#giant pile of laundry and a piece I NEED to finish today and stuff to study for and things to learn

[red-winters]

I feel insane

(it might be all the sugar I consumed but whatever, we’re ignoring that right now)

[dilly-oh]

Laundry Day

    It had been building for weeks now. Piling up, bit by bit. Iruka ignored it for as long as he could, shoving it to the back of his mind and going about his daily business, teaching at the Academy and pulling shifts at the Mission Desk like nothing was wrong. But eventually, even he could deny it no longer. When he checked his closet and found that all he had to wear was a single ketchup-or-maybe-blood-stained crop-top, tight yoga shorts, and flip-flops, he knew it was finally time to stop putting it off. There was no other choice left. 

    He had to do laundry.

    “Oh my God, who did you kill?” Anko asked as he dragged the bulging laundry bag down the hallway of his apartment complex.

    “You, if you don't back off,” Iruka snapped at her. “There's just enough room in here for a body.”

    “I sincerely doubt that,” Anko said, cocking an eyebrow at the huge bag. “Seriously, what gives? That thing must be, like, a hundred pounds. Is this some kind of new training craze?”

    “It's laundry day,” Iruka stated. Anko blinked. “I haven't done laundry in two months,” he went on impatiently. “It's kind of hard to find the time between my job teaching, my job at the Mission Desk, and my other job keeping Naruto and Sasuke from killing or kissing each other in public, and since they all count as full-time jobs with none of the benefits, I literally have nothing else to wear.” 

    “Ah. That would explain the booty shorts.”

    “They're called yoga shorts, and they're comfortable.”

    “I don't care what they're called, your ass looks amazing in them.”

    “Stop ogling me!” Iruka barked, his cheeks flaming. Anko's eyes didn't move. “Am I gonna have to go have another talk with HR?” Anko paled.

    “Oh, God, please don't. Last time I had to watch a three-hour film on sexual harassment in the workplace. I had to take notes. There was a quiz after.” 

    “Then stop. STARING.” Iruka gave Anko one last glare, then continued on his way, dragging his laundry bag after him with all the dignity he could muster. Which wasn't alot, considering the bag was heavy as fuck and he'd kinda been neglecting his standard workout routine. Because, you know, three jobs or whatever. 

    There were quite a few laundromats scattered about Konoha, all stocked with specialized, heavy-duty cleaning supplies for shinobi needs (to aid in the removal of blood, guts, and other icky bits picked up from slaughtering enemies and whatnot). The one Iruka usually frequented was located about ten blocks away, which normally wasn't too bad, especially if Iruka went by rooftop. However, that was quite impossible at the moment, considering his giant bag of dirty clothes was hefty and ungainly enough that it would probably squirt right out of his arms and kill an unfortunate pedestrian below. Also, it was the middle of summer and the sun had decided to be an asshole that day, blazing down like some kind of fire Jutsu and scalding every living thing in sight. To make matters worse, the laundry bag seemed to grow heavier with every step until it was like dragging Hokage mountain down the street. So by the time Iruka finally managed to heave the bag halfway across Konoha and up a flight of stairs into the laundromat itself, he was a hot, sweaty mess, his ponytail half-undone and hanging in his face, damp clothing sticking to his skin. 

    Which was exactly why Hatake motherfucking Kakashi was in there, of fucking course. There was no way Iruka's silly little crush wouldn't be in the one place he'd hoped he wouldn't be. 

    Iruka wanted to crawl into the nearest drier and turn it on.

    Maybe he won't see me, he thought as he quietly slipped inside.

    “Hey, Iruka!” Kotetsu shouted from across the entire laundromat. “Nice shorts!” 

    Everyone immediately turned to look.

    Well I know who I'm going to kill now, Iruka thought to himself miserably as he was ogled by every shinobi in the room. He made a mental checklist and vowed to prank each one in retaliation. His body was a temple.

    “You know you could have just stuffed that in a scroll,” Genma said after peeling his gaze off Iruka's thighs, twitching his senbon at the bulging bag. 

    “I'll stuff you in a fucking scroll,” Iruka hissed at him, wiping a sweaty strand of hair out of his face.

    “Ooh, baby, talk dirty to me,” Genma cooed.

    “You're disgusting,” Iruka said flatly. He glanced around, looking for a table with any inch of free space, perfectly willing to fight someone for it. There, in the back, he spotted one last table...right next to Kakashi. Because, you know, this day couldn't get any worse. Iruka debated waiting an extra ten minutes or so to see if the laundromat emptied out a bit, saw Genma wiggle his eyebrows suggestively at him, and decided anything was better than this. Steeling himself with a deep breath, he dragged his bag over to the open table beside Kakashi and started dumping clothes out.

    Kakashi, thankfully, didn't respond to his sudden arrival except for a polite grunt and nod in greeting. Iruka nodded back, then focused for the next several minutes on organizing his dirty clothes, intent on ending this humiliation as quickly as possible. As he worked, he couldn't help but sneak glances at Kakashi while he sorted his lights and darks. The man was busy folding his own laundry, bent over the table, his movements precise and methodical, done with the utmost care. Iruka almost suspected he was using the Sharingan to achieve such perfect folds. He glanced down at the clothes themselves, expecting combat fatigues or maybe a pair of well-worn sweats. 

    Instead, he was surprised to discover Kakashi was folding almost two dozen miniature flak jackets with some kind of funny emblem on the back. 

    “Did...did you accidentally shrink that in the drier or something?” Iruka blurted out before he could stop himself. Kakashi looked over at him, blinking lazily, then chuckled, a husky sound that made Iruka's knees weak. 

    “Of course not,” he said, his voice warm with amusement. “This is my ninken's laundry.” 

    Iruka had to hold in a snort. The famed Copy-Nin of Konoha, scourge of all enemies, feared by missing-nin, doing his ninken's laundry? It was ridiculous! It was absurd! It was...

    Adorable, quite frankly. Iruka's heart melted a little at the sight of him carefully piling up their little vests, careful not to crease them.

    “It's a pain,” Kakashi went on. “They're so picky. I have to use unscented detergent and dryer sheets or they complain.”

    “Too bad they don't sell a fresh cat-shit scent,” Iruka chuckled awkwardly before biting his lip. 

    Kakashi, however, took no offense, throwing his head back and laughing aloud.

    “Ha! They'd like that! Maybe they have a three-day-old steak one, too.” He grinned at Iruka through his mask, one visible eye twinkling. Iruka flushed, and he quickly turned back to his laundry, realized he was holding a pair of underwear, and flung it away, his face flushing darker as he busied himself with sorting again. “You've got quite a load,” Kakashi went on after a moment, nodding at the mountainous pile in front of him.

    “Yeah, I've been putting it off for a while,” Iruka grumbled distractedly, searching for a stray sock's missing partner with no luck. “This is literally the last thing I have to wear, so I either do laundry today or go into work tomorrow naked.”

    “I knew I should have finished that mission report,” Kakashi said under his breath.

    “Very funny,” Iruka scoffed in annoyance, shoving his first few loads into the nearby washing machines.

    “Oh, I'm dead serious.”

    The annoyance turned to anger, and Iruka looked over at the other man to give him a piece of his mind, only to find him staring right back, his warm grin having grown into something much more inviting, bordering on flirtatious. Iruka's sharp comment died in his throat and he cleared it roughly, feeling hot all over. Awkwardly, he reached for change in his pockets, then froze. He looked down and swore. He didn't even fucking have pockets. Stupid booty- YOGA shorts. He'd forgotten the quarters, and he didn't dare leave his clothes unattended for fear someone like Genma would be a creep and steal a pair of underwear or something. Also, Izumo and Kotetsu had a habit of borrowing things and never returning them, and he could see them eyeing several of his favorite shirts from across the laundromat. He'd just have to pack everything up and return home. What a waste, the whole trip had been for nothing-

    The clink of coins snapped him out of his mental cursing, and he looked up in shock to see Kakashi paying for his loads. 

    “Oh no,” he sputtered, “please, Kakashi, you don't have to-”

    “It's fine. You can pay next time,” Kakashi said with a wave. 

    “But I...well...oh, alright, fine.” Iruka sighed, giving in. “Thank you.”

    “So it's a date then,” Kakashi said. “Which cycle do you prefer?” 

    “Cotton cycle, cold water, extra rinse, please,” Iruka said automatically, then blinked. “Wait, I'm sorry, did you say-” 

    “See you next week,” Kakashi was already halfway to the door, his ninken's clothes tucked under his arms and a pile of quarters left on Iruka's table for the rest of his loads. Iruka gaped after him in shock. 

    Had that...really just happened? Had he really exchanged pleasantries with one of the most infamous shinobi of Konoha while folding laundry? Or had it all been merely a dream, a figment of his imagination-

    “You washing those shorts, too?” Genma asked hopefully, leering like a hungry wolf.

    Nope, he was definitely awake. Iruka threw some Tide-pods at Genma to chase him away before turning back to his loads, shaking his head in wonder.

    He'd definitely be doing his laundry more often from now on.

(Written for @kakairu-fest KakaIru Month 2021, Day Ten Prompt: Laundry)

[chubbyreaderwriter]

Don’t Panic

Mycroft Holmes x Chubby/Plus Size Reader

Prompt:  Hi! This is my first time sending a request so I hope I'm doing it right... Could you do a mycroft/reader where the reader is on her period and he finds blood somewhere. Thinking that she has injured herself he freaks out, before finding out what really happened. :)

Word Count: 1.5k

Warnings: blood, swearing 

Masterlist 

Today had started off just great for you, you had the day off work and you finally had some free time to catch up on some reading you had been wanting to do for a while. Mycroft’s giant maze of a house unsurprisingly had a huge library in it and you had made it your personal mission to read every single book in there at least once. The two of you had some kind of competition without saying anything so you decided you would make use of your free time to sit in the library and try to catch up on some reading. After a couple of weeks, the two of you had forgotten the ‘competition’ and were content reading in silence, in each other’s company. The two of you could sit there for hours reading the same book and after you finished, you would talk about all your favourite parts. It was mostly you talking while Mycroft listened but you both cherished those moments together, it had been a while since you had done it. 

You had woken up later than usual, having some trouble sleeping that night because you felt oddly hot and nothing was cooling you down. You didn’t really think anything of it until you were sat down in your designated chair in the library and you tensed as you felt a sharp pain inside you. That’s when you checked your phone to see the date and realised you were due to start your period. You groaned; you had forgotten all about it, the past few weeks seemed to have just flown by. Your eyes widened as you felt your seat get warmer and it felt wet. You shot up and saw that the blood had leaked through your underwear and thin pyjamas. “Oh shit, goddamn it!” 

You prayed that Mycroft never checked his security cameras after this as you pressed your legs tight together to try and stop the blood from dripping everywhere. This helped a little bit but the blood had already started going down your leg and onto the wooden floors. With each step you took, you cursed and groaned as you tried to hobble to the upstairs bathroom as quick as possible. While there were a couple of bathrooms in Mycroft’s ginormous house, the upstairs bathroom was the only one you had thought to stock up with pads and tampons. You were really regretting that decision now. 

“Fuck, screw it.” You could clean the blood up after you had sorted yourself out in the bathroom but you couldn’t do this any longer. You ran up the stairs and into the bathroom, ignoring the disgusting feeling of your blood running down onto your foot. You yanked open the bathroom door and shimmied off your pyjama bottoms and your underwear, hurrying to crawl into the bathtub. You kicked your clothes away from you and reached into the small set of drawers next to the toilet to get out a clean pair of underwear, a tampon and a pad. Your period was pretty heavy so you always had to double up on both tampons and pads, which some girls always gave you sympathy looks for and so they should, it was awful. You grabbed the tampon first and was careful to insert it correctly before you turned on the tap to wash away all the blood over your legs and your crotch. 

While you were doing this, you were too distracted to hear the front door opening to alert you of Mycroft entering the house. He carefully closed the door and took off his jacket to hang up, putting his umbrella in a pot next to the door. He took his briefcase into his office, which just so happened to be located right next door to the library. He was too tired from working all night to see the trails in the hallway at that moment, but he would soon. As Mycroft spent equal amounts of time in his home office and the library, he had an adjacent door built in to freely walk between the rooms without having to go around. He had a feeling he might find you in the library so he opened the door without a second thought and froze. He sniffed once, what was that smell? He stepped forwards and felt his blood run cold at the sight of a blood stain on your chair. 

His eyes went wide as his gaze followed the drops of blood on the floor. He didn’t hesitate to pull out a pistol he kept in his trouser pocket and slowly approached the library door when he heard your muffled scream followed by a soft bang. He ran to follow the trail of blood on the floor, panting as he was overcome with worry, what had happened here? Were you hurt? If you had been hurt because of him, he would never forgive himself. He reached the bathroom and slammed open the door only to see you lying awkwardly on the floor next to the bathtub, rubbing your arm and groaning. He saw the blood stop at the pile of your clothes on the floor. He looked around, confused. If there was no one here, what happened? 

He reached down to help you up, trying to look over you to see if he could spot a cut or a wound of some kind. “Are you okay? I saw the blood on the floor and thought something terrible had happened to you. I promised you I would keep you safe and-” He was cut off by your laughter. Granted, you probably shouldn’t be laughing but this situation was a little bit funny to you now. Mycroft frowned at you, were you concussed? He put his hand against your forehead to see if he could feel a bump of some kind. You lightly batted his hand away, trying to speak through your laughter, “I’m fine, Mycroft, honestly.” 

He sighed in relief, “So who’s blood is this?” You scrunched your nose in embarrassment, “It’s my blood...my period blood.” Realisation was shown on Mycroft’s face as he pieced together all of the evidence, “Oh...so you came up here to..” You finished it for him, “I came to the bathroom to get some stuff, deciding I would clean it up later, I didn’t think you would be home for a little while longer.” Mycroft chuckled lightly, “And I imagine your scream was you falling out of the bathtub?” You blushed in embarrassment, mumbling out, “Well, it’s slippy.” 

Mycroft sighed and helped you up, “Well, you stay here and continue to clean yourself up, I’ll clean downstairs.” Your head shot up, “Oh no, you don’t have to do that, I’ll do it, just give me a couple minutes.” Your face screwed up in pain as another cramp came on and you clutched your sides, taking deep breaths. Mycroft smiled down at you as he rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, “Nonsense, what kind of partner would I be if I didn’t take care of you, I’ll be back soon with some medication and new clothes.” 

You smiled at him as you moved to sit on the toilet so you could put on your underwear and pad. You moved your dirty clothes into the laundry basket and decided to clean the blood on the bathroom floor while you waited for Mycroft to return. It was a few moments later when he entered the bathroom with a glass of water, a box of pain relief tablets and a clean pair of pyjamas. You gratefully took the water and tablets first before reaching for the pyjamas, wasting no time to change into them. Mycroft then carefully lead you from the bathroom into your bedroom, “Why don’t you lie down and I’ll get a hot water bottle for you.” Before you could ever say thank you to him, he was gone. You groaned as you laid down, feeling another cramp but it wasn’t as painful this time, showing the medication was already working but it wouldn’t be long before you needed some more. 

Mycroft wasn’t ashamed to reveal that he had done a lot of research about menstrual cycles. He thought it was important to know your partner’s body almost as well as you knew your own. No matter what the situation was, he was always going to be there to help you without any judgement on your part. He found it strange that not all male partners felt the same way, periods were a part of nature and yes, Mycroft has never experienced one himself or seen someone else deal with one until now, but there was always opportunity to learn; now he was prepared for the future. 

He came back to you in thirty minuted with a hot water bottle in hand, he had taken his time cleaning the floors and the library so he wasn’t all that surprised to come back to see you sleeping in the bed. Hopefully, you weren’t as prone to mood swings as some women were when on their period, it wouldn’t do him much good to be scared of his own partner. But then again, he would tolerate anything for you, because he loved you.

[hellas-himself]

Crack Ship Holidays

Friendsgiving Pt. 1

Soooo this is starting off where we left our two dorks last. This is going to take place before, during, and a bit after thanksgiving  Friendsgiving because I don’t celebrate but I do love the day off with my loved ones (and my grandma’s food but that’s besides the point) November is also Rhysand’s birthday month so NATURALLY that’s going to come up. major shout out to @bookloveaffair for letting me drop this crack ship on yall no shame. 

.

.

.

I hum along to one of the songs playing on my phone as I tap my pencil against the counter. I have three different budget options laid out in front of me and none of them work. The first one, I pay the rent and my car insurance but not my phone. The second, I pay the rent but not my car insurance to have my phone active in case the school called me. The third- I laugh. I can’t not pay rent. The bar had sent its last check but it was not enough. I was screwed. I only have until the fifth to pay my rent before my asshole landlord starts bitching about kicking me out. 

When I hear the front door unlock, I gather my bills and the envelopes I wrote on and put them into a pile. Cassian steps into my apartment and pulls off his hat.

“Can you believe it’s already snowing?” he asks as he closes the door.

“I hope it sticks,” I reply as I slide off the bar stool to greet him. His coat is wet and cold when I hug him but I don’t care. Not when he kisses me the way he does.

“Ready to go?” he asks and I smile.

“Let me go get my coat.”

He kisses me again before I hurry to my room. I grab the bag I packed with more clothes as well as the big bag full of my art supplies. Cassian had said I should have it just in case the school called me so I could just leave directly. His optimism is touching.

Cassian is leaning against the counter when I step out. He looks pensive but once he notices me, he grins and pushes himself off to take the bags from my hands.

The car ride to his house is quiet, but Cassian holds my hand the entire way. Every time he looks at me, I blush. Once we get to his house, I bring Valo outside while Cas carries my things to the bedroom.

“How was work?” I ask when Cassian comes to stand beside me. He puts an arm around my shoulder.

“It was great. Az and I got to work on a piece together. I wish you would’ve been there to see it.”

“Maybe next time?”

He presses a kiss to my temple.

“Yeah. We aren’t done by a long shot.”

“I can’t wait then.”

“What about you, bunny?”

“Well. When I wasn’t texting you, I was cleaning up the apartment and finishing up on laundry. I got my last check from the bar so I deposited it in the bank. I saw Aelin,” I say. “She was on her lunch break. I can’t believe we’d never run into one another before.”

Cassian chuckles.

“Oh and the groomer called to confirm Val’s appointment tomorrow. I told her I’d be there.”

“Thank you, bunny.”

I shrug and call our giant puppy over. Valo runs right into me and I don’t fall thanks to the arm Cassian has around me.

“Hey! Be careful, Val!” Cassian reprimands. Val whines and walks in a circle around us before bumping his head against my hand.

“It’s okay, baby. You’re happy I’m here, huh? I am too,” I say and kiss the top of his head.

Cassian lets me go and walks over to the small bin in the corner of the porch and pulls out a ball. He whistles to get Val’s attention before he throws it. I’m surprised it didn’t go over the fence by the force of it. Val barks and takes off after it.

“Will you be alright?” Cassian asks me.

“What do you mean?”

“With rent and all that?”

Oh. I blush and shove my hands in my pockets.

“I’ll figure it out.”

I don’t have to look at Cassian to know that he’s not satisfied with that answer. But he puts an arm around me and kisses the top of my hair. When Val comes back, I take the ball and Cassian laughs when I throw it. It doesn’t get very far but Val is thrilled.

“Why don’t you go pick a menu from that drawer in the kitchen and pick something for dinner? There’s cash in my wallet.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I would rather spend the next forty minutes with my beautiful girlfriend and our oversized lap dog than have to go inside and cook today.”

I giggled. “Alright. I’ll be right back.”

I give him a quick hug before I walk towards the door.

“Oh, and bunny?”

“Yes?” I stop and turn to look at him.

“I’ve got you,” he says. “Don’t worry about anything.”

I realize he isn’t talking about paying for dinner.

*

“Feyre’s here. I’ll call you when I get home… I love you too, Az.” Elain smiles at whatever Azriel is saying to her on the phone before she hangs up and slides the phone into her back pocket. She pushes herself off her SUV and opens her arms to me.

“Hey, you,” Elain says as I give her a hug.  

“Hey! I hope you weren’t waiting long. There was so much traffic coming here from the dog groomers.”

She kisses my cheek. “No, I just got here. Besides, it makes me feel like I’m in high school again when Az and I talk on the phone. I like it.”

Elain gives me a wink and when she grins, I already know what’s on her mind.

“You look happy.”

I know I’m blushing as Elain links her arm in mine.

“I am.”

“Az says Cassian has been smiling like an idiot lately. I wonder why.”

I roll my eyes but I can’t help the smile on my face.

“He asked me to be his girlfriend, El.”

“He did? When?”

“After the Halloween party.”

“About damn time,” Elain mutters and lets me go to grab a cart. She pulls a list out of her pocket and hands it to me. “Iliana’s been pestering me about you two, she’ll finally leave me alone.”

We share a laugh as we step into the store. Elain’s grocery list is divided by groups and despite the glitter gel pen used, this is Azriel’s handwriting.

“Your husband is so organized,” I say as we make our first stop.

“Well. Since I’m in charge of Rhysand’s birthday cake this year, I figured I’ll get some stuff now so closer to the date I’m not running around. With my luck, I wouldn’t find what I want if I leave it for then.”

“I agree with that wholeheartedly.”

“Speaking of which, I need your help designing it.”

“What’s the theme?”

“Lucien has no idea how to top Mor’s Harry Potter theme last year. The only thing Rhys loves more than that is The Wheel of Time and Lord of the Rings.”

“Oh! I can work with that.”

I hand Elain the list and pull out my phone.

LUCE!!!! Wheel of Time or LOTR? I can do either or. Or both. I hit send and slip my phone into my back pocket. We talk idly as we make our way down Azriel’s perfectly organized list.

“Cas and I take forever to do this,” I say as I grab a tub of ice cream from the freezer. “I might have to steal Az’s idea.”

Elain snorts. “That’s because you two are children. How does Cassian even fit in these carts? I don’t know how you’re still allowed to shop here.”

I smile and push the cart for Elain as we head towards the cashiers to pay. I feel my phone vibrate and pull it out of my pocket.

“I wonder what he decided,” I say as I unlock my phone. But it isn’t a text from Lucien. But from my bank. I don’t realize I’ve stopped walking until Elain tugs on my sleeve.

“Feyre?”

I breathe in sharply and let it out. I clear my throat and shove my phone back in my pocket.

“It’s nothing. It wasn’t Lucien.”

“What’s wrong?”

I shake my head and try to keep going but Elain stops me.

“Feyre. Is Tamlin still bothering you?”

I don’t like the way his name still pierces my heart and makes me feel afraid.

“No. It isn’t him… It’s just…” I stop and look away, needing to keep myself from crying. “Stupid car insurance already took the payment and so did my phone. I’m so fucking screwed.”

“Hey… If you need help, you know Az and I can take care of it.”

I shake my head with a sniffle.

“No. I’ll figure it out.”

Elain puts a hand over mine and nods her head.

“Let’s go pay for this,” she says. “I’m bringing Az lunch today. We can surprise Cassian, too.”

I nod and return her smile.

*

I don’t see Cassian when Elain and I step into the tattoo shop. But Az notices us and is already making his way over. He kisses Elain as though he hasn’t seen her in forever, leaving my sister blushing. Rhys has gratefully come to sweep me off my feet, literally.

“Hello, darling,” he says with a grin. When he sets me down, Az comes to give me a hug.

“Hungry?” Elain asks, and holds up his Marvel lunch box, a beat up, metal lunch box he’s had since grade school and Iliana had found at her grandmother’s house last summer and he’s used ever since. Az looks at his lunch box and then looks at Elain with a smile.

“I’m starving.”

“Stop it,” she whispers loudly and lets Az lead her away.

“What about me?” Rhys whines and I laugh.

“We both know Lucien is bringing you something.”

Rhys is beaming. “Aurelie is sending left overs.”

Rhys puts an arm around my shoulder and guides me to the break room. Cassian is walking inside from the back door when we step into the hallway.

“Bunny?”

“Hey, Cas.” Rhys wiggles his eye brows at us before he goes off to pester Elain and Az. “Elain made lunch so I brought you some.”

By some weird coincidence, my pink bento box was in Elain’s kitchen cupboard. It’s covered in purple butterflies and blue bunny rabbits. Cassian closes the space between us and takes it from my hands with an amused smile.

“Now I know I didn’t lose your lunch box,” he says and gives me a kiss. “When Lia stayed the night for their anniversary, I packed her school lunch with this.”

“That was months ago, Cas.”

He shrugs and I roll my eyes. I take his hand and lead him into the break room where everyone stops and stares at us. I have to let him go to take off my coat but once it’s hung up, he takes my hand again.

“Finally,” Az says and bites into his sandwich. Elain slaps his arm which seems to amuse him further.

Cassian sits down in his usual seat and pulls me down onto his lap. He slides an arm around me and uses one hand to open the bento box to pull out the sandwich Elain had made. I’m content to lean back and listen while he and the boys talk about their morning. Their plans for the evening.

“What’s wrong?” Cassian asks softly. I shake my head. “Did you eat?”

“Yeah… El and I ate before we left the house.”

“Valo still with Amanda?”

I nod. “He should be done soon.”

I can tell the others are trying and failing at pretending they’re not listening to our conversation despite having their own.

“I’d go with you to get him but I’ve got someone at one.”

“It’s okay,” I say and press a kiss to his cheek. “I’ll walk him over later so we can ride home together.”

Cassian smiles.

After lunch, Cassian shows me the tattoo he’s working on. It’s a full sleeve.

“Bunny,” he says and puts his arm around me. “You zoned out. You didn’t even notice Az’s joke.”

“I did?” Fuck.

“What’s wrong?”

I let out a sigh and lean into him.

“The fucking car insurance and my phone payments went through this morning but that was rent money and I can’t believe I forgot to ask them not to use the auto pay this month.”

“Hey… hey, it’s okay. I’ve got you.”

“Cas…” I want to cry. I hate how much I want to cry.

“We’ll talk about this when we get home,” he says and pulls me in for a hug. “Just… consider it. Please.”

I nod. “Let me get out of here,” I say, though I do not wish to be anywhere but here in his arms. “Val should be done soon.”

Cassian kisses me softly. “I love you,” he says.

“I love you,” I say back, and force myself to leave.

*

My arms are around Cassian’s neck, holding onto him as he kisses me ardently. His grip on my thigh is almost to the point of pain and I know it’s going to bruise. I don’t care. He’s panting when we stop to breathe, and I meet his gaze when he looks at me and I smile.

“Holy shit,” he says breathlessly and adjusts himself so that he’s merely laying on top of me. I don’t want to move. I’m not sure if I could if I tried. “That was…” He whistles.

“You’re carrying me around for the rest of the night,” I manage and he laughs.

“My pleasure.”

Cassian goes quiet as I run my fingers through his hair.

“Bunny,” Cas says, his voice like gravel. “Move in with me.”

I pause. “What?” My voice is no better than his.

“I’ll break the lease.”

“No… I mean. You’re serious?”

Cassian pushes himself up to look at me. The look on his face makes me want to kiss him.

“I don’t want you stressing over something so easily remedied. You practically live here anyway. The apartment isn’t anything more than storage.”

“But Cas…”

“When you start working, you can fight me on bills.”

I scowl and he leans in to kiss me.

“If it’s too soon, I’ll pay the rent.”

I shake my head, hating that there are tears in my eyes. Cassian panics but I reach up to pull him against me again.

“Okay,” I say.

“Okay?”

“I’m sorry I’m crying… I’m just so overwhelmed and-” Cassian interrupts me with a kiss. He rolls us so that he’s on his back and I’m on top of him. My hair falls over my shoulders, and he reaches up to tuck some of it behind my ear.

“You’ll move in with me? Like for real?” He sounds the way he does on Christmas morning and he’s about to get his present.

“Yeah. For real.”

He sighs with relief and then his expression softens. I close my eyes and I feel him brush away the tears still falling from my eyes.

“Don’t apologize for how you feel. Least of all for crying.”

“I know, I’m-” I stop and open my eyes to look at him. I blush. “I’m trying.”

He places his hand at the nape of my neck.

“I know, bunny… I know.”

I smile. “You are the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Though he flashes me a cocky grin, he’s blushing.

“I’m the luckiest girl in the world.”

“Bunny…”

“Yes?”

“You’re making me blush,” he says in a rather conspiratorial tone. “I have a reputation.”

“But I like it when you blush,” I say with a pout. It’s so hard not to laugh.

“Fuck my reputation,” he declares and kisses me in such a way, I know we’re not going to bed anytime soon.

*

“Can I have this?” Mor asks and I look up from where I am sitting on the carpet. She’s holding up a red sweater I’ve never worn before.

“Sure.”

I go back to unscrewing the bedframe. Mor had taken the liberty of going through my dresser and closet while Cassian, Az and Rhys moved the heavy furniture downstairs to put in Cassian and Azriel’s trucks. I am giving it all away. Lucien has been changing my address online most of the morning, he even submitted the form to the post office for me.

“Hello, hello!”

I look up to find Aelin standing in my doorway.

“What are you doing here?”

She shrugs and walks over to where I am sitting. I give her a hug when I stand up.

“Rowan had wanted to go to the gym with Cassian but he said he was busy moving his girlfriend out of her apartment and into his lovely home,” she says and pokes my side. “When did this happen?”

“Just a few days ago.”

“That’s unacceptable. I gave you my number, right?”

I shake my head, and she groans. With a laugh, I unlock and hand her my phone. She takes ONE selfie and saves it for her contact picture.  

“In one try?” I ask, completely taken aback.

“It’s all about knowing your angles,” she says proudly. “I can show you.”

“Uh… Yeah. Maybe once I’m all settled in.”

Aelin beams at me and hands me my phone.

“Now you have no excuse. I want to know everything. I need to know else I’ll die.”

“Ignore her. She’s no better than Tinker Bell.”

Rowan walks into the room with Cassian right behind him. He comes to hug me hello and he keeps an arm around my shoulder before reaching out to pinch Aelin’s cheek.

“So. Tell us what to do. We’re all yours today,” Rowan says.

“Damn babe. I thought you were kidding when you said you wanted-” Rowan silences Aelin with a glare that has her cackling.

“Uh… My bookshelf? I have a separate bin for the fragile stuff.”

Mor peers out of the closet. She looks like she’s up to no good.

“Let Rowan do the shelf. Come help me get these clothes sorted,” she says to Aelin who wriggles her eye brows as she walks off to join Mor. Rowan follows her and says hi to Mor before shrugging off his coat.

Cassian makes his way towards me as Rowan grabs himself a cardboard box and unfolds it before the bookshelf.

“You alright?” Cas wraps his arms around me. I bite down a shiver from how cold his sweater is.

“Yeah… You?”

“I ordered pizza. Elain is on her way over here with Iliana.”

I smile and give him a kiss.

“Perfect.”

“I’m leaving with Az to drop the furniture off. But call me if you need anything.”

“Okay.”

Cassian kisses me, earning a sound of disgust from Mor. When we look at her, she stops and sighs.

“God, I love you guys,” she says and before I notice, she’s got her phone out and I am blinded by the flash. 

.

.

[dancingskys]

can you please write some 0t7?? doesnt matter if its planotic or nah. idc about the scene, but maybe cooking dinner or something?? i just want a nice little cute ot7 ff 😢😢 theyre so hard to find these days 😢😢

Pairing: OT7, Yoongi-centric

Word Count: 1011

It’s on the shorter side, I’m sorry, but I hope you’ll enjoy this little something~ Sadly cute OT7 fics really are hard to find…

More Mini Stories here

Yoongi was a lazy human being, he never went out of his way to do something, he never cared for others, he was never interested in anything that was going on. He just simply wanted to go and lie down somewhere and not be bothered all day long.

…

Yeah, right.

Yoongi snorted in disbelief.

Fucking whipped is what he was, a whipped softie who bent over backwards for a certain group of special people just to get them to smile. Quietly of course, because no one was allowed to notice. Yoongi was stealthy like a shadow, acting upon nightfall and only when no one could see him.

He was sneaky and no one ever noticed him when he-

“Oh, hi buttercup.”

Yoongi made a noise that sounded somewhat like a screeching cat and turned to glare at Seokjin who just blinked back owlishly, not knowing what was going on. The older glanced down at what was in front of the younger and broke out into a smile. “Aww, that’s so sweet of you, love. Are you coo-”

“No.”

“No?”

“No, sit down, be quiet.”

Seokjin raised an amused eyebrow and wandered over to the table, sitting down and eyeing his younger lover who turned back around to face the counter and grumbled something under his breath. He started chopping carrots again, a bowl of cabbage already set aside.

No one would see him. When the others came home he’d have dinner ready because he was the only one who didn’t have work today so he had taken it upon himself to prepare dinner.

He’d be finished when they all came home and no one would see him preparing this… Seokjin hadn’t seen anything, nothing at all.

“Hyung!”

Yoongi almost dropped the knife and jumped in surprise, a piece of carrot tumbling down from the counter and hitting his foot before it rolled away happily.

“What?” Yoongi snarked, glaring at Jungkook who wore a similar expression like Seokjin had just two minutes before. “What are you cooking? Are you making dinner. Can I have some-”

“No.”

“N-”

“No! Sit down, I’m not doing anything.”

Jungkook crooked his head and turned to look at Seokjin who just smiled and shrugged his shoulders, legs crossed and elbow propped up on the table so he could watch the other chopping more vegetables comfortably.

Not even ten minutes later Hoseok stumbled in and before Yoongi could snark at him as well Seokjin made him sit down quietly but Jimin and Taehyung who came home a little while after that were not as lucky.

“Hyung, I love you!” Taehyung moaned as soon as he smelled something cooking and Yoongi looked about ready to explode. No one was supposed to see!

“Why the fuck are you all here already?!” he screeched, everyone looking at him.

“Well, we kinda live here,” Hoseok said teasingly.

“No, get out.”

“He’s having his Yoongi-phase again,” Jungkook mumbled in realizating and Seokjin sighed. “We’ll be waiting in the living room,” he said towards the second-oldest with a wink and herded everyone out of the kitchen.

Yoongi was more than happy to have his own space again and could just pretend that no one had seen him preparing food. Why he didn’t like it when other saw him doing stuff like this… well, he didn’t know either. Maybe he didn’t want to be seen as a softie. Blame his father for always doing the same and young Yoongi copying everything he did, it had become a habit.

His boyfriends all knew that he was like this and they found it more amusing than anything. They usually humored him and pretended not to see when he fixed their broken door handles, collected their laundry when Jungkook was too busy or left them small gifts like some… some bird trying to court another bird by leaving shiny things in their nest.

He listened to what they said, what they wanted and needed and did his best to provide. He wasn’t cold or uninterested, he just… did all that quietly without most people noticing.

Half an hour later the kitchen was filled with delicious scents and their dinner was pretty much finished.

The kitchen door slowly creaked open and six heads turned to look at him, Namjoon having arrived home by now as well.

“Done,” was all Yoongi mumbled and let the six into the kitchen only for them to find the table set and dinner served already.

“Thank you~” everyone said happily, giving him a smooch before sitting down and leaving him scrunching up his nose and grumbling under his breath.

They ate together and everyone complimented his food which left Yoongi with red cheeks while he pouted at his own plate, trying to will his blush away.

Afterwards the others did all of the cleaning up. Yoongi had tried to object but Namjoon had simply picked him up and seated him on the table so he was out of the way, tapping his nose sternly and telling him to stay put. Yoongi had probably squawked at him because of the treatment but the younger had simply kissed his nose with a sweet smile before going back to work so Yoongi was left to watch everyone else tidying up, stopping by every so often to give him a kiss and tell him how sweet he was.

And it seemed to be one of those nights because once everything was cleaned up they migrated to the living room and just went down in a giant cuddle pile. Yoongi wasn’t sure whose chest he was lying on and who’s stomach he was squashing with his butt but he was comfy and warm so he didn’t really mind all that much.

“Love y’all,” he mumbled into the someone’s chest and realized it was Taehyung upon seeing the fancy dress shirt properly.

“Love y’all!” Jimin parroted and a series of ‘I love you’s followed like a mantra and Yoongi couldn’t help snorting around a small laugh.

They were one weird not-so-little family.

But he wouldn’t want it any other way.

[waldos-writing]

The Dig Initiative: Chapter 20

The Misadventures of Poole

Adam bent down in front of the door and carefully untied his shoes before sliding his heels free. He tucked the shoes neatly beneath a row of decorative hooks he used to hang his keys and his coat and his hat. The instant relief on the soles of his feet was heavenly. He cracked his toes against the floor before locking his door and retreating into the quiet sanctuary of his home.

The kettle on the stove was old, something he had inherited from his neighbor as she did her spring cleaning. She had a new one to replace it. Why own two kettles? She laughed and he thanked her for thinking of him and she asked him some question he dodged before returning home. The kettle looked tarnished. Nothing fancy. However, it boiled decently. That’s all he really needed; a decent boil. Adam turned on the stove, which clicked and clicked and sputtered and clicked and then took the flame. While the water heated, he found a mug from the pile in his sink. Probably had only been used for water and, if not that, then just another cup of tea. He sniffed it. It would be fine.

There were a few apples in a wire basket on the counter. They were getting long in the tooth by then with their sugar spots and Adam struggled with the idea of eating them or just throwing them out. He picked one up to test the firmness of the skin. It wrinkled against his thumb.

“Ugh, gross.”

“You were supposed to throw them out yesterday.”

“I know,” said Adam, his nose scrunched as he kept pushing the soft old skin of the apple in a little circle with his thumb. “Trash doesn’t go out until next week. They’re just going to get bad in the waste basket.”

“They’re going to get bad on your counter too.”

“I know,” said Adam again. He put the apple back. He’d get to it tomorrow.

While he was thinking about it, he wanted to shed his suit and tie and put them in the laundry bag to take to the dry cleaners on his day off. He worked the tie loose and pulled it up over his head as he went back to his bedroom. It was dark in there, too, but he knew his way around the place. There was still a little light coming in through the west-facing window, cut into pieces by the cheap blinds. Adam stared through it as he unbuttoned his shirt, whipped the belt out of the pant loops, and tossed his jacket onto an unmade bed. Felt good just to be in boxers and a tee. Adam stretched his arms over his head and cocked his hips to the left and right. He even smiled as he did it. Adam did not smile enough.

“I told you about the raid, didn’t I?” Adam called from his bedroom. He was putting on some jeans before he’d come out again to talk. “Soup kitchen, can you believe? All these little people, these parasite kind of people, stuffed into this dis-gust-ing little place. Bunch of them in there and half of them dead from the fever.”

There was a hole in the knee of his jeans. It showed most of his kneecap. Too much skin exposed. Adam stopped, touched the hole, fingering the delicate white threads that bordered it, and then stood up again.

“Hole…. Whole bunch of uh candidates. Couple of them had turned actually, which is weird.” Adam stared at the hole, wondering if he cared when all he was going to do was stay in for the rest of the day. “I don’t know how it got there. Out. I mean out. I mean how it got out. I don’t know how those people survived if they didn’t have the program, remember that? Valentina does.”

Didn’t matter that nobody else was going to see him. Adam wormed out of the pants and chucked them at a pile trailing out of his attached bathroom. There was a second pair of jeans, less comfortable, but clean and complete. No hole.

“Valentina also has a few theories about what happened. About the virus. She cares about a lot of things,” Adam continued as he came out of the bedroom. “Has that kind of energy.”

“You know I can’t hear you when you’re back there, right?”

“She’s kind of infectious too, if you know what I mean,” Adam said, ignoring the question.

He popped open his refrigerator and fished out a beer. It didn’t do that satisfactory ssktssaah when he pulled the tab back on it. Commercials always lied about that stuff. Lied about the flavors too; crisp, mountain fresh, full bodied and refreshing. Well, okay, it was refreshing. Adam gulped down half the can.

“Ahh,” he said dramatically, closing the fridge door. “Anyways, I think I’ll take her out for coffee. I told her about those places they used to have, you know. Late night open mic places. I really miss those places, I really do.”

“You’re kettles on.”

“What?”

“You’re kettles on, Poole.”

“Don’t call me—”

“You’re kettles on, Poole.”

The kettle was screaming on the stove. It was hard to miss as Adam put down his beer and grabbed the little dingy kitchen towel to take the kettle off the burner. The fire was still going, but he was careful to set the kettle down on an oven mitt before he did anything else.

“This is only because I was talking to you,” said Adam bitterly. He hadn’t put out any tea and decided it didn’t matter. He was going to finish the beer anyways.

“Then don’t.”

“Oh, you’d hate it if I ignored you. You’d start going on and on about everything just to fill the void. You’d tell me everything under the sun because you don’t even get to see the sun anymore. Don’t think I don’t remember.”

Maybe one beer wasn’t enough. It definitely wasn’t enough. He was a big guy, tall. Had always been bigger than other people, but not too big, because then he wouldn’t have been an augmenter. And nothing seemed worse than wearing white.

Even though the tea wasn’t going to happen—Adam reached in and grabbed two cans before bumping the fridge door shut with his hip—he decided he’d move on to a different routine. Tomorrow was going to be his only day off in two weeks.

“We’re cleaning the house today,” he announced and laughed.

“I thought you were going to the dry cleaners.”

“Clean the house first,” he answered. He sipped at the second beer and nodded at nothing and peaked his eyebrows, giggling a little with a metallic ping into the can. “You better,” he muttered. “If you’re ever inviting her over here, you want a clean place.”

What he really wanted was to sit back and talk about Valentina Drednov. He wanted to talk about how she tugged at her earlobes during debriefs, like a little wink to him about how boring their supervisor was. Or the way she hitched up her shoulders, bubbling with nervous confidence when she drove during their patrols. The way she purposefully stopped at each light to remind him of their first flirtatious moment. The way she snapped her fingers when she was primed to knock a candidate off their feet. The way she turned to him for approval when they dropped them off with the Altamira team. The way her mouth twitched with that little hidden smile for him, of course for him, because they were partners and he knew, if he cleaned and washed his clothes and made his bed and prepared everything just right, he could have her.

“You know, we’re coming up on a very important date. You remember it?” Adam asked, setting down the can again so he could start in on the dishes. “Half of May already over. I can’t believe it’s finally coming up. I can go on and on about illegal candidates and turnovers in soup kitchens all day, but it won’t even matter when they finish up with the towers, right? And I wouldn’t even know about it if it wasn’t for what you did.”

Adam laughed again, a little softer this time, expecting to hear a nasty retort. The faucet was running, maybe too loudly, so he turned it off.

“Did you say something?”

Silence.

“You know what I’m talking about, though, don’t you? You haven’t forgotten yet?”

Adam was scrubbing one of his many mugs. It was covered with soap suds, squeaking against the tired green sponge. When there was still no answer, he threw the sponge into the water in the sink. The mug went right in after it, shattering against the dishes hiding under the suds.

“Great! You see what you made me do?”

Adam turned in the kitchen, waiting for something, probably laughter, but it just wasn’t coming. He gripped the edge of the sink and roared with his neck taught, eyes bulging. He tried to rip the counter off from the sink, but it was solid built. It stayed. He pushed and pulled, jerked against it a little, but gave up.

“Are you ignoring me? After all we’ve been through? After all you’ve put me through? Now you’re giving me the cold shoulder, huh?” Adam slapped the counter. “Cold shoulder, you sonovabitch.” He slapped it again and laughed this time, hard. “Cold shoulder!”

Adam grabbed the kettle next to him and tossed it out of the kitchen. It sailed over the counter with an arc of hot water splashing around it before it bounced against his dining room table and onto the floor. The half-empty beer can was next, not before it soothed some of the burn on Adam’s palm. He didn’t care, really, that his hand was burned. He didn’t care that the table was damaged or that there was a giant puddle of steamy water on his dining room rug. He turned to the freezer and yanked open the bottom drawer.

“You don’t even have a shoulder, Daniel!” Adam yelled to the block of ice that took up the majority of his freezer space. Daniel still wasn’t answering, deciding instead to let his partner steep. “You think you’re better than me. You always did. You snuck around my back like I was this big dumb simpleton, thinking you could get in with the higher ups and take me out. You talked to that doctor, the one we had to put away and figured out they’re spreading the rest of NARA through the towers. Got a date, too. And good for you. Good for you, cause you had to tell me. Me, the big dumb partner. Put me in with the White Jackets. I knew, Danny. I knew you wanted to do that. I knew everything.”

The frozen head felt even better against his burnt palm than the beer can did. Adam fished Mr. Shutter’s out, squeezing the dead frozen cheeks between each hand as he hoisted it up to his eye level.

“And it’s good that I did. You know? Cause, Danny, listen,” he whispered and pressed his forehead against the bluish-white skull. Mr. Shutters eyes were frozen white, sightless, but he didn’t need them anymore. Didn’t need anything but that big dumb mouth of his, running off all the time. “I got the girl. How about that? Pretty thing, too. Beautiful. You’d be so jealous. You will be, when she comes over. She’s coming over and she’s gonna love me, Danny. Everything you used to say? Lies. Lies lies lies, even when you found out everything from that Dr. Fletcher and didn’t even tell me, didn’t even share until you did like a giant idiot, Danny.”

The skull’s blinked through the white frost, staring up at the big man who used to be his augmenter. But he didn’t say anything.

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