#it’s deep cover and they can’t just chat on the phone all day???????

[onlyhereforangst]

personally requesting a chenford angst-filled breakup as the finale cliffhanger 🤲🏼

[back2bluesidex]

We Need Practice - JJK (18+)

A Sequel to Novice.

Pairing: Pornstar!Jungkook X Fem!Reader

Theme: Fluff, smut

Wordcount: 2.1k+

Summary: Jungkook wants you to ride him and you are too bad at that.

Warnings: Unprotected sex, messy cock riding, cumming all over body, they are down bad for each other, more fluff than I intended to have, confessions. NSFW!!

Minors are not allowed in this blog!!

Masterlist | Patreon

“Don’t judge a book by its cover” 

You have heard this phrase for thousands of times in your entire lifetime but you have hardly had any chance of actually implying the same in your life. 

But then you met Jungkook and you understood how true that one sentence can be. 

Jeon Jungkook is the text-book definition of what those cliched bad-boys or fuckboys would look like. 

With a hand full of tattoos, silver rings dangling from piercings, impressively structured body and a small waist that could rival female models, he really looks like someone who would be fucking people and putting on a show out of it. 

And that is exactly what he does. 

Pornstar Jeon Jungkook is actually very notorious. 

But Jeon Jungkook as a person is a completely different story. 

After that one encounter at that porn movie set, he asked for your number and you complied with his request thinking of he could give you some of the best fucks of your life (not that you have had many fucks to brag about in the first place). 

If you are being honest, then you never expected him to be the sweetheart that he actually is. Since the day you two exchanged numbers, he never once asked if he could come over during god-forbidden hours of night. He never once asked for your nude pictures, neither did he ever force you to meet him. 

Rather he sends you funny dog videos, funny tik tok clips and asks you how was your day. And you can’t lie about the fact that your heart has already started acting strange, like it flutters everytime Jungkook’s name glows on your dark phone screen. 

It’s been more than a month since you have been chatting regularly and now you are getting a little impatient. 

As much as you appreciate his good-boy vibes, you would like to see him again, touch him again. 

So you do what you have been thinking of doing for more than a week now. 

“Sleeping?” you hit send, praying to the universe that he doesn’t find you a desperate bitch for what you are going to do. 

The clock reads 2:15 am already, and just then his reply arrives, “nah. Can’t sleep. What about you?” 

“Me too. Can’t sleep.” 

You take a deep breath before typing the next message, “do you wanna hangout?” 

Just when you are about to add “at my place” to complete your proposition, his reply hits your screen, “Send me your address. And wear something warm before I ask you to come out.” 

Wait. is he? Taking you out? 

Even though you were trying to ask for sex but this option feels even better to be honest. 

So you send him your address and he texts you that he will be there within 10 minutes. Wearing your gray padding, you wait for him to arrive at your place. 

Another positive point about Jeon Jungkook is that he is punctual. You might even call him a green flag because your phone dings with a “I am here” text right on 2:27 am. 

The scene that unfolds in front of you once you come out of your apartment, almost leaves your jaw hanging mid air. 

Jungkook has arrived with a bike, dressed in complete black. If you drooled a little at the sight then you would never admit that. 

Once he sees you awkwardly walking towards him, he takes off his helmet and welcomes you with one of his infamous bunny smiles. 

Your heart does a little flip inside your chest. 

His big doe eyes shine amid the darkness as if those are made of some priceless stone. At this moment it’s really tough to believe that he is a pornstar, who fucks people on camera to earn a living. 

“Hey. you look beautiful.” he greets you with a compliment when you come close to him. 

“You look even more handsome today.” you return his compliment genuinely. And at that, the tip of his ears turn red. 

“Ah thanks.” he replies shyly as he hands you a helmet. And gestures to you to mount his fancy bike. 

You take the helmet, slip that on your head and hold him by his shoulders to climb on his bike. 

Once you have settled, he revves the engine. 

“Hold me tightly” he says briefly before setting the bike in motion. You wrap your arms around his waist and hold him just as he asked you to. 

The deserted road, the trees whooshing by, the buildings that look peaceful, everything feels so beautiful. 

Maybe it’s because of the hour or maybe it’s because you are with someone you like. 

The bike comes to a halt at a crossing and you slide up the windshield of your helmet, “where are we going?” 

He looks at you through the mirror, slides his own windshield up and gives you another sickening smile, but doesn’t say anything. 

5 more minutes later he parks the bike beside a huge lake. 

It looks like a secluded area. The lake is mostly hidden amid big trees and surrounded by fishing spots and some benches. 

Jungkook spreads his hand before you once you both are standing side by side. 

You take the cue and place your hand on his. He intertwines his fingers with yours and you start blushing. Thanks to the darkness, he wouldn’t be able to witness it. 

Once you are sitting on a bench, Jungkook starts, “I often come here to fish with my hyungs. This is my first time coming here with a woman.” 

When you look at him, you find him already staring at you, “Really? You look like the type to have a lot of girlfriends, you know?” 

“Is it because of my profession?” there is a hint of sadness in his eyes. 

So you press on his hand, which is still intertwined with yours and say, “no. not because of that. It’s just that you are generally very attractive and charming, Jungkook.” 

His face brightens up with a beautiful smile, “Too bad, I was about to say the same about you. But you snatched my words.” 

Your eyes widen at his compliment, “You find me attractive?” 

“Why? Why are you so surprised? Is it wrong to find someone attractive?” he giggles, staring deep into your eyes. 

“No. Th-that’s not what I meant. I mean, you know, you work with far more attractive women than me. So.. it’s kind of unlikely actually.” you fumble with your words. 

Jungkook chuckles at your explanation, “they are just colleagues, Y/N. Just like any other profession, we have a strict business relationship. And honestly, they are not even my type. You, on the other hand, fit perfectly into the category of women I would love to date.” 

Your eyes go even wider at his confession, “you.. You want to date me?” 

“If you let me. If you trust me despite the nature of my profession… I would love to make you mine.” Jungkook breathes slowly, his eyes drop down to your lips. 

Before you can voice your answer, your intrusive thoughts win and you reach up, placing a chaste kiss on his lips. 

“I think I would love it too.” 

And then you find yourself being pulled by the back of your neck as Jungkook crashes his lips on yours. It’s passionate, it’s overwhelming, it’s so beautiful and you never felt anything close to this. 

He licks the seam of your lower lip asking you to grant him permission, you let him inside your mouth. 

His tongue probes into your mouth testing each corner, you moan into his mouth. His other hand wraps around your waist pulling you even closer. 

And then you feel one, two, three and then multiple drops of rain falling on you two. 

He detaches his lips from yours, “fuck. It’s raining.” 

“Let’s go back to my place.” you reply, trying to cover your heads with your hands. 

It’s been one of your bucket list wishes to ride a bike in the rain with the person you love and probably it’s going to come true today. 

You hold him tightly, pressing your chest on his back, not in a sexual, but in a loving manner. It starts raining heavily within a few minutes, and Jungkook quickens his speed to reach your destination as soon as possible. 

“Where are you going?” you place your question, seeing Jungkook putting on his helmet again after dropping in front of your apartment entrance. 

Even though the rain has turned into drizzle now, it still can be quite dangerous to drive a bike in this weather.  

“Home. Where else?” he adds a little sheepishly. 

“Jungkook, it’s still raining. I don’t think it’s any wiser to go home now, you’re drenched on top of that. Come inside. You can leave after the sunrise. If you want.. I mean.” you propose, he seems to think for a bit. 

“I don’t think I should go inside, Y/N.” Jungkook looks at the ground as if it’s more interesting than your face. 

“Why? What’s wrong?” you are truly confused now. 

“I might not be able to control myself…” his voice fades by the time he manages to end the sentence. 

“Did I say I want you to control?” you bite your lip, hoping that you don’t appear to be too desperate to him. 

His eyes go wider inside his bulky helmet. 

Jungkook pushes your naked body on the mattress. 

“I couldn’t stop thinking of how good you felt that day.” He groans while biting down on the skin of your neck. 

Your hands roam around the smooth skin of his back. Everytime you scratch his back, he moans a little. 

“So pretty, so delicate, so perfect for me.” Jungkook groans again. 

One of his hands reaches down, finding your clit within a moment. It’s as if he has studied the map of your body with earnest interest. 

Drawing tight circles on your sensitive bundle of nerves, he pulls out melodic moans out of your throat. 

“Jun-jungkook mmm..” you moan again. 

“Yes baby. Say my name again.” he urges you while entering your heat with his middle finger. His digit plunges inside you, making you see stars indoors. 

“Jungko- I’m close” you manage to voice somehow. And as soon as those words fly out of your mouth, he empties you. 

You look at him being dumbfounded. He smirks at you, knowing what exactly he has done. 

“I want you to cum on my cock. I am hard as hell, baby.” he confesses blatantly. 

Just when you are about to hold him, he flips you around. So, now you are sitting on his thighs.  

“I want you to ride me.” he adds a little breathlessly. And you almost choke on your own spit. 

“What? I-I don’t..” 

“I will guide you, Y/N.” he cuts you off. 

He helps you in taking off his slacks along with his underwear. Once he is naked, he holds you by your waist and lines your entrance along with his cock. 

“Are you ready?” he asks briefly. You nod in affirmation. And then he is sliding you down his length. 

At first his length is overwhelming but you adjust fast. 

“You should move now.” Jungkook’s voice is laced with lust, his eyes are hazy, making him look even more attractive than he already is. 

You honestly have no idea how to move. So you try to implement your visual experience. However, it’s tough once you start bouncing on his cock. Even though Jungkook is guiding you well, you are messy regardless. 

Your moves and Jungkook’s thrusts don’t match at all and the experience is nothing like that day. 

You really are a novice. 

Even though the friction is delicious for you, Jungkook’s expression tells that he is very underwhelmed. So, you start trying your best. With a few more bounces, you cum all over his cock, creaming it perfectly. 

As soon as you are done, Jungkook flips you around again. He slips out of you and starts playing himself. 

Even though you are in your post-orgasm haze, it’s embarrassing for you. You couldn’t help him finish and he had to take the charge himself. 

With a few more pumps, he cums all over your body. Starting from your face, to your stomach, everything gets creamed in his white hot seed. 

And it’s hot. He is hot. And you are pathetic. 

“I-I’m sorry. I know it was bad.” you manage to voice once Jungkook is done with himself. 

“You are not bad, baby. We just need more practice together.” and then he is sealing his lips with yours again. 

You certainly need more practice with him. 

Taglist:

@phenomenalgirl9 @variety-is-the-joy-of-life @chimchimmarie @coffeedepressionsoup @meowstake @vonvi-blog @nochuel @chimmisbae @i-have-no-life-charlie

[lilylovestowrite]

We all know that Aventurine's love language is definitely gift giving! So I would like to request aventurine spoiling his s/o with so much money and gifts. At first reader was thankful and also flustered with all of the gifts he provided for her, but later reader started to become annoyed cause he's been spoiling them too much, so one day they decided to text aventurine about this matter. They only just called his name and he already thought that they needed money so he sent the money. Reader was surprised at first but then got annoyed and decided to scold him in the chat (to which aventurine didn't take them seriously and even teases them, finding amusement with his lover's anger) make this a playful banter between the two and at the end, aventurine decided to meet up with them to pamper them, but this time, with affection ✨

MUST BE FUNNY, IN A RICH MAN'S WORLD ୨♡୧

PAIRING ୨♡୧ (Aventurine x GN! Reader)

WARNINGS ୨♡୧ None

SYNOPSIS ୨♡୧ You decide to confront your boyfriend over his overzealous spending habits. 

WORD COUNT ୨♡୧ 1.4k

A/N ୨♡୧ Thank you for the request! I love Aventurine SO MUCH. I want to hold him and cherish him but I think he deserves to be thrown down a flight of stairs because he’s such a brat. I am so normal about this man.

Divider by @/cafekitsune

‘I saw you eyeing this crystal swan the other day. When you and I get married, I’ll buy the whole store and decorate our venue with them if it’s to your liking- Kakavasha’

You are going to kill your boyfriend. 

You are going to kill your boyfriend over a Swarovski Swan on your bedside table. And thirty bottles of the same Dior perfume you wore once around him. And every piece of designer clothing he’s gifted you. And that one time he rented out a whole cruise ship just to play tag with you over a moonlit river. Well, perhaps not the last one. You liked the idea, the execution? A little overkill.

But this? Overkill can’t even begin to explain how much Aventurine has been spending on you recently. Just before you started dating, he would regularly spoil you with large bouquets of your favourite flowers and a few lovely pieces of jewellery. It was sweet at first: you remember blushing and hiding your flustered face behind your palm, only for him to kiss your hand and usher it away. “Stop, you look super cute when you’re flustered,” he’d say, but now, a deep pit of shame hollows the joy out of every gift he gives you. He gives, and gives, and spoils you, but what do you have to offer? 

You do appreciate his gestures, and it feels lovely to be kitted out in the finest gossamer, or the softest of silks. The aroma of expensive perfume smells less chemical-ly and manufactured compared to your old bottles. There isn’t a day that goes by where your flower vases in your house aren’t filled with high-end flowers. It’s affection, sure, but, you wish he didn’t feel as if your love is something to be bought. 

With Aventurine, you have to be careful with your communication. He may play off other people’s rude comments about his origin or his affiliation with the IPC. Other people’s opinions don’t matter. But you know how much he cherishes you, and you don’t fit into the bracket of ‘other people’. If you seem too dismissive of his efforts, you fear that he may feel rejected. Picturing his sad face drooping makes you only want to let him coddle you, but you can’t allow this to happen anymore. You ponder your text carefully, before hitting send. 

You: 

Kakavasha. 

Peacock <3: 

My love? 

Are you upset with me?

I’m so sorry, let me handle it. 

Oh, wow. That was a quick fix. You sigh in relief and put your phone down, allowing yourself to get more comfortable in the covers. Another ping erupts from your phone, and the notification nearly makes you turn around and sob. 

Peacock <3 has sent you 1,000,000 Credits

You: 

STOP SENDING ME MONEY

I’M NOT YOUR SUGAR BABY FFS 

So much for being ‘careful with your communication’, but 1,000,000 credits is insanity! Does he think he can buy you off? You sigh and watch the text bubbles load as he types. 

Peacock <3:

Darling, what do you mean?

I want to spoil you! 

And if I’ve done something wrong, I’ll make it up to you!

You:

Then. Maybe. ASK

‘What’s wrong?’

BEFORE SENDING ME A SHITLOAD OF CREDITS

Peacock <3:

What’s wrong, angel? 

You reread your messages and realise how aggressive you're coming off, so you decide to talk to him face to face. Surely, his suave tongue and pretty face won't distract you from the matter at hand. Right?

You:

Let’s call.

You have started a call with Peacock <3

“Kakavasha, stop sending me money!” You hiss the second he picks up the phone. It’s the early morning, and hues of liquid sunlight paint your lover’s skin in light gold. Streaks of light coming through the blinds of his window shine through his gorgeous eyes, turning them translucent like opalescent marble. Aventurine gives you a tiny lopsided grin, the same one that creeps onto his face when he’s plotting something, and you don’t like it one bit. “

“How else am I supposed to show my adoration for you?” His silken, honeyed voice echoes through the phone. You have to stop yourself from giggling at his lovely voice, the cadence rising and falling masterfully, all perfectly orchestrated to let you listen to him instead of arguing. 

But you don’t take the bait yet. 

“I don’t know, maybe spend time with me?” You reply, but you can’t conceal the blush on your face when you realise that he’s only just woken up. His light blond hair is tousled and one of the cat cakes stretches on his lap. Although Aventurine dresses to impress, it’s the domesticated, sweet mornings where he truly shines. 

“I do spend time with you. We went to see the Opera just three nights ago!”

“Without money being spent, Kakavasha. I want a simple, romantic date. No renting out hotels, no extravagant jewellery, and no mariachi band like that one time-” 

“In my defence, I was completely wasted-” He interjects, giggling softly at the memory of planning a lovely beach date after consuming wine like water, and then ordering a band on a whim.

“You were barely awake, I drew a moustache on you.” You muse. Watching Aventurine’s face morph into an angry pout, like a kitten, makes you emit an ugly laugh. 

“That was you?” He gasps, clutching his heart with faux sorrow. Dramatically falling back on his black pillow, his golden locks are spread. Aventurine’s half lidded gaze and light pink blush makes you want to crawl into bed next to him and trace patterns into his hands, and his lovely eyes would-

“Don’t distract me from the matter at hand! Please stop spending on me, sweetheart. I’m not saying I don’t like your love, I want it! Just not in such an excessively materialistic way, you know?” 

This comment breaks Aventurine’s suave attitude. He blinks at you through the camera, positively perplexed. His eyes are wide and shocked, resembling that of a deer tasting cardboard. “H-how else am I supposed to show my love for you?” 

“Well, how do I show my love for you?”

Aventurine’s eyes look up, trying to recall: “You hold my hands,” he lists one on his fingers,  “listen to me when I speak, you support me through hard times,” he smiles warmly at you, flashing a toothy grin that makes his nose scrunch up cutely, bring back pebbles that remind you of me…” A devious smirk makes its way into his face and you prepare yourself to interject: “and you bite my as-” 

“Enough!” You reprimand him, but your tone is soft. “See? I don’t buy things for you to feel loved. You’re much more than a bank, even if other people don’t make you feel that way.” Suddenly bashful, Kakavasha looks away from you. Perhaps unused to such affections, he hugs the cat cake on his lap closer to his chest. 

“I just want to give you the best of the best.” He replies defensively, and you sigh softly.

“You are the best of the best, Kakavasha.” 

“Then,” his voice cracks in an attempt to hide his shyness, “let’s meet up at your place. Let’s stay inside and watch a movie? I hear that’s a popular date idea.” 

“Perfect. My door is open, we can do face masks and-” The call is interrupted by one of the cat cakes jumping on his head, causing him to tumble off the bed and clutch onto the sheets for stability. Instead, his finger hits the end call button. You giggle softly. For all of his cocky displays, Aventurine, at his truest form, is just a little bit of a dork. 

Said dork knocks at your door, dressed in a lovely black dress shirt and his white pants. You suddenly feel a little self conscious, in your bunny slippers and oversized dress shirt. But the way he hugs you and lifts you off the ground slightly for a kiss, it makes you feel like a national treasure. You waddle your way onto the couch, still hugging, and collapse into the plush cushions.

“So, what movie are we feeling today?” Aventurine pulls a blanket over the two of you, and your eyes brighten with an idea. “The Great Gatsby?” 

“Mm, tragic ending. No. Let’s hold that thought.” He leans over and gently pries the remote out of your hand. “Instead,” he kisses your nose and pushes you into the couch a little more, “let me show you even more ways I can show my affection for you.” He whispers, and captures your lips for a deep kiss…

[misspygmypie]

Meet & Greet... and more? Pt. 9

Pairing: Lando Norris x reader Words: 2937 Click here for Part 8

Please do not repost, thank you, and leave some feedback :)

The months passed by with Y/N and Lando’s relationship growing deeper steadily. In the 11 months they had been with each other they both had learned to cope with Lando’s busy lifestyle. The next Grand Prix was just around the corner and Lando had always thrived on the adrenaline of racing but today the excitement was dimmed by a heavy feeling of responsibility. Every detail needed his attention and this meant missing Noah’s fifth birthday party, which was less than a week away.

He glanced at the demanding schedule on his desk and felt a pang of guilt. He opened his laptop and called Y/N, hoping to at least share a moment of happiness remotely via video. When her face appeared on the screen the dining table in the background was cluttered with birthday decorations ready to be hung up, of course racing themed.

“Hey baby,” Lando said, trying to sound upbeat. “How’s everything going for the big day?”

“Hi,” Y/N’s smile was warm. “We’re getting everything ready, he’s really excited and he’s been asking about you a lot.”

Lando tried to mask his sadness with a smile. “I’m sorry I can’t make it, things are just incredibly hectic right now.”

“I know,” Y/N replied, her eyes filled with understanding and concern. “He understands and he’s so proud of you! He even drew a picture of you racing and he’s been showing it off to everyone. He’s really looking forward to when you’re back and we can all spend some time together.”

Just then the boy appeared on the screen, holding up the drawing with a beaming smiley face. “Lando, look! I made this for you, it’s you in the car!”

Lando’s heart melted at the sight. “Wow, Noah, that’s fantastic! I’m going to keep it in my suitcase to remind me of you.”

Noah’s face lit up. “Will you win the race for me?”

“I’ll definitely try my best,” Lando said sincerely. “And when I get back, we’ll have a special day together. How about we finally go to a go-kart track and race like I do? You can show me how fast you are.”

“Really? That sounds amazing!” Noah’s eyes sparkled with excitement and Y/N gave Lando a grateful look. “Thank you for making the effort to connect, even if you can’t be here in person.”

‐—-------

In the days following the video call Lando couldn’t shake the guilt of missing Noah’s birthday. He had promised to make it up to them and he was determined to keep that promise. Between the hectic preparations for the Grand Prix and the relentless schedule it seemed nearly impossible but Lando was set on finding a way.

Late one evening he sat in his living room and stared at his calendar. Meetings, strategy sessions and media obligations filled every available slot. But the more he looked, the more he felt that missing Noah’s birthday wasn't just a minor oversight, it was an opportunity lost to be there for someone who meant so much to him.

The idea was simple: create a small window of time to surprise them before the Grand Prix. It would be tight, but with some help he believed it could be done.

“Hey, Oscar, do you have a moment to chat?” Lando spoke into his phone after his team mate had picked up.

“Sure, what’s up?”

“I need a huge favor,” Lando said. “Noah’s turning five this week and I’ve been looking forward to celebrating his birthday with him. But with all the media meetings and events I have lined up I’m struggling to figure out how to be in two places at once.”

Oscar listened carefully. “What can I do to help?”

Lando took a deep breath. “I was wondering if you could cover some of my media meetings and sponsor commitments for a few days. Noah and Y/N are my family now and I can’t bear the thought of missing this day.”

“I get it, Lando. Family is everything, I’d be happy to help out.”

“Thank you, Oscar,” Lando felt a surge of relief, “Noah looks up to me and Y/N has been incredibly supportive during our entire relationship. I want to be there for both of them just this once.”

Oscar chuckled softly, finding Lando’s dedication endearing. “You know, it’s kind of cute to see how much you care about them. It’s clear how much they mean to you.”

Lando smiled, a bit embarrassed, grateful that Oscar wasn’t able to see him. “Well, when you find the right people it changes everything. I’m really lucky to have them in my life.”

“Just send me the details and I’ll make sure everything runs smoothly. You focus on having a great time.”

“Thank you so much,” Lando said gratefully. “It means more to me than you know. I’ll get you all the details in a bit.”

“No problem at all,” Oscar assured him. “We’re all part of a team here and we support each other. If there’s anything else you need just let me know.”

With their conversation wrapped up, Lando quickly called his assistant to inform him of the changes and then compiled the necessary details for Oscar, relieved and grateful for his friend’s support.

_________

The day of the surprise arrived and Lando boarded a private jet early in the morning, arriving in Y/N’s city just in time to make the most of his brief visit. He kept his plan a secret, even from Y/N, to ensure it would be a complete surprise.

When Lando arrived at Y/N’s house, he was greeted by colorful birthday decorations and the buzz of children’s laughter. Y/N opened the door, her eyes widening in disbelief when she saw him.

“Lando! What are you doing here?” Y/N gasped and hugged her boyfriend tightly before kissing him for a few seconds.

“Surprise! I couldn’t miss his birthday, so I rearranged my schedule to be here.”

Y/N’s face lit up with happiness. “He’s going to be thrilled. He’s been so excited for today.”

As Noah ran up to the hallway his face brightened when he saw Lando. “You came!”

Lando crouched down and the two of them hugged tightly for a moment, then Lando handed the birthday boy a large box wrapped in orange, his favorite color. “This is for you, happy birthday, buddy.”

Noah eagerly unwrapped the box to find a high-quality remote-controlled race car. His eyes widened. “This is amazing, it’s just like the car you drive!”

“It is,” Lando said with a grin. “And I thought we could have some fun together testing it out.”

Before they could start playing Noah’s friends, who had been watching from a distance, gathered around, their eyes wide with disbelief as they recognized Lando. The kids stared in awe, their excitement growing as Lando greeted them. “Hi everyone,” Lando said with a friendly wave. “I’m glad to finally meet all of Noah’s friends.”

The children took turns asking Lando questions about racing and they all spent the afternoon racing the remote-controlled car around the yard, with Noah’s friends eagerly joining in to cheer them on. The party was a huge success and after seeing the joy on Noah’s face Lando knew he had made the right decision.

—-----

The next evening Lando was preparing to leave for the Grand Prix when Y/N approached him, Noah standing next to her with a small, carefully wrapped package.

“Before you go, Noah has something he made for you,” Y/N said. “He and his class had a project where they crafted gifts for the special people in their lives. He was really excited about this and he wanted to give this to you next time you were here.”

The boy, standing beside Y/N, handed over the gift. “I picked you because you’re my hero.”

“Aw,” Lando responded, visibly touched by the gesture, “thank you so much, I can’t wait to see what you’ve created.”

Lando unwrapped it eagerly but just as carefully and he discovered a handmade notebook. The cover was decorated with stickers, including race cars, stars and an orange glittery “L.” Inside, the pages were filled with Noah’s heartfelt notes and colorful drawings about their adventures at the tracks so far together.

Lando felt himself tear up as he flipped through the pages. Each drawing depicted a different scene, a race car zooming across a track, Lando in his racing suit and Noah himself with a big smile in the garage. But it was the final page that truly got to him.

The last drawing was a vibrant crayon depiction of a family. It showed Lando, Y/N and Noah together, smiling and holding hands, surrounded by stars and hearts. The drawing was labeled with the words: “Our Happy Family.”

Lando could barely keep himself from crying. He turned to Noah, who was watching him with wide, hopeful eyes. “This is the most beautiful drawing I’ve ever seen. It means so much to me that you see us this way.”

“I wanted you to have something special because you’re always so busy and away from us.”

Y/N, seeing Lando’s emotional reaction, added softly, “Noah was so proud of his project. He wanted you to know how much you mean to him.”

Just in that moment Y/N’s phone rang and she stepped away to answer. Lando took the opportunity to grab Noah’s hand and guide him to sit down next to him on the sofa. “Can I tell you something, Noah?”

The boy looked up, curious. “What is it?”

Lando took a deep breath, trying to find the right words. “I want you to know how much I love both you and your mom. Being with you two has made me happier than I’ve ever been.”

Noah’s eyes widened with interest. “Really?”

“Really,” Lando said, nodding. “And there’s something I’ve been thinking about. I want to ask your mommy to marry me but I wanted to make sure you’re okay with it first.”

“You mean you want to be our family forever?” Noah’s face lit up with excitement and the young man smiled, feeling relieved. “Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. I want us to be a family, just like in your drawing. What do you think?”

Noah thought for a moment, then asked shyly, “If you’re going to be our family, you kind of would be my dad then?”

Lando’s heart melted. “That would make me very happy. But let’s keep this a secret for now, okay? We’ll surprise your mommy together when the time is right.”

Noah nodded enthusiastically. “Okay, I won’t tell anyone,” he whispered and the both shared a big smile while Noah snuggled up to the man.

_____

Lando had spent the last few weeks juggling the thrill of Formula 1 races with the excitement of planning a surprise that meant more to him than any victory on the track. He had been dating Y/N for well over a year now, a year that had flown by in a blur of love and laughter. Their relationship had grown and Lando knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

There was just one thing missing: the perfect proposal. So, he decided to involve someone very important in his plan, someone who would have a unique perspective and whose opinion mattered a lot to both Y/N and Lando. That someone was Noah.

During his next weekend off Lando gently woke Y/N one morning and informed her about the day’s agenda.

“Good morning, love,” Lando said softly, smiling and kissing her forehead. “I’ve got a little surprise planned for you today.”

Y/N blinked sleepily. “Oh? And what’s that?”

“I’m taking Noah for a boys’ day out. You’re going to have a day to yourself; shopping, pampering, whatever you want, baby. Just relax and enjoy.”

“And what are you two up to?”

Lando gave a mysterious grin. “You’ll find out soon enough. Have fun today!”

With that he placed a loving kiss on her head and quietly tiptoed over to Noah’s room where the boy was already awake, the space a cheerful mess of toys. 

“Good morning, buddy,” Lando greeted, tousling his hair. “Are you ready for a little secret mission?”

Noah’s eyes widened with curiosity. “A mission? What kind of mission?”

Lando knelt down to Noah’s level, a playful grin on his face. “It’s a very important mission. I need your help to plan something really special for your mommy.”

“What is it?” Noah’s face lit up with excitement. 

“Remember when I told you a while ago that I wanted to ask your mom to marry me?” Lando asked. “I need your help to make sure it’s perfect. Can you help me with it?”

Noah’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Yes, I’ll help! What do we need to do?”

Before they were able to head out they had to get ready. First he had to get the boy dressed. Lando picked out a pair of comfy jeans, then held up a colorful, striped shirt and a grey hoodie. 

“Which one?” Lando asked, holding them up for Noah to see.

“This one,” Noah pointed at the hoodie, “so we look like twins because you’re wearing a similar hoodie.”

“Great choice,” Lando laughed, setting the clothes on the bed. “I have to start selling some LN4 merch for kids…” he mumbled to himself, still giggling while helping the kid put on the hoodie, carefully guiding his head through the hole and then assisting him with the jeans.

Next up were the shoes. Noah struggled a bit with the laces, so Lando patiently demonstrated how to tie them with the boy sitting on his lap and intensively watching the man make two bows and soon Noah was proudly showing off his neatly tied sneakers.

“You’re all set, bud” Lando said, giving Noah a playful fist bump.

Noah looked down at himself, beaming with pride. “Thanks, I look great.”

“You sure do,” Lando chuckled and a few minutes later they were on their way.

Lando could hardly contain his own excitement as they headed out, Noah chattering away about superheroes and cars. They made their way to a luxurious jewelry store that Lando had carefully selected and once inside Lando crouched down to Noah’s level. 

“Okay, buddy, here’s the plan. We’re going to pick out the prettiest ring we can find for your mommy. I want it to be perfect and I need your expert opinion. Do you think you can help me with that?”

The boy nodded proudly. They wandered through the store and he would occasionally stop to inspect a ring with intense focus. Lando enjoyed watching Noah’s careful consideration, amazed at just how seriously the little kid took his task.

After a while, Noah stopped in front of a classic, elegant ring with a solitaire diamond. His eyes grew big and he looked up at Lando with a confident grin. “I think this one is the best! It’s so shiny and pretty!”

Lando studied the ring. It was perfect; timeless and beautiful, just like Y/N. He smiled and nodded, clearly impressed. “I think you’re right. This is the one!”

Noah beamed with pride as the ring was carefully packaged. “I can’t wait to see mommy’s face when she sees it!”

With the ring selected they headed to a nearby fast food restaurant where Lando turned to Noah for ideas for the proposal. Over shared chicken nuggets, fries and milkshakes they came up with a perfect plan and after they had finished their meals and bought the rest of the supplies they would need they quickly made their way home knowing that Y/N was still going to be out for another few hours.

Back at the house they worked together to prepare the living room. They created a colorful path by lining the walls with some pictures Noah quickly drew, depicting past memories the three of them had made together and at the end of the trail is where they were going to wait for her.

When Y/N arrived a few hours later she followed the trail of Noah’s drawings, her heart swelling with emotion as she admired each piece, confused about what was happening but curious to find out what was awaiting at the end of the trail. Eventually she saw Noah with the biggest smile on his face, holding a large sign that read “Will You Marry Lando?”

In the center of the room and next to her son stood Lando, surrounded by Y/N’s favorite flowers and big red shiny heart balloons scattered around him and Noah. He took Y/N’s hand, his voice filled with emotion. “Y/N, we’ve been planning something special for you today.”

Noah, proudly holding the sign and not being able to wait any longer, added, “Mommy, Lando and I picked out a ring for you. We wanted it to be perfect!”

Y/N’s eyes filled with tears as she looked back at Lando who dropped to one knee, holding out the beautiful ring. “Y/N, I love you more than words can express and I want nothing more than to be a family with you and Noah. Will you marry me?”

Overwhelmed with emotion Y/N nodded, tears streaming down her face. “Yes, Lando. Of course I will!”

Noah jumped up and down with joy just as Lando slipped the ring onto Y/N’s finger. They embraced each other tightly, with Noah joining in, sharing kisses knowing that the journey of their little family was just starting.

_____

Click here for Part 10! I can't stop writing this series, send help

Tag: @barcelonaloverf1life @remmysthings @poppyflower-22 @vickykazuya @hadids-world @ririyulife @deafeningunknowntyrant @lexiecampos @littlegrapejuice @eloriis @yawn-zi @landossainz @taliya8346282844eliviahdgdajs @casuallyeating @jaydensluv @destinyg237 @il0vereadingstuff @lnchicagosreads @alana4610 @hc-dutch @cherry-piee @wisestarfishbouquet

[chaosheadspace]

Hiii I hope you feel better soon!

8 or 46 for the kiss prompts?

@embroiderling

HI, thank you for sending in an ask! I did 46 (out of jealousy). I tried combining them, but what came out of my brain has really nothing to do with secrecy lol. Enjoy!

In theory, it could have been a good day. In theory. It had been Hob’s day off, teaching part-time and all, and he’d wanted to just relax for once. Don’t get him wrong, he loves life, but the last few months have been hectic with school, finding new staff for the New Inn and sorting out the veritable mess with his oldest friend. He’d come out on top of that, though, because (Hob still can’t believe it) said friend is now his boyfriend, and Hob has vowed to himself (and to Dream, for that matter), to make him as happy as he possibly can be.

Dream is busy tonight though, and so Hob had planned on a bath and a nice dinner, maybe a film. These plans are thoroughly derailed just as he’s putting in a load of laundry. His phone rings, and his barman for tonight barely has a voice, and according to him also a fever, maybe even RSV. Apparently the test said so. Remembering that Jon has asthma, Hob sternly tells him to go to urgent care, and then hangs up to curse a bit.

He’s got no one else to cover that shift.

Hob tries to see the bright side. He loves working the bar, to meet new people, to chat with regulars during (admittedly rare) lulls. So he does what he has to, moves his bath to the afternoon and then puts on a haphazard bun, his best apron and his best smile.

Upon entering the New Inn proper though, the smile quickly slides off his face again.

Dream is here, sitting at one of the tables, full wine glass in front of him, and opposite him a very stunning woman. Both of them are absorbed in conversation, like the world doesn’t matter to them right now, and Hob can’t help the familiar, sickening lurch his stomach gives.

Hob might be old, but he’s not been a good man for long stretches of his life, and even with six hundred odd years to work the kinks out of his personality, some of his faults run deep. Like his jealousy. Oily bitterness on his tongue, an older friend than even Dream. They look good together, right in a way Hob knows he could never be. And he trusts Dream, really he does, he trusts Dream’s heart more than his own.

The thing is, he doesn’t trust himself to be good enough, because he knows he’s not. His own light is a candle to Dream’s supernova, easily outshined, swallowed up.

No, Hob is not a good man at all, because the first thing he does is go right over to them.

“Hi love, can I get you anything else or are you good?” Hob’s got many faces. He’s managed to be polite in front of the queen once, he can manage it now. Maybe.

Dream looks up, startled out of his concentration, and the way his face lights up is a small consolation, but not enough to calm the burning acid in his stomach. He can’t let them know. Can’t let him know. If Hob could get any more jealous, he’s sure there would be poison dripping out between his teeth.

“Hello Hob,” Dream says, his voice like velvet, “This is Calliope. My ex-wife, I believe you would call it.”

Hob swallows. Contradictory feelings tear his heart apart inside his chest. Surely there is a reason they are apart now, but there had been something once, enough to get married…

Hob’s cruel mind reminds him of his recent daydreams , flashing images of a silver ring with rubies and a small cottage in front of his eyes. If he were alone, he’d shake his head and tug his hair and maybe scream into a pillow a bit.

Deep brown, soulful eyes look up into his, and Hob swallows again and forces his smile wider.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Hob, his boyfriend.”

Calliope raises one eyebrow and shakes his outstretched hand as if she could see through him down to his last secret. Which she probably can, let’s be honest. In all his years, Hob’s never gotten as good at subtlety as he wished, and maybe his rampant jealousy is painted on his face.

“Really?” Calliope says, and Hob is gone, finished, his anger vaulting him over the edge.

He whips to the side, takes Dream’s face into his hands and kisses him in the middle of his own inn, apron and all, in plain view of the whole floor. Doesn’t keep it strictly appropriate either, instead he kisses Dream like it’ll be the last time, like the end of the world was upon them, filthy, with tongue. A very tiny, quickly squashed part of him tells him he might come to regret this later. But he has to, he can’t help it, can’t push down this feeling any longer, and so he stakes his claim.

Dream purrs under him, his chest rumbling, his neck tilted almost too far to be comfortable. There’s hands on Hob’s hips, fingers in his belt loops, tugging him down into Dream’s lap. Hob doesn’t care enough to resist. It’d be a bitch and a half to relocate his life fifteen years before it’s time but right now there’s no place else he’d rather be.

Dream remembers too late that Hob, unlike him, has to breathe, so by the time Dream lets him go just an inch, he’s panting like he’s run a marathon, and more than a little dizzy.

“I see,” he can hear Calliope’s amused voice behind his back.

Dream hooks his chin over Hob’s shoulder, possibly to say something, the rumbling purr still rolling through his chest and into Hob’s.

Calliope doesn’t let him get a word in, though. “It’s fine,” she says, “but do keep me out of it next time. We can catch up at a later date.” Then there’s only footsteps and the din of the Inn around them.

A stray thought slowly filters into Hob’s brain, through the mess of feelings and lack of oxygen. He takes another breath, clears his throat.

“Did you…did you do that on purpose?” he asks.

The purring intensifies, then Dream speaks, haughty, vague. “Maybe.”

Hob laughs. He knows he should be mad, but right now he’s just relieved to be accepted, wanted even in his messy imperfection.

send me a kissy prompt or read the finished ones here

[whiskersz]

Heyy! I hope you're having a good day. My fav hazbin character is Husk. Could you please do a ficlet where he and the reader have feelings for each other but are both nervous to admit it. Husk is having a bad day and maybe really stressed and the reader tries to comfort him? Maybe says something like "you're always a great listener for everyone one else, but you need someone to listen to you too". Lots of comfort, fluff, confessions, and love please! ♡♡ my heart aches for this sweet grumpy kitty!

Hey to you! This turned out a bit long, and maybe I did rush the end because I'm just...still not used to writing short fics, ahah. But hey, it's finished and I hope you enjoy it at least a bit!

Text divider by : cafekitsune

Husk x Reader - We found love in Hell

“I’m back!”

You announced, closing the entrance door of the Hotel behind you. You had gone out to run a few errands earlier in the day, and now that it was night the only thing on your mind was lying in bed and falling asleep.

Angel, already back from work and concentrated on his phone, waved at you tiredly; you decided to sit next to him on the couch after shooting a smile at Husk, who seemed grumpier than usual.

Albeit a bit lazily, you and Angel Dust started chatting for a bit, telling each other about how your day went and what you did. When the topic of the other residents of the Hotel came up, the spider demon lowered his voice to a whisper.

“I’ve got to say toots; Whiskers over there is in a bad mood today.” He revealed to you, making you perk up immediately.

“Oh, I did notice he didn’t seem up to a conversation, that’s why I didn’t bother him...” your gaze fell on his figure, all you could see was his back; he seemed to be busying himself with something. “You know if anything happened?”

Angel shrugged, then smirked at you slyly.

“Not sure, but I know of a few things you could try to cheer him up.”

You rolled your eyes at him playfully before shaking your head.

“No thanks, I’ll pass. I’ll talk to him though, thank you for telling me.”

Angel knew very well of you and Husk’s crushes on each other, so he didn’t mind playing matchmaker sometimes. He guessed the best thing to do would’ve been to leave the two of you alone, so he stretched a bit before getting up and announcing that he was off to bed.

You told him goodnight, while Husk simply gave him a nod.

In all honesty, you felt a little bad going up to him for conversation now that you knew he wasn’t in the best mood, but you still did so in hopes of comforting him at least a little. When you sat at the counter, he finally turned around.

“Good evening Husk, how are you?” you faked ignorance and asked, resting your face on your hand. He fluttered his wings and nodded at you as a greeting, putting aside the cloth he had been using to clean the sink.

“Can’t complain. How about you? Want me to pour you somethin’?” he asked despite looking particularly beat, as Angel had warned you.

You shook your head.

“No, just wanted to, y’know... talk to you for a bit before going to bed. Are you sure you’re okay?” your warm smile admittedly made his cheek flush. He was glad that his fur could cover that up at least partially.

Concentrating on your question though, he gave you a deep sigh.

“Yeah, yeah. Just a couple things on my mind today, but who doesn’t go through that.” He took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair; it was your turn to blush.

However you weren’t a fan of how vague he was being. You sighed, which made him turn towards you once again.

“It is common I guess. But even this morning you seemed troubled, so you know...you always listen to others, but it’s fine if sometimes you need to be listened to, too.”

Husk wasn’t one to have big reactions but, having been close for some time, you did notice his eyebrows raising a little at your statement. Still, you hoped he’d say something. When he didn’t, you continued to fill the silence.

“...Not to push you, of course. Maybe you want distractions, I can talk about my day or something...just, let me know how I can help now that I’m here, yeah?”

He took a deep breath, then leaned on the bar’s counter so he could be closer to you, copying your position with his head resting on his hand.

“Ya worry too much, really, I’m fine. Just had way too many interactions with...” he let out a sigh; Alastor, you guessed. It wasn’t surprising that he would be distraught after interacting with the demon he had lost his soul to.

He was pretty vague in his explanations of what happened too, but if he didn’t want to go too in depth about how he felt you were going to respect that. Eventually, the two of you noticed that it was getting late, so you decided to turn off the big lights in favour of smaller, dimmer ones that set a cosy atmosphere.

You sat comfortably on the couch, legs crossed as you listened to Husk speak about a lighter topic now; how everyone had been asking to mix way too complicated cocktails lately while he was already in a bad mood. You knew this wasn’t aimed at you as you either always asked for the same one or didn’t even order one at all, too busy dealing with errands for Charlie or yourself.

“...Thanks for listenin’, by the way.” He said suddenly, and you smiled at him.

“It’s not a problem, that’s what...friends are for.” You said hesitantly.

“Yeah, I s’ppose.”

Friends, you both thought, unbeknownst to each other. You and Husk had been friends for a while, always relying on each other when things got bad. Always managed to break through each other’s walls and get the other to talk about their deepest troubles.

It was clear to everyone at the Hotel that you two were very close, and saw the other in a very positive light, one that outshined the definition of ‘friend’; there was something more that you both wanted, but were too scared, perhaps because of past experiences, to go through with.

“Been a while since I sat with someone to talk about something until late at night.” Husk confessed, breaking your train of thoughts.

“It’s just because it’s me, I bet.” You said jokingly, yet boldly. He chuckled.

“Usually it’s the other way around. They talk, I listen. Feels nice to be listened to.”

Even though you were the listener in this case, he made sure to make you feel appreciated by basically confessing that there was nobody else he’d open up to. You admittedly felt too tired to conjure any insightful thought or answer, so you simply leaned against him; the sudden contact made his ears perk up, but he slowly got comfortable with it and cuddled closer to you himself.

“I’ll always listen to you, Husk.”

“I thought I lost the ability to love long ago;” you thought he was about to start another rant, so you slightly looked up at him to let him know he had your full attention; “Turns out my old heart was jus’ waiting for you to come along.” He finished, looking away.

You felt his wing tentatively reach to hug your side, so you shifted a bit to allow it to. It was warm, comfortable. Exactly how you felt around Husk.

Registering his words, the blush on your cheeks spread. This was his own way of confessing to you.

“I love you, too.” He let his head rest on the top of yours as you muttered those words nervously, as if it was a gesture meant to comfort you.

The next morning, Charlie had to contain a squeal as her and the rest of the residents of the Hotel found you cuddled up next to each other on the cough, sleeping soundly, wrapped in Husk’s wings as if they were a blanket.

[jeridandridge]

For Lovers At Night part 5

My too much gene kicked in so there’s one more chapter of this fic coming. Enjoy! Previous chapter

The text puts a knife in her chest causing her to let out a sob, hand flying to her mouth to cover it. Getting up she walks with her phone in hand out the hall through the doors breaking down only when she’s outside. Letting the sob escape her throat she doesn’t care that it’s starting to drizzle. Taking several deep breaths she tries to stop crying long enough to call you. As the dial tone rings, Melissa feels like her heart is going to fly out of her chest and not in a good way.

“Hello?” A voice on the other end sighs.

“Hon, can we talk please? I need to talk to you.” Melissa’s voice wobbles as she speaks a mile a minute.

You’d never heard her sound like this, so small and unsure of herself in the time that you’ve known her.

“There’s a lot we have to talk about apparently.” You hum. “I need a bit of time, Melissa.”

“Time?” She asks quietly, “how much time?” She’s all but pleading with you at this point and she doesn’t care how she sounds. “I can’t lose you.” She whispers.

The line goes quiet for a moment until you speak again. “I need to gather my thoughts about everything. I think you owe me that much.”

“Okay,” Melissa takes a deep breath. “Just please don’t shut me out.”

“I’d never do that. I’m not an asshole, Melissa. I’m hurt and I need time. I’ll talk to you soon.”

The call ends and Melissa brings her hands to her face holding in a scream. In a matter of hours her entire life got flipped around in a way she never thought would happen. After a few more minutes outside Melissa breathes trying to calm herself to go back to her kids. Going back inside Abbott she cleans up her desk and tucks the card you sent into her purse before the tears start flowing again.

A couple blocks over you busy yourself cleaning up the store and bar in prep for the night ahead.

“you’ve been cleaning that same spot on the bar for ten minutes.” Your friend and colleague Jacob says coming up beside you.

“I’m- yeah,” you shake your head moving down the slab of granite. “My head is in the clouds.”

“And you don’t have that dopey lovesick smile on your face.” Jacob hums, “was it too soon for flowers?” He winces.

“Considering her husband posted on her Facebook for their anniversary last month, I’m gonna say yeah too soon,” You huff tossing the rag down with a sigh.

“Oh no,” Jacob lets out slow and full of pity.

“Don’t do that, dude. I dont need that right now okay? I need to get through this weekend and figure out what the hell to say to her.”

“How did this all happen?”

Looking at your friend with a sigh you slouch forward crossing your arms.

“I looked her up because she’s so mysterious ya know? I looked and she came up, still has old pictures of him and that damn post on her wall. I don’t know what to think at this point.” You shrug completely confused and hurt.

She definitely wasn’t lying about being with women before, that much you knew and the way she looked at you felt real. She looked at you like she loved you. Talking to her on the phone and hearing the sadness in her voice made you even more conflicted.

“You have feelings for her right?” He asks leaning against the bar.

“I’d be stupid not to wouldn’t I?” you scoff.

“Theres your answer. Hear her out and talk to her when you’re ready.” Jacob advises the only way he knows how.

Thinking about your friend’s words for the rest of the day, you go through the motions at work putting on your best fake smile as you greet and chat with customers. As you cater to your patrons your phone sits on your office desk buzzing with a text chain from Melissa you don’t see until much later.

When you get up to your apartment that night you get ready for bed shuffling over to the mattress feeling almost disgusted with yourself. You slept with a married woman and you had no idea if she was telling the truth or not about how she was treated by her husband. The post you saw online rubbed you the wrong way, you were still friends with enough people from your hometown to know what a bad relationship looks like yet you still didn’t know for sure.

Laying on your back you look at the ceiling with a sigh. Now or never, you grab your phone looking at the long string of texts you have from Melissa.

I know you said you needed time but I need you to know I meant everything I said to you. About my family, work, how I feel about you.

I know I fucked up and I’m so sorry. More sorry than you’ll ever know, Amore.

Please don’t push me away.

Dropping the phone onto your nightstand you turn over curling under your blankets wanting to sleep the day away. Only sleep doesn’t come. Tossing and turning with racing thoughts of the redhead you dissect every moment carefully from when you met up until you kissed her goodbye after your date and every single moment puts a ghost of a smile on your lips. Her still calling you ‘Amore’ in the texts made this even harder for you. Closing your eyes you listen to the raindrops hit your window and thunder rumble in the pitch dark.

At the same time, Melissa is overtired and wanting desperately to sleep but she can’t stop the tears or her thoughts from keeping her body awake. She’s never felt like this before in her entire adult life and she knows it’s her fault. She should have never lied in the first place and she sure as hell should have never let Kristen Marie put her on Facebook.

when Joe posted that message on her page it didn’t effect her, she already knew it was for the show he constantly put on for her family of being a good husband when they are all aware he is anything but. What she hadn’t known was he made it public, and now the thought of losing you and explaining everything to her family makes her chest ache.

The following day for you is strange. When you wake at your usual ten am, it takes everything in you not to grab your phone and send Melissa a good morning text as you’d come accustom to. Instead you lay there for a few minutes enjoying the sound of birds outside along with the usual traffic. Getting up and going about your morning proves difficult for you. Once ready for your day you check the time, realizing Melissa had her lunch break in less than two hours. Picking up the device with a sigh you send a quick message.

Can you meet me the cafe near Abbott during your lunch?

In a classroom not far away Melissa’s heart jumps when she sees her phone light up. Opening it immediately she feels hopeful reading the message, glad her students were in gym at that very moment. Not wanting to test her luck too much she replies with a simple yes I can then gets up practically jogging to Barbara’s classroom.

“Hey, I have to cancel our lunch plans today. She wants to meet at the cafe.” She can’t stop the smile from crossing her lips.

“Melissa, be careful with that woman.” Her best friend warns. “You still have to deal with all the legal proceedings with Joe and your mother.”

Melissa nods shoving her hands in her pockets. “I know, I know that. I just really need to see her Barb.” She shrugs with a small smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes.

Barbara looks at her friend in astonishment. “You love this woman.” She comes to the realization. “Go on during lunch, you text me as soon as you get back here.” She points.

As Melissa’s break time approaches you walk the couple blocks to the cafe on the corner, wondering if you’d see her coming from the school from the window. Sitting there waiting you order a water trying to keep your cool while mindlessly scrolling on your phone. As you do you receive a text from Jacob.

Hear her out and remember she’s hurting too

Letting out a sigh you tuck the phone in your pocket. When you lift your head you’re met with the sound of the door chime and green eyes landing on you. Standing up at the table you don’t make a move, gesturing for Melissa to sit across from you.

“Hey,” you let out not breaking eye contact with the woman. Even dressed in her work clothes she was absolutely stunning. “You look as tired as I feel.

“Yeah,” Melissa takes a seat wanting so badly to hug you. “I didn’t really sleep.”

“That makes two of us,” you nod pushing one of the two coffees in front of you forward.

Melissa looks at you with a grateful not picking up the drink. Just how she likes it she thinks.

“So uh, I’ve never had to do this before.” You shrug not sure where to start.

“And I’m not good with the whole feelings thing.” Melissa adds playing with the corner of a napkin. “I know you owe me nothing, but let me explain everything?” She asks softly.

While you were upset, an explanation is exactly what you wanted. Nodding, you urge her to go on.

Taking a breath the redhead fiddles with the napkin between her fingers. “What I told you about him, everything is true. The cheating, the lying, the not caring, it’s all true. We were young and stupid when we got married, and he didn’t wanna miss out on being one of the guys.” She shrugs taking a breath.

“You’re not gonna tell me you two have kids are you?”

“No,” Melissa shakes her head immediately. “No kids, just an overbearing family on my side.” She chuckles. “In fact, my brother and cousins threatened to kill him after they found out he cheated on me the first time.”

Letting out a puff of laughter you shrug. “Can’t blame them. It’s the Italian-American way.”

Melissa ducks her head with a small smile, eyes going to the paper. “Yeah. And I ain’t saying I’m a saint, I cheated when I was a teenager but as an adult? Never did. My marriage started out fine, but a few years in he got sloppy with hiding it. I never cared enough to ask for a divorce because growing up my mother made a big deal about marriage but anyway,” She shrugs it off not wanting to get emotional. “I didn’t think any of it mattered and I wasn’t good enough for anyone else so why go through the hassle?”

Looking over the woman’s features you see a mixture of sadness and pleading in her eyes as she nibbles her bottom lip.

“What changed?” You ask quietly resting your hand on the table almost touching the redheads.

“you made me feel like a woman that was desirable and worth talking to.”

“Melissa, I can’t mess around with a married woman.” You sigh shaking your head. “I meant what I said in that card, I-“ before you can finish your sentence Melissa hits you with another bomb.

“I asked Joe for a divorce.”

Sitting stunned you just blink at her for a moment.

“He was there at the school when those flowers were delivered. Which are beautiful by the way.” The redhead gives a shy smile.

“Well fuck.” You sit back in shock taking in the information.

“Hon, It was the best thing that coulda happened to me, I finally told him how miserable I was and that’s what I needed to do,” Her eyes water, the dam about to break again as her voice turns to a whisper. “And you gave that to me even- even if that means I lose you.”

Extending your fingers you turn your hand, palm up to the redhead, your fingers entwining together a moment later. “You’re not gonna lose me, Mel. I just-“ you sigh, “I need to process everything and I bet you do too.” It had been a strange twenty four hours and you still couldn’t believe the woman you were in love with was still someone else’s wife.

Feeling the warmth and gentle squeeze from Melissa’s hand you lean forward slightly meeting her eyes. “Let’s take things slow, start over.” You suggest.

“I can do that.” The redhead nods. As long as she could keep you that’s all she cared about.

“Okay,” you give her a soft smile gently pulling away. The rest of your short time together comes easy, the awkwardness chipping away as you two sit and talk as you usually did.

Tapping the screen of her watch Melissa sighs knowing the forty five minutes she spent with you wasn’t long enough but would have to do for today.

“Back to the rugrats?” You ask knowing her lunch wasn’t very long.

“Yeah, Barb is getting ‘em from recess for me. I uh, thank you for talkin to me, hon.”

“I’d never ghost you or ignore you, Mel.” You shake your head leading her out the door of the cafe. “I really, really like you. I meant that. Now we can just pump the breaks a bit yeah? You and your family are going through a lot now.”

“Yeah,” Melissa lets out in a puff of laughter. “I can’t wait to be interrogated by my ma and Nana later at dinner.”

“In that case I’d say that’s punishment enough.” you chuckle putting your hands in your pockets, still a bit of space between you two as you stand there on the sidewalk. “Well, I’ll see you later, Mel.”

“Can- hon, can I have a hug?” She asks almost unsure of herself.

Unable to say no to the woman you step forward wrapping one arm around her shoulders and the other around her waist in a warm embrace. Closing your eyes you take in the feel of her body, her signature smell, how her hands feel playing with the back of your jacket.

“Thank you, Amore.” She whispers, most definitely needing the loving touch as much as you did. The redhead pulls back first, giving you that shy smile that has just the corner of her lips up slightly.

“I’ll see you soon.” You assure her, knowing that you really couldn’t stay away from her long, especially now.

In the Schemmenti household a weekly dinner happens at Nanas house, and this week was no different except when Melissa pulls up with a large tray of ziti she only sees her parent’s car in the driveway. Coming into the house with the tray she smells food cooking and her nana talking, that was a good sign.

“Is a hit happening?” She pokes her head into the kitchen.

“My mia Cara!”

Maria Schemmenti crosses the kitchen going right to her granddaughter kissing her cheeks and taking the tray from her. “Come sit, food is almost done.”

Even though she’s up in years the oldest redhead that Melissa took after the most in looks and actions moves swiftly going back to her many dishes on the stove.

“Hey kiddo, you okay?” Johnny Schemmenti was a no nonsense guy, always ready to jump into action for his family especially his mini me Melissa. Sharing the same green eyes the two hug and Johnny places a kiss to his daughter’s head.

“Ya know what dad? I’m better than I’ve ever been.” She smiles moving to sit back down with her dad. “Ma looks pissed.” She says quietly watching the blonde woman move around the kitchen.

“Hi, ma.” The youngest redhead calls out getting no reaction from the woman.

“Melissa I will speak to you when I’m done helping your nana.”

“Caterina don’t give that girl the cold shoulder.” Nana points at her.

“That’s okay, Nana. I’m the only one here so apparently I’m in for an ambush. Did you put the hole in the backyard, Ma or is it somewhere else?”

Johnny has to bite back a laugh hiding his proud smirk with his beer bottle.

“Melissa this isn’t an ambush. I’m only wondering why you had to cause a scene instead of telling us you weren’t happy.”

“Mi stai prendendo per il culo,” Melissa huffs.

“Melissa Ann!” Caterina snaps.

“If this is how dinners gonna go tonight I’m outta here. I don’t need all this. Nana, dad, I’m sorry I’ll see you on Sunday.” She gets up kissing her dad’s cheek, grabbing her purse as she goes.

“Sit back down, Tesoro. Your mother means well but she ain’t going about it the right way.” Maria shoots her daughter in law a look that gets a huff from the blonde.

Melissa listens to her Nana, sitting back down next to her dad. Elbows on the table she covers her face with her hands taking a breath feeling like she’s a little kid that was caught and is now getting in trouble.

“Look you wanna know what happened? Joe cheated on me for years, did ya know that? That weekend the guys had the cops called on them and I had to sweet talk the cop? Yeah, they were ready to kill him. We done here now?” Melissa lets out with a challenging look to her mother.

That night almost ten years ago had been a rough one. A bunch of the cousins rented a house in the Poconos and the long weekend in the summer heat ended with Joe taking off on a four wheeler and Johnny Junior having his hand stitched up in the cabins kitchen after a drunk Joe made a joke about another woman he was seeing. Junior and the cousins scared him good, eventually the cops came ruining the weekend for Melissa.

“The boys knew this whole time?” Caterina asks quietly.

“Of course they did. So did Barb, and Nana.” She nods to her grandmother taking a breath.

Melissa’s mother looks at the oldest woman with an agape mouth.

“Mel, we want you to be happy. You happy with splitting from Joe?” Johnny asks his daughter.

“I can’t put into words how happy I am, pops.” She shrugs with a small smile.

“See, Cat? That’s all I need to know.” He nods to his wife, getting up to get the plates for the table.

“At your wedding I knew he was no good.” Maria shakes her head. “The negativity sheds off of him like his hair does.”

Melissa chuckles staying put as her parents move about the kitchen setting the table. As they do, Maria comes over kissing the top of her head.

“Mia Cara, when we’re done you make a plate and take it to your new friend. Give her a sneak peek of family dinners.”

The redhead looks at the matriarch of the family with a warm smile knowing her Nana would understand everything that Joe told the family.

As Melissa has dinner with her family you move around your apartment cleaning up and ordering groceries as you usually do on your days off. Seeing Melissa that afternoon was nice and you knew as soon as you saw her the anger you felt would lessen. You were upset but not so much with her. Now you were upset with her husband and how he treats her.

If her being free of him and the cage she felt trapped in meant you had to feel bad for those few hours from finding out to the moment you met up with her for lunch then so be it. You were tempted to text her an invite to come over for the night to decompress and talk more. As you leave your apartment and hop down the stairs to the alleyway out back to get rid of your garbage you see a car you do not recognize parked almost blocking the alley, and a man getting out of the car.

A man you recognize as Joe.

Final chapter

[thetomorrowshow]

intruder

backstory of why jimmy and scott moved out of the super neighborhood in my empires superpowers au!

cw: murder (in SELF-DEFENSE) of an unnamed character, blood/violence, like a decent bit of it, injury, dissociation

~

Scott’s been missing for two days.

Scott’s been missing for two days, and Jimmy isn’t going to wait around doing nothing.

The news had come in the form of a knock on the front door, around 3pm on the first day. Jimmy doesn’t officially live at Scott’s house, but he spends a fair amount of time there, and now he pushes back from the kitchen table and heads to the front door, snapping on the mask that hangs on a hook by the entrance.

“Oh, hi, TJ!” Blossom says when he opens the door to find her on the step, flowers actively winding around in her hair. “Is Major around?”

Jimmy frowns, checks his watch. “Um, he left for work this morning, around eight? He shouldn’t be back until four, at the earliest.”

Why would Blossom be asking him this? Don’t they all have some sort of hero group chat?

“Are you sure?” Blossom’s smile drops. “Did he say he was headed somewhere else?”

“Just to work,” says Jimmy. “Why? What’s up?”

 Blossom bites her lip, the flowers in her hair wilting. “He never showed,” she says. “He isn’t responding to messages.”

That’s enough for Jimmy to shut the door and run back to the table, grabbing his cell phone. Then he returns, pulling it open again. Blossom is still there, looking a little surprised.

Jimmy pulls up his contacts, clicks on the one labeled ‘scott :) - super’ and hits call.

“You’ve reached Major, I’m probably winning a battle right now. Send me a text and I’ll get back to you when I have a moment.”

Straight to voicemail.

That can’t be good.

“Try the Mad King,” Jimmy tells her. “I’m still working until four, but keep me updated. Do you have my number?”

But Blossom never texts him any news.

And Joel tells him, that night, that Scott’s officially missing, and they’re moving Jimmy to a safehouse.

So it isn’t even 8pm when Jimmy finds himself in a small apartment downtown, the dim light of the setting sun half-illuminating the single room.

And Jimmy stays there all night, staring at his phone, as his worry crescendos over and over again, blowing out lightbulbs and spoiling food can by can.

They still haven’t found him in the morning.

Jimmy can do nothing but sit, alone, in this cheap, unused apartment of Joel’s, waiting for some message that his boyfriend has been found.

But there’s nothing, and Jimmy isn’t going to wait around doing nothing when Scott could be getting tortured right now.

Because that’s it, really. When Jimmy went missing, it was because some horrid, insane villain kidnapped him and ran experiments on him and treated him like an animal—

One of the blades on the floor fan comes off, crashing to the bottom of the fan cage.

Jimmy takes a deep breath.

He can’t continue to sit here on the ragged carpet (because there’s no furniture other than a single folding chair and a mattress) while Scott could be going through the exact same things that he had been subjected to.

Or worse, he thinks, pushing back a sickening memory.

So Jimmy packs up his little backpack that he hasn’t actually unpacked yet except to get his toothbrush, grabs the mask he’d left on the kitchen counter (which he balls up and shoves in the pocket of his jeans), and leaves, ready to find Scott.

Where does Scott usually go first?

He covers all of the city, but rarely ventures away from the most densely populated areas. Downtown is one of his favorites to frequent, as well as the pier.

Good thing Jimmy knows downtown like the back of his hand.

He catches the bus like it’s second nature, the schedule practically tattooed on the inside of his eyelids (despite the fact that he rarely rode the bus for fear of causing an accident. He learned it in case anyone ever asked him the bus schedule). He hasn’t spent much time out and about on his own, but he can get around and he’s lived with Lizzie long enough to know how to go somewhere by himself. That doesn’t mean he isn’t careful: he sits at the back of the bus with his back pressed against the window and watches everyone, careful to sort them into threat categories and keep tabs on everyone.

It’s exhausting. It always is.

It isn’t long at all before he leaves the bus at one of Scott’s favorite places—right across the way from the elementary school. Scott heads here first thing most mornings, keeping an eye on the children as they arrive at school.

The mask is scrunched uncomfortably in Jimmy’s pocket. He wishes he could put it on. He hates going out in public—not without at least a baseball cap.

It feels like everyone at this park is watching him.

Any of them could be in league with whoever took Scott. Any of them could have been one of the thugs that worked for Xornoth. Any of them could be someone he hurt in the past.

Every time someone walks past him, Jimmy automatically tenses. That woman could attack him. That man could crush his skull. That child could be a distraction. That man could grab him and pull him into an alley.

Jimmy shoves his hands in his hoodie’s pocket so that he doesn’t have to look at how they tremble. This is why he doesn’t go places alone. This is why he works from home right now.

This is why people need to not get kidnapped. Specifically the people that can help him not panic about being kidnapped.

Right, now, does he usually patrol around the school? Or just wait out front and watch the kids go in?

If he was Scott, what would he do?

Scott would probably patrol. He likes to be moving, likes to show off his skills.

So Jimmy hikes out of the park and crosses the road to the school, following the sidewalk all around the building.

On one side is an alley between some run-down apartments, and Jimmy passes through, keeping a close eye on anything out of place. Any knocked-over trash cans, any smears of dirt or dried blood on buildings, anything that could be the signs of a struggle.

He feels more and more anxious the further down he goes, swallowing back the thrumming of his power within him, the scar at the base of his skull burning.

He can’t cause an accident here. He's next to an elementary school, he can’t risk it.

Can he?

What accidents can he cause here?

Jimmy’s never really reached out with his powers before on purpose—not in a long time, not in a searching way.

But his powers can cause terrible things to happen, things as far away as inside the school, and if his power can know that there’s things that far away to ruin, then can’t he know, too?

So he reaches out into the surrounding buildings.

There are a lot of people here.

That’s the first thing he feels.

There’s hundreds of children in the school, and one of these buildings is an apartment complex, and Jimmy can’t see them or even really sense them? He just . . . knows that they’re there, in some kind of . . . sixth sense?

There are so many other things that he knows are there, but can’t verbalize. He simply knows, to an overwhelming degree, the contents of everything around and maybe there’s a reason he’s never done this before because he thinks he’s going to be sick—

“TJ!”

Jimmy flinches, hears something crash in the distance. He wheels around—this could be it this is the moment he’s kidnapped—, only to find fWhip standing at the mouth of the alley.

“Why are you out and about?” fWhip asks, moseying over, hands in his pockets. “Don’t you usually stay home from the cool parties?”

Right. He knows fWhip. Kind of. fWhip is nice, right? He helped save him.

Jimmy isn’t wearing his mask. Which is fine. It’s fine to not be wearing it, because fWhip recognized him anyways and his secret identity isn’t contingent on a mask anymore.

“Um, I’m looking for Major,” he says, head still spinning a bit. “He usually goes here every morning, and nobody saw him for his whole shift, so if he got kidnapped it was probably near—”

“Wait, Major’s missing?”

Jimmy frowns. “Yeah, did you not hear? He disappeared yesterday.”

fWhip checks over his shoulder, adjusts his goggles. “Okay. Not good. And if Major’s missing, why aren’t you in a safehouse?”

“Well, I was,” Jinmy says, looking down at his feet. How has he been caught already? He just barely left!

“But you couldn’t stick around when Major could be . . . being tortured?” guesses fWhip.

Jimmy shifts uncomfortably. “Yeah,” he says dejectedly. “But I can go back. The Mad King would—”

“Nah, don’t do that. I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to. Do you need help looking?”

And before Jimmy can so much as process what he’s said, fWhip is reaching up to the window in the building beside them, testing the latch and finding it open.

“Let’s check out this place,” he suggests, shoving the window open and grabbing the sill, pushing himself up and into the window in an impressive show of upper-body strength.

Jimmy blinks.

He didn’t expect to be joined in his search.

Let alone by fWhip.

“Okay, nobody’s here,” fWhip calls out the window. “You coming?”

“Is there a door?” Jimmy asks halfheartedly.

fWhip shrugs.

Jimmy sighs, grips the windowsill (a bit lower for him than it had been for fWhip), and heaves himself up, legs kicking for purchase on the wall and arms trembling under his weight.

He falls back once, arm scraping a bit against the sill, then manages to pull himself up the second time, his ribcage pressed in painfully against the windowsill, where he hangs for a moment before tipping over and landing in a heap on the other side.

“Try to roll when you come in,” fWhip advises as Jimmy picks himself up. “It’s easier. And way more cool.”

“I’ll remember that,” Jimmy grumbles, brushing the copious streaks of dust off his hoodie.

“So we’re looking at an abandoned first floor of some office building, I think,” fWhip says, flipping a switch on his goggles. “See anything?”

Jimmy looks around. It’s a fairly large space, the concrete ground scarred by the torn-up carpet (some of which still lies in an awkward heap against a wall), a single dead office chair sitting in the middle of the room. Otherwise, there’s some brightly-colored papers in a corner, and—

The front door slams open.

“TJ,” comes a suspicious and familiar voice.

The Mad King is standing in the doorway.

“Rats,” fWhip says, frowning. “Did you follow me?”

“You and Mythics are always up to no good,” Joel tells him dismissively, before turning back to Jimmy, arms crossed. “Why are you here?”

“Um . . . looking for Major?” Jimmy tries.

Joel raises an eyebrow. “With fWhip? Come on, TJ, if you were going to break house arrest it should’ve been with someone respectable.”

“Hey!”

“Come on, back to the safehouse.”

“But—”

“TJ,” Joel says firmly. “We aren’t arguing about this. I’ll keep looking for Major, yeah? You need—”

“But I, I can help!” Jimmy insists. This isn’t fair, he shouldn’t be locked up when his boyfriend could be going through the worst experiences of his life—

“Jimmy,” Joel grits out. fWhip makes a ‘yikes’ face, turns to start going through the neon papers in the corner.

“Since Major has been kidnapped, they will want to get the people he cares about the most—you,” Joel stresses. “They will want to hurt you to get him to give up whatever information they’re looking for. That’s why—”

“I know, I know, but I can defend myself,” argues Jimmy. “It’s—it’s Sc—I mean, it’s Major. I have to help. And I know—”

“You’re helping by staying safe,” says Joel. “I’m not arguing about this, okay?”

“Who would have a bake sale and then put the signs in an abandoned building?” fWhip murmurs, examining one of the said signs.

Which is stupid.

This is stupid.

How does Joel expect him to just sit there?

How can he tell Jimmy to go hide and let Scott get hurt?

But there’s no point in fighting this.

“Maybe there’s some way you can help from the apartment, okay?” Joel says placatingly, and Jimmy rolls his eyes.

“Sure. Fine, take me back, officer.”

“Don’t get an attitude with me, young man,” Joel warns, sputtering jokingly, but Jimmy’s stomach squirms just the slightest bit.

He’s not a child.

“fWhip, I’ll be back here in half an hour, okay?” Joel says. “Let me know if you find anything.”

Then he strides out the door, Jimmy reluctantly following along behind.

-

Joel finds Scott the next day.

It’s a small place, a closed mechanic shop, near the East side of the city, where this particular gang of villains decided to keep him.

Joel finds him by checking the security footage of the elementary school. He sees, in the corner of one of the cameras, a couple of neon signs hanging on the side of the building fWhip and Jimmy had broken into.

Backing it up a little bit, Joel finds the car that carried the people who hung up the signs (something they did several hours before dawn).

And when he tracks down that car, he finds Scott.

Jimmy receives the text that Scott’s been found and instantly calls Lizzie, begging her for a ride home. Lizzie agrees, and when Joel and Scott come through the front door, Jimmy is there waiting, a frozen pizza in the oven.

Jimmy drops everything, his stress releasing in a little burst of power that crashes his phone and knocks all the cushions off the sofa, hurrying toward Scott.

Scott looks absolutely exhausted. His suit is torn here and there, his hair tangled and greasy, his eyelids drooping. But he gives Jimmy a small smile and acquiesces to a gentle hug.

“Glad you’re safe,” Scott murmurs. “I was worried.”

Jimmy chuckles, pitched a little high with nerves. “You were worried? Imagine my state!”

Scott pulls away, plants a small kiss on Jimmy’s lips before tugging off his mask, mouth twisting in a grimace.

There’s a large bruise on his cheek, and a small line of them down his jaw, but he otherwise doesn’t seem to be in very bad condition. Still, Jimmy frets, hands twisting anxiously.

“Where are you hurt? Do you need to get checked out? You really should go to the hospital, just in—”

“I’m fine,” Scott cuts him off. “Just some bruises. It’s all right.”

Even so, Scott stands there patiently, as Jimmy takes in every part of him.

He seems to be telling the truth. Nothing looks broken or like it’s bleeding too badly. He’s holding himself a little gingerly, though, that could be a broken rib—

Jimmy prods at his chest and Scott steps back, hands over himself.

“It’s not broken,” Scott says, teeth gritted. “Joel already tried it. Just a deep bruise.”

“Probably the worst kidnappers I’ve ever seen,” Joel calls from the kitchen, where he’d gone after pushing past the two of them in the hall. “Didn’t even know how to torture him properly.”

Torture? “Scott, I’m so sorry—do you need anything? Should I schedule you a therapy appointment?”

Scott bursts out laughing. “Thank you, baby,” he says. “I’m fine. I promise. Just tired.”

“And an idiot,” adds Joel. “How’d you manage to get kidnapped by such an incompetent lot?”

“Their signs said homemade croissants,” Scott moans, walking into the kitchen as if nothing ever happened (though his arm is still wrapped around his ribs). “You know I love supporting small local businesses.”

“’Twas your downfall,” Joel intones, snickering. “Sorry, mate.”

Jimmy follows awkwardly, not entirely sure how to behave.

Scott’s . . . fine?

He hadn’t even considered that as an outcome. He hadn’t dared to think that Scott might return without severe injuries, without being traumatized by the torture and greatly needing help returning to the real world.

Like Jimmy had been.

He doesn’t know what he can even do.

How can he help Scott when Scott doesn’t need help?

So Jimmy just kind of hovers, near Scott, as he sits there and eats pizza and jokes a little with Joel.

Then Scott leaves to go shower, and Joel shoots Jimmy a sympathetic smile.

“He’s fine,” Joel assures him. “He may be a bit clumsy for a while—his hands were zip-tied pretty tightly together—but he’s really fine.”

It’s hard to believe him.

But Jimmy just nods and resolves to not treat Scott strangely. He’s fine, after all.

If he’s fine, then so is Jimmy.

-

That night, there’s something wrong.

Jimmy wakes up quite suddenly, the odd sixth sense that he’d probed at the other day ringing with the notice that something is off.

He doesn’t know what. He doesn’t know what’s changed in their surroundings, but he knows that it’s not quite right and he needs to be aware of it.

Jimmy blinks open his eyes, glances over to Scott to reassure himself that his partner is safely there.

And leaning over Scott, a knife gleaming in their hand and poised above Scott’s chest, is a person dressed in black.

Jimmy reacts immediately.

He dives over Scott, knocking the man’s arm just as he sinks the knife down—Scott wakes with a cry of pain, the knife carving a jagged line in his chest and up his shoulder as the man is knocked off course.

Jimmy rolls off of Scott, faces the intruder for a brief second.

The intruder spits out a curse, then barrels into Jimmy, brandishing his knife.

Jimmy moves on instinct. He grapples with the man, twists his wrist with the knife—the man slashes at him, but Jimmy twists further until his grip loosens on the hilt, and then he takes the knife.

He spent hours and days and weeks training with Xornoth in knife work and he knows exactly how to attack to injure, which spots are the most painful without being fatal. He stabs the knife into the attacker’s upper arm, then into his side when he howls and twists away, and Jimmy can’t help but show off a bit as he flips the knife to his other hand and drives it into the man’s knee.

The intruder falls to his knees, and Jimmy’s head is pounding with the adrenaline, and he can’t move his focus from taking this man out entirely because he tried to kill Scott—

Jimmy spins around to be behind the man, hands on his throat—the man grabs at his wrists, nails scrabbling against his skin—and sends a burst of power out.

Under his sweaty palms, knife still tucked between the fingers of his right hand, Jimmy feels the man’s neck break. Not just the bone: his vocal cords snap—his muscles fall loose—his throat collapses, and so does the man, falling heavily to the carpet.

Jimmy stands there, panting.

Scott wheezes in pain.

Jimmy fumbles on the bedside table, grabs Scott’s hero phone with fingers slick with blood. He presses the emergency button on the side, holds it down for a solid five seconds.

Then he drops it back on the table, opens one of the drawers to pull out Scott’s mask.

“Jimmy,” Scott gasps, sitting up, clutching his arm over the slash in his shirt. “Are—are you okay?”

Jimmy nods, then he clicks on the bedside lamp, bathing the room in low, yellow light, and surveys Scott.

There’s a sheen of sweat over Scott’s bruised face, his eyes pained and confused (and concerned, and very very worried), but Jimmy barely registers that as his eyes find the wound.

His nightshirt is soaked in blood, spreading out from the slash, and it only takes one glance at the wound for Jimmy to know that it needs a professional to take a look at it. He doesn’t know near enough about injuries to know anything other than that it looks bad.

He leans over Scott (Scott flinches back) and pulls the mask over his face, carefully holding the knife pointed away from him. His hair catches a bit in the eyeholes and Jimmy doesn’t do anything about it.

"Major?" calls a voice from below, and Jimmy spins around, knife held out, as he hears the stairs creak with running footsteps. Was there back-up? No matter. There won’t be, soon.

A pajama-clad Blossom pushes open the door from where it's half-open (Scott always closes the door when they go to bed), her hands flying to her mouth when she takes in the scene. "Oh my gosh—Major, TJ, what happened? Should I call an ambulance? I'll call one—"

"Hello? Is everything okay?"

More footsteps, then Gem appears, mask pulled over tangled hair.

"Hi, we need an ambulance—the address—"

"What happened?" Gem says, echoing Blossom's words as Blossom turns away, one hand covering the ear not pressed to her phone.

Scott pushes himself up further, grimacing. "Intruder," he manages, nodding toward the body on the floor. Gem glances at it, before her eyes fix on Jimmy.

"TJ, sit down—where are you hurt? Where do you guys keep your first aid kit?"

"It's not my blood," Jimmy says, his voice too loud in his ears. He gestures with the knife toward the motionless body, the neck appearing kind of . . . squashed. "I'm fine. Check Major."

"Shoot, the attacker," Gem mutters. "Blossom, tell them that there's two or three people that need—"

"He's dead," Jimmy interrupts. "Don't worry about him. Check Major."

Gem blinks.

Meets Jimmy's eyes.

"Okay," she says after a moment. "I'll check Major. Did you kill him?"

Jimmy swallows.

"He was attacking us," he says stiffly. "He stabbed Major. I acted in self-defense."

Gem moves around and climbs onto Jimmy's empty side of the bed, still keeping an eye on him even as she checks out Scott, pulling away his shirt and asking quiet questions (to which Scott responds, his breath shallow and words faltering).

"The ambulance should be here soon," Blossom says, moving toward the foot of the bed. "TJ, you're covered in blood—set that knife down, let me help you."

"It's not my blood," Jimmy says again. "I'm fine."

"Okay, then—"

"You help Major," Gem says, slipping off the bed and coming back over. "I'll help TJ wash up. C'mon."

Numbly, Jimmy follows her out of the room, checking over his shoulder to make sure Scott is okay. Scott waves him on with the hand that isn’t held to his chest, and Jimmy continues down the hall, into the bathroom.

"We'll have to make this quick," Gem says. "Sit down. And give me that knife."

Jimmy doesn't want to give her the knife. He pulls it back to his chest when she reaches for it, thumbs the blade protectively.

"I need the knife to give it to Major, so that when the police get here we can have a convincing story without you in it. Make sense?"

After considering, Jimmy nods. It makes sense.

And that means he needs to not be here.

He hands over the knife. "I killed him," he says. "If they ask, Major stabbed him three times. Then he fell and broke his neck."

Gem shakes her head. "Okay. Wow. Okay. You know we don't normally kill people, right? Never mind. I'll go give this to Major."

Jimmy glances in the mirror as she steps past. There's blood spattered across his face, more in splashes on his nightshirt and shorts and arms. His eyes, cold and wide, peer back at him out of his pale face.

He needs to get out of here.

Gem returns after two or three minutes, handing Jimmy a jacket (one of Scott’s, he distantly notices).

"Zip that up over the blood, rinse off your hands, and let's go," she says. "We'll head to my place. Blossom will ride with Major in the ambulance. It doesn't look too bad, so he should be okay."

Jimmy obeys, letting Gem turn on the water so he can stick his hands under the cold spray.

For a moment, he's back there—just trying to scrub the blood off his hands from his first intentional murder in the sink with the broken handle.

Then he blinks, looking down at the sink, at the red running off his hands.

"Good enough. Let's go."

-

Joel joins them in Gem's dark kitchen after about two hours, stripping off a pair of gloves. He's fully dressed in his supersuit, his hair unbrushed and his posture stooped, looking more exhausted than ever.

"Gem, you have anything caffeinated?" Joel asks, opening a cupboard.

"Yeah, there's a pot of coffee already made. Mugs are in the left cupboard."

Jimmy watches as Joel finds a mug, fills it up with coffee, and then takes a swig of it black.

"Thanks," he says, face scrunching up at the taste. Joel doesn't like black coffee. Jimmy knows that. He always adds cream and sugar.

"Major's okay," Joel informs them, pulling out a chair at the kitchen table to sit across from them.

Jimmy's been here more or less in silence for the past hour and a half, staring at the wooden table. When they'd first come in, Gem had sent him to wash his hands and arms and face better than he had before, but there's nothing they can do about his sleepclothes, so he's just been sitting here in a blood-spattered t-shirt for a while. Gem had joined him after pulling a hoodie over her pajamas and starting the coffee maker, and has since sat beside him, working on a crossword puzzle.

"Major's okay, he and Blossom are at the hospital now. The intruder was pronounced dead on site. Major identified him as one of the men who kidnapped him."

Jimmy doesn't feel anything.

No sense of satisfaction at knowing that the man truly deserved it, no fear at how close they had been to getting killed, no guilt for his actions.

Nothing.

"TJ," Joel says hesitantly, "how are you doing?"

Jimmy shrugs.

He's still covered in the blood of the man he murdered.

"They say killing is like riding a bike," Jimmy says after a long pause. "You never quite forget how to do it."

Gem sighs. Joel winces.

"Right. Well, we don't really kill people, as a general rule. It's kind of, like, against the law."

The law.

As if the law applies to heroes and villains.

Jimmy's not really sure which one he is right now.

Neither, probably. Which means the law should apply to him, even if it hasn’t stuck in the past.

"I've never really been one to follow the law," Jimmy says.

"Sure, but as a person—"

He isn't a person. If anything was to prove that fact, it would be tonight. He hadn’t thought, he’d just acted, and even now the first feeling that he can even register is the feeling of not feeling. He isn’t a person.

He's a weapon.

He's a pet.

That's the word that triggers his therapy brain.

"I'm in a bad headspace," Jimmy interrupts Joel, using words that he'd rehearsed with Nora. "I don't feel like a person right now. I might be dissociating."

"We have to talk about this," Joel insists. "We can't run away from hard conversations—"

"I promised I would never kill again," Jimmy whispers, and, ah. There’s the panic. Detached and not quite real, but panic nonetheless. "I can't escape it. I'm not—I can't. I'm a weapon, I was made to be a weapon, I—"

"Stop that right now," says Joel firmly. "You are a person, and you just saved someone from being killed. It was self-defense, not mindless."

Jimmy almost laughs, because to some extent, it was mindless. He acted entirely on instinct, following the training Xornoth had given him, whether or not it was self-defense.

He doesn't like hurting people.

He never wanted to go back to being a villain.

It's not even that he's upset about killing that specific man. Screw that man, he tried to kill his boyfriend.

He's really just afraid that now that he's killed one person, he'll keep doing it. It isn’t like anyone can stop him. Nobody can stop him, not even himself, and he wouldn’t even care if his current state has anything to say about it.

"TJ," Gem says carefully, "why did you kill that man?"

Jimmy frowns. Why? "To protect Major."

"Do you have any desire to kill people outside of defense?"

Does he?

He's never had the desire to kill.

Not even when he was getting rewarded for it. Killing was something he did to survive, to escape severe punishment, or accidentally.

And here, he killed to protect. To save his boyfriend. He didn't get any satisfaction out of it. He certainly didn't enjoy it. He doesn't want to do it again.

That cuts through the foggy panic in his mind, the fear that he might keep going, that he wouldn’t be able to stop himself.

"No," he says, then stronger, "no. I never want to kill. I hate it. I only do it when I have to."

Joel lets out a breath of relief. "Thank goodness. Okay, next issue. You and Major clearly aren't safe here. Do you want to try to stick it out, or should we start moving you two as soon as possible?"

Jimmy hadn't even thought about it.

Of course they aren't safe here—he hadn't been safe alone, when Scott was kidnapped and he had to be moved to the safehouse. Why did he think that things would magically change just because Scott was here? Every villain in the city knows where they live. The rest of the gang that kidnapped Scott could show up on their doorstep at any time, even more angry than before.

Anyone could show up at any time.

Jimmy doesn't feel as secure as he used to feel, surrounded by superheroes as they are.

"We'll move," Jimmy decides. "As soon as Major is back, we're moving. It just isn't safe here."

They’ll move.

Then he’ll deal with this numbness.

-

"Hey!" Jimmy calls, running into the kitchen. "No! You aren't allowed to lift anything more than ten pounds, put that down!"

Scott sighs with an over-dramatic roll of his eyes, sets the box back on the counter. "It's not that heavy. And it doesn't even hurt right now."

"Just because it doesn't hurt doesn't mean it isn't injured, Mister," Jimmy tells him. "You don't want to pull out your stitches."

"You haven't let me help at all. Pearl already handled the actual heavy stuff, let me do something."

Jimmy shakes his head and picks up the box. "That's your own fault for getting stabbed right before we moved."

"We're moving because I got stabbed," Scott points out. "It's not like any of this was planned."

"You should have thought about that before you got stabbed, then."

Scott groans, then reluctantly laughs. "I guess I should have. Can I at least drive?"

Jimmy lets out a very put-upon sigh. "I suppose, since I don't have a driver's license, you can be allowed to drive. But only if you behave yourself."

Scott giggles again. "You're adorable," he says fondly. "You know I'm the Primary Protector of the city, right? I don't think you'd be able to stop me."

"And I killed a man last week," counters Jimmy. "I don't think you want to be on my bad side."

"Oh," Scott says after a moment. "Are we joking about this now?"

Jimmy shrugs. "We're in the laugh-or-cry stage. I'm trying to laugh about it right now."

Scott looks at him. Really, truly, looks at him.

Then he laughs. Just a little bit, but still a laugh.

"I love you," he says. "I'll help you hide the body next time."

Jimmy laughs a little, too, but Scott pauses.

"There . . . isn't going to be a next time, right?" he asks uncertainly.

"Oh, absolutely not. Not unless it's entirely necessary."

Scott nods several times. "Good," he says. “Yep. Cool.”

Jimmy turns back toward the door, box in his arms, and waits until he’s out of the house to huff, shaking his head (though a smile plays on his lips).

They’re okay.

He pushes away the numb feeling that threatens to seep into his brain and thinks and remembers and knows that they’re okay.

That’s good enough for him.

[milkypompon]

pairing: Nathan Bateman x F!Reader

summary: Did you wake up in your boss' bed after a night together? Oops...

content: Fluff, morning after, talks of sex, sprinkles of smut

wc: 642

a/n: I am balls deep into Nathan Bateman... I'm rewatching Ex Machina and couldn't help but write for this pathetically genius man.

Main Masterlist

–

The bed underneath you was plush… too soft even.

You roll around in the sheets and still haven’t fallen off the single-sized mattress.

Oh, fuck. 

This was a king-sized mattress. 

And it wasn’t yours for that matter.

“You going to piss on my pillows next? C’mon, finish marking your territory.” A lilt of amusement hidden behind the gruff smirk catches you off-guard.

“I already did last night.” You throw said pillows at Nathan, he sidessteps each one. “Where’d you put my phone?”

Nathan chuckles and leans against the door frame, a towel wrapped low on his waist – freshly bathed with water droplets clinging to his chest. 

You knew that you’d be caught staring anyway, so you didn’t bother being discreet about it.

“Are you gonna take pictures to use as references for solo sessions?” He pushes up his glasses, making a show of it with his fingers. 

You rub the sleep out of your eyes, ineffectively stopping last night’s memories from seeping in. Those deliciously thick digits that plugged his cum back into your cunt, threatening to spill out to his annoyance. 

“Just give it back, Bateman. You and I got shit to do.”

Nathan pouts.

He fucking pouts.

You almost feel bad for wanting to leave but reality gave you a cold-wash of “you just slept with your boss”. 

“Quit thinking so hard, you’re gonna fry your brain.” He fishes your phone from god knows where because he certainly didn’t have pockets sewn into the towel.

“Was that between your ass cheeks?”

He tosses your phone back. “A magician never reveals his secrets.”

The view is “not safe for work” to say the least. 

Your bare back is pressed against the bed, your stiffening nipples exposed to the cool air. The only thing covering you up right now was the thin sheet splayed across your pussy. (Damn rich people and their attraction to minimalism). 

But there was no point of decency now. He’d seen you on your knees and against the wall. 

There were a few places he’s yet to take you like his annoyingly neat desk that you wanted to mess up just for the sake of musing his workspace.

He said it’d be like straight out of a badly written porno. “Hot, billionaire boss fucks ditzy, sexy assistant on his desk during work hours.”

You rolled your eyes. “You sure the title shouldn’t be ‘assistant finds out her boss is actually the owner of PornHub’? How the hell did you come up with it so fast?”

His sweatpants were past his knees but he was rudely interrupted by a call with the board before he could pull your panties off. 

“Alright, sir. You’ve got a long day today.” You open up the Teams app, listing off his daily meetings. 

He plucks your phone and settles your head into the crook of his neck. “I knew you’d do this, pretending like it didn’t happen.”

“I can’t believe I slept with you.”

“I know, I was there.” 

You can’t help it when the corners of your lips curl at his stupid remark.

Nathan beams at drawing out a reaction. “Oh? Is that a smile I see?”

“No, you idiot.” You’re full-on grinning now, cheesing and all.

“Quit worrying about your pretty head, babe. You’re already working full-time at the facility, no one’s gonna know what you’re doing here. Besides, my dick is just a bonus.”

“Is your dick equivalent to a bar of gold? Because I’m gonna need that extra money once I get fired.”

“Now you’re just giving me ideas. Imagine that! A golden dildo molded from my cock.” He strokes his beard. “A true Midas’ touch.” 

You crane over to him, nudging your nose against his. “I’d never survive a day in your mind.”

“Well, you made it through a night with me, so I think it’s fair game.”

I'd love to hear your thoughts and my inbox is always open for requests or if you want to chat!

[butididntpourthewhiskeys]

Sweat & Tears

“Are you sure?” the red-haired woman looks at the blonde in front of her, who clearly struggles to take off her sandals. It’s silent in the room, two security guards waiting in the door frame for her. Tree can see clearly how Taylor's hands are shaking, almost like a tremor that has been brewing inside of her for a few hours. She’s fiddling with the buckle of her Gucci heels. Truth is, she’d prefer for Taylor to spend her evening in company of her father and herself over a nice dinner in her suite. Besides the many phone calls Tree has to make, she still cares about Taylor’s well-being first and foremost. And by the sight of it, she absolutely is not well. But knowing the blonde stubborn woman as well as she does, Tree could already tell by the minute they left the venue that Taylor is once again in a rather self-isolating mood. 

“Do you need anything?” she asks then, still watching the long blonde sitting on the couch of her hotel suite, knowing very well that she didn’t get an answer to her last question.

“Do you have water? Let me know if you need anything else. Dinner will be served as soon as you…”

“I told you, I’m not hungry.” Taylor responds then in a tone that tells Tree everything she needs to know. One more push and Taylor might actually loose her temper. She sighs.

“Alright. Call if you need anything. Alex is on call next door. These guys will be just outside your hotel room door for safety.” She says and points to the men right behind her. She looks at Taylor one last time, who is still sitting on the hotel couch, obviously exhausted and down. She doesn’t want to push her any further, but she can’t contain a last “get some rest, Tay. I know this was a rough few days but you’re doing great.”

Taylor doesn’t reply, once more, and Tree gets the message. She gives the three men next to her a look, signaling them to ensure that her door is secured at all times. Tree then leaves the presidential suite, and the big door falls into the lock. 

And suddenly, Taylor's alone. Completely alone. 

She takes a deep breath. She just needs to shower it off. With her hair in a loose bun she covers her eyes for a moment sitting there. She’s tired. So tired. But every time she tries to relax, there’s the same picture in her head. Beautiful Ana’s smiling face. The fact that this young person had to loose her life because she decided to give a concert. Taylor immediately gets up. This thought is unbearable. She needs to stop thinking about this. She walks barefoot over the burgundy carpet of her suite, makes sure the curtains are fully closed before opening the bed sheets. She’s been waiting all day for this. 

Within one second, Taylor has gotten comfortable under these heavy sheets. The air conditioning in the room is on full mode, and she’s thankful for this cooling sensation of the bed sheets on her bare legs. The incredible feeling of crawling into bed after a horrible day. Another thing that Ana will never experience again…

Just when Taylor was about to get lost in these thoughts again is when her phone vibrates for what feels like the fifteenth time tonight. She knew that her mom and Travis had been texting her. But the last thing she could do earlier was to be on the phone when everything went down. Her desperately waiting in her way too warm and stuffy dressing room. Her dad walking up and down, telling her that it’ll be alright and that everybody is on her side. Sweat dripping down her forehead. Tree being on the phone constantly and a bunch of translators running back and forth. And her? Useless just in between the chaos. She wasn’t able to tell anyone at home what was going on. There was no space. No silence. No room to breathe.. until now.

Taylor opens her iMessage chat with Travis and swallows. 18 notifications. 7 calls. He’s worried. Not just because she didn’t pick up or reply to his texts for hours now but also because he had to find out that this show, that she’s been terrified of playing all day, had been postponed last minute through an instagram post on her official handle. Never before did he have to find out something like this through social media.

Your dad told me you’re unwell. Call me when you can. No need to go through this on your own.

His last text makes her smile slightly. He never fails to show her support. And as shocked as she is that he went to the lengths of calling her father, it shouldn’t really surprise her that much. These two have hit it off to an almost greater degree than she and Travis have. Her dad adores him. No wonder these two are chatting behind her back. 

Taylor takes a deep breath, opens her front camera for a second. She looks horrific, tries to fix her bangs for a moment before calling him back. Yes, she knows he won’t care what she looks like but she still wants him to not see her at her worst. Not just yet. Just when Taylor is about to leave her bed to fix her face and her hair is when she gets an incoming FaceTime call from him. She hesitates for a second, then decides to go for it anyways. 

The second he appears on her screen is the second she feels tears boiling up again. She doesn’t know why, but something about seeing his kind face and the worried look in his eyes opens the flood gates for her. She needs him. Oh lord, how much she would love to tell herself that it isn’t so.

“Oh baby” is all he brings out for a second. The little tear escaping Taylor’s eye and rolling its way over her cheek hasn’t remained unnoticed by him. She doesn’t say anything, just makes sure to wipe the incoming tears as much as humanly possible.

“I’m sorry, I…” just when she was about to apologize for how he’s witnessing her right now is when he interrupts her already. 

“Tell me everything. I just got home from practice and I’m all yours. Your dad said there was some issues with the people there again?” 

Taylor takes a deep breath, glad that he’s there. Glad that she can talk about it. Glad that she knows he wants to listen.

“It’s a nightmare. I told you this morning how they threatened Tree and 13 that I’m contractually obligated to perform because apparently the circumstances aren’t as bad as they need to be for a show like this to be cancelled. Like..” Taylor can barely find words to describe her anger, just feels angry tears following the ones from before while her hands are making a grand gesture.

“I mean, a young girl has died... DIED the day before and they don’t think this is as bad as it gets? And Tree also told them about my little incident last night and…”

“Thank god!” Travis interrupts her. She knows the second he learned about her fainting backstage after the show, was the second he himself started to worry more than she would want him to.

“Yeah but, they basically still wanted us to go through and then they finally agreed to providing free water if we cover the costs. Which is something they shouldn’t even charge anyone for, but like.. of course I would pay for that. I didn't even care. And yet once people started getting seated and the arena got more and more packed, there was no water being handed out to people. Nothing. If… if my team hadn’t flagged this, I probably never would’ve known, Trav and…”

“This is unbelievable.” He just says, sighs deeply and is clearly angry too. He’s sitting on his couch, wearing one of her beloved huge sweaters that she’s been stealing so often. What would she give to cuddle herself into his chest, feel his big arms hold her tight and simply fit her little big world into the palm of his kind hands right now.

“Yup. So I just posted it. On Instagram. Because there was no getting out of the show unless I pull the plug myself. They’re threatening us with a lawsuit now, but..”

“Oh fuck that. No chance.” he says and she nods. Hard to imagine that she doesn’t even care about this possible lawsuit at all. There’s so many other things she cares about more in this moment. 

“Well, besides that. We reached out to Ana’s parents and… they’re in shock. They hate me. They disagreed to speak to me. And..” 

Taylor wants to continue speaking but the lump in her throat is growing to a size that makes it hard to breathe for her.

“I’m sure they don’t hate you.” he says, cannot stand seeing his girl cry all alone in this hotel bed, on the other side of the earth. He’s never been closer to jumping on the next plane there as he’s been right now. 

“Well, they’re in shock I assume. And they have every right to hate me. And then on top of all this the hotel is swarmed by people. They have basically taken the cars we took from the venue because my team covered the license plates. For safety. Literally to not get chased on the fucking high way. But no chance. So now, all we can do is just stay at this hotel and hope for tomorrow to be better and…”

She stops then, knows that she’s just been rambling for a while now. And as much as she hates to present this anxious and crying version of herself to Travis, she kind of feels a lot better all of the sudden. It felt good getting it off her chest. It felt good just telling somebody that she’s not doing well. A few last hiccups escape her mouth and she’s drying her face with her hands. Her eyes are puffy, red and swollen. But she doesn’t even care anymore. There’s so many worse things that can happen than looking like this.

“Oh Tay..” he says then. Doesn’t move from where he sits, just straight up looks at her through his phone. 

“Yup.” she just says, knowing damn well that no one knows what to say about this nightmare weekend. She feels bad all of the sudden to put all these heavy feelings on him, especially because he never asked her to.

“I’m sure every single person you spoke with tonight has said this to you before, but I’ll say it again.” he says then, a serious look on his face. She’s never witnessed him like this before and it definitely draws her attention even more to the screen than before. 

“None of this, was in your power. None of this.” he says, and she knows he means it. Taylor takes another deep shaky breath and looks back at him. She nods. Hearing him say these words almost makes it possible for her to believe them. 

“I know, you take pride in having control over things and organizing and planing things to a tee. But there’s always gonna be stuff out of your control, and sometimes things go horribly wrong. But that’s absolutely out of your control. I hope you know that, babe.”

She looks at him for a moment, doesn’t say anything. Then she nods. Why is it that she believes anything he says? 

“I know. It’s just…” she stops, feels new tears forming. For a moment, she’s collecting herself again. Travis can see what she’s doing. She’s trying to hold back her tears. He hates it. 

“Hey, it’s okay to cry sometimes. Don’t try to play it all cool with me. I hate when you do that.”

Taylor almost starts laughing through her tears, and so does Travis. 

“I just… I’m sure you had an exhausting day today as well and all we talk about is me again. And…”

“Shut up.” Travis interrupts her again, and Taylor just wipes her tears. 

“I had a boring day. All I was thinking about all day was you. I love you. I’m worried about you. Stop playing it cool with me. It’s okay to cry about this.”

Taylor doesn’t move. Her head is leaning against the velvet bed rest behind her. She looks awful and for a moment she doesn’t care because she can feel that he doesn’t. She nods. Tears still streaming down her face.

“I miss you. And... I love you, too.” 

It still feels weird knowing that these words escape her mouth as casually as they do, but it feels so good and so right. She loves him. He loves her. Unbelievably beautiful to travel the world with this knowingness in her heart and head.

Travis sighs deeply from where he is. He slowly sits up. The iPhone camera still right in front of his face. 

“Do you think I’d get in trouble if I call in sick tomorrow and coach Reid sees pictures of me sneaking into your hotel in Rio?” 

Taylor can’t help but laugh quietly. She knows he wants to be there for her. But she’s gonna be fine. Knowing that he’s there, in her life, just a call away, is enough for her to know that she’s gonna be fine. 

“Let’s not get you into any more trouble than you're already in now.” she says jokingly then, for the first time tonight there’s no tears coming down her cheeks. It’s been healing to see his face, to hear his voice. The calm after a storm. A warm hug after a horrible day. That's what this is for her. That's what he's been for her since the moment he walked into her life.

“Tay, I’m worried about you.” He says then, and she knows this time it’s him who’s becoming vulnerable. It feels ridiculously good to know he cares. Even though she’s almost embarrassed to have put him in this position. It’s all new between them, still. He’s never had to deal with her lows before. She never had to ask herself if this could be too much for him, as it has been for everyone before him. 

“Don’t be.” 

“No, I’m serious.” He says then. The look on his face is still gentle and kind but she knows he’s being serious about this.

“I don’t mean the fact that you’re upset or that your show is cancelled but I’m worried about your physical health and your safety. Have you had dinner yet?” 

“Baby, I know you’re worried and it’s so sweet but I can assure you that Tree and my team are taking care of me very well. There’s like five guys in front of my hotel room door right now, and..”

“Have you had dinner yet?” he asks again and she knows he knows. He’s been incredible when it comes to her sometimes problematic eating habits, ever since she told him about this topic. Never before did he ever comment on anything she’s done or hasn’t done in relation to food. But her collapsing backstage last night did something to him. It’s in his eyes, it’s in the way this question comes out of his mouth so firmly. He's scared. He cares.

“I’m still a bit nauseous from the heat and..”

“Did you get an IV?”

“I didn’t need one today. I didn’t perform. So..”

“You said it was incredibly hot in your dressing room? Didn’t you spend all day there? That's not the best way to spend a day before performing for three hours in the heat.”

“Yeah but it was fine. It’s just.. whenever it’s hot I can’t really eat much. So…”

“Baby, please make sure to eat something tonight and drink enough water. I also still think another IV before your show tomorrow would be a good idea.”

She takes a deep breath and nods. He’s right. He always is. But what she appreciates the most in this moment is the tone of his voice. He’s assertive. But he’s gentle. A combination that impressed her from the moment they met. 

“I know.” she just says. 

“I almost had a heart attack when your dad told me you passed out last night.” he says, and she sighs. She knows this incident scared him. She can’t blame him. If she were to ever get a call from his mom, telling her that he fainted on the other side of the world she would probably lose her damn mind. 

“It’s just… performing like that for three hours at 140 degree? It’s horrible.”

“I bet.” he says quickly. “And I’m so glad you cancelled tonight.” 

Taylor nods. Somehow, just hearing him say these things really calms her down slowly. 

“I miss you. I’m not dealing with it too well at the moment.” she says once more, and his mouth turns into this beautiful smile she loves so much. 

“Me too. It’s been so hard focusing on anything after Argentina. After seeing you perform, sleeping in one bed with you. Kissing you good morning. I could get used to that.” 

Taylor smiles instantly, and nods. He speaks her mind, once more.

“Can’t wait to see you next week. Even though I’ll miss Thanksgiving. It breaks my heart, but..”

“Hey, we’ll do our own little post-Thanksgiving dinner. Don’t worry about that.” 

“Trav?”

“Mhm?”

“Thanks for being there for me tonight. I feel so much calmer than I did half an hour ago.”

The man on the other side of the screen smiles at her once more. He’s so happy to be this person for her. He’s so happy to have this effect on her.

“See, that’s what I’ve been telling you all along. Whenever we speak, my day gets 99% better. Just after seeing that face.”

She giggles quietly. 

“How are you? How was practice?” she asks then, wishes she had asked him before earlier. She hates when it’s all about her. He knows that. 

“Was good. Nothing special happened. Just got home, ordered some food and might pop into Brit’s Thanksgiving dinner later tonight.”

“Oh my gosh, yes! How could I forget? Ugh I can’t believe I won’t be able to go. Give her a hug from me okay?”

Travis smiles and nods.

“Of course. I won’t stay long though because I have physiotherapy tomorrow super early.” he sighs and it makes Taylor smile. He usually doesn’t mind getting up early but he definitely does on a Sunday morning. 

“What are you doing now? Are you in your suite?” he asks and Taylor nods. Her tears have finally dried and she fixes the heavy bedsheets over her body. It’s really gotten cold in this room. At least here, the air conditioning works just fine. 

“Yup. It’s like.. eight I think. I’ll just go take a shower and watch some Netflix and that’s it.” she says, clearly not impressed by her plan of the evening now that she won’t play a show in front of thousands of people. 

“Order some food, baby. And dessert. Promise me.”

Taylor smiles slowly, then nods. He’s right. She needs some dessert tonight. 

“Thanks for being there for me.”

“Don’t ever thank me for this again. Of course I’m here for you.”

Taylor smiles, then gets closer to the screen and kisses her phone camera. He laughs quietly.

“Go take a shower now and call me when your dinner has arrived. We can eat together. My lunch should be here in a bit.” 

Taylor nods, sits upright for the first time tonight. That’s actually a better idea than for her to be crying alone watching some Netflix show.

“Sounds great.” She says, slowly gets up and makes her way to the bathroom. 

“I’ll call you in a bit. Okay?” 

“Okay.”

“I love you, baby.”

“Love you.”

A few moments later, Taylor steps out of the shower, dries her body with the soft white cotton towels at the end of the generous bathroom and quickly reaches for the robe on the hanger next to the bathroom door. She slowly covers her still damp body in the white fabric, then leaves the warm bathroom to step back to the main room of her suite. The cold air of the air conditioned room hits her gently. She weirdly can’t find the body lotion she brought. It must still be flying around in her suitcase. 

Taylor slowly crouches down, starts rummaging through her big suitcase. Why is she always so messy when it comes to packing? 

Suddenly, she gets startled by a knock on the door. One knock. Then another. For a second, she stands up. Just ensuring to wrap the fabric of the robe even tighter around her body than before. She slowly makes her way to the door of the suite, still barefoot. Her hair still in a bun from the body shower she just took. 

“Hello?” she asks carefully, can already hear Dustin from her team speaking. 

“Taylor? We have a delivery for you. Do you mind opening up?”

Once more, Taylor clutches onto the robe covering her naked body, making sure she's still fully covered. She carefully opens the door, finds two security men still standing right in front of the door. But to her surprise, Dustin is carrying something very big and very heavy in his arms. She’s confused. White paper covering the package.

“Do you mind if I…?”

Taylor realizes quickly that he needs to place the heavy delivery somewhere. She steps aside, lets him enter the suite. Dustin carefully places the package on the little side table next to the couch of the suite. 

“What’s.. what’s this?” 

“A delivery from the hotel. I was asked by Tree to bring it to you directly.” 

Taylor looks confused, just covers her mouth as Dustin proceeds to peel off the paper from the top of it. Behind the packaging, a massive bouquet of red roses becomes visible. It’s a ball of flowers. She’s never seen so many put so beautifully together. 

“Oh my god? What…”

“This is the card for you.” he says, smiles warmly at her and proceeds to leave the suite again. Taylor just remains standing there. The door falling into the lock, her robe still a little bit too big on her, both eyes on the beautiful roses in the middle of her living room. She quickly opens the envelops that Dustin just passed to her. For a moment she reads these printed words. Then she looks back at the flowers and smiles. The biggest smile she's smiled in days.

Because I’m always with you, even when you can’t see me. I’m so proud of you. 

I love you.

Travis

[kaciidubs]

Hoodie Season | Hyung Line

❣ Summary: What it would be like stealing and wearing their hoodie ❣ ❣ Warnings: None - just fluff and implied relationships. ❣ ❣ Gender Neutral! Reader [No use of Y/N]❣ ❣ Additional Tags: Reader is referred to as baby, sweetheart, thief [lovingly], Chan is referred to as Chris ❣ Maknae Line ❣ Stray Kids Masterlist ❣ General Masterlist ❣ AO3 ❣

Chris

Would it still be considered ‘taking his hoodie’ if he actively encouraged you to wear them? 

It’s probably his favorite thing in the world - seeing you relaxing on the couch in his studio while wrapped up in one of his hoodies, doing your own thing while he worked on one of his many tracks.

“You doing okay over there, baby?” He called over his shoulder, sliding his headphones around his neck before turning in his chair, “Hungry or anything?”

You looked over at him with a soft smile and he couldn’t help but give a dimpled smile back, admiring the way his hoodie nearly swamped you in fabric.

“I’m fine - could probably go for a bite later on, though.”

“20 minutes and I’m all yours - my treat.” He offered with a grin, hiding a chuckle when you sat up at his prospect.

“Sounds perfect, but don’t rush yourself, alright?”

He loved it even more whenever you’d send him a random selfie during the day; sometimes making a silly face or using a cute filter, and the collar of his gray Maniac hoodie would show up in the edge of the photo - or even covering your head, and partially your face due to how oversized he ordered it.

Sometimes, when their schedule had them going out for a few days or so, he’d make sure to leave behind your favorite hoodie of his with a note; ‘In case you miss me too much’.

Chris would absolutely end up getting matching hoodies for the both of you, even going so far as spraying yours with his cologne to make it feel more like his.

All in all, Chris absolutely loved the idea of you “stealing” his hoodies, even if he was the one giving them to you.

Minho

Though Minho wasn’t the type to have a closet overflowing with hoodies like a few of his members - Chris, Seungmin, and Jeongin, namely - he did have four or five that he kept in his rotation. So, when that rotation shortened by one, he knew who the culprit was immediately.

“Hi, you!” Your charming voice filled the speaker of his phone, and he wasted no time in getting to the point of his call.

“I didn’t know I was dating a thief.”

A confused hum came through the phone, before he heard the tell-tale sound of a hidden giggle, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He scoffed, amused at the failed smugness you attempted in your tone, “Oh, really? So you know nothing about a green Mahagrid hoodie that was hanging in my closet the last time you came over?”

“Nope, not a clue, I don’t even know what a hoodie is!”

This time he couldn’t help but laugh, “You can’t trick me! I know you took it from my closet - what do you even need it for anyways? Didn’t you end up buying one in a different color?!”

“Yes - but it’s not the same! Yours is so much softer, Min, can you blame me?”

“Actually, I can, since it’s stolen property.”

“Then sue me!”

“I will!” He smiled at the sound of your laughs on the other end, only to look up and see a few of the other members trickling into the dance studio, “We’ll continue this later, thief.”

“I’ll make sure my lawyer’s present - have fun at practice, honey.”

Hanging up, he let the remnants of the silly conversation settle over him before he felt his phone vibrate, lighting up with a text message from you. Opening the text chat, he was met with a picture of you in said stolen hoodie, a mischievous grin on your lips with a text underneath; “Thief: 1, Boyfriend: 0”.

He wouldn’t admit it out loud, but his heart skipped a beat seeing you in clothing he’d worn himself - you looked so natural in it, somehow more comfortable than when you wore your own.

Sure, he’d make a whole scene of it whenever you’d manage to swap out his rotation again, but deep down he felt a sense of pride about it - he even added a few more into his selection just to see them disappear from his closet after a month or so.

You were a hoodie thief, but you were his hoodie thief, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Changbin

Changbin was the perfect subject for stealing hoodies - the sizes were always perfect for being hugged in fabric with hoodie-paws from the oversized sleeves, not to mention the fact that he left them everywhere, so who could blame you from picking them up and adding them to your own collection at home?

“Sweetheart? Have you seen my hoodie?” He called from your room, the sound of him shuffling through his duffle bag echoing down the short hall.

“The one you came over in? It’s on the couch, Binnie!”

“No, no, there was one I had a week ago, I thought I left it in the recording studio but none of the staff saw it so I figured it’d be back at the dorm!” His voice grew louder as he entered the living room, bed head fluffy and black t-shirt slightly ruffled, “But then I couldn’t find it when I got home, so I just wanted to know if you saw it anywhere.”

“I don’t know, Bin, you have so many it’s kind of hard to keep track of.” You walked into the living room from the kitchen, attention focused on sending a text, “What color is it, maybe I-”

“Hey!”

You jumped, looking up at him with furrowed eyebrows, tilting your head when he merely stared back at you with an incredulous grin.

“You’re wearing it! I thought you didn’t know where it was- when’d you get it from the studio?!” He rushed toward you, eyes bright with an even brighter smile on his face as he took you in; the green Supreme hoodie that was already big on him had practically doubled in size on you in the cutest way possible. “You’re so adorable in it! God, how’d you manage to get even cuter? What am I going to do with you?”

You could barely get a word in when he took you into his arms, rocking side to side and smothering your cheeks in a flurry of kisses.

“B-Bin! I didn’t know, I swear!” You managed to wiggle your face away from his onslaught of kissing and incoherent cooing, “Chris noticed you left it and gave it to me the last time I visited the building with Felix - I meant to give it to you but then I wore it one time and it just… stuck with me!”

Changbin held you at arms length, studying the way his hoodie came to your thighs, the way the sleeves were bunched excessively around your wrists - he swore if you put the hood over your head, you’d turn into a green Supreme hoodie monster.

“I’ll give it back if you want to wear-”

“No! Keep it, it looks good on you - I’ll just wear the other one and when I want it back, I’ll trade with you.”

Of course he’d hold true to his word; whenever you had a hoodie of his that he wanted to wear, he’d trade you for one you wanted to wear, and vice versa - anything to see you wrapped up in his clothes.

Hyunjin

If Minho was jokingly dramatic about his hoodies being stolen, Hyunjin was overly dramatic - almost to the point where it was like the world was ending and he’d never see his dear hoodies ever again.

Of course, he loved seeing you attempt to recreate his outfits with his hoodies as the staple piece, but that didn’t mean he was going to pass up the chance at giving you little hassle for raiding his closet.

“Hyun, it’s only for one day, I promise I’ll give it back to you!”

“But why do you have to take that one?! Why can’t you take the gray one, it goes better with your shoes!”

You rolled your eyes at his stylistic reasoning, clutching the black SKZ hoodie in your hands. “Because I want to wear this one, whether it goes with my shoes or not!”

“But what if I wanted to wear that one? Huh? What about me?” He pouted at you from his position on his bed, tilting his head to add to the pitiful curl of his lips.

“If you wanted to wear this one, you’d be wearing it instead of your balenciaga one, now wouldn’t you?” Raising an eyebrow at him, a bashful smile easily broke through his dramatic facade as he tugged at the black sleeves making you laugh. “What am I going to do with you, my drama prince?”

“Keep taking my hoodies until I’m left with nothing but a worn out t-shirt?” He grinned, running a hand through his unstyled blond hair.

“Darling, you have more clothes than me, I think you’ll survive missing this one hoodie.” Sliding the article over your head, you took a second to go over the fit in his mirror with a satisfied hum. Maybe it didn’t go with your shoes, but it was warm and smelled like him, and that was all that mattered.

“Miss it?! Nuh uh, you said it was only for today you thief!”

Safe to say, after a bit more teasing - and giving him kisses as “payment” for wearing his clothes - you both ended up going out in his hoodies, but one of them might not have ended up back where it belonged.

❣ Honestly, this was very much inspired by me listening to Hoodie Season on repeat recently, but can you blame me? As always, feedback is appreciated! Whether it be a simple like, reblog, or keyboard smash and the most essay-like comment, feel free to share your thoughts. ❣

[thecynthh]

Gift — M.S.

synopsis • matt gives y/n a present since she passed her exams for the term

warnings • cotton candy fluff, my shit writing

notes • college setting, f!partner, matt n u r dating

author chats • this is my first ever fic !! please give feedback i need validation

also i’ll write a pt 2 with smut in it if yalls like this one 🤗

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i want to wear his initial on a chain round my neck, chain round my neck

not because he owns me, but because he really knows me

Y/N’s POV

heavy tension finally clears from my shoulders as i take a step out of the thick classroom door. my feet automatically start my treck to a local coffee shop near my building. barely taking a few steps out the door my phone begins to buzz with excitement.

matty b❣️

the nickname flashes on my screen as i pull out my cell phone from the back pocket of my cargo pants. clicking the screen immediately after processing who it was.

“hello?” i say whipping my phone up to my ear.

“hey pretty girl” matt replies to my initial greeting. “so tell me, how’d it go?”

“personally i think it went phenomenal and to make it even better i KNOW it was super amazing” i explain absolutely thrilled by my amazing scores

unlike matt going through school was a necessity. i needed to succeed and i’m glad i had as great as a support that matt has been for the past year. my dream was so close all thanks to him, if he didn’t pull me out of that anxiety slump and put me back to work so soon i would’ve failed this exam.

i soon make it to coffee shop after asking matt how his day went and then getting greeted by the same barista whose been working there since i started at Eastwood.

“by the way i just made it to the cafe, im just going to pick up my coffee then i can head to your place to hang out” i tell my phone. the barista asks if my usual is good in a hushed voice seeing my phone up to my ear. i nod to him while walking over to the pick up side of the counter.

“actuallllyyy you can go straight to your apartment, i have a surprise for you” matt says showing excitement for what he got for me.

“matt, you can’t do this to me, im gunna cry” i reply with a fake teary voice.

a small chuckle echos through my ear. “you deserve it princess, all of it.”

“okay i’ll be home soon, i won’t make you wait much longer, love ya.” i snatch my drink and take a peak outside, snow fell from the coveted sky. matt would love how pretty this weather is.

Matt’s POV

“i love you too-“ that was all i could squeeze in before she hung up on me.

right now i just made it into y/n’s apartment waiting on her to get home, i bought a bouquet of red roses, which were here favourite, and i saw the prettiest necklace and i knew i had to get it for her.

it was held in a small velvet box waiting for its owner to claim it. opening it caused a small showcase light to illuminate the silver “m” that was a matching silver chain.

i thought about her when i saw it on the small mannequin. the only thing that played through my mind while i purchased it was that one taylor swift song she loves. i know swift isn’t really my vibe but she won a bet and got the aux for the car ride, it was catchy but i’ll never admit to liking taylor swift.

soon after fixing the bouquet i hear the lock on the door click and unlock. i hold up the flowers standing near the door with the necklaces box burning a hole through my jean pocket.

the door swings open revealing my girlfriend. my lovely girlfriend. her eyes lit up with glee as she looks at the bouquet in my hands.

Y/N’s POV

all i see is matt with a large bouquet of flowers in his hands and sweet smile drawn on his face.

i yank the large amount of red roses from his hands placing them down carefully on the coffee table near us and dive into his arms.

“thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.” i blurt out between each peck on his face. matts face lightly covered in a deep red lipstick he still just stands there waiting for me to done.

“of course princess, im really proud of you for finishing that exam.” he says to me pulling me in even closer.

“but to make it even better….” he trails off while sneaking is hand into his jean pocket. out comes a small jewelry box, he opens it presenting a necklace with his initial on it.

“i remember that song you like a lot, i don’t remember it all too well but i knew it meant a lot to you so-“

“i love so fucking much matty. you have no idea” i rest my forehead against his and slowly connect our lips.

he returns the kiss slowly with his hand snaking around the small of my back tugging me a little closer.

i’ve never wanted to be anywhere else in that moment.

[missjoolee]

This is a mixture of shower thoughts fic and lying in bed after taking a sleep aid fic, so is it good? who knows. but apparently ao3 is down so enjoy! lol

Warning: not proofread at all.

the band has been working diligently to make a name for themselves and while they have a decent following, they’ve all had to take day jobs

on one of the days they are all working, julie almost misses a call form a record label that recently saw them perform and would like to sign them on

she says she is excited by their offer but would need to speak to the rest of the band first, to which they are understanding and even offer to email a pdf of the first draft of the contract to them to review and they can set up a time to meet if things look satisfactory

she rattles off the band email before ending the call and texts the band group chat before heading back to work after her break

“a label wants to sign us! contract in band email. can’t wait to go over it with you guys! <3 <3″

she feels her phone buzz with an incoming response as she’s walking back to the front of the store she works at and quickly checks it.

L- yes! rock n roll hall of fame, here we come!

as she is reading that, another texts arrives and she laughs at Luke’s impatience

L- emails not there yet :(

back at the front, the afternoon rush hits and julie doesn’t have time to check her phone, but she’s felt it go off several times in her work apron and, while she’s never hated the customer service industry, she absolutely cannot keep a giant smile off her face the whole rest of her shift

so she’s a bit blindsided when she finally gets to check her phone again as she grabs her things from her work locker and the first message she sees is

L- I’m not signing this.

it must be a real bad deal then. her heart sinks as she continues reading

A- ?

R- oooo bad money deal?

L- money is fine.

L- not a good fit for the band

A- how do you mean?

luke didn’t respond and the next message comes 20 minutes later

A- F that. i’m not signing either

R- guys. what is going on?

R- oh

R- okay, yeah no

by now Julie’s anxiety is starting to climb because how could it not be a good fit? this label is known for signing bands in the pop-punk genre. What on earth would make the guys turn this opportunity down? an opportunity they have worked blood, sweat, tears and years to get. How could they dismiss it so easily?

she needs some time to think (but does she really? it’s the anxiety talking) so instead of responding, she pulls her bag strap over her shoulder and begins walking towards the exit, tying her hair up in a real messy bun to keep herself from picking at her fingernails

The clouds in the sky are pinkish purple against the darkening sky as the sun is low enough to be blocked by the surrounding buildings. heat still emits off the parking lot pavement, alluding to the Hot summer days thar have fallen upon the city.

Julie takes a deep breath before heading to the employee parking

Luke is leaning against the back of her car

"Luke? What are you doing here? Is everyone okay?!"

"Yea, Boss. Everyone's fine," he reassures her before pulling her into a hug. "I just wanted to see that million dollar smile."

Julie can't help but smile

She holds him tighter as her thoughts quickly jump back to the contract. She questions him about the group chat. How could they possibly all be saying no?

His arms tense around her, before letting her pull back to look at his face. He reveals that the contract actually starts off pretty decent. The label just had one stipulation that was a deal-breaker.

What? What could possibly be a deal-breaker when the rest is that good?

"If we sign it, they'd be able to force the band to undergo cosmetic dentistry."

"Oh." Her stomach drops. She wants to look away from the boy she's described as having the perfect smile. Alex and Reggie are basically right there with him. She forces her hands to stay put, but they scream to cover her mouth, her face. Her eyes drift down and stop on his Adam's apple. This is about her.

One of his hands gently cups the side of her face, tilting it so she is looking up at him again. His eyes are sad.

She can't stand it. She can feel tears welling in her eyes "I- I could do it."

He's shaking his head vehemently before she can finish. "No, Jules! You are perfect and beautiful just as you are. If they can't see it, then they aren't the label for us."

"But-"

His other hand moves up to cup her face in his hands.

"Be who you are, don't compromise, julie. Fuck them."

Julie is overwhelmed in that moment. Tears break free of her lashes, but a laugh rings out as she pulls his face to hers.

His lips ground her and she cant believe how lucky she is to have such a supportive boyfriend. She pulls back and remembers the others immediate refusal to sign as well. She couldn't ask for a better band and family. She thanks her mom for the millionth time for bring them to her.

She sniffles from the tears but a smile is back on her face as she teases him. "Did you quote our own song at me just now? What a dork."

He's grinning back. "Well, the gal who wrote that line is pretty smart."

He pulls her to the passenger door "let's go home"

[sariahsue]

Marinette’s Three Rules for Preventing the Apocalypse

Set shortly after the events of Chat Blanc, Marinette uses her knowledge of what happened that day to create three rules to prevent disaster. What happens when she can't keep them all?

Prologue - The First Rule

Marinette's nightmares were always bleached white.

The akuma alert blared in her ear, and Marinette bolted upright in bed, heart pounding, blankets twisted around her legs. It had only been another nightmare, but one that could still come true one day.

She rubbed at her eyes to wake herself up and squinted at the bright phone screen to focus on reading the meager scraps of information, while she tried to control her breathing. Someone had been akumatized because of a late-night ticket mixup. The Gare du Nord metro station was currently flooding with water. Lovely.

A trickle of anxiety bubbled through her chest, and she rubbed at the spot to soothe it. The dream hadn't been real. She wasn't going to let it ever become real. She had her rules.

The flit of red in the corner of her eye told her Tikki was waiting for her by the skylight. "Ready?" the kwami asked, far too perky for Marinette's mood. She transformed and took off across the city without a word.

It was close to midnight. Traffic was calm. The sidewalks were quiet. And the stillness of the air and the familiar rhythm of her swinging did nothing to calm her nerves.

"Rule number one," she repeated to herself. It was something she'd done every time she'd gotten anxious over the past month since the Chat Blanc… incident. "Don't fall in love with Chat Noir."

She stopped on the roof of a highrise only long enough to check her coordinates. She was still going in the right direction.

"Rule number two," she said as she jumped off the edge of the building and swung away. "Don't let Adrien find out my identity." It was her least favorite rule, but Bunnyx had been clear on that one. It somehow contributed to Hawk Moth finding out and using it against them. She refused to believe that he was the type to spread her secret around, and the distance she felt between them ached. Another phantom wound that pressed on her.

"Evening, Milady." Chat Noir called from ahead of her. He'd stopped on the top of a burned out street light. Moonlight shone on him from behind, giving his outline an eerie, pale glow. His face was hidden in shadow.

Number three, Ladybug recited to herself, like a desperate prayer. Never, no matter what, let Chat Noir get akumatized. 

"You okay?" he asked as she swung past him, eyes ahead of her.

"Fine," she said. That had probably sounded terse and definitely NOT fine, so she quickly added, "Just tired. I want to go back to bed."

"Hawk Moth must think we're all caught up on our beauty sleep. I think I agree with him there."

"He's right about one of us," Ladybug corrected.

Footsteps on ceramic tiles thundered behind her as he ran to catch up with her. "Me-ouch. You wound me, Milady."

"I never said which one of us, Chaton!" She slowed so they reached the edge of the roof together and leapt into the darkness as one. They were almost at the street when Chat Noir caught her around the waist and she threw out her yoyo, swinging them in a deep arc and catapulting them into the open sky.

Try as she might to deny it, seeing Chat Noir, feeling him solidly next to her, letting his gentle smile and warm laughter fill up every space inside her was the best antidote for her anxiety. By the time they reached the station, the knots inside her chest had loosened.

"Ready?" he asked.

They stood on top of the theater next door. The wide roof of the metro station was dark. All the rails leading inside were empty and submerged. The water spilled out into the surrounding streets, leaving floating cars and flickering street lights. The flood covered first floor windows. No people in sight, but no akuma either. That probably wasn't good.

She flipped open her yoyo and pulled out a piece of cheese and a macaron. "Readier than you are," she said, popping the cookie into her mouth before handing the cheese over to him. Her suit transformed, giving her long flippers. "I've got more. We'll replenish your stock after we're done here."

"Great. Can't wait." He held the cheese up to her in a mocking toast before swallowing it with a grimace.

"I hope the lights don't go out completely," she said as they flickered again.

"You'll always have me if they do."

"My helpful kitten. What would I do without you?"

"Probably cry because you miss me so much."

She cannonballed into the water to avoid answering that one. It was warmer than she was expecting, almost pleasant, but it was murky and difficult to see through. When Chat Noir grabbed her hand and led them through the metro's main door, she followed willingly.

Even with her limited sight, she knew the instant they were fully inside. The atmosphere changed immediately. Everything felt too open and exposed. Chat Noir guided her around the tall ceiling's support beams and over ticket counters. Something brushed her leg and she jumped, a stream of bubbles leaving her mouth, and reached for her yoyo. "What is that?"

He tugged on her hand to get her attention, then pointed to the surface.

"What was it?" she asked, wiping water out of her eyes. It didn't make much difference. Only dim light filtered through the upper windows.

"People," he said. "They're all statues. I don't like this akuma." The weight of the water flattened his hair.

"Do you think it's still on the platform?"

"I didn't see anything." He floated closer to her. Their hands brushed as they tread water. "But I saw a sign for the underground lines. I think we should look down there next."

She nodded, took a deep breath, and slipped back beneath the surface. He wasted no time in grabbing her hand again and leading her down. With a few more kicks of their flippers, she saw the dull glow of a red arrow pointing to the lower levels. At the bottom of the wide stairs, the cement roof had collapsed in. Slices of harsh fluorescent lights flashed through the rubble, along with some air bubbles. All good signs. The akuma had probably barricaded itself down here.

Chat Noir let go of her wrist so he could point at his left hand, one shoulder raised in question.

He was right. They probably couldn't get through without his Cataclysm, though she didn't much like the idea of his timer running down under water. They weren't far from the surface, though. He would easily be able to recharge and come back to join her.

No sooner had she nodded her approval than the rubble crumbled to dust, leaving a cloudy slurry for them to swim through.

The hallway lights were submerged completely but still flickered bravely, giving her glimpses of dozens of statues all running for the exit, frozen in stone terror.

Echoes of her nightmare whispered in the back of her mind. And even though she didn't need him to guide her, Ladybug reached for Chat Noir's hand as they swam above the silent crowd, just to have the constant physical reminder that he was there with her. And that he wasn't going to leave her.

The akuma wasn't hard to find.

The first things Ladybug could make out were the glowing red eyes, then the matching red hair that fanned around her in the water. At least they wouldn't lose sight of her easily.

She seemed more fish than human, with oversized webbed hands and feet, and long teeth that glinted hungrily.

One of her hands was clenched tightly around something, and when she pointed at the ticket counter, it was blasted into a hundred pieces. Chat Noir yelled and pushed Ladybug against the nearest wall, shielding her as plastic and stone torpedoes hurdled past them, lines of bubbles streaming after them. Over his shoulder, Ladybug could see the statues of cowering workers.

The akumatized woman turned and saw them. "You two have an appointment with Hawk Moth!" She raised her fist. Ladybug saw it held a small piece of paper. "And I'm going to make sure you aren't late!"

Ladybug and Chat Noir dove in opposite directions as the ceiling above them crumbled, blinding them with dust and bubbles.

Water rippled around her, giving her just enough warning to dodge out of the way of the hand shooting toward her earrings. She spun in the water, giving a good kick to the akuma's side as she propelled herself toward clearer water. Chat Noir was there waiting for her, weapon drawn. He put a finger to his lips and drifted forward.

"Wait," Ladybug whispered, bubbles hissing through her teeth.

Chat Noir turned, but his momentum in the water pulled him away from her.

She pointed at the ring finger of her right hand. He only had two minutes left on his timer. Then she pointed upward.

He shook his head and held up his staff. "I have enough-"

Ladybug swam forward and pushed him toward the exit just as the woman jetted toward them.

"Go!" Ladybug dove to avoid a blast from the paper. She was close enough to see it was a ticket.

"But-"

"Get charged up. I'll hold her off!"

Another shrill beep let him know he only had one minute left, so Chat Noir kicked and disappeared back down the hallway, leaving Ladybug to turn her attention back to the fight. It wasn't time yet to use her Lucky Charm. She had to wait until she had Chat's cover to set up a plan to use it, so for now, she would stall until he got back.

Ladybug's attacks were met with glancing blows from wide fins. The woman's whirlpool kicks were easy to evade with the water powerup.

The water powerup! Chat didn't have another one! And she didn't want him to risk coming back down without it. He was reckless enough to do something like that.

The akuma snarled when she found Ladybug ducking behind an overturned table. She hissed her disapproval, then leveled the ticket at Ladybug's face.

Ladybug had just enough time to knock the woman's hand toward the ceiling. The initial impact of the blast sent a shockwave through the water. Metal and stone cracked and crumbled immediately after. One chunk caught Ladybug on the shoulder, but the suit protected her, and it bounced off. The woman wasn't as lucky. She roared in pain and frustration and headed deeper into the subway, following a line of tracks into the darkness. Ladybug took off toward the surface, following after her partner.

His timer had probably run out already. She hoped he was waiting for her already transformed, and not waiting so he could give Plagg the cheese instead of eating himself. Still, she should close her eyes when she surfaced, just in case.

The walls and ceilings were pockmarked all down the corridor. Several more lights had become flooded and given out since she'd been through here, minutes before. Doors hung from hinges, the rooms behind them even darker and gloomier than the hallway. She thought she saw a shadowy something move behind one of the crooked doors, and she swam faster.

She knew she was out of the hallway when the light became more diffuse and the ripples she made stopped bouncing off the walls back toward her. The water splashed as she broke through the surface, and she kept her eyes closed. "Chat, I have another powerup for you," she called, turning her head to better hear which direction he was in. "The woman slithered off, but she'll probably want to stay in the water, so… Chat?"

Her hand was halfway to her yoyo, ready to grab a wedge of cheese, but he made no answer. "Chat Noir?" Her voice echoed off the ceiling and the slowly rippling water. It was met with only silence. Her breath caught in her throat. Why wasn't he answering? "I'm opening my eyes."

In the dim light of the flooded station, she could see that she was alone. Her body felt heavy in the water. He wasn't there. He wouldn't have left her during a fight, not unless there was an emergency. And he would have told her what had happened–

Unless he couldn't.

Unless his timer—

Ladybug dove back under the water, flipping open her yoyo and using it as a flashlight to guide her way. Where is he? WHERE IS HE? 

The panicked plea flooded her thoughts, filling every crack, as she desperately searched the platform.

He hadn't made it to the surface. Dread settled over her, threatening to send her panic over the edge. Without stopping to think about what she was doing, she pushed herself back toward the stairs, into the dark.

She'd missed him. He needed her and she'd swum right past him! How could she!

He hasn't come up yet! Where is he?! 

Lights flickered. Ladybug checked every door, eyes wide open, searching for the faintest flutter of movement, any shadow that was the wrong color.

In the watery, flickering light of the hallway, she tried to think this through. His timer had definitely run out by now. If he was untransformed somewhere down here, he wouldn't be able to breathe or get himself to safety. And she wouldn't be able to keep her eyes closed if she wanted to get him to the surface quickly.

A flash of white caught her attention, but it was just the fluttering of paper tickets. She swam faster, the beam of light from her yoyo casting harsh shadows in the jagged holes the akuma had left behind.

Finding out his identity wasn't against her rules. Keeping her eyes open would almost certainly mean she would see his unmasked face, and maybe tell her who he really was.

But the alternative wasn't an option.

She slowed in the middle of the hallway, drifting past doors and broken tiles. A stripe of red kicked out behind one of those doors. Ladybug twisted and sped toward it, heart hammering in her throat, and grabbed a pale hand.

The hand gripped her back and started pulling her up.

Ladybug's head broke the surface, and scraped against a rough ceiling. "Ow!"

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Her yoyo was still under the surface, making the water around them glow, casting weak shadows from below. But she could see his face clearly enough.

"Adrien," she said breathlessly.

Water had plastered his hair to his head, and he was shivering in the cold water without his suit, and so much was wrong - how could Chat Noir be Adrien?! - but despite everything, he still smiled at her.

"Sorry," he said. His legs brushed hers as they tread water.

"It's fine," she said, she lied. The response was automatic. Her whole body felt stiff and unreal. Nothing was fine. Chat Noir was Adrien and Adrien could have drowned and she needed to get out of this small room and fight an akuma before she hyperventilated.

She thrust the yoyo at his face. "Use this. To breathe."

He took it wordlessly and started to dip back under the surface.

"Wait!" She grabbed his arm, and he popped up out of the water so fast that they knocked their foreheads together.

"Are you okay?" he asked, rubbing the spot.

"Powerup's in there. There's a powerup in there for you."

"I'll be back quick, I promise." He gave her a thumbs up. "Thanks for the save, Milady." And he disappeared back under the surface and took the light with him, like he hadn't just shattered her understanding of reality. She stayed there for a few more seconds before she shook herself and started groping for the door in the darkness.

The water didn't help clear her mind. It left her feeling as murky and blind physically as she did mentally. It pushed on her. Muffled her senses. Left her disoriented. Weightless and untethered.

The faint flickering light from the hallway was enough to guide her out, but navigating her path wasn't as easy as it had been the first time with her partner by her side.

The atrium the akuma had been destroying when they arrived was quiet. Statues, and pieces of statues, littered the floor. The train tracks she'd disappeared down faded into the black. Ladybug knew she would have to think of a plan to win the fight, but her mind kept spinning back to Chat Noir and Adrien and her rules.

The first rule was definitely broken. If she loved Adrien, that meant she'd been in love with Chat Noir the whole time. Her feelings for Adrien would somehow lead to the end of the world.

She didn't want to believe it. Wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen the destruction for herself.

"Ladybug!"

His voice was jarring in the quiet. Adrien's voice. Chat Noir's voice.

It was louder and more energetic than when they were at school, and her heart clenched when she heard it. She'd been so close to him. Why hadn't she figured it out?

"Where'd the akuma go?" he asked. He stopped next to her and rested a hand on her elbow, like he was trying to steady her. His gaze was searching. When she didn't respond to the question he said gently, "Sorry. Akuma, or do you need a minute?"

"Akuma," she said abruptly. She didn't need more time to think. She was thinking too much. And only two things were important. Save Paris. And don't break any more rules. Everything else could wait. "This way."

---

The water in the tunnel was moving, pulling them toward the fight faster than she was ready.

"What's the plan?" Chat Noir asked. He kept one hand on her shoulder, guiding her in the dark. It had been his idea to keep the lights out, so they could stay hidden as long as possible.

"I have a plan." There was definitely no plan.

The hand on her shoulder gave a brief squeeze. "Does this plan include calling Lucky Charm?"

"Of course." It did now. That would be a smart thing to do.

"Could I suggest cleansing everything first?"

Ladybug put a hand to the wall to steady herself against the current. It was gaining speed. "Why would that help?"

"Is it a bad time to make a fish out of water joke?"

A lock of hair slipped out of her pigtail and fluttered in front of her eyes, barely visible in the gloom. She tucked it behind her ear. "It's never a good time for bad jokes." The strands floated free again, pulled in front her her by the intensifying current.

"All my jokes are great," he said, giving her a gentle hip check. "You just have a bad sense of humor." He was so close to her.

"One of us does, but thank you for the input." And for trying to make me feel normal.

"What's that sound?" He turned away from her, facing down the tunnel.

"I don't-" And then she heard it too: rushing water. She had just enough time to throw her arms around him before they were dragged down into the darkness.

They tumbled together, slamming into walls and pillars. Ladybug gripped him even more tightly, desperate for something to hold onto. They scraped against the subway tracks.

After a few seconds, the tunnel started to rise and opened up above the ground. The tracks dropped out from below them. In the distance, skyscrapers stood like broken teeth, distorted through the surface of the water.

The current was pulling them to the center of a lake, with a large column of water erupting from the middle. It swelled with all the floodwater from the subway and debris it was pulling in.

The akuma floated in the center, glowing and clearly visible in the darkness.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir!" she bellowed once she saw them. Her voice carried through the water, reverberating like ripples.

Chat Noir grabbed his baton and buried it into the lake bottom, using it to anchor both of them. Ladybug slipped, her arms leaving his shoulders only to fasten securely around his waist. His knees knocked into her stomach as they drifted in the pull of the water.

"Give me your miraculous! Or this water will flood all of Paris, starting with City Hall!"

Ladybug was not in the mood for this right now. Hawk Moth was just going to have to find another time, because she was not going to deal with this. His crisis could get in line right after her own.

She called for Lucky Charm, snatching a red and black Jumbo Sticky Hand as it almost floated past her. The gears started spinning. Using it to wrap her up? To slingshot herself to where was suspended in the middle of the column?

The baton shifted in the dirt as the water eroded the anchor they had, and she remembered his suggestion. It was time to take away the akuma's main advantage. Ladybug threw the yoyo as hard as she could and watched as it broke the surface above them. Within seconds, red swarms of magic had returned the world to normal, except for a flailing akuma, who was pushing herself to her feet, getting ready to charge on legs that looked a lot less floppy than Ladybug was expecting.

"Not tonight," she muttered. She gripped one end of the Sticky Hand and threw the other as hard as she could. Her aim was true, and the train ticket stuck fast, and her plan worked perfectly. Within seconds, the butterfly had been free and cleansed, and a woman in a wrinkled red blouse was kneeling in the middle of an abandoned lot.

"I'll take care of her until the police come," Chat Noir said. He wrenched the baton out of the dirt and brushed it off. "You go get charged up."

There wasn't much around that she could hide behind, so she followed the tracks back to the tunnel. Instead of calling off her transformation, she waited it out, watching Chat Noir and the woman from the shadows. Street lights gave her enough illumination to see the gentle way he held her hand, and how she uncurled as he eased whatever pain she'd recently experienced with his Adrien compassion.

Master Fu had been right in choosing him. Adrien had a good heart. And she loved him for it.

The first rule was broken. Had been broken this whole time. She loved him so much.

And that meant the other two rules were even more important if she wanted to prevent a disaster. Adrien couldn't know her identity, even though she was sure Chat Noir would never betray her like that. He understood how important the secret was more than anyone else.

The flash of pink light illuminated the walls around her, temporarily blinding her. Tikki was the first thing she saw.

Marinette fished a cookie out of her pocket. "He's Adrien," she said simply. "Chat Noir is Adrien."

Tikki took the cookie and nodded slowly. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you."

"I know," Marinette whispered, eyes back on him already.

He and the woman were sitting in the dirt. When she'd first appeared, she'd looked defeated in every way, weighed down with so much anguish that she couldn't stand. After a few minutes of talking to Chat Noir, she sat up straight, leaning back casually as he pointed out faint constellations above them.

"What are you going to do?" Tikki asked after she was done eating.

It was a question she'd been avoiding asking herself. She knew what she had to do, but she didn't want to, for herself and for him. But they were heroes, and sometimes that meant that other people came first, even at her own expense.

She transformed back. Her feet were heavy as she walked back to the pair.

Hawk Moth must have manipulated Adrien somehow. He must have tricked him. Or sent a powerful akuma that could read minds. There was no other explanation. But it didn't change what she had to do. Their love ended the world. She couldn't let that happen.

"So Eléa here-" He nodded toward the woman sitting next to him. "-and I have been chatting. Did you know that Pisces is a constellation and used to be a name for the formal classification for fish?"

"Used to be?" Ladybug settled down on the dirt next to him and watched him out of the corner of her eye, finding Adrien's familiar profile in every plane of Chat Noir's face.

"It's an unofficial superclass now," Eléa finished.

"She was on her way to her new job at the Nausicaá Centre National de la Mer."

"Probably not," Eléa said dully.

"There was an akuma attack at the train station," he told her. "Of course you couldn't get there for an early morning interview."

Eléa poked her toes into a pile of dirt and didn't answer.

"They don't usually publish the civilian's name or the reasons," Ladybug said. "No one will know it was you if you don't tell them. I'm sure they'll reschedule."

"An accomplished scientist like yourself will be a great addition to the best aquarium in Europe," Chat Noir said.

Both women smiled at him.

Ladybug had always loved that about Chat Noir: how gently he dealt with the akuma victims, never blaming them for being so upset, always letting them know it wasn't their fault, and that there was still hope for everything to turn out for the best.

They sat in silence until blue lights flashed on the buildings around them, and the police stepped out of their vehicles.

"Thank you both," Eléa said as she stood and dusted herself off.

"Of course," Ladybug said.

"Always an honor to help," Chat Noir added. "Good luck with your interview, though I know you don't need it."

Eléa gave each of them a quick hug before letting herself be led to the waiting ambulance.

"So, do we need to talk?" he asked as they watched her go.

Ladybug swallowed hard against the lump in her throat, but it didn't budge. She tried once more, then gave up. "Yeah, we do."

Doors slammed, engines revved, and Ladybug and Chat Noir were suddenly alone in the dark in the middle of an abandoned lot. What a depressing place for an even worse conversation.

"Do you want to go somewhere else, or?" he asked.

She grabbed his wrist before he could leap away from her. If only she could keep him here forever in this moment, before she had to ruin everything. Before she had to hurt him.

"So…" he began. "My identity."

"Your identity," she whispered back. Her eyes found his and then skittered away.

"Does this change things between us?" he asked. His breathing picked up its pace. His hand twitched under her grip.

She hated rule number two. She wanted him to know who she was. She wanted to be able to love him freely. This was going to hurt them both so much.

"Yes," she said. The least she could do was look him in the eye when she ruined their relationship. She should do that much for him. So she dropped his wrist and squared her shoulders and held her head high, willing herself not to cry and make this even harder for him. "But not in the way you want."

His disappointment was a subtle thing. A slight drop of his shoulders as he let out a small breath. The curl of his fingers where they hung at his sides. A barely perceptible tightness around his eyes when he gave her a smile.

"I guess that was too much to hope for."

It wasn't. It really, really wasn't.

"You can't wait for me," she said. "You have to move on."

The step back he took was not subtle. "What?"

"I mean it," she said. "I'm sorry, but we're not–"

"Ladybug, I don't think I can."

Her treacherous heart thundered. If Chat Noir had said that an hour ago, she would have turned away with a grimace. But now that it was also Adrien declaring his love for her, she wanted to pull him in and kiss him and never let him go.

All she could do was clasp her hands tightly and lie to him. "I want you to move on." Her eyes dropped to his shoulder. She couldn't face him for her final blow. "I'm not going to return your feelings, and it's not fair for either of us."

At least the last part was true. There was nothing fair about this situation. The best she could do now, even though she hated it, was to let him go. Maybe he could be happy and loved by someone else. She had to be strong for both of them. For Paris.

After Chat Noir had been quiet for several seconds, she chanced a peek at his face. His eyes were fixed on her wringing hands, so she unclenched them and slowly moved them against her sides.

"I'm sorry," she said helplessly. Rule number one said they couldn't be together, but rule three said she couldn't let him get upset enough to be akumatized either.

"It's okay," he said tonelessly. "You can't change how you feel."

The denial she wanted to shout at him pushed against her lips, but she held it back. This wasn't a new wound, so maybe it was better this way.

"Chat?" She stepped forward, putting a hand on his shoulder, pressing gently, trying to convey comfort and care only, and not all the love she had for him. It was a fine line she couldn't afford to cross.

"I'm okay," he said, passing a hand over his eyes quickly. He cleared his throat and said, "I'm okay," more firmly.

He stepped out from under her hand. It hung between them for a second, before she thought to lower it.

"I-" she started. What was there to say? There was no way for her to make it better. Empty apologies weren't going to help him, and she couldn't make him any hollow promises.

A cold breeze blew the loose lock of her hair into her eyes, and he reached up to tuck it behind her ear. The move was filled with such tenderness she thought her heart would break, and then he stepped back and smiled at her, as hollow and empty and broken as everything she couldn't say to him.

"I'll see you at patrol?" He flashed her a quick thumbs up.

"Sure. See you."

Like nothing had happened. Like it was just a normal goodbye between two friends.

Ladybug was the first to turn and leave. Chat Noir didn't follow her. The way back home was long and lonely.

---

Every muscle in her body was sore by the time Marinette got back to bed. She'd pushed herself to the edge to outrun the disaster she'd left behind, and it hadn't been enough. She handed Tikki a cookie and said she was going to sleep and laid very still until her kwami's soft snuffles let Marinette know she was asleep.

And finally she was alone with her thoughts. All of Paris was finally still, but Marinette felt like she was in freefall. She would see Adrien in a few hours at school. Would he be too upset to go? Would he think it was just another rejection like all the others and not take her seriously? A piece of her hoped he would, that there might be something salvageable between them, but the flash of white when she closed her eyes pushed that feeling down.

After a few more minutes of tossing and turning, she gave up on her bed and headed out to her balcony. A drizzle had started, but Marinette didn't mind. They were a pair, the city and her.

The streets were empty. Street lights were dampened. Sounds of life were all muffled. Not even the moon was visible.

A small flicker of movement caught her attention, a shadow darker than the others that moved across the rooftops, and a flash of golden hair.

"Chat Noir," she called out before she could tell herself this was a terrible idea.

The shadow stopped and turned toward her.

Hadn't he gone home yet? Had it taken him all this time to come back, or was he just wandering aimlessly? "What are you doing out?" she asked.

He made the jump to her balcony in three short leaps, with none of the theatrics she had come to associate with him.

"Akuma," he said briefly once he'd landed next to her. "But it's gone now," he added as an afterthought. "So you don't need to worry." He stared at her chrysanthemums before sliding down the railing.

She'd never seen him look so defeated in her life. He was a crumpled heap at her feet, hair and ears flat, tail and limbs all limp. It was a bad idea to offer him comfort. It was a bad idea to kneel next to him and wrap her arms around him. But bad ideas were all she had tonight, and she couldn't turn him away when he was upset and it was her fault, no matter what her rules said.

"You don't have to talk about it." Water soaked through to her knees quickly. His leather-clad shoulder against her cheek was hard and cold. "But I'll stay here with you as long as you need me to."

Eyes closed, she felt him nod.

"Why?" His question was only a whisper louder than the rain.

The apology she wanted to give him burned in her stomach. Marinette couldn't give him that without suspicion. "Because you do so much for me - for the city! - that I want to help you too."

"I shouldn't be here." He tried to stand, but Marinette refused to let him rise. "I can't burden a citizen with my problems."

"That's not true," she said. There were a hundred reasons why, but 99 of them were only Ladybug's. "We're friends. That means I care about you and I'm here for you."

And she wanted to know when he was upset. If there was anything she knew about her Chaton, it was that he often stuffed his feelings when they were anything other than glowing. He would hide how hurt he was from Ladybug so she wouldn't have to suffer along with him. Marinette wasn't going to let him do that this time.

Rain pattered around them, making her flowers' petals tremble and plastering her hair to her face.

"Promise me something?" she asked after a few minutes.

"What?"

"Come over whenever you're upset. I don't care if it's personal stuff or superhero stuff. When you feel like you don't have anyone else, remember you have me and come visit." Because she could be with him this way even if she couldn't be with him the way they both wanted. Because he deserved better. Because she loved him.

He rested his head against hers. "I will."

---

A/N: Welcome to my contribution to this year’s Big Bang! Thanks for setting it up @mlbigbang. And thanks to @khanofallorcs for beta’ing! There will be artwork for the upcoming chapters, so stay tuned for that! I’ll link and reblog when they’re posted!

There will be seven chapters total, and this one’s the longest one. :)

@tbehartoo

[slowlyhardgoatee]

Tim, I think it’s time we had a chat.

Listen, son, you can’t have failed to notice that your mum and I are going through a bit of a rough patch. When I met you guys three years ago, I knew your mum had had it hard - single mother, raising a boy on her own, all that. And I liked you, Tim. I do like you. Do you like me? Good. Good.

Look, you’re eighteen now, and old enough to know the truth. And I wanted to wait until this weekend, when your mum was away on business, so we could have a good talk about it all. See, the truth is, we’ve been in a rough patch for a while. We haven’t even slept in the same room for just over a year. And, well, then there’s you.

See, I know your secret, Tim. I know all about the false wood panel in your wardrobe floor, and I’ve seen the porn you’ve hidden beneath it - big, hairy men with bulging crotches. Oh yeah. And I know what else you’ve got hidden in there. What - you didn’t think I’d miss a pair of my underwear? Hehehe. I notice it was a dirty, used pair out of the laundry basket, too. Covered in the stink of my sweaty arse and crotch, and with a couple of loads of my cum in them, and all. I’ll give you three guesses who I was thinking about when I blew those loads, boy, and it certainly wasn’t your mum.

But I did notice some teeth marks on them, as well. Have you been sniffing and sucking on my used undies when you’re jerking yourself off, boy? You have, ain’t’cha? Dirty faggot boy, I fucking knew it.

Well, how’d you like to taste the real thing, eh?

Yeah, that’s your stepdad’s big dick, boy. I think you’d better get it in your fucking mouth where it belongs. Good lad. All the way down.

Now, I’m gonna record this on my phone, boy, and I think I’m gonna send it to your mum. Keep sucking, and don’t interrupt.

Mandy, give yourself a second to really look at this video. That’s your only son there, deep-throating his stepdad’s cock like the antidote’s in my balls. And his mouth is sweeter than your pussy by far. Also, just for good measure - keep sucking, boy - it’s nearly 3 on a Saturday afternoon. And you know what happens at 3 on Saturdays, don’t you Mandy? Yeah, ten of my mates come over for a barbecue and some beers by the pool out back. But I think this week, instead of the barbecue we’re gonna take your faggot son into your bedroom and pass him around until we break the fucking bed. Then when we’ve finished cumming in your son, I’m gonna let every single one of my mates spunk all over your sheets and wipe their cocks clean on your pillow.

Don’t bother responding to this, Mandy. As soon as I hit Send, I’m turning it off and throwing mine and Tim’s phones in the pool. Then we’re out of here as of tomorrow afternoon. You’ll never see either of us again. I don’t know quite what to do with Tim yet - whether to have him working every street corner in the city as a prostitute, or keep him as my full-time slave boy. Either way, I’ll be letting fat old men cum up his arse every day without fail.

Y’know what I always liked about you, Mandy? You were a sure thing. You were easy. A slut, really. You’d have your knickers down for the first bloke you saw. And Tim’s just the same. Isn’t that right, boy? Yeah, keep gagging on that cock, faggot. And now I’m -

Careful, boy, you’re going the right way to have me cumming down the back of your throat any second, you keep sucking me like that. Haha - is that what you want, boy? Eh? Your stepdad spunking all over your fucking tonsils while your mum watches? Dirty fucking faggot. Well here it comes, boy, hold still. Here it fuuuuucking comes, you cunt. Yeeeeahhh, didn’t spill a fucking drop, did ya, boy? Good lad. Open wide, let me and your mum see your empty mouth after you’ve swallowed my cream. Good boy. And there you have it. Mandy. Tim’s a cocksucking little slut, just like his mother.

Well, I’m gonna go now. My mates will be here any minute, and then we need to decide who gets to take Tim’s virginity - y’know, before the rest of us spend all weekend gang-raping him in your bed. Bye.

That’s it sent, boy - and there goes the doorbell. Run outside and throw both phones in the pool. Then come back in the house, go into your mum’s bedroom and get on your fucking back. I wasn’t joking about breaking the fucking bed, boy. We’ll be raping both your holes pretty much constantly for the next twelve hours at least. Obviously no condoms or lube, and I think I’m gonna let Steve - he’ll be the fattest, oldest bloke in the room - break you in first and take your virginity. Oh - and for the rest of the weekend, as far as you’re concerned my name is Daddy and everyone else is called Sir. That is, if we allow you to speak for the few seconds an hour that you don’t have a cock in your fucking mouth. And if we do allow you to speak, it’ll only be to beg for more cock. I can’t wait to watch Steve split your cunt in two with his fat baseball bat of a dick and then make you lick your own cherry off it. Get comfy in that bed, faggot, because you ain’t going anywhere for a good long time.

[sparkle-d]

waiting game | daniel ricciardo

pairing: daniel ricciardo x you

summary: in which you switch your phone with daniel's without knowing

tags: falling in love; chatting and messages; kind of enemies to friends to lovers

warnings: insecure reader; f!reader; dumb people

chapter: 4/?

(you: blue/ daniel: orange)

✧.* tag list: @bloodyvalentine93 @organasith @verstappens-hat @idkiwantchocolatee @landhoe @theplobnrgone @iamasimpingh0e @chiliwhore @buendiabebeta @icecoldtiress @holy-macncheese-balls @caosfanblr @cxliforniadream @calmleclerc @hannahholland1811

chapter 4 - beginning

hot stuff said: oh shit

hot stuff said: i just cut my thumb really badly

hot stuff said: don’t ask how

ma fraise said: how.

hot stuff said: i was shaving my hand…

ma fraise said: at the same time that i want to know why you were shaving your hand i’m a little scared to ask

hot stuff said: to have soft hands what else would it be

ma fraise said: idk you are "“kinky

hot stuff said: w-wht

With the blink of an eye, your vacations have come to an end.

You didn’t do anything special with your free time, aside from enjoying your own company and watching the most chick flicks you could. Even with the amount of movies and young adult series you’ve been binge watching, you still have a single and persisting thought inside your brain. You had a conversation with hot stuff a few days ago, the one he mentions about fancying you, at least that’s how you interpreted his text. 

This continues to make you wonder between yes, he made a move on you and no, you’re being delusional. You like hot stuff, his company and to talk with him during your days and nights, but you can’t put your mind to believe that he would find you attractive. Maybe this is the way friends joke around with each other and you’re not used to it because your two best friends are more like your brothers and they would never do something like that. 

It makes you confused.

You didn’t mention this to your best friends because 1. you felt weird about commenting on this kind of stuff with them, when you normally have nothing to comment about so you just don’t talk about it with them. And 2. they know who hot stuff is, and exposing that he made such a move on you is embarrassing.

Pierre and Charles have no filter in this matter, they always mention to you about their partners, people they hook up with and it’s so normal to you, you don’t even mind it anymore. But thinking about opening up about it to them when the issue is on your side, it’s different. They wouldn’t do anything to make you feel ashamed of it, but they definitely would lecture you about not being innocent and naive about things. They would want to protect you like they always do.

The truth is, you never felt desired.

You actually never gave the opportunity for anyone to see you with different eyes; you always tried to hide yourself from everyone, if someone turned heads on you, you would assume they were thinking badly about you. Well, and you’re probably right.

“You’re the ugliest out of all of us.”

You grew up in this reality - the reality that every single cell in your body is hideous. Your hair sometimes covers most of your face, leaving only a small gap for your  eyes to pop out. Your skin feels too hot against your palms, making you think that your touch is feverish. The lines on your face are too deep and that makes you not smile too much, not that you’re someone who often gives away smiles out of nowhere, anyways.

You never felt beautiful.

When Charles and Pierre became your  best friends, the friendship started because they never cared about your appearance. They never judged you for the way you’re, the way you look, or the way you dress - Pierre and Charles never tried to change you. Even though you are a very hard person to have around, in your opinion.

They came into your life and never left.

Your best friends could have anyone around them, they easily make friends without problem. But there’s something they share with you, they’re very anxious people. With you, Charles and Pierre have nothing to worry about. They always say you are a very sincere person, you never lie to them, never hide things from them and would never replace them with someone new.

You feel the same for the both of them, and as years went by, you noticed that now they understand you. They understand that you don't like crowded places, that you like the silence and being alone. Well, you like to be alone with them, mostly. You enjoy watching chick flicks with your best friends, especially because even when things don’t work out in the beginning, in the end, everything is worth it. 

Sometimes you need some positivity inside your brain.

Maybe you should start to believe more in yourself. 

—

Charles takes off the protection on your ears, patting on your shoulders “Oh, I’ve missed having you around.” He gives you a smile, side hugging you “I didn’t see you arrive at the garage today.”

“I got late this morning, you know, I got used to watching the races from my television, so I did not calculate correctly the time I needed to get ready and get here.” You arrived at the paddock late, a coffee in one hand and another holding your notebooks and papers “I ran immediately to check in if everything was right.”

“I bet they are.” Charles says as if you would let him drive in a car that wasn’t in a perfect and safe state “Want to check in with Pierre? I haven’t seen him either and you will go there anyways.”

You nod, checking one last time if everything is okay, making sure you can relax a bit with your friends “Yeah, I was about to head there.”

Sometimes you can’t turn off your brain from being focused on the race, but being anxious and worried about everything all the time is the ‘you’ that you want to change a little inside.

If Charles, who is racing later on, is okay with hanging out with his friends, you can do it too.

Pierre gives you and Charles the biggest of smiles, waving as he sees you - acting like he hasn’t seen you in years when in fact you had dinner together yesterday. Having them with you during race weeks, hanging out around the garages and smelling the oil and burnt tyres in the air, makes you nostalgic.

This was your childhood, and things didn’t change at all. It makes you feel warm in your heart.

You only notice that Pierre isn’t alone when you’re too close to run away from it.

“Oh my god, yeah, you’re a Ferrari member.” Pierre shouts at you, touching your Ferrari uniform - looking like a couple of tomatoes with Charles “Red looks good on you, lucky you went working with Charles and left me alone.” 

You can’t concentrate on whatever Pierre and Charles are starting an argument on, something about you having a preference for Charles and making Pierre feeling lonely, when in fact you used to share beds with Pierre and leave Charles to sleep on the ground when you were younger.

Your attention is completely on the man in front of you smiling, looking like the menace he is because he knows his presence annoys you, he annoys you - and he likes it. He likes to see your cheeks turning redder as you try to avoid his stare, leaving your shyness as a view he enjoyed seeing.

“So baby girl is a Ferrari staff.” Daniel leans closer to you and bumps your shoulder with his “I didn’t know you were working here, thought you were only friends with these two.”

You open your mouth to retort Daniel, but when you look up at him, you notice he’s having fun with your embarrassment. Your cheeks are getting a tint of red so bright, anyone around the paddock could notice it. Is this how Rudolph feels? You let out a breath and decide to put your mind in its right place. You shouldn’t feel ashamed or anything, when in fact is Daniel the one saying embarrassing things. 

You can deal with it.

“That’s only my part time job, my full time job is being an engineer.” You reply the most simple thing you can think of, if your interaction with him ends fast, it’s easier for you.

“This means I will have you around more.” Daniel grins, as if he has won something, when in fact there’s nothing to win here “I knew I should’ve known who you are, you’ve always been with these two.”

“Thank you for making it more evident that my presence is unnoticeable.” You give him a fake smile, crossing your arms, you don’t want to talk with him, but you stay beside him.

“Not at all, I think your presence is very noticeable.” He winks, but you are not in the mood, especially because you didn’t know you would see him around today “You’re mysterious and that intrigues me.”

You look at him, not getting what he means by that, but when you are about to ask it, Charles speaks louder.

“She’s happier when YOU win.” Charles says, his tone a little louder as the discussion with Pierre got heated, bringing your attention back to your best friends.

“Well, you win all the time, of course she’s happier when I end up winning.” Pierre shrugs. They aren’t serious about this discussion, but they’re using real arguments on this. Pierre is right, you made a fuss when he won, of course you did it for Charles every time he won, but with Pierre you even cried.

Well, you cried on Charles' first win too.

Charles snorts “She works with me, she shouldn’t be happier with your wins, dumbass.” 

“Are you trying to get me fired, Charles?” You say, but your voice comes out almost like a whisper and you giggle in the end, to make sure anyone notices you’re just joking. 

“Do they always fight for you like this?” Daniel crosses his arms, interested in all of the dynamics with your best friends.

“They aren’t fighting…” You try to say, but your voice again fails you and it comes out too weak “They are just messing around.”

“I’m on Charles’ side, I think you’re favoriting Pierre in your actions.” Daniel simply says, mocking you with his tone. You don’t want him to meddle in, to have an opinion or a side. You aren’t close to him, you barely know him. Until a couple of weeks ago he didn’t even know your name.

“Thank you.” Charles says “She even has a tradition with Pierre before every race. Me? Nothing.”

You beg with your eyes for Charles to shut up, but the person you didn’t want to notice is the one that notices first. Daniel lets out a loud laugh, going back to your eyes and staring at them. This time you try to not break the stare, and try to pierce him with your glare.

Pierre looks at you side by side with Daniel, only noticing now how close you two are “Are you friends now?” He raises an eyebrow, and Charles immediately does the same.

“I wouldn’t call it like that.”

“We are building up our friendship.” You and Daniel speak at the same time, exchanging looks as the answers are not on the same side “Don’t be jealous, I’m not trying to be her best friend, just a friend.”

Daniel bumps into you again and you snort, but wanting to leave a smile at the thought. Not that you like the idea of being Daniel’s friend when you’re always bothered by him. But having a new friend, of any type, is something new to you. Charles and Pierre have been trying for years for you to open up to new people, and now someone is there willing to destroy your walls and share a space with your best friends.

Charles looks at Pierre and they exchange a look that you can’t comprehend what it means, maybe they are indeed jealous of you. They don’t need to be, no one will ever replace them inside your heart.

“Anyways, I think it’s time for us to prepare ourselves.” Charles finally says it, looking around and notices everyone in the garage is wrapping things up “Just do your thing with Pierre and let’s leave.”

The tradition you have with Pierre is that you always close his racewear, for good luck. Pierre puts his overalls on his shoulders and you zip them up, tapping his chest in the end. You give Pierre a kiss on his cheek and wish him good luck, and do the same with Charles, so he won’t have such a pout on his face. His expression lights up immediately, the least thing you would want is for one of your friends to feel left out.

“And me?” Daniel says, showing his left cheek to you and standing still. 

Pierre and Charles are watching Daniel waiting for your kiss. You look at them as if they were crazy, almost laughing on Daniel’s face. Why would you kiss his cheek? Why would he ask you for it in the first place? It’s not like you’re uncomfortable with it, but you aren’t leaving kisses everywhere you go. 

“I would rather die, Daniel.” You answer, if Daniel has no shame in asking for a kiss, you shouldn’t feel ashamed to answer him like that. He deserves it.

“Ouch, you’re in a bad mood today cupcake?” 

“For you my mood is always bad.” You say. Daniel seems to be having fun with this, and it infuriates you even more.

hot stuff said: how do you know if you’re into someone?

hot stuff said: i think i might be-

ma fraise said: what?

ma fraise said: falling in love?

ma fraise said: kdfjgnsdfkj

hot stuff said: this sounds so boring omg

hot stuff said: falling in love and etc

hot stuff said: but yeah something like it ig…

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