evening before she could begin her own research tomorrow at the local town museum. Entirely on a whim, she had called the number on the flyer when she had picked it up at the local grocery store, and made a booking for tonight's tour. Even though it would be ridiculous, and not the historically accurate account she preferred, she did want to hear a local telling of Mad Dog Caddock's death, though of course it would be 'glamourized' for the benefit of those going on the tour. If she was to get her book research completed in a month, she needed all the head start she could get.

Lucy walked in to the sitting room to check on Plue snoozing in front of the fire. As much as she would rather get straight into her pyjamas and make herself a hot chocolate, she forced herself to march away from the cosy glow of the sitting room to the bedroom. She pulled on a navy woollen sweater over her shirt, and after a moment's thought, dug a bright red beanie and scarf out of the drawer at the bottom of the wardrobe she had so recently filled, and stuffed them into her backpack. Plue should be fine for the few hours that she would be gone – he was in such a deep sleep from the exercise he'd had chasing lizards and birds in the backyard that afternoon, he'd probably hardly notice that she wasn't there. After leaving him a fresh bowl of water and his favourite biscuits next to his basket in the corner, she grabbed her car keys, ready to make the half hour trip back to Magnolia.

Natsu smiled as he walked up the hill to the local pub. That poor woman had been so embarrassed, you could have fried an egg on her face, she could barely look at him. Which had made it all the easier to look at her. And he had liked what he saw. A lot. Too much. He had really wanted to ask her name, what she was doing in Magnolia, because she was obviously not a local, but seeing her intense embarrassment, he'd decided that a chivalrous exit was the best course of action.

He knew everyone in the small community; they were a tight knit bunch. You didn't live in a small country town for twenty-five years without knowing everyone's business. She was probably just a tourist, up here for the weekend from Sydney, for some mountain air. There were quite a few bed and breakfasts here in Magnolia, who capitalised on city slickers who wanted a weekend away from it all. Yes, that was probably it – she was here with her boyfriend or husband for a romantic weekend, and had been in a hurry to go meet him somewhere. Lucky guy. He tried not to imagine how those beautiful golden curls would look like out of that braid, spread out on a pillow. Natsu stopped short. Where on earth had that come from! It wasn't like he was short of female companionship. If he wanted it. And he didn't. Right now, Grandeeney was his number one priority.

He walked into the pub, and greeted the few men already sitting at the bar with a nod, and received raised beer glasses as way of greeting in return. He sat on the nearest bar stool and smiled at the barman, who was deep in conversation with old Makarov about the latest football scores. Football was the only thing Macau took seriously, everything else would look after itself.

"Evening Macau", Natsu said, as soon as there was a break in conversation. "Are there many bookings tonight?"

Macau tore himself away from the football conversation, after a good-natured pat on old Makarov's arm, and ambled across to him. He retrieved a small battered notepad from under the bar, and after consulting it, and counting on his fingers, he replied "Seven. An older couple, John and Elsie Smythe, staying at the Victoria and Albert Guest House – they'd appreciate a pick-up, by the way, they didn't want to walk up the hill in the dark. A couple of boys from Hall's Gully are bringing their girls along, so that should be fun for you." Natsu rolled his eyes. Hall's Gully was a larger town further down the mountain where the local high school was situated, and every now and then a few of the older students came on the tour. Usually it involved a lot teasing from the boys, and screaming from the girls, and no doubt tonight would be no different.

"And the last one?"

"A woman. Lucy Heartfilia. She called me this afternoon on the phone to book, and paid with a credit card. Said she's here to research for some history book on bushrangers and was interested in local stories. She's staying up at Rose Cottage, but said she didn't need a pick-up, she could drive herself."

A sudden image of brown eyes, a cute slightly-freckled nose and thick golden hair forced its way into Natsu's head. 'No, that would be too good to be true' he smiled to himself. 'She's probably some older university professor or something.'

"Rose Cottage?" he said aloud. "I didn't think anyone was still up there, after old Mrs Evans died?"

"Ah, it's one of Jonathon Everlue latest purchases. You know how he's always going on about his 'portfolio'. After poor old Esme kicked the bucket, and didn't leave a will, Everlue snapped it up at the deceased estate auction. Got it for a good price too, including all the furniture. I hear he's letting it out to tourists. Knowing him, he's charging them like a wounded bull."

Natsu frowned, then shrugged his shoulders. Everlue was not well liked around Magnolia, and Natsu had his own reasons for disliking the man.

"Well, that's not a huge group, but it's better than nothing. Good thing I didn't give up my day job" he joked to Macau. "There's just enough time to go check on Grandeeney before I come back here".

"How's Grandeeney doing these days?" asked Macau. "She used to potter into town every day, but I haven't seen her around lately. Not even at the gin rummy game on Wednesday evenings. It's not like her to miss a chance for cards and a port and lemonade".

Natsu's face fell. "Not so good, I'm afraid Macau. You know she had that fall last year when she broke her hip, before I moved in with her. With the colder weather coming on, she's finding it hard to walk a long distance at the moment with her arthritis. She can get around home ok, but she doesn't like people seeing her use a walker, and she'd need that to get into town. I've been taking her out and about when I can, but you know how stubborn she is about being independent. The only reason she's letting me live there with her to keep an eye on her is because I told her I needed to save money for a house."

Macau sighed. "I'm sorry Natsu, I didn't realise it had got as bad as that. She's a tough old stick; I didn't think anything would get her down."

Natsu managed a weak smile. "Come over and visit one afternoon, and bring your cards. She can still beat the pants off me at poker. She'd probably like some new competition."

Macau chuckled. "I've been there once too often to take that bait Natsu. Remember that tournament we had in the pub a few years back? The boys have never let me live it down. I'll round up a few of the old folks who've been asking after her – we could come over for a gin rummy afternoon, if you think she's up to it. I'll even throw in a free bottle of port."

After a beer and a chat with a few of the locals, Natsu walked around the corner and down the street in the twilight to the comfortable old Federation house that he now called home. The front garden was still filled with all the old-fashioned cottage garden flowers that his grandmother so loved, and their perfume hung in the still air. The wide veranda held several Adirondack wooden armchairs, painted a crisp white, and made more comfortable with fat squashy cushions and crocheted blankets. A welcoming glow poured out of the windows either side of the dark green front door, and the huge brass doorknocker gleamed.

Just looking at this house filled Natsu with comfort. It had many happy memories for him. It was where he had grown up, and Grandeeney had always been there. After his parents had both died in a house fire when he was a tiny boy, his grandmother had come to the city to collect him, taken him home, and he had never really left. Of course, he had moved away to go to University after high school, and he stayed in the rooms above the Fire Station in Hall's Gully when he was on call, but Grandeeney was the one constant in his life. There was no way that he was going to let her down now that she needed him, whether she liked it or not.

The front door gave its characteristic groan on the hinges as he opened it, and he heard the familiar sound of knitting needles gently clicking, and his Gran calling from the kitchen.

"Natsu, is that you boyo? Come and give your old gran a cuddle. I've been reading up on the rising temperatures in Antarctica, and there's more than a few people that I'd like to give a piece of my mind!"

Natsu grinned. As a birthday gift, he'd given Grandeeney a laptop, and after some initial reluctance, she had embraced the internet with all its possibilities. Dinner was often spent discussing world events, or some crackpot scheme she'd come across.

He stepped down onto the slate tiles of the cosy kitchen, and walked over to the huge kauri pine table, where his grandmother sat in a comfortable armchair propped up on cushions. It was much easier for her to get out of the softer chair when it was next to something she could lean on, and as she spent most of her time in the kitchen anyway, she had finally agreed to move her favourite armchair there. She was surrounded by balls of different coloured wool, and from the looks of what she was knitting, no doubt he'd have a new scarf before the weather got cooler.

Natsu walked behind the chair and leaned down to kiss the top of his Grandeeney's head. "I can't stay long Gran, I have a tour tonight, but I'll be back in time for supper. What's in the oven that I can smell?" A delicious lemony scent was drifting around the kitchen, emanating from the old cast iron wood cook stove that his grandmother had staunchly refused to get rid of, even though he had offered to buy her an electric one. He made to open the door of the oven, and received a poke in the ribs with a walking stick for his efforts.

"Oi! Keep your greedy mitts off. It's a lemon delicious pudding, and you'll be ruining it if you go slamming the oven door." The cheeky grin she gave him as she poked him in the ribs again softened her words. She gazed at him over her the top of her glasses. "Are you sure you want to do a tour tonight boyo? My elbow's aching, I'm sure we're in for a storm this evening."

"Definitely sure" he smiled. "I have bookings, and it's not polite to keep your customers waiting".

"Oh well then, if you have to, you have to. But make sure you're home in time to tuck me in".

Natsu smiled at her again. "Of course, I'll tuck you in. But I'm really coming home for the pudding."

"Be off with you then, you rude lad" she grinned, taking up her knitting again. "Maybe you'll finally meet a lass that you can bring home for me to meet. You know I'd much rather be knitting booties than another scarf for you!"

Natsu rolled his eyes at her, before giving her a quick smooch on the cheek and grabbing some keys off a hook next to the back door. "Save me some of that pudding" he said with a wink on his way out.

Natsu leaned against the wall of the old sandstone pub. The rest of his tour group were all inside, being fed huge portions of steak and chips by the ever-hospitable Macau. He'd just wait outside for a few more minutes to see if his last guest was going to show, before rounding them all up to begin the tour. He rubbed his hands together in the chill air, before thrusting them into his capacious pockets, glad he'd remembered to bring his huge old army jacket. He was used to the cold, but this night looked like it was going to be a windy, stormy one. Gran's elbow was a very reliable weather predictor. He looked up to see grey clouds scudding across the full moon, and heard a distant rumble. The storm was still a good way away, hopefully it would continue circling until everyone was safe home in their beds.

He was just about to turn and head back inside to wait next to the fire, when a small battered blue Volkswagen lurched into view, with a grinding of gears. It pulled into the car park, and a petite woman in jeans and a navy wool jumper leapt out of the driver's seat. She made to sprint towards the door of the pub, then turned on her heel and opened the driver's door again, leaning across for something in the passenger seat.

Natsu caught a glimpse of a long shiny gold braid as it swung in mid-air, and couldn't help grinning to himself in the semi-darkness. He was going to get to meet his mysterious woman after all. He admired the heart shaped view of her behind in her jeans as she leaned across the front seat to grab a small backpack, and then winced in sympathy as she banged the back of her head on the opening of the car door. Rubbing her head, and muttering to herself, she turned and seeing him, immediately stopped in her tracks.

"Oh no, not you", she groaned audibly.

This story began as a straight romance I was writing, hoping to get published. Lucy was originally Cally, Natsu was Connor. I was halfway finished, and then I was hit by the worst case of writer's block I've ever had. I just couldn't finish it, and shelved it indefinitely. I decided to drag it out again a few months ago, and while I was re-reading it, I realised that the characters were really close to my favourites from Fairy Tail. So with a few name and hair and eye colour tweaks, plus a lot of extra content to take in some of the Fairy Tail arcs, this story lives again!

I debated about changing the location from Australia to somewhere else, but I really wanted to tell my bushranger story. So, as far as I know, this is the first Fairy Tail fan fiction set in the Blue Mountains, near Sydney, Australia.

If you’d prefer to read on Fanfiction.net, here’s a link!

#nalu fanfiction #Nalu #natsu x lucy #Keys to her Heart #fairytail fanfiction

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