#finally felt happy expressing my nationality for once-

[tuberosumtater]

Whoopie! :] 🇵🇭

[catmiemy]

Things Will Never Be the Same (Lia Wälti x Reader)

Summary: You figure out that your girlfriend hasn’t been paranoid and your best friend is actually in love with you.

A/N: Finally managed to finish something! I have so many ideas, but I'm constantly too busy to actually write them. But I'm hopeful to have more time the next few weeks.

Also I'm definitely going to write a part two for this because I need a happy ending. So if there's anything you want to see, please tell me. :)

“Where the hell is my coffee?”

Your girlfriend’s voice reached you through the bathroom door. Both the actual words and her tone made you frown at yourself in the mirror. Apparently someone had woken up on the wrong side of the bed again. Like most mornings these days.

With a sigh you went back to applying your make up. There was no point in arguing with Jessica when she was like this. Furthermore you had a long day ahead of you and didn’t feel like wasting your energy unnecessarily. It probably, no definitely, wasn’t a good sign that you reached a point where you thought of most interactions with your girlfriend as draining, but you weren’t ready to face that fact.

Unfortunately Jessica was determined to bring the argument to you. Only a few moments after her initial shout, the door crashed open and your girlfriend marched into the room. “Where the hell is my coffee?”

Annoyance flared up inside of you. You did your best to keep a grip on your anger though, this would turn ugly if you also lost your temper, well uglier than it was going to be anyway. You hated what had become of your relationship, but no matter how hard you tried, you continuously failed at turning things around. You used to be so happy, so in love.

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were awake, otherwise I would have brought you your cup.” You tried your hardest to keep a neutral tone and an impartial expression, all the anger and pain you felt hidden behind this façade.

Bringing Jessica a cup of coffee in bed had been one of your favorite things early on in your relationship. Her eyes always lit up with sheer joy and an endless amount of love for you at this small gesture. Back then she never got tired of telling you how much it meant to her, how much she enjoyed these few minutes in bed with her favorite beverage and cuddles with you, because of course in the early days of your relationship you would always snuggle back into bed with her. Now it had become chore, which apparently you got yelled at for if you missed it once.

“I sent you a text to let you know!” Jessica pointed out sharply.

You grabbed your phone and sure enough, there was a message from her. You also noticed that you had forgotten to turn off the “Do not disturb”, but you doubted that Jessica would be receptive to this explanation. Another thing that you noticed was a message from your best friend, your teammate at both Arsenal and the national team, Lia.

I’m grabbing us some coffee.

See you at the airport!

These few words were enough to bring a smile to your face, another thing that didn’t sit right with Jessica. She snagged the phone out of your hand.

“Hey!” You protested, grabbing the phone back from her. It wasn’t hard, Jessica relented it easily once she had seen what had made you smile.

“When will you finally realize that she has a crush on you?” She basically spat at you.

 This was an old argument and one that always made your blood boil. Lia was off limits! However you didn’t have the time, or energy, for a full blown fight right now. So you restricted yourself to hissing at your girlfriend that she should really leave Lia out of this and that you would talk later. Then you pushed past her, grabbed your luggage that you had put next to the door, and left the apartment.

Unsurprisingly your uber wasn’t here yet. A quick glance at your watch revealed to you that you were a good ten minutes early. The thought of going back into your apartment and facing your girlfriend again was entirely unappealing, so you decided to stay out here. At least the weather was pleasant enough.

To avoid being seen by Jessica, which might have prompted her to come out and continue your argument, you moved a little further down the street until you were hidden behind some bushes. Standing there you were hit by the realization that this might be a new all time low for your relationship. And if you were being honest the idea that this was what the rest of your life was going to look like made you sick to your stomach. Better not to dwell on it.

The instance you entered the airport and spotted your best friend, you rushed over to her and flung your arms around her. Lia matched your motion, although a little awkwardly since she was holding two coffees.

“Hey Schätzi, is everything okay?” She asked you, worry dripping from her voice.

You nodded your head and allowed yourself to enjoy the closeness a little while longer, before extracting yourself.

“Fight with Jessica,” you mumbled.

Anger set Lia’s eyes ablaze. She bit her lips to avoid saying anything too harsh. It was no secret that the dislike between your best friend and your girlfriend was mutual. However Lia was much better at keeping civil than Jessica.

“I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”

This time you shook your head, “Nah, I don’t want to think about it right now.”

As was normally the case it didn’t take long before you told Lia everything nonetheless. When it came to her you never could keep silent, no matter how closed off you were with everyone else. Lia’s soothing and caring personality made you feel like it was okay to get it all out. And even if you would never admit it, you usually felt better afterwards.

Lia was a very attentive listener. Her gaze rested on you the entire time and she nodded along, keeping a mostly neutral complexion. If you would have focused on it, you could have easily picked up on the disdain for your girlfriend in your friend’s eyes, but you didn’t want to see it.

And anyway, the more you talked about it, the more explanations you found for Jessica’s behavior. She wasn’t a morning person, she always felt a bit lonely when you had to travel because of work, anger was her go to emotion when she was overwhelmed.

“You know I think I’m going to text her that I’m sorry and that we should talk in the evening,” you announced.

Lia looked at you skeptically, asking carefully, “Why are you apologizing?”

You shrugged your shoulders, finding it more difficult than expected to answer her question. Somehow you always felt like you had to apologize around Jessica. Again, this was something you didn’t want to dwell on.

“For yelling,” you said finally, before quickly changing the subject.

The arrival at camp and especially the reunion with all your teammates that you hadn’t seen in a long time was chaotic and easy to get lost in. Still you noticed that Lia was quieter and more reserve than usual and you promised yourself to question her about it before bed. With a pang of guilt you realized that you hadn’t even asked her how she was this morning at the airport, just instantly unloading all of your stuff onto her.

Dinner dredged on for quite some time and when it was finally finished you realized that both Lia and Ana were nowhere to be seen. First you checked the room Lia and you shared, when they weren’t there you headed to Ana’s room.

You stopped in your tracks when you heard sobbing coming from the room. It didn’t sound like someone having a little cry either, no this was desperate wailing and even before you knew who was in so much turmoil, your heart broke for the unknown person. That being said, the moment you realized who was sobbing their eyes out your heart shattered into a million pieces.

“I can’t do it anymore,” a voice that you recognized instantly as the one of your best friend in the whole world, managed to get out between sobs.

As if these words were pulling you into the room, your body began moving on its own accord. You burst into the room, frantically looking around for Lia, rushing to her side the moment you spotted her on the bed. She was wrapped in Ana’s arms, but this didn’t deter you. You simply threw your arms around both of them.

“What’s happening, Schätzi? Please tell me, what’s going on. If someone hurt you, I swear to god I will kill them!” You would! No one was allowed to hurt your best friend, not when she was the sweetest person on the planet.

To your immense surprise Lia went rigid the moment she heard your voice and felt your arms around her. This didn’t make any sense; you had always been each other’s place of comfort. You looked up at Ana questioningly, startling once again when you saw the anguish in her eyes. What had you missed? Had someone died? One of Lia’s parents?

While you were still trying to make sense of this all, Lia freed herself from both yours and Ana’s arms and with a mumbled apology ran out of the room. You jumped up as well, ready to go after her and get to the bottom of this, but Ana held you back.

“Don’t,” she told you earnestly.

“I…Ana, what the hell was that? Please, you need to tell me, so I can be there for Lia. I’m her best friend, I need…” You didn’t know exactly what you needed; just whatever would help you take away Lia’s pain. You had never seen her like this, not even after any of her breakups.

Ana chewed on her lip, the internal struggle happening in her mind clear as day. In the end she sighed and said, “I can’t, Y/N. I want to because I think it’s important that you know, but it’s not my story to tell. Give Lia a little time to calm down and then try talking with her again, yeah?”

You nodded, even if in reality you had already decided not to heed Ana’s advice. How could you not try finding Lia right this second when she was this devastated? More than anything you wanted to make it better for her and you had a lot of faith that you could. You had always been there for Lia, through everything, just like she had been for you.

Therefore you began searching for Lia everywhere. First you checked your hotel room, but unsurprisingly she wasn’t there. Then you went outside because Lia loved being outdoors when she felt emotional. Again, no luck. The next hour you spent looking through every nook, but Lia was nowhere to be found.

Defeated you went back to your hotel room, hoping she had returned there by now. You held your breath when you entered, disappointment hitting you when you were greeted by a dark and empty room.

You plopped down onto the bed, not even bothering to turn on the light despite it slowly getting dark. Where was Lia? And more importantly what had happened to her? You picked up your phone, debating if you should call someone from Lia’s family. Maybe they had some information.

That’s when your phone lit up with a call from Jessica, an unwelcome remainder that you were supposed to talk everything out with her tonight. However, you didn’t have the energy for that right now; especially not when it would mean you would have to grovel until Jessica finally deemed it enough to forgive you. Lia’s words popped up in your mind, why were you even apologizing?

So you ended up ignoring the call, and you also ignored that this would inevitably lead to an even more difficult conversation with even more groveling on your part. Right now you couldn’t worry about that, all of your concerns were taken up by the whole situation with Lia.

You had lost all sense of time, so you couldn’t say how much later it was when the door was finally opened and Lia tiptoed into the room. Instantly you sat up, startling your friend who had expected, hoped really, that you were already asleep.

By now it had become pitch black in the room, and you reached towards the light switch to turn on the lights. When Lia saw your movement, she asked you not to, her voice sounding horribly hoarse. You respected her wishes, instead getting up and walking over to her in an attempt to give her a hug.

“Don’t,” Lia pleaded, cracking your heart in the process

What was going on? What had you done to make her push you away? It physically pained you not to offer Lia any comfort when she was clearly struggling, but again you listened to her boundaries.

“Lia, please talk to me,” you begged, “Ana told me…”

Later you would try to rationalize what you did next, or didn’t do to be more precise, to yourself by saying you were too stunned to stop Lia once it became apparent that she thought you were going to say that Ana had told you what was bothering her, when really you wanted to say, ‘Ana told me to leave you alone for a while, but I can’t do that.’

However a small voice would always point out that you could have stopped her at any time if you had really wanted to. The thing was though, you wanted to know what was going on with Lia, so you didn’t stop her.

“I…look…I’m so sorry! And I promise I can keep my feelings in check. I’ve been doing it for the longest time, so please…I can’t lose you! I know you’ll never love me like I love you, but I still need you in my life. Please….I’m…”

Lia’s voice broke, sobs bubbling up instead. She suppressed them successfully, but there was nothing the midfielder could do against the quiet tears streaming down her cheeks.

By now you really were shocked into silence, your mind reeling. Was it possible that Jessica had been right all this time and Lia did in fact have a crush on you? No, that was crazy! Your best friend had never given any indication that she liked you like this. Or had she?

You looked up at Lia whose whole posture screamed defeat. Her head was bent, her gaze firmly trained on the floor. The brunette had crossed her arms in front of her as if to protect herself from whatever you were going to say.

“Wait what? You have a crush on me?” This was the rather dumb response you came up with.

Lia shrugged her shoulders helplessly, her voice tear-stricken when she spoke again, “I’m not sure if that word is strong enough for what I feel, but like I said, it doesn’t matter. I can deal with it.”

She looked up at you for a moment, but was unable to even meet your eyes. Panic hit you, no matter how much Lia stressed that this wouldn’t change anything, you weren’t too sure if this was true now that it was all out in the open. You couldn’t lose her!

“But wait? Didn’t Ana already tell you this?”

Lia’s question ripped you from your downward spiral and at least for a moment the fear was drowned out by intense shame.

“No, she didn’t. I was going to say she told me to leave you alone, but then you began explaining and I just didn’t stop you because I wanted to know what’s going on so I could help,” you admitted.

Now it all made sense why Lia hadn’t wanted to talk to you about what was bothering her. You wished that you could turn back time and make different choices, so you never found out about this. But you didn’t deserve that, not after basically tricking Lia into disclosing her secret.

“What?” Lia asked in anguish, “So I could’ve...You never had to…I’m so stupid!”

And with that your best friend turned around and fled from the room. The sobs she could no longer hold back shaking her shoulders, and breaking your heart. You deserved all the fear and shame and other complicated feelings that came with this being laid open, but Lia didn’t.

You sank back down onto your bed, staring numbly at the wall, while your mind was beating yourself up mercilessly. If only you hadn’t been so selfish! How did you never notice that the most important person in your entire life was in love with you? What did that say about you?!

There were no tears, just silence and an ever growing pit in your stomach.

When the room to the hotel room was opened again sometime later, a tiny flutter of hope went through you. Maybe you could find the right words and things could go back to how they had been straight away?

This small and probably completely unrealistic hope was crushed instantly when you saw that it wasn’t Lia but Ana entering the room. She rushed over to you, engulfing you in a hug.

“Hey, how are you?”

You didn’t answer Ana’s question, but allowed yourself a moment of burying yourself in your friend’s arms. And anyway it was impossible to reply when you didn’t even know how you were, if you were really still in that hotel room, if this was in fact your life.

After a short while you pulled back, sitting up straight and focusing on the truly important topic.

“How’s Lia?” You asked, fear tinting your words.

Ana took a few seconds to answer, pondering her words. The truth wasn’t pretty, so she wanted to do her best to soften the blow.

“Not too good,” she admitted finally. “There’s just too many emotions hitting her at once. I think up until now she still had some hope that you’d return her feelings. But now that it’s all out in the open these hopes have been crushed and she just needs some time.”

While talking Ana studied you carefully. She had always wondered if maybe you returned Lia’s feelings. Not that she had ever told her friend that, the poor girl didn’t need any more confusing thoughts and emotions to deal with. Part of her wanted to ask you straightforward, but in the end Ana decided against it. Now was not the time for it, not when it was clear that you too were completely overwhelmed with everything that had happened.  

For you the thought of Lia needing time, time apart from you, made you nauseous. There was barely a day where you didn’t see or at least talk to your best friend. A reality where that wasn’t true, even if it was only for a little while, felt unbearable. However you were well aware that you weren’t in a position to make any demands. If Lia needed time, you had to accept that.

“Nadine has agreed to switch rooms with Lia so that she can stay with me. Are you okay with that?”

Ana’s soft words pulled you from your thoughts. The idea of Lia not sleeping in the bed next to you felt like another punch to the stomach. Still you pushed down your emotions and the tears burning in your eyes, and nodded.

“Okay then,” Ana said, a little unsure on how to proceed. If only she could cut herself in half and offer both Lia and you some comfort!

You decided to make it easier for her by standing up and heading to the bathroom. There you gathered Lia’s vanity bag, handing it to Ana when you returned. After that you quickly assembled all the things your best friend would need for the night. Pain shooting through you with every familiar item you picked up.

“Goodnight, Ana,” you said once you had given her everything, before disappearing into the bathroom once again to get ready for bed yourself.

You did so in record time, wanting to be in bed and be able to pretend you were already sleeping when Nadine came to the room.

At least this worked out in your favor and when you heard the door being opened again, you pressed your eyes shut and didn’t react to your teammate’s soft calls. You probably weren’t very convincing, but thankfully Nadine decided to leave you alone.

Sleep evaded you for a long time. You lay there with closed eyes, silent tears rolling down your cheeks as you tried and failed to keep your mind occupied. But no matter what you did, it kept circling back to the horrible image of Lia’s devastation once she understood that she had just revealed her biggest secret to you, the gut-wrenching realization that everything would be different now, and the fear of losing Lia once and for all.

What if she would never be able to move past this? She had so many great friends in her life, Ana, Leah, Viv and so many more, what if she realized that they were much better than you anyway? You couldn’t imagine a life without Lia. The prospect of a few weeks without her was already enough to make you want to curl up in bed and never get up again. But if you never got her back? You couldn’t do that. You couldn’t.

[delusionalfanficwriter]

forgive me

My heart pounded in my chest as I turned the key in the lock, the anticipation of finally being home after what felt like an eternity abroad making my hands tremble. I had missed Leah desperately during my time away, longing for her comforting presence after I missed the possibly winning penalty for the USWNT. But now, as I stepped inside our apartment, that longing turned to dread.

The soft glow of lamplight illuminated the living room, casting eerie shadows against the walls. And there, on the couch, lay Leah, wrapped in the arms of another woman. My stomach dropped as the scene before me registered, the shock and disbelief hitting me like a tidal wave.

I wanted to scream, to demand answers, to tear apart the fabric of reality until this nightmare dissolved into nothingness. But all I could do was stand there, frozen in place, my heart shattered into a million irreparable pieces.

Leah's eyes met mine, a fleeting expression of surprise and guilt flickering across her features before she spoke. "Y/n, I can explain," she whispered, her voice barely audible above the pounding of my heart.

She quickly got up from the couch in her panties and long t-shirt while the other woman I did not recognize gathered her belongings and ran out without hesitation.

I didn’t respond and as Leah took another step towards me, I took one back, shaking my head in disbelief. 

“Say something, y/n. Please. I know I fucked up, but I can explain.”

I block out her words and just stare at her, tears filling my eyes as my heart breaks every second I stand there. I take a shaky breath before saying, “I am going to pack a bag and go.” She goes to argue but I shake my head and interrupt, “Leah, you need to let me go.”

Leah's face crumpled in anguish as my words hung heavy in the air, the weight of them pressing down on us both like a suffocating blanket. She reached out to me, her hands trembling with desperation, but I recoiled from her touch, unable to bear the thought of her hands on me after what I had just witnessed.

"No," she whispered, her voice thick with tears. "Please, y/n, don't do this. I love you, I swear, I never meant to hurt you."

Her words cut through me like a knife, reopening wounds that had barely begun to heal. I wanted to believe her, wanted to cling to the illusion of love and happiness we had shared, but the reality of her betrayal loomed large in the space between us, an insurmountable barrier that threatened to swallow us whole.

"I can't do this anymore, Leah," I said, my voice cracking with emotion. "You've hurt me in ways I never thought possible. I’m sorry I wasn’t enough for you."

Leah's eyes brimmed with tears as she reached out to me again, her desperation palpable in the air. She knew how hard I worked in my self-confidence but this just took the biggest blow to it. "Don’t for a second think you are not enough, y/n. I’m the problem. Please, y/n, give me another chance. I'll do anything to make this right, anything to prove to you that I love you."

But I shook my head, my resolve hardening with each passing moment. "It's too late for that, Leah. You've broken my trust. I can't just forgive and forget."

I ignore her as she begs for forgiveness while I head to our room to grab a few extra items as I already have a suitcase filled because of my trip with the national team. 

As I hastily packed my belongings, Leah's pleas echoed in my mind, each word a painful reminder of the love we once shared. 

Leah followed me into the bedroom, her footsteps hesitant as if she were treading on thin ice. "Please, y/n," she implored, her voice choked with tears. "Don't leave like this. We can work through this together, I promise."

Her words stirred a flicker of doubt within me, a small voice whispering that perhaps forgiveness was possible. But as I looked into her eyes, I saw not just remorse, but a deeper struggle, a fundamental flaw in our relationship that could not be easily mended.

"I need some space, Leah," I said, my voice firm despite the tremors of uncertainty coursing through me. "I need time to figure things out on my own."

Leah's shoulders slumped in defeat, her gaze falling to the floor as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I understand," she whispered, her voice barely audible above the din of my racing heart. With a heavy heart, I zipped up my bag. As I made my way to the door, Leah's voice stopped me in my tracks.

"Y/n, wait," she said, her voice wavering with emotion. "Just know that I'll always love you, no matter what."

I let the tears I have been holding back drop silently as I look her in her eyes one more time. I love her so much but obviously I am not providing enough if she’s seeking more elsewhere. 

I get into my car and drive around aimlessly before arriving at Katie McCabe's place, seeking refuge in the familiarity of her warm embrace, she immediately sensed something was amiss. Concern etched across her features as she ushered me inside, her voice laced with worry.

"Y/n, what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost," Katie exclaimed, her eyes scanning my face for any sign of explanation.

I managed a weak smile, attempting to mask the turmoil raging within me. "It's nothing, Katie. Just... a rough day."

But Katie wasn't easily fooled. She took my hand gently, her touch grounding me amidst the chaos of my emotions. "You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm here for you, no matter what."

I hesitated, the weight of my unspoken truth threatening to suffocate me. But as I looked into Katie's compassionate gaze, I knew I couldn't bear to burden her with the tangled mess of my heartache.

"It's complicated," I finally admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "I just... I don't want to talk about it."

Katie's brow furrowed in concern, her instincts urging her to push further. "Is it Leah?" she asked softly, her words hanging heavy in the air.

I flinched at the mention of her name, the pain of betrayal still fresh in my mind. But I couldn't bring myself to tarnish Leah's name, not when the love I once felt for her still lingered like a ghost in the recesses of my heart.

"I can't," I choked out, tears threatening to spill over. "I can't do that to her. I still love her, Katie. I can't bear the thought of anyone hating her."

Katie's expression softened with understanding as she wrapped me in a comforting embrace, her presence a soothing balm to my shattered soul. "You don't have to say anything you're not ready to, y/n," she murmured, her words a whispered promise of unwavering support.

…………. ……….. ………… ………….

As the days passed, life seemed to go on as usual. I returned to my routine, throwing myself into training with the Arsenal team, my mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. Despite my efforts to appear unaffected, the tension between Leah and me was palpable, a silent rift that threatened to tear us apart.

At practice, the atmosphere was strained, the weight of unspoken words hanging heavy in the air. My teammates exchanged knowing glances, their curiosity piqued by the unspoken tension between Leah and me.

Leah, ever persistent, continued to plead for forgiveness, her desperation evident in every fleeting glance and tentative touch. But I remained steadfast in my resolve, refusing to entertain the possibility of reconciliation until I had fully come to terms with the betrayal that had shattered my trust.

As we gathered on the field, preparing for another grueling session, Leah approached me tentatively, her eyes brimming with remorse. "Y/n, please," she whispered, her voice pleading. "We need to talk. I can't bear this distance between us any longer."

I shook my head, my resolve hardening with each passing moment. "Not now, Leah," I replied, my voice firm despite the turmoil raging within me. "I need time to process everything that's happened."

“Please, y/n. I can see you training extra hard just to avoid thinking about this. Please, I don't want to see you hurting.”

“You did that, amore. You hurt me. I knew I wasn’t enough and you reassured me countless times I was. I was stupid to believe you… that I was enough for you.” I whisper before walking away. 

“Y/n, wait! At least tell me why no one else knows? I was expected to get some lash back from the gals.” She grabs my arm before I face her once more.

“Despite all you have done, and might think, I still love you.”

As Leah and I stood on the training field in our emotional exchange, a voice interrupted from the sidelines, cutting through the weighty atmosphere with unexpected levity.

"Well, whatever Leah did, it must be forgivable if she's still alive," came a joking remark from one of our teammates, interrupting the solemn moment with a touch of humor.

I turned to see Alessia smirking playfully as she approached us, her eyes twinkling with mischief. Despite the seriousness of the situation, her lighthearted comment momentarily lifted the heaviness that had settled over us.

"Seriously, y/n," Alessia continued, nudging me gently with her elbow. "You must be a saint to consider forgiving whatever she did. I mean, I can barely forgive her for stealing my snacks, let alone whatever this is."

A small smile tugged at the corners of my lips, the tension easing slightly under the unexpected reprieve of humor. "Trust me, Alessia," I replied, my tone light despite the lingering ache in my heart. "It's going to take a lot more than snacks to make things right."

[sunshine-theseus]

World Cup Loses and Transfers | Frido Rolfö x Reader

Words: 3.2k Summary: you get knocked out of the wc but you meet the woman of your dreams (I’m giving Kristie the playing time she deserved at the wc), please pretend frido never got injured Warnings: slightly suggestive. i think that's it. barely proof read. Requested by - @realsociadadferminofan

Being called up to the national team for the first time when you’re 27, right before the world cup, was unexpected and terrifying. I only knew Kristie, Lynn and Kelly from playing with them at Gotham, closest to the Mewis due to both growing up in Boston and playing with her sister Sam for a few years in North Carolina. It was a national team that was relatively skilled and fluid with one another, and I felt like an unnecessary part in a smoothly working machine.

“This has to be a, a joke, right? It’s four.” Kristie runs her hand down her face as she holds her phone in a deadly grip. I stare out the window, looking across the city, trying to ignore the way my gut drops when her phone rings before mine.

“Is Y/n there too? It might be easier to do you both at once.” I hear the accent from across the room and solemnly stand, dragging my feet across the floor, and sit on the couch beside Kristie, waving at our coach.

“I wanted to talk to you, and just let you both know, that you’re both selected to go to the world cup.” I choke on the words of thanks I was about to spew out and don’t even try to hold the tears back.

I turn toward Kristie, who has a similar expression, and I pull her into me.

“We did it.” I whisper in her ear and she rubs a hand up and down my back before we pull away.

“Thank you so much, I’m so excited.” Kristie gives her thanks and I repeat a similar message.

“You deserve this, you both bring something to the team on and off the field and it’s exactly what we need for the world cup.” We thank Vlatko once more and bid him goodbye, and I break down.

Kristie pulls me back into her and I cry, I can feel her tears drop on the top of my head but neither of us say anything for a moment. We hold each other and feel the relief and excitement of it all.

“You deserve this more than anyone Kristie. We’re going to go to the world cup and show people we are worth it.” I wipe away her tears and we both agree to separate and call our respective people.

~~~~~

The beginning of the tournament is nerve racking, but we beat Vietnam 3-0.

Then we play the Netherlands, and Vlatko doesn’t sub on a single person, and I begin to get nervous for our time at this tournament. We tie 1-1 and no one is happy. We have to at least tie with Portugal to get through to the knock-out rounds.

Lynn starts, I get subbed on at half time for Andi Sullivan, and Kristie gets subbed on in the 54th minute for Lindsey Horan. We’re still 0-0 in the last 3 minutes of the game, but Rose makes a pass to Kristie, who manages to slip the ball to me, and I make a powerful shot from just outside the penalty box. The goalkeeper’s hand grazes the ball as it spins, but it still hits the back of the net.

I scream as I make a run for Kristie, jumping into her arms as Rose and Lynn and whoever else hugs us.

The whistle blows to continue, but barely a minute later it blows again, indicating the end of the game.

I fall to my knees and weep, players patting my back as they pass. Emily is the one who lifts me off the ground and hugs me.

“You fucking did it.” I cling to her for a long time.

I’m surrounded as we celebrate, and I finally feel like I belong. Being hugged and congratulated by veterans of the team, singing kid’s jerseys and signs. People care about me.

~~~~~

Neither Kristie nor I start for the game against Sweden, which hurts considering how well we played the other day, but we keep our hopes up.

In similar fashion to the game against Portugal, I’m subbed on at half time, Kristie joining me.

“Go out and make a fucking difference! We’ve got this girls!” Lindsey yells as we run back out onto the field, ready to win this thing.

We take our positions, Alex kicking off. I follow the ball with my eyes as I make my way to mark my player, almost running into her as she heads toward me. Fridolina Rolfö is one of the best players in the world, with a versatility that isn’t seen all too often, and she’s standing right beside me. I also try to desperately ignore my raging crush on the tall Swedish player as the ball falls to my feet and I try to manoeuvre around her.

I kick the ball through her legs and take on down the field again, making a pass to Kristie. She passes to Alex who takes a shot, but Mušović catches it and falls to the ground with ease.

After the full 90’, neither team yet to concede a goal, we prepare for an extra 30 minutes, possibly even penalties. Vlatko gives us the order before the extra time begins, and I begin to get nervous again.

We fight as hard as we can for a goal, while simultaneously trying to keep Sweden away. By the time the final whistle blows to indicate the extra time is over, we’re still at a stagnant nil-nil. Penalties will be the decider. We line up, Andi stepping forward to take the first kick for us. It drifts into the goal with ease, and I hug Kristie to my side in short celebration.

Frido steps up next, taking her spot in front of Alyssa. I try not to think about how arguably good she looks as she takes a deep breath. She lets it go and runs, slotting the ball into the right corner.

1-1.

Kristie takes our 3rd. In a calm fashion I’ve witnessed from her many times before, she places the ball on the spot, closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, and kicks. It flies into the top left corner, and I don’t waste a second in running out of the line and picking her up, spinning her around.

3-2.

Both teams struggle to convert another goal for a few shots, but we eventually end up 4-4. Then it comes to me. It’s up to me to get us through.

I line up with the ball, glancing to the left side of the net in hopes of confusing the keeper. I take three steps back, run, and kick the ball. It flies forward toward the right side of the goal and the goalie jumpers to the left. The ball looks like it’s about to go in, when it makes contact with the post, diverting it away from the net. I try not to fall to the ground, instead silently crying as Kristie holds me at her side, watching Lina Hurtig line up.

The world moves in slow motion as she kicks the ball. Alyssa gets her hands on the ball, but it flies back in the air and toward the net. She makes a dive to stop it before it crosses the line, sweeping it away. Both teams begin to celebrate in a moment of confusion, us hoping for a second chance to get through, Sweden believing they’ve knocked us out.

We wait in anticipation as the ref checks with the VAR, and I fall into Kristie’s arms, pulling us both to the floor as she announces the ball crossed the line.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” I whisper apologies in her ear as we both cry, watching Lina run to her team.

“It’s my fault.” I can’t lift my head to look anyone in the eyes. I failed this team.

“It’s not your fault, it was bad luck. You did everything you could.” She comforts through her own tears.

“You should go talk to Lynn and the others.” I say, pulling away. Kristie nods curtly, hugging me once more before standing up and leaving me to wallow by myself.

“Ursäkta mig?” (excuse me). I turn toward the person looming over me and come face to face with Fridolina Rolfö.

“You played very well today. I’m sorry for your loss. It’s not your fault.” She offers me a hand which I take nervously.

“T- thank you. But I should’ve been able to make that penalty. You played well too.” I stare at the ground, far too nervous about who I’m talking to, and disappointed in my performance.

“Would you like to swap jerseys?” my head whips up to look at the tall blonde.

“W- with me? Frido Rolfö wants to swap jerseys with me?” I stutter as she smiles down at me.

“If you don’t mind.” I waste not a second more in pulling my jersey off and handing it to her, Frido copying me. We pull them over our heads and some photographer takes a picture. I smile despite my puffy eyes and the tears that have yet to dry.

“You really should be proud of your performance today. Despite missing the penalty, you played the best you could. Maybe we’ll see you at Barca one day.” She pats me on the back and heads back to her team. I do the same.

~~~~~

A few weeks later I get a rather shocking email. The world cup ended about a week ago, Spain taking the trophy over England, and the NWSL was about to start back up. This email put a stop to my plans.

“Dear Y/n L/n,

Barcelona Femeni has deeply reviewed your performance at the world cup and at Gotham FC, and we wish to extend an invitation for you to transfer to Barcelona before the start of our 2023/24 season.

Please get back to us as soon as possible. We may be open for discussion on your salary.”

I try not to scream in excitement, hyperaware of the newly engaged couple sleeping in the room next to me, and decide to take a day to think about it and discuss the idea with Kristie and my family. I get up and begin to make breakfast for the three of us, a simple poached eggs on avocado toast, to keep me distracted.

Eventually Kristie and Sam emerge, and I present them with the idea.

“You have to take it.” Sam tells me deadpan.

“Well hold on a second. Maybe you should take a few days to think about it.” Kristie counters, and I begin to get nervous.

“Offers like these don’t just hang in the air Kristie. It’s the best move for her career.”

“What about her family? And the NWSL? We’re so close to the final.”

“What about what’s best f-”

“I’m doing it.” I interrupt what’s inevitably going to become a fight if I let it drag on.

“I’m moving to Barcelona. Sam’s right, these opportunities don’t just wait for me to be ready, and they rarely come more than once. My family will understand and so will the club. I hope. I have to do this Kristie.” The girl simply nods in understanding, and I smile at Sam before heading back to my room to reply.

~~~~~

A week and a half later I’m stepping out of a taxi and standing in awe in front of the Joan Gamper training grounds. I came in yesterday to put myself in their system and take the signing announcement photos but being here for training made it seem much more real.

I stand watching the likes of Aitana Bonmati and Keira Walsh walk past me and into the building when a hand lands on my shoulder. Once again, Frido Rolfö towers over me with a wide, welcoming grin that spreads across her face.

“They took my recommendation!”

“What do you mean?” I begin to walk alongside her.

“I strongly suggested that Jonatan watch your performances at the world cup and the NWSL after we versed each other. We need a strong midfielder like you who can also make goals. Very similar to Alexia.”

“Me? Like Alexia Putellas? You’re lying.” The Swede simply smiles again as she pushes open the door to the locker room.

“Hola!” a chorus of voices greet us as we enter. We’re clearly the last here.

-

It takes me a few days to start gelling with other players. These people were the best of the best and I had to prove I belong here, so I did just that.

-

“Mapi, Mapi! Here!” I yell to the centre back, pointing to where I want the ball. 5v5s could be hard but they made it seem easy.

It flies through the air and lands against my chest before falling to the ground. I seem to be in an impossible situation, but I spot a gap and hit the ball through, managing to run around Lucy and tap it into the goal past Sandra.

“VAMOOOS.” Mapi, Frido, Ona and Aitana run toward me.

“You’re so good.” Frido taps me on the head affectionately as she pulls me into her side in some sort of hug. I blush and roll my eyes when I make eye contact with Pina, who was very aware of my crush on the forward.

“Thank you Frido.”

There must have been something in the air because I continued to bang in goals all session.

I tap the ball back behind me to navigate around Alexia and chip it over Sandra, right into the goal.

I make a shot from the boarder of the penalty box, and it lands in the top right corner.

Aitana shoots the ball into the air and before I can think, I’m jumping and throwing my leg in the air behind me. It connects with the ball, and I turn my head to watch if it goals in as I fall to the ground. The net ripples behind Sandra and I’m at the bottom of the dogpile before I can say anything.

“You just flawlessly executed a bicycle kick what the fuck?!”

“How’d you do that?”

“Can you do that again?” a new question is presented before I can answer the previous and I just laugh. Eventually everyone gets off and heads to lunch, but Frido helps me up.

“You’re performing goals like that but you’re not a striker? Why?”

“It just feels right. I’ve always been told I’m best midfield even though getting goals has always been something I loved doing.” She hums and takes my hand as we follow the others.

~~~~~

“We’re playing truth or dare! No complaints!” Claudia shouts over the groans spewing from everyone’s mouths.

“It’s the ultimate team bonding experience. Come on.”

“I’ll go first!” Ona volunteers and we all wait to see who she picks.

“Mapi. I dare you to knock on your neighbours door, accusing them on stealing Bagheera.”

“But Señorita Ruiz is so nice, and old.” Despite the complaint, Mapi gets up and walks out of her apartment, Ona following her, and knocks on Ms Ruiz’s door.

“María Pilar! How dare you accuse me of stealing Bagheera! I look after him every time you go away and take good care of him! I would never do such a thing.” The sounds of what one could only assume to be a handbag hitting Mapi, echo down the hall.

“Lo siento, lo siento Señorita! Por favor my friend made me I’m sorry!” the subject of the quabble meows and struts out of the apartment and toward Señorita Ruiz’s.

“Never accuse me of such things again or no more buñuelos.” Eventually the two come back, Mapi red faced with Bagheera in her arms, and Ona giggling in joy.

“My turn I suppose.” Mapi seethes jokingly.

“Y/n. I dare you to play seven minutes in heaven with Frido.” I stop, but Frido is already standing, and I can’t say no.

“Let’s do this.” I whisper, apparently loud enough for everyone to hear, as they cheer and laugh.

I follow Frido to Mapi and Ingrid’s bedroom and close the door behind me. As soon as I do, I’m pushed up against the wood. My breathing stops and I flush red, trying not to look at her lips.

“If you don’t want this, tell me now. Otherwise, I’m going to kiss you because I’ve wanted to since I first saw you.”

“I want you to kiss me so bad.” She surges forward, pressing her lips against mine, and I grasp at the loose fabric of her shirt to pull her closer.

I don’t even try to talk as we continue to make out against the door. I try not to think about how hot she looks with dishevelled hair and ruffled clothes, my lip-gloss smudged against her own lips, otherwise we won’t be leaving this room.

Then comes an aggressive bang from the other side, Mapi yelling time is up.

“This isn’t over.” She whispers in my ear as she reaches around me to open the door and walks out. I stand still in awe as I watch her walk away, and Mapi has to usher me back to the circle where I sit next to Frido.

~~~~~

I went home with her that night and woke up the next morning buried beneath satin sheets with an arm around my waist, skin on skin. Despite the deep want inside of me to freak out, I take a breath and take in the world around me. The sun streams through the window and lands perfectly on the face of the woman beside me, making her skin light up and her hair seem like liquid gold.

I spot the pile of our clothes on the floor and giggle at the memory of how hard they were to take off last night in our rushed kisses. But then I remember how the rush slowed down. There was no other word to describe it except love.

Frido’s eyes slowly open and she grins at me, leaning forward and pressing soft kisses to my shoulder and neck. I sit up urgently and reach a hand toward the spot she just kissed, then stand and head toward the bathroom linked to her room. There on the side of my neck, is a row of small, dark purple hickies. Frido follows me in and wraps her arms around my waist, resting her chin on my shoulder, and continues to kiss every inch of skin she could reach.

“I have no way to cover these up before training.” I groan and throw my head back.

“Good.” She shrugs before kissing me on the lips, and then goes back to her room.

“You did it on purpose!” I whine.

“I will never admit that. Now join me.” She pulls me into the shower before I can protest.

Let’s just say we were nearly late to training. And I had to borrow her spare kit. And everyone most certainly knew what happened.

Ingrid was the first to point it out, poking a finger into the bruises on my neck and pointing them out to Mapi. I swat them away but it only brings more attention to us. Alexia is the next one over and she gracefully points out the 16 that replaces my usual 3. I look over to Frido for help but she just laughs.

“You know what? At least I’ve got a girlfriend. More than some of you can say.” I laugh along with some of them but Frido seems shocked. I tilt my head to the side in confusion, running my sentence through my head.

My smile drops but she leans over and kisses me.

“Yeah at least she has a girlfriend.”

[sakusaur]

rin itoshi ; baby daddy

hcs of rin as a father / sfw !!!

you took the pregnancy test three times to make sure it wasn’t a false line but it’s true; you and rin are going to be parents! on the same day, you immediately went online to purchase a baby sized national team football jersey to surprise your husband rin.

needless to say, you panicked at first but after seeing his reaction to the news, you felt relieved and so full of love and happiness

you told him just as he came home from training, you were already laying in bed relaxing as you rubbed your tummy though there was no bulge yet

just next to you, the tiny jersey was displayed and rin immediately noticed it, confused as to why you put a tiny national team jersey there

“y/n, did my jersey shrink while i was gone?” he asked as he walked closer to your side before noticing a pregnancy test just above the jersey

“wait. is that mine? or yours? wait,” rin starts getting flustered as he grabbed the test and you hold onto him excitedly, “you’re going to be a father!”

rin doesnt say a word as he looked back at you and the positive result and you fear that he might not want a child, especially after the childhood he had.

but NO he’s actually over the moon and crazy happy that a mini you and him will be walking around the house and o h he’s trying not to cry

gives you a very very very passionate and deep kiss while he holds your face because thats how he knows how to express his emotions at the moment

during the pregnancy

rin is the type of father who would read guidebooks and research A LOT on the internet

worries about your morning sickness and he’s always there holding your hair and massaging your back

makes you a nice healthy balanced breakfast after that and doesn’t let you move an inch on the bed as he does the housework, only allowing you to move once you finished your meal and feel better

he WILL bitch about your weird cravings but still go out to buy them

“i want ice cream and pickles right now,” you shot awake and started jerking his arm while he’s half asleep.

he sticks his tongue out in disgust, “together?” and you nod before he groans and gets out of bed to get it for you

(if your cravings are too weird at home he’d still go down to the convenience store to get it or get delivery)

he gets nervous touching your belly but when your baby kicks as they feel rin’s touch, rin is moved to tears but holds it in, and continues to stroke your belly while lying on your thigh

will NOT sing to the baby like you told him to but he will talk to them as if it was a teen

“you have to stop giving your mother back pain, ya hear me?” rin is at your belly eye level as he says it, giving your belly a peck after

during/after the birthing

rin will hold your hand during labour

give you so much forehead kisses

tells you how well you’re doing and how much he loves you

tells the doctor to pass the baby to you first

will finally let some tears shed as he sees how beautiful you look carrying his baby

and his whole life is complete

part 2 to be continued! :)

tag list: @6423btw

[writtenbymisunderstoodnerds]

You didn't actually think I would miss this, did you? (Tobin Heath x Reader)

Just a short little fic for Tobin's birthday. Not really edited so mind any mistakes. Hope you enjoy!

Between work getting busy and studying, life has been busy lately so writing has unfortunately been put on the back burner so fics might take longer than usual. My final essay is due in less than 2 weeks so hopefully I'll have more time to write after that!

Words: 1.4k

Y/n: Nobody on earth can make me feel the way you do. Everyday I wake up you continue to amaze me in every way possible. Your kindness, empathy and compassion are what make you the most amazing woman I've ever known. Please never stop being the beautiful, confident and sexiest person that I am madly in love with. Everyday I am blessed to have you by my side. I hope today is filled with love, friendship, surprises and fun. Thank you for going through life with me. Happy birthday my love. I love you today and always.

Toby: Thank you baby. There's no one I'd rather go through life with than you. I love you so much.

Toby: I wish you were here with me today... I miss you

Y/n: I miss you too Toby. We'll see each other soon. I'm sure you'll have an amazing day regardless. I wanted to have this text ready for you to wake up to, but I got busy :(

Toby: It's okay, facetime later?

Y/n: Wouldn't miss it. I have to go, but I'll message you a bit later. I love you

It was Tobin's birthday today. We had been together for 7 years and this was the first birthday that we would be apart for. Since we started dating, we had always made sure to be with each other on our birthdays. This year though, I was playing in Europe meaning I couldn't be there this year. Well that's what she thought anyway. I was out for a couple of weeks with an injury and coach had agreed that I could return to the states as long as I kept up with physio. 

Tobin's birthday happened to fall in the middle of a national team camp. One that I couldn't attend due to being injured. I knew they would be planning something so I had reached out to Ali to let her know I was surprising Tobin. I trusted her to not let it slip and she was able to keep me updated on their plans so I could surprise her. I didn't want to miss her whole birthday, instead I had found a flight that would get me there in time to surprise her at lunch. 

I got through security as quickly as possible. Knowing I was so close to seeing Tobin again was making me impatient. This was probably the longest we had gone without seeing each other. I hated it, but playing internationally had always been a dream of mine. They had organized lunch in the meal room at the hotel seeing as there were so many of them. I quickly dropped my stuff in Tobin's hotel room and cleaned myself up a bit before heading down to the meal room. 

Ali had organized a game of guess the person. Tobin was blindfolded and had to guess who was in front of her based on the feel of their hands and face. The girls smiled widely when they saw me, somehow managing to not completely freak out. I watched Tobin go through a few more of them. There was a wide smile on her face, the corners of her eyes no doubt crinkling. I knew pretty much all of Tobin's expressions at this point, even without properly seeing them. It made me happy knowing that even though she was missing me, she was still able to have fun and be genuinely happy. 

After a few minutes, I stepped up to Tobin, placing her hand on my arm first then my face. I knew there was a high chance that once she felt either of my hands she would know it was me. Besides the years of almost constant hand holding, I had a scar on one of my hands that was very noticeable.

I lent into her touch, enjoying the feeling after almost six months away from her. That must have been a give away, because her hand froze briefly before moving to my eyebrow that also had a scar then my left hand. She ripped the blindfold off, eyes wide as she stared at me in shock. 

"Y/n!" Tobin pretty much squealed, jumping up, arms wrapping around me as she jumped up, legs around my waist, "You're here, you're actually here."

"You didn't seriously think I would miss your birthday did you?"

Tobin kissed me hard, filled with passion and love. I knew the team were watching, fake gags coming from them, but I did care as I cupped the back of her head, not letting her move until we were both out of breath. Tobin watched me for a few seconds before speaking, "I love you so much. How long do I have you for?"

Reluctantly, I put her down, feeling my knee starting ache, "A couple of weeks. Pretty much until I'm ready to join practice again as long as I keep up with physio here."

Since there weren't any real plans for after lunch, Tobin and I snuck off to the room. We didn't do anything other than cuddle and make out a little bit. I was exhausted from my flight, all I wanted to do was hold her after months apart. When Tobin eventually had to go to the bathroom, I got the piece of paper and ring box from my bag. I quickly hid the ring box as Tobin came back into the room. I still wasn't sure if I was going to propose right now with just the two of us or do something with the team later. I wanted to have it with me for when I decided the time was right.

"I got you something."

"You didn't have to, just being here is enough."

"Shush and take it. I think you're going to like this."

I handed her a piece of paper. She read over it slowly before jumping on me, peppering kisses across my face, "You're coming back?!? We get to play together again?"

"I'm coming back. I still have to be there for a couple more months though. I love playing for arsenal, it's been a great experience, but it's not worth how much I miss you." 

A few tears fell down her cheeks as she kissed me slowly before a smile stretched across her face, interrupting the kiss. Her smile was one of my favourite sights so I wasn't mad about it, "You are amazing, I love you Y/n."

"I love you Toby." 

Once again I found myself watching her. Taking in her smile, the way her eyes crinkled, the dimples I was obsessed with, her beautiful eyes that I could look at forever and the short hair that drove me crazy. It was my first time seeing it in person, I had ran my fingers through it countless times already and was currently resisting the urge to do it again. I loved her more than I thought it was possible to love another person. She was the person I craved, the first person I thought of when I woke up or before I went to sleep, the first person I wanted to tell when anything happened. She was the person I wanted by my side for the rest of my life. 

"I meant what I said in my text."

"Which part?"

"All of it. Even after 7 years, you still make my heart race, butterflies and sparks to explode at even the slightest touch. No one has even made me feel the way you do and no one else ever will. I thank everything in this world that you chose me, that I get to be with you and love you every day. You are the only person I want by myside through everything life throws our way. The good, bad, funny, messy, whatever it is, it will be okay because I have you. I am so madly in love with you Tobin Powell Heath, I want to do life with you for as long as you'll have me. Will you marry me?"

Tobin launched forward before I could even get the ring box. She hugged me tightly, tears landing against my neck, "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes. I love you so fucking much Y/n."

My own tears fell, the happiness bubbling over as I chuckled, "Can I get the ring now?"

"You got me a ring?"

I reached under the pillow for the ring box, opening it for Tobin to see. It was just a simple rose gold band, it fit who she was and the type of style she liked. She grinned widely as I easily slipped it onto her finger, "Of course I did. I've been planning to do this for months now. Only the best for my girl or should I say fiancé?"

"God I can't wait to marry you Y/n."

[wishingforatypewriter]

Mystery Man

Written for Lin Beifong's Week (Day 3: Gossip at the RCPD)

‘Mind your business, keep your job’ was a rule Mako had followed devoutly since his days running numbers for the Triple Threats as a child. But even he had to admit he was curious. 

You see, on Monday morning, a courier delivered a bouquet of fire lilies to the station. The floral arrangement was walked right up to the chief’s office and remained on the side of her desk for the rest of the day.

This was truly significant because Chief Beifong’s office was markedly bare, devoid of the trinkets and family photos nearly all the cops left on their desks.

“Who do you think they’re from?” Meilin asked once she returned to the bullpen after submitting a report to the chief. 

“That’s above my paygrade,” Mako said, barely glancing up from his paperwork. “Yours too.”

“You’re probably right,” she replied, leaning against his desk. “It’s strange, though, to imagine the chief with a boyfriend.” 

On Tuesday, the flowers were gone, but when he went into Beifong’s office to get her approval to launch an investigation, the room smelled of expensive Fire Nation cigars. The scent was vaguely familiar, something from a lifetime ago. He felt his brow furrow as he tried to remember where he recognized it from. 

“Is there something else you need, Mako?” she asked when he paused before leaving her space. 

“Uh, no,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “I just didn’t know you smoked.” 

“It’s a habit that keeps coming back.” The chief’s expression twitched into something like a smile, but it was gone as soon as he blinked. “My advice is never start.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and then left, finally placing where he encountered the smell of those exact cigars when he sat down at his desk. It was back when he was learning to bend lightning on the rooftops and in the alleyways of the Dragon Flats.

On Wednesday, for the first time since Mako joined the force, Chief Beifong actually left work early. 

“I have an appointment,” she said with a noncommittal wave as she made her way out. “Hold down the fort.” 

“An appointment?” Meilin said, once the brass doors shut behind the chief. “More like a date.” 

“I haven’t seen her like this since she was a rookie,” said Old Patel, the unit chief of the organized crime division, who’d been a cop since Toph Beifong led the force. “Wearing perfume, going on lunch dates.” 

“Who has a lunch date?” Bolin asked as he and Opal approached. 

“No one,” Mako said. “Why are you here?”

“Rude!” Bolin said. “After Opal and I came all this way to pick you up for Asami’s kickback.” 

Mako sighed, rubbing his forehead. “That was today?” 

“Yeah, now who’s on a lunch date?” he asked, feeding off of the potential for gossip, as always. “Anyone I know?” 

“Chief Beifong and her mystery man,” Meilin said. 

“Lin’s dating?” Bolin asked. 

“We don’t know that,” Mako said. 

“He sent her flowers on Monday, cigars on Tuesday, and now she left early for a lunch date,” Meilin said, counting off each clue on a finger. 

“Ooh, this is getting good.” Bolin rubbed his hands together, grinning from ear to ear. “Hey, Opal, Lin’s your aunt. Did she say anything?” 

The airbender simply inspected her nails instead of responding. 

“Hey, no secrets!” Bolin said, pouting. 

“It’s not my business to tell,” she replied. 

Later that day, at Asami’s get together, Bolin made the whole friend group aware of Lin’s potential dating situation. 

“Come on, we have a detective, a genius, and an avatar in the house. Someone’s got to be able to figure this out.” 

“Trust me, you’ll never guess it,” Opal told him. “Not in a million years.” 

Something in her inflection returned Mako’s mind to the cigars—expensive, imported. He’d only ever known one person who smoked them.

“You think he makes her happy?” Mako asked. 

She smiled. “I definitely do.” 

“That’s good enough for me,” he said. “Now can we please stop talking about this and go eat?” 

[asgardianangel]

Be with me instead-One-shot/request

Hello!! I would like to request a Saul/Reader with Saul being obsessed with Reader who was a client once but she is back to ask him for help because of her Bf so Saul decides to help but manipulates her to leave the bf and end with him 

Warnings: Obsessive! Saul Goodman, delusional, age gap, manipulation, bad language, mentions of abuse and drugs, drugging, creepy behaviour, implied smut

Be with me instead 

Pulling up in the familiar parking lot you let out a sigh drumming your fingers against the steering wheel thinking about your boyfriend Evan. 

Why did he have to be there? You thought to yourself as you gazed at the name of your old lawyer printed in bold on the window of the building.  

Saul was the very best. 

You smiled to yourself thinking of how the worst time of your life turned to the best because of him. Saul was a friend and protector of your very being and you promised him to stay out of trouble since the incident that occurred two years ago. You were so stupid. 

Pushing the door open the bell chimed the hustle and bustle of clients awaiting Saul greeted you. Children cried and ran around the room franticly as all sorts of unusual characters stared at you. You felt out of place as some sort of American national anthem played.     

His sectary Francisca frowned looking up from her paperwork you let out a fake cough and her eyes lighten up upon seeing you again.  

“Y/n?” You smiled with a nod. She got up from her desk and made her way to you with a hug.  

“Hey Francisa. How you been?” You asked. She looked around breaking the hug. 

“Oh, you know the usual. Does Saul know you are here?” She asked as you finally found a place to sit. You had his work number as well as personal but Evan’s arrest make you panic and were so quick to visit rather than to call. 

“I should have called it’s just- there's been a lot of stress” You explained poorly over the noise of clients. 

Then a door opened and you heard his voice “Don’t worry I’ll help your nephew Mrs Lee” Saul said to an older client.  

You stood up and his eyes met yours. It looked like he was having a moment to realise your presence. I should have called you thought. His lips curved into a smile as he straightens his tie.  

“Y/n Y/L/N as I live and breathe” Saul announced making you laugh nervously. He then turns to his next client “I’ll be with you in just a second I got to handle a personal matter” the man huffs at his words then Saul gestures you inside his office. 

The door closes behind you “You in trouble again sweetheart?” Saul asked as you glance around the office you thought you would never set foot in again. “No, I'm here for my boyfriend- he's in custody for dealing but he promised me he wasn’t involved” Saul’s expression was unreadable as he clicked his pen.  

“Boyfriend?” He asked smiling awkwardly tilting his head. You nod “Yeah Evan Rodgers we been together coming close to two months now”  

“Ah Rodgers he sounds familiar. I’m happy for you- well not in this case if he’s a drug dealer but happy you are staying out of trouble” Saul laughs nervously and you smile looking down at your nails that you have been biting stressfully. 

“Maybe we can meet in the El Camino diner in I’ll say an hour on my lunch break. You should have called Sweetheart” Saul sighed standing up to open the door for you before you could walk out, he wrapped his arms around you making you tense in surprise. 

“I missed you” 

- 

Sitting at the table in diner twiddling your thumbs as the waitress poured you some coffee.  You mumbled a thanks while checking the clock. Saul was right on time as he spoked to client through his earpiece setting down his briefcase on the table smiling at you. 

He was quick to end the call and order a coffee “Soo- this boyfriend of yours what exactly did he get into to worry that pretty head of yours?”  

You explained the best you could from Evan’s exact story how he and a few friends went out late to deal in the infamous ‘blue stuff’ but Evan promised you he wasn’t involved. His ‘friend’ Dave (who you never met before) wanted to be dropped off at a known rough area. It took you a while to remember where it was. Just the number of the apartment 11124 flashed in your mind. Then cops showed up from nowhere and busted Evan while this Dave guy was away doing the deal. A night's peacefulness got disturbed by one phone call. 

Saul wrote the whole thing down in his file as you took a sip of coffee. “Hm DEA got to him” He looked at you and saw the tears brimming in your eyes “Sweetheart don’t worry I got this I would do anything for you” His blue eyes gazed at you his hand rest upon yours. “Hey at least he’s not a public masturbator like my last client” Saul always humoured you during your worst times putting that smile back on your face. 

You spent some time with him talking about other things just to keep your mind off your boyfriend sitting in a cell. Saul made you promise him to get some beauty sleep.  

- 

Night time came by and you tossed and turned then it felt hopeless to get asleep. Then you decided to call Saul and luckily, he answered.  

“Sorry for calling you over so late I just need to talk to someone face to face” You apologised seeing him inside your apartment. 

“Oh, it's fine I wasn’t getting sleep either and how can I ever say no to you anyway” Saul said looking around your small apartment “Cute pyjamas” he said and couldn’t help but blush a little looking at the mickey mouse logo. You weren’t used to seeing him in anything other than his colourful suits as he stood wearing a white shirt and black long shorts "May I use your bathroom?” you nod “It’s down the hall” 

You started flicking through channels as you waited for Saul feeling a sense of blue as Evan’s scent surrounded you. You missed him so much. You settled on some Alfred Hitchcock movie that played. “Oooh Suspicion” You heard his voice as he entered the living room “Yeah, I haven’t seen it in a while. Evan doesn’t really like old movies” You mused.  

“Bummer.” Saul said “Don’t take this the wrong way what do you see in the guy? I mean he didn’t strike me as your type when I spoke to him today” You raised an eyebrow at him. “What do you think my type is?” You asked playfully 

“Well, I think for starters you would go for a guy who has a better taste in movies and friends. And not be stupid enough to get arrested with the prettiest girl is waiting for him at home” Saul explained in a rather flirtiest manner and you brushed it with giggle. 

“Evan is just like me in the sense that we did things we regret now ever since well I got caught selling weed and I'm grateful for you getting me off of that penalty I was stupid” You lightly scolded yourself thinking back. It was one of the scariest moments of your life and there was Saul bursting into the room with his defence of coercion  

‘A young woman with the whole world ahead of her pushed in the devil’s lettuce by not very good friends’ That sentence always will stick out to you. You still didn’t know how to thank him.  

“Oh, I forgot to offer you a drink” You sat up feeling like a rude host. 

“You watch the movie I’ll make the drinks-how about some warm milk that will make you sleep” Saul places his hand on your thigh long enough for you to notice how odd it felt. 

“What am I? Five?” You asked with a grin Saul looks you up and down “with those pyjamas yeah” he lets go with a chuckle “Do you need help finding the kitchen?” You tease knowing he’s already past it going to the bathroom “Think I'm good” He responds. 

It was hard to admit to yourself but Saul gave you enough attention then Evan has done in weeks he was always going out with his friends and leaving you alone and worried. It started to make you feel suspicious his involvement with this Dave guy. 

‘It’s none of your business what I do Y/n’ he would say and slam the front door making you jump. He was certainly growing to out of the man you met with verbal abuse here and there but love is blind and you forgave so easily. 

Saul soon came back with drinks “Hope you don’t mind I got one of your boyfriend’s beers” he said handing you the glass of milk. “He won’t mind cheers” you say and clink his bottle with a laugh. 

Minutes after you felt yourself become drowsy as the tv screen slowly develop into a blur. Your head fell on top of Saul’s shoulder as his cologne indulged your senses.  

You were out  

Not feeling fingers running through your hair and gentle whispers in your ear. Saul felt you needed guidance in this cruel world as he slipped a sleeping pill. He wanted to calm you and give some affection while you rested. The whole years was agonising for him burying himself in work and the company of sex workers. He tried the best he could with contact but you showed little interest in him. It was when you needed his legal help for your asshole boyfriend. But he wasn’t angry at you he knew you were under Evan’s spell. His fist clenches as he strokes your hair thinking about him. Evan didn’t deserve you.  

Saul must admit he was impressed on how the guy hid all sorts of dirty little secrets away from you. Drug charges, assault here and there even on an ex-girlfriend. Seeing evidence pictures he envisioned you in her place bruises marked your pretty innocent face and it pissed him off. Your precious Evan was a piece of shit there was no doubt about that no wonder his name was familiar.  

After some time, Saul decided to pick your sleeping form up and carry you to your bedroom he admired you wrapped up in a cosy blanket.  

Then he left locking the door behind him with his special key. Satisfied upon spending time with you 

- 

The court date finally arrived in a blink of an eye and Saul held your hand the entire time which was oddly comforting to you. Sitting down at the back of the court nerves played Saul gave you a reassuring look as he took his place in front of the Judge. Evan soon entered the clinking of cuffs alerted you and he sends you a smile. 

The trial was going steady so far and the DEA was shooting their shots they were desperate to seek answers about the ‘blue stuff’ beforehand. But Evan kept his mouth shut.  

Saul proved Evan to be a victim of circumstance or so he thought by almost the end they brought out new evidence his messages exchanged with his friend Dave indicating it was his idea to do the deal. You were shocked even more so when they brought up his long record of drug possession and trafficking in the past. Oh, how it was kept from you. 

Saul lost the case and you were left confused as the judge read out his sentencing. Truth be told it was over a decade and the tears gleamed in your eyes. 

You couldn't face Evan who pleading innocence kicking and screaming as he was being taken away

Saul manged to catch up with you as you rushed out of court crying your heart out. “Shh sweetheart it will be okay you don’t need him”  

You looked up at him as he wrapped his arms around you wiping your face “You don’t understand Saul, I love him so much” You cried on his shoulder as he ran his fingers through your hair shushing you. 

“It’s not just the drugs he was charged with in the past” Saul said wiping your tears.  

You were confused “what do you mean?” You ask 

Saul clicked open his briefcase to retrieve a file with Evan’s name on “this is his criminal record” he stated showing you a list  

‘Domestic violence and assault’ stuck out to you and you furrow your brow  

“These are some evidence photos taken on a few occasions by his ex-girlfriend who he dated a month before you met him. I knew his name was familiar since an attorney I knew worked his case” You felt sickness in your stomach looking at the pictures. That could have been you. Evan had anger problems it was obvious but you never knew he could escalate to that. The horrible names he started to attack you with was just a start. 

"Leave him sweetheart he go what he deserved"

And just like that he was cut from your life 

- 

A month went by and you were starting to feel better Saul or Jimmy (he confessed his real name to be) was by your side almost all the time. 

At first you found it to be sweet but rather clingy at the same time but you didn’t mind. He was there for you. 

One morning he invited you to his office on his break to talk and you couldn’t say no. 

Sitting there with a coffee made by Francisca you listened to him go on with unusual stories from his clients and laugh. Then before you knew it, he was closer to you sitting there with his hand on your thigh that made you of the night you invited him to your apartment and then apparently fell asleep on him. You couldn’t remember much. 

“Y/n?” Saul asked in a rather strange tone gazing at you with his baby blue eyes. 

“Yeah?” You ask 

“Do you feel lonely sweetheart?” It took a minute for you to think. Do you? Ever since Evan you still craved romantic connection but your trust issues skyrocketed. 

“In some ways yes” You answer truthfully holding his hand. 

“Well so do I but you being here with me changed something” Saul responded honestly 

“And I would do anything for you” He continued rubbing your cheek so softly. The action made you realise what was happening  

Is he trying to confess his feelings for you? The man who guided and protected you. A dear friend has sparked romantic interest you were so unaware of. 

“The truth is I felt this way from the day we met. You were so scared and lost I wanted to shield you from everything” Slowly but surely, he placed a sweet peck to your lips. 

You didn’t know what to say but you understood even if it felt strange. You kinda liked it. Saul saved you from serving in cell saved you from a progressing abusive relationship. 

“Be with me” Saul urged softly 

You trusted him 

This is what you needed placing your hand at the back of his neck you pulled him in a longing kiss closing your eyes. His lips were soft as his tongue started to slide into your mouth with a groan. 

After a few minutes you both pulled back with a gasp and Saul smiled “I suppose you accept then?” he asked tucking a hair behind your ear. 

“I feel the same way yes, I appreciate everything you have done for me and this last month have been amazing with you. Never would I have thought my old lawyer would be catching feelings for me now” You tease nudging his shoulder. 

“I can’t help myself I want to be there for you and I would never treat you like he did. The man was a secretive asshole”  

“No secrets?” You ask holding out your pinky  

“No secrets” He repeated giving you a pinky promise. 

He then gave you another deep kiss and grabbed the phone on his desk “Yeah Fransica, I advise you not to swing by in here for at least twenty minutes” he said making you giggle “Make that an hour” With that he ended the call. Poor Fransica must be rolling her eyes. 

Be with me he urged and so you complied  

- 

Saul was on cloud nine making his merry way to his car after work he couldn’t wait to see you. 

Next to his car a familiar face stared so grumpily  

“Mike good to see ya” he greeted with a wave 

“You owe me for that set up and you need to pay up for that girl those pictures were convincing” His baritone voice answered taking off his sunglasses. 

“Yeah, yeah whatever you say” Saul dismisses opening his car door. 

His sweetheart wouldn’t be in his arms if it wasn’t for him and to that he owed Mike 

Fin

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Sugar part three is on its way it was accidentally deleted and I had to rewrite :/

[maaarshieee]

˚₊໒❄꒱Ice & Snow₊˚

⎯⎯ ୨ 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐭𝐡 𝐈𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 ୧ ⎯⎯

➢ Cʜɪʟᴅᴇ x Gɴ!Rᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

➢ Mᴀsᴛᴇʀʟɪsᴛ

a/n - first event ever >:) ok so im totally not obsessed with childe. who gave you that idea???? anyways, the event is called 'ice and snow', a winter themed writing event! i always have fun writing childe !!! titled "warmth in forever winter", have a nice day/night!! not my next post being childe too 😰😰 Ice & Snow event masterlist!

Childe grew up in the snow. Born in the nation of eternal winter, Snezhnaya, he learned from his birth how to live in endless coldness from day and night. At this point in his life, he's barely bothered by the cold.

So imagine his surprise when his dear lover, a Forest Watcher who grew up in the deserts and rainforests of Sumeru once mentioned that they've never experienced winter, let alone seen snow. He was baffled. Surely you must've at least gone to a region where it snowed per season? But you merely gave him a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of your neck, a tad embarrassed.

Well, it can't be helped. You were attached to the residents of your hometown, especially to Tighnari, who was seen as the leader of all Forest Watchers. You've never been outside of Sumeru, so you've never seen a lick of snow.

So Childe made it his mission to let you experience the joys of the cold. But of course, he wouldn't plan this without consideration. When Childe first visited Sumeru, he almost died of heatstroke. He's heard of how hot deserts were and has experienced heat waves in Liyue, but he has underestimated the blistering heat in Sumeru altogether. Luckily, you happened to be passing by where he had fainted from the heat and took him someplace cooler.

If you hadn't visited the General Mahamatra that day, Childe would've been easily compared to a melted snow cone left under the sun. He'd get shivers just thinking about stepping near the desert without you by his side.

And when you finally agreed to visit Snezhnaya, he was over the moon, wrapping his arms around you and lifting you up high while he spun you, a big fat grin on his lips. While snow can give you chilling frostbite and blind you with its raging storms, there was always a bright side to many things. You taught him that.

Childe thought you looked absolutely adorable with layers upon layers of clothing, not used to the frigid coldness of Snezhnaya, chuckling when you already got yourself a runny nose while Childe barely had any extra layers on him.

But you soon grew fond of snow, Childe often losing you in the white plains only to look down and see you making snow angels every chance you get, giggling like a kid. He'd also take you ice fishing, one of his favorite activities, and felt immense pride when you caught a big catch for your first time. When you initiated a snowball fight, he felt exhilarated, throwing heaps of snow toward you. But even if you lacked experience in such fights, you somehow still managed to beat him.

Although, both of you knew he held himself back, just to see you cheer in victory and smile beautifully. Seeing you so happy and carefree made him feel so light, his heart swelling as warmth, to which he had learnt, was love spread all over his body.

He adored how you marveled at the sight of rare plant life only to be seen in snowy terrain, taking pictures with your Kamera, and rambling information about them. And of course, he'd listen to every word you say, soaking up the knowledge you enthusiastically pour onto him so he could converse with you without any confusion.

You got along well with his siblings, just as he hoped. They all adored you, immediately glomping onto you when they saw how you made Childe so happy. He didn't even know you bought his siblings gifts and trinkets from Sumeru. They all loved it, expressing awe at objects they'd never seen before.

"I never told you we'd be visiting my family." He poked you once, Tuecer was asleep on your lap, while Tonia and Anthon slept at either of your sides. Childe's younger siblings had all listened to you ramble about Sumeru, about its deserts and rainforests, your dear friends, and the wonderful flora they'll get to see if ever they decide they wanted to travel, showing them various pictures of the beautiful greenery of Avidya Forest. It ended with them falling asleep with dreams of being in Sumeru and being Forest Watchers by your side.

All five of you sat in front of the fireplace, Childe pouting in his incapability of pulling you into a hug and how his siblings took an immediate liking to you, so much so they've all given most of their attention to you. You only shot him a knowing smirk whilst you sipped on your hot chocolate and Childe had to refrain from laughing at the small cream mustache formed on your upper lip. "You have this same dopey look on your face when you talk about your family when you told me you wanted to bring me to your homeland, so I concluded that you were thinking of bringing me here anyways."

Smug, you ran your fingers through Tuecer's hair, cooing when the small boy wrapped his arms around your torso comfortably and relishing the way Childe crossed his arms, pout more evident on his lips. "I don't make weird faces," He stated, narrowing his eyes at you.

"You're making one right now."

"Am not!"

"Shhh," You put a finger on his lips, shushing him with a warning, but he could clearly see the mirth in your eyes. "They're sleeping." Glancing at his three peacefully sleeping siblings, all he could manage was a defeated sigh as he laid his chin on your shoulder. Just by looking at his expression, you know he's desperate to have you all by himself. "Maybe it was a bad idea to introduce you to my family..."

"Are you seriously jealous right now?" You teased, brow raised in amusement. He put a hand on his chest and dramatically threw his head back, "And what if I am?" He wiped a fake tear.

"Oh please," You shook your head, leaning over toward him to press a kiss on his freckled cheek, "I'll give you all the attention you want later, okay?"

And with that, he grinned, nodding enthusiastically and cupping your face, peppering kisses on every inch of skin he can press his lips against and earning giggles from you.

Winters can be ruthless. It makes your teeth chatter against each other, shivering from the cold, freezing your skin, and even making you ill if you're not careful enough. But the winter will always have warmth somewhere. At the hearth of homes. And Childe has never seen a better hearth in his life; you, surrounded by his siblings, all with smiles and shielded by the ugliness of the outside world.

It brings warmth to Childe's once-frozen heart.

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[whatisreggieshortfor]

Questions and Answers

Your friend bailed on you, so you decide to help a cute guy win a trivia game while you wait for your best friend and his friends ignore him.

College!Yamaguchi x college!gn!reader

You were exasperated. You felt like that was the best term. Your friend that had been putting you off for weeks because of her new relationship had finally promised to meet you for a drink, without bringing the new boyfriend for once. It wasn’t that you weren’t happy for her, you were ecstatic, but you wanted to spend time with her, not with her plus one. However, you weren’t surprised when you received a text stating that he wasn’t feeling well, so she was cancelling to take care of him. Again, you weren’t unhappy. You know she was doing what she thought her duties were as a girlfriend, but you just felt like your friendship was getting thrown on the back burner. You said as much when you texted your best friend, who promised to meet you when he got off work, while complaining you needed better friends, but offered up that the bar was scheduled to have a trivia night while you were there. You groaned, it had been the reason you came. Your friend loved trivia, and it was because of her that you learned so many random facts for this. You decided it was fine, settling more into your seat at the bar to wait out your best friend’s work clock until he’d be able to join you. A group of boys took a table near you, and you recognized the blonde one as the guy that sits down the row from you in one of your lectures, but he was too busy bickering with two of the guys to notice. The fourth guy was just snickering to himself about it before he offered to get the first round of drinks, making his way to stand beside your seat at the bar. Taking a closer look, you were blown away by how pretty he was. Sure, most guys didn’t like being called pretty, but you couldn’t think of a better word. He had olive green hair and freckles dusting over his face, you almost couldn’t help but stare. He seemed to notice when he glanced your way and you witnessed the flush creeping up his cheeks, “Uh, hi? Do I know you?”

“No,” You shook your head embarrassed, “No, sorry. I, uh-“ what were you gonna say exactly? That you were too busy picturing the different constellations on his face to realize you were looking at him too long?

“Tadashi!” The blonde called out, and you were thankful for interruption, “They’re going to start soon.”

“Sorry, Tsukki!” He looked back at you, “Not playing?”

“No,” You shook your head again, “My friend bailed, so I’m just gonna watch until my other friend can meet me for a drink. Gotta destress after midterms somehow, right?” He laughed, and dear god it was even prettier than his face that you were sure had to have been crafted by all of the gods.

“Fair, well, I’m sure I’ll see you later then,” he did an awkward two finger salute before grabbing the drinks for his friends from the bartender and heading back to their table. The blonde, Tsukki, looked back at you with an eyebrow raised and an unreadable expression on his face, so you just stuck your tongue out at him. Sure, you were a grown adult, but you didn’t care how childish it was, he just scoffed and turned back to his friends.

The host of the trivia night wasn’t even halfway through the first set of questions before three of boys started ignoring him in favor of bickering amongst themselves, leaving the cute freckled one to try and reel them in if they wanted any hope of winning.

You shifted over a seat, just one to be closer to their table before leaning down, “It’s Scotland.”

“Guys, if you’d just- huh?” He snapped his head over to you as soon as he registered your voice.

“The county wood national animal is the unicorn. It’s Scotland.” You nodded to his answer sheet before taking a sip of your drink.

He huffed a laugh, giving you a bright smile that you almost had to look away from, “You know something like that?”

“I like fun facts.” You shrugged.

“Do you wanna-“ he started to motion to the last chair at the table, the one that still sat empty next to him before he froze, “Sorry, nevermind, you said you were meeting someone.”

You smiled at him, hopping into the empty seat, “Akira won’t be here until trivia is over.”

“Oh- well, uh, I’m Yamaguchi. This is Tsukishima, Hinata, and Kageyama.”

“Y/N,” You waved at the boys that were still ignoring the two of you.

It took over half way through the game before the other boys even noticed you joined them long enough to say anything, Hinata felt bad, reasoning to you that he was usually much more friendly, “but Crappyama and Suckyshima keep starting arguments with him”. Which obviously only launched another argument while you and Yamaguchi finished the game, and you managed to win between the two of you. The prize was just a free round of drinks from the bar, so the group of made your way over. You laughed knowing these guys only stopped fighting when they heard “free drink.” Yamaguchi was laughing at something you said before he looked kinda of nervous, “Uh, I know this might be a long shot, but I was wondering if maybe-“

“Y/N!” Your head snapped toward the door when the voice called your name, interrupting the boy in front of you.

Your smile got even bigger when you saw your best friend offering a small wave as he started walking toward you, only to slow down with slightly furrowed brows on his usually expressionless face.

“Kageyama?”

“Kunimi?”

“Yo, wait, you’re that Kageyama?” You laughed, “That must make the rest of you Karasuno boys!”

The rest of them looked equally surprised as they nodded, Hinata was the one to break the silence, “Did you do volleyball, too or something!?”

You shook your head, “Akira was my neighbor, I unofficially managed the volleyball to help his lazy butt out when he was a third year but I didn’t get to sit next to the coaches at the games cause I wouldn’t fill out the application to actually have the job.”

“And you call me lazy.” Kunimi rolled his eyes.

“Oh shove it!” You laughed.

Kunimi and Kageyama didn’t glare at each other anymore like they would’ve in high school, instead Kunimi just listened to him talk about the team he works with now. Tsukishima and Hinata are still arguing because Tsukishima said Hinata was so small he could use the ginger’s head as an arm rest. You were listening to Yamaguchi tell a story about one of his classes when Kunimi slumped over into your arm. You didn’t even glance away, so used to his tired antics, just ran a hand through his hair as you encouraged Yamaguchi to continue, but the freckled boy seemed to forget as he stared at him. “How long have- uh-“ his face flushed a bit.

Tsukishima just groaned from he stopped paying attention to Hinata, “Tadashi, for fuck sake, we’ve been here for like three hours longer than planned. Can you please just ask what you wanna ask so we can go to bed?”

“Sorry, Tsukki!” He looked even redder, still not quite meeting your eyes, “Uh- are you two dating?”

You blinked as Kunimi seemed to jerk away from you, “Gross.” He muttered, choosing to lean onto the bar instead.

Now you were slightly offended. “Wow. Bro, just because you’re a whole ass aroace, does not I am not a catch.”

“Catch is a good word. Like a stomach bug. I caught you in middle school and haven’t gotten better since.” You laughed as he huffed, smile barely cracking his face as he buried it in his arms.

“Whoaaa!” Hinata was almost vibrating with excited. “They’re like Noya-Senpai and Tanaka-Senpai mixed with Tadashi and Suckyshima!” Tsukishima scowled, but Yamaguchi seemed to feel better.

You just poked Kunimi, “Come on, ya big baby. Let’s get you to bed.” He shuffled up, and even though he obviously did it on purpose, he stumbled into, making what was left of your cup go flying into Yamaguchi. “Akira, what the-“

“Oops. I guess now you should give- what did you call him again?” He fished out his phone, “‘The freckled angel face’ your number so he can get ahold of you to get his shirt cleaned.”

You flushed, slowly setting the cup down before staring at the ground. “I-“ The squeak caught you off guard, but you were too afraid to look, “Would you, maybe, wanna hang out again instead of worrying about my shirt?”

Tsukishima groaned, “Kunimi’s tired ass tried to set you up and that’s the best you could do?”

Kageyama wasn’t even sure what was happening, he had been checking volleyball scores on his phone, and Hinata was trying to hype Yamaguchi up. The olive haired boy just seemed to get more nervous when you glanced up at him, “I can give you my number.” You offered with a mumble.

“I would really, really like that.” He smiled, face getting redder as Hinata cheered.

So maybe your friend bailed on you. But you got the number of a really cute guy.

Masterlist

[agirldying]

hi all, just want to do a big update as my final semester started this week.

i'm currently not enthusiastic because our neighbor (can't tell if it's downstairs or to our right but now i have a feeling it's downstairs) has an unregistered, untrained dog who has been barking for the past several days and it's driving my bf and i insane. it's barking right now and i've been calling the complex every day i hear it just to add to my complaint. they've been saying they'll send someone down to check it out, knock around and ask about it i guess and i'm assuming they've been doing that but it's just frustrating, i wish it were more invasive or strict? like i don't necessarily want the owners to have to give up the dog or move out but i also know whatever the repercussion calls for is not my responsibility, they as tenants agreed that if they have a pet that it should be registered properly and not disturb their neighbors' globe of sound. that's not too much to ask so if they can't do even that then they kinda deserve the consequence of a noise complaint or an unregistered animal. but at the same time i assume the dog must be in some level of unease to be barking this much so i feel kinda bad for it. it doesn't seem like a "i'm all alone" bark it sounds like a "squirrel!" bark.

ANYWAYS. i want to talk about how my classes have been going. I'm taking 6 classes: thrive, intro to expressive art therapy, intro to family, intro to sociology, video game narrative, and identity and culture in franco film. I'm also taking a masterclass for the heartsupport network which is a nonprofit mental health program centered around metal music as catharsis. i'm also a part of a club called active minds which is another mental health program. so i'm extremely busy and am technically on hiatus on the traumasurvivorshelpingsurvivors blog until i can find moments of stillness.

thrive is a 7 week class that's barely a class (in fact, it isn't the only one). this is about student wellbeing. the only homework is really to set an intention for the week (it meets once a week) that's practical and promotes a healthier lifestyle, as well as documenting self care routines throughout the rest of the week. i'm so glad to say i made 4 new friends in this class already, which is really unlike me as i'm naturally introverted and scared to break silence, but i felt comfortable enough in that space to have conversations, which also created a domino effect where the people i said hello to said hello to other students. at the end of class i asked for us to exchange information which also inspired them to do the same amongst each other, so i'm really happy about that.

intro to sociology is surprisingly spicy so far despite not even starting the material. the professor is one of the most inclusive professors i've ever had, as she talked about how pronouns are important and even listed it/its and xe/xyr as valid pronouns. as a lecture hall i honestly felt a little scared when she said that? because as i found out in today's class, not everyone "agrees" with that. err... yeah, today we had conversations with each other about what we could bring to the class and i grouped up with this one guy who said he likes to be the devil's advocate and went on to say how he thinks blm, pro choicers, and the lgbt community are too sensitive, and also talked about the second amendment. not sure why he unloaded that on me as i don't feel like i look like someone who would agree with any of that but at the same time i'm nonconfrontational so i was being agreeable to avoid escalation.

culture and identity in franco film was not what i originally signed up for. i originally signed up for national cinema, and this is a class im taking with my bf. turns out it's french cinema, which is fine, but i was just confused. it seems fun so far, we're currently watching a comedy called le visiteurs which is like monty python's holy grail.

i just had intro to expressive art therapy for the first time today. it seems really cool, it's more of actual therapy than a class about therapy, if that makes sense. we're to bring things to class like crayons, markers, gel pens, colored pencils, as well as tissues because the professor stressed that it can get so emotional that usually everyone cries at least once. we listened to a song and did a mandala (i participated but it wasn't really a mandala, just a doodle within the circle) that was supposed to represent us. this one also feels like a non-class which i'm happy about.

video game narrative seems interesting, it's an async class which is usually really bad for me but i'm also taking this with my bf, and the professor i've met before and is super nice so those are some advantages. plus there are actual due dates which is usually not the case for async classes, usually they just say everything's due at the end of the semester which is really bad for my procrastination. but what's really cool about this class is that part of our homework is to play video games and record us playing them (which can include streaming). so another non-class, although we do have some brief articles and reflections sprinkled throughout.

intro to family is also interesting so far, this is another once/week class and so far it seems to be about the different kinds of families like arranged marriages, monogamy, polygamy, polyamory, divorce, separated, repaired divorce or separations, and really just the complexities of a family. one of our big projects is to create a genogram (family tree) which is a daunting task as i'm fortunate to have quite a large family with a lot of information dating back to great great great grandparents. it's interesting to observe visually how my dad's family is disproportionately larger than my mom's, how two of my family members (not blood related thank god) have passed from cancer, and other things. it's giving what remains of edith finch.

i think that's all of them?

i just hope that i can keep my momentum this semester because i CANNOT afford to fail. CANNOT. it's a big pressure but i'm just trying to hype myself up to step up to the plate.

if you read this far you're a real one, hope you're having a wonderful day, thank you for reading all of that.

[bernkastel11]

𝑻𝒘𝒊𝒏 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝑶𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒖𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒆: 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑾𝒂𝒔 𝑳𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑰𝒏 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒘

ᴘᴀʀᴛ 2

Many times had Arabella tried to get close to me. But I can't let her near me,the Darkness And Light cannot be near eachother

I shall not deny the truth: I hate her till the end,why was she the one who got blessed but not me? We're twins, aren't we? So why was I treated differently? I didn't even care about it anyway

Then when I was at my lowest,he reached out to me. Ricardo Rodriguez Hill

He was the Emperor of the Azureit Empire and expressed his desire to make me his Empress

I was suspicious of course but this can also be a beneficial chance to me, so I agree to marry him. I knew it was because of power but I didn't care, I wanted to be an Empress anyway

If he cheat on me, I can just kill him anyway

Our engagement came out as the biggest shock to everyone. Who would have thought that the "disappointment" of the Solareth Family would've engaged with an Emperor of a nation?

Bella's reaction was so amusing

Ricardo was the one who can help me rise to power and he was very useful to me. His nation does not discriminate Black Magic at all, which is proven to be a a perfect place for me as my magic is also in the Black Magic's category

The Aurous Empire does not take very kindly to Black Magic at all anyway, I had no need to linger at such place

The Emperor of the Azureit Empire,he was one to be of great use to me. I can hold powerful authority thanks to him

I may not love him but I'll be sure to use him carefully and not to break him so much, I don't want my precious husband to be so broken like how I was

For once in my life, I felt fortunate

I left with my fiancé right after the announcement, I didn't want to have a wedding at the Empire that hated me

I left everything behind

My past,my sorrows,my pains,my sister

There was anything for me at the Aurous Empire no longer

It didn't even have anything for me since the start anyway

I got married and was successfully crowned Empress

Everyone at the Azureit Empire welcomed me,of course many disagreed my presence but I already shut them down

A few years later, I heard from others about Arabella's situation

Jilian and Arabella got married and ascended the thrones. But Jilian wasn't faithful at all,he was a libertine

I was probably not very bright when I fell in love with him,ugh my youth's stupidity

Arabella was suffering, I wished I could've have comforted her and helped her. But how could I when I hated her?

Hearing such news oddly pleased me to no end, that lucky and blessed girl finally got a taste of what it feels to be in the pit of despair

Ah,my sister. I hated you,you were adored I was not. I suppose that everything has its cost in the end. You only have yourself to blame for your own foolishness anyway,you could've had a nice marriage if you were brighter in the head I supposed

People would say I'm a heartless bitch for finding my own sister's misery amusing,but do I even care? The girl never suffered so about time she feels some pain like I did

I finally got happiness after being so miserable at the beginning of my life, I should be pleased, don't I?

I did not need to care about words of ignorant people who know nothing about me

-𝐅𝐢𝐧

[artdecosupernova-writing]

Small Stories Hour: Partners

Television in the Dark or Ben Murray Nearly Spent His 27th Birthday By Himself

↳ "Can I—there's somethin' I wanna say real quick…"

"The stage is yours! You don't need my permission."

"Well, it's your show. I didn't want to impose, but now I'm imposing."

Ben, sitting on the coffee table in the apartment he shared with his wife, lifted his head from his hands and peered at the television. A camera had zoomed in on his best friend's face, all smiles and the exact opposite emotion exuding from his mannerisms than what was leaking from Ben's.

"What's the date?" Reagan asked someone sitting off-camera.

The host of the program, Lou Andrews, currently laughing at the question and possibly swooning—he, like every other man, would never admit that, but Ben knew better—stepped into frame. He dropped an arm around Reagan's shoulders, a contrast of appearances as Lou was easily twice Reagan's age and still dressed like it was 1947. "This'll be going out on the 27th."

Reagan searched for his camera and looked into the lens, crystal blue eyes even lighter in black and white. "I'm dedicating my next song to the love of my life." He pointed, froze. "I mean the love of my life I didn't marry. Carolyn, I'm…it's not you." A beat passed and he broke out into a grin. "Oh. I'm gonna get in a lot of trouble for this one."

"I'd like to see you try to explain that one to Mrs. Gilmore." Lou cackled as he backed out of the shot.

"Now, now." Reagan winked at someone in the audience. They all ate it up, howled at the tolerance he displayed on national television.

When he focused on the lens again, however, all levity had been replaced by sincerity and golden softness.

"Happy birthday, Benny," Reagan said, and though he didn't tear his gaze away from the camera at all, it felt to Ben that it was happening live and he was the only one in the world watching him. That embarrassing stumble had been an illusion to capture the viewers' attention while also distracting from the fact that Ben was not onstage with him. He knew exactly what he was doing.

A knock at the door sent a shot of relief into Ben's chest. He shook off his despondency and crossed the living room to let Faye in. "What, did you forget your key again, sweetheart?"

He unlocked the door and swung it open as Reagan leaned an arm into the frame, wiggling a gold key between two fingers. "No."

Ben released the startled breath that had caught itself between his ribs. "…What the fuck are you doin' here? You're on the television right now."

Reagan glanced into the apartment over Ben's shoulder, expression hardening. "Ah. I'm early."

"Some would say you're too on time, actually."

"You gonna let me in, or should I sing along with myself for a more immersive experience?"

Ben stepped aside. "You been back in New York the whole week?"

"Actually, no," Reagan said, brushing past him to saunter into the living room. "I just got in this morning. I wanted to surprise you after the show."

"Definitely a surprise. I didn't think you'd be home all month."

Reagan cast a slow look at Ben over his shoulder, suspicion crossing over his face. "…Where is Faye?"

"She's visiting Amelia for a couple of days. She finally wore her down."

"Mothers are good at that." Reagan's stare turned to steel. "So. Am I to understand that your wife left you…alone…on your birthday?"

Ben held up a hand after locking the apartment door once again. "Don't start the Papa Bear thing. Faye was backed into a corner, she was so upset about leaving that she cried. I didn't wanna complicate her already fragile relationship with her mom, so I let her go. It's fine, I'm fine."

"You're watching television in the dark."

And yes, Ben realized he'd never bothered to turn on the lights after sunset. Partially because he hadn't caught on to how dark it'd gotten and partially because he enjoyed the view of the city the apartment afforded him. Knowing hundreds if not thousands of people bustled about, cars honking and bicycle bells ringing even though he couldn't see or hear them, gave him comfort.

"And who the hell's gonna stop me?" Ben joked, making a beeline for the kitchen. "Want a drink or somethin'?"

"Yeah, get me a beer. I'm stayin' the night."

Ben halted with his fingers curled around the fridge handle. "Was this your plan the whole time?"

"If ‘the whole time' means since I learned you had every intention of spending your birthday alone, then uh-huh."

"Damn it, Reggie," Ben spat, snatching two beers from the refrigerator and popping the caps off using a bottle opener. He stomped out of the kitchen. "I am a grown-up!"

Reagan accepted the beer and watched himself on the television set for a few bars of the song. "I definitely look better in person."

"Don't kid yourself, you're a dreamboat there and you're a dreamboat here." Ben looked over to Reagan in the midst of a generous swig of the cheap beer. "…Is this the first time you've seen yourself on TV?"

Reagan nodded. "It's something."

They stood in silence as his soothing baritone filled the apartment. When the song ended, Ben erupted into a chuckle, shaking his head before pouring more of the beer down his throat. Reagan swung around to him.

"It was actually a very serious song, Benny."

"I should've known you'd be here," Ben said. "You always seem to know exactly when I need you."

"You sound as though you've doubted me."

"No, no. I…doubt me. But never you."

"Then it's a damn good thing I love you enough for the both of us."

Ben had the presence to catch the curtains closing on Lou Andrews' show. "Let's go for a walk."

Setting the beer on the coffee table, Reagan pulled his coat tighter around himself and slapped Ben's back twice. "Happy birthday, kid."

"D'you think we'll ever go back to the way things were?"

Reagan opened the front door and shrugged. "No. But we'll be fine. You and I will always be fine. We'll figure it out."

Ben tugged on his fingers for a moment. Then he followed Reagan into the corridor and out of the apartment building.

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

EXPORTING REVOLUTION TO THE CONGO IN '65.

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on Ernesto "Che" Guevara reading, posing for photographs, and instructing the Congolese locals in guerrilla warfare in the Congo during the Congo Crisis, c. 1965.

The following is Ernesto Che Guevara'sarewell farewell letter to Fidel Castro, and his then last documented postmarked appearance before mysteriously disappearing, and later surfacing in the Congo during the same year.

"Havana, April 1, 1965,

Fidel:

At this moment I remember many things: when I met you in Maria Antonia's house, when you proposed I come along, all the tensions involved in the preparations. One day they came by and asked who should be notified in case of death, and the real possibility of it struck us all. Later we knew it was true, that in a revolution one wins or dies (if it is a real one). Many comrades fell along the way to victory.

Today everything has a less dramatic tone, because we are more mature, but the event repeats itself. I feel that I have fulfilled the part of my duty that tied me to the Cuban revolution in its territory, and I say farewell to you, to the comrades, to your people, who now are mine.

I formally resign my positions in the leadership of the party, my post as minister, my rank of commander, and my Cuban citizenship. Nothing legal binds me to Cuba. The only ties are of another nature — those that cannot be broken as can appointments to posts.

Reviewing my past life, I believe I have worked with sufficient integrity and dedication to consolidate the revolutionary triumph. My only serious failing was not having had more confidence in you from the first moments in the Sierra Maestra, and not having understood quickly enough your qualities as a leader and a revolutionary.

I have lived magnificent days, and at your side I felt the pride of belonging to our people in the brilliant yet sad days of the Caribbean [Missile] crisis. Seldom has a statesman been more brilliant as you were in those days. I am also proud of having followed you without hesitation, of having identified with your way of thinking and of seeing and appraising dangers and principles.

Other nations of the world summon my modest efforts of assistance. I can do that which is denied you due to your responsibility as the head of Cuba, and the time has come for us to part.

You should know that I do so with a mixture of joy and sorrow. I leave here the purest of my hopes as a builder and the dearest of those I hold dear. And I leave a people who received me as a son. That wounds a part of my spirit. I carry to new battlefronts the faith that you taught me, the revolutionary spirit of my people, the feeling of fulfilling the most sacred of duties: to fight against imperialism wherever it may be. This is a source of strength, and more than heals the deepest of wounds.

I state once more that I free Cuba from all responsibility, except that which stems from its example. If my final hour finds me under other skies, my last thought will be of this people and especially of you. I am grateful for your teaching and your example, to which I shall try to be faithful up to the final consequences of my acts.

I have always been identified with the foreign policy of our revolution, and I continue to be. Wherever I am, I will feel the responsibility of being a Cuban revolutionary, and I shall behave as such. I am not sorry that I leave nothing material to my wife and children; I am happy it is that way. I ask nothing for them, as the state will provide them with enough to live on and receive an education.

I would have many things to say to you and to our people, but I feel they are unnecessary. Words cannot express what I would like them to, and there is no point in scribbling pages."

Written: April 1, 1965 Transcription/Markup: Brian Baggins

Source: www.marxists.org/archive/guevara/1965/04/01.htm.

[watevermelon]

Just Enough | Diluc (Genshin) x Traveler!Reader

✧ Summary: Between freeing Dvalin and pursuing the Geo Archon, you were constantly moving forward to find your brother with hardly a second to look back. You were in a rush to find your lost sibling, not realizing how your heart had stopped in Mondstadt. Visiting the city while waiting for things to die down after Rex Lapis’ death, you return to a… jealous Diluc?

➳ Spoilers for the Dark Knight Hero quest and some of the manga background ➳ Notes: lots of fluff, slight angst and jealousy, character development, mutual pining at one point, a long one-shot that covers the (1.0) beginning of the Liyue story  ➳ Navigation

---xXxXxXxXxXx---

If he had only asked you to stay.

To say that these past few weeks were a blur would be a severe understatement. For months you were simply a lost wanderer, traveling from world to world for any sort of clue that could lead you to your brother.

And in just a matter of weeks you were suddenly Mondstadt’s hero.

From bringing peace to Dvalin’s heart to meeting Mondstadt’s infamous Dark-knight hero, you were familiarizing yourself with a people and a place for a world you knew you did not belong to. Learning of the history of the Seven Archons, the Gods’ of contracts or of freedoms, suddenly you were being thrust into it all at once.

You shared the burden of knowledge with a few of Mondstadt’s elite, the true God of Freedom walking in plain sight to the citizens of his nation. And with him, were the quick allies you found side-by-side when fighting a dragon. 

It was all happening so suddenly and Lord Barbatos himself was giving you directions to the next country over, to continue on your journey in meeting all seven Archons to Liyue. 

To this day, you could fondly recall your final celebration in Mondstadt.

“To think that despite his small stature he can drink so much.” Kaeya commented from his seat at the table, eyes slid in the direction of Venti at the bar next to you. You could see the impatient stare behind Diluc’s eyes, not at all happy that their God was indulging himself so freely.

“Honorary Knight, Mondstadt thanks you for your service.” Jean formally stated, for the nth time since Dvalin had been freed.

“I’m just glad I was at the right place at the right time.” You answered back, offering a placating smile in return.

“Humility doesn’t pay for dinner!” Paimon hmphed next to you.

“But aren’t we at a feast now?” You countered, gesturing to the table. 

She sighed again before moving to get a taste of some of the honey roasted ham. “Fine, don’t blame me when we have to settle into that poor excuse of a tent!”

“Please, do not feel you are in any rush to leave.” Jean offered, “You are welcome lodgings at our Favonius Headquarters.”

“With the other Knights of Favonius?” Diluc asked, face completely blank if not for the small upward tilt of his left brow.

Kaeya flirted with you from across the room, uncaring of the other partygoers, “You could always stay with me.”

You laughed lightly and responded, “That’s a hard pass.”

The Cavalry Captain simply shrugged, offering it to you again if you changed your mind before grabbing another glass of wine and walking with Jean toward the busy table.

Barbara was trying different dishes and offering some to her older sister, spouting descriptions with medicinal purposes and flavors that compliment one another. Lisa was no better as Amber egged both of them on, completely sober as she continued to feast on the food laid before her. Other Knights of Favonius that you recognized were scattered about, enjoying the first truly peaceful night in the past few weeks.

“You are welcome to stay at the Dawn Winery, while you look for your brother.”

He relished in the sight of your smile.

“Thank you, Diluc.”

That was three months ago.

And since then you had been thrown into more of not your business but suddenly IS your business, business.

You remembered your last day before setting off from Mondstadt. The Knights of Favonius would surely call on you again and so you had quick goodbyes with Jean and Kaeya the day before. Venti was saved for last, a somewhat light-hearted and yet somber goodbye as he was the first and last person for you to see in Mondstadt. 

But Diluc… How could you even start that conversation?

He was the lone wolf with a prickly reputation and an even worse sense of patience. You remembered the first time you even spoke to him, clipped words meant to get straight to the point. Not to mention that he was the first person to antagonize Kaeya, who was one of the few people you kinda trusted in the beginning.

It was not until the side adventures, the little quests you did one-on-one that you realized how much more there was to the edgelord that was Diluc. 

Of course, he was still the strict type to focus solely on the mission. 

But you realized more about why Diluc had come to be this way. 

‘The uncrowned king of Mondstadt.’

As you worked together against the possible abyss invasion of Mondstadt, you poured over strategies and testing of his slime potion. And while slimes were not the hardest enemies to fight, he still complimented you on your form and appreciated your quick style with the sword.

You had a unique style, unlike Kaeya or anyone else of this world.

“Elegant, but deadly.”

You took that as a compliment.

And little by little Diluc opened up to you, cluing you into his personal history. 

He and Kaeya were step-brothers, growing up together at the Dawn Winery. How he knew Jean since he was child and once served as her superior in the very organization he now despised. How he still has things to protect, to avenge. And while his description about what happened to his father was nothing more than a quiet stare, you were still grateful that he was entrusting you into his world.

You remembered Kaeya’s words as he discovered Diluc’s nighttime secret:

“I’m glad you’re working with an assistant.”

Kaeya’s tone may have come out scathing, but you knew better. Kaeya and Diluc used to be close, close enough to entrust their lives with one another. There was no doubt that Kaeya still cared about his brother, but with Diluc pushing everyone away….

Again, you were so appreciative that he chose to let you in.

When Kaeya finally left the bar, you turned to Diluc with a smile. “I think my work tonight earned me at least one glass of wine?”

That broke a small smile on his face, not the slight tilt on the sides or the wistful, far off look he got when he recalled something beyond your knowledge.

“Alright.” He waved over a nearby waitress, all of the customers tonight employees of the Dawn Winery. “Let’s take this up to the balcony, I’m going to close up anyway.”

“Oh?” Paimon’s squeaky tone somehow went up another octave in curiosity, “I just remembered I have to ask Venti something! Why don’t you two enjoy your date alone.”

She flew away before you could swat at her for her teasing words, blush apparent on your face. Diluc kept his flat face as he maneuvered things behind the bar, wiping at something before putting something in the below cabinet. 

To your surprise, he handed you a bottle and two glasses, motioning with his head toward the second floor. Charles was among some of the ‘customers’ tonight, taking his usual spot behind the bar as Diluc stepped out.

You followed him wordlessly, walking up the steps and out the second-floor door closely behind him. He pulled out a wooden chair next to the table outside, you taking the seat underneath the stars as he plopped down alongside you.

“I thought the stars here in the city would get overcrowded by the lights.” You admitted, “But they’re beautiful even here.”

“Yeah, they are.” Diluc agreed, making you smile before turning to him.

“You’re not even looking at the stars.”

The pyro-user simply smirked, before looking up at the starry sky with you. You relished in the moment, glad to have some time alone with Diluc. Many had commented that the winery owner was so elusive, missing from the bar weeks at a time and unseen within the city walls. And yet here he was, enjoying the crisp air and a glass of wine with you.

“Thank you.” You started.

“Shouldn’t you be demanding thanks from me?” Diluc asked.

You laughed lightly, “Yeah, cause I’m sure that the abyss mage would have totally kicked your ass without me.”

Diluc had that slightly amused expression on, looking a bit more light-hearted as he turned to you with a slight tilt at the corner of his lips.

You continued, “I mean, thanks for entrusting me with your secret.”

Diluc paused, looking you straight in the eyes, probably to gauge your honesty. And he would concede that there was nothing else there. You wanted to be his friend, the first in a long time to have approached him without your own agenda regarding either the winery or his fortune.

In return, he poured you a glass of wine and replied, “You’ve long earned it.”

“Thank you, Diluc.” You took the glass and felt your heart flutter at the brush of his fingers. “I’m glad I got to know you.”

“I’m glad you’re in my life too.”

He shot you another one of his genuine, millisecond smiles before pouring some from the bottle for himself. 

“Wine and not grape juice today?”

But he did not answer, instead eyes latching onto the rise of goosebumps on your arms. You could not help it against the crisp Mondstadt air, naturally feeling a chill at this time of night. Without a word, he shrugged off his outer coat, the thick black one he wore at almost all times of day, and rested it casually on your shoulders.

You muttered a small thanks as you snuggled into it. Diluc’s iconic dark coat, a complete contrast to yourself. While you wore a white dress with open sleeves and plenty of skin, Diluc wore black covering most of his body with the exception of his neck and face. Seeing it on your shoulders only reminded you of that fact.

“Don’t need you getting sick anytime soon.” Diluc stated plainly, as he returned to his seat.

You huddled into it more and replied, “Aw, Diluc cares.” Again, you were rewarded with another flat expression. “Or rather, if the events of today are to show anything, you’ve always cared. Just in your own, protective way.”

He slung an arm across the back of your seat, leaning closer before stating in a low voice. “Don’t forget that.”

Your eyes snapped to his, the both of you basically sharing the same breath in your close proximity. His scarlet eyes, usually a searing color when on the battlefield, looked surprisingly tender only inches from yours.

“You mean so much to me, Diluc.” You whispered back, afraid that anything above a whisper would punctuate this amorous atmosphere.

He slowly dragged his face alongside yours, stopping beside your ear and continuing in his low voice. “So do you.”

There was no stopping the shiver of anticipation that crawled up your spine.

You could feel the small smirk grow against your skin before he pulled off and grazed his lips against your forehead.

The expression on your face was practically begging him to kiss you. From the small lean in your side against his arm slung around you to the way your eyes slowly fluttered closed, it took all of his self-control to stop himself before he pulled you closer. He wanted nothing more than to grasp you by the back of your neck, relish in the way you melt against him. To kiss you now and tomorrow and maybe even the morning after at the winery.

Diluc had to remind himself that in less than a week you were going to be long gone.

He did not want to ruin this memory a week from now, asking what if and why. And so he settled on a simple kiss above your brow before leaning back in his seat, enjoying the moment he had with you tonight.

You were disappointed, but actually not surprised. It was a feat in itself that you were so close to Diluc in this short amount of time, it would do no good in pressuring him into anything else. But also, another more rational part of you, had to remind yourself that getting attached to the people of this world would only make it hurt more when you had to return home.

This was for the better.

But no matter how much rational thought Diluc used to push you away, you were sure that you had already fallen for him. From the small interactions with Diluc, you could barely recognize the moment that you were completely enamored with him. It was not during the first time you saw him fight or even the night he leant you his jacket. No, you feared it was much before then.

To think you had gotten attached to Diluc in such a short amount of time.

But then you had to say goodbye.

“Safe travels.” Diluc stated from behind the bar when he saw you enter on your last day.

You were not sure what you expected, a drawn out goodbye or a fore longed hug, but Diluc was still, well. He was still Diluc. And to see him re-erecting his walls before you left for your journey was a sad thought, but needed while the two of you were hundreds of miles away from one another.

But you would regret it if you didn’t say anything.

Instead you settled on, “I’ll miss you.”

The hopeful look in your eyes spelled out exactly what you wanted to hear back.

Diluc instead replied, “You fight good.”

“Oh. Um.” The hesitation was clear in your voice.

Was this really how you were going to leave things?

But with Diluc turning his attention back to the wine glass he was previously wiping, yes. It seemed that this was exactly how he wanted to leave it. Paimon scoffed, but said her own goodbyes before flying away.

“Goodbye, Diluc.”

Outside the tavern, you let your frown grow at that interaction. After everything you had been through together, Diluc complimented you on your fighting? Then said peace out?

“That was really lame.” Paimon commented aloud as she floated alongside you. You could not help but internally agree, but you had a whole journey ahead of you. At least the busyness of Liyue would keep you busy from dwelling on that conversation.

But as you said goodbye to Venti, the both of you stood in silence under the giant tree staring at the city. You thought about going back three times, to get a proper goodbye out of Diluc. But doing so would do neither of you any good, since it would only open more issues.

“No more questions about the other Archons?” Venti asked, voice surprisingly serious.

“Can’t think of anything.”

“None even of a certain… winery owner?” You could almost hear the smile in his voice.

You rolled your eyes and responded, “You’re such a little shit.”

“Hehe.”

You both continued to stare at the city, the marvels of its people and history within its high walls. To think Barbatos and Dvalin were finally free, because of your otherworldly intervention. Venti was truly thankful for you, and while he knew his words were on the more mischievous side, he knew that you understood.

Venti’s voice permeated the air. “Be safe in Liyue.”

You smiled back and offered him a tight hug, replying. “As always.”

To think that the same day that you stepped into Liyue, Rex Lapis was murdered before your very eyes. It was like the Gods actually hated you, having to rely on a Fatui to run away from the government officials hot on your trail.

Since then you had been working with Zhongli to prepare for a parting ceremony. From running around for certain types of Jade materials to singing to flowers, you were happy to take a second to yourself at all. You were afraid that trouncing around Liyue with a bounty on your head would do you no good and often stayed in the wild areas. Visits to the city were for necessities only, which often left you relying on the ever so truthful Childe or the mora-averse Zhongli.

More than three months after your initial departure to Liyue, you stepped back into the walls of Mondstadt’s bustling city, a commission nearby and you figured you were safe simply due to your reputation under the Knights of Favonius.

Venti was the last face you saw and the first face that greeted you, beckoning to join him for lunch. With your final commission of the day finished, you joined him with a smile and ordered some honey roasted ham.

You recounted some of the news to Venti, meeting many of the adeptus and how out of touch they seemed with the region. You described Zhongli from the funeral parlor who always felt like he knew more and played a higher part in Liyue (and you inwardly noted how Venti’s eyes lit up in recognition at the name). And also, Childe the Fatui Harbinger that had you on edge. 

“You’re hanging out with a harbinger?” Venti asked.

“Uh oh.” Paimon reacted.

“Well.” You remembered your last encounter with Signora. “It’s complicated.”

Venti paused before sighing, “Is he cute?”

“That’s not why!” You huffed back instantly.

“So he is cute!”

“And rich!” Paimon added, joining in on the teasing.

“Not the issue here.” You stated, “He saved me from the Millelith and helped me get into contact with the adepti.”

Venti’s mischievous smile from the earlier teasing turned blank, as if he was fully ingesting your words. “... Why would he do that?”

“Huh?”

But Venti quickly recovered, waving away the question and urging you to move past it. “Just thinking out loud, continue. What happened after?”

And so you recalled everything from then. How the soldiers followed you all the way up the mountain and how you had to defend yourself from people that were supposed to be on the same side as you. 

How there was someone out there with the strength to take down a God.

Venti laughed at you for like, twenty minutes.

After his laughter subsided, he held a hand over his stomach and asked. “They think you killed Rex Lapis?”

He took another look at your pouting face and laughed again.

It only made you scowl further. “I’m glad you think my supposed war crimes are so funny.”

“I think I’m missing the punchline again.” Paimon added.

“Hehe. You’ll be fine.” Venti shot back his mischievous smile, “Besides, I’m sure you’re looking forward to laying low here with a certain… someone here.”

You paused and put your fork back down, “What are you trying to say?”

“Well, the Dawn Winery is throwing a festival tonight.” Venti stated clearly, “Isn’t that why you’re here?”

“Wait, really?”

The mischievous light was back in Venti’s eyes, “I’m sure the winds of fate have brought you here purely on coincidence.”

You sighed and turned to him fully. “You trying to fight, old man?”

“Hehe.” His signature giggle, one you found almost endearing, was undoubtedly mocking you. “We should go together later.”

And true to his word, somehow you found yourself with the Anemo Archon heading over to the bar. To think that it was Venti who introduced you here and now he was bringing you along again.

That is, if you even had a chance to make it inside at this rate.

The area was packed to the brim, all the seats outside in front and on the side of the building already taken. There was a line out the door, many hopeful young women with gleaming eyes trying to get a one-on-one conversation with the current barkeep and owner.

You peered into the open door and saw Diluc and Charles behind the bar, the red-head adorned with his usual flat-expression. It was the first time in months since you had seen him, but he looked exactly as the day you had left. Still the same colored wardrobe and prickly atmosphere, Diluc was still, Diluc.

What did not help was the ever growing line of flirty men and women trying to vye for his attention.

It only seemed to further nail the pit in your stomach.

Was this… jealousy?

You didn’t dwell on the thought for long.

Instead, you considered for a single-second if you should just turn tail now, but Venti must have seen your hesitation and grabbed you by the arm to walk inside. Dozens of eyes followed you on the way in, many people recognizing you as the young hero of Mondstadt and honorary knight of Favonius.

The crowd was surprisingly less inside, but knowing Diluc he probably would have tried to corral everyone to the outdoor areas. Venti continued to lead you towards a table in the back and you saw a familiar red-bowed Outrider.

“I didn’t even know you were going to be here today!” She greeted you excitedly. 

“Tone-Deaf Bard here convinced us to stay the night.” Paimon replied.

“Oh?” Her voice lifted in a tone that only spelled trouble, “No matter, I’m glad to see you in one piece.”

“I’m assuming you’ve heard.”

Amber stretched in her seat and lowered her voice, smile turning to a smirk. “Well, I won’t confirm anything. But my suspicions are that the blonde person the Knights were pursuing for stealing the Holy Lyre may be the same blonde person running from the Millelith.”

“What a crazy theory.” Paimon responded as she cleared her throat.

“At least it’s just a theory, right?” Amber replied. “Anyway, we’ll hold the seats. Do you mind going up to the bar to order?”

Paimon chimed up as she floated down into the wooden seat, “Yeah, you should go.”

You barely had a second to object before Venti agreed and was motioning for you to go back to the bar. If not for their eager stares at you, you would have rolled your eyes at how obvious they were being.

“Fine, fine. I’m going.” You stated aloud, getting up from the seat you inhabited for at most ten minutes. 

Turning towards the bar, you took in a deep breath to collect your thoughts. To think you fought the Wolf of the North and Oceanid with more courage - it was just Diluc.

“Long time no see.” You greeted, trying to sound extremely casual. “Bottle of wine for one of your favorite people?”

Diluc looked at you for a quick second, then back down to the bar, then rapidly snapping back up to you in surprise. “Hey. Of course.”

Unsure what to say, you responded back with a simple, “Thank you.”

“Didn’t know you’d be in town today.”

“It was all coincidence. Venti told me about your event tonight.” You mentioned, motioning behind you to the table where the three of them were waiting. Amber waggled her eyebrows in response and you turned back to Diluc in embarrassment.

But he was looking at you the entire time. “For a war criminal, you look well.”

“Ugh, not you too.”

“Ironic how you delinquents always return here while hiding it out.” Diluc did not answer, instead openly teasing you.

Honestly, it was a little ironic that you and Venti ran here after stealing the Holy Lyre, just to end up back here while the Millelith were on the hunt for you.

Instead you replied, “They didn’t release any names.”

“Right, it’s probably some other sword-wielding blonde with white clothes and access to the Anemo vision.”

“Obviously.”

To think you were so involved in Teyvat's politics. An otherworldly being with no prior connections to the people or nations was somehow involved with the highest ranking people of every country you’ve stumbled into.

Everyone from the Dvalin team knew about your primary objectives: to find your brother and regain your full power through the seven Archons. And when news of Rex Lapis’ death reached Mondstadt, Diluc could almost physically feel the dread in his heart that something had happened to you. And when the Millelith released their man-hunt of your exact profile, there was no doubt that you were involved. 

To see you standing before him, in association with an Archon of all people, it was like a breath of fresh air on his heart. You were here in the tavern, fine and even enjoying the night. 

A large part of him wanted to ask about your journey, what was it that had you on the run again? But with the growing line out the door, he knew he barely had time to keep this conversation going.

So instead, Diluc grabbed glasses and a bottle of wine from beneath the bar and asked, “Spare a few minutes for me later?”

You nodded quietly, handing him the necessary Mora before returning back to the table.

Amber did not pull her punches, “So, you guys dating yet?”

You almost dropped the bottle, but Venti was quick even through his laughter.

“Yeah and I’m the Archon of Snezhnaya.” Paimon replied sarcastically.

“Shut up.” You pouted, “It was just nice to see each other after all this time.”

“Oh so you had a good conversation? Did he ask you to stay after? Are you going to stay the night? Did he offer for you to stay at the Dawn Winery?” Amber spit out question after question, not a sense of patience or tact in her words.

Venti was still laughing like the Archon of assholes he was.

While they prodded through their multiple questions, you tried to wave them away to another conversation topic. If Amber was prodding you like this, you could only imagine that the other Knights, such as Kaeya and Jean, were also aware of your strange relationship.

Amber tried to push it a bit more, but you were able to spin the conversation to ask what the others were up to. It was interesting to hear about the little tasks in Mondstadt, small commissions that the Knights take care of in the city as well as guarding the areas further out into the country.

And while you hated to drift off with them sitting right in front of you, your mind often wandered toward the red-head behind the bar. Diluc had personally asked you to stay back later, undoubtedly to speak to you about something one-on-one. Would it be cowardly if you left early? Would the others notice if you tried to make a break for it at one point?

Again, it seemed as if Venti was capable of reading your mind, lightly calling you to attention and putting a casual hand on the back of your chair.

He was not letting you get away from this.

Venti even shifted the conversation to you, asking about Liyue and the local adventures you had while in the city. Unable to ignore the direct questions, you told them about the stories of the people you met so far and the strange events you seemed to be dragged into.

“Wait, start over.” Amber cut into your most recent story about a ship just outside of the Liyue city. ”You just glided down onto the Pearl Galley?”

You paused then replied, “Well. I mean the ship was just sitting there outside the harbor and I was curious.”

“And so you boarded a luxury ship without an invitation?”

“Yeah, so?” Paimon answered with a question, genuinely confused.

“And yet you wonder how you keep getting involved in all these crazy schemes.” Amber answered ambiguously.

“Well, eventually I did get an invitation.”

“But after you were already on the ship.” Amber pointed out. “How did you even glide that far out?”

“I climbed to the top of the nearby mountain and then just dropped down.”

“Wow.”

“Is it really a surprise?” Venti commented, “She doesn’t even follow the proper stairs here in the city. Don’t think we don’t see you climbing over every wall here in Mondstadt.”

“You’re such a weirdo.” Amber sighed with a smile, “You’re lucky we love you so much.”

You continued on with your stories, some in the city and others within hidden temples deep in the wilderness, puzzles and timed traps masking treasures you sought to find. Amber and Venti listened on in rapt attention, asking questions here and there and even teasing you about your constant climbing.

You hadn’t even noticed how the bar patrons were starting to slowly thin out.

The night with Venti and Amber was such a refreshing feeling compared to the nights you spent staring up silently at the night sky, only Paimon at your side. It was nice to hear and speak to other people, to not be on the run and always looking over your shoulder.

Feeling a light tap on the side, you turned to see Diluc standing at attention.

“Hey.” He greeted you again.

“We were just on our way out!” Amber exclaimed, standing instantly with Venti not far behind her. “Mondstadt’s star Outrider has to be up bright and early tomorrow.”

“Which is why you’re both leaving…?” You asked.

“It’s my duty to ensure the safety of the city and we said we were going to discuss something.” Venti answered ambiguously.

You crossed your arms, “Discuss what?”

“The— !” Amber paused, “The thing. You know, with the stuff at the Seven Winds Temple.”

“Right! Let’s get going.” Venti turned to Paimon at the last second, “I think this will interest you.”

Paimon winked at you before turning to Diluc, ”Right, the stuff!”

Diluc motioned you to follow him and so, once again, you found yourself following behind the Pyro-user out the second-floor balcony. However, instead of sitting at the table, you learned against the railing while Diluc stood to the side.

“Wasn't expecting you to be gone for so long.” Diluc started with a flat voice.

You turned to him with a slight grimace. “I’m sorry, I ended up getting caught in something important back in Liyue.”

More important than him.

The implication was quiet in the back of Diluc’s mind.

But that would always be the case. To think that the first person in years to open up his shell was someone who could only be in his life temporarily. You intrigued him to the high heavens - the strange mix of both pride and humility as you fought and carried yourself. You were strong, but merciful. Kind, but a purveyor of your own brand of justice.

It had been a while since he met someone with such genuine reservations as you.

But your time together was already ticking down, from your time in Mondstadt to your time in his world. You were looking for your brother and who knew if he was even in Tyvat currently? It would be unfair to be bitter towards you. And so he resolved long ago to simply cherish the moments you had together.

So instead of snapping back, Diluc teased you.

“I’m sure. I’ve heard of your extensive… wanted days.”

You sighed aloud, “How did the news travel here so fast?”

Diluc smirked, “First Barbatos and now Rex Lapis? What kind of luck do you have?”

“The worst kind.”

Of course, there was something he wanted to learn more about. After he had caught wind from Katheryn in Liyue, Diluc still wanted to be informed about your current situation. To think that you were in close association with one of the high Fatui Harbingers after Signora personally attacked you, it was almost like you were openly inviting trouble.

It also did not help that many of the gossip mills included how attractive this particular Fatui was.

He goes by the alias of ‘Childe.’ Young, but deadly!

A Fatui, but doesn’t wear his mask - for good reason! He’s quite the looker.

I wouldn’t mind if he impaled me somewhere. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Needless to say, his sources did not alleviate his worries.

Of all people? A Fatui was one of your close associates in Liyue? A party of him wanted to snarl, the thought a worse downgrade from the Knights of Favonius. At least he knew Kaeya would do you no harm; he doubted the same could be said about Childe.

Archons, why did he care so much?

Diluc told himself multiple times that your abrupt parting was necessary to keep himself from getting too attached to you. But it hardly mattered when he was worrying this much anyway in spite of that.

Fuck, why did he just let you walk away like that?

Diluc was not going to make the same mistake.

He turned to you and asked, “Like the Fatui kind?”

You sighed, “Believe me, I don’t like it either.”

“And yet somehow here we are.”

“It’s complicated, okay?”

“When is it not with you?” Diluc asked, more hypothetically. And while from anyone else, it may have felt offensive, you could tell from his tone that it was just a tired sigh.

“Tell me about your journey.” He continued.

“What?” You answered with a question, genuinely surprised. “It’s a long story, not all that interesting.”

Diluc took a step forward, taking the spot next to you against the rail as your shoulders touched. “I want to hear it from you.”

You couldn’t help but smile, “Okay.”

And so you recounted your journey to find the Geo Archon, how the adepti set up strange puzzles and at some point you swore you were pulled into a teacup that somehow contained a full domain.

There were also other missions on the side, other things you would do to collect Mora or materials if you were going to get any stronger. Some of them made sense — doing deliveries, clearing abyss camps, and other mercenary like duties. Other instances, not so much.

“Only you would accept a commission from a ghost.” Diluc teased as you recounted the treasure in the mines.

“In my defense, I didn’t think he was a ghost at first.”

“Right. Nothing suspicious at all about a transparent old man in the middle of an abandoned village.”

“I was reading the poster he was showing!”

“And when did you realize he was a ghost?”

“... After I met three other ghosts.”

Diluc cracked a smile at that, only making you pout more. You had adjusted your postures overtime, standing against with rails to your backs as you faced the tavern.

“He paid me good Mora!” 

“How…?” Diluc thought about it before waving it off, “Forget it. I don’t want to know.”

You laughed back before you saw the lights inside the tavern switch off, complete darkness in the windows as the remaining employees packed up and went home. 

“Oh wow, I hadn’t even realized how long we were out here.” You admitted, “I’m sorry I took up so much of your time.”

“Don’t apologize. I wanted to spend this time with you.”

“Still, it’s already late.”

“You’re right. Where were you and Paimon going to spend the night?”

“Honestly, I don’t know.” You admitted, “Venti convinced us to stay, but I don’t even know where he is.”

Diluc pushed off the railing to stand facing you, “You could stay the night at the winery. We can retrieve Paimon tomorrow.”

What game was he playing? Your disappointing departure with Diluc cutting you off and now he was asking for your time and space back into his life? You hated that he pushed you away just to pull you back in at his convenience. And while you understood his personality tended to keep people at a distance, you had your own limits as to what you could withstand. 

“... Diluc, what are you doing?”

“You’ll have to be more clear.”

You closed your eyes, trying to gather your thoughts and hamper down on your rising temper. “Come on, why are you being so nice to me?”

He stared at you expectedly, blank eyes urging you to continue.

It only served to make you more angry.

“Diluc, when I left you hardly blinked. And now that I’m here, after months of us not talking, you want me to spend the night?”

“I told you before how much you meant to Mondstadt.”

To Mondstadt? Not even to himself personally? 

You decided it was better to confront him cleanly asking, “Why didn’t you kiss me that night we were drinking here?”

Diluc paused, not a single hint of surprise on his face as you addressed the situation head-on. “Why should I have?”

“Don’t act like you didn’t feel it. There was something between us.” You scoffed.

He noticed your use of past tense.

“Does it honestly matter? You would’ve left anyway, I saved us both the trouble.”

You visibly recoiled in response. “Is that what this is about? I have to go to Liyue and the other counties, Diluc. I have to find my brother.”

“I know that.” Diluc cut in, before you got the wrong idea. “You don’t think I’m acutely aware of that fact? The fact that this is my home and not yours. That one day you’ll find your brother and I’ll never see you again?”

“Wait.”

“Believe me, I know better than anyone that you’re off to find your brother. And I’ll help you in any way that I can.” Diluc continued, not heeding your confused attempts to stop him. “But let’s not pretend like I was anything more than a stepping stone in your journey.”

“That’s not true!”

“Oh?” Diluc’s tone was almost challenging,  “It’s not? So once the dust is settled, if I asked you to stay here with me, would I be enough?”

You stuttered over your words, “I --”

“I don’t want to hear your excuse because we both know the answer.” He cut you off, “I was trying to save myself from that before it happened.”

“Will you let me speak, you idiot!?” Your voice cut through the silent evening air.

Diluc paused, standing a good ten feet away from you and looking angrier than you’d ever seen. But he did, thankfully, stop talking.

“Is it crazy to think that I feel the same way about you?”

“What?”

“Diluc, I’m just me!” You answered, “I have nothing to my name but an objective to find my brother — if he’s even alive at this point. I need to try and I need to continue on this path…”

He crossed his arms, but stayed quiet as he listened. 

“But just because I have so much ahead of me, that doesn’t I don’t care about where I’ve already seen.” You took a few steps toward Diluc as you spoke, “You mean so much to me and I wouldn’t ever want to throw that away.”

“You won’t have a choice if you have to leave this world.”

“If!” You pointed out, “Diluc you’re so worried about the future, about me walking away from you forever, but it doesn’t have to be this way.”

“And suddenly there’s an alternative?”

“There’s always been one, you idiot! You just never bothered to actually talk to me.” You put your hands on his chest, the light material of his dark clothes underneath your palms. “I would’ve tried. If you asked me to make this work, to come back to you at the winery back then, I would’ve done it.”

Diluc closed his eyes, taking in your words as his hands snaked down to your wrists.

“Don’t give me empty promises.”

“I mean it!” You defended, “You aren’t just another person, Diluc. I—“

He opened his eyes then, reflecting back to you as hopeful and curious. “You…?”

“I care about you more than you know.” You settled on, still unsure about the extent of your feelings. “Why are you giving up on us before even starting?”

You stared right back at Diluc, his silence paramount to the inner turmoil you were sure he was going through. From his late father to the betrayal from the Knights, there were plenty of reasons why Diluc was so hesitant to connect with other people.

But you’d be damned if you didn’t try.

Your hands felt heavy against his chest. Despite your small demeanor and even smaller palms, the weight of your hands seemed to play seesaw between his heart and mind. He had logical reasons to keep you at a distance, but here you were trying to carve your way through back to him.

It had been a long time since he cared about anyone like this. And Diluc could not even recall the last time he wanted to sorely kiss someone at all. But how could he not want to now? You stared up at him, eyes blazing with determination as you tried to convey your feelings.

“You mean so much to me.” Diluc stated after a few silent minutes, “Let’s make this work.”

The smile you shot him was wide and radiant, a private blessing that only he was gifted tonight. He wrapped his arms around your waist, eager to feel more of you — to envelop you in his arms and keep you within them tonight. 

One hand strayed upward, carding itself in your hair and pulling you closer until both your eyes fluttered closed. The soft skin of your lips slotted against his, an endearing frenzy to give one another tender pecks. You could not help the happy mewl that escaped your lips as Diluc licked against the crease of your skin.

Moaning aloud to his tender touch, Diluc was eager to explore every inch of your wet cavern. There was no battle of tongues, simply moving in tandem as Diluc dominated the kiss. You tried to maneuver to give him more access, but with your height difference it was the best you could do.

Diluc lifted one of your legs, wrapping it around his waist and lightly tapping the other to do the same. Eyes clouded with lust, you did as instructed and quickly felt the soft thump behind you, the wall of the tavern helping hold you upright.

You fell more and more into the passionate lip lock, pushing to match his intensity as Diluc connected you in one of the most intimate ways possible. One hand was still in your hair while the other continued its scandalized trail downward.

You prayed to Barbatos that nobody heard you outside the tavern.

The both of you would later attribute this impassioned frenzy due to the prolonged time apart and mutual pining (culminating in a mistake outside on the balcony, twice inside the bar, and the rest of the night back at the winery).

For the first time, you enjoyed the morning sun streaming in through the windows, a lazy arm strung across your waist as you snuggled in the chest of the man you were growing to love.

Diluc woke long before you, hand threading through your hair silently as he resolved to remember this moment. You kissed at the naked skin of his chest twice before nuzzling him, feeling the light arm pull you closer.

“Good morning.” You started, voice muffled against his skin.

But you would have never expected Diluc to be so affectionate.

He kissed the top of your head, murmuring in a low tone. “Good morning, my love.”

Nothing about your relationship was perfect. You still fought and cried like every other couple. But you both knew that what you had was real, willing to fight for it no matter the obstacles that came with the future.

It did not matter that Tyvat was not your home.

Wherever Diluc was, that was where you’d return.

---xXxXxXxXxXx---

Extra: “What if they end up fighting?” Amber asked the other two as they walked down a side-street of the city.

“Then we’ll find out the moment it breaks out. Trust me.” Paimon replied. After all, your Anemo power would only serve to make any fire larger.

“They’ve both been in that pining puppy phase for so long, I doubt it’ll come down to that.” Venti added.

“500 Mora says they’ll be dating by the end of this week.” Amber bet.

“1,000 that they’ll be together by tonight!” Paimon countered.

“10,000 that they’ll be joined in every way by tonight.” Venti added, the mischievous tone not missed by either woman.

“You tone-deaf bard!” Paimon exclaimed as she slapped her hands over her red cheeks. “The traveler is more dignified than that!”

Amber had a hand on her chin, “Dating? Probably. But more than that…?”

Venti held out a hand to both, vying for both to shake one and accept the bet.

Nothing, but a couple of suckers. 

Amber grumbled once when she heard the news, but otherwise excitedly congratulated you two on finally accepting your feelings. Paimon’s whine could probably be heard in a fifteen mile radius and Venti’s proud smile didn’t help either — accepting the easiest twenty thousand Mora he ever made. 

And, just to gode the tiny guide a little more, Venti turned to Paimon in the middle of her complaining rant. 

“Hehe.”

---xXxXxXxXxXx---

A/N:

The festival idea comes from Diluc’s story 1: “The winery holds festivities from time to time. These events are routinely attended by enthusiastic fathers, eager to introduce their wonderful daughters to the young and single winery master.”