#have a warm cardigan hanging around because i'm always cold

[sarah-yyy]

first year on the job: must always dress nice!! make up always on point!!! must look put together even if i'm 3 secs away from a mental breakdown!!!! fifth year on the job (aka now): combing my hair before i leave my house is already the biggest show of respect to you tbh

[icy-cold-bitch-latte]

I always see things for the reader stealing *their* clothes, but what about the sides stealing the *readers* clothes? How would they react?

Anon I love this idea so freaking much omg

The Sides stealing the reader's clothes

Warnings: fluff, Roman angst (sorry), suggestive stuff for Logan and Remus

Patton

Patton couldn't find his cat cardigan anywhere (and no, it wasn't around his shoulders, he checked)

He'd taken it off and set it down for just a second, but when he went to put it back on it wasn't there

Unfortunately, you weren't in your room when he checked to see if you'd let him borrow something to wear

He didn't like taking things from you without getting your permission first, but he needed something to warm him up

Spotting a scarf hanging up, he gently took it down and wrapped it snugly around his shoulders (or "cold-ers", as he often called them), making a mental note that he should do something nice for you in return so you wouldn't be too upset with him taking it

After he left, he wandered downstairs to find himself a cookie to eat, and maybe even a second cookie if he was feeling dangerous

You were already in the kitchen, wearing the exact same cat cardigan Patton had been looking for earlier 

When the two of you saw each other in the opposite one's clothes you both burst out laughing until your sides hurt

"So that's where my cardigan went!" Patton exclaimed, trying to catch his breath

"Sorry for just sorta taking it, I always thought it looked really cute on you and just wanted to try it on"

"Well, I'm sorry for taking your scarf without asking, I had to keep my cold-ers warm somehow"

You giggled before holding up a plate with cookies on it. "Want one?" You offered

He smiled before picking one up. "Cookies may be sweet, but they're no where near as sweet as you." He kissed your cheek while you blushed

Roman

Roman was devastated. He'd tried out for an important role in a play he really wanted to be in earlier that day, and to say he blew the audition was an understatement

His ego was bruised, and his heart was hopelessly crushed. There was absolutely nothing that could ever make him feel happy again... except for maybe spending some quality time with his devoted and loving partner, that is

He went to search the house for you, hoping you'd be there to give him some words of encouragement (and also cuddles), but when he couldn't find you he got even most frustrated and upset

Had his beloved darling somehow found out about his awful performance and decided that because of it, they were going to leave him for good?

Wrapping himself in one of the jackets he'd stolen from you ages ago, he collapsed on your bed in a fit of tears, sobbing into your pillow until he eventually tired himself out and fell asleep

You ended up finding him still lying there later that day after you'd gotten back from helping Patton shop for groceries

Walking over to the bed, you sat down next to him and began gently stroking his hair until he woke up a few moments later

Upon seeing that it was you, he wrapped his arms around you and hugged you tight, tears threatening to spill out of his eyes yet again

Having known about what had happened from Logan, you hugged him back, gently consoling him the best you could

"It's okay, my sweet prince. Don't worry, I'm here"

He was able to calm himself down a lot quicker than before, simply by you just being there

You hugged him for a bit longer before asking, "Roman, is that my jacket that I thought I lost a couple weeks ago?"

He hesitated before letting out a muffled "Maybe" as a response

You chuckled, holding him close. "It's alright, you can keep it. It looks good on you"

Logan

Logan woke up that morning to find you curled up next to him, fast asleep after the previous night's, ahem, activities~

The sun hadn't quite rose yet, and since he didn't want to run the risk of waking you up he decided he'd just get dressed in the dark. I mean, how hard could it be?

Very hard, as he would find out just moments later after he'd managed to put both shoes on the wrong feet and his button up on backwards (twice)

Once he finished dressing himself to the best of his ability, he went downstairs to put on a pot of coffee, making sure to leave some behind for you when you woke up

You made your way to the kitchen not long after, yawning loudly as you shuffled down the stairs

"Good morning, Star," Logan greeted you affectionately, giving you a kiss on the forehead before handing you a cup of coffee made just the way you liked

You hummed at the nickname, leaning into his kiss before going to sit down at the kitchen table

It wasn't until after you'd gotten up for a refill that you noticed something you hadn't be awake enough to spot when you first came down

"Logan, did you inspect your outfit closely enough this morning when you got dressed?"

He furrowed his brow, confused by your unusual line of questioning. "Well, considering I did most of it in the dark so as not to wake you, no, I didn't. Why?"

"Because you're wearing my pants, that's why." You gestured towards the lower part of his body with your coffee cup, watching with a bemused look on your face as he realized the mistake he made earlier when picking out his clothes

"I- I am so sorry, I had no idea-" Logan stuttered, cheeks tinted pink at his obvious embarrassment

"Oh, honey, don't worry, I'm not upset," you reassured him, setting down your coffee on the counter. "In fact-" you made your way over to him, playing with the end of his tie in a teasing fashion, "I think it's kind of hot, you wearing my clothes and all"

Safe to say neither one of you were seen again that day until some time after lunch

Virgil

Virgil had spent most of the day at your house hanging out with you

When it came time for him to leave, he found himself not wanting to, so he was ecstatic when you offered to let him stay the night and then go home the next day

Until he remembered he didn't have anything to wear to sleep in

I mean, sure, his everyday clothes were pretty comfortable, but he really didn't want to spend the night in a pair of jeans

You let him borrow clothes before in the past, so he figured you wouldn't mind if he grabbed a pair of sweatpants to sleep in

He had just slipped them on when you came out of the bathroom, toothbrush still in hand from where you'd been brushing your teeth

"Are those my Tim Burton pajama bottoms?"

He froze upon hearing your voice, afraid you'd be upset, but when he looked up to see a slight smirk on your face he realized you were just messing with him

"Oh, uh, yeah, they are. I didn't have any other clothes on me, so I decided to borrow yours. I hope that's okay," he said sheepishly

"Don't worry, it's totally fine," you reassured him. "Besides, you look cute wearing my clothes"

You gave him a wink before going to return your toothbrush to the bathroom, leaving behind a very flustered emo boy

Janus

If there was one thing Janus hated, it was cold weather

Since he was part snake, he was cold blooded like reptiles, and therefore unable to regulate his body temperature properly, causing him to be particularly drowsy and out of it on colder days

Luckily they lived in Florida, so it was pretty much always warm, but that didn't mean there wasn't the occasional cold front that passed through

Usually he'd have his cape wrapped him on chilly days like this, but unfortunately for him Remus had gotten a strange combination of glitter glue and what he hoped was mayonnaise on it the day before, meaning it had to be washed

He'd been sulking around the house looking for something warm to wear, glaring at anyone who dared to hold his gaze for too long when he spotted one of your sweatshirts laying on the back of the couch

Now, he often found sweatshirts and such to be quite unrefined, and therefore unfit for such a sassy, stylish snake boi such as himself to wear, but he was desperate at this point, and he would do almost anything to feel warm again

Making sure he was alone, he slipped it on, feeling himself become all nice and toasty almost immediately

He'd felt so relaxed and comfortable he hadn't even heard you come down the stairs, looking for the exact same sweatshirt that he happened to have on his body

"Janus, what are you doing?"

He nearly jumped out of his skin at the question, slowly turning around to see you standing at the bottom of the stairs, watching him with an amused look on your face

"Well, I totally didn't steal your sweatshirt because I was cold," he remarked slyly, trying to keep himself from panicking at having been caught

You playfully rolled your eyes at him. "Uh huh, sure. But next time you get cold and you need something warm to borrow, just ask, okay? I don't mind sharing. Plus, I'd hate for my favorite little snake boy to freeze to death"

It was now his turn to roll his eyes, jokingly scoffing at you while you gave him a small boop on the nose

Remus

You were in the shower when Remus popped up in your room like he normally does when he gets bored

He was upset you were taking so long, and while he was tempted to pull a Psycho on you (with a fake knife, of course) he remembered that last time he did something like that you had threatened to shove a bar of soap down his throat if he ever tried it again

While he didn't want to face your wrath for the second time around, he also desperately needed to be entertained, or else he felt as if he might combust

Seeing the pile of clothes you'd been wearing earlier that day lying on the floor gave him a rather naughty idea for a surprise he could have for you once you were done in the bathroom

When you got out of the shower a couple minutes later, you were immediately suspicious to how quiet it was

Usually Remus used your shower time to pull off some sort of crazy, elaborate scheme he could never get away with under your supervision, so complete silence couldn't be a good thing

You hesitantly walked into your bedroom, towel wrapped around you as you quickly scanned the area, trying to see where he might be hiding

"Boo!" He said, jumping out from your closet wearing only a pair of underwear, which to you was nothing new. Until you noticed it was yours, that is

"Remus, are you- are you wearing my underwear?" You asked in disbelief as he paraded around your bedroom, clearly proud of himself

"Yup! And I must say, they fit perfectly," he said flirtatiously, giving you a wink

"Good to hear. Now, take my clothes off, and put your clothes back on. I need to get the dirty laundry together so I can wash it soon"

"If you want them back so badly, why don't you come over here and take them?" He taunted, wiggling his hips

You let out a sigh. It was going to be a long day

~

(Also I feel kinda bad because Virgil's isn't as long as the rest but I didn't want to rewrite his section so 😭 it is what it is ig)

Sanders Sides masterlist | 🏷 taglist: @iloveentrapta

[walkingtalkingsomething]

✨Taylor Swift Makes Everything Better Lyric Prompts - Pt. 2✨

It's exactly what the title says. I find song lyrics in general very inspiring and have a notebook of ones that strike me for one reason or another but don't have the 'whatever' that's needed to write them. And I unapologetically stan the hell out of Ms. Swift and am so often struck by her word choices. So this is my collection of the TS lyrics that conjure up the most thoughts - minus a ton of sad ones because I am just too soft to be putting that much angst into the world 😊

Lover

•Your name on my lips tongue tied, Free rent living in my mind - I Forgot That You Existed

•Fever dream high in the quiet of the night, You know that I caught it - Cruel Summer

•And I screamed for whatever it's worth, 'I love you,' Ain't that the worst thing you ever heard? - Cruel Summer

•There's a dazzling haze, A mysterious way about you dear, Have I've known 20 seconds or 20 years? - Lover

•I think he knows his hands around a cold glass make me wanna know that body like it's mine - I Think He Knows

•He got that boyish look that I like in a man - I Think He Knows

•Got that, Ah, I mean, Wanna see what's under that attitude - I Think He Knows

•I think he knows when we get all alone I'll make myself at home and he'll want me to stay - I Think He Knows

•Lyrical smile, Indigo eyes, Hand on my thigh we could follow the sparks, I'll drive - I Think He Knows

•We're so sad we paint the town blue, Voted most likely to run away with you - Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince

•Kiss me once cause you know I had a long night, Kiss me twice cause it's gonna be alright, Three times cause I've waited my whole life - Paper Rings

•I like shiny things but I'd marry you with paper rings, Uh huh, That's right, Darling, You're the one I want, And I hate accidents except when we went from friends to this, Uh huh, That's right, Darling, You're the one I want in paper rings, In picture frames, In dirty dreams - Paper Rings

•Barefoot in the kitchen, Sacred new beginnings that became my religion - Cornelia Street

•My heart, My hips, My body, My love, Trying to find a part of me that you didn't touch - Death By a Thousand Cuts

•Something gave you the nerve to touch my hand, It's nice to have a friend - It's Nice To Have a Friend

Folklore

•We were something, don't you think so? Rosé flowing with your chosen family, And it would've been sweet if it could've been me - The One

•And when I felt like I was an old cardigan under someone's bed, You put me on and said I was your favorite - Cardigan

•You drew stars around my scars - Cardigan

•I knew you tried to change the ending, Peter losing Wendy - Cardigan

•I knew you'd linger like a tattoo kiss, I knew you'd haunt all of my what ifs, The smell of smoke would hang around this long - Cardigan

•I think I've seen this film before and I didn't like the ending - Exile

•I can see you staring, Honey, Like he's just your understudy, Like you'd get your knuckles bloodied for me - Exile

•And I've been meaning to tell you I think your house is haunted, Your dad is always mad and that must be why - Seven

•I can see us lost in the memory/And I can see us twisted in bedsheets - August

•I didn't know if you'd care if I came back, I have a lot of regrets about that - This Is Me Trying

•And maybe I don't quite know what to say, But I'm here in your doorway - This Is Me Trying

•You showed me colors you know I can't see with anyone else/You taught me a secret language I can't speak with anyone else - Illicit Affairs

•And isn't it just so pretty to think all along there was some invisible string tying you to me? - Invisible String

•Right now is the last time I can dream about what happens when you see my face again - Betty

•But I'm a fire and I'll keep your brittle heart warm If your cascade ocean wave blues come - Peace

•And you know that I'd swing with you for the fences, Sit with you in the trenches, Give you my wild, Give you a child, Give you the silence that only comes when two people understand each other, Family that I chose now that I see your brother as my brother - Peace

•Don't want no other shade of blue but you, No other sadness in the world would do - Hoax

•You knew the password so I let you in the door - Hoax

•Take me to the lakes where all the poets went to die, I don't belong and my beloved neither do you - The Lakes

Evermore

•Wherever you stray, I follow - Willow

•Head on the pillow, I could feel you creeping in as if you were a mythical thing, Like you were a trophy or a champion ring, But there was one prize I'd cheat to win - Willow

•Your Midas touch on the Chevy door, November flush and your flannel cure - Champagne Problems

•There's an ache in you put there by the ache in me - 'Tis The Damn Season

•And the heart I know I'm breaking is my own, To leave the warmest bed I've ever known - 'Tis The Damn Season

•Gain the weight, Then lose it - Tolerate It

•No one teaches you what to do when a good man hurts you, And you know you hurt him too - Happiness

But are you still the same soul I met under the bleachers? - Dorothea

•And do you miss the rogue who coaxed you into paradise and left you there? Will you forgive my soul when you're too wise to trust me and too old to care? - Coney Island

•Oh, Goddamn, My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand - Ivy

•My house of stone, Your ivy grows and now I'm covered in you - Ivy

•Your opal eyes are all I wish to see, He wants what's only yours - Ivy

•So yeah, It's a fire, It's a goddamn blaze in the dark and you started it - Ivy

• You're a bandit like me, Eyes full of stars, Hustlin' for the good life, Never thought I'd meet you here - Cowboy Like Me

•And the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to fuck this up - Cowboy Like Me

•Now you hang from my lips like the gardens of Babylon, With your boots beneath my bed, Forever is the sweetest con - Cowboy Like Me

•And it's been so long but if you ever think you got it wrong, I'm right where you left me - Right Where You Left Me

Midnights

•And I wake with your memory over me, That's a real fucking legacy to leave - Maroon

•I wake up screaming from dreaming one day I'll watch as your leaving and life will lose all its meaning for the last time  - Anti Hero

•And time can't stop me quite like you did - Snow on the Beach

•I wait patiently, He's gonna notice me, It's ok we're the best of friends...anyways - You're on Your Own, Kid

•They said the end coming, Everyone's up to something, I find myself running home to your sweet nothings, Outside they're push and shoving, You're in the kitchen humming, All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing - Sweet Nothing

•To you I can admit that I'm just too soft for all of it - Sweet Nothing

Misc.

•Seen you fall, Seen you crawl on your knees, Seen you lost in a crowd, Seen your colors fade, Wish I could make it better, Someday you won't remember this pain you thought would last forever and ever - Sweeter Than Fiction

•What a sight when the light came on, Proved me right when you proved them wrong - Sweeter Than Fiction

•Follow me home if you dare to, I wouldn't know where to lead you - Beautiful Ghosts

Part. 1

[justalildumpling]

chapter 28: for real

"Actually, I wanted to ask if you wanted to go on a date with me sometime?"

Park Sunghoon, the famous figure skater in your uni.

You had occasionally seen him around campus, mostly hanging out with his fraternity mates. But you had only properly met him at his party when he opened the door for you and your friends. The two of you got along that day, bonding over your lack of eagerness to party, which in turn led to frequent hellos on campus.

But never did you expect for him to ask you out tonight.

You blinked a few times, your mouth agape from the sudden question.

Sunghoon, as far as you were told by Hyuck, was a nice guy and quite the looker too. Despite the wild frat boy reputation his group has, Sunghoon was always known to be the quieter one, oftentimes mistaken as cold and dismissive, though you knew that was far from the truth. 

He was the “definition of your type,” according to your friends, and they weren’t wrong. 

But, it wasn't him.

"I’m flattered but, I'm taken-" though you stop mid sentence.

You weren't "taken" anymore; you couldn't say that. You had messed it all up.

The guy you had experienced your firsts with, the first guy to look past your reputation, the first guy you had ever fallen in love with. He made your stomach erupt in a flutter of butterflies, but now you couldn't have that anymore.

"Hey bubs, you know this guy?" A voice sounded from behind.

As your eyes met the person behind the familiar voice, your heart began to mirror fireflowers, sparkling, hissing and ready to burst into a million pieces.

Jaemin snaked his arm around your waist, pulling you closer towards him like he did the first time you had met. Though his lips were tugged into an innocent smile, his eyes contained a fiery depth, as if challenging the poor boy across from him.

Sunghoon had hastefully spluttered apologies before running off inside, leaving you alone with him.

Once again, the two of you sat on the steps in front of Sunwoo's house, the powerful bass from inside providing a diegetic noise for the tense atmosphere outside.

You sat fiddling with the loose hems of your knitted cardigan, as Jaemin counted the number of pebbles occupying the path, thinking of ways to start a conversation. After several minutes had painfully crawled past, you still remained without any spoken words, just enveloped by the thick silence until he timidly spoke up.

"You okay?" He whispered, his eyes still fixated on the path.

It was only then that you had gotten a proper glance towards Jaemin.

He looked different from the last time you had seen him.

Maybe it was the dim hues of the street lights that reflected against his pretty face; or maybe it was the way his hair was pushed to the other side; or maybe it was simply because you missed him.

You felt your eyes well up in tears, though you couldn't seem to pinpoint why.

The only thing you had gathered in your bleary vision, was Jaemin's alarmed expression before being engulfed into that familial hug you had grown to love the past few months. As you snuggled closer into his neck, there released the warm cotton scent of his cologne. Though the two of you remained silent, it was that moment when you realised that you had found your comfort. Right under the diamond dusted night sky and amongst the transcending autumnal leaves, your angel was there, his halo residing in his perfect smile.

"I'm sorry," You muffled into his jacket, "I'm sorry for running away without any explanation, I'm sorry for being a coward and denying my feelings for you and I understand if you never want to talk to me again after this but god I missed you so much."

Your body seemed to ache for warmth as Jaemin pulled away from your body, placing his hands on your shoulders.

"Who said that I never returned the feelings?"

There was a slight pause in your movements, your lips wavering before you murmured, "What?"

Jaemin smiled as he held your hands, "I like you y/n, and I have since the day we met."

Your eyes widened, staring into his dark orbs with the same expression you had adorned the time you reunited with him at the party. You inched closer to his figure, in attempts to find any signs of playfulness or mischief in his eyes; but alas, you were left with none.

This was the way things were meant to be, Jaemin's heart in your hands, and yours in his, all, without the lies, the denial and the fear of losing each other.

When his lips met yours, moving softly and perfectly in time with your fluttering heartbeat, you knew that you had found the one. The previous kisses you had shared were unrivalled to the surge of emotions the real thing had brought. From the way he tenderly cupped your cheeks to the whispering of sweet nothings on your lips, if his words weren't enough to convince you, his actions definitely did.

"Does this mean that we're dating now?" Jaemin murmured softly against your cheeks, "For real this time."

You giggled, "Yes, for real."

As he leaned in for another kiss, you stopped him with your palm, muttering one last question which had burned at the back of your mind.

"But then, why did you ghost me?"

That once comfortable silence was broken by Jaemin's excessive coughs, avoiding your curious gaze. Jaemin believed that he was always ready to conquer obstacles, whether it was Chenle's verbal attacks or Jisung's sudden late night cravings but it was only that question that made him wish the ground would swallow him and his past regrets up whole.

"I may or may not have broken my phone and felt too awkward to text you back…"

"You what?!"

masterlist || previous | next

pairing: jaemin x fem! reader

synopsis: after getting ghosted by your crush in high school, you swore off dating in university, earning yourself the title of ‘the unattainable’. after 3 years you were convinced that there would be no way the two of you would ever cross paths ever again. well, that was until he announced that he was your boyfriend at a party.

genre: social media au, fake dating au, college au, fluff, crack, mutual pining, acquaintances to lovers

warnings: swearing, murdering jokes, mentions of alcohol, mildly talking themselves down

note: ngl was kinda scared to post this cause i haven't made a written part in so long so hopefully it was okay </3

taglist: open! feel free to send an ask or comment to be added :))) ~ @w0nderr​ @qghosty​ @luxebeautystyle​ @mafegarcia​ @watermelonxes​ @carelessshootanonymous​ @finmls @haechansgfreal @smolpeyy​ @cupid-yuno @pckeia​​ @xxxx-23nct @euphoricjaemin​ @calssunflower​ @fullsunld @dandelionxgal @luvrboyjeno​ @simtone @yutensoul @tamakofever​ @yoonrimin​ @viagumi @rinrinslovebot​ @kkotjia @000rpheus​ @iwouldbangchan​ @leeknowsredeyeliner @chocopie16​ @hem-lyss​ @bbnana @im-just-trying-to-survive-man​ @hyucupid​ @studywoo​ @luvenshiti​ @philanarose @uglyratlmao @wooyoung-a @cacaubs @beemarkie @w3bqrl @bennettsprmcy @maeumiluv @strdaydrp @ghostfacefricker6969 @sehunniepot @0606love

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[thebigsl33p]

You Are Sick and You're Married, and You Might Be Dying. (Part two)

Part one.

Really I wanted to title this after Andromeda by Weyes Blood, "Treat me right, I'm still a good man's daughter. Let me In If I break and be quiet if I shatter." But it's easier if it has the same title as the one before. Maybe I'll do another one with that title. TW: angst, death, cancer, realistic Chemo (as close as I could get it anyways), Morpheus. No happy ending.

Things had been hard.

Y/N had been given two choices, Chemotherapy or to just…leave it. To let the Cancer exist and spread to her lymph nodes, slowly kill her. She thought about it, she really did. It would be easier, peaceful and on her own terms. Joanna assured her that whatever she chose she would be by her side, and Y/N had no doubt. So when she chose Chemo, Joanna did everything in her power to make sure she was comfortable.

It was the least she could do with the guilt she was carrying. She knew Y/N wasn't going to make it, a demon's curse is a demon's curse. And she felt awful. But she didn't want her girl to hate her, so she didn't bring it up.

The Doctors had told them about what to watch out for. How Y/N would be sensitive to the cold, it could cause pins and needles or make her throat feel like it was closing up so they should always have gloves, a scarf and a bottle of warm water after a Chemo session.

They had also told the couple about how food might taste different for Y/N and may even have a different texture. And how she could be sick or feel nauseous. And should anything feel off at all she was to call 111. They would give her the best advice, tell her whether she should to to the hospital or not.

The Chemo was spread across every other week.

Y/N was sitting in a chair in the Chemo section of the hospital she was in, wearing one of Joanna's shirts and a cardigan. She had a pick in her arm and a bag of chemicals hanging over her head. Her girlfriend was sitting in a chair next to her, and they were chatting about shit TV when her phone went.

Y/N saw her go to decline it, "Joanna, you're allowed to accept phone calls, y'know? I know you don't think of it this way, but you do actually have a job, that you are allowed to attend." She reminded her.

"Fine." Joanna accepted the call and sat there for a while, just humming in agreement before hanging up, "They want me for an exorcism this evening. Someone high class."

"Royal?" Y/N laughed.

"Probably. But I can cancel if you don't want me going. Like seriously, they can pull someone else in. The only reason I took it was because they're paying a lot." She explained.

"Joanna it's fine. I'll probably be tired when I get back home, so I'll just sleep while you're gone sweetheart. Don't fret."

***

Joanna had been to this church many times.

Outside, was the local crazy, Hettie, who Joanna loved to bits. She always had a bit of mystic or occult gossip. The woman was two hundred and eight after all.

And this time, it was about The Sandman, something that Joanna was sure was nothing more than a fairy story.

"He's back.." Hettie slurred.

Joanna laughed, "Who's back Hettie?" 

"Why Morpheus of course."

"Morpheus?" "The king of nightmares. The sandman."

"The sandman's nothing but a fairytale hettie." Joanna laughed.

"Mark my words girl, The Sandman's back, and he wants his sand." Hettie looked over Joanna's shoulder and started giggling.

Joanna turned around, to see what Hettie was having a look at and there on the steps of the church she was about to go into was a man, who she would describe as goth. He looked a bit like an emo teenage boy…but with more style.

"Who are you?" Joanna's eyebrows raised at the man and he began to speak something about dreams and nightmares and sand, but she stopped him, "Look, that's nice and all but I have an exorcism to do and a girlfriend to get back too." She pushed past him.

Joanna would've been eternally grateful for that night.

The night she partnered up with The Sandman to get his bag of sand from an ex-girlfriend of hers who had destroyed herself with it. He had made sure she died peacefully and happily.

And that was when Joanna had an idea.

As they were leaving her ex's house, Joanna turned to Morpheus, "I'm going to ask you a favour." She said, "I don't care what the price is I just…need this. My girlfriend Y/N has cancer. She doesn't know it yet, but…the chemo's not gonna make a change. She's dying and it's my fault. What you did to Rachel in there, could you do that for her? Or maybe put a word in with Death when the time comes? Make sure she's comfortable?"

"Yes." He answered, his eyes showing pity for her, "One day I'll call on you."

In that moment he was the patron saint of Lovers. Forget valentine.

***

The Chemo was doing very little. If anything it was making it worse. Months later, Y/N had shaved her hair and had lost weight. She looked pale and tired.

The doctor's didn't see much point in continuing with the sessions. Instead they gave Y/N some meds and sent her home under the care of her girlfriend.

The moment they got home, Joanna put Y/N into bed before going to make some food.

Just as she was about to leave the bedroom, Y/N called her back, "Joanna. Please, sit with me."

"…Okay." Joanna turned around and took her side of the bed, "What's up?"

"I know." She said, "I know I had no chance of living…" She admitted, "The night you called me…worried. I thought if I did the Chemo it might make both of us feel better, might let me live a little longer. When I go-"

"Y/N, no." Joanna took her hand.

"When I go, I don't want you to feel bad. Alright?"

"Alright. I'm sorry."

"I know, it's okay. I know you only tried to do what was best."

Y/N barely lasted the rest of the week. She was fading away, finding it harder and harder to wake up, sleeping more, eating less.

And then, one warm summer evening, she was awake again. Joanna could hear her mumbling to herself from the kitchen, chatting away. And just as she went to check on her, there was a knock at the door.

Joanna sighed and went to open it and there on the other side was The Sandman. And she knew what that meant, and she knew who Y/N was talking too.

Together, the Exorcist and The Endless walked into their bedroom to see Y/N sitting up in bed and a black woman sitting on the end of it, her legs crossed like a child.

"I didn't think there was much point in hiding." She shrugged, "You've already met my brother." She turned to Y/N, "You've got a real amazing one here, I wish I could let you keep her a little longer."

"Joanna, come sit with me." Y/N smiled as Joanna took a seat on her side of the bed, "Are you okay?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Joanna was beginning to sniffle.

"You know that's not how we work." She laughed before wiping her Love's eyes, "Don't cry Sweetheart. It's not worth it." Her eyes flicked up, "I take it you're Dream? Your sister told me you'd be coming."

"Yes. I'm here to make sure your happy when you go. It's the least I could do for Joanna." he sighed.

"Well, I think I'm ready." She smiled at her girlfriend, "In the end, was it a Royal?"

"Yeah." Joanna smiled through the overflow of tears.

"I love you." She kissed her cheek.

"I love you too."

And then Morpheus was gone, Death was gone and so was Y/N. And with all three of them they took Joanna's will to live.

The world would never shine as bright again as it did when she was besides Y/N.

Her wonderful, beautiful Y/N.

[stanurines1mp]

I Wanna Be Yours

Pairing: Eren Jaeger x Fem!Reader (she/her)

type: slight angst + fluff.

an: IM BACK. Finally. Also, i just started watching Jujutsu Kaisen and I am now a whore for Satoru Gojo. Might start a few oneshots for JJK boys, who knows. Anyway, this took me long enough. i miss writing. here's part 2 for the Eren oneshot. Inspired by the song I Wanna Be Yours by Arctic Monkeys. Let me know if you have any requests. More stuff coming soon :)

warnings: slight angst, Eren and Y/N being stupid, a few curses here and there. I think that's all. so uh, yeah :)

Part one

~~~

Eren gave up. After watching you being your happiest self, Eren gave up.

You've met your match.

And it just wasn't him.

Eren thought that this guy, your boyfriend, he's the one you'd marry one day. Because knowing you, there was no way you'd ever break up with someone. And because this guy is actually a good guy, Eren knew he wouldn't do anything to hurt you.

Unknowingly to you and your boyfriend, your happiness was hurting Eren.

But Eren loves you. And he didn't want to stop being your friend even if it was hurting him. So you'd always invite Eren to hang out with you and your boyfriend. And he'd always say yes.

Because what if?

What if your boyfriend actually was a bad person?

What if your boyfriend actually was planning to hurt you?

But every time that thought occurred in Eren's mind, it would fade just as quick as it came. Eren remembered one of the nights when it happened.

You and your boyfriend were going to watch a movie at the cinema and kindly, you had invited Eren along. Your boyfriend didn't mind it at all. Eren accepted because again, how could he not?

So you and Eren went to the cinema together because your boyfriend had a late class. You two arrived at the cinema at the agreed time. The night air was cold as you and Eren waited long for your boyfriend to show up.

Eren began to grow angry because how dare he hurt you after making you so hopeful and happy?

Your body shivered in a coping mechanism against the chill breeze. Your knitted cardigan was not thick enough for the fall night.

Noticing your discomfort, Eren took off his jacket and wrapped it around you. In a smooth movement, completely unnoticed by you, Eren pulled you closer into his side with an arm.

Being nuzzled against Eren was always comforting to you. He was warm, even when the cold weather tried to tear through.

And you liked how Eren smelled like. His aura wore one that reminded you of cinnamon, something so equivalent to the scent of one's childhood home.

You were beginning to suspect that your boyfriend was standing you up. Your once excited heart was beginning to sorrow. Eren could hear your breathing growing more nervous and shallow.

Eren was about to just take you into the cinema but the sound of a car engine approaching snapped him out of his daze. He followed your gaze towards the street and well enough, your boyfriend's car was put in park.

While your face lighted up, Eren's face was washed over by the darkness that had loomed over him. Your boyfriend got out of the car, a flower bouquet in his left hand. He rushingly jogged towards you two, his face tired and guilty, his breathing short and panting.

"I'm so sorry, love. I was going to text you that I'd be late but stupid Ackerman took my phone like I'm in high school or something. And then he kept me behind, getting another stupid lecture that I shouldn't use my phone in class. I'm so sorry," he babbled, handing you the bouquet.

Eren noticed that you were just happy he didn't stand you up. That night, you all went in to watch the movie. And again and again, Eren thought your boyfriend would do something.

He would mess up your relationship, break your heart and you'd come crying to Eren. Because Eren wanted him to be your ultimate destination. But your boyfriend was literally so fucking perfect.

You barely fought with your boyfriend and even if you did, it wasn't too bad that you cried. Your relationship was going steady for more than a year.

You thought nothing would cause a breakup in your relationship. Your boyfriend really didn't seem like he would ever hurt you.

Little did you know you were the cause of another heartbreak.

You and your boyfriend were together for almost two years when it happened. You were supposed to meet him at a diner he liked to go to.

You sat across him in the booth, your plate of food in front of you, untouched. He was growing worried because you weren't eating.

Your body was there with him but your mind was completely elsewhere. He saw through that. Your eyes were gazing into a void of nothingness over the window.

"Is everything okay?" he questioned carefully, frowning with worry. "Y/N?" He called again when you didn't answer.

"What?" You turned your head back to meet him, your fingers that were toying with the straw of your iced tea stopping abruptly.

"Is everything okay? You seem distracted," he queried gently.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," you shrugged dismissively.

"You're not eating," he quirked a brow.

"Oh, sorry, I-"

"Y/N," he sternly sighed, putting down his utensils. "It's okay," he suddenly said.

"What is?"

"I know you've been thinking about it," He softly said, eyes looking up at you.

"About what? What are you talking about?" You furrowed your brows, confused but at the same time, you knew exactly what he was talking about.

"Y/N, you know what I'm talking about," he sighed deeply.

"If I want vague shit, I'd go to literally anyone else. So cut the crap. What are you talking about?"

At this point, you were losing patience. You had no idea why but again, you knew exactly why.

And it hurt you. Because you didn't like what you were feeling. What makes it worse is that you had no idea why you were feeling that way.

But then again, you knew damn well why.

"Y/N," he called firmly.

"You're right," you exhaled sharply. "I know."

"It's okay," he smiled rather sadly.

"I'm sorry," was all that managed to escape your lips.

Then there it was. The breakup. You actually liked him.

How could you not? He was kind, smart, caring, and actually a nice fucking guy. He was the definition of perfect.

Just not in your eyes.

It actually hurt you to do what you did. Because you did care about him. He was a good person and he was nothing but kind to you. So why couldn't you love him?

Why did you have to be so dramatically in love with Eren fucking Jaeger?

That night after breaking up with your boyfriend, you did cry. You didn't mean to hurt him and you really didn't want to lose someone as great as him from your life. And all you wanted to do was go to Eren and cry.

But you couldn't.

Because if you did, then he'd ask you what's wrong. And what's wrong is that you've been absolutely fucking infatuated with him since the first moment you had accidentally bumped into him.

Oh shit, sorry.

Your first words that you wished you could take back.

You wished you could meet him in a more polite and formal way. You wished you could be a damn beauty when you first met him.

But not a single part of you ever wished to not have met him. Even though you knew he held zero interest in you that way, you still wouldn't change a thing about having him in your life.

You tried your best to avoid Eren for the next few days since your absolutely unproblematic breakup. You kept ignoring his calls, saying that you were busy. Or that a Professor was holding you back about some work or something.

But there was always a something that denied him of hearing your voice through the phone. You still replied to his texts though. You tried your best to conjure the same energy you always had when texting him and you thought you did a pretty good job.

But you were absolutely wrong.

Because Eren saw right through.

"Did I do something wrong?" Eren fumbled, his fingers playing with the hem of his hoodie while he talked to Armin through facetime.

"I don't think so. Maybe she really is busy?" Armin queried, trying his best to support his best friend.

"There's something wrong, though. I just know it. It's like she's avoiding me or something," Eren groaned, his fingers moving from his hoodie to his temples, slightly massaging it.

"Why don't you talk to her? You have the same class tomorrow, right?" Armin suggested, quickly lighting up Eren's eyes due to hope.

"Yeah. I'll talk to her tomorrow."

Though Eren displayed a slightly more calm demeanor in front of Armin, he was internally panicking, absolutely fucking worried that he did something wrong to hurt you.

His head was hurting, thinking again and again for anything that could explain your sudden behavior.

He was so scared that he hurt you, his eyes were kept open all night because the gears in his head wouldn't stop turning. He was thinking about you. Like he always does.

You, you, you.

When the next day arrived, he was getting ready to ask you, confront you. But most of all, he wanted to see you because he missed you so much. So fucking much.

Knowing that, one could surely imagine the devastation that darkened his entire being when he walked into class only to see your seat lacking the beauty that should be you.

Frowning, he took his seat next to where yours should be had you shown up to the lecture. His right hand quickly found the edges of his phone as soon as his pants hit the cold seat in the lecture hall.

Eren could feel his heart beating in anticipation while his ears were intoxicated by the sound of his phone ringing, his entire being awaiting the sound to be replaced by the one of your sweet voice.

Much to his dismay, he hadn't the chance to hear the sweet vocals of yours because the ringing stopped only to be replaced by the call going into voicemail.

Rubbing his temples in frustration, Eren swiped the screen of his phone to enter his home screen which soon turned into your texts. His fingers made quick work into typing a message for you.

Eren: Hey, is everything okay?

Eren: You're not in class

Eren: I'm worried.

You: I'm fine, Ren.

You: just a little sick

You: I already told the lecturers today

Eren: shit, i'll come over after class

You: no need i'm highly infectious

You: I don't want to get you sick either

Eren: okay then

Except it wasn't okay. Not to Eren. Questions filled the confines of his head throughout his entire class. Questions of you. Because again, all Eren ever thought about was you.

You, you, you.

Were you really sick?

Were you okay?

Did he do something wrong to you?

Did he hurt you?

Did your boyfriend hurt you?

Did you hurt yourself?

How did you get sick?

Why were you avoiding him?

Eren sighed, his brain already making a decision for what was to come between your friendship with him. He tried his best to focus on literally anything else other than you.

At least until his classes for the day ends. He was also praying that you'd get your rest, enough to feel better and heal from your fever.

But you didn't have a fever to heal from.

Unless you count being in love with Eren a fever.

But it was more like a virus.

A virus that you didn't want to heal from. A virus that you'd let fully infect you. A virus that you wished would grow bigger because the feeling was just absolutely euphoric even if Eren could never reciprocate.

You let out a sigh, your back laid softly against the gentle fabric of your bedsheets. Your left arm draped over your eyes, blocking the familiar view of your white ceiling.

Your eyelashes tickled against your tired skin, your heart heavy with lies that you have conjured lately. The lies weren't what's bothering you. It was the person you lied to.

The guilt was overpowering you. You were feeling shitty about yourself, your life. God, you wished more than anything to have Eren beside you.

To have his scent fulfill your senses. To have his warm touch igniting all your goosebumps. To have his arms embracing your body.

You wanted to feel him. How his palm would be at the back of your head, slightly burying your face in his chest. How his calloused fingers would feel against the strands of your hair.

How soft the sound of his voice is when he'd whisper the most comforting things to you. How sweet his skin would feel against yours when he touched you.

How mesmerizing his green eyes would be to look into, lifting you into a universe where everything you wanted to come true. In that universe, it would be him and you.

Your head was voicing out your thoughts, the words splayed around the walls of your brain;

The secrets I have held in my heart.

Are harder to hide than I thought.

Maybe I just wanna be yours.

Your thoughts were interrupted by the sound of knocking on your door. You sighed, your body screaming for you to lie back down on your bed.

But you ignored it as you walked towards the door. You didn't bother to look through the hole so you just opened the door, revealing your tall best friend.

Speak of the Devil and the Devil may come.

Any coherent words you could think of faded in your throat as your eyes stared with shock at him. Didn't you specifically tell him not to come?

"Eren, what are you doing here?" You managed to say.

"I wanted to see you," he gaped blankly. But soon, his unreadable expression turned into one slightly angry. "Thought you were sick," his voice was almost condescending and daring, head tilted to the side, words laced poisonously with sarcasm.

"I-I'm feeling better," you squirmed, arms moving to cross over your chest while your eyes uncomfortable looked away at literally anything but his eyes.

Because you knew that once he looked at you, he'd know damn well that you had lied.

But right now, it already seemed like no matter what, he knew because he caught you.

"You've been avoiding me," he stated, straightening his head again.

"No, I haven't," you weakly defended, eyes darting to him.

Yes, you have.

"Cut the crap, Y/N," he huffed quite angrily as he walked past you into your room.

"Oh come on in, why don't ya?" You blurted out with slight annoyance.

You had no idea why you were also feeling angry. Was it because Eren's anger was infecting you? Maybe.

"Did I do something wrong? Is that why you've been avoiding me so much lately?" His brows furrowed bitterly, eyes turning around to meet you.

"I haven't been avoiding you-"

"Come on, Y/N," he groaned. "Did I do something wrong?"

His voice lowered into a soft plead. His green eyes were almost teary as he gazed into your orbs.

"No, you didn't."

"Then why?" He queried. "Is it because of your boyfriend or something?"

"We broke up."

Your words left your lips in a painful sigh. Your eyes evaded Eren's sight because you didn't want to look at him.

Because you lied to him. Or at least kept a secret from him. And part of Eren was hurt that you didn't tell him.

"Did he hurt you?" Eren's words sauntered through his gritted teeth, his fists clenched tightly while his nostrils flared with a firey flame.

"What? No, it's not like that," you shook your head, heat and chills crawling up your body at the same time.

"Then what the fuck happened?"

"It's nothing," you mumbled out.

He wasn't pleased with your response. For the first time, he wasn't pleased with you.

"Then tell me what happened," he sternly added.

"Nothing, okay? Just leave it alone, Ren," your right foot tapped anxiously against the white tile of your room.

Eren could tell you were nervous, lying. He could read you like a book. But he just hadn't managed to turn a page to truly see why you're lying or what you're lying about.

"I swear to God, Y/N, if you don't fucking tell me-"

"Because I don't love him!" You shouted, anger suddenly escaping you at his pressuring words.

His eyes were staring blankly at you, unsure for a fleeting moment if you were lying or not. He knew that you weren't.

But he was shocked. Shocked at your sudden outburst. Why were you angry?

"Is that what you wanted to hear?" You snarked, breath scoffed out bitterly. "Finally I meet a decent guy that actually likes me, I can't love him," your lips lets out a humorless chuckle, pity for yourself growing bigger within your body.

"Wh- Why?"

"Jesus fuck, Ren, I don't know!"

You do know.

You know damn well why.

You know the reason you couldn't love that man.

It's because the reason himself is standing in fornt of your eyes.

"You're lying," Eren's firm voice ehcoed your hearing.

"I'm not!"

You are.

"God, Y/N, how stupid do you think I am?" Eren's voice was raising in anger and disbelief.

"What?" You frowned, letting your hands uncomfortably down to your sides. "I don't think you're stupid, Ren."

"Then why are you lying to me?"

"I can't tell you," your words were low in a mumble.

"Why not?" He pressured on, slow strides taken to approach your figure.

"I just can't. Now will you just let it go?"

"No," he scoffed. "I won't 'just let it go'," he spat, forehead creased with worried lines, tone slightly mocking your words. "You've been avoiding me because of it and I think I have a right to know why. So just tell me-"

"BECAUSE IT'S YOU!"

Your words were blurted out in a flash that you didn't realize until after they entered the shell of your ears. Damn Eren and his ability to make you talk.

Your palms clasped over your lips, eyes widened in a shocking manner, taken aback by your own outburst.

Your eyes travelled to Eren's, contact initiated. You could see he was just as shocked and surprised as you were but he was more confused, lacking understanding of your words.

"What are you talking about?"

You let your hands leave your lips, breaking the eye contact. The tips of your fingers massaged your temples, eyes closed with slight frustration towards yourself.

"It's you, Ren. You are why I broke up with him," you softened your tone. "I can't love him because I love you."

You watched as his eyes widened slightly, any anger residing in his body dissipating as your words touched him.

His eyeslashes contacted the bags under his eyes as he blinked a few times, fathoming the words you had just said. He could feel his heart fluttering in the way it did when he first saw you.

Oh shit, sorry.

The scene of your first interaction with him played in his mind. He remembered everything about it.

Because how could he not? It was the blessed day when the universe had allowed him to meet such an angel as you.

He just never knew you felt the same way.

"Can you please say something?" You nervously let out, unsure of the thoughts running through his head at the moment.

"You love me?" His question sounded like a child asking their parents for a confirmation.

"Isn't it fucking obvious?" You let out a saddened laugh.

"No," he scoffed, furrowing his brows. "How the fuck was it obvious? You're always with some shitty guy only coming to me when he hurts you," he spat out.

"But it's you! It's always you! In the end, no matter what, I always go to you!"

He was silent, unsure of what else to say. Unsure whether he should tell you the truth or not.

"I know you don't feel the same way," you added with a devastated sigh.

That got him.

How could you say that?

How could you say he didn't feel the same way when all he ever dreamed of at night was you?

"I fucking love you, Y/N."

Now it was your turn to sound like a confused child.

"You love me?"

"Ever since I fucking met you," he smiled, and neither of you had realized how close he had gotten to you.

You were mesmerized as you stared into the green specks surrounding his irises. You were hypnotized by the beauty Eren had always held.

"Why didn't you tell me?" You quiet tone trembled under his gaze.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He returned, eyes searching yours.

What was he even searching for? Confirmation? Truth? Lies? Deceptions? He didn't know. But he was searching for something within your vision.

"I thought you didn't like me," you whispered out.

"I thought you didn't like me either," he let out a small laugh. It was sincere, happy. "So we agree?"

"Huh?"

"We're blaming miscommunication?"

"Yeah."

Your head nodded, eyes flickering onto his lips before going back to his eyes. You felt his hands swoop to your sides, pulling your body flush against his.

Eren's soft lips pressed gently against yours, the feeling euphoric in all ways possible. It was better than you have ever imagined. And he wasn't even properly kissing you.

When his lips finally moved against yours, heavenly wasn't even a word strong enough to describe the feeling.

Your arms carefully crawled over his chest then shoulders before looping behind his neck, trapping him against you. Because you never wanted to be apart from him. Not again, not ever.

His lips curled into a smile, your skin brushed against the corners of his lips. The sensation was enough to make you push yourself further against him.

Because nothing felt close enough. You wanted to be closer.

But the passionate kiss you two shared left you both breathless. Quite literally. Slowly, unwillingly, he pulled away from you.

But you weren't ready to let go. So you let his fingers linger against your hips just as he let your hands cage him against you. His forehead rested against yours while you both caught air.

The same thoughts that had appareared in both you and Eren's heads had turned into words. Word that you both let out at the same time, briniging much more happiness to both your hearts;

I wanna be yours.

[suna-reversed]

HQ boys as Taylor Swift songs-folklore

characters- Oikawa (exile), Atsumu (my tears ricochet), Meian (illicit affairs)

tags/warnings- ANGST, breakup, heartbreak, cheating, mentions of alcohol, manipulative behaviour, fluff in Meian’s if you squint

suggestions for pt2 would be appreciated (currently thinking of cardigan with Bokuto and hoax with Tsukishima)

Oikawa

“I can see you standin', honey

With his arms around your body

Laughin' but the joke's not funny at all”

He had told himself over and over again to not look; in the flight, in the ride to the hotel, even as he passed the entrance gates of the exquisite banquet hall where the reunion was being held. All he had to do was keep his eyes away. 

But you were here, and he had never been good at withstanding the cosmic pull you always held. Even if you were in the arms of another, laughing like you always used to, with him. 

I think I've seen this film before

And I didn't like the ending

“What changed, Tooru?” Your eyes were red and puffy, you had exhausted all your tears while he simply stood in the corner and watched. 

“This isn’t going to work out y/n. We’re both miles away, with different lives, in different time zones, around different people; we can’t have a relationship built on nothi-” He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose,  “...I’m saving both of us from the pain that would come with splitting a few years down the line.” 

“Do you still love me?”

Oikawa was familiar with the grief that came with loss; the grief of giving something every single bit of your soul, only to come out empty-handed and wounded. 

“Go back home, y/n.”

You're not my homeland anymore

So what am I defendin' now?

You were my town

Now I'm in exile seein' you out

Perhaps he had damned himself to ruination. Given up without a fight. But that didn’t matter now. 

You look ethereal, with stars in your eyes and glee in your smile. It doesn’t matter if he’s not the one behind it. You would have been a shell of who you are right now if you had stayed with him anyways. 

He turns around, heading for exit.

Just one last time. He promises himself. His lips curve upwards into a bittersweet smile as he turns around to get his last look. Instead, he finds himself staring into the expanse of an entire galaxy. A cosmic explosion coming his way as the floor shifts from beneath him. 

No, you definitely don’t sound the same.

How long has it been since he heard that voice?

“Not even gonna say goodbye before you leave Oikawa?”

What happened to your precious “Tooru”?

Atsumu

Even on my worst day, did I deserve, babe

All the hell you gave me?

The clock reads 01:27 am. You’ve been sitting on the couch for the past 3 hours, the untouched dinner on the table gone cold long ago. You hear the sound of a door slamming shut, hushed footsteps making their way towards the center of the apartment, coming to a halt at the sight of you.

“Why are you still awake?” 

“You promised we’d have dinner together tonight.”

“Listen, it got late at practice, you could’ve just eaten without me.”

“You could’ve at least dropped a text.” You murmur, trying to keep your voice from breaking. This wasn’t the first time he had stood you up.

“It’s not that big of a deal y/n. You realise how important the upcoming match is to me, don’t you?” He sighs, shaking his head in disappointment, “Let’s just go to bed okay, I’m tired.” 

“Okay.” You mutter, loosening your grip on the 2 year anniversary gift hidden below the couch cushion. A platinum ring with yours and Atsumu’s initials carved on the inside.  

You wear the same jewels that I gave you

As you bury me

Atsumu’s vision is blurry, shirt drenched in sweat, his head pounding as he’s pushed against the wall. He doesn’t know whether it’s from the screaming match he just had with you, or from the two bottles he chugged at a shady bar right after he walked out. 

All that matters right now is the feeling of the hands of the girl that’s kissing his jaw. The same spot where you had pressed a chaste kiss not too long ago as you told him that you were going to leave- 

No, he’s not going to think about it. All that matters is the touch of skin against skin, filling in the void you caused as he kneads the supple flesh of her thigh with his hand. The same hand that bore a platinum ring, the letters engraved inside of it now fatuous and futile. 

You had to kill me, but it killed you just the same

Cursing my name, wishing I stayed

You turned into your worst fears

No, no, no. 

Why are you here?

Why are you back?

“I had hoped we could talk-” You take a deep breath, feet stuck in place as you lay your eyes upon the marks littering his jaw, his neck, going much farther down-

A sob comes out from deep inside your chest. 

No, no, no. 

He’s looking at you, your crestfallen face, tears falling off of it like british showers. 

He’s acting before he can think, falling to his knees, grabbing onto your waist as you try to walk out. 

“No! Angel, please just let me explain. I thought you were never coming back- I would've never-”

“Never what Atsumu?!” Your voice is louder than you expected it to be. 

“Never what? A single fight is all it takes for you to discard everything we ever had? For you to step over everything I put into a relationship that has barely even existed for so long!” 

He’s never heard you shout before. But it's okay, it’s okay if you shout at him, if you break a few things, hell you can wreck his whole apartment if it means that you’re staying for even just a moment longer. 

But you’re not. You’re pushing him away, movements stern, as you try to make your way to the door. All he can do is cling onto you, crying your name over and over again as he racks his brain for a way to make you stay. 

Why was it always you who knew what to say when it came to fixing things?

Meian 

Make sure nobody sees you leave

Hood over your head

Keep your eyes down

Tell your friends you're out for a run

You'll be flushed when you return

You knew there were aspects of his life he had no control over. After all, he was watched by thousands of eyes everyday; the star player, the golden boy; the captain of MSBY. So how does it matter if you had to go a mile extra to hide what you had?

You loved who he was as a person and how he made you feel. Good-morning and goodnight texts, warm cuddles after matches, dancing in the kitchen to songs you don’t know the name of, late night drives to get takeout or go stargazing, laughing till you were on the floor crying. You loved him so much.

And that's the thing about illicit affairs

And clandestine meetings

And stolen stares

They show their truth one single time

But they lie, and they lie, and they lie

A billion little times

“Volleyball player Meian Shugo spotted with a blonde beauty at the MSBY vs Adlers afterparty. Could she be his rumoured girlfriend that we’ve been kept in the dark about all along? Read more for exclusive deta-”

You can’t shed a single tear staring at the cover of the magazine. Not because your heart hasn't just been ripped out of your chest, but because you’re in public, standing in line at the grocery store picking up snacks for you and...Meian. 

Why did you not see this coming? What hurt more was that you knew the girl. Meian had introduced you to her as a friend, and her as his social media manager. So this was clearly a misunderstanding right? It had to be. Despite telling yourself that over and over again, you still couldn’t get the picture of his arm wrapped around her waist and the smile etched onto his face out of your mind as you drove home, tears blurring your vision.

Don't call me kid

Don't call me baby

Look at this godforsaken mess that you made me

“Baby please listen to me-”

You’re sitting on the edge of the couch. You don’t know how long ago you stopped screaming, how long ago the anger dissipated and the rage turned into silent sobs, leaving behind a gaping hollow feeling in your chest. 

You feel him shift closer to you but you don’t at him, still sniffing, your head buried in your arms. 

“She was at the party because she’s our manager, you know Jessi-”

“Don’t say her name.” you hiss out. 

“I wish I never met you, I wish I never got into this stupid arrangement. I wish-” You’re rambling now, sobs escaping between every few words as you try to comprehend the situation, “I hate this. I hate you.” 

Heavy silence hangs in the room. 

And you know damn well

For you I would ruin myself

A million little times

You find arms being wrapped around you and your head being pulled into a warm chest. You try to fight at first, but you’re tired; your throat hurts, your eyes burn and everything feels so cold, so you let yourself guiltily fall into his comfort, pathetically sobbing into his neck.

He patiently waits for your sobs to quiet down, one hand rubbing gentle circles onto your back while the other cradles the back of your head.

“She was at the party with the whole team and the publicist used it as a way to create gossip. That’s all there is to it. I had not given my consent for them to go ahead with this, but they refused to make our relationship public. Apparently, they didn’t think that the age gap between us would reflect well on my reputation.” 

Meian’s heart breaks at the sound that leaves you as he says that, your hand gripping onto the fabric of his shirt as you start sniffing once more. 

“I don’t care about what they say princess, you know that.” He kisses the top of your head, pulling you even closer to himself as if he could absorb the pain from you. 

“I’m so sorry, give me another chance please. I didn’t tell you because I knew it’d hurt you. I promise I’ll make it up to you, please?” 

You look up at him. His eyes are filled with tender love and pure adoration, it makes your heart melt. You nod, burying your face into the crook of his neck. Of course you would, he's your precious Meian, you’d always forgive him. Why did you ever think he’d do anything to hurt you?

Meian smiles into your hair, ignoring the sound of the notification popping up on the phone kept on the table, 

Jessica: hey, we're still on for tonight right ? ;)

[hashire]

there's something waiting there (that i want, i want)

When I'm sad, I think about falbi and feel better. This is based on the concept that Gabi is good at a lot of things and confident and so on, but ~fEeLiNgS~? Weird. Confusing. No.

Title from 4 Memory by Dreamcatcher. There's a line from New days tucked in the story but I'm not going to say where. :) More notes on AO3 (listed as the source of this post to make it show up in the tags ugh tunglr).

-

A cold night in Paradis, overflowing memories, and warmed hands. (Post-canon falbi. 3.8k.)

-

Paradis is much cooler than Marley this time of the year. Mr. Levi had told her as much before they departed. Gabi brushed it off and said she could handle it. Now that she’s here and sitting in the darkness with her arms wrapped around her knees and suppressing the shivers as much as possible, she has to admit that he’s right.

Gabi doesn’t want to go in yet. The walls feel too close, the ceiling advancing on her, the floor wobbling underneath. She knew that coming to Paradis would bring back memories - very few of them good - but not as intensely as this. Marley, home, has bad memories, too. The difference between Paradis and home is that there are more good memories than bad.

There are no clouds in the sky that night. The moon hangs low and almost full. A soft breeze tickles her cheeks and ruffles her hair. She can’t stop the shiver that ripples through her body. A creaking noise announces the presence of someone else before they step outside.

“Gabi?” Of course it’s Falco. “What are you doing out here?” She reaches up to push some of her hair back as she looks over her shoulder at him. He takes a moment to close the door behind him, turning the knob so it won’t make as much noise. He’s wearing sensible pajamas (because he’d listened to Mr. Levi) and a large cardigan that she frequently steals.

“I couldn’t sleep.” It’s partially true. Falco’s expression shifts into one she knows well: creased brow, the corners of his lips pulled down into the slightest of frowns. He knows that she’s omitting something. He doesn’t press, just starts removing the cardigan. It’s then that Gabi realizes she’d started shivering again; it intensifies once the warm, familiar fabric wraps around her shoulders. She hadn’t noticed how cold she really was. “Thanks.”

“Do you want some company?” He knows she’ll say yes. He wouldn’t have asked if he knew she wouldn’t. Gabi waves at the spot next to her, a silent invitation for him to sit down. She tugs her hair out from where it caught in the back of the cardigan. She wraps her arms around her legs again, pulling them to her chest. “It was nice of Kaya to visit today.”

“She looked pretty happy to see you.” That isn’t true. Or maybe it is. Kaya still keeps herself guarded. Gabi initially thought she had been acting like that because she knew where they were from - and, later, what Gabi had done. She was expressive in anger, for sure, but, when she stopped by that day, she had the same placid expression with the same placid demeanor.

“Don’t be like that.” The shivers have finally subsided, though the breeze caresses her cheeks, biting the skin of her face. She watches the light swaying of the trees across the street, aware that Falco is watching her.

“Like what?” Gabi starts picking at a fray on the hem of her nightgown. She can hear her mother scolding her, telling her to stop making it worse.

“Jealous.” Falco leans back on his hands, so she has to turn her head to look at him. He’s smiling and looking at the moon, relaxed and comfortable. He’s teasing her to distract her from her thoughts; it’s what he’s always done when this happens.

“I’m not jealous,” Gabi says, dropping the hem and reaching to poke his cheek.

“Sure,” he says. She scowls and moves to poke his cheek again. He catches her hand before she can. His skin is so warm against hers that it’s on the edge of painful. His expression immediately shifts back to the one he wore when he first came outside. “We should go inside.” He attempts to stand, to use her hand to pull her up with him, stopping when she tenses.

“I don’t want to.” Not yet. She unwraps her arm from around her knees and uses it to tug at the front of the cardigan, pulling it tighter against her. It smells like him. She fights the desire to bury her face in the fabric. It reminds her of home, comforts her, invades her senses and leaves her nearly dizzy.

Falco frowns again, deeper this time, no longer trying to conceal the concern on his face. She moves to withdraw her hand from his. He covers it with his other hand, tightening his grip. “All right.” The warmth seeps into her skin before he starts rubbing her hand between his. He’s not looking at her anymore.

Something pulls at her stomach, drawing Gabi back to a day more than three years ago. She sees him jumping at her, looking happier than he had in a long time. There was relief in the tears in the corners of his eyes. They somehow landed with Falco underneath her, Gabi’s head narrowly missing clipping his chin. Even as he coughed and wheezed, he reached out and cupped her cheek and said, “I’m so happy you’re alive.”

Everything felt so raw, so weird that the first words that came out of her mouth - spilled out without her permission - were, “I can’t return your feelings.” She wanted to take it back immediately, wanted to snatch the words out of the air between them before they could find his ears. It was too late. He blinked, his smile dropping just a little. He moved his hand to her shoulder.

There was a long silence before he said, “I’ll be here for you, no matter what.” She became aware of her surroundings as the static in her ears receded. She climbed off Falco when she realized she was still on top of him.

Gabi knelt on the ground next to him as people started moving. She could have said, wanted to say, ‘Right now. I can’t right now.’ Her mouth felt dry, so much so that she didn’t think she’d be able to speak. Then the yelling started and they stood at the same time, turning to find Reiner standing in front of them.

The memory blurs as her mind jumps forward. The bite of the cold melts away from her hand. Falco brings it to his lips and breathes warm air onto it. She frowns and thinks and thinks.

Time had passed as they rebuilt, renewed, recreated. Falco, through all of it, stayed by her side, just as he said. He never withdrew from her, never gave any indication that he was heartbroken or that she had hurt him. Gabi didn’t try to push him away even though something in the back of her mind was telling her she should. That she didn’t deserve all of his kindness toward her.

Zofia and Udo were gone. She couldn’t confide in them anymore. She couldn’t talk to Reiner. She couldn’t talk to Falco. Pieck was away on a diplomatic mission that was projected to drag on for at least another month. She couldn’t wait that long. In the end, she cried with her head in her mother’s lap (something that she would forever deny, though her mother never brought it up) while her mother rubbed her back.

“Why do you think that?” she’d asked, and while there were so many reasons, Gabi was unable to speak. She stayed silent, her mother finally giving a little sigh. “Falco is so kind. He’d give you space if you needed it, but you could never chase him away.” She didn’t continue, but Gabi heard what her mother didn’t say. After everything, Gabi knew this - all of this - was true.

She never said anything to Falco. And so, as it does, time passed. Gabi spent a lot of her time with her family and an ever increasing amount of time with Mr. Levi (an interesting old man, though he took exception to being called that). The rest was spent with Falco. Nothing changed, but, at the same time, things did change. There was a shift inside of her, pushing her in a direction she didn’t quite understand.

Falco lets her hand go when the color has fully returned to it. She’s moved a bit, feet sliding forward, knees sinking closer to the ground. Her other, freezing hand rests in her lap. He doesn’t reach over to grab it. He holds his hand out, waiting for her. The skin of her right hand prickles from his touch. She could use it to warm up her other hand. She doesn’t need him to do it.

Gabi gives him her hand.

She’s been watching him this whole time, watching his expression flit through many different emotions. He’s smiling at her again. It’s not teasing or accusing or knowing (because of course he would notice her staring at him). It’s just...him.

Just Falco.

-

Mr. Levi didn’t ask them to help him with the teashop. He didn’t have to. Gabi was there on the first day, ready to help out. She’d never done anything like it before, but, compared to many other things she had learned or done in her life, it was easy. Easy enough that Mr. Levi rarely gave her instruction and left her to her own devices most of the time.

The regulars - mostly older women - loved to chat with her. They’d often finish their tea at the counter. Some of them were annoying. Some told her very interesting stories. Some wanted someone to talk at.

Many gave her love advice. It was confusing at first. Gabi didn’t make the connection right away. It always happened after she and Falco had spoken with one another, after he walked in the door and she greeted him, after she’d look at the door to the back of the shop even after he closed it.

None of them had said anything about that. They talked about their first loves and things they did to win them over. Gabi would pretend to listen intently, mind elsewhere. Usually it had to do with schoolwork. Sometimes it was about dinner. A lot of the time, it was about Falco.

They’d taken to playfully bickering at that point. Gabi would often bring up something so inconsequential that she’d forget about it shortly after they finished. The rest of the time, it was about some silly challenge and how she’d win with her superior skills. She’d goad him until he responded, which never took too long.

It took one of the old women making a humming noise and saying, “You’re such a cute couple,” for her to understand the intention behind all of their words. Gabi - who had just given Falco a gentle shove, holding onto his arm for a second or two longer than necessary - flushed to the roots of her hair. She couldn’t (and still can’t) remember a time when she’d blushed so hard. She didn’t know how to respond, what to say that wouldn’t potentially hurt Falco, when she heard him laugh next to her. It wasn’t quite his normal laugh; there was an edge to it that she didn’t recognize.

“We’re just good friends,” he said. When Gabi finally looked over at him, he was giving the woman a small, polite smile. He was standing in a beam of late afternoon sunlight that filtered through the front windows, cheeks tinged red but otherwise unruffled. His eyes flicked to the left, catching her gaze briefly before turning his face away.

“Yeah,” she’d heard herself croak, “friends.” Falco excused himself after this. Gabi fidgeted, twisting a lock of her hair around her finger as she watched him walk away.

“Oh, dear,” the woman had said, reaching over to pat Gabi’s hand on the counter. “My husband and I were stubborn, too, when we were your age.” Gabi let her other hand drop, hair uncoiling from her finger.

“It’s not like that,” she said. ‘I rejected him two and a half years ago’ sat on the tip of her tongue. She didn’t want more sympathetic noises or comparisons to the woman’s love life. Her face had finally started to cool down when she looked at the woman again. She forced a smile and asked, “Would you like another cup of tea?” The woman appeared to be about to protest, to continue, but she realized that her cup was, in fact, empty.

That night, Gabi hugged her pillow to her chest and thought, ‘Oh, so that’s what this is.’ It was nothing like the stories that her mother had told her about when she’d met Gabi’s father. It sounded simple. She anticipated it would be the same in her life: meet someone, develop feelings, start dating, and so on and so on. Straightforward. Easy.

She was left wondering what to do, how to move forward, if Falco felt the same at this point (even after what the woman had said when he walked away; he easily, smoothly assured her they were friends and left once Gabi agreed).

And then nothing happened. Things continued as they had, with one exception: Gabi understood the fluttering feelings in her stomach, acknowledged how content and at ease she felt around Falco, and wondered. The older women continued on the same path of offering unsolicited advice, and she continued to ignore them. Their stories weren’t applicable. They didn’t understand the situation.

It did, however, start to feel like they were moving toward something, toward an unseen and unknown point. Then Mr. Onyankopon informed them of the plans to return to Paradis. Gabi jumped at the chance to get a change of scenery, something to refresh her senses and make things work. It had taken one look at Falco for him to agree.

Paradis has certainly been a change. She can’t remember the last time her equilibrium had been thrown off like this. She envies how steadfast he remains.

Her left hand has been thoroughly warmed. Falco loosens his grip but doesn’t drop it. He looks up and meets her eyes. The wind whispers around them. His eyes are so bright in the moonlight. There it is: the feeling of movement. Are they moving?

The wind picks up and whips some of her hair into her face. Gabi withdraws her hand to push it out of the way. It immediately flies up, this time into her eyes. She grunts, annoyed, and pulls all of her hair over one shoulder to braid it. She has nothing to tie it with, but it should hold well enough. A lock of hair that she missed blows up over her mouth, edging toward her nose. She reaches to push it back, but there’s a hand already there, tucking it behind her ear.

“Doesn’t it feel weird?” It’s not what she intended to say when she opened her mouth. It’s what came out anyway. The hand withdraws; she misses the warmth (how is he staying so warm?) instantly.

“What do you mean?” Gabi toys with the end of her braid. She stretches her legs out in front of her. The hem of her nightgown lifts in the wind, drawing it up over her ankles.

“Being in Paradis. It doesn’t feel right.” If it were anyone else, they would have reminded her that it was her decision to go there. She peeks over at Falco, his face neutral except for the slight creasing of his brow.

“Why doesn’t it?” He moves to lean back on his hands again. Gabi wishes she hadn’t pulled away before, even though she hadn’t done it because she wanted to. Her hands are warm but it feels like something is missing.

“Why wouldn’t it? So much happened here when I got onto that airship and dragged you along with me.” She lets her hands drop to her lap. Falco hums. Silence falls between them. The leaves on the trees susurrate across the street.

“I don’t think it feels weird.” Gabi jumps at his words. She hadn’t been falling asleep. She had, however, started to list to the right: closer to Falco. When straightening up, she finds that she is closer to him than she was before. Not close enough to touch, but almost. “Why would it? You’re here with me.”

It’s not the first time he’s said something like that to her. She’s had bad dreams before. She’s spent days in hazes that feel infinite. Sometimes the phrase sits between them. Sometimes it brings her back from a place that is nowhere. Now? It makes her stomach lurch, her head buzz, her heart jump into her throat and pound hard enough to nearly suffocate her.

A gust of wind loosens her braid, flicking at the ends and tugging her hair over her shoulder. The feeling of it on her face distracts her from the static running through her veins. Falco, who had been smiling at her, now looks even more concerned. Everything she felt was internal, wasn’t it? There was no way he could have known what was going on in her head, right?

“Gabi, what’s -”

“I love you.” His mouth, still in the middle of forming another word, drops open instead. Her stomach twists. Her heart recedes into her chest. The buzz lessens to a low hum in the back of her mind. Gabi takes in a breath and lets it out, the smoke pluming between them before the wind carries it away. It feels like the first clear breath she’s taken in a long time.

Falco closes his mouth, opens it, and closes it again. A shiver runs through her body, one part cold and one part elusive emotion, beyond where she can reach. She finds herself shifting: angling her body toward him, knee bumping against his leg and startling him out of whatever trance he fell into.

“Gabi,” is all he says after that long silence. She purses her lips, unsure of what to make of his reaction. She doesn’t miss the way his eyes drop. The wind tosses some of her hair again. They’re close enough now that it flits between them and touches his cheek. He tucks it back like he did before, hand coming to rest on her cheek, just like all those years ago.

Gabi feels more agitated with each movement. This isn’t something she’d thought about ahead of time or planned or even considered happening like this. She hadn’t ever really thought about it. Maybe she should have listened to the old ladies at the teashop. Maybe they did have good advice and weren’t trying to relive their youth through her. She has to do something. She dusts off her hands, grabs the front of his pajamas, and pulls him in.

Gabi has never kissed anyone, but she knows it’s not a great kiss. Their noses mash together and their lips meet a little harder than she intended. She withdraws, opening her eyes and finding Falco staring at her. He hadn’t even closed his eyes. His hand slides to curl around the back of her neck. His thumb strokes the line of her jaw. It isn’t until her fingers start to ache that she realizes that she’s still holding handfuls of his pajamas. She unclenches them, bit by bit. She doesn’t let go because she’s afraid that he’s going to run (though she knows he never would).

“Falco.” He blinks and looks at her like he’s surprised that she’s there. “Are you going to say anything?” Her fingers feel stiff, unyielding, like she wouldn’t be able to let go of him if she tried. He then huffs out a noise near a laugh mixed with a sigh. She’s a breath away from shaking him out of frustration.

“This feels like another dream.” Falco’s thumb stops rubbing against her jaw. He takes another breath in to go on. Gabi stops him by finally letting go of his pajamas and reaching for his other hand where it sits on his thigh. She pushes her fingers into the sleeve to shift it up, digs her fingertips in, and gives him a pinch for good measure. His eyes widen. He lets go of her neck and covers her hand with his, pulling at it too gently for someone with fingernails sunk into their skin. “What are you doing?”

Gabi allows him to remove her hand from his arm, anticipating him dropping it into her lap. Instead, he continues to hold it, warm against her cooling skin. “Do you think you’re dreaming now?” His next breath is laced with laughter. He smiles.

“I guess not.” Gabi realizes how tense she is when a twinge digs into the muscle of her neck. She lowers her shoulders from her ears, flexing her fingers when she releases him. She watches the movement, unsure of what to do, where to go from here. “I love you, too.”

It’s not a surprise by any stretch of the imagination, but a shiver skitters down her spine: one that she knows isn’t from the cold night. She meets his eyes, grins, and says, “Of course you do. This is me we’re talking about.” Falco does laugh at this.

“Right.” He leans forward until their foreheads are touching. “It is you.” A long moment passes between them, matching silly smiles on their faces and a sparkle in his eye. He kisses her, soft and careful and warm, and it’s perfect as she laces their fingers together and -

“Now that you kids have sorted your shit out,” comes a voice from the door, making them both jump and nearly knock their heads together, “go to bed.” They turn to see Mr. Levi standing in the doorway, backlit and leaning on his cane. Gabi narrows her eyes at him.

“How long have you been standing there?” Mr. Levi had never asked her about her personal life, letting her offer what she chose to. He never invaded her privacy before. Anger bubbles underneath her skin (more from frustration over the fact that they had been interrupted than his spying).

“Long enough.” He jerks his thumb toward the inside of the building. “At least come inside before you freeze. It’s going to get colder.” He doesn’t wait for them to respond or even stand, just hobbling away toward his room.

“Come on,” Falco says, grabbing her face between his thumb and forefinger and squeezing her cheeks. The scowl on her face drops, the ferocity of her glare disappearing with it. “Mr. Levi is right. We should go inside.” Gabi doesn’t resist this time. She allows him to pull her to her feet. His arm wraps around her waist to draw her closer.

The building feels more open now, no longer bearing down on her and trying to steal her breath. “Falco,” she says, and he looks over at her as he makes sure she doesn’t trip on the raised threshold. “Thank you.” She swallows. “For everything.”

[katedrakeohd]

What Happens in Paris...(6b)

[MASTERLIST]

Author's note: Part 6 is broken up into several parts, and told from different points of view. Part (a) was told from Kate's perspective, whereas part (b) is from Drake's. I'm trying out a 'read more' that's supposed to work on Android, so I apologize if it doesn't work.

Word count: approximately 1850

Rated PG because these are Drake's thoughts. 😏😉

:::

Later, after Kate and I have demolished a basket and a half of pastries and a couple cups of coffee, we're still sitting around the table with some time to kill before the tea party. 

Looking across at Kate, I can see a smudge of sugary stuff on her cheek and I wish I was close enough to lick it off. She catches me staring at her, and smiles. "What are you staring at?"

Maxwell grins, "Oh, you have something sugary on your cheek." 

"Oh," she blushes, and damn it's so cute, wiping at her face with a napkin. "Did I get it?"

Hana turns in her seat and swipes her thumb across Kate's cheek. "There, all gone."

"Thanks," Kate says, smiling at her.

I frown. Damn, I wanted to do that. Next time I'm sitting next to her, or we're eating alone. Tonight I'm taking her out for a date, just the two of us.

A rush of excitement sizzles through me at the thought. I lean over to talk to Maxwell, "So, aren't you or Bertrand usually in charge of getting Kate dressed up for social events?" 

Maxwell's face brightens, "Yea, why? As her new Beau, do you have a suggestion for what you would like her to wear?"

I feel heat creep up my neck, and settle in my cheeks and prickle my skin, "Don't you ever use that word to describe me again. I..just want her to look good today and not get picked apart by Madeleine again."

Maxwell checks his phone with a beaming grin, "We still have plenty of time, are you saying we should take her shopping!?" 

Hana and Kate both gasp with delight.

"Oh my goodness, yes!" Hana says, "How often do you get to shop the boutiques of Paris?"

"I was actually hoping Hana could lend her something pretty to wear, but I guess now we're going shopping." I mumble, but feel that rush of heat again when Kate smiles at me.

The thought of buying Kate something to wear in a boutique in Paris makes my stomach knot at what it might cost, but she's worth it.

Maxwell jumps out of his seat with more enthusiasm than is necessary,  "Awesome sauce! I'll call us a cab."

..

Riding through the streets of Paris on the narrow backseat of the SUV with Kate was an interesting experience. I had to slouch down on the seat to avoid banging my head on the roof, but it was all worth it to have her sitting next to me. Hip to hip, thigh pressed to denim thigh, with my arm stretched across the top of the seat behind her, all I had to do was turn my head to get a whiff of her hair or nuzzle the side of her neck. Whenever I did either, she'd giggle and place her hand on my thigh. Damn if it wasn't a turn on every time she touched me. If we were alone, and not just sitting a foot away from Maxwell and Hana, there's no doubt we'd be doing some heavy kissing by now. But for the sake of decency we had to keep ourselves in check. Paris may be the City for Lovers, but I didn't feel like getting kicked out of our cab and violating some kind of unknown public decency bylaw or something.

Maxwell and Hana were doing their best to ignore us by pointing out different sights on either side of the vehicle as we passed them. I was impressed by Hana's french speaking skills, although I didn't understand a word, it sounded nicer coming from her than Kiara. 

Although I've been to Paris a few times, I'd always avoided doing the touristy stuff. Probably because of the language barrier. But now that I had Kate to experience things with, I kind of wish I could take her places and we could make new memories. It would be to our advantage to have Max and Hana as our guides today.

Looking out through the tinted glass I didn't recognize where we were, but the traffic was moving slower and I could see shops and cafés along with crowds of pedestrians on the sidewalk.

Kate seemed eager to get out of the cab to explore, and she was leaning forward in her seat to see the stores that Hana was pointing out to her. 

Maxwell turns in his seat to look back at me, "Ready to get out and watch the girls try on pretty stuff?" He smirks and winks at me.

I lean forward and pat Max on the shoulder, "As long as you're buying, sure."

Hana gets the attention of our driver, Henri, and says something to him in French. "Merci Henri. Pouvons-nous réserver le voyage de retour dans une heure?" (Thanks Henry. Can we reserve a return trip back in an hour?)

He nods and then once he finds an empty space at the curb, he parks the SUV. 

I stumble my way out of the cab,  bumping my head twice, and join everyone on the sidewalk. "So where are we going?"

Kate grabs my hand and I can't help but smile at her as I lace our fingers together. 

"Aww, you two look so cute." Hana giggles.

I cringe, "Well don't make a big deal out of it."

Maxwell pats me on the arm before taking up a position ahead of us with Hana as we head down the sidewalk. "But it is a big deal, big guy. In all the years we've been hanging out, this is the first time I've seen you out with a girl on your arm."

Kate squints in the sunshine as she  looks up at me, "Really?"

I loosen my grip on Kate's hand and feel self conscious as I tuck my hands into my pockets instead. "..uh, no comment." 

I glare at Maxwell's back as we meander our way around other tourists, Kate has to quicken her pace to keep up with me. When she grabs my arm, I slow down and apologize. "Sorry. Max kind of caught me off guard."

"It's ok, Drake. I understand." She tries looping her arm through mine, but it's awkward, so I go back to holding her hand.

"C'mon," I say, sidestepping around another group of window shoppers and tugging her along with me, "We better catch up with Max and Hana before we lose them."

Kate laughs as she scampers along beside me, narrowly missing obstacles, and by the time we spot Hana and Max again they're waiting for us outside of a clothing store. We skid to a stop. 

"Geez, guys. You nearly lost us." Kate pants, leaning against my arm. "I'm glad I wore my sneakers."

Hana pulls the door open, "Sorry for the rush, but we only have an hour before our cab comes back. I've been dying to shop at this boutique, ever since I've started following their posts on Instagram."

I glance up at the fancy sign above the doors in gold script. "Mes -...?"

"Mes Demoiselles. It means 'My Ladies'." Kate says, and I smirk at the way her speaking French sends a shiver through me. Damn it sounds sexy.

I hold the door open for her, "After you then, My Lady."

We're all met by a tall woman with a friendly smile, and of course she welcomes us in French. Hana answers and then we're left alone to shop. I haven't a clue what to look at, or what would be appropriate for a tea party so I just follow Kate around as she sifts through the racks.

Up on the wall are photographs of models wearing various dresses and outfits, I try to imagine Kate modeling things for me, and suddenly I feel warm all over. 

"F..find anything you like..K-..Darling?" I stammer and she gives me a little smirk, flipping her hair over her shoulder. 

"What color should I wear, Drake?" She pulls out a pale minty colored dress made of some sheer fabric and covered in flowers, holding it up to herself. "Do you like this?"

I tried to imagine her in it, the minty color did bring out the blue of her eyes, but it made her look too pale to me. There was another dress of the same style in a pale pinkish color, and I pointed to that one. "Ehh, try that one instead."

Kate twists her lip in thought for a moment and then pulls them both, "I'll try them both on and then we'll see."

She hands them both to me and I raise my eyebrows, "Oh..ok."

Hana waves us over to the other side of the store where there are some longer dresses. I make eye contact with Maxwell briefly and he winks at me in some kind conspiratorial way, and I look away with a frown. 

"Ooh, Hana. This white dress is pretty. Do you think I could pull it off? I'm not very tall."

"Oh sure, it might even make you look taller. Try it on."

Kate hands me another dress, and I get a glimpse at the price tag. It's over a hundred Euros. I gulp as I try to hold all three dresses without dropping them.

I feel a gentle tap on my shoulder and then turn to see the shop lady, "Excusez-moi monsieur.  Voudriez-vous que je vous enlève ceux-ci pendant que votre femme fait les courses?"

I blink, "Uh…"

Hana smiles, "She wants to know if you'd like to set these dresses aside while your..wife...continues shopping."

I blush, "Uh..tell her 'yes'...but she's not my wife."

Hana quickly translates, and then shares a chuckle with the woman at my expense. And I feel myself blush even harder.

Kate covers her mouth and giggles, watching me hand off the dresses. "I'm sorry, Drake. You just look so cute when you're flustered."

Pulling Kate into a hug, I bury my hot face into the side of her neck, and whisper. "You're lucky you're cute too, or I wouldn't be caught dead shopping for dresses. Now let me see what they look like on you."

When she sucks in a breath and presses her lips to my cheek, I squeeze her tighter. "Although I'd much rather you helped me out of them," she whispers. 

Maxwell clears his throat, "C'mon you two. Quit your canoodling. We have a party to get to."

Hana picks out a long skirt and a blouse for herself.  On our way to the changing rooms at the back of the store, I notice a mannequin wearing a long cardigan type shawl in an ivory color. I point it out to Kate. "Do you like that?"

She runs her fingers along the delicate stitch work, and smiles, "I do. Why?"

"Get one, there's not much to these dresses and I don't want you to get cold."

Kate kisses my cheek, and then runs over to where they're folded up on a shelf and cuddles it's softness to herself as she comes back to me. "Thank you Drake, it's beautiful."

"You can thank me later."

::

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[thegreatfatnerd]

Hi, Hope you enjoy this, if you want to get in touch don't hesitate to message me I will always reply as soon as I can, also if you could leave a little review, it really helps, it helps keep me inspired and motivated x 

8th Doctor finding his new companion x

Finally, it had taken a while, it was tedious yet enjoyable in a way, strange really, going through all the stuff that a previous incarnation held as important, dear and interesting. In a way, they still were because I suppose I am that person but at the same time I'm a different person. Train magazines, hundreds of clocks it would seem, but some things will never change, such as wanting a cup of tea. The Tardis knows me so well, probably better than I know myself.

 Word count : 2832. 

And So The Adventure Begins.

-------------------------------

Sat down in my favorite chair, with a perfect cup of sweet tea, what could be better. Well, staring at an empty chair, what's the point in saving worlds on a semi-regular basis and sitting to relax when you are by yourself. Well usually the Tardis steps in here, she does always seem to know best, she seems to always land in a place so I find someone or so fate gets involved. Maybe this time I should change that, maybe I could find my own companion. I must admit I'm feeling a little lonely, but not for much longer me thinks. Well, maybe I should let fate have its turn, maybe I should let the Tardis decide where we land, then again, who knows where I could end up, who knows what species I could end up with. Maybe for once, I should have full choice, this won't happen often so let's take a chance ...

Earth 2019

"Alright, I heard you I will put the rubbish out, I will eat, but no nothing unhealthy, yes I know I'm on a diet, yes I will sort out everything before I leave... I'm losing you, bye bye." I promptly hang up, "Ugh, I hate people sometimes."

I look in the mirror, this is as good as it will get, I'm 'really dolled up', by that I mean I have literally just cleaned my glasses, bright red lipstick, that if I'm totally honest was totally wrong for me, and that is it. I'm wearing my favorite dress, I think anything with a petticoat, can hide a multitude of sins.

Looking at the clock I realize as usual I'm ready with some time to spare so I make sure I've done everything I need to do. I can hardly believe it sitting here. I'm about to go on my first date, leaving it to the week before your 22nd birthday means I am more nervous than should be necessary.

One last look in the mirror, great, it doesn't really matter what clothes you wear, I will always look fat. Let's get going shall we don't want to miss the bus, that would be a great start either late or on time but out of breath and all sweaty, yuck.

As always the bus is late and it's raining so all that effort on doing my hair is undone, at least that's what I'll say to him, I don't ever really do much to it anyway, it's always big but not quite curly clip the bits off my face and we're good to go.

xxx

I'm standing in the doorway of a restaurant I've never even heard of, some Italian place, great time to get a text the exact time you're meant to meet, he isn't coming, he never had any intention to. Well, I'm here, I don't care if I'm on a diet or not. I want something greasy and unhealthy, tomorrow I'll be going back to my place to live by myself, have no human interaction for at least a week so who's gonna notice.

That's a good plan Chinese, and a walk through the beautiful green gardens, I'm sure that will make me feel better. Bench by the lake, lovely, food, check, no person in sight, even better and to top it all off the rain has stopped.

Of course, there had to be someone where I couldn't see, but hey, as long as this bloke doesn't talk to me or sit by me there's nothing to worry about. Just keep eating, the diet can start again in the morning.

"Excuse me?" First time I look up at this bloke, what the hell is he wearing, velvet jacket, don't see that everyday does you, best be polite.

"Yes."

"Could you help me, I'm terribly confused, I was wondering what year it is?" Great, he's crazy, I'm all alone and there is a crazy bloke with me, could this night get any worse. First proper look at him, and it confirms my suspicions all the good looking guys are mad.

"Umm, 2019, why?"

"Well I thought it was, but then I saw you in that dress, which looks lovely by the way, but then I thought it could be the 1950's but then I looked and saw your food and that confused me again. May I sit down?" Every other bench is empty and he wants to sit with me, this bloke who actually noticed my dress, I really want to say no. But hey I'm curious and if I'm totally honest I don't think it would be possible to say no to those eyes.

"Um, sure." I say moving my things across, I look down and realize how greedy I must look. I have enough food for at least two if not more, "Want some?" I say holding some chips up.

He smiles, I have to admit it was quite a smile, held it up, stared at it for a moment before eating it. I offered him some more of all the food, he did the same with everything.

"What's your name?" He suddenly comes out with, should have really seen that one coming.

After swallowing, "Y/N", I hold out my hand ready to shake, he does take my hand and then replies.

" Hello Y/N, lovely name, I'm the doctor."

"The doctor? Really is that what people call you, what, doctor what?"

"Just the doctor", after that we sat in silence for a little while, I had so many questions I wanted to ask, but I just couldn't bring myself to break this comfortable silence, besides who am I to judge. It wouldn't be fair anyway, everyone around here thinks I'm a bit strange and that never stopped me, maybe it's the same for that guy.

My eyes are starting to itch, oh how could I forget about my hayfever, I'm sitting in a giant flower garden, this really isn't my night is it.

I pick up my bag and start rooting through it. I'm sure I had some tablets or a tissue or something in my bag, why can I never find anything when I need it.

"What are you looking for? Could I help?"

"Just looking for my hayfever tablets or a tissue or something, nothing important."

"But if you're suffering with an ailment then it must be important."

"No, it's just my eyes." I take my glasses off and wipe my eyes with the sleeve of my cardigan. "Fine, see?"

"No, no, this will never do." He rooted through his pockets, as if they were huge, then pulled out a handkerchief, "Here, use this." He offered me the handkerchief, I wasn't going to take it, but pushed it closer, I really didn't have a choice.

"Thank you" What else can I say?

"Your welcome." He stopped and sat for a moment then said: "Are you quite warm enough, it does seem to be going cold and getting dark."

I hadn't really noticed the temperature, but he was right it was getting cold, but of course, I'm not going to let him know, I'll be fine soon, I'll be walking home. "I'm fine, thank you."

"Are you sure?"

"Quite sure thank you." He didn't seem to believe me but didn't say anything. I put my glasses on.

"We should really leave the gardens if there is something affecting your health." He seemed to clarify, "Keep the handkerchief, I've got plenty and you might need it again."

"Oh, well, thank you." I stand up and gather my things, I don't really want to go home yet but suppose I'm going to have to.

"Which way is town again, I can never remember."

I can't help but laugh, "Well, that depends on where you need to go, most of the town is that way" Pointing which way, " train station that way, bus station that way."

"Well, which way are you going." I don't think he realizes how weird and creepy he sounds.

"Um, Oh I'm going in a totally different way."

"But you came from that way, " He said pointing down the now dark, creepy lane next to the church and graveyard.

"Yeah, that's the direction of the place where I got stood up, to go home I need to go that way."

"You said the bus station was that way."

"I'm not getting the bus." Okay, why am I saying all this to a creepy stranger, whose name I don't know.

"How are you getting home, then?"

"Walking, it won’t take too long." Although that's not entirely true it can sometimes take an hour to walk home, but I always enjoyed walking and right now a walk by myself is probably just the thing I need.

"Walk, by yourself, in the dark, I think not."

"It's alright I walk it all the time, and anyway, once you're over the river, there are street lights."

"Let me give you a lift or something"

"Oh, no, I don't want to make you go out of your way."

"It wouldn't let me walk you home," I was about to interrupt when he said, " At least let me walk you to the street lights over the bridge."

"Okay, I suppose."

He offered me his arm, he really was the nicest gentleman I've ever met. I took his arm, and we started walking.

"So you got stood up, then."

"Yeah, a bit of a disaster, eh."

"Well, I think he must be an imbecile, to stand you up."

"No he's just a man, well, here we are at the bridge. It was nice to meet you, doctor."

"The pleasure was entirely mine."

A week later

Finally everything is sorted, ready to move, just typically your flatmate tells you their moving out the day before rent is due and she's leaving today, so no way I will be able to stay.

All morning was spent on the phone to the landlord trying to explain what's happened, he seemed just as annoyed as me, he's coming to collect the keys in 2 hours.

After that all my time was taken by packing all my stuff, so now that's everything into boxes, I don't quite know what I'm doing now, I mean tonight shouldn't be a problem. I will just have to go and stay at my parents house, luckily they are on holiday for a few days and I have the spare key, after that isn't so certain though.

More immediate problem then is how am I moving my stuff, can't drive the car, it's at the garage getting repaired, so no car, not going to be able to get all this on a bus, could get a taxi I suppose.

"Good", he opens the door for me " Which way, back that way", I say pointing from the direction I just walked.

"Bye" Jess pops her head out and round the door, with a box in her arms, her boyfriend having taken everything else. "Oh give these to Mr Baker for me" throwing her keys at me and leaving.

"Why did I ever move in with her, I do not know." I don't know why but speaking to yourself does sometimes help.

I put both our keys on the kitchen table , all my boxes are outside, I've made sure everything is clean. I don't really want to see Mr Baker, he seemed quite angry on the phone, not that I blame him. I know I wouldn't be able to afford it on my own and even if I could I wouldn't want to live alone, even if I do hate people sometimes, maybe one day I'll be a crazy animal lady.

Oh great no credit on my phone, so can't ring a taxi, my parents house is about a 30 minute walk and I wouldn't be able to take all the boxes at once. So I suppose I will have to hide all the other boxes, carry one down to the house to walk back and get the next one. It's going to be a long day.

Well might as well get going, these boxes aren't going to move themselves, besides the weather says it's going to rain again later, at least at the moment it's dry. Boxes hidden behind the shed, hope Mr Baker doesn't get rid of it, that's all my sci fi stuff and other dresses. Oh great I'm going to bump into Mr Baker I know it. Headphones in, musical playlist, I think, to calm me down, let's start walking.

I can't be more than 10 minutes away from where I left, when this bright yellow car pulls up beside me, with none other than the man from last week. What a coincidence that he is up here, almost too good to be true.

"Why, hello there Y/N, what have you got there." Why do I feel the need to tell him everything.

"Oh, hello Doctor, well done for remembering my name, most people don't." That's it keep stalling that will make everything better (!) "Oh, it's just some stuff I'm taking down to a friends." Well it's kinda true.

"Would you like a hand or a lift or something."

"No need, I'm sure I'll be fine"

"It's going to rain soon might as well."

"Oh, all right."

"Alright then"

"This is a lovely car," small talk has never been my forte, besides can't really talk about the weather.

"Oh, yes, I've had her for a long time, her name is Bessie"

"She's lovely, pull in down there on the next left, that's it straight in front."

"Do you believe me?" He says from behind me.

"Are you sure this is where you were headed , you were going in the other direction. "

"Well, as you're here, I thought I'd make the most of it, and get all the stuff."

I hop out the car and head to where I know all the heavy boxes are, what I hadn't expected was for him to be right behind me.

"Funny place to keep clothes, and, are those X-men comics?"

He obviously got distracted, typical man. " Uh, yeah"

"And Wonder Woman, and Superman and Batman ... "

"Yeah there are a few there, I'm not the most sociable person, one can never be lonely with a good book or comic."

He looked up smiling, then his smile fell as he stood up. " Are you alright, you're not getting rid of them are you, you seem to love them?"

"Well, not today, but probably soon" I don't know why I told him everything but I did.

After that he helped me get everything into the car, he got the door for me , he then headed back to the house, went in the general direction of the front door then after a minute if that came back and we headed off the road again.

"I might have a solution to your problem."

"I'm listening" Please don't be creepy, please don't be creepy.

"You could come live with me" Okay it's creepy. "Hear me out, I'm an alien, I have two hearts, I would say see for yourself but I am driving. I live in a spaceship called the Tardis, I can travel anywhere in time and space. How does that sound."

"Like you have read far too many comics."

"Let me show you." He turns down a country lane , and we keep going for some time before we stop at a weird blue, police box. "This is it," He practically jumps out the car and helps me out. "This is the Tardis" It doesn't look like a spaceship, who knows what will happen if I go in there. He opens the door and I can see some lavish furniture, and curiosity always gets the best of me, so I have a look.

Best to be honest "Yes", I could hardly breathe let alone talk.

"No, way, it looks huge in there," I literally walk around this box twice before I step inside, "It's bigger on the inside."

"Do you believe me?" He asks from behindn me.

"Great let's get you moved in, before we have an adventure".

So thank you for reading, honestly I know it's not great please don't be mean and any help to improve would be greatly appreciated X

[neraawritesxx]

Say I Do - Chapter 4

anime: Inuyasha pairing: Sesshomaru x Kagome genre: Drama/Romance words: 6,669 status: Ongoing

summary:  [au] ‘I vow to you today and a thousand times over that I will never let you leave my side.’ The man to whom she was vowing eternal love was supposed to be her husband, not her brother-in-law.

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this work could also be found on ff.net and ao3

Kagome awoke to plush sheets and the soft glow of the morning sun trickling in the room through the crack between the shades. Slowly – reluctantly - she shed the last remnants of her dream, crawling to mental awareness. Her body was languid and she was more than content with keeping her eyes closed, basking in the warmth of her covers. She couldn't remember the last time that she felt this relaxed – this peaceful. Everything in the room was still and she would be damned if she was not going to take the time to laze in this serene moment.

Unfortunately for her, it didn't last very long.

The calm came to an abrupt end when the bedroom door was tossed open in haste, revealing an extremely chipper looking Souten. "Good Morning Kagome!" The olive-skinned woman exclaimed, making her way into the room.

Instead of verbalizing a coherent reply, Kagome released a gurgled wail – a mix between a hiss and a groan – trying to burrow deeper into the safe-haven of her blankets.

"Now don't be like that," Souten 'tsked', coming into the room so that she could toss open the curtains, illuminating the area in a very irksome bright light.

Kagome, once again, chose not to respond. Instead, she tossed the covers up and over her head, trying to block out the sunlight. Curling her knees towards her chest, Kagome tucked the blankets closer to her balled-up form, continuing to discreetly overlook the other occupant of the room.

If she didn't acknowledge her, Souten would leave the room…right?

Her ears picked up the telltale shuffle of feet across the carpet causing her to stiffen. Kagome strained her hearing in an effort to figure out where exactly in the room the crimson-eyed woman was wandering to. Despite her effort, Kagome couldn't seem to place her.

Before she even realized, there was an unanticipated, swift yank on her cocoon of sheets. The ebony-haired woman released a muffled cry of outraged protest, but Kagome's weak attempts in keeping her position engulfed within her covers seemed futile in comparison to Souten's desire to get her out of bed. The battle was quickly lost when Souten successfully jerked the blankets free and divulged Kagome of her hiding spot.

Sticking to her original plan of blatantly ignoring the other woman in the room, Kagome grumbled about the 'unfairness of it all', rubbing the heels of her palms over her eyes.

"Don't sulk. It's not becoming," Souten chided.

"I can't believe that I now live in a house with one of those," Kagome muttered darkly.

"One of those?" Souten questioned from her perch by the bed, curiosity and amusement lacing her tone. One slender brow arched in question as she waited for Kagome to wake up enough to answer.

"A morning person," Kagome hissed lowly, blue eyes slanting towards Souten, pinning her with a half-hearted glare.

Souten chuckled at her anger and politely chose to disregard it, not even phased by the shorter woman's scowl. She dropped the blankets into a crumpled heap at the end of the bed before she turned and ventured across the room, heading towards the closet.

"It's relatively warm today," She called out as she slipped into the depths of the sub-room. "It's humid and sticky from the rain yesterday, but the sun is out." The sounds of hangers shifting accompanied with the rustling of clothes echoed from the closet while she continued to prattle on about the weather.

Kagome shifted on her bed, turning over so that she was laying on her left side facing the wall with the bathroom and closet doors. She took a deep breath, held it for a moment, then released it slowly. Her mind was beginning to come to the very solid conclusion that she would not be going back to sleep any time soon. She also realized that any plans to do so would be easily thwarted. Rolling onto her back, the petite woman propped herself up on her elbows, half sitting up. Blue eyes shifted towards the closet which had now become eerily silent.

"What are you doing in there?" Kagome queried, slipping from the mattress.

Her toes curled on the carpet before wiggling happily as she stretched her arms over her head. A tongue curling yawn passing her lips while she that position for a few seconds longer. Kagome dropped her hands to her side, keeping her eyes glued to the open closet door. After several moments of not receiving a response, she shrugged and turned back towards the bed, fretting around the mattress as she put the sheets back in their proper place.

Souten must have come into the main room when her back was turned – how she approached so silently, Kagome didn't know – because her soft voice answered the earlier question from directly behind her.

"Picking out your outfit of course," Souten responded in a very matter-of-fact tone. Upon watching her employer try and – horrendously fail – at putting the sheets, duvet, and comforter back into their former glory, she asked, "What on earth are you doing?"

"Making the bed," Kagome immediately responded, choosing to overlook the small hint of disparage in Souten's tone.

She liked to think of herself as a neat and tidy person, though she never really had a knack for proper housekeeping. That wasn't going to dispel her from continuing to make the bed, however.

In hopes to change the subject, Kagome added, "You don't have to pick out my clothes, you know."

Patting the comforter lightly when everything was made to her own liking, Kagome turned towards the other woman. Souten was holding a formal, black sheath dress in one hand and a white cotton cardigan in the other.

"I know I don't," Souten started, not bothering to even look at Kagome, her eyes taking in the clothing held out in front of her. "But that is not going to stop me. It's my job to make things easier for you, after all."

Souten suddenly frowned, sun-kissed lips drawn down in taunt, tight line. A skeptical light entered those red hues and before Kagome could question her on what was bothering her, the other woman turned on her heel, back tracking across the room and disappearing once again into the closet. Kagome cast the spot Souten was previously standing in a deadpan look. Shoulders slumping, she huffed dejectedly while making her way towards the bathroom.

"It's not your job to dress me up like a doll," Kagome called out in rebuff.

Flipping on the lights, she almost flinched at the quick and blinding illumination of the room. Venturing towards the vanity, Kagome released a small shudder, bare feet now padding against the cold ceramic tile of the bathroom floor. Turning on the sink, she waited until the water reached a warm temperature before she cupped both hands underneath the faucet, bringing them up towards her face so that she could begin to wash away the last fragments of sleep.

Souten came into view once more, still holding the same dress, but she traded the cardigan for a hunter green blazer. She hung both articles of clothing on the towel hook that was built into the back of the bathroom door, tucking the blazer over the dress as she did so. Taking a step back, Souten surveyed the outfit with those scrutinizing eyes once more. Bringing a hand up to her chin, a slender index finger tapping idly as Souten mulled over whatever it was that she was thinking so hard about.

"I'm thinking black pumps," Souten murmured out loud after a pause, head tilting slightly to the left as her eyes narrowed a fraction. "You could pull off flats, but I feel like they wouldn't look right."

Kagome turned off the sink, patting her face dry with a small towel that was residing on the counter. Tossing away the used cloth, cobalt hues flicked towards Souten. The serious tone that she used during her in-depth fashion analysis caused Kagome to roll her eyes towards the ceiling.

"You would think with the way you are planning out this outfit that I would be attending a red-carpet event."

Souten shrugged her shoulders in response, bringing her both of her hands to rest on her hips, gaze never leaving the clothing hanging on the back of the door.

"If it's one thing my mother always taught me, it's 'dress to impress'."

Kagome released an un-ladylike snort. "Souten I'm serious, you really don't have to do this. I'm a big girl, I think I'm more than capable of dressing myself."

The earnest tone Kagome used caused Souten to hesitate, the hands on her hips dropping down to hang limply at her side. Souten stared blankly at Kagome for a moment; blinking once, twice, before a large, warm smile curled at her lips.

"I wouldn't do anything that I wouldn't want to Kagome," She offered softly.

Crossing the threshold into the bathroom, Souten reached out and grabbed one of Kagome's hands in her own, giving it a small reassuring squeeze. "It's been a while since I've been able to do what I'm paid to do. There's only so much of this house that I can actually clean daily and Lord Sesshomaru is a very reserved man. He doesn't really make all that big of a mess."

Souten paused, pursing her lips in thought for a moment, before adding, "Plus, I don't think he would let me pick out his clothes."

Kagome unwillingly released a small giggle at the thought of Sesshomaru being exposed to this extremely lively woman so early in the morning. She may not know him well enough, but from what she could tell, Souten crossing Sesshomaru's path this early in the morning would definitely not turn out well.

It seemed that Souten was thinking the same thing because her smile grew to the point where it crinkled the corner of her eyes. "It's nice to have another woman to dote on and talk to. You said it yourself that you want us to be friends. Think of this as a way for us to get to know each other."

She leaned in, bumping her shoulder with Kagome's in an encouraging nudge, much like her husband had done the day prior. Getting Kagome to look her directly in the eye, Souten broke into what Kagome could only assume – was her best begging 'puppy-eyed' face.

"Please let me do this," the older woman pleaded.

Kagome instantly knew that this was another battle with Souten that she was not going to win. Accepting her defeat with as much dignity that she could muster, Kagome jabbed Souten's shoulder with her own, a small smile playing upon her lips.

"Alright, I give. Stop looking at me like that, you look ridiculous."

Souten grinned broadly at her victory, smugly giving Kagome a quick 'thank you' before she turned and began dragging the smaller woman out of the bathroom.

"Now with that settled, you need to get into the kitchen to grab something to eat. My instincts – which are never wrong, I might add – tell me that you're going to have a long day ahead of you."

The way she said it made wheels in Kagome's head turn. Souten was aware that something was going to happen today, something that involved herself. Cerulean orbs narrowed at the taller woman's back, though, instead of trying to wrangle information out of her, Kagome chose not to question anything. If it was related to her, she would find out soon enough.

"Now don't come back in here until you've had something to eat," Souten commanded in her best bureaucratic tone, practically shoving Kagome out of her bedroom door.

"Yes mother," Kagome drawled sarcastically, earning a bark of laughter. "If you're going to pick out shoes for me, save myself and everyone else the embarrassment by keeping the heel size under three inches. I'm a notorious klutz."

Kagome didn't have to look over her shoulder as she walked out of the room, she could feel Souten's Cheshire grin boring into her back.

"No promises!" Souten called out, slamming the door closed behind her.

-o-

The kitchen was easily the biggest room in the house.

It was also the most open.

The ceramic tile that made up the floor was a light cream color which complimented the polished oak hardwood of the cabinets. To the immediate right of the entrance was a door that lead into the walk-in pantry, a few hanging cabinets were mounted on the wall to the left of the door. The wall opposite the entrance was mostly covered in glass. Two large windowpanes took up the majority of the expanse of the wall, nestled between them was a pair of elegant sliding glass doors.

Offset and to the left to the doors was a long, extravagant looking glass-top dining table which looked like it was barely used. In the middle of the room was a lengthy, white granite-top island. It was concave in shape, angled so that it separated the left corner of the kitchen from the rest of the room, creating a semi-enclosed space. Nestled in that little alcove was an exceptionally grand, built-in stainless-steel refrigerator and its matching appliance counterparts. There was countertop space built along the left corner of the room, stemming from the fridge and running along the curve of the wall. Along the bottom of the marble top were built-in cabinets, made up of the same wood as the additional ones which hung above.

The light that filtered through the windows cast an intimately pleasant aura, in an almost picturesque type of way. It was like the entire layout was picked out of a home décor magazine. Kagome was sure that when her mother came to visit, the older woman would immediately be struck with kitchen envy.

Upon her arrival, Kagome was greeted with the sight of Shippo pouring what looked like miso soup into two small bowls which were laid out in front of matching table settings on the island.

"It smells delicious in here," Kagome hummed, catching the redhead's attention.

"Good morning Kagome!" Shippo chirped happily in greeting.

"Oh no," Kagome blanched in mock-horror. "You're one of those just like your wife!"

Her groaned accusation caused Shippo to pause, looking at her questioningly with both brows raised.

"One of what?" He questioned, clearly confused.

"A morning person," Kagome groused for the second time in the last half an hour.

There was a pregnant pause as Shippo simply stared at her, mirroring the same expression his wife had worn just before. He blinked at her once before he tossed his head back and released a chest rattling laugh.

'It's scary how similar their reactions are,' Kagome joked internally.

Turning from her, Shippo continued to chuckle, moving towards the counter behind him. Opening the cabinet above his head, he plucked a large ceramic mug from the array of glassware before shifting to one of the intricate looking appliances on the countertop. Kagome caught the distinct sound of liquid flowing before Shippo turned back to her and made his way out from behind the island, glass in hand.

He crossed the room, holding a steaming cup of something and instinctively, Kagome's eyes lit up as the bitter aroma of coffee infiltrated her olfactory system. He stopped just out of arm's length, holding out the glass, jade orbs dancing with amusement. Kagome had no time to indulge in tricks he was going to try and play and crossed the unnecessary distance between them, snatching the mug from his grasp.

She quickly brought the cup to her lips and greedily took the first few sips of the caffeinated liquid, eyes closing in utter bliss.

"Easy there tiger, there's plenty more where that came from."

Much like she had done with his wife, Kagome chose to ignore Shippo's teasing, continuing to sip on the coffee while making her way towards one of the stools near the island. Sitting down, she pulled her right foot up on the seat, tucking her knee close to her chest. Cradling her mug in both hands, she balanced it on top of her knee, azure hues watching Shippo as he resumed his position in front of the stove.

It was silent for a few minutes, Shippo turning on the rice cooker before he cracked two eggs into the pan residing over the open flame. The bubbling sizzle resounded throughout the room.

"Do you need help with anything?" She questioned after half of her coffee had been depleted, finally starting to feel awake enough to assist if needed.

He seemed startled by her question, turning to look at her over his shoulder with wide emerald eyes. The 'deer-in-the-headlights' look didn't last long, Shippo quickly collected himself and shook his head as he grinned at her. He turned back towards the cooking food before he responded.

"No, thank you. You just sit tight and wake up a little more. Something tells me I shouldn't trust you anywhere near hot objects this early in the morning."

Kagome bit down the childish urge to stick her tongue out at him, settling instead to give him a small 'hrmph' while turning up her nose. "I'm going to pretend to not be insulted by that."

Shippo laughed at her sulking, muttering something under his breath that suspiciously sounded like 'definitely not traditional'.

A flash of orange caught the corner of her eye and Kagome turned towards it, pouting momentarily forgotten. Her gaze landed on a neatly stacked pile of paperwork and file folders that resided on right end of the countertop.

It was her paperwork.

A frown furrowed between her brows, confusion evident as her mind come up with an answer as to why her work files were in the kitchen.

'That's right!' She exclaimed internally. 'I was reviewing files out on the patio last night.'

Her realization didn't clear up her confusion, however. It didn't take long for another question to form in her mind.

'How did I end up in my bed last night?'

The logical side of her brain declared that the answer to her question was quite obvious. Unless she had somehow developed a highly advanced case of sleepwalking within the last few days, someone had to have carried her to her room.

The better questions was: who?

Again, the rational side of her brain screamed that there was a clear answer to that question, though Kagome refused to even broach the possibility. No one besides Sesshomaru and herself were in the house last night, but he wouldn't have carried her off to her room. It was her own fault for falling asleep outside and Kagome wouldn't be surprised if he would tell her so to her face. This man – who basically was a stranger – would not submit himself to the lowly task of looking after her.

There was just no way.

Then again, she really didn't know him, did she? Most of the information she had on Sesshomaru was from secondhand sources. Who was she to say that he wouldn't do something like that for her? He had, after all, given her a newly renovated room.

"…Shippo?" Kagome ventured in a hesitant tone.

"Yes?" He replied, not looking up from the stove.

"Did you or Souten come back here last night? For any reason?" Kagome asked though she was well aware of the what the answer would be.

Even if the staff has come back last night, there was no realistic possible outcome as to how it could have occurred. Myouga would definitely not be able to carry her anywhere and, though she was relatively small, Kagome doubted Souten would be able to even lift her. The only one who she knew could complete that task without any real effort would be Shippo. Despite spending most of the day yesterday getting to know him, Kagome seriously doubted Shippo would be comfortable enough to carry her to her room. He would have politely woken her up.

"No, we didn't…" Shippo responded, voice trailing off as he turned his head so that he could look at her. Green eyes surveyed her face for a short moment before he asked, "Why? Did something happen?"

"No, no," She hastily replied, quelling any fears that she might have caused with her inquiry. "Nothing happened. I was just wondering, that's all."

Shippo stared at her for a moment longer, jade orbs narrowing minutely. For a moment, he looked like he didn't quite believe her and was going to call her out on it, but he must have thought better of it. He resigned with a small nod before turned back towards the stove.

Her right hand released its hold on the coffee cup, coming to grasp the ring that was suspended on the delicate silver chain around her neck. With all the packing and unpacking, Kagome chose to wear her wedding ring on a necklace so that she wouldn't lose it. Slowly, she traced the engraved stones on the band while her mind shuffled through the barrage of different questions racing through her head.

'It could be his way of thanking you for the food,' she thought.

Quickly, Kagome swept her gaze down to the other end of the island, looking for any evidence of Sesshomaru even eating the food that she left out last night. Of course, there wasn't any, the dish and her note were long gone. As nonchalantly as she could, Kagome looked towards the sink, trying to distinguish if there were any dirty dishes that vaguely looked familiar to her. It was to no avail. Due to her angle and distance, she couldn't see over the lip of the countertop.

Absentmindedly, she continued to fiddle with her wedding band, twirling it between her thumb and pointer finger.

Much like on her wedding day, Kagome found herself plagued with thoughts of her new husband.

And much like on her wedding day, Kagome was trying to figure out the mystery that was Sesshomaru.

-o-

Sesshomaru found her like that a few minutes later.

As he entered the kitchen, golden eyes immediately took in the sight of her. She looked dazed, staring off at the opposite wall, but not really seeing. Briefly, he wondered if something had upset her; if someone had said something to cause her to be in such a state. Sesshomaru flicked his gaze over towards Shippo – who was contently absorbed in cooking breakfast – and brushed that thought aside as quickly as it had come.

There was no way the young man would continue to carry out his tasks if he knew that he had caused one of the guests in his house any distress.

Then again, Kagome wasn't a guest.

Either way, Shippo was attentive, personally enveloped with those around him. It was one of the reasons why Sesshomaru hired him in the first place. Sesshomaru also knew that if this woman was anything like how his father and half-brother described her to be, then her temper was not to be trifled with. He had only caught a small glimpse of it on the night of the Inuyasha incident, but he knew when she was enraged, she was extremely loud.

It was a stark contrast the melancholy behavior she was presenting now.

No, this wasn't anger or frustration.

Kagome looked lost, confused even.

The movement of her hand captured his attention and Sesshomaru glanced down at her fidgeting fingers. The glint from the sapphire stone was easily recognizable and his left hand twitched in response. The sight of her wedding ring suddenly made the golden band on his own finger feel incredibly heavy. He wouldn't admit it out loud – especially to the likes of his father – but he knew interacting with her would be easier from this point on if he showed that he wasn't making an effort to resist their unique circumstance, hence him sporting his own wedding ring.

And suddenly, it clicked.

He understood the topic that seemed to have her so derailed.

It was him…her…them.

The conversation that he had with his father the day before came back to the forefront of his mind. Sesshomaru chose to overlook a lot of things over the course of the last few days, Kagome being one of them. He supposed that his ignorance was unsettling for her, being brought to this house without so much as a conversation between them. As much as he wanted to place the blame equally on both of them – she didn't necessarily reach out to him either – Sesshomaru had too much pride to allow himself to point the finger at anyone other than himself.

He knew his little stunt at the wedding gave her more questions than answers, but instead of allocating time for her to even inquire, he had all but disappeared the last few days. This entire situation – where they were now – was because he brought them here.

Maybe he avoided her because he would be uncomfortable with the questions that she would ask.

Maybe he avoided her because he was unsure of how he would even answer those questions; if he could even answer those questions.

Sesshomaru didn't want to treat her callously, though he knew better than to treat her like a chummy companion. They were on neutral ground and addressing her as a partner was what he should have done from the beginning. Kagome held her right to question why he had spontaneously intervened at the wedding and he knowingly chose to take that right away from her.

Tawny hues glanced towards her face once more. There was an air of discomfiture around her that unsettled him, paired with this unusual look of perplexity in those blue-gray eyes of hers. There was always something about her that he couldn't place. She was an unknown and he wanted to grasp her, to understand what it was that made her tick.

This woman was going to play such a panicle role in his life and career, but he knew nothing about her.

Instead of fully venturing into the room, Sesshomaru chose to remain in the archway, not making his presence known as he apprised her with creased eyes.

She continued to twiddle her ring, dark brows drawn down in concentration. Before long she stopped, tilting her chin downwards so she could gaze at the band clutched between her fingers. Kagome situated herself properly on the stool then, placing her coffee mug on the countertop before she brought her hands to the nape of her neck. She played with the clasp of the necklace for a brief moment, the chain parting with little effort. Carefully she unwrapped the circlet from the silver strand, holding it out in front of her.

Kagome scrutinized the ring for a concise minute, azure eyes taking in every intrigue and infinitesimal detail. Whatever thoughts she had which caused her to act meekly seemed to have disappeared instantly. The longer she peered at the ring, the more her face set into hard lines of determination. Placing the silver necklace on the counter, Kagome continuing to eye the ring as if it was the answer to all of her un-vocalized questions.

It was another moment before she slid the band on the appropriate finger of her left hand. Something twisted in his gut at the sight of her. She held out her hand, gazing at the sapphire stone nestled on her finger with – dare he say – approval in her eyes.

Before Sesshomaru could contemplate anything further, the shrill voice of his head attendant broke the silence of the room.

"Sesshomaru-sama!" Myouga called, making his entrance into the kitchen from the patio. "Good morning!"

Both Shippo and Kagome snapped their heads in his direction. Shippo quickly followed in his elder's footsteps and gave Sesshomaru a lively greeting while Kagome simply stared at him, wide-eyed.

Sesshomaru chose not to bask in her shocked expression, greeting both of his employees with curt nods as he finally crossed into the kitchen. He traversed the room swiftly, long strides carrying him towards the island. He tried to politely ignore the way her wide-eyed gaze trailed his movements as he swiftly and smoothly occupied the chair to her right.

He half-turned to her then, offering her the same brisk nod that he had given Myouga and Shippo.

"Kagome," Sesshomaru greeted.

The ebony haired woman seemed caught off guard by his acknowledgment, her mouth opening and closing sporadically like a fish out of water. It took her a moment to gather her wits before she recognized him in return.

"S-Sesshomaru," She squeaked, bobbing her head.

"I take it you slept well, sir?" Shippo interjected, depositing two large plates in front of both occupants of the countertop. It seemed Shippo chose to keep things simple for the new lady of the house. Each of them received a bowl of homemade miso soup along with a dish filled with steamed rice mixed with natto, topped with a fried egg.

Sesshomaru liked to believe that it was because she was extremely hungry, instead of her wanting to focus on anything other than him, but as soon as the food was placed in front of her, Kagome dug right in. She clasped her hands together and shyly offered a soft 'itadakimasu', trying her best – and failing – to not look in his direction. Sesshomaru followed suit, offering his own thanks for the meal before taking the first few bites of his breakfast.

He swallowed, saffron eyes taking in both Myouga and Shippo as they chatted amongst themselves, moving about the kitchen in an effort to clean up the pots and pans the younger male used to make the meal.

"I did sleep well, thank you." Sesshomaru stated after a moment's pause. "It was relatively quiet here last night. It allowed me to get a lot of things done before going to bed."

His implication was not lost to either of his employees, nor the woman sitting next to him. Both men stiffened, turning their heads to give Sesshomaru matching sheepish expressions. He could feel Kagome's gaze upon him, but he continued to stare down his employees, waiting for an explanation. Shippo awkwardly scratched the back of his head, nervously chuckling.

"About that…" Shippo started.

"Milord, you see it-" Myouga grasped for an excuse.

Whatever they were going to say was lost to Kagome's resolute declaration.

"It's my fault," she aforementioned, all traces of her seemingly bashful demeanor long gone. For a fraction of a second, Kagome seemed almost shocked at her own words, but she quickly collected herself.

Politely, she placed her chopsticks down, determinedly straightening her spine as she turned her head towards him. The strongminded gleam in her eye didn't go unnoticed by any of the males in the room, his employees graciously keeping their mouths shut, watching the scene play out. Sesshomaru graced her with an inquisitive arch of his brow.

The longer she was under the speculating scrutiny, the more her tough deposition seemed to crumble. She squirmed slightly under his glower, but instead of cowering back, cobalt eyes locked with his own and her steadfastness strengthened as she took a breath.

"I wasn't trying to be presumptuous, so I'm sorry if I came off that way, but I sent them home. They helped out a lot in the afternoon, moving everything from the car to my room and such," She explained rapidly. "And um, well…It just seemed silly, you know?"

She was crumbling and she knew it.

"To keep them here when they worked so hard and I figured giving them the night off would be okay. You weren't home and we didn't know when you were coming back and there was no point in them cooking just for me to only sit around and wait for you and wow I'm rambling…"

An embarrassed flush dusted across her cheeks as she finished her babbling, but despite how distressed she seemed to be, Kagome never looked away from Sesshomaru. Her embarrassment eased the small amount of tension in the room, Shippo chortled somewhat, turning back to the sink so that he could continue the task that he started.

Myouga, who was gracing Kagome with an extremely grateful look, offered, "Miss Kagome thought things would be easier for the both of you if you both were alone when you arrived home, Milord."

The woman in question sent the older gentleman a small pointed look of betrayal as if that was the last thing that she wanted Sesshomaru to know. Myouga chose to ignore the glower, offering his employer a small bow. "I apologize for not being here when you arrived home last night Lord Sesshomaru, but your wife is very convincing when she wants to be."

Sesshomaru shifted his gaze between the two, Myouga seemingly feeding off Kagome's previous strengthened resolve, while Kagome was now nervously gnawing on her bottom lip. She looked away from him then, eyes shifting to every other corner of the room.

He didn't understand what she was nervous for, it wasn't like he was the type to yell or scream when something went wrong. He wasn't going to berate her for her choice of action, but he did want an answer to what had occurred. It didn't help that he held a reputation of being vindictively cold towards most people, but Sesshomaru liked to believe that he had a better hold on his attitude within his own hold. Especially towards his staff. He held the utmost respect for him and he returned that respect tenfold.

It didn't help that his bastard of a half-brother was one of her best friends. Sesshomaru could only imagine the things that Inuyasha had said about him over the years, but he wouldn't do anything without reason. Technically, as his wife, she had every right to dismiss the staff if she felt like it. Now that he knew the reason why no one was here last night, he deemed it an acceptable excuse.

In the back of his mind – the very dark corner that he liked to discount on most occasion – Sesshomaru took a small amount of satisfaction in the thought that this woman thought ahead to take into account his own comfort when it came to their first meeting.

"Hn." He hummed, dismissing the situation entirely as he turned back to his meal.

The kitchen fell into comfortable silence then, or at least a comfortable silence for the three men who were used to the inner workings of this household. The only noise was the running water and occasional clatter of the cookware as Shippo and Myouga washed, dried, and placed them back into their respective cabinets. Kagome idly picked at the remainder of her meal, passing glances towards Sesshomaru out of the corner of her eye.

He chose not to outwardly acknowledge her. If she was looking for something to say, she should simply say it. Until then, he focused on with his breakfast, mulling about the different things he needed to get done at work. When he was finished, she was still peeking at him but remained tightlipped.

Sesshomaru pushed the empty bowl and plate away from him before standing. He didn't move right away, looking down at the woman sitting next to him. Kagome, who was still trying her best to continue to watch him out of the corner of her eye, immediately turned towards him. Sensing that that he needed to tell her something, she looked up at him from under dark lashes, fingers nervously twitching around her chopsticks.

"Father thinks it would be best for you to come into the office from now on," He stated with an authoritative tone. "With the merger being finalized it would be optimal for you to start getting yourself acclimated to how things will be run. With that being said, you will accompany me to the office today."

He watched her take in his words, processing them slowly. That fire was back in her eyes again, excited sparks of elation flicking within her orbs. It took Sesshomaru a moment to realize that she was still fidgeting under his gaze, but this time it seemed to be with enthusiasm. The thought of going to work had brought her joy, like a kid who was couldn't sleep the night before Christmas. It was highly amusing to watch.

"Okay," She confirmed with a bob of her head.

Suppressing the small smirk that threatened to curl on his lips, Sesshomaru carried on. "I also noticed that there isn't another car in the driveway, do you not have one?"

Kagome didn't look uncomfortable or ashamed by his question. She shook her head in response, "No, I don't. There was never any need for one since I lived so close to campus and dad's office."

"It's of no consequence, you can ride with me to work." He didn't give her a chance to comment or rebuff what he had said, shifting his body away from the counter as he began striding towards the entryway.

He didn't make it very far before a hand reached out and wrapped around his forearm, halting his movements.

"W-wait!" Kagome stuttered out as she stopped his retreat. Sesshomaru cast her an inquiring look, inwardly attempting to quell the uncomfortable feeling rising up within him as the cool metal of her wedding ring resonated against his bare skin.

"I wanted to thank you Sesshomaru," Kagome stated in a sincere tone. "Not just for the ride to the office, but for everything. Allowing me here, the room, and what you did at the wedding…for this." She emphasized her point by gesturing wildly around the kitchen with her free hand.

"I'm not sure why you did it, but you helped me. You really don't know how much this means to me… so thank you."

The earnestness in her voice took him back slightly and he feared that if he remained under her gaze for long, he would end up being the one squirming uneasily. With a sharp nod, he gently disentangled himself from her grip and continued on his original path towards the entrance of the room. When he reached the archway, he paused to turn to look back at his onyx haired wife.

She had been trailing his exit with her eyes, instantly meeting his gaze with raised brows, looking surprised that he had stopped to turn back towards her. Cocking her head to the side, Kagome patiently waited for whatever it was that he wanted to say.

"For future reference," Sesshomaru's voice monotone voice drawled, "I prefer my curry spicier." He said nothing else after that, turning his back on the trio and exciting the room with the same long strides he used when he had entered.

The tension in the room snapped then; any notion of awkwardness from the previous interactions was suddenly erased. Both Shippo and Myouga paused in their cleaning to share a confused glance, slowly turning towards Kagome for an answer as to what their boss was talking about.

Kagome's mouth hung open, brows drew down in a frown, her shock and confusion evident. Before long, the look of stupor morphed into one of startled delight, a large grin breaking out on her face. The pair of bewildered looks that she was receiving turned even more perturbed as a bubble of gleeful laughter crawled its way up her throat, echoing throughout the room.

"Uh…Kagome?" Shippo asked hesitantly, watching her.

Kagome's ill contained mirth now caused her shoulders to shake. She may not know Sesshomaru well, but she easily recognized that comment being the closest thing she was ever going to get to a 'you're welcome'.

"Duly noted Sesshomaru," She murmured to herself in between snickers, turning back to her breakfast, offering no explanation to the other occupants in the room.

Sesshomaru only made it halfway through the living room when the string of bell-like giggles made their way to his ears.

The corner of his lips quirked up at the sound.

[name-me-regret]

White Roses For My Sister - Chapter Two

White Roses For My Sister Chapter Two: All The Bad Things

Summary: Peter Parker is pretty sure he’s cursed...

Author’s Note: I know that in the earlier chapter, Billie is born earlier than the comics, and Morgan is also born earlier than in MCU canon, but I changed this for the purpose of this story. Also, the timeline is distorted in this chapter, some things that happened in canon were moved up.Also, I think I got ahead of myself when I said twelve chapters. It might be less, but if anyone reads these (lol) I’ll let y’all know here if the estimated twelve chapters changes. For now, let me know what you think.

Read it on AO3.

- - - -   "Bad things happen to the people you love And you'll find yourself paying the diamond above But honestly I've never had much sympathy 'Cause those bad things always saw them coming for me

 It would take some time just to see me shine For the whole world to see me here with all of my light But honestly I've given up on all those fights So that one day I'll have you all wrapped up in my light

 I'm gonna run, run away, run, run away, run away Runaway and never come back..."

~Bad Things - Cults   - - - -

Peter could hear them crying, his aunt and uncle, and his uncle never cried. It must have been a very sad thing if even Uncle Ben was crying. The four year old didn’t know what could have happened, since before they’d been having a good time.

He wasn’t a good at sports, and his asthma didn’t let him run around too much, but today he had played catch with his uncle. His dad use to play with him, but he had been too busy lately. Peter wasn’t mad at him, because he knew they had important jobs. So, Peter had to be good and not give them any trouble. He wouldn’t complain or cry when they couldn’t play with him, and one day maybe they would see how good he was being and they’d spend more time with him.

That had been the plan his four year old mind had come up with, and didn’t know that the day would never come.

- - - -

Peter wasn’t supposed to tell anyone. He had told the eight year old not to, that it would be their little secret. It was just that... he wanted to tell his aunt and uncle.

He didn’t like what Skip was doing, not one bit. Peter had said he didn’t want to play that game with him, didn’t want to see those adult magazines he’d forced him to look at. In fact, Peter hated it.

Skip said that everyone did it, and it was supposed to feel good. The older teenager had told him not to tell, made him swear he wouldn’t say anything.

Peter didn’t like to lie, but he had done it for a good reason. At least, that’s what he told himself as he went to his aunt and uncle.

- - - -

Peter Parker sat in the chair in the police station, flecks of blood still on his face. He felt numb as he stared down at the concrete floor, his eyes burning from having cried for so long. The ten year old was sure he had never cried as much as he had that day, not even when they had told him his dad and mom weren’t coming back, ever.

The only family he had left was gone, and Peter wondered if he was cursed. Perhaps he had been born under a bad star, or someone had placed a curse on him. Because the boy could find no other explanation as to why he kept losing the people he loved.

“Peter?”

The aforementioned child lifted his face to look at the police officer. He knew his uncle, but at the moment Peter couldn’t remember the man’s name. At the moment, he pushed it aside and looked at the woman that had walked up with him. She had semi-business attire, a cheap suit from Jcpenny that looked to have seen better days, some flats that didn’t match the dress and hair that had been haphazardly put in a sloppy bun at the back of her head.

“Hi, Peter, I’m Margaret Reed, I work with CPS. You’re going to come with me until we can either find a relative you can stay with, or a foster parent becomes available. Until then, you’ll be staying at a home for boys.”

She smiled reassuringly at him, but Peter could see the bags under her eyes that gave her a haggard appearance. Peter wondered if he was ever going to leave that home, or if he’d disappear in the system like so many others.

Even so, he stood up and followed her, leaving behind his old life, which had once been a happy trio. Now, Peter was the only one left.

- - - -

Ned glanced at his friend, worried about how quiet he had been since his uncle and aunt’s death. He’d tried to invite him to his house to build his new AT-AP Walker, but he had just silently shaken his head. Even Flash’s usual taunts had had no effect on him, even if the bully had toned down after the death of his aunt and uncle.

He wasn’t going to give up though, because that’s what best friends did. Besides, he was Ned’s only friend and Ned was Peter’s only friend. They had to stick together. After school he’d insist they hang out, build the Walker and have fun. Ned would save his friend, at all costs.

 The sound of gunfire was heard through the halls of the middle school. Their teacher, Ms. Gonzales’s head lifted sharply, her eyes narrowing behind her glasses. All of the students had gasped at the sharp sound, tensing in their seats. “Everyone... stay here,” she said, moving quickly to the door.

She opened the door, seeing the teachers from other classes doing the same. “What was that?”

Ned and Peter looked at each other, worried as they heard more of those sharp sounds and that was followed by screams. Their teacher slammed the door closed and locked it. “Everyone get to the supply closet, now!” she whisper shouted.

They had a small class that day, since a lot of students were out due to the flu that was going around the school. So, their usual fifteen had been reduced to nine, but even then it would be a tight squeeze.

She ushered them inside, helping Betty as she tripped over her desk and carried her the rest of the way. Peter and Ned were the last ones in, since they usually sat at the front of the class. Most of them were crying by then, and Peter could feel Flash at his back, the bully sobbing against his ear and he instinctively grabbed onto Ned as he also gulped in shaky breaths, face wet with his own tears.

Ms. Gonzalez was breathing heavily as she looked them over, standing in the open doorway. “Don’t some out, no matter what,” she told them, a determined look crossing her face as the sound of gunfire started getting closer.

She closed the door, locking it and all of them were plunged into darkness. They flinched as they heard something being dragged across the ground, and then something else as whatever it was was shoved against the door of the supply closet. They realized that it was their desks, one after another pushed up against the door.

The sound of a door slamming open was heard, followed by a woman’s yell and the loud sound of a weapon going off. Peter felt Flash’s hold tighten so hard around his arm he was sure he’d have bruises later.

All of them screamed as the gun went off again, something slamming into the heavy wooden door with a splintering sound. Then the sound of gunfire came again, and Peter heard Ned yelp in pain and he felt something warm splash against his face. All around him everyone was screaming as they listened to the gunfire, and light was coming through the bullet holes in the door.

Then they heard it, the clicking of an empty chamber, and a frustrated shout. Whoever was outside started banging against the doorknob with something, and the children cried as they feared he would get in. Before he could, there were more yells, running footsteps and fighting.

“Cecilia! Oh God! Hold on!” a man’s voice yelled, the shouting getting farther away.

“K...kids... help them,” a voice whimpered, then a gasp.

“Cecilia!”

Peter pressed against the door, Ned slumped down at the floor and Flash trying to push as the other kids cried out for him. They could hear the person outside pushing the desks aside frantically.

They all screamed as the door was wrenched open easily, since the doorknob had been complete destroyed. “It’s alright! You’re safe!”

It was their history teacher, Mr. Lloyd.

“Sir, Ned,” Peter sobbed, unaware of the blood on his face as he crouched over his fallen friend. Ned’s shoulder was bleeding, and the man removed his cardigan and pressed it against the wound. “Is h-he gonna die?” the eleven year old whimpered, his brown eyes pleading with the adult to tell him otherwise.

“No, he’s going to be fine,” the man reassured. He could tell that the bullet had gone cleanly through his shoulder. It was a miracle it hadn’t hit anyone else as it had exited the plump boy’s body, and it must have imbedded into the wall behind them somewhere. “Is anyone else hurt?”

Betty lifted her hand, also crying like the rest of the others. “I think I hurt my ankle,” she sniffled, wiping at her eyes with her sleeve.

“Alright,” Mr. Lloyd sighed, sounding shaken despite his calm demeanor. “We’re going to get out here... I need everyone to hold hands with the person closest to them. Then I need you all to close your eyes.” He didn’t want them to see Cecilia’s body, not wanting to traumatize them anymore than they had already been.

Mr. Lloyd had tied the cardigan as best as he could around Ned’s shoulder, looping it under his armpit. The boy was out cold, most likely from the pain, and it was a small mercy. He lifted him in his arms with a grunt. “Peter, grab onto the back of my shirt, and don’t let go.”

Peter obeyed him, using one hand to grab his shirt and his other was being held by Flash,  neither boy worrying about the fact that they were holding hands. Peter and Flash just wanted to get out of there, the latter wanting to be held by his mother. As for Peter, he was almost glad his aunt and uncle were gone, because if not they would have been terrified right now. He was glad if only to spare them this.

Even if he wished he could also be held by someone that loved him.

As the kids moved out of the supply closet one by one, eyes squinted closed and trusting their teacher to lead them out safely. Only, Peter found his curiosity get the best of him and peeked his eyes open, and immediately regretted it.

Ms. Gonzales lay in the middle of the room, almost where Liz Allan’s desk had been, and her limbs were akimbo. Her eyes were wide open and unseeing, blood dribbling out of her mouth and pooling around her body which had been riddled with several bullet holes.

Peter slammed his eyes closed with a keening noise, but the image was burned into his mind, her unseeing black eyes staring up at the ceiling. “It’s alright,” Mr. Lloyd called, “we’re almost to the hallway. Keep your eyes closed.”

It was too late, Peter had seen her. He had seen her and he would never ever be able to forget her. Her smiling face whenever he got a difficult math problem right was replaced by her face twisted in agony, covered in blood. She was dead, had died trying to save them all, and for no reason that Peter could understand.

 Peter lay in his bed in the boy’s home he’d been staying for the last four months, breathing in shakily. They’d turned off the light almost an hour ago, but he and sleep could not find one another. For when he almost managed to start to doze off, the memory of Ms. Gonzalez’s body would pop to the forefront of his mind and he’d startle awake with a gasp. So, he could only lay in bed and stare up at the ceiling as he tried to remember how to breathe properly.

In and out, making sure they weren’t rushed for fear that he’d have an asthma attack. He hadn’t had one in months, not since his aunt and uncle had been killed, and he hadn’t been in the hospital because of his since he was eight. That had been a difficult time for Peter.

His breath hitched dangerously into asthma territory and he forced himself to stop thinking of anything and just the shaky breaths he was taking; in and out.

As he lay awake most of the night trying to breathe carefully, he decided that it was too dangerous to love anyone else. After all, he had loved Ms. Gonzales, who always had a kind word and smile for him; especially after his aunt and uncle had died. She had helped him understand a tricky math problem and gave him more advanced work when he had asked for it.

Peter had loved Ms. Gonzales, and now she was dead. He loves Ned and he had almost died. His love killed people, and was determined never to love anyone else again.

- - - -

The twelve year old stared at the man and woman in front of him, not quite understanding what was happening. Perhaps he was dreaming, but that seemed unlikely. While he had nightmares and the occasional insomniac night, he tended to get enough to function as a normal human being. So, he knew he was coherent and awake.

That made him try and analyze the man and woman again, the very familiar power couple. There was no way he could comprehend what he’d just been told, and it wasn’t because he was stupid or anything.

Peter went to Midtown Junior High, and his hard work all through junior high had paid off since his place was already reserved in Midtown Tech (the high school one). His grades never dropped from the top five in the whole school, and excelled in his after school activities (he had to drop almost all of them except robotics, mathletes, and decathlon, because MJ hadn’t let him).

He could still go to Midtown when the time came, but would have to get a scholarship to do so. Even then, it would only pay his tuition and not his textbooks. He’d already found a solution for that, since Mr Delmar at times needed help stocking the shelves. Peter would be able to make some money after school to pay for his textbooks, and also put some minutes on his phone.

After the school shooting, Ned’s parents had moved their whole family to Massachusetts. Because apparently, “Mom says there aren’t any school shootings there, and besides, it’s closer to MIT”. Peter knew that had been Ned’s school of choice, since it was his dad’s alma mater. He had only smiled and wished him luck, even if inside he was begging for it not to be true, but one look at his bandaged shoulder silenced him.

So, Peter needed minutes on his phone, since it was the only way to keep in contact with Ned now. He didn’t want to be able to lose touch with his only friend. He had lost everyone else he loved, and he felt like he was barely hanging onto Ned now.

That had been the plan at least, but instead, he was staring at Tony freaking Stark, Pepper Potts, and a little girl that all of America had known from the moment she’d been born, Morgan Stark. She was two years old and sitting next her mother quietly as she looked across the table at Peter, wide brown eyes almost sparkling with excitement.

“Uh, I d-dont... understand,” Peter said, looking at his case worker, Margaret. The woman’s blonde hair was as always pulled up into a sloppy bun with a few strands falling into her face. She had on one of her usual cheap dress clothes, and that had a few wrinkles at the collar.

“Mr. and Mrs. Stark want to adopt you, Peter,” Margaret repeated. “They want you to be their son.”

There was that words again, ‘son’. Peter had already been someone’s son, had been someone’s nephew, but now they were all gone. He couldn’t be some else’s son, or nephew, or anything.

The adults faces changed into something that had to be sorrow. He hadn’t realized he’d said that out loud.

“Oh Peter,” Pepper Potts sighed, dabbing at her eyes. She almost didn’t seem like she ran a Fortune 500 company, but perhaps having a daughter had softened her. It made Peter miss his own mother, his Aunt May’s absence like an ache that clawed at his throat with the need to scream, because life wasn’t fair. Life was a cruel bitch that took and took from you, and nothing and no one could make it better.

“A bruther?” a sweet voice asked.

Peter looked at the little girl, her hair braided like a crown on her head and a flower band on. She was wearing a white dress with llamas (or alpacas?) all over it, as well as cacti. Over that she had a pink vest with tassels all over it (it might have been called a cowboy vest), and brown sandals on her tiny feet. She had one a pink and white necklace with a pink flower in the middle, and a pair of sunglasses hooked to the front of her dress almost like the kinds her father always wore.

He knew this because she’d come around the table and he turned in his seat to be able to see her. She grabbed his hand, much larger than her tiny one. “You my bruther?”

Pepper and Tony had stood as soon as Morgan had slipped clumsily out of her chair. Now they watched the two kids, one twelve and the other two, but both still children. “I’m... nobody’s brother,” Peter whispered.

“Yea, you my bruther, k?” Morgan nodded like it was final.

Peter opened his mouth as he looked into her innocently smiling face, and he found he could say nothing to remove that smile from her face. “Okay,” he gasped, and he hadn’t realized he’d started to cry until her other tiny hand wiped at his face.

“Why you cry? Got an ouchie?”

He nodded as he gripped her small hand as hard as he could without hurting her, afraid to let go. “Yes... I got an ochie,” he sobbed.

Morgan wrapped her little arms around the bigger kid, in an effort to comfort him. “It’s otay. Magona kiss it better, k?” She pressed a kiss on his cheek, making the other cry even harder as he held onto her now. He was sure he was cursed, that everyone he loved died, but he couldn’t help wanting Morgan.

Peter wanted to be her big brother, to have someone he could love again, and that loved him too. He wanted to be selfish, just this once.

Tony and Pepper signed the adoption papers that same day, and Peter became Peter Parker-Stark; became Morgan’s big brother.-