#four lights tiny house company

[babyrunsforfanfic]

Tangled Necklaces

summary: the four times steve harrington untangles your necklace for you, and the one time do it for him.

steve harrington x fem!reader

warnings/tags: light angst, talk of anxiety, reader and steve meet while reader is dating someone else but they don’t cheat or anything they just kinda have a moment y’know, reader described as having hair long enough to put in a bun at one point, everyone lives ok like zero talk of the upside down or vecna, platonic fruity four, talk/use of drugs & alcohol, talk of kids but it’s like four sentences and it’s over so fast i swear

based off these two posts (one) (two) that i really had the urge to expand on.

wc: 4500ish

1. when steve harrington agreed to tag along to a party to keep his friend, eddie munson, company during some “party favor” deals… he didn’t really know why. okay that was a total lie, he had mainly agreed due to nancy and robin being out on a double date with vickie and jonathan respectively, and he didn’t want to fifth wheel.

however, watching the party with a red cup of warm beer to his lips, he wasn’t sure why people still threw these fucking things. eddie was decently in his element, happily spouting about something to some guy buying a pre-rolled spliff, the guy in which who looked like he had no want to be there. said guy who, after passing eddie a ten dollar bill, made some comment about a girl sobbing in the upstairs bathroom.

now steve, steve couldn’t deny he had things for saving people and the whole ‘kicked puppy’ schtick, so when he glanced at eddie, eddie simply waved him off toward the house. steve maneuvered through wasted teenagers, kicking a few plastic cups out from under his feed, before he treaded up the stairs slowly. upstairs was quieter, though not completely vacant, and the floor still thrummed from the music that was being played just below.

“i can’t believe that girl is in there crying over a stupid fucking necklace.” a girl had snickered in passing, and steve ignored whatever the girl’s friend had said (though he knew it was as equally malicious as the first girl).

instead, steve walked straight to the only closed door on the floor, and tapped his knuckles against the wood. he could hear the sniffles, the water running, and when you opened the door… god he didn’t think he had ever seen someone as pretty.

“m sorry.” you mumbled, mascara black tear lines under your eyes, and steve watched as your hand came up to wipe at your face. “if you need to-”

“what’s wrong?” steve instead asked, and he caught the surprise in your eyes as you rapidly blinked. “someone said something about a necklace?”

“oh.” you wince, and you lifted your clenched fist that steve had just realized had been tucked behind your back so far. “it’s nothing, really.”

“let me see.” steve folded his hands on his hips, waiting, before you let out a soft sigh. “let me see, c’mon.”

you said nothing, and instead just brought your hand around to open your palm face-up. steve sucked a breath through clenched teeth, though didn’t say anything as he glanced at the clump of metal chain you had in the center of your hand.

the necklace itself was pretty, some thin silver chain with a tiny stone on it, and you scrunched your nose as you shrugged noncommittally.

“it’s fine, i can take it to a jeweler in the next town over.” you shrugged again, and steve watched as you touched the knot with the tip of your nail from your other hand’s pointer finger. “not a big deal, y’know?”

“give it.” steve murmured, and when you didn’t move quick enough- steve plucked the necklace out of your hands for you. “wash yourself up, i got it from here.”

you blinked owlishly as steve closed the toilet lid and sat, balancing the chain on his own palm as he stared at it. you didn’t necessarily know what to say (was there anything to say?), and so instead? you just listened to him.

you used a hand towel to wash your face, paired with the bottle of cheap face wash you found tucked under the sink. you were able to scrub off most of your leftover makeup, though you were delicate around the eyes, which left the majority of your now smudged eyeliner and eyeshadow. you huffed, breathing deeply as you leaned forward, before you cupped water in your palms. the trickle of the water, the coolness of it, grounded you- and you didn’t flinch when you looked up in the mirror to see steve harrington standing just behind you. he smiled at you, slow and steady, before he jerked his head toward you.

“move your hair.” steve kept his voice soft still, and you did as he asked- before your necklace was back where it belonged. your fingers smoothed over it, as steve connected the clasp closed, fingers brushing just under the back of the collar of your sweater. “there we go.”

you both stared at each other’s reflection, unblinking and quiet, your fingers of one hand pressed to your necklace- while the other kept you steady as you stood against the counter. steve watched you, arms and hands limp at his side, though he offered you a smile still.

a sharp thwap on the door caused you to jump, and you glanced at the locked doorknob as it jiggled.

“baby? you in there?” chris, your boyfriend of six months and some change called, and while steve mouthed the word ‘baby’ to himself, you answered back with your eyes still locked on the harrington boy still stood behind you.

“i’ll meet you downstairs!”

steve let you go when you stepped away. when you whispered your apologies, he murmured his own back.

later that evening, when he makes eye contact with you when you’re pressed into the side of some jock, he can’t help but feel smug when your hand lifts to ghost against the necklace that’s nestled between your collarbones.

2. steve harrington was pretty sure his friends were out to get him. when eddie had whined and pleaded to let him throw a little friend-movie night thing. steve had reluctantly agreed, but he made his friends instead switch it into an all day thing. starting with swimming in the pool, and then. when they were tired enough, pizza and movies.

steve should’ve known something was up when eddie asked if he could invite someone over, and when steve later asked who, eddie had instead changed the subject.

but steve hadn’t pressed, and instead figured eddie had probably lucked out with a girl or guy— and was embarrassed.

he hadn’t expected to walk out of his house to see you sitting by the pool. most of your hair was scraped up in a bun on the top of your head, but your hands were currently fiddling with that fucking necklace of yours.

steve dropped off the case of beers next to a grinning nancy, who winked playfully at steve, before she gestured to you. when you turned around you beamed, giggling and waving at steve as he got closer to you.

“surprise!” you grinned wide, eyes bright, and steve chuckled as the sun caught the shine of the sunblock you’d applied to your cheeks and nose.

“hey there!” steve greeted you in an quick one arm hug when you dropped one arm, though he took note that one of your hands stayed tucked at the hair at the nape of your neck. “what are you doing here?”

“eds invited me!” you chirped, eyes bright as your dark tinted sunglasses tipped down your nose. steve glanced over his shoulder toward eddie, who was fiddling with the boombox steve had propped on a table. “said you wouldn’t mind.”

“the more the merrier.” steve grinned when you smiled wide, before he couldn’t help but gesture towards your neck with a jerk of his chin. “problem?”

“oh.” you winced, and steve felt a familiar rush of deja vu, though this time you’re spinning to show steve the back of your neck. your necklace had grabbed hold of the hairs at your nape, and it was spun almost to the root. steve whistled this time, murmuring a curse word. “i know, it’s bad huh?”

“you sleep in that thing or something?” steve settled down behind you without asking, and quickly flicked your hand out of the way. you flushed, though tipped your head forward as to make his ministrations easier.

“yeah, i uh, shower in it too.” you shrug, and steve balks as he sets about carefully pulling your hair out of the chain’s teeth.

“now, i’m no jeweler…” steve’s words trail off as he untangles one section, before moving to the next. “but pretty sure sleeping in this and showering in it is not helping you with taking care of it.”

“i just.. i don’t want to lose it, y’know?” you shrug, and steve can see over your shoulder you’re fiddling with a thin bracelet that’s around your wrist. “i don’t want to lose any of it.”

you gesture then, from head to toe, and steve looks at where you point. the tiny earrings in your ears. the necklace in between steve’s fingers. the bracelets. the rings. an anklet on your left ankle.

“i don’t have a jewelry box so i just..” you shrug again, and steve watches from over your shoulder as you start to turn a ring around your thumb.

“hm.” steve makes a noise of acknowledgment, mainly so you know he’s still listening to you, before he smooths his hands under the last bit of your previously tangled hair. “all done.”

you smile from over your shoulder at steve, an ear to ear thing, and steve pretends his heart doesn’t skip a beat when later you tell robin while you’re tipsy that you dumped your boyfriend.

you pretend yours doesn’t skip a beat, when you get back home and empty out your bag. tucked inside the towel you’d borrowed, you find a beat-to-shit jewelry case. when you eventually got the courage open it, all that’s inside is a small sticky note.

signed— from, s.

you don’t tell anyone that you tuck the sticky note away into your wallet for the safest of keeping.

it’s the first night you sleep where when you wake, your necklace isn’t tangled into your hair, and your anklet isn’t snagged on a lose thread.

steve pretends to not blush when he gets his own sticky note back, alongside a small ring, a ring that while it doesn’t fit his hand, it does fit on his key ring.

his note is signed— with a doodle of a necklace.

3. steve liked working at family video on one particular day the most out of any other day. sure, there are the days where his friends come in, keeping him and robin company at the two work while their two other friends pick their way through the stacks.

steve however, steve especially likes saturdays.

he mainly (okay fully) enjoys saturdays because those are the days where you come in. the hour varied— sometimes right when the store opened and other times you’d slink in just before your shift though.

however, when he arrived to work one day and found you sniffling while you sat on the curb in front of your car, his heart ached. you’d blinked up at him, pretty and hands shaking, as your hands cradled two parts of the necklace that you usually wore. the clasp was in one hand and the body of the necklace in the other, and steve said nothing to you as he ushered you inside the family video store.

robin wouldn’t be in for another hour, and steve didn’t care what keith would probably have to say come monday. steve instead ushered you to sit behind the store’s counter, and you sunk to the floor as steve moved around quickly.

first, he’d relocked the doors. secondly, he’d taped a piece of paper to the glass of one with just the word ‘emergency’ scrawled across it. thirdly, he’d draped his jacket around your shoulders in passing, since your body was still trembling as you cried. fourth and fifth, he snagged a coke from the vending machine in the break room, alongside a pair of needle nosed pliers.

when steve came to sit in front of you cross legged, knees touching yours, you sniffled as you held the broken necklace in your hands. you didn’t say anything at first, and instead let steve pluck the broken necklace bits from your hand, swapping them for the coke. he let you, keeping quiet as you drank, before you started to fiddle with the tab.

“my mom gave me that.” you explained, and steve nodded, set about using the pliers to reopen the clasp end that had gotten pulled off. “and whenever anything happens to it… god i just fucking freeze.”

“what made you come here?” normally, steve would think he had more tact then that, and for a moment he thinks about robin and the ‘you suck’ tally marks at scoop’s.

“i…” you blow out a huff of air, and steve gets a smell of mint and coke, smiling as he watches you become flustered. “this is gonna sound so dumb.”

“hey, you aren’t dumb.” steve’s answer is an almost bite, and you blink up at him prettily as steve’s eyes harden as he watches you. “you’re not. we all have things that stress us out, yeah? so don’t say you’re dumb just because you think you’re overreacting about something.”

you say nothing, bottom lip between your teeth.

steve continues to fiddle with the necklace, pliers helpings as he’s able to loop the rings back together. you’re smiling as you watch, steve notices, and you happily turn around after steve lets out a small ‘ta-da’.

you move your hair out of the way as if it was something you did all the time, and steve is gentle as he clasps the necklace around your neck.

“be careful with this, okay?” steve murmurs, and you hold back a shiver at the way his breath fans over the back of your neck. “if it breaks, try and not lose the rings, i can get it back together if you have all the pieces.”

you nod and promise, and for the next forty minutes, you and steve talk about life. you both say nothing when robin walks in, the girl mumbling to herself about an ‘emergency’ and you and steve both try to not squirm when she grins down at you. instead, you let steve pull you up so you’re standing on your own feet, and he finally opens the store with robin as you’re looking for your next movie to watch.

when you find it and are later checking out, you see steve’s keys, and steve looks up when the most adorable choked out puff of air falls from your lips.

“oh.” you’re grinning, shifting your weight on both of your feet, eyes bright as you rub your thumb over your ring that’s sitting on his keys.

steve just smiles at you, nervous, and you accept the movie and receipt from him. when you leave, robin slides a sticky note to him, with a sloppily drawn ‘you rule | you suck’ diagram, with a single tally mark under ‘you suck’.

steve pushes it away with a scoff, just as the door chime alerts your re-entry to the store. you don’t have the movie in your hands, and instead you’re fiddling with your necklace, your bracelets, your rings. steve and robin both keep quiet as you huff to yourself, before you send a smile to steve.

“go on a date with me.”

later, after steve agrees and gets your number, robin slides a new sticky note his way when the store is packed full.

‘you rule: I | you suck: 0’

4. steve harrington is pretty sure, almost a hundred percent fucking positive he was meant to be your boyfriend. he decides this early on in your relationship, while he’s listening to you giggle to robin about leaving hawkins and all seven of you moving into a duplex of some kind. he listens to you giggle with nancy, mainly when nancy tells you steve’s vision of having six kids.

when you squirm and say you wouldn’t mind, eddie claps steve’s shoulder and proclaims him to now officially be a goner. steve rolls his eyes and pushes eddie away as eddie teases him about being whipped. (steve will never tell eddie about how that night, you and steve laid nose-to-nose in his bed talking about name ideas).

he later hears you checking with nancy that she’s not upset with you for dating steve, and when she assures you that she’s not- you quietly say you think someone like steve had always been missing from your life. (that night, steve lays in your bed beside you and wishes that you’ll never leave him). when you wake up the next morning and notice he’s more bleary-eyed than usual, you have him call out and you spend all day in bed together, sheets tangled and skin to skin.

steve doesn’t mind that you both have morning breath the whole day. you do, but you’d never say a word.

if steve had to pick a favorite though, mornings would definitely be at the top of the list. you had a job at the police station with nancy, both of you working as secretaries to save up money so all of you could get the fuck out of dodge, before you all intended to move just.. out of hawkins.

but mornings, mornings steve got to help you. he got to slip your rings onto each finger, before he pressed a kiss to the digits. He carefully selected your bracelets, making sure they wouldn’t snag on anything you were wearing that day (he knew you had certain ones that were finicky for certain clothes).

your necklace, the one your mom had given you, was long since broken. you’d had a full meltdown when it happened, sobbing into steve’s shirt as held you to him. you’d both stayed like that for a long while, him cradling you to his chest as you held the necklace to yours. later, when your tears ran dry, he helped you slip the necklace into a small plastic bag, and tuck it carefully against your jewelry box.

(he’d offered to buy you a new one, a better one than the old one he’d snuck into your bag. you told him to shut the fuck up with silly questions, and steve hadn’t asked since)

he’s gifted you a necklace, just last week, a dainty chain with a small teardrop pendant that hung in the hollow of your throat. your eyes had teared up, breath stuttering in your throat, and you’d instantly turned around so you could push your hair off your shoulder.

and all of that, led to now— where you and him were getting ready to go pick up steve’s adopted children (how you’d fit them all in his little car you weren’t sure), but you’d manage. you were fully ready, one of his sweaters on but pouting, your chin cradled by the palm of your hand. steve shook his head fondly at you, even as he used the pair of tweezers you’d offered him to try and untangle the knot that you’d made with your necklace.

“oh.” you mumbled, and steve huffed playfully at you, eyes rolling fondly as he hushed you. “i’m sorry.”

“don’t apologize, pretty thing.” steve wet his lips with his tongue, slowly working out the chain as he shrugged his shoulders. “not too bad, ‘m a pro at this now and everything.”

“need to start paying you.” you teased, and you squirmed when steve grinned at you.

“pay me in kisses, huh?” steve grinned as you stuck your tongue out at him, before he pressed his hand to his chest with a grin. “ouch! fine, pay me by doing my dishes when we all move in together.”

steve gestured to one of the polaroids tacked to your vanity mirror, and you smiled as you glanced at it. it was a picture of all of you; you, steve, robin, vickie, nancy, jonathan, and eddie. you were all tucked close, hazy eyes but with bright smiles, and you’d loved the photo since the day you’d taken it.

“you want that, really?” your voice was soft, and steve clicked his tongue at you and gestured you closer as he held your necklace up.

you turned, allowing him to clip your necklace on, before his hands curled around your shoulders to hold you in place.

kiss. a soft kiss to your shoulder.

“i can’t wait to move in with all of you. waking up every day with you in our bed, not having to sneak around anyone.” steve hummed, and you let out a soft sigh to urge him on. “we’d all balance each other out, and we’d have our own space to hang out if they got on our nerves.”

kiss. a soft kiss to your shoulder.

“i can’t wait to start the rest of my life with you, sweet thing.” steve thumbed the clasp of your necklace, and you nodded as you shifted so you could straddle his lap and face him. “okay?”

“okay.” your answer has steve smiling, and you can’t help but smile back shyly.

steve let’s out this soft, almost fucked out laugh, before his fingers curl around the necklace chain..

and pull.

the kiss is shy, sweet, both of your noses brushing and giggling and smiling into each other’s mouths. steve pulls away first, eyes flickering to the clock you have above your bed, before he presses another kiss to your mouth.

“c’mon, sweet thing. let’s go get the kids.”

you don’t tell steve, but the entire drive there and back with the kids… you can’t help but think that it would be easy to have a life where steve’s hand was in yours.

unknown to you, steve feels the exact same way.

5. steve huffed as he leaned his head to rest against the headboard of the bed he sat on, brow furrowed and lips pulled down in a frown. he glanced around the room, and couldn’t help but let a slight smile curl at the edges of his mouth.

you’d all done exactly what you said you would, and now, two years almost to do the day of meeting you, you’d all moved out of bum-fuck nowhere that is hawkins. it wasn’t without its challenges, of course, the main one being it took a whole extra year to follow through with the group’s goals plan. (the group had unanimously voted to stay while eddie finished his third try of senior year, even with eddie’s insistence that you didn’t have to and he’d follow soon)

but, all eventually was okay- and you’d all thrown several darts on the map to decide where you’d move. you’d all decided on texas of all places, renting a large 6-room duplex to fit the entire lot of you. it was nice, slipping into the domestic life with steve’s friends and you around him— if he was honest with himself, it was everything he’d ever wanted in life.

on the day you all moved in, you’d gifted steve a necklace of his own. steve had blushed (and totally did not teared up thank you very much), and now it was his favorite thing to wear. it was simple, just a chain necklace, but you’d given it him. steve could also fully recall the nervous ramble you’d slipped into, one that rivaled one of robin’s. you’d been worried he wouldn’t like it and that it wouldn’t fit his style, but steve just cut you off with a kiss, before clipping it around his neck.

all of that culminated to now, steve having gotten off much earlier than the rest of you. he’d changed and showered to rid himself of just the funk for working for a little under eight hours, and while slipping his shirt over his head- he knocked his necklace off the bathroom counter. it’d fallen to the floor in a clatter, and steve felt his heart lurch in his throat as he scrambled to pull it off the floor.

his hands shook as he tried to untangle the knot of chain, but everything he did just seemed to make it worse. he’d been working at it for over an hour, hands trembling and curses on his tongue, and he couldn’t help but feel idiotic. he couldn’t count the amount of times you had to have his help untangling yours, and here he was not even being able to do his own.

“hey baby,” your voice caused steve to flinch and instinctively cup his hands together, and steve glanced up at you with wide-eyes as you slipped into your shared bedroom. your fingers were quickly unbuttoning the blazer you had on, and steve watched as you cocked your head as your brow quirked. “what’d you have there?”

“oh.” steve blushed, and took a few short breaths as you draped your blazer over the footboard, before you crawled up so you were sitting across from him. “uh-”

your hands were on his, uncurling and parting his hands, and steve watched as you smiled. you didn’t say anything, even as his own hands trembled as he held them flat. you used them as a surface as you carefully began working at the knots, and steve wet his lips with his tongue.

“do you wanna talk about it?” your brow pinched as you glanced up at steve, and he felt his cheeks warm as he swallowed. “you always make me talk about it, y’know?”

“it fell and i just-” steve let out a puff of air, clenching his eyes shut as he steadied his breathing. he focused on the light brush of your fingers against his, and the small hum you made to prompt him to continue. “i can always get yours untangled and then it fell and i…”

“i know.” you had a smile on your face when steve opened his eyes, and he watched as you plucked the chain up and shook it lightly. it was untangled now, dangling from the tips of your fingers, and you cocked your head with a small smile. “there we go, want me to put it on for you?”

you were teasing, steve could tell, but you didn’t even wait for him to respond before you leaned forward. your hands went behind his neck with the necklace, and he felt the slight brush of your fingers as you clasped the chain together. when you pulled back, you brushed your fingers down, smoothing the chain so it sat smoothly on his chest.

“there we go.” you smiled up at steve, who stared down at you with a slight shyness in his eyes. “all good, baby?”

“mhm, love you.”

steve watched as you curled your fingers around the chain of his necklace— and pulled.

your lips connected in a kiss, nose bumping and giggling into each other’s mouths when your teeth clashed. when you both disconnected, you had your hand placed on his chest, fingers twisting the chain of his necklace around.

“love you too, stevie.”

later, that night, while you’re flush to his chest- quiet snores falling from your mouth as you sleep, steve is thinking about rings.

specifically to go on that finger on your left hand.

[amywritesthings]

mistletoe (on the clock.) / nanami x you

pairing: nanami kento x f!reader word count: 1.7k summary: It's your annual holiday party at the office. You and your coworker Nanami Kento end up in a precarious yuletide predicament. tags: mistletoe, holiday office party, explicit language, sexual tension, hair pulling, kissing, make corporate speak horny in this house

part of the twelve days of amymas 2023 !!!

Office holiday parties shouldn’t be mandatory.

Eight, sometimes bordering up to twelve, hours under fluorescent lights was more than enough anguish — add four extra mandatory 'fun' hours and you see why half of your colleagues spend their nights bar hopping to cope.

However, if these annual holiday parties weren't mandatory, most of your colleagues would never bother showing up in the first place.

You sure as hell wouldn’t.

(And you're pretty sure the tall blonde you spy from across the room wouldn’t, either.)

It’s only your first year with the company, but it’s already one year too many.

You'd taken a few gap years between college to figure your shit out, travel a little, but you still ended up in the grand corporate scheme.

The nine-to-five lifestyle is nothing less than soul sucking. Commuting back and forth is such a pain. 

By the time you make it back to your tiny one-bedroom flat, the night is too cold to enjoy anything beyond your warm bed.

But... there are perks to the job, sometimes.

Free lunches are great.

Business connections don't hurt.

Not to mention you've grown fond of one person who makes your commute a little tolerable:

Tall. Blonde. High cheekbones. Voice as smooth as honey.

Nanami Kento.

Stoic on the outside yet considerably kind on the inside, Nanami has equal parts ruined and consumed your days.

The sheer sight of him in his tailored suits without a strand of hair out of place can make you weak in the knees, so you make it a point to always talk to him sitting down.

And he seems to like you, for what it’s worth.

Nanami always makes sure to bring you tea and water in the morning to stay hydrated.

He stops by your cubicle to tell you there's free catering in the break room if you missed the memo.

No matter how late you end up staying, he always makes it a point to never let you walk to the train station alone.

It’s sweet.

It’s more than what anyone else has ever done for you in your life, so naturally?

You're into him.

Bad.

Of course, that means you’re too chicken to invite him over for dinner.

God knows you can’t cook a decent course to save your life, but you’d order in — it’s only one string away from officially asking him on a date, masked as a favor repaid.

('Tis the damn season; it may be your time to take a little leap of faith if he's going to be standing there all alone for this insufferable party.)

Emboldened by the spiked eggnog in your system, you decide to jump:

You make a beeline through the crowds of laughing colleagues, all varying stages of intoxicated, straight to him.

In truth, you're eager to blend as a wallflower beside him.

Nanami almost instantly catches you in the crowd, but he makes no motion to meet you in the middle.

He moves a pace to the right, silently offering you the corner to hide in.

You have to be brave.

You have to make the first real move.

(Attractiveness aside, it's just Kento. He must be at the end of his social battery, too.)

“Hey,” you greet.

“Hello,” he replies, smooth as butter.

“Having the time of your life over here?” you joke, pressing your back into the wall.

He hums in a noncommittal fashion. “At the very least, this party is much more tame than the one they threw last year.”

“Is it?”

Kento nods. “Someone overserved. Shirts flew. Marriages shattered.” His strong brow furrows. “Though I wanted to ask, even though I've been here longer: has Mr. Hiro always been a happy drunk? I recall differently.”

“No, that’s a fairly new development. His wife finally finalized the divorce last week,” you gossip under your breath. “I had to field the call myself.”

“Oh?” Nanami asks, turning a sharp chin your way. “Ugly?”

“Very.”

“To call and finalize over the phone at the office is—”

“Ballsy.”

A sly smile tugs at the corner of his lip. “I was going to say a choice, but sure.” 

Nanami clinks his ceramic ‘work hard, play harder ’ slogan mug to yours — a past gag gift from that Gojo Satoru friend of his, you’re sure — and pushes his body from the wall. 

“Do you need a refill?”

You nod, holding up your empty eggnog mug.

"Thanks."

"How spiked do you want it?"

"Blackout levels," you joke. It earns you an even larger smile, albeit shortly lived.

He plucks the handle from you easily enough, but you notice how his eyes flutter above your heads and… stay there.

Weird.

Unable to help yourself, you lift your chin to see the captivating problem for yourself:

Hovering over the two of you this entire time has been a pesky little bundle of leaves, tied together with a tiny red bow.

Shit.

Mistletoe.

(Were these things even allowed in the office? Surely hanging one constituted breaking at least four different Human Resources violations in one swift sweep.)

You open your mouth to make a joke, but—

“Has that been there?” Nanami asks, and you can feel your face grow hot.

“I— Maybe?” You clear your throat. “Did you stand under it on purpose?”

(Way to go, moron.)

Nanami considers, then shakes his head.

“I had no intention of kissing anyone in our office, I assure you,” he replies, and you feel yourself deflate a little. “Though I guess this is an opportune moment.”

Oh?

You pretend to look unbothered, arms crossed over your chest.

It takes you biting your tongue to avoid asking outright.

“What do you mean, opportune?” you ask instead.

Blink and you’ll miss it: Nanami smiles, albeit barely, before turning his chin back to the mistletoe in question.

“I would prefer taking a woman out to dinner before kissing her, but I suppose if you were interested, then we could be a little unconventional. It’s likely the swift kick in my ass I needed.”

Your brows slide to your hairline as you regard him in equal parts confusion and hope.

“Wait, you…” 

Words.

You have to remember how to speak.

The whole point of this job was to be suave, but you’re failing miserably at it at the moment.

“You were interested in going to dinner with…”

“You?” Nanami finishes, and he angles his larger frame towards you. “Was it never obvious?”

Obvious?

Now you really felt like a fish out of water.

Nothing about Nanami Kento was obvious.

You could barely get a read on him, even if he did all of those really nice things for you—

Oh.

The realization hits you like a subway train, leaving you breathless.

The blonde stares down at you, patiently waiting for an answer.

You blurt. "Do you still want dinner after?"

"I don't think many places are open at this hour, but if you're not hungover tomorrow, I could call."

"I'm not picky," you reply. "I love takeout."

"We're not getting takeout on our first outing," Nanami snorts.

"Like I said, very-much not picky."

A moment passes.

You both stare at one another, waiting for the right timing to...

Well, do anything.

He wants to take you out to dinner.

Nanami fucking Kento wants to take you out— 

And kiss you.

Actually, that part is more important right now.

"So the... unconventional part."

"The mistletoe," he adds.

"Right. Is that still on the table?"

"Do you want it to be on the table?"

"Is that a serious question?" you counter, before leaning in a little closer. "Okay, but what if someone sees?"

Nanami shrugs a shoulder, resting his bare forearm against the wall you lean against. His button-down shirt is rolled up to the elbow, making your mouth water.

His body shields you from the rest of the people in the office. 

One quick peck and none of the drunks on this floor would be any wiser.

“Are you that concerned?” he asks.

When his featherlight touch raises your chin to meet his gaze, he makes your decision right there and then.

You’ve wanted Nanami for so damn long.

Now the opportunity is presented to you like a holiday gift, and you’re not one to be ungrateful.

“Not anymore,” you admit, wrapping your fingers around his speckled yellow and black tie.

Like two magnets, you pull him in by the tie and he drags you in by the chin, connecting your lips in a searing kiss.

Nanami is warm, stronger than you anticipated. You melt against his lips as they gingerly move against yours.

You want him to push you against this wall.

You want to what he'd do if you dropped to your knees the way you’ve imagined doing every single time he’s sitting at his desk with those goddamn dress slacks bunched against his thighs.

You want so much in so little time that you bite his lower lip, causing the blonde to groan with need.

He slides his fingers along your jawline, snaking up past your ear and into your hair.

His fingers curl around the strands, tugging playfully.

Then, abruptly, he pulls away.

No.

Too soon.

You could topple over with how quickly you chase him, but he stops you with his index finger pressed to your lips.

“Nanami!” 

A voice calls him, slurred and hiccupped, from the other side of the room.

You freeze, unable to do anything but stare into his brown eyes. 

“Get your ass over here!”

“Group photo,” Nanami reluctantly murmurs to you, and your shoulders sag. “Before everyone starts digging out the hard liquor.”

Still, he leans back in to drop a gentle peck to the tip of your nose.

When he pulls away, he drops the arm against the wall to hold his palm out to you — an invitation.

“Let’s circle back after.”

He doesn’t need to tell you twice.

You take his hand and never look back.

.

[cockdestroyer32]

it's rotten work.

peter b. parker x fem!reader

word count: 2615

summary: Peter's been a wreck after his divorce with MJ. Thankfully, you're there to look after him.

aka me just fantasizing about taking care of peter b. parker when he needed it and giving him the love he so very deserves.

a/n: yeah I write abt this loser now

Two months. That’s how long it’s been since Peter and MJ’s divorce. Two months of countless pizza orders and late-night fast food trips. You tried your best, of course, most days making lunch and dinner for Peter, but it still wouldn’t help his insurmountable need to shove oily fries drenched in high amounts of salt down his throat. Though he would gladly take them. His hand finding yours on the table, giving you a knowing look with his sad, tired eyes that you’d gotten used to seeing so damn often on him. His own way of a thank you. Two months of coming home to Peter’s place to find him sprawled out on his couch, his head lying on his own arm and still wearing shoes. The TV would be on playing the most random channel. He’d be staring at it, but if you turned it off he wouldn’t even blink. Two months of trying your best to be there for him.

You were still getting used to the new apartment. For as long as you could remember, Peter and MJ lived in the same house for the past 15 years. You’d gotten used to it. It was nice. Two stories, wooden floors, big dining room. They’d have Thanksgivings there, it was almost a tradition. The turkey was served and everyone gathered around, talking and laughing about nothing. Peter was happy then, at least most of the time.

This apartment was none of that. It was way smaller, one small cube covering kitchen, living room and bedroom, with a room to the left including the tiny bathroom- which has a bathtub? You never quite understood that, what is it with Americans and putting bathtubs in their already tiny bathrooms?- not to mention it was unkept. The dishes practically overflowing, two pizza boxes, one awkwardly thrown to the counter, not even closed, its gaping mouth allowing you to spy the damp spots the hot pizza left on the cardboard box, and the other shoved inside the trash, which was also nearly overflowing. A barely-eaten cereal bowl rested on the sad excuse of a dining table, some colorful circles creeping out of the white liquid. It was more milk than cereal. And both ingredients also stood there, not put back on their respective places. 

Peter does not have enough money to just waste perfectly good milk. 

You grab the carton and open the refrigerator, the light illuminating the kitchen/living room/bedroom area. God, even the refrigerator was sad. An already open can of soda standing lonely to the side, feeling unsafe on the grids of the shelf, a container of cheese at the top, four eggs to the side, and untouched lettuce to the middle. You place the milk inside, now making company to the lonely soda, and shut the refrigerator door, making your way back to the couch. As you do you pass by the wall of the apartment that includes Peter’s attempt at decorating, one only possible after much pleading by you that the place might feel more like home if he did so. 

They were pictures. Pictures on the wall. Four to be specific. All taped to the wall with double-sided tape. They were all scattered like corn and asymmetrical. How and why did he manage to do that? You don’t know. Was it awful? Yes. 

But you were still excited when you’d shown up to his place and found them there. 

This was only a fraction of the pictures he had back in his place with MJ. Their old living room had once been full of pictures of them and the memories they made together. But these were the ones he took and remained. The middle picture was one of you and Peter, back when you traveled to Barbados. You stood behind him, hugging him with one arm from behind, your chin resting on his shoulder as you both smiled at the camera. The one to the side was a picture he took of you on your birthday, you wore one of those birthday headbands, a huge smile spreading across your face as you saw one of your other friends bringing you your cake. It was slightly blurry, not one you’d usually have on your wall but beautiful regardless. When you’d seen that picture, your finger reached out to touch it, surprised it was there, and you turned around to look at Peter, who refused to look at you, clearly embarrassed. The third one is a picture of May, 2 years before she died, her grey hair perfectly framing her smiling face, and the fourth one of Peter and May, sitting on her couch, his arm wrapped around her shoulder and his head on hers.

Peter sits on the couch, his ankles extended out, looking like he wanted to trip someone. He wore the same grey sweatpants he always wore, and his sweatshirt was stained. The bags under his eyes were prominent, and his eyebrows were furrowed. His gaze was fixated on the TV, but he actually seemed to be paying attention this time, so that’s progress…right?

You threw your body on the couch beside his, letting out a sigh and looking at the screen. He was watching a documentary on…pandas? You don’t comment on it. Or on his stained shirt. Or on the cereal bowl. Or on the milk. You just stare at the TV.

“I’m fine,” He says, his voice raspy.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You didn’t have to.”

You don’t reply. He’s used to you asking the same question, and you’re used to hearing the same answer. You both know he’s not fine, that he hasn’t been fine in a while, but that there’s not much you can do but let time pass, to let the wound heal as best as it can, leaving only a scar, that at least won’t sting as much anymore. You know Peter. You’ve known him for years. You know his moods, you know what makes him laugh, what makes him angry, his mannerisms and what they mean, his favorite foods, his favorite flavor of cake…you know when he needs love. 

Except for on days like this. On days where he’s grumpy and barely speaks at all. Days where his arms are crossed and he’s always tapping his foot. Sometimes he just wants to be left alone, sometimes he wants as much physical affection as possible. You don’t know. 

So, you leave a hint.

You place your hand next to his on the couch- they have always been so rough, so calloused, yet always felt nice- and you lift your pinky, it grazing across the back of his hand. Up, and down. You do that once before stopping it at the bottom of his hand, just next to his pinky. If he wants to take it, he can take it, if not, he doesn’t have do anything. 

You feel the back of his hand being taken away from the tip of your finger, before his palm finds yours and he entwines your fingers together, giving your hand a light squeeze. Yours is smaller than his, and certainly softer. You don’t look at each other, you don’t have to. You keep your eyes on the panda eating bamboo and feel his thumb caress the side of your hand. 

If that wasn’t clear, it’s been a rough two months. And you’ve been there for rough months. You were there for when Peter and MJ would have tough arguments, for when being Spider-Man started being just a little too much for him, for when he couldn’t save everyone, for when Aunt May died. But this? This was bad. Almost as much as May’s death. He just…fell into a hole. And you don’t blame him either. He’d been married to Mary Jane for fifteen years. Fifteen years. Having to separate from someone you spent more than a decade with must be one of the hardest things ever, and you couldn’t exactly say you understood.

It wasn’t all bad though. One time, you decided to watch a movie together. You let Peter choose the movie. Horror. You were never quite used to it, but were you gonna say no to him? No, and he knew it. About 40 minutes in, there was a scene where the main character was inspecting his house after having heard a strange noise. He walks around for a while, letting the tension build until suddenly the monster rises behind him. It’d been about 11pm at that point and you let out a loud yelp, followed by your hand slapping over your mouth as you realize what you did. You did a slow turn towards Peter, finding his eyebrows raised and his mouth slightly agape, before he burst out into laughter. The sound rang through your ears like your favorite song. God, it’d been so long since you heard that laugh. If you knew it’d happen you’d grabbed your phone and started recording it immediately. But at that point it’d been enough, and you couldn’t help but start laughing too.

Now, you feel Peter’s grip slowly loosening on yours and you turn your head towards him. His eyes are closed, and his eyebrows are more relaxed now, though he’s not asleep just yet. From this angle you could perfectly see his roman nose, the bridge sticking out in all of its wonder, and the little bend to the side, where he’d broken it so many times his healing factors had just given up. He hated it. You always loved it, and he knew it. You leaned in slightly.

“Pete…” You whisper, “Pete, let’s get you to bed.”

He murmured some nonsense. A chuckle leaves your lips and you reach for his arm.

“Pete, if you wanna sleep we gotta get you to bed, come on.”

“O…kay…” You get up from the couch and place both hands on his arms, motioning for him to get up. When he does he rests his head on yours, and you drape your arm over his shoulder, leading him to his bed. He drops his body on it and oh he looks adorable. His arms curved in front of him almost in a praying motion, and his knees slightly bent. You notice his shoes are still on and reach to take them off, he doesn’t even move as you do so, and you set them down neatly on the floor. You know what’s next, you’ve gotten used to it: you crawl on the bed beside him, and wrap an arm around him from behind, the other creeping from under his body so you can hug him properly. You bury your face on his shoulder and squeeze him tight, your legs lying just behind his. 

Peter likes being the little spoon. You wonder if he’s always been like this or if it was born out of an extreme need to receive the physical affection he lost after his divorce. Those thoughts are quickly brushed off but everlasting, you probably shouldn’t be thinking about that. This happens every night now, to the point Peter doesn’t sleep without you anymore. If you take too long to crawl into bed, he tells you in a groggy voice, “Come hereeeee…”

One time you got up in the middle of the night to drink some water, and in comes Peter, wearing his grey pajama shirt, rubbing his eyes as he sleepily asks you, “Why'd you go?”

The first time you fell asleep cuddled together was a little over a month ago. Peter’d been quiet that entire day and you left him alone, figuring he just wanted time for his thoughts, until eventually you lifted a gentle hand, resting it against his shoulder as you asked, “You alright? Wanna talk?” And a few minutes later you found yourself holding a sobbing Peter, his hands desperately clutching to your back as you rubbed his, his face pressed against your chest as his own heaved. Wet trailings ran down your body and made your shirt damp, trailings that’d grow salty and sticky on your skin, but that’d you pay no attention to. 

You don’t even know how long that lasted, you just held him for as long as he needed, until his weeping subsided and the sobs were replaced only by the shuddering breaths one gets after crying so desperately. Then even those went away, Peter’s breath completely evened out and calm. You noticed he was heavier in your arms, and whispered his name as you leaned your head down, looking for his face, only to be met with one of a sleeping Peter. His lashes were wet and eyes were shut and relaxed, as if he hadn’t just had a full breakdown in your arms. You stayed like this for a moment, wondering if he’d wake up, and knowing you didn’t have the heart to do it. Eventually you leaned back on the couch, your back resting against it as your head was placed awkwardly on its stiff arm. He slid down on your body a bit as you did, his face now at your stomach, and he tightened his grip and pressed his nose into your skin. You still don’t know if he remembered he did that.

And now Peter has you climbing into bed beside him every night, trying your best to envelop his body with yours even though your frame is much tinier.

You turn your head to him as you feel him shift and take a breath.

“I wanna…be big spoon…” You can barely make out the words due to his raspy mumbling, and before you could even process them, Peter was turning around and grabbing your arm, flipping you on your side as he wrapped his arms tightly around you. Tight as if to ensure you wouldn’t try to escape his grip.

Woah. Is this what MJ felt every night when she was with Peter? Again, probably not something you should be thinking about, but still. This? This comfortable? 

If you were MJ you would have never given up on this. Ever. No matter what.

God, he’s strong. I mean, you knew he was strong, he’s Spider-Man for crying out loud. But you’d never thought about how that came into play in moments like this, where he could wrap his arms around you with such a firm yet tender grip that it felt like absolutely nothing could tear you two apart.

Though you were still quite a bit frozen. Peter had never done that before. This was new and sudden. And slowly you could feel that information seep back into Peter’s presumably more awake mind as well, with the way he turned his head slowly to the left, and his body straightened and stiffened on your back.

“Uhh, is this okay?” He asked.

“Yeah, it’s alright,” You replied. He was probably awake right now, mortified by his own actions but too comfortable and scared to pull away. And so were you. So you placed your hand on his arm, and gently ran it back and forth, telling him you really were okay with this, and if anything you wanted him to keep it up. His body remained frozen for at least 3 seconds until he lifted his arm from under your hand, and placed his palm over it, enlacing your fingers together. He pressed your arm in the front of your body and buried his nose in your neck. It sent a few shivers down your spine, you won’t lie. But you just took a deep breath and toughed it out, closing your eyes as well and relaxing. His breath on your neck slowly lulled you to sleep.

Hopefully, this is your new night routine.

[sinfulstarskitten]

BlackPink House 1 (Smut)

| Black Pink x male reader || 18+ || Kinky || Foursome || Bisexual ||

| Reader is sent to live with the Blackpink members for a week, only to realise he's been sent to fulfil their sexual desires.

| pt. 1

You were wary when your team leader told you you'd be managing all the black pink members on their vacation that winter.

It wasn't often that a male manager was given a free vacation in a little house with four sexy idols. Heck it wasn't often that black pink themselves ever got a vacation.

But a whole damn week in a cabin in the hills? Cut off from the rest of the world? Damn this was both amazing and weird at the same time.

Either way, you were excited at the thought of spending some time with the girls. You've only managed Rose for a Paris event before, and been in meetings with Jisoo twice. Both girls had a body you could fantasize about for days.

Your favorite member was Jennie after you came across a fan cam of her shaking her ass in a tiny little skirt at a concert. You had that video saved in the darkest corner of your phone.

Brushing the horny thoughts off your mind, you pull up your car up at the little house. It was a modern, sleek thing with glass walls that overlooked the mountain scenery. (You noticed one of the bathrooms was fully glass too, which meant if you went on a morning walk, you could see one of the members showering.) It was supposed to have four bedrooms, which meant two members were gonna be sharing just so you could have a room to yourself. It was situated on the top of a mountain, a painful 5-hour drive from the nearest town. You were all on your own for the entire week.

The members should have arrived that morning, driven in by an experienced tour guide after their sightseeing tour of the nearest towns. You expected there to be party lights and loud music as you approached the house, but it was dead quiet. Maybe they had all fallen asleep? It was only 10 o'clock at night.

Hesitantly, you knock on the door. No one answers.

You push the door open to find it unlocked. You step inside.

"Hello? Anyone home?"

The house is dark as you're answered with silence. You could make the dark outline of the living room, no doubt lavish and luxurious if seen in daylight. You hear a soft sound, and you look up to see that the kitchen lights are on.

"Hey? I'm your new manager. Is anyone there?"

You walk into the kitchen, catching a glimpse of familiar blonde hair. You smile and prepare to call out Rose's name, but freeze. She has her back turned to you, and under her feathery blonde hair, she is topless.

And in her arms, kissing her roughly and fondling her chest, is Lisa.

"Girls what the hell?" You gasp out loud. Rose turns towards you, lips parted as Lisa opens her eyes in annoyance. You expect them to cover up and scream or do something, especially with Rose's soft milky breasts on full display but… they just grin.

"You must be our gift," Lisa says seductively. Her long black hair is a mess, covering her bralette top, and reaching her little black skirt.

"No." You avert your eyes from the two. "I'm your manager for this week, and it's gonna ruin the kpop industry if the company finds out what I just saw here."

Rose gasps, and you look up at her to see if she finally understands the weight of the situation. But to your surprise, she squeals in delight.

"Y/n Oppa? I knew it was you!" She claps excitedly, causing her boobs to bounce up and down. "I can't believe they listened to my request and sent you! This is the best gift ever!"

Your face turns red as you shake your head vigorously. "Are you girls listening! You could-"

"The company knows," Lisa says in a bored tone. "Everyone does, except you I guess. You probably don't even know why you're here from what you're saying."

You frown at her words. "What do you mean?"

Lisa approaches you calmly and sets a hand on your chest. "You, Mr. Manager, have been chosen to be our fuck toy."

[shoshiwrites]

Decided to try my hand at a little postwar. Big thank you to @basilone for the prompts that inspired this ♡ Bucky Egan/War correspondent OC, also on Ao3! NSFW.

the nearness of you

The table’s littered in paper, a handful of pens, black-red-blue, the bound copy of her manuscript beside, her wristwatch, the coffee cup separated from its saucer.

The clock behind her, above the stove, reads just after one. 

She should probably try and get some sleep, she knows, but he’s due back in tonight, the tiny D. C. apartment they share until the paperwork goes through on a house. She hasn’t seen it in person yet, but he’s told her about it. Says she’ll love it. It’s got a nook for her desk, he says, a big window to the backyard.

A yard.

That’s a new thing, too. Hydrangea bushes and trees to watch the birds.

She inspects the coffee grounds at the bottom of the mug, dark specks in the dim light of the bulb above her head. There’s more sugar to be had now, a whole canister of it there on the counter, labeled in blue, and she can’t break the habit of only sprinkling a touch with the tiny spoon.

She doesn’t know if she’ll ever get used to it, waiting.

It's not like she hasn't done. The landscapes blur in her mind, the muddied boots, the blood, the tall dry grass, the leaden skies and swoops of birds — starlings, and the flies.

The radio next to the canisters of sugar and salt punches out the program sign-off in static, the tinny “Star-Spangled Banner“ that follows. She keeps it on for the baseball games, when he’s not here. The noise keeps her company, the promise that he’ll ask about the scores. Thank you for listening. Good night and good morning.

She makes it through half of the next page before she hears the turn of the lock.

“In here,” she says, like a stage-whisper, and her voice is thick, like she’s been sleeping. Like she hasn’t spoken since he left. 

“You’re up,” he says, and it’s a statement and a question at once, colored by his own face and curls that look like they might have seen a moment of shut-eye in the back of a taxi. He sounds a little surprised, maybe that she’s awake, that she’s greeted him before he’s opened his mouth. His cap must be by the door, and no need for an overcoat in the summer. She knows it’s only the hour and the neighbors that have kept him from coming in with a boom. He looks tired, the same softness to his face that she knows comes from exhaustion. She wonders how he’s been sleeping.

It’s the usual questions and answers, slow this time, and still rushed — have you eaten, how was the train, how’s the story going, hear anything good, and the last one means she gets to produce the little scrap of paper with her pencil marks, the scribbled notes. Two to one Yankees. Chandler walked nine in the first four innings but took a no-hitter into the ninth. Someone hit a one-out single. He guesses until he hits the name that rings a bell. She nods, and his eyes crinkle in delight — at the win, at the paper, at her own eyes warm with love.

He sees the manuscript pages too, the coffee grounds, the hunch of her shoulders. There’s a question in it, like maybe it’s not going as fine as she says it is. She reaches for him. “I missed you.” Maybe it doesn’t help anything, saying that, when this is what they do. Have done. Maybe it does. He smells a little bit like a smoking lounge, the faint scent of aftershave applied many hours earlier.

“Missed you too,” he says, wrapping his arms around her when she stands. “I missed my wife.”

She doesn’t know when she’ll get used to that, either.

Maybe she doesn’t feel like one, a wife, here with a dirty plate in the sink, and the coffeemaker that needs cleaning, and her slacks, and her hair curling away from her forehead.

He kisses the top of her head and maybe she does, here in his arms.

“How much,” she asks, and the feeling gathers in her throat, something tumbling.

He pulls back, the smallest smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. “I’d say — a hell of a lot.” He cups her face with his hand, traces his thumb at her chin, kisses her like he’s passing a secret. “A whole hell of a lot.”

“Mmph,” she says, into his shoulder, and he looks like he might laugh.

“How much for you?”

She tucks a curl behind his ear. “”Bout the same. Maybe more.”

“More, huh?”

She pokes her tongue into his mouth, in the next kiss. His hands grasp the small of her back, his fingertips wandering lower. She shivers when he travels beneath the hem of her top, skims his fingers along the bare skin of her hip.

“John-” Her voice is a little breathy now, half-serious. “Don’t go starting something you can’t finish.”

“Now, just what are you accusing me of, Josephine?” His thumb presses against her hip, a promise. She starts to unbutton his jacket, the back of her hand falling to ghost against the front of his trousers. “Where’s the goddamn couch?”

They’d moved it to the spot themselves, not-so-gracefully accounting for the difference in their heights. It’s not as plush or as comfortably upholstered as either of them would really like, but they’re not about to waste too much time complaining. He settles himself over her, or tries to, hipbones framing hers. 

She bites her tongue with a crack about needing coffee, even though she knows he’d laugh. He’s like that, he can laugh at himself. She lets him work his hand between her legs, over the brown herringbone. 

Maybe they didn’t think it through either, as clothed as they are. It doesn’t stop either of them, her from pulling him down to her mouth, the wet kisses and flushed cheeks, the growing hardness of him under the olive wool.

They hardly wiggle out of them, the inconvenient trousers, just enough for her to grab at the back of his thigh and squeeze. “Alright there, Mrs. Egan.” 

She goes redder, a sight, and the dark tufts of hair just above the waistband. He sighs out against her throat. 

She’s wondering just how comfortable he is exactly, knee wedged like that against the couch, until she feels him against her, slick and swollen, until-

Her exhale’s sharp, the twist of it, the little gasp-groan of it, of them, her nails against the curve of his back. 

He covers her like a blanket, heavy and warm, the dull oak moss of his aftershave, like everything she’s ever missed. The movement of his hips grows quicker, spooling tight in the bottom of her stomach. 

“Got me right where you want me, huh,” he asks, and his eyes are hazy with it, stormy-beautiful-blue. 

“All I dreamed about-” she breaks off with a noise, a whine, a spot inside hit just right. 

“Missed me, huh?”

“So much-” Every day, since-

She clenches around him, the edges of her sight shimmering, watches his mouth fall open that touch it always does. A second or two before he remembers just what exactly they’re doing, how they ought to be careful if they don’t want-

She arches, her gasp swallowed with a kiss. He comes in her hand, a dribble sliding down the crease of her thigh. The sound the sticking makes, between their bodies, pulls another noise from her chest.

Heavy, unthinking kisses against her nose, her forehead, her lips. Her shoulders lift, needing more of him. 

“I kept thinking about this,” he says, hoarse. “On the train.” A fresh thrill runs through her, touches her cheeks. “Almost missed my damn stop.”

She doesn’t push the errant curl back that brushes her forehead from his. “That wouldn’t have made either of us too happy.”

“Me in Richmond, and my darling wife here on this couch.”

“My darling husband in Richmond and me here on this couch.” Her fingers play at the back of his neck, the moments before they’ll get up and clean and dress for bed. “Good thing you wised up, then.”

“With the real thing here at home? Be pretty hopeless if I hadn’t.”

She traces her thumb against the corner of his mouth, watches his eyes follow her collarbone. “Does Mr. Not Pretty Hopeless care to join the Mrs. in the shower?”

He dips his head, kisses the crook of her neck and shoulder, intent on kissing across her chest. “Care to? That’s the best offer I’ve heard all week.”

[fangirlingfromdownunder]

4th Day of Christmas

Gingerbread Houses

Summary/Prompt - “Everyone knows you’re not actually supposed to eat the gingerbread house. Those things are stale as hell.”

Pairing - Dean Winchester x Reader

Christmas Masterlist | Masterlist

You finally finished laying out all the supplies and ingredients on the kitchen table to make a gingerbread house. Part of you hopes you’ll have some company, but if not you’re more than content to play your Christmas carols and make it yourself. With Sam and Dean nowhere in sight you find your Christmas playlist on your phone and play it through your headphones, knowing they’d just complain anyway. You love the hunters but they lack a little Christmas spirit at times. Dean tries for you, he really does, but with his past and the life he leads he doesn’t really see the point in celebrating anymore. There’s always more important things on his mind. The last proper Christmas he celebrated was before he went to hell. 

The three of you had been hunting what you thought was Krampus but really ended up being a Pagan anti-Santa that was killing people in Michigan. All the festivities got Dean in a festive mood, and with it being his supposed last Christmas topside he wanted to make the most of it. Sam was skeptical at first, but you finally convinced him to do it for his brother. It was a quiet affair: a tiny twiggy tree with cheap lights, cheap eggnog, some last minute gifts from the Gas N Sip, and the game on TV in an old motel room. But all of that is what made it perfect; it was a clear representation of your lives and most importantly it made Dean happy. 

With Dean now back and you two agreeing to stop wasting time silently crushing on each other and actually give dating a chance, you wanted to feel and give him some of that Christmas cheer again. That’s how you ended up at the store buying all the ingredients for gingerbread as well as heaps of icing and lollies for decorating. 

You lay down the biggest of the freshly cooked and cooled gingerbread cookies you made on a tray. Then you pipe some icing in a square near the edges to stand the four walls. Once all four walls are carefully balanced and iced in place you add more icing to the top of each cookie to add the roof panels. Then it’s time to decorate. Just as you’re looking at it trying to decide how you want it to look, a pair of arms wrap around you from behind and a kiss is placed on the top of your head. 

“That looks great, Sweetheart.”’

“Wanna help me decorate it?”

“I’d love to, but uh, Sam found a case just a few hours over. Hopefully it’ll be a simple salt and burn and we’ll be back for dinner. I’ll let you know either way.”

“You want me to come? I can be ready in ten.”

“No, it’s okay. We can handle it. You enjoy your free time. Make sure you call me if anything goes wrong.”

“I should be the one saying that to you. I’ll be safe here in the Bunker.”

“I’ll call you when we get into town and then let you know what we find. I’ll see you later, hopefully.”

“I love you, Dean. Be safe!”

“Yeah, love you too Y/N.”

He kisses you on the lips before walking down the hall. You say a silent prayer to your angel friend to keep Dean and Sam safe. Then you return to the task at hand. You pipe decorative shapes of icing over the cookie house and then strategically place the rainbow candies in the icing. Once you're happy with your design you place it in the fridge to cool and set. Then you start to pull out some other decorations you picked up and place them around the bunker for a more festive feel. 

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

A few days later the boys finally return from their hunt. What was meant to be a simple salt and burn ended up being a lot more complicated when they found out the body was already cremated, leaving them to track down other family members who had taken some of the possessions after the funeral. 

They’re both surprised as they walk into the war room. They take in the tinsel lining the tables, the decorated fir tree sitting atop one of them and your gingerbread house and carefully wrapped presents sitting under it. Dean quickly comes over to you and wraps you in his arms, kissing you passionately.

“This looks wonderful, Sweetheart. This must’ve been a lot of work by yourself,” he says once he pulls back for air.

“You’re worth it. You both deserve to enjoy Christmas. You work so hard.”

“You do too. I wish I had’ve gotten you something.”

“Coming home safe is enough. You’re all I need.”

He looks over at your handiwork again, smiling. “So when can I try your creation here?”

“It’s a decoration! You can’t eat it!”

After a while you separate to let them unpack while you cook dinner and serve it on the tables under the tree. 

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

The three of you fall into rhythm just doing research and enjoying the decorations. They even let you play Christmas music sometimes. You love the more relaxed nature that it all brings, if only for a few days. 

But one night as you’re all sitting there reading massive books Dean reaches over and snaps a piece of the cookie of the overhanging part of the gingerbread house. You cringe internally as you watch him place it in his mouth. The house had been sitting out on the table for days, you couldn’t begin to imagine how terribly stale and disgusting it would be by now.

He instantly spits it in the bin beside him and chases it with a long swig of beer. “No offense, Babe. But that is absolutely disgusting.”

“Everyone knows you’re not actually supposed to eat the gingerbread house. Those things are stale as hell.” You laugh.

[painterofhorizons]

(post Akuze rehab banter)

The first acute pain flare up James witnessed in Reda completely shifted his perception of where in her recovery process she was, and what side effects clouded the way for her. For him, it was pretty straight forward: wrack ACL, get surgery, let the shit heal, build back mobility and strength, be done. He had let himself be fooled at first to assume the same was true for Reda – having met her during a relatively good episode. But he was quickly brought back down to earth witnessing her state over the past few days.

Now, on the end of day four since the flare up, he finally began to see some light at the end of the tunnel. While Reda was still bed bound, at least she was sitting, she didn’t need sensory depriving aids anymore, and pain management seemed to be working. She was even up for some light conversation, or at least endured him talking bullshit to keep her entertained. She’d even signed a few words.

All the things he’d taken for granted with her just days ago – sitting, walking, talking, excercising. Until that house of cards had collapsed, because things just weren’t that simple.

James insisted on keeping her company during his time off, spending the free time in between treatment by her bed, even though she’d told him he didn’t need to waste his time like this. He’d swallowed the impulse to argue with her about that and just reassured her it was fine for him. Because it was, and it felt like the most valuable thing he could do with his free time at this very moment.

And he didn’t intend to leave just now.

When the door swooshed open and nurse Kalyani entered the room carrying a small tray of jelly, James sat up a little more upright, trying to get himself into a posture that was slightly more impressive, a little more manly, and put up his best flirty face. He’d seen the disgusted microexpression on Reda’s face knowing what was to come, and he was eager to brighten the mood by hook or by crook.

He gestured towards the tray.

“Hey, any chance I can get one of those?”

Reda frowned at his words, but her eyes were rivet to the object of her hatred sitting on the table board in front of her. Jelly time was a nightmare. Eating, in general, was. But this tasteless, gunky, undefined substance of nauseating consistence was a particular joy four times a day for her, when she was taken out by pain or other complications.

Kalyani side-eyed the bulky marine in the chair beside her patient’s bed. She’d seen him around here a number of times by now, and while she was no fan of his attitude, as long as he kept a low profile towards Reda she tolerated his presence, knowing having a friendly face around was beneficial for her.

“Pretty please?”, James added with a smirk on his lips.

Kalyani handed him one of the spare cups of clear jelly from the tray.

The smirk on James’ face grew into a grin. “Any chance I could get a bigger one, you know, proper for my size?” He gestured with both hands forming a circle around the tiny cup that was about eight times the diameter.

“Don’t stretch your luck, Mr. Vega.”

Reda slid her own tiny cup of jelly down the table towards James, and earned a warning glance from the nurse.

“And you don’t stretch my patience, Reda”, Kalyani dunned her.

“Worth a try”, Reda muttered, making James snicker.

“No worries, nurse Kalyani, I’ll make sure to not touch hers. Even if you hurt my feelings with this tiny portion of a deliciously tasteless treat.”

Kalyani snorted and shook her head. Then, looking at Reda, she said “I’ll be back at half past with your meds.”

[pinkbrries]

𝐀 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝.

➞ SUMMARY. Maybe making new friends wasn’t that bad at all, right?

↳ TW: nothing? as far as i know

↳ WORD COUNT: 1.7k words

➞ ERA: PRE-DEBUT

↳ [a/n: here is full scenario for june!! we love to see it<3 finally we know who is the best friend june was referring to👁👁 hope u enjoy this one !!] // bold words are in english // this is not proofread

SUMMER OF 2012

“Can you please hurry up, Junnie? We’re gonna be late!” A scoff is heard and then, the woman part of the staff gasps in feigned shock, “ya! don’t give me that attitude, young lady!”

One small chuckle can be heard, followed by the sound of light steps making their way to the front door: a ten-year-old june appears on the sight of the woman, the usual bright smile she always wears is adorning her face.

“Sorry unnie! I was just trying really hard to make my ponytail look good,” she pouts as she walks out of the room and closes the door behind her, seeing that her friends were already walking towards the elevator and pressing the button to call the metallic box over. “You know how ugly can get after the dance class!”

The woman slightly laughs, patting her shoulder and nodding. “You’re right, Minjun.”

Entering the elevator and hearing her friends talk, June starts wondering what she was going to be learning in today’s class, a tingle of excitement spreads through her tiny body and she can’t help but smile again at the thought.

This was her second year as a trainee, but she was the youngest out of the selected group to travel to Los Angeles and train there for a month during summer to refine their skills.

Minjun always wanted to go on a summer camp just like her friends back in England, and even if the experience wasn’t even a close one (because her friends would play around and Minjun would have to train from early morning until seven p.m), it was good enough for her.

Stretching has always been the easiest part for June, it was as if she was born to do this.

People around her that would also take the class were always nagging about stretching, but to her, it was her favorite part.

It allowed June to think about stuff like, how the weather was so hot in Los Angeles and how she preferred the cold season because it reminded her of the white-ish snow falling on the green, pine trees outside her house back in London, or how people here didn’t say ‘pardon’ and instead said ‘sorry’ if someone accidentally crashed with you on the busy downtown streets.

Or how there was a boy sitting on the other side of the busting room, a slight older boy that she hasn’t seen before (and well, it’s not like she has been in LA for a lot of days, since they had arrived like, four days ago) but it definitely sparked curiosity in her since… well,

He looked like he knew what he was actually doing.

“Okay, perfect! Let’s take a break,” the choreographer claps while turning around to face the class, “we’ll start filming in five, okay?”

She hears humming and more affirmative responses around her, the choreographer walks away and June takes this little time given to steal some more glances at the newcomer without getting distracted.

“—He looks korean,” she hears one of the trainees sitting beside her whispering and nodding, “I think Yoonah said she heard him talking in korean.”

“He’s a trainee… and I think he’s the only one from his company, I saw him entering with two persons, they told him they would be waiting outside—“

“How do you know that, Minkyu!?”

The boy raises both shoulders, a cheeky smile adorning his face. “I don’t know, maybe I just overheard a little.”

“Maybe you’re just nosy,” Moon, another girl there, rolls her eyes. And while the group of trainees starts discussing and laughing, June decides on taking mental notes about the lonely boy sitting in a corner of the crowded room.

He looked like he was kinda the same age as her, maybe a little bit older like the trainees that were with her, he had dark hair and kind but shy brown eyes, and he looked pretty tall.

Pouting in thought, she glances at the group of people beside her, and then she returns her eyes towards the stranger.

Yeah, June liked the other trainees, but they were… not her type of people at all. Sometimes they were a little too competitive with each other, and while Minjun tried to keep it friendly with all of them, she knew she couldn’t trust them since they always bad mouthed each other at their backs, as if that would make them debut or something.

Sigh. Maybe making new friends wasn’t that bad at all, right?

Standing from her seat, she makes her direction towards the stranger that captivated her curiosity, smiling a little when he looks up and locks eyes with her.

“Hi, hello!” Minjun says with an excited tone, standing in front of the boy and waving her hand in enthusiasm.

The boy went from confused, to nervous, to confused again, the timid boy blinks twice and mutters a greeting back, his hesitant hands doing an awkward gesture, making June smile.

In less than five seconds, June decides that she likes him because he seemed kind enough for her, and yeah, she might be ten and maybe she didn’t not know a lot about life, but this young stranger seemed nice.

Sitting in front of him and crossing her legs, Minjun beams brightly at him, extending a hand to greet him.

“Hi! My name is June, what’s your name?” Before the boy can answer, June gasps when she suddenly remembers something, “oh wait, do you speak korean? Because I do. Do you want us to speak in korean or english?”

Stunned by the sudden words coming quickly by the shorter girl’s mouth, the dark haired boy can’t help but let out a giggle.

“Uhm—,” he smiles slightly, extending his hand too so he can answer the greeting. “Yes, I’m korean, I don’t know a lot of english, so—“

“It’s okay! I’m korean too!” June interrupts again, and just like that, she starts making small conversation with the boy.

To the boy, there was something peculiar about how the girl talked with him with so much emotion: as if the both of them have been friends of each other for years and they just met after so long. It was a pleasing feeling; it made him feel comfortable and like home.

That afternoon, Minjun spends her time getting to know someone new, and when her time of training that day is almost over, she realizes that maybe she just found someone that really understands her.

The dark haired boy is four years older than her, he’s from Busan, and he’s also a trainee (so the information she overheard by her fellow company trainees was right) from a small company, the company’s name not really sticking to her.

“So, you’re debuting in a year?” June asks, eyes widening at the new information she just discovered. The boy nods.

“Yeah, I started training some months ago but my dance skills are… not that advanced,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck in slight embarrassment, June giggles at that. “So my company decided on sending me here to take some lessons.”

June hums, pouting, deep in thought.

Walking together to where their water bottles were located, June grabs her drink but doesn’t open it, instead, she just admires the object between both of her hands.

“Debut”; a word that every single trainee gets prepared to hear, and it usually means good news. It means that your hard work has finally paid off, that you’re going to show the world what you’re capable of.

A word that Minjun only has heard, but it was never directed to her.

He’s debuting in a year, and he just trained for months… must be nice.

“What about you, June?”

“Hmm?”

Taking her out of her deep thoughts, the boy gulps down the rest of his water and cleans his mouth with the back of his hand, a sheepish smile adorning his lips.

“What about you?” he repeats the same question, tilting his head a little, “when are you debuting?”

“Oh–“

Yeah, “oh.”

“–Uhm,” the girl hesitates for a second, shrugging and trying to smile again, “I don’t know, uhm, actually this is my second year as a trainee, but— but I’m sure that, maybe when I go back to Korea, I’ll get put in a line-up!”

The boy nods excitedly, giving her a thumbs up. “I’m sure your company will debut you soon! You’re really talented!”

June lights up upon hearing this, and before she can answer, a call of her name makes the both of them turn their gazes to where the voice is coming from.

It was Minjun’s manager.

“Minjun-ah, it’s time to go!”

She looks up at the clock hanging up on the wall, widening her eyes at seeing that her lessons are already over. She sighs.

“Coming!”

“We’ll be waiting for you outside!”

She just nods, looking again at the taller boy in front of her. He gives her a toothy grin, nodding.

“I guess we’ll keep seeing each other, right?”

She giggles, “I come to this studio three times a week, tomorrow I have lessons on a different one,” she adds, the boy’s shoulders dropping at hearing that. “But! wait, does your company let you use a phone?” He nods, “give me your number and your kakaotalk id! We can keep communicating there!”

“Of course!”

Minjun runs towards her bag, takes out a tiny notebook and her glittery gel pink pen and hands it out to the boy, making him laugh.

After the exchange of numbers, she waves goodbye to the boy and high-fives with him, making a promise on seeing each other again.

Minjun starts walking away, eyeing the boy’s cute handwriting and— wait.

She doesn’t even know his name!

“Hey!” She runs back quickly, taking out the pen, the boy looking at her in expectation. “What’s your name?”

The boy can’t help but start laughing, realizing that he never gave her his name, but they spent all day talking and laughing together.

“Jungkook. My name is Jeon Jungkook.”

Scribbling it down, she nods and gives him a thumbs up.

“Nice to meet you Jungkook oppa!” Minjun says enthusiastically, walking backwards while waving him goodbye, “hope we can meet again soon!”

And just like that, the girl turns around and starts running towards the main gate, a 14-year-old Jungkook watching her disappear with a smile adorning his features.

taglist: @curly-fr13s

[roseofdarknessblog]

Monsters and Heroes (Reiner Braun x Marleyan!Reader)

Word count: 5 400

Disclaimer: english is not my first language, I apologize in advance for any mistakes

A/N: Huge thanks to @wyvernslovecake for inspiring this story! Soft dad Reiner with his little princess has my whole heart! ❤️

TW: mentions of birth trauma, postpartum depression

Summary: You and Reiner were very well aware, that raising a child is going to be challenging. Although most days were filled with nothing but love and fun, there came days when you had to re-open old wounds, just to let your daughter know what the world she was born into used to look like back in the day.

This story can be read on its own or as a part of my little post-war series: House by the ocean

Monsters and Heroes

„Honey, watch your steps. You’re going to trip and fall down again,“ you said to your four-year-old daughter, who kept looking over her shoulder in your direction. It has always been her little thing – walking a few steps ahead and looking back, to see if you were still following. „And if you rip your dress, daddy is not going to be happy. You know this one is his favorite and he loves it, when you wear it.“

„He can buy me a new one,“ Maya replied without even thinking about the answer and gave you the cutest little smile. The bright yellow dress with tiny little white flowers was Reiner’s favorite from the moment he got it for his little princess. And you completely understood why. „Right, mommy?“

„I don’t know, you’ll have to ask him when he later comes home from work.“

„I wish he didn’t have to work so often, so he could be home with me.“

You smiled, tucking a few strands of loose hair behind your ear. It was a beautiful summer day – not too hot thanks to the light breeze, which was coming from the ocean. „You know he loves his job. And besides, he would be bored if he stayed home all the time, don’t you think?“

„No,“ Maya said and looked over at you again. You were on the way back home from the farmer’s market, which was one of her favorite places ever. She simply loved looking around, asking tons of questions, and saying hello to everyone who she passed by. Animals including. „I would keep him busy. We could play all day.“

Over time, Reiner got really friendly with the owner of the nearby farm, from where you first got your ducklings – way back when you moved here from Marley after the Rumbling and started a new life. And as their friendship got stronger, the owner offered him a job. As he was getting older and needed help more often, he wanted someone, who he could trust. And Reiner was just the right man for that position. With a pretty decent income came many more benefits as well. But the most important thing was, that Reiner was happy.

While you stayed home with your daughter, occasionally earning some extra money by selling your paintings and tending to the house, he worked five days a week and had the weekends off. That’s when the farmer’s sons usually came to visit him, so he had somebody else to help with the things that couldn’t wait until Monday morning.

And even though you never had tons of money to spend, you lived happily. You could always afford all the things you needed while living a slow and peaceful life, both of you doing something you truly enjoyed.

But the most important thing above all was your daughter – Maya Braun, whose birth almost cost you your own life. After nearly bleeding out shortly after delivering her, and then spending almost three weeks in the hospital due to many other complications, you had to face something even more horrific. You’ve barely heard about a condition called postpartum depression until you had to face it yourself. Not to mention the overwhelming anxiety and quilt, which keep you company for many months to come. Maya was nearly one year old when you finally started to feel like yourself again.

You had to face many hardships, to have the happy life you lived today. But with the help of your partner, his mother, and Pieck, who moved close by with her dad a couple of months after Maya was born, you did it. You slowly recovered and got to enjoy your new life, not taking anything for granted.

„Will Pieck come over today? She promised to braid my hair and put some flowers in it.“

„Not today, I think,“ you said, walking up the little hill to your house, which was situated on top of a cliff. The view from your garden was the best part, it overlooked the ocean in all its beauty. „But if you want your hair braided, I can do it. We can even pick some flowers in the garden.“

„No, Pieck does it better,“ Maya stated, looking back at you once more. She stumbled a little almost immediately but didn’t fall. She just twirled around a bit with a heartwarming laugh and continued walking as if nothing happened. „I’ll wait for her. Or for daddy, he can do it just as nicely.“

„Well, okay then,“ you smiled and shook your head.

She made every day of your life so worth it. As she was getting older and started exploring the world around her more and more, you simply loved to watch her every step. And Reiner was the same. He spent every possible second with his baby girl, always carrying her around on his shoulders and making her laugh until both of them could hardly catch their breaths.

She really was the happiest, when she was with her dad. And not only now, but ever since she was a baby. At first, you were pretty bummed about it and blamed yourself, for not being able to bond with your daughter right after birth. But as you saw how effortlessly Reiner cared for her and loved her, how much happiness his daughter brought into his life, you slowly let go of your dark thought. Seeing both of them happy was, after all, the most important thing.

Recovering from his past took Reiner a lot of time, but after many battles, he succeeded. Sometimes, there were moments he remembered something or got sad, but you couldn’t even compare it to the state he was in during the Marley Mid-East War or after the Rumbling. Maya truly healed his heart and mind in ways even you couldn’t. And just simply by being born and being his daughter, who took after him in many ways. Her blonde hair, nose, and lips looked so much like Reiner’s. Not to say her eyes, which started to turn the color of honey gold when she was about six months old. There was no denying, that she was Reiner’s daughter.

„Grandma said she’ll bake that cherry pie I love so much and bring some over in the evening.“

„Yeah, she’ll stay over for dinner as well,“ you answered, finally seeing your house on the top of the hill. Walking up here when you were in town during pregnancy was a true nightmare. „Will you help me cook something good for her?“

Maya excitedly nodded and when she too finally saw your house, she started running towards it, screaming for your ducks. She loved them to death, always playing with them and carrying them around the garden or the house when they were still little.

„Mommy, you’re taking forever!“ she shouted for you, shoving open the wooden gate. It was painted white and decorated with colorful flowers and butterflies, she helped you paint. On one of the wooden boards were three colorful handprints – Reiner’s, Maya’s, and yours in the colors orange, yellow, and red.

„You don’t have to wait for me, go check the ducks and ask them what they did while we were away.“

„They surely missed me so much.“

„Of course, they did, honey.“

While she raced to the back of the garden, which was reserved for the ducks, you stopped to check the mailbox. For almost seven years now, you were expecting at least a single letter from your father. A former Marleyan soldier, who was taken hostage by the Eldians from the Liberio Internment zone, when the Rumbling started. Only thanks to that did you and he got the chance to travel with them to Fort Salta and survive.

But after everything, he turned his back on you because of Reiner. It was humiliating for him, that his only daughter fell in love with an Eldian. Not to say with Reiner Braun. You tried to make amends with him throughout the years by writing him every week and even going back to his new home in Marley. But he avoided you at all costs. At that time, you were already pregnant without anyone knowing. Even Reiner got to hear the exciting news just after you came back.

After giving birth and almost losing your life, it was Reiner, who wrote to your father and begged him, to come and see you. But not even such horrific news convinced him to contact you. After some time, you somehow accepted it. He was simply not interested in you anymore. He rather lived alone, than accepted Reiner into the family. Not even the fact, that you named Maya after your late mother, who died when you were still a child, interested him.

And so almost seven years went by, without you and your father speaking a single word. You kept sending him letters, where you wrote about your life, about Maya, and sometimes about nothing important at all. But you kept sending the letters in the hope that one day he’ll respond.

With a sigh, you closed the empty mailbox, made your way into the house, and started putting away everything you bought at the farmer’s market. Maya was running in and out of the house, laughing and squealing just like always. Some of the ducks were following her, running around your legs, just like they used to, when they were following Reiner around.

You could barely settle her down to eat some lunch, without the urge to run away and do millions of other things in between every bite she took. However, the good thing was, that after lunch she usually only lasted another half an hour. After that, she always came to you for a hug and then voluntarily retreated to her room to take a nap, which sometimes lasted up to two hours. You went to check on her ten minutes after she’s gone to bed, finding her fast asleep under a blanket with little cherry blossoms, Reiner’s mom crocheted for her even before she was born.

Your relationship with Karina Braun was at a point, you never thought it would get to. After she realized just how wrong and selfish she acted towards her own son, and started trying to mend their relationship, everything changed. Even more, after she accepted the fact, that Reiner fell in love with a Marleyan girl. The two of you sat down to talk many times and slowly started to build a nice and solid relationship.

It was difficult in the beginning, but all of you tried your best. Mainly Reiner, who after all those years wanted to finally have a healthy relationship with his mother. And you were forever thankful to Karina, for being here after Maya was born and you were still in the hospital or recovering at home. She truly helped Reiner a lot by taking care of the house, her newborn granddaughter, and you as well, after you came home.

After you went to check on Maya and confirmed, she was soundly asleep like usual, you did some work around the house that needed to be done, and then crashed onto the sofa with your new book. It was a really hot summer day, so doing anything required too much energy.

The heat soon make you drowsy and your eyelids so heavy, you had to close them. One second you were reading your novel or wandering somewhere between reality and a dream, the next somebody was gently kissing your forehead and stroking your cheek.

„What time is it?“ you asked, sleepily opening your eyes and seeing your husband. Yes, husband. You became Mrs. Braun just a couple of days after Maya celebrated her second birthday. The wedding was small and simple, just like both of you wished it to be. „How are you already home? Where is Maya?“

Reiner chuckled at all of your questions, laying down on the couch between your legs and resting his head on your chest. „She’s still asleep, I just checked. And I finished early today, so don’t worry. You didn’t miss anything.“

„Great,“ you breathed out, still half asleep, and ran your fingers through his hair, smoothing it down a bit. „How was your day? It was really hot.“

„Pretty good. I had a lot to do, so there was literally no time to think about the heat.“

„And you still managed to finish early?“ you asked, lovingly caressing his nape and sliding your fingers under his shirt. You could feel his body relax against yours, his eyes closing almost immediately.

„I wanted to be with my favorite girls.“ You smiled at the tone of his voice. It was so gentle and full of love, just like always when talking to you or his daughter. „Mom is coming over for dinner.“

„I know, Maya reminded me as well. She can’t wait for your mom’s cherry pie.“

Reiner immediately lifted his head from your chest. „She’s bringing some?“ With a laugh, you nodded your head and tried to prop yourself up on your elbows, to give him a kiss.

Both he and Maya loved everything Karina baked or cooked. Sometimes even more, than what you made for them. But that was more than okay. Even if you tried your best, the kitchen was never your natural habitat. Not that Reiner would be any better. He tried and successfully learned some basics, but that was it. He really wasn’t pushing his luck around the stove or the cutting board.

„And how was your day? Did my princess behave?“

„She did, yeah. You know how much she loves going to the farmer’s market. So she had the time of her life there, we picked up a lot of things I needed and then she just chased the ducks around the garden and the house until she got tired.“

„I would love to have her stamina sometimes, she really has more energy than you and me combined.“

„Definitely,“ you nodded, kissing the tip of Reiner’s nose. His smile warmed your heart more than words could describe. „Oh, and she turned down my offer to braid her hair. You and Pieck do it better.“

„What a nice compliment,“ Reiner smirked, while one of his hands slipped under your summer dress and squeezed your thigh. „You always loved when I braided your hair. Mainly when you were pregnant, remember?“ You nodded, biting down on your lower lip when Reiner slid his hand a bit higher, his eyes hungrily looking at you. „Since Maya is still asleep...“

„She’s going to wake up any minute now,“ you reminded him, stopping his hand before it went any higher.

„Or not,“ Reiner objected and before you knew it, he put away your book and rolled up your dress. His lips pressed to your left inner thigh, making you gasp for air in surprise. „I think we have enough time to...“

„Mommy!“ Both of you were startled when your daughter screamed for you. Her voice sounded a little urgent and scared. Almost as if she was on the verge of tears.

„I’ll go,“ Reiner said and swiftly stood up, giving you a gentle kiss. You watched him walk into your daughter’s room, while you sat up and adjusted your dress. „Y/N,“ your husband called for you.

Without hesitation you stood up and joined them, sitting down on the edge of her bed. Your little girl was clinging to Reiner, tears streaming down her chubby cheeks. Karina said, that Reiner used to have them as well when he was this age.

„What is it, baby? What happened?“ you asked her, caressing her back, while she was hugging Reiner around the neck. „Did you have a bad dream?“ She nodded, while Reiner kissed the top of her head and hid her in his embrace the best he could. That helped every single time and in every situation. Just like you, Maya knew, that being in Reiner’s arms meant being safe from the whole world and loved beyond words.

„Do you want to tell us what that dream was about?“ he asked her in a gentle voice, kissing the top of her head once again.

„Take your time, it’s okay,“ you assured her and leaned closer, so she would feel your presence even without looking at you. „You know we won’t let anything happen to you, baby. Never.“

It took some time and many kisses from both you and Reiner, but she eventually told you. Still crying a little the whole time, she told you about what she heard from two women at the farmer’s market today. It all happened, while you were talking to one of your friends there and didn’t pay that much attention to your surroundings. Maya was right there beside you holding onto your skirt as she typically used to, so it didn’t even occur to you, that she could have heard something disturbing.

„Were they telling the truth?“ she asked with a quivering lip, looking from Reiner to you and waiting for an answer.

From what Maya told you, it was obvious that those women were talking about Titans and about the Rumbling. About the past, you and Reiner lived through and still vividly remembered. And it was also the past Maya knew nothing about. There was no need to tell her such things – not yet. However, you and Reiner both knew, that there will come a time to sit her down and tell her the most important details of your past.

„Did you see those monsters?“

Reiner looked at you, before nodding slightly. „Yes, we did,“ you said, closing your eyes just for a second.

Remembering those times was never easy. Not for you, an ordinary Marleyan girl, who survived only thanks to the Eldians from the Liberio Internmnent zone. And surely not for Reiner, who actually fought in the Battle of Heaven and Earth, as the people used to refer to the final effort of the Marleyan military, the Warriors, and members of the Survey Corps from Paradis to stop the Rumbling. Sometimes, when you closed your eyes, you were back at Fort Salta in Marley and you could see the Founding Titan and his army of giant steaming Titans getting closer and closer.

Some nights you still had nightmares about Eren Jeager and what he did to the world. And even after all those years, you tried not to hate him for that. Only because you didn’t know enough about him and his life to have the right to do it.

„They were very scary, just like those women said,“ you continued, stroking Maya’s head and leaning against Reiner. He seemed a little uncomfortable, but you couldn’t blame him. The past he was so eagerly trying to forget for almost seven years, was now back and trying to haunt his beloved daughter. „But they are gone for good, honey. Those monsters are never coming back, I can assure you.“

„Really?“

„Yes, really,“ Reiner assured her in a calm voice. „You will never have to face them.“

„And you know why?“ you asked a little more cheerfully, kissing her cheek and wiping away a couple more tears. „Because daddy took care of it. He fought those monsters and made sure they don’t hurt anybody ever again.“ Her little eyes lit up as she looked at Reiner in astonishment. „Daddy, Pieck, Gabi, Falco, and some of their friends fought those monsters and made them disappear forever. A couple of years before you were born and before me and daddy came to live here.“

„What about you?“

„Me?“

Maya nodded. „What were you doing?“ She looked from Reiner to you, waiting for your answer eagerly.

„Well... me, grandma, Pieck’s dad, and many other people were cheering on them from a huge, huge nearby cliff. From there we saw everything.“ You tried to make it all sound like a fairytale with a happy ending. But that was far from the truth. Even though you and Reiner got your happy ending, the Rumbling was something this world will never forget.

„Those women said, that the biggest monster was called Eren.“

Shivers ran down your back when you heard his name from your daughter’s mouth. At first, you didn’t even dare to look at Reiner. „I knew that Eren before all of that, and I can assure you, princess, that he was no monster. Just other people made him do bad things.“

„That’s right, daddy and Eren knew each other when they were young. They were friends.“ You looked at Reiner with love in your eyes, giving him a gentle smile.

„But then we didn’t talk for a couple of years and the last time we saw each other, we had to fight against one another. Sometimes...“

When he took a deep breath but didn’t continue after a while, you took over once again. „Sometimes people change. Or they are forced to do things, they don’t want to do. They just don’t have any other choice if they want to protect their family or friends.“

Both of you knew, that Reiner had his fair share of guilt in everything that happened. But looking back at his story, you could never blame him. Not, when he was brainwashed by his own mother and then the military as well. All that little boy wanted, was to bring his father home. Because of that dream, which was falsely made up by Karina, he got the Armored Titan when he was only ten years old. His whole childhood was lost to military training and a suicide mission to Paradis, which started all of the events, that ultimately led to the Rumbling itself.

„And are you angry at him for doing so many bad things?“ Maya asked Reiner, her cheeks still stained with drying tears. At least she wasn’t crying anymore. „Those women said he was very cruel.“

„He had his reasons,“ Reiner said, his voice trembling a little. None of you ever thought, that you would be having this conversation with her this soon. That’s why you weren’t prepared. Or else... how could anybody explain such an event to a four-year-old? „People who didn’t know him should never judge him. Times were hard back then, the world was a much uglier place than it is now.“

„Why?“

„Because...“

When Reiner didn’t continue, you tried to say something. But no words came out of your mouth. What were you supposed to say? That people like you wanted people like Reiner dead? That your military was punishing them, by turning them into said monsters? That even you for so many years hated people like Reiner and wished nothing but the worst for them?

„Because the past is almost always uglier, baby. Then people learn to do better, so the world can be prettier and safer,“ you said finally, while Maya climbed over to you and hugged you just as tight as Reiner before. „If you ever hear something similar, tell me or daddy about it, okay? So we can sit down and explain it to you. That way you won’t have nightmares.“

Maya nodded, but for the rest of the day, she barely moved from you or Reiner. Even Karina noticed that something wasn’t right with her granddaughter when she came over for dinner. So when Reiner and Maya went to wish the ducks good night, you told her what happened and asked her, not to mention anything in front of Maya.

She was still too young and innocent for all of that. And you wanted to keep it that way for a couple more years.

You were just about to get into bed when Reiner appeared at the door leading to your bedroom. „Is she finally asleep?“

„I had to read her almost half of that big fairytale book. My eyes started to close halfway through the second story, but I had to keep going, she was still watching me with eyes wide open.“

You smiled, sitting down on the bed. „Guess I’ll have to pay more attention next time and just pull her away when I hear something similar. I really didn’t notice what they were talking about.“

„Hey, don’t beat yourself up over it. I think we handled it pretty well.“

„But I don’t want her to know, Reiner. Not yet. She is still so little.“

It was only natural, that you wanted to protect your daughter. She and Reiner were the most precious people in your life, and you wanted nothing but happiness for both of them. They deserved it – life in a world, that was always full of sunshine instead of dark stormy clouds.

Reiner shrugged and came to sit down next to you. „Who knows, maybe it will be better this way. Randomly telling her bits and pieces over the years, so she can put them all together later on her own. And then, if she has questions, we’ll sit down and talk about everything.“ One of his arms wrapped around your shoulders, bringing you closer to him. „You can’t lock her into a golden cage so nothing ever happens to her, Y/N. We have to let her grow up and explore the world. Even its ugly parts.“

„I know,“ you breathed out, nuzzling your face into the crook of his neck. „It just hurts seeing her sad, scared, or in pain.“

Since Reiner only nodded but didn’t say anything, you stayed quiet too. It was more than obvious, that he felt the same unease about this whole situation as you. He just tried not to show it and be strong for you. But talking about that day and about Eren surely hit pretty close to home.

„I’ll go shower and get ready for bed. Will you wait for me or are you too tired?“

You smiled and kissed the warm skin on his neck. „Of course, I’ll wait for you, take all the time you need.“ When you pulled away from his embrace, Reiner bowed his head a little and found your lips in a sweet kiss. „I love you so much.“

„I love you too,“ he whispered into your lips, giving you one more kiss before he stood up and went into the bathroom.

When he finally put the lights out and made himself comfortable, you were half asleep. But still conscious enough, to cuddle up to him, wrap one of your arms around his body and rest your head on his chest. Falling asleep like this is what you missed most during pregnancy when your belly got too big.

„There’s something I wanted to talk about,“ Reiner said after a short while, his fingers playing with your hair. „It looks like Armin and the others are going to Paradis again. In the next couple of months. You know... to talk to Historia, maintain the still fragile bond Paradis has with the outside world.“ You nodded, feeling him tense up. „Pieck asked if I’ll come along as well.“

The last time he went there, Maya was just a few months old and he still worried about you and your health. He was thinking about not going, but you and Karina promised, that everything will be okay during the time he’s gone. And so he went, together with his old friends and comrades. They met with the queen and began the peace talks between Paradis and the outside world.

„Do you want to go?“ you asked, drawing all kinds of lines and shapes onto his chest with your fingers.

„I’m not sure. I don’t want to leave you and Maya here.“

„We’ll be fine, just like last time. Don’t worry about us so much, we can handle many things, Reiner. After all... we are the Braun girls.“

„Yeah, you are,“ he chuckled and kissed the top of your head. „I told Pieck I’ll think about it and let them know. Not that they can’t handle it without me.“

You still remembered how hard it was for him to go back the first time. Because of you and Maya, but because of his own past as well. He feared the worst, and you knew it. Even if he never told you. But when he came back after almost three weeks, you saw how content he was. Maybe even a bit happy, that he overcame his fear and went there. Back to the place, which held so many painful memories.

„You know, maybe it would be good if you...“

Before you could finish what you were saying, the door to your bedroom opened slightly and closed back when a four-year-old girl slipped inside. She quietly made her way to your bed and climbed up, walking over to you and Reiner.

„Princess, if I have to read you another fairytale, I’m going to fall asleep before we get to the end,“ Reiner said and outstretched his free hand toward her. Maya grabbed it with her much smaller hand and flopped down right onto Reiner’s chest.

„What’s the matter?“ you asked her, stroking the hair out of her face and switching on the lamp on your nightstand.

She slightly pushed out her bottom lip, hugging her favorite doll with her other hand. It was her favorite from the moment she got it – almost a year back when Jean and Connie came to visit and brought it for her. She immediately fell in love with both of them and was very sad, after they left.

„Can I sleep with you tonight?“ she finally asked, looking at you and then at her father. And that was it. All she had to do to convince you. Neither one of you could say no to her big puppy dog eyes. „I don’t want to be alone.“

Without a word, you pulled away from Reined and made space for her in between the two of you. Reiner rolled onto his side with a quiet laugh, so he was facing you and looking at Maya at the same time.

„Now, is this better?“ he asked, kissing his daughter’s forehead. She giggled quietly and turned on her side, so she could cuddle up to Reiner.

„Honey, if you’re going to be hugging daddy for the night what am I supposed to do?“ You teased her, leaning closer and kissing the top of her head while smiling at Reiner, whose eyes were full of love and joy.

„Here mommy,“ she said, turned around, and gave you her doll.

You took the toy from her with a chuckle. „Thank you, baby. Now I feel way better.“ She gave you one last cheeky grin, before turning her back to you once more and trying to hug Reiner as if he too was one of her dolls.

The bond she and Reiner had was something incredible and magical. You could watch them talk or play all day every day, and you still wouldn’t have enough. Seeing them both so happy together really made you feel like the luckiest person in the whole world. Even if things weren’t perfect and you still missed your father a whole lot, you had your own wonderful little family. You had the sweetest daughter and the most loving husband you could ever ask for.

And they were all that truly mattered. The people, who made you feel loved and appreciated. The ones, who were always excited to see you and spend time with you.

When you sometime looked at them, you felt sorry for your father. Sorry for the fact, that he didn’t want to have such amazing people in his life. And sorry for the fact, that he once loved you just like Reiner loves Maya, but he stopped in the moment you decided to live your own life and be happy.

If he gave Reiner at least one chance. Only one...

„Hey,“ Reiner said in a hushed voice, and before you knew it, he caught the first tear that was ready to roll down your cheek.

„I’m fine,“ you assured him and grabbed his hand, squeezing it reassuringly. When you turned off the lights once more, the darkness suddenly became even more comforting, now that Maya was right there next to you.

In the end, all that pain and suffering was worth it. A hundred percent. Your husband and daughter... your current life was worth everything bad, you had to face since the day you were born in the old world.

[daddy-dins-girl]

Kindred - Chapter Four

Main Masterlist Series Masterlist

AO3 link

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 || Chapter 5

Maxwell Lord x f!Reader (Nanny)

Word Count: 7.5k

Chapter Summary: Max goes on his business trip and expresses just how much he missed you when he gets back ;)

Chapter Warnings: 18+ MDNI. Smut. Teasing, edging, vaginal fingering, praise kink, goodboy!maxwell. If I missed anything else, lmk!

Notes: I'm sorry I'm pretty sure I promised y'all that they'd finally do the deed this chapter but it got way too long and that'll have to wait for chapter 5. To make up for it though, you're having a bath with Maxwell. Enjoy.

After your little impromptu morning romp with Max you both regretfully pulled away from each other before the still sleeping 6 year old could come in search of his father. Max went off to his ensuite to have a quick shower and you went to do the same in the main house bathroom. You washed your hair again, blow-dried and styled it and settled on doing just a light touch of makeup today. It was Sunday and you had no grand plans other than taking care of Alistair and offering to help Maxwell with anything he needed to prepare for his trip.

You pull your bottom lip between your teeth as your mind wanders to Max. You’re happy for him for this amazing opportunity for his company, but you can’t help but worry for him. With the recent news of Alistair’s mother staying out of town for the foreseeable future and Max taking on full-time Dad responsibilities, you know it’s not going to be easy on any of you. Not to mention Max is always so tightly wound with stress as it is, the taught thread threatening to snap at any given moment. You’re grateful at least that he’s let you in, to let you take some of that stress from him and relieve it in a way that seemingly only you can.

Butterflies flutter in your stomach any time you think about it. The way he gives his whole self over to you simply because you ask him to because you know he needs it. You’ve had walls up around your heart for a long time, not letting anyone in for fear you’d get hurt again, but Max had a way of taking them down, brick by brick, day by day. And it started long before your sexual relationship began, you realize. Max had trusted you, let you into this little family of him and the darling 6 year old boy that now held a large piece of your heart in his tiny hands. You became a staple in their lives, and them for you.

You knew the coming weeks - or more likely, months - were going to get complicated. You and Max had yet to have a real discussion about it but you assume at this point that it won’t happen until after he returns from his business trip. You were glad for it, in a way. It gave you time to think over how you felt about it, and what you wanted your involvement to be going forward. You had a lot to think about, and a lot to discuss with Max.

You hear laughter flow through the house and it pulls you away from your thoughts as a smile crosses your lips. Clearly Alistair is up and he and Max had made their way downstairs to get their day started. You give yourself one last once-over in the mirror and satisfied with what you see you head out of the bedroom and through the house to meet them in the kitchen.

“Good morning gentlemen” you announce yourself at the entrance of the kitchen. Max is leaning against the counter looking amazing in a pair of dark tan khakis and soft pink polo shirt, sipping away at a cup of coffee. His hair is perfectly styled the way he likes it and you have to curl your fingers into your palms to resist the urge to go and run your hands through it, now that you know how good it feels to do so. If it weren’t for his son sitting at the kitchen table happily munching away on his Cheerios, you would do exactly that.

“Morning Nana” Alistair mumbles through a mouthful and a little bit of milk dribbles down his chin.

“No talking with your mouth full” you remind him gently of his manners before crossing the kitchen to wipe his chin with a napkin before it has a chance to drip down onto his clean t-shirt.

“Sorry” Alistair giggles sheepishly and you tossle his hair before leaning down to place a kiss to the top of his head.

Max watches the sweet exchange from a few feet away, a smile playing at his lips before he turns and grabs a mug out of the cupboard and fills a cup for you. You’re at his side a moment later, accepting the steaming mug and breathing in the rich scent.

“Thank you, Mr. Lord” you tell him, tossing him a playful wink that goes unnoticed by Alistair as your back is to the boy. Max surprises you by putting a finger through your belt loop of your jeans and tugging you a little closer and you quickly whip your head around to check on Alistair; a relieved breath leaving your lips as you realize the boy is happily entranced in his breakfast as he slowly eats and reads the random childrens facts and stories on the back of the cereal box.

“Good morning Angel” Max’s words are barely a whisper, easily unregistered by the young ears a few feet away.

“Good morning” you smile sweetly at him, your free hand coming down to rest on top of his that’s still holding you at your belt loop.

Max takes a second to peer over your shoulder to double check that his son’s back is still turned to the two of you before leans in and places the briefest peck of a kiss to your lips and then pushes you back a few inches and regretfully releases you from his hold.

“So,” Max suddenly claps his hands together, getting Alistair’s attention. “What would you like to do today, my boy?”

Max spends the entire morning with Alistair. The three of you go out for breakfast and then once you get home you give them some space to hang out just the two of them, excusing yourself to run off to the grocery store to get a few things you know you’re going to need to get through the week. By early afternoon Max is all packed and you and Alistair are standing at the top of the driveway waving him off as he heads to the airport. There are tears in Alistair’s eyes that he hastily wipes away as he watches his father go but you anticipated that and thankfully had the forethought to buy his favorite treat at the grocery store so once Max’s car is out of sight you let Alistair know that there’s a Strawberry Pound Cake in the kitchen with both your names on it and his eyes light up as he races off inside the house.

The 4 days that Maxwell is gone is mostly uneventful. Alistair does have one minor meltdown by Wednesday evening but you manage to calm him down eventually and by the time his father calls for their nightly chat, Alistair is fully settled again and is back to his happy-go-lucky self. Each night after Alistair and Max chat for a few minutes he passes the phone off to you and you get a couple minutes with Max as well to ask him how he’s doing and fill him in on what’s been going on at home. It’s not the easiest trying to talk to him because Alistair is typically running circles around you or playing nearby and so when Max confesses how much he misses you, you can do little but say “ditto” and hope he hears in your voice how much you really miss him too.

He tells you he will be flying home on Thursday but that with the time difference and the length of the flight it will be the middle of the night when he gets home. He could’ve opted for a later flight that wasn’t a red eye but that would mean not getting home until dinner time Friday and he didn’t want to be apart from the two of you a minute longer than necessary.

You’re excited to have him home and so by the time Thursday night comes and Alistair is asleep you lie awake in your bed like a kid on Christmas Eve too excited to sleep for hours until the numbers on the clock at your bedside start to blur and you finally begin to drift off.

You wake in the early morning hours, a slow smile spreading across your lips as you stretch out in your bed, knowing that Max would have gotten home sometime in the middle of the night. You push down the twinge of disappointment that you didn’t wake up to him in your bed with you. Maybe he was too tired, or maybe he felt it might be an invasion of your privacy to just crawl into your bed while you’re asleep (you make a mental note to let him know that you’d like that just fine). It’s still early, Alistair is not due to get up for school quite yet so you decide to push yourself out of bed and go seek out Max yourself. You know he needs his sleep, but you see no harm in at least cuddling up to him while he does it.

You make your way upstairs and frown slightly when you see Alistair’s door not all the way shut. You know you closed it when you put him to bed last night, but maybe Max stopped to check in on him when he got in last night. You poke your head in and your heart swells at the sight before you. Max, still dressed in his slacks and dress shirt (at least he lost the tie at some point) curled up and sleeping next to his son on the small bed barely big enough for one. Max is curled in on himself, his knees nearly to his chest to take up as little room as possible, meanwhile Alistair is spread out like a very comfortable looking starfish and you have to bite back your giggle at the site. The disappointment you briefly held for not waking up with Max in your bed quickly disappears when your gaze settles on the adorable sleeping duo. You knew Max had been missing Alistair a lot and couldn’t wait to get home again.

You watch them for a couple of minutes, both sleeping peacefully until you quietly pad into the room. Max sleeping scrunched up like a Slinky was not likely to bode well for him or his back when he wakes up so you reach the side of the bed where he is and gently push a hand through his hair. He hums sleepily at your touch, burrowing his face a little further into the pillow and you gently shake his shoulder instead.

Max stirs slightly and then turns on his back and looks up to see you standing over him and a sleepy smile crosses his lips.

“Oh, I fell asleep” he whispers quietly into the room and you giggle.

“I can see that. C’mon,” you say and he holds his arm up for you to grab and help pull him out of the bed. His fingers entwine with yours and wordlessly lead him out of Alistair’s bedroom and down the hall into his own.

The moment Max’s bedroom door closes behind you his arms wrap around you and he’s hugging you tightly against him, his face buried in your neck and breathing you in.

“Missed you Angel” he murmurs into your neck before placing a soft kiss to it.

“I missed you too” you confess; arms tightly wound around his neck to hold him close.

“Hey, listen” you say after a few long moments pass and you gently push back from Max so you’re able to look at each other.

“Sofia called last night,” you begin, your arms still around Max’s neck as his now slowly run up and down your sides. “She talked to Alistair for a bit and then she asked to speak with me”

Max’s brow furrows at this. You two had never really spoken much before other than brief exchanges of hello’s or goodbye’s when you’d answer the phone if she called or when she would pick up or drop off Alistair at Max’s place. You certainly weren’t unfriendly or anything, it’s just anything that needed to be discussed regarding Alistair always went through Max and the two of you didn’t have much need to speak to each other.

“What did she want?”

“She wanted me to let you know that she’s coming home for the weekend. Since she’s going to be staying with her mother much longer than anticipated she needs to pack some more things to take up there. She’ll be here tomorrow, Saturday, and she obviously wants as much time with Alistair as possible while she’s here”

“Of course” Max nods his head.

“She didn’t say anything to Alistair yet, and neither did I. I told her, obviously, that I’d let you know so you could call her to discuss it first but I figured…” you trail off and shrug your shoulders.

“No, no, of course she should take him. Alistair will like that” Max agrees easily. Thank God, for Alistair’s sake, his parents got along fairly well and were typically pretty amenable when it came to schedule changes for either of them if something came up.

“She said she’d bring him home Sunday night and then she’s driving back up to her mother’s place” you finish and Max nods his head again.

“So….” you begin again, taking Max by the hand now and leading him over to his bed where the two of you sit down next to each other. “Tell me about London, how did it go?” you ask excitedly, knowing what a big deal this could be for Max and his business. He hadn’t told you a lot during your phone calls while he was away, and the last big meeting had been yesterday and you hadn’t spoken since it happened so you were eager to hear all about it.

“We got him” Max says simply and grins and you shriek before quite literally tackling him down onto the bed in a hug.

“Max, that's amazing! I knew you could do it” you gush as you squeeze him a little tighter and Max huffs a little laugh over how excited you are but before you know it he grabs you and flips you both until you’re underneath him with your legs dangling off the side of the bed and he’s kneeled over top of you.

“Maybe we need to celebrate” Max says before he leans down and kisses you roughly, knocking the air out of your lungs at the surprise of it.

“Mmmmm,” you moan into the kiss, your hands finding purchase on his shoulders as he continues kissing you, licking into your mouth, his tongue hot and insistent as it explores every cavern.

“C’mere,” Max growls as he hooks an arm under your thigh and hauls you further up the bed so you’re no longer half hanging off of it and then he’s on you again, his mouth now trained on your throat, sucking and licking and the occasional little nibble that has your eyes rolling back into your head.

“Max!” You gasp at the way he all but manhandles you further up the bed. You do love when he’s submissive to you but in the rare moments when he’s the opposite and just wants to take, it sends a heat low into your belly that turns you into mere putty in his hands.

It’s fucking sexy.

You’d seen glimpses of it last week, typically after you’ve worked the stress out of him, so seeing him like this now you know it means that those business meetings really did go well for him and that some of the pressure has been lifted.

“God I fucking missed you” Max moans into the column of your throat as he nestles himself perfectly between your legs so he can grind into you and you gasp. “How much time do we have?”

You push yourself up slightly so that you can look over Max’s shoulder to the clock on his nightstand and immediately frown, flopping back down onto the bed with a sigh.

“Not long enough” you pout. “Thirty minutes maybe?”

“Fuuuck” Max groans before releasing his mouth from your throat and bringing his forehead down to rest against yours, shaking his head a little.

“I know what we said about when I get back and I know we were both looking forward to it but… I don’t want to have to rush through it” Max says sheepishly and you nod your head.

“I don’t want that either”

“I actually um, had a thought about that though, in light of recent news…” Max begins and you tilt your head questioningly.

“I was thinking,” Max begins again. “If Sofia will have Alistair tomorrow night, I’d like to… take you to dinner, and then after, you know, we’d have the whole night to spend together, just us. Would be nice…”

“Maxwell Lord, are you asking me out on a date?” You ask through a smirk and he huffs a laugh, shaking his head.

“I realize we maybe went a little bit out of order here” he laughs.

“I think it sounds perfect” you tell him sweetly before wrapping your hands around his head and pulling him in for a kiss.

“Me too” Max smiles between kisses.

You kiss unhurriedly for a couple of minutes, tongues softly stroking against each other and getting reacquainted and hands roaming each other's bodies over clothes before Max pulls back slightly to look in your eyes.

“Can I play with you Angel, just for a little bit?” he asks sweetly before planting a kiss on the tip of your nose and you could positively melt for this man.

“Course you can baby” you smile up at him and run a hand along his face. Max returns your smile before placing a quick kiss to your lips and then brings a hand down to tug your sleep pants and underwear down. You help him by wiggling out them and kicking them off to the side and then he’s on you again, kissing you with a renewed passion and moaning into your mouth when his hand makes its way between your legs.

You’re already wet when Max’s hand makes contact and so his fingers easily slide through your folds and you shiver at his ghosting touch.

“Oh Max,” you softly moan. His touch is featherlight, borderline teasing as he gently explores your sex with skilled digits.

“So perfect” Max hums against your lips. He leaves you on your back but he pushes himself up to his knees, sitting back on his heels and repositioning your legs on either side of his. Once he’s settled between your legs he pulls both of yours up until your knees are bent and feet planted on the bed, opening you up even wider for him.

“Fuck” Max curses as he stares down at your glistening core and and runs his hands down your outer thighs and under your hips to give your ass a firm squeeze. He groans, massaging the soft flesh for a moment before his hands retreat the way they came.

“Max” you whine, desperate for him to touch you where you need it. Your hands come up to rub up and down his forearms as his hands now rub up and down the inside of your thighs, stopping just at the apex.

“God you’re so beautiful, my Angel” Max sighs and brings his hand up to his face and wetting his fingertips with his tongue before putting them between your legs, rubbing through your folds and exploring every inch.

“Mmm, baby, that’s so nice” you sigh dreamily. And it is, nice. It’s gentle and exploratory like he has all the time in the world and he pays no mind to the literal ticking clock at your bedside. He could’ve shoved his fingers inside of you and you probably could’ve cum easily within a couple minutes, given how pent up you’ve been all week waiting for him to return home but as always, Max wants to savor you. His other hand that’s been resting on your thigh moves up to push up your t-shirt before palming one of your breasts and tweaking the nipple between thumb and forefinger and another moan escapes your lips.

Max continues working you over, his touches getting a little firmer as the minutes tick by and you encourage him with your little whimpers and whines. A tiny gasp escapes your lips when he brings two fingers up to rub tight circles against your clit and your hips involuntarily push up off the bed into the pressure of his hand.

“Right there Angel?”

“Ohhh, mmmhmmm” your eyes are screwed shut as you gently rock your hips into his hand, mewling from underneath him.

“Oh fuck baby, I’m close” you murmur and suddenly Max’s fingers leave your throbbing clit and push back into your folds and you let out a loud whine at the loss.

“Max?”

“Fuck sweetheart, we still have…” Max turns his head back to check the clock. “Ten more minutes” he states before pressing two fingers into your heat and kneading a breast with the other hand. Your hips rock into his hand and you gasp at the new sensation of fingers other than your own, fingers so much thicker that can reach so much deeper.

“Oh Max,”

You already know full well he’s going to use every last second of that ten minutes torturing you with his fingers, staving off your orgasm until the last possible moment.

He continues pumping his digits in and out of you slowly, curling them into just the right spot that has your head thrown back and mouth open as little whimpers leave your throat.

“Shit, baby” your brain is foggy as you reel yourself back from your almost orgasm and try to refocus (easier said than done when Max is driving you fucking crazy). When you told him he could play with your pussy you didn’t think he meant for thirty goddamn minutes while he alternates between slow and fast, gentle and rough, always so fucking much but never quite enough.

He knows exactly what he’s doing to you, and you fucking love it.

“Missed you so much” Max confesses before leaning down to capture your lips in a searing kiss, swallowing all your little whines. You kiss him back just as passionately, chasing his tongue with yours and expressing without words exactly how much you missed him as well. As your kiss gets more heated, so does Max’s pace as he pumps his fingers into you, even adding a third to the mix and your mouth rips away from his to let out a loud moan.

“Oh my God, oh my God” you’re a quaking and quivering mess in his arms, the coil in your lower abdomen gradually tightening for easily over twenty minutes now and begging to be snapped to give you some relief. “Maxie, oh fuck, it feels so good baby” you groan.

“Love making you feel so good Sweetheart” Max hums against your face before he sits back on his heels again, sliding his fingers in and out of you over and over again and picking up pace.

“Baby, I’m close, please” you plead with him. You raise yourself up on your elbows so you can watch his fingers disappear and reappear from your throbbing cunt at the brutal new pace he’s set. “Please baby, oh please, please, please. Oh my God, fuckkkkk.”

“I’ve got you honey” Max promises, and then immediately makes good on it by removing the hand at your breast and sucking his fingers into his mouth before bringing them down to pinch and roll your clit between the pads of his fingertips, causing your hips to jolt off the bed as a gasp escapes you.

“That’s it Angel” Max encourages as he switches to rubbing tight little circles around the small bundle of nerves and you let out a shaky moan.

“Ohhhhh, yes, yesssss. Fuck Max, fuck. Don’t stop baby, please! Don’t stop, ohhhhh don’t stop!” You suck a breath through your teeth, your whole body is thrumming with an intense energy as he focuses attention on your throbbing clit, alternating between rubbing tight circles over it and pressing down just the right amount of pressure that sends you reeling.

“I’m cumming! Oh fuck Max, I’m cumming, I’m cumming!” You wail before Max leans down and covers your mouth with his, swallowing your deep moans with his rough kisses. One hand still has his fingers inside of you, working you through your orgasm while the other comes up to hold the back of your head so he can kiss you deeper until you both become desperate for air and break apart.

“You are so beautiful when you cum” Max hums against the side of your face, nuzzling into you. “Thank you, Angel”.

He plants a kiss to your forehead and then pulls his hand away from your sex and hauls you up until you’re sitting in his lap. His arms wrap around your back to hug you tightly to him with you wrapped around his body.

“Sweet boy” you hum dreamily as your hands wrap around his neck and pet the back of his head.

“God I missed you so much” Max sighs, his words are muffled by his face being nuzzled into your throat.

“I gathered that” you giggle.

>His hands push further down your back until he’s got a handful of your ass in each palm and he squeezes, grinding you down into his own aching need.

“Fuck, should’ve woken me up sooner” he groans.

“Hmmm, maybe you should’ve just come into my bed and taken what you needed” you reply coyly and Max brings his head up to look you in the eyes.

“Really?”

“I was kind of hoping you might” you reply shyly, shrugging your shoulders.

“I didn’t know if that would… be OK” Max admits sheepishly.

“More than ok, sweet boy” you hum before leaning in to kiss his lips.

“I’ll remember that” Max smirks.

“I hope you do” you counter playfully and kiss him once more before you finally push away from him with a groan.

“I need to get Alistair up. Why don’t you go take a shower and take care of this little… situation” you tease, gesturing towards the very obvious tent in his dress slacks. “And I’ll get breakfast started and put on a pot of coffee”.

Max lets out a whine but dutifully nods his head. He knows it’s already getting late for Alistair’s usual wake up time and as much as he’d love to spend the entire morning in bed with you, he can’t do that now.

He reaches behind him on the bed for your discarded clothing and helps you back into them before he crawls off the bed and offers his hand to you to help you up. Once on your feet he wraps his arms around your waist for one last hug and kiss to your lips.

“Go,” you playfully scold, landing a light smack to his ass. “Before Alistair is late getting to school!”

“So bossy” Max quips and you giggle before gently pushing on his chest.

“Ok, I’m going” he concedes with a sigh and you laugh as you push him towards the bathroom and you head out of his bedroom to go to Alistair’s.

The rest of the day goes by in a blur. Alistair goes off to school, Max to the office (despite your arguments that he should be going back to bed, given the jet lag he was surely experiencing) and you head off to the salon where you had a few appointments scheduled for today. On your way home before picking up Alistair you also make a stop by the mall, wanting to pick up a new special outfit for your date with Max tomorrow. You feel giddy like a schoolgirl when you think about it and you can’t help it. Barely two weeks ago you thought it might be a one time - or at best, occasional - thing of you getting your boss off to let him relieve some stress. You’d never imagined then how close you and Max would have gotten over such a short period of time and just how attentive of a lover he would be (and technically you haven’t even had sex yet!). Now he’s asked you on a date. He wants to treat you right, not just like a plaything that happens to live in his house and look after his son. The familiar feeling of butterflies flutter in your tummy again as a stupid smile plays on your lips all afternoon. Even a few of the girls at the salon had commented on it, asking if you’ve done something different recently, or if you’ve started seeing someone that’s got you looking like a lovestruck teenager.

“Maybe” you had simply shrugged at them, not yet ready to get into it much further. You and Max still hadn’t defined your relationship, but you’re hoping that tomorrow’s dinner brings some clarity to the situation. You know it’s complicated, you essentially almost live together already and he’s your employer. There’s not going to be anything normal about this dating situation and yet you’re still absolutely willing to explore it with him and figure it out. You hope he wants to do the same.

You managed to find a really pretty floral dress at the mall that is within your budget. It has off-the-shoulder puffed sleeves, a modest neckline and the flowing skirt stops around your knees. You hope Max will love it, but before you leave you make a stop at one more store to make sure that no matter if he likes the dress or not, he will certainly like taking it off of you later when he sees what’s underneath.

The rest of the evening is uneventful until Maxwell gets home. You play cars with Alistair for a while before making his dinner and then he opts to go into the backyard and practice with his soccer ball afterwards while you busy yourself with tidying up the house. Max arrives home around 8:00, dead on his feet when you open the front door to greet him just as he walks up the steps.

“Daddy, you’re home!” Alistair squeals from the living room the moment he hears the door and you don’t even have a second to properly greet Max before his son is barreling towards him. Despite his exhaustion Max bends just in time to swoop Alistair into his arms and hug him tightly.

“My boy, I missed you so much” Max tells him, planting little kisses all over Alistair’s cheeks and the boy laughs and wiggles in his grasp. “Were you a good boy today at school?”

“Mmmhmm” Alistair simply nods his head.

“Listen, I have some special news for you buddy” Max begins before placing Alistair back on the ground and kneeling one knee in front of him so they’re at eye level.

“What is it Daddy?” Alistair’s eyes light up like a kid at Christmas, already excited.

“How would you like to spend the weekend with Mommy, hmmm?” He asks and Alistair lets out a gasp of excitement.

“Mommy’s coming home?” He’s practically bouncing on the heels of his feet.

“Just for two days, and then she has to go back and help your Abuela, but yes, she’s coming home and she can’t wait to see you. She’s gonna pick you up tomorrow, ok?”

“Yes!” Alistair shouts, fist pumping in the air and both you and Max have a little laugh at the boy's enthusiasm.

“Can I have some paper from your office Daddy? I want to make a card for Abuela so Mommy can give it to her” Alistar asks and Max smiles warmly.

“Of course you can, my boy. I think Abuela would love that, it’s very thoughtful of you. Go on, get whatever you need” He tells him and Alistair turns and quickly scurries toward the basement door where Max has a small home office setup.

“You talked to Sofia today then?” You ask as you hook a hand under one of Max’s arms and help him to his feet as Alistair busies himself down in the basement.

“Yes, everything’s arranged. She’ll pick him up tomorrow, it’ll likely be late morning by the time she gets down here. Then she’ll bring him home Sunday around dinner time”

“Ok, I’ll make sure he’s ready to go in the morning” you tell him, already assuming Max will be going into the office at least for a while on Saturday, as per his usual routine.

“And when she brings him back on Sunday she wants to discuss what the plans are for the next few months while she’s away. I told her that you and I haven’t had any discussion on your involvement yet but that we would before Sunday night so that she knows exactly what’s going on as well” Max explains and you nod your head. It was something you’d been thinking about all week and you knew it was something you and Max still had to discuss, whether you’d go full time or stay part time, your salary, and so on.

“But um…” Max trails off for a moment, looking over your shoulder to ensure Alistair is still downstairs before he brings his attention back to you and reaches to hold one of your hands in his own. “I know, we have our date tomorrow night and… I don’t want it to be business. And I don’t want any discussions or agreements we come to regarding your role as Alistair’s caregiver going forward to affect our date in any way so I was thinking we could talk about that on Sunday, before Sofia comes by. I just want tomorrow night to be about us, nothing else” Max admits, soft brown eyes boring into yours and your lips curl into a smile.

“I think that’s a good idea” you tell him, your fingers curling around his. “I’m really looking forward to our date” you confess, smile beaming and Max returns it with one of his own.

“Me too Angel”

“I’m going to go run Alistair’s bath, will you go tell him he’s got five minutes until bath & bedtime please?”

“Oh, I can do it,” Max begins but you’re quick to cut him off.

“Max you look like you’re about thirty seconds from passing out” you laugh. “You’re exhausted. Let me do it tonight”

Max yawns but nods his head in agreement. “Ok, you win” he sighs and you smirk.

“I think you need a bath and bedtime yourself” you tease and Max’s eyebrow raises at that.

“Only if you’ll join me”

“Max!” You scold him playfully but his hands quickly raise in his defense.

“No funny business, I swear” he promises. “I’m uh, saving myself. You see I have a very important date tomorrow night”

You eye him questioningly, not sure if you believe him to behave himself in a bath with you. The man needs to relax and to sleep, and that’s it. Though, the thought of curling up with Max in a hot soapy bath is just too good to pass up and you don’t know when he’ll afford you the opportunity again so you find yourself giving in way too soon.

“Fine. But no funny business” you poke a finger into his chest to emphasize your point and he nods in agreement. You try to ignore the buzz of excitement that courses through your veins and instead focus on the tasks at hand.

“Go see your son, I’m starting his bath” you announce before you step away and head towards the main bathroom and Max wanders off after Alistair with maybe just a little renewed energy in his step.

You get through Alistair’s bath, making sure to give him a good scrub and wash his hair too so that his mother doesn’t have to worry about doing any of that in their limited time together this weekend. Once he’s dressed in clean PJ’s you lead him up to his room where you find Max waiting for him in the rocker chair next to his bed, story book already in hand.

You leave the boys to the bedtime routine, closing Alistair’s door behind you and heading back downstairs to grab a bottle of red wine and two glasses before you head back up and disappear into Max’s ensuite in his bedroom.

It’s not long before you hear Max’s bedroom door open and close and heavy footfalls coming towards you. You’re lighting the last of the tea lights that litter every surface of the bathroom to give the darkened room a warm and romantic glow. Two glasses of wine are already poured and sitting on the floor next to the tub that’s filled with hot water and soapy fragrant bubbles.

“Wow” Max says simply, taking it all in.

“You like it?” You ask, turning to face him. There’s a blush rising up your neck and warming your cheeks and you're thankful in the moment for the low lighting. You weren’t sure if it was a little too much. All that was missing was a trail of rose petals leading to the bed for this to be straight out of some silly romance novel.

“It’s perfect” Max affirms with a soft smile. “You’re too good to me Angel”

“Well someone was pretty good to me this morning, so this was the least I could do” you tease before walking up to him and beginning to undo the buttons of his shirt.

Once you’ve helped Max strip down he helps you as well, though yours takes significantly less effort. Max had still been dressed in his work clothes (minus his jacket) whereas you were in a simple soft cotton PJ set of shorts and a top. Max’s hands linger for a few seconds at your waist once he has you completely undressed and you let him, until raising up on your tiptoes to place a quick kiss to his lips.

“In the tub, Mister” you playfully command and Max obeys, crawling in before you so he can sit with his back to the wall of the tub and you can get in front to cradle between his legs and lean your back into his chest, your head resting on his shoulder.

“Mmmmm” you sigh happily as your tired limbs reach the hot water. There’s steam rising above the bubbles and you hum in content as you snuggle deeper against Max’s chest and his arms wrap around you.

“This is nice” Max murmurs into your ear before placing a kiss just below it. “Could stay here forever, fall asleep just like this”

“You better not” you gently nudge him with your elbow. “I can’t lift you outta this thing if you fall asleep” you remind him and he huffs a laugh against your cheek.

“Fine, no sleeping” Max sighs and then reaches out of the tub for the two wine glasses, passing you yours first before grabbing his own.

You lie in the steaming bath for a while, chatting about both of your weeks while you were apart. You talk about how Alistair did, how your work week went with your other two jobs and how Max’s business meetings in London went, all the while sipping at your wine while each of your free hands gently roam each other's bodies. Your hand is placed mostly innocently on Max’s left leg, running slowly up and down from around his mid thigh to his knee and back whereas his touch gets increasingly bolder the longer the two of you relax together. What started as a hand simply resting on your stomach graduated to soft caresses all over your abdomen from the top of your rib cage to dangerously low on your waistline and your little hums of appreciation for his touch do little to discourage him so he tests his boundaries a little further still.

You whimper when a single digit comes up circle lazily around your nipple, a barely-there touch that’s still enough to send a little tingle all the way down your spine to your toes.

“Babyyy” you whine and let out a little huff of disappointment. He can make you feel so good so easily and you want to let him, but you already promised yourselves that this bath wasn’t for sex. He’s supposed to be relaxing and you know he’s exhausted.

“Please Angel” Max whimpers before he sets down his wine glass and uses that hand to wrap around the front of your throat, caressing gently and holding you even firmer against him. “Just want to touch”.

“Sweet boy,” you coo, your hand leaving his leg to come up and rub over his chin and then down the side of his face, turning his head towards you so you can place a gentle kiss to his lips.

“You need to sleep, baby, you promised” you remind him. “Let me take you to bed”

Max doesn’t argue, just gives a little nod of his head before kissing you once more and then releasing his hold on you. You set your empty wine glass down and you both step out of the tub and towel off. You opt to redress in Max’s discarded dress shirt, closing only a few of the buttons before you blow out all the candles and then pad into the bedroom where Max is in front of the dresser.

“I thought you wanted me to sleep” Max groans as he looks over at you from where he’s pulling on a pair of fresh boxers and sees what you’ve decided to wear.

“What, this ol’ thing?” You reply teasingly, playing with the hem.

“You’re mean, Angel” Max pouts and you laugh.

“I know, now come on and get into bed” you tell him before you reach for his hand and lead him over to the bed. You crawl in first, Max following right behind you until you’re both settled on your sides facing each other.

Max reaches for your hand, bringing it up to his mouth and placing a kiss to your palm. You smile at the sweet gesture and he returns it with one of his own before he takes your hand and brings it to his head and lets go. You quickly take the hint and start raking your fingers through his hair and his eyes close at your touch.

“My perfect beautiful boy” you sigh happily, letting your hand run through his hair, watching as he shudders slightly at your soft touch.

“You like that hmmm, sweet boy?” You ask and he whispers a quiet ‘yes’ and nods his head, eyes still closed and relaxed and you watch his breathing begin to even out.

“So good for me” you praise and decide to reward him by undoing the few buttons on his shirt you’re wearing so it’s wide open. He can’t see, as his eyes are still closed but you gently push at his shoulder to get him to lie on his back and an appreciative groan leaves his lips when you snuggle in even closer on your side and half drape yourself over top of him and he feels your naked chest against his own. His arm that you’re lying on comes up around your back and you lift your arm enough so his hand can slip underneath it and hold your breast. He doesn’t pinch or play, or tease, just content to fall asleep with his hands on you.

“There you go baby” you whisper before planting a soft kiss to his chest. You knew this is what he wanted, what he needed, and you’re happy to give it to him. Max loves feeling as close to you as possible and truth be told, you love it too.

“Go to sleep Maxwell” you whisper and he hums. Your hand rests on his chest, your finger carefully drawing imaginary patterns with a gentle caress to soothe him and eventually your sensual touches lull him into sleep and his soft snores fill the room.

“Goodnight baby” you whisper before pressing a kiss to his jaw and then making yourself comfortable until you are also pulled into a deep slumber.

You can’t wait until tomorrow night.

Tagging my Maxwell girlies @boliv-jenta @suzdin @prolix-yuy @heavennumber2 @macabremads

[i-eat-worlds]

Alex & Friends Part 14: Greenwich Park

This is a fun one. cw: violence

The morning started with Eric leading an hour long briefing detailing their operation. It was complete with a map of the area and several photos that had been pulled from Google Street View because of the short notice. He went over the specifics of each person's role.

Avia would position herself on the other end of the pond, concealed by foliage, so that they could be close by if Alex needed help. Aarav would liaison with the local pigeons for aerial surveillance. Joseph would be on the same side of the pond as Alex, far enough behind that he could go unnoticed. Sil would remain with the van, keeping it running so they could make a quick escape. Teri would be in the back, monitoring other signals from the area to make sure that Tindley didn’t call for help, ready to alert the local supers that Tindley had been caught. Finally, Eric would watch the street to the west, and would float as necessary.

When the briefing was finished, Alex waited for everyone to stand up and start gathering their things. Instead, only Teri moved. She pulled out the bag of peppermints that they’d been gambling with last night. “Unwrap it, but don’t eat,” She said as she handed a peppermint to each member of the team. After everyone had received their candy, she smiled widely and counted down from three. “Suck now so you don’t suck later!” The team said in unison, then popped the peppermints into their mouths. Alex smiled a little bit and slipped her own piece of candy into her mouth. She bounced it around in her mouth as she packed her stuff up and slid her knife into her boot.

***

Somehow, Aarav had convinced Nyx to lend them the company van for the morning. They piled into the back of the van. It smelled vaguely like beer, but it was relatively inconspicuous, and most importantly free. The early morning traffic was heavy, but Sil eventually pulled the van into the parking lot.

It was chilly, leaning towards cold, and Alex was glad she’d bundled up a little more than normal. Eric passed out earpieces to everyone, and then they got underway. They fanned out across the southeast quadrant of the park, heading towards their various positions.

Despite the anticipation brewing in her stomach, walking through the park was almost peaceful. Morning bird songs filled the cool, misty air and the light filtered through the tree branches overhead, casting her in alternating shadows. Pea gravel crunched underneath her feet as she walked to the meeting site.

Eventually, the path opened up to a pond. She followed the edge of the pond for a short stretch until she saw Tindley sitting on a bench by the edge. A breath got caught in her throat as she approached him. Ignoring the panic that rose in her chest, she sat down next to him.

“Good morning, Alexis. I’m glad you’re alright.” He said, and it took everything Alex had in her to not to wipe the polite smile off his face.

“Thanks for agreeing to meet,” She said. “I assume you have a plan to get me out of this mess?” Tindley scooted closer, and Alex felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise.

A voice cracked over her earpiece. It was Aarav. “I’ve got three people approaching from the northwest side.”

Eric quickly responded. “I’ll go check it out.”

“I’ve got a safe house waiting. Off the books, nobody knows about it but me and you.”

Tindley looked pleased with himself as he stood up. Like he’d won. Alex was ending this. She stood up, lining herself up to grab his wrists and make the arrest, when Teri’s voice filled her head.

“It's a trap! Alex, run!”

She quickly turned around and tried to escape down one of the paths. Tindley planted his foot in the back of her knee, sending her tumbling to the ground.

The next voice was Aarav’s. “Four people converging on your location. Northern end is clearest.”

He went to kick her again, and she quickly rolled out of the way. A spray of tiny rocks went up instead.

“I’m going in for back-up.” Avia said.

Alex launched herself at him, tackling him to the ground.

“Beacon’s up. Hopefully local heroes will be arriving soon.” Eric reported.

She climbed onto his back, pinning him down with her legs. Her hands ew to her handcuffs and she quickly secured them around his wrists.

“Bitch,” He said, face pressed against the gravel.

“Shut up,” Alex said.

Avia rounded the corner out a full sprint, stopping when she realized that Alex had subdued him. “Let’s go,” she said, helping Alex hoist him up.

They dragged him behind them as they made an escape from the northern end of the pond. As fast as they could, they ran up the paths, surrounded by immaculate, well kept gardens. Joseph met them halfway up the path, following behind them.

The three of them had just cleared the tangle of paths in the forest and were making a beeline towards the road when they were blinded by a flash of green light. The teleporter popped up from the ground, knife drawn. It was one of the Andros brothers.

“I’ve got Tindley!” Joseph yelled, pulling him out of the path of the teleporter while Avia and Alex engaged him.

The teleporter jabbed towards Alex first, lunging for her throat. She grabbed his arm, deecting the knife away, while Avia kicked his legs out from underneath him. He disappeared in another ash of green.

“Duck!” Alex called as he reappeared behind her. Avia listened, squatting down then turning to face him. She landed a fist in his stomach, causing him to double over in pain.

Avia took the opportunity and pounced, clipping the suppressants around his wrists. Alex was about to call it in when a spray of dirt went flying. Another mercenary, this time an energy manipulator. “Leave ‘em here.” Avia said, and then bolted over the fence, giving a report as she went.

Alex was close behind, jumping the fence, crossing a wide paved path, and entering another green. Joseph was further ahead, about half-way across, with Tindley in tow. Another blast behind them signaled that the mercenary was in pursuit.

The fact that they were still standing meant that whoever was chasing them was only a short range energy manipulator. They might have a ghting chance. “Parking lot!” She yelled at Avia. Cover was going to be key.

Alex could feel the ground vibrate behind her as she cleared the green and ran into the parking lot. She pointed at a white car. “Behind this one!”

They both collapsed behind the vehicle, tucking themselves out of sight as their pursuer entered the parking lot. Alex pulled out a knife from her boot. “Get ready to cuff.” She whispered. Avia smiled back, holding a second pair of restrictors in her hand.

The mercenary had stopped running, and they were now carefully walking through the center of the lot, checking behind every vehicle. Alex and Avia waited in tense silence as footsteps approached their car. They stepped forward, in front of their hiding place, and Alex lunged forward for them. She wrapped her knife around their throat and pulled them back, and Avia quickly strapped the cuffs on. Taking the mercenary with them, they started running to the van again. They were nearly to the van when there was another ash of green, and the metal of a knife glinted in Alex’s vision.

Taglist: @pigeonwhumps @sassafrassmoke

[raineandsky]

A Corrupt Guardian

or #8.2 (Part 1) (Part 2)

“Ugh, what a day,” the villain exclaims as she swings the front door open. The handle violently batters against the handle-shaped dinge in the wall for good measure. “It’s been a long one – heroes just don’t know when to leave off.”

She shrugs her coat off, frowning at the lack of response to her complaints. “[Civilian]?” she calls into the house as she traipses down the hallway. The TV’s on in the living room, unoccupied, and she tuts in disappointment as she switches it off. Her next port of call is the bedroom, and it’s only when she finds the sheets perfectly made and the curtains open that she starts to suspect something is amiss.

“[Civilian]…?” she repeats a little louder, the name wracked with nerves. She makes several rounds of the house and a dozen unanswered phone calls before she accepts what’s happened. She sinks into the living room sofa, and the lingering warmth on the leather almost brings her to tears.

She’d promised she’d protect him. He’d come to her in a moment of weakness for help, and she said she would keep him safe from the so-called heroes – yet here she is, in an empty house, only the pleasant warmth of his recent departure against her back to suggest he was ever here.

She knows exactly where he is – heroes aren’t anything if not a little obvious. She gets to her feet, steeling her resolve as she strides back out into the hallway and whips her coat back over her shoulders. He’ll be back in the safety of her company in the next twenty-eight minutes.

-

Seventeen of those minutes are the painful journey to the hero agency – rush hour traffic makes her honestly consider upping the ante of her crimes. She abandons her car in a dark alleyway nearby, making her way to a simple backdoor on foot and slipping through the moment the guards aren’t looking. They obviously presume no one knows about the door to use it to break in, since their attention is caught on something they’re laughing at on their phones.

Nineteen minutes now. The villain studies the hall she’s in nonchalantly, the walls bare and the space devoid of life. She wanders aimlessly until she happens across a junction in the corridor, complete with a sign of directions – it was always humorous to her that the agency’s size required signposts to point employees to and fro, but right now she couldn’t be more thankful for them.

Twenty minutes. She finds the holding cells and follows the arrow down the hallway, leaping into the barely-there shadows whenever she catches an inkling of another human. Eventually she spots a plastic sign next to a door when she pauses in a slightly darkened alcove. Its bold, unabashed letters might as well be a neon sign pointing to the door for her specifically – ‘Holding Cells’.

She flits down the corridor on the twenty-third minute. The lights are overbearingly bright, as if the agency wants you to think the sun is trapped in their ceilings. The sterile environment was never something she was particularly a fan of.

Twenty-four. She turns hopefully into the cell room. Bars line each wall, broken voices of criminals arrested and instantly forgotten seeping through the cracks and boring into her skull like a dull drone. She carefully walks down the middle, checking each cell and trying to not get put off by the other villains’ excitement at her presence. She’s not here for them.

Twenty-five. “[Civilian]?” the villain says as loudly as she dares into the damning echo of the room, and a shuffle catches her attention from somewhere behind her.

“[Villain]…?” The cell behind her on her left. Hearing the civilian sets her heart alight with relief, and all the tension dissipates from her body as she swings back to him, following his voice to the cell with a barely contained laugh.

“[Civilian], I–” Her voice catches in her throat as she pauses in front of the open bars, her victorious grin dying on her lips.

A cold steel chair sits in the middle of the tiny cell, a small radio propped up on its seat. “[Villain],” the radio says.

“Wh–” She barely has time to comprehend the reality of what’s happening before someone harshly shoves her from behind. She stumbles into the cell with a poorly held back curse, barely recovering before she hears the rattling rails as the door is rammed shut behind her. She swings to face her captor, not entirely surprised to see Hero locking the door with a sigh.

Twenty-six minutes. “Hey,” he says casually, as if they’re just spotting each other in the street and he’s not currently locking her in a prison. “Figured you might come.”

“Bastard,” is the only name that comes to mind to call him. “How dare you–”

“Your boyfriend’s fine,” he interjects levelly, unbothered. “He’s living a lot better than you’re about to be, at least. Does he prefer one or two pillows on his bed?”

“He prefers me, freak.” Her hands wrap around the bars, willing them to bend apart under her feeble strength. “You seriously went for him?”

The hero shrugs tiredly as he swings the keys idly around his finger. “Got you here, didn’t it? Our plan worked a treat.”

“Well I’m here now, aren’t I? I thought you didn’t bring civilians into it. Thought you were the morally superior, perfect role models.”

The twenty-seventh minute is rewarded with a heartless shrug. “He’s in no danger, technically. Makes good blackmail for you, though.”

“How the fuck are you going to blackmail me with his being here if you’re doing such a wonderful job looking after him?”

The hero lets out a noise that vaguely resembles a laugh. “Guess you’ll have to stick around and find out, huh?”

He steps away from her cell with a proud smile before turning on his heel and wandering out of the room, leaving her in her new prison with the cacophony of angry and upset and annoyed and terrified criminals surrounding her.

It’s been twenty-eight minutes.

Taglist: @voodoomorph

[downwiththeficness]

Shadow and Veil-Chapter Eighteen

Summary: Eva Moore’s life was a carefully constructed fiction.  Every day, she did exactly what her mother in law, her husband, and his  best friend expected of her. No mistakes. And, that was going pretty  well for Eva right up until a huge complication literally tried to run  her over. Now, she’s faced with trying to keep the pieces of her life  from falling apart while attempting (and failing) to keep her feelings  for her husband’s new business partner at bay.

A/N: This fic is a sister-fic to A Need So Great and A Need Unleashed.  You do not need to have read ANSG or ANU to read this fic, but there  are Easter eggs from those fics in Shadow and Veil for readers with keen  eyes.  This fic is explicit for canon-compliant blood, gore, violence,  and sex. As such, it is intended for an adult audience, only. A/B/O  dynamics come with their own warning. Anyone under the age of 18 should  not interact with this work. I do not consent to reposting this work to  other platforms. Reblog only to Tumblr.  

Word Count: ~4,200

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It started with a note on her door. Eva noticed it as she walked out of her bedroom that morning. 6pm. The Lounge. Wear a dress. Eva thought nothing of it as she went about her morning.

Her schedule was filled with meetings and one particularly boring lunch with Myra. She got a tiny bit of amusement from the way Myra wasn’t talking about how her son kicked the shit out of her after the party. Even after Eva asked how the discussion with the DA went and whether or not Lizzy’s presence had affected his interest in working with the company. Myra’s anxious tap dancing around the subject was the one bright spot in an otherwise banal conversation.

As she keyed into the house, Eva could hear familiar voices talking down the hall. She glanced at her watch. Five o’ clock. There was time for her to run upstairs and freshen up before figuring out what Josh wanted from her.

In her room, she stripped off her suit and stepped out of her heels before perusing the closet for a dress. Her fingers stalled over the pretty floral number she’d worn to the park. Eva didn’t like the way she’d left it with Horacio, but couldn’t see any way through it. He wanted something she couldn’t give, which put the both of them at an impasse.

A small part of her thought that maybe she’d overreacted. Since discovering who he actually was, Horacio had been surprisingly up front with her about what he was doing and why. She shouldn’t have allowed herself to get so caught up in her own emotions that she alienated the one person who might be able to help her.

Then again, that help seemed to come at a price that Eva wasn’t willing to pay. She ‘d never make it to the witness stand alive and Eva planned to live a very long life.

Deliberately moving deeper into the closet, Eva settled on a soft suede mini dress in a deep brown. She paired it with slip on flats in a similar color and went to the bathroom to refresh her hair and make up.

When she was finished, Eva took another glance at herself in the mirror. Her skin looked better than it had in a while. The bruising was no more than an easily covered mark on her cheek. She wished that her side would heal as quickly. Her injuries were a mottled green, still sensitive to touch.

Having done about all she could with herself, Eva flicked off the light and headed downstairs. The door was open and Alexei was laughing. She could hear Josh’s more subdued chuckle not far behind. Eva was grateful that they were in a good mood. Putting on a show for them would take more energy than she had to spare at the moment.

Standing in the doorway, Eva knocked three times and took four steps into the room. She folded her hands in front of her and waited to be acknowledged. Alexei looked up from something situated on the coffee table. Josh was leaning against the bar with a glass in his hand.

“Eva,” he said with glee, “Just in time.”

She didn’t need to look at a clock to know that he was right. It was six o’ clock exactly, as requested.

Alexei stood, “Busy day?”

Even as she shook her head, Eva was on her guard. Alexei never asked about her day. Neither did Josh for that matter. They didn’t care enough to even consider the question.

Suspicious.

“Good,” Alexei said in a clipped tone. He motioned her forward, “We have a task for you.”

After glancing at Josh for permission, Eva walked further into the room and circled one of the couches to stand nearer to Alexei. He gestured for her to sit and Eva dropped carefully down onto a soft cushion.

“I’m sure you’ve noticed that we are having some difficulty negotiating with our new friend, Mr. Jimenez.”

Eva held as still as possible, waiting for the task to be assigned to her. It was possible that they wanted her to figure out how to get access to his books, or his suppliers. Either of those things was doable, but might complicate her relationship with the man. Especially since she wasn’t exactly sure what kind of relationship they had after their last interaction.

“And, we,” Alexei waved a hand towards Josh, “have noticed that he seems to like you.” He paused, “If he likes you, maybe we can use that to help him be more...cooperative.”

She scoffed, “I doubt that.”

Josh pushed from the bar and walked over to them, “You’re right. We don’t know for sure. If you were prettier and smiled a little more, there wouldn’t be a question about it.”

That’s my husband, she thought, king of the assholes.

“That’s why we’re going to run a test.”

Eva tilted her head back to look at her husband, “A test?”

He sat next to her, closer than she wanted, “Yes. A test. To see how much he likes you.”

She let him tuck her hair behind her ear, forced herself not to cringe away from his touch, “What kind of test?”

“Alexei?”

Cutting a glance at the Russian, Eva watched him spin a case around on the coffee table so that it faced her. Alexei opened it to display a syringe and several vials. None of it was labeled.

“I don’t understand.”

Josh shushed her, “We’ll explain. This is the first viable batch of our new product. We’ve run preliminary trials and one successful human trial.”

“Semi-successful,” Alexei cut in.

As she stared at the case, a sense of foreboding crept across her shoulders and down her spine. Too slowly, Eva began to put it together. Her hands curled into fists on her thighs. She bit down on her tongue to keep the sound of fear from making its way past her lips.

Voice low, Josh said, “If he likes you, he won’t be able to resist the scent of you spiraling into heat. It would be impossible.”

She drew a breath, “You might be underestimating him.”

From across the coffee table, Alexei snorted, “I’ve been watching him. He doesn’t have a girlfriend, doesn’t even entertain the women who approach him. He’s been here for months and hasn’t taken a single woman to his apartment.”

It was nice to know that Horacio was turning other women down, but she could reason that away by reminding herself that he was working and probably didn’t have time to date.

“Maybe he’s gay,” Eva offered, “His friend, Javier, is with him almost everywhere he goes.”

Beside her, Josh laughed and wrapped an arm around her, “We thought of that, too. Sent a couple of our men his way. He turned them down, too.”

Thrown by their foresight, Eva couldn’t think of another retort that might justify Horacio’s disinterest in getting laid. Cornered, she leaned into an old reliable.

Turning to her husband, Eva gave him her most beguiling smile, “You said it, yourself, I’m not pretty enough to draw his attention. I don’t see what he would want with me.”

Undeterred by her rationale, Josh replied, “That’s what we’re going to find out.”

She stalled over that sentence for several long seconds with furrowed brows. It didn’t make sense that Josh couldn’t think of a reason Horacio would want her and yet still wanted to move forward with the test.

“It would be a false positive,” Eva offered, “A heat would trigger any alpha’s instincts.”

“Very good,” Josh replied with false praise in his tone, “We’re interested in what he does with those instincts.” A pause, “How he handles himself, so to speak.”

Alexei shifted on the couch and Eva flinched. Josh laughed and squeezed her tighter. It wasn’t until his other arm crossed her chest that she realized he wasn’t hugging her, he was holding her down.

Kicking out her legs, Eva tried to stand. Her strength couldn’t overcome Josh’s weight, but that didn’t stop her from trying. She wiggled and jerked and threw her body around with wild abandon. Loosing a loud grunt, Eva slid out from her husbands arms and to the floor.

On all fours, Eva tried to crawl towards the door only to have a foot drop hard onto her back. All the breath blew out of her as she was flattened into the shag carpet. The foot lifted briefly only to be replaced by a knee. Two hands pressed firmly into her shoulders. Eva couldn’t move if she wanted. All she could do was watch Alexei’s loafers as they moved ever closer.

“Sit still, Eva,” Josh urged from above, “It’ll only hurt a little.”

Tears pooled in her eyes as the hem of her dress was lifted to expose her ass. A pinprick of pain, the heat of an injection, and then Josh was pushing off her to stand. Eva lay on the floor until she could gather herself. And then she got her arms and legs beneath her and sat up. Blinking rapidly to clear her vision, she sniffed back her tears and set her jaw just in time for the doorbell to ring.

Alexei closed the case on the table and slid it beneath the couch, then moved to answer the door. Eva stayed put, monitoring every beat of her heart so that she would know when whatever they’d put inside her kicked in.

“Get up,” Josh ordered as he poured himself another drink.

Eva stared, unseeing, at the floor. In silence, she refused to obey. What he’d done was far worse than any beating. She was humiliated. Hot with anger and embarrassment. Eva couldn’t be bothered to care what Josh told her to do. Not with how much she wanted to grab the decanter off the bar and smash it over his head.

Slamming down the glass, Josh stomped up to her and grabbed beneath her arms. Eva let her body go limp as he lifted her, savoring the way he struggled with her weight. That didn’t stop him from throwing her onto the couch.

Mulish, Eva righted herself and smoothed the hem of her dress. She ran her hands over her hair and wiped away a stray tear. Then, she crossed her ankles and straightened her spine. There was still some dignity left inside her.

Alexei crossed the threshold first, Horacio not far behind. She didn’t have to look at him for more than a second or two to know he was Diego again. His mouth was permanently crooked into a smirk, his footsteps were slower and louder. Horacio would never wear that shade of red, especially not in a silk shirt.

There were subtler differences than that. Diego’s gaze was icy despite the easy expression on his face. His dominant hand was held loose at his side, ready to grasp the gun that was no doubt tucked into the back of his pants. He barely acknowledged that Eva was in the room.

“You succeeded.”

Josh, all smiles, approached with the offer of a drink, “I think we have.”

“You want the rest of the product?” Horacio asked, all business. “I can deliver next week.”

“Not so fast,” Josh replied as he led Horacio to the couch, “I thought you might like a demonstration.”

Only the slightest pause in his movements gave away Horacio’s suspicion. He accepted the drink and sat on the couch opposite Eva. It was only then that he seemed to notice her distress.

“Your wife is the demonstration.”

His voice was smooth and calm, not even his scent fluctuated. Eva spared him half a glance before she looked down at her hands. She hadn’t detected any changes in her body, but wasn’t putting any faith in the serum being a dud. Josh was way too good at his craft to let it fail, especially in front of his business partner.

“Good eye,” Josh complimented as he sat down next to Eva. “We’ve timed it perfectly. You’ll get to see the whole effect from the start.”

Horacio looked her over, “What effect? A crying woman?”

Eva’s mouth thinned and she glared at him. In her peripheral, Alexei laughed. Beside her, Josh pretended to soothe her by running his hand over her back.

“Give it time,” Josh said, “The subject was...resistant.”

The subject, she thought with ire, The fucking subject.

Alexei was suddenly in her line of sight, standing near the bar. He was watching her face carefully. Eva couldn’t tell what he might be thinking. His expression was neutral, icy eyes catching the minutiae of the emotions that slipped Eva’s control.

Reaching over to grab a bottle of vodka, Alexei poured two fingers’ worth and said, “Our deepest apologies, Birdie. For not telling you sooner.”

Josh cut his friend a glance that was more betrayed than angry. Alexei saluted him and drained his glass before pouring another. Eva licked her lips and tried to keep as still as she could. Her focus turned inward, measuring the beat of her heart, the rush of blood in her veins.

Both of which were increasing.

Eva inhaled. Josh’s scent, usually unoffensive, singed her nostrils. She turned her face away and tried to breathe through her mouth. The citrus and vanilla was overpowering and it made her want to gag.

“Are you sure it works?”

The droll tone, the easy dismissal, made Eva hiss through clenched teeth.

“It works,” Josh assured him, “Slow and steady, right Eva?”

When he moved to touch her cheek, Eva twisted away from him and stood on shaky legs. Unable to keep still, she rocked from side to side on the balls of her feet.

“We estimate the effects to last between two and four hours, depending on the size of the dose.”

Though she wasn’t looking at him, Eva could feel Horacio leaning forward to eye her critically.

His voice was interested as he asked, “What effects?”

She paced towards the bar, intent on getting a drink. Alexei stepped forward to stop her. Eva glared at him and tried to sidestep the man.

“I’m sorry, Birdie,” he intoned, “Can’t contaminate the results.”

“Fuck you, Alexei,” Eva muttered.

On the couch, Josh cackled, “See? Our Birdie would never talk like that to Alexei like that without our little project.”

Horacio was not convinced, “Rude words were not what you promised.”

“Patience.”

Eva stood there between the couch and bar, deeply embarrassed and working hard to control what was so clearly uncontrollable. Her body felt alien to her, separate. The skin on her arms and neck pulled tight. The hair along her limbs stood straight up. In her cheeks was a molten fire that worked its way down her spine and into her belly. The legs beneath her threatened to crumble under her weight.

And, above all, there was him.

Despite the distance between them, Eva could sense Horacio’s every breath, could almost hear his heart thumping in his chest. Tobacco and vetiver coated the inside of her mouth and nose. Eva steeled herself against the urge to go to him, to crawl into his lap and let him comfort her.

“Come here, Eva.”

Biting down on her lower lip, she went to her husband. He pulled her back onto the couch and held her with an arm around her shoulders. His free hand grasped her chin and forced her head up.

“Look at her,” he demanded, “Stage one, already.”

Eva didn’t know what ‘stage one’ meant, but she dreaded the stages that would follow. Her breaths were coming faster, now. And, every one of them tasted like him. His scent overpowered even Josh, who was right next to her. Eva felt as if she’d stepped right back into the woman who’d been standing with him on the sidewalk. Overwhelmed and frantic.

Josh’s touch was an affront to her most of the time, but now Eva could barely stomach it. She jerked her chin away, snarling when he moved to grab her again. Both hands encircled his wrist as she held him back.

“Don’t.”

For the first time in her memory, Josh looked genuinely proud of her. He nodded and disengaged her grip. Eva pressed her palms into her thighs and tried to catch her breath. Her lungs couldn’t seem to hold onto the air and the muscles of her stomach trembled to keep her upright.

“Stage two, I think,” Josh murmured. Then, “Let’s move things along.”

He snatched the back of her neck and threw her face down on the coffee table. Surprised, Eva screamed and tried to gain her footing. Two hands gripped the back of her dress and slid her to the side and onto the floor. Eva landed hard on her knees. The pain was quickly forgotten as she caught the change in Horacio’s scent.

He was angry. More angry than she was. She looked up at him, saw how much he wanted to use his fists to beat the shit out of her husband. Hell, Eva wanted to beat the shit out of him. But, even with her body careening frenetically, Eva knew it would destroy everything he’d built.

Something was wrong.

Eva was no stranger to a heat. While infrequent, she knew what they felt like, what to look for. There was a pain in her belly that was not normal. Crying out, Eva held her middle and curled in on herself.  Her toes dug into the carpet, trying to gain traction against the feeling of being cut open from the inside.

“Is this part of it?”

Eva couldn’t even be bothered to respond to the concern in Horacio’s voice. The whole of her attention was focused on not throwing up all over the carpet. It would a be too dried in to clean up tomorrow.

“Don’t be a baby, Eva,” Josh bit out.

She yelled into the floor, tears leaking from her eyes. Her body shook. Twitched. Spasmed. Her vision was nothing but a blur.

“I take it this is not part your stages,” then, “She should go to the hospital.”

Movement behind her, “Alexei, get my bag.”

Careful hands lifted her so that she sat up. Eva’s head lolled towards the scent of safety until her forehead rested on a garishly colored silk shirt. Her tears would ruin it, which was probably for the best. It really was ugly.

Eva hated the shirt. She hated her husband. She hated that she couldn’t drape her arms around Horacio’s neck and make him take her out of there. Most of all, she hated that she could barely think past the pain radiating from her stomach.

A hand touched her forehead. It scalded her, despite the fever rising in her blood. Eva tried to pull away, but her muscles protested the effort. Horacio cupped the back of her neck and applied pressure to her forehead.

“She’s too hot. She’ll have a seizure.”

From behind her, Josh voice was suspicious, “And you know that how?”

With a soft noise of derision, Horacio replied, “You think I don’t know what an overdose looks like.”

“This isn’t an overdose.”

“What is it, then, doctor?”

Eva smiled a little bit at the sarcasm in Horacio’s tone. She was so used to hearing people treating Josh with deference that the utter disregard for his medical training was refreshing.

The longer she spent with her hands curled into Horacio’s shirt, the better she felt. The pain in her belly receded to a dull throb and her vision cleared. It left her with the residual tremble in her body and a weakness that made her so vulnerable that it scared her. Eva had no capacity to defend herself, no strength to play her part in front of Josh and Alexei.

She heard the Russian come back to the room and round the couch to kneel next to Josh. He opened the medical bag Josh kept in the house for emergencies. Her husband pulled out a stethoscope and she felt to cool metal land on her back as he listened to her lungs. Then under her arm to rest on her chest so that he could check her heart.

“Put her on her back,” Josh directed to Horacio.

Eva snorted, “Wasn’t that the point?”

She could tell that Josh was frustrated and angry that this wasn’t going how it was supposed to and Eva half expected him to slap her for the comment. He didn’t. Which was nice. Her head was already hurting enough as it was.

Eva eased onto her hip and then rolled to her back with the help of two pairs of hands belonging to two very different men. She blinked wearily up at three faces that were all looking down at her with varying expressions.

Josh was frustrated.

Alexei was worried.

Horacio was...well, there were several feelings flying across his face. He was, of course, concerned. But, the narrowed glances he was throwing at Josh were all repressed anger. If she inhaled, she could detect a softening of the vetiver into something warmer. If Horacio wasn’t sitting in a room full of his enemies, Eva knew that he would be coddling her. He would be holding her close and doing whatever he could to soothe her.

She was charmed by it.

And, that was about when her eyes rolled back and she passed out.

Eva woke later in her bed. She was lying on top of the covers and it was dark save for the light coming from the upstairs hallway. Sitting up, she ran a hand over her face. It came back grimy with the salt of her sweat and tears. Eva cringed and moved to stand so that she could shower.

That was when she noticed Alexei.

He was sitting in the chair next to her vanity. Eva stared at him in silence, wondering why he was watching her in the dark.

“Are you better?”

She nodded.

“Good. You were unresponsive for,” he checked his watch, “three hours.”

“Oh.”

He stood and she tried hard not to flinch. She followed him as he cross the room and sat on the bed next her. Reflex had her folding her hands in her lap as she waited to find out what he wanted.

“Josh has gone to the lab to test the serum against the control,” he said conversationally, “I’m sure he won’t be back tonight. Probably not tomorrow, either.” When Eva didn’t say anything, he added, “Despite your bad reaction, I think the test gave us what we needed.”

Eva frowned at him in confusion.

“Our Diego was worried about you,” Alexei asserted firmly, “Josh might have been too busy to notice, but I caught it. This is something we can work with.”

Compelled to offer a counterpoint, Eva replied, “Or, he’s a human being who cares about other human beings.”

He shook his head, “He’s as much a psychopath as I am.”

She drew back, “How do you know that?”

“Remember,” he answered, all confidence, “I looked into him. The rumor is that he has a habit of beating men to death with his bare hands—or, emptying a clip into them when he doesn’t have the time.”

Her mind detailed what Horacio might look like in a real fight. What his body could do to someone if he chose violence.

“Don’t worry,” Alexei soothed, mistaking her silence for fear. “He wouldn’t dare lay hands on you. At least, not like that.”

She didn’t like the innuendo in his tone, or the spark in his eyes.

“Its an opening,” he said. “We need more product and we need to get him to deliver.”

Again, Eva frowned, “He said he could deliver next week.”

“We need it in in five days.”

“So, ask him to deliver in three days.”

He smiled, “We already did that, Birdie. Diego was firm on a week.”

“Its only two days, Alexei.”

“We’re on a schedule.”

“I don’t see how I can make him get it faster.”

Alexei cast her a patronizing look, “You’ll ask. Nicely. Sweetly. Like a good omega asks her alpha.”

Her face scrunched in distaste, “He’s not my alpha.”

He laughed, “Yes. I know. But, you can make him feel like he is, can’t you?”

“I don’t know…”

Eva had no experience with seduction. And, despite what she already knew about Horacio, trying to trick him into doing something for her husband felt somehow wrong.

Alexei put a hand over hers. His skin was cold and dry. Heavy.

“I know you can do it.” He rose, “Get some rest. We’ll arrange an outing with him the day after tomorrow.”

And then he was walking out of her room and descending the stairs with an almost silent step. Eva tipped her head back and groaned to the ceiling. She was too tired to really think about what the conversation she just had meant for her. All she wanted to do was shower and crawl back into bed.

Standing on newly steady feet, Eva grabbed her robe and headed for the bathroom.

[ceph-the-ghost-writer]

For Renato: 🍁 Where does your OC go when they need to have some time to themself? Would they ever have their own “comfort corner” filled with all the things they like? Do they have a favourite spot outside that feels like its theirs and theirs alone?

Isaac: 🌻 What little things do they notice about people or the world around them that make them happy? What tiny little treasures do they find in the normal every day that makes the world seem a little brighter for them?

Elfy: 🌳 What is your OC’s favourite way to relax after a stressful day? Do they have a favourite book to curl up with? A hobby? Or do they have a nice bubble bath and have an early night to bed?

Hey, K! Thanks for sending some asks. :D

From this list

For Renato: 🍁 Where does your OC go when they need to have some time to themself? Would they ever have their own “comfort corner” filled with all the things they like? Do they have a favourite spot outside that feels like its theirs and theirs alone?

He does have his own room at the Unseen Hand's manor house/guild hall. That's where his beloved fish stay, of course, and he'll often watch them to relax while he's there. He also invested a lot of money into having a ridiculously huge four poster bed with a great mattress, both for sleeping and, ah, having company over. His walk-in closet contains a hoard of designer clothing and shoes.

Of course, Ollie or Mergus or someone could bother him there, so Renato sometimes just checks into a fancy hotel for a few days to get away. He typically spends the early part of the night by the pool, occasionally swimming, but mostly maintaining his tan under the UV lights or being admired by anyone else cool enough to go out for a night swim.

If he truly wants to be alone, though, Renato will take a dinghy out when he's by the coast. He'll sail until he can't see anything but black water below and glittering stars above. If he's in a particularly morose mood, he'll imagine sitting there and watching a final sunrise. Once being alone with his thoughts becomes too much, he'll head back to shore, inevitably catch the eye of someone who's taken with his wistful expression, and the charming mask is put back on.

For Isaac:🌻 What little things do they notice about people or the world around them that make them happy? What tiny little treasures do they find in the normal every day that makes the world seem a little brighter for them?

He's very much an appreciator of little things, despite what his grouchy demeanor might suggest. Animal and people watching are a big part of this.

Back at his apartment in Chicago, Isaac always gives any leftover takeout to the crows and pigeons on his street. He likes watching the birds' antics and listening to their calls to one another. He's also one of those people who amazes cat owners when their normally skittish beasts approach Isaac and are purring in his lap within minutes. He knows it's just a matter of respecting their space and not being pushy, but he enjoys being the guy who's "good with animals".

Learning the why's and how's behind something brings Isaac a lot of pleasure, whether it's history, a machine, physics, whatever. He actually stops to read plaques on sites of interest and museum exhibits. (This is at least part of why he and Dorian hit it off.)

As far as people watching goes, he likes catching little moments of tenderness or peace. Someone smiling as they whisper a secret into a friend or partner's ear. A person reading on a blanket at the park with their dog beside them. A parent helping their child button a coat. Granted, these also make him a bit wistful too since he (foolishly) thinks he'll never experience these kinds of things himself.

For Elfy: 🌳 What is your OC’s favourite way to relax after a stressful day? Do they have a favourite book to curl up with? A hobby? Or do they have a nice bubble bath and have an early night to bed?

Surprise: Elfy prefers to blow off steam by going out, getting some drinks, and nine times out of ten going home with someone she met at the bar. Of course, if she's a) already hungover or b) tired from a long assignment she'll hang with Isaac or some of her other friends to watch movies and relax for a rare moment.

Her other favorite pastime is combing antique and salvage shops for potentially haunted/cursed objects. She prefers Isaac to accompany her on these searches--she knows she found something good when his face scrunches up a certain way.

[byte-the-bullet]

A slacker’s philosophy

Page 1-Motivation and Yue

Don’t do anything more than you’re told to-you might have extra pressure put on you.

Never say no, but only do what you’re asked to-do not take initiative.

Live comfortably and relax, who needs stress when you’re doing just fine as a doormat?

Do the bare minimum. Never turn things in early and make sure everything is done to the minimum standard.

All play, no work-find a way to escape responsibilities at all costs. No matter who you see, are they really happy? The overachievers, who try everything to their fullest.

The advanced, being told they’re gifted.

The talented, worshiped by those beneath them.

The famous, with lives of sparkling gold.

But the slacker? The failure? Those who are called lazy, and ignorant?

Ignore them, we are told. 

They are useless scum, we are assured.

But then we see those people who have told us these things.

The overachievers, who will soon meet failure-tears streaming down their faces.

The advanced, thrown away and exhausted-told they are broken and needy.

The talented, crumbling at jealousy and dwindling skill-dropping dead at a hint of criticism.

The famous, surrounded by controversy and lies-brought blood by those who once loved them.

See, the slacker who spends all day in blissful rest.

See, the failure who has no worries about their future.

See, the ignorant who are unaware of the things others think. 

They all share in common these things, they do not fear death, they live life without regret, they exist not to be great-but to be happy. ‘Slacker’ is a compliment, to be a failure is to be happy.

And he is happy. This ‘Slacker’ is named Yue Lynne, a young man with the gift of being completely, and utterly, useless. Yue is the very definition of a slacker-he sits around all day, every day. A middle school dropout who used to be a prodigy, now going around living in a run-down tiny house without heating and without electricity or water, not old enough to drink, and without a driver’s license. He works part time at a call center, and just kind of… Exists. Yue doesn’t worry, he doesn’t stress, he just casually exits. Well… Today is just another day, Yue is just lounging around in the break room at his work, taking his sweet time falling asleep in the not-so-comfortable plastic chairs, looking at the peeling light gray walls and the dust-packed vents, the refrigerator he’s stolen food from so many times before, and the stupidly heavy metal door. Yue stands up, yawning and walking over to the dirty white refrigerator-he only stood up because he had to eat something-and so he pulled open the refrigerator door, eyeing up someone else’s lunch and quickly snatching it, making sure to avoid the unidentified rotting substance near his hand. He popped the food in the microwave for about a minute, then proceeded to eat it without even bothering to read the label on the container or check what kind of food it was. He didn’t even take a second to taste the food, instead wolfing it down until there was nothing left-only to come to the realization that there was another man watching him eat. “Yue.” And that other man looked very upset. “That was my lunch, you bastard…” Yue, however, completely ignored this-responding with a quick-“Oh? Okay, I won’t do it again.” Of course this was a lie, but the other man simply shook his head and walked off with a sigh. By now it was about time to leave, it’s not like Yue ever stuck around for the full work day-especially not when he knew that he was getting paid to do nothing; he’d disconnected his company phone and computer years ago on his first day. And of course everyone knew; and everyone wondered how Yue was getting away with it… Maybe he’d somehow cornered the company, or maybe their boss just liked Yue? No, Yue hadn’t done anything like that-he’d be too lazy to come up with some elaborate plot. But there he was. Four years of doing absolutely jack shit, hired at 18, turning 21 in September, with a cozy life of daydreaming and sleep ahead of him. He was the definition of a slacker, an eternal laze without wants or needs, someone unbothered by the world and people around him… He could go wherever he wanted on foot, do whatever he wanted with a hundred in his pocket, and exist in peace forever. On a whim, he decided to go to a nearby church, peering inside he couldn’t help but laugh to himself-so many people all putting in such an effort when a good 70% don’t even believe all of it. He shook his head and kept walking, stopping dead in his tracks as he looked over at a poster-a new art gallery? Here? In this flavorless city? He had to see it, so for once in his life he made an effort to get there.

Kicking trash out of the sidewalk and putting it in dustbins as he walked, collecting the occasional old coin or ripped paper bill, all the way until he made it to the gallery-an art museum he’d been to many times before just to laugh at the people dissecting a paint splatter on the floor. At one point he glued a shoe to the ceiling and watched stuck-up critics praise the ‘creativity’ and ‘excellence’-only for Yue to be unable to hold in his laughter. This time however, he was greeted by a stunning ceramic sculpture of some kind of ancient dragon ten feet tall, an impossible feat to be sure. He stood there for a good thirty minutes, just staring at it, taking in the sight. His human, pale green eyes locked on the dragon’s light blue eyes, his pale skin shimmering like the beautiful sculpture’s cold white scales, his hand reached out to graze the sculpture- to trail over it’s carefully crafted teal ceramic fur, despite the twenty or so ‘DO NOT TOUCH’ signs pasted around it. He was awestruck, only to be pulled away by one very confused looking woman. “Are you alright sir?” Yue ignored her, completely enamored with the sculpture until he was smacked on the head. “Snap outta it, I get that it’s pretty but it’s just a sculpture.” The woman was now crass, rolling her eyes. “You art geeks sure are a weird ass bunch.” She proceeded to walk off, leaving Yue significantly confused and now slightly concussed. After taking one last look at the dragon, Yue had to remind himself-“Just… Just a sculpture. Nothing more.” And he began walking to observe the other new exhibits. Each piece was intricate, all forming something incredible-he now stood in front of a clay landscape of deep China blue and cold white, detailing a heaven that was far too beautiful for him to avert his gaze from, each ceramic animal was so detailed, gazing over a lake of mirror, and a waterfall stopped in time made of stunning silver glass-each and every leaf or blade of grass was delicately sculpted and polished-and Yue just… He couldn’t look away. But again he was interrupted, this time by a young man his age-“Do you like it?” The young man’s head tilted, and Yue responded quickly this time-“Yes, I-I… It’s beautiful.” The young man gave a slight giggle, “Oh, you do? Then tell me why you think it’s beautiful.” Yue didn’t spare a moment before again responding-“Because it must’ve been ridiculously stressful.” The man’s eyes narrowed a little bit in confusion, and he quietly responded-“Well… That’s certainly a… ‘Unique’ view..? Why do you think it’d be stressful..?”

Yue again responded instantly, “Nobody would put that much effort into something without a reason to, so it’s safe to assume that the reason was some kind of pressure.” Now thoroughly baffled, the young man responds-“Well… I guess that makes sense..?” Yue looks at the younger man fully now, he’s around the same height as Yue with pale freckled skin and doe like hazel and green eyes, thin eyebrows and a rather tiny frame too. The young man’s bitten down nails are attached to soft looking hands grasping a studio camera, and his relaxed shoulders carry a small leather messenger’s bag. His hair is a rusted umber color, held in a short ponytail and accompanied by sideswiped bangs. “Are you some kind of photographer? Do you work for the museum?” Yue stepped back, and the other man now stepped forward with a smile. “Yes! I’m a photographer, I mean- I don’t work for the museum but- I do work for a few arts magazines! My name is Leo Mux!” Yue hadn’t heard his name before, other than the occasional mention from the magazine’s his mom had kept, but he attempted to meet the enthusiastic reply-“Oh, my name is Yue Lynne, I think I’ve heard of you…” Leo immediately lit up even more, now directly invading Yue’s personal space. “Really?! That’s great! I had no idea that anyone all the way out here would know about me!” Leo seemed all too excited, and was now only half a foot away from Yue-who not only didn’t mind, but enjoyed being able to talk to someone so energetic. “I’ve seen your name on a few magazines, yeah.” Yue responded, and Leo happily nodded and backed away-this time Yue was the one to close the gap and get closer to Leo. “Wow… I had no idea..!” Leo’s response was a bit too enthusiastic for Yue, but he tolerated it well and kept talking to him. “So… Leo, what do you like taking pictures of?” Leo finally quit moving around so much, seeming a lot calmer. “Just about anything I can get pa-“ Yue cut him off with-“No, what do you like taking photos of?” And Leo paused, a little stunned, then responded with a bright smile, “Everything! Sometimes I just run around with my old cheap camera and take pictures of everything in sight…” ‘He’s like a little kid.’ Yue couldn’t help but think, before getting an idea. “Oh? Everything? Then if I took you around the city, you’d end up with a bunch of photos at the end of the day, right?” Yue’s idea was simple-and just about the most effort he’d ever put into anything; take Leo, and drag him around the city, post the photos on the city hall’s webpage (and a few social media sites) and hopefully get one or two new faces into the dreary ass place. Yue didn’t really understand why he was exerting so much effort, but he had the time, and the energy, and now… “Yeah! That’d be amazing-thanks for offering!” He had Leo’s response. And so Yue went home after securing Leo’s number, and spent the rest of the day doing absolutely nothing.

[odysseywritings]

The Church

@flashfictionfridayofficial @howdywrites

(tw blood and gore)

The quartet of zombie survivors walked away from the struggle with bloodied wounds barely covered by bandages. They needed a place to hold out and recover and it certainly wasn't going to be out in the open as dusk approached. The bloody red sun overlooking the cruel southwest desert signalled the frozen chill of night creeping in. By serendipity, the sun was toward the direction of a church with lights still on.

"Yay, someone is still alive!" the pink dyed Gabi beamed.

"Finally," the large stetson wearing Rhonda grinned. "Was afraid Tess was gonna fly away with th' wind!"

"Hush it," the tiny, gray flanneled woman said. "This is holy ground, and I don't want y'all talking like heathens while we're finally blessed."

A long haired man wearing denim and brown leather observed the pile of zombies dead and impaled while posed in upside down cross formations.

"I love what they've done with the place," Ken quipped. "Really feeling the love of God here."

Tess groaned, "Lord, forgive them and their foolishness."

Gabi knocked on the door and yelled to say they were in need of a safe house. There was no coherent answer, only some mumbled sighs. She looked at the others who were also confused, yet the chill was grating on their skin, and they chose to enter anyway.

The cobwebs and chipped pews contrasted with the ornate church's stained glass filled with colorful hagiography that felt at home to Gabi and Tess, while Ken was impressed by the artistry, and Rhonda was apathetic to it all. They looked around to find the sound's source, a constant moaning that echoed throughout the building, causing Gabi to shiver and Rhonda to aim her shotgun. Tess found a separate room and found a kneeled woman in a nun's habit sulking.

"Sister? You're alright now. We're not bit."

Gabi stepped in to see the nun and bent down to comfort her, but Tess put her arm out in case it was a trap.

"What's your name?"

With a long exhale, the woman slowly got up and looked at them, and saw Ken and Rhonda enter as she ambled over.

"I am Sister Amanda. I am the only one who has been saved in this great judgement. I hope you four are not the Horsemen come to lay waste to me."

"Hell no," Rhonda barked as Ken raised a brow at the nun's words. "But if we were, I call War, because that's the most badass one!"

"Rhonda," Tess sighed. "Sorry, Sister. We didn't mean to intrude, but night's closing in, and we needed a refuge."

"I understand. But before I let you all stay, you must do me a favor, and that is to confess your sins. It is how I remained safe from this awful plague. I insist you do the same lest the horrible curse outside befalls you all."

Rhonda rolled her eyes while Tess and Gabi obliged with Ken out of sight.

"I don't mind, Sister," Tess said. "I ain't going too private since I'm with company, but... I did a kill a man before all this. A real snake who tried to get more than he deserved."

"I killed a few m'self, ya ain't that special" Rhonda chimed as Tess glared at her. "What? Y'all wanted confessions..."

Gabi twiddled her fingers and stepped up. "I... turned a blind eye to someone being attacked. I was just so scared and didn't know what to do!"

Tess put her hand around Gabi's and Amanda gave a small smile with hands outstretched.

"Thank you all. I know now what people you are all. How un-Christian and sinful you are."

"Excuse me," Tess stared daggers at her. "Then what was all that confession shit for?"

"Call it introspection," Amanda said with a sluggish smile and heavy eyes. "You will need it in this coming Rapture. Murderers and cowards need to be reminded of their guilt if they seek salvation."

"What are you even saying," Gabi cried in confusion. "We messed up but we're doing what we can! How dare you be sanctimonious!"

"I can beat that smugness right out of 'er," Rhonda cracked her knuckles.

"You may say your barbs, but I am protected, for my deeds are only to the evil and soulless you saw before trespassing on this land. You three-"

Her heart dropped and a chill went down her spine.

"Wait, there was a fourth one. A young man. Where did he go?"

"Ladies?" Ken shouted from below, causing the others to be concerned.

Rhonda grabbed Amanda by the arm and escorted her to where Ken was. He found a cellar hidden by tapestry and went down and saw a sight that rendered him speechless and cold. The others followed his path and saw what he discovered.

Bodies of slashed clergy and churchgoers were laid neatly in a row. Many were only recently rotting and three were smaller and younger than the rest.

Ken pointed at the limbs and necks. "No bite marks."

Amanda lost balance and felt her vision distorted and swirling. She retreated to a pew and rested on her side.

"The Lord will forgive me. He always will. He knows what I had to do. They all committed grave sins. To use the apocalypse as an excuse for impure and unholy acts. To abuse all of His love. To abuse all of His laws. To abuse all of His charity."

She rambled on as nightfall pressured them to throw her outside, in her nearly catatonic state, damning her to the outside world come Hell or high water. The group had varying degrees of guilt, with Ken and Rhonda feeling no sympathy for Amanda, Gabi feeling terribly sick, and Tess thinking about their safety in sleeping without a knife around their necks. They didn't hear her as they slept through the night and assumed she met her flock.