#go to work go home and sleep until its time for work again

[ak-vintage]

From the Ground Up - Chapter 3

Pairing: DBF!Joel Miller x OFC ("Reader" Format/Second Person POV)

Series Summary: After getting laid off from your job, you are forced to move back in with your parents until you can get back on your feet. You can't help but feel like you have started your life over again at square one, but when your dad's best friend offers his help in the form of a job at his burgeoning construction business, you learn that maybe there is more than one path to the life of your dreams.

Chapter Summary: Your relationship with Jacob becomes even more strained when Joel makes you an offer that's impossible to turn down.

Chapter Tags/Warnings: Dual POV. Angst. Relational conflict. Classism. Complicated family dynamics. References to past alcohol consumption. (Still 18+ like the rest of my blog.)

Word Count: 6.2K

Read on AO3 | Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

good morning babe ❤️ how was the party?

Blowing a strand of sleep-tangled hair out of your face, you stared blearily at the text notification glaring back at you from your phone screen. He had to be kidding.

A part of you was tempted to compose something biting in response, something like, “If you had responded to my text yesterday, you would know.” But the hour was too early, the clock in the upper left corner of your screen reading 7:03, and truthfully, if your boyfriend didn’t understand how asinine of a question that was, you weren’t certain you were feeling like explaining it to him.

Instead, you thumbed a quick, terse response, abandoned your phone on your nightstand, and dragged yourself out of bed and into the bathroom. You were awake now; you might as well get the day started.

When you returned a handful of minutes later, face washed and hair pulled up off your neck, the screen of your phone glowed once more, and you could not stop yourself from picking it up and swiping it open.

fine what’s up?

Well, you thought, at least he had the awareness to notice that you were being short with him. That was something.

You continued the tense conversation as you made your way downstairs, as you started a pot of coffee, as you sliced yourself a bagel and tossed it into the toaster. If Jacob had woken up this morning and suddenly decided that he wanted to talk to you after weeks of two-word messages and zero FaceTime calls, you were damn sure going to make him work for it.

nothing ??? what do you want me to say? what’s your deal? did something happen?

Gathering up your breakfast and a steaming cup of coffee, you quietly opened the front door and sneaked outside. One of the few things you had missed about your parents’ home when you moved away for school was the sturdy old swing your dad had hung on the front porch when you were little. On the rare instances when you found yourself eating breakfast alone these days, this was where you preferred to do it. It was early for a Sunday morning, the raging Texas heat still mild and the neighborhood quiet, and if you could manage to tempt a little breeze, it was uncommonly peaceful.

Setting your coffee mug and your plate on the swing beside you, you considered for a minute how you wanted to respond to Jacob. It was clear to you that he wasn’t going to get why you were upset if you didn’t spell it out for him. As disappointing of a conclusion as that was, you could not say you were surprised. This was not the first time an argument with him had required you to lead the horse to water, as it were.

i texted you yesterday. i was anxious and having a hard time and i needed you and you ignored me. again. i didn’t ignore you babe i was busy you know my team had that go-live get pushed to this weekend. that’s why i couldn’t come down to visit. we talked about that.

You sighed, taking a heavy pull on your coffee. Even with the addition of your favorite creamer, it still scalded your throat on its way down.

It was true that that had been the explanation Jacob provided when he bailed on his plans to come and visit you this weekend. It was a perfectly plausible one – Jacob was a project manager for a software company, and it wasn’t uncommon for these kinds of events to happen over weekends if it better suited the client’s schedule. Although disheartening, you had been willing to accept that as a reason for him to stay in Dallas.

But even so…

yeah i know but you’re telling me you were working on that literally all day? i was at that party til like 11 last night. i texted you at 5. you couldn’t have found 10 min somewhere in there to say hi?

Taking a bite of your bagel, you watched as the three little dots at the bottom of your screen appeared, then disappeared, then reappeared again. You were nearly done with the first half of your breakfast before his response finally came in.

i’m sorry. i guess my mind was just on other stuff okay well i think about you all the time. it would be nice if that was reciprocated sometimes.

The moment you hit send, a pang of remorse made itself known in the pit of your stomach, making acid burn at the back of your throat. Perhaps that had been a bit harsh. But you could not deny that it was true; you did think about your boyfriend all the time. You missed him terribly – the weekly lunch dates in the middle of the work day, the nights on your couch watching old sitcoms and reality shows, the warmth of his body under your shared blankets, the scratch of his five o’clock shadow on the back of your neck in the middle of the night.

But more than that, you found that his needs and his wants often took up more space in your mind than your own. His dreams, his goals, his desires, his happiness – they were never far from your thoughts, and in the instances in which they came into conflict with yours, you were always the one to make the sacrifice. Your needs bent to his every single time, and he probably didn’t even notice.

When was the last time he had compromised on something for your happiness, your wellbeing?

Again, you watched as Jacob typed, phone in one hand, half-empty coffee cup in the other. Eventually, a series of single-line messages appeared, one right after the other.

that isn’t fair and you know it but i understand your point i’ll try to be better. i’m sorry.

Well. It wasn’t nothing. Jacob was a proud man. To see him apologize for anything was a rare occurrence.

thank you

You let the message linger for a moment, then…

i love you

Just as you drained what was left of your coffee, one last notification lit up your phone screen.

love you too babe

You loitered on the porch swing for a bit longer, swaying gently back and forth as you began mentally cataloguing everything you hoped to accomplish that day. Your bedsheets needed stripped and washed along with the normal weekly loads of laundry. Your dad was out of his favorite protein bars, and your mom had mentioned something about making brownies for her book club this week, so you would need the ingredients for that. And you probably should spend some time sending out more job applications. It had been a couple days since you had had the motivation to do so, but discouraging as it was, it wasn’t as if you could simply opt out of it…

“Mornin’.”

Blinking rapidly as you came back to yourself, you glanced toward the sound of the greeting to find Joel hovering at the end of his driveway, squinting into the sun as he waved in your direction. His dark brown hair, touched with the faintest traces of silver at the temples, was rumpled with sleep, and he wore a plain, navy-blue t-shirt that stretched across his broad shoulders in a way that should not have been as distracting as it was.

“Morning,” you called back, returning his wave. “Surprised to see you up this early. I thought you’d be wiped after yesterday.”

The older man shrugged and smiled wryly. “I am, but I’ve still got some cleanup to take care of. Trying to get it out of the way before it gets too hot out.”

“Smart.” Taking in the sweat at his shirt collar, the glisten on his forehead, you assumed he must have been at it for some time already, likely toiling away in his back yard while you lounged on the porch with a leisurely breakfast. “You want to take a breather? Come have a seat?”

You expected him to decline, but it was almost as though he had been waiting for the invitation. With a nod, he crossed the lawn between your two homes in a dozen or so long, loping strides, thick arms swinging as he jogged up the stairs onto your porch. “If you don’t mind,” he said. “Actually, I was hoping to run into you this morning.”

You felt your eyebrows raise, and you shifted in your seat to face him more directly. “Oh?”

“I, uh.” He hesitated a moment, scratching his patchy, stubbly beard in thought. “I have a proposition for you.”

Something charged and fluttering ignited in your belly, something somewhere between anticipation and anxiety as his statement hung in the balmy morning air. “I’m listening,” you prompted.

Joel seemed lost in his thoughts for another moment, as though weighing his words carefully before he said them aloud. “So you know me and Tommy have been workin’ real close with your dad for a few years now.” You nodded. “With that, and all the attention we’ve been getting from those jobs with other developers in the area, we’re going through some… Well, you might call ‘em growing pains.”

“Okay?”

“See, I’m usually the one that manages our contracts. And I track purchases, make sure they go to the right site, make sure we get paid on time, all that back-office stuff. And if I’m bein’ honest, darlin’, I’m barely keeping my head above water,” he confessed. “We been thinking about bringing somebody on for a long time to help out. Like a…office manager-type person.”

Oh, fuck.

In that moment, you knew precisely where this conversation was headed, and a wave of mortification so strong you could no longer meet his eyes passed over you. Gaze in your lap, fingers wrapped tight around your coffee cup, you started to shake your head in denial. “Joel…”

But the older man plowed onward, refusing to acknowledge your apparent discomfort. “I wanted to see if you’d be interested.”

“Joel, if this is about our conversation last night…” God, you had known it had been a mistake to be so vulnerable with him at the party, to allow yourself to relax in the strong steadiness of his presence and the soft warmth of his eyes and share so candidly your fears and your anxieties, feelings you hadn’t shared with anyone in the months you had languished in unemployment.

You didn’t need anyone’s pity. You didn’t need your dad’s friend’s charity. You had just…wanted to be seen. But if Joel thought you had been sniffing around for a bit of nepotism…

His response was emphatic in its denial. “It’s not.”

Your eyes snapped back up to meet his, and you hit with him a hard, pointed stare. “You promise?”

“I promise. Like I said, this is something we been thinking about for a long time anyway. Me and Tommy, we’re…hands-on. Blue-collar guys. We worked for other crews for almost 20 years before we got brave enough to set out on our own.” Joel ran a broad, thick-fingered hand through his hair, the dark strands standing up at odd angles with sweat. “Now, both of us have gotten a lot better with the business side of things over the years, but we still feel like we’re flyin’ by the seat of our pants half the time. You went to school for business, didn’t you?”

“Well, sure, but that doesn’t mean that I know how to run a construction company,” you scoffed.

He shook his head calmly. “No one’s asking you to. I’m just sayin’, might be nice to have somebody around who actually knows what they’re talking about. And didn’t you say you were good with computers? Half our records are still pen and paper, darlin’.”

You couldn’t quite suppress your surprise at that, the way you drew back and quirked your brow with interest.

Of course, your father’s friend spotted it immediately and pressed on. “Bet we could probably get a better handle on things and stay more organized if we used the computer more, but neither of us knows the first thing about how to do that. Honestly, you’d be doin’ us a favor.”

But the intrigue was not enough to have you ready to agree, nor was the bid to your people-pleasing nature. “Is this because of my dad?” you asked. “Do you feel…I don’t know, indebted to him for all the business he’s helped you guys get?”

Joel sighed, leaning back against the porch swing as his shoulders sagged just slightly. Something told you he had not been prepared for you to push back so hard against his offer, and although a part of you panicked at the idea of discouraging his generosity, a much larger part had to know that he was being honest with you. You would not take something you had not earned – you didn’t need a fucking handout, even if it was from Joel Miller.

“Look, I’d be lying if I said your dad wasn’t a big part of the reason why we’re so slammed right now,” he admitted after a beat of tense silence. “And it’s a great problem to have. But I wouldn’t be offering you this job just to make him happy. I love the man, but I run my business the way I see fit and not for anybody else.”

Nodding slowly, you fell silent, allowing the idea to settle in your brain for a moment. You couldn’t help but feel that this was all too simple, that there had to be some kind of catch to accepting something that had fallen so easily into your lap. For months now, you had been doing everything people always said to do when you were on the job market – polish and tighten your resume, network with people in your field, connect with friends and acquaintances who worked for companies you were interested in, scour the job boards daily, cast a wide net, apply to everything…

After all of that, was it really fair that all it took was one heartfelt conversation with your parents’ handsome neighbor, and you had an offer in your hands?

As though he could sense the direction of your thoughts, Joel added, “It won’t be glamorous work, you know. Might be some long hours for a while until you get your feet under you. And me and Tommy get called out to job sites all the time, so you’ll be alone in the office a lot. But I do think you’d be good at it. I think we’d be lucky to have you.”

His words surprised you, and you fought against the wave of heat that suffused your cheeks at the compliment. “What makes you think that?” you asked, praying your voice did not betray how deeply such simple praise had affected you.

“Because I see how hard you work,” he replied, matter-of-fact. “I see how organized you are, the way you pick up on every little detail. And I see the way you take care of your dad, the way you keep him on track. Same with your mom. It’s like…” He trailed off then, considering his words. “It’s like you know what people need before they can ask. And if I’m honest, I think me and Tommy need somebody like that on our team.”

With every gruff and sincere word from Joel’s lips, you could feel yourself softening, could feel your walls crumbling, and suddenly, you were back in the warm, smoky glow of that bonfire, bearing the most tender parts of you to the first person who had made you feel enough safe to do so in what had to have been years. Beside you on your parents’ old porch swing, Joel Miller’s dark brown eyes shone in the morning sunlight, and you knew you could no longer deny the honesty of his offer. He had no ulterior motives, no agenda he was attempting to keep hidden from you. He was telling the truth.

“Thank you, Joel,” you murmured, voice suspiciously hoarse and choked with emotion.

“I ain’t just blowin’ smoke up your ass, darlin’. I mean it,” he assured you. He cracked a small, dimple-cheeked smile for the first time since he sat down. “Will you at least think it over? Don’t need to make a decision right now, just…think on it for a day or two and let me know what you decide?”

Drawing your lower lip between your teeth, you nodded. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“Well, here. Lemme give you my number.” He reached into the back pocket of his worn, grass-stained jeans, pulling out a beat up, black leather wallet. Flipping it open, he drew a single business card from within and handed it to you. “You can give me a call anytime.”

Glancing down at the card in your hand, you took in the simple, sleek Miller Brothers Construction brand logo, his name in the bottom left corner followed by the address of his office and his cell phone number.

“I will,” you promised. “Thanks again.”

“You bet.” With a groan that belied his age, Joel pressed down on his knees with the heels of his hands and hoisted himself to his feet. “Say hi to your folks for me, okay?”

You nodded, suddenly unsure of whether you ought to…walk him home? Shake his hand? Throw your arms around his neck and hug him in thanks for what was certainly the wildest opportunity of your life?

Thankfully, you did none of those things. Instead, you simply said, “For sure. Uh, good luck with the party clean-up.”

You spent the day in a haze.

From the moment your dad’s friend had retreated back to his own yard and you tucked his business card into the pocket of your shorts, you had disappeared into the depths of your own thoughts. Floating through the house work, the grocery shopping, the meal prepping, you played the conversation over and over again in your mind until you felt as though you had memorized every word of it. You didn’t bother telling your parents about it, knowing that neither of them would be able to provide you with an objective perspective given their closeness with Joel. Also, the fact that both of them had gargantuan hangovers did not give you a great deal of confidence. They both spent the majority of the day in their pajamas, lounging in the living room with the lights off and the TV on low, so you kept to yourself.

Ultimately, as day turned to evening and evening to night, you found yourself calling Jacob.

You still weren’t certain you had moved past the way he had abandoned you at the party yesterday, but you reminded yourself that he had apologized, and from what you could tell, he at least had seemed sincere. And Jacob was a smart guy – it was one of the first things that had attracted you to him when you first met. You valued his perspective. So even if things between the two of you remained strained by the distance, you were willing to put that aside for now.

He answered on the first ring, and the familiarity of his voice was like a balm to your frayed nerves. It was easy to find your rhythm again, the comfortable back-and-forth that had made your time together in Dallas so easy, so natural. You asked him about his work project, which you learned had successfully gone live with only minor hiccups along the way, while he asked you about the goings-on around the neighborhood. You both avoided the topic of the Millers’ party, not wanting to press on that bruise just yet, but even still, it was…nice.

It had been over a month since your move back to Austin, and your relationship had never quite recovered. Perhaps you had turned a corner, you thought. Perhaps you were finally settling in to a new normal.

Sitting cross-legged on your bed, a basket of clean, dry laundry propped up next to you as you folded, you mentioned, “You know, I had the weirdest conversation with Joel today.”

A brief beat of silence from the other end of the connection met your statement, followed but some rustling and the distant sound of controller clicks. “Who’s Joel?”

“My parents’ neighbor. Well, my neighbor now, too, I guess.” You matched a pair of socks – gray, crew length, your father’s �� and began to roll them together. “I’ve mentioned him before. He’s…he’s the one who hosted the party last night.”

“Oh, okay.”

You frowned as a prolonged silence fell between you again. “Aren’t you going to ask me why it was weird?”

A breathy laugh sounded in your ear, almost staticky over the phone, and Jacob replied, “Sorry, I’m distracted. I’m just joining a COD lobby. Why was it weird?”

“He offered me a job at his construction company. As an office manager.”

More controller clicking sounds could be heard through the connection as he made a grunt of surprise low in his throat. “Seems a little out of your wheelhouse.”

“Yeah, it might be,” you admitted with shrug, jostling the phone on your shoulder. “But it’s the first offer I’ve gotten in months. I need a job.”

“How much would he pay you?” he asked.

Hmm. That was a fair question, you would concede. It might be worth knowing what your salary would be before agreeing. Though admittedly, any salary at all would be better than what you were currently working with. “I’m not sure,” you confessed. “We haven’t gotten into the details yet.”

Jacob’s response was so quick, it nearly startled you. “Nope. Red flag,” he snapped decisively.

“You think so?” You couldn’t imagine Joel Miller – loyal, steady, everyman Joel Miller – intentionally trying to pull the wool over your eyes with something like this. Though you wouldn’t describe yourself as an especially shrewd person, you liked to think you would be able to tell if the older man were attempting to screw you over.

On the other end of the call, you could practically hear your boyfriend nodding. “What the hell kind of job offer doesn’t mention pay? Probably thinks he can take advantage of how desperate you are.”

Ouch. You winced, the word “desperate” hitting you like a punch to the gut. He wasn’t entirely wrong, you supposed, but still, having your current situation phrased like that – so bluntly and callously – was salt in the wound.

“I…guess? Maybe?” you said dubiously, your words coming out more like questions than statements. “He really doesn’t strike me as that kind of guy.”

“You see the best in everybody, babe.”

The sentiment sounded like a compliment, and from anybody else, it probably would be. But this was Jacob, and you knew him well enough by now to know what you saw as empathy and giving others the benefit of the doubt, he saw as naivety. It was a philosophical difference the two of you had never managed to resolve, and throughout the course of your relationship, it had come up on multiple occasions, the fulcrum around which more than one argument had swayed.

There was pride your voice when you replied, “Well, I try to.”

“I know, and it makes you easy to manipulate.” Another prolonged silence, more controller noises, and then, “Just…don’t let this dude lowball you, okay? If you’re going to have this job on your resumé for forever, you should at least get paid well for it.”

You paused your folding, the plain white undershirt in your hands crumpling into your lap as your eyes narrowed. Swallowing thickly against your raised hackles, you drew a deep breath before replying. “What is that supposed to mean?”

Jacob scoffed, like he was laughing at an inside joke that he thought you were privy to. “Oh, come on, Kay.” His tone was cajoling, almost playful. “This job is beneath you, and you know it. If I were you, I’d turn it down. You can afford to wait for something better.”

Blinking, you let out a sharp breath, his words echoing in your ears as all of the warmth and the safety you had felt at the beginning of the conversation evaporated and left only cold incredulity in its wake. You could…afford to wait for something better? Where had this man been for the past several months?

Where had he been when you fell behind on your monthly credit card payments and took a hit to your credit score? Where had he been when you stopped being able to take your turn to buy takeout for the two of you and instead started cooking dinner on date nights with meals made from discounted groceries? Where had he been when you had spent hours scouring the Dallas area for the most affordable storage units so you could hang on to as much of your apartment furniture as you could?

Where had he been when you tearfully drove your own U-Haul the nearly 200 miles to your childhood home, taking with you only your bed, your clothes, and a few sentimental items you couldn’t bear putting into storage?

Oh. That’s right.

He had been in Dallas. In his two-bedroom luxury apartment. The one that was too small for you to move into, the one that he hadn’t been ready to share, even in your time of need. That’s where he had been.

Wrestling your voice down from the scream building up in your throat, tasting like bile and dying to explode into your phone’s receiver, you gritted out, “No, Jacob, I literally cannot afford that.  Why the fuck do you think I’m in Austin right now? Plus, yeah, maybe it’s not some fancy firm downtown this time, but that doesn’t make it beneath me.”

If your boyfriend could tell just how deeply he had gotten under your skin, you would never know by his voice. He was matter-of-fact as he continued, “It’s a small-time construction company I’ve never even heard of run by your parents’ neighbor. Sounds like a downgrade to me.”

“Jacob…” You said his name like a sigh, like a plea, breathless and exasperated and tinged with a kind of bone-keep weariness you didn’t have the words to describe. “I am losing my mind living with my parents. Unemployment is enough to cover my expenses, but I have next to nothing left to save up. I have to start making money again – real money – if I ever want to be able to move out. And this is the first thing that’s come along that might actually let me do that.”

Your tirade was greeted by silence broken only by those same controller sounds – X, Y, A, left trigger, X again – soft and distant and endless.

Drawing a deep, steadying breath, you felt a bit of your rage begin to leak away and reveal the tender wound beneath.

“I’d really like your support on this,” you admitted softly. “Don’t you want me to able to move back to Dallas? I…I thought this would make you happy.”

A vulnerable pause stretched between you, and then it was Jacob’s turn to sigh into the receiver. “I am happy, babe.” Flat, cool, unconvincing.

“Are you? Because it sounds like you’re trying to convince me not to take this job.”

“I just don’t want you to feel like you have to jump at the first opportunity you’re given without thinking about what’s best for your future career opportunities. That’s all.”

Letting your eyes slip closed, chin pressed to your chest, you nodded even though he could not see you. Jacob meant well, but like you, he had a tendency to fix his focus far in the future. While others chose to live for the moment, your minds were always planning six, nine, twelve months ahead, always thinking about the next task, the next goal before you had even finished the current one.

Or at least, that was how you had been before your layoff, before breaking your lease, before…all of this. Now, you felt as though you couldn’t plan for the future, not while it was so in flux. Not until the present – the right now – started to feel a bit more secure.

You had hoped that Jacob might understand that.

“Yeah, I know,” you said eventually, your voice just as flat and dull as his had been.

“Look, at the end of the day, it’s your call. If this is what you want to do, then go for it. Just…” He trailed off, for the first time sounding as though he was weighing his next words carefully, questioning whether he ought to say them at all. “Just don’t feel like you need to slum it with the blue-collar guys if you don’t want to, okay?”

And there it was – the root of his hesitation. This job wasn’t beneath you because of your skills or your work experience. This job wasn’t beneath you because of your educational background. This job was beneath you because it wasn’t in an industry Jacob respected.

You ought to have known it would come to this. This job wasn’t something in tech, like his own job, or finance, like the men whose podcasts he favored. It wasn’t in insurance or healthcare, a company with real clout and deep pockets. It wasn’t even in the public sector, steady and stable.

This wasn’t about what was best for you and your financial situation, or your mental well-being, or your future employment prospects. This was about him. He didn’t want to have to say out loud to anyone who asked that his girlfriend worked for a small, family-owned construction company.

“…yeah. Got it.”

Your boyfriend had always admired your dedication to your career; the two of you had met at a young professionals’ mixer, after all. So many of your conversations early in your relationship had been about your respective jobs – what you liked about them, what you would change, what your five-year plan was, where you hoped to end up. He had called you impressive once, and you had ridden the high of that earnest, wide-eyed praise all the way to nights on his couch and weekends in his bed.

If you took this job, you weren’t certain he would find you impressive anymore.

“Call you tomorrow?” Jacob asked, seeming to sense that the conversation was over.

“Yeah. Tomorrow.”

“Okay. Love you, babe.”

Swallowing against the thick lump that had formed in your throat, you inhaled deeply and said, “Love you, too.”

It was nearing 9:00 PM when Joel’s phone rang.

He had been parked on the couch in front of the television for the better part of an hour, Curtis and Viper 2 playing in the background for what had to be the hundredth time since he had introduced the series to Sarah last year. The teen sat at the other end of the sofa, folded into the corner, all elbows and knees under the hand-me-down crochet blanket wrapped around her like a cocoon. No matter how busy he got with work, and no matter how many extra-curriculars she signed up for, Sunday nights were theirs and usually involved pizza and movies until one of them started to doze.

Tonight, it had nearly been Joel, his eyes beginning to itch and his head feeling heavy on his neck even as the movie’s explosive climax approached. Just as he had been about to surrender to the pull of the soft, worn couch cushions and allow his head to drop back, his phone startled him awake, singing and buzzing at full volume from the pocket of his flannel pajama pants.

“Jesus Christ,” he groaned, digging clumsily for the thing with one hand as he rubbed the fatigue from his eyes with the other. When he finally unearthed it, an unfamiliar number stared back at him from the sleek, black screen.

These days, unfamiliar numbers meant business-related. He would have to answer.

Clearing his throat, he swiped to accept the call and brought the phone to his ear. “Miller Brothers Construction, this is Joel.”

“Hi, Joel, it’s Kate. Kate Walker.”

He drew back at the unexpected sound of your voice, soft and hesitant in his ear. All irritation he may have felt at the disturbance melted away at the sound, and instead, he felt a small smile curl the corner of his lip.

“Hey there, darlin’. What can I do for you?”

“I, uh...” You paused for the briefest of moments, as though gathering yourself. “I’m sorry for the late phone call, but I wanted to let you know that I’ve given it some thought, and if the offer’s still on the table, I’d like to accept the job.”

Joel let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding, and a surge of relief and gratitude swelled in his chest. He hadn’t been overstating the situation when he had spoken with you earlier – he and Tommy truly were drowning, and the scale of their business had gotten to the point where the administrative tasks were entirely too much for the two of them to handle on their own. Not when they had developers to meet with, not when they had builders to oversee and crew conflicts to mediate and materials to order and payroll to manage. It had taken very little effort to sell his brother on the idea of offering the job to you.

And if it happened that you were in need of a job, if it happened that the weight of your circumstances might be eased by joining his company, well… Then that was simply a happy coincidence.

Or so he told himself.

“Very happy to hear it,” he said sincerely. “Tell you what, are you free tomorrow to come by the office? We can talk details, sign some paperwork, I can give you a tour of the place…”

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Sarah quirking her head, suddenly intrigued by the conversation.

“Yeah, I’m free,” you replied. “What time would work best for you?”

“I’ve got a call with a supplier at nine… How’s 10?” he offered.

“10 is perfect.”  He could hear the smile in your voice through the phone, and something near his heart – behind his ribs, deep in his chest – warmed and softened at the sound.

“Great. Address of the office is on the card I gave you earlier.”

A brief silence fell over the connection then, but when you spoke again, that quiet vulnerability was back in your voice. “Thank you again, Joel, for the opportunity. I won’t let you down.”

The absurdity of such a statement startled a chuckle out of him, and even though he knew you couldn’t see him, he shook his head. “Don’t think that’s even possible, sweetheart. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Your answering laugh was small, breathy, almost disbelieving. “Yeah, I’ll see you then,” you said. “Have a good night.”

The two of you said your goodbyes, and Joel slipped his phone back into his pocket. Awareness of his surroundings suddenly coming back to him, he noticed that at some point during the brief conversation, Sarah had paused the movie and was looking at him with an arched brow.

“You can start it up again,” he prompted, waving his hand toward the TV.

But his daughter ignored him, instead offering him a sly smile. “Who was that?”

“Kate. From next door. Now, c’mon, I wanna finish the movie before I pass out.”

“Ohhh, it’s Kate now. I see,” the girl teased, still grinning like she knew something he didn’t.

Joel rolled his eyes with a huff. “What else would I call her? That’s her name, isn’t it?”

“Well, sure, but she’s always just been ‘Mac’s oldest.’ She’s Kate now.”

Goddamn it. She wasn’t wrong. That might have been the first time he had ever referred to you by your name.

Something was shifting, something faint and tender and new growing in the pit of his stomach that had been stretching its limbs and opening its eyes since the moment he locked eyes with you in your parents’ doorway. It was small now, easy to ignore, but if Sarah could already sense it, he needed to be careful. He was 15 years your senior, at least. He was your father’s closest friend.

And as of tomorrow, he would also be your boss.

“Just hit play,” he grumbled, focusing his gaze back on the TV screen.

Sarah chose not to push the issue any further; she simply did as he asked, but even without looking, he could sense the piqued interest and keen observation still happening at the other end of the couch.

This could only end badly, he knew. But now that the thing in his gut had awakened, he had no idea how to put it back to sleep.

Credits: Dividers - @saradika-graphics; Beta Reading - @sunshinehaze1

Taglist: @shchristine @80ssong @half-moon16 @/sunshinehaze1 @kilamonster @peepawispunk @almostfoxglove @orodeah @rosebuds-and-moonlight @brittmb115 @kedsandtubesocks @yxtkiwiyxt @yorksgirl @pedroswife69 @glitterspark

If you would like to be included in the taglist for this fic, please comment on this chapter or send me a message!

[just-your-average-tangerine]

The trickle-down effects of trumps election/inauguration/policies happen fast.

My insurance denied my hrt. I live in one of those "safe states." The ones that legally require insurance companies to cover trans healthcare. But they denied it anyway. Because who's going to stop them?

[connormoving]

its so embarassing likee. going to talk abt a feeling you have but you already know ppl will be like Oh that sounds like depression lol and its like. well yes . i know . trust me i am so aware i am depressed . but its still like a thing ive been thinking abt and wanting to talk abt but ik itll just be like Ok hun 👍. idk idk what response i would want tho ig FNFNFNF

[b0ngwater69]

Pretty fucked that im expected to go into work tomorrow (at 6am no less) 0 likes and i will cough on all my boss's shit

[thebibliosphere]

My husband and I were discussing how the first felon is defending the FDA and how the quality control of our food is gonna basically disappear and I proceeded to have so much anxiety about it that I didn't sleep last night. How do we prepare for this? Is there a way to make food safe at home? How can we avoid getting poisoned from the grocery store? Sorry for bringing this anxiety to your inbox but I'm exhausted and scared and I'm hoping you've come up with food safety tips what with your general food complications.

I’m afraid I don’t have a solution for something of this scale and am just as equally terrified, but that said:

Check your local state regulations. Some states actually have strict testing that the FDA when it comes to certain things like milk. See if they are listing any recalls.

Stop eating things raw for the foreseeable future. Wash and cook everything thoroughly, even if the bag claims it’s pre-washed, wash it again. Cooking will also help eliminate any remaining pathogens. It means no more salads for a while but that’s okay.

For things like fruit, try to go with things that have an outer skin that can be taken off. If it requires you to cut into it with a knife, give the outer skin a scrub and rinse to reduce the chances of your knife being contaminated by anything like e-coli and then contaminating the insides by cutting it up.

For fruit that can’t be peeled, make sure to inspect and wash them thoroughly. If you are immunocompromised like me, consider cooking it down into a jam or pie filling to reduce further risk. Not as fun as eating it fresh for some people, but it’s a valid way of still getting the flavor and nutrients.

For things like milk, only drink pasteurized and ultra pasteurized. Try to get pasteurized eggs if you can too.

If you don’t have a meat thermometer, now is the time to get one. Make sore everything is cooked to its required internal temperature. For poultry, the recommended temperature is 165°F (74°C), while for beef and pork, the recommended temperature is 145°F (63°C) with a 3-minute rest time. Ground meats should be cooked to 160°F (71°C). Eggs should be cooked until the yolk is set. No more runny egg yolks for a bit until we get a competent source of information back about bird flu.

For things like flour, try to go for reputable brands that have their own independent testing facilities for things like gluten. They also usually test for other things and clean their facilities thoroughly. My go to is King Arthur atm.

Also, stop eating raw cookie dough if you’re not going to toast the flour in the oven first. That’s how a lot of people get sick, not necessarily from the raw egg, though stop eating raw egg right now if you do. Again, bird flu. [Addendum] I learned the flour trick in a job I used to work, but apparently, the pre-defunded FDA didn't think toasting the flour made it safe, so maybe just don't eat raw cookie dough. And I know someone's going to be a cunt in the notes like "I don't care I do what I want" good for you, hope saying that made you feel better.]

This is a dwindling possibility with the tariffs but try to buy food imported from other countries that still have food quality control. I get my masa harina from a small company that imports directly from Colombia. They can’t afford the gluten free label required to be classified as such in the USA, but considering Cheerios in the USA can afford to buy that label and the celiac foundation certification logo and still routinely sells contaminated produce due to not using gluten free oats and a mechanical sorting system that can’t be certified gluten free (1) (2) (3), I’m more inclined to go with other countries labeling right now.

With clean water under threat, use a filter for your drinking water. We currently use the ones by Life Straw. They don’t fit into your faucet but the LS filters are better than most of the ones that can be attached that way and the housing of the jugs and countertop filters are easy to clean. Make sure you do so once a week and change the filters as directed.

Most of this is just basic food hygiene stuff combined with what it’s like to be immunocompromised, but it’s always worth repeating in case someone didn’t know, but especially worth repeating right now with all our rules and regulating bodies going out the window 😞

[missdynamighttt]

hehehe sooo.. pro hero, husband! katsuki not being able to spend time with you took a toll on his agency, so someone said... you two needed to bone.

it had been weeks since katsuki had a proper night at home. pro hero work never let up but lately, it felt like it was eating him—late nights at the agency, barely any sleep, reports, patrols, meetings.

you understood. it was his job, his responsibility, but his stress showed in the way he snapped at people more often, his fuse shorter than usual.

and today? he was especially pissed.

the whole office refused to confront dynamight about it, until some dumbass sidekick, probably sick of his rage-fueled outbursts, muttered under his breath, “tch. man just needs to go home and bone his wife.”

the room went silent.

dead silent.

katsuki stopped mid-step, shoulders going rigid. his head turned slowly toward him, eyes burning like he was about to set the entire building on fire.

"the fuck did you just say?"

the sidekick, to his credit, had the audacity to look innocent. "i mean, you’re obviously tense, and i'm sure she’s—"

he lunged at him. it took three other sidekicks to hold him back as he damn near flipped his desk over.

“YOU'RE FUCKIN' DEAD! BONE?!” katsuki roared, struggling against his coworkers like a wild animal. "say that shit again, i dare you! you think i’m pissed ‘cause i ain’t fucking my wife enough?!”

the whole agency floor collectively held its breath.

the poor sidekick scrambled for an excuse. “n-no! i-i just meant—uh, stress relief! yeah! y’know, intimacy is good for—”

katsuki grabbed a random clipboard and hurled it across him. he missed by a centimeter. “you think i don’t wanna fuckin' go home to her?! huh?!”

“sir—”

“i wanna go home so bad! i wanna see her, i wanna kiss her, i wanna lay on her tits and sleep for the whole fuckin’ day,” he ranted, voice cracking from pure frustration. “BUT NOOO! i’m stuck here writing reports and dealing with dumbasses like you!”

the office was dead silent.

it took a solid ten minutes for him to cool down, grumbling and seething as he rubbed his temples.

but his mind did wander.

to you. to the way he missed your voice. to how fucking long it had been since he held you properly.

to the way he always found you asleep by the time he got home, curled up on his side of the bed, waiting for him.

… fuck. maybe the sidekick did have a point.

katsuki inhaled sharply. then, with wild determination, he grabbed his his stuff, and stormed toward the exit. the agency could handle itself for the night. he had better things to do.

“fuck this. i'm goin' home to my wife."

meanwhile, you had barely settled on the couch, ready to enjoy a quiet evening alone, when the front door slammed open. you jolted, turning toward the entrance just in time to see katsuki storming in—looking like a man on a mission.

“katsu—” you barely got his name out before his mouth crashed onto yours, hot and urgent, like he’d been starving for this. you gripped his shirt as he pulled you impossibly close, practically lifting you off the floor.

you gasped against his lips as his hands cupped your cheeks, tilting your head as he deepened the kiss, pressing his body against yours.

strong hands cupped your face, rough but desperate. his lips were everywhere—your cheeks, your nose, your jaw, the corner of your lips—like he was making up for lost time.

and when he finally let you breathe, his forehead pressed against yours, panting slightly, his hands still gripping your waist like he was afraid you’d disappear.

you were breathless, blinking up at him in shock. “what the hell?”

katsuki exhaled sharply, his forehead resting against yours. “i missed you.”

your brows furrowed. “you left for work this morning.”

“exactly,” his lips brushed against yours again, softer this time. “should’ve come home sooner.”

it was then you realized—he was home way earlier than usual. normally, he'd get caught up in work, buried in reports or dealing with patrols, but tonight…

“wait, why are you home so early?” you asked, still dazed.

katsuki huffed. his fingers slid down to your waist, gripping you tightly. “tch. dumbass sidekick at work said i just needed to fuck my wife to fix my attitude.”

your jaw dropped. “excuse me?”

his lips brushed yours again, softer this time. “so i left early to prove ‘em right.”

your face burned. “katsuki!”

but he was already leaning in again, smirking against your lips. “better get comfortable, sweets. i’m makin’ up for lost time.”

and when katsuki stepped into the office that morning, something was… off.

for the first time in weeks, he didn’t stomp in with a permanent scowl, barking at everyone the second he crossed the threshold. his usual sharp glare was dulled, his shoulders weren’t tense as tense.

instead, katsuki looked, dare they say it—relaxed. his jaw wasn’t clenched, his brows weren’t furrowed, and the usual aggressive boom of his steps was noticeably tamer.

hell, the man even had a post-nut glow so obvious. skin clear, posture loose, and zero unnecessary shouting.

no explosions. no immediate death threats. no one getting yelled at for breathing too loud.

everyone noticed.

by the time he made it to his desk, his coworkers were already exchanging looks, whispering amongst themselves like they’d just seen a miracle.

"uh…" one of his sidekicks was the first to cautiously approach. “sir. you good?”

katsuki just grunted, rolling his shoulders before cracking his neck. “feelin’ great, actually.”

and that’s when it clicked. a murmur spread through the office as realization slammed into them.

“you boned last night,” he stated, like it was the discovery of the century.

katsuki just smirked, grabbing some files off his desk. “what’s it to ya?”

the room erupted.

“holy shit, i forgot he could be normal—”

“i haven’t known peace in months.”

“oh my god, mrs bakugo katsuki, if you can hear this—thank you for your service!”

someone started clapping.

then, the entire office cheered.

‎‧₊˚✧[ it's me, kia ! ]✧˚₊‧ ｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ ‎‧₊˚✧[ more of katsuki ! ]✧˚₊‧

⋆˚࿔ kia's note ˚⋆ i think y'all know where this is inspired from but js in case, its from a sitcom named brooklyn 99 where this girl tells her boss he needs to bone his husband lmao😭 hope yall enjoyed!!

[just-your-average-tangerine]

I cant fucking do this anymore.

[rosemaryhoney27]

Phantom Manor

Danny had been through a lot. He’d been half-killed in a lab accident, gained ghost powers, and then been chased through the multiverse by a government that would’ve loved to dissect him like a frog in eighth-grade biology. So when the portal spat him out into this dimension—one packed with capes, cowls, metas, and aliens—he figured he’d finally caught a break.

No GIW agents. No Fenton parents shouting about ectoplasmic anomalies. No Skulker showing up to hunt him down in the middle of English class. Just... peace.

Well, almost.

The major snag? He was homeless. Again.

No ID, no money, and the last place he tried to haunt had been a warehouse with exactly three raccoons who did not appreciate his presence. He couldn’t go back to school, didn’t know how to get a job, and sleeping on rooftops got old fast, even for a ghost boy.

That was when Danny heard the most ridiculously useful rumor ever: Billionaire Bruce Wayne had a habit of adopting black-haired, blue-eyed children like it was a competitive sport.

And Danny? Well, he had black hair and blue eyes... at least half the time.

Good enough for government work.

So one night, in the dead of moonlight, Danny phased through the locked gates, passed the high-tech security system, and slipped straight into Wayne Manor. The place was huge, quiet, and oddly comfortable despite its bat-themed overtones. He didn’t even try to sneak around like a spy—he just floated through until he found an empty bedroom with a made bed, thick curtains, and a view of the garden.

He claimed it.

No one said anything.

So Danny just... stayed.

Danny didn’t mean to con anyone. It’s just that no one noticed him. He figured maybe there were already so many black-haired, blue-eyed kids around here that adding one more didn’t even make a blip on the radar. And since Jack and Maddie Fenton may not have taught their kids about interdimensional politics, they did make sure their kids had proper manners.

So, the first time he ate in the massive kitchen, he washed the dishes afterward. Alfred showed up just as Danny was drying the last fork, his sharp eyes watching from the doorway.

“...I see Master Grayson’s taste in midnight snacks has rubbed off on someone,” Alfred remarked.

Danny froze. “Uh—yeah. Sorry. Just thought I’d clean up after myself.”

The butler narrowed his eyes. Then nodded. “A rare instinct in this household. Continue.”

And from then on, it became a routine.

Danny helped in the kitchen. He helped clean the manor. He weeded the garden (phasing out any actual creepy-crawlies). He carried laundry baskets. He repaired a broken picture frame. When one of the Batmobiles needed a patch-up job on a fin, Danny phased into the engine and fixed it from the inside out while humming along to an old Ghostbusters theme remix.

Alfred was absolutely delighted with the newest, polite, respectful, and hard-working “Wayne.” Even if he had no earthly clue when exactly this young man had joined the family.

It took a few weeks before anyone realized something was off.

“Alfred,” Bruce said over breakfast one morning, “why is there an unfamiliar teenage boy pressure-washing the back patio with what looks like... green plasma?”

Alfred sipped his tea without looking up. “That’s Master Daniel. He’s been most helpful.”

“…We don’t have a Master Daniel.”

Alfred finally looked up, deadpan. “Master Bruce, I have tolerated you bringing home orphans like stray cats in the rain. The boy helps clean. He gardens. He fixed the coffee machine. I will not be chasing him out. Adopt him, give him a room, or be quiet about it.”

Bruce blinked. “...Fair.”

Meanwhile, Danny was just glad he hadn’t been blasted with a Batarang on sight.

He had a bed, food, quiet (well, relatively), and access to the Wayne library’s wi-fi. He was pretty sure Damian glared at him more than necessary and that Jason kept trying to figure out if Danny was secretly a zombie, but otherwise?

He was kind of fitting in.

At least until someone walked in on him halfway intangible while reaching through the fridge for leftover pie.

“…Master Daniel,” Alfred said from behind him, entirely unshaken. “If you are going to help with the silverware later, do remember to phase after you wash your hands.”

Danny, still half inside the fridge, stared.

“…Yes, sir.”

And thus, somehow, without anyone signing a single form or asking too many questions, Danny Fenton became the most ghostly Wayne sibling yet.

And honestly?

He was kinda cool with that.

[administer-distractions]

.

[anisespice]

“ baby steps ” || tokyo rev.

continuation of this post.

pairing: bonten x fem!reader [ mikey, ran, sanzu ]

warnings: mature content ahead. MDI. mature language, crude humor, ANGST w/ comfort (mostly in mikey's), deadbeat!bonten (unintentionally), not proof-read so there may be A LOT of errors :// mikey's is LONG, ran + sanzu's are silly goofy, mikey + sanzu's are a lil unhinged lol and i think that’s it :))

notes: can i just say thank y'all so much for showing "accidents happen" the love that i didn't think it would get, it was made on a whim so i'm so so so happy y'all enjoyed! i tagged as many as i could (or that tumblr would allow) sorry if i missed some of you :( thank you for your patience and let me know how you feel about this continuation format :) !! notes ii: also also, pt. 2 for "accidents happen" coming soon! notes iii: MY COMPUTER CRASHED AND I THOUGHT I LOST EVERYTHING BUT IT'S OKAY IT'S OKAY :'))))

tagged: @fantasycantasy , @illegalspacecow , @captaincyberqueen , @cherryblossiren , @niragiswhore , @awkwardaardvarkforever , @valentsoup , @lovely212 , @miffysoo , @yandere-kouhai , @i-am-just-a-girl-ur-honor , @wisteriarose214 , @kindadolly , @yuwaimo , @sweetbella1221 , @simpingfor-wakasa , @sirachano0dles , @yutahg , @slowlikehonee , @blurpleuni-squid , @haruchiyoreen , @istanstraykidss , @loyard176 , @msluccapotato , @luv444lay , @backgroundcharactera , @jegelskeranime

Ever since you picked up your daughter, there’s been a hovering presence that wouldn’t go away no matter where you went. From the park, to the grocery store, all the way home it clung to you like a bad itch. Despite looking over your shoulder and being met without any sort of threat, that didn’t stop the uneasy feeling. And it only intensified when you received a knock on your front door.

You made a confused hum, checking the time on the microwave to confirm that it was indeed past the reasonable hour for potential visitors. Not to mention, you weren’t expecting anyone.

The hairs on the back of your neck stood up, instincts telling you that something wasn’t right, that your best option was to pretend you weren’t home. However, the person on the other side knew otherwise as they knocked on the door again, this time with more fervor. You inhaled sharply, taking hesitant steps towards the door until you were mere feet away from it. Eventually, you worked up the courage to look through the peephole, your brows furrowing in distress when all you could see was black—They were covering it. All the more reason not to open the door…

What if it’s a robber? Ridiculous, they don’t knock.

What if it’s just the neighbor? Why cover the peephole?

More and more did your mind swirl with endless possibilities, each one becoming less and less believable. Taking a long, deep breath, you doubled-checked the door-chain was on before slowly cracking it open. And as you attempted to peek through the sliver, nothing could’ve prepared you for the arm that forced its way through, startling you as you yelped, stumbling back as it made a grab at you.

Before you had the thought of shoving the door closed on the offender’s arm they grabbed the little chain, then yanked it clean out of the wall. To your terror, a dark hooded figure entered your home, head hung low, concealing their identity.

You began to hyperventilate, backing up to keep distance as they staggered further into your home before kicking the door closed behind them, effectively blocking you from the exit. Surely, someone heard your scream and would check in, or call the police. But, how long did you have before the intruder decided to make a move? Not to mention, your sleeping child just down the hall…

With that last thought in mind, you immediately steeled your nerves.

Even if you had to use your bare hands, you were going to do whatever it took to keep your baby out of harms way.

You reached for the closest weapon without taking your eyes off the figure, hands clasping onto a discarded umbrella that was leaned up against a closet door. It wasn’t ideal, but it would have to do. Taking a defensive stance, you prepared for what you assumed to be the inevitable.

“I-I don’t know who you are, or what you want…b-but if you don’t leave…my..my boyfriend will be home any minute! H-He knows how to fight, and he’ll fuck you up if you try anything!”

Your means of intimation fall on deaf ears. It were as if you hadn’t spoken at all. They just…stood there. Watching you from the darkness. That feeling, that hovering presence you’d been weary about all evening…there was no doubt in your mind it was because of this individual. Suddenly, they gave a watery chuckle, hand coming up to rub the lower half of their face as the chilling noise dissipated into soft snickers.

You sweatdropped. “I mean it! He’ll be here real soon, so you better get out of here before-”

“[_____]…” the figure finally rasped, voice heavy with an emotion you couldn’t decipher in the moment. You froze, eyes widening.

“…How the hell do you know my name?”

Without much urgency, they stepped forward into the light. Beneath the warm glow, it took you mere seconds to recognize the person standing before you. You gasped, trembling hands dropping the umbrella, it landing with a harsh clatter. Soft, mortified hitches in your breath echoed through the small space, memories flashing before your eyes as you covered your gaping mouth.

“M.. Ma..” you whimpered, throat tightening. A shell of a man, who gazed upon you with stormy eyes flooded with tears at the mere sight of you.

He gave another strained laugh, muttering to himself as he soaked you all in. “Needed to know.. Needed to know it was really you…”

Mikey eyed you up, intensely, eerily silent as he did so. Then, he took in the surroundings, the warmth, the interior, the smell of dinner—It truly felt like a home. A bitter pill to swallow once he reminded himself that you built it without him.

His sharp gaze returned to your stunned expression. He sneered.

“Must’ve been easy for you. To forget me and move on, just like that. Like I was nothing.”

You blinked, taken aback. All you could do was remain speechless, cemented to the ground with thoughts and questions racing in your head. Now matter how many times you opened your mouth, no sound would come out aside from choked whimpers.

“Do you know…how long I’d been searching for you? Been mourning for you?” He hissed through clenched teeth. “When you left, I thought… I thought someone had taken you. That I lost you all because I was too stubborn to say I’m sorry…”

As he spoke, Mikey slowly closed the space between you. The more he came into the light, the more you could see how the years had treated him. His cheekbones were more pronounced, the dark circles under his eyes as well. His lips were dry, cracked, his fair skin now ghoulishly pale. If not for the black hoodie you would’ve mistaken him as such; ghost of your past.

Your shoulders shook, hands hovering over your face as you gaped in disbelief. He’d been looking for you?

That night, that stupid fight you could barely remember…he made it crystal clear that he wanted nothing to do with you. He pushed you away. Pushed so hard that you almost believed he really wouldn’t have cared if you dropped dead. You knew he didn’t mean it, knew it was just another dark impulse…but none of that mattered when all your pregnancy tests came back positive just hours prior.

That night, you made the decision for the sake of your daughter. And also, for his sake. At the time, you were certain he wasn’t ready to be a father. He was quick to rage, merciless, losing himself to the darkness you tried to protect him from. If you had stayed, you were certain Mikey would’ve never forgiven himself if he lost control in front of his own flesh and blood, if the child grew to resent him for something he struggled to control.

You thought you were doing him a favor…but it appears to have done the opposite.

“And this whole time…you’ve been here, alive. Playing fucking house with someone else.”

You stiffened. Someone else? Your visible confusion only irritated him further.

He scoffed. “Don’t play dumb. You said it yourself. Too bad he won’t be coming home anytime soon. I’ve already got Sanzu and the Haitanis looking around for the bastard. And when they find him, I’ll make him regret sticking his filthy dick inside you.”

Confusion morphed into realization. You did threaten him with said hypothetical boyfriend…But, that was before you knew it was him!

“Oh, Manjiro…” you whispered. He glared, scorned.

“Don’t you dare pity me. I mean, you got the family you always wanted, right? So who cares who it was with, right? Congratu-fucking-lations.”

You shook your head, exhaling deeply as you held your face in your hands. For years, he thought you dead. Then, when he received word of your appearance, he finds you with child. And not once did he consider that child to be his? It’s like…he couldn’t fathom the thought.

If only he had looked just a little bit closer, he would’ve seen that she had his eyes. How they resembled those pools of ink that used to shine with so much hope back in his youth, so playful and full of love…those same eyes that now gazed upon you with contempt.

It stung.

He thought so low, not only of himself, but of you as well.

Taking a deep breath to reel in your emotions, tears began to well up in your eyes. He assumed they were tears for your doomed lover, further breaking his heart as Mikey clenched his fists to the point of nearly drawing blood. Luckily, even though you struggled to find the right words, someone else happily found them for you.

“Papa..?”

Both of you instantly drew your attention on the toddler standing near the kitchen, one fist clutching her blanket while the other rubbed the sleep from her eye. You glanced at Mikey, and he was stiller than stone. His once dead-stare had morphed into what could only be described as incredulous. Surely, he heard her incorrectly…

With a sniffle, you crouched down to address her, offering a soft grin as you nodded earnestly. “That’s right, sweetheart. Papa’s finally come home.”

The little girl blinked sleepily, taking a second to reboot. But, as soon as the words registered, a bright smile stretched across her face as she excitedly rushed towards Mikey, throwing herself onto his legs and hugging them like a koala as she chirped, “Papa, home!”

Said man hobbled a bit at the force, arms windmilling as he caught himself to keep from falling backwards. He didn’t know what to do with himself, especially when those big, round pools of ink opened and stared right up into his soul. Mikey’s heart nearly stopped. With a hitch in his breath, the gangster did everything he could to hold his composure, looking between you and the child as you both gazed at him with so much warmth…it was suffocating.

Sensing he was overwhelmed, you reached down to scoop up the bubbly bundle, holding her close as you eyed Mikey, apprehensively.

He resembled a cornered animal—Muscles stiff, jaw tight, eyes wild. After a moment, Mikey began to slowly back away into the shadows of your home, conflicted, devastated. It wasn’t until his back hit the door did he eventually fall to his ass, of which caused your child to giggle at how silly he was being. However, all you could do was hold back tears, watching as the reality started to weigh down on a man who just discovered he was a father.

Nervous, you gently explained. “I didn’t leave you because of our spat, Jiro…and I never moved on. I just…thought that I’d be doing more harm than good sticking around when I found out I was pregnant…I didn’t want to add any more stress on your plate, so I…”

Mikey didn’t respond. He sat there, stare vast and unfocused. But, you knew he hung on to every word. So you continued. “I wanted to tell you. But…I wasn’t sure how. At the time, I believed you had stopped caring about me altogether. And to hear you’d been looking for me, I-I’m…I’m so sorry. I’m sorry you harbored all that guilt. I didn’t mean for any of that to happen.”

Your daughter wiggled around in your hold, making small grunts in complaint. Her eyes were trained on his figure huddled in the dark, wanting to be acknowledged, wanting his attention. “Papa!”

Mikey flinched. He focused his gaze on the two you, haloed by the light emitting from the living room. You both were like salvation, reaching down to a broken sinner…How could she want anything to do with him? When he had missed so much already…

To keep from accidentally dropping her, you placed your daughter back on the ground, watching wearily as she wobbled all the way to Mikey, blanket in tow. You weren’t worried about him hurting her, far from it…if anything, he appeared to be the fragile one.

Eventually, she made it to her destination, standing before him with a curious, but eager expression as she rested a hand on his knee. Mikey watched her, took in all of her features, every last detail as he engraved it to memory. She was beautiful, just like her mother. One would think his genes didn’t stand a chance. But the eyes. That was all him. From his mother to his older brother to himself, there was no doubt in his mind that those were Sano eyes.

His lower lip quivered, reaching out hesitantly to caress her cheek. She didn’t cower away, merely babbled as she began patting his knee, allowing his thumb to rub over her chubby cheek. You clasped your hands over your mouth, growing even more emotional at the delicate moment. Mikey looked enamored already, eyes subtly sparkling from what you could see as they interacted.

“I-I told her stories, about you. And I made sure to show her photos, too. Old ones, but still you nonetheless. I wanted her to know who her father truly was. Despite everything else…”

Your daughter cooed, then placed her blanket in Mikey’s lap before climbing into it. Mikey didn’t dare move, rigid as she made herself comfortable. He looked up at you, looking for guidance, for reassurance. Your encouraging smile was enough for him to hesitantly place his hands on her small back for support, carefully adjusting so that she was stable. She laid her head on his chest and stuck her thumb in her mouth, sighing contentedly.

And, for the first time in years, he smiled.

When you hadn’t seen her familiar pigtails bobbing around, or heard any of her excited chatter with the receptionist up front, worry couldn’t even begin to describe what you felt the moment you realize…your daughter wasn’t here.

As soon as the meeting looked like it was wrapping up, you politely excused yourself from the room. Masking your worry wasn't too difficult, but there's no doubt a couple people might've noticed the spring in your step as you exited. One of them being Rindou Haitani. He watched you speed down the hall with mild interest, corner of his mouth ticking up ever so slightly as he thumbed around on his phone beneath the table. Having been updating his older brother during the meeting while he was on his smoke break, he was more than eager to inform him of the storm that was no doubt heading his way.

Little did the younger Haitani know, he was already dealing with one.

"And then, Haruka-kun tries to take Momo-kun's bento box because she had cuter animal shapes, but Momo-kun already said no, and so Haruka-kun pushes Momo-kun, and then tries to take it! But I pushed him and hit him with my fist, like this," she clenched up her tiny fist and held it up to Ran before striking down on his forearm with all her might. It didn't even pitch. "Like that."

The lavender-eyed man merely gazed upon her with mirth. "Did you now?"

"Mmhm! And teacher got so mad, and said that she would tell Ma about me fighting, but she's stupid because Ma didn't pick me up today, and I told Haruka-kun if he snitches, I'll beat 'em up!"

Ran lowly whistled. "Quite the little menace, ain'tcha?"

She pumped her fists. "Yeah!" Then, she paused, holding a finger to her chin in thought. "Wait...what's a menace?"

"Ah, something you inherited from your old man." He ruffled her hair, much to her displeasure. Though her innocent jab earlier regarding his age still hit a sore spot, he was starting to like the sound of it. She, on the other hand, wasn't convinced.

"I already told you; Ma was on her happy juice when she said that. She said not to believe anything she says when she's on happy juice. It makes her do silly things."

Ran chuckled. He knew that all too well. The little girl wouldn't be in this world if not for your inability to hold your liquor. But judging based on how you've raised her so far, clearly you made the right decision keeping him in the dark.

He'll admit, he wasn't the best in terms of commitment. Throughout his day to day, Ran just didn't have the energy. With being in Bonten, keeping an eye out for his younger brother, handling business, dealing with numbskulls and disposing of their bodies, there was never a time to even consider settling down. One-night stands and on and off flings were the easiest choice. At least, until he stumbled upon you.

You were the whole package and more. Classy, independent, witty, and a looker to top it all off. When Bonten started collaborating with the organization you worked in, he couldn't help but to be drawn to you—Like a moth to a flame. It started out as the occasional bantering, trying to one-up the other, catch them off guard. Ran was smooth with his words but could never quite beat your sharp tongue. Thus, things escalated to something more flirtatious. Harmless, but it didn't take long before the months of tension between the both of you began boiling over...and throwing alcohol into the mix, it was the first time Ran finally felt like he had the upper hand. Seeing how poorly you handled just a few glasses of wine, it endeared him. Seeing a piece of you that no one else had the privilege to witness. Your sloppy side, the clumsy, whiny, touchy side. After that long, passionate night beneath the sheets, the one time you and Ran allowed yourselves the space to be vulnerable with one another...you found yourself pregnant. And Ran found himself being nonethewiser.

He wonders, if he hadn't left the next morning and completely ghosted you...would you have kept him in the picture?

Suddenly, his phone dings. Reaching back to pull it from his back pocket, Ran half expected it to just be another update on the meeting or Rindou cursing at him to hurry his ass back inside. But, it wasn't that at all. And at the sound of your kitten heels rushing out of the building and halting at the top of the steps, Ran didn't even need to look up to know who was glowering down from them.

"Hey, Ma! Guess what, the purple man isn't such a meanie after all!"

Ran snorted, finally looking up from his phone to greet the woman who not only still had his heart, but evidently his first child. You, on the other hand, weren't so thrilled to see him.

"Rika. Wait inside. Ma's got some words for the purple man."

He smirked. "Wanna say 'em over a glass of wine?"

"You son of a-!"

"Bad word!" Your daughter covered her ears. You flushed, your composure nearly slipping just by being in his prescence. Ran, immediately seeing the opportunity, teasingly pouts at you whilst covering her tiny hands with his larger ones, shielding her.

"Honey, please, not in front of the child. Can't have her repeating those dirty words at school, can we?"

You fumed, speaking through clenched teeth. "Haitani, as soon as I get her in this building, away from you, I swear to God, I'm gonna wring your neck."

He hummed, amused. "Well. Guess she didn't get her violent side from me after all. Speaking of which, did you know at school today-"

"Hey! No snitching!"

“...What did you say?” 

You were hoping you heard the teacher wrong. Surely it was just your exhaustion taking the wheel. But, when her kind smile didn’t falter, nor did her gushes for the supposed “adorable display”, you immediately grew suspicious.

While heading home from work, you went to pick up your children from daycare. And when you arrived, the teacher merely informed you that it was already taken care of by your very handsome and very devoted husband. 

“I-I think you’re mistaken. My boyfriend and I aren’t married…”

The teacher, finally coming back down to earth, tilted her head in confusion. “Eh? You aren’t?” 

“Did he…say we were?” 

“Well, no. I just assumed since it was easy to tell who he was here for. Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy.”

You choked on your spit.  Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy. Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy.

You did everything in your power to keep from strangling the poor woman. Sure, she didn’t do anything wrong per say…but she sure did make a grave error. And your struggle to restrain your intrusive thoughts must’ve shown on your face from the way she placed a concerned hand on your arm. “Are you alright, miss? You look like you’re about to faint.”

“M-Mhm, yep, great, just peachy.” You squeaked through clenched teeth, sweatdrop on your forehead. “Could you um…confirm something for me?”

“Uh.? Er, sure. I’ll try my best.”

With tense shoulders and a tight smile, you asked, “Their…father…did his mouth have two scars in the corners?”

The teacher blinked, confused. Shouldn’t you already know that answer yourself?, she was probably thinking. And she would be right; you did know. But her simple, hesitant nod was the final nail in the coffin that was your delusion—Haruchiyo Sanzu had found you. And to make matters worse, he had the children.

Your smile faltered, twitching ever so slightly. Covering it with a forced chuckle, you cried, “Oh, that’s..wonderful! He’s always been self conscious about them, and I’m j-just.. beaming with joy that he’s embracing them more. Have a nice evening, Ms. Yuki.”

The teacher didn’t get a chance to respond as you quickly turned on your heel and began speed walking home. You’d apologize for your abrupt exit another day…right now there were more important matters to worry about. For instance—How on earth did Sanzu find you? How did he know about the twins and where they were? Oh, God…did he know about Satoru?

Dialing him up a few times only for the calls to go straight to voicemail weren’t reassuring in the slightest, having you rush across oncoming traffic just so you could avoid any further delays for your fraying nerves. You could see your apartment complex up ahead, heart thumping in your throat at the familiar, black SUV parked a couple blocks down. Had it not been for the heavily tinted windows and no license plates, you probably would’ve overlooked it. He knew where you lived. Stomach in knots, muscles stiff, nerves shot. You didn’t know whether to feel relieved or devastated. Your kids were safe at home, but at what cost? You stood in front of the building, rooted to the ground. Despite mentally preparing for this exact scenario for years, it all went down the drain the second you went to that daycare and discovered your children were missing.

It wasn’t until your phone vibrated did you snap out of your thoughts, shakily pulling the device out of your back pocket to check the notification.

from : unknown 1:06 pm     “ hi, mama.~ ”

Your stomach twisted. Attached to the message were two photos.

The first photo was of your kids eating McDonald's in the kitchen, happily cheesing and waving at the camera. You couldn't hold your choked gasp, hand coming up to hold your quivering lower lip—They were safe.

The second photo...was of Satoru. Tied to a chair, gagged, and beaten senseless. And standing behind him, holding him by his hair so that he could pose for the camera, grinning like a cheshire cat...

Another message pops up. Your grip tightened around your phone.

from : unknown 1:09 pm " daddy's home.~ "

© 2024-2025 anisespice ッ all rights reserved. likes, comments & reblogs much appreciated!

[hoonatic]

emergency contact | park sunghoon x reader

prompt: weeks after your breakup, sunghoon finds out that he’s still your emergency contact. pairing: non-idol sunghoon x implied female reader genre: angst with hopeful/happy? ending; second chance romance??; exes to lovers??? word count: 2800 note: i’ve had a cute fic idea that i wanted to write forever…but this is not it. the sad demons have visited me once again. hope y’all enjoy nevertheless and any feedback is much appreciated <3

sunghoon was miserable. 

it had been three weeks, five days, two hours, and thirty-two minutes since the two of you had gone no contact.

he wished he could say he was happy to be single, that he was no longer “locked down” and “whipped” as his friends had always called him. but the so-called “freedom” felt like hell since it meant losing you.

at first, he kept telling himself that time would heal the pain. “it’s natural,” he had repeated like a mantra, “she was your best friend and lover for years.” but no, this heartbreak was inhumane. his desire to see you, apologize endlessly, and spend days holding you until you could feel every ounce of his love was gnawing at his soul. if anything, it got worse by the minute.

he had tried so hard to balance work and the rest of his life, using the excuse several times that he was securing this future for your shared life with him. that one day, you’d be able to reap the rewards of his efforts and live comfortably together without stress.

but what was the use of all of that now? the future he had worked so hard to create was ripped out from his hands by no one other than himself. 

you had accused him of being too busy for you. dates canceled at the last minute, a birthday forgotten, and all the texts left on read had built up to the argument that ended it all. he was always good at fighting, a little too good. he had retorted that you weren’t being supportive, and he was never one to sugarcoat his words. his tongue was sharp, and he did nothing to dull its blade.

but there wasn’t too much yelling on your part, and he thought that that hurt more. he wanted you to fight back, to stand your ground because he knew deep down that he was being the asshole. his toxic thought was that by you fighting back, this meant that you were still fighting for your relationship. but instead, you just stared with silent tears and a blank expression. seeing the indifference in eyes that had previously held so much love was a sight that would stay with him forever. so, in fear of you leaving, he ran instead.

he was a coward, leaving your shared home to run back to the apartment he had still technically owned but hadn’t lived in for more than a year. he locked himself away for a few days, but the realization that you hadn’t attempted to contact him burned more than he could put into words. you were done with him. he had hurt you, had the audacity to be the one to run, and now he had lost you.

he had even run from his job. he couldn’t stand to walk into the same building he stayed in when he forgot dates with you. his coworkers wouldn’t stop asking what happened to him, why he looked so rough. he even found an empty container that had once held lunch you made for him. but his final straw was getting promoted. his first instinct was to call you, but he remembered the sad truth before he could dial. any ounce of pride was washed away with shame in that moment. that same day, he quit without notice.

so there he was: miserable, alone, and unemployed with nothing left to run from but memories. he had spent the last week going through his phone and saving your pictures together in a locked album. he wouldn’t dare delete them, but he couldn’t stomach looking at you either.

he wished he could get drunk and sleep away the pain. he had tried, he definitely did - but that night, he dreamt of you. you were smiling at first, eyes ever full of love. you were speaking, yet he couldn’t hear you. but he could see how your words started to gradually look sadder, and slowly, tears started to fall as your grin dropped. he woke up that next morning crying with the conclusion that he would have to face this heartbreak sober.

but another day of scrolling through albums had stopped abruptly when he saw the notification that changed everything.

SOS i called emergency services from this approximate location after my watch detected a hard fall. you are receiving this message because i have you listed as my emergency contact.

sunghoon had to remind himself to breathe.

he had purchased that watch for you as a “just because” present months ago. you had complained of bad sleep and he wanted you to use it as a way to track your slumber. he hated seeing you tired. he knew that the watch had a fall detection function, but it had never been used before.

his heart was in his stomach as he went to his favorite contacts page and selected your name for the first time in weeks.

“please,” he begged, all notion of running away from you leaving his brain, “pick up please.”

but you just weren’t answering. so he tried again and again and again.

for a moment while the line attempted to connect, he wondered if this was how he had made you feel for months - desperate for a sliver of attention from him. but instead, he was desperate for a sign of life.

finally, after about two minutes of trying to reach you, his body moved of its own accord. before he knew it, his car keys were in his hands and he was out the door.

the car ride there might have been the worst part. the speed at which he drove at almost defied the laws of physics. other drivers were cursing at him but he wasn’t registering anything except the thought of your safety. he just needed to get to you.

why did he run? why didn’t he try to talk it out? if he was so afraid of losing you, why did he do the one thing that would guarantee that? he should have been there like he promised to be from the beginning. you would have been safe with him.

when he pulled up to the house you had shared for so long, he suddenly felt the world slow down. why were emergency services there? you should’ve canceled them by now.

he had to double park as the ambulance was blocking the driveway. why were they here?

the emts and police had arrived at the same time as him, which both increased his anxiety and soothed him. for one, that meant he had been quick enough. but why did you need them?

“sir, do you know–” an officer had approached him as he stumbled to the front door. all he could understand was your name. why were they asking if he knew you? of course he knew you. you, the love of his life. you, his soulmate by every meaning of the word. you were you. and you were safe.

as if sensing his distress, he felt an emt worker pull him to the side as the same officer prepared to break down the door. seeing this, sunghoon finally returned to his senses.

“w-wait! sorry, i have a key.” sunghoon’s hands were shaking. the only way that door had unlocked was by pure muscle memory because he didn’t understand what he was doing at all.

as soon as the door opened, sunghoon tried to step in. finally, he was close to you. 

the officer, however, pulled him back.

“sir, you should wait here. we need to make an initial search before you can go in.”

“what, why? if she’s in there, i want to see–”

“sir, it’s just in case we find something we wouldn’t want you to see.”

all of sunghoon’s hesitation and fear went out the window at those words. his body flew automatically as he ran inside.

he screamed your name as he rushed in, ignoring the yells of the police officers who followed him in. as it had been for almost four weeks, his only thought was you. he just needed you.

he checked the ground floor first, eyes scanning the open space in less than a second as his body avoided an officer trying to grab him. sunghoon then moved to the staircase, long legs prepared to skip steps to reach you. then suddenly, he heard the voice his ears had been longing for,

“sunghoon?!”

his head shot up. there you were, finally. he saw the sadness, confusion, and fear all flash your face as you registered the emergency workers behind him. you looked exhausted and unruly, but he had never felt more in love.

he didn’t even remember climbing the steps, but suddenly he was at the top of the staircase and you were in his arms. 

you could feel him trembling as he held you. you took his face into your hands to look at him, “sunghoon? what’s wrong? why are you here? is it my parents? is someone hurt?” you watched as his mouth opened but no words came out. after a few seconds, one of the officers spoke from the bottom of the steps,

“ma’am, we received an alert from your device that a hard fall had occurred.”

suddenly, you understood everything. taking sunghoon’s hand gently, you led him down the stairs, afraid he’d fall from shock. he followed you silently, but his grip tightened seemingly with every step.

that’s when you noticed your shattered watch on the third step.

you let sunghoon go and you could hear his deep breath when you did. you picked up the watch and offered it up to the officer as an explanation, “i’m sorry officer, it looks like there’s been a misunderstanding…”

the officer nodded in understanding, and dismissed the emts, “got it, ma’am. we will still need a formal report for our records since this was registered as an emergency call.” he motioned to your couch as he took out a pen and paper.

you reached for sunghoon’s hand once more and led him to sit with you. in the moment, you knew he needed you more than you would ever understand. so, as you explained to the officer, you held his trembling hand, rubbing soothing circles with your thumb.

“i was doing laundry here downstairs and had taken off my watch to prevent it from getting wet,” you recounted, “i put it on top of the basket of clothes that i took upstairs. i remember tripping a little going up the stairs - i didn’t fall, but that must’ve been when the watch fell."

"what about your phone, where is it? i'm sure your boyfriend must've tried to call you."

sunghoon slowly nodded at that, turning to look at you. you smiled sheepishly, "i left it upstairs and it was on silent while i folded the clothes. i’m so sorry for the inconvenience.”

after finishing up your statement, the remaining officer prepared to leave. as he walked out the door, he gave a soft smile to the both of you,

“glad to see it was a false alarm, ma’am. you had this gentleman quite worried - ran so fast i couldn’t even grab him!” the officer laughed, “you two have a nice day now! sorry about your watch, though!”

after he shut your door, the silence enveloped your home. you closed your eyes and breathed deeply to prepare to speak to your ex-boyfriend. but as soon as you opened them, sunghoon started to cry softly.

he hugged you tighter than he ever had, and soon enough, his face was buried in your neck. his cries were silent, but you could feel his body shaking as his tears soaked your shirt.

“sunghoon…” you started, stroking his back, “i’m sorry i worried you, honey.”

you knew you shouldn’t be calling your ex pet names, especially an ex that had run from you without properly ending the relationship. but your heart still held so much love for him that it flowed out naturally. and you knew he was crying from more than just worry, so you doubt he minded at all in the moment.

his crying slowed down as his arms took to loosely wrapping around your waist instead. he pulled away from your neck to rest his forehead on yours. from this angle, you could see his swollen eyes and red nose - a sight so rare in all the years you had dated. he was never a crier after all.

but memories of several late-night conversations rushed your mind. he always said his number one fear was your death, and now you could see he had never lied about that.

he could see your mind go elsewhere so he called your name softly, “don’t say you’re sorry. i’m so happy, these are relieved tears. and i just really, really missed you.” he croaked out. you knew he had more to say, so you just nodded, letting him go on.

“and i’m sorry, baby. for everything. i shouldn’t have run, i shouldn’t have tried to egg you on to fight me back. i shouldn’t have even fought anything you said that night. you were right. i didn’t prioritize you. in my attempt to secure you for life, i let you go instead. i’m so sorry, i never wanted to break up.” he was rambling in earnest now, afraid that no words would make you take him back.

you listened quietly as he went on for a few minutes after that, hand continuing to rub his back, “i know honey, i know.”

“baby, you need to understand that i almost died thinking you almost died today,” you could’ve laughed at how dramatically he spoke, “i couldn’t breathe right thinking that our last conversation could’ve been an argument. that you wouldn't have ever known just how deeply i love you and need you. i have so much regret for how i treated you, but if you’d give me the chance, i have all the time in the world to make it up to you…let’s go on that vacation i promised you. we can leave tomorrow if you’d like.” he smiled hopefully at you.

“hoon,” his heart soared at the use of his beloved nickname, “what do you mean? don’t you have work? can you really leave with such short notice?”

“i quit my job.”

“excuse me?”

“no job that made me work that much is worth it. i’ll find one with better work-life balance…after our vacation. if that’s what you still want of course…” he spoke more quietly, as if afraid of rejection.

you sighed. you really should be realistic with this - you two had been broken up for a few weeks at that point. you knew the love was still there, but was this a good decision?

while there was still some hesitation on your part, you couldn't help but notice how gingerly he held you. his arms were still around your waist loosely, yet there was something desperate about their hold. you knew he was holding back from hurting you - you could tell how tightly he wanted to hug you.

he was so shaken up at the idea of you being hurt that he rushed over there despite the two of you not being on speaking terms. for someone who had trouble communicating how he felt sometimes, you knew his actions spoke louder than words. he always acted brave, but there was so much he feared. and you knew losing you was always at the top of this list.

you could also feel how he was simply soaking in the sight of your face. his eyes were shy, yet determined. he wasn't going to risk missing another second of staring at you. a part of you grew conscious, but you knew he was just taking in what he had missed for weeks.

“what about…” you started and almost giggled at how he perked up, “we take it slow - another two weeks or so to talk everything out and relax? to get us to a good place again before you hold me hostage in some foreign country?”

sunghoon smiled softly, kissing your forehead. you leaned in naturally to his warmth, to his touch that you missed so much. “that sounds like a great idea, love.” he spoke, “we’ll get you a new watch too. and i’ll do all the itinerary planning and packing whenever you’re ready, okay? i love you.”

“okay. and i love you too. can’t wait to enjoy your unemployment with you for now!”

one smile and nod from you had him taking you into his arms once more, relishing in your being. he was back where he belonged. he had experienced the scariest reminder ever that he needed you, and sunghoon was never letting you go now.

[strwberri-milk]

can you make a scenario where MC called the LI’s during night then she’s crying and sobbing mess through the call? i wanna see how would they react <3

honestly i love these LMAOO also totally you shuold check out midnight blues!! its a raf fic i wrote thats got a similar premise to this

Zayne's first response is going to be to get you to cry a little less so he can figure out what the problem is. He'll try to give you a task to focus on - naming something you can see, smell, feel, etc. until you're able to speak with him. He hates that he's caught at work right now but also glad that at least he's on call while in the hospital so he technically has a moment between operations at this point in time. He'll sit with you as long as he can on the phone until you calm down, setting the phone beside him as he works to give your tired brain something else to focus on. If he's able to he'll drive over to your home to comfort you, holding you securely against his chest and running a gentle hand along your back.

Xavier is by your side in an instant. He immediately scoops you up in your arms - and you're so confused as to how he got there so quickly that you just. Stop crying. That doesn't stop him from comforting you though, his soft voice definitely great for some bedtime ASMR as he talks to you about anything he can think of. He...doesn't have much to say because he's not a big talker but you appreciate how hard he's trying.

Rafayel's going to want to be by your side - just depends on where he is. If he can, he'll drive right over to you and keep you company but if he's across the world then he'll stay on the phone with you and talk your ear off, definitely loud and distracting enough for you to fall asleep again. He only feels his heart settle when your breathing does too, watching/listening to you sleep with a soft smile.

Sylus is going to be at your side too - just not as quickly as Xavier is. He'll come by with some small treats but primarily, his focus is to hold you close and press soft kisses to your forehead. He'll tease you a little for needing him so badly but that's only to make you laugh and smile, internally feeling incredibly happy that your instinct is indeed to seek him out.

[nxtt2-u]

kink headcanons ft. OT8 SKZ !

content info — ot8 (individual) x afab!reader, 3.6k words, smut, established relationship in all scenarios

content warnings — nsfw, a shit ton of kinks and scenarios about them, kinks will not be specified to prevent spoiling, swearing, intentional lowercase

notes — this was actually meant for kinktober ‘24, but i clearly never got around to finishing it… whoops. here we are a whopping four months later; enjoy! not proofread. 18+ only, mdni.

★ ──── BANGCHAN

a switch, but leans heavily on the dominant side. usually a service dom, but can get a little mean sometimes.

⤷ BREEDING.

chan gets off so badly to the fantasy of fucking his babies into you. one night when he’s pounding into you with a condom on, he begins to babble when his orgasm draws near — “you’d look so fucking gorgeous all round with my children, baby, fuck!” and you clamp down on him so hard he has half the mind to think his cock might snap in half as he experiences the strongest orgasm of his life. so yeah, it’s safe to say you got on birth control right away & threw away all condoms after that.

⤷ PRAISE.

he loves to whisper sweet things into your ear as he gently pushes into your cunt from behind after a busy schedule. chan loves how you gush around him when his murmured words, coated in sickeningly sweet honey, flow into your ears as he wholly takes you apart with his hands and cock. he loves it even more when you praise him as well! it has a special effect on him when you’re riding him especially — the praise sends his dick jerking within your tight heat as his knees wobble and he keens into where his face is mushed between your tits.

⤷ FACE FUCKING.

this man loathes to hurt you, but when you give him head one time and he accidentally thrusts too deep into your mouth, he can’t help the way he positively throbs at the wet click your throat gives when it constricts around his tip. when you feel the twitch, you moan & quickly pull off just to give him permission to fuck your throat before taking his cock back into your mouth and waiting patiently. the sight and sound of you deepthroating him is so erotic that when he comes, he genuinely gets lightheaded and has to sit down afterward before he collapses from the intensity of his orgasm.

⤷ BONUS!

his fav position is definitely riding. quick, act surprised! he loves to see you work up a sweat in his lap while you struggle to take his cock to the hilt. its so endearingly hot, the way you plea and whine for him to help you work his dick inside, but he just chuckles n pats your ass as a signal to keep going. maybe, if he feels merciful enough, he’ll flip you over when your legs really do give out and pound you til you’re full of his cum.

★ ──── MINHO

dom & brat tamer. has subbed only once with you and liked it so much he got too scared to try it again.

⤷ BONDAGE.

minho often restrains your wrists with his belt or a silk tie he owns when you get particularly bratty with him. he holds them behind your back as he slams into you from behind, and the sight of you restrained just for him, creaming all over his cock despite the rough treatment he loves to dish out, has him seeing stars when he pulls out to come on your back.

⤷ IMPACT PLAY.

it’s no secret minho loves ass: slapping ass, grabbing ass, pretty much anything to do with ass. so it’s no surprise when his palm harshly crashes down on the supple curve of your cheeks when he gives you backshots for the first time. you jolt at the sudden sting, though it burns wonderfully when he does it again. and again. and again, until your skin is red and thoroughly raw once he’s done with you. as your relationship goes on, he eventually begins to slap your pretty face as well, though he’s much more gentle about that. on your rear, however? no mercy.

⤷ SOMNOPHILIA.

min loves nothing more than coming home to you dozing peacefully in those specific sleep shorts, a sign you’re his for the night. even if he’s horribly exhausted from a long day, the sight of you deep asleep and utterly pliant for him has the cogs in his mind gearing into something primal with how much arousal shoots to his cock. he wastes no time in prowling across the room to harshly push the gusset of the fabric aside and immediately slide himself home when he discovers you’re commando and already soaking wet. there’s no way you stay asleep at such rough handling, of course, but that won’t make him stop anytime soon!

⤷ BONUS!

he enjoys anal. when you were out the house, he took one of your dildos in secret and experimented with it on his own, and came out pleasantly surprised. not only does he enjoy it with himself, he also loves anal with you — especially when he gets home after a long day of work to find you all dolled up for him. his cock jerks in his pants when he reaches down to grope your ass in appreciation, only to discover a plug snug between your cheeks. he’d never admit it out loud, but it gets him super riled up to see the way your hole gapes and sputters when he’s done with you.

★ ──── CHANGBIN

a switch, but leans slightly onto the subby side.

⤷ FREE USE.

bin loves to see when you come home from a long, frustrating day at work. he loves to see your eyes darken when you notice the special bracelet on his wrist that shares an unmistakable sign between the two of you, and he loves it even more when you storm across the living room to shove him back onto the couch and pop open the button of his jeans without a word to sink down on his cock like you own it, own him. nothing else gets him harder than when you simply take and use him like your own personal toy!

⤷ PEGGING.

although he does enjoy pegging, the two of you don’t dabble in this often — simply because you much prefer his cock down your throat or in your pussy, milking him dry. but when he does feel subby enough to offer his ass up, it usually leads to very tender lovemaking rather than hard, rough sex. he just gets so soft and needy in this headspace when you peg him, so eager to feel good! in missionary, he often pops a tit into his mouth to softly suckle at as you thrust into him leisurely from above. but it’s never long before he starts babbling and begging you for more!

⤷ ROLEPLAY.

something about taboo roleplays get binnie going like no other: age gaps, power imbalances, and even cheating get his cock rock hard in seconds when the two of you play in the bedroom. recently, the two of you had roleplayed as professor and student. “ah, professor, are you sure this is the best way to get extra credit..?” you’d peered down at him as he eased your short skirt and panties down your legs, chuckling at your bashful behavior. “of course, bun,” he’d sighed, leaning in to press a kiss to your sopping core before meeting your eyes again with a smirk. “your grades will be up in no time if you just spread those pretty legs for your professor, hm? now go on, i’m waiting.”

⤷ BONUS!

loves double penetration, both on him and you. it drives him crazy to see you struggle to take both his coke can of a cock in your cunt and a silicone replica of it down your throat at the same time. watching your cheeks hollow obscenely around the replica has his cock kicking within your walls as you moan around it, and it quickly has him bending your legs to your chest to pound you properly. on the flip side of the coin, he loves how full he feels when you plug his ass and fuck his throat with your strap; it gets his head all floaty n pliant for you in a heartbeat!

★ ──── HYUNJIN

walking definition of a switch. sadist & masochist. can get pretty bratty when he subs.

⤷ BREATH PLAY.

hyunjin loves the tantalizing pressure of your palm against his neck, especially when you ride him so hard he’s practically seeing stars. whether that’s from how hard your ass is slamming down onto his muscled thighs or from the growing asphyxiation, he’s too deliciously lightheaded to even think about it when the two of you go hard like this in bed. when you give his neck one generous squeeze, it has his whole body locking up and him coming instantly with no warning other than a broken, guttural cry. on the other hand, he gets an intense power trip when he chokes you — the way your jaw drops as you gasp for breath when his grip tightens and your pretty eyes roll back to show the whites is so intoxicating to him! he’ll never be able to get enough of the sight.

⤷ TEMPERATURE PLAY.

the way you squirm beneath him is just so cute when hyune rubs ice across your perky nipples while his hot, hard cock spears you open at the same time! when the cubes slip off your breasts onto the sheets beside you, the warmth of his breath fanning over the cold area when he leans down has you squealing and kicking your legs out in protest — but he catches those easily and wraps them around his slender waist to laugh down at how sensitive and responsive you are for him.

⤷ COCK & BALL TORTURE.

the delicious sting hyunjin feels when you slap his cock sends his body shuddering and eyes rolling. his toes curl when you tug harshly on his sensitive balls before rearing your hand back to smack the head of his weeping cock, forcing his hips to kick off the bed with the searing pleasure-pain that has his brain reeling and nervous system going haywire. especially loves when you bust out some cock rings — it’s a perfect night for him when you ride his cock raw, denying him of his orgasm while you have your fun, until he can finally cum inside after hours of his balls being squeezed tight to stave off his orgasm.

BONUS!

big big big fan of markings, both on himself and you! he’s constantly biting marks into the tender skin just below your boobs and the soft inner areas of your thighs when he goes down on you. he really loves it when he gets time off so you can mark him up properly on his neck, particularly below his jaw, so he can go a few days without having to conceal it with makeup and wear and flaunt them properly. his favorite place to mark you, though, is your hips and chest. gets a huge ego boost when he sees them peeking out of your shirt when you wear a low-cut top, and he’s extra smug when you get home later that day to refresh them.

★ ──── JISUNG

sub, sub, sub! rarely doms, and even when he does “dom” it’s more or less him acting the same as usual — like a princess — with the only difference being him doing all the work for once. big masochist.

⤷ MOMMY KINK.

there’s rarely a moment in bed where jisung doesn’t call you mommy. like the sweet boy he is, he always asks you for permission before he does anything. “mommy, please let me suck your tits? i promise i won’t touch myself without your permission, pleaseee?” and with those sweet doe eyes of his, how could you say no? he gets pretty babbly when he’s balls deep in your pussy and his head is mushed between your tits as he whines and cries out his thanks, how good he feels — he’s simply too obsessed with you!

⤷ DEGRADATION.

jisung nearly cums in his pants when you talk down to him like he’s worth nothing to you, like he’s the dirt on the bottom of your shoes. he can’t stop the breathy moans slipping from his dropped jaw when you jerk his slick cock, whispering words in his ears that should humiliate him, but only results in more burning hot arousal pooling deep in his stomach and his balls tightening, eager to spill all over the tight grip of your hand. all his efforts to hold off his orgasm go to waste, though, when you call him a “worthless, good for nothing slut” that has his body abruptly convulsing and cries tumbling from his lips as he cums all the way up to his heaving chest.

⤷ PAIN KINK.

he gets delirious with pleasure when you slap his face or spank him when he’s misbehaved a little too much for your liking. if you pair a harsh slap to his cute, chubby little cheeks with a mean slew of insults to his face as he fucks you in missionary, he’ll wind up keening so loud he has to bury his face in your neck to muffle the sound, lest you get a noise complaint from the neighbors in the morning. the sting of getting hit has so much blood rushing from his head to his cock in an instant that he gets dizzy with how good he feels, every. single. time.

⤷ BONUS!

this man is a munch. he eats you out at any opportunity like a man starved, fast and messy, just the way both you & him love. tug on his hair n it’ll have his eyes rolling as he buries his face into your cunt, eagerly lapping up your the juices that soak his chin with a whine while his hips buck involuntarily against the mattress. degrade him too, n he just might cum in his pants right then n there!

★ ──── FELIX

dom. doesn’t mind subbing if you ask, but it’s generally not his go-to.

⤷ ORGASM DENIAL.

this man is a little shit who adores bringing you right to the edge before ripping your orgasm out of your grasp with a delighted smirk. as soon as he rips whatever he was using on you away, whether it be his fingers or a toy, the way you convulse in protest and plead at him with watery eyes gets him so hot he nearly cums on the spot, even if nothing is actively stimulating his dick. he just loves to tease, what can he say?

⤷ SENSORY DEPRIVATION.

felix has no qualms with playing with you for hours when he blindfolds you and, sometimes, even plugs your ears when he really wants to get you on edge. seeing your breath quicken in anticipation for what he’ll do to you has his cock chubbing up in record time in the tight confines of his boxers, and the sight of you all docile and restrained for him has him half considering the idea of dropping the ties just to bend you over the nearest surface and fuck your brains out. but he always reins himself in just before he can fold, for you always look much prettier disheveled and begging for him to end the teasing and give you what you want.

⤷ HUMILIATION.

he loves making you cream all over his cock just to spew absolute filth at you for it. he can feel his sanity disappearing bit by bit when he gets to witness firsthand the way you slip into subspace at his vulgar, demeaning words in that deep voice of his, and it only gets him hotter when you begin to cry and beg him incoherently. for what, he isn’t quite sure because you’re too far gone to even speak properly anymore, but he’ll make sure you have all you need when you start clawing desperately at his shoulders with a beautiful, full-body shudder.

⤷ BONUS!

he’s lowkey a brat tamer! it gets him so riled up when you purposefully dress in your skimpiest clothes for the group nights you spend going out with the other guys, just to elicit a reaction out of him when you get home. and boy, is that reaction dangerous. he watches you like a hawk throughout the night, tongue constantly poking his cheek in annoyance while his jaw ticks when he sees you laughing with one of his members. he knows he has no real reason to be jealous, especially when he’s already aware you’re just looking to be put in your place, but that won’t stop him from taking all that emotion out on your cunt when everyone leaves later.

★ ──── SEUNGMIN

switch. he doesn’t have a preference & simply enjoys it all.

⤷ EXHIBITIONISM.

the adrenaline rush seungmin gets when he fucks you on the floor of their dance practice room once everyone’s gone for the day is so fucking heady and addictive. the thought of one of his members walking in to find him blowing your back out in the middle of the room is so arousing that he fucks you practically ten times harder than usual when the two of you mess around in semi-public places like this. one time, when you did happen to get caught blowing him backstage right before a soundcheck, his eyes had blown impossibly wide before he spilled down your throat with a choked groan. the two of you were horribly mortified after the fact, but he still secretly gets off to that memory when he’s away on tour.

⤷ DUMBIFICATION.

seeing you gradually lose coherency the longer he has you warm his cock while he busies himself with other tasks is one of his favorite pastimes. “hey, pup,” seungmin taps your shoulder delicately as he lightly jostles you in his lap, causing a moan to flutter from between your lips. when he grabs your chin to press a chaste kiss to the corners of your mouth, he nearly moans aloud too when he pulls back and sees how fucking gone you look. eyes fuzzy, pretty lips pulled into a dopey smile, and pussy stretched warm and wet around his now-throbbing cock. it’s insane to practice restraint with how sweet you look like this. “since you’ve been so good for me, i have a reward for you. how’s that sound, baby?”

⤷ PET PLAY.

when you come home after an outing with your friends to discover seungmin perched on the couch in nothing but the collar with your name attached to it and some dangerously low black sweats, you can’t help but drag him to the bedroom to leash him and force him to sit at your feet while you finish up some papers at your desk. he’s obedient for a little while, like he always is, until he starts getting antsy and whines for your attention. you pay him no mind until he begins to nose at the crotch of your bottoms, eager for a treat, and who are you to deny your sweet puppy a snack after he’s been so good and obedient for you?

⤷ BONUS!

he owns multiple different colored collars that have your name engraved onto the tags as well as a human-sized dog bed to pair with them. when he particularly craves submission, he’ll ask to be leashed and rode in the dog bed because it brings him an odd sense of comfort: being someone’s so wholly that he’s willing to wear a collar to show off who he belongs to, who owns him.

★ ──── JEONGIN

generally a dom. when he does sub, it’s nothing too crazy.

⤷ BEGGING.

jeongin loves to drive you to the point of incoherency with his mouth, hands, cock: all of it! it goes straight to both his dick and his ego when you’re reduced down to broken, babbling cries that beg him for more, less, harder, faster — somehow you plea for them all at once. he can’t get enough of how much you seem to love his body and the pleasure it can provide.

⤷ DACRYPHILIA.

it drives him insane when he sees you writhing with so much pleasure that it actually brings you to tears. every time your pretty eyes begin to water with unshed tears from the unforgiving pace he sets as he pounds into your poor cunt, it makes a loud moan rip from his throat and his dick twitch within your walls, and he may even nearly cum on the spot. he absolutely loves the sight of you desperate and babbling for his cum, and he’s not afraid to show it.

⤷ CORRUPTION KINK.

both of you were the farthest thing from inexperienced or vanilla when you first started dating, but that doesn’t stop jeongin from fucking his fist late at night to the fantasy he was your first. the first man to take your virginity, show you how to ride cock and suck on one, even teach you how to have your first orgasm because you’d been too unsure of yourself in the past to even try. the thought of you being pure and untouched before meeting him makes him ache with arousal, particularly at the thought of corrupting and ruining you for any other man because he just fucks you so good that both of you know you’d never be able to reach the same peaks of pleasure he brings you to again and again with anyone else.

⤷ BONUS!

he really enjoys 69ing. when he’s on top, he loves the sensation of his cock sliding down your throat and the clicking of your throat as it tries to accommodate his length. he loves the way your juices coat his chin as he messily slurps and sucks on your clit, and especially loves the way your thighs shake beside his ears when you get close. when he’s on the bottom, he adores the way you push your hips back onto his face to grind your clit down on his tongue, and adores the way you slip his cock into your mouth until you’re gagging around the tip and your tongue is laving hot and wetly at his balls. the rapid tightening of your throat around his dick has him close in seconds, but even if he comes early he’ll eat you out til you’re shaking with satisfaction.

[ggukgoldensoul]

GLASSES

pairing; idol!jk x reader

summary; jungkook comes home from a rehearsal to find reader wearing glasses for the first time.

warnings; dom!jk, oral fem, fingering, clit play, fluff aftercare, again jungkook is so down bad for reader.

a/n; a little bit short but i should be sleeping and instead im writing this because i needed to write it, so enjoy this.

word count; 663

the tv was long forgotten now that jungkook was home. she knew he was exhausted, she had prepared him dinner, his favorite dish and also a nice bath, a massage and some cuddles that she knew would help him sleep after a long day of recording and practicing. that is what she had planned… but jungkook had other plans for the night. and all because she was wearing glasses.

her legs were on his shoulders, underwear forgotten, jungkook’s tshirt also forgotten and his head was buried on her. 

his hands were gripping her tights, nails digging on them while his tongue worked on her, feasting like a starved man. her moans filled the room as jungkook sucked on her clit, “jungk- ah- kook, fuck” she gripped his long hair and her back arched, feeling the pleasure on her spine like an electric shock. 

his hands searched hers and squeezed them, as if saying that he is there and he isn't going anywhere. his tongue never stopped, he went to her clit, biting it softly and sucking it making her scream, legs trembling and head dizzy. 

his tongue went to her hole again and pinched her clit, moving his fingers to create the friction he knew would send her into a storm of pure pleasure. “kook- kook- im cumming- fuck im cum-” and with a last lap of his tongue on her core, she came undone underneath him. her mouth opened into a silent scream and her hands squeezed tightly his. 

jungkook kissed her clit one last time and travelled up and up, kissing and biting every bit of skin he found until he reached her mouth and kissed her. tasting herself on his lips, she felt his fingers play with her folds and entrance. “kook, please-” his tattooed hand cupped her jaw, his thumb stroking his lips. “you can do it babe, one more, ok? just one more” he whispered. not giving her time to answer, he shoved two fingers into her.

her hand gripped his shoulder, digging her nails and moaning to his mouth. “that’s it babe, my pretty girl, so good for me.” his pace was slow but hard, hitting her g spot. “you like it? i know you do. all of this is because of you, your pretty face with these glasses that make you look so fucking sexy, i love you so much.” 

his words hit her hard, she had never felt so loved before, nobody had cared for her the way jungkook did, and she was so thankful to have him. 

she felt her climax again, she was feeling so good she didn't want it to end. jungkook knew she was near, he could feel it in the way her walls clenched, how she was squirming and moaning. his thumb stroked her clit while his fingers sank into her, fast, deep and hard.

“kook- kook- bae, i wanna cum please, please, please.”

“whatever my princess wants.” his lips kissed her neck and with a last thrust of his fingers she came undone again. her breathing was rapid and labored, closing her eyes, she rested her forehead against his and jungkook whispered sweet things to her. a few minutes passed until she felt awoken again. her eyes opened and jungkook smiled softly at her, rising her glasses a bit. “you okay there?” she nodded and hid on his neck. “my pretty girl”a kiss to her forehead, “i love you so so much, i think im going to die.”

“hmm, dont you dare die now kook, we have too many things to live.”

“yeah thats right, but now” he took her in his arms “its time for a bath and then to bed.”

“youre the perfect boyfriend.”

“i know babe.”

all rights reserved to ©ggukgoldensoul. no tranlations allowed. no copy theme. don not copy my work.

🏷️; @redcherrykook

[useless-catalanfacts]

Something very strange happened, and I think we need to have a talk about the way some people who don't know about Catalan culture misrepresent the Tió (our pre-Christian Christmas present-bringer, a log who poops presents 🪵🎁).

I have a relative who is a teacher in an adult school, she teaches Catalan language (mostly to immigrants). Some days ago, they were doing an activity about Catalan holidays, and two of her students said that Tió should be banned and that it's the worst thing they have ever heard. My relative was very shocked and asked why they could say such a thing (imagine, it's like saying Santa Claus should be banned in the USA). Their reasoning was that they completely misunderstood everything about it. These people are native Spanish speakers and assumed that the Catalan word "tió" (meaning "log" 🪵) means the same as the Spanish word "tío" (meaning "uncle"), even though both words are pronounced differently. They believed that the Tió represents a man and that we tell children to beat people up, so much until they poop themselves, threatening them to give us things. They said it promotes violence to children and that it's disgusting. Nothing further from the truth.

This is not an isolated incident because a few days ago I saw a post on Tumblr repeating this same mistake. I texted the person who posted it saying that it's not called "Poop Uncle" but "Christmas Log" and they said that this was what they were taught by their teacher (this person is from a different continent), and haven't taken down the post. I have also seen comments on Instagram repeating the same and making fun of how gross and violent it is.

The real meaning of Tió

The Log is a way of symbolically passing down our relation with nature. This is how the tradition works:

In early December, we get a log and bring him home. We take care of him: we keep him in a warm place, with a blanket over him, and we feed him things like orange/clementine peels and walnut shells. On Christmas day, all the family comes together. Children get wooden sticks and go get ready in another room, meanwhile adults place presents under the Log's blanket. Children come back and hit the Log while singing a song. There are many local variants of the song but they all come down to asking the Log to poop us good food. When they have finished singing the song, the children remove the blanket and discover the presents that the Log has pooped. Years ago (now this is only done by some farmer families in rural areas, but back in the day this was generalized), the Log was burned in the house's fireplace and its ashes were spread on the fields, believed to act as a magical fertilizer.

Notice what this whole "ritual" has been about: we take care of nature, nature takes care of us, we are part of a whole and there's no real difference between "nature" and "us" because we all give life to each other. After the winter rest, we wake up nature (the Tió) so it will bring fruits and light again.

We take a log from the forest and bring it home. We do this for the Winter Solstice because it's the time of the return of light and the rebirth of nature after the winter sleep, and wood symbolizes the most important things for human life: food, warmth and light. It's difficult for us to imagine nowadays because we are used to electricity, but for our ancestors who only had oil lamps, fire and candles, darkness was almost absolute for many hours in winter, and that's why the Winter Solstice was very important because it meant that light is coming back. We want something from the Log, his fire will allow us to cook, it will give us light, and keep us warm. So we offer him the same: we feed him (notice what we feed it, too: a kind of compost, which is complimentary to human food), we keep him warm, and we love him. Then, we hit him with sticks (mimicking the motion of cutting down a tree) and ask him to give us food, and he does. Then, our ancestors used to burn him for warmth and light, and then take him back to plants spreading his ashes so it will give life to the fields. Which in turn will give us food again, which we will poop and it will fertilize plants again. And it's a cycle that never ends, we're all part of a whole.

We give to the forests, the forests can grow with the remains that all living creatures leave on its ground: leafs, excrements, the remains of parts of our food like nuts and fruit peels. These things give life to the forest. And the forest gives life to us: gives us fruits and wood (=light and warmth). We take these things, and in return we give to forests once again.

Nowadays, the part about warmth and light is often lost to kids, but the part about food is still obvious, even if subconsciously. This is why the Log is not the horrible barbaric tradition that the "haha poop and violence" crowd would make you believe.

And don't get me wrong, it can still be funny! We're the first ones to make jokes about it. And you can, too! But don't spread false ideas: the Spanish word "uncle" appears nowhere near this tradition because it doesn't have anything to do with uncles nor with Spanish-speaking cultures. It's called the Christmas Log (Tió de Nadal, Soca de Nadal, Tronca de Nadal, Tizón de Nadal, etc depending on the area, all meaning "Christmas Log") and it's celebrated by the Catalan people and a part of the Occitan and Pyrenean Aragonese people. The word "poop" (as an imperative verb, as in "please poop for us") appears in the song, but not in the name.

I know that, now that misinformation has gone viral, a post won't stop it. But I hope at least people with a genuine interest can learn some more. By all means, keep laughing! Make all the memes you want! But knowing the whole story will give you understanding. And, please, don't argue in favour of banning our cultural practises, we've had enough of that for centuries.

[melwnst]

────── ⋆⋅☆ MARRIED LIFE WITH DEAN HEADCANONS

⭑.ᐟ so I lied…. Just got inspired so quickly wrote this! I’ll really be back tomorrow or Sunday but here’s a cute one<3 please interact and send requests if u have any!! (Here’s dad!dean headcanons, and dating Dean headcanons!)

supernatural masterlist/full masterlist

──────────୨ৎ──────────

⭑.ᐟ He’s so touch starved like he’s never been touched before…. It’s like something’s different the moment your status changes because now he’s a husband and he wants to spoil you even more but he needs your touch EVERY TIME like he’s actually almost annoying in a cute way.

⭑.ᐟdean’s the type of guy who puts everyone above himself, he’ll never prioritize himself over the people he loves. So sometimes he’ll skip entire nights of sleeping so he can watch you, make sure you’re safe next to him, and just be on the verge of tears cuz he can’t believe how lucky he is. Impostor syndrome at its finest he feels like he doesn’t deserve you/this no matter how many times you tell him that he does.

⭑.ᐟ The moment you’ve settled down and promise each other to never go back to that hell of a life, deans never been happier. You’ll catch him cooking breakfast fully singing, dancing or whistling. He’s genuinely happy. His smile doesn’t feel forced, he wants to be here, with you, and you know he misses it sometimes but he’ll never go back because now he has you.

⭑.ᐟlong mornings tangled up in bed together, just the sound of your breathing, not talking, because you’re with each other and you don’t need to talk. You need to take the moment in, and that happens so often at some point that’s just what every morning looks like. Then he’ll cook breakfast, which he’s surprisingly great at, you’ll get ready together and get on with work etc.. whenever you’re together again at night, falling asleep will be the same. Silence, enjoying the moment together without even sleeping until eventually you doze off.

⭑.ᐟhe never falls asleep first. He always finds a way of knowing if you’re asleep or not, and when he gets confirmation he’ll either stay up all night looking out for you even if he doesn’t have to, or he’ll be at peace knowing you’re safe next to him, he’ll fall asleep. Even though he still gets nightmares most nights, they’re not as bad as they used to be because you’re here so he feels better, more grounded, safer.

⭑.ᐟmovie night every Friday, you never miss one. It’s just you and him, either the movie is in the background and you’re having a hot make out session, or you’re wrapped up together on the couch enjoying a shitty movie with snacks all around. Sometimes he’ll take you to dinner before or cook your favorite food. Or sometimes you’ll just go to the movies period. Maybe Dean will fall asleep, and you tease him about it all the time so he’d rather stay home with you.

⭑.ᐟ he sings in the shower… if you’re both in the shower together he’ll go full concert mode and it’s so hilarious that’s almost your favorite time of the day.

⭑.ᐟhe’s such a shit talker…. When he comes home from work he’ll gossip for hours if he has too many things to say, you’ll sit back and laugh in silence because he’s sooooooo annoyingly funny!

⭑.ᐟDean gets hotter with age, so do you. So the passion grows even hotter, day by day. He’s always been hot but his charisma and charm is just so unmatched. AHHHHHHHHHH

⭑.ᐟhe’s always loved making you feel good in bed. But ever since getting married, he’s more careful, softer but also rougher when he needs to be, or when you ask for it. He’ll just do whatever you ask of him. HOWEVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hes lowkey a sub sometimes. He’ll whine, he’ll beg. YOU LOVE IT.

⭑.ᐟhe’s so worried all the time he’ll snap his fingers and you’ll be gone. He’s always worried too much about everything and anything, but with you he just doesn’t know why you’re still with him. You make him feel like the best husband ever but there’s still this bit of doubt in the back of his mind that worries you’ll leave. He knows that’s not you- but he’s scared if you don’t leave, you’ll be taken away from him because eventually everyone does in his life. Everyone leaves, or dies.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

taglist: @tinas111 @blossomingorchids @bluemerakis @mostlymarvelgirl @that-stanford-girlie @sunnyteume @bohoooitsme @beelzebzb @l0v33-rey (comment to be added!)