#it's so long and extravagant because every time we pushed out flight dates it was like

[mod2amaryllis]

we're in Seoul :)

[nationalharryleague]

One Day

Pairing: Harry Styles x Reader

Genre: Drunk!Harry Fluff!

Word count: 2K

A/N: Hi all! This is some drunk boyfriend harry fluff that I just love sm. It’s based off of “One Day” by Catie Turner (I highly recommend listening to it!!) More of my writing can be found in my masterlist and I would love to hear what you think in my ask! Thank you so much for reading! 

***

Harry was the life of the party when he wanted to be. He knew how to let loose, with a tequila on the rocks in one hand and a beer in the other, ready to party until he (literally) dropped. He always ended up on some sort of elevated surface like a teenage girl, usually a kitchen island or an absurdly expensive coffee table, singing along to whatever music was playing, magically knowing every word to whatever came over the speakers. Sometimes he would get lost in the winding corridors of the massive mansions his friends lived in, taking a wrong turn in his enhibrated state and ending up somewhere he definitely wasn’t supposed to be. There was also one time he jumped off a (thankfully low) roof into the swimming pool below.

But usually, he was calm, cool, and collected; gently sipping on a single drink he would nurse for most of the night. The two of you liked to sit and watch during these parties, his hand settling securely on your waist, keeping you close to him and away from the chaos that unfolded before you. You would curl up on a couch somewhere and just watch it all play out like it was an observational study, often giving commentary and ranking people and their drunk dancing out of 10.

“I feel like we're the mean girls in the corner of the cafeteria who just sit and silently judge everyone around them,” you would giggle, nuzzling yourself further into his side.

“That’s because we are the mean girls in the corner judging everyone around them, sweetheart” he would reply, in a slightly buzzed drawl.

But tonight was not one of those nights. And Harry had ended up standing on top of the dining room table scream-singing ABBA at the top of his lungs.

You couldn’t help but laugh at his dramatic and messy performance. His limbs flailed freely as he wiggled his hips along to the beat of Dancing Queen, singing into a small statue of a naked woman he had picked up off an end table that you assumed to be very, very expensive, like it was a microphone. He wore a pair of high rise denim flares that swayed along with his movements to the music and his white “Women are Smarter'' shirt was now stuck to his body with sweat, just see through enough for his butterfly to make an appearance.

He only came down after a green malaise began to settle over his features, skin slightly clammy and a bit pale. You extended a hand, helping his loopy body down off the table and letting him settle into your side for support once he was on solid ground again. “Let’s head to the bathroom, H,” you said gently, trying to settle the panic that was beginning to crawl into his eyes. “I’ll take care of you.”

Once he got to the beautifully large and extravagant bathroom, he crawled into a small, or as small as the large man could make himself, ball and rested his hot clammy cheeks against the cool marble of the floor. “May have overdone it,” he grumbled from his spot on the floor, holding on for dear life as you were sure the room was spinning for him.

“Ya think?” you teased, immediately feeling a pang of guilt when you were met with a pathetically needy face from him in return. “Oh baby, it’s okay.” You carefully dug through the cabinets, knowing there had to be washcloths somewhere in the lavish room, and once you found one you dampened it with cold water. Settling down on the tile next to him, you pulled him and his sweaty curls on to your lap, wiping the layer of sweat delicately from his skin and then resting the cold cloth on his forehead.

You two stayed in this position for a while, carefully rubbing his back in an effort to sooth the large man and trying to ignore the loud music that was still shaking the house around you. He looked small like this, no longer your giant protector, but like a younger version of himself who just needed someone to take care of him. You were happy to be that person, as he always was for you.

This was the first time you had ever seen him like this. He always managed to know his limits, but tonight he just went off the deep end. He had been working like a dog, constantly in and out of the studio, frustrated that none of the songs he was writing were up to his astronomically high standards for himself. It wasn’t too shocking that he was trying to escape that stress.

Gradually, as he laid on the floor and you held him close, the color came back into his cheeks and he stopped holding onto your legs like the room was about to take flight. When you sat him up against the wall, he was still a bit wobbly, but no longer looked like he was about to unload his stomach contents all over the room.

“How are you feeling now, H?” you asked softly, scanning his face for discomfort or distress as you dabbed the washcloth over his skin.

“’m okay,” he hiccuped back, “jus’ needed a cuddle.” He got exceptionally British when he got this drunk, his accent coming out in a barely distinguishable garble of tall vowels and dropped consonants, his tongue heavy in his mouth.

His eyes fluttered open and closed without rhythm as he looked at you, his light green eyes glazed over with a glassy shine, and his mouth hung open slightly, like he didn’t have the coordination to close it. His pink cheeks were flushed and his skin had a sweaty sheen. His head had rolled off too one side and rested on his shoulder, like his neck had given up on holding his head up, and his arms fell heavy at his sides.

You should have been at least slightly annoyed with him for acting like a college kid, drinking until he made himself sick. His behavior and subsequent need for you to take care of him should have gotten under your skin and caused a bit of anger to bubble up into your chest. But it didn’t. You were just taking care of your man.

“Do you still feel nauseous?”

“‘m a-ok, babay” he said, making himself giggle with his rhyme. His lips lazily curled up into a smile and he dragged a lazy arm up to give the “OK” symbol with his uncoordinated fingers, before the heavy limb dropped back down to the tile beneath him.

“Okay, funny man,” you began sarcastically, planning on instructing to drink the glass of water you had retrieved on your way up to the bathroom, when he cut you off.

“I am pretty funny, aren’t I?” you rolled your eyes but couldn’t hold back the loud belly laugh that fell past your lips. He took the glass from you and began to sip, a proud smirk never leaving his lips as he looked at you.

“You were a comedian in a past life.”

“I agree.”

You two were quiet for a bit, Harry drinking something other than tequila for the first time the entire night, and you just admiring him in silence. You let your hand crawl into his, interlocking your fingers together before bringing it up to your lips and pressing small kisses to each of his knuckles. It wasn’t long before his glass of water was finished and he crawled back into your arms, his back pressing to your chest with your arms wrapped securely around his shoulders. Your fingers ran through his still damp curls, initially just to push them up and away from his forehead and eyes, but continued when you heard the little happy mewls coming from him.

“Ya take such good care of me,” he said sloppily with a gentle tone, breaking through the bubble of silence you two had created together.

“I always will.” You pressed a gentle kiss to his salty forehead and settled back onto the hard wall behind you.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

You hadn’t been together for long, with saying the “L” word still being pretty new, and still slightly foreign, to both of you. But you meant it when you said it, you loved him, and your body always filled with a blushing warmth when he said he loved you too.

You had met through work when you interviewed him for the magazine you worked at. From the moment you saw those dimples in real life, you were weak in the knees and enamored with him. You hadn’t been trying to flirt, it just happened. And before he left the office, you had a date planned for that Friday. That was 6 months ago now and they had been some of the happiest of your life.

“Will you marry me?”

The question left his lips in his absurdly difficult to understand drawl and it took you a moment to process what he said, but when you did your heart stopped.

It wasn’t that you didn’t want to marry him, because you did, but not now.

It was too soon. There was still too much for you to do together, too much still to learn about him, and too much for him to learn about you. You hadn’t even had a serious fight yet; you didn’t know how he dealt with conflict or how you would react to it. You didn’t live together; you didn’t know how your living habits would match up or if they would drive each other insane. You didn’t know how you would deal with him touring being away for so long.

There was just too much you didn't know.

“I will someday.” You spoke gently, trying hard not to hurt his currently fragile feelings. You were now holding his face tenderly, like if you held him steady and close, you could lessen the blow.

“So, no?” he looked up at you with his big puppy dog eyes, feeling guilt punch you in the gut.

“For now. Everything is just going so well right now, we don’t have to mess with it.”

“Jus’ wanna be with you forever,” he said softly and your heart began to melt. He was such a soft person, who felt everything so deeply and with so much emotion. He was a sap, and you loved him for it. You pulled him closer to your chest, pressing soft kisses to his temple.

“And you will be,” you breathed. “Forever will still be there down the line.”

“Why not now?” His lips held an adorable pout and you couldn’t stop yourself from pressing a kiss to them. He tasted awful, like tequila and sweat, but the kiss was loving and sweet as you tried to pour all your love for him into it.

“Because we still have to grow,” you watched the end of his mouth tick up, sure to make some sort of smartass comment about you both being grown already. “We have to grow together,” you finished.

“I guess so,” he mused softly.

“I promise that I will say ‘yes’ when we are ready someday.”

“Someday,” he repeated softly, feeling the words on his own lips. “I’m going to keep asking, ya know?” he smirked up at you, his smile and joking tone signalling that you hadn’t broken his heart, just bruised his ego a bit.

“That’s perfectly okay,” you sighed, a contagious smile finding its way to your own lips. “I’m going to keep saying ‘no’ until we’re ready, ya know?” you teased, using his own words against him.

“One day, I’ll make an honest woman outta ya when you let me.”

“One day.”

Thank you reading!! Reblogs/feedback mean the world!! 

[woah-were-halfway-there]

Island In The Sun

A/N: Finally the highly requested little (very long) vacation one shotttttttt, enjoy :)

Word Count: 7.8k

To you, summer was the best time of the year.

The weather was beautiful, the days were long, and the best part, Auston was off. Although you had nothing against hockey, you always loved the offseason because it allowed the two of you to relax and be together without worrying about being separated. As a parent, you loved it even more. 

One of your favourite things ever was seeing Auston and Mia interact together, and the summertime allowed you to witness that all the time. Whether it be them cuddled up on the couch watching a movie together, splashing around in the pool as Auston tried to teach your one and a half-year-old to swim, or even just the two of them walking ahead while you and Frank trailed right behind; you loved watching their bond grow. And there wasn't much more you appreciated than those special moments you got to share with your little family.  

However, since Mia was born, it had been a bit harder to find time for yourself. Not that you cared, though, because you loved your daughter more than anything in the world, but compared to before, it was much more complicated to do things and not have to worry about Mia's wellbeing as you did them.

It was even more challenging whenever you and Auston tried to have some alone time together. Sure, the two of you would cuddle up on the couch and watch Netflix every once in a while after putting Mia to bed, but going out or doing anything that was just the two of you for more than a couple of hours, simply had not been doable. 

Hockey season didn't help with that either. 

With Auston consistently coming and going for roughly six months of the year, the two of you struggled even more with getting some alone time. When Auston was home, of course, he'd want to spend time with you, but he also would be determined not to miss any time he could get with Mia. Therefore, making that much-needed husband and wife time more challenging to achieve. Sure, the two of you always took what you could get, but leading up to the end of the season, your friends and family would always go off on both you and Auston how a night to yourselves was necessary. 

Still, nothing extravagant happened. In complete honesty, the two of you were content with nights in that consisted of cuddling on the couch while Mia was asleep upstairs. It was simple. To you and Auston, it was perfect. Neither of you needed anything more than that, but then the opportunity to go on vacation with Auston's family came up.  

The Matthews family had plans to go to Cabo San Lucas in Mexico for a week-long trip at the end of July. They had vacationed in the same area a few years prior, back while you and Auston were still dating and long before Mia arrived, but you couldn't tag along for the trip because of things going on at home. That was fine, though, you still loved seeing the pictures and hearing all the stories, but this time around, you were very excited to join. 

Seeing as Mia was almost a year and a half old, it was the first time you and Auston were travelling outside of the US or Canada with her. You knew the flight from Phoenix to Cabo wouldn't be an issue seeing as she was ok on the much longer trip to Toronto, but you were still very interested to see how she was with being in a completely new setting. 

You were most excited to see how she'd like the Beach, and luckily for you, she loved it. 

The first half of your week-long trip flew by. The day everyone arrived mainly consisted of getting settled into accommodations and relaxing a bit before the fun actually started during the following days. 

Speaking of accommodations, they were unreal and so lovely.

Along with some family friends, the entire family was set up in three different places within walking distance of each other along the Beach. The first house was a little bungalow where Brian and Ema stayed, giving them their own relaxing space to go back to after a long day with the fam. The next one was a much larger house that was able to accommodate more people. It had a pool, games and all different types of activities just there and ready to use. That was where Alex, Bre, as well as the friends that tagged along stayed. It was also where everyone spent the most time as a group unless you were all out doing other things.

The last house was a kind of villa type thing. It was a bit larger than where Brian and Ema stayed, but nowhere near as big as the house between the two, and was the perfect size for your little family. The villa had two bedrooms, one smaller one that wasn't even used but was stunning, and a huge master bedroom with a large ensuite and walk-in closet. It had a little kitchen and living room with massive floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the Beach and was the perfect little oasis for you, Auston and Mia. Sure, it felt a little empty without Frank roaming around, but you knew he was living it up back in Scottsdale while being watched by a close friend of Auston's.

Your first full day in Cabo was nothing short of amazing. 

You started the morning off by meeting up with the rest of the group for breakfast at a restaurant nearby. Everyone discussed how things were as they settled in the night before, then moved on to talk about what the day's events would consist of. It was established that after breakfast, the guys and Bre were going to do a round of golf. As they did that, you and Mia decided to spend some time on the Beach with Ema and Alex. 

It was super peaceful.

You spent a fair bit of time in the water, gently pushing around a standup paddleboard while Mia sat on it with her little lifejacket, smiling widely and giggling as you moved her around. After doing that for a little while, Alex said she'd watch Mia so that you and Ema could explore a little bit. That went on for a couple of hours before eventually being joined by everyone else. 

"Hello, Miss Mia," Bre chimed as she sat down next to you on the beach blanket later that afternoon, immediately earning a response from your daughter from where she sat between your legs playing with a shovel. 

"Look who's back, Mia! Is that your Auntie Bre?" You asked your daughter as she held onto your hands to pull herself into a standing position before wobbling towards Bre. 

"Tee!"

"Hi, sweet girl," Bre responded with outstretched arms so that she could pull Mia in for a hug once she was close enough. Mia hugged her tightly and let out a happy squeal before Bre set her down in her lap and looked back to you. "How's it going? What have you guys been up to all day?"

"Good, we've just been hanging around here," you told her with a smile. "I explored with your mom for a bit, then Alex and I got smoothies a little while ago, now they're out on the jet skis. Mia has been absolutely loving the Beach, but I haven't taken her swimming just yet. How was golf? Did you kick their butts?"

"You know it," she said matter of factly, making you chuckle. "Auston was a little cheesed."

"Of course, he was. Sore loser."

"Always!"  

She then explained how Brian had plans to surprise Ema with a little dinner that night, so he was back at their bungalow, setting up a reservation for just the two of them. She also mentioned how Auston had gone back to your villa to shower and should be joining any minute. 

As the two of you chatted, neither of you noticed Ema and Alex as they docked their jet skis and began walking towards you until Mia got all smiley again.  

"What's got you all excited, huh?" Bre asked as Mia started reaching towards something behind her aunt, making you glance in the same direction to see who it was approaching. 

"She sees your mom," you replied while smiling and waving to the two women approaching. 

"Ah, no wonder," she chuckled and stood up from her spot to go greet them with Mia. 

"Oh, hello there," Ema said as Mia tackled her in a hug, indicating that she now wanted to be held by her grandmother. 

"Wow, Mia, nice to know who your favourite relative is," Alex joked as she sat down next to you, nudging you with her shoulder. "You ready to go shopping?"

"Yeah, whenever you guys are ready!"

"Is Mia coming?" Bre asked as she, Mia and Ema joined you and Alex again.

"I don't think so," you replied. "Auston wants to take her for a bit to hang around the pool before she needs a nap, I believe."

"Fair enough," Alex nodded and watched as Ema walked with Mia to where the tide flowed onto the shore. "We probably have a few minutes before he gets here, do you mind if I take Mia in the water as we wait?"

"Not at all, I'll have her towel ready."

"Wait, I'm coming!" Bre called after her sister as the two walked towards the water. 

You sat back and watched as your mother and sisters-in-law took turns wading into the water while holding onto Mia until a small waved formed and brushed passed them. It was so simple, but Mia loved every second of it. Each time she touched the water, Mia would let out a squeal of delight and laugh before splashing around a bit, earning some dramatic gasps from Alex and Bre.

As you watched, you couldn't help but smile as your heart swelled with so much love. These three women had become such important people in your life throughout your relationship with Auston. They always loved and supported you, welcomed you as one of their own, and built a significant and lasting relationship with you. That love was shared with your daughter from the moment she was born and had only grown ever since. You were well aware of how much Mia adored her aunts and grandparents, and it just made you so happy that she was going to grow up with these amazing people always watching out for her. 

After a few minutes went by, there was a sudden presence of a person sitting on the sand behind you and pulling you close to them. You didn't need to turn around to tell that it was Auston with the way his arms instantly wrapped around you protectively, and his facial scruff brushed against your skin as he leaned his chin onto your shoulder, quietly observing his mom and sisters play with Mia as well. 

"Hey, you," you said after a moment of just sitting there in comfortable silence, before looking at your husband and smiling. "How was golf?"

"Oh, I'm sure you already know how golf was," he responded with an eye roll.

"You lost that bad, huh?"

"Don't wanna talk about it."

You couldn't help but chuckle at the way he was acting, as he let out a huff and looked at you with a pointed glance. "Well, if it's any compensation, I'm glad that you're back even if you did lose to your little sister. Can't be better than everyone at everything, babe."

"Yeah, whatever, I'll take it," he replied with a grin. "Besides, I've got my prize right here, anyways."

He then leaned towards you, and you closed the remaining space between the two of you by meeting his lips with yours in a soft, sweet kiss. You could feel him smirk against you and had no intention to break away from him either until a voice interrupted. 

"Geez, get a room," Bre spoke up from where she stood in the water, sticking her tongue out jokingly once you looked at her. 

"Leave them be," Ema scolded her daughter before smiling at you and Auston. 

"Way to ruin the moment, Bre," Alex scoffed and stepped out of the water with your daughter. "But, I do think someone's excited to see you, Auston."

"Daddy!" Mia exclaimed and reached towards you and Auston as she and Alex approached. 

"Hi, baby," Auston grinned widely and reached up to take Mia from his sister's hold, not waiting any longer to snuggle her into his chest. "Did you have fun in the water?"

"Uh-huh," she replied as she leaned back to look at him and smile.

The two then started chatting, and you subtly moved from your spot between Auston's legs to grab Mia's towel so she wouldn't get cold. 

"Are you ready to hang out with me while your mom leaves us to go shopping with your aunts?" Auston asked Mia, making you roll your eyes as you stood up. Alex gave you a knowing look as the two of you just shook your heads.

"Yeah!" Mia said and cuddled closer to you as you took her from her dad and wrapped her in the towel.

"Mia, tell your dad that he's a drama queen," you spoke up and pecked her on the cheek.

"'Rama, daddy."

"Yes, drama!."

Alex started chuckling from where she stood beside you, while Auston huffed and looked at you with a pout. "You make it seem like Bre, and I are stealing her from you."

"Uh, have you seen the way the three of you shop? You guys won't be back for hours."

"Like you're any better," Bre deadpanned and gave her brother a look as she and Ema approached. "We'll be back before dinner. You'll be fine."

"Whatever," he said with a sigh before standing up and walking towards Ema. "At least mom wants to hang out with me."

Ema chuckled and shook her head. 

"I'm going with them. What do you mean?"

The look of absolute betrayal that washed over Auston's face as she said that was comedic and made everyone laugh but him. "Wow."

"Oh, babe, I promise next time you can come with us," you stated and walked towards your husband. Once you were close enough, Auston wrapped an arm around your waist, holding you close as he took Mia in his other arm. "We'll be back soon."

"Yeah, yeah," he replied and winked at you before glancing at Mia. "Looks like it's just me and you, baby girl. Is that alright with you?"

She didn't respond, just nodded before leaning against Auston's shoulder and knuckling at her eyes tiredly. You and Auston looked at each other knowingly after that. 

"I think I'm just going to take her back to the villa, cause someone needs a nap," your husband stated and brushed a little curl away from Mia's face. "You tired, mini?"

Whenever he called her that, you couldn't help but smile because of how true it was. Mia really was Auston's mini-me, and you loved it so freaking much. 

"Mhm," Mia replied before letting out a loud yawn. "Nemo, daddy?"

"Yes, sweets, we'll watch Nemo together," he said and leaned down to kiss her cheek before looking back to you. 

"We'll be back soon," you assured both Mia and Auston, but earned yourself an odd glance from your daughter.

"Mommy, come."

"No, baby," you responded quietly, your heart breaking a bit thanks to how she looked at you with her tired eyes expectantly. "Mommy will be back in a little bit, ok? I promise."

"Ok," she repeated before cuddling closer to Auston, showing just how exhausted she was. 

You then looked to Auston, who didn't miss a beat as he leaned down to peck your lips again. "Call me if you need anything, ok?"

"You know, I will. I'll see you soon," Auston said before giving you another quick kiss and then looking at his mom and sisters. "Have fun, ladies."

"Bye," the three of them said as you stood and watched him walk away with your baby. 

A moment later, someone nudged you with their shoulder to get your attention. 

"Ready to go?" Alex asked, already holding her folded up beach-blanket and other items. 

"Oh, yeah," you stated and moved to pick up your things before heading back to the house she and Bre were staying in. "Lead the way."

It didn't take long for the four of you to get where all the little shops and stores were, and it took even less time for the actual shopping to begin. You found a couple of cute clothes for yourself and even more adorable things for Mia, thanks to Bre and Alex's help. After that, you and Auston's sisters helped pick out a new outfit for Ema and somehow convinced her that she should wear it to dinner that night, although she was still unaware of her little date night with Brian. 

Once you finished shopping, the four of you returned to the Beach to get ready for the night ahead. Ema went back to the bungalow, while Bre and Alex helped you with the stuff you bought back to your villa. You were all excited to be back and see Mia again, but the house was empty when you entered. 

"Where do you think they went?" Bre asked as each of you set down the bags you were holding and looked around. 

"No clue," Alex replied and glanced at you. "Has Auston messaged you?"

"No, he hasn't," you told her and pulled out your cell phone to see that Ema had texted you instead. "But your mom did. She says to go over to your guys' place."

"That's where they must be," Bre said and started walking towards the door again. "Let's go. I wanna see my niece."

"I'm sure she wants to see you too," you chuckled as you followed after her and Alex back outside. 

The three of you walked down the Beach to the two-storey house you assumed everyone else was. It was early evening, so the sun was still up and would be for a few more hours, and you couldn't help but wonder what Auston and Mia had gotten up to while you were away. 

As soon as you stepped foot into the house, you got your answer.

"Y/N, go take a look by the pool," Ema said as she greeted you, Bre and Alex again. "I think there's something you might want to see."

Confused, you looked at Bre and Alex unsurely before walking by them and towards the back of the house. You could hear them and Ema following behind you and didn't know what to expect when you went outside, but your heart melted once you did. 

Brian waded in the pool with the other guys, while to the left of the door, Auston was passed right out on one of the lounge chairs, with Mia asleep on his chest. 

Mia was still wrapped in a towel, which made you think she mustn't have gone to sleep right away, so Auston brought her to the pool in an attempt to wear her out even more, but ended up making himself tired during the process as well.    

"They've been like that for an hour and a half now," Brian chuckled as he climbed onto a pool floaty. "Didn't even make it inside the house, they were both so exhausted."

"Please, I love them so much," you replied and couldn't keep yourself from awing at how cute the two of them were.

"They are pretty freaking adorable. I must admit," Bre spoke up as she placed her elbow on your shoulder and leaned against you as she observed the two sleeping beauties as well. 

"My favourite pair," Alex chimed in as she stood beside you and smiled. 

"Mine, too," you stated. "I don't want to wake them up."

But just as you said that Mia began stirring awake and started looking around as if trying to remember where she was. 

"Mama," she said with a yawn once her eyes landed on you, and Bre wasn't long in taking her arm off your shoulder so that you could go over to your little girl. 

"Hi, baby," you responded as you ducked under the broad umbrella and sat down on the edge of the lounge chair beside them, making sure to gently brush away some of the curls that fell in your daughter's face and smile at her. "Did you have a good nap with daddy?"

"Mhm," she nodded while still leaning against Auston's chest, which gradually woke him up as well. 

He stretched and groaned while wrapping his arm protectively around Mia before even opening his eyes, but when he finally did and saw you, he immediately grinned widely. 

"Hey, you're back," he said and sat up straight, his voice husky as he spoke. "Did you have fun?"

"We did," you replied, smiling as well before looking to Bre and Alex and winking at them. "Looks like you and Mia had some fun too."

"I don't even remember falling asleep," he admitted before looking down at Mia. "I guess we were both tired, huh, little miss?" 

"Yeah," Mia smiled before reaching towards you so that you'd hold her. 

"I bet," you stated while hugging your daughter close and looking back at your husband. "What do you say we head back to the villa and get changed for dinner?"

"Tee!" Mia called once she noticed Bre and Alex standing nearby, no longer paying any attention to you. 

"Well, I think that's a solid plan, but we may have trouble separating Mia from those two," Auston said as he stood up and glanced towards his sisters.

"Hi, baby girl," Alex spoke softly and crouched with her arms open as you set Mia down and watched as she wobbled to her aunt. 

"You know, you could always leave her with us as you went and got ready," Bre suggested as Alex stood back up, holding your daughter, and gave her arm a little squeeze. 

"Please, you'd never give her back," Auston scoffed, making you chuckle as you stood next to him and wrapped an arm around his waist. 

"And what about it?" Alex challenged while moving so that Bre could hold Mia. "I swear, you two never take any time to yourselves. This vacation is for the both of you too, you know?"

"Yes, and we love it," you answered honestly. "But, it's a different type of vacation now with Mia here, which is fine. Wouldn't have it any other way."

Bre and Alex both sent you soft smiles after that, before glancing at each other as if they were silently planning something. Auston seemed to notice their plotting too and glanced down at you before looking back at them suspiciously, but Bre spoke up again before either of you could say anything.   

"Fair," she shrugged and looked back to you and Auston. "But go get changed, we can watch her for twenty minutes. I'm sure you'll both be fine."

"But-," Auston started, but cut himself off as his sisters both turned around and headed back into the house with your daughter without saying another word, his eyebrows furrowing as he watched them go. "Did they just steal our daughter from us?"

"Looks like it," you giggled and turned around so that you'd be facing your husband. "C'mon, let's go get changed, and we'll have her back before you know it."

And so you did. The two of you headed back to your villa, telling Auston's family that you'd both be back in a few minutes. But what neither of you noticed was that both Bre and Alex came back outside with Mia and looked at their mom expectantly as soon as you and Auston were gone. 

"How are we supposed to get them to have a whole night that's just the two of them with Auston being so stubborn?" Bre asked as she sat at the edge of the pool, still carefully holding onto Mia.

"I definitely think Y/N will be easier to convince that it's a good idea for us to watch Mia for a night than Auston will be," Alex stated from where she stood before looking at Ema. "But we need to. Those two haven't had a date night in who knows how long, and what better time to do it than on vacation?"

"Exactly," Ema agreed as she walked into the pool and waded over to where Bre sat with Mia. "We're going to have to just bombard them with the fact that they're going to be alone for a night. Don't give them a chance to argue. They'll be fine if they keep busy, and besides, it's their anniversary soon. They deserve some alone time."

Bre and Alex nodded in agreement, and both began thinking of ways to make their plan work, while Brian continued floating around and became curious about how their plan would work out.

~*~ 

The evening was relatively lowkey after that. You and Auston returned to the house after getting changed, and everyone headed out to dinner. Once you all at the restaurant, Brain and Ema went their separate way away from everyone else for their little date night. While they were gone, the rest of the group ate a massive meal before eventually calling it a night and heading back home with plans to meet at the big house the following morning. 

The next day, everyone met up and went boating. Some snorkelled, some went tubing, and others just chilled on the boat and made the most of it before going back on land and doing other activities. 

That was what each day consisted of. 

There was always so much to do, as a whole or split up in groups, and being with Auston's family made it extremely enjoyable. Each busy day ended with everyone grabbing dinner together before going back to their respective homes to unwind and go to bed. But on one particular night later in the week, that changed. 

Everyone had finished eating and was just getting ready to start walking back to the houses when Ema picked Mia up from her chair and started walking away. 

"Are you going to stay with me tonight?" She asked your daughter as everyone started following after them, you and Auston being the last ones to trail behind.

"Yeah," Mia replied as she hugged her grandmother, making you and Auston come to a complete halt.

"Wait. What?" the two of you asked in unison, not noticing how Bre and Alex covered their mouths, attempting not to burst out laughing.

"What's going on?" Auston questioned, still obviously very confused. 

"Mia is going to stay with your dad and me tonight," Ema said as a matter of factly while she glanced at the two of you over her shoulder, making sure to send you a wink before looking at her son. "You and Y/N can have a night to yourselves tonight. Mia will be fine with us. We'll keep her busy and then tomorrow after dinner; I'll bring her back to the villa." 

"I think they planned this," you whispered as you leaned against your husband's shoulder while he stared back at his family completely dumbfounded. 

"Exactly," Bre stated. "You two have barely had any time that was just the two of you since Mia was born. Go, have a date night. Be a little reckless. We've got Mia."

"But not too reckless," Brian chimed in, making everyone but Auston chuckle. "Have some fun. The two of you are on vacation, one night away from your daughter won't kill you. Relax a little bit."

"But-," Auston started until you cut him off. 

"It's just a night, Aus," you told him, noticing how both Bre and Alex let out sighs of relief. "She's in safe hands. If anything happens, we're not very far away. I think a night to ourselves would be… nice."

"You should listen to your wife," Alex said while smiling at you and Auston. "We'll follow you back to the villa to get Mia's things, then let the two of you be."

"I-," he was ready to argue, but when he looked down at you and started thinking of how one night with you away from Mia wouldn't be too bad, he sighed in defeat before looking back at his family. "Ok, fine."

"Perfect, let's get going," Ema said and started leading the way back to the villa. 

"They definitely planned this," Auston grumbled as he wrapped a hand around your waist and continued walking next to you. 

"I know," you replied and shook your head while laughing. "Everyone has been trying to get us to have a date night, didn't know it was so bad that we'd have to be forced to do it."

"A date night with you isn't something I need to be forced to do. I'll take that any day."

"Good answer."

"Yeah," he chuckled too. "I've just gotten so used to being around Mia and not having to leave. This feels kind of weird, her leaving me for once."

"Oh, how the tables have turned," you teased and gave him a squeeze, to which he responded by leaning down and kissing the top of your head. 

"It'll be nice getting you alone," he said huskily, not noticing that it was loud enough for others to hear.

"Ok, at least keep it PG until we get Mia's things and leave," Bre groaned.

"Hey, you can blame yourself for this," Auston replied before reaching down to squeeze your butt, trying to get a rise from his sister. 

"Auston!" You scolded and stepped away from him. "God, you're such a pest."

"You love it," he responded cheekily as you let him pull you close again. 

"Debatable," you told him with a wink, before standing on your toes and pecking his lips before linking your hand with his and pulling him after everyone else. "C'mon, it's getting late, and Mia is going to need to go to bed soon."

"Yes, dear," he said and followed behind you all the wat back to the villa. 

Bre and Alex came over to help Ema gather Mia's things, but they didn't stay long. Before you knew it, they were all heading towards the door; getting Mia to blow kisses at you and Auston as they went.  

"Bye, mommy. Bye, daddy," she said while waving goodbye.

"Bye, baby," you replied while leaning against Auston, suddenly feeling emotional over the thought of your little girl leaving. 

"We'll see you tomorrow, princess," Auston said and held you a little tighter as you both said goodbye to his mom and sisters, and they eventually disappeared out the door. Once they were gone, you looked up at Auston curiously. "Guess it's just us now."

"What do you propose that we do?" You asked. 

"Well, there's that jacuzzi tub in the washroom that hasn't been used yet. What do you say I pour us some wine, and we relax in there a little?"

"Sounds like a plan to me."

And that was how the two of you spent the night together. You relaxed in the tub, chatted, and just enjoyed each other's company before eventually getting out to shower off. However, neither of you made it to the shower because soon after wrapping yourself up in a towel, Auston was behind you, placing kisses along your exposed collarbone and holding you close. It didn't take long for things to get heated after that, and the night soon faded around the both of you as you made your way back into the bedroom. 

~*~

When you woke up the next morning, the space on the bed beside you was empty. A few beams of light peaked through the drawn blinds and danced across the room, illuminating the area just enough for you to take in the clothes strewn all over the place, and the thin bedsheet that clung to your body. 

The half-empty glasses of wine still sat on the bedside table, and your bra hung across the lamp on the other side of the room, but you didn't care. You were at peace as you snuggled into the pillows a little more and listened to the sound of waves as they crashed against the shore outside.

The waves soon faded into the sound of running water coming from the ensuite, and it was then you realized where Auston had gone off to so early on this day that was meant for the two of you to relax.

Wasting no time, you scrambled off the bed and wrapped the sheet around your body so you'd at least be a little covered as you greeted your husband and quickly made your way to the ensuite.

Once you entered the room, Auston immediately made eye contact with you in the mirror and smirked. His mouth was full of toothpaste as he finished brushing his teeth, and his eyes were very sleepy, indicating how much the activities from the night before seemingly wore him out. However, he still looked ridiculously hot to you as he stood there in nothing but a pair of basketball shorts.   

Without breaking eye contact, you walked up behind him and placed some soft kisses on the back of his shoulder before stepping beside him and beginning to brush your teeth as well. 

You kept sending each other glances as he moved on to shaving around his moustache a little, and once you both finished what you were doing, you were all over each other again. 

The next thing you knew, you were sitting on the vanity with your back pressed gently against the mirror and hands tangled in Auston's hair as he kissed you hungrily. You could feel the sheet slipping off with each movement you made and were quick in pulling it back up before too much could get shown off, making Auston chuckle as he continued kissing you shamelessly. 

A moment later, you both pulled away to catch your breath and look at each other knowingly. 

"Good morning," you were the first to speak as you leaned up to peck his lips once again, noting how swollen your's were already beginning to feel. 

"Good morning to you, too," he responded and gently tucked a stray piece of hair behind your ear as a smug grin danced across his lips. "Did you have a good night last night?"

"Cheeky," you responded while rolling your eyes at how he referred to what the two of you did once you got back to the villa. "But, yes, I did, and I think today will be even better."

"I don't know. Last night was pretty great. Pretty sure I'm going to have to wear a T-shirt all day to cover the scratches on my back."

"Auston!"

"I'm just messing with you," he laughed and leaned down to catch your lips in another sweet kiss, before moving away and walking towards the shower. "Well, we better start getting ready. We've got a busy day ahead of us."

"Busy?" You asked as you hopped off the counter and followed after him. "I thought we were supposed to, and I quote, relax. I mean, I'm down for anything. But I am missing Mia, though."

"Me too, which is why I think my family booked a bunch of things for us to do today. They want to keep us busy until we get her back tonight."

"What did they plan?"

"I honestly don't know," he shrugged and turned back around to face you. "I just woke up to a text from Alex saying we have to be down at the marina in an hour and a half, that's all I know. So I'm going to shower and get ready. Something is waiting for you in the kitchen if you want to check it out. Or you could join me in the shower, wouldn't be opposed to that either."

"Get in the shower, Matthews," you replied and rolled your eyes at his cheekiness again. "I'll make us some breakfast, then wash my hair."

You didn't leave much room for argument, because after that you were striding out of the washroom and back through the bedroom, not caring that you were still wearing a bedsheet dress. 

As you walked into the hallway, you wondered what the hell could be waiting for you in the kitchen, and was unable to keep yourself from gasping as you rounded the corner and saw a huge bouquet of flowers sitting on the counter. It wasn't hard to spot the little card resting in the flowers that had your name written on it, but before you could walk over and read it, a pair of hands gripped your waist and spun you back around. 

Auston's lips immediately crashed to yours, and you let out a surprised squeak, but quickly returned the kiss before pulling away slightly. 

"Happy anniversary," he mumbled against your lips before stepping back and smiling. 

But you were beyond confused and looked at him weirdly.

Anniversary? Anniversary of what? You raked your mind for ideas of what it was he talked about until something clicked, and your eyes went wide.

"Holy shit," was all you said before bolting back down the hallway towards the bedroom. 

You could hear Auston following behind you, but he was quiet as he watched you walk over to where your cell phone was sitting on the table and check the date. Sure enough, the date was exactly what you thought. 

July 30th, otherwise known as yours and Auston's first wedding anniversary, which you completely forgot about up until that moment.

Not a moment later, your phone chimed with a text from Steph wishing you and Auston a happy anniversary. Then came one from Mitch, then Alex, then Bre, then even more friends and family from home, which did not make you feel any better about the situation. 

"Oh, my God," you groaned and ran a hand down your face before eventually glancing back at your husband, who was looking at you with pure amusement. 

"You forgot our anniversary, didn't you?" He asked and stepped towards you. 

"No," you lied.

"Yes, you did, or else you wouldn't be so flustered."

"Ok fine, I forgot," you whined and flopped onto the bed, completely ashamed. Auston chuckled as he sat on the bed next to you and watched you sulk for a minute before finally looking back to him. "I'm sorry. We've just been having so much fun during this trip. I knew it was coming up, but I completely lost track of the days and didn't realize that it was today. Wow, I'm a terrible wife."

"No, you're not," Auston stated while shaking his head at your dramatics. 

"Yes, I am! Who forgets their first freaking wedding anniversary? Also, how are you so calm about this?"

"Because I'm not mad, Y/N."

"You're not?" You asked and lifted your head from the pillow to look at him better. "How? I mean, I would be. I suck."

"Because, babe, I get it," he told you seriously. "And no, you don't suck. Life gets crazy sometimes, and it's hard to keep track of things. Remember when I forgot Valentine's Day that one year?"

"Valentine's Day is not as important as our anniversary."

"Doesn't matter, I'm trying to prove that it's ok you forgot. I'm not going to hold a grudge against you over it."

It was impossible for you not to melt a little bit as he said that.

"Why are you so good to me?" You asked as he reached a hand towards you, and gently linked your fingers with his. 

"Because I love you," he replied. "Simple as that. How do you like the flowers, though?"

"I love them," you stated as you sat back up and quit your sulking. "They're beautiful, Auston. Thank you. Are you sure you're not mad?"

"Yes, I'm sure," he chuckled and shook his head before standing up. "I may never let you live it down, but no, I'm not mad."

"God, I think that might be worse than you just being pissed off at me."

"Not my fault you forgot our anniversary, now is it?"

"Auston!" You groaned and leaned back against the headboard, knowing that he most definitely would never let you live this down. 

"Love you," he singsonged as he leaned down to kiss you once more. 

"Love you too, even though you're a pain in my ass," you pouted before returning the kiss. 

"Your favourite pain," Auston stated as he moved back towards the ensuite. "But we really do need to get going, or Alex is going to be pissed that we missed whatever reservation she made."

Once the two of you were showered and dressed, you both made your way to the marina to see what the day had in store, but not without glancing at Ema and Brian's bungalow to see if you could see Mia as you went. 

When Auston gave the man who was waiting on the docks his name, the two of you were told that he was taking you both on a boat tour to see The Arch Of Cabo San Lucas and other tourist attractions such as the infamous Lovers Beach. 

"Fitting name," Auston said to you quietly as the two of you boarded the boat. 

"This kind of thing has Alex written all over it."  

"You think that's bad, Bre just texted me saying she booked us an hour at the driving range after this."

"Oh, god," you replied dramatically, but had to smile at how thoughtful and considerate it was of Auston's family to set everything up for the two of you. "As long as there's some type of alcohol, I'm game."

"Perfect," he responded as he sat next to you and the boat set sail. "Anything else you want to do before dinner?"

"I think I'll book us something at the spa," you told him with a smirk. "My treat."

"Sounds good to me."

The day couldn't have gone more perfect, and the fact that you and Auston spent it entirely together made it even more special. When evening came, you went to a dinner reservation for two, which was so lovely, but you were both a little antsy by the end of it.

"Think they'll let us take our daughter back now?" You asked your husband as you sipped on the last little bit of wine you had with dinner.

"God, I hope so," Auston said dramatically. "Not that I didn't love this time with you or anything, but I really miss her."

"I do too. This was needed, but I'm ready for us to get our little girl back."

"Couldn't agree more."

After you finished your drink, you and Auston walked hand in hand to Bre and Alex's house and couldn't wait to see everyone, especially Mia. Once the two of you arrived, it wasn't long before Ema opened the front door and pulled you both in for a hug.

"Happy anniversary!" 

"Thank you," both you and Auston replied while returning the hug.

"Did you two have a good day?" She asked and stepped back to let you enter the house.

"It was amazing," you told her honestly. "Thank you for doing this, Ema."

"Oh, don't thank just me. There was no way I would've been able to do it alone. Now, come."

You looked at Auston suspiciously as Ema began leading the two of you down the hallway, but he just shrugged. 

"Don't look at me," he started with a laugh. "They're up to something else, though. I feel it."

"Let's go you two," Ema's voice called from down the hall, not giving you a chance to respond.

"Guess we'll find out," you told your husband before making way down the hallway after your mother-in-law. 

But neither of you were prepared for what you saw once you entered the living room.

"Happy anniversary!" Everyone who came on vacation exclaimed. 

"'Versary!" Yelled Mia from where she stood between Bre and Brian.

It was then you were able to take in your surroundings finally. The room was decorated with balloons and banners all with 'Happy Anniversary' written across them.  There was also a cake resting on the table in the corner with a framed photo of you and Auston from your wedding day standing next to it. 

"You guys," you started as you covered your mouth and looked around at everyone with teary eyes. "Thank you."

"Yes, thank you," Auston said, and just couldn't stop smiling. He then looked down at you and pulled you in for a sweet kiss. "Happy anniversary, babe."

"Happy anniversary," you repeated before softly kissing him again, then pulling him in for a hug.

"Maybe I won't tell them that you forgot."

"Matthews, I swear to-." 

You were ready to ream him out but were interrupted by a small force tackling yours and Auston's legs. Immediately, you moved away from your husband and looked down to see Mia hugging you both tightly. 

"There's my girl!" Auston exclaimed as he bent down to pick up your daughter and hug her tightly, to which she returned. 

"Hi, sweet girl," you greeted as Mia looked your way and was soon tackling you in a hug as well. "Your daddy and I missed you today."

"'Versary!" She replied excitedly. 

"Yes, it's mommy and I's anniversary, princess," your husband said before leaning down to kiss her head. "Man, a lot has happened in a year. I just keep thinking of how small she was the day we got married."

"I know," you responded with wide eyes as you thought back to a year prior. "But, you know, although this past year was pretty amazing, I still think the best has yet to come."

"I think you're right," Auston agreed. "Can't wait to see what the next year brings us, and all the years after that."

"Me neither."

Both you and Auston were soon surrounded by everyone in his family, hugging and congratulating the both of you. They then went on to ask how yours and Auston's day went and had the biggest smile on your face as you relived it all. That smile remained for the rest of the evening as you mingled with Auston's, no, your family, and got even more excited with what the future was going to hold because you knew that with all of these amazing people in it, it was bound to be special.

// please let me know what you think! <3 //

[idreamofplaid]

Texas Magic

Square Filled: 69

Characters: Sam x Olivia (OFC); Jensen; Baby; John mentioned

Rating: Explicit

Summary: Olivia is discovering a new world filled with possibility and romance, one that she’s only dreamed about until now. 

Word Count: 7143

A/N: Thank you to @fangirlxwritesx67 and @dean-winchesters-bacon for being such wonderful betas. Viv and Kat you pushed when I needed it and helped me make this better. I’m grateful for both of you and your time.

A/N 2: This is Part 2 of the series called Surrender to the Truth. Catch up with Part I It Begins.

Created for @spnkinkbingo

First Class, it was a glimpse into a life Olivia had only dreamed about. Sam had apologized to her about not being able to take the private jet. John was using it, and it was his father’s company. 

She didn’t mind at all. In fact, maybe it was better to take this intermediate step in upscale flying. It was an opportunity to acclimate to the lifestyle of the wealthy. Her upbringing hadn’t involved much travel, especially not the kind that required a plane and certainly not First Class.

At the front of the plane, the seats were big and comfortable, made of leather that was buttery soft to the touch. There was plenty of legroom, and flight attendants were on hand to fulfill every whim and desire she might have. Her desire at the moment was for champagne, and they gave her all she wanted.

Sam looked over from the iPad that had monopolized his attention for most of the flight. An amused smile danced at the corners of his mouth. “You better slow down. At this rate, you’ll be drunk by the time we get to Austin.”

She wanted to push out her bottom lip and pout, but that would be taking it too far. Sam had flirted with her some since they’d had sex two weeks ago, but he hadn’t asked her out, hadn’t made another advance toward her. Nothing. She should have known better than to jump right into bed with him or, in their case, onto the floor of his office.

It had been the lights. She could blame it on that. The Christmas tree had been nothing but romantic. If that hadn’t been enough, there was the fire sending out a soft glow from the fireplace, and the magnificent city skyline clearly visible through the wall of windows in Sam’s office adding to the fantasy feel of the setting. When he kissed her, that was it. She became another notch on his bedpost. 

Olivia scrunched up her nose, and her forehead wrinkled a little at that thought. That wasn’t exactly being fair to him. He’d never treated her like a conquest or like she was some kind of game to him, but she would be lying to herself if she said she hadn’t been hoping for more than just that one night. It was her way, and her curse, to get too hopeful and too romantic about things too soon. Now, it just made her sad. She knew what it was like to feel Sam touch her, and the thought he might never touch her again wasn’t something she wanted to accept, or even could accept sitting here in his world with him.

Sam gave her an assessing look, glancing down at the champagne glass and back to her face. “What’s wrong?” He smiled at Olivia and put down his iPad. “Don’t worry. You’re not going to get drunk. I won’t let that happen to you.” He took the glass from her hand and signaled to the flight attendant. She immediately walked over, and Sam handed her the glass. “Could we get a mineral water, please?”

Sam put the iPad into his briefcase and turned his full attention to Olivia. “So you like champagne better than beer then?” He was referring to the fact that he had been her “beer tutor” since they’d started working on the account for Family Business Beer Company. She’d never had a taste for the stuff, but she was learning to appreciate it under Sam’s guidance. 

“I do like champagne,” she answered a little sheepishly. It was an extravagance she didn’t allow herself often.  When it was so freely offered, she happily accepted. She looked at the champagne flute in her hand. That had been the stuff of her dreams when she was growing up. Champagne in a pretty glass represented special events in life and having something to celebrate to her. 

She glanced at Sam and let her eyes stay on his. The things she was feeling for him made her want to trust him, and the champagne was loosening her lips and her defenses. She wanted him to know her. “It’s nice. Something I can give myself now. When I was growing up, we were poor. I used to dream about having nice things.”

Sam’s eyes dropped to the glass she was holding. Then he put his hand over hers. Their eyes met again. “You have those things now, and you’ll have more of them.”

The flight attendant returned with the water, ending the moment; Sam let go of Olivia’s hand and nodded in her direction. Dutifully, Olivia took a sip. Sam’s name was on her paychecks, at least part of it was. For now, his father was signing them; but one day Sam would inherit everything. So, if he wanted her to drink water; that’s what she would do.

He turned the conversation in a different direction by saying, “Tell me about Austin.”

“Haven’t you ever been?” Olivia was surprised, assuming he had been everywhere. 

Sam did an arousing thing with his tongue, pushing it out over his bottom lip, pulling it back into his mouth, then biting on that bottom lip briefly before letting it go. Olivia yearned for the intimacy of what his tongue could do to her and for him to allow her deeper into his life. She was almost certain he was about to say something important, reveal some part of himself the way she had, but then he pulled back. “I spent a few weekends there when I was in college. I had...friends there.” 

He hardly missed a beat. If she hadn’t been watching him so attentively, Olivia would have missed it. What had happened in Austin?

Sam continued smoothly. “Most of my trips to Texas have been to Dallas, sometimes Houston. Business stuff.”

Olivia tried to ignore the burning questions in her mind about Austin in the interest of carrying on the conversation. Who was in Austin? Why had he gone there? There had been something in the tone of Sam’s voice when he said “friends” that made her think there was more to that story. “I haven’t been that many times either. I grew up in San Antonio. Even though it’s not very far away, I never had much reason to go there.” 

Sam was listening to her and seemed interested in the trivia of her life, so she went on. “The first time I went there it was on a school field trip to the capitol. I don’t think that’s going to help us much now.” Olivia knew she’d been chosen for this ad campaign because she was from Texas, and now she knew little more about Austin than she did about beer.

Sam chuckled. “No, the government doesn’t have much to do with beer, except regulating it. Maybe we’ll have time to do some sight seeing while we’re there.” Was that an offer for a date? Don’t get your hopes up, Olivia. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The hotel was jaw dropping. It had five stars for sure, maybe more if there was such a thing. Olivia didn’t know. It wasn’t in her experience. The lobby was covered in marble, and there was a fountain right in the center of it. When Olivia looked up, she saw a coffered ceiling that made her think of elegance and old world charm. 

Her room was equally breathtaking. It had hardwood floors and a stunning view of the river. Olivia sat down on the bed to take it all in. This bed felt good just sitting on it. What would it feel like sleeping in it? The opulence of her surroundings sank into her slowly.  This was her reality. You belong here now.

Sam had left her at her door with a “Get some sleep. Tomorrow’s an important day.” Then he’d disappeared into the room next door to hers. She liked knowing he was nearby. For a moment, she indulged herself in the thought of him being beside her on this bed. Olivia had visions of what they could do in that bed to each other.

“Sam, that feels so good.” His long fingers were inside her, rubbing over that spot that made her want to scream. 

“You think that feels good?” He was watching her, enjoying her reaction to him. The little whimpers of pleasure that escaped her lips made him smile. How could dimples be so fucking sexy? “I can make you feel even better.”

Sam eased his fingers from her body and lay back on the bed. His skin was golden against the white of the sheets, making her want to touch every inch of it. She draped herself over him and kissed his pink lips; they were the softest part of him. Olivia loved the way he felt beneath her. Not as much as she liked how it felt to be pinned under his weight, but his body under hers was strong, solid with muscle, and made her ache for him.

Sam planted his hands firmly on her hips and whispered with his bedroom voice into her ear “Come here.”

He guided her up his body until her core was over his face. Sam parted her folds with his fingers and licked a long stripe up her center. Olivia grabbed the headboard to steady herself. The things this man could do with his tongue might just drive her out of her mind. Sam speared her with his tongue while he circled his fingers over her clit. 

Olivia could feel her orgasm building inside her. She craved that release, but there was also another need burning inside her. She loosened her death hold grip on the headboard and repositioned herself over Sam’s face so she was facing the other direction.

Sam adapted quickly to the change, one hand on her waist while the other grasped a handful of her ass. His mouth was right back on her, taking her to the edge of that peak she had been near to falling over before. The sight of his hard cock bobbing in the air was taking her even closer to that fall.

She wanted him to fall with her. Olivia leaned over and took his thick cock into her mouth. She moved her head up and down his length as far as she could go, pulling the most sinful sounds from deep in his throat. He was throbbing in her mouth, and she knew he was getting close. 

Sam sucked her clit between his lips, his tongue lapping at her. It stilled for only a second when he came hot down her throat. When he started moving his tongue again, it was with an inspired intensity and desire to pull her orgasm from her. He was determined that she would give it to him. 

Olivia came back to reality. She had made herself wet for him, and there was only one thing she could do to ease the tension in her body and her untouched clit. She opened her pants, lay back on the bed, eased her hand into her panties, and imagined it was Sam touching her, giving her the release she needed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Texas sun was shining brightly the next morning as Sam and Olivia climbed into a rental car and headed west of Austin toward Dripping Springs, home of Family Business Beer Co. She was doing her best not to stare at his hands on the wheel, or the way the sunlight landed on his forearms, but that was a battle she was losing. She didn’t want him to catch her stealing glances at him, feeling a little self conscious about the role he’d played in her fantasies the night before.

She needed a distraction. The only reason she was in this car right now on her way to meet this gorgeous, millionaire, Hollywood hot shot who owned this brewery was because she’d grown up in Texas. Lord, that was getting her in all kinds of situations. Olivia felt completely out of her depth. She could have been born anywhere, but she had been born in Texas and that had gotten her here.

 What was Sam’s story? How had he gotten here? Maybe if she could get him talking about his childhood, it would take her mind off how sexy he looked doing something as ordinary as driving a car.

Olivia nervously brushed her hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ear. “So, Sam, you know I’m from Texas. Where did you grow up?” 

Sam cut his eyes over at her for a second, then put them right back on the road. “My life isn’t that interesting.”

His hesitancy to tell her anything instantly piqued her interest, and she turned in her seat as much as the seat belt would allow to look at him more directly. “C’mon, Sam. Everybody thinks their life isn’t that interesting because it’s theirs, and they’re used to it. Tell me something.”

He raised his eyebrows, cocked his head, and kept his eyes on the road. “Okay. I was born in Kansas, but I don’t remember it. My mom died in a fire when I was a baby. We lost our house, and my dad took my brother and me and left. Want to hear more?” His tone was uncharacteristically tense, bordering on almost harsh.

Olivia faltered. She had been under the impression he’d lived some sort of charmed life.  “Sam...I’m...so sorry.”

“It was a long time ago.” His voice had softened, the defensive edge gone from it. 

The next couple of minutes were painfully quiet until Sam announced, “This is it.”

He turned the car onto the drive, and there it was. The first time Olivia had seen pictures of Family Business Beer Co. it hadn’t been what she was expecting. It was a converted house, a beautiful one with a full porch stretching across the length of both floors in the front. It had a certain grace to it and was the kind of house Olivia had dreamed of having when she was a little girl. She had been extraordinarily good at creating a dream life for herself then, and she still was because her mind had taken one encounter with Sam to an entirely different level.

Sam bypassed the visitor parking area and drove right up to park near the buildings on the property. He seemed to know what he was doing, or it was a show of the confidence that had been bred into him. “Where are we supposed to meet him?” Olivia asked. 

“In the taproom, which is over there.” Sam pointed in the direction of what had once been the barn. That looked more like the kind of place you’d drink beer, or so Olivia thought. There was a row of picnic tables outside, all of them empty now. It was the day before New Year’s Eve, and the brewery was closed for the holidays. 

Sam led the way, and Olivia was happy to let him because this client they were scheduled to meet intimidated her more than a little. He was famous, gorgeous, and rich. Sam was rich too, but this man had even more money than Sam. Olivia had grown up poor enough that everyone around her was in awe of money. It was like a magic key that could open worlds and a life barred to ordinary people.

When Sam opened the door and held it for her, she stepped across the threshold into one of those worlds. It was a world where you could buy a brewery with your Hollywood money because it suited your fancy, because it was one of your dreams; and you had the power and the resources to make your dreams come true.

She recognized Jensen across the room, standing behind the bar, a glass and a dish towel in his hands. He looked up when he heard the door; a huge smile spread across his face, and he waved them in with a “Hey, welcome to the Family Business.”

He walked from behind the bar to meet them part way across the room and extended his hand to shake Sam’s. “Nice to meet you. Call me Jensen.” Olivia was next. When Jensen took her hand, she noticed the way his large hand engulfed hers. Of all the men she’d known, only Sam’s hands were bigger. 

Jensen was a charming man. It was evident in his easy smile, his cordial words, and the assurance that radiated off him as he moved about the space. In spite of his good looks, wealth, and success; there was no indication of anything arrogant about him. There was, however, the distinct presence of a certain kind of quiet power around him.

Jensen turned that charm toward Olivia, speaking directly to her while ignoring Sam for the moment. “John assured me you’re the perfect person for this job. Said you’d bring an informed and fresh perspective to the project.”

“Really? Mr. Winchester mentioned me?” She had meant to be poised and confident during this introduction and hoped her voice sounded more conversational than insecure.

“He did. Said you were talented and the perfect person to meet my needs.” Jensen’s eyes were a deep green, the color of a lush forest at the height of summer, and they had a gleam in them when he spoke those words. It was a spark that Olivia couldn’t help but notice, and the underlying meaning behind them didn’t go unnoticed by her either.

“It’s a nice set up you’ve got here,” Sam commented, injecting himself back into the conversation. Jensen smiled, creating crinkles at the corners of his eyes that only enhanced his already handsome face. Slowly, he turned his attention from Olivia to Sam. “Call it a passion project. I’ve always had an appreciation for craft beer, and now I’m lucky enough to have the chance to make some.”

Jensen walked back behind the bar, filled two glasses from the tap, and set them down on the bar. “You two had a chance to try Golden Age? It’s a pilsner, and it’s one of my favorites.” Olivia had no idea what that meant. She was just beginning to get used to the taste of beer. 

“No, haven’t had that one. It wasn’t in the samples we got,” Sam answered. He settled his long frame onto one of the bar stools. 

Jensen motioned to the glasses on the bar. “Try it. It’s what I think of when I think about this business, what I had in mind when I opened it up.” Jensen filled a glass for himself and took a sip. “I wanted a place that felt like home, where people could come enjoy a beer and the beauty of the Texas countryside. That’s what I want you to capture in this ad campaign. Simple pleasure.”

Sam took a generous sip, pondered the taste for a few seconds, and announced. “It’s light, crisp, and clean.”

Jensen nodded. “Exactly. It tastes to me the way possibility would taste if you could put it in a glass.”

Jensen noted Olivia’s still nearly full glass. “I take it beer’s not your thing.” He leaned on the counter in front of her and smiled, causing those sexy crinkles to appear around his eyes again. “I bet I could teach you to like it.”

Until now, Olivia felt like it was always her looking at Sam. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his gaze fixed on her, waiting to see how she would respond to Jensen’s flirting. Olivia didn’t return his look, choosing instead to keep her eyes focused on Jensen.

He was mesmerizing. Was she starstruck? What was this? Olivia had never met anyone famous before, and she hadn’t expected herself to react this way. She had never been the kind of girl to care about what celebrities did with their lives. She didn’t anxiously wait for their next post on social media.

Jensen was the exception. He made her heart beat faster. She felt like she was near something she didn’t quite understand, but very much wanted to. He had the kind of magnetism that made thousands, maybe millions, of people hang onto his every move; and she could feel it when she was this close to him.  

Here she was. Staring into the eyes of the epitome of Hollywood handsome and successful. Looking at his eyes was even better than staring at his hands and imagining how they would feel on her body. What the hell, Olivia? Stop it. What was she trying to do? Make Sam mentally jealous?

Olivia took another sip of her beer because she knew Jensen was waiting, and she didn’t want to disappoint him. Where were all those words Sam had taught her? All she could remember that might be vaguely the right thing to say was, “It tastes bright.”

Jensen chuckled, and she wasn’t sure how to take that. Was her comment amusing to him. Had she gotten it that wrong? Was her lack of knowledge about beer so blatant, or was he pleased by what she’d said?

Jensen put her uncertainty to rest by saying “Bright. I like that.” He stood back up to his full height, no longer leaning on the counter. “Why don’t I show you both the rest of the place?”

He gave Sam and Olivia the complete tour. By the time it was over, she had a much better understanding of exactly what it took to make a good beer happen. There was work, dedication and a certain love that went into it. It made more sense to her why they called it “craft” beer.

The morning had been pleasant, and Olivia didn’t want to see it end. The property was beautiful, and she couldn’t ask for better company than the two men she was with. They weren’t just attractive beyond reason; they were intelligent too. Each had a depth to him that went beyond only what you could see, making them both exactly her type. 

Jensen was a gracious host; the kind to walk Sam and Olivia back to their car. When they rounded the corner of the brewery, she saw it. Sitting parked on the side of the building was one of the most impressive classic cars she’d ever seen.

It was a black ‘67 Chevy Impala, and it was in perfect condition. The car drew her to it, and she ran her head reverently over the hood. “This is an amazing car.”

Jensen’s warm laugh sounded in her ears. “You clearly like cars better than beer.” He didn’t seem at all offended that she didn’t share his enthusiasm for beer, especially considering she was supposed to be the person convincing others to buy the one he was making.

Olivia let her hand drop from the car. “I do like cars, especially the classic muscle cars.” She left it there, feeling it would be too revealing to say that hanging around her father when he was working on old cars was one of the few happy memories she had of him. 

Jensen ran his hand along the roof line. “This is Baby. She was a gift from the network after the last show I was on wrapped.” He opened the door. “Get in; give her a try.” Olivia eagerly climbed in behind the wheel, and Jensen closed the door behind her.

He fished in his pocket for the keys and handed them to Olivia. “Start her up. You gotta hear how she runs.” 

The car absolutely purred, and a huge smile crossed Olivia’s face at the sound. Her reaction seemed to please Jensen greatly. He gave her a wink. “You should drive her sometime, really get a feel for her.”

Olivia was practically sparking with excitement. “Did you hear that, Sam?”

She didn’t notice the flat tone in Sam’s voice when he answered. “Yeah, I did. It’s a great car.”

Jensen turned to look at Sam. His eyes traveled down the other man’s body and back up. Then he raised one corner of his mouth, and his eyes got that gleam in them again. “You can drive her too sometime, if you want.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam was quiet for most of the drive back to Austin until just outside the city limits. He finally asked, “What did you think of the brewery?” There hadn’t been any talk about business or much of anything. Olivia had been waiting for him to bring it up. She’d figured they’d talk business all the way back to town, brainstorm, plot a strategy, that sort of thing.

“The property is beautiful,” Olivia answered. 

They’d reached a red light, and Sam turned to look at her. “Does your opinion have more to do with the beer... or with the man that owns the it?”

Olivia wasn’t sure how to answer. Her initial reaction was: yes, it probably does have something to do with the man, but she didn’t know how to put that in the right words to express what she thought. The light changed, Sam looked away, and she left her response unspoken. 

He made a left turn and headed into downtown. What Sam said next had nothing to do with the brewery or the account. “The hotel is having a New Year’s Eve Party tomorrow. Do you want to go with me?” 

Olivia had been waiting for this moment since that night she’d been with Sam, known him intimately and got a glimpse of another side of him. He’d shown her an endearing, thoughtful man with a touch of sweetness. They were appealing and surprising traits to find in a man of his position.

Sam’s presence in her fantasies had been frequent the past couple of weeks, but she hadn’t imagined a gesture from him quite this extravagant. Hotels like the one where they were staying had formal affairs in ballrooms on New Year’s Eve. It was like something from a fantasy she hadn’t had yet, and now it was right in front of her. There was only one problem. 

“Sam, I would love to, but I don’t have anything to wear to something like that.” Olivia felt an acute stab of disappointment in her chest. She hoped the disappointment wasn’t too apparent in her voice. 

Sam’s mood was noticeably light again, and he grinned. “That’s why we have an expense account.”

What followed was like a scene straight out of Pretty Woman. Sam took her shopping at one of the most exclusive women’s clothing boutiques in Austin. It was the kind that had crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and the clothes were displayed more often on a mannequin than a rack. There was also a seating area with better quality furniture than Olivia had seen in most living rooms in her life.

That was where Sam sat, sipping a glass of wine, waiting for her to model the dresses she was trying on. He seemed to be very interested in her wardrobe for the evening. He also seemed very comfortable in a women’s clothing store. Olivia didn’t let herself think about that too long.

The first dress Olivia tried on was a wraparound with balloon sleeves, made of a black sequined material. It hit her mid thigh and was sophisticated, just like everything else in the store. Sam assessed Olivia’s look, scanning her from head to toe. His eyes narrowed slightly. “I’d like to see something with a more defined shape, more form fitting. I do like the black...and the sequins.”

The sales associate had been standing by, intent on his every word. Sam hadn’t even addressed her directly. She just disappeared to find what he’d specified. When she returned, there were two dresses draped over her arm. 

She followed Olivia into the dressing room to help her get into the next one. It was a strapless black sheath that barely covered what it needed to with an overlay of black lace that was dotted with sequins and had three quarter length sleeves and a couple of inches of additional hem to provide some sheer coverage.

The associate zipped up the back of the dress while Olivia held her hair to the side. Olivia recognized a kindred spirit in the girl. Here was a “typical” young woman surrounded by this extraordinary world, much as Olivia was, a world where money and privilege were commonplace. The status and luxury were so expected by the people who enjoyed both so easily that they hardly noticed they had them.

Olivia put her hair back into place and took a look at her reflection in the mirror. The young woman who had helped her into the dress was also smiling into the mirror. “I think your boyfriend is really going to like this one.”

Olivia let the girl’s words sink in; she liked the way that sounded. It made her heart a little heavy when she had to respond, “He’s not my boyfriend.”

“Really? I’ve seen a lot of men come in here with women to buy clothes for them, and the women have meant all sorts of things to these guys, from mistresses who are nothing more than dress up dolls to sisters with a sweet brother who wants her to feel special. Your guy definitely has the boyfriend look, and he’s super hot too.”

Olivia was curious now and, if she admitted it, hopeful. What was this girl seeing? “What do you mean, the boyfriend look?”

She fanned Olivia’s hair over her shoulders, accenting the dress with it. “He has that look in his eye. He’s interested in you, proud of you even, loves that you’re with him. It isn’t just about what you can do for him; he’s got that smitten look.”

“Smitten?” Olivia spread her hands over her hips; her curves were accentuated in the snug, but not too tight black dress with the sequins Sam had requested. She turned the idea of Sam being “smitten” over in her mind as she exited the dressing room, so he could see what she was wearing. Sam had been paying an awful lot of attention to Jensen’s interactions with her back at the brewery.

When she parted the curtains and emerged from the dressing room, Sam put his wine glass down on the nearby table, and his lips parted slightly. “That’s the one,” he said quietly. The v-neck was just deep enough to show the swell of her breasts without revealing too much, and she was showing some leg without the need to tug at her skirt to make sure other vital parts of her anatomy were covered.

She saw the way he was looking at her, like she was something that had just walked out of his dreams instead of the other way around. Olivia turned to take another look at herself in the mirror. For a moment, she felt like Cinderella; her ball was a fancy New Year’s Eve party, and her prince was the heir to the Winchester fortune. She just hoped her midnight would be very different than the one in the fairytale. When she turned back around, Sam was still watching her; his eyes followed her all the way back to the dressing room.

Olivia changed back into her own clothes; Sam paid for the dress, the sexy strappy high heels Olivia had chosen to go with it, and an evening bag to complete the look, then they headed back out onto the street and into the bright Austin sunshine of midafternoon. Sam opened the car door for her and stowed her bag in the trunk on his way back around to the driver’s side.

The atmosphere on the drive back to the hotel was light and comfortable, all the quiet awkwardness from the morning’s drive back to the city was gone. It was late afternoon; the soft muted hues of dusk had started to fill the sky by the time they were approaching the hotel. They pulled up in front of the grand double doors in front. Sam put the car in park, waved off the valet, and turned to Olivia.

“I’m meeting a potential client for drinks and dinner after. Dad wants to expand our presence in Texas, so he’s making the most of my time here. He scheduled meetings for me all day tomorrow too.” Sam sounded almost apologetic, and Olivia was touched by the way he felt the need to explain his schedule to her and account for his whereabouts. Had the girl back at the boutique really seen something? “But I’m really looking forward to tomorrow night.”

Olivia cast her eyes down, feeling suddenly shy. “Me too, and thank you for the dress, Sam.” 

“Thank Dad.” She could hear the smile in his voice and looked up to see the dimples she knew would be framing his mouth. There was a soft playfulness in his eyes and something else. Olivia could see it now too. There was something there, but she didn’t know what it was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, while Olivia was putting on her makeup, the front desk called to let her know someone had left something there for her. She couldn’t get downstairs fast enough, and her curiosity was about to consume her by the time she approached the front desk. She gave the clerk her name, and he handed her an envelope.

Olivia opened the envelope, her fingers nearly trembling with excitement. There was a company credit card inside with a note from Sam. I booked an appointment for you at the hotel spa for a massage. Get anything else you want done while you’re there. Enjoy yourself. 

Olivia was nearly giddy with excitement. She’d never gotten a professional massage before, but it was another item on her fantasy wish list. There would probably be music and aromatherapy. She hoped so.

Then a stillness washed over her, drowning the spa daydream but bringing life to something far more important. This was another gift from Sam, and it was the most thoughtful thing anyone had ever done for her. He had thought about how she would spend her day, how he wanted her to spend it. 

She looked at the note again, anything else you want. He wanted her to relax and be pampered while he worked all day. It was the first time in her life Olivia experienced how it felt to be truly taken care of, and it wasn’t about the money. It was easy to throw money at something or someone, especially when you had so much of it, but Sam’s consideration for her feelings was something rare. 

She made her way to one of the chairs in the lounge area of the lobby and sat down. Olivia held the envelope tightly in her hand, and tried to breathe deeply. The shopping trip yesterday somehow hadn’t been enough to make it click in her brain, but now the truth hit her like a palpable force. She mattered to him.

That night Olivia was a flutter with excitement and nervous energy. She freshened her lipstick, checked her hair for the third time, and checked the time for at least the fifth. Sam said he would pick her up at eight. She’d been ready since 7:15 and the minutes had ticked by excruciatingly slowly since then. 

She opened the curtains and looked out at the view of Austin. There weren’t as many city lights as the view from Sam’s office, but there was a definite charm to the place. Revelers had already started to set off fireworks over the river, and the reflection of the colors in the water was magical. 

She was beginning to think anywhere she was with Sam could be magical, and that was a dangerous path to start traveling down. Her romantic heart was hoping for a kiss tonight. Wasn’t midnight the perfect opportunity to feel his lips on hers again? Olivia could almost feel his mouth on hers. She was so lost in her thoughts that the knock at the door made her jump.

When she opened the door, the sight in front of her was breathtaking. She’d never seen Sam in a tux before, and it was well worth the wait. It was classic, black with a white shirt. He’d opted to forego the tie, and that just made it even sexier.

Sam offered her his arm. “Ready to ring in the new year?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dining tables covered with black linen tablecloths had been set up around the edges of the dance floor in the ballroom. The entire space was a festive wonderland that created exactly the right mood to reflect the promise that a new year held. Trees with only the bare branches of winter covered with white fairy lights were positioned around the room, and a jazz band was at the far end of the room providing live music. 

Sam placed his hand at the back of Olivia’s waist, guided her to a table, and pulled out her chair for her. He took his place across from her and spread the black linen napkin that matched the tablecloth over his lap. Olivia followed suit just seconds before a waiter appeared to place the first course on the table in front of them.

“I took the liberty of ordering ahead for us,” Sam explained. “I hope you like crab stuffed mushrooms.”

“I don’t know,” Olivia answered. “I’ve never had them.”

“Then allow me.” Sam picked up one of the mushrooms from the plate between them and held it to her lips. She took a small nibble and started to chew.

Sam was watching her eat like it was fascinating to him. “Well, what do you think?”

“It’s good.” He took a bite from the mushroom he was still holding, then put it down on the dish in front of him. He swallowed and smiled, pleased he’d introduced her to something she liked. 

The rest of the meal went much the same way. Olivia discovered many new tastes she enjoyed, and Sam took pleasure in watching her. They talked about the new accounts he had secured for the firm during his meetings as though it was natural that they discuss his day together.

Between the main course and dessert, Sam held his hand out to her and asked, “Will you dance with me?”

Olivia nodded and put her hand in his. “Of course.”

On the way to the dance floor, Sam and Olivia passed within several feet of the bar. There was Jensen, sitting at the end with two older men wearing bolero ties. He was holding a whiskey glass which he held up in salute to Sam and Olivia and winked in their direction before turning back to his companions.

Sam rubbed his thumb over the back of Olivia’s hand. “He likes you.”

The reached the dance floor. Olivia turned to Sam, and put her hand on his shoulder as he settled his at her waist. “It isn’t necessarily just me he’s flirting with, you know.” Sam’s brow furrowed for a second, but he didn’t say anything, choosing instead to focus on the dance.

It wasn’t the kind of dancing Olivia was used to, but was it ever romantic. Had he been to some kind of finishing school or something? Sam could actually waltz. Thank God what the women in the movies said was true. He was a good partner; he knew how to lead, so all she had to do was follow.

He had held her when they had sex in his office, but this was a whole different way of being in his arms, and she loved it. He made her feel graceful, it felt like she was floating across the floor, like she was more a princess in a fairytale with every passing moment. Then Sam managed to make it even more romantic.

“Tell me your dreams for the new year, Olivia. What do you want to do?” He spun her beneath his arm and pulled her close to him once again, his hand at her waist. 

She couldn’t tell him what she really wanted to do, so she toned it down. “I’d like to get to know you better.”

His eyes softened, and his smile was just as soft. “I think that can be arranged.”

The song ended, and for a few seconds they didn’t move. Sam and Olivia stayed on the dance floor looking into each other’s eyes as the couples around them began to disperse and go back to their tables. “I want to know you better too,” Sam told her before finally breaking the spell they seemed to be under and guiding her back to their table. 

“You ready for dessert?” Sam asked her.

She twisted the end of her hair around her finger and smiled at him. “Did you order that too?”

He reached across the table and took her hand. “I did. How do you feel about chocolate caramel peanut bombs?” 

Olivia had no idea how she felt about chocolate caramel peanut bombs. That was something else she’d never had. It didn’t take her long to find out. What the waiter put in the center of the table was a chocolate sphere that he poured hot caramel over, causing the top to collapse and revealing the peanut crunch inside. 

It was true that the sounds and expressions people made while eating a good dessert were similar to noises and looks they made during sex. Olivia knew Sam well enough to verify this. He had closed his eyes to savor the taste, and when he opened them to see her staring at him; he didn’t look away. Instead he fixed his eyes on her and said, “You are so beautiful.”

Olivia felt herself blush and lowered her eyes. “It’s the dress.”

When she looked back up his eyes were still fixed on her, and Sam was shaking his head. “It’s not the dress. It’s what you do for the dress.”

Ladies and gentlemen, the time is almost upon us. Please join us on the dance floor for the last song of the year.

Sam offered her his hand again. “Start the year with me?”

This time he held her close on the dance floor and swayed with her against him, formal waltzes were forgotten. There were no words between them, only what they said to one another with their eyes. The music stopped, and the countdown started. 

The chorus of voices called out “one”! Sam waited a beat, then leaned down and kissed her. It was better than she remembered. When his lips left hers, she slowly opened her eyes. “Happy New Year, Olivia.” 

“Happy New Year, Sam.” He kissed her again, more intensely this time, just on the edge of opening his mouth and seeking entrance into hers. This second kiss had nothing to do with the clock striking midnight.

Everything: @gambitwinchester​ @princessmisery666​ @peridottea91​ @logical-princey​ @emilyshurley​ @beenlovingromansincedayoneish​ @fangirlxwritesx67​ @waywardbaby​ @atc74​ @shaniquacynthia​ @mariekoukie6661​ @tumbler-tidbits​ @67-chevy-baby​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​ @terrarium-jpeg​ @emoryhemsworth​ @crashdevlin​ @jules-1999​ @mrsdeanfuckingwinchester​ @cosicas-cuquis​ @sammyimpala-67​ @queenoftheunderdark​ @dean-winchesters-bacon​ @timelordy-fangirl2​ @sweetness47​ @hobby27​ @awesomesusiebstuff​ @kickingitwithkirk​ @sandlee44​ @supernaturalgrandma​ @dawnie1988​ @volleyballer519​ @outcastedangel​ @kdfrqqg​ @lizette50​ @sorenmarie87​ @lovealways-j​ @mrswhozeewhatsis​ @petitgateau911​ @thinkinghardhardlythinking​ 

Sam/Jared: @girl-next-door-writes​ @stunudo​ @feelmyroarrrr​ @idabbleincrazy​ @evansrogerskitten​ @focusonspn​ @autumninavonlea​ @durinsbride​ @deansyahtzee​ @waywardnerd67​ @fullmooner​ @sams-sass​ @beskaradberoya​

Dean/Jensen: @flamencodiva​ @deanwinchesterswitch​ @feelmyroarrrr​ @akshi8278​ @ladywinchester1967​ @sgarrett49​ @wingedcatninja​ @coffee-obsessed-writer​ @adoptdontshoppets​ @ellewritesfix05​ @weepingwillowphoenix​

[orbitariums]

𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦 | 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 | 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬 (𝟏𝟎)

note: hey y’all welcome back!! the chapter we’ve all been waiting for is hereee honey chile.

jusss so you know there will not be smut this time around. i took y’alls opinions and my own opinions into account and decided it would be best!! sry if you’re disappointed, i promise u will get smut. and since i’ve made my decision n planned it out it will be juicy and perfeeect. for now i hope y’all enjoy this chapter ! <3 it’s the longest yet so buckle up and share your thoughts with me!!! love u. 

playlist (always always adding new additions, go check it out n listen while u read!!)

warnings: none

word count: 14.4k

     Steve was resisting the urge to pace back and forth in his room that morning. He knew that any minute now, you would receive his gifts, and see the ticket. He was a bit nervous. He just wanted everything to go well. God forbid someone find out by accident and not only ruin the surprise, but discover what you and Steve had been up to.

     Or maybe you'd changed your mind — no, you wouldn't, not without talking to him first. He was really just anticipating the moment he knew you'd actually seen the gifts, which he wouldn't know until you contacted him.

He kept looking over at his phone, glancing down and waiting for the screen to light up with your name. But he knew this was unhealthy, sitting around, waiting for your response. He had nowhere else to go, but he'd retire to the kitchen to make some coffee. Granted, it didn't really do anything for him, but it filled in the time, and distracted him from waiting around for your response.

The clock ticked on as Steve waited. Drinking coffee and reading the paper could only take up so much time out of his day. Soon enough, he was back to waiting. And waiting. Until...

His phone seemed to be ringing with more ferocity than he ever remembered, and he practically snatched it off the table in the meeting room, causing several eyes to glance up at him. He blushed, smiling awkwardly,

    "Gotta take this."

He accepted the call without even looking to see who it was, hurrying out of the office and into his room in brisk, long strides, speaking hurriedly into the phone,

    "Hello?"

    "Steve! Holy shit!" it was your voice on the other end, and Steve was relieved to hear it. Now he could stop anticipating, stop worrying. His heart was soaring just hearing your voice, and he knew you'd received his gift. He was hardly listening as you went on and on, not saying much of anything, just shouting excitedly into the phone.

Once you'd opened the envelope again to see the single plane ticket which read DESTINATION: MANHATTAN with the date and time printed elsewhere, your mouth literally dropped open. It was as shocking as the moment Steve revealed his face to you, but the context was oh so different, and so much better, even. Of course you'd been expecting to see him, and you knew it would be soon, but you hadn't expected it to come about in this way at all. No, not at all.

    Your heart pounded and you dropped the ticket onto the floor, swiping it right back up like it was a check for a million dollars. And those butterflies in your stomach went wild. Your mind was a blur, but one thing was clear: you were actually going to meet Steve. Maybe your reaction would've been different had Steve done this in a more mundane manner, but he had taken you completely by surprise.

    And honestly, you were over the moon with excitement to meet him. So, rightfully so, you were freaking out. You had tripped over yourself trying to find your phone, your hands trembling as you called him.

Steve was grinning from ear to ear at the sound of your voice. He'd never heard you so ecstatic, so happy over something which he was anxiously awaiting your reaction to. And it settled in for Steve too - he was really going to meet you. It was as big a deal to him as it was to you, and the days of waiting only made you both more antsy to meet.

     "Oh my god!" you squealed again for a final time. "Are you for real? How long have you been planning this, how — did you know about this before I went out with my parents? How the hell did you pull this together, how did you- oh god, I should let you talk. But, fuck, seriously? You're serious right now?"

     "Hundred percent," Steve replied, still beaming, closing the door to his room behind him.

You went off again, shouting expletives and declarations of joy into the phone. You knew you weren't being very mindful right now, but fuck it if you weren't. You didn't get nice things like this often. The fact that Steve had taken you seriously and took the dedication to make this happen when you knew it wouldn't be easy? Your reaction was completely validated.

     "You're fucking amazing. You know that?" you blurted, unable to hide your praise, making Steve's cheeks heat up yet again, the curve of a shy grin appearing on his lips.

     “You're sweet," Steve uttered out, his heart feeling warm.

     “Are you blushing, Stevie?" you teased, and he laughed.

     “To answer your other questions. I've been planning it ever since we spoke about it on Facetime, during your party. But I didn't finalize plans until last week. And no, I didn't know about it before you went out with your parents. How'd I pull it together? Well, it was complicated, I had to do a lot of things very discreetly and plan out when I can take time off so I can be with you. But it's not that hard to get plane tickets- granted, it's a private jet—"

You didn't even let Steve finish talking or let that process in your mind before you blurted out,

     "Private jet?!"

You thought nothing more could surprise you, but here Steve was, full of surprises. And honestly, you hadn't expected anything fancy. You figured he'd just pick you up from the airport after an economy flight, and that was enough for you. A private jet, though? It was unfathomable. You'd never even been on a plane past standard class.

Steve's eyebrow raised - had he done too much? Honestly, everything that went into this took a lot of internal debate. He didn't want to do too much, and he didn't want to do too little. But, he figured, after all you two had been through, after all you had been through, you deserved a bit of luxury. Besides, that wasn't all Steve had planned — you didn't know it, but you were in for even more of a shock.

     "Is it too much?" Steve muttered, and you scoffed in disbelief,

     "Hell yeah. Steve, I can't afford to pay you back, I-"

Steve's brows furrowed together as he laughed, realizing why you were reacting this way. He had considered how you might react to the extravagance Steve was planning, but he should've known you'd act like you now owed him something.

     "Come on, princess," he drawled, his voice seeming to drop a few octaves unexpectedly. At the sound of Steve's voice deepening and the new nickname he'd donned for you, you felt your face warm up. "You know you're not paying me back."

You took in a deep breath, suddenly finding it a bit hard to breathe, fanning yourself. You liked this side of Steve for sure. But, that didn't mean you wanted to be super spoiled. You were used to getting special treats from customers, sure, but that was different. That was for work. When it came to romances? The last time you'd been "spoiled" was when your ex-boyfriend gave you flowers, and that was hardly spoiling. You realized now that that was the bare minimum.

So, you weren't used to being spoiled, hell, even really being taken care of by people, be it your parents or your romantic partners. It was a part of the reason you had always felt like you had to ask to be loved, a habit you had to teach yourself to grow out of. Steve didn't make you feel like you had to ask for anything.

     "Right. I just..." you sighed loudly, pressing a hand to your hot forehead. This was a lot for you to take in, overwhelming in the best way. You couldn't believe this was your life right now. "I don't want you to feel like you have to — I mean, it's just... why?"

Steve laughed, shaking his head. He found it adorable how stunned you were by his gestures. He wanted to fly you out and make it an experience. Steve wasn't usually one to go big, so he even surprised himself in his actions, but he thought it was all worth it. It was so unlike him, so unlike anything the Steve a few months before would've expected of him. Out of anyone he knew, he felt like you deserved it.

     "Because you're you. And you deserve it. I just want to make this day special. I figure, why not splurge and go all out? And since you and me both care about the environment, I sent in one of Tony's environmentally friendly jets. Do me a favor, don't push this away. You deserve a treat. You're so hardworking and the gift of seeing you is something I could never repay... but I could at least try."

You felt your heart warm at Steve's words, sinking into your couch with a hand on your chest, feeling your heart flutter as you cooed,

      "Steve, you're such a darling. I... this is the fucking craziest and best thing that's happened to me in a long time. But... just promise me this isn't the beginning of a sugar relationship, because that's not something I'm into."

You were half-joking, but you were serious. Steve didn't seem like the sugar daddy type, but in any case you didn't want being with him to mean that he supplied you with your every need and then some. You didn't side eye people who sought that out, but you were so used to being on your own and making money the way that you did, that someone genuinely devoting all their time to paying you just for existing felt unnatural. You weren't the type to sit back and get paid for nothing. While you understood the appeal, you just couldn't feel comfortable doing it. And you didn't want Steve to think he could buy your time, though you knew he didn't think that.

    "I know. Don't worry, that's not what this is. Just special treatment for a day, is that alright?" Steve asked.

    "It's more than alright," you gave in — you knew Steve had good intentions only, but it was still hard for you to accept that someone would do this for you just because. You were trying to get used to your energy being reciprocated — more than reciprocated, it was overflowed. "I can't thank you enough, Steve. Really."

       "Don't worry about it. I look forward to seeing you," Steve said, and the words felt like a relief just to say them, now that he knew it was a reality.

      "I'm counting down the days," you trilled, laying back on your couch with a dazed smile on your face.

❁❁❁

    "Since when do you have family in New York? Thought your whole fam was California born and raised." Aaliyah quirked a brow, pinching the straw of her strawberry daiquiri.

     "Since... now, I guess," you shrugged.

You were lying your ass off. You had to make up some excuse to Aaliyah as to why, in a week, you would be leaving to New York for two weeks.

    "Huh," Aaliyah furrowed her brows, running it over in her mind and then shrugging. "Well, I'll miss you. Who else am I gonna get drunk off my ass with in the middle of the day?"

You laughed, squeezing Aaliyah's hand. You felt a bit bad for lying, but it was what you had to do for now at least, until you felt comfortable enough to reveal your secret. So you didn't dwell on it. You weren't hurting anyone, and you were honest with her about everything else but this.

     "It's two weeks, not a year."

Aaliyah's eye twitched and she glared at you,

    "Two weeks is a year."

    "I'll write," you rolled your eyes playfully, and she nudged you from across the table.

    "You better."

      In the days leading up to your big day with Steve, you stressed about every little detail. What did you need to pack, what could you leave at home? What clothes should you bring? Would Steve want you to bring something in particular to wear, besides the lingerie he'd bought you? Oh of course not, he wouldn't give a rat's ass what you wore. You didn't know it fully yet, but you could wear a t-shirt with holes in it and dusty sweatpants and he'd still see you as a perfect ten.

    You packed for a few days, and you talked to Steve everyday since that day. Sometimes you could only text, but luckily you could call most of the time. You talked to Steve about norms, as in just basic rules you both had to follow when you were together. It wasn't meant to be restrictive, it was meant to be smart. Neither of you wanted anything getting out before you were ready, so there were precautions you would have to take. You understood that.

     Steve was just as, if not more, nervous than you were about the whole ordeal. He was the one in charge of making sure things went right, making sure you were safe, putting everything together just to see you. He was eager to see you, but you were both full of nerves. Today, you had no time to be nervous — because you were on the way to the airport.

    As requested, you updated Steve about everything. Right now, you were in the backseat of the comfortable uber that Steve sent to you. Your nerves were on one hundred right now. You couldn't stop crossing and uncrossing your legs in the backseat of the black SUV, wiping nervous sweat off your palms.

Steve texted you back, reminding you that you'd be alone at the airport besides the staff. And you knew that hours later, at an airport in New York, he'd be waiting for you. The whole ride there, you stressed about what Steve would be like in real life- what he'd look like, how he'd greet you. You were sure he would be just as sweet as he was over the phone, if not sweeter.

    But god, did the thought of closing the distance make you nervous. You thought back to the day you and Steve first spoke, how different your life was then, and how this wasn't even something that registered to you. You didn't know Steve back then, didn't know who he really was. There wasn't even a chance that you'd even think about this. And now, here you were, about to meet the man you'd found under such strange circumstances.

    When you arrived to the airport, you almost didn't want to look out of the window. You didn't want to see what you knew was right outside — that big, private jet that you just couldn't ignore, darting your eyes towards it once from your car seat and never being able to look away.

    "Here you are," chirped the friendly driver, opening your door for you. You were frozen in your seat, hadn't even taken off your seatbelt. The driver looked at the private jet, then at you with a warm smile. "Lucky you."

You refocused, back to planet Earth, and let out a shaky breath. You hadn't even stepped on the jet and already you were going through rigor mortis.

     "Yeah," you replied with a bit of a neurotic laugh.

    You unlatched the seatbelt and wobbled out of the car— when had your legs turned to jelly? You were trying to contain yourself, trying not to act like a fool over something so material, but God, you thought. Nothing had ever been so majestically presented to you. You'd never been with anybody who had the means to do this, and that didn't matter, because you'd never been with anyone who would make these grand gestures just because. You weren't asking for a private jet, but from the way you'd been treated in your past relationships, you'd think that you were.

    "Holy shit," you murmured under your breath, and lurched forward, the driver carrying your luggage behind you. The steps to the jet were already at the floor, and all you could do was stand at the foot with wide eyes. You could see the staff were kindly waiting for you to come in, and you called up to them, awestruck. "Do I just go in?"

    "Come on up, Miss! It's all yours," a staff member encouraged you, calling you by your last name like you were some important administrator.

    This did something for you. You made a livable wage, and had some leftover for the occasional treat— like selfcare or stuff for your cam shows. But this was the life of a millionaire. And although you resisted initially, the fact that you knew Steve had arranged that you got treated with the utmost respect during your travel made it a lot harder for you to.

     You weren't on some sort of power trip, but this once again proved the kind of gentleman that Steve was. It made you feel more comfortable, knowing that you'd be treated like you belonged here, when you felt anything but. He cared about you, and you'd never really had that before. Not like this.

     You actually stepped foot inside, and when you saw what was before you, you audibly gasped, brows raising far up your forehead. You'd never seen anything like this. Sleek, modern furniture adorned the interior of the jet, which stretched so far you didn't think it'd be possible to see everything. You nearly panicked — there was no way Steve had done all this for you. No way.

    It was basically a mansion, compacted into a private jet — which sounded like the most ludicrous thing you'd ever heard of. Everything inside had a color scheme, cool neutrals and splashes of color here and there. The seats were plush and huge, leaving leg room for days. There was even a big TV screen in the middle of this particular section. Everything about this screamed luxury.

    "Welcome! First time on a private jet?" Eliza, an employee, asked, and her presence was a shock to you — you were too busy staring in awe at everything you were seeing.

     "Yeah... is it noticeable?" you joked, a hand over your chest.

     "I won't say," she grinned, and you shook your head, chuckling.

     "This is all so... amazing. I-I've never seen anything like this. It's like, you see it in movies and online but... but for someone to actually bring it to me? Just because?"

     "He must really like you," said Eliza— of course, she didn't actually know who he was.

    "Yeah," you said tearfully, trying to avoid crying and becoming even more of a mess than you already were.

Thankfully, you weren't scared— just amazed. You were sure you'd settle in at some point, but right now, you were kind of in paradise. You just had to get used to it first.

    "Please, sit anywhere! Or I can give you a tour, let you get accustomed."

    "Please," you answered immediately. Maybe after she showed you everything, you'd feel a bit less overwhelmed.

You let Eliza lead you through the jet, showing you all of its amenities and rooms. Each time you thought nothing more could surprise you, there was something new up until the end.

    For one, there was a kitchen where a team of chefs would work to serve you - some of your favorite things were on the menu, mimosas included. Steve had really been paying attention when you spoke to him about the little things. You didn't realize how much he genuinely enjoyed talking to you, how he died to hear the most trivial things about you and compartmentalized it.

    Hell, there was even a bedroom with your name encrusted on a gold plaque attached to the door - ridiculous, you thought, but so amazing. Attached to that bedroom was a full bathroom. Everything was top tier, nothing surprising considering this was Stark property, but still, it was crazy to see. By the end, while you were glad you were familiar with everything on the jet, you still couldn't help but feel floored.

   You felt like a princess - adorned with special privileges you'd never even thought of in your comfortable little life in sunny southern California. Steve was opening up a whole new world of options to you, and doing it so gracefully, and just because? It was the definition of being treated like royalty.

    You were a logical woman, and you had a good hold of your emotions. You didn't often act "childish", but you felt like you were giving into those giddy girlish feelings that only Steve evoked. But you were still young, still someone who liked to have a good time. You didn't want to be in your feelings over material things, but it was so much more than that. You were grateful you were even getting to experience this, but even more grateful for the person who had given you this experience to begin with.

Eliza could see you were getting emotional, and placed a hand on your shoulder,

    "Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. We'll let you know when we take off in a few minutes."

You let out a deep breath. It was all sinking in. Somehow, this was your reality. You took a look around, and shrugged — you might as well take full advantage of it. You slumped your shoulders, dropped all your worries. You were in luxury - you'd act like it, and enjoy it, instead of overthinking for once. You walked into one of the lounge rooms, plopping down on a reclining chair that felt like heaven just to sit down in, sighing as you sunk into the supple plush. Still in awe, you texted Steve, expressing your disbelief and excitement all at once, sending him a video of your lush surroundings.

     Steve grinned when he received the video from you, glad that you were enjoying your time. By how you reacted the other day, he was sort of afraid you might feel too overwhelmed and be unable to enjoy the experience. But all Steve really wanted was for you to have a good day, to feel like you were important. He could do that without getting you a big private jet, but if he was going to fly you out, he was going to fly you out. He didn't mind dropping a bag on you- for him it was nothing, Steve hardly touched his money. He wanted you to feel first class. Hell, this was higher than first class.

He texted you back, telling you he hoped you enjoyed and to text him if you needed anything. But honestly, you didn't think you'd need anything more.

You spent the remaining duration of the flight in the private bathroom, finishing your hair and makeup and choosing an outfit. You weren't stressing too hard over what to wear, but you wanted to look good for Steve. You settled on a white sundress with floral decals that accentuated your features just right. You stood in front of the mirror for a long time, checking yourself out. You knew you looked good, but you were just a bit nervous since you were landing in a few minutes now.

You tried to spend the time waiting for the plane to land by scrolling through your phone, but you found yourself switching mindlessly through apps, your mind blank except for one thing - Steve. Then, you heard the announcement saying that you had officially landed. You had noticed the jet getting lower, but you had been too distracted by your thoughts to notice that you were here. In New York, middle of the day, about to see him.

❁❁❁

Steve was just as nervous as you were, standing in the landing area, which again was empty and private, hands in his pockets as he rocked back and forth on his toes. He was really going to see you, and he knew you'd be everything he imagined and more. He had been waiting here for a good hour, because he didn't want to miss a thing, and now he knew he'd be seeing you in a few minutes, even a few seconds.

And when the door opened, and he saw the figure of you standing there at the entrance, he froze. Even from afar, you were beautiful. And you were real. Not that he'd had any doubts, but after the amount of time he'd spent talking to you on a screen, it seemed impossible that he would really see you in real life, even as he finalized his plans and the day came closer. It still didn't seem feasible. And now, here you were just a few feet away from him, and his heart stopped. Whatever he was expecting, you were even more, which seemed unimaginable. His mouth went dry, he was at a loss for words, and his eyes had never been more blown.

And you would've froze too, if your heart didn't tell you to run. To you, it was a clumsy, graceless run. To Steve it was cinematic, like you were the heroine running right out of the movie screen and towards him, the flash of you growing closer and closer until you were finally there, jumping up at him.

     He caught you with ease as you leaned into him, wrapping your legs around his waist and your arms around his neck. You wondered if he could feel your heart beating against his own, or feel your chest pounding from all the nerves, all the excitement, from the feeling of true fulfillment. Because in front of you was your Steve Rogers, nothing less. You were feeling the same feelings of disbelief. After months of talking, weeks of planning this out, finally it had been manifested. Finally it had happened successfully, without interruption, and you were in front of each other.

You buried your face in his neck, taking in his scent - he smelled like fresh air and clean linen, and surprisingly... like home. And in his arms, you definitely felt like you were home. You actually felt comfortable, like you could trust him, like being in his arms was right, like you weren't moving too fast.

As much as you tried to imagine it, your thoughts couldn't come close to how strong Steve actually was, how much his arms wrapped around you with ease, holding you tight and close and secure, how big and powerful his body was against you. Like no matter what, you would mold into him perfectly, and he would just wrap you up and hold you like you were the best Christmas gift.

     "Ooh, I wanna see your face," you took your face out of the crook of his neck, though you were quite comfortable there.

You pulled back to see him, your arms still around his neck, and he held onto you still, his entire face beaming while he took a good look at you as well. You let out a pleased sigh, a feeling lifting off of your chest like you'd been waiting for this and it had been hounding you - which wasn't far off from how you felt. You reached out and squeezed his cheeks in your hands, doing it without a second thought. It gave you no greater joy than to know that you could do that to him, that you were the only person who could do that to him.

     "Oh, you're so beautiful," you sighed dreamily, looking into his sparkling blue eyes. You'd always loved looking at those eyes over Facetime calls.

You didn't think his eyes could be any bluer than they already appeared on screen. It felt so surreal, being with him. And in the midst of all the surreality, you were filled with an impenetrable bliss. It wasn't shocking, it was more like a dazed feeling, dreamlike. You got what you wanted, what you deserved.

Steve couldn't get enough of you, even with you right here in front of him, legs and arms wrapped around him. If it was possible, he was even more blissful than you right now. And it was a moment of pride for the both of you. Had you continued on in fear, not trusting each other, not trusting yourselves, this would've never happened. It was a huge accomplishment for the both of you.

Steve took in all of your features, and he couldn't deny that the glow you possessed in real life was even brighter than your glow on screen, the same thing that had drawn him to you that very first night. You were glowing, smiling the way you had been before. Just to see you, it was worth the wait. And the feeling of your soft fingers squishing his cheeks had him smiling like a little boy at a toy store.

His eyes drifted down to your glossy lips, which he couldn't wait to kiss, then your bright eyes, and he uttered,

    "You're gorgeous, YN. I can't believe I'm finally seeing you. You're everything I imagined and more."

You couldn't believe the feeling that was in your heart, just from finally hearing his voice in real life. To Steve, your voice was like warm honey toast, alluring and adorable all at once. And his voice was music to your ears, that voice you dreamt of hearing. You couldn't believe anything you were feeling right now. It was nothing that you'd ever felt before, and it made tears well up in your eyes once again.

    "This is so unreal. You're... here. You're holding me. I just got off a fucking private jet to meet you!" you squealed, recounting the events of the past few hours.

Steve chuckled,

    "I'm still having trouble understanding that this is real."

    "Doesn't get any realer than this, Steve," you smirked, although you felt the same way, and his knees nearly buckled at the way you said his name.

You slowly unwrapped your legs from his waist, and he supported your hips as he lowered you gently onto the ground. Your arms were still around his neck, and your body was still pressed against his, this time standing on the ground in front of him. Your knees felt bendy from how much you were leaning into him. But you didn't want to ever be any further from him.

He pulled you closer by the hips, as if you could get any closer,

    "Mind saying my name again?"

    "Hmm, Steve?" you cocked your head to the side as if you were trying to remember his name, and he chuckled, shaking his head as he looked at you.

Your personality was even more than he'd imagined, too.

    "That's the one," he replied. He ran his hand along your face, caressing your jaw and cheek, sending tingles down your spine that he wasn't even aware of. "God, I can't get over you."

    "Me either," your lips quirked up, and you hummed, incredibly intrigued as you noticed the light bristles of hair forming along his face. "Mmm!"

    "What's that?"

     “You're growing out your beard, huh?"

Steve absentmindedly stroked the beginnings of a beard that were growing, and you placed your hand over his own, guiding his hand against his chin and jaw. He relished the feeling of your hand over his.

    "Trying to."

    "You don't have to try. You're Steve Rogers. That beard'll grow like nobody's business," you chuckled, and he grinned at your fast remarks, blushing at the compliment.

    "Steve!" you trilled, pleased to see this in real life, your eyes glimmering as you watched pink flood his cheeks. "You're blushing."

Steve bit down, and your eyes followed the place where his teeth sunk into his bottom lip. You both wanted to kiss each other, you both could hardly control the way your eyes lingered on one another's lips for far too long. But you were waiting for the time when it felt just right — after all, you were just now meeting each other. But somehow he knew already that you were just the person he needed in his life - playful, but one of the realest people he'd ever met. You balanced each other out perfectly.

    "And you're gorgeous," Steve replied, looking you up and down unashamedly, admiring the way your simple yet pretty sundress clung to your body, highlighting your best features. "And you've been traveling for too long. Let's get you to the hotel, hmm?"

And just like that, you were settling into one another like clockwork, like this was natural despite how amazed you were by one another. He turned around, quick to put his arm over your shoulder to keep you close to him, leading you to the car. Your heart was still pounding hard and fast in your chest, your brain still scrambled even though you felt like you fit so naturally with him. He seemed so majestic up close, so much like the Captain America that everyone adored and revered. He was the walking definition of a picture perfect American Dream, a glint of hope that that dream still existed. You gained a newfound respect for him just by standing next to him, encapsulating all his undebatable glory. And in this moment, you had him all to yourself.

    Steve felt a strange buzz, just from the friction of you being so close to him. Both your feelings of excitement seemed to create a high frequency vibration that you could literally feel. You were both anticipating what was next, and loving it because you knew you'd be together.

    On the walk to the car, you couldn't help but gaze up at him the entire time in amazement, your eyes sparkling. Steve couldn't deny that he felt your eyes on him, but some part of him made him too shy to simply look down and make eye contact, because he knew he'd get lost in the moment and stare forever. He didn't want to scare you off. Still, that didn't mean that he didn't spare a few quick glances, followed by a quirk of his lip that was almost a smile, pulling you closer under his arm each time.

      Steve opened the door for you and helped you up into the passenger's seat. He really didn't have to, but who were you to deny Steve picking you up as gently as he did, then placing you softly on the seat? He got into the driver's seat and started the car.

    "Hope travel wasn't too bad," Steve offered- he was honestly trying to have natural conversation, but his nerves forced him to keep it to small talk.

Honestly, all he wanted to do was go on about how beautiful you were, how he was intimidated to even look at you too long, but he knew that would be weird.

    You on the other hand, were nervous, but not to the point where you felt like you couldn't find the right words to say. You figured he'd just need to settle in, that he liked you just as much as he did on screen, but needed to adjust. The situation was new for the both of you, and Steve was really putting himself out there. Besides, even though you clicked, you had still just met each other.

    The affection was there, but you knew it would take some prodding for Steve to really feel comfortable. You could tell he was sort of doubting himself like he often did, probably wondering if he was even fit for you. And you had no problem reminding him that he was more than fit. You laughed and shook your head, nudging Steve's arm playfully,

    "Are you seriously making small talk right now? Also, you put me on a private jet. You tell me how you think my travel was."

      Steve chuckled, a grin breaking out on his face as he began to feel more comfortable. Your playfulness, your honest sarcasm, honestly made him feel less hesitant. You joked with him like he was an old friend, and everytime you were sarcastic with him it actually uplifted him, reminded him who he was when he started to doubt himself and you had to give him reminders.

Your friendly demeanor made Steve feel more at ease. He just wanted you to like him. He wanted everything to be perfect, and he kept forgetting everything he'd learned - not to let fear get the best of him.

    "You're right, you're right," Steve nodded, and you shook your head playfully, still looking over at him. He stopped at a red light, and finally looked over at you, locking eyes with you and taking his bottom lip in between his teeth.

    "What?" you teased.

    "Nothin'," Steve played along, grinning gently.

    He jerked back to realization when a car honked from behind him — the light had gone green already and he was too busy smiling at you to notice. You stifled a chuckle, leaning back into your seat and looking out at the road before you while he drove forward, but he glanced at you, smirking because you weren't hiding your smile behind your hand well enough.

    "What's so funny?" Steve chaffed, and you feigned oblivion, raising your brows and looking over at him,

    "Hmm?"

    "You heard me," Steve continued, all in good fun.

    "Oh, so this is how we're gonna do this, huh?" you couldn't help but break out into laughter, unable to keep up the act for too long.

Steve shrugged,

    "No clue what you're talking about."

    "Okay, I'll bite. I think what might be funny is the fact that you can't keep your eyes off me and that's why you just got honked at for missing the green light? I don't know, I could be wrong, but!" you threw your hands up in the air, unable to fight the smile that spread on your face.

Steve blushed — he knew you'd noticed, but being put on the spot so unashamedly for his fixation for you made him feel bashful. Although it was a relief to see that you definitely liked his attention. And you kept him on his feet. Your energy was such a breath of fresh air. He was hardly thinking of his Avenger friends now, and his worries about things going wrong seemed to dissipate with every word you spoke, every glance you spared at him.

    "You had to mention it," Steve sighed, and you giggled,

    "I was gonna spare you! But you play dirtier than I expected."

You just sat there chuckling together, feeling the positive energy seep into the space. Steve definitely felt less nervous, and the banter opened up more space for developing your relationship.

    You looked out the window, pressing your hand against it as you drove past new faces and places. You'd never been to New York before, unless a rest stop on a flight with your parents counted. But you'd never actually explored the city, big and flashy and somehow warm, inviting. Maybe it was because you were with Steve that New York felt comfortable and even homey, but you were a California girl at heart. You could stand being here for two weeks though, at least if it meant you got to be with Steve.

    The city started to become less of a blur as you began passing by even bigger, more luxurious buildings and glamorous restaurants and clubs that were just waiting to be lit up come nighttime. Your eyes widened as you marveled at the tall buildings that yet again screamed wealth, and you wanted to ask Steve where exactly this hotel was.

     "Think you could get used to New York?" Steve asked, practically reading your mind.

He knew how much you loved SoCal, and he just wanted to make sure this place wasn't too much of a culture shock for you. He wanted you to feel as comfortable as you could going from surfer paradise to concrete jungle.

     You looked at him over your shoulder, and just the sight of you like that made his chest pang with desire.

    "Oh yeah, New York's nice. You know, I used to think it was true that all New Yorkers were mean. But then I met you," you winked, and Steve nodded,

    "Brooklyn kids do it best, what can I say?"

    "So this is Manhattan," you replied, and Steve nodded again, pulling into an empty road and heading towards the back of a building which you hadn't seen in its entirety yet. But even looking at the deserted back, you could tell that the building was nice, and expensive too.

    "Yep, Manhattan it is. And here we are," Steve chirped, seeming pleased to have gotten to the destination without interruption. He rubbed the nape of his neck, feeling sheepish again. "Sorry about this, we've gotta enter through the back. Less attention."

You could tell he was sort of feeling bad about this and you frowned, your brows knitting together.

    "Steve," you said in the sternest voice you could manage. "Quit feeling bad. I literally have no complaints, as long as I'm with you. I get it, really."

    Steve nodded, looking down at his lap. He knew you'd understand, you both discussed things like this in advance. But he didn't want you thinking he was ashamed of you at all. Some things just had to be kept secret, for sanity and for safety.

    "Got it. I just want you to love it, that's all," Steve said, and his genuinity made your heart warm like it had just settled down and snuggled into a blanket in front of a crackling fireplace.

Steve got out of the car and was on the other side faster than you could even unbuckle, opening the door for you and holding his hand out for you to take.

    "You're fast," you chuckled, taking his hand and stepping out, your dress flowing in the wind, an image that Steve kept locked in his mind.

    He shrugged,

     "Super soldier things."

He took you in through the back and checked the both of you in discreetly with an employee who had been waiting for you two. It all felt so exclusive and secretive, and made you a bit antsy to see the full extent, but you had no worries. You got on the elevator with Steve while a few employees took all your stuff up to the room, watching as all the floors passed by you in the glass elevator. It wasn't until you actually got to your floor, floor 31, that you even realized the full magic of the luxury hotel.

    When you stepped out, your jaw dropped. Just the floor was the definition of luxury, and you hadn't even been inside the room yet. It was decked out in marble flooring, large windows all about for perfect lighting and an unbelievable view of the afternoon skyline. The decor was beautiful and the entire floor smelled like fragrant flowers. You weren't sure what was more impressive — this or the private jet. Steve noted how you literally stopped in your tracks, then turned around to face him with almost needy eyes, like you had to know if this was real.

    "You're serious?" was all you could say.

    "D'you like it?" Steve asked, leaning forward.

    "It's amazing! I can't believe — Steve, I feel so bad," you said, your voice growing distant as you wandered the halls, straying away from the room.

He caught up fast, chuckling to himself as he gently grabbed onto your arm and looped it between his own, leading you in the right direction. Then he paused, standing in front of you and towering over you. You felt your entire being softening when he did that, it was like he was both dominating you and comforting you in the simplest of ways. You looked up at him with unintentionally coy eyes, glancing between his pink lips and his ocean eyes.

    "Hey. Don't feel bad. I'll say it as many times as it needs to be said — I want to do this for you. It's no trouble for me," he shrugged, and usually you would've made some remark about him implying that he was rich, but the way he was standing over you right now rendered you speechless.

    You felt like you had melted into a big ice cream puddle and all you could do was nod slowly and look up at him with dopey, wide eyes and set lips.

    "Okay," you uttered, your voice faint, and before you knew it he was leaning over you and bear hugging you, throwing all of himself (not all, because he would literally crush you) into the hug and just wrapping his arms around you.

    Even though you'd been close to each other since you met, and onscreen you'd been closer than you could even imagine, this felt like the most intimate you'd been since meeting each other in real life. You felt protected and safe in this moment. You liked how Steve hadn't gotten tired of you despite having to remind you that this wasn't any trouble for him and that you shouldn't feel bad for being spoiled by someone who liked you and wanted to do it for you. You were overwhelmed by his scent and the warmth of his strong body.

    When he pulled away you felt weak with endearment, and that ice cream puddle feeling hadn't gone away. Of course, Steve hardly noticed the effect he had on you, and just took your hand in his and led you to the room. This initiation of holding hands had both your hearts pounding — any physical touch did. His hands were big and muscular, and your hand fit in just perfectly.

      "And here we are," Steve opened the door wide, leading to the unbelievable room.

It was more like an entire house, actually. A penthouse, to be specific. You were surrounded by glass windows that once again offered a view of the whole city. The suite was the perfect mix of contemporary and minimalist. It was luxurious, but not too stark, comfortable enough that you could actually sleep there and not feel like you were sleeping in in some strange utopia. You couldn't help but explore immediately, trying to see everything, like it was sand falling from between your fingers much too fast.

There was a bedroom with the biggest king sized bed you'd ever seen, a bright and airy bathroom with a freestanding white marble tub and a clear glass shower that faced a window, a kitchenette with a fully set up bar, and a huge living room with a near movie sized TV screen. There was even a balcony with stone flooring, a jacuzzi and a plethora of lounge chairs, not to mention another bar.

    Hell, you couldn't keep up with all the things you were seeing, racing around the penthouse suite and trying to wrap your mind around it. Steve had done enough to show you that you shouldn't doubt it or feel guilty about being around such opulence for a day, but you were damn amazed.

Steve just followed you as you raced around, laughing to himself at your reactions to everything and your utter disbelief. It was wholesome, and a reminder of the fact that even though you had a good head on your shoulders, at heart you were a blossoming young woman who had never experienced these things before.

    "Steve," you groaned, falling back onto the plush bed, which was perfectly made up. You felt dizzy.

    "Yeah doll?" he asked, and you smiled, suddenly feeling eager to hear the nickname again. It made such a difference to hear it in person.

    "This is amazing. I could kiss you," you said nonchalantly, then held yourself up on your forearms and looked up at him.

He was too busy being shy again, turning away slightly and kicking at the ground. He knew he looked ridiculous, but you were amused. You knew exactly the effect you had on him, you always had. But seeing it up close and personal was somehow even better. Half the time you didn't even mean to purposefully tease him. He got bashful all on his own, just a reminder of the power he knew you had over him in that sense.

    You smirked, just watching him try to get his act together again.

    "Ahh, thanks, YN. I'm glad you like it."

    You sighed, still laying back and making a snow angel with just your arms against the bedsheets.

    "You know, if you do want me to be your sugar baby..." you trailed off, clearly joking.

Steve shook his head playfully,

    "You're a handful, you know that?"

    "Of course!" you quipped, and sprung up, sitting upright on the bed, dangling your feet above the floor. "So, what do you wanna do?"

     "Well, I had a few things planned, but it's really up to you."

    "Yeah? Like what?" you chirped, and Steve grinned at your voice and how intrigued you sounded.

    "Uh, well. There's a spa on this floor as well. Private, of course. I gotta say, I'm not great at relaxing, or being touched by strangers."

    "Steve," you whined, reaching out for his hand and cupping it between both your hands. "You don't have to force yourself to do anything. But you do deserve to relax. This is as much for you as it is for me. I mean, you put this all together, I can't thank you enough. Least you could do is get a massage."

    Steve was endeared by your sentiment, and you were right. He needed to relax. He definitely was not as uptight as he was before he even knew of you, but he was still usually in a work mode. You'd only be at this hotel for one night, and it was only right that you both take full advantage of its amenities. After all, it was luxury for a reason. You were here to be pampered and be together.

    "Yeah..." Steve looked down at where your hands were cupped over his, and smiled fondly. "You're right. I'm real good at being stressed out."

    "I know," you kneaded his hands. "But I can help you relieve that stress."

You bit down on your lip, knowing that could mean so many different things, but here you really had innocent intentions, your face brightening up as you got an idea.

    "Okay. So you want to relax, but not while a stranger is touching you," you restated, and Steve nodded with a hum. "I have an idea."

| | |

    "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Steve chuckled as you flitted around him like a fairy, getting everything together.

About an hour later, once your stuff had been returned to the room and you had both settled in just a bit more, you were practically dragging Steve out of the room and to the spa area where you'd carry out your idea. Your request was simple when you'd called the spa over the phone in your suite: you wanted all the material there, but no employees. That way it'd be more personal — how hard could it be to do the same things that the staff did? It wasn't defeating the purpose if it meant you got to bond alone.

    "Uh, I mean I've never done this before but I usually know what I'm doing, so I'm gonna go with yes," you answered, probably more sure of yourself than Steve was.

    "I trust you," Steve smiled.

    "Smart choice," you smirked, looking at him from over your shoulder. "Okay, I think everything's ready. The question is - are you?"

    "I don't know, am I?" Steve cocked his head, eyeing you as you got everything ready, admiring you once again.

    "Not in that, you're not," you said, gesturing to the loose fitting t-shirt he still had on.

You said it casually, but truthfully, the pace of your heartbeat was quickening, thinking of actually seeing him take his shirt off. You had a lot more experience than Steve, so it wasn't like it was some new and strange experience, but the thought of seeing even more of Steve made you nervous.

    "Oh. Do I just-" Steve gazed up at you, raising his brows.

    "Mhm," you hummed quietly, biting down on your lip and watching him.

Steve felt nerves too for the same reason as you, but not because he was insecure with his body, so he lifted his shirt up with ease and placed it on the bed beside him. The silence felt deafening as he looked up at you and gauged your reaction. And honestly, you were just standing there looking at him, your lips pursed and your chest visibly rising up and down as you switched from automatic breathing to manual.

    You didn't have a huge preference for body type, but Steve was certainly a force to be reckoned with, big and hulking both with and without a shirt. You noticed the pleased, expectant expression on Steve's face and came back to earth, blinking away all the thoughts that flooded your mind.

    "Okay!" you practically gasped out, all the breath you were holding in leaving you at once. "You can lay back. And um, I'll just-"

Steve lay back and you approached the massage table, your breath hitching in your throat as you climbed up quickly and got on top of him, placing your legs on either side of him so you were straddling him. And don't get it wrong, you were confident. You put your body out there almost every night for hundreds of strangers, and that definitely boosted your sexuality in real time. It wasn't hard for you to perform suggestive acts or use your sensuality, but actually touching Steve felt so sacred — like you both wanted every touch to be precise. You had the chemistry online, it was just a matter of how the chemistry progressed face to face, sinking into the reality that felt so surreal.

Steve put his hands on your hips to steady you and your body twitched just slightly, Steve looking up at you with innocent, inexperienced eyes.

It was quiet now, and you focused on the task at hand, Steve's hands dropping to his sides while you diligently went to work. You spread oil on your hands and reached down to touch Steve's face, a small smile on your concentrated face. You were paying more attention to your hands, but Steve was looking right up at you, admiration full in his eyes, a small smile on his face. He was letting you do the work, lightly massaging oil onto Steve's face, keeping your fingers gentle and your pace slow and relaxing.

You were focused, but certainly, you couldn't help but be hyper aware of the fact that you were literally on top of Steve while he had no shirt on (and looked damn good without it). The innocuous yet obvious sensuality of the moment stirred the both of you. But rather than act upon it, you let it stay innocent. Steve cherished the feeling of your fingers lightly tapping and massaging against his face. You may not have been a licensed massage therapist, but you knew what you were doing.

    "You sure you haven't done this before?" Steve uttered, his words almost slurred from how relaxed he was.

    "One hundred percent," you offered a tiny smile, your face hovering just over Steve's, locking eyes with him. Your voice was gentle and soft. "Close your eyes for me."

Steve was entranced, fully into this experience, and honestly probably because it was you doing it. Had it been anyone else, he probably would've been squirming around, because he didn't know how to relax. But you were his oasis. A smile cracked out onto your lips at the sight of Steve underneath you with his eyes closed, totally relaxed. You'd hoped this would be the result. And you couldn't help but knead your fingers a little extra when you got down to his chest, still mind boggled by his muscles.

    "Just let me know if it feels alright," you said, your voice just above a whisper as you placed hot stones carefully on Steve's face and massaged his skin with them. "That okay?"

    "Hmm," Steve hummed affirmatively in response.

You watched as his chest rose and fell at a steady, relaxed rate, completely at ease. Every once in a while, he let out a sigh or a quiet groan that made your breath hitch in your throat. But again, you let it stay innocent. It was just Steve's luck that you didn't notice, or feel the tent that was growing in his pants just from the touch of your hands against his face. It was just that good.

When you were done, you didn't have the heart to tell him it was over. He seemed to have no complaints though, although he knew he could stay like this for much longer. His hands gripped your wrists, then he slid his fingers in between yours, cupping your hands together by his sides. You beamed down at him, amused at the way his eyes seemed glazed over and totally blissed out.

    "How was it!" you exclaimed, excited to see how pleased he was.

    "YN," he massaged his thumb into the nook of your hand. "I think you're actually good at everything you do."

You shook your head and Steve rolled his eyes.

    "You're being modest," he said with a wave of his hand. "Now, what can I do for you? Because that was incredible."

    "Steve, no way. You're not doing a thing for me. You've done... more than enough."

    "I appreciate that, doll, but you do know this is mutual. If you hadn't already gotten your nails done," Steve flopped your hand up playfully, and you giggled, "I would try. I guess it's best that you've already got them done, though. Don't know how accurate my nail painting would be. But I could give you a massage, or try my hand at a facial."

You hopped off of Steve and the massage table, bouncing up and down slightly on the floor,

    "Steve, as much as I adore that idea, I'm solely focused on making you feel relaxed right now. Though, if you really want to do something for me, you could... get in the pool?"

You skipped backwards, and pulled off the loungewear you'd changed into for the spa, clad in a bra and underwear beneath. You simply winked while Steve sat upright, eyes widening at the sight of you half naked in front of him. Sure, it was technically the same as a bikini, but just seeing you like that unexpectedly made him start. You couldn't be anymore coquettish right now, flaunting your body with a twirl before you jumped into the pool.

You disappeared for a few moments, then swam back up to the top, pushing back the water that speckled your face with your hands. Steve found his mouth going dry - you were so beautiful and alluring without even trying to be. He stood up and walked over to the edge of the pool, glaring down at you while you gazed up at him with playful, inviting eyes.

    "You're gorgeous," was all Steve could manage to utter out, kneeling slightly so he was more at level with you.

You bit down on your lip and gestured for Steve to come closer, enticing him with your beguiling eyes. You placed your hand on his face, wet hand against his firm jaw, and pulled his head closer as if—

Then, a loud splashing sound and the feeling of being submerged in water as Steve fell in. He swam back up to the top easily, pushing his hair back and wiping water away from his eyes as he regained his bearings. The accomplished grin on your face told him all he needed to know, and he lunged forward, grabbing you in his arms with ease and lifting you up, your back against his chest.

    "You're gonna pay for this, you know that?" he scolded you playfully, and you laughed giddily, your vision blurred as Steve spun you around against him in the water, unable to withhold your delirium.

    "I knew you wouldn't get in unless I forced you in! You think I don't know you by now?" you cackled, trying and failing to free from his grasp.

He let you go, but that didn't mean he wasn't right up on you, looming over you in the pool and pressing up against you, your bodies flush with one another. You were still laughing, but that feeling was coming back again, that feeling that you were melting once more.

     "I'm not gonna forget this," Steve warned, pursing his lips in a triumphant smirk.

     "If I could dunk you, I would," you narrowed your eyes at him, pressing your finger into his chest.

    "Oh my god, would you look at that?" Steve questioned sarcastically, picking you up by the waist without trouble and placing your legs around his neck, falling back deep into the water as if you had actually dunked on him.

You managed to open your eyes under the pool water, blinking excessively but catching a long glimpse at Steve, who was pressed beneath you. You grinned and swam up to the surface, Steve following short after.

    "Why, I never!" you pressed your hand against your chest, gasping dramatically. "Steve, you slick debonair. Did you just use that as an excuse to have my legs around your neck?"

Steve, who had thought nothing of it, was now wide-eyed and gulping, his mind traveling to a sinful place — particularly, the place between your thighs.

He handled it with grace though, raising a brow and cocking his head,

    "Don't think I'll need an excuse."

This time it was your turn to react, your mouth dropping open into a small o shape. Steve had even shocked himself. But you were really getting comfortable with one another, and he was just catching up to your pace.

    "I..." you didn't even know what to say, because just like Steve you were lost in thought as well, blinking and smiling blankly. You glared at him in a lighthearted manner. "You win that one. But you're a bad man."

    "Am I?" Steve chuckled, his voice deep and playful.

     "You're a bad man who puts me on a private jet and takes me to a very bougie hotel. Honestly, you're horrible," you joked.

    "You're right. They should take away my shield."

     You spent at least an hour in the pool, fucking around and just having fun, Steve placing you on his shoulders and swimming as fast as he could from one end of the pool to the other. You continuously tried to dunk and or splash each other, and you kept getting closer than any of you two could handle, then not actually doing anything about it.

You were beginning to prune up though, so each of you quickly rinsed off using the shower at the spa, then walked back to the room, wrapped up in towels. But you realized that you hadn't seen anyone else, not even in passing. When you asked Steve about it, he very nonchalantly mentioned that he had the whole floor blocked off for them specifically to guarantee maximum privacy and comfort. Yet another thing he did that was so mind blowing to you.

    "You hungry?" Steve asked. "I ordered room service for dinner."

It was getting darker outside, you had noticed, and nightfall was quickly approaching. Your mind wandered to thoughts of a romantic, private dinner with Steve, and you sighed in ecstasy. This day was literally perfect. You were more rejuvenated than you had ever been, and back at home rejuvenation and selfcare was a mighty big investment of yours. The fact that Steve could top that just by being him, was astounding.

    "I could eat," you grinned, sitting down on the bed at peace. You had changed back into your loungewear, and Steve still stood in front of you without a shirt on.

He felt your eyes on him and his cheeks flushed, his jaw ticking.

    "I'll go put on some clothes," he decided, and you sprawled out on the bed, starfishing.

    "Oh, you don't have to," you joked lazily, closing your eyes.

    "Ha-ha," Steve bleated, changing into a shirt anyway.

By the time Steve changed, room service was knocking at the door. You watched as Steve led them outside and set up himself. Although you insisted that you help, he practically commanded that you stay inside. And when he used that voice, he didn't have to tell you twice. You pulled out your vanity mirror, checking your appearance while you waited for Steve, and you frowned because you hadn't thought to change into nice clothes and put on some makeup for dinner. You figured it was principal, and you always wanted to look your best around him anyway.

Steve came back inside and caught you frowning at yourself in the vanity mirror. Without even thinking he commented,

    "You look amazing."

You raised a doubtful brow and looked over at him,

    "I think I still smell like chlorine."

Steve shook his head, a smile appearing on his lips. As confident as you were, you were being so critical of yourself right now. He didn't care what you were wearing - as long as he got to be with you, he didn't mind.

    "Chlorine just happens to be my favorite fragrance. Come on," he nodded towards the doors that opened up to the balcony where he set up the dinner for you.

You got up out of bed, tugging down your loose cotton shorts, and walked over to Steve, who immediately put his hand around your waist and guided you to the dinner table. You glanced up at him, pleasantly surprised yet again. The set up was simple, the table decorated with small candles and a vase of roses as the centerpiece, a bucket full of ice and a bottle of Moet at the edge of the table. And of course, a plate of your favorite food on your side. Jazzy music played softly in the background.

You turned up to face Steve, snuggling up to his body and placing your hand on his chest.

    "Steve, this is so beautiful," you cooed, then glanced back at the table — he could've easily had this all set up by staff, but all he did was have them bring the food, the rest he set up for himself.

    "You like it?" he asked, his heart beaming all because you were happy with it. Steve may not have been the kind of guy to go all out very often, but when he did, he did it right. This had just the personal touch that it needed.

    "I love it," you broke free from his grasp and skipped over to the roses, your fingers softly grazing over the petals.

You had been close to crying a couple of times today, but now you were dangerously close, and you couldn't help the tears that fell from your eyes this time around. This gesture was probably the simplest that Steve had shown this whole day, but it touched your heart the most. The private jet and the nice hotel were definitely nice touches, but they didn't mean anything if there weren't any feelings there. And Steve was doing everything in his power to show how much he cared for you, something that you weren't used to most people even bothering to do.

Steve saw that you were crying and rushed over to you immediately, frowning,

    "Is everything okay?"

You laughed tearfully, wiping away your tears with the back of your hands,

    "No one's ever done anything this nice for me, that's all. It feels really... special."

Steve smiled sadly. Your reactions were so wholesome, yet from a place of so much hurt, and it showed the elements of your past that you had recounted to him. Steve wasn't trying to make you forget about your past or make up for it, but he wanted to put the work in to show that you deserved so much more. It was just who he was.

    "First time for everything, huh?"

    "Yeah," you crooned, sniffling.

Steve gave you a pat on the back and put his arm around your hip as he led you to your side of the table, pushing out the chair for you and letting you sit down. He sat down too, and you almost instantly grabbed the champagne bottle, Steve smirking at your eagerness.

You giggled, biting down on your lip,

    "I have to do something for you."

    "Wrong, but I won't complain," Steve laughed, shaking his head playfully.

You opened the champagne bottle with a pop, and let the fizz pour out into your glass before you carefully poured a glass for the both of you, reaching carefully across the table. You sucked gently at the side of your finger, and placed the bottle back inside the bucket.

Both you and Steve raised your glasses, and you made a toast as you clinked them together,

    "To us!"

    "To us," Steve repeated softly, gazing at your face, shining in the candlelight.

You took a sip and started eating, the both of you quiet for a few moments before Steve spoke up.

    "It's still so unbelievable that this is all happening," he blinked, wanting to lean back and just get a good look at you.

    "In a good way, right?" you smirked, taking another sip of your drink.

    "Oh, the best way possible. It's indescribable, the feeling I got from seeing you. It's still there," Steve huffed, and you cocked your head at him, your lips turning up into a gentle smile.

    "I know. Me too," your eyes scanned his face, strong and handsome and illuminated by the candles lit in front of him.

    "I know it's been hard for me to open up... to you, especially. I was just so hesitant because I've never really felt the things that you made me feel, and I was afraid because we didn't know each other, you know? You were just a girl on a screen in the beginning, yet I thought of you all the time. I was thinking, Steve, you can't let this happen. I thought it was unbecoming of me, starting to feel things for a stranger."

You listened, glad to hear Steve finally opening up, but you joked,

    "Yeah. It doesn't quite fit your job description."

Steve laughed, rubbing his temples as he leaned back,

    "Yeah, not quite. It was sort of a shock for me. I was scared of the possibilities. And it was hard for me to understand my own feelings, you know? I shut down when things felt too serious. And I know I was stupid for it looking back, but... in the moment I was just overwhelmed. Opening up to someone I didn't know like that, getting into that territory, it... scared me. And the feelings I started having for you, jeez. I hadn't had those feelings in a while. And I'd only ever had them for one person. It was so hard for me to wrap my head around."

    You listened to Steve, taking in his every word. Even as you got closer, Steve didn't open up as much as you did, and you hadn't minded that because he was always listening to you and talked with you about anything. So to hear this was eye opening and helped you understand more why he operated the way he did. So you just listened, leaning in and nodding, your cheek against your palm.

    "Ahh, I'm just old," Steve shook his head, and you perked up, your brows knit together.

    "No! Well, technically speaking, yes. But no! You are not 'just old.' Your feelings are valid. And I understand, because I felt the same way, almost. It was weird opening up to you, and I got those weird feelings too, but I didn't give in because... I had to stay safe, you know? I can't be falling for my clients. But when I realized who you were, even though it was a shock, it... things came together. It made sense. Suddenly, you weren't just some random, you were you. If it were anybody else, nothing would've come of it. That's why I let it happen. I decided to try my hand at trusting you, and so did you. And I mean, it's a good thing we did, right?"

    "Otherwise, none of this would've happened," Steve nodded, and you both grinned at each other.

    "Yeah. So don't be so hard on yourself," you wagged your finger at him, and Steve chuckled, shaking his head- you weren't going to let him pass with anything, and he liked that about you. "We all have a long ways to go with our growth, but it's happening. You just have to let it."

    "You're right. It feels hard to fit in, you know? I've been here about a decade now, and it's still so... I guess I'm still finding my way around. Don't know if that makes any sense, but I'm trying to fit in," Steve replied, his voice deep and almost sorrowful.

You pouted slightly, reaching your hand out and cupping it over Steve's,

    "It makes sense."

    You truly felt for him. You knew his story, everyone did. But they didn't know the intimate, personal details of it. They didn't know how Steve felt being a walking experiment in this modern world. Maybe if they did, the world might be a lot less harsh to him. You didn't want to fix him, but you wanted to be there for him - make the sharp edges of new life softer, dim down the starkness of modernity.

    You talked about a multitude of topics over the course of the dinner, things that made you emotional, things that made you both burst out into laughter, menial things and profound discussions. But anything you talked about, anything you had to say to each other, just filled you both up to the brim with gleeful warmth. You were just truly soaking in the moment with each other, enjoying being alone together. The evening was filled with lingering eye contact, brushes against the other's hand, and laughter.

    By the time Steve had gotten behind the bar, trying his hand at making drinks like it was nothing, you found yourself feeling like you were ready to wind down. You were warm from wine and other alcoholic drinks Steve had mixed, and jet lag was catching up to you. Though you wanted to stay up all night, you wanted to be refreshed the next morning.

    You retired inside to go take a shower, feeling only slightly tired because the beautiful night with Steve kept you exhilarated. The bathroom was spacious and expensive, you could spend hours in there just sitting on the sink and thinking. You got undressed and got into the shower, the warm water running along your body, washing away the travels of the day, the hot pulsating jets of water relaxing your muscles. It was much bigger and fancier than your shower back at home, that was for sure.

    As you let the water rush over your body, you started to reflect on the entire day. This day had been full of first times for you, first feelings, first experiences. You were in awe, but it evoked deep feelings that seemed to be getting coaxed out of your stomach. This deep feeling that there was still more to be uncovered, that there would always be more. It wrecked you — gave you anxiety and nerves like nobody's business. But it also calmed you, knowing that you were with the right person for there to be more. You wouldn't be snatching for more at the bottom of an empty, loveless hole in the ground with no one or nothing to water you. And the best part of it was that the feeling didn't come with the kind of fear that made you want to stop. You wanted to keep going. Everything was beautiful so far. Although you knew it wouldn't always be one hundred percent perfect if you kept going indefinitely, you were enjoying the moment now. The present.

    Meanwhile, Steve was sitting on his side of the bed, looking down at the floor and kneading his palm with his other hand. He was thinking deeply, all good thoughts, and all about you. He just wanted to keep making everything perfect for you, for the both of you. And he was coming to the realization that perfectness wasn't realistic, that it would actually be worse than authenticity. But like you, he was enjoying the paradise you were sharing with each other. He was trying to keep himself in the present, which was so difficult for Steve, whose job was to solve problems and think of the future. But when it came to you, he would take that chance willingly.

    You also thought of Aaliyah in the shower, thinking of how happy she'd be if she knew what was going on. You thought you should tell her soon, but you also knew no matter how much you wanted to, you had to take it slow. As you stepped out of the shower and dried off, you had nothing but positive thoughts in your mind — there was no one in your life who you held ill bearings for, not even your parents. It seemed that once you took that initiative to focusing on yourself, everything and everybody else seemed to fall into place.

You used a towel, then wrapped a plush white robe around yourself, tying it at your waist. When you came out of the bathroom, you were still slightly damp, and drops of water sprinkled your bare, dewy skin. You knew you probably looked pretty raw, but not because you were bare-faced, more because you were fresh out of the shower.

You were dabbing at your face with the corner of the robe as you stood against the doorway that connected the bathroom to the bedroom.

    "Steve, can you pass me my clothes?" you asked, nodding over to your fresh change of clothes on the bed.

    "Sure," he said, thinking nothing of it and reaching behind himself to get your clothes.

But when he turned back, something on his face had changed, as if he were stumped by the sight in front of him. His mouth had dropped open slightly and he sort of goggled at you in amazement. He didn't bother to get your clothes, because there was only one thing on his mind as he stood up, looking very determined.

You were slightly confused, but couldn't find the words to ask him what was going on, because there he was towering over you again, without any desire to intimidate you but succeeding in doing so anyway. Only, it wasn't a bad kind of intimidation. You looked up at him with innocent doe eyes, tilting your head slightly upwards to him. As you realized what was happening, you couldn't help the way your eyes flickered from his lips to his own eyes, inviting him in. You were almost daring him, egging on the feeling of burning desire that flooded the dimly lit hotel room.

    The mere sight of you amazed him all the time, but in this moment, Steve had been thrown off guard. It was perplex to him, how you could appear so beautiful to him without even trying to. Your beauty was not subtle, it was loud even when you were fresh out the shower, no makeup on, completely stripped down. It drove Steve crazy, seeing you standing there with wet hair, and a face that had drops of water still running down your cheeks to the inside of your robe where your naked body was concealed.

It was so silent, and Steve was so close to you, you swore you could hear your heart beating. And then, he did what he had been waiting the whole day to do, what you had been wanting to do the entire day, and leaned down, kissing you.

    And when your lips finally met, it was like nothing you'd felt before. Even if you weren't so close, you were so sure that the electrifying feeling that surged through your entire body would've emanated off of you. It was like your body heat was combined in this moment, like you were molded into each other like a perfect ceramic sculpture. As if time decided to slow down just for you two, leaving space for only the two of you to exist together in this moment. And nothing else mattered, nothing except the feeling of Steve's lips against yours, parted and warm, like they belonged against you.

    The kiss was soft, but passionate and full of burning desire. You fell into the kiss naturally, closing your eyes instantly. You weren't sure if this was just a fever dream of yours, if maybe you'd been asleep for a very long time and dreamed up the past few months, all building up to this moment when you'd finally wake up. Or maybe you'd passed out in the hot shower and you were just dreaming this. But you didn't wake up. Your eyes remained gently closed as you kept on kissing him. Steve couldn't fathom the feelings he got from finally feeling your lips against his own.

    The desire to kiss you had been building up the whole day, but when he saw you just now, he couldn't restrain himself any longer. You hadn't kissed each other the whole day although you wanted to, because it didn't feel right just yet. You wanted the moment to be right. And even though it was sudden for the both of you, it just fit. It was spontaneous and a touch born out of yearning.

    You overpowered his senses. Even after your shower, every breath he took smelled like California sunshine and the salty spritz of ocean waves, and that natural ambrosial scent that you seemed to achieve without perfume. Every touch he felt was you, his hands digging into your waist, your plump lips, your hands exploring his shoulders and the nape of his neck. The taste of your wet lips. Everything was you.

    He could've lasted longer, but you needed to take a breath, though you wished you could stay like this forever. You just kissed Steve Rogers. And it was nothing like you imagined, because nothing you imagined could compare to this. You took in a deep breath, feeling your entire body warm up just from the buzzing aftermath sensation of the kiss and the art that was looking into his eyes, which seemed to be an even deeper blue than before.

    Steve looked you up and down, then couldn't help but smile, breaking out of the very serious air he had just entered upon seeing you. He laughed, a deep chuckle that sent shivers running down your very body. You laughed too, and you nudged Steve playfully. He brought those nerves out of you that nobody else could. You had plenty of experience, but Steve made you feel so much.

    "I wasn't expecting that, sir," you quipped, and he grinned down at you,

    "But did you like it?"

    "You're a doofus," you shook your head, pushing him gently. Your voice became a whisper and you reached up, pulling him close by the collar of his t-shirt, your eyes boring into his. "I loved it."

You kissed him again, hard and sweet but short, then practically pushed him away, sauntering away into the bed before you, and getting your clothes, teasing him about how he just wanted to get you naked before you changed in the bathroom. You then emerged, climbing beneath the bedsheets and propping your head up against a pillow. It was then that you really thought of the fact that you'd be sharing a bed with Steve, but at this point, it seemed expected.

Steve was still recovering from the second kiss, then practically twirled around on his feet to face you, a dazed grin on his face, getting into the bed himself.

    "Let's watch a movie, hmm?" you suggested, looking up at him. "Till we fall asleep."

    "Sounds good to me."

    You sighed in pleasure, scooting closer to Steve and snuggling into the crook of his outstretched arm as he turned on the TV and put on a random movie for you two to watch, one that wasn't too hard for you to follow. You were stealing glances at him the whole time anyway, and he was too. The movie was the last thing on your minds, but it just filled up the time until one of you fell asleep, and made for distracted conversation about the plot, one of you making comments followed by a hum from the other. You on the other hand, barely lasted ten minutes, falling asleep almost immediately. Steve turned off the TV and the light beside him, glancing over at you as your eyes fluttered closed. You were such a sleeping beauty, all he could do was look at you. You fell asleep and turned absentmindedly on your side, posted up like the little spoon, cuddling into him.

    Steve turned on his side too, your back against his front. He let you snuggle into him, but was unsure of what to do himself. He had never shared his bed, and the way you cuddled into him made him swallow hard. How did he follow suit? Would you want him to?

    But after a good look at you, unable he slowly put his arm around you, hesitantly placing his hand at your waist, letting it tumble over onto your stomach. In your sleep you put your hand over his, snuggled closer and held onto his arm. Reassured, he settled into the position with ease, falling asleep faster than he ever had in years.

Dreaming of you.

eeep did y’all love it?!?!?! share ur thoughts ~! ily <3

adding tags in a few mins ♡ 

[possiblyderangedpenguinstuff]

(baby I) love the boom

Maria Stark was a photographer.

It's a rare known fact, but that doesn't change anything.

It doesn't change how there are boxes and boxes and boxes of photos, in storage facilities and the attic of Stark Manor and framed all around the world, sold or given to friends and acquaintances, business partners, board members.

It doesn't change how Tony remembers his mother not as the sparkling debutante trophy-wife, but as his mama speaking Italian and telling him to pose for the camera.

It doesn't change how she always, always carried a camera, in her purse or around her neck, or in her hand. Howard saw the beauty in machines, Tony in lines of code, Maria, through a lens.

She grew up in Italy, surrounded by the sea, by vineyards and orchards and growth, a warm house bustling with life and people and food. Her early photos reflect that, dinner tables filled with people, the wild, grey sea crashing against cliffs, the symmetrical, perfect lines of a vineyard running straight down the scalp of the earth like braided hair.

She decided to leave her corner of Italy, where everyone knew everyone and the most adventure you could get is venturing into the already well-explored woods to the north of the village. There’s a few scattered pictures of her trip to Milan, where the big airport was, but they’re too excited to be any good.

There are more pictures of the plane than almost anything else, it was a long flight with not much entertainment, and she was bored. The stewardesses, laughing, tipping their hats at the lens, the fabric seats and their inhabitants, most laughing, smiling, waving, excited for their new lives in America; but a few staring glumly or caught eating, Maria once said that she took a picture of every person on that plane. He thinks he might be right. As he gets older, he likes to flick through them, see all of the faces, all of the people with their own stories. He wonders where they are now.

Once in America, she found herself chasing the coattails of white, pretty pale girls, blue eyes and blonde hair, big skirts and milkshakes. The perfect Americano life; far different than her dark hair and dark eyes, the immigrant Italian girl with a camera around her neck.

When she landed, she found herself a home in New York, some little place in Queens, Howard happened to be passing by, when she was taking pictures of the pigeons and people and cracks in the sidewalk and god knows what else.

The rest is history. There aren't many photos from her dating Howard, most are just pictures of him, smiling, happy, mellow, machine grease on his forehead, in work stained clothes. Some are taken by surprise, in the middle of him laughing, or chowing down on noodles. There are a few of her, young and beautiful, not yet the mother he knew and far from the simple girl who left Italy.

There are plenty of pictures from their wedding, all white and money and Maria’s happy face, There are more pictures of the guests with their hats and dresses than of the bride and groom. Tony wonders what went wrong. They seemed happy.

Then after, as a high society woman, glittering with pearls and gowns, sneakily taken photos of rich extravagance that only the 1% will ever experience. People forgot, once she ascended to society, how they had whispered about the brown girl, the gold digger, the filthy Italian thief who stole one of their people. People forgot, but she didn’t. There’s enough dirt inside those pages to fill a landfill.

Then Tony's childhood, a few pictures of a smiling boy, curly-haired and red-cheeked. He was a quiet boy, but shone with a curious light. She used to tell him he was going to change the world, and he believed her. 

The Maria Stark foundation, pictures of meetings, of galas, then of the people they help, some with Maria, some photographed by.

Peggy and Howard and Obie and Angie and Maria and Ana and Jarvis, all smiling and happy and maybe a bit drunk, two years after the war or twenty.

She used to lie down with him on his race-car bed, tuck the cartoon-patterned sheets around them and flick through the picture book with him, until it was dark and he had every single one memorized, every page carved into memory. He still remembers the sound of fingers flipping through the pages with a certain magnitude, a certain meaning that he was in awe of. Some were in color, some were grainy, some from film and some in black and white, but all were beautiful. She had a gift for it.

Tony’s favourites, though, were the explosions. He’d hide his face in her hair, inhale her perfume; that ungraspable scent that always floated around her. He could never figure out what it was. He never did.

She knew Howard when he was in Los Alamos, when he was working on the atomic bomb.

First, there are the pictures of them in a workshop or in the hot New Mexico sun, a few of a bar with dim lighting and blurry faces, and it’s just unplaceable enough not to immediately place, and then there Howard is, there Maria is, sitting with Oppenheimer. Edward Teller’s fiddling with something out-of-frame, Leslie Groves next to him.

They’re surrounded with history, with the thing that will kill 381,000 hundred thousand Japs, but for now, forever, in this moment caught in sap, petrified in time, it’s just a few scraps of metal and an idea.

After that, the focus diverges from Howard and group scenes, and onto Maria’s artistic side. Generals with their hats and uniforms lined up like toy soldiers forgotten outside in the sweaty Alamogordo sun. Their noses are shiny, faces flushed and ruddy. They look like plastic, about to melt.

A dusky, smooth desert sunset, with the yellow half-disc of the sun sinking down the horizon like melting butter. Gold, yellow, red, the colors of Iron-Man. Of night. Of a few scientists in the desert, trying to help their countries. Of life in death, maybe.

Later though, past the conventionally beautiful, almost hidden at the back of the book are the explosions, and the aftermath.

They're big and bulging, filling up the sky, mushroom clouds the color of dirt. Some of them, you can practically hear the sound wave through the paper.

They should be monstrous, should be horrible, disgusting things, the lowest of humanity, but how can something that can soar 60,000 feet into the sky in a matter of minutes be so bad?

There were seven major tests, and it looks like Maria has every single one of them captured on film.

Tony sees it not as death, but as mankind, beautiful in it’s destruction, beautiful like nothing else can be beautiful, because only it can kill like it does.

Maria had told Tony once, whispered in his ear, that she’d never seen such a thing before, that she never would, that watching it hurt in her chest, because there it was, billowing up from earth, about to disappear in between heartbeats.

And then, taking up two pages, commandeered, surrendered to their power, their brilliance: Little Boy and Fat Man.

Fat Man, in his roundness, his laden belly full with poison, with radiation, with death. Tony always imagined a smiling, jolly face on the head of his snub nose.

Little Boy like a submarine, diving from the sky, swimming down to land, his square propeller spinning behind him. Tony imagined his own face on this one, serious like he only practices in the mirror. It’s important work. He has to be important.

They would spend what seemed like hours staring at these killers, these killers with one of the highest kill counts of the war. 155,000 on impact, and 226,000 from radiation. Maria would hold him, hide her face in his hair, and it almost seemed like she knew who he would become, what his own kill count would grow to. He wonders what she thought then, what she would think now. She always told him he was going to change the world, is this what she meant? 

He guesses he knows why he didn’t argue when SI was shoved into his hands. He’s always loved demolition. Whether it be his own or the world’s. That’s why he is who he is, why he does what he does. Why he fucks and drinks and makes jokes when he shouldn’t. It’s why when people say his name, they know who he is. Tony Stark. Right?

There are pictures of the testing site after. He likes these just as much. Maybe more, even. There’s a finality there that’s missing in the moment. A certainty.

Green, glassy Trinite suspended in the air, maybe thrown, maybe permanently suspended by the arms of the atomic bomb, Tony doesn't know. He suspects the former.

There's a crater, 5′ deep and 30′ wide, left in the dusty, rocky ground, the parallel of that cloud, the reverse of creation, destruction.

Howard and a few other figures, clad in rubbery radiation gear, faces obscured. Tony knows it’s Howard because he’s holding a cigarette and a flask of scotch, and trying to persuade the others to have a light and a drink with him, Tony can hear him telling them to celebrate their legacy.

It sure is a big one.

--

He’s 21, and it’s been many years since his mother last held him and flicked through picture books and he doesn't even really remember the smell of her perfume, anymore.

He’s 21, and they’re dead.

He’s 21, and he’s alone.

He’s 21, and he finally knows what it feels like to be one of those explosions, to be so destructive that everyone around either left on after a night or was never there to begin with.

He’s 21, and now he really does understand those bombs. The urge to destroy, to burn, stronger than anything else.

He’s 21, and...tired.

He’s tired of the parties and the girls and the taste of blood on his tongue from where he’s bitten it to stop himself from screaming at all of it.

He’s tired of the company asking him tony tony we need those designs tony tony are you done with those specs tony tony remember you have responsibilities tony tony your dad would be proud tony tony do you have any ideas?

He’s tired of Ty pushing pills into his hand and giving him a drink to down them with.

He’s tired to having to call Rhodey in the middle of the night because he’s off on deployment.

He’s tired of Obie, Obie and his shark grins and big hands and deals.

He’s tired of the press and the journalists and the gossip.

He’s tired of Tony Stark. Who he is, what he stands for, what he does. He likes the shattering, sure, but it’s getting harder and harder to pick up the broken pieces.

He thinks back to Anthony, to that little boy who didn't have any of that, just his mama and a photobook and silence in a big house.

But, Maria Stark and Maria Carbonell are both dead now. That photobook is dust and that big house is gone, he had it demolished as soon as possible.

Anthony is buried next to his mama.

--

Later, someone asks him, he’s not sure if it's at a party or an interview or at a press conference, because, frankly, it’s all a blur and sometimes it seems like he leaves a club and steps into a bright-lit conference room.

“Why do you do it?” they ask, “why do you kill and explode and make bombs?”

And he can only grin, a little lopsidedly, lean forward, try not to trip, and laugh.

“Baby, I love the boom,” he says, and he feels it in his chest, the mushroom cloud expanding and flying into the sky, perfectly, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico blue.

He’s not sure if anyone ever even asked, and suddenly he’s sitting in his workshop, looking at the clean, white lines of the walls only interrupted by half of a dismantled gun or a car engine, and there are pictures on his lap, papery and thin, his mother’s face staring up at him, judgement in her eyes. He wonders for who. 

“I like the boom,” he says again, and not even JARVIS answers.

[gigglyirwin]

A Merry Little Christmas

Pairing: Ashton x Laura (aka @irwinkitten)

Word Count: ~1.4k

Warnings: fluff

Summary: I participated in @plainwhiteluke , @flannelpunkcalum , and @dukehoods  5 seconds of swapping christmas challenge and this is my fic for @irwinkitten with love from your secret santa <3

A/N: flashbacks are in italics 

Ashton had woken up long before Laura had. For a while, he laid in bed, his arm still around her waist, propped up on his other arm so he could watch her sleep. She looked so peaceful. He always fell more in love with her, watching her sleep and being able to pinpoint all the freckles and dots on her cheeks. He pulled her hair away from her face, leaving a soft kiss on her cheek before getting up.

He kept the music on the radio low as he worked on breakfast, hoping to surprise her in bed. He glanced towards his living room at the presents that filled the bottom of their tree. There weren’t many but there didn’t need to be. They both had given each other gifs every year, even the first year they had been together when they had only been officially dating for a month and a half.

“I know we never talked about gifts, but I wanted to get you something,” Laura said, handing Ashton the small wrapped box.

Ashton let out a relieved sigh, pulling a box out from his coat pocket. They both laughed. “I know we haven’t been together for long, but I saw this and immediately thought of you,” Ashton admitted shyly, rubbing the back of his neck.

Ashton opened his gift first, seeing a few different rings. He had been wearing a bunch of them lately so she found two that she thought he’d like.

“These are awesome, Laura,” he said, looking up at her with a smile. He pulled one out and put it on his middle finger, then put the second one on his pointer finger. “Wow. I love these, they look so cool!”

He decided to wear them for the rest of the day, turning the one around his middle finger every so often. She opened her gift, gasping. The box held a gold necklace; it was like three necklaces in one. The first one was somewhat of a choker that had diamonds spaced evenly apart on the whole chain. The second hung down a little farther, with a rose in the center. The third would hang down her chest and was a simple gold block. “Thank you, Ashton. I love it.”

He offered to help her put it on, coming around behind her chair and pushing her hair off to one side as he clipped the necklace in place. She fixed her hair again, looking down at the necklace with a wide smile. “I love it,” she repeated.

Ashton plated breakfast, putting the leftovers in the fridge. He knew they were going to have friends and some family coming over throughout the day, so he figured if anyone got hungry he’d warm up what he had made.

Laura was still asleep when he entered the room. He set both plates on the nightstand, leaning on the bed and pressing kisses to the side of her face. “Wake up, love,” he hummed, cuddling up against her back and shaking her slightly. “Wakey wakey eggs and bakey,” Ashton cooed.

Laura let out a quiet yawn, followed by a giggle. “Morning, Ash,” she whispered and Ashton responded by plastering more kisses along her face.

“I made breakfast.”

She hummed, “Smells good,” and turned around to bury her head in his chest.

“I think Santa Clause came too,” Ashton joked, brushing back her bright pink hair. “I saw a whole bunch of presents under our tree.”

Laura laughed, kissing his neck and collarbone. “You sure it wasn’t you up late wrapping all those gifts?” she teased.

“No way. It was for sure Santa.”

Laura sat up in bed, followed by Ashton. He leaned over her when she was sitting up, kissing her gently, yet he let it linger. His hand came up to cup her cheek, only pulling away when his lungs were begging for air. “Merry Christmas, darling.”

They ate in bed and talked about that day's plans. It was still pretty early, not even 9 o’clock yet, and while they didn’t have anywhere to be until later that night, they knew they were going to have people in and out of the house so right after breakfast, they shared a warm shower and brushed their teeth together while standing in front of the giant mirror of their master bathroom.

Ashton went back to the bedroom to get dressed, then returned to the bathroom to finish drying his hair and fix it so it looked good. Any other day he had off, he wouldn’t bother taming the mane and would just deal with the bed head, or the freshly showered hair look, but today he put product in it and slicked it back in its usual way, leaving one little curl on the front of his forehead.

After getting herself ready, Laura headed to the bedroom to get dressed. She found a box on the bed, paired with a huge bow and a note that said: “to Laura, love Ashton.”

“Ash!” She called, picking up the piece of paper. Ashton came into the bedroom with a shy smile on his face.

“It’s just something for you to wear today.” Ashton leaned against the doorframe and waited until she opened it, his own smile growing when he saw hers form too. Inside was a red flowing skirt with a bow tied on the waist and a long sleeve white shirt that closely resembled a knitted sweater but was much more lightweight.

She shooed him out of the room as she changed, listening to him mumble about how unfair it was just because of how many times he’d seen her naked. But she wanted it to be a surprise when she walked out in it. After fixing the outfit in the mirror, she opened the door to him leaning on the wall now.

“Absolutely gorgeous,” he gushed, pulling her in by the waist for a much more heated kiss that was very unfortunately interrupted by the doorbell.  

--

Ashton’s bandmates at all joined him at his house. After trading gifts with them, they hung around. Laura had cooked them a light lunch knowing that each of them were doing their own extravagant dinner for Christmas evening. The band loved Luara just as much as Ashton loved her and were always happy to be around her. All of them joked that if Ashton didn’t put a ring on her eventually, they were going to shoot their shots. The truth was that neither of them were in a rush to get engaged or married, but Ashton had everything planned out, he was just waiting for the date to come around.

As a Christmas present to Ashton, Laura had fixed the strings on his guitar and Ash was eager to play. Luke was the one who suggested they go live on Instagram. They were sure that not many people would show up but decided to anyway. It turned into an impromptu acoustic set, with Ashton playing guitar and then taking suggested songs that came through the comments.

“What about this one,” Ashton began, playing a new chord on the guitar. He began to sing: “have yourself a merry little Christmas. Let your heart be light.”

“From now on, our troubles will be out of,” Luke joined, and the four of them harmonized perfectly to the word ‘sight’. Luke picked up on the second part of the verse and the boys did the same thing with the word ‘away’. Laura snuck pictures and short videos of the little live show, her smile never fading as she listened to them sing.

--

“Got one more gift for you,” Ashton mentioned as he and Laura had crawled into bed together that night.

“Ashton, you’ve spoiled me enough already,” she laughed, situating herself in bed when Ashton handed her his phone. Pulled up on it was flight information, a flight to New York that left on the 29th and returned on the 4th. “Really?” She gasped.

Ashton nodded. “I know we’ve been before, but we’ve never been on New Year’s and it’s beautiful during that holiday.” But truth be told, Ashton had a surprise for her on that day. He was planning on proposing to her at midnight, right in front of the ball drop. He had been keeping it a secret for nearly a year now, hiding the ring in his sock drawer or in his bag when he was touring. He looked at it every so often, sometimes carried it around in his coat pocket when they went out, just in case a far more perfect moment arose, but he knew for sure that he was going to ask her to marry him on New Year’s Day and he was so excited to start this new chapter of their lives together.

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[not-so-innocent-bi-sander]

On Powerful Wings

So… I’ve wanted to write a Wings AU since i’ve been seeing all these beautiful drawings of the sides with wings (i’m looking at you @randomslasher and @artistwave!! Everyone else also go look at them. I am. They are sooo talented oh my gosh.) I was stuck on what to write about for a long long time until it hit me to try and write wings that weren’t bird wings. So… this is what came of that.

Another Polysanders. Apparently it’s my thing now.

Wing AU!!!!!

(I made a part 2! Here!)

Logan groaned as he sat up in his bed. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to today. One of his boyfriends was dragging the rest of them to a party. They had all been dating for a long while now, but they only had been living together for a short time. He was in his own room, they agreed it would be nice for each of them to have their own space, even if a good portion of the time they tended to fall asleep in each other’s beds anyway. As he swung his legs over the edge he began to stretch. His wings unfolded out from behind him as he let them get some air. One of the problems with wings was definitely waking up in the morning and finding you had slept on one of them weird.

He yawned as his arms and wings fully extended, the slightly leathery skin of the wings awkwardly unsticking from itself. He managed to grimace his way through the moderately uncomfortable sensation of his skin unsticking.  It was one of the worst things about his type of wings. While everyone had wings, he felt his type was probably the most unsightly. He grabbed his glasses and glanced at himself in the mirror. His hair was ruffled from sleep and his wings were still fanned out slightly. Retracting them back in, he watched how they folded. His medium-sized and bat-like wings folded neatly against him, reaching down to about his waist. They were of average strength as far as wings went, the main benefit being he was better than most at gliding and he was strong enough to carry relatively heavy things and still maintain flight. There was also the fact that when his wings were wet, he wasn’t completely grounded. He could fly with relative ease in the rain, which most wings were not capable of accomplishing.

He wandered down stairs, smelling breakfast. As he reached the landing he saw one of his boyfriends out on the balcony. Patton was smiling and watching the clouds, something he always did in the mornings. After his shower, Patton’s wings were essentially useless. So he took time to dry them every morning before breakfast which took him anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes. But man… His wings.

Logan watched Patton’s beautiful wings fluttering behind him, the iridescent colors shimmering in the morning light. They were almost opaque with how delicate their coloring was… Like stained glass. While Patton’s wing type was considered generally the prettiest, they were also the weakest and most delicate. His type of wings was mainly considered to be “Butterfly” but a lot of people referred to people with these wings as Fairies. Logan wasn’t sure if this was an insult or a compliment, but knowing Patton, he would definitely choose the latter. A smile spread across Logan’s face as he watched his moral love a moment longer before turning his gaze to the kitchen.

Standing behind a pan on the stove was one of his remaining loves. The gorgeous Roman. He was muscular, robust… And seemed to be rather frustrated. His feathery angel’s wings rustled anxiously behind him, apparently breakfast wasn’t cooperating with him. Roman’s wings were the grandest of all of them, highlighting his general extravagance. They were covered in beautiful feathers that shown in the sunlight. Nothing was quite as grand as fully extended angel wings. They had the benefit of being one of the strongest wing types but if he would be grounded pretty quickly if his feathers got wet.

Logan’s smile faltered only a moment at Roman’s obvious displeasure. An idea popped into his head, turning back to Patton, his wings still lightly opening and closing in the sunlight.

“Patton?” Logan called gently, smiling when the fatherly one turned to see him with a smile.

“Good Morning Logan!” Patton flitted over to Logan and gave him a good morning hug and kiss.

“Good Morning, Pat. Could you go assist Roman? Breakfast seems to be giving him trouble. I’ll go check on Virgil.” Logan asked. Patton nodded happily and skipped off the kitchen.

“Oh my angeeeeeeeel….” Logan heard Patton calling to Roman over his shoulder, chuckling because he knew only Patton could get away with that particular nickname. Logan wandered up the stairs, coming to stop in front of Virgil’s door. He knocked gently on the door.

“Virgil? Breakfast should be ready soon, would you like to accompany us?” Logan asked through the door. He heard a strange *WOOSH* sound and the rustling of fabric before the door opened about a minute later.

“Morning, specs. I’m ready.” Virgil stepped through his door and closed it behind him.

He was wearing his signature trench coat, which none of the other three had ever seen him without. While everyone was born with wings, some people chose to wear special garments that concealed their’s. Virgil was apparently one of these people. None of them had any idea what Virgil’s wings could be like. Logan surmised his wings couldn't be like Patton’s. Delicate wings like that would be extremely uncomfortable to conceal and that such a heavy coat would actually damage them. But beyond that, none of them had any idea. They didn’t want to push the issue, they were sure they would learn whatever Virgil wanted to share as soon as he decided to share it.

The two of them made their way downstairs while and found their two other loves just setting breakfast out. They all sat down at the table and ate their breakfast.

“Thank you for breakfast, Roman. It is quite good.” Logan piped up. A light blush spread across the royal’s cheeks.

“You should really thank Padre. He saved the whole thing.”

“Nonsense! I just helped a little bit!” They made some general small talk for a bit before Roman brought up their plans for that evening.

“Ok! So we are going to my castmate’s party. Its up on top of that apartment building off of 6th street. There is also going to be a pool! So bring your swim suits!” Roman explained excitedly, his feathers rustling about. Patton clapped happily while Virgil simply raised an incredulous eyebrow.

“Understood.” Logan said, not looking up from his meal. Roman wasn’t upset by Virgil and Logan’s reactions, he was confident they would have a good time. And if they didn’t, he wouldn’t put them in this situation again. But he thought it would be nice to get them out of their comfort zone a bit.

They had a relatively slow day, just lounging about and relaxing. After dinner they went up to their rooms to change for the party. Patton came down cheerily in his light blue swim trunks and a light tank top. Logan was dressed normally, but he had a small bag with a swimsuit in it incase, however unlikely, he changed his mind. Virgil, unsurprisingly, was dressed in his coat with no sign that he planned to swim. And Roman had red swim trunks with golden swirls of design all around them.

They stepped outside to fly off the party, noting that there were some dark clouds in the sky.

“Hmm. Roman, if it begins to rain I will carry Patton home and you can take Virgil.” Logan suggested, eliciting an eye roll from Virgil.

“You know I don’t like when he carries me like a bride.” He laughed.  

“Nah, you love it my little Angry Bird.” Roman laughed and grabbed one of Virgil’s hands while Logan grabbed the other. The four of them rose into the sky, Virgil between his two stronger-winged boyfriends while Patton trailed along behind them. Luckily the party wasn’t too far from their place.

They landed gently on the roof, Logan and Roman expertly placing Virgil down before softly landing on either side of him. They looked around to make sure that Patton was still behind them, the wind was not his friend, and sighed in relief when he landed a moment later.

Roman stepped ahead of them and began introducing them to all of his friends. His castmates were so excited to finally have faces to put to all of Roman’s stories of these wonderful boyfriends he always talked about. It was going well and they were all enjoying mingling with this surprisingly welcoming group of people.

Logan noted that the vast majority of them either had butterfly wings like Patton or Angel wings like Roman. There were other’s as well, some different types of bird’s wings, a very small handful of bat wings like his own, and even a couple moths. But it made sense to Logan that most actors would have the types of wings regarded as the most beautiful. He found himself sitting off to the side at a table with Virgil while essentially everyone else was in the pool. Which was fine with him, he didn’t really care for swimming and he was happy to keep Virgil company.

It wasn’t too long before the clouds began to darken even more so and Logan swore he saw Virgil’s coat twitch.

“Is everything alright, Virgil?” Logan raised an eyebrow. Virgil was looking up at the sky.

“I.. I just have a really bad feeling all of a sudden.” Logan looked up as well, the clouds beginning to gently drop water on them. A moment later they heard a boom of thunder and everyone began vacating the pool to head indoors. Virgil stood, scanning wildly for Roman and Patton amongst the chaos of the large pool. Logan saw his trench coat twitch once more. They spotted Roman, walking toward the two of them, probably to make sure they were ok. But where was Patton?

Roman reached them and realized their moral boyfriend was missing. He turned to help them look, everyone else facing the opposite way as they ran indoors. Patton was standing on the edge of the pool, opening and closing his wings trying to shake off excess water. The wind began to pick up, Roman and Logan instinctively pulling their wings in tightly to avoid being blown over. All of their eyes widened, looking at Patton. He was still sopping wet and his wings were spread wide. Before Roman or Logan could form a thought, Virgil had taken off at a full sprint towards Patton. Before he could reach him, Patton had begun sliding backwards toward the edge of the roof and was easily thrown right off the edge.

“PATTON!” The logical and creative ones yelled as he disappeared from their sight. Virgil had reached the edge and didn’t even stop to think. He had ripped his coat open while he was running, the buttons flying in all directions. He leapt off the edge, his arms straight up, causing his coat to blow off and land on the roof.

The two of them stood there, completely in shock at what they had just witnessed. But before they could process what had happened, Patton rose up from the side. They could see hands around his ankles that placed him firmly on the ground. The hands disappeared as soon as Patton was safe. Roman and Logan ran forward, pulling Patton into them and hugging him against them. They collapsed into a pile on the floor, so happy that he was alright. But Virgil never appeared.

They managed to calm down after a little bit and Logan scooped up Virgil’s discarded coat. He examined it a bit and found that the inside was scratched horribly. He saved his pondering for a later time as they needed to go find their missing love. They took the elevator inside down to the ground and ran home as fast as they could.

Busting through the front door, they saw wet footprints that trailed all the way upstairs. Breathing a sigh of relief that at least he made it home, they ran upstairs and knocked on his door.

“Virgil?!” Patton knocked on his door, concern still in his voice. They heard a small sniffle from inside.

“Virge? Are you alright? Did you get hurt?” Roman added, getting more worried by the moment.

“…I’m fine…” they barely heard.

“Virgil. I have your coat. Would you like it? You don’t have to come out if you don’t want to. But please know that we love and accept you no matter what.” Logan explained. “I can leave your coat on your door if you would like us to leave so you can retrieve it.” Patton and Roman looked up at Logan, realization spreading across their faces.

“We will be downstairs, Virgil. Please, we just want to know that you are ok.” Logan placed the coat on Virgil’s doorknob and the three of them went downstairs. They immediately turned and headed downstairs, Logan grabbing fuzzy towels and wrapping up Patton and Roman. They sat, huddled together on the couch for a while just enjoying being safe together at home. They heard Virgil’s door creak open. There was a pause, then steps very tentatively coming down the stairs. They looked up expectantly, seeing Virgil approaching.

He plopped himself down on the bottom stair, his broken trench coat on but hanging open, which they had never seen before. He sighed and cradled his head in his hands.

“Virgil… Can I ask why you don’t let anyone see your wings? You… Don’t have to show us if you don’t want. But.. I just.. I wonder why?” Patton suddenly asked, Virgil looked up at them, three sets of big gorgeous eyes on him. He slowly let out another shaky breath and his coat shifted about.

“I… am.. embarrassed. You all have such nice wings. They suit you. They make sense. Mine…” He trailed off, looking behind his back at his coat. “What do you mean, Virgil? I…” Logan trailed off, looking back at his wings. “I do not understand.”

“Logan, your wings are more understated. They aren’t big and attention grabbing. They are practical and strong and will always be there for you in a tight spot. They are accountable and trustworthy. Just like you. You might not like them, but I love them.” Virgil was hugging his knees at this point. “Patton, your wings are delicate and pretty. They make us all smile when we look at them and they are so unique. You do your absolute best at every turn and even when someone thinks you might not be able to handle something, you show them you can. You never let other people’s opinions or judgments stop you from being you.” Patton blushed, his wings fluttering behind him. “And Ro… Where do I even start? Your wings are gorgeous, they are strong. They make heads turn when you walk by and they have a confidence I’ll never understand. You make jaws drop and everyone who sees you either wants to be you or to be with you. They are expressive and when you wrap me up in them I know that I am in the only thing that matters and that you will keep me safe.” Virgil was nearly crying.

“Virge… You are our protector. You look out for us and keep us all safe. We may have never seen your wings, but they are fast and they are strong. You… saved me.” Patton choked a little as he spoke.

“Neither Roman or I would have been able to accomplish that task, Virgil. You have a reaction time and, apparently, a strength and power none of us could ever dream of possessing.” Logan added.

“Virge.. You say my wings make you feel safe. But you are the one who does that for us. Just being near us makes all feel… at home.” Roman smiled.

Virgil’s coat was twitching again. A blush was spreading across his face as he gently stood and moved to sit on the floor in front of them on the couch. He slowly lowered the coat to his shoulders, looking up at them with fear still in his eyes.

“Virgil, you don’t have to. No matter if we know or we don’t, we love you for everything that you are.” Logan quickly reassured him. Virgil paused a moment before pulling his arms out of the sleeve of his coat and letting it fall to the ground. His head dropped to his chest as he fully extended his wings.

The others gasped. They had never seen wings like this in person. His wings were simply enormous. They spread easily the width of the living room and were coated in shining black scales. They even had a large horn on each one. Virgil had dragon’s wings. His head remained hung to his chest and his eyes were shut. He was waiting for them to freak out or…. break up with him. He suddenly felt warm hands touching his wings, causing them to twitch in surprise.

“Fascinating…”

“Astounding!”

“Whoa…”

He looked up and saw his three boyfriends inspecting his great wings. Patton was running his hand over the smooth scales. Roman was looking at his great pointed horns. Logan seemed to looking back and forth between Virgil and his discarded coat.

“How did you ever manage to conceal such magnificent wings?!” Roman asked, spreading his out to compare wingspans, where of course Virgil had him beat by a long shot.

“Indeed… Theres no way such large wings should be able to hide inside a coat.” Logan added. Virgil actually laughed.

“Um.. I guess you never would have noticed before? But… I’m really skinny?”  Virgil chuckled. He retracted one wing and pulled it tight to his body. He made a valid point, his body was much thinner than they ever would have guessed beneath his trench coat. With his tucked in wing, he only looked a little thicker than an average person.

“Wait… That’s all you are wondering? Not… why is this demon in our house?” Virgil suddenly spoke, his voice trailing off as he spoke. His last couple words were hardly above a whisper. The other slowly began to embrace him, pulling him into a group hug. His cheeks flooded red and for the first time, he allowed his wings to wrap around all of them, fully encompassing them all in a kind of security blanket that they had never experienced before. He truly was their protector.

@twentyoneparades-to-panic-at @celiawhatsherlastname @de-is-me @authordreaming13 @introverts-assemble @lilylunalovegood2002 @musicwitchthomas @didsomeonesayprince @heracaine @freepaperie081 @loverofpizzaandallthingssweet @cefmua56 @justanotherpurplebutterfly @kittyboof8

[ayahinanetwork]

Sicilian Defense (Chapter 2)

Tokyo Ghoul Vampire AU

Summary: Unexpectedly changed into a vampire, Fueguchi Hinami finds herself thrown into a completely different world. Now enrolled into the prestigious Anteiku Academy as a member of the elite Night Class, Hinami slowly steps deeper into the realm of these monsters. Dealing with her ever-changing world and state, she becomes dependant on those around her, yet at the same time, poses them a danger greater than any of them could expect. As her thirst reaches closer to the point of no return, Hinami finds herself becoming increasingly drawn to the blood of her dorm leader, the sheltered Prince of an ancient pureblood vampire clan, Kirishima Ayato. As a former enemy resurfaces, will Hinami be able to protect her world from their interference?

Chapters: 1

A/N: Hello again everyone! Me (Mod Alice) and Mod Far finally finished chapter two! First of all I’d like to say thank you for the positive response to chapter 1! We were both very glad to see it, and you got us very motivated with your comments. This chapter is will still introduce a lot of things, but I hope some parts of it will have your interest piqued! Also, enjoy Ayato’s introduction~ Please do reblog this and feel free to leave some comments!

Chapter 2

Brought into Anteiku Academy, Hinami is facing the start of her new life - gaining a new family, discovering more about vampires, as well as meeting people from the Night Class she’ll be joining, already facing new hurdles with them. (8k)

She’s never really been bothered by the sun too much. In fact, Hinami really loves the sun. She spent the whole of her childhood playing in the small garden in her backyard, chasing butterflies amidst the flowers as she basks in the sunshine. But it feels different now. She’s a creature of the night— or soon to be one. Her body has changed. Walking behind Kaneki and Touka, Hinami winces as the rays burn into her skin and she’s tempted to run into the shades of the trees nearby to cool herself down.

“Won’t you turn to dust if you’re out in the sun?” Hinami had asked Touka earlier on, horrified as she watched the vampire throw open the doors of her mansion in broad daylight. Touka had laughed and stepped out and more so out of instinct, Hinami had cried out in distress, reaching forward towards her. Touka’s laugh continued and she twirled herself around outside, completely whole, completely solid and completely alive.

“Don’t trust those stupid vampire stories, silly. Most of them are untrue,” Touka had said as Kaneki ushered her out as well.

Apparently it seems that vampires do not die under the sun, but they’re still not so fond of it. Touka had explained that once one had lived for as long as she has, the sun doesn’t really bother them anymore. On the other hand, younger vampires like her brother still struggle to get used to it and would hole themselves up indoors during the day.

Hinami had wondered how old Touka is. She looked to be in her twenties, but at the same time she gave off a much more mature and powerful air. There was also something about her conversation with Kaneki that made Hinami believe that this woman is a powerful and influential person among the vampires— someone like that, especially among immortal creatures, can’t possibly be so young, right? While curious, Hinami swallowed her question. It’s rude to ask a woman her age and besides, Hinami wondered if she’d be able to continue seeing Touka in the same light if she ended up being much older than Hinami had expected her to be. Instead, Hinami focused her attention on something else.

“Your brother?”

“Yes, my brother, Ayato. You’ll meet him later. He’s really young— practically a baby,” Touka had chuckled.

“Is he a pureblood too?”

“Yes, he is.”

“I’m sure he’s cute.”

“Sure he is. He looks just like me.” Touka’s eyes were glinting as she spoke of her brother and Hinami was sure she adored him more than anything. She imagined a smaller version of Touka, maybe a chubby baby boy, and she agreed— indeed, he must be very cute if he had inherited from their parents the same looks Touka had. Kaneki had watched them with a cheeky look, though he remained silent as they headed towards the academy.

————

Situated past deep woods, Anteiku Academy is an isolated, yet sophisticated campus. Standing outside the gate, Hinami’s mouth falls open. This is no school— it’s practically a castle. The buildings stand taller than any school she’s seen before, with the school’s emblem intricately carved onto it. The brown brick walls and pointed blue roofs reminds her of the pictures of ancient, medieval palaces she’s seen in her mother’s books.

She follows behind Kaneki and Touka as they walk through the hallways. The place was eerily silent, sending chills up her spine. She reminds herself that it’s all in her mind, that she’s too caught up in thinking about the fact that this is a school for vampires. The hallways are quiet, but it’s because classes are ongoing and there is no one walking about on campus, not because that it’s haunted or something after being inhabited like monsters like vampires.

Monsters… Hinami wonders if she should really stop referring to them as that that. Touka is clearly far from a monster; she’s kind, friendly and really warm. No one who’s been so patient and helpful can be a monster, after all.

Eventually, what about Hinami herself? She too will turn into a vampire. Does that mean she’ll become a monster too? She gulps at the thought, wondering what kind of person she’ll change into, if she even changes into a different kind of person. She’s only known two vampires and they’re both completely different people.

They walk out of campus though the back exit, only for Hinami to be further surprised by the sight before her. The walkway out of the school leads to a split right ahead, entering deeper into a bunch of trees. Touka and Kaneki took the path heading right and Hinami merely follows like a puppy after its owner. It seems like the trees are really just a small clump, rather than another set off woods and going past them, she’s greeted with the sight of a glittering blue lake that stretches out as far beyond the horizon, merely impeded by an island in the middle which seemed to be mainly covered by more woods.

Crossing the bridge, Hinami’s able to see right across to the other side. There’s a similar bridge a short distance away, which she assumes is where the other path from the split earlier leads to. The two bridges were practically alike. The mere difference laid in the gates at the end. While the gate right in front of her had a huge crescent-shaped emblem on it, the other one had a sun.

“We’re headed towards the Moon Dorms,” Kaneki explained as they walked through the gates. “Here’s where the vampires stay in the day before their lessons at night. Hinami-chan, you’ll be living here as well.”

“So you’re gonna take me to my room?” Hinami asks.

“Not, exactly…” Kaneki says. “For now, let’s go to my residence. We have some paper work for you to settle and I’ll explain the school a little better.”

There is a building right ahead of them, but Touka and Kaneki turned to a small path and walked away from it before Hinami can even take a good look at it. At quick glance, it did seem as illustrious as the rest of the school, but she didn’t have enough time to really study it.

She’s led to another building and Hinami’s head swims in the number of buildings she’s seen just that day itself. The campus is far bigger than she had expected it, even from the moment she first stepped into the main building. She wonders how much it had cost for the school to be set up and maintained, but after realizing how wealthy Touka seemed to have been based on  her house, she assumes it’s probably not too impossible a feat for Kaneki and Touka to achieve this.

The new building she’s led to is thankfully smaller and less intimidating. Still, it’s nowhere near the size of her former home. Her house feels like a gardening shed beside all these structures. She’s never really thought of herself as poor or underprivileged. Instead, she’s always thought that her family had been pretty well-to-do. She knows now that she was wrong and that there’s far more wealth in the world in the hands of people who were far above her.

Then again, this is the vampire society, isn’t it? Things are surely different.

“Welcome to my humble home,” Kaneki says as they step in. After Touka’s mansion, Hinami nods in agreement at the statement. Kaneki’s house is cozy and comfortable, much more homely than the extravagant Kirishima mansion was.

Kaneki leads her up the flight of stairs and down a corridor. He pushes open the door at the end, and she’s led into a room that seems to resemble a study. Despite the fact that the lights are turned off, the place is still bright, thanks to the full-length glass windows that line the wall in front of them, letting sunlight stream in to brighten every corner of the room. Kaneki takes a seat at the desk in front of her, reaching below as he rummages through something.

“Hinami-chan, don’t be shy, please take a seat!” he calls out, voice muffled a little from him looking away from her. Touka pushes her forward lightly and she goes to take a seat in one of the two chairs in front of the chair. Kaneki raises his head and pulls out a couple of papers, laying them out in front of her.

“We’ve already filled out the stuff based on what you told us. I hope it’s all correct,” he says. Hinami’s eyes scan the pages, running quickly through familiar words and date. She tries not to think too much as she reads her parents’ names out silently to herself, merely looking up and forcing out a smile, nodding at Kaneki. Kaneki smiles at her. “Great! Well, since you technically need a guardian, I took it upon myself to list myself as it.”

“Huh? Why?” Hinami asks.

“Ah… because Touka-chan told me to,” Kaneki says, looking at the vampires standing right beside Hinami. Hinami turns to her, only to see her scowl at Kaneki before she looks down at Hinami and smiles.

“Well, Hinami, you’re technically still a minor and you’ve been orphaned. The government would see to it that you’ll taken care of normally, but there’s a little problem with your case,” she explains. “You were attacked by a pureblood, not a normal vampire, so the humans can’t hope to deal with it and we rather the news about purebloods not get out as well… Since we don’t want them interfering, we decided to present ourselves as friends of your family and take you in. I hope that’s fine with you?”

Touka’s eyes soften as she spoke. The explanation is vague and Hinami knows that she isn’t being given the full picture here, but she feels she can trust Touka and Kaneki despite not even knowing them. Maybe she’s being naive, but Hinami’s always been a little too easy when it comes to trusting people. Kaneki and Touka were nice to her when she woke up and they were beside her as she cried for her parents. Such nice people can’t possibly have any ulterior motive, can they?

“I’m fine with it. I guess we’re some kind of family now,” Hinami laughs, scratching the back of her head.

“I guess we are. Go ahead and call me your father if you want,” Kaneki jokes, smirking playfully.

“Father…? Aren’t you a little too young for that? You’re more like a big brother,” Hinami points out. Touka and Kaneki exchanged mischievous glances at her statement, before Kaneki chuckles in response.

“I suppose so.”  

“Then… is it okay if I call you Onii-chan?” Hinami asks slowly. She ignores the cheeky looks that continue to hang on Touka and Kaneki’s faces, trying her best not to let them bother her too much.

“You can call me whatever you want that makes you comfortable,” Kaneki says, getting up and walking to a corner, where there seems to be a pantry. “Do you want a drink, Hinami?”

She realises her throat is dry and she nods. As Kaneki pours her a drink, she watches his back, silently repeating their conversation in her head. Onii-chan… Onii-chan… The thought of having a brother beside her seems to make her feel a little lighter, though it makes her think of her previous family a lot more as well. But all she’s ever had were her family and now they’re gone. She’s never had too many friends and she’s never known anyone else. Touka and Kaneki are strangers, but even then, she finds herself wanting to be with them; not wanting to be alone.

“Then… Touka-san… Can I call you Onee-chan as well?” she asks softly, hesitating a little. She doesn’t turn to look at Touka. Instead, her eyes drop from Kaneki’s back to her hands, watching as her fingers fiddle with one another. She hears Touka shuffle slightly and she feels a hand being placed on her shoulder, squeezing it lightly.

“You can call me whatever you want,” she murmurs. “As long as it makes you feel better, I’m fine with it.”

Kaneki returns with a glass of water, bringing it to her and placing it down in front of her. She takes it, thanks him and starts to drink. It hadn’t hit her how thirsty she had been until she starts drinking, but even after she downs the glass, she feels that the thirst had yet to quench and her throat still aches somewhat from wanting more to drink. She swallows her saliva instead, forcing herself to smile at Kaneki.

“Thank you!” She places the glass on the table and Kaneki nods at her, clasping his hands together after he takes his seat back in his place.

“Now, more to serious stuff,” he says. “Hinami-chan, you’re going to be enrolled here, in Anteiku Academy, as a Night Class student, so you’ll be with the vampires. The human students are in the Day Class instead. Your lessons will be at night, so you’ll have to get used to sleeping in the day. Eventually, you’ll prefer this arrangement as well.”

Hinami’s hand finds its place on her neck, lightly rubbing the two holes that is now long gone. She swallows again, mind reeling at the thought of her becoming them again. How many times has she thought about it? Yet she’s still far from accepting it. All these-- it’s too surreal.

“We’re trying to test for co-existence here, but everything is still too early and too new. The vampire’s identity is still a secret. No one knows that the Night Class is made out of vampires as we’ll like to keep it that way. The Day Class is forbidden from wandering into school grounds while the Night Class has their lessons and this extends to the Night Class in daytime as well. It’s absolutely forbidden for you to drink their blood as well,” Kaneki explains.

Drink… Hinami nods as his words but she feels a chill run down her spine. Blood-- it will soon be her nutrient. What is she going to do about that? She can never imagine herself sinking her teeth into the neck of a human. Besides, what do the vampires in the Night Class drink anyway? Since they’re forbidden from drinking the blood of the Day Class students, do they have an alternate source of blood? Maybe they had a vault of human bodies somewhere for them to go to to drink the blood of. Hinami shudders at the thought.

A knock sounds on the door and Hinami jumps slightly, before she turns her head to look backwards.

“Ah, seems like he’s here,” Kaneki says.

Touka raises her eyebrow at him. “Why’d you call my brother here?”

“I thought the Dorm Leader could help her get used to some stuff as well.” Kaneki gets up and heads to the door.

Meanwhile, Hinami is confused. Kaneki had called Touka’s brother a dorm leader and it probably meant that he was in charge of the dorms, but Touka had called him a baby. Hinami arcs her neck, looking behind as she watches Kaneki open the door.

“Ayato-kun! Glad you could come,” Kaneki says. He steps aside for the newcomer to step in and Hinami’s eyes widens. The boy standing by the door is no baby. In fact, he seems to be taller than Kaneki, though his body is leaner and less broad. Even then, Hinami just knew he is well-built.

It’s impossible to deny the resemblance between him and Touka. Touka was right in that sense; he did look just like her. Save for more defined jaws, he looks like a carbon copy of his sister-- the same blue hair, the same dark eyes and the same intense, yet alluring aura that makes it impossible for her to tear her gaze away from him.

“Ayato-kun, this is Hinami-chan, the girl we were telling you about,” Kaneki introduces, gesturing over to her. Ayato eyes her for a moment, before he gives her a slight nod. “Hinami-chan, this is Kirishima Ayato-kun. He’s the Dorm Leader for the Moon Dorm, so you’ll be in his care.”

“Oh… Nice to… meet you,” she says slowly, stammering a little as her voice catches in her throat. She realises she sounds embarrassing and that realisation is enough to turn her attention away from him as she turns around and plops herself back properly onto the chair. Touka lets out a slight chuckle at her reaction and Hinami glances up to her.

“What? Have you fallen in love with him already?” Touka teases and Hinami’s sure her face was bursting into millions of different shades of red.

“No… No… I--”

“I don’t blame you. He has that effect, as expected from a Prince, don’t you think?” Touka chuckles.

“P-Prince?”

“Oh, didn’t we tell you?” Kaneki asks, walking up to her, now holding a paper bag in his hand. Hinami hadn’t seen the bag before so she assumes Ayato must have brought it along with him. Ayato follows behind Kaneki, walking over to stand by the table as Kaneki takes a seat again. “Touka is the Queen of vampires and Ayato’s the Prince. The Kirishimas are the royalty of their society.”

Hinami blinks, staring at Kaneki, then at Touka, Ayato and then back at Kaneki again. Knowing that she’s been associating with vampires is one thing, but realising that vampires aren’t loose monsters running about the darkness of society is another thing; they have their own society, with enough organization and hierarchy that there’s even a monarchy among them.

Is that why the Kirishima mansion is so big? It’s a castle.

“Onee-chan… you--”

“Don’t think too much about it! Here, time to change!” Kaneki cuts in, holding out the bag towards Hinami. She takes it from him and looks in, noticing that there was a set of clothes in there, purely white aside from occasional black lines, which initially looked like stripes but seems to be some other kind of pattern after she had stared at them for a short while. “It’s your uniform. You’re allowed to wear anything you want at your dorms of course, but for class, you’ll be wearing that.”

“Come on, let’s go change,” Touka says. She takes Hinami by the hand and starts pulling her away, leaving Kaneki and Ayato in that room as they leave it and head to another room down the hallway. The room Touka had pulled her into looks like a normal bedroom and while it is a little bigger that her room back at home, it felt more homely than the one back at the Kirishima mansion.

Touka helps her take out the clothes from the bag and lays them down on the bed. The design of the uniform takes her completely by surprised. Now unfolded and smoothened out, the intricate patterns and the distinct color choices were striking. She didn’t need other evidences to show that this really is the uniform of an elite school.

The uniform consisted of a long-sleeved white blouse, a skirt that fans outwards a little more than the usual school skirt does and a heavy-looking jacket. While it did look uncomfortable at first glance, it takes her by surprise when she pulls it on and finds that it actually is really snug to wear. It’s not as stuffy as it looks and the outfit as a whole feels really light and easy to move in. The jacket isn’t as bulky at it had seemed as well. In fact it hugs the midsection of her torso in a manner, not in a sexually appealing manner, but in a manner that is still nice to look at. Touka pulls out a pair of boots and a stockings out of the bag as well and Hinami pulls them on immediately. As she stands to admire herself in the mirror, Touka walks over behind her and reaches forward.

“The final touch,” she says as she pulls on a necklace. The necklace seems to be ordained with the rose-patterned emblem she had seen all over the school-- what she had assumed to be the school’s logo. With that on, Touka shifts a little to admire Hinami’s reflection and a wide smile appears on her face. “You look beautiful.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I think you’ll make a nice bride for Ayato…” As she speaks, she raises her hand to rub her chin playfully, watching as Hinami chokes in response.

“Onee-chan! That is--”

“You were staring at him so much!”

“That’s because I was so surprised. You had said he’s a baby!” Hinami insists. Her eyes fix on Touka’s through the mirror. Touka still has her amused expression on, clearly enjoying Hinami’s reactions.

“He’s only seventeen. We’re purebloods so we’re immortal and we can live for thousands of years,” Touka explains. “Even I am fairly young. If we assume an average pureblood lives up to ten thousand years before they’re killed off somehow, even I’m still a kid. Ayato’s like a human fetus still in its mother’s womb.”

Hinami’s reminded once again what very different kind of creatures they are and once again it hits her that she’s going to be stepping into that world and become just like them. Ayato’s the same age as her, but Hinami’s always been regarded as a young lady on the brink of stepping into adulthood, but Ayato, despite living for the same length as her, is barely even a child.

More questions burn in Hinami’s mind as she thinks about them, but she’s too scared to ask. How old is Touka? Is she far too old for Hinami’s comprehension? Is she at an age Hinami can never accept? She claimed to be young, but she’s old enough to think that a seventeen-year-old is a baby. What’ll happen when Hinami turns? Will she become immortal as well? Is she also doomed to eternal life? Does she have to continue bearing that emptiness in her heart that her parents’ death had left her? She can’t imagine living for no ends.

------

Ayato watches his sister drag out the girl who’s clearly far too confused and has definitely only been fed with half-truths about the whole situation. No, maybe even less than that. He knows his sister and the Headmaster feed him with half-truths, so he bets they had given her half of that-- quarter truths.

The moment Touka and Hinami were out of the room and the door had slammed in their faces, the air takes an immediate change. Ayato turns to Kaneki, who now has his attention on the papers in front of him.

“Do you still want to see Naki and I later?” he asks.

Kaneki doesn’t look up. “Yes, I would like to give you an official briefing as Dorm Leader and his assistant, but for now, Ayato-kun, let me discuss this with you as a former member of the Hunter’s Association with you, the Pureblood Prince.”

Their official places in society-- this must be serious.

Ayato takes a seat in the chair Hinami had just been sitting on, though allowing himself to relax far more than she had. Between the two of them, he’s in a position above Kaneki anyway. He doesn’t have to worry too much about appearances. He leans back into the chair, crosses his legs and rests his arms on the sides. Kaneki looks up at him, staring at him intently, before sighing.

“The Association is to never know of what happened with Hinami. It is a crime for a Pureblood to turn unwilling humans into vampires and such an act can be seen as an act of war against the humankind, especially considering the particular pureblood that did it… though unfortunately, I can’t tell you who it is--”

“Someone from the Yoshimura household?” Ayato cuts in with a random guess. “I don’t know anything about them, but the Old Man left behind some people after he died or something, right?”

“I didn’t say it’s them…”

“You did say an act of war… The only families influential enough for that are the Kirishimas, Yomos and the Yoshimuras. I doubt it’s my uncle who did it. He’s barely left the house,” Ayato points out.

Kaneki grimaces at Ayato’s words, rubbing his temples lightly. “Touka-chan’s gonna kill me.”

“The only person I know from that family is the Old Man though… but he was one for peace so why would his family even do this?”

“Ayato-kun, just because one person thinks in one way, it doesn’t mean everyone agrees with that person. For instance, just because your sister is helping me out in this and she believes wholeheartedly in our cause, do you agree that humans and vampires can live in permanent peace?”  

The case with Hinami is evident enough to prove his own thoughts about the situation. Ayato had never actually thought that way-- there’s too much of a power imbalance for there to be permanent coexistence. He just went with the flow when Touka told him to take on the role as Dorm Leader. In fact, he did it partly because it was the only reason he could use to get out of his house. Touka wouldn’t let him out otherwise, especially after the incident with their parents, Touka’s been too insistent that a Pureblood Prince who’s still learning his powers was probably safer at home.

He’s been a sheltered prince all his life. Even though his parents had been a little more open with him than Touka was subsequently, they had never formally introduced him to the vampire society as well. Of course, it made sense since he was too young when they were killed-- pureblood kids are only introduced when they’re a little older. Even now, he hasn’t had an official introduction to most of the society, though he’s pretty much of age already. Touka had mentioned him to everyone else, but mainly to strengthen the Kirishimas’ hold on power to prevent the society from falling into a power vacuum. She has a younger brother, much younger than her. She doesn’t have her own children or anything, but the Kirishima family line at least has one heir to the throne. That, and the backing of the Yomo clan and the patriarch of the Yoshimura clan back in those days, had managed to reassert Touka’s dominance over the vampires as the Queen.

But while his sister is the lynchpin of their society, one who knows every single dirty bit of gossip and rumor floating about, Ayato’s own world is built upon secrecy and half-truths. He knows nothing about their world aside from the walls of the Kirishima mansion, and now the walls of Anteiku Academy. He’s never met a hunter before, aside from Kaneki who had retired some time back to take the place of Old Man Yoshimura as the Academy’s Headmaster. The only time he’s seen a Level E is when a mob of them were sent to attack their mansion back when he was five. The only aristocrats he know are those in the Night Class. There’s still thousands more out there. He doesn’t even know the family members of those in his class.

It’s likely that even if Kaneki is to tell him the identity of the vampire who bit Hinami, he’ll probably have never heard of the name.

Kaneki tosses something at him and he catches it. The box he had thrown is something Ayato’s seen a thousand times already and as he expected, opening it unveils tons of pills.

“Pass that to Hinami later on. Touka-chan and I need to discuss something so you can take that time to show Hinami around the Moon Dorm. Bring Naki here after you’re done and we’ll talk more,” Kaneki instructs. “I don’t expect Hinami to last really long. In fact, I think she’s already quite thirsty now. She might be turning soon so keep an eye on her.”

“Is that why she’s being admitted into the Night Class directly?”

“Yes. Please take good care of her,” Kaneki instructs. They’ve taken in ex-humans before but even then, this is way too suspicious. Kaneki continues staring at him with an authoritative look and Ayato finds himself narrowing his eyes in challenge.

“Is there something else that I should know about this?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Ayato-kun, if you’re trying to use you pureblood magic on me, it won’t work. I might be almost like a vampire, but I am still essentially human,” Kaneki says, dropping his formality with a more playful disposition that almost resembles Touka herself. It might seem cheeky, but Ayato notes a trend between these two-- the tendency to hide their secrecy under such fronts. There’s more to Hinami’s case than a mere fear of the vampire hunters and humans seeing this as an act of war-- something strong enough to drive Kaneki and Touka, especially the vampire Queen Touka, into direct action.

But unfortunately, before he can question anything else, a knock sounds on the door.

“Ah, that must be Touka and Hinami,” Kaneki chuckles, making it far too obvious that he’s relieved from the their appearance. “I guess this brings our conversation to an  end, Ayato-kun. Do show Hinami to the Moon Dorms and help her familiarise herself with the place. Keep an eye on her as well. I’ll see you and Naki in about an hour and a half.”

-----

He leads her through the Moon Dorms’ garden, the trees around them shivering under the soft breeze passing through them while both of them walked on the brick tiles leading up to something that looks more like a mansion than any dormitory she has ever had the luck to lay eyes on. The blue roof is pointed and tall, looming over those who dare enter the building. Its walls were made of pure grey stone, looking as if it was carved, carefully made so that there will be no roughness detectable.

It reminded Hinami of a simpler version of a Cathedral, those buildings who towered the believers that came to worship God, all in the mindset that God is above those believers, and that they should be scared of him just as much as adore him when they’re under his wing. She wondered if this building had the same purpose, almost. It would be immensely hypocritical of a school that promotes balance but in the end… Isn’t it right, that humans are under the vampires’ mercy?

Holding the edges of her pure white skirt nervously, Hinami glanced up at Ayato. He didn’t seem like a bad person, from what she saw and currently seeing. His sister was very nice to her as well, and their blood relation was clear from their facial features. Maybe she could hope it was the same case with him. He didn’t speak with her much while they walked, but she barely spoke a word herself, so she couldn’t judge him for that.

Still… He was a vampire prince, a pureblood much like the one that bit her. Sometimes the wound area stings, brings her memories of that night. She can almost remember the feeling of those fangs plunging beyond her skin, tearing through the vein that held her blood. She brought her fingers to the wound, touching the rough patch of skin that only lately recovered fully as if to block the outside world from it.

“We are here.” Ayato tells her, snapping her out of her thoughts. They were standing in front of two visible pillars that were a few of the base foundations of the building itself, and were the start of an outside hall that led to a big wooden door in its ending, the main entrance of the building itself. “The others are more than likely sleeping, some might be roaming around the dorm… It’s been a while, since somebody new joined. Don’t mind them if they seem too closed off.”

She nods at him, though her eyes fall back to the floor quickly afterwards. Her stomach is churning and she feels slightly sick. Ever since she was young she was more on the shy side, but right now, she’s facing her fears at the same time she dives into a new beginning. It’s terrifying, and she tries not to be stiff, especially not in front of Ayato who didn’t do anything to offend her, but it’s hard to think that behind those two giant doors there are vampires lurking, vampires that she’d have to live with, vampires that will in the end of the day, are the same as what she’s going to become.

Ayato’s lips stay in a tight line. Her muscles were tense and her heartbeat quickened its pace. It wasn’t hard to tell that she was scared, if not terrified at the thought of entering this dorm. Touka told him it was a traumatic experience for her, when that pureblood tore through her house. It would be for the better, if he helps her with the rest. “I’ll introduce you to all of them, alright? They need to start waking up soon, anyway.”

Hinami’s still nervous, but her eyes crinkle as she smiles at the gesture. “Alright. Thank you, Ayato-kun.” She says. She hopes it's okay to call him by his first name, all she wants is to try and be friendly. She watches his expression carefully, and though his eyes widen a little for a few short seconds, he doesn’t say anything about it.

“No problem… Let’s get in.” He turns his back to her, walking towards the door. She’s a few steps behind him, still hesitant but aware of the fact that right now, she has no choice. Ayato grabs the metallic, rectangle shaped handles in front of him, and the doors opened with a creak that echoed across the main hall.

Hinami is a bit awestruck. If from the outside the place looks like a mansion, the inside looks like a castle, something out of a movie. There were two staircases, both wide and heavily decorated at each side of the room, reflecting each other as if one were a mirror of the other. In the middle of it, expensive looking sofas stood, surrounding a wooden short table. Rugs and hand crafted clocks were carefully placed, and the entire huge hall was giving the feeling of a fancy living room.

It was almost saddening to think this hall alone was bigger than her former house even when it wasn’t shredded to pieces, like it is now. But no mind to the sad thoughts that still lingered, she was slack-jawed. There was an eerie beauty to the building, all the lights dimmed except those of the sun, trying to peek through the curtains, and its extravagant entrance didn’t leave room to doubt why a vampire prince resides here.

A while passes before Hinami realizes that Ayato has been staring at her, a small grin on his face. She averts her eyes from him, biting her lips at the stupid display she had put on. She eased up a little after seeing nobody new in her range of vision, but she should have known to control her expressions near people she just met.

“Hooguro, Shousei, I know you are there. Come out already.” Ayato suddenly says, and Hinami practically whips her head to where he directed his head to. Two blond men, one rugged with visible scar on his eye and another with an oddly similar haircut to the one Touka is sporting appeared, coming out of left hallway. Their eyes were squinted at her, examining and judging.

“Ayato-kun…?” She looks at him, a bit unsure of how to approach either of them – one seemed awfully intimidating, tall with sharp facial features. His arms were crossed and he didn’t look welcoming at all. The other had a bit of a wicked smirk on his face, his eyes fixated on her as if trying to stare her down. Well, until she talked at least, and he decided to frown. Hinami felt anxiety spreading down her body.

“Hinami, these two are Hooguro and Shousei Idera. They’re a part of the Night Class. Shousei, Hooguro, this is Fueguchi Hinami and she’s going to join the class.” He said, frank in his words. The two men looked between each other, exchanging unsure, and may she say, slightly dismayed looks.

Hinami swallowed as she felt Ayato looking at her back, expecting her to say something. She wringed her hands together and stepped forward. “Uh… Hello, Hooguro-san, Shousei-san.” She offered, bowing slightly. Both men tilted their head. She wondered if had done something wrong. Did she come across as weird?

“Ayato-sama, isn’t she being a bit too ru-“ One of them, Hooguro, tries to talk, but Ayato cuts him midway through.  

“No. Go wake up Naki, he knows he needs to be up earlier today. Tell him to come see me.” He says, authority present in his voice. He’s definitely the dorm’s leader, Hinami thinks. To think how both of them just scurry away under his command…

Both of them are out of the room, and Ayato sighs to himself. Hinami is unsure of the situation at hand, but she doesn’t ask. If she did something wrong, he would have probably pointed it out anyway. He certainly showed the confidence to call someone out moments ago. “Let’s move on. I’ll show you the other parts of the dorm.” They start moving through the building, and Hinami leans in as he basically maps the spacious dorm for her.

“The left side is the boys’ rooms area. The right one is the girls’.” He gestures to each hallway with his hands, and she looks both sides. “Your room will be upstairs to the right side. Most people have roommates, but you lucked out. I’ll take you there in a bit. But first there are more general places you need to see.” He then starts walking towards one of the staircases, and Hinami quickly follows his lead.

Behind the first large door they come across, Hinami finds out there is a library, big and filled from floor to ceiling with bookshelves that seemed so packed there were barely any spaces between the books they were holding. Hinami could at least see herself confide in this area, although it was a quite dusty compared to the other rooms. As if less used.

Despite wanting to stay a bit more, to look through all the sections and see what she can find, she reminds herself Ayato isn’t here to watch her admire their library. He’s here to show her the place she’s going to live in for a very long time. She follows him out, though her head still turn to look back, before the door closes. She doesn’t know it, but Ayato saw her excited gaze. In his heart, he’s glad that she at least found something nice in here.

They walk near a window, framed with silver metal. He stops near it, and she almost bumps into him, but she steps back in time. “Look out of the window.” He tells her, knocking on the glass lightly with the back of his fingers. She turns her head, looking at the outside. There is a back garden there, and Hinami could recognize so many beautiful flowers there. Amaryllises, anemones, carnations, roses, even gardenias.

Her hands and face stick to the glass, trying take a better glimpse, and Ayato snorts. “That’s the actual flower garden we have here. We have a staff that takes care of it. It’s usually a free spot, if you want to go there. The rest don’t really like to be outside when you can actually see the flowers.” He added factually.

“Thank you for letting me know, Ayato-kun!” She gushed. She always liked gardens – both her and her mother had their own little garden in the backyard, at the time. Even if she isn’t the one planting the seeds, it would still be nice, to have her own little greenhouse here as well. After her eyes lingered a bit more on the beautifully organized garden, she turned, her skirt twirling with her, looking at him a bit more lightheartedly than before. “Let’s go!”

“Uh, alright.” He replied, unsure of how to approach the situation. She had seemed to have calmed down almost completely by now. Her heart pace was stable, from what he could hear, and instead of walking slumped and withdrawn, she stood tall in joy.

If it’ll help her introduction to go smoothly, he guessed it’s only for the better.

He started walking, and with no time they both found themselves in the dorm’s kitchen. Hinami was puzzled. Ever since she was a child, she had heard vampire feed on blood, blood, and well… blood. Maybe she could recall a few novels that included them eating human flesh, but… there is no need of a kitchen filled with caviar or roast beef or whatever types those seven jars of ice cream were in the freezer. She turned her head to Ayato, tilting it, and he could have sworn he had seen question marks in her eyes.

“We can eat things that aren’t blood. It doesn’t satisfy the thirst, but we are still able to eat them, anyway.” He explained, and she released an almost inaudible ‘oh’. He could catch from the corner of his eye how her lips tightened. Not a lot of turned vampires can process the thought of food not satisfying them at first, so it’s hardly surprising to see her distraught at the thought of a meal. Of what she’ll have to actually feed on.

There is silence between them. It fills up the room, making them both feel slightly uncomfortable. There’s a question lingering on her mind that is insistent on bothering her, making her feel guilt for crimes she did not commit. There’s a question lingering on his mind that makes him worry for what will happen to both her and the dorm, the people she can accidentally hurt.

What am I going to do?

What are you going to do?

Ayato shakes his head. The tablets would have to be enough. If she can take them, it’ll be fine. She won’t turn to a Level E.

“Ayato-sama!” Both of them turn around to look at two people entering the kitchen. One blond man, just like the two other men before, and the other a short woman, with a rather strange reddish-brown hairstyle. The man struts into the kitchen, with some sort of a gangster walk. His back was slumped and his feet pointing outwardly as he stepped. Against him, the woman walked in a perfect line, her back straightened with her hands behind her back.

“Naki, you remember we two have to go out earlier to talk with Kaneki, right?” He reminded. Naki nodded excitedly, his white, toothy smile appearing on his face. Hinami almost giggles, but stops herself. Nonetheless, Naki’s eyes still shift to her.

“Who’s the girl?” He asks, as if she wasn’t there since the beginning.

“Naki, Miza, this is Fueguchi Hinami and she’s going to join the night class.” He answers, and they looked at her curiously, the woman – Miza, apparently, has her eyes narrowed, but both of them don’t look too malicious. Actually, even despite the squinted eyes, Miza is very pretty, just like how Naki’s features are incredibly charming.

Already bowed down, Hinami attempts to be as polite as possible, so what happened before half an hour or so won’t repeat itself. “It’s nice to meet you, Miza-san, Naki-san.” She said, only to lift her head and see they seemed more embarrassed than anything about it all. Naki scratched his head while Miza looked at her as if she’s trying to figure her out.

She bit the inside of her cheek, shifting her eyes to Ayato instead. “Ayato-kun, should I apologize or….?” She asked, worried that she may have done something idiotic. Naki suddenly grimaced, and Miza pressed her lips together. The tension was thick in the air.

Ayato was close to tell them off before one more person appeared.

“You know, it’s pretty rude to lower the status of a pureblood like that. ‘Kun’? You want to get slapped, or something?” A man with white, messy hair that matched his ill-fitting white uniform. He skipped towards her, stopping when his face is inches from hers. She trips back, and he laughs, almost manically.

“Takizawa, fuck off.” Ayato hissed, stepping in front of him. Takizawa Seidou was a human turned vampire, just like Hinami was, or at least, going to be – however, he was never fully sane after he was bitten. There was little that he hadn’t experienced in terms of torturing, and his hatred grew to insanity long before he was able to reclaim his life by biting the pureblood who changed him. Despite being C Level vampire, he was usually worse than an E Level.

Especially when it came to Ayato, or any other pureblood, for that matter. He was a survivor made out of spite – and that caused him to more than often lash out on Ayato, as the closest pureblood he could reach to.

“What now, little Prince? You all have us calling you Ayato-sama, but the moment a pretty girl walks in you’d give her extra privileges? A bit unfair, if you ask me.” He teased, with his nicest shit eating grin. Within seconds Ayato’s hand clutched Takizawa’s face, nails digging through his scalp, ready to break it on a nearby wall. Naki came and interfered, breaking the fight off.

Hinami could barely breathe as she watched the scene unfolding in front of her. She heard Naki trying to calm Ayato down and Takizawa laughing out loud as if he had just heard the funniest joke in his life, and it occurred to her – she knows nothing about how to deal with things like that. She didn’t even know there was a problem with the suffix, she was just trying to be friendly. How could she handle situations like these? I won’t be able to…

“We’ll talk about this later. Kaneki will handle you.” Ayato announced, his hand covering his eyes, avoiding Takizawa’s face that he knew oh so well was still in the same smirk it was before, still gloating happily as if he won the lottery.

Takizawa sighed in exaggeration, acting like he was upset before bursting into laughter again. “Whatever. I see him every other day anyway, I’m sure he already got used to it. Bye missy! Hope you are ready to when he shows his real fangs!” He yelled towards Hinami, skipping away from the kitchen.

Hinami was beyond appalled. You could even say she was shaken, from how she was frozen in her spot.

Ayato sighed. So much for the introduction to go smoothly. He couldn’t even stay, he already had to go to the meeting with Kaneki, which he would have to report Takizawa on as well… His mind was a mess. “Miza, take Hinami to that one free room and the girl’s section. Naki and I need to go already.”

Miza looked like she wanted to complain, but she sucked it up. “Fine.” She took a hold of Hinami’s wrist, shaking her a little, so she would wake up from her trance. “Let’s go already. I still have stuff to do before school starts.”

Hinami glanced at Ayato. Miza still didn’t seem to like her much. He nodded at her, before finally leaving the room with Naki. Miza rolled her eyes and simply started walking, Hinami following behind in small but quick steps.

Her eyes were at the ground – she knew she wouldn’t fit here. She wanted to break down and cry and go back to her parents, but she had nowhere to go. She bit her lips, trying to concentrate on anything else but the events, to avoid any more embarrassment and failure that wish to follow her.

Miza, looking back at her, almost felt like she was watching a kicked puppy. She noticed her touching her neck, covering it... She’d even say shielding it, in a way. It wasn’t that hard to figure out why she’s here now. She was clearly at loss here. A lost child that was forced into a life they didn’t want.

Maybe she could spare her some wise words, while they’re still walking.

“Listen up.” Miza began, grabbing Hinami’s attention.

“In the vampire world, there is a hierarchy. You have to follow it. This is non-negotiable, if you want to stay on good terms with all of us. Ayato-sama, as you should call him, is at the top. He’s a prince. The suffix is important, you cannot leave it out.” She lectures her, and Hinami takes mental notes, even as she’s sniffling a little.

“The next in line are people like me and Naki. Aristocrats. Calling us how you did is fine. We have considerably pure blood, but not fully pure like purebloods. If we tell you that you can call us otherwise, then it’s okay to call us that in public too. Again, this does not extend to purebloods.” She continues, and Hinami is already grasping the concept. She gets it.

“And then we get to turned vampires. Yes, like you. Level C to E. Takizawa is one too. He’s level C. You are the bottom of the chain, so don’t expect much from higher ups – they don’t like messing with you bunch much. You will usually simply be called by whatever name the higher ranked vampire wants to call you. I’m calling you Fueguchi, from now on, as an example.” Hinami nodded at the name. Fueguchi is fine. Better than what she could have expected after what happened.

“Now, there’s more to all of it, but I don’t have the time to explain it. If you have any questions, you are free to come and ask me. Also, here’s your room.” Miza finishes, and gestures towards the door they now stood beside.

Hinami opens the door, to reveal a beautiful, spacious room, with silk curtains hanged and silk sheets on a big, fancy bed she could only dream the princesses she reads about in fairytales have. She has everything she needs here, a closet, a work table, nightstands and bookshelves. The wallpaper was dark royal blue and Hinami gawked at how prettily all the things in front of her combined.

“Glad you at least like your room.” She offers, letting the corner of her mouth twitch up, even if only slightly. “I’ll be going now.” Miza is already ready to leave, but Hinami holds onto the edge of her white jacket.

“What?” She asks, a bit shocked Hinami actually had the courage to pull on her jacket.

“Thank you, Miza-san.” She answers, letting go of Miza’s clothes, her hand shyly falling back to it’s place.

Miza let’s herself stare at her, for a few moments longer, her eyes traveling to her neck – to the wound. “No problem, I guess. But just so you know, it’ll only get harder from here on.”

[ideadudes-blog1]

7 Steps To FINANCIAL FREEDOM & INDEPENDENCE For Millennials & Students!

Being young and starting out in life is a little scary. We have all been there. Myself that was a little while back. No it was not before the dinosaurs roamed the earth or when Adam and Eve were created. But, I am not a spring chicken. But, one thing that I did realize growing up is that time flies. So, you need to be prepared for the future. If you are not then it will bite you in the assets. So, where do you get started , when do you get started, these are the questions that need to be answered. In this article I will point out some of the things that you can do to get started the right way. You are the next generation and the pride of the future. Make us proud. Mindset Discontinue your fascination about the doom and gloom and start fascinated by the options, begin thinking about what you could create for yourself. Even though it can be only something really small, doing it given that as you do it you see the outcome you see how powerful and persons who you might be. Even have a fairly good think about your attitude on the subject of spending. My money mantra is handiest purchase what you love, value, use and appreciate. Building wealth has surely nothing to do with how a lot you earn however what you do with what you earn. Don't get me wrong I like a luxury purchase. Nevertheless, I do it inside a balanced process. I prioritize my economic objectives and my monetary successes earlier than I am going and reward with some extravagant high-priced purchase. Have a fiscal snapshot You have to comprehend where you stand financially proper now. So, open up your Excel spreadsheet and write down cutting-edge date and write down your whole belongings, all of your liabilities and the way much passive income you earn. Now, whilst you first begin doing this it would seem very small. Now not much to place into the Excel spreadsheet however as you see as time goes with the aid of and you frequently replace this Excel spreadsheet, you will see that you're absolutely getting wealthier and wealthier and due to the fact that you can see that growth you can be more influenced and extra committed and related to growing these numbers. So on the subject of what you place in that Excel spreadsheet. I'm fairly sorry, it doesn't comprise cars, depreciating property, even those luxurious purchases like a fashion designer purse. It's actual monetary property So you'll write down your retirement savings reminiscent of your 401k plan or your superannuation account. You'll write down any money savings that you've any investments that you might own like shares or term deposits and even property or bonds. Put them down on this Excel spreadsheet and add them up. On the other column in the Excel spreadsheet you write down your whole liabilities. So any credit card debt that you just might possess, any scholar debt that you just would have, any investment loans or mortgages. Write down these numbers and add all of them up. This will then enable you to create a net determine. This is the place you are taking the belongings and deduct the liabilities. It'll provide you with a internet wealth better and as I mentioned, ensure you set down trendy date. In the third column, I want you to write down how a lot passive earnings you earn. On the moment it probably zero, but that's something we're going to study to construct by means of gazing my videos and being subscribed to this channel. Now, examples of passive earnings you might earn it things like earning curiosity off bank bills you might only be $1 per thirty days that they earn in interest and that is okay considering the fact that I'm going to show you how to construct it. We're going to rather flip up the quantity for your passive income due to the fact that's the key foundation to actual financial independence and protection. Now, whenever something alterations on your trouble or even each month, go into that excel spreadsheet and replace it evaluation it. See what is working and notice what's growing. Possibly your organization is hanging more cash into your superannuation. Account might be you are paying off these credit card debts. Now, as I said review and replace this Excel spreadsheet on a general basis. It's a little bit like reducing weight or going on a health plan. Whilst you soar on the scale, you will discover exactly how much you weigh and that's manner that you would be able to set the targets as to how so much weight you want to truly free. Now, while you see that weight coming down. You're feeling extra inclined and extra influenced extra sticking to the food regimen, the endeavor plan on account that you will find it can be really working. This is exactly the same precept in relation to that wealth spreadsheet. You will see that you are surely getting wealthier. You will find that economic safety is realistic and you can see how powerful and able you might be.   Have the Finances Having the finances just isn't about being restrictive or depriving yourself or being imply. It is simply with ease about having spending boundaries so that you do not go and blow all that money and get up at some point and go woah, where is all my cash long gone? That isn't what we wish to do. We wish to sincerely use our money and spin it and invest it and put it aside accurately earlier than it all goes and when you have the finances you could genuinely put within the finances your fiscal ambitions. So say for illustration, you will have an intention to save lots of up thirty thousand greenbacks for a deposit for your first house. For your budget you set in a regular financial savings plan so that you are making it sincerely happen. Set monetary ambitions You need to have fiscal pursuits which might be brief, medium and long term. They must be distinctive. So you need to say to yourself. I need to construct up a passive revenue of $100,000 per yr or I want to buy an investment property worth $300,000. You must have a numerical small print in your fiscal goals and must be competent to articulate them. So in case you bump into me in the street and come to a decision to come back as much as say hello, which I would love.

I need to hear what your friendship goal is. I would like you to turn up and say good day Michael I read your article on Biz Owner Survival Guide, my economic goal is to get rid of my $10,000 credit card debt through January 2021. I need to hear exactly how so much and with the aid of what time limit because it makes you responsible. Places a lie on the stand and you understand that point is ticking so you'll pull your finger out and make matters occur. So that intention has got to have it in quantity and it has to have a cut-off date. On no account say in three months time or in six months' time because you are normally pushing that intention into the long run. Supply your self up a relatively strict closing date so that you just work towards it at all times. These short and medium-term targets can also be daily and month-to-month, quarterly and with the aid of yearly and annually. Make certain that they're all in line with every different. So that you your whole short-time period targets are positively aligned to the fulfillment of the massive photograph intention. I love that announcing we perpetually overestimate what we can do in sooner or later, however we underestimate what we can acquire in a single yr. Through breaking one gigantic intention into little chunk-sized mini manageable and viable pursuits just like the ideas of a thousand dollar mission. That is how we get stuff performed. That is how we develop. That is how we succeed. Coach yourself Ensure you're reading books and listening to podcasts on Success Stories. One of the first books that you should read is "Think and Grow Rich". It was written in the 1920's but all of the Billionaires have read it. There are so many other books that you can read by well known authors. Get your head out of the TV and the computer. This is extremely most important. You have to be feeding your brains with you fully grasp what cash is. How cash work, the right way to use money, the best way to spend money, find out how to invest money and find out how to grow cash. Read some of my other articles on my blog. They have tips and tricks about finance and business. We share pointers and tricks and each week I speak about books that I am studying. I share with you other key features about these books. It's an incredibly connected and powerful crew where we're all helping each and every other acquire our financial objectives due to the fact we're making each different accountable. Do it Stop talking about it and just do it. You can plan all day but until you actually do it, nothing get's done. Don't be afraid of failing. Failing is all about learning. You may not want to hear it but the most successful people failed before they accomplished anything. Take Abraham Lincoln, he failed every time that he ran for office except the President of the United States. Do you use a light bulb or a lamp? Of course you do. Do you know that Thomas Edison failed 10,000 times before succeeding. I am glad that he did not give up or we would not have lights. What about the Wright Brothers, do you think they succeeded on the first time with inventing flight? No way. Don't take it from me. Do you research ,but don't just read about it. Do it. Nike has the famous saying "Just Do it". Well start listening. That is how I get forward financially. So discontinue the entire chatter on your mind speaking to your family your acquaintances about your goals and your passions. That used to be satisfactory however tell them what you might be truly doing rather than what you are going to do. Make silence be your success. Simply get out and start doing it and as you do it you are going to inspire different persons to keep doing it as well. So ensure you keep people up to date on what you have been doing considering it's significantly strong and magical.

Start Investing Of direction, it's principal to save and store up for these big monetary ambitions, like buying your home paying, off your debt those don't seem to be really fundamental, however once you've gotten achieved that start investing start constructing lengthy-time period passive income streams. There are different ways that you can start investing. One of the principles that you should learn is the principle of 72. Divide the interest rate into 72 and this will give you how many years your money will double. Take if you are 22 years old. If you were to take $25 and invest it each month for 10 years how much would you have? You would have $3000 right? Wrong you would have a lot more. Depending on the interest rate that you have will determine how much you would earn. Can you put aside $25? Sure you can, just give up a meal at McDonalds or a movie once a month. Let's figure how much you would have in the account. Say, hypothetically you had found an account that paid 6% interest (money market account). You take 72 divide it by 6 and that is 12. So, your money will double in 12 years. Let's make this interesting. Say, you were able to earn an additional $1000 a month above your regular job. Take that money and invest it. At the end of the year you would have $12,000 saved. Now let that set for 10 years. Guess what you would have. $24,146 would be in your account. Let that sit for 30 years. You would have $72,585 in the bank. If you have $12,000 you could probably get 12%. I can show you investments that have paid over that. You would have $428,919.22. Say, we put away $120,000 in 10 years. Let that set for 30 years. Who wants to be a millionaire. How about $4,389,192. It is not about how much you invest but consistency. You have the ability to start now , while you are young. The question is where can I find the extra income. Well you could go and borrow money from a bank. That is not likely to happen. You could go back to school and get another degree. Well that will cost you the $120,000 that you wanted to invest. You could buy a franchise but then you will be working 80 or more to make that $120,000 plus have employees and more liability. Another option is to find a part-time gig and work to make that $1,000 a month for investment. I have done that as I was growing up but did not take all of my advice. I found a company that I could work 10 hours a week and make an additional $1,000 or more per month. If you are interested in learning how, then click on this link Extra Income. Do you research and you will find something that meets your passion. But just Do It. The bottom line is when it comes to investing. Be smart. Do you research. Find advisors that can help you make educated decisions. Build an income that is residual and also passive. Enjoy your younger years but don't forget about the future. When you think. Do I need another car? Do I really need that new pair of sneakers ($200)? How much will I loose if I buy it now? Just think financially smart. Don't do what our generation has done and buy another house or car. Put money away so that you can retire early and enjoy the rest of your life. The only think that we cannot get back in life is time. So, don't waste it. By the way, ask for help. Your parents have already done this before, so they know what is coming. Think before you act. You can always reach out to me for answers to your questions. I may not know all of the answers but I can lead you to those that do. Henry Ford was told the one time "You do not know anything about motors". He said "I don't need to that is what I pay these people to know." You need to surround yourself with a mastermind. People that you know and trust that know more than you do. That is the last point of success. Read the full article

[ideadudes-blog1]

7 Steps To FINANCIAL FREEDOM & INDEPENDENCE For Millennials & Students!

Being young and starting out in life is a little scary. We have all been there. Myself that was a little while back. No it was not before the dinosaurs roamed the earth or when Adam and Eve were created. But, I am not a spring chicken. But, one thing that I did realize growing up is that time flies. So, you need to be prepared for the future. If you are not then it will bite you in the assets. So, where do you get started , when do you get started, these are the questions that need to be answered. In this article I will point out some of the things that you can do to get started the right way. You are the next generation and the pride of the future. Make us proud. Mindset Discontinue your fascination about the doom and gloom and start fascinated by the options, begin thinking about what you could create for yourself. Even though it can be only something really small, doing it given that as you do it you see the outcome you see how powerful and persons who you might be. Even have a fairly good think about your attitude on the subject of spending. My money mantra is handiest purchase what you love, value, use and appreciate. Building wealth has surely nothing to do with how a lot you earn however what you do with what you earn. Don't get me wrong I like a luxury purchase. Nevertheless, I do it inside a balanced process. I prioritize my economic objectives and my monetary successes earlier than I am going and reward with some extravagant high-priced purchase. Have a fiscal snapshot You have to comprehend where you stand financially proper now. So, open up your Excel spreadsheet and write down cutting-edge date and write down your whole belongings, all of your liabilities and the way much passive income you earn. Now, whilst you first begin doing this it would seem very small. Now not much to place into the Excel spreadsheet however as you see as time goes with the aid of and you frequently replace this Excel spreadsheet, you will see that you're absolutely getting wealthier and wealthier and due to the fact that you can see that growth you can be more influenced and extra committed and related to growing these numbers. So on the subject of what you place in that Excel spreadsheet. I'm fairly sorry, it doesn't comprise cars, depreciating property, even those luxurious purchases like a fashion designer purse. It's actual monetary property So you'll write down your retirement savings reminiscent of your 401k plan or your superannuation account. You'll write down any money savings that you've any investments that you might own like shares or term deposits and even property or bonds. Put them down on this Excel spreadsheet and add them up. On the other column in the Excel spreadsheet you write down your whole liabilities. So any credit card debt that you just might possess, any scholar debt that you just would have, any investment loans or mortgages. Write down these numbers and add all of them up. This will then enable you to create a net determine. This is the place you are taking the belongings and deduct the liabilities. It'll provide you with a internet wealth better and as I mentioned, ensure you set down trendy date. In the third column, I want you to write down how a lot passive earnings you earn. On the moment it probably zero, but that's something we're going to study to construct by means of gazing my videos and being subscribed to this channel. Now, examples of passive earnings you might earn it things like earning curiosity off bank bills you might only be $1 per thirty days that they earn in interest and that is okay considering the fact that I'm going to show you how to construct it. We're going to rather flip up the quantity for your passive income due to the fact that's the key foundation to actual financial independence and protection. Now, whenever something alterations on your trouble or even each month, go into that excel spreadsheet and replace it evaluation it. See what is working and notice what's growing. Possibly your organization is hanging more cash into your superannuation. Account might be you are paying off these credit card debts. Now, as I said review and replace this Excel spreadsheet on a general basis. It's a little bit like reducing weight or going on a health plan. Whilst you soar on the scale, you will discover exactly how much you weigh and that's manner that you would be able to set the targets as to how so much weight you want to truly free. Now, while you see that weight coming down. You're feeling extra inclined and extra influenced extra sticking to the food regimen, the endeavor plan on account that you will find it can be really working. This is exactly the same precept in relation to that wealth spreadsheet. You will see that you are surely getting wealthier. You will find that economic safety is realistic and you can see how powerful and able you might be.   Have the Finances Having the finances just isn't about being restrictive or depriving yourself or being imply. It is simply with ease about having spending boundaries so that you do not go and blow all that money and get up at some point and go woah, where is all my cash long gone? That isn't what we wish to do. We wish to sincerely use our money and spin it and invest it and put it aside accurately earlier than it all goes and when you have the finances you could genuinely put within the finances your fiscal ambitions. So say for illustration, you will have an intention to save lots of up thirty thousand greenbacks for a deposit for your first house. For your budget you set in a regular financial savings plan so that you are making it sincerely happen. Set monetary ambitions You need to have fiscal pursuits which might be brief, medium and long term. They must be distinctive. So you need to say to yourself. I need to construct up a passive revenue of $100,000 per yr or I want to buy an investment property worth $300,000. You must have a numerical small print in your fiscal goals and must be competent to articulate them. So in case you bump into me in the street and come to a decision to come back as much as say hello, which I would love.

I need to hear what your friendship goal is. I would like you to turn up and say good day Michael I read your article on Biz Owner Survival Guide, my economic goal is to get rid of my $10,000 credit card debt through January 2021. I need to hear exactly how so much and with the aid of what time limit because it makes you responsible. Places a lie on the stand and you understand that point is ticking so you'll pull your finger out and make matters occur. So that intention has got to have it in quantity and it has to have a cut-off date. On no account say in three months time or in six months' time because you are normally pushing that intention into the long run. Supply your self up a relatively strict closing date so that you just work towards it at all times. These short and medium-term targets can also be daily and month-to-month, quarterly and with the aid of yearly and annually. Make certain that they're all in line with every different. So that you your whole short-time period targets are positively aligned to the fulfillment of the massive photograph intention. I love that announcing we perpetually overestimate what we can do in sooner or later, however we underestimate what we can acquire in a single yr. Through breaking one gigantic intention into little chunk-sized mini manageable and viable pursuits just like the ideas of a thousand dollar mission. That is how we get stuff performed. That is how we develop. That is how we succeed. Coach yourself Ensure you're reading books and listening to podcasts on Success Stories. One of the first books that you should read is "Think and Grow Rich". It was written in the 1920's but all of the Billionaires have read it. There are so many other books that you can read by well known authors. Get your head out of the TV and the computer. This is extremely most important. You have to be feeding your brains with you fully grasp what cash is. How cash work, the right way to use money, the best way to spend money, find out how to invest money and find out how to grow cash. Read some of my other articles on my blog. They have tips and tricks about finance and business. We share pointers and tricks and each week I speak about books that I am studying. I share with you other key features about these books. It's an incredibly connected and powerful crew where we're all helping each and every other acquire our financial objectives due to the fact we're making each different accountable. Do it Stop talking about it and just do it. You can plan all day but until you actually do it, nothing get's done. Don't be afraid of failing. Failing is all about learning. You may not want to hear it but the most successful people failed before they accomplished anything. Take Abraham Lincoln, he failed every time that he ran for office except the President of the United States. Do you use a light bulb or a lamp? Of course you do. Do you know that Thomas Edison failed 10,000 times before succeeding. I am glad that he did not give up or we would not have lights. What about the Wright Brothers, do you think they succeeded on the first time with inventing flight? No way. Don't take it from me. Do you research ,but don't just read about it. Do it. Nike has the famous saying "Just Do it". Well start listening. That is how I get forward financially. So discontinue the entire chatter on your mind speaking to your family your acquaintances about your goals and your passions. That used to be satisfactory however tell them what you might be truly doing rather than what you are going to do. Make silence be your success. Simply get out and start doing it and as you do it you are going to inspire different persons to keep doing it as well. So ensure you keep people up to date on what you have been doing considering it's significantly strong and magical.

Start Investing Of direction, it's principal to save and store up for these big monetary ambitions, like buying your home paying, off your debt those don't seem to be really fundamental, however once you've gotten achieved that start investing start constructing lengthy-time period passive income streams. There are different ways that you can start investing. One of the principles that you should learn is the principle of 72. Divide the interest rate into 72 and this will give you how many years your money will double. Take if you are 22 years old. If you were to take $25 and invest it each month for 10 years how much would you have? You would have $3000 right? Wrong you would have a lot more. Depending on the interest rate that you have will determine how much you would earn. Can you put aside $25? Sure you can, just give up a meal at McDonalds or a movie once a month. Let's figure how much you would have in the account. Say, hypothetically you had found an account that paid 6% interest (money market account). You take 72 divide it by 6 and that is 12. So, your money will double in 12 years. Let's make this interesting. Say, you were able to earn an additional $1000 a month above your regular job. Take that money and invest it. At the end of the year you would have $12,000 saved. Now let that set for 10 years. Guess what you would have. $24,146 would be in your account. Let that sit for 30 years. You would have $72,585 in the bank. If you have $12,000 you could probably get 12%. I can show you investments that have paid over that. You would have $428,919.22. Say, we put away $120,000 in 10 years. Let that set for 30 years. Who wants to be a millionaire. How about $4,389,192. It is not about how much you invest but consistency. You have the ability to start now , while you are young. The question is where can I find the extra income. Well you could go and borrow money from a bank. That is not likely to happen. You could go back to school and get another degree. Well that will cost you the $120,000 that you wanted to invest. You could buy a franchise but then you will be working 80 or more to make that $120,000 plus have employees and more liability. Another option is to find a part-time gig and work to make that $1,000 a month for investment. I have done that as I was growing up but did not take all of my advice. I found a company that I could work 10 hours a week and make an additional $1,000 or more per month. If you are interested in learning how, then click on this link Extra Income. Do you research and you will find something that meets your passion. But just Do It. The bottom line is when it comes to investing. Be smart. Do you research. Find advisors that can help you make educated decisions. Build an income that is residual and also passive. Enjoy your younger years but don't forget about the future. When you think. Do I need another car? Do I really need that new pair of sneakers ($200)? How much will I loose if I buy it now? Just think financially smart. Don't do what our generation has done and buy another house or car. Put money away so that you can retire early and enjoy the rest of your life. The only think that we cannot get back in life is time. So, don't waste it. By the way, ask for help. Your parents have already done this before, so they know what is coming. Think before you act. You can always reach out to me for answers to your questions. I may not know all of the answers but I can lead you to those that do. Henry Ford was told the one time "You do not know anything about motors". He said "I don't need to that is what I pay these people to know." You need to surround yourself with a mastermind. People that you know and trust that know more than you do. That is the last point of success. Read the full article