#i get it because even in my head i was like ‘no joey’ | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

starsinthesky5 · 1 month

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the one || joe burrow x reader

description: once he found the one, he never planned on letting go

a/n: this is part 2 of down bad!!! thank you to the anon that wanted to see a part 2 and since she literally gave me the idea for a good chunk of this fic, a special shoutout to @joeys-babe! part 3 will be out soon!

also, i just wanted to say do the things that make you happy and not care about what anyone else says (as our boy has stated a few times). don’t let anyone’s opinions or words dictate what you can and can’t do, especially if they do not know you. do what makes you happy, ALWAYS! that has lowkey been my life motto for the longest time and those are my thoughts as I continue to write and enjoy my time on this app 💗

okay back to the fic, this takes 2 years after the first part! so you and joe have been together for 2.5 years going on to 3 by now!

warnings: SMUT, language

word count: 20 k

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“Fuck, you feel too good, baby,” you moaned as you closed your eyes and ran your nails along Joe’s muscular back, your pleasure rapidly building inside your sore body.

“That’s it…that’s it, baby,” Joe moaned. “You’re doing so good,”.

You and Joe had been wrapped up in bed for over an hour this evening, enjoying all this extra free time you two had together since it was off-season for Joe. You two were planning on spending the evening going through your shared closet and getting rid of things you didn’t need or use anymore, but that only lasted for about 10 minutes since Joe found a pair of new skimpy red lace panties you bought to surprise him later in the week. You could practically see the lust in his eyes as he pulled you right back to bed and you could feel it too because of the way he was going about it.

“I’m gonna cum again,” you whined while opening your eyes and seeing Joe’s incredibly dark blue eyes filled with raw desire, his hand firmly placed on your waist as he rammed into your core, sending your body further up the bed and a prominent indent being visible in your lower belly because of him. You felt your orgasm building again for the 3rd time this evening and you were practically floating at this point. Joe's stamina was never to be questioned, but he was surprised that you could still keep going even after being so wrung out.

“Shit..me too,” Joe panted as he dropped his head to the crook of your neck. “Fuck, you look so pretty under me like this…I can’t get enough of you, baby,” he moaned into your ear as he finished the sentence with a nip to your neck. He continued to moan and whimper in your ear, the sounds coming from his mouth literally making you lose all control and innocence.

“J- Joe,” you whimpered as your legs started to shake, your eyes once again seeing stars. “Fuck..I need you harder,”.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he groaned as he felt your walls start to convulse around his thick shaft, your nails clawing at his back which was sure to leave a few red marks you’d take care of later. He started pounding into you with more intensity, making your moans come out in short gasps.

“Baby, I-,” you hissed before you felt Joe crash his lips against yours, silencing your sounds of pleasure as he moved one of his hands down to your bundle of nerves. You placed a hand into his hair–lightly scratching his scalp in a way you knew he loved–and pulled him closer while his thumb fondled your aching clit.

A few seconds later, you pulled away from his lips mid-kiss because you felt the imaginary band in your belly snap hard and another wave of pleasure washing over your tired body. “Ah, Joe,” you screamed for maybe the 100th time in the past hour.

You felt your release soaking both of your lower halves as he kept pounding into your core, his rapid pace not slowing down even though you were experiencing the aftershocks of your orgasm and he was making it even more intense.

“Joe…I C- Can’t…,” you whispered, your eyes screwing shut again as you arched up into him.

“I’ve got you, baby,” he whispered into your ear, his gentle hand sliding along your thigh and down to your calf as he pressed a few loving kisses to your flushed cheeks. A few seconds later, you heard him let out a soft grunt as he emptied himself inside of you, his warm cum coating your walls for the second time tonight yet the feeling was still so pleasing and fresh.

After giving himself a few moments to regroup, he gently pulled out of you and crashed down right next to you on the bed, both of your bodies incredibly sweaty and covered in body fluids but still stuck to each other like glue.

“That was hotttt,” Joe smiled as he pulled you into his chest and pulled a blanket over both your bodies after he noticed you shivering a bit because of the cold air hitting you.

“Very. I don’t think I’ll be able to move for at least another hour,” you laughed as you kissed his chin. “I don’t know what we were thinking when we said we’d be productive this evening,”.

“I mean, we were pretty productive I would say,” Joe smirked. “If the task at hand was baby-making then we were definitely productive,”.

“Joe!” you shrieked, slapping his chest as he continued to laugh above you.

“Kidding,” he added after he pressed a kiss to your forehead. “We can be productive another day. We deserve to have fun and do our thing without worrying about anything,”.

“Won’t argue with you about that one,” you breathed out while closing your eyes and snuggling up to him, his arm wrapping comfortably around you as you both just enjoy each other’s warmth.

You both stayed like this for a little while longer, Joe tracing invisible shapes onto the soft skin of your back while you played with the wristbands on his other wrist, neither of you saying anything to the other.

Only when Joe spoke up.

“Soooo, earlier I may have booked us a trip to NYC for tomorrow night,” he so casually said to you, your head immediately lifting up from his chest as you were now face to face.

“What?” you asked, incredibly confused and surprised by what he said.

“Yeah,” he smiled at you while moving the falling hair out of your eyes. “We could use a little trip,”.

“To New York,” you said while raising an eyebrow.

“Yes, to New York,” he slowly nodded.

“Any reason in particular? You didn’t even ask me about it like you usually do before planning a trip,” you said, slightly suspicious about the whole thing. Why did he want to go to New York for vacation out of all places? He could’ve picked Florida, Hawaii, or literally anywhere else to escape the coldish March weather.

“Nope, no reason at all,” he lied while flashing you a smile.

Oh, there was a reason that’s for sure. Joe planned this spur-of-the-moment New York trip because he was going to propose to you this week, and you had no idea. He had known that you’d be his forever from the first time he laid his eyes on you, and your first conversation sealed the deal. From then on, every kiss, every date, every ‘I love you’, and every moment you spent together just made that ever more clear. Although you two hadn’t been together for a super long time, he knew that nothing could compare to the love you two shared–this was it. This is what many people spent years upon years searching for, some even being unable to find this type of connection. He was lucky enough to have found it so quickly and wasn’t planning on letting go of something so rare and priceless. You were the one for him and he had to make it official.

He spent countless days trying to figure out when and where to do it since he had the ring made and in his safe for about a month and a half; he was growing restless by the minute because every idea he had was cliché or generic. He also hadn’t discussed this with any friends or family yet because he wanted this special moment to just be for you two, so he was completely on his own. He didn’t know what to do until yesterday, a photo popped up in his memories from your trip to New York–2 years ago to be specific–at your best friend Sophia’s Wedding.

And that’s when it hit him.

This was the same place where Joe first mentioned your future together.

This was the same place where he told you that he was going to marry you.

This is the same place where Joe was now going to propose to you and really make you the one. It all was going to come full circle.

“I just thought to surprise you with the trip. I know you usually do the majority of the planning and stuff whenever we go somewhere but I wanted you to take the backseat this time,” he added.

“Okay,” you nodded. “But tomorrow night? What’s the rush?”.

The rush was that he physically could not wait any longer to put that beautiful ring on your finger and call you his fiancé.

“No rush,” he lied again. “It’s just because we don’t have anything really going on this week so why wait,”.

You thought over it for a few seconds and felt that it would be nice to get away for a little bit and spend some time together outside of Ohio, and New York was one of your favorite spots to visit. And since Joe was planning it all, you could sit back and relax. You needed a break from life for a second and this was exactly what you craved. “I guess,” you giggled as you moved his tousled curls out of his eyes.

“So, you down?” he asked, searching your tired eyes for a ‘yes’.

“You know I’m down for anything as long as I’m with you,” you lazily smiled before you leaned down to press a sweet kiss to his swollen lips.

“I love you,” Joe smiled against your lips, your loving eyes staring deeply into his which were mirroring yours. It was finally going to happen, he was finally going to make you his forever.

“I love you more,” you said while nuzzling your nose against his, his arms wrapping around your waist and his warm body cuddling you again. “I’m so excited,” you giggled as he smothered you with kisses.

“Me too,” he grinned, internally laughing at how you had 0 idea how excited he really was. He had never been this excited to do something in his life.

The Next Night - On the plane

“I always love a good night flight,” you smiled as you got comfy in your seat after you and Joe shared a quick meal while the plane was taking off.

“And that’s exactly why I called the Private Jet for this specific time,” he grinned as he brought over your wine glass and sat down next to you.

“Thaank you,” you smiled as you took the glass from him, taking a small sip before handing it to him so he could take one as well. “Something about night flights is just so much more comforting and relaxing,”.

“Mhm,” he nodded before swallowing the lush wine. “New York looks even better at night so I figured you’d like seeing the city from up here before we go further out and the lights are gone,”.

“Further out?” you asked as you turned your neck to look at him. “Are we not staying in the city?”.

“Nope,” he grinned. “I got us an Airbnb in Winchester,”.

“...Winchester?” you asked, your brain struggling to remember why that sounded so familiar. You stayed quiet for a few seconds as you tried to recall where you’d heard that from, and Joe stayed quiet so you could figure it out on your own.“Wait, isn’t that the little town where Sophia got married?”.

“Yeah,” he laughed. “I remember you saying how much you liked it out there over the city because it was quieter and simpler,”.

“It’s soooo pretty,” you smiled as you closed your eyes and remembered how beautiful the town looked the last time you visited it. “It’s right by the lake, has tons of cute little shops but also all the luxury ones like the city does, and the energy is so romantic. Like rom-com romantic,” you blushed.

“Romantic?” Joe raised an eyebrow and asked.

“Mhmmm,” you grinned while leaning your head on his shoulder. “Like the vibe is just so-,”.

“Romantic?” he smiled while finishing your sentence.

“Yeah,” you shyly said. “I don’t know how to put it into words but it’s just so perfect and lovey. No wonder Sophia and Steven chose it as their wedding spot,”.

“Mhm,” he hummed and hid his extremely big smile by wiping his mouth, trying very hard to not refer to it as your proposal spot.

“Thanks for doing this, Joe,” you smiled up at him. “I feel like I needed this more than I thought,”.

“Of course, baby,” he said while kissing the side of your head and wrapping an arm around your shoulder. “It’s just you and me, just as it should be. No distractions, no outside noise, and definitely nothing around that can ruin this for us,”.

“Our own little bubble of love. I loveeee it,” you said while leaning into him.

“Good, because I plan on staying in this bubble till I die,” he mumbled under his breath.

“Hm?” you said because you heard him murmur something but couldn’t quite make it out.

“Nothing,” he quickly shook his head and brushed off, his cheeks turning a little red since you almost heard what he said. You were about to say something because he was acting a little weird but before you could, he spoke up again. “I um..Do you remember our little yearly game challenge,” he quickly changed the topic so that you wouldn’t dig at the little moment that you just had.

“Listen, I know I lost last time, like really badly lost, but you don’t have to rub it in my face,” you scowled.

“I’m not rubbing it in your face, I just wanted to remind you that since I won, you have to do whatever I say for an entire day,” he smirked, this little condition a small part of tomorrow’s proposal plan.

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” you groaned while stuffing your face in your hands.

“By the way, I’m cashing in my ticket tomorrow so be prepared to do whatever I say,” he whispered in your ear.

“Why tomorrow? We’re on vacation,” you groaned again. “I swear to god if you have me do some stupid shit-,”.

“Nothing stupid, I promise,” he grinned. “You’ll have fun and I’ll make it enjoyable,”.

“This game challenge was a bad idea. You always win and have too much power over me for 24 hours,” you shook your head.

“Well, from what I remember, right now we’re pretty neck and neck,” he shrugged. “If you wanted to catch up, now is probably your chance. Unless, of course, you’re too lazy,” he teased.

If there was one thing you hated being called, it was lazy. You never backed down from anything because you were too ‘lazy’ and Joe knew that which made this even more fun because he knew that being called ‘lazy’ woke something up inside of you. He found your competitive nature incredibly endearing, and he got to see it pretty early on in your relationship. He loved that he had someone who matched his competitive side, someone who didn’t mind silly shit-talking and was as goal-oriented as he was.

You stared at him for a few moments, a fire building behind your eyes before you got up from your seat, “Where’s the Switch,” you grumbled while scrunching up your nose.

“That’s my girl,” he grinned before he got up from his seat, dropped a loving kiss on your red cheeks, and grabbed his bag. You couldn’t help but smile even though you were getting your determined game face on, his sweet and soft attitude towards you always made you melt into a puddle of goo.

The Next Day

“Joe, where are we going?” you asked for the 3rd time as you looked over at him, but couldn’t see because of the blindfold around your eyes.

“It’s a secret, babe. You and your sexy self need to be patient” he grinned as he looked over at you, taking in how gorgeous you looked in the very expensive outfit he bought for you earlier. You both were doing some shopping earlier and Joe came in intending to find something for you to wear during the proposal but lied and said it was for tonight’s special dinner so you wouldn’t ask questions. He picked out a very gorgeous but very expensive vintage floral dress for you to wear, a matching pair of vintage Prada heels with a matching handbag, and even bought you another gold necklace from the jewelers next door to tie it all together. You refused to let him spend this much money on you, but he reminded you that you had to do anything he asked for 24 hours, so you had to comply with his wishes of buying you all this.

After shopping your lives away, he made you go to the Spa with him. You were very confused as to why he made you both go to the Spa since that was never Joe’s scene, but this was his way of making you get a fresh set of nails and a nice facial treatment without it being too suspicious. Since this New York trip was super last minute, you didn’t have any time to get anything done and he knew that you’d be on his ass if you took engagement photos with a bad manicure and slightly dull skin, so he made sure you got everything done. You were going to go with light blue nails, but once again you had to do everything he said, and Joe wanted you to get white chrome nails. You didn’t ask why he wanted that specific color because you were too busy laughing at how silly he looked with a green mud mask on, but it was because it was the perfect color to mesh with the engagement ring he had made for you.

Then once you got everything wrapped up at the Spa, you went back to the Air BnB and got ready for the ‘dinner’ Joe was taking you to. You were finishing your makeup before you felt Joe come up behind you in his baby blue sweater, wrapping his arms around you, swaying you from side to side, telling you how beautiful you looked. You spent a few moments like this, whispering little words of love to each other and passing typical flirtatious comments before Joe pulled out a blindfold from his pocket.

“Why the blindfold?” you furrowed your eyebrows and asked. “You trying to kidnap me or something?” you joked.

“Do you trust me?” he asked with a smile.

“Of course, I trust you, my to-be kidnapper,” you giggled as you leaned back into his arms.

“Then let me put it on,” he whispered in your ear while running his hand along your arm, your body heating up from his electric touch.

“Why?” you breathed out, his hand moving up to cup your shoulder, the pad of his thumb lightly brushing against the nape of your neck.

“It’s a surprise. Can’t say,” he smiled as he opened up the blindfold and met your eyes in the mirror, looking for some sort of response. You gave him a small nod and let him wrap the blindfold around your eyes. You didn’t really have a choice because you had to do whatever he said but you also didn’t ask too many questions, mostly because he wouldn’t answer any of them but also because you enjoyed a good surprise.

“I know it’s a secret but I’m getting impatient,” you frowned as you snapped back to the present. You did enjoy a good surprise, but the anticipation was killing you. “You got me all dressed up and even took me to the Spa–which might I add–is the least Joe Burrow-like activity on the planet, and I’m a little suspicious right now truth be told,”.

“Am I not allowed to pamper my fian-..girlfriend?” Joe said, his eyes widening at the fact that he almost called you his fiancé.

“You are,” you laughed, Joe letting out a relieved breath because it sounded like you didn’t hear him slip up. “I just thought you’d have me do other stuff and not stuff that was catered to me since I have to do whatever you say for the whole day,”

“Other stuff? Like what?” he snickered as he looked out onto the road, the Wedding Venue where Sophia got married and where Joe was proposing getting closer and closer.

“Hmm, I don’t know. Maybe giving you super sloppy world-class head or making you pumpkin pie while only wearing an apron and no clothes underneath,” you chuckled.

“Well, the day isn’t over yet,” he smirked. “Maybe I’ll ask for those two later tonight,”.

“Now that sounds more like you,” you laughed. “But seriously, where are you taking me that requires a blindfold,”.

“You’ll see, we’re almost there,” he smiled, his heart rate picking up once he realized that this was really happening and wasn’t just a dream.

A few minutes later, you had made it to the Winchester Country Club. Joe had rented out the entire event space for the day so that you two could have all the privacy you needed for this special and intimate moment. He had the staff set up the same ballroom where Sophia had her reception–and where he first mentioned your future together–with various candles and flowers lining the dance floor while there were rose petals scattered around in the middle. He even made sure that they hooked up the sound system so that he could play a special song while all of this was going down. It was picture-perfect, all of it. He was going to make you the one where it all really started for you both, where you first got a taste of what the years to come would be like.

Joe turned the car off and took a few deep breaths to calm his growing nerves before looking over at your clueless yet adorable face, a big smile on it as you unbuckled your seat belt and turned to face him.

“Are we here?” you eagerly asked as you attempted to find his forearm but couldn’t see so you were doing a bad job.

“We are,” he smiled while grabbing your hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“So I can take this off?” you asked as you reached to untie the blindfold.

“No!” Joe quickly moved your hand down and said. “I need you to keep it on for a bit longer,”.

“You’re so kidnapping me,” you giggled.

“Would it be so bad though?” he teased as he opened his door and slid out of his seat, quickly closing it and jogging over to your side to let you out and finish your conversation.

“Not really,” you laughed as he opened your door and you struggled to find where he was standing since you couldn’t see a thing. “I would have the sexiest kidnapper in the world and probably receive the best treatment a hostage could get,”.

“Exactly,” he shrugged as he grabbed your hand and carefully helped you out of the car. Being blindfolded was not easy because you were either one step away from falling on your face or one step away from going the wrong way. He made sure you got down carefully and closed your door for you before taking another deep breath and grabbing your hand. “You trust me, right?” he asked again, his nerves settling in now.

“Where was this coming from?” you thought to yourself. This was now the second time he asked you this and it was adding to your suspicion along with the blindfold, expensive outfit, and spa treatments, that something was up.

“More than anyone in the world,” you smiled as you pulled his hand up and pressed a soft kiss to it.

“Okay,” he sighed. “Let’s go,” he said while leading you inside hand in hand. You let Joe lead you to what felt like a building of some sort, the whiff of warm air confirming that you weren’t outside anymore.

You were walking for a little bit and felt that you were turning corners and entering other rooms. A few moments later, you stopped walking and you heard a few noises that sounded like a door opening, and then you were walking again.

You heard the door close behind you and Joe let go of your hand, his eyes scanning the room as he took in the fairytale-like set up which was just as he imagined. “Wow,” he mumbled to himself before he looked down at you, his heart rate picking up and his palms getting sweaty.

“Come on, Joe. You got this. She loves you and she’s going to say yes,” Joe thought to himself, giving himself a mental pep talk.

This was it.

“You gonna let me see now or is there something else?” you laughed as you continued to look forward. Joe didn’t say anything in response, instead, he just untied the blindfold around your eyes and slipped the silky band off.

Your eyes slowly adjusted to the dimly lit room, your heart stopping as you looked around and saw that you were standing at the foot of a ballroom floor that was lined with lit candles and flowers, a plethora of rose petals scattered across the middle. “Joe..where are we?” you said, your voice just short of a whisper as you looked up at him, taking note of his crinkled eyes and charming smile.

“The Country Club,” he said while he reached into his pocket and tapped the play button. A few seconds later, the starting tune of “Can’t Help Falling In Love” by Elvis Presley filled the ballroom.

“Why are we-,” you began to say before he grabbed your hand and led you out to the middle of the dance floor.

“Dance with me first,” he said as he stopped you both in the center and placed his hands on your waist. “This is our song, it would be a shame to pass up on a chance to dance to it,” he said while pulling you closer to him.

“That is true,” you agreed while looping your arms around his neck, Joe began to sway you both back and forth while looking deeply into your soft eyes. “Whatever this is, I already love you for it,” you said while threading your fingers through his hair.

“That’s really good to hear,” he smiled, as you placed your cheek against his chest and melted into him. Joe couldn’t believe that this was happening, he was just a few moments away from one of the most important moments in his life. He was a little nervous, to say the least, but he knew that you loved him more than anything in the world and there was a higher chance you would say ‘yes’ than ‘no’. You wanted this just as much as he did and if you didn’t, then you would show it.

You spent a few quiet moments dancing around to the song that you both held incredibly close to your heart before Joe ended the dance by giving you a little twirl and pulling you right back into him after, a little gasp leaving your lips because of the strong movement from him.

“I can’t help falling in love with you,” he said, his face just inches from yours. “And that’s why I have to do this,”.

“Do what?” you giggled.

“Do you know where we are right now?” Joe asked as he moved his hands from your waist to entwine your fingers, holding your hands as he started his little speech.

“The Country Club,” you nodded, Joe staying quiet as he expected a more specific answer. “…The place where Sophia got married,” you added as you looked around and recognized the familiar surroundings.

“Mhm,” he nodded, taking another deep breath to compose himself.

“Joe, why are we here?” you asked again, a little more serious this time as you noticed his tense body and felt his slightly sweaty palms.

“Do you remember what we talked about at the Wedding? Specifically what we talked about on this dance floor while we danced to the same song?”.

Of course, you remembered what you talked about that night, you couldn’t forget it even if you tried. It was the first time he mentioned your future together, as more than just boyfriend/girlfriend.

“Yeah,” you swallowed. “I do,” you said as you felt a warm feeling fill your body.

“I wanted to bring you back here for that specific reason,” he began to say. “This was the first place where I told you how I felt about our future together. Where I told you I wanted to marry you. This was where I had to do this,”.

“Holy. Shit.” you thought to yourself. “Was he actually about to do this?”.

“Y/N, I love you more than words can describe. These past two years have literally been the best years of my life because of you. You lit my world on fire when you first walked in, and from the first moment I saw you, I was already so down bad for you,”.

Flashback to when you first met - Offseason 2.5 years ago

“Y/N, we need you! He’s here,” your boss yelled as you were prepping the dressing room.

“Coming!” you yelled back as you finished setting up the room with snacks and the wardrobe for the shoot. This was just another part of your job working in PR–setting up the room for brand shoots for your guests.

You looked everything over again to make sure that nothing was lacking, which obviously it wasn’t because you were amazing at your job. “I’m too good,” you grinned to yourself as you quickly turned around on your heels and walked out to the main area.

Joe was talking to a few of the staff for the shoot today before he heard your boss speak up. “Ah, there she is,” he said while throwing his hands up. “Our miracle worker!”.

“I’m flattered,” you laughed as you walked over to everyone, Joe’s eyes darting toward the adorable laugh that echoed throughout the room.

The first time Joe looked at you, it felt like the world shifted, just enough to make everything around him blur into the background. When you walked into the room, your presence commanded attention without even trying and the air around you shimmered with something magical. His heart skipped a beat, caught off guard by the sudden pull he felt toward you.

His eyes met yours for a brief, electrifying moment, and in that instant, it was like a spell had been cast over him. All he could focus on was you, your smile, the way you moved with effortless grace and the way you lit up the entire room. It wasn’t just your beauty that captivated Joe; it was something deeper, something that resonated with his soul.

The way you laughed and smiled, the way your hair bounced around while you moved, the way you just seemed so utterly yourself–it was all so enchanting. It didn’t take him long to realize that he didn’t want to break free from whatever spell you had unknowingly cast on him. He was completely and utterly mesmerized by you, and you were all he wanted to think about.

“I’m Y/N,” you said to him, breaking him free from the trance he was in.

He looked down and saw that you were now standing in front of him, his heart skipping another beat because of how close you were to him. “I’m- I’m Joe,” he nervously said.

“Oh, I know,” you smirked. “You’re pretty well known to say the least,”.

“Y/N will be your best friend today, Joe. She’ll help you get ready, answer any questions, and basically be stuck by your side while we film today,”.

“I’m a lucky guy,” Joe laughed while rubbing his neck.

“That you are,” you chimed in. “Follow me, I’ll show you your room for today,” you smiled as you turned around, your smile dropping once he couldn’t see your face anymore.

“Why was he looking at me like that?” you thought to yourself, his heated gaze incredibly noticeable. His beautiful blue eyes were stuck on you the entire time and that made a cloud of butterflies appear in your stomach. You shook your head and snapped out of it, “Focus, Y/N. That’s Joe Burrow. He probably looks at every girl that way for this exact reason–he likes to see them fawn over him,”.

“So, this is basically your house for today,” you awkwardly joked as you led him into the glamorous room.

“Wow,” he said as his eyes scanned over everything. “And this was all done by you?”.

“Mhm,” you nodded while closing the door behind you. “Also, after the shoot, you can keep whatever you want in this room. Except for the furniture obviously, but the clothes, snacks, and accessories are all yours,”.

“What about you? Do I get to keep you too?” he looked over at you with a cheeky grin and said.

“Sorry, I’m off limits,” you winked.

“Damn, that sucks because I think out of everything in this room, you’re the most appealing,” he flirted.

You raised an eyebrow, amused at his boldness. “You’re trouble,” you laughed.

“Are you gonna arrest me?” he smirked while raising his hands.

“We’ll see. I’ll give you the rest of the day before I make a decision,” you said as you felt yourself getting lost in his captivating baby-blue eyes. Something about his eyes was pulling you in, it was as if you wanted to get to know what was behind them and he was going to let you.

“I’m gonna go back out there and look over the first set of shots we’re doing of you. The stylist and hair/makeup person should be coming in a few minutes,” you said as you felt his heated gaze traveling over your body, your breath hitching in your throat when you saw him lean in close to you, his arm brushing against yours.

He reached to the side of you, twisting the doorknob and opening the door for you, “Thank you,” he whispered into your ear before pulling back and meeting your eyes again, seeing a spark behind them that you were trying to hide; but why were you trying to hide it?

You stared at him for a few quiet seconds before giving him a shy nod and quickly leaving the room, closing the door behind you as you pressed your back against the door. All it took was one look from him to leave you breathless. No man has ever been able to make you feel like this with just a look.

“I’m so fucking screwed,” you whispered to yourself, a blush creeping up your face.

About 20 minutes later, you walked back into Joe’s room and saw that he was getting ready for the shoot. Your eyes traveled down his body as you took in his outfit, “Mm, this is all wrong,” you shook your head, everyone in the room looking over at you.

“Why?” the stylist asked.

You walked over to Joe, “The colors are clashing with his complexion. The tan just blends in with his skin and those necklaces aren’t popping either,” you said while touching his shoulder, your gentle touch sending shivers down his spine as he looked up at you from his chair.

“I think I can fix this. Everyone, out. I’ll bring him out in a few minutes,” you ordered, everyone nodding and leaving the room.

“Damn, they didn’t hesitate to leave,” he laughed.

You walked over to the clothing racks and looked over the variety of available clothes, “I take my job very seriously and they all know that our boss calls me the miracle worker for a reason. I can’t have you going out there looking like a tan bandage,” you giggled as you pulled out a plain black tank top, baggy black jeans, and a white and black letterman jacket.

Joe stood up from the chair and stood next to you, “Here, put these on,” you said while handing him the clothes. “I’ll look at the chains and necklaces and see what I can do,” you nodded as you moved around him and went back to the vanity.

Joe took the clothes and moved to the middle of the room, slowly peeling his clothes off as you remained unbothered and looked down at the chains. There was no other room for him to go into and change as the bathroom was like a broom closet, so he had to get changed right there.

“Oo, this one looks good,” you said as you picked up a chain and turned around, your body freezing once you saw him standing there with no shirt and just his boxers on.

Your eyes were glued to his chest, a warm feeling taking over your body again as you looked at his perfectly crafted tan frame. “Fuck, why does he have to be so hot,” you thought to yourself.

Your eyes widened at the thought you just had before Joe spoke up, “Uhh, my bad,” he said, still standing there half-naked.

“I..I..uh,” you stuttered. “You’re good, that’s on me,” you stuttered again as your eyes traveled down his body to his pelvis, your breath hitching in your throat as you saw something you’d never thought you’d see.

“Give me a few seconds,” Joe said as he quickly put everything on.

“Take all the time you need,” you blushed as you kept your head down and turned around, Joe’s gaze stuck on you the entire time he was changing. He wanted to touch you so badly–feel your plump pink lips against his and your manicured hands scratching down his back. But equally, he wanted to get to know you. He wanted to peel off your clothes but also to peel you like an onion, peeling back each layer and getting to know you on a deeper level than what he saw on the surface.

The rest of the shoot went like this as well, he just couldn’t take his eyes off of you. You stayed where he was the entire day as you said you would, so his eyes would instantly move over to you after every shot since you were right next to the camera. You even caught him staring at you a few times, each time thinking that he’d stop but he wouldn’t. You even found your gaze lingering on him when he wasn’t looking. You couldn’t help it, he looked insanely good. And he noticed, of course. Each time you stared at him for longer than normal, he could feel it.

You wondered what about you made him so unfocused and distracted, unable to figure out if it was because there was something wrong with you or if he just wanted to get in your pants for a quick hookup and this was his way of drawing you in. You didn’t say anything to him about it because you tried to remain professional, but also because you thought that maybe the answer when you asked him wasn’t something you wanted to hear.

Until the end of the shoot came around, delaying the inevitable wasn’t working anymore. If you weren’t going to say something, Joe sure was.

“So…,” he cleared his throat and spoke up as you were looking through a few of the shots in his dressing room with him. “Thanks for helping me out today with everything. You’re really good at all this. Not just PR and work stuff, but also keeping me entertained,” he said as he looked over at you.

In between shots and filming, you two actually had a few great conversations with each other. You talked about how you got involved in PR, and your thoughts on football–telling him that you lived and breathed football and had been since you were little so this was pretty fun for you, then talked about your favorite season which for both of you was fall which then led to you two bonding over your mutual fondness for pumpkin pie, and then talked a little about your likes and dislikes.

Joe got to see your humorous side as well, he even lost count of how many times you had made him laugh. He also saw a little bit of your nerdy and brainy side, a dichotomy to the stupid jokes you made. You were quite literally perfect in every aspect, the most flawless person he had ever met. Each time you talked, Joe saw a little sparkle in your eyes; a sparkle that he wanted to never stop seeing now that he had been exposed to it. Every time you opened your mouth to talk, he got lost in your eyes, and that drove him crazy.

“I’m a woman of many talents,” you grinned. “Also, I didn’t mind because you’re actually a pretty cool guy,”.

“You sound surprised?” Joe said, acting like he was offended.

You were opening your mouth to say something, but all that came out was a soft laugh. “It’s just...the things I hear about you and how great and normal you are outside of football, I didn’t really believe it?”.

“Really?” Joe said, sitting up in his seat and rubbing his hands on his thighs out of nervousness. “Why is that?”.

“I just….you’re this millionaire quarterback who has the looks, the brains, the athletic ability, and all the money. That’s the formula for a Playboy douchebag but the way you portray yourself to the public doesn’t align with that. I just thought it was a front for your brand and image, but today’s showed me that it’s not,” you said. “You’re a pretty cool person,”.

While Joe got to see a bit of your personality, you got to see the same from him too; and the part you saw, you loved. He was funny, grounded, and legitimately a caring person. Whether it was him talking about his football journey or talking about his silly interests–he laid himself bare and was fully honest about himself.

“Go on a date with me,” Joe blurted out, that being the only thought in his head for the past hour.

You flinched when you heard him say that, your heart dropping from your chest all the way to your feet, “Woahh, I know I said you’re a cool person but I never said that I-,”.

“I know. And I’m probably being way too blunt right now but I want to go on a date with you. Like really bad,”.

“You don’t even know if I have a boyfriend or not,” you huffed, entertained by his confidence.

“With the way you were looking at me during the shoot, either you don’t or you have a wandering eye,” he laughed.

“Fuck, he saw me? This is so embarrassing,” you thought to yourself.

“Don’t think I didn’t see the amount of times you were staring at me too. Way more than the times I looked at you,” you said, flipping it back onto him to hide your embarrassment.

“That’s because I want you,” he blurted out again, this newfound confidence coming out of nowhere. He had never been this straightforward with a girl, especially a girl he had just met. You were special.

Your eyebrows felt like they shot up to the roof, “You’re very forward, aren’t you?” you laughed.

“Only when I’m serious about something,” he nodded.

He’s just trying to get in your pants right? No way he was really interested in you. “Joe, you’re sweet, super flirty, but sweet. But I don’t think this is a good idea,” you sighed.

“Not a good idea? Who were you trying to please? You’re not some angel saint, this Greek god-like man literally said he wants you. What the fuck are you doing? Jump his bones already!” your subconscious said.

“Why not?” Joe crossed his arms and asked.

“I mean, I don’t even know you and-,”.

“That’s what first dates are for,” he interrupted.

“Okay, but I’m just a normal girl and you’re this hotshot Quarterback. You could have anyone you wanted so why-,”.

“You’re perfect, like insanely perfect in every aspect and not just your looks. I don’t want anyone else,” he interrupted again.

“How do I know you’re not just looking for a quick hookup? You are an athlete after all and-,”.

“Don’t judge a book by its flashy cover,” he interrupted, again. “Get to know me. The real me. You got a sneak peek of the real me today. He wasn’t so bad, was he?”.

You were speechless. He had an answer for every doubt you had and he was oh-so persistent.

You looked down at your hands, fidgeting with the rings on your fingers because you didn’t know what to say. You wanted to peel his onion and get to know him, but you were scared that if you did, it would leave you in tears–and not the good kind. Even though you’d only spent a few hours with him, he made it memorable and special. The conversations you two had were as if you were just two old friends catching up, not as if you were two strangers who had just met. He had this aura around him that was pulling you in even though you were trying to hold back.

Joe saw your uncertain facial expression and scooted closer to you, lifting your chin with his hand to meet his eyes. “Listen, go on one date with me. Just one. If you don’t leave with a smile on your face and a warm feeling in your heart, I’ll leave you alone. We can pretend like it never happened,”.

“....Really? You’d do that, leave me alone? You’re pretty stubborn so…,” you giggled.

“Very funny, Y/N,” he rolled his eyes. “But yeah, I would. I hope I don’t have to because there’s something about you that just draws me in and it’s not just how beautiful you are. I don’t know what it is, but it’s like a magnetic pull and I felt it the first time I looked at you,”.

“You have a way with words,” you smiled.

“I’m serious though. I want to get to know you, if you’ll let me,” he added, the seriousness in his voice making you feel less nervous about the situation.

You bit your lip and thought over his offer for a few seconds. “It can’t be that bad? He seems really sweet, respectful (but flirty as fuck), and is acting like he genuinely likes you. Not every guy is looking for a quick fuck and he was right, don’t judge a book by its flashy cover. You peeled a layer of his onion so far and you liked what you saw, you should keep peeling because it probably gets better and not worse. Right?” your subconscious said. “This could be different. You never know unless you try,”.

“Fine. I’ll go on a date with you,” you said while you looked back up at him, his eyes filled with desire and curiosity.

“Perfect,” he beamed, mentally doing a little dance because he got you to agree. “I’ll swing by tomorrow after you’re wrapped up here and take you out to the best first–maybe last–date possible,”.

“I’m counting on it,” you nodded. You weren’t sure why you were giving him a chance, but it felt right for some reason. This was either the worst decision you’ve ever made in your life or the best decision you’ve ever made in your life.

Oh, and Joe made sure that it was the best decision you’d ever made in your life. The date was quite literally perfect. He was quite literally perfect.

And given how well it went, it wasn’t your last date. It was the first of many, many exciting and special dates.

You left that first date just as he thought you would–with a smile and a warm feeling radiating throughout your body; but also with another feeling.

A feeling of intrigue.

You wanted to get to know him just as much as he wanted to get to know you. You wanted to get to know him more than you already had during your date.

You wanted to get to know Joe in every single way possible.

End of flashback

“I was stubborn as fuck and even though you were hesitant, you still agreed to go on one date with me. I came into that date nervous and awkward as hell because I was scared that you wouldn’t enjoy it and that you didn’t feel the same spark that I did, but I was wrong. We left that date hand in hand, laughing until our stomachs hurt, with your head on my shoulder, and with your name carved in on my heart. You peeled my whole onion in one date and nobody has ever been able to do that. That was the moment I knew that you’d be the one. I swear I fell in love with you the moment I saw you and that date made me double down on those feelings. You’re kind, compassionate, and the most stunning woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on. You never fail to make me laugh, you’re always finding new ways to make me fall even more in love with you, and you’re exactly what I picture when I think about my forever person. You’re exactly what I needed in my life; with you, there are no empty spaces. My entire world is complete because of you,”.

You felt tears pool in your eyes as he continued talking, “Joe-,” you sobbed.

“I’m not done, yet,” he laughed. “I’ve thought about this moment every day since that Wedding. The thought of you being the one makes my heart hurt, in a good way obviously. I physically can’t live without you, everything I do is for you. I live for you, I love for you, I burn for you, Y/N. It’s all for you,”.

“He’s perfect. He literally cannot get more perfect. I love him so much,” you thought to yourself.

“I brought you back here to this special spot so I could do this,” he said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a red velvet box. He got down on one knee in front of you, the sobs getting harder as he opened the box and showed you the gorgeous princess-cut diamond ring.

“Princess Cut. He remembered,” you thought to yourself, tears streaming down your cheeks like a river breaking through a dam, fast and uncontrollable.

Your heart was about to beat out of your chest, he was actually about to do it. He was about to do the one thing that you had dreamed about for as long as you could remember. “You’re the one, Y/N. You always have been, and you always will be. Will you marry me and let me be the one for you?” he said as he opened the box and looked up into your eyes, his glossy with a few tears.

“You already are, Joe. You’ve always been the one,” you choked out as you cupped his face. “You’ve been the one since the day we met. Yes, I’ll marry you,” you smiled through your sobs.

Joe’s entire soul lit up when you said that, fireworks set off inside his body as he took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto your ring finger. “I love you, Y/N,” he choked out as you crouched down and pulled him in close for a tight hug, tucking his head into your neck and rubbing his neck as you felt a few tears from him drip down onto your shoulder.

“I love you, Joe. I love you so fucking much,” you smiled as tears slid down your face. You moved his head out from your neck, cupping his adorable face and pulling him in for a kiss, a kiss that quickly became heated.

“Whew, gotta hit the brakes, we’re still in public,” you giggled as you ran your thumb under his eye.

“Who cares,” he smiled as he moved his hands down to cup your ass and chased your lips for another kiss, planting a few around your cheek before ending at your lips. “Wait,” he said as he pulled away. “You didn’t just say ‘yes’ because of the fact that you have to do whatever I say for a whole day, right?”.

“Are you kidding?” you broke out laughing. “I would say ‘yes’ solely because of that condition even if I didn’t actually want to willingly marry you. I said ‘yes’ because I wanted to, not because I was forced to. However, I wouldn’t complain if I was forced? Being married to you either way sounds like the best thing ever,”.

“Mmm, I love you,” Joe mumbled as he pulled you in for another kiss.

“So,” he said as he pulled away and kissed your right cheek. “Fucking,” he said as he kissed your left cheek. “Much,” he said as he kissed your nose. “Mrs. Burrow,” he said as he ended the sentence with another kiss on your soft lips.

“Ooo, I like that name,” you giggled.

“Yeah?” he asked with a laugh.

“Mhm, and I love you, Mr. Burrow,” you smiled against his lips.

One month later - Las Vegas, Nevada

“Woo, we had a little too much to drink tonight,” you giggled as you and Joe stumbled into your hotel suite.

“What do you mean? I feel amaaaazing,” Joe drunkenly laughed as he let go of your hip and set you down on the couch before plopping down next to you.

“Leave it to us to get fucked up within 5 hours of being in Vegas,” you rolled your eyes while slipping your heels off.

You and Joe had been in LA for the past week for some of Joe’s offseason training & brand sponsorships and decided to end your visit to the West Coast with a trip to Las Vegas for a few days. You had gotten to your hotel around mid-afternoon and immediately got changed and went out, first attending a classic Vegas magic show but not before you tricked Joe into thinking you bought Magic Mike tickets instead and his reaction was priceless.

Flashback to earlier

“What the fuck do you mean you got Magic Mike tickets,” Joe said, his jaw practically on the floor.

“That means, I got us Magic Mike tickets,” you smirked as you slipped on a sparkly black skintight short dress. “Front Row too,”.

You could practically see the steam coming off of Joe’s face, his cheeks turning a shade of red you had only seen a few times; times when he got jealous. “Absolutely not,” Joe grumbled as he grabbed your wrist and spun you around so that you were facing him and not the mirror.

“Why not?” you said with a furtive grin, his grip on your wrist sending chills down your spine.

“Because,” Joe said while motioning at you with his free hand.

“Words, baby. I can’t read minds,” you laughed.

“Because I don’t want half-naked men ogling at my sexy fiance right in front of me,” he snarled. “Especially when she’s wearing a dress that’s showing off too much cleavage for public view,”.

“So it’s okay if they do it not in front of you,” you said, perking up and flashing him a full tooth smile. “Because I can go alone,” you shrugged.

“What? No,” Joe chirped. “I don’t want any half-naked men ogling at you, not in front of me or behind my back,”.

“But Joeee,” you whined. “It’ll be fun,”.

“Please, I cannot believe he actually thinks I want to go to a Magic Mike show,” you thought to yourself.

“Y/N, no man needs to be giving you a lap dance in front of your to-be husband. No man needs to be giving you a lap dance period,” he said, his voice laced with sternness.

“What if I want them to,” you said while crossing your arms from displeasure.

“What,” Joe said, his jaw falling to the ground again as his eyebrows shot up.

“Yeah,” you nodded. “You can get eye-fucked by every girl that’s in your vicinity and I never say anything. Maybe I want a few guys to do the same to me without your objection,”.

When the words left your mouth, you saw his jaw clench and the veins on his arm pop, “Oh fuck, he’s mad mad,” you thought to yourself.

“Am I not enough?” Joe asked, the tension in the room now so thick you could cut it with a knife.

“Joe, I-” you began to say.

“No, seriously. Is my attention not enough that you need random sweaty men in skimpy outfits to make you feel good?” he said while crossing his arms at his chest, a pose that signaled that he was upset. “If you want that kind of attention, why are we even engaged? Why are you even with me? Being single and being as gorgeous as you are can get you all of that kind of attention you so clearly want,”.

Your smile dropped as you could practically feel in your soul how this joke didn’t sit well with him through his voice. Joe was a pretty sensitive guy even if he didn’t show it and this joke clearly made him feel pretty awful because he was saying these things he normally would never say.

You looked up and walked closer to him, cupping his face with your hands as he refused to look at you in the eyes. “Hey, Hey, look at me,” you softly said as you tilted his head back to look at you. “I’m just kidding, Joey,” you said, your softened eyes telling him that you were being truthful.

“W- What?” he choked out.

“It’s a prank…a really dumb prank, but a prank. There are no Magic Mike tickets and there are no men that I want eye-fucking me, other than you obviously,” you laughed. “I was just messing with you. I got us the David Copperfield tickets at MGM like we talked about,”.

“You’re serious?” he hesitantly asked.

“So serious. I’m sorry I made you feel like you weren’t enough. You are more than enough for me, more than I can honestly handle,” you winked, earning a soft chuckle from him.

“Sorry I got so worked up over that,” he shook his head as he placed his hands on your hips, the pad of his thumb rubbing the sparkly fabric. “I just don’t want anything ruining this, even if it’s some rando Vegas stripper getting too close to you because it’s part of the show,”.

“Nothing is ruining this,” you said while looping your arms around his neck. “I’m here with you, and only you. My to-be husband, my favorite person in the world, my bestest friend–don’t tell Sophia I said that, and the sexiest person alive. I don’t need random men to make me feel good when I have you,” you said while scratching his scalp.

“You make me feel good,” you smiled. “In every,” you whispered as you pressed a wet kiss to the corner of his lips. “Single,” you whispered as you planted a few kisses on his cheek. “Way,” you whispered as you pulled away and looked him in the eyes. “Possible,” you whispered before you crashed your lips against his.

End of flashback

After a quick makeout sesh, you both went to the magic show and then hit up a few clubs along The Strip, which was the reason you were both completely out of your senses. The alcohol and hint of weed in both your systems were really pushing you both onto a different planet.

“It was worth it though,” Joe shrugged. “I had the time of my life watching you struggle to drink all the Jello Shots by yourself,”.

“And that is the last time I make a bet against you,” you sighed.

“Let this be a reminder to never make a bet about anything sports-related against an actual athlete,” he slurred as he got up from the couch to walk over to the mini-kitchen and grab you both some water.

You got up right after him, following him into the kitchen as you started fiddling with the fabric of your dress which was scratching against your skin and making you incredibly uncomfortable. You hopped up onto the counter as Joe opened the fridge and pulled out two bottles, his eyes navigating towards you as you were pulling down the straps of your dress.

“What’re you doing?” he laughed as he set the bottles next to you.

“Trying to get the hell out of this dress,” you whined, an idea popping up into your head when you glanced over at him. You reached out for his hand and pulled him over to you, spreading your legs open to accommodate his large body, allowing him to step in between them. “Maybe you could help me?” you smirked as you pulled him down for a kiss.

His veiny hands settled on your waist as you leaned back, your hands cupping his cheeks as your lips moved against each other in a sensual tango. You both had so much pent-up energy from your activities earlier and going out tonight made it even worse. Joe’s eyes were glued to you the entire time at the clubs you went to, even though you two were stuck to each other’s side the whole time anyway. You just looked so insanely good that the only thoughts in his brain were ones he would get slapped for if he said them in public.

Everything about you was sending him into overdrive tonight; the way your dress hugged your body in all the right spots, the way your hair bounced each time you laughed, the way your beautiful eyes would look into his, the way your soft pink lips were curled into a smile the entire night, and the way you were stuck to him like glue–reminding everyone in the room that he was all yours.

His eyes were also glued to the massive diamond ring on your ring finger, a constant reminder that you were all his.

But that ring being a reminder wasn’t enough. He couldn’t wait to make you all his.

“Mm, Joe,” you moaned into the kiss, the taste of alcohol lingering on his tongue which made the kiss more intoxicating. “Fuck, I need you,” you whispered against his lips as he pulled away. Those words usually ignited a fire within Joe that couldn’t be burned out until you two ended up naked in bed after spending a good amount of time partaking in certain activities, but this time those words seemingly didn’t do anything.

“Let’s get married tomorrow night,” Joe blurted out as he looked into your eyes with nothing but a look of raw desire and excitement.

You stared at him like he had two heads, breaking out into a fit of laughter a few seconds later. “Oh my god, you’re funny,” you laughed while pulling him back to you using the collar of his shirt, attaching your lips to his for another kiss before he abruptly pulled away.

“Y/N, I’m not kidding,” he said.

“Joe, you’re drunk. We’re both very drunk,” you giggled as you rubbed his cheek.

“I know, but I’m sober enough to know that I want to marry you tomorrow,” he said, turning serious as he pulled away from you.

You hopped off of the counter and stood in front of him, still not being able to take him seriously. “Can we talk about this later? Why don’t we go to bed and finish talking about some other things first,” you said while running your hands up his chest and cupping his big shoulders.

“Nope. We’re getting married tomorrow night which means we have to abstain from having sex so that the first time we do as a married couple is special,” he said, stepping back from you.

You think he’s just messing with you like you were earlier, so you decide to play along and tease him to hopefully break his front. Since you were out of your mind drunk, there was no logic available in your brain to stop you. You quickly yank off your dress and are left standing in front of him in your matching bra and black lace panties, his breath hitching in his throat as the tent in his pants grows at the sight of your gorgeous body.

“You sure about that?” you said while raising an eyebrow, knowing that he could never resist putting his hands on you when you were half-naked in front of him.

“Yeah,” he cleared his throat and said, “I’m sure,”.

“Okay, but you can’t be so sure when you’re sitting next to me in that big bed…all alone…just the two of us…with nobody in sight that could interrupt us,” you teased while giving him a slow once-over.

“Fuck, why does she have to make this harder than it already is,” Joe thought to himself, an idea quickly popping up into his head that would solve this problem.

“But that’s just the thing. I won’t be sitting next to you in bed,” he smirked.

“What?” you asked.

“I’m sleeping in the second bedroom,” Joe wiggled his eyebrows and said as he walked around you towards the bedroom.

Your jaw dropped to the floor, “Joe!” you yelled as you followed him through the large suite. “You wouldn’t dare,”.

“Ohhh, but I would,” he laughed as he glanced back at you, watching as you quickly matched his pace and walked up next to him.

“Joe, we haven’t had sex in 2 days,” you complained. “I can’t take it anymore,”.

“And that’s exactly why tomorrow night will be better,” he smirked as he made it to the little hallway where the bedrooms were, opening the door of the second one and flipping around on the doorstep so you couldn’t come in. “Nope. Your room is over there,” he pointed across the little hallway as you bumped into his chest, then backed up because of the stubborn smile on his adorable face.

“You’re not serious,” you said while placing your hands on your hips.

“I’m very serious,” he slurred and nodded. “We can’t be in the same bed before we get married,”.

“Fine,” you huffed, seeing that he wasn’t going to budge so you shouldn’t waste your breath trying to get him to cave. Whenever Joe set his mind on doing something, he always did it.

“You’re going to wake up and regret this, Burrow. And stop with the marriage thing. Our wedding is in July, not tomorrow,” you shook your head and turned around to go into the bedroom you’d been sleeping in alone tonight.

“I loveeee youuuu,” he grinned as you opened the door to the room.

You turned around and couldn’t help but giggle at the scene, “You make me crazy, but I love you too. But also, I’m still mad at you for this,” you said as you turned your smile back into a pout, earning a throaty laugh for him before he closed his door.

A few minutes later, you were lying on your back and staring up at the ceiling, absolutely bored out of your mind as the ache between your thighs got stronger and stronger and the only person who could fix it refused to come near you.

“Fuck,” you whispered to yourself as you ran your hands along your neck. You still couldn’t quite understand how Joe could still get you like this years later. Back then, getting turned on by him was a given because you hadn’t gotten a taste of what this was like with him consistently. But now, you had gotten plenty of tastes and he still got you like this. Either you were insatiable as hell or he was just too damn good. Or maybe it was a bit of both.

Flashback to your 4th date

“Tonight was really fun,” you smiled over at Joe, who was walking you to the front step of your house. He had taken you out on your 4th date tonight, taking you to glow-in-the-dark Mini Golf and treating you to dinner at a retro diner nearby. Every date with Joe just got better and better; you couldn’t get enough of him. You couldn’t get enough of his contagious laugh, silly stories, and his constant looks of admiration for you. That pull he talked about feeling from you, yeah, you were feeling it for him too. Everything about him made you happy. He was a walking ray of sunshine in your life which was something you desperately needed.

“I’m glad you had fun,” he smiled as he led you over to your door. “I hope this isn’t getting too boring for you,” he said while scratching his neck. Although everything was going smoothly between the two of you, he couldn’t help the few doubts that crept through.

“Boring?” you laughed. “Joe, please. Our first date solidified that you are physically incapable of ever boring me. I mean, we were in that restaurant for 4 and a half hours,”.

“Yeah, you’re right,” he chuckled. “You managed to get my entire life story out of me in those 4 ish hours, even shit I’ve never told anyone,”.

“I peeled your onion pretty quickly, didn’t I?” you smiled as you played with the rings on your fingers. “I didn’t even cry,”.

Joe’s heart skipped a beat and his eyes instantly moved from the ground to your eyes. “Onion? Peeling my onion? She compares people to onions too? Like me?” Joe thought to himself.

“You- you compare people to onions too?” he swallowed.

“Yeah,” you giggled. “I know it’s silly, but people are like onions just less smelly–they both have layers. There is more to what is seen on the surface, you know? Like each layer represents different parts of your personality, experiences, emotions, and thoughts. As you get to know someone better, you peel back these layers, discovering deeper and more complex parts about them,” you smiled. “But doing so can also make you cry, because well, onions can make you cry just like people can,”.

“You’re everything I’ve ever wanted,” Joe whispered out loud, his cheeks turning red once he realized he just said that to you.

“….I am?” you blushed as you rocked back and forth on your feet.

“I..uh…yeah,” he stuttered, feeling a spark inside of his heart. “I compare people to onions too but I’ve never met anyone who does the same,” he nervously smiled, hoping that he didn’t just weird you out by saying you were everything he’s ever wanted—even though it was 100% truthful.

“Look at us being on the same wavelength,” you smiled as you grabbed his hand and entwined your fingers.

“That’s really cool,” he shyly smiled, the blush on his cheeks now matching the blush on yours and his eyes staring deeply into yours as you held onto his hand. You both continued to stare at each other in silence, not exactly sure why but it felt right. You didn’t want to let go of his hand and quite frankly, you didn’t want to let go of him either. Tonight was amazing, and you didn’t want it to end. You didn’t want him to leave.

“I should get going,” Joe said as he broke eye contact and looked down at his watch, letting go of your hand which startled you.

“Or you could stay?” You quickly said as you looked back up at him with hopeful eyes. You and Joe hadn’t spent the night together yet so this would be the first time you’d ever stayed over at each other's house. The first time it would be just the two of you, together, in a quiet house, with a bed, for hours.

Specifically with a bed.

You’d be lying if you said there wasn’t a single unholy thought in your head about the man standing in front of you. You had managed to keep it PG between you both—except for the occasional wandering hands during a little make-out session—but you wanted nothing more than for him to touch you everywhere, to kiss you everywhere, and to make you feel like the most special girl on the planet.

You wanted Joe so bad. You tried to fight it when you first met, but you couldn’t stay away and his extraordinary personality made it even harder. He was the epitome of sexiness, the textbook definition of perfection. From his gorgeous dirty blonde curls to his adorable ski slope nose, to his killer jawline, down to his plump pink lips, and then to his crafted-from-gold chest that you wanted to run your fingers along, he was the hottest man you’d ever come across. And he was all yours.

But were you all his? Did he want you as bad as you wanted him?

“Are you sure?” Joe said while anxiously playing with his wristbands.

“Yeah,” you nodded. “I had a lot of fun tonight and I don’t want it to end. We could go inside and watch a movie or something,” you said while turning around to unlock the door. “If you want to, obviously,”.

“I’d love to,” Joe contently sighed, a feeling of excitement sparking inside of him as he followed you inside your house.

It was just the two of you, in this house, alone, at night. Nothing bad could happen, right?

But what if you wanted something bad to happen?

What if you both wanted something bad to happen?

A half-hour passed by and you and Joe were sitting on your couch, watching “The Proposal”. You would think since you put on a classic & incredibly sweet romantic comedy, you and Joe would be curled up in each other's arms and glued to each other as you laughed your hearts out.

But you weren’t.

Instead, you two were awkwardly sitting next to each other with none of your body parts touching each other and with both of your hearts beating out of your chests because of how nervous you felt.

By saying that you both kept your relationship PG so far, you really meant PG. Yeah, you two kissed a lot and even had a few spicy make-outs, but oddly enough—cuddling wasn’t common. Hell, you barely even cuddled with each other. Cuddling was so intimate and special, the feeling of your bodies pressed against each other out of pure love and comfort was unmatchable.

That’s why you both are so nervous right now. This was a prime cuddle moment. You wanted to scooch over and lay your head down on his chest while he wrapped his arm around your waist, but you were too scared he wouldn’t want to. How could you go there if you couldn’t even cuddle him without getting anxious and nervous? The fact that you even wanted to cuddle with him was enough to scare you. Since when did you get so comfy around a guy so quickly?

“Snap out of it, Y/N. Stop getting in your head over this,” you thought to yourself.

Joe was nervous because you made him nervous. He’d been pretty vocal about how badly he wanted you—your first meeting clearly giving that away—and those feelings were heightened right now because of the situation you were in. You were coming off of a really good date night and were all alone in your house; the situation couldn’t be more perfect for things to happen. Things Joe literally spent hours thinking about.

He was so down bad for you and he hadn’t even gotten a full taste of what you had to offer. It was insane. “Come on, Joe. Pull her over. Why are you sitting like you don’t know each other? She’s literally made out with you in your lap so why are you being so awkward?” he thought to himself. “Wake the fuck up, Joe. This is your girl,”.

“My girl,” he mumbled under his breath, causing you to look over at him.

“Did you say something?” you breathed out, your palms getting sweaty as your brain wouldn’t shut up about how awkward this situation was.

“Hm? Oh…no,” Joe said, his cheeks turning red again once he realized he said that out loud. “I’m gonna go get a glass of water, you want one?” He quickly changed the subject and got up.

“Oh, I’m good,” you swallowed, letting out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding in once he walked around the couch and back to the kitchen.

“A glass of water. That’s what I need,” Joe thought to himself as he grabbed a glass from your cabinet and poured himself some water, looking up a few times and seeing you laughing adorably on the couch in front of him. “When you go back, sit down closer to her. Put your arm around her, girls love that,” Joe’s subconscious said.

Joe took a final sip of the icy cold water—a much needed refresher—before he walked back over to the couch, your eyes following him as he sat down next to you. As he sat down closer to you.

You froze as you felt his arm touching your arm, and then suddenly felt him move his arm and place it around your shoulder, then felt him pull you into his warm chest. “Oh my god,” you thought to yourself as you heard his heartbeat through his chest. “Wait, is he nervous too?”.

You stayed quiet and frozen for a few seconds before literally melting against him. The feeling of his thumb rubbing your skin and his head leaning against yours was something you craved, and now you finally had it. You felt like a piece of melting chocolate on a warm tongue.

Joe smiled as he felt you relax against him, planting a sweet kiss on your forehead as you got comfy on him. This calmed all of his doubts and nerves, you felt comfortable with him and that’s all that mattered.

“This is nice,” you smiled up at him a few moments later, showing your appreciation for his actions.

“It’s very nice,” Joe chuckled, his laugh vibrating through your body. “I’m glad you feel comfortable around me, I got a bit nervous there,”.

“Feel my palms, Joey. They’re sweaty as hell. I feel nervous around you,” you giggled.

“Nervous? Why are you nervous?” He questioned.

“…Because,” you said while taking a deep breath and turning serious. “I’ve never felt this way about a guy before. Especially this fast,”.

“Really?” He said while looking down at you.

“Yeahhhh,” you sighed. “It takes me a minute to get comfortable around a guy like this. I usually have all my walls up early on because I’m scared that if I don’t, they’ll see the most vulnerable parts of me and then they’ll know exactly what my achilles heel is. I’ve made the stupid mistake of letting my walls down early on a few times, and that’s exactly what happened. They used it against me, and that really fucked me up for a while,”.

Joe's heart broke when he saw your eyes slowly getting glossier as you talked. “I’m- I’m sorry,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

“No, don’t be,” you smiled up at him. “You haven’t done anything wrong and that’s why I’m nervous. Usually by now, a guy does something that ticks me off and leaves a sour taste in my mouth. But you? You haven’t done a single thing,” you beamed.

“So that’s good?” he nervously asked

“It’s great,” you said while leaning up to plant a big kiss on his lips. “I don’t know what it is about you, but I don’t feel the need to put my walls up. I have really, really strong feelings about you. I haven’t even known you for that long, but I know you won’t ever do anything to hurt me,”.

He wouldn’t. Joe would never do anything to hurt you, never in a million years. He wouldn’t hurt someone that he loved.

Yeah, he loved you. Was it too early to say it? Absolutely. But he couldn’t help the powerful feelings he felt about you. He’d never fell this fast and hard for a girl, you were clearly unique. “I wouldn’t ever dream of hurting someone so precious and extraordinary,” Joe smiled as he pecked your lips.

“I knew I liked you for a reason,” you smiled as you buried your face in his chest, his arm tightly wrapping around your waist, his hand slipping a little under your shirt. The feeling of his warm hand against your bare skin sends jolts of electricity throughout your body.

“Tell me about your exes. I want to know what things they did that ticked you off early on so I know what not to do,” Joe said while he squeezed the soft plush skin of your waist.

“I don’t think you’ll make the same mistakes they did, trust me. But okay, if you really want to know I won’t stop you,” you laughed. You spent a few minutes ranting to Joe about your exes, his jaw-dropping each time you said something they did—each ex progressively getting worse each time.

“Where are you finding these guys? Like this is insane,” he said with a wide-eyed stare.

“Tell me about it,” you rolled your eyes. “And my most recent ex, please,” you scoffed. “You can’t be an incompetent boyfriend and be bad in bed at the same time,”.

“No way,” Joe gasped.

“Mhmmm. Only cared about getting himself off; never once thought about me and how I felt. I should’ve known, if you can’t take care of a girl in bed then you definitely can’t take care of a girl in a relationship,” you shook your head.

“I’d take care of you,” Joe mumbled under his breath, but just loud enough for you to hear.

“You would?” you smirked as you looked up and said, a gush of wetness instantly pooling at your core.

“Did I seriously say that out loud AGAIN? Can I not keep anything in my head?” Joe thought to himself.

He stayed quiet for a few seconds before speaking up, “Yeah, I would,” he boldly said. “Fuck it. This is my girl. She should know how I feel about her straight up, no beating around the bush,”.

You felt a pang of arousal shoot up your body, his alluring words waking up another side of you that you hadn’t seen in a while. “Really?” you asked as you shifted next to him, slowly moving up and placing your legs on each side of him, settling down in his lap. His hands moved down to cup your thighs as you moved his hair out of his eyes, your face just inches from his.

“Yeah,” he nodded as his eyes darkened with lust. “I don’t think I’ll have any issue getting you off before I get off,”.

You felt your breathing stop for a second, “Fuck,” you thought to yourself. “I need him, bad,”. Any and all nervousness and anxiety left your brain at this moment. You couldn’t care less about things that happened in your previous relationships, all you wanted to focus on was Joe. “You sound so sure,” you whispered as you leaned down and peppered kisses along his jaw, his hands moving to your back but slowly inching down to your ass.

“Because I am. I’ll make you scream my name so loudly that you’ll forget about all those other guys. I’ll be the only thing you remember,” he whispered into your ear, his voice thick with lust.

A switch turned on when he said that and you immediately lifted your head from his jaw and crashed your lips down onto his, your hands cupping his cheeks as you pushed yourself closer to him, his lips fighting for dominance against yours as you ran your hands along his thick chest.

You wanted him so badly.

His lips were so addictive, the way they were so soft just felt like you were kissing a cloud. He moved his hands back up to your waist, his fingers tugging on the fabric of your t-shirt, “Bedroom?” he breathlessly asked you as he pulled away.

“Yes,” you panted as he quickly pulled your face back to his and got up from the couch, your legs wrapping tightly around his while he carried you up to your room.

Once you got inside, he gently threw you down on the bed before ripping his clothes off, both of you moving with a sense of urgency. When he was completely bare in front of you, that’s when you truly lost it. Your eyes traveled along his body, noticing each and every vein that you would so easily travel along, noticing every muscle and every spot that you deemed kissable. Your eyes then dipped down to the V in his abdomen, your breath stopping again when you saw his prominent erection, the tip of his cock pooling with precum.

“Fuck me. Literally and figuratively,” you thought to yourself. You looked back up at him and ripped your shirt and shorts off, quickly making yourself bare just like he was. Normally, you’d feel insecure and shy with a guy when it got to this point. But with Joe, all you felt was comfort and confidence, it was amazing.

Joe looked down at you, taking in every part of your body for the first time; your perfect thighs, your soft belly, your perfect & gorgeous breasts. You were all his, and you were so beautiful. You felt a dip in the bed as he moved on top of you, “You’re gorgeous, Y/N,” he whispered as he peppered kisses along your chest. “So insanely gorgeous,”.

“Joe, I need you,” you whispered as you felt your core throb and your body relax underneath him.

“Before we actually, you know, do it..you’re good, right? I don’t want you to feel any pressure or stress to do anything if you don’t really want to,” Joe said while tucking your hair behind your ear.

You grabbed his hand and shoved it down to your core, his eyes looking down as you ran his fingers through your wetness. “You feel that? That’s all for you, Joe,” you blubbered, the way his fingers were sliding along your folds was teasing yet so satisfying. “Please, fuck me. Make me forget about them,” you said while intensely staring into his eyes, his eyes turning a shade of blue you’d never seen before.

You wanted this just as bad as he did and he wanted this just as bad as you did.

He leaned down and captured your lips in another heated kiss before sliding his hand up your belly to cup your breast, playing with the sensitive bud at the same time as he lined himself up with your dripping core and thrusted all the way into you, wasting no second to get straight to it. The intensity of the first thrust caught you completely off guard, the feeling of fullness and being stretched out by him for the first time making you abruptly pull away and let out a throaty moan. “Oh, fuck,” you moaned as he set a relentless pace. “Fuck, Joe,”.

“Fuck,” he whimpered above you, his hair falling down and acting as a curtain. “Jesus, you feel so good,” he groaned as the warm feeling of your walls felt like a tight hug around his cock.

You placed your hands on his back, digging your nails into his muscular body as he continued to fuck you in the most delicious way possible; each thrust laced with need and infatuation. He grabbed your leg, cupping the back of your knee and pushing it up which opened you up even more, allowing him to hit new spots as he explored you in the most intimate way imaginable. “Does it feel…good,” Joe wailed as he pounded into your wet heat.

“It feels amazing,” you whimpered while throwing your head to the side, his lips instantly attacking your neck with little nips and sucks. The feeling of him inside you was sending electricity throughout your body, he was so good at this. Each thrust hit the right spot inside your core, each kiss landed on the right spot, and each word that left his mouth made you lose any and all control you had. He definitely was better than your exes, and he was definitely taking care of you.

“F- fuck, Joe. P- please, fuck me forever,” the filthy words leaving your mouth surprised both you and Joe.

“You’re so needy, baby,” he smirked as he peppered kisses along your jaw. “Were they that bad?” he asked, referring to your exes.

“Mmph,” you whimpered as you moved your head back to look at him. “S- so bad,” you moaned as his thick cock was grazing your g-spot. “Oh, right there,” you practically screamed.

“What? Right here?” he smirked as he gave you an extra hard thrust, this one sending you up the bed.

“Joe,” you moaned again as your back arched off the bed, but he pushed you back down with his hand and continued to snap his hips into you. He dropped your leg and moved his hand to your abdomen, rubbing the soft skin of your belly and gently pushing down as he inched towards your breasts. He leaned down and took your nipple in his mouth, his tongue swirling around the sensitive peak as you threaded your hands through his hair.

You lost track of the amount of times you moaned his name just like how you lost track of how much time had passed. There were no real thoughts in your head, all you could think about was how good this felt and how it was all because of Joe. Your chemistry was insane. It was like pure fire between you both.

You felt your arousal building in your stomach as he continued to send you over the edge, both of you moving with pure lust and desire. “You’re doing so well, Y/N…that’s it,” he whimpered as he dropped his head to the crook of your neck. “Fuck, you’re perfect,” he moaned.

You couldn’t help but smile, he was praising you and making you feel good at the same time. He was truly the perfect guy; he lacked in no area. Each time your name fell from his lips, you found yourself yearning for more and more. You deserved this, you deserved him, his love, his touch, his everything.

“Joe, I’m so close,” you moaned, your chest heaving as the band in your stomach tightened with each thrust, the room filling with sounds of your pleasure and the wetness below.

“Mmph, me too,” he whimpered, trying to hold back his release because he wanted to make sure that you felt your high first, just as how it should be.

You looked down and saw his thick shaft moving in and out of your core, that sight alone made you let go. “Oh- oh,” you croaked as you felt him lift his head and move his hand down to your clit.

“Come on, baby,” he panted as his fingers toyed with your sensitive clit. “Come for me,” he said as he leaned down to kiss you again. You lifted your legs and wrapped them around his waist, pulling his head closer to you at the same time as you moaned into the kiss. Your hips started jerking and bucking up into him, your body starting to tremble under him as you felt your walls spasm and contract around his cock.

“Joe!” you screamed against his lips after one well-placed thrust, the tension snapping as you came around his cock. You were seeing stars at this point as your release soaked both your lower halves, Joe feeling his cock twitch inside of you. Your reaction, your rolling eyes, and the sounds leaving your lips were pushing him straight toward the finish line.

“My girl…that’s my girl…,” he rasped as his hips stuttered and his thrusts became erratic, his high practically knocking at the door. “You’re so fucking hot,” he groaned as he watched you feel your high below him, your breathy moans that were filling the room being one of the greatest and prettiest things he had ever heard.

You let out a few more sounds of pleasure as you felt shockwaves throughout your body from your intense orgasm, your body fully limp as he dropped his head and bit down on your shoulder. “Oh, fuck..Y/N,” he moaned as he felt the band in his stomach tighten. He wanted to let go so bad, but he wasn’t going to make this “just good enough” for you. He was going to make this better than anything you’d ever felt before.

“F- fuck, Joe,” you whispered, coming down from your high just to feel another one building as you felt your walls tightening around his cock again. Before you knew it, his hands were on your waist and he flipped you over so that you were on top.

“W- what?” you panted as you placed your hands on his beautifully crafted chest, his cock still seated deeply inside of you. Your brain was so fogged up with arousal that you couldn’t comprehend what was going on.

“Fuck, keep going,” he whimpered, his hands grabbing your waist again as you continued to stare down at him–a frisky grin appearing on your face as you leaned down to give him a passion-filled kiss.

“You’re the best,” you whispered as you got back up, your hips starting to rock back and forth against his. He looked so right underneath you with his tousled curls and open mouth that was repeating your name over and over, this was meant to happen. Not only was your sexual chemistry on fire, but your emotional chemistry was too. He knew exactly what you wanted, how you wanted it, and knew how to give it to you without you having to say a single thing to him.

He reached up to cup your breast with one hand, the pad of his thumb rubbing your nipple as you closed your eyes and quickened your pace against him, his arousal just begging to be released. The restraint he had was insane and quite frankly, it was killing him. But this was about you, not him.

“Just like that,” he whimpered, bucking his hips up into your core slowly, helping you reach your second orgasm faster.

“Joe, I can’t…it’s too- you’re too…,” you said while letting out a shaky breath, this time your climax feeling stronger than the previous one.

“Yes, you can,” he said as he slid his hand up your back, pushing you down to him and cupping the nape of your neck. “I’m right here,” he softly said against your lips.

“J- Joe,” you whimpered as you hid your face in his neck, his hips snapping into yours as you felt your thighs starting to burn.

“You make me crazy, Y/N,” he groaned as he moved his hand back down to your clit, his voice laced with pure need. “You make me so fucking crazy,”.

“Oh, Joe,” you moaned into his ear, placing a hand on the side of his neck as you opened your mouth to bite his earlobe. A thin layer of sweat was forming on both of you as your movements became more frantic like you were both chasing something you couldn’t get enough of. It was like an insatiable desire for more.

Joe started rubbing circles around your clit, your body reacting with a slight tremble as jolts of pleasure started vibrating through it. Your breathing was getting deeper and deeper and a few breathless seconds later, you felt him pinch your sensitive bud which ultimately set off your release.

“Joe!” you screamed again as the strength of your orgasm made you sit back up, your movements stilling as you came around his still-moving cock again. “Oh my fucking god. You are not real,” you whimpered while your high washed over you.

“F- fuck. I’m,” Joe choked out, not being able to hold it in any longer.

You looked down through your messy hair that was falling in front of your eyes and saw his face—specifically his scrunched up nose—and knew that now it was your turn to make him feel good.

Although you were about two seconds away from passing out and still dealing with the aftershocks of your second high, you leaned down and smashed your lips against his while cupping his face, allowing him to do whatever he needed to feel as good as you did right now. A few more hip snaps later, he emptied himself inside of you—endless ropes of his warm cum filling your already—soaked core. This was the first time you’d ever felt him like this, and it was everything you’d dreamed of and more. Joe was everything you dreamed of and more.

A few minutes later, your body was lethargic as you lay on top of him, his arms tightly wrapped around your tired frame. You felt his hand rubbing the back of your head and playing with the strands of your hair, words of love and affection filling your ears as he went on and on about how perfect you were.

Joe was truly the man of your dreams. Not only did he do what your ex couldn’t do, he did it twice, and he did it better than anyone else could. All while making you feel safe, comfortable, and in control. He was truly perfect for you in every way possible, emotionally and physically.

“So?” Joe spoke up, his hand now rubbing slow circles around your back. “How was it?”.

You shifted your head on his chest to look up at him, “Are you god? I think I’ve been sent to heaven,” you giggled.

“You liked it?” He softly asked again, a shy smile on his face.

“I loved it,” you grinned as you leaned up to peck his lips. “I loved all of it. You’re amazing,”.

“No, you’re amazing. Seriously. I was already obsessed with you and your personality, but now I’m also obsessed with your body. You’re insanely beautiful and insanely sexy,” he blushed.

“Awww, stop,” you blushed while patting his bare chest, pressing a few kisses along his pec.

“Do you still remember their names?” Joe smirked, referring to how he told you he’d make you scream his name so loudly that you’d forget the others.

Of course, you didn’t, Joe made sure you didn’t. He worshiped your body tonight and his name left your lips like you were chanting a sacred prayer. He was unlike anyone you’d ever been with before, he was special.

“Whose names?” you grinned up at him. “I only know one name,” you added as you scooted up so that you were by his ear.

“What name?” Joe said while biting his swollen bottom lip.

“Joe,” you whispered into his ear, the sultry tone of your voice making Joe instantly pull you right back underneath the covers.

“Joeeee,” you giggled as he flipped you over and the white covers created a cocoon around you two.

“What?” he grinned down at you. “You thought I was done?”.

“Maybe,” you teasingly shrugged.

“Well, I’m not. That was just the beginning,” he winked as he leaned down and peppered wet kisses down your abdomen, his head eventually disappearing in between your thighs.

You looked back up, not knowing what to expect since seemingly you were doing everything with him in one night—not that you were complaining. You hadn’t even mentally prepared yourself for him to go down on you, this position was so incredibly intimate and raw.

But he didn’t give you a chance to overthink because suddenly, you felt his warm mouth latch onto your swollen clit and a finger thrust into your core, another shock of pleasure vibrating through your body. “Joe,” you moaned loudly, your brain turning off as he threw your leg over his shoulder. The only coherent thought in your head was that he was the best thing that could’ve ever happened to you.

End of flashback

“Holy fuck,” you whispered to yourself as you snapped back to the present. The spicy memory made you feel even more needier than before and you had absolutely no idea what to do. You knew he wasn’t going to budge but you definitely were not going to be able to fall asleep like this. “Of course, the universe gave me the sexiest guy known to mankind,” you grumbled as you stuffed your face in your hands, “I can’t stand being away from him,”. You still couldn’t quite believe that he was all yours and would be forever. He was truly one of the most special people you’d ever met in your life and he changed your world in a way you thought was impossible. You were going to marry him in a few short months (or tomorrow based on Joe’s silly drunken thoughts that he would most likely forget about) and get to spend the rest of your life with him. You couldn’t ask for anything better, your life was perfect.

You sat on the bed for a few more minutes, thinking of a way to cool yourself down because you could just feel your body getting hotter and hotter as the minutes passed by. All you could think about was Joe.

Your eyes traveled around the room, looking for anything that could calm you down. There was a bottle of wine, but that would just make your hormones skyrocket more than they already were since you were still as drunk as ever from earlier. There was Joe’s stash of edibles, but that would probably make you even more horny. You let out a shaky breath as your eyes moved to the bathroom, an obvious reliever right in front of you the whole time.

“Cold shower, obviously,” you sighed as you quickly got up and walked into the bathroom.

Meanwhile, Joe was struggling too. Even though it was his idea, it wasn’t being executed successfully. The tent in his pants and the need to feel your lips around him were strong. He refused to get off on his own, so now he was stuck sitting on the bed and staring up at the blank ceiling, wondering if he should cave and go back to your shared room and finish what you started.

“Nope. Not happening,” Joe said as he sat up and shook his head. “I’m marrying her tomorrow, I can wait,” he assured himself.

Joe was so serious about marrying you tomorrow even if you didn’t believe him, he could wait any longer to fully make you his even though you had only been engaged for a month. He didn’t care that it was going to happen in Vegas or that no family would be here. It would be much more special and intimate if it was just the two of you and truthfully, that was all he wanted. He was down for a big ceremony and party, but as someone who didn’t enjoy big crowds and all eyes being on him (even though he played football in front of 50,000+ fans every week), he would rather do something like this. Plus, something about getting married secretly in Las Vegas at a small chapel was giving him an adrenaline rush; it sounded like much more fun than standing in a big hall in front of hundreds of people who had their eyes glued on him. This way, it was just the two of you.

You were his dream girl and were finally about to be his forever girl. He couldn’t wait to stand across from his girl at the altar and recite the vows, say the things he needed to say and kiss his wife for the first time.

He laid back down on the bed, smiling as he imagined what your married life would look like. First, he needed to plan your honeymoon with you. You both had 2 places in mind–Porotifno, Italy, and St. Barths–and since you were having 2 weddings you’d also have 2 honeymoons which meant you could go to both places instead of having to pick one. He couldn’t wait to travel with you more, especially around the world now that he had moved on from his whole ‘I hate traveling’ shtick. There was a whole lot of world out there to see and he couldn’t have asked for a better person to see it with him. Another thing he couldn’t wait to do with you was have kids. Although that was still a few years down the road, he was so excited to watch you grow his child inside your belly. He was so excited to grow his family with you.

Another thing he was looking forward to was all of your ‘firsts’ as a married couple. The first time you have sex as a married couple, your first vacation, your first big purchase together, your first husband/wife date, your first anniversary, your first Christmas, your first Valentine’s Day, and your first baby together.

It was all he could think about as he drifted off to sleep with a huge smile plastered on his face. He thought his life up until he met you had been perfect and like a dream–a solid college football career and successful NFL career plus the fame and attention that came with it–but his future with you was even more promising and fulfilling than all of it.

You were more fulfilling than anything he had in his life.

The Next Night – STK Steakhouse – Las Vegas, Nevada

“Ooo, Joe you have to try this Crab Cake,” you chewed as you covered your mouth and handed him a crab cake. “I feel like I’m eating gold right now,”.

“Considering this is one of the most expensive and highly rated restaurants in Vegas, I would expect no less,” he smiled as he took the crab cake and took a big bite, a groan leaving his lips as the bundle of flavors exploded in his mouth. “Holy shit, this is actually amazing,”.

“I told you,” you giggled while you bumped his leg with yours, then reached for your wine and took a small sip to wash down your food as you were wrapping up dinner. He had brought you out on a date tonight to one of the best restaurants in Vegas, even going so far as renting a private room for you both so you could enjoy the night in private. You weren’t exactly sure why since eating in public was never an issue before, but you decided to let it go.

The day had passed by pretty quickly up until now as you both kept yourselves busy by relaxing by the pool together and soaking up the sun, Joe didn’t mention his marriage idea at all the entire time which wasn’t surprising for you. You knew that was just one of his drunken words that had no real meaning behind them, so him forgetting about what he said last night wasn’t a big deal. Although it was weird he wasn’t confused when he woke up in a different bedroom in the morning since he seemingly forgot the marriage talk which is how he ended up in that room because of how drunk he was, but you also let that go.

“You think we’re all done? Or did you want to stay for a little longer,” Joe asked, praying you said that you were good to go so he wouldn’t be late for the time he booked your wedding for.

Yeah, wedding.

He didn’t forget. He just decided to keep quiet the whole day so that this moment would be way more memorable. While you were taking a dip in the pool, he found a little classic Vegas chapel down the street from the restaurant he was taking you for dinner and booked a little private ceremony for tonight. All while you were blissfully unaware that this was your last few hours as his fiancee.

“Uhh, I think so,” you nodded as you looked around. “I’m stuffed and probably would throw up if we ordered dessert,” you laughed.

“Okay, cool,” he nodded, rubbing his sweaty palms on his thighs as he took a deep breath.

“But don’t you think it’s a little early to head back? Or did you have something else planned for our little date night since you think absolutely everything through ahead of time,” you said while putting your elbows on the table resting your chin on your knuckles, and looking at him with pure love.

“We’re not heading back,” Joe said matter-of-factly.

“Where are we going then?” you said while raising an eyebrow.

Joe let out a little laugh as a song lyric from The Dixie Cups entered his head, “Because we're, going to the chapel, and we're gonna get married,” he sing-songed while moving his shoulders back and forth as he pretended to dance around.

You stared at him for a few seconds, your face not changing as you expected him to say he was just kidding since you two were not that drunk like you were last night for him to be talking like this.

“W- wait, you’re serious?” you said as you sat up after he didn’t say anything else.

“Run away with me, Y/N,” Joe blurted out as he lost the lighthearted tone in his voice and became serious. “Marry me, right here, right now,”.

Your heart was pounding in your chest and a wave of reality hit you like a brick. He wanted to marry you right now. Like right now.

“I know it’s not what we planned, but I can’t wait anymore. I know you’re the one and I need to make it officially official, the ring is a great reminder but I want to make you the one for real,” he said as he grabbed your hand, his thumb grazing over your engagement ring. “I booked us a time slot at that chapel down the street. We can go right now, just say the word,”.

You felt your eyes well with tears, he was serious about it. You knew that you were getting married to him now that you were engaged, but the fact that it was this close to actually happening was making your heart stop. You didn’t realize you were really crying until you felt his thumb wiping the falling tears.

“I didn’t mean to make you cry, baby,” he softly said while cupping your cheek. “If this is too much too fast, I can cancel. I can wait,” he lied. He couldn’t wait, who was he kidding? But if this was too much for you, he could make himself wait. He would do anything for you.

“I- I thought you were drunk last night and that’s why you said that,” you sniffled.

“Drunken words are sober thoughts,” he smiled. “I was being serious,”.

“Y- you really want to marry me right now?” you said while meeting his gentle eyes.

“I’ve never wanted to do something so bad in my entire life,” he said.

“But what about our friends and family? Shouldn’t we wait for our parents? Shouldn’t we talk to them?” you said while placing a hand on top of his.

“Actually, I want it to just be you and me as cliche as it sounds. It’s always been you and me and it’s always going to be you and me, Y/N. You are the most important person in the world to me, I just need you there. I want this moment just for us,” he said while picking up your hand and planting a gentle kiss on it. “We can still have our big wedding in July with everyone like we thought about, but I want this to just be for us. But only if you want that too,” he said while looking down at your ring.

You stayed silent while you thought over it, “He’s thought it all through. He’s thought everything through from the first time we met, to our first date, to our first time, to the proposal, and now this. Whenever Joe set his mind on doing something, he always did it. Whether that was convincing me to go out with him or wanting to make me his forever, he did it. He wanted this with me. He’s always wanted this with me,”.

“Okay,” you breathed out, a thrill shooting up your spine at the thought of marrying Joe in secret.

“What?” Joe said while he looked back up.

“Okay,” you smiled again. “I don’t care how we get married, Joey. I’ll marry you in secret, I’ll marry you in front of a thousand people, I’ll marry you on top of the Empire State Building, I’ll marry you drunk, high, naked, you name it. I’ll run away with you,”.

“You’re serious?” Joe asked, his body perking up. “Because if this is a joke, it’s not funny…like I will not forgive you if this is a jo-....,”.

“I’m serious, Joe,” you said as you interrupted his nervous rambling. “Let’s go get married,” you said while pulling his head closer to yours by the nape of his neck.

Joe bit his bottom lip as a blush grew on his face, “I love you, Y/N. You have no idea how happy you make me,” he said while he rested his forehead against yours.

“I love you endlessly, Joe,” you smiled before you tilted your head to press an expressive kiss to his lips.

“Let’s go get married,” you said against his lips when you pulled away.

“Let’s go get married,” he softly chuckled, quickly sliding out of the booth and pulling you out with him, his hand holding onto yours tightly.

He pulled you out of the private room with speed, both of you flying through the crowded dining room while you quickly dodged the waiters and servers. “Joe,” you laughed. “Slow down,”.

“Nope. I have to get us there before you change your mind,” he joked while he glanced back at you.

“Well if that’s the case, then the clock is ticking, Burrow,” you teased as you made it to the front door of the restaurant.

“Fuck, I didn’t call an Uber,” he realized as he stopped you both before you walked out onto the street.

“You said it’s down the street right? We can walk,” you suggested.

“Are you sure? Won’t your feet hurt?” he asked as he inspected your burgundy heel boots.

“Probably, but it’ll all be worth it in the end,” you said while opening the door and pulling him out onto the street, the fresh breeze taking all of your worries away.

“Okay,” he laughed, the adorable crinkles around his eyes showing up as he tightly held onto your hand again and pulled you down the street. You felt like it was the early days in your relationship again with the way you were sneaking around. In the past, it was sneaking around together to keep your relationship on the low for a little, but now it was sneaking around to get married without anyone knowing. It’s funny how everything had changed in the blink of a crinkling eye.

You were only a few more blocks away from the little chapel before you stopped in your tracks, Joe feeling a tug on his hand and looking back at you. “What’s wrong?”.

“I don’t have a white dress on,” you said while looking down at your black mini-dress. “I can’t get married without a white dress,”.

“Well, I don’t think we’re going to have time to go dress shopping,” Joe laughed.

“Mmm,” you hummed while looking around the street. “Oh, look,” you said while pointing over at the boutique across the street. “I could find a basic white mini dress in there,” you looked over at him and said.

Joe looked down at his watch, seeing that you had a few minutes to spare. “I think we have time,”.

“Okay, good,” you breathed out. “I’ll go, you stay here,”.

“Okay,” he eagerly nodded, feeling you let go of his hand before quickly walking across the street, your sense of urgency making him feel like he was on top of the world. You really wanted this just as bad as he did.

When you walked into the store, you quickly glanced around to spot a white dress, the store owner noticed your frantic state and spoke up. “Can I help you, young lady?” she asked.

“Yes, actually,” you said while walking over to the front desk. “I need a white dress,”.

Her eyes landed on the massive rock on your ringer finger, then broke out into a huge fit of laughter after you said that. “Ohhhh, Stacy owes me $20,” she laughed.

“Excuse me?” you questioned her strange behavior.

“Oh, sorry sweetie. It’s just comical,” she said while getting up and motioning for you to follow her.

“What’s funny?” you asked as you followed her to the back of the store, your eyes widening once you got closer to the wall of white mini-dresses, white heels, and veils. “Holy shit,” you mumbled.

“You’re surprised? You can’t expect a boutique to be this close to the little chapel and not be stocked up with wedding wear,” she laughed. “You aren’t the first girl to run in here in search of a white dress,”.

“Clearly,” you said as you walked closer to the display, your eyes looking over the variety of dresses and heels.

“Stacy, my employee, owes me $20 because she said we weren’t going to get a bride-to-be in the store today,” she said.

“And then I walked in,” you blushed as your eyes instantly landed on the perfect, simple yet glamorous, white mini dress.

“You sure did,” she smiled as she walked over next to you. “You like this one?” she asked after she saw the spark in your eyes.

“I love it,” you whispered.

“Oh, here honey,” she said as she spotted a pair of heels that went with the dress. “These go great together,”.

You looked over at the beautiful pair of white jeweled heels which had flimsy soft white bows tied to the clasps. “This is perfect,” you smiled over at her.

“Oh my goodness, it has a matching veil too!” she clapped her hands together and grinned before she brought over a delicate shoulder-length veil.

“Thank you, so so so much,” you smiled as you grabbed the simple yet flawless veil.

“My pleasure,” she nodded. “Now hurry, let’s get you checked out so that the groom isn’t kept waiting too long,” she laughed as you scurried back over to the front desk.

“Good idea,” you giggled. “I think if I made him wait any longer, he’d drag me out of the store himself,”.

“Tell me about him,” she said while she quickly started scanning everything.

“Where do I even start,” you grinned as you looked out the store window and saw Joe rocking back and forth on his feet, the biggest smile you had ever seen on his face.

“He’s my everything. My whole world in the form of a person. He’s the biggest sweetheart I’ve ever met and has shown me a kind of love I never thought I’d ever have. I don’t think I really knew what love felt like until I met Joe. I honestly don’t think I even knew what truly living life felt like before I met him. He keeps me on my toes, acts like my safety net when things get too chaotic, and is the one thing I physically can’t live without,” you blushed as you looked back over at the lady, who was holding a bag with all your things in it. “Oh, you’re fast with it,” you giggled while handing her your card.

“Well, as I said, you’re not the first bride to run into the store for wedding wear,” she winked, noticing the spark behind your eyes after you finished talking about Joe.

“Yeah,” you laughed as you took the bag.

“But he sounds like a wonderful man, sweetie. A word of advice, hold onto that love for as long as you can and never let it fade no matter what happens. That spark behind your eyes only comes around so often, it’s rare,” she told you.

“Thank you, I will,” you nodded. “I appreciate your help tonight,”.

“It’s my pleasure, dear. Enjoy your married life, I wish you the best,” she waved over at Joe through the window before looking back at you. “He looks and sounds like a keeper, hold onto him forever,”.

“Oh trust me, I will,” you said before thanking her again, then swiftly exiting the boutique and joining Joe back across the street.

“We good now?” he asked as he grabbed your hand and entwined your fingers again.

“Yes, Mr. Burrow,” you giggled while leaning up to kiss his cheek.

“Okay, Ms. Y/LN, I think we have a wedding to get to,” he grinned before pulling you down the street again, another soft laugh falling from your lips as another wave of reality came over you. Your whole future was in front of you, right at your fingertips.

About an hour later

You both were inside the chapel and had finished filling out the paperwork that they needed to approve the marriage license–which apparently needed 90 days to be approved but one mention of Joe’s status changed that pretty quickly.

Joe was already wearing a black dress shirt and formal-ish pants, so they just gave him a bowtie to finish it off. You two had also decided to keep the custom, special vows for your big wedding so you’d be sticking to the classic ones for tonight.

After slipping on your dress, heels, and veil, you were standing in front of the mirror and holding your bouquet of white roses. You were thinking about how your life was about to change in a matter of minutes and you still couldn’t quite believe it, you were about to become his wife.

Joe was about to become your husband.

You felt your nerves settling in when you looked down at the ring on your finger, inhaling a few deep breaths to compose yourself. “It’s okay, I’m okay,” you told yourself out loud. “This is my wedding. That’s my husband. This is it,” you continued.

“Y/N, we’re ready,” Vanessa, one of the chapel’s bridal assistants smiled as she entered the room which snapped you out of your daze.

You took a few more seconds to collect yourself, “Okay,” you breathed out. “Here we go, Y/N. This is what you’ve been waiting for since the day you met Joe,” you thought to yourself before turning around, hearing the soft tune of the music fill the air as you walked through the curtain and made it to the aisle.

Your breath hitched in your throat as you saw Joe standing at the altar with the officiant, his eyes widening once he saw you in your white dress–you looked like an angel. “Oh shit,” he whispered to himself.

“Fuck,” you mumbled under your breath as you started to walk down the aisle, all your nerves disappearing once you see Joe mouth ‘I love you’ to you.

You finished walking down the aisle and placed the bouquet down on one of the benches in front of you before you took your place across from Joe.

“You look beautiful, Y/N,” Joe mouthed to you, his heart soaring at the sight of you in a veil and a white dress, only imagining how he’d feel when you’re in your real wedding dress in a few months.

“Not too bad yourself, Burrow,” you mouthed back before you heard the officiant clear his throat.

“Welcome, everyone. We are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Y/N and Joe, two hearts and souls in marriage. This is a day of great joy, for we have come together to recognize the tremendous love and commitment these two share,” he said.

“Today, we stand together to witness a love story that has been written in the stars, a story that has brought us all here to celebrate the union of two souls who have found their forever in each other. As we gather in this moment, we are reminded that love is not just a feeling but a journey—one filled with laughter, challenges, and countless memories that shape who we are. Today is the beginning of a new chapter, one where two hearts, once separate, now beat as one. It’s a day when promises are made, not just with words but with the deepest parts of our hearts. May this day be a reflection of the love and commitment you share, and may it be the foundation of a marriage filled with joy, compassion, and endless adventures. So, let us celebrate this momentous occasion, as you embark on this incredible journey of life together. Here's to love, laughter, and a lifetime of happiness," he added, the sweet opening remarks making you and Joe both get a little misty-eyed.

“Joe, Y/N, do you stand here today with the intention to be each other’s partner, rock, and best friend for all the days of your lives?” he asked.

You and Joe both looked back at each other, joining your hands together and saying, “We Do,” in unison.

“Will you love and honor each other as husband and wife for the rest of your lives?” he asked.

“We will,” you both smiled in unison again, Joe giving you a gentle squeeze in return.

“Joe, do you take Y/N to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold from this day forward, For better, for worse, For richer, for poorer, In sickness and in health, To love and to cherish, Till death do you part?” he asked, both your hearts about to beat out of your chest.

“I, do,” Joe nods as he tries to hold back his tears, giving you another squeeze as you feel your heart explode.

“Y/N, do you take Joe to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold from this day forward, For better, for worse, For richer, for poorer, In sickness and in health, To love and to cherish, Till death do you part?”.

“I, do,” you answer, goosebumps rising on your skin as you feel the room get 10 times brighter.

“It is my great pleasure to now pronounce you both husband and wife. Joe, you may kiss the bride,” he said.

Joe quickly pulled you into him and captured your lips in a passion-filled, needy kiss; one that said everything without saying anything.

You were finally his. You were finally the one.

His hands settled on your waist before one slowly slid up your back while you looped your arms around his neck and pulled his face closer to deepen the kiss, your lips moving against each other in a familiar dance. After a few heated seconds, you felt him bite down on your bottom lip when you threaded your fingers through his curls, a sound leaving your lips that immediately made you pull away out of sheer embarrassment.

“Oh my god,” you giggled as he rested his forehead against yours.

“Damn, wait till we’re back at the hotel, Mrs. Burrow,” he grinned, watching a blush rise on your face after referring to you as his wife.

“Sorry, I can’t help myself, Mr. Burrow,” you teased while nuzzling your nose against his.

“I can’t believe we did that,” Joe laughed. “We’re crazy,”.

“The craziest,” you agreed. “But I’m glad we did. It was just you and me like it was supposed to be,”.

It was just the two of you, and that made Joe the happiest man on the planet. Nobody could ruin this moment.

“I love you, Y/N,” he choked out—high on emotions—before pulling you in for a hug. “I love you so much and I can’t wait to show you how much I do for the rest of our lives,”.

You felt the tears coming back when he squeezed you, the tone of his voice enough to make you want to break down into tears. “I love you, Joe. Thank you for being the one,”.

“No, thank you,” he corrected before pulling away. “Your name was unwillingly carved into my heart since the moment I saw you. Thank you for letting me carve mine into yours,”.

“I didn’t need to let you, Joe. You won my heart over the moment you asked me out on a date” you grinned.

“I didn’t, but we could go back and forth on this for hours,” he laughed as he grabbed your hand.

“That’s debatable, babe, but I’ll let it go for tonight,” you chuckled while dropping your head on your shoulder.

God, Joe could never get tired of hearing that adorable laughter. And now he’d get to hear it for the rest of his life. “You ready to be a Wife?” he asked as you felt him press a kiss to your hair.

“Mhmmmm,” you grinned while turning your head to look up at him.

“You ready to be a Husband?” you asked while kissing his neck.

“Mhmmmm,” he hummed while dropping his hands to your ass, giving it a gentle squeeze that made a twinge of arousal shoot up your spine. “You wanna get out of here?” he whispered in your ears. “I think it’s time for us to consummate the marriage, my lovely and sexy Wife”.

“You’ve been watching way too much Bridgerton with me,” you shook your head as you pulled away and looked up at him, his heated gaze making you feel naked even though you were fully clothed.

“But yeah, let’s go, my handsome and precious Husband,”.

–To Be Continued–

#joe burrow #joe burrow x reader #joe burrow fic #joeburrow #nfl imagine

395 notes · View notes

m0nsterqzzz · 7 months

Text

Happy Wife Happy Life

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pairing: Clarisse La Rue x fem!reader

summary: being Clarisse's "wife" will always have it's perks

a/n: honestly don't know how to feel about this but I'm tired. anyway, kinda hate the ending. and my writing lol.

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Love is the greatest thing.

At least, in your eyes it is.

It can bring the strongest people to their knees, risking their lives or others lives just so that they can keep their person happy. It's always been amazing to you.

Not so much in your best friend Clarisse's. She'd much rather have the glory of being the strongest kid in school, or be feared by your classmates. "Love is stupid." She always tells you while she watches you study under the willow tree she likes climbing.

"No, it's not. It's powerful. You like powerful things don't you?" You'd say back with an airy laugh, then forcing her to come back down from the branches so you can help her with her math homework.

She's heard lots about the emotion called jealousy, but she'd never truly felt it until she saw Holly Bracken kiss your cheek during recess one day. The tightening of the chest, the way her throat went dry and she clenched her fist by her side from the other end of the black top and tried to stop herself from throwing the basketball in her hands towards the blonde girl's head. It wasn't a feeling Clarisse liked, and the feeling only went away when you were laying in her arms under the tree after school that day.

That warm afternoon, she'd asked you to marry her with a paper ring, one that you cherished for a whole week until it got caught in something and broke. You'd obviously said yes, the fact that you had a huge crush on her not exactly helping as you forced yourself to remember she was obviously kidding. Sealing the marriage with I do and then placing a chaste kiss on the back of your hand like she'd seen done in the romantic movies her mother likes watching, you were officially hers. As long as you were her wife, Holly Bracken could no longer kiss your cheek with that ugly smug smile.

She went on to make sure of that, introducing you as her wife to anyone and everyone that was willingly to listen. You two were young, and nobody took it quite seriously until she saved up almost a full year's allowance money to buy you a nice looking- but still cheap- promise ring from the jewelry store downtown. It was a silent promise, one that she eventually voiced as you were sleeping over at her house.

"I'll be with you forever." She'd whispered in your ear, and you foolishly believed her.

She was gone three weeks later.

You didn't get a phone call, an email, or even a letter. She just....disappeared.

Her family stopped answering the door for you, seemingly purposefully avoiding you in town. It was months before you finally gave up, and it was obvious to anyone that looked hard enough you were slowly becoming a shell of yourself without her. Without your girl.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

The only thing in your life that is weirder than Clarisse's mysterious disappearance, was the fact that a boy just told you you're a child of one of the Greek gods. You couldn't believe him. You'd learned about the gods in school, but there was no fudging way they were real. You'd only finally agreed to go to some place called Camp Half Blood when he rolled up one of his pant legs to reveal furry goat legs. Nothing will ever be weirder than that.

Just in time too, because right after you left the school building and started sprinting towards the forest across from the place, some giant winged creature that no one else seemed to see crashed through a window and started flying towards you.

Your protector, someone you learned is a satyr named Joey, lead you to camp with minimal death, which you learned is very rare when it comes to leading a demi-god to camp. It didn't help with the newly installed fear inside you, but you just simply nodded along with what he was saying as your eyes scanned the crowds of campers that are doing their own thing below the hill you stand on.

The moment you step past what Joey calls Thalia's tree, all eyes are on you. A new camper means special events so they feel welcome which means more fun for the campers and the drama of figuring out who their godly parent is.

You don’t have any belongings other than the clothes on your skin and the school pencil that’s brought you a strange sense of comfort on your long trip. A female camper with blonde hair and gray eyes comes up and introduces herself as Annabeth, helping you to the “Hermes” cabin to give you a camp t-shirt and new pants. She explains all the new campers go there, at least until they get claimed, which means the kids in there are either children of Hermes, unclaimed, or new just like you.

Since everyone is gone doing daily activities, you decide to just change in the cabin. It’s peaceful, the sound of campers laughter, birds in the trees.

Your blissful silence is broken when someone tightly wraps their arms around you from behind you and lifts you up in the air with a squeal, your hands flying to cover your bra-covered chest. “What the hell?!” You scream, but the profanities you were going to yell out die down in your throat when the person sets you down and you turn around to see Clarisse.

She doesn’t look much different, her hair a little bit grown out and her band t-shirts and jeans have been replaced by camouflage pants and an orange camp half blood shirt similar to the one you’re trying to put on. You’re so starstruck that you just stare, her arms still loosely wrapped around your waist as you stand there in only a bra and jeans. “Clar?” She nods, grinning brightly as she pulls you into yet another hug.

You’re much more aware this time, pushing her away harshly as you hurry to put on the shirt and then leave the cabin with a quick roll of your eyes. The curly haired girl is hot on your tail, attempting to grab your wrist to stop you before you pull it away as if she’s burned you. Her face is full of hurt, but your voice shows the same amount as you ask, “Why didn’t….why didn’t you call? Or email? Or-or send me a fucking letter? Just to let me know you were okay? That you came here.”

She sighs, eyes full of regret as they fall to look at her doc martens so she doesn’t have to see your sadness. “I couldn’t call you because a phone call is like sending a message out to any monsters that could be listening and find out where we are. Email, I don’t have any electronics cuz of the whole call thing.”

“And letter? I bet monsters don’t know how to read Clar.” The girl is silent for a minute, and as the silence continues is when you realize she doesn’t have an answer for you. You scoff, beginning to walk to who knows where again before she runs to catch up with you.

“I’m sorry, okay? I was scared. Gods, I was scared.” The worlds tumble out of her mouth before she can stop them, and the campers around you fall silent as they stare with mouths agape in shock.

“Scared? What’s there to be scared of? It’s just me.” She nods, wordlessly reaching out to hold your hand. You let her this time and she feels relief flood through her. “Scared. I was scared….scared that you would hate me for leaving. I mean, what kind of woman leaves her wife?” She attempts a small laugh, and she takes it as a win that the corners of your mouth twitch upwards in the start of a smile. “I promised you forever and then left without another word. You had been looking at me through rose colored glasses our entire lives, I was scared those glasses were shattered. It’s not an excuse though. I should’ve sent you a letter, told you I was okay and told you how much I missed you.”

A small smile works its way onto your face, but she can still see the sadness in your eyes and she hates it. She hates it when you're sad. “Come here angel.” The girl hesitantly pulls you into her arms, almost crying when you relax into her hold and hug her back before she remembers where you guys are and how many campers are staring in shock at how sweet she’s acting.

“You have to understand that I’m still mad Clar. Even if you were scared, I spent years living in fear you were dead.” You mumble against her shoulder as you grip onto her like she’s going to disappear again if you let go.

The girl nods in agreement, cradling your head to her chest as she glares at the campers in an attempt to get them to leave you two alone. They do it.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

Clarisse brings you to her cabin, cuddling with you in her bed as she tells you anything and everything that has happened over the past. She’s a child of Ares, and you spend several minutes that it makes sense after the amount of times she threatened other kids by saying she should hang them from the top of the flagpole.

By dinner time, it’s like no time has passed, and everyone’s eyes are on you as you two walk in with her arm casually placed on your around the back of your waist as she leads you to her table where her siblings are trying not to make fun of her. After a lot of begging and threats, Chiron agreed to let you sit at the Ares table for your first week at camp. “Hey guys.” Her happy tone is a rare one around her by the look on their faces, the smile even rarer as she sits you down next to her spot on the bench. “This is my wife.”

The whole room goes silent, all eyes trained on you as your eyes dart up to stare at her. “What are you-” She cuts you off with amusement dancing in her brown eyes.

“What do you want to eat, honey?” Clarisse asks you, and a son of Ares you know as Mark scoffs before he says, “The last time I asked you to get me food, you poured your drink in my lap and told me it wasn’t your job.”

The smile falls from your friend's face as she glares at him. “That’s because it isn’t my job.”

“Then why are you getting her food?”

“Because a happy wife equals a happy life alright? Now shut the fuck up.”

The smile is back as she turns to face you again, taking your order before she leaves to get that and her own food.

The rest of the campers go back to their meals, though they’re clearly gossiping about Clarisse’s supposed wife as they eat. It doesn’t make you feel very happy, but all the doubt is gone as your girl comes back and sits down next to you, setting the food down before her hand falls to hold your hand under the table the way she used to during lunch at school.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

A little bit later, you finish eating and join in the group of campers leaving the dining hall towards the campfire with Clarisse walking beside you. “My legs hurt.” You mumble while leaning closer to her. She doesn’t miss a beat as she picks you up bridal style, casually carrying you to the bonfire like you weigh absolutely nothing. Smiling at the sound of your laughter, she sets you down on one of the logs surrounding the fire. “What was that for? I could’ve walked.” You say as she sits down next to you before pulling you into her lap.

“What kind of wife would I be if I let you walk around while in pain?” She grins before leaning her head on your shoulder. She seems happy, and you recently learned she hasn’t felt that way in a very long time so you simply smile before leaving a kiss on her forehead. Her fingers lace with yours, her thumb caressing the back of your hand as she talks to her brother. It’s like no time has passed. Although you’re still upset, it’s nice to have her again.

Clarisse makes you guys some smores, a few people coming up every once and a while to introduce themselves and your friend introduces you the same way every time; “This is my wife.” By the time you’re making your way to the Hermes cabin with her walking by your side like a bodyguard, everyone in camp is aware of the “marriage”.

“I wish you could come stay in the Ares cabin.” She mumbles into the crook of your neck on the porch of Hermes cabin, and you chuckle while rubbing circles on her back. “I think you annoyed Chiron enough for one day.”

The daughter of Ares sighs, reluctantly nodding as she gives you a gentle squeeze before walking away. You watch her walk to her cabin for a few seconds, a permanent smile on your face before you walk inside your crowded cabin.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

The next morning, it’s time for you to join in the routine of chores and training. It seems tiring, but Clarisse is by your side to help you with anything and everything so it’s okay.

“You’re getting better, hon.” She repeats for the 100th time in an hour, and your trust in her words is slowly fading as you sling the sword in your hands awkwardly towards the dummy covered in greek armor in front of you. The girl seems to notice your mood dropping, so she sighs and then stands up and walks towards you. You think she’s going to tell you to take the armor off just stop trying, but you shouldn't have. Clarisse was never one to tell you to give up on something. Instead, she places her hands on your hips, brown eyes straying from your face as she gently moves your body until you're standing in the correct way. You feel like clay under her grip, simply allowing her to position you as your face scans her features.

It’s like something pulling you to lean in, and it’s only when you're inches away from her face do you realize she is leaning in too. As if realizing where you are and what you guys are doing, she clears her throat and backs away, her hands following to rest at her sides. “There. Try again.” She begins to awkwardly walk away, her confidence gone as she almost trips over some armor left on the floor by another camper.

You nervously laugh, taking a deep breath before you slash the sword forward again. The sword feels much more natural in your hand, and it’s almost like an instinct as you angle it so it hits the unprotected parts so it cuts open the material.

Your friend cheers, rushing over to you and easily lifting you off the ground like you just won the olympics. Clarisse has always been that way, proud of every thing you could ever do. With a small laugh, you thank her and finally get her to set you down. “Well done wifey.” The words flow out of Clarisse’s mouth like they’re the most natural thing, and you fake an annoyed sigh.

“You know I’m not your wife right?” You say with a laugh, but she clearly doesn’t find it very funny.

“Then what's this?” Her hand moves to grab your hand, holding it up in front of your face and you try to ignore the way butterflies explode in your stomach from the touch as her eyes lock on yours. With rose colored cheeks- you decide to blame it on the heat and not the feeling of her hand in yours- you finally take notice of what she’s talking about; the ring she bought you when you were kids, snuggly placed on your left hand ring finger. It was a bit too big when you guys were younger, but it fits basically perfectly now.

“It’s a promise ring.” You mumble, walking away to take off the armor and put away the sword. “It’s the closest thing to a wedding ring I could get. And besides, red is my favorite color, the jem is red. It’s basically me, in a ring.” “I didn’t understand a single thing you just said.”

Clarisse sighs, wrapping her arms around your waist from behind the same way she did your first day at camp- though this time she doesn’t lift you up. “Sorry. Let me summarize. You’re my wife, and that is your ring.” You chuckle, turning around in her arms and trying not to think about the way you’re so close you can feel her warm breath on your face. “Fine. I’m your wife.” She takes the win, leaving a chaste kiss on your cheek before she makes her way out of the training grounds to go wash up for lunch.

This girl is gonna be the death of you.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

That night, Clarisse sneaks into the Hermes cabin. She’s used to sneaking out, but she’s never had a reason to sneak into this specific cabin and she almost bursts out laughing when she gets through the window and almost steps on a kid laying on a sleeping bag on the floor.

She easily manages her way through the sleeping kids to get to your bunk in the corner, cringing every once and a while when floor boards creek. You��re awake, staring at the wall and you reach under your pillow to grab a dagger Annabeth gave you when someone puts a hand on your shoulder and tries to shake you away so you can hold it up against their neck.

“Why the hell do you have a knife to my throat?” Clarisse quietly squeaks out, and you sigh in relief before putting the weapon back under your pillow for safe keeping. “I just…I’m sorry.” You think about telling her about the nightmare you were having not even ten minutes ago, but it looks like she’s already aware of it as she sends you knowing eyes.

“You can make it up to me by following me.” One look into her pleading eyes is all you need to reluctantly agree, and she helps you out of the window and then onto her back so she can carry you to the surprise she set up in the forest.

The sight makes you want to grin and cry at the same time; it’s a picnic set on the cliff overlooking the waterfall you told her was your favorite part of camp, all your favorite foods from the outside world placed accordingly on the blanket. There are little lanterns placed all over, lighting up this specific part of the woods. You can clearly see the stars, one of your favorite things, and the cozy feeling of the date-like setting goes against the summer breeze of the night.

“So? What do you think?” Clarisse nervously asks as you look around in awe. “I….I love it Clar.” You reply, pulling her into a tight hug. “How’d you get all these foods?” You quest with a grin. She innocently shrugs, but she’s got a mischievous look in her eyes that only appears when she does something bad. She won’t tell you that she snuck out of camp the same way she snuck out of her cabin to go to the mortal world, sneaking back in a throwing herself into a bush when Mr. D almost caught her.

She sits down on the blanket, patting the spot next to her and then pulling you into her lap when you sit down. “This is so nice….but why?” “Why?” “Why’d you do it?”

Clarisse chuckles; “Because my wife deserves best.” There it is again, the phrase that brings a blush to your face no matter how many times you hear it. “Well, thank you.” She nods, grabbing a chocolate covered strawberry and taking a hesitant bite before humming in satisfaction. “That’s really good.”

You two spend the rest of the night talking and giggling as you cuddle up to her and eat the delicious foods, and by the end of the night you’re lying with your head in her lap as she runs her fingers through your hair. “One day,” She starts, leaning down to kiss your forehead before she continues speaking; “I’m gonna marry you for real.”

With a small laugh, you nod, staring into her brown eyes as you sigh. “I’m okay with that.” You whisper, and for a second it seems like she’s leaning down again. It’s proven she is when her lips connect with yours. Her lips are slightly chapped since she always forgets to put on chapstick before she leaves the cabin, but that doesn’t matter as she’s kissing you like she’s been starved for years. Technically, she has been.

She pulls away, watching with a nervous smile as you attempt to catch your breath and stare up at her in awe. “Was that-was that okay?” You slowly nod, sitting up and then turning to face her before you grab her face in your hands and kiss her once again. She seems surprised, but she quickly adapts as her hands move to your hips and firmly grip them.

“I’ve been wanting to do that since the day you agreed to be my wife.” She whispers as she pulls away and leans her forehead on your own. You giggle, giving her a quick kiss in between love sick giggles. “Me too.”

She begins to talk again, but the sound of hooves galloping near and a loud voice calling out, “Who's there?!” makes her panic. Chiron. You panic as well, and you both messily pick up the empty plates and blanket, shoving it all in the basket and taking your hand in the one that isn't holding the basket.

The galloping is getting closer, and you both begin to run back into the forest- on the way back to camp but still in the opposite direction of Chiron.

You both begin to laugh as you almost trip over a branch, and you have to bite your lip and hold a hand over Clarrise's mouth so Chiron won't hear.

You eventually make it back to the cabins, and you both slow down to a light jog as you near the Hermes cabin. She brings you back to the still open window, and helps lift you up into the slightly cold room. You take off your shoes, and are about to wish her a goodnight and go to bed when you turn around to see her lips playfully puckered.

You chuckle, walking back to the window and giving her a small peck on the lips. “Goodnight Clar. and thank you for a wonderful night.” She smiles. “It was only wonderful because you were there. Goodnight angel.” With that, she leaves towards her own cabin, and you're left staring at her leave with a love sick smile and look in your eyes.

At the edge of the forest, Chiron watches the sweet goodnight with a small smile. “Well I'll be damned….Clarisse La Rue is a softy.” He begins walking to his own cabin with a content sigh. “But they better not sneak out again.”

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#clarisse x reader #clarisse la rue x you #clarisse la rue x reader #clarisse la rue #pjo x reader

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sourholland · 1 year

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timeless; thomas shelby

This idea has been plaguing my mind for days, I cannot get it out of my head. I’m not sure if I will make any more parts of this, it all depends on how I feel about it and if it is well received. The timeline of this is skewed on purpose, it’s also heavily based on Tommy’s time fighting during the war. Timeless by Taylor Swift was a huge inspiration.

Both you and Tommy became unlikely friends during childhood, only for you to realize you had always loved him. Tommy finds himself seeing you in a different light, only war being able to separate the two of you. (3.5k)

Thomas Shelby was the first and only boy you had ever loved.

It was 1902, Tommy was twelve years old. He played with your older brother, they went out into the street with the Shelby brothers and few other boys from the neighborhood and kicked a ball around. You were eight, trailing your brother Joseph at every chance you had.

When you met Tommy, it was because you had chased after your brother one August afternoon with the intention to join their game of kickball. The moment you approached the large group of prepubescent boys, Joseph looked absolutely mortified. Even though he was older than some of the boys, at fourteen, he still followed all of Tommy’s orders. This, you didn’t understand.

“Go home,” he leaned down to your level in gritted teeth.

“I just want to play, just one game,” you pleaded with him. “Please, Joey.”

“No,” he barked. “Y/N, you gotta get out of here.”

Feeling your face heat up, you were near tears and embarrassed in front of all of the older boys. Joseph would not let up, angry at you for trying to play with him and his friends.

“What the fuck d’she want?” Arthur bellowed towards your brother.

Peering over at him, you could tell that he was not very patient and was even older than Joseph. After Arthur had yelled, you turned back to go home. Hot tears spilled down your cheeks as you shuffled back to where you lived and went inside to play alone.

“Fuckin’ asshole is what you are,” Tommy shook his head a bit. “Game’s not fuckin’ hard or anythin’, Joe. She could have played.”

That was all they ever said again on the matter, your brother never brought it up to you that night and you never spoke of it to him. It wasn’t until later on that month that anyone had approached you about what happened that day in Small Heath.

You were sent out to pick up your mother’s cigarettes, dragging your feet along the dirt path with the coin in your hand. Every Wednesday, you made the same trek. Tommy Shelby came up on your right side as you walked one day, you saw a screwdriver sticking out of his pocket and nearly shuttered. The kids around the neighborhood spoke of him in hushed whispers, calling him a gypsy and saying he and his brothers carried razor blades around with them.

“You’re Joe’s sister, aren’t you?” He asked, peering over at you. “Tried to join in on a game a while back?”

“Yes,” you nodded. “I’m Y/N.”

He hummed in response, kicking dirt with his shoe as you both walked. He was much taller than you, though he was still quite narrow and scrawny. Truthfully, there was no denying that you had a little bit of a schoolgirl crush on him.

“Where’re you headed?” He finally spoke up.

“Grabbing my mum’s cigarettes,” you told him with a sigh. “She sends me out every week to pick some up.”

At the time, you had no clue why Tommy had followed you all the way to the shop and then walked you home. He never gave you any inclination either. Then, he did the same the next week. He came outside when you passed his house and you walked together. This occurred every week after the first.

Of course, you assumed this meant he liked you and this caused you to revel in the attention just a little. Tommy would talk to you about school and horses mostly, he was kind to you.

About six months after you and Tommy had developed this weekly routine, you mentioned something to your brother about it and he teased you about having a crush on Tommy. Making the mistake of saying he must’ve liked you back if he continued to walk along with you, Joseph was quite cruel in return.

“He doesn’t do it because he likes to,” Joseph laughed. “Father started pestering me to walk with you when he found out you were being picked on in school, bothered and such by the boys around. I started to give Tommy a bit of my allowance to walk with you so dad would finally get off my fucking back.”

You no longer walked to the shops on Wednesdays.

Tommy waited for you the next week, but you never left out front and began past his house. The week after, he did the same and you still did not come.

“Y/N!” Your mother’s voice came up the staircase on Thursday morning. “Come to the door.”

Tommy stood there in the walkway to your home, talking with your mother about something as you came down the steps. She left you to walk outside together and down the stairs into the street.

“You’re not getting your mum’s cigarettes anymore?” He asked you suddenly.

“No, I am,” you told him. “Just don’t want to walk with you anymore.”

He seemed taken aback by this, not used to the idea of you sticking your nose up at him and looking the other way when he tried to talk to you. Tommy knew you were smitten with him, he didn’t mind it. He thought you were nice enough, he liked to walk with you every week. He just didn’t see you the same way that you saw him, you were too young and too curious about certain things.

“Why’s that?” He shot back a little annoyed.

“Joey told me that he’s been paying you to do it, to make sure nobody messes with me.”

“And?” Tommy asked. “Doesn’t really fuckin’ matter if you ask me, whether he’s payin’ me or not.”

This made you roll your eyes, shaking your head at him and leaning against the brick of one of the alleyways you walked down. Tommy was confused as to why this bothered you so much, truthfully it didn’t really matter about the money to him. It helped him to buy cigarettes, that was all. He didn’t mind walking along with you, though. He would’ve done it without the payout.

“It matters to me,” you told him. “I don’t need looking after or anything like that.”

Turning on your heel, you thought that you’d been able to get the last word. Little did you know, nobody but Tommy got the last word. He only realized you had decided to go out on Saturdays, rather than Wednesdays. He told Joseph that he wouldn’t be requiring payment anymore and you walked in silence for over a month before you spoke to him on your walks again.

His stubbornness irked you, leaving you infuriatingly mad at his inability to leave you alone. Your cheeks went hot when he came around, stomach in knots whenever he would say your name.

Over the years, you had tried to shake your feelings for Tommy. This was mostly due to the fact that you had grown attached in a way that allowed you to call him a friend. By the time you were eleven, Tommy had taught you how to ride his horse. He spent an entire summer working with you. He was fifteen and definitely had plenty of better things to do, but he spent hours upon hours in the grueling sun with you.

“Tommy,” you said, laying sprawled out on a patch of grass one afternoon when you were thirteen and he was seventeen. “D’you want to come ‘round to mine for supper tonight? Mum asked me to invite you over.”

The last bit was a lie, you truly just wanted Tommy to join you. He inhaled shortly before propping himself up on his hand and looking over at you.

“Can’t tonight, m’sorry,” he apologized to you.

“Why not?” You asked curiously, assuming he’d saying something about having to be with his brothers or Polly.

“I’ve actually asked a girl out,” he confessed to you. “I’m planning to take her out tonight.”

This was one of the few times Tommy discussed his love life with you. Your friendship mostly consisted of doing other things, less intrusive things. He still really saw you as a younger sister type of figure in a way. He thoroughly enjoyed your company, but there was no denying his attraction to the girls he saw in school.

Once, Tommy told you about Arthur bringing home a prostitute. He didn’t tell you why he did it, or what they did. Only laughed it off, unbeknownst to him that you really didn’t know what a prostitute was. Joseph had called them whores, but you lived a rather sheltered lifestyle and none of the older people around you ever spoke about such things in front of you.

Tommy took girls out, he’d had several girlfriends as you approached your later teenage years. Your friendship, however, never faltered. When you were seventeen years old, you remember going out riding with him and telling him how you wanted to make something of yourself beyond what Small Heath had to offer. Planning to become a schoolteacher, Tommy had always admired this about you.

“Don’t you want to be something other than all this?” You asked him, alluding to the fact that he was growing more and more responsible for the Peaky Blinders. “I mean, I just wondered if you ever had other dreams.”

“I’d like to work with horses,” he told you quietly, running his hands over the mare’s mane.

“Why don’t you?” You questioned him. “I know you feel some sense of responsibility over your family, I think it’s one of your best traits. Don’t you ever want to just—I don’t know, live a less tormenting life?”

Tommy played with the reins, looking at you and shrugging. This was all he’d ever known, and all he would ever know. There was no Birmingham without Tommy Shelby, you knew it as well as anyone. It still hurt, though. Knowing he was playing with fire every day, testing God, as your mother had called it.

Once Tommy had grown more involved in the gang, your parents no longer allowed him to come over to the house. They detested you seeing him at all, your brother most of all. He settled quickly, marrying a woman and starting a family.

Tommy realized he loved you when he was twenty two years old. He’d known you for ten years, having called you his best friend for a decade. You were eighteen years old and had just begun training to become a teacher, you were commuting frequently and saw Tommy less and less.

It was that Christmas when you’d introduced him to the man you had been courting, his name was Michael. When he shook the man’s hand, Tommy felt something inside of him shift. Suddenly, you were no longer that little girl with scuffed shoes and long pigtails. He saw a young woman with ambition and heart, but you were no longer holding out for Tommy like you had for nearly ten years.

“The fuck is wrong with you?” Arthur came up and clapped Tommy on the back of the shoulder. “S’fucking Christmas and you’re really bringing my spirits down.”

Tommy said nothing, downing more whiskey as he watched Michael spin you around in a dance. You were in a fit of laughter, smiling at him adoringly.

“Be serious, brother,” Arthur sighed, drunk and wondering how Tommy could truly be as he was. “You can’t tell me that you’re sitting over here in the corner drinking away your sorrows because she’s brought along some bloke.”

“Fuck off, won’t you?” Tommy shot him a look.

“Unbelievable,” Arthur walked away laughing.

It was completely and utterly unbelievable, not only to Arthur, but to Tommy as well. He’d spent years with you, practically praying that you would find someone, anyone to avert your feelings too. As you grew older, you also were able to hide your feelings and emotions better in Tommy’s case.

He watched you the entire night, nodding a farewell when he noticed you trying to approach him. He had no intention of speaking to Michael again, for fear that he may be physically ill.

His hope that it was a passing courtship died with what looked to be your close friendship. The two of you hardly saw each other anymore, animosity forming between you after the night of the Christmas party.

Months later, Tommy found himself at your apartment door when Ada had told him that you mentioned thinking Michael was planning to propose. He left to see you after midnight, walking the entire distance to where you lived and putting himself at your front door well past one in the morning.

“Y/N,” he called out as he knocked. “It’s Tommy.”

Opening the door, you were only left in your nightdress. Your hair was down completely, something Tommy had not seen since you were some years younger. He could not help but to notice the sheer material of the fabric, the buds of your nipples showing through.

“Tommy?” You yawned. “What’re you doing here?”

“I needed to talk to you,” he told you.

“Now? It’s the middle of the night.”

Ushering him in, you let him shut the door behind him and tried to rub the sleep out of your eyes. Tommy felt himself growing hard, looking at you in such a state.

“Y/N, don’t marry him,” Tommy blurted out in almost a whisper.

“What?” You looked at him, shocked. “What did you say?”

“Don’t marry him, don’t marry Michael.”

There was a stillness to the room, a silence that made you almost sick. His face was somehow stoic, but pleading at the same time. His eyes bored into your own, as if they were making it impossible to get a word out.

“He is a good man, Tommy,” you said. “He wants to take care of me, to make me happy.”

“With plenty of money and security, with a practical occupation and a good legacy to leave your children?” Tommy asked, sarcasm incredibly evident.

“Yes, Tommy. Fuck, I mean is that what you want me to say? That he can give me a good life? Why should it matter if he’s got money?”

“It shouldn’t, not if you love him,” Tommy told you. “Do you?”

It felt as if you were eight years old again, confronting Tommy about why he was walking with you in the first place. He looked at you with such yearning, such longing. It was as if he was begging you not to say yes, pleading with you not to have already devoted your heart to this man.

There was only one truth of the matter. Thomas Shelby was the only man that you had ever loved.

“Tommy, I have only ever loved you since I was eight years old,” you whispered.

As if unable to hold back any longer, Tommy embraced you fully and brought you into his arms. He kissed you furiously, without any doubt or question that you were meant for him. He let his hands run up and down your back and pulled you into his body.

Before you gave into your urge to let him rip your sheer nightdress off of you, you pulled away with swollen lips and eyes full of desire. This was not right, not until you spoke to Michael. Regardless of how you felt for Tommy, you could not do this to Michael.

“Not yet,” you whispered. “I gave a man my word, I need to speak to him before I can go any further here.”

Tommy respected your choice, he knew you wouldn’t want disloyalty on your conscience. He just nodded his head and placed a hand on your cheek gently, it was in these moments that he forgot about everything else.

Michael didn’t take the news very well at all, his ego was bruised and he pleaded for you to reconsider. He told you how deeply he loved you and how you had led him on, making him believe that you two would have a life together. He was right, you had encouraged him in all of his dreams of your future and you had done it without ever considering how it may end. It was selfish.

It took you weeks before you agreed to see Tommy again after Michael had left you feeling so guilty. Nights of tireless sleep, you would look up at the sky and pray to god that you were making the right decisions.

Over a year into your training, you would soon be able to do what you’d always dreamt of. Dark times approached, though. There were ghosts of whispers at every street corner, they spoke of war so feverishly. It was as if death was due to knock at the doors of families, stripping women of their husbands and children of their fathers.

The thought of this had left Tommy quite stoic most of the time, he held a monotonous view on the entire matter. Every time you had brought it up to him, he told you how he would be expected to fight on behalf of his country if it came down to it.

And so he did, when it came down to it and Britain had joined the War—The Shelby brothers and hundreds of other men in Small Heath joined as well.

“Tommy,” I sniffled as I watched him from across his bedroom pack a small bag of things. “I need you to promise me that you’ll come home, that you won’t die out there. They’re saying things about trench warfare, it’s all really terrifying—”

Tommy crossed the room and took your face in his hands, kissing you hard on the lips, as if it was the last time he would ever do so. A piece of you wondered if he believed that he would die out there.

“Please come home,” you breathed.

“I will come home,” he kissed you again. “I promise you.”

You planned to hold him to this promise. Having waited ten years for Tommy Shelby, you would wait however long more so long as he would come home to you.

It took two months before his first letter would come after you watched him depart on that large ship. Long months of kneeling at the foot of your bed, begging god not to take Tommy. Everything that was being said about the war was absolutely tragic, soldiers being blown to pieces or rotting below the earth in the trenches.

My Dearest Y/N,

I wish I was able to write to you sooner, I cannot say where I am for the risk of interception. Just know that I have never been in such conditions in my life, I spend my days underground. I have taken the role of a tunneler. Trench warfare has not been good to any of us, I find myself fantasizing of the end of this long hell.

I stare at your picture every night before I shut my eyes, dreaming of what it would be like beside you. There is no greater sorrow to me than your absence from my life at this point in time. I can only hope that it will not be for long.

Not long ago, myself and a group of men were gassed. I watched a fellow soldier go blind for nearly three days before he finally came out of it, only with some permanent damage. There are times when I have thought to myself, ‘Perhaps if I was hit, it would not be so bad. Perhaps even death is better than fighting in this war’.

Then I think of you. I think of the promises I made to you before I left to fight in this god awful war. I cannot understand how men are expected to live like this, nor how we will continue on. I was up to my knees in water last week, the trenches dark and desolate as we waited for the storm to pass. There is so much waiting these days.

I look forward to your letter.

With all of my love,

Tommy Shelby

#elle’s fics #tommy shelby #tommy shelby x reader #tommy shelby imagine #tommy shelby imagines #tommy shelby x y/n #thomas shelby #thomas shelby x reader #thomas shelby imagine #thomas shelby imagines #cillian murphy #cillian murphy x reader #peaky blinders #peaky blinders x reader

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bengals-barnesbabe · 29 days

Text

There’s Something You Should Know

Pair: Dad!Joe Burrow x OC , Dad!Joe Burrow x ExFianćee!Reader

Desc: Joe’s new girlfriend is in for a big surprise when she drops by unexpectedly.

TW: Jealousy, Toxic Gf, talks of divorce, childhood trauma

a/n: just a little idea I had and worked on for 2 weeks :)

Main Masterlist

WC: 4.9k

┊┊┊┊ ➶ 𓆉｡˚ ✧

August weekends are some of Joe’s favorites, not because he goes out with friends or showers his girlfriend with the attention she desires. No, he loves days like this. Days where his living room doesn’t stay clean for more than a few hours, mornings filled with cute giggles and sticky-syrupy little fingers, and nights controlled by a little girl with beautiful hazel brown eyes and a head full of dark tight curls, who picks the same bedtime story every night. These are his favorite moments.

Like now as he picks up the pink and purple lego sets off his living room floor while his little girl is off playing with some other toys in her playroom. From down the hall, he can hear all the make-believe scenarios the stuffies are going through. Currently, Who Dey the tiger and Joey the kangaroo were shopping for skirts but there was only one pink sparkly one left, it was a heavy debacle that Joe couldn't help but chuckle at while putting away the rest of the legos.

Elliana, or Ellie for short, is the no doubt most important person (albeit little person) in his life. From the day she was born, there was nothing he wouldn’t do for his little girl. Now at 4 years old, the bubbly and charismatic girl is taking in some of his interests, hence the immense collection of Lego sets that decorate his home. Sure this hobby came back to bite him in the rear when he would fall to victim of said legos by stepping on them, but the time they spent together just playing around was worth all the lego injuries in the world. But they also have house slippers now, to protect both of their feet.

Joe moved to tidy up the kitchen after double checking that all legos were in their rightful spots, not that he was actually going to count every single lego. To prepare for his 4 day weekend with Ellie, he made sure to restock on all her favorite meals and snacks but also ingredients to make the Bengals-themed cookies that she hadn’t stop talking about since she saw them on a commercial for a grocery store they don’t even have in Ohio. Joe wasn’t much of a baker, he only began cooking real meals when Ellie started staying over for multiple nights. Give him a box of Kraft Mac N Cheese and some dino nuggets and he’d turn it gourmet for his daughter, but for now that’s as far as he could go. So he called in reinforcements for this mission.

*ding dong*

His saving grace, Ja’Marr Chase. Joe was forever grateful to have a best friend that loved and cared for his daughter like she was his own. Ja’Marr was a great uncle and Ellie thought so too.

“Daddy, daddy! It’s Uncle Marr, he’s here to make cookies!” He smiles as the squeaky voiced girl comes running down the hall. Before she passes the kitchen, he sneakily pulls her into his arms before she could notice him. “Daddy!”

“What did I say about running in the house? I know you’re excited but you might fall and hurt yourself and that would make daddy really sad.” He lightly scolds bending down to her height.

“I’m sorry daddy. No more running.” Ellie cutely nods and places her small hands on his cheeks to lift his faux frown. A grin quickly returns to his face and he kisses her forehead.

“That’s my good girl, how about you go wash your hands so you and Uncle Marr can get started?” Her face beams as she wraps her arms around his neck. He returns the hug almost as tightly to take in the warm sense of comfort that having her in his arms brings. His arms could probably wrap around the young girl twice, but the contentment of having her little ones squeezing onto him so tightly is a feelings he never wants to forget. When she finally lets go, she kisses his cheek then skips down the hall in her fluffy pink slippers.

The door bell ringing again brings Joe back to his full height, but his brows furrow when he doesn’t hear his friend do his usual call out. ‘He’s probably on the phone.’ He thinks walking over to front door. He opens the door wide with a smile to greet one of his best friends, but gets replaced with his eyes widening and mouth dropping in shock.

“Hi babe!”

Joe blinks then narrows the door’s opening to only fit half his body. “What are you doing here?” He asks the woman he’s been seeing for 6 months.

“I thought we could spend some time together. I know you said you’d be busy this weekend, but you’re busy every weekend. But since you’re actually home, we could watch a movie or something.” She smiles trying to peak inside. “Are you going to invite me in?”

Joe can hear the faucet in the first floor bathroom turn off and another car pull into his driveway. He looks behind him and zeroes in on every detail in his house that screams ‘this is my little princess’ castle’ then turns back to his curious girlfriend. “Um, now’s not a great time Kate.”

The short brunette’s jaw clenches and just as she’s about to respond, Ja’Marr walks up behind her. “Wow- so what, Saturdays are for the boys?” She barks. Actually they’re for the girls, little girls.

“Kate-

Loud giggles erupt from behind him. “UNCLE MARR! Daddy he’s right there I see him!”

His teammate breaks out in a smile and waves to Ellie. “Hey babygirl.” Ja’Marr excuses himself from behind the woman and Joe lets him in the house.

Kate stands in front of him now dumbfounded. “You have a daughter?”

When Joe met Katelyn, he hadn’t had a long term girlfriend in a while, not since you. So he didn’t have to introduce anyone to his daughter. His team already knew her, his friends were great with her and she had a mom and dad who would do anything for her. Joe didn’t even feel like dating after your engagement ended two years ago. He had some hookups here and there, but getting into a relationship was not on his mind. Funnily that’s how this ‘relationship’ started, she was just someone he could call and was cool about it. Then he took her out to dinner to test the waters and half a year later he’s here.

When you broke up, you and Joe agreed not introduce your daughter to anybody without the other’s consent. You both wanted to make sure that she was your priority and her safety always came first. Then Joe implemented the rule to not introduce Elliana to romantic interests until at least 9 months into the relationship, he said it was him being protective but it was also so he didn’t have to see you without anyone else until it was serious. You also didn’t broadcast your daughter to the world like other parents, so not many knew that he did have a daughter unless they watched his every move.

So long story short, Katelyn did not know.

“We should talk.” He said as she shoved his body to the side and stomped into his home. “I guess I deserve that.” He shook his head and shut the door.

Thankfully, the kitchen and the living room were a decent distance from each other so when she plopped down on the farthest end of the sofa, he could relax knowing Ellie wouldn’t hear any distinct words the woman might start throwing his way. Kate sat facing the blank tv screen, he took the spot in front of her so he could still see some of the movements in the kitchen through a wall cut out.

“Listen Kate.”

“No me first.” She cuts him off with a hand in front of his face. He just nods and allows her to speak. “Why didn’t you tell me? Is she actually yours? Where’s her mother? How come no one knows about her? Why didn’t you fucking tell me? I thought I was your girlfriend, do I mean nothing to you? Who keeps this kind of giant fucking secret? Fucking talk!” She huffs.

“I was letting you go off- whatever. Yes, Elliana is mine. She just looks exactly like her mother” He mumbles the last part, combing his fingers through his hair, a nervous tick he’s had since he was little.

“She’s 4 and I have dual custody over her, so I mostly get her during the weekends. I didn’t tell you because her mother and I have an arrangement and I would have to talk to her about it first. Her mom lives here- well not here here, she lives in the city. You know I don’t like the attention the spotlight gives so it was easy for us to decide to leave her out of it as much as possible. I guess was going to tell you at some point.”

“What do you mean, you guess? I’m your girlfriend! Don’t you think I have the right to know that the guy I’m seeing has a kid?” She crosses her arms red faced.

“Calm down, we haven’t been seeing each other that long. We were never that serious.”

“Of course not, every time I want to spend time with you there’s a new excuse. Oh you have a game, or practice that evidently takes all fucking day. Maybe you’re hiding me because there’s someone else.”

“I promise the only other girl in my life right now is my daughter. And everything you just said is a valid excuse, I have a job and child that require all my attention.”

“Why can’t she just stay with her mother? Do you have this stupid arrangement so she can come by and give you what you’ve been missing? I bet you’ve been fucking her this whole time.”

Joe scoffs, her words starting to make his blood boil. “Katelyn, what do you not understand about us co-parenting our daughter? I barely have time to spend with you, so what makes you think I have time to cheat? If you have a problem with me being a father, then you should leave.”

“I don’t have a problem with you being a dad, I have a problem with you not talking about your ex. What, was she so special that it hurts to talk about her? Was she the one, Joe? What exactly is your relationship like with her now?”

“I told you, we co parent. There’s nothing going on with me and her mother, that’s all in the past. Can we stop talking about her now, she’s not going to just pop up out of nowhere?” He rolls his eyes.

“I’m not convinced, you’d only hide her if there was still something between you.”

“Yea her name is Elliana, the four year old making cookies in my kitchen right now.”

Before Katelyn can come back with another complaint, the doorbell rings, again. Joe sighs and looks out the window to see another very familiar car. Spoke too soon Joe.

He opens the door to see another one of his close teammates and the very woman he was just talking about.

“Tee, Y/n what are you doing here?” His eyes lazily flicker between the pair and you send him a sheepish smile.

“Oh you know, we were just in the neighborhood.” Tee nods very nonchalantly. You nudge his side with a chuckle.

“I got a 911 call from Ellie, she said there was an emergency.”

“Really?” He starts to pat down his pockets and realizes his phone is missing. He turns around and spots a smiling little girl with two long braids neatly done with purple bows in her hair. “Ellie…”

“Yes daddy.”

“Did you call mommy with my phone without telling me?”

“Yep!”

You stop the laugh from bursting out your mouth when he sends you a pointed look. Taking that as a sign to go ‘confront’ your daughter. “Elliana why did you call me saying there was an emergency?

“There is an emergency momma! Uncle Jay is eating all the cookies!” Ja’Marr turns around shocked at his little partner.

“Ellie, what did I tell you about snitches?”

“Snitches get stitches.” She relays matter factly. Joe shakes his head in confusion because clearly he wasn’t aware she knew about snitches yet. While you chuckle and run in to snatch up your girl.

“Ellie what did I tell you about taking advice from Uncle J?” You ask placing her on the counter.

“You said to tell you when he teaches me something new. He just did momma, see I told you!”

“Wow, Joe see what your friends have done to my sweet little girl.” She giggles wrapping her arms around your neck.

“They’re your friends too. How is it my fault, I had no idea?”

“There’s your answer.” You smirk. “Now Ms. Ellie Dae Burrow, is there any other emergency I need to know about?”

Freeing herself from your grasp she nods her head. “We don’t know how to ice cookies mommy.” Then takes your face in her hands and turns you towards the powdered sugar mess next to her baking buddy.

“Ellie, did you touch the cookies before touching mommy’s face?”

“Um yes?”

“Did you wash your hands after touching the cookies?” The young girl looks at her flour caked hands curiously.

“No mommy.”

“Remember what I said about touching your toys with dirty hands?” Ellie nods her head. “Well that goes for people too, cause now I’m covered in flour.”

“Oh, sorry mommy. I’ll go wash my hands now.”

You go off to get washed up then Ellie returns to the kitchen to continue helping with the cookies while you join Joe in the living room.

“I hope you guys didn’t have anything planned, Ellie clearly has a mind of her own.” Joe jokes with the couple.

“Not much, we were just going to pick up some lunch and maybe catch a movie.” Tee shrugs.

“That’s what we were going to do, how funny.” Kate perks up with hidden mischief in her eyes. This is when you realize you have no clue where this woman came from nor who she is.

“Joe?”

“Oh how rude of me. I’m Katelyn, Joe’s girlfriend and I assume you’re his baby mama.” She fake smiles holding her hand out.

The eyes of the men in the room widen at her bold choice of words. You smirk and shake the woman’s hand. “Yep, that’s me. The mother of his only child, you must know how great of a dad he is right? Whenever he has any time off, he’s always picking her up or coming over to see her. Truly father of the decade and she isn’t even 5 yet.”

Tee sits next the father hiding his face in his hands and chuckles. “I bet this isn’t how you wanted this to go.” He whispers to him. Joe just groans in his hands.

“Well, you should have a seat.” Kate invites.

“Oh I will, thank you for the hospitality in the house that my ex fiance asked me my opinion on over a year ago.” You grin and sit on the other side of Tee.

Katelyn’s kind demeanor shifts with a fake smile wide on her cheeks as she sits next to Joe. “So why’d you break up?”

“We are not starting here!” Joe’s eyes go wide and he straightens up. “Ask anything else please.”

“Joseph, your girlfriend wants to know why we’re not married right now. Why don’t you tell her?” You say forgetting how the whole thing happened for a bit. Thankfully those cherished memories come floating back to your mind and you hoped he decided to change the subject to cover your mishap.

“You just met, aren’t you supposed to be doing the making sure she’s safe for Ellie to be around thing?” You let out a muted sigh before replying.

“Oh please, and you haven’t?”

“No.” He mutters.

Your face hardens as you kiss your teth. “You let this woman around my daughter without screening her first? Joseph what the hell?”

He throws his hands up in surrender. “I didn’t think it was going to last this long, I wasn’t thinking about it.”

“Then why is she here?” You question turning your body completely towards him.

“Your guess is as good as mine!”

Katelyn scoffs, “excuse me, I’m sitting right here!”

“Unfortunately we see that too. How long have you been together anyway?” You hope that their explanation has to do with the restrictions you came up with to keep your daughter safe.

“7 mont-

“6 months- They say at the same time.

“Damn, this is awkward. I’m gonna go.” Tee announces. “I’ll text you.” Then he leaves.

“Looks like that didn’t last, maybe that’s why Joe left you. You attract drama everywhere you go.” Joe grimaces at her just wanting her to stop talking.

“Oh no hun, I left him. Not like it’s any of your damn business cause you don’t know me or him that well either. But let me guess, he told you he was busy but you showed up anyway hoping he’d let you in and give you whatever you want. I wouldn’t stress about him not making enough time for you, there’s a lot of worst ways he could be treating you. Just remember that at the end of the day, I’m that little girl’s mom and he’s her dad. I’ll always have a key in the door, when you won’t even get to see the open house.” Then you got up and went to the kitchen. Joe watched in amusement as Katelyn seethed. Then peaked behind him to catch a glimpse of you and your daughter baking together.

“You need to talk to her, she needs to know that I’m your future and she needs to make room.” Joe rolls his eyes.

“She’s right. They’re my past, present and my future. You were just a distraction and now I don’t need you anymore. I’m going to have to ask you need to leave my daughter’s house.”

She shakes her head. “Joe, we can have our own family. You don’t need them. I can do that for you.”

“Katelyn I want them, not you. It’s time for you to go.” He stands and walks over to the door.

“You’re going to miss me and regret this, but I wont open the door for you. When you want me back I’ll have someone way better than you. Please don’t do this, don’t break up with me.” Rolling his eyes at the quick change in behavior he unlocks the door for her.

“Joey, I thought we were having fun. You don’t want to throw that away do you?” She asks as a final strand of hope glistens in her eyes.

Joe sighs, “it was fun, but I’d rather play with flower shop legos and bake cookies.”

“Fuck you Joe!” She stomps out with expletives shooting from her mouth.

⍣ ೋ

“Daddy was your friend crying because you hurt her feelings?” Ellie asks with frosting covering her mouth when he arrives in the kitchen. He picks her up and kisses her sugary cheeks.

“No bub, she hurt her own feelings.”

“Joey hurt my feelings when left to join the circus.” She pouts talking about her stuffie and licking her sticky fingers.

“Are you eating the icing before we can put it on the cookies?” He asks the orange dye covered girl.

“Nyooo.” She chuckles.

“What are we going to do with you?”

“Mommy said we’re all going to the park to feed the ducks.” She smiles. You turn around with wide eyes and an amused smirk, halting your current task of making more orange frosting.

“I did not say that. Ellie Dae why are you telling your father stories?”

“I think she wants to go feed the ducks.” Ja’Marr snorts while eating some of the cookie dough.

“Uncle Marrrr, you can’t eat more cookies! It’s for the ducks.”

“Ellie ducks don’t eat cookies.” Joe chuckles putting her on a part of the counter that’s not covered in sugar.

“Kaia said they do.” Your daughter yawns mentioning your next door neighbor’s teenage daughter that likes to babysit her.

“Well you’re going to have to ask Kaia where she found the cookies made for ducks.” Glancing over at the oven clock you hum realizing its 2pm. Naptime. Looking back over at your ex, you watch him wrap his arms around your daughter as her eyelids struggle to stay open. “Joe.” You whisper. He looks up at you then the time and nods.

“Come on babygirl, let’s go upstairs.” She whines as he lifts her, but still wraps her arms around his neck.

“But daddy, I’m not tired. Cookies.” She yawns laying her head on his chest. He smiles and kisses her head.

“I promise the cookies will be there when you wake up, and maybe we’ll even take some to the ducks.” You can’t help but smile as the pair climb the staircase up to her room. You always knew Joe would be a great father, especially when the you were surprised by the idea of having a baby so young and so early in your relationship. But he only stepped up in ways you couldn't have imagined, watching him become a father felt like one of life’s greatest privileges. It’s one of the things you love loved about him. Joe’s caring nature was unlike any other, in those 4 years together you’d never felt so loved and cherished by anyone like him.

Turning around to go back to your icing duties, you’re faced with a smirking Ja’Marr Chase. “What?”

“You’re ridiculous.” He chuckles setting a timer for the cookies that you now notice are in the oven.

“I don’t understand.”

“You look at him the same way he looks at you, which is the exact same way when you were engaged. You just need to put the ring back on and plan the damn wedding at this point. I mean he broke up with his fling for you.”

You just shake your head at his nonsense, there was no way you and Joe would ever get back together after how it ended- after how you ended it. “No, I’m with Tee. They just had a mild disagreement, the second Ellie comes home with me he’ll be calling her back over.”

“You’re fucking with me right?” He scoffs. “You and Tee are not together.”

“How would you know?”

“He texted me the minute you got here. The only reason you two were out together was because we’re all still friends. Don’t try and bullshit me. You’ve been trying to make Joe jealous for weeks.”

“I have not, lower your voice. If you think he would ever take me back after the shit I said that night, then you’re delusional. I already fucked up with Joe.”

“But you want him to though.” He tilts his head with a soft smile. “I bet you still have the ring on you.” Your eyes go straight to the floor.

“You didn’t give it back because he wouldn’t take it. You can’t put it away because of who it reminds you of and you won’t sell it because you still care. In fact Ellie said you put it on a necklace and kept it in the smallest pocket of your purse.” When you look up, he’s somehow produced the same ring Joe proposed to you with on that beach date when Ellie was 8 months old.

“She really is a little blabber mouth.” You sniffle taking the chain.

“She’s smart and a thief. She showed it to me after you went to go clean your face. She knows how much it means to you and whether she understands it or not, she wants her mom and dad back together.”

“Oh please, this is the same little girl that wants to feed ducks sugar cookies.”

“All I’m saying is you should think about why you’re still carrying that nice ass ring around and talk to him. Alright I’m gonna head out, you got this right?” You nod and share a friendly hug.

“Remember what I said.” He says as the front door opens then shuts.

You lean over the counter with your hands on your face and let out a groan. There’s no possible way for Joe to ever take you back. You don’t even know why you still carry the ring around, but somehow leaving the house without it makes you feel untethered to reality.

“I doubt the cookies are that bad.” You gasp startled by the man leaning on the entryway to the kitchen.

“Goodness, Joe.” Your right hand covers your eyes while still clutching the gold chain.

“Wow,” you drop your hand remembering what you were holding. “That’s something I haven’t seen in a while.”

“Yea- um. I was having it cleaned.” You bite the inside of your lip, then replace it with a pout when his face tells you he knows the full story. “Joe-

“Put it on.”

“Listen- wait what?”

You want to believe he’s joking, but the look in his eyes is all seriousness. “I want you to put the ring back on.”

“I can’t, not after the way I ended things. It wouldn’t be right.”

“You can, because I want you to. I need you to put the ring on.”

“Joe there’s something you should know.”

He sighs and takes the chain from you. “I know you and Tee hooked up once, I’m still debating on if I need to sucker punch him for it.” Then unclasps the chain and releases the 7 karat diamond into his hand. “I know that we spent the last 2 years trying to forget everything that went down between us only to remind each other every weekend when Ellie is dropped off.” He begins to fiddle with the ring between his fingers. “I also know that nothing you said that night was true.”

You gulp locking eyes with the man you’ve always wanted to call your husband. “Joe.”

“On April 10th, your mom called you and said ‘never get married’ because she had finalized her divorce with your father after spending 25 years in an unhappy marriage, that without a doubt gave you enough trauma in itself. April 11th, I came home from a night out where I drank way too much and reminded you of a part of your childhood you tried to run away from, which is something I’m extremely sorry for. April 12th, we spent the entire day arguing about the dumbest shit because I couldn’t see the pain you were harboring. Then you said ‘I can’t spend the rest of my life with a man that doesn’t care how he comes home to his family. I won’t let you run me into the mud like he did to her, I want to be happy. I can’t marry you.’ And took your ring off.” You couldn’t stop the tears from falling down your face as he recalls the last night you spent together as a couple. A night you’ve regretted since it happened.

“Joey, don’t let me do this to you. You don’t deserve this, you could do so much better better than a damaged bitch with trust issues.” With one hand he wipes your tears and with the other he takes your left hand. “Joe think about this.”

“I think there’s something you should know.” He repeats your words with a more lighthearted tone, then gets down on one knee.

‘There’s no way, no way. Nope, he’s not doing this.’ You echo to yourself while shaking your head.

“I spent two years thinking about this. Two years driving back and forth so we could have equal time with our little girl. Two years of wondering if I’d ever have you back in my arms the way I dream of at night. Even spent one in this house thinking about how hollow it feels without you living in it. I bought it for you, so we could raise our family here together. I know this probably won’t top the first one and I don’t have a new ring yet.” He winks causing another wave of tears to fall, this time happy tears.

“I can’t see myself happier with anyone except this damaged woman in front of me with trust issues. Shit I’m not that happy now, cause every time I look in our little girl’s eyes all I see is her beautiful mother. She’s a constant reminder of the woman I miss more than anything. I thought we could do this co-parenting thing and stay friends so Ellie could have a happy childhood, but I spend more time with you than I do without you. I don’t want to wake up with anyone else in my bed that isn’t the woman right in front of me. And I’m thanking Elliana for bringing you here, because I need you. I want you back more than anything in the world.”

His voice starts to tremble. “I’d step on a million legos for you, bake and burn a thousand dinners for you, miss hundreds of games for you- fucking anything. Anything you want, it’s yours. Just say yes.”

You can feel the way your heart breaks for him, just proving how much you don’t deserve him. “I can’t.”

“Why not?”

You can’t look him in the eye and break him again. You try to suck in the sob but there’s no use.

“I’m pregnant with Tee’s baby.”

SIKE

i'm sorry that was childish, don’t hate me lol here’s the real ending

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ꕥ

“I can’t,” You giggle when his pout deepens. “You haven’t asked the question yet.”

A bright smile breaks out on his face as he sighs in relief. “You need to stop scaring me. Y/n Y/l/n, will you marry me?”

“Yes, yes I’ll marry you, Joey. I'll marry you a hundred times if I have to.” You beam as he slips the ring back in its rightful spot then stands and pulls you into the most passionate kiss.

After two years, you’re back in the arms you love, felt the most comfortable and cherished in. You feel so lucky to have found a man, a fiance so caring, thoughtful, and understanding. Lucky that every time you pushed him away, he just pulled you in harder. And you can’t wait to finally marry him and give him everything he’s ever wanted. Including a bigger family.

♡.﹀﹀﹀﹀.♡

so any critiques, comments, concerns. i'm open to any and everything🫶🏾 oh and don't forget to reblog for more :)

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joeys-babe · 7 months

Text

Joey B Blurbs: Dinosaur

————————————————————————-

Summary: You make the mistake of helping Joe make a TikTok account.

Warnings: None, pure silliness

Pairing: Joe Burrow x reader

Imagine Universe: Into The Mystic

————————————————————————-

February 15, 2024

Out of nowhere, Joe plopped down next to me on the couch and put his phone on my lap.

“Can I help you?” - you

“Yes, actually!” - Joe pointed to his phone

I looked down at his phone to see that it was the TikTok log-in or sign-up page that pops up when you first download the app.

“What?” - you

“Can you help me make an account? My dinosaur ass can't figure it out, but I wanna follow you and see the videos you post. Ja’Marr was talking about the videos you posted of me and you for Valentine’s yesterday, but I had no idea what he was talking about. I wanna be able to see your posts.” - Joe

“Why? So you can approve of them?” - you

“No, nothing like that! I like watching the videos you make of us, and I think they're cute. Plus, I rarely ever get to see the finished prank videos. Please help me?” - Joe

I thought his reasoning was adorable, so I happily helped him.

“Do you want it to be an official account or incognito?” - you

“Incognito.” - Joe

Nodding, I handed him his phone so he could type a username in.

I was absentmindedly staring off when I heard Joe giggle.

“What?” - you smiled

He handed me his phone, and I playfully rolled my eyes at the username he typed out.

Simp4Y/N_B

“You're a dork.” - you laughed

“I mean, I am making the account to watch your videos, so it's kinda fitting.” - Joe grinned

After getting the rest of the account setup process completed, Joe made me type my username in the search so he could follow me.

“Wanna follow anyone else? The team you play for, maybe?” - you

“Nope. This is all I wanted.” - Joe

——

You had no idea what a mistake that would be, and you were dealing with the consequences.

It wasn't even the next day yet, and Joe had blown your phone up, mass-liking every video you've ever posted.

Then he found the AI Spongebob singing videos…

“Joseph Lee, send me one more TikTok, and I'm going to block you.” - you

“Watch the last one I sent!” - Joe

“No!” - you

“It's Patrick singing Billie Jean!” - Joe

We were lying in bed, or at least I was, but my phone continuously vibrated on the nightstand, and Joe laughing kept me from sleeping.

“Go to sleep.” - you

Joe rolled over and laid his head on my shoulder, his hand propping up his phone on my chest to show me the video.

Like he hadn't already watched it ten times, Joe couldn't stop laughing.

“I'm gonna shove you off of this bed.” - you

——

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse, they did. They damn did.

Joe found Jett and Campbell. (IYKYK)

Now he randomly calls me Pookie as a joke, but with way too serious of an expression for my liking.

He'd gone to pick up my online pickup order from the store for me, and when Joe called me to tell me he had received my order, he greeted me in a way that made me want to hang up.

“Hey, baby.” - you

“Hey, Pookie. I got your order and am almost home.” - Joe

A few seconds of silence went by till I spoke up.

“Call me that again and I'll file for divorce.” - you

“You wouldn't do that, you love me too much... right?” - Joe

“I would never even think of it. I was just kidding, Joey.” - you

“Good because I can't live without you.” - Joe

“Can't live without you either… I love you more than anything.” - you

A few seconds of silence went by before Joe spoke up.

“Love you too… Pookie.” - Joe

“Bye.” - you hung up

——

After threatening divorce, Joe toned it down with the “Pookie” shit, but then he found trends that guys were doing on their girls.

We were in bed one night, cuddling and watching a movie, when out of nowhere, I heard an unmistakable edit audio playing. I looked over at Joe’s phone only to see my face and an annoyed expression on Joe’s.

Joe put his phone down on his chest and scooted away from me.

“Joe…” - you

“Nope, it's okay. Comforting knowing that my wife can recognize songs that are in the background of videos of other men.” - Joe

“You're being silly. I'm huge right now because I'm pregnant with your kid.” - you

“You're not huge… but that still doesn't make up for the fact that you knew that sound.” - Joe

I rolled over onto my side and curled up against Joe. He begrudgingly reached out and ran his fingertips over my bump that was pressing against his side.

“You're crazy if you think I don't have an edit of you saved with the same song in the background.” - you grinned

Joe looked away, suddenly feeling bashful as his cheeks flushed pink, and I lightly scratched his bare arm with my nails.

“You're playin’.” - Joe

“No, I'm not!” - you

I grabbed my phone out and pulled TikTok up, immediately finding my collection titled “Hubby ❤️🤭”, and scrolled till I found the video I wanted.

“Woah, you weren’t joking.” - Joe

“Don't you look hot as fuck?” - you

“I'm just drinking water on the sidelines…” - Joe

“Exactly!” - you

————————————————————————-

Authors note: idk what to say 💀

Request in this fic;

Hope you enjoyed! 💕

#joe burrow #bengals #joe burrow imagine #joe burrow x reader #joey b #cincinnati bengals #joe burrow fan fic

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sprite-writes-fanfic · 2 months

Text

How the Killers from DBD would react to you slapping their ass.

Hey guys! Welcome to my silly DBD headcanons, this was just for fun, worked with a great buddy of mine @despacitobandito! <3 They helped me and we overall had a great time making this together so I hope you all get a good laugh out of this. Also! Apparently more killers have come out since Unknown’s release that I didn’t write down during the making of this, sorry for missing any new killers! Other than that, I hope you enjoy!

Word Count: 390

CW: Crack headcanons, nothing graphic, some reactions you’d expect from a slasher, contains killers up to Unknown!

Evan MacMillan - Trapper

• Insulted that you would ever touch his fine juicy ass.

Philip Ojomo - Wraith

• “Oh..!” You both are really awkward afterwards. Like just awkwardly staring at each other in silence.

Max Thompson Jr. - Hillbilly

• He’s genuinely startled by you slapping his ass, a little flattered probably.

Sally Smithson - Nurse

• Your hand phases through her and she slashes the shit out of you.

Michael Myers - Shape

• The thousand yard stare before he’d stab you in the face.

Lisa Sherwood - Hag

• *Minecraft skeleton noises.*

Herman Carter - Doctor

• *Farts electricity and electrocutes you.*

Anna - Huntress

• Stops humming. Run. Dude just run.

Bubba Sawyer - Cannibal

• Squeals and cries, you touched his no-no square.

Freddy Krueger - Nightmare

• Turns into literal dust because that’s what he deserves.

Amanda Young - Pig

• Instant bear trap, you don’t even get to find the key, as soon as it’s on, it snaps.

Jeffery Hawk - Clown

• Burp and fart combo.

Rin Yamaoka - Spirit

• You cut your hand since she has a glass shard sticking out of her ass cheek.

Frank, Julie, Susie and Joey - Legion

• They all gang up on you and kick you on the ground, JoJo style.

Adiris - Plague

• She pukes on you, like a baby.

Danny Johnson - Ghostface

• He liked it so much that he hunts you down for you to do it again.

Kazan Yamaoka - Oni

• Feels his masculinity being threatened and he hunts you every game to beat you violently.

Caleb Quinn - Deathslinger

• You traumatized the old man.

Pyramid Head - Executioner

• Execution via guillotine.

Talbot Grimes - Blight

• Immediately tries to vore you but he can’t as he doesn’t have movement in his lower jaw.

Charlotte Deshayes - Twins

• Victor shoots out of her chest and mauls you.

Ji-Woon Hak - Trickster

• Promoted to side hoe and discord kitten that manages his social media; you’re forced to listen to his music on loop on Spotify. There is no escape.

Nemesis

• “S.T.A.R.S.” *blows you up.*

Elliot Spencer - Cenobite

• “I came.”

Carmina Mora - Artist

• Screeches and crows swarm you.

Albert Wesker - Mastermind

• Look of pure disappointment before he hooks you. “Look but don’t touch.”

Tarhos Kovács - Knight

• “Oh good heavens!” *His and him gang mori you.*

Adriana Imai - Skull Merchant

• She cyberstalks you and cancels you on Twitter/X.

Charles Lee Ray/Chucky - Good Guy

• Punted across the whole damn map.

Unknown

• Snap, crackle, pop.

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chessholic · 6 months

Text

ー

The One With

Joey's Food

ー

Joey Tribbiani

Reader

Summary: JOEY DOESN'T SHARE FOOD... However it seems that rule might not apply when it comes to you.

Author's Note: Someone asked me to publish my Joey fanfics, so this one is for you. <3

ps. I made that iconic Joey's Meatball Sub, it really made me feel alive again.

New comfort food unlocked

ー

You were so tired, and hungry.

Oh dear, you could eat a horse right now. Or maybe not if that meant eating the entire horse.

Finally you got yourself inside being greeted with everyone else except Joey.

Where was he? You could really just snuggle against your friend to forget all your worries. Joey felt like home, he felt safe.

Except Chandler would disagree with you, strongly, not that you could blame him after that robbery thingy.

"It's a zombie! Everybody, run!", Chandler shouted while jumping behind Ross and pushing him towards you.

"Hey!", Ross squeaked realising that Chandler, his best friend since the beginning of time, was sacrificing him to this supposed 'zombie'.

"Hahaha", you laughed a dry sarcastic laugh while getting your jacket off.

"What happened to you?", Rachel asked noticing your disheveled look.

"Your eye bags-", Rachel was saying before you gave her a stern look that did shut her up.

Monica also gave Rachel an are-you-serious look before helping you sit down at the kitchen tables chair

"Work huh?", Monica asked already knowing what was behind your current state.

Before you started to explain Joey made a grand appearance with his iconic sandwich. It makes your stomach growl and mouth water.

Joey sat at the table next to you, he gave you a tender look before getting ready to destroy his food, with the intention of not leaving even crumbs behind.

"So. I got to work a few hours early because my boss asked me to and as we know my boss, I couldn't refuse-", you started taking a deep breath.

"I had my mom's cooking for lunch, but there was so much going on I didn't have time to eat. And when I finally did- that ass had eaten it! My food! It was supposed to be the only good thing today, and it was taken away from me", you rambled trying not to break down completely.

"Oh, this reminds me of that 'MY SANDWICH' thing", Chandler said looking at Ross who just looked back at him shooting daggers out of his eyes.

"Oh, this gets much worse. I confronted that- idiot and it got a bit heated. Long story short, I got fired", you ended your story leaving out the details of wandering around the city crying your eyes out.

"Let's celebrate!", Phoebe cheered from the couch making everyone turn to look at her.

"Yeah, you hated that job! More than I hated serving coffee!", Rachel said trying to comfort you.

"I didn't hate the job, but the people", you muttered burying your face into your hands.

"That's my girl!", Chandler cheered giving you a quick pat on the back before hurrying towards the armchair.

Your stomach made a loud noise and you felt truly awful.

"Do you have anything to eat Monica? I don't have anything at home", you asked carefully your voice cracking slightly.

"I need to go quickly to the store-", Monica started hurrying to gather her stuff.

"Here, you can have my meatball sub"

The time seemed to slow down.

Phoebe stopped chewing her hair.

Rachel had her hand covering her mouth that was hanging open.

Monica dropped her purse to the floor.

Chandler almost fell off the armchair.

Ross had a look on his face that would be expected if someone would prove to him that dinosaurs had never existed.

You lifted your head to see Joey smiling and offering his food, to you, you.

Joey had a small amount of the sauce on his face.

"I already took a couple of bites if that's okay", he said looking a bit sheepish.

"Really?", you asked voice slightly shaky, knowing that nobody else dared to move or speak.

Joey nodded and you reached towards him. But to everyone's surprise you didn't take the sandwich.

However you got up and put your arms around his neck. Burying your face to his neck you mumbled so many thank you's that nobody could say exactly how many there was.

Maybe ten? Hundred? Hundreds? Who knows.

Then you gave a kiss to his cheek before pulling away and snatching the sandwich from him.

Eagerly you started eating it and you moaned slightly at the most delicious thing you had ever eaten.

"JOEY DOESN'T SHARE FOOD!", everyone suddenly shouted after they switched glances between each other.

Joey tried to look like he had no idea what they were talking about, his face was oddly red and he was feeling warm and fuzzy.

Joey loved seeing you happy, he could sacrifice one meatball sub for your happiness.

But only one.

When Joey looked at you eating happily his favourite Meatball Sub he couldn't even see anything else than you. He didn't even care about his friends who were still shocked and wanted answers.

Joey would give you every meatball sub for the rest of his life if it meant seeing you so utterly happy.

But he wanted a bite, at least.

ー

#joey tribbiani x reader #joey tribbiani #friends #fanfiction #rachel green #monica geller #chandler bing #phoebe buffay #ross geller

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bloatedandalone04 · 4 months

Text

In The Way I Need You | Part 11

Series Masterlist

➪in which clay makes it up to you after you found that now destroyed picture of him and sam, and you confess to what happened after he left jess’.

PSA: strongly suggested to read the warnings before proceeding.

WC; 3k | Do not repost this anywhere, reblogs are fine ♡ | THANK YOU FOR 4.7K FOLLOWERS

Today was one of the rare days that Clay got to work with his mom, and of course she was able to tell that something was wrong as soon as he entered the room.

When he tried to wave it off, she pressured him into going home early and resting - assuming it was something to do with his heart, which was a lot better than her finding out the real reason why he wasn’t his usual self. There was no way he could tell her that he was miserable because he fucked things up with you again.

He knew you would be there when he got home, and he was almost nervous to face you after this morning. He had the full intention to apologize to you and explain further, but you completely shut him out, and he understood why.

If you needed space, he’d give you it, but it wouldn’t make him feel any less like an asshole for having Sam’s picture in his drawer, even if he forgot about it entirely before you found it.

Clay was scared that you’d stop babysitting Joey, and they’d be alone again. You had filled in most of the hole Sam left, which was surprising in itself since you hadn’t been in his life for too long.

Since he was coming home a bit early today, he was hoping he would be able to talk to you for a bit longer. His mom wouldn’t be back until later tonight, and Clay was planning on explaining things to you when Joey goes to bed. If you even decided to stay that long and let him.

He got home at around six thirty, and he was up the stairs within seconds when he heard yours and Joey’s mixed laughs coming from the kitchen. The sound was one he wanted to hear all the time, and that just further proved how badly he needed to fix things between you and him. Because Joey loved you. And Clay…well, he really liked you and didn’t want things to end because of Sam.

Clay entered the kitchen and met your eye almost immediately, and he was forced to watch your smile fade as you set Joey down. He runs over to Clay with a big grin and a laugh as he picks him up, greeting him in the way Clay loved. “Hi, daddy,”

“Hi, buddy,” he said back, kissing the top of his son’s head before looking back at you. “Y/n.”

You seemed to have been frozen before and when he said your name, you quickly straightened up and put down the spoon you were holding. “You’re back early,” you observe and hesitantly make your way over to him and Joey. “I thought you’d be gone another few hours. I was going to clean.”

Clay shook his head and set Joey down. “Don’t worry about it,” he waved you off as Joey grabbed his hand. He looked tired, and Clay knew he needed to go to sleep. So with pleading eyes he said, “I’m going to go get him ready for bed. But I want to talk to you about…everything. Will you stay? Please?”

You bite down on your bottom lip and reach out to run your knuckles along Joey’s cheek. “Yeah,” you answer quietly, meeting Clay’s eyes again. “I’ll stay.”

A sigh of relief left his mouth and he was quickly taking Joey upstairs and getting him ready for bed. Once he was tucked under his covers and holding his teddy bear, Clay leaned down and kissed the top of Joey’s head. “I love you, Joe,” he whispered, then turned and made his way back to you.

You were sitting on the couch, your leg bouncing a bit as you picked at your nails, and Clay passed by the living room and continued on to the kitchen, where he grabbed a diet coke from the fridge before heading back to you. “Here,” he murmured and held it out to you.

The smile you gave him as you took it had his heart skipping a beat, and he quickly sat next to you. “You know, I got mad at my coworker today,” you say quietly as you run the tip of your index finger along the cold can. “Like, really mad.”

Clay’s lips turned upwards at your choice of a conversation starter and he leaned back on the couch. “You got mad?” He asked with a teasing tone that made your smile grow a bit. “Why?”

You bite down on your lip and lean back as well, looking over at him with a blush coating your face. “Because he’s an ass,” you answer simply, making Clay let out a surprised laugh. “He was. It was right after you left. His name is Miles, and he started saying all this stuff after you were gone and not there to defend yourself, and even if you were there, I know you still wouldn’t defend yourself because you are far too sweet to stand up to someone you don’t know, but I’m not.”

He held back a laugh at that since he knew you were probably right. Clay couldn’t even stand up to his mom or Sam when she was still around, and he knew there was a small chance that he’d actually stick up for himself to a total stranger.

You, on the other hand…he’d stand up for you, just like how you supposedly did for him.

“So when you left, I was reading through your texts that I stupidly didn’t answer and then he just had to say something. He said that you were probably some rich guy who’s stuck up and only came to Jess’ to pity poor people like him and I,” you rambled and Clay couldn’t stop himself from reaching over and grabbing your hand. Thankfully you allowed him to and laced your fingers with his. “I went off on him. I was practically yelling at him and telling him to shut up in front of all the customers and on my first day of working there. You and I weren’t even on good terms and I was still acting like we were and I probably totally embarrassed myself in front of everyone there, including my new boss.”

You were beginning to sound a bit breathless, so you stopped and waited for a few beats, and Clay didn’t say a word.

“But I didn’t care, because he was being an ass and I needed to say something to him about it because,” you stopped yourself short and Clay thought for a split second that you were going to say those three words that had been swirling around in his head for a few days now. It was too early, right? You didn’t feel that way, right? “I like you so much. You’re so sweet and kind and caring and the best dad to Joey. I couldn’t stand hearing him say all these horrible things about you when he doesn’t even know you.”

Clay smiled and felt his body heat up at the way you defended him from the coworker he’d seen eyeing you up the entire time he was visiting you at Jess’. “I don’t know what to say,” he laughed, rubbing his thumb along the back of your hand. “No one has ever publicly defended me like that before.”

“Yeah, well,” you laughed, too, but he could tell that you were starting to feel a bit embarrassed. “Maybe it was stupid of me to risk doing that on my first day, but…I just didn’t care.”

Clay’s brows furrowed in concern. “You didn’t get fired, did you?”

“No, no, I just…I told Jess that the hot guy that came in before Miles and I’s argument was my…boyfriend, and how we weren’t doing great at the moment, and she understood for the most part,” you answer with a forced smile. “It just can’t happen again.”

Clay nodded and then when he was sure you were done, he knew it was his turn. “That picture you found, the one in my drawer? Well, it’s in about a hundred pieces right now,”

Your eyes widened and you sat up, setting your drink aside. “You ripped it up? Clay, that was your wedding photo. That day was supposed to be a good memory to hold onto,”

He just shook his head and squeezed your hand. “It’s over,” he whispered. “What Sam and I had…it’s not even a good memory anymore. That picture? It doesn’t mean anything at all to me anymore, and that’s why it’s in pieces in the garbage.”

You press your lips together in a way that told him you were holding back a smile, and he fought one off himself as he continued,

“Sam is just the person who helped give me Joey. That’s all she is to me,” he promised and watched as you nodded. “She doesn’t mean anything, and she hasn’t for a long time. You on the other hand…you’re…”

He stopped talking as he didn’t know where he was going with that. You meant so much to him and to Joey, he honestly didn’t know where he would be right now without you. But it was still so soon, and he promised he wouldn’t rush things with you. It worked so well for him last time.

“I’m what?” You pressed, leaning closer to him and reaching up to lightly grip his shoulder.

“You’re everything she’s not,” he replied, sitting up straight. “I mean, Joey is practically obsessed with you already. You’re all he talks about when you’re not here, and he’s attached to you when you are here. He’s like his dad in that way.”

The smile you give him at that could only be described as fucking beautiful, and then you were carefully crawling on top of him and straddling his lap.

Clay reached up to smooth out your hair. “You’re who I want to be with. And I’m sorry you saw that picture. I thought I had gotten rid of it a while ago,” he murmured, leaning in and kissing behind your ear. “I don’t ever go in that drawer, so I promise, I really had no idea-”

You cut him off with a kiss to his mouth that was pretty effective in getting him to forget about what he was about to say. “Clay,” you mumble when you pull away, kissing the corner of his mouth quickly afterwards. “Stop making yourself feel bad with excuses. I already forgave you.”

Clay smiled, then you were kissing him again. “I missed you yesterday,” he confessed against your lips. “I really wanted to take you out on our second date.”

You whined and pulled away. “Don’t remind me,” you whispered, dropping your head onto his shoulder, your fingers tangling in his hair afterwards. “I feel guilty about that. You were so cute before I found that stupid fucking picture.”

“I’m not now?” He teased and you pulled back to give him a pointed look. “Sorry.”

You laugh, shaking your head. “I’m sorry, Clay,” you mumbled, running the tips of your fingers along his jaw. “Maybe I overreacted. But I hated seeing you with her, even if it was through a photo.”

“You didn’t overreact,” he murmured, leaning up to kiss the side of your neck. “That photo shouldn’t have been in there. I promise, you won’t find any more around. She’s out of our lives.”

“Okay,” you trail off, gently massaging the back of his neck. “I missed you, too. Can we spend a day together soon? Or did I blow the one chance we had?”

Clay laughed, already knowing when the next time you and he would be alone together could be, but he decided to keep it from you for just a bit longer. “We’ll have another chance,” he promised and watched as you nodded then looked down at his lips. Without another word being spoken, you leaned in and kissed him softly, your lips barely brushing against his as if you were testing it out. It reminded him of the first kiss you shared, and the memory had him grabbing hold of your hips and pressing you tight against his chest.

The feeling of your fingers tangling in his hair felt concerningly good, and Clay realized that it had been a while since he felt this comfortable with a woman. Sam did a number on him and he had only let himself indulge in a few meaningless conversations with women before he decided he just wasn’t ready to move on yet.

That was before, now he was pretty much all in with you.

You adjusted yourself so you were straddling his lap, your hips pressed to his in a way that had him holding back a groan of want. He would let you decide how far this goes, even if it left him with a killer boner afterwards. “Is this okay?” You asked sweetly, pulling away just enough to be able to look him in the eye.

“Yeah,” came his strained reply as he leaned his head back on the top of the couch. “It’s okay. More than okay.”

You press your lips together, sliding your hands back down to his shoulders. “It’s not too much?” You asked quieter this time, and he adored the way you were so concerned about doing something that could potentially trigger his heart rate to spike.

Clay shook his head, bending his legs more so his thighs were a bit firmer. Your lips part in a silent gasp, and it took a lot out of him to not kiss you again as he said, “It’s not too much, baby,”

He knew that nickname did things to you. He caught the way you reacted to it the first time he called you it, and he made a mental note that you clearly liked it. “Oh, God,” you groaned, leaning in and dropping your head to his shoulder. “Clay.”

Ever since the first time he had heard the sweet sounds you make when you get like this, Clay had been determined to coax them out of you more often. It was impossible to not get riled up when your soft moans filled the quiet living room, and it was hard not to notice the fact that he usually spends most of his time in here with you.

The memory of his first kiss with you flashed through his mind, and he groaned at where that kiss led to. You on top of him, your hands tangled in his hair and your hips dragging against his in a way that should not feel so good. But it was you, and Clay was beginning to think that everything with you felt good.

Your lips brushing against his in a barely-there kiss got him out of his head and he held onto your waist a bit tighter, leaning up to kiss you properly. You returned it, pulling on his hair as you shifted your body back and forth on his lap. “Do we..” You trailed off, massaging the spot on his head where you had tugged on his hair. “We have time?” You hesitantly asked, slowing down the drag of your hips.

“I got sent home early,” he laughed breathlessly, watching as a smile formed on your lips. “My mother wouldn’t put up with my pouting.”

You laugh, shifting so you were higher up on his lap and pressing your chest to his. “This pout,” you murmur, wrapping one arm around his shoulders while the hand of your other came up to caress the side of his face. “It does something to me.” Your index finger traces the outline of his lips as you begin rubbing yourself against him again.

“At least it works on you,” he teased and you bit down on your lip, leaning in to press a deep kiss to his mouth.

“So,” you dragged the word out.

“So,” he echoed, guiding the slow roll of your body. “We have more than enough time.”

You smile at him, picking up the pace again. “Feels so good, Clay,” you whimper, wrapping your arm tighter around him and dropping your head to his shoulder. “Just like how it felt upstairs in the hall.”

Clay groaned, bucking his hips upwards and making a surprised moan leave your mouth. “You sounded so pretty,” he reminisced, bunching up your shirt. “Tasted so good.”

“Oh, my God,” you moaned loudly, moving a bit erratically now. “It’s too much.”

“Are you gonna come?” He asked under his breath, unable to speak any louder than that in fear he’d give away just how much of an effect you have on him.

You nod quickly, bunching his shirt in your hands. “Are you?”

Clay leaned back against the top of the couch again, gazing up at you with a lazy smile. “Do you want me to?”

“Yes,” you answer instantly. “With me? Please?”

Clay grunted, in a bit of disbelief at how sweet you sounded when asking for something so dirty. He was sure he’d give you anything you wanted if you asked him like how you just did. “Come, baby,” he requested in a raspy voice, and you squeezed your eyes shut as your body shook on top of his.

He came with you, making a real mess in his boxers that he honestly didn’t care about. It’d been a long time since he was intimate with someone, but you made him feel better than he had ever felt. He was sure it was because it was with you, the girl he’s been so into since the minute he met you.

Your body stilled on top of his, your fingers trailing through his hair as you came down from your high. “How?” You asked breathlessly, pulling away from his shoulder to be able to look him in the eye. “How do you make it feel so good every time?”

Clay laughed, smoothing out your messy hair and ruffled shirt before pressing a kiss to your swollen lips. “Maybe I’ll let you find that out next time,”

With that promise, you grinned at him and pulled him down so he is laying on top of you and your arms are wound tightly around him.

Next up...some time alone..

Thank you for reading this extremely late chapter !

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autisticrosewilson · 5 months

Text

It's been bugging me for a while that we have so many canonically queer characters now but none of them ever DO anything! It's like after they get two characters in a queer relationship they just never give them any conflict after. We didn't ask for more representation because we wanted that character to no longer have interesting stories outside of a queer identity we wanted you to stop queer baiting us.

I know that word gets tossed around a lot, but there is very strong evidence for TimKon, StephCass, and GhostBat where they practically confirm it but they never say anything explicitly. Supersons were literally shown to live together, co-parent Lizzie, and were explicitly paralleling other canon couples last week.

But it's too much for Kon AND Tim to be queer, so they gave Tim a civilian boyfriend that he never has any conflict with and all of the build up and tension that comes with trying to clone your dead teammate 99 times and being a hair away from making out for like 8 years.

Robin AND Super boy couldn't be canonically queer so they aged Jon up and then gave him a civilian boyfriend he never has any conflict with all while parading them around in elseworlds because they knew fans were upset about the lost potential.

Even Harley and Ivy fall victim to this in a different way. I love that they're canonically queer! I just wish that at least Ivy got to keep some of her villainy. I don't think they should have to compromise being menaces to society with being queer.

And it's related but I hesitate to call it queer baiting... what's going on with Dick Grayson. He gets confirmed bi in a non canon video game but he has more pride covers than Tim. Like you can't dangle an extremely queer coded character in front of us and then just never make it canon. And I'm tired of one off implications too. We deserve better representation than a one liner played off for a joke (Batstantine this is about you I fear) but they won't because they know full well they won't do a damn thing with him after.

You wanna know what we should be striving for? Midnighter and Apollo. Messy their whole run time, uncompromisingly interesting whether they're together or not, happily married with a daughter, and yet continued to be unerringly bad ass. John Constantine, with all of his shameless flirting and raunchiness. Grace Choi and Anissa Pierce. The pining, the break ups, the make ups. Obsessed with them.

Joey Wilson!!! You want someone whose already canonically queer who Dick has a lot of tension with? He's right there! The son of Dick's arch Nemesis. Both of their willingness to go over people's heads to protect them. Joey's ability to completely take someone's free will (and his deliberate and spiteful choice not to) vs. Dick's constant fight for independence (and his willing surrender to the pull of his family). Dick's unwillingness to communicate his feelings or experiences with literally anyone ever paired with Joey's uncanny ability to read him like a book. Are you joking. The mess, the tension, the INTRIGUE!!

This got away from me but I want my queer characters to be interesting again pretty please.

#dc #blorbo posting #timkon #Supersons #Stephcass #ghostbat #Harlivy #Dick Grayson #Midnighter #Apollo dc #midpollo #grace choi #anissa pierce #joey wilson #dickjoey #like I get it they're trying to make these as marketable to as many people as possible #but also I'm soooo tired of hearing about the newest canon queer character that's going to fade into obscurity within the year #because dc just doesn't use them or give them interesting relationships

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starsinthesky5 · 2 months

Text

you belong with me IV part 1 || joe burrow x reader

description: you and joe attend your sister's wedding together and relish the blissfulness that a new relationship brings

a/n: whew this one is longggg. and this is after splitting it up so the original version was going to be even longer 😭 anyway, hope you all enjoy it ;) this also features a flashback requested by @joeys-babe! ilysm girly💕 also, there may be a few faint fearless album references here and there (told you that these two reminded me of that album's love songs)

part 2 will be out next week!

word count: 19 k

warnings: smut, language, slight angst?

you belong with me masterlist (parts 1-3 located here)

—————————————————————

January 3rd

You finished applying the last bit of lip gloss to your lips before stepping back from the mirror, straightening out the strappy-silky blush pink dress that hugged your body in all the best ways possible and the high slit showing just enough leg. Your hair was curled and clipped back with two pieces hanging in the front and your gold jewelry glistened in the warm light of the bathroom, specifically the ring on your left hand which was a permanent & constant reminder of the person in your life that meant the most to you.

“Y/N, you look amazing,” your sister said from behind you, interrupting your daze.

You turned around, your sister standing behind you in her robe, her hair done up in her ‘wedding look’, with two glasses of champagne in her hand.

“Thanks, Kay,” you smiled as you walked over to her, grabbing the champagne glass she was offering you and taking a good sip to hopefully take the edge off and cool down your brain that was operating at 100 miles per hour because of the fact that it was Wedding Day.

“I see you went with gold jewelry per my suggestion,” she gloated as she looked at your earrings, your necklace, the bracelets on your wrist, her eyes stopping at the ring on your left hand (which was the only ring you were wearing).

“Hm, that’s new,” she said as she grabbed your hand and pulled it up to her face. You froze as she examined the ring, the ring Joe had given to you in December.

“Yeah. I, um, got it at an antique shop a few weeks ago,” you lied as you took another sip of champagne.

“Really? It looks so authentic. I’ve never seen such real-looking fake diamonds and jewels,” she said as she studied the ring.

Before she could ask any other questions and you blabbed about who the ring was actually from, you quickly changed the topic. “Shouldn’t you be getting your makeup done right now?” you asked as you looked over at the clock.

“She’s almost done with Veronica and then I’ll go out,” she smiled as she let go of your hand and reached up to tuck in a flyaway hair on the top of your head.

“Thanks,” you nodded as you started to take another sip of your champagne.

“Of course,” she nodded. “I have to make sure you look perfect for Joe,”.

You nearly choked on your drink, your eyes widening in shock as your brain registered what your sister was suggesting.

You hadn’t told your family about the two of you yet, you were practically a secret. You wanted to tell everyone, but the two of you also wanted to enjoy this for a little bit without it being out in the world. But you were also playing a risky game, one tiny slip-up from you and your sister would be cracking the case she had been trying to break open for years.

“W- What?” you coughed.

“Relax, Y/N,” she said while rubbing your arm. “I was just messing with you,”.

“R- Right,” you coughed again.

“But you did bring him as your date, no surprise there though,” she smirked, your eyes rolling at her relentless attitude. “Just like how he brought you with him to that Christmas party last month. You sure you don’t have anything to tell me,” she warily asked you.

“Nope,” you voiced, remaining calm and collected so that you wouldn’t give it away.

“God, when are you going to make a move? You guys aren’t getting any younger,” she asked, playfully shoving your shoulder.

Little did she know, you already did. You already made a lot of moves.

“Kay, we’re just friends. I’ve told you that many many many times,” you lied, attempting to hide the growing blush on your cheeks by walking out of the bathroom, Kaylee following you back into the bridal suite.

“Actions speak louder than words,” she teased as she walked over to the now-empty makeup station and sat down on the comfy chair.

You shook your head while turning around and walking over to the dining table, walking past the other bridesmaids who were trying on different shoes to pair with their dresses.

“I can’t believe Joe Burrow is here,” you overheard your sister's friend Veronica say to the other girls.

Your heart skipped a beat when you overheard his name being mentioned, your face heating up at the nature of the conversation.

“Shhh, he’s Y/N’s date,” her other friend Lacy said as she glanced over at you.

“So? From what I’ve heard they’re just good friends and if she’s not going to go for it, then who’s stopping me?” Veronica laughed. “I mean, have you seen Joe? Give me 5 minutes with him alone and he’ll be stuck to my side,”.

“Yeah, but that’s still her best friend and she brought him as her date. Besides, don’t you ever see the stuff online about how none of his girls seem to stick around? And then don’t you see the stuff online about how people think Y/N and him have something going on which is why he doesn’t really have a girlfriend,” Lacy attempted to whisper but was doing terribly.

“Who cares? If she really likes him, she’s doing a terrible job at showing it because as far as I see, he’s still on the market,” Veronica said with a grin.

You rolled your eyes again because of how childish it all sounded. You wanted to say something to them, defending your relationship and getting them to back off but how could you defend a relationship that people didn’t even know was a relationship yet? You felt like a teenager, hiding her first boyfriend from her family and friends and sneaking around like you had something scandalous to hide.

“Whatever,” you whispered as you placed your champagne glass down on the dining table. You reached for a chocolate cupcake but were interrupted by a knock at the front door, nobody noticed but you.

“I got it,” you said aloud to everyone, nobody listening as your sister was wrapped up in a conversation with the makeup artist, and the other girls were busy trying on their shoes and talking about your boyfriend. “Okay,” you sighed as you walked over to the door of the suite.

You opened the door, your eyes staring at the shoes of the person standing in front of you, slowly moving up their body as you met their face.

“You look gorgeous,” Joe said, a cheeky grin on his face as he stuffed his hands in his pants pockets, his eyes moving from your toned legs, to your perfect hips, and up to your beautiful face.

“Joe,” you gasped as you stepped out into the hallway with him, closing the door behind you. “What’re you doing up here,” you asked him as you took in how handsome he looked in his suit, the urge to pull him into one of the rooms by his tie incredibly strong.

“I came to see my stunning girlfriend,” he smiled as he backed you up to the wall.

You blushed when you felt his hand brush against your waist, “If Kaylee catches us out here-,”.

“We’ll be fine,” he said as he grabbed your hand, toying with the ring on your finger. “I just wanted to see you for a few minutes before the ceremony,”.

“Oh yeah?” you beamed as you ran your hands up his suit jacket to his broad shoulders.

“How’s it going in there? You guys at each other's throats yet?” he asked, knowing how you felt about some of your sister's friends.

“Well, Veronica was going on about how she apparently needs 5 minutes alone with you to get you stuck to her side,” you said, rolling your eyes as Joe’s mouth dropped.

“No way,” he said.

“Yes, way. Future Mrs. Burrow is probably in there talking about baby names right now,” you teased, Joe clearly not liking the joke as he wasn’t laughing like you were.

“Please, the real future Mrs. Burrow is standing right in front of me,” he said, giving your waist a gentle squeeze as he gazed deeply into your eyes. You felt your heartbeat pick up, his touch sending shivers throughout your body much like the words that came out of his mouth.

“It doesn’t bother me. She’ll figure it out at some point,” you smiled confidently.

“As much as I hate other girls talking about me like that and how much I’d love for you to shut them up, I like that we’re just enjoying this for now without having it out in front of everyone,” Joe nodded, referring to enjoying each other’s company without having everyone know you were officially a couple.

“Me too,” you smiled. “By the way, you look amazing,” you said as you gave him another once-over. “I need to see you in more suits,”.

“No, you look amazing. This dress is reallyyyy doing something to me,” he said as he moved his hands to your lower back, feeling the strappy design that was exposing a little too much of your bare back for his liking. “You look stunning with it on,”.

“If you play your cards right tonight, I might even let you take it off,” you teased as you threaded your fingers through his hair, your head leaning against the wall.

“I’ll be sure to be on my best behavior then,” he mumbled as he slowly leaned in for a kiss, you moved your head off the wall and crashed your lips against his, his hands pulling your body closer to his as you meet for a fiery kiss. His touch sent electric jolts throughout your body as his hand went from your back to your ass.

“If we were alone right now,” he said between kisses.

“I know,” you panted as you pulled him back to your lips, your arms looping around his neck and pulling him closer.

The feeling of his lips against yours was sending you into a frenzy, not a single coherent thought in your mind as you melted under his electrifying touch. You felt his lips move down, pressing kisses from your chin down to your neck and his hands sliding across the silky fabric of your dress.

“Joe,” you whispered as you grabbed his hair and moved him back to your lips.

“Mm, I can’t get enough of you,” he said between kisses.

A few heated seconds later, you heard the doorknob make a few clicking noises before hearing the door slowly open.

“Fuck,” Joe whispered as he quickly pulled away from you and backed up so that you both had enough space between you.

“Stay cool,” you mouthed as you saw your sister walk out from the corner of your eye.

“Hey, lovebirds. I’m not interrupting anything right?” she teased.

“Uhh….,” you nervously stalled as you tried to come up with an excuse as to why Joe was up here.

“No, not interrupting at all. I just wanted to check our reception seats with Y/N. I think we’re sitting with your parents so I wanted to make sure she was cool with that,” Joe said, saving you both from being caught with a somewhat believable lie.

“Ah, I see,” she nods, not fully believing him as her eyes darted back and forth from him to you. She noticed that you looked a little shaken up—which you were since she almost caught you both in the act—and that you were anxiously fidgeting with the ring on your left finger. She also noticed that your lipgloss looked smudged and his lips looked more pink than usual.

“Well, I just came to grab Y/N. The girls need your opinion about their shoes real quick since you’re Maid of Honor and apparently your opinion holds more weight,” she said as she turned to face you, not bothering to grill you about how this looked.

“Right,” you nodded as you glanced over at Joe.

“Go ahead. I’ll see you down there,” Joe said to you with a feverish look, his hand touching your exposed back, sending shivers throughout your body before he said bye to your sister and turned around.

“See you in a bit,” you said as you turned back to look at him, your mind fixated on the heated look he gave you as he turned around again before he walked back down the hall to the elevator.

You look back at your sister, noticing her skeptical facial expression. “What?” you laughed as you crossed your arms.

“Ohh, nothing,” she smiled as she grabbed your hand and pulled you back into the room.

After the Wedding Ceremony

“I got you your favorite,” Joe said as he handed you a peach mojito and sat back down next to you with his drink.

“Thank you,” you said to him, squeezing his thigh underneath the table as you took a sip of the fruity beverage. The wedding ceremony had concluded a few hours ago and it was nothing short of magical and fairytale-like. You and Joe were currently seated at the table with your parents, having a few drinks and catching up while your sister and her husband were making their rounds around the party.

“So Joe, how’s football going? Think we’ll see another AFC title this year?” your dad asked him.

“Dad,” you said, sending him daggers with your eyes. “I told you, no football talk tonight. Let Joe have a rest day,”.

“It’s Okay, Y/N,” Joe laughed, grabbing your hand underneath the table and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I hope so. We’re taking it day by day still but I feel good about everything but I know it won’t be easy,” he said to your dad.

“Well, just know that we’re proud of you and you’re doing great,” your mom chimed in.

“I’ll double down on that,” your dad added.

“Thanks, guys,” Joe smiled.

Your parents had seen Joe’s football journey since the beginning just like you had. They were practically a second set of parents for him given how close you two were and his relationship with them was something Joe held incredibly close to his heart, something he wouldn’t ever want to replace.

“Y/N, you really outdid yourself with these flowers,” your mom pointed out. “You better keep the contact of whichever florist you found because this looks amazing,”.

“Actually,” you said, looking over at Joe. “You should be thanking Joe. The original florist canceled at the last minute a few weeks ago and he actually pulled a few strings and got one of the best florists money can buy to come through. Even picked out most of the flowers himself,”.

“Well that was sweet,” your dad smiled as he took a sip of his champagne.

“Very,” your mom added. “But did we expect any less from him? He has an excellent track record of coming to Y/N’s rescue whenever she needs to be saved. He’s always been so good to her,”.

“Okayyyy, that’s enough of that. I can just feel his ego getting bigger by the second,” you laughed as you poked his shoulder.

“Someone’s just mad that I have exceptional taste in flowers,” he said as he turned his head and leaned in closer.

You raised your eyebrow, “You wish. I would’ve done just fine without your help,” you scoffed as you leaned in closer, your eyes navigating down to his plump pink lips. God, you wanted nothing more than to kiss him right now.

“Okay, let’s not get into a fistfight at your sister's wedding now,” your mom said as she got up with your dad. “We’re going to go make some rounds around the room. Try not to murder each other while we’re gone,” she smiled.

“No promises,” Joe joked as he watched them walk away, his head turning back to look at you, watching as you were laughing to yourself.

“And what’re you laughing about?” he asked.

“They thought we were going to fight, that’s funny,” you giggled. “More like kiss the hell out of you but I guess they couldn’t catch onto that,”.

He leaned in closer and you could feel his heated gaze on you as you started fidgeting with your ring again. “You know, we didn’t get to finish what we started in the hallway earlier,” he whispered into your ear. You felt his hand creep through the slit of your dress and to your bare thigh, your cheeks heating up again as you could practically hear your heartbeat.

“Joe, we’re in a hall filled with people,” you whispered, moving his hand out from under your dress.

“So?” he said looking around. “Everyone’s doing their own thing, nobody’s looking at us,” he said as he moved his hand back to your thigh.

“I’m not going to kiss you in a room filled with people who think we’re just friends,” you laughed. “I’ll have every single female in this room out for my blood,”.

“Who said anything about kissing?” he whispered as you felt his hand creep up your thigh, inching closer to your heat. Your breath hitched as you felt his fingers ghost over your core through your lace panties, your body jerking when you felt his fingers against your folds. “Joe,” you whispered.

“What, Baby?” he whispered in your ear.

You turned your head to meet his eyes, opening your mouth to say something but before you could, someone interrupted you.

“Y/N! There you are,” you could recognize that fake tone of voice anywhere. Veronica.

You turned your head to face her, watching as she sat down across from you and Joe, the fakest smile plastered on her face and a glass of champagne in her hand. “I’ve been looking all over for you,” she smiled.

"Were you looking for me or looking for my boyfriend?" you thought to yourself.

“Hey, Veronica,” you forcefully smiled and nodded at her.

“And you must be Joe,” she said, turning her head towards Joe and batting her eyelashes.

“Nice to meet you,” Joe smiled, his finger sliding your panties to the side causing you to bump your leg against the table at the sudden movement. You looked over at Joe who was looking straight ahead at Veronica, a smug look on his face as she was introducing herself to him.

You gasped lightly when you felt Joe’s fingers sneak up to your clit, his thumb toying with the sensitive bud which made your body jerk again, your hand gripping the table as he entered two fingers into your soaking core.

“Mmph,” you quietly moaned into your hand as you placed your elbow on the table and covered your mouth.

“So Joe, Is it true what they say about professional athletes’ taste in ice cream?” she smirked at him, clearly using ice cream as a relationship and sexual innuendo. Your eyes widened at her boldness and at the fact that Joe was pumping his fingers in and out of you with zero shame. He started to rub circles around your clit with his thumb, your leg twitching as you started to feel restless.

"This Bitch.." you thought to yourself as you squirmed in your seat.

“Uhh, what do they say?” Joe asked her as he glanced over at you, your pleasure rapidly building up as you were struggling to stifle your moans.

“Hm,” you lightly inhaled as you sat back again and tried to act normal, but it was not working very well.

“Y/N, are you alright?” Veronica asked as she looked over at you, the suspicion on her face evident.

“Yeah, uh, I’m fine,” you winced as you felt his fingers pick up the pace, your arousal begging to be released, your eyes looking over at Joe a few times who was still looking ahead with a smirk on his face. Just a few more pumps and you’d reach your pleasure, you wanted him to stop because if you got caught this would be incredibly hard to explain, but you needed him to keep going.

“Oookay..Anyway,” she said as she looked back over at Joe. “That they don’t stick to one flavor so they can try every kind without feeling the need to have the same boring one for the rest of their lives?”.

“Hmph,” you moaned into your hand as you covered your mouth again, the urge to slap Veronica across the face almost as strong as the urge to come undone right now. You felt your belly flutter at the gentle shock of pleasure vibrating throughout your body once Joe had hit your sweet spot, your hands gripping the tablecloth incredibly tightly as you were just seconds away from feeling pure bliss.

“Uhhh,” Joe nervously laughed as he gave your core a few more pumps, feeling your walls start to tighten around them. You were so incredibly close, but then he slipped his fingers out of your core, leaving you stranded on the edge. You felt everything go still as you let out a shaky breath when you looked over at him, your eyes widening at what he had just done.

“I see you’ve tried a few flavors before but none of them seem to have stuck with you, it seems like you got bored. Hm, have you thought about trying strawberry?” she winked, clearly referring to herself and her obnoxious red hair.

“No actually, I haven’t. I’m not a big strawberry ice cream kinda guy.” Joe laughed again, sliding his wet fingers across your bare thigh and giving your twitching leg a few loving squeezes. “Is it good?”.

Was Joe just painfully oblivious to what she was actually talking about or was he doing this on purpose? Whatever it was, you couldn’t sit there for another second and listen as the ache between your thighs was getting stronger and the incredibly needy comments Veronica was passing were making you sick to your stomach.

“Uhh, excuse me,” you said as you quickly got up from your seat.

“You Okay?” Joe innocently smiled at you as if he didn’t know what was wrong.

“Yeah, I just feel sick all of a sudden. Might be from the shrimp I had earlier, I’m going to take a breather,” you lied as you looked over at Veronica, wanting to wipe the grin off her face as she was practically making googly eyes at Joe.

You quickly walked away before Joe could say anything else, your stomach doing backflips as your brain started to register what had happened underneath that table. He actually just did that in front of Veronica, in front of everyone.

“I should go check on her,” Joe said as he glanced back at your figure that was getting further and further away.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Veronica chirped as she watched Joe get up from his seat, a scoff following as she watched Joe ignore her and walk away.

Meanwhile, you hand wandered out of the Reception hall and were leaning against the bathroom door, staring off into space before you felt a familiar pair of lips press a kiss on your shoulder.

“Absolutely not!” you clamored as you turned around to face Joe.

“What?” he innocently chuckled.

“You know exactly what,” you huffed, crossing your arms and sending him a look that he would easily understand.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Oh I don’t know, maybe the fact that my boyfriend just fingered me under the fucking table, didn’t even finish me off, and then proceeded to blatantly flirt with the same girl that was talking about making a move on you earlier right in front of me,” you grumbled.

“I’ve never seen you Jealous before,” he smiled. “It’s kinda hot,”.

Your mouth dropped open, “Are you serious right now?”. You were a little mad about the Veronica thing but it didn’t really bother you because you knew that Joe wouldn’t ever look at another girl the way he looks at you, and to be completely honest with yourself you were more mad that he did that under the table and didn’t let you finish.

You scoffed and started to walk down the hall, glancing back to see if Joe was following you, which he was. He walked a little faster and grabbed your hand, pulling you back towards him in one strong pull.

“Okay, Okay. I’m sorry for feeding into her terrible attempt at flirting with me,” he said, his eyes filled with adoration as he squeezed your hand.

You continued to stare at him, not responding to his apology on purpose before you felt him pull you into his chest, his mouth inches from your ear. “Let me make it up to you,” his hot breath made your core throb again.

“How?” you whispered to him.

“Let me finish what I started under that table,” he whispered into your ear again. “We both know that’s the real reason you’re mad,”

You looked back into his infatuated eyes, a smile creeping onto your face as you looked behind him and then behind you to make sure nobody was around. The ache between your thighs was still there, calling his name just like how your heart was. You couldn’t stay mad at him, not when he looked at you like this.

“Deal,” you whispered as you grabbed his hand, urgently pulling him down the hall.

“Where are we going?”.

You stopped once you got to the bedroom suites, slowing down your pace as you walked past each room before reaching yours. “My room,” you smiled at him, pulling out your keycard and unlocking the door.

“Thank God for wedding venues with bedrooms,” Joe mumbled to himself as you dragged him inside, quickly closing the door and backing him up against it as you got straight to business. Your hands tangled in his hair as you met for a passionate kiss, your lips then trailing down to his neck where you absentmindedly nipped his skin while kissing it.

“We have to be quick,” you panted as you pulled away from him.

He nodded before pulling you into the bathroom, quickly helping you onto the countertop before unbuckling his belt and pulling his pants and boxers down in one swift motion. He moved his hands under your dress, sliding your drenched panties to the side before thrusting into you, a throaty moan coming from your lips at the sudden intrusion.

You’d never get sick of this feeling. Ever since you and Joe got a taste of what this felt like with each other, neither of you could resist sneaking away for a few moments and feeling this way again and again. It didn’t matter where you were, it didn’t matter when it was, but it always started & ended with you both feeling like horny college kids. Call it making up for lost time if you will?

“Joe,” you whimpered as you grabbed onto his shoulders, his thrusts picking up as the sounds coming from your lips got louder.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” he smiled as he dropped his head to your shoulder, your hands finding themselves in his hair.

“Fuck, harder,” you moaned into his ear, his merciless pace doing wonders for you. He smiles, moves his head back to yours, and captures your lips in a sloppy kiss as he quickened his pace, rapidly thrusting into your slick core which meshed with both your moans and created a familiar harmonious melody that echoed throughout the room.

He moved deeper and deeper inside your core with each well-placed thrust, your cushiony walls beginning to tighten around him as you moaned against his lips. “Joe, right there,” his lips glossy and swollen from being attached to yours for too long. He used his hand to spread your legs apart a little more, the increased space allowing him to hit an angle that he hadn’t before.

“J- Joe,�� you struggled to moan as you dropped your head on his shoulder.

“Remember, you’re the only girl I want,” he moaned as he peppered kisses around your jaw. “Okay?”.

“…Yeah,” you moaned as you felt him hit your sweet spot. “I’m the only girl you want,” you whimpered as you threw your head back against the mirror, the band in your belly tightening as he picked up the pace.

“I’m close,” you whined as you felt yourself clamp down on his thick cock.

He moved his hand underneath your dress again, his fingers coated with your arousal as he began to rub circles around your clit. “Joe, oh my g- god,” you moaned as you felt the band snap, your walls convulsing around him as your body started to shake from the intense feeling.

“Hang on,” he panted as he picked up his pace again, his hand gripping your waist, his cock twitching inside of your core as he felt himself getting closer to his pleasure.

A few moments later, you felt him still inside of you as his cum coated your walls, his head dropped to your shoulder again as he bit down on your skin to prevent himself from being too loud, his high washing over him as you were recovering from yours.

“Shit,” you panted as you rubbed his neck, Joe gently thrusting into you before tapering off.

“If you ever think that I’d want anyone else, you’re crazy,” Joe smiled against your shoulder before tilting his head and pressing kisses to your flushed cheeks. “I don’t give a damn if I have to taste the same flavor of ice cream for the rest of my life,”.

“My kind of ice cream is incredibly delicious,” he said with another kiss on your cheek. “Sweet,” he said with another kiss, this time to your neck. “Kind and gentle,” he said as he kissed your shoulder. “Is 2 in 1 because she’s the love of my life and best friend all in one,” he said with a kiss to your chest. “And far from boring,” he ended with a passionate kiss to your lips, the kiss so intense that it sent you back towards the mirror again.

“So you do know that she wasn’t talking about ice cream?” you rasped, your voice tired from screaming his name as you felt your heart flutter at his softness and kind words towards you.

“Obviously,” he laughed as he ran his fingers through his hair. “She wasn’t exactly subtle about it,”.

“Then why were you playing along?”.

“Because I knew it’d make you a little jealous,” he winked.

“Asshole,” you playfully grumbled as you lightly slapped his chest.

“I may be an asshole but you still love me,” he said as he raised an eyebrow.

“Unfortunately, that’s something that’ll never change,” you sighed.

“Unfortunately?” he asked. “You say it like it’s a bad thing,”.

“It’s definitely not a bad thing” you grin. “It’s just I love you too much to care about the fact that you did that to me under the table at my sister's wedding, in a room filled with people, and then we proceeded to sneak off mid-party to hook up in the bathroom. If I was with any other guy, I would never even entertain these thoughts. We’re so scandalous,” you said as you wiggled your eyebrows which made him laugh.

“You know I'm not a bad girl, but I seem to be doing bad things with you. I should care, but I don’t,” you blushed.

“And that’s exactly why you're far from boring; you always seem to surprise me,” he said as he pressed a kiss to your jaw.

“Love you,” you lazily smiled as you grabbed his face to kiss him again.

“Love you too,” he smiled against your lips.

A few minutes later, you were both cleaned up and fixing yourselves in the mirror before heading back to the reception. “I hope they didn’t notice we were gone,” you laughed as you fixed a few stray pieces of your hair.

“I doubt it. They were probably too wrapped up in the party to realize,” he smiled as he fixed his tie. “You ready?” he asked after he was done.

“Mhm,” you nodded, leaning in for one final kiss before getting ready to head back.

Joe opened your door and stepped out into the hall, you followed him out and closed the door behind you, laughing at a joke he made about how you guys went from sneaking out of weddings to raid the bar to make stronger cocktails to now sneaking out of weddings to have hook up in your room. You were about to reach for his hand before you heard a shriek come from down the hall, your heart stopping when you realized who it was.

“Busted!” the familiar voice screamed.

“Oh, fuck,” you froze as you realized who it was, being able to recognize that voice anywhere.

Kaylee.

You and Joe both looked at each other before looking at Kaylee who was speed walking down the hall to you, both your cheeks turning red as you were caught red-handed.

“Kaylee,” you forcefully smiled.

“I knew it. I knew it. And you said you were just friends…Ha…Funny,” she laughed.

“Uhh, Kaylee are you okay?” Joe asked her, his palms getting sweaty as he quickly glanced over at you.

“I’m great, Joe. Are you okay? You got a little something on your neck,” she said, pointing out the tiny purple bruise on his neck.

“Fuck,” you mumbled under your breath.

“Oh, and Y/N, did you bump into something?” She said as she moved her hand to the mark on your shoulder, leaning in to look at it closely. “Oh wait, that looks like a bite mark?”.

“Shit,” Joe mouthed as he looked into your eyes, both of you frozen and having no idea how to play this off.

“We were just…,” you started to say but not being able to come up with anything.

“We were just taking a breather,” Joe interrupted.

“Uh huh,” your sister nodded. “So that explains the flushed cheeks, obvious hickey, bite mark on your shoulder, and the fact that Joe’s lips are covered with lipgloss,” your sister said looking at you. “Not to mention whatever I interrupted in the hallway outside the bridal suite earlier was clearly the first part of whatever happened in that room,” she smirked as she pointed behind you.

You quietly stared at your sister, your mind completely blank as you had no idea how to lie to her because she quite literally had caught you both in the act.

“I…” you trailed off before you felt Joe lightly bump into your shoulder, making you look up at him. One thing about you and Joe was that you could tell each other a thousand words by just looking into each other’s eyes. He didn’t need to say anything but you knew exactly what he was saying to you; his soft gaze calming your nerves, the warmth in his eyes showing that he genuinely cared about you, the adorable crinkles in the corner of his eyes coming out, and his gentle and steady eye contact reassuring you that everything was perfectly fine.

You nodded your head once you got the message he was trying to convey and looked back at your sister. “We’re dating,” you blurted out.

Kaylee stayed quiet for a few moments and looked back and forth between you two, “Well obviously,” she laughed.

“What?” you deadpanned, your heart-stopping.

“Y/N, I’m your sister. I know when something’s up with you,” she grinned. “I had a feeling something was going on after that Christmas party you went to together. You started acting weird after that and the phone call we had the night before the party was strange so then I put 2 and 2 together. There was a high chance that I could’ve been wrong but I had a gut feeling,”.

“Damn,” you whispered to yourself. Were you really that bad at hiding it or was Joe’s effect on you just that noticeable?

“But I’m really happy for you both,” she said. “I always knew you two were meant to be but I was called delusional every time by Y/N over here,” she laughed as she looked at Joe. “Besides, I see the way you look at her, Joe. The eyes never lie,”.

“Only took us about 9 years but here we are,” Joe said, pulling you closer to him and kissing your forehead. The blissful looks on both of your faces right now matched how you felt with each other.

“This is the best wedding gift you could possibly give me. My baby sister is finally with her Prince Charming,” she cooed as she gently punched your shoulder.

“Yeah,” you said. “I guess I am,” you smiled up at Joe.

“You know, the wedding setup is still here and I bet my wedding dress fits you,” your sister teased. “You guys can pull a fast one on everyone. I won’t snitch. You can even use that ring on your left hand, Y/N. By the way, Joe, nice taste in jewels,”.

“How did you..,” you questioned since you thought she believed your lie about the ring being from an antique shop.

“I had a hunch,” she winked at you and Joe. “That ring screams expensive,”.

“What were you going to do if you didn’t catch us together like this? Because we weren’t planning on telling anyone for a little longer but it sounds like you were on the case for a while now,” you wondered.

“Hmm, I probably would’ve encouraged Veronica to steal Joe for a dance to get you to rile you up and get a reaction out of you. No way you’d let her be alone with him,” she giggled.

“I would’ve killed you if you did that,” you scowled, feeling Joe laugh above you at your adorable defensiveness.

“Okay, Okay,” she laughed while throwing her hands up. “Note to self, steer Veronica away from Joe if I want to live to see my honeymoon,” she giggled.

“Mhm,” you nodded.

“I should get back to the party considering I am the lady of the hour but I want details later. All of them,” she pointed at you both.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Joe saluted before she opened her arms and lept onto you both, pulling you in for a tight hug.

“Ahh, I can’t believe you two finally did it,” she hooted as squeezed you both. “This is the best thing ever!”.

You looked up at Joe with a heartfelt smile, one that said everything without saying anything just like the looks in both your eyes. Your sister released you both from the hug a few seconds later and said “Make sure to cover those up before you go back in,” while pointing at your shoulder and his neck.

You covered your face with your hands out of embarrassment and let out a soft whine as she walked away, “Remember, no babies out of wedlock! Wrap it before you tap it,” she laughed.

“Oh my god,” you said, your face reddening as you looked over at Joe who was laughing to himself about how comical this situation was.

“If you had told me a few years ago that your sister would be warning us to have protected sex to not have a child out of marriage, I would’ve laughed in your face and walked out the door,” he smiled.

“That makes two of us. God, I cannot believe she saw that,” you smiled as let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding before looking back up at Joe, his cheeks a little red and his eyes glistening. “You look happy, though,” you said, rubbing his shoulder.

“That’s because I am happy,” he hummed before he leaned down to press a sweet kiss to your lips. “I love you,”.

“And I love you,” you smiled at him before pecking his lips again.

“I guess we should probably tell your parents now that your sister knows,” Joe said as he grabbed your hand and slowly started leading you back to the reception hall.

“I guess so,” you sighed. “Be prepared for my Mom to hound you with questions about your intentions though. She loves you to death but you’re the boyfriend now and not just the best friend. There’s some pressure on you,”.

“Oh, I’m prepared. I know what my intentions are and I'm not afraid to voice them,” he winked at you, another chill running down your spine as you could practically feel the tenderness and reassurance in his voice.

A few minutes later, you’re back inside the hall and sitting at the table again with your parents who thankfully hadn’t noticed your absence. They were talking to Joe about needing some help with moving some furniture out of the house and given the gentleman Joe was, he happily said yes.

You cleared your throat a few moments later and sat up, squeezing Joe’s thigh under the table to get his attention. He looked over at you and met your eyes, your eyes once again telling him everything without needing to say anything. He gave you a small nod before you turned around to your parents.

“So, Mom, Dad,” you said, looking at both of them. “I have something to tell you both,”.

“Go ahead, sweetie,” your mom smiled as she placed her drink down.

You took a deep breath, “I’m seeing someone,” you smiled, feeling Joe grab your hand under the table.

“Really?” your parents asked, both of their eyes lighting up.

“Yeah,” you nodded. “I have been for about a month now,”.

“Do we know him?” your dad asked, putting his elbow on the table and grabbing his drink.

“Yeah actually,” you laughed as you saw Joe blush from the corner of your eye. “You know him pretty well,”.

“Are you going to tell us his name?” your Dad laughed at your vagueness.

“Honey, I think she wants us to play the guessing game,” your Mom chuckled. “Am I right, Y/N?”.

You bit your lip and nodded your head, Joe’s fingers softly rubbing your hand as he tried hard to remain quiet.

“You always loved to play the guessing game as a child, I should’ve seen this coming,” your Dad shook his head.

“Okay then, what does he do? Does he have a stable job?” your mom asked.

“He’s involved in sports, it’s very stable and it pays very well,” you said, glancing around and not meeting her eyes because this could make it so obvious.

“Okay,” your dad nodded. “How is he? Describe him,”.

“Well, he is the sweetest guy I’ve ever met. He’s really kind, super smart, genuine, caring, and has a great sense of humor. He’s also a big nerd but never likes to admit it because he has this cool guy attitude on the surface,” you say as you feel Joe bump your leg with his leg under the table, making you look over at him and see him give you a look that makes you want to explode into a cloud of pink dust.

“He’s really athletic too. One of the absolute best at what he does,” you bragged as you looked back at your parents.

“Is he an athlete or something?” your mom asked as she took a sip of her water.

“Mhm,” you nodded.

“What sport?” your dad asked. “This guy might be giving Joe a run for his money,” he laughed as he looked at your mom.

You pursed your lips to hide your smile, watching as Joe laughed along with them from the corner of your eye.

“If I told you the sport it would give it away,” you said matter-of-factly.

“Okay, well keep going then. You seem to be in a secretive mood tonight,” your mom said.

“Okay, he never fails to make me feel like the most important girl on the planet, never fails to tell me how beautiful and special I am, and never fails to tell me and show me how much he loves me. He cares a lot about me and I feel at home whenever I’m with him, and I haven’t felt that way with any guy before. And whenever we’re around each other I can’t help but fall even more in love with him,” you blushed.

“Love?” your mom said as she raised an eyebrow. “It’s only been a month though?”.

“It’s only been a month since we’ve been dating but I’ve known him for about 9 years,” you smiled as you leaned back against your chair and looked over at Joe.

“9 years? So she met him in college?” your dad said as he looked at your mom.

“Y/N, why didn’t you bring him to the wedding? No offense Joe, you know we love you, but you should’ve told this mystery man to come. I’m sure we could’ve added an extra invitation,” your Mom said.

Joe was about to say something before you grabbed his hand, “Actually,” you said while picking his hand up from under the table and pressing a kiss to it in front of your parents. “I did bring him with me,”.

Your parents went silent as they looked at you both and then at each other, “Oh. Ohhhh,” your Mom said as she looked back at you with realization, her eyes softening once she put the puzzle together in her head. “You two,” she said, choking up a little and placing her hand over her heart. “Oh my god,” she said as she looked over at your Dad.

“Well, would you look at that? It’s about damn time,” he cheered as leaned back and crossed his arms, a huge smile on his face. “I knew this would happen at some point,”.

“Did everyone see it this entire time except for us?” you shook your head as you looked at Joe.

“I guess so,” he grinned as he placed his arm around your shoulder and brought you in closer.

You looked over at your Mom who was using a tissue to soak up a few tears in her eyes, “Mom, are you crying?” you pouted.

“Yes,” she said with a smile. “You have no idea how happy this makes me,”.

“That makes two of us,” Joe said, looking down at you with what looked like real-life heart eyes.

“I mean you two have been such good friends since college and seeing you both like this,” she said as she felt more tears coming. “I’m just so happy for you both. I couldn’t ask for a better man for my Y/N,”.

“Ditto. You two are excellent for each other, it all makes perfect sense,” your Dad nodded with a fervent smile.

“Thanks, Mom and Dad,” you smiled as you dropped your head against Joe’s shoulder, feeling him press two kisses to your forehead before feeling him rest his head against yours.

“You have to tell us everything. How did this happen?” your Dad asked as reached for a glass of water to hand your Mom.

“It’s quite the story,” Joe smiled as he placed his hand in your hand and started to tell them how this all came to be, your heart growing from all the love you were feeling around you, a majority of it coming off of the man next to you.

A week later

“You ready?” Joe asked as he turned the key to the golf cart.

“Absolutely,” you grinned as you crossed your legs and leaned back. “I still can’t believe you bought a golf cart,”.

“Well, this neighborhood is pretty big and there’s a lot of trails and paths around so I thought this would be the right investment,” he smiled at you as he backed out of the driveway. “And also because once you move in we can do nightly drives instead of nightly walks so we don’t get tired halfway through and you beg me for a piggyback ride home,”.

“Hey, don’t act like you don’t enjoy it just as much as I do,” you pointed at him. “But anyway, I can’t wait to move in with you. One more month and I’m all yours,” you bit your lip while rubbing his thigh.

“You’re already all mine,” he said, leaning in for a quick peck before beginning the drive.

“That I am,” you smiled as you turned your head back to the road, watching as the sun set over the beautiful Ohio River where you and Joe were driving down to as his house sat right by the water.

“I’m getting major Deja Vu,” he said as he turned onto the grassy path that led down to the river. “Do you remember when we stole that neighbor's golf cart when we went on that beach trip during spring break back at Ohio State?”.

“You mean the beach trip from hell?” you giggled. “Oooh yeah, I remember,” you nodded.

Flashback to Spring Break - Ohio State

“Joe, what if someone sees?” you whisper yelled at him while he was trying to grab the keys to your neighbor’s golf cart from the patio table, your eyes darting back and forth from the door to Joe.

“Almost..got it…,” he whispered as he grabbed the keys from the table, then carefully sneaked past the windows and made it to the ledge. “Let’s go,” he said as he hopped down from the patio.

“Fuck, we’re going to get in so much trouble,” you laughed as you slid into the golf cart, Joe doing the same and then turning on the cart.

“I honestly could care less. Anything to get me the hell out of this house for even 10 minutes will suffice,” he said as he quickly backed out of the driveway and started driving towards the beach.

“Are you alright?” you asked him, rubbing his shoulder as you noticed his exhausted body language.

“Could be better,” he sighed as he turned onto the beach, driving you both alongside the ocean.

“You wanna talk about it? You know I’m always here,” you said.

He stayed silent for a few seconds, your heartbeat picking up because he wasn’t saying anything and you were getting worried because he was usually quick to confide in you.

“Joe,” you said, gently squeezing his thigh.

“It’s Audrey,” he sighed.

You went silent at the name. Audrey was Joe’s girlfriend, or situationship as everyone liked to call it.

“What happened now?” you asked, pulling the hood of your sweatshirt up as you tried to block the cool ocean breeze out.

Joe turned the cart to face the water before putting it in park, giving you both some time to talk while enjoying the view of the ocean.

“Just everything,” he sighed as he placed his arm around the back of your seat. “Nothing I do is good enough for her. No matter how hard I try to make things work, she always does something that ruins it,”.

You felt your heart drop at his words, you wished you could do something to make him feel better but you couldn’t. You promised yourself that you’d never put yourself on the field in Joe’s love life. You’d watch from the sidelines, cheering him on with whichever girl captured his heart, even though silently you wished that the girl was you.

It was enraging watching as Audrey played with Joe’s feelings, always dragging him along even though she clearly didn’t treat him the way he treated her. He knew that he deserved better but each time he tried to pull away, she’d always bring him back and give him hope that things would be different but they never were.

“I mean, just this morning I woke up early to make her breakfast but she decided to go out and get an acai bowl or something and then got mad that I was making you breakfast when she got back,” he shook his head.

“Are you serious?” you laughed. “Why is she always so petty about everything,”.

“I wish I had an answer. It’s just exhausting being around her. We have moments where things feel normal but they’re very very short moments,” he said as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“Have you tried talking to her about it?” you asked.

“I did…Just before the trip. I told her that I wanted things to work and she agreed, I also told her where I stood and how this trip was a kind of ‘make it or break it’ for us,” he said.

“What’d she say? you bit your lip while playing with the bracelets on your wrist.

“She said she understood and gave me the impression that things would be different this weekend. But ever since we’ve been here she’s been on me for literally everything. It was the breakfast thing this morning, then it was her getting mad that we went out for ice cream yesterday without her even though we didn’t even ask the others if they wanted to come so it’s not like we specifically left her out, and then it was her getting mad that we all wanted to go to the pier last night but she wanted to stay in and watch TV,”

“Who stays inside and watches TV while you’re at the fucking beach?” you grimaced.

“Then it was her getting upset that you were even on the trip in the first place even though I literally told her you were coming,” he shrugged, his eyes quickly darting to you as he realized how bad that sounded. “Sorry about that. I know she isn’t exactly the nicest to you,”.

“No offense taken. I get a vibe from her that tells me everything I need to know,” you sighed.

“You know what? That’s another thing. She knows you’re my best friend but still treats you like shit for absolutely no reason. It’s like she doesn’t care about anything important in my life,” he ranted.

Important. You were important to Joe.

You looked at him for a few seconds before dropping your head on his shoulder, his arm wrapping around you as if it were a reflex. “I’m sorry,” you said to him. “I know it’s hard and you deserve so much more,”.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one that has the worst taste in girls,” he softly chuckled as he rubbed your shoulder, his phone vibrating on the dash which diverted his attention.

He leaned forward to see who it was, “Speaking of…,” he said as he grabbed his phone.

“It’s like she’s listening to our conversations,” you joked. “You sure she didn’t bug you?”.

“Wouldn’t be surprised if she did,” he laughed as he opened up the texts.

You watched as Joe’s smile dropped as his eyes skimmed her lengthy text message.

“What’d she say?” you asked.

“Basically asking where I went and why didn’t I tell her I was going somewhere. Then accusing me of sneaking off with you since she doesn’t know where you went either,” he said.

“Well, she’s not wrong about that part,” you shrugged.

“Then she said this isn’t working, I’m not trying hard enough, and that she’s been miserable since she’s been here,” he said as he turned off his phone.

“Damn, no text back?” you said while looking out to the open waters.

“Nope. I’m done with this bullshit. If she thinks I’m not doing enough then she needs to wake the hell up,” he said as he pulled you in closer. “I’ve tried to do fun stuff with her since we’ve been here but she doesn’t want to do anything other than sit and be mad at me for no reason. I’ve been trying for months. A relationship is a two-way street and I’m not going to work on it if she isn’t going to try. It’s draining and I can’t do it,”.

“You deserve better, Joe,” you say, tilting your head to look at him. “You’re such an amazing guy and have so much to offer and if Audrey can’t see that, then she isn’t the one,”.

“I know,” he sighed. “It just sucks when you spend time on someone who you thought was your person,”.

You looked out at the ocean again, “Did you know that 80% of the ocean is unexplored?”.

“Yeah..” he confusingly said, wondering what this had to do with what you were just talking about.

“Well, the unexplored parts of the ocean probably have new species, new ecosystems, and things we haven’t seen before. In love, there are so many things to explore just like in those unknown parts of the ocean. So many chances to find a deeper connection, to find out things about yourself and other people, to do new things and see new places, and so many chances to find your person. There are endless possibilities. You’ll find your person, I know she’s out there. It might take some exploring and some waiting, but you’ll find her one day,” you said, feeling a visceral ache in your heart because you wanted to be his person so badly. “And she’ll be the one who showers you with all the love you deserve and the same love you give to others,”.

“You know, you should really do a Ted-Talk episode one day,” he laughed, squeezing your shoulder gently. Your words meant the world to him, especially since he had a secret crush on you, and hearing you talk to him about finding his person just made him think of you. He wanted you to be his person, he wanted to explore these things with you.

“I think I just might,” you grinned.

“Thanks for that though. You always know how to make me feel better, I don’t know how you do it, but you always say the right things every time,” he said, shaking your shoulder and looking down at you.

Before you could say something, you heard a piercing shriek come from behind you. Both of you jumped in your seat and turned around and saw Audrey speed-walking towards you both with a fearful look on her face. “Joe!” she screamed. “Why the hell are you out here with her?”.

“Uh oh,” you said as you turned back around, watching Joe quickly switch the cart from park to drive. “What are you doing?”.

“Getting us the hell out of here,” he nodded as he turned the steering wheel and floored the cart.

He told you to hang on as he tried to get away from her as fast as he could, which was pretty fast because you were practically zooming down the beach and Audrey’s figure quickly faded into the background.

“Oh my god,” you screamed as you hit a bump on the sand that nearly caused you two to spin out, the adrenaline rush keeping you from making him stop the cart.

“Hold on,” Joe yelled as he quickly made a turn onto one of the streets that led down to the main road, your hands clutching onto his arm as you pulled yourself closer to him.

“Joeeee, slow down,” you laughed as you tightly held onto his body, the force of the cart & wind giving you whiplash.

End of flashback

“I can’t believe she snitched on us for stealing the cart because we drove off,” you laughed.

“I remember seeing steam practically coming off of her face when she was walking towards us. Scary sight,” he said, bumping into your shoulder as he drove you two along the path.

“The latter half of the trip after she left was pretty enjoyable though,” you said as you propped your feet up on the dash of the cart.

“Very. I still can’t believe you threw up in my hat after we rode the slingshot,” he chuckled as he placed his arm around your shoulder.

“Please don’t remind me of that ever again. That was so embarrassing,” you said as remembered the grotesque memory and hid your face in his chest.

Joe pressed a kiss to your head before changing the subject, “Okay, I won’t make you relive that but we should really go back there this off-season. Just the two of us though,”.

“I’d love to, we made some pretty great memories on that trip together,” you said as you pressed yourself closer to him.

“This time, make sure to not eat a soft pretzel and funnel cake before getting on the slingshot,” he warned you.

“You got it,” you saluted. “I can’t believe this is my first off-season with you,” the river trail getting closer to you both as you continued talking.

“What do you mean? I usually spent a lot of time with you in previous off-seasons,” he said.

“I know, but I mean this is my first one as your girlfriend,” you say, playfully poking his shoulder. “I get to do a lot more with you now,” you beamed.

“Oh yeah?” he smirked. “Like what?” he said, wiggling his eyebrows, his words laced with mischief.

“Ohhh I don’t know, maybe watch some movies, teach you how to cook some more, swim in the pool, amongst other things,” you tease.

“What are the other things?” he said as you made it down to the trail, now driving alongside the river.

“I guess you’ll just have to find out when the time comes,” you winked.

“Such a tease,” he shook his head before slowing down once you reached the rocks that you two would sit on by the water when you came down here.

Joe switched off the golf cart before hopping out and helping you out, then carefully led you down to the rocks–making sure you didn’t almost fall like how you did the first time–and then sat you down on a rock he deemed stable and secure and then plopped down on a rock next to you.

“This is nice,” he said, letting out a relaxed sigh as he watched the sunset.

“What is?” you laughed as you looked over at him.

“Doing stuff like this with you. Everything just feels so easy with us…like I don’t have to jump through hoops to make this work,” he said, looking over at you and seeing how the cool January breeze made your nose red. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy and at peace in my life,”.

“I’m glad you’re happy, Joe,” you grinned as you pulled your sweatshirt sleeves out to cover your chilled hands. “You deserve it,”.

“Are you cold?” he asked as he sat up.

“A l- little,” you mumbled as you felt a chill run up your spine.

“Here,” Joe said as he opened up his legs and scooched back. “Come sit with me,” he said, pointing at the space between his legs.

You smiled and got up, carefully moving over to where he was, and sat down between his legs. His arms instantly wrapped around your waist as he pulled you back into his chest, his body warmth quickly heating you up.

“Mmm, you’re so warm,” you hummed as you rested your head against his shoulder and turned your head to press a kiss to his fragrant neck; the smell of his gentle cologne filling your nostrils.

“Are you happy?” Joe asked as he continued to stare out at the water, his grip on you tightening.

You were quiet for a few seconds before speaking up, “Of course I’m happy, this is all I’ve ever wanted. You’ve all I’ve ever wanted. And now I have it and it’s even better than imagined. It quite literally can’t get better than this,” you smiled up at him.

“I’m glad. It’s not just me who deserves it, we deserve it,” he beamed as he leaned down to kiss you.

After holding the kiss for a few seconds, you both pull away and look ahead at the slowing descending sun, the sky getting darker as the moments go by. “You excited for the first playoff game tomorrow?” you asked him as you placed your hand on top of his.

“Excited, prepared, a little nervous,” he sighed as he laced his fingers with yours.

“You’re going to do great, I have full confidence in you and the guys,” you told him. “You’ve been playing really really well recently and I know that tomorrow's game is going to be good,”.

“I hope so,” he nodded before looking down at you, an idea coming into his head. “Hey, you should come down to the sidelines before the game so I can see you,”.

“What? In front of everyone?” you asked as you felt a little nervous at the thought of being down there in front of everyone, usually a spot that was reserved for the family of the players.

“Yeah, why not? You’re my girlfriend and girlfriends get to come to the sidelines along with other immediate family if they want to,” he smiled. “Besides, only a matter of time before the fans figure out that we’re together which would confirm their already established theories,” he giggled. “And I need my good luck kiss,” he sneaked in.

You let out a soft laugh, “Okay, I’ll be there,”. You always supported Joe when it came to football, even if it was from a distance; but now it was time for you to be front and center.

“Wear some of your peach lip gloss too,” he mumbled as he kissed your cheek.

“That’s your favorite I assume?” you asked.

“Mhmmm,” he hummed as he kissed your cheek again. “Although, watermelon might give it a run for its money. We may have to test it out some more,”.

“Deal,” you grinned. “Just promise me you’ll win the game,”.

“I promise,” he nodded. “I’m going to win the game and then I’m going to take you out for dinner after,” he added.

“Won’t you be tired though?” you furrow your brows.

“Probably, but that’s fine. If anything we can just bring it back to the house and stuff our faces with delicious food while sitting on the couch in our jammies and watching the latest episode of Love Island so you don’t miss it,” he smiled.

“I like youu,” you grinned like a little kid at his tempting words.

“Guess what?” he asked you.

“What?”.

“I like you too,” he whispered into your ear as he found himself remembering a similar moment like this from a few years ago.

Flashback to LSU – 2019 (in the same flashback period as the 2019 LSU flashback from part 1 & post-breakup with your ex jake)

Today was the day.

Today was the day Joe was going to tell you how he felt about you.

You had flown in early yesterday morning and had surprised him last night at his game and were staying in Baton Rouge for 3 more days. Joe made it his mission to come clean about his feelings within these 3 days, hopefully today so that he could get it over with. He just couldn’t keep it in anymore. He thought about you every single day and being away from you killed him, especially because he had absolutely 0 idea what was going on in your life (or who was in it) when he wasn’t physically with you. You could only talk about so much over Facetime, 90% of the time not talking about your relationships since neither of you liked to travel into that territory with each other because of how you felt about each other even though you both were incredibly curious about that subject.

He needed to tell you how he felt before it was too late (preferably before another guy came along), even if you didn’t feel the same way. Those feelings he’d been keeping to himself for years were eating away at him and he could only hold on to them for so much longer. You told him yesterday that you and your now ex-boyfriend Jake had broken up but you weren’t dwelling on it because you hadn’t been together for that long and you were too excited to see Joe to feel bad about the breakup. Joe still felt a bit weird about coming to you with his feelings as you just got out of a relationship but he also just couldn’t keep it in anymore, he was basically a ticking time bomb. He was going to tell you this time, no matter what it took.

This morning Joe brought you and his parents to one of his favorite breakfast spots downtown. You were busy having a conversation with his Mom and Dad about your Thanksgiving plans since it was only a few weeks away while Joe was sitting next to you in the booth picking away at a thumbnail as he couldn’t be more uninterested in the conversation. The only person he wanted to talk to was you, and the only thing he wanted to talk about was his feelings.

“Ooo, Jimmy look at that,” Robin said as she pointed across the street through the window at your booth. She was pointing over at what looked like a local artist selling paintings of the LSU football team as well as some custom merchandise.

“We should go check it out. I think we have room for a few more paintings around the house,” Jimmy smiled as he got up from the booth and helped Robin up. Both of them excitedly rush to the door and make their way across the street without saying a word to you and Joe, causing you both to laugh.

“I don’t even know how many paintings or wall pieces they have up in the house anymore. It’s like every time I go back a new one spawns out of nowhere,” Joe shook his head.

“You’re their golden baby,” you said while rubbing his shoulder. “Embrace it,” you said softly as you placed your chin on it, your lips just inches from his face.

“I think if I embrace it even more than I already have, I’m going to explode,” he joked as he felt his heart pounding because of how close you were to him.

“Hey, maybe in 15-20 years we can open a Burrow Museum? Get all of the paintings in there, your awards from High School, your eventual Natty and Heisman that you’ll be getting in about 3 months, your future Super Bowl trophies, rings, and MVP awards,” you smiled when you moved away, noticing how his cheeks turned redder while you continued talking.

“Okay, let’s not get ahead of ourselves about the awards and championships,” Joe said while running his hands through his hair. “I’m not even sure if I’ll be getting any of that stuff,”.

“Please,” you scoffed. “I beg to differ,”.

“Anywayy,” Joe changed the subject before you went on another rant about how you thought he was the best college football player in the league and was going to become the top NFL prospect in the next few months. He appreciated when you praised him like this, it meant the world to him especially since it was coming from you, but he also didn’t want to look too far ahead into a future he had no control of.

He turned a bit more in his seat to face you, taking note of how adorable you looked wearing one of his LSU football shirts which was a few sizes too big on you, your hair in a messy bun, and your beautiful natural face on display. “How are you doing about the whole Jake thing? I didn’t get a chance to talk to you about it and just wanted to know if you were doing okay with it,”.

You paused for a few seconds, both of you inching into territory that you usually avoided. “I’m fine,” you reassured him. “I kinda saw it coming and came to terms with it a while ago. And you were right, he’s 100% Mr. Lovebombing,”.

“Y/N, I wasn’t being serious when I said that,” Joe said, his smile dropping a bit because he knew how awful it felt to feel that way in a relationship.

“No, you were right though. One second he was all over me and telling me how I’m his world, the next he was doing anything and everything to dodge having a conversation with me and refused to see me,” you rolled your eyes. “I’m glad I’m done with that BS,”. You honestly weren’t that affected by the breakup as you’d been through much worse many times before. You were too busy looking forward to seeing Joe after 5 long months to think about Jake.

You both remained silent, Joe not knowing how to go about this since if he confessed his feelings after you said that, it would seem weird and almost selfish. “But enough about me and my sad dating life, what about you? Any girls I should be warned about?” you painfully laughed, not wanting to hear him say ‘yes, there is a girl’.

He cleared his throat while glancing around the room before meeting your eyes, his palms getting sweaty because he knew that this conversation could lead to him telling you how he truly felt about you. “Uhh, not really. I’ve just been focused on football,” he nodded.

“That’s great,” you smiled, mentally doing a little dance because he didn’t have any other girl in his life but then stopping once you realized how weird that could have sounded. “Uh, I mean. That’s good because you’re focusing on football, not because you don’t have a girlfriend. That sucks,” you blabbed as you scrambled to make it sound better.

“It’s okay,” he laughed. “I know what you mean,”.

“Here we go, Joe. Just tell her. It’s the perfect opportunity. It’s not weird or wrong for you to tell her how you feel, and you know how much she appreciates honesty,” Joe thought to himself.

It honestly was the perfect opportunity, his parents weren’t around, and you reassured him that you weren’t bothered by your breakup so it wasn’t like he was pushing you, and it wasn’t out of the blue since you were talking about things related to that subject.

He just had to say it; those 3 words he’d been eager to say since he met you all those years ago. It couldn’t be that difficult to say it, could it?

“We really have the worst luck when it comes to dating. I mean, why is every person we end up dating such an asshole?” you complained while taking a sip of your orange juice. “Like hello? Universe? What did we do to you?”.

“Y/N, I have something to tell you,” Joe said while looking over at you, his tone of voice and the look in his eyes changing from playful to serious all of a sudden.

You placed your glass down, “What is it? Is everything alright?” you asked as you placed your hand on his that was resting on the table.

“Everything’s fine,” he laughed. “It’s more than fine. It’s just I-,”.

“We’re back!” Robin interrupted as she placed a few bags on the table, your hand quickly moving away from Joe’s.

“Y/N, we got you a few sweatshirts we thought you might like,” Jimmy smiled as he pulled them out of the bag while Robin pulled out some of the artwork they picked up to show you.

“Are you serious,” Joe thought to himself as he watched you get distracted by his parents, all of you once again in a conversation while he just sat there and watched.

“It’s okay, Joe. Just tell her once you're back at your apartment, you have time. Mom and Dad won’t be there,” He thought to himself as he watched your face light up when you saw the artwork that had Joe front in center, your eyes then meeting his with a proud smile.

A few hours later – Joe’s LSU apartment

“Your apartment is so comfy,” you giggled as you sat down on the couch across from Joe.

“So it’s not giving Man Cave or Bachelor Pad vibes?” Joe said while pulling your feet into his lap.

“Nope. It’s giving I have a best friend who has excellent taste in decor and she doesn’t mind ordering nice stuff for my apartment,” you winked.

“I’m a lucky guy,” Joe said, squeezing your foot.

“That you are,” you replied, leaning your head back against the couch cushion and closing your eyes. “I wouldn’t do this for anyone else,”.

Joe looked at you for a few quiet moments, his heartbeat picking up once again as he found himself thinking about his feelings towards you. This was the perfect moment to tell you how he felt, it was just the two of you. No distractions, interruptions, or oblivious parents in the way.

“Hey, can I talk to you about something for a second,” Joe said, breaking the silence and causing you to open your eyes and look up.

“Yeah, of course,” you smiled at him as you moved a few strands of hair out from your face.

“Okay, come on Joe. Just tell her,” Joe’s subconscious said to him. “It’s just 3 words.

I. Like. You.

Just say it,”.

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves, but just before he could open his mouth you both were interrupted by a knock on the front door.

You turned your head back to look at the door, “I got it,” you said, glancing over at Joe before getting up from the couch. You unlocked the door and opened it, the person standing on the doorstep making your face light up, but Joe’s face drop.

“Ahh, there’s my favorite Ohio-an. Damn, I missed you Girl,” Ja’marr said as he stepped inside Joe’s apartment and pulled you in for a hug.

“Are you kidding me? Why does everyone keep interrupting us?” Joe thought to himself while rolling his eyes.

“Missed you too, Ja’marr,” you laughed as you gave him a gentle squeeze before pulling away. “How’s Claire?”.

“You mean Samantha?” Joe said as he stood up, a little upset because he interrupted you two, prompting both of you to look back at him because of his bitter tone. Joe was a little more than a little pissed off right now. This was the best chance to tell you how he felt since you were fully alone this time, but the universe (or Ja’marr) clearly had other plans. “Or was it Laila?” he huffed out. “I can’t remember. Might be because Ja’marr over here can’t ever keep it in his pants and feels the need to-,”.

“Aye, what’s your deal,” Ja’marr scoffed.

“My deal is that you just-,” Joe started to say as he stepped closer before you interrupted him.

“Okay! I’m not in the mood to deal with two caveman football players right now,” you reprimanded them. “Ja’marr, let’s go over to the kitchen and get some drinks. Joe, go take a breather or something,” you said, sending him an intense look.

“I just-,”.

“Joe,” you said, sending him another look that he easily understood before he let out a loud sigh and walked past you and Ja’marr to the porch outside his apartment.

“What’s his problem?” Ja’marr shrugged as he followed you into the kitchen.

“Don’t ask me. He’s your best friend,” you laughed as you opened up Joe’s fridge.

“Uhh, he was your best friend first,” Ja’marr pointed out.

“Hm, touché,” you smiled while pulling out 3 cans of soda.

Meanwhile, Joe was standing outside the apartment, his heart getting more and more tired from having to wait to tell you how he felt. It’s like every time he opened his mouth to say something, the universe sent something to stop him.

Was it the universe that was trying to stop him? But why would the universe be doing that?

“What the fuck,” Joe sighed as he leaned against the wall and dropped his head. “Why is this so hard,”.

“No, don’t give up Joe. The universe isn’t doing anything, you just have bad timing. You’ll find time to talk to her. You still have the rest of the day. Just breathe,” his subconscious said.

So that’s what he did. He took a deep breath, walked back inside, apologized for his attitude, and went about the rest of the afternoon like he didn’t have something poking away at him until Ja’marr left.

Now, you were finally alone again. You were in his bathroom freshening up and Joe was sitting on his bed, anxiously playing with his wristbands and waiting for you to come out so you could talk. He heard the door open and immediately looked up and saw you stepping out from the steamy bathroom in just a plain white towel, your wet hair falling against your shoulders.

“Sorry, I left my clothes on your nightstand,” you blushed as you walked over to the nightstand next to his bed.

“Y- You’re good,” Joe gulped, his heart skipping a beat or two while watching you walk around his bedroom in just a towel.

“I’m almost done and then you can go shower,” you gave him a thumbs up before going back into the bathroom and closing the door again. Joe nodded and then let out the breath he was holding in and cracked his neck, relieving some built-up tension you were creating for him.

“She’s driving me insane in the best way possible,” Joe thought to himself. You were the only girl who could get him to feel like this, and that should be enough to validate his feelings for you.

A few minutes later, you came back out in a white short skirt and black tank top, both of which were showing off a little too much skin for Joe’s liking but also making him even more attracted to you than he already was.

“How do I look?” you asked as you gave him a twirl.

“You look..great,” he smiled (deep down wanting to say that you looked incredibly sexy) as you walked over to your suitcase and pulled out a pair of black-heeled boots. “But don’t you think it’s a little…”.

“Skimpy?” you chuckled.

“I mean, I guess,” he said while scratching his neck. “It’s just that a lot of dudes around here have wandering eyes and well…”.

“I’ll be fine. I’ll just pretend you’re my boyfriend,” you stuck your tongue out and teased, his heart stopping for a second because of the word ‘boyfriend’. “Their eyes will be focused on your fists instead of my ass if I call your name,”.

“That’s…probably true,” he shrugged while he watched you zip your boots up. Nobody wanted to mess with the LSU star quarterback, and surely nobody wanted to mess with his girl.

“Nice song choice by the way,” you pointed out, humming along to ‘Be My Baby’ by The Ronettes.

Joe didn’t even realize what song had come on because he was too lost in thought to pay attention to what was going on around him. The fact that the song was about an instant love connection and the girl pining for a particular man was ironic considering it mirrored his situation except the roles were reversed and he was pining for the girl.

“Our playlist as usual,” he winked, you sent him a warm smile in return. "It's nice to actually listen to it with you here,".

"It doesn't hit the same when we're listening to it alone, does it?" you asked.

"Nope, not even close," he shook his head.

“Check out my new boots,” you said while giving him another twirl, this one was a little unbalanced given that the boots were new and the heel was a little bigger than normal for you.

“Woah, be careful,” Joe warned as he noticed you almost losing your balance.

“I’m fineeee,” you twirled again, this time moving closer to Joe who was sitting on the bed. “Shit,” you yelped as the heel got caught in the carpet which caused you to trip, your body crashing down on Joe’s, sending him back against the bed and lying flat with you on top of him.

“Oops,” you giggled as you lifted your face from Joe’s neck, his arms holding you in place as they were wrapped around your back, your chest pushed up against his, and your legs almost straddling him.

“See what happens when you wear heels too big?” Joe laughed as he tried to stay calm over the fact that you were on top of him right now. “I thought you would’ve known better considering what happened on your 21st birthday,”.

“Crashed right into the waiter holding a platter filled with shots of Tequila,” you shook your head at the embarrassing memory and looked down on Joe his eyes stuck on your face as if he was lost in thought–which he was.

Once again, Joe was thinking about what he had been wanting to tell you all day. The feeling was only getting stronger as the moments passed by with you, and it was driving him insane.

“What?” you laughed as you moved his hair out of his eyes, noticing the look in his eyes.

He didn’t say anything and just continued to stare into your eyes, his breathing getting deeper and his heartbeat getting louder. You looked absolutely gorgeous right now and all he wanted to do was kiss your pretty pink lips and forget about everything else around him, but he couldn’t do that until he said those three words to you.

“Joe, what’s wrong?” you said again, this time a little more seriously.

“Y/N, I-,” he started to say before his phone interrupted you both.

“I swear to god,” Joe thought to himself as he pulled out his phone from his pocket, his face going from cheery to irritated.

“Who is it?” you asked.

“Justin and Ja’marr. They said they’re hitting up the bar with some friends and asked if we wanted to come with them,” he sighed.

“But what about dinner? I know you were excited to take me to that new Mexican place,” you pouted.

“We can go with them if you want. I know you missed seeing everyone and I don’t want to keep you from them. We can grab dinner tomorrow,” he nodded.

“Are you sure?” you asked as you slowly got off of him and sat down on the bed next to him once he got up.

“Yeah,” he smiled at you. “I’m just going to take a quick shower and then we can head out,”.

“Okay,” you said while absentmindedly rubbing his hand which sent electric jolts throughout his body.

He looked down at your hands, you quickly move it away once you realize what you were doing. “S- Sorry,” you blushed, your cheeks heating up as your stomach did a backflip.

“It’s alright,” Joe smiled, placing his hand on yours and giving it a gentle squeeze.

Joe got up from the bed and grabbed a few things before going into the bathroom, stopping at the sink mirror and staring at himself for a few heartbeats. “Why can’t I just say it,” he whispered to himself.

Were these constant interruptions really from the Universe? It was starting to feel like they were and it was a sign telling him not to tell you, almost like a cue that he should let it happen naturally.

“Naturally?” Joe whispered to himself.

“Don’t force it, Joe. If you keep getting interrupted, this might be a sign that you shouldn’t force things between the two of you. This could screw things up with her but if you let everything fall into place on its own you might save this from crashing and burning,” his subconscious mind said.

Maybe his subconscious mind was right. Maybe he just needed the world to give him the green light. These interruptions were the yellow lights warning him that if he told you how he felt, he might be facing a red light. If you didn’t feel the same way about him your friendship could be ruined and he didn’t ever want that to happen, so waiting might be the best way to go. If you were to bring it up, then he would tell you. But until then, he decided to not mention it again even if it was killing him internally.

Joe never would have thought a girl could ever drive him so insane. You had the keys to him, the only person who could access his heart and the most intimate parts of him. So much of him depended on you; his happiness, his sanity, his mood. When you smiled, he smiled. When you shined, he shined for you. Your laughter was the best sound he had ever heard and he wanted to hear it for the rest of his life. Every time you talked, he couldn’t focus because all he thought about was how you two should be together. When he sat and watched you break down, he wanted to hold you and tell you that he was never going to leave you like the others did. When you would jump and fall, he wanted you to fall into him. He was all in for you, and he needed you to know it. But maybe the Universe was trying to prevent him from ruining what you two already had.

Joe looked at himself in the mirror before letting out another exhausted sigh and dropping his face, “What are you doing to me, Y/N,” he whispered to himself before heading into the shower.

A little later, Joe was freshly showered and had a clear mind for the first time all day and was lacing his shoelaces while you were laser-focused on the episode of SpongeBob that was playing on his TV, almost like you were caught in a trance.

He got up from the bed and grabbed his wallet and phone, slipping both into his pocket before looking over at you. “Y/N, we’re gonna be late,” he softly laughed.

“Shhh, it’s the hash-slinging slasher episode,” you said as you waved him off.

Joe should have known better to put an episode of SpongeBob on in front of you. You would practically stay glued to the TV until the episode ended, maybe not even getting up after that because you would stay seated for the next episode. This was something you both had in common, no matter how old you two got SpongeBob would be a staple for the two of you. He always admired how you shared some of the same childish interests as him, no other girl being able to match his personality unlike you.

Joe turned around and grabbed the TV remote, switched the TV off, and then walked in front of the screen and saw your upset face.

“Hey,” you grumbled, crossing your arms like a little child in annoyance.

“We can finish it later, I promise,” he said, extending his hand out for you to grab and stand up. You stared at him for a few moments, not budging from your seat.

“You know I never break my promises,” Joe lightheartedly added, giving you a charming smile that warms your heart. It was true, he never broke any of the promises he made you. Wether it was sweet and silly like promising to buy you ice cream and call you after his games or serious like promising to never lose the connection you two had once he moved down to Louisiana for football; he always kept them.

“You do have an excellent track record of living up to your word,” you smiled as you placed your hand in his.

“And I intend to keep it going,” he said as he pulled you up from the bed.

About 20 minutes later, you made it to the bar and were walking towards the entrance. The loud music vibrated throughout the entire block and the strobe lights peeked through onto the street. “College bars are something else,” you laughed as you looked over at Joe, who was once again seemingly lost in thought.

“Hey, you alright?” you asked him as you stopped walking, Joe not noticing until a few seconds later and then backtracking to you.

“Yeah, I’m good,” he nodded, his tone and demeanor not reassuring you that he was.

“Joe, I know you too well to know when something is bugging you. You’ve been lost in a trance at least 4 times today and that’s way more than usual for you,” you said.

“She noticed? She noticed me lost in thought because I was thinking about her?” he thought to himself.

“Are you bored? Am I boring you?” you giggled.

“No, No. God, No,” he quickly shut that thought down.

“Then what is it?” you questioned.

“It’s nothing,” he brushed off, his secretiveness not sitting well with you.

“Wait. You’ve been wanting to talk to me about something all day but we kept getting interrupted,” you said as you looked up at him.

“Yeah..” he slowly nodded, his heartbeat picking up again because of where this was going.

“That’s what’s bothering you, Obviously,” you realized as you smacked your head. “And I kept forgetting that you needed to talk,”.

“It’s not a big deal Y/N,” he nervously laughed as he glanced around and refused to meet your eyes.

“Uhh, yes it is,” you said, moving your head so that his eyes met yours. “We always talk about important things with each other and I don’t want that to stop because of silly interruptions. So before we go with the others and end up getting super trashed and wasted, we should talk. What was it? What did you want to talk about all day?” you said while staring deeply into his eyes which looked like they were hiding something.

Joe paused for a few seconds, his brain freezing just like his face. This was it. This was his chance to tell you what he had been feeling for years. He could finally tell you how much he liked you which was way more than the normal amount. You were it for him, and now he finally got you alone to tell you.

“This is it, Joe. This is what you’ve been waiting for. Tell her how much you like her and get your girl,” his mind was saying. “This is the universe letting it happen naturally. She brought it up this time, not you,”.

“I-.....” he opened up his mouth, nothing coming out.

“What is it?” you nervously chuckled while brushing your fingers over his hand.

He paused for a few seconds, his heartbreaking before the words came out of his mouth.

This time instead of his mind and subconscious, his heart spoke up. “It’s not the time,”.

“Never mind,” he forcefully smiled. “It’s not important,”.

End of flashback

It was so hard for him to say it to you back then but now it was like a reflex, he almost had a hard time stopping himself from saying it.

“I love our life,” you giggled as you felt Joe smother you with kisses.

“And I love you,” he smiled against your cheek. “More than anything in the world,”.

“Even more than you love Pumpkin Pie?”.

“Even more than I love Pumpkin Pie, my Looney Tunes sweatshirt, my gray jeans, and Football,” he said while giving you a loving squeeze.

“Wow, that’s a lot of love,” you raised your eyebrows. All 4 of those are things Joe couldn’t live without.

“You sound surprised,” Joe laughed. “You’ve had me down bad for you since the first time I saw you,”.

“Shut up,” you laughed as you turned your head to kiss his cheeks which were turning a little pink because of the cold weather. “You should probably be getting ready to go to the team hotel,” you said as you looked down at your watch.

“Mmmm,” he whined as he pulled you closer.

“I know, I know. But they’re going to send out a search party if you don’t make report time,” you giggled as you gently got out of his embrace and stood up, reaching out and pulling him up. “And I should probably head back to my place and get some sleep for tomorrow,”.

Joe looked up at you like you had two heads, the look on his face matching how he felt. “Back to your place? Just stay here,”.

“At your house? Alone?” you questioned. You hadn’t stayed over at Joe’s place alone before, and truth be told it felt a little weird being there all by yourself even though you were literally moving in with him next month.

“Correction, our house. And yeah, you’re moving in next month so why not?” he said as he reached out for your hand, helping you up the rocks and back to the trail where the golf cart was parked. It was weird for him to refer to his house as your house as well, the thought not registering in your brain yet.

“It’s so weird to hear that,” you laughed.

“Why? Am I that terrible to live with,” Joe said as he slid into the driver's seat.

“The worst,” you grumbled, sliding into the seat next to him with a cheeky grin on your face.

“Ha Ha, very funny,” he said in the most monotone voice possible.

“I’m just messing with you,” you said while running your fingers along his arm. “It’s just weird because I would have never expected to hear those words..our house,” you said. “It’s like a fairytale,” you said as you looked at the growing smile on Joe’s face, the smile that would take you to another planet.

“Things change pretty quickly, don’t they?” he said as he glanced at you.

“Very quickly,” you said as you leaned your head against his shoulder as he turned on the golf cart and started driving you both back up to the house. “But I'm also very glad they did,”.

“Me too,” he grinned. Joe was truly the happiest he’d ever been in his life at this moment, and it was all because of you.

A Half-Hour Later

“Did you get everything you need?” you asked Joe as you spun around on the kitchen barstool you were seated on.

“Yeah, but I’m still going to come by tomorrow morning so I don’t have a ton to take with me right now,” he smiled as he placed his duffle bag down.

“You’re not going straight to the stadium?” you asked as you took a bite of the brownies you had made earlier.

“Nah. I’m gonna come by and then we can drive over together,” he smiled while walking over and grabbing a brownie from the pan.

“Hmm, I don’t think you’re supposed to be eating that right now,” you said, grabbing his wrist.

“One brownie won’t hurt,” Joe said, transferring the brownie to his other hand and taking a bite.

“Sweet treats can wait until after the game tomorrow,” you shook your head.

“Oh, trust me. I’ll be getting a sweet treat then too,” he winked at you before moving over to grab his water bottle from the counter.

“Focus, Joe. Focus,” you laughed as you placed your elbows on the kitchen island and your face in your hands, intensely staring at your boyfriend's muscular arms and then his dirty blonde curls that were being controlled by his backward cap.

“What’re you looking at?” Joe asked as he caught your gaze on him.

“Just admiring you, like usual,” you smiled.

“Admiring anything in particular?” he asked, placing his elbows down and mirroring your position.

“Hmm, just your deliciously impressive biceps and your easily pullable hair,” you said as you gave him a heated look.

“I should get going before this ends up going somewhere else,” he said as he stood up straight.

“Probably a good idea,” you grinned as you slid off the barstool and walked over to the fridge, pulling out a container of some pumpkin bites you made with the brownies earlier.

“I thought you said no sweet treats?” he said while examining the continents of the container.

“Well, there’s always a loophole for everything,” you shrugged. “These are healthy pumpkin energy bites. All the goodness of normal pumpkin bites but with healthier add-ins and ingredients,”.

“You made these just for me?” he grinned as he took the box over to his duffle bag, then carefully placed it inside.

“Mhmmm,” you skip over to him and say. “You can eat them tonight or tomorrow morning. Up to you,”.

“Thank youu,” he said, grabbing your wrist and quickly pulling you into him causing you to bump your head against his chest.

“Mm, Hi,” you quietly laughed as you loop your arms around his neck and look up at him, his arms settling around your lower back with his hands firmly placed on your butt.

“Hi,” he grinned while nuzzling his nose against yours before leaning in to kiss you, both of you relishing the taste of the chocolate from the brownies on each other’s lips. The kiss quickly became more intense as his hands started sliding up and down your body and the heat between you two increased from how close your bodies were to each other.

“Okay,” you panted while pulling away from the kiss, a dazed smile on your face.

“Focus. We need to focus,” he cutely nodded.

“I gotta get you out of here,” you laughed while stuffing your face into his neck.

“I’ll get myself out of here. No need to lift a finger,” he smiled while pressing a kiss to your head. “You just stay here and be Queen of the house,”.

“Bow to my throne you worthless peasant,” you teased in a silly voice.

“Damn, it’s already going to your head,” he raised his eyebrows.

“I’ll have a crown and a butler by the time you’re back tomorrow morning,” you winked.

“Okay,” he laughed. “But seriously, act like the Queen. Make yourself at home, this is all yours just as much as it is mine. You can go in any room, sit anywhere, re-arrange my things, do whatever. It’s all yours,”.

“So you don’t care if I sit naked in your office and re-watch hours of game tape of you looking sexy as hell while throwing a football?” you joked while wiggling your eyebrows.

“Nope,” he smiled. “Well, I do care about the naked in my office part. Maybe sit in there fully clothed and then we can do the naked bit after the game if you really want to,” he whispered in your ear.

“You’re crazy,” you giggled as you looked lovingly into his starry blue eyes.

“Crazy about you,” he said before sealing the statement with a kiss.

After a few more minutes of kissing and teasing each other, you were standing at the doorstep of the Garage and watching Joe put his stuff into the car. “Remember, call me if you need anything,” he said while opening the driver’s side door.

“I will,” you smiled.

“Okay,” he sighed as he quickly jogged over to you. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I love you,” he said before pressing a final kiss to your lips.

“I love you, my perfect boyfriend,” you said while pecking his lips and ruffling his hair.

You watched as he got into the car and backed out of the garage, then gave you a quick wave before closing it and driving off. You turned around and closed the door behind you, letting out a deep breath as you looked around the quiet house, a smile forming on your face once you realized that this was your house now too. You loved this house, you loved your life, and you loved Joe, you just loved everything. There was so much love inside of you for the first time in a long time, and Joe was the one who brought it out.

An hour later

You took a quick shower in Joe’s bathroom (now your’s as well) and were now inside the massive closet, searching for another comfy sweatshirt of his to steal. “Hmm, this one should do,” you giggled as you pulled out another one of his many Bengals hoodies and slipped it on, his scent still lingering on the fabric. “Mmm,” you hummed as you brought the collar to your nose.

You were about to walk out of the closet before something caught your eye in the corner, your curiosity spiking as you walked closer to the little stand that he used to keep his cufflinks for his suits, but that wasn’t what caught your eye. What caught your eye were the photos taped to the wall above the stand.

There were 3 photobooth film strips taped to the wall, all of which were of you and Joe.

“He’s such a teenage girl,” you giggled to yourself as you ran your fingers along the strips. The first one was from when you both went and saw Avengers Infinity War at the movie theater on opening night together back during your Ohio State days–both of you were raging Marvel nerds. The second one was from the Bengals pre-season party from last year–another event he brought you to before you were dating. Both of the photo strips were tied to sweet and flavorful memories until your eyes went to the third photo strip.

This one was from LSU.

Flashback to 2019 – LSU

“..He told me he loved me, and I thought he m- meant it,” you cried into Joe’s chest. “ Am- Am I not enough?” your voice cracked as the tears fell harder.

“Y/N you are enough, don’t ever say that,” Joe said as he rubbed your back, pulling you in tighter as you were both sitting on the curb of the parking lot.

“Then why did he go to her? Why did he feel the need to-,” you sobbed, your eyes burning from the amount of tears that were pouring out from your eyes. “As soon as I leave, he goes to her,”.

You were currently visiting Joe at LSU during your Spring Break and he had brought you to Snappy’s Arcade tonight which was one of his favorite places to go around town. You spent some time playing air hockey and skeeball, shooting some hoops, playing all the old classic arcade games, and even winning a few prizes along the way. You both hit the photo booth per Joe’s request as well, making countless silly poses and memories that would last a lifetime not only in picture form but also in your hearts. You always had the most fun when you were with Joe, all of your worries instantly disappearing once you heard his adorable laughter and saw his comforting smile. Everything was going great until you looked at your phone which was blowing up with messages from your friends, messages you wished you had never read.

“It’s like he was planning it. The second I’m 14 hours away he pretends like he doesn’t have a girlfriend, washes everything we’d built over the past year down the drain, and goes and does that with her? Knowing how hard it took me to open up to him in the first place because of what happened last time,” you sputtered. “And it’s even more fucked up because he knew how excited I was to come down here and see you,”.

“Y/N…,” Joe said, his heart hurting as you cried harder into his chest.

“It’s not enough. It’s never enough,” you interrupted, your body shaking as a result of the plethora of emotions you were feeling. “I’m never enough, not for anyone,”.

Joe felt his heart sink seeing you like this, especially because of a guy. You didn’t deserve to feel like this; unwanted, unloved, not enough. He wanted to mend your broken heart by telling you how extraordinary you were and how you had someone in your life who loved you beyond words and could give you the same love you gave others, but he just couldn’t get himself to tell you the second part—not now. But he could tell you the first.

“Hey, look at me,” he said as he cupped your cheek and lifted your head to meet his soft eyes. “You’re so much more than you think you are. Don’t ever let anyone make you feel like you’re not enough. You’re one of the most loving and special people I’ve ever known and you deserve to be treated the same way you treat others, with limitless love. If Ryan can’t do that for you, then screw him,” Joe said as he rubbed your back again to calm you down.

“Y/N, you deserve the world and more. You’re going to find someone that can give it to you, I promise,” Joe said as he gazed deeply into your red eyes, telling you the same thing you told him a few years ago on that beach. He wanted to be the one that gave you the world, so badly.

“You’re literally anyone’s dream girl. You’re kind, funny, selfless, beautiful, and can hold a conversation about anything from which flavor of Gatorade is the best to a conversation about Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and Epistemology. You’re nerdy as hell but you're also the most football-involved girl I know, which shocked me when we first met considering most girls I know just like football for the eye candy. Anyway, you’ve got the looks, you’ve got the brain, you’ve got the personality, but most importantly you’ve got what’s in there.” he said as he pointed to your heart. “You have so much love inside of you. So much love to offer and show the world. You have it all. You’re more than enough,” he said.

You looked into his deep blue eyes and could tell his words were genuine, he meant everything he said to you. His eyes always had a way of telling you things he couldn’t say with his mouth, and right now they were telling you many things. “Thank you,” you said as you stuffed your head back into his chest. “I swear you always know exactly what to say to me when I’m upset about something. It’s like you’re incapable of saying the wrong things, I don’t know what I’d do without you,”.

“You won’t have to worry about that. I’m always going to be in your corner,” he smiled as he moved you closer to him, both of you sitting on the curb in silence and just enjoying each other's warmth; his gentle touch soothing your worries.

“Fruit Punch is the best by the way,” you spoke up a few moments later as you looked up at him.

“Hm?” he asked, a little confused by what you were talking about.

“Gatorade. Fruit Punch is the best,” you giggled.

“You’re insane. It’s obviously Lemon-Lime,” he shook his head as you laughed underneath him, the smile he loved to see coming back onto your face as your tears dried up.

End of flashback

You smiled at the end of the bittersweet memory, the one that would normally leave a sour taste in your mouth but didn’t because of Joe. He told you that you’d find someone who could give you the world, and he promised you this.

One thing about Joe, he always kept his promises.

The person who could give you the world was under your nose the entire time and you had no idea. He was the one that wiped your tears every time you cried, he was the one that made you laugh until your stomach hurt, he was the one that always thought about you, he was the one that truly loved you. He promised you that you’d find that person who could give you the world, and you did.

Joe was the one that could give you the world.

—To be continued—

#joe burrow #joe burrow x reader #joe burrow fic #joeburrow #joe burrow imagine #nfl imagine

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