#i know it's been almost 3 years but it still baffles me

[become-a-robot]

What is your favorite album with the worst album cover and why is it BOOK They Might Be Giants

[scribblesofagoonerr]

— the bubbles are pink, jackass!

pairings: leah williamson x child reader!buddy x reader!monkey

summary: buddy learns a new word from monkey and can't stop repeating it, meanwhile leah's almost have a breakdown over it.

Thank you to @alotofpockets for her help with getting this one started as well!

"The bubbles are pink, jackass!"

The not so innocent words that slip out of the 3 year old's mouth are enough to make Leah completely freeze in her spot and widen her eyes in disbelief.

"D... Did she just," Leah stutters her words in horror, having to question herself if she heard it right, "Did you just hear that then?" She wonders.

Looking to where Buddy is sat on the sofa playing with Mr. Bear, the blonde's still baffled to hear what is said and doesn't want to believe it came from the little one.

Meanwhile your minding your own business, pretty much hyper focused on scrolling through your Instagram while eating your cereal, "Oh yeah, I heard that," You can't help but snort in amusement, feeling a sense of pride for your little buddy, "Clear as day."

Leah clicks her tongue disapprovingly once she's gotten over the shock horror of the words coming out of her innocent little girls mouth, "Need I ask where she heard that from?" She questions.

"Accusations! False accusations!" You drop your spoon in the bowl of cereal and point your finger directly at the blonde.

"Mhm sure, I don't believe that for a single second," Leah murmurs, shaking her head in disagreement, "I know exactly what you're like at times!"

"ExCuSe Me!?" You gasp in shock at the blonde pointing her finger at you straight away, "You know nothing... Nothing, Jon Snow!"

So you'd been a bit hooked on Game of Thrones, but so what?

"Oh really, so if I don't ask her then she wouldn't tell me that?" The blonde remarks, raising her eyebrow which makes you suddenly go silent, "Yeah, that's what I thought!"

"Okay so maybe I did but in my defense, it's not even that bad of a word!" You can't help defend yourself, shrugging your shoulders.

"No, no, I don't wanna hear it!" Leah held her hand up to cut you off from speaking any more, "Monkey, she's 3! You know that she listens to everything that you say!" The blonde's face is furious and you know that you did mess up this time.

You should really try and stop talking, but of course you do the exact opposite.

Shrugging your shoulders, you go back to staring at the Instagram screen, "There's kids that have said so much worse--"

"Ah, ah, no I said I don't want to hear it!" The blonde states, firmly, "Stop talkin', Monkey!"

"I'm just sayin' that I'm not surprised she hasn't picked up something worse," You insist, knowing there's been times where you've been playing on the PS and your not so colourful language has slipped out, "So many things worse than that word."

"Your really diggin' your own grave here, Menace," Leah states, continuing to look at you annoyed before she looks over to her mini-me, "Buddy, can you come here a second?" She calls over to get 3 year old's attention.

"Hi mummy," The little one flashes the blonde an innocent smile, before she runs over to you both with her hands still clutching the teddy bear, "Look, I got Mr. Bear!"

"Yeah I can see that, Buddy," The blonde laughs faintly, hoisting the toddler up onto her hip, "Listen here, missus, me and you need to have a little chat."

"About what, mummy?" Buddy cocks her head to the side, curiously.

You can't help but snicker in amusement, "You got a sailor mouth and half, Buddy-- Which she totally didn't get off me!" You start to speak as you see the scowl Leah's giving you and are quick to state to avoid the wrath of the blonde, "Alright, I'm just gonna... I'm gonna shut up now."

"Wise decision," Leah comments, pursing her lips before she turns her attention to the little one in the room, "We need to talk about the er, the sentence that you said." She tells, not really sure how best to approach this.

Buddy continues to look confused, "What sen... sentence?" 

"The one that you said to Mr. Bear over there," Leah explains, exhaling a sigh.

"Oh!" Buddy's eyes widen in realisation, "You mean when I told him that the bubbles are pink, Jackass?" The question sounds so innocent coming from your favourite little buddy.

You can't help but crack up laughing right there again, "You can't blame me for that once this time!" Moving to drop your bowl into the sink, you lean up against the kitchen counter as you can't wait to hear the rest of how this conversation is going to play out.

"Whoa whoa whoa," Leah is quick to stop Buddy from saying anything further, "Okay there's no need to repeat it again, Buddy. Can you tell mummy why you said it?" She wonders.

The 3 year old exhales a sigh dramatically and you swear she even did so much as roll her eyes, "Because mummy, the bubbles are pink!"

"Final piece," You speak aloud, accepting the lego block from your favourite little buddy as you attach it to the rest of it, "And there we go, done!" You announce, grinning proudly.

"Yay!" Buddy lets' out an excited squeal and claps her hands, "Can we do more now?" She questions with a glint of hope in her eyes.

You shrug your shoulders carelessly, "Eh, I don't see why not. Which one shall we build now?" You wonder.

Much to Leah's relief, your little buddy hadn't had any slip ups with her newfound sailor mouth.

You didn't fancy taking the blame for that one, again.

"This one!" The toddler points to the new lego set that you'd both picked out together and claps her hands in excitement.

You love how much she loves lego, its' great because it means you can do it together!

You can't help but get carried away with it sometimes.

"Alright, time to get ready for bed now, Buddy!" Leah interrupts the fun that your both having with the lego set.

Buddy looks up at Leah with an adorable pout, "No, mummy. 5 more minutes!" She insists.

Your an absolute sucker for her puppy dog eyes most of the time.

That's why your guilty of letting her get away with so much, sometimes.

Well, actually, pretty much all of the time.

"Come on, you've had long enough," Leah shakes her head in disagreement, "It's time to put your jammies on and get into bed now."

"But mummy," Buddy tries her luck to push for extra time.

Leah smiles a little and shakes her head once again, "No, come on. There will be plenty of time to play with lego tomorrow," Her decision remains firm but still gentle with her mini-me, "Come on, let's go."

"No fair," The 3 year old huffs dramatically and gets up from the floor.

What can you say? She's taking lessons from you.

You even swear she's sometimes more dramatic than you, if that's possible.

"I know," The blonde can't help but laugh amusedly at the toddlers' flare for dramatics.

"No playin' lego without me, Monkey!" Buddy states, bluntly, "I mean it!"

For a 3 year old, she sure is bossy sometimes, and well, no doubt where she gets that from.

"You got it, Bud!" You mock salute the mini blonde, jokingly.

With that being said, you flop onto the sofa and scroll through your TikTok page while Leah takes Buddy upstairs to get ready for bed.

"Wait, Monkey needs to join us for the story!" Ten minutes later, you hear protests from your favourite little buddy upstairs.

It's a routine every single night.

You suppress a grin and jump up from the sofa to head up the stairs two at a time, "I heard my name mentioned!" You exclaim, walking into the bedroom to find Buddy dressed in her pajamas while Leah's searching for a book to read.

You don't know why she bothers to find a new one though, when Buddy always end up wanting to read the same thing every time.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

"Agh! Monkey!" The sound of Buddy's shrieks fill the room as you lift her up and spin her around.

"Do you have to rile her up so much before she's about to go to bed?" Leah questions, exhaling a sigh as she picks out the same book.

Shocker, you already knew it would be that.

You mischievously grin at the blonde, "Can't help it now, can I?" Placing the toddler on the floor, she beams a wide smile at you.

"I'm goin' bed now, Monkey. Mummy's gonna read a story!" Buddy states clear as day, sometimes your impressed by the 3 year old's vocabulary.

Her speech is somewhat impeccable for her age.

"You are?" You faux a gasp as her little hands cling around your legs, "Alright, well I guess we'd better get comfy for storytime, eh?" You question, teasingly.

"Uh huh!" Buddy's more than happy to drag you in the direction of her toddler sized bed and your more than happy to oblige to anything that the 3 year old wants.

Like you said, you were easily convinced to do anything when it comes to your favourite little buddy.

"Alright then kids, are we both comfy?" Leah chuckles, watching you as you settle into the small bed beside the 3 year old, its' not that comfortable but Buddy's happy and that's the main thing right now.

"Comfy," You reply, giving her a mocking thumbs up.

"Comfy," Buddy mimics you, giving the blonde a thumbs up as well.

"How many times' are we gonna say the word comfy?" You joke, referring back to the video that the blonde did with Keira during an England camp.

"Menace," Leah lets out a laugh and shakes her head, before she begins to read the story book.

You know most of the lines in the book, so you can't help but read it out word for word, much to Buddy's protest.

"Monkey, stop. Mummy's reading!" Your favourite little buddy huffs, glaring at you almost identical to the way that Leah usually does.

Although coming from a 3 year old is less terrifying at least.

"Sorry, sorry," You can't help but chuckle, trying to refrain from speaking any more of the words out loud to avoid any further annoyance from the 3 year old.

"Alright, all done," Leah states, closing the book and smiles at the sight of you both curled up together, Buddy's fighting to stay awake and your not far behind her, "Time to close your eyes, Buddy."

At least until you hear Buddys' next words.

Buddy lets' out a small yawn as she tiredly rubs her eyes, "Goodnight, Jackass!"

You can't help but snicker, "Oh now that is hilarious," Quickly catching the look of the stern blonde, you move your hand to cover your face to stifle any further laughter.

"Excuse me?" Leah's taken back by the response from the 3 year old.

"I believe she said--" You start to speak.

"I heard what she said!" Leah is quick to cut you off from repeating what the little one said as she turns to look at the youngster, "Buddy, why... why did you just call mummy that name?" She asks, confused.

"Cos' you are, and its' not a bad word. Even Monkey said so!" There goes your favourite little buddy throwing you right under the bus.

Damn it.

"Whoa, whoa, no, uh technically, I didn't... I didn't say that you were!" Your hands fly up in surrender, "I mean I didn't even say it like that, but uh..."

By the annoyed expression on the blondes' face, you decide to make the smart decision and shut up.

"You really need to watch your language around her," Leah murmurs, exhaling a sigh, "You know she literally absorbs words like a sponge nowadays!" Shes' scolding you, like it was all of your fault.

Well, technically... You didn't help matters, but you didn't think she would repeat it.

"That's right, Jackass!" Buddy exclaims, smiling like she was completely proud of herself.

Your not quite sure if she understands what the word means or not, but there's something funny about hearing swear words come out of a little kids' mouth.

"Hey, Buddy," Leah gets the attention of the 3 year old, "We don't swear and say words like that, do we?" She chides gently, but still trying to remain firm.

Buddy pouts in confusion, "Why not, mummy? Monkey says it all the time!" She insists.

Well that's backfired on you now.

You drop your mouth in shock, "Wha..."

Leah clicks her tongue in disappointment, "Yes and Monkey's shouldn't be using them sort of words either," She takes a moment to scowl at you while your just sat there cracking up laughing about it all, "You're not helping here, go and do something productive!"

You stand up from the toddlers' bed and hold your hands up in mock surrender, "Geesh, I say one bad word and suddenly I'm the bad guy round here." You murmur, jokingly.

"Go, now!" The blonde gestures in the direction of the bedroom door, shaking her head in disagreement, "Listen Buddy, you should know that even when you hear Monkey say words like that, it doesn't mean that you should always repeat them, okay?" You hear her continue to speak to Buddy as you make your way out of the bedroom.

"What, even when she says shit?" Buddy doesn't think twice to ask.

Leah exhales a short sigh, "Even when she says them words."

"But what about when you and mama say words like that, though?" Buddy questions innocently, cocking her head to the side with an expression that looks somewhat identical to Leah's.

"Ha, she got you there!" You can't help but snicker in amusement.

"Monkey!" Leah shouts to you in that firm tone of voice your all too familiar with.

"I'm goin', I'm goin'. Geesh!" You huff and continue to make your way to your own bedroom where you plan to watch another marvel film, or you were gonna but ear wigging is so much more fun sometimes.

"Sometimes, yes, even mama and I say words like that at certain times, but you still shouldn't be repeating them, okay?" Leah tells Buddy, trying to get her point across but in a gentle tone of voice.

"Okay, mummy!" Buddy nods along in agreement.

"So no more of the swearing, alright, little miss potty mouth?" Leah jokes, ruffling her mini-me's hair.

"You got it, dude," Buddy nods once again and sticks her thumb up, "Ove' you, Mummy!"

"That's my girl," Leah smiles and presses a gentle kiss on the 3 year old's forehead, "Night Buddy, I love you lots!"

Buddy lets out a small yawn and tiredly rubs her eyes, "Goodnight, Jackass."

You can't help but snort aloud in amusement once again, "Oh man, this kid!" You crack up with laughter, peering your head round the door and seeing the unamused expression on Leah's face once again.

"Right that's it, we're getting a swear jar!" Leah declares, shaking her head in disbelief.

© scribblesofagoonerr

[normansnt]

For old times sake (pt.2)

(Huskerdust x platonic! Male!overlord reader)

I'm really happy with how this turned out. Non of y'all asked for it the idea just hit me so I had to write it down😎

ALSO

I'm VERY likely going to write a pt.3 thats an Alastor x male reader so lemme know if ya'll would want that🫡💗

Warnings: V@lentino

Art by the very talented: @dragon-spaghetti

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You were having the best time. Talking to Husk and Angel was very fun and you saw the amazing chemistry they had. You guys were talking laughing and drinking in your office when suddenly Angels phone started to get bombarded with messages.

You felt the sudden shift in atmosphere. Angel hurriedly reached for his phone and when he saw the messages he jumped up.

"It was nice to meet you (Y/N) I had a lot of fun and thank you for the drinks but I have to go now, Husk baby I'll see you at the Hotel don't wait up for me if I get home late."

He said, with one breath and quicker then you have seen anybody talk and left with the same speed.

"Shit..." said Husk as he stood up with a sigh to pour himself another drink.

"What was that?" You asked baffled.

"It's...its his job, his boss he is... a fucking cunt"

Said Husk with audible anger in his voice.

You were about to ask more questions but then it hit you. You knew angel was a porn actor. And you also knew about the Vees. It was easy to put the picture together from this point on. And judging by Angles terrified reaction, Husks anger and cussing you could quite easily tell how his boss treated the spider.

"Hey, Husk" he looked at you with tired eyes.

"I have an idea." You said at last with a smirk on your face.

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

"HAHH, suck it idiots, guess who was invited to a business meeting by THE (Y/N) Demon of gambling." Yelled Valentino as he entered the Vees break room.

"What. The. FUCK, give me that" said Vox pissed as he tore the invitation from Valentinos hand.

"THAT BITCH, why did he invite you and not all of us."

"Never mind that who the fuck sends messages via letters?" Asked Velvette disgusted.

"This is the way the big shots do it, you uncultured swine" said Valentine still very full of himself due to the invite.

"That doesn't make ANY sense" Vox has read the invitation at least 3x by now not understanding why you invited only Valentino.

The Vees have been trying to get in contact with you for years now but to no avail. You had no interest in any alliances since you thought them to be stupid and egoistic, if overlord meetings were something to go by.

"Deal with it honey, I'm just better than you guys" ended Valentino the conversation as he snatched the letter from Vox and blew the pink smoke from his cigarette into his face.

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

Valentino showed up to your casino with Angel by his side dressed in...well, almost nothing. Of course he wasn't gonna show up without a pretty thing by his side and who better than his favorite toy.

"If you embarrass me in front of the demon of gambling I'll-" he started saying through clenched teeth but got interrupted. By you.

"Mr. Valentino, it is such a pleasure to meet you." You started as you put your hand out to shake.

He shook your hand slowly. He was surprised to say the least. One of the most powerful overlords was this young, not to mention very hot. When he got over his surprise however his personality was back and on FULL display for you. He turned on his charm like never before and started shamelessly flirting with you.

You just kept the calm smile on your face.

"So, Mr. Valentino I'm sure you are wondering why I invited you and we will be having a business meeting do not threat however I'm afraid I have something else to take care of first, please go ahed and try out the games my casino has to offer and drink something, all the drinks are on the house for you."

Now, in a situation like this normally Valentino would be offended. How dare someone invite him and then say they have something else to do.

But you were different. You were a very powerful person in all aspects, your goddamn charm, it was just irresistible not to mention the free drinks.

"Well all right but do not keep me waiting for long now, amor." He said with the ever present flirtatious tone in his voice.

You didn't react to this, just a simple nod of your head and with that you left.

Valentino hasn't gambled much in his life, or death, he just stood by when Vox did it, so he sat down by a random table.

He won. To his (and Angels) biggest surprise, he won.

"Oh, yeah, this is going to be a good night. ANGEL, bring me another drink."

This was just the beginning of the night. He continued to go around table by table, and he won, by every single one of them. And the more he won the more he drank.

About two hours after he arrived one of your employees came up to your office.

"It's time sir I think he is drunk enough." Said your guard. So, you put down the book you were reading and stretched. You didn't have anything to do, that was just a lie. It was just part of the plan.

When you arrived downstairs you saw that your employee had been right, Valentino was standing on the table singing and kicking the coins he had won.

You cleared your throat.

"Mr. Valentino, I'm glad you're enjoying my casino" with that one sentence you got everyone's attention in the room.

You could have that effect. You weren't a cruel overlord and didn't choose to rule over people by the means of fear. But you could make it so that even just your voice demanded respect.

"I see you have won quite a lot, would you care to play a round against, me?" You said ever so calmly.

And of course drunk and full of himself due to not loosing once all night, Valentino was more then happy to play with you.

"Now then, since we are playing in the big leagues now we cant just play for money thats below us don't you think."

"I'd like to be below you, handsome" he answered.

You just hummed, unamused.

"I say, how about we play for souls."

That caught Valentino off guard, he didn't think of that, but he didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of you so he agreed.

"And...whose soul would you be offering? I heard the demon of gambling doesn't own anyones soul" said Valentino with just a bit of temptation in his voice.

You hummed.

"You heard correctly, I'm in no need of souls, I will be offering...my own" you said still as calm as ever.

To that Valentine spit out his drink. The amount of power that would be in his hand if he owned your soul is...too much for his drunken mind to think about. And of course due to the amount of alcohol in his system he didn't think about how stupid this proposition would be on your part if you weren't 100% sure you would win. He didn't even think about the fact that you are the demon of gambling, the owner of a casino, it would have been obvious to anyone that he had no chance at winning.

"Well then, I'll offer the soul of this beautiful thing here" he said while squeezing angels cheek.

You looked at Angel and said

"Very well then, let the game begin.".

After a few rounds, you were loosing. Big fucking time and Angel was starting to get very worried. But not only him, Husk, who was the whole time as well, making sure the plan goes well, was starting to doubt you two. He knew first hand just how good you were especially in poker, but it was still a game that depended on luck at least 50% of it.

When Valentino needed a break to go puke, Husk walked over to you.

"Kid, just what the hell are you doing you are aware that you're loosing." He said pretty pissed off.

"Oh, I'm just messing with him-"

"Well stop, what if you mess too close to the sun you might be good but you cannot control your luck."

"Luck is a non factor if you use logic. You seriously think a porn seller, money hungry, moth man big shot wanna be will beat me, in Poker? Don't insult me." And with that Valentino returned and the game continued.

He kept winning rounds and Angel and Husk were growing more anxious by the second.

Finally the last rounds were coming around and thats when you decide you messed with him enough. And just like that you started putting down winning hands one after the other.

Valentino was panicking. He is about to loose his best paying costumer whatever you come out with this round everything depends on it-

Royal Flush.

You fucking won the game.

Now that the loss has sobered his mind he could finally look at all of this in a logical way.

Of fucking corse you won. You are the mother fucking demon of gambling just how the hell did he think he could win.

But the wins before. Hold on. That was illogical too, NO ONE goes to a casino and wins every fucking time was he really that drunk not to notice.

You broke him out of his thoughts when you snapped your fingers. And Angels contract that bound him to Valentino appeared in your hands.

However now, where Valentinos name used to be, stood yours.

"Well, Mr. Valentino that was a very productive business meeting I hope to never see you in the future"

"...What?" asked the moth angrier by the minute.

"You still haven't figured it out? I do not care for you or the other Vees business. Did it not seem suspicious that I only invited you? What am I saying of course it didn't, because a narcissist like you would never ask why someone wants their company. See, thats why tricking you was so easy. Getting you drunk wasn't even necessary I only did it so I can be sure that you will play for angels soul."

"...but, but...NO, Angel dust is still mine, he-" Valentino went to reach for Angel but Husk stopped him.

"No he fucking aint." Hissed the cat.

In panic Valentino tried to make the leash appear but to no avail. A deal was a deal. He doesn't own Angel's soul anymore.

"Just why the FUCK was it so important to you to get a wretched whore's soul?" Asked the moth now yelling.

"It was a favor for an old friend."

"You mother fucking- do you know who the fuck I am, I will destroy you me and the Vees-"

"No" you stated simply.

This was the last drop for Valentino.

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN NO-"

"I would like to ask you to leave now Mr.Valentino and, please tell your partner not to send me any more invitations, I do not care"

Valentino made one last attempt to attack you but your guards stopped him.

"I was winning all night you dickwad I sucked your casino dry" tried to irritate you Valentino.

"Oh? Thats right here, isn't this one of your coins?" You threw it at him.

"Of course, every coin has two sides."

Valentino turned the coin around to discover a big fat 0 at the other side.

"What-"

"You really thought you won at every single table? Wow, you are even stupider than I thought."

It was part of the plan, you told everyone who worked at the casino wherever Valentino sits down, he wins, at least coins of zero. You needed to boost his confidence so he'd think he can beat you.

"You will not take him away from me I'll find him-"

"You will do no such a thing he belongs to me now so he is under my protection." You were getting a but pissed now, he just wouldn't give up would he?

He was about yo say more when you looked at him. Dead in the eyes. Thats half the reason why you are as powerful as you are. The look. If you looked someone deep in the eyes they will see their worst nightmares playing right in front of them.

Valentino started screaming, crying and shaking uncontrollably. And with that your guards dragged him out.

You turned to Angel and Husk, who were standing there holding hands.

You looked at Angel, lifted the contract, and tore it in half right in front of him.

Angel was staring at you. He stared as tears started to roll down his cheek and he fell to the ground in sobs.

'I'm free' he thought to himself over and over again. Husk chuckled as he knelt down to his boyfriend and hugged him.

You two locked eyes, and you understood just how thankful he was, words weren't needed.

You wanted the couple to have some privacy so you headed back to your office.

Unbeknownst to you another demon was present that night at the casino, and he saw the whole ordeal.

"How well you grew up to be, young (Y/N)" chuckled Alstor to himself.

"(Y/N)" you heard Ang- Anthony yell from behind you.

You turned around with raised eyebrows and looked at him.

"THANK YOU" he yelled still sobbing.

You smiled at him.

"Happy to help, for old times sake."

[cosmicpearlz]

yours for the time being |3|

summary: what happens when your academic rival of years proposes an offer of fake dating? pure chaos.

pairing: gryffindor!jude bellingham x slytherin!reader

a/n: hi y'all! this was suppose to be up last night but i was tired, so here we are! chapter 3 is where we start getting into more of the drama aspects of the story lol, enjoy :)

it almost felt too good to be true. being in a relationship with jude was comfortable. you guys would go on dates, sit with each other at lunch and even have alone time without others. although it's been a month of dating, it didn't stop you guys from still being competitive about grades. instead of the useless insults that you hurled at one another, it was replaced with light teasing. harry and ron had gotten used to you. they still didn't exactly trust you but there were no more side comments.

saturday mornings were usually spent studying alone in the library. now, jude joins you any chance he gets. the new tradition gave you something to look forward to.

"sorry i'm late baby. practice was running longer than it should've." you pick your head up from your notes, finding jude with his duffle bag and backpack. he kisses your cheek and rounds the table to sit in front of you.

"hi," jude grins.

"hi babe, how was practice?" you sit your pen down to give him your full attention.

"terrible."

"that sucks, why was it so bad?" you slide your hand across the table to hold his. as if it were a natural action, he gladly grips your hand. rubbing the back of it with his thumb.

"because i missed you the entire time." you rolled your eyes trying to ignore the cheeky smile jude gave you.

"oh, you're full of shit."

"i'm serious!"

"whatever you say bellingham."

"what are you studying?" jude gestures to your notes with his head. your eyes brighten at the thought of sharing your favorite subject with the boy.

"the notes are for my care of magical creatures' class! it's my favorite subject because the animals are all so sweet and very cute!"

"they let slytherins in that class?" slowly your smile dropped, and your brows furrowed.

"what do you mean by that?"

"i'm just saying that slytherins are enormously known for treating animals and creatures terribly. i mean look at draco's dad! you know how he treats dobby."

"is that what you really think of me? that i would ever treat animals and creatures like that?" you tilted your head at the boy. it was like jude didn't realize how much he was hurting your feelings.

"well yeah. at least i used to, i guess. you're a slytherin," jude shrugged his shoulders. you wiggled your hand from his and go to gather your stuff.

"what's wrong with you?"

"the fact that you don't even realize what you just said baffles me. you're such an asshole."

"babe, i didn't think that-"

"don't call me that and you're right, you didn't think. how could you ever even think something like that? if you pulled your head out of your ass for five seconds, you would know that not all slytherins are cold and ruthless."

"y/n, it's not that serious. i said that i used to think of you like that before i spent time with you." you scoffed, getting up from your seat.

"it's serious to me because you're questioning my character. that was so hurtful and you're not taking the time to understand why that hurts me." jude stands with you, stepping forward towards you. you take a step back.

"so explain it to me!"

"all my life, people have had this negative stereotype that i'm a horrible person, just because of my house. my parents were slytherins and never acted like that, so why would i?"

"i'm so sorry," he goes to reach for you again and you stepped back once more.

"don't follow me."

you left the gryffindor standing there. typically, you were able to brush off what people said about you and your house. but it stung hearing that coming from jude. perhaps it's because you were slowly catching feelings for the boy. you knew you had to get out of there before he seen the tears slip down your face. you bite your lip trying to stop the tears from escaping anymore and head to your house portrait.

you speak the password and walk in with your head down. your friends watched as you came in. noticing the slouched shoulders and small sniffles.

"by merlin's bread, are you crying y/n?" draco being the one to boldly and loudly announce in front of the group.

"no."

"you're sniffling though," pansy points out, eyes soften at the sight of you.

"can you guys just leave me alone?" you maneuver around the common room, heading up to your room.

-

"can anyone tell me what amortentia is?" professor slughorn asks the class. hermione raises her hand happily. "yes, miss?"

"granger. hermione granger."

"yes, miss granger. please explain to the class what amortentia is."

"well, it's the most powerful love potion to ever exist. it smells different to each person. for example, i smell freshly mown grass, new parchment, and spearmint toothpaste."

"very good miss granger. today, we will be brewing our own amortentia and then sharing what we each smell. the ingredients are listed in your book. if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!"

you turn to your book, reading the ingredients that were needed to be used. ever since the conversation with jude on saturday, you felt empty. he tried getting your attention in every class you guys shared. your pride prevented you from talking to him. after all, he did hurt your feelings.

"what do you think you're gonna smell?" jude appears by your side. he leans his head over your shoulder, and it takes every bone in your body to not react. damn him and his overall sweet nature. jude sighs at your silence and walks back to his station.

"are you guys, okay? jude's been miserable and moody lately," hermione whispers with questioning eyes.

"we just had a disagreement."

"y/n."

"hermione."

"what was the disagreement?" you sighed, looking away from your pot and in the girl's eyes.

"he hurt my feelings," you mumbled, quickly looking down.

"he what?"

"he hurt my feelings and i don't want to talk. there, i said it!" hermione nods and doesn't question you any further.

for the rest of the class, you were focused on brewing the potion. keeping yourself and ignoring jude's obvious looks. any chance he could, he would see if he can catch your eyes. he felt horrible and didn't know how to apologize correctly. as if you would give him a chance to.

"okay class, we're going to quickly go around the room and say what you personally smell!"

everyone in class explains what they smell. you were a little nervous because you didn't know what to expect. finally, it was your turn. you take a deep breath and lean over to sniff the pot.

"it's smells woody with spice, as if it's some sort of a cologne. i also smell lots of grass." jude. you smelled jude. the professor moves to the next person, but you could only hear your heartbeat. tuning back in when it's jude's turn, your heart skips a beat once more.

"i smell strawberries, vanilla and parchment paper." your eyes widen upon the revelation. finally meeting the gryffindor's gaze, he sends you a weak smile. could he have smelt you? your strawberry body lotion and vanilla perfume were your everyday staple pieces.

"class is dismissed." you didn't waste another second before rushing out of the room. not waiting for hermione and not waiting for jude to come talk to you either.

-

it was around lunchtime, when the boy found you again. this time, he wasn't taking no or silence for an answer. smelling you in his amortentia was an eye opener. jude already knew that he was falling for you, but this was the knot to finish the bow. he couldn't imagine himself with anyone else but you. jude grabs your arm gently and drags you outside. despite your protests.

"let go of me!"

"relax princess, we're almost at the location." he walks you both to the lake. where he first brought up the offer and what you thought about it.

"talk to me," jude lets go of your arm and looks at you tentatively.

"no."

"i'm not taking no for an answer."

"fine, i think we should break up." the silence is loud and jude's heart begins to beat louder. pounding on his chest, he's render speechless.

"what?"

"we should break up," you looked away and bit your lip. not wanting to meet his gaze anymore. instead, focusing on the open body of water.

"we smelled each other in the amortentia!"

"so what, we're breaking the agreement that we both signed."

"to hell with the agreement! i'm falling for you more than i ever care to admit. you're the only person I think of and-"

"jude, it doesn't matter."

"don't try to invalid my feelings." you rolled your eyes and looked back towards him.

"oh, like you invalided mines?"

"i've tried to apologize to you! and i'll apologize a million times over. you mean too much for me to just let you go."

"it can't be that hard, being that we've only been dating for a month." jude scoffs with the shake of his head. stepping closer, he places both hands on your cheeks, making sure your eyes never leave his. you almost forgot how much his touch sends you into overdrive. silently relishing in the feeling.

"but i've known you for years. we grew up together! hell, do you not understand that it's always been you? you thought that i was just competitive for the fun of it? no, i did it because i like you and i think that i always have." you gasp softly and pull away from him. missing his gentle touch and warmth.

"even more reason to end this."

"you're going to sit here and tell me that you don't have feelings for me too?"

"i didn't say that."

"so why are you fighting me?"

"let it go jude! we don't belong to together. we're different and it'll never work."

"but it has worked. we were together for a month. a month pure bliss," he tries to shuffle closer again, but you take a step back.

"you're a gryffindor and i'm a slytherin. it won't work."

"that's bullshit and i don't care what people think. i never have. you don't see the times that i've defended you behind your back. i only want you!"

"we need to end this now."

"please don't do this."

"goodbye jude," you take this moment to turn your back, walking away from the one person in your life that has ever made your heart skip a beat. you knew jude was your person. instead, choosing to close off to protect your heart. perhaps, it was because he hurt your feelings before, and you didn't want that to happen again. a cruel punishment for a mistake.

two hearts were left broken that evening. one that put their heart on their sleeve and the other that guarded it with tight walls.

[blouisparadise]

Here are some amazing bottom Louis fics that were posted or completed during the month of May. We really hope you enjoy this list. Happy reading!

1) My Heart's In Overdrive, And You're Behind The Steering Wheel | Explicit | 1,649 words

Being late to class means Harry and Louis have to pose together for figure drawings. That being said, the hate each other, but maybe they don't?

2) It's A Question Of Lust, It's A Question Of Trust | Explicit | 2,258 words

Louis is shaken up after being assaulted at the barricade in Panama City and feels guilty, he can't get it out of his head. Harry knows what he needs to escape the worry. Harry steps over, speaking quietly into his ear. "Good boy, doing as I asked." He looks beautiful, his skin golden, dark nipples puckered, his cock starting to get hard. His breath already ragged. "Not that you always do, eh?" "Sir?" His blue eyes stare at Harry, nervous, uncertain. "Letting those tarts fondle and grope you after each show. When you know you belong to me."

3) If Walls Could Talk | Explicit | 2,394 words

Louis is waiting backstage for Harry after his second show in Coventry. It's their last night together before Louis leaves for his own tour. Harry's mission for the evening is to worship Louis' body and make him see himself through Harry's eyes.

4) In An Octopus's Garden With You | General Audiances | 4,682 words

Autistic alpha Harry, a teacher, spends an overwhelming day on a field trip to the aquarium. Luckily, his omega, Louis, knows just what he needs.

5) I Didn't Have To Search Cuz I Still Know Your Number| Explicit | 5,161 words

As Louis approaches the front of the old flat he sees a light on upstairs in what used to be their master bedroom. A memory flicks through Louis’ mind of Louis spread open on the duvet with Harry between his legs nipping and sucking on his hole while Louis whimpered and writhed, clutching the sheets and moaning out Harry’s name. Louis looks down to see his dick at half mass and sighs. Louis flicks the butt of the cigarette to the ground and pulls his phone back out of his pocket. He exits the Uber app and pulls up his contacts, scrolling down to the H’s until he lands upon Harry’s name in his phone. He pulls up their messages and sees the last time they talked was right after the break up all those years ago. Louis begins to type out a message to Harry, hoping he hasn't changed his number. Louis: U up? (sent at 1:14am)

6) You Have Me | Not Rated | 5,529 words

Louis is escaping his mundane reality, avoiding his fiancée, and going to an anonymous hook up party in the woods. When the mysterious stranger who has been eyeing him all night asks him to come back to his tent, Louis is game for anything. He doesn’t know that he’s going to get an offer he can’t refuse.

7) All My Life | Not Rated | 5,553 words

The four times Harry tries to propose and the one time he gets it right (or does he?)

8) Limping In The Limelight | Explicit | 5,832 words

Harry breaks his accessory navicular during a concert in Birmingham in 2015.

9) I Like to Watch | Explicit | 9,287 words

If there’s one thing Harry loves, it’s watching his husband Louis get fucked by other men. After picking up a lad called Zayn who is baffled by this concept, the three men are in for a wild night.

10) House Husband | Mature | 11,853 words

Louis and Harry are happily married with two beautiful kids. Harry is a lawyer who provides for his family and Louis is his sassy house husband. This is a week in their life.

11) For A Sushi Restaurant | Explicit | 13,345 words

And yet, in the depth of the sea, where water started to go from that sky blue to the dark petrol blue, almost black, of the unknown, creatures moved, ready to attack at a moment’s notice, sleek tails and pale, blueish skin helping them with mimesis. Or, cecaelia Harry and human Louis.

12) Peaches And Soft Myth | Explicit | 36,192 words

“Greta kissed me,” he said at last. It wasn’t the main issue, but it was a start. Louis’ smile was radiant. Eyes sparkling with genuine happiness. Harry’s stomach felt a little funny, wishing he could feel as happy as the cheerleader. "Oh, my god? We did it! I’m a genius ! Was it long? Slow and sensual, full of lust and passion, tongues intertwined—" he gasped. “Did she tremble in your arms?” He hugged himself. “That’s not—” “No one believes me when I say I am a good matchmaker. They are always like, ‘Oh Louis, you have the worst eye for couples and men. You always miss the real connections.’ Who missed now? Not me. Nuh-hu, I saw the potential. Your grumpy attitude did not deter me. I'm probably the greatest matchmaker on campus. Don’t you think?” Louis’ smile faltered. “Wait… why do you look as if you were about to throw up?” “She told me her roommate leaves for a few days after spring break. She invited me to her dorm room.” “Okay?” Louis said slowly. “Am I missing something? Is it about clothes? Because I can totally find something—” Harry scrubbed a hand over his face. “It’s not about that.” “Then what?” “I…” Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m a virgin.”

13) The Maddest Obsession | Explicit | 100,974 words

One fears the dark. One rules it. Harry Styles, the dangerous mob enforcer, finds himself entangled with Louis, the strong-willed mafia-princess. As they navigate the treacherous underworld of New York, their forbidden love sparks a deadly game of loyalty, betrayal, and passion. Will their devotion to each other overcome the chaos surrounding them, or will their love be their downfall?

14) At Our Seams | Explicit | 185,290 words

Newly mated and happily engaged Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson, are moving into a new phase of their lives. Together, their world felt complete. However, the world beyond their bubble has been strung into chaos. Political strife is raiding the streets and oppressive policies are being enacted everyday. Louis is desperate for something to change, to finally set the record straight for omegas and non-soulmate children everywhere. Harry is determined to keep his mate safe, even if it goes against Louis’ wishes. Unfortunately, he can’t control everything, and things quickly fall out of his hands. Who’s this new alpha who’s entered the beloved couple’s life, giving Louis another purpose Harry hadn’t been expecting? What happens when the soulmates don’t exactly see eye to eye? Will the protective alpha get his wishes, or will he concede to his cherished but oh, so stubborn omega? How strong are the seams that bind? Only time will tell.

Check out our other fic rec lists by category here and by title here.

You can find other monthly roundup fic rec lists here.

[cheynovak]

When we were young - Part 2

Ben (Soldier Boy) Harrison x F/Reader Y/N            

Contains/warnings: 18+, Smut, angst, fluff, hurt, Childhood/ family trauma, puberty, losing virginity, time jump ...  

Side note: English isn’t my first language     

Words:   5500

Part 2 out of 3

*Does not follow the boys storyline – Set in a time period where Ben was not yet a supe. Since we don’t know his last name, I came up with Harrison for this story.*  

 

--  

Y/N is a young girl who works with her mother as a maid in the household of Mr. Harrison and his son Ben. Since Ben was mostly in boarding school and Y/N till this summer in a normal school, they didn’t know each other very well.  

This summer it all changed, Y/N had to help her mother financially and Mr. Harrison was so kind to let her work with her mom in his house. That’s when she met Ben, his son who was only a year older than her.   

Soon the kids became best friends... but is that all there is? Friendship?  

-- 

Ben got home yesterday, he got kicked out of boarding school and since he was almost an adult it was difficult for his father to find a school that was willing to take him in. He talked to me about Ben every night.  

Asking me what I thought about him being so disobedient, it was hard for me to answer that, since I saw only the pain and suffering. But I stayed polite like my mom thought me, said I can’t interfere in those matters or gave him a soft smile. 

This morning Ben walked in the kitchen while I was washing the dishes from breakfast, but the second he saw me, he turned around. I couldn’t stand this anymore and ran after him. ”Ben, Ben, Ben!”  

He stopped in his tracks. ”What?” he asked not looking at me.”What’s wrong?” I asked. I saw his foot tapping the floor. He was either nervous or furious. “Did I do something wrong?” I could feel the tears prickling behind my eyes. 

“No.” He answered sharp. “Then what is it?” I pushed. He didn’t answer and walked upstairs. Mr. Harrison saw how his son reacted. ”Benjamin! When a woman asks you something you answer!” He turned to me “See what I mean, I send that boy to the best schools and still he has no manners, don’t take it personally Y/N.”  

He placed his hand on my shoulder, it was weird, he never touched me before, and unlike the touch was supposed to feel, secure a token of care, it felt cold. I smiled politely but the second he walked in a room I ran upstairs.  

As I rushed upstairs, frustration and confusion bubbling within me, I found Ben in his room. Without hesitation, I demanded to know why he had been ignoring me this past year. His reaction was unexpected and defensive, his eyes avoiding mine as he refused to give me a straight answer.  

"Ben, why have you been avoiding me?" I pressed, my voice tinged with hurt. He shifted uncomfortably, his hands fidgeting with something on his desk. When I asked if it was because of a new girlfriend, his reaction was sudden and sharp.  

He snapped at me, his tone cutting through the air with an edge of anger. "Don't be so demanding of my attention, Y/N," he retorted, his voice tinged with frustration. "I have other things going on in my life than to write fucking letters!" 

"Beside it seems that my dad gives you all the attention you need!" His father? I had no idea what he meant by that. "Y-your dad? He has been kind since my mom died Ben, that's it."

"Good for you princess, I'm glad he at least gave a shit about one of us when their mother died!"

His words stung, leaving me speechless and wounded. The sudden change in his demeanour baffled me, and I struggled to comprehend why he was pushing me away like this. Had our friendship meant so little to him after all?  

Tears welled up in my eyes as I stood there, grappling with a mixture of emotions, hurt, confusion, and a growing sense of betrayal. I had always thought Ben and I could talk about anything, share our worries and joys without fear of judgment or rejection.  

But now, faced with his cold dismissal, I felt a rift forming between us. His unwillingness to explain himself left me with more questions than answers, and I couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted irreparably in our friendship. 

"I-I refuse to believe that is the only reason why you are so hard on me. We barely talk when your home, you never write to me anymore, you don't even look me in the eyes."

As I stood there, hurt and bewildered by Ben's sudden distance and defensive reaction, I couldn't hold back the pain that was welling up inside me. "Ben, I miss my best friend," I pleaded, my voice wavering with emotion. "You used to tell me everything, and I would never judge you."  

His response was sharp, cutting through the air like a knife. "I can't tell you everything, Y/N," he snapped, his frustration palpable. "Not anymore." His words struck me like a blow. I couldn't understand why he was shutting me out, why he had suddenly become so guarded. 

The distance between us felt like a chasm widening with each passing moment, and I couldn't bear the thought of losing the closeness we had once shared. I left his room tears now streaming down my cheeks.  

After an hour I heard a soft knock on my door. The door opened slightly and I saw his perfect green eyes looking at me. “Can I come in?” " Only if you talk to me.” He did so I asked again. “What's going on?"  

He hesitated, his expression conflicted. For a moment, I thought he might relent, might open up to me like he used to. But then, with a bitter edge to his voice, he uttered words that shattered my heart.  

"I had sex..." he confessed, "With who? Do you have a new girl?" I asked clearly upset. “With a prostitute... multiple prostitutes... and eh girlfriends... over the last year.” his voice laced with a mixture of defiance and vulnerability.

He must have seen the shock on my face. "There, see I can't tell you everything. But now you know like you wanted, and you're disgusted with me. "  

I was stunned into silence, the weight of his confession sinking in. Shock, disbelief, and a sense of loss washed over me in waves. I struggled to find words, to make sense of the revelation and the rift it had created between us.  

Ben's words echoed in my mind, a painful reminder of how much had changed between us. His words hung in the air, heavy with finality and a bitter sense of resignation. As he voiced his belief that it was best not to be friends anymore, a wave of numbness washed over me. 

Masking the hurt and confusion that threatened to overwhelm. I tried to brush off his confession, to pretend like it was nothing,” What, why not? B-because you had intercourse. T-that's ok, that’s eh, fine I don’t care.”  

But Ben saw right through my facade. His gaze bore into mine, searching for a connection that felt increasingly elusive. "We've both grown up and changed," Ben continued, his voice tinged with sadness. "Maybe it's time to accept that things aren't the same anymore."  

The realization hit me like a punch to the gut, our friendship, once a cornerstone of my life, was slipping away. I wanted to argue, to plead with him to reconsider, but the words caught in my throat.  

The truth was painfully clear: we had drifted apart. The innocence of childhood had given way to the complexities of adolescence. With a heavy heart, I nodded slowly, unable to summon the strength to fight against the inevitable.  

"I understand," I managed to whisper, my voice barely audible. "I guess... maybe you're right." Ben's expression softened briefly, a flicker of regret passing through his eyes. "I'm sorry, Y/N," he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper.  

The next few days my teary eyes did not go unnoticed by Mr. Harrison. Concern etched his face as he approached me, his instincts urging him to rush to his son to teach him a lesson. But before he could, I stopped him gently, my voice wavering.

"It's not Ben's fault," I managed, trying to compose myself. Mr. Harrison, sensing my turmoil, pulled me in a comforting embrace. His arms provided a momentary refuge from the storm of emotions swirling inside me.  

Confusion mingled with gratitude as I accepted the unexpected gesture of solace. The warmth of his care offered a fleeting sense of security amidst the uncertainty of my friendship with Ben.  

But for the moment his tenderness towards me felt like a warm welcome to ease my pain, so I placed my head against his shoulder. When I closed my eyes I could pretend it was Ben who held me instead of this stone cold man.

-- 

Ben’s POV:  

As Ben stood at the top of the stairs, watching his father comfort her in a gesture that stirred a tumult of emotions within him, he felt a confusing mix of anger, upset, and an unexpected pang of jealousy.  

Seeing her in his father's embrace, seeking solace that Ben himself couldn't provide, knowing his father he never did anything without meaning.

Seeing how his hand caressed her back, how she melted away in his embrace, her head against his shoulder and her eyes closed.

Turning away abruptly, Ben retreated to the solitude of the night. The cool breeze of the garden offered clarity. Trying to understand why he gave her so much warmth.

And then it hit him, she is nice, sweet, caring, honest and beautiful. Just like his mother was. His father must have seen something in her that remembers him of her. Especially now since Y/N no longer looked like a young girl but morphed into a woman.

Under the soft glow of the moon, he wandered aimlessly, trying to make sense of the turmoil within him. He passed by Y/N's window, noticing her lights still on and the faint movements inside the room.  

Curiosity and a longing he couldn't quite define drew him closer, despite the inner conflict raging within him. Standing outside her window, hidden in the shadows of a tree, Ben observed Y/N. She appeared changing her clothes, her expression unreadable as she moved around in the room.  

Ben stood there, frozen, his imagination no longer able to hold back, he longed to be with her, wanting to see what was under those new clothes his father had bought her. Wanting to feel her skin underneath his fingertips, to explore the new curves she developed during this year.  

Curious if making love with Y/N would feel the same, no it had to be different, better. He’d make sure she felt satisfied. While his mind played tricks on him, while he watched the shadow of her move around.  

For a moment, he hesitated, unsure of whether to announce his presence or slip away unnoticed. The sight of Y/N, illuminated by the gentle glow of her lamp, tugged at Ben's heartstrings.  

A part of him yearned to reach out, yet, another part hesitated, weighed down by pride and unresolved emotions. In the quiet of the night, beneath the watchful stars, Ben wrestled with his conflicted feelings. He knew deep down that he couldn't let their friendship slip away without a fight.  

As Ben stood outside Y/N's door, his heart pounding with a mix of nerves and determination, he took a deep breath before knocking softly. Moments later, Y/N opened the door, a hint of surprise crossing her face as she hastily covered herself while wearing a new nightgown, the fabric rich and unfamiliar to Ben.  

His eyes widened in shock at the sight of her. The nightgown, another gift from his father, draped over Y/N's figure, transforming her from the familiar young girl he had known into a vision of maturity and elegance. Showing more of her skin of her than he had ever seen before.  

The realization hit him like a wave, Y/N was no longer the girl he once saw as his childhood friend; she had grown into a woman before his eyes. Y/N hesitated for a moment before stepping aside to let him in, a silent invitation that spoke volumes.  

Ben entered tentatively, the atmosphere heavy with unspoken words and the weight of recent events. "I... I'm sorry," Ben murmured, his voice tinged with regret as he struggled to find the right words. 

"For everything. For pushing you away, for not being there when you needed me. I mean, your mother died, a-and I turned into an asshole. Blaming you for my fathers mistakes. I should have been glad he at least tried to show compassion for you."

His apology hung in the air, filled with the sincerity of someone who had come to terms with his mistakes.  

-- 

Y/N's POV

He met my gaze, searching for forgiveness and hoping against hope that their friendship could be salvaged despite the rift that had formed between us. After a long moment, I finally nodded slowly, a small smile tugging at the corners of my lips. 

"I appreciate that, Ben," I replied softly, my voice carrying a mix of understanding and relief. "I missed you." Ben's heart soared at her words, a flicker of hope igniting within him. "I missed you too, Y/N," he admitted earnestly, the weight of their shared history flooding back. 

"Can we... can we try to fix things? Start over?" I hesitated briefly before nodding again, but I couldn’t hold back a smile. As I settled onto the bed, the familiar comfort of our shared space enveloped us, easing some of the tension that lingered between us.  

As Ben and I started to talk and laugh like we used to, the inner child came back up. Ben mocked his father’s sense of fashion, draping a satin robe with flowers over his shoulders, while he danced to the and talked about all the bars he had been at night, while I giggled and watch him from my bed.

After a short silence, I couldn’t help but to wonder, so I asked. 

“How was it... your first time?” my question hung in the air, delicate yet laden with curiosity and a desire for openness. Ben hesitated, his gaze shifting momentarily as he grappled with the vulnerability of the topic.  

He knew me well enough to sense my sincerity, my genuine interest in understanding his experiences, despite the awkwardness of the subject. He took a seat next to me on the bed. "It was..." Ben started slowly, his voice low and hesitant.  

"It was strange, honestly. I wasn't expecting it to happen, not like that." He glanced at me, gauging my reaction carefully. There was no judgment from me, only a quiet patience and acceptance that encouraged him to continue.  

"It wasn't what I thought it would be," he admitted, his words tinged with a mixture of embarrassment and relief at being able to share his thoughts with me. "I felt... I don't know, like I was just going through the motions. It didn't feel right but then again, it's a really, really addicted feeling."  

I nodded empathetically, listening to every word, my expression softening with understanding. "I'm sorry it wasn't what you hoped for," I murmured sincerely sighed, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders as he opened up to me. My compassion and non-judgmental demeanour offered him a sense of relief he hadn't realized he needed.  

As I listened to Ben describe his longing for a meaningful connection filled with love and passion, my heart raced with a mixture of emotions. His words echoed my own desires, resonating deeply within me, and for a moment, I dared to hope that perhaps we shared more than just friendship.  

"You wanted love and passion," I murmured softly, searching his eyes for confirmation. "Like... like something real." Ben nodded, his expression vulnerable as he spoke. "Yeah," he replied quietly. "I wanted it to be... special, you know? Not just a quick fuck in a bar with a hooker."  

But then, Ben's next words tempered my excitement, casting a shadow of doubt over our shared moment of connection. "But I don't think that is posibble," he continued, his voice tinged with resignation.  

"The girl I want... she probably doesn't want me, not after all my mistakes." Confusion and disappointment warred within me as I processed his confession. Was he talking about someone else, or could it be... me?  

I wanted to ask, to seek clarity in his words, but fear held me back. Fear of ruining the fragile balance we had just found, fear of discovering that I might not be the one he longed for after all. "Why do you say that?" I finally managed to ask, my voice barely above a whisper. 

Uncertainty coloured my words, a mix of hope and trepidation clouding my thoughts. Ben sighed, his gaze dropping momentarily before meeting mine again. "I don't know," he admitted softly.  

"I guess... I'm just not sure if she sees me the way I see her. "His vulnerability touched me deeply, and I struggled to find the right words to ease his doubts. "Maybe she does," I offered tentatively, my heart pounding with the weight of unspoken feelings.  

"Maybe she's just waiting for you to tell her how you feel." Ben's lips curved into a small, rueful smile. "Maybe," he murmured, his tone laced with uncertainty. "But what if she doesn't? What if I ruin everything?"  

I shook my head gently, reaching out to grasp his hand in mine. "You won't know unless you try," I replied earnestly, my voice steady despite the nervous flutter in my stomach. "And... and if she's worth it, she'll understand." 

He stayed quiet for a while, making it very clear to me he wasn’t talking about me, so to ease the awkward situation I ask him. 

"What is she like?" curiosity tinged with a growing sense of unease. Ben's expression softened, a small smile playing on his lips as he began to describe her. "Well," he started slowly, his voice gentle yet filled with conviction, "she's kind, caring, always there when I need her. She's smart, funny, and she has this way of making everything better just by being around."  

As Ben spoke, my heart skipped a beat. "She's beautiful," Ben continued softly, his gaze lingering on mine. "Not just on the outside, but inside too. She has this... this warmth about her that draws people in."  

I swallowed hard, my mind racing with conflicting emotions. Beautiful, of course... why did I even thought it was me. "Is that... how she makes you feel?" I ventured, my voice barely above a whisper, afraid yet desperate yet trying to be a good friend.  

Ben's eyes softened further, a fondness shining through as he met my gaze with sincerity. "She makes me feel alive," he confessed quietly. "Happy, understood, like I can be myself without fear of judgment. She's... she's everything to me."  

Silence hung between us, heavy with unspoken words and the raw intensity of our shared revelation. "She sounds... amazing." I smile shyly. Without a word, Ben moved closer, his gaze never leaving mine. “You are.”  

I felt my heart pounding, a mixture of excitement and nervous anticipation coursing through me. He leaned in, and before I could fully process what was happening, his lips met mine in a gentle, tentative kiss.  

The world seemed to stand still in that moment. The warmth of his touch, the softness of his lips, and the electricity that passed between us all combined into a sensation that was both overwhelming and incredibly right.  

It was as if everything we had ever shared, every moment of our friendship, had been leading up to this. For a second, I was too stunned to react, but then I melted into the kiss, my arms wrapping around him instinctively, pulling him closer.  

Ben's hands gently cupped my face, holding me close as the kiss deepened, filled with emotions we had both kept hidden for so long. "I've wanted to do that for a long time," Ben whispered, his voice husky with emotion. 

I opened my eyes, staring into his perfect green ones. Instinctively I pulled him closed, asking for another kiss, but he held back."Y/N I need to tell you something." I looked confused. "I eh, enlisted in the army, I'm leaving tomorrow."

My heart dropped, just when he confessed his love for me, like I dreamed of since I was a kid, just when I had him back after a year of silence and heartbreaks and now I'm losing him again.

But all I could do was nod and pull him closer, no longer wanting to waste our time talking, but needing to feel him closer. Ben answers me with a heart stopping kiss filled with passion I didn’t even knew excited.  

As our lips were locked on each other’s, his hands started to wander over my nightgown. His hand wandered gently over my back, a shiver of excitement coursed through me. His touch was tentative, yet it sent waves of warmth and anticipation throughout my body.  

The intimacy of the moment was electric, charged with a mixture of newfound desire and the deep bond we shared. His fingers traced light patterns along my spine, and I felt myself leaning closer, drawn to him in a way that felt both thrilling and natural.  

Each brush of his hand seemed to ignite a spark, heightening the intensity of our connection. His lips moved to my neck. "Ben," I whispered breathless, my voice trembling with a mix of excitement and nervousness. I could feel his breath against my skin, his presence overwhelming in the most wonderful way. 

"Is this okay?" he asked softly, his eyes searching mine for reassurance. I nodded, a smile tugging at my lips. "Yes," I replied, my heart racing. With that simple affirmation, the barriers between us seemed to dissolve entirely.  

Ben's hand continued its gentle exploration, his touch growing bolder as our mutual desire became more evident. The sensation was exhilarating, a heady mix of anticipation and the deep emotional connection we had built over the years.  

As we held each other close, the world outside faded away, leaving just the two of us in this intimate, shared moment. His hands were gentle yet assured, exploring the curve of my back and the line of my waist. 

I found myself leaning into him, craving more of the sensations he was awakening within me. Our breathing became synchronized, heavy with unspoken emotions and a shared desire that had finally found its voice. 

The movements became more fluid, more natural, as we let ourselves get lost in the moment. I could feel Ben's heartbeat against my chest as he cover my body with his, his breath rapid and strong, mirroring my own. "Y/N," Ben whispered, his voice husky with emotion.  

"Tell me when to stop." His words hung in the air, a mix of desire and concern. My heart raced, the excitement of the moment making my pulse quicken. I looked into his eyes, seeing the depth of his feelings mirrored in his gaze.  

"I trust you, Ben," I whispered back, my voice trembling slightly. "But I'll tell you if I need to." Ben nodded, his expression softening with understanding and respect. He leaned in, capturing my lips in another kiss that was both tender and passionate.  

His hands continued their exploration, moving over my breasts, kneading over the very light fabric. a soft shaky breath left my lips. "Is this okay?" Ben asked softly, pulling back slightly to look into my eyes. "Yes," I replied, my voice filled with sincerity. "More than okay."  

As Ben's lips moved to my neck once more, a soft moan escaped my lips, unbidden and filled with the raw intensity of the moment. His kisses were gentle yet electrifying, each touch sending waves of sensation through my body.  

I tilted my head slightly, giving him better access, my fingers tangling in his hair. Wanting to pull him closer.

The warmth of his touch and the intoxicating feeling of his lips on my skin. I felt his hands trace a path along my sides, his touch both tender and filled with a growing sense of urgency.  

Each kiss, each caress, seemed to feed a fire. “Oh Ben," I moaned, my voice breathless and filled with a mix of desire and nervous anticipation. He paused, lifting his head to meet my gaze, his eyes dark with emotion.  

"Too much?" he murmured, his voice low and husky. I shook my head slightly, a small smile tugging at my lips. "No," I replied softly. "It's perfect. Don't stop." A smile playing at the corners of his mouth.  

As Ben’s hand travelled down my waist to my thighs, a mix of excitement and uncertainty washed over me. I instinctively held him back, my fingers gripping his wrist gently.  

Ben paused immediately, looking up at me with concern and respect in his eyes. "I'm sorry, it's ok. " I mumbled before letting go of his wrist. “Are you sure, I can stop if you want.” he asked again, very softly, his voice filled with genuine care and hesitation.  

I took a deep breath, my heart pounding in my chest. I could see the need and longing in his eyes, a reflection of my own desires. After a moment's contemplation, I nodded, giving him a small, reassuring smile.  

“I’m sure,” I whispered, letting go of his wrist and allowing his hand to continue its journey. Ben’s touch was gentle and patient, his fingers tracing a path down to my thighs. He moved slowly, his eyes never leaving mine, ensuring I was comfortable and at ease with every step. 

As Ben's hand moved between my legs, a surge of raw need coursed through me. His fingers brushed against me before he moved the fabric of my panties aside I gasped softly, the sensation both overwhelming and deeply intimate.  

I gripped his biceps as I felt him moving slowly inside me. Unable to understand the feeling that washed over me. I only knew I needed more of this. "Y/N," Ben whispered, his voice husky with desire. "Are you okay?"  

I nodded, unable to find the words to express the whirlwind of emotions I was experiencing. Instead, I reached out, pulling him closer, my fingers tangling in his hair. "Yes," I breathed, my voice trembling. "I need you like this." 

With that admission, something shifted between us. Ben's touch grew bolder, more assured, as he responded to my need with a fervour that matched my own. His fingers moved with a skilful precision, eliciting soft moans from my lips as he explored this new and intimate territory. 

As the sensations intensified, I felt myself reaching a feeling I had never experienced before. My body responded instinctively to Ben's touch, arching towards him, seeking more of the pleasure he was giving me.  

The intimacy of the moment was almost overwhelming, but it was also the most exhilarating experience of my life. "Ben," I gasped, my voice filled with a mix of urgency and gratitude. He looked at me, his eyes dark with emotion, and I knew he knew how I felt.  

"I'm here," he murmured, his voice a soothing balm to my heightened senses. "I've got you, let go, it's ok." As Ben continued to move between my legs, I surrendered to the sensations, allowing myself to be completely and utterly present in this shared experience.  

My first orgasm felt out of this world, not really understanding what happened to me, but loving the fact Ben shared it with me. 

-- 

Ben’s POV 

As I felt Y/N's body respond to my touch, her soft moans and whispered breaths filling the room, I was overwhelmed by the intensity of the moment. Her need mirrored my own, a raw and unspoken desire that had been building for years.  

"Ben," she gasped, her voice filled with urgency and something deeper, an invitation, a plea for more. I looked into her eyes, searching for any sign of hesitation. Instead, I found a reflection of my own longing, her gaze filled with trust and a need that matched my own. 

"Are you sure?" I asked, my voice husky with emotion, my heart pounding in my chest. Her nod was small but resolute, her eyes never leaving mine. "Yes," she whispered, her voice trembling but firm.  

"I want all of you, tonight." The weight of her words hit me like a tidal wave, a mix of exhilaration and responsibility. I wanted nothing more than to give her everything she asked for, to make this moment as perfect as possible.  

I leaned in, capturing her lips in a kiss that was both passionate and filled with the depth of my feelings for her. As our kiss deepened, my hands moved over her body, exploring every curve and contour.  

Her responses, the way she arched towards me, the soft sounds she made, only fuelled my desire. I wanted to memorize every detail, to etch this moment into my memory forever. Her eyes shone with emotion, and she pulled me closer, her fingers tangling in my hair. 

With a sense of reverence, I began to undress her, my movements slow and deliberate, wanting to save every moment. She did the same, her hands trembling slightly as she helped remove my clothes.

The vulnerability of the moment was palpable, but it was also incredibly beautiful. When we were finally skin to skin, I paused, taking in the sight of her, the way the soft light played over her body, highlighting every curve.  

She was breathtaking, and I felt a surge of gratitude and awe that this incredible person wanted me as much as I wanted her. "You're beautiful," I whispered, my voice filled with awe.  

She blushed, a shy smile playing at her lips, and in that moment, I knew there was no going back. As I deepened out, the sensation was overwhelming, a mix of pleasure and a deep, abiding connection that went beyond the physical.  

Every movement, every touch, was filled with love and a sense of unity that I had never experienced before. The world outside faded away, leaving only the two of us, she felt differently than my pervious experiences, better, softer, warmer.

And as we moved together, I could feel Y/N's body responding to every touch, every kiss, the tension building in her with each passing moment.  

Her breath came in quick, shallow gasps, and her fingers gripped my shoulders, her nails digging in just slightly as the intensity of the moment grew. "Ben," she moaned, her voice trembling with a mix of urgency and need. I could see the anticipation in her eyes, a beautiful blend of vulnerability and desire.  

I kissed her deeply, feeling the connection between us strengthen, our movements becoming more synchronized, more fluid. When she reached her peak again, it was like watching a wave crest and crash, her entire body tensing for a moment before releasing in a shuddering, blissful wave of pleasure.  

Her back arched, pressing her body against mine, and a soft, breathless moan escaped her lips, a sound filled with pure ecstasy. Her eyes closed, her lips parted as she rode the waves of her climax, her fingers tightening their grip on my shoulders.  

I could feel the tremors running through her, the way her body pulsed with each surge of pleasure, and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever witnessed. As the intensity of her orgasm began to subside, her body relaxed, melting into mine.  

Her breaths came in soft, uneven gasps, and she opened her eyes to look at me, a radiant smile playing at her lips. "That was..." she began, her voice trailing off, unable to find the words to describe the overwhelming sensation. "Good" I replied softly, brushing a strand of hair from her face, my heart swelling with love and admiration for her.  

"I felt it too." Ben rolled beside her, but she knew he wasn't satisfied like she was, not yet. His eyes didn't have the same spark she had, instinctively she straddled him. Ben saw her fully naked body on top of him, admiring her while she moved.  

Her hands pressed down on his chest while she moved. His hands helped her, guiding her. His heart pounded in his chest, his breath coming in ragged gasps as he surrendered to the intense sensations coursing through him. When he finally reached his peak, it was a release of pent-up passion and love.  

He felt a wave of euphoria wash over him, his body trembling with the intensity of his climax.

It wasn't just physical pleasure; it was a deep emotional connection with Y/N that heightened the experience to a profound level. He held her in his arms, He pressed kisses to her forehead. 

-- 

Many years later 

As Ben stood in the vault he had in his room at Vought, he was reading an old diary, with a handwriting he could recognise out of a thousand different ones.  

“I never felt more alive than that night. Ben and I made love, real love. He made me a woman that night. I will never stop loving him. I knew he would leave in the morning, but our connection was made, built to survive anything. Even the war.”  

His lips trembled moving to the last page of the journal.  

“Ben was supposed to come home today, home from war. I guess his plans got delayed. He believes this will make his dad proud, I wished he was satisfied with the idea of me being proud of him for who he is.  

But I accepted it, knowing he will return, and we can finally start our life together outside of the shadows of this cold house like we talked about that night while he held me in his arms. 

He hasn’t written as much as he used to, but I know he is working hard and I'm proud! I just hope he’ll be home soon, so I can hold him in my arms all night.”   

He could see how the rest of the journal was empty, ripped out. But he didn’t need to read to know what followed.

He never returned home to her. He failed her.

“What are you reading?” Ben rolled his eyes, sighing, hearing that woman’s voice. He turned to Countess. “None of your business.” He answered putting the diary back with the other artefacts he placed there. But Crimson Countess didn’t give up so easily.  

“Come on babe, show me?” When she wanted to reach for the journal, he grabbed her wrist hurtful tight. “What part of not your business don’t you understand?” Ben growled. “If you ever touch any of this stuff, I'll fucking kill you, understood?”  

All she could do was nod. “Now, why are you here?” She looked in his eyes seeing nothing but blank hatred, knowing this only made him more dangerous, “Edgar, he’s waiting for you to start the meeting.”

With a low growl he left the safe and walked with her to the conference room. While walking down the hall he couldn’t help but feel that part of him, part of his being, and his heart was locked away.

Locked away in that safe, together with what little he had left of Y/N.  

--

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[aclockmaker]

steddie established relationship argument (mild on the actual arguing) under the cut. ~1700 words. cw discussion of having kids. no teaser because it starts out kind of E rated lol

also on ao3

“Pretty baby,” Eddie said, nose in the back of Steve’s hair, dragging against his scalp. “You’re so sweet, you were so sweet with Emily earlier.”

They’d been playing with Nancy and Jonathan’s 3-month old for the first time.

“Oh yeah?” Steve said, grinding the swell of his ass back against Eddie.

“Yes,” Eddie rumbled, lips against a shivery part of Steve’s neck.

After nearly a year of dating, Steve was used to this flavor of praise from Eddie, but it still worked to calm something deep inside him. And it was exactly because he did feel calm that he said, “So do you finally wanna talk about it?”

Eddie made an inquisitive sound into Steve’s skin.

“Eddie. You know,” Steve said gently, holding himself still. He thought if he played his cards right he might be able to get Eddie to mess around a little, ask him if he wanted to get a baby put in him, that sort of thing.

But when Eddie just kept frowning into Steve’s neck Steve went on—“Kids?”

“Uh huh. What about them?”

“Come on,” Steve said, squirming and then flipping over when Eddie let up.  “You know I want kids, right?” He said it softly, because of course Eddie did know.

Except Eddie froze, just a little, and the whole thing began to feel decidedly unsexy. “Uh,” he said, a notch too loud for the situation.

“Okay, not right,” Steve said, mostly to himself. He’d thought, for sure, that he’d been making no secret of it.

“I mean,” Eddie said, trying to recover. “I totally, yeah, I guess, I know you—like kids and everything.” He chewed his lip like he knew it was lame. Steve rarely saw him so wrong-footed.

“Well, yeah,” Steve said. “I do, but—like last weekend, remember when that dad was arguing with his kids about milkshakes? And I said I wouldn’t make a big deal out of a milkshake with my kids—what’s the point?”

Eddie sputtered. “Okay, that was a hypothetical! I thought! I just thought—and you never said—” Eddie shook his head. “Oh. Six little nuggets.”

“Yes, as you’re so fond of reminding me.” Steve rolled his eyes to show he was joking.

“But, Steve,” Eddie said, sitting up.

Slowly, not wanting to do it, Steve followed.

“I mean—what does this mean? You would want to, what? Marry a woman?” At least Eddie seemed baffled by it. 

“Don’t be ridiculous. I mean I want to do it with you, obviously. Dumbass,” Steve added for good measure.

“With me,” Eddie said, not able to hide the way his eyes went wide.

“No, with Jonathan,” Steve said, annoyed. “Obviously you, man, who else am I in a serious relationship with?”

“Okay, Jesus, give me two minutes to catch up here!”

Guilt made Steve want to let him off the hook but he didn’t think he should have to, really. Steve frowned at his lap, feeling miserable and stuck. He had the unpleasant sense that this wasn’t going anywhere good.

“Is it really so bad?” Steve asked.

“I don’t know!” Eddie said. He stood up, paced restlessly to the opposite side of the room and back. He was wearing only a pair of boxers and he reminded Steve of a caged animal before he even started throwing on his clothes. 

Steve sat quietly in bed as he dressed only partly because he knew it was the thing he could do that would annoy Eddie the most. And Eddie was the one who was leaving, he deserved it. He also did it because he really didn’t know what else to do. Begging Eddie to stay wouldn’t do any good. They both needed space sometimes.

“I don’t even—it’s not that easy,” Eddie said, picking up his wallet and then putting it down again to punctuate it. “It wouldn’t be that easy for us.”

“I get that,” Steve said carefully. “But I thought… it doesn’t have to be a baby. Maybe an older kid.”

“Steve,” Eddie said, looking almost choked up. “Can we—talk about this later?” His voice had turned brusque. “I just need to—clear my head.”

“Yeah, course,” Steve said, feeling stupid and vulnerable still in the t-shirt he slept in while Eddie was dressed. The fight had gone out of him. Eddie just needed to deal with the revelation in his own way. He’d come back. Steve owed it to him to be patient after, apparently, springing this on him.

Eddie paused at the door. “I do love you.”

“I know. You too.”

And then the door was shutting behind him. Steve’s fingers itched to call Robin but for the first time it felt so personal that he decided against it. It was personal for Eddie, too. It belonged to both of them, and, for right now at least, no one else.

Now, if Eddie wasn’t back by the morning, all bets were off.

Steve gave up on sleeping after a frustrating 45 minutes and resigned himself to sitting up at least until exhaustion won out with worry. And right now, worry was putting up a good fight.

Steve put the water on for tea. He wasn’t stupid—he knew that Eddie might not come back. Or, well, he’d surely come back to the apartment either way but he might not ever really come back to Steve after this.

They were serious about each other. A consequence of the years of charged friendship before they’d so much as kissed, maybe, or just a consequence of how well they usually worked together. They talked about spending the rest of their lives together. Something like whether or not they each wanted kids was a big deal—the kind of thing that changed things. Steve had given Eddie an ultimatum. Part of him wanted to backtrack, call Eddie up and say just kidding, I can be flexible about this. But he couldn’t, and besides, he didn’t know where to call (except for how, realistically, he knew Eddie was at his uncle’s or Jeff’s place.)

In the morning, Steve called Robin.

“Oh, babe,” Robin said when Steve explained it, her voice crackling just a little down the line from New York where she was always up early. “Did you sleep at all?”

“About four hours,” Steve admitted. He’d been too wound up for any more and he was sure as hell feeling it now, exhausted and eyes aching. He hadn’t cried, and he spared a thought for the fact that maybe he was kidding himself by not really examining the worst case scenario. “Do you think—I mean, obviously this isn’t a good sign. That he left. But do you think there’s a chance or am I delusional?”

Robin snorted. “There’s more than a chance. He loves you, obviously. But—yeah, he might decide he wants to end things. We know that’s an option.” She said it gently enough that now Steve did feel a little hot behind the eyes.

Today was a Sunday. Their only plans were hanging out with Jonathan and Nancy and Emily more while they were in town. If Steve had to go see them alone—

“I wish there was something I could do,” Steve said miserably. And then the front door opened and there was Eddie, close across the small apartment, looking a little out of breath in the yellow morning light that was pouring in through the window, too cheerful for Steve’s heavy heart. “Oh, shit, Rob, I have to go.”

“Is it—”

“Yeah. Love you.”

“I love you, call me, that’s a threat—”

Steve hung up the phone.

“Uh,” Eddie said. “Robin?”

“Yeah.”

“Hi, Robin,” Eddie said dutifully toward the hung-up phone.

“I’ll tell her,” Steve said, so giddy with relief that Eddie was back that the nothing joke made him want to laugh. “Hi.”

Eddie looked at him. “Hi.”

Steve took a breath. “I’m sorry. For bringing it up during sex, and all. That was stupid.” He’d been feeling guilty some more and that, at least, was a legitimate reason for it.

But Eddie just shrugged. “No, it’s…” He searched for the word. “You thought I knew.” He wore his hair short these days, and it looked like he’d been running his fingers through it.

“Yeah. Eddie, listen—”

“No, just—give me a second,” Eddie said. And then he was going down on one knee, pulling something out of his pocket and holding it out to Steve. It was a simple gold band. It looked well-worn, but it shone in the light.

He cleared his throat. “Steve, I—“ his voice broke. “I’m sorry I don’t have a ring box. I went to the pawn shop as soon as it opened and I didn’t want to wait for another place to—I love you. I got scared when you started talking about kids, because it seems so big. And I just didn’t realize you felt that way, even though, okay, I guess I should’ve. But the more I thought about it the more what really scared me was losing you. I love the idea of you as a dad. You’d make any kid so lucky to have you. I can’t believe you want to do it with me, but if you really do—I’m open to it. So—will you?”

“We can’t even get married, though,” Steve reminded him, perilously close to tears again.

“Psh,” Eddie said. “Fuck the government, I’ll marry you anyway.”

“Eddie, get up,” Steve said, and then the tears were coming. He swiped at his eyes while Eddie stood hesitantly. “Save it, okay? Save the ring. I don’t want it to be like this—to end a fight. I want it to be its own thing. And it’s too soon anyway. It hasn’t even been a year. But—” Steve grabbed Eddie’s hand before he could put the ring back in his pocket. “Yes. Of course I want to marry you.”

Eddie touched his knuckles to Steve’s cheek, pushed aside a tear. “Getting some mixed signals,” he said, looking between Steve’s eyes with his own so full of love it hurt to see. “I’m sorry. And for worrying you.”

Steve sniffed. “I was worried but—I knew you’d come back. I know you.”

“I know you do,” Eddie said. He was still holding the ring. “Do you want to at least try it on? You could wear it on a chain or something—”

Steve put the ring on, and he didn’t take it off until the day in Joyce’s backyard when Eddie held it safe in his pocket until it was time for him to put it back on Steve in front of everyone they loved in the world.

[stevie-petey]

hiiiiiiiii honey <3 could we get a blurb about bug telling steve about jonathan’s outburst towards her after he took the pictures of nancy and steve’s reaction to learning about it???? it would be so so appreciated by me <3 you’re the best ever <3 MWAH

(i am being held against my will to write this jonathan sweetie im so sorry) (i love u val) (u are evil)

i know this isnt necessarily what u MEANT but ,,, ive been dying to expand upon bugs kindness and how it may seem annoying and pathetic, but its hers ! its her kindness !!!

enjoy <3

"no way you guys havent wanted to strangle each other at least once." steve remarks one day as he watches you and jonathan work side by side at the cash register.

jonathan had been bored today and decided to join you and steve at work, something that you're very happy about, honestly.

"oh, ive definitely wanted to strangle jonathan," you say, writing down a new shipment receipt while the boy next to you doodles.

steve rolls his eyes. "old married couple squabbling doesnt count. im talking, like, full on betrayal and hurt here. you guys are always so... you, and it has to be an act."

jonathan snorts. "shouldve seen the fights we had last year. surprised y/n didnt kill me with her bare hands."

"i dont believe you."

"no, hes right." you look up at steve. "he threw a jacket at my face last year and then told me we werent family the night he took those pictures of nancy. then cried in my arms like a day later."

steve stares at you, shocked.

"i also then slept in nancys bed and lied about it. and tried leaving you behind a few times."

"that you did," you flick jonathans ear, causing him to wince in pain. "you deserved that."

"i did."

during this entire exchange, steve hasnt said a single word. hes still stunned, baffled by the fact that jonathan could be so cruel to someone so wonderful.

"wait a second," he looks between you and jonathan. "and youre still friends?"

"yeah." you both say at the same time.

steve cant fucking believe it. you do anything and everything for jonathan, that much is obvious, and sure. steve has seen jonathan do small acts of kindness towards you, devote the same back, but to throw a jacket at you and belittle you? and now here he is, joking about it alongside you. as if it was all okay in the end.

"youre too nice sometimes, y/n." the words leave steves lips before he can stop them. once he realizes what hes said, he looks up at jonathan and panics. "sorry, man. im sure you guys talked it out and... yeah."

jonathan shrugs. "no, youre right. she is and i was dick."

"im right here, you know."

steve winces. "sorry."

"its fine, honestly." you go back to scribbling shipment orders. "i am indeed too nice, but i dont ever really see the point in holding a grudge? i mean, jonathan apologized and i understood the stress he was under. sure, it didnt erase all the hurt he caused, but after almost dying immediately after being mad at him for not including me in something... i dont know. it felt silly to hold onto that anger after. childish, even."

jonathan and steve share a look, for once both seeming to think the same thing.

shes too good.

you hate that they do this. you hate that people view your kindness as a weakness. after the hell youve been through, long before monsters even came to hawkins, youve learned the hard way just how rare kindness is.

now you try to be kind to everything and everyone, no matter what it may cost you.

the kindness is yours, no one elses.

and if that makes you weak, then at least it made you better.

you tear two pieces paper from your notebook, scrunch them up into balls, and then throw them at steve and jonathan. "stop pitying me. im kind and i love that aspect of myself. i dont care if it makes me vulnerable or pathetic. its a piece of me, and i wouldnt change it. if you dont like it, then that belittles me even more than emotional outbursts ever could."

jonathan sighs. "youre right, bug. youre a very kind and lovely person and its what makes you a joy to be around, paper balls and all."

steve plays along. "definitely a better super power than spider-man, dare i say."

"okay, lets not get ahead of ourselves now," you giggle, appreciative of both the boys. they may not understand or like the way you view the world, but theyre at least trying.

its all you could ask for.

even if steve later on that day pulls you aside to whisper, "i think i can kick jonathans ass this time, if you ever need it."

and its enough.

[kepnerandavery]

My favourite quotes from On the Way to the Wedding..

1. “It was only a matter of time before he, too, found the woman of his dreams and settled down to be fruitful, multiply, and take on such baffling hobbies as papier-mâché and the collection of nutmeg graters.”

Nutmeg Graters?? I can’t 😂

2. “Where is the scintillating Lord Bridgerton?” he asked. “Oh, somewhere. I don’t know. We’ll find each other at the end of the day, that is all that matters.”

This book is every Kanthony stan’s dream follow-up to TVWLM 😭 I love that we got little glimpses into their marriage to see how they've evolved as a couple and people.

3. “She was without artifice, the sort of girl a man could trust. Rather like his sisters, he supposed, with a keen wit and a sharp sense of humor. Lucy Abernathy would never inspire poetry, but she would make a very fine friend.”

Bahahaha. Did he just friendzone her in his head? 😂

4. “It was nothing. She was nothing. No, that was not fair. She was something. Quite a bit, actually. But not for him.”

Ohhh Gregory! My poor, sweet, innocent, naive Gregory 🤣

5. “Lord Fennsworth took one look at the duo (more at one than the other, and suffice it to say that blood was not thicker than unrequited love), and he murmured, “Friday it is.”

Props to Gregory for being perceptive about someone’s feelings, if not his own 😂

6. “At least she seemed rather more like herself. The world seemed a bit steadier with Lucy Abernathy yipping along like a terrier. He’d felt almost off-balance when she’d been staring morosely at the trees.”

Signals!! He’s missing all of the darn signals. How?? 🙆‍♀️

7. “Auctioning your friend off to the highest bidder. You’ll be well-practiced by the time you have a daughter.” She jumped to her feet, her eyes flashing with anger and indignation. “That is a terrible thing to say. My most important consideration has always been Hermione’s happiness. And if she can be made happy by an earl . . . who happens to be my brother . . .” Oh, brilliant. Now she was going to try to match Hermione with Fennsworth. Well done, Gregory. Well done, indeed.”

Hahaha, Lucy is too nice for her own good. And Gregory just keeps making things worse for himself at every given opportunity 😂

8. “Didn’t you wish for time for yourself?” she asked, softly . . . so softly it was almost a whisper. Slowly, he shook his head. “I did,” he said, sounding as if the words were coming to him at that very moment, as if the thought itself was new and not quite what he had expected. “I did,” he said again, “but now I don’t.”

My heart 🥺 💕

9. “She later told Gregory that he had still not forgiven her for costuming him as Cupid at the Billington fancy dress ball the previous year.”

I will so pissed if I don't get to see Anthony dressed up as Cupid on the show. I simply must see it 🤣

10. “Surely she would not come over an hour late. If nothing else, Lady Lucinda would not have tolerated it. She was clearly a punctual sort. In a good way.As opposed to an insufferable, nagging way. He smiled to himself. She wasn’t like that.”

Omg, someone needs to hit him in the head!!! How is he missing this? 😫

11. “What happened to you? Are you all right? Did someone—” His grip loosened slightly as he looked frantically around. “Who did this?” he demanded. “Who made you—”

You’re a little too concerned about her safety, aren’t you, Gregory?? 😂

12. “And I didn’t have my mask, which made me stick out a bit.” “Like a mushroom?” “Like a—?” He looked at her dress and nodded at the color. “A blue mushroom.”

Trust him to be even cuter when he's drunk 🥺

13. “I will walk you to the stairs, then.” Lucy knew better than to argue. He would not relent. His voice was quiet, but it had an edge she wasn’t quite certain she’d heard there before. “And I will remain there until you reach your room.” “That’s not necessary.” He ignored her. “Knock three times when you do so.” “I’m not going to—” “If I don’t hear your knock, I will come upstairs and personally assure myself of your welfare.”

Omg. He's sooo cute 🥰

14. “I’m not, he thought, and he realized that it was true. He had a sudden flash of his life married to Hermione Watson, and he was.. Bored. Good God, how was it he was only just now realizing it? He and Miss Watson were not suited at all, and in truth, he had made a narrow escape.”

"A narrow escape" haha 🤣 🤣 At least he realized it rather quickly. Granted, his brothers have set the bar quite low when it comes to life-altering realizations lol

15. “And Anthony was worse. He didn’t even have to say anything. His mere presence was usually enough to make Gregory feel that he was somehow not living up to the family name. It was difficult to make one’s way in the world with the mighty Lord Bridgerton constantly looking over one’s shoulder. As far as Gregory could determine, his eldest brother had never made a mistake in his life.”

Oh, if only he knew.. Looks like Anthony hid his devilry from the younger siblings quite well. Props to Benedict and Colin for covering for him 😂

16. “The way she was looking at him, her hand on his arm. She’d been clutching him, and for a moment it had almost felt like she needed him. He could be her rock, her center. He had never been anyone’s center.”

Awwww 🥺

17. “She turned. She turned, and she saw him. Her eyes widened, and her lips parted, and it hit him squarely in the chest—It was good to see her.”

I would have found this so romantic if I wasn't so mad at him at this point 🥲

18. “He simply liked Lucy. Considered her a friend. And he wished for her to have a bit of fun. It was admirable, really.

Haha, sure Jan 🙄 It totally doesn't seem like you're in love with her. No one goes so out of their way to help friends. He would've never gone to Violet if she wasn't so special to him 🥺

19. “Anthony is exceedingly generous,” Gregory said quietly. “Yes, he is, isn’t he?” Violet said, smiling. “With his money and his time. He is quite like your father in this way.” She looked at him with wistful eyes. “I am so sorry you never knew him.” “Anthony was a good father to me.” Gregory said it because he knew it would bring her joy, but he also said it because it was true.”

My heart.. Anthony was so worried about living up to their father, and yet he has managed to fulfill all of his duties to perfection. Edmund would be so proud of him 😭

20. “I know what it means to work for something,” he said in a quiet voice.”

He's got so hurt by her implication.. And when Gregory is hurt, I'm hurt. It's a simple law now 😫

21. “I have found that most men do not notice anything that is not clearly spelled out, anyway.” “Even your sons.” “Especially my sons.”

Haha It's a universal truth 😂

22. “And then she saw him. Lucy saw him. He saw it first in her eyes, which widened and sparkled, and then in the curve of her lips. She smiled. For him. It filled him. To near bursting, it filled him. It was just one smile, but it was all he needed.”

Sighhhhhh 🥰

23. “His fingers gripped hers when they should have just brushed by. She looked up and saw that he was gazing at her. ”

Ohhh... How scandalous lol 😏

24. “Hyacinth regarded her with a delighted smile. “I like you,” she said slowly, as if she were deciding upon it right then and there. “You are wrong, of course, but I like you, anyway.” She turned to her brother. “I like her.”

Hyacinth literally showed up out of nowhere towards the end of the book and stole the show 😂

25. “He and Lucinda Abernathy were meant to be husband and wife. Hers was the face he was supposed to gaze upon over eggs and bacon and kippers and cod and toast every morning. A snort of laughter pressed through his nose, but it was that nervous, desperate kind of laughter, the sound one made when the only alternative was to cry. Lucy had to marry him, if only so that they could eat masses and masses of food together every morning.”

And the most endearing Bridgerton sibling award goes to... 🥰

26. “Her eyes glistened as they met his. In the dim light of the night, they looked a dark, dark gray, and achingly sad. He could imagine the entire world there, in the depths of her gaze. Everything he needed to know, everything he might ever need to know—it was there, within her.”

My man is soo wrecked in the best way possible 🥺

27. “Let me kiss you,” he whispered. “One more time. Let me kiss you one more time, and if you tell me to go, I swear that I will.”

The respect!!! No wonder Lucy fell in love with him so quickly 😭

28. “The night seemed to dance, sparkling and tingling, as if the air itself understood that nothing would ever be the same. Dawn was waiting on the other side of the horizon, and already the stars were beginning to look less bright in the sky. If he could have frozen time, he would have done so. Never had he experienced a single moment that was so magical, so.. full. Everything was there, everything that was good and honest and true. And he finally understood the difference between happiness and contentment, and how lucky and blessed he was to feel both, in such breathtaking quantities.”

Awwww! Happiness is seeing your favourite fictional men so utterly and hopeless in love 😭

29. “It was simply impossible to enjoy one of nature’s small miracles and not kiss her.”

Why is he soo cute??? 🥺

30. “I have sworn in my heart to protect you,” he said, his voice passionate and fierce and maybe even a little bit revelatory. Because today, he realized, was the day he truly became a man. After twenty-six years of an amiable and, yes, aimless existence, he had finally found his purpose. He finally knew why he had been born. “I have sworn it in my heart,” he said, “and I will swear it before God just as soon as we are able. And it is like acid in my chest to leave you alone.”

She's so darn lucky. She wasn't even looking for love and somehow found the best of the best 🥰

31. “Gregory had told Colin everything, even down to the events of the night before. He did not like telling tales of Lucy, but one really could not ask one’s brother to sit in a tree for hours without explaining why.”

What are brothers for, if not to sit in trees for hours in front of their sibling's girlfriend's houses? 😂

32. “Listen to me. I love you.” Her eyes filled with tears. “I love you,” he said again. “There is nothing in this world or the next that could ever make me stop loving you.”

Oh my god, whenever he told her he loved her an year was added to my life.. It's so damn adorable 🥲

33. “He would try with everything he had to make sure that they both came through this alive and unhurt, but if there was a choice—if only one of them was to walk out the door.. It would be Lucy.”

Chivalry at its finest 😭

34. “Nine children. Nine. It was only one less than ten. Which possessed two digits. If he did this again, he would be in the double-digits of fatherhood.”

Haha, Lucy wanted a large family, and Greg certainly didn't disappoint lol 😂

[infini-tree]

episodic - part 3

< back | next >

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

Summary: It's business as usual. At least it looks like it, and that has to count for something. The boys do a bit of arts and crafts. Krupp takes a step back.

A/N: literally the worst part of writing fic for CU is trying to think of pranks. they’re up there with choreographing fight scenes. also these next chapters were brought to you by: me referencing the movie’s art book i got as a gift. Locations And Fascinating Objects section my beloved…

this chapter's scene went through a lot of shuffling-- melvin was supposed to be in this one. but alas, once this was finalized he was pushed back into the next chapter. ideally. at the earliest. its been almost 4 years, i swear he actually has a part to play in this AU, he's technically part of the core secondary cast--

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

Back in the present day, the boys snuck into the art room. Even now, there wasn’t a proper class for it in Jerome Horwitz, despite The Prank For Good. But because of it, Krupp never had the thought to put it under lock and key again. The doors still remained unlocked for any kid that needed it. And George and Harold had a big need. In fact, they had been caching away supplies when no one was looking.

Captain Underpants trailed behind them; he looked at the room and gave a small nod, murmuring something about being “back at the start”.

“What will we be doing this time, sidekicks?” He clapped his hands together. “Oh! I could try and ask for a carnival again–”

“NO!” both of them shouted. The hero jumped up in surprise and stayed in a low hover.

George was the quicker of the two to regain composure. “No, no– we’re doing something different.”

“Oh.”

Harold unpacked the contents of his bag. There was a ridiculous amount of flour and bottles around them, along with other plastic pails and shovels.

“Ooh, are we making a cake? Can I decorate it?” Captain asked.

George sighed. “It’s not for a cake.”

“Well, what is it for?” 

Harold dumped a bunch of flour and oil into the largest bucket with the glee reserved for children about to make a huge mixture of stuff. “Sand!”

When the hero continued to look baffled, George cut in. “With Krupp instating the grade-wide assignment gauntlet, we have to retaliate with the exact opposite of that.”

“…Recess?”

“Close!” Harold began to mix the concoction with a plastic shovel. “Summer vacation!”

“And we need to make a lot to really sell the beach vibe.”

“Oh…” Captain nodded with the confidence of someone who had no idea what that meant. He knelt down and gave a curious sniff at the flour sand, catching the faint whiff of some sort of cooking oil.  mix his own bucket the other boy handed to him.

To make a long story short, they managed to create enough of it to create a sizable layer in at least two classrooms. They hauled the first half of it to Guided’s classroom–or rather, Captain flew it over in record time. He began to push all the desks back and started to stack them high up against the edges of the wall. It reminded Harold of that one time he showed George a boardwalk on a faded postcard, tall buildings looming over sandy beaches.

“Why only two?” Captain asked as he stacked some of the desks on the teacher’s desk. “Why not make the whole school a beach?”

The boys perked up from their efforts to place the sand evenly across the classroom floor.

“‘Cause the first big tests are in Ms. Guided and Ribble’s classrooms,” Harold said.

“We’d have loved to do something big," George explained as he scattered the beach toys. "Really put the last big prank that happened here to shame–”

“But we had to improvise. Go for lots of smaller ones for the first part of this plan, you know?”

“First part?” Captain echoed. 

“Yeah!” Harold continued, ushering them all out of the room. Captain followed in a low hover, and George swept over the remaining footprints with a hand. Looking back at their work, it looked like no one was ever in the room.

“The first bit is to wear all the teachers and Krupp down. And then–”

“Bam.” he punched into his own open palm. “That’s where you come in!”

Captain tilted his head. “I thought this was where I came in?”

“What? No– I mean, we appreciate your help, but you have a bigger part to play here.”

“I do?” he asked.

“We figured you’d want to get back at Krupp, right?” George said. 

Captain was silent, his expression dumbfounded. 

“With enough pressure, he’ll back off from you and he’ll back off with all the sudden assignments!” Harold clarified. “It’ll be great.”

“We’re not sure how long he’s planning on making everyone miserable, but we’re planning for the long game.”

That seemed to make things more murky for him but the curiosity still remained. He tilted his head with furrowed brows, as if trying to figure out the connection between the two facts. “…How long, exactly?” 

“As long as it takes.” Harold gave him a good natured punch to the side. “Now come on, let’s get the other classroom set up.”

The boys grabbed his hands and led him back to the art room, chatting about what else they could do.

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

The school didn’t know what hit them. 

Later that day, the fourth graders enjoyed the slices of beaches in the pair of classrooms. They made their sandcastles and moats as the teachers tried– and failed– to get their papers from their desks buried under their own students’ desks. 

And on the day after that, there was the petting zoo in the math classrooms on the same day a calculator-less test on long division was meant to happen. It was no tiger, but the kids enjoyed petting the sheep. For extra salt in the wound, there were numbers drawn in bright colors on their wool. 

Corralling the animals out was one thing. Finding out they were only Sheeps #1-6 and 8 was another, leaving all the teachers to scramble to find the last sheep of the set for the past few hours.

Apparently, the third time wasn’t the charm as George and Harold were called into the principal’s office. When they walked in, he had never bothered to close one of the desk drawers, clearly embroiled in whatever work principals do. Krupp was faced away from them, yelling into the phone.

“How many times do I have to explain it to you, there probably isn’t a Sheep #7– are you falling asleep counting them?” He turned to face them and grimaced. “I’ll get back to you.” 

He hung up the phone, glaring at them as they took their respective seats. 

“Care to explain the last few days?”

Harold shifted in his seat as he gave a glance to the other boy. “We have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“We were a bit too busy dealing with the sudden wave of assignments and tests to try anything,” George added with a shrug.

“Don’t play innocent with me. The gaps in my memory are extremely obvious.” He waggled an accusatory finger at them.

“Like we said, we were busy–”

“What– watching him get bit by sheep yesterday?!” He held up his other arm filled with band aids of various sizes.

George leaned over to the other boy and whispered, “Man, they can be really vicious, huh?” 

Krupp slammed his fists onto his desk. He opened his hands. Closed them. Before pushing himself off his seat to look down at them. “Whether you’ll actually admit it, I’ll cut to the chase. Stop whatever you’re trying to do.”

“If it was us, why would we? You started it.”

“Oh, hah–” He let out an incredulous, breathless laugh at that. “I started it? You’re one to talk after all you’ve done to me. You should be grateful I don’t just hold you back right now for that comment!”

Harold was unmoved. “Man, you got so much worse– I didn’t think that was possible.”

“Oh, I can do so much worse after your little breaking and entering stunt,” he shot back. “Invading my privacy, looking into things you shouldn’t–”

“So you admit you were talking to him.”

“Now I never said anything about talking, have I?”

George and Harold leveled a glare at him, refusing to give him any confirmation or satisfaction that he was right. “So that is why you cracked down on the entire fourth grade, huh?”

“Or maybe it has to do with the fact that I’m losing sleep over mysterious injuries!” The boys wanted to speak up, but he refused to give them that. “And– and, seeing the school be nearly destroyed multiple times a week.”

“Not like you really cared about the school before,” George grumbled.

Krupp spluttered furiously, turning a new shade of red in the process. “Says the children who keep on endangering it and wasting its resources!"

“We’re saving the school!”

“From problems you made up.” He slowly made his way around his desk to them. “Is that why you made me your little stooge? Were you just tired and wanted to feel important in your little superhero fantasy? Or was getting rid of me the main motivation here?”

George stood up from his chair. “Oh, if we could have, we would have!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, it suddenly felt like the office had turned somewhat askew. Gone was the red in Krupp’s face and gone was the anger– if anything, he looked like he had been slapped in the face. His mouth opened. Closed. Nothing.

The boys were suddenly aware of the clock ticking, now that it was completely silent. George couldn’t help but be reminded of the time he said something that crossed some unseen line with his mom.

And just as quickly as the conversation was fishtailing out of what any of them were used to, the principal clambered for any sense of control.

“I’ll deal with the both of you later.” He put up a hand to rub his temples– and conveniently hid his eyes. “Get out.”

Harold blinked. “What–”

“NOW!” He whipped his arm to point at the door.

They stumbled out of their seats and ran without a second thought.

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

For the rest of the last class of the school day, Harold was sitting on pins and needles as he looked at the clock. While most kids looked at it expectantly for the final bell to ring, right now he was dreading it.  He figured George was doing the same.

Krupp getting the jump on them was a matter of when today , not if, especially when he was as mad as he was earlier.

Five minutes. He glanced to the front of the class. Even Rected was struggling with the new mandate to increase kids’ work. Which, he guessed, made sense– more work for them meant more stuff the teachers had to look at.

Two minutes.

Speaking of work, he was quickly scribbling out some ideas for the next issues. Though he couldn’t help but let his mind wander off to the other prank plans they had– he figured by the way Rected was pulling at his hair, they can bring Captain in for the cherry on top by the end of next week–

The speakers screeched to life. There was a beat of silence long enough for someone to ask if Krupp called an announcement on accident, until–

“Pop science fair, end of this week,” he said tersely. “Hope you can wow the teachers, since this is now a good chunk of your mark. How much? That’s the ‘pop’ part of that.”

The kids began to groan and slam their heads on their desks. Even more heads fell on their desks as another screech echoed through the school.

“You have George Beard and Harold Hutchins to thank for that. That will be all.”

The bell rang. One by one, everyone turned his direction, some shocked, others confused, many furious. Even Mr. Rected gave a baffled look.

After dodging the onslaught of kids ready to hound him or worse due to the announcement, he found George running down the hallway for similar reasons. At some point along the way, the other boy got their skateboards and helmets. With a frantic throw, they skateboarded out of the front yard and down the quickest route to their house.

“George?” Harold said, once they turned to their street. He had been eerily silent the whole time.

The other boy jumped off his own board and pulled his helmet off. He could see how much sweat was on his forehead now.

“Change of plans–” He stomped the end of the skateboard to make it stand before quickly grabbing it. “We’re taking stock of everything tonight.”

Harold stared at him. He knew why– he could still feel a flare of indignation from that announcement.

It was like George read his mind. “What Krupp said– those were fighting words. We’re going to move the Captain Plan up next.”

He gave a curt nod.

[imperial-agent]

Out of pure curiosity, what do you think is missing from Halsin's story?

after writing it all down, i realized it's not just what's missing but also what's broken, inconsistent and shallow about Halsin, hopefully that still answers your question :)

his backstory in the underdark comes out of nowhere and is never again brought up!! it is, in fact, brushed off as just some silly goofy thing that happened to him once!! hihi haha i was a sex slave for two years. im so embarrased to tell you this, tav haha anyways how about round two with the twins ??? while im standing speechless mouth agape struggling to process the story he just told me. to say it was written and handled poorly is putting it mildly

he is shown to be a shrewd person (with his francesca choice for the new archdruid back in emerald grove) so expand on that! show that he's more than just a pile of muscles! show me he's cunning and has bite! there's so much political intrigue in act 3, have him comment on it, on gortash's plan, have Halsin compare it to some other people/events that happened in the past and how they mirror what's currently happening in baldur's gate, my dude is 3 50, he's seen some shit im sure, even living in the forest the news would reach him so no excuses

he's so closely tied to act 2 i have no clue why he's locked off as a companion till you find daniel (which on my first playthrough was just before attack on moonrise, that almost made my blood boil bc not even 2 hours later orin snatched him up??? and i was like?? ok?? she took who? i barely know the guy?). i think he's too tight-lipped about what happened all those years ago with the shadowcurse and i would have loved to hear more about it (like the implication of him killing isobel and the conflict with the thorms)

I need him to be the biology/nature expert equivalent to Gale with his weave expertise. he should have more to say about the worms!! he should be studying you under the microscope the entire game!!!! literally bring back all the missing EA halsin dialogue!! i should be able to drag his ass into the underdark!!! I WANT HIS KNOWLEDGE! I WANT IT TO BRING BACK BAD MEMORIES! expand on drows and their culture in this game by using halsin as the conduit that tells you everything he learned from spending his time here!! so maybe that info dump in act 3 about him being a slave wouldn't come out of nowhere

i refuse to believe he'd have nothing to say about the elder brain after seeing it. i want him to be absolutely repulsed, terrified but also intrugied by the mindflayer colony under moonrise, i want him to cautiously study every nook and cranny there and offer his insight

absolutely baffled he won't say anything to that one dragonborn druid back in baldur's gate that is trying to keep a tree alive???? for all his distain for the cities he sure is quiet here, seeing nature failing in the middle of it while a guy is desprately trying to keep it alive. maybe make it so these two actually manage to turn this spot into something more beautiful, a lush tree in the middle of a concrete road that attracts people who come over to relax in its shade

if they bring up his hatred of the city life, why not let me turn him into a full on shadow druid (which is already hinted on during one of the conversations with him in act 3), kind of how you can keep shadowheart a shar worshipper or steer her toward selune. plant some seeds of his loathing back in act 2, how nature had to be sacrificed because people had delusions of grandure (the elder brain plot and the thorms) etc

besides wanting to cure the shadowcurse and enjoying whittling there's nothing more to this guy. after the curse is lifted all he's got are the ducks.............. once he'll mention he doesn't like the city life. okay, you've been on this earth good 350 years, my guy, you know how cities are don't act surprised

an alternative ending is missing, you should be able to go with him

personally, i think his personality is missing because he is too flat and frankly, boring. he is too agreeable even if you're a meanie to others. just as long as you don't kill innocents he's a ride or die. it's not his fault of course, he's just badly written, too surface level. which is a terrible shame bc i'm so in love with him but i'd like to fall for his personality too. once there's a fleshed out one. so it's quite hard to speculate on what's missing about a guy there's barely any information on in-game tho :'(

[thegurlwhoisntthere]

Okay, so I can’t believe I’m writing this, the Maribat/Daminette fandom has me by the throat so, here we are

There are a lot of fics where Damian comes to Paris and they click and he gets the Black cat miraculous for various reasons, and also a lot where Marinette goes to Gotham with generally the same outcomes, but what about a fic where Damian and his class go on a trip to Paris before Hawkmoth first attacks.

Like, he’s 13 and forced into this trip because the fam wants him to experience more than just being a vigilante and he hates it. His school has a program with Marinette’s, so at the beginning of the year they pack up and plan to spend two weeks in Paris.

This trip just so happens to coincide with when Master Fu is looking for his new Ladybug and Black Cat (y’all see where I’m going with this?)

In this Au, Adrien makes it to the school sooner and misses Master Fu because he’s testing Marinette. Adrien still gets to go to school, because he deserves happiness, but he’s able to get there the first day, and so avoids the whole gum thing that make Marinette hate him, but also sees what Chloe does to Marinette which really changes his initial perspective of school. He would definitely be a temp hero later, but he gets to enjoy being a normal rebellious teen.

Anyway, so Adrien Misses Fu, so who’s going to be the Cat? Well, Damian’s school pulls up at the same time Adrien would have.

The class stops to do a head count and give the general speech of why they’re there in front of the school and Damian’s planning on slipping away because he’s 13 and thinks this is all a waste of his time. He thinks that if he can make it back to the hotel without anyone noticing he’ll be able to make an argument that they forgot him and that he should be allowed to go home (can you see where I’m taking my inspiration from?). Unfortunately for him, Fu sees this and does his test (the fall). All his classmates don’t do anything because they’re from Gotham and are suspicious of everything (and also it’s Paris and they don’t want to be scammed) and the teachers don’t notice. Damian, however, does notice. He considers leaving anyway because it’s not his problem, but he’s been Robin for almost 3 or 4 years at this point and, contrary to what some people might say, has grown a lot. He would feel guilty and maybe even a little unworthy of Robin if he didn’t stop for 2 seconds to help this old man up.

It goes quite similarly to how it did with Adrien, he helps Fu up, but gets caught and can no longer run away from the class.

Basically, this au is a “what if Damian was The Black Cat from the start?”

I have a lot more ideas, but here’s just a few:

Damian isn’t Chat Noir, but I haven’t looked up any cat related names that he could be yet.

As the cat, Damian acts a lot more fun than he normally would allow himself. He’s not Chat Noir level, but this is the first time in his life where literally no one knows who he is and is monitoring his behavior, nor does he have anyone’s expectations on him for who he should be.

He’s initially annoyed with Ladybug, because she’s so clearly untrained, unconfident, and unprepared, but then she comes up with the plan that shows what she could be capable of, and the speech and he might have a crush, but brushes it off as grudgingly respecting her

He 100% plans on training her and their partnership is more equal than what the show portrays it as, because one of my main problems with the actual show is that chat noir, despite being her partner is often shoved aside and given the sidekick role

Damian doesn’t tell his family what’s happening. As far as they’re aware, Paris is fine. Normally he would have, but he had no time until after the fight and he really enjoyed being the cat that he’s like “I’ll tell them later” which keeps being pushed back.

At the end of the trip he somehow talks his family into letting him actually transfer to Paris so he can stay as the cat

He is baffled that this works, but they are all so happy that he’s taking an interest in something other than Robin and Superheroing that they jump on letting him before realizing that it means he’s gonna be in Paris for months.

Dick is sad about this later, so is Bruce and Alfred and the others, but he’s the most vocal about it.

Damian is also baffled that they haven’t figured out what’s going on by now and as everyday passes he gets more and more annoyed by the fact that his so called family of detectives have realized that he’s decided if they can’t figure it out, he’s not telling them.

He has not figured out that magic is preventing knowledge of this from leaving Paris and even if it didn’t, Magic is protecting his identity.

He acts annoyed by Plagg, but he actually loves him so much

His cat outfit is still fun with the ears and tail, but it’s a lot more elaborate and has a utility belt and a lot of hidden things

In fact, because it’s so elaborate, Marinette’s boring suit only stays for the first time she transforms. Once the fight finishes her little fashion designer brain can’t stop thinking about it and comes up with a new design after consulting Tikki.

Of course, she only has the idea of the costume down, because by the time they finalize it, she sees the news and has her depression moment, so the first time she wears it is when she saves Alya.

Due to this first change, her outfit would constantly be changing throughout her time as Ladybug, as she learns more about fighting and what she’s comfortable with, as well as what’s actually possible with magic and the miraculous.

By the end of the year her firs are going to be crazy (wait till she finds out she can change her actual eyes (both color and the pupils and-) hair colors and length)

She will eventually bully Damian into making some changes but he’s generally happy with the first design.

They also know each others identities a lot sooner because Damian actually knows the benefits and his cold logic is able to cut through a lot of her anxiety.

It still doesn’t happen until at least the second season tho.

Y’all I have so much more, but this is getting long and I’ve got things to do so tell me if u want more or feel free to add your own ideas!!!

[redgoldsparks]

March Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 4 by Ryoko Kui

I'm reading these books so fast I can barely remember which parts of the plot happened in which volume but know that I am still having a great time!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 5 by Ryoko Kui

Oh, this story has taken a darker turn, and also just introduced a whole bunch more characters. Will I be able to keep track of them all? I hope so!

Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb, read by Anne Flosnik 

Unfortunately, this is definitely the weakest Robin Hobb book I've read so far. I was expecting to like it less than the glorious, 5-star previous trilogy, but I actually think I'm going to skip the rest of the Rain Wild Chronicles and read summaries online to get to the next Fitz books. This book follows five main POV characters. This works fairly well for the first half, when the characters are all in different physical locations. However once all of the characters meet up, we start getting the same scene from multiple different POVs, which feels extremely repetitive. Also, almost EVERY SCENE includes a flashback, often a lengthy flashback, sometimes to something that happened only the previous day and could have been told as present-moment action. This writing choice baffled me. It's something I can't remember struggling with in any of Hobb's previous books, but by the end it was driving me up a wall. The book also moved very slowly; the stakes feel lower, and the character far less emotionally true than in the two Fitz trilogies. Disappointing, but I will keep moving forward towards the next part of the series I want to read.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 6 by Ryoko Kui

Damn, a lot of characters get murdered in this volume! Good thing almost everyone who dies in the dungeon can be revived. Also, very excited to finally meet the cat ninja I've been seeing fan art of since before I even started the series :3

Delicious in Dungeon vol 7 by Ryoko Kui

I am still completely caught up in this series. I love the glimpse of Senshi's past revealed in this volume, and the lore of the dungeon that is still being revealed. There was a line in here about how the dungeon leaves you alone if you don't ask much of it, but that if you have strong desires it throws even more obstacles into your way. Our heroes have such big goals right now, but they're marching ahead regardless!

School Trip by Jerry Craft 

A satisfying new installment in the New Kid series from funny, talented, charming Jerry Craft! I appreciated how this volume started to complicate some of the students who had been left a bit one-dimensional in previous books. Several people stood up to and called out a bully; new friendships were built; and Jordan Banks left Paris even more inspired than ever to follow his dreams of becoming an artist. This series has a lot of jokes, but also a lot of heart!

A Frog in Fall (and Later On) by Linnea Sterte 

Minor frog is less than a year old, and is dismayed when winter begins to steal all of the light and warmth from his world. Instead of bunking down safely with his mentor to wait for spring, he sets out on a journey with two vagabond toads passing by on a quest to make it all the way to the tropics. They tramp through the Japanese countryside, encountering tree spirits, new friends, dangers, and views the likes of which minor frog had never even imagined. This is a gorgeous book; every page worth pouring over, an economy of line and detail building a beautiful and mysterious world of talking animals and miniature packaged foods. Made me want to draw.

Dark Rise by CS Pacat read by Christian Coulson 

In 1820s London, orphaned Will tries to earn enough as a dockworker to survive- and evade the killers pursuing him. Violet dresses in her half-brother's clothes and sneaks onto a ship in the Thames to watch a man be branded with his master's mark. Katherine excitedly anticipates her engagement to one of London's richest and most mysterious lords; his gallantry nearly makes up for the fact that he's twice her age. And in the bowels of one of that lord's ships, James tortures a man for information. All of these characters are 16 or 17 years old, but all of them are tangled in an ancient conflict between the Light and the Dark which stretches back into an age of magic before history. This is CS Pacat's YA fantasy debut, and it contains a lot of tropes very familiar to both YA and high fantasy- there are shades of both Tolkien and Rowling in this. Its fast-paced and action-packed, but especially in the first third of the story, the characters all felt fairly thin. None of them have quirks, hobbies, career hopes, relationships outside of immediate family, school, or work; or much more than a brief sketch of past. It took until the mid-way point for what I consider Pacat's major strengths as a writer to emerge: intense, homoerotic interpersonal sparring between characters operating under major power imbalances. Every scene in which the seductive, manipulative, powerful evil gay faced off against the good boy chosen one crackled with energy. Unfortunately, there were only four of these scenes in the whole book. It ends on a cliff-hanger, because of course it does, with a tempting set up for book two; but that doesn't entirely excuse the fact that the first 50% felt like set up. I will definitely keep reading, but long-time Pacat fans should take note that this is toned down version of what I expected based on Captive Prince.

Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls (re-read before event)

What an accomplishment! I savored every page of Feeding Ghosts, absolutely floored by the labor and courage that went into the writing of this book. The inking is gorgeous, the history is clear, digestible, and devastating. This book threads the line between honesty and compassion in a way that I appreciate so much in any memoir, but especially one dealing with family. Hulls lays out the story of three generations of women starting with her grandmother, Sun Yi, a Shanghai journalist who faced intense persecution during the rise of Communism in China, who penned a popular and scandalous memoir and then suffered a mental breakdown. This left her only daughter, Rose, a student at an elite boarding school with no parental figures and no other family to lean on. Eventually Rose earned a scholarship to an American university and in the end moved her mother into her California home. Sun Yi haunted that home during the author's own childhood. The unexamined trauma and codependency of Sun Yi and Rose drove the author to the extreme edges of the Earth, seeking freedom from their ghosts. But in the end, she stopped running from her family history and turned, instead, to face it. Shelve this book with Maus, Fun Home, Persepolis and The Best We Could Do. Re-read it for a second time and got even more out of it on a second pass.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 8 by Ryoko Kui

Laios and company realize that their encounter with changling mushroom rings had more consequences than they'd realized- its the body swap episode! This visual humor is contrasted against increasing dangers from both above and below, as nastier monsters and political machinations begin to close in on our heroic adventuring party. I'm now over halfway through this series and almost feel like I should start reading it more slowly to savor it, but I'll probably just keep devouring it instead.

Lunar New Year Love Story by Gene Luen Yang and Leuyen Pham

High school senior Val grew up knowing her family was unlucky in love; for generations, relationships in her family have ended in heartbreak. Her childhood love of Valentines Day ends with a shocking family revelation and what feels like the beginning of a curse. Then her Vietnamese grandmother sweeps her off to a Lunar New Year celebration in downtown Oakland and a pair of cute lion dancer boys catch her eye. Could one of them break the spell on her heart? This story offers a classic and satisfying rom-com, with Val torn between an outgoing, rich, but flaky boy and a broody, shy, loyal one. The story takes several kdrama style twists and includes ghosts, saints, red envelopes, confessions, fights, reunions, tears, and kisses. For a comic, its wordy; the pages are dense with small panels and thick with dialogue, but also illustrated with such warm, humor, and realism. I really liked that the story included as much of Val's relationship with her family and best friend as romance. And the lion dancing scenes practically leap off the page with color and energy!

Witch Hat Atelier vol 10 by Kamome Shirahama

This series remains as visually stunning as ever but I'm struggling with how every single book expands the cast. There are so many characters now that I don't care about that much, and have trouble remembering from volume to volume. I wish the story line would stick more closely to Coco, her classmates, and their main mentors!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 9 by Ryoko Kui

Oh the stories are all converging! The savior at the bottom of the dungeon is probably a demon! Ituzumi saves the day! I am still having a great time reading this series.

A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson read by Abby Craden 

A short, very queer, very poly retelling of Dracula focusing on his coven of enthralled lovers. I liked the way the book breezed through history, as the dysfunctional little family moved from one major European city to the next, with snatched moments of glittering joy interwoven with violence and plague. The story is fairly simple, and has a happier ending than I expected, or honestly think the characters deserved.

City of Dragons by Robin Hobb

I DNFed the previous book in this series and just read a summary online before skipping ahead to this one. I think that was a very good choice for me. This third one was more engaging and a bit more action packed, with some cool discoveries about the city of Kelsingra and the nature of Elderlings. But the Rain Wild Chronicles as a whole do not stand up to the quality of the Farseer books. There are so many POV characters that a few of them get only two or three scenes in this whole book. I don't feel that I deeply know any of these characters; while at the same time watching Hobb pair them off at an extraordinary rate- in the last book five sets of characters got together and in this book an additional two couples are developing feelings for each other. Between this and a kidnapping, a birth, a murder, and a lot of blackmail, this series feels like a soap opera.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 10 by Ryoko Kui

Almost two TPKs in this volume, yikes!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 11 by Ryoko Kui

You know shit's getting serious when the character who has been the series main villain up until now is partially devoured by a different, worse villain. Exciting changes coming to this dungeon under it's new lord and master!

Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall and Lisa Sterle

When Becca gets invited to sit with the popular girl clique at her new high school, she's thrilled. But the friendship turns bloody and complicated when she learns that her new friends are actually werewolves who need to kill and feed on a human once a month. If she joins them, Becca will gain superhuman strength and a pack; she'll never have to fear a male predator again, because she will be a predator herself. I loved the queer rep and the twist on werewolf lore; I wish it had been a little longer and more developed. Give me multi-page transformations sequences!

Delicious in Dungeon vol 12 by Ryoko Kui

I love seeing all these plot lines come together! Building towards a wild climax.

Delicious in Dungeon vol 13 by Ryoko Kui

I went out and *bought* vol 13 of this series because my library didn't have it yet, that's how hooked I am. And now I have to wait until JULY for the final volume! (But also, thank goodness I didn't get into this series any sooner or I'd have a much longer wait).

[tirsynni]

If we're asking about BotW/TotK ships, any thoughts on Revalink? Asking mostly just because it has been living in my head rent-free for months and I constantly desire more people to talk about it.

Anonymous asked:

Sorry for asking about your opinion on Revalink without even checking to see that you had already written Revalink fics, feel free to ignore previous ask

Oh, honey. I am always happy to talk about Revalink. They are absolutely my BotW/TotK OTP. I also adore Revali and I hungrily devoured even the slightest mention of him in TotK and have multiple WIPs scribbled on my laptop finding out ways to have him actually in TotK.

(Do I still feel a little cheated? Maybe. I wasn't expecting much, but ow, TotK.)

This ship has an insane amount of potential, especially since we have so few of Link's memories available in BotW. Maybe it was always just brutal tension between two fucked up young Champions with far too much weight on their shoulders (with most of it being self-imposed!). Maybe they quietly figured out something, just for Link to forget or maybe he didn't even forget but it didn't matter because the Link of then and the Link of now are so different. Ack! So much potential!

...but anyway.

Pre-Calamity, these two had so much weight dragging them down and not a single positive communication skill in sight. Link was buried under the title of Champion and Hero to the point he could barely see the sky anymore. Revali pushed and pushed and pushed himself to the point of collapse. He was absolutely driven and stubborn and passionate and snarky and desperate for validation. Link was silently begging for everyone to not look at him and Revali was silently begging for someone to fucking see him.

Specifically, he wanted Link to see him.

That's what absolutely kills me about that pairing. We don't know what Link saw or thought. We got everyone's journal but his. Hell, even his memories seemed like they were from an outsider's perspective (especially the last one). But we got Revali's journal and we got to hear Revali speak (and snark and yell) and so it baffles me when people paint him as an asshole who hated Link.

Doubtlessly, Revali would have pushed himself forever without external validation, but it didn't change the fact that he was thirsty for it. Where do we see it most? In his interactions with Link. In his journal talking about Link. It was a constant chant of "See me, see me." Link was strong and skilled and we saw in his limited memories that he pushed himself, too. While Zelda quietly mused in a safe, dry spot, Link stood in the rain and continued to practice with his sword. He threw himself at hordes of monsters and Zelda scolded him for being reckless. For their own reasons, Revali and Link actively pushed themselves arguably long after almost anyone else would have stopped, and I think Revali saw that in Link -- saw a possible peer who valued hard work and sweat and determination -- and desperately wanted Link to see him, too.

When they reunited one hundred years later, for all of Revali's snark about Link making him wait, nothing can convince me that Revali wasn't happy to see him again. We won't know what happened in those final days before the Calamity or what Revali knew about Link during those hundred years, but the fact that Revali specifically told Link to avenge him will forever be telling to me. Revali -- fiercely independent, determined Revali -- recognized that he couldn't avenge his own death. He also didn't expect the fight to be impersonal for Link, for it to be another thing for Link to check off in his quest. He didn't want Link to kill the Blight on his behalf: he wanted Link to do what he couldn't, he wanted Link to treat the fight as something personal, he wanted Link to fight in Revali's name. He wanted Link to avenge him.

(And in return, he gave Link wings and personally lifted him into the sky. <3 With an adorable little flourish.)

I also love the dialogue choices during the fight, and they are part of my argument for why Revali isn't hateful: he's snappy and snarky and is absolutely the guy who shows he cares about by calling his love interest an idiot for failing to appropriately care for himself. He spends that entire fight scolding Link and cheering Link on and snarking at Link and fretting over Link, depending on how the fight goes. He gets so worried for Link. Not because Revali won't be avenged but because Link is hurt and he checks to see if he is okay. ;_;

On Link's half? If Revali is the bird who is desperate to fly as high as he can, Link is absolutely the trapped, muzzled songbird. There's one scene where the king is scolding Zelda and Link is kneeling beside Zelda, absolutely forgotten by both of them. He's pretty much part of the scenery in that memory. His head is bowed. His face is expressionless. He's disregarded butterly as the king berates Zelda and Zelda focuses on vainly defending herself. That exemplifies so much of his backstory: he's the silent Knight. He's the Wielder of Evil's Bane. He's the guy who effortlessly claimed his destiny by pulling the Master Sword while Zelda struggled fruitlessly to call upon her sacred powers. I would argue (and this isn't a slight against Zelda, who is clearly a traumatized, overburdened, and royal teenager in all of these memories) that when Zelda finally sees Link as an actual person and not just another symbol of her failure, she still struggles to see him as a true individual and not another way for her to deal with and understand her own problems. For most of the characters in those memories, Link is characterized by his role and his duty, not as an actual overburdened teenager himself.

Except Revali, who never shows any indication that he gives a damn about titles and destiny and all of that bullshit, sees Link and wants Link to see him. Revali wants a response. Revali wants Link.

I've also written briefly about this before, but in regards to symbolism, Revali is also the closest in-game parallel to things normally associated with the Heroes of Courage. Courage is Farore green, courage is Farore's Wind. In Skyward Sword, Link rides upon his loftwing, a sacred creature which connects the Hylians to the Goddess. In Wind Waker, well, do I need to say it? The other Champions fit well with Din/Power (Urbosa and Daruk) and Nayru/Wisdom (Zelda and Mipha). Revali? Fits great with Farore/Courage. Revali, who pushes Link and gets so pissed (and hurt) when Link doesn't push back. Revali, who tells Link to watch him as he flies and grows so upset when Link doesn't react to that magical moment at all.

To leave the Great Plateau and begin his journey, Link needs to take a leap of faith and glide through the sky. Link needs the wind. Link needs to fly.

I could keep going for a while, but I think I should stop. lol I've written plenty of meta about these two before, though, so feel free to check out my Revalink tag. Always feel free to ask about these two (and fandom and such in general). I love rambling about them and people IRL tend to look at me like I'm crazy when I begin talking about this stuff. :D

[inniessick]

Do You Still Love Me? / Yang Jeongin

pairing: non idol!yang jeongin x fem reader

word count: 5.1k (im so sorry)

warnings: angst, fluff, cursing, mentions of break up, lowkey mean!jeongin but not the entire fic, SMUT! soft/hard dom!yang jeongin, sub!reader, mention of alcohol (once), dumbifaction, no verbal consent but everything was fully consensual, oral (f receiving), unprotected sex (do not do that), begging, fingering, being manhandled? (wrists pinned above head, face being grabbed), dacryphilia, crying in general, degradtion, praise, overstimulation, size kink (maybe kinda, just being safe), pet names/names (baby, doll, princess, good girl, darling, my love/love, honey // bitch, slut, whore), orgasm delay?, hickeys/lovebites, marking in general, hair pulling, kissing, showering together??, let me know if i missed any!

likes, reblogs and feedback appreciated! :3 ♡

smut below the cut, don't press keep reading if you don't want to see that.

to think you'd end up here.. alone with him, it had only been a week since you last saw jeongin. and about 6 months since you broke up. it was messy, and clean. the entire situation made so much sense and none at all.

it had been nearly perfect for 3 years. you had been friends for 2 years before you even started dating. you and jeongin met in your junior year of college. he had a reputation around him, but you gave him the benefit of the doubt. you became best friends, basically attached at the hip, always together no matter where you were. "y/n and jeongin" "jeongin and y/n". absolutely nobody was surprised when you both started dating. you had always been naive, but jeongin realized he liked you very early on, too afraid to actually ask you out because he valued you so much. eventually, after a bit of liquid courage he had the balls to ask to be your boyfriend. the funniest part? you were going to confess your feelings to him the same night! your new years resolution was to be more upfront with your feelings, and you labeled that your first attempt, of course he beat you to it but you still told him how much you really liked him. a win is a win. jeongin knew you had only ever been in small relationships, never meaning a whole lot, and he wanted to change that for you. he went out of his way to make you smile at least once a day. he succeeded. 

he was your first for almost everything, and he prided himself on that. everything he did, he did with meaning, he payed so much attention to you. he was the best boyfriend you could've asked for, of course you two fought, but it was rare and never a screaming match. it was civil. but then things got ugly after he went on a vacation to see his mom for 2 weeks. he came home so upset, and unintentionally took it out on you. called you clingy stupid incompetent. followed all of that up with, "why can't you leave me alone?" "do i need to help you with everything?" you tried to talk to him and ask him what was wrong, he didn't budge. you tried everything, being affectionate, leaving him alone, talking to his friends, you even tried to call his mom. nothing worked and you started to give up, you thought he hated you. eventually you told him you were moving out, he had no reaction. you took it as sign that it was over and done with.

of course you tried to move on but you couldn't. no matter what you did, you thought of jeongin. everything you did was a reminder that you had lived with him through seriously important years of your life. you couldn't shower without thinking about how he washed your hair. couldn't wear your clothes because he either got you most of them, or you got them when you were with him. your favorite meals were his favorite too. anything that was “yours”, was his. you didn't blame him, its not his fault that you two worked so well together. worked, past tense. you constantly had to remind yourself he wasn't yours anymore but no matter what you did it was always him.

you were baffled when he sent you a text one night, shortly after breaking up, asking to meet up. you took him up on the offer but rather than talking it led to you both drinking just a little bit too much and ending up in bed together. and that's how it's been for the last 4 months.

isn't it funny? sometimes you get lucky and they think you're someone else. you figured he didn't care that it was you, he just wanted to fuck. but here you are regardless. you thought you'd finally end things once and for all, but then you got a call from him. were you stupid? you shouldn't have answered his call at all. how can you blame him for your inability to end it? i mean, you picked up the phone after all. 

it was 1am, you were nowhere near ready to sleep, you were thinking about how to approach him. speak of the devil as they say, right?

“hey.. y/n.. are you up?”

“yea innie, im up.” there you go again, thinking without speaking. the nickname too? cmon.

you could hear his staggered breathing, “come over? please? really need you.”

your heart was beating so hard you would've thought it was going to burst out of your chest. you knew exactly what he was implying. “mkay innie... ill come over” why would you say no? at least he wants you for something right? you heard him sigh, “thanks doll, you know how much you mean to me.” you gulped, trying so desperately to breathe but you couldn't, his words taking all the air from your lungs. you opted to just hang up the phone instead of responding.

somehow you made it out to your car, no recollection of getting dressed or grabbing your keys. but you were back to reality now, and all you could think was “should I really go and see him?” your hands gripping the steering wheel so hard your knuckles began to blanch. hadn't he made it clear weeks ago? you were just a quick fuck and a half decent friend, always so pretty for him, not enough to make him think about a relationship though. and yet, you started the car anyways, you drove over to his place, it used to be yours too. the drive couldn't have gone any slower, yet you were pulling into the parking lot before you knew it. walking up to his door, knowing you had one more shot to turn around and end it there, you grabbed the spare key from under the little garden gnome you'd gotten him a year ago, and you unlocked the door. you idiot. then you walked into his apartment, and made your way to his room. are you serious right now? and of course there he was waiting for you. only one thought in your head, god he's so pretty..

“’m so glad you're here, baby.” jeongin wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you towards him before connecting his lips to your neck and kissing all the spots he knew you loved. of course he knew them, he knew you better than you knew yourself.

“mhm.. I know innie.." you murmured while looking to the side, unintentionally giving him more access to the crook of your neck, before throwing your keys on the chair in the corner of his room.

you felt him pull away, only to come back once he had led you to his bed. towering over you, a small smile on his face as he leaned down to kiss your neck. he began running his hands down your torso before slipping them under your shirt to grab at your chest. his hands moving so gently over your skin, yet slow, achingly slow. jeongin slotted his knee between your thighs, the slightest bit of pressure being put against your core. a shaky breath and a whimper gave him all the confirmation he needed. peppering kisses along your jawline before meeting your lips. it was aggressive, tongue pushing it's way into your mouth, spit across your lips, all while he was touching and grabbing at your skin. your skin felt on fire, you needed some sort of release. how had he got you so worked up while doing so little? how did he still have this much control over you? you pulled at his hair, moved yourself against his knee just enough to satisfy the urge for some kind of friction.

"innie please.. need it so bad." you'd think you just entered another mans bed with how gently he began taking off your shirt, it all felt so slow, he was teasing you, testing to see how much he could get out of you. “innie, hurry please. don't wan’ wait anymore.” you were whining, begging for him to stop teasing you and just give you what you wanted, no, needed. “alright, honey, shh.. cmon lift your hips a little so I can take these off of you too.” he pulled at the top of your shorts, and you lifted your hips up allowing him to pull your shorts and panties off in one swift motion. 

grabbing your hips before moving his hands down your legs. gently rubbing his hands on your thighs before bringing them back up and reaching your clit, applying the slightest bit of pressure, trying to get you to moan his name just the way he wanted. throwing your head back, and arching your back, “ahh- innie.. jeongin oh my god.” he gently kissed your thighs offering slight squeezes, almost like he was afraid to grab you too hard. “that's it princess, same my name again, tell innie what you want.” “wan’... want your fingers, please innie please.” “alright love, ill give you whatever you want.” right.. ‘whatever you want’, you were too caught up in the feeling of his fingers near your core to actually feel upset about what he was saying.

but it didn't stop you from thinking about his actions. how was he able to hold you like you were made of glass? touch you so lightly, it felt like his fingers were just ghosting over you. he made sure to place you down gently, to tell you such sweet things.. how could such things come from a mouth as vile as his? 

you and jeongin weren't always like this, it was good at one point. you a real relationship. he really truly loved you, yet somewhere within the years, he stopped. he couldn't tell you why, he didn't know, or maybe you didn't care to ever ask in the first place. endless miscommunication. he may not love you, but at least in some way he still cared about you, even if it was late into the night and only if he could touch you in whatever way he pleased. you loved him still, and you weren't ready to give up yet. how else could you make him stay? 

his fingers made their way to your entrance, slick built up from his teasing. “always so pretty and wet for me. just for innie, yea?" you nodded while grabbing at his hair, lightly tugging. “yesyes always for you, just for you, jeonginnie. pleasepleaseplease.” you weren't quite sure what you were begging for anymore, you knew he would fuck you so why beg? did you want him to love you? kiss you and hold you? your thoughts becoming scrambled as he slowly pushed 2 fingers into you, slowly pulling them out then pushing them back in, curling them right at that sweet spot. you closed your eyes, unable to handle all the pleasure he was giving you. his fingers reached places yours simply couldn't. 

he kissed his way up your torso before getting right to your collarbone and stopping, his hand never moving away from your core. “princess, you still here?” he put his finger under your chin nudging your head up. you were still moaning, clenching around his fingers, trying to think of a response as he quickened the pace. “yes, just wanna cum innie.. p- please.” you whimpered, “alright love, you got me, im here. cum for me baby, come on.” he went back down, this time finally connecting his mouth with your clit. humming slightly when you let out a higher pitched moan. small kitten licks as he kept fucking you with his fingers, coaxing an orgasm out of you, just as you had asked him. before you knew it you were coming undone on his fingers. moaning, pulling at his hair, incoherent words spilling for your lips as he helped you ride your high out. finally pulling himself away from you, lips slightly wet from your juices, your legs still shaking as he softly rubbed circles on your thighs.

“you still okay doll?” “mhm.. want more, need you jeongin.” your hand on his clothed chest, pulling at his shirt, a silent request for him to take it off. he seemed to understand what you wanted, retreating from the bed to rid himself of his clothing. you stared at him as he stripped, it almost felt like he was giving you a small show. it didn't matter how many times this happened, you never got over how big his dick actually was. seeing him always made you nervous, how is it gonna fit? even though he makes it fit every single time. he got back onto the bed, towering on top of your small frame again, giving you a few kisses before he lined himself up with your entrance, pushing in slowly, his soft hand caressing your cheek. you were whimpering, tossing your head from side to side, and grabbing at his biceps, “innie too much too much canttakeanymore..” your speech was slurred, “you can do it doll, take me so well every time.” you knew he had to have been only half way in, but you felt so full, it felt like he was splitting you apart. “still so tight after I fucked you with my fingers... so cute, always asking me for more.” he whispered close to your ear, it sent a shiver down your spine. he kissed your face gently as he continued to push himself deeper into you before finally bottoming out. tossing his head back and groaning every time you clenched down on him, “see princess? took it all j-just for me.” your breathing was rigid, trying to get used to his size. your fingers gripping harder onto his arm, whining “why are you so big? its too much.” “its okay baby, take your time, you can do it.” “j.. jeongin move, please move.”

he connected his lips with yours, the kiss was hot and sloppy. he moved his hands down to grab your hips, slowly building up speed. each thrust causing you to whimper and moan into his mouth. he pulled away from your lips only to reconnect himself to your jaw and move down to your neck while letting out strings of curses, softly biting your neck every time he felt you clamp down. he had completely littered your neck and chest with red and purple hickeys, even after everything was done you'd still be reminded of him, that ultimately, you were still his. “fuck.. so tight for me... always so fucking good." he moaned as you moved your hands under his arms and clawed at his back, not only was he picking up his pace but he was going harder, each thrust making his tip kiss your cervix. “fuck innie.. ahh.. right there please, moremoremore” “more what princess? talk to me.” he fucked into you faster, he wanted to fuck you dumb, make it hard for you to say anything to him. “shit.. harder please.. god, jeongin, please harder!”

its like something in him snapped at that moment, pulling away from you and grabbing your wrists before putting them above your head and holding them there. “why do you keep begging? are you that much of a greedy slut for me?” he looked down at you, so small beneath him. such a tiny little thing, all his, only for him to use. “mm! yes innie, I am!” “do you want me to fuck you dumb? make you feel so good you can't think?” “yesyesyes please! wan’ be good for you.” you kept babbling nonsense and moaning to the point where you couldn't even think a proper thought. he had reached his goal. “who fucks you this good, y/n? who makes you scream like this?” you were trying so hard to form a response, really you were! yet you failed, unable to register the things he was saying. it didn't help that he kept snapping his hips into yours and hitting the one spot that made you see stars. he stilled his hips, grabbing your cheeks with one hand and making your face form a pout. “answer me, who fucks you this good?” “you, jeongin! only you fuck me like this! please dont want you to stop.” you moved your hips while whining, “atta girl.” he was back to assaulting that sweet spot, fucking into you at a rapid, unwavering pace. you couldn't stop moaning, almost like you had no control over yourself anymore. all you could think about was jeongin and how good he felt. in the midst of everything, your mouth hung open just slightly, drool falling onto your lips, tears threatening to spill from your half lidded eyes. “awwhh, poor little baby crying because that can't take what they asked for? didn't you say harder, love? isn't this what you wanted?” he was taunting you, he knew exactly what he was doing. tears fell from your eyes and you kept nodding and babbling, completely fucked out while your legs trembled, “’s too much innie, too much, c-cant take it!” “getting fucked so good you're crying now? are you that much of a whore for my dick?” you cried harder, sobbed for him, begging him to not stop, while going on and on about it being too much, before you knew it you were begging him to let you cum too. 

“in... fuck- innie.. wan’ cum for you, please need to.. love you so much.. please need to cum,” the pace he was going at was cruel, and so precise, every thrust hitting right where it needed to. “I'm nowhere near finished with you and you're already gonna cum? are you that much of cock hungry bitch?” “yesyesyes love you so much, i love you! jeonginnie! please let me cum! need to cum,” “come on then, wanna feel you cum on my cock.” and with that he was kissing you as you moaned and trembled in his grasp, he gently released your wrists and slowed down, fucking you through your orgasm. “that's my good girl,” it almost sounded as though he put an emphasis on the word, making it known that you were his.

you dont know why, but you used all the strength you had left to wrap your legs around his waist as you grabbed his face, “keep going please... want you to cum in me innie.. need to feel you.” you pulled his face back down and kissed him, you felt his hips stutter slightly before he put one of his hands behind your neck and the other holding on to your hip so hard you knew it'd leave a mark in the morning. he deepened the kiss, it was full of passion, tender yet sloppy, so hot you thought it would burn you. you tangled your fingers in his hair and held onto him. he had slowed down a lot, only pulling out halfway before sinking back into your warm cunt. you weren't screaming his name anymore nor moaning so loud that he would be gettin noise complaint, rather it felt almost too intimate, small moans and a couple swears. sweet nothings “love you so much, want to kiss you innie, keep going please” and him reciprocating, “feel so good around me, never want to let you go, you're perfect... love you.” the last two words made your chest begin to feet tight, almost like you couldn't breathe and you screwed your eyes shut. he was too caught up in the moment, right? surely he didn't mean to say that. his thrusts became sloppy and jeongin started breathing heavier, “cmon baby, cum for me, please.” you whispered into his ear, tugging on his hair a bit, you heard a small “mhm” come from him as he kissed all around your neck, you swore you even felt him smile against it every time you said his name. a familiar knot in your tummy formed. with a few harsh thrusts from him he was filling you up, as you unraveled around him while mumbling about how much you loved him.

you both laid their for a moment, catching your breath and just holding onto each other. after a few minutes he leaned up slightly, wiping the tears off your cheek, but these weren't from earlier.  “y/n, why are you crying?” and you snapped back to reality. of course he was just saying all of that because of the sex, why else would he be that sweet to you? he hadn't said your name like that in awhile, it sounded too cold. you felt your heart break just a bit, your short-lived dream being ripped right from your hands.

he was holding himself just enough above you to not be laying on top of you, and you missed how close he felt to you, you understood the intimacy was over. he rubbed your cheek, “why are you crying? was I too rough? did I hurt you?” he pushed himself off of you and took in everything. your chest had hickeys all over it, neck covered in bite marks, hip starting to bruise from his ruthless grip, lips bitten and red, hair disheveled, he felt horrible, did he really hurt you? well no, not in that way at least.

you had no clue why you couldn't stop crying, offering him a small smile as tears kept falling from your eyes, “no jeongin.. it was great. you didn't do anything wrong, you didn't hurt me, I wanted you to be rough, promise. I just... I missed that.” you saw his jaw tense, “what do you mean..? the sex? we do that all the time..” you turned your head to the side trying to avoiding his gaze. he quickly, yet gently, grabbed your jaw and made you look at him, you were his, and he had full control of you. “no.. missed you.. holding me and talking to me like that.” “y/n- baby... im sorry, you know it can't be that way anymore.” “I kn- I still love you.. dont know what to do with myself.” you cut yourself off. if not now, when? didn't he deserve to know you felt? did he not remember saying he loved you too? were you really just a tool for him to use? certainly that wouldn't be horrible, right? at least he would keep you around. it left you thinking, when had jeongin ever said something he didn't mean at least a little bit, though? some truth had to be hidden in his statement.

he ran his hand through your hair, “let's get you cleaned up and then we can talk about this, okay?” you stared at him, like a dear in the headlights, “talk about it..?” “mhm baby, we can talk about it. cmere let me walk you to the bathroom, clean you up.” you simply nodded, at a total loss for words. was this his form of a cruel joke?

he started a warm shower and got you both in. holding you against his chest, you could hear his heart beating, it was so steady. it was silent for awhile, only small sniffles coming from you. he held you, letting the warm water run over you and ease your muscles.

"turn around so i can wash your hair, darling." “mkay..” his fingers massaged your scalp slowing working his way around your head before rinsing the shampoo out of your hair. he helped you wash your body. making sure to gently go over each area, small apologies after he touched every mark. “dont apologize.. like it when you mark me like that..” he only hummed in response. you knew he loved doing it to you, too. as he finished rinsing the bubbles off your body, he reached for the shampoo, and just before he could pick the bottle back up, you grabbed it, "innie, can i wash your hair too?" you sounded so enthusiastic, like it was something you had been waiting to do. that stupid smile of his, he let out a small laugh. "of course you can wash my hair." you smiled back at him, placing a small kiss on his cheek. he put his head down so you could wash his hair completely, you started to wash his body for him, you took this opportunity to take the full view of him in. only a few marks left from your mouth on him, his back had scratch marks all the way down, you stifled a giggle when you saw. it felt so natural.. normal again, but things like that are too good to be true aren't they? you turned the water off and got towels for each other. you stared at him as he dried his hair, "your hair got long again.." you said lowly, you hadn't noticed it until now. you hadn't been this close to him for a long time, "i haven't had the time to cut it yet.." you hummed in response before drying yourself off. "i like when you grow it out.." you thought you had said it softly enough that he hadn't heard, but you were met with him saying, "i know" before holding your head to his chest for a moment.

"let me go get us some clothes- are you okay wearing mine? i don't have any of yours here.." "yea jeonginnie, your clothes are just fine." something in you was glad that you hadn't asked to keep a spare change of clothes here, but you shouldn't be happy, you shouldn't have hope that this will work out again... but god do you want it to.

walking back into the bathroom, he handed you a shirt you used to wear to bed all the time, "i remember this one, you got it from Chan during new years right?" "Mhm, same time when i asked you.. sorry." he stopped himself, the grin on his face falling, he looked upset with himself for bringing up the memory of when you two first got together. granted, you never forgot, you think about it all the time. shaking your head, you put on his clothes and walked back into the bedroom.

there was a long pause, where you both just looked at each other trying to figure out what to say, "so...” you looked around the room, trying to break the silence but jeongin quickly spoke, “you still love me?” your eyes widened again, you hadn't expected that. "you kept saying it when we were.."

you stopped him, “you said it too...” he looked at you and nodded, acknowledging that he had reciprocated the words. so he said it on purpose... “of course I still love you jeongin.. why else would I keep coming back?”

he held your hand in his as he looked down.. “but I said some really horrible things to you y/n, I just let you leave, and then i only called you for things like this.." “mhm.. I didn't want to lose you completely.. needed to find a way to stay with you.” “princess.. im so sorry.”

you shook your head and pulled your hand away, “dont apologize, that means you're gonna leave.” panic rising in your chest, “baby.. im apologizing because I dont want to leave. I want to be around you, you don't know how much i still love you.” just as quickly as the anxiety came, it left.

you could feel your eyes getting watery again, you didn't know you had any tears left to spare. but for him you always did, you had everything to give him, you just needed him to let you. “do you really want me innie...? do you want a relationship outside of sleeping with me? im too clingy and I can't do stuff right..” he knew you were referring to the things he had told you, it pained him, chewing on his bottom lip to fight off the tears he knew would spill at any moment. god, how he regretted hurting you. he never meant to, he couldn't stand seeing you upset because of him. “love... im so sorry I told you things like that i.. i dont know why i did.” he grabbed your cheeks and looked into your eyes, “I didn't mean it. you're not too clingy, I want to be glued to your side every second of the day. I never want you to leave my arms. I want to be around you more than anything else. and.. and you're not incompetent my love, you do so much right, im the one who messed up. of course I want a relationship with you y/n, I didn't know you still wanted me after everything that happened.” was he always this dumb? of course you still wanted him. you put your face into his chest, trying to say something but you couldn't. the only words that would come out were sorry, and love you. he knew you couldn't put it into words just yet. he held onto you so tightly, but it wasn't close enough. you needed to be closer, you needed to crawl into his ribcage and make a home next to his heart. but you already resided there. you were always there, he loved you more than anything and deep down you knew that. thats only fair right? he had made a home inside of you, an endless garden that flourished through every limb, every cell within you, constantly growing, begging for you to never uproot it, and of course you wouldn't. when he had abandoned the garden, that is your heart, you continued to water it, show it love, in hopes that one day he'd come back and stay there. maybe this was what you were waiting for. you loved him more than bees love flowers, more than the stars love the moon, more than life itself. 

jeongin held you in his arms and placed a kiss on the top of your head. “love you innie..” “I love you too... baby im sorry I didn't try to fix this sooner.” there was a pause in his speech, but you didn't doubt that he truly meant what he was saying. “we can fix it now, right?” you looked up at him, pleading, silently begging him to tell you ‘we can fix this’.  “if you'll let me, ill do everything to prove im a better man now. I dont want to live without you like this anymore. I cant tell you how much I love you.” “I dont want you to tell me you love me, jeongin. just show me. show me that you love me like I love you.” you pulled away and kissed him for the nth time tonight, but it felt different. it felt loving, there was no lust, just a kiss between two people who loved each other. a kiss that signified a promise, a promise to keep trying, to show each other endless love. a kiss shared to say things neither of them could. 

a/n: PLEASE I REREAD THIS SO MANY TIMES IF THERES AN ERROR IM SORRY? HOW DID I MISS IT?? you can thank tv girl for this fic because the whole inspo was from "her and her friend". i literally couldn't stop writing, it felt never ending. may be a bit disorganized, but i tried really hard to make it as fluid as possible. i hope the ending didn't feel rushed either? i thought i closed it off pretty well. that being said, please give me feedback on what you liked/didnt! i will take it into consideration when writing my next piece! my requests are open!

[daryldamnson]

Elm Street and Other Things Worth Waiting For

summary: eddie’s convinced he heard you listening to black sabbath.  steve’s not having it.  you just came in to rent a horror movie; you leave with a maybe date with the metalhead who’s kind of already obsessed with you. fem!reader, awkward but soft eddie, supportive steve

word count: 2.1k

ao3 link

“Her?”  Steve’s eyes practically bulge out of his head like a cartoon as Eddie tries not to take offence at his tone.  “Really?”

Eddie shoots him an unimpressed look at his incredulation, embarrassed enough at the conversation topic without the added scrutiny.

“I just…” Steve shrugs, moving the box in front of him to the side to lean his forearms on the counter.  “I don’t see it, man, I don’t know - you’re just so different.”

The pair are trying to look but not obviously stare at you as you wander around Family Video, tipping your head a little to read the titles of the shelf full of movies in front of you.

“I know, but…”  He absolutely does not want to mention that you were the only person in his group project last year to treat him like a person.  Like he wasn’t The Freak; like he wasn’t intimidating; like he wasn’t an idiot for failing senior year twice.  “I’m pretty sure she was listening to Sabbath the other week in the library.”

It’s true, but Eddie’s little crush - huge, ginormous, life-ruining crush, more like - had started long before that.

Steve, well aware of his new friend’s obsession with the band, had tried to give them a listen once.  He’d made it to about the 3-minute mark before he’d given up.  Metal’s not his jam - and he’s pretty certain it’s not yours either.

“How sure?  Because I’ve gotta be honest, man, I doubt it.  I mean…  Look at her and tell me she listens to 6-minute guitar riffs and scream-singing.”

Eddie’s expression drops.

Steve’s not sure if he knows it, but Eddie’s face plays out his emotions like a book - a really simple kids book with loads of pictures and no ambiguity.

Normally, it’s something he likes about him - it’s sort of nice in a way, not having to guess what he’s thinking or feeling, and there’s a childlike kind of sweetness to it if he really thinks about it - but when Eddie’s sad it’s just heartbreakingly obvious.

“I don’t know, man,” he backpedals, scrambling to take it back.  “What do I know, huh?  I was shocked when I found out how much she likes horror movies and we’d been sort-of friends for years by then.”

It doesn’t really look like Eddie’s paying him any attention anymore, his forlorn, pining puppy–dog eyes gazing at you across the room.

Steve, still half-desperate to bring a smile back to his normally goofy friend’s face, calls out to you.

“Hey, L/N!”

Your head swings up from the shelf of horror tapes you’d been studying, looking over your left shoulder at the two of them.  Eddie almost has a heart attack at the suddenness of it all and tries to wipe the terrified look off his face.

“Hey, Harrington.”  One brow quirks up as you wait for an indication of what he wants.

“Who’s your favourite musician?”

Both brows shoot up your forehead as you tilt your head a little in confusion.  “What?”

Eddie finds your baffled expression unfairly endearing.  Your right hand is still resting on the VHS in front of you as you turn your body slightly to face them.  Eddie’s eyes flicker to where your middle finger taps once on the top of the tape as he tries to figure out what movie it is.

“Y’know - singer?  Band?”  Steve continues, shoulders shrugging slightly.  “Etcetera?”

You’re looking at Steve like he’s a little nuts but then clearly decide to roll with it as you shrug, a contemplative expression taking over your face.

“I don’t know that I can pick just one.  S’like asking a mother to pick her favourite kid, y’know?”  You pause, tilting your head back a little as you shake it, a sardonic smile tilting the corners of your lips.  “No, that’s not right - parents do that all the time.  It’s more like…”. Your eyes rove around the store before landing back on Steve.  “Picking a favourite movie.  There’s so many!  And so many genres - how do you put one single film above the others?  It’s too hard.”

Eddie’s hanging onto every word you say.  You’d talked a little when you were doing project work, but it was hardly anything and it was almost all assignment-related.  Hearing you talk music and movies was much more captivating.

“I have a favourite movie,” is Steve’s slightly confused answer.

“Of course you do, Stevie.”  Your tone has turned playfully condescending.  “Because you’re as simple as you are pretty.”  

He lets out a choked sound of indignance as Eddie struggles between jealousy and amusement.

“Fuck off,” Steve answers, no real malice in his voice.

“Speaking of favourite movies,” you move on, leaning forward against the counter you’d been slowly ambling over to during the conversation.  The same counter Eddie was currently pressed against.  He feels himself freeze up at your proximity.  “When’s Elm Street due back in?”

“You and goddamn Elm Street,” Steve mutters, rolling his eyes as he dutifully makes his way over to the computer to check.  He flashes a look of encouragement at Eddie as he walks away but the metalhead isn’t so much as glancing at him, his eyes trained on the curve of your jaw.

Way to make it obvious, dude.

Having resigned himself to being a spectator of this conversation, Eddie is wholly unprepared when your focus shifts to him.

“Hi, Eddie.”  Your tone matches your smile - sweet and soft.  Gone is the teasing familiarity you had with Steve, replaced with something softer - almost shy.

Eddie can’t decide if he hates it or loves it.

Hates it because he wants to exchange easy banter as you call him pretty and make fun of him with a comfort borne of familiarity.

Loves it because there’s something so utterly disarming about the saccharine sweetness your voice adds to his name.

He didn’t even know you really knew his name.

“Uh, hi.”  He manages to throw out robotically, trying not to do a full body cringe out of embarrassment.  “I don’t have a favourite movie,” blurts out of his mouth before he can think it through and he feels his humiliation skyrocket.

“No?”  You question, an amused smile tugging at your lips.

“No,” he confirms, shaking his head as if to reiterate the point.

Idiot.

“Genre?”

“Sorry?”

“Do you have a favourite genre?”  You clarify, not looking irritated in the slightest at his lack of understanding but he feels his cheeks flush anyway.

“Oh,” he mutters, swinging the top half of his body left to right a little to try and rid himself of some of the nervous energy he’s been accumulating.  “Uh…  Horror.”

Eddie feels himself shrug a little self-deprecatingly at his honest answer.

The metalhead’s favourite genre is horror; what a cliche.

But then a smile grows on your face as you nod.

“Me too,” you say, and suddenly he remembers that you’d exclusively checked the horror section before sending Steve off on his Nightmare on Elm Street related errand, and he feels simultaneously dumb for not noticing and elated that you’d already found common ground.

“Cool!”  It's just a touch too loud.  Eddie clears his throat and tries again, voice a little softer this time.  “That’s…  Cool.”

Jesus Christ, man.

Thankfully, his awkwardness doesn’t seem to bother you this time either as you step a little closer to him.

“I like your pins.”  You reach across the small space left between you to flick at one of the Black Sabbath pins stuck on his denim vest as he looks down to follow the movement with his eyes.

A smoother man could’ve taken this opportunity to learn if you really did listen to Sabbath like he’d suspected.

Instead, Eddie lets out an unintelligible sound that seems to land somewhere between ‘oh’ and ‘huh’ as his gaze shoots back up to meet yours.  He’s pretty certain at this point his cheeks might as well just stay pink with how often they’re flushing with awkward embarrassment.

If he’d had any hint of a shot with you before, which let’s be honest, Munson, you didn’t, he’s positive the well on that had run dry.

You’re smiling at him, though, and even if the amusement glinting in your eyes makes him feel a little like you might me laughing at him, he’s just grateful it doesn’t seem malicious.  More like you’re letting him in on the joke.

You roll your bottom lip with your teeth and Eddie finds himself utterly captivated by the movement, eyes trained on your tongue as the edge peeks out to soothe the area.

You’re not stupid.  You’d noticed the way his eyes would light up whenever you backed up his ideas for the project last year.  The way he’d flash you a hesitant smile whenever you’d catch his gaze in class afterwards.  You’d seen his cheeks flush an adorable pink when you grazed your fingers against his palm to lend him a pen.  You’d watched him pace around your general vicinity in the library like a caged lion last week.  You haven’t missed the way his wide, chocolate-brown eyes remain on your lips for a tad too long after you’d purposefully drawn his attention to them moments ago.

You’re not stupid, and it’s knowing this that pushes you to say what you do next.

“You like Nightmare on Elm Street?”

You watch as his gaze flicks up to meet yours, the guilt of being caught causing it to flicker away over your shoulder almost immediately.

He catches sight of Steve, very clearly typing at the slowest pace possible and trying not to eavesdrop.  He’s not sure whether to be grateful or furious.

I’m making a fool out of myself here, man, come save me, half of him whines, battling the other half practically begging for more time alone with you.

“Uh…”  Eddie stammers out, a few beats too late.  “Yeah.  Yeah, I love it.”

“I’m gonna rent it out as soon as it’s back.  Y’know…  If you want to–”

“Wanna watch it together?”  His sudden understanding of where you’re going with the conversation makes him over-eager and he finds himself cutting you off to jump to the point. Like you’ll change your mind if he gives you half a second to think about it.

The smile that tugs at your lips tells him you find it endearing rather than annoying.

“I’d like that.”  You nod a little as if emphasising your answer.  Your voice is soft but sure and Eddie can’t help the grin that stretches his lips upwards, your own smile growing in response.

There’s a beat of time where you both stand there smiling at each other before you snap out of it to pick up a pen from the counter beside you.  You hold your hand out and Eddie’s a little embarrassed by how long it takes him to realise you’re asking for his hand.

His breath hitches at the feel of your fingers circling his wrist as your other hand uses the pen to scrawl your number onto his forearm.  You add a small ‘x’ below it and Eddie experiences a moment of insanity where he thinks about getting the little kiss tattooed there permanently.

He feels your fingers brush curiously over the gruesome ink puppet on his forearm when you’ve finished writing and nearly loses his mind.  It’s the briefest of touches before you pull away but he just knows he’s going to think about it all week.

You call out “see you around, Harrington!” as you step back to put the pen on the counter once more.

You send a casual wave of acknowledgement in his direction when he yells back “Friday!” in answer to your long-since asked question before turning your soft smile back to Eddie.

“Call me this weekend?”

“Okay,” is all he manages to choke out.

“Okay,” you murmur back and he’s treated to his first glimpse of uncertainty as your nose scrunches up a little at your repetition.

You gather yourself quickly and take a small step towards him - for half a second he thinks you might hug him or kiss his cheek or something which jesus christ, give him strength - but you simply reach a hand out to catch one of his, squeezing it gently before letting it drop as you step back towards the door.  Eddie tries to ignore the way his heart pounds at the contact.

“Okay,” you say again, more to yourself than anything.  “Bye, Eddie.”

Flashing him one last smile, you make your way out of the video store.

His belated, lovesick “bye” comes right as you cross the threshold to the outside world, and it’s only the amused grin you flash over your shoulder that lets him know you heard it.

Fuck.

Eddie rubs a hand over his mouth as he stares after you.

I’m so screwed.

requests are open but no promises i just go where the inspo takes me