#i even went for a jog first thing this morning even though it was thanksgiving | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

glimmerglanger · 3 years

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If you feel like doing more HotR, could you do a Christmas (or any other family event) scene? I had a thought of Ben having a huge family Christmas for the first time in his life and it made me feel some type of way

Ohhhh, that’s such a cute and sweet idea. I ended up not going for Christmas, because the idea of a Thanksgiving meal occurred to me and wouldn’t let go. This is SO DOMESTIC. Codywan with a lot of family feels.

~~~~~

Ben had tried to cook a meal on Thanksgiving precisely once in his life, while in college and sharing an apartment with Quin. They’d attempted to cook a turkey in their oven, promising to handle the stuffing and potatoes, as well. Luminara and Bant were each supposed to bring other dishes, he could no longer recall exactly what.

None of them had succeeded.

Some of the resulting food had been, at least, edible. Much of it had not.

They’d eaten stale cereal with milk while sitting around and watching a football game, instead.

It was a good memory, in the end. Something they laughed about together. And Ben had never tried to cook anything like that, again. Qui-Gon had never been interested in such things growing up. He said it always ended up being a waste, and that true thankfulness had nothing to do with cooking too much food or overeating.

And so, really, Ben wasn’t expecting anything when he woke up on the last Thursday in November, tucked in close to Cody in the new bed they’d bought a month ago, tired of trying to wedge into Cody’s little twin.

Technically, he mostly noted Thanksgiving because it meant he didn’t have to work and could, allegedly, sleep in. But Cody was always up early. Cattle didn’t take holidays, after all, and Ben was generally up when Cody rose, after sharing a bed with him for a few months, and so he was sitting at the table in the pre-dawn light when Cody put a cup of tea in front of him and said, “Eat a big breakfast this morning, we won’t eat again until late.”

“Hm?” Ben asked, tilting his face up, and got a kiss in answer.

“I’ll be back,” Cody said, brushing a kiss to his forehead, as well, before zipping up his coat and disappearing through the door. “You finish waking up.”

Ben nodded, drank his tea, and pulled out his books to make some headway on his final paper; not due for weeks yet, but it was a huge project. By the time Cody came back, cold clinging to him, he’d gotten most of his work done and grinned, standing to pull Cody into a hug, murmuring, “How about you let me warm you up properly, hm?”

Cody grinned against his mouth, slid his cold hands up under Ben’s shirt, and said, “Later. We’ll warm each other up. Come on, get dressed. We’re about to start the cooking.”

And it was only then that Ben really, truly, recalled that most people around the country did something for the holiday. “Ah,” he said, with a little grimace, thinking about the delicious food that Jango and Val managed to produce on a regular basis, “I really can’t cook.”

Cody snorted, thumbs brushing over his skin, and said, “We know. That’s alright. Anyone can cut up vegetables. Come on.”

Which was how Ben ended up standing in the kitchen in the main house, which had been cleared of all chairs, the counters and table stacked with meat, vegetables, and large metal baskets.

“Here,” Cody said, nudging Ben between Wooley and Echo, “just cut whatever mom tells you to chop. I have to go check the pit.”

“The pit?” Ben asked, but Cody was already heading out the back door. Echo was involved in an animated conversation with Fives, and Wooley was humming along to whatever music playing through his earbuds, and so Ben just shrugged, took the yams he was handed, and started peeling and chopping them.

The parade was playing on repeat in the other room, the television turned so that everyone working around the table could kind of see it, and Ben fell to talking with Boba and Ahsoka - also contributing by chopping vegetables - as Val and Jango did something with what appeared to be a bunch of chicken over by the counters.

It wasn’t until Fox - and Ben had only met the man the night before - brought over a basket lined with aluminum foil and started putting the vegetables in, that Ben thought to ask, “What are we cooking, anyway?”

Fox blinked across at him. Despite having only met in person the previous day, Ben felt like he knew Fox well enough. They’d spoken often throughout his court cases, after all.

“Dinner,” Fox said.

“It’s a hāngi,” Boba said, tossing yams into the basket. “Mom and dad only do them for special occasions. You missed the one in July. Just put the vegetables in, you’ll see, it’s really good.”

And that was that. Ben helped load up the vegetables, and carried one of the baskets out through the back door when instructed, over to what appeared to be a pit, well back from the house.

Cody and Wolf - who had also flown in the night before - were standing over the pit, which was radiating heat, leaning on shovels. A large pile of ash sat to one side, and Cody’s pants were covered with it. Jango and Val reached the pit first, and Ben watched as baskets were lowered in, one after another, meat first followed by the vegetables.

Cody covered the food with blankets before he and Wolf grabbed up their shovels again and started burying the whole thing.

Ben lingered to watch, smiling when Cody finished and stepped over to kiss him sweetly. “Now what?” Ben asked, since he’d just watched them bury dinner.

“Now it cooks for a few hours,” Cody said, nuzzling back against his jaw. Cody no longer felt cold, but he’d been, apparently, standing by a fire pit and doing manual labour. “And then we eat it.”

“No,” Fives said, bounding up and pushing Cody’s shoulders before continuing on, “now we play football.”

Cody rolled his eyes and said, “That, too.” His expression grew more serious as he looked Ben up and down. “You don’t have to play.”

“I think there’ll be an uneven number of players, if I do,” Ben pointed out. It seemed handy, having twelve children if you wanted even teams for sporting events.

“Nah,” Rex said, arriving at a jog, “Ahsoka’s playing, so you have to, otherwise we’re a man down.”

Which was, he supposed, how they all ended up down in the field where Ahsoka still did the dog training classes, though the obstacles had all been cleared away, giving them lots of open space. The brothers agreed, after only a little arguing, that Fox and Wolf should get to be captains, to welcome them home, and the oldest set of twins quickly picked teams.

And Ben only realized that Cody thought he didn’t know how to play when Cody tugged him to one side - they were on the same team, which Boba had thought was hilarious - and said, “Just have fun, alright? We don’t play tackle anymore, and it isn’t a big deal who wins or loses.”

Ben stifled the smile that tried to curl across his lips at Cody - quite possibly one of the most competitive people he’d ever met - claiming that it didn’t matter who won or lost. He just nodded and said, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

And, when he got the ball, two plays into the game, he scrambled back, looked down field, and nailed Crys a few feet away from the line they’d designated the end zone. Crys caught the ball, shouted, laughing, dodged past Ponds, and took the two necessary steps before getting jumped on by half his brothers and buried.

Ben laughed, well back down the field, blood pumping fast with a swell of pleasure, and Cody grabbed him by his shoulders, turning him and pulling him into a kiss. “You!” Cody said, after a beat, pulling away from him. “You can--”

“Throw a football?” Ben suggested, kissing him again, briefly. “Indeed I can. Not as well as I could in highschool, but--”

Cody kissed him again, laughing against his mouth, and only quit when his brothers all gathered around to heckle them, insisting on getting back to the game. They chased one another around the field, grabbing for the rags tucked into belts, tossing the ball around, until Ben felt breathless and delighted, until Jango hollered for them from back towards the house.

Cody took his hand on the way back up the lane and led him around to the back of the house as many of the rest of his brothers flooded inside. Cody, Fox, Wolf, and Rex seemed to be on, well, unburying duty.

Ben watched them work for a moment, turning as Val stepped up to his side, offering him a beer, asking, “Good game?”

“Seemed to be,” Ben said, nodding his thanks and taking a long drink. It was cold, which felt good after all the activity. Despite the chilly temperatures, he was sweating all down his back, even with his coat thrown to one side.

“Good,” she said, and nudged him, “come inside and get cleaned up for dinner. Then you can come back and watch Cody, if you want.”

He snorted a laugh and followed her, scrubbing his hands clean over the kitchen sink, watching Cody through the window over the counter, listening to the family bicker about setting the table behind him and--

Swallowing, thickly, as his throat got tight all at once. He took the opportunity to splash water across his face, drying his skin even as cheers started going up, the brothers outside pulling the first of the baskets from the pit.

Ben shook himself and went to help out, bringing food inside, watching Val and Jango start dividing things up among all the different plates set around. It felt kind of like getting caught in a whirlwind of delicious smells and laughing people, all of it sorting itself out in the end with them clustered around the table, chairs all pressed together, wedged so close that Ben wondered, for a beat, if Cody were about to end up in his lap.

He didn’t, but it was a near thing.

The food smelled delicious, savory aromas filling up the room, chicken and some darker meat on his plate beside sweet potatoes, potatoes, cabbage, and what he thought might be pumpkin. The family talked and yelled and laughed through the meal, and Ben just...absorbed it, sat in the middle of it all and took it in, even as they finished and even as everyone pitched in to clean up.

“You’re quiet,” Cody said, much later, when all the work was done and they were back in their space, Ben toweling off his hair after a shower that he’d desperately needed.

“Mm?” Ben asked, tossing the towel into the hamper and shivering when Cody caught his hips, tugging him over to the bed, pressing a kiss low on his stomach.

“Today too much?” Cody asked, looking up at him, expression concerned, his hair still wet as well, curling up more from the moisture.

“No,” Ben said, leaning into his touch and threading his fingers back through Cody’s hair. He smiled, just a little, feeling his chest aching with an overabundance of contentment. “No,” he repeated, and sighed when Cody kissed his stomach again, “It was just enough.”

#my writing #glimmer replies #ask me anything #home (on the range)#the cowboy au #codywan #DOMESTIC TIME #oh gosh #family bonding

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solar3lunar · 4 years

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1.𝔹𝕖𝕒𝕔𝕙☼︎

Ayama POV

My alarm starts going off. I groan at it then shut it off. It's was a Sunday. I was wondering why I turned it on. I lied in my bed for a bit then it hit me. I wanted to torture myself today. By going on a walk on the beach.

I felt four paws on my thigh. "Morning, Nebula." I said. "Meow" "I'll get up." I told her. I stretched a bit. I took my bonnet off and got out the bed.

Once my feet hit the carpet. I walk towards my closest and pick out something simple and plain. I then went in the bathroom and set my clothes down on the counter and closed the door.

I got undress and put my shower cap on. And got in the shower. Once I was done in the bathroom. I walk out wearing a black tank top, a black crop top hoodie that I could only wear if I have a tank top under it. And black leggings.

I walked back into my room and went straight back to sleep. I woke up about 10 minutes later. Leo woke me up this time. "Okay, Okay." I sighed.

Knowing my dad already went out the house to help the other pro heroes with the exam that coming up tomorrow. I turn on the TV in my room, but all I found was news channel or ads talking about the exam.

I turned it off and went downstairs to get cereal not wanting to make pancakes or french toast. I pass a picture of my mother and father.

I stopped to look at it for awhile. I've seen some pictures of my mother. The rest are kept somewhere in my father's room.

She's Afro-Asian. She passed away when I was 3. I never met my grandpa or my grandmother from my mother side. They're villians after all.

I seen my mother's family members in Texas and some in California. We visit them sometimes whenever it's a holiday like Christmas or Thanksgiving. I've also seen my dad's family members other than his sister. He never told me why she not in my life. And tellsl me it best if I don't meet her.

Anyways, my mother's hair is natural black(or very very dark brown that looks black). Her hair was long and wavy in the first picture. Our hair same the same features. Our hair type can and it grows fast after a week or two. Her eyes were like mine, but her eyes colorare lavender and mines lilac.

Her skin is dark brown and it's very beautiful. I can't help but admire her. She also has some yellow sparkle across her face. They looked like stars. It's apart of one of her Quirks. Her eyes color and lavender.

She had four dark brown gazelle horns on her head and her gazelle ears were showing. Her body was well mature. I guess like mine though I never really care about my shape really. She has two of her horns wavy and the other two curly wrapping around the other white horns.

Her costume in the third was her in a long sleeve black crop top and black pants with gold medal plates around the rims of them. Her high combat boots were black. And finally she had a gold medal choker around her neck with the sun symbol in the middle of it.

(Considering her Quirks she doesn't really need a bold hero outfit.)

In the second picture her hair is long and was in a kinky fro she didn't show her horns. Despite her time being alive she was one of the top number ten heroes. I walked away from the picture to go eat.

"Leo! Nebula!" I watch the two come into the kitchen and go to their bowls. Turns out it was already filled. They just wanted me with them.

From what my Dad told me. He got them for my mom when it was her birthday. So the cats been in my life the moment they brought me home.

I keep thinking about the exam tomorrow. I wonder who I would see. Once I was done eating I decided to clean the house. I did every room but my dad's.

I decided to go down to the beach, because I don't want to stay in the house all day and game. I text my dad and inform him about my whereabouts.

I put 20 dollar into my phone case and put my phone in my pocket. And went near the door to put my shoes on.

Now that I'm here. I'm just going walk along the shore. Although it strange to be wearing this on a hot day. I honestly don't really care. I have my reasons.

I walk towards the beach and decided to walk along the shore. While doing that I saw Izuku jogging along the shore. Geeze he grown a lot. "Izuku!" I shouted. It doesn't seem like he can hear me so I tried calling out to him one more time. He didn't so I followed him.

I see him almost out of breath. "I finish what you asked." He said while breathing heavily. I look up to see he was talking to. I saw Uncle All Might, but I didn't say anything, because I didn't want to say about me being relate to my dad.

"Oh hey n-Ayama!" And that was a close call. "Wait?... Ayama!" Izuku shouts. "I been calling your name for the last minute." I spoke. I saw him blush a bit, but I ignore it. Not really sure why.

"Wait is it okay for her to see you like this?" He ask my uncle All Might. "Oh yeah. Before you I had told her about it, but she turned it down saying I should give to someone who doesn't have a quirk." He told him.

"Oh so that means you also know about 'The one for all' Right?" Izuku ask me. "That right, freckles." I giggled. "Freckles? BAHAHA!" Uncle All Might laugh blood coming out of his mouth.

Izuku was freaking out about it. I seen this before but I was just gross out. "Alright you can take a break. Oh by the way can you me a popsicle?" He asked me. "Sure."

"Come on Izuku! We have a lot of catching up to do." I shouted. He rush up to me as we went to the small market near the beach. Which lead you back to the roads and sidewalks.

We were talking about what the news were talking about. "I wish I could've been with you guys. Mostly to tell Katsuki to stop." I said with guilt.

"It's nothing to be guilty about." He said reassuring me. "To make it up to you can get what ever you want from the market just try not to go overboard." I said.

"Ayama you don't have to." He said waving his hands. "I insist." I tell him. "Your kindness never change a bit Ayama." He said. He right and that was a bad thing in middle school, but it not like it ever left me. I got myself a soda, Izuku got a chocolate mint ice cream bar, and I got uncle All Might a ice pop of himself.

"That would be 4 dollars, Ms." The cashier tells me. I paid her. She gave me my chain back. I thank her we both left walking back towards my uncle.

"So I'm guessing after today your finally getting your quirk."I said. He nodded while holding the bag in his hand.

"Oh I'd never asked you what are your quirk?" He asked me. "I have two of them, but their both complicated." I said. "Oh I see." He said. "Don't worry you'll get to see me in action at the exams." I cheer him up. Once we got the spot again.

"I want to be surprised that you're eating a popsicle of your self, but I'm not." I sighed. "It a hot day. I have every right." My uncle said. Leaving me and Izuku giggling and snickering. "Hey! What's so funny?!"

They went back to training and I decided to help uncle out with training. The fun part was Midoriya going on his back while doing push up. "I'm sorry Midoriya." I muttered. I spent almost the whole day with them. It was about 7:00pm

"Welp I better get going." I said. Me grabbing my soda bottle. "I'm guessing I'll see you at the exam?" I asked him. My uncle interrupt him "Oh yeah definitely!" I just sighed. "See you later Midoriya!" I shouted waving at them both.

I while walking towards my house I notice a teenager with ash blond hair that was spiky but looked soft. "I wonder if that could be... No. I doubt he would even remember me."

{Brain and Heart♡Melanie Martinez}

‘Help me when I'm at a loss for words. Bring up all of my memories for the please and the temporal.’ "There's that melody again."

'Well that was a fast walk.' Dad's Car was park in the driveway, so that meant he has came back. I open the door and then lock it behind me. I took my shoes off and left them at the door. "Lyric." My dad spoke. I jumped a bit. "Oh hey Dad." I said. "You seem lost in thought." He said.

"Oh yeah just a song came in my head. Although the melody was a bit strange." I spoke. "But who's know when I'll be using it." I shrugged my shoulders while walking towards the kitchen to go sit at the dinner table. It's was quite, but comfortable. I was just lost in my mind.

I got up from the dinner table and went towards the kitchen sink. That melody it sounded familiar, but I never heard it before.

I felt a hit on my hand. "Ouch, Dad!" I whined. "Next time, pay attention." He sighed. "What do you- Oh." I saw the dish I washing now broken in half.

"My bad." I mutter throwing it away in the trash. "Alright what was the lyric this time?" He ask. This isn't the first time this has happened. "Help me when I'm at a loss for words. Bring up all of my memories for the please and the temporal." I said.

"Don't give it too much though. If you go to sleep You'll have nothing to worry about." He said. He always does that. Brushes it off like it's nothing. "Alright, night Dad." I said.

"Good night and good luck tomorrow." He said. That right he won't be here when I wake up. I took a quick shower got into my PJs setting an alarm on my phone to wake up at 6:00am.

"I'm going to get a new bonnet. I can't stand this one. It's always falling off." I muttered.

The moment I closed my eyes. I saw someone with long wavy natural black hair and two gazelle brown horns and ears. I woke up and got out of bed and went straight downstairs to look at my mom's photos.

"I thought I told you to go to bed." My dad said. "Technically, you suggested it." I said. I'm still looking at my mother pictures.

"Bed. And I mean it." He said strictly. "Alright, alright." I said. Going straight to bed this time got it. I look at the clock it was 8:30pm.

"Just one question. Why do I have to go to bed this early?" [Ayama]

"Because you'll end up like me if you don't." [Aizawa]

~Wishlist~

~Luna Lyric~

~Universe navi~

#supanova

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softboywriting · 5 years

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Christmas Together | Shawn Mendes

Summary: When you and Shawn head home for Christmas, you end up stuck in a snowstorm in a small town in the middle of the united states. With all flights grounded until further notice, the two of you will have to spend Christmas together at a bed and breakfast. This blizzard may just be the push that brings the two of you together with the help of a little Christmas magic. [fluff] [Christmas themed] [personal assistant to lovers au] [non au shawn]

Word Count: 6k

|Masterlist In Bio|

Traveling with Shawn for the holidays is never easy. He is possibly the busiest man you've ever worked for but you don’t mind because being with Shawn is just like being with someone you love, because, well, you do love him. Thanksgiving came and went, yours in the states not his, you don't go home for that holiday anyways. It's not a big deal for your family back home. Christmas is though and traveling three days before Christmas is a nightmare.

Things were going smoothly, you had a plan to get home before christmas. Things were going perfectly until the last minute. You had somehow gotten two tickets on a fully booked flight from Brazil to Canada. The plan is for you to fly straight to the Toronto airport, no layovers and from there you'll catch a cab home to New York. You're about an hour into the flight and you can feel some turbulence coming on. No big deal. Until the pilot announced an emergency landing somewhere in Iowa.

"Oh no...no no shit." You look out the window and see nothing but clouds. No doubt about it, you’ve flown directly into a storm system.

"What? It's fine, we're just going to be a little delayed." Shawn rubs your shoulder. "It's no big deal."

"No, it is." You lean your head back against the headrest. "My sister is having a baby today and I promised I'd be there. My whole family is going to be there for Christmas. She's the first of us to have a kid."

"Oh. You didn't tell me that."

You look over and Shawn looks concerned. He always has such a big heart for everyone, it’s one of the many reasons why you love him so much. "I didn't think you needed to know. It's not work related."

"Well yeah but I still care about you. I know I'm your job but like, I'm still a person who cares about you."

"I know...I know I usually tell you everything it's just been...I've been-"

Shawn lays his hand on yours and you look down at it, heart racing. "I've been difficult lately. I know and I'm sorry. Traveling and shows have been hectic the last few weeks. It's totally my fault you’re overwhelmed."

"No, Shawn it's fine. My job is to take care of all that stuff. I'm not- I shouldn't complain about it."

"So what's stressing you out if it's not me?"

"Everything about the christmas season. My sister having a kid, obviously but...mostly it’s that christmas sucks when you're single okay?"

Shawn's eyebrows shoot up. "Why?"

"Because every year I go home and my siblings all have their girlfriends and boyfriends or fiance's and shit and I'm the odd one out. Every year I become the center of attention at dinner, the butt of the joke during gift opening. It's just a pain in the ass being branded as the forever alone child in the family."

"Why is your family so mean?"

"They aren't. They don't mean their comments venmously, it's just little things that bug me. Little indirect jabs that remind everyone I'm single and I have been for a long time."

"Why are you single?"

You give him a blank stare. He couldn't be serious. He doesn't understand that he's the reason you can't be in a relationship? That your job of tailing him everywhere and managing his schedule and life is just as stressful on a relationship with someone for you as it is for him. "Shawn, I'm constantly traveling. When am I supposed to date? When am I supposed to meet someone?"

"Fuck." He groans and scrubs a hand over his face. "You're in the same boat as me. I didn’t even think of it like that."

"Yeah except I can't fly somewhere every time I have a few days off to see someone and make an attempt at one."

He shakes his head. "I've doomed you to be single. I'm putting you through the same stress I put myself through and it's not fair."

"It's not. But it's my job, and you have yours."

Shawn grabs your arm as the plan drops and shakes. "I'll make it up to you, I swear." His voice falters as the plane jerks violently.

You squeeze your eyes shut and he threads his fingers between yours, palm a little sweaty. "I don't see how but okay."

"If we make it through this I will do everything I can to get you a date."

"You're crazy Mendes."

"Yeah but you already knew that."

_____________________

The plane lands in one piece despite feeling like it was going to tear in half at any moment. As soon as you get to the airline club lounge you find out the flight is not just delayed but all flights are grounded for the next forty eight hours at least. Two days. You are definitely going to miss your sister's baby and you're possibly going to miss Christmas. As much as you don't want to deal with your family for the holiday, you're still going to miss them and you’re upset you might not be there.

"What're we going to do?" You ask as you slump into a chair beside Shawn. He looks over from his phone and you raise your eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

"I got a place to stay until we can get another flight."

"What? How? That's my job."

He chuckles and pockets his phone. "I can book a place. I know how to use the internet."

"Well yeah but- how? There was a hotel with rooms free this close to Christmas and during a storm?"

"Kind of. Every hotel I looked at was full but there is a bed and breakfast about half an hour from the airport that had a room."

You stand up and grab your bag and suitcase. "I'll call a car or taxi or something for us and-"

Shawn lays his hand on your shoulder. "I did that too. I got an Uber."

"Oh."

"You do absolutely everything for me. I figured I could return the favor since right now is really stressful for you."

"But it's my job...it's not a favor."

Shawn shakes his head and grabs his bags. "Come on, you need to relax. I read that this b'nb is super nice and the rooms have huge tubs. I know you like baths."

"What? How do you know that?"

"You travel with mini bath bombs in your shower bag and you always seek out the hot tub when we book a really nice hotel on tour." Shawn looks back and you jog to catch up to him. "I guess I’m a little observant?"

"What else have you observed?" You ask nervously, hoping he hasn’t caught on to the fact you have very real feelings for him. You’ve done your best to hide them for a long time.

Shawn holds open the door to the pick up lanes for you as you step out into the icy wind blowing snow everywhere. "Your favorite color is red."

"Why's that?"

"You rarely wear it but when you do, you are always more confident and you seem more comfortable. You always pick red when given a choice of things and your eyes always light up whenever I wear my red button down, so I know you must like the color at least."

"Maybe that's because it looks so good on you."

He smirks. "Oh yeah?"

"Mmhmm."

"Good to know." Shawn steps out into the snow and approaches a black car. "Come on, this is our ride."

_____________________

The bed and breakfast looks like a winter wonderland. It's decked out in decorated trees, wreaths, lights, the whole nine yards when the Uber driver pulls up. It has a little sign in the front that says Dover Inn. How Shawn found this place you have no idea. A short walk up to the front and you and Shawn are pushing your way through a heavy door into a small foyer that's been converted into a check in area.

"Hello!" An older woman with long dark hair says as she comes out of a back area. Her name tag says Judy. "Do you have reservations?"

"Yes, Mendes. We booked online." Shawn shakes snow off his hat by the door. "The first name is Peter."

"Ah, yes, here you are." Judy says, squinting at her laptop on the old wood countertop. "Let me go see that the room is ready. I'll be right back."

"Peter?" You ask, dusting your coat off. "Why'd you use your middle name?"

"I didn't want to draw attention to myself. You know how fans are, they always somehow find out where I'm staying."

"True. Smart, actually. But we're in the middle of nowhere Iowa in a town of probably a few thousand people during a snowstorm. I'm pretty sure that no fans are going to bum rush you out here."

"I wasn't taking the risk." Shawn pulls his hat back on and you shake your head at him.

"Mr. Mendes?" Judy says from the stairs behind the check in desk.

"Yes?"

"You booked a double room correct?"

"Yes."

The woman walks forward to the desk and types something into her laptop, chewing on her lower lip. "There is an error with room numbers on the site, the room you booked is a single room suite with a queen bed. We can refund you if you like. I'm so sorry."

"No," you lay your hand on Shawn's arm before he can say anything. "It's fine. We will take it."

Shawn gives you a look, silently asking if you're sure.

"You're sure?" The host asks, looking between you and Shawn. "I can at least give you a discount for the mistake."

"That will be fine, thank you." Shawn says softly and the host grabs your room keys.

On the way up the stairs you notice how beautiful this place really is. It's old, a historic building if you were to guess. A large manor like house of sorts at some time, but now converted to a bed and breakfast. Everything is decked out in Christmas, literally everything. Judy leads you to your room at the end of the hall and opens the door.

"We have pillows and blankets in the closet. There are heated blankets available on request. Breakfast is served at eight until nine every morning. If you need anything you can call the front desk by dialing star five five. Feel free to explore the inn, we have a large living room and the kitchen open to guests after ten in the morning. Can I get you anything right now?"

"No, thank you." You smile as you look around the gorgeous room. It's huge and spacious. There is a fireplace in the center of the far wall, lounge chairs flanking it with a small tree decorated in the corner. A large queen-size bed with a huge bed frame and two dark wood dressers sit against the opposite wall. There is a door on the left of the entrance for the bathroom and the right for the closet. It's incredible.

Shawn drops his bag on the floor by the closet and pushes his suitcase and guitar case up against it. "You're fine with sharing a bed?"

"Yeah? Should I not be?"

"Well I mean isn’t it a little...intimate?"

You laugh. "Shawn, I've been your assistant for almost two years now. I'm pretty sure that I can survive sharing a bed for two nights with you. It's just like sharing your bed with your best friend when they sleep over." You drop your own bag by the closet. "Don't worry about it." You say this, but honestly you’re not sure how you’re going to fare. Being close to Shawn is one thing, but sharing a bed is a special kind of intimate, whether sexual or not, you worry about how you’ll be able to keep your cool.

Shawn takes off his coat and flops down on the bed. "I'm sorry you're missing your sister's baby."

You hang your own coat and flop down beside him. "There's nothing that can be done now."

"What if we can't get home for Christmas?"

You look over and he turns his head to look at you. "We have each other?"

"Yeah, we do." Shawn smiles softly. "I'm glad I'm stuck here with you."

"I'm glad it's you too."

____________________

Sleeping with Shawn is better than you expected. To start, you thought he would be a bed hog like he is on the tour bus, sprawled out all over his bed at the back of the bus, but he isn't. The two of you put on pajamas and crawled in on your respective sides. It was a little awkward at first, both of you unsure if it was okay to move or curl up or anything really. You decided to break that barrier though, push the button and make a move because the tension was absolutely eating you alive.

You scoot over from the very edge of the bed where you are laying uncomfortably still. You turn on your side and face Shawn who looks uncomfortable as hell too. "Hey, you look like you're petrified."

"I don't know what to do."

"How do you usually sleep with other people in your bed?"

Shawn rolls onto his side and props his head up on his hand. "Well, usually I spoon them because it's someone I'm very interested in and have usually just been intimate with. Other than that I usually sleep alone."

"Uh huh. So is it the lack of intimacy before hand that's stopping you?"

His cheeks turn dark pink in the soft glow of the white lights on the tree in the corner. "I-I don't know. Maybe?"

"If you need to spoon me so you can sleep, you can. I don't mind." You lay on your back and roll so your back is to him. You pat your side, inviting him to cuddle up. It’s the worst idea you’ve ever had and your heart is threatening to burst out of your chest at the sheer thought of Shawn being pressed against you. But how else will you ever get to experience a Shawn cuddle? You would rather know and live with that knowledge for the rest of your life while you pine in silence until you find someone to settle down with, than never know and always wonder just what you may have missed. "I trust you Shawn."

The bed shifts and you can feel the heat from his body as he scoots closer, but not quite touching. "You don't think it's weird?"

"We've been in much more intimate situations I’m sure. I've seen you naked a few dozen times. This isn't a big deal. I sleep better with someone close and you do too it seems. Just cuddle me and stop being so nervous about it."

Shawn's hand rests tentatively on your hip. "You're sure you don’t mind?"

"Shawn. I swear, it's fine." You chew on your lip, voice surprisingly convincing despite your nerves.

Finally Shawn takes the plunge, wrapping his arm around you and pulling you back against his warm body. Instantly you melt, body completely turning to mush. It’s everything you imagined it would be and more. He’s just right, bigger than you, warmer, soft but not too soft. You let out a sigh and he presses his nose to your hair.

"You smell really good,” Shawn says quietly.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome, and thank you for letting me cuddle you. I hope you don't think I'm weird."

You put your hand over his against your chest. "I always think you're weird, but not because of this."

"I miss it."

"Hmm? Miss what?"

"Being affectionate like this." He adjusts himself so he is fully pressed against the length of your body, feet covering yours between the blankets.. "It's been a long time."

You close your eyes, nervous to say what you really want to. Worried he will know you're falling for him. Well...that you’ve already fallen for him. You did that a long time ago. "I don't mind if you want to do this. I mean...like, again?"

Shawn presses his hand against your chest gently, holding you back against him as if giving you a hug. "I just might have to take you up on that offer sometime."

_____________________

Morning finds you warm and cozy. There is a fire in the fireplace when you sit up and look around the otherwise empty room. Shawn isn't there, but the smell of his body wash wafts in from the bathroom that's open but dark. You look to the clock over the fireplace and it's just after eight thirty. You check your phone and you have no signal, of course.

You stretch as you get up and go to the big windows on the far wall. It's snowing still. You doubt it has ever stopped. You grab the complimentary robe from the dresser on your side of the room and wrap up in it before heading downstairs.

In the dining area that's set up like a small restaurant would be with it's tables and chairs scattered around with families and couples sat in eating, you find Shawn alone by the fireplace sipping coffee and reading something on his phone.

"Morning," you say softly as you take a seat with your back to the fireplace. "How'd you sleep?"

"Like a baby. You?"

"Same."

Shawn puts his phone down and offers you his cup. "Coffee?"

"That's yours though?"

"Yeah but you can have some while we wait for the hostess to come by again." Shawn scoots the mug toward you. "I know you aren't sick or something."

You wrap your hands around the mug and lift it up to take a sip. Straight black coffee with a hint of sweetener. It's strong as hell and you swear you can feel it wake your senses up immediately. "This is horrible. How do you enjoy this?"

He laughs. "It's good?"

"No cream or something? It's like engine oil."

"Nuh uh." Shawn plucks his mug from your hands and takes a drink. "It's great. Oh, here comes the hostess."

You order some eggs, bacon and orange juice. Shawn asks for just some bacon and toast. You look out the window to see the snow reaching the bottom of it, drifted up from the wind no doubt. It has snowed so much you're seriously worried you may not get home for a while.

"What's wrong?"

"The snow. It keeps falling."

"Yep." Shawn turns and looks outside. "I told my parents I would be spending Christmas here. If I'm wrong, it'll be a surprise when I get home. If I'm right, they're not worried about me."

"You have signal?"

"Yeah. You don't?"

"No. Can I call my parents?"

Shawn hands you his phone and you excuse yourself to the living room where it's a little quieter. You dial your dad's cell number and lean against the wall near a tree.

"Dad? Hey it's me."

"Kiddo! Where are you? We thought you were coming home last night?"

"We had to land in Iowa. We're grounded for at least two days, but it might be longer. It's hasn't stopped snowing since last night. Did Penny have her baby?"

"Not yet. They said it could be any day now, I guess she wasn't ready."

"That's great! Well, not for Penny but I didn't miss it. Is she worried about me? Did she think I forgot?"

"No no, we figured you might have been delayed. Whose number are you calling from by the way? I didn't recognize it."

"It's Sh- the hotel's number. I'm using a landline."

"It's an out of country number? I thought you were in Iowa?"

You scrub a hand over your face and mentally kick yourself. You don't want to tell your dad it's Shawn's cell number but your lie doesn't make sense. "It's Shawn's phone. Promise me you won't give this number out."

"Shawn? You're traveling home with him?"

"Yeah, well, no."

"Honey!" You dad calls for your mom and you hear her respond in the background. "Our daughter is bringing home a guest for Christmas!"

"Dad! No! We aren't going to make it!"

"What's that dear? You're breaking up, I can barely make out your voice."

"Dad, we probably aren't going to make it for Christmas and I'm not bringing Shawn home. Dad, can you hear me?"

"You're bringing Shawn? That's okay! We'll see you soon!"

"Dad no! We aren't-" The line goes dead and you pull the phone away from your ear. The signal bars drop from three to none and you groan. Perfect...just perfect.

______________________

After breakfast you find Shawn in the living room with his guitar sitting with a little girl who has a cat piano that meows instead of playing regular piano notes. The girl is maybe five or six and you're pretty sure her grandma is the woman sitting a few feet away on her iPad. You lean against the archway that leads to the dining area and smile as Shawn let's the girl pluck a few strings on the guitar.

"You like music huh? What's your favorite?"

"I like the music from Frozen and Moana." The girl says and presses a key on her piano that makes a deep cat meowing sound. "I like Moana the best."

"Me too." Shawn smiles, playing a few chords. "I know the song How Far I’ll Go pretty well."

You shake your head as he smiles to himself. Of course he knows the song, it's one of Alessia's. Shawn looks up and sees you. He says something to the girl really quick and gets up, leaving his guitar on the floor.

"Hey, did you get to call your parents back after it dropped?"

"No, the signal keeps fading. I sent a few texts, hopefully they'll get them."

"Ah. Well...did you know you're standing under the mistletoe?"

"Huh?" You look up and sure enough there is a little sprig of green with holly berries attached to the archway. "No, I think you're under the mistletoe."

"No, it's definitely you and you know what that means."

"You're gonna kiss me?"

"Yep." Shawn leans in and kisses your cheek gently as you back up. "You're free to go now."

You roll your eyes and giggle as he steps forward and leans against the archway. "Oh no, looks like you're definitely under it now."

"Ah crap."

You stand on your tiptoes and kiss his cheek. "Looks like I was right all along."

Shawn laughs and turns away to go back into the living room. "I'll get you back for that, you lured me in."

"Uh huh. Sure you will." You head upstairs to find a movie on tv to kill time. May as well get used to it. You're going to be here a while longer.

_____________________

A little after noon Shawn finds you in the room curled up on the bed watching TV. You just got a text back from your dad saying that Penny had her baby. A boy named Lucas, eight pounds. You couldn't help but cry, disappointed you weren't there but happy that Penny had her baby okay. It sucks.

"What's wrong?" Shawn asks, sitting beside you on the bed. "Your eyes are red like you were upset."

"Penny had her baby."

"Oh! That's great, is she okay? Is the baby okay?"

You nod. "I'm just sad I couldn't be there for her. She's the first of my siblings and I to have a kid and I guess...I guess I sort of live vicariously through her."

"Oh."

"It's fine." You wipe your eyes. "Everyone is healthy. I'll get to meet the baby a little later. It's alright."

Shawn opens his arms and motions for you to come to him. You do, leaning forward until you're crawling into his arms. He holds you tight, rubbing up and down your back with his big soft hands. "Its okay to be upset. I understand if you're emotional about missing something clearly important to you."

You rub your nose on his shoulder. "Thank you. I'm sorry I'm crying so much."

"No, shh, you don't have to be sorry."

"But-"

Shawn squeezes you. "No buts, let it all out. You're always there for me on my bad days, I'm gonna be here for you."

_____________________

"Can I take you to dinner?"

You look up from your laptop. The inn has WiFi but it's not the best. You've just been updating schedules and trying to get any flight out of Iowa. So far everything is still grounded until the storms blow over. "Dinner?"

"Yeah. I was talking with some people in the living room earlier and they said that there is a place not too far from here that serves dinner through Christmas Eve. I thought maybe it'd get your mind off of everything."

"Sure." You close your laptop and get up to put on your coat. "Are we walking?"

"Yes. Wear your boots."

"Mmm and what are you going to wear?" You glance at his well loved chelsea boots in the corner. They're the only shoes he has with him aside from some tennis shoes made of breathable mesh.

Shawn grabs his boots and looks down at his feet, wiggling his toes in his socks. "I'll wear extra socks?"

"Mmhmm." You sit down and pull on your black leather boots that are possibly the best shoes you own. "Y'know you're a millionaire right? You can afford new boots just like those that aren't worn thin."

"I know. But these are comfortable, they're my boots."

"Right."

He groans as he sinks into the bed beside you to put on an extra pair of socks. "I promise I'll get new boots okay? But I won't get rid of these."

"Shawn, they're old."

"They're my favorite." He zips the side and stomps his foot down to adjust to the extra socks bulk. "Don't judge me."

"Alright, alright," you giggle. "I'll stop bullying you into getting new shoes. If they make you happy, that's what matters."

"They do." Shawn gets up and grabs his coat, tossing you his sweater he wore yesterday. "You might want that."

"I have a sweater?"

"The thin one that you wore yesterday? That's hardly a sweater."

"I didn't plan on being trapped in a snowglobe after leaving Brazil, a very non sweater climate. So sorry I didn't pack for a blizzard."

Shawn narrows his eyes and you narrow yours back. "I'm not going to take a human popsicle to dinner."

"Oh whatever." You snatch his sweater off the bed laughing as you pull it on. It's a little big and it smells like cinnamon and his cologne. So basically, Shawn. You used to wonder why he smelled like cinnamon, then you found out one of his primary vitamin supplements has cinnamon in it. It's supposed to help with metabolism or something. All you know is it makes him smell slightly spicy when he gets warm.

The walk to the restaurant is fairly short. It's just two blocks up from the inn. The snow is a pain to walk through and it's easier to walk in the street than it is to try and use the sidewalk. There are absolutely no cars out and about so you're pretty safe. There are a few other people in the restaurant when you step in, grateful to get out of the cold wind. You're glad you wore Shawn's sweater.

"So, if we are stuck here for Christmas, what do you want to do?" Shawn asks as soon as you're seated by the waitress.

"We're going to find a way home."

"I know you're trying but-"

You shake your head. "No, I'm going to find a way home. I missed Penny's baby. I'm not missing Christmas."

Shawn sighs softly. "Alright. We're going to find a way home. I'll get you home one way or another."

"We'll get us both home."

"Right. Enough about that though, we're supposed to be enjoying dinner and not thinking about all that." Shawn says, lifting his menu. "Look, they have a Christmas dinner option. Ham, potatoes and all the fixings. Sounds good."

You nod and try to focus on the menu. It's hard. You can't help but feel nervous as the day comes to a close. One day until Christmas. At least you're not alone.

_____________________

Just after two in the morning you wake up to a severe weather alert on your phone. The signal must have connected enough for you to get one. Shawn's phone goes off too, loudly buzzing on his dresser.

"What's going on?" Shawn asks sleepily, arm falling to your waist as you sit up.

"It's a severe weather alert." You read the message on your phone. "Blizzard warning. High winds may cause power outages across the state. Below freezing temperatures are in effect, be advised if going outdoors."

"Shit." Shawn mumbles.

"Shit is right. We're not leaving this place."

He pushes you back down and you curl up facing the windows away from him. "We'll be alright."

"This sucks."

"Mmm. I promise I'll make it up to you. It's my fault we're out here because I didn't want to leave Brazil until the last minute. I ruined Christmas." He sighs.

"Shawn, stop. You didn't ruin anything."

He cuddles you against him and presses his nose into your hair. "I'm sorry."

"You didn't do anything."

"I still feel guilty."

You grab his hand and he threads his fingers between yours. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, but I'm not very awake."

"Do you think we were meant to be here, together for Christmas?"

"Hmm?"

"Like...never mind."

Shawn yawns and doesn't press the subject. He relaxes into you, his weight comfortable against your back. You close your eyes, really enjoying this moment despite the impending knowledge of being stuck here for the holiday. You and Shawn fit together perfectly, maybe a little too perfectly.

_____________________

Shawn is gone again when you wake up in the morning. It's after eight and you know you should get up and go get breakfast, but you aren't hungry. It's Christmas Eve. You don't want to get up.

The bedroom door opens and Shawn walks in, bundled up and carrying a bag full of wrapped gifts. "Good morning."

"Morning. What's that?" You point to the gifts and Shawn grins sheepishly.

"Presents."

"For?"

"You?"

You raise your eyebrows. "Why do you have presents for me?"

Shawn sets the bag down by the tree and unwraps his scarf from around his face. "Everyone deserves gifts on Christmas day. And since we're going to be stuck here, I figured we should make our own Christmas."

"You're not sad you can't get home?"

"I was, but I talked to my dad this morning. He said that Christmas is what you make it, whether that be with family, friends or your pets. He said that they will miss me, but he doesn't want me to fret over it. We can do Christmas whenever I get home." Shawn hangs his coat and kicks off his boots. "I'm lucky, because I have you and I'm not alone."

"I guess you're right. We are together in the same boat."

"Yep. So let's make the best of it."

"I suppose I should get up and go shop for you now huh?"

"You could. But let's have some breakfast first." Shawn holds his hand out for you. "Come on, there is cinnamon roll pancakes with your name on them."

"There is?"

"Mmm. I talked to the kitchen staff this morning. They said they would make them special since we're some of the few guests left at the inn." Shawn bites his lip. "I know they're your favorite."

"You're sweet." You curl your fingers around his hand and he lifts you up out of bed. "Too sweet."

Shawn hugs you tight. "You deserve it."

_____________________

Breakfast is amazing. The kitchen crew out did themselves with the cinnamon pancakes with sweet icing for you. Shawn ordered just eggs and bacon but they're also super good. Even the coffee is better than before.

Shawn reaches out and swipes some icing off your lip with his thumb. "Do you like me?"

"What? Of course." Your heart sinks, stomach churning. You know he doesn’t mean in a general way. "Why?"

"I mean, as more than your friend or job...whatever. I've just been thinking. The last few days have been some of the best I've had and-" He looks away, flushed. "And you and I have been kind of flirting a lot? Unless I've been reading this completely wrong."

"You like me?"

"Of course I like you." He looks back and fidgets with his fork. "You and I have had a vibe since you joined the team. I think I've been too nervous to admit it before now. I was too scared to shoot my shot."

You grab Shawn's hand and make him stop tapping his fork on the table. "Calm down. I like you a lot. A whole lot."

"Yeah?" He grins, chewing on his lip.

"Yes."

"Good, because I don't want to stop sharing a bed with you any time soon. You’ve spoiled me the last few days. I don't think I've slept this well since before the tour started." He chuckles to himself. "Remember when I promised you on the plane that as soon as we landed I'd find you a date?"

You giggle and he lines his hand up with yours on the table, palms together, his fingers curling over the top of yours slightly. "Yes?"

"Do you want to go out with me tonight?"

"But there is a blizzard warning."

Shawn looks around the dining room. "We can stay here, I can get hot cocoa and cookies from the kitchen. We can watch a movie or something." His fingers slot between yours and you squeeze his hand. "We can stay up until midnight like kids on Christmas."

"Alright." You smile softly and he looks back just as soft. "Let's do it."

_____________________

At midnight you and Shawn exchange gifts, not all of them, just one each. You had gone out and shopped at a small store in town that had all sorts of things for the holidays. You picked out a few things for Shawn, just little memorable trinkets. One is a keychain so you never forget this holiday and it says first Christmas, Iowa. It's cheesy but you don't care. The next gift you grabbed was a paracord bracelet the store had by the registers. It's black with a red stripe down the middle. You couldn't pass it up. Shawn loves his accessories and especially if they mean something or are a gift.

Shawn hands you a small box wrapped in brown paper first. "Merry Christmas."

You turn it over and give him a look. "What is this?"

"Open it and see."

You tear off the brown paper and open up the box. Inside is a little sparkly rose charm on a gold chain. "This is so cute." You lift it out and it is so ornate and delicate. "Where did you get this?"

"It's a secret." He smirks.

"Mmhmm. You did not buy this here.”

“You can’t prove that.”

“Oh yeah? I have access to your bank account remember? I swore I wouldn’t use it for ill intent but...and you told me you’d never lie to me when we first met.”

“Fine, I did promise you that. I got it before we left Brazil. I was going to give it to you at the airport.”

“Thank you.” You curl your hand around it and smile. “Your turn." You hand him a tiny bag with the bracelet in it.

Shawn opens it and slips it on. "I love it."

"I thought you might. I didn’t get you something cool in Brazil....and I know it's not much but-"

Shawn leans forward and kisses you, hand resting against your neck. Your eyes go wide and he pulls back.

"W-what was that about?"

"Look up."

You tilt your head back and see there is mistletoe hanging over the area in front of the fireplace where you're sat with Shawn. It was definitely not there earlier. "When did that happen?"

"I told you I'd get you back." He smirks and it dawns on you. The other day in the living room, the mistletoe.

"You put that there." You laugh and he cups your cheek. "You...you put that there?"

"I did." He leans in and you take a deep breath. "And I did it because I needed some Christmas magic to give me the courage to do this." He presses his lips to yours once more and you slide your hand into his hair.

"Merry Christmas Shawn."

"Merry Christmas."

End

______________________

Thank you for reading! Please reblog if you enjoyed this and reblog to support and encourage myself and fellow writers. - A

*****Note: none of my works should be posted anywhere outside of my linked accounts. I do not give permission to repost with or without credit to my accounts. Please notify me of any reposted fics.*****

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softbiker · 4 years

Text

Born to Run - Chapter 17

Warnings: angst, alcohol abuse, anxiety, heartbreak, police violence (potentially triggering encounter, please heed the warning), language

Word count: 3.2k

A/N: Well, here it is. All I can do is say...I’m sorry. But I promise I’ll fix it. I decided to go ahead and post this tonight because I haven’t gotten to write much lately, I’ve been working constantly and now I’ve got a second job - so I just love getting to write and post when I can. Thank you for sticking with this story. It’s almost a year old now! As always, let me know what you think!!

“I dunno, Mom - I mean it’s not like I planned this-”

“Well, no, honey,” her mother huffed over the phone. “It doesn’t seem like you planned any of it.”

Y/N winced at the sting of her words but didn’t argue. With her phone wedged between her ear and her shoulder, she grabbed another stack of underwear and socks from the dresser and turned back towards her bed, where a suitcase lay open. A few pairs of jeans and a couple of sweaters were already folded inside. Off to one side, her toiletry bag was stuffed full - skincare and toothpaste and hair products she might not even use but tossed in anyway in her flustered packing frenzy. Her grip on the socks in her hands tightened to keep her fingers from trembling.

It had been 2 days since her fight - breakup - with Bucky. For the first 24 hours, she fell into an anxious, disorganized catatonia; she shuffled from room to room in her house, pacing and biting her nails, opening cabinets at random then promptly closing them. Her fingers tapped restlessly against her thigh, and her heart raced at a breakneck pace. If a single clear thought managed to arrange itself from the scattered clutter of her panic, it was only Bucky’s face, red-eyed and tear-stained as he pleaded with her. After splashing some water on her face and changing into sweatpants, she had put herself to bed, settling in for the longest night of her life. She tossed and turned, hearing the minutes tick by from the clock on the wall. At around 3 am, she threw off the covers in heartbroken frustration and stalked to the kitchen, setting the kettle on for tea and raiding her cabinets for any treats she could find. Thank God she still had that fancy dark chocolate she’d gotten last time she went to the city; it was the only thing her cupboards could provide in the way of comfort food. Armed with a steaming cup of lavender chamomile and an entire half-pound of dark chocolate she settled back under the covers and grabbed the T.V. Remote from her nightstand. If nothing else, she prayed Netflix could distract her, fill her mind with different faces, different voices - drown out the one that wouldn’t leave her.

She managed to doze off towards the end of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, tearful confessions playing in the background of her not-quite-dreams, and woke just before 7. A cold, clear morning greeted her through the window, the air in her room practically frigid, but something in it settled her. Quieted the static that had blurred out all thought since Bucky walked through her door the day before. With a deep breath, she threw off the covers and swung her feet out of bed, leaving the tea cup and chocolate wrapper to deal with later. It was her running shoes she reached for.

An hour and 10 kilometers later, she jogged back up her front porch steps, breathing heavy and feeling light. Her cheeks were charted from the wind, and her nose was running, but the grip on her heart had shaken loose. And as she clambered into the shower, stinging hot and billowing steam, new thoughts began to string together - thoughts for tomorrow, and the tomorrow after that.

Still in sweatpants, hair dripping, she’d scribbled down a list while she sipped her coffee. Names, to-do’s, a seed of a plan. In order, she phoned the clinic, her best friend, her residency program coordinator - and now, at last, her mom.

“I’m driving up to stay with Kat for a few days - maybe a week,” Y/N sighed, ignoring her mom’s comment. “Just to…clear my head, you know?”

“Sure, sure,” her mom agreed. “Though I don’t know why you couldn’t come here…I haven’t seen you since Thanksgiving-”

“Mom.” She closed her eyes, one hand settled on her hip. “It’s not a vacation.”

“No, sweetie, but it doesn’t hurt to come let your mom take care of you…”

Knuckles pressed to her eyelids, Y/N sat down on the edge of her bed. The old mattress creaked, as it had every night she slept in it for the last several months.

“I-I just,” she licked her dry lips and tried to swallow. “I need to be alone for a little bit, Mom. Once I’ve got it all figured out, I’ll let you know. And maybe…who knows, maybe I can come visit soon.”

“Sweetheart.” The voice on the phone is tired, resigned. “Why do you always try to do these things by yourself? You don’t have to be alone.”

Y/N’s throat tightened, her fingers curling into the fabric of her pants. She breathed slowly, warding back the lump that threatened to close off her voice.

“I’m sorry, Mom. But this time I do.”

**********

“You’ve got to go in there and wake him up-”

“I’m not doing it - I wouldn’t touch him with a 10 foot pole when he’s like this.”

“Well, someone’s got to. We’re bugging out in just a couple days-”

Heavy-eyed, and feeling like death warmed over, Bucky stirred at the sound of the voices outside his bedroom. Harsh winter sunlight burst through the blinds over his window; even before he opened his eyes it hurt. Something throbbed inside his skull, and his tongue felt thick and heavy in his parched mouth. Why the hell did he feel this bad? He couldn’t remember the last time he drank like this, to the point of blacked out nausea. His stomach roiled as he turned over, and he felt far too old to be drinking like there was no tomorrow, like he hated himself-

And then he remembered.

Y/N.

Suddenly he had no interest in getting up, getting water, getting something that would settle his stomach. He covered his face with his hands, fingers pressing firm against his eyelids and blocking out any light that came through. It was hot in his room, the combination of heating and a pile of blankets that someone had tucked him in with, but he didn’t move the covers, choosing instead to sweat underneath them.

How had he fucked up so badly? The best thing that ever happened to him - and now she was gone, baby, gone. It would’ve been alright, maybe, if Natasha had allowed him to talk to Y/N himself, but-

Natasha. Just the thought of her set his blood on fire, and he sat bolt upright in bed, his eyes flying open - only to immediately regret it as a stronger wave of nausea threatened to claim him. He quickly folded himself in half and put his head between his knees. When his head finally stopped spinning, he propped his elbows up against his knees and threaded his hands through his hair.

Already, he felt a thread of shame and guilt tugging at his gut. It wasn’t right to blame Natasha. He knew that. The lies were all his own; all Nat had done was reveal the truth.

But, God, the look on Y/N’s face - she had never looked at him that way, not even in the beginning when she was afraid he might be a criminal. It chilled him - right down to the marrow of his bones - the cold anger, the mask of disgust and disinterest that she wore to hide the way she hurt. And she did - he could see her pain cracking the ice in her eyes, no matter how she tried to hide it.

He hated himself for it.

A soft knock at the door, and Steve’s blond head poked in.

“Oh,” he said, eyebrows jumping in surprise. “You’re awake.”

Bucky’s scowl deepened as Steve and Sam kindly let themselves into his room and took up post at the foot of his bed.

“Yeah - thanks to you two. You wouldn’t know how to whisper if your life depended on it, Wilson.”

To his credit, Sam didn’t respond - merely rolled his eyes and cast an exasperated glance at Steve. With a sigh, Steve crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes down on the soft blue quilt Bucky had haphazardly wrinkled during the night.

“Look, I understand that you’re really upset right now.” Steve’s voice was soft, barely more than a murmur. “I know…I know how much she meant to you.”

Bucky felt his eyes starting to burn as he stared at his friends, and he hastily scrubbed at them with his palms, sniffing.

“But,” Steve continued, licking his lip. “We’ve got our marching orders - we’re on standby to pull out any day now. We - I - can’t have you going on binders, AWOL for 24 hours, and then stumbling in here piss drunk at 3 in the morning.”

“We thought you were dead, Barnes,” Sam added, clenching his jaw. “We’re on fuckin’ suicide watch, man. You’re gonna drink yourself to death over a breakup? Huh?”

Growling, Bucky reached behind himself for a pillow and hurled it at Sam’s head.

“Shut the fuck up-”

“No, Buck, Sam is right.” Steve’s brows were knitted together tightly. His eyes were sympathetic, but the rest of him was unflinching as stone. “You can’t do that again. What if you’d run yourself off the road, or gotten hit by a car?” Bucky scoffed, but Steve didn’t back down. Raising his voice he went on. “No, I really want you to think - would you be better off dead? Is that what you want? Is that what she would want?”

Eyes squeezed shut, Bucky saw her face right before him once again, her smiles, the way she used to look at him. The panic in her eyes during his parking lot showdown with Rumlow, the way she bit her lip when she was concentrating on something, how sleepy her eyes were in the mornings - each little piece of her, precious secrets he had tucked away in the hidden corners of his heart. He had thought, dreamed, that he had a lifetime to collect them all, fit all her parts together like a puzzle one piece at a time, and love every moment of it. Now, though. These lone pieces are all he has left, and they will never be enough.

What did she want? He knew only one thing for sure - that she was the only person who could say.

“I don’t think it matters to her either way, punk.”

**********

A few miles outside of town, just past the last lonely gas station, was the exit ramp to the interstate. The road had seen better years; the pavement was pitted with potholes and cracks, haphazardly patched with uneven lumps of asphalt that left drivers weaving between lanes and wondering which would do more damage to their tires. But, since this part of the state saw less traffic than other areas, infrastructure money was slow to trickle down towards repair and reconstruction.

Y/N had driven this road a handful of times - as she moved into town, and then when she had taken the drive a couple of times to visit her friends in the city. It was desolate enough to be a slightly depressing drive; nothing but scorched fields for miles on either side of the road, and the steep ditches that banked it on either side were overgrown with wispy stalks of dead grass. Overhead, a grey and overcast sky shadowed everything, promising a winter day best spent indoors.

She tuned in and out of a true crime podcast while she drove, hardly seeing the road in front of her. Her mind was too far gone on the events of the past few days - and everything she had to do with the coming ones. But there was something comforting here, in the grip of the wheel in her hands, a travel mug of coffee still steaming in the cupholder, an open road ahead of her. She felt…awake, present. Bruised, but not broken. And ready to get back up.

Of course, it shook her when a cop car pulled out of the overgrowth on the shoulder of the exit ramp, putting on speed to keep up with her. Mentally she reviewed her driving - still only 5 over the speed limit, her lights were on and working, her tags were in date. They had no reason to pull her over, she rationalized.

And they didn’t. The car stayed right behind her for the next 10 miles, quietly driving at her speed, keeping a couple car lengths’ distance between. No flashing lights, no sirens.

So why were her palms sweating?

After 20 miles, the sirens finally started blaring, blue and red flashes blinking in her rearview mirror. Despite being raised to respect the law, she felt nervous as she glanced back at the car, easing her foot off the accelerator, but not quite braking to pull over. She bit her lip, hesitating another few seconds as the alarm grew louder behind her. Her stomach clenched nervously.

Stop freaking out. You’re just worried about getting a ticket. Sucking in a deep breath through her nose, she scolded herself and gently pulled her car over to the side of the road, careful not to get too far into the muddy grass along the shoulder. Fingers fidgeting nervously on the steering wheel, she watched as the officer got out of his car and strolled up to her window at a leisurely pace. His head was shaved, and he wore dark mirrored sunglasses, in spite of the gloomy light of the day. As she rolled down her window, she squinted at his face, trying to recognize him from the adrenaline-blurred memories of the night Bucky killed Brock Rumlow - but the low slope of his cheekbones, the clean-shave, the firm-set frown are all unfamiliar to her.

“Good afternoon, ma’am,” he greeted her, one hand on his hip. It drew her eyes down towards his gun. “License and registration please.”

Instinctively, she nodded and reached towards her wallet lying in the passenger seat to dig out her license. The officer was silent, propping one hand against her car while he waited; she could hear her own heartbeat in her ears and willed herself to calm down.

Clearing her throat, she gathered her courage and spoke up.

“Excuse me, officer-” He barely glanced up from where he was perusing her car registration. “Why did you pull me over?”

He looked up at her fully at the question, shifting his stance and licking his upper lip.

“One of your tail lights is out,” he said, shoving her papers back through the window. “That’s a real safety issue.”

“My tail light…?” Her tail light - which had been changed only a month ago. She knew, because Bucky did it himself. He had always been worried about her safety; every time she was going somewhere without him, he did a full inspection of the car, testing brakes and changing the oil, going over every last inch of it and then filling up the tank with gas before she left. Last time, she’d sat in the garage nursing a cup of cider as she watched him fiddle with the lights…

She shook her head to lose the thoughts of him.

“I’m sorry, sir, but my tail lights are working just fine, I just had the bulbs changed.” She leaned forward in the seat, peering up at the officer. “Are you sure that there’s something wrong with them?”

Frown deepening even further, he crossed his arms and widened his stance.

“Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to get out of the car?”

“Excuse me?”

“Get out of the car, ma’am.”

“What? Why?”

“Please, just calm down and get out of the vehicle.”

“But-” her protest broke off as he shifted his stance back, one hand inching towards the mace in his belt. She glanced at her phone, sitting in the unoccupied cupholder with her aux cable connected to it. Her fingers twitched - for a microsecond, she contemplated the very bad idea of reaching for it, refusing to get out of the car, calling-calling…someone. Someone.

But surely, if she cooperated, this would all be worked out with just a minor headache, or maybe a ticket, she reassured herself. She repeated it in her head as she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door, climbing out of the car carefully, her hands held out to her sides where they could be seen.

Once she was out of her car, the officer took a step forward and pushed on her door, shutting it with a resounding click.

“Okay, I’m out of the car…”

“Turn around and put your hands on the hood.”

“I’m sorry, what?” she exclaimed, hearing her voice hitch in alarm. Her eyes cast up the road and back towards the exit ramps - there were no other cars in sight. No witnesses. “Am I under arrest?”

“Shut the fuck up,” he growled, out of patience. His hand went to rest on his gun now. “Turn around and put your fucking hands on the hood of the car.”

Her fists curled and she stood her ground. She willed away her thoughts of Bucky.

“No. I haven’t broken the law, you can’t arrest me for having a tail light out-”

In a blink, his gun was up and trained directly on her.

“Put your hands on the fucking car!” he yelled, loud enough to make her wince at the volume. Her thoughts tunneled on the barrel of the gun aimed at her chest.

Wordlessly, she turned and planted her hands on the cold metal, shivering in just her sweatshirt, her winter coat tossed in the passenger seat while she was driving. The tips of her fingers went numb and her eyes watered, stung by the wind. Her dry tongue pressed against the backs of her teeth - if she tried to swallow she’d choke.

“Who are you?” Her voice shook, but she managed the words. Scared and alone, but she’d fight, goddammit. She’d fight. He would want her to fight. “Who the hell are you and what do you want?”

“Shut up.” A firm, cold point of pressure between her shoulder blades as he pressed the gun against her back. There was a faint buzzing sound and then the rustle of fabric; when he spoke again, it clearly wasn’t to her. “Yes, sir?” He answered his phone. “Yes - we’re on schedule. I have the package. Will confirm when its secure and en route.”

Her heart raced wildly and her mind went white with fear. What was he talking about? This had to be some kind of mistake, a misunderstanding-

Just as she opened her mouth to speak again, the butt of his gun came down against the back of her head; her vision exploded in stars, and then faded to black as she slumped against her car. Barely conscious, she felt herself being dragged away down the road, lifted and shoved into the backseat of the squad car, unceremoniously dumped with her face down against the cold leather. The engine hummed to life; a seatbelt clicked - not hers.

“Sir?” He spoke again from the front seat. “Package is secured.”

She wondered if Bucky was coming to find her. He would, she told herself. He’d come.

And then, nothing.

#bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #bucky x reader fic #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes fanfiction #born to run #biker!bucky #biker!bucky au #biker!bucky fic

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let-me-love-you-loki · 4 years

Text

Welcome to Oblivion--Ch. 15

Chapter 15

Drew looked up from the notebook on his lap and grunted. “Addy? You okay?”

The sound of his voice startled me awake. It was the week before Thanksgiving and the majority of the professors had decided it was time they torture us with exams and papers and projects. I’d been up late the night before working on a paper for my world history class and then had to get up early for a Poms workout. I shouldn’t have been surprised that I’d practically fallen asleep on my textbooks.

“Huh?” I asked, wiping drool off the corner of my mouth.

The big Scotsman laughed and leaned back in his chair. “You’re useless right now,” he said with a grin. “Go take a walk or something. Otherwise, we’re both going to fail psychology.”

I nodded, not quite hearing what he was saying. Standing up, I threw on my jacket and tugged gloves over my hands. A walk around the quad would do me good. That, and maybe a stop at the coffee shop. Yeah, I thought, that’ll do the trick.

The sky was gunmetal grey as I stepped out into the quad. Leftover frost tinted the grass silver. Freshly spread salt crunched under my feet on the sidewalk. The weather was calling for snow overnight. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen a good, heavy snow. Living down South made that a rare occurrence. I nearly jogged to close the distance to the student center. The cold bit at my face and slid down into my lungs.

I let out a sigh when I stepped into the warm, coffee scented air of the shop. Just the smell perked me up more than I would have thought. People were milling around, some at tables with laptops and stacks of textbooks, others curled up on mismatched furniture with containers of steaming muffins. I dropped into the line and tugged off my gloves so I could dig out my card.

“Shit,” I said under my breath, realizing too late that I’d left everything in the dorm. I didn’t even have my key to get back into the building. Or my phone to text Drew to let me in. “Shit. Shit. Shit.”

More than a little frustrated—and slightly embarrassed—I turned on my heel and made to jump out of the line. No coffee for me. Only a cold walk back to the dorm and an even colder wait for someone to walk by and let me in. I was paying so much attention to wallowing in pity and tugging on my gloves that I shouldered into someone waiting in the line behind me.

“God, I’m sorry! I didn’t—” Looking up, I caught sight of Roman’s dark-haired, dark-eyed roommate. The one I’d literally slammed into a few weeks ago in the hallway.

“It’s cool. Hey, I know you.” His voice was deep but with a hint of something gruff just beneath. My first thought was that it didn’t match with the way he looked.

Heat burned my cheeks. “Yeah… you’re Roman’s roommate.”

“Seth Rollins,” he said, sticking out his hand. I took it, trying not to think about how we’d first met. “Addy, right?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

He looked from me to the coffee counter. “Change your mind?”

“Left my card in my dorm.” I rolled my eyes and tucked my fists back into my pockets. “Along with my phone and my keys.”

“Coffee’s on me then.” He smiled and pulled me back into the line in front of him. “Roman would kill me otherwise.”

***

I grinned when I saw Drew pacing in front of the door. He pushed it open the second he saw me crossing the quad with a coffee cup in my hands. “Didn’t even check before you left, did ya?” he asked, dangling my keys and phone from his hands.

“I’m sorry,” I replied slipping into the building past his bulk. “But I ran into Roman’s roommate at the coffee shop and he hooked me up.”

Drew lifted a brow as he followed me back toward the lounge where our books were still spread out on one of the tables. “I’m sure the Big Dog will be happy about that.”

“Shut up, Drew. Now where’s my astronomy lab book? We’ve got an exam tonight.”

***

Roman pulled into the parking lot outside his apartment. It was almost three in the morning, and I was exhausted. While I was glad that we’d gotten our astronomy midterm over with, I needed sleep more than anything else. And I didn’t feel like driving the rest of the way back to the dorm.

He came around the truck and gathered me up in his arms, carrying me princess style inside. The television was on, and I caught sight of Dean sitting on the sofa in sweatpants and a t-shirt, his feet propped up on the coffee table. He looked up as we came inside.

“Hey, Ro,” Dean said faintly. His voice seemed to fade in and out as I fell further toward sleep. “She’s a princess now, huh?”

“Shut up,” Roman hissed back. “She’s asleep. Or close to. Any food in the fridge?”

“Yeah, there’s some pizza from last night.” For a moment, there was quiet. Then… “Dude, just put her down here and get something to eat.”

For a moment, Roman was still. Then he turned toward the sound of Dean’s voice and carried me over to the sofa. There was a heavy rustling noise just before I was settled down on cushions that were surprisingly plush and comfortable. My feet bumped into Dean’s legs, and I tucked them back close to me.

“Jesus Christ stretch out,” Dean said, a frustrated edge in his voice. He reached for my feet and, though his voice sounded upset, his fingers were gentle as he pulled my feet into his lap. His hands were warm on my toes. “Ro, get the princess here a blanket. She’s freezing.”

Dean kept his hands on my feet, rubbing my toes between his palms to work some warmth into them. Half-awake, I wriggled my toes, snuggling into the cushions. I really wanted to go crawl into Roman’s bed—I knew it was comfortable, plush, and warm. And it smelled wonderfully like Roman which made it easier to sleep.

“Here,” I heard Roman’s voice nearby. Dean’s body shifted beneath my feet and, an instant later, he was spreading a blanket over me, taking the time to tuck it around my legs. “And turn that down so she can rest.”

The sound that Dean made was halfway frustrated and halfway something like indulgence. But he moved around, the noise of the television dipped, and a peaceful calm settled over the room. I could sense Roman somewhere near my head… a sensation confirmed when his fingers slid into my hair. A faint sigh of happiness slipped past my lips as I finally drifted straight off to sleep.

***

I woke up what was probably hours later, but might have been only a few minutes. Everything was pitch black. I was disoriented for a moment, unsure of where I was. The faint ache in my hip was enough to remind me. I was curled on my side on the sofa in Roman’s apartment. I shifted, trying to take some of the pressure off. My feet bumped into something warm and solid.

“Stop wigglin’, princess,” came Dean’s sleepy voice. “Go back to sleep.”

For a moment, I stayed still. But the ache in my hips and my joints made it impossible to rest anywhere close to comfortably. Every move made me bump Dean.

“Goddamn it,” Dean said after I wiggled another two or three times. He pulled himself from beneath my feet and stood up.

The next thing I knew, I was being lifted up. It wasn’t the gentle carry of Roman. Dean had leaned over and picked me up around the waist, practically putting me over his shoulder like I was a sack of potatoes. I had a clear view of Dean’s broad back as he carried me down the hall to Roman’s room. While I expected a hard drop onto the mattress, he squatted down and sat me on the edge before easing me sideways.

“Go to sleep,” he said gruffly.

***

I woke up alone, clearly in Roman’s bed, still in my clothes from the night before. My head swam, desperate for something to drink. Grunting, running my hands through my hair to take care of the knots, I padded down the hallway. The door that I figured belonged to Seth was closed tight. The next was wide open. But I could see into the living room, and both Dean and Roman were still there. The former was stretched out on the sofa where I had started out the night. The latter was sprawled in the chair, arms and legs hanging off the edges. His head was dropped back in a ridiculously uncomfortable position.

Grinning, I made my way to the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. Then I went to dig around in the fridge to find something to eat. I grabbed a carton of eggs, and found everything I needed to make scrambled eggs. Some of the weariness of the night before began to fade away at the scent of fresh coffee.

Moment by moment, the apartment filled with the sounds of people waking. There was a groan and a loud thump. When I turned around, Dean was getting to his feet after having fallen into the floor. He was bleary eyed, his auburn hair sticking up at odd angles. There was a red mark on his cheek from how he slept.

“Morning, Dean,” I said just loud enough to get his attention. He stumbled into the kitchen, making a bee line for the coffee maker. “Do you like scrambled eggs?”

A grunt was his only response. At least until he was halfway through a cup of black coffee. “Princess can cook, huh?”

“When she has enough to work with, yes. But right now, she’s only got eggs.”

Dean slipped around behind me to get to the fridge. He dug around for a minute and pulled out an almost empty bag of shredded cheddar cheese, microwavable bacon, and a slightly questionable Tupperware container of chopped vegetables. “Enough to work with?”

“Those,” I said, pointing at the container, “look like they’d kill us. But the rest… I can manage.”

He grunted again, snatching up his coffee cup and the Tupperware. As he walked back toward the living room, he tossed the container into the garbage. “Call me when breakfast’s ready, princess,” Dean said over his shoulder.

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@mox-made-me-do-it @vebner37

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side-effect-of-the-meds · 5 years

Note

Do you know what I need more of? Ania’s and Kevin’s friendship. Like I would die for them

This isn’t very much but I actually kinda like it so I hope you do too!

Ania hadn’t thought that Aaron could get any gloomier.

“Never say never,” Kevin grumbled as they watched his sullen form slink around the dorm. From the kitchen, they could hear the crash and clatter of pots and pans. Nicky had grown uncharacteristically quiet in the days since Erin’s departure for Easthaven but the slamming of drawers and cabinet doors made up for his silence.

“Are they going to be okay?” Ania asked in french.

“They can still play,” Kevin replied. Aaron and Nicky weren’t like them. The upperclassmen might have dubbed the cousins ‘the monsters’ but the three of them had proved to be anything but.

Monsters were heartless. Nicky had a heart of gold.

Monsters were selfish. Everything Aaron did, he did for his sister.

Monsters were soulless. Just because Erin didn’t love the way everyone else did, didn’t mean she didn’t love at all.

Monsters did what they did, not because they had to, but because they wanted to. By that logic, Kevin and Ania weren’t monsters either. They were beasts; everything they did, they did to survive. They’d do what they did until their bones broke and their hearts stopped. That wasn’t true. Kevin had broken his arm and here he was, playing with everything he had. Ania’s heart had stopped before and yet here she was, running from her past as fast as she could. So long as there was even an ounce of strength left in their bodies, Kevin would play and Ania would run. It was all they knew how to do.

She opened her mouth to tell him as much but stopped short at the look on his face. His gaze was focused on a point in the distance as he crushed the stuffed fox plush closer to his chest. It had been a present from Erin, won at a carnival that summer.

“Look, it’s you,” Erin had said, presenting her prize to Kevin

“That’s a fox,” he replied, his brow furrowed.

“I’m getting tired of you acting like you’re so much better than us. You play for Palmetto now, Day. That makes you a fox.” She paused then, inspecting the toy. “Maybe he just doesn’t resemble you well enough.” Wrenching the toy’s front left leg off, she held the altered plush up for him to inspect. “Better?” she asked. The manic smile accompanying her words made Ania’s blood run cold. Glancing at Kevin, she saw his frightened gaze trained on the severed limb in Erin’s hand. He nodded dumbly and accepted the stuffed fox without another word.

A month ago, the plush had disappeared. Ania had found Erin in the girls’ locker room with needle and thread, mending the toy. Their eyes met and Ania saw the challenge in Erin’s gaze.

“You should use thicker thread,” Ania offered.

“You’ll see the tear,” Erin replied.

“And Kevin will always see his scar.” Erin considered that for a minute before pulling out the neat row of stitches she’d just placed. With a thick, white thread, she resewed the detached arm. Ania watched as Kevin cradled the toy when Erin handed it back to him.

“Thank you,” he’d whispered. Erin had already started for the door but Ania knew she’d heard when she caught a glimpse of way Erin’s lips tugged upwards into a sad smile.

“Hey,” Ania said softly, snapping Kevin out of his daze. “She’ll be back on the court in no time.

“She isn’t like us,” Kevin countered. “There’s more to her than Exy.” And then, in a voice so soft that Ania thought she’d imagined it, he added, “She’s more than just an investment. She’s my friend.”

Kevin’s words knocked the breath from Ania’s lungs. Immediately, she felt infinitely more alone. After only a year and a half at the Foxhole Court, Kevin was already more human than she was. To be fair, the foxes worked their magic pretty quickly. In the seven months Ania had been here, she’d found her own glacial heart starting to thaw.

The upperclassmen were congenial and kind, giving without ever expecting anything in return. They all flocked around Ania, offering her comfort and advice the way she imagined normal parents would. The cousins were wild and reckless, their antics bringing quiet smiles to Ania’s face. There was Kevin and Coach, both strict and hard to please but supportive and fiercely protective of her no matter what she did.

And then there was Erin. Drugged to the heavens, her snark matched Ania’s toxic tongue to a t. Sober, her cold and callous facade didn’t last long. Her curiosity almost always won out, evident in the mischievous glittering of her eyes. The pair of them danced on knife’s edge trading secrets as they shared cigarettes.

And then there was that. A certain sense of… something pervaded many of their exchanges. From the barely there brush of Erin’s shoulder against hers to the conspiratorial whispers they shared while they taunted one another, there was something about it all that Ania didn’t quite understand. She’d long since given up trying to interpret what any of it meant. Even so, that didn’t stop the butterflies from flaring to life in her stomach everytime Erin so much as glanced at her nor Ania’s pulse from racing whenever she came close. More than likely, it was the adrenaline flooding her system to fuel her fight or flight response.

Regardless, Kevin had grown a heart and Ania was growing soft. She’d have to leave soon. But not before Erin came home.

Swallowing, Ania offered Kevin one of the few truths that truly hurt her to admit. “She’s my best friend, Kevin. You and Erin are all I have left.” Kevin turned an incredulous look on her.

“But your mom-”

“Mom told me that the only way I’d ever set foot on a court again was over her dead body.” Kevin frowned as he searched for the answer to his unfinished question. As the weight of her implication hit him, his face crumpled.

“Ania,” he choked. A thin sheen of tears coated his emerald eyes. Ania shrugged as she turned her attention to the blank t.v. screen. Suddenly, she felt a pair of arms wrap around. Too surprised to move, Ania let Kevin draw her into his lap. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“It’s not your fault,” she managed.

“I know. I’m just sorry that I’m fifty percent of your assets.” At that, Ania laughed. She twisted in time to see Kevin’s watery smile.

Thanksgiving break came and went. Aaron and Nicky spent it at Abby’s. Kevin and Ania spent it at the court. They ran drills from sunrise to sunset. More than once, Ania caught herself searching the stadium seats for Erin. Kevin caught on quickly and picked up the pace, keeping her distracted. It was little after midnight when Ania collapsed from exhaustion. Laying on the court floor, she realized that her legs were going numb. It didn’t matter. She had to get up. She had to keep going.

“Junkie.” Erin’s voice echoed through Ania’s head. Ania closed her eyes and saw the mirthful, dopey smile that always accompanied the word.

“Ania,” Kevin called. She pried her eyes open to watch him jog across the court towards her. Hauling herself up, she leaned heavily against her racquet. “Let’s call it a day.”

“No. I’m fine.” No sooner had the words left her mouth when she pitched forward. She must have looked unsteady because Kevin was ready to catch her. Scooping her up with ease, he carried her to the court door. With some difficulty, he opened it. Setting her down on the bench, he propped her up against the wall. He began unstrapping her gear. “I can do it myself,” she said, making no move to stop him.

“You can shower by yourself,” he said as though it were some consolation. Ania glared at him and he smiled. It was a wide, toothy grin that Ania hadn’t seen since she was very small. For the first time in eight years, she saw the Kevin she’d chased across the Evermore courts. Smiling at her, Ania remembered how much she’d loved Kevin, the only person in her life who’d made her feel normal.

Nathan hadn’t had time to sit around and teach Ania anything that wasn’t directly involved with the family business. Her mother had been too wrapped up in her own misery to spare her daughter any attention. It had been Kevin that had taught Ania how to tie her shoes and spell her name. On the days that she visited Evermore, he’d been the one to shake her awake in the morning and tuck her in at night. He’d even managed to convince Tetsuji to let him go to Baltimore so he could hold her hand as he walked her to her first day of preschool. Kevin might not have been related to her by blood but he’d always been the closest thing Ania had ever had to family.

After resting awhile on the bench, Ania found the strength to stand and make her way to the locker rooms. She showered quickly but thoroughly before tossing her gear into the laundry cart. Kevin came out not long after, clutching a clean towel.

“You’ll catch a cold,” he said, motioning to her wet hair. Ania sat quietly as he dried her hair for her. Once he’d finished, he chucked it into the laundry bin beside the gear. Sitting down beside her, he wrapped his arms around her. Ania leaned into him instinctively. “One down, six to go,” he said. Ania deflated. Six weeks, six whole weeks, until Erin came home.

“Kevin?” He hummed in response. “Will you sing for me?” She felt him work his jaw as he searched for a response. “You don’t have to.”

She felt his chest swell as he took a deep breath. Kevin’s voice was a soft tenor, untrained but enough to soothe Ania. Where Kevin had been raised on Exy, Erin had been raised on music. She’d sang from a young age as a coping mechanism for the horrors she faced in her negligent foster homes. At twelve, her foster mother, Cass, had heard Erin singing and sent her to class. Erin spoke about Cass in the most wistful tone, piquing Ania’s curiosity. In exchange for a few inconsequential secrets, Erin admitted that Cass had offered to adopt her. She’d turned Cass down in favor of moving in with Aaron. Ania had thought the whole thing strange but she hadn’t pushed. Knowing now that Cass was Drake’s mother, the pieces slotted into place. Of course, Erin had chosen to take her chances with Tilda rather than remain with the Spears.

In the years since her departure from the Spear home, Erin had taken up smoking. The bad habit gave her voice a gravely texture that Ania adored far more than she cared to admit. Often, she found herself pressing her ear up against the dorm wall to catch the faint strains of Erin singing to herself.

It wasn’t as though Erin didn’t sing in front of the others. In fact, she sang as she dressed at her locker beside Ania and in the car and on the bus and as they walked to the corner store. Drugged to the heavens, Erin sang seemingly lighthearted songs that grew dark as you registered the lyrics. However, returning from her early morning runs during their trips to Columbia, Ania always ran into a half-asleep Erin in the kitchen as she prepared breakfast.

Sober but sleepy, Erin’s beautiful voice drifted through the kitchen, singing mournfully of partners past. Recently, Erin had begun to allow Ania to sit on the kitchen island while she worked. She sang wistfully of beautiful girls and eloping lovers as she swayed before the stove.

The morning before Erin left for Easthaven had gone similarly. Ania had been standing beside her, scrambling eggs to go with the bacon. Lighting a cigarette with the fire from the stove, Erin had turned to offer one to Ania as well. Ania had accepted before realizing that she had no light. Just as she was about to light it the way Erin had, Erin closed the space between the two of them. Cupping Ania’s face in one hand, she pressed the cherry of her cigarette to the unlit one between Ania’s lips with her eyes closed.

As Erin drew away, she turned, returning to singing without missing a beat. As a kid, the children in Ania’s school had said that if one person put their mouth on something and then another person pressed their own lips to the same spot, they’d claim that it was an indirect kiss. If those were indirect kisses, then what was that? She didn’t know.

It doesn’t matter, she told herself. She’d spent too much time here at Palmetto. She didn’t have time to figure out whatever game Erin was playing now. Six weeks until Erin would come home. Six weeks until it was time for Ania to leave. It would be lonely out on the run after living with so many people for so long. It would be cold too. With her face pressed up to Kevin’s chest, rumbling as he sang, and his warm arms wrapped around her, Ania felt her eyes closing. I’ve got six weeks to enjoy all of this. Six weeks and I’m gone, she promised herself before drifting off to sleep in Kevin’s arms.

#just a pipe dream #erin minyard #ania josten #kevin day #kevin day hc #fem!andreil #all for the game

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savemefromanepicoftimewasted · 5 years

Text

I Always Knew

Steve Rogers X Bucky Barnes Steve laughed bitterly, taking off his glasses to wipe away the tears that had begun to slide down his cheeks. Bucky wanted to reach over and wipe them away for him, to show him that he wasn’t completely alone.

a/n:this is my submission for @capcountdownchristmas, i got the quote “You’re being ungrateful!” hope you guys enjoy! tw:alcoholism references, cheating, fluff at the end at least!

Steve was known to go over the top with decorations, they were usually scattered around the apartment he shared with both Sam, and Bucky. The other two men didn’t mind so much, as long as it didn’t affect them personally. So when they came home and found the apartment clean, with absolutely no decorations whatsoever, it was quite a shock. Surely Steve knew that it was after Thanksgiving, and that he was allowed to decorate.

“Do you think he forgot or something?” Sam looked around the living room, as if he could find the answers there.

“We’ve known the man since we were kids Sam, he didn’t forget that Christmas is a few weeks away.” Bucky stepped over to the fireplace, electric as it was cleaner than an actual fireplace, noticing a few things were missing.

Steve had put a picture of himself with his mom, and Peggy, back before she’d lost her battle with cancer and left Steve to be on his own. A loud crunch echoed in the otherwise silent apartment as Bucky turned to face Sam. The frame had been thrown onto the ground, glass shattered against the dark wood.

“What the hell?” Bucky knelt down, pushing aside the broken glass to pull the photo out of the now broken frame.

“Isn’t that the last picture Steve had with his mom?” Sam abandon his search and headed over to where Bucky was, glancing over his shoulder.

“Yeah, so why the hell was this on the floor?” Bucky knew damn well that it couldn’t of magically fallen off.

The frame was sturdy on top of the mantle, they’d done enough stupid shit in the past that could’ve easily knocked it off, and nothing had, so what changed? Luckily the photo inside looked to be completely fine, except for the fact that Peggy was no longer in the photo.

“Oh shit.” Bucky handed the torn picture over to Sam, sighing more to himself than anything.

It was obvious what had happened, and this wasn’t something either of them were trained to handle properly. Bucky had seen Steve go through nearly everything in his life, had been the one to help pick up the pieces when his mother passed. This though? Bucky wasn’t ready to deal with it just yet.

“It doesn’t sound like he’s home, he probably left after he threw the frame, and tore the picture up.” Sam shook his head, setting the photo down onto the coffee table.

Alpine, Bucky’s little furball of a cat, had perched himself in the middle of the couch, curled up in a comfortable ball, watching the two adults try and figure out what to do.

“We need to talk to him, figure out what happened.” Bucky could already feel a headache forming, running his hands through his hair with a long sigh.

“Trust me, I know, but I’m afraid of how he’s going to react to all of this.” Sam merely shrugged, stepping around to go into the kitchen.

Alpine perked his head up, meowing softly as Bucky reached over to pet him gently. Sometimes he wished he could talk to Al, figure out what he should do with his life so he didn’t feel so lost.

“Buck, I don’t think he left.” Sam’s voice, although quiet, was loud enough to gain his attention.

Bucky headed over, picking up the sound of what seemed to be someone sobbing. Shit, had Steve been home this entire time? Listening to them discuss what was going to happen when they had to confront him?

“Give him some space for now, if we go in there he’s gonna be pissed, and I’m not gonna be on the receiving end of Steve’s anger.” Sam had a point, whenever Steve was upset he tended to cry first, and get unbearably angry second.

It wasn’t going to be easy though, not if Bucky planned on trying to figure out what even set Steve off in the first place. If this had anything to do with Peggy, Steve was going to be a wreck for a while. They were inseparable, and it seemed like things hadn’t ended as pleasantly as everyone had expected.

“I gotta do something Sam, I can’t just let him wallow in his own self pity, he’d hate us for letting him do that.” Bucky frowned, watching as Sam’s brow rose nearly to his hairline.

“I’m sorry, did you just say you wanted to go help Steve whose most likely having a mental breakdown? The man will kill you with his bare hands without a single thought.” Sam had a point, but damnit, Bucky needed to help his friend.

Which is exactly what he didn’t do. Bucky had tried to knock nearly five times, chickening out each and every time he was outside the door. He knew better than to try and get Steve to open up when his wounds were too open and raw. Instead, he headed down to his own bedroom and turned on netflix, letting Alpine climb onto his stomach and relax.

And it was perfectly fine for the night, he wasn’t entirely sure when he’d managed to fall asleep, the sun peeking through the blinds letting him know that it was morning. Al was still perched on his stomach, sleeping as contedly as ever. Man, what Bucky wouldn’t give to feel that kind of relaxation.

Unfortunately, when he managed to get out of bed and head out to get some breakfast for himself and the little feline, he noticed that Steve was already gone for the day. He always went for a jog in the morning before heading down to work. Except it was a saturday, so he had the day off.

“Have you seen Steve?” Bucky looked over to where Sam was busy typing on his laptop, brow furrowed in concentration.

“Nope, he was gone before I even got up, and you know I don’t sleep very late anymore.” Sam had gotten into the habit of waking up at the ass crack of dawn, and it hadn’t stopped him for a while.

“Shit, do you think he’d answer if I called him?” Sam gave Bucky a ‘you really can’t be this stupid’ type of look.

Bucky, on the other hand, happened to be quite stupid when he wanted to be. Which ended with him calling Steve approximately three times, and texting him five before finally giving up. He wanted to be left entirely alone, and it was glaringly obvious.

“Maybe I could call Peggy, see what’s going on.” There was clearly tension in the air, something had happened that Steve refused to share.

They’d broken up years ago, fortunately there was no ill will towards the other, or at least no one could sense that. Sam noticed an open envelope, addressed to Sam, Bucky, and Steve. He was expecting some kind of invitation to another wedding, or a jack and jill for one of their friends that were getting married. What he wasn’t expecting to see was Peggy’s wedding invite, falling on the exact date of Sarah Rogers’ death.

“Buck.” Sam felt his blood run cold, fear racing through his veins as he stared at the other man.

“Please tell me that’s a joke.” Bucky took the invite from him carefully, noticing that some of the ink seemed to be smudged.

Steve must’ve checked the mail after he’d gotten home and seen the invite when Bucky, and Sam were still at work. This wasn’t something they could handle easily, Steve only ever really had his mom growing up, and to have this thrown in his face.

The door swung open harshly, slamming into the wall with a loud bang. Bucky jumped, spinning around to face the incomer. Steve looked horrible, from his rumpled clothes, bloodshot eyes that looked far too red from where Bucky could see them. The smell of whiskey seeped into the air, almost choking Bucky where he stood across the room.

“Steve, what the hell?” Bucky was ready to start yelling, to demand answers to the questions burning in his mind.

“Leav’m alone.” Steve stumbled down towards his bedroom, falling into the wall as he struggled to stay upright.

Sam could only watch with horror, the man he’d called his best friend for so long was degraded to nothing, a shell. He was so strong, had been named the Star Spangled Man With A Plan when they were all in the army together. That had been a joke, a way to keep everyone’s spirits up when they got home sick. This though? This was Steve at the lowest point he could be in.

“He did the same thing when mom passed, blamed himself for not making sure she was seeing her doctor regularly.” Bucky and Sam had practically dragged him to a rehab center for his drinking, and he’d come out of it healthy.

It had been almost nine years since her passing, they always took the day to remember Sarah for the woman she was, making promises to be the type of people that would make her happy.

“You’re his sponsor, it’s not really a surprise on why he didn’t bother talking to you.” Bucky sighed, running a hand through his hair.

He was tempted to follow Steve, to see how truly broken he was over this entire mess. That wouldn’t do any good though, not unless he wanted to have the wrath that was pissed off, and drunk, Steve Rogers coming after him.

He could really only do so much.

“I’m gonna talk to him.” Bucky puffed his chest out, taking a deep breath before heading down to Steve’s room.

Sam wished him good luck, cause he was definitely going to need it right now.

The door was unlocked, and partially open when Bucky made his way down the hall, standing outside as his nerves took hold. What would he even be able to say that wouldn’t set off the blonde? ‘Oh, sorry to hear that your ex is getting married on the anniversary of your mom’s death, what’d you wanna do for dinner?’. Bucky couldn’t do that without losing his head, even if the words were simply to break the tension in the room.

“Steve?” Bucky stepped into the room slowly, unsure as to what sight would greet him.

Steve was curled up on his bed, all six feet, and two hundred forty pounds, looking as small as he had when Bucky and he were kids. How could someone manage to look so small with shoulders wider than most doorways? Now’s not the time to think about something like that.

Steve’s shoulders were falling and rising slowly, as if he was asleep. He kept his footsteps quiet, leaning over to check on his best friend. Steve wasn’t sleeping, much to Bucky’s disappointment. His cheeks were splotchy and red, streaked with tears, knuckles torn and bloody. So not only had Steve gone out and gotten beyond drunk, he’d also managed to get into a fight with someone, the cops would be showing up when Bucky least expected, he could feel it.

“She was there when it happened, saw my mom take her last breath, and this is how she decides to spend her wedding?” Bucky frowned, stepping closer to the edge of the bed.

Tears were sliding down Steve’s cheek once more, jaw set harshly as he glared a hole into the wall, well, tried to at least.

“Steve, you can’t get mad at Peggy for moving on and getting married when you were too much of a chicken shit to ask her, she has her own reasons for choosing that date.” Bucky knew his words were harsher than intended, and it wasn’t going to put him in Steve’s good graces.

The blond lunged off his bed, nearly knocking over the lamp that sat on his bedside table, his glasses were hanging precariously near the edge. How the hell had Steve managed to walk around town without them on? Or had he taken them off at some point while he was out getting drunk?

“I’m not mad that she moved on, I’m pissed off that she chose the day my mom died to get married! She knows how fucked up that date made me feel, and if you’re going to side with her, you can get the fuck out.” Bucky furrowed his brow, shocked at the words spewing from the other man’s mouth.

“You’re being ungrateful!” Bucky glared at the other man, arms crossed over his chest.

Steved laughed bitterly, throwing his head back as if he’d heard the most hilarious joke in the world. “I’m being ungrateful? For thinking my ex is being a little pessimistic and choosing a day I try not to think about because it drove me to alcoholism? I thought I knew you better, but clearly there’s things I don’t know about you.” Steve’s voice was abnormally calm, expression smoothing over into a smooth mask.

Bucky knew exactly what it meant, he’d served alongside Steve for nearly five years, this was the persona he’d taken on when he’d been promoted to Captain.

“Get out Buck.” Steve hadn’t moved an inch, body tense as he stared the other man down.

Bucky didn’t wait any longer, storming out of the room and down to where Sam was nervously pacing. It was a habit he’d picked up from being in the army, waiting to hear news about friends that were on their own missions.

“Leave him be, he’s in one of his moods right now, and I’m not about to be lectured by someone who was called Captain America.” Bucky scoffed, plopping down onto the couch with a groan.

Sam didn’t bother to ask, he knew better than to acknowledge the sudden change that seemed to shift in the air.

“Why don’t we go out and get something to eat, let him be pissy all he wants.” Bucky couldn’t deny the offer, it seemed too tempting to go out and stuff his face for the next hour.

And that’s exactly what he and Sam did. Well, Bucky only stuffed his face a little, he didn’t want to overdo it in case Steve wanted to talk when they got back. Well, Bucky knew Steve like the back of his hand, and there was no way he would be willing to talk.

Sam stepped into the apartment first, listening for any kind of noise that would let him know where Steve was. Alpine was perched on his cat bed, relaxing in the midday sun as he slept peacefully. Bucky wanted to run over and get a picture before the ball of fur woke up from his nap. He couldn’t do that though, not when he and Sam noticed that Steve had made his way out to the living room, in what Bucky could only describe as a blanket burrito.

They looked at one another, unsure of what their next step should be. Would Steve be angry that they were back at the apartment? Or would he simply pick himself and head back down to the solace of his room?

“Steve?” Sam held his hand out, slowly walking over to where the other man was currently laying.

“Bucky’s right, I am being ungrateful.” Steve’s voice sounded so hollow, void of any and all emotion as he glanced over to where the photo of him and his mom currently sat.

He’d tried to fix the frame before slipping the photo inside, grimacing at how the glass seemed to be cracked the most over his mother’s face. He’d taken the last photo he had of her, and ruined it out of his own selfishness.

“No wonder she finally gave up and left.” Steve muttered softly to himself.

“Steve, that’s not true.” Bucky frowned, standing beside Sam who’d kept a few feet between himself and Steve.

“I developed a drinking problem that nearly killed me Buck, I didn’t get into the army because I needed something to do to pass the time.” Steve laughed, the sound sodarnic and bitter.

Bucky and Sam had already enlisted by the time Steve had followed close behind, saying that he needed a new perspective on life. He’d moved up quickly, passing Bucky within the first few months before he’d been made a Captain. To know that he’d wanted to die on the battlefield, it left a sour taste in his mouth.

“Wait a second, you’re telling me when you ran into the burning building, you weren’t planning on coming back out alive? Steve, what the fuck!” Bucky was furious, his best friend was suicidal in a place where people tried to keep themselves alive at all costs.

Bucky wanted to scream at him for being so stupid and reckless, why hadn’t he said anything to Bucky or Sam? Why bottle everything inside to the point that he was ready to risk everything?

“She had been seeing Daniel before we broke up, said that I wasn’t emotionally there for her anymore, so she found someone who could do it for her.” Steve smiled to himself, it seemed disproportionate on his face.

“I had buried my mom a week before she told me, and I think the only reason she said anything was because I caught them,” Steve’s eyes welled with tears, this wasn’t something Steve had talked about before.

“God, I begged her to stay, that I could do better for her.” Bucky glanced over to Sam, forcing to keep his own emotions in check.

This wasn’t something they could easily talk about, not without opening old wounds that had healed so long ago.

“You know my mom was the only person who knew I was bisexual? I tried not to let it show, like I needed help instead of telling everyone the truth. Peggy ended up finding out after the funeral, she found a journal I’d started writing in, that was a screaming match from hell.” Steve ran a hand through his hair, grimacing at the greasy feeling.

“Said there was something wrong with me, that I shouldn’t be having feelings for anyone else, that I was a freak.” Bucky’s jaw had hit the floor, Steve had already been going through enough, and to be attacked so harshly?

Bucky felt terrible suddenly, guilt washing over him like a tidal wave as he realized he’d of reacted the same way all those years ago.

Not about Steve of course, but about himself.

“She didn’t like that you were figuring yourself out, so she wanted to make you hurt.” Sam sounded so much like a therapist that it bothered Bucky more than it should.

He’d come out to his family when he was fifteen, telling them that he was gay, and they’d been supportive of him. Of course things between him and Steve were a little tense when he’d started getting out into the dating world, but he assumed it was because he was getting into the dating pool. Steve was still tiny, overlooked by everyone around him while Bucky was pulled in every direction.

People would ask why they were friends, Steve wasn’t worth his time, Bucky could clearly do so much better. He didn’t want to though, he and Steve were best friends from childhood, and no one could change that about them. It wasn’t until Bucky had gotten together with his first boyfriend that their friendship was nearly torn apart.

Jordan Wilson was a good kid, he and Bucky were what most people would’ve considered the perfect couple, but Jordan was accepted to a college out in Cali. Bucky had told him to do what was best, so they broke off their relationship. There wouldn’t be any bad blood between the two, something Bucky was grateful for.

Except he worried about Steve more and more, the man was drinking nearly three bottles of vodka every weekend. It escalated to everyday soon after, Steve stumbling drunk wherever he went. Bucky was terrified his friend was going to get himself killed, so he sent him to rehab.

“She always told me that I’d end up alone if we broke up, I guess she was right.” The room felt thick with tension, Steve’s shoulders slumped forward as he stared at the coffee table.

“That’s not true and you know it.” Bucky sat down next to Steve, giving the other man enough space to keep him comfortable.

Steve laughed bitterly, taking off his glasses to wipe away the tears that had begun to slide down his cheeks. Bucky wanted to reach over and wipe them away for him, to show him that he wasn’t completely alone.

“Who would even want me Buck? I’m barely making ends meet, I’m a recovering alcoholic, I can’t stand the thought of the spring because it reminds me of my mom, add the PTSD from being in the army, who the hells gonna want that?” Steve didn’t turn to look at him, wiping his glasses off with the end of his shirt before sliding them back on.

Bucky could either let their conversation die where it was, or admit something he’d held in his heart ever since he was barely thirteen years old.

“I’m in love with you.” It felt like word vomit, Bucky couldn’t stop the words even if he were actually trying to.

It sounded as if everyone in the room had stopped breathing, Steve’s eyes were wide behind the lenses of his glasses. Sam was staring at him incredulously, and Bucky was more shocked he’d finally admitted it.

“It took you long enough to admit it.” Steve didn’t sound angry, more amused than anything.

“What?” Bucky felt flabbergasted, Steve knew?

Bucky glanced over to where Sam was, noticing that he looked just as confused and shocked.

“I’ve been kinda obvious about how I felt, but you never showed any interest so I backed off.” Steve glanced over at the brunette, raising a brow.

“You’ve had feelings for me?” Bucky wasn’t entirely sure how his jaw was still working, it felt almost as if it had fallen off.

“Remember when we were playing spin the bottle, well you were playing and I was sort of sitting on the side, over at Micky’s place?” Bucky nodded dumbly.

It brought a smile to Steve’s lips, he snickered under his breath.

“Well, when it landed on me and they kept telling you to kiss me cause they were kids and assholes, well I thought about that kiss all the time. I didn’t want to say anything and make stuff weird between us, but yeah.” Steve shrugged as if he hadn’t just dropped a bomb on Bucky.

Sam slowly walked out of the living room, clearly trying to gather his thoughts on how to even approach what was going on.

“So, would you like to get coffee sometime?” Steve’s smirk snapped Bucky out of his trance, bringing him back down to earth.

“Yeah, I think I’d like that.” Bucky smiled softly, cheeks darkening with a blush.

The holidays didn’t seem so bad anymore.

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stereksecretsanta · 5 years

Text

Merry Christmas, @dwarvyn!

Read on AO3

*****

Different

It would be fair to say Derek has been looking forward to the holidays this year. Usually, the thought of Christmas crowds, overplayed jingles, and endless hints about presents has him in a mood that is not so much “merry and bright” as it is “grin and bear it.”

This year is different.

This year, Stiles is coming home. He’s submitting all of his finals online, so he’s coming back after the last day of classes, December 12th. And he’s staying into the New Year, a whole three weeks to spend with his dad, with his pack, and hopefully, with Derek.

His hopes for the holidays get turned sideways when he overhears a conversation between Stiles and Scott.

Scott is cradling the phone against his ear so he can make a sandwich in Derek’s kitchen, and he’s “mm-hm”-ing and “I know”-ing along in time to what sounds like a rant. Derek doesn’t intend to eavesdrop, and it’s really not his fault his hearing is so good, and his brain so attuned to Stiles’s voice. He starts to get phrases, and is just about to dismiss the conversation as yet another complaint about Stiles’s criminal justice professor when his tone changes, and Stiles says, very clearly:

“Max, the love of my life.”

Derek leaves the kitchen in a hurry.

After that, it’s like Derek never hears Stiles talk about anything other than his new boyfriend, to anyone and everyone, including Derek.

He texts, can’t wait for you to meet max btw!!

Derek sighs. He wants to be happy for Stiles, he does. Is max staying for the whole trip?

Lol obviously dude

“Not a chance,” Stiles is sighing over Skype with Isaac and Allison. “Besides, I’m not looking for a date. I have Max. And I haven’t even introduced him to the pack yet!”

Derek hates himself for it, but he’s shattered to hear Stiles has someone he wants to introduce to the pack. None of his other significant others have been significant enough to bring home.

Max even manages to ruin a pack meeting phone call with Stiles. They’re not even talking about it, how instead of coming home for three weeks, he’s coming home with Max for three weeks. They’re talking about other things, like Christmas plans, how the solstice ritual will go, whether the Nemeton might appreciate decorations. Derek thinks not, Stiles declares that shiny garland will make even the grumpiest tree happy, and this ritual is all about making the Nemeton happy for the upcoming year, and there’s nothing wrong with celebrating the solstice with a bit of good cheer, and his dad already put up their tree without him, please let him decorate this one…

And suddenly it’s Max again.

Stiles yawns and says he has to get going. “I’ll be up at 5:30 with Max.”

“Why so early?” Kira asks, leaning in toward the laptop they’ve got set up for Skype.

“We’ve been walking with Mrs. Bailey next door. She’s taking care of her son’s lab while he’s overseas, and he can be too strong for her. We try to run off some of his energy in the mornings before classes. I take an extra lap around the park with Dodger and Max chills with Mrs. Bailey and they watch the ducks.”

“That’s so sweet,” Kira says. “Do they get along?”

“Yeah!” Stiles nods excitedly. “I didn’t know how Max would do, but he’s been great with Dodger.”

“Enough about Max,” Derek snaps.

Everyone stares at him.

Derek walks out, even though they were Skyping Stiles from his house. He runs the perimeter twice, making sure the conversation will be long over before he returns.

Stiles returns as planned, but since he’s working on final essays he holes up at his dad’s for a few days. Scott goes over several times, until he’s kicked out for being distracting. Derek doesn’t stop by, and Stiles doesn’t text after the first day.

The first time Derek actually sees Stiles, he’s sitting at Beacon Beans with Scott and Kira. He’s lounging back in his chair, one hand wrapped around a mug. He looks relaxed, so finals must be over.

There’s no sign of Max, thankfully, so Derek decides to get his coffee and go over and say hi. He knows Stiles is taken, but he wants to be near him after so much time apart. Seeing him on the screen is nothing to seeing him up close and real.

While he’s staring, Stiles glances over. His eyes light up and he smiles.

“Stiles, are you bringing Max to Derek’s?”

“I don’t know,” Stiles says, glancing Derek’s way with a sad tilt to his lips. “I don’t want to cause trouble. Max is kind of stupid around strangers.”

“Didn’t he do okay when he met your dad?”

“Yeah, when it was just us,” Stiles says. “but when we went to Jack and Eric’s for Thanksgiving, Max couldn’t handle himself and snuck into the kitchen and ate a whole pie before we even sat down to turkey.”

“Oh no,” Kira giggles.

Stiles nods. “He spent most of the day sleeping it off on the couch. Like I said, stupid around strangers.”

Derek turns away to collect his coffee and misses the next thing said. He hovers by the counter for a moment, considering going over to say hi or just head out.

“Eric was ready to throw me out because of Max, dude. That’s serious! I think Jack put in a good word, plus I’m pretty sure some of their old teammates put away a pie each.”

Scott and Kira laugh, but Derek rolls his eyes. The guy sounds like he has no self control. Derek’s trying not to judge, really, but the more he hears about Max, the less he thinks of him. He’d at least be civilized enough to stay and socialize, especially with Stiles’s dad.

He leaves without acknowledging them. He has shopping to do, anyway.

He gets a text from Stiles as he gets into the car. Just saw you at bb. You didn’t come over?

He doesn’t reply, but by the time he’s heading home he feels guilty, so he stops by the Stilinski house on the off chance Stiles will be there. He stands on the porch, reluctant to knock, but Stiles is pack, and Derek needs him to know he can tell him anything, and he can bring his boyfriend to Christmas if he wants to.

He knocks.

Stiles opens the door. “Hey, I was just going to go for a walk with Max. Wanna come?”

Absolutely not. “No,” he starts, “I just wanted to talk to you.”

He hears nails scrabbling against the kitchen floor and pauses.

A brown and white, floppy-eared dog pokes its head between Stiles’s legs to stare at Derek. Stiles stumbles and laughs, pushing at its snout. “Max, did you hear the word? Go find your leash.” He grins at Derek when Max - Max - scrambles backward and bounces off, presumably to retrieve his leash. “Come on, we haven’t had a chance to talk yet, and I’ve been back almost three days already. Walk with us.”

Derek smiles. “Okay.”

He waits by the door while Stiles crosses to get his keys, then hurries back to the kitchen for plastic bags, then stops in the living room to slip into a jacket, sidestepping Max all the while, who follows dutifully with his leash in his mouth and trailing between his feet, tripping him. The two look ridiculously well-suited, long-legged but not graceful, a chaotic but not uncoordinated dance.

Finally, Stiles shuts and locks the door. Max leads them eagerly off the porch and down to the sidewalk, tail wagging and nose twitching.

“When were you going to tell me you had a dog?”

“I talk about Max all the time. In fact, I’ve been reliably informed I talk about him too much,” Stiles says with a wry grin.

Derek shrugs. “I was out of line.”

“I never figured you’d be so against dogs, dude. More of a cat person, sure. But I would’ve assumed you’d have sort of an in-built affinity for the lonely, lost pups of the world.”

“I like dogs,” Derek says defensively.

“Then why were you so mad I’d gotten one?”

“I didn’t know Max was a dog!” Derek says without thinking.

“So what, you thought he was a person? Oh, shit, you thought he was a person,” Stiles says softly.

Derek can see his clever mind putting the pieces together all too fast.

“You thought he was my boyfriend.”

“The love of your life, you called him,” Derek says. He might as well throw that out there, let Stiles know exactly how much to mock him. Except no, Stiles wouldn’t do that. He’s a better friend than that.

“Wait,” Stiles says, reaching out to stop Derek walking on. “You thought I’d met the love of my life? And that upset you?”

Derek can’t look. He knows it’s going to be disastrous, but he just can’t watch it dawn on Stiles’s face.

Stiles is quiet for a long moment, and then with just a gentle pressure against Derek’s shoulder, he asks him to turn. Stiles searches his face for something, and starts nodding before he even says anything.

“I think I have, actually,” Stiles says. “Met the love of my life, I mean. I didn’t think I had a chance, but…”

Derek can’t stamp down the hope rising in him. An ugly voice whispers that this isn’t real, but Stiles’s earnest face tells a different story.

“You have a chance,” Derek says. Please take it.

“Me and Max, we’re a package deal,” Stiles warns with a smile.

“I think I can handle it,” Derek chuckles.

Max trots back to them, pushing at Stiles’s legs like he needs a reminder that they’re supposed to be on a walk. They both smile at him, and Derek takes a moment when Stiles is looking at Max to dart in and kiss his cheek. He starts walking again, making encouraging noises at Max until he’s pulling Stiles along.

“Hey, wait,” Stiles protests. “I didn’t get to kiss you back! That’s not how this works, Derek!”

Derek laughs. “Max needs to walk, Stiles, keep up!”

Stiles curses and jogs to catch up, which just encourages Max to pick up his pace.

Derek smiles. Yeah, this Christmas is definitely going to be different, and he is looking forward to it.

#dwarvyn #stereksanta19 #*fics19 #*gifts19

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urdbell18 · 5 years

Text

A Seed Hidden in the Heart Chapter 19: The One With the Dog

Wow I'm shocked that I was able to finish this chapter but I did! Yay me! But speaking up as you guys know two of the busiest retail holidays are coming up, Thanksgiving and Christmas. It means that I'm not going to have as much time as before to write my chapters so if my updates are a little slow that's why and I apologize. I just wanted to give you guys fair warning and thanks for understanding. Enjoy!

In the summer months Zelda took a job at the local college. The position was temporary, ending just before regular school started once again but it gave her something to do and a little more money over the summer than the packet that she got when school ended. When she collected her last paycheck Mr. Hawthorne said in so many words that she was getting a little bonus because of the several high scores that her students received. It turned out making her students taking that college level test paid off for her in the end. Mr. Hawthorne took all the credit of course. Zelda couldn’t bring herself to care anymore. Her work schedule was Monday and Friday mornings and Monday and Wednesday afternoon so the earliest she’s ever had to go in was nine and the latest she’d be there was almost 5. It worked well enough for her.

The time that she was at the school Vida was with Mary. Together she and Mary came up with activities that they could do with Vida over the summer. The aquarium and the zoo were on the list because they were things that Vida did and loved and wanted to do again but there were others like some crafts, swimming, and a small local theme park, Vida was excited about that one the most. Bust most of the time Mary kept it simple, spending time at home reading or going to the park. They spent a lot of time at the park. Sometimes Zelda would join them for lunch, usually on Mondays or Fridays but she could pull it off on Wednesdays if she wanted to. Wednesdays were usually the days that Mary and Vida went to Zelda, they would have lunch in the cafe before Zelda had to go to her next class.

It was during one park outing where Vida and Mary met him.

It was early June. The weather was nice but not stifling like July and August would be. Everything was still vibrant with color, the grass, the trees, and the flowers, all brightly colorful swaying in the gentle summer breeze. With it still being nice Mary and Vida took a walk.

There was a jogging path right next to the park and when it was nice like it was that day they walked the path. Vida liked looking at the flowers and Mary just like the soft exercise and time with Vida. Vida was curious about everything, Mary told her what she could like what a certain flower or tree was called and Mary loved how Vida would stop and watch the movements of the current bug or small creature, mostly squirrels, that caught her attention. On that day they were halfway through the walking path when a rustling of leaves from a nearby shrub caught their attention. Out of fear Vida moved behind Mary as the rustling grew louder until a dog appeared out into the open.

The dog was between medium and small. It was long like a dachshund or a corgi but just slightly taller than either of those breeds. The dog had all the markings of the hound breed, short fur with a white belly, muzzle, and paws and brown and black patches all along its body but Mary couldn’t tell if it was a beagle or a basset hound. The dogs muzzle was too short for either of those breeds but its ears were very beagle-ish. The dog saw them and its tail starts wagging, causing his whole body to wiggle, mouth open to let its tongue roll out to one side.

“It’s a puppy!” Before Mary could stop her Vida was running to the dog. Though it seemed friendly Mary knew that could change in a snap but this dog stayed friendly. It ran in circles around Vida before standing on its hind legs licking anywhere he can reach. Vida giggled even as the dog knocked her to the ground. Mary approached the dog with caution, the dog looked at her and sniffed her legs when she was close enough. He craned his neck hoping for some head pats. “Can we keep him Mamma!?”

“We don’t know where he came from.” Taking advantage of the dog butting his head against her hand Mary felt the dog's neck hoping to feel for a collar. She didn’t find one, which didn’t really mean anything but it just meant that it would be harder to get the dog to follow them. Mary took the belt from her jeans and the ribbon from Vida’s dress to fashion a leash and make shift collar. The dog allowed Mary to wrap the belt around its middle, the belt was too thick to hold in place around the dogs short neck. After securing the ribbon to the collar Mary took two tentative steps to see if the dog would follow. He just stood there, wagging his tail like nothing was wrong. “Come here boy.” Mary tried to coax the dog but he didn’t budge. After a few minutes Vida took the slices of watermelon she was saving to lure the dog. It worked, the dogs nose twitched as it tried to keep up with the scent of the watermelon that was in Vida’s hands. Sometimes when the dog was close Vida would let the dog take a bite before moving more away. When she was down to her last slice they made it back to the main opening of the park. What was going on in the large side field gave Mary a good feeling on where the dog came from.

In a field that was sometimes used for soccer was currently holding what looked like a little fair. It was an adoption fair for a local animal shelter. There were dogs of various kinds and sizes in pens and a board with pictures of other animals, like cats and rabbits, that couldn’t be at the event but were also available for adoption. Naturally people flocked the fair, surrounding the pens to awe over the dogs. In the sea of people Mary located a volunteer for the shelter due to the light blue shirts they wore with the shelter name on one side and volunteer on the other. Mary approached a girl who looked to be in her late teens or early twenties with long black hair that she tied back in a ponytail.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?” The girl turned around and before Mary could ask her next question the girls green eyes lit up at the sight of the dog that was still trying to get the last few bites of watermelon from Vida. “Vinegar Tom! You found him! Thank you so much. He got loose when we were setting up. Bad boy.” Taking a slip leash the volunteer slipped it over the dog’s neck so that Mary could detach the belt.

“Vinegar Tom? That’s an interesting name.”

“Yeah. Sometimes we rename the animals when they come in. I’m a history major and I reviewed the play for a paper I was doing at the time. Vinegar Tom came in on my first day almost a year ago and I don’t know something just felt right about the name.” There was an empty pen not that far away so the volunteer placed Vinegar Tom inside, scratching his head in comfort. “Thank you again for bringing him back. We have a new volunteer who’s never done an adoption fair before and he kind of lost control over a few of the dogs and he slipped away. Actually, now that I think about it Vinegar Tom has never done that before.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Tom’s really sweet but he’s usually not so energetic like this. I always think that he would fit in so well with a single person or a small family but whenever he’s considered for adoption he just… stands there or lays there not doing anything. It’s why he keeps getting turned down every time. It’s kind of depressing.” Vinegar Tom was pressed against the wire of the pen licking Vida’s fingers.

“We best be going. Vida.” Vida turned to her, she looked reluctant to move away from her new friend.

“Bye Vinegar Tom.” That’s when Vinegar Tom started to whine. He sat down on his hind legs and looked at both Mary and Vida with his big brown eyes. Vida in turn looked at Mary, jutting her lip out in a quivering pout. Between the pathetic whines of the dog and the look that Vida fixed her Mary could feel her resolve slowly dissolving away.

“What do we do to adopt?” The soft look that the volunteer gave Mary was matched with the squeal that came from Vida and the happy barks of Vinegar Tom. As Mary filled out the form Vida and Vinegar Tom played, mostly Tom rolling on his stomach while Vida gave him belly rubs. Though Mary loved to make Vida happy and Vinegar Tom was cute a cold feeling tickled in the back of her mind.

Zelda was going to kill her.

_____________________

Zelda arrived home a little after five. She had a staff meeting where all seasonal staff members were given some general info about the short semester. This wasn’t anything new to Zelda but it was necessary. In the end she couldn’t really complain because she got out the same time Hilda got off work that day so she swung by to pick her sister and niece, Sabrina saw some movie with her friends, before heading home. Everything seemed normal, Zelda had just enough time to place her keys on the table before Vida ran into her.

“Mommy! Mommy! Guess what!?” Zelda smiled at her daughter’s enthusiasm. Vida took so much joy out of anything that it truly was a guess on what made her so happy this time.

“What Vida?”

“We got a puppy!”

“You what?” Zelda might not have wanted it to come out so harshly, but out of everything that she expected that wasn’t one of them. As if on cue a dog came bounding into the entrance hall. He lost his footing on the hardwood floors, slipping and half flopping onto the floor, but it didn’t stop him. He came to a full stop in front of Zelda, sitting almost at her feet and wagging his tail so hard his whole body was wiggling. Though Zelda looked at the dog dumbfounded Hilda and Sabrina awed and surrounded the creature to shower him with affection. “Vida where’s you Mamma.” Vida pointed in the general direction of the kitchen before returning her attention back to the dog. Zelda stormed off not giving the scene before her a second glance, Mary had some serious explaining to do. “You got a dog!?” Mary’s shoulders hunched over and she turned around to face Zelda, whipping her lips from of excess tea. Apparently Zelda surprised her mid sip. Mary placed her cup in the sink before placing them on the counter.

“Don’t be mad.”

“I have every right to be mad. You got a dog without consulting me first.”

“You weren’t there. Vida fixed me with this look.” Mary mimicked the look before continuing. “How was I supposed to say no to that?”

“You’re going to have to because the last thing that I want is for this house to become a glorified petting zoo.”

“It’s not. I doubt something like this is going to happen again. It might sound cliche but I think Vinegar Tom chose us.”

“The dogs name is Vinegar Tom?”

“One of the volunteers is a history major. Anyway, the one day that the dog went against his usual behavior is the day that Vida and I were in the park. The volunteer even said that he showed no interest in anyone except Vida. So here we are.” Zelda sighed through her nose. She really didn’t want the dog but Vida was attached she couldn’t say no now.

“He’s your responsibility.” With that Zelda turned on her heel out of the kitchen. Hilda, Sabrina, and Vida were still in the entryway with the dog. They were throwing some kind of soft toy for the dog to fetch. Zelda just rolled her eyes and went up the stairs to her room. She refused to have any part of this.

___________________________

It has been about a week since Vinegar Tom joined his new family and he could safely say that he’s never been happier. He yawned and stretched before stepping out of his basket. His madam got him his basket along with his toys when he first came and he genuinely loved them. He always made sure that he kept his ball next to his basket and his lamb close to him. He went to his water bowl for a small drink and then rang the small bell that was attached to the door. He didn’t need to go out, he just liked ringing the bell. Satisfied, he left the kitchen to the stairs. There was a lot of them and he climbed them as best as he could. He wasn’t used to stairs but anything to be close to his people. Still learning his way around he used the scent of his people to find their location. When he reached the door he gently pushed it open with his nose. In one bed there was his madam and mistress, he tried to climb up but it was too high. In another bed was his little miss, he went over to her and started to nudge her with his nose. His little miss moved and murmured before she sat up, rubbing one eye.

“Tom!” Taking that as an invitation he climbed into his little miss’ bed. Well, tried, he wasn’t very good at climbing. Little miss got out and helped him, she struggled a little under his weight but it was enough to get him on. Once he was in little miss joined him, laying down. Vinegar Tom did the same, laying his head near the pillow and a stuffed octopus. He gave a contented sigh and fell asleep.

_______________________

Though most of the family was smitten with Vinegar Tom there was one family member he hadn’t won over.

Zelda.

Zelda wanted nothing to do with the dog. She didn’t feed him and refused to walk him or acknowledge his presence. The only thing that she has ever done for the dog was let him out when he was ringing the bell and it was only that one time. All other duties and needs were regulated to Mary. She was the one who agreed to getting the dog she was going to do the brunt of the work. Though she must say she was impressed with the amount of responsibility that Vida showed. She helped Mary feed, walk, and bathe the dog and even learned some commands to help train him. Despite her disinterest Zelda recognized that Vinegar Tom was a good dog. He was fully house trained so they never woke up to any accidents in the house, Hilda even trained him to ring the bell that she tied on the door in the kitchen to be let out. Didn’t chew anything but his own toys, he liked rolling around his ball and squeaking his lamb toy. He listened to what they told him not that he misbehaved often. His only crime in Zelda’s eyes was that he kept trying to climb onto the sofa when she was on it. She didn’t know why he looked at her for attention but she was consistent and kept kicking him off. Keeping herself at arms length worked until one fateful day.

Everyone in her family was busy. Hilda had to work, Sabrina had plans with her friends, and Mary and Vida had a scheduled activity that they would enjoy but Zelda necessarily wouldn’t. Hence why they scheduled it when Zelda had to work. This was of course before they got the dog.

Vinegar Tom had been with them only a couple of days. It was why they, mainly Mary and Hilda, didn’t feel comfortable in leaving him on his own for so long. And with his veterinary check up not for another week they couldn’t enroll him in doggy daycare. There was only one viable option that was available and it was that he went with Zelda.

“Absolutely not!” Zelda abruptly got up from her chair and looked between Mary and Hilda. Apparently, Mary felt like she couldn’t ask Zelda on her own and called for reinforcements. Zelda couldn’t really blame her, she and Mary weren’t fighting but Zelda was adamant in proving her point. Mary wanted the dog she was going to take care of it.

“Zelda it’s just for one day.” Her sister pleaded in that soft tone of her, the one that she uses to try to calm her down with. It worked about 70% of the time. Zelda ranged in her anger a little but she wasn’t backing down.

“No.”

“Come on Zelda what’s the harm?”

“For one it’s against the rules. Animals aren’t allowed unless they are a service animal and I’m not about to commit a criminal offense just because there is no one to watch the dog that I didn’t even want. And before you even ask no I am not going to cancel my class.”

“Zelda it’s just one time. Do this for me and not only would I not ask this of you again but next date night is on me. Please? I would do it myself but the plans that I made with Vida can’t be changed.” Zelda turned her glare onto her girlfriend. Mary was being extremely unfair at that moment. Her expression was soft and her tone was pleading. It was a rare combination and it made Zelda cave in every time. And Vida was thrown in, it was dirty move and sadly, it worked.

“Fine.” Mary smirked and got up to give her a kiss on the check. It was supposed to be on the lips but Zelda turned her head to the side. Mary has not earned that privilege back yet.

And thus here she was now, driving to work with Vinegar Tom in the back seat. Though Zelda couldn’t stop thinking about everything that could go wrong, she could get fired, claw marks in her seats, dog hair EVERYWHERE, the mutt was having the time of his life. After dropping of Hilda at work he got up on his hind legs to look out the window. His breath fogged up the windows, his muzzle was that close to the glass, and his tail was wagging up a storm. There was even drool on the glass when Zelda went to let him out. Sneaking the dog into the building wasn’t that hard, the office that she used was on the first floor and the other teacher that she shared it with taught not only on days that she didn’t work but evenings as well. She had the whole space to herself but to make sure that Vinegar Tom didn’t get into anything he shouldn’t she brought a portable crate to create a temporary pen. Vinegar Tom circled his enclosure but he seemed content with the small water bowl and pillow that Zelda gave him. He was happiest with his lamb, he wiggled in eagerness when Zelda pulled it from the bag that Mary set up for her. He squeaked it a little before settling down near the pillow. The last thing that Zelda set up in Vinegar Tom’s pen was a pee pad, Mary walked him before she left but it was better safe than sorry. By the time that Zelda finished setting everything up it was time for her to head to her lecture. Before leaving she took one last look at the dog. He looked up at her with his big brown eyes and his goofy expression that had everyone in her family in love with but gave Zelda a slight jagged feeling in her stomach.

“Don’t get me fired.” With that Zelda left and acted like nothing was wrong.

________________________

When his mistress returned to her office Vinegar Tom was sleeping peacefully. He woke up when she closed the door behind her. He yawned and stretched before watching his mistress. She set down something before coming over to him. His tail started to wag, he was hoping for some treats or a belly rub for being such a good dog. He was slightly disappointed when all she did was take away the barrier that kept him in one corner of the room. It wasn’t quite what he wanted but he was free! It was something. He explored the best way he knew, by smell. He let his nose guide him but after a while of not finding anything he turned back to his mistress. She was sitting behind something big and wooden. She was looking at something but he couldn’t tell what. Her head was bowed, was she sad? Tom couldn’t let that happen. His lamb made him happy so maybe it would make his mistress happy.

Picking up his lamb he brought it over to his mistress. She didn’t appear to notice him so he got up on his hind legs, using the side of the desk for support. When she still hadn’t noticed him he squeaked his lamb. That got her attention.

“What?” He squeaked his lamb again and wagged his tail. He wanted her to know that it was okay to take it. She just looked at him funny. “What?” This time she turned slightly in her chair giving him a space to place the lamb. He dropped it in her lap. However, instead of being happy she looked even more funny and threw his lamb to some corner. Oh! She was playing with him! She must love fetch too! As fast as his legs could go he went to get his lamb and then brought it back, squeaking it twice so she knew that he got it. She threw it two more times, when he came back the third time she ignored him completely. Oh, she was done playing. That’s okay, he was a bit tired so he’ll take a little rest. He dropped his lamb on the floor and then rested his head next to it. He gave a soft sigh in contentment.

______________________

By the time that Zelda was done she still had half an hour before Hilda got off work, great. Gathering everything that belonged to the dog she clipped his leash onto his harness and out they went. The dog still showed the same enthusiasm as before though Zelda wished he didn’t, she just cleaned her windows of his drool and there he was fogging and slobbering them up again. With twenty minutes still on her hands Zelda had to figure out what to do about the dog. It was pointless to drive all the way home when she would have to drive right back into town to pick up her sister, it wasted both time and gas, both of which she loathed. She decided to take the dog to the park. She didn’t know how tired Mary was going to be and she had the time so why not suck it up and walk the dog once.

The dog seemed happy about it. His tail wouldn’t stop wagging and he sniffed every tree that he got close to. He wasn’t that much different than Vida in that regard. Now that she thought about it he and Vida were a lot alike. They knew how to listen, could entertain themselves, didn’t get into much trouble, and were very loving and sweet with people they liked and a bit closed off with people they necessarily didn’t like. Maybe that’s why Vida fell head over heels with the dog because Zelda would have known if Vida wanted a pet. Yes, she wasn’t exactly forthcoming with Telling Zelda what she wanted but there were signs that as her mother she was able to pick up. There was nothing. Getting the dog was a completely last minute, spontaneous thing. Maybe that’s why Zelda was fighting so hard. She didn’t like spontaneous change. Yet that explained her relationship with Mary perfectly. She didn’t plan on falling in love with Mary, or moving their relationship so fast that they were living together in such a short time. There was no rational reason other than it just felt right. It’s what Mary felt when she agreed to get the dog, so maybe Zelda could work on changing her attitude towards the dog.

She knew just where to start. Since Vinegar Tom behaved himself so well at her work she decided to get him a special treat. There was a small dog boutique not far from where Hilda worked so Zelda took him inside to let him pick out a treat. She held her breath because there was a possibility that the dog could stick his head in a container and either destroy it or eat everything and take every last dime that she had. But as he sniffed through the selection of treats he didn’t seem interested in any of them until he found one he liked. He pawed at it and then turned to her with that same goofy expression and wagging tail. Zelda paid for it and tucked the trat in her purse, he could have it later after his dinner.

Home was very peaceful. Well, more normal than peaceful, and for that Zelda was grateful. As chaotic and as crowded as their household could be it was theirs and Zelda loved it. Vida wouldn’t stop talking about what she did that afternoon with Mary and they all sat around the table for dinner. That night it was Mary’s turns to wash the dishes, they tried to rotate who did what kind of cleaning. Zelda stuck around, she was finishing the last little bit of wine and it was the first time she could talk to Mary alone. Vinegar Tom was circling her, he barked softly and wiggled as he looked up at her. Zelda instantly knew what he wanted.

“Okay fine.” Zelda tossed him his treat. It was some kind of bone thing that smelled vaguely like barbeque. It was what he wanted and was safe for him so Zelda didn’t give it much thought. Vinegar Tom happily took his treat over to his basket and started to chomp away. Finishing up the last of her wine Zelda placed her glass with the rest of the dishes that haven’t been washed yet which was when she noticed Mary looking at her with a smirk and a gleam in her eye. “Not a word.”

“Well your attitude has certainly changed.” Zelda just huffed and walked out. Mary shook her head and went back to the dishes. Zelda would never say out loud if someone was right, she would stay silent and if she could walk out of the room. Mary smirked and looked at Vinegar Tom, he was halfway through his treat. “She’s warming up to you big guy.” He woofed lightly and went back to his treat.

Later that night Vinegar Tom padded into the living room where Hilda sat in an armchair knitting, and Mary and Zelda sitting on the couch reading. He went over to the couch and climbed up on it. Every other time he did that Zelda instantly kicked him off but instead she, without looking away from her book, took one hand and gave him a few head pats. Mary saw this out of the corner of her eye and smirked. It looked like Vinegar Tom was staying for good.

#Zelda Spellman #Madam Satan #madam spellman

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mookybear12404 · 5 years

Text

Part 2 of the Sims!MP100 AU is finally here!!! [Part 1] [Fanart for pt2: x] [Fic] [New Server]

Some more lore was added to the AU!

So basically, Mob and Ritsu were orphaned when they lost their parents to a house fire. Since they had no other relatives, they had to be put in the foster system. Reigen, (who already knew Mob before it all happened), decided he was going to do everything in his power to take care of the poor kid and keep him out of the foster system. He tried to adopt the two brothers, but there was a big pushback from the court. Reigen was single, unemployed, a smoker, and didn’t exactly have a good track record for, well, anything. There were innumerable cases before Reigen was able to finally win over the court... or at least, partially win them over. He was able to adopt Mob, but Ritsu wasn’t so lucky. Ritsu was sent to be fostered by an older woman with a lot of cats. Ritsu lives so far away now that he and Mob never get to see each other. While Mob still calls him from time to time, it feels to him like he lost his brother in the fire that day too.

Reigen is doing his best to be the most loving parent he can be to a kid in this situation, but its hard when Mob refuses to talk or share his emotions. Reigen’s also struggling to do everything he can to get himself financially stable. He’s been in interview after interview trying to get a job so he can support Mob. Its hard though, finding time to write resumes and such, when you’re raising a kid full time. He’s trying to manage living with a demonic cat, keeping the house in one piece, keeping his kid happy and healthy, and balancing his finances all while having the court breathing down his neck. Reigen is doing everything he can to prove himself worthy to the system, not just so he can keep Mob, but also so that one day he can finally reunite the Kageyama brothers.

Even though Reigen is his legal father, Mob still goes by Kageyama and doesn’t call him dad (yet). Its hard for Mob to really accept that his parents are gone now. Reigen respects this, and doesn’t try to force the whole “dad” thing onto him, but a small part of him hopes that one day, maybe when he gets Ritsu back, he can finally be his real dad.

and now that that's done, here's what all that’s happened since we left! :)

-Reigen tries his best to help Mob with homework, despite not knowing a thing about math.

-And finally, finally, FINALLY Reigen is able to get a job! its a crappy, minimum wage job as a mailroom technician, but hey! if it pays the bills it pays the bills.

-That night, as they’re trying to sleep, Mob and Reigen are rudely awakened by the sound of their neighbors,,,, uhh,,,,,

-(Reigen decides he’d rather lie to the kid about what those noises are)

-But since Mob isn’t able to get any sleep, he goes over himself to bang on the neighbor’s door.

-Turns out? Creepy stalker neighbor has a lady friend! and now she and Reigen are yelling at each other... while she’s naked...

-This, by the way, is how they start the morning of their first thanksgiving together! :)

-Reigen is actually very excited, this is their first Thanksgiving as a family after all! He can’t wait to give him boy the most perfect Thanksgiving ever! :D

-And of course, it turns out to be everything but perfect.

-To start off, their house is invaded by gnomes:

-Thankfully, Mob and Reigen are able to appease the gnomes through the power of singing and coffee (dont question it)

-They leave Reigen with seedpackets as a token of their gratitude. Reigen’s not really sure what to do with these, but he’s very thankful.

-The gnomes, however, then decide to surround Reigen’s bed, making it impossible to go back to sleep.

-And as if things can’t get any worse, an old friend creep decides to give Reigen a call

-how this man managed to find out that Reigen got hired the morning after he got the call is beyond all of us. Reigen hasn’t even spoken to him. He hasn’t even left the house since he got the call.

-Doesn’t he have a lady friend now?? Why doesn’t he just go and bother her?? ?

-We finally decided that things were a little bit too chaotic at the apartment. Since both of them had the day of we thought, hey, why not have Reigen and Mob go out for a little morning jog? Some body improvement!

-We would later come to regret this decision

-Poor Mob has trouble keeping up with Reigen

-The two of them are enjoying their run so much, Reigen decides to go outside the city to run!

-They take a taxi down to Brindleton Bay, and then a boat out to a nearby island.

-Mob and Reigen continue jogging as they explore the area a bit! Mob comes up with the idea to climb up to the top of the lighthouse. They use the opportunity to get some stair exercises in. (Body improvement! Fight on!)

-The view from the top is gorgeous! Reigen can’t help but feel so proud of Mob’s progress.

-Mob, it seems, isn’t able to wait until Thanksgiving dinner to tell Reigen how he feels.

-Things, it seems, can’t get any fluffier.

-Then of course

-That’s when everything goes to shit

-Reigen is now freezing to death, trapped on an island, far away from home, with not much time left before his body temperature drops so low that Mob has to watch another one of his father figures die.

-The chat, of course, is handling this very calmly

-Luckily, Mob spots a house on the shoreline!

-Thankfully, there was a very kind family living there!! A Mom, her son, her young daughter, as well as their dog were there when Mob arrived with Reigen

-The woman didn’t hesitate for a moment, but went straight to work saving Reigen

-Reigen resisted help at first (he didn’t want to be seen naked), but they were eventually able to get him in the tub

-Mob stood by and waited nervously as we watched his dad slowly return from the brink of death

-Thankfully, THANKFULLY, the woman was able to save him!

-Mob is more than ecstatic to see Reigen alive and breathing, he doesn’t even wait for Reigen to leave the room before he gives him a hug

-The woman was kind enough to let them stay over at their house until Reigen’s body temperature went all the way back to normal. She even lit him a fire to warm himself by.

-A picture of Reigen thanking the kind woman

-While Reigen is sitting by the fire bundled in blankets, trying to get the cold out of his bones, Mob finds himself making a new friend.

-The woman’s son and Mob bond over their shared interest in video games!

-Mob also discovered their piano! His playing sounded pretty awful, but he’s trying his best!!

-We’re suddenly distracted from playing Mob when Reigen’s moodlet shoots through the roof. The cause of his excitement?

-He saw a doggo

-he does have the dog lover trait after all, who can blame him

-Reigen is able to recover before nightfall, and he takes Mob home for the night, both of them having made a new friend.

-Reigen decides he’s gonna try and salvage this disaster of a holiday with the grandest thanksgiving meal Mob has ever had!

-He goes to work trying to prepare the turkey, despite having no cooking experience, and having completely and utterly destroyed every single meal he’s tried to cook so far.

-Surprisingly, Reigen manages to cook the turkey without burning it!!

-The two of them decide to go and get themselves dressed while the turkey cools.

-But of course, the sims gods refuse to leave this poor family in peace.

-For when they return to their thanksgiving turkey they see-

-Disaster

-In perfect Christmas-Story fashion, Dimple decided to go and EAT THE ENTIRE TURKEY

-The chat panics

-That turkey was $75, more than an entire paycheck for Reigen

-We begin frantically deciding what objects of furniture in the house aren’t necessary. I mean, how badly do they need a toilet anyways?

-An unexpected hero jumps in at the last moment to save the day: Reigen’s new job! Despite the fact that Reigen hasn’t even gone to work yet, they decided to give him a holiday bonus!

-Reigen is able to remake the entire meal with his bonus! Surprisingly, the family is able to spend the rest of their dinner in peace, with no weird or traumatic events to ruin their day. (Its like a thanksgiving miracle!) Mob talks to Reigen about his new friend, school, his favorite animal, video games, and other such things.

-For a moment, it feels like Family

-Reigen, it seems, can’t seem to shake off what Mob said to him before the near-death experience at the lighthouse. He decides that there’s no better time than the present for him to tell Mob how he feels.

-Despite all the trauma this family has had to endure, they both go to bed feeling happier and more loved than ever before

-All’s well that ends well I guess?

And as a Bonus:

#Sims!MP100 AU #Sims!MP100 #MP100 #Sims #sims 4 #au #mob psycho 100 #mob psycho #kageyama shigeo #reigen aratake #reigen is a good dad #please save him

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91whiskeygirl · 5 years

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It’s 430pm, the air thick since it just rained. The sky cloudy and full of moisture. He took out his luggage from the trunk and walked over the driveway with a crooked grin on his face, his snug black shirt and jeans hugging his most firm features. Checking the time on his watch while he waited for you to be surprised at the knock on your door, how early he arrived back home unexpectedly. Jensen flew twelve hours straight just to get home to you; you’d thought he’d spend the weekend celebrating with the crew; which you didn’t mind since you still had to clean yourself up, but once you landed eyes on the tall figure behind the glass door while you walked through the foyer, you shouldn’t be surprised, after all, you’re his girl. He reminded you of that countless times.

The SPN hiatus finally begun, and you were so excited to have your boyfriend back for some well long awaited quality time.

“Jay!”, you squealed, quickly hugging him like a five year old girl that just got her first prize at the carnival.

“Hey baby girl”, he towered over you with that smirk of his, putting his luggage inside and grabbing you by the waist, your feet barely touching the floor now. Gosh he knew how to take your breath away every single time.

“Why didn’t you stay the weekend? We’re you that desperate to see me in my pizza pajama pants?”, looking up into his candy apple eyes. “Of course sweetheart, those pjs make your ass look just as juicy as it is without them”, his intense stare made you lose your train of thought for a retort as he snaked his hands around your bottom, lifting you up to where you could feel how hard he already was for you. You couldn’t help but smile ear to ear, feeling wanted wasn’t what you were used to, but with Jensen it was a perfect response.

Laying your hands on the sides of his neck you kissed his jawline and took his hand, leading him to the kitchen. You grab a couple of beers for you both. “I haven’t even had time to make dinner, I didn’t know I would have company”. He popped the cap with his keys and sat down on one of the chairs, leaning his elbows on the island while looking at you with those pretty boy lashes of his. He replied, “it’s no big deal, we can always order in.”.

A bit more of slow kisses on his lips you hopped on to his lap and hugged him tight, your chin on his shoulder. Gosh, how could you miss his scent so much? You engulfed your nose of his presence and didn’t want to let go of him, fearing he was just an illusion. You hadn’t slept well for a couple of weeks. Your job had you at overtime for a wedding gig, and because of the Thanksgiving holiday, you were booked three weeks straight. You didn’t celebrate thanksgiving, but you didn’t mind spending it with someone who loved food as much as you do. Of course, you didn’t want to admit it as much, you weren’t like most women like what “Dean” went for. but he didn’t care that you were the total opposite. You were a curvy woman, your y/h/c hair just passing your shoulders, but not tame able enough to style it how you wanted it all the time, your belly just about hugging your waist, your constant battle to finding a great pair of jeans felt inevitable. You weren’t the perfect vision in your own eyes. But when Jensen walked into your life you started to not mind your size as much. He appreciated every curve and dimple, every flaw you saw in yourself was perfection to him. “How the hell did I catch this handsome guy in my life when I look like this?” Was always your daily mantra until things got serious between you two a few months back. Now he called your home his, he even had his own closet.

You took all your strength to move away from him answering back, “How about we do some pre - feasting? We can order some fried chicken, wedges, couple of pies for dessert,and why the hell not; maybe even a salad just because I’m feeling healthy today.” Thanksgiving was never your favorite holiday, your family ruined it for everyone even though they’d host the party. You felt no better when they’d make remarks at your for how you look, going for your passion instead of being a nurse, and never settling down with whoever they approved. You moving out at 19 and taking a risk to fly to Canada randomly was a blessing in disguise. You worked your ass off with internships, most unpaid, surviving on coffee, ramen, and sriracha packets. The fact that you jumped on applying for a job while SPN was filming in the area, you never thought you’d end up with a hunk like Jensen falling for you. You giggled as he gripped your hips tighter, his chin lifting up and looking into your y/e/c eyes. “I love it when you talk pie to me”. You rolled your eyes thinking “Shut up Dean”.

He scoffed a laugh and put you down gently and headed to your bedroom, plopped his luggage down next to the foot of the bed and made his way to the bathroom. He took off his shirt and instantly grimaced at how gross he felt thanks to the long flights he just made. One of his favorite places in the house was definitely the shower. He helped you out a bit since you hated the original structure of the bathroom. “I’m too fat to fit in a tub meant for a water goddess”, was what you told him, saying it lightly enough to be taken as a joke, but he knew your insecurities in and out. So he offered to get his contractor in and upgrade it. The floor was a soft rose gold marble, walls matching, a tub the size so wide and deep you could actually cover your whole body and and an extra person, gold trim accenting everywhere. A bit feminine but not enough for him to not use this masterpiece of a bathroom.

A separate shower next to it so big he caught you a few times dancing in it while you showered after coming home from work, de stressing the day away with his new album playing on your blue tooth speaker. You were so proud of him when it finally released. He’d caught you one too many times humming “All Our Own” in the house. You always sang off key but he loved hearing you no matter what. It was one of the things that showed your were content and happy.

He thought back to when you couldn’t even take a compliment on your outfit. You had just gotten the AKF hoodie in the mail and drank some coffee on set while waiting for Jared on his way to get a touch up on his hair and makeup. “Hey, loving the jacket on you y/n, you’re looking beautiful”, Jensen complimented her, keeping his stare on your face, struggling not to look anywhere else he wanted so badly to. You were just his makeup artist then. “Oh- uh thanks Jay, I’m just glad it fits...you know the sizes never seem to be a perfect fit whenever it comes to me. I actually bought a couple more in case but luckily I have friends that are way smaller than me, so I gave the ones I didn’t fit to them.” You looked down into your cup of caramel coffee, trying to avert your eyes from him. His eye contact always made your heart race, no matter what came out of his mouth. “Well,” he slowly walked inching closer to you “you’re perfect to me.” Shooting you that movie star smile he gave to fans. And that’s what did you in. A gorgeous man just told you that you were perfect without a snark comment or a snicker after finishing that sentence. THE Jensen Ackles just complimented on your appearance, and you felt the wave of confidence, standing a little straighter and fluffing your hair to the side while you drank your coffee and having your eyes twinkle up at him. Next thing you both knew, you were on your first date, and then your first make out session in the park You, Gen, and Jared used to jog in the mornings before starting work, and then everything built up to him moving in to your home.

Steam started to build up in the shower as Jensen put his head underneath the shower nozzle. Rubbing the hair product out of his hair made him feel a little less grimy. He wished you stayed with SPN before the last season finished, your expertise with lightweight products were a god send to the boys; but you got tired of the traveling back and forth with airports and cabs, sleeping in hotel rooms, you wanted to stay close to home. You started your own side business free - lancing again like the old times, but now with a reputation you were busy with every occasion you could think of. Hair and makeup gigs never came to you so fast when you landed back home.

“Dinner just got here!” You yelled from the hallway. “I’m just about done” he retorted back, washing away the last remnants of what traveling he just did. He didn’t notice you leaning on the doorway admiring him toweling off until he turned towards your way and you got a full view of him as he wrapped his towel around his waist. Your throat got dry enough where you subconsciously had a soft moan escape from you, and he noticed, smiling. Were you in trouble now.

Walking over to you with his semi wet hedgehog hair and steam coming off his shoulders from his shower, he closed any space between you two.

“I think the dinner can wait sweetheart”, he said, his hand at the back of your head and leaning down to grab a kiss from you. “Breath y/n, for fucks sake this isn’t the first time you both got heated.” Your thought ran through your brain. You hadn’t realized you closed your eyes until he released his lips from yours. You were dumb founded. It was like you were in a trance. He was so god like in every form, and you were a bumble of a mess every time he even so much as grazed you with his fingertips.

He led you to the bedroom and he threw his towel off into the laundry basket. “I want dessert first,” he already was helping you take off your shirt, your breasts hovering then dropping like heavy gum drops. You made your way to get your bottoms discarded and thrown wherever, you didn’t give a fuck, you were focused on Jensen too much to care. You sucked in your stomach like always like it was first instinct, and he noticed. You started to get tense until he started kissing you hard, his tongue teasing your bottom lip to invite him in. His arms around your back making its way down to your hips, he gently pushed you on to the bed, your back lying on all the silky pillows you had, just because it looked nice aesthetically. You always ended up only sleeping with one particular one to support your neck and back.

He starts to kiss your shoulders, then nipping his way down to your breasts. His mouth devours one side, licking and sucking, making your hips lift because of the slight pain and absolute pleasure. “Jeez Jensen I don’t know why you always go for the boobs first” you tease. “You knew from the start I was a boob guys, one of the many reasons I asked you out.”, teasing back. You bit your lips and tugged the back of his head full of hair in your hand when he started to pull your nipple gently with his teeth. Your breathing started to stutter, his hands caressing your back, your hips, your thighs. He opened up your legs and cradled your ass cheeks. His elbows supporting his position of what he was about to do next.

“Perfect as always baby,” he told you, kissing the insides of your thighs, going lower with each kiss. You gave up feeling like he would hate seeing you naked after the first few times you both messed around in the beginning of the relationship. He told you to stare at him while he devoured your pussy and for the first few times you hesitated ,but did as you were told. You locked eyes with him, but you eventually would lay back down. You were so scared of the angle of what he’d see. Instead of a flat tummy there was a mountain of a roll in the way if you ever lifted up, and your chin wasn’t your friend either. But tonight was different. He didn’t even ask and you saw his eyes locked on you while he licked you gently, then a bit harder,knowing building you up to the amazing orgasm you always have with him.

Your hips started to writhe when he started to suck your bud, and lick up whatever wetness you had, the warmth in your core creating a wave of pleasure soon. You could feel his stubble burning on your inner thighs, accepting the sensation it gave you. He moaned into you when you reached to hold his hands. How you imagined having your pussy eaten out never came to until Jensen introduced it to you, and he never skipped it when things got hot in the bedroom. He always paid attention to you first even though you were persistent at times that you wanted his cock in your mouth first. Your breathing became more shallow and erratic, the coil in you about to break, Jensen licked a bit faster but not harder, he knew it was never in the interest of a woman when you just rushed the process of her dam breaking. Your back started to arch and he dove in deeper, putting two of his fingers in you and curling it right on t your spot. You closed your eyes and placed your hands on your mouth. You realized your windows were open even though the curtains were closed, your bedroom windows faced the neighbors where your pool also was, and you didn’t need sneering looks from them in the morning when you got the newspaper. “Cum all over my mouth baby, I want to taste all of you” he said, gripping your hips now, he felt your pussy clench, dripping with wetness all over his lips and stubble. He pumped you a few more times then eagerly got above you, his cock already pleading at your tender entrance.

“Please Jay, I want you to fill me up baby”, you shined under him, your high slowly dissipating. He inches into you and you gasped at every inch he got deeper. Your body leaned into the mattress even more when he was fully seated in you. “Fuck Jensen! “ you screamed, too late for avoiding sneering looks I guess. “You’re so beautiful under me y/n, taking all of my cock inside of you, I missed you so much, I missed all of you. “ he leaned down making a mark on your left breast and then grabbing the right one with his left hand. If you thought you couldn’t cross your eyes, you probably just did. Your coil started to tighten again, and he wasn’t even thrusting in you repeatedly yet. He saw how desperate you were becoming. “You ready for me sweetheart?” He asked you softly. “Always.” Was the only thing you could answer back. With that he thrusted in one go into you, and you could feel him reaching at your g spot again. How the hell can he feel this good every time? You were baffled, every time.

“I can never get tired of this pussy y/n, you’re always so tight and warm for me. “ he grunted through. His neck and shoulders tensing, his biceps bulging when he grabs your thighs to pull them apart wider, going deeper. Your short of breath now and can only reply with whimpers, you want to let go so bad and cum on him. Feel him while you wrap tightly around him. “Jay I’m so fucking close, please!” You beg, your eyes closing tightly shut, trying to control your orgasm until Jensen is ready.

A few more thrusts and Jensen is starting to ride you unevenly, you thank the heavens he’s about done, I’m sure he’s hungry, but you’re starving, for him to fill you up to the rim and also for that fried chicken dinner waiting downstairs. He lifts your leg over his shoulder and kisses it tenderly, his hand moving from your calf to your knee, and ending up caressing your thigh, and then grabbing your ass to pull you in as he starts to fuck the lights out of you. You cry with pleasure, the coil bursting and you clench his cock, he’s not slowing down at all. “I’m gonna finish baby, you want me to cum in you? Fill you the fuck up? Have you leaking me out of you?” Gosh he knows you love dominant dirty talk. You smile wickedly and grab his hips. For a curvy woman you have the flexibility of a cheerleader. “Fill me the fuck up baby” you tell him confidently, staring into his eyes as he comes undone. He grabs the leg on his shoulder tightly, thrusting shallow as his high is coming down, and he makes his way sitting up after kissing you a bit more before pulling himself out.

“Fuck I missed you y/n”, he softly said while you were both cleaning up after the blissful session. “I missed you too Jay, you make me feel so loved and safe, you don’t expect anything less of me”. He cups your face with his hands and you gently kiss one of his wrists “Baby, You’re perfect.”. With that you smiled and kissed him deeply, his plush lips hugging yours perfectly. You took his hands and looked up at your lover. With that sparkle in your eye, you say “I love you.”

He never thought you’d say that to him. He never expected you to say it, he didn’t need it. The corners of his eyes crinkled from his smile; “I love you, y/n.” There’s butterflies in his stomach, and then, a loud gurgle of a growl came from his and yours stomach. He thought you’d be embarrassed enough to forget what awesome thing just happened between you two an hour ago and run to hide somewhere in the bathroom. Instead, you laughed loudly and snorted a bit too, his concerned face softened and he took your favorite shirt you stole from him on one of your sleepovers at his place, and dressed you. He placed a kiss on your hand , “come on , we’re both hungry after that session” you beamed a smile at him and giggled on your way out to the hallway, he smacks your ass a couple times and you jump and squeal before running to the kitchen, him running after you.

After dinner you still had room for actual dessert, the pumpkin pie and vanilla ice cream with dark chocolate shavings on top really hit the spot. You both are cuddled up on the sofa watching the fireplace crackle and warming your bodies up again. You relish the moment, Jensen’s chest going up and down slowly, knowing he fell asleep right after dessert. You turn and angle yourself where you can lie down more and place your head near his belly and on his lap, he automatically adjusts and starts playing with your hair. He rubs his eyes and sees you staring at him intently, a small grin on your face. “Whatcha smiling about now y/n?” He keeps playing with your hair. “Nothing, just that tonight was perfect, thank you for surprising me.” He replies with a kiss on your forehead as you both fall asleep from the pre -feast coma you both just gave yourselves.

**Happy Thanksgiving everyone!**

It’s a bit random but I wanted something to post for the holiday, I’m gonna try my best to do one shots for the Xmas holiday:) hope y’all enjoyed!

#spn #spnfamily #spnfandom #spn fan fiction #dean girl #jensen ackles smut #jensen x reader #jensenedit

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douxbebearchives · 6 years

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Find An Olitz Fic Masterlist: Twelve

Greetings! Here is a masterlist for all of the questions we’ve received regarding hard-to-find Olitz fics (“Find An Olitz Fic”). We recommend you come here first and/or utilize our desktop search button before sending an ask. There’s a strong possibility the title you’re looking for is there.

Directions: Click on the links below and you will find the title. The masterlist includes mostly-answered questions.

If there are corrections that need to be made or you know a title for an unanswered ask, please kindly send us a message. Thank you!

PREVIOUS LISTS

#221 - Hi, I’ve been trying to find this story where Olivia and Fitz are in college, he’s with Mellie but doesn’t want to be. No one knows that Olivia and Fitz are dating and they spend a lot of time at his apartment and one night when Olivia isn’t there Mellie stops by and sleeps over. Olivia finds out about it because she finds Mellie’s jacket in the bedroom

#222 - I’m trying to find the story where Olivia and Fitz are on the campaign trail and they go to her hometown and there’s a snowstorm and they’re stuck there and Fitz meets her parents and her dog

#223 - I’m looking for a story about Fitz giving a man (Olivia’s husband) his plane ticket, but the plane ends up crashing and the man dies. Fitz finds Olivia to try and make it right.

#224 - I’m looking for a story where Fitz is sent to live with his Aunt and Uncle in South Carolina and they put him to work and one day while he was in town he sees Olivia and they have a summer romance. I believe it was rated M

#225 - I’m sorry if this is a inappropriate question but I’m looking for Olitz fics that are rated M with detailed smut. Similar to that of the authors of Vision and First Love. Even though there are many stories in the M category a lot of them are very tame.

#226 - Looking for a series of One Shots. In one story Olivia was a young dancer and Fitz her teacher and then her parents died and she lived and trained with him. In another story, Olivia was a reporter that went to Alaska to do a story on Fitz, who had his own fishing business. His son died while fishing and he was really beat up about it many years later and when then Olivia convinces him to return to the boat and bring her and then he falls over board.

#227 - I can only remember this one part in a story I read but I think Olivia is in NY and she’s dating or engaged to Fitz. Olivia ex shows up at her place of work and Fitz also show up and I think he hits her ex.

#228 - Are there any complications of one shot stories similar to the fanfic “Lovers: One-Shots”? I loved the concept of it mostly being AUs.

#229 - In this fic I read, there was a part where Liv was pregnant in Santa Barbara with Fitz and his kids (Gerry and Karen) and Mellie shows up for thanksgiving unannounced...

#230 - Everyone has recommended I read My Best Friends Sister but I was wondering if you know if the story leaves off with a cliffhanger (considered its not a complete story)

#231 - There was a story where Olivia was looking for a job and Fitz needed a nanny. She was interviewed but I don’t think I Fitz ended up hiring her or anyone. A few weeks later Olivia is jogging with Abby and she notices Fitz struggling to put the stroller together. He ends up hiring her and later on the relationship begins. Do you know the name of this fic?

#232 - Hi I’m looking for the story where Olivia and Fitz are at Camp David and Olivia comes clean about the abortion. Fitz has a girlfriend but I think it’s just for show. They argue a lot in this one and have a lot of sex lol. Would you know the title?

#233 - I read this fic where Olivia ends up becoming First Lady and I think it ends with her and Fitz having twins... I’m sorry I can’t remember other details

#234 - I read a fic where Stephen has a thing for Olivia but she doesn’t see it, and he kisses her in her office one day and she tells Fitz about it and I think he punches a wall... he later confronts Stephen without getting physical. Also Olivia and Fitz are married in this one.

#235 - I'm trying to find a fanfic about Olivia and Fitz being married to other people and Liv has a wife but they're about to divorce or so, is kinda new but I don't remember the name. Thank you in advance.

#236 - There is a one shot with Fitz as the a younger nanny. Olivia is a mom who is away on business and she leaves her son, Teddy, to Fitz. She comes back and she tells Fitz that her son doesn't think she cares and Fitz tells her to give him a bath and spend time with him. Later Fitz is getting water and Olivia is eating ice cream. Things happen and they have sex. I can't seem to remember what the collection of one shots were called. Please help.

#237 - I'm looking for a fanfic in which Olivia and Fitz are together in the Scandal universe after Fitz leaves the WH and has the Institute and Olivia doesn't have a job so Fitz offers her a job there.

#238 - I can’t quite remember what story this was but Fitz had Olivia’s picture as his screensaver and she’s in bed but her hair is covering her face and I think Mellie or someone sees it and questions him about it.

#239 - *UNANSWERED* I’m looking for a fic I read where Olivia is Fitz and Mellie’s marriage counselor, it was rated M and I think it was short... 10 chapters I think...

#240 - I read a story where Olivia is a nurse and she was treating Stephen after he was hurt playing basketball with Fitz who is there with him in the ER while Olivia is tending to Stephen. Olitz have a connection but Stephen said he saw her first so during their relationship he plots to break them up. At one point he slips Olivia a antibiotic in her morning smoothie to counteract her BC but instead of a unexpected pregnancy breaking olitz up, then end up getting married. Do you know the title?

#Find An Olitz Fic #Masterlist #12 #answered questions #some unanswered questions

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jchichibu · 6 years

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Things that God told me.

Hi, this took me a little long to pen down. It’s not because I’m too busy or I’m procrastinating – but simply because I am someone who tends to rank priorities wrongly. Penning down my thoughts about my 7-month journey in SOT (School of Theology) was something I was tasked by Lester, but something I really wanted to do even before he asked for it. Take it as a reminder for me, and take it as a 17-minute read of my 7-month endeavour for anyone who is interested.

My name is Jasmine, better known as Chichibu or CCB (Titus 1:15 lol) and I am 24 this year (it’s still 2018 as of 6:43 PM 31 December 2018 as I pen this on my way home from Malacca on the coach :P). I graduated from City Harvest Church’s School of Theology Class of 2018, and the course began from 26 Feb and I graduated on 30 Sep. As quoted by one of my favourite persons in my life Claria, I am certainly the “last person ever you will think of going SOT”. True, SOT never once crossed my mind even being in church since I was 16 and every year they ask you to tell your neighbours “Join SOT!”, but I never wanted to, or never thought I needed to. Throughout my Christian walk, the OG and most tangible thing was the love of God. I was never the most holy, most spiritual, most caring, most enthusiastic person for Christ and I might feel somewhat stagnant in my walk (but I was contented honestly). I was becoming lukewarm. I forget to read the Bible, spurt vulgarities or flash finger signals I probably should never ever have, think or covet for things I should not and did things I’m not proud of. I sometimes would not want to show I am a Christian because I don’t want people to think badly of Christianity. I am just not a standard girl you would expect to want to go SOT.

However, a week before the closing of registration of SOT I had a push from God to join SOT. I went for a jog and I remembered clearly at the uphill of Toh Tuck Rise I made a decision to register for SOT. Yea, people who are not from my church will think I really sot, I just got lifted my burdens of having 4 private tutees out of my full time job, and now am I really doing this to myself? To burden myself with SOT, full time job and attempting have a social life? I was also motivated to have my routine of working out every morning and even had plans to sign up something with Ling Hui at the gym. SOT is a commitment and yes, I have to wake up at 7 AM everyday for SOT at 8.45 AM and end work generally when the sky is dark. Ok la obviously I just yolo-ed and ‘took a leap of faith’, said goodbye to chill 2018 and registered for SOT!!! Through it all I know that God will carry me through and nothing is too hard for Him. Though at that moment I really can’t believe I’m doing this to myself.

I am not going write about what SOT is about, but I am going to pen my revelations. I did keep a dated record of things that spoke to me throughout my journey and I hope some of these will relate to some of you and serve as a reminder for me as the year closes. Hopefully the (long) introduction above gave you some sort of context as to who I am, and now I begin: Things that God told me.

1. It is not by my might that I am saved, or that God loves me. You can rely on Jesus to forgive you, but do not take it for granted. Cheap grace is not what we are looking for here. When God forgives, remember to learn something from it and avoid the mistake again.

2. Since 16, I recalled every moment that I prayed for something, gets it eventually and forget that it was God. Countless times with my knees bent worshipping God in SOT, I was reminded of how smooth my life has been. I remember when I was 18, I was praying to get into a local university because my results were not fantastic. I was scared. But look, I got accepted into my first choices for the 3 local unis. I remember when I was 21, I got into exchange programme without even meeting the critieria of cGPA 3.5 (lol). I remember when I was 22, I was so anxious after my paper because I felt I would fail the paper and that means I will retain and not graduate with my peers (Ely do you remember us drinking Tiger at ahlian? Haha). Look, I scored a D or something in the end but I graduated as planned.

3. I’ve disappointed God several times, I am in church but I feel like shit, you know. I have had bad days, where I feel freaking unworthy of God to love me and I want to run away. Having the revelation that God has not disappointed me a single time makes me more mindful how mighty He is, and how weak I am, and how much I needed to stop disappointing God. We cannot not sin, truth is, we all have. But we can make a decision everyday to rely on God. The authority to defeat Satan is in me. God loves me so much. So so so so sosoososososososoooooo much what is my next move?

The woman was left alone. Jesus stood up and spoke to her. “Woman, where are they? Does no one condemn you?” “No one, Master.” “Neither do I,” said Jesus. “Go on your way. From now on, don’t sin.” (John 8:9-11)

4. Learn to wait upon the Lord. Those who know me personally know I am a relatively fast paced person. I do not really like to wait or queue up for things and I speak super quickly.. I know Jeremiah 29:11 very well but I still plan things for myself anyway. Is this lack of faith/disbelief in God that I am experiencing? But I know God has a plan for me. You see, it gets very conflicting, for fear that my impatience will ‘spoil’ God’s good plans for me. As 2019 becomes less fast paced and I become older, may I calm my tits down and tarry in the Lord. It means to stay longer than expected and be patient in hope. Because for the record, God’s plans has always been good to me – when I see the big picture now for the uncertainties I felt in the past, everything makes sense. I need to truly believe that God will provide, God is truly the overseer of my life, God’s timing will come.

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)

5. Be thankful to God and always be. If you are thankful, you will always find your way back to Jesus. Take thanksgiving to God more seriously, EVERYDAY. And I thank God that every night before I sleep I always have something to be thankful about up.

6. Right values and right spirit translates to right actions. I’ve learnt to set boundaries for my value system, not everything is okay, even if my free-spirited soul tells me “aiya yolo” countless times. Spirit wise, I need to talk to God more consistently. The Holy Spirit is something I learnt to engage more in SOT, and I need to remember to communicate with it more (considering how slack I was in the past and it has yet become a habit). I am a reflection of my own routine.

7. To not find ways to see how close I can go without stepping over the line. Instead, think how far I can be from that line. This was mentioned during one of Pastor Ed’s session, struck a chord in me since then. People like me, free-spirited, come-what-may kind of personality, running away from things I deem as fun (but not exactly morally upright) is hard. I crave excitement and adventure. I need to learn, not everything that makes me happy is beneficial for me. I am responsible for my own freedom. Deliberate habitual sinning makes us okay to cross this line and it’s scary. I forget that it is actually not pleasing to God, I forget that it will hurt me, because I’ve gotten used to it, I’ve gotten immune to it. I do not feel bad anymore. And that itself, is toxic.

8. Repentance, I need to repent from things in my life. Inward change + outward action = repentance. I feel constantly that I’m doing both half-heartedly. It’s hard to truly 100% repent if I continue this way. Deal with the heart problem.

9. Life is worth living for the Lord. Quit thinking that life without acknowledging is my Saviour is better. I used to have thoughts that life would be better without being a Christian – I don’t have to feel shitty about having done something bad, I can sleep till super late on a Sunday, look my friends who are unchurched are living alright too… I envy them sometimes. Then I realised I need to be secured in my identity in Christ. I am a child of God, and knowing Jesus should be one of the best decisions of my life. Yes, people who do not know God can lead a good life too. But I should not think that knowing God has compromised my happiness and freedom in life. God gave us free-will and there is freedom in Him. Quitting Jesus will likely mean I am not returning.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh ; rather, serve one another humbly in love. (Galatians 5:13)

10. If we think closely about most of the things in our lives, there must be an exchange. I gave the auntie my 3 dollars in exchange for a plate of chicken rice this afternoon. The handicapped uncle busked in the streets in hope that someone could give him some money in exchange for his time. Jesus died in exchange for the forgiveness of our sins. I cannot keep taking for granted that I will go to heaven if I keep doing things not according to the will of God; I need to exchange something. Is it my lack of discipline, is it a person, is it a hobby? Surrender.

11. My life should not be a paradox. Make my words precious. From my heart, motives and mind, I need to understand why things cannot be done. Does my verbal profession translate to moral obedience? My life is the most powerful message for people. No one has seen Jesus but they have seen me. Live my life for Christ. Be mindful of what I speak about, don’t say or do things I don’t mean. Treat people genuinely. I should learn to not just receive God’s love, learn to give God some love too by loving His people. He deserves it. When people say my name, what do they say about?

Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like. But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will ﬁnd delight and afﬁrmation in the action. (James 1:22-25)

12. I can live at my own level of faith. I always categorise my friends as upz and never felt equivalent to them. You see, I don’t speak or edify people so much, I don’t lead people, I speak whatever comes my mind (#uncensored) and I am not a standard example of a holy person. Then I talked to some people I deemed as upz and I realised we are all human beings with real temptations and fears; whatever I face they face too, just differently but we have inadequencies. Maybe I’m just more vocal about these things, but everyone’s fighting their own battles even if they looked perfect on the exterior. I learnt that God did not create robots, but created us in His image… and we can be comfortable with who we are. I do not need to be whoever for God to love me more, God is happy with who I am, as long as I live my life with integrity, offline and online, real life or secret life. I can just stay rooted in Him based on my own pace. God isn’t impressed by human strength. If I want real and divine strength and power, first I have to be weak by the standards of this world. When I’m weak by the standards by the world, then I can get the grace to become strong in God. I need God.

For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. (Romans 12:3)

13. Leadership is not about title, leadership is about influence. Note to self about my life as a teacher or colleague or friend. I want to influence positively, I want to be someone who honours my word, that what I believe in is in sync with how I act out and live out.

14. God does not waste every experience I face in my life. No one knows the full shit I’ve experienced, the real training that I’ve been through but when the situation calls for it, I can be useful to people around me. Don’t come out of experiences empty-handed, instead bring treasures of darkness.

15. Read the Bible more, spend time with the Holy Spirit more, pray more. I was forced (ok, at the last feel moments of SOT I was truly forced due to time constraints) to complete the Bible and I realised how much wisdom the Bible has and how little I’ve read it through my years. Contradicting isn’t it? I fail to read the sole thing that was given to me to know God better. As I said earlier, my relationship with God is based on experience – experiencing His love. What if one day I stopped experiencing God’s love during sessions, will I still follow Jesus? The word is indeed important, in times of need I can become a blessing. I beat myself up for the fact that I lost time in my years as a Christian not reading the Bible as much as I should have, but may 2019 be a year where I find time on my own to look deeper into His word and know His word.

Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. (II Timothy 4:2 NKJV)

Pray until inadequacy leaves me. Pray until my prayer is answered. Pray until my burden is lifted. Be close to the Holy Spirit and ensure that when God knocks at my door, I am available and present to answer it. My thought pattern is developed through years and I need to undo this thought pattern by the Holy Spirit, prayers and word of God.

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matthew 6:6)

16. Make decisions when you are not emotionally unstable. Decisions is rooted in your character. Learn to stop acting on impulse. Learn to say no at times. Align my decisions with the will of God.

17. Whatever I focus on grows. Become wiser this year about the people, the finances, the health, the things i spend my time on...

Get wisdom—it’s worth more than money; choose insight over income every time. (Proverbs 16:16)

18. God loves me so much… through SOT, I am certain of the love of God. Now remember this and know that nothing I do or not do can make God love me lesser or more.

19. I can decide what comes into my heart. Let what is worth it come into your heart.

Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts. (Proverbs 4:23 – 27)

20. Be secure in myself, no need to strive to prove myself. If I’m good people can see.

21. If God speaks, will I be willing to listen?

Sooooo, is SOT necessary? To be honest, no. I was so tired at that time, thankful that my dad was able to send me to work straight after SOT at 1 PM. I had no time for myself at all, there was something to do that I cannot cancel everyday. SOT was more of a routine that I learnt to follow, a controlled environment for me to know God more. I had to praise and worship every morning, pray with my peers, read the Bible, complete assignments to graduate. It gave my life some sort of order because everyday I am put in an atmosphere that allows me to meet God. However life after SOT is what really mattered the most. Certainly I got distracted and travelling a lot during my holiday did not help. However, the experiences and revelations in SOT, those are things that cannot be taken away from me... that I just need to regularly be reinforced in my head and heart. My biggest takeaway for me is that nothing will make me leave God and nothing will make God leave me.

May life after this see me becoming more matured, where I have self-realisation as to what is good and bad for me, having a mature love for God that knows no fear because I’m fully convinced that God loves me sooooo super much. Live life with integrity!

This is by no means a 2019 New Year Resolution post because I don’t want that shit anymore (typing this on 31 Dec simply ‘cuz yo girl kept forgetting to do it since 30 Sep after graduation). I’m sure I am bound to make mistakes and bound to screw up and get lost again in my life time but I just want to live my life to my best. Life never really turn out the way it is planned – some parts better than you planned, some parts worse than you planned. A general word for 2019 though, Gr. Apokaradokia: To wait with expectation with head raised and eyes ﬁxed over the horizon –

+ Apo: Means to turn away with concentration. Ignoring other interests.

+ Kara: Means head.

+ Dokia: Means to stretch forward.

Two of my favourite verses throughout my SOT times and have a blessed year ahead.

But he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, And don’t take yourself too seriously— take God seriously. (Micah 6:8 MSG)

God , your God, has blessed you in everything you have done. He has guarded you in your travels through this immense wilderness. For forty years now, God , your God, has been right here with you. You haven’t lacked one thing. (Deuteronomy 2:7 MSG)

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b-afterhours · 7 years

Text

Sympathy For The Devil: Epilogue

summary: Set in 1978, Bill a young yet accomplish cop takes on the crime in New York City. Nervous yet excited to take on his first big task at his new department and prove himself. He soon finds out his partner is everything he had least expected.

author’s note: this is good and long for the wait! if you’ve made it to this epilogue i couldn’t thank you enough! after thinking on it i decided to continue the Star and Bill’s story thru “one shots” i’ve already have one in the works!! but anyway sit back and enjoy! and thank you for loving this story and Star as much as I do!

also if you’re seeing this for the first time you can read part one HERE and if you need to catch up on previous chapters go HERE.

playlist: Angie - The Rolling Stones and Dedicated to the One I Love - The Mamas & The Papas

tags: @kikilikes @billieskars @imaginingyournotsolikelyfuture @bskarsgardfilth @itsbillskarsgard @ambeazyyy @the-lonelyon3 @biskarsgards

At the police station in East Harlem, Bill no longer sat at the beat desk in the back of the place but now he was seated right at the front. In a much nicer desk that he arranged to face out so that his back was to the wall and he'd have a view of everyone. His shift was about over, he just needed to double check some police reports he'd let pile up over the week. He was so busy patrolling the streets, that by the time his shift ended, he just wanted to grab a beer and go home to his cat Minx.

"Ay, Bill!" Jason, his partner, said sliding his leather police cap off his head. "I'm out for the day. See you in the morning." He punctuated tapping his knuckles on Bill's desk.

"No drinks tonight?" He said a bit disappointed.

"Nah, sorry. Baby girl is sick with colic." Jason frowned.

"Francis?"

"No, that's my oldest. It's Ruby, the 8-month-old."

"Oh! Right, right..." Bill often zoned out when Jason talked on and on about his kids. He had 3, two girls and a boy in the middle and despite having a near newborn, his wife was already a few months pregnant with a fourth. Bill was one of the first lucky few to hear the news. "Well, then 'til morning. Hope Ruby feels better." Bill gave Jason a little nod while he shuffled his paperwork into a neat pile.

Jaime, the youngest secretary, came in right as Jason passed her at the threshold. She was still very shy and painfully stiff around Bill. She stood with her arms to her side and cleared her throat lightly.

"Uh, are you here for these?" Bill lifted his reports.

"Oh, I can take those." With her feet still planted she awkwardly reached for them and clutched them to her chest. She's weird, Bill thought, but he thanked her. "But I came to tell you, that there is a caller on line three for you."

"Caller? You know who?" Bill said pulling the beige rotary phone on his desk closer to him. He hardly got personal calls to his desk but when he did it was family who he'd given the direct number to.

"No... they said you'd 'know who it is'," she pursed her lips before speaking again. "And they told me to, 'hurry up'."

Bill ran his hand over his mouth to mask his amused expression. "Okay, sorry about that Jaime." He picked up the receiver and hit the third square button flashing red at him. He had an inkling of who it might be calling. "Angela?" He smiled to himself over the fact that he could call her by her real name.

"Christ, what took that girl so long? My break's almost over." She said on the other end of her call. He could hear several dings from a bell in the background and loud chatter. "Bill?"

"Uh yeah. Sorry I should have given you this number too."

"It's no big deal. Are you busy?"

"No, just about to head out."

"Listen, I know we're going out tomorrow and all but could you come to the diner? Um, some lawyers came by earlier and I'm kinda spooked."

"What?" Bill stood out of his seat.

"How do they know where I work? I think they were part of Stan's defense team..."

"Shit... uh, I'll be on the way okay. Don't talk to anyone else."

Bill got into his brown 1977 Oldsmobile Cutlass that he bought lightly used as a late Christmas present to himself. Tossing his police cap on the passenger seat, he glanced down at himself and suddenly felt like a square in his uniform. He turned the keys in the ignition with a huff and shrugged, he was just going to have to deal with it.

Arriving at the diner, he jogged from across the street where he parked. The door chime rang loudly when he walked in. All the waitresses, turned their heads acknowledging the police officer. All, except for Star, who was busy wiping down a booth by the window. He gave the waitresses a polite nod passing them by to meet her. Star looked over when she noticed a tall figure approaching.

"You got here quick," she smiled. "Um sit back there, I'll join you in a second." She pointed at the last booth by the window.

Bill nodded, walking past her to take a seat. He watched as she quickly went around the counter, picking up a coffee pot and a white mug. Swiftly, she approached him setting down the mug and filling it up, letting the caffeine pour to a long trail of nothing as she lifted the pot upright. She walked off with a wink to set the bill on her last table of the evening. The table was full of rowdy, college-aged men, they quieted when she approached only snickering amongst each other. A blonde haired boy collected the money from his friends and handed it to Star.

"You give this to the cashier," she set the money on the table.

The blonde looked at her with a sly smirk on as he sneakily ran his hand up her thigh to meet her bottom. Watching the exchange Bill jerked in his seat. Before he could slide out of his booth, Star snatched the boy's hand away; his index finger in her grip, ripping it back harshly. The boy winced, biting his bottom lip to keep from yelping. Star reached for a five dollar bill from their pile of cash and crumpled it tightly in her hand.

"That costs boy," she smirked, pushing his hand out of her grip. The rest of the boys sat back in shock, speechless at what had happened to their friend while he sat red in the face in embarrassment. She stared them down. "Now, you pay with Tammy. Over there." She pointed at the gray-haired waitress gnawing on a piece of gum.

Star turned on her heels and saw that Bill wasn't too pleased with what he saw. She rolled her eyes and slid into the seat in front of him, tucking the crumpled five dollar bill in her bra.

"I'm fine," she spoke before he could say anything. "It doesn't happen a lot. They're just stupid kids."

Bill sighed, shaking his head. "Well, I don't like it." He said still having to let her know.

"Are you hungry?" She changed the subject. "We've got a thing called a garbage plate, it's actually good despite the name," she lightly laughed, waving one of her fellow waitresses over. "So these lawyers that came by," she said turning to him after placing her order, "have any of them come to you or anything?"

"No," he sipped his coffee. "Um, I've heard things about Stan and even Randi from Pat but no goon type lawyers have come to see me."

"Shit..." she sighed. "How did they find me? I don't even have my studio lease in my name?"

"You have a studio?" He said happy knowing she had found a proper place for herself. Star responded with a proud nod. "You didn't tell these guys anything right?"

Star scoffed. "Of course not! I know my rights. I've been to jail so many times I can recite the Miranda rights myself. I just played dumb." She laughed.

"Good." Bill nodded. "I'll poke around, maybe get some info on what's going on at the station tomorrow morning? I can't promise anything but I'll try," he took a sip of his black coffee.

"Alright, thanks," she relaxed in her seat.

"I won't let anything happen to you. I promised you that, remember?" Bill reached for her hand and she quickly pulled away. He winced at the rejection.

"Sorry, they could be watching..." she glanced out the window overseeing the street.

"I'm already here, Angela. And they have nothin' on us anyway."

She slid her hand back lacing her small fingers between his fingers. She looked at their clasped hands, she couldn't believe that he was back in her life again. She missed him the very second she left his apartment that day in late November. She took all her things to the greyhound station waiting in the long line of people trying to leave the city the weekend after Thanksgiving. She stood for an hour and once she was right at the ticket booth, she froze. The old man behind the thin iron bars looking at her strangely when she didn't respond to his greeting.

"I said, where to Miss?" He asked her again.

She stood shaking her head as her eyes teared up. "I-I can't..." she choked out before bolting off.

She stowed away the rest of that evening in a small biker bar until close. She felt stupid. Crying to herself when she was too drunk to drink anymore. Everyone gave her strange glares but thankfully avoided her corner of the bar. For a second she contemplated whether she should go back to Bill's apartment but she thought better of it. He would probably be angry with her, though she knew deep down he wouldn't have been mad at all. It was better for her to stay away for her sake since the night before when they kissed she just didn't feel the same... Instead, she walked back to the bus station just to crash for the night. Never in her life, had she felt what he had her feel. And it terrified her.

The waitress set the large steaming plate of hash, eggs, bacon and sausage and cheese before them. She gave Bill's hand a squeeze before letting go.

"It doesn't look too pretty but I swear it's good," Star said handing him some rolled silverware. "If you put syrup on it, it's way better."

The plate was big enough to feed both of them. Yet Bill was left to finish it off when Star was too full to eat anymore.

"Kinda, shitty, huh?" She said talking out loud.

"No, the food's really good," he said with a full mouth, shoveling the last bite in.

"Oh, not the food... Just, we come back around and all the bullshit came right back with it. I'm bad luck," she frowned.

"You're not bad luck. It was bound to happen, just didn't think it would be so soon. We're gonna have to get lawyers soon too, ya know."

Star sighed. "I work as CI and assume I'd never have to see a courtroom again after..." she shook her head and suddenly yawned.

"Long shift?"

"I worked a double today," she shrugged. "Switched shifts so I could go out with you tomorrow... Don't go lookin' sorry for me," she lightly laughed.

"I wasn't feeling sorry?" He wiped his mouth with a crumpled paper napkin.

"You don't have a very good poker face."

He chuckled. "Well, that explains why I always lose at Jason's poker nights." He laughed. "I, uh, can I give you a ride home? I have a car now," he didn't want to sound too eager but he was.

"Please? My feet are killing me."

Star didn't live too far, just a few blocks over from the diner. Bill couldn't help but scope out the neighborhood, it was a bit rough and he didn't like that on normal evenings she walked home alone. Star pointed out her building to the right of them and he pulled over.

"Uh, I'd invite you in but I really need to clean first. Trust me. And it's a studio so it's super small anyway..." she said quickly barreling out her excuses.

"It's fine," he reached passed her and pushed the car door open. "I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"

"7:30?" She double checked. Bill answered with a nod. "If you have to call me, remember the number I gave you is my neighbors and you kinda gotta talk loud, she's old and hard of hearing and if I'm not home then-"

"Then call the diner," he finished for her, "I got it," he smiled, reaching for her hand and planting a gentle kiss on the back of it. "Goodnight, Angela." ...

That morning at the station, Jason was telling Bill all about the night he had with his youngest daughter Ruby and dealing with her colic. Bill still had no idea what colic was exactly but with what Jason was telling him it sounded like a nightmare. Jaime came hustling her short legs toward them with an aluminum wrapped muffin tray just before they walked out the building.

"I almost forgot!" Jaime said out of breath. "Th-these were left for you this morning." She said passing the tray off to Bill. "And this," handing him a folded sheet of notebook paper. Bill flipped the paper open with his free hand and began to read:

"Good morning, B'. Enjoy my blueberry muffins. See you tonight. XOXO."

It was signed with her signature drawn star with A.E. in the middle. It even smelled of rose perfume. He smiled big, pulling the foil off the tin, and the scent of the sweet muffins hits him. He realized then, her messy studio was just a lame excuse, she had planned to bake these after work.

"Who are these from?" Jason said when Bill handed the tray to him when they finally got in the cruiser. "You got a honey, you've been keepin' from me?" He handed Bill a muffin before biting into his. "Fuck this is good," he said with a full mouth, crumbs coating his dark mustache.

Bill took a bite, his teeth breaking through the sugar crystal crust and into the moist, sweet blueberry muffin. It was incredibly good, actually. He was smiling to himself the whole time he chewed.

"So? Who's this A.E.," Jason said looking at the note. "See you tonight. XO. XO." He read, wagging his brows at Bill.

"Gimme that," Bill playfully snatched the note from Jason. "She's my friend." He said putting the uneaten half of his muffin back in the tin tray.

"Just a friend?" He pressed. "You know how early your friend has to be at the station, for you not to spot her?"

"She's... we're talkin', I guess." He said putting the cruisers gear in drive.

"Talking's good. Now, you don't want to go on getting tied down, just warning ya. You're too young."

Bill flashed him a puzzled glance. "Aren't you only a year older than me?"

"Yeah..."

"You're married and your wife is pregnant with your fourth kid?"

"Exactly, why you should heed my warning!" He wagged a finger but digressed. "But anyway, where'd you meet your friend A.E.? These muffins are really fresh and sweet, so she must be too, right?" He said holding the last bit of muffin up and tossing it in his mouth.

"She is. Uh, we met here at work," Bill bit his lip.

"Oh, was she a secretary before the turn over?" Jason asked as he looked out his window watching the foot traffic blur by as Bill drove.

"Ah, no... met her while I was doing undercover work."

Jason turned his attention back to him with a raised brow. "Met her at a disco or something?"

"No. She was, uh, she was my CI..." He glanced over at Jason, nervously chewing his lip.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Well... opposites attract right?" He patted Bill's shoulder and left it at that. ...

At 7:20, Bill parked in front of Star's complex, checking his hair in the rearview mirror while he smoked. He was almost late, having trouble with what to wear until he was reminded of the time and forced himself out his apartment. He settled on dark wash jeans and a white button up with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Also unbuttoned showing a bit of his bare chest and the thin gold chain he religiously wore underneath his clothing.

Star came hustling out the front door of her building. Bill could faintly hear an arguing couple and a child's crying just before the door closed behind her, silencing it. He flicked his cigarette away as he swiftly stepped out of his car to meet her on the sidewalk. She was wearing a little black dress with black velvet thigh high heels.

"Hey, you look great," Bill smiled, putting a hand on her shoulder ushering her to the passenger door.

"Aww, did I overdress?" She turned her head noticing how casual he had dressed. "You said it was an Italian restaurant, you made it sound fancy..."

"It's a mom and pop place but it's popular. And I-I think I'm underdressed. You look wonderful." He leaned down to open the passenger door. "Now c'mon, the place fills up fast," he put a hand on the small of her back guiding her in.

There was a short line out the little hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant when they arrived. Bill was walking back to Star with his police jacket in hand while she held their spot in line under the awning. It was a slightly chilly out for the beginning of March. He draped the jacket over her and rubbed between her shoulders. Star giggled to herself as she pulled the oversized jacket tightly around herself.

"What?" Bill with a chuckle, wanting in on whatever was amusing her.

"I'm usually in police cuffs," she laughed, "not jackets."

He smirked, his dimple appearing. "I hope my jacket is a lot warmer."

"Definitely," she leaned into his side.

Shortly, they were seated in the back of the dim restaurant that smelled of garlic and rosemary and fresh bread. It felt homey. An authentic piece of Italy hidden right in New York City. Sourdough baby baguettes were set before them on the white cloth covered table. Their waiter handed them paper menu's and just before he could hustle off Bill ordered two glasses of white wine.

"What's good?" Star asked perusing her menu. "Have you been here before?"

Bill puffed his bottom lip out and shook his head. "Nah, uh Pat told me about this place."

"Do you talk to Pat about me?" She smirked.

"Uh... sorta? Is, is that weird?"

"Nope," she lightly shrugged. "Just weird that you're basically best friends with an old broad."

"Yeah, well, Pat's alright. I'm still trying to convince her to go out for drinks. You think it'll happen one day?" He playfully winked.

"Christ," she bit her lip to keep from laughing and entertaining his sarcasm. "I knew you had a crush on her. Any other broads I should know about?" She went back to looking at her menu.

"Nah... no," he nervously bit his lip.

"Don't lie..." she peered from atop her menu. A glimmer of curiosity and friskiness in her eyes. "I'm sure girls panties just drop seeing a tall handsome fella like you patrolling in your uniform."

"Excuse me?" He said with a laugh. "Panties dropping? For an NYPD pig? Don't think so." He tore a piece of the small baguette and dipped it into the olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette that accompanied it. "I had a run in from the bar but I, it never went anywhere. One night stand thing," he shrugged. "Only once."

"That's absolutely filthy of you, B'." She facetiously joked. "Can't believe you," she smirked.

"And you, you're a beautiful lady? Uh, I mean, may I ask?"

She set her menu down, suddenly becoming serious and near unreadable as she sat up in her seat. "Not a single soul." She said looking him square in the eyes. "Did you figure out what you want? I think I did." She clasped her hands together, changing the subject.

Bill didn't know how to take her stoic response but he knew how she loved to change the subject when she felt the spotlight on her. It made her uncomfortable. And for some reason, he felt like he was back to square one with her despite everything.

"I'm getting the shrimp alfredo," she pointed on his menu.

Bill's attention finally fell on the menu he barely looked through. "Uh yeah, I'll get the lasagna." It was an easy choice and the first he had noticed. Bill called the waiter over to order and only began speaking once he left. "Uh, did I say something wrong, Angela?" He nervously scratched his neck.

"Huh? No, not at all," she shook her head and reached for his hand on the table. "Relax," she said softly, "I'd let you know if you said something I didn't like."

"But will you, really?"

"Do you know me or not?" She tilted her head. "We just have some catching up, is all."

"Right, right," he nodded.

They ate the delicious Italian dishes with their wine. They even switched plates for a moment to try each other's food. Bill was glad Pat didn't let him down with her recommendation of the place. If only she knew, who he had planned on accompanying him. Lord knows she tried to press him for details but he didn't budge. Star sat back in her seat absolutely stuffed, she hadn't eaten outside the diner since she started working there a few months ago. Her meals were discounted so it was convenient. Bill paid the tab and quickly glanced at his wrist watch, it was almost 10:30 and the movie he had planned to take her to was scheduled at ten on the dot. He was out of moves for the night.

Bill was driving Star back to her place. They sat listening to a Hollies song playing on his car radio, passing a cigarette back and forth. Despite Star's cheery attitude singing along to the radio, Bill felt like the whole date had been a disaster. They missed the movie. And he felt stupid for even thinking it was okay to ask Star if she had been with anyone. He definitely blew it. Bill finally parked right in front of the buildings' door.

"Um, would you like to come up?" Star asked shyly. "You don't have to stay but I'd like to show ya?"

Bill followed her in, hoping this was his chance to end the night on a better note. The walls in the main hallway were painted a dingy yellow color or maybe they were nicotine stained, Bill wasn't so sure. Random yelling and noises came from various rooms as they walked to the graffitied elevator at the end of the corridor.

"Did you get those muffins?" Star asked him after hitting the button for the 19th floor; she lived just below the very top. "Big Ol' Stacy didn't get to them did she?"

"Oh Stacy doesn't work at the station anymore," he chuckled, "But yeah I got them, thank you. They were really good, incredible. Even my partner Jason liked them."

"Is he nice?" She wondered. The only nice cop she ever met was Bill.

"Yeah, good family man. Uh, there is a bit to catch up on, the station nearly had a whole staff change." The elevators opened with an unsettling creak onto Star floor.

"This way," she pulled on this shirt so he'd follow, going left. Her floor was by far a lot quieter than the main floor. Almost eerily quiet. "Old folks live on this floor," she said digging in her small purse for her keys. "I don't know why but I like it. They mind their business for the most part," she stopped at her door, 19G. "It's just a studio," she looked up at him before opening the door.

She was nervous inviting Bill into her home. But he had been so inviting and generous with his apartment she felt it was only right. Besides, she knew he was curious since mentioning it last night. She didn't have much. She was lucky to have collected all the furniture she had acquired so far. She bought a full sized bed and box spring, used, but in decent condition. The bed frame was still leaning against the wall right by, she hadn't had time to set it up. And also she was worried about breaking a nail. Right next to the bed frame was an orange suede recliner she had decorated with a white crochet throw. Nothing she owned matched yet she got it to work together somehow.

"This is it," she shrugged. "I'm gonna get out of this dress. Go and get comfortable. The radio is right by the window." She pointed out.

Star ducked off into the small bathroom leaving Bill alone. He slowly walked over to the radio set on a little card table and hunched down tuning dial back and forth until he could find a song he could live with. He took a seat on the edge Star's bed while the piano jazz he settled on softly played. He looked around the place, bored with waiting, fidgeting with his hands between his knees feeling awkward. There wasn't anything covering the walls but the huge cloth tapestry tacked at the head of her bed. Star emerged from the bathroom in a black slip dress and an oversized thick red flannel over it. She was wearing long tube socks bunched at her ankles that were recognizably his.

Star put a hand on his cheek letting it glide off as she walked around him to her nightstand, pulling out a half-smoked joint and a lighter from the drawer. She walked to the window by the radio and tugged it open, she stuck her head out, and then looked back at Bill.

"C'mon," she nudged her head, a playful look in her eyes.

Bill watched her crawl out the window and on to the fire escape platform. Star could easily fit through but he had a whole foot of height on her. He stuck his head out first and met Star's amusement as she watched him shimmy his long limbs through the window. Finally, on the platform, he sat with his back to the stairs, his legs right behind her while her's were between the bars swinging back and forth several stories high.

She lit her joint, taking a puff and slowly sighing the smoke out. She had a lovely view of the iconic skyscrapers of Manhattan, they looked a lot less daunting from Harlem. The city looked beautiful at night almost peaceful if it weren't for the various sirens and clatter of bins and screeching alley cats.

"Sorry about the movie," Bill said looking at how the moon lined her nose and plump lips in silver and created shadows of her mascara-coated lashes on her cheeks.

She turned her head. "We'll see it another time. I heard The Deer Hunter is really good so we gotta." She held out her joint to him. "I'm only offering to be polite."

Bill took the joint between her fingers and took a puff without hesitation. He hadn't smoked grass since grade school. A devious smile tugged at Star's lips as he blew a thin trail of smoke above her head.

"You still wanna go out with me?" He asked passing the joint back.

"Yes..." she stubbed the joint out on the rail. "Why wouldn't I?" Her brows furrowed at his question.

"Y-you left... I thought maybe you felt sorry for me and that's why you agreed to go out?"

"Bill no..." she frowned. "I missed you."

"You knew where I lived?"

She lowered her head. He had every right to be upset with her. "I know. I was scared... And I'm confused... w-why do you like me, Bill?" She looked back up at him. "I'm not that great? I'm just an ex-hooker turn waitress. I'm going nowhere?"

"Stop that," he closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head. "I don't like when you talk about yourself like you're nothing. Like you couldn't possibly mean nothing. What you did and what you do now, you shouldn't feel ashamed of. You're a good girl, Angie. I like you because you're honest, and you care, and you have so much courage and you're real. You don't fake anything. Me," he pointed at his chest, "I'm a big faker. I got my uniform and everything but I fuckin' hate being a cop. It's bullshit."

"Oh don't say that. You love being a cop, B'. You're really good at it."

"Fuck the cop shit," he waved off. "Don't skim over what I said about you... d-do you even like me? Or..."

Star slid her legs from between the bars, Bill moved his from behind her and bent them. She looked like she was about to leave him making him regret his words towards her. Until she scooted closer to him, sitting in between his bent knees.

"I do. I like you. I'm sorry for leaving like I did... Like I said, I was scared," she chewed on her lip.

"But why were scared?"

"Because I... no one," she sighed, having trouble finding her words, "I don't meet a lot of nice guys you know. If I do, they certainly don't like me. You know what kinda guys I've dealt with, it's really fucked with my head." She pointed at her temple. "I've had a lot of time to think on it... about what I used to do and why I left you, 'cause at the time I didn't know. Not really... I just, I just feel gross? And then, Stan," she shook her head and swallowed the lump forming in her throat. "I'm so disgusted with myself." She turned away for a moment, blinking rapidly to keep her tears at bay. "I like you, Bill. Like a lot! But you don't want someone like me."

"Stop. Stop it. You're not gross or disgusting," he reached for her hand and held it tightly. "I don't see you that way. But it doesn't matter what I think, I want you to see that you're not either. It's important to me. I'll do whatever so that you can know how amazing you are," he sweetly swept a dark lock of her hair behind her ear. "I know it's silly to have these feelings so fast but I couldn't help it and I couldn't shake them. And then I saw you again and just knowing that you were okay and well... that alone made me so happy."

Star nodded feeling so loved and appreciated. It was something she hadn't felt and she never realized how, so desperately she needed it. "If-if we do this..." she nervously stammered, "we have, we have to do it slowly. Is that okay?"

"That's fine. I just don't want you to leave again," he said earnestly, he couldn't take it if she did. "Whatever you need me to do, I'll do it."

"Okay... 'cause, sometimes people touchin' me freaks me out, I don't know," she shook her head feeling embarrassed. She hated being vulnerable but she also had to remind herself that her words were safe with him. "Like that kid, I was able to handle it 'cause I knew you were there. Other days, I run off to the kitchen and lock myself in the walk-in freezer to calm down. Until I'm me again, you know. It really doesn't happen a lot but when it does it's bad."

Bill nodded understandingly. "Just tell me, what's okay and what's not. Please."

"Well, kissing is okay. I kissed you the day when I saw you again," a soft smile curved from her lips. "I even surprised myself, I just needed to do it."

"And holding your hand?" He said rubbing his thumb on the back of her hand that he was holding.

"Yes," she giggled.

"I'll let you take the lead with whatever, okay? I won't put hands on you unless you ask."

"Sounds fair. You don't have to treat me like I'm fragile, though. I don't get those icky feelings with you. I feel safe. I'll let you know, okay?"

"Okay," he smiled.

"Uh, would you like to stay with me tonight? Unless you've got something in the morning that's fine?"

"I wanna stay." He reached for her head running his hand through her dark hair. "Can I?" He asked. She nodded her head cradled in his hands. He planted a tender kiss on her forehead, trailing them down her nose and finally connecting their lips.

It felt like the first time all over again. Back in his bedroom when things were all right in the world. Before she left. She threw her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, kissing him back longingly. Making up for lost time. At that moment, nothing else existed. Not who they were or what they had been through. And no one around to place judgment on the fact that they had chosen each other. Opposites... Though they were equals in each other's eyes. They were people living in the beat of their own drum in the city that never sleeps. Bill held her tightly as she rested her head on his chest, taking in his warmth. His heart happy with knowing she wasn't going anywhere this time.

#bill skarsgard #my bill writings #70s bill

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soaimagines · 7 years

Text

happy halloween 🎃

Holly-day Series: Part One

Pairing: Happy x OC (Holly)

Word Count: 3,560

Warnings: language, i think thats it

Authors Note: This is Part One of my Holiday series (with my first ever OC). Every major holiday I will be continuing this series, I am super excited for this and I hope you all enjoy 💕🎃 I have also linked an image of the costumes I imagined throughout the story (just click on their names). This will also be my entry for the @samperv challenge! Let me know what you all think, feedback is always welcome! Masterlist Happy Thanksgiving ( Part Two )

Hollys Costume & Makeup

“Hey Hol, are you almost done with my laptop?” Juice called across the clubhouse, as he laced up his boots, one foot up on the coffee table and the other stood firmly on the ground. The brunette at the bar ignored him, her eyes glued to the screen of his laptop.

“She not talking to you man?” Tig asked, an amused look on his face at the idea of drama between his brother and Holly, Donna’s cousin. Juice shrugged and rolled his eyes before walking across the room. Tig followed him and they both leant against the bar, either side of her. “Whatcha looking at?” Juice asked, and pushed the corner of the laptop so he could see the screen. Images of halloween makeup filled the screen, all bloody and gory. “You know its only August, right?” Juice teased. Holly rolled her eyes and pulled the lap top back in front of her and continued scrolling. “I wanna get my costume ready.” “Aren’t you a little too old to go trick-or-treating?” Tig asked. Holly snorted. “Its for the party.” Juice tilted his head to the side in confusion. “What party?” Holly closed the tab on the screen and shut the laptop before pushing it back to Juice. “The Halloween party.” She said, as if it was obvious, before she slid off the stool and went behind the bar to grab some beers. “You’re kidding right?” “Juice I never joke about the holidays.” Holly said as she opened a beer and passed it to Tig. “You can throw a party, sweetheart. But no one’s gonna dress up.” Tig stated. As he said that, Bobby and Chibs walked through the door and sat at the bar alongside their brothers. Holly pulled two more beers out of the fridge for the newcomers and passed them to the men. With a furrowed brows, and her lips pouting out and she turned to Tig. “Ya know, I thought you would have liked playing dress up, Tiggy.” “Oh baby, I do.” Tig winked. “But only in the bedroom.” “Whats this?” Bobby asked, though if he was honest he wasnt sure he wanted to know. “Holly wants to throw a Halloween party” Juice explained, with a shake of his head. “I don’t want to, I am.” She emphasised the last word. Bobby chuckled and shook his head. “Not gonna happen sweetheart. There’s only two things Halloween is good for. Cavities and diabetes.” “Well heaven forbid a SAMCRO party has a fucking theme for once.” “They do have a theme,” Tig said, a cheeky smile on his face. “Pussy and booze.” The boys all laughed while Holly grimaced and buried her face in her hands.

It was almost ten months ago that Holly became the newest addition the the SAMCRO family. She was Donna Winston’s cousin and after Donnas death she had taken it upon herself to help Opie with the kids and had moved in with him shortly after. Every morning she woke the kids, despite their protests, made breakfast and dropped them off for school. Then, she would spend the day helping Gemma in the office, or cleaning up around the club house, or on the odd occasion helping the boys in the garage before rounding the kids up after school and taking them home. She was a breath of fresh air when the club needed it most, and although she may not realise it, she had that club wrapped around her little finger. For a lot of them she was the sister they never had. She could drink the guys under the table and in the morning she’d wake them up with a smile on her face and steaming mug of coffee.

Gemma, while hesitant at first, had soon grown to love Holly and had taken her under her wing. Even Clay had a soft spot for her, allowing her to get away with far more than any one else that hung around. In fact, the whole club adored her. So Juice wasn’t entirely surprised when he saw Holly’s plans for a Halloween Party were coming together. Of all the members of the Sons, she was closest to Juice, being of similar ages. They had hit it off instantly and neither of them could deny the initial attraction between the two, but after a drunken make out session that was nothing but awkward, they had both agreed there was nothing romantic between them. Only friendship. He was working in the garage when he saw her car pull up and he watched, wiping his greased hands on a rag as she got out and struggling to lift a box out of the trunk of her car. “You need a hand?” Juice called, as he jogged across the lot. “Thanks!” Holly smiled and passed the box to Juice who lifted it easily from her grasp. “What’s all this?” He asked as she turned back to the car and grabbed two large bags out before slamming it shut. “Decorations.” Together they began the walk across the lot, and Juice balanced the box against his body as he opened the door with one hand, holding it open for Holly. She smiled in thanks and entered the clubhouse. “Clays okay with all of this?” “Uh-huh!” Holly nodded and dumped the bags on the nearest table. “He said the prospects will help me set up.” Juice shook his head in disbelief while Holly flashed him a smug smile and a wink. “Where are the prospects anyway? Jax wanted me to go through some stuff with them.” “They went to pick up the fog machine and some more decorations.” Halloween was in five days and Holly had prepared a strict schedule in order to get everything ready for the party. She was a stickler for details and she wanted to make sure everything was perfect, since it was the first holiday event that she had been allowed to host at the clubhouse. The door burst open and in came the booming voices of Opie, Jax, Chibs, and Tig. Juice went to talk to them and Holly turned away, immediately getting back into business mode and sorting through the bags. She didn’t notice the guys surrounding her as she pulled faux cobwebs out of the bags, her mind solely focused on the decorations. “This all for the party?” Tig asked, lifting a skeleton out the box. Holly grabbed the decoration and slapped his hand away. “Yes, don’t touch.” Tig raised his hands in defence and pretended to back away. “You guys got your costumes ready?” The boys all nodded and Holly couldn’t help but grin. Despite their initial resistance to the party, everyone had come round to the idea. Maybe it was because they all loved Holly, and no one wanted to disappoint her, especially after seeing all the effort she was putting into this. Or maybe it was because secretly they all loved the idea of dressing up. But, most likely it was because she had threatened them for the past weeks that if they didn’t come in costume, she would cut all their dicks off. “So is your boyfriend coming?” Tig asked as he sunk down into a chair and swung his legs up, using a spare chair as a footrest. The guys chuckled while Holly rolled her eyes, the mere thought of Happy Lowman bringing a blush to her cheeks. “He’s not my boyfriend. I don’t even like him anymore.” She was lying through her teeth and they all knew it. “Yeah,” Opie snorted. “And my wife’s not a pornstar.”

The boys all laughed while Holly groaned. After yet another drunken night Holly had regretfully confessed to Opie, telling him about her feelings for his Brother and Opie ‘Big-Mouth’ Winston had taken it upon himself to tell almost everyone. Ever since, the guys had teased her relentlessly. She was sick of their teasing and she had decided to try a new tactic, in which she, albeit rather badly, pretended she had moved on. No one needed to know that it was a lie or that when she saw him her legs turned to jelly or that the sound of his voice made her swoon and dream up names for their future children. “Hate to break it to ya Hol, but I don’t think Hap will come.” Jax said, as he too sunk into a chair. Holly rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders as she leant against the table. Before she could give herself a mental pat on the back for her award worthy acting, she knocked a jar of candy corn off the table, causing the sweets to scatter across the carpet. With a mutter of ‘Shit’ she knelt, quickly working to clean up the mess.

“Yeah, I mean, you really think the Killer is gonna dress up?” Opie laughed. “I’m gonna ‘ave to agree with the boys, luv. I don’ think Happy’s a holiday kinda guy.” Chibs said. “Well it doesn’t matter anyway.” Holly said as she stood and snatched some decorations from Jax’s grasp. “Like I said, I don’t like him anymore.”

Holly hadn’t been lying when she said she loved the holidays and of them all, Halloween was by far her favourite. The transformation of the clubhouse was impressive. The entire ceiling was covered in fake cobwebs, littered with spiders, bats and hanging lanterns. Skeletons and ghosts, witches and monsters were hanging all throughout the room with bales of hay along the wall for extra seating. There was a ‘graveyard’ in the corner, filled with headstones and Holly had set the fog machine behind those, so a low thick fog blanketed the floor. Juice had even helped her set up a lighting system for maximum effect. The pool table was covered with a black table cloth and was scattered with skulls, candles and Halloween themed snacks that Holly had spent hours making. She had stayed late last night setting up the decorations and had spent most of the day doing finishing touches before getting ready. Holly had debated with herself over her costume for a while but, after finding an old wedding dress at a thrift store she had finally decided. She had torn the front of it before adding fake blood and finishing the look with a bit of gory makeup. The clubhouse was slowly filling with guests, mostly croweaters and friends of the club. A couple of the Nomads had turned up, donned in various outfits ranging from clowns to Rambo and even Kozik had come. He had chosen a Van Halen style costume, complete with a mullet, a red headband, and leopard print pants. So far from SAMCRO only Opie and Lyla were there, dressed as Jane and Tarzan. Holly had practically dragged them out the door in order to get to the party early and make sure everything was organised. As Holly looked around the room she noticed at least four different girls dressed as Harley Quinn and in the back of the room was someone wearing a full Foghorn Leghorn costume, from the Looney Tunes. She was about to cross the room to greet the mysterious Rooster, and figure out who exactly it was, when she heard cheers erupt. Tig had arrived, clad in a red Lycra suit that cut off at the thighs and biceps. A red forked tail was floating around behind him and amongst his dark curls sat a pair of red horns. His arm was wrapped around Venus, who looked stunning in a white dress with large feathered wings behind her and a gold halo above her head. Holly went to join Opie and Lyla who had headed to greet Tig and Venus. But when Tig turned to face them all front on they immediately shielded their eyes. In what only seemed to be typical Tig Trager fashion, his costume was not only extremely tight and cut in a ‘V’ shape, revealing a little more of his chest than Holly had ever wanted to see, but it also hugged his genitals snugly, showing anyone who dared to look the exact form of his trouser snake. “I shouldn’t have to see that.” Opie groaned. “What?” Tig said, defensively throwing his hands out. “They didn’t have my size.” Tig and Venus headed to the bar, leaving Opie, Lyla and Holly slightly scarred for life. Juice was next to arrive. He marched through the doors, the black cape of his Darth Vadar costume billowing out behind him. He had a light saber, of course, and he swung it through the air in front of him before stopping before them. “Holy shit, Holly, this place looks incredible! And you! You look great!” Juice gushed. Holly smiled proudly and gave him a twirl. “Cmon, lets get some punch!”

Much to her surprise everyone had put in real effort with their costumes. Gemma and Clay had come dressed as 1920s mobsters, which suited teh matriarch perfectly, complete with fedoras and a feather boa. Jax was swanning around the room in a James Bond outfit while Tara trailed after him, dressed as Sandy from Grease, wearing a pretty dress and a ‘Pink Ladies’ jacket. Chibs had dressed as a pirate which he suited far too well, and was leant against the bar with a half empty bottle of rum, mumbling something about ‘Booty’ in Chibberish. Bobby had, of course, come as Elvis and was seranading a dozen slutty nurses and schoolgirls and even a few croweaters with cat ears as well. Even the prospects had made an effort; Phil made a very convincing Shrek (he was yelling “Get outta my swamp!” At anyone that got too close) but Ratboy didn’t seemed to be dressed up at all, although his hair did look a bit curlier than usual. Holly frowned, seeing Rat in his dark jeans and a kutte and she strode over, her hands on her hips. “George, I’m disappointed.” Holly scolded, shaking her head. Rat was taking a sip of his beer and he paused mid air to look questioningly at Holly. “I told you what would happen if you didn’t dress up.” Holly mimicked scissors with one hand while the other pointed to his nether regions. “I did dress up!” Rat exclaimed and placed his beer in the table before raising his arms to show leather wrist bands and he pointed to his curlier-than-usual hair. Up close Holly could see he had coated it in hair gel giving an exaggerated greasy look. “I’m Tig.” Holly snorted and Rat leaned in close and put on his best ‘Tig’ voice. “I like the tombstone decorations, and all these people dressed as corpses. Really gets my dick hard.” The two erupted into laughter and while they were laughing the ‘Mysterious Rooster’ stopped in front of the table and watched them. The laughter died off and Holly tilted her head to the side as the person in the Foghorn Leghorn costume watched them. Holly glanced at Rat who looked equally confused by the newcomer and just as abruptly as they had come, they walked away. “Who is that?” Holly asked. Rat shrugged. “No one knows. The guys are taking bets. I reckon it’s Unser, undercover.” Holly laughed at the idea but shook her head. “No way! It’s probably Ima. At least if no one knows it’s her, no one can break her nose.” “Fair point.” Rat agreed. The pair chatted for a little while longer before Holly headed back to the bar. She slid onto an empty stool and Chucky immediately passed her a glass of Whiskey. He had come as a mime, which made it difficult for people to order drinks because he refused to speak, and kept pretending he was trapped in a box. Holly sat at the bar for a little while and was nursing a near empty glass of whiskey. She swirled it in her hand, watching the cubes of ice clink together when Juice slid onto the stool next to her. “You okay?” She smiled up at his warm brown eyes and nodded. “This party’s amazing, Hol. Everyone’s having a blast. You’ve done a great job.” Juice nudged her and Holly nudged him back with a wide grin on her face. “Thanks Juicy.” The door to the clubhouse opened and in walked Wendy, dressed as Sandy from Grease, only in the final scenes. She wore her hair curled perfectly and she even had a ‘T-Birds’ leather jacket draped over her shoulder. “Oh no.” Holly whispered and nudged Juice again. They both glanced between Wendy and Tara and they watched as Tara spotted Wendy and her face fell before her lips turned into a snarl. “Well this is awkward.” Juice whispered. They both laughed and Wendy shrugged off Tara’s dirty looks and went to join Tig and Venus dancing. Tara was already arguing with Jax and Juice and Holly couldn’t help but find amusement in the situation. The two fell silent as they both took sips from their drinks. “He didn’t come, huh?” Juice asked quietly. Holly shook her head and sighed. “I just really thought he would, ya know? God even fucking Piney made an effort.” They both glanced across the room to see Piney (dressed as a Veteran) staring alarmingly and shaking his head at Tig who was dancing a little too provocatively, considering his attire. Holly and Juice sniggered and turned back to their drinks. “The nights not over yet. He might turn up.” Holly nodded, although she wasn’t hopeful. But she knew there was no point wallowing about it and so she lifted her glass to her lips, finishing her drink before slamming the glass back down on the bar and sliding off her stool. “Cmon then Juicy. Let’s dance!”

After dancing with almost everyone Holly headed outside to get some fresh air. She hopped up on the picnic table and glanced up at the night sky. A full moon shone down, bringing a smile to her face and she pulled out her pack of cigarettes. She pulled one out of the pack and pressed it between her lips as she rummaged through her pockets for a lighter. “Damn.” No luck. She was about to jump off the table and head back inside when the door opened and the person in the Foghorn Leghorn costume came out. “Oh, hello!” She greeted cheerily. They raised their arm/wing in response but said nothing. Holly glanced at the head of the costume nervously. It was pointless, but she really wanted to know who it was. Whoever it was had been here all night, never really talking to anyone and always lingering in the background. They didn’t speak and Holly couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous being alone with them. She cleared her throat. “You uh.. you gotta light?”

The Rooster shook its head and Holly sighed before she slid off the table. “Thanks anyway.” She was about to head back inside when the Rooster stepped in her path, blocking the entrance. They reached their hand out towards her as they took a step closer. “What are you doing?” Holly stepped back. The door opened and Holly was relieved to see Juice come out. He stopped when he saw Holly, clearly frightened, and the mysterious costume. “Everything okay here, Hol?” “Uh.. yeah I was just heading back in.” Juice held out his hand and Holly took hold of it. He wrapped an arm over her shoulder protectively and the Rooster watched as they walked into the clubhouse together. “Thank you!!” She whispered once inside. “Anytime. What is it with that guy?” Holly shrugged. “I dunno, but he gives me the creeps.”

The night had gone better than Holly could have ever expected and the early hours of the morning were rolling in. Most of the crowd had headed home and it was mainly SAMCRO left drinking, with a few stray hangarounds here and there. Holly was sat around a table with Juice, Opie, Lyla, Jax, Clay, Gemma, and Ratboy. Phil and Bobby had both passed out somewhere amongst the decorations and Tara had headed home after a rather entertaining confrontation with Wendy. The group was all chatting and laughing together when they heard a squeal. A croweater, dressed as a slutty pirate leapt off the sofa with a wide smirk on her face. “Yaaarrrr, bring me tha’ booty!” Chibs yelled and chased the girl into the hallway. The group laughed and shook their heads. “Seriously? Who is that?” Lyla asked. Everyone turned to look in the direction she was pointing. Foghorn Leghorn had walked back inside and went to stand near Kozik, who was chatting up a redhead in a nurses outfit. “No one knows.” Opie replied. “What if it’s like.. I dunno a Mayan or something?” Everyone turned to Ratboy and he shrugged. “I’m just saying! If I was gonna come and murder my enemies I’d probably wear a costume like that too, ya know.” Silence fell in the group and the guys all looked at each other before leaping out of their seats. They each pulled out a gun and stormed across the room. Gemma, Lyla and Holly followed but hung back, careful not to get too close. The guys surrounded the Rooster, all guns raised and aimed and when it realised what was going on he froze and lifted his hands/wings in surrender. “Who are you?!” Clay demanded. A muffled voice came from inside the costume but no one could quite make out the words. The Rooster threw his hands up in frustration and slowly lifted the head off the costume, to reveal none other than Happy fucking Lowman. “Guys, chill! It’s me!” “Happy?!” “You have got to be kidding me!” Clay said and rubbed his brows. Holly wouldn’t have been able to keep the grin off her face even if she had wanted to. He had been here, all along. “What the hell, man? What’s with the costume?” Jax asked. Happy shrugged. “I like the Loony Tunes.” Opie laughed and shook his head. “We didn’t think you’d come at all.” Happy frowned. “Why? I fucking love Halloween.” The guys all headed back to the table, chuckling to themselves, leaving Happy standing in front of Holly alone, though none of them forgot to wriggle their brows or wink in her direction as they passed. Happy tucked his ‘Head’ under his arm and stepped closer. “I’m sorry about earlier, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Holly blushed and shook her head. “No, no it’s fine! Don’t worry about it.” She smiled up at him. Happy smiled back at her, and she couldn’t help but notice the sparkle in his dark eyes, or the way he looked at her with a yearning, or the chemistry burning in the air as he stepped closer. “Thank you.. for coming.” She said quietly. “I wouldn’t have missed it.” Happy licked his lips and was about to say something when Tig barrelled into him. “Hap, my brother. You do realise you came as a Cock, right?”

Masterlist

Part Two ( Happy Thanksgiving)

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