#feel like heart would be like “okay sure why not”. hes just like hell yea more lil guys around the house

[sneeb-canons]

There's more than one Darrell. A silkie, a frizzle, a brahma and a lakenvelder.

Soul pretends they're all the same chicken, despite the fact that they're all vastly different looking. If anyone asks why, he'l act like he has no idea what they're talking about- he's just fucking with em.

"That's a frizzle."

"Yeah? He was always a frizzle."

Headcanon #159

[swordsandholly]

Across the Way

Chapter 4: New and Old Problems Alike

Retired!Ghoap x Fem!Fat!Reader

Ao3 | Previous - Next | Masterlist

MDNI | cw: fainting, some medical inaccuracies

Word Count: 5.8k

Summary: You go to Scotland with high hopes for your future. After all, you have the bakery you always dreamed of and a whole new life to live. Plus, the men who own the butcher’s shop across the street seem nice.

You haven’t texted them, even three days later. That little sticky note haunts the surface of your kitchen counter. It taunts you - tells you that you should text them and at least give them your number. That you’re being a terrible neighbor. They might need you too, after all. Even though you can’t figure out why they might for the life of you. On the other hand, you can’t help but feel wary about it. Men don’t take an interest in you - people in general rarely take interest. It’s hard not to feel suspicious, as pure as you’re sure their intentions probably are.

More so than any of that, you don’t know what to say. If it had been day one you could have just put your name, but now you feel like you need to explain. Or at least be funny or something. Tossing and turning on your designated rest day about what the hell you should do.

You’re overthinking it. You know that. You can’t stop, either.

They just seem so cool - so put together. So unlike you. You want to impress them. You don’t want to ruin the first possibility of friends in this new life you’re building for yourself.

Eventually you work up the courage to send off an initial text to each of them. Just to give them your name to save if they so choose - plus an extra thank you to Simon for giving you their numbers in the first place. Something simple and borderline cold. Too cold, maybe? Maybe you sound irritated. You hope not. You just want them to like you. Friends in new places are hard and to have someone around you who gets how it feels to need accommodations would just feel so… lovely. Your phone may or may not go flying onto your bed while you bury your face in your hands out of sheer nervousness.

You don’t expect it to chime about a minute later. Right as you’re staring to calm down, of course. It sends your heart violently pounding all over again.

J >> Bonnie lass!

J >> So glad u texted!!

>> Sorry it took so long lol

Oh, you could just slap yourself. You don’t have anything better than that? At all? Christ.

J >> Nah Nah

J >> No worries

J >> Actually I was wondering if u would mind if I came by tomorrow

J >> Just to chat

J >> need an excuse to get out of the house

“How the hell does he type that fast?” You scoff to yourself.

>> Yeah, come by anytime.

>> totally

>> yea sounds cool

>> rad, man

A message from Simon pops up mid your internal battle with how to respond, replying with a simple thumbs up. Very in character, you think. He knows how to be nonchalant. What would Simon say? Something casual, maybe a little formal.

>> If you like. You’re always welcome.

Okay maybe that was too much like Simon. You sigh heavily m before adding,

>> I’m trying out a new blueberry loaf

>> If you want to test for me :)

Better. That’s a little better. With another heavy sigh you decide to drop your phone into your nightstand for the rest of the day. Your heart really cannot handle this much emotional pressure.

~~~

You sort of end up just forgetting about the texts. With your phone out of sight and out of mind upstairs in your apartment it almost catches you off guard when Johnny comes striding through the door just before close. He’s dressed more casually than the last couple of times you saw him - having broken out the summer shorts and a graphic tee for some band you don’t recognize. It suits him, though.

“Hey, bon.” He grins.

“Hey.” You smile back, finishing with putting up your stocking baskets before dusting off your hands and turning around. “Simon closing up?”

“Aye.”

You hum. “Come on back, I’ll get you a slice of that loaf I mentioned.”

Johnny follows you quietly. Uncharacteristically quietly. That’s okay - you don’t have a problem with hanging out in silence. It doesn’t feel tense, surprisingly enough. He leaves Riley out front again. Should you get her a dog bed? Maybe if he comes by consistently. That would be nice. Maybe that’s wishful thinking.

“It’s sort of a pound cake but fluffier. I might make an icing for it but I don’t know if that would be too sweet…” You trail off, focusing on plating up the piece. You’re not sure what compels you to try and make it pretty for him. Probably something you could blame on your grandmother. She did have an obsession with presentation.

Johnny hums loudly after taking a bite, talking around the mouthful. “Y’should totally make an icing.” He swallows roughly. “Si would go crazy fer this.”

“Oh?” You smile. “I’ll send some home with you.”

There’s a lapse of silence while Johnny chews on his slice of bread and you pack up some in a paper bag for him to take home. The only sounds in the room comprised of your cutting and folding and the hum of the cooling oven.

“You’re being weirdly quiet.” You blurt, immediately covering your mouth with your hand. “I, uh, I mean that isn’t a bad thing! I don’t mind… I just, uh, was… sorry, never mind…”

“Well I did come wit’ a bit of an ulterior motive…” Johnny admits, glancing off to the side shyly. It’s a show, you think. Johnny doesn’t seem the type of man to have felt shy a day in his life.

You tilt your head. “Oh?”

He dusts off his hands and grins. “Let us take ye out! In celebration of yer first full month.”

Has it been a month already? “Oh - no, no you don’t have to-“

“C’mon! It’s a big accomplishment.” His smile is so bright that you almost believe his idea that you’ve done something great.

“…alright.” You give a tentative smile. It’s hard to believe they like you enough to want to hang out casually in the evening. Hard to imagine anyone liking you that much but you’re not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“There’s a pub down the street - the one on the corner. Want tae meet us there around six?” Johnny gives you that lovely smile. How could you ever say no to a smile like that?

“Okay.”

You spend far too long changing in and out of clothes and fussing with your hair. Up-do’s and buns and braids. A tank top then a sweater then a t-shirt. There’s no reason to feel this stressed over it. It’s not a date or anything. Besides, it doesn’t seem to make a difference. Either way you look like a frumpy dumpling. Eventually you land on jeans and one of your designated ‘going out tops.’ At least it’s a good excuse to wear something other than work clothes or loungewear.

Excitement and anxiety thrum under your skin like electricity as you make your way down the street. You feel painfully nauseous - stopping once or twice just to make sure you aren’t about to throw up for real.

The pub is surprisingly quiet when you enter. Obviously somewhere only real locals hang out - there’s no theme or really any decor in general. Just a bar, some booths and a couple pool tables. You scan the floor a few times, not seeing either Johnny or Simon (not that they would be hard to miss). Eventually you just grab a soda from the bar and slide into one of the booths closer to the back. A quiet spot facing the door where you can easily watch for them.

As time ticks on you begin to grow increasingly nervous. Did you get the time wrong? No, no you triple checked. You even wrote it down in your planner. Your leg begins to bounce furiously, heart nearly beating out of your chest. Did they decide to ditch? You wouldn’t really blame them. They’re way out of your league when it comes to friends. Maybe Johnny had an emergency? Should you call Simon? If he had an emergency it would make sense that they would forget to notice you. What if something really bad happened? What if-

The front door opens and Simon’s wide frame strides through, holding the door for Johnny and Riley to come in behind him. You let out a quiet sigh of relief, willing your leg to stop bouncing with a pinch to your thigh. Why are you always so damn dramatic?

Johnny lights up with an ear to ear grin when he spots you, bee-lining for the booth while Simon casually walks up to the bar. It’s almost comedic, the way he dwarfs the counter. Johnny leans on the side of the booth, waiting for Simon, you think.

“Glad ye could come out.” He looks you over, eyes flicking from your plain top to the very practical, not at all stylish up do that you landed on for the evening.

You do your best not to squirm under his gaze. “Me too…”

Simon comes back with two beers in hand and slides them onto the table. He scoots into the inner booth to give Johnny the outer edge. Riley happily sits beside his leg and practically grins at you in a near mirror image of Johnny’s. You’d never do it while she’s on the job, of course, but part of you wants to give her a pat on the head and coo at her for being so polite.

Johnny gives you an apologetic smile. “Sorry we were a bit late-”

“Johnny redid his hair about five times.” Simon butts in, not reacting at all to Johnny’s sputtering protest. He glances at your half-drunk soda. “Want me t’ grab you a beer?”

“Oh, no, I’ll just stick to coke.”

They blink at you. Simon cocks his head slightly. “You sure?”

You chew your lip. “Uh, alcohol tends to aggravate my symptoms is all...”

“Then why’d ye agree to drinks? We coulda gone somewhere else.” Johnny frowns.

You shrug. “I don’t mind. I… maybe this is over sharing but I’d rather go out and be kind of normal than just… not ever. Y’know?”

His expression softens. For having such icy blue eyes they are so, so warm. “I get it.”

“How’d you two meet anyway?” You blurt, taking a left turn to get the conversation off of you. It’s the first question that comes to mind. Maybe it’s rude - maybe you’re prying too much already.

“Military.” Simon grunts. “SAS.”

“Si retired wit’ me after I was discharged.” Johnny points to his scar the same way he did when you first met. “Russians scrambled my egg a bit.”

“Couldn’t do the time apart…” Simon murmurs, eyes locked on Johnny’s face. It’s vulnerable. More than he’s used to - you can see it in the way he tenses after saying it.

Something passes between them that a deep, wounded part of you desperately wishes to understand.

You can’t help but start giggling to yourself. They both give you an incredulous look. “Sorry, sorry - it’s just, that’s like… totally a romance book premise. It’s sweet. Really.”

“Och, aye. Wouldn’t know it t’ look at him but Si’s a real romantic.” Johnny bats his eyes at the other man, who just rolls his in response. The corner of his scarred mouth quirks up subtly.

“SAS…” You repeat, staring at your drink. “That’s like Navy Seal shit, right?”

“We worked with them a few times, yes.” Simon nods. There’s an air of ‘do not ask anything more specific’ in his voice.

“Huh.” You take that for what it is and sit back, squinting at them. “You don’t look it, honestly.”

Johnny laughs. “Tha’s just cause ye havennae seen Simon with his gear on. The Ghost.” He wiggles his fingers along as he makes a stupid, spooky sound effect. “I domesticated him.”

Simon scoffs but doesn’t deny it, just takes a quiet sip of his beer.

“Riley’s a vet, too.” Johnny pats her head. “Got too skittish around loud noises but she transitioned into a service dog nicely.”

“Now she’s just spoiled.” Simon rolls his eyes in faux annoyance. You get the strong feeling that he’s the one doing the spoiling.

You find yourself relaxing as the night goes on. Slouching in your seat rather than sitting ramrod straight and nervously twiddling your thumbs. They never press you to drink, never insist that you’ll be fine with just one. They take your statement as fact and it isn’t brought up again. That shouldn’t be as significant as it is, now that you think about it.

Johnny’s words begin to slur a little bit on his fourth, no maybe fifth, beer. You aren’t sure. It’s very cute, the little blush that forms across his cheeks. Simon loosens up, too. He slings an arm around the back of the booth and Johnny readily tucks himself into the open spot. You find yourself wondering about their military career again. You can’t picture either of them committing violence - especially Simon. Sure, he’s big and gruff but he looks at Johnny so, so softly.

Simon is the one to call it a night - though you have a feeling its because you nodded off a couple times. Not out of boredom, you try really, really hard to pay attention to Johnny rambling about the chemistry of different explosives. He makes it interesting, somehow. Really it’s just that you’ve been awake for… holy shit almost twenty hours!

“D’you need a ride?” Simon asks as you exit the pub, hands firmly shoved into his pockets.

“No, I’ll be fine.” You don’t know how to interpret the look he’s giving you. It’s intense, but not annoyed or displeased. He has such a weird knack for unreadable but distinct expressions. You wonder if you’ll ever get close enough to get good at deciphering them.

You jump when Johnny takes both your hands in, kissing the backs of them with a sloppy, drunk smile. “Thank ye fer comin’ out. “

Somehow your face feels hotter than a damn oven. You tuck your hands to your chest, kicking shyly at the sidewalk. “Th-thanks for the invite. We, uh, we could do it again sometime?”

You glance up hopefully, praying that you didn’t misread the situation. You’ve done that before - thought people liked you more than they did. Johnny just grins wider somehow and nods excitedly.

You watch them walk off in the other direction, hand in hand. Johnny giggles about something loudly and you can see Simon’s shoulders shake with a far more silent laugh. All the way until they disappear down the street.

The sheer amount that the image hurts your heart makes you feel evil.

~~~

The pub changed something. What, you don’t know. Either way, you fall into an easy pattern with Johnny and Simon over the next couple weeks. Exchanges of food, leftovers or morsels about to turn, little visits back and forth between your shops. Johnny continues to stop by after close, just hanging around with you while Simon closes up shop.

You can’t deny how much you look forward to hearing that door chime followed by a too-loud greeting from Johnny. How your heart flips in your chest when those bright blue eyes peek around the corner into the back room or light up while trying a new recipes you’ve been testing. You’re still a bit awkward - unsure how to react when he throws an arm around your shoulders or listens oh so intently while you talk about nothing important.

Things can’t ever be all sunshine and rainbows, though. Not for you. A new problem has arisen as summer truly sets in - the comfortable spring breezes giving way to nothing but bright, unfiltered sun. One you didn’t expect to impact you this much living this far north.

Heat.

It’s hard to breathe in the back room while you’re baking. Hard to keep your water and salt intake high enough to compensate for how fast you lose them. You might as well get a permanent saline drip attached to you at this point. You definitely didn’t google if that was physically possible. Your budget for liquid IVs and other supplements nearly doubles. Standing over the massive oven in the back room has your head swimming a few times. You end up resting longer on your weekends, unable to keep up like you could in cooler weather.

It’s okay, you tell yourself, the summer here isn’t like back home. It will pass quicker. Plus, you at least have methods of dealing with it now other than crossing your fingers and praying.

“Bonnie!” Johnny suddenly appears in your doorway - that charming smile splitting his face from ear to ear. “Ye made it up Main Street yet?”

“No?” You tilt your head and try to ignore the way your vision spots momentarily at the motion. “Why?”

“Ye dinnae hear about the summer festival?” He leans on your counter. You shake your head. “It’s a yearly thing. Not that big a deal but they have some fun games an’ it’s nice tae see everyone out an’ about. Si an’ I are about tae head down. Come wit’?”

You hesitate. The exhaustion in your body tugs at your spine. Your limbs feel heavy. This morning really got to you - out of towners who must have come for the festival flooded your shop the moment it opened on top of your Saturday regulars. Not that you’re complaining, really. It’s easily your best day so far. You want to go with them, though, despite the ache in your back and the sting in your joints. It sounds so fun and it’s never a bad idea to take part in your new community’s festivities.

“Yeah. That sounds nice.” You smile. You can tough it out for an hour, then come back home. Yeah, just an hour. You’ll be fine.

You hadn’t noticed Simon leaned up at the entrance to your shop. Your eyes lock on his arms. This is the first time you’ve actually seen him in short sleeves. You can’t help but stare at his half-sleeve tattoo - all skulls and bombs and other military motifs. Faded and sun worn. Yeah, if you’d seen that sooner you definitely would have picked up on the whole military thing. You bite your lip to keep from snickering about it.

You can hear the music drifting from the speakers down the street. A few kids run by with balloons and cheap carnival prizes. It almost reminds you of the Spring Fling back home, just missing the extreme American flag theming across every booth and vendor front. Now that you’re looking around, you can actually see several booths that have been sponsored by various businesses in the area. Even the post office has a snow cone stand. The deeper you get into the event, the more flamboyant the decor becomes. Multicolored streamers and pennet flags connect stands, creating an almost canopy effect.

Simon stops rather abruptly at a booth, waiting behind a few teenagers tossing rings onto bottles. You stop with Johnny about two feet away. What’s he thinking? Simon doesn’t seem like the type who would be too entertained by basic carnival games. Even so, he steps forward and passes over a couple bills to the vendor as soon as the teenagers leave.

“Si’s really good at these. Watch.” Johnny grins beside you.

“Aren’t they rigged?” You raise an eyebrow.

Johnny doesn’t answer, eyes locked on his husband as he lines up one of the rings. You have to lean slightly to see around the breadth of the man - the multicolor rings almost cartoonishly small in his hands. Cute. Your eyes get impossibly wide with each toss, every single one landing comfortably on the bottle necks as if it’s the easiest thing in the world. As if this isn’t one of the most commonly rigged carnival games.

“Holy shit…” You mutter, still staring.

“Aye, tha’s a SAS sniper for ye.” Johnny laughs. “Glad tae see it still comes in handy.”

Simon huffs out a quiet laugh at that. Almost more of a sigh if it weren’t for the shaking of his shoulders. You love it - their little dynamic. The bond between them that’s so strong it’s almost visible.

“‘ere.” Simon turns to you suddenly, holding out a cheap little carnival prize. You can’t even begin to decipher what it’s supposed to be - some sort of furry puff ball with big, embroidered anime eyes and two felt antennae sticking up out of it’s purple head… body… thing…

Your face heats. “F-, uh, me?”

He shrugs. “Suits you. Riley will just chew it up if we take it home.”

“Aye. She’s so good with everythin’ but cheap plushies.” Johnny snickers.

You glance down at the dog in question - her dark eyes glued to the toy in Simon’s hand. Her tail thumps against the ground where she sists dutifully, but you can see the desire to snatch the thing away in her twitchy ears and pleading eyes. You snort, taking the stupid thing and tucking it under your arm with the prayer that they don’t notice the heat now spreading from your cheeks to your ears.

“Thanks…” you murmur, already mentally deciding where to add it to the mess of stuffies covering your bed already.

Somehow you end up walking between them down the street - Simon on your left and Johnny on your right with Riley in tow. You stop at a few other games here and there. All pretty basic. Johnny absolutely kills at the dunk booth.

Simon tires his hardest to help you with your terrible aim, “Just visualize it. Y’have t’ account for the arc.”

You get to the point of sticking your tongue out in concentration. Even so you only manage to knock down a couple of the wooden ducks at the ‘Dunk-A-Duck’ stand. You do, however, win one of those rock candy sticks at the guessing booth. You just hand it off to Johnny. It’s probably not best to load up on sugar in your current state.

Johnny excitedly points to different buildings giving you a rundown of the history of his hometown as you walk. Simon seems to barely be listening. He’s probably heard this a thousand times. Prattling on about the old town square, the church bell that a bunch of teenagers spray painted one time (Johnny was not involved, how could you accuse him of that?)

You find yourself focusing on your feet - keeping each step even and fast enough to remain on pace with them. One, two, one, two, one, two. The air begins to thicken. Muggy and heavy on your skin. Your breaths become shallow and fast. You can’t catch it, the air seeming to get stuck in your throat rather than reaching your lungs. Spots begin to dance across your vision. You stumble over nothing.

Not now! Come on! You’ve been doing so well!

Riley presses against your leg acting as a counter weight. Your body moves on instinct to grab whatever you can - hands wrapping around something strong and covered with cloth. An arm solid as rebar. Hopefully it’s someone you know. All you can see are colorless shapes.

“Gonna pass out - don’t freak!” You gasp before your legs give out.

It’s not that you go entirely out - it’s rare that you fully black out. It’s more like being stuck. Limp and fuzzy and confused. Almost like sleep paralysis. There’s voices and people moving around you. Someone has picked you up, you think, based on the swaying motion and the passing shapes around you. Maybe that’s just vertigo. A door bell chimes.

You finally begin to really come to when something icy is pressed to your forehead. It couldn’t have been more than a handful of seconds that you were gone, but it takes much longer for the world around you to come back into focus.

“I’m sorry…” You murmur, eyes stinging. Even after all these years it’s so damn embarrassing. You blink, the distinct mural that decorates the ceiling of the post office slowly coming into view. Johnny said a big time traveling artist painted it back in the nineties.

“Ye alright?” Johnny murmurs, crouched down beside you. Riley sniffs at your hand, seeming satisfied when you finally move it on your own.

You nod slowly. “Overheated…”

“Give her this.” Someone says. An event medic, you think. The boys must have flagged them down. Fingers press to your pulse point, a light shines in your eyes and you follow it. A quick check of vitals. Johnny shoves a water bottle in your hand as soon as the medic decides you’re fine to move - the contents distinctly murky from some sort of electrolyte pack that’s been shaken into it.

“Up y’get. Slowly does it.” Simon helps you sit up with a hand on your back. It’s so gentle. You don’t miss how he cages in your body the way only someone intimately familiar with caretaking might. Fully ready to catch you if you go limp again.

You sip slow, eyes glued to the ground. You feel so fucking stupid. Can’t even walk down a street without creating some sort of scene. They’re never going to want to hang out with you again, are they? You can’t go out drinking, can’t walk around a festival for longer than a couple hours. You distracted Riley. What if something happened to Johnny while you were having your spell? She might not have alerted correctly because of you. She might have gotten confused and then he could have gotten hurt. He might have-

“Ye really should drink tha’ instead of glarin’ at it.” Johnny pulls you from your thoughts. He’s now sat with his legs crossed beside you. Riley’s head rests in his lap. She seems calm. Content now that the emergency is over and happily lying on a cool floor.

You hum, chugging the last bit of it quickly. “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be.” Simon says curtly. “Does this ‘appen often?”

You shrug. “Not as much anymore… usually my medication keeps me stable.”

“Do ye need a doctor?” Johnny tilts his head slightly. There’s no judgment in his tone - in either of their tones. Just calm concern. It probably shouldn’t make you want to cry as much as it does.

You shake your head. “I’ve got liquid IV at home. Just need to sleep it off.”

Hopefully. In reality, a pain flare up is inevitable now. You just won’t know how bad until you’re fully in it.

“Let’s get ye home.” Johnny says, knees popping as he stands.

“I-I’m fine!” You insist, mentally preparing to get yourself up off the floor. “I can get home on my own - I don’t want to ruin your time.”

Johnny levels his gaze onto you, so serious it almost looks angry. It doesn’t match his face. “We’re not leavin’ ye tae get home alone like this.”

You’re caught off guard when an arm slides under your back and another under knees - lifting you like you weigh half of what you do in reality. Like you’re a paperweight instead of a boulder. You blink up at Simon, far too surprised to be embarrassed. At least at first. You splutter out a poor attempt at convincing him to put you down. Excuse and reason after reason and excuse. They roll off him like water off a ducks back. Your face burns as he steps out of the post office with you neatly tucked against his chest - Johnny and Riley in tow.

If you allow yourself to be honest, to give into that weaker part of you (or, at least, the part you consider to be weak) you could possibly admit that this feels nice. Being cared for feels nice. Having your body up against someone else feels nice. It’s been a long time since anyone touched you outside of a polite handshake or accidental bump. You sink into it despite yourself - relaxing against Simon’s chest. They were right, you wouldn’t have made it back. Your head is too fuzzy and there’s that telltale pain in your shoulders radiating up to your neck that signifies an oncoming Bed Day.

It doesn’t take long with Simon’s lengthy strides to get back to your building. You probably wouldn’t have been able to keep up to that running. Well, you can’t really run much at all so you definitely wouldn’t. A stupid, muddled train of thought that melts into the hazy bog of your current mental state. Even Johnny trails a few feet behind. Neither of them speak, marching in determined silence. You attempt to subtly check their faces for any anger. You’d understand if they were angry. Most people would get angry. You interrupted their day out with your useless drama. All you get is a wide, bright grin from Johnny when your eyes eventually meet his.

Simon puts you down with all the care in the world. As if you’re made of fine china. His hand stays on your upper back - planted firmly between your shoulder blades and ready to catch you if need be. Your vision swims a bit, your joints feel like jelly but you manage to dig your keys out of your pocket and unlock the door.

“Here.” Johnny plops the puff ball back into your hands just as you turn to say goodbye. To say thank you - to apologize profusely.

Your brows raise. You completely forgot about it while swimming around in a sea of embarrassment - he must have picked it up for you. You hug it to your chest with a quiet, “Thanks.”

You shift your weight side to side, psyching yourself up for the crawl up the stairs. Probably literally. You don’t think you could stay upright if you tried to walk them like a regular day, or even with an aid. Like a regular or semi-regular person. Fuck.

Johnny follows your eyes up at the staircase. He must sense some hesitation in you. “Do ye need help up?”

You bite your lip, staring at the ground. Standing in one place seems alright, but the thought of climbing is so daunting, even with the cane you have stationed at the bottom of the steps for that exact purpose. It’s embarrassing. You’re young, you should be able to walk up some damn stairs. It isn’t even that many. It’s barely a full flight. Just one story of stairs for fuck’s sake.

“Hey.” Simon touches your cheek, the action snapping your eyes to his in surprise. “It’s okay. C’mere.”

He picks you up again in the same fashion with barely a grunt, taking his time up the steps so as not to jostle you. How many times has he done this with Johnny? you wonder. That’s the only explanation for how good he is at keeping your equilibrium so even. You wonder if he practiced - if he took caretaking classes. He probably did. Does he keep up at the gym just so he can take care of his husband? Simon might be quiet and a little formal, but he exudes dedication.

“Sorry it’s messy…” You murmur when they reach the top of the steps. Glancing behind you, you see Riley sitting patiently at the bottom. Johnny must have told her to stay. “Haven’t gotten to fully unpack…”

You’ve been spending too much time in bed on the weekends. Fucking lazy.

Johnny just laughs. “Ye shoulda seen the first place Simon an’ I had.”

“Wasn’t that bad.” Simon argues, carefully setting you down on the couch. His hands hold your waist to steady you. They’re so warm… It feels wrong to be disappointed when he lets go.

“We hadnae figured out a system yet.” Johnny huffs, hands on his hips. “We ended up hirin’ a specialized maid service the dishes got so backed up.”

You scoff, laying back against the couch with that stupid carnival prize still in your arms. Like it’s the only thing grounding you to reality. The tears that have been stinging your eyes this entire time continue to threaten to spill - a myriad of blinks and careful breaths the only thing keeping them back.

Johnny sits beside you slowly. You can’t meet his eyes. “Do… do ye want tae tell us what it is? Ye donnae have tae - it’s up tae ye. Just if somethin’ happens again…”

“We’d like to be prepared.” Simon jumps in where Johnny trails off.

You chew your lip, still staring up at the ceiling. It splits and that coppery taste coats your tongue for a moment. “I, uh, it’s called POTS. There’s different types but basically my body can’t regulate blood flow and pressure right…” You shrug. “Like I said my medication usually keeps me mostly okay.”

It’s the pain that really gets to you usually, but you don’t need to start dumping on them about that. There’s no reason to spill your guts about things they can’t fix.

“Thanks fer tellin’ us.” Johnny smiles. You stiffen slightly when he reaches out to tuck some hair behind your ear. You tilt your head, still resting on the back of the couch, to meet his eye. “Get some rest, yeah? We’ll lock the knob behind us. Call if ye need anythin’.”

“Okay.” You nod, keeping your eyes down and picking at your nails. “Sorry… about all this… I didn’t - I don’t… I’m sorry.”

“Donnae apologize.” He says softly as he stands. “Never apologize. We’re your friends, aye? Friends help friends. Tha’s all there is to it.”

Simon gives you a discerning nod behind him, expression both soft and deeply serious.

Friends? They consider you real life proper friends? Really? You can’t help but beam up at him. “Yeah.”

A/N: I’ve re-read this chapter so many times that it’s total mush in my brain which tells me it’s time to be done with it.

Bonus: I made a Pinterest board for this fic

[atinystaypixie]

CaringBoyfie!Ony

Just something short and based off what I said this morning

It only took you one time to hit Ony with the “I’m grown” line. You had more to say but it never came with how fast he had you bent over with your ass stinging. He respects everything about you and wants the best for you which is why he doesn’t appreciate the unnecessary attitude you were giving him.

He was simply trying to be a loving boyfriend and provide for you, but you got defensive. You aren’t used to being taken care of and it was embarrassing to feel like you were relying on him so much. He already filled your gas tank, gave you money, and now he was questioning you about groceries. It already took all of you to accept his offers the first time, but this is the third month in a row and you can’t handle it.

Ony knew your job paid you enough to get by, but he also knew it wasn’t enough to have your pantry and fridge completely full all month. He wasn’t going to let his girl have to wait for a paycheck as long as he was around. You meant everything to him and if it were up to him you would be living under his roof by now.

He understood you though and didn’t want to cross your boundaries. You weren’t someone who accepted help easily, but he would be damned if he sat back with funds while you lacked something.

Which is how you got here. All he asked was if you had eaten today and if you needed anything from the store. Your eyes swiveled and started targeting other objects to focus, avoiding his question. He didn’t like when you lied and sure as hell didn’t like how you were getting heated.

“Yea, I had some snacks earlier.” You said starting to look past his shoulder instead of his loving stare.

“Okay…,” he tried to let it go, “and what you gon’ eat later?”

“I don’t know yet, maybe some more snacks. I’m not that hungry so I’ll find something.” That made him suck his teeth. He went in your fridge earlier to grab a drink and saw more ingredients than meals, few ingredients at that.

“Bae, y’know you need to eat. You want me to go to the store-”

“I know how to eat, Ony. I don’t need you babying me all the damn time. I’m a grown ass woman,” you raised your voice. Lied, cut him off, and attitude? That wasn’t going to fly, not when all he tried to do was take care of you.

One second you were standing and the next your cheek was squished against the couch cushion. You felt his hand holding you in place by the neck as he kept you bent over the armrest. Before you could even finish your little lash out you felt several stings on your asscheeks.

He had never done this before and it caused you to immediately silence. Your jaw slack from the shock of his actions. You couldn’t tell if you were angry or wanted to melt into a puddle in front of him.

“Y/n,” that puts your attention back on him. His voice lowered and serious as he said your name. “I do my best to respect your boundaries. I understand you don’t take well to receiving, but I’m your man. I won’t let you go hungry just because you don’t want to ask me for anything. Ion like you lying and lashing out at me either. Let’s fix that, igght?”

By now he is rubbing at the skin he made contact with, his chest touching your back as he’s closer to your ear. “Answer me.” A sniffle and nod is all it takes for him to let up. Moving around to sit on the couch, he pulls you into his lap. Seeing you cry is not something he enjoys and he makes quick work to swipe his thumb across your tear streaked, brown cheek.

“Sorry, Pa,” you mumble, wrapping your arms around his neck. The tears weren’t from the pain of the slaps against your ass, but more so from your heart shaking. You knew he loved you and he had torn down the walls you sheltered the fragile muscle in long ago. It was hard letting him love you the way he did.

Your lashes, that he insisted on paying for, fluttered as he pressed a kiss to the corner of your mouth. “It’s fine, baby. I’m here and I ain’t gon’ stop caring for you, so Imma really need you to work with me. Now give me a kiss and let’s go get you some food.”

✨

Pixie’s Flying🧚🏽‍♀️

I knaauurr it’s been a min since i released something. Yall I have been swamped in school and I am even taking summer courses rn. Free me plz😞 I have so many drafts and not enough time.

Also i am changing from “thoughts of a slutty virgin” to “pixie’s flying”

ENJOY! Reblog, like, and comment💜!

Pixie’s Masterlist

Taglist: @un-lawliet @tophamhat-kyo @nobianna @angxlwritez

[neil-perrys-reincarnation]

How TOS characters would react if you asked them for a hug (platonic)

this is based on that time i asked all of my teachers and basically everyone who i knew for a hug and compiled all the data into a best hugger spreadsheet. yea i’m neurodivergent and touchstarved why do you ask

“can i have a hug please?”

Kirk:

he would definitely ask you if you were okay

If he knows you he gives amazing hugs, absolutely fantastic. If he doesn’t really know you, you might get a quick, well-meaning one-arm hug

“sure thing, come here <3”

chub is good for cuddles

it’s kinda intimidating to ask for hugs from him, especially when he’s on shift

you feel a bit honoured that he actually said yes to your request

he always does a quick little squeeze at the end before he lets go

his hugs aren’t super tight though

the kind of hug that makes you both smile

wouldn’t rank super high on a “best hugger” list but that’s not his fault, he’s trying to run a ship here and he can’t get too attached to people

you probably wouldn’t get a repeat hug unless you really needed one or you knew him well

he smells like shampoo!

Spock:

he’d definitely raise an eyebrow

it looks like he’s considering saying no but on reality he’d never refuse unless the circumstances were dire

“of course, officer. is something wrong?”

he’s not an enthusiastic hugger but he’s really really good at long hugs

like not-letting-go-until-your-heart-rate-is-steady kind of long hugs

not super tight, not super loose. very medium strength hugs

he would clasp his hands together behind your back so he doesn’t have to touch your skin with his fingertips

if it’s a calm hug he might continue talking about ship duties while he holds you

if you’re freaking out he’s quiet enough that you can hear his heartbeat, which is surprisingly calming

he smells like lavender

he’ll hold on until you’re ready to let go

when you do let go, neither of you will talk about it again but it’s never awkward

he doesn’t offer up hugs if he sees you again, but you know he’d accept one no question if you asked

Bones:

he might not register what you’re asking for a second, because it’s not a request he gets very often

grumbling under his breath about not having time for this, but in reality he’s over the moon

“get over here, sweetheart”

king of platonic pet names. he knows well enough that this is notttt romantic

he smells like antiseptic and pear soap

his hugs are tight as hell, enough that you might have to remind him that he’s not trying to break your ribs

swaying hugs are his thing

while he holds you he’d definitely ask if anything’s up, or if this is a just-because-hug

would complain that this is why he doesn’t get close to patients, while simultaneously rubbing your back happily

once you get past the intimidating facade he’s a softie and pretty easy to ask for hugs

only in private though. never in public

if you do something great in the future he might hold out his arms for a hug randomly

Scotty:

he’s honestly miffed you haven’t asked him for a hug before

absolutely lights up at the question, clumsily putting down anything he’s holding and putting his arms out wide

“tha’s a good kid, c’mere”

he smells like engine oil and grease and something slightly singed. in a good way

surprisingly soft. he’s gentle and squeezy and keeps patting you on the back

he might lift you off your feet for a couple of seconds before putting you back down

very laughter-filled hugs

if youre upset he might try and tickle you a little

after asking, of course

he wouldn’t do long hugs, but he’d be regretful about it. as it is he’s probably neglecting some jefferies tube that’s about to malfunction or burst into flames

after that you’re not getting hugs when he’s busy, but if he’s got time and he sees you in the hall he’d call out “where’s my hug, lad?” (gender neutral) and follow through on it

he’s the one asking for hugs, and even though they’re short they’re very good natured

Uhura:

perhaps the least intimidating person on the Enterprise to ask for a hug. if you were asking all of the crew, you’d do her first because she gives off comfortable vibes

she would repeat your question back to you - “can you have a hug? of course you can!”

the first one to initiate the hug

no swaying whatsoever. she’s like a steady rock, and her hold is the perfect tightness

this is the best hug you’ve ever had

you are going to remember this hug for at least two years

you’re legitimately planning on calling your parent and telling them all about this hug, it’s just that good

she smells like perfume and freshly brewed herbal tea

while you’re hugging, she would definitely go “awwww” or make some sort of sweet little positive comment

you both let go at the same time. it feels like you never want to step away

she tells you that you guys can do hugs all the time if you want, and you get the feeling she really means it genuinely

whenever you see her she’ll hold out her arms for a hug no matter what, even if she’s talking to someone she’ll hold them out knowing you’ll come

[magisland]

chapter XXXI : always and forever

wc: 1k words

lua’s note: this chapter happens a couple years after the last chapter

seokmin, who was resting between your legs, his head laying down on your stomach, sighed and closed the book before turning his head upwards to look at you

“so, what do you think? did you like it? give me a review like you’re reviewing a movie on letterboxd!” you said looking down at him, nervous and curious about his opinion on your book.

“okay, but can i be truly honest? youre not gonna get hurt?”

you nodded, “yes you can, bring it on, i can handle it”

“okay, but you asked for it!”, he said while sitting up to be able to talk to you face to face, “i loved it. i really did”

“really?”

“of course! i loved the way you showed how you started lacking confidence about not sharing a string with someone and how you got the confidence back. i think you really wrote it so well and really put your heart on it, this book shows your thoughts in such a transparent way and i think it shows your vulnerable side, but also your strong side as well, it made me feel like i was reading your journal and not a book, which can be a good or vad thing depending on who’s reading it.” he placed his hand on his chest and chuckled, “but i liked it. i also loved the way you wrote about how our string can be invisible for ourselves just like other people’s string is invisible for us and how you put in your book our conversation about our love being a secret that the universe doesnt know about. i really, really, really loved your book, yn. im proud of you”

you smiled, holding back your tears, “im so glad you loved my book, honestly it was such a crazy experience and journey writing this book and, since at some point the book tells about our story, your opinion is really important to me. at first, i thought you were going to say negative things about the book”, you chuckled.

he put a strand of your hair behind your ear before wiping away the single tear that was starting to run down your cheek, “youre so talented. im sure people are gonna love your book”. he hugged you, caressing your hair as a way of trying to soothe you since you began to cry, “they better be happy tears”, he said softly.

you chuckled, still crying, “yeah.. they’re happy tears. im really happy about my book, about my life in general and about us… i would never replace one single thing about my life, i couldnt be happier”.

he hummed softly while laying you down on his lap and holding your hand as you two began to watch the sea, the comfortable silence filling the air. you kept watching the sea, but seokmin’s eyes were glued to your hands, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

seokmin cleared his throat and spoke up, “uh.. yn?”

“yea, minnie?”, you said still watching the sea.

“i think the universe knows our secret now”, he spoke quietly.

“huh? what you mean?” you looked up at him, seeing his watery eyes and then followed his gaze, only to find your fingers intertwined with his and a string around your pinky fingers. your eyes widened, “what the hell?! how did- when did that happen?!?”

“i dont know,” he sniffed, “it wasn’t there when we were reading the book!”

“did we… did we just made each other our soulmates?”

“i think we did!” he chuckled between his sobs, “i didnt know this could happen”

“i guess we can choose our soulmate. come here,” you hugged him, letting him rest his head on your shoulder, “i would spend the rest of my life by your side regardless this happening or not. i already knew youre my one, but i guess the universe also knows that now. our love is not a secret anymore”

seokmin nodded, trying to calm down so he could speak without any problems, “i.. i dont know how, why or when did this happen, but im so happy it did. i love you so much, yn”

“i love you too, seokmin”, you leaned back to look at him, cupped his face and smiled at the sight of your loved one crying with a smile on his face, it was clear about how much love he has for you just by the way he looks at you, like youre a diamond, like you’re the only thing that really matters to him, “i love you so damn much”

you kissed him, placing your hands around his neck and he wrapping his arms around your waist. the kiss was slow, soft and full of love. once the kiss was broken and he rested his forehead against yours, looking down at your hands

“i cant stop looking at it. im totally mesmerized” he sniffed and smiled, caressing your hand, “cant believe now youre really my soulmate… people are never going to believe us”

“our friends will”, you said smiling.

“youre right, our friends will”

“you know, i think ill need to write another book now”, you chuckled, “another best seller? wow, my girl will become the best writer ever. not you arent the best writer ever already, you know”, he pinched your cheek and you rolled your eyes playfully.

“you spoil me way too much”

“maybe i do and ill probably spoil you even more since now i know its gonna be us always and forever”

“thats true.. its gonna be us always and forever ”, you said and kissed the back of his hand before laying your head back down on his stomach. you didn’t know how did that happen, maybe the universe was testing out you too or maybe you changed your destinies. you werent sure of anything but the fact that you love seokmin more than anyone could ever imagine, that his love is the most important thing in your life and that this love will last forever.

THE END

lua’s notes: and with that, invisible string comes to an end! i want to thank everyone who read it, interacted with it and enjoyed it. i really means the world to me!! im still thinking if i should post an epilogue or not so let me know if you would enjoy invisible string having an epilogue! also, let me know if you liked the smau, it can be as a comment or as an ask. your opinions about the history itself, the characters or the end are always welcomed 😁 thank you for supporting my work and i hope to see yall here again for my next projects. love you ❤️

prev - masterlist

INVISIBLE STRING

in a world where when you turn 18 you share an invisible string with your soulmate that only you and your respective soulmate can see it, seokmin, also known as dokyeom, is an actor in the musical theatre world that doesnt have a soulmate and keep it as a secret. meanwhile, yn works in a bookstore and doesnt seem bothered at all by the fact of not sharing a string with someone. is it possible to change the destiny and find your soulmate even tho you dont share the invisible string with anyone?

[cupiddior]

NANA — huh yunjin

WARNING — fluff, swearing

★☆

huh yunjin was conflicted.

she’s never liked someone so much, like she feels like it’s actually concerning how much she likes you.

you’re the leader of new jeans just two years younger, she never thought that she would actually like someone younger than her and despite you being younger than her you actually intimidate the hell out of her.

she just thinks that the way you got so popular so quickly is a little scary I mean global vivienne westwood ambassador only five months after debut ?!

that’s crazy.

should she also mention that you’re her best friend jimin’s little sister ?

“oh my god.” yunjin looks up as he best friend dramatically flops at the end of her bed. “yn is driving me crazy.”

yunjin stomach turns just at your name. “how ?” she asks.

jimin sits up and looks at her. “I’ve seen my little sister’s face my whole life, and I love yn but when I become an idol it was a little nice to have a break from her, but now I see her face EVERYWHERE I mean billboards, poster, on my social media.”

as jimin continues to rant about you, yunjin gets lost in her thoughts I mean jimin wasn’t wrong your face was everywhere not that yunjin was complaining she loves seeing your face, well sorta, how is she supposed to try to get over her best friends little sister if she sees her everywhere ?

“BUSES I MEAN BUSES YUN.” yunjin snaps out of her thoughts as jimin finally stops her ranting.

“but that’s besides the point, I was talking to her this morning and why didn’t you tell me you guys were doing a duet on kbs ?” we are ? “she told me her manager told her this morning.”

“uhhh…” yunjin trails off trying to find an answer did her manager tell her and she just wasn’t paying attention ? probably

“that doesn’t matter.” jimin cut her off. “ I came here to tell you no funny business.”

“what do you mean ?”

jimin let’s out a deep sigh “I MEAN no funny business, no flirting, no touching no nothing, just singing, I know how you are yunjin.”

“I cannot have my best friend dating my little sister, first you’re the only thing I have that she doesn’t and also if something happens I’d be put in the middle.”

she then wraps her arms around yunjin. “ so no funny business right ?”

“yeah.”

“so what songs do you have in mind ?”

yunjin heart flutters as you smile at her.

she’s so pretty

I wonder how it would be if we were dating

“um hello ?” you wave your hand in her face.

“um sorry.” yunjin stutters as she scrambles to get her notebook, her cheek heating up in embarrassment.

“it’s okay.” you laugh, you look down at her notebook. “so, have any ideas?”

“um so I wrote down some songs like, kingston by faye, lover by taylor we could also do gorgeous by Taylor.”

“so love songs ?” you ask cutting off her rambling.

“um no..” yunjin trails off looking at her notebook. “there’s… uhh… yeah love songs.”

“sorry.”

“no it’s okay I was just teasing you.”

“you could tease me anytime you want.”

“what ?”

“huh, what ? nothing, i didn’t say anything.”

“um okay.” you laugh. “how about we do the last one on your list.”

yunjin looks at the last song and her face heats up “sofia ? are you sure.”

“I’m sure.” you say “I’ve listen to it sometimes it’s a good song to cover.”

“yea okay, sure let’s do it.”

you and her spent the rest of the next couple weeks splitting up lines and practicing and yunjin felt herself falling for you even more.

today was the day you guys actually film the duet.

“I’m nervous.” she whispers to you.

“don’t be.” you wrap your arms around her’s “we will do amazing especially you.”

wow are you trying to kill her.

“really.”

“I wouldn’t be saying it if I didn’t believe what I was saying.”

“actually.” you turn away from her and and pick up a little box. “I have something for you.” you give the box to her.

yunjin brushes her fingers over the lettering on the box Vivienne Westwood.

she opens the box to see two necklaces, obviously it was the icon westwood planets but hanging on one was a little strawberry and the other had a black star.

I’m in love could she get any better ?

“they’re for both me and you.” you say as you pick up the one with the strawberry hanging on it. “help me put it on.”

yunjin gently puts the necklace on you turning herself around implying she wants you to put hers on as well.

after you finish putting hers on, you turn her around and wrap your arms around her.

yunjin freezes.

“no touching” it’s not like I’m the one touching her so it shouldn’t matter right ?

“are you ready?” you ask her, letting her go.

“yep.”

“good.” you grab one of her hands and pull to to the set. “let’s do this.”

yeah let’s do this

the cover was a hit, fans were going crazy over not only the song choice but the necklaces ? thats what confused yunjin weren’t they just cute necklaces with charms ?

NEW JEANS YN AND LESSERAFIMS YUNJIN GO VIRAL OVER COUPLE NECKLACES.

the duo was seen in their hit cover wearing vivienne Westwood’s new exclusive couple NANA necklaces.

fans were already spiralling about the song choice but the necklaces are just the icing on the cake.

which leaves us wondering are is the yn of newjeans dating lesserafims yunjin ?

I guess they weren’t.

yn you sneaky little shit.

“YOU’RE DATING YN UNNIE.” eunchae barges into yunjin room.

“NO.”

“then why are you guys wearing exclusive couple necklaces ?” eunchae asks her facial expression says I just caught you in a lie.

ding (yunjin’s phone.)

“I’ll explain later.” yunjin pushes eunchae out her room and locks the door ignoring eunchae protests.

yunjin picks up at the phone and her heart drops.

jimin bae 😜

sofia by clairo ? couple necklaces?

oh shit

[fyofangs]

OMORI ! sunny x gn! reader .

00. my summer love .

❀ in which mari’s hushed little brother falls head over heels for you, and decides to confesses his feelings under the sun’s embrace.

first of all, let’s say this is an au where the incident never happened and they lived happily ever after ✋. his extremely shy and stand-offish manner made him believe that this crush was going to lead nowhere in the first place, yet he always managed to find himself gravitating towards you on those nostalgic sunny afternoons. whenever you smiled, whenever you spoke, whenever your endearing hands grabbed his, he merely smiled in response. all while sparks and fireworks played in his head and heart. now, having these feelings for 6 consecutive months began to make it difficult for sunny to bottle his crush up. so, he made a risky decision. it took a hell of a while for him to actually build the courage, admittedly, most of the courage being given by kel and mari who always said that your unusually loving actions were the evidence to say you reciprocated sunny’s feelings. the plan was just to bring you a bit into the woods for some privacy, while the gang were all having a picnic in the usual spot, and to confess. sunny being sunny, the main priority in his head was to recite the part where he assured you that he still wants to be friends if you don’t like him back, since he’s genuinely so afraid you may be weirded out by his feelings. even if you didn’t reciprocate, he would still love you platonically and endlessly.

“Y/N, can I talk to you in private please?” The timid boy spoke, his heart slightly palpitating once he said so. You reply, “Hm? Sure.” As you quietly go to stand up, Sunny’s face forms a subtle grin when he sees Mari and Kel discreetly smiling and holding thumbs up at him. Only then does he feel slightly better. You follow Sunny into the familiar, humid woods. His charcoal hair illuminated in the sun, curiously peering through the green leaves of trees. Despite only seeing his back, the fact you were alone with him in the beautiful woods created a warm feeling in your head. You walk a little more until you reach a fallen log, in which Sunny stops at and sits down; you take a seat next to him, being met with only sweet silence as he seems to be mustering up something to say. His legs and feet awkwardly shuffle in place, and his fingers played with one another. ”Do you like anyone?” The ravenette finally questioned, an apparent blush appearing on his cheeks. You were taken aback a bit, unaware that he wanted to ask you about that topic. Though, what that implied gave you high hopes. You gave him a delightful smile and rested your hands in your lap. “Yes, why?”

“Is it someone I know?”

“…Yea.” You grow slightly rose as well while you watch Sunny’s eyes trailed off into the distance, amongst the glistening river bank and tempered trees slowly waving at you. As you observe inventively, you see his face start to sort of contort in concern, as if he messed something up. “Ah— Um.” he tries to calm himself down, softening his expression, ���Well— I just wanted to tell you that…” Sunny hesitantly meets your eyes, and for once they gleamed from something other than the sun. He shifts his body to face you, leaning on his arm for support. You gladly do the same and at this point, your faces are closer than ever before, this in which you grin nervously at. “I like you. Like that.” Sunny finally admitted with a half embarrassed - half dainty look on his face.

Even though you anticipated a confession like that, seeing and hearing it turn to reality lit a fuse in your heart, causing a sort of excitement. Your corners of your lips tugged upwards as you softly blinked, knowing he wanted to say more. ”I really really like you, but if you don’t feel the same, that’s okay. I just wanted to let you know. We can continue being usual friends, I don’t wanna make you weirded out or anything—” “Sunny— Sunny! I like you a lot too.” Playfully, you interrupt his resultant ranting and reassured. Your sweet body language and nurturing expression made it almost hard for Sunny to believe it was real. He’s extremely glad, but also at a lost for words, he didn’t practice what to say in this situation much… —, “I want to be more than friends with you… If that’s ok.” You chuckled at the last part in a cold sweat, as Sunny’s shocked and content face wasn’t exactly easy to read. The lovestruck boy is already aware that if he sits in silence for too long, it’ll make the confession go stale, so he answered with an almost exaggerated but delighted tone, ”Of course that’s ok, I’m glad you feel the same.” You and the rosey boy exchange pleasant yet sheepish smiles at one another, before he stands up. Though, about to say something, you quickly sneaked in, ”So, we’re together now, right?” You asked half jokingly. Sunny can’t help but beam when he responds with ‘yes’. As you chuckle and stand up as well, you both make your way back to the picnic spot.

Since it was a quite short way there, you took the swift opportunity to grasp Sunny’s hand. Rough in some places, yet warm and pillowy overall, you continued to hold it lovingly. He doesn’t face to look at you, but evidently grins and looks at the ground, starstruck. He can’t believe he managed to pull someone so amazing as you. Now, a new chapter of his life could begin.

[imamotherfuckingstar-lord]

hate to see your heart break

steve harrington x reader

summary: tired of seeing eddie lead you on, steve has to decide if he wants to confess his feelings to you.

warnings: unrequited love, pinning, eddie being kinda shitty. drinking. cursing. a/n: 3.6k. eddie's "involvement" in chrissy's death is not canon in this story.

paramore: hate to see your heart break

The lights flickered, metal pipe in your hand as a someone touched your shoulder; fingers gripping your shoulder back to a safer distance. Your lungs filled with cold air, nerves so wrecked, your bottom lip was shivering as the monster showed its face. Fear gripped you frozen for a mere second before you heard someone calling your voice and courage blossomed from the pits of your stomach – you fought harder than you ever could or would ever again.

There was no other way to make it home then to fight and with Steve Harrington at your side; you never felt braver.

….

“I need eggs…”

“There’s some in the fridge.”

“Can I use this milk too?”

Steve glanced up from the magazine he was reading, elbow prompted up against the kitchen counter. He nodded and went back to his reading, annoyed that you were in his kitchen making a birthday cake for Eddie. It wasn’t like he disliked the young man – hell, he had been in the fight last year too. He was part of the group now, but that didn’t mean Steve had to enjoy whatever the two of you had going on. He glanced up from a JCPenney advertisement and stared at you; watching as you read the directions off the cake mix box. Your eyes were heavy with thought, and he wondered why you even bothered. Eddie had been so nonchalant about the feelings you had for him, and you had been fine with the way he was stringing you along. Robin had advised Steve to keep his mouth shut, especially after the comment he had made about you being Eddie’s little puppy. He now cringed at the memory of the hurt on your face and sighed, asking if you needed help.

“You can bake?”

“No,” he laughed, closing the magazine. He walked around the kitchen counter and stood beside you, plucking the box out of your hand. You stared up at him, amused as his eyebrows rose as he read the directions. “Eggs, milk, butter…okay, doesn’t seem too complicated. How do you…preheat an oven?”

“Hopeless.”

Steve laughed and dipped his forehead against your shoulder; you never minded his constant nearness, the two of you had been close since the summer of the mall incident. He was constantly flinging an arm around your shoulder, picking lint off your clothes, or resting his head on you every chance he got. Even after Eddie and you…well, you weren’t sure what Eddie and you were. The two of you hooked up off and on for last few months, and he was always saying how much he liked having you around, but there was never an official talk about your relationship status – and when Steve was around, Eddie never batted an eye at the way he was constantly all over you. Maybe he just saw it as the two of you being close friends….

“Should we call Robin over?”

“Yeah,” you smiled and pushed Steve off, who groaned but went straight to the landline. You listened as he dialed Robin’s number and asked for her, staring down at the cake mix as he explained your dire situation. It was Eddie’s 21st birthday and he was throwing a kickback at his trailer; he proclaimed you were his special guest and begged for you to bake him a cake. Like the sucker you were when it came to him, you said yes.

“…for Eddie, yea. Okay, thanks.” Steve hung up and returned to the kitchen, a soft smile on his handsome face. “I’m going to go get her, want to come for a ride?”

“Actually, I’m going to walk over to my house real fast.”

Steve noticed the drained look in your eyes but just smiled, grabbing his keys off the counter. He motioned for you to follow, and you did, and when he locked the front door behind him, he asked if you were okay. The afternoon sun was covered by clouds and Steve wanted nothing more than to tell you to screw the cake and Eddie’s party, but he kept his mouth shut.

“I’m just tired…”

“…sure you’re up for a rager tonight?”

“Can’t miss his birthday, he begged me for a cake.”

Steve’s jaw clutched but he nodded, giving your shoulder a little squeeze before excusing himself. He promised to be back in ten and you agreed, crossing his lawn to the driveway of your family’s home. Steve turned on the ignition and watched as you walked into your house, cursing Eddie before backing out of the driveway.

….

“He’s such an asshole.”

“Agree, but technically they aren’t even together.”

“Don’t try to be the goddamn voice of reason, Robin. I don’t need that shit right now.”

Robin made a face but apologized. “She’s going to get tired of him dragging her around eventually, you just have to hold out.”

“What for? She obviously is into him; I don’t stand a chance and it – it really pisses me off that he treats her like that.” Steve gripped the steering wheel. “He has her baking him a birthday cake, but I guarantee you tonight at the party, he’s going to completely ignore her like he always does.”

“I know, I hate seeing her like that. I thought she was smarter – “

“-Robin,” he warned, and she sighed.

“You’re right, I guess sometimes we can’t help who we like. Maybe you can just swoop in and make her realize Eddie’s wrong for her? Girls like that – knight in shining armor crap.”

Defeated, Steve shrugged as he pulled in front of his house. He turned off the car and saw you waiting on his porch, Robin looked to him with an empathetic smile. “Come one,” he said quietly. “Let’s go help her bake that cake.”

….

The trailer was rimmed with people, mostly Eddie’s friends slash clients. Members of Corroded Coffin where they, as well as some of the younger kids evident by their bikes parked in front of the Mayfield’s lawn. You were happy to not see Lady Applejack’s bike outside the trailer; you would have sent her straight home.

“What was he thinking inviting the kids.”

Steve glanced over at you, platter in hand; the cake was a success. It was chocolate, as Eddie requested, pink sparkles added by Robin. You had written happy birthday on it with little white hearts all over the top, it made Steve’s stomach turn but he said nothing on the drive over to the Munson’s residence. He helped you up the stairs and threw the keys to Robin, who was late getting out of the car.

“Lock up, slowpoke,” he teased, hand on your back as he reached for the screen door. Steve looked to you and agreed on the kids. “I better not catch Henderson drinking…”

The thought made your stomach turn and when the two of you walked in, music blasted free into the air, and you quickly searched around for Eddie. Instead, you heard the familiar nicknames the kids had for Steve and you.

“Mom and Dad are here!”

Dustin waved from the couch, packed next to him was Lucas, Max and Mike. Your eyes went straight to the beer in Max’s hand and Steve groaned, telling you to take the cake to the kitchen and that he’d handle the young girl. Leaving Steve to deal with the underage drinking, you pushed past folks in band tees and ripped jeans, finding Eddie in the kitchen. He was leaned against the counter, beer in hand and in conversation with a guy you recognized from some of CC’s gigs. Eddie’s eyes went from his friend to you, and he grinned, placing the beer down to gawk at the cake in your hand.

“Oh, God, that looks delicious! Thank you, princess,” he cooed, taking the platter from your hand. He placed it on the counter and moved you towards his friend, hand on your back. He introduced you as a really cool chick and it made you wince. “She’s a total babe too.”

He kissed your cheek and your stomach dropped, eyes moving to the opening of the kitchen to where Steve stood; he nodded to Eddie and asked where the beer was. Eddie leaned into your side and whispered into your ear if you could fetch “Harrington a drink? Beers in the cooler in the living room, thanks babes.”

You stared at Eddie as he turned back to his friend, utterly confused by his passive nature towards you. Steve, witnessing the whole exchange, rolled his eyes and looked to Eddie. “I asked you, dipshit.”

The loud music drowned out Steve’s voice and you said it was fine, turning Steve around back toward the living room. He placed an arm around your shoulder and lead you back to where the others were; Robin had joined the younger kids on the couch.  You found the cooler containing the beer and grabbed two, giving Max a disappointing look as you popped open the can. She diverted her eyes and Dustin grinned, asking how his two parents where today.

“Shut it, Henderson,” Steve snapped; shocked, you placed a hand on his arm. He relaxed and apologized to the kid, asking him to move over. The couch was completely stacked, so Steve patted the arm rest, and you sat down beside him. You drank the beer as everyone conversed, the kitchen in perfect view. Eddie was still talking to his friend, and you watched as he laughed, bounced around and finished off his drink. You felt a warm hand on your back and stared down; Steve’s gaze met yours and you shrugged, dipping your head back to down the rest of the alcohol. He kept his hand on your back, fingers rubbing up and down, just as soothing as the beer.  

People were drinking and dancing, most where in their own conversations shrewd around the living room; eventually, you loosened up and joined in the conversation among your friends. Steve’s hand eventually moved away from you and a strange feeling of disappointment washed over you. Ignoring it, you listened to Robin’s story about a customer at Family Video and everyone was engaged, laughing – even you, until your eyes moved back to the kitchen.

The laughing faded into the background as you watched Eddie smiling at chick you didn’t recognize. She was standing in front of him, and he was nodding at whatever she was saying, her hand on his shoulder. His eyes were glossy, and you knew the look, recognized that eager expression. He had given you that seductive smile so many times, expressing how much he needed you, how good you made him feel. It was sickening to see him with those puppy dog eyes on someone else. Your lungs felt like they were about to drown and all you could do was get up from the couch’s arm rest. Robin paused her story and Steve’s eyes followed you out the trailer. He gave his friend a confused shrug until he looked over into the kitchen – and saw what you had.

Eddie drooling over some chick.

“Fuck,” Steve muttered, handing over his beer to Dustin. He didn’t even care if the kid drank it or not, he was too busy thinking about how hard he was going to punch Eddie, but Robin blocked him. Dustin, Lucas, and Mike stood quiet, oblivious to what was going on, but Max stood up too.

“Don’t.” She warned Steve, nodding to the door. “You should go talk to her.”

“Knight in shining amor, remember,” Robin pointed out, dissolving all the anger Steve was feeling. The girls were right, he could give two shits about Eddie – he only cared about you. He wanted to be there for you and had loved you from a distance for a long time now, but above all of that – he just hated seeing your heart break. Composing himself, he thanked his friends and pushed his way out of the trailer. The night had come over the town and he had to squint in the dark to find you sitting outside of Max’s trailer. He took a deep breath before sauntering over to you, trying to think of what he was going to say but couldn’t get a word out when he saw tears in your eyes.

Embarrassed, you laughed. “I’m pathetic.”

Steve relaxed and took a seat next to you.  He reached a thumb over and wiped away a stray tear. “Eh, we’re all kinda of pathetic.”

His casual nature made you smile and when he offered up his shoulder, you took it, resting your head upon it. Your bodies in close proximity kept the two of you warm in the cold and after a few minutes, you sighed. “I know Eddie isn’t interested in me beyond hooking up.”

Steve tried to hide his disgust at the nature of Eddie using you for sex, because it had been your choice as well – he couldn’t really fault either of you, but he was jealous. Not of the physicality of your relationship with Munson, but the fact that you chose to be so vulnerable to him. Eddie had been given the gift of having your enamored gaze on him, a look Steve had been haunted by every night as he placed his head down to rest. He hated seeing you so in love with someone who couldn’t reciprocate, dragging you around like a plaything. Even if he couldn’t have you, Steve still wanted you to be happy.

“He should be a man and tell you straight out, instead of dragging you around like- “

“- like a lost little puppy.” Guilt riddled Steve and he apologized but you moved away from him and told him there was no need to apologize. “It’s true, I know this. I just – have you ever wanted someone you knew could never want you?”

“Yeah,” he laughed, mostly for his own benefit. His fingers ran through his hair, and he sighed – holding his breath for a moment before deciding to be brave like you were the night you fight off a Demogorgon. “See, I’ve been in love with this girl for a while now.”

“What girl?” Your heart raced, trying to remember him talking about a girl but you would have known. He would have told you – you were his best friend, after all. The thought dried your throat, and your nerves shook as he laughed again.

“She’s amazing,” he let out a whistle and a pang of jealous smacked you in the heart, and you weren’t sure why… “…smart, funny, kind – but there’s a slight problem. She’s in love with someone else – I guess, a friend of mine, if you could call him that…”

Your initial thought was Nancy. “I thought you were over Wheeler?”

Steve stared, dumbfounded by your completely lack of connection and he cackled. You stared at him, confused and annoyed that he was laughing at you; you smacked his arm and he pretended to be offended, rubbing at his arm. “That’s definitely going to be a bruise, genius.”

“You’re so annoying, I’m going home,” you declared, pushing up off the steps. Steve panicked for a second before reaching for your elbow, bringing you back down. Plopping down, your body relaxed under his touch and the two of you sat quietly – neither of you saying word until Steve cleared d his throat and released your elbow.

“Remember that night at Byers? I was fucking terrified,” he remembered, dipping his head to stare up at the stars. Your looked to him, eyes going to his throat; his scars from the demobats were slightly faded now, but the pain of almost losing him had stayed with you. When Steve had been taken under the water, you jumped in after him, the others followed and when you had arrived to see him being strangled to near death – something came over you. You ripped the bats off him with your bare hands, Eddie had a habit of noting how hot it was during your hook ups, but you weren’t thinking about how attractive you were looking in that moment. No, all you could think about was how you couldn’t lose Steve – you downright refused because he was your best friend. He was the one person who could sooth away any worry with just a simple touch; he was the one that was constantly there for you…

“I remember you standing next to me,” he recalled quietly, you just stared, heart racing. “I was still hung up on Nancy, but for a split second, I was terrified of losing you more than her. Which was ridiculous since you had always been ‘Nancy’s friend’.”

It was true, Nancy had been one of your closest friends in high school and while Steve had been an annoyance in your life then, you had always had a soft spot for him. Never understanding why, you just gravitated towards him, but it was platonic, even after they broke up. Even after getting a job at the mall and seeing him everyday during your lunch break.

“I didn’t understand it then,” Steve finally looked at you, eyes a bit sad. He reached for the lapel of your jacket and chuckled. “I guess I always pretended to be annoyed with you back then, because I really did care about Nance. I thought she was the one I wanted, but…”

Your mind becomes flooded with all the small moments the two of you have shared – the little looks across the cafeteria table that felt like they meant nothing, because they weren’t supposed to. All the times you walked into the ice cream shop to bug Steve and Robin, and the smile on his face every time you asked for a free sample. The pained look on his face when he cursed at the Russian soldier who slapped you hard. The rides to drop off Robin at school, listening to music and giving her love advice – the movies he’d bring over to your place, so the two of you could watch and fall asleep on the couch. Every touch on your back, every lingering touch that brought warmth to your body, and a sense of security.

“The girl you’re in love with…” you couldn’t bring yourself to finish the sentence, afraid of a rejection that would hurt far worse than Eddie’s. Your heart pounded and the air felt like it would freeze you inside out, and then Steve sat up, and touched your cheek with his hand.

That familiar warmth enveloped you.

“…it’s you, you got to know that. The girl is you.”

His words are quiet, echoing in your ears and all he can do is stare, doing his best to analyze your reaction. Your heart slowly relaxes and all you can do is apologize. Steve’s hand falls from your face and you realize he thinks he is being rejected.

You grabbed his hand and hold it tightly. “I’m sorry I didn’t realize it sooner, I think deep down, I was afraid I’d lose you for good.”

Steve shook his head and immediately pulled you closer, his arms held your face in place, and he leaned in for a kiss. His lips on yours shocked your senses because you never in your life thought Steve Harrington would be kissing you or that it would feel like something you never had experienced.

Love.

Real love.

Kissing him back, the two of you held onto each other’s faces until he finally pulled away and laughed. “It took you long enough.”

You laughed and embraced him, arms around his neck. He cradled you then, your chin on his shoulder as he rubbed his hands up and down your back. The music from the trailer grew louder and the two of you turned to see Robin and the kids leaving the party. Steve helped you to your feet and flung his arm around your shoulder, bringing you into his side. The two of you stood on the porch of the Mayfield’s trailer, watching as your friends grew closer.

Steve glanced over to you, and you looked at him.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you too,” you whispered back, the truth spilling out so naturally. He grinned, ear to ear, and gave Robin a knowing glance when she approached. She grinned and Max smiled, asking if anyone wanted to watch a movie.

“I stole some beers from the cooler,” she smirked, and Steve frowned, demanding for her to hand them it over. She obliged begrudgingly, taking them out of her coat pockets. The boys followed her into the house, arguing about what movie to watch and Robin plucked a beer from Steve’s arms, looking your way.

“Eddie was looking for you.” Steve gave her a look and Robin shrugged. “I told him you two left together. Want to know what he said?”

“No,” you laughed, the thought of Eddie looking for you was hilarious now. How stupid you had been to think he could ever care about you and even more foolish to think you thought you cared about him. Eddie was a good friend, but he was never what you truly wanted. He was a distraction because you were afraid to go for what your heart desired – Steve.

“Good answer,” Robin grinned.

Steve rolled his eyes and told her to get inside. When she disappeared into the trailer, Steve handed over a beer and the two of you opened them up. He held his can towards you.

“Happy birthday to Eddie.”

Laughing, you clinked the can against his. “To Eddie.”

Steve took a long sip before pulling you in for a sweet kiss, until a parade of ‘ew, gross’ came from the open window near the door. Rolling his eyes, Steve barked for the kids to shut up, but a smile appeared on his face that remained there for the rest of the night.

……

Blurb of Eddie's reaction

[yandere-genji]

Helloo, I’ve never requested a fanfic before, or on tumblr so ur my very first I’m excited ^^ ~ could you do a highschool au of like a bully!gabriel x nerd!reader where he becomes frustrated by the reader not reacting or caring about his bullying, so uses “extreme measures” to really grab their attention. non-con or dub-con, and daddy kink, if that’s okay 🤎

ok i hope u don’t mind i took some “creative liberties” with this lovely prompt and also made it college au but yea. this is an S tier request btw anon and you sucked me back into this shit so props to u 🤎 reader is gender neutral ofc (yes princess is a gen neutral term this is the 21st century)

“You’re not funny, Gabe,” you spoke through gritted teeth in an attempt to intimidate your tormentor, “give me my stuff back or else!”

He responded with a hearty chuckle, tossing your school bag into his locker and closing the door with swift kick. He was bouncing with laughter and amusement at your widened eyes, completely entertained by his own antics, “Yea? What the hell are you gonna do, tell your fucking dean? Go right ahead, see where that’ll get you with me.”

You couldn’t help but close your fists in the tightest grip you could muster, your jaw clenched and face burning red. You hated that he was right, not only was your first instinct to tattle on him, but it would get you nowhere. Gabriel Reyes was untouchable. The school’s quarterback with a promising future that would surely put them on the map once he continued with his career. It made you sick that this asshole would only get a slap on the wrist and a stroke to his ego if you asked anyone to do anything about his harassment of you. What could you do, then? There’s no way in hell you’re just going to sit here and take it.

“No, I’m not running to anyone. Trust me when I say this, you’ll regret messing with me!” The threat didn’t come out the way you intended. Your voice fell out with a crack in the midst of your reply, and tears threatened to fall from your wet eyes. You had hoped he might second guess his actions and consider that you might actually fulfill your promise. Instead, it seemed to have the opposite effect on him. It seemed to have egged him on even further.

His smile widened and he pushed you against the wall. You gasped at the impact, you could feel a dull pain on your back. Hopefully it wouldn’t leave a mark. Before you could get out of your dazed state, Gabe caged you in with his arms, looking down at you like a starved wolf, “You’re really gonna make this fun for me, aren’t you?”

“I’m not scared of you,” you whispered, breath unstable and heart pounding in your ears.

Gabe’s smile beamed. He looked like almost perfect, straight and impossibly white teeth. Full lips and sharp jawline with hints of facial hair. His eyes were dark, like a black hole pulling you in the more you looked into them. Keeping his gaze only revealed to you how weak you were under him. Something he must be aware of by the way he was forcing you to look at him.

He knew you found him handsome. You had told him as much the day you had met him. The day he set his sights on you. He had been much nicer to you then. Saying hi to you in the halls, asking if you wanted to sit with him during lunch, and not taking your shit and throwing it in his locker. But you never came around to him when he asked you if you wanted to go out sometime. You didn’t want to go out with anyone, you were far too focused on schoolwork and tutoring on the side. Dating and boyfriends was just something you didn’t have time for. So you had to refuse and be on your way.

Gabe never understood why you rejected him. How could you be too busy for him? You were always studying in the library, or just reading because you enjoyed it, you said. That’s what all this was about? Reading? That’s like asking your professor for more exams. What kind of masochist shit is that? You must’ve been into that considering all the shit you had to put up with from him.

But fuck, he just couldn’t help but taunt you. The way you insisted upon standing up for yourself even though your face read that you were completely terrified, it did something to him that he couldn’t describe. It made him want to break you. Tear you down and finally see you cry, beg him to stop, beg him to be nice. Just completely melt into him. He wanted to see you on your knees, on all fours, face level with his cock and crying for his forgiveness. For his attention. For any sense of mercy he had for you in his heart.

And you did nothing to quell his desires. Always so pompous in your academic achievements like you were to hottest shit in town. Just like when you became president of the debate club, you gloated about it nonstop until Gabe knocked the wind out of your sails. It didn’t piss him off that you were doing well. In fact, a part of him admired you for it. No, it was the fact that you pranced around so proud before him but you weren’t his. You weren’t asking him if you’d made him proud. Weren’t even talking to him about it. He had to hear about it from a friend of his who was into your nerd shit. Pissed him off to no end.

Now you were here. Trembling under him like a fucking pathetic worm. Yet, you still insisted on defying him. Denying him the pleasure of seeing you vulnerable before him. You were a tease through and through and Gabe was intent on getting what belonged to him. You stared up at him with wet eyes for what seemed like forever until the your phone alarm rang, signaling the start of your next class.

“Well, what do you know. Looks like it’s time for this bright little student to get to class,” he pushed himself away from the wall that had bruised your back, turning back to you, “Hope you didn’t need anything in that backpack of yours today, what a shame.”

……..

As turns out, you would need that backpack of yours. In fact, Gabe must’ve been a stalker creep because his timing couldn’t have been any better - or worse, for you. You had to give a presentation for your language comp class and both your laptop and flash drive were in your backpack. Of course you hadn’t factored in the fact Gabe was going to steal your shit. So, for the meantime, you were screwed until you could get it back.

Maybe this was an opportunity for you to reconcile with him, you thought. Sure, he was hot-headed and seemed sadistically interested in making you miserable, but you couldn’t keep going on like this forever. What was his end goal? You hadn’t the faintest clue, truth be told, but maybe if you could just cut the bullshit with him, go right to the brass tacks of it all and lay everything bare on the table, maybe, maybe, maybe the two of you could come to terms with whatever issues you had. You weren’t unreasonable but you had been stubborn with Gabe. You had hoped he was stop acting like a dick or get bored with you, but nothing you had tried with him so far was effective. So screw it. Might as well try to compromise with the guy and hope he could listen to reason.

Your class ended at noon, the busiest time at your school. Everyone was racing out the door and headed for the cafeteria. Among the crowd, you were determined to find Gabe and, most importantly, your school bag.

You had caught him in the hall standing next to his locker, chatting it up with Jack Morrison, class president and all around golden boy. This was your chance, you thought. You eagerly made your way towards them, Gabe noticing you maneuvering in the crowd in an effort to reach him. An effort that already had him grinning from ear to ear as he averted his attention away from Jack. Before you made you way to them, he was already gone. Gabe shooed him away with words you couldn’t make out, and the two of you were standing side by side in the bustling hall.

You stared at each other for a moment, not saying a word. He knew what you wanted, knew you were going to approach him at some point, but the intent on your face was not what he expected. Your brows furrowed, eyes almost pleading. Jaw slightly slack and bottom lip hanging open as if to speak but all that was heard was the crowd of hungry students running through the halls like a parade. It left him speechless, the very sight of you. You were speechless, too, not sure how to approach him without some form of hostility in your voice. But the halls soon cleared and the silence was deafening. You took a breath, trying to start the conversation.

Gabe spoke, interrupting you, “What do you want?”

It had been so long since you heard him speak that way. Still voice, no sign of amusement or taunting. Almost as if he were genuinely curious as to why you were there. But you both knew that wasn’t true. You decided to play along, let him lead.

“I’d like to have my stuff back,” you spoke with your voice as aloof as you could muster, looking at his locker, “I have a presentation next class and I need my laptop.”

He hummed in response, “Well,” he began to play with the lock, twisting it mindlessly any which way, “guess that means you want me to fetch it for you, right?”

You shrugged, “Not necessarily. I could get it myself if you prefer, I just don’t know your combo is all.”

He chuckled. The sound was so jarring to you, your body instinctively flinched. He looked up at you from the lock, meeting your eyes with that same predatory look from earlier. Everything was still for a moment. Then, Gabe straighten his posture and spoke, “You don’t need to know it. It’s not here.”

“Wha-” your eyes squinted in frustrated confusion. You exhaled, trying to keep your composure, “Okay, where is it? Do you think I could get it back before my next class?”

Gabe could tell you were starting to drop whatever act you were playing. It was cute to see you try to keep your cool with him, the muscles on his face were burning with delight, “Sure.”

You crossed your arms and sighed, starting to grow impatient, “So where is it?”

He turned away from you, slowly walking down the hall, “This way,” he whistled at you like a dog while motioning with his two fingers for you to follow him. How insufferable.

But you did. It seemed that your method had some impact on him. This could be the break you had been looking for. You followed him down the corridor, wrapping around the halls with him until he came to a stop in front of the boys’ locker room. He turned towards you, leaning against the wall looking ever so smug.

You mouth fell open and eyes widened a bit. Huffing, you shook your head, “No way.”

“What?” he kept his eyes on you, “Don’t tell me you’re too prissy to go into a locker room.”

“There’s no way I’m going to go in there with you, Gabe!” you raised your voice a bit in frustration. He couldn’t be serious, right?

“Christ, relax, princess. Coach is out for lunch and I swiped his keys earlier,” he shook his pockets which rang with the jiggling of the keys, “Go on in, nothing to be scared of.”

What he was describing had to break some kind of law, but it’s not like he’d really get in trouble anyway. Not everyone can do this kind of shit, but Gabe could. Even worse, he could get away with it even if he was caught. So what option did you have but to walk through the doors into the dank locker room that reeked of sweat. Much to your unease, Gabe followed behind you and locked the door. He raised the keys in his hands, letting you have a good look at them, “Gotta make sure no one sees us, right?”

You shook your head in disapproval, “Where’s my stuff? Or are you just gonna drag me around all day?”

He scoffed, “You got a real attitude problem, you know that?” Gabe grabbed your elbow in a tight grip. You gasped, struggling to escape his grasp, “Calm down, just come with me.”

“You’re hurting me!” You put your hand on his wrist in some attempt to get him off of you, and he thankfully obliged by pushing you away from him.

“Don’t have a high pain tolerance, I take it? All bark and no bite. Didn’t take you for the type with all those empty threats you spill,” he began walking off, “you coming?”

Although Gabe was mean to you, he had never really hurt you before. Not physically. It shook your core a bit, the atmosphere seemed all wrong and the fact he was your only way to escape did nothing but frighten you more.

“Gabe?” you softly called out his name, not wanting to go any further.

He stopped. Your voice cut through him like a knife. You had never spoken to him like that. He could hear the fear in your voice, hear you on the verge of pleading for him. He turned his head, but didn’t dare look you in the eyes, “What?” he spoke sternly, demanding an answer.

You weren’t sure what to say. So many emotions were running through you - mostly fear and confusion. This was something different than a fight or flight response. You couldn’t describe it, you didn’t want to run away or fight back. You just wanted to appeal to whatever sense of reason he had.

“Why don’t you like me?” your voice was weak, a kind of weakness you hadn’t spoken with in a long time. Completely vulnerable, willing to bare everything for just one moment of clarification. Just one reason why things were like this. It was something you were wondering all along, but could never bare to ask. The kind of thing that is sunken in the deepest pit of your subconscious, never baring its head until you’re backed up into a corner just like this.

He turns around slowly, deliberately. The look on his face is almost pitiful, but not authentic. He’s taunting you with a false vulnerability. Now you’ve done it. You’ve completely unraveled before him. He didn’t know this could be so easy. The two of you had been chasing each other in circles for the better part of half a year and it’s finally come to this. There was no farce, no tricks behind your words.

Three steps was all it took for him to close the gap between the two of you. Three agonizing slow steps. Your hands were clasped together, you didn’t even know why. You felt so small. He wouldn’t answer you. He just looked at you with that look on his face that mirrored yours yet had no purpose but to mock you. Like he was teasing you, just like he had always done. No, this wasn’t working for you at all. None of what you had been doing was working. He had set a trap for you and you foolishly fell right into it.

“Gabe,” you spoke, just barely above a whisper on shaken breath. He raised a hand to your cheek. It had barely touched you but the feeling of his calloused hand and the tension in the air had your flesh burning. Your eyes stung, too, as tears threatened to fall from them. Just like always, you fought at your instinct to cry. But you couldn’t stop a tear from sliding down your cheek and onto his hand.

“Gabe, please,” you were starting to raise your voice. You wanted to turn away, step back, retreat in some way. But he hand kept you there.

He crouched a bit, eyes level with yours. They were dark. Hazelnut brown and an empty black center that was so close to you, you could make out your own reflection. You could hardly recognize yourself.

“Look at you…” his voice was low, but affectionate. Like he was speaking to a wounded kitten, “And all this time I thought you were nothing but a brat.”

He lowered his hand from you cheek and onto the back of your neck. You felt a light squeeze from his grip and swallowed at the sensation, “As much as I want to keep you here, I think we both got places to be. Right, honey?”

Your face grew red with embarrassment at the sudden sweetness in his voice. He was talking to you like his pet, a part of you was relieved that he might not harm you but another part of you felt belittled and tormented. Still, you wanted to comply with him in some desperate hope to get out of this mess. So you nodded, mouth knit shut and eyes brimming with tears.

“Good. Then behave for me,” In a sudden movement, his hands gripped your shoulders tightly and you knees buckled in shock. You yelped as Gabe continued to push you down onto the floor. Your hands grabbed at his arms, trying to get him off of you but it was no use. He was far too strong for you to move him off of you. A hand moved to the back of your neck like before and another grabbed a handful of your hair and tugged gently, “The faster we get through this, the sooner you can get your shit and get out of here. If you don’t behave, then this won’t be pretty. Not one fucking bit.”

Gabe isn’t like you. He’s not the kind of guy who just says shit to scare people. When he declares his intent, he means it. And whatever picture he had in his head of what he was going to do to you if you didn’t comply, you certainly didn’t want to see it. You tried to relax your body as much as you could to cope with whatever he had planned for you.

His hand moved from your back and wrapped around your throat, the other forcing your head to look up at him. He didn’t grip hard but you were already choking on weak sobs and felt suffocated. You didn’t want to speak, didn’t want to piss him off or provoke him anymore than you already had. Apparently he didn’t mind, and pulled himself closer to you. His crouch was getting disturbingly close to your face, you averted your gaze away from him onto the floor.

Turns out, he didn’t like that. He tugged your hair to get your attention, “What’s the matter, you getting shy on me? Crazy, I never took you for the type. Always talking up a big game, but now look at you.”

With one swift motion, he unclasped his jeans. His briefs peaked through his open zipper and revealed his hard cock through the fabric. You gasped, not realizing what was happening up until that point. You had thought he was just going to beat the piss out of you. No, you couldn’t handle this. Mindlessly babbling, you begged him not to do this, asked him to please stop. Tears were running down your face frantically as you took in sharp, panicked breaths. Gabe soaked in the sight of you, growing larger at your pathetic display. This is exactly what he wanted. To tower over you, commanding complete control while you sit helpless before him. He grabbed a tuft of your hair, pulling hard as he forced your face onto his crouch. Your tongue spilled out and your hands tried to pull away from him but the more you pulled the harder he would grind into you. You could hear him laugh above you and felt his laughter vibrate through his body. It was useless, nothing was getting through to him.

He pulled you off of him and onto the floor. Before you could move, his legs caged you in before him, “C’mon, we’re just getting started.”

He grabbed your hair again, pulling you onto your knees. The floor was hard and cold and it didn’t take more than a few seconds for it to hurt your knees. You tried to get in a more comfortable position, but Gabe denied you at every turn. So you leaned on your knees, certain it would leave a mark.

Your face was level with his crouch and he made a display for you in undressing himself. Slowly tracing the band of his briefs, pulling down to show you the dark hair on his body. He was toying with you and enjoying every second of it, moaning with every touch. Part of you hoped that this was all he wanted, that he wouldn’t make you participate in bringing him pleasure besides watching. But when he sprung his leaking cock out of his briefs, you felt your self wanting to sink into the floor.

He was big and you were not prepared at all to take him. He stroked his cock, precum bubbling and drooling at the tip, “See that, baby” he hummed and laughed, enjoying himself, “You’re gonna clean up Daddy’s cock real nice, aren’t you?”

You didn’t think your face could get any hotter, but it did at that moment. More tears fell and you struggled to let out a normal breath. Gabe pulled harshly on your hair, “You better fucking answer me.”

It was too much. The stinging in your scalp, the hot tears on your burning face, the heavy beating of your heart in your chest. All you could do is resign yourself to his desire and pray to God this would all be over soon, “Yes, Daddy.”

He threw his head back and stroked himself faster, obviously very pleased with himself now that he had your total compliance. Exhaling, he looked down at the sight of you. Desperate tiny frame right next to his hard, leaking cock.

“Take it in your mouth. Don’t make me wait. I’m a busy man, I have shit to do.”

You opened your mouth and licked his tip clean, salty and slimey precum covering your tongue. Inch by inch you took him in your mouth. You fit half his cock in your mouth before his started pumping into you, lewd sounds of your gagging echoing in the empty room. Gabe groaned, hissed, growled in pleasure as he gently fucked your mouth, covering your face in spit and tears and his juices. You were a mess and he felt so fucking good. His thrust became faster, deeper and you choked on him with every one. You didn’t think you could possibly take him all in, but he forced your head down until your chin met with his plump balls and you nose was tickled by his pubic hair.

“That’s it, so good for Daddy,” sweat made his skin glow as he forced you deeper and deeper onto him, “you’re gonna swallow ever last drop of me, baby.”

You could hardly breath. Your mouth was full of the taste of him and the air around you smelled like his cock and sweat. He was all around you and you had no escape.

You sucked on his cock so hard your jaw felt like it was going to break. You just wanted this all to be over and done with. Fuck, all this for a fucking powerpoint presentation. Every part of you ached and burned. Even between your thighs, your own arousal was stirring without warning, desperately squeezing your thighs together for any sense of relief.

“You like that, baby?” he asked hoarsely, “If you weren’t such a fucking brat, maybe I would’ve let you cum.“

You cried out on his cock, sending waves of pleasure through him. He was getting close, frantically fucking your face with more fervor. It wasn’t long before he let go of your hair, putting both his hands on your head and using your mouth like a fucktoy.

“Don’t fuckin move baby, Daddy’s gonna cum right down your throat,” sweat dripped down his chest, right onto your lips as he held your face flush against him. In a few jagged pumps, he emptied himself in your mouth. It was warm and tasted so strongly of his cock that you couldn’t help but instantly swallow, not wanted to gag. More tears came rushing out of you. Thank God, it was finally over.

He let go of your face and you tore yourself from him, coughing and gasping for air. Gabe had to catch his breath, too. Leaning against a row of lockers, he cleaned himself off with a roll of paper towels nearby and redressed himself. You curled into a ball, completely humiliated and unsure what to do next. What time was it? Oh God, you still had to go to class.

You were interrupted when Gabe approached you, towel in hand. His chest was rising and falling, but he wasn’t panting anymore, “C’mon, get yourself cleaned up. I’ll get your shit.”

Reluctantly, you reached for the towel and cleaned whatever moisture on your face that hadn’t already dried up. Your hair was a complete mess. You tried your best to untangle it but there was no way you could fully restore it with just your fingers.

Gabe came back, your backpack in his hands. Your heart soared, relief washing over you, “Consider this a reward. You really impressed me today.”

You blushed, ashamed and not sure what to say. You felt embarrassed at having been so violated but a shallow part of you felt superficially flattered. You wanted to pull that part of you out and punch it in the fucking face.

He tutted, “You gonna be shy around me now? Shit, I don’t mind, you’re kinda cute like this.”

His arms wrapped around you in a soft hug and your body froze. This was all too much for you, “It’s okay, baby. Let me walk you to class. No one’s gonna give a shit if I’m late.”

“I don’t feel good,” you said softly, throat sore and raw after the abuse.

“Poor thing,” Gabe pulled away to get a look at your face. You still wouldn’t look at him. He felt like a fucking king when you were blowing him but looking at you now… Well he kind of felt like a shit head. But damn if you didn’t like good, “Skip class with me. Let’s get you something to eat.”

You didn’t want to be with Gabe right now. But you didn’t want to go to class either. You just wanted to go to bed, “Can you take me home, Gabe?”

“Of course, baby,” He stroked your hair and gave you and gentle kiss on the forehead, you recoiled, “Let’s get you home, alright?”

[alligaytorswamp]

how did taiki and his poly all start dating? how do they like to cheer each other up when something bad happens?

aughhghhhh thank u for the asks 😭

god given me the right to talk too much so like. warning i talk too much:

run down on their meetcutes and such (vaguely presented here too):

taiki was dragged by his coworker junpei to hang out with idols under their label, they prolly only talked to andromeda and ishindenshin that day, regardless this is how taiki was simply introduced to kotoya, they didn't even talk

howeverrr kotoya is a pretty boy, the type of idol known for his beauty, and yes ofc taiki was mildly aware of that? he kind of looked at the photos of some idols, but he didn't care all too hard. BUT upon meeting kotoya irl he had that gay moment of 'holy shit he is even prettier in real life what the fuck' and now had a dumb crush

but kotoya is introverted as hell, and an idol! taiki has no clue how to rizz him up. not to mention he doesn't wanna do anything cringe to essentially a colleague, right?? so yeah for the first time in ages taiki just feels stupid because he out of all people doesn't know how to ask a man out

regardless he now tries to hang out around the company building more in hopes they can naturally come across each other, and plot convenience strikes he just knows some ishindenshin members will be recording smth, so he goes to that part of the building

altho again he is unsure how to talk to kotoya, he can't really just walk in to say hello to pretty much stranger- boom. rokuro spawns

he also got some shit to do, and he- unlike taiki - knew kotoya for a good while now. their respective groups are close friends and they all know each other pretty damn well. rokuro himself spends enough time at ishindenshin's dorm and hanging out with kotoya specifically

so as a good friend ofc rokuro goes out of his way to meet up with kotoya, yet this time he comes across an entire taiki. and given that rokuro is very friendly he just immediately nice to taiki, asks him who he is, why is here, etc

taiki introduces himself and vaguely says that he met ishindenshin before and heard that some members were here and wondered if he should say hi... (smooth king). naturally rokuro is immediately like 'omg yea? come with me!'

so rokuro highkey forces a proper personal interaction between kotoya and taiki that at least later allows taiki to confidently interact with kotoya on his own

but plot shall continue- kotoya and rokuro already in their slow burn era. like they just extremely good friends, who are sweet and cuddly, and rokuro will come to hang out with him after a day of training just to listen to kotoya talk about smth complicated (or watch him play games)

taiki got his 'love at first sight' thing going on, where he is very much trying to very casually and slowly rizz up kotoya and kotoya is honest to god very receptive to this (albeit shy asf)

and while this is a thing rokuro and taiki become very good friends too, like they just hit it off, but there is also an odd level of gayness in there with certain flirty comments that are once again received well

cue taiki kind of losing his mind because he can't understand who he has a bigger crush on and how he supposed to deal with this (plus he starts to suspect kotoya and rokuro themselves seem to have close relationships, maybe he is a homewrecker or smth)

rokuro is chilling, he doesn't even worry about a single thing, sure he apparently likes two people but the experience of having a crush is fun for him. + taiki and kotoya are awesome. and on top of that like even if they reject him or simply end up together he would be totally happy ??? (open minded king)

kotoya didn't have much going on he was honestly in survival mode because he is already shy, and there are maybe two people flirting with him, he deadass refused to think about it too hard. god bless his gentle heart okay

(cue them like being progressively more gay in any 2 ppl combos, and when it's 3 of them - because yes they eventually start hang out all three - it's like rokuro leading the convo, complimenting one person, but like involving the other, so it's like he is both rizzing up somebody being a wingman for the other person. crazy stuff really.)

now the rest doesnt have cool details

basically i think atp all of this is entirely too gay, and taiki gotta make a move but he doesn't know with who

so he confesses to rokuro, but he straight up says he also likes kotoya (in a way trying to say 'sorry i dont think my head is in the right space for this relationship with you') . to which rokuro is just like 'oh yeah me too!' LMAO

yeahhhh it's kinda goofy. i think they chat about it and come to a proper conclusion that they both like each other AND like kotoya

then taiki and rokuro very bravely ask kotoya out (by basically going out together and then ending it with a confession where they just say that the two of them together now BUT they also like kotoya and wanna date him as well)

likely kotoya needs like a few days to even process everything but then he agrees and peace and love on planet earth, my rgb poly became real!!

cheering up (thank god this is less words):

kotoya is a physical touch king, so he would just offer his company (hand holding, hugs, etc) + he is good with reassuring words and advice <3

rokuro tends to just ask if there is anything he can do + give gifts/show fun videos/etc

taiki i think is more of a listening ear, but also when possible he can initiate a pretty random date to hopefully keep his bfs' minds off something bad

[zvmz]

Writing down my thoughts while watching monster high for the first time Pt. 2

alright y’all now we’re watching why do ghouls fall in love let’s go

oh oh new and improved intro

the one long shot as the intro is so cool

ohh shoot we 3D now

actually might like it better than the 2D

wait r they saying Valentine’s Day was literally made for Draculara?

im confused 😁

can I get a sugar daddy like clawd

CAN I GET DRACULARAS DAD?????

oh

um this is awkward

so guys it was all in our heads apparently 😊

clawdeen is kinda slaying this new animation style

oh this song goes so hard

the bats flying out of clawds wallet is so real

come again how old is draculara

why is she still in school

was she held back a few hundred years

and I thought my grades were bad

the cat people make me uncomfortable. stranger danger

damn these cats are menaces

arent they always

not the driving lessons book

just pass it the first time fr 🙄

GUYS

GUYS

GUYS

CUPID

SHES HERE

LOLL NOT THE STOOL CLAWD 😭😭

vampire daring charming???

“misunderstanding with the locals”?? 😭 what did girlie do??? 😭😭

is ghoulias back okay like fr

the collection of broken hearts is so extra

kinda metal idk I almost cant be mad

imagine eah characters trying to navigate the catacombs

girls would not last a minute

actually can someone make a fic I would totally read that

why am I just now realizing ghoulia can’t talk

like idk I just thought she was a bit quirky this whole time

WHY DOES DRACULARA HAVE KNIVES ON THE CEILING OF HER CAR

oh my god Draculara HIT HIM

FLOOR IT DRACULARA

she missed her chance :( vampire Elvis lives

The shot of them running towards each in slow motion just to maintain a 3 feet distance was so unnecessary

WAIT A MINUTE DRACULARA YOURE BETTER THAN THIS. YOU ALREADY HAVE A BOYFRIEND

why is dueces animation specifically so rough

he kind of reminds me of sparrow

i kinda like him

yes Draculara break it off

oh- um

THE ANIMATION ON THEIR PHONES OF DRACULARA DUMPING CLAWD?? WHO MADE THAT?? WHERE DID IT COME FROM?? 😭😭😭

wait a minute I recognize Frankie’s voice. Is that Barbie?

why does some random cow go to their school

CUPIDDDD

LOL NOT CLEO BREAKING THE CLASS

yeah Cupid shoot her

pow pow pow 💥🔫💥🔫💥🔫

okay now what the hell

get it together cupid

why does Cupid keep accidentally getting love enchanted? First clawd then Dexter lolll

the dog whistle?? 😭

clawds like. I guess you can say I got… W rizz...

”what u want” ABBY 😭😭 BEST CHARACTER ONG

this party looks kinda fire ngl

not sure how I feel about the food being served next to the body odor pit

okayyy frankieee kinda slaying her party look

cleo barely changing after being love enchanted to herself

Could this be considered a school shooting? like legally

um anyway Kitty Cheshire supremacy

rizz lord clawd

hell yea body odor pit for the win ✊🏻

why was the kiss sound so um squishy

abby is such an icon

okay it’s over

I liked this one a lot better than the last movie. I hope we see Cupid again or else I’ll rage

the pacing was like SO much better than the last movie.

my only complaints are that toralai and vampire Elvis's motivations either weren’t really explained or made no sense to me. Also the animation still isn’t great but what do you expect lol

oh wait one more complaint. where is Frankie’s personality. I do not see it

hopefully we get a good frankie episode to get to know her a bit more

also it keeps telling us clawdeen and draculara are best friends but not really showing it??

In conclusion clawd is the rizzard and Abby solos

[awrestlinggirlwholoves80sbands]

Hey, i am the one who requested the slaxl story: yea I meant axl telling Izzy about slash, sorry if that was unclear😅 I respond you this way cause I'm sure how I can comment under your post😭 (new on Tumblr)

Okay so a year has passed since this ask (ops) and I am so sorry, but between uni and anything I've never got the chance to finish it until now. I hope you'll enjoy it :)

Izzy's POV

The clock read 3 a.m when a loud bang on the door woke Izzy up. The guitarist almost wanted to laugh, considering that he decided to go to sleep earlier for once but destiny had other plans for him. He settled on ignoring the noise however it just kept going.

“Go away!” He yelled, hoping that the fucker would give up.

“Izzy, pleaseeee open up!” Axl's voice pleaded.

“Go harass Duff, he’s probably still awake.”

He might have been Axl’s childhood best friend but it didn’t mean he had to deal with his shit, especially when he just wanted to sleep and nothing would change that not even the grip forming in his heart due the guilt.

“Please Izzy, I need your help.”

Izzy wanted to say no and go back to sleep or pretend to until Axl would have left him alone, but something inside him urged him to listen to his friend. More than once he found himself calming the redhead back to sleep or allowing him to let his emotions out, especially for Axl and the whole band’s sake.

Reluctantly he stood up, his hands curled up in fists for a second and promising himself that he would make sure to let the other man know he owned him. When he opened the door, he was relieved to see Axl's face still intact however his glossy eyes had some red in them that couldn’t only be because of the alcohol.

“What do you want, shithead?” He asked unceremoniously.

“I need your help, Izzy.”

“Yeah, you kind of said that already. So are you going to repeat that all night or are you giving a good enough reason why you’re knocking on my door at 3 a.m.?”

“Okay, so do you know Slash?” Axl sounded completely serious which made Izzy almost let out a hysterical laugh. He couldn't help but arch his eyebrows at how Axl was tiptoeing around the subject, even if he was more surprised about how he still hadn't pushed him out of his room. His stomach lurched at the thought he was becoming soft.

“You mean Slash, our guitarist, the one we have known for a year now?” His sarcasm was bitter but it didn’t seem to faze Axl.

“Yeah.. me and Slash did something…”

Izzy rolled his eyes. As much as he wanted to strangle Axl to make him spill the beans, a part of him didn’t want to know what those idiots did because it meant getting involved and he wasn't ready to bail Slash out of jail again, even if deep down he loved them. Before saying anything he sighed, letting out all the anger from his voice because he had learned long ago that it was pointless.

“Something illegal?”

“No, well maybe it’s immoral for some people. My step dad would have found it such but technically it’s not illegal.”

The guitarist forgot that if Axl normally would talk for hours, while drunk he would do that even more while making zero sense. Something so wonderful when he just wanted to sleep.

“Axl, please just tell me what the hell you two have done!”

“Me and Slash went on a date, okay?!”

Izzy’s eyes widened in surprise. The sexual tension between Axl and Slash was obvious, the two were constantly hugging and teasing each other, however he didn’t think they would actually act on those feelings. Probably his tiredness didn't only close his eyes but his brain too, because he felt genuinely happy for them, even if the redhead’s tone told him the date didn’t go as planned.

“On a date? Damn, did you bite the bullet and ask him?”

“Well it wasn’t officially a date but we both knew it was.” Axl said, sounding just like a teenager.

Izzy's head started pulsing in anticipation of the cheesy story that was about to unfold, he would rather eat sand than having to listen to that but he doubted that pretending to faint could get away with not hearing the story. However, making his eyebrows arch was the reason Axl decided to come to him, usually Duff was the love advisor. Was it because he trusted him more? Or was it karma deciding to kick his ass by not making him able to get a good night of sleep?

“What’s wrong with the date?”

“Everything was cool and then he kissed me!” The singer spat those words almost like they were poison.

“You weren’t okay with that?” Izzy 's heart started to beat faster as rage slowly crept close to the surface. He was well aware of Axl’s past and how he didn’t take lightly people forcing on him, so it was only expected for him to go into his protective mode. Hell, if he discovered Slash had done something to Axl, he would have killed himself with his hands.

“No no, I wanted to but then I freak out because it made everything real! Because I really like him but we agreed to be friends with benefits and I don’t know what to do.” The redhead sniffled, hiding his face with his hair.

The guitarist's brain just shut down, unable to process a correct answer to give, he knew he needed to be honest but not too harsh, sympathetic yet realist. He just stayed silent for what seemed the longest time, Axl's eyes fixed on him like he had the answer to every problem of the universe, while Izzy was just digging through his brain for possible outcomes.

“Well isn’t it pointless to not be together if he likes you?”

"Well, you are already having sex. What's the problem?"

“Don’t worry about it, true love always wins.”

“Fucking hell Axl, it’s 3 in the morning and I just want to sleep.”

“Why don’t you talk with him tomorrow? When you are sober and not a crying mess. Just tell him you want to take things slow and time will tell.” He decided to set on, hoping it would work.

Axl tilted his head, pondering what Izzy said like a big truth about the secrets of the universe, and eventually he nodded in agreement. The other man's shoulder relaxed, maybe the universe was really rooting his way and spared him more Axl's tears and possible screams.

“You’re right. I just gotta wait and I’ll tell him and if doesn’t accept him, well fuck him!”

“Great, now why don’t you go back to your room and just sleep on all of this?” The black haired man suggested, almost taking his arm to direct him to the door. However a knock to the door made him groan in frustration, every ounce of diplomacy leaving his body at the prospect of having to deal with another of his bandmates.

“Whoever you are, you better get lost in the next five seconds or I will murder you.”

“Izzyyyy, I need your help.” Slash’s intoxicated voice replied.

Another drunk friend, as dealing with Axl wasn’t enough for him. The redhead’s eyes widened were a big tell that he was about to freak out and the guitarist didn’t know if he could handle him. Pinching his nose, he decided to take matters into his own hands before he had to bash his head against the wall, after all his hotel room wasn't a therapist's office.

“Slash, go to Duff. It isn’t really a good moment.” He yelled sternly.

“But I need you!”

“I’m going out of here.” Axl said, moving towards the window and prompting Izzy to throw his arm to block him.

“Fuck no! You will stay here and I’ll try to keep him out.” Izzy squeezed his shoulders in a calming way.

He opened the door just enough to see his band mate: clearly intoxicated, his eyes weren't red but they were darting all around and his fingers were playing with one of the bracelets he always wore. It was another prime example of a band mate in crisis, but to make everything worse, he didn't know Slash as much as he knew Axl.

"Slash, why don't you go to Duff?" He crossed his arms, hoping to scare him enough to discourage him from staying there.

"Because he can't understand... you know him better." Slash's curls automatically covered his face, but that didn't fool Izzy and only made his heart drop in defeat.

"Know who better?" He sounded as vague as possible, as if he couldn't hear Axl crawling on the floor and hiding in the bathroom.

"Axl. Look, I'm afraid that I freaked him out. I'm scared too, I get it but I need to gain his trust back."

Izzy rubbed his temples, the headache slapping him with such a force that he wished he could make him pass out, giving him a way out of this mess. He had another choice to make: should he tell Slash that Axl was there, and let them solve their problems? Or should he protect his friend and keep his mouth shut?

He tasted his pockets for cigarettes, probably they could have cleared his mind and corrupted Slash, making him gain some time. All of a sudden a loud noise made his hand fall against his side and a small curse came out his mouth, even Slash in his drunken stupor was attracted by the unusual sound.

"What's that noise?" A look of puzzlement crossed Slash's face.

"I was busy before you interrupted me." Izzy gestured vaguely, hopefully the other man was too drunk to question his lie.

"You never bring a girl into your room."

"Now what? Do you think you know what I do in my free time?" His face contorted in an annoyed expression.

It took all his self control to not ran outside the room and leave the two idiots with themselves, all this diplomacy was making him sick to his stomach. Slash's glossy eyes stared at him for a second, but he was too out of it to argue back, however right when he thought the situation was diffused, he heard the bathroom door opening.

Axl seemed to have sober up a bit, his face was clean of any sign of tears however his eyes quickly went down as soon as he caught a glimpse of Slash. On the other hand Slash seemed awkward, his mouth opened in slight surprise as Izzy could clearly see the gears in the other man's brain trying to come up with something but only resorting to silence.

"Hi Slash." The redhead said shyly.

"Were you hiding in the bathroom?"

Axl's face scrunched up for a moment and Izzy saw a familiar fire in his eyes that made him ready to step in if needed, but apparently the redhead's rational side seemed to win so he just took a deep breath and did not break Slash's nose to the delight of Izzy.

"I guess we need to talk."

Izzy's eyes bolted to both men as the tension was filling the air: Axl's confidence was gone as he kept looking around the room while Slash just stood still as he was waiting for the Earth to swallow him alive. Izzy wanted to leave the room but a look from childhood best friend's told him to stay.

"Look Axl, if you didn't like the kiss it's fine. I know we said to keep things casual-" Slash started but he was quickly interrupted.

"No, I liked the kiss. It's just a bit more complicated than that." Axl started to play with his bracelets, trying to find the right words.

"Oh..."

Izzy's hands hitched to butt the heads of his friends together, maybe that could help them be less oblivious. A sense of discomfort took over as he realized that he was just standing here, watching two people talking about their deepest feelings in front of a bandmate. He needed to do something so he headed towards the only window in his room to lit up a cigarette.

"I... I like you Slash, okay? But this shit ain't easy! I've never had feelings for a guy, I've been taught it was a sin."

"You like me?" Slash asked, with such a surprised tone that Izzy had to turn around to watch both of them.

"Yeah. I know I said "no feelings involved" but it happened."

Izzy watched Slash stumbling towards Axl and gently kissing him. For a moment Izzy's heartbeat got faster but Axl quickly reciprocated the kiss, making shame invade the guitarist's body.

"I'll be outside... try to not use my bed for "fun times" " He said but the other two man were too busy eating their faces to acknowledge him in any way.

Axl POV

Axl barely heard the door closing, he was too focused on how Slash's lip tasted like a whole bottle of Jack and a pack of cigarettes or how his hands were buried in the other man's curls, making Slash purring in his mouth. Quickly their lips weren't gently touching anymore but smashing against each other, the air uncomfortably getting trapped in his lungs and his cheeks turning red.

"I'm taking this forward, okay? Tell me to stop whenever you don't feel up to it anymore." Slash said and Axl nodded, his face relaxing at the thought of having a choice.

Slash's hand traveled to Axl's shirt, his finger played with the hems without actually lifting it while their feet were subconsciously leading them towards the bed. The same bed Izzy forbidden them to touch. Axl tugged Slash's shirt, hating his moment of clarity because he wanted nothing more than to keep kissing, but the other man didn't budge.

"Slash?"

"Mh?" He said, interrupting the kiss.

"Izzy would kill us if we touched his bed." Slash sighed and stepped away from Axl. "But maybe we can continue in your room." The redhead added.

Slash's lips immediately turned into a smirk but he hesitated for a minute.

"So we are officially more than fuck buddies? Because I can't deal with another run like the one we had before, I thought you were going to take a plane or kill me!"

"Yes, we are. I might take some time but I promise."

Axl felt Slash's hand on his, squeezing it reassuringly and the cold metal of his ring gave him a weird sense of comfort, he couldn't explain it but it just felt like Slash. He let him guide him to the door as fear slowly left his body.

Izzy's POV

He sat against the door, his head pounding and his eyes tired which was so fucking stupid because everything was solved, there was no need for his body to be so dramatic. He pondered about resting,not sleeping, just to see if it eased the pain of his head.

"Izzy?" The voice was far away but he just ignored it. He was so close to drift away when the voice came back again and louder.

"Izzy!" It sounded familiar but his brain was too exhausted to match any face to the voice.

"I'm sleeping, leave me alone." He replied.

The sound of steps only lasted a couple of seconds before he felt someone sitting next to him, all his reflexes were apparently dull because he didn't react at all. A strong smell of cigarettes and a very specific cologne hit his nostrils and revealed the mysterious man.

"Duff, what are you doing here?" He said, giving up and opening his eyes.

Duff's shoulder dropped in relief, his red eyes holding all the remaining anxiety running through his body. Izzy had no idea if he was about to laugh or cry because having to babysit him sounded like a nightmare.

"Oh thank God you're alive. I was smoking outside the bar and then I noticed Slash running towards the hotel, I thought he was in trouble until I watched him get inside your room."

"Yeah, he is okay. He was just very drunk and he and Axl had to sort something out."

"Is Axl going to kill him? What's going on?"

Izzy's hands started to play with the pack of matches in his hands, he looked Duff right into his eyes with a blank expression while his mind was traveling as fast as light. He didn't want to harm Axl or Slash in any way, even if he always had a good amount of trust in Duff's open mind.

"No. I'm about to say something and it has to stay between us, okay? Axl and Slash are dating.

Duff started laughing and then it turned into wheezing, so much that he had to hold his stomach from it and his eyes started to water with tears. Rage shot through Izzy's body, making his face twist into the scariest impassible expression he was capable of, the one that usually meant he was about to throw hands.

" God, I thought Slash upset Axl or something. I mean, are we even surprised? Those two are behaving like a married couple all the time, fucking finally!"

Izzy didn't even realize he clutched his hands until he relaxed them, Duff's supportive nature came handy once again and he found it hard to suppress the smallest hint of a smile. As much as the bassist was a piece of work, but Izzy couldn't really say anything since he was one too, moments like this reminded him of the weird bond they had about making sure the rest of the band was okay.

Suddenly the door next to him opened, revealing a certain drummer with blonde hair staring at Duff and Izzy with the widest smile.

"Axl and Slash are together?" Steven squealed with excitement.

"Steven, what the hell? You scared me!" Duff said, holding a hand over his heart.

The drummer ignored him to instead close his door and sat across Izzy, eyes full of joy and his body vibrating with energy.

"It's almost 4am why are you awake?" Izzy hoped to distract him.

"I couldn't sleep. So, are Axl and Slash together? How did that happen?"

The guitarist sighed, he pondered if he should have ignored Steven all together but the angel on his shoulder seemed to win, his face softened as he looked at the other man. He went over the story again, his calm voice in total contrast with Steven's continuous face expression even if in a way it made him feel validated in having to deal with those two idiots.

"Wow, I've never knew they were fuck buddies. I mean, one time I saw Slash and a redhead in bed but I thought it was a chick!" Steven said, making Duff laugh again.

Before he could stop it, Izzy felt a small laughter escaping his body as the image of a very naked and dramatic Axl screaming plagued his head. His head moved closer to the door but he couldn't hear much so Izzy returned to focus on Duff and Steven and their very important argument about pizza toppings, but soon their voice became only a background noise and his eyes dropped.

Maybe he was finally able to get some sleep...

The door slammed open, making Izzy's eyes immediately snap open, he turned his body around and he saw Slash's guilty eyes shooting an apology, quickly followed by Axl's confused face. Irritated wasn't even enough to describe the pure heat radiating through his body, but he would have lied if he said that he wasn't relieved by their two friends holding hands.

" What are Duff and Steven doing here?" Axl tilted his head quizzically.

"Duff thought you would kill Slash and Steven wanted a sleepover." Izzy explained and that seemed enough for Slash, who tugged Axl towards their room before the redhead could say anything.

The doorknob almost lured Izzy like a siren as his tired body screamed for some rest, he barely realized his feet moving towards his room before he was distracted by Steven's cheerful voice.

"Wanna join me and Duff in our sleepover?"

"No." He said, closing the door right in his friends' face and falling flat on his bed.

[forcebookish]

ok sorry I have a lot of thoughts about this ep so hope this is ok 😭

1. I am genuinely hopeful for a topmew reconciliation and I think the beginnings of it could start as soon as next ep? I don't think it'll be quick or easy but I do think a lot of things are gonna click in place for mew when top is taking care of him while ray is nowhere to be found. also I think he needed to self destruct a bit before he could forgive top. 2. FUCK RAY AND I MEAN THAT!!!! his stans can victimize him all they want but he is the nastiest character aside from boston. the way he treats sand and mew is downright vile but he keeps getting excuse after excuse. (Also sidenote as much as I hate it I think raymew needs to happen once just so they can both get it out of their systems and quickly realize it'll NEVER work). also I know I'm a mew apologist but is no one gonna talk about how ray knows mew just got his heart broken and is still gonna try to be with him while he is kind of seeing/has feelings for sand? he's gonna put mew through hell again?? but he's SO much better than top apparently.

totally okay, anon, let it out. i mean, i'm going to let even more out lol megarant incoming:

1. agreed, i'm sure that topmew can make it through, especially based on the next episode. i think mew just has to go through it a little bit. i'm really bummed that top ended up hitting mew, but at least it wasn't on purpose... unlike the other couples😒 and you know what? i'd want to hit ray that badly too, because

2. SAME!! FUCK RAY! i have hopped onto the ray hate train and i am riding it until the wheels fall off. idk what kind of work or what he's going to have to go through to earn even neutral status again, because his still thinking that he doesn't have an addiction after ALL THAT is truly some next level bullshit. yeah, it's realistic, and that's why it pisses me off so much. you don't, at least shouldn't, keep that kind of toxicity (ACTUALLY TOXIC I KNOW FANDOM DOESN'T KNOW WHAT THAT WORD MEANS BUT THAT IS LIKE, THE DEFINITION OF TOXIC) in your life. everyone's going to get burned AGAIN by him. he's not on his second chance he's on like his tenth chance and they better not give him an eleventh.

mew, sand, and his dad have all told him he's an addict; he drove while drunk AND high, after throwing all of his friends under the bus and INSULTING sand TWICE... AND HE THINKS HE DOESN'T NEED REHAB??? HE THINKS THOSE ARE THE ACTIONS OF SOMEONE NOT ADDICTED TO DRUGS AND ALCOHOL????!?? you said it, anon, FUCK HIM. if he had actually woken up and seen reason, i would have at least have given him a chance but he's run out of my sympathy. he's not a baby, he's an adult who needs to face some real fucking consequences. oh wah wah he hurt his shoulder? fuck off, he could have killed someone and he hardly blinks, pouts when he's barely even scolded - AND CONTINUES TO DRINK!?!??? has the gall to say that he doesn't have an addiction?

that's the definition of an addiction, asshole. oh he's "stressed?" yeah no alcoholic has ever been stressed and used alcohol to feel better🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄 oh wait, that's EVERY ALCOHOLIC EVER

i really hope that whatever ray's dad asks of sand is to find a way to get him to quit, but it doesn't look like it based on the preview. maybe sand calls the cops, idk.

i can't beLIEVE that everyone's wearing kid gloves with him. i get that his dad is neglectful and not affectionate, but he could have, and honestly should have, let him go to jail. i hope he gets arrested in the next episode and he finally goes through withdrawal and sees what he's doing to the people he supposedly loves, especially based on what it looks like he's going to do to mew, is unacceptable.

and he already treats sand like trash!!!! all he does is take advantage of his kindness and then throw him away when he doesn't need him anymore. like LITERAL TRASH. did he even apologize for calling him a whore? oh wait, he probably doesn't remember because he was SO drunk and high.

AND YEAH I CHECKED HE DOESN'T APOLOGIZE TO SAND AT ALL IN FACT SAND IS THE ONE TO APOLOGIZE WTF

i mean. sand should apologize but still. jesus christ, ray.

AND YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT THIS THING WITH MEW. after all this talk about ray not wanting to be mew's rebound and "knowing" it wouldn't be good,

he still JUMPS at the chance and doesn't think about how this would hurt mew. he waits for one little moment of weakness and FUCKING LEAPS.

(which... i don't want to get into it but this scene reads as extremely sus to me. it's the same position they were in when ray kissed mew when he was asleep. i don't know if that means they're meant to parallel it as ray taking advantage of mew again or if mew's playing him. the way mew talks sounds like a trap; it seems out of character that he would blame himself for ray drinking. and the scene where they're dancing is so... weird... it gave me the same bad vibes i got when topmew got home from the party but maybe i'm wearing my topmew goggles too tight idk)

and this!?!????

i haven't seen ANY evidence that ray has EVER taken care of mew EVER. tbh i would love to be proven wrong, show me the receipts, but mew is ALWAYS the one taking care of ray (probably one of the reasons why top was so appealing: someone was finally taking care of him for once). and now he thinks that he can take care of mew when he can't even take care of himself? please.

he's just selfish. sure, unlike boston, he may care when he hurts people but not enough to stop apparently.

i've been saying it from the start, both boston and ray are shitty friends who take advantage of mew's friendship. just because boston is shittier doesn't make that any less true. mew is going through all of this shit because of both of them. none of this would have happened if it weren't for both of their bullshit.

thanks for stopping by and giving me a chance to rant, anon💖 let's pray for some consequences for ray together🙏🙏

[gemwolfz]

good morning chat (<- it's 12:30 pm) its time for a GEM FROG WATCHPOST (instead of putting it in the bg while i draw because ive accepted i cant draw and read at the same time)

btw my very legal straming site doesnt have episode descriptions and no way im remembering an episode thats been mentioned by number so i have no idea what im getting into. also im setting a timer to truly see how long my autistic ass can stretch a 15 minute episode. ok lets get started :)

okay first of all intro i havent seen yet lets GOOOO. PURURU SIGHTING IN THERE HEY GIRL!! i actually need to watch some eps with pururu in em btw. like hey show her to me. anyway good intro lots of guys spotted :)

^ CATEGORY 5 DORORO EVENT HI. experiencing the horrors as usual i see

i see so this is what we're doing today huh. do you intend to rip my heart out.

im sorry they have a fucking invasion planning chore wheel? thats really funny

OH IT'S THIS ONE HUH. THIS IS WHAT WE'RE DOING HUH (lovingly)

wcdonalds btw. sorry sorry wcdonalds cracks me up every time in any show

^^ his ass did NOT process what was just said!!!

he had it right the first several times cmon man.

hes taking this in stride huh. even in category 5 THE LORE situations the silly grind doesnt stop

why is zeroro resonance so fucking stupid btw. sorry man.

screenshot that speaks for itself man

somehow i dont think "my alien ninja partner is in serious trouble i need to leave immediately" will be counted as an excused absence by your teachers but after scaling a building in a single leap i dont think anybodys gonna question you. i love you koyuki

[this image set broke in the editor but it included keroro and tamama calling zeroro SO MEAN for not explaining his plan to them] frankly i respect keroros unwillingness to treat situations with the proper gravity because i do the same thing king

his ass does not care

he changed his mind something is terribly wrong

okay lets be real here the platoon would NOT have found him there. if he hadn't been able to contact koyuki he'd have been fucked. badly. something something being saved again by the person who showed you the warmth and beauty the planet has to offer

literally yeah the fate of the planet is held by natsumi being able to throw frogs like splat balls. pov youre giroro and the number one person standing between you guys and invasion is decidedly the girl who is constantly personally stopping you from blowing shit up. this is a personal attack

important and relevant but also im sorry "brat" is incredibly funny word choice coming from tamama

no reaction i can put into words. btw this episode is labelled as a filler episode. just so you know. i just think thats funny. haha so silly

aye.......................................... i would be using more reaction images but i have to prioritize screenshots. anyway god.

they were holding their fucking BREATH. his ass could have died!! badly!!! their deep sigh of relief is not as visible as i'd have hoped but you know. you feel me.

there are reactions i am making that are sound effects i cannot put into words sorry. im better at posting silly nonsense im sure you understand. hell, post horse staring at the ocean MAN again

he goes "i'm sorry about that, everyone!" as if it was fucking nothing. DUDE. This is why you caught that trauma-eating brain parasite because you just act like shit was NOTHING DUDE...

........yea...........................

NO EYECATCH OR ANYTHING? YOURE JUST GONNA TAKE US TO THE NEXT EPISODE? OKAY. OKAY THATS FINE. THAT'S FINE.

gem conclusion:

anyway i spent an hour watching this ten minute episode. sorry for maybe a weak reaction post i need to stir this episode in my head like a soup. thank you plates for your recommendation. join me in the rbs later as i may watch episode B and experience whatever tonal whiplash this episode came with

[redrose-arrow]

RedRose Reads: TRR6, Arazan’s Wolves

also known as the book i swore i wouldn’t bingeread and then, well, ended up bingereading

- i know i should feel for these farmers boys but i just want will and maddie

- WILL AND MADDIE

- maddie istg i love your stubbornness so much omg

- will’s absolutely going to SHOW maddie who’s boss

- not will being proud that maddie cheated 💀

- okok jokes aside, genuinely HOW GOOD is will if he noticed the cheating and still hit the target within literal tens of seconds ???

- GILAAAAAAANNNN

- i forgot how much i loved him

- “what brings you to redmont?” if he doesn’t answer “jenny” i’m throwing hands

- not tricking gilan because he’s the commandant??? nah, not tricking gilan because he’s a babe. i said what i said.

- “it would appear your mother had some strange parenting habits” ALSKDJDHS I CANT

- the tiny reference to will’s last time in celtica has my heart

- okay BIGGER reference, still has my heart

- page 21, two inconsistencies. i shall ignore them.

- JENNY WOULD KILL YOU, SHE WOULD, AS SHE SHOULD

- i love how jenny is canonically more important than halt and pauline

- please gilan i am literally begging you to move your headquarters to redmont

- all jokes aside, cassandra would not mind tbh

- george bestie i can’t wait to see you

- george you are a mood a legend an icon and i love you

- YOURE TELLING ME WILL IS SORT OF ADMITTING HIS TRAUMA???? i am nothing short of a mess

- the constant references to b2 are just *chef’s kiss*

- will being called greybeard???? i cannot breathe

- i am literally short of breath right now i absolutely can’t

- why and how did i miss morgarath’s name so much lmao

- the damn reference to macindaw, i just—- this book DELIVERS

- more about will and evanlyn in celtica and i will cry. i will.

- fear being normalised is something i hold so dear

- tug i am begging you not to attack another wolf

- “hahahaha yea let’s just walk into the trap” screw you, will, for playing with my feelings like that

- not the damn fissure

- will should honestly stop comparing people to his animals akskfjdjs

- if anyone ships will and eveningstar i’m gonna throw hands

- there’s something about the parallels that has me obsessed

- maddie falling in will’s arms is a detail i didn’t know i needed

- WILL TELLING MADDIE ABOUT THE PAST AAAAAHGGG IM SO SOFT FOR THEM

- THE OLD ARROW

- how are they capable of bantering right now, i would be scared as fuck

- “does tug talk to you?” oh here - we - go

- if will’s gonna do magic i’m gonna cheer him on

- “great shot” “not just a pretty face” akskdjdhd yes you go girl

- last time will had a plan maddie didn’t like, he almost got burned to death. sure as hell hope this won’t be like old times

- “i will give you what you most desire” we all thought of alyss, don’t lie to me

- “very very tired” ain’t that a whole ass mood

- next time????? please no

- i won’t lie i laughed when the bowstring snapped. it’s nerves. six pages left and I DONT KNOW WHATS HAPPENING

- oh it’s, it’s over

- owh

[peter3ismybf]

impossible choice- part 1

Spencer Reid’s twin children, Elijah and Eloise Reid, have been kidnapped by someone who is much more than they appear, causing Spencer’s world to fall right in front of him.

She was tied to the chair, her arms bound tightly behind the back of the wood. The sockets at her shoulders ached and she squirmed uncomfortably, trying to find some comfort in any different position, but it proved useless. Her ankles were also bound, her dusty white converse suddenly looking much dirtier against the muddy wooden floor. She guessed she was in a barn, or in an abandoned warehouse. It occurred to her that she could be anywhere- 5 miles from home or across the country. She had no idea how long she had been out after the man knocked her across the back of her head with the butt of his gun.

A groan sounded from behind her and her heart froze. Elijah. He was tied to a chair directly behind her, their backs to each other. He must be just waking up. She listened as he collected his bearings just as she had- twins work in very similar ways, her dad told them when they were younger.

Dad. The breath caught in her throat at the thought of him. After losing their mom, she didn’t know what he would do with them gone.

“Eloise?” Elijah spoke, his voice raspy.

“Are you okay?” She asked.

“Yea. You?” He replied.

She nodded, then realized he couldn’t see her. “Yea.”

They sat in silence for what seemed like hours until a man came into the room. he had some stubble, and purple bags underlined his eyes. His pupils were dilated- he’s on drugs, she concluded. His movements were frenzied and panicked, and it was like he hadn’t noticed the two kidnapped teenagers in the room with him until he cleared his throat.

“W-What’s your names?” He said.

Eloise scoffed in disbelief. Despite the present danger in front of her, she spoke. “You kidnapped two teenagers and don’t even know their names?”

The man’s eyes shot towards her, and almost as if he hadn’t moved he was suddenly in front of her, gripping her throat so tightly she began to see spots. “I don’t take disrespect from a fucking kid.” He said through clenched teeth, spit landing on the tip of her nose. He let go and she gasped, her lungs welcoming the air that flowed into them.

“I’ll ask again, what’s your names?”

“Andrew.” 

Eloise coughed, hearing her brother say the fake name. Twins can sometimes read each other’s minds, another thing her father had told her when she was younger.

“Kathryn.” She followed suit. The man fidgeted in place before seeming satisfied with the answers. He started to walk back towards the entrance of the room before stopping and turning around.

“You’re parents, they’re not feds or anything like that, right?”

Eloise froze, and she could feel Elijah’s brain working furiously like hers. The two options both don’t have amazing results- should they say their parents aren’t, that just gives him more reason to keep them. If they say their dad is a part of the Behavior Analysis Unit for the FBI, he could panic and kill them.

“Our dad, he’s in the BAU.” Elijah speaks and Eloise sucks in air through her teeth. The man shoots Elijah a look.

“The BAU?” he asks.

“The Behavioral Analysis Unit, in the FBI.” Elijah answers.

The man’s eyes go wide and his mouth opens and closes as if he’s trying to speak, but no sound comes out. Eventually he leaves the room, bumping into a wall on the way out.

Once she’s sure he’s gone, Eloise turns her head as best as she can. “What the hell are you thinking? He’s going to kill us now!” she hisses.

“No, that’s why he asked. He won’t kill us if he knows the feds will get on him. He’s more likely to let us go.” Elijah answers as if it’s the most simple thing in the world. 

“But you don’t know that.” Eloise emphasizes and feels a lump in her throat.

“You don’t know that he’ll kill us.” Elijah answers.

“But he could.” she says in barely a whisper. A tear drops onto her jeans, the moisture spreading through the fabric and making a perfect little dot on her leg.

“We’re gonna be okay. Just trust me.” Elijah says softer now. She feels his fingers brush hers, and to the best of their abilities, they somewhat hold each others hands behind their backs.