#last night when the wind was making noise and freaking me out I packed like 9 orders despite being so sleepy just to calm myself down dsfjk

[doctorguilty]

A form of comforting stim for me is packing etsy orders in the envelopes and putting labels on them. Dead serious. Order my stuff so I can put it in a package, I finished all I got right now (joke, there's no pressure but ofc I appreciate when people buy stuff!)

[show-choir-gal]

How You Two Meet - Slashers Preference

Masterlist of Masterslists

Thomas Hewitt: You were walking by the house after escaping a potential assaulter You had been walking for what seemed like hours. You had sliced clothes and open wounds. You were shivering uncontrollably and your eyes were swollen from sobbing. It was dusk when you came across a lone farm house in the middle of who knows where. You were so tired from walking, the attempted assault, and crying. Your body was finally starting to give out. You started to trip over almost every little thing. A sheriff car rolled up behind you. "Hey there, I'm sheriff Hoyt. Are you lost?" The man said as he rolled down his window to talk to you. That was the last straw and your body finally let go and you fell to the ground crying. Hoyt got out of his car and grabbed you and placed you in the passenger seat. Once you two were parked by the farm house, Hoyt called for a woman as he grabbed you and carried you into the house. He placed you down on a chair in the kitchen and a woman came running in. "Oh gosh, what happened?" The woman asked as she looked at you then Hoyt. "I don't know, she was just walking when I found her." A man in a leather mask walked into the room and immediately he was drawn to you. He stared lovingly at the woman in front of him. "Thomas, please stitch this young lady up so she can get better." The woman said as she sent the man to fetch his supplies. "I'm Luda May. I think Thomas really likes you. He'll stitch you right up and I'll fetch you a glass of water and you can explain everything, alright?"

Bubba Sawyer: Your car broke down by the farmhouse You were driving down a long dirt road when all of a sudden your car started to make a strange noise. You tried to power through it but to no avail. The car slowly came to a stop and would not turn back on. You screamed at the top of your lungs. When you looked back to the scenery in front of you, you can see two men walking towards you. "Everything good?" One of them said. "M-my car just broke down." You replied. "Ah yes, that often happens on this road. I'm Nubbins." The second man said as he smiled. "I'm sorry miss, I should've introduced myself. I'm Drayton. Nubbins and his brother are pretty good at cars and can get you on your way in no time. Would you like to come into the house to get away from this dreaded Texas heat while they work on your car?" "That would be great actually. I really appreciate the help. I'm Y/N." Nubbins stayed behind and Drayton walked you to the house. "We have a guest!" Drayton yelled as he lead you around the house and then finally lead you to the living room where an old man and another man with a mask. You sat down as Drayton explained what happend. Every now and again the other man, named Bubba, was always seeming to be staring at you. As soon as Drayton left, the old man spoke up. "Could you help me into th-" He started to ask with a smirk. "No." Bubba declared, which startled you. The old man began laughing, "Bubba seems to really like you."

Michael Meyers: You were stalked during your babysitting Your parents were going to a Halloween party and called you to come and babysit your little brother. You drove from your college to your childhood house and greeted your family as they waited for you in the living room. They handed you $20 for dinner and kissed you and your brother goodbye. You two ordered some pizza and fries and hung out for a little bit until you looked at your brother and told him that he needs to do his homework. "But why?" He begged. "Because I don't want to be yelled at for letting you get away with not doing homework. Besides, I'll do homework with you so you're not alone. After we're both done we can bake some Halloween cookies, deal?" He took and your hand and shook it, "Deal." "Alright kiddo, we got this." You two finished your homework about an hour and a half later and then once that was cleaned up you two started on the cookies. The cookies finished baking and you took them out of the oven and put them on a cooling rack. "Yo, who is that? Is that a friend of yours?" Your brother asked as he looked back out the window. "What are you talking about?" "Look!" You looked out the window to find some person in coveralls and a pale white mask, "I have no idea who that is, they're probably just trying to scare us." You grabbed a sandwich baggie and put some cookies in it and grabbed a handful of candy that was meant for tomorrow and you opened the door and looked in the direction the person was originally standing. "Halloween is tomorrow asshole, but I like your spirit. Here's some candy and cookies for the night. Make sure you stay warm, it's a bit chilly out." You placed the items on a little stool on your porch, "Have a goodnight." You said before you went inside. Michael was hiding in the woods, but suddenly felt this warmth inside him when he witnessed your kindness and just not being scared or freaked out by him.

Brahms Heelshire: You were looking after Brahms (in doll form, obvi) This goes right along with the movie, but before Greta. Forget Greta even happened.

Jason Voorhees: You were renting a cabin for the summer You just wanted a nice and peaceful summer, so you rented a cabin right by the popular Camp Crystal Lake a few towns over. You pulled up to your cabin and took a little tour before you started to bring your bags inside. Unbeknownst to you though, while you were bringing your bags inside, Jason was watching you bring your bags inside. Jason would normally be observing to kill but, he was intrigued by you. You weren't loud and partying, you didn't dress in only sleazy tops and short shorts. You were by yourself, quiet, kept to yourself. He watched as you finished unpacking and sat on the front porch and...just started to read a book . The wind was blowing your hair out of your face and you were smiling gently to yourself. Jason really liked that about you. You were different to the people he killed, and he liked and appreciated different.

Billy Loomis: He saw you at the local coffee shop You had just moved to Woodsboro with your parents. You moved because your father found a better studio to write for and so you all moved with him. You weren't one to complain, this could be worse, it could be a lot worse even. Once the final moving boxes were put away, you kissed your parents goodbye and heading to find some nice places around the town. You found some nice boutiques and parks and a beautiful movie theatre but you came across a really cute coffee shop and chose to stop by. You ordered a latte and a muffin and started to subtly people watch. Your eyes were caught on a boy who was already looking in your direction. You smiled at him and he smiled back and you finished your latte and you left. Stu was going on and on about how he should make a move, but Billy just watched you as you left the shop, a smile never leaving his face.

Stu Macher: You were assigned as partners for a project This was the final English project before midterms and you were just hoping that you didn't do all the work again. Your teacher was assigning groups aloud when she called your name, "You're working with Stu Macher." Kids snickered and the teacher shushed them all and you just slung your head back. "If you can get him to do his work, I owe you a spa day." Your best friend whispered in your ear. "You just earned yourself a bet!" You exclaimed in a whisper as you held you hand out to shake. The project was a breakdown of a book turned movie and the differences between the two. Class eventually ended and you packed up your things and headed straight to Stu's locker. You spotted him and made your way over. "Hey Stu, we got assigned as partners for an English. We can talk about the project tomorrow in class. I chose Psycho for our project, I think I remember you talking about it a few times so I hope you don't mind. See you tomorrow." You said with a smile as you walked away to your own locker.

Bo Sinclair: You stop for gas at his gas station You were on your way to visit some friends and had to make a quick pit stop to use the restroom and get gas. You pulled into this run of the mill gas station and went inside to use the restroom. Bo had been staring at you since you pulled up but you brushed it off thinking that it's just his job. You walked out after washing your hands and grabbed a few snacks on the way to the counter. You placed your items in front of the gas station attendant - Bo. "What is a pretty young thing doing here today?" He asked with a smirk. "Just making a pit stop while heading to see some friends." You replied with a smile. "Well they must be lucky to have a friend like you. How much do you want on your pump?" "$17 please." "Snacks are on me, as long as you give me your number." He said with a wink. You blushed and wrote your number down on some receipt paper and handed it to him. You grabbed your snacks and headed out to your car and then started to fill it up.

Vincent Sinclair: Bo takes you home to kill you You were just chilling at the local bar when gas station attendant Bo started to strike up a conversation with you. You two hit it off pretty well so you two decided to ditch the grimy club and head over to his place. Bo was a gentleman and opened all the doors for you. He gave you a brief tour of his house and led you to the living room, he had you sit on the couch and he asked if you wanted anything to drink. You said you only wanted a water and he smiled and went to the kitchen but there was immediately some commotion. Vincent came out to see Bo's newest victim, but when he looked at you he fell head over heels for you. Bo didn't like this, but Vincent never felt this type of way for anyone so Bo gave up his blood thirsty ideas. He came back with some water and said, "My brother Vincent thinks you're pretty and wants to get to know you." Bo said with a smile

[beyondspaceandstars]

The Damn Weather

Relationship: Steve Rogers x Reader Warnings: N/A Summary: Steve does his best to comfort you after a thunderstorm knocks the power out. A/N: Short, sweet fluff <3 a pretty older one I sort of dug up in my computer files but I still enjoy it!

Masterlist

CRACK. CRASH. BOOM.

You jumped out of your sound sleep when the unsettling noises from the night sky pierced your ears. The thunder shook the room after a strike of blinding lightning illuminated the darkness. Rain was was being thrown at your panoramic windows by vicious gusts of wind. Your breathing was heavy as you tried to reel your emotions back in, quite shocked. You were never a fan of thunderstorms, especially ones that occurred in the dead of night.

Even though you quickly got your breathing under control, your brain was all over the place and keeping you wide awake. You sat in the bed, trying to convince yourself to just go back to bed (God — you felt like you were being such a baby!) but your racing heart wasn’t having any of it.

You glanced quickly at Steve to double check you hadn’t woken him up with your outburst. A tired grumble and sigh proved he was still asleep — completely and utterly unaffected by the storm. You felt a tinge of jealousy at his calm state, but brushed it off and went to watch some TV in the living room. You just had to get your mind off it and pray the storm would pass quickly.

Television programming at two in the morning was fairly scarce you found out very quickly. Practically every channel went to paid programming, much to your demise, leaving you stuck watching some forgotten movie channel. But a distraction was a distraction, so you sat back and did your best to get lost in the cheesy acting. It was going fairly well for a while and you even felt like you may fall back asleep... But then it happened.

One lighting crash followed by a piercing boom of thunder and your entire home went dark. No hesitation, no warning… You were now sitting in pitch black darkness.

You can do this, you thought. You can go grab flashlights in the dark like a grown woman without waking your fucking boyfriend for comfort-

CRASH.

A crack of lightning caught you off guard causing you to let out a yelp in surprise. Seconds later, footsteps could be heard rushing into the living room, alerting you that your outburst had accidentally woke your boyfriend.

"Y/N?!" Steve called out as he entered the living area. He could just barely make out your figure huddled on the couch in the darkness.

"Hi," You mumbled and sunk back into the couch. Lightning struck once again, illuminating your boyfriend face, giving you a clear look at the concern written all over it.

"Are you okay?" He asked as he took a seat next to you, swiftly pulling you into him. You were allowing it at this point. You were shaken beyond belief.

You sighed, "The storm knocked the power out."

Your body was tense as you stared into the unknowing darkness of the apartment. You never did like storms — especially when you were younger — and they always seemed to get worse when the sweet comfort of light abandoned you. It was silly for you to still be so freaked about storms, but there was just a feeling about them you couldn’t quite shake.

Unknowingly to you, Steve was observing you and the fear your eyes held. He knew you hated storms, but he never quite realized power outages would also be on your list of fears. Knowing you wouldn’t be coming back to bed anytime soon, he had to find something to ease your brain. He thought he had a fine idea, but first he desperately needed some kind of light that wasn’t just lightning.

"Okay," Steve nodded. "You sit here, and I’ll grab candles and flashlights."

He went to stand up, only to be pulled back by your gentle hand.

"No," You mumbled. Steve cocked his head in confusion. "Don’t leave me alone."

Your words pierced his heart. He grabbed your hand, pulling you up from the couch and into his arms. He held you there for a second, just letting you breathe and get your thoughts together. After a moment or so, Steve broke the silence.

"It’s okay, darling," He said. "We’ll get them together."

You held your boyfriend’s hand tightly as you two maneuvered through the dark apartment. There was a casual grumble from Steve when he’d accidentally hit his foot on a piece of furniture which made you laugh a bit.

Finally, you two located the candles and flashlights in one of the kitchen drawers. You turned on a couple of the flashlights and pointed them to the ceiling, giving you a makeshift lamp. Steve lit the candles and placed them around the living area. The brightness eased your worries greatly and allowed you to fully see your boyfriend’s face — which was always a welcoming sight.

"Better?" Steve asked as you two stood in the dimly lit living room.

You shrugged. Your eyes glanced over to the open windows. The rain was still beating down and thunder rumbled throughout the sky. You wanted to climb away and hide.

"Well," Steve’s voice broke the silence, "how about we find some board games to play?"

You turned to him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Board games?"

Truthfully, you couldn’t really remember the last time you played a board game. They seemed to phase a bit out of your life as you grew up, but you knew Steve enjoyed them enough to keep a few stashed in the living room.

"Yeah," he shrugged, "or we can just sit here in the dark, but I have a sneaking suspicion that’s not what you wanna do."

You let out an embarrassed chuckle and agreed to his suggestion. You noted he seemed slightly too excited to pull out the games and it warmed your heart he was trying to distract you.

Steve proceeded to pull out various board games ranging from skill based, trivia, to pure chance. He moved a couple of candles to the coffee table and began setting up one of the games on the floor beside it. He looked heavenly in the glow of the candles, once again making your heart melt over your ridiculously sweet and very attractive boyfriend.

You were pulled out of your daze by an exceptionally loud crack of thunder. Your heart began racing again, but you didn’t have much time to dwell on it before Steve pulled you down to the floor with him.

The game of choice for the time being, you saw, was Connect 4. You chuckled at the childish  game, but when you got into it — you found out quickly that Steve plays to win.

You thought, since you were the distressed one, it would be a light hearted game. You were dead wrong. Minutes in and Steve was trying to play mind games with you in order to win.

"You sure you wanna do that, darling?" Steve teased as you went to place your red chip in one of the slots. He was just trying to distract you, you knew that, but you still briefly hesitated on the initial drop. It made sense from your point of view, so you shot your boyfriend a look and dropped the chip.

What you thought was gonna be your ultimate comeback turned into Steve winning within three moves. He hadn’t let you win once in the five games you two played. You threw your chips down in frustration.

"You’re cheating!" You squeaked.

Steve let out a laugh and reset the game. "How could I be cheating?"

"You’re using psychological warfare!"

"No, honey, I’m just the good." Your boyfriend scoffed, shooting you a proud smirk. You huffed in annoyance.

"I want another round." You demanded. Steve happily agreed.

It was way into the early morning hours but the time you had actually won a game. The rain had stopped hours ago but you didn’t pay much attention to it. You were just determined to kick your boyfriend’s ass in Connect 4.

"Finally!" You finally got to screech in victory. You two eventually lost count in how many games were played, but this was the one that mattered in your book.

Just after you declared your win, the lights flickered back on around you. The power outages had escaped you during the Connect 4 marathon but now you were just insanely thankful it was back.

"You won," Steve shrugged and began packing up the game.

You let out a yawn. "Thank you."

"For what?" Your boyfriend asked as he placed the board games back on the shelf. You walked around blowing out the candles.

"Just for getting my mind off it all."

Steve gave you a kiss and slung his arm over your shoulders, leading you back to the bedroom. You greeted your warm bed with open arms. Cuddled up next to Steve, you laid there waiting for sleep to engulf you.

"Gosh, I can’t believe I beat you in Connect 4."

"Yeah, doll," Steve chuckled. "You sure got me."

…

"Steve, did you let me win?"

"Good night, darling."

[uniqorrn]

KiriBaku X Reader

A/N: I’m a huge simp for KiriBaku x reader fanfic. I hope ya’ll like this since I just spent a week editing and writing this pfffttt. 

Pairing: KiriBaku x reader 

Warnings: kidnapping, some inappropriate behavior/words, some blood, angst but some love and fluff to balance it out at the end.

Prompt: You, kirishima, and Bakugo, along with your other classmates end up having to fight villains on the street in a sudden attack. However, you get caught in one of the villains arms and taken away in front of everyone. Kirishima and Bakugo watched as you dippeared and they would do anything to get you back.

Key:

e/c = eye color

Y/n = your name

Y/h/c = your hair color

—————————

“Tch, dammit!”

“What happened?!”

“Where did this sudden attack come from?”

The confused screams and shouts of your friends filled your ears as your gaze settled upon one of the villains that attacked the street. The attack came out of no where and startled everyone, leaving shocked looks on their faces. It left the class of 1-A without their costumes too, a bad position to be in as your costumes aided you guys in battle.

Your e/c narrowed onto the man in front of you, studying him to see what his next move could possibly be. You were fighting on the out skirts of the city with a few pro hero’s however, you got word that most of your classmates and boyfriends(Kirishima and Bakugo) were all somewhere in the center fighting in the middle, per usual. That’s where you were now, in the center of the large city, eyes narrowed onto the man dressed in black with the smirk of the devil written across his face under his mask.

You hadn’t seen Bakugo or Kirishima yet, only having seen Deku and Todoroki fighting another villain on the other end of the clearing. That rumor about everyone being here didn’t seem to be true.

“Well. Well. Well. lol Kenya we have here. A pretty little thing ain’t she?” The villains masked voice spoke through the clearing, breaking your thoughts and bringing you back to reality. You couldn’t think about Kirishima and Bakugo right now, they would be perfectly fine in battle being so strong.

“What do you say we okay a little game.... hmm..?” The villains tone was dark and rather scary, causing an uncomfortable shiver to flow down your spine. Something about him seemed off. I mean everything about a villain was off but, this guy? He was kreepeir. He took out a deck of cards, shuffling them in his hands like a pro, he grabbed a card between to long fingers and pointed it at you as if asking you to take it.

“I don’t have time for games” you spat, eyes narrowing more onto the target in front of you. You could almost see the creepy smirk he had on under his black mask.

“Awe.. that’s a pity.” He whispered, but in an instant he was gone until cold hands grabbed your shoulders, pushing you down slightly to prevent movement.

“However, I guess I’ll have to take you somewhere else to play the game then.” He whispered in your ear, his breath hitting against it making you even more uncomfortable. The villain had caught you off guard, your body freezing as one of his hand made there way to your neck.

“I think you’ll be the perfect-“

“Oi! Get your hands off her you dick!” The all to familar angry shout had you slightly relieved as the light from Bakugos explosions clouded your vision. However, the hands on your shoulders didn’t lift up. Bakugos attack seemed to have done nothing to the villan. Kirishima ran up behind him, scolding him for not being careful with his attacks.

“Sorry boys but, me and little princess here have some place to be.” And with that a blue glow formed around your body, blackness slowly starting to fill your vision as you were sucked into a portal. The last thing you had seen was the terrified looks on Bakugo and Kirishimas faces as you screamed for help.

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

“Dammit dammit dammit!!” Bakugo screamed, his fists colliding with the ground you had been standing on just moments ago, hot ears leaking from his eyes and onto the stone floor. Kirishima stood behind him, his eyes watering over in anger. Angry that he couldn’t save you. Unlike Kirishima this wasn’t normal behavior from Bakugo. He usually kept his emotions bottled up inside, preferring not to share them unless he absolutely had to but, seeing you get taken away in front of him broke his heart.

“That bastard! He’ll pay for this” He continued to shout as members of class 1-A gathered around them, making a small circle around Bakugo and Kirishima. It was quiet for a while, no one dared to speak, shocked that yet another classmate was kidnapped. Everyone seemed to have known what happened judging by how Bakugo was reacting. Their classmate, their friend, someone they’ve known for a good while, was taken from them. 

Kirishima sucked in a harsh breath, flashbacks from when Bakugo was kidnapped filled his head which made his breathing even more uneven. Usually, it would be Kirishima to make the first move in comforting one of the two in their three way relationship. However, it was Bakugo who stood up and placed a warm comforting hand on his boyfriends shoulder. In that moment, as tears streamed down both their faces they silently promised each other they would get you back, even if it meant dying to save you.

Class 1-A spent that night in the hospital, doctors checking over their wounds and injuries to make sure they were alright. Many citizens thanked the group for helping them by giving them comforting words and phrases of encouragement. It didn’t phase them though, everyone-including the teachers- were still shocked and upset about what had happened. Bakugo and Kirishima were forced home that night as well, told that they would find you tomorrow but the two hot headed boys couldn’t wait that long but they had too, all they could was hope that you could hold on till morning-till they came to save you. 

~~~~~~~~~~ “Put me down you freak!” Your voice was dry and hoarse but you continued to shout anyway hoping that someone would hear you. He jerked you around roughly, shutting you up as he roughly shoved you to the ground in an empty, cold, dark room. A pained gasp left your lips as the wind was knocked out of you. You tried to stand up but fell right back down as your body was too weak to move. 

“Pathetic. What a lame excuse for a hero.....” The villain continued on with his rambling. You tuned him out though, not listening to what he was saying as tears finally fell from your e/c eyes. You swallowed thickly, trying to steady your breathing and keep quiet. A sudden kick to your side pressed you against the wall before the guy left the room, the large metal door slamming against the stone walls, the sound echoing around the empty room. 

That's when it hit you. You were stuck in here and couldn’t get out. The sobs escaped your body harshly, straining your throat with each sob that left your mouth. You brought your knees to your chest, hugging them tightly against your body as you cried. It was cold and dark, you had no idea where you were and you know for a fact that you were making Kirishima and Bakugo worry. 

Eventually the crying slowed down, and you drifted off to sleep. You hadn’t known how long you had been sleeping in that spot for but the loud sounds of explosions and things breaking woke you up. People were shouting and loud noises were going off everywhere.

“I said where is she!” You recognized that all to familar deep, raspy voice. It was Bakugo. You didn’t have to wait long for the door to burst open, the sudden light blinding you for a moment. You couldn’t fully see yet but the minute Bakugos arms wrapped around your frame you knew it was him.

You embraced each other for a few minutes, crying into each other’s shoulders as another pair of arms wrapped around the two of you as kirishima joined the group hug. After a few more minutes the boys pulled away, kirishima picked you up bridal style while Bakugo secured a safe path for your exit.

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

“Her wounds aren’t severe, just a few cuts and bruises. She did hit her head though, so expect a headache for a few days. With some rest and this-“ recovery girl stopped talking, pausing to reach in her bag to grab a small bottle of pain killers. “This will help the pain. Now now, I’ve got to run” she handed Kirishima the bottle of pills before packing up her bag and off to the next person.

Your two boys stood in front of you with tired, angry, yet relieved looks on their faces. More tired than anything. Kirishima was the first to speak, setting the pill bottle on the make shift hospital bed you were sitting on.

“Are you feeling any better?” He asked, placing one of his arms next to you while the other supported him inbetween your legs. He gently rested his head on your shoulder, leaning over slightly as he gave your neck soft kisses. You sighed in content, mumbling a soft “mhm” in response.

“You had us worried there dumbass” Bakugo chimed in, taking the other place next to you and resting his head on top of yours. His big warm hand embraced your small one, rubbing his thumb over your bruised knuckles as he leaned his head against yours. You sighed in content, happy to be back with your boys. You melted into them, loving the warmth that came with being sandwiched between the two muscular hero’s.

You gave Bakugo a slow peck on the cheek as Kirishima nuzzled into you more, his hot breath hitting against your collar bone.

“Come on you two. Let’s get home” you smiled sleepily, holding your arms up for one of them to carry you. They both let out a chuckle at your whiny, sleepy, baby state. They were beyond tired but greateful that you were okay.

[juletheghoul]

Mysticus Chapter 2

Ezra x F!Reader Soulmates AU

Pairing: Ezra x F!Reader

Word Count: 1.6K

Warnings: Nothing yet - maybe language (Smut later on)

Masterlist Chapter 3

Later that night you realize that after your mystery patron left, you made your way back to the shitty motel you were staying at seemingly in a daze. Almost as if you were on autopilot.

Laying in bed having showered and locked up everything tightly, you stared at your dog curiously. She didn’t seem much different than she usually did.

“What the hell was that about huh? Did you turn into a teddy bear all of a sudden?” you often spoke to her as if she’d respond. You supposed that in some ways she usually did, or at least you felt as though she did. She looked at you without lifting her head, the barest hint of acknowledgment.

“Excuse me ma’am, I’m speaking to you.” You stared at her – she looked away and let out a heavy sigh. Wow. Rude. Maybe he smelled like someone familiar? Either way its lucky she didn’t bite or growl at him, relieved that you didn’t have to deal with that fall out.

You stared at the little mark in your palm with the little sliver of light that cut through the darkness of the sad little room you both had been staying in for the past week and thought about it’s twin on the man at the carnival. His voice in the back of your mind as you pictured his face. The smile that made your heart beat faster, those deep brown eyes that crinkled giving you that smile. The feel of his lips on the back of your hand, you could almost feel it as you drifted off to sleep.

The same sliver of light woke you the next morning, and not in the best of moods. You had a vague sense of nightmares but nothing concrete, a couple of minutes later you couldn’t even remember. The feeling however didn’t go away, and it followed you like a cloud throughout the day. After taking the dog out to handle her business and grabbing yourself some breakfast you sat in the bed and upturned your earnings to see what you were working with.

“Okay, so we have $115 from the carnival along with the little bit we still have for emergencies. Which means we’re at a grand total of $637.53. That’s not too bad huh?” the dog gave a little huff.

“One more day at the carnival wouldn’t hurt – lets see if we can make it an even $700. Don’t look at me like that, it’s got nothing to do with that guy he probably forgot what he said. I doubt we’ll ever see him again.” You weren’t sure who you were trying to convince. The dog was ever silent and you gave her a little frown but put your money away anyway.

You decided that no matter what happened at the carnival, this was your last night in this town. It felt as though you’d stayed there too long already. To harden your resolve, you checked out of the motel early and packed up everything you owned - double and triple checking that you didn’t miss anything - into the back of your jeep. You used the rest of the day to restock everything you needed for your life on the road – snacks, extra gas for the long stretches of road between gas stations, dog food & snacks for your girl, as well as basic toiletries that had been used up or were running dangerously low. Everything went into the back of the jeep where you had your life neatly organized. Feeling better about your provisions, you made your way over to the carnival.

It was a slow night. Not as many customers as you would have hoped for and the cloud over your head felt as though it was getting heavier, full to bursting with rain and hail, thunder and lightning. The feeling that seemed like a vague suggestion of a bad dream, now sat heavy and low in the pit of your stomach like a brick. You tried to shake it off but the slightest movement had you whipping your head around, any normal carnival noise had you jumping and it wasn’t just you. The dog’s ears kept prickling like she too was on the lookout. Even the smells of carnival, which normally were the only thing you liked about it – were making you queasy. Donuts and funnel cakes, cotton candy and roasted nuts, things you usually liked now were cloying and were threatening to make you gag.

You felt him before you actually saw him and when your eyes locked and he gave you that secret smile, it felt as though the wind got knocked out of you.

He sat down opposite you and you stared at each other for a few minutes in silence. You mapped out the lines of his face unabashedly while he did the same. You noticed the scar on his cheek that you’d somehow missed the night before and again that wild urge to reach out and touch him struck you again.

“Good evening Birdie, I cannot put into words the euphoria I feel in seeing you again.”

“Do you always speak like that?” you blurted out, as your eyes widened and the colour rose high in your cheeks.

“Do you find it bothersome?” he asked seemingly unphased, you’re guessing you probably aren’t the first person to ask him.

“No.” You certainly didn’t speak in such flowery prose but then again, you travelled alone with a dog so your conversations were very one-sided.

“I found myself contemplating how a petal as exquisite as yourself found herself providing your services in this barren no-name town. I suspect you’re not a local?”

“Nope, just passing through.” You ignored the compliment.

“As I suspected. As am I petal. I don’t suppose you’d be agreeable to coming to a little arrangement? I’m looking for transport out of this place and as romantic as the thought of purchasing a bus ticket and driving off into the sunset with strangers on all sides is, I’d rather travel with someone as lovely as yourself to look at.” You gawked at him. “I realize that we do not know each other but I assure you petal I am as harmless as a newborn kitten.” Yeah. Right. You weren’t afraid of this man in any way, you couldn’t explain why but there was something in the pit of your stomach that told you he was safe. Were you actually considering this??

“You want me to give you a ride? You don’t even know where I’m going, and how do you know I’m harmless?” You crossed your arms over your chest to hide the frantic beating of your heart, as if he could somehow see it.

“Call it intuition. What do you say? Are you agreeable?” He reached out his hand to shake on your agreement. You stared at his hand momentarily when a thought struck you.

“What do you say girl, should we pick up a stray?” You looked over at your dog. She stood up and walked over to him – he smiled and pet her behind the ear and she licked his hand again. That settled it.

“Agreed.” You both shook on it.

It was only as you both walked over to your jeep that you realized you’d never asked him his name.

At first it was a little strange having someone other than the dog in the Jeep, but he volunteered to drive and you couldn’t help but admit that it was nice. It was nice to be in the passengers seat with the window open, sun shining on your face, wind blowing through your hair and the steady hum of his voice lulling you into a state of relaxation you haven’t felt since god knows when. That was another thing that was strange. Conversation. You spoke to the dog often but she didn’t respond. Not verbally anyway. You both made your way through each town, deciding off the cuff whether or not you wanted to stay or keep going. It was also very nice having him pitching in with gas money. The first time you pulled into a gas station he was out of the car before you could fully comprehend what he was doing, filling up your tank and walking in to pay without so much as a word. As he got in and dropped a bottle of water in your lap he gave you one of those smiles that made your heart skip a beat, and noticing the look of confusion on your face he laughed lightly.

“I figure if you’re courteous enough to allow me to accompany you in your cross-country travel, the very least I can do is contribute with the cost of fuel. Now I have purchased some water for you because you have to stay hydrated, especially in this heat and I’m guessing the little lady riding in the back might also be a little thirsty. What do you say girl, do you need to go about your business?” the dog perked her ears up as he grabbed her leash to lead her outside.

You were left speechless, but glad you didn’t have to have the awkward conversation when you eventually did run out of gas money. That was another thing that seriously weirded you out. He spoke to your dog as if he’d known her forever – no fear – no hesitation and while for other dogs that was usually fine, you knew for a fact that your dog was most decidedly not open to new people. Except him it seemed. You watched as he led her near the trees while she relieved herself and trotted back happily for a drink of water. Any part of you which held a little bit of regret at readily accepting him joining you was gone in that moment.

--------

Tag List: @foli-vora @frannyzooey @freak-nasty-thick-dick-mando @marydjarin @thirstworldproblemss @cannedsoupsucks @ilikechocolatemilkh @lori-tovar

<3

[dem-obscure-imagines]

Snowflake

Jack Frost x Reader

Prompt: Hi there! I saw you wrote for Jack Frost and was hoping to request a Jack Frost x reader imagine for Soulmate au the one where you and your soulmate have matching marks and the marks glow when you’re near your soulmate.

Note: LOVE THIS CONCEPTTTTT. I was scrolling through requests and this one REALLY spoke to me. Haven’t written for Jack in a while, but I love the boy. And, as always, you know I love a good soulmate au.

Warnings: None?

Word Count: 1.9k

You were proud of your soulmark. You really were. How could you not be? After all, it represented not only your future, but the person you were destined to spend the rest of your life with, whoever that was. It also happened to be in a really cool shape: a gorgeous snowflake etched into your wrist. You found yourself staring at it a lot, sketching it in the corners of your papers for school, sketching it on everything, really.

It only made sense that winter became your aesthetic. You had sweaters and sweaters covered in snowflakes, you had snowflake earrings, snowflake rings, snowflake necklaces and notebooks and pencil toppers. You loved winter and the coziness the cold season brought. You loved bundling up in cute scarves and boots and jackets and hats, you loved drinking hot cocoa and decking the house out in decorations and going ice skating with friends.

It was your freshman year in college and you still hadn’t found whoever your snowflake was supposed to lead you to, and once the snow started falling, you couldn’t help but hope that maybe, this was the year it was supposed to happen. This was the winter that would matter.

You were on your way back to the freshman housing from the university library the first time you felt what you called a spark. A cold gust of wind blew past you and when it did, you felt your mark jolt. You stopped in your tracks, snow gently falling all around you. You heart was racing and you stood there frozen, unfamiliar with the feeling that had just coursed through you all at once, intense and sudden.

Curious, you pulled up your sleeve to look down at your snowflake. Flickers of light shimmered before fading away to nothing. You looked around, but the courtyard was empty. There was no one even near you, and no one had been a few seconds earlier.

Weird.

You walked the rest of the way home, flinching at every noise, looking around for people at ever turn, and checking your wrist every once in a while just to be sure. The further you walked, you were sure you had imagined it, and yet, nothing that vivid could possibly be a figment of your imagination. Right?

Classes continued, new layers of snow came down every few days, covering the campus in its sparkling beauty. The window of your dorm room was covered in a thick layer of ice, thoroughly frosted and cold to the touch. You’d look at it sometimes while laying on your bed, tracing your soulmark with the tip of your finger absently. Your heart raced when you thought of the moment you’d finally felt something, only for it to slip away just as quickly.

Maybe it was a glitch in the system, you reasoned. But…maybe it wasn’t…

***

About a week later, you were out walking the campus with some friends. It was the weekend, and you were out to grab a bite to eat. After lunch, the three of you went outside to fool around in the snow. Together, you started assembling a snowman, packing the snow together and rolling three giant snowballs to form his body.

Once you had him built and stuck some sticks in his sides to be arms, you bent down and packed a snowball in your hands, a mischievous grin slowly stretching across your face. Then, you straightened up and threw it at your closest friend, making her giggle before racing to make her own. In seconds, a snowball fight broke out.

While you were playing around in the snow, you felt the feeling again and you froze, standing completely still as the now-familiar chill pulsed in your wrist. A snowball exploded across your chest, your friends laughing before they realized something was wrong.

You rolled up your sleeve to look at your mark, and this time, instead of disappearing flickers of light, the entire mark was lit, but faintly. You gasped, staring at it for a long time, your heart racing. Finally, you remembered to look around. As it was a weekend, there were a lot of people roaming around, but none of them seemed to be affected in the way you were, and when you looked back down at the mark, the light had gone out.

“H-holy shit…” You whispered, heart still racing and fingers trembling.

“Do you want to look around?”

“Yeah.” You nodded. The three of you wandered around campus, monitoring your wrist like it was a GPS, but no matter how far you looked, it didn’t light up again. Weird, you decided. A little deflated, you returned to your dorm and took off your jacket and gloves and climbed up onto your bed, getting out some homework to work on before Monday reared its ugly head.

You put in your earbuds and started grinding through your Stats homework, and then when you were done, you pulled out a sketchbook and started drawing snowflakes. When you finally looked up at your window, there was a snowflake traced there. The same one that was on your wrist, tingling ever so slightly, little pinpricks of light dancing around the mark like pixie dust.

Your heart raced. Your room was on the fourth floor. There was no way someone could just…be outside your window tracing that there. Something didn’t quite…line up. It was really starting to freak you out a little.

Maybe…maybe your soulmate was a ghost…

***

You endured another week of classes, the occasional tingling on your wrist, but aside from that, nothing weird had happened that pertained to the snowflake permanently etched into your skin. You did, however, find yourself dreaming about it almost every single night.

When Friday finally rolled around, instead of going to a party with some friends, you grabbed your ice skates (you’d found them at a thrift store a few years back and they’d served you well) and headed to the little ice rink they’d set up in one of the courtyards of campus. There were a few people there, the traffic was pretty low, as it usually was on Friday nights when people were out partying. It was a more popular place on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. But no, you liked to go to this place on Friday nights, especially when there was a lot on your mind, and boy, was there ever.

You skated around for a while in the cold, snow falling gently all around. The sun set and one by one, the stars started to appear. As they did, and the streetlights came on, slowly, the people who were there skating started to leave until finally, you were the only one left circling around the rink.

Eventually, after a few more lonely laps, you stopped in the middle of the rink and just stared up at the sky, at the big fluffy snowflakes drifting down, and at the bright full moon shining down on you.

And in that quiet moment, you felt another patch of tingles on your wrist. You gasped and your breath fogged up in front of you in a puff of steam that floated up into the chilly night air. Moving carefully, you reached for your sleeve and tugged it higher, so you could see the mark. The light escalated from starry little dots to the full mark glowing faintly at first. You looked around you into the emptiness surrounding you and then back down at the mark, which was steadily growing brighter.

“H-hello?” You called out shakily, looking for some sign of someone there, but there was no one. The campus was empty this late at night when everyone else was inside in the warmth. Quieter, you asked, “Are you there?”

You did not expect a reply, but you did get one. It was faint, a wintry whisper, his voice deeper than you expected, shaking like he was as nervous as you felt. “I’m here. I’m right here.”

You immediately slipped and fell back onto the ice, sitting there in shock. You stared into the air in front of you, where you’d heard the voice. His voice. It was impossible and you knew that, and yet, your mark was glowing brighter than it ever had before.

“Who are you?” You asked, blinking up at the empty space before adding, “Where are you?”

The voice gasped. “Y-you can hear me?!” He sounded surprised. Before you could reply, he popped into existence right in front of you, crouched down so he was on your level. “C-can…” He paused, looking down before looking right into your eyes with his icy blue eyes. “Can you see me?”

“Now I can.” Your voice shook. You laughed in disbelief. He did too.

He reached forward with his hand, his wrist glowing as brightly as yours was. He was tentative, as if he wouldn’t be able to touch you, like his hand would go right through yours, but you reached up and pressed your hand against his. Your wrists were shining as bright as LEDs, blinding almost. His hand was large and cold, his skin as pale as the snow falling around you, his hair so blonde it was white.

His fingers intertwined with yours and he let out a long breath, staring at you. He smiled slowly, tears welling in those blue, blue eyes. “I’m Jack. Frost.” He introduced, your hand still tightly in his.

“(Y/N) (L/N).” You laughed, shaking your head. This was not happening. “Why did I have a feeling you would say that?”

He chuckled and shrugged. “I’ve been told I look like a Jack Frost.”

You laughed at that, admiring him for a long time before he finally helped you up off of the ice. You wobbled on nervous legs, but he held you steady.

“Woah, easy there…” He whispered. “I’ve got you.”

Your arms wound around his shoulders. The height boost your skates gave you made you about eye level with him. “How long have you been…around here?”

“The last few weeks…” He admitted. “I was flying by and…well,” he motioned to his wrist, “something finally felt different.” He paused, looking down. “I’m so sorry I didn’t find you sooner. I’ve been looking everywhere. And then you had classes and I—”

“It’s okay.” You shook your head, a hand reaching up to touch his cheek. He melted against your touch, leaning into the warmth of your palm. “You’re here now.”

“I’m here now.” He repeated, nodding. Tears welled up in his eyes once again and he inhaled a shaking breath. “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for you.”

“Sorry I took so long.” You apologized.

“Don’t be sorry.” He shook his head. His expression softened, his eyes locked on your lips for a moment before he started leaning in. You met him halfway, relishing in the cold but pleasant feeling, tingles running from your mark up your arm and then down your spine. This was right. This was how it was meant to be. When you pulled apart, he finally whispered, “You were worth every minute.”

[squeeneyart]

Breathe in the Salt - Chapter 23

AO3

Beta reader as always is @thesnadger!

It's harder to say it out loud.

Jon and Martin catch up.

As the seconds ticked by and Martin failed to respond, Jon adjusted a small bag slung across his shoulder. “It’s um- I understand this might come as a shock. I hadn’t meant for my entrance to be so dramatic, but this place seems to insist on a particular atmosphere.”

Martin heard the words as they slipped past on the wind, the skin drawing his full attention. It wasn’t like his mother’s, dusty and worn and so very old. No, this seemed to shine in the rain and seawater, but his chest constricted at the sight of it.

Despite Jon’s efforts to conceal it, a shiver ran through his shoulders. 

“Right, sorry,” Martin croaked out, then coughed until his throat behaved itself. He found his hand still gripping the door knob and gave it a twist. “Sorry. Yeah, come on in.”

Jon’s stiff shoulders dropped, and with some eagerness he walked up the stairs to escape the rain. “Sor- Thank you. It’s not the best night to be out dressed like this.”

He wasn’t wrong. Warm light poured out from the doorway onto the front porch, illuminating Jon in his soaked-through fleece jumper and jeans, a far cry from the waterproof seal coat in his arms. It was no wonder that Jon was quick to enter the house and leave the damp, cold night behind. With one last look outward, Martin dipped inside and shut the door behind him. 

Jon seemed uncertain where to go next and stood next to the coat hooks, leaning from one foot to the other. 

“Do you want to...um, put it down? You can hang it up in the shower if it’s still wet,” Martin said, placing his own coat on a hook as casually as he could manage. “I don’t know if hooks would be, um, good for it?”

With a nervous glance downwards, Jon nodded and slipped his shoes off. “Right. That makes sense. I guess it is dripping everywhere.” Yet he continued to stand on the front rug.

Ah, right. “If you don’t want to lose sight of it, that’s-”

“It’s not- I’ll go hang it up now. Is it down the-”

“Second door on the right.”

“Right.” And Jon stalked down the hall into the toilet and closed the door, leaving Martin by the front entrance.

Martin wasn’t going to scream and freak Jon out right off the bat. Not that Jon worked too hard to give him the same courtesy.

Jon was a-

Shit. Martin pressed a shoulder against the wall and forced himself to breathe. It was fine. It made sense, right? Jon’s interest in selkies was bound to come from somewhere. He was knowledgeable in a way that would’ve required access to a selkie directly, and finding one couldn’t have been easy. 

There was a twisting in his upper chest, but he heard the door down the hall open and straightened himself out. Jon came out in a plain t-shirt and different trousers, evidently leaving his other clothes to dry. 

He rubbed his upper arms. “An explanation is probably necessary.”

Martin took a good look at him, all skinny limbs and uncertain glances. Bags much deeper than before dragged down under his eyes and without the extra layers hiding him away it was even harder for Jon to hide how much he was shivering.

“You-” Martin pushed up his glasses and rubbed his eyes. There was no helping it. He walked to the living room and motioned for Jon to follow. “I’ll make some tea.”

In spite of himself, Martin found it in him to fuss. He ushered Jon onto the couch and pulled the old blanket down from where it lay over the top just so it fell behind Jon, resisting the urge to pull it snug. At first Jon lifted a hand to wave him off, but as he sank further into the seat he let out a weary sigh and leaned forward onto his knees.

“Thanks.”

“Mhm. Be right back.”

Martin strode toward the kitchen in a way that he hoped didn’t look like bolting and escaped Jon’s line of sight.

A kettle. There was a kettle on the countertop. It was… technically not washed, not for a few days. Good. That gave him some time. He got to work, scrubbing at it much longer than necessary to settle his thoughts. As if there would ever be enough time for that.

So. Jon was on his couch after revealing himself to be one of the sea folk, looking cold and tired and very uncomfortable with the circumstances. That was all he had to work with, that and the cheap tea bags he tossed onto the countertop. 

He’d gotten groceries for two. That would be the polite thing, to offer food. 

If Jon intended to stay for more than an evening. This might be one rest stop on the path to elsewhere, land or sea. He certainly wasn’t packed for an overnight stay with that tiny bag he’d apparently managed to fit with him inside his coat, a train of thought Martin had no desire to follow. Maybe he’d even eaten… on the way? Hm, no, that wasn’t a great place, either. Whatever, he might not be looking for much more than a place to sit a while.

And then the tea was ready and poured out into two mugs, one with a pastoral scene of some sheep and the other a faded logo of a long-gone tackle shop. He’d run out of time.

The two mugs lent warmth to his hands as he walked back to the living room, catching himself before he tripped on his own feet. On the other side of the room, Jon had chosen to bundle himself up at one end of the couch, legs and all tucked into the blanket. It was all Martin could do to offer him the sheep mug without making eye contact and pray that the lamp light was too dim to reveal the red across his face.

Thankfully Jon didn’t seem to notice Martin’s awkward demeanor as he slipped his hands from under the blanket to curl his fingers around the mug. “Thank you, again. I’m sure you have questions.”

He would, wouldn’t he? He had several a moment ago, but unfortunately with all the heat emanating from his ears it seemed every question had risen right out of his head. Instead Martin sat on the other end of the couch. “You’d know better about where to start.”

From under the blanket Jon squared his shoulders. “Right. I don’t think there’s much to explain on this first point. I’m a selkie, or sea folk as you once said. I hope it explains the intensity of my… concern, regarding your mother.”

Martin squirmed a little. Jon's anger at the possibility of Martin holding one hostage took on a much more personal bent in hindsight. It must’ve been like a horror movie to find the skin there. “Yeah, I got that part.”

“As for my showing up here today, I…” Struggling somewhat with words, Jon took a sip of tea and gave a small noise of approval. “Okay, from the beginning. The day I’d finally finished with all of the extra work piled onto me, I’d settled on digging further into Elias’ connection with the Lukases. Possible overlap in goals, reasons for why the three of us were sent to this town, etcetera.”

He continued. “There wasn’t much. If I had to guess, it’s all largely in financial records that I have no access to, but I’d hoped that other strange happenings connected to the Lukases would explain something.”

“But they didn’t,” Martin said.

Sighing, Jon said, “No. So I changed direction and focused on Elias’ goals. If it wasn’t the lighthouse he wanted us to look at, then there were two options: either he just sent us out there to look at nothing, or he thought we would find something else of interest. Or that I might find something I’d been looking for.”

Martin’s heart could’ve stopped. “You don’t think-”

“He of course knew of my research into selkies. It’s the main reason I was eager for this position, all the resources he offered. I kept my more… personal motivation quiet, of course, stuck to how it was ‘underrepresented in our field’, which is entirely true and I could- anyway, I thought I was careful.” Quickly, he turned toward Martin as if he’d realized something. “And I was, with regards to you and your mother. I promise I never said anything about what I found. That secret isn’t going anywhere.” He rested the mug in his lap, tapping his fingertips on the white ceramic.

“But?”

“It appears I wasn’t doing a good enough job hiding myself. He always knew.” His mouth set into a grim line. “When we first got back I thought something was off about my flat, but the workload had gotten so high and there was so much to think about that I brushed it off.”

He gripped his knee through the blanket as it bounced with agitation. “I know someone came into my flat while I was gone. I know this because the day after your incident with Simon Fairchild it happened again, and this time he was sloppy.” 

A tremor had crept into Jon’s voice, just enough to be heard, though it wasn’t for the cold or for fear exactly. Anger? Irritation? 

“I was sent to check on something outside the city, not far but enough that I was able to get reimbursement for a night’s stay. It wasn’t the first time I’d been sent off without warning, obviously-” Jon motioned in the general direction of the town. “-but something was wrong. I could feel it, just like I could feel that someone had been in my flat.” At this point Jon stopped and leaned over to rub at his forehead, his shoulders rising and falling with long, deep breaths.

“Jon?” Martin said. He lifted his hand and then placed it on the back of the couch.

The tired man shook his head, “I’m fine. Just let me finish.”

“So I went back late that night. Didn’t tell anyone, didn’t cancel my hotel. And when I entered my flat, what did I see but a figure in the dark rifling through my things. A familiar one at that.” A sardonic edge snuck into his voice. “Never expected Elias to be the type to get his hands dirty in a work sense, let alone an illegal one.”

“There was a struggle. I rushed at him without thinking, and when pressed he eventually admitted to knowing what I was. I knew what he was looking for then, didn’t really need to ask, and so I… ran.”

Martin’s hand twitched, but he kept it in place. “That sounds… awful. I’m sorry.”

With a shaky inhale, Jon said, “I-I ended up staying with an old friend of mine for a few days, outside of town. When I initially got the job she’d agreed to keep my, um… my skin, while I was in the city. So Elias was never going to find it by looting around my things, on either attempt.” He smiled, eyes empty and humorless. “Paranoia pays off sometimes.”

“Sounds like you have a good friend, then,” Martin said, looking down at his barely-touched tea. “Why’d you leave?”

“Because three people and a cat take up a lot of space in a one-bedroom?” Jon replied with a small but genuine laugh. “My friend, Georgie, she lives with her girlfriend. Her girlfriend and I don’t get on at the best of times, and cohabitation while I’m a terrified mess is not the best of times. The cat didn’t seem to mind, though.”

“I figured the next safest place would be in the water, while traveling at least. I couldn’t take much with me, but I wouldn’t need much either. My main goal was to just stay hidden as best as I could.” He looked back at Martin sheepishly. “Which I hope is a good enough reason for my number being unavailable.”

Martin nearly dropped his tea. “What?”

“What?” Jon frowned, brows knit together in confusion. “Oh. Um, yes, I deactivated my account. Maybe a bit more precaution than necessary, but at that point I was too nervous to take any risks. Tossed my mobile as well.” 

A horrid wave of guilt hit Martin right in the stomach. The number wasn’t reachable, which he’d have known if he’d just called. Stupid, of course Jon had a reason for not calling. How much more of an ass could he be, assuming things when Jon had his own worries to deal with? Not everything had to be about himself and his problems.

“Makes sense,” he said, hiding his own unhappy mouth behind the mug. 

“Anyway, I left the land for… an amount of time. It was hard to keep track. And it’s still the wilderness, so it wasn’t safe. Eventually I decided being stuck surrounded by wild animals wasn’t going to help me and figured this was the best place to go next.” He leaned back. “I couldn’t exactly see Tim or Sasha for updates, though they know to pretend to trust Elias for now, thanks to Georgie. Once I see them in-person, it’ll be safer to explain why I’d disappeared on them.”

And in the meantime pretend that Jon was off to the side, too busy to bother with a group text. He might as well have been asleep the whole time with how obvious it all was. And there he’d been writing Jon off without evidence instead of feeling concern. Horrid.

Jon took a deep breath. Some of the tension slipped away from his forehead, smoothing the creases into faint lines. 

“Had a harder time than expected finding this place considering the lighthouse looming over everything. I think I got turned around after losing sight of the coast and the fog certainly didn’t help. But things cleared up enough, and now I’m here.”

Martin withdrew his arm from atop the couch and leaned away into the arm rest. “And now you’re here.”

There in the present, they sat on their respective sides of the couch. Jon settled further back into the cushion, pressing both hands to his mug of tea and enjoying the warmth it brought to his skinny fingers. 

The man needed to sleep. It was clear in his struggling eyes, his voice, his shoulders obscured by the blanket’s folds. How long had he been at it, swimming mile after mile until he found his way here? How much further was he planning to go?

“Are you okay?” 

Martin started, ripping his eyes from Jon’s face. “Fine, yeah. Just, just taking it all in I guess.”

Jon rubbed the back of his neck. “I know it’s a lot. If you wouldn’t mind, though, I wanted to ask if anything else happened here since I left.”

Martin replied, “Not much. I delivered the letter for Simon a few weeks ago. Peter has been spotty ever since and has been on a boating trip for a few days.”

“The only way to avoid Fairchild, maybe. Until he goes out on his own yacht. Or flies there.”

Martin snorted and took another sip of tea. 

“And nothing else has changed?”

In the grand scheme of things? “No. Not really.”

“Good. I’d worried about getting here- well-”

“Too late?” Martin said with a rougher edge than he’d intended, and he saw Jon flich. Quickly, he continued, “I’m fine. If anything you didn’t have to deal with weeks full of nothing like Tim and Sasha.”

It was Jon’s turn to snort. “That would’ve been preferable, I think. Being so out of the loop, not knowing what to expect when I managed to get back. It wasn’t pleasant.”

“So, what now?”

Jon chewed on the inside of his cheek. “I’m not entirely sure. There isn’t anywhere else for me to go now. But since you asked, there was something I’d been considering.”

Twisting in place, he faced Martin directly with a nervous expression. “Truth be told, I don’t know anyone else like me, not personally. The sea might as well be the woods or the mountains for all I know on how to navigate them. If anyone was going to be able to help me with my particular situation, I figured it would be-”

“My mum.” The words came out throttled. 

The room shifted, the sides of his vision blurred until all he could see was the dead television. If he stared at that point long enough, he could almost see the burnt-in images of something he’d left on pause for too long.

From beside him, he heard the rustling of the blanket.

“I- yes, th-though if that’s too much trouble I understand. I would never want to make you or your mother’s lives harder by getting her involved with me. I know I’m a liability to her safety just coming here, but I’d at least wish to speak with her, ask if there’s anywhere or anyone she knows that could help if she herself is unwilling. She’s already asleep I assume, so I could wait until tomorrow-”

“She’s gone.”

His words cut through the air with a swiftness, the quiet settling in so deeply that he could almost hear tv static as his mind tried to fill the gap. With nothing to be heard and his vision so caught by the television, Jon might as well have vanished into thin air.

But he hadn’t. With something between wariness and disbelief, Jon muttered, “...Gone.” 

“Four days ago.” Martin blinked away the tunnel, looking down at his own hands. “Took her skin and nothing else.”

“That’s… Did she say when she might come back?” 

Without answering, Martin stood up and walked to the kitchen. When faced with Jon’s protestations he placed a hand up, signalling for the man to wait, and from the kitchen table plucked the unmoved note. Then, wordlessly, he handed it over to Jon and sat on his own end of the couch. 

The note was short enough. “...That’s it?”

“Yeah. Sorry I can’t be of more help.”

“That’s- you don’t need to apologize to me. I imagine it’s been difficult.” A pause as Jon set the note on the side table, and then, “You did the right thing.”

Something pushed upwards in Martin’s throat, something bitter and harsh and awful, but he clenched his teeth and kept his tone even. “It’s for the best.”

“If there’s any… If you have any questions, I’ll do what I can to answer them.” As Jon spoke he was plainly starting to regret it. “But I suppose you would know her better.”

Martin frowned and said nothing.

“Right… right. Family business.” Jon drained the rest of his mug and then dragged his fingers down one cheek. “If you’re all right with it, I’d like to spend the night here and figure things out tomorrow, when I’m feeling more myself. I’ve sorely missed sleeping somewhere dry and horizontal.”

“You really slept that way with your face sticking out?” The image of a little seal head popping up out of the water fast asleep came to mind, a welcome distraction. He let himself smile a little and leaned a cheek into his knuckles. “You seem a bit drift-y, yeah.”

“I hope that’s not meant to be a pun. And sleeping in the water is difficult,” Jon replied, deadpan. “So I have permission to co-opt your couch?”

“Knock yourself out. I need to get to bed, anyway.” He pushed himself back up off the couch and grabbed both mugs. As he walked back to the kitchen, he looked back at Jon. “... She left her medication here. Does that mean anything?”

Jon shook his head. “She’ll be fine. She won’t need them unless she returns to a human form, according to my own, er, experimentation.” 

Martin nodded and waved goodnight with one of his full hands, making his way back into the kitchen one final time to place the mugs in the sink. Every motion reminded him that he too was tired, so tired, so they would be washed another time along with the plate of whatever it was he’d made for himself. Had he offered Jon something to eat? No, but the man was capable of asking for things.

One thing had been helpful. He looked at the half-empty pill bottles that sat undisturbed on the counter and with one swift motion tossed them into the bin.

[peach-pops]

may i perhaps request a continuation of the suga, noya and kags hqs of them meeting ukais niece? like when they start datin and ukai catches them smoochin or just being gross🤢 and kinda stands there like 👁👄👁 if u dont want to just ignore this

Sorry this took sooooo long! This doesn’t have to be a continuation from the first one but if you guys want to check it out, it’s here!

Kageyama, Suga, and Noya Get Caught By Ukai

Kageyama 

Kageyama is not a fan of PDA and you may quote me on that

He can MAYBE handle hand holding underneath a table and if he’s feeling a bit bold, a quick kiss on the cheek in the hallways is a possibility only if no one is looking 

He wasn’t embarrassed of you but lets be real, he is always at practice or some volleyball event and it would be pretty awkward for him to start kissing his girlfriend when his coach, and also your uncle, is only a few feet away 

Your schedule was pretty jam-packed and that meant it was really hard for you to go to his games especially since Ukai expected you to run the store when he was off with the Karasuno boys

This meant that you hardly ever got to see Kageyama play but a part of him didn’t mind because that took less pressure off of him

Ohhhh boy but then the day came where you were able to go watch a game and of course, it had to be the most important one of the season. Shiratorizawa vs Karasuno 

That day, Kageyama was a complete mess for a number of reasons but to know that you were going to be at his game terrified him 

The game was intense and you were standing the whole time because you couldn’t bring your nerves down at all no matter how hard Saeko and Akiteru tried, you were a nervous wreck 

Wait this is separate from the hc but can we pls talk about HOW FUCKING HOT TSUKI’S OLDER BROTHER IS ??? 

Sorry anyway

To think that the first volleyball game you were seeing was the one to dictate whether or not your boyfriends team made it to nationals was insane but you had so much faith in the team that they would pull it off

You couldn’t even move when Karasuno won the last point. Hell, you even forgot to breath for a second but once you saw the team celebrate together on the court, you felt so proud because they really did the impossible

You shout for Kageyama and when he looks up to see you standing up in the bleachers, he has the BIGGEST smile on his face because holy shit THEY WERE GOING TO NATIONALS!!!!

HE’S CHEESIN SO HARD uwu

After the awards, you wait for Karasuno at the gymdoors and when Kageyama sees you, He runs over to you and literally sweeps you off your feet 

Kageyama doesn’t know if it’s from the adrenaline of the win or the absent nerves but all he wants to do is kiss you

So he does AHHHHH IN FRONT OF ALL HIS TEAMMATES

Tanaka and Noya are screaming their heads off their so proud !!! Suga is obviously shielding Hinata’s eyes 

He kisses you so hard as if it would be his last and it catches you off guard because um hello??? Who is this man kissing you?? 

this was the same Kageyama that gave you head pats instead of kisses when he was around his friends and now he’s kissing you as if his life depends on it

But you’re not complaining you’re a bit too busy at the moment trying to enjoy the moment

All he can think about is you; any other sound around him is completely muffled but once the two of you pull away for air, his smile drops so quickly and he almost drops you to the floor 

“ Tobio? What’s wrong-” You turn to look over to where he’s staring and your heart drops when you see your Uncle Ukai with his arms crossed

Kageyama stops breathing and he literally turns white cause he’s TERRIFIED AND SO EMBARRASSED 

Ukai is kinda weirded out more than anything because first off, he didn’t even think Kageyama showed any emotion besides anger or disinterest and second, he’s always known to be the ‘cool uncle’ 

Like should he really be yelling??? They’re just kids??? He did a lot worst stuff at his age-

“ It’s not what it looks-”

“ I think I’m just gonna…” Ukai kinda points off to the side and awkwardly steps around the two of you because he rather not think about his student and his niece kissing 

so he kinda gives Kageyama a pass? Not because it’s Kageyama you’re dating but just because emotions are so high and it’s like eh okay??

If anything, it would just be kinda awkward between Ukai and Kageyama during practice/school like just lil nods like “ okay I guess you’re dating my niece” and “ okay I guess I’m dating you’re niece”

Sugawara

Suga is just so sweet let me put that out there because it must be known

You two had only been dating for a short time but you both were already so comfortable with each other

He knows you work late some days at Ukai’s store so he always stops by after practice to check up on you and makes sure you ate dinner and that you were caught up with your homework

Tonight was no different as Suga walks in and sees you behind the register trying your best not to fall asleep

“ Ukai isn’t here?” 

“ Nope, he texted me and said he was going to stop by the house before coming over with dinner. I wish he would hurry up. I’m about to pass out” You yawned as Suga greeted you with a kiss on the cheek as you kicked over a stool so he could sit on the opposite side of the counter,” how was practice?”

“ Kageyama and Hinata got into it again during practice so you know, the usual. I missed you a lot today though, I feel like I hardly ever get to see you.” 

*Cue sad puppy dog Suga*

You two weren’t the type of couple to always be attached at the hip. You had your own things to do and so did he but that didn’t stop you both from missing each other

“ I know Koshi but at least you’re here now.”

You had a point, he cherished any time that the two of had together, even if it was only for a few minutes and now that he was with you, he could show you how much he missed you

Suga got rid of his pouty face and leaned over the counter to kiss you but this time, it was way different than any kiss the two of you shared before. His lips were so warm and you practically melted into him because you two hadn’t had time alone in a quick minute

Ukai was on his phone as he stepped into the store but when he looked up to see his niece smooching with one of his students, he was so freaked out he just shouted

“ WHA-HEY! NO KISSING WHILE WORKING!” 

You pushed Suga off of you but the force of your push sent you falling backwards in your chair and you landed on the ground with a thud

You groaned and held your head as Ukai and Suga peeked over the counter to make sure you were still alive,” Wah! You said you weren’t coming to the shop until later!” 

“ Change of plans, my Uncle senses were going crazy and I’m glad I listened to them! What if a customer walked in and saw two hormonal teenagers going at it?”

“ AIYA alright!” You shouted, feeling more embarrassed than before as you got off the floor. 

Suga was lowkey panicking cause he wasn’t even sure what to say. How could he even ease the tension between his girlfriend and coach ???? 

“ I uhm-” Suga started as Ukai looked over at him,” I’m sorry Ukai-san! I’ll see you tomorrow Y/N!” 

Suga bows respectfully as you and Ukai watch him leave the store. Once he’s gone, Ukai only laughs and grabs an apron from the hook. 

“ Why are you laughing? You basically traumatized him!” 

“ A little fear never hurt anybody but good job, you managed to pick a decent guy for once,” You uncle teased as he patted your head and started to sweep the store

Ukai was definitely protective of who you dated and he had a suspicion that you were going out with someone but now that he knew it was Suga out of all people, he wasn’t worried at all 

Of course, he could never say that outloud because again, fear keeps guys in check 

Nishinoya 

Oh god okay 

You live with your uncle Ukai because your parents always traveled a lot for work and since Ukai is literally the coolest uncle in the world, you liked living with him

He would’ve let you live with him anyway but because you offered to help him out at the store, it kinda stuck and that’s how you got into helping him out

Noya and you had been dating for a while now and while Ukai knew the two of you were together, he never really brought it up because a big part of him didn’t even want to acknowledge the fact that his niece was with someone as crazy as Noya

But again, if you and Ukai didn’t bring it up then that’s just the way it is

You and Noya were always pretty busy and since you barely saw each other during the day, you would sneak Noya into your room late at night just to makeout cuddle whatever

And just like any other day, you opened up your bedroom window as Noya carefully climbed in, being extra careful not to make any noise

Now you two hadn’t spent quality time with each other in sooooo long and again, two hormonal teenagers that are touch starved is bound to happen. This is basically a long-winded way to say that it was obvious you two would makeout

No matter how heated the makeout sessions would get, that’s all they would ever be because you two both wanted to wait before taking it to the next level 

99% of the time Noya would take off his shirt and today was no different. Your hands were tugging at his hair as his body hovered over yours as your lips moved against each other

Even in the dark, he always told you how pretty you were cause he’s a goob and you would just smile and get back to kissing him 

Noya inhaled deeply because this is what pure bliss felt like and he couldn’t be happier being so close to you

“ Hey Y/N, tomorrow I need-” Ukai barged right in and turned the lights on as his eyes landed straight on a shirtless Noya on top of you 

“ WHAT THE HELL-”

You screamed as Noya rolled off of you and was frantically trying to find his shirt while avoiding eye contact with Ukai

Through all of the panic, Ukai looked down and saw the shirt on the floor. He just picked it up and threw it at Noya’s head,” Get dressed, and both of you see me downstairs.” 

Noya gulped because he knew he was going to get his ass beat and even when Ukai left your room, Noya turned to you with sad eyes

“ If I don’t make it back alive, I want you to know how much I love you. Tell Tanaka I’m sorry.”

“ Yu, I think you’re being dramatic…”

The whole time you and Noya were panicking, Ukai was losing his mind because he knew what he had to talk about with you and he reallyyyyyy wasn’t ready for it 

Once you two made it downstairs, you both sat down on opposite sides of the couch 

Ukai might’ve looked pissed on the outside, and he was, but he was just so uncomfortable. He didn’t know if it was really his place to bring the birds and the bees but as the adult in the room, it was now his responsibility. 

“ You guys realize I have to give you the talk now right?”

“ Uncle Ukai please-”

“ You brought this upon yourself.”

[moriartysnerd]

Jim Moriarty x fem reader Harry Potter! AU

An: this is kinda short, not really anything big. Just a cute little story. I want to start writing more one shot story’s in this AU. There will be many more parts, I just needed some soft fluf, tell me if there’s anything specific you’d like to see!

_______________________________

How you loathed mornings. The sun had finally just begun to hit your eyes as you awoke to the soft click of the dorm room door closing and giggling slowly fading away behind it. You finally managed to open your eyes and looked around. Everything around your bed was so clean, and all the other girls had left. The images of what you and sherlock did last night flashed in your mind. You where always so tired after a revision night with the ravenclaw. You struggled to keep up with him half the time, you couldn’t imagine how you two had become friends in the passing years but there was no getting rid of him. You wiped your eyes clean before getting up and preparing yourself for the day. Sherlock seemed to of gotten everything ready for you. Even folded your uniform. The neat freak. You smiled to yourself, slipping into your attire and then reaching for your tie. It was blue. Not only was it blue, it wasn’t yours. Sherlock’s cologne swiftly surrounded you as you picked it up. He’d taken the wrong tie. No. Of course he hadn’t. Sherlock Holmes didn’t make such simple mistakes. He was either marking you, or he wanted to tell you somthing. Either way, unless you wanted house points off you had to wear a tie. Unfortunately, you wernt in the mood to deal with a professor harassing you over somthing so simple. It was settled. You’d wear it.

It felt like it took you forever to get ready that morning, the minutes where dragging and so where your feet. Finally your hands reached for your bag, tossing it over a shoulder and groaning at the heaviness. Seems Sherlock had packed that too. You groaned in defeat as you realised you wouldn’t have the time to resort you bag and headed out of your room and down the stairs, making your way out of the common room. It still made you laugh to think that Sherlock had some how found a way to sneak passed the magic and get himself into the girls dorm room. He was bright, you’d give him that. He was also somewhat of a charmer. Always helping the other girls in your dorm room, Or waiting outside when any of them needed to change. He was more than welcome to say he wasn’t really a people’s person, but most of all. The girls loved the drama he could indulge. Sherlock could deduce things so easily with substantial evidence. He was a drama whore, he just didn’t admit it. He’d figure things out about couples, teachers, classes the works. It was like a super power. It even had its perks. He was a bright wizard and you where somewhat in his shadow, it didn’t help that people constantly doubted your intelligence. Thinking you where only friends with Sherlock so you could pass classes. You worked your ass off for those grades. With or without Sherlock.

You stumbled your way into the great hall, sighing softly when their was no sign of Sherlock. Of course he wasn’t going to make this easy for you. He had your tie, he wanted something. You walked past a table, picking up an apple and taking gentle bites out of it, the noise of people chattering filled your eyes as you stared up at the huge Christmas tree in the corner. That’s right, Sherlock would be going home for Christmas. He’d invited you, but you’d declined. Christmas was for family after all. You smiled a little shaking Your head, you had Netflix and chocolates for Christmas. Plus most if not all the girls in your dorm would be gone. A practically empty school. Perfection.

You hadn’t noticed how far you’d wondered out of the great hall until you’d made your way to the whomping Willow tree. You knew not to get too close, she didn’t like that. You sighed softly as the wind blew through your hair, letting the breeze comfort you effortlessly.

“Blue tie L/N? Honestly, that man has you collared like a mutt.”

The Irish voice broke the silence, you didn’t face him. Moriarty. You knew it. You could feel it in your stomach. You and Moriarty weren’t really on speaking terms, he’d been harassing Sherlock a lot this month and you’d always been the one having to comfort the Ravenclaw after Moriarty visits. It didn’t help that Moriarty and Sherlock both shared a house. They where both Ravenclaws. Both so alike yet so different. Sherlock found it impossible to sleep in the same room as the man stood behind you. That had started the whole “study nights with Sherlock” thing. Sherlock would sleep with you, unbeknownst to the teachers, you where close. You wanted him to be safe.

You took yet another bite of your apple, the sour taste now running down your tongue and slipping down your throat. It was bitter. You threw the apple towards the willow tree and it sprang into action, destroying it in seconds. It was almost a warning. A warning for James to back off. Maybe he couldn’t find Sherlock either and that’s why he wanted to play with you. You wanted to tell you darker male to leave you alone, to push past him and never see him agian, but you couldn’t. In an odd way he had you wrapped around his finger, and only he knew that.

“I came out here looking for Sherlock. He has my tie. I wasn’t going to risk the house points.”

You stated, Still defiant and refusing to look at him. You knew it made his blood boil. He was taking time to give you attention. Attention that wasn’t being reciprocated.

“Didnt you hear? He left this morning.”

Those words rang in your ears as you swallowed dryly. He left without saying goodbye? It was stupid, of course it was, but it still bothered you. You two where always together. Then he just leaves? You thought you’d atleast get another week with him before he left for Christmas. You shook your head silently, finally looking into Moriartys deep eyes. Your stomach couldn’t handle it for too long as you looked away.

“Whoops. Have I told you something I shouldn’t? You should be used to this though, shouldn’t you? You’re always second best to him. If he leaves you. He still has John. Who do you have L/N?”

He practically sang those words but that didn’t stop the truth from hitting. You where going to be alone on Christmas. No matter what way you looked at it. Moriartys eyes softened as he looked down at you, was it pity? Possibly. You never knew with this man.

“He has a family. Which is more than either of us have. He’s his own person. He can leave if he wants too.”

You gently gripped Sherlock’s tie and pushed past moriarty, swiftly walking back inside. You weren’t about to doubt your best friend over this. No way. The day slowly blew over, you had been bored out of your mind without Sherlock. He annoyed the hell out of you, without him even magic couldn’t keep you entertained. 4 o’clock eventually chimed and you made your way to the library, there was one thing you could do that would pass the time. Work. You spent a good few hours revising alone. Picking out books and writing. Even practicing a few non-threatening spells while alone. You grew tired early, the sun just beginning to set as you put your last few books away, packing up your things and wandering down the empty corridor your ears picked up the soft Irish chuckle of moriarty once agian.

His laugh was sweet, it belonged in the hearts of millions. It was a shame it belonged to such a horrid person. You continued towards his voice, your feet moving without your mind even telling you too. He was stood near an open window, watching the sunset. He had quietened down and whatever he was laughing at had long since passed. Your hands traced the wall as you came up behind him, staring at the sunset, unsure of what to say. You knew this man. You knew him well. However once you started hanging around with Sherlock, you drifted. He was no longer the most important man in your life.

“It’s nice hearing you laugh agian..”

You spoke softly, looking up at moriarty, he didn’t even glance at you, but still acknowledged you. You gripped Sherlock’s tie a little tighter as you looked down. You felt the gentle touch of a hand brush yours as moriarty moved to hold your hand, still staring out. It was golden hour. Everything was beautiful. It was as if nothing had changed between you two.

“I do miss you sometimes darling, i must admit I hate how Sherlock acts like he owns you.”

Moriarty spoke gently, weaving a hand around your waste and holding you from behind, head placed on top of yours. Neither yours nor his eyes left from the gorgeous veiw of the lake just outside the window. Everything in that moment felt so right. You couldn’t even stop yourself from your own thoughts. They where a mess. Leaving you confused and somewhat brave. You couldn’t even prepare yourself for what was to come, but one string of words slipped out and for once, you where glad they did.

“Spend Christmas with me jim....”

[halpertstuna]

must have been the wind - jj maybank

A/N: this imagine is inspired by the song “must have been the wind” by alec benjamin. i wrote this imagine listening to the slowed version of the song. i highly recommend you listen to it whilst/before/after reading this(:

pairing: jj x reader

word count: 2,874

warnings: mentions of domestic violence, some angst, some fluff, ya know, all that jazz. and probably typos (this isn’t really edited, pls forgive me)

-> masterlist <-

(gif credit: @jjbanks )

It was 1:28AM, you gazed out the window of the moving car, your elbow was placed on the door panel whilst your head rested in the palm of your hand, the dark navy blue moonlit water in the ocean outside was being reflected in your eyes.

You were currently sat in the backseat of a white Honda lost in your thoughts. Your dad got transferred to North Carolina due to him getting a promotion at work, which was a big deal, especially since your mum wasn’t working and so he jumped on the opportunity right away, moving the two of you with him.

Obviously you were happy for him, but you were also kind of glum since it meant packing up your entire life back in Miami and leaving all of your friends behind with everything else that was familiar, warm and felt like home.

You were being pulled out of your thoughts by the car coming to a stop.

You exited the car taking your bag and suitcase with you to the front porch, then retuned to help your exhausted parents with theirs, once you acknowledged they were struggling to keep their eyes open.

The movers were supposed to come in the morning at about 8AM to unload the rest of your belongings.

You had entered the house and your dad lead you to your room, your mum following not far behind, not wanting to be alone in the foreign, empty house.

You set your bags down next to the bedroom door and kissed both your parents goodnight. They went to their room shortly after and fell into a deep asleep right away.

You changed into pyjamas and laid down in bed staring at the ceiling, you were tired but you couldn’t bring yourself to sleep.

After about an hour of just gazing at the fan spinning above your head, your eyes started to flutter shut, and just as you were about to drift off to sleep the sound of glass shattering startled you, making your heart race as the sound echoed through your ears.

You jumped out of bed and ran to your parents room worried, only to find out they were fast asleep.

Where did the sound come from then? And how come your parents didn’t hear anything? Is the tiredness starting to affect your hearing? Did you just imagine it?

You walked back to your room confused and curious as to where the sound came from.

you laid back in bed and quickly fell asleep assuming what you heard was caused by your sleep deprived state, your ears playing tricks on you.

You managed to fall asleep pretty quickly but you were pulled out of your dreams by the sound of two male voices, screaming at the top of their lungs, shooting at each other vitriolic comments.

Now you were sure, you weren’t just imagining it earlier.

You walked towards your bedroom window, peeking out in hopes of seeing something, anything that could give you a clue to whatever the hell is going on at almost four in the morning.

After about five minutes of hearing despicable words roll off someone’s tongue, muffled by the walls yet clear as day the second you let them sink in, you decided to go back to sleep since it’s really not your place, and just as you were about to walk back to your bed, you noticed a tall figure exit the house in a hurry while someone from behind it kept roaring in a resentful tone vile words.

You quickly turned your attention back to the view your window had to offer, watching as what looked like a teenage boy, put a helmet on his disheveled hair, get on a bike and ride off.

And with that, the noise stopped.

You were stood by your window as the quiet night swallowed you whole, the only sound audible now was your breathing.

You laid back in your bed taking in what you had just witnessed.

Who was that boy? Who was the mysterious, scary voice behind the door? why was he yelling such dreadful things at him? And what more was he capable of?

The questions were endless, they haunted your thoughts, knowing you had to find out what was going on, if that boy was okay.

You dozed off not long after, given the fact that you were after a flight and it was really late.

The next morning you were woken up by the rays of sunlight breaking through the glass of your window, resting on your closed eyelids. The realisation that you forgot to shut the curtains last night before you went to bed suddenly hitting you.

It was almost eight. You let out a loud groan and flipped so you were facing the wall, desperate for more sleep.

You barely had time to even try before your mum knocked on your door, your eyes fluttered open, she smiled at you greeting you good morning.

You let out a sigh and sat up, mumbling under your breath “it could be better”.

You got up and brushed your teeth, then went back to your room to get changed. You wore blue jean shorts, a black oversized band tee and white slip-on vans.

you entered the kitchen and noticed your dad making coffee, he handed you a mug filled with the warm liquid, you quickly drank it and set the mug down in the sink, realising he had started unpacking the “fragile - kitchen” box, meaning the mover’s loading truck was already outside.

You got out of the hous and your dad followed, your mum was already helping with the boxes and the two of you joined her and the movers helping them unload the truck.

It was almost nine and you were down to your last boxes, when you heard what sounded like the engine of a motorcycle.

Your head shot in the direction of the house next to yours as you noticed the same bike from yesterday come to a stop at the front porch, a blonde mop of hair was the first thing you noticed once the boy took off the helmet he had on, running his fingers through his hair.

He started making his way into the house, not giving you a single look.

When you finished unloading and unpacking your parents asked you to take out the trash.

You held two big, black garbage bags in your petite hands and started making your way to the bin.

You threw the content in, and just as you turned around the boy exited his house.

The two of you made eye contact and you offered him a kind smile which he mirrored without hesitation.

You started walking towards your house but stopped in your tracks at the memories of last night.

He was sat on his doorstep, a juul in his hand, as he hit it repeatedly.

You started walking towards him.

“Hey” he greeted sending you a smirk.

“Hi” you replied grinning.

As you got closer to him, you were met with the prettiest pair of blue eyes you’d ever seen.

“I’m JJ” he introduced himself taking another hit

“I’m Y/N, I’m new here” you stated suddenly shy under his gaze, taking in how attractive he is from up close.

“Yeah, i kinda figured, I saw the truck here earlier, plus I’ve never seen you around before” he affirmed

You nodded, a comfortable silence fell upon you two.

You were looking him up and down, he was wearing a grey tank top that revived his biceps and kaki shorts with a pair of black boots.

You then looked at the juul he was holding and noticed his knuckles looked slightly bruised, painted in this violet colour. You studied his features slowly before breaking the silence.

“Hey, um I actually wanted to ask you a question” He looked up at you signalling you to continue. “Last night, when I was trying to sleep, I heard glass shattering and other noises, d- did you hear anything?” He averted his gaze from you to the dock in front of him shaking his head no.

You knew he was lying. But you didn’t push him any further, knowing that if he wanted to talk about it he would.

You quickly changed the subject which he was highly grateful for.

The two of you sat there talking for a few hours, you told him about your life back home and he told you about the pogues, the two of you found out you actually have a lot in common, you share the same love for the ocean and surfing, you both would do anything for your loved ones and you both want to travel the world and explore it.

You didn’t know how long you’ve been sat with JJ, talking, until the two of you noticed the sun starting to set in the horizon, painting the sky in the most beautiful shades of yellowish-red slowly followed by shades of violet and blue.

You darted your gaze over to JJ, only to discover his was already on you. You smiled up at him, you could feel the heat rising to your cheeks, you whispered a “hi” to which he chuckled and shook his head, smiling at how cute he found your softness.

And for the first time since you moved, you felt welcome. And even though it started getting chilly, you felt warm inside, thanks to the humorous boy beside you.

You could hear your name being called from inside the house, telling you dinner’s ready.

You bid your goodbyes and walked back to your house.

You ate dinner with your family then went to bed, this time falling asleep easily since you were exhausted from that day.

At about two in the morning, you had to pee, so you walked to the bathroom half asleep but were quickly snapped back to reality when you heard “I’ll fucking kill you!” bawled with rage.

Your eyes were shot open at the sound of that and you started freaking out a bit. You were really worried but you didn’t want to stick your nose where it didn’t belong, so you decided to let it go.

When you laid back in bed you heard someone ignite a motorcycle and take off, you assumed it was JJ, and again, with that, just like the night before, the noise stopped.

The next day you didn’t see him. You were worried something might have happened but you reassured yourself, assuming he was probably with the pogues. That day was dedicated to helping your parents unpack furniture, cutlery etc.

You went to sleep pretty early given you were in desperate need of it.

You were abruptly woken up by the sound of loud thuds and the words “worthless piece of shit” ringing in your ears as they were being yelled at someone.

You quickly got up and looked out your window, you were concerned about JJ’s well being, assuming he got back home while you were sleeping.

This time you just couldn’t shake the feeling something’s seriously wrong, with that you slipped on your shoes and quickly ran to his house in a panic.

You knocked on the door firmly.

Once it was swung open and you were met with the same pair of blue eyes you saw yesterday, but this time with a bruise under one and a cut under the other.

His eyes softened at the sight of your worried state and you drank him in, searching his face for more bruises.

“What the hell is going on?” you asked now angry “what’s all that noise?!”

JJ looked at you then down at his feet and said “I wish I could tell you but I didn’t hear anything” you were taken aback by his words.

You knew he was playing dumb, and usually you won’t want to intrude but you were far too worried about him.

“Are you serious?” You asked him with wide eyes. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about. It must’ve been the wind.” you were dumbfounded by his statement, speechless.

“Thanks for caring, but I have to go back inside, good night.” Your eyes swam with concern as he closed the door. You walked back to your house not wanting to pressure him any further into talking about it since he looked like he was on the verge of breaking.

The next day you went to the beach with your surfboard. You ran into the water, eager to catch some waves when you were met with none other than the “surfing legend” himself, as he liked to say, JJ Maybank.

He was on his surfboard riding a wave as you watched in awe.

Once he saw you he started paddling on his board in your direction.

“Well hello there, how are you enjoying the waters of the Outer Banks so far?” he greeted authoritatively and you giggled at that. “I actually just got here, didn’t really get the chance to ride any waves. But I can’t say the same about you. You’re really good” you commented and a grin spread across his face. “Thanks” he replied.

He sat straddling his surfboard and as he got closer you noticed a giant bruise on his stomach, you gasped at the sight, he didn’t understand at first, then followed your gaze. “What happened?” You asked faintly, reaching out and tenderly tracing the bruise with your fingertips. “It’s nothing,” he scoffed “you should see the other guy” he chuckled awkwardly, but you weren’t buying it.

“I get it if you don’t want to talk about it,” you started “but just know my door is always open, you can come whenever you’d like for as long as you desire if you ever need a friend” he shot you a watery smile at that invitation and a comforting silence fell upon the two of you.

You broke it by saying “I bet I can catch that wave before you Maybank!” Then started steering away towards the giant wave that was heading your way, “Oh! Bring it on Y/L/N!” He retorted following not far behind.

That day was fun for the both of you, sun, surf and no worries.

When you got home you took a shower and put on a pair of grey sweatpants and a white oversized shirt.

It was getting late and you were beat from surfing and being in the sun all day, you had no trouble drowsing off.

You were sound asleep until you were alarmed by the sound of knocking on your window. You shifted the blanket off your body and got up, your warm feet made contact with the cold wooden floor, waking you up a bit as you approached your window.

You rubbed your eyes trying to make out the face of the blurry figure on the other side of the glass. You quickly picked up that it was JJ and opened the window, letting him climb in.

He didn’t need to say anything, knowing you already knew why he was there. You turned on the the table lamp, then noticed he had a busted lip, and a fresh cut on his cheek.

You were quick to wrap him in your embrace, hugging him dangerously close. He nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck and started crying, tears slid down his cheeks, making the collar of your shirt wet and see through, but you didn’t care. He buried his face in your chest and you held him as tight as possible until he managed to steady his breathing.

You held his hand and intertwined your fingers, leading him to the bathroom without a single word being passed between the two of you. You signaled him to sit in the counter and he obeyed. You started cleaning up his bruises and cuts, bandaging what you could.

After you finished you told him to go back to your room. You went to the kitchen and quickly returned, plopping down on the bed beside him, handing him ice cream, knowing it’s the most comforting thing you could give, other than a hug which followed the deed.

You put on “Iron Man”, trying to lighten the mood with Tony Stark’s humour.

As the credits rolled he opened his mouth “I’m sorry,” he mumbled “for bothering you like this it’s just- I mean- I-“ you cut him off by caressing his cheek with your hand, he leaned into your touch. “It’s okay.” you cooed, a single tear slid down his cheek and you wiped it away with your thumb, smiling weakly at him “We don’t have to talk about it if you’re not ready, and until you are, we can say ‘it must have been the wind’” you quoted what he’d told you the other day, gaining a smile from him, a real smile, eyes full of adoration.

You pulled the blanket on the two of you up to your chin.

You shut off the light and muttered a “Good night” before drifting off.

He kissed your forehead, lingering for a bit longer than he should’ve.

He murmured a good night before falling asleep as well beside you.

[svtshine]

Tattooed in my heart

Pairing: Minghao x reader

genre: Soulmate!au, Fluff

type: oneshot, imagine

ability: Soulmates that share the same tattoo, which is located on a random part of your body. It glows when you’re going to meet your soulmate

extra: i’m not actually sure if minghao has this tattoo or if it was edited. Feel free to tell me if you know :’). But it’s still really gorgeous and beautiful, inspired me to write this

You were five when first felt the hot searing pain on your wrist. It shocked you and you immediately found your parents, tears running down your face at how painful the feeling was. After a while, a beautiful 8 figure formed on your wrist like an infinity sign, it was gorgeous you first thought, slightly sniffing after enduring the pain for an hour.

Your parents showed you their tattoo, and explained how soulmates worked. Everyone is born with someone they were destined to meet, to love and to spend their whole life with. There were different ways one would be able to find their soulmate. Matching tattoos, being able to feel their pain for example.

It seems that you, alike your parents, had matching tattoos with your soulmate. You stared in wonder of the beautiful figure and wonder what it meant

It was around the age of twelve when you learnt the true meaning of your tattoo. The infinity 8 symbol represent everlasting love and good fortune. Infinite energy, infinite love and endless abundance. You loved the tattoo at first sight, and now understanding the deep meaning that it symbolises made you love it more. You couldn’t wait to find your soulmate, you believed that whoever he was, was someone who would love and appreciate for infinity and beyond.

It was a nice evening, as you made your way to the restaurant you were working at for your night shift. You sighed as it was going to be a long night, but the beautiful colours that painted the sky made you wanna smile.

It was sunset, the hues of orange, yellow and pink mixed together and formed a majestic sight to behold. The wind also complimented the scenery and you stopped for a moment to admire it.

You knew it was hard to be alone, but the thought that one day, you were going to meet the one, that would protect you, love you and take care of you, regardless of any situation. Someone you could pay all of your attention towards and wake up every morning to make them breakfast, was worth every second. You hoped, somewhere out there, your soulmate could watch the very same scenery that you experienced.

You turned your attention from the array of colours as you felt a sting on the inside of your wrist. Your tattoo was glowing slightly and you scrunched your eyes brows in confusion as this has never happened before. However, the alarm on your phone set off, reminding you that your shift was going to start soon. You took one last look at the sky and rushed down the street

Your tattoo glowing brighter with every step

“Minghao, let’s go. coups hyung said we’re all gonna go get some late dinner” Hoshi said as Minghao looked away from the mirror in the practice room and replied with an ‘okay’

He stared back into the mirror for a while, noticing how his tattoo on his back, was emitting a small glow.

“hyung, am i thinking too much? why is my tattoo glowing” Minghao asked frustrated because this was the first time his tattoo had ever done that he didn’t know why it was doing it.

Hoshi came over to check and sure enough it was really glowing, “i don’t know man, but i’m sure it’s fine” hoshi patted Minghao’s back. Minghao packed up his stuff, “we’ll just ask the rest later” hoshi said waiting at the door. Minghao nodded and took one last look at his tattoo that he has grown to be fond of.

He loved the number 8, in fact his stage name was chosen after his tattoo. Coming from a chinese family, Minghao loved the chinese meaning of the figure 8 and what it stands for. Loving it more since it became his tattoo.

He was aware about soulmates, and he longed to meet his destined soon enough. In seventeen only woozi hyung has found his soulmate, and only accidentally. She is very kind and bright, always bringing refreshments for the boys whenever they finished practice. But the one thing that minghao envied about them, was the way they looked at each other. Woozi hyung and his soulmate that it. They always looked at each other, eyes filled with adoration and pure love.

Minghao wanted that, to look at someone and just smile by them laughing or doing something random. To spoil someone and to love that person with his whole being. He couldn’t wait to meet his soulmate and always wondered how it would be like, the first time meeting them.

His tattoo glowed brighter with every thought that passed his mind.

It was a slow night, as you sat on the counter and doodled on a note pad, the design of your tattoo. It was close to ten now and most of the families and couples have already left. There were only a few customers left in the restaurant.

You continued sketching your tattoo and hummed a soft melody to yourself. You looked up to check the time and got lost staring at the second hand ticking.

The sound of the doorbell jiggling pulled you away from your thoughts and you double checked the time, it wasn’t very often customers came in at this timing.

“Welcome, how many of you are there—“

Your eyes slightly widened at the sight of 13 young men that were all way taller than you, pooling into the restaurant. It was a large group and they were all wearing masks or hats almost to cover up their identity.

“Hi, can we have a table for 13?” The one infront spoked politely. His deep voice shocked you but the way he spoke with a warm tone made you less tense.

You flashed them a smile and took 8 menus in hand and guiding them to a table at the back. “Of course, we can only give you this table, it’s the biggest and there’s more space here”

The boys started choosing their seats and flipped through the menu. You took out your notebook and pencil, preparing to write down a very large order.

Minghao continued to stare at you as you focused on what Josh hyung wanted to order. He didn’t miss the way your eyes widened as you took in their whole group but he found it cute.

Even Mingyu whispered to him, “hey she’s pretty don’t you think?”

When you directed them towards the table at the back, he found your voice super satisfying, there was just something about you. That made him want to know you more.

When you finally reached him, since he was sitting at the end of the table. Your whole page was already filled with orders but you continued asking, “what would you like, sir?” looking at Minghao for the first time

He’s handsome.

The way his hair was styled, and how great he looked in his outfit even thought it was coming to midnight and you probably looked like shit compared to him. For a moment you just stared at his lips moving, it was like moving in slow motion and you couldn’t help but focus on them instead of his orders.

Minghao realised you were staring at him and he blushed slightly, praying that under the dim light you won’t be able to notice it. He waved a hand u tik you shook your head slightly and apologised to him before biting your lip.

Oh god that was so freaking sexy—, stop Minghao

You broke away from your thoughts and blushed, apologising to the handsome one infront of you.

“i’m so s-sorry, could you repeat yourself?” you stuttered.

The rest of the boys resumed conversing within one another so only Minghao attention was on you.

“it’s really fine, i’ll get fried noodles and hot tea please.” He looked at your badge, “Y/n”

You nodded, writing it down and announced that you were going to come back with the food.

Minghao’s eyes continued following you as you prepared the plates and interacted with the chef while preparing to serve them their dishes. You just seemed, perfect. he could almost see you glowing under the lights. Minghao didn’t understand why he was so attracted to you.

You served their drinks before going back and getting the dishes. You folded up your sleeves since you didn’t want to accidentally stain it, forgetting your tattoo for a second.

Minghao noticed there was a tattoo on your wrist, but under the lights he wasn’t too sure of the design. He also realised that you were able to memorise all their orders without even needing to ask them twice and found that super cool.

As you walked towards him with two plates of steaming food and placing the fried noodle dish infront of Minghao, that was when he realised he was staring at the same tattoo that he had on his back.

For a moment, he was still taking in the fact that he’s actually seeing his tattoo somewhere else that wasn’t his back. His eyes widened in disbelief and shock.

Minghao instinctively grabbed your wrist after you let go of his plate and looked up at you. Your eyes were as big as his, “T-this tattoo, i have the same one. O-on my back. Oh my god, i found you” he stood up and hugged you tightly.

You processed the information and proceeded to hug him back as tightly as the members cheered you on, some already knew as they recognised tour tattoo but didn’t want to spoil it for Minghao.

Minghao wrapped his arms around you and pulled away, brushing the stray hair away from your face and behind your ear.

“I think this is why i was so attracted to you ever since you entered but, i’m really going to need proof” You whispered shyly as you stared at the man infront of you, who you hoped deeply that really was your soulmate.

“y-yeah of course, do you have a staff room or something here? with more privacy?” Minghao questioned, still smiling and in a daze as he stared at you.

You looked at your manager, and judging by the noise and hoots from your soulmate’s group, he understood you guys needed some privacy and even gave you a thumbs up as you led Minghao to the locker room at the back that was only for staff members.

Minghao closed the door behind him and turned behind from your gaze. He took off his shirt and let you stare at the tattoo on his back.

he heard you gasp in shock as you left gentle traces on his back, following the lines of the tattoo.

“it really is you. I-i can’t believe it, i’ve been wishing for this day ever since i was a kid, oh god i even thought about meeting you just a few hours ago” You said quickly, voice clearly showing you were nervous and exciting about finally finding your soulmate. “what’s your name soulmate?” you asked

“Minghao, love” minghao said, wearing back his shirt and turning around to face you. He lifted his hands and his eyes silently asked if he could wrap them around your hips. You nodded and he instantly pulled you closer to him, admiring you.

“i’ve been dying to meet you too, Y/n. and can i say, you’re gorgeous, i’m so lucky you’re my destined” You loved the way your name rolled off his tongue and blushed as he complimented you.

You wrap your arms around his neck, “Minghao, you’re really handsome too. I can’t wait to get to know you, and i’m really grateful you’re my soulmate”

Minghao smiled at you and leaned in closer, hesitating as he was scared that you weren’t comfortable with it. After you nodded in approval, he softly placed his lips against yours.

it was, magical. A soft moan escaped you as Minghao’s hands came up to sneak around your waist and your hand pulled on his hair ever so slightly. His lips never stopped moving against yours. The two of you pulled away for air.

Minghao laid his forehead on yours, and the both of you smiled at each other. the same thought crossed your minds.

“thank you, for letting me have this blessing as mine”

and your tattoos, glowed brighter than it ever did before

Masterlist

[friccinfricks]

Ben Hardy x Reader Headcannons, LONG.

This was originally titled “Ben x American!Reader” but idk how I feel about that, America’s lame. So, if you’re not an American, sorry, there are still some references to that, but otherwise it’s pretty generalized. Sorry! Nobody asked for this butttttt

- You probably met through Joe during Bohemian Rhapsody - When Joe met Ben, he just knew you two would get along - So he called you and insisted you visit him in London - “What?? Why??” - “There’s someone here I need you to meet” - He flew you out a week later, when they were doing the farm/Love of My Life/Bohemian Rhapsody scenes - He was so excited to see you, he rushed off the set to pick you up and twirl you around in a hug - “Y/N! You’re here!” - “Of course I’m here, I wouldn’t miss an opportunity to see Europe with you old friend!” - You catch Ben’s eye immediately - Joe introduces you to the rest of the cast, saving him for last - When you’re finally formally introduced, he can’t take his eyes off you - He’s in his wig and the blue button up, which is surprisingly silky - You find this out when you greet him with a hug, it’s warm and inviting - He smells lightly of cigarettes, but also of cologne - When you pull back, his arm lingers on your shoulder, a shy smile on his face - You come to the set everyday with Joe, for “encouragement” - But it’s really just so you can keep his chair warm (but it’s ineffective because the UK do be cold) - Ben notices this as the shooting goes on, and starts bringing an extra hoodie or jacket everyday, even when they move locations - He smiles when he sees your face light up - “You brought this, for me?” - “I saw you shivering yesterday, and since Joe is making you sit here all day, I thought I might as well try to make you less miserable.” - “Aw, thank you!” - He likes when you give it back to him at the end of the day, because by then it smells like you - You take turns bringing each other tea/coffee/hot chocolate (although it’s mostly you bringing it) - The rest of the BoRhap Boys make fun of you two alllll the time -Lucy’s kind of your closest confidante - One day towards the end of shooting, you run into her trailer where she’s packing up her bags - You’re wearing one of Ben’s navy blue hoodies - It’s way too big for you, but you’re so warm and toasty you don’t even care - “Lucy!” - “What?! Is something wrong?”

- You’re giggling like a fiend - “I need you to hide me” - “What?” - “I stole something from Joe and now he’s after me” - “What did you take?” - She’s asking you questions but she’s already moving things around so you can hide behind the small couch in the trailer - It doesn’t take long for Joe to come pounding on the door - “I know she’s in there! Let me in!” - “Whom? I don’t know who you’re talking about.” - “Y/N!!!” - Eventually he makes it into the trailer, immediately moving things around trying to find you - You’re trying super hard not to giggle - Ben sees Lucy standing in the doorway of the trailer and hears Joe’s yelling - “What’s going on?” He asks as he walks up to her - “Joe’s mad at Y/N because she took his picture of him and you from his make up station.” - Ben smirks and walks into the trailer, watching Joe tickle you while you’re squealing on the couch - “Give it back!” - “But... ah!... but you both look so cute in it! Please!” - “No! Get your own cute picture with Ben!” - Ben starts cracking up, approaching you two - Joe looks up at him, knowing about both of you and your feelings for each other - “We can take a cute picture if you want, Y/N” - You calm down your breathing, sit up, sigh, and reach into the pocket of the hoodie - “Fine, here” You say, feigning defeat - Joe takes it and victoriously kisses it, patting Ben’s shoulder - “I’m gonna get that fucking picture...” You mutter - And you do, eventually - You get many, many cute pictures and polaroids - At the wrap party after the last day of shooting, Ben asks if you’ll be going back to America soon - You tell him that you don’t have a return flight set up yet, but that you’ll probably have to go sometime soon - He asks you on a few dates, and it goes really well - But unfortunately you have to go back home - It’s a sad goodbye, but Ben insists that he’s going to call you everyday - And he does - Once a month he sends you a bouquet of your favorite flowers, always around the time of your period - He leaves little notes/cards with them, usually along the lines of        a. “Hello love, hope you’re doing alright this week, I know it’s not the best.”        b. “I’m thinking of you! Stay warm, let me know if you want another sweater.” - Among other cute things.  - When award show season comes around, he doesn’t even pretend to get a hotel room - “So, is your apartment ready for me?” - “It’s been ready for you! For months!” - The only downside is that he wasn’t able to bring Frankie - You guys rock the red carpet together - He can’t keep his hands off you, constant compliments - He’s v protective of you, holding/covering your drink when you go to the bathroom - You know that video of him and Joe at the 7/11??? - Yeah, you’re sitting in the car with Lucy, Rami, and Gwilym waiting for Ben to bring you out a fresh cup of coffee - “You two took forever. You’re not allowed to go on food runs anymore!” - The entire cast and you probably get drunk off your asses at Rami’s house, the ultimate after party. - You probably wake up in a spare bedroom in his button down - He’s next to you, breathing softly - His hair’s a mess and yours is too (not like a, “we fucked last night” but more of a, “we did some dumb shit last night”) - You get up before him and bring him a cup of coffee with just the right amount of cream - When you go downstairs, you see the rest of the cast, sprawled out on couches, making you smile - Everyone complains about the noise, but they quiet down when you distribute cups of coffee and aspirin. - Joe doesn’t even open his eyes when you set his down on the coffee table in front of him, he just says, “thank you Mom” - Once you get back to the room Ben and you shared last night he’s stirring - “Oh, there you are, beautiful” - You softly tell him to shut up and hand him his coffee - You run a hand through his hair when he groans about the sunlight coming through the blinds - He kisses your knuckles after a few sips and complains about his pounding head - Eventually you say goodbye to everyone and catch an uber back to your apartment - He falls asleep on your shoulder on the way back - He leaves a few days later to start shooting for Six Underground - It’s a sad goodbye (again) but you get through it - He does his best to call you when possible, and even introduces you to Ryan Reynolds, who makes fun of how he talks about you all the time - He flies you out to Italy, where you scold him the entire time and tell him to be careful during all of his stunts - “Stop it! sLOW DOWN!” - “Babe I gotta do it for the shot, let me practice before we film” - “Be careful though!” - He’s an utter dork about it and winks at you while he’s practicing - He even winks at you and sticks his tongue out during one of the shots, which makes the editors in post roll their eyes months later when they’re going through the footage - Somehow you wind up rolling your ankle ??? - You’re sight-seeing with him and you’re walking down some steps and ?? - He catches you and pouts when you insist that you’re fine while also hissing in pain when you walk on it - So he carries you back to his hotel and makes you lay down on the bed - You huff and complain but he kisses your forehead and you watch Netflix with him the rest of the day - He takes good care of you, propping it up on a pillow while wrapping you in blankets - He doesn’t even roll his eyes or smirk that much when you complain about the ice being too cold on your foot - You order his favorite (spaghetti carbonara) and you make him watch The Office, the American version - “No! I hate this! The British version came out first, that’s the original!” - “Yeah but this one is better, also, I’m INJURED” - He chuckles and boops your nose and says, “you’re lucky I love you so much” - And that’s the first time he tells you he loves you !!! - You stop mid noodle slurp with wide eyes and turn to him - You blink a couple times, swallow, and tell him you love him too - He smiles and puts an arm around you - A few months after you go back home, you get a call from your boss - They ask you if you’d like to work from home - You mull it over, then ask them if working from home could be done from another country - ... or continent.... - They tell you yes, and you call Ben nearly immediately - “Heyyy baby, remember how you told me you loved me and would support me no matter what?” - “Of course darling, what’s up?” - “How would you feel if I... maybe... moved to London...?” - He doesn’t even answer the question - His voice gets super high and he flips out - “Oh my god, really?!” - “Do you want to stay with me? I promise, my flat’s clean” - “Babe, Frankie misses you so much, when will you be here?” - You chuckle and thank your bosses for the opportunity - Your family isn’t in love with this decision, but they support you - And they like/trust Ben enough to be okay with this - Two months later you’re in London, luggage in hand - You’re looking around the airport, kinda freaked out - He finds you in baggage claim, taking you into a bigggg hug - He won’t stop kissing you !! - “You’re *kisses* so *kisses* beautiful!”  - “Ugh babe stop I just got off a plane, I know I look like crap” - “No. You’re absolutely radiant.” - He helps you with your bags and takes them out to his car - The entire times he’s holding your hand and telling you how excited he is - Your first night there he insists on taking you to his favorite takeout restaurant - It becomes a weekly tradition; takeout every tuesday - Months go by and the pandemic hits - Luckily his shooting for Pixie is done by then - But he’s still bored and on edge - You guys watch the news, but after a while it just becomes too depressing - You sleep in a LOT together - normally he’s not a morning person anyways, but any semblance of a schedule is now gone - One time you see an ad on the tele about animals more in need - Frankie’s sitting on your lap and you’re rubbing her ears - “Do you want a friend, Frank?” - She just looks up at you with big eyes - “We should get a cat.” You announce - “A cat? Are you crazy?” - “I dunno, I kind of want a cat.” - He just sort of nods slowly, averting his eyes back to the tv - A couple days later when you come back from the store you can’t find him - “Hon? Where’d you go?” - You hear some shuffling and moving around coming from your shared bedroom - “Shh shh no, hush, don’t chew on that, your mum will be so mad if you ruin her lamp” - “Ben?” - “Y/N! Hi love, come in, come in!” - You open the door and you see him sitting on the floor with a little black and white kitten on the floor in front of him - You squeal and drop to your knees - The kitten immediately takes to you, purring while you pet it - “What should we name her?” - It takes the two of you a couple of hours to figure out a name - But you settle on Mariposa, because it almost looks like she’s got butterfly wings on her back - Mariposa and Frankie actually get along really well !! - At first they were afraid of each other, but after having them both for two weeks Mariposa is more than comfortable cuddling with Frankie on one of her doggy beds - Ben complains every now and then about “all the estrogen” in his flat, but you just throw a pillow at him - “You chose Mari! And Frankie! AND ME!”  - Speaking of throwing pillows - That’s kind of your thing when there’s not any hot tea or coffee around - When one of you says something inherently stupid,  - BOOM - Pillow’s thrown at the other - Sometimes this leads to pillow and tickle fights (which somehow he always wins) - And yeah, that’s kind of the only two kinds of fights you guys have - Sometimes there are definitely cultural differences or perspectives, but you usually are able to contain those disputes enough to where no one’s voice is raised and there isn’t any lingering animosity - Ben is aware that you two are different people from different upbringings, and is mature enough to realize that you won’t agree on everything - BUT that is a great way to push each of you out of your comfort zones - Your relationship is by no means perfect - Especially in the beginning when it was rare for you to see each other when you weren’t on Face Time. - There were ups and downs and very hard times of just... missing him -  But through that entire journey, you never felt as if you weren’t meant to be - You knew that Ben was a hot commodity and as a growing actor he would be getting a lot of attention for how talented and attractive he is - And he knows you get a little worried/insecure/jealous sometimes, so he goes out of his way to show a little bit of extra PDA towards you when he feels it’s appropriate - All in all, he just wants you to know that he thinks you’re the real star of the relationship - His star, anyways - And while he’s done his best to take it slow, holding off on saying “I love you” too soon because he wanted it to mean a lot - He’s got something in the works - A little velvet box that he puts in every pair of pants, because you never know when the right moment arrives - He’s so nervous, too - There have been so so so so many times during quarantine that he’s wanted to just pop the question - But he knows he’s got to have just a little bit of patience - Then, one day, it comes - You’re nauseous as you look at the two parallel lines on the test - You’re freaking out, you have no idea what to do - If Ben even wants kids - If you even want to keep it - You slide down against the bathroom wall, feeling v clammy - After ten minutes, Ben knocks on the door - “Love? You alright?” - “I-um, yeah, one second!” - You stand up, hands trembling and open the door - He’s standing there, a worried look on his face - “What’s wrong, sweetheart?” - You hand him the test - “Sorry, it’s kind of unsanitary.” - This gets a chuckle out of him - It’s hard to read his expression, but you can see he’s trying to hide a smile - “Hold on, stay right there princess” - He disappears into your bedroom and you’re just standing in the doorway like ??? what is he up to ??? - A moment later he comes back and gets on one knee and you’re just... flabbergasted - It takes you a second to comprehend what just happened, but you say yes (duh) - He’s so excited - He kisses your forehead and then your tummy - He insists, and nearly begs to go with you to every OB/GYN appointment - You let him drive you there, and even in the earliest stages of the pregnancy, he’s got an arm on your womb the wholeeee time - At first you told the doctor you didn’t want to know the gender - But then she told you that you’d be having twins - TWINS - So you were like, “fine okay just tell us” - Ben looks like he’s about to faint when the doctor tells you they’re girls - On the car ride back he’s joking the whole time - “Oh my god the amount of ESTROGEN I’ll be dealing with is ASTRONOMICAL”  - The two of you have no idea what to name them - You ask Lucy and Rami, who are trying to conceive - The entire BoRhap cast is sending you suggestions alllllll the time, at any hour of the day - Joe wants you to name them Josefina and Frances since he’s the one who brought you two together - But you’re also planning a wedding simultaneously - You decide it’s going to be a very, very small and soon ceremony - The only people there are your very closest friends and family - Tbh the most expensive element was probably your dress - You get married two months after your engagement - And go through a very rigorous pregnancy - The twins are born with slight complications, which makes Ben worry about you the whole time - You end up naming them Ilsa and Delia, both beautiful and healthy - They for sure have Ben’s green eyes and your hair - And yeah - Life isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty damn close - Ben loves you and all his girls - Because you’re his girls - He’s a good and compassionate father, and his parents love to babysit for you - And if there’s such thing as a happily ever after, - This is it.

[softboywriting]

Haven Port | Chapter Three | Shawn Mendes

Summary: Shawn and his pack have moved to your tiny town of Haven Port. You’ve never met werewolves other than your dad before and you’re infinitely curious. You may be only half werewolf but you and Shawn have a connection that will send you on a wild romantic journey in this small town you call home. [hybrid reader] [werewolf shawn] 

Word Count: 2.5k

|Masterlist In Bio|

  You wake up and immediately you're confused, not familiar with your surroundings. Then it hits you, you're at Shawn's place. You sigh softly and relax. You're laying half on his chest, his arms around you, legs all mixed up with yours. He's snoring, soft little noises coming from his open mouth, warm against your cheek. You're not sure what time it is, to guess you'd say it was still some time in the middle of the night.

The wind rattles the windows and from your place in bed you can see the white snow flying about endlessly. The storm doesn't seem to be getting any better. By morning the world will be coated in a fresh several inches of snow.

Shawn stirs, hugging you close, then rolling you under him so he is laying on top of you. “Go back to sleep.”

“The storm hasn't let up."

"Mmm it's fine. I promise I'll make sure you're comfortable if you have to stay."

You duck your head against him and he tangles his hand in your hair. You close your eyes and fall asleep wrapped in his warmth.

When you wake a second time the bed is empty. The sun shines through the window, reflecting off the bright snow outside. Shawn's side of the bed is cool as you stretch and take in your surroundings. It feels so strange being in a bed that isn't your own. It's much softer, warmer too and it smells heavenly, like cologne and fresh laundry. You don't want to get up, but you have to pee and the bathroom is downstairs.

You pass two open bedrooms on the way, one that you guess is Ava and David's judging by the colorful decor you see inside. That definitely seemed like Ava. The bathroom is on the other side of the stairs when you go down and as you turn to go down the hall, you hear Shawn talking. He sounds upset.

"Who wants to explain last night?" Shawn asks just as you slip into the bathroom. You close the door enough so that it doesn't latch but you can still hear and not be seen.

"Explain what?" Ryan asks.

Shawn scoffs. "The greeting you gave our guest."

"We greeted her just fine?" It's Lindsay's voice.

Shawn growls low and guttural, it sends a shiver down your spine. "The two of you were extremely cold to her. Lindsay, Ryan, want to talk about that?"

"I guess she wasn't what we expected." Ryan says nonchalantly. "We were expecting a wolf."

"Is she not a wolf?"

Lindsay scoffs and Shawn must do something because she clears her throat immediately as if covering with a cough. "She's a hybrid, Shawn."

"And?"

"And she's just...not what we expected."

"Listen. All of you, but particularly you two. We do not discriminate against hybrids in this pack. I will not stand for it. If any of you say another word about her or her upbringing and I hear about it, there will be consequences. Am I clear?"

There's a chorus of "Yes Shawn." And then silence. You back away from the door and sit down to use the bathroom. You knew they didn't like you, you just knew it. These wolves were no different than humans, judging you for what you are and how you look. Was there anywhere you'd fit in?

______________________

"You awake?" Ava asks as she opens the door to Shawn's bedroom. "Shawn and Ryan went out to shovel out the cars and I thought maybe you could join me in making breakfast."

You roll over and look at the girl in the doorway. Her pajamas are adorable, little ducks and hearts all over a bright pink and yellow background. "I think I'll just stay here."

"Is something wrong?"

"No. Well..." You sigh and Ava steps in, closing the door. "I don't know if I fit in."

"Because of last night?"

"Yeah. I don't want Shawn to make everyone like me."

Ava sits on the bed and lays her hand on your shoulder. "Shawn loves you. He does. He might not admit it yet, hell, he might not even know it but he does."

"That's insane. We've basically just met."

"I know. I know." Ava giggles. "You and Shawn are definitely mates. Not all the wolves understand that, or realize it yet  Lindsay and Ryan are from a pack that used to exile hybrids, they're still acclimating to a different life. And Jo...well I think I know why she was so quiet."

"Quiet?" Jo wasn't quiet, she was just as bad as Lindsay and Ryan. You want to tell Ava what you heard, but what if she tells Shawn? No. No drama.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure Jo has been in love with Shawn since she joined the pack. She's the youngest of us all. She is Shawn's friend's sister and left with him when he split from his old pack."

You curl up tighter and sigh. This is so overwhelming. You had no idea wolves were this complicated. Mates, packs, dislike of hybrids. You don't fit in here, you don't fit in anywhere.

"I just want to be alone." You pull the blanket up over your head. "Thanks for talking to me though."

Ava rubs your side and stands up. "You'll fit in just fine. It'll take time."

You remain quiet as she leaves. As soon as the cars are dug out you ask Shawn to take you home. You don't belong with wolves, you belong in town with Parker and your teas and coffees and rugged old boat captains who treat you like a long lost daughter.  

____________________

"Are you sure you don't want me to shovel out your walkway?" Shawn asks, leaning toward you across the center console of the Jeep.

You shake your head, standing outside the Jeep with your hand on the door to close it. "I'm fine. I'll get to it in a while."

"I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Um, yeah, I guess."

Shawn furrows his brow. "Something wrong? Did I do something to upset you?"

"No, no...I just think I need some time alone. Meeting everyone was a lot."

"Oh. Uh, well, let me know if you need anything. You have my number now."

You nod and hold up your phone. "Got it right here. Bye Shawn." You close the door and start tramping through the snow toward your front door. It hurts, saying goodbye. It feels so final. He didn't do anything wrong, in fact if you could spend all your time with him you would. But his pack isn't fond of you and he wasn't going to choose you over his pack, you'd never expect him to do that. It was best you just ended this now.

_____________________

A week passes before you see Shawn again. It's your own fault, you've been dodging him. Faye says you're being stupid, that his pack doesn't understand you yet, that you're running away without giving him a chance. At night you can't sleep, body aching for his touch. It's like a drug, once you've had it you can't get enough. You have laid awake every night wondering if he was right about mates, and if there was something to that business.

It's Monday, officially nine days since you last saw Shawn and the bell over the shop door jingles. It's a little late in the day, usually customers stop coming around ten and it's well after noon time. You look up from the coffee grinder you're wiping out and see Ava.

"Hey, there you are!" Ava says in relief. "We thought maybe you left town. I've been so worried about you!"

"No, I'm here." You set the grinder aside and go to the order counter. "I'm fine, just working. Did Shawn send you?"

"No, I came on my own. Shawn is a mess." She sighs and folds her arms over her chest. "He doesn't sleep, he doesn't eat, he just goes out in the morning and then comes home late. I've got no idea where he's going, but I really hope it's to work."

"He works, he got a job?"

Ava looks around the shop. "Yeah, I think he got a job at the docks. David did too and he works the morning shift, they put him in the parts room. Ryan and Lindsay work out of town at a temp place in Jonesville. But anyway, Shawn has been in a foul mood lately, when he is home he's snappy and annoyed. I'm pretty sure it's because you're avoiding him, he's heartsick."

"I am not avoiding him." You fidget with a paper stir stick, avoiding her eye contact. "I've been working...and so has he obviously."

"But you don't reply to his texts or calls."

"How'd you know that?"

"Because he told me." She leans on the counter and gives you a soft smile. "He wants to see you, why are you avoiding him?"

You cross your arms and start to pace the length of the back area. "The pack doesn't like me. I can't be around people who are going to mock me. I like Shawn, I really, really like him, but it's not going to work. I separated myself to make things easier."

"The pack doesn't know you yet. They didn't even try, but you didn't either."

"They made fun of me!" You tremble, feeling like a child tattling, but you don't care anymore. "They think I'm a freak! Ava they don't like me and they never will."

"Whoa, hold on. Who made fun of you?"

"Jo and Lindsay. They were talking about me in the hall after dinner that night. They were mocking my ears and how they move." You clench your jaw as you bite back tears.

Ava walks around the counter and puts her arms around you. "Did you tell Shawn?"

"No."

"You should have. He's the alpha, he will talk to them."

"No. I didn't want to start drama and make them hate me more."

Ava rubs your back slowly. "You need to talk to him. I can send him to your place when he comes home tonight. Just talk to him."

"I can't. He would never choose me over his pack." You sniff softly. "I'm just some girl he met and I'm way too emotional about it."

"You're his mate." Ava steps back and holds your face in her hands. "Don't forget that. It's not something that's going to just go away. He will choose his pack and his mate."

"How am I his mate? I just...it's so much to understand. We just met and I'm having all these feelings and I don't even know him that well yet." You pull away from Ava and lean against the far wall, hoping the cold of the brick will help relieve some of the stress. "I'm overwhelmed."

Ava nods and smiles softly. "Being a mate can be overwhelming even for a person who grew up with wolves, I can't imagine how it feels for you. But I can tell you that hiding from him is not going to solve a thing."

"What do I do? What do I say?"

"Start with talking to him. Seriously, just talk to him and you'll find things just come naturally. I'll send him to your place as soon as I see him."

"I guess." You sigh and thank her for stopping by. She invites you to the store with her and you close up shop, having filled your online orders earlier in the day. Maybe talking would be good, because hiding sure isn't solving anything.

_____________________

Just as you're getting ready for bed later that night, a knock on the front scares the shit out of you. You're not sure why. Maybe it's because you're not used to visitors, or maybe because you are so on edge about seeing Shawn. You pull on your night shirt and head down the stairs to see Parker sitting at the front door, fur raised on the back of his neck. Strange, he never got this way unless he was stalking a bird through the window.

"Scoot over you crazy cat." You look through the peephole and see Shawn standing on the porch. He's got his hands in his pockets and he's looking around anxiously. "Oh, it's just Shawn," you mumble and pull open the door, shooing Parker away with your foot.  

"Hey, Ava said I should come by." Shawn says quietly. "I've been meaning to but..."

"But I've been dodging you."

"Yeah." He smiles weakly and you open the screen door to let him in. "You're hard to find when you don't want to be found."

You close the door and press your back against it. "I can hide when I need to."

"Why did you need to? What happened?"

"N-nothing."

Shawn steps close, hand sliding along your cheek as he cups your jaw. "Don't lie, I know something happened. Tell me who hurt you."

"I-" You swallow harshly. He's looking at you with so much concern it hurts. You haven't seen a look like that since you were a child and your mom scooped you up after you broke your arm when you fell on your bike. It's a pure form of love and you can't comprehend how he has this look for you. "It's the pack."

"Jo, Lindsay and Ryan?"

"Yeah...Jo and Lindsay." You look away and he moves your head back up to look at him. "I heard them making fun of my ears. It's fine, it doesn't hurt anymore. I'm-"

"But it does hurt. I can see it. You're hurt because you thought they'd accept you, I told you that they would." He drops his hand and curls his fingers around yours loosely. "They know better."

"This is what I'm afraid of, making you choose me over them. I was doing you a favor by staying away. I don't belong with wolves, I-"

"A favor?" He laughs curtly. "Staying away did no one any favors. I've been in a shitty mood because I couldn't be with you and I know I've been snapping at my pack since last week. I've been trying to find some way to get back to you and to hold you. This last week has been awful."

You look down, eyes wet. "I'm sorry."

"No," he drops one hand and tilts your chin up. "You didn't do anything wrong. You thought you were doing the right thing, you were scared. I'm sorry you felt like you couldn't tell me or come to me about this."

"I don't know what to do. I've never been a mate and I feel like I barely know you, but I've also known you forever somehow. I feel like everything has happened so fast and I haven't had time to process and understand any of it."

Shawn steps back and shrugs his coat off. "We'll talk. I'll answer every question you have."

"But it's late."

"And you need answers. Come on, we can sit in the living room or wherever you're comfortable."

You peel yourself away from the front door and go to the stairs that lead to your bedroom. "My room. The bed is comfortable and if I fall asleep, then I won't get a back ache like I do on the couch."

"You're sure? You want me in your room?"

"Yes...I need it."

Shawn takes your hand and looks up the stairs. “Lead the way, sweetheart.”

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

Please send feedback in asks, replies or reblogs. Let me know if you’d like to read more of this story. Thank you so much -A

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

[hadenodom-stories]

Clair’s Voyage, Part 1

Clair woke up in a cold sweat.  There was no light breaking through her open window, and her heavy dark Navy curtains made no noise as they wavered in the summer wind.  It was the 5th of July, and she was freaking out.  Have you ever had a dream that stays on your mind and colors your mood for an entire day?  Clair had just endured the second such dream in as many nights.

Regardless of the dread her dream had instilled in her, she knew she had to get up and moving.  Yesterday's dream had nearly sapped her of all of her energy, and her friend Elaine had noticed at the neighborhood 4th of July cookout.  "I've never seen you in such a foul mood", she'd remarked.  She couldn't let that happen today.  She had a very important interview, and her entire future potentially hinged on it.  She couldn't be in a dour, depressed state -- 'Then I'll have to fake a smile', she thought, 'and I'm absolute shit at that'.  

Despite a grim determination to force herself into a better mood, she found herself dwelling on the previous day's events as she trudged through the hallways of her quiet house towards the kitchen.  By the time she was sitting down, her head full of frizzy auburn hair slumped forward beholding the sight of a depressing bowl of some "healthy" cereal that'd been sitting in the cupboards well past its expiration date, her mind was busy replaying  and reliving the most traumatic part of that day.  The part that she'd seen before in a nightmare just hours before it happened in real life.  The part of the day that was at first clouded in a sense of Déjà vu -- a surreal "I've seen all of these events, in this exact order, before..." sense -- until it burst into traumatic realness.  The pops and whizzes of fireworks zooming into the sky.  The cheers of the neighborhood kids as one particularly bright, low, and loud firecracker exploded.  Her younger brother looking at her with a cheeky "watch this" expression as he prepared to light a cobbled-together collection of old fireworks that he'd taped together and put into a small pipe to launch.  His uncomprehending, still-excited face as the spark ran along the fuse far too fast and the pipe began to tilt back towards him.  The flash and screams afterwards.  And everything going black once she saw the blood and exposed bone.  Once she realized how bad it might be...

She neatly placed her spoon back on the table and stood up.  'No way I can fucking eat now', she thought.  As she walked out onto the back patio and tossed the now-soggy cereal out into the yard for the local cats to enjoy, she remembered her mom's instructions:

"Look, go home.  Just go home.  You heard the doctor, honey.  He's going to be alright.  They're doing their best.  We won't be able to see him for quite a while.  I'll stay here for now.  Just go home and sleep in your own bed.  Get you mind off of it and come back when you're able."

Clair slammed the patio door shut behind her, furious now.  She understood that her mother wasn't exactly a master of emotional understanding or empathy, but how could she be so fucking stupid?  How could her mom just think that she'd be able to go home and be comfortable knowing her brother was in surgery, having seen what happened to him?  'I'm an adult now, but goddamn, how do I even process this on my own?  How do I just move on with my life?  How can she expect me to just go home, forget all about it, and then get ready for this interview?"

She continued to ruminate and curse her mother's lack of empathy - or at least the kind of empathy Clair expected - as she lazily got ready for her interview.  It was only 5 AM and her interview wasn't until 9, but there wasn't anything else to do and she certainly couldn't go back to sleep.  She was going to put on a frightfully awful dress - she hated dresses - with a pair of shiny black businesslike pumps - which she also loathed - and apply more makeup than usual, and then go spend a couple of hours at the hospital trying to get an update on her brother's situation.  'I'll go ahead and let mom know that I can't handle this on my own while I'm there', she thought.  'She won't care, but I'll let her know'

In her old, grey Civic hatchback with the paint peeling, she barely focused on the road or on driving.  The static-filled dulcet tones of an NPR reporter reciting headlines momentarily calmed her, but she wasn't processing any of the words.  She was just busy thinking of what she could remember from last night's dream.  It was a mess - all she could remember was some boy she barely recognized (but couldn't place) talking to her mother, and her mother suddenly displaying more emotion than Clair had ever seen from her - but she still wasn't able to actually identify the emotion her mother was feeling in the dream.  Something like shock - or confusion - or betrayal - or all of those.  Clair tried in vain to figure out who the boy in the dream was - his face looked very familiar, but she couldn't remember where, other than the dream, she'd seen him. And as for what emotion her mother had been reacting with or what the boy had been telling her mother, she was at a complete loss.  Her eyes flashed upon a sign and her brakes squealed.  Lost in thought, she'd almost missed the exit for the hospital.

The hospital was a tiny rural hospital on the edge of town, a decaying building full of old doctors and young underpaid nurses, kept alive on a shoestring budget despite the exorbitant prices it charged you for the simple privilege of remaining alive.  Clair was sure that her mom wasn't ready for any of the financial burden her brother had just incurred -- at least not on the meager retirement checks and alimony they'd subsisted on since her dad had left.  Walking into the main waiting room, she was mentally prepared to hit her mom hard with three questions:  "How is he?", "When can I see him?", and "You're not going to make me stay at the house by myself for another night".  The last one wasn't a question, but she expected, at the very least, her mother's acknowledgement.  Instead, she was met by the face from her dream - the unfamiliar boy - walking out of an empty waiting room.  She couldn't help but stop in her tracks and stare at him.  "You're Micheal's sister, right?", the boy said, seemingly unphased by her glare.  "Yes", she finally managed to respond.  "He's not here anymore", the boy replied.  

"What?"

"They took him to a hospital in Jacksonville.  He's stable.  Your mom didn't call you and tell you?"

"No..."

"Oh, well.  They left about 30 minutes ago.  He's stable, but your mom's kind of a wreck.  I stayed to meet up with his friend Lisa who wants to ride with me to Jacksonville.  He's going to go into another surgery to try to save his face and they said he'll probably be ready for visitors by later tonight."

'This is absurd', Clair thought.  'How can this random boy know more about my brother's situation than me.  How could my mom be so detached as to not tell me any of this?  And I'll be goddamned if anyone's going to finally visit my brother's hospital room before me'

"You can ride with us if you'd like", the boy offered.

"No, thanks, I actually have to drive to Jacksonville this morning anyways.  I have an interview at 9..."

"Say no more... I guess I'll see you there"

With that, the boy walked past her.  She turned and followed him outside.  "So... who are you?"

"Oh, we've met before I think.  I'm Cavill, Micheal's... we're friends.  I've been here since last night worried sick about him.  I guess your mom wanted you to be home so you wouldn't worry yourself sick like her."

"Fat lot of good that did", Clair replied drearily.  "And yeah, we have met... Micheal just never bothers to introduce his friends to us.  I guess he gets that from mom, the habit of keeping everyone at a distance"

"Cigarette?"  Cavill was holding out a crumpled pack of smokes.  It was odd to think that anyone Micheal hung out with smoked -- to Clair, she couldn't think of her brother as anything but a kid.  Hell, she had a hard time calling herself an "adult"

"No thanks", she replied, waving sheepishly.  

"I quit like a month ago - most on your brother's insistence.  But sitting here waiting last night and stressing out... I just couldn't do it.  I went and bought a pack of smokes.  Micheal would be ashamed of me."

"Don't say that.  I've never known Micheal to be anything but supportive"

"Yeah, but he..."  Cavill's voice trailed off as he began to choke up.  "He's the only person that really ever cared, you know?  And I care about him too.  I don't want to let him down."  A single tear ran down his cheek.

Clair was at a complete loss.  She always came to a complete loss when anyone cried or became vulnerable around her.  'I guess I'm not too unlike my mother', she thought.

"You won't.  You know he talks about you sometimes?  The other day he told me that you're learning guitar and that you're pretty good"

"I'm not, and he knows it.  He just..."

She wasn't sure why Cavill was trailing off now.  She'd met friends of her brother's before, but something was different in the way Cavill talked about his bond with Micheal.  What was it?  

Suddenly, some neurons firing in her brain or some semblance of emotional intelligence came to her, and it made sense.  Months before, Micheal had confessed to her that he was in a relationship but said it was a secret and refused to give her any more details.  It'd annoyed her at the time - she hated secrets in any form and saw them as puzzles or riddles that she needed to solve - but now, with her brother's somewhat-secretive friend quietly crying over a cigarette in front of her, an uncomfortably vulnerable figure, she felt like she was close to unraveling this particular puzzle.  She eyed Cavill again, taking him in.  He was a bit taller than her brother, and thinner.  His hair was golden-brown and jettisoned out from his head at odd angles, like some sort of anime character's.  His face didn't quite match it - soft angles, a small button of a nose, and thin lips.  Blue eyes.  He looked absolutely sad, and she couldn't stand to leave him here on his own.

"You're going to Jacksonville, right?", she said.

"Yeah, but I'm waiting for Lisa, remember?  She's my ride"

"Well, you can ride with me if you want.  I'm going right now."

"That's probably more convenient.  Lisa lives between here and Jacksonville and hasn't even left her house yet".

"Well, I'll make some room in my car.  And I have an interview later on, so I won't be able to give you a ride back until after lunch"

"That's okay, I'm staying at the hospital for the day if I can help it"

Clair looked at Cavill, who'd extinguished his cigarette between his fingers and was starting to walk behind her towards her car.  "Go wash you hands and splash some water on your face", she said.  "I don't want the smell of cigarettes in my car, and besides, you look tired"

Cranking her car, her head disappeared in thought again.  What was the meaning of the dream she'd had the night before?  What kind of secret life had her brother been living?  Who is this Cavill kid she's seen around who's suddenly very attached to her brother?  Why would her mom not tell her that her brother had been taken to a hospital an hour's drive south for surgery?  What was Cavill telling her mom in the dream she'd just had, and why did it make her mom so... upset?  

She couldn't sit there with her thoughts for a second longer, so she reached for the pair of pliers in the center console and used them to twist the metal stub on which her car radio's volume knob had once rested.  The dulcet tones of the NPR announcer now filled the silence:  

"Next on NPR:  We talk to an experimental psychologist about a new study on the phenomenon of apparently precognitive dreams.  Can dreams predict the future?"  

Not even NPR was going to give her a moment of escapism. 

=============================================

This is part one of my unfinished series about a girl named Clair whose dreams begin to mirror reality (sounds fun until it happens to you!), which for now is going to be titled “Clair’s Voyage”.  I started writing a story along these lines, with much less detail, a few years ago until it was apparent that I was writing a longer story than I’d set out to write.  At that time, I just saved the draft but left it unfinished.  Now, I’m adding more details and breaking it out into different parts.  It may become a book by the time I’m done.  Clair, you see, is an aspiring psychiatrist - she loves studying the mind and how it works - but right now she’s just trying to struggle through community college and get a job as a secretary at the local psychiatric hospital.  She’s also trying to struggle with the traumatic events surrounding an eerie July 4th, on which her brother was grievously injured in a scene that played out exactly how it had played out in her nightmare the night before.  With her brother’s boyfriend, Cavill, at her side, she’s about to embark on a journey of discovery and empowerment filled with ups and downs and unspeakable trauma.  So be sure to tune in for the next Part of Clair’s Voyage. 

[tails89]

Whumptober 2020

No 9. FOR THE GREATER GOOD “Take Me Instead” | “Run!” | Ritual Sacrifice

Fandom: Teen Wolf

***

“Boyd and I are heading to the supermarket.”

“No, wait. Take me instead.” Stiles plants his hands on the kitchen table, pushing his chair back to balance on two legs.

“You’re supposed to be studying,” Derek tells him. He collects his keys and wallet from the bowl they keep on the counter. “You made me promise not to distract you.”

“That was like two hours ago,” Stiles whines. “People change. I’ve changed! Please distract me.”

“It’s a twenty-minute trip to the supermarket.”

“It’s outside. Do you know how long it’s been since I saw the outside?”

“We went for a walk this morning,” Derek reminds him. “Fine.” He hip-checks the chair, grinning when Stiles almost overbalances. “But you’re not allowed to complain later that I’m an enabler.”

“You are an enabler,” Stiles smirks, bouncing up from the table. “I love it.” He smacks Derek on the ass and disappears into their bedroom to find his shoes.

When he returns, Derek’s waiting for him in the living room with Erica and Boyd.

“How long have you two been here?” Stiles asks, sitting on the arm beside Boyd. “What’s wrong with your house that you gotta come watch my TV while I have to study?”

“Technically,” Derek points out. “It’s my TV.”

“It’s the principle Derek.”

“It’s pack night,” Erica says. “And I want icecream.”

“You don’t deserve icecream.”

“Boyd Junior wants icecream.” Erica pouts, smoothing her hand across her swelling belly.

“Fine,” Stiles tells her. “Boyd Junior can have icecream.”

He hops off the couch and follows Derek down to the driveway.

“Can we take the Jeep?” Stiles pats the hood as he circles around to the driver’s side. “I haven’t driven her in ages, have I girl.”

“Your car has no legroom,” Derek says, pausing beside the Camaro. “I have to sit there with my knees up around my ears just to fit. I can think of better things to do with my knees up around my ears than sit in a car.”

“Well…” Stiles says slyly. “You can do that in a car too.”

“Yoga?”

“You suck.”

Derek pulls a face.

“Don’t you dare say it.”

“I didn’t say anything. We should take my car. It’s better.”

“Agree to disagree.” Stiles waits with his hand on the door handle for Derek to give in with a long drawn out sigh and walk across to the Jeep.

“You did the right thing Der,” Stiles says, patting Derek’s thigh and backing out of the car park.

*

Stiles had the green light.

He knows he had the green light. He’d been stopped on the red, it had gone green, and-

He doesn’t remember seeing the silver car fly through the intersection, but he remembers the noise. The crunch of metal and glass, the squeal of rubber and car horns blaring.

Then there is silence.

The sedan hits the Jeep on the weekend, sparing the squishy human the worst of the collision. Had it had hit the driver’s side; Stiles would likely be dead. It sends the Jeep skidding across the asphalt and onto the grass, finally coming to rest pinning the Jeep up against a telephone pole.

“’les-“

Pain.

“’iles-“

But distant, like it’s happening to someone else.

“Jesus Stiles, open your eyes.”

Okay, maybe not so distant.

“Please Stiles.”

Pain.

Stiles makes a noise, low in his throat, and scrunches his face against the waves of agony crashing down on him.

“Stiles?”

He blinks sluggishly, willing the world around him to stop spinning and focus. There’s an itch down the side of Stiles’s face and a rhythmic pounding behind his eyes that’s matching pace with his racing heart.

The blurred lump beside him leans closer and a face materialises.

“Hey.”

“’rek?”

Stiles squints at him. Derek’s half twisted in his seat, leaning against the door which has buckled inwards from the force of the collision. There’s blood running down his face, matting up his hair. There’s more blood on his jeans, too much blood.

Stiles swallows down the panic, and his chest burns. It steals his breath and he pants, desperate for air but terrified of breathing too deep and jostling his ribs.

“-iles, I’m okay. I promise.” Derek reaches across to grab Stiles’s hand. “I’ll heal. It’s okay.”

It’s not, but Stiles forces himself to nod, to winded to respond verbally. He turns his gaze to what was once the windshield. The glass is gone, scattered throughout the totalled car.

Outside, a hysterical bystander is talking into a phone.

“No,” Stiles groans, struggling with his seatbelt.

“What?” Derek tries to sit up, grimacing as the movement pulls against healing injuries.

“I can’t afford ambulance.”

“Stiles stop. Stop.” Derek covers Stiles’s hands with his own. “Stop moving. I can pay for the ambulance.”

He holds on until emergency services arrive.

*

The police turn up first.

There are more of them than necessary, but every law enforcement officer in Beacon Hills knows the distinctive blue Jeep and they had all responded when the call came through dispatch.

The fire brigade arrives minutes later.

The fire fighters assess the incident while a deputy comes around to Stiles’s window.

“Hey Stiles, Derek,” she says. “We’ll get you guys out real soon okay?”

“That would be great, Clark,” Stiles says, his voice strained.

“Roberston’s calling your dad, too,” Clark tells them as the paramedic’s swoop in.  She steps out of the way to let them get to work.

One of the paramedics test Stiles’s door, but the pole prevents it from opening.

“Guess we’ll have to do this the hard way,” she jokes, keeping the mood light and reaching in through the window. “My name’s Sarah, this is Mike. Can you tell me your names?

Mike goes through the trunk and over the back seat to get to Derek, who tries to brush him off. He heals quickly, Stiles doesn’t. Eventually, he resigns himself to the paramedic’s ministrations. Despite the healing factor, he hurts. The door pressing into his back is cutting off the feeling in his legs and working with the emergency services will get them out of the car faster than arguing with them.

Sarah and Mike work like a well-oiled machine, calling out instructions and passing things to each other while the firemen outside work to get Stiles and Derek free.

But the adrenaline of the accident is beginning to wear off and Derek notices Stiles is fading.

“I told you we should have taken my car,” Derek says, trying to catch his attention.

“How woul’ this be diff’rent?” Stiles asks. His eyes are closed, his breath fogging up the oxygen mask that he’s now sporting.

“My car has crumple zones.”

“Y’re a crum’e zone,” Stiles murmurs.

Beside him, Sarah’s brows knit together infinitesimally. Derek only notices because he hears her heartrate speed up a notch.  

“What’s wrong?” Derek asks.  

“His oxygen saturation- how much oxygen is in his blood- is lower than I’d like,” Sarah explains. “But we should have you both out of here soon.”

Derek is the first to be plucked from the wrecked vehicle. Once he’s out of the way they can reach Stiles.

The numbness in Derek’s legs is easing now that nothing is pressing on his spine and his healing has kicked in, but it’ll probably be a few hours before he can get up and walk. There are a few staff at the hospital in the know, so he’s not too concerned about freaking anyone out with his healing abilities.

He’s not ready to go to the hospital though, not while Stiles is still trapped.

He watches as Stiles is pulled from the wreckage on a backboard and placed on the ground. Someone kneels by his head, squeezing a bag that’s replaced the oxygen mask.

Then the ambulance doors close.

“No, wait.”

*

Melissa is waiting for him when the ambulance pulls up to the hospital. She holds Derek’s hand while he’s wheeled through to triage, murmuring reassurances the whole way.

Derek barely notices her. He can’t erase that last image of Stiles lying lifeless on the grass.

The triage nurse is a friend of Deaton’s. She and Melissa check Derek over before confirming that his healing seems to be kicking in. There are pin and needles running up and down his legs - it’s an improvement.

Melissa finds Derek a quiet spot to wait for Stiles, away from the hustle and bustle of the emergency room. They wait together until the commotion down the hall heralds Stiles arrival.

With a promise to keep him updated, Melissa ducks out of the room to find out what’s going on, leaving Derek alone with his thoughts.

His mind immediately turns back to that image.

Not Stiles. Please, not Stiles, he thinks to himself. Take me instead, but don’t take Stiles.

Almost thirty minutes after she left, Melissa returns with a wheelchair.

“They’re about to take him to surgery,” she explains quickly, helping Derek transfer to the chair. “His dad is with him now, if we’re quick you can see him before he goes upstairs.”

She pushes the chair back into the bustling emergency room, expertly dodging around medical staff. There’s a cubicle about halfway along the room with a drawn curtain. A nurse exits, holding aside the curtain for Melissa and Derek to head in.

Inside, on the bed, is Stiles.

The first thing Derek notices is his chest.

There’s a thin blanket across Stiles’s hips and legs. He’s bare from the waist up, the left side of his chest painted in pinks and purples and reds. There’s a tube protruding from between his ribs on the left side, the skin around it stained orange.

Melissa pushes Derek right up to the bed. John stands on the opposite side, his hand resting in his son’s hair.

Their eyes meet, and Derek looks down.

A tube snakes out from between Stiles’s slack lips and his chest rises and falls with a mechanical wheeze. Derek stares at it, unable to process anything else.

The loud rattling as the curtain is suddenly, pulls him abruptly from his reverie.

“Time’s up I’m afraid,” Melissa tells them. She pulls Derek away from the bed so he’s not in the way as Stiles is whisked away.

*

“-going to wake up properly this time?”

Stiles feels his lips pull down in a frown.

“He will if you don’t shut up.”

“Mama McCall said he should be waking up. I’m doing him a favour really, keeping him on track.”

Someone is holding his hand, running a thumb across his knuckles. He squeezes their fingers.

“Stiles?”

*

His lips are so dry.

He tries to wet them with his tongue.

His mouth is so dry.

“Wake up sleepy head.”

He shifts, trying to get comfortable, and something pulls.

“D’rek?”

“I’m here.”

The hand Stiles is squeezing, squeezes back.

Stiles blinks, opening his eyes.

The pack is perched in various places around the room, watching Stiles expectantly.

He closes his eyes.

*

“Wha’ happened?”

Stiles can hear the rustle of Derek shifting in the chair beside the bed.

“We were in a car accident,” Derek tells him. “Do you remember?”

Nodding vaguely, Stiles looks around the room.

“Was my dad ‘ere?”

“Mel took him home for some dinner and to get some rest.”

“Mm, what time’s’t?”

“About seven pm.” Derek stretches his legs out with a slight wince. “You’ve been here for a bit over twenty-four hours. You’ve been drifting in an out for a while. Melissa said you probably wouldn’t remember.”

“When can I go home?”

Derek smiles. “A few days maybe, once the chest tube stops draining blood.”

“Huh?” Stiles is wearing a gown, but it’s not tied up. Derek helps him tug it down to reveal the tube and bandage and patchwork of bruises which have darkened over the day. “Are you okay?”

“Werewolf, remember.” He’d been walking again, albeit slowly, by the time Stiles was out of surgery. “I’m fine.”

“Good.”

Exhaustion clings to Stiles like mud, dragging him back down into the depths of sleep.

*

One week later, Stiles is released from hospital. He’s sent home his painkillers and antibiotics and instructions not to do any strenuous activity.

Derek and Stiles have very different ideas what constitutes strenuous activity.  

“Oh!” Stiles lurches upright, trying not to jostle his broken ribs. “I totally missed my exams. I need to email my professors.”

He goes to stand, but Derek is already there with Stiles’ laptop.

“You’re supposed to be resting,” he says, scowling.

“I am resting,” Stiles protests, taking the computer. “The doctor also said I should be walking around a bit.”

“You did.”

“From bed to the couch? That hardly counts.” Stiles rolls his eyes fondly and pats the cushion beside him.

Derek sits down, guiding Stiles to lie back and snaking a hand under his shirt. He splays his fingers across the healing bruises and starts drawing out the pain that lies under Stiles’s skin.

“How about tomorrow,” he says once Stiles has melted into a puddle human goo. “You can walk from the bed to the kitchen.

“You drive a hard bargain, Derek Hale.” The last two words are almost lost around a yawn.

“What do you want to watch?” Moving to the opposite end of the couch, Derek settles in with Stiles’s feet in his lap.

“Hmm, The Mummy.”

Derek keeps one hand on Stiles’s ankle while he flips through the Netflix catalogue.

Stiles is asleep before the movie starts.

[phoenixhalliwell]

Waking Up In Vegas

Pairings: Benny Miller X Gender Neutral Reader (I have given them a call sign ‘Tink’ cos I love that nickname lol)

Word count: 2490

Author’s Note: Tumblr is being a wee weirdo and I cant find the link for this fic and my other frankie one for my masterlist so I have to report again *cries*

Archnemesis Benny and reader wake up the morning after a wild night in Vegas with the boys to a surprise revelation.

BANG. BANG. BANG. BANG 

 It takes a second to realise that the noise isn’t just your head pounding but in fact someone knocking rapidly at the door. A whimper leaves you as you try not to throw up. You wiggle around the bed, trying to get loose from the heavy blankets but fail miserably.

“Please, stop….too loud. Dying” is all you’re able to croak out. Your mouth is drier than the desert and a one man band is marching in your head. Looking down you realise that it is not a blanket weighing you down but an arm. An arm that is now pulling you backwards to firmly press you against their warm chest. A groan comes from behind you and a face  nuzzles into your throat. You can feel the panic starting to build in your chest.

'Oh god, oh god. What the fuck!’ You are brought out of your freak out by a familiar voice.

“Are you going to open the door willingly Tink? Or am I going to have to come in there myself!”

Frankie! Relief rushes through you at your saviour. Frankie is a good guy, he won’t give you shit for this like the other boys. It’ll be swept under the rug and no one else has to know. That’s why Frankie is your favourite. The person behind you suddenly makes their displeasure at being rudely woken known.

“Will you shut the fuck up Fish, some of us are trying to sleep”

A coldness rushes through you. NO. FUCKING. WAY. Not him. Please not him. Slowly turning in the arms that have you in a death grip, you let out a low moan. Benny Miller is lying there in all his glory. He looks almost angelic with the way the morning sunlight hits him just right, making him glow. But you know the truth.

That man is the fucking DEVIL.

To say you and Benny dislike one another was an understatement. There is a long standing feud between you and the younger Miller that goes so far back you can’t quite remember how it started. You were originally a medic under the command of his brother Will, but over time (with Will vouching for your skills) you’d been pulled into other little jobs that involved his old army buddies and his dipshit little brother. You were welcomed into this little make shift family with open arms (well by most people anyways).Will, Santiago and Frankie - you thought the world of.  Benny…. let’s just say you wouldn’t piss on if he was on fire. There was just something about Benny that just irks you. The way he calls you names and winds you up until you explode and end up being separated by Will who is sick of both of your shit. That god damn cocky grin rubs you up the wrong way. The way he thinks he’s god’s gift to mankind and struts about. Sure, he is a handsome man and is talented at his profession.He can be kind when he wants to be. He’s loyal and he’ll have your back if the situation calls for it,  but it doesn’t mean he has to show off all the fucking time! He’s a god damn pain in your ass!

So to wake up this morning and find out you two have evidently slept together causes a small part of you to die inside. This bastard is never going to let you hear the end of it. You try to cast your mind back on what actually led you to your current predicament.

You and the boys were spending the weekend in Vegas for Santiago’s bachelor party. The wild stallion had finally been tamed and he wanted one last hoorah with his family before the new chapter of his life. The original plan was to have a nice dinner at the Bellagio before hitting up the tables in hopes of winning some cash. That part you could remember, it is the rest that comes in drips and drabs.

The chant of “Shots! Shots! Shots!” echoes in your mind and there is still a faint taste of tequila in your mouth. 'That explains why I can’t remember jack shit. Did we do Karaoke?’ You can see Frankie and Benny screeching “I want to know what love is ” with Will swaying along and Santi throwing money at the them from the front of the stage. 'Why can I hear bells ringing?’ There is also a familiar body ache you know the exact cause of. More flashes come to mind that make your heart race : Stumbling into walls, the desperation of trying to undress quickly, a hot breath on your neck, hands gripping your waist, filthy words being whispered into your ear….

'I’m never drinking again’

The banging at the door starts again, Frankie is clearly pissed at being kept waiting.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your marital bliss but check out is at 11 and I know for a fact neither of you fuck heads have packed”

Marital bliss? Who the hell is married?

You eyes drift down to your left hand and its suddenly hard to breathe. There is a nice new addition to your ring finger. A gold band that sure as shit was not there yesterday. This seems like the perfect moment to start screaming. Benny is up in an instant, scanning the room for the unknown threat. Once he realises it’s just the two of you, his body relaxes and he scrubs his hand over his face. It takes him a moment to notice the feeling of cold metal on his skin and he stares down at his hand, an unreadable look on his face. You are just able to hear him whisper

“Fuck, its real”

This whole situation is suddenly too much and everything becomes blurry as tears fall from your eyes. You can feel yourself start to hyperventilate and Benny is at your side in an instant trying to console you.

“Come on sweetheart you need to calm down. Feel my chest and breathe with me yeah? In… and out…. It’s ok I’ve got you.”

He repeats his reassurances over and over again. You try to focus on the sound of his deep voice, try to follow his instructions to help regulate your breathing. Gradually it returns to normal and you slump forward into Benny’s arms suddenly exhausted. He rubs his hand up and down your back, somewhat soothing you. You  feel him sigh before he turns his face into your hair and presses a gentle kiss to your head. It suddenly occurs to you that Benny has never been this gentle with you and your heart clenches a little. You feel him pull away from you and have to stop yourself from squeezing him tight.  You stand there for a few seconds in silence before you hear the door opening behind you. Frankie must have found the spare key to your room.

“Are you guys still alive in here?” he asks timidly, glancing between  you and Benny,  eyes zoning in on how close the both of you were.

“Yeah man, we’re good.” Benny  replies, moving to stand on the other side of the room.

“Look I am really sorry to rush you’s but Will’s anxious to get on the road and he might end up murdering Santi before the wedding if we all don’t hustle” Frankie says apologetically.

“I’ll catch you guys downstairs. I won’t be long” Benny grabs his things off the floor before making a break for the door, leaving you and Frankie to stare at each other awkwardly.

“Not a word Morales” you threaten.

“Wouldn’t dream of it Tink. Let’s pack your stuff and get the fuck out of dodge yeah?”

Like you said. Frankie was always your favourite.

Awkward doesn’t even begin to cover breakfast. Those little shits planned it so you and Benny are forced to sit side by side in the booth. Frankie is looking somewhat sympathetic when Santi slides a piece of paper over to you with a shit eating grin. It’s photographic evidence of the worst decision of your life. You still weren’t sure how you guys ended up in the little white chapel saying the big 'I Do’. None of the boys seem to remember either or were just refusing to give up any information about it in case they incriminated one of their brothers.

'Bet you it was all that bastard Santi’s fault’

Sighing, you finally look down at the photo in front of you. It was the 5 of you all lined up. You and Benny stand in the middle of the photo, clinging to each other. You were snuggled into his chest as he gazes down at you in awe. You swallow sharply and tear your eyes over to Will who is off to Benny’s left and appears to be crying? (I was just so happy someone took the little shit off my hands) Obviously Will stood in as Benny’s best man, that was a given. On the far end of the photo on your side stood Santi who looked dishevelled and pissed off. Was that blood on his shirt? Between him and you stood Frankie who (unusual for him) was sporting a Cheshire grin. Confused, you looked up at the two men in front of you and suddenly noticed real life Santi had a black eye.

“What the fuck happened to you?”

The two men glanced at each other in embarrassment before Santi quietly admitted that he and Frankie had got into a fist fight over who was going to be your right hand man. Will snorts into his hand in the corner.

'God give me strength not to kill these stupid bastards’  Sighing and rubbing your temples you shot them a glare which has the 3 men across from you cowering in their seats.

“So at no point did any of you guys think to put a stop to this madness?” You growl.

“Is the idea of being married to me really the worst thing in the world?” You hear Benny asks quietly, still not looking at you.

The boys have the good grace to look a little ashamed before Santi decides to pipe up and make his defence.

“Well how could we? Benny spent the best part of the night proclaiming his undying love you. Fuck he even serenaded you at the Karaoke bar.” There is a loud thud and Santi’s face  twists into a grimace. Apparently someone had kicked him under the table.

“Yeah right as if Benny would ever say anything like that! He hates my fucking guts. Right Benny?” You scoff and nudge him with your elbow. An uncomfortable silence washes over the table and Benny refuses to look at you. It’s good old Will who breaks the silence, abruptly standing up.

“Why don’t we go sort out the bill yeah?” looking to his brothers.

Santi squawks in outrage and throws up his hands “But it was just getting to the good part!!!” Will grabs him by the collar of his shirt and drags him out of the booth, muttering furiously into his ear before marching him off to god knows where. Frankie reaches over and gently squeezes your hand before sliding out and giving Benny a pat on the shoulder on the way by.

“Good luck hermano” he calls over his shoulder. You wait for a beat before turning to Benny gearing yourself up for a fight.

“Are you fucking serious right now. Or is this all an elaborate game that you and the boys have cooked up Huh?” you hiss.

“You really think I’m that cruel?” he fires back.

“I don’t know! Ever since I met you, you’ve made my life a living hell Benny! So why wouldn’t this not be the next step in the ’ terrorise Tink’ grande scheme?” The remark clearly hits him hard as he whirls round to finally face you.

“You really have no clue do you.”

“What the hell are you talking about Miller?”

Benny scoffs bitterly and takes a deep breath.

“I don’t hate you Tink! I never have. I’m so far gone on you that Will threatens daily to kill me if I don’t shut up about you. Ask him or any of the guys for that matter”. There’s a look of pleading on his face as though begging you to believe what he is saying that leaves you completely floored. Without waiting for a response he barrels on, the dam broken, clearly needing to get everything off his chest at last.

“Do you realise how intimidating it is to talk to you?. You’re amazing and so fucking beautiful Tink that I feel like I can’t breathe every time i look at you. You are hella smart and watching you work on the job blows my mind every time. And that mouth you have on you, no one else ever calls me out on my shit like you. I know I have a sense of humour that people don’t always get. I know I can be a complete asshole and I don’t really have much going in my favour but  I’m not a bad man Tink I swear. I’ve been sweet on you since the day I met you. For some reason though you just seemed to dislike me from the start so it was easier to play up on being an asshole. It hurt less that way.” He trails off.

What. The. Fuck.

You stare at him. Dumbfounded. You’d been wrong the whole time?

“I remember most of last night Tink. We had been drinking and betting at one of the craps tables. You were on a winning streak and kept saying if you rolled a hard 8 you would do this and that. You were having the time of your life Tink. I’ve never seen you look so free. So Happy. Any time you’re around me, you’re always so closed off. And it kills me. But you were looking at me different last night. And i was so caught up in the game I bet if you rolled a hard 8 one more time that we should get married. And you took me up on that offer. I’ve never felt so fucking happy in my life. I know it was a stupid idea and that we were drunk, but you finally chose me and if anything happened to me after that I could die a happy man.”

He gently brings both his hands up to cup your face and leans in close, not enough for your lips to touch but close enough for him to whisper to you.

“I know this whole Vegas thing has been crazy and I’m not asking you to stay married to me. That would be unreasonable. All I’m asking is that you choose me again. That you give me a chance to show you how much I care about you. Please”

You stare into his eyes for a second, looking for a hint of deception. Finding none, you make your decision. You close the gap between you and feel Benny sigh in relief into the kiss.

I  guess there’s a fine line between love and hate.