#fun fact I did this all on one brush with different settings

[placesyoucallhome]

Sweater weather

[lowkeyremi]

𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 !

pairing: suna, tsukishima, ushijima, osamu, sakusa, and iwaizumi x fem!reader (separate) note: thank you for the request @nicoleisdumb ! this was so fun to write and a nice refreshing break from jjk :3 miss writing abt these boys. summary: You forgot date night ! Oops... now your man is ignoring you?? How are you gonna fix this? content: slight angst to fluff, established relationships (marriage for a few, hehehehehe I will always find a way to sneak babies in), cursing, kinda suggestive for kiyoomi's part. not proofread!!!! wc: 3.3k

❥ 𝐑. 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐀

Rintaro is not one to usually get upset when you forget things because you're human just as he is and he forgets things all the time. He forgets his keys at home sometimes, or his wallet, sometimes he forgets his birthday, etc. (never his phone, he always has that thing).

There has never been a day that he's forgotten a date or an anniversary to your surprise. Lately, though, work has consumed both you and your boyfriend. He was handling it better though, because when you'd get home you would immediately collapse onto the bed and fall asleep. Rintaro would make sure to change you into something more comfortable and at least clean your face with a warm, wet cloth and your face wash.

Today was no different from any others. As soon as you remove your shoes and lay in the bed, all of your problems don't matter anymore. It was only around 7 pm then.

The morning had arrived in a blur. Finally, you had a day off. This morning is off though, because you don't wake up with a set of pajamas on or Rin's t-shirt. That was your first clue to something being off.

The second clue was the fact that he is not in bed. Rin doesn't get up out of bed unless he absolutely has to. Usually, he's holding you captive in his arms. Before you investigate, you take the initiative to shower and brush your teeth. When you're in a fresh pair of clothes; a tank top and shorts, you slowly make your way into the living room, sleep still in your body.

A brown tuft of hair sticks out from under your mickey mouse blanket and a body way too big for the couch is curled up on it. Why is he sleeping on the couch?

"Rin, baby, why are you on the couch?" Silence. He's awake, you know it because of the sound from his phone that's muffled by the blanket. Is he ignoring you? There's no way... he must not have heard you.

So you speak up in case he didn't hear you the first time, "Morning, Rin!"

Still nothing. He doesn't even move. What is his problem? Your mood instantly deflates into something sour. There was a hope within you that you would finally get to spend time with him today. Be it cuddles or going out.

Since he's not talking to you, you'll just decide to make breakfast in order to pass the time and fill the silence. While breakfast is being made you try to think of things you could have possibly done to upset him.

Then it suddenly clicks... you wanted to go out with him today. He had planned to take you out yesterday. That had to be it, right?

"Rinnie was yesterday date night? I'm sorry for forgetting. I think you had tickets for something? I feel so fucking bad, baby." Sleep had instantly taken you last night that you forgot to set an alarm or something so you could remember date night.

He still didn't say anything, but he did get up from the couch to get some food. His gold eyes were cold and unforgiving.

"Rintaro. I'm really sorry. I guess my body got used to going to sleep right when I got home. I didn't even check to see if we were doing anything yesterday. I'll make it up to you, we can go out tonight?"

He's not mad at you, not anymore at least. Even though he's not mad at you, he kind of wanted to be. It's hard for him to be upset with you for too long.

"Don't fall asleep this time, sleepyhead." That familiar smile that you know so well appears on his face. It causes you to smile just as wide if not wider.

In seconds your arms are wrapped around him in a loving hug. "I won't fall asleep. Promise."

❥ 𝐊. 𝐓𝐒𝐔𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐌𝐀

Kei is mean and petty about it. Date night is usually something simple like Netflix and some homemade snacks or something of the sorts. Mainly because the two of you like to stay in rather than go out.

He texted you asking where you were, only for you to reply that there was some old close friend of yours visiting town, so you decided to hang out with them.

When you got home late into the night, it was a little too quiet for you. Kei is probably asleep or playing on his play station, you assume. So, without even knowing that your boyfriend is upset, you go through your whole nightly routine.

Upon entering your bedroom you see his body lying in bed, his chest rising and falling every second. "I'm home." Leaves your lips in a whisper. There is no response so you assume he's asleep.

Halfway through the night you can't sleep, at all. It's probably because your boyfriend's comforting hands aren't wrapped around you, like usual.

You softly nudge your boyfriend's side trying to ease him awake, "Kei."

After a few more tries he finally startles awake, "what?"

"I can't sleep." You whine, "I need you to hug me."

"Shoulda' thought 'bout that before you went off with your friend instead of having date night." His tone is sour, from both being woken up and from you forgetting date night.

A small gasp leaves your lips, suddenly the conversation you two had a week prior to last night floods your brain. You weren't working that day and neither was Kei, which meant you guys could have your annual movie marathon.

"I'm sorry baby, I completely forgot..." He doesn't say anything to you and you can't tell what he's thinking because his back is facing you.

With a new spring of motivation you hop out of bed to make some of your favorite movie snacks and grab your laptop, before heading back to your bedroom.

"How about a redo?" Kei turns his body to look at you, he eyes the snacks and your computer. How could he stay mad at you?

"Hurry up before I change my mind." A huge cat-like grin adorns your pretty face.

❥ 𝐖. 𝐔𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐉𝐈𝐌𝐀

"Daddy, why red circle?" Your little son Nao asks looking at the calendar on the fridge.

"Mommy and Daddy were supposed to go out tonight, but work called Mommy and asked her to come." Wakatoshi explains to his three year old.

The original plan was for Nao's nanny to come a little early because Wakatoshi finally had time off of work and so did you. When she came to take care of your son you two were going to go to dinner and see this new jazz group.

Wakatoshi had only told his son part of the truth, you did have to suddenly go to work but it wasn't because they called you in, it was because you requested to work late, so you could have more time off in the future.

The only reason he sugar-coded it was, because he would never want to paint you in a bad light.

The both of you have enough to support the household and live a steady life so he has no idea why you decided to go into work tonight. It seems you'd even forgotten that you were supposed to go out on a date with him tonight.

"Mommy not gettin' dinner with you?" He asks for clarity.

"Yeah, that's right." He gives the little guy a pat to the head.

"So it's just you and me. After bath time and dinner we can do something fun like watch a movie."

"We watch Dootopa?" He asks with a beaming smile on his face.

"You wanna watch Zootopia?"

"Yes yes!!!" That is his all time favorite movie. Flash the sloth is his favorite character next to Judy Hopps.

"Okay, well lets hurry up and get bath time and dinner time over with."

When you arrive home, your two favorite boys are fast asleep on the couch. You make the assumption they've been watching movies all night because Toy Story 2 is playing and neither are awake to watch it.

Nao is curled up in his father's lap, while Wakatoshi's hand is supporting him in case he falls.

You pick the sleeping little boy up in order to take him to his bed. Wakatoshi ever the light sleeper awakes when you remove Nao from his lap.

Instead of smiling and kissing you goodnight he turns the TV off and proceeds to walk straight to your shared bedroom without a word.

You quickly place your son down in his bed kissing him goodnight. You know why he's upset with you and there's an eagerness for you to fix it.

"I totally forgot about dinner, honey, I'm sorry." Those words leave your lips as soon as you enter your bedroom.

Your hurry to change into something more comfortable so you can join him in bed.

"Don't be mad 'Toshi." He grunts, his back is turned to you, so who knows what he's thinking.

Luckily for you he tends to not hold grudges.

"I'll get us a reservation at your favorite place," desperation seeps into your voice when he still doesn't answer you, "I really feel dumb for calling into work today, please cut me a break baby-"

"You aren't dumb, by any means, and I'm not mad. I'm confused." That's when you remember that Wakatoshi doesn't usually ignore you when he's upset about something.

The reason he doesn't say anything is usually because he's thinking.

You wait for him to tell you why he's confused and as you do so you sink into bed. At the point he turns over to see your face.

"I'm confused as to why you needed to work late when you already have so many days off."

"Well- I was hoping the three of us could go on vacation this summer, if the team doesn't require you to do your workouts there." His confusion is replaced with awe.

"Just ask them for days off, if they dock your pay it won't matter. We have enough to live comfortably, I promise." It feels good to finally have your man looking into your eyes again. A relieved sigh leaves your lips.

❥ 𝐎. 𝐌𝐈𝐘𝐀

"Forgettin' something?" Your husband asks right before you walk out the door to go to your best friend's baby shower. He's leaning against the door frame, his huge arms flex when he goes to cross them over his equally large chest.

Is there something you're forgetting? Nothing rings a bell, so you assume he means you're about to forget to kiss him goodbye.

You lean into kiss him and he kisses you back of course, but there's still a pout on his face and he doesn't look satisfied.

"I love you, 'Samu! I gotta get going before I'm late!" So you forgot about it. You forgot that tonight Osamu was supposed to take you to the shop and fix up a nice dinner for you two at your favorite table. He'd serve your favorite wine and you two would talk about the stupidest things into the early hours of the morning. He even closed early for tonight.

I mean, he can't blame you, your best friend of a lifetime is having a baby shower, and of course she wants you there. It would have made him feel a little bit better if you at least remembered it, but you didn't.

Osamu wouldn't be a Miya if he wasn't at least a little bit petty about it. He's decided he'll ignore you until you figure out that you'd forgotten about your date tonight. Maybe if he's not too sour he'll make dinner for you.

The petty man in question has been watching the clock for the past twenty minutes. You were supposed to be home by now, because it's already 8:45 pm. The baby shower started at 6 and ended at 7, so, where are you?

Just as he asks himself that question, the telltale sound of keys on the other end of the door snaps him out of his trance.

"Hey baby, I'm back!" The door swings open and your pretty face greets him.

He doesn't say anything back to you, he just pretends to be busy on his phone.

"Sorry I got back so late, I stayed to help her clean everything up." Your eyes watch your husband carefully, checking for any sign of him being upset, because he doesn't say anything yet again.

"What's wrong, 'Samu?" Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He's definitely mad, now you just need to figure out why.

After a quick change into your slippers and your keys are on the rack you walk up to him, giving him a hug from behind. You rest your chin on his shoulder. He's scrolling through twitter, his personal one not the one for promoting the shop.

"Why are you sulking? You're acting like your brother." Osamu accepts his fate, you know he can't ignore you when you compare him to his brother.

"Do not compare me to that oversized baby." When he hears your beautiful laugh he almost forgets why he was upset, almost.

"Did I not tell ya that ya were forgettin' somethin' before ya left?" The question in his voice makes you think for a second.

"Was it not a kiss?" He shakes his head. Now you're completely lost.

"I was 'posed to take ya down to the shop and we were gonna eat at our table." When he finishes his sentence you gasp in remembrance. Oh shit. You forgot about date night.

"Baby, you can't possibly be telling me I had to choose you or her." He stiffens for a brief moment, then relaxes.

"Nah, I was just hoping ya'd at least remember it." A shudder rolls down his spine when you give him a small kiss on the neck.

"I'm sorry for forgetting, baby. Let's have a do ov-" Osamu doesn't allow you to finish because he scoops you up bridal style and brings you into the kitchen to set you down on the counter.

"Ya better watch me cook or I won't forgive you."

"Aye aye captian!"

"Yer so annoying." He smiles at you.

❥ 𝐊. 𝐒𝐀𝐊𝐔𝐒𝐀

"Bye baby! Mama and Dada love you!" Your baby girl waves at you shyly as you and Kiyoomi drop her off with her grandparents.

"I wuv you too! Bye bye Mama, bye bye Dada." Kiyoomi hugs his daughter tightly before setting her down next to her grandma.

"Alright, sweet girl, make sure to be good for nana and poppa okay?" She nods her adorable little head, the tiny ponytails you put in her hair swing rapidly.

As soon as you guys are in the car, a look of excitement flashes in your husband's eyes.

"What?" You can't help smile when he looks at you like that.

"Made us that reservation for brunch like you asked." Your smile immediately drops. You'd forgotten that you and Kiyoomi planned this whole weekend out already. You two had planned this weekend two weeks prior, which is kind of why you forgot and booked a mani-pedi for an hour from now.

"Fuckkkkk." Why do you forget the most important things?

"Kiyo, can we do dinner instead? I forgot about brunch and booked a mani-pedi because today is the only day my nail lady could fit me in."

A tension forms almost immediately when you inform him of your plans. Guilt is heavy on your stomach while listening to your husband cancel brunch over the phone. The rest of the car ride is silent except for the sound that's happening outside of the car.

Your husband is kind enough to drop you off at your nail appointment. You feel so bad as you hop out of the car, so in order to try and smooth things over you offer for him to come inside but he just mumbles a quick, "No thank you, I'll come get you when it's done."

That's how you ended up spilling everything to your nail lady. She shakes her head as she shapes the gel nails into the shape you asked for. "What's his favorite color on you, sweetheart?"

You think for a second before answering, "He loves when I get sage green." The woman gives you a knowing smile and you connect the dots as to what she's referring to.

"You want him to feel better? Take him to dinner and then give him a night to remember with those pretty nails. Works every time with my husband." She says with a mischievous smile.

Your eyes widen for a second, "Oh my- I- we haven't had time to do anything because our little girl requires most of our time, but she's with her grandparents for the weekend."

The nail lady giggles as she goes to find your color. "Honey, if that's not a sign to get laid then I don't know what is!"

When your appointment is over you see the cadillac waiting for you in the parking lot. Kiyoomi doesn't even bother to look up when you enter the car.

"Got your favorite color." You purr with a seductive smile on your face. Kiyoomi doesn't spare you a glance, "Cool."

"Stop being so mean, I'm sorry about brunch. I made a reservation for dinner." That finally baits his attention, he turns to you, a nasty look in his eyes.

"Oh I actually think I'm going to be busy, can't go to dinner." He mocks your voice to make you feel what he had felt earlier. He's being mean, but he doesn't mean it. He still kind of has this habit of getting defensive when he or his pride is hurt.

"Too busy to get a blowjob in the car after dinner?" You know you've got him when he stops breathing for a few seconds. Your husband is only a man, and what kind of man would he be to deny a blowjob from his wife?

"Shit, should have started with that. Let me see your nails." The whole time he inspects your pretty hands there's a smirk on your face.

"I love this color on you baby."

"I know you do Kiyo. Now, let's get home, we have to get ready for dinner tonight."

Having your daughter stay with her grandparents for the weekend was the best decision you guys have made in a while.

❥ 𝐇. 𝐈𝐖𝐀𝐈𝐙𝐔𝐌𝐈

Hajime has been ignoring you for the past two hours and you can't figure out why.

You know you haven't done anything to piss him off recently (or so you think), so his behavior is kind of strange. Nothing you did made him listen to you either.

He doesn't even let you know he's leaving for work, which reminds you of yesterday. You were so excited to go see your cousin's puppy you'd forgotten to tell your boyfriend you'd be out for awhile.

Suddenly while you're tidying up the kitchen you briefly remember him asking you on a date... yesterday.

That's probably why he's ignoring you.

So of course, being the problem solver you are, you head to the store to get stuff to set up a nice date at home.

You decorate the table with pretty rose petals and cook his favorite meal for him. Candles light up the table and two glasses of wine are set on the table.

Hajime lets out a loud groan as he enters the house, working with a bunch of athletes all the time is quite tiring. What he doesn't expect is the dimmed lights and quiet music playing from the alexa in the kitchen.

For the first time today he talks to you, "What's all this?"

"An apology for forgetting our date last night. I set up an at home date for us." He tries and fails to look upset, still.

"I'm glad you remembered," he pauses, "the day after our date." A snort leaves his lips and you roll your eyes.

"At least I remembered. Hurry up and put your stuff up so we can eat. The food is gonna get cold."

It's safe to say he forgives with the way a lopsided grin adorns his face.

©𝐋𝐎𝐖𝐊𝐄𝐘𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐈 All works are written by me! Please do not copy, translate, or upload onto other sites thanks!

divider: @/chachachannah

[cleo-fox]

Daylight

Summary: Despite your best efforts, Sunday morning doesn’t go as planned…and you couldn’t be happier about it.

Pairings: Loki x Female Reader

Warnings: Smut, 18+, Minors DNI, shower sex, fingering, vaginal sex, soft sex, sex that causes you to be several hours late for work, Loki being a (respectful) horn dog.

Series: Overtime (I don't have a masterlist for this yet, but the first fic is here). A/N: This started out as a scene in Overtime that kind of took on a life of its own. You don't necessarily need to read Overtime in order to enjoy or understand this fic, but you'll have more context if you do. Anyway, it was fun revisiting these two idiots--I've got a few more ideas for them up my sleeve, so there will be more in this series at some point.

The sunlight wakes you the next morning.

It’s the same sunlight as always, but it looks different coming through Loki’s window and streaming across his bed. It looks better, you think, splashed across his sheets.

Or maybe it’s the addition of your hand clasped with his resting on those same sheets. Or perhaps it’s the sight of your clothes and his, discarded on the bedroom floor in a pool of sunlight, combined with the fact that you’re still wrapped in his arms. Maybe all of that is why it seems better.

That seems more likely.

You lie still for a moment, simply enjoying the feeling of his arms and the heat of his skin against your bare back. You are reasonably certain he’s asleep from the steady rhythm of his breath on your neck, but you’re not about to disturb the sleepy calm of the morning to confirm that. 

The clock on his bedside table says it’s just after six. Before last night, you would have said that this was a reasonable time to get up—early enough to ensure that you’re in the office by eight, which would hopefully give you enough time to meet this evening’s deadline, but not so early that it makes you question your life and your choices.

But that was before. Now…well. You suddenly find that your priorities look very different from the comfort of Loki’s bed.

You decide that you didn’t really see the clock. Neither one of you thought to set an alarm last night. Sleeping in was inevitable. That’s not your fault. No harm, no foul.

You close your eyes and allow yourself to fall into a light doze, warmed by the sunlight and Loki’s embrace.

Sometime later, you’re woken by the soft brush of a kiss against your neck.

“Did you sleep well?” he murmurs against your neck.

“Yes, though I did have a bit of a late night,” you say. “Someone kept me up.”

“Really? That was rude of him.”

“Very.”

He’s noticeably—achingly—hard. His lips brush against your neck again. “Perhaps he might make it up to you?”

Your intention is to open your eyes, roll over, and allow yourself to be ravished. But in a development you can only describe as tragic, you happen to catch sight of the clock on his nightstand.

7:38 am.

“Shit,” you say. “It’s almost eight.”

Loki is predictably unconcerned about this. “We don’t have any official hours to keep,” he says, his hand skimming along your ribs and down the curve of your waist. “We have all day.”

“Yeah, but we’ve got a ton more to do,” you say, trying to ignore how good he is at kissing your neck or how his hand is drifting down your hip toward the aching pulse between your legs. “We really need every minute.”

“That is true,” he says solemnly. “Perhaps we ought shower together to save time.”

You can’t help but smile. “I kind of feel like you have another agenda.”

“I’d never,” he says.

“The raging hard on pressing against my ass would suggest otherwise.”

You can almost hear him smirk as he gives his hips a teasing little thrust against you. “I contain multitudes.”

You wiggle out of his embrace and slip out of bed. You intend to look back and give him a coquettish look and say something sharp and teasing, but instead, the sight of him takes your breath away. He leans back on his elbows, looking everything like the sort of lounging god you would see depicted in marble at the Parthenon, all chiseled, sharp muscles and clean lines. His cock stands fully erect and deliciously thick, flushed with wanting.

“I can’t help but notice that you didn’t reject the offer,” he says, seemingly fully aware of the path of your gaze. His hand drops to his cock and he strokes himself casually, which very nearly sends your sprinting back to bed.

“You’re right,” you say, trying to keep your cool as you throw him your most beguiling look. “So you should probably hurry up.”

You turn and start walking toward the master bathroom. You don’t need to look over your shoulder to know he’s following you, his gaze hungrily devouring every inch of skin, eyes dark with purpose.

You walk into the master bathroom and are immediately confronted by several flagrant violations of the residential handbook. The TVA is many things, but it is not the sort of place that deviates from set floor plans, nor is it the sort of place that deviates from those plans to install a rainfall shower and soaking tub—in marble, no less.

You think of the stark, vaguely institutional aesthetic in your own master bath and you can’t decide if you’re annoyed at his rule breaking or jealous that he could get away with it.

“I’m not even going to ask if you got approval for this setup because I know you didn’t,” you say as you reach in to the shower to turn on the tap.

“Do you think of anything other than that cursed personnel manual?” he asks as he comes up behind you, his arms snaking around your waist and his lips again finding your neck as he draws you to him.

“First of all, it’s not the personnel manual, it’s the residential handbook, which you specifically agreed to abide by when you signed off on your lease.”

He turns you around so you face him and draws you close, a wicked gleam in his eye, “Oh, I’m going to make you forget all about those ridiculous rules.”

“That’s a pretty tall order—oh.”

His hand is slipping between your legs, stroking your already slick folds.

“I think I’m quite capable of inspiring other passions,” he says, rolling his fingers in a broad circle over the hood of your clit

You loop your arms around his shoulders. You can already feel your knees starting to tremble, but you know he won’t let you fall.

“Bold claim,” you say, “I’m going to need more evidence.”

“Oh, you’re going to get a lot of evidence,” he says softly. He curls a finger inside of you, pressing his thumb against the hood of your clit. “You will have no doubts by the time I’m done presenting my argument. You will be weak-kneed with evidence.”

You shudder as he rocks his hand slowly. He’s touching you enough to stoke the flames of desire, making your hips rock helplessly toward his hand as you try to create that extra friction and pressure that you know will send you flying over the edge. But Loki is meticulous—perhaps even ruthless—about not giving in. 

“Not yet,” he murmurs softly when your latest attempt is thwarted. “Slowly.”

Your pleas become louder and more frequent, but his answer remains the same: slowly. You whimper and beg, but he is resolute.

Steam has fogged up the mirrors and is curling around you when your orgasm finally begins to crest. You suddenly find yourself grateful for his pacing as the intensity builds to a level that makes your knees shake.

“That’s it,” he breathes as you tremble in his arms. “You can come for me now, lovely.”

Like magic, the coil inside you snaps at his command and you cry out as your cunt shudders around his slowly thrusting fingers. Your arms looped around his shoulders are the only thing keeping you standing.

“Beautiful,” he murmurs, pressing a soft kiss against your temple as you sag against him. “Beautiful.”

He gives you a moment to get your bearings before leading you into the shower. He sits down on the marble bench, spreading his thighs wide and pulling you into his lap so you straddle his hips. The spray of the water hits your back as he kisses you again, slow and hungry.

You love everything about this. The heat of the water on your back. The closeness. The way his thighs are spread wide. How his cock presses against your bare cunt. The noise he makes low in his throat when you start rubbing yourself against him.

“Need you,” he mumbles against your neck. His hands squeeze your hips and you reach between the two of you to line his cock up at your entrance.

It occurs to you that you could take the opportunity to tease him, to make him beg for you, but pretending that you have any control over your aching need for him is several degrees beyond impossible. So instead, you slowly ease yourself down onto his cock while he groans against your neck, dragging his lips down to the curve of your shoulder.

The feeling of him inside you is still so new that it feels just a little unreal. After all that wanting and yearning and thinking that he was too handsome, too divine, too out of reach to have, he’s suddenly yours and it’s absolutely dizzying. 

You pause for a moment, eyes closed, savoring the feeling of unyielding fullness, of connection. Of him.

“All right?” he asks softly.

You open your eyes and his look of sweet concern makes your heart swell. “Yeah,” you say, a lazy, satisfied smile tugging at your lips. “I just—I needed a moment. You feel—” You pause for a moment, searching for the right words, sifting through the effusive and flowery and the things that are true but too early to say. “You just feel really good,” you say.

It sounds wildly inadequate, but he seems to understand, to hear all of the unsaid parts that you’re keeping close to your heart. He could turn away, say it’s too much too soon, that you haven’t even said what you are yet, much less committed to anything serious, but he doesn’t. Instead, he leans forward, drawing you into a slow kiss, his hands framing your face, tracing the curve of your cheek and jaw with the kind of reverence that makes you want to say everything you feel.

“You’re perfect.” He says it in between breaths, with such a disarming sincerity that you can’t bring yourself to try and deflect, to name a flaw or even make a joke.

Later, he will tell you that he was struggling with a similar battle, trying to reconcile how new this was with the depth of feeling that was already blossoming in his chest. He will tell you later that he couldn’t believe you were his, just as you couldn’t believe he was yours, that there was something about you that felt right in a way that made him feel like he knew even then.

But right now, he simply kisses you with a fervor that makes your toes curl and your hips start to move.

It’s only the second time that you’ve done this, but there’s a strange blend of both the new and the familiar. The shape and feel of his body pressed against yours is new, but the way that he moves, the way that he touches you is as though he’s loved you for centuries.

The rhythm you fall into is slow, despite the excuse that this shower was to save time. His hand slides down your stomach, his fingers finding your clit to add another layer of bliss to the feeling of his cock inside you. Despite your slow pace, your ascent rushes in fast and brilliant as a comet blazing through the night sky. Your back arches, almost as though you’re presenting yourself as an offering to him as you come undone in his arms. Loki watches you with a kind of breathless wonder, brow furrowing in pleasure, his lower lip caught between his teeth at the tight clench of your cunt around his cock.

Your legs are rubbery with pleasure, but you keep going because you need his release as much as your own. You need to feel him empty himself inside of you, to hear the low groan he makes as he unravels, to see the way his eyes flutter shut. You want crescent moon marks on your hips from where his hands gripped you too tightly in that final ascent, physical proof that you can make not just a god forget himself, but Loki specifically. Loki with all his masks and tricks and artful poise; Loki laid bare below you, free from all artifice and glibness, raw and real and just as he is. All the parts of him that make you think that down this path lies something wonderful (not that you’re ready to call it love. Yet).

But Loki is nothing if not predictably unpredictable and he seems determined to make you work before granting you that little glimpse at the heaven that is the god of mischief coming undone beneath you.

“Let me feel you come again,” he murmurs as soon as you catch your breath.

“Is once not enough?” you say, trying and failing to sound cool and calm, like you’re not completely wrecked for him.

“Hardly.” His eyes flash in a way that makes you shiver as he urges your hips into a faster rhythm. “I am not so easily satisfied when my need has been so great.”

You can feel the coil in your hips beginning to tighten again.

“I’ve burned for you for years, my love,” he says, his voice going a little shaky. “Would you deny water to a man dying of thirst?”

You shake your head, your words lost to the oncoming wave of your undoing.

“Then do not deny me your pleasure, I am desperate for you.” He’s panting, barely holding on to his composure. “Now come for me again, let me feel you.”

You are so far gone that it only takes a few more strokes to make you come undone and the first shudder of your climax takes Loki with you.

You savor his pleasure more than your own release, memorizing the sound he makes, the way his lips form a silent plea in the shape of your name until he slides a hand up your neck and pulls you down to kiss him.

His kiss is fierce and hungry at first, but it ebbs to something slower and sweeter as he empties himself into you. He sighs as you tangle your fingers in the wet tendrils of his hair.

It’s a long moment later when you finally break the kiss, resting your forehead against his.

“I don’t think we saved any time,” you say.

He doesn’t even open his eyes. “I cannot overemphasize how much I do not care about being late in these circumstances.”

You grin. “Not even a little?”

He kisses you sweetly on the mouth before opening his eyes, his lips curling into a slow and satisfied smile. “I would be late every day for the rest of my life for just a few seconds of that.”

His words spark something warm in your chest and you try to hide it with a wry look. “I’m not sure that you’re getting the better end of the deal.”

He kisses you softly. “You don’t know how good you feel.”

“You’re one to talk,” you murmur against his lips and he smiles as he deepens the kiss.

The warmth of his body pressed against yours and the feeling of him smiling as he kisses you is a kind of luxury you’ve never imagined. It takes you a while to untangle yourselves, but you can’t find it in yourself to move any faster.

The actual showering part of your shower is slow and unhurried and you find that Loki’s hands are equally gifted at these mundane tasks. His fingers have a knack for finding every stubborn knot in your neck and shoulders, which he explores leisurely under the pretext of washing your back. The press of his fingers unwinds the tension in your shoulders, loosening up muscles that have been too tense for too long.

“You are way too good at this,” you say.

“Just one of my many talents,” he says, dropping a kiss on your shoulder. “Though perhaps I ought to stop—I wouldn’t want to make you late.”

“I’m so relaxed I’m going to ignore that little bit of sass.”

He chuckles against your shoulder. “You’ll forgive me.”

“We’ll see.”

The sweet, almost chaste kisses he’s been pressing against your neck and shoulders are gradually growing slower, more insistent. When you feel the tip of his tongue draw a quick, teasing line on your neck, you know that you might be in trouble.

His hands slide to your waist, drawing you close enough that you can feel that he’s hard again. 

“I’m sensing some ulterior motives,” you say.

“A bold accusation,” he mumbles against your neck, pressing himself more firmly against you.

“We can’t have sex again,” you laugh.

“Mmm, we could,” he says in between kisses. “There’s nothing stopping us from having sex again.”

“We are already running late—”

“I thought I was very clear about my feelings on timeliness in these circumstances.” He nips at your earlobe and you shiver. “And would you really deprive me of the utter bliss of coming undone inside you?”

“It’s more like rescheduling than depriving you of anything.”

“I’ve waited so long, darling.”

“We just had sex like…less than an hour ago,” you say through a laugh.

“Ah, but the days before that were so terribly long,” he says.

You turn to face him, thinking this will make things easier for you. This turns out to be a grave miscalculation because now you have to contend with the fire in his eyes and the twin flame that it summons low in your hips.

Fuck. 

You are definitely going to have sex again.

His eyes glitter like he knows and he slowly walks you backwards until you’re pressed between him and the shower wall.

“You are absolutely incorrigible,” you say as he peppers your neck with slow, decadent kisses. “I can’t believe you talked me into this.”

“Funnily enough, I don’t think you’ll be complaining about my mouth in about thirty seconds.”

And with a wicked and hungry grin, he slowly sinks to his knees.

It’s 10:48am when you finally walk into the office.

Even though you are now several hours later than you intended and the stack of files is no less imposing, you feel nothing but a pleasant glow of happiness as you take your seat. Loki sits down in the chair next to you and this time, he sneaks his foot underneath your desk and hooks his ankle under yours.

He catches your eye and smiles. “I can be a little more obvious now.”

You put on your most exaggerated expression of mock seriousness. “Only a little. This is a workplace, after all.”

He adopts a similar expression and nods. “Of course. I imagine there will be paperwork as well.”

“There actually is a form we’ll need to file with HR,” you say.

Loki frowns. “Wait, you’re not being serious about that, are you?”

“Yep. We’ll need to file it by next Friday.”

He sighs and throws his hands up in the air. “Is there anything that this place hasn’t managed to weigh down with the burden of unnecessary bureaucracy?”

“I see we’re in a good mood this morning.” Mobius has arrived, cup of coffee in hand. He nods at Loki and looks at you. “How long has he been raging against the machine?”

“Not terribly long,” you say as Loki rolls his eyes.

“It’s not raging against anything,” he says. “I just fail to see the point of some of this organization’s operational practices.”

Mobius raises an eyebrow at you. “You told him he has to fill out a form, huh?”

“Got it in one,” you say as Loki scowls.

Mobius chuckles and takes a sip of coffee. “You should hear him during performance evaluation season. I get entire monologues. It’s like Hamlet meets HR.”

Loki’s scowl deepens and you have to bite the inside of your cheek in order not to laugh.

“It looks like you made good progress, though,” says Mobius, looking at your completed stacks of files. “I took a look at what you pulled earlier this morning and there’s some good stuff.”

“Oh, good,” you say, hoping he doesn’t think much of the fact that neither one of you was in the office earlier this morning. “What time do you think you’ll need the rest done?”

“Right, about that,” says Mobius. You steel yourself for bad news. “I took a look at what you pulled so far and I think I’ve got what I need.”

You blink at him. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah, you’re off the hook,” he says. “Go enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

You look at Loki, who looks just as pleasantly surprised as you feel.

“In fact, you can take the rest of the week off,” says Mobius. “Triple overtime, right? You earned the time.” 

“This feels like a trick,” says Loki. “What’s the catch?”

“No catch,” says Mobius. “You did good work.” He takes a sip of his coffee. “However—”

“And there’s the catch,” says Loki.

“There’s no catch,” says Mobius. He gestures at you with his coffee cup. “I’m just going to need you both to turn in the relevant paperwork to HR by next Friday.”

Loki sighs, though you can tell he’s fighting a smile. “There’s absolutely no privacy here.”

Mobius raises his eyebrows. “You’re playing footsie under the desk. It’s not exactly rocket science.”

You look at Loki and shrug. “He’s got a point.”

“You’re taking his side?”

You roll your eyes and stand up. “Well, you can sulk about it if you’d like, but I’m going to go enjoy the rest of my weekend.” You share a sly, secret smile with Mobius. “I’ll see you next week, Mobius.”

It takes Loki approximately twenty seconds to catch up with you.

“And you say I’m incorrigible,” he says as he falls into step beside you.

You smile at him. “I think you’ll get over it.”

“I’ll consider it.” He catches your band, fingers twining with yours. “What are your plans for the rest of the week?”

“Hadn’t decided,” you say, biting back a smile. “Did you have any suggestions?”

“Well, I’d like to start by going back to bed.”

“To sleep?” you tease. 

“Eventually.” He licks his lips. “And since our respective schedules have been cleared for the week, we’ll be able to take our time.”

The hunger in his eyes is still so new and intoxicating that you can’t help the shiver that works its way up your spine.

You give him a slow smile. “Lead the way.”

[seravphs]

ੈ♡˳·˖✶ — MIYA ATSUMU x FEM READER

Being hot at the grocery store should be illegal.

wc — 800

tags — grocery store meet cute, set in the same universe as the way to the heart is through the stomach

“There is an attractive man on the other side of the grocery aisle,” you hiss at Kiyoko. Your roommate had dragged you out for a grocery run, but as the person who forced you out of the comfort of your home, she could stand to be a little nicer to you. 

Instead, she raises an eyebrow; her face conveying utter disdain, confusion, and slight pity at all once. It’s a little impressive, honestly. 

She peeks between the cracks in the shelves. Looks at you. Looks at the man. Looks at you again. She makes a motion that could be what are you waiting for or let the grandma pass so she can get her multivitamins. 

Sometimes it’s complicated when it comes to Kiyoko. She’s not great at talking without words. It’s because she’s spoiled. Must be nice to have a boyfriend who loves you so fully you don’t have to try to be understood, you think with a hint of jealousy. 

Then, she pushes you towards the other aisle in a gesture that’s unmistakable. 

“Kiyoko!” You’re appalled. “You’re not making me go over there. I’m wearing my pajamas!” 

Your pajamas are grey sweats with multiple suspicious stains from ketchup or blood or some other substance. You’re not sure. That’s why it’s suspicious. 

“Okay? He looks worse,” she says. Notably, she doesn’t tell you that you look fine. 

She probably thinks that’s reassuring. It’s not. 

The fact that he’s also in his pajamas and still looks hot is infuriating. 

And very sexy. 

Terribly so. 

“Just go talk to him,” she says. “You know if you don’t you’ll be thinking about him for days, anyway.” 

“I will not!” 

“Excuse me,” says the hot stranger, who in the time that you spent arguing with Kiyoko, has suddenly moved behind you. “Do ya mind?” 

He’s gesturing at the package of cereal behind you. 

You freeze. How did he move so quietly? And had he heard the conversation between you two? 

“Hello?” He waves his hand in your face - a little rudely. That deducts one point from his overall hotness score. You scramble away, giving him access to the shelf. 

“This is my favorite brand,” he says conversationally, “but my brother got a girlfriend lately, and every time she comes to our apartment she eats all of mine. I’ve told her not to like six million times! And he’s a chef! Why are ya even eatin’ processed junk if ya can get yer professional chef of a boyfriend to make ya whatever ya want? He’s so whipped, I swear.” 

“Aren’t- aren’t you also eating processed junk, then?” You say with trepidation.

He brushes you off with a “No, that’s different.” 

He’s…a little weird. Who just talks to a stranger like that? You have to admit that confidence is attractive - even if you’re not sure if it’s confidence or narcissism as he continues. 

“So, like. Are ya going to ask me out or what?” 

You choke on your own spit. He had overheard. There would be no better time for one of these shelves to fall on you and crush you instantly.

“Woah!” Says the hot stranger, who still hasn’t told you his name before commanding you to ask him out. “Ya okay?” 

He slaps your back as you wheeze for breath - hard. Is he an athlete in his spare time? How does anyone have that kind of arm strength? 

“I-“ You shut your mouth because actually, you don’t know what to say. How do you respond to that? 

“Come on,” says Mr. Bad Bleach Job. “I heard ya and yer little friend talking about me all the way down the aisle. I know you want in on this sexy ass.” 

He’s ridiculous. Are you - are you into that? You’re seriously reevaluating your mental health even as you say, almost to your own surprise, “Can I take you on a date?” 

He wrinkles his nose. “I dunno. Can ya make it a little more romantic?” 

“Why don’t you ask me out if you’re going to be so demanding?” You challenge. 

“Sure,” he says easily. “Wanna go out? We can get fancy sushi for fun and eat McDonald’s after cause that’s real food.” 

Even you can’t tell if the noise that escapes you is a laugh or a sigh. What have you gotten yourself into? 

“Whatever,” you say, handing him your phone. “I think mine was better.” 

“They both kind of sucked. 5/10 for execution, -2 for sheer cringe, -3 for awkwardness.” 

“Kiyoko, read the room.”

[vierlieben]

Lip Gloss.

Choi Jongho x f!reader

genre: fluff

wc: ?? idk

desc: you just thought of another way of putting lip gloss on your boyfriend's lips.

you are a living doll, everyone said. maybe it's just you can't go out without getting dolled up, or even when you're just staying at home, or maybe because just you're effortlessly pretty. now, by the term "dolled up", it doesn't mean applying full makeup—it's just you wearing hair clips, putting light blush, curling your eyelashes and lastly, your favorite, lippies.

a lovely picnic was planned today together with your boyfriend, Jongho, who was terribly excited about it. well, who wouldn't be so excited for finally getting to have a whole day date with his partner after a rough weekend? all he needed was you.

but maybe you two were simply just unfortunate, which is horrible because it's now raining cats and dogs out there. Jongho quietly stood by the window, watching the rain as it pours; poor one, you thought. he must be terribly saddened by now. he was the one who came up with the whole picnic idea and even bought lots of snacks for you to enjoy together. now, it's just not possible to do it because duh, picnic under this goddamn rain?

now, you hate this view. you hate seeing nothing but sadness in his face. god, you wished that you could just stop this rain and change it with the perfect weather, but yeah, obviously, you cannot. Jongho just sat on the couch and reached for his phone. now, it just got worse; you know that it's really bad when he just decided to sit in silence and give all of his attention to his phone.

"jagiiii," you threw yourself on the couch and gave him a tight, warm hug. "it's fine, we can just stay here together. maybe watch some movies or do anything we want."

you know so well that he can't resist that sweet tone of yours.

"mhm," he dropped the phone and turned around to hug you back. "yeah.. it's just, i don't know, i'm kind of devastated. i didn't even expect it to rain. i thought that the weather's gonna be fine today."

you leaned to give him a kiss on his forehead. "we can still enjoy the day, alright? tell me, how can i ease the devastation that you're feeling?"

"oh, don't worry about me. i'll be fine later, love." the lighter look at his face made you believe what he just told you. "hold on..."

suddenly, he's just staring at your lips, examining something. you froze, confused as you were waiting for him to say something else.

"hmm?"

"is that a different shade of lipstick?"

boom. suddenly, your face's hot, blushing like a whore...

all just because he noticed that you're wearing a different shade of lippie. it is a big thing for you. you know so well that he's always just observant and everything, but everytime he points out something new, you couldn't just help it but to fall deeper for him.

"uh," you looked away for a second. "yeah... did it make a lot of difference?"

"no, you still look pretty. i just noticed. that's a nice one, love." even with the plainest tone, you felt like your heart's melting. GOD, he doesn't know what he's doing to you.

"thanks," was all you can say.

"it's missing something, though," he added. "where's your lip gloss?"

oh, right. the damn lip gloss that you were about to apply but you heard the rain pour so you rushed to see if it's really raining earlier.

"ah... i forgot to put it on. wait, i'll get it." you got up to quickly grab it from your room.

you sat on the couch beside him and applied it on your lips. it was a clear lip gloss. fun fact, he got it for you last month for your birthday together with a set of brush for your blush and perfumes. he gets the best gifts for you.

and when you're finally done putting it on, you looked at him and oh god, now he's finally smiling. that smile is to die for. you are no longer worried about him being sad for the rest of the day because the picnic date is cancelled. he can now get to smile and be happy just because you put on a lip gloss in front of him.

"pretty," he muttered. "very pretty, my love."

you smiled back. "stop, god, why is it whenever you speak, i feel like melting or worse, dying? are you a witch or something?" jokingly, you said, and then laughed.

"i am not a witch. you're just inlove with me."

he's damn right.

"i kinda wanna try those lip gloss. is it too sticky?" he stared at your lips again.

"no, not that much. you actually picked a nice brand. wanna put it on?"

"yes, please. put it on my lips."

you applied one more layer on your lips and spread it out real nice. you've been waiting to do this and now is just the perfect time for it, since he asked you to do it. but he wasn't definitely expecting you to do it in this way—it is very unusual, really.

you leaned into him and pressed your lips on his. this move made his heart race and face turn red so quickly. so did yours. you were too nervous and so that "applying lip gloss" move, or should we say, that kiss lasted for a few more seconds before you let go of his face and lips.

his eyes are still open. maybe he was just really shocked and didn't get to enjoy the moment. although he wasn't expecting that, he surely wanted it—he wanted it so much and he didn't even know about it.

you took some time to appreciate how pretty it looks on him. it made his lips look plumper. this man is truly beautiful — maybe more beautiful than you, but that's okay, maybe god just have his favorites.

"woah," was the first thing that came out of his mouth. "do it again."

you were expecting him to react more, as if it is really thrilling. but he just asked for one more... and now you're just shy to do it once again.

"no, i've already put it on you." you refused.

"i don't think you've put enough," he demanded. "go, do it again."

"no wayyyy!" you shouted as you were running away from him.

you proceeded to go to your room, expecting that he didn't even follow you—but boy you were wrong, he was just right behind you, holding your lip gloss.

"come on, love. i enjoyed it. give me one more!"

[lvis44]

Sweet Escape - Pt. 2 // LH44

Lewis Hamilton x Y/N

Warnings: Swearing, 18+ NSFW (Minors DNI), smut, regret of sexual acts, alcohol consumption, age difference, jealousy, general angst, secrecy, not edited

Word Count: 4.6k+

Summary: Paradise is supposed to be fun and relaxing... a Sweet Escape, but when unspoken feelings and jealousy rise to the surface, everything can be turned upside down in the blink of an eye.

Notes: We had some drama in the last part, but things are going to start getting a little unhinged, buckle up! The next part probably won't be up until the beginning of next week. Try to ignore the fact that I can not and never have been able to keep the same tense through a whole story and I am a fan of run on sentences, its simply how my brain works lol. I am not a professional writer and all of this is a work of fiction and is strictly for fun. Thank you for all of the love thus far! Enjoy!

Previous Sections: Prologue - Part One

---

You jolt awake to the feeling of a hand brushing over your forehead. You have absolutely no idea how long you’ve been asleep, curled up in the corner of the couch. It could have been 10 minutes or five hours.

“Sorry, sorry, shhh it’s okay.” A familiar British accent soothes you, his hand still stroking your hair in a comforting manner.

“Lew?” You croak out, your voice much more hoarse than you had expected it to be.

“It’s me sweetie.” His voice stays low and comforting, “Why are you on the couch?”

It takes you a second to blink your eyes open, blurriness clouding your vision. When you finally see him, he looks exhausted, and maybe a little drunk.

“I was worried about you, tried to stay up” You mumble drearily, still not really awake.

“I’m sorry, I’m okay, no need to worry about me.” His large hand comes to rest on your cheek as you start to wake up a bit more.

“Where did you go?” You ask, trying to elbow yourself up on the couch slightly.

He frowns, looking away from you, “Don’t worry about it. How about you get to bed? I’m home now, no need for concern.”

You nod, getting up from the couch and heading towards the hallway where everyone is asleep. You pause for a moment, remembering that Talia has taken over your room. You glance at the clock over the bar, seeing that it’s past three in the morning. You know Charlotte offered for you to sleep with her but you feel bad possibly waking her after she's already been asleep for nearly four hours. You let out a deep sigh, turning back toward Lewis. He’s sitting on the couch where you left him, his legs wide with his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands, he looks distressed. He doesn’t seem to even realize that you're still in the room as you make your way over to the bar. You grab two fresh glasses, pouring the both of you a drink. His head snaps up as he hears the liquid pouring. You carefully make your way over to him, wordlessly offering him one of the glasses before you take a seat next to him.

“You should really go to bed Y/N.” He says without much meaning, taking a sip of the fresh Gin and Tonic, leaning back into the couch.

“Talk to me.” You say, ignoring his comment, curling yourself up into the couch. Your knees are to your chest as you face him, his arm coming up over the back of the couch, just barely above you.

“What do you even want me to say?” He laughs almost cynically.

“Where did you go tonight?” You ask against your better judgment. You’ve known Lewis long enough to know that when he says he doesn't want to talk about something, he truly doesn't, but your curiosity is getting the best of you.

He lets out a long sigh, leaning forward to set his drink down on the coffee table before looking toward you.

“I really don’t think you want to know Y/N.” He says, quickly lowering his eyes so he doesn't have to meet your eye contact.

“What do you mean?” You pry, placing your own glass on the table.

“I’ve been to this island quite a few times, I’ve gotten to know the good spots.” He starts, leaning forward to take a big sip out of his glass like he needs it to carry on with the story, “There’s this bar, maybe a mile away, it’s almost always open. I went there, just wanted a drink, alone, to cool down a bit. But… in all honesty, I just came from the hostesses apartment.”

“Oh.” You’re not quite sure how to respond.

“I know, it’s stupid, but I just needed to blow off some steam I guess.” He shrugs as if it’s nothing out of the ordinary, however the look on his face is one of pure shame, he still won’t look at you.

“I mean, you’re a single adult, it doesn’t really matter I guess.” You try to sound confident however your voice wavers, unsure of how to properly navigate the situation.

“No Y/N, I might be but… the situation I left behind, it wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair to anyone.” He lets out another deep sigh before continuing, “I really fucked up, and I think I fucked up with someone I really care about.”

This takes you by complete surprise, never would you have pegged Talia as someone Lewis would truly care about. You’ve always thought he was a decent judge of character when it comes to everyone but his play things. You really couldn’t imagine them as a true couple, they barely seemed to have anything in common. You felt a small pit form in your stomach, realizing that if he wanted to make things work with her, she would be around a whole lot more often. You couldn’t help but feel like that would be the demise of your friendship with Lewis, you doubt she would want you around after she made her feelings on you very clear.

You take a large swig of your drink, downing half of it in one sip, hoping to push away the ache that is starting to form in your chest. You don’t want to imagine a world without your friends, without Lewis, in your life. Despite having a million questions for him, you don’t push, not really in the mood to hear him confess his feelings for the woman you despise. He seems to be in a similar boat, acting to change the subject quickly.

“Where did you learn to make such a good drink, huh?” His voice is lighter now, almost teasing. You can tell he’s attempting to diffuse the conversation.

“I’m almost positive I’ve told you this before, but I used to be a bartender. It was my job in college.” You tell him, settling into the couch, just enjoying your uninterrupted time with him, “Besides, its a gin and tonic, it would be pretty sad if someone fucked that up.”

His laugh was tired but still held the boyish charm it always does, “Oh trust me, Miles can fuck up a gin and tonic. I’ve experienced it.” He looks at you with a smirk before continuing, “And no you’ve never told me that, because I’m certain if you had, that I would have told you that I too used to be a bartender.”

“Oh really?” You raise an eyebrow at him, wanting to hear more. You’ve only ever known of him as a racer, never even thinking of the possibility he did other things while getting to where he is now.

“Yup, back when I was like eighteen,” He nods, taking another sip of his drink, “my last day I got absolutely hammered though. I made myself try everything I’d been serving.”

You giggle, picturing a hammered teenage Lewis, “I should have thought of that on my last day. All I did was throw my apron at my manager and tell him to ‘go to hell’.”

“Ah, yes, a fantastic way to leave a job. I’m sure you got lot’s of good references from that one.” He teases you.

“Hey, he was a sexist pig, I don’t need references from someone like that.” You defend yourself.

“I’m sure you had plenty of good reasons, you always do.” He assures.

“Tell me more about you as a youngster. I only know grown adult Lew, I don’t know much about teenage Lew.” You prompt him, settling further into the couch, ready for a story.

He does the same, relaxing himself so his arm hangs just around your shoulders, pulling you into him slightly, “You know plenty about me as a kid.” He furrows his brow.

“Well I know the stuff that everybody else knows, I know the karting career, the underdog story, but I also thought I knew plenty about adult you before we met. I was very wrong about that though.” You laugh a little.

“Okay, fair. Well I was a royal pain in the ass when I first got to f1, my ego was sky high. It didn’t take long for me to settle down, thankfully, but I’ve definitely grown a lot since then.” He starts, glancing at you to gauge your reaction.

You hum, urging him to continue. He tells you about his old partying habits, random fights he’d been in during his school days, how rivalries played out off track. He tells you about the Lewis you watched on the television for so many years, and you find it quite fascinating. You try so hard to keep listening, humming every once in a while to let him know that you're still there. You could listen to him talk for hours, his voice so soothing and peaceful. You try to fight your sleep, but it's useless, his voice lulls you into a peaceful slumber. You cuddle further into his arm as he tightens his hold on you, your head lands on his shoulder and you feel him rest his cheek against you, his own exhaustion taking over. The warmth of his body is so grounding and you can’t help but wish you could stay there, tucked against him, forever.

. . .

“Well it’s nice to see you’re alive.” You’re woken to the sound of Charlotte's voice in the kitchen. You’re alone on the couch, a blanket draped over you.

“It’s not like I disappeared for a week or something, I was gone for a couple hours. I’m fine Char.” You hear Lewis, you can tell he’s trying to keep his voice down, hoping not to wake anyone.

“No, not this time, but you’ve done that before and it scared the shit out of me.” Her voice sounds emotional. You feel bad eavesdropping but you perk up at that, intrigued as to what she’s talking about.

“That was different, you know that.” The tone in his voice tells you he’s trying to shut the topic down, not wanting to speak about it any further.

“Of course I know that, but it’s not like you to go awol on us like that. The only times you do are never good for you.” Charlotte says, her voice getting slightly louder.

“Keep it down, Y/N is still asleep, right there.” Lewis hushes her.

“Sorry,” Her voice is quiet again, “where did you even go last night?”

“I went and saw Marina.” His voice is much quieter now, like they’re exchanging secrets.

“Holy crap, how is she?” Charlotte sounds shocked, and almost a little concerned.

Now you’re incredibly confused. Lewis had told you he spent the night with some hostess from a bar, he hadn’t mentioned a name of any sort and you have no idea why Charlotte would know who she was.

“She’s definitely been better but she’s hanging in there. She wasn’t too impressed that I didn’t tell her I was gonna be in town.” He keeps his voice low.

“And how’s Leon?” Charlotte sounds almost giddy as she asks.

You know you should make your conscious presence known but it feels almost too late, they’ve gotten too far into what seems to be a very private conversation. You don’t want either of them to be mad at you, although they would have every right, you’re violating their privacy majorly.

“He’s good,” You can almost hear the smile on Lewis’s face as he speaks, “he’s getting freaking big. He comes up to my hip already.”

You can’t hear Charlotte's next comment as dishes clank around, one of them cleaning up the kitchen from the abandoned dinner the night before.

“Yeah, I just wish I could help them out more. I send them money but that doesn’t really make up for her being a single mom.” Lewis says.

“You do more than enough for them Lewis.” You hear Charlotte reassure him, “Why didn’t you tell her you were going to be in town?”

“I knew if I tried to go see her, Talia would want to come, and there’s no sense in introducing Leon to someone that he’s never gonna see again. It wouldn’t be fair.” Lewis sighs.

You stay so still on the couch, you’re not sure you’re even breathing, desperate to hear where the conversation goes. You have so many questions. Why would Lewis have told you he hooked up with someone instead of telling you the truth? Why does he feel so responsible for this kid? Is it his?

“Wassup bruv, good to see you’re in one piece.” You hear Miles' voice burst through the kitchen, effectively ending the conversation between Lewis and Charlotte.

You let out a small sigh, knowing you won’t learn anymore, at least for now. You stay on the couch for a few more minutes, listening to Miles harass Lewis about his insane guest, before you deem it long enough to safely make your presence known. You make your way off the couch, taking the blanket and wrapping it around yourself. You’re still in your swimsuit from yesterday and you feel disgusting, you desperately want a shower and some fresh clothing.

“Morning.” You greet the three of them quietly. Feeling the guilt of listening to them gnaw at your core.

“How’d you sleep?” Lewis asks, “Apologies if my shoulder isn’t the most comfortable pillow in the world.”

You laugh before responding, “Honestly, not bad, I think I could have fallen asleep on any surface last night.”

“I was waiting for my cuddles last night, I’m offended that I got beat out.” Charlotte sends a scowl in Lewis’s direction.

“Sorry, I didn’t want to wake you up, it was really late.” You give her a sympathetic smile, knowing she’s only really half joking.

“Yeah that brings up a problem that we currently have, the wicked witch is still here.” Miles points out, gesturing his thumb down the hall where she must still be sleeping.

“Yeah, I know, I’ll deal with it.” Lewis sighs, rolling his eyes. His response surprises you a bit, you wonder if he doesn’t want to make his feelings known to his other friends, that maybe it was a moment of weakness when he revealed it to you.

He makes his way over to you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and placing a kiss to the top of your head before speaking quietly in your ear, “Your stuff is still in my room. How about you go take a shower and get dressed while I make you something to eat, sound good?”

You nod, whispering a quiet thank you before making your way down the hall and toward his bedroom. You had yet to actually step foot in his room but when you did you were in awe. He was staying in the suite, seeing as he had rented the house. His bed looked even more comfortable than the one in your room and his view was unmatched. There was a large terrace off the side of the room that you had only seen from outside. The room was big enough to hold a seating area that rivaled your living room at home. You found your bag, neatly placed on a chair, obviously picked up from wherever it had been chucked the night before. You rummaged through it hoping to find your bag of toiletries to go take a shower, huffing when you realized she hadn’t been that thorough while evicting you. You grab a clean change of clothes and make your way to the bathroom, hoping you can at least rinse off. The bathroom is just as impressive as the bedroom, an impressive combination of marble and teak that shouldn’t work as well as it does. The shower is massive with two large rainfall shower heads. You almost moan when you see it, eager to enjoy the hot water on your incredibly tense muscles. As you wait for the water to heat up you try to locate the towels, as you do, you see both Talia’s and Lewis’ body washes sitting on the counter. You contemplate stealing hers for a moment, but you don’t even want to smell like her. You opt to steal Lewis’s figuring he won’t mind.

The shower is just as therapeutic as you had hoped it would be and the clean clothes make you feel like a whole new person. As you walk past what used to be your bedroom you hear her moving around, you can only hope she’s finally packing and getting ready to leave. You end up finding Lewis, Charlotte, and Miles on the back deck, a large spread of food in front of them. You take the seat next to Lewis and he smirks at you as you sit down.

“What?” You ask, confused by the look he’s giving you.

“You smell familiar.” He teases you.

You blush, feeling immediately embarrassed that he noticed, “I’m sorry, I borrowed your soap but when Talia kicked me out of my room she didn’t-” Your rambled apology is quickly cut off.

“Hey, hey, don’t worry about it, s’not a problem. I kinda like it.” He offers you a comforting smile, placing his hand on your knee. “Now what do you want to eat? We’ve got plenty of options.”

The atmosphere throughout breakfast finally feels normal, like the vacation that you were all supposed to be able to enjoy. Charlotte makes mimosas and Lewis keeps your plate full, despite your constant pleas for him to stop, you’re pretty sure you’re going to burst at the seams pretty soon.

“So I was thinking maybe we could head back down to the beach today, Volleyball has been calling my name since I saw the net.” Miles pipes up.

“Sounds good to me, get ready to get your ass whooped though.” Lewis says through a mouthful of pancake.

“Last time I played Volleyball I sprained my ankle and got a concussion, but I’m happy to be a cheerleader.” You said, laughing.

All three of them looked at you with very amused expressions.

“Please elaborate on how the hell you managed that?” Lewis urges you, you can tell he’s ready to taunt.

“Well clumsiness and hard balls don’t really go well together.” You shrug taking a sip of your mimosa.

They all burst out laughing, agreeing that maybe you should stick to the sidelines. The lighthearted air is cut short as Steph walks out to the back deck, her eyebrows almost to her hairline and clearly unamused. The reason is made clear quickly as Talia gets to the door, her hands on her hips and a scowl across her face.

“So playboy, you get me a flight out of here or what?” She throws her hands to her sides, staring hard at Lewis.

“If you’ll excuse me.” He wipes his mouth as he stands up from the table.

“You know its pretty classy of you, eye fuck her all day and then go spend the night somewhere else while I’m tossed to the side like dirty laundry.” You hear her start to berate him as they walk into the house.

“Well she’s a joy.” Steph mumbles, taking a seat and loading up a plate.

The conversation turns easy again, Miles filling Steph in on what has now turned into a Volleyball tournament apparently. He’s given you the job of ref, despite you trying to explain to him that you have no clue what the rules of the game even are. Lewis still hasn’t returned to the table as you all finish up and head off to go get ready for a beach day again. You walk into his room to grab your stuff, finding him sprawled back on the bed, an arm over his face.

“You good?” You ask quietly, hoping not to startle him.

He lets his arm flop to the side, glancing over at you, “Soonest flight out of here isn’t until five, so we’re stuck with her for the rest of the day.”

“Why doesn’t she just go do something while she waits?” You point out the obvious option while you rummage for a fresh swimsuit.

“Because she’s not a reasonable person, I think we’ve established that.” He gives you a look that makes you chuckle.

“Fair point,” you nod, “I’m just gonna go change and then we’re gonna head down.”

He nods, getting up off the bed as you head into the bathroom to change. The swim suit you chose for the day is one of your nicer ones. It's a one piece with bright colors and more cutouts than it really needs. The hips come up high and put most of you on display but it makes you feel confident. When you make your way out of the bathroom Lewis has already changed into a new set of swim trunks, you know he’s watching you intently as you step in front of the mirror, trying to adjust the tie behind your neck. He comes up behind you, brushing your hands away and redoing the tie himself. When he’s done he doesn’t step away, instead he steps closer to you. His bare torso pressed to your back, you can feel his bulge on your ass and you have to take a deep breath to steady yourself. You watch him carefully in the mirror as he leans down, placing a kiss to your neck making you gasp, then another, and another, each one going higher toward your ear. When he gets to just below your earlobe he nibbles, making your knees go weak. His strong arm comes around your torso, holding you up and keeping you pressed to him.

“I like this one.” He mumbles against your skin, continuing with his assault of wet kisses on your neck, finding every perfect spot as if by magic.

You feel his tongue trace over your skin, his head moving so he’s closer to your throat, placing a kiss to your clavicle before moving back up your neck. His hand that is placed on your stomach moves down slowly, almost seeking permission first, he reaches the crease between your hip and your thigh, that movement alone making you whimper. His other hand turns your face toward his, capturing your bottom lip between his teeth before properly kissing you. You melt into the kiss, his tongue so skillfully dancing with yours. You feel him move the small material of your swimsuit to the side, his thumb brushing over your clit ever so slightly, making you moan softly into his mouth. He takes that as a good sign, moving his thumb up and down in a gentle pattern with the perfect amount of pressure as his middle finger makes his way down to your embarrassingly wet opening. He applies the slightest pressure and you take notice of how thick just the tip of his finger feels. He groans into your mouth, feeling how wet you are, how easy it would be to take you right now, up against this mirror. You moan again as his finger slips past your walls, entering you at the perfect angle. He pulses his finger against the spot in the most intoxicating way, leaving you a panting mess. You can already feel your high creeping up on you as he inserts another finger, stretching you further. He groans again, a deep satisfied sound from his chest, thinking about just how snug you would feel around his cock.

“Good girl, such a good girl f’me,” His breath is just as ragged as yours and you can feel just how hard he is, pressed up against your ass, “you like that don’t you, like how I touch you. You’re gonna come so quick, I can feel it. Let it go for me Y/N, come all over my hand.” His kisses move back down your jaw as he talks you to your high but something about him saying your name slapped you back down to earth.

It hits you like a ton of bricks, your best friend who is nearly ten years your senior, is fingering you in his room while your friends wait for you at the beach. Not only that but the woman he had brought simply to fuck is still in your old room, two doors down the hall. You're still not sure where he was last night or what he was talking about with Charlotte this morning. It hasn’t even been twenty four hours since the explosion where Talia accused him of wanting to fuck you and here you are, proving her right. Immediately your orgasm vanishes and you start to push him away.

“Lewis, no, stop.” You say, pushing him away.

He lets you go easily but is incredibly confused. He shakes his head, his brow furrowed, trying to make sense of where your rejection suddenly came from.

“Y/N, what's wrong, are you okay?” He tried to step toward you, not to resume but in hopes of offering some sort of comfort.

“No,” You back away from him, you can see the pain flash over his face at your movement, “we can’t-, that can’t-, I’m, I’m not her, I-.” You can’t string together a full sentence, feeling like you might cry at a moment's notice.

“I know, Y/N, hey, it’s okay, I’m sorry I thought-” He starts, trying his best to calm you down somehow

“No Lewis, it hasn’t even been twenty four hours, shes still here,” You hiss at him, finally finding your words, “my god, she was right. Fuck. Is that why I’m here? Just so you can get your dick wet?”

“God no Y/N, fuck, yes I know, shitty timing on my part. But-” He tries to speak again but you cut him off once more.

“Yeah no shit, ‘shitty timing’.” You mock his accent, “I am not a fucking rebound or some play thing for you, especially after what you said last night. That, whatever that was, it can’t happen.” You shake your head.

“I’m sorry, that’s not what it was, I promise, I thought that-” Once again you cut him off.

“Yeah, I can tell what you fucking thought Lewis.” You keep your voice down but it still comes out harsh.

“Jesus Christ, would you please let me speak?” He sounds desperate, it’s written all over his face.

“I can’t do this Lewis, I have to go.” You put your hands up, stopping any further conversation from him before turning and walking out of the room.

“Y/N.” You hear him call your name behind you.

“Y/N.” It comes again, this time louder, but you can tell he’s not getting any closer. He’s not following you, and you’re thankful.

You feel so ashamed and so angry. You hate him right now, you hate that he chose that moment, this situation. You hate her for being right, he was trying to sleep with you. But you hate yourself too, you hate that you melted into him so easily, you hate that you didn’t stop him sooner. More importantly though, you hate that you loved it, you hate that you wish you didn’t stop him at all, you hate that you now want more, that you want to know exactly what he feels like, what he tastes like, everything about him. He made you  putty in his hands with just his lips alone, you can only imagine what else he is capable of. You hate that you know exactly what he offers, that he's willing to offer it, and you can’t accept it. You felt exactly what he possesses, pressed against your ass and now you will never be able to get the thought of it out of your head. You hate this.

But most important of all, you hate that you may have just lost Lewis.

[works-of-fanfiction]

Ma Chérie || Charles Leclerc x Reader 

Summary: Charles and the reader have a long history together, and they’ve taken their time realising they’re more than just friends. 

Word Count: 4.7k

Warnings: Angst, short description of assault, swearing. Some badly translated French. 

a/n: this is a long one as it’s split into a few different time periods! I love reading oneshots like this that take you on a bit of a journey through the years. I really hope you like it!

“This is Y/N. She’s just moved here from England.” 

Charles remembered the very first time he set eyes on her. She slowly walked into the room, checking back at the number on the door several times to make sure she had the right class. He could tell her clothes were new and her hair freshly cut, as the front pieces kept falling in front of her eyes no matter how much she pushed them back. He followed her eyes as they scanned the room, taking in every student’s face, every piece of paper stuck to the wall, every potted plant dotted around. He couldn’t help but think how well her name suited her - Y/N. It was perfect, it just made sense somehow. 

He and his fellow classmates were encouraged to give her a warm welcome, but the majority of them were too busy gossiping amongst themselves about an English girl joining the school. Did she speak any French? How was she going to survive in Monaco? 

“Charles.” The teacher called over, gesturing for him to stand. He brushed off his shirt, standing tall and waiting for instruction. “Please can you be Y/N’s tour guide for the day? I’m sure you’ll help her feel welcome and introduce her to the school.” He nodded, smiling over at the new addition to the class. She weaved through the desks to reach the spare one behind him, setting her backpack on the ground. 

“Bonjour.” Charles turned around and smiled, stretching his hand out for her to shake. “Charles.” 

“Y/N.” Her touch was light, her fingers a little cold. She shook his hand nervously, barely able to hold eye contact with him. When Charles turned back to face the front, his palm was tingling and heart pounding inside his chest. How could he concentrate knowing the prettiest girl he’d ever seen was sitting just behind him? 

“So, you’re from England?” Charles asked, clutching his books to his chest as he walked Y/N down the hall. He glanced down, matching his footsteps to hers. He was well aware they were walking pretty slowly, but he didn’t mind being a few minutes late to his next class if it meant he could spend them with her. 

“Born and raised.” 

“What brings you to Monaco?” 

“Well, my Mum recently remarried. I didn’t think we’d actually move here, but here we are.” She threw her hands up in defeat, and Charles sensed she wasn’t impressed with her new home. 

“You don’t sound too happy about that.” 

“I just hate being the new kid.” She shrugged. The two of them stopped outside of her classroom as the crowd tried to squeeze through the door in time before the bell. “Thank you for walking with me.” 

“My pleasure. Maybe, see you later?” 

“See you later.” She gave him a small smile and turned to walk into her class. Charles looked at his watch, picking up his speed down the hall, his shoes squeaking against the polished floor. He spent the next couple of classes constantly checking the clock, hoping he’d see Y/N at lunch. 

And Charles did see Y/N at lunch. In fact, he spent every lunchtime with her until the two of them graduated. He felt lucky to witness the shy new girl blossom into his fun, carefree best friend with the feisty side, and quick wit. She’d done a good job to keep him in line during their last year, making sure he kept his head down and passed his exams, despite how much he just wanted to be karting constantly. Once he received his grades, he realised just how grateful he was for his bossy friend and all the times she’d read out test questions to him whilst he sat in his kart between practices and races. He was sixteen with the dream of being a racing driver, but she never let him forget how important finishing school was. 

The following two years flew by, the two of them both focused on their career goals. During the Summer after they both turned eighteen, they saw each other for the first time in weeks at an old school friend’s party. “Did you get taller?” Charles teased as Y/N stepped out of the car, high heels sinking into the gap between the paving stones.

“Very funny.” She rolled her eyes, hoisting her bag onto her shoulder and moving hair out of her eyes. “Perhaps you’ve shrunk, Perceval.” She leaned in close and kissed the air in front of his face, taunting him. Charles scowled at the nickname and shook his head, earning a laugh from his best friend. “Oh don’t look at me like that! You love me really.” 

She had a habit of using that line on him, and Charles almost fell for it a few times. He was convinced she knew more than she let on, and was saying it to tease him or encourage him to blurt his feelings out loud. He wasn’t sure if ‘love’ was what he felt for her at that age, but he knew she’d been the person he cared about the most ever since she stepped foot in his school nearly four years ago. Some of his friends made fun of him, saying he got stuck with the new girl, but he didn’t see it that way. He wasn’t stuck with her at all. He chose to sit with her at the lunch table, he chose to bring her to the track and show her where he spent all his time, he chose to teach her French every Thursday in his backyard. He didn’t regret a second of it. 

“Come on handsome, let’s get inside.” Y/N smiled, linking arms with him. Her array of nicknames for him never failed to make him smile like an idiot, regardless of how stupid they were. She’d once called him ‘macaroni cheese’ and he didn’t understand it, but he accepted it anyway. He’d learnt over the years that you couldn’t argue with someone like Y/N, as she would always win. Not because she was particularly argumentative, but because Charles would always give in to her. Anyone would think she’d lit some candles, adorned her best black dress and cast a spell on him. 

Charles and Y/N weren’t exactly the pair to be seen drunk at a party, but this one was an exception. They danced around to the music, or at least tried, but it was more like maniacal jumping to their own made-up rhythm. Whenever Y/N’s cup was empty, Charles made sure to be the one to refill it. He knew exactly how she liked her drinks since the first time he secretly made her one using some alcohol he sneaked out of the fridge. They were sixteen and clueless, and it took a lot of trial and error to make something that actually tasted nice. 

“Tu es magnifique ce soir.” You look beautiful tonight. Charles said, raising his voice over the music. Y/N laughed, the compliment making her cheeks feel hot. She was no stranger to Charles’ charm and way with words, but it still made her feel special when he said such things. Being called beautiful by someone like Charles is not something that happens to a person everyday. 

“Merci, mon chéri.” Thank you, my dear. Y/N cooed, pulling her best friend into a hug. The two of them stood there for a moment, letting the music hum and vibrate around them. The floor felt like it was buzzing beneath them, and the air in the room was practically non-existent. “I’m going to get some fresh air.” 

“Do you want me to come with you?” 

“No, no! You stay here and have fun. I’ll be back soon.” Y/N disappeared into the crowd, leaving Charles to guard their drinks and make small talk with old faces he recognised from school. What started as a couple minutes of fresh air turned into almost an hour, and Charles couldn’t mingle any longer. He set off through the house, calling out her name in every room. A quick glance out of the window confirmed she wasn’t outside anymore, so he followed his footsteps back to their original spot, but she wasn’t there. 

He bumped into one of her past friends from history class in the hallway. “Have you seen Y/N? She went out for some fresh air but she hasn’t come back yet.” 

“I think I saw her go upstairs. That was about fifteen minutes ago.” 

“Thank you.” Charles rounded the corner and bolted up the stairs, using the handrail to pull himself up. People were scattered around, whispering in pairs or making out in the corners. It almost made Charles laugh at how stereotypical the scene was. It looked exactly like the kind of thing you’d see in an American teen movie. 

“Y/N, are you up here?” He called out. He knocked on a couple of doors and took the lack of response as an answer. He wasn’t planning on barging in and catching some former classmates under the covers together. There was one more door cracked open to the right, so he stood outside of it and pressed his ear against the wood. 

He heard voices, and what sounded like somebody stumbling across the wooden floor. Someone hushed and demanded the other keep quiet, but what he heard next made Charles jolt into action. 

“Please don’t, please get off of me.” It was Y/N. He could pick out her voice in a line-up. She sounded scared, and the only response she was getting from whoever she was with was a string of ‘be quiet’s and other things he’d rather not remember. Charles threw the door open, the sight before him making his heart sink. He was right, but boy did he wish he wasn’t going to be. Y/N was pressed against the wall, one of her shoes missing and her dress pulled up on one side. A guy had his hands on the wall on either side of her head, trapping her in. 

Charles jumped at the stranger, pushing him away from Y/N. He wasn’t one for violence, so didn’t stay for a fight. His attention went straight back to Y/N, and he grabbed her hand to lead her out of the room. She kicked off her remaining shoe and the two of them ran down the stairs, leaving through the front door and across the garden until they were in the street, far away from that awful room. 

“My girl… my girl, are you OK?” He asked, both hands gently placed on her shoulders, holding her up. Y/N couldn’t even look Charles in the eye. Her gaze remained fixed on the ground, staring at her bare feet as little stones on the road dug into her soles. “Y/N, please talk to me.” 

“I’m sorry, Charles. I’m so sorry, I don’t know - “ 

“Why are you saying sorry? You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“I went up there with him, Charles. I was basically asking for it.” Y/N burst into tears, dropping to sit down on the ground. Charles tugged his jacket off and wrapped it around her shoulders, sitting down beside her. “I’m so stupid.” 

“You are not stupid. That guy was a total creep and an asshole. It’s not your fault.” He leaned into her, settling his shoulder right beside hers so she could comfortably rest her head if she wanted to. Instead, she fell into his lap and cried into his chest, clinging onto his shirt and rubbing her nose against his collarbone. “It’s OK, I’m here. It’s OK.” He stroked her back gently, pulling her as close as he could to make her feel safe. The two of them stayed there for what felt like hours, until Charles was able to encourage her to stand so he could get her home. 

“Please can I stay with you tonight? I really don’t want to be alone.” She asked timidly, wiping her eyes.

“Of course. Come on.” 

Luckily no one else was awake when they got back, so he didn’t have to explain what had happened. Y/N was silent as she watched Charles dart from room to room to gather everything he needed to make sure she was comfortable. She’d stayed over many times before, but this time was different. She needed him now more than ever. 

Charles gave her a spare pair of pyjama pants and one of his t-shirts. Whilst she was getting changed in the bathroom, he pushed the contents of his nightstand into a drawer so he could make space for Y/N. He laid out a glass of water with some facial wipes he found. Surely his mother wouldn’t mind them borrowing some. 

He also put out a pair of thick, comfy socks should she choose to wear them, and a hairbrush. He turned the small table lamp on at the other side, giving the room a warm hue. Climbing into bed, he lifted the covers at Y/N’s side and fluffed up the pillow. 

Seeing Charles’ efforts in front of her made Y/N want to cry all over again. No matter what happened, Charles was always there to take care of her. She thanked her lucky stars that he was there tonight and got her out of that situation before it was too late. She was shaken up, a little drunk, and desperate to lie down. Her head felt heavy like a bowling ball, and her feet stung from wearing those god-awful heels all evening. She wasn’t too sad about leaving them behind. “Can I get you anything else?” Charles whispered, rolling over to face her in bed. She shook her head, giving him a small smile to show her appreciation for everything he’d done. 

“You’ve done enough. Thank you.” 

Charles carefully lifted his hand to her cheek, running the back of his fingers over her skin. Her eyes fluttered closed and she leaned into his touch, shuffling closer to him. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, Charles.” 

He didn’t know what to say back. He wished there was some way he could show her that she’d never have to find out what life would be like without him. He had no intention of going anywhere. Was it too dramatic for an eighteen year-old to feel as such? Sometimes he wondered whether there were enough words to explain how much he cared for her. 

“Charles Leclerc, how does it feel to be a Formula One race winner?” Y/N beamed, pouring a glass of champagne and thrusting it into his hand. It was a stark difference from being sprayed and covered with it as he was just an hour before. 

“I can’t believe it. I can’t describe it!” He grinned, adrenaline still coursing through his body and his hands a little shaky. “I feel like I’ve waited my whole life for this.”

“It’s the first of many! We have to celebrate properly. Let me take you out tonight.” 

“I can’t tonight, I promised I’d celebrate with the team.” 

“In that case, come over when we get back to Monaco! We can stay in and I can cook the chicken pasta you love so much.” 

“Sounds perfect.” Charles smiled, pecking her cheek. “I have to run. There’s so much to do and people to speak to.” 

“Of course. Go!” Y/N nudged her friend out of the door, watching him disappear out of view. Cheers erupted from the crowd outside as their winner faced them once more. Her heart swelled with pride and excitement for her best friend, and she was so happy he’d finally gotten the win he’d always wanted. 

Y/N dashed around her apartment, making sure everything was perfect and the finishing touches were in place. “Lorenzo! Is the cake in the fridge?” She called, quickly changing her shoes in the hallway. 

“On the top shelf like you asked.” 

The knock on the door came perfectly on time. She dashed through the apartment, telling everyone to get into their hiding spots. Lorenzo and Arthur squeezed into the coat closet near the door, waiting to throw confetti over their brother. “Salut! I brought your favourite pastry from the bakery on the corner.” Charles chimed, waving the paper bag in the air.

“Merci! Come in, come in.” Y/N took the bag and ushered Charles inside. His brothers listened out for their footsteps and Y/N’s cue as they held their breath in the closet. “Finally, we can celebrate properly!” She raised her voice, getting the attention of all the hidden guests. 

Lorenzo flung the door open and jumped out with Arthur, throwing handfuls of red confetti at Charles. “Surprise!” They shouted, voices joining them from the living room. Y/N guided Charles into the room where his fellow drivers, friends and family were waiting in front of a table covered with snacks, each plate personalised with little cocktail sticks with Charles’ face on. Y/N didn’t leave a single detail unaccounted for. 

“What! How long have you been planning this?” Charles turned to Y/N who could not stop grinning. “You’re so sneaky!” 

“Don’t worry! I still made that pasta I promised, just a slightly bigger portion.” She laughed, gesturing to the crowd stood behind her. Charles scooped her up into a hug, thanking her over and over again. 

He greeted his family, so Y/N took the opportunity to pop into the kitchen and put the pastries into the cabinet. “He seemed pretty surprised. And here you were worrying he’d figured you out.” She turned to find Louis behind her, leaning against the doorframe. It had taken some convincing to get her boyfriend to attend Charles’ party, as he felt he had no place considering he’d only met the driver once. Y/N thought there was more to it, but the last thing she wanted was to start an argument. She also didn’t really want to find out whether her suspicions were right or not. 

“This is the least I could do. He travels so much, he never gets to celebrate with his family properly!”

“Everyone needs a friend like you, ma chérie.” Louis smiled. Y/N struggled to smile back at the sound of that nickname, as she was so used to it coming out of Charles’ mouth. She hadn’t been with Louis long, but she had the feeling he was more certain of her than she was of him. His traditional romantic charms worked on her in the first month, but something had her distracted more recently. Between work, travelling for Charles’ races and helping her mother renovate her house, she hadn’t had much time to see Louis and let their relationship progress. She tried not to make herself feel guilty for it. After all, they’d only known each other for three months. 

“Y/N! I need a drink!” Charles burst into the room, stopping dead in his tracks when he saw Louis. “Oh… salut.” 

“Salut.” Louis nodded, looking Charles up and down. He was no stranger to him and his friendship with Y/N, but that didn’t stop him being jealous. “Congratulations on your win.” 

“Thank you.” Charles faked a smile, sensing the well wishes weren’t exactly genuine. Louis stepped aside so Charles could get a drink. He watched the driver hug his girlfriend and gritted his teeth, mentally trying to remind himself that he was the one dating Y/N. They’d known each other for years, if something was going to happen between them then it would’ve been a done deal a long time ago. 

The party got off to a great start. Everyone ate and drank and asked Charles a thousand questions about the race in Belgium. Lando made sure he took plenty of pictures, no matter how embarrassing some turned out to be. Daniel pulled out his best pout, posing and loving every minute of it. It made Y/N incredibly happy to see everybody in one room, celebrating Charles and putting the competition aside. He deserved to be surrounded by great people. 

Later in the night, Charles found himself on the balcony beside Louis. He’d only popped out for some air and found his friend’s date nursing a cigarette. Probably not his first of the night, Charles thought. “Sorry, I didn’t know anyone was out here.” 

“Don’t worry, I won’t get in your way.” Louis scoffed, dying his cigarette out on the railing and flicking the butt into the distance. 

“Classy. Just throw it anywhere you want.” 

“What’s it to you? Huh? Shouldn’t you be inside being the centre of attention?” 

“Have you got a problem? If you do then be a man about it and tell me instead of acting like a child.” Charles turned to face Louis, but chose not to step any closer to him. He’d rather stay where he couldn’t smell his smoker’s breath. 

“My problem is your obsession with my girlfriend.” Louis spat, crossing his arms and leaning against the railing. 

“She threw this party for me! I’m here because she invited me. It’s just a shame she invited you too. I’m not obsessed with her, she’s my best friend.” 

“Yeah, your best friend that you clearly want to fuck.” 

“And so what if I did? What are you going to do about it?” Charles laughed at Louis, finding the whole conversation pointless and embarrassing. He didn’t like hearing him speak about Y/N like that, but he knew Louis didn’t have a leg to stand on. Nothing more than sharing a bed and a few friendly kisses on the cheek had ever happened between him and Y/N. 

“Why don’t you do us both a favour and leave her alone?” 

“I’ve known her since I was fourteen, you can’t get rid of me that easily.” 

“Yeah yeah I know the story. You just felt sorry for the new girl and couldn’t let go. She doesn’t need you to babysit her anymore.” Louis walked towards Charles in an attempt to intimidate him. Charles leaned back, not giving him the opportunity to get in his face. “Stop being such an asshole and leave her alone.” 

“Get out.” They both turned to see Y/N stood at the door, the cake balanced in her hands. “Why are you still standing there, Louis? Get out!” 

“Y/N, come on! It’s him you should be telling to leave.” Louis protested, stepping towards her. She staggered back, putting the cake down on the counter.

“Charles isn’t going anywhere. This is his party to celebrate his success, his win, which is far more than you’ve ever done.” 

“I didn’t have you down as such a bitch.” 

“Get out of my apartment. And lose my number whilst you’re at it.” Charles came inside and closed the door to the balcony, joining Y/N. 

Louis barged past them both, and Charles followed him to make sure he left. Some of the guests heard the commotion and poked their heads out of the living room, watching Louis leave and slam the door behind him. Back in the kitchen, Y/N shakily cut the cake into slices as she tried to hide the anger rushing through her. She knew something wasn’t right with Louis and now it all made sense. He was just another jealous guy who couldn’t handle a girl having male friends. Deep down, she knew why it would never work with anyone. She compared everyone to Charles and they never came close. Nobody ever understood her or made her laugh like he did. Nobody ever cared or knew exactly what she needed like him. She only wished she could find the confidence to tell him so she could stop forcing herself to date these people she knew she didn’t really want. 

“Y/N, I am so sorry.” 

“Charles, do not apologise to me. It’s my own fault for having horrible taste in men.” She looked at the cake and sighed, seeing how uneven her slices were. Perhaps she shouldn’t have operated a knife whilst angry. 

Charles took over and helped her pack the slices into little bags for the guests to take home. He figured the night was coming to an end anyway, so he handed them out and gave everyone a hug goodbye. They each congratulated him again and he felt overwhelmed with love and support. Regardless of it being his night, he couldn’t help but think about Y/N. She deserved so much better than guys who couldn’t see past their childish delusions. 

The two of them sat down together with a slice of cake and two forks. Y/N rested her legs over Charles’, digging in from her side. “Do I just attract the weird ones?” She asked, mouth full and cake crumbs spraying out. Charles laughed, brushing crumbs off of his lap. She swallowed and covered her mouth in embarrassment. “Sorry!” 

“I can’t believe you’re blaming yourself! You know how amazing you are. It’s their fault they’re too blind to see it.” Charles couldn’t stop the words from falling out of his mouth. Y/N dropped her fork, taking the plate and setting it down on the coffee table. 

“Do you mean that?” She asked, fidgeting with her hands. She moved her legs so they were no longer on top of him, and Charles was somewhat disappointed by it. 

“Absolutely. I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it.” Charles turned to face her, kneeling on the sofa so he could scoot closer. “Y/N, you are the best person I know. I mean, look at everything you did for me tonight! Nobody else in the world would go to such lengths for me.” 

“It’s because you deserve it. Celebrating with expensive champagne around the world is one thing, but coming home and enjoying it with your family is so much more. That’s why I threw the party.” 

“Thank you.” He reached over to hold her hand, his thumb drawing shapes on her knuckles. “You mean so much to me, Y/N. Please don’t put yourself down because a dumb guy couldn’t see how special you are.” 

The two of them sat in silence for a moment, exchanging small touches as their fingers entwined in Y/N’s lap. They both looked up at the same time, meeting one another’s eyes. “Charles.” She whispered, her breath catching in her throat. She couldn’t remember the last time they’d been so close, and her heart was pounding. 

“I’ve said too much, haven’t I?” 

“No, no. Of course not.” 

Charles lifted her arm and kissed the back of her hand. He didn’t break eye contact, and Y/N almost forgot to blink. “Would you give me a chance?” He asked quietly, nervously awaiting her answer. He’d spent seven years growing to love her and couldn’t wait any longer. Perhaps it was selfish that he felt inspired to admit his feelings on the same night as her breakup, but he knew he needed to tell her before he flew out to Italy. 

“Charles, I… I had no idea.” 

“Because I’m a fool for not saying something sooner.” 

“Are you sure you’re not just saying this because you feel sorry for me?” 

Charles laughed, shaking his head whilst squeezing her hand lovingly. “What would I get out of lying to you, ma chérie?” There it was, the nickname that Y/N loved so much. The nickname that only sounded right when it came from Charles. “If you don’t feel the same, I’ll understand.” 

“Now you’re the one being ridiculous. I will give you a chance if you give me one.” 

“I’d like nothing more.” Charles pulled her into a hug, holding her close, his right hand settling in the back of her hair. His heart felt like it could explode. Not even winning his first race could compare to the happiness he felt having her there with him. Being able to hold her the way he’d always wanted. Being able to finally say how he felt out loud, and not hide behind the ‘best friend’ title anymore. 

“Shall we finish this cake?” Y/N asked, pulling away. Charles nodded, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. It was quick, but filled with love. The two of them had waited forever to share such a moment, and it meant more than either of them could ever put into words. Y/N couldn’t believe he’d shared the same feelings for so long, and she couldn’t wait to be by his side through everything as more than just his friend. 

[inkabelledesigns]

Belladonna Nightshade - Halloween Dark Fairy

Base Doll: G3 Twyla from Monster High Clothing Pattern: Dollightful's Asymmetrical Dress (read to the end, I have notes about this)

Happy Halloween everyone! Since becoming a doll customizer, my Halloween dolls are usually related to my favorite indie horror game, Bendy and the Ink Machine. However, seeing as I've completed two Bendy dolls already this year, I felt it was time to give myself a break and try something a bit different. My friends over in DollyAnna's Discord server wanted to do a collaboration, so we decided to all make some Dark Fairies for Halloween!

Belladonna Nightshade is a mischievous fae that loves to play tricks and tempt mortals. That said, she's easily bribed with a sweet treat or two, and will usually let you be if you have a little candy or pastry to give her. I haven't decided what I want to do with her yet in terms of a story, but there is a part of me that would love to have her in my Equinox story.

When you consider the fact that most of my other Halloween dolls are black and yellow, it's no surprise she ended up super colorful. XD Would you believe this is my first doll with rainbow hair? Yeah neither did I, but she is! Part of my style is having really colorful and vibrant dolls, it surprises a lot of people that I've never done a rainbow before, but honestly? I'm glad to have finally tackled one! I'm also glad to have worked with another G3. Twyla is very near and dear to my heart, and I was so psyched to work with her mold! You can't see it in any of these photos, but I used glow in the dark varnish on her eyes and neon markings, so that her eyes still glow like the original. I will say, this doll has a lot more acrylic paint than my others, just by the nature of I don't have any pencils in neon colors. It was nice to get the practice in, I feel more confident than I did before in my brush skills. It was also nice to have a doll with dark scleras for a change! I haven't done that since I made Dreamer, it's surprisingly fun to draw on!

I was inspired by a LOT of different things with this one, and I went back and forth on my concepts a lot. Black light skeleton make-up, butterflies, fairies with non-traditional wings, candy, jesters, these were all sources of inspiration, and I think most obviously of all, Dollightful herself. This wasn't intentional, but I ended up using a doll of one of her favorite characters, with a lot of saturated colors which we know she loves, and even her dress pattern! I've been wanting to make this garment for ages, and finally I had a reason to try it!

So those of you who know how this pattern works are probably asking "Kat, how did you make this fit a G3? This dress is supposed to fit a G1 Monster High doll!" Believe it or not, Requiem Arts has a method for easily adjusting G1 patterns to fit G3 bodies. It's as simple as scaling a pattern up to 104% and printing it that way. It's meant for her garments, but I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work for other doll patterns. So I tried it with Katherine's dress, and I'm happy to say it worked out just fine! I think I probably should have adjusted a bit more on the skirt though. This outfit is essentially two pieces, and the skirt with all the ruffles is a little tight around the booty, it could have used a little more sizing up. So if you own this pattern and want to try this yourself, do keep that in mind!

Do let me know what you think! I had so much fun working on Belladonna, she's so vibrant and fun, I wanna try more fairies like her someday. I also need to try using props more. I got these pumpkins and hay bales on sale, and it was fun using them to craft a little temporary set for photos.

[moodymisty]

✓ Private Lesson ✓

Author's Note: I love Teacher Tech. And Medic Tech. And Dom Tech. Sensing a theme here. I’ve been writing a bunch of fluff lately, so here’s a little somethin’ nasty I did in my spare time.

Summary: Tech wants to take the Marauder for a test flight after some adjustments, but decides to give you a piloting lesson beforehand.

Relationships: Tech/Fem!Reader

Warnings: NSFW, All smut, Porn without plot, Cockwarming, Competency kink, Sex in the Marauder, Lap sitting, Tech decides to be your teacher but are you really learning anything?, A little bit of praise kink, Unprotected sex, creampies, Technically semi-public sex,

Word count: 1959

"Now, what do you do first?"

Tech's voice is firm but gentle in your ears, speaking with his usual smooth tone. If one listens you might be able to hear the tiniest bit of strain, but your heart is thumping in your ears so loudly you aren't able to notice it yourself.

He's been meaning to take the Marauder for a simple test flight. He’s been doing some, unauthorized work on the ship, and decided to use their current shore leave on Coruscant as a chance to make sure everything was in working order.

It will be; Tech just needs to be thorough.

But you’ve never flown a ship before, thinking as you look over the control panel that might as well be speaking a dead language. Tech has spoken a million different times before about it, but you have no actual real world experience.

All of his brothers have decided to hit one of the mid-levels for some food and drinks; And with Tech not being much of a fan of that type of scene, and having work to do, he decided to stay back here in the ship. You'd showed up after they'd already left, so no one but Tech knows you're here with him.

You remember the first time he showed you the Marauder; his pride and joy. You’d asked so many questions you almost turned blue in the face, and he answered every one of them with the gusto of a man with a love of the craft and pride in his work.

He had promised to take you on a flight one day, and when he had it was some of the most fun you'd ever had together. And not moments after he'd landed he promised that one day, he'd teach you. He saw the opportunity to share his knowledge and held it out for you, and you'd accepted his potential future lesson.

And while it's been awhile since he'd promised to teach you how to fly, last you checked he hadn't mentioned some of the more, intimate details were apparently included in this lesson.

His armor is cold and unyielding against the backs of your thighs, as you sit firmly spread in his lap. Your underwear are tangled around one ankle, legs spread over his. His cock is stuffing you full, but he isn't moving even a fraction; Instead torturing you like this.

When you don't answer the first question on his verbal test, he sighs.

"Do I need to perhaps repeat myself? I thought you were smarter than this." One of your hands rests on the armrest; It's the only thing grounding you as your cunt flutters around him.

“Tech, I, I don’t remember.” He has the gall to make an unamused noise, as if him fucking you gormless should be just a minor inconvenience.

“Clearly I didn’t teach you thoroughly enough. Or you were not listening.” He feels the way your groan, adjusting your position in his lap as your hands hover in front of the controls. When you do it's impossible not to feel the way his cock shifts inside of you, trying hard to not let out an embarrassing moan.

“You, set course with the Navicomputer,” Tech hums.

“Lock in the destination, then warm up the, the,” his hand brushes over your clit, fingertips feeling just above where he’s buried inside of you.

“Words, love. Do you remember how to use them?”

Snarky ass.

“The engines. You would warm up the engines.” He gives an approving noise, rubbing circles around your clit. He's so composed, his voice barely cracks despite the fact that you can feel his cock throbbing inside of you, almost painfully hard.

"Now, would you like to put it to practice?" Leaning his head down he presses his lips to the soft spot of your neck just behind your ear, feeling how your neck instantly moves to give him more access to such a sensitive spot.

"Tech you, you can't be serious..." You can't see his face at this angle, but you can tell by the tone in his voice that his eyebrows are more than likely raised in an unamused expression.

"It is not often at all that I am not serious." You let out a desperate whine, just hoping for this sweet torture he's decided to put you through to end.

"Tech I, I can't even think straight, I'm not going to be able to fly this..."

His other hand brushes over your hip, while the other is still firmly nestled between your thighs. You can hear every little motion his fingers make, pussy slopping wet against his fingers and around his cock.

"Then at least show me you can prepare the ship as if we were going go depart."

As if it's just so easy, you think; Swallowing the thick knot in your throat. His chest is still pressed against your back as he adjusts slightly underneath you, and neither of you can stop the little noises you make from even such a small movement.

At least this torture is going both ways, as you can feel the heat radiating off his face while you look forward.

Ok, you've seen Tech do this multiple times now... And he's right here. It's not like you're actually going to fly; You just need to show him you can turn everything on.

That isn't that hard, right?

You lean forward, gritting your teeth and whining at the way his cock feels even deeper inside of your as your stomach folds, stuffing your cunt and leaving not a centimeter of room.

The navicomputer is set, you press the correct buttons to lock it in, and whimper at the way his fingers firmly brush over your clit. He's done so well being composed thus far, but you can hear his harder breaths; Feel the way he's trying not to thrust his hips upward into you. Pulling his lips away from your neck he leans up, looking over your head to watch your hands.

Locking the destination in you lean back, letting out a large shaky breath as your shoulderblades press against his chest armor. He hasn't scolded you yet, so you must have done everything right so far.

"Then, you start the engine with... Those buttons, warm them up, and then the throttle." Tech's fingers press against your clit harder, deftly teasing you and groaning at the way you tighten around him.

"Good girl. I knew I taught you well."

You've never heard Tech call you anything like that before; But gods, what you wouldn't give to hear him say it again.

His hands drift to hold you by the hips and help you move in his lap, moaning as you finally get some form of friction for your efforts. You just barely lift off of his lap, hearing the sound of your bare skin against his armor. One of your hands grasps his forearm, the other the arm of the seat as you bite your lip hard. Top bunched upward it's normally quite cold in the Marauder, but you couldn't be less so as Tech thrusts his cock deep into you.

"How, do you jump to hyperspace?"

He suddenly blurts out, and you can feel him already starting to slow down to dull what little pleasure you've finally gotten your hands on. It's almost impossible not to just cry right then and there, your head lolling back against his shoulder as you whine.

"Tech!" He responds just as swift as one might expect.

"Answer me, or I will stop."

Cruel, snarky ass.

"Fuck Tech, I, I don't know..." HIs hands keep grinding you into his lap, feeling the way your body leans into him.

"You know the answer; I taught you."

You lean forward just enough to gesture at the correct things, groaning as you already feel so close to cumming, but he keeps you from reaching it.

"That one, that one, and-" You bite your lip as your stomach tightens, feeling the way his cock shifts and throbs inside of you. "That one." It seems like you're right, judging by the way he hums approvingly.

"It seems like you were actually listening." You attempt to fuck yourself on him, but Tech's surprising strength keeps you from making any significant movement upward or forward. You spit out your desperation in words, pleading with an almost angry sounding tone.

"Gods Tech, please just fuck me or I swear..." Maybe he decides to give you a bit of mercy, or perhaps he himself can't take his own torture; As a moan slips from his throat and his hips thrust upward. His hands don't even stop you as you grip the armrests, grinding yourself against him as much as your body can manage.

He's been teasing you at this for so long now, it doesn't take much to make you cum at all, your thighs quaking as you tighten around him. He almost feels like you're going to suffocate him, and he can't help but let out moan loud enough to echo through the ship.

Even if the fear of anyone seeing or hearing you from outside the ship is unwarranted, given the area outside the civilian hanger where you're landed is practically abandoned, it still crosses your mind once or twice as you glance out the viewport. It's not a thought that sticks however, within moments it's gone from your head as Tech keeps bouncing you on his lap. And whatever composure he's managed to hold up until this point is quickly crumbling away, his voice strained in your ear as his hands tightly grip your body. Tech has always had a surprising amount of strength, and while he isn't gripping you enough to hurt, it is showing how strong his lithe arms really are as he fucks you.

You can feel the moment he cums by the way he lets out a strained, choked groan, his head leaning forward enough that it hits the side of your head. Your heart is pounding in your chest, and having been sitting in his lap so long off the ground, your feet are almost starting to fall asleep.

The ship now only echoes with the sound of both of you and Tech's heavy breathing, your body limp as you lay back against him. His hands now lay much more gently against your body, one against your thigh and the other your hip.

When he shifts underneath you, he can feel the way his own cum leaks out of you and over his cock, a feeling he'll secretly never grow tired of.

You can feel his soft breaths on the back of your head, him just as out of breath as you are. It's a quiet moment, and you take a moment to just enjoy it.

Until you feel him lean forward, and adjust something on the control panel just within reach. And in your tired, ecstasy driven fatigue, you comment.

"Tech, you're seriously still going to do a test flight after all of that? I can barely move..." He doesn't react to your bafflement as you expect, and instead still attempts to maintain his almost always present composure. Even if it had just been melted away only moments ago.

"You can stay on my lap, if you would prefer." You'd prefer to take a nap; Especially given the haggard state of what few articles of clothing you currently have on.

"Let's just, wait a minute." As much as Tech might want to do what he had originally planned, having you here with him sways his judgement enough so that he can put it off, just a little bit longer.

"Alright, we can wait for a little while."

Join the taglist here: @seriowan @starborncyare @simp-legend @nekotaetae @chad-something @coffeyorky @merkitty49 @lokigirlszendaya @get-wr3ckered @mandoloriancookie @rebel-finn @totesnothere04

[thearchvillain]

gardenias. | nikolai

part I

nikolai lantsov x reader

summary: the setting is a grand event hosted at os alta with the intention of finding a future queen for crown prince vasily. the reader is a merchant's daughter trying to keep a low profile after her parents had dragged her there (against her will) with the hopes that she might catch the prince's attention. she, on the other hand, has different plans. plans that get entirely upheaved by none other than the younger prince nikolai who interrupts her illicit late-night meeting in the winter garden. now she's caught attention of one of the two people whose scrutiny she'd been trying so hard to avoid for the last few days of the event and she's not entirely sure she actually minds it.

preview: Irritated, she spun around and came up so close she could feel the wool of his uniform brush against her bodice as she glared up at him. "What now?"  "Now I'm thinking I should escort you to your room, just to make sure you don't accidentally commit some act of treason on your way to it." "Is that what you think? That I'm planning some grand act of treason with Zaitsev?" "You do have that look about you. A bit insolent, a bit treasonous."  She twisted her wrist in his hand as if to draw attention to it, jutting her chin out defiantly as she looked up at him. When she spoke she did her best to sound as smug and irritating as he did. "You like that, don't you?" He made a soft tutting sound, looking deeply amused. "I do like you. That doesn't mean I trust you."  "That's--" she stuttered, torn between irritation and being caught off-guard by the matter-of-factness colouring his voice, "That's not what I meant."  "You're blushing again."

word count: 5k (i know. don't @ me)

tropes/warnings: not cannon, vasily's still alive, nikolai's kinda suspicious that y/n is about to commit some kind of treason and it's reflected in the way he acts, there is tension and innuendos though sljdf, y/n does get a bit upset/frustrated at one point, nikolai does apologise but does not back down from his plan to uncover her secrets bc where would the fun be in that, there is physical touch

a/n: i'm not going to lie to you, this is absolutely going to be a multi-part. i'm enjoying writing nikolai being a teasing menace far too much not to explore it further, and i think nikolai would be far too curious and fascinated by y/n to just let it go (and a bit worried about what she's up to). note that while this is their first time meeting there's still a lot of tension that will only continue to grow, so i hope you enjoy it!

The air inside the palace winter garden was laden with the scent of jasmine. There was an oppressiveness to it that stood in stark contrast with the fresh night air she'd come in from, leaving her heady and wondering if she might suffocate from it by the time the lieutenant arrived. That would be quite the sight - a page ripped out of a book of fairytales and brought to life, a pretty young thing laid peacefully amongst the blossoming flowers, caught in the last moment before the colour had drained out of her cheeks. She would lay out her arm like so, blue petals spilling out of her still fingers and... Ghezen. This place had a way of bringing out the morbid in her. Must be something about all the death imagery she'd sifted through earlier that day in the royal library - Ravkan stories certainly had a proclivity for martyred girls and their lovely, tragic endings. It did nothing but fortify her belief that breaking into the winter garden and hiding out had been a good idea. Y/N had no interest in actually experiencing martyrdom or tragic endings, thank you very much.

That is if one ignored the fact she was tempting fate by agreeing to an illicit meeting with a man her parents had most definitely not had in mind when they'd dragged her all the way to Ravka with them. A man who was distinctly late to said meeting. Y/N twisted the leaf she'd plucked from one of the bushes, her fingers sticky from where she'd crushed it and unsteady with the nervous sort of energy that accompanied late nights and ill-advised impulses. She'd already stood up and sat back down several times when the sound of a door opening interrupted her mid-movement and she slipped behind one of the stone columns that obscured her from view. The silence stretched for a long moment before the door clicked closed once more. The stone roses of the column were biting into the skin between Y/N's shoulderblades where she pressed herself against it as if she might blend into it by the sheer force of will. Another stretch of silence before the sound of a key turning in the lock made her start, her chest tightening. Silence. Whoever was there must've just noticed the door was left unlocked and decided to close it. Good. Y/N fingered the silver hairpin she'd used to break into the garden before pushing herself away from the column and slipping towards the glass door that led onto the palace grounds. She didn't want to risk anyone seeing her going back through the door that had just been locked.

"What's the rush?" A voice came from somewhere behind her. "You're missing all the flowers. Or is the collection not exotic enough for the refined tastes of a merchling princess?" 

Y/N halted mid-step, her shoulders drawn taut as she went very, very still. This was not the lieutenant's voice - it was just a bit too silvery, too playful, too... refined in its accent. Not a native speaker, but a very well-educated one. 

"I... the smell - it's overpowering." 

A soft chuckle. "Perhaps the lady would find it less offensive if she came to visit the gardens during the day." There was a slight pause. She swore she could almost hear him smirk in the way his voice trailed off. "As most people do."

She still had her back turned to him, her head tipped slightly back to look up towards the glass ceiling as if she expected to find a solution or at least strength to deal with this up there. "You are here too, are you not?" 

"Touche." He moved then, his steps loud against the marble floor but slow and languid, as if he were a predator stalking a fear-frozen doe in some rather exotic forest. He was much closer when he spoke this time. "But I like the smell. It's jasmine. Night-blooming jasmine to be specific. My mother's favourite." 

Y/N did not see what was the relevance of his confession but she assumed he might be slightly more compliant with the whole keeping quiet about this business if she played along. "Does she garden?"

This made him laugh. It was a nice sort of laugh - the kind that belonged to someone intimately familiar with the sound, whose mouth had been made for laughing and who found her question infinitely amusing. "Saints, no. That would be quite the sight though - my mother with dirt-stained hands, taking care of a living thing."

Y/N did not respond. This sounded like a confession too, one she was not privy to. She felt like she was missing a puzzle piece. He waited in silence for a moment, and when she didn't answer she heard the rustle of fabric as he must have leaned against the column behind her. "Are you not going to turn around?" 

"I was escaping, remember? It would be silly to show my face now when I still have a chance of getting away."

He made a noncommittal sound. "I didn't realise you were fleeing. Women don't tend to run away from me very often. How... thrilling." 

Y/N almost snorted at this display of ego. She resigned herself to a sort of small, vague sound that could be left up to interpretation. "Are you going to stop me?" 

"Would you like me to?" His voice had gone low and goading, but he never moved from his spot. It had occurred to her that it might be advisable to be more nervous about this strange man standing behind her, but this felt more like a game than a threat and Y/N couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corners of her lips. 

"A thrilling proposition, but one I will have to refuse. Allegedly I'm a sensible creature, and none of this sounds very sensible."

"Neither does meeting Lieutenant Zaitsev in a winter garden at three in the morning, but here we are. Minus Zaitsev, unfortunately." He said unfortunately in a way people did when they found nothing unfortunate about a situation at all. 

Y/N spun around, suddenly very aware of the sound of rushing blood and her own quickened heartbeat that rang in her ears. Prince Nikolai looked as pleased by this reaction as she imagined a cat would as it dug its claws into some poor, unsuspecting thing or got a big plate of full-fat cream. At least now the gardening thing made complete sense. 

He was in his full regalia, as polished as he'd been when she'd seen him earlier this evening, all shiny medals and sharp lines and the sort of lazy indifference that came with inherited importance and disarming good looks. She'd half expected the illusion of grandeur to disappear once she saw him up close, but the prince remained as impeccable as he'd been from afar, almost to an irritating degree. Y/N lowered her eyes. 

"My apologies, your Highness. I didn't recognise your voice."

"How could you? We've never had the pleasure of speaking to each other." Y/N thought she might have been imagining the subtle note of accusation in his voice. He tipped his head to the side, eyes fixed on Y/N with the sort of intense curiosity that she could feel burning against her skin. "Don't apologise. I've had enough of performative politeness to last me a year."

Y/N raised an eyebrow at that, her eyes flitting up to his face for a brief moment of offence. "Are you implying my apology is performative?" 

Nikolai caught her eyes and smiled at that. She had been right - he had the sort of mouth that lent itself to charming, easy smiles and was hard to look away from. "You don't seem the type to be sorry about any of this. Except maybe getting caught."

Y/N didn't deign answer that, there was no point in pretending when he hardly appeared open to changing his mind if the knowing smirk on his lips was anything to go by. She took a slight step backwards when he pushed himself away from the column and moved towards her. He side-stepped her, though there was still an undue amount of proximity between them as he passed by her side, eyes trailing along her features before he focused on something behind her. 

"You know who I am, don't you?" she asked. He'd called her a merchling princess, he'd known exactly why she was here and who she'd intended to meet. Something was unsettling about the casual way in which he considered her question as if he were toying with her the same way he was toying with the leaves of some unnamed bush he'd stopped to observe. 

He was quiet for a while, the only sound a low chuckle that rumbled in his chest as he plucked a pretty, pink flower from its stem. "It's in my job description," he said simply as if that might explain the overabundance of information on her. 

"Is it? I've heard princes have people for that. To whisper over your shoulder whenever they see someone coming your way."

A laugh this time. "You're not wrong, but I find those quite overbearing and tough to get rid of when one wishes to slip away unnoticed. I'm sure you can relate." 

She hummed in response, eyes narrowed. "Where's the lieutenant?"

"Am I boring you that much? You wound me, Miss Braam." 

Y/N barely held back a frustrated sound that she felt building in her chest. He was infuriating on purpose, she was sure. She'd seen him interact with people tonight and he went about it with such elegance and ease that there was no doubt Nikolai Lantsov had a way with both words and people. 

"I would do no such thing. You're a delight," she said dryly. And it wasn't a lie - Nikolai did seem delightful in a precarious sort of way, but Y/N felt far too on edge to appreciate it. "He promised..."

Nikolai interrupted her, one gloved hand raised as if he were placating a startled wild animal. "I sent him away," he said, turning to face her, "I must say, if I were in his place and meeting you in such a lovely place at a such late hour I would've personally put up much more of a fight. Alas, he obeyed - so you're stuck with me instead." 

Y/N felt the frustration rising, choking out the words in her throat even as she pushed it down to try and appear forlorn rather than annoyed. "Oh," was all she said, turning her face away so that the shadowy darkness offered some cover. 

She saw him shift in the periphery of her vision and then there were fingers on the edges of her jaw, the material soft and runny against her skin. Not cotton, silk. Of course it would be silk. She didn't fight him as he guided her chin so that she was looking at him once again, determined to appear deeply hurt by Zaitsev's abandonment rather than irritated by the fact she would now have to come up with another plan to get the materials from him. Nikolai's eyes trailed along her face as if he were drinking her in, so gentle and sympathetic she almost believed it. Almost.

"As lovely as you look in all your teary-eyed, heartbroken glory," Nikolai said, sounding amused, "I sincerely doubt you are anything of the sort. It's that Ketterdam blood in your veins. Pragmatism above all else, no?"

She tried to free her chin from his fingers, but as she did the grip suddenly became less gentle, holding her firmly in place. He smiled when he saw the flash of irritation cross her features. 

"That's more like it." He sounded almost satisfied to see the facade crack, amused by her reaction. What in Ghezen's name was his problem? 

She jerked her chin against his grip in a display of defiance before staring him down. "And is pragmatism an unfamiliar concept here in Ravka? Quit playing, your Highness. We could've been done with this much quicker if you'd just asked your questions at the start."

He only hummed in response, still looking at her as if he were observing a particularly riveting piece of art, one that might reveal some secret symbolism hiding beneath the surface. "Maybe I didn't want it to be quick?"

"I also sincerely doubt that." 

He chuckled and Y/N felt his warm breath brush against her flushed cheeks. His grip had loosened, but she still felt the warmth of his fingers seeping into her skin. "Why? You're a curious thing. Brought here to be paraded about for the Court in hopes of securing a fruitful marriage, no? But then you very adamantly avoid both my brother and me. It's a bit strange... I suppose I wanted to take my time with you."

"Maybe that was the ploy all along, the whole avoidance thing. It got you curious, didn't it?" She leaned into his touch very intentionally then, overly aware of the way he shifted them to accommodate her, her eyebrow raised in an attempt at mirroring his playfulness.

"I admire your talent for improvisation, Miss Braam. Really, it's quite charming..."

"But...?" She'd sensed he was going in that direction and interrupted him before he could say it. Nikolai chuckled. 

"But, I'm not buying it. It would've been far too risky of a plan. And unless you are more arrogant than I am - which I doubt - I don't think you expected or wanted anyone to come looking. Aside from Zaitsev, of course."

Y/N sneered at him then, finally irritated enough that she reached up to grab his wrist and pull his hand away from her jaw. The wool of his uniform was rough beneath her fingers, golden buttons digging into her palm where she gripped it. She hated how aware of him she was as she let go. Nikolai let her, grinning delightedly at this sudden display of insolence. 

"Not particularly gentle. I like that."

"Stop pretending to flirt with me, your Highness." Because that's what it was - make-believe. She thought she could see something more sinister lurking beneath it. If he didn't believe her she was meeting Zaitsev for a moonlight tryst between two lovers - which in all fairness was an entirely correct assumption - then he must've thought she had more insidious intentions. So why wasn't he dragging her back to the party, demanding answers? Perhaps making a spectacle of it was his way of intimidation, it certainly fit the aura of aloof confidence he was displaying.

"Who says I'm pretending?"

She shot him a dry look in lieu of an answer. "If you're not going to ask what my real reason was for meeting Zaistev then I'm going to ask how in Ghezen's name did you know we were meeting in the first place?" 

He watched her for a moment, head bent to look down at her and a smirk playing on his lips, then he turned and went around her to stroll between the lush flowers. She watched the moonlight glint off the golden details of his uniform, his hands clasped behind his back, something languorous and insolent about the way he moved. "Now, that would be telling," he said, "And I like to keep an air of mystery about me. It adds to the charm I think." 

"Fine. Why care to find out about it at all?" 

He halted for a second as if considering his answer. "I told you. You never bothered to introduce yourself, and the whole charade has been going on for three nights and days now. I was already suspicious on the second day as to what exactly you were doing here."

Realising they weren't going anywhere any time soon Y/N made her way over to the fountain, the soft rush of water behind her back soothing her nerves as she sat down. "So your explanation is that your ego made you do it?"

"My ego makes me do a lot of things, Miss Braam. A character fault, I know, but no one's perfect." He didn't sound sorry about it at all. 

"I have a perfectly sensible explanation for that, if you'd like to hear it?"

He was picking apart another flower, like a gardener's worst nightmare when he looked back towards her and smirked. "Another one? Are we dropping the playing hard-to-get ploy?"

Y/N ignored the jab, leaning back on her hands and tilting her head as she watched him lean in to smell some unremarkable bush. "My parents are tentatively hopeful, but I know better..."

"Of course you do."

"Would you stop that, you menace." 

Nikolai started laughing and Y/N realised that all the other times he'd laughed or chuckled at her words it had been only a good mimicry of amusement. This was the real thing. She snorted and looked up towards the glass ceiling in faux exasperation, hiding her smile.

"Anyway. It's the crown prince's hand in marriage that's on the table, right? You said it yourself - us merchling princesses are a pragmatic bunch. As nice as it sounds, I'm no royalty, so why waste my breath? Your kingdom needs political alliances, not money. Nothing's going to come of it." She shrugged. "And if I'm debasing myself like I'm a dairy cow on a cattle fair, I'd prefer not to do it in vain. I too have an ego, you know."

When she dropped her head back down she realised Nikolai was watching her from where he stood, head tipped to the side, his fingers absentmindedly plucking the petals off a rose he was holding. He seemed to be considering saying something but decided against it. 

"From what I've been told, your father is a very rich man," he said eventually, "And I find that sort of thing makes a woman rather attractive. Political alliances can be bought, you know." 

"Is that why you keep not-pretending to flirt? Does my father's money make me so irresistible?"

"Well that, and the insolence." He smirked. "But mostly insolence. Us Ravkans, we're just not as pragmatic." 

Y/N rolled her eyes, though without malice. "I can tell." She sighed, watching her fingers where they dipped into the cold water. "And besides, I'm not too keen on being shipped off to a foreign kingdom. Much to my mother's dismay."

"Not even for a crown?"

Her gaze shifted back to Nikolai who was now strolling over to her, appearing genuinely curious this time. He looked like something out of a children's book, like he might be the one to discover the fair, dead girl she'd imagined in a field of flowers and mourn over her body, impressive even in tragedy. She supposed she understood why all the girls when they were done with Vasily swarmed to try and get Nikolai's attention instead.

"I have no interest in crowns. They seem heavy."

He stopped a few paces away, watching her for a moment before a small, knowing smile bloomed across his lips. "What is it that interests you then?"

Y/N was glad he'd asked if only so she could grin insolently at him and repeat what he'd said to her before, "Now, that would be telling, your Highness. And I like to keep an air of mystery about myself too." 

He was standing over her now, looking down at where she was sprawled back on the cold stone of the fountain, a playful glint in his eyes. "Fair. I suppose I should've seen that one coming from a mile away."

"You really should have." She agreed with amusement, head tipped back to look up at him. For a moment they stared at each other, him standing so close she could feel the fabric of his pants brush against her knee, and her leaning back on her hands, aware that she could but didn't want to shift away. She'd almost forgotten she was supposed to be rather annoyed about her failed meeting and when the thought appeared uninvited at the forefront of her mind she couldn't help breaking eye contact and looking at the dark corners of the winter garden behind Nikolai. 

"Why were you meeting him?" he asked then, his voice more serious than it had ever been since they started talking. Y/N didn't look at him right away, worrying at her lip as she thought about what she would say. Playful avoidance didn't seem like a good choice here, but neither did the truth, at least not the whole truth. 

She sighed. "He has something I want." 

When she pulled herself up to stand Nikolai shifted slightly to the side so that he was right by her side, not really blocking her path but close enough to stop her if he decided to. He was close enough that she could feel the heat radiating off his body. 

Y/N looked up at him, a determined look in her eyes. "I'm not telling." 

Nikolai raised an eyebrow. "I assume you can see how that might seem rather worrisome to me."

Y/N dipped her chin in a small nod of acknowledgement. 

"And I also assume you know I won't just let it go."

"You? Unrelenting? I never would've guessed." 

He smiled at that, though it was a bit strained. "I could drag you back to your parents now. Demand an explanation." 

Y/N appeared to consider his words for a moment. "Yes. I suppose you could." She dropped her eyes down to his hands where he had them shoved into the pockets of his uniform. Her skin remembered the grip he'd had on her chin earlier that evening, prickling at the thought of those silk gloves wrapped around her arm. Was this fear she felt in the pit of her stomach? 

Nikolai must have noticed because he followed her gaze down and let out a soft chuckle when he saw the prickled skin on her bare arms and the uncertain look on her face. "I didn't mean it literally. Though I could, if that's your preference?"

Y/N felt the blood rush to her face, hot and burning, certain the blush was already spreading from her chest up to her neck. She closed her eyes and let out a frustrated breath. Collect yourself, you frivolous fool. "You just can't help yourself, can you?" she said, voice biting. 

Nikolai chuckled. She couldn't see him with her eyes shut, but she could imagine he was looking at her, thoroughly amused. "I can, I just don't want to. I was wondering how much it would take to make you blush." 

She opened her eyes to glare at him. "Satisfied?"

"Very much so." 

"Great, now that we've pleased you, let's get this over with. -- I am warning you though, my mother is prone to fainting when startled." 

She tried to side-step him to head for the door, assuming he'd follow her, but Nikolai deftly held out his hand to catch her wrist and pull her back to where she had been standing. There was no harshness to it, he was careful not to grip too hard or pull too strongly, but Y/N still gasped when she felt stopped in her path. 

Irritated, she spun around and came up so close she could feel the wool of his uniform brush against her bodice as she glared up at him. "What now?" 

"Now I'm thinking I should escort you to your room, just to make sure you don't accidentally commit some act of treason on your way to it."

"Is that what you think? That I'm planning some grand act of treason with Zaitsev?"

"You do have that look about you. A bit insolent, a bit treasonous." 

She twisted her wrist in his hand as if to draw attention to it, jutting her chin out defiantly as she looked up at him. When she spoke she did her best to sound as smug and irritating as he did. "You like that, don't you?"

He made a soft tutting sound, looking deeply amused. "I do like you. That doesn't mean I trust you." 

"That's--" she stuttered, torn between irritation and being caught off-guard by the matter-of-factness colouring his voice, "That's not what I meant." 

"You're blushing again."

She reached up to smack him on his arm with her free hand. For a moment he looked genuinely caught off guard and Y/N couldn't help the smug self-satisfaction that swelled in her chest at the startled look he gave her. She just hit a prince. A real, very gilded, very irritating prince. 

"You are the most infuriating man I have ever had the displeasure of meeting." Her chest rose and fell on quickened breath and she could hear her pulse thrumming against her ribcage like some caged bird startled by the way her voice rose in irritation. 

Then Nikolai started laughing and it was Y/N's turn to look alarmed by the display. She stared at him as he tried to collect himself several times, running his hand through his hair and leaving it charmingly tousled as he tipped his head back and took a deep breath to calm himself. 

"Like I said. You do have a tendency for treason - like hitting a prince." 

"I barely touched you, and you had it coming," she said, then shook her head and looked up above his head, "Sorry. I lost my temper." 

"No, no - it's fine. I did have it coming." 

She felt his thumb brush against the inner side of her wrist, suddenly aware that he'd never let go of it. His fingers stilled for a moment before he spoke, "Breathe. Your heart's beating like you just outran a bear. I'm not going to tell anyone about tonight." 

She did not think anything good would come of admitting the current state of her pulse had very little to do with the fear of her parents and everything to do with the way every sense in her body was heightened by his proximity. She hardly wanted to admit that silly reaction of her body to herself, much less him. She let out a shaky breath. "Okay." 

"Okay?" He was watching her when she opened her eyes again. "Do you want to go back to your parents or your room?"

She stared at him for a moment, uncertain. Had she really appeared distressed enough for him to so suddenly switch gears? She searched his face for anything suspicious as if she half-expected this sudden calmness in his voice to be a trap. 

"I'm suspicious. Not cruel," he said when she failed to answer. She felt him release her wrist as if finally satisfied enough with her pulse going down to let go. "I crossed the line and upset you. It wasn't my intention."

"Wasn't it?" There was an accusation in her voice, one she didn't realise was there until it slipped out without her permission. When had they switched roles of the accuser and the accused?

Nikolai looked away, looking almost repentant. "I don't know. I got carried away - I guess I didn't expect you to be... like that." 

She wasn't sure what like that meant and was half-afraid of asking. Maybe he'd say something ridiculous and then she'd be blushing again. No, that was a ridiculous thought. This entire exchange was ridiculous. She almost expected to wake up tomorrow and fully believe it was a fever dream. 

"So what I just... leave now? No consequences?" she said, sounding deeply doubtful. 

"Yes and no. I said I wouldn't tell." He finally looked back at her, his gaze scouring her face. "I didn't say I wouldn't keep trying to find out what you're hiding." 

"It's nothing bad if that's what you're worried about." 

"You've tried to lie to me several times tonight. Do you expect me to just believe you?" 

He did have a point there. Y/N pursed her lips. "What then?"

Nikolai seemed to consider her then. Under scrutiny, Y/N suddenly became very aware of their proximity, which in all fairness had been entirely her fault. She stepped away uneasily, worrying at her lip. Ghezen, he really was deeply infuriating, for more than one reason. 

"You'll see tomorrow."

Y/N's head shot up. "Tomorrow?"

"Save me a dance."

She was certain she looked like there were rusted cogs inside her head grinding against each other as she tried to process his words. There was clearly a double meaning in there, there always seemed to be with him, but it wasn't immediately obvious to her. 

Nikolai smirked as he watched her work it out. "Don't overheat that pretty little head of yours. I like the way it works." 

She made a face at him. "Why would you... oh."

"Oh," he repeated, smug. 

Save me a dance. It was a threat, not a request. He would approach her tomorrow in the middle of the after-dinner ball, in front of everyone. She would know it was for show, but to everyone else, it would appear as if he'd singled her out and shown her his favour. Out of the blue at that. 

She shot him a dirty look. "That's low."

"I don't consider myself a particularly immoral person, but I will do what I have to."

She would find herself dragged out of her carefully-crafted obscurity and thrust under scrutiny. Her parents would be delighted, no doubt, a welcome reprieve from the frustration her disobedience was causing them currently. She couldn't think of a worse thing. 

"Unless, of course, you decide to tell me about it beforehand." At some point, he'd strolled away from her and plucked another one of those poor flowers. "I'll still ask, of course, but more subtly." 

She stared at him, disbelieving. Did he just threaten her and then proceed to imply he'd still ask her to dance with him?

She let out a frustrated sigh. "Very well, we can play that game. I will warn you though, I tend to bite when cornered."

"I was hoping you would."

"You... you are just the worst," she said, irritation colouring her voice higher than normal, before turning around to head for the door. In the smallest, most meagre act of defiance, she decided not to tell him goodnight and instead storm out without a word. 

He was not having it. "Y/N?"

She produced some indeterminate sound of frustration. "What now, your Highness?" 

"Call me Nikolai."

"I will not." 

A chuckle. Then the sound of his steps as he approached her from the back. "I do wish we'd met on some less... dramatic terms. Honestly." 

She couldn't ignore him when he went around her to stand in her field of vision, but she did shoot him a dirty look. There was a flower in his hands now, so delicate and white that it almost blended into the whiteness of his gloves, only the leaves visible in the darkness. He hadn't yet dismembered this one. 

"Since you don't like the smell of jasmine," he said, as if that explained everything, and held it out to her.

Y/N considered not taking it, but curiosity got the better of her and she reached out her hand tentatively to pluck the flower from his fingers. "What is it?"

"Gardenia. A personal favourite, at least scent-wise." He stared at the flower in her hand for a moment, then smiled. "Goodnight, Miss Braam."

She watched him stroll back towards the door that led into the palace, unhurried, languid and infuriatingly prepossessing. For a moment she stood there, reeling, before she headed for the other door, the one that led out into the gardens, desperate for a breath of fresh air. It was only once she was outside that she realised he hadn't lied about the flower, its fragrance a sweet, charming thing. Later that night, when she returned to her room she would put it in a small crystal glass and place it next to her bed so that when she fell asleep her mind was still full of that fragrance and the memory of Nikolai's thumb pressed against her pulse point. 

[sanctus-ingenium]

u guys wanna see more WIPs... similar to the last post, here are Some WIPs

all of these were started in sai before going on to procreate. before going back to sai again in the case of the strength card

so Blue Sky/Out Of Time... yeah it’s extremely self-explanatory, it’s very obvious what this scene depicts and i’m sure everyone gets it (this is a joke i’ve had multiple people dm me asking wtf this even is). the one element that absolutely NEEDED to be there was the LED digital clock with a bullshit time on it, and i decided to replace it with an AIRE warning sign instead and put the LED readouts in the bg. the warning sign in this setting serves the purpose of informing ppl when there are hostile faeries around. i knew what the colours would be from the beginning, but it took a bit for me to realise what sort of shading style i wanted (it took forever). but i did know i wanted to contrast the very sketchy black void against the cleaner and almost cartoony/comic book style rest of the drawing, to emphasise the fact that the foreground sky and background void are made of two very different things. again i used a colour shifting brush to quickly make all the shards of sky different colours, but originally i planned to have some of the shards be dark or night time (with stars or the moon etc). unfortunately it didn’t work, it was too dark and pascal got lost against it.

My Eyes Are Up Here is pretty obviously the exact same scene with the same character, in the same field, but with a different sort of atmosphere. i sketched this in sai then did the final in procreate. originally it was going to have a black background

i really like this version tbh but the blue works better. i think he looks good against dark backgrounds where it’s kind of hard to see wtf is even happening there

so about the neon signs..... i’m well aware that the sketch has way more promise than what the final ultimately was, and that’s because i found that i didn’t have the technical or artistic ability to pull off the complex neon signs like i wanted to. i couldn’t get it looking good enough so i had to scrap them. but these signs will be back, i want to draw them properly and do them justice. the gif was unplanned too but i thought it would be fun to have the flicker be very intermittent so that if you scrolled past it you might not even realise, or you’d have to stick with it just to catch it looping. i used GIMP to make the gif and change the frame rate, and this actually took a very long time because i had to preview it over and over. anyway if you WERE to get lost in the púca’s field, in this story, you would see neon signs like this encouraging you to follow them.

Strength is actually the last drawing i ever made that ended with a paint-over in sai, and the oldest drawing here. as such i actually don’t think it’s representative of my current ability but i do have a soft spot for it for sentimental reasons lol. the reason for the paint-over in sai was because i drew this at a time when i still did not trust procreate to be able to place the level of finish on it that i wanted

the background took me a thousand years to figure out. literally it was so annoying that i considered scrapping it for something simpler. but the idea was for it to be a kind of fairytale-ish lost in the woods sort of look while also appearing like the blood vessels around the human heart. the branches were also supposed to be heart-shaped in cross-section but i spent so long zoomed in painting them that i forgot to zoom out to see if all those fine details were actually visible, and it turned out they weren’t. i was disappointed that i couldn’t get félix’s tattoos to look right but that’s what i get for making a character with shit tons of both tattoos and body hair. i also got rid of the foreground branches really soon because they weren’t adding anything and muddied up the readability of his pose

the swan is from a daemon au and bears no relation to my other swan characters. i just like swans a lot

[piss-pumpkin]

🌲home🌲

Older!Dipper pines x reader

~3.2k words Chapter 1 of Douce amere,

Master list

The air in Gravity Falls was different. Maybe nostalgia clouded your perception, and maybe that was okay. It still smelled like pine and cedar and adventure here. And the day had that electric feel. It was the day they were coming.

Your alarm blared, and you groaned in response, grasping under your pillow to find your phone and silence it. Nine AM, on the dot. An early morning at the start of summer was a punishment in itself, but you had good reason today. Their bus came in at noon, and you had to be ready, meet them at the stop with the Grunkles and gang. You stumbled out of bed, and started to get dressed.

Half of you wanted to just wear pyjamas and spare yourself the trouble. The other half wanted to dress as nice as possible to snag attention. They hadn’t seen you in person in a year, even him. You sighed at yourself for giving into the stereotype, but you did want to catch his attention. No pyjamas today.

As you started to brush your teeth, you could feel the anxiety. As exciting as it was to start a new summer with them, it was scary too. What if they’ve changed? What if I’ve changed? You texted and called a lot, but… 

You shook your head, trying to clear the thought. They were friends. Always were and always will be. You hoped. 

Still, that wasn’t the only pain. You were older now. It was one of the last summers you’d be able to spend here with them before high school ended. You had to squeeze every bit of fun out of it while you could. Time seemed to slow here, but it still passed. Summer still ended eventually, despite everything. 

You shook your head again. The very beginning wasn’t the time to think about the end. 

Dressed and ready, you grabbed an apple and started to the mystery shack, a few hours before they were set to arrive. “Bye, Y/n! Have a good day!” you aunt shouted from the kitchen. 

“Bye, Susan, you too!” You called back. She was incredibly kind to let you stay with her, lazy Susan. 

The shack was close, and the soft grass folded under your shoes and wet them with dew. “Y/n!” You hear Soos call from the porch. He was still sporting the question mark shirt, but it was under a suit jacket, and the hat he wore was the fez Stan had given him all those years ago. 

“Soos!” You shouted back, waving as you jogged your to him. 

“Dude, I am so stoked for today, you don’t even know,” he said, leading you inside. 

“Dude, I know too well,” you laughed. “Ugh I can’t wait, I should have slept in more.”

Wendy popped her head in from the break room, “amen, man, I’ve been here since seven.”

You cringed, and clenched a fist near your chest, “My condolences.”

The mid morning passed quickly though, despite everything. There was still that static feeling, and it only grew as the day went. And eventually, the time did in fact come. The time to go to the bus stop and meet them. You had to. All of you. Stan, Ford, Soos, Wendy, none of you were willing to prolong the meeting any further. The only shame was that Candy and Grenda were still out of town. 

                                             …

The bus was rolling in, all to slowly for your liking. For everyone’s liking. You could feel how the people around you were buzzing with excitement too. One year was far to long away from these people. Your people. The bus came to a stop seemingly at your feet.

The door seemed to slide open agonizingly slowly, but against all odds, it opened. Out came Mabel, screaming.

”Aaaaaugh! Guys!” She yelled, jumping out of the bus and skipping the stairs. She threw he luggage aside as she managed to envelope everyone in a group hug before they had time to respond. 

Stan was the first to recover, quickly leaning into the hug. “Kid, you get taller every time I see you!”

Ford laughed, “You almost beat Stan and I.”

You almost spoke, but your eye caught on the second person leaving the bus. Dipper had a wide smile on his face as he watched the scene. With a sigh, he placed his bags with Mabel’s and joined he hug. 

“Dip!” You found yourself exclaiming, along with Wendy. The both of you maneuvered to let him in the centre of the hug. 

There they were, at last. Dipper and Mabel, Mabel and Dipper. Here. Home. You smiled, barely hearing the words around you as you buried your face in Mabel’s hair and Dipper shoulder. They smelt a bit musty from the bus ride, and a bit like Mabel’s strawberry shampoo. This was the place to be. You squeezed tighter. So did they.

                                               …

Walking back to the shack was nice, pleasant, nostalgic. Dipper and Ford talked science, while Stan interjected to call them nerds. Soos and Wendy were chatting, and You and Mabel were catching up behind them. 

It wasn’t like you didn’t call and text, but there was so much you had to just say. But Mabel was, on occasion, a stinker. She had a smug grin on her face as she drifted back a bit behind he others, prompting you to follow. 

“So Y/n, are you gonna do anything about your crush on-“

You threw your hand towards Mabel, and covered her mouth before she got his name out. She immediately started to lick it, but you stayed strong. Your head whipped in front of you to Dipper and the rest of them before looking back to Mabel, who’s smirk you could see in her eyes. “Dude, what the fuck?” You whispered. Or maybe it was more of a hiss. “Don’t just say that! Not now!” You wiped your wet hand on your pants.

She giggled. “Fine, fine,” Mabel shrugged, still smirking smugly. “Just trying to help is all.”

You pursed your lips, and squinted at her. “Somehow I don’t believe that… and who says I need help?” You turned your head away from her with an uplifted chin to add an air of smug snottiness to your question. 

“Uhh, the fact that you’ve been pining for like, two years, and are still single?” Mabel said dryly. You could still hear the shit eating grin in her voice, “But hey, what’s a professional matchmaker to that, hmm?”

You winced, “Okay you have a point.” You snapped your eyes back to her, and smiled, a slightly evil and cunning smile. “But this summer, I have a plan… this is the one I can feel it.”

Mabel faked a gasp, pressing her palm to her open mouth, “My gosh? A plan?” She mocked. “You sound like Dipstick now.”

”Oh god, don’t say that,” you laughed. “This isn’t like his plans, this one is simple, honestly.

Mabel looked quizzically at you in response. Her hands started to come it her eyes, nearly forming her skepticals.

”No really, don’t even with that,” you said, swatting her hands down. “I say plan but it’s really just… an idea. I’m just gonna flirt, like a lot. Like really smooth, hopefully. Or try to, at least.” Saying it out loud, you almost felt embarrassed, a slight heat creeping onto your cheeks.

Mabel on the other hand, looked ecstatic. Her head was on a swivel looking between you and Dipper. “Okay, that’s a plan I can get behind,” she said. “I think you could have moves, I see the potential.”

You stifled a laugh, “Glad to hear it, glad your rooting for me.”

”Of course I am!” She said, hands flying into the hair for effect. She turned to you as you walked, and pointed to your face with one hand, the other resting on her hip. “And I will do my absolute best to assist your noble quest whenever possible, should you choose to call upon my services!” 

You played into the bit. “Appreciated, you are like my loyal knight and this is a war which we must win together.” You clasped her pointing hand in yours, “We will prevail!”

Mabel’s eyes lit up, “Fuck yeah we will!” She yelled. A bit too loud. Dipper and Soos turned their heads in front of you, shooting you curious looks. 

Ever smooth, you shot them back a snap and a finger gun. Dipper only smiled, giving Soos a light punch punch the  arm before drifting back to walk with you and Mabel, at your side. He laughed, “Fuck yeah you will what?”

You smirked, and stroked your chin with faux smugness. “Mmm, wouldn’t you like to know, Dip.”

Mabel chimed in, “Yeah, we got secrets, we’re scheming!”

Dipper rolled his eyes as he chuckled, “God, that has to be a new record for you guys, we’ve been here a whole five minutes and you’re already plotting shit.”

You smirked, and did your best to maintain eye contact. “Hey, I always am, it’s how I keep life interesting.”

”Life is very much that when you’re involved,” Dipper laughed. 

You could feel Mabel’s eyes burning into the back of your skull as she held her tongue and listened to your banter. Involuntarily, your smile widened.

”And I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said. 

You laughed, “You couldn’t even if you wanted to.”

He blushed, his cheeks turning a slight pink colour, hopefully at your comment. First blush of the summer, hopefully the first of many you’d get from him, he was rather cute when he blushed. You were particularly fond of how the corners of his mouth curled up when he did, in the slightest of smiles.

”Welcome home, kids!” You heard Stan yell in front of you.  He turned around to walk backwards toward the shack so he was facing you and the twins. “Finally, am I right?”

Ford kept his back to you, but turned his head so you could see his eyes, “we’ve been looking forward to you kids coming back for a while, if you couldn’t tell.”

”Stans been driving me up the walls talking about you guys for months,” Wendy chuckled. “Y/n too for the last few days.”

You couldn’t help yourself, ”Hey, I did not!” you defended.

Soos snickered, “dude, you totally did.”

You pursed your lips and hummed lowly in disapproval. They were probably right, but that wasn’t something you’d outwardly admit. “Yeah whatever, nerds, that’s not how I remember it.”

Stan cackled, ”The congratulations, you got Alzheimer’s before the seventy year old man!”

You grumbled, trapped in this conversational corner. Mabel smiled, and elbowed your side, “Awww, somebody missed us!”

Dipper spoke too, “That much?” he asked, a little too innocently. Innocent enough to be mocking. 

You scoffed, “like you guys are any better.”

You all moved inside the shack to get settled in the living room, all still chatting. Dipper and Mabel’s suit cases were leaned against a wall by the stairs. 

Mabel pushed Dipper hard on the back towards you. “You’re right, Y/n, this little rascal hasn’t shut up about you guys for a week.” Dipper whipped his head around to glare at her, as if a threat. She snickered, “especially you, Y/n,” she teased. 

Dipper spun his head back around to look at you, and rubbed the back of his neck. “Not like that-“he sputtered, a blush in his cheeks. 

You smiled. If you had to guess, you’d call if fifty/fifty it was actually not like that. You hoped anyway. Fifty/fifty on a good day, twenty-five/seventy-five against you on most others. “I believe it, Mabel is a half reliable source at best.”

”Hey!”

Stan chimed in and spoke to Mabel, “Hate to agree with Y/n, but they are completely right, sweetie.”

                                             …

The conversation moved, and you all caught up with everyone. As much as you already had, having arrived a few days before the twins, there was always more to say, more stories to tell. A lot can happened between summers. 

And eventually, it simmered down, and the twins started to try and settle in. 

There was a double edged sword to that, being, the twins still shared a room despite their age. It was slightly more annoying now then it was when they were twelve, especially to you, who occasionally wanted to hangout there with Dipper, and divorce yourself from Mabel’s match making antics from time to time. 

Mabel took her bags up first, running up the stairs with haste and excitement. You walked up behind Dipper, catching his attention, and did you best at a little bow. “May I help with your bags, m’lady,” you asked.

Dipper grimaced and recoiled, but a smile crossed his lips. “You sound like a redditor,” he snickered as he started to pick up his suitcases. 

You shrugged, “Your loss.”

He smiled, “I wouldn’t let m’lady strained their perfect hands.”

You laughed as you walked with him up the stairs. “Ew, yeah, I hear it. Never again, no more m’lady, too neckbeard for me.”

”Good, because I took a lot of psychic damage from that,” he said. “You can mimic the Redditor mannerisms with freakish accuracy, right down to the face.”

You put your hand to your chest, feigning hurt. “I take incredible offence to that, I do not have Reddit face,” you scoffed. 

As you approached the door to the attic, you stepped in front of Dipper to open it for him, who had full hands. Mabel was already laying on the bed with Waddles, kicking her feet in the air as she laid on her stomach. There were already posters on the wall and stuffed animals on the bed, too. 

Dipper barely batted and eye, moving to his side of the room with a small comment, “you work fast.”

Mabel shocked, ”You know me, they call me sonic in the-“

“Buddy,” you cut her off. “You finishing that sentence would actually kill me.”

She smirked, and rolled on her back to face you. “There’s a joke there about finishing, but I don’t wanna look for it.”

”Everyday you find new ways to disgust me.”

“Imagine living with her,” Dipper added, taking folded clothes out of his suitcase. 

Mabel grumbled, but said nothing and instead rolling over and looked at her phone. Waddles oinked beside her.

“Hey, it’s summer, I can imagine it perfectly well.”

Dipper laughed, and sat on the bed, looking at you with a smile. “Yeah… you do pretty much live here in the summer, huh?”

You sat down next to him, and grabbed the old musty pillow that rested at the head. “Good thing or bad thing?” 

He looked away, and laughed slightly, “Good thing.”

                                            …

The day went by, remarkably fast. The sun set, the energy simmered, people left. Soos and Wendy went home, leaving you chatting with Stans late at night. You didn’t quite want to leave yet. Instead, you nodded and snapped a finger gun to Stan and Ford, and quietly ascended the stairs to the twins room.

Mabel was sleeping already, snoring lightly. Not loud enough to bother you much. Dipper though, was reading. A small lamp in the bedside table illuminated the small space by his bed, where he sat upright against the headboard. “Dip,” you said quietly. “What are we reading?”

He looked up from his novel with wide eyes, as if broken from a trance. “Oh, God- y/n,” he stuttered, startled. “Are you staying over?”

You bounded over to the bed and took a seat next to him, nestling your feet under the blanket. “Yeah, but that’s not the point,” you said, leaning on his shoulder and glancing at the books pages. “What are we reading?” 

His skin was warm on your hands and arms as you leaned on him. His loose t-shirt was soft, too. He stammered a bit, “Oh, well- it’s a mystery novel, a murder, detectives…” Dipper looked at you for a flicker, as if checking to see if you were still interested. “There’s these two brothers that are the main characters, and this one guy who’s their partner.” Dipper taps the pages, and chews his lip. “But I have my suspicions about one of them.”

You hum slightly in a hushed laugh. “So tell me now, who’s the killer?”

Dipper rolled his neck, cracking it. “Man, I really think it’s the partner guy, but it’s awful because one of the brothers is in love with him.”

You winced, “oh shit.” You knew the feeling, empathy for a doomed character. “That kind of sucks for him.” Dipper nodded, and turned the page. He was maybe halfway through the book. you read along with him, trying to gain whatever you could from the out of context scenes. “So should I pick it up, or wait for you to finish it so I can read your next book with you?”

Very quickly you felt heat radiating from him. You did your best not to pull away in the inherent embarrassment of closeness, pushing though the fact that you made him blush again to stay leaned against him, your chin rested gently near his collar bone. “Well I mean- this one is really good, I’ll admit, but I may have just spoiled it for you…”

You waved your hand as he turned another page. “Eh, I don’t mind too bad. Mystery isn’t even my main genre, I just love the book club,” you said. It was nothing but true, it didn’t matter the quality of the book if you were reading it with him, or anyone really. But mainly him, or sometimes Mabel. Even if it was the worst book ever written, it was at least fun to discuss it and make fun of it together. 

“Well in that case, yeah I’d recommend it,” he said. “Wanna borrow my copy when I finish?”

”Mmhmmm,” you hummed, tired. “Or I could just read with you, I guess. I’m sure the first half wasn’t that important.”

Dipper shook his head, a slight and baffled smile forming across his lips. “I disrespectfully disagree with you,” he said, turning the page.

You yawned, “That’s… rude.” Your eyes were sluggish as they followed along with the words. Dipper started to turn the page again, before you were ready. You quickly cut him off, “Hey, hey, wait for me, I’m tired, alright?”

He turned the page back, “Alright, alright,” he yawned in response. 

You pawed at the pages when you finished, and on the next one, Dipper waited for you to do it again before turning it. And then, again. 

And somewhere along the way, you fell asleep, sitting with him on his bed, head leaned on his shoulder, and feet warmly huddled under the blanket. It was summer, and everything was okay again, home, in gravity falls. Whatever the summer held for you, whether it be mystery, adventure, love… you were ready. Whatever summer could throw at you, you were ready

Next chapter

Hello! This is a part of my Multi chapter dipper x reader story, I love it a lot, it’s one of those fics that’s like my baby. This was the first chapter written so yeah, it’s kinda rough. I really don’t wanna reread it so if there’s spelling errors lmk I guess😭

[runnning-outof-time]

Escaping the Ashes | Modern!Tommy Shelby x Reader

Request: no - written for @shelbydelrey ‘s Peaky x Lana Festival

Pairing: Modern!Tommy Shelby x reader

Summary: (Y/N) reflects on her time spent in the limelight. Although she left it all behind, she can't say she regrets stepping into it; for it brought her the one thing she loves the most.

Warnings: drinking, brief mention of a car crash

Word Count: 1912

A/N: I think I can safely say that I throughly enjoy writing stories based off of songs I’ve never previously heard. This was a bunch of fun to write — thanks for assigning it to me, Isa! I decided to take the modern AU route for it….I hope you don’t mind. Enjoy! :)

A/N 2: this is based off of the song Wild At Heart by Lana Del Rey…I tried to weave some other elements of the song in. I didn’t use the lyric you chose verbatim because it didn’t fit with the speaking pattern, but I’ve got it in there.

PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!

Comment/Message Me if you’d like to be tagged in future stories similar to this one!

(Y/N) raised her hand slightly, waving to the bartender to get his attention before she motioned to her empty glass, signaling that she wanted another drink. He nodded before getting right into making a second Jack and Coke for her. It was ready within seconds and she thanked him for it before bringing the glass up to her lips to take a sip.

She heard footsteps coming from behind her as she set the glass back down on the wooden bar top. Those footsteps led right up to the empty stool next to the one she was occupying. She kept her eyes fixed on the television hanging above the bar, sighing as she felt someone sit in the seat next to her.

The bar was nearly empty, which is why she decided to take up a temporary residence there, so the fact that someone would choose the seat right next to her confused, and slightly irked, her. She just wanted to be alone!

The voice that belonged to said person answered all of her questions. "Figured you'd be here." It was her fiancé.

"You finally figured out where I spend my Thursdays now," she responded, not yet looking over at him, even though she could feel that he was looking at her.

He chuckled at her statement, noticing the dry nature of it, and he called over the bartender; ordering some of the top shelf whiskey, before he spoke to her again, "couldn't stand waiting back at home?"

"No," she answered, shaking her head as she fixed her eyes on the glass in front of her, "mind gets the best of me there."

"Sorry work ran late..."

"It always runs late, Tommy," she cut him off, brushing off his apology before he even had the chance to finish it, "I know how it can get sometimes," she finally looked at him as she finished speaking, smiling slightly as she took in his appearance. If he wouldn't have said that he'd put in a full day's work, she wouldn't have thought that he did...how he could look so effortlessly attractive still blew her mind daily.

Tommy grimaced at her statement. Her 'late days' looked different than his, sure, but they were taxing all the same. "Still should have been home earlier for you," he didn't let the thought go.

"Let it go, Tommy," she dismissed him yet again.

"I don't like leaving my fiancée home, alone; to her own devices," he continued anyway.

"You make me sound like I'm crazy," she giggled slightly as she teased him. He was happy to see her smile.

"Aren't you?" he teasingly quipped back, making her fully turn to face him with wide eyes and her mouth gaped.

"Thomas!" she exclaimed in surprise, smacking his thigh as she tried to hold her façade up and keep back the laughter that was threatening to escape. He said nothing in response and just winked at her as she grumbled something along the lines of how if he wasn't so attractive, he'd ‘ve gotten an entire earful just then.

Silence returned as their laughs faded off, and (Y/N) turned her body back so that she was sitting properly on the stool once more. She picked up her drink and took a sip from it before setting it back down and deciding to occupy herself with spinning the glass around.

"How are you handling all of this?" Tommy spoke up after a few moments had passed, finally getting to asking what they'd been dancing around from the second (Y/N) realized he was sitting next to her.

She exhaled a sigh before speaking, "I'm handling it," she shrugged, "I...I'm happy to be away from all of it, you know."

"I wouldn't," he answered honestly, making her remember that there truly wouldn't be a Tommy Shelby if he didn't have his work, "but I'm happy you were able to get away before it got to be too much."

(Y/N) exhaled a sigh and nodded. She again began to wonder if she'd made the right choice. She'd spent her entire life wanting to create and share her music with vast audiences, and now she'd finally gotten the chance, she was backing away. The four years she'd spent in the business were catching up with her. She didn't like the other things that came with fame, and they were getting to be a bit much for her to handle. The part she loved had been essentially placed in the shadows of the camera flashes and the engagements that seemed to book up every hour of her day. It was too much to the point that she backed out of her record deal and moved out of the city, escaping the ashes that were starting to fall around her; before the ashes were all that was left.

"You're thinking again," Tommy cut into her thoughts, knowing that her mind was going a mile a minute by how she was staring absently at her glass.

"I am," she admitted dryly, seeing no need to lie. He could always see right through her anyway. She turned her head slightly, seeing that he was looking at her expectantly. "Was it the right move?" she then asked him the question that had been pestering her mind.

"Do you think that it was?" he flipped it back onto her.

"I'm asking you the question, Tommy!" she groaned, frustration flashing across her features.

"If you feel better now that you're away from it then I'd say 'yeah, it was the right move'," he gave his opinion, shrugging slightly.

"But I took you away from London," (Y/N) pointed out, a slight frown forming on her face. Tommy was a prominent businessman, and London was one of his major home bases.

"I've got a car, love," he brushed her statement off, flashing a grin in her direction. She shook her head slightly upon hearing his response, "I'm still able to do my work just fine from here...you were having a hard time doing anything in London," he pointed out then.

This was true. She really wasn't even able to leave their apartment with the aforementioned paparazzi always wanting to capture every little snippet of her life. The fact that there was an air of mystery around Tommy and his business dealings didn't help either. The 'famous musician dates business bad boy' headline was one the paps were always trying to sell, no matter how corny it sounded.

She couldn't leave Tommy though. No. The two years that she's spent with him have been the best of her life. So these serious talks of stepping out of the limelight began one evening after dinner when the incessant flashes caused her chauffeur to get into a minor car accident. Both (Y/N) and Tommy were fine, but she reached the breaking point. They decided to purchase a home and move out to the outskirts of London, where the paparazzi wouldn't find her. It was the reason why she was able to sit in this bar, alone, whenever she wanted to.

"Being stuck in that city was a lot," (Y/N) spoke on her thoughts after a few moments had passed. Tommy nodded in agreement with her as she took another sip from her glass. A momentary silence then fell around them as she turned to look over at him. He kept his gaze on her as she studied his face before dropping her eyes to her hands, looking at the engagement ring that was sparkling back at her. "You still love me, yeah?" she asked him then, her voice soft as she glanced up at him through her eyelashes.

"Course I do, love," he answered her like it was a no-brainer, his brows furrowed in confusion because he wondered why she would have asked this, "why would you question that?"

"Because I've stepped away from singing," she answered him, her voice still soft.

"You're more than just a pretty face on the stage for me, (Y/N)...way more," he told her, his eyes showing his seriousness. "You've stepped away from that, but you've not changed one bit. You're still...I love you because you're still wild at heart."

(Y/N) bashfully looked down at her lap as she heard what he had to say. She still wasn't used to him saying things like this. To have someone profess their love to her and actually mean it was something that she really wasn't used to; being in the circle she was.

"Have I made (Y/N) (Y/L/N), the woman who has something to say about everything, speechless?" Tommy questioned after a few silent seconds, a grin apparent in his voice.

"Oh shut it, Tommy," she said to him, knocking her knee against his as she looked up at him again. Seeing the smile on his face made hers break out from behind the glare she was trying to hold up.

"It seems as though I have," he stated smugly, making her roll her eyes at him.

She shook her head, looking him over again like she had before. "You know...if I had to do it all over again I would..." she trailed off, her words making Tommy's eyebrows raise in intrigue.

"You would?" he asked, surprised that she would say that, "why's that?"

(Y/N) cracked a smile before she laughed slightly. "Because, in the end it brought me here to you," she admitted, knowing full well how corny she probably sounded. Tommy cracked another grin as he chuckled slightly at her words; not because they were funny, but because they'd struck something inside of him.

He wasn't embarrassed to admit that he stuck around the club one night after she'd finished the set she was performing. Her voice had mesmerized him, and her beauty was something unlike he'd seen in his entire lifetime. She entertained him when she realized that he'd been waiting around for her, and that was when he really fell in love. It was safe to say that he’d never met anyone like her. He made it a point to go to the next few shows so that he'd get another chance to see her afterwards, and he hadn't stopped following her since.

"It's corny, I know," (Y/N) admitted to the cheesiness, "but it's true. I'd do it a thousand times over if it meant I got to meet, and be with, you." She was able to lean in closer to him due to the proximity of their stools, and she waited until her lips were just inches from his to speak again, "I love you, Tommy," she said, feeling the grin as it grew on his lips.

"I love you, (Y/N)," he repeated the sentiment, not allowing her a second to respond before he matched his lips with hers.

Their kiss was kept brief, and (Y/N) giggled as she pulled away, reaching up to wipe the smudge of lipstick from his bottom lip before anyone would notice. Tommy just grinned at her, managing to kiss her knuckles before she brought them away.

No one did notice though, which was another reason why she was grateful that she escaped the life that she was hurling herself into before it got to where she was in too deep. Now she was able to be the person she desired to be. The person that was, definitely, wild at heart.

Tagged: @mgcldydrms @the-anxious-youth @cloudofdisney @look-at-the-soul @elenavampire21 @mrsalwayswrite @julkaamazing @evita-shelby @lilyrachelcassidy @notyour-valentine @shelbydelrey @december16-1991 @onlydeadcells @peakyswritings @just-a-blackhole @watercolorskyy @strayrockette @peakyduchesss @alexxavicry @captivatedbycillianmurphy @yummycastiel @dark-academia-slut @tommystargirl @stevie75 @lyarr24 @signorellisantichrist @zablife @anotherblinder @midnightmagpiemama @cillmequick @rangerelik @dandelionprints @letal-y-poetica @raincoffeeandfandoms @itscheybaby @gypsy-girl-08 @insanitybyanothername @depxiety @dragons-are-my-favorite @acewritesfics @forgottenpeakywriter @cilliansangel @cljordan-imperium @areyenotfondofmelobster @little-diable

MASTERLIST

Listen to the song Wild At Heart by Lana Del Rey:

Here.

[tranquilskies2]

Kai x Chameleon Headcanons🐂🦎

Yeah Ik what happened in the 4th film but I'm a sucker for size difference ships so...

As a kung fu nerd, of course Chameleon knows a lot about Kai before summoning him. However, the reason she didn't say much about him when she summoned him is simply because she's not a fan of him (she's more of a Tai Lung fangirl).

The most obvious trait about the two together is their massive size difference. Whenever they walk by together, it's bound for passerby to stare & wonder how & why. They never hear the end of several intrusive questions about how they did the woo-hoo (both of them just simply say:"I am/she's a shapeshifter!)

Whenever the two go back & forth with each other, others will assume they're married for thirty or more years. The two aren't afraid of making it known they're a couple (Kai is more prideful of this aspect than Chameleon). By default, Chameleon will have a seat of Kai's shoulder like a pirate's parrot so that he doesn't accidentally step on her. A nickname Kai has given Chameleon is:"Dolly" due to her size.

Kai likes to poke fun at Chameleon's size. In fact, he does more of the teasing in the relationship. Sometimes he'll walk faster than Chameleon just for the fun of it. If Chameleon needs an item, sometimes Kai picks up said item & then dangles it over her head. As much as he likes getting snarky with Chameleon, he usually doesn't try to drag it on for too long & only does so when the room is appropriate.

Despite being a lot smaller than Kai, Chameleon is capable of getting back at Kai. She keeps all five of her senses open for opportunities for revenge against Kai (Ex: Kai getting into spaces way too small for him, being declined for transportation, accidentally bumping into something, ect).

Due to their size difference, Kai either has to crutch down or pick up Chameleon just to hear her (he mostly does the latter). Kai has to be vigilant on his surroundings so that he won't accidentally squish his girlfriend. The first time the two slept next to each other, it almost ended up with Chameleon going to the Spirit Realm due to Kai rolling on top of her while he's asleep. He miraculously avoid manslaughter by waking up quickly to one of Chameleon's spikes on her tail stabbing him on his back(left a nasty wound for a while, whoops...).

Kai loves recieving physical affection more than Chameleon does. Scratches behind the ears, pats on his head, body rubs, you name it! Chameleon often climbs onto Kai like a tree to give him the affection he needs. He appreciates Chameleon being good with her claws. Chameleon likes the sight of Kai's ears perking up whenever he gets flustered or embarrassed. He loves receiving scattered kisses across his face from Chameleon. Sometimes Kai likes getting his hair brushed by her.

For a while, it was a challenge for Chameleon to receive physical affection from Kai for reasons obvious by now. The first time Kai hugged Chameleon, Chameleon almost suffocated. As a more safer alternative to hugs, Kai cups Chameleon's body in the most delicate way possible. Due to Kai's lips being larger than Chameleon's face, he'll either gently stroke her head or nudge his own head against her body.

Kai usually does the cooking since he's a better cook than Chameleon. At their home, Chameleon has her own dining table set just like the one she has in the 4th film. Much to everyone's surprise, Kai is an above average cook & does more of the cooking back when he & Oogway were in their warlord eras. Although Chameleon's taste are much refined, she appreciates Kai for knowing how to serve her meals fit for her portions.

Their favorite date spots are restaurants, hot springs (especially during winter) & old ruins. One of the things Kai does on their dates is telling Chameleon about his past victories & accomplishments. As a kung fu nerd, Chameleon is more than eager to soak in every word. Kai appreciates Chameleon's fangirl nature since it strokes his ego like a cat. In return, Kai finds it cute whenever Chameleon rambles on about her favorite kung fu masters & historical kung fu events, even if he doesn't understand it.

Although Kai is more of an open book than Chameleon, it took him a while to open up to her about his past. Chameleon can understand & relate to Kai on what it means to struggle making a name for yourself & barely leaving a mark on the world. Despite Chameleon occasionally teasing him back, he feels the most safe around her.

Chameleon's deep rooted insecurities took her more hurdles to open up to Kai. Kai can understand & relate to Chameleon on what it means to never be the greatest. Due to this, Kai offered Chameleon a hoof in helping her improve her combat skills (albeit, Chameleon has to overcome her stubborn anture to accept this).

No worries, I didn't forget about Zhen! As Chameleon's adopted daughter, how does she feel about Kaimeleon? If Chameleon was to be more than a decent mother & Kai somehow enters the picture when she was a child, Zhen would be thrilled to have a stepfather! Kai would be more lax than Chameleon, possibly more than eager to train her legitimate kung fu & loving to play with her as much as he could. Plus, he'll eventually be a little more open about exposing his past to Zhen since there won't be use in keeping that a complete secret from her. Overall, as a child, Zhen would call Kai:"daddy". As an adult in events more aligned to canon? Zhen would be mostly indifferent. She'll mainly address Kai as"Stepdad" & that'll be it.

[lets-try-some-writing]

one of the more random asks but I was thinking what your thoughts on flier oppy would be? like him being a triple changer (is that the term???) or smth

Triple changer? Sure why not. Not sure if you want a story or just some thoughts, so I will give you a random story idea since that seems more in line with your request.

Triple Changer Prime

Orion Pax was not a triple changer, he was solidly a grounder by any and all definitions. He was raised with wheels and did not have an interest in the skies beyond avoiding the seekers and other flight frames that found it to be great fun to dive and poke fun at land locked mecha.

But then the Matrix decided in its infinite wisdom that the mech who had never once taken to the skies needed to have wings. Thus during his ascension to become a Prime, Optimus was forged with a lovely set of wings to go with his wheels. That change ended about as well as one might have expected it to. Simply put, Optimus had no fragging clue what he was doing.

Flight was not something he took to handling with the ease and grace of the ancients. No, his first attempts were messy and reminiscent of a newspark. He had no teachers amongst the Autobots in no small part due to almost every flier having joined the Decepticons. This mean that he was nearly entirely on his own, leading to... interesting attempts to fly. Once he figured out how to transform he quickly found himself shooting off into the skies with force greater than expected. He will never admit it aloud, but he did in fact scream as he failed to find a way to control his flight path. He ended up transforming halfway and tumbling toward the ground trying desperately to slow his fall through the use of his wings and thrusters.

He crashed in spectacular fashion and needed to get several reconstructive repairs done to put everything back where it belonged. After that incident it became abundantly clear that Optimus needed to get an actual flier to teach him or stop flying altogether, a possibility that was largely out of the question for numerous reasons not limited to just the war effort. Optimus's very code demanded he fly at least once a stellar cycle, and thus he did his best to fumble his way through learning.

Without a proper teacher, he was limited in his learning options, and thus he spent a great deal of time watching vehicons and seekers fly and transform. He observed quietly and did his best to mimic them, but quite possibly due to his size, he never quite figured out how to do it properly. He could get into the air easily enough and flying as an armed combat aircraft was not too different from driving if there was nothing in his way. But of course the moment obstacles became an issue Optimus found himself losing control and hastily trying to transform and use his blades to catch himself on something and slow down that way. More than once he had to be retrieved from the top of some skyscraper that he landed on in an attempt to avoid falling to his death.

Optimus panicking and throwing himself into the skies after Megatron a handful of times certainly didn't help. He was not at all proficient in flying, much like fighting while in the air. Most of his close brushes with death came from those incidents. His lack of flight ability couldn't be fixed by the Matrix whose wielders had all but been entirely grounders. It got bad enough that in the end Jazz threw in the towel and went to get Optimus a teacher by the only means he knew. The entirety of Optimus's inner circle very nearly choked on their energon when Jazz turned up to a meeting with a Vehicon bound and dragging along behind him.

Jazz: I got you a teacher!

Ultra Magnus: JAZZ! We do NOT take Decepticons into base-!

Jazz: What? Its just one Vehicon! Besides Op needs someone competent to show him out to use those wings of his.

Prowl: It's still a Vehicon!

Jazz: So what? The little dude will be stuck with Op all cycle long. What's he gonna do? Stab the Prime with his itty bitty claws? I think Prime is strong enough to stop a clone from killing him.

Jazz: Besides, Op has almost died more because of being unable to fly than because of anything else. I think this is a risk worth takin.

Optimus: ... As much as I am loathe to admit it, I do require a teacher. If this Vehicon will suffice, then so be it.

It was not exactly the most friendly of meetings, and Optimus's new teacher was not pleased with his situation much. It was... tense to say the least. For a long while the Vehicon said nothing and gave no wisdom whatsoever. But as with almost all things, Optimus took his time and steadily managed to befriend his new 'teacher'.

While his inner circle were impatient for him to learn, Optimus was in no rush. He took his sweet time slowly getting used to his new teacher, even going so far as to urge the Vehicon to take on a designation as they spoke. Often it was nothing too big, but he would bring his teacher some energon, speak with him on almost every matter that he thought might intrigue the Vehicon, and was not at all opposed to asking for his opinion. With time his captured mentor opened up to him slowly upon finding himself treated like an actual Cybertronian instead of an expendable resource.

In response to his kindness, Optimus found himself receiving simple direction from the Vehicon. When he attempted to practice on his own, his 'teacher' gently offered advice on how to take off that was never repeated but always appreciated. Then he would sometimes find the Vehicon waiting with an energon cube after an attempted flight. Other times his teacher would even join him in the skies, gently nudging him along and easing Optimus's fears through dutiful direction. With time the Vehicon even started to teach Optimus how to work with his newfound codes rather than fight against then, even going so far as to teach the Prime songs to help him focus.

It was a slow development, but the Vehicon proved unwilling to kill Optimus and thus ended up losing the shock collar on his neck. His Decepticon insignia was scrubbed and his bindings removed and was allowed to roam as he pleased so long as he came when Optimus called. This was generally allowed to be since none wanted to touch what Optimus had interest in. The Vehicon took great joy in abusing his powers as the Prime's favored companion. Often he would strut around like he owned the place and make a show of not having to go off to fight. He was hated by most of the Autobots, but around Optimus he was perfectly reasonable and taught the Prime kindly.

Jazz grew to regret his decision to bring the former Decepticon back deeply when the Vehicon in question took Jazz's spot on Optimus's desk. There was not a fragging thing he could do about it and both Jazz and the Vehicon knew it. By the time Optimus was capable of flight and fighting while doing so, the Vehicon was no longer needed. But by that point he and Optimus were close enough that there was no getting rid of the former Decepticon, especially after he took to the skies to aid Optimus in a battle when he saw it getting dire. The Vehicon could have left during that battle, but he did not, and thus earned the begrudging acceptance of most of the Autobot troops.

Optimus learned to fly, and in return one Vehicon was forced to be amongst Autobots and isn't even upset about it. When Optimus left for Earth, the Vehicon even decided to come along. Thus out of a team of elite Autobots, one singular Vehicon hung around happily and never raised a digit for anyone except for Optimus.

[questionableratatouille00]

𝖮𝗇 𝖲𝗈𝗆𝖾 𝖲𝗎𝗇𝗇𝗒 𝖣𝖺𝗒 (𝖶𝖾’𝗅𝗅 𝖬𝖾𝖾𝗍 𝖠𝗀𝖺𝗂𝗇)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x GN!Reader

Summary: In another reality, perhaps you and Bucky had a chance.

Warnings: Fluff ending in angst, major character death, non-happy endings, talks of death. Mentions of murder.

A/n: Highway to Hell is still being worked on, but the updates might be less frequent as I get ready for whumptober. (I intend to do all 31 days of the ai-less whumptober. All x-readers, with all the Avengers I have the motivation to write for. Mainly Bucky lmao.) I was inspired to write this, so here we are! Enjoy!

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

“Do you think,” you paused, gathering your thoughts, “in another life, it could’ve been different?”

“Different?” Bucky questioned, looking at you. It had been a fun day of helping fix Sam’s family boat. After the blip, or really, after Steve left, Bucky wasn’t ever really the same. It was good seeing him smile and joke and laugh like he did today. The two of you now stand together at the water's edge, watching the sun set.

Your love story, if you could even call it that, only really started after the battle at the German airport. Whenever Steve would go to Wakanda to see Bucky, you’d go with.

“For backup,” you’d reasoned. You were lucky that nobody ever questioned why he’d need back up to go to Wakanda, one of the safest places in the world. Still, Steve had let you tag along.

You and Bucky had bonded quickly. You were an easily trustable person, and you never asked inappropriate questions. When Bucky needed silence, just to process his thoughts, you didn’t try (and fail) to read his mind, like Steve did. When Bucky craved human interaction but was too scared to ask for it, you’d always be there, willing to try and explain to him that they did, in fact, make three The Hobbit movies. You’d waited a little while longer to tell him about the Lord of the Rings.

His steel blue eyes brought you back from your thoughts. “Different.” You repeated. “None of this…world-ending bullshit. Like…you know how the wizar—sorcerer guy just told us all that the multiverse was real?” You recalled the day. You also remembered Bucky complaining about Sam calling Strange a wizard.

“Yeah?” Bucky nodded, remembering it too.

“Do you think..in another life, we’re eating spaghetti together? And the biggest worry on our minds as we do so is who’s going to do the dishes?”

Bucky thinks about it for a minute. He’s making that one face he makes whenever he’s annoyed. You know him well enough to know that he’s not annoyed, but he’s considering what you’ve just said.

“Maybe.” He murmurs after a moment.

“We could be folding laundry right now. Or brushing our teeth together.”

“You want us to brush each other's teeth?” He questions, confused. He considers the idea, you can basically see the gears turning in his head.

“No—I mean—whatever.” You kick a pebble into the water, before you feel him press his right shoulder into your left one.

“I’m kidding.” He smiles softly. “I mean, I’m all for brushing your teeth if that’s what this day and age’s romance customs include.” He teases further.

“You know, you’re technically old enough to be my great grandpa." You mumble out, keeping your eyes focused on the setting sun.

"Are you kidding me?" It's like you can hear his eyes roll just from his voice.

You begin to laugh a little. "106 year old man. You weren't married or anything, right? No grandkids running around? Damn, that would be awkward. Imagine calling someone who's the same age as you 'grandma'."

Bucky grumbled something, and you tapped his shoulder with yours. "I love you. Even if in a couple years people will think I broke you out of the nursing home."

"I still age at a normal rate." Maybe even slower, you added in your mind. "I love you too." He slips his hand into yours.

"Maybe it's super sunny that day. In the other reality. And we're having a picnic."

"I'd love to have a picnic with you. We can do that in this reality, too, y'know." He reminded you.

"We've really got all the time in the world." You lean against him as he puts his arm over your shoulders.

"We do." He agrees.

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

Your eyes flutter open in the same familiar sequence. Every night, it's like you dream the same dream. And yet, every morning, it's the same nightmare.

You pull yourself out of bed, no matter how much you don't want to. The hallways of your apartment are cold, lonely now. The lights are almost always off. It's easier to not notice the pictures on the wall like this.

You pour a cup of coffee, sitting alone on your couch. Flicking on the TV, the first channel that pops up is the news.

"It's the official one year anniversary of the death of James Barnes, the former Winter Soldier. On December 20th, 2024, Mr. Barnes was found murdered in his Brooklyn apartment--" The man on the television screen begins. You immediately shut the damn thing off, sitting in silence for what seems like hours.

Nobody even knew what had happened. That was the worst part. The attacker was there, and then they were gone. Just like Bucky. He was there. Alive, breathing. Safe.

Then he was gone.

And with him, your heart was gone, too.

So much for that picnic.