#dc looked at these two and went: these bad boys can fit so much fucking trauma

[introspectivememories]

[boldlyvoid]

Amoreena | Chapter Five

Chapter Five

main summary: Heaven is a real place and it's located exactly 14.6 miles away from the FBI, Quantico Headquarters. Off behind a small park, under a fantastical willow tree surrounded by wildflowers, in every colour young minds can imagine.

Don't forget, heaven also comes with angels.

Chapter Summary: (fluff only) weekly Saturday reading only they are joined by an extra 15 lost boys, not just Spencer

Warnings (adding as they happen): fluff, hurt/comfort, depressed spencer, reader has a daughter, falling in love, strangers to lovers, library smut, oral (female receiving) lots and lots of fluff

word count: 3K

from the beginning <3

He woke up Saturday morning to the sound of a bunch of voices coming from beyond the walls of his room. Only it wasn’t his room, it was the room he slept in when he stayed with Y/N and Amoreena, he hasn’t left since he arrived on Thursday and he had no plan to either.

They still hadn’t told her about their relationship, not wanting her to come crawling into bed with her mom in the morning to find Spencer there too. She wasn’t ready to explain to Amoreena what it meant for Spencer to be in her bed, how they were in love and that she might need to learn how to knock before entering.

So he slept in the spare room, completely contently because he knew she was only on the other side of the wall, instead of 30 minutes away like she would be when he slept at his own apartment.

It had been a week since he saw them reading in the park, and now they were his family. It was incredibly fast, anyone who heard the news would say so. But that’s how his life worked, he blew through everything incredibly fast, it only made sense for him to skip every step in the book and become a stepdad overnight.

He woke up then, missing Y/N and Amoreena as he thought about the last week. Finally getting dressed and peaking outside, through the crack in the blinds, to see what was going on on the farm.

There were a bunch of men in the field with the cows dropping new cattle off in a big truck as a bunch of children ran around the yard. Y/N wasn’t kidding when she said her 7 siblings had produced 15 cousins for Amoreena to play with. Children all between the ages of toddler and 7-years-old, screaming while they ran after Rufus and the cats, it was a pure dopamine rush to witness.

He found Y/N in the living room, a book in one hand and a coffee in the other, “good morning cutie, all the ruckus on the farm wake you up?” She did her best fake southern accent as she smiled at him. Beautiful as ever in the early morning sunshine.

He nodded with a yawn, sitting beside her and snuggling into her shoulder. She placed her mug in his hands so she could wrap an arm around him and pull him in closer, letting him take a sip of coffee and become a real person again.

He noticed she was reading a book he had never seen before, reading the pages and not know the words. It was a first for him.

“What’s that one about?”

Y/N closed it to let him look at the cover. It was a hand-bound book, wrapped in green fabric that was at least 30 years old and in well-loved condition. The gold lettering reading Amoreena, along with a pressed gold rose and the author's name. He had never heard of it before.

“My grandma was an aspiring writer and the reason I love books so much, her name was Peggy and she had a dream once about a wonderful little girl named Amoreena and the magical life she created for herself. She wrote it all down and my grandpa had it typed and bound for her, she was so proud of this book,” Y/N gushed, smiling as she held it to her chest softly, thinking of all the memories Spencer didn’t know yet.

“Really?” Spencer couldn’t help but smile at her.

She nodded softly, “she loved Elton John, so much so that when my sister Ashley came out she threw her a party. Almost all those kids out there are Ashley's, by the way, she went down the adoption and foster root after I did IVF.”

She pointed out the front window at all the people gathered on her land, “Ben and Dylan dropped their kids off too while they help dad and Evan with the farm. Those are my brothers in case you didn’t know their names yet, there’s also Carver and Francis but they don’t live as close.”

Her little life was just so perfect, “did they want to come with us to read this afternoon? We need some lost boys.”

“They’d love that, are you sure you can handle 16 kids between the two of us?” she smiled, pure love spreading through her body as she held him.

“They’re not so different from psychopaths right?” He teased, watching her settle against him even more as they enjoyed their Saturday together.

“What else can you tell me about your grandma?” He snuggled into her more as he asked, wanting to know as much about her happiness as possible.

“She was always listening to music, she loved Elton's song Amoreena the most. It was the song she played for the majority of my childhood. It only made sense for me to name my little miracle Amoreena too, cause I wouldn’t have her unless nanny suggested I have a baby.”

“I would have loved to meet her.”

Y/N’s smile changed then, “she would have loved you and your big mind.”

“My mom wants to meet you and Amoreena,” he announces softly, he hasn’t really told her anything about his family yet.

“What’s she like?”

“She has schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s and she lives in a care home in DC right now, I try and see her when I can but she has her own schedule so I have to fit around when she’s having a good day,” it was hard to explain it to most people, but not to her. He didn’t feel any shame or fear in introducing them. Y/N was the most loving human, and Amoreena was just the same.

“When is she free next?” A simple question that made him feel incredibly giddy.

“Tuesday from 3-5,” he snuggled in closer to her as she wraps her arm around him.

“We’ll pick Amoreena up from school after work and take her over,” Y/N agreed, their lives intertwining like they were always meant to.

Like she was the ivy on his old cottage, she took him in and made him her own, wrapping herself all around him and never letting him go again.

He basically finishes her coffee while she holds him on the couch. The sound of the kids outside making them laugh every once in a while, dogs barking and cows mooing, the farm was alive and roaring while they enjoyed each other's company.

“Did you bring your costume for the reading today?”

He sat right up then, looking at her like she lost her mind, “of course I did, I wouldn’t have Penelope spend a week tracking down a Captain Hook costume just to forget it.”

Y/N’s jaw dropped, “you didn’t?!”

He simply nodded with a cheeky grin, “come on Tinker Bell, everyone knows she had a thing for Hook.”

“Who didn’t? He was the first and last bad boy I was interested in, I typically go more for Milo’s and Ariel’s; full of adventure and always learning something new,” Y/N teased him.

“Mhm, I always had a thing for Aladdin and Belle in search of far off lands and happy endings,” he mused, making her smile just as much as he was, “but for real it was between Hook and Wendy for my costume,” he made her laugh again, wanting to hear it for the rest of time.

“You still can, I have a blue nightgown you can borrow,” it was so easy for them to flirt, it fit into their conversation so simply it felt like they had been together forever.

He couldn’t help leaning in to kiss her, resting her back against the couch softly as she held onto him. He loved kissing her, she tasted like coffee and happiness every single time. She made the cutest sounds when they would make out like she was surprised by it or she wasn’t used to it at all.

She made him feel like he was young again like he was 21 and in love for the first time. All his trauma disappeared and that Spencer who used to stare back at him in the mirror was gone now. That guy packed his bags and left the farm to never be seen again.

Good fucking riddance is all he had to say.

He was happy, he enjoyed being happy and he was going to stay happy. It was the only goal he had going forward, and as long as he was in her embrace, surround by the laugher of her child and family, he knew it would be possible.

Amoreena came running inside then, finding the two of them making out on the couch before they could part from each other.

“Ewww!” She cried, jumping on top of the two of them and knocking the wind out of Spencer.

“Get off,” Y/N tried to speak as she was crushed by the two of them. “Mom down!”

Spencer picks Amoreena up then, taking her away from the couch and spinning her around like she’s an airplane. She cheers and cheers and doesn’t want him to put her down because it’s so fun. The next thing he knows he’s being dragged outside to twirl all the kids around like they’re Peter Pan, flying through the air on their way to Neverland.

He’s surrounded by giggles and tickles fights, he’s tackled down against the dirt as a herd of tiny children dog pilled him. Laughing until he cried, feeling more joy than humanly possible and then Y/N’s telling them all to get ready to he’d to the park.

Coming down the stairs in a pirate costume to a bunch of screaming kids was an experience and a half. Spencer couldn’t believe how happy it made them all to imagine Captain Hook had broken into the house and Amoreena, or Peter Pan as she corrected him, chased him outside with all the lost boys.

He took a moment to learn all their names, all 15 of them, however, unlike the cats, they had relatively normal people names.

Kate, Cade, Jet, Lauren, Cassie, Sara, Evan, Benny, Olivia, Jessie, Owen, Maddie, Gwen, August, and Parker, were the cutest little family of cousins. some looked like Amoreena, some looked like their own mothers, a handful of them were adopted out of the country, they were the most perfect cast of lost boys.

He's never had any cousins, no pets, no siblings. His life never felt lonely until he realized what he missed out on.

“Dad,” Amoreena whispered as she tugged on his shirt lightly, “look!”

She pointed towards the house where Y/N was standing. When she said she was going as Tinker Bell he really didn’t think she meant looking exactly like Julia Roberts at the end of Hook.

She looked magical in her beautiful white dress, curly hair with the most perfectly placed flowers and flawless wings wrapped around her shoulders. She was a vision standing on the porch, waiting for him to pick his jaw up off the floor and compliment her.

“Tink,” the words are more like air, soft and barely there.

“Is Captain Hook being nice? Or should we take him to the pond and let the Alligators deal with him?” Y/N teased, marching down the stairs and poking Spencer's chest.

“Ouch,” he teased her, holding his hand over his heart to make her feel bad.

But she didn’t, “some Pirate you are,” she teased, sticking her tongue out at him before taking Amoreena’s hand and running off down the trail towards the main house, everyone following her lead.

Nanny packed enough snacks for all 16 kids, and a little extra just in case. Spencer slipped the lunch box over his shoulder and they made their way towards the adventure. Y/N pulling a wagon just in case the littlest ones didn’t want to walk anymore. It was spectacular.

Y/N stopped then, pretending to stand like an army man turning around abruptly to look at the troop. “Lost boys, are we ready?”

“Yes, Tinker Bell!” They cheered back.

“On my lead, 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4,” she marched, bringing her knees up high as they all followed her down the path. “We’re following the leader, the leader, the leader,” she began to sing.

Spencer was in awe, his heart felt like it was going to explode as he watched everyone follow her. Singing along as they marched their tiny little butts down to the park.

“We’re following the leader wherever she may go!” Amoreena yelled the lyrics back, leading the pack as Peter Pan should.

“Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day Tee dum, tee dee, it's part of the game we play Tee dum, tee dee, the words are easy to say Just a teedle ee dum, a teedle ee do tee day

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee dum We're one for all, and all of us out for fun We march in line and follow the other one With a teedle ee do, a teedle ee do tee dum”

It was like magic, they all knew the words and they sang the whole way down the path. Every verse and then repeating it. Not a single kid strayed from the path, no one complained about sore feet or hot backs, they loved their Aunty Y/N and so did Spencer.

“We’re off on an adventure, adventure, adventure,” Y/N changed the words, making him smile as she brought happiness into the world. “We’re off on an adventure to read out in the sun! Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day…”

Every single time he thought she had given him the best day of his life, she manages to outdo herself.

—

They barely listened to the story, it was a disaster of epic proportions but they tried. 15 kids is a lot to handle as an ex FBI agent and a librarian, they had lunch and instead ran around the field playing lost boys instead. It was still an amazing afternoon.

He was going to be covered in bruises the next morning. He had been kicked, poked, trampled, jumped on, the whole 9 yards. They were the most energetic bunch in the whole world, and then they came home to ice cream.

“Y/N,” Spencer finally pulled her aside when all the kids were preoccupied with their cold snack after a hot day.

“Yes, cutie?” It was a nickname that was sticking, much like pretty boy, and he didn’t mind it at all.

“We’re going to need more than 2 songs tonight to get her to go to bed,” he teased, stepping into that step-dad role with ease.

She couldn’t stop smiling at him, wrapping him up in her arms gently so he didn’t crush her fairy wings. “We’ll take her swimming, that’ll tire her out instead. Are you lookin’ for some alone time?”

“I love her dearly, but I can’t kiss you as much when she’s around,” he whispered before pecking her quickly and hearing the group of lost boys pretend to be sick.

“Just because he’s my dad doesn’t mean you have to be gross like your mom and dad, mom,” Amoreena’s smart mouth making them both shake their heads and laugh.

“What would you do if I did this?” Y/N teased before dipping Spencer back like a princess and kissing him, he stuck his foot out in shock as she held him there.

“Ewww!!” All the kids yelled as she returned him to his feet.

“Or this?” Y/N pulled him into another kiss, her leg popping like Princess Mia’s in the princess diaries.

Amoreena and her cousins were all screaming then, laughing at how gross their aunt and her new boyfriend were being. Used to it clearly, their grandparents were just as in love and watching from the porch as they held each other on the swing.

“I love you,” Spencer announced, loud enough for all to hear without a care in the world.

“You better,” she smiled. “I love you too, cutie,” she added before kissing him one last time.

His life felt perfectly complete.

Y/N’s brothers were incredibly kind just like her. He learned that Ashley was the oldest with 5 kids and her wife Susie, then Ben who was 46 and his wife Shannon, they had 3 kids. Dylan and Laurie had 4 and Even, her twin brother had 3.

Turns out her mom had 2 sets of twins back to back, 7 children and only 5 pregnancies. It felt crazy for him to think about having that many people in his life for his whole life, he wouldn’t have known what to do with anyone more than just his mother growing up.

Spencer helped Bob with the barbecue, they made burgers and hotdogs for all 16 of the children while they continued to run through the fields. They had enough energy to last them 5 straight days of chaos. It was amazing.

Y/N and Spencer managed to wander off while all the kids ate, sitting under a tree with their dinner so they could finally have some time alone together.

She was beautiful, sitting in the afternoon amber glow as she tried to keep her hair from blowing in her face. Tucking the strands behind her ears so she could eat her dinner in peace before spencer handed her the hair tie on his wrist. Then she got ketchup on her cheek, seemingly on purpose as she smiled at him and laughing as Spencer wiped it off with his thumb. He was so in love he felt stupid, smiling at her like he’s never seen another person before, absolutely enamoured.

“Derek and his wife wanted to come over tomorrow and have his son meet Amoreena if that’s okay?”

Her face lit up, “his son is the one named after you right? Not your godson?”

He nodded with yet another smile, his lips were going to fall off at this point. “Yeah, he’s the sweetest little guy, Hank’s never been to a farm before.”

“You tell them our gates are always own to new minds and pure hearts,” she smiled. “That’s what nanny used to say.”

He leans in and kisses her then, resting his forehead against hers as she held his cheek in her free hand, smiling ever so softly as she stared into his eyes, they didn’t need words, he knew she loved him too. A week of pure bliss had passed within the blink of an eye, and they still had forever to go.

Taglist: @shemarmooresfedora @spookyspence @spencers-dria @manuosorioh @reidsfish @mochionly (send me an ask if you want to be added to the tag list, I don't always see every reply! i love you guys thank you so much for reading)

[unknown-saddened-user]

When I’m Watching You Watch Him

Jason X Reader

Mention of Dick X Reader

A/N: Got hit with an oldie but good song. Watching You Watch Him by Eric Hutchinson, just makes me feel all sorts of ways. Anywho, my friend was making me binge some of the animated DC films with her and this just kinda happened, my bad.

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

I love you from the bottom of my heart

And that's not gonna change, but things look grim

Oh, Jason had it bad. Really, really bad. Just watching her do the simplest of things made him melt into a puddle. 

He had a slight crush on (y/n) before he died. And not to be dramatic or anything, but after all the care and time she had put into helping him recover he’s pretty sure she could hit him with a crowbar and he’d still put a ring on it. 

What did all those gen-z toddlers call it, simping? Yeah, he was kinda a simp for her at this point, and there was use trying to escape the reality of it. Everywhere his mind took him always brought him back to the same thought, (y/n). That’s fine though, he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

He was a man damned to eternal hell in the presence of a blessed angel from the highs of heaven. Well shit, this ain't gonna go well. 

When I'm watching you watch him

Christ, there she goes again looking at his goddamn brother. Dick fucking Grayson, golden boy himself, the first boy wonder. All eyes were only Dick as he told countless tails in remarkable detail at the large round table. She watched him from across the table, an unmistakable sparkle in those lively (e/c) eyes of hers. 

“C’mon (y/n) bring those pretty eyes this way,” Jason whispered quietly enough as to not be heard.

Both elbows of his elbows were on the table which was something that would drive Alfred insane. One hand tapped idly on the oak surface, and the palm of the other held his heavy head. His gaze focused on her, taking every feature, loving each and every bit of the angel before him. 

He knew he didn’t deserve her, but he couldn’t help but yearn for her anyways. Hell she deserved better than anyone in this damned family.

I give you the best a man can hope to give

He wants nothing more than to spoil her. And just when she thinks she’s seen it all he’ll surprise her with something new and filled with love. 

Jason would do anything for her, if only she would only let him. He could repay all the love she put into him at least ten fold.

But I'm not feeling brave

Chances are slim

Jason was a man of action, words were never really his forte. But, of course it was something his brother excelled at. Capturing every spot light within miles of his being, there never seemed to be a moment when attention strayed from the eldest.

Of course there was so much Jason wanted to say to (y/n). However, everytime he got the chance, her attention was always pulled somewhere else. And when she came back to ask him what he wanted to say, he would always brush it off, completely missing his shot. So all the things he wanted to say went unsaid. 

One would figure that literature would have maybe taught him something about wooing a lady, but alas, he is a hopeless romantic with no idea how to talk to his crush. 

When I'm watching you watch him

Today was the day of another gala Jason was forced to attend. That meant that he had to dress to impress, tux and all, much to his dismay. 

Jason of course arrives early to help Alfred prep with the rest of the boys. Which never ended well. When he opened the door he was greeted by the sadly normal sight of Damian attempting to choke Tim, and while most time he would have joined in the chaos, a dolled up damsel caught his gaze. 

(Y/n) was trying to persuade Damian to let Tim go. She offered him cookies, however, Damian was not fazed. 

God she was gorgeous, he thought. Lightly applied makeup on her already flawless complection, a dress complimenting her figure perfectly, hair topping it all off to complete the look. She was just, so her, and he loved it. 

Just as he was about to lend a helping hand in her efforts, Dick stepped in to physically separate the two boys. Jason could only watch as she blushed when that dumbass winked towards her. Damian, of course, ran to her glaring at Tim as he asked for the promised cookie. Dick laughed as she raised a questioning brow at the boy hugging her waist. Jason let out a sign, walking past them to the kitchen, occasionally glancing at her, desperate for her to return his stares.

Oh, what is left to learn

When he will let you crash and burn

Dick was quite the flirt, it wasn’t hard for anyone to figure out upon meeting him. He flirted with every single person, heck he would probably flirt with a dog. Jason shuttered at the thought. 

All Dick’s life he has been a player, toying around with others' feelings. A complete heartbreaker. It kills Jason to know that she could possibly become one of the many victims burned by his games. 

He never gives attention

But you still yearn

It's obvious to Jason that she was enraptured by Dick, falling for all his empty flirting. Or at least that’s how he saw it. If only she could see it the way Jason did. Maybe then her heart wouldn’t ache for someone who never who would never see her in a romantic way. 

Part of Jason is relieved that Dick isn’t into her. But still…. 

Where do I fit in

There she was sitting next to Damian who was fiddling with her fingers out of boredom. It was kinda sweet how motherly she was to him. And anyone could tell just how much that little demon spawn looked up to her. (Y/n) was someone Damian values above all others, even Dick. He was stuck to her side every moment he could be, only acting his real age around her. She just had that effect on him and Jason has no idea how she does it.

Every Wayne had a special place in her heart, just like she held a special place in theirs. The whole family was like her own, they were a family she never had growing up all alone in the streets of Gotham. 

The same exact streets he spent most of his childhood wonder around. Having a similar past made it easy for the two to bond. Exchanging memories of hardships and prosperities while laying on the roof of Wayne Enterprise, tracing out shapes made from glowing stars in the moonlit sky. 

When I’m watching you watch him  

Jason sat alone sipping whiskey from the canteen tucked in the inside of his coat pocket. He could just tell by the way she was looking at his older brother who was dancing between a crowd of ladies that it was going to be a very very long night.

God only knows why I still wait around

Except I hate to see you cry

He doesn’t understand how Dick could just ignore her loving gazes. Does Dick not understand that the woman Jason practically worshipped was crying out for his attention? What a dumbass, Jason thought.

And I need you 

But there are things I cannot do

If only Jason had the balls to go over there and ask her to dance. Steal her attention away from that play boy and focus it on the man who would die for her in a heartbeat. (Y/n) was his salvation, his savior from the twisted shadow that darkened all that good in his mind after being revived. 

Though his mind was screaming at him to comfort her, he physically could not approach her. Not even Jason himself understood what was holding him back, it was not pride, not masculinity, god knows he would scrap all of that for her.

Maybe it was fear, the fear of not being good enough. The fear of being rejected by her angelic self. 

Man, he sighed taking another swig of the bitter liquid, it was indeed going to be a long night.

And I want you

When he’s playing all his games

Jason watched her the whole night, even when she got her turn to dance with Dick. The sight really tore Jason to pieces. He would almost rather get beaten with a crowbar then watch that ever again. 

It was hard to pick between swooning over the smiles and giggles passing those luscious lips of her and punching the absolute shit out of Dick as he led her on. But, he chose to just let her be happy for the moment.

However that moment was short lived as people who stood idly on the side were pulling into the center of the room to dance. Every time someone tried to coax him over he would snap at them. That was until she held out both of her hands out to him, at first he shook her off. But, unfortunately for him, (y/n) was just as stubborn as he was and she was going to get him out on that floor even if it was the last thing she ever did. 

Puffing out her chest strut over to his isolated figure. Oh, how he wished she had not come over to him. Who the hell was he if he had denied the pouty expression on her face that was supposed to be a menacing glare. 

And it gets hard to tell who's the victim

Both of them danced the longest together which kinda pissed off the baby bat who wanted her attention oh so badly. Jason could give less of a shit thought, he was going to make the most of this moment. 

Two partner rotations had gone by as people swayed with the music, but he wasn’t quite ready to give her up. Life, like always, didn’t seem to want to comply with Jason’s wishes as she was swiped from him amongst the crowd as another person was thrown into him. 

The two youngest were quick to catch onto Jason’s dilemma. Tim felt kinda bad, the longing stares of a broken man really did a number on the sleep deprived boy’s heart strings. Damian pretended to not give two shits, he values Dick as an important role model, but even Damian knew that Dick was no good for his beloved Ummi. If Damian had to choose between the two, he would rather her go with Jason. 

When I’m watching you watch him

The cycle continued just as it had for months on end. Jason would look her way, but his gaze was never returned. 

Oh, what is left to learn to learn

When he would let you crash and burn

She would give her romantic affection to the eldest, just like she alway had. And in return Dick strung her along like a lovesick puppy on a loose leash. Never committing to her, but flirting just enough to keep her hooked on in his delusional version of love. 

He never gives attention 

But you still yearn

One day, Jason prays, one day she will look his way. Giving her even more love then she could ever hope for.

But, that day is not today, or the next day, or the day after that. All he can do is wait hopelessly from his spot.

Where do I fit 

Sometimes he wonders if she even sees him anymore. He feels as though he has become nothing but a forgotten memory filed in the back of that pretty head of hers. 

Jason can only hope that one day she will see him the same way he sees her.

When I’m watching you watch him

As of lately something seemed to be off. Her eyes weren’t as bright as they were. She carried herself in an anxious manner, constantly fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. 

It concerned Jason to no end. He had no idea why she was acting the way she was, and no matter how far he dug nothing came up. And it aggravated him that Dick ignored her strange behavior, it really wasn’t that hard for someone to tell something was off if they had been around her as long as the Wayne's have. 

Hell, even Damian took notice of her distressed figure. Her state caused the brat to cling to her hip even more than normal. Occasionally, Damian would send a glare the golden boy’s way as he approached the two.  Damian’s worried expression shifts to her face to Jason’s stares in a pleading manner. It was if he was asking Jason to do something. Fix her, help her, comfort her; do something dammit. 

God only known why I still wait around

Except I hate to see you cry

Imagine his surprise when the angel of his dreams shows up at his door in the middle of the night, tears staining the soft skin of her cheeks. Her eyes were red and puffy, it's not hard to tell that she had been crying for a couple of hours.

One of Jason’s old oversized sweatshirts draped over her much smaller frame. She bunched up one of the giant sleeves, a heap of fabric gathered into the palm of her still covered hand. Using the sleeve she wiped her wet eyes making tiny splotches of the fabric darken from the salty liquid.

Oh God, he didn’t know what good he had done for her to show up at his doorstep, but he wasn’t going to question it. 

And I need you

But there are things I cannot do

(Y/n) was a sight for sore eyes, even in her grief stricken state.

Gathering her into his arms, Jason pulled her into the apartment quietly shutting the door behind her as to not startle her any further.

Jason had an idea as of why she was upset. Dick stood her up for their weekly coffee get together for the second time this month, opting to hang out with some whore he met at the gala the other month. 

It was pathetic really. Dick had no concern for (y/n)’s feelings and it made Jason’s blood boil dangerously close to the lip of the pot. 

And while this probably would have flustered him in any other scenario, leading to him awkwardly patting her back or something. But, there was only one thing going through his mind at this point. Comforting her. Making all her problems become nothing but a long forgotten memory. 

And I love you

Like a broken record plays 

But I’m a window pane

A phantom limb

No matter how much it hurt him to hold her so close, knowing that she didn’t return his fatal feeling, killed him all over again. However, he would suck it up to if it meant bringing a smile back to that gorgeous face of hers.

He’s a sucker for her, but at least he knows it. Jason might not be able to admit it in words, but he did his best to relay it through actions.

When I’m watching you watch him

“That woman was right, I’m just not worth it,” She whispered through hiccups. 

Jason’s eyes shot down to her in utter shock, his grip involuntary tightening on her frame, causing her to let out a small squeak. 

What did that filthy pig say to his angel? That gold digger didn’t have a clue what the word meant. Oh, Dick was in for it the next time he came around. 

“I don’t know what upsets me more,” Jason muttered gently, “the fact that she said that or the fact that you actually believe that bitch.”

Clearly his statement caught her attention. Glossy eyes pooling with salty tears threatening to spill over peered into his own. 

Fuck it, he thought, its now or never.

Taking a deep breath, exhaling hot air through his nose, he threw everything worry and doubt out the window and took his chances.

No matter how many times she tried to wipe her tears, they just kept coming as he spilled out all his thoughts about her. Telling her just how priceless she was to him. Jason made sure not to skip out on even the slightest of detail. His walls shattered, heart lying bare and utterly vulnerable before her. He, himself, couldn’t help but let a couple tears cascade down. 

Taking her other dry sleeve she brought it to his face, gently wiping the water droplets away as they fell. All this time she has been looking at the wrong man. Listening as Jason’s walls shattered rekindled those mushy feelings she had for him back before his Robin days. Back during the times when they could care less about the world as they fought the harsh world side by side. 

Those feelings she pushed down when he came back guns blazing. When he disregarded everything he once had, putting all his pain into the bullets in the barrels of his guns. Though she never gave up on him, it was hard for her. All he did back then was push her away, giving her the cold shoulder time after time again. Though all her efforts were kicked to the side and stomped on at the time.

Dick was the only one to comfort her back then. Maybe it was the comfort and reassurance that drew her to him all those times, but what does it matter anymore.

When I’m watching you watch him

Little did they know the two nosey pairs of eyes watching them through the window from a roof a couple buildings over. Binoculars peered into the living room where Jason and (y/n) rocked back and forth on their feet in each other's embrace. 

Smack!

Both Red Robin and Robin let of a high pitched yelp as the binoculars were swiped from their faces. They stared at each other with wide eyes of surprise, a heavy grunt brought them from their daze. Neither one of them wanted to look behind, acting like toddlers being caught doing something they knew they weren’t supposed to. 

To giant gloved hands extended palms up in front of their faces, a wordless demand to hand over the devices. Of course they did as they were told, but not without complaining and throwing a couple jabs at one another. The boys headed in the opposite direction to patrol the remainder of the city. 

Once they were out of sight, Batman put the binoculars to his eyes. A rare smile graced his rough feature at the sight of the two. Hooking the lenses to his belt he went after the bickering boys.

It was a start. It was their start. The start of something beautiful in the years to come. 

When I’m watching you watch him

[amerie-wadia]

balancing on breaking branches: part one

jj goes to the water when the world begins to spiral around him. always has. 

a/n: this will likely be a two or three part series, will be mayward too. i’m not sure when the next part of will be out, or if i’ll end up making this longer. inspired by this clip and title taken from exile by taylor swift. trigger warning for mentions of child abuse and minor references to drugs. 

JJ goes to the water when the world begins to spiral around him. Always has.

———————————————————————

The day his mom left was a completely ordinary day. JJ was ten, his hair had been long enough that it was starting to fall over his eyes and he would have to tuck it behind his ears when he watched cartoons. Big John had been home that week and had asked JJ’s mom and dad if he could take both of the boys camping that weekend. JJ had eaten leftover mac and cheese for lunch and had put on a sweatshirt when he left to go meet John B because it was November and the air pinched at his pale skin.

Usually when somebody left there was a fight. A reason. At least, that’s what JJ had always heard. But JJ’s mom had been happy when he left—maybe she hadn’t, maybe JJ had only thought she was happy. She ruffled her fingers through his hair but she didn’t hug him, didn’t kiss the top of his head.

Luke wouldn’t tell JJ where she went. Why she left.

Instead, he drove to the liquor store and when he came back home he ran right through the mailbox and he had his music really loud.

JJ hadn’t understood that night. He knew his dad was angry but he ate some pretzel sticks while he tossed his hacky sack up and down at the foot of his bed. He didn’t have any trouble falling asleep.

She was still gone when he woke up. Still gone when he got home from school. Still gone when he got back from his camping trip with John B and Big John.

JJ started to cry when his dad yelled. She’s gone, boy. She ain’t coming back. It was the first time Luke had ever hit him.

It hurt. Fucking badly.

But JJ was ten and Luke told him he could never, ever tell anybody. JJ knew his dad had been drinking, that he was sad too. JJ waited until his dad fell asleep and then he grabbed his bike from the backyard and peddled as fast as he could until his tires hit sand.

It was too dark to surf or to swim. JJ didn’t want to get in the water, not really. The salt would just hurt the cut on his arm where Luke had pushed him too hard against the door hinge.

JJ sat on the sand, crossed his legs and tucked them beneath his bum. There was nobody around to hear him cry. He wished—just a little, unassuming wish—up to the stars that his Mom would come home soon.

She doesn’t.

———————————————————————

The first time somebody calls DCS on Luke is in fifth grade.

JJ thinks it was his teacher, because he wasn’t careful and he wore a short sleeve t-shirt when he knew better. Luke sits him down at the dining room table and explains how they’re going to handle it. He helps JJ cleans up the dishes that have been piling up in the sink and he puts all the alcohol from the living room into the cabinet above the fridge. He puts JJ’s clothes in the washer so there will be something clean for him to wear when the social worker gets there.

“I love you, son,” he says, and JJ clings to the words. “I don’t want them taking you away from me. And you don’t want to be away from your daddy either, do you?”

JJ shakes his head because he really doesn’t want that. It had been two months since his dad had last hit him. Two days ago, when he did though, it hadn’t even been that bad. Luke had picked him up after it was all over and held him. He had told him everything was going to be fine.

And it would be fine, if JJ did exactly what Luke told him and they could get the social worker to leave them alone.

It’s a woman and she gets to their house at exactly five—the time they had been given. JJ had his clean clothes on and is combing his hair when the doorbell rings.

She follows Luke around the house, glancing around the rooms and biting down on her lips or nodding at stupid things like electrical outlets or the ceiling fans. She watches JJ as he trails behind them and he stays close to Luke because if not the lady might reach out and steal him away from his dad.

After the house tour, the women wants to take JJ on a walk. He freezes but Luke just gives him a light pat on the shoulder and tells him to go with her. He isn’t sure but his dad smiles and the woman smiles and he follows her out the back door.

They walk around his house and down his street until they’ve reached the main road, and then they turn around and walk back.

She asks him all sorts of questions. He tells her about school and John B and Pope and about surfing. She asks about his mom but he doesn’t want to talk about that at all. He refuses to answer so instead she asks about his dad. He knows how to answer her questions. He remembers what Luke told him to say if he wanted to stay at home.

Before they go back inside she gives him a little piece of paper with her name and her phone number and tells him that if he ever feels scared at home he should go someplace real quiet and give her a call. He puts the little paper in his pocket and tells her he will—even though he knows he will throw the paper away as soon as she leaves.

When the visit is over Luke gives JJ a bowl of ice cream and they watch a movie. Luke starts drinking about ten minutes into it but he doesn’t drink himself into a fit, just into exhaustion and he’s asleep by nine. JJ cleans up his bowl and throws the empty bottles into the recycling bin out back. He sneaks the rest of the potato chips into his room and stays up late scribbling images of surf boards and super heroes on his school books.

———————————————————————

JJ gets really good at talking to social workers and the next time he has a home visit—which is in seventh grade—his dad doesn’t even have to tell him what to say. JJ cleans the house and puts his clothes in the washer and puts all the alcohol in the cabinet above the fridge. He makes coffee and gives two large cups of it to Luke while he searches under his bed to find textbooks to put on the kitchen table and on his desk. He lets Luke borrow his deodorant.

Nobody ever takes him away. Luke stops giving him ice cream after every visit. He never, ever hits him those nights. JJ always feels relieved. Relieved his dad isn’t angry. Relieved he is still at home.

But the relief drowns out of his body within a few days typically. He’ll do something to set Luke off—wrong place, wrong time—and Luke will hit him. Usually on his chest, sometimes around his neck. But it’s always careful. For as drunk and sloppy as Luke will be, it’s always careful.

A third of the time, Luke will say he loves JJ the next day. But he never says he’s sorry.

It hurts more and more the older JJ gets and he isn’t sure why because he’s getting bigger and stronger and Luke is getting older and drunker. JJ thinks it might just be in his head.

His dad always, always hits him on the anniversary of his mother’s disappearance. It’s usually the worst of the whole year. JJ goes to the beach at night when it’s all over and he has the sand all too himself. He keeps his cuts away from the salt water, laying down on his back tentatively so the dunes don’t put too much pressure on his bruises. He still makes wishes—very quiet, very secret wishes—to the stars. He wishes for his mom to come home. It was never like this before she left.

———————————————————————

The night of the ship wreck is a whole different type of hurt. The type of hurt that Luke can’t achieve through punches alone. The kind of hurt that JJ didn’t understand when he was ten and thought his mom would be walking through the front door by the end of the week. The kind of hurt that he couldn’t hide inside of him in front of Pope and Kiara and all the people surrounding them in that stuffy white tent.

When Officer Shoupe tells them what happened all JJ can do is clench his fists and yell because he’s not sad yet. He’s only angry.

The sadness takes a few minutes—his mind can’t process it that quickly. When it hits though, it hits hard. And JJ can’t hold back his tears, especially when he sees Pope and Kiara have started to cry. Mr. and Mrs. Carrera cradled Kie in their arms and JJ’s gut hurts. Pope’s mom runs across the tent and pulls him against her chest. Heyward holds them both. Suddenly, JJ remembers how cold it is. How alone he is.

Heyward looks up, as if he knew exactly what JJ was thinking, and reaches out his arm. JJ knows Heyward thinks he’s a shitty friend for Pope, that he’s shitty. But he is so close to falling completely apart and the thought of being held is too much to turn down. Heyward pulls him into the hug but Pope anchors him in place—keeps him from crumbling into the dirt.

Pope’s tears on his shoulder are wet and it reminds JJ that John B had drowned. The water had surrounded his body and penetrated through his lungs until he had no air left to breath. JJ chokes on his breath but there’s no water in his mouth and he tells himself to breath.

Pope breaks away and JJ’s legs sway. He reaches for Kie because Pope needs her. Pope doesn’t need JJ the way JJ needs Pope.

Maybe Heyward notices, maybe he’s just being kind. He cups JJ’s chin and tells him that he’s alright. He wraps his arms around JJ and it doesn’t hurt.

JJ wonders if maybe Heyward will ask JJ if he wants to stay the night but instead he offers JJ a ride home. JJ accepts because Pope and Kiara won’t let go of each other and that hurts too. JJ isn’t sure why. Maybe he feels left out. Maybe it’s something else.

Heyward leads him to the car and helps him with his seatbelt when his fingers shake too much to do it himself.

Luke is passed out on the couch when JJ gets home, which is a good thing for some many reasons. He doesn’t know about the Phantom yet. He won’t hear JJ cry himself to sleep. JJ watches Heyward’s headlights disappear through his bedroom window and he contemplates going to the ocean. Thunder breaks out across the sky and a bolt of lightning illuminates his bedroom through his mangled blinds so he takes off his boots and sheds his clothes onto the floor. He really wishes he could go to the beach. He really wishes his mom was here.

———————————————————————

Luke finds out about the Phantom the next day.

It’s bad.

———————————————————————

Everything changes after John B dies. It goes from John B and JJ and Pope and Kie to Pope and Kie and to just JJ. They grieve and it puts a space between them. Or at least, it’s easier to blame it on the grief than it is to blame it on himself.

JJ doesn’t answer Pope’s texts. Kie doesn’t reach out but Pope tells JJ, in one of the many unanswered messages, that Kie is really struggling. He says she won’t get out of bed. It’s sad but it makes JJ angry because he can’t lay around even if he wanted to. He has to work. He has to spend as little time as possible at home because Luke hits him a lot now. He has to figure out how he’s going to pay his restitution money. His hearing is coming up soon. He doesn’t reach out either.

He smokes a lot more. At first it’s just weed, because that’s all JJ has. But he can’t afford to keep buying it and save for his restitution fund, so finds Barry and he starts selling to earn his keep. Cocaine doesn’t relax him the way weed does. He’s scared to try heroin, so he doesn’t. Not yet. But he needs something because his body aches and he misses John B and he really misses Pope and Kiara but he can’t work up the strength to text either of them back.

He doesn’t see them all summer. Pope still texts him, but it’s less and less.

———————————————————————

JJ doesn’t show up to the first day of school because there’s a big purple bruise right across his face and he doesn’t have the energy for school. His probation officer is going to be mad because part of his deal was to go to school.

He was working for the Thorntons every day after school and on Saturdays too. He lost his job at the country club after Midsummers but he doesn’t actually get paid, per se, by the Thorntons. He just has to work off his debts. He also has to do community service—an idea Mrs. Thornton had because there wasn’t really twenty-five thousand dollars worth of work for JJ to do at her office or around their house.

Without any extra time to earn his own money, he can’t afford to eat very much. Luke rarely buys groceries, usually too drunk to notice or runs out to McDonalds for dinner. He never offers to get food for JJ. He hasn’t told JJ he loves him since JJ sunk the Phantom. JJ’s stomach growls and occasional Mrs. Thornton offers him some lunch or a glass of lemonade. He misses having Kie finesse them free food. He misses his paychecks. He misses his friends.

Between working off his debts to Barry and his debts to the Thorntons, JJ barely has a moment in the day to himself. So when he does, it’s late at night and tucked away on the beach. Summer is slowing starting to turn to fall and JJ brings a hoodie to keep him warm from the ocean breeze. He doesn’t let himself make any wishes. He can’t do that to himself any more.

He twirls his zippo between his fingers. Lighting it. Clicking it off. Lighting it again. His initials are carved into the front and it reminds him of the day he and John B smoked for the first time. He pushes the memory aside before it lingers long enough to hurt. JJ has a little bit of weed left but he’s not going to see Barry again for three days and doesn’t want to smoke it all right now.

JJ shoves the zippo in his pocket right as his phone vibrates. It’s Pope.

JJ has stopped even looking at the messages. He turned the preview off on his lock screen so he wouldn’t be tempted to open them anymore. But this isn’t a text, this is a call. JJ really doesn’t want to answer but his finger slides across the green bubble and suddenly Pope���s voice fills his ear.

“JJ?”

He’s not sure why Pope asks. Who did he expect to answer?

“Yeah.”

“You weren’t at school.”

“I wasn’t.”

Talking to Pope used to be easy. It doesn’t feel easy any more. JJ doesn’t know what to say. He hasn’t had a real conversation in a very long time.

“Why?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

And it doesn’t. School is absolutely irrelevant right now. If JJ were in school, he wouldn’t have time to sell for Barry and work for the Thorntons.

“It matters to me.”

Pope does that sometimes. Says something too thoughtful to JJ. Casually, as if he doesn’t realize the impact it has on JJ. Pope’s voice never wavers when he says stuff like that, when he cares too much. JJ isn’t sure why the words make him feel defense—Pope’s his best friend, it shouldn’t be as weird as it is. JJ grabs a handful of sand and watches the shadows fall between his fingers.

“I was sick. It’s not a big deal.”

“Sick? JJ, I know you’re not sick.”

“I could be sick.”

“You’re not.”

JJ doesn’t know how Pope knows he’s not really sick.

“Where are you?” he asks suddenly.

“In bed,” JJ lies.

“No, you’re not.”

How does Pope always know anyway?

“I’m falling asleep.”

“Dude, I can hear the wind. Are you at the beach or something?”

In the time JJ tries to think up a good lie, Pope seems to connect the dots.

“I’m coming. Which beach are you at?”

“I’m not—”

“JJ,” Pope says, and something about the tone of his voice makes JJ’s shoulders fall.

“Rixton’s Cove.”

“Stay. I’ll be there in five.”

Pope hangs up before JJ can respond. But he stays. Partly because he’s too tired to stand up. And, because he really can’t face Pope sober, he rolls the rest of his weed into a joint and lights up. He’s only had a few hits when he hears footsteps.

“It’s so cold,” Pope whines as he takes a seat next to JJ, “Why the fuck are you here?”

JJ shrugs—he knows that Pope can connect the dots for himself.

“I’ve missed you.”

“I know,” JJ says, because he’s not brave enough to say I’ve missed you too.

“It’s been two months,” Pope adds, as if JJ doesn’t know. Maybe he didn’t realize how quickly the days went by sometimes. “I’ve been so worried.”

Pope worries too much. Especially about JJ. He shifts and takes another hit.

“Dude,” Pope says softly, too softly for JJ. “Are you okay?” Based on the wavering of Pope’s voice, JJ can tell that Pope knows that he’s far from okay.

“Never better.”

It so much easier to lie.

“Don’t do this, man.”

“Do what?”

“Push me away. I’m sick of it.”

There’s no bite to Pope’s voice, only gentleness, and that’s what sets JJ off.

“Shut up, Pope. Just shup up!”

“What?”

“If I wanted to talk to you, I would’ve fucking texted you back.”

It’s dark, but JJ can see the way Pope tenses at that. It feels really good though, to release, so he keeps going.

“This is all your fault, you know that?”

“What’s my fault?”

“I said shut up!” It’s harsh. JJ knows how harsh it is. “Fifty thousand dollars, man. That’s what I owe because of you!”

Pope doesn’t seem to care that much that JJ wants him to shut up, because he asks, “How is it fifty?”

“Restitutions and reparations, man. All because of you. How do you think I’m gonna pay them back? How do you think I’m paying Barry back without any fucking money? How do you think I could possibly go to school when I’m working from sunrise until sunset just so I don’t go to fucking juvie, Pope? Huh?”

Pope is silent. It’s the first time JJ wants a response and he doesn’t say a word.

“I’m gonna be doing this for years because of you! John B’s fucking dead in the ocean somewhere and you and Kie are off macking on each other while I can’t even afford to fucking eat anymore and by the time I’ve paid off my debts you’re going to be off at some fancy school and Kie’s gonna be doing whatever the fuck she’s gonna do and where do you think I’ll be, huh?”

“What do you mean you can’t afford to eat?”

JJ rolls his eyes because that’s not what he wanted Pope to focus on.

“Bro, talk to me.”

Bro.

JJ kicks at the sand and tries to take a breath so his lungs don’t fill with water. Pope reaches out but JJ pulls away because it’s dark and JJ forget that it was Pope sitting next to him.

“JJ?”

It’s too soft. Pope is always too gentle.

JJ starts to cry and he wishes he was still angry. Anger is so much easier than this.

“I’m so sorry,” Pope says, reaching out for JJ again. This time JJ doesn’t pull away. He’s too tired. Pope’s hand rests on his shoulder. It’s firm but not so tight that it will bruise.

———————————————————————

Pope drove JJ to McDonald’s because it was open and JJ got lightheaded when they stood up. JJ wants to argue because the offer makes him feel pathetic but he feels dizzy and his stomach growls so he gets into Pope’s car and watches as raindrops begin to shower across the windows. The motion of the windshield wipers calms him a bit. Pope doesn’t say much on the way there.

He gets a milkshake after he forces JJ to order more than just a burger and fries. JJ really wanted more than that but he didn’t want to push. All the tables are open since nobody else is awake but they sit in the corner where it’s far enough from the counter that the employees won’t hear them.

Which is funny because they don’t really talk. At least, not for a while.

“Kie and I aren’t together,” Pope says once JJ is done with the two hamburgers and is starting on his fries. Pope’s only had a few sips of his milkshake.

“Really?” JJ asks, his voice raspy from the crying and filled with half-chewed fries. Pope nods.

“After everything that happened, neither of us really wanted to dive into a relationship.”

JJ doesn’t know what to say. For some reason he feels a bit relieved. He doesn’t know why—even though he does, in fact, know exactly why.

He’s always known. He’s always tried to convince himself he was confused. But he’s always known.

“She asks about you.”

“Oh.”

“I know you two don’t talk anymore, I know we don’t talk anymore. But we still care about you.”

Pope is too forward most of the time. He cares so openly that JJ can’t always believe Pope is real.

“Is there anything you want me to tell her?” Pope asks when JJ doesn’t say anything. It’s weird, to not be the talkative one. Pope is good at it though.

“Don’t tell her about this,” he asks, motioning down to the food. He hopes that Pope knows he’s talking about JJ not being able to eat.

“Nothing else? Not even a hello?”

“Hello is fine.”

“Okay, JJ,” Pope sighs and takes a sip of his milkshake. JJ knows he’s being difficult, he knows Pope is more patient than anybody he’s ever met, but it still makes his chest tighten. “Whatever.”

“I’m sorry.”

“What for?”

“Tell Kie I said hi.”

“Why don’t you tell her yourself? Why don’t you ever talk to us anymore?”

JJ isn’t ready for this conversation but he’s all out of fries and Pope’s eyes are stuck on him and there’s no way he can just bolt. Well, maybe he can. Not if he lets his own eyes meet Pope’s though.

“Is it your dad?”

“Don’t ask me that.”

“JJ, come on. You’re my best friend, you don’t have to hide this shit from me.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” And he didn’t. There was no way Pope knew what he was asking of JJ.

“Then tell me, JJ.”

And for a moment, JJ considers telling him. He really didn’t have much to lose.

“I don’t know.”

“What don’t you know?” Pope asks, his voice softer again. JJ’s eyes fall to his hands because looking at Pope makes him want to cry and he’s not doing that again tonight.

“I don’t know what you want me to say.”

JJ made the mistake of meeting Pope’s eyes. Warm and open and fucking up the way JJ felt. His breath hitched and he knew why.

“I want to know why we don’t talk anymore.”

Straight forward. Maybe for once in his life JJ can be straight forward.

“Because,” he took a deep breath, trying to remember all the reasons why he shouldn’t say anything, “it’s hard to talk to you sometimes.”

“Why?”

JJ wished they were still on the beach in the dark. Wished for a lot of things.

“Because I like you.”

He couldn’t take it back. Not now. Couldn’t spin it if he wanted to.

Pope’s eyes widened and then his brows scrunched as if he didn’t quite understand. JJ didn’t want to elaborate.

“You like me?”

JJ shrugged and bit down on his lip because everything felt like too much.

“You mean—?”

“Yeah, like that.”

“Oh,” Pope expressed quietly, shocked. He didn’t sound mad but he didn’t sound particularly excited either. JJ wanted to bury himself in the sand.

“Look, thanks for the food, but I have to get home,” JJ started, sliding out of the booth to stand up.

“Wait. Don’t,” Pope protested, standing up himself but JJ was always taking steps away.

“I have to go.”

And he ran all the way to the beach.

———————————————————————

tagging some lovelies who seemed excited about this idea: @kikifromtheblock @ifyourelostyoucanlook @hmspogues  @maybanktho @kiesargent

if you would like to be added to a mayward and/or kiarah taglist, feel free to let me know!

[100layersofdaddyissues]

Angel - Chapter 5

AGHHHH I KNOW IM SORRY it was an involuntary hiatus brought on by the horrible holiday we call christmas, but its here, ive had this idea since the beginning so i hope you like it!

rach im sorry this ones for you my queen of angst i hope i did you proud

 In retrospect maybe taking personal leave directly after your fight with Maxwell probably didn't fit in with the image you wanted to portray to him, you’d hoped it looked as though you truly didn't care about what he said to you. But you did. You wish you didn't, honest, you'd been burnt by men before, you shouldn't have been surprised that once you caught feelings you would be in trouble. But you thought “if he truly doesn't care about me then it won't matter to him that I’m not there, he won't even notice.” you'd still been working from home, you've been keeping up all your professional correspondence, he won't notice, so why should you care about him either. 

           Little did you know however, that the morning after his outburst, Maxwell had returned to the apartment you had presided in, expecting you to be there. But you weren’t. He wanted to apologise, to grovel and fall to his knees and beg you to forgive him. To tell you that he was an idiot and he never meant to hurt you and that he, well, he had very strong feelings for you that were really, really beginning to scare him.

 That night had been the first time he'd ever lost sleep over something in years. 

           Ever since he had lost his fiancée, Alice, Max made sure to never become attached to anyone, knowing how much pain it will cause him when they inevitably leave. Everyone left, whether it be willingly or not. His grandparents left, his parents, the woman he would have died for, and now you. He wasn't sure where you fit in there, his grandparents taught him to find happiness in everything, his parents taught him how to live, how to run the business he loved so much, and Alice taught him to love. And you. You taught him how to love again, you taught him compassion and kindness that he'd long lost. Before you he had promised himself that he would never feel pain again. But here he was, dealing with the consequences of breaking that sacred rule, and he hated it. 

           Max had hoped that he'd perhaps be able to speak to you at work, get you alone in your office, sadistically, somewhere you couldn't escape him, but alas, when he arrived early in the morning, two coffees in hand, Sookie had been there to greet him, letting him know that you were taking leave and working from home. He didn't press the issue, in fact he didn't say anything, just mumbled a quiet “you have this then” while passing her the second coffee. 

           Maybe he could call you to apologise, but it seemed pathetic to him to even consider apologising over the phone, after what he had said to you, you truly deserved the most heartfelt apology he could muster. But as the days went on and turned into weeks with you not at the apartment or at work, he slowly gave up. Max’s head started to fill with thoughts that maybe you were preparing to leave the company, to leave him. He had convinced himself that if you stayed with the company then you were staying with him. 

He didn’t know why he had assumed that it would be easy, you’d proven to be anything but, he’d hoped he could just apologise, and then fuck you enough to prove it. But no. it wasn't going to be that easy.

           Maxwell didn't want to admit it. But he missed you. 

           For the first week he stayed at the apartment every night, away from his home, just hoping that you would return for something. All of the clothes he'd paid for were still there, the kitchen was still stocked, you'd even left cigarettes in a pack on the balcony. It hurt to see how quickly you'd left him; you were obviously rushing to get away from him. He really fucked up. And he had no idea how to fix it. 

           He really fucking missed you. How soft your lips were, your cheeks reminded him of soft marshmallows for some reason. He missed the way the sun used to hit your face in the mornings as he was getting ready to leave the apartment, you always looked so beautiful, the golden light bathing you in a constant glow, he always felt content in those moments. Like nothing could ever go wrong or be bad, he simply let himself live in that moment, pretending that he could stay like that forever. And for some reason, he had convinced himself that h couldn’t stay. Every morning like that, where he left, the pain inside of him grew deeper and more unbearable. 

           And now all of that was gone, and it was his fault. 

You missed him too. You hadn't left your apartment in almost three weeks, and you had intended for it to stay that way until Jade had shown up at your apartment this morning. 

           “Listen, I'm sorry that Mr. Handsome was a cunt, but I did warn you, you can't wallow here for the rest of your life. You've kept the job, and your apartment is dirt cheap, so I know you're loaded, you know what that means? We're going day drinking.” 

           “I don't want to go day drinking. I want to sit in my cocoon and rewatch the Brady Bunch, I'm not hurting anyone.” you said trying to release from her grasp. You had no intentions of being seen in public. 

           “Well too fucking bad, George is going to be here soon and he’s bringing me a friend, so you can’t fuck this up because I’ve been trying to get Robert to ask me out for weeks. We're going.” she said, beginning to pull out your makeup and go through it. 

           You walked towards her to ask what she was looking for until you clocked what she had said. “Wait did you just say George? As in George, my ex-coworker? Why is he coming over?” you asked your tone growing in urgency as your questions progressed. 

           “Well, when I was talking to him, he asked where you been, so I explained that you'd been working for Maxwell lord and that you’d not left your room in weeks after a big fight with your boss I’m not an id- OW! why are you throwing things at me?” 

           “Because! When George saw me on the street that night, I told him that it had been a fight with my boyfriend! Now he's going to think Maxwell was my boyfriend! I'm in so much trouble if he tells anyone that!” You refused to panic. At least that's what you were telling yourself as you got more and more breathless, you're truly trying not to panic but god is it hard to convince your brain not to have an anxiety attack. 

           “Listen Y/N if he thinks Max is your boyfriend so what, he isn't anymore, so what's the deal?” how Jade could be so nonchalant about this began to frustrate you, this could ruin you. Didn't she realise that? “Get up and shower I’m sure they are almost here.” apparently not. 

And surely enough, just after you had gotten dressed there was a loud knock at the door, Jade went to answer it, hoping to distract the boys while you threw your hair together. 

You overheard their idle chatter, something about the work at halo being boring and Henry being a dick. Nothing you didn't already know. 

As you emerged you saw the two boys sitting on your couch and Jade standing in the kitchen. You'd never realised how small this apartment was until you were sitting here with others and everything felt so cramped. You missed your place with Max. you shouldn't say that. It wasn't your house with him. It was his place. You were staying there.    

“Hey guys! Sorry I was just fixing up my hair, should we head?” you try to sound as cheery as you could. You were not ready for this day. 

George slipped past you, saying something about “I just need the loo, I can lock up and meet you downstairs.” yeah, like you were going to let him do that, deciding to shoot jade and Robert downstairs, telling them you'd wait for George to get out and then come downstairs with him. 

He was taking an unusually long time in the bathroom, and all you could think was “dear god please tell me he's not pooping in there,” as you went to knock on the door to check if he was okay, you heard a loud bang, felt unbearable heat, and then, saw only black. 

 Maxwell had been staring out his window all day, he wasn't sure why, but he had been compelled to stare at the skyline, take in how beautiful the city really was. Returning from his office he sat down to do the exact thing he had been doing all morning, until he noticed a pillar of smoke coming from the south side of the city. A bolt of fear ran through him as he remembered picking Y/N up from her apartment in the south downtown area of DC. 

Immediately he called his assistant for the week and told her to access employee records for Y/N’s address, then he called the Fire Chief for the DC area, asking for the address of the most current fire that he can see burning from his window. And his worst fear was realised. They're the same address, it's Y/N’s apartment that's up in flames, and he's sitting in his high rise just watching it happen. 

Maxwell stormed out of his office yelling at the girl to have Darius in the car waiting for him at the front doors by the time he gets down to them or she's fired. Logically he knew that she had no control over that, but he was in a rush and he didn't care to care about her. He didn't even know her name. Something with a B maybe? This is not what he should be thinking about right now. 

He should be thinking about how the second chance he had at love was in danger and he had no idea what to do except go to her. That's if she even still lived there, what if she moved and she was absolutely fine, and here he was running around like a headless chicken hoping that she was okay when she could be fine; “yeah,” he thought, “she’s fine, I’m just going to go check up on the building just in case she's there and if she isn't then I will just go back to the office.” yeah because it was going to be that simple. Everything leading up to this point sure has been. 

“Master Lord, I have to ask why we were driving to the downtown area in the middle of the workday?” Darius asked him with a careless tone as if he was expecting Maxwell to say that he just wanted a coffee.        

“I have reason to believe Y/N is in trouble and I would like to ensure that she's not, now is that okay with you?” Maxwell knew he was being an ass, but he also knew that Darius cared for her too and that was accentuated in the way he stepped on the gas not saying a word, as if speed limits were not a problem. 

They were outside the apartment building in less than ten minutes, Maxwell racing out of the car before it was even parked. He stood in front of the building gulfed in flames staring at it feeling a sense of hopelessness. 

“Oh no you fucking don’t, Mister.” he heard someone say but barely paid any attention until a young woman got up in his face. “I’m talking to you Richie Rich what the fuck do you think you’re doing here? You yell at her, make her miserable, don't speak to her for weeks and then suddenly when she's in trouble you're here? To what? save the day? Sorry to break it to you dude but money is an accelerant so it’s probably best that you fuck off.” she shouted at him. He had no idea who this woman was but from what he had heard she obviously knew Y/N. 

“Wait she's in trouble? She's in there?” he didn't even think to ask who she was all he wanted to know was if she was okay.

“Yes, she's in there, fires have been burning long enough for you to get down here do you see her on a stretcher? No, she's still in there, my best friend is in there and if she doesn't come out of there alive, I'm going to blame you. if it weren't for you going all macho alpha bullshit man then she wouldn’t have felt the need to leave that apartment up town, she wouldn't have moved back into this shit hole, and she would have been at work today instead of watching brady bunch reruns for the last 12 days straight. So, for your sake you better hope she comes out of there alive or I’m going to kill you for killing her.” Max had barely had the time to process the thought before he was tearing up, light sniffles coming from his nose as he tried to hold them back. 

“Right, you're ahh… you're completely right, this is my fault, and believe me, I wish nothing more than to be able to take that night back, to make sure it never happened, because all I want right now is to hold her, and, and tell her, tell her that I love her. Because I do. I really do, and if I never get the chance to tell her that then I promise you can blame me forever and make my life a living hell but right now, all I want to do is focus on getting her out of there alive so excuse me for just one second please.” Maxwell walked away from her after saying his piece walking directly to the man who looked to be in charge of the fight.

“Excuse me, hi, I’m going to need you to go immediately to 21b and save the woman in there, she is of utmost importance do you hear me?”

“Sir, I'm sorry but we're going apartment by apartment trying to get everyone out. We can't just take priority for some girl,” the man said to him, slightly condescending as if he hadn't just asked the man to save the love of his life. 

‘Here, you take this,'' Maxwell said while fishing out his wallet and handing the man his ID card, “and I’m going to call Chief Wallace, shall I? Or are we going to stop wasting time and you’re going to go get my girl out of that fucking building son?” Max’s tone was commanding, he would get what he wanted, and he knew that much. 

           “Yes sir, I’ll go retrieve her myself right away.” the man said while running towards his truck, Maxwell presumed for him to suit up. 

           As he walked back towards the group that Darius had now joined, the woman, whose name he still couldn't remember or hadn't been told, had a relieved and vaguely smug look on her face. “You know she's going to kill you when she finds out you manipulated the fire department into saving her first right?” she said watching Y/N’s window for any sign of movement. 

           “I know, but it's worth the price to have her here to threaten to kill me.” he said staring at the same window.

           “Sorry, I know that was really rude of me, I’m Jade, I'm not sure if Y/N has mentioned me, this is Robert and George, two of our friends, guys this is Max, Y/N’s... Friend?” 

           “Yeah, I think it's best we go with a friend for now. I'd like to live long enough to be able to change that.” Maxwell slightly chuckled. He felt lighter, she wasn't safe but the hope he felt made him feel better. 

           Until he saw he being carried out, on the right side of her body her skin was burnt, he clothes blackened and singed, she looked lifeless, Maxwell heard nothing but silence and the ringing in his ears as he ran to take her from the man, Maxwell took her from his arms, and fell to the floor, he watched her, waiting for movement, and like the glimmer of hope he had held on to paid off, her chest moved slowly and minutely, but it moved, she was breathing. 

           Maxwell let go then, as he held her to him and sobbed into her, pushing the hair out of her face, being careful not to touch her skin while the paramedics brought over a stretcher, he didn't want to let her go, he just got her back he couldn't let her go. 

           He couldn't hear anyone, but he felt a hand on his shoulder and Jade's sympathetic eyes filled with her own tears staring down at her. That compelled him to stand up and lay her on the stretcher. The paramedics asked if he wanted to ride to hospital with her, but he looked at Jade and gestured for her to go. He knew that if she woke up on the way, the first face she saw after almost dying shouldn't be the man that put her in that situation. 

           He followed the ambulance into the city, finding jade within minutes, they sat in the waiting room for 8 hours, just hoping for some good news, they talked about how Max and Y/N met and how he knew he was in love and everything he can't wait to do with her if she gives him the chance. The conversation lulled around hour 5 with Jade opting to nap in the highly uncomfortable hospital chairs, urging Maxwell to follow in her suit but he couldn't sleep until he knew how she was. He needed answers the moment they were available to him. 

           By the time it was almost hour 9 a doctor came to them. 

“She's going to be just fine, the burns aren't too severe, however she did inhale a lot of smoke shop she's going to be rusty on the talking for a few days and her respiratory system is going to take a while to recover, so it's up to you to make sure she doesn't overexert herself okay? Other than that, she’s out of surgery, so you can go see her, but just make sure it's only 1-2 people at a time. This is a very traumatic time for her and it's only going to get worse before it gets better but I’m sure with a husband like you it won't be so hard for her to recover.” the doctor finished with a small smile and then walked back down the hall to attend to other patients he assumed. 

           Husband. She thought he was Y/N’s husband. And honestly, he didn't want to correct her on it. He liked the idea of being her husband. Even if it wasn't real. 

           “Hey Jade, come on wake up, we can go see her now.” Jade sat bolt upright when she heard those words. Asking for her room number and bolting towards the door, with Maxwell following behind slowly. He reached her door and saw her sleeping, so peacefully, the LED lights of the hospital only served to make her look more pale and sickly than she already was, but she still looked beautiful to him. Absolutely perfect. 

           Just before he could join Jade in the room his cell began to ring. “Maxwell Lord.” he answered, not expecting any calls on this thing, it’s 1984 who has this phone number? 

           “Mr. Lord I’m sorry to interrupt you, I know you're extremely busy with your wife, but I just had a matter to discuss with you about the fire in her building.” The man on the other end, Chief Wallace, sounded nervous, almost trembling, “I'm not entirely sure how to explain this, but preliminary investigation we conducted into the cause of the fire has indicated that the fire was started in Ms. Y/L/N’s apartment.” 

“I'm afraid we're going to need to question her when she becomes lucid enough for a police interview.”

tags: @innerstrawberrypolice​ @maxlordsgf​ @mrschiltoncat​ @historianwithaheart​

[izukult]

This is such a cute idea! I’m addicted to making weirdly specific Spotify playlists so this is perfect. I have an ✨eclectic✨ music taste but my favorites are usually bedroom pop (mxmtoon, chloe moriondo, khai dreams, etc), romantic classical (think Debussy and Revel), and indie (although I like some Megan Thee Stallion, AC/DC, Nirvana, etc when I’m hyping myself up). As far as my personality goes, I’m pretty insightful and like to support people whenever I can, even if I don’t know them well. I can be a little chaotic sometimes, but I like to think it’s a chaotic good. I love tea, blankets, philosophy, deep conversations, the outdoors, and writing. I’m also an INFP and a Taurus :)

Sorry if that was too much, thank you so much! Take care of yourself and stay well

- Elle ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ

( @snoozless ) you don’t understand how bad i want to be your friend. 😐😐 ok so you kind of get bonus 😀 but it rly might not be bonus because akfjakdkw. so, i gave you matsukawa!! but he’s not always like revered about so if u want a character lmk!! i am. in love w him tho. you’re so sweet you would balance him out and yall would be equally chaotic together.

he would have philosophical questions w u!! he might just be a little blunt & might accidentally cut the convo short, but he would listen to everything you said.

he’s used to a wide variety of music bc i’m convinced the seijoh playlists are absolutely fucking cracked like so loud. so he really could sit there and listen to anything. and i mean ANYTHING. like if you wanted to put on christian rock he’d awkwardly try to tap his foot on beat for you.

but, that doesn’t mean he’s gonna geek over you i feel like he’d be pretty private about the relationship. he’s not like secretive but he’s not gonna post you every two seconds yknow? he wouldnt put prom photos, but if yall went to look at the stars or go on a little hike he’d take a pic and youre wearing baggy sweats and one of his shirts and your hair isnt brushed for shit and it’s way too dark to properly make your face out and he’d put that shit on his main absolutely 😒

this man would be the kind of mf to look up his “crush’s” zodiac just for shits & giggles, so if he randomly knows a taurus fact, don’t question it<3 (he looked up your compatibility and he will take that to the grave)

issei is an infp idc. so yall got that in common.

he’s genuinely so pretty.

bc i took so long, i’m going to put descriptions for all the songs i love you thanks for requesting sorry for taking forever i’ll link the playlist and list the songs<3

1. silly girl- chloe moriondo

okay while this song is actually kinda sad, i think tHIS is pretty cute. issei comes off as this intimidating guy, and the more you get to know him the more you forget ab this idea of him you had or whatever? like the lyrics “i made him perfect, cause i wanted him to be” are really prominent in the point i’m tryna make because like even tho the lyric is obviously sad bitch shit, music is up for interpretation and this is like “hello ok he actually a real mf and shiiit maybe he cool😁✊”

2. nice boys- TEMPOREX

kinda sad. i don’t care how unemotional he might act, everyone has shit that brings them down. PLUS HES A PISCES THERES NO WAY HES NOT SAD SOMETIMES. this song just really taps into insecurities for him, and the song just gets under his skin in like a very therapeutic way. also “because he’s a pisces” some of his emotions are super intense so the “because he cares too much” line hits him fuckin hard

3. IV. sweatpants- childish gambino

this is some shit he listens to more with his team, absolutely. no doubt they blare this shit during weekly practice. but, he really really likes the song. so, when you’re hanging out and he has the aux? it’s one of the first ones he puts on. you two jam to it together. he’ll come up w dumb little dances to fit with certain lyrics (stole some of them from oikawa and hanamaki, but he won’t tell you)

4. you get me so high- the neighbourhood

okay unfortunately i must say him and hanamaki get fuckin faded in empty fields at two am all trashy like. but they make it look good idc. and if you smoke, cool, if you don’t he does not care. he always associated getting high with,,, getting high and everytime he listened to this song it just was one of his getting blazed jams, but now he’s got like a different kinda “euphoric” feel with loving you? like i said this bitch is a pisces even if he doesn’t overwhelm you with affection, he thinks ab you 24/7

5. 80’s makeout session- dacelynn

thIS SONG IS SO CUTE. but it’s p self explanatory. in love and also spare a kiss pls

6. can i call you tonight- dayglow

i feel like actually coming to terms with genuine feelings for someone would be kind of weird for issei. like no offense, but he sees it as kind of a pain in the ass. i genuinely think he would be someone to put his all into work or a task in front of him. he’s super intuitive, and constantly uses it to be better. whether it’s in volleyball or like cremating ppl i guess (HE WORKS INA FUNERAL HOME POST TIME SKIP IF U DIDNT KNOW). and it’s the same in relationships, but it’s also harder because he can’t have this complete clear head because you make his brain go kinda fuzzy. so, this song is like his little way of expressing that even tho he was like ‘internally conflicted’ this mf chose to go for it and that’s how much u mean to him

7. clair de lune, L. 32- claude debussy

i’m gonna be fucking honest with you. even though he’ll listen to anything, i really don’t think this man is looking up ‘classical romance study tunes’ playlists in his free time. he definitely enjoys the music, but that’s only if someone points it out to him. and he’s listened to you talk about it before, and watched you as you heard the piano and gauged your reactions and thought u were pretty cute he’s not gonna lie😼. so he definitely just looked up classical romance and picked the first recommended song and added it on there. he’ll dance w you a lil bit, but it wouldn’t be that quiet, intimate slow dancing in the dark you think would come w this song. itd just be a little sway as he hugs you from behind while you get water, or he twirls you once randomly with a laugh UGH I LOVE HIM

8. like real people do- hozier

ok. this one was fun for me. idc. double meaning lol. so this song is literally about two dead bodies in a bog and ,,, and he works in a funeral home PLS LMAOFJAJDJA I THINK THATS SO FUCKING FUNNY AND SO DOES HE. but also this song literally is my idea of love. this is my idea of love. and yall listen to it, with your stupid little death joke, but he looks at you and he’s just like ‘oh’. yknow? YKNOW?

9. BS- still woozy

like i said, i think he puts a lot into work. and he literally plays for a powerhouse school there’s no way he doesn’t practice a lot. so that means there’s a lot of time where he’s physically not there and definitely can’t text, because he’s trying to improve. and while he wouldn’t stop volleyball for someone else, he understands that you are like super amazing for being so Cool with him not being the most available. the song just reminds him of how compassionate you are and also he does miss u when he’s at practice YKNOW?

10. i <3 u- boy pablo

this one made me so fucking soft ew. ok. this song reminds him of you so so much. he’s totally okay being vulnerable with you? and even though he has pretty heightened emotions, he’s never felt like so strongly for smth other than like ??? volleyball and caring ab his siblings (BUT HE FEELS DIFFERENT FOR U THAN HE DOES FOR A VOLLEYBALL AND HIS SIBLINGS PLEASE😁). HE LUVVVVV YOU

11. heart-shaped box- nirvana

so many reasons. for one, simply fucking JAM. yall would scream this on a drive. if you ever got drunk together, this would be the first song you play. also, little lyrics remind you of each other. (the pisces lyric in the first and third verse, and even tho the flowers aren’t being used in a sweet sense in the song he does remember talking ab flowers w u, and now any flower is mentioned and he’s like “ah yes. my girlfriend.”)

12. pluto projector- rex orange county

FUCK. FUCK THIS SONG. GOD. NO. LIKE HE REALIZES HE’S IN LOVE WITH YOU WITH THIS SONG. HE T E L L S YOU HE’S IN LOVE WITH YOU WITH THIS SONG. the first time, he just sends you the name of it like ‘pluto projector <3’ and you listen and it’s so sweet and ur like ayo turn this shit up. and he adds it to your playlist, which definitely gets a smile from you. and then one night like two weeks later youre just laying together, and he’s running his fingers through his hair and he pulls away for a second to grab his phone and he turns the song on and you just listen to it in silence and it’s so fucking intimate. and he’s just like “i don’t think i’ve ever related to a song more” and you think he’s making a joke so you tell him to shut up (also jokingly) and he just laughs and it’s dark in his room and he’s playing with your hair again and he just goes “god, if you’re telling me to shut up over that i don’t even want to imagine how you’re gonna react when i tell you i love you” and it’s right around 3:10 in the song i’m literally so gone for him. bye you cry and try to hide it but he can tell HES PERCEPTIVE

13. i wanna be yours- arctic monkeys

okay for one, it’s a good song. it’s a song he absolutely let’s play in the background, just to cover the static lol. but also? ALSO? THE TITLE APPLIES TO YOU THE FUCK? it’s as if,,, he’s whipped,,

14. supermassive black hole- muse

hanamaki prolly showed him this song, and it’s one of his vibe songs. he will do falsetto while singing it if he’s in a really good mood and it just makes everyone laugh, including himself. it actually kind of grosses him out, because this song used to literally just be a song he would aimlessly go hard to but NOW his little bitch ass is like “you set my soul alight”? i guess i relate and “oh baby, i’m a fool for you” well, surely i’m not a fool but yea i get you muse sing it. it’s so gross. at this point he wants one thing that doesn’t make him think of you, just to prove that he’s not that gone, but he struggling

15. desperado- rhianna

i’m sorry to say it but this song makes him feel like a bad bitch LMAOOOOO. like if he’s ever getting pregame jitters or anything, he will just play this song. whether it’s on the speaker or in his headphones, he puts this shit on full volume and gets a lil too cocky LOL. this is also on the main seijoh playlist no doubt. he wants to share his bad bitch song w you, so you can aLSO feel like a bad bitch?? dUH

IM SO SORRY FOR THE WAIT BABES! IF YOU WANT ANY OF THE SONGS CHANGED (or even the character) LMK!! UR AMAZING ur so sweet it makes me ill

[fallout-fucker]

Commonwealth Unsolved: Part One, The Museum of Witchcraft

"Today on Commonwealth Unsolved, we're going to be taking a look at the strange and unsettling Museum of Witchcraft as part of our ongoing investigation into the question: Are ghosts real?" The first ghoul starts boldly, his voice crisp and distinct, yet strangely soothing, a voice used to narration. The second ghoul rolls his eyes, shaking his head in disbelief, making the first grin. "You don't seem very open to the idea, Shane."

"We've been asking this for over 200 years. Ghosts don't exist, Ryan." Shane drags, making a point to say Ryan's name back to him sarcastically, in retaliation to his own being used. The smaller man laughs, messing with the microphone he'd fixed to his Pib-Boy.

"And after all we've seen, you still don't believe in ghosts? Not even a little?"

"What? What have we seen? We live in the apocolypse, there's nothing to see but dead people and junk." Ryan wheezes, grinning from ear to ear as he looks at his partner.

"What if some of those dead people are ghosts now? Waiting for us to go to the museum to find them?"

"What? Every single ghost? There's just a hoarde of dead people who have nothing better to do for the rest of eternity than wait for us to visit them? What are they waiting for? A 'come back to life soon' card?"

Ryan breaks into a fit of laughter, shaking his head, "That's not what I-" He cuts himself off, wheezing and choking slightly. Shane joins him a little, cracking his own smile and hint of a chuckle. Once Ryan calms down a little, however, he clears his throat. "Let's just get into it," He begins. "Built in 1972, Salem's Museum of Witchcraft was built in remembrance to victims killed during the Salem witch trials which began in 1692. Over 300 years later, the museum is now a breeding ground for rumours and a hot spot for what people claim as 'strange activity'. A reliable source from the Commonwealth's Great Green Jewel itself states that 'something bad went down there' recently, despite it being 'abandoned'."

"How'd you get into Diamond City?"

"Well I couldn't go in, I was chatting to one of the-" Ryan stops himself abruptly, "I mean, my source- Just outside the city walls, you know near all the turrets and arrows?" He says, gesturing with his hand slightly in a circular motion.

Shane laughs. "Way to almost get your 'source' in trouble there, Ryan. It wasn't Piper, was it?"

Ryan shakes his head. "No, it wasn't Piper." He smiles. "Even if it was, I wouldn't tell you," He shifts, changing the subject, "But I am talking to her about that- That other thing, you know for the other episode later? Well, I guess it's two other things-"

The taller ghoul nods his head. "Ah, yes, the mysterious two other things."

Ryan snorts, "Fuck off."

Shane snickers. "Okay, okay, other than ghosts, what do you think could be in the museum? And don't say aliens." He says, pointing his finger at Ryan and eyeing him accusingly.

"I don't know- An animal maybe? Some raiders? That's what some people have been theorizing. Maybe it's a Deathclaw?"

"It's not a Deathclaw-"

"What if it is-"

"Well then, we're as- We're as good as dead- Look, if it's a Deathclaw, I will eat my own boot, how's that?"

"Deal." Ryan smirks, shaking Shane's hand. The other man couldn't look more done with him. Ryan presses the stop button on the device attached to his arm, pausing the holotape's recording of them.

The air is cold and bitter, Ryan can see his breath turn to mist in front of him as he hugs himself tighter. One of the worst things about being a ghoul is the increased chance of illness and also increased chance of fatality from said illness, so he's not exactly grateful for the cold Autumn air. It worries him that he might catch a cold.

The orange and brown leaves on the ground crunch beneath his feet as him and Shane walk closer to the side of the Museum, stopping when they see the mutilated corpse of what looks like a Gunner.

"Well it's a good job we're in a graveyard." Shane quips. Two hundred years ago he may have been a little more sensitive and considerate, and more likely to throw up at having seen a dead body. Fortunately for them, though, living through two centuries of irradiated wastelands gets you used to seeing dead bodies enough to gain a morbid sense of humour rather than going numb upon every corpse you come across or create. "Holy moly, there's a stash!" Shane reaches around one of the graves and fiddles with a hollow rock, pulling out some ammo, a rifle, and a note. Another thing that surviving the apocolypse teaches you is how to be good at spotting hidden stashes, something Shane and his beady eyes have always been good at since day one. Ryan sums it up to his height, being tall's gotta help you spot things.

"What's the note say?"

Shane shrugs. "Just someone named 'S' saying they missed their friend, 'E', at Megaton and left them some gifts."

"Megaton? That's all the way back in DC, right? Yeah, we lived there for a few years about- What? About ten years ago?"

Shane nods. "And I swear we found a rock outside Megaton with the exact same kinda note."

"Maybe the real mystery isn't the Museum, maybe it's who the Hell S and E are."

Shane laughs, pocketing the note and moving towards the Gunner. "Maybe." He bends down, searching carefully through their pockets and rucksack, pulling out more ammo, some caps, a pair of holotags, and a holotape. He holds the holotape up to Ryan, an eyebrow raised. Ryan shrugs and watches as Shane inserts it into his own Pib-Boy, listening carefully as the audio cackles to life. He winces slightly, audio recordings not being what they used to be, worn down and damaged now. You think he'd be used to it, but there's only so much you wouldn't miss from before the war. Sadly, clean audio was one of the many things he did find himself missing.

It starts with a woman's voice as she talks boredly about the job she and her crew had been assigned, teasing another Gunner about the job. Quickly though, the audio shifts, growing tense as the crew seem to spot something. The woman screams about her friend, Connor. "Where's the rest of him-?!" She cries, sending shivers down both of the ghouls' spines. Something roars in the background, sounding similar to that of a lion. The crew rush inside the museum, but the audio cuts off before they can find out what was chasing them. Shane and Ryan stare at each other. "Well, at least it's not a ghost."

They gave themselves a few minutes to clear their heads and look around a bit more in case there was something they missed. Shane had tried the front door but it had been locked and chained up, so they made their way into the basement from an entrance at the side of the museum instead which, thankfully, hadn't been locked.

They slowly stalk down the steps into the building as quietly as they can. The floorboards above them creak, making them freeze as small bits of debris crumple and fall from the ceiling. "Hey there, demons," Shane says quietly, trying to lighten the mood. "It's your favourite ghoul boys," He pauses to shine his light around the room. "Well I'm glad I don't have a nose because this place looks like it stinks." Ryan smacks his arm, shushing him. His heart pounds in his ears, Shane seems to get the message and shuts up a little.

They make their way through the first room reluctantly, looting whatever they need along the way. The building seems to shake every few minutes, like whatever is upstairs is large enough to make the earth shudder every time it moves.

The two men enter a small use-to-be-closet, and Ryan almost screams as a body that was poking through the boards of the ceiling gets dragged away by something. Shane's hand is over Ryan's mouth, the only reason he hadn't managed to scream, making sure not to alert whatever it is of their presence. He could feel Shane shaking slightly behind him. The taller man pulls his hand away, carefully stepping over a pool of blood and through a hole in the wall, he holds his hand out for Ryan, who takes it, still shaking as he too crosses over the blood. "Holy shit," He whispers, hand clutching the fabric of his shirt over where his heart is. "I can't breathe."

"You're okay." Shane pats his back gently, one of the few times he's ever actually this comforting is when something genuinely terrifying is happening and when they're most likely in danger. "We should go." Ryan nods, but before they can step back towards the hole in the wall, the beast moves again, this time its weight makes the ground below it collapse, and a mountain of bricks, wood, and other debris piles into the room, separating them from the exit. They both look up, staring at the ceiling. A quiet, unsaid realisation dawns on the both of them that the only other exit is upstairs. "Fuck."

The reluctantly make their way through the maze of rooms left in the basement, before reaching the final one. A body falls through a hole in the ceiling and Ryan yelps, quickly cut off by Shane's hand covering his mouth yet again. He feels the other drag him backwards then pause, listening silently. Nothing but quiet fills the museum.

A chill runs up Ryan's spine as he spots some mannequins in the corner, their eyes black and cold, matching black smiles painted on their faces. It feels like they're watching him and he prays the conspiracies surrounding the figures are nothing more than ghost stories. Above them is an old, broken staircase made from rotting wood. Something in him hopes they stay intact, unlike the upper floor that caved in a few rooms ago. He pushes Shane gently off of him, moving towards the staircase. He sucks in a breath as he tests the first few then signals for the taller man to follow.

As they ascend the creaking steps, a growl cuts through the silence, low and soft; the murmur of a beast. Shane and Ryan stare at one another, Ryan's eyes wide in fear whilst Shane's remain unreadable. The older ghoul moves in front of Ryan and places his hand on a door at the top of the stairs. Another sound comes from whatever's out there, this time a whimper. Almost sad. Almost... Broken? They have no time to consider it as Shane carefully opens the wooden barrier, shotgun in hand. It's now or never.

They stalk through the opening, eyes darting around. The first thing their eyes land on are more mannequins, just as creepy and unsettling at the previous ones. This time, however, they're set up in a way that depicts on old witch hanging, making it even worse. They make their way reluctantly through the exhibits, stopping when they hear a soft panting. From the cracks of a few walls, Ryan sees it. He grabs Shane frantically and points in its direction. It is, indeed, a beast. A reptile with large horns and large teeth to match, its signature deadly claws on display, blood dripping from them as it tears apart the body of a gunner. A Deathclaw, the thing of nightmares itself. Standing there, ripping apart its prey. Then, it stops. It moves slightly, snout tilting towards the ceiling as it sniffs. Ryan feels every inch of his body grow tense as the monster slowly turns towards him and his partner, beady eyes settling on them. Time slows, it feels like the Deathclaw stares at Ryan for forever, looking directly into his soul. Finally, time moves again, but Ryan wishes it hadn't as the Deathclaw roars, charging towards him. He runs left as Shane goes right.

The Deathclaw follows Ryan through a series of holes and exhibits as Ryan helplessly shoots at it. His heart pounds in his ears, Shane is nowhere in sight. Half of him feels thankful, knowing his friend is safe, but the other half wants to scream to him for help. He stumbles through another broken wall, grabbing a nearby mannequin and pushing it in front of the entrance before he continues sprinting. Behind him, he hears as the beast trips up on the statue, mid way through a roar that ends up as a pained whimper. The ghoul almost feels bad, but considering the Deathclaw has probably already laid out 50 ways it wants to rip apart, cook, chew him, and spit him back out again, he realises he doesn't feel too bad about it. He turns around to shoot it during its moment of weakness. The bullet hits it right in the torso, but it isn't enough, even as he realises some of his earlier bullets had also hit it. The Deathclaw is littered with wounds, both from his and, what he assumes is, the gunners' attempts to kill the beast. Ryan regrets his decision as the it bellows angrily. It's too fast for him to outrun and it quickly grabs Ryan by the leg. He screams as he falls onto his back, shooting rapidly at its face. His life flashes before him and tears well in his eyes as he resorts to kicking the Deathclaw with his free foot. His gun's out of ammo and he can't reach into his backpack for a backup whilst in this position. Fuck. Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck. This is the end. It can't be the end. Not like this. Not after everything- Everything he's survived, a whole ass nuclear war and a 200 year old apocalypse and he's gonna die at the hands of a Jurassic Park actor. At least it'll be a cool death, right? Oh, God, Shane better make it out. But what will he do without Ryan? They've been a team for so long, what now? Is Ryan even okay dying without his best friend by his side? Where is he? Where's-

Shane's voice rings out loudly as he hollers, climbing atop of the reptile and grabbing it by the horns. He pulls at them, making its head turn, dropping Ryan in its shock. Ryan scrambles away, watching in a mix of horror and awe as Shane practically plays mechanical bull with the monster. The taller male kicks the Deathclaw in its jaw a few times before it goes to bite him. His eyes widen and he quickly retrieves his foot but not before the Deathclaw can claim his boot, leaving it clenched between its yellow and crimson dyed teeth.

After nearly an astonishing 30 seconds of clinging on, Shane manages to press the barrel of his gun right against the demon's skull before pulling the trigger, immediately killing it.

As it falls, so does Shane. He comes topping forward, collapsing onto the ground next to Ryan with a loud thud, a groan falling from his lips soon after. Ryan stares at him momentarily but then pulls himself up, stumbling towards the Deathclaw's corpse. He pulls Shane's boot from its open jaws, tossing it to him, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Get eatin'."

---

A little thing I’ve been working on! This is what the cryptic ‘Soon’ comment was about. I’ve had this idea for a while but just started writing it. Future fics in this series will include:

Investigation into the Institute, including an interviews with Piper Wright and Nick Valentine, and various theories about the crows and mannequins across the Commonwealth, as well as some political figures

Interview with the Man/Woman Out of Time

Investigation into Pickman Gallery

Investigating Alien Crash Landing

Haunted Insane Asylum Investigation and Rumours of a Mysterious Serum?

Investigation into the Railroad

Early days Appalachia Unsolved and The Hunt for The Infamous Mothman

Stories from DC Unsolved and New Vegas Unsolved

Investigation into the Strange Occurrences Surrounding Far Harbour

A discussion about meats in the Commonwealth that exist despite animals said meats are supposedly made from not doing.

An Interview with Mamma Murphy and Her Sight

Who Are the Children of Atom?

Investigating MedTek

A Discussion about Vault-Tec and Their Inhumane Experiments

And many more, if you have any ideas, leave a suggestion!

[kohanayaki]

Caught in the Middle (Steve Harrington x Reader x Billy Hargrove) Ch 1

Just before the school year begins, a new girl drives into town in a black 84' Jaguar with a New York license plate. But you weren't new to Hawkins at all. As a matter of fact, you were returning. While reunited with your old friends you soon find yourself making some unexpected new ones as well; namely the hair of Hawkins high himself and a certain hot-blooded Californian bad boy. Little did you know, dark forces were at work just beneath your feet. How the hell did you get caught in the middle of this?

Links: Ch 1  Ch 2  Ch 3  Ch 4  Ch 5  Ch 6   Ch 7

___________________________________________________________

Ch 1 .:Something Old, Something New:.

Nothing really changed much in Hawkins, Indiana. It was always the same people working the same jobs or going to the same high school. However one thing that was definitely different was the fact that a giant, glass-topped complex decked out in neon signs and flashing lights stood tall in the middle of town square- a stark contrast to everything else around it. Starcourt Mall looked severely out of place in your small town, but then again it had been almost six years since you've been here.

Your gaze swept over the impressive building, swarms of teenagers weaving in and out of the stores. Your eyes suddenly settled on a cute blue and white striped sign that read 'Scoops Ahoy!'

“You up for ice cream?” you asked.

“I'm down,” your brother said from the passenger seat.

“Good, because I was going to pull over anyways,” you grinned. 

You backed into a nearby parking spot, getting out of your car and stretching out your arms. The ten hour road trip from Rochester to Hawkins did not do great things for your body or your sleep schedule, especially when you had to live off of nothing but McDonalds and 7-11 food for a few days. As ready as you were to flop face first onto your old bed, some ice cream sounded really good in the sweltering heat.

You headed into the ice cream shop as you took out your wallet, a cute little bell ringing out as you opened the door. 

“Ahoy,” a pretty girl with shoulder length blonde hair greeted you as you walked in. She wore a sailors uniform and hat and looked like she couldn't wait to go home. However, she seemed to regain a bit of energy as she saw you. She stared at you curiously for a moment, looking you up and down before smiling. 

“Hold on just a second,” she said. 

“Uh, sure?” you said, a bit confused by the girl as she quickly disappeared into the back room,

“You're gonna want to take this one, Harrington,” Robin said. 

“I'm on break,” Steve said, his feet up on the table.

“You've been 'on break' for over an hour, dingus,” Robin rolled her eyes, “Besides, you'll thank me later if you play your cards right.”

She reached behind the table he sat at, pulling up a white board with two columns reading 'You Rule' and 'You Suck'. 

“You're 0 for 6, Popeye,” Robin said, “Let's see if you can flip the odds.” 

She gestured over to the window where you stood in front of the display case, looking around for another employee. Steve seemed to perk up at the sight of you. It was a rare occurrence in Hawkins for Steve to run into someone he's never seen before, and hell if you weren't beautiful. 

Robin chuckled as he shot up out of his seat, straightening out his uniform with new enthusiasm.

“Alright, I'm going in,” he said, pausing for a moment before he opened the door, “And you know what? Screw the company policy.” He took off his hat and threw it over his shoulder with a flourish, “Totally hiding my best feature.”

“Yeah,” Robin said under her breath, “That's what's holding you back.”

“Ahoy there!”

You nearly jumped at the overly-loud greeting you received as the door to the back room swung open, revealing a guy about your age in an equally ridiculous sailor uniform as his coworker.

“Sorry for the wait, I hope you're still available to set sail on this ocean of flavor with me. I'm your captain for today, Steve-”

“Harrington,” you finished, surprising the boy behind the counter. He blinked a few times, letting his brain catch up with itself.

“Do. . . do I know you?” he asked.

“Probably not,” you chuckled dryly, “We went to middle school together. I moved a few weeks before freshman year.”

“Oh,” he said, feeling kind of bad. A lot had changed in the last year- mainly that he almost got killed by flesh eating beings from another dimension on no less than two accounts. But he'd also changed a lot as a person. He was one to acknowledge that he wasn't the greatest person in the past; Maybe it was better that you didn't know him in high school.   

“Well, I'm sorry we didn't get to know each other back then,” Steve said honestly. 

That took you by surprise. This wasn't the Steve Harrington you knew. He was the King as far back as elementary school and, as far as you knew, a grade-A asshole. He seemed a lot different than when he was smacking down lunch trays at the sixth grade table in the cafeteria, but he was still just as stupidly attractive.

“Let's start over, then,” you said, “I'm (Y/n), and this is my brother Kyle.”

Steve looked over to the (h/c)-headed boy who looked only a year or two younger than you and gave him a little salute-wave. 

“Nice to meet you,” Steve said, “What can I get you two?”

After taking your orders Steve started scooping up the ice cream, piling them into waffle cones. As he handed you yours he seemed to hesitate before talking. 

“So, are you just back in Hawkins to visit, or. . .” he trailed off.

“I'm back here as long as my dad's business is,” you said, “He moved us out to New York for work, but he's setting up base back here.”

“Oh, New York!” Steve said, trying to come up with something to say, “That's, uh, the- where the Statue of Liberty is and. . . hot dogs, and. . . taxis?”

“Yeah, that pretty much sums it up,” you laughed, the sound making Steve smile.

You looked over to the wall clock and bit your lip as you saw how late in the afternoon it was.

“Hey, we have to get going,” you said reluctantly, “I still need to finish moving in. You know, unpacking everything I own and all.”

“Uh, yeah, no, I totally get it,” Steve said, mentally kicking himself as you turned around to leave. 

Just before you closed the door you turned to look at him over your shoulder. 

“You know, I start my senior year in a few weeks at a little place called Hawkins High,” you said. 

Steve rose an eyebrow, his expression a little more hopeful, and you grinned.

“Who knows? I might see you around,” you said, a mischievous glint in your eyes.

Robin smirked as Steve watched you walk away, a little in awe.

“I like her,” she said, “Although, I'm not really sure if this one counts as a win or a loss.”

Steve was fine with that, so long as he got to see you again. 

~2 weeks later~

Hawkins High was always bustling with activity, even in the early morning. Chatter from groups of students walking to school together along with the hum of car motors filled the air. Everyone was either sitting on the steps of the school or leaning against their cars to show them off, trying to avoid going to first period as long as they could. 

Suddenly, a low rumble sounded out in the air as an unfamiliar vehicle rounded the corner. It seemed like everyone in the school was watching as the sleek, black car pulled into the parking lot with the windows down, music blasting. 

You enjoyed the feeling of the wind on your face as First Blood from AC/DC's new album sounded out through your car's stereo. You turned it down slightly only to talk to your brother.

“Got everything you need?” you asked Kyle.

“Everything but a doctor's note to get me out of here,” your brother joked.

You chuckled as you grabbed your jean jacket from the trunk; You slung it over your Black Sabbath t shirt before killing the engine and locking the door. 

You were about to start walking in until you were tackled into a hug from multiple children.

“(Y/n)!!” Dustin yelled, running towards you from the middle school next door.

“You're here!” Mike said, grinning wildly as he joined the group hug that Will and Lucas piled onto. 

“Hey, guys,” you smiled, “Good to know you avoided setting fire to this town without me.”

“Hey what am I, chopped liver?” Kyle said. 

The group quickly shifted their attention from you to your brother, each of them doing the secret handshakes they'd come up with together when they were little.

“I didn't know you guys were coming back,” Will said, “Why hasn't anyone said anything?”

“Your mom wanted it to be a surprise,” you admitted, “I already talked to her.”

“Are you kidding me?!” Will exclaimed.

You noticed two girls you didn't recognize were standing somewhat awkwardly to the side, not really sure what was happening.

“New party members?” you asked, smiling at them.

“This is El and Max,” Mike said, introducing you, “El, Max, this is (Y/n) and Kyle. They used to live across the street from us.”

“Nice to meet you,” you said to them before turning back to the boys, “Damn, I'm gone for a couple years and you all go and get girlfriends?” you teased. 

Mike and Lucas blushed and your smile widened.

“How do you know them again?” the redhead girl named Max questioned, “It's just. . . I don't know, you actually seem cool.”

You laughed at that, much to the boy's chagrin. 

“I used to baby sit them when we were kids,” you explained. 

“God knows why,” Lucas said, “It's not like you were any less trouble than us. You were only, like, thirteen.”

“Ok, but you were, like, seven and completely out of control,” you countered, mimicking his tone of voice.

“Woah, hold up, hold up,” Dustin said, circling around your Jaguar, “You have a fucking car?!”

“Hey, language, you little shit,” you said playfully, ruffling his hair, “And yes, I got it last year.”

“Sweet,” Dustin said, wide eyed as he continued to stare at your new ride. 

“If you guys want I can drive you to the mall this weekend,” you offered. 

Excited shouts followed, effectively giving you your answer. 

“Ok, but there's no way you'll all fit back there, so someone's riding in the trunk or I'm going to have to strap one of you to the roof,” you said, only half joking as you tossed your keys up, catching them with your other hand and pocketing them.

“I'll see you guys later. Hell awaits,” you said, gesturing to the school building. Kyle fell into step next to you as you walked up the stairs. 

As you entered the halls of Hawkins High you couldn't help the sigh that escaped you. Sure, it was good to be back in some ways, but school was not one of them. You liked your school back in New York. It was so different from here. The people were more diverse, more open minded, and just less dickish overall. 

One of the biggest downsides of a small town like Hawkins was that you were pretty much stuck with the same kids from kindergarten until high school, and you knew you'd have to see the same people that made your life hell in middle school for another year.

“Well shit, look who's back!”

Speak of the devil.

Your expression immediately hardened as Tommy and Carol walked up to you, looking just as pleased to see you as you were to see them. Among their posse were a couple of brainless football players and a guy you didn't recognize.

He had long, curly, dirty blond hair and blue eyes that took no shame in raking over your body. He had his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket as he chewed absentmindedly on a piece of gum.

“You just had to come and infect this school again, huh?” Tommy sneered.

“Nice to see you too,” you said sarcastically. Carol said nothing, just glaring at you behind her protective shield of a boyfriend. You resisted the urge to roll your eyes; you both knew she wouldn't do shit.

“You know, I don’t think New York changed her at all, guys,” Tommy said, leaning into your face, “You still a bitch?” 

You shot back without skipping a beat.

“I don’t know, Tommy. You still finger banging cheerleaders in the bathroom behind Carol's back?”

The new guy let out a small chuckle at that while the rest of the group looked stunned.

“You what?!” Carol said, eyes wide as she shoved Tommy away from her. 

“Carol, she's lying!” Tommy panicked as she started walking away, “Babe, it's not true, I swear!”

You sighed as you finally got them out of your hair, turning to your brother. 

“You better get to your first class,” you said, “I'll meet you at lunch, okay? And let me know if any assholes give you a hard time.”

“Will do,” he smiled, “See you.” 

And with that he bounded up the stairs.

You started to make your way across the hall to get to your locker when you found your path blocked by a muscular chest, barely covered by a half-unbuttoned shirt.

You looked up to see the guy who was with Tommy just now and your breath caught in your throat as you tried to put some distance between you two. Everything about this guy screamed red flags, from the scent of his cologne to the slit in his eyebrow, but wow he was handsome. Then again he was friends with Tommy, so that placed him in the category of 'shittiest humans ever' by default.

“You've got a smart mouth on you, I like that,” he drawled, his voice smooth and deep. He hooked his thumb through one of his belt loops, pulling his tight-fitting jeans down even lower. “I don't think I've seen you around here. The name's Billy Hargrove.”

“Cool,” you said before walking away. You were going to be late at this rate, and you knew he was nothing but trouble no matter how hot he was.

Billy was slightly taken aback at your disregard towards him, but he was persistent. He caught up with you easily, sliding into your view again as he walked backwards in your peripheral vision.

“So-” 

“No thanks,” you said, shutting him down fast.

Billy's face fell slightly as he kept up with your quickening pace.

“No thanks what?” 

You stopped at your locker and started putting in your combination. He leaned against the wall as you did.

“I’ve heard about you, Hargrove, and I know your type. You’re good looking, you know it, and everyone in this place seems to follow you around like a herd of sheep. You’re gonna make some kind of lame pass, ask if I wanna take a ride in your mediocre car which is definitely a euphemism for something else, expect me to jump into your pants, and then never talk to me again afterwards. So to that I say: no thanks.” 

Under ordinary circumstances Billy would have been in uproar about you reading him or calling his car mediocre, but instead his lips twisted upwards into a shit-eating grin.

“So you think I’m good looking?” 

You sighed as you slammed your locker shut. Of course that’s all he got out of that. 

“If I say yes will you go away?” 

Billy laughed at that, still insistent on following you.

“Quite the opposite, sweetheart.”

“I’m not your sweetheart,” you glared.

“Would you like to be?” 

You rolled your eyes. This guy just doesn't know when to quit.

“Do you pull these cheesy one liners out of your ass with every girl you see?” you asked, a wry smile tugging at your lips.

“Not every girl,” he said suggestively.   

“Oh, really? Because I’ve only been here for half an hour and your hand’s slipped into the back pockets of at least five different willing participants,” you said.

“Jealous?” he smirked.

It was at this moment that you realized when you stopped walking he basically had you trapped between his body and the rows of lockers lining the walls. His gaze was hot and heavy as he loomed over you, purposefully giving you a full view down his shirt. A sudden spark of confidence made you smirk right back at him as you replied:

“You'd like that, wouldn't you?”

As the bell rang out into the hall you used it to get past Billy and continue on your way to your first period. He turned around, staring at your retreating figure. 

“I never caught your name,” he said.

You stopped in your tracks to look at him over your shoulder. 

“I never threw it,” you said, a playful tone to your voice, “(Y/n) (L/n). Don’t rack your brain too hard trying to remember it. If you’re a friend of Tommy’s we won’t be talking much.” 

Your words were harsh, but the way you said them and the grin on your face made it sound like a challenge, and Billy Hargrove has never backed out of one of those.

Read Ch 2 Here!

[blakescoven]

Undress Rehearsal (Duncan Shepherd x fem!Reader)

Summary: You got a fashion degree and moved to DC to work as stylist assistant. Unexpectedly you meet a familiar face during a meeting and it seems there’s a spark between you two...but things may take a wrong turn.

A/N: Hey lovelies!! This is my first fic EVER, so be nice! Also, forgive any grammar mistake (English isn’t my first language). Since the ending is kinda open, I guess I could write a PART 2. I’m so happy to finally be able to post this one-shot, even though it sucks! I’d appreciate every comment/reblog/DM about it and about how I could actually improve my writing. This is a sort of experiment! I’m still trying to figure out “my style”. Oh and this is important: bold type means flashback, italics are Y/N’s thoughts and // means a few days passed! ENJOY and thank you for reading! I love you.

Warnings: mean!Duncan (just a little), making out and veeery light NSFW, plot!twist, lol I think that’s enough(?)

Word count: 6.1K

moodboard by the talented @hecohansen31​

You were late again. It happened twice this week. But how could that happen? You had always been a punctual and reliable person, at night you ensured that the alarm was correctly set and you never went to bed too late, afraid to not being able to wake up the morning after. So how could it be possible? Maybe because of your jetlag, but after almost a month, well, this had become a really bad excuse. Then perhaps, the frenetic pace was already affecting you that much, making you too tired to hurry up and get ready. This couldn’t happen again; you were jeopardizing your new dream job because of this straggler behavior. While you were running along the streets of Washington DC, those were your recurring thoughts. Your wheezing and the speeded-up heartbeats, pounding in your hears, were drowning out any deafening noise coming from cars and traffic, which always filled the city driveways.

From the early hours of the day, the avenues were swarming with people going to their office, each of them withdrawn into oneself, busy minding their own business with their smartphones, bringing takeaway breakfast on the other hand. You were way too anxious and distracted from running breathlessly; you had already bumped into three stupid human beings, slowly strolling down the sidewalk like damn sloths. Every single step was followed by a quick glance at your cellphone screen, checking the time and ensuring there was no missed call of your boss.

If you knew anything in this world, it was that you had to take this job seriously, dealing with the fact that your exhausting dues would have allowed your eager ass to work your way up and finally become a fashion designer. So, you didn’t expect any great satisfaction to come very soon. And starting from the bottom was really tough. After years of studying and a well-deserved university degree, you were prepared for whatever the future might have brought. Despite that, you didn’t expect at all to end up in DC, working as a stylist assistant. Sure, this would have opened the door to your real dream job, be part of the style department, designing collections for a luxury brand. You had tried your luck moving to New York, but you ended up broke, with no savings left and no available job opening. For this reason, you decided to take that chance here. You hadn’t made any progress till now though. You were new, yes, but your tasks and assignments were hardly restricted to bring coffee or running around the Capital with tons of garment bags for upcoming fittings.

Finally, after that insane 3km rush, without even stopping for a second - no, you couldn’t afford an Uber ride every time -, you arrived. Your feet hurt like hell, your cheeks covered with scarlet shades like the worst of sunburns and your breath coming in short gasps…and your hair, oh dear Lord, it was a mess. You were sure you were also sweating. Luckily, Richard, your boss, was quite nice to you and somewhat tolerant; he was sincerely impressed by all your efforts, skills and abilities, so much that he wasn’t utterly certain what you were doing there.

Five minutes past the established hour and, thank God, the client hadn’t arrived yet. You didn’t have much information or details about that meeting. You only knew that you had to help during a fitting for a client, extremely influential on the political scene. He needed a few new looks and outfits for public appearances, interviews, and fundraising events. Of course, you assumed he would have been an old middle-aged white man, with too much money to count and eager for power.

Mr moneybags is getting late tho. Too busy making grands? you thought.

Meanwhile, you were trying to look more presentable, also to not risk damaging the brand reputation.

“Y/N?”

Your calves burned and, in that moment, you thought that bringing extra sneakers would have been a good idea.

“Y/N?!”

Since the client hadn’t arrived yet, maybe you could sit down and rest for a minute on that super comfy booth near the mirror…

“Y/N!!!! HELLOO!!!” Your train of thoughts was abruptly interrupted by your boss’ yells, which suddenly caught your attention.

“Oh my God, I’m sorry, I zoned out! Forgive me, what can I do for you?”

The man, a healthy and elegant 40ish brunette, looked at you concerned “Y/N I know it’s hard to settle down, but I need you to be 100% focused today. The man who’s coming is a big deal for us, he’s a powerful figure in Washington politics! He has recently taken her mother’s place as CEO of the family company. So, I want us to make a good impression!” after saying that, he looked at you from head to toe, a bit baffled.

“So…” he continued “…I need you to – in that moment you really hoped you were about to receive a major task, finally a turning point – ..to run to the bar across the street and buy some coffee, and come back quickly!” All your expectations fell apart in a sea of disappointment. “Hurry up!”

You put on a forced smile and went straight to the exit.

After having waited in line for centuries, you figured that probably the client had to have arrived, and therefore, just as you had started your day, you came back running as fast as you could, to save time.

You were holding the coffee cups in your left hand, while you were struggling to turn off your phone, which had started ringing. Opening the glass door with your hip, you were still trying to silence the ringtone, this, without even minding where put your feet up. Ugh, mom, stop calling me...always the worst timing! you screamed in your own mind, frowning. Before you could slow down your steps, one of your heels didn’t grip well the lacquered floor, making you stumble and trip. A sudden change in your balance and you couldn’t avoid slipping forward, causing the not-so-angelic flying of coffee directly on the special guest of the situation.

Damn it.

And to make matters worse, you fell to the ground, cursing the day you were born. Hell no, it can’t have really happened to me. You had just made a complete ass of yourself. You would have rather sink below the waves into the oblivion.

“OH SHIT SHIT SHIT I-I’m so sorry! I-I don’t know h-how it happened!” you were apologizing, still keeping your eyes fixed on the once-full cups rolling down the parquet, next to your badly chipped mobile touchscreen.

“The floor must be slippery…please let me make it up to you, I ca- ” you stopped all of a sudden when you lifted your gaze, for the first time since you had stepped in. Standing in front of you there was the most attractive man you’d ever seen. His piercing blue eyes were fixed on you, like two burning flames almost forming deep holes in your soul.

It’s hot in here or it’s just me?

He was tall and his toned arms were easily visible through the once-white shirt. Now that expensive fashion piece was all covered by a huge stain of hot coffee. And it was your fault. You were speechless. Your attention all focused on the man’s features. Your gaze was busy running down those perfect shaped cheekbones and the sharp jawline. Oh boy, gods’ gift indeed.

Oddly familiar to you though.

You clearly remained to stare for too long to not be noticed, because the man himself broke the silence.

“Uhm, don’t worry” he seemed taken aback for a second “I’ll send it to the cleaners or I’ll throw it away, I don’t care” he said, immediately composing himself, while carefully unbuttoning the ruined shirt, with those long fingers... You were blushing. His low soothing voice sent shivers down your spine. But his tone was plain, no apparent emotion, he seemed almost indifferent, maybe even a little annoyed. Ah, pompous ass.

Your attention was caught by your boss, who, with a worried voice, while pinching the bridge of his nose with his eyes closed, proposed him to choose another shirt among the others and take it as an apology gift. The man accepted, nodding with a crooked smile and with smug remarks about the needlessness of gifts for a man as rich as him.

Cocky asshole! You mused, with a roll of her eyes.

Anxious to change the subject, Richard, started the introductions. “Mr Shepherd, she is my smart – but clearly clumsy – assistant, Y/N” at that very moment that name awoke the memories in your mind.

No. It can’t be true.

“Well, nice to meet you” he remarked “Y/N”, repeating your name like he was tasting it on his own tongue “..or so.” he added, with a stupid smug grin on his breathtaking face. When they shook hands, you felt a sort of jolt and realized you had been holding your breath all this time. You remained silent.

That was the same man you met 6 months ago on the flight you took to go to New York, when you moved for the first time. It was him the influential man of the meeting.

Duncan-fucking-Shepherd.

//

Duncan. This name was the only thing in your mind right now, while you were lying on the couch, in your little apartment, with a glass of wine loosely resting on your lower lip. Oh my God, did he recognize me? Did he figure out it was me? How had he called me that day? Oh, his angel, right. Fuck.

Your head hurt, but you couldn’t help but keep on repeat your two first meetings again and again in your mind. The Duncan Shepherd from today was completely different, compared to the man you had encountered on that plane.

He hadn’t talked about himself very much, just spilled that he was a businessman traveling for work. You had immediately noticed how mature he was to be in his late 20ish. And incredibly handsome. And charming. And seductive.

Ok, stop.

You still couldn’t understand why you. Among all the attractive available women he could easily have, during all the time of the flight, he had been flirting with you. You. He made you feel sexy, desirable and safe, after a very long time.

It was the first class. You were there because of a lucky misunderstanding. While the plane was taking off, you two had a moment, since he saw you panicking. You had started talking for real only two hours after having left Milan. The conversation started casually, then developed into a flirty game. Little did you knew that a few hours later, you would eventually find yourselves making out so much intensely, whilst the rest of the passengers was sleeping with lights off. This wasn’t like you; you were strangers after all. Damn, you only knew his first name. But you couldn’t help your crazy attraction towards him. A sort of electricity, a particular connection that you had never felt with anybody else in your life.

You were staring off into space, completely lost in your inner thoughts, while biting hard your lip and fidgeting with the hem of your oversize t-shirt. You nervously swallowed and closed your eyes. Your hand began to move from the fabric and wander over your bare legs, brushing them with your fingertips. Throwing back your head and swallowing again, you frowned and sighed. You couldn’t make those thoughts disappear. He got under your skin and no matter what you did, you couldn’t shake him.

His soft lips on yours, hot and peachy, the trailing of his wet open-mouthed kisses along your throat and the series of marks he was leaving on your skin, on the way down your collarbone. Feeling the smile of the other against your lips as you two kissed. The best feeling in the world. His small moans when you had pulled his lower lips between your teeth, while his hands were touching and roaming all over your body, as if he wanted to memorize each spot, each curve, each part of you. “Baby I wish it was just the two of us right now, damn, I want you so badly” he whispered. God, if they had been alone, you’d have gone further for sure. You were both turned on, you could tell, especially from the prominent bulge on his designer pants. All you wanted was to climb on top of him, straddling his hips, panting in his hear and feel his hot breath all over you. Intense was the craving to undress him, feel his skin against yours. Shit, it was like a living a dream.

The meeting had been canceled and rescheduled for tomorrow. The situation was quite unpleasant. What you were supposed to do now?

//

Judgment Day had come. You hadn’t slept at all, all night spent tossing and turning between the sheets and looking at the ceiling. How were you supposed to act now? Should you have mentioned anything? What was really killing you, was the feeling that ‘your moment’ had meant nothing for him. Yes, after 6 months, you had gone over it, also because you had no idea how to contact him. But after seeing him again, all the buried thrills came rushing back. You absolutely needed to test the waters today. What did you have to lose? Well, your dignity maybe. If he wanted to, Duncan could have easily said something. And of course, a man of his status could have anything, or anybody, he wanted. Maybe you were overthinking, maybe not.

Since it was almost dawn, and the sun was peeking through the blinds, creating a delicate play of lights and shadows on the curtains, you decided you could actually distract yourself choosing what to wear for the meeting. You shouldn’t have done it. Your bedroom had become a battlefield, all your clothes scattered all over it, like some lifeless leftovers of the closet, now empty. Almost like a little bomb went off. You kept trying combinations on combinations, each time taking off the pieces and throwing them away anywhere around you, as if you were on the verge of a breakdown. It was still a business meeting; you couldn’t dress up too revealing or doll up too much. But at the same time, you’d never give up on being yourself and express your personality through what you wore. Respecting yourself was the most important thing. Self-love. However, this didn’t solve the problem at all. You wanted to appear at your best, challenge him, in a subtle way.

On your way to the office, an unexpected call tuned you away from your own thoughts.

“Richard! Good morning! Are you calling me for coffee? Because I’ve already stopped off at the bar, now tell me who is the best assistant in the whole world?! And I’m not even late!” your smile vanished as soon as your boss answered.

“WHAT?! What does it mean you won’t be there today?” Your heart skipped a beat and started pumping so much blood through your veins, that you felt as a heatwave was rushing inside of you. “W-well if you have family issues, we agree that it’s necessary to postpone the gathering..I-” your eyes widened at the realization that you’d be alone. With Duncan.

You almost fainted on the spot.

“I’m sure you can handle it on your own! You can still reach me with a phone call, if you ever need me. Plus, don’t you think this would be the right chance to prove yourself and finally level up, get noticed and considered for that vacant position in the style & design dep.? My money’s on you, girl!”

How could you blame him, though? He was always so encouraging.

You sighed through the phone, so he added “Look, it won’t be hard. Remember that Mr Shepherd is in your hands. We have to turn him into one of the brand advocates; he’s young, a self-made man, the best choice to promote the brand awareness. It’s up to you now.”

Wow, that’s very reassuring you figured, shaking your head.

“Ok, you can do this, I have to go now, let me know how it goes. Bye!” Fuck.

“W-wait! I can’t do that withou-” he has already hung up. Looking up to the sky and letting out a frustrating grunt, you allowed yourself a childish whine and mumbled a ‘why me’.

Now you were standing outside the building, trying to collect yourself before entering. You were wearing an oversized see-through blouse, tucked in a black knee-length skirt, and an *accent color* blazer with rolled-up sleeves, to complete the look. You were ready to fight. No more clumsy bullshit.

Breathe, remember to breathe you reminded yourself, looking at the elevator door.

You strode next to the receptionist’s desk, Tiffany, or, as you liked to call her, ‘Crazypants’; since her eyes were always so disturbingly wide open – Does she ever blink? – and her hair painfully pinned back, so tight that must have hurt her. She seemed a cross between a barbie and a psycho killer. As soon as you walked by her desk, Crazypants greeted you overly excited, calling you with her earsplitting high-pitched voice. You put on your fakest smile and replied,

“Morning Tiff, uhm, I wish I could stay and chat, but I have work to-”

“The client is already here. He’s waiting for you in the fitting room” she winked. Hell, you hoped your blushing wasn’t so obvious, you couldn’t even have a few minutes to be psychologically prepared. Well, maybe better pull off the band-aid.

“Thank you for warning me! I’ll be right there” you answered. Not even before your exams you felt all this pressure.

Why is it always so hot?!

Walking along the hallway as if you were going to your own execution, you found yourself in front of the door of the rehearsal room. You gently opened it and entered. Do you know when, at some point in movies, there’s a slow-motion moment with background music?! There it was. Precisely. He had his back turned, gazing the skyline through the glass wall. And the second he heard the clicking of a pair of heels, he turned his head, smiling at you and looking intensely at your figure. You were about to die for real now.

How could someone be so beautiful?

His hair perfectly styled, his hot stubble,... Oh, that stubble was your weakness. You could already feel it between your legs and…

“Hey hey, easy with that” he teased with his deep honeyed voice, pointing the take-out coffee cups you were holding. You winced and giggled

“I’ll never stop apologizing about that, ehm, incident…but if you want one, go ahead!”

You looked at each other smiling for a while, until you had to break the silence and eventually get down to business. “So, I guess it’s better if we start…Mr Shepherd, so then you’ll be free to go back to work”, he exhaled and nodded

“Oh please, just call me Duncan.”

You saw a sort of shift in his features. His face went blank. He adopted a bossier and intimidating position, like last time. Ok, maybe he just wants to keep it professional, I understand.

“When is Richard coming?” he questioned while taking his trench coat off. “To be honest, it’ll just be me today, but it’s all right, you’re in good hands” you slightly smiled. He sighed again and you rose your eyebrow, taking it as an unspoken insult.

“Is there a problem?”

“Well, yes, I didn’t come here to waste my time with a newbie assistant.” Your jaw dropped.

“Excuse me?”

“No need to get upset darling, this is what you are, after all” he stated shrugging. You were speechless; yes, you were an assistant, but the way he said that, as if you were a dumb zero…What an asshole.

“Oookay, since I’m here..let’s continue” he glanced at you, waiting for her next move. “I agree, you can change in the wa-” you paused; he was literally undressing in front of you.

“What? There’s nothing you’ve never seen...I guess” You were confused…was he teasing you or something? “You should be more professional, I’m saying it for you”, your rage slowly increasing and flowing throughout your entire body. He was a completely different man, with all those unnecessary mean remarks. He gave you mixed feelings. You would have punched him, but at the same time, contemplating his perfectly-shaped heavenly body, his toned muscles, his thighs..you wanted to jump on him, kiss him and be his, in every way possible.

“You’re staring.”

“W-what?! No. I’m waiting for you to finish undressing, so I can give you the first change to wear..”

“Sure.”

You’d already had enough of his attitude. “I suggest starting with this evening suit, since Richard told me you’ll attend a charity gala in a few days.”

“Hush, please, save it. I don’t need all your pointless suggestions. I can handle it by myself.” he seemed almost..angry? You didn’t know how to hit back anymore. Why was he acting like that, all of a sudden? He tried on a few different outfits while you were staying there, silent, shifting your weight from a leg to another, your eyes wandering through the room, your lips pressed into a thin line and your mind trying to figure out what was happening. Duncan, noticing the tapping of your fingers on your thigh, rolled his eyes and gave you an annoyed look.

Then he huffed “Impatient, uh?”

You were hovering on the brink of an outburst.

“Why don’t you do your job and bring me some water, or take notes, or whatever you get paid for?”

“My job is helping you find a set of appropriate clothes for various occasions, trying to create the right mix & match that suits your taste and personality...” you retorted in a plain tone.

“Oh, thanks for the not required explanation, Wikipedia..”

“..but I’m not stupid, I know what a fucking stylist does” he was pushing your buttons.

“If you’d allow me to do my job, instead of questioning me, I could recommend something..”

“No need to whine, baby girl…So do it, instead of staying there like a scared little girl.”

“If relying on someone to select your wardrobe really bothers you..why don’t you choose them by yourself?” you sassed, struggling to remain polite.

“Well, I’ve demanded the help of a professional, not that of a ‘coffee-bringer’…and I’m wasting my time here”.

Ok, that’s enough.

He was still a client, but for you being treated like that wasn’t acceptable anymore. “You know what? I don’t fucking care if I get fired after saying these words. But I’m done with your dumbass comments. You’re a douchebag. I’m trying to do my job and, just because you’re rich and influential, you think you can treat me like that. Like I’m trash?” you were finally giving in to an outburst “The saddest thing is that I really hoped you would remember me. About that moment we shared 6 months ago, on that flight to New York. But obviously, I’ve given it much thought. Turns out that I’m just one of many, aren’t I? I’ve been thinking about you for weeks and when I saw you again, it all came flooding back. I’m so stupid. It’s not your fault, I was wrong to think that day could have really meant something.”

While talking, you were struggling to hold back the tears, you weren’t supposed to look pathetic, but your eyes were already watering. “So, do me a favor: end this meeting now. I’ll call Richard and tell him to take care of you, since you do not believe I’m capable enough to fulfill your needs..”

“..oh and don’t worry about seeing me again, I don’t want anything to do with you! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do.” you spat, entering the small wardrobe room, without bothering to switch on the light, hoping that your angry tears would have remained unnoticed in the darkness and that Duncan would have gone for good. So you started moving crutches on the clothes stand, to make room for those outfits to restock over.

Unexpectedly you felt an arm around your waist, holding you tightly. It was Duncan. He hadn’t left.

His body pressed against yours, you were paralyzed, his arms keeping a firm grip on you. What’s happening? You knew you should have pushed him back and kick him out, but something inside you decided against it. It was like a part of your dumb heart wanted to stay still in that position forever. You two remained silent, until he whispered in your hear, with his hot breath and his cologne filling your nostrils - a mixture of cinnamon, sandalwood and tobacco.

“I’m sorry..” he sighed. He sounded sincere.

“..I went too far.”

Now your own hands were resting upon his arms. You could feel the heat his body was radiating right now. With a honeyed soft tone, he murmured “Please forgive me, I don’t know what came over me. It’s just that having you standing here again, in front of me, stunned me. I didn’t know what to do and I misunderstood your demeanor. I thought you were pretending nothing had happened, or that you didn’t recall that day, or that you simply didn’t care.”

His hold slowly loosened, allowing you to turn around and look at him with narrowed eyes and a puzzled expression, without a word.

“Uhm, I’m not very good at communicating my emotions, but you’re right. I’ve been a dick. You didn’t deserve it, but I was overwhelmed by the attempt to suppress my own feelings. Since I saw you again,”

he paused,

“you are all I can think about.” he admitted, stroking your tear-stained cheek with his thumb, but you tried to resist him,

“I hope you’re not trying to play me, because otherwise I’ll smash that stupid hot smirk to the ground.”

“So do you think I’m hot, uh?!”

“You dumbass.”

“God, you’re so damn sexy when you’re mad.” he teased, coming closer.

“What?” you giggled. He stared at your lips “I just can’t stop thinking about kissing you right now…” and unexpectedly, his hand drifted to your hip, pulling you even closer. You inhaled deeply. You were against his warm chest, sculpted to perfection. Why must he be so perfect? You placed your hand against it, intending to push him away, but instead you left it there. You froze, from both fear and excitement.

You two stared into each other’s eyes and his breathing quickened as did yours. He slowly leaned in, so his forehead rested against yours. You closed your eyes. Your faces were inches apart now, and he lightly traced your lips with one finger. His other hand placed behind your neck, shortening the distance even more.

Your noses bumped and your mouths matched up slightly-opened, breathing each other’s air directly. He brushed his lips against yours and you freaking loved it. You loved the way your body melted into his. The way your lips perfectly fitted like two puzzle pieces. The way Duncan held you tighter and tighter. It sent shivers down your back. His only desire was to touch you, to move his hands under your layers and feel your smooth skin.

You two broke the kiss for a second to catch your breath. Then he pulled you in, claiming your mouth again, hungry and intense. Duncan lowered his hands down your hips, cupping your ass and dragging you impossibly close. You deepened the kiss swallowing his groan of pleasure as you lost into each other, no space between you two. His hands were exploring your body, while you grabbed his hair tightly to restrain your own moans.

Slowly, you started exploring each other’s mouths with your tongues. Sometimes sucking his lower lip and biting it a little bit. He started kissing your jaw and leaving hickeys on your neck. He didn’t want to let you go, so he pulled you again and kissed you so hard, with much more intensity. He squeezed you, suggesting that he wasn’t going to stop. You didn’t mind at all and continued making out.

He slowly put his hands under your blouse, trying to reach and unhook your bra, eager to run his fingers along your breasts and rub it. You began unbuttoning his button-down, seductively leaving wet kisses and love bites on his chest. He moaned. Then Duncan raised your blouse and took it off completely, so he could see you.

“You’re beautiful” he purred, and started massaging your chest and kissing it hardly, licking and biting gently your nipple. While Duncan was playing with your body, you could only keep on tugging his hair, making his moans vibrate against your body. Then he kneeled down kissing your stomach.

Both of you couldn’t silent your groans anymore, the entire room was filled by sexual noises. But you didn’t care at all. You knew where it was going. Duncan pushed you against a wall, grinding on you and you could clearly feel his hardness pressed against your body. You needed more friction.

“Jump.” he suddenly hinted, and used his veiny arms to hold you up by your thighs lifting you off the ground. You wrapped your legs around his waist. Your core was throbbing at that very moment.

But you were brought back to planet Earth right after; that divine feeling was ruined by a pesky thought that clouded your mind.

What if he’s just interested in sex?

He sensed your sudden slowing down. “If you want me to stop, tell me now,” he whispered. When you remained silent, he brushed his mouth against your temple,

“Or now.”

he followed the line of your cheekbone,

“Or now.”

now he was kissing your chin,

“Or—”

then your lips were against his, again. You kept undressing slowly, savoring the moment.

But that damn thought came back, stuck in your mind. And eventually it hit you. “Wait…wait” you said, trying to steady your breathing.

“What’s wrong angel? I did something wrong or..” he questioned worriedly. “No, not at all, it was perfect..but I don’t think this is right.”

“Wait what?! Why?” Duncan replied in disbelief.

“I’m not a yes girl, Duncan. I’m not looking for casual hookups, I really want to know you better and see where this leads us.” you smiled reassuringly, caressing his cheek. You were scared as fuck. Maybe he wasn’t interested in any kind of relationship, just random booty calls. But you had to take the risk. You wanted to.

“Uhm..yeah. I guess that sounds fair enough.” he chuckled and you released the breath you didn’t know you were holding. “How about a coffee date? I know a place, it’s quite secluded, to not attract the attention of press and journalists” you tilted your head and frowned,

“What do you mean?”

“Angel, I don’t want you to be targeted by newspapers, they aim to find some dirt on me and make every aspect of my private life public. I prefer keeping a low profile, and put you in an uncomfortable position is the last thing I would want.” “Oh, ok. I got it.” you were a little thoughtful, to be honest. But in that moment, you would have agreed with everything he was saying. You used every inch of strength you had, to stop and not go further. Not that there was anything wrong with that. You just wished to learn more about that handsome man in front of you; his desires, his passions, his values and aspirations.

“I’d better get back to work, they’ll wonder what happened to me.” he smirked. “Yeah, you better hurry up, then” you laughed, while putting your blouse on. “I’m gonna put aside the chosen clothes” you informed, but before you could leave the cramped room, he grabbed your hand and pulled you back in his arms, giving a last soft peck on your lips.

“How can I focus now, with the thought of you against me?!”

“You’ll have to make do with the memory..” you shot back “..for now.” you cooed, whispering in his hear.

The rest of the day went off without a hitch. You had exchanged numbers and with all those texts you were sending to each other, you felt like a schoolgirl again. Nothing could have ruined that sensation. Before going back home, Richard called you, questioning you about the meeting, not noticing your struggle to not make disconnected sentences or beat around the bush, to hide your embarrassment. Then, to thank you for having his back, he gave you another assignment: a high-society lady had requested a selection of gowns to choose, to attend a few fundraising events. Another important add-on for your CV. A few more efforts and they would have finally offered you the long-awaited position in the creative team.

//

The consultation had been set up two days later, you had to go to the customer’s penthouse this time. Ugh, lazy rich people. You rang the doorbell and right after you were greeted by a thin blonde girl, all fake boobs and tinted tips, wearing a dress that seemed closer to a long top, rather than an actual dress.

“Hey, you must be Y/N! Come in! I’ll be right back” she yelled. You came in holding the garment bag; you were shocked when you found out how actually big the apartment was: super modern, black & white themed and with some art hanging on the walls.

Uhm, de gustibus you muttered to yourself.

“Here I am, sorry for the waiting. I am Madison!” Why rich people seem so reluctant to share their last name with me? you mused, smiling to yourself.

“Let’s start, shall we?”

And then Madison took you to what has to be her large bedroom. Odd. That seemed more like a bachelor to you, but judging wasn’t your thing.

The fitting went smooth as silk. This Madison was a bombshell, every single dress fitted her body as it was sewn on her. For the upcoming event she chose a nude silk dress, that perfectly matched her skin tone. She looked pretty excited for the pick, so much that she started screaming and calling out loud, making you aware that there was someone else around.

“Muffin come here!!! I chose the dress!! It’s perfect oh my God! You must see it before I take it off!”

MUFFIN.

Seriously? Do not laugh, please, do not laugh.

You were biting her lip a little too hard. While Madison kept calling her…muffin, you decided to do something and began packing all the stuff back up into the bag.

“Oh finally, you walk so slow, babe…now, look! What do you think?” Before the man could answer she continued “Oh wait, how rude I am. Y/N, this is my fiancé...”

As soon as you turned around and lifted your gaze, your heart stopped beating.

“…Duncan!”

His smile soon disappeared too, replaced by a shocked and guilty expression, like a deer caught in the headlights. You froze in place.

You were trying to hold back the impending flood of tears, washing it away with your anger. A million different feelings rushed through you, but at the same time you couldn’t feel anything, just your own heart, literally breaking down in pieces.

“Do you already know each other?” Madison asked, noting Duncan’s surprise. You gathered all the strength left within you and stated

“Just one of the many customers.”

Then, lowering your broken voice, you sputtered a “Now I really have to go.”

Without saying anything more, you took the garment bag and run straight to the door, shutting it down behind your back. Right after, a teardrop rolled over your cheek, and your eyes started watering. Once that the first tear broke free, the rest followed in an unbroken stream. Before turning into a sobbing mess, you walked fast down the hallway, reaching the elevator and waiting for the doors to open up.

Before you could take another step, a large hand took you by the wrist, keeping you in place. You turned around and instantly pushed him back, trying to free yourself from his grip.

“Please,” he begged,

“Let me explain. Please, I don’t want to lose you! We have something..w-we can talk about it, please, wait!”

“Go to Hell” you snapped;

and then you shoved his hand away, entering the elevator. Stupid. I am so fucking stupid. You two looked at each other one last time, shedding tears. The eyes of both soaking blatantly. And then the doors shut.

That heartbreak felt like concrete drying in your chest.

________________________________________________________________

Tagging: (I hope you don’t mind BUT tell me if you want to be removed, I was just curious to know your opinion about it, if you'd like to read it) MUCH LOVE @ladynuwanda @hecohansen31 @michael-langdon-appreciation @sojournmichael @so-langdon @stupidocupido @sammythankyou @emmyrosee​ 

[makeste]

a BnHA playlist/fanmix thing

@psqqa so I finally put together a list of some of my BnHA playlist tracks! this is by no means comprehensive because I have literally half a dozen different playlists with different themes (e.g. “instrumentals”, “BakuDeku”, “songs that either remind me of Kacchan or that he would work out to”, “angsty apocalyptic final battle”, and so forth) and omg it’s a lot. but this is my most inclusive playlist, which consists of general character theme songs for most of class 1-A, the League of Villains, and a few others. my taste in music generally leans towards alternative/indie/rock/grunge, but it can kind of go all over the place. so the genres may vary here and there, especially since I opted to go with whichever song I felt fit the character best regardless of how well the tracks all blended together musically.

also I have a bakudeku bias but THAT’S NOT EXACTLY BREAKING NEWS what can I say. and this is actually me holding back lol but oh well.

Deku - Rise (Katy Perry) - “makeste did you really just kick off your BnHA playlist with a Katy Perry song” yeah I did! because!! I won’t just survive/oh you will see me thrive/can’t write my story/I’m beyond the archetype. like, this song was made for anime protagonists. oh ye of little faith/don’t doubt it, don’t doubt it/victory is in my veins/I know it, I know it. this kid just doesn’t give up. this is no mistake, no accident/when you think the final nail is in, think again/don’t be surprised/I will still rise.

bonus: Blood (Archis) - this song is fucking gorgeous both musically and lyrically. don’t let them win/don’t let them get/under your skin, into your head/they’re full of it/you’re full of life/you’ll prove them right if you’re giving up/so let’s go for blood. it really is fucked up how dismissive BnHA society is of anyone who’s quirkless. it’s so stupid too, because the majority of quirks aren’t even all that great. “look at me I can make DSLR lenses pop out of my body!” lol fucking great. so obviously superior to normal people who have to take pictures with actual cameras like fucking scrubs. anyway, so Deku was written off from a young age as helpless, defective, and deficient, all because he lacked a quirk. so it’s been so fucking great to watch him finally prove them all wrong. (...by getting a quirk. lol. but STILL.) well it sure took a while to turn it around/but I never gave up on me.

Bakugou - We Will Rock You (VonLichten mix) (Queen) - I like this version of the song because it adds a bit of an extra oomph and it’s a little bit fiercer. anyways, this has been my Bakugou theme song since day one, and what I love about it is that each verse works for a different stage of his ~journey~. buddy you’re a boy/make a big noise/playing in the street/gonna be a big man someday -- this is Katsuki as a fearless young child, with hints at the growing chip on his shoulder (kicking your can all over the place). and then the second verse is him a little older, starting out at UA -- buddy you’re a young man/hard man/shouting in the street/gonna take on the world someday -- and proclaiming to the world that he’ll be number one. and lastly we have the final verse, with its line gonna make you some peace someday, which I know is meant in a make-peace-with-things-before-the-end kind of way, but in a BnHA context you can totally tweak it to be a reference to the man he’s aspiring to be. gonna make you some peace, because he’s gonna be greater than the Symbol of Peace himself someday.

bonus: Defy You (The Offspring) - the wind blows/I’ll lean into the wind/my anger grows/I’ll use it to win/the more you say/the more I defy you/so get out of my way. perfect song for a boy who cannot and will not be stopped. you cannot stop us/you cannot bring us down/never give up/we’ll go on and on. or, in his words: “I will win... that’s what heroes do.”

All Might - Legends Never Die (League of Legends OST) - listen I have never played League of Legends lol, but ever since I heard this song in a Marvel edit, this has been the All Might song for me. you could probably just watch the Kamino battle on mute with this song in the background and everything would fit. legends never die/when the world is calling you/can you hear them screaming out your name?/legends never die/they become a part of you/every time you bleed for reaching greatness/relentless, you survive. the lyrics basically speak for themselves. we stan a champion.

Aizawa - I’ll Make a Man Out of You (Mulan OST) - y’all I went through so many songs looking for something that summarized Aizawa’s tiredness/doneness-with-life while also alluding to his mentor side, and then suddenly BAM, it hit me. anyways so yeah. you’re the saddest bunch I ever met/but you can bet before we’re through/mister I’ll make a man out of you. also just try to listen to the “say goodbye to those who knew me/boy was I a fool in school for cutting gym/THIS GUY’S GOT ‘EM SCARED TO DEATH” part without picturing 1-A bitching about their scruffy teacher overlord whom they secretly love.

bonus: I’m So Tired (Fugazi) - if you’re looking for something more musically cohesive with the rest of this playlist in general, as opposed to SUDDEN DISNEY SONG OUT OF NOWHERE, this may be a bit more up your alley lol. I’m so tired sheep are counting me/no more struggle, no more energy/no more patience/and you can write that down/it’s all too crazy and I’m not sticking round. anyways Aizawa needs a nap.

Todoroki - Alive (Sia) - I grew up overnight/I played alone, I played on my own/I survived/I wanted everything I never had/like the love that comes with life/I wore envy and I hated it/but I survived. guys this little candy cane boy has been through some shit. but he hung in there and now he is thriving. I’m still breathing/I’m alive.

Ochako - You Gotta Be (Des’ree) - because she’s a badass. you gotta be bad, you gotta be bold, you gotta be wiser/you gotta be hard, you gotta be tough, you gotta be stronger/you gotta be cool, you gotta be calm, you gotta stay together. anyways I sure would like Ochako to get the spotlight in an arc again one of these days. she’s the best.

Iida - Never Die (FNDTY) - it was actually pretty hard to find a song that fit Iida’s unique forty-year-old man personality since my musical tastes usually run towards moody shit and he’s pretty much the opposite of that lol. but I think the tempo of this song fits his quirk, at least, and it makes me smile, which he does also. you can run/you can fly/you can never die.

Kirishima - Guts Over Fear ft. Sia (Eminem)  - so this is a song all about overcoming your insecurities and finding the courage within yourself. I freaking love how the pre-chorus I was afraid to make a single sound/afraid I would never find a way out builds up and transitions into so here I am and I will not run/guts over fear. I’m so proud of Kiri you guys.

Momo - You Are Young (Keane) - another song about getting the better of your personal doubts and demons! hey now, don’t be scared, baby, don’t be scared at all/of all the things you don’t know/you’ve got time to realize. Momo has so much potential and she’s going to be such an incredible hero one day. now that she’s gaining more confidence the sky is pretty much the limit for her. you’ve got time/you’ve got to try/to bring some good into this world/cause you are young.

Mina - Safe and Sound (Capital Cities) - oh hey it’s the most upbeat song in the world, for the world’s most cheerful and optimistic and endlessly delightful person. I could fill your cup/you know my river won’t evaporate/this world we still appreciate/you could be my luck/even in a hurricane of frowns/I know that we’ll be safe and sound.

Kaminari - Thunderstruck (AC/DC) - okay yeah maybe I didn’t try too hard on this one lol. BUT IF THE SHOE FITS and honestly, it does. title aside, I think this song fits Kaminari musically too. it’s badass and it puts a smile on your face. went through to Texas/yeah Texas/and we had some fun/we met some girls/some dancers who gave a good time/broke all the rules/played all the fools. and then, of course, the chorus. you’ve been thunderstruck.

Jirou - Dream On (Aerosmith) - you know I had to go with a rock song for Jirou, so might as well go with a classic that’s all about (a) loving music (sing with me, sing for the year/sing for the laughter, sing for the tear) and (b) shooting for your dreams. dream on, dream on/dream until your dreams come true.

Tokoyami - Dark Necessities (Red Hot Chili Peppers) - I could have possibly gone with something a bit more goth for Toko as opposed to the Chilis, but the lyrics just fit so well though. you don’t know my mind/you don’t know my kind/dark necessities are part of my design/tell the world that I’m falling from the sky/dark necessities are part of my design/do you want this love of mine?/darkness helps us all to shine. Tokoyami doesn’t get enough respect for being a teenage edgelord without being a cringey mess. he’s setting such a good example for others.

so that’s pretty much it for my 1-A songs, but here are some bonus BakuDeku songs because I am obsessed

Muddy Waters (LP) - this is my theme for Deku VS Kacchan 2. goddamn Katsuki is such a hot fucking mess during this fight. and he’s hurting so much, and he’s reaching out to the only person he knows to reach out to in the only way he knows how. I will ask you for mercy/I will come to you blind/what you’ll see is the worst me/I’m not the last of my kind/in the muddy water we’re falling/in the muddy water we’re crawling. this song brings that good angst you guys. this is a relationship that has been through the wringer, and two boys who have basically no idea what they are doing, just kind of stumbling along. it is not clear why we choose the fire pathway/where we end is not the way that we had planned/all the spirits gathered round like it’s our last day/to get across you know we’ll have to raise the sand. anyways these kids chose the highest possible difficulty level for their path forward, but they’re doing it though. together, y’all.

Admiration (Incubus) - because Izuku is frankly infatuated and doesn’t even try to hide it. you’re an unfenced fire/over walls we’ve trampled/it’s you I admire/my living example. “an amazing person who was even closer to me than All Might.” he’s so open in his respect and awe for practically everything Kacchan does. just staring at him in starry-eyed wonder. and this part of their dynamic has always been so compelling to me -- how unconditional it is on Izuku’s part. that is some fiercely strong love there on his part that it can survive all the bullshit Kacchan heaps onto it, and all his best attempts to snuff it out. he just latched on and wouldn’t let go. anyways it resulted in something extremely unhealthy for quite a while, but it’s turning around now and being reciprocated, even if Kacchan’s version is prickly and tentative. don’t get ahead of me/could we just this once see eye to eye?

Ordinary Love (U2) - I can’t fight you anymore/it’s you I’m fighting for/the sea throws rocks together/but time leaves us polished stones. I fucking love that metaphor, though. yeah, just give them time. they’re gonna figure this all out one day.

and have a bonus theme song for class 1-A in general before we move on

Charlie Brown (Coldplay) - something about this song just embodies that restive, fidgety energy of youth to me. all the boys, all the girls/all that matters in the world/all the boys, all the girls/all the madness that occurs/all the highs, all the lows/as the room a-spinning goes/we’ll run riot/we’ll be glowing in the dark. there’s like a disorderly, disheveled beauty to this. say what you will about Coldplay, but some of their songs are like the musical equivalent of a rainbow.

anyways so now I’m gonna segue into some songs for a few of the season 4 characters. starting with...

Nighteye - While I’m Still Here (Nine Inch Nails) - ticking time is running out/yesterday I found out the world was ending. I still can’t get over how psychologically devastating Nighteye’s quirk is. it’s basically just Major Bummer: The Quirk. this season is really going to fuck me up emotionally isn’t it. a little more/every day/falls apart and/slips away/I don’t mind/I’m okay/wish it didn’t have to end this way. fucking hell. guess I better brace myself for some solid gut punches to the soul.

Eri - Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) (Florence + the Machine) - nothing to see here, just a little girl being treated as nothing more than a human bloodbank, and told that her quirk is nothing but a curse even as her abuser hoards it and uses it to wage a war. this is a gift, it comes with a price/who is the lamb and who is the knife?/Midas is king and he holds me so tight/and turns me to gold in the sunlight. but I also picked this song for Eri because of the way the POV slowly gathers up their courage and tries to fight back. I wish that I could just be brave/I must become a lion-hearted girl/ready for a fight/before I make the final sacrifice. excuse me I need to go hug Eri.

Mirio - Carry On (fun.) - okay so it was kind of hard to pick a song for Mirio, I think maybe I was overthinking it. anyways I ended up going with something hopeful to try and embody his endless, determined optimism. this song has kind of a quiet courage that builds up as it goes on. my favorite part is the second bridge: cause we are/we are shining stars/we are invincible/we are who we are/on our darkest day/when we’re miles away/so we’ll come/we will find our way home.

bonus: Mirio and Tamaki - Kids (Acoustic) (OneRepublic) - back when we were kids/swore we would never die/you and me were kids/swear that we’ll never die. lol at least we have one healthy childhood friendship to stan in this series.

and now on to THE VILLAINS, yay. this is probably the most musically cohesive section of this playlist, since VILLAINS!! means I can go with an overall darker ambiance.

All for One - Sympathy for the Devil (Neptunes Remix) (Rolling Stones) - didn’t even have to think about this one. please allow me to introduce myself/I’m a man of wealth and taste/I’ve been around for a long, long year/stole many a man’s soul and faith. this is the gentleman villain song and a perfect fit IMO.

Tomura - Pet (A Perfect Circle) - or really, this is more “AFO and Tenko”, I guess. manipulating a traumatized child into hating the world and raising him to become a killer. pay no mind to what other voices say/they don’t care about you like I do/safe from pain and truth and choice and other poison devils/see, they don’t give a fuck about you like I do/just stay with me/safe and ignorant. this is one of those songs where literally the entire song fits both lyrically and musically. just perfect. I’ll be the one to protect you from your enemies and your choices, son/they’re one and the same/I must isolate you/isolate and save you from yourself. like it’s a struggle here not to quote the entire song. ...eh, one more. swinging to the rhythm of the new world order and/counting bodies like sheep to the rhythm of the war drums.

bonus: Flesh and Bone (Black Math) - Tenko angst. god that last arc was so fucking good. I walk alone, beside myself/nowhere to go/this bleeding heart that’s in my hands/I fell apart. stupid manga with its darkly compelling villain character arcs.

Dabi - Shadow on the Sun (Audioslave) - aaaangst lol. and I can tell you why/people go insane/I can show you how/you could do the same. p.s. Dabi you still owe me a flashback! also “shadow on the sun” is a pretty good metaphor for his relationship with Endeavor. fire quirks make for such great metaphor potential.

Toga - Bones (MS MR) - you know I really have no idea why this song pings me so hard for Toga lol. but whatever, it is what it is. marinate in misery/like a girl of only 17/man-made madness/and the romance of sadness.

Twice - Misfits (Third Eye Blind) - my people are the misfits/the ones that don’t fit in. this is another song that clicked pretty naturally without requiring much thought on my part. well those are the ones for me/yeah those are the ones for me/the misfits, the freaks, the enemy/you and me.

Spinner - Normal Person (Arcade Fire) - is anything as strange as a normal person?/is anyone as cruel as a normal person/waiting after school for you/they want to know if you/if you’re normal too/well are you? this song is such a burn on quirk society and all of its issues. I can’t tell if I’m a normal person, it’s true/I think I’m cool enough/but am I cruel enough? I especially love the ending -- if that’s what’s normal now/I don’t want to know.

and a bonus League of Villains song:

Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears cover) (Lorde) - just change “rule” to “destroy” I guess lol. help me make the most of freedom/and of pleasure/nothing ever lasts forever/everybody wants to rule the world. god I love this cover. this is one of those songs I’ll play over and over again anyway so it’s nice to have a good excuse what with the direction this new arc appears to be headed in.

and lastly, a couple of Hawks and Endeavor songs because they don’t really fit in any other section and I didn’t really plan out this post!

Hawks - Weapon (Matthew Good) - just a really nice, angsty theme for the man who goes too fast, off on his spy mission of doom. careful, you be careful/this is where the world drops off. plus some bonus angst about how he’s trapped in this role that he never wanted to be in. and you give in/and you give out for it/ain’t it so weird/how it makes you a weapon.

Endeavor - Find My Way (Nine Inch Nails) - lord my path has gone astray/I’m just trying to find my way/wandered here from far away/I’m just trying to find my way/you were never meant to see/all those things inside of me/now that you have gone away/I’m just trying to find my way. I don’t really need to comment more on this, do I? also, the part where Trent Reznor’s voice drops to a whisper and says please/I never meant for this, though. omg. Endeavor you’re such a bitch and you had all of this coming, but even so. oof.

and that’s pretty much it! she said, like this post wasn’t long af as it is lol. anyway so there are... 34 songs here, lol. I should probably try and put it all into a youtube playlist or something for convenience. I’ll edit once I’ve done that.

edit: playlist!

[pcygoldenchild]

Catwoman

🕷summary: It was a halloween party. You were Catwoman. He was on a hunt for a specific pussycat to tame.

🕷warning: NSWF, cunnilingus, dirty talk, bondage

🕷A/N: Time for some filthy Jongdae. I love my boy to death; he’s my baby. But I’d be lying if I said he couldn’t destroy some pussy so here it goes. (sorry for the long length!)

Halloween wasn’t really a holiday you celebrated. You just liked dressing up in constumes and the thrill of being a character or thing. It was always fun to you. You’ve gone to a party almost every year. And you were now 20 still going to parties which meant you’ve had so many costumes done already. You were at a loss of ideas for what to go as this year. So you asked your best friend who had the other half of your excitement.

“Well last year you went all out as Lara Croft which was personally one of my favorites.” Cassie said. You were walking around the mall throwing around ideas.

“The only reason you liked that costume so much is because you made it.” you said rolling your eyes. But you had to be honest; it was amazing and fit you perfectly. You actually felt like Lara Croft and that was a dream come true because duh, it’s Lara Croft.

“Well duh. And the fact that Jongdae couldn’t keep his eyes off you. You’re welcome.” she said nudging you. You shoved her making her shuffle to the side and she laughed.

“Sure, he couldn’t keep his eyes off me but he sure didn’t say a word to me either. So just how great was it?” you replied. Jongdae was a sophomore at your university and one of the prettiest guys you’d ever seen. He wasn’t the cliche jock or mysterious hot guy. He was a bubbly personality and literally friends with everyone. But when it came to you, he was either shy or barely attentive to you. You don’t like to take it personal. Cassie says he’s like that with a lot of people but all you could see were the people he laughed obnoxiously loud with.

“I’ve told you this a million times before, he’s just shy. Everyone he’s super loud with are all extroverts. But you my dear friend, are an introvert. So what do two introverts do to become close? Nothing because they are too shy to interact.” she said. She had a point like always. But you were going to be stubborn and ignore her.

“Anyways, I don’t really have to go all out this year. I heard it’s a pretty chill party.” you said walking into a mask store. The store opened up to selling masks only around halloween.

“I heard the opposite. And I heard Jongdae will be there. Maybe this time, if you dress right, the cat man will pounce on his prey.” she joked pouncing on you. You laughed and pushed her off. Cat man was what you two called him. He always would just quietly creep around you like a cat approaching a mouse. And an idea came to your head. You looked at Cassie with a sudden exciting expression which only excited her.

“Oooo an idea!” she said rubbing her hands together.

“What if I’m the cat tonight?” you said. Cassie’s expression died.

“A cat? Seriously that’s the lamest costume ever.” she said turning away to one of the isles. You let out a sigh. She was right like always. All the years you’ve had to dress up, you’d never done something as simple as being a cat. You walked down one of the isles full of different masks. And then it caught your eye.

The perfect black shiny mask. It was a Catwoman mask. The real deal too. It would cover the entire top half of your face and head to the center of your head. It was perfect and looked so authentic. It called your name.

“Ok so what’s your approach?” Cassie said from behind you. You were so amazed by the mask in your hands you didn’t even know she was there.

“My approach?” you said turning to her. She took the mask out of your hand and held it up to your face thinking. Then she led you to the cash register.

“Well you could go Anne Hathaway Catwoman or Halle Berry. Utility belt or sexy latex?” She said. The conversation not seeming to phase the old cashier. But you still waited to leave the store to answer her.

“I have no clue. But I bet you’re going to tell me.” you said letting her guide you to whatever store was next.

🕷

You arrived at the party a little past 10pm. It was already in motion for it to still be fairly early. Everyone looked so good in their costumes. For the first time, you’d seen no repeats, everyone had their own costumes. Cassie, who couldn’t calm her excitement about how you looked, looked incredible herself. She was Poision Ivy to keep the DC comics theme with you.

“Dude, we’ve been here for 5 minutes and the entire basketball team has checked you out. They’re literally coming to find you just to stare.” Cassie said tugging your arm. You rolled your eyes and turned to her.

“Maybe it’s because I’m literally naked.” you said. After you got the mask, she made the decision herself for you to be in sexy latex but also include little accessories to spruce it up. The latex suit did little for imagination; the zipper in the front stopped right below your underboob so there was a lot of clevage. Other than that you were completely painted in latex and it hugged your body just right. A little too right. Your ass looked great and you prayed it wouldn’t be cold or your nipples would definitely show through. On your upper thigh, there was a holster for your expensive catwoman whip. And on your waist, Cassie sewed a cute utility belt. It was dainty enough to not take away from the sex appeal of the outfit but still added to it not just being a sexy constume. Your hair was down in loose natural curls to really add to the look and you wore black latex boots. Overall, you’d say you were best dressed. Just one thing...

“Oh come on and quit being dramatic. You’re not naked.” she said rolling her eyes at you as if you were being overdramatic.

“This suit covers me like milk. And underneath it I have nothing on. So I’m basically naked.” you said. She looked shocked. It was her idea to not wear anything underneath. She said it would bulk.

“Wait. You really didn’t wear anything under it?” she whispered excitedly. You shook your head and walked away to the drink table. You needed to get partying or else you were going to leave.

You got a drink of the infamous jungle juice and a turkey leg because you were quiet hungry. And you couldn’t pass up on the massive turkey legs you can only get at Disney World.

You walked over to a wall with a bar table and surveillanced the scene. You were looking for Jongdae of course. You hadn’t seen him since you got there. Maybe he was late.

“How’s the juice?” a voice said to your right. You knew that loud but smooth voice anywhere. But why was he talking to you now?

“It’s the same juice it is every year.” you laughed turning to him. He was dressed up as some incredibly handsome character. Or himself, to be honest you had no clue.

“I guess we should try a new recipe.” he replied. His eyes caught yours before he inspected your body.

“Catwoman. I like your take on it.” he said smirking his curvy lips.

“You mean the sheer fact that it’s sexy?” you said smirking back. He bit his lip. He bit his damn lip.

“A costume is only sexy if the host fits the description.” he said. You didn’t know he was so flirty. You also didn’t know why he was so bold to say more than two words to you.

“Cheesy flirt Jongdae. And who are you supposed to be?” you said trying to hide the redness of your cheeks partly covered by the mask.

“I’m a vampire. But most people are saying I came as a pussycat tamer.” he said doing a 360 for you to see. The constume looked like a vampire but he had no fangs and lack of blood. And his look was very poised. He just wore a lot of black and-wait. Did he say a pussycat tamer?

“Seriously?” you laughed. You wanted to make him believe the joke was bad but you were more effected by it than you thought you’d be. He stood a little closer to you and leaned on the bar.

“Very serious. I can really do wonders with a sweet pussycat. The feisty ones are fun too.” he said. Oh dear God.

You took the turkey leg and brought it up to your mouth. You needed something to distract you from him. But when he leaned in and bit the other side of the leg, you almost lost it. His face was right in front of yours. His lips only separated from yours by the turkey leg. His eyes fucking your brain.

“Well you’d better go and find one Jongdae.” you said after you removed your mouth from the turkey leg leaving it in his mouth. He took a large bite out if it and ate it slowly in front of you.

“I have found one.” he said placing the leg back down.

“And she seems like she’s curious of my powers.” he continued pointing to your super hard nipples. They could cut glass for fuck sakes.

“I’m moreso curious as to if you know who I am.” you said crossing your arms to cover your tattletale nipples. He laughed.

“Of course I do. I couldn’t miss that smile anywhere. And when word goes around of a fine feline prowling the premises, I know they’re most likely for me.” he said. Dude what the fuck?

“For you?” you laugh.

“I’m the Cat Man.” he said back smiling that insanely seductive smile.

“Ok Cat Man. Why now then? Why talk to me so much now? Are you drunk?” you ask incredulously. He just shook his head and stood up straight standing now right in front of you. You only came up to his shoulders so you had to look up at him or else your eyes would be trained on his lips. Not that you minded.

“I’m as sober as I can be. But you must know, I’ve waited and waited until you’d get my game. You were always the sweet little mouse. Quiet and shy. But I wanted the feisty pussycat I know you are. And here she is.” he said pushing strands off hair behind your shoulder.

“So what do you want with a pussycat like me? I’m not stuck in a tree or injured. What would I need you for Cat Man?” you asked playing into his game. He smirked, happy you obliged.

“Although I do want to make sure you’re in tip top shape, I’ve got other plans.” he said taking your arms and unfolding them. He grabbed your zipper and pulled it down a little more before stopping just before it would expose your breasts.

“I’m not an easy pussycat Jongdae. Catwoman doesn’t need your plans. Why should I let you carry out your plans?” you said expanding your shoulders so your boobs lifted, they looked incredible.

“Why? Well I’ve waited for a long time to get you. And once I’ve got you, you’re mine. Because from the way everyone has been looking at you tonight, I feel very possessive. What do you want me to say? I like you? That’s cheesy and not quite like me. But I’m making you mine.” he said and his hand slowly slid up the crevice between your boobs. And that’s all it took for him to win you over. So much for not being easy.

🕷

You were pushed against a wall in a red lit room. He wasn’t rough, just eager. His eyes never left you even when his hands did. He stepped back to admire you as your body stilled against the wall.

“You are really a masterpiece. Your body is like a marble sculpture in that suit. And your blue contacts under this red light make you look really enticing. I could stare at you like this for hours.” he said. His eyes were really surveilling your every curve intently. You pulled your mask off and let your hair fall on the sides of your face. He didn’t miss any of it.

“Do you like being such a tease?” he said coming closer to you. His gaze was a tease on its own and he had the nerve to call you a tease.

“Oh please. You’ve seen me a thousand times. I’ve felt you stare at me from across the room like in a teen movie. Tease? Not me.” you defended. You were only rambling on because he was now right in front of you. His gorgeous fucking lips were right there. He licked them.

“You’ve felt me stare at you and your body reacts doesn’t it? You straighten your back. Play with your hair. Smile to yourself. I can’t imagine what you’d be thinking about but I know it’s me. That’s why you’re a tease.” he said into your ear. When he pulled away his lips grazed your cheek. But you couldn’t just take that.

You grabbed his face and tasted his curvy lips. They melted into yours just like you knew they would. He was delectable in every sense. You couldn’t let his lips go. Every lick, every bite, every taste made your senses come undone. And you were sure you’d become the obsessed girl you didn’t think you were.

“Easy there pussycat.” he said into your lips. You released his lips with a pop and leaned against the wall to catch your breath.

“There is plenty more when that came from. I’d love to show you. Just let me taste you. Let me finally taste my kitten.” he said as he pulled the zipper down more. The latex contracting back to its tight form from being stretched on your body which reveals your very erect breast. His hands run up the sides of your stomach, tucked in the suit. They run back down your sides and rest on your hips where your underwear waistband would have been.

“You went incognito? For me? You shouldn’t have.” he smiled. You rolled your eyes and faked a laugh before his left hand came down to rest on your core. His hand was slightly above your clit but it still made you freeze. He cocked an eyebrow at you.

“That’s all it takes? Just one touch?” he asked. You never got the chance to reply because his fingers left your skin on fire with every millimeter he moved down. But he was stuck once his finger reached your clit. The suit wouldn’t allow him to move freely. So he pulled it off your upper body down to your knees.

“Fuck Jongdae!” you moaned once his mouth attacked your pussy. He didn’t even give you a warning. He just went it for the killing. And fuck was he killing you. Your hands found his soft hair as your head rested against the wall. Your eyes were shut tight and your bottom lip was crying between your teeth. The way he was licking and sucking your clit was sinful. He was going so hard and fast it was like he wanted to see how fast he could make you cum. Your body was involuntarily grinding against his mouth but that only made your orgasm more fast coming. His hands held your thighs tight so they wouldn’t close on him before he made you cum. Your hands in his hair did nothing to his tongue swirling over your clit. You’d never say you saw it coming. You lasted a solid 5 minutes of constantly being tongue fucked by him before your body gave out. Your legs shivered in his hold as your hands tried to push his head away from you. But his neck seemed to be incredibly strong and he only continued as your cum leaked from you. You didn’t open your eyes not once since his mouth found place on you. But the minute you did, once he completely stopped, you looked down at him. And he looked devine. His mouth glistened with you. His eyes taking in the way his tongue made it move. When he finally met your eyes, nothing much was needed to be said. You were his.

[avengersmusings]

FULL NAME: Anthony Edward Stark MEANING: Highly praiseworthy, Priceless One, Flower NICKNAME: Tonio, Tony MEANING: Tonio was what his mom called him growing up (and she’s the ONLY one allowed to call him that thanks), and Tony’s just the shorten version of his name. AGE APPEARANCE: 46 BIRTHDAY: May 29th, 1973 ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Gemini SPECIES: Human GENDER: Cis Male ALLERGIES: None SEXUAL PREFERENCE: Pansexual THEME SONG(S): Back in Black by AC/DC, Because of You by Kelly Clarkson, Bastards by Kesha, I Don’t Care by Fall Out Boy

APPEARANCE

HAIR COLOR:  Dark Brown with some grey peppered in because baby old. HAIR STYLE AND LENGTH: Honestly a mess, but like a stylish mess. It’s longer on top and always in that spikey MESS. EYES COLOR: Brown EYESIGHT: 20/20, he paid for corrective surgery when he was younger thanks. HEIGHT: 5′9″, don’t let HIM FOOL YOU WEIGHT: 190 lbs OUTFIT/CLOTHING STYLE: Tony’s probably wearing some band shirt with oil/grease stains on it and jeans. He also likes wearing tshirts, a blazer, and jeans. BUT ALWAYS THE SUNGLASSES. ABNORMALITIES: Miniaturized arc reactor in chest. DISTINGUISHING MARKS(SCARS,MOLES): Tony’s got a couple of scars from his father childhood, some old track marks along the crease of his elbow from his wilder days, and a giant ass scar on his chest from the one a half two heart surgeries that goes from the middle of his sternum down to almost his belly button. SELF CARE(MAKE UP): Tony either looks like he hasn’t slept in days or put together, there’s no in between. The only thing he really keeps maintained is his goatee. Because he’s vain about it. FIRST IMPRESSION ON PEOPLE: He’s Tony Fucking Stark okay, people either want to be his friend for his money or to hurt him so they try to impress him. SKIN COLOR: White BODY TYPE/BUILD: TINY BABY, he’s also fit but not like Steve level of muscle.  DEFAULT EXPRESSION: Tony always looks done with everything when in public. POSTURE: Oooooooof, Tony pretends to take up as much space as physically possible while keeping his back protected and everyone in the room in his sight. PIERCINGS: He has a closed up earring hole. DESCRIBE THEIR VOICE: Steve’s voice has a subtle Brooklyn accent and takes on a softer tone than you’d expect out of him. His voice hardens and deepens when he goes in Captain mode.

RELATIONS:

MOM: Maria Stark HOW WELL DO THEY GET ALONG: Maria and Tony had a bond that was built off of both of them being abused by Howard. They’d stick up for each other when he got too hard on one of them and when Tony got older he started acting out more so Howard would take it out on him more rather than Maria. To this day, Maria is still one of the most important people in his life. DAD: Howard Stark HOW WELL DO THEY GET ALONG: HoWARD STARK CAN FUCKING CHOKE YOU DUMB ASS BITCH. Howard was not a good father, he was not Marvel can fight me. He was abusive and cold and distant and had his son kidnapped so that he wouldn’t break when it really happened. Howard’s better off fucking dead. SIBLINGS: Isabelle St. Martin (Half-Sister) HOW WELL DO THEY GET ALONG: Tony.........has no clue she’s his sister sorry. CHILDREN: Toni Stark, Morgan Stark, Peter Parker, and the Bots HOW WELL DO THEY GET ALONG: Tony’s kids are hIS LIFE. His biggest fear is turning into Howard so he treats them like they’re the best thing to happen to him (which they are). OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS: Edwin Jarvis (Father Figure), Peggy Carter (Adoptive Aunt) PAST LOVER(S): so MANY ONE NIGHT STANDS TONY PLEASE. CURRENT LOVER: Pepper Potts REACTION TO MEETING SOMEONE NEW: Tony’s analyzing what they want from him and why they’re talking to him, but he’s keeping up with the conversation and probably trying to see if he can make them hate him. ABILITY TO WORK WITH OTHERS: It depends on his mood, honestly. HOW SOCIABLE(LONER,ETC): Tony can be sociable, when he wants to. FRIENDS: Elise Burke, Bruce Banner, Peggy Carter, Thor, Nat, Clint, basically all of the Avengers. PETS: Ginny, a miniature poodle (who is also a service doggo for his anxIETY) LEAST FAVORITE TYPE OF PERSON: People who take advantage of him or use his tech for evil. PARENTAL TYPE(PROTECTIVE,ETC): THE BEST, his kids want something and they get it. FAVORITE PEOPLE: Pepper, Elise, Bruce, Morgan, Peter, Toni. LEAST FAVORITE PEOPLE: Steve, Justin Hammer, most of SHIELD.

PERSONALITY:

..WHEN YOU FIRST MEET THEM: ? Distant, Sarcastic, Pushy ..AS YOU KNOW THEM BETTER(AND THEY LIKE YOU): Warm, Loyal, Giving ..AS YOU KNOW THEM BETTER(AND THEY DISLIKE YOU): Cold, Mean, Closed-Off FAVORITE COLOR: Red FAVORITE FOOD: One of his mom’s old dishes or a Potts family recipe. FAVORITE ANIMAL: Cats (?) FAVORITE INSTRUMENT: Piano FAVORITE ELEMENT: Fire LEAST FAVORITE COLOR: None of them??? LEAST FAVORITE FOOD: Honestly, nothing. LEAST FAVORITE ANIMAL: Rats LEAST FAVORITE INSTRUMENT: Maybe a kazoo? Tony’s weird. LEAST FAVORITE ELEMENT: Earth HOBBIES: building things he shouldn’t be, hanging out with his kids, annoying Pepper in her office, sciencing with Bruce. USUAL MOOD: Honestly Tony’s eager to please so he wants people around, but HE ALSO DOESN’T WANNA SEEM TOO EAGER so like.......you have to come to him first.

DRINK/SMOKE/DRUGS: Not anymore. He used to do all three and stopped when he became Iron Man. Well, drinking stopped when he got together with Pepper. DARK VERSION OF SELF: OH FUCK. AN EVIL GENIUS. The entire world is metal and humans arE GONE. LIGHT VERSION OF SELF: hello see Tony thanks. Maybe less self-doubty and more willing to work with others. HOW SERIOUS ARE THEY: Tony can be serious if he wants to be, he just doesn’t want to be most of the time. BELIEVE IN GHOSTS: Nope. Science can’t explain it so they aren’t real :) (IN)DEPENDANT: Tony likes to pretend to be independant but CANNOT REMEMBER WHAT HE HAD FOR BREAKFAST. please help him. SOFT SPOT/VULNERABILITY: anybody hurting one of his kids or Pepper, failing the team, turning into Howard, people needing help in general. OPINION ON SWEARING: Will say fuck in front of a child if needed. Morgan probably knows a LOt of swear words. DAREDEVIL VS CAUTIOUS: Both??? He’s mostly just a menace to himself and lack self-preservation skills. MUSIC TYPE: Ear-shattering rock. MOVIE TYPE: .......Tony doesn’t watch movies he doesn’t have the attention span for them. BOOK TYPE: ..........i don’t see Tony as much of a reader either. Maybe scientific journals??? GAME TYPE: Tony can kick your ass at poker without even trying. COMFORTABLE TEMPERATURE: Tony likes it a little bit warmer than comfortable. The cold reminds him of the cave and being trapped in space :( SLEEPING PATTERN: .........tony stark..........sleep???? what. CLEANLINESS/NEATNESS: Tony is the cleanest messiest person you’ll ever meet. He never picks up after himself but IF YOU PICK UP ONE OF HIS TOOLS AND MOVE IT ANYWHERE IT THROWS OFF HIS ENTIRE SYSTEM.  DESIRED PET: who needs pets when kids keep showing up at your doorstep amiright HOW DO THEY PASS TIME: Bothering Pepper, hanging out with a kid of his, building up suits for the team. BIGGEST SECRET: Tony Stark has had three “suicide” attempts in his life and only one of them was intentional. HERO/WHO THEY LOOK UP TO: Everyone because he’s short.  His mom, Pepper, Steve to an extent. WHAT ANIMAL WOULD THEY BE: A cat. FEARS: BECOMING HOWARD, losing one of his kids or Pepper, space, failing the team. COMFORTS: Pepper’s shampoo, Morgan’s childlike scent, the smell of motor oil, being utterly surround by someone he loves.

HOW DO THEY ACT WHEN THEY ARE:

SAD: Tony bottles it all up until it spills out and he can’t control it anymore. He’s getting better about opening up about when he’s sad, but he WASN’T ALLOWED TO BE SAD when he was younger THANKS HOWARD. HAPPY: Talking fast and probably waving his arms around TOO MUCH, getting up in personal space, SARCASTIC JOKES ANGRY: OOOOOFFF, the cold creeps in and Tony shuts off all other emotions. He tends to let the anger control him and doesn’t think things through. AFRAID: Tony’s not allowed to show he’s afraid because FUCK HOWARD so he keeps it to himself. If it gets too bad he has panic attacks. LOVE SOMEONE: Everything you’ve ever been in debt for is suddenly paid off and you have a nice vacation to look forward to and ANYTHING ELSE YOU NEED he’s giving you thanks. HATE SOMEONE: Tony’s cold and distant and probably wishing he could blast them with a gauntlet. WANT SOMETHING: Tony will take whatever he wants, he was raised spoiled okay. CONFUSED: tony stark doesn’t get confused HOW DARE YOU.

HOW DO THEY REACT TO:

DANGER: If Tony’s in danger it’s no big deal, but if someone else is? He’s doing everything in his power to GET THEM OUT even if it means getting hurt in the process. SOMEONE THEY HATE WHO HAS A CRUSH ON THEM: Bitch bye, Tony doesn’t have time for people he hates. PROPOSAL TO MARRY: He’s already married sooooooooooo unless it’s Pepper he’s gonna say no. DEATH OF LOVED ONE: It depends on how close they were. But he’d probably hide away until the sadness went away unless someone makes him face it. DIFFICULT GAME/MATH/ETC: Tony will not rest until he’s solved it thanks. INJURY: Yeah no, Tony doesn’t tell anybody when he’s injured. He was literally dying and didn’t tell anyone so. SOMETHING IRRESISTABLY CUTE: My guess is Tony would want to make sure it’s taken care of. LOSS OF HOURS OF WORK: .............he’s sleeping with his boss so.

KNOWLEDGE:

LANGUAGES: English, Italian, knows conversational various other langauges. SCHOOLING LEVEL: He has 3 doctorates. FAVORITE SUBJECT (S): Science, Science, and more Science. INTERESTED CAREERS: An engineer or inventor. EXPERTISE: genius level intellect, master engineer, master scientist, master buinessman, pilot of the iron man suits PUZZLES: Puzzles take him a minute but the serum helps him figure them out rather quickly. CHEMISTRY: Tony likes making things explode and probably has a good understanding of chemistry. MATH: TONY LOVES MATH. ENGLISH: Tony can speak it but has NO interest in interpreting what authors were trying to say in books thanks. GEOGRAPHY: Who needs maps when you have an AI running everything? POLITICS/LAW: Tony knows about them, and probably participates in them.  ECONOMY/ACCOUNTING: yOU DON’T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT MONEY WHEN YOU’RE RICH. COOKING: Tony can cook three things: scrambled eggs, spaghetti, and cereal. That’s it. SEWING: No. MECHANICS: Tony rebuilds classic cars in his spare time the fucking nerd. BOTANY (FLOWERS): lol no MYTHOLOGY: Tony knows about the different mythologies but doesn’t really believe in them? Atheism is a thing. DRAMATICS(ACTING,SINGING): besides the fact that tony is a DRAMA QUEEN, no. READING LEVEL: WAY ABOVE AVERAGE HE GRADUATED CO LLEGE AT FI FTEEN. HOW GOOD ARE THEY AT PLANNING AHEAD: no. just.......no this why he has Jarvis and Pepper.

ROMANCE:

DO THEY TAKE INITIATIVE: YES he loves bothering Pepper when she’s busy and a l w a y s gets his way. HOW DO THEY ACT(SHY,ETC): .........he’s Tony Stark.....that’s enough right there. GENTLEMAN/LADYLIKE VS KLUTZY: Tony can be gentleman like when he’s done something he’s not supposed to (or when he wants something) but other than that HE’S A DEMON. GO SLOW VS JUMP INTO: he was used to going fast and doing the one night stand thing, but with Pepper it was easier to take things slow (and then go really fast once they realized how WELL they worked together). PROTECTIVE: Yes. ACT LIKE FRIENDS OR LOVERS:  B O T H. WHAT KIND OF PRESENTS DO THEY BUY: ......tony doesn’t buy presents because he forgets birthdays and anniversaries. TYPE OF KISSER: It depends on his mood and what he wants :) DO THEY WANT KIDS: He didn’t want them, but now he has a small army of them so. DO THEY WANT TO MARRY: he’s ALREADY MARRIED. MAKE GOOD OR BAD DECISIONS: Bad decisions are unintentionally made because Tony might be a genius but he’s a dumbass. ARE THEY ROMANTIC: Y E S. HOW ARE THEY IN BED: Tony Stark literally did one night stands and one night stands only. He’s A M A Z I N G in bed he knows how to treat Pepper the way she should be and how to take car eof his WIFE. GET JEALOUS EASY: nO.  WIFE/HUBBY BEATER: nOPE. MARRY FOR MONEY: tony IS MONEY. FAVORITE POSITION: HOnestly? Pepper on top. WHAT WOULD HAPPEN ON THEIR DREAM DATE: A five star hotel while someone takes care of Morgan so Pepper can just relax. They spent as much time as possible in bed or relaxing. OPINION ON SEX: Sex was always just something Tony thought he HAD to do because people wanted it from him. And then he realized it was fun so he kept doing it because WHY NOT. But with Pepper it’s different and he could never go back to the one night stand thing. He likes the intimacy of sex with someone who cares about you beyond just getting off. 

[70swonderpoisonstark]

Poison. ( I )

Villain’s are people too, are they not? (Y/N) is taking the “home grown” terror title a little too seriously. You’re really really bad, until you meet a certain super soldier who makes you consider a career change. It’s a lengthy process, but you’re willing if it’s for the right reasons. Maybe you’re not so bad after all? 

//basically poison ivy and a little bit of bane but with marvel characters?? I'd be original but I love her and them so much so sorry. also some changes, idk I'm making them my own but completely based of the DC characters SNS. Nickname Ivy, real name, yours duh!//

***this is my first attempt at fanfic so any feedback is welcome! I love all these characters dearly so, here goes nothing! Hope you enjoy***

A/N: Violence, language, crime. I’ll update these as the chapters come out

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

"The target goes by Green. Keep your eyes open, he's known for causing mass chaos surrounding the area of interest."

"Got it, Nat." Steve looked at his left, nodding at his friend, they'd been tracking 'Green' down for months. You had to hand it to the bastard, he was good. No matter where he was, what he did, how much he stole or how many people he killed. They never found him, couldn't even connect the same man to any of the crimes. Nothing, he was almost as elusive as the Winter Soldier. Whether it was hiding in plain sight, or moving in the shadows, this particular villain was intense.

Bucky scanned the room for anything that looked suspicious, hesitant movements, shaky voices, eye contact that lingered for a second too long. Every man in the luxury club looked confident, and you could tell nobody thought the two super soldiers looked out of place in their suits and leather shoes. The boys sipped on their single malt scotch, glancing over their shoulders occasionally.

"Anything on your end?" Steve whispered into his drink.

"Still nothing." Falcon's eye's ran across the crimson screens, was their intel wrong? These scenes were never this quiet, especially for this long. "Wait, what about the big guy? Your 3 o'clock.

Bucky slowly turned his head, locating the person Sam had mentioned, he pretended to to laugh a joke Steve hadn't made as he checked the man in question. He was tall, extremely handsome, and big. Not in a too many cheeseburgers big either, big as in a hasn't stopped weight lifting since birth way.

"He's wearing a huge emerald ring, could be him. No other signs, anything on facial recognition?"

"Hiya boys, drinkin something strong?" A redhead with curves like a country road slid up between the two of them, cancelling the response by Sam, and catching Steve completely off guard. "You okay there, love? I didn't mean to scare ya. Just thought you two looked a little lonesome." You motioned to your surroundings with your elegant hands, twirling alongside your silk gown. "This place is so cliquey, hard to fit in unless you're a blonde with a nice rack." Steve hung on to your every word, life went in slow motion as you talked, his blood boiled as you touched his shoulder to get to the bar, talking casually as you order a double something with some type of juice.

"Earth to Steve, hello? Steve, it's just a woman, focus on the target." But Steve couldn't, something about you was mesmerizing, as if your touch alone could heal 70 years worth of pain. He held on to the conversation, saying anything he thought would prolong it.

"Y-You're not blonde." He sputtered out, he could see Bucky physically cringe at his words. How could he care, the most breathtaking woman he'd ever seen was actually paying attention to him, and with no idea who he really was.

"You're a sharp one," your giggle made Steve feel like he was floating. He looked across at his friend, who after teasing him about his word vomit, was just as entranced as he was. Actually, now that he's paying attention, the whole place was fascinated with you. "If only all the men here were as charming as you." You placed your elbows on the bar, leaning back to get a good look of the scene in front of you.

Bucky couldn't believe his eyes, the green silk was almost reflective under the luminescent lights of the club, the fabric hanging loosely off your curves, highlighting every tantalizing contour. If he didn't have years of self control under his belt, he'd had reached out and touched you to make sure you were real. You blew out a deep sigh, causing Bucky to smell roses and divert any lingering attention back on this wonder of a woman.

"What were the names of you two boys again?" Her voice drawing them nearer like the song of a siren, they answered without hesitation. "Oh, James and Steve? Classic names for classy men." A quick wink was all it took for the super soldiers to melt at your feet. "And, what do you want more than anything right now?" You sung.

"You." They both said in unison, forgetting the other was there.

"Well, I can't give myself to you both. That just wouldn't be right, hm?" A slow nod no from each man. "Hmm, Captain America. America's golden boy WOULD, be fun to rot." You ran your delicate hand across his strong chin, your touch warm and inviting. "However," You made a quick turn towards Bucky, making him take an extra swig of liquor. "Dark and twisty Romanian seems to know how to really use his hands," You glided behind him, draping your arms over his shoulders, leaning into his ear and whispered, "I've seen the knife work honey, nobody has hands like THAT anymore." You popped back up and spoke to where Steve could now listen in, "Then again, I be the serum DID have its effects on Private Rogers too." The childish giggle that escaped your lips made their hearts beat faster and stronger, adrenaline pumping throughout their systems as they awaited another word from a seemingly flawless stranger. "I think it would be to difficult for me to chose on my own," A slight pause that lasted only seconds but continued for what felt like hours. "so I won't. I'm sure you strong, sensible men can find a civilized way to sort this out. Until then," You began to turn around, your hair flowing seamlessly around your shoulders and your eyes glinting in the strobes. "I'll be waiting for one of you, over here." You beamed at them, how could somebody so innocent be so intoxicating at the same time? Steve stared at Bucky, and Bucky at Steve, desire and lust driving them mad they puffed their chest up, and stood.

"She wasn't that into you Steve, just sit this one out, like old times yeah?" Bucky knew you wanted him, he could feel it in his core, Steve didn't stand a chance.

"I think you need to sit down and try to remember what actually just happened, Buck. She talked to me the whole time YOU were just in the background. You've lost some of your charm, I'm sure you'll get the next one." Steve flashed his million dollar smile, clamped a hand on Bucky's shoulder and began to stride over to his girl when Bucky's hand wrapped around his elbow.

"I've lost my charm? That's what you think? You sit there drooling like a damn dog and I'M the one who's lost it?" Bucky couldn't help but be angry, you were a beautiful dame, and Steve had enough of those to go around, now the one time a lady was actually interested in him HE had to have her? There wasn't a way in hell where Bucky was going to allow that.

"Yes Bucky, I think a bit of your charm must have melted after they defrosted you for the sixth time. Now get lost while the functioning adults talk, would ya?" FUNCTIONING?! BUCKY WAS FUNCTIONING JUST FINE- OH- RED. red. All Bucky could see was red as the next few moments unfolded. He leapt for Steve, knocking him down with the unplanned blow, tackling him on the hardwood floor. Steve knew an attack when he saw him and immediately fought back.

"You don't think I'm functioning?! I'll show you a functioning can of whoop ass you fucking science experiment!" Bucky yelled in between grunts and punches. The two of them were so evenly matched it was hard to tell if either was really doing any damage. Punches were landing, blood was showing, Bucky had gotten Steve in the gut and the face a number of times, however Steve landed a lucky blow to the back of Bucky's knee, causing him to collapse in a kneeling position. Even then the fighting still went on, Steve's nose was most definitely broken, along with a couple of Bucky's ribs. Physical contact was no longer doing enough for the men to express their anger, Bucky grabbed a whiskey bottle from behind the bar and crushed it across Steve's face, shattering the glass, slicing open his cheek, and almost knocking out America's most famous patriot.

"Oh you're going to pay for that one, James." As if Bucky gave a shit, Steve using his first name was usually cause for Bucky to be worried something was wrong, but now, a total KO was all Bucky had on his mind. The two continued to forcefully lay their hands on each other. Finally, the other had let their guard down just enough to see their girl of the evening, Steve and Bucky both wound up for the perfect sucker punch, just one hit till they both got the girl of their dreams and WHAM. Both of them made contact with the others cheek, and simultaneously collapse on the ground, the last thing either of them seeing, was a giant bag of cash, and the entire club in chaos.

[angrypedestrian]

THE TIME IDIOTS EPISODE 405 TITLED “No.” MY THOUGHTS:

Okay so first off fuck octopi. They are an abomination to god and are not to be trusted! 

Tentacles are BAD for reasons other than hentai! 

but hentai is reason enough!

Octopuses can fucking walk ON LAND 

they are SMARTER THAN US 

they can fit their big blob bodies into holes the size of a QUARTER 

BEAKS

their beady little eyes know too much!

This is all to say that I just don’t like them i don’t like them AT ALL

Keto i am SUING

But other than wow what a great episode!

i’m going to need to watch a second time to get all the emotions because i’m watching in a crowded room, but holy shit Keto

i’m still suing bc of tentacles, but for SIGNIFICANTLY less emotional damages than i would have otherwise

first OFF fuck you for reminding me of mick’s romance novel

Second: please don’t be racist, please don’t be racist, please don’t be racist, please don’t be racist

i don’t have high hopes

huh they actually weren’t super racist?

good job?

I am watching yet again with my old roommates and once again they are perplexed as to what is happening

also i am only hearing every other thing that is being said

what the fuck u doing in reston nora

THERE IS NOTHING FOR YOU THERE NORA

oh fuck sara is both enraged and immediately aroused by charlie drinking her booze

MAISIE IS HAVING SO MUCH FUN I LOVE HER

Back at the combination taco bell/time bureau

CHUPACABRA

WHERE IS MOTHMAN

I DEMAND MOTHMAN

Thanksgiving is a national trans nightmare

once again ava and nate are the only true solidarity on this show

These fucking OUTFITS

godDAMMIT why don’t they go back to the 50s more often

also if you think i’m not thinking about Kendra and Sara you are WRONG

oh boy oh boy the TENSION between charlie and sara is off the charts!

fucking TENTACLES

the whole show needs to be cleansed

oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck this is GAY zari

the tension between the two of them is pre hiatus levels last year between sara and ava

the ren faire

my friend: “we went there!”

nora should murder everyone

she’s gonna murder everyone

look at how VALIANT ray is!

this is what heterosexuality should be! TAKE NOTE HETEROSEXUALS

trans solidarity in action!

ava: family is...terrible. y’know there is nothing wrong with being a clone

dot: do you know nate’s husbands? where are they today?

ava: i am leaving and getting dinner at fucking le diplomate i have EARNED it

(sadly le diplomate is CLOSED on thanksgiving i know i checked bc i am in dc by myself for thanksgiving)

(am i clone? Maybe!)

gary why are you at work?

IT’S A FEDERAL HOLIDAY

Mona is the most adorable person alive

and gary is the most bisexual boy

this is another post for another time but I love gary’s bisexuality

this is GR8

welp kuasa doesn’t need that leather jacket, here you go courtney!

recycling wardrobe is eco friendly! we’re saving the earth! it definitely isn’t because we have no money!

sara: bold of you to assume we have ever read a book before

zari: i read mick’s romance novel!

sara: what?

zari: what?

listen dude you just HAD to bring your tentacle hentai to life

nate: now you’re a true trans ava sharpe, welcome to the club, have several more drinks

ray: i have taken another husband and you must save him!

nora: like i’m down with the poly thing, but i have some limits

mona and gary are now where my heart lies i love them deeply

how did gary get hired

how did that interview go?

who did it? rip?

i have so many questions that will never get answered

again

mona NO you’re gonna get ruined by the time idiots

a...magical transfusion

i hate this show

ava : i know how family works now i got this

mona is a badass

sorry yr gonna get turned into a werewolf girl

zari: it pains me to say this but i...read

i can’t believe i am UNCOOL now

I HATE THE TENTACLE MONSTER

my friend: i feel like anyone could get cast on this show. I could get cast on this show.

me: you could! please dream bigger than that

this cgi ain’t the worst its ever been tho

magic is actually just a series of tubes!

ava: you do? religion? at this holiday?

grace yes?

not related to to this episode but my friends are planning our new year’s eve party and it’s going to be 20-bi-teen themed

just so you all know

we are very excited

this fight scene is upsetting on every level

oh shit mick finally got a canon love scene

...good for him

charlie was into it and there is a lot to unpack there!

but like live yr truth

sara...cleaning? she’s finally...a real adult?

how many sets of glassware does this ship fucking have?

time travel: saving family dinners since 2015

that husband and wife are gonna make out and it’s gonna be GREAT

god they’re a hot fucking couple

i need to see the line budget for this episode where the fuck did this money come from???

TOM WILSON WHY ARE YOU EVIL

[renaroo]

SO... about that Titans Trailer...

Okay, so I wasn’t. Planning on giving this a review but then I watched it and you gave me an excuse. So. Here we are.

I hate teen drama shows but I live with my younger sister this summer so I’m constantly hearing them in the background and I know that I’ve not heard this weird song before but I also know that they allllllllllllll sound like this so there’s already. That creeping sense of 

Oh fuck it’s Riverdale isn’t it

Like. Costume design for superhero shit isn’t easy, you’ve got classic superhero looks that are purposefully garish and meant to stand out while celebrated costumes in visual mass media are toned down and realistic, fitting the style of setting. You can honor both traditions at the same time, what it requires is picking a color temperature for your set’s lights that are less noir mood piece and more lit like a musical. I actually think Moulin Rouge! is a movie where the cinematography deserves more credit for getting that mood balance because it’s definitely what I think of when I’m thinking of ideal lighting and color palettes for superhero live action. 

Marvel’s gotten a little better at figuring this out in the post-Iron Man 3 movies but they went a little too flat and bright in the first Avengers and too drab and dull in movies like the first Thor and the first Captain America.

The whole reason I’m thinking of this is because DC has never once figured this out save for Wonder Woman which had its coloring saved by choosing a sepia-esque lighting that wasn’t Sn*der-saturated so that Wondy’s costume and Themyscira in general popped while the warfront was still diferentiated but earth tones. I would actually point to DCEU movies being the pennacle of trying too hard for realism to the point of being visually embarrassed by their motifs. Which is also why the CGI rendering is always horrible in their movies. Suicide Squad was a little better but almost bipolar in how it snapped abck and forth between color saturation.

Anyway, this is a TV show and you would think that because TV shows are lower budget and more closed sets generally that this would actually be an advantage for the iconically colorful Titans teams because they’re likely to have warmer and flatter lighting choices. Except teen dramas lately haven’t been about that. They’re much darker and “more serious” and they mostly demonstrate that by darkening the lights and having everything go to dark blues with light temperature. That might work well in some places but it’s not good if you have multiple characters you want to show off with different color schemes that are wildly different from each other let alone from the blues. You can do it, but usually that involves introducing additional light sources to combat the darker lights, which is why in our Riverdale case study you have neons show up a lot, especially at Pop’s restaurant. Those neons introduce a “natural” secondary color and lighting source that helps make different hues exist more naturally in the environment without being garish and misplaced. 

I can tell that at no time is this show going to put an iota of thought into any of this sort of detail because in this BLUE ASS SHOT of this trailer they have Raven’s purple hair look like it’s been photoshopped in by me -- they managed to make an already cool color like purple look unnatural in a scene that has cool temperature lighting. This is going to be shot like complete shit isn’t it. 

What time am I at--

FIFTEEN SECONDS???

Dick’s a police officer so that’s a positive. I like the actor’s smile too, he looks just. Very Dick Grayson-- hahahahahahahahahhaahahahahahahahahahahahaha

oh my god

oh my god.  Was that supposed to be Robin jumping over rooftops in the background. Is that what that was. IT WAS AN UNMOVING BLUR. IT JUST KINDA WAS DRAGGED ACROSS THE SCREEN I CAN’T--

Oh jesus. Did Dick Grayson just step on someone’s neck and break-- FUCK BATMAN

FUCK BATMAN

HAHHAHAHA

HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA

I was wrong -- all that shit I started with? Obviously I was overthinking. This is a glorious comedy.

Okay all that aside we get rapid montage which is supposed to wow us with cameos for DC diehards and impress us with the quality of composition of shots and the special effects quality for people like my sister who don’t care about Comic Con because I’m playing trailers loudly on my laptop while she’s rewatching Pretty Little Life of the Secret American Teenage Drama Queen. 

It does none of these things. It’s no longer a comedy, it’s depressing because all that shit I said about the colors and mood lighting and temperature increases rapidly when you have terrible CGI transformations Beast Boy and... fire spouting... Starfire. Hm. Someone took that name a little literally didn’t they. 

Wait

Is that Dove. From Hawk and Dove? Killing people?

Um. I mean none of these characters save for Starfire and Raven are really all that down with killing under any circumstances in comics but Dove in particular... like why have Dove as part of the team if you’re not going to bother with the Avatar of Peace part and the eternal conflict ongoing of wanting to use tremendous powers while promoting nonviolence. I know this is something I tend to care more about than most people with superheroes, but that’s literally the only reason to have Dove in anything ever. A great example would be the single Justice League Unlimited episode involving Hawk and Dove which tackles that exactly. 

Who makes these live action decisions for DC. Is it Joffrey Johns? I bet it’s him. It has to be on some level. 

Oh my god this music is so bad. I listened to nothing but emo music for a solid 18 months of my life and my favorite band to this day is Nightwish and I find this unbearable. 

I 

what

Evil inside of me I kinda like it. I mean. I guess. That is... a conflict for Raven to have sure.... But it’s also way more boring and tedious than it was in the 80s? Like. There’s five million supernatural teenage dramas that have already done that exact conflict But With Vampires or But With Werewolves. I should know! My sister watches them in the background! I know all about Diaries of the Teen Dog Vampire. 

I’m hip

Oh and that scream. Okay, so also in film there’s this thing called a sound board and there’s a lot of cheap, royalty free sound mixes and noises that if you pay attention to editing and sound design there’s some sounds that have been really overplayed in media lately because people are too cheap to have their foley artist record a sound for themselves. 

That scream that Raven just did that you know you’ve heard before is one of those and there’s nothing wrong with it I guess it just. makes everything about this feel cheap. The writing’s cheap. The characterization’s cheap. The lightning’s cheap. The character design is cheap. This god awful song is cheap. 

they broke the glass

THEY BROKE GLASS. IS THAT FOR ME? WAS THAT MEANT TO MAKE ME FEEL BETTER BECAUSE THEY BROKE GLASS IN THE TRAILER. alright fine two points to Gryffindor. 

That puts them at -80 so everyone clap

Welp that was definitely a Thing I watched. Hope everyone enjoyed this educational review.

[darkdreamer253]

JayTim Week - Day 2: Time Travel

Title: Time to Save You

Rating: Teen & Up

Fandom: Batman, DC

Characters: Jason Todd, Tim Drake

Warnings/Tags: Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, Time Slips, Major Character Death(Implied), Child Neglect(Implied), Foster Care, Underage Smoking, Mild Language, Runaway, No Capes AU

Summary:  Jason Todd and Tim Drake met in an unprecedented way. They found each other in a time slip, three years apart. When Tim learns that Jason is going to die, he tries to find a way to save him.

Notes: This was a much bigger project than I anticipated, and got done really late. There was a preview before, but once I finished it, I deleted and reposted the original post with this version. That’s also why it’s out of order. If you saw the preview, I suggest reading the new version. It’s much better and wasn’t rushed.

External Link: Archive of Our Own

Timothy Drake met Jason Todd in a very unprecedented way. Jason lived next door to him, and the windows on the first floor of their houses had small awnings that almost touched.

Tim would sit out there to think, Jason would sit out there to smoke. The two met on those small awnings, separated by a gap barely five feet wide. The two would never really talk when it first started, both just doing what they did before going back inside.

It was a week before Jason got the first word in. Tim tried to catch himself whenever he stared at Jason, the guy was pleasing to the eye after all. However, one time he hadn't stopped himself as Jason commented with an exhale of smoke.

“Are you gonna just stare at me all day or are you gonna say something?”

It had startled Tim, he'd never expected Jason to notice or talk about it, but his face flushed now as he was caught.

“Sorry, I just… you're pretty handsome,” it was all Tim could think to say, but it wasn't much of an excuse.

Jason now met Tim's eyes, a sly smug plastered across his face,” Oh, am I? Pretty bold of you to say.”

Tim hadn't thought about it that way until Jason's comment, his cheeks flushing more from the embarrassment. “I-I… I didn't mean it that way, I just--”

His stammering words were cut off by a low chuckle from Jason. “Relax, kid, I was only messing with you.”

“Actually, I think we're the same age,” Tim corrects Jason, who took another drag off his cigarette.

“No shit,” Jason looked genuinely surprised about this information,” You're older than you look, kid. Want a light?”

“No, I don't smoke,” Tim waved off the carton Jason offered as he answered,” I've been coming out here for more than a week without ever lighting a cigarette, why would you think I want one now? Plus, I'm not old enough, which you should know.”

“Don't care about the age, just thought maybe you're a once in a while kinda guy,” Jason's shoulders shrugged as he explained his thinking.

“Well, I'm not that kind of guy,” Tim deadpanned at the other teen.

“Then what kinda guy are you?” Jason waggled his eyebrows at him as he asked.

Tim connected the dots as he realized this was Jason's ‘subtle’ way of trying to get to know him. It made Tim's face flush again at the thought of a cute guy wanting to get to know him. Names were exchanged for the first time shortly after and their conversations continued for many days, the two becoming very close up on those awnings.

It had been a couple of weeks when they started talking that Tim began to notice something strange. First, he tried to visit the house one day. He didn't want it to seem weird that he wanted to see Jason on more than just an awning, and had come up with a good excuse. He had one of Jason's favorite books, one he hadn't gotten around to reading, and was going to say he wanted to read it with him where it wouldn't be damaged.

After the third knock when nobody answered, a woman next door working on her garden piped up,” No one lives there, hasn't for quite some time.”

“What?”

“Yeah, ever since the accident the house has been vacant. The family that lived there wasn't the best off and left shortly after it happened. Whole thing was tragic really.”

Tim thanked the woman and headed back to his own house next door, not sure what to think. Eventually, he decided the woman must have gotten the houses mixed up, because he knew Jason lived there. He must have simply not been home. He met Jason up on the awning later that day and decided to ask him.

“Actually, I live here with my foster family,” Jason spoke between drags of his cigarette,” My dad is in jail and my mom is an addict who can't take care of me, so social services decided I would be better off in the system. Which is bullshit, the whole thing is. None of the kids here want this shit. They want a family, not temporary living.”

“Well, then maybe they weren't home earlier? No one answered the door.”

“They just don't like visitors unless it's a government official coming to give them a check,” Jason explained,” They're not bad people, they take care of us, they just only do it to get the money.”

“Oh.” Tim couldn't come up with a better response. He wasn't sure what to say after hearing that, but he was a bit upset that he would never really be able to see Jason anywhere but on top of the awnings.

Jason must have picked up on it, because he spoke again in a reassuring tone,” Hey, don't worry about it. In three years, I'll be able to get out of this shit hole and live on my own.”

That didn't really raise Tim's spirits, but he tried not to let it get to him too much. He decided not to bother asking about whatever accident that woman was talking about, she was clearly wrong. Instead, he decided to tell Jason about the book he planned on reading and the subject changed quickly, Jason clearly excited about sharing the story with Tim.

It was another month before Tim noticed the second weird thing. It was another day out on the awning and Tim had started another book Jason suggested that Tim hadn't read, having already finished the first. Jason usually started off the conversation by asking about how far Tim had gotten, but not today.

“Man, can you believe the shit that happened across the street last night?”

“Why, what was last night?”

“You mean to tell me you didn't hear that? Shit, the cops were so loud I thought they'd wake up the whole fucking neighborhood.”

“I didn't hear anything about it,” Tim was a bit concerned now,” What happened?”

“Apparently it was a drug bust,” Jason told him,” Woke up just about everyone. Your mom was out there, I talked to her--”

“Wait,” Tim couldn't help but interrupt Jason,” My dad and I moved out here because the family funds started to decline after my mother's death. It couldn't be my mom you talked to. Maybe one of the neighbors?”

“She said she lived there,” Jason looked worried now,” Fuck, I hope you didn't get robbed or some shit. I thought she lived there so I didn't stop her when she went into your fucking house. God, I'm so fucking stupid.”

“It's alright, we didn't get robbed,” Tim tried not to seem worried as well,” She must have left after realizing this wasn't her house, because nothing is missing. Still a bit weird that I slept through a drug bust.”

“Maybe your a strong sleeper?” Jason suggested as though that were a real answer.

The whole thing didn't sit well with Tim, why did one of their neighbors think she lived there? And how did he sleep through something so loud? It ate at him and so he decided to look it up, but what he found was surprising. The only thing he found about a drug bust across the street happened three years ago.

He thought maybe it was a practical joke on Jason's part, though Jason didn't seem like the type to use something so serious as a joke. He didn't want to think the worst of Jason like that, but he also couldn't come up with any other reason why Jason would bring it up.

So he decided not to confront Jason about it. After all, there was no harm done. Instead, he just continued like nothing happened, growing closer and closer to Jason with time. He started to realize that this was more than just friendship for him as he started going out there more, excited to see Jason everyday.

He felt stupid that they never bridged the gap between the awnings. It was Jason who suggested they didn't, 'more romantic that way’ were the exact words he used. Tim knew he was joking, but to him it really was romantic going out there and talking to Jason everyday.

He just wished that it could be more. That he could jump over there and hug him, or hold his hand, or just be close to him. But it was always Jason who suggested they live in their separate worlds, close but never close enough.

It had been almost a year of this when Tim finally got the last piece of weird information that put the whole puzzle together. He noticed a well-dressed woman in front of Jason's house, putting Flowers on the side of the road. It made him think back to the accident the neighbor had mentioned, though he hadn't really thought about it since that day. He decided to ask her about it, standing near the edge of the curb to talk to her.

“Hi, sorry, I noticed you were putting flowers here, I wanted to ask about what happened.”

“Oh, of course,” she seemed to compose herself, wiping her cheek and straightening her button-up,” I was the case worker for the foster family that used to live here. A few months before you moved in, one of them was hit by a car. The couple who cared for the boy were distraught, and felt they weren't fit to care for the children anymore. They asked for them to be moved elsewhere. They left the house after all the kids were gone, I don't think they could afford it anymore.”

Tim’s brows furrowed, unsure of how to process the new information. “Was there another foster family living here before the one that's here now?”

“No, you must be mistaken. This house has been empty since the accident. No one lives there now.”

“But I know one the kids who lives there,” Tim was insistent now, trying to make heads or tails of what this woman was telling him,” I talk to him everyday, you must know him if you work in foster care. His name is Jason Todd.”

The woman looks awestruck for a moment before anger takes over her features. “Is this some sort of joke?”

“What do you mean?”

“Jason Todd was killed in a car accident,” she explained, hot tears now running down her cheeks,” I came here to leave flowers because he died one year ago today. I don't think it's funny that you're joking around about this.”

Tim didn't know how to respond to the information. Jason Todd has been dead for a year. Even as it ran through his head so many times, he still couldn't believe it. The woman stormed off as he tried to process everything he just learned about Jason. He wondered how he even met Jason in the first place. Was he a ghost or was something else going on? It was only when he thought about the drug bust Jason mentioned that he started to realize what might be going on. It made him doubt and think about skipping a day with Jason, but he decided it would be better to ask him about all this.

He wasn't sure how to bring it up once he was out there, letting Jason talk for awhile before he confronted him,” Do you remember that drug bust you mentioned last year?”

“Jesus, that was a while ago,” Jason snuffed out his cigarette as if to give Tim his full attention,” Yeah, I remember. Why are you bringing that up now?”

“It happened four years ago according to the news articles,” it seems Tim had lost Jason as a look of sheer confusion was all he saw,” This might seem like a weird question, but what year is it?”

“2013. Look, Tim, what is this about? Are you trying to mess with me? 'Cause this shit isn't funny.”

“It's not 2013 though, it's 2016,” Tim still couldn't believe what he heard, but it proved exactly what he thought,” The house you live in has been empty for about a year, ever since one of the foster kids living there died.”

“The fuck?” Jason was on his feet now, pure rage the only thing on his features. “That's not fucking funny, Timmy. I think I'd know if one of my siblings died or if my family moved out of my fucking house. This is some fucked up shit and you need to stop.”

Jason usually used the more childish name to tease Tim, knowing that it got under his skin to have a name that sounded like a ten year old. It wasn't meant to be teasing this time, Tim had never seen Jason so mad, even after a bad day with his foster family.

“I never said it was one of your siblings,” Tim stared intently into Jason's eyes,” It wasn't one of them who died. It was you, Jason. You're the one who died, last year in 2015.”

Jason went wide-eyed and then ground his teeth. “This isn't fucking funny anymore. I'm not fucking playing this sick game. I'm gonna come over there and your gonna have three seconds to explain yourself before I hurt you.”

Tim was expecting the anger, he just wasn't expecting it to be this bad. Jason approached the gap, ready to jump it without a second thought. The second he moved across the gap, he was gone. No angry, much bigger than him teen looming above him. The space where he'd been was just empty. Tim wondered if that was part of the deal. If they could meet and talk across time, but never actually be close enough to touch despite the small gap. Tim took the opportunity to move to the other awning.

The window opened, left unlocked from whoever was in the room last and he absently wondered if it was Jason. It opened into an empty hall, before he numbly moved through the rest of the house. Everything was the same, all the rooms empty. Seeing it first hand was something completely different than hearing it from other people. The house was abandoned after the death of the person he'd gotten to know so well. He found himself crying in there, thinking of Jason who he only just now realized that he was probably in love with.

He went back to his own awning after composing himself, looking back to see Jason leaning up against the side of his house. He was holding his legs to his chest like a scared child, something Tim had never seen him do. Jason had always been too tough for that sort of thing.

“You fucking disappeared,” Jason was quiet and didn't move when he spoke,” I thought it was a fucking joke and then you were just fucking gone. I wasn't even angry anymore, I just wanted to know where you went. I knocked on the door, but you weren't inside, just that lady from before. She said she lived alone, that there was no Tim Drake who lived there. What the hell is going on, Tim?”

“Have you ever heard of time slips?” Jason's look told him that it was a stupid question and he continued,” I think these awnings, for some reason, are in a time slip. That we're meeting across two different times, three years apart.”

“That doesn't make any fucking sense,” Jason moved a bit now, letting his legs slide away, allowing Tim to see his face,” I mean, why the fuck would this shit happen to us? I just learned I'm going to fucking die in two years and I can't even fucking do a goddamn thing about it. I can't even fucking touch you.”

“Maybe you can,” Tim suggested and Jason looked at him like he was crazy,” I mean, we haven't actually tried, maybe we can still touch.”

Tim reached out his hand across the gap, stretching it about half of the way. He asked Jason,” Can you still see it?”

“Yeah, I can,” Jason answered, staring at the outstretched limb like it might vanish if he looked away.

It took Jason awhile before he reached out his own hand, meeting Tim's in the middle. The hands looked as though they were touching, but Tim could feel nothing against his skin. There was no feeling of another person there, just the empty air.

“Well, it was worth a shot,” Tim pulled his hand back to his side,” But who knows? Maybe we'll find a way eventually. Maybe this is happening to us because I'm supposed to figure out a way to bridge that gap and save you.”

“Maybe.”

Jason sounded like he didn't believe that and he didn't talk the rest of the time they were out there. Tim went in when it started getting a little too cold to handle, but Jason didn't budge. Tim went in through his window and looked out as he closed it, only to see Jason wasn't there despite the fact that he definitely hadn't moved. It was going to take some time to get used to this new revelation, but Tim didn't want to give this up.

Over the next months, Jason tested the boundaries of their time slip extensively, seeming intent on meeting Tim on the other side of the gap. Tim didn't complain, he liked that Jason seemed up for anything to see if he could get to Tim.

Jason had found out that as long as he was still touching his own awning, he could stretch himself across the gap to Tim's own and Tim could still see him. When he tried to use a board to get across, however, he disappeared the second both feet touched the new surface. Jason had tried taking a small piece of shingle with him before jumping over to Tim. That drew the conclusion that once something was removed, it was no longer actually part of the awning.

Jason had thrown a couple of books across the gap to Tim, ones he had in his room. Yet when Tim tried to throw something to him, only Tim could see it sitting on the awning. Tim figured it was because the object didn't technically exist in Jason's time, so he couldn't actually touch it, while anything from Jason's time would still exist in his.

Jason kept trying, no matter how many times he failed to reach Tim's awning with Tim still being there. It was actually admirable how hard Jason tried, though Tim was working on his own project.

He'd been looking up time slips and how they worked, in order to figure out a way to save Jason's life. He could never find anything conclusive, mostly stories and theories without solid evidence. Whatever was happening between him and Jason was something unique.

It had been another a year since they found out about the time slip that Tim noticed Jason had stopped trying to bridge the gap. He never tried anything new, not really doing anything else they tested either. He also talked less and mostly just sat there while Tim did the talking.

“What is up with you lately?” Tim confronted Jason after almost a month of the cold shoulder. “Did I do something wrong? You're not trying to cut yourself off because you know that it's almost time, are you?”

Jason didn't say a word, just took another deep inhale of his cigarette. Tim had noticed he'd been smoking more too. He wondered where he even got the cigarettes since he wasn't old enough to buy them, but didn't think on that too much.

“You're never this quiet for this long,” Tim pressed the subject,” Come on, Jason, just tell me what's wrong.”

“Everything is wrong, okay?” Jason practically shouted, the first words he'd said to Tim in some time. “There's a clock ticking down over my head and I don't want to drag you down with me. I mean, aren't you tired of it? Of knowing that I'm gonna disappear one day without ever really meeting you? Without giving you a real goodbye?”

“A real goodbye?” Tim wasn't sure about Jason's meaning, but he'd clearly struck on the core of the subject as the teen across from him flinched at the question.

“Shit, I didn't mean to say it like that,” Jason didn't meet Tim's eyes now as he continued,” I mean, I don't even know if that's what you want, I was pushing what I want onto you.”

“What do you want, Jason?”

The question had Jason visibly shaking. It was clear that there was something he wanted to say, but he was too scared to say it. Tim didn't push him, knowing that he would say it when he was ready.

“Fuck, I mean, I didn't want to tell you like this,” Jason ran a hand through his hair,” Not sure I wanted to tell you at all after finding out we can't even touch. After all, I can't really give you anything and I'm gonna die before I even get the chance to.”

Tim hated it when Jason got on the subject of his death. Jason could rant on for hours about how fucked up it was and it always hurt Tim to see him like that. He hadn't found a way to save him yet, but he wasn't going to stop looking. But right now, he just looked at Jason, ushering him to continue without pressuring him by forcing it out of him.

“I've been thinking about you a lot lately,” Jason finally said, as if that answered all of Tim's questions,” And I think I'm fucking head over goddamn heels for you, but I can't do shit about it.”

Tim was silent, sure that his hear that stopped beating and his throat had closed off. He was sure he was going to die from those words, sure that he must have imagined it because why would Jason Todd like him? He was just a scrawny little nerd with nothing going for him and Jason could probably have anyone he wanted.

“Jesus fuck, are you still with me kid?” Tim was roused from his trance by Jason's voice. “I knew you probably wouldn't swing that way, but I didn't think you'd just stop talking to me either.”

Tim hadn't thought of a response, hadn't even thought he'd truly heard what Jason said. He needed to say something, but he had no idea what. Thoughts ran through his head, but none of them left his lips. He just sat there as Jason probably thought that Tim hated him for his confession.

“Well, guess I'll just stop bothering you then,” Jason looked disappointed as he turned and opened his window.

“I love you,” Tim forced the words from his throat when Jason had one leg through the open window, about to disappear from Tim's life until the next time he came out onto that awning.

Jason pulled back out, closing the window behind him. He sat back down and stared at Tim silently, as if the explanation were just written on Tim's face.

“I mean, at least I feel like I do,” Tim provided, tense thinking about what Jason might say to this,” I think I've known for a little while. I've definitely had a crush on you for a long time, but I realized I'm pretty sure it's love shortly after we found out we're in a time slip.”

“Well fuck, guess we really fucked up then.”

“Yeah, I guess we did,” Tim laughed a bit,” Falling in love with someone you can't touch. We must be the stupidest people on the planet.”

Jason laughed with him and the tension Tim felt from his confession eased away.

“So what now? Where do we go from here? I'm gonna die in a few months and we've never even held hands, let alone kissed.”

“I don't know.” Tim wasn't sure he could answer that question. He wanted nothing more than to jump over there and hold Jason, but he knew that was impossible.

Jason slid to the end of the awning, holding his hand out towards Tim. Tim followed suit, getting his hand close enough to touch Jason, but not feeling anything. He wondered if he stretched a bit more that his hand would go straight through Jason's, like it was an illusion.

Jason's hand dropped before he could try, not that he wanted to. He preferred to believe that Jason was really there, not somewhere Tim could never reach him. He wished it were that simple.

“I'm working on the whole 'going to die’ thing,” Tim told him, letting his own hand fall,” I've been thinking about it a lot actually, but I'm still working out how to fix this.”

“I don't know if you can,” Jason dropped back, now lying down on the awning,” We might just have this time and that's it. Life is fucking cruel like that.”

Maybe Jason was right, but Tim wasn't ready to give up. He continued looking, even as Jason had just about given up on stopping this. Tim knew he still had time, he'd practically been counting the days since the social worker had told him the day Jason had died. He knew that somehow, he would find a way to do this. His research took up a lot of time, but he still came out onto the awning as often as he could.

Jason had taken to setting up pseudo dates. He'd make snacks that could stand the test of time, like peanut butter granola bars and soda. He'd throw some over to Tim and they'd eat the snack together. It wasn't the most romantic thing, but Jason had said this was the closest they'd ever get to a real date and he was going to take what he could get. Tim actually enjoyed what time they had together. It wasn't typical dating, but he enjoyed it. Then came a day when Jason didn't plan one of their 'dates’.

“The lady next door moved out,” Jason told Tim,” There's a for sale sign out front. Is it getting close to that time?”

Tim didn't want to answer. He didn't want to tell Jason he could count the number of days left with his fingers. He didn't want to admit it because he didn't want it to be real. He hadn't even found a way to save Jason yet.

“It's still a little while,” Tim lied, trying his best to give a reassuring smile.

“Fucking sucks that I have to think about this shit,” Jason ran a hand through his hair,” Most seventeen year olds don't have to think about when their going to die.”

“Well, we're not normal seventeen year olds,” Tim shrugged,” I told you it would work out, and I meant it. Just don't think about it too much.”

That seemed to cheer Jason up a bit, but the smile on his face just made Tim's heart sink a little. Six days was all they had left. How was he supposed to save Jason in that time?

Tim hardly went out for five out of the last six days. He'd wanted to do as much research as he could before it was too late. Searches yielded nothing and when the last day came, Tim didn't even bother. There was no way he was going to find the answer anymore, so he just decided to spend the last of his time with Jason.

He'd gone out on the awning earlier than usual that day, hoping to catch Jason as soon as he came out. He'd brought a book to read while he waited, but that was put to the side when he saw someone pacing in front of Jason's house. When Tim looked harder, it almost looked like it was Jason, but that wasn't possible. The only place he could see Jason was on the awning. There wasn't any way it could be Jason.

Before he could think on it too much, the person moved toward the house. Maybe someone finally coming to see if the house could be sold? Tim wasn't sure, but he was so distracted by this that he didn't notice Jason had come out until the window snapped shut.

Jason was carrying a duffel bag with him as he sat down at the edge of his awning,” I'm gonna run away.”

Tim felt his throat tie itself in a knot. Maybe that's why he'd been out there when he died, because he was running away. Tim needed to try and convince Jason not to go, but he couldn't get the words out.

“I mean, maybe this is how I can be saved,” Jason said,” If I'm not here I can't die, right? I've been thinking about running away for awhile now, but what you said the other day convinced me. Maybe that's how you change my fate or whatever.”

Tim wanted to protest, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get any words past the lump in his throat. This wasn't what would save him, this would be what caused his death.

“Listen, I have a friend's place I can stay until I can come back and find you,” Jason continued his plan,” I just wanted to say goodbye before I left.”

Tim couldn't find the will to force the words out, to shout at him to stop. Jason turned away from him to jump down off the awning. Then his feet touched the ground below him. His feet were planted firmly on the ground and Tim could still see him. Then a revelation hit him. The person in front of the house had really been Jason, Tim had somehow actually made it to Jason's time. Something about this day had allowed him to jump across time.

He was shocked as he watched Jason walk toward the street, the slightly busy street with speeders who didn't pay attention. He moved when Jason was halfway to the street. He jumped down as quickly as he could, running after Jason. He knew that this was it, this was how he saved him. Jason had just gotten into the street when Tim wrapped an arm around him and pulled him back to the curb.

Jason hit the ground hard, the sound of screeching tires and a car horn now filling the street. He saw an SUV that had just skidded to a halt in the street, the tires marks starting right where he'd been standing just a second ago. He looked to see the person that had dragged him out of the street, but when he saw no one was there, he thought of Tim. Maybe he'd finally figured out a way to save him.

The driver got out of the SUV and came over to Jason,” Oh, God, are you alright? I wasn't paying attention. I almost hit you. What about the other kid that was with you? What happened to him?”

Jason was trying to think of an answer when doors started opening and he heard the sound of his foster father's voice. Jason just grabbed his bag and ran after hearing him, ignoring it as his foster father shouted after him. He made it to his friends house without any other incidents. He'd already told Roy he wanted to crash here, so he got a warm welcome when he entered the apartment.

Roy was a couple years older, so he'd managed to get his own place, albeit it was a cheap apartment that he could afford on minimum wage. Jason's foster parents didn't know about it either, which was a plus. And Jason didn't care, he just needed somewhere, and right now someone to talk to. He told Roy the whole story of Tim Drake and how he'd saved his life. Roy seemed to believe him, so he managed to talk his friend into doing some recon for him.

Apparently, rumors spread through the neighborhood that the person who saved Jason had died since he was never found. That became the 'block tragedy’, and since no one could name the savior, Jason was the one more talked about in the stories. The rumors had reached Jason's case worker eventually, but the only information she got was that Jason was involved in a car crash and someone had died. So when his foster parents said they wanted to give the other kids back to the system for failing a child, she assumed that it was Jason who died.

His foster parents had simply thought that having a child run away meant they failed as parents. They never even reported him as a runaway, which helped the story get as bad as it did. The Drakes moved in a few months after the accident, just like Tim had told him. Jason wanted to just go over there now, but he knew that Tim had to meet him the way he did if this was going to work. So he had to wait three years with Roy.

It was a hard three years when all he wanted was to go back and see Tim. He tried to distract himself from running back there too early. He managed to get a job at a bookstore to help with rent and helped out around the house. He bought the groceries and did the cooking. He helped take care of Lian, Roy's daughter. Anything he could do that would keep his mind off of Tim.

When he finally made it through the three years, it almost felt like a dream. That if he went back, the illusion would be broken and he'd have to face reality. It was Roy who convinced him that maybe life could be like the movies and motivated him to go.

He stood just two houses down from Tim's house, watching it closely. This was the day and Jason knew he couldn't get too close and risk interfering. He had to wait for this thing to run its course before he could see Tim.

After awhile, he saw Tim. He was bolting toward the street at top speed. Jason felt his heart leap to his throat when he saw the look of desperation on Tim's face. Watch as he got to the street. Held his breath as he pulled someone back that Jason couldn't see.

Tim landed in the grass, the air knocked out of his lungs. The silence of the street contrasted what had just happened. He expected the sound of tires or a car horn. There was nothing. He got himself together when he noticed Jason wasn't there.

He looked around, searching for his friend. Tim caught notice of someone watching a couple houses away. Jason waved from his spot, happy to see that Tim was alright. Tim was confused by him, someone who looked like Jason but just a bit older.

Jason approached the now younger than him teen, offering a hand to help him up and a few words,” Looks like you finally figured out how to save me.”

Recognition lit up Tim's face immediately. He shot upright and wrapped his arms around Jason, holding onto him as if for dear life.

“I can't believe you're alive,” tears started to do Tim's eyes,” I really thought I wouldn't be able to save you.”

“Well, you managed to do it, kid,” Jason chuckled,” I'm here, in the flesh.”

Tim then pulled back from the hug, clearly just now noticing something important,” I can touch you now. I just hugged you.”

“Finally found a way over to you, no more three year gap between us,” Jason said, but had to correct himself,” Well, not a time gap anyway. Age gaps are a different story.”

“I'm so glad you're here,” Tim buried his face in Jason's chest.

“I'm glad I'm here too,” Jason put his arms around Tim as well now,” It was hard, waiting three years so I could catch up to you. Maybe next time you get us stuck in a time slip, don't make it so long.”

They both laughed now, holding each other in the middle of the sidewalk. After a moment, Tim lifted himself up on his toes slightly. Jason bent his head down to meet him halfway. And the two of them shared their first kiss.