#god why did i spend my afternoon on this all this proves is that I need to be put in an English class again purely for enrichment purposes

[picaroroboto]

For the past couple days, I've been unfortunately cursed with thinking about Zenos yae Galvus. I don't even particularly like him - not that I dislike him either, Zenosfuckers you can put your scythes down - but it seems to me like a lot of the fandom either greatly misunderstands him, or doesn't even care to try to understand him, which from an objective standpoint as someone who cares deeply about writing in video games kind of pisses me off. But I'm more pissed about the fact that I'm apparently going to keep thinking about this issue until I actually write a character analysis of him.

Q: "But, what even is there to analyze with him? Isn't he all about wanting to fight the WoL and nothing else?"

Well, you wouldn't be wrong with saying that. That motivation is at the forefront of his character, and even if you look closer, everything about him comes back to either "violence" or "lack of understanding of others". But there are more meaningful sides to his deceptively simple character. That question of meaning is what I really want to look into - what does his character mean, what symbolic or thematic role does he play in this story?

Q: "Better question: why are you posting this on your art blog/Fate meta sideblog?"

Good question, with a stupid answer: I have all of 6 followers on my FF14 sideblog, and around 150 here. Let's go under the cut so they don't have to read a wall of text, unless they want to.

When you look at and compare FF14's villains, you can see a very clear change, no doubts thanks to the change in main writers. ARR Gaius and Thordan are more or less two-bit villains - Gaius's memeable iconic Praetorium speech gives us insight into how fascists try to justify themselves but little into Gaius's actual personality, while all Thordan gets as far as depth of character is an NPC in a sidequest remarking that he wasn't always a bad person and was probably doing what he thought best for his nation. Nidhogg is a little more understandable, since revenge is a relatable motivation to anyone who's been hurt by others. In Stormblood, Zenos and Yotsuyu are both presented as deserving of pity even as they do terrible things. Come Shadowbringers and Endwalker though, the story takes a greater interest on why villains like Emet-Selch and Elidibus do the things they do, and the player is allowed more options to try to understand them and see how similar they are to the WoL. Hell, Hermes and the Endsinger are barely "villains" at all, with the level of sympathy the story shows them.

What I'm getting to here is that Zenos, with half his arc in Stormblood and the rest in Endwalker, is sort of caught in the middle of this shift. He played the role of the rival character in Stormblood really well, but come Endwalker, he's standing on a stage full of heroes and villains with grand causes and deep motivations, as the guy whose sole motivation is fighting for pleasure.

It seems he's not unaware of this contrast himself - when Jullus confronts him for ruining Garlemald for no good reason, he retorts with "Would you be happier had I a good reason?" Zenos makes no attempt to justify his own actions and doesn't care that his reason seems incomprehensible and unforgivable to others. Yet in that same cutscene Alisaie hits him with the fact that if he keeps living solely for pleasure, he'll die alone. When next we see Zenos, he's alone at the Royal Menagerie waxing philosophical about what he really sought in the battle with the WoL.

See, what really motivates Zenos isn't just the thrill of battle - this guy has gotten Battle High and the joy of human connection confused. Really.

Even before he gets so perturbed by the idea of dying alone, there's other suggestions, like his proposal of friendship to the WoL when they fought in Stormblood, and then later his dying words in which he explains that he never understood others - at his core, he's just lonely. I know there's an official side story that tells it, but you don't need to know the exact details to glean that he had some sort of tragic backstory. Sad, but not a surprise, considering he's the prince of the Garlean Empire, raised to take the throne and continue the Empire's legacy of violence.

At his core, he's a very lonely person, but also a thing of violence, raised using violent methods for the purpose of causing more violence. Violence is how he lives and breathes - the only way he gets any sort of connection with others in a world of hurting and being hurt is the brief connection warriors dueling as equals can sometimes find. Don't deny that this sort of connection exists - FF14 is great at making fights that are both fun and tell a story. Hence, why he goes crazy for the WoL, but also refers to them as "friend". In their fights, he senses (or thinks he senses) similarity between him and them. Beneath all the madness is a pure, genuine joy in seeing the self reflected in the other...but he also instantly gets on the train to projection-town, population Zenos, and assumes the WoL is exactly like him, ignoring or failing to notice that they also fight for deeper meanings. The worst part is, he doesn't even notice that what he's actually seeking in fighting them is connection until Alisaie's aforementioned callout.

So he goes and angsts for a while, then turns into a dragon again and flies across the universe to help us kick the Endsinger's tail feathers, then issues his challenge for that duel he'd been longing for. But what's changed is that he starts with a question - "Such pleasures you sought for their own sake, and for no other reason, is that not so?". Dying after the duel, he's full of questions too: "Was your life a gift or a burden? Did you find fulfillment?" Alisaie's suggestion that he'd die alone actually spurred him to realize what he actually sought in the WoL, and now he's asking all these questions in an attempt to, for the first time in his life, genuinely connect with another human being.

The questions aren't important just because they're a sign of how Zenos has changed in Endwalker - they're actually the thematic heart of Endwalker! ARR may have had "Answers" as it's theme, but EW is the expac of questions. Namely the biggest question of all: What is the meaning of life? Different characters have different answers to that, leading to the grand-scale symbolic conflict being the Endsinger's despair - her belief that there is no meaning in life - versus whatever reasons the WoL chooses to live for, left, as always, up to player interpretation.

When you look deeper, Zenos isn't actually as out-of-place in the symbolic conflict as he first seems. His depressed worldview - that metaphor about drowning in a swamp again - seems to align with the Endsinger's view about life being meaningless. But he aids the WoL in defeating her. In that way he serves as part of the answer to her question about the meaning of life. He may have resented life at times, but he still found meaning in chasing pleasure. Not the strongest or most beautiful reason to deny oblivion, perhaps, but it did enable him to help the WoL triumph. I think of Zenos's philosophy as being connected to the concept of "Amor Fati"...largely because this quote explaining it sounds like something he'd say, or at least agree with on some level:

"and if our soul has trembled with happiness and sounded like a harp string just once, all eternity was needed to produce this one event—and in this single moment of affirmation all eternity was called good, redeemed, justified, and affirmed."

So he does have a meaningful role in Endwalker, as the "Amor Fati" against the Endsinger's "Memento Mori". I think that in this the story shows that his reason for living, while somewhat shallow, is not necessarily a morally wrong thing in and of itself (setting aside for a second all the people he hurt in his pursuit of that). It's just that, since it is a lonely pursuit that denies everything except for his target, it still feels empty. The core of the counterargument against the Endsinger's despair is that both pleasure and fulfillment are necessary to live a meaningful life in a meaningless universe, and that's why Zenos is here in Endwalker. Why he even exists in the story in the first place.

Even if you're one of the people who deeply hates Zenos...well, you probably wouldn't have read this whole thing if you did, but I still think it's important to read into characters you dislike, because every character in a story is written for a reason. Plus, trying to understand even their worst enemies is one of the WoL's key traits as of ShB and EW. With his last breaths, Zenos was trying to understand the WoL too - carrying this understanding of him with you as we move into our next adventures is the least you can do for your "friend".

[visceravalentines]

Michael Myers is the human equivalent of a cat and you can't change my mind. Here is a collection of tiny fluffy blurbs proving my point. I hope you enjoy!

Michael Myers x GN!Reader, no content warnings besides the man himself

He’s ignored you all day.  You’ve tried to engage him in a movie, a walk around the block, even tried to entice him into the bedroom.  He dismissed you every time with a blank stare.  You finally gave up and started working on a project you’ve been putting off. 

Not twenty minutes later, he appears in the doorway and stands there watching.  You acknowledge him briefly, focused on your task.  You don’t hear him move but you sense him behind you, smile up at him when he bumps against your back. 

He brushes his fingers through the hair at the back of your neck.  “Oof, you gave me goosebumps,” you tell him.  You keep working. 

He puts his hands on your shoulders.  You kiss his wrist.  “How are you?” you ask.  You get no response.  You never do. 

After a minute he sighs, bends over you to rest his chin on your head, puts his big hand right in the middle of what you’re working on. 

You stop, fight a smile.  “Oh, now you want attention?”  He grunts noncommittally.  “Well I’m doing this now.” 

His pushes his face into the side of your neck and you feel a warm, wet pinch.  “Michael!  Did you just bite me?” 

He steps back, pulls your chair with him.  “Ohh my god.  That is so rude.”  You look up at him.  He is unmoved by your criticism.  “Can I help you?” 

He comes around in front of you, drops to his knees between your legs, leans his head against your chest.  You put your arms around him and tease his curls. 

“I have been trying to hang out with you all day, you know.”  He grunts again.  “Why am I tied into your schedule?”  He squeezes you.  “Fine, let’s hang out.” 

🔪

You look up from your book at the sound of the back door.  A moment later he steps into view, knife in hand, mask sprayed with blood. 

“Welcome home, handsome,” you say. 

He sets the knife on the table and moves closer.  You lay the book aside and get up to inspect him for injuries.  “Are you hurt?” 

He shakes his head once and digs his hand into his pocket. 

“Oh boy.  Did you bring me something?” 

He fishes out a tiny porcelain mouse abducted from someone’s mantle and places it in your open palm.  It is adorable and not covered in blood. 

“Wow, I love this,” you say honestly.  “Thank you!” 

He is reaching into his other pocket.  “Oh, two things?”  You hold out your other hand.  There is a clicking sound like nails on a tabletop.  Teeth.  They are teeth.  He has brought you six human teeth. 

You gather yourself for a second and then look up at him with a careworn smile.  “Thank you so much.  You really, really shouldn’t have.” 

His eyes glitter behind the mask.  You know he knows that you hate it and love it in equal measure.  That’s why he does it.  You should consider yourself lucky tonight; one time he brought you a finger.  A finger. 

🔪

The afternoon sun is golden as you get home from work.  You look up at the second-story window right in the front of the house and sure enough, you see his silhouette looming like a Halloween decoration.  It’s his favorite spot.  He spends hours looking out at the world, just observing, thinking. 

He stares at you blankly and you smile and wave.  Even from a distance, you can see his gaze shift from you to something across the street:  two women shooting the breeze while their kids draw with chalk on the sidewalk.  Maybe it’s because you know him so well, but the look on his face is utterly predatory. 

“Shit,” you mutter under your breath.  You’d better get in there and distract him with something, or your neighbors are going to end up on the news. 

🔪

“Okay, hear me out.” 

You regard him uneasily, hands on your hips.  He already looks unimpressed. 

“We’re having grilled cheese and tomato soup.  You love that.” 

He does.  He is waiting for the bad news. 

“But we’re out of milk.  So I have to make the soup with water.” 

His ability to communicate such abject disgust with zero change to his expression is incredible. 

“I know.  I’m sorry.  I promise it will still be good.” 

He is the pickiest eater you have ever met.  Not only is his list of acceptable foods limited, but he eats on a strict schedule with almost no wiggle room.  There is only one right way to make the things he likes, and a thousand wrong ways.  He would rather starve than eat something he thinks is gross. 

When you present him with the offending soup he looks at you like you have spit in it in front of him. 

“Look, Michael, I promise it’s fine.”  You sip a spoonful.  It is not fine.  He knows it. 

He eats the grilled cheese with enthusiasm.  He finishes yours too.  He pushes the soup away and does not touch it.  No amount of cajoling will convince him otherwise. 

🔪

You are on the couch, Michael’s head in your lap.  You have been stroking his curls, scratching his neck and shoulders, caressing his handsome face for almost an hour.  Every time you try to get up or change position he grips your knee tightly, will not let you move.  Periodically he lets out a contented sigh, adjusts his position, guides your hand to a new spot. 

Your legs are falling asleep.  You continue running your thumb over his jaw as you shift your weight just a little, just enough to free up the circulation. 

He sits up abruptly.  “Sorry, Mikey, come back.” 

He stands up and stalks away without looking at you.  You watch with absolute bewilderment as he sits on the other couch, makes himself comfortable, and then looks at you like nothing happened. 

“You are so fucking weird,” you whisper, almost to yourself. 

🔪

You are out for a midnight stroll on the arm of a murderer who, for now, is content to leave everyone alive.  The moon is full and the street is bright beneath it.  Michael’s expression is serene.  You know he enjoys the breeze on his face when he can get it.  Walks like this are so normal, so refreshing, you can almost pretend it’s not three in the morning. 

A branch hangs over the sidewalk.  You move to duck around it, but Michael takes hold of it with his free hand and snaps it in half. 

“Well that was…effective,” you remark.  He looks at you impassively. 

A block later, someone has left a tricycle in their front yard.  He pulls away from you, picks it up with one hand.  You furrow your brow in confusion.  He throws it lazily into the neighbor’s yard. 

“Michael,” you say, “you can’t do that.”  But he can, and he does, and he pulls you along before you can drag it back where it belongs. 

He behaves himself for the next few minutes, and you are nearly lulled back into contentment.  You don’t question it when he stops and picks up a rock; he’s always bringing home odds and ends.  He does not look at you as he lobs the projectile across the street directly into the front window of a house and you hear the glass splinter.  The sound is deafening in the silence. 

“Michael Myers!” you hiss, grabbing his arm.  He is smirking.  For him it is the equivalent of a shit-eating grin.  “I cannot believe you just did that!”  Lights turn on in the house and you haul him quickly down the street.  “I swear to god I can’t take you anywhere.” 

[legolasbadass]

Office Hours, Part 32

Summary: Lorelei Browning has just secured a job as an assistant professor at Exeter College in Oxford. Naturally, she is eager to prove herself and meet every challenge sent her way, but what she does not expect is the tall, handsome stranger who will quickly become much more than a colleague.

Relationship: Richard Armitage x OC (Professor AU)

Word Count: 2k

Rating: M

A/N: Thank you all for your kind comments on this story, both here and on Tumblr. This story is quickly coming to an end, but I hope you will enjoy the last chapters! 💙

With an exhausted sigh, I drop one of the last boxes into the living room and take a moment to catch my breath. The early afternoon sun floods into the house from the tall bay window, casting beams of light onto the overflowing bookshelves and the pale couch. Boxes are scattered all over the place, and the sound of loud voices coming from outside and the thudding of heavy boots against the old wooden floors disrupt the usual tranquillity of the house, but it is still home. 

Home. 

The last few days have not been the most restful. Since the end of the term and the college party a few days ago, Richard and I have spent every waking moment packing my belongings, making room in the house, and correcting exams, and we have not gotten nearly enough sleep, but the fatigue and stress do not compare to the happiness that fills me. 

I make my way toward the front door, but before I know it, a pair of strong arms circle my waist from behind and pull me into a warm but sweaty chest. 

“Oh, God—you’re all sweaty!” I exclaim and try to wriggle out of Richard’s embrace. 

His rumbling laughter reverberates through me as he leans in to brush his lips against my earlobe. “That doesn’t usually bother you.” 

Warmth floods my cheeks, but before I can respond, William peers down from the bannister overhead. “I’m right here.” 

It is Richard’s turn to blush, and we giggle in embarrassment as William walks down the stairs and back outside. William, Claire, and Beatrice all kindly offered to help us with the move today, and I certainly do not want to leave them to do all the work, even if there are only a few boxes left in the truck. But as I turn around to face Richard, I cannot yet will myself to go back outside. His cheeks are red and his hair is an irresistible tousled mess of curls, and I cannot refrain from running my hand through it as he smiles at me. 

“We’re going to live together,” he says, his gaze warm. 

“Oh, is that what we’re doing?” I reply teasingly, earning a look of fond annoyance from him. 

He chuckles, then squeezes my hands. “You’re not nervous at all? No second thoughts?” 

“Of course not! Why, did you expect me to have second thoughts?” 

“No, I just—it’s a big thing.” 

Unable to stop myself, I grin and glance down at his groin. “Yes, it is a big thing.” 

He laughs as another blush blooms on his cheeks. “You’re impossible,” he says, shaking his head, though the affection in his eyes is undeniable. 

My mischievous grin widens as I revel in the playful embarrassment I have managed to cause. “But seriously,” I begin, traces of laughter in my voice, “I’m not nervous and I’m not having any second thoughts. I’m so thrilled that we’re going to live together.” 

His smile softens, and he leans in to gently kiss me. “Me too.” 

William’s voice reaches us from outside. “Come on, lovebirds! Stop snogging and grab some boxes!” 

Chuckling, I give Richard’s hand a final squeeze before dragging him outside, though I wish I could spend the rest of the day kissing him. The air is thick and humid under the bright afternoon sun, but thankfully, after Beatrice and William make another trip into the house, only one box remains in the truck, and Richard effortlessly lifts it as if it were not filled with tons of heavy books. 

“Well, that’s the last of it,” Claire says with a relieved sigh.

“Thank you so much for all your help!” I say as we follow Richard into the house. 

“Anytime! It’s the least I could do to repay Richard for all the times he’s helped Will and I move in the past.” She looks up at Richard as he drops the box into the living room. “Remember when you helped Will and I move into our first flat?” 

He chuckles in remembrance. “That feels like a lifetime ago.” 

“It does!” she responds with a nostalgic sigh before turning her gaze back to me. “It was right after I graduated from uni. We moved into this horrible tiny flat in the Leicester city centre that was always cold and had no storage space, and I nearly broke up with Will because he never picked up after himself, and it was driving me crazy.” 

“Typical Will,” Richard says with a deep, rumbling laugh, and Claire rolls her eyes in agreement. 

“And the worst part is that he’s still like that! I hope for your sake, Lorelei, that this clown is tidier than his brother.” 

I chuckle. “Well, Richard can be a bit messy, but he tends to contain his mess to his office, and as long as it remains that way, it’s fine with me.” 

“Day one and you’re already the boss in the house, are you?” Richard retorts playfully as he wraps an arm around my shoulders. “And I’m not messy—you’re just a neat freak.”

“I am not!” 

“Yes, you are!” Beatrice chimes in as she walks down the stairs, causing them to laugh. “We only lived together a few months and I honestly think any longer might have ruined our friendship.”

“Bea!”

“It was all ‘don’t dry your hands with that dish towel’, ‘you haven’t vacuumed your room in two weeks’, and ‘take off your shoes on the rug, you’re trailing mud all over the hallway’.”

“Stop before Richard changes his mind about living with me,” I respond with an embarrassed chuckle. 

But I have nothing to worry about as Richard pulls me into a hug and says, “Don’t worry. You’re my little neat freak, and nothing anyone says is going to make me change my mind.” He then presses a tender kiss atop my head, and I blush as Claire and Beatrice smile knowingly. 

“Well, Lorelei, you are officially moved in!” William announces as he joins us in the entry. “But don’t worry—we still have the truck so there’s still time to change your mind and run. Because I’m telling you, my brother can be difficult to deal with.” 

“Rumour has it you’re the one who’s difficult to live with,” I respond teasingly. 

William tilts his head questioningly, then narrows his eyes at Claire. “What lies have you been saying about me now, Amy Dunne?” 

Chuckling, she raises her brows in challenge. “Just that even our five year old son is often tidier than you are, which is not a lie.” 

“Only because you’re always nagging him to clean up his messes,” William retorts.

“Well, at least one of you listens.” 

“Behold, our future,” Richard whispers playfully in my ear, causing me to giggle. 

As the scorching summer sun makes way for a refreshing evening breeze, we all work tirelessly to unpack as many boxes as possible. We leave the endless boxes of books for later and tackle the kitchen first, and soon enough, all the counters are covered in dishes waiting to be organized into cabinets, forcing us to eat dinner in the living room, plates piled high with pizza. I grow silent when the conversation inevitably turns to Richard’s imminent move to Boston, selfishly wishing we could pretend for tonight that he is never leaving. Richard is clearly proud and excited about this new opportunity, but when he rests a hand on my thigh and squeezes me tight, I know he, too, wishes the same. 

Eventually, I make my way upstairs to continue unpacking in the bedroom, letting him enjoy his success and discuss his plans with the others. I am halfway through a third box of clothes when a knock on the door interrupts me, and I turn to find William standing in the doorway with a hesitant smile. 

“I was just coming to get some boxes to put in the recycling bin,” he explains, pointing to the pile of empty boxes in the corner. 

“Great, thanks!” I say. “But you can leave one or two here—Richard might need them to pack some of his things.” 

William nods, then pauses. “You doing ok?” 

I turn to him after folding a jumper into the drawer. “I’m doing great,” I answer with a slightly confused frown. 

“I mean, it can’t be easy—with him leaving for a year.” 

“Ah. That.”

William nods slowly. 

“Well… I wish he didn’t have to go, obviously,” I reply with a humourless chuckle. “But he has to—I want him to! I’d have to be really stupid to try to stop him, and I’d have to be even more stupid to give up on what we have because of this.” 

“My brother’s lucky to have you.” 

I smile, unsure how to respond. 

“I mean, to be able to count on you through all this…” 

“Are you referring to his ex Rebecca?” He nods. “Well, it’s different… We’re different people and—and he’s not asking me to uproot my whole life for him. It’s just one year, right?” I shrug again, trying to convince myself that it is not as difficult as it is. 

“Right.” A few moments of silence later, William chuckles and shakes his head. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to come up here and get so serious. I just—I like you and I think you and my brother are great together. And I guess this is my weird and really awkward way of making sure you’re doing ok and reminding you that my brother’s a great guy and I think he’s worth the wait.” 

“He definitely is. And thanks,” I reply with a shy smile. 

He smiles in return, then clears his throat. “And hey, I know I’m not Richard. I mean, I’m funnier and more good-looking than him,” he begins with a playful smirk, causing me to chuckle. “But if you’re ever feeling down or whatever, and you want someone to talk to or hang out with while he’s away, I’m here. I can tell you all sorts of embarrassing stories about him.” 

Laughing, I shake my head. “I might take you up on that.” 

At that moment, Richard steps into the bedroom, and the brothers exchange a look before William leaves us alone, winking at me as he walks through the door. Still smiling, I turn to Richard, and the love I feel for him, and the joy of moving in with him momentarily chase away the ache in my heart. For now, he is still here, within arms’ reach, and I can pretend that this day is only the beginning of our new life together and not bringing us closer to our separation. 

With a soft smile, Richard closes the space between us, and I bury my face in his chest, inhaling his familiar scent as he wraps his strong arms around me. We remain in this embrace for a little while as the sun slowly dips below the houses at the end of the street, but eventually, Richard breaks the silence. “He’s not really funnier than me, is he?” 

My laughter echoes through the room as I look up to meet his eyes, which sparkle in the golden warmth of this summer evening. “No, of course not, love.”

A playful grin lights up his face. “Good.” 

Then he slowly leans in, and, understanding his intention, I stand on my tiptoes to meet his lips halfway in a tender kiss. He holds me tight, the fingers of one hand gently tracing patterns on my back while the other cradles my face, pulling me even closer and urging me to part my lips. I shiver as his tongue caresses mine, still marvelling at how easily he can awaken desire within me. Eventually, we are forced to break the kiss, and he rests his forehead against mine, his tender eyes slightly darker than usual. 

“I love you,” he says, his voice barely above a murmur. 

“I love you, too,” I reply in the same tone, pressing a lingering kiss onto his bearded jaw. 

“We’ve made some pretty good progress with the unpacking already, haven’t we?” 

“Yeah, I’d say so.”

“Good. So how about I start hinting that we’re getting tired so they leave and we can be alone?” 

I chuckle at his suggestive tone. “I like the way you think.” 

Tag list: @lathalea @linasofia @fizzyxcustard @bitter-sweet-farmgirl @i-did-not-mean-to @xxbyimm @middleearthpixie @enchantzz @myselfandfantasy @notlostgnome @sazzlep @albionscastle @evenstaredits

Let me know if you'd like to be added to my tag list or tagged in future chapters💙

[whatisreggieshortfor]

Daddy

(Not sexual. Don’t even think it.)

Inuoka x gn!sugawara!reader

Your brother had been a blessing.

You had just planned to celebrate acceptance for your doctorate program, go out for the night, and… nine months later you had a baby you had never planned on. The other parent wanted nothing to do with him, so Eijirou was yours, and yours alone.

It was such a stroke of bad luck to your mom- you had always been the good child. Always careful. Always working hard. You graduated high school early while taking college courses.

You were years ahead on your career path than all of your peers.

But once you held your son, you didn’t think it was bad luck at all. You were burning yourself out along the way, and that small, fragile being reminded you to appreciate little things and live your life while you can.

But you also worked twice as hard so you could give him the life he deserved.

Your brother was like a guardian angel. While you changed to night courses to complete your degree, Koushi moved into your apartment. He took care of your son while you went to class, would spend his days off with him so you could catch up on sleep. He never complained, raising Eijirou like a son rather than a nephew.

But eventually your degree was finished. You needed to find full time care so you could work during the day when you were needed. Koushi loved Eijirou nearly as much as you did, but he taught kindergarten. Eijirou wasn’t old enough for school yet- he was only three.

So instead he found you a day care, apparently a kid he used to play against in high school was one of the teachers, but what mattered was that your brother trusted him. And if Sugawara Koushi trusted someone to take care of the kid he loved like his own, they were probably a safe bet.

So you marched into the office, hoping to enroll your son on your day off.

And you met Inuoka.

As he looked at the forms you’d filled out, he muttered to himself, “Sugawara… why does that sound so familiar.”

“You’re probably thinking of Koushi. He went to Karasuno.”

“Right!” He grinned, “The setter. I only had a year against him, is he doing okay?”

“Oh, he’s great!” You smiled back, “A teacher at a local elementary school actually.”

“Glad to hear it.” He seemed so nice. No wonder Koushi liked him. “Your son’s name is Eijirou?”

“Yes.”

“And it says that you need day care services as soon as possible?”

“Not every day but…” you sighed, “Honestly, I raised him through getting my degree, I have to take whatever shifts the hospital schedules me for, at least until I prove myself, and Koushi can’t watch him during school hours.”

“That’s no problem.” He stood from the desk, gesturing out the door, “Let me show you around, you’re welcome to bring him by first thing in the morning to start here.”

Inuoka showed the school with a childlike enthusiasm that reminded you of Koushi, it was obvious why he wanted to work with kids.

But where Koushi made you feel familial pride, you could feel your chest tighten around Inuoka. So you shoved that feeling away.

You were not going to crush on your son’s day care teacher.

But that didn’t stop you from gushing to your brother about who cute he was.

From the first day for weeks Koushi took to dropping your son off at day care, most times he picked him up too. Sometimes you were able to, mildly flirting in joking ways. Just some fun banter.

The trauma head worked you to the bone so much in the first few months of residency that even though you were technically at work during the day, you felt like you forgot what the sun looked like.

No matter the time or level of exhaustion, when you finally made it home you would spend playing with them.

It never occurred to you that people misread your family situation until you finally got an afternoon free and went to pick up yourself.

Inuoka saw you before Eijirou did, sending him to grab his lunchbox, “I wasn’t expecting to see you today.” He laughed, “Your husband has been around so much.”

“My-“ you snorted, “No, no, god no. Koushi is my brother.”

“Oh.” His eyes widened, cheeks flushing in embarrassment, “I am so sorry.”

You waved him off, “I don’t know if you remember him- Daichi? The old captain at Karasuno back when Koushi played? They are dating.”

“That makes so much sense.” He smacked himself on the forehead as Eijirou came running back out.

“Bye daddy Inuoka!”

It was your turn to burn red, “Eiji! How long have you been calling him that?”

Your son cocked his head, “What’s wrong? Uncle Koushi says I can because you want him to be!”

“Oh, that’s it. Say goodbye to Uncle Koushi when you see him because I’m gonna kill him.” You huffed air, terrified to look at the teacher that still beside you after your son’s exclamation.

He just knelt down to Eijirou’s eye level, “Usually people are married when you use words like that, bud.”

But your son was nothing if not a traitor, “But I’ve heard you talking with Miss Yei! You said you like (paternal address) and think they’re pretty!”

Inuoka turned nearly as read as his old Nekoma uniform, but he powered through, “Then how about we start with me asking them on a date, and we’ll go from there?”

“Can I come?”

You could’ve sworn your brother described him as easily flustered and awkward and shy back in the day. But right now he shot a smirk your way. “If they say they want to go, I don’t see why not.”

Great. So much for not crushing on the day care teacher.

(By the time Eijirou was old enough to sit in Koushi’s class, Inuoka had proudly taken the title of his dad.)

Masterlist

[spaceorphan18]

Scenes from December (22/24)

Klaine Advent Day Twenty-Two : Red

****

December, 2076

The house had been sold.  Half their personal belongings had been donated or given away.  Downsizing had always been in the plans for this age, but now that he was here, Kurt didn’t like it all much.  He didn’t like anything - from the windows that were too small, to the weird, musty stench, to the fact that the carpets were a dull red shag probably left over from when the place was built a hundred years earlier.  No matter how long Kurt had spent fixing the space to make it feel as comfortable as possible, he wanted it to be a home - and it didn’t feel like that yet.

 “I don’t like it here,” Kurt grumbled at Blaine as they sat in their chairs.  These weren’t his old, worn in chairs -- they had given those to Katie, these were new, stiff things that may have looked nice online, but were proving to have little functionality.   

“I don’t see why not - you used to love retirement homes.”  Blaine gave him a cheeky grin.  Of course, one week in, and Blaine was already having a ball.  Blaine always did manage to acclimate to new situations much better than he did.  “I still think you should join our retro game night - there’s Wii Bowling and it’s a delight.” Blaine chuckled to himself. 

Thank god for Blaine and his endless optimism.  Kurt didn’t think he’d have made it that far without it.  

“Oh, speaking of retro - that reminds me…” Blaine pushed himself up and went over to the wall with the control panel.  With a few button pouches the sound of 1940s jazz filled the room.  “The community center said they were offering a ballroom dancing class.  I thought maybe you and I should go.”  

Kurt grumbled a little - but Blaine still made his way towards him, offering his hand, his hazel eyes still holding that twinkle.  Kurt softened, and took his hand, and a moment later the two of them were holding onto each other rightly, dancing cheek to cheek as Glenn Miller played on the sound system.  

“Do you remember our first dance together?” Blaine asked. 

Kurt grinned.  “Prom.”  Not that he could ever forget that moment - it had been captured and framed and on their dresser the entire length of their marriage. The photo would often get dusty and forgotten, but every now and then it caught Kurt’s eye - and he remembered the magic.  “I can’t believe it was an Abba song.” 

“Yeah - whoever chose that one was really on the nose with it.” 

They both laughed at the memory as they swayed back and forth.  

“So, what’s really been bothering you, Kurt?” Blaine asked.  Blaine could tell his unease since the move.  He had been quiet about it - but Blaine always knew.  “Is it that this time of year always reminds you of your dad? Or the fact that Rachel didn’t recognize you last time we visited?”

Kurt let out a sigh.  “All of it - I guess.”  Kurt gave a look around.  It was still mid-afternoon, but the sun was already setting, the room growing dark.  “I think this place just solidifies that my story is almost over and the world just keeps on going.” 

“Yes, but it’s been such a good story,” Blaine playfully argued back.  “And all good stories have to come to an end sometime.  Just because it’s bittersweet doesn’t make it bad.” 

A wave of emotion swept over Kurt.  He just wanted to stay in this moment, hold onto Blaine as long as he could.  “You know, you have a knack of always finding new ways to make me fall in love with you.” 

“Oh, well then, I feel accomplished.” 

“Accomplished?” 

“I mean, I did say I wanted to spend my whole life loving you. And. I got to.  Accomplishment achieved.”

“Hey - we’re not done yet -- there’s still a little bit of story left.” .

“Hey, Kurt?” 

“...Yeah?” 

“I promise never to say goodbye to you either.” 

Kurt moved in to gently brush his lips against Blaine’s then leaned their foreheads together.  The melancholy melody of the music swelled as they moved with it.  He began to feel a little bit at peace.  It didn’t matter where they were - as long as he had Blaine, he was alright. 

“You know Kurt, if you ask nicely, maybe the retirement home will let you put on a play.  You can dust off Peter Pan.” 

“Nah.  I think being young forever is overrated.”

[heavenlyhoundoom]

Knd x AWISC au, "kill" Benedict and Ramona ending.(this is the cannon ending.)

Arthur: If I'm going down, then you two are going down with me!

(Arthur deeply slashes Benedict's neck, appearing to have killed him instantly(Benedict managed to survive), he then gets on Ramona's shoulders where she couldn't sting him and used his left hand to scratch out her right eye.)

Arthur: You should've stayed out of my way, but since you didn't, I will maul you the same way I mauled Natalie!

(It flashes back to Monday afternoon.)

Natalie: So, why did you want to talk to me in private?

Arthur: I have a question, do you like Lenard?

Natalie: What?

Arthur: Don't play dumb, you have a thing for him, don't you?

Natalie: No. Why would I?

Arthur: You just spend a lot of time with him and I-

Natalie: Oh, so you have a crush on Lenard?

Arthur: (embarrassed) No! You two just seem close...

Natalie: You and him seem pretty close too, don't you think?

Arthur: You two seem closer, you go well together...

Natalie: You think so? I think you two pair nicely.

Arthur: You're being a total ass kisser!

Natalie: Why would I be kissing your ass, Arthur?

Arthur: Because you're fucking stupid!

Natalie: You think I'm stupid?

Arthur: Yes, I do.

Natalie: Why?

Arthur: The fact that you don't even know why I think you're stupid proves how much of a fucking moron you are!

Natalie: You're just mad because you think I'm dating Lenard, aren't you?

Arthur: (embarrassed) N-no!

Natalie: Arthur, I don't like him like that, I'm only into other pigs.

Arthur: How do I know you're not just trying to get me off your back!?

Natalie: Arthur, you're being possessive, Lenard is his own animal, not your property!

Arthur: I̴̟̦̅͊̀̔͛͜͠'̸̜͎̪̭̯̱̀̎́͋͠m̶̠̘̝͇̝͐̂̔̄͠ ̸̣̳̠̯̫̚͝ͅn̴̻͉̈o̶̻̝̙̬͗͛̚t̵͚͖̜̜͉̻̋ ̵̢͉̎̒̈b̸̝̙̤̲̈́̓͆͊̎e̶̗̻̰̙̩͖̋̍͑̚i̶͎̜̳͙̒̄̂͠ǹ̶̫͌̌̚ĝ̵͓͔̮̻ ̷̺͑͒̕p̵̡̨͎̜̜͐̃͒͗͒͠o̸̘̩͒͗͜͝s̷̨̬̳͉͍̍́s̵͕̙͉̏̾̒͗̚̚e̵͎͓̻͎̽̈́̋̿̈̌s̸̛͚̋̉̏͝ŝ̶̨͕̃̉͐͋͒i̵̡̮̗̻̥͐v̵̹̣͙̼͈͚̌̓͝ȩ̷̩̖̙̽̉̈́́̓̆!̷͍͐̉̓

(Natalie takes a step back, startled by Arthur's sudden outburst.)

Arthur: (smug)What's the matter, scared of a (air quotes)"kangaroo"!?

(Arthur pounced on Natalie as hard as he could and scratched her right eye, causing her to yelp.)

Natalie: Why did you do that? What are you gonna do to me!?

Arthur: Like that fucking matters, what if I told you that I'm gonna eat you!?

Natalie: But you're a fellow prey animal!

Arthur: No I'm not, you stupid bitch! I'm a blood thirsty predator, a̷̢̳̮̖̐̈̾n̸̫̠͎̩͍̻̓d̸̲̙̖́̓̆̂͌͆ ̴̖̥̎̋̎̍̽y̷̢̨͓͇̯̓̄o̴̗̪͓̜̽̕u̸̡͍̲͔̺͉͗͗̓̏͊ ̵̣̦̻͙̮̖͌̊a̶̡͇͗̄͝ͅͅȓ̶̛̙͂̈́̊̎ȇ̶͕͓͇̕ ̵̞͔̲̤͌͆͒̈́͘m̴̳̺̜͆̀͊ͅͅy̸̨͉̘̙͚̿̋̄̔ ̷͌͛ͅp̵̭͉̰̥̔͠͝r̷̘͎̱̺͖̊͊̈̿̕ͅė̷̼̼̪̭̈́͑ý̷̠̮͈̥̪̉!̸̼͈̃͠!̶͓̖̣̱̑́̉!̵̧͇̽̍͛͗

(He tears Natalie apart until she died, her eyes, arms, right foot, right ear, a chunk of her chest and her heart were all missing because Arthur ate them.)

Arthur: She's finally gone, Î̸̬ ̵͔̝̊d̸̪̉̑o̸̥͌n̸͇̊͑'̸͙̰͌̿ţ̸̘̀ ̵͌͊͜h̷̢̾ä̴̫v̷̛͇͈͛e̸̳̪̾ ̸̰̈́̅t̸̖̎́ọ̴̍͝ ̵̡͔͋̆ŵ̵̡͝ǒ̴̝r̵̗̀̿r̸̲̜̈́̌y̸̥͋͒ ̵̦̆̅h̸̳͍͂e̸̗̒̓r̶̘̚ ̸̯͖͋̄t̸͙͓̆a̴͉̓k̷͎̀̾i̸̦̾͝n̸̟̿̀ĝ̴̦̿ ̴̧̩̄͗m̵̦̏͠ỳ̴̟ ̸̣̽p̶̤͈̚ŕ̸̨e̸̩̳͂̆c̷̜͍̅í̶̲̚ö̵̡̭́u̸̠̝̇̓s̶̳̈̋ ̷̩̈́L̸̢͇̉e̶̟͌̈́ņ̴͕͆a̵͈̫͑̉r̸̢̗̈̇d̴̲̓͠ ̴͈͇̊à̶͜͝w̶̫̺͊a̴̮͈̕ỳ̷̭̺ ̶̪̪̂̕f̴͓̿r̴͉̿ỡ̶̡m̷̥̻̅̿ ̸̘̟̄̑m̴̥̎e̵̥̜͂͆ ̵̥̖͊̚å̶̤̗̚n̸̼͘ỵ̵̑͌͜m̶͙̪̾o̴̦̍r̷͔̳̅̾e̶͔̜̋͒!̷̡͠!̵̬͘͜!̶̛͕͠

(It cuts back to the present.)

Arthur: Natalie did teach me one valuable lesson though. The meat of a woman doesn't really taste good, so your meat won't taste good either. Oh Ramona, I̴̢̙̩̝͘f̶̪̏͝ ̴̖͇̰͓̝͒̆ơ̸̦̲͗̄̀̆̽͝ͅń̷͈̫͂̓̓̕l̷̢͇̃̾̇̋ŷ̶̲̝͑͐̈̔͝͝ ̴̛͕̐̍̅̅̕y̴̪̻̬̆͂ô̴̝̝̑͒̆ṵ̴̙̋̏͑̊͜ ̸̹͕̤̘̞̐͋͋͂w̶̙̼͌̀͋ͅͅë̷̝̲̱̜̯͂̍͜͜r̸̜͎̠͎͍̗̓͛͝ę̶̭͎̽́̆̽͊̊̈́͜ ̵͔̖̀̓̆͒͘ͅa̷̲̠̹͍̗͒̓͜ ̴͚̪͙̥͕̥͍̄̂̐̃̌͠m̸̢̤͚̝̭̘̃̍̆̃͠a̷̞͔̱̲͇͂̐̿͜͝n̵͈̯̖͈̞̅̃́̃̐͝!̵̫̍̏

(Arthur suddenly feels a shock on his neck and immediately falls off of Ramona.)

Beth: Are you okay, Ramona?

Ramona: No the fuck I'm not, I just had my eye scratched out!

Beth to herself: Beth, you should've known better than to leave the killer unattended...

Mariana: Oh my God, Beth, please don't tell me Arthur killed my little lamb pup!

(Beth checks Benedict's pulse and determines that he's still alive.)

Beth: Don't worry, he's not dead, Arthur somehow missed his vitals by just enough, Benedict's very lucky to be alive.

Mariana: Oh, thank God...

Ramona to Monty, Carter, Rachel, Helen, Linda, and Lenard : Why didn't you try and save me or Ben!?

Carter: We thought Ben was already dead and we were too frozen in fear to help you!

Beth: Arthur...(puts handcuffs on him) You're under arrest for the murder of Timothy Woodchuck, Greg McCluck, Natalie Pigman, Joseph Pouch, and the attempted murder of both Benedict Uno and Ramona Stinger.

Arthur: I̸̢̜͇̥͕͙͈͔͝'̸̮̝̥̰̥͖̫̔̓̐͑l̴̬̇͛̑̀̏̑̚l̷͖̙̳̹̣̣̉ ̸̗̯̩̓͋͛͌̌̇̑e̸̩̖̻̬͐̋͒͑͛͝a̵͍͖̫͚͖͌̀̿̍̇̅͘ẗ̵̜̤̱̺̣ ̷̼͙͙͔̳̫̱͗͊̓̅̈́̈́̃̕y̸̤̔̒͂o̴̥̘̎̑u̸͇̰̦̖͙͌̈́ ̴̨̢̭͚̘͎͚̥͆̊́͗a̵̠̖̞͕̒̌͋l̵̢̡̛̗̝̰̻̳͂͗̚͠l̶̳̅̒̔͗̕!̸̥̲̫̜̙͇͈̙̈́̿̽̌̾͗̀!̷̺̰̤̗͔̩̣̆͂̽͛̅͘̕͝!̶̧̢͎̟͆͜

(Arthur gets shocked by his tame collar for showing clear signs of aggression.)

Beth: Get in the car.

(Ten years go by and Arthur has gone through a drastic transformation and now he mostly looks like an alligator, with the only kangaroo traits he still has being his head shape, hand shape, feet shape and small patches of kangaroo fur scattered throughout his body.)

Monty: Number 934, today's the day you get electrocuted.

Arthur: You can't do this to me!

Monty: You know this was gonna happen eventually, I just wished it happened way sooner.

(Monty takes Arthur to the electrocution chair. It cuts to Linda and Benedict(who are married now) entering the prison.)

Benedict: This place is so scary, I can't believe Ramona and Monty work here.

Carter: Hey, Ben. Hey, Linda.

Helen: So you fond a sitter for Delilah?(they're adopted daughter who's a lemur/cheetah hybrid)

Linda: Yep, Her grandma, Mariana is looking after her.

(They notice Lenard's looking uneasy.)

Rachel: Are you okay, Lenard?

Lenard: I'll be okay...

Rachel: Don't lie...

Lenard: He was my best friend ever since we were seven, I know he killed people...but I'll miss him...

Rachel: You'll miss the version of him he let you see.

Lenard: Yeah, you're right...

(The six of them enter the electrocution room where Arthur is sent to die.)

Arthur: Hey, meatbags...

Ramona: Don't you dare call them that!

Monty: Any last words, Arthur?

Arthur: Yes, but it's a long one.

Monty: Well, we have nothing but time.

Arthur: Alright then...I lived all my life as a hybrid. Society may accept hybrids now, but back when I killed people, society was not only ruled by prey animals, but also ruled by pure blood supremacy. My father was solid proof of that, he hated me, forced me to take anti hybrid pills to look like a pure blood which is thankfully now illegal, and even admitted to never wanting me and trying to get my mom to abort me! I may have killed people, but can you really blame these actions on me, if you ask me it was our old society's fault I became such a monster.

Ramona: It is not our old society's fault that you killed people, it's no one's fault but your own!

Monty: Ramona, please try to calm down.

Ramona: Sorry about that, I just feel very strongly about this.

Arthur: Whatever, just flip the switch.

Ramona: I've been waiting for this for four years...

(Ramona pulls the lever, Lenard closes his eyes, not wanting to see Arthur's gruesome demise. Lenard could see the flashing lights through his eyelids, his friends help escort him out of them room as he didn't want to open his eyes.)

Lenard: What happened?

Linda: Something, you don't deserve to see...

Lenard: Huh?

Helen: It was some pretty gruesome stuff...

Lenard: Oh...

Carter: Don't worry about it. Let's go home.(Lenard is Carter's roommate)

Lenard: Alright then...

(Meanwhile in Hell...)

Arthur: Where am I, am I in Hell!?

?: You are indeed in Hell.

(Arthur turns around to see a brown ram.)

Arthur: Who are you?

Baylor: I'm Baylor Uno.

Arthur: Uno? Are you Monty and Benedict's father?

Baylor: Yes I am, but I'm not a proud father of them.

Arthur: Why not?

Baylor: Monty a pure blooded sheep and Benedict doesn't embrace his predatory instincts like you do.

Arthur: So you would be proud of him if he was like me?

Baylor: I sure would, in fact, I think you should be my new son, is that okay with you?

Arthur: (happy tears)Of course, I never had a dad who loved me, especially for what I actually am!

Joseph: What about me!? I'm down here too!?

Arthur: You never wanted me and even tried to get my mom to have an abortion, why the fuck would I want to be your son!?

Joseph: Whatever!

(Josph storms of as Arthur hugs Baylor.)

Arthur: I never thought my new father would be younger than me...

Baylor: Unlike Heaven where everyone's forever young, here in Hell you're stuck at the age you died at. (Confident) So, I guess I'm glad I died young, I'm one of the hottest sinners here.

Arthur: (laughing) Dad, that's weird.

Baylor: You're the best son I could ever ask for...

Arthur: (tears of joy) Oh, father...

Timothy: Are you sure you want that f**got to be your new son!?

Arthur: Why, you little shit!

Timothy: Bring it on f**got, we're already in Hell, you can't kill me twice!

(The two get into a full on brawl infront of Baylor.)

Baylor: (Giggles) That's my boy...

The cannon ending.

[evil-ontheinside]

Why is writing Dustin literally the funniest thing? I don't know how it keeps happening but I wrote at least three different times from his pov and every time it has the best lines. Have some various snippets from my WIPs to prove my point:

"Why do you have to be so negative about this? You will not be the one in trouble should something go wrong, I will handle the consequences." He has his arms crossed in front of his chest and it might have been intimidating - especially with that dagger still in hand - but it's not because it's Michael. The Prince, sure, but also the person Dustin had seen sitting drenched in the fountain of the main plaza, looking like a wet cat and grumbling about it with the dignity of a small child. The cut-off curtains, draped over his shoulder like a makeshift cape, don’t command much respect either. ----

Dustin had been playing one of his favorite songs, approved of by all the important people at home, including the royal family. He knows it better than the back of his hand, could perform it in his sleep if he had to, had played it while being attacked by a ranger in the forest - yes Lucas, this story will be made into a song sooner or later, there is no escape. ----

Dustin knows nothing. Prince Michael, who? Wait, no, Dustin knows something. But nothing important. Yes, that sounds better. ----

“You won’t believe this.” Dustin almost chokes on his drink when he looks up and sees Hopper storm into the Byers’ kitchen. He did not just hear the chief of police Jim Hopper say You won’t believe this also known as the most stereotypical sitcom-drama sentence ever, right? “Try me,” is all Joyce answers, completely unphased, from the kitchen table where they all sit together and try to complete a 2000-piece jigsaw puzzle. It’s going worse than he anticipated. At the same time Dustin triumphantly fits a piece into the right place, does he realize that this must be a normal occurrence. Jim Hopper, taken right out of the afternoon’s soap opera.  He’ll need some time to process this later. -----

If anyone asks why he decided to spend one of the last days of summer vacation with Max underneath a lonely tree in the middle of an open field? They’re studying, obviously. Or having a romantic getaway that lasted for a few hours and will never happen ever again. They had planned to make this an extended Party event but, as usual, life just won’t go according to Dustin’s plan. He had it all planned out: camping for a night in a - of course completely randomly selected, no doubt about it - field in town, a DnD campaign crafted by Eddie himself to celebrate the last days of summer and far away from prying eyes to not disturb anyone. But no, the Byers and Hoppers - soon to be only Hoppers, Dustin is more than just a little excited for that wedding. He also had that fully planned out years ago but his planning was, as usual, not appropriately appreciated - had to make an impromptu family trip to god knows where, Steve, Eddie, and Robin - this betrayal maybe left the deepest wound - had suddenly all decided to take a road trip without telling anyone else beforehand, and the Sinclairs had all been jammed into their family car and carted off to visit a dying relative somewhere in Indianapolis. This left Max and Dustin all alone in Hawkins. At least Max was always down for a little espionage to search for possible gossip. Though Max had almost ditched him when he complained - totally justified by the way - about everyone leaving them behind when they should’ve been here with them, lying in waiting for the newest information. -----

Dustin doesn’t care. The others can hide their interest for all they want but he’s here to gather information and he’s not ashamed of it. His observations might as well be for science. His curiosity doors are wide open, he can’t risk only looking through a crack if he wants the full picture. -----

What the fuck do they need an old wooden chest for? Why doesn’t Dustin have an old wooden chest? He could totally pull off an old wooden chest in his room.  Maybe, and Dustin thinks this with reluctance of the highest order, the rumors aren't as ridiculous and farfetched as they sounded at first. This family might not be quite normal. [...] A few more boxes join the wooden chest - and Dustin is still not over that. This thing looks like it was taken straight out of a medieval fantasy story. The cheek, the gall to show off their cool wooden chest in front of Dustin without considering his feelings - neatly stacked on top of it before he simply gets behind the wheel and takes off without giving them an answer as if he hadn’t even heard them.

[robinrunsfiction]

If You Kiss Me

Will it be just like I dreamed it?

Pairing: Gerard Way x Female Reader Rating: General Requested By: None Word Count: ~1,400 Author’s Note: Just a sweet little high school AU one shot, in which Frank is a little shit, and there are lots of feelings. It's not much but I hope you enjoy it.

~

It was a typical Saturday afternoon for (YN), hanging out with her friends, watching movies, playing games, and just being teenagers. They had been watching Blade Runner, but (YN) was finding it hard to focus on the movie she’d seen so many times before.

“Tired?” Gerard whispered from beside her, as her eyelids started to feel heavy.

“Mmhmm,” she nodded.

���Come ‘ere,” he said, wrapping an arm over her shoulder and she snuggled into his side. With her eyes closed, she didn’t see the look Mikey and Frank were exchanging.

(YN) woke up before the movie was over, but stayed tucked under Gerard’s arm. She always felt safe when she was close to Gerard. They had grown up together, spending countless hours together, and there was no one she trusted more.

“So when are you two gonna admit it?” Frank smirked.

“Admit what?” (YN) mumbled.

“That you two are like totally in love with each other,” Mikey answered, barely able to contain his amusement. “It’s been obvious forever.”

(YN) sat up and looked at Gerard. He seemed as confused as she was.

“We’re just friends!” Gerard argued.

“Yea, we’re not doing anything weird,” she added.

“You two do sit really close like all the time,” Ashely shrugged from the other side of (YN).

“That’s because there’s always so many people around, there’s no room,” (YN) retorted.

“Just admit you have feelings for each other,” Frank sighed.

“We don’t have any feelings for each other!” (YN) snapped.

“Other than friendship,” Gerard added.

“Right!”

Their friends stared back at them with looks of utter disbelief.

“Ok fine,” Frank finally said. “Prove it.”

(YN) and Gerard exchanged a look of confusion. “Prove what?” (YN) asked.

“Prove that you don’t have romantic feelings for each other.”

“That’s dumb, how would we even do that?” (YN) sputtered.

“Yea,” Gerard chimed in, rather unhelpfully.

“Kiss,” Frank answered simply.

“Each other?!” (YN) blurted out.

“No, my mom. Yes, each other!”

(YN) and Gerard looked at each other again. “Fine,” (YN) shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant.

Gerard looked a bit surprised at first, but nodded. “Yea, sure, it’ll be nothing.”

“Then do it,” Frank goaded.

“We will!” Gerard shot back, before clearing his throat. “Ready.”

“A real kiss, not just some dumb peck on the lips!” Mikey added.

(YN) rolled her eyes and shifted closer to Gerard, before looking back over at the group of friends watching intently. “Ok, this is weird with you guys watching like that.”

“Then go in the other room or something,” Ashely suggested. “But you better do it.”

“Come on,” Gerard said, leading the way to the kitchen.

(YN) leaned against the counter and crossed her arms across her chest. “This is dumb.”

“I know, like have they never seen friends before?”

“Apparently not,” (YN) rolled her eyes. 

Silence hung between them, neither wanting to be the first to move.

"They're still listening and I hate it. Guess I know I'm not into voyeurism,” (YN) muttered after a while.

"What?" Gerard asked, eyes going wide.

"Nothing," she shook her head and looked down, hoping to hide the fact that she was blushing. “So how are we gonna do this?"

“I guess like this?” Gerard took a step forward and reached up hesitantly, before gently cupping her cheek. (YN) felt like her heart was speeding up, but she didn't understand why. Gerard began to lean in and she closed her eyes just as his lips met hers. It wasn't just a peck, as decreed by Frank, but a full fledged kiss. Her lips moved against his before they pulled back. Gerard had an expression on his face that she couldn't read.

"Yea, they did it!" Ashely called from the doorway.

"Oh my god," (YN) covered her face, while Gerard groaned.

(YN) did her best to remain neutral when she made her way back to the living room with her friends. There was no way she was letting them realize that she had felt something from that kiss. Something she didn't understand at all. 

“So?” Frank smirked.

“You’re an idiot,” Gerard muttered, but when Gerard sat back down next to her, she noticed that he did leave a bit more space between them, and pain sprung through her heart.

“Seriously. All it was was a kiss, like who cares?” (YN) rolled her eyes.

"Fine, you win," Frank put his hands up defensively. "You're just friends."

~

The rest of her time spent with her friends went by like usual, but when (YN) was in bed that night, staring up at the ceiling, all she could think about was how she felt when she kissed Gerard. But that wasn't how this was supposed to go, she wasn't ever supposed to feel something for Gerard. He was her oldest friend, spending their whole childhood next door to him, growing up together. If she wanted to, she could go tap on his window and talk to him. She'd done it before, but what could she say now? 'Oh hi Gee, sorry to wake you up, but that kiss woke something up in me and I know I've always loved you as a friend, but now I think it's more, so let's ruin this friendship!'

She rolled over and sighed. At least she had homework to busy herself with tomorrow, but Monday she'd have to see Gerard walking to school, in the halls, everywhere. 

~

But it wasn't just Monday that ended up being hard, it was the whole week. She tried to avoid spending too much time with Gerard, as every time she did she was filled with so many conflicting feelings. She wondered if he noticed, but hoped he didn’t.

By the end of the week (YN) felt like she had hardly slept all week, so it wasn't hard to get her mom to believe she wasn't feeling well and she let her stay home sick. (YN) had been napping on and off all day, and feeling sorry for herself when she was awake. She hadn't paid much attention to her clock, so she didn’t realize the school day was over when there was a knock on her door. 

"Yea?" She answered, not moving from where she was curled up under her blankets.

"Hey."

(YN) sat up and her heart flipped. Gerard was in her doorway, looking so sad, and she hated that. "Hey Gee."

"Are you feeling ok?" He asked, sitting down by her feet.

"Is it any use to lie?"

"I wish you wouldn't."

She sighed. "No."

“What’s wrong? Is it something contagious?” But he didn’t flinch away from her.

“No, I’m not physically sick, I’m just exhausted. I couldn’t sleep this week.”

“Oh,” he nodded. “Something on your mind?”

“Yea.”

"You seemed sorta off this week. Umm, did I do something?"

"God no," she shook her head. "No, it's nothing you did."

They sat in silence until Gerard finally spoke up. "Is it because of Saturday?"

"Yea," she whispered. Sitting next to Gerard, she knew that there was no use in hiding from how she felt any longer. She didn’t want to feel like this anymore. "I never wanna admit it to Frank, but that kiss… it made me realize I do like you Gerard. And now I wanna kiss you like that every day."

Gerard shifted to sit next to her, put his arm over her shoulder, and she instinctively melted into his side. "And I'd never wanna admit it to Frank, but he was right. I do have feelings for you, more than friend feelings."

"Can we even go back now, knowing how we feel?"

Gerard didn't respond at first, until he let out a soft laugh. "(YN) look," he said, nodding at her mirror across the room. In the reflection she saw Gerard and her cuddling close. "If you saw two people sitting like this, wouldn't you assume they were dating?"

(YN) laughed lightly. "Yea, I suppose so. And I suppose this is why Frank and Mikey and Ashely assume that we’re together."

"So what would really be changing if we dated?"

"Other than we get to kiss each other whenever we want, not just when we've been dared?"

"Right," he laughed.

(YN) looked from their reflection, up into his eyes. "You really wanna be my boyfriend?"

Gerard nodded. "Yea. I have wanted that for a long time now."

"I want that too."

Gerard grinned and leaned in, kissing her again, much like he had the other day. But this time when her heart fluttered and stomach flipped, she felt nothing but happiness.

[absolutelyfizzing]

unwanted feelings

james potter x reader

description - You'd had a crush on James Potter for years and when he kisses Lily Evans in front of you, you are heart broken. Later you find that he didn't actually feel as you expected and he explains himself.

warnings - some angst, unsure reader, fem pronouns, self doubt, negative self talk, not eating for a day cause reader is avoiding someone

word count - 2800

A/N - so this one isn't my best work by far but i wrote it so looks like its getting posted. i don't know why all of my reader inserts lately are so fem and sort of bubbly, i guess it's sort of what i'm aiming for for myself right now but i'm sorry if it maybe isn't coming off as relatable.

MASTERLIST

Your throat tightened in anxiety as you watched James zoom around the pitch. He was reckless when he was playing quidditch and it was one of the things that made him great at the game and an excellent captain. It was also the thing that nearly gave you a heart attack every time you watched him play. You went to every one of his games and you always wore something of his with his colors when you were in the stands. You were stood up on your seat and a slightly bored looking Remus sat to your right, reading from a book you didn't recognize. You'd thought that Sirius playing would be enough to keep him interested but sports was just not something he enjoyed watching. You were usually that way as well but whenever James was playing, suddenly you were the most intent spectator in the stands.

You were more worried than you should have been. More worried than what was appropriate for a friend to be. That's what you were, friends. That had been reinforced many times by the shaggy haired boy and you tried desperately to get it through your head before you embarrassed yourself one of these days. Sometimes though, you just couldn't help it.

Really you might have thought he reciprocated if you didn't know any better. You often got comments on what an attractive couple you guys were but each time it was quickly corrected by James. Normally along the lines of 'Oh god no, we are just friends. Purely platonic' , sometimes followed by a shudder or a gag even. It upset you every time to no end but you played along. You rarely, if ever, contributed to the shooting down of any feelings but that was never noticed by the man you had feelings for.

You'd had a crush on him since you were probably in your second year and now you were coming to the middle of your seventh. There were a million times that you almost said something but every time there was a reminder that you were not the one he had eyes for. It usually took the shape of disgust at the thought of dating you or commentary as he pined over the Evans girl who you felt you could never compete with. How could you when she was just perfect. You saw her to the left of you as she stood in the stands as well and your hands shook with insecurity before looking back toward the game. Your heart raced nearly as quickly as James did around the pitch and you prayed that the snitch would be caught soon so that you could get rid of the stress surrounding you. You felt a hand on your right shoulder and you looked over to find Remus had stood and was looking at you caringly.

"Are you alright, Y/N?" He asked softly and you tried your very best to soften your gaze and calm your stance so you appeared less concerned with someone that you shouldn't have that much interest in in the first place.

"Of course I am. When am I not?" You smiled before looking out at the pitch.

"When youre watching the guy you're in love with play a dangerous game that you don't like." He stated simply in response to the question you meant to be rhetorical and your eyes widened.

"I don't know what youre talking about." You nearly whispered and Remus smiled.

"I'm not gonna tell anyone Y/N but its not exactly subtle. It probably doesn't help that I know the look on your face because it's how I feel too watching Sirius play." He was still smirking but your anxiety was far from eased.

"Oh god, does he know?" You asked scaredly, terrified that the answer would be yes and you would have to stop spending time with him.

"Shockingly, no." You sighed out in relief but Remus continued. "You should tell him though or else he might end up moving on."

"What do you mean? There's nothing for him to move on from. Everyone knows he's in love with Evans and he has made it pretty clear that he is opposed to being anything more than a friendly relationship with me." You choked out, struggling with the words leaving your lips but knowing them to be true.

"I mean he has a minor crush on Evans but it's nothing compared to the annoyingly huge crush he has on you. He's probably just overcompensating for the fact that he's insecure and doesn't want you to reject him."

"Why are you telling me this?" You asked sincerely. You were friends with Remus as you were with the rest of the marauders but it was nothing compared to the friendship they held within their group. You knew Remus was more loyal to James than to you so you couldn't understand why, if it was true, Remus would be telling you at all.

"Because he is trying desperately to move on seeing as he is under the impression that you aren't into him and I'd hate to see him throw something away that could be really good for him." Remus smiled gently and you looked at him gratefully.

"I really appreciate you telling me and all but I just don't think I can believe you. I can't even count how many times he has made a big show of not liking me. I love him too much to ruin what we have and I know that if I confessed and it went bad that I would lose him all together. I would rather have him in my life in a way that hurts than not have him in it at all." You stated sadly and Remus sighed but nodded in understanding.

"I get it but just know that I'm being honest and pretty soon he is going to give up on it. I just want to see you both happy but if its too big of a leap, I understand. That's exactly the excuse he tells the rest of us too."

Suddenly cheers erupted from the stands, cutting your conversation with Remus off as everyone ran to rush the pitch. The snitch had been caught and gryffindor won. You were excited for James but you were also a little terrified to walk onto the pitch to see him with the now conflicted thoughts running through your head. Your thoughts were stopped by the image in front of you which was causing the whole crowd to cheer. James had pulled Lily Evans into a kiss in his excitement and your heart stopped. You felt nausea rise in your throat and Remus caught your eye with a sympathetic look. You didn't look at him for longer than a second and you ran off the pitch with tears streaming down your face. You found your way up to your dorm, pushing yourself to get there quickly before the common room filled with students celebrating their victory. James was always one to love attention so he would be getting crazy after the game which he did just about every time they won.

When you made it to your bed, you hurried under the covers, throwing the shirt you were wearing which belonged to James onto the floor. You felt your heart clench at the despair you felt. You wanted to be upset at Remus for getting your hopes up but you knew he was sincere in his want to help. Still you felt that you would probably not be able to face James in the weeks to come. Maybe, given a little time, you could be around him and not be upset at the world for taking away your chance with him. As you laid in your bed, you stared at the ceiling. You felt tears streaming down your face and you grew angry at yourself. He didn't owe you anything, he wasn't into you. That wasn't his fault and it was so unfair of you to expect anything more from him when your feelings were not his responsibility.

You weren't sure how long you laid there but you could hear the party start and end in the common room. It must have been late. Sleep wouldnt come though, you could just feel your heart continue to break and you were stuck in a loop of self pity. You made the decision that the following days would be spent away from James if you could at all help it. That was probably what he wanted anyway and it was the only way that you would get over the pain you were feeling. At some point your roomates entered your dorm and sleep overtook you for a few restless hours.

When you woke up, the sun was barely on the rise. You hurried up and got dressed and ready. You were planning on getting to breakfast early to avoid running into any of the marauders. You found your plans were not going how you wanted when you entered the great hall to find a head of red hair next to a mop of black. Your throat tightened and you quickly moved to turn and head out of the great hall. You heard a familiar voice call your name but you rushed out before you could give it too much thought. You knew that if you let him try to convince you, you would end up having a very upsetting breakfast with your best friend and his new lover. You would rather avoid breakfast.

Throughout the day, avoiding James was proving to be harder than you had thought it would be. You had many of your classes with him and you even sat next to him in a few. He was insistently trying to get you to open up about why you were suddenly so closed off to him but you remained shut off, reassuring him that nothing was wrong and you were just a little tired from the game the day before. You avoided lunch for the same reason as you had avoided breakfast and you felt yourself starting to get a bit lightheaded. Your afternoon was spent avoiding James but soon he was preoccupied with Lily anyway.

You were hid in a corner of the library when a cough alerted you of someone's presence. You looked up to find the very eyes you hadn't wanted to see.

You pushed it down with a gulp and smiled a bit at him, trying desperately to keep the tears at bay but they were growing harder to hold back after keeping everything pent up all day. It probably didn't help that you were hungry and therefor a bit more emotional. You could feel the tears sitting in your eyes, waiting for something to go wrong so they had an excuse to escape you.

"I don't know what I did wrong." He mumbled while looking at the floor in front of you and you took a deep breath.

"There's nothing wrong James, I promise. It's just been a long day." You smiled and your heart picked up speed.

"Since when did we lie to each other?" He questioned and your heart stopped. You were left unsure how to respond.

"Since the truth would cause more damage than good." You spoke honestly. At this he looked up at you and your eyes met. A tear left you and James immediately moved to comfort you but you tried to move away, standing quickly to evade him. You regretted it as spots filled your vision, the lack of food catching up to you. You know that you turned a bit green for a moment because James looked slightly scared.

"Y/N I dont know whats wrong but you look like you should be getting to the hospital wing. You don't look well."

Before you could answer you felt your vision blacken and your legs give out before your consciousness left you completely.

When you woke up, you knew you were in the hospital wing. It smelled sterile and the bed was stiff underneath you. When you started to wake madam pomfrey came to check on you.

"You can't go around with an empty stomach like that again, do you hear me?" She scolded, though her eyes were soft. You nodded solemnly. "I was alerted that you hadn't been to the great hall to eat all day, you have to know that isn't good for you. I'm gonna have a prefect watch out for you the next couple days to make sure you're eating at meal times. Understood?" She asked again and once more you nodded before leaning back and sighing. You looked at your surroundings and were surprised to see the black haired boy next to your bed fast asleep. Your heart took off again and you felt trapped by your environment. As anxiety swirled around in your chest, James had woken up a bit.

"You're awake." James sighed, laced with relief. You still wouldn't make eye contact with him.  You felt the bed dip as he sat on it and you looked up to watch him put his head in his hands as he leaned over. You felt guilt fill your chest more than it already had from hating that you felt any claim over the man in front of you. You knew you were in the wrong and the last thing you wanted was to cause him any pain. "Remus talked to me." He almost whispered.

At that moment, you wished you could have apparated to anywhere else in the world. You looked back down at your lap and tears were once again brought to your eyes. You felt betrayal that Remus would reveal your feelings to James.

"I'm sorry." You apologized and you fiddled with your fingers.

"Why are you the one apologizing, I'm the one whos behaved poorly." He assures and you shake your head.

"That's not fair to yourself. You're allowed to want to be with whomever you want and my feelings should have no effect on that. You've made it clear for years that you weren't interested in me and it is my fault that I couldn't take a hint. I'm so sorry." You gushed out and tears started to fall from your eyes. You felt James get up from your bed and you prepared him to leave but instead you felt arms wrap around you and a kiss came to your head.

"Y/N I have had feelings for you for years. I was just always too scared for myself to even consider that you might feel the same." He whispered out but you felt only a different kind of pain. Even though he had now admitted his feelings, he was still dating Lily. Not you. Almost as if he could hear your thoughts he spoke quietly. "I broke it off with Evans." You pulled away immediately.

"What? Why would you do that?" You asked quickly and before he had a chance to answer you feared the worst. "Oh god is it because of me? James please dont let my feelings have any bearing on who you want to date, I can't stand the thought of being the reason you broke up. Even if we do have feelings for each other, you deserve a chance with Lily if that's what you want."

"It was mutual, actually. She understood that I had feelings for you and she said she had a crush on someone else. It just seemed like I had kissed her a bit rashly on the quidditch pitch and we agreed that we shouldn't have gotten together in the first place. It was only a day anyway." He reassured as he explained himself and you calmed a bit.

"So what does this mean." You got out, almost inaudibly.

"It means that, if you'll have me, I'd like to take you out on a date." He stated as if it were the simplest thing in the world and you almost couldn't believe your ears. Before you were even thinking you were nodding quickly, causing spots to once again fill your vision and James grabbed your shoulders to stabilize you before you both laughed. He pulled you by your shoulders toward him and he caught your lips in a kiss that somehow expressed all of the years of repressed feelings. When he pulled away he smiled at you and sat back on your bed. He spent the rest of the day with you in the hospital wing talking about all of the places he was going to take you in the coming weeks.

[littlefreya]

Vanilla Milkshake

Summer: Henry and a long time friend hangout at their usual spot when things turn chaotic because of an innocent misunderstanding...

Prompted by:  

 Oooh Freyaaaa I just *need* some scene featuring Henry and ofc drinking milkshake. 

Pairing: Henry Cavill x Unamed OFC (no description of ethnicity or body type).

Word count: 1.7K

Warnings: RPF, major fluff, friends to lovers, sexual innuendo, mild seduction, sex talk, an unwanted boner, Henry being a boomer, Henry having a meltdown. 

*No permission is given for reposting my work, copying it, ideas or parts it and claiming it as your own.*

A/N: So, first thing first, thanks @agniavateira for quickly beta’ing my work! And of course thanks @the-soot-sprite for bouncing ideas with me and being an emotional support. Decided to go with friends for lovers because I live for that stuff. Also, I am aware that “Milkshake” can be interpreted in several ways but for the sake of the story I went with that particular reference. Divider by the lovely @firefly-graphics

Please comment and reblog if you enjoyed.  🖤

Title: Vanilla Milkshake

“I swear, this diner looks like Barbie had an orgasm all over the place.” A whimsical grin sliced between Henry’s marble cheeks. Eyeing the pastel-esque surroundings, he huffed scornfully and adjusted the cap over his nest of unruly curls. 

“Remind me again why we always meet here, young lady?”

Staring at the beastly man who barely managed to squeeze into the plastic-pink faux leather booth, she couldn’t help but chuckle. Henry carried himself with something that was both eloquent yet unmistakably feral, reminding her of a burly forest creature. Sturdy tree trunks stood for limbs, torso, and shoulders—the widths of icy mountains and a blanket of thick fur coated the entirety of his body, deeming him a dangerous bear. 

No wonder he preferred himself clean-shaven. The sharpened edge of a razor kept him a cut away from becoming ‘Henry the Barbarian’. 

Seeing him surrounded by pastel and sparkly fairy dust brought far more joy than she could ever imagine. The utter look of contempt gleamed on the surface of his shifty eyes. 

Oh, by God, how much he hated glitter!

“And what would you know about Barbie’s orgasms?” she teased with a crooked eyebrow and a comical suspicious glare. 

Readjusting his cap over the messy mane of chocolate curls, Henry offered a terrible wink and shrugged, “a gentleman never tells.”

Her fingers rapped on her thigh while she contemplated whether to allow this naughty joke slide, but then the urge to provoke him was far too great. After briefly chewing on the inside of her cheek, she broke into a wicked grin.

“Is that… like a role play you have with the missus? She’s Barbie, and you’re G.I.Joe? Because I kinda don’t want to hear about it, but then I kinda do.”

Henry’s smile gradually faded along with the playful glee in his eyes, his melancholic gaze dropping to the sparkly table. He slumped into a heavy sigh, “If by missus, you mean ‘Miss Hand’, then no… not really.”

Dumbfounded, she frowned at Henry with confusion when then it struck her; a sense of incredible embarrassment drained the blood from her head to her gut.

“Oh…”

“Yep.” Henry blurted and grabbed the menu, pretending to be incredibly interested in the kids’ meal options. 

Just in time to rescue them from a prolonged awkward silence, the waitress arrived with their order, serving Henry a hot cup of double espresso while she received a tall glass of a luscious vanilla milkshake. 

“Enjoy your drinks, guys!” the waitress smiled sweetly and kept her eyes glued to Henry as she walked away. But the gloss of the waitress’ flirtatious excitement was lost on him; drenched with greed, Henry’s blue sapphires were fixated on the generous scoops of ice cream and the dark chocolate swirls that decorated his companion’s dessert. 

“Henry, my eyes are up here!” she provoked and grabbed the straw between two fingers while throwing an amused glance at his simple cup of coffee. Henry followed her gaze and scoffed before raising the cup to his mouth and blowing to cool his drink.

The way his lips pursed together and his finger stroked the ceramic surface did not escape her observation. A sudden tingle swam down the length of her spine once it resonated in her mind that kind, charming, and beastly Henry was now single. Here they were, long time buddies, but now sitting together felt less comfortable than before. Her limbs felt like pins and needles while staring directly at his eyes was as risky as staring at the sun.  

“Cheers,” Henry mumbled and took a sip from his cup. 

Almost jolting in her seat, she stiffened and then grabbed her straw.

“Cheers.”

Giggles came from the other side of the diner. Among the retro gumball machines and rounded plastic bar stools, the waitress and a colleague leaned against the counter and stared at Henry, who turned his head for a brief moment and tipped his head.

Their giggles turned even louder.

She frowned. 

“So, have you been single for a while?” she heard herself asking with a rather urgent tone. Right away, a look of contrition crept on her face as she regretted her verbal onslaught and lack of sensitivity. 

Henry directed his gaze back to her and watched as she slowly sipped from the milkshake and then suckled the cream off her mouth. 

Absentmindedly, he licked his lips. “Since May. How about you, weren’t you with…?”

“No, ended, dodged a bullet.” she spat and pumped the straw up and down the thick beverage. “My milkshake brings all the boys… except it doesn't.” she sighed.

Henry frowned and shook his head with confusion. “What? You never told me you make your own milkshake. How come I never had some?” 

Her face abruptly froze, her eyes rounded with surprise before she snorted so loudly the waitresses stopped their whispering.

“Umm… Hen?” she called out, trying to hold herself from bursting into chuckles as her friend accidentally asked for a very sexual favour, “you honestly don’t know what ‘milkshake’ is slang for...?”

“Uh…”

“Omg, you’re such a boomer.” 

“No, I was born in ‘83! I’m a millennial. But please, indulge me.” he begged and crossed his arms together.

Clearing her throat loudly, she did her best to fight the wicked grin that stretched on her already painful cheeks and wrapped her fist around the straw. “So you know... how… certain male bodily fluids are sometimes white and creamy...? And when you perform a certain motion it’s like you’re shaking it…?”

Henry blinked and became silent. An unbidden rush of blood pooled at his groin as he watched her thumb graze over the tip of the straw and her fist pumping it into the smooth liquid in a slow, gentle motion. Wickedness glazed her eyes, but he tried to dismiss it as nothing but their usual playful banter; yet his adam’s apple bobbed up and down while his shoulder tensed at the oddly arousing sight of her performing a sinful act on a milkshake. 

There was an unmistakable stir in his cock and for once, he was thankful for narrow spaces as it hid his predicament.

Leaning forward, she opened her mouth and swirled her tongue around the straw. She went deliberately slow, making him watch while she playfully licked and suckled the tip until finally wrapping her lips around it and taking a generous sip.

Henry gawked utterly smitten, unaware that his jaw was nearly at the floor.

And to make things worse, she moaned—not too loud—but definitely enough to make his shaft harden more.

She wasn’t sure what stirred this whimsical boost of confidence, only that seeing the large, handsome man pale at her provocations made her feel like the most powerful woman on earth. She also gathered she’d regret it forever and a day once they’ll part ways, but it was too late for that now.

Gingerly she pulled back, though not before allowing a single drop of cream to trickle down the corner of her lips.

“Oops,” she smirked casually, wiping the cream with her fingertip and sucking it clean. 

“Please stop…” 

It was then when she noticed that Henry’s playful mien was all but gone. Far from amused, he glowered with a clenched jaw. “If you’re going to keep doing that, I’ll have to leave,” he stated matter-of-factly. 

A rush of panic made her freeze in her spot, the same needles that pricked her skin were now setting jolts of electric bursts. “I’m so sorry, I crossed the line,” she said and covered her mouth with shame, “did I offend you? Do you want me to leave?”

“What? No, no, not at all.” Henry’s voice softened right away, and he reached a hand in the air, as if trying to stop her from leaving. The last thing he wanted now is for her to think he is angry with her. If anything, he wished they could spend more time together, not because of his obvious arousal, but because for the first time in a long while, he was having fun.

Still, she looked at him so utterly distraught.  

“Then…?” 

Henry scanned the diner as if trying to make sure no one was staring or taking any photo and then shifted in his seat uncomfortably. His eyes altered between his spread thighs and her several times, trying to signal toward his… trouble.

“Oh...” she gaped. 

An odd sense of pride began to permeate her chest, battling over the burning embarrassment that flamed up her neck and cheeks. At this point, she wasn’t sure what she was supposed to feel, only that it was definitely the most awkward hangout they had to date. 

Problem was, she never knew when to shut up. 

“Is little Henry hungry?”

Hearing those words, his brows dropped to an irritated sulk. “There is nothing little about it.”

“Ha! Prove it!”

It was as if the entire diner and perhaps the world fell into silence. Had the clatter of the dishes being washed in the back kitchen not rung their ears, she would have thought she grew suddenly deaf. 

“I didn’t mean it… sorry, I’ll stop,” she mumbled slowly and pressed her fingers to her mouth while shaking her head at her stupid behaviour. That was it, this was to be the last afternoon she would ever hang out with Henry and right now, she couldn’t even bring herself to look at him.

Henry chewed onto the inside of his cheeks, trying to stop the words that came faster than his thoughts.

“You didn’t?... Because I’ll definitely be up for proving...”

She blinked at his words and tilted her head, hoping that he won’t notice the wild tremors that shook her limbs, “What was that?” 

“I... yes? No?...I… fuck!” 

Henry lowered his head and slapped his palms across his face, rubbing back and forth with an utter meltdown while mumbling, “Forgive me,” a couple of times. He couldn’t care less of what the waitresses or whoever was watching would think of him; all he cared about was to make her feel comfortable around him again and maybe… even make her like him?

“Henry?”

Soft and warm her voice called to him, slowly pulling him from his anguish like a sailor being rescued from a sunken ship. His blue sapphires shone, an ocean of confusion and anxiety still pooling within while he peered back at her face that was now smiling at him a mixture of comfort and exhilaration. 

“Would you like some of my milkshake?”

[redhoodssweetheart]

Welcome to My World

Genre: Soulmate AU

Pairing: Jason Todd x Gender Neutral!Reader

Requested: Yes (REQUESTS ARE CLOSED, this was for my 1.5K follower celebration)

Word Count: 1.6K

Warnings:  Swearing, slight angst, fluff

Description:  You wind up in your favorite comic book character’s world and find out that he’s your soulmate.  Jason Todd wants to know how you know his secret identity since he was in his Red Hood gear when you met, but your answer is the last thing he expected to hear. 

Hey, are you all right?

Those five words were tattooed on your inner arm, the first words your soulmate would ever speak to you.  Every time someone asked you that question you would tense up and respond waiting for their initial reaction as they realized who you were to them.  But the response never came.  The “Oh my God you’re my soulmate” never happened.  And year after year that passed you felt like maybe you would never meet them.

You found solace in comics, in the stories of heroes, and wondering what it would be like to be their soulmate.  Your favorite hero, or anti-hero you guess, would be Red Hood AKA Jason Todd.  The BatFam comics were amongst some of your favorites and you devoured fanfics written about Jason.  Silently you wished that he was your soulmate, maybe because it was easier than feeling disappointed time after time when someone else wasn’t your soulmate.

Then the strangest event occurred.  You were walking home one afternoon from your shift and there was a blinding flash of light.  At first, you had thought that maybe there had been some kind of explosion, or maybe you had died somehow and there really was a white light at the end.  Then everything was dark and when you slowly opened your eyes you realized that you weren’t home anymore.

City buildings you didn’t recognize rose around you a police car with the letter GCPD written on the side whizzed by.  Your heart felt like it had lodged itself in your throat and for a moment you thought that you really had died and maybe this was what the afterlife was like.  You took stock of everything around you looking for anything that might give you a clue as to where you were and in the distance, you noticed another tall building.

It was a stereotypical skyscraper but written on it was Wayne Enterprises.  You blinked and let out a startled laugh, “No way.  No, no, no this isn’t real.  This can’t be real.”  The possibilities that you were dreaming flitted through your mind and you scrubbed your hands over your face as if you were trying to wake yourself up.

There was no way you could be in Gotham City.

“Hey, are you all right?”  Those words.  Those damn words.

Turning your head you saw him standing there, the red mask obscuring his face, the bat emblem on his chest.  “Cool Jason Todd cosplay,” you managed to get out before your head began to swim and you began collapsing, the man before you rushing to catch you before your head could connect to the pavement.

“Shit,” he hissed.  Then he hit the button for his comms, “Alfred, I’m bringing someone to the cave… uh, well I’ll explain when I get there.”

“Understood,” came Alfred’s response.

How did you know his name, and why the hell had you thought he was cosplaying himself?  He didn’t have time for that now, and he also resisted the urge to check his arm where those very words were etched into his skin.  Whoever you were, you were his soulmate.  There was no doubting that.

He managed to get you to the cave in one piece and Alfred quickly checked you over and gave the all-clear.  “It was probably shock,” he told Jason.  “You said that they seemed confused, correct?”

Jason had his arms crossed over his chest and nodded, “Yeah, it was strange.  It was like they had no idea where they were and they thought I was cosplaying.”  He unfurled his arms and rolled up his sleep, “Whoever they are, they’re my soulmate.”

Alfred patted Jason’s shoulder, “Let’s wait until they wake up, and then we’ll get answers.”

Bruce and Dick entered the cave and saw you lying on the medical table, Jason standing over you looking pensive.  “Jason what is this?”  Bruce asked as he stepped closer to him and the stranger.

“They’re my soulmate,” Jason said calmly, his eyes still locked onto you, his mind racing.  “Found them looking lost and confused tonight, and right before they passed out they said the magic words.”

Bruce’s eyes shifted from Jason to you, “Are they all right now?”

“Alfred said that it was probably just shock,” Jason finally looked at his adoptive father.  “They knew who I was.  Or at least they thought I was cosplaying myself.”

There was a moment of silence, “I got a call from Barry, he said there was some type of disturbance.  A doorway opened between our earth and another, maybe that’s where they’re from.  Maybe there they know who you are.”

“Maybe,” Jason didn’t want to jump to conclusions.  “Anyhow I’ll get the answers we need when they wake.”

Bruce and Dick left him alone after that and he pulled a chair over to wait until you woke.

 It was several hours later and when you woke up you were still in an unfamiliar place.  You would have thought that you would have woken in your bed, proving that it had all been a dream.  But it seemed that your subconscious wasn’t done with you yet.  This time when you opened your eyes you were in a cave and then everything came crashing back down around you.

You were in Gotham.  You had seen Red Hood.  That must mean you were in the-- “Batcave, you’re in the Batcave,” the voice from earlier said, this time it wasn’t obscured by his helmet.  When you glanced to your right you saw him sitting there.  Jason Todd in the flesh.  “You and I need to have a little discussion.  Soulmate to soulmate.”

You let out a ragged breath, “You’re my soulmate?”

He pulled up his sleeve to reveal the words you had spoken to him right before passing out.  “How did you know who I was?  You asked if I was cosplaying Jason Todd specifically, not Red Hood.  How did you know?”

Of course, that would be one of his first questions.  All vigilantes were super secretive with their identities, wanting to protect themselves.  Bruce Wayne was one of the ones that was super protective of his.  “You don’t exist,” you blurted out.  “I don’t know how I got here, but where I’m from you’re a fictional character.”

Jason was quiet for a moment, “All right, let’s say I believe you on that and where you’re from I don’t exist as a living, breathing person.  How did you get here?”

“There was a flash of light,” you explained, wanting desperately for him to trust you.  “The next thing I know I’m standing on the street here in Gotham and you’re coming up to me asking me if I’m okay.  I didn’t expect any of this.  Do you know how I’m here?”

There was a moment of hesitation, “Barry Allen called, do you know who he is?”  You nodded, Barry was the Flash of course you knew that.  “He said there was an anomaly, a doorway from your earth opened and brought you here to mine.”

“So this isn’t some weird dream?  I didn’t die or anything like that?”

He chuckled, “No, there’s a scientific explanation behind it.”  He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment, “Do you want to go back to your earth?”

Did you?  

I mean you had just found your freaking soulmate.  The person you had been hoping to find since the words had appeared on your arm.  Of course, there was a catch and he belonged to a whole other earth.  And let’s not forget that he happened to be one of your favorite fictional characters of all time.

“Is it okay if I don’t know?”  You asked cautiously.

He nodded, “Yeah, it’s all right.  I know this is a lot to digest.”

You blew out a breath, “This is so not how I saw meeting my soulmate going.”

“It’s not how I saw mine going either,” he offered you a smile.  Then stood and said, “Let me formally introduce myself, I’m Jason Peter Todd, your soulmate.”

“Y/N Y/L/N,” you told him.  “It’s nice to meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Y/N.”  And you swore you could have melted at the tender way he said your name.

He took you to a room in the manor where you could sleep and Alfred offered to go out and get some clothes for you since you were left wearing what you had at work.  You were grateful for them all and how friendly they were treating you despite the fact that you were a literal stranger.  Jason stayed with you and asked you questions about your earth and what he was like in the comics that you had read about him.

You talked for hours until you fell asleep beside him, your head resting on his shoulder.

You spent weeks in Gotham with Jason, learning all there was to learn about the city and its inhabitants and about your soulmate.  Jason was patient and understanding and never pressured you into telling him if you wanted to go home or not.

“Jay?”  You said one evening as the two of you were lying in bed, he was reading a book and you were on his phone playing some games.  He stopped reading and looked over at you to see what you wanted.  “I want to stay here with you, I don’t want to go home.”

The smile that he gave you nearly made your heart stop, “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” you said quietly, smiling back at him.  “I don’t think I could ever leave you, and it’s not because you’re my favorite character or even my soulmate.  It’s just because I love spending time with you.  I love your family and this city despite its flaws.  And I just want to stay here forever.”

He placed a finger under your chin and tilted your head up slightly, “I would love nothing more than for you to stay with me.”

“Good,” you leaned forward and brushed your lips against his, feeling happiness blooming throughout you at the thought of spending the rest of your life here with Jason.

[bananonbinary]

Time for a Salty Meta Post about Martin!

people who’ve followed this blog for a bit know that spending six hours combing through text for some goddamn sources is my specialty, so i compiled every time jon ever talked about martin’s work in season 1. which for the record, he stopped complaining about all the way back in episode 26, where he was angry that martin of all people got hurt.

things jon gets mad at martin for:

not being able to find records that don’t exist

not being able to find someone based only on a first name

the Dog

not wearing trousers in his off-hours

being the one that got caught up in the jane prentiss thing

mag 004 and mag 012 both have jon taking potshots at martin over research that was proven accurate by outside sources

things jon has never once complained about:

martin not understanding the filing system and just putting stuff away at random

martin being clumsy, constantly ruining things, spilling tea everywhere everyday, etc

martin turning in incompetent, poorly-edited, or badly formatted reports

martin not understanding the terminology used, skills expected, etc., and generally being extremely new to the field

please for the love of god stop making martin the silly bumbling idiot who can’t do anything right just because he doesn’t have a formal education. there’s zero evidence for it in the text, and it’s really weird to act like a 4 year degree would outweigh the *10 years* of job experience he has, not just in academia, but in the institute itself by season one. my boy has worked there longer than ANY of the rest of the main cast. screw you guys.

tl;dr: martin is never once shown to be bad at his job, jon pretty much only ever gets mad at him for the really stupid first impression and also not finding stuff that no one else was able to find either. after martin got hurt, jon talks about his research basically the same way he talks about tim’s or sasha’s work.

fucking proof under the cut:

(i didnt include the s1 finale or martin’s statement bc that’s just...two entire episodes of them talking to each other, but there isn’t really any notable Martin Complaints in either of them imo)

I swear, if he’s brought another dog in here, I’m going to peel him.

[pre-launch trailer]

.

Well, technically three, but I don’t count Martin as he’s unlikely to contribute anything but delays.

[...] Alongside this Tim, Sasha and, yes, I suppose, Martin will be doing some supplementary investigation to see what details may be missing from what we have.

[MAG001 Anglerfish]

.

Martin couldn’t find any records of Ex Altiora as a title in existent catalogues of esoteric or similar literature, so I assigned Sasha to double-check. Still nothing.

[MAG004 Pageturner]

.

I had Martin conduct a follow-up interview with Mr. Woodward last week, but it was unenlightening. Apparently there have been no further bags at number 93 and in the intervening years he has largely discounted many of the stranger aspects of his experience. I wasn’t expecting much, as time generally makes people inclined to forget what they would rather not believe, but at least it got Martin out of the Institute for an afternoon, which is always a welcome relief.

[MAG005 Thrown Away]

.

Martin was unable to find the exact date the original house was built but the earliest records he could find list it as being bought by Walter Fielding in 1891.

[...]

We cannot prove any connection, but Martin unearthed a report on an Agnes Montague, who was found dead in her Sheffield flat on the evening of November 23rd 2006, the same day Mr. Lensik claims to have uprooted the tree.

[MAG008 Burned Out]

.

According to Martin, who was here when they took this statement, it was at this point in writing that Mr. Herbert announced he needed some sleep before continuing. He was shown to the break room where he went to sleep on the couch. He did not awaken; unfortunately succumbing to the lung cancer right there. Martin says the staff had been aware of how serious Mr. Herbert’s condition was, and had advised him to seek medical aid prior to giving his statement, but were told rather bluntly by the old man that he would not wait another second to state his case. I can’t decide whether this lends more or less credibility to his tale.

[MAG010 Vampire Killer]

.

“Veepalach” might also be a mishearing of the Polish word “wypalać”, according to Martin, which means to cauterize or brand. Admittedly, if Martin speaks Polish in the same way he “speaks Latin,” then he might be talking nonsense again, but I’ve looked it up and it appears to check out.

[MAG012 First Aid]

.

I sent Martin to look into this ‘Angela’ character - not that I want him to get chopped up, of course, but someone had to. Apparently, he spent three days looking into every woman named Angela in Bexley over the age of 50. He could not find anyone that matches the admittedly vague description given here, though he informs me that he had some very pleasant chats about jigsaws. Useless ass.

[MAG014 Piecemeal]

.

Martin declined to help with this investigation as he’s “a bit claustrophobic”

[MAG015 Lost John’s Cave]

.

There simply aren’t enough details given in this statement to actually investigate, short of Martin confirming that Mr. Vittery did indeed live at the addresses he provided.

[MAG016 Arachnophobia]

.

Oh, he’s off sick this week. Stomach problems, I think.

Blessed relief if you ask me.

[...]

I asked Martin to try and hunt down Mr. Adekoya himself for a follow-up, but have been informed that he passed away in 2006. 

[MAG017 The Boneturner’s Tale]

.

MARTIN

Well, I need to tell someone what happened, and you can vouch for the soundness of my mind, can’t you?

ARCHIVIST

…

That is beside the point.

[MAG022 Colony]

.

Martin! Good lord man, if you’re going to be staying in the Archives, at least have the decency to put some trousers on!

[MAG023 Schwartzwald]

.

Martin found one other thing while combing through police reports for the Hither Green area. About a month after this statement was given, on May 15th, 2015, police were called out to once again investigate the chapel.

[MAG025 Growing Dark]

.

I know, but it would have to have been Martin, wouldn’t it? I mean, anything goes wrong around here, it always seems to happen to him. Anyway, we’re getting off topic. Why didn’t you report this?

[MAG026 A Distortion]

.

Martin made contact with the son, Marcus McKenzie, but he declined to talk to us, saying that he’d “already made his statement.”

[MAG027 A Sturdy Lock]

.

Tim and Martin had a bit more luck investigating Tom Haan, though only really enough to confirm that he seems to have completely vanished following his departure from Aver Meats on the 12th of July.

[MAG030 Killing Floor]

.

Martin’s research would seem to indicate the place employed a reasonable number of international staff they preferred to keep off the books

[...]

TIM

Ah well, that’s actually what he was asking, huh! Um, apparently Martin, uh, took delivery of a couple of items last week addressed to you. Did he not mention it?

ARCHIVIST

No, he… Oh, yes, actually. I completely forgot. He said he put it in my desk drawer, hold on.

[MAG036 Taken Ill]

[hogwartsmarvelmommy]

The lighthouse that guided me H.H ❤️🔥

~Best friends brother  

I do not grant permission for anything of mine to be copied or redistributed even if recognition is given. All rights reserved to Hogwartsmarvelmommy © 2021.

🌼🌸Masterlist🌼🌸

this is 18+ only!

word count: 9.9k

(HarryHollandXReader)

summery: Sam knew you and his brother would hit it off, so he made you promise to not fall in love with his twin... easier said than done. 

Warnings: Swearing, miscarriage, blood, smut. (additional warnings under the cut)

Warnings: unprotected sex, oral (F & M receiving) fingering, some dirty talk (But like not really) protected sex. 

A/N: ok... i really only planned for this to be like 2-3k words, but i just couldn't stop... hope you like it :)

~ 

It was the insistent pounding that woke you up. The first thought in your head was how you were going to kill him for interrupting a perfectly good dream.  With a loud, rather dramatic groan you rolled out of bed and flung open your door. Sam looked like he was stressed beyond belief. Pushing past you, he came into the room plopping down onto your bed and groaning before burying his face in his hands. This was not a sight you were used to, usually your best friend was a happy go lucky guy, but right now he seemed to be anything but.  

"Sam, what's wrong?" Suddenly all the anger from being awoken so early left you, seeing him in distress was bad enough. You closed your door and went over to him, crouching down in front of him, hoping the boy would talk to you so you could offer some sort of help.

"There coming," he groaned. Who was he talking about? Who was coming? You were about to ask when he spoke up again, "my brothers want to see where I live and go to school, there on a plane now," 

You felt all that worry dissipate instantly. Did he seriously wake you up at the ass crack of dawn because his brothers wanted to come spend some quality time with him on his free week. Why did he always have to be so dramatic? 

With a roll of your eyes you let out a chuckle. "Seriously Sammy? That's what's wrong?" 

"Y/n, they're going to judge all of this," you looked around your room, there was nothing out of the ordinary really, just a bed, a dresser and some random nick knacks. 

"My room?" You asked, confused. 

"No, our apartment,"  he said. You were a bit taken aback. Yes your apartment was rather small and lacked a lot of decor, but for two broke college kids it was what you could do.

“What is wrong with the apartment?” you asked him, verging on offended. You had put in a lot of effort to make the place your own. From the beer bottle wreath on the pantry door to the pong wall of champions. It wasn't much but it was home, and that's what mattered. 

“I need to tell you something,” he sighed slightly looking up to you. “I come from a very well off family, and i am nowhere near broke, i just don't want to flaunt the money i have around,” you weren't sure you'd heard him right, the boy you'd lived with for three years, who you considered your closest and best friend was telling you he was in fact not broke? When there had been times you ate microwave noodles for lack of anything else in the house.

“So you have money?” you asked, your confusion was evident in your tone. 

“I'm sorry,” he sighed. 

“Why would you lie about that?” You wondered. You were taken aback at your best friend's confession. Confused and a little hurt were just the brink of it. Why did he think he had to lie to you? After all this time?

“It was easier. I didn't want to worry about anyone just befriending me because of money,” He explained. You rolled your eyes, not sure if that was an acceptable explanation, but for now it was what you were getting. 

“Well where are your brothers staying?” You asked him. 

He sighed in relief at the fact that you weren't completely ripping him a new one. “Can they take your room, and you can crash in mine?” He suggested.

“Absolutely not!” You exclaimed.

“Y/N!” he groaned out. 

“You give them your room and you take the futon in the living room,” You told him, smacking his cheek lightly. 

“You're the worst,” He groaned. “But I need a favor,” he muttered.

“I swear if you ask me-” 

“Can you take me to pick them up at the airport?” He interrupted. 

“And he asked it,” You sighed walking out of the room. 

“Y/N? Is that a yes?” He called out after you. 

“Fine Sam, but you owe me big!” You exclaimed before shutting the bathroom door. 

You had met Sam your first day at the University, and instantly the two of you had clicked. You oftentimes would say the two of you were half-soulmates, like half of your soul was Sam’s but the other half you hadn't meant quite yet. You understood Sam, and he understood you, and it was easy. You knew he had brothers, but mostly when he'd get time off school he would fly from Scotland back to London to visit them instead of vice versa.

So despite spending most of the last four years together, you had never met them. 

You got yourself showered and put together before going to find Sam, who was a mess. “You look like a train hit you,” You told him as you stood in his doorway. 

“Y/N, that's not helpful,” He groaned. 

“Well let's go get your brothers,” you announced, grabbing your car keys from the counter. 

“Wait,” He exclaimed. You turned to look at him, waiting to hear what he had to say. “I need you to promise me something,” He muttered. 

“What?” 

“My brother, Harry, my twin. I need you to promise you won't fall in love with him,” He told you. You nearly doubled over laughing, you couldn't imagine falling in love with anyone, much less someone related to the Div you called your best friend. 

“Yeah I'm sure that won't be a problem,” You chuckled. 

“Y/N, i’m serious, the instant you guys meet you're going to click, and if you think me and you have a lot in common, i can promise you, that Harry and you will have more,” He explained. You realized he was completely serious. 

“OK Sammy, i'll do my best to not fall in love with your twin brother,” You nodded at him. He took a deep breath before finally walking towards you. 

“Let's do this,” He muttered. 

~

The airport was crowded, much like you had expected, but you still found yourself trudging through the packed areas to the waiting area to wait for Sam's brothers. “When is their plane set to land?” you wondered looking up at the screen that had all the flight information. 

“They just landed. Tom texted me to let me know,” He told you as he stood waiting impatiently. 

“Why are you so nervous? There only your brothers Sammy,” you tried to get him to calm down. 

“Look at that mane!” You heard from a group of people that had just entered the waiting area from the landing pad. You saw the color drain from your best friends face as he turned and saw a curly haired boy coming at him. Sam opened his arms as the boy crashed into him, hugging him tight and muttering things back and forth to each other. 

“Did you have to leave me?” A man asked as he walked up to the three of you, glancing at you and flashing you a smile before throwing his own arms around the already hugging pair. 

The three of them hugging was cute, and it made you wonder why Sam was so nervous in the first place to have them here, since he looked so happy now. 

“Ok, Guys this y/n, my best friend and roommate,” Sam told them, turning the two boys' attention over to you. 

"Hi," you mumbled, feeling rather shy suddenly. 

"You weren't joking when you sai-" Sam smacked Harry in the back of the head before he could finish what he was saying. "I meant hi," he told you, extending his hand out to you. 

You took his hand in yours, noting how attractive his hands were. His grip was tight as he shook your hand, staring into your eyes with the most breathtaking brown orbs you had ever seen. You weren't even aware you could think brown eyes were so beautiful. His curls had fallen to his forehead, giving him a boyish look, but dear God did he pull it off. No wonder Sam had asked you to not fall in love with his brother, just looking at him had your stomach in butterflies. You let go of his hand, looking away hoping your best friend wouldn't pick up on how easily you were taken aback by his brother.

The older boy 'Tom' extended his hand as well shaking yours and saying hello, before the four of you headed down to the baggage claim. 

Both boys found their bags quickly and then it was off to your car. "Shotgun," Harry yelled as you unlocked the door. 

"What? No!" Sam argued.

"You snooze, you lose Sammy, and it looks like you just lost," you laughed as Harry smirked triumphantly, throwing his bag into the trunk before sliding into the front seat. You knew Sam was nervous to get back to the flat. Worried that maybe his brothers would judge you based on the appearance of your place. 

You parked the car and led the boys up to your place, unlocking it and slipping inside. 

"Wall of champions huh?" Tom asked as he admired the drunk scribbles of the pong wall. 

"Me and Sammy boy are undefeated," you announced proudly pointing to the top where your names were scribbled out. 

"No," Harry laughed, shaking his head, "there is no way, Sam is awful, and has never won. Ever!" 

"Board doesn't lie, red," you told him, shooting Sam a smile. 

"Prove it," Harry said. 

You looked at Sam who had a mischievous look plastered on his face, neither of you were ones to back down from a challenge. So you spent the early afternoon drinking and Whooping Sam's brothers asses at beer pong. Easily.

"She carries you," Tom told Sam as he dropped himself onto the futon.

"Does not!" Sam argued with a laugh. 

"No she does," Harry confirmed.

"Oh piss off," Sam laughed, shoving his way in-between his brothers on the sad excuse for a couch you had. "We need a new couch," he groaned. 

"Let's go shopping for one," Tom said randomly. 

"We're drunk," you pointed out. 

"We can Uber," Tom laughed. You rolled your eyes but reluctantly agreed. 

~

You stood in your living room in your fuzzy pajama pants and tank top staring at the giant couch that was now taking up a majority of the room and the two sleeping boys on it. 

"We actually did that?" Sam groaned, walking out of his room in only boxers. "I've never been so drunk in my life," 

"Day drinking for the win," you told him, holding your fist up for him to bump. The prior night consisted of way too much drinking and then shopping at furniture stores, before going to a pub for more drinking. If you were honest with yourself, you didn't even recall getting the sectional into the apartment. 

Your head was pounding and you felt like you had been hit by a bus. So you opted to exclude yourself from any activities Sam had planned for him and his brothers, and instead spend the day catching up on your studies. 

You found yourself sprawled out on the new couch with books around you as you worked on your laptop. Regardless of the fact it was a drunk purchase, you had to admit the couch was pretty comfortable. 

You didn't realize you had fallen asleep until you were woken up by someone moving beside you. You sat up watching as Harry settled in. He glanced over to you and sighed. 

"Sorry I was trying to avoid waking you," he said apologetically. 

"S'ok, where's Sam and Tom?" You asked. 

"Club," he chuckled. You rolled your eyes, before grabbing the books from next to you and setting them onto the table. 

"You didn't want to go?" You asked. 

"Not in the mood," he said, smiling at you. You felt a tad guilty about being happy Harry had chosen to not go, opting instead to hang out with you. Sam had been right, you and Harry had A LOT in common, so talking and joking with him came almost naturally. He radiated positivity, it was like if he was a color, it was yellow 100%

After a couple hours of talking about everything you could think of, the room fell silent. "Let's go on an adventure," Harry suggested.

"An adventure?" You wondered. 

"Why not?" He laughed. 

"I'm not very adventurous," you admitted coyly. 

"That's ok, we'll figure something out. Let's just drive until inspiration strikes,"he said, standing up and extending his hand for you to take. 

Your decision to say yes was probably where everything went wrong, but looking back.. you would do everything the same if you were given a second chance.  

~

You parked your car on the side of the lake. Looking over at Harry with a skeptical look. "You gonna back out?" He asked. 

"Harry, it's only like 68° out here," you reminded him. He nodded with a smile before opening the door and getting out of the car. Somehow both of the Holland twins had a way of convincing you to do crazy things. 

You got out, feeling the chill of the air make goosebumps raise on your skin. "Harry, I'm not sure about this," you admitted walking towards where he was now standing on the dock. 

"Me either, but it's not an adventure without a little hesitation," he told you. 

"Who told you that?" You asked, laughing. He thought about it for a minute and shrugged. 

"Ok, let's do it," he told you, giving you a nod. You sighed nodding back before slowly peeling your pants down your legs and then your shirt over your head. You took a deep breath before removing your underwear and then unclipping your bra. 

You stood completely naked staring out at the ice cold water, not daring to look at the boy beside you, no matter how badly you wanted to. You felt his fingers interlace with yours. “Ready?” He asked. 

“Nope. let's do it,” You told him, squeezing his hand. You followed his movements. As soon as his body lunged forward, yours followed, hitting the icy water almost instantly. It felt as if there were pins and needles poking you on every inch of your body, and when you finally came back up to the surface, you gasped trying to catch your breath, your body tensed up from the shock of the temperature. 

"Adventures. Are. Dumb." You shuttered. You could see Harry's teeth catering together.

"That. That was stupid," he admitted swimming back to the dock and pulling himself out. He reached out his hand, grabbing yours and hoisting you back onto the dock.

"Remind me to never go on an adventure with you again," you laughed, before realizing something. "We don't have towels," 

Harry's eyes widened, "no we don't," you stood on the dock, completely naked trying to shield your body. 

"I have a blanket in my hatch. We can turn on the heater and sit under it until we're dry," you offered. 

"That sounds good," he told you before grabbing the clothes from the ground. You rushed to your car, opening the trunk and jumping in. Luckily you had left the keys in the ignition, so all it took was you leaning over the seat to crank on the car. Forgetting about your completely exposed state. Harry pulled the hatch closed as he crawled into the car, tossing the clothes into the back seat and unfolding the blanket. You plopped down beside him, pulling the corner to cover yourself, hoping the heater would warm the two of you up fast. 

After a few (awkward) moments, Harry finally spoke up. "You have a nice body," he said quietly. You felt your cheeks heat up at his words. 

"Harry, were you looking at my naked body?" You joked, knowing it would have been impossible for him to have not seen you. 

"I mean, when I came to crawl in you were bent over the back seat. Like on full display. Would have been hard to not look," he laughed, turning away to hide the blush that was gracing his ears and cheeks. "This trunk is roomy," he said, trying to change the subject. 

"Me and Sam had to sleep in here once, hence the blanket," you told him. 

"So you two?" Harry wondered. 

"No, never. He's like my half-soulmate, like in a friendly way, you know?" You asked.

"Well he's my womb mate so kind of," he admitted. You couldn't help but laugh. "You know, we will probably warm up faster, if we're closer," Harry said shyly. His logic was right, but you were worried about your self control. 

"Yeah, ok," you mumbled, scooting closer, until your leg was touching his.

"Can I put my arm around you?" He asked. You nodded quickly. You let out a sigh of relief at his warmth,as you let yourself snuggle into his body, being cautious not to place your hands anywhere questionable.

It was nice. It was strangely intimate as well. "Sam told us you were beautiful, but I can't believe how breathtaking you are," Harry said quietly after a few minutes. You glanced up to his face, his eyes were closed, and it seemed like he was trying to focus on his breathing. 

"Are you just saying that because you have seen me naked?" You asked. He laughed, before opening his eyes and looking at you. 

His eyes met yours, and it was like you were each seeing something you had been looking for for way too long. You saw his eyes shift down to your lips.  

"No, Y/N, you are just breathtaking, clothes and all," he told you, brushing stray hairs from your face. 

Your next movements were slow. You glanced down to his lips, and back to his eyes before slowly leaning in, giving him plenty of time to curve your movements, but he didn't. Instead he followed them.

"We shouldn't," you whispered, faces so close you could feel his breath on your lips. 

"I know," he told you. You bit your bottom lip, before looking into his eyes. There was something about Harry, something that was throwing all your inhibitions out the window. All you could think about was how his lips would feel on yours. His hand reached up, rubbing his thumb across your face, you closed your eyes and leaned in, closing the distance between your lips. 

The second your lips met you felt something ignite in you. He kissed you slowly, not rushing into anything. His lips were soft and warm, and made you melt into him. Turning your body more, your naked chest pressed against his as your fingers laced themselves in the curls on the base of his neck. 

As he rested his hand on your waist, squeezing lightly, as he deepened the kiss. 

His tongue swiped across your lower lip, looking for access, which you quickly granted. You leaned back as his lips found themselves trailing your jaw and to your neck. 

"Sam will kill us," you let out, as you threw your head back giving him more access to your neck. 

"Let him," he mumbled into your neck, before continuing his task. You knew you should stop him. This was the first step, in the wrong direction. Harry was someone you could easily fall in love with, and if you stopped now, you could pretend this naked, heated, makeout session had never happened. But then his hand slid down from your waist to your thigh, as he pushed you farther back onto your back. 

You pulled his face back to yours, reconnecting your lips with his in a hungry kiss. 

You continued the heated kissing for a while, letting yourself lose control, something that did not come easily for you. 

"Harry," you moaned into his lips, making him lift his head. 

"Tell me what you want darling," he told you, face red from kissing you. You pushed him up and over so he was sitting again. 

"Do you want me?" You asked. He nodded quickly, grabbing your waist to pull you over to him. You threw one of your legs over his, and let him get himself situated, grabbing his hard member and lining it up to your entrance. You let yourself sink down slowly onto him, enjoying the initial feeling of him filling you up. 

"Christ, y/n, you're so tight," he groaned, as he bottomed out on top of him. you leaned forward resting your head on his shoulder, getting used to the stretch he was giving you, before you started to move slowly. He kept his hands on your hips, helping you with your moviments, but never forcing them, letting you choose the speed of your thrusts. 

Harry peppered your neck with kisses as you held onto him, letting little moans and whines escape your mouth as you rode him slowly. 

He whispered sweet nothings to you, making you lose it, hearing you were 'perfect' and 'so beautiful,' 

"M'So close," you moaned out, as your movements became more rigid. 

"I've got you darling," Harry whispered as he took over, and began thrusting up into you, he let his hand slip between your body's, finding your bundle and rubbing it as he thrust into you. "Oh god," you groaned, throwing your head back. 

"Let go for me darling," he said as he pressed open mouth kisses to your neck. 

As soon as you felt him twitch inside of you, you felt the band in your stomach snap. You felt yourself convulsing around him as his thrusts became sloppy and slowed, having hit his peak with you. 

You let your forehead rest against his, both of your breathing heavy. "Wow," you whispered. 

"I think I like adventures with you," he chuckled, making you roll your eyes before kissing him again. 

~

Your eyes opened to the light streaming through the window. At first you were confused at the amount of windows surrounding you, and then it hit you. 

"Oh god," you groaned, sitting up. 

"What?" Harry gasped, sitting straight up. 

"We fell asleep," you told him as you rustled around you to find your clothes. "I don't know where my clothes are," you groaned. Harry placed a hand on your check, turning your face to him. 

"Back seat darling," he told you, before leaning in and kissing you. He pulled away sooner than you would have liked and reached over the seat grabbing the clothes from last night. 

You both dressed quickly, moving to the front of the car. The drive home wasn't a long one, and you were relieved when you arrived home to find that neither Sam or Tom were there. 

"So," Harry said as you poured both of you a glass of water. 

"What?" You giggled sliding it over to him. 

"Last night was incredible for me, and I don't do the sleeping with random people thing," he told you.

"And you think I do?" You asked him.

"What? No!" He told you, nearly spitting out his water. You couldn't help but laugh. "I just mean, that I'd like to do it again, maybe take you out as well, get to know you more," he told you, reaching for your hand. You laced your fingers with his, blushing as a smile spread across your face. 

"I'd like that," you whispered. Harry went to move around the counter, but as soon as he got off the stool the front door swung open and a very hungover Sam and an amused Tom came in. Pushing whatever moment you were having to the back burner. 

"You let him get pissed?" You asked Tom as you rushed over to your best friend who looked like death. 

"To be fair, I tried to stop him multiple times, but he kept telling me 'I'm in college I can handle my booze'" Tom laughed.

"Sammy," you groaned as you pushed him onto the couch. 

"Sorry mom," he mumbled as his eyes fluttered shut. 

You rolled your eyes at how dumb he could be. 

"What did you guys do last night?" Tom asked, walking over to where Harry was in the kitchen. 

"Went on a late night adventure," Harry told him, avoiding eye contact. 

"Oh yeah? What did you do?" Tom repeated. 

"Nothing really," Harry mumbled, trying to avoid Tom. But Tom knew Harry better than anyone. 

"Harry?" Tom asked, making the boy look at him. 

Tom gasped, looking from Harry over to you and then back. "Tell me you didn't Baz," Tom groaned. 

"Didn't want?" You asked, confused.

"You two had sex," tom whisper yelled. 

Your eyes grew wide and you could feel your cheeks heating up, "how would you gather that by just looking at him?" You demanded. 

"Sex glow," Tom explained. 

You snorted before rolling your eyes. "Oh whatever," you told him, not buying it.

"So you didn't then?" Tom asked, looking directly at Harry, who's cheeks immediately reddened. "Jesus you two, Sam is going to be livid," he informed you. 

"We're not going to tell him," Harry said quickly, to which you agreed just as quickly. 

Tom shook his head, "was it just the one shag? Or are there feelings?" Tom asked. You looked at Harry and bit your lip. He nodded before speaking back up. "Just the one shag, no feelings at all, " he lied. 

~

You sat in the driver's seat of your car, waiting.  Memories flooding your mind of that night weeks prior. You glanced down at your phone, checking the time again. You were being impatient, but to be fair you had been waiting for this for a long time, too long. Having had to accept secret calls and texts as enough for the time being. But now it was time, you somehow managed to clear up a weekend, and he happened to be free, and now you were going to sneak away, and not be a secret for just a few days, not have to hide behind a screen, or be a distant voice. 

Your phone began to buzz in your lap and you looked down to see the contact name you had changed a few weeks ago “My baz <3”

“You here?” you asked, bringing it up to your ear.

“Just landed. Am I getting my bag and heading out to you?” he wondered. 

“Yup. and then we will have two whole days uninterrupted, just us, in a virbo, naked, and sweaty and-” you were cut off by his laughing.

“Someone is clearly eager,” he told you.

“Fuck, i messed you sweetheart” he told you. 

“Yes i am, the phone sex and sexting isn't doing it for me, I've literally had the real thing baby. Now I want it again, so hurry up so we can get out of town,” you groaned, as there was a knock on your window. You jumped, and turned to see him standing at your door, red curls crazy from a cat nap he had surly taken on the flight over, and a smile so big you could drown in it. You jumped from the car throwing yourself into his already full arms, making him drop his duffel bag, but he didn't seem to mind. He wrapped his arms around your waist lifting you up in his hug, and burying his face in your neck. 

You could have sworn your heart skipped a beat. 

"Let's go," you urged him, impatient for what you knew was to come later. You began the hour-long drive to the weekend rental you had gotten for the two of you. Making sure you would be alone, and able to not be bothered by anything. Or so you thought. 

"Sam's calling you," Harry said as you turned another corner.

"What, why? He thinks I'm with my dad for the weekend," you told Harry. Looking down at your phone. Harry shrugged. 

You answered the phone hoping it was nothing. 

"Hello?"

"Hey, I uh, have a problem," Sam sounded worried.

"What?" You asked. 

"I wanted to make sure it was okay that I invited Harry to stay with us for the two weeks we have off of school next month, because I already invited him.. and I totally forgot to ask," he muttered. You felt a smile grow on your lips. 

"I don't know Sam, I'm not sure me and Harry got on well," you joked, peaking Harry's interest. 

"Really?" Sam asked. 

"Yeah, I just thought he was annoying and I'm pretty sure he didn't like me at all," you told him. Harry started to shake his head and roll his eyes. "I am fine with it Sammy," 

"You sure?" Sam wondered. "Cause I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable by any means,"

"Positive," you confirmed 

"How's spending time with your dad?" He asked you.

"Good, hey look we just got somewhere so I gotta go, call you back later. Love you, bye," you hung up the phone before he could continue any conversation, knowing he would keep you on the phone for an hour if you let him. 

"You love him?" Harry asked. 

"What?" 

"You love Sam?" He repeated.

"Course I do," you smiled at him. 

"He's lucky to have you, you're a good friend," he told you. Your brows furrowed as you looked over to him. 

"Is that what we are? Friends?" You asked.  You parked the car in front of the house and turned to look at Harry. 

"Do you want to be more?" He Wondered. 

"I mean, the way I feel about you, I don't feel about any of my other friends," you whispered. 

"And how do you feel?" He asked.

"Well, when I see that you're calling or texting me I get this feeling in my stomach, it's like an insistent fluttering, that never goes away, as long as I'm talking to you, gets me all flustered and nervous. And when you told me you were going to be able to come this weekend, I was so excited, because it meant I could spend even a second with you alone." You smiled at him before biting your lip, "I really like you," 

"I like you too y/n, more than I think I've ever liked anyone," he told you, reaching his hand out to caress your cheek. "And because of that I've had something on my mind," 

"Oh yeah? You asked 

"Yeah, I mean I know it won't make much of a difference since we'll still have to keep it a secret, but I'd really like it if you were my girlfriend," he told you, his cheeks flushed red as he watched you closely for a reaction. 

You leaned in close, nearly touching his lips with your own, "I would love to be your girlfriend," you whispered before closing the space between you in a kiss. 

Everything with Harry was easy, even though the situation was strange, and the secrets and lying were hard, everything felt natural. Every Time you talked to him it felt like home, and you knew you were in over your head. If you had hoped to not fall in love with him, you absolutely would have been let down by yourself. You knew you were going to hell for lying to Sam, but you couldn't change the way you felt, and although you wished you weren't hurting him, you didn't regret anything you had going on with his twin brother. 

~

You entered the little rental house, surprised at how cute and quaint the decor was. It had a very boho chic feel to it, there was a four poster bed in the middle of the room with sheer curtains streaming down. There was a little sectional in the corner with a television in front of it, and a little kitchenette to the right of the room. The owners had left a fresh vase of roses on the little table along with a basket that had chocolates and a few other things inside. 

“This is romantic,” Harry said, as he looked around the room. 

“The pictures were cute, and it had good reviews, i didn't expect this though,” you admitted. 

Harry walked over to the bed, pushing the drape to the side and looking towards you. “Come test it out with me?” He asked. You rolled your eyes at him, but went over, slipping off your shoes and climbing onto the bed (Which felt like a cloud)

“It's nice,” you hummed as you let your body sink into the mattress. 

“Be nicer, if i wasn't so constricted by these clothes,” he told you, making you look over to see his smirking face. 

“Oh yeah?” you asked, turning to face him. 

“Oh yeah,” he repeated, raising his eyebrows at you. He adjusted himself to his side so he was facing you now. 

“What are you thinking about?” you whispered. 

“That night,” he muttered, “The way you looked, riding me, falling apart on my cock. How tight your pussy was and the way it clenched around me while I whispered sweet nothings in your ear,” your eyes widened in shock at the filth of his words. 

“Harry,” you giggled. 

“Come on, you know you have been thinking of it.  I know I can't get the sound of your moans out of my head, the small whimpers you were letting out with every stroke of my cock on your g spot,” you felt your walls clench around nothing at his words. He knew what he was doing, and he was doing it well. “I just wish we had had more time that night, I could have had you whimpering if I had been given the chance. I would have filled you up good with my fingers, and eaten you like you were my last meal,” he whispered. 

You closed your eyes, trying to keep from letting off how unbelievably aroused you were. You had rushed straight to the point the last time you and Harry had been left alone, but now.. There was no rush, no time crunch, you had all night, and all weekend to give into your sexual desires. Lord knows you have already given into your emotional ones. 

“Show me,” you challenged, stealing a glance at the way his mouth widened with your words. He pushed himself up onto his knees in between your legs, grabbing your ankles and pulling you down the bed and closer to him. “Harry,” you giggled. 

He ran his hands up your clothed legs, and up your body, until he was leaning over you, his face close enough that you could smell his shampoo and feel his breath fanning across your lips. “Want to make you feel good,” he whispered. 

“Do it then,” you groaned, arching your back up and into a kiss. His hands found your waist, sliding them under your shirt as he kissed you like his life depended on it. He slowly pushed your shirt up until it was pooled above your breasts and he then pulled the fabric of your bra down, taking your already pebbled nipple between his fingers and rolling it, which made a slight moan escape from your mouth. 

“Can I take these off?” he asked. You nodded quickly, sitting slightly up so he could remove the shirt. He reached behind you to unclasp your bra, but not without a little struggle. When he finally managed to get it undone, he slid the straps down your arms tossing it to the side, before dipping his head down, and taking one of your nipples in his mouth. You let out a loud gasp at the sensation, as your hands instinctively found themselves tangled in his auburn curls. He made sure to do the same to the other breast before trailing open mouth kisses down your stomach and stopping at your waistband of your leggings. Glancing up to you for permission, which you nodded, overly eager for him. He hooked his finger in the waistband peeling your leggings and underwear down in one sweep. He could see how wet you already were for him, from the glistening sheen of your cunt.  

He ran two fingers through your folds, stopping at your clit and pushing down. “Oh,” you moaned out at the unexpected pressure. 

“So wet for me darling,” Harry whispered.

“I have been waiting for this,” you admitted, looking up to see him smirking at you. 

“Oh you have?” He asked, pulling his fingers almost all the way out before plunging them back in.  He brushed your g spot with the tip of his fingers making you moan out his name and arch your back. “Been waiting for this?” he asked as he continued to finger fuck you. 

“Yes, Harry,” you moaned, as you felt a knot forming in the pit of your stomach. Harry moved his thumb, and you almost whined at the loss of stimulation, until you felt his tongue lick up from above his fingers to your nub, wrapping his lips around it as he began to suck slightly. You were done at that point, and you knew it. “So close har,” you warned, but he didn't falter in his actions in the slightest. Instead he sped them up, pushing you over the edge even faster. With a loud moan of his name, your back arched off the mattress and your toes curled, as you felt an explosion of bliss. Harry continued his movements through your orgasm, only slowing and coming to a stop when your legs quit shaking and you seemed to relax. 

“Fuck, y/n. You're bloody perfect,” he mumbled, bringing his lips to yours, you could taste yourself on his lips, but you didn't even mind. All you could focus on was the fact that he was way overdressed, for the activities you wanted to partake in. you grabbed at the hem of his shirt, and he broke away from the kiss to allow you to pull the shirt over his head. 

You took a second to admire his bare chest, he was muscular, but  wasn't overly defined, and he, well he was perfect. 

“You're breathtaking, you know?” You told him, making him turn a shade of red. 

“Shut up,” he giggled, before reconnecting your lips in another kiss. 

You let your nails graze the naked skin on his back making him groan, and rut his hips against yours. His clothed bulge rubbing against your naked sex. “Take em off,” you instructed. He pushed himself up onto his knees, unbuttoning his jeans, but before he could push them down you sat up grabbing his hands to stop him. “Can i?” you asked. 

He smiled at you before nodding. You pushed his jeans down as much as you could, you could see the outline of his cock that was straining against his boxers. You leaned forward, placing an open mouthed kiss on the fabric. “Fuck,” harry groaned. You looked up at him through your eyelashes to see him looking down at you.

“Want me to..” you asked. 

“Yes, fuck yes. If you want to, I mean,” he stuttered out. You smiled up at him, pushing the fabric of his boxers down until his cock was free of the restraint. You took his length in your hand, pumping it a few times, as you licked your lips and leaned forward, taking him in your mouth. You bobbed your head up and down as you worked what your mouth couldn't take with your hand. Harry held onto your hair loosely, watching as you sucked him off. “M’close,” he warned you. You continued what you were doing, not caring, he had done it for you, the least you could do was return the favor. You felt him begin to twitch against your tongue, as his grip on your hair tightened and his hips rutted forward, nearly making you gag before you felt him release himself the warm liquid slipping down your throat. You pulled your head back letting him out of your mouth with a pop. 

Harry pushed you back onto the bed, making you giggle at his eagerness. He let his body fall to yours, lips crashing in a deep kiss. His fingers laced with yours above your head as he moved his kisses down your jaw to your throat, sucking lightly, leaving small marks that would be a reminder for days. “Harry, I need you,” You whined. 

He lifted his head smiling, bringing his lips back to yours. His hand slipped between your bodies, lining himself up at your entrance before sinking slowly into you. He slowly thrust into you, setting a slow pace. 

“Faster, baby, please,” you moaned out. He grabbed your thigh lifting it lightly as he began to thrust into you harder. 

“You're so tight,” he groaned, as he began to quicken his movements. You reached down, rubbing your nub as he pounded into you. 

“I'm close,” You told him as you neared your second orgasm. 

He reached down, replacing your fingers with his, “Cum all over my cock darling,” he groaned. His fingers circled your clit, and with one particularly deep thrust, you felt yourself clench around him, as you whimpered at the relief. After a few more movements Harry's hips stilled and his body went limp, laying his head onto your chest. “That was incredible, you are incredible,” he told you as he laid there trying to catch his breath. 

You smiled as your eyes fluttered closed, sleep taking over your overworked body.

~ 

The weekend passed quicker than it had even come, and before you knew it you were kissing Harry goodbye at the airport where you had picked him up two days prior. 

“I wish we had more time,” you whispered as you hugged him, your face buried in the crook of his neck. 

“I'll be here next month, love. Five weeks and we will be back together, promise,” He whispered into your ear, kissing the top of your head. 

“I'll hold you to it,” you told him, kissing his lips one final time before he had to leave. 

“I’m counting on it,” he said, before walking away. Just like that, faster than he had arrived in Scotland, he left for London. 

The drive to your place was quiet, and the whole time you were fighting the urge to cry. You parked your car, and grabbed your bag, noticing a pink sleeve peeking out. You unzipped it, and saw Harry's pink hoodie, that he had probably shoved into your bag after you had practically lived in it and only it for the weekend. You couldn't help but smile to yourself. You shoved the hoodie farther into your bag, zipping it up and heading up to your flat. 

As soon as you opened the door you were hit with the aroma of a home cooked meal. Sam was standing facing the stove, focused on whatever he was stirring. 

“Smells good Sammy,” you said, startling him. 

“Oh good, your home. Come stir this for me,” he instructed holding a spoon out to you. 

"Yes chef," you said, bringing your hand up to your head and saluting him. 

"You're an idiot," he groaned at you. You walked over taking the spoon and began to stir the sauce while he cut up garnish for the top. "How was your weekend with your dad?" He asked. 

"Uh good, busy, but ok," you lied. Seemed like you were doing a lot of that to Sam recently. 

"So you guys worked everything out from that fight?" He asked you. Your eyes grew wide, realizing you had fucked up. You and your dad had gotten into a fight about money, and afterwards he had cut you off, and told you to get your life in order. It had been months since you had spoken.

"No, but we pretended so that my gram wouldn't be upset," you lied again. 

"Oh, that makes sense. I was confused when you said you were going to spend the weekend with him, I thought you might have been lying to me, glad that wasn't the case," he said as he drained the pasta. 

Guilt. That was the only thing you felt. Guilty for being a bad best friend. Guilty for lying. Guilty for not sticking to a promise you had made. You were going straight to hell. 

~

It had been a few days since yours and Harry's weekend, and he was set to be back in a little over a month. You were sitting on the couch, laptop in your lap when the pain started. At first it was a slight pinching sensation, but soon it became like a stabbing pain, and you nearly doubled over from the intensity. You tried to stand up, but let out a groan as the pain increased. Sam looked up, worried filling his face at the sight of you. 

“Y/N? You're bleeding, what's going on?” He asked, as he rushed to your side. You looked down to see a line of blood down both of your legs, and immediately got dizzy. 

“Sammy, I'm gonna pass out,” You warned him. 

“I’m taking you to the doctor,” he told you as he practically carried your limp body down to your car and drove you to the nearby emergency clinic.  

The doctors drew blood and put in an i.v to get fluids into you, all the while Sam never left your side, holding your hand tightly as he knew you hated doctors offices. 

“Okay darling, we're going to run some tests and get to the bottom of why you're feeling so bad,” the nurse told you, as she left the room. Sam sat beside you as you laid in the bed, squeezing your hand lightly. 

“It's alright, you're okay,” he cooed as he stroked your hair. Just then the door opened and a doctor came into the room. 

“Miss, Y/L/N, i have some unfortunate news, it looks like you're experiencing a miscarriage,” your jaw dropped as you heard the words coming from his mouth. You glanced up at Sam who was looking at you with raised eyebrows. 

“I- what?” you asked. Clearly not registering what you had just heard. 

“The HCG levels in your blood make me think you were maybe around ten weeks pregnant, which would explain the extreme blood loss, and the feeling like you were going to faint. The unfortunate thing is that there is not much medically that we can do, so we will send you home. Try and get some rest, take it easy and if you experience any clotting bigger than a golf ball,  come back in. ill have the nurse work up your discharge paperwork,” he turned to exit the room but stopped in the doorway, “I’m sorry guys, i know this must be hard news,” and then he left. 

“You were pregnant?” Sam asked. 

“I guess so,” you mumbled. 

“Who have you slept with? What was ten weeks ago? That was like-” Sams face fell. He looked down at you, “That was our holiday week, ten weeks ago,” He told you. You winced at his insinuation, which in and of itself gave you away. “Tell me you weren't pregnant with my brother's baby y/n?” he sighed. 

You weren't sure if it was being caught in a lie, the hormones coursing through your body, or the fact that you had just been told that you had lost a baby you were never even aware of, but you felt a sudden surge of emotions, as your eyes glossed over. Sam noticed this almost instantly. 

“Shit y/n honey, please don't cry,” he told you, but it was too late as the tears began to spill from your eyes.

“I’m so sorry,” you nearly wailed. Sam pulled you into his arms as you cried your heart out, mumbling things about how ‘awful of a person you were’ and how you ‘didn't deserve him in your life’.  

“Y/N, try and breathe, and tell me what happened,” he whispered as soon as your crying settled slightly. So you tried to explain what had happened, where you had gone wrong, and when your heart had been opened to his brother.

~ 

“Are you mad at me?” you asked as Sam tucked you into the couch with your favorite fuzzy blanket. He hadn't said a word to you since you had left the hospital. 

“I am,” he sighed, sitting down beside you. “Y/n, what happens if he hurts you? If he breaks your heart into a million pieces? What happens when I'm forced to choose a side? What happens when I have to choose him over you even if I know he was in the wrong?” he asked, voice cracking, and tears prickling his eyes. “What happens if I lose you over something he does? I'd be crushed, your my best friend, the person i turn to when things are hard, the one who knows me inside and out, the one id trust with my life, but he is my brother, my twin brother, you are like a stranger compared to the way i know him,” 

“Sam-” 

“No, y/n. Just- I can't have this conversation right now, because i want to yell at you, tell you how betrayed i feel, but i can't because this- what your going through, is bigger than what i feel right now,” he stood up pulling his phone from his pocket and walking to the front door. “And that's why I called him,” he said before opening the door. 

You felt tears form in your eyes again at the gesture. Your best friend putting his own feelings to the side to make sure you were ok. Harry stepped inside the house, offering a small smile to Sam who just nodded at him, obviously hurt. Harry went straight to you, pulling you into his arms as you started to cry again, this time it was even worse. 

Harry held you for what felt like hours as you cried until you fell asleep. He placed your body down gently before walking to the kitchen where Sam was standing.

“Mate-”

“No, you don't get to start. Why her? Out of every person in the world, why her?” Sam demanded.

“It just happened,” Harry said.

“That is not a reason,” Sam argued.

“She's it Sam, I don't know,” Harry said.

“You wouldn't have known that had you left her alone,” Sam was verging on pissed at that point.

“No, Sam, you don't understand. I didn't need to know her, the second I saw her in the airport standing beside you, her hair tied up and in that old pearl jam t-shirt. Everything changed, call it a gut feeling, or me being an idiot, but I swear to god Sam, I fell in love with her before she even spoke a word to me,” Harry explained, hearing the words he said for the first time out loud.

“You're in love with her?” Sam asked. 

“Desperately,” he admitted. 

“I'll hurt you, if you hurt her,” Sam warned. 

“I wouldn't expect anything less,” 

“And if she hurts you, well, i cant hurt her but i'll give her an earful,” Sam laughed. 

“I know,” Harry laughed.

“God it had to be my best friend?” Sam asked, shaking his head in disbelief.

“I'm sorry, the heart wants what it wants,” Harry said. 

“Who are you? Selena Gomez?” Sam asked, hitting his brother's shoulder. “I’m sorry, about the baby,” 

“I didn't even know there was a baby till you called,” He told Sam.

“She didn't know until today. You guys were careful, yeah?” he asked Harry. 

“Uhh,” 

“Harry! You fucking div! condoms man!” Sam groaned. 

“I know it was just-”

“No, no, no. I do not want to hear the specifics of you sleeping with my best friend, just- next time, CONDOMS!” Sam stressed.

“Okay, okay, that's easy enough,” Harry laughed. 

~

“You look nervous,” Sam laughed from the passenger seat of Harry's car. 

“I am,” you told him,

“You have met mum before darling,” Harry reminded you. 

“Yeah, as Sam's roommate and best friend, Not as your girlfriend,” you explained. Your stomach was in knots the entire drive from the airport to the Hollands family home. This was all new territory, sure you and Harry had been together for eight months, but meeting the family was a big feat, even if you had met them all before your relationship had started.

“I promise you will be fine, love” Harry assured you. 

“I'll hold you to that,” You muttered, as he pulled into the driveway of an extremely nice house. You felt your jaw drop, as you glanced around the house, unaware that they had grown up in such a nice place. 

Your door opened, and Harry held out his hand for you to take, which you did. Stepping out of the car and smoothing the bottom of your dress down. “Ready?” Harry asked.

You smiled up at him, “Nope. let's do it,” you squeezed his hand lightly as he pulled you along, Sam following closely behind. 

The inside of the house was just as nice, pictures of the boys lined the walls from when they were tots until now. You heard the pitter patter of paws on the hardwood and looked over to see a blue staffy running towards you. Sam dropped down hugging the dog. 

“Hi Tess, hi darling, oh i missed you too,” You giggled at the sight of the dog smothering Sam in kisses. 

“Just in time,” Niki sang as she rounded the corner. “Oh y/n,” she said, pulling you into her arms. “So glad you could join us for the holidays,” she told you, squeezing your shoulders. 

“Mum,” Harry said. 

“Oh yes, sorry please go ahead,” she giggled while backing up.

“Mum, this is Y/n, my girlfriend,” Harry said, making you shoot him a strange look. 

“Oh so nice to meet you,” she gushed with a giggle.

“What-” 

“He insisted he re-introduce us with your new title,” she explained. You laughed glancing up to see a blush covering his cheeks. 

“You're cute,” you told him, before being whisked away to meet the rest of the Holland crew. 

The night ran late, as you got to know everyone. The whole Holland family was easy to get along with, you spent most of the time laughing at embarrassing childhood stories and telling stories of Sam at school. 

“Are you ready to go?” Harry whispered in your ear when he noticed you had yawned for the third time. You nodded, eyes feeling heavy from the long day. You went around saying your goodbyes to everyone, Sam opting to just head back later. So you and Harry took off to his flat which he shared with Tom and a few friends. 

Once you got to his place, he grabbed your bag, leading you inside, and passed two boys who were occupied in front of a video screen. “You can meet them tomorrow,” He told you as he helped you up the stairs. 

His room was nice, quite what you would expect from a boys room, plain bed, empty dresser, there was a shelf full of movies, and a large tv, but nothing extreme. 

“Can i have a shirt?” You asked. “To sleep in?”

Harry smiled at you before walking over to the dresser and pulling out an old t-shirt. “This one will look nice on you,” He told you. 

“Help me out of these clothes?” you asked. He leaned forward bringing his lips to you as his fingers found the zipper on the back of your dress. He unzipped it slowly, pushing it off your shoulders before it fell to your ankles, revealing the lingerie set you had bought for him. 

“Oh god,” he groaned looking at the black and gold lace that lined your body. 

“You like it?” You asked with a cheeky smile. 

“I'm going to like it even more once it's on my floor,” he told you as he grabbed your bum, lifting you up and carrying you to his bed. He threw you down, and you landed with a giggle as he attacked your neck with kisses, trailing the patterned lace that laid over your breasts with one hand. “The things i want to do to you,” He growled in your ear. 

“Do whatever you want baz, i'm all yours,” You said with a wink. 

“Whatever I want huh? What if I just want to make sweet love to you all night?” He asked, catching you off guard. 

You smiled and brought your thumb up to his mouth tracing his lip and the birthmark right beside it. “Make love to me then,” you whispered. 

Harry bit his bottom lip, as he looked into your eyes. “I love you,” He blurted for the first time. 

You felt your smile grow even wider, as you leaned up, kissing his lips softly. “I love you,” You mumbled into his lips. 

You stayed tangled together, lips clashing, tension burning between you, for a while. 

“Harry,” You moaned into his kiss. 

“Yeah baby?” He asked.

“Make sweet love to me?” You nearly begged. 

He smiled wide, jumping up and walking to his dresser, pulling out a little foil square and tossing it to you before quickly undressing himself. You took the chance to slip out of the lingerie you had on, laying naked and waiting for him. 

He crawled onto the bed next to you. “Sit down,” you told him. 

“Yeah?” He asked excitedly. 

“Yeah,” you told him. 

He sat down, back to the pillows, and legs spread open, waiting for you. You ripped open the condom, rolling it over his member slowly in a teasing manner. “Y/N” he groaned, making you laugh.

“Alright,” You laughed, climbing on top of him, and lining him up to your entrance. 

“This feels familiar,” He whispered as you sank down onto him.

“Going back to the beginning,” you whispered as you began to move slowly. You wrapped your fingers in his hair as you brought your lips to his, letting all the love flow between the two of you. 

“I love you,” Harry mumbled into your lips. 

“I'm in love with you,” You told him. He grabbed your bum before flipping you onto your back. “Harry,” You giggled. 

“I'm so glad I found you y/n. I feel like I had been lost at sea and you were the lighthouse that guided me home,” he expressed.

“Harry,” You whispered feeling your heart skip a beat.

“I love you so much,” He whispered, before connecting your lips again, and moving his hips, sinking farther and farther into you with each thrust. You continued to kiss him, fingers tangled into his curls as he grinded into you, bringing you both to your breaking points. 

“Harry,” You moaned as you reached your climax.

“God Y/n, you look so beautiful falling apart because of my cock,” he groaned as his thrusts became rigid and rough. 

“Cum for me, Harry,” You moaned in his ear as he reached his peak finishing into the condom. 

He rolled off of you, disposing of the condom in the bin by his bed and turning back to you. 

“I love you,” He whispered again. 

“I like the sound of that,” You sighed, as you snuggled into his body. “And I love you too,” you whispered.

[helloalycia]

teenage dirtbag [five] // wanda maximoff

summary: spending the afternoon with the Maximoff twins proved to be interesting... and prom night finally arrives!

warning/s: none.

author's note: here’s the final part to this mini series! i’m so glad you all enjoyed it and i appreciate every note i get, thank you 😊♥️ i’ve still got other wanda stuff in the works that will be posted soon, so stay tuned!

part one | part two | part three | part four | lil bonus bit for after p5 |masterlist | wattpad

After a few tries and encouragement from Pietro, I managed to win the black cat plush toy for Wanda. It was strange, her brother wanting me to make a move on her, but I guess it reassured me a bit to know he thought I was actually good enough for her.

The two of us headed to the diner next door to find Y/BF/N and the other Maximoff twin, myself hiding the plush toy behind my back.

"Finally, you two took forever!" Y/BF/N exclaimed when he saw us approaching their table.

"Y/N here is one stubborn girl with that machine," Pietro explained with a smile as we took our seats. His eyes fell to the drink in front of him. "Oh, you ordered!"

"Just the drinks," Y/BF/N said, before looking to me as I slid in beside him in the booth. "I got you a Cherry Coke. Your favourite."

I smiled gratefully. "Thanks."

"So, what d'you win?" he asked, quirking a brow.

Feeling the heat rising up my neck, I looked to Wanda who was sat opposite Y/BF/N. She was leaning on her hand as she stared at me with a kind smile on her lips.

"You said you wanted the black cat," I said nervously, before holding it out to her. "Here."

Taken aback, she raised her eyebrows but accepted the gift. "Aww, Y/N... you didn't have to!"

I shrugged, smiling awkwardly.

She grinned, studying the toy before looking up at me with sparkling hazel eyes. "I love it. Thank you."

Nodding, I glanced at Pietro who was grinning with pride before me. I could feel Y/BF/N staring at me and when I looked his way, he was smirking and wiggling his eyebrows knowingly. Rolling my eyes, I focused my attention on the menu to distract myself.

"So... what shall we order?" I asked, hoping to change the subject.

After relaying our order to the waitress, Pietro was the first to speak up.

"Okay, I have to ask," he began, leaning forward slightly as he looked between Y/BF/N and I. "Are you guys dating?"

I almost choked on my drink as I looked over my glass to see him grinning cheekily. He knew full well that Y/BF/N and I were only friends, so what was he playing at?

"Definitely not," Y/BF/N answered with a chuckle. Y/N here is practically my sister."

"Exactly," I added, giving Pietro a look that basically said I'm going to murder you. "He's been my best friend since we were kids."

"So there's never been feelings there?" Pietro continued to question curiously, leaning back in his seat.

Wanda slapped his arm gently. "Leave them alone, Piet."

"Never," Y/BF/N answered for us both. "Like I said, she's my annoying little sister."

I quirked a brow and looked to him. "Little? I think I'd be the older sister in this fake sibling relationship,"

"But I'm a month older than you," he stated like that was explanation enough.

"But you act like a child," I retorted. "I'd be the older one."

He rolled his eyes, though a smile was playing on his lips. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say."

I rolled my eyes, too, before looking back to the twins. Wanda was smiling as she sipped her drink and Pietro had a mischievous glint in his eyes as he looked to me. What the hell was he thinking?

"So you're not interested in Y/BF/N," he thought aloud. "And you definitely weren't interested in me..."

"You made a move on Y/N?" Wanda asked suddenly, looking to her brother with knitted brows.

I breathed out through my nose, eyes falling to the table with embarrassment.

"Yeah, but she made it clear she didn't like me," Pietro said with a shrug, before looking to me again. "So who do you like then? Or is their a girlfriend we don't know about?"

Looking up, I saw three sets of eyes on me and I suddenly felt nervous. Y/BF/N and Pietro were watching with amusement dancing in their eyes as Wanda chewed her lip curiously, awaiting an answer.

"You know there's nobody, Pietro," I said through a forced smile as I looked to him.

His cheeky smile was still present as he said. "Really? I thought you mentioned someone back then. Whilst we were playing in the arcade."

Oh, boy, was he going to die.

"You misunderstood," I played along, before kicking him in the shin to shut him the hell up.

Of course, it was just my luck that the leg in front of me was actually Wanda's. She squeaked an 'ow' as she bent down to rub her leg.

"What was that?" she asked with confusion.

Pietro must have pitied me, having put me on the spot enough in the past two minutes, as he looked to his sister with an apologetic smile. "My bad, Wands. My foot just twitched."

I breathed out with relief as Pietro looked to me, trying not to laugh. He was lucky we were with company otherwise I would have killed him there and then.

—

I wasn't expecting to be hanging out with the Maximoff twins on a Saturday afternoon, but by the time dinner came to an end, I realised how much I enjoyed the day. And I think I could say the same for Y/BF/N, too.

The rest of our meal was pretty uneventful after Pietro's initial teasing, to my relief, and Pietro eventually quit it with the overt hints towards his sister. The last thing I wanted was for Wanda to feel uncomfortable, so I was glad he eventually cut it out.

At the end of the meal, Pietro and Y/BF/N offered to split the bill between them – something about chivalry not being dead, I don't know, all I knew was Wanda and I were getting a free meal so why complain? – and headed to the till to pay, leaving Wanda and I alone.

She was hugging her new black cat plushie on her lap adorably, making me smile.

"Aren't black cats supposed to be bad luck or something?" I asked, earning her attention.

She put her arm on the back of her seat, leaning her head on her hand as she gave me her full attention. "I didn't peg you for the suspicious type," she taunted.

I smiled. "I never said I believed it. Just what I've heard."

She chuckled, licking her lips. "Fair point... I don't believe it either. I just love black cats. They're so cute and get way too much stick for merely existing."

It was my turn to laugh. She had such a unique way of thinking that I couldn't help but be attracted to. Something as simple as the way she was smiling at me right now warmed my heart.

"How is your hand by the way?" she suddenly asked, eyes looking down to it.

I squeezed it into a fist and released. The purple bruising along my knuckles had turned yellow-green which meant it was getting better, but it did still hurt a little. Nonetheless, I didn't want to make Wanda feel bad, so I gave her a reassuring smile.

"It's okay," I said, making her look up at me with concerned eyes. "I mean, it hurts a little, but it's getting better."

She pursed her lips, nodding. "Nate really did deserve what you did. Bet it felt good."

I raised my eyebrows with surprise, certainly not expecting that. "I guess it did a little, but..."

"It's okay, I'm not biased," she promised with a slight smile. "We broke up, remember?"

I relaxed before mirroring her expression. "Then yeah, it felt pretty great. Karma for hitting me with that stupid football."

She chuckled, leaning back into her seat and clutching her cat. "Karma, indeed." There was a pause, before she grew excited. "So prom is coming up. How are we feeling?"

I groaned playfully. "We're feeling exhausted already. I'm not a huge prom fan."

She gasped. "Seriously? Y/N, come on, it's our last one! How aren't you excited?"

I pulled a face. "The concept of dancing in a hall with people I barely speak to isn't exactly appealing."

She straightened up, hugging her cat closely. "So what, you're not gonna go?"

"I'm not sure yet... Y/BF/N has plans to ask someone and really wants me to go, too," I admitted. "But I've not decided. I might just leave him to it."

She tilted her head to the side curiously, eyes studying me intensely. "What if somebody asked you to go with them? Then would you go?"

I tried not to laugh as I leaned my head in the palm of my hand on the table. "Nobody is going to ask me, Wanda. Nobody even knows who I am."

She scoffed playfully. "Now that's just not true. You're beautiful, Y/N. Funny. Kind. Intelligent. Someone is bound to ask."

I rolled my eyes, hoping to distract from the heat rising to my cheeks. I knew she was just saying all of that stuff to be nice, but God was I awful at accepting compliments.

She must have noticed as she leaned forward on her own palm, eyes glowing with entertainment. "Okay, what if you asked somebody?"

Appreciating the subject change, I leaned back in my seat. "I wouldn't even know who to ask."

She thought about it for a moment, before saying, "Pietro was being annoying earlier with all of that questioning, but he's right. Is there nobody you're even remotely interested in at school?"

I quirked a brow, wondering if she was serious. The way she was watching me patiently, a small smile tugging at her lips, made me believe she was. And I found that I couldn't bring it in myself to completely lie to her. So, I didn't.

"There's one person," I admitted reluctantly, swallowing hard. This piqued her interest as she sat up straight, an excited look on her face. I continued, "But I could never ask her."

She gave me an are you serious? look. "And why not?"

I tensed my jaw, smile fading at the thought. "She wouldn't say yes."

Wanda's expression softened. "I doubt that."

Feeling a little uncomfortable, I shuffled in my seat. "She wouldn't. And it's fine anyway! I mean, I wouldn't even know what to say. It's pointless."

"Try," was all she said. And in response to my confused face, she added, "Try asking me. Practice what you would say if I was this girl."

I shook my head. "Wanda, that's not–"

"Just try!" she insisted, sitting back in her seat and smiling encouragingly. "No harm, no foul, right?"

Maybe a little, I thought, but straightened up anyway.

"Okay, er..." I cleared my throat, suddenly feeling nervous as her eyes followed my every move. Looking up, I felt intimidated by her gaze, even though she had the softest smile and kindest eyes directed my way. "Wanda, would you like to go to prom with me?"

Without hesitation, she nodded. "I'd be honoured to, Y/N."

It was fake, this whole thing was 'practice'. But God, I wanted it to be real so bad. She held my gaze, confident and startling and wonderful all at once, and I had no idea what to do. My palms were getting sweaty and my heart was racing the longer she stared. My gaze fell to her lips at the wrong time, as she licked them and I wanted to lean in, wanted to kiss her. I wanted to kiss her hard and tell her how I felt. I wanted to ask her to prom and dance with her in the school gym. I wanted to hold her hand and pull her close, staring into her eyes without fear of going too far.

I wanted her.

"Okay, we're all done here," Pietro's voice broke our staring contest. He clapped his hands together, stopping by the table. "You both ready to go?"

Wanda nodded, already sliding out from the booth. "I'm ready. Y/N?"

I looked up and forgot how to breathe when she smiled down at me.

"Y-yeah," I got out, wiping my palms on my jeans before sliding out the booth. "All ready. Let's go."

—

Prom came upon us in no time and I'd made the decision to attend. My sister ended up convincing me with Y/BF/N, the two of them rambling about how it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and a rite of passage before graduating high school. As much as I hated the thought of attending, I knew they were right, so I agreed to go.

Y/S/N came over to help me get ready, as she was the one who picked my dress. I wanted to wear a cute pantsuit, not really one for dresses, but after her complaints – "you're really milking that whole 'I'm a lesbian' look aren't you?" – I agreed on a dress that she chose.

She helped me do my hair and makeup before taking loads of embarrassing photos of me at the door. I went to prom with Y/BF/N and his date – some girl he liked in his Maths class – which wasn't too bad, but I didn't want to third wheel too much, so I gave them space when we actually arrived.

The school had done a good job at converting the gym into something unrecognisable, I must admit. Plus there was food, which was always a good distraction.

Some acquaintances from some of my classes said their hellos to me and engaged in some quick conversations before moving on. Admittedly, it wasn't too bad catching up with people I'd shared class with over the past several years. Y/BF/N even had a few dances with me, both him and his date, which was sweet, but honestly, I still felt out of place.

Two hours in, I was already fed up of the experience, opting to stand on the sidelines by a cocktail table with a sad glass of punch. I definitely didn't expect to see Wanda approaching me with an impressed smile on her lips. I hadn't actually seen her since arriving, the place full of students and myself barely recognising anyone as it was, let alone in a full gymnasium.

"You came," she said when she stopped my table, eyes looking me up and down. "You look amazing, Y/N."

She was one to talk. I tried not to drool over how beautiful she looked. I assumed she'd be one to wear a dress, but I guess I assumed wrong as she was pulling off a burgundy suit and white blouse. Her hair was curled and left out, paired with a smokey eye makeup look that only complimented her eyes perfectly.

"Says you?" I replied with a smile. "You look gorgeous, Wanda."

She smiled bashfully. "Thank you... so what made you change your mind in coming?"

I laughed uncomfortably, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Partially forced by my family, partially felt like I had to."

She laughed alongside me. "Well, I feel like you made the right choice."

"Not too sure about that," I joked, before straightening up. "So, who was lucky enough to bring Wanda Maximoff as their date to the prom?"

She rolled her eyes at my compliment, smile on her lips still. "Nobody. I came alone. Well, alone but with my brother."

I was surprised at that, but tried to hide it with a nod. "Alone works, too."

"Says the girl who also came alone," she teased.

I couldn't help but smile with amusement. "Yeah. Says she."

Setting her purse on the table, she began to open it. "I was looking for you earlier. But I couldn't find you."

I watched as she fumbled around in her purse. "Yeah? And what did you need?"

After a moment of searching, she finally pulled out two slips of paper that looked like tickets. Holding them up with a small smile, she said, "I've got two tickets to the Paramore concert happening in the summer."

My jaw dropped with disbelief. "You're kidding."

She shook her head, holding them towards me. I accepted them, looking to see if she was pulling my leg. She wasn't.

"These are really good seats," I pointed out, before looking up at her. "You scored big time."

She laughed as I held the tickets out to her. Accepting them back, she said, "I did. And I bought them for a reason."

I raised an eyebrow as she watched me.

"We've got to get matching tee shirts somehow, right?" she joked lightheartedly before looking to me with certainty. Green eyes sparkled with hopefulness as she said, "Come with me."

My mouth went dry. She was asking me to go with her, holy shit.

I opened my mouth, about to speak, but she cut me off.

"Don't say maybe," she said, chewing on her lower lip nervously. "Say yes."

The music and the dancing students and the lights all faded into nothing as Wanda waited for a response, stepping closer to me, way too close to be platonic. I was overwhelmed, definitely not expecting this. Never in a million years did I think Wanda Maximoff, the most popular girl in our grade, would be asking me to see Paramore with her. I didn't even think she knew I existed! 

Her eyes darted between mine patiently, sending shivers down my spine. I could feel her breath tickling my lips as she waited and I looked down to hers, suppressing the urge to lean in.

"Yes," I finally spoke, voice barely a whisper as I swallowed hard. "I'll go with you." 

She nodded, but that wasn't enough as she licked her own lips. I looked back to her eyes, only to see her looking down at mine.

"Can I kiss you?" she muttered softly, making me freeze in place.

Her eyes looked back to mine, dark and patient. I managed to nod weakly, and she wasted no more time when pressing her lips to mine a in a slow, gentle, warm kiss. Her hand wrapped around my waist, tugging my body close to hers, as the other rested behind my neck, giving me goosebumps and turning my insides to jelly.

I closed my eyes, melting into her embrace, one hand planted firmly on her waist as the other rested on her chest. She tasted like peppermint and her floral perfume was infiltrating my senses, making my head dizzy in the best way possible.

When she pulled away, I opened my eyes and was immediately submerged in pools of green. Still so close to her, I kept ahold of her waist as she did the same with me, eyes flickering down to my lips once more.

"I've wanted to do that for a long time," I admitted breathlessly.

She looked to me again. "Why didn't you?"

Her lips were swollen slightly, red lipstick ruined. I could only imagine the mess on my own lips, but I didn't care.

I smiled nervously. "You were with Nate."

She tried not to laugh. "How stupid of me." Eyes falling to my lips again, she added, "I should have broken up with him sooner if it meant I could do this."

I smiled widely, heart fluttering in my chest at her words. Leaning forward, I took her bottom lip in mine, giving her a final kiss that was long overdue before pulling away.

"In case you couldn't tell, you were the girl I wanted to ask to prom," I said, stepping back slightly, but taking her hands in mine.

She bit her lip to contain her smile. "I figured... and for the record, I would have said yes."

My cheeks began to heat up, but I smiled nonetheless. "Well, in that case... Wanda, would you like to go to prom with me?"

She grinned. "I would be honoured, Y/N."

I mirrored her expression. She held out her free hand.

"Do you wanna dance?" she asked gently.

I accepted her hand, squeezing it gently. "I'd love to."

Before either of us could make a move to do so, we heard Pietro's voice shouting in the distance.

"Fina-fucking-lly!"

We turned to the left to see him racing towards us in his blue suit, a knowing smile on his lips.

"You took forever," he said with disbelief to his sister. "I thought I'd have to keep flirting with Y/N in front of you for you to get the hint and make a fucking move."

Wanda rolled her eyes, but I smiled as her cheeks dusted pink.

"And you!" he said, looking to me. "You're so oblivious it hurts."

"Wanda didn't know I existed before this year," I told him, half joking and half serious. "I had every right to be."

Wanda squeezed my hand, earning my attention. She shook her head. "That's not true. I always noticed you."

I gave her a knowing look. "Seriously?"

With an endearing smile, she nodded. "Seriously."

I sighed, looking away and definitely not expecting that. "Well, okay then."

She laughed, pulling me close and wrapping an arm around my waist comfortably. "I believe you owe me a dance. C'mon.

Pietro opened his mouth to speak, but Wanda merely pushed past him, guiding me to the dance floor.

"Not now, Piet," she said, before looking to me with sparkling eyes. "I want to dance with my girlfriend."

I was sure it was impossible for me to smile anymore.

"Girlfriend," I noted aloud, nodding. "I like the sound of that."

She grinned before standing opposite me, holding out her hand. And as I accepted it, I felt a warmth spread all over me that was only possible because of one girl and one girl only.

Wanda Maximoff.

[misschifuyu]

To choose a lover

requested here

characters: ran haitani + rindou haitani

genre: fluff

warnings: none

Giggles and whispering comments were passed around, giddiness present in the voices that spoke out just a few metres away from you.

As much as you tried to focus on the tiresome work that was splayed out on the piece of paper before you, it was completely futile to drown the girls out.

It didn't take a genius to know what they were talking about. The school you were all under had the privilege - if one could even consider it as such - to hold two infamous students.

The Haitani brothers.

Whilst the eldest was in his final year, the younger still had another year under this roof until he followed in his brother's footsteps.

But there was really nothing to dislike about going to class when one had a literal fan group who's main topic was always them.

There were girls who preferred Ran, with his signature braids that they always wished they could undo for him; and others that would always fawn over Rindou's cocky ways and stubbornness, trying to catch his attention wherever he went.

The current conversation, however, wasn't just fixed on talking about their aspects.

Far from it. Sending each other questionable looks and making fun of those on the other side of the opinion, they were discussing who, out of the two brothers, was better.

Those on Ran's side had the advantage of saying that he was older, therefore more responsible and willing to take care of anyone.

Sure.

He would make the perfect husband, some were proclaiming. But...the youngest would always want to show that he is the strongest, the more dependable one, as a result of the inferiority that had always hung with him since they were young.

It wasn't that he was, he just hadn't pushed himself to be known as much as his brother had done all those years back.

Needless to say, it was an argument that would never see an end. At least not until the two left the school behind and continued up to wherever the future would take them.

It was amusing, from your point of view, to hear all of these discussions. For years now you had known the two, as close friends who had grown up on the same street, so you knew everything that there was to them, right down to what they actually did when they said they were studying.

Definitely something that the girls would be pushed back by if they ever found out.

But, if it really came down to it, you probably wouldn't be able to pick one out of the pack that they came in, either.

They both had their merits and faults, and, truth be told, neither of the two were that much of a pleasure to be around with, as much as their fans would beg to differ.

One thing was for sure, though. It had come into the light when the three of you had been hanging out one afternoon, without much else to do.

You had asked the youngest about what he thought about his notorious lower level when it came to comparing him with his brother.

It had simply been a spur of the moment, and you hadn't expected him to actually give a sorrowful response.

He was well aware that he was viewed as the weaker brother of the two, and as much as he'd try to prove otherwise, it had always been something that would eat away at him.

Naturally, both you and Ran had jumped to convince him that he was far from a weak person.

The fact that he was viewed as such meant nothing at all when it came down to the reality of what he was, and that there was no point in even listening to those ignorant - and frankly, irrelevant - opinions about himself.

At the end of the day, although you would never openly admit it near the oblivious fangirls, you held a considerable amount of affection towards the two of them.

Of course, they had their odd moments in which you only wished to hit them around the head with Ran's metal bar; but, all in all, they would always be your childhood friends.

So choosing between them was simply out of the question.

Both of them held an equal importance to you, so when a peculiar feeling started growing for one of them, you quickly averted it so it would be felt for the two, whatever it were to be.

They were two peas in a pod, and you weren't about to change this because of a measly crush.

However, the thought would only bug you more whenever you were all together. Such as the current situation, sat right between the two of them on the comfort of their couch.

Before even coming over, you had mentally ordered yourself to disregard the ridiculous thoughts that had flooded your mind.

The girls back at school hadn't help with the problem one bit, if anything they worsened the conflictive feelings; and now you were to spend the afternoon with the two.

One could only think that all odds were against them in such situations.

Head resting on Ran's shoulder, legs atop Rindou's, your eyes were fixed onto the screen before you. The reasoning behind spending the afternoon together was the airing of your favourite show.

However, you were now racking your brains over what you were supposed to do after the series ended. Watching a movie was the prime option, but you figured they would want to move from the couch and do something else.

And the two were very talkative, so you would have to, inevitably, push everything in your mind aside to prevent from even giving the smallest hint surrounding your thoughts.

Your stiffness didn't go unnoticed, and, soon enough, you felt a hand on your leg, startling you in an instant.

"What the hell is up with you today, Y/N?"

Rindou had lost all attention for what was playing on the screen, and it looked to be as though he had for a bit now. This meant he had felt your change of attitude well before he had actually asked about it.

"What? No, nothing...why?"

Knitting his eyebrows together, the blond looked over at you with a disbelieving stare. By now, you were sure Ran had shifted his interest towards the two of you.

"You've been all skittish since you got here. You got something important on your mind or what?"

Geez.

"No...I've just been thinking about something stupid, that's all. Don't worry about it, now let me watch th-"

"That being?"

Now you were cornered. From behind you, having turned to look at Rindou, a voice spoke out the question. In slight panic, you managed to come up with another way around it.

"Well...that, let's say, if I had to choose one out of the two of you, I wouldn't know who I'd pick. It's a silly question one of my friends asked today, that's all"

God bless the fan girls. You were sure to never judge them internally again, because they might have just saved your skin in the nick of time.

Your nerves calmed down as you heard Rindou chuckle at the concern, and you figured he'd just brush it off as another one of your peculiar inquiries.

However, as he fully turned towards you, it was clear that he wasn't about to let this go unfazed.

"Well, you can't just leave us like that without an answer. Go on then, if it was a life or death situation, who would it be?"

"Rindou...you know I'd get rid of both of you if I could"

You all laughed at your words, stirring the conversation into an area that you were certain you could get a hold of.

Each one of you was just as ridiculous as the next one, so it wasn't hard to divert difficult topics.

If only the youngest wasn't so damn pushy.

"On a real note, there's gotta be one of us that you like just a little more, Y/N"

Upon knowing that perhaps you had driven yourself into a dead end, you started to fumble with your fingers.

What the hell were you supposed to say? If you picked one, the other was surely to get the wrong idea.

"Um..."

A slight shift behind you made you turn your head, catching Ran just a little too close for comfort to your face. Great, just what you needed.

After a few, nerve racking, seconds in silence, it was the eldest of the two that decided to break the ice. You were all just wasting time there, after all.

"Listen...since my brother seems incapable of forming a decent sentence, what we've been trying to get at is which one you'd choose, because we've both liked you for some time now and we kinda need to know who you'd go out with"

Well.

Certainly an unexpected turn to your seemingly uneventful afternoon. It appeared that you weren't the only one struggling with the damned feeling that was a crush, but you hadn't gambled that it would be both of them...and for the same person.

You couldn't choose.

In the same way that you had to waver the feeling of more than just friendship between the two of them, there was no way you could pick one now.

It would be unfair for the other, especially since you would only be lying to yourself for saying that you felt nothing for the half that was left aside.

There was only one way out of this, unless you wanted to shatter the relationship you had built between them for the past years.

"I...both of you. I can't leave one of you out when I, well, like both of you"

A huge weight was lifted from your body the moment the brothers exchanged a look, followed by an agreeing nod. Far from the catastrophe you had gambled with, that much was sure.

As Ran leaned his head on your shoulder, Rindou gave you a bright smile, one that not everyone had the chance to say that they've seen.

"Wasn't so hard to say, now was it?"

No. What was going to be hard was having not one Haitani by your side, but two, as a partner. Sure enough, you were really going to know what their poor mother had to put up with now.

[undiscovered-horizon]

Imagine meeting Loki in the Asgardian prison, in which your cells are across from each other. Although at first he's annoyed with a talkative neighbor, he quickly grows attached to the little company he could get.

"First time, eh?" a female voice diverted Loki's attention from his book. "You'll settle in after a week or so."

He lifted his gaze to look at his neighbor. The annoyance he felt was painfully obvious from his expression. That neighbor of his was across the corridor separating two rows of cells. Why, in the name of all the Gods, did she have to bother him?

Loki's eyes rested on the woman across from him. She was sitting in a chair, with her legs on top of the table in front of her. The cell in which she was kept had similar furnishing as Loki's: a bed, some bookshelves, a pedestal with a vase. Additionally, she had a chair and a table, something the prince had to do without.

"You know, when they brought me here I never thought I would be neighbors with a prince. A real honor, your majesty," her sarcasm was obvious. "I'm (Y/N) by the way."

"Is that all the wisdom you wanted to share with me? Yes? Then be quiet." He went back to reading his book. Loki wasn't planning on staying long in the prison but he felt like even a day will be too long with his friendly neighbor.

"What're you thinking about?" the same female voice called out.

Loki caught the little cup he was tossing. His grip tightened on the little metal object as he sighed and turned his head towards the cell across the hall from him. The woman was sitting on the table.

"Nothing that concerns you."

"You know, we're going to spend quite a lot of time in here. Might as well talk."

"I don't do talk."

"Well then, do you do listening? Cause I could really use an ear."

"Do I look like I care?"

"You look like a lot of things and occasionally nice might just be one of them."

Loki looked at her confused. Did she just try...flattery? He had no desire to befriend her but his reason seemed to overpower his ego: creating a, sort of, alliance with a criminal might prove useful in the future.

"You got me," he sat on the bed and gave her an empty smile. "And my occasional kindness starts now."

The woman had a cocky grin on her face.

"A flerken!" Loki took a guess.

"Damn, how are you so good at this?" It was their second hour that day spent playing charades. The paper planes they made the day before were still lying on the floors of the two cells, a memory of a fun afternoon that resulted in guards regularly quieting the two of them. To be fair, it was a prison, not a library, so why did the sound bother them so much?

"Maybe I'm reading your mind?"

"That would be very against the rules, Loki."

"Oh, do you think they'll put me in prison for that?" He grew to love the banter between him and his neighbor.

"I pray to Gods no one does because then I'll get like a life sentence for cheating in Monopoly."

"Monopoly?" Loki was unfamiliar with Midgardian games.