#he even saw the live cause he lived in Veracruz and they always went to a salsa club that was there

[riotgrrrlhole]

hi!!! i was the anon a few weeks ago asking for salsa music recommendations! thank you so much again, i love all of the songs so much!!! still have a lot to go through, especially most of celia cruz’s discography LOL one thing i love about the salsa scene from back then is that everyone has collaborated with each other at least once. well im just here to say thanks and also! i was listening to héctor lavoe’s juanito alimaña and theres this one line near the end where he talks about burying “pedrito navaja”, or at least i think so based off the translation i read. thats a reference to rubén blades pedro navaja right? i thought it was really cool!!!

ive been looking for the right song to draw lalo to for a while LOL i like to have a song in my head while drawing because it helps me set the scene but i think with him its so difficult because hes so peculiar <3 also i just dont think my music taste covers his energy well enough so i never bother. i like pedro navaja in general because the irony of the songs story is SO good, i love stories like these. but also im thinking juanito alimaña paints the image of a much more laid back higher ranking criminal which would fit lalo way more. then again ive only read translations :) if you have any thoughts on it i would love to hear them! thanks again!!

You are totally right , in Juanito Alimaña there is a reference to Pedro Navajas (this the equivalent of an mcu crossover lol), I personally think Juanito Alimaña is more like Lalo, cause the whole song is how everyone fears him and the bad stuff he does

[flightlessangelwings]

The Comandante and the Agent

Comandante Veracruz x gn!anget!reader

Word count: 3.4k

Warnings: cursing, injury, mild violence, enemies to lovers(?), non descript smut, no y/n, no gender indicators, Veracruz is an asshole, reader is a badass, some pining, only one bed

gif credit: @thewaythisis​

Written for the Pedro 12 days of Christmas Secret Santa fic exchange. Enjoy @shadow-assassin-blix​!

~

You hated Comandante Veracruz. Not only was it your job as a federal agent to catch and detain people like him, but every time you got close, he always managed to taunt you and slip away. After it happened several times, you were sure that even if it wasn’t your job to hate him you would hate him anyway.

The way Veracruz grinned at you tauntingly as he got the upper hand on you and knocked you down on your ass made the rage burn in your veins. You were so close this time; you had him cornered and alone and you thought you could easily take him in hand to hand combat. But, you always forgot that Veracruz played dirty, and the advantage turned in his favor when you got tired.

“I like you at this angle, agent,” he blew you a kiss as he towered over you before he sauntered away, “Until next time,” his voice echoed down the empty space as he left you alone. For some reason, Veracruz always left you alive, but you didn’t let yourself dwell on that.

“Fuck!” you slammed your fist against the ground as you watched the one person you couldn’t seem to catch walk away. Again.

With a heavy sigh, you got to your feet as you slowly made your way back to the rest of your team. You knew you were in for a lecture from your superiors for your failure once again, and you weren’t looking forward to it. They weren’t going to be happy with you, and you knew you were low on chances to bring Veracruz in. But, you didn’t want to be taken off the case, so you just had to come up with another strategy.

The meeting with your superiors went just as badly as you expected, and after a few days of recon in the jungles, you decided to take a few days off. You retired back to your little house that you rented on the edge of the city while you were in Colombia. It wasn’t much, but after several months, it became home to you. It was small, just a one bedroom one bathroom with a little living space, but it was cozy and just what you needed after a hard day.

You made your way to the kitchen for a much needed drink, and you frowned at your mostly empty refrigerator before you grabbed a bottle of tequila and poured yourself a shot.

Just as the glass touched your lips, your phone rang. You rolled your eyes and downed the shot before you answered with your title, “What is it?”

“They got him,” the gruff voice of your superior said simply on the other end.

You let out a gasp as your eyes went wide, “What?” you were breathless as you slumped down on the nearby stool. You only nodded as your superior explained that another team had finally managed to capture the comandante that escaped your grasp for months. 

You should have felt relieved, but you didn’t. You almost felt mad that someone else swopped in at the last minute and stole your glory. It should have been you to bring him in. Veracruz and his team had caused a lot of trouble for many countries with his weapons trade, but the arrogant side of you wanted him in your custody, not anyone else’s.

Once you hung up the phone, you let out a heavy sigh and poured yourself another shot. You looked around the room as the silence felt heavy on your mind. All your hard work felt like it was for nothing, and though you should have been relieved that Veracruz was in someone’s custody, you still felt like a failure. It was your job, your assignment, and you couldn’t get it done.

After one more shot, you decided that a warm, relaxing bath would be more helpful than just drinking your sorrows away. The warm water felt nice on your achy muscles, and you exhaled heavily as you leaned back and closed your eyes.

Between the alcohol and the warmth of the bath, you must have fallen asleep because when you opened your eyes again, the water was freezing cold. You shot up to sit and counted yourself lucky that you didn’t accidentally drown yourself in the tub. That was just what you needed to add to your list of embarrassments. 

It was the middle of the night, and the neighborhood was quiet as you slipped on shorts and a tank top. You had just put the half empty bottle of tequila back when you heard a knock at your door. You froze; you weren’t expecting anyone, and the only people who knew where you lived were members of your team. And they had no reason to show up unannounced at 2am.

With furrowed brows, you quietly made your way to your door and stopped to grab your gun on the way. You peeked around the little side window to try and figure out who it was when you heard a familiar voice call your name.

Again you froze with your gun aimed at the door. What was Veracruz doing here? You just got the call hours ago that he was arrested. This was impossible. And how did he even find you in the first place?

“I know you’re in there, agent,” Veracruz called out again. This time, you noticed how strained his voice sounded. When you looked through the window again, you saw that he leaned against the doorframe and you thought you saw blood drip down his arm.

Now you had a choice to make: you could cuff him and turn him in or you could help him. You swallowed hard as you listened to his labored breaths on the other side of your front door. Either way, you had to open it, so you kept your gun up and swung it open. You expected to be met with his own weapon on the other side, and you were surprised to find that Veracruz was unarmed.

The two of you stared at each other for several moments, and you felt like time moved slower than normal. Veracruz leaned against the pillar of your little porch and clutched his side. Cuts and bruises adored his body, and you were sure it looked even worse under his clothes. He tried to keep his expression in his usual cocky smirk, but you saw that he faltered just slightly.

“You look like shit,” you finally said as you kept your gun pointed at him. Veracruz may have been injured, but you still didn’t trust him.

“And you look sexy as ever,” he gave you a short laugh before he coughed in pain, “I’ve never seen that much leg on you, agent.”

You felt your face heat up, and you faltered for a moment before you regained your composure, “Shut up,” you snapped as you took a step toward him and checked him over for any hidden weapons, “What are you doing here, Veracruz?”

“I was in the neighborhood,” he snarked back sarcastically, “Thought I’d drop by.”

You clenched your jaw as you kept a fierce gaze on him, “How did you find my house?”

He laughed again, and this time he didn’t try to hide the way he flinched in pain, “I’ve known where you live for some time now.”

“Comforting,” you dead-panned. You used your gun to gesture to his slumped over body, “What happened?”

“Are you going to interrogate me?” Veracruz interjected, “Or are you going to help me?”

“Give me one good reason why I should help you.”

The comandante was about to answer when he fell forward and drifted in and out of consciousness. Out of instinct, you wrapped your arms around him and caught him before he hit the ground. Panic rushed through you for a moment and you looked around to make sure no one was around before you dragged Veracruz inside. 

You set him down on the floor before you rushed to lock your door and you let out a heavy exhale as you stared at him. Veracruz laid still, and you saw blood pool underneath him. Everything in you screamed to call someone: your superior, your agency, anyone. And yet, you heard another voice in your head that told you to help him.

No matter how much you hated the man in front of you, there was a part of you that just couldn’t let him die. With a dejected sigh, you ran into your kitchen and grabbed your first aid kit. You weren’t the best with wounds, but you knew enough to close and clean the large gash on Veracruz’s side before you worked on his smaller wounds on the rest of his body.

“What the fuck am I doing?” you whispered to yourself as you watched over the unconscious comandante. Although you couldn’t deny how handsome he looked when he wasn’t scowling or trying to kill you...

The next morning, Veracruz woke up with a grumble. He looked around and he tried to piece together the events of the previous night when he heard a rustle of movement. It hurt to move, but Veracruz managed to pull himself up and he was quickly able to find your gun where you left it on the coffee table and aimed it at you.

You were just a few feet away in your little kitchen when you heard Veracruz wake up, but you weren’t fast enough to get to your gun first. You raised your hands in surrender before you slowly moved one arm to turn off the burner that had breakfast simmering on it. The two of you held eye contact in silence for several moments before you finally broke.

“You’re not going to shoot me,” confidence lined your voice. 

He snarled, “Why is that?”

You took a tentative step and when he didn’t move, you took another one to close the distance, “Because I just saved your life,” you stepped even closer until you were within arm’s length, “And because I can do this,” you smacked Veracruz’s side where he was injured.

Veracruz yelped in pain as he dropped the gun and hunched over. You dove for your gun right away and pointed it at him. He glared up at you before he huffed, “Fine,” he grumbled as he conceded. 

Satisfied, you pointed towards your couch with your gun, “Sit down, the couch is more comfortable than the floor,” you said as you went back to the kitchen.

He glanced down at the floor and noticed that there were still bloodstains where he laid. Veracruz remembered that he came to your door late last night, but everything was a blur after he knocked. He didn’t think you’d actually help him and let him stay the night, and he couldn’t help but watch you move around your kitchen as you finished breakfast.

“You look like shit,” Veracruz finally spoke, which made you turn around.

“Well, someone had to show up at my door injured in the middle of the night,” you snapped back as you brought two plates over and sat down next to him on the couch, “You have a lot of explaining to do, Veracruz.”

He stared at you, dumbfounded. Though the two of you were on opposite sides of a conflict, Veracruz never fully hated you. In fact, he always had it in the back of his mind that he could get you to come around to his side at some point… or at least in his bed. However, he was well aware how much you hated him. Yet, despite that, you patched up his wounds, let him stay at your place and served him breakfast. 

Veracruz also couldn’t help the way his eyes drifted down to your bare legs as your shorts rode up when you sat down. 

“Don’t even think about it,” you warned when you saw his eyes drift down. You weren’t sure if he fully remembered what happened last night, but you didn’t want a repeat of his comment. Nevermind the way your face felt warm when he looked at you that way.

No, you hated Veracruz. You hated him, and the fact that you saved his life last night was a fluke. You told yourself that you only did it so you could be the one to turn him in yourself.

“So,” you changed the subject, “Explanation,” you repeated. 

“I thought you could figure it out on your own, agent,” he snarked back. When you just stared at him, Veracruz let out a heavy sigh and sank back against the couch, “Your agency isn’t what you think it is.”

You gave him a pointed look but stayed silent.

The comandante ignored your glare as he went on, “They did this,” he declared simply.

All the fight left your body as your eyes went wide, “No… We don’t operate dirty like that.”

He let out a short laugh before he inhaled sharply from the pain, “You’re a good person, agent, but not everyone is like you.”

You pressed him to explain more, but Veracruz passed out as he mumbled incoherently. With a sigh, you checked over his wounds while he slept before you sat back and thought about his words. You always thought you did the right thing, and you tried to be a fair and just person. But Veracruz’s words threw you for a loop. 

Soon, you shook your head as you tried to physically chase the thoughts out before you went to clean up your space. It was late into the afternoon and the comandante still didn’t wake, so you decided to shake him to make sure he was still alive. He groaned in his sleep, but did not wake up.

At least he seemed to be ok. You decided to let him sleep for a few hours before you woke him again. 

“What the hell, agent?” Veracruz growled at you as he sat up and grasped his side where you slapped him to wake him up, “Was that really necessary?”

“Yes,” you retorted right away, “You need to shower before your wounds fester and I have to get a new couch.”

The comandante gave you a half smile before he slowly got up and made his way into the bathroom. You paced your living room while you listened to the shower run as you contemplated your next move. 

But you weren’t prepared for when Veracruz emerged from your bathroom in nothing but his boxers. You froze and you knew your mouth hung open, yet you couldn’t help it. 

“Like what you see, cariño?” the smirk on his face mocked you.

You quickly shook your head and regained your composure as you cleared your throat, “You wish,” you paused and when the comandante opened his mouth with another smart comment, you blurted out, “We need to share the bed.”

That stopped him in his tracks.

“You’re still injured and I don’t have a guest room,” you gestured to your bedroom, “I don’t want you dying on me now, comandante,” you addressed him in a mocking tone.

“Whatever you have to tell yourself, agent,” his tone matched yours but he followed your lead into your bedroom and you both settled into your bed.

You placed yourself as far away from him as possible, and you made sure your gun was within reach. “Try anything and I’ll make those injuries look like child’s play.”

Veracruz grunted in response, but you missed the grin on his face. Just that little bit of movement seemed to tire him out though, and the comandante passed out within minutes.

Since when did you actually care about him? You told yourself it was just because you didn’t want him to die, but something tugged at the back of your mind that told you otherwise. In all the times you clashed in the past, there always seemed to be some tension between the two of you, but until now you ignored it. Maybe it was partly because Veracruz had numerous opportunities to kill you, yet he always left you alive. What exactly was it between you and him?

It was the middle of the night when Veracruz woke up again. He blinked a few times to adjust his eyes to the darkness and he looked around, confused as to his surroundings. It was then that he remembered you allowed him to share your bed, and he looked over to find that you were sound asleep next to him. 

Veracruz watched you for several minutes, and you had never looked more peaceful. You had to have been tired to be able to sleep next to him, and he wondered how long you stayed up the previous night when you tended to his wounds. He honestly expected you to call your superior and turn him in, but he had no other options when he escaped custody. 

The comandante grinned as you let out a deep breath in your sleep. He reached out and gently brushed his hand along the side of your face, careful not to wake you, “I knew you had a soft spot for me, agent.” 

Your brows furrowed together, “Keep dreaming, comandante,” your voice cut through the darkness before you opened your eyes. When you did, you were met with Veracruz’s face only inches from yours.

Both of you stared at each other in tense silence for several moments before Veracruz closed the space between you with a chaste kiss. He didn’t lean any of his weight against you to give you the opportunity to push him away. Instead, however, you wrapped a hand around his neck and pulled him closer. You parted your lips for him, and Veracruz eagerly deepened the kiss.

Carefully, the comandante shifted himself so that he was positioned between your legs. He gazed down at you, splayed out on your back in just a tank top and shorts, and you looked even better than he ever imagined, “I like you at this angle, agent,” he teased in a low voice before he leaned in and kissed you again.

Your comeback was muffled by Veracruz’s lips, and the more he kissed you, the less you cared about anything other than his body on yours. The comandante clawed at your clothes, and he had you stripped naked in no time.

And when he fucked you, it was unlike anyone you had ever been with before. Veracruz was rough, yet passionate. Even a large wound on his side didn’t seem to hinder him or slow him down. You arched into his touch and wrapped yourself around him, desperate for as much contact as possible. 

The comandante filled you so well, and fucked you into your matterss so throughly. You tried to keep your moans down at first, but he managed to coax the sounds out of you with his touches and kisses. And Veracruz didn’t stop until you came multiple times.

Exhausted and spent, you and Veracruz both fell asleep quickly after that. True to your stubborn nature, you rolled away from him when you dozed off, determined not to fall into his arms. However, during the night, you turned over in your sleep, and Veracruz took the opportunity to pull you in close to him.

The next morning, the bright sun woke you up. With a grumble, you stirred in your bed and blindly reached out for Veracruz with your eyes still closed. You patted the bed a few times before your eyes shot open and you gasped when you realized you were alone. Quickly, you grabbed the closest piece of clothing and draped it over your body as you rushed out of your bedroom to look for the comandante.

You called his name as you dashed into your living room, but you were only met with silent stillness. 

“Mierda,” you cured to yourself as you ran your hands across your face, “I’m so stupid,” you added in a more hushed voice as your eyes dropped down to your coffee table.

That was when you noticed a note in the middle of the table. You crossed the room and picked it up. With a scowl on your face, your eyes scanned the page:

“I appreciate what you’ve done for me, agent. Your company wasn’t so bad. But now our little game is back on. Until next time, I’ll think of you often.”

You sighed deeply, “Fucking Veracruz.”

~

Notes: Something different for Veracruz lol! But I had fun writing this, and I enjoyed the enemies to possibly lovers angle here. And I kept the smut brief cause this got too long already and I wanted to keep this as a gender neutral reader. I hope you enjoyed this!