#me i have to cram hours and hours of work in on the weekends while everyone is home and making noise bc i don't have time during the week -

[non-un-topo]

Worrying I'm developing a case of senioritis, not in the screw-this-I'm-just-not-going-to-do-it way, but in the holy-shit-can-I-please-finally-just-be-done way

[gracieheartspedro]

Crave

Part 3 of "How Long"

pairing: f!reader x brother-in-law!joel miller

find part 1 and 2 here!

dedication: @jenispunk <3 I love you sm jen. thank you for always supporting my writing and being the best wife a girl could ever dream of. you make my heart so happy. thank you for helping me edit and being the first to read this and encouraging me no matter what! love you love you love you!!!

description: a weekend escape with joel and sarah, kinda. the bed situation is a little confusing. luckily you and joel make it work. when sarah's not around, of course.

word count: 5.5k

warnings: MINORS DNI! this is 18+, pre!outbreak joel, there is smut in this part!! unprotected p in v, oral sex (f receiving), joel is a CONSENT KING AGAIN, dirty talk, daddy kink (aha), hotel sex?, begging? lmao I think that's it.

author's note: finally. it's here. I feel like I've been staring at this doc for 7 years. thank you all for your patience. I want to continue this series but I have to sit down and really brainstorm what I'd like the next parts to be. let me know your thoughts! THANK YOU FOR READING!

“My favorite Millers!” 

Your face was beaming, seeing Joel hop out of his truck with Sarah in tow. The truck was still running, the diesel engine chugging louder than any truck you had been in before. Joel always had a nicer, newer truck. He made great money and he was always having to go into construction zones that needed an all terrain vehicle. They always got pretty banged up with dirt and rocks, but he took excellent care of the interior. 

Joel grabs both of your bags, taking them to the backseat where Sarah would be crammed in with all the luggage. You give him a nod, silently thanking him. Sarah wraps her arms around your waist, giggling with excitement. 

“I’m so happy you’re coming with us! It’s going to be a great weekend,” She explains while you two walk over to the tall truck. You always found climbing into a truck unnatural and awkward yourself, but it was hot watching Joel hop in with ease. You agree with Sarah, all the while opening up the door for yourself. Sarah springs up to her seat, and you struggle to crawl up into the cab. It makes Joel chuckle. 

“I’m making you lift me into this thing next time,” you joke, easing back into the fabric seats, “Especially since you think watching me struggle is funny.”

Joel looks back in the rear view to see if Sarah’s paying attention, “‘s no problem at all, darlin’. I will gladly help you next time.”

You knew he was flirting. It makes your stomach bubble with excitement. He makes sure you two are buckled and starts on the two and half hour journey to Houston. Once you leave your neighborhood, Sarah taps your shoulder and holds out her new CD player. It’s purple and covered in sparkly stickers. 

“Looks like your Dad is supplying you with all the ways to listen to music,” you observe, glancing over at Joel. He’s just watching the road, one hand on the steering wheel, the other propped up on the shifter. He looks younger, the dusk sky the perfect back drop for his pronounced nose and beautiful eyelashes. You couldn’t help but stare, even as Sarah’s talking your ear off. He just nods along to her, making sure she knows she’s heard. 

“Think I’m gonna listen to my Kelly Clarkson CD this time,” Sarah explains, putting her earphones over her voluminous curls, “So don’t try to talk to me!”

You and Joel giggle, shaking your heads at her comment. It’s not like you were the one’s talking before, you both think. 

It gives you both a moment without a kid’s ears nearby. 

“How was the rest of your work week?” He asks, tapping the shifter to the soft hum of the radio.

“Boring,” You mumble, “Think one of the guys in marketing has a crush on me and he’s making it impossible to avoid him. I can’t even go to the break room without him bothering me.”

You didn’t know why you felt the urge to tell Joel about the situation. It wasn’t even a real situation, it was just an annoying thing happening in your life.

“Hmph,” he ponders for a moment, “Want me to kill him?”

His tone is serious, but you know he’s just messing. You grin, nudging his arm with your elbow gently, ensuring it doesn’t move the steering wheel. 

“My hero,” You comment as you watch a smile crack across his face, “No, thank you, though. If it starts to get to stalker status, I will call you.”

“Seems like stalkin’ already, baby girl.”

The nickname makes your stomach flip. You purse your lips, contemplating his words. Sure it was creepy, but the guy was scrawny and you could probably snap him in half with two fingers. He had nothing to really worry about. Right?

Joel steals a glance over at you. 

“Maybe, but I’ll handle it.”

You wanted him to think you were strong enough to deal with unwanted attention, but to be honest, you weren’t sure how to say no to most men. You only ever had Tommy and he scared everyone away. Now everyone around town knew you were on the market, and men were drawn to your natural beauty and somewhat sassy attitude. 

Little did they know, you were hung up on the other Miller boy. 

“You let me know if you need me to talk to him,” He doesn’t take his eyes off the road, just reaches his right hand out to rest on your thigh, “Man to man.”

His hand is so warm, you feel it through your black leggings. He was almost always like a furnace, but it was okay, because you always ran cold. But every time he touched you, you felt that warmth trail up your arms and legs. He made you feel different. Every fiber of your being became electrified when he was around. It was a sensation you never noticed when you were with Tommy. You begin chalking it up to just being nervous because he was older and larger and… well, hotter. 

“Again, my hero,” you respond sarcastically, letting your hand rest on top of his. It makes him more confident, gently massaging that area. You watch as his hand creeps closer and closer to the crack between your legs. You practically gasp at the contact, but you catch yourself before you do, remembering there’s a child behind you. 

So you smack his hand away, shooting him a glare. 

“What are you doing?”

“Nothin’ just… sorry.”

You didn’t want him to pull away, your leg already missing his touch, but you knew what would happen if you did stuff like that in front of Sarah. She’s a teenage girl. She’ll talk. It’ll find it’s way to someone’s ears. 

You wanted to act like you didn’t care if Tommy found out, but deep down you knew it would be a disaster. You didn’t feel like being the talk of the town. You didn’t feel like explaining yourself to Tommy. You didn’t feel like watching Joel deal with the flack from his family, especially his mother. 

If you two wanted to continue this… game… you would have to keep it secret. That included keeping it away from Sarah’s eyes and ears. You and Joel would just be friends. You would just be her aunt. That’s it. 

“Don’t apologize,” You whisper, “Just not here.”

You two let the radio take over the rest of the trip, occasionally chatting about a song or what the newscaster says about the weather. Once you get into Houston, it’s already 8:30 at night. Joel pulls into the parking garage to the Marriot and you already start craving the bed that awaits you inside. 

-

“I call the bed near the window!” Sarah throws her stuff down, jumping straight onto one the huge queen size duvet. The room was nice. A large television set catches your eye immediately, proving that this was probably an expensive room if they were giving you free cable tv. The curtains were open, giving a beautiful view of Houston’s skyline. 

One thing you notice, too, is the fact that there was only two beds. You knew this, but it still made your stomach sink a bit. 

You realize you three hadn’t discussed the sleeping situation. You didn’t care where you would sleep, honestly. You just knew Sarah was a restless one, having slept next to her in a tent when she was 9. Family camping trips entailed you, Tommy, Joel, and Sarah sharing a 6 person tent and being absolutely miserable the whole entire time. Between Tommy’s snores and Sarah practically flailing all around the tent at night, you remember not getting a lick of sleep. 

“Go get a shower, Sarah. We will figure out who’s sleeping where.”

She groans at Joel, like usual. 

“Dad!”

“Shower,” he throws his bag down on the ground near the dresser, “No arguin’.”

Sarah sulks, her bag in hand, straight to the bathroom by the front door. You don’t say anything. You just start following Joel’s lead by putting your bags down next to his. You stand a bit too close to him, waiting for him to say where you’d be sleeping.  

He clears his throat, “I will take the recliner, if you want the bed.”

“Of course I want the bed, but I don’t want you to have to sleep in the recliner.”

It makes him laugh, how matter-of-fact you are. 

You hear Sarah start up the shower. You wouldn’t have to fear she hears you and Joel talk about the possibility of sleeping with one another. Again.

“It’s not a big deal,” He explains, unzipping his bags to grab his pajamas, “Sleep on the couch all the time.”

“But you have a nice plush couch,” You gesture towards the hard and structured looking recliner, “That doesn’t look comfortable at all.”

For a girl who didn’t want Joel touching you in the car, you were practically begging him to sleep next to you in the big comfortable hotel bed. 

“So, where do you want me to sleep?”

“Just take the bed.”

“But you want the bed.”

You swallow, not even looking up at him, “We both can have the bed.”

He’s silent, gripping onto his sweatpants and t-shirt. He slowly looks down at you, his eyes carry a curious glint in them. You cock your head, giving him a mischievous smirk.

“You and Sarah?”

“No, you and Sarah.”

He groans, “You are a fuckin’ tease.”

You giggle, watching him brush pass you to position himself close to the closet. He opens the closet door, slipping in like he’s looking for something in there. 

“What are you doing?”

“Changin’.”

“In the closet?”

He grabs his shirt from the nape of his neck and pulls it off smoothly. You can’t peel your eyes away, partially seeing his right peck from how he’s standing. It was like the morning after having sex with him. Your eyes were glued to him, his tanned skin practically asking to be touched and licked. 

You horny bitch. 

“Joel, get out of the closet.”

He chuckles, “Why? You want me to give you a show?”

Why yes, I really do, Joel. You think to yourself. You hum a response, peeling your eyes away. You needed to find your pajamas, a pair of Nike sports shorts and a black tank top. Lately, you’ve been sleeping completely naked, but that was obviously not an option here. 

Sarah finally leaves the bathroom as soon as Joel slides his pants up. She has her hair wrapped in a towel, which makes you smile. She looked so grown up, it’s hard to believe you met her when she was 6 years old. You wordlessly walk into the bathroom, beginning to change your outfit for your sleep wear. You splash some cold water on your face, your cheeks still blushed from seeing Joel shirtless. 

You hear the door outside open and close. You peak out, your traveling clothes wrapped up in your arms. Joel stands in the middle of the room, fiddling with the remote for the TV. 

“Where did Sarah go?” You question, packing your clothes back into your duffle. 

“She wanted to go get ice from the ice machine,” He grumbles, “Said she wanted to see if any of her teammates were awake or nearby.”

“Is her whole team staying here?”

“Yeah, pretty much every team gets a floor. Last year it was a like a huge sleepover. Fuckin’ nightmare,” Joel mutters, flicking through different channels, before landing on some westerns. You smirk, deciding to plop down on one of the beds. As soon as you lay back, Sarah comes back in, bucket in hand. 

“Can I go stay in Amelia’s room? Her mom is there, just two doors down.”

Well that solves the bed problem. 

Joel rolls his eyes, you can tell he’s already annoyed. “Is Amelia’s mom okay with that?”

“You want to go talk to her? I promise Dad, we will get up at 5:30 like we need to. Pleas-”

“Let’s go talk to Amelia’s mom.”

You hear them leave the room without saying anything else. 

You were tired from a long day at work and the long drive. But some excitement blooms in your stomach when you realize it may just be you and Joel, all alone in a hotel room. 

Before you have time to ponder all the wonders that may be in store for you, Joel comes back with a frustrated huff. 

“She staying over there?”

“Yeah, Amelia’s mom said it was fine. Then she started askin’ who you were. Guess they saw us in the hotel lobby.”

Your stomach twists, nervous at what his response was.

“And?”

“Told her you were Sarah’s aunt. She gave me a weird look.”

“Great, now the soccer mom’s will be oogling me tomorrow.”

“Well they will anyway,” Joel responds, finding a spot next to you on the edge of the bed, “Single ones won’t leave me alone.” 

You know he’s really just seeing if you’ll get jealous. But you don’t play into his little game. You just let out a loud hearty laugh. 

“The ladies just love a Miller.”

He grumbles something inaudible, nudging you with his elbow. “You do, don’t ya?”

“Sure do.”

His face softens, his eyes flicking down to your lips. 

You grin, “She’s 14 and super goofy. Loves to play socc-”

“You’re truly testin’ me today, ain’t ya?”

You can’t help yourself at that point. The way he’s flirting only gives you more reason to taunt him. 

“Is Sarah seriously going to be gone from the room all night?”

“Yeah,” He nods, leaning back on his palms. He acts like he’s watching TV, ignoring your not-so-subtle hints that you want his eyes on you. 

“So, I can finally ask you why you think it’s okay to tease me in the car?”

“Don’t know what you’re on about, darlin’,” He smirks, he knows.

You tilt your head to the side, finally lifting your hand onto his lap. You immediately start toying with him the same way, your hand creeping towards his crotch. His eyes peel away from the TV. He watches you closely, his eyes trailing from your gaze down to your fingers dancing on his pant leg. 

“You put your hand on my thigh and started inching closer and cl-“

“Are you tryin’ to make a point or pose a question?”

He was getting annoyed with the games already. But you’d only just begun. 

“I’m just trying to explain how you can’t do things like that to me in front of Sarah,” You remark, flicking your eyelashes up to his glare, “Especially when you can’t finish it.”

“Who said I ain’t gonna?”

You huff, “Well here we are, all alone in a hotel room. No kiddo in sight. Still not touching me.”

“Don’t think you deserve it cause you’re a tease.”

“How am I a tease, Miller?”

“You exist and that’s enough. Walkin’ around in a tank top,” He gestures to your chest, “Just beggin’ to be touched.”

Your skin is set alight. The words go straight to your core. 

“Joel-“

You’re cut off. His hands work quickly, pulling you by the nape of your neck, right to his eager lips. You begin to realize you had been longing for this moment for so long. He couldn’t resist anymore, his whole body buzzing at the fact that he finally has you again. 

His lips are soft and slow as they make their way around yours. His hands eventually trail down to your butt, his hands cradling both cheeks. He lifts you forward, sliding you up and onto his lap. 

“Been wantin’ this for months, baby.” 

Butterflies erupt in the pit of your tummy. You can feel them travel up to your chest as you look down at him, his eyelids heavy and his lips pursed.  

He waited for you to respond to his calls, knowing you needed time. He needed to be patient. You would come around, he knew it. After months, here you are. 

He thinks back to every time he was touching himself late at night, he would imagine the night you two shared. Your soft curves and needy dripping pussy. It drove him wild imagining you like this again. 

“I think it’s been more than wantin’, Joel,” You grind down on his prominent bulge growing in his sweatpants, “Think you need it.”

He grins, finally getting out of his own head.

“Such a little tease, damn it.”

You lean down, mindlessly speckling kisses behind his ear and neck. Your boobs rest right in front of his face, and you’re right, he needs it. His hands leave your behind, reaching up to the straps of your tank top. He tugs them down your biceps, allowing your cleavage to spill out more. 

Your hands find his dark peppered curls at the nape of his neck, pulling downward. You needed him closer and he obliged. He starts to kiss your collarbones, wandering down to the swell of your breasts. You can feel yourself staining your sports shorts with anticipation. 

You rock your hips, craving more. He takes the hint, reaching back down to lift you from your ass. He switches spots, laying you on your back on the plush white duvet. He’s leaning over you now, which gives you a great view of how spent he looks already. His gray sweatpants are hanging lower, tenting where his cock has grown hard. 

He smirks, taking off his shirt the same way he did earlier. With one hand, it slips right over his head and onto the floor. 

“Jesus,” You huff out, using the time to remove your top, “I need you, Joel.”

The smirk never leaves his lips. He leans down, pushing your legs apart with his pointer and middle finger. You open up for him, wanting nothing more for him to dive into you in every possible way. You watch as he slides his fingers up your thigh, past the openings of your shorts. 

He realizes you aren’t wearing underwear. He sighs as he swipes the pads of his fingers across your wet slit. 

“I know you do,” He drawls, watching you writhe under his touch, “You need me as much as I need you.”

He practically tears off your shorts, not wasting any time fighting with the fabric. 

You adjust how your laying to accommodate him laying between your thighs. He lays down on his stomach, bringing your hips close to his mouth. You watch as he kisses your inner thighs, his breath hot fanning against your skin. 

You remember the last time you were in this position. You spent night after night remembering the best head you’ve ever gotten, from the one and only, Joel Miller. And you could tell Joel was not going to go another moment without making you cum on his tongue. 

When his tongue hits the top of your slit, you whine at the contact. He presses his face in, diving deeping into your lips. As soon as he finds your clit, he puts all his attention there. His nose is pressed against your mound as he hums against your sensitive bud. 

“Joel,” You cry, reaching down between your legs to grab the crown of his head, your hands lacing into his locks, “Right fuckin’ there.”

He continues his movements, only increasing in speed in which he flicks his tongue. He wraps his lips over the swollen area, sucking and lapping your sweetness. He pulls away, the slick between your thighs missing him instantly. He brings his fingers up to his mouth and wets them with saliva. He glances up at your completely dazed face. 

“‘M gonna fuck you with my fingers first,” His voice is deep and hushed, “Make you cum. You gonna cum for me like a good girl?”

You don’t even know where it comes from. But you say it with your chest.

“Yes, Daddy.”

You never expected the moan to come out of his mouth. It’s deep and guttural. He couldn’t believe his ears, and he can’t believe the words came from your mouth. His good girl? That fuckin’ flithy?

He slips his fingers into you without resistance. His mouth finds it’s way back to your core, fucking you in unison. 

You reach up to your chest, cradling your own boobs. Joel’s still only in sweatpants but they are riding low on his hips. As he’s giving you his all, he’s grinding his hips into the bed, trying to get whatever friction he can. Watching the motion alone is driving you wild, sending your hips rotating on his tongue. You knew the release was coming, you could feel it in your fingertips. 

And when it comes, it’s like fireworks inside your stomach and chest. You lurch forward, crying out his name. You knew it was probably way too loud for the thin hotel walls, but you couldn’t help yourself. The orgasm sends stars speckling across your vision. 

Joel fucks you through the comedown. You are the hottest thing he’s ever laid eyes on, he thinks. When your body rests back, you’re panting, trying to ground yourself for a second. Joel pulls his fingers out and sucks each digit. 

“You’re gonna be the death of me,” You mewl, reaching out for him. You just need to touch him. 

He shimmies his sweatpants down and off his legs. He’s sitting back on his knees, smiling down at your desperate eyes. He crawls on top of you, his dick prodding at your thighs. He leans down, trapping your lips into another longing kiss. His hands trail down your sides, leaving goosebumps in their wake. He pulls back after a couple seconds, gazing into your eyes. 

“You still on that birth control?”

You hum in response. 

“Need me to pull out still?”

You smirk, lacing your arms around his shoulders, “No. Need you to cum inside me.”

He shakes his head, sitting back to line himself with your entrance.

“My dirty girl,” He runs his cock head between your swollen red lips, triggering your hips to move closer to him, “You drive me insane.”

“Come on, Joel. I’ve been waiting for ages for you to fuck me. Need you. Now.”

He chuckles darkly, still not giving you what you want. “Waiting ages, huh?”

“Joelllll,” You beg, smacking his chest, “Please.”

“Mmm,” He pushes forward just enough to relieve your ache, “Love it when you beg for it.”

He practically splits you open when he snaps his hips. You both groan simultaneously, unable to hold back this sick fantasy you’re both playing into. You feel more full than you ever did before. You don’t remember it hurting this good. 

“Holy fuck,” you whine, “So fucking full, Joel.”

He slowly pulls back, “You tell me if it’s too much, ‘kay?”

You shake your head, throwing your head back as he sets a cautious pace. He’s watching all your facial expressions, making sure he’s not hurting you. You wince when he starts to pick up the pace, which causes him to halt completely. 

“No,” You plead, “More. Faster. Please, just please.”

He says nothing, just pushes up your thighs so the back of them are flush with the front of his. He leans over you, his elbows on each side of your head. He grinds into you while his dark curls fall into your face. You tilt your head up, finding the crook of his neck again. 

His cock felt so good dragging in out of you. You felt like you could stay in this position forever. You molded so perfectly around him. He treated you like this beautiful mural, taking his time with delicate strokes. His hands wrapped around the back of your head, holding you in the curve of his body.

You latch your lips onto his neck, peppering lovebites everywhere. You didn’t even think about if they could be seen later. In the moment, you only thought of him as yours. He was yours and everyone would fucking know it. 

He’s starting to get more greedy. He pulls back, his warmth moving away from your perked up nipples. His upper body the best view you could get, so you couldn’t complain too much. He grabs behind your knees, using them as leverage as he starts to pound into you. 

Your eyes meet and for fuck’s sake, he’s perfect. You never knew you could see Joel Miller like this. Like someone who fucked you so good, but also cared so tenderly for you. He wanted to see you in the throws of pleasure, not even worrying about when he’d get his rocks off. He got his rise out of seeing how much you enjoyed yourself.

His ravenous drive to bring you to the edge is causing the headboard to slam against the wall which each stroke. He brings his left hand up to your bouncing tits, grabbing your nipple and tugging on it. He knew what touching your boobs did to you. He remembers watching your visceral reactions to him toying with them before. It brings a smile to his face. 

“I’m gonna-”

You don’t even finish your sentence, you just gasp as you feel his cock head hit the deepest parts of you. A place no other man has made it to. 

“I don’t want anyone else,” He musters out, his teeth clenching as your pussy restricts around him. He means it. He may be drunk on you, but he feels those words down to his bones. “I only ever want this.”

It was never just about the sex. Joel cared for you. Fuck, maybe he even loved you. 

You swallow, propping yourself up on your elbows. You glance down, watching his cock slip so perfectly, in and out of you. 

“I’m yours, Joel,” You manage to peep out before the orgasm you’ve been holding back builds to a maddening point, “I’m yours.”

The words make his cock twitch. He can’t help himself, he needs you to cum right this very moment. He doesn’t say anything, just unhooks your legs and uses his right hand to put pressure on your clit. Tears start to prick in your eyes as he lazily rubs circles, humming in satisfaction. He feels you tightening up, he knows your close. 

Your vision goes white. You body starts to vibrate, the pure bliss he’s sending you into takes you to a whole other dimension. You want more. More. More. More. 

As he watches you seize up, he can’t resist his own orgasm. The explosion sends him into a moaning mess. He fucks into you, painting your walls with his cum, not letting a drop go to waste. 

He collapses on top of you. You don’t even care, you feel like jello anyway, he could melt right into you.

He rolls off after a minute. 

You always miss him when he’s not near you. 

You stare at the ceiling, pondering the right words to say to him. Nothing comes to mind. He gets up, walking naked to the bathroom. He grabs a rag from the shelf above the toilet, running it under some warm water. 

When he returns, you let him clean all around your body. You make sure he doesn’t wipe away the wet kisses he left all over you, though. 

“You okay?”

You finally look at him. 

You want to say yes, because you were okay. Physically. But your heart wanted to pulsate out of your chest. 

“I will be,” You state simply, “Just tired.”

He slowly starts grabbing all your articles of clothing off the floor, dressing you once he collects all of them. He’s careful with you. Gentle. 

“Do you want to sleep in the same bed?”

The question rings in your ears. Of course you did. 

“As long as you get up at the ass crack of dawn and move before Sarah comes in.”

He chuckles, pulling his sweatpants back over his waist. He doesn’t even bother to put on his shirt.

“Will do, baby.”

-

When you wake up, you realize the overheard light flickered on. You contort your sleep dazed body, Joel’s upper body practically laying over you. You try to blink the haze out of your eyes, but your tired mind is completely shocked when you see an outline of a girl. 

Shitshitshitshitshit.

You fling your body upward, rattling Joel awake. He’s startled, his arms flinging off of you. 

“I knew it!” Her voice is piercing. “I knew it! Holy shit!”

“Sar-”

“Are you two dating? Or are you just… wait, ew!”

She’s rambling, her words clashing together in confusion. Your heart is about to hammer out of your chest. 

“Sarah, we aren’t dating,” You declare, your voice shaking. 

“But you’re sleeping together?”

You could cut the silence with a sword. It’s so thick and awkward. 

A 14 year old girl shouldn’t know you’re sleeping with her Dad. Let alone walk in after you spent all night tangled up in him. 

“Sarah,” Joel’s voice is buttery and raspy after he wakes up. You hold the comforter up to your chest. You had your tank top on, but it hangs so low on you, you don’t want to risk anything. “Grab your uniform, get dressed. We can talk about this later.”

“Does Uncle To-”

“Sarah! Stop!”

It scares you since it’s so close to your ear. His voice changes so abruptly, it makes you cringe a bit. 

Hearing the question from Sarah’s lips makes you feel queasy. Having the girl who you always considered your niece ask if her uncle knew you were sleeping with her dad... God what a fucking mess. 

You watch her storm across the room, grabbing her backpack and race to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. 

Joel groans next to you as he slams back into the plush pillows. 

“She will be fine. We will talk about it later,” Joel says under his breath. 

You open your mouth but nothing comes out. 

You hadn’t thought much of this through. Ever since you and Joel first slept together, you pushed your harbored feelings to the side. Sometimes they creep in, which would send you into a panic. Because deep down, you knew you felt something for Joel. Something you hadn’t felt since you first started dating Tommy. Maybe even ever. It was exciting. He made you feel special. After everything he said to you last night, you knew he possessed some similar emotions and feelings.  

You felt crazy for believing this could work. 

You knew this would be complicated. Now Sarah is involved. How do you explain these emotions to a child? You don’t. 

You think about all the horrible outcomes to this situation. Tommy wanting to fight Joel. His mom never accepting you back into the family. Who knows, maybe Sarah gets so upset at the situation, she never treats you the same again. 

But then you think about Joel. How he’s a night and day difference to what Tommy was to you. He wore his emotions on his sleeve. He wanted to protect you. He wanted to take care of you every chance he could. 

You start to think back to the times when you were still with Tommy. Joel defended you when you two had a blowout fight. He always made sure to have a watchful eye on you when you all went out to bars. He was even there when you graduated college, giving you a bouquet of beautiful daises he swore up and down Sarah picked out. But you knew the truth. Joel loved daisies. He even had his Mom plant some in his front yard last year. 

You were just so scared. You didn’t want to be hurt again. You did not want your feelings to be wrong. 

You glance down at him, your back still turned. He could read your face, he knew you were overthinking everything. Your mind was working overtime, trying to muster up some excuse to run away and forget everything that happened between you two. There was nothing normal about this situation. 

But fuck, you both really wanted it. So bad. You couldn’t keep lying to yourself. 

His hand creeps up your back, resting a reassuring palm on your aching shoulder. 

“Stop thinkin’ for a minute,” he whispers, “You don’t need to make any decisions right this minute. We will just take it one second at a time. Ain’t no way ‘m lettin’ you go. I want you here.”

You didn’t know if he meant here in general or in the figurative sense. 

He meant it both ways. 

Maybe it was crazy, but that feeling was deep in your chest. This palpable inkling that this could evolve into you being his. 

This being more than sex? More than a crush?

Being Joel’s sounded like a fever dream.

He wanted nothing more but to wrap you up into his arms, hold you and kiss your head, reassuring you that you two can figure it out together. But instead, Sarah walks out in her soccer uniform, squashing the moment. She stands in front of the bed, finally making eye contact with you. 

“You guys gonna get up and watch me kick ass, or are you gonna to lay in bed all day?”

You smile at her. You silently prayed this girl would stay in your life forever.

“I know my answer.”

Joel smiles, “’s go kick some ass.”

-

again thank you for reading!! let me know your thoughts!

find part 1 and 2 here!

[marasmadness]

soft dom regina mills x fem reader smut where reader has a praise kink & a mommy kink <333

Midnights With The Mayor || Regina Mills x Reader

CW: smut, strap ons, praise kink, mommy kink, blindfolds, biting, magic during sex bc why not 🤷‍♀️, dom/sub dynamics

WC: 2.5K

“Granny’s Diner, this is Ruby speaking.”

Regina heard the pop of her gum through the phone as she pinched her phone between her ear and shoulder so she could flip through the papers on her desk. As usual, she was the last one in the town hall. It was long after the sun had set and all the other office lights had gone out. “ Ruby, it’s Regina. I know it’s late, but would you mind swinging by with an order on your way home after your shift? I’m at my office and I’ll pay you extra.”

Ruby scrambled for her order pad in the pocket of her apron while simultaneously filling the coffee mugs of the diner’s last lingering customers. “Let me close up, and it’ll be there around 1 o’clock. Your usual order, I assume?”

“Yes, thank you Ruby.” They hung up, and Regina continued with her work. Regina had shown slightly more softness toward Ruby than the other residents of Storybrooke. She had been one of the first to forgive Regina along with Emma, was great with Henry, and even supported her return to the position of Storybrooke’s mayor.

She quickly returned to work, plowing through the seemingly never-ending pile of town proposals or updated budgeted plans. No matter how much she accomplished, her workload also replenished itself by the next morning. She made an effort to cram out a little extra on Friday nights so that she could spend most of her weekend with Henry without having to pick up extra phone calls or bring work with her to his activities. Half an hour later, Regina heard a knock on the double oak doors echo through the hall’s tiled corridors. “ Door’s open; come on up Ruby.” She had yet to look up when the door creaked open, but the tentative footsteps across the marble caught her attention.

She looked up to spot someone unfamiliar, who was not Ruby but wore the same uniform. You lingered tentatively in the doorway of the mayor’s office, holding up her takeout bag. “Two orders of apple cinnamon pancakes?”

She nodded, confirming you had the right place. It took her a moment to address you. You threw her off. She knew every face in Storybrooke, or at least she did, before you showed up. She had been distracted, less focused on Storybrooke’s border, and using less magic recently anyway in order to gain the town’s trust.

You began to fidget under her gaze when she approached you. Her heels clicked against the floor with long, fluid steps, and she reached her hand out toward you. For a brief moment you forgot you held your order in her hand and stared at her outstretched hand. Quickly realizing what she was reaching out for, you placed the brown paper bag in her hand, dropping your head to hide the slight blush that tinged your cheeks.

“Regina Mills, May-”

“Mayor of Storybrooke. Of course I know who you are, Miss Mills,” you finished with a soft smile.

She raised her eyebrow, glad to hear her reputation still reached as far as it did when she was the evil queen. “And you are?” She asked, prodding for a name, as she rested her hand on her hip against the smooth fabric of her pencil skirt.

You gave her your name, explaining that you went to school with Ruby, and she invited you to spend the summer with her here in Storybrooke rather than in Boston, where you lived.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you. Welcome to Storybrooke.” She turned around, leaning over her desk to grab her wallet. Your guilty eyes roved over her body while she was turned and distracted. You had heard plenty about Regina Mills from Ruby during your road trip to her hometown, but she had failed to account for the fact that with a single brief interaction, she had your palms sweaty, which you attempted to hide behind your back. Regina wore a red silk blouse tucked in her skirt, with a few unhooked buttons near the top that revealed the slightest curve of her cleavage. It was obvious she had been running her hands through her dark, silky hair, which was slightly tousled.

You attempted to loosen your tense shoulders and offer a casual smile as she turned back around toward you. Your lips parted in surprise as she grabbed your wrist, placing a stack of cash in your palm. “Here, for the late-night visit. I appreciate it. Sorry for keeping you up.” Her voice was soft; there was no need for volume when she was as close to you as she was. A subtle smirk crossed her red-painted lips as she closed your fingers around the money.

“ Oh really, it was no extra trouble at all. I would’ve been up if I wasn’t working anyway. Terrible sleeper.” You rambled nervously, trying to make your visit seem like as little of a hassle as possible to the woman.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” You swore she could’ve winked with the statement, but the light surrounding the two of you was too dim to tell.

You turned around, closing her office door slowly behind you. “Have a goodnight, Miss Mills.”

…

The next morning, Regina sauntered in bright and early to Granny’s Diner. Only a few regulars had beat her here, silently sipping on their coffee in a corner booth.

Ruby spotted her surveying the room with a purpose and smirked. “ Regina! Back so soon? What can I get you? Or who can I get for you?” She raised her eyebrows, twirling a red pen between her fingers.

Regina hollowed her cheeks into a petulant expression, annoyed that Ruby could read her that quickly. “Where is she Ruby?”

The girl clicked her tongue, pointing towards the curtain that led to a back section of the restaurant. “Back by the laundry. There was a coffee spill.”

The mayor strode through the quaint Storybrooke staple before Ruby had finished, slipping away from the smell of hot coffee and homemade syrup.

Rolling her tongue across the tip of her teeth, her introduction rolled off her tongue when she found you leaning against the washing machine, your shirt splayed out in front of you as you scrubbed at a coffee stain. She held her breath, letting her eyes soak in your bare skin before you noticed your presence.

“Mayor Mills, eager for our reunion to be so soon?” You commented without turning around to face her, hiding the small smile as you tucked your chin to your chest.

Regina withheld the instinct to flinch in surprise. “How did you know it was me?” She questioned, now more intrigued than shocked.

“You’re not the only one with powers around here.”

The color drained from the sorceress’s face, fearing the worst until innocent pink tendrils flowed from your fingertips, erasing the previously unrelenting stain from your shirt.

Regina crossed her arms over her chest, leaning against the doorframe. “You’re not just here for summer break.”

“ Nope.” Shrugging your shirt back over your shoulders, you buttoned it up and retired your apron over it. “ Ruby’s been trying to get me to come out here ever since we were freshman roommates and she sensed I had magic. I’ve never bothered to learn more than party tricks.”

“She wanted you to learn from me,” Regina finished, putting the pieces together.

Hopping up onto the drier, you crossed your legs and shot her an eager smile. “So, teach me?”

Regina wasn’t sure what suddenly made her so agreeable, but she found herself saying yes before she could hesitate. She had a possessive death grip over her powers and was never quick to reveal her secrets, but the feelings that were luring her to you made her willing to sacrifice the slightest bit of control in order to keep you around. “Meet me tonight at 9; come prepared.”

“Prepared for what?” You asked, scrambling after her as she pivoted around.

“ Anything.” You froze, watching her leave and knowing you weren’t going to get anything more from her right now. Her hips swayed slightly beneath her red blazer as she left with the same confidence she walked in with.

Despite not having an address, the mayor’s house was not hard to find. It took all of 15 minutes to travel from one end of Storybrooke to the other. Even with Ruby’s vague instructions, you ended up right in front of Regina’s house. It was the biggest one on the block, with pristine white siding, an eye-catching red door, and an impressive collection of apple trees beside it.

The door swung open before you could even knock, revealing Regina, still dressed for work, minus the blazer. She let you in, glancing up and down the street before she closed the door behind you. She invited you to sit on a bar stool in her kitchen. You had been out for a drink for Ruby and were still dressed for it. The older woman’s eyes darted to your lap as you attempted to pull the hem of your dress farther down your thighs as you sat down.

She leaned against the countertop across from you, pouring two glasses of wine. “So what have you worked with before?”

You shrugged, tapping your fingers against the bottom of the glass. “Mostly small objects I guess, never anything powerful. I’ve used it to grab things across the room, plenty of laundry.

Regina tilted her head. A smile crossed her face, amused at your innocence. “You’re a witch, and you use your powers for... laundry.”

You laughed airily. “I’m not a witch. I’m not out here cursing people.”

“ Ruby really taught you nothing. You don’t have to be evil or cursing people to be a witch. You practice magic; you’re a witch. You don’t see me out here cursing people, well, anymore.”

You raised an eyebrow at the suggestion, but she dismissed it with a dark stare. “So, what do you do with your powers?”

“Whatever I wish. Though I am trying to use them less due to a history of a…. magic high, if you will. Let’s start with teaching you how to work with humans. It feels different from objects and requires more strength. You have to sense their skin, touch, or blood if you’re working with dark magic.

You stood up slowly, raising a hand. “I am not working with-”

“Relax.” Regina waved her hand and your arm well back to your side.

You looked down to where your fingers rested against your hip without you placing them there. “ Woah.”

Regina walked around the counter, placing herself in front of you. “I usually get a more impressive response than “ Woah,” but we’ll work on it.”

Your eyes brightened with a hunger that Regina recognized in her younger self when she had first been opposed to magic more powerful than her own. “What else can you do?”

Regina’s eyes raked over your body in thought before she raised two fingers, curling them into her palm. Controlled purple light sparked from her fingertips, wrapping itself around your wrists. You gasped in surprise as she lifted them above your head without a single touch. Stumbling backwards, you looked up to find your hands pinned above your head and Regina hovering over you with a single glide.

Her voice husked in your ear, the sweet wine still scenting her breath. “Do you still need further demonstration that magic can feel good?”

Tilting your head brought your mouth closer to her lips, and you found her dark, unflinching stare. “Yes,” you whispered, daring her to go further.

With your word, she hooked her finger on your collar, practically dragging you around the corner. You found yourself in her bedroom, and she pushed you down on her mattress. You watched attentively as you kicked her heels off and strode over to her nightstand, digging through it for something.

She revealed a blindfold before wrapping the piece of silk around her palm. You looked up at her curiously as she kneeled into the mattress before your vision went dark.

From the movement of the mattress, you sensed her settling onto the bed a few feet away. You flinched when her raspy voice entered your ear, and you picked up immediately that she was using her powers to project her voice across the space between you.

Our powers come to the surface best when we’re desperate, so use yours, and I’ll fuck you. It’s that simple.” You could hear the grin in her voice as you sat frozen in a moment of shock.

Working based off what Regina had done with her voice, you attempted to extend your sense of touch past where your arm lay still beside you. You were hesitant to use your magic, fearful of losing control. A soft pink glow from your touch eventually reached out and wrapped around her waist, eliciting a soft smile of satisfaction from the older woman. “Good girl, keep going.”

Guiding your sensations lower, you found her belt buckle and loosened it until you heard it click where it felt beside her. While brushing over the fabric of her slacks, you faltered as your touch latched around her belt loop and, to your surprise, rested on a curved bulge straining beneath the fabric. Regina chuckled at your reaction. “Mommy’s taught you well.”

She must have finally been satisfied with your display of powers because you heard her shuffling around, stripping herself of her clothes. Your fingers itched to remove the blindfold so you could soak in the goddess-like state of the woman kneeling in front of you.

You felt her hands on the back of your head working to undo the knot, and then your vision came back to you. Regina loomed over you, her hands on each side of your head. After teasingly grazing her fingertips along the length of your body, she lined up her thick red strap, dragging the tip across your folds. “ Already soaked,” she hummed softly.

She brought her hand up over your mouth, and before you had time to react, she was pounding deep inside you, reveling in the vibrations she could feel underneath her fingertips from your moans and screams. The room filled with the sounds of slapping skins and heavy breaths.

Regina lowered her mouth to your chest, sinking her teeth into the soft flesh with restraint. You dropped your head back into the pillows, closing your eyes in an attempt to fight the dazedness that was starting to cloud your head. Sure to leave a scatter of marks, Regina’s lips latched onto your skin, only releasing it to circle your nipple with her tongue.

You let out a guttural gasp as the woman bent your legs over her shoulders, brushing her faux cock against your throbbing clit. “Come for me baby,” Regina whispered just as she drew you over the edge into a blinding orgasm. Your thighs tensed and quivered as you coated her cock with your cum. Her pace slowed down as your euphoria faded and sleepiness washed over you. Regina climbed up, satisfied, and grabbed a warm washcloth. Sitting on the bottom of the bed, she smiled, watching the starry-eyed look you wore as she cleaned you up. “So, lesson tomorrow?”

[matchesarelit]

Imagine If You Will... Just Us (Lars Pinfield X gn!Reader)

Prompts: “I thought it was going to be just us today” from @pookie-and-cereal's list (here) AND #17, #28 and #30 from @thelonelyempath's list (here).

W.C: ~3k

Warnings: Gary gets typical 3rd wheel treatment, science flirting (it's real bad),

Coming back from Ray's, your arms were killing, turns out hiking over an hour over public transport with more than ten kilos of, for a lack of a better word, junk, was not the brightest idea. Lars had texted you late last night, gushing over the newest adaptions he'd make to the extractor; how much time was saved on every use, how low the resistance rate was etc.

So naturally, when he invited you to come in on the weekend to try it out, your reply could have broken the sound barrier, if it weren't a text that is. You weren't exactly in his realm in regards to ghostbusting science, now don't get me wrong you did ghost bust on occasion, but your main focus was on the PR end of Ghost Corps. Yes, it is a very stressful job. That being so, you weren't sure why he'd chosen to invite you, surely another scientist would be able to understand it better.

Well, who truly cares... you were getting the rare chance to witness his dorky joy and that was not something you were going to turn down.

Finally trudging in through the main doors, you let out a grievous grunt as you dropped the box of trinkets onto a nearby trolley. Tugging it along behind you as you made your way to the main lab, you waved as you always did towards the enclosed ghosts in the hallway. Finally setting sights on the elaborate workspaces of the many scientists that work crammed into the space, you allowed your smile to overtake your features, eager as always to see Lars in his natural environment.

You'd first met when you stated on the G.C PR team, you'd been eager to set up a web page for the Ghostbusters with a page profile for all involved scientists. Winston had had you meet them all here in the lab, Lars was one of the first you'd met and you'd gotten along immediately.

"Heyo! I think you're gonna have to send Ray a gift basket with the amount of stuff he gave us-" Your rattled-out greeting was cut short as your eyes fell on the pair of men huddled by one of the desks. As they turned to greet you, you felt your steps slow, the air felt dense against your movements. Lars had forced out a smile that had no hopes of reaching his eyes, while the man by his side, Gary Grooberson, seemed to be dripping in ecstatic energy as he jogged over to meet you by the steps.

As he lifted the front end of the trolley and helped you carry it down, your eyes fell back on Lars, he was once again facing away from you and he'd retreated to the large mechanical focus of your visit. His hands were busy doing, what even you could tell from across the room, was absolutely nothing.

Cutting your study short, Gary captured you in a hug, it was as it always is; warm and comforting and definitely more for him than it was for you. You had time and time again succeeded in putting a good spin on whatever ruckus his family had created, so he was by no means a new acquaintance, neither was his proclivity for hugs a surprise.

Gary's greeting however flew right past your ears, tearing your focus away from the man on the other side of the space was proving much too difficult. To your luck however, you managed a gentle greeting and casual inquiry of how his family was doing before a notable amount of time had passed.

With a conscious effort you set your eyes on Gary, resolved to focus on the conversation at hand, the man before you was a friend after all. As the conversation continued, small updates about how the Spenglers and co were doing outside of the ghost busts filled the next half hour, before the dialogue began to stall.

Until, Gary, ever the extrovert, started to rifle through the box you'd brought in,

'So, are you as excited for today as I am? It sounds like Lars has been making absolute leaps and bounds with this stuff.'

Now, you wouldn't say you were projecting your voice when you spoke up, nonetheless, it definitely wasn't a normal speaking level. 'Yeah! I can't wait to see what he's been up to...' You trailed off as you glanced towards where Lars still stood, his back to the two of you but his hands had now stilled in place, a change you all but reveled in.

Lars wasn't a guy who enjoyed being alone all to much, you'd been able to gather as such within moments of meeting him. Luckily, that first time, you'd caught him on a good day; when talking about his work, rather than doing it, was pretty much exactly what he wanted to do. He'd tried to come across as a sort of stoic and while it was clear he did enjoy the solitude, the way he interacted with his peers made it crystal clear how much he also enjoyed such conversations.

That was part of why his actions today seemed so strange... You weren't exactly his peer as a scientist, but you knew enough about ghosts and he'd shared similar achievements with you in the past, not to mention the fact that he, himself, had invited you here only last night.

As for Gary, he was a scientific man himself, so why the Lars wasn't chatting happily with him about the newest changes to the mechanism was a mystery to say the least.

You'd hate to admit it, although it wasn't hard to notice by any means, you'd obliviously thought it was just going to be the two of you. So it took some quick metal re-wiring upon realizing you wouldn't just be able to fawn so freely over the unsuspecting scientist as you often did.

In that moment you'd felt bad, noting that both of you were acting strange and that that couldn't have been too fun for Gary.

Although... you considered perhaps Lars was simply overthinking his progress, now that his audience was present. Maybe he just needed a little push to start, like one of those old timey planes.

'Lars' Your call cracked through the silence of the facility, your voice finally tugging the man in question to turn on the spot. 'Come on Science-man, show us what you've got!'

He shook his head slightly in a sort of incredulity as he turned back around, your shoulders fell slightly, but only momentarily as his voice soon bounced around the room.

'Come on then'

Your eager smile reappeared on your face as you beelined towards the large prism like container in the middle of the workplace, where he stood hitting, what you could only assume, were the start up buttons. Your eyes on him, and his eyes on the machine -with you safely in his peripherals- Gary was left to wheel over the box of supplies. His mumblings of something about third wheeling and losing his phone, all but faded to oblivion in your focus.

Stepping back from the small panel and towards yourself and Gary, Lars seemed to pause for a moment, glancing once between you and his chair that sat empty by the control screen. You brushed off the look he'd given as he began to speak, as a mutual offer between him, yourself and Gary, You'd chosen consciously however, to not plop down in it yourself.

Strangely, claiming his seat whenever he stood from it, felt like something you could only do in private, although it usually occurred when ten or so other scientists also occupied the space. You suppose, sitting there; your head in your hand, as you gawk up at him was a lot more obvious when the only other person in the room would be standing mere feet away.

Whilst you turned your own thoughts over in your head, Gary had taken the chair for himself, muttering out a cheeky, 'ya snooze ya lose'. While you were still mulling things over, Gary caught what you didn't; a flash of a glare passing over Lars' features as he paused his explanation.

Choosing to remain comfy, Gary shot the younger scientist a simple smile, before tilting his head in your direction. With one look to you, your in-your-head state was obvious and Lars was talking a step towards you, your name a whisper on his lips.

Snapping out of your thoughts, and meeting his eyes, you immediately rushed out an apology running shaky hands down your face as you promised to listen closely.

From there it was somewhat business as usual, Lars went about explaining his changes, with yourself, and Gary, asking prompting questions every once and a while. You'd resolved to simply enjoy his company as you usually would, extra company be damned. Sorry Gary.

Gaping up at him in the way you always did, you were yet again in awe of Lars. The way his eyes shone a little brighter when the machine worked perfectly and how he would always look eagerly to you a soft smile on his face. Ghost by ghoul, the three of you went about testing for a while, with Lars occasionally ducking his head towards the wiring or control panel to make some small adjustment, only to return with a beaming smile when the following test went by even faster.

Watching him work was always enjoyable. He was always either grinning like a fool or he had that small frown and furrowed brow that graced his features in a moment, usually quite brief, of struggle. All the same, even that echo of a scowl wasn't enough to diminish the glow you swore he gave off. Today was slightly different, there was no lab coat in sight, his goggles hung loosely around his neck and the top half of his jumpsuit had been tied 'round his waist. He seemed relaxed, at least if you ignored the tension that seemed to be holding his body together.

'Amazing' your murmured comment, and the countless like it, were more about him than his machine and whenever you caught his eyes with your own, you hoped he could see that. Gary, on the other hand was completely enthralled by the testing, rattling off compliments of his own with much higher frequency, mentions of the 'stellar efficiency' and 'innovative programming' which, I'm sad to say, went in one ear and out the other. Except, for when he managed to interrupt you in the midst of his enthusiasm, at which point he was met with yet another brief glare from the man of the hour.

The setting sun that bathed the three of you in warm tones of orange and yellow took you by surprise, and a quick glace to the box by your side revealed you had powered through more than three quarters of your supplies. You felt your shoulders fall considerably at this thought, now achingly aware you'd be expected to leave somewhat soon. Shocking you from your melancholy was the loud ring of Lars' phone, some 8-bit version of the Ghostbusters theme you'd set up on his phone some time ago, echoing about the space.

He hurriedly excused himself, and unwitting as usual your eyes lingered on the doorway he'd left through. Until a clambering of legs swung into your own, following them with an eyebrow raised you met Gary's stare as his own eyebrows wiggled fancifully. 'Soooo... I'm gonna get going, Callie just texted-' Catching him in a squinted glare you doubted '-didn't you say you'd lost your phone?'

'um-uh, okay so I'm just a little aware that you guys want to be alone.' His tone was anything but unsure, nevertheless he seemed hesitant to voice his concern.

'No don't go, I'm sorry I-I know I get a bit absorbed seeing him work, but he wants you here!' You'd felt horrible, you weren't aware how obvious you'd been.

'Its okay, I know you didn't mean to... Also I highly doubt Lars is all that happy about me being here.' You opened your mouth to argue but he shook his head simply as he continued. 'Winston invited me after Lars let him know he'd be here today, He didn't know until I got here and that half an hour before you arrived was tense enough.'

You supposed he was right, Lars had seemed pretty off earlier, but surely it wasn't that deep that Gary should leave. 'That's silly though, you're a scientist, if anyone is annoying him by hanging around surely its me... I mean I was asking all those inane questions.'

Your concern was met with the most well meaning, yet still a bit of a brush-off, cackle you'd heard from him, 'Except every one was met with a soft explanation and a confirmation that you understood, which wasn't exactly the response I've been getting. I doubt today was meant to be about the science as anything more than as a justification for inviting you over.'

Your brow furrowed at that, yourself and Lars had hung out before, you supposed it wasn't too frequently and it was usually a work outing where the two of you peeled off for a bit. Even so, why would he feel like he had to justify inviting you over?

'But we're friends, he knows he doesn't have to-' you stopped yourself as his footsteps reverberated through the halls, growing closer by the second.

Mid-way through turning your head to catch the doorway, Gary darted out of his chair. Stealing back your attention as he addressed yourself and you supposed lars, who you could imagine had stopped, lingering at the end of the hall at the other man's outburst. 'I've gotta get going, great seeing you guys... Good luck with the rest of the testing...' He was backing away now, towards the entryway, maneuvering around stray chairs and tables as he went. With a final flourish of a finger gun in Lars' direction, he was crossing the threshold and calling back over his shoulder. '...Not that you need it!'

You found yourself scoffing in disbelief as you continued to watch as the doors swung closed with a slam. Slowly turning on the spot you set sights on Lars. He was making his way over to you, shoulders still higher than usual, tight due to, as far as you could ascertain, the dramatic exit of the older man. Reaching out, you placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. As the slight weight of your hand settled on him you noted the relaxed fall of his shoulders, a sigh falling from his lips. Content with the slight ease in his demeanor you gave a slight squeeze and a hum of your own.

'So, should we get back to it?' Lars nodded, but otherwise remained completely still until you elected to remove your hand, at which point he spun on the spot and traipsed back over to the machine with a vigor that'd been notably absent all day.

Narrowing your eyes at the man in front of you, you watched as he returned to his regular As Seen On TV type demonstration. Now, with a pep in his step that you always found almost too intoxicating he placed a new object inside the chamber, closed it and started towards the computer.

'Hey, Lars? Can you level with me on something?' you hated to see how his movements stuttered to a halt at your vague interruption, but the question fell from your lips before you could think, 'Do you not like Gary?' His gaze seemed to flutter about the space, until his eyes were screwed shut, a shaky hand messing through his locks as his jaw dropped open, dancing silently in the nonexistent wind until you fixed him with pointed look and he suddenly found some words.

'I don't dislike him he's just very- He's smart it's just- its just that...' he trailed off, seemingly deciding to communicate through a jumpscare like gesture of his hands.

'He's very eager?' he nodded, glad you gotten his meaning, but he stilled when your head tilted ever so slightly.

'So am I.' With that thought your eyes had drifted from his, not shyly to the ground but dazed, as if fixed on some invisible specter only you could see. Your mind grew harsh faster than you'd care to admit, retroactively scanning every interaction with him against some intangible measure of frustration. There were surely times your presence slowed his work, distracting him with conversation or absurd what if's, not to mention the plethora of what you now realized must have been idiotic questions.

Surely he'd been speaking while you re-considered your very existence, but it wasn't until you felt the warmth of his hands on your shoulders that an ounce of sound managed to reach your brain.

'Hey, you okay there? You-you went blank on me.'

'I-um yeah -I just...' You had no clue what to say, how could you? Yeah sorry I was just thinking about how insufferable I must be to you, that came with a little spiraling as a treat.

Gathering that you'd most likely missed his in depth explanation of the difference between yourself and Gary from his perspective, Lars stepped away from you, considering the best way to dissolve the tension evident on your features. 'You and I, Us, we're not just colleagues, you don't just come to me to get new gadgets or answer some question you have... even if you do have a few. We're... something else, but when he's here its like he's extracting facts and figures, all the while you're just trying to understand me, m-my work. Its not his fault I- just I-'

'-Thought it was going to be just us today?' Cutting off his rambling you finally met his eyes. He shrugged nodding slightly as he held your gaze. 'If it makes it better?.. it is now.'

He released a bemused hmmf. 'I'll admit I wasn't the biggest fan of having to fight for your attention today. I'm pretty glad it is just the two of us again. Splitting your focus between me and my work is as much as I can handle.' Shaking your head in amusement at his sudden bluntness, you stepped towards him, a gentle hand against his chest, the eye contact mere inches long as you stood in his orbit.

'You are so oblivious... Trust me Lars there was not a moment that you weren't the nucleus of my afternoon.' A light groan was his only response to your overy-cheesy claim. 'No? what about...' you thought for a moment, tapping a finger to your chin.

'I'm much too weak to resist the gravity of your presence.' he narrowed his eyes at you own, looking for something you couldn't distinguish.

'Is that why you're in so close? My pull is too strong?' He didn't bother to cover the roll of his eyes or the teasing tone in his voice, but the smile that was paired with them was comfort enough to keep you talking.

'Mhmm You're just too enthralling Pinfield, you're gonna have to work on that if you want other people to be able to stand being around us'

Amidst all his scoffing and modest smiling, the blush that spung up across his cheeks was a sight for sore eyes, as his head lowered and he whispered into the paper thin space between you his tone even and resolute;

'Who says I'd ever want that?'

[heesdreamer]

could you pleasseee write something for the trend “but does he know you call me when he sleeps”

PAIRING ➩ heeseung x reader (jake x reader are together initially)

WC ➩ 8k

WARNINGS ➩ jake is a terrible boyfriend and reader cheats on him with heeseung. smut… like really smut (popping my full smut cherry)

AUTHORS NOTE ➩ um i don’t usually write fluffy stuff especially sexually so sorry if it’s terrible i wrote this from 6am to 10am randomly and it’s not proofread… here’s the song from the trend if you’re curious

The party was crammed and sweaty, evident by the way your dress was sticking to your back as you tried to navigate your way through the crowd of people and get to the kitchen.

When you eventually made it there your gaze immediately went to your boyfriend Jake, he was standing laughing with a few of his friends you recognized from picking him up from football practice. You’d seen them on the field a few times, having called out mocking comments every once in a while as you dragged him away from the bleachers.

You were sliding in next to him and he wasn’t sparing you a glance, too caught up in his conversation to realize his girlfriend had arrived and was looking noticeably flustered.

Despite him not paying any attention to you, somebody was and you flushed as you awkwardly looked away from the deep stare one of Jake’s friends was giving you. He wasn’t on the team but you knew him more than the others, being your boyfriends best friend over everybody else.

You wrapped your hand around Jake’s arm and leaned into him, finally getting his attention as he shot you a quick glance and raised a dismissive eyebrow before continuing on talking to the others.

Your throat burned like you were about to cry but you ignored it, not wanting to cause a scene or embarrass yourself in front of the unrelenting eyes of teenage boys. Shifting uncomfortably, you waited for him to finish as you willed the anxiety to go away.

It was Jake’s idea to attend the party in the first place despite you telling him you weren’t feeling up to it this weekend. You were stressed from exams and work, not to mention your stomach had been upset for days and you felt disgusting as you squeezed into a tight dress and heels to appease him.

Jake hadn’t always been a bad boyfriend, in fact when you had started dating at the beginning of high school he was an absolute angel in human form.

You loved him more than anything but you couldn’t deny the changes in his personality as years went on and his social circle changed. He was less focused on you and your relationship, harsher when you fought and even more dismissive towards his parents and random store workers you’d encounter out on dates, leaving you to usher apologies and follow your boyfriend out of restaurants and stores.

Heeseung, your boyfriends best friend who was currently sipping out of his red cup and watching you with low eyes, had been Jake’s friend before you met him even and sometimes you wondered if he ever felt the same way you did.

At times you wanted to ask the older boy, question him on if he was upset Jake had gotten new ruder friends and started to leave the two of you behind, demand to know if you were being dramatic or if your feelings were justified.

You never did however in fear of it getting back to Jake and upsetting him, plus the fact you rarely spoke to Heeseung lately outside of group hangouts and casual greetings.

20 minutes had passed now in the kitchen, making it two hours over the time Jake had assured you he’d have you home. You were fidgeting against his side constantly and he turned to glare at you, momentarily stopping in his rants and conversation.

“Go wait in the car.” He was muttering and handing you the keys without another word. You stood frozen in shock for a few seconds before tears of embarrassment welled up and you were turning and rushing out of the kitchen.

You felt completely humiliated considering the fact he had practically talked to you like a dog in front of his friends who already didn’t respect you, seeing you as a nagging girlfriend who took up too much of their friends precious time. You weren’t out of the house yet, barely passing through the living room, when a hand was grabbing your arm and spinning you around.

You yelped softly as you were pulled into a dimly lit hallway and you felt your back bit the wall behind you, glancing up to see who had tugged you away from your exit.

Your eyes were widening as you realized it was Heeseung, standing oddly close to you as he peered down with hooded eyes. Jake was taller than you but Heeseung even towered over him, making your height difference almost comical. You shifted against the wall awkwardly and looked up at him through your eyelashes.

“You’re leaving?” He was speaking in a hushed tone, voice low and slow as he watched you. He wasn’t pinning you against the wall fully but you’d have to scoot past him if you wanted to leave, almost toe to toe with the taller boy.

“I mean… you heard what he said.” You were flushing again, still embarrassed at how dismissive Jake had spoken to you. You shook your head and looked down at the floor instead of saying anything else.

Heeseung was reaching a hand up and touching your face softly, a soft gasp coming from your lips at the feeling of his fingers on your chin as he slowly brought your head back up to look at him again. You’d never touched him before outside of small side hugs of greetings or brief contact when passing him something.

Your eyes were shooting back towards the party with panic, worried what somebody would think if they saw you and your boyfriends best friend only inches away with his hand holding your face like you were something delicate and precious.

“He’ll be busy for a while.” Heeseung’s voice was somehow lower than it had been the first time he spoke as he halfway guessed what you were thinking, turning your head to the side softly.

“What are you doing?” You were breathing out the words in confusion, peering up at him with wide eyes as his thumb moved softly on your skin. He seemed unaffected by his own strange actions but you didn’t miss the way his jaw clenched every time you spoke to him in such a soft voice.

He was leaning towards you more and you pressed against the wall harder, if that was even possible. You could feel his hip bumping you now and his forehead was coming down to rest against yours, swallowing heavily at how close he was getting.

“Heeseung.” You were whispering, head spinning from the range of emotions you’d been put through in such a short time.

His eyes were squeezing shut as you said his name, a slightly pained look on his face as he pulled back and shook his head. You took in a deep breath now that he wasn’t touching you anymore but he was still closer to you than he’d ever been and you felt flips of nervousness underneath all the confusion.

“Let me drive you home.” He was saying eventually once he regained his composure and you raised an eyebrow. “More guys from the team showed up, you’ll just be sitting in the car.”

“Won’t that look weird? If I leave with you?” You were whispering back to him and he sucked in a slightly frustrated breath, wanting to help you out of your shitty situation.

Heeseung stayed silent for a second and you felt guilty for not immediately accepting his kind offer but you couldn’t help but think about how your boyfriend would react to the inevitable whisper that would get back to him, announcing you’d left the part with his best friend.

For a half a second you wondered if he’d care at all, not the same protective and caring boyfriend he had been a few years ago. Maybe he would be relieved that you weren’t his problem for the night anymore and he got to stay out as long as he pleased.

You were just about to accept Heeseung’s offer, the thought of the second scenario making your stomach turn more with desperation to leave, but he was suddenly stepping away from you completely and nodding his head.

He didn’t say anything else, not looking upset at you despite giving you a long stare that was full of guilt and something else you couldn’t quite place at the time. You watched him as he returned back to the party, sliding down the wall and sinking to the floor once he was turning the corner and out of sight.

——

You’d spent the whole day at work the next Monday thinking about what had happened, confused and guilty considering you hadn’t necessarily told the boy to get away from you.

It wasn’t like you’d never considered the fact that Heeseung was attractive. You’d actually met him before Jake, sitting next to him in a club you both had joined and striking up a smile filled conversation before your now boyfriend was stumbling into the classroom and demanding that they hurry to the cafeteria.

Heeseung had given you a sorry smile and made you a promise you’d still show up to the club next week despite his early exit, a handsome smirk on his face when you nodded earnestly at the idea of seeing him again.

And you did see him again, every single week you sat next to each other and talked about everything you could think of.

At some point you’d started to hang out outside the classroom and school as a whole, and that’s where you had officially met his friend that interrupted your first ever conversation all those months ago.

Jake had immediately been infatuated with you, always trying to steal your attention from his friend and openly flirting with you in a way you’d never experienced before. You’d never had a boyfriend or such a passionate suitor and eventually you and Jake started to hang out one on one.

Only once or twice had you considered the possibility that Heeseung had liked you too, retreating when he realized how his best friend seemed to feel about you.

You considered it late in bed some nights and then you would roll over and bury your face in your pillow, guilt eating away at you considering how much you loved your boyfriend and were happy together, at least at the time.

It’d been a few years since you’d thought about Heeseung as anything other than Jake’s friend and now you were getting that sick guilty feeling again as you remembered the way he had held your chin and looked down at you with such affection.

The sick feeling stayed as you finished work and made your way back to Jake’s apartment. You stayed there more than you did at the dorms and it was sort of an unspoken arrangement that you’d come there throughout the week, feeling perfectly at home as you used your own key to unlock the front door.

You immediately froze as you crossed into the threshold and your eyes fell on the boy on the couch, lazily sprawled across it as he watched TV with an uninterested gaze.

It wasn’t a rare sight for Heeseung to be there, almost constant at this point other than weekends but considering you’d spent the entire day thinking about him, you were slightly thrown off to see him in person.

His eyes were going over to you at the sound of the door creaking open and he smirked softly at your frozen frame, knowing exactly what you were thinking as you looked at him from the doorway.

“That you babe?” Jake was calling from somewhere down the hallway and you vaguely processed the fact the shower was running in the distance. You shifted awkwardly in place and closed the door behind you.

“Is it babe?” Heeseung was speaking now in a slightly mocking tone and you flushed bright red, glaring at him and storming past him towards your boyfriends room.

You were suddenly upset at him rather than feeling guilty, understanding that as much as you were Jake’s girlfriend, he was his best friend and the one to initiate the contact with you in the first place. He didn’t say anything as you stomped down the hallway to set your stuff down and he still didn’t speak when you were returning to the living room with crossed arms and a huffy expression.

He raised an eyebrow at you and lazily reached over to grab the remote and turn the TV off.

“What the fuck was that?” You rushed out, keeping your tone low in case Jake could somehow hear you over the loud sounds of the shower and his speaker playing his usual washing up playlist.

For a second you expected Heeseung to ignore you considering how long he took to respond but then he was surprising you and standing from the couch, immediately towering over you as you lost your resolve and uncrossed your arms.

He was taking a few steps in your direction and your mouth parted in surprise at the fact he was almost as close to you as he had been the night before, this time in an even more risky place considering Jake was only a few feet away and not the type of shower for longer than necessary.

“What if I said I was drunk?” He was whispering and peering down at you, gaze heavy and dark as you looked up at him.

You thought for a second before shaking your head at him and looking down at the floor for a second as you gathered your nerves enough to speak. “You weren’t I… I could smell your breath.”

He nodded at your words, a gentle look on his face despite the intensity of his stare and you felt his hand coming again. This time it stopped on your arm, running the tips of his fingers up and down in slight trails that caused you to take a breath and shiver.

“What if I told you I hate the way he treats you.” He was still whispering but he sounded more sure of himself now and you felt your heart drop and he confirmed what his intentions were. “That it drives me crazy knowing I let him have you just for him to take it for granted.”

You were shaking your head and gasping slightly, your hands coming up to try and take his touch away from you. He stopped you and held your arms gently by your elbows, leaving you to touch his biceps as you took a step backwards.

“Don’t say that.” You were rushing out in a hissed whisper, although your face lacked any anger as you looked at him with big sad eyes. “I love him.”

“He doesn’t love you.” He was immediately countering, almost like he didn’t mean to say it and your face was crumbling. Tears welled up in your eyes and he was quickly letting go of your arms so he could cup your face as he desperately kept talking. “I’m sorry Y/N but no one else is going to tell you and I can’t do this anymore. It’s impossible to be around you.”

He was softly rubbing your cheeks with his thumbs and tilting your face up so you could look at him, leaning in closer as he watched you with a guilty expression.

It was too close and your heart was beating as it also broke at the confirmation that Jake wasn’t in love with you anymore. You had suspected it due to his behavior obviously but hearing it made you feel lightheaded, especially coming from the person he’d trust the most with that information.

Heeseung was leaning down and you could just barely feel his lips grazing over yours before you were pushing him away, snapping out of it and touching your mouth in panic with wide eyes. He stumbled back a few feet and looked at you with a hurt expression but nodded softly and didn’t try to approach you again.

The timing was in your favor considering only a few seconds later the shower was turning off and Jake was stepping out into the hallway with a towel around his waist, eyeing the two of you standing in the center of the room weirdly before asking why the TV had been turned off.

——

The following weekend you officially declined Jake’s offer to attend another party. You almost always did despite never wanting to and he tried to convince you like he did every single time, normally getting you to consign after a few pleads.

He seemed particularly agitated when you put your foot down and told him that under no circumstances would you be going and you hoped he’d have fun without you. He angrily responded that he would before hanging up the phone and leaving you to lay on your bed with the silence of your actions.

It’d been a week since Heeseung had almost kissed you and you’d been feeling the ghost of his touch every night since, along with the weight of what he had told you about your boyfriend.

You hadn’t mentioned it to anybody, especially not Jake but you couldn’t stop considering the possibilities of what this could mean for you. Jake liked having a girlfriend as far as you knew, somebody on his arm at parties and to appease his parents for the holidays, so you didn’t necessarily think he’d break up with you any time soon.

Maybe that’s what Heeseung had meant when he said nobody else was going to tell you and you wondered how many people knew how loveless your relationship was.

You’d been thinking yourself to death ever since the conversation happened and you were reaching your breaking point, eyes welling up with tears as your chest got tight and restricted. You shook your head and picked your phone up off your chest before you could think about it twice.

The call was picked up on the second ring and you could hear the loud sounds of music and laughter, an active party going on around the person on the other line and you immediately felt guilty for what you were about to say.

“Y/N?” Heeseung’s low voice sounded even deeper over the phone and you squeezed your eyes shut in nervousness. “You okay? Are you there?”

You didn’t say anything for a few seconds as you listened to the sound of his breathing, trying to sync yours and calm yourself down enough to be able to respond to him. You wondered if he could hear your stuttered gasp and inhales.

“Can you come over?” You eventually forced out in a tight voice, breaking into a small sob mid sentence that made his heart sink to his stomach.

At the party he was turning away from Jake so he could hear you better, watching as he laughed and leaned closer and closer to a girl that was on your rival schools cheerleading team. He was seconds from breaking them up or storming out before you had called and your boyfriend didn’t even bat an eye when he heard your name accidentally slip from his friends mouth in a worried tone.

“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

——

You had only lasted about 30 seconds after hanging up the phone before you were eaten alive with guilt and crying even harder.

For a second you questioned why you hadn’t even attempted to call Jake first, you knew he wouldn’t have answered you and if he did he certainly wouldn’t have left the party he’d just arrived to a few hours prior but it made you sick that you hadn’t even considered trying him before you instinctively were pressing Heeseung’s contact.

Not long after there was urgent knocks at your door, followed by softer ones immediately after that would’ve made you laugh if you weren’t so upset. You were standing and opening the door to see a flustered Heeseung standing there.

“I was worried you fell asleep.” He was explaining his secondary knock and you just nodded, scanning his outfit.

He looked nice always but you realized you liked him best when he got ready for parties. He really knew how to dress himself and it was always interesting to see him after he carefully parted his hair, showing off his newly shaven undercut.

You felt out of place considering you were wearing pajama shorts and a large T-shirt that could potentially have been Jake’s in high school although you’d been using it as a sleep shirt for so long it definitely belonged to you now.

Heeseung’s expression fell at the sight of your swollen eyes and messy dorm room and you sighed, reaching forward to pull him softly out of the hallway so you could close the door behind him and avoid somebody seeing him awkwardly outside your room in the middle of the night.

“What happened?” He was whispering and you sat on the bed softly, watching him with glossy eyes until he sat beside you and turned his body so he could face you better as you started to talk.

“I just don’t want to think about it anymore.” Your voice was breaking and you shook your head again, feeling tears collecting under your chin. “My brain won’t shut off, I don’t know what to do.”

He was shifting forward as you broke down, kissing his teeth in upset and holding your face, similarly to the way he did last week. You were meeting his gaze and sniffling as he gently wiped your tears and for a second your eyes went down to his lips before immediately bouncing back up.

He didn’t miss the action but he didn’t acknowledge it yet, letting you calm down more and clear your head before he spoke again.

“Can I help you forget?” He was whispering as he looked at you and your stomach turned at the implications, his words heavy in the tensioned air as he watched you with doe like eyes. He seemed genuinely and earnest and you felt your heart break again, this time for different reasons.

You thought about pushing him away and demanding he leaves, telling him this was a mistake and you shouldn’t have called him at all in the first place. You knew he would leave immediately and try his best to not make you feel awkward the next time you saw each other so you’re not sure why you were so hesitant to do so.

Then you thought about Jake and you thought about the fact he was at a party right now, not bothering to ask why you didn’t want to attend and instead being angry and going alone. You thought about how he wouldn’t have answered your call, how he never did and how Heeseung had answered before it barely rang and made it to your dorms within ten minutes.

He didn’t demand a reason or complain you were taking him away from his friends, interrupting his weekend or making him feel guilty for having a social life.

He came to your side despite you avoiding him the entire week and he held you as you cried about the boy he had given you up for, being too good of a friend to deny Jake when he had begged for permission to take you out on a date before Heeseung got the courage to.

You thought about all this and then you thought about how you couldn’t stand thinking for another second, leaning forward and kissing Heeseung gently before you talked yourself out of it.

He was stiffening immediately in shock and you pulled away in fear of his reaction, thinking you had somehow read the situation wrong and he wasn’t expecting that out of tonight or his offer to help you. You were parting your lips to apologize to him when he was surging forward and cutting you off.

Kissing Heeseung felt different than kissing Jake and you flushed at the fact you were kissing somebody other than your boyfriend for the first time.

Where Jake was passionless and routine, Heeseung was desperate and clingy like he had been waiting to kiss you for his entire life. His hands were still on your cheeks and he kept pulling you in deeper like he was scared you were going to disappear.

You tried to reassure him by scooting closer to him on the bed, placing a hand over his as you tilted your head and deepened the kiss. He groaned softly into your mouth and you squealed as he was suddenly pulling you forward and off the bed, landing onto his lap as you tried to catch your balance.

His mouth was on your again before you could process the fact you were straddling him now and you tried to shut off your thoughts and kiss him, shuddering slightly at the feeling of his hands on your lower back.

“Hee.” You were muttering into his mouth and he pulled back slightly to look at you, panting with swollen lips and hooded eyes. His gaze was shooting all around your face like he was trying to believe you were actually here and doing this. “Get on the bed more.”

It took him a few seconds to unfreeze but eventually he was nodding and scooting backwards with you on top of him, stopping when his back hit the headboard as he waited for you to make another move.

And you did, taking a small breath before leaning forward to kiss him again. It was messier this time and you whined softly into his mouth, feeling his tongue against yours and one of his large hands coming up to hold the back of your head and keep you pressed tightly against him and his open mouth.

He stopped kissing you briefly to trail down your chin and neck, stopping at your collarbone as he left wet and sloppily kisses on your hot skin, drinking in the way you gasp and reached forward to clutch onto his arms.

You could feel his muscles flexing under your hands as he tried to restrain himself, one of his hands still in your hair as the other softly massaged your hip bone without him even meaning to.

“So pretty.” He was grunting against your neck and a shiver ran through you at how out of breath he sounded just from kissing you, you shook your head as you felt him bite down softly on your skin.

“No marks.” You whispered in a half pant and he lifted his head up to look at you, furrowing his eyebrows like he was slightly hurt by the suggestion. You didn’t say anything for a second and just looked at him, hands tightening around his thick arms. “We can’t Heeseung.”

You saying his name made his eyes soften and he nodded his head in agreement, understanding the situation was about to get extremely complicated and he didn’t want to add to the drama that was inevitably going to happen. You looked saddened again at the reminder of your boyfriend and he frowned, surging forward again to capture you in another heavy kiss.

You hummed in appreciation and accepted it immediately, leaning into him and moving a hand up so you could feel the way his jaw tensed at the feeling of your tongue pressing against his.

It wasn’t long before he was growing impatient from all the kissing and the feeling of you hovering over him in his lap, grabbing your waist with his large hands and flipping the both of you over like it was absolutely nothing. You squealed at the sudden movement and laughed softly at his neediness, eyes squinting as you did so.

He was hovering over you on his elbows, planking as he looked down at you with a small grin.

“God you’re so beautiful.” He was breathless as he said it and you flushed. Your hair was splayed out across the pillows as you smiled and he felt his heart beat in happiness despite the way his stomach was turning in anger, anger at missing out on you for so long and anger at Jake for hurting something as sweet as you.

“Don’t think about him.” You were whispering and touching his cheek, bringing him back to the moment as his eyes softened. “I’m here with you.”

His chest filled with pride at your words and he felt a wave of possessiveness over come him at the truth in your words, the fact you were currently laying underneath him and not anybody else. He was nodding at you before kissing you again softly.

You groaned into his mouth at the feeling and shifted underneath him, liking the way he immediately lowered his body down so he was pressing you into the mattress underneath his weight but still holding himself up enough so he didn’t hurt you.

The kiss was soft for a few minutes as you got used to the new position and the feeling of him on top of you but eventually you were feeling anticipation eating away at you and your stomach was lighting up with want and desperation for him to do something, anything more. You shifted again and whined softly into his mouth causing him to lean back slightly.

He saw the look in your eyes, the way your lips parted in a slight pant and he smirked slightly before kissing your cheek.

“Please.” You were whispering out in a half gasp and his gaze darkened now, your hand coming up to bunch up a chunk of his shirt in your shaking hands. “Heeseung please.”

He didn’t need to be told twice, mesmerized by your soft voice begging for him to do something as he sat up off you slightly to pull his shirt over his head. You watched him as he did it and your stomach turned in arousal at the sight of his bare skin. You’d seen him shirtless countless times at pools or lounging around on a hot day but having him like this in this context made your body light up.

“Tell me what you need baby.” He was leaning back down to kiss you and push your hair from your face, his other hand going down to rest on your hip as he softly pushed your shirt up and rubbed at your exposed skin with his thumb. “Whatever you need, I’ll give you anything.”

You nodded at the idea of that and whined desperately, too overwhelmed to probably word what it was that you wanted from him. You shifted slightly again and rubbed a hand up his warm bare skin, slightly satisfied when he lowered himself down onto you again.

“Hee.” You gasped out at the feeling and you clenched his arm, nails digging into his skin when he was hard and fully pressed against you.

“I know baby I know.” He kissed you again finally and groaned into your open mouth. He was going crazy as you squirmed underneath him but he didn’t want to pressure you or suggest anything you’d agree with in a hazy state of lust, waiting for you to request something you knew you wanted.

You impatiently trailed a hand down towards his that was resting on your hip and you guided his upwards, gasping softly as he laid it over your ribs and could feel how hard your heart was pounding.

He watched you in curiosity for a second before softly moving it up even further, understanding from your small and desperate nod that you wanted him to take the shirt off completely. You sat up slightly so he could pull it up and off your body before flopping back against the bed and awkwardly looking at him, suddenly self conscious considering how bare you were.

“Fuck.” He was groaning out as he looked down at you, eyes transfixed on your chest as you took sharp breaths that caused your entire body to rise and fall. His large hand was moving forward and not wasting any time, aggressively groping you as he pressed his lower half harder against you.

You let out a small cry and shifted your legs so they were spread more, sitting on either side of his hips so he could be completely pressed against your core as he touched you so vulgarly.

“So fucking pretty, so sweet baby you should’ve been mine.” He was shaking his head in frustration as he spoke the weighted words, leaning down and kissing your chest softly but avoiding the sensitive places you were hoping he’d get to. “He could never deserve you, he doesn’t have the slightest idea what to do with all this.”

Despite not wanting to think about Jake or your relationship and having half the mind to tell him to stop mentioning it, you felt a wave of arousal at his possessive wording.

“What would you do if I was yours?” You rushed out and he looked up at you through his eyelashes from where he was still laying wet kisses on your body. He picked his head up slightly and shifted so he was closer to your face again, your nipples hardening up at the feeling of his bare chest pressed against his now.

“Never would’ve looked at him.” He was shaking his head as he looked down at you and you clutched his arm harder as he started to talk. “You never would’ve thought about anybody other than me babygirl I promise you, I’d have taken such good care of you.”

You were nodding and you felt slightly embarrassed by the tears springing to your eyes, the emotion immediately forgotten at your desperation and want for him to keep speaking to you.

“I know Hee, I know.” You gasped out and squeezed his arm. “Should’ve been you.”

He was pausing for a second, something you didn’t recognize passing through his face, before he was leaning down so he could kiss you again. It was slow and careful like he was trying to savor the moment again and you felt cared for due to his gentle approach.

You could feel him hard against you as he lowered himself completely again, shifting so you were pressed together even tighter and he throbbed and rocked softly forward into your core. Your legs were bending slightly so he had more access and your shorts bunched up on your thighs at the movement, almost all your skin available for him.

He took advantage of this as his large hands immediately went to your exposed legs, rubbing them up and down your warm thighs softly like he was really taking his time to explore and cherish every single inch of your body.

You felt another wave of affectionate wash over you underneath the complete desire that was dizzying your senses, understanding from his words that he had thought about this more than you had ever realized.

“I want you.” You were pleading into the kiss and he faltered for a second, big wide eyes hesitant and questioning as he waited for you to specify and confirm what he thought you were saying. “I want all of you Heeseung, please.”

He liked it when you said his name, he always had, even when it was something as simple as catching his attention because you were ordering food for everybody or calling him over in a crowd as he searched for you and Jake. He liked it most like this, he was quickly deciding, for more reasons than just how nice it sounded falling from your lips as you gasped and whined.

He liked hearing it like this because it was a direct acknowledgment that he was here with you and not Jake, not anybody else that could fulfill a meaningless rebound after you’d gotten your heart broken.

You’d chosen him this time and the way you said his name continuously, despite the fact you were slightly delirious with need and lust, kept him grounded in this fact as proof that you wanted him here.

“You want me to fuck you?” He was mumbling it as he kissed at your jaw, causing you to suck in a breath and wrap your arms around his warm back.

You were nodding repeatedly although he couldn’t see it now, mouth on your neck as you hooked your chin over his shoulder and kept making little cries as he rocked his hips against yours. You felt like you were going crazy and you wished you could gather your thoughts enough to tell him how good he was making you feel.

“I’ll fuck you like you belong to me.” He was muttering as he pulled back softly, laying your head back down before sitting up and helping you pull your shorts off. You cried out in complaint at the loss of contact but used the rest of your strength to attempt to pick your hips up and assist him.

“I do.” You whined out once he was laying back on top of you and you pulled him in for a sloppy kiss that was more so you trying to stick your tongue in his mouth as he watched you with an endeared expression. “I wanna.”

He’d thought about you like this more times than he’d ever admit, always feeling guilty every time you’d smile in his direction or peer up at him in question and his mind would immediately go to the image of you underneath him and panting for air like you were now.

He’d spent lots of nights wondering what you were like when you were being touched, wondering what you sounded like and if he could pull sounds from you that you didn’t even know you could make.

Jake would talk about you sometimes but he couldn’t find it in himself to listen despite his curiosity and fantasies, always going into a silent rage as he listened to your boyfriend talk about you like a piece of meat.

He was shushing you as you continued your mantra and repeated begs, exclamations about wanting to be his and little overwhelmed hiccups and he pressed himself against you again, this time with only his underwear separating you.

“Heeseung please.” You felt large tears rolling down your cheeks but you didn’t care, not feeling embarrassed despite your desperation showing.

“I know sweet girl, it’s okay.” His tone was gentle but the way he was rolling his hips into yours was anything but, constant slams of his clothed hard on against you as you scratched at the skin of his back. “I have to stretch you first baby.”

You were immediately shaking your head and he frowned softly, kissing underneath your eyes where your tears were collecting as you started to object his statement. “No need… just please.”

If you were in a clearer headspace you’d be saying differently considering the fact that you and Jake weren’t at the most sexually active point in your relationship and it had been a while since something had been properly inside of you, most likely needing the prep before anything.

Still, he couldn’t disagree with you upon hearing the urgency in your voice and you were thankful for that since you felt like if he wasn’t inside you in the next few minutes you’d just completely shut down.

“I’m bigger than Jake.” He was muttering as he shifted on top of you to push his boxers off. He wasn’t taking a dig at his friend intentionally, stating a fact for your own preparation but his lips quirked into a smirk when you let out a small laugh at his statement.

You whined softly at how slow he was going and he was immediately shushing you before leaning back down to kiss you, a hum of satisfaction vibrating your lips when he deepened it.

You could feel him pressing against you completely now and you shuddered, fighting the urge to break the kiss and looked down at him now that he was also completely naked with you. You didn’t want to stop kissing him however or get too overwhelmed too fast, knowing the sight of him entering you would drive you to your breaking point.

The feeling of him even slightly pushing in immediately had you stiffening up and sucking in a pained breath, understanding why he had warned you about his size just a few seconds ago.

“Shit I’m sorry.” He was groaning and shaking his head, stilling on top of you completely as he waited for you to say anything and let him know what he should do next. “I can pull out.”

You were quickly shaking your head and tightening your hold around his shoulders, happy he wasn’t complaining about the way your nails were tearing his skin. “No no don’t, it’s okay.”

“Just give me a second.” You were wincing and sucking in deep breaths, feeling slightly better when he dipped his head to kiss you softly. “Been a while.”

He was stiffening more as you said that. He knew Jake was still actively having sex considering he was his best friend and the subject to late night text of excited emojis and the thought of it being with somebody other than you made his stomach turn in disgust.

“I’m sorry.” You whispered when you felt him harden, misinterpreting his reaction as frustration for having to wait for you to get used to his size.

“What?” His attention was immediately back on you and he shook his head as he saw your saddened expression, leaning down to kiss you softly again and brush your hair from your sweaty face. “No baby not you, don’t say sorry.”

You nodded although not fully convinced and let him kiss you deeply for a few seconds, squeezing him tightly and rubbing his back a few times until you were ready for him to try and move.

When you finally gave him the go ahead he was slowly inching himself inside of you, being careful not to hurt you in any way while also gritting his teeth in an attempt to not just fully slam into you and get it over with. You were tight and wet around him and he swore under his breath and he laid his head down onto your shoulder.

Once he was fully inside you, you finally let out a breath that was immediately followed by a soft whine at how full you were, how deep he had managed to reach.

“Fuck.” He was shaking his head against your shoulder and you let out a small breathy laugh in agreement, understanding what he meant by the simple exclamation. “How are you so fucking tight?”

“Hee.” You were tapping his back and he picked his head up to look at you in question, eyebrows furrowed with a wild look in his eyes. You didn’t need to say anything, simply shifting underneath him and tightening your legs around his sides. He understood immediately and kissed you quickly before starting to move.

Your mouth was opening in a cry as he pulled out halfway before burying himself inside of you again, any pain you had felt from the stretch of him immediately being replaced with waves of pleasure and ecstasy.

You were driving him crazy with the sounds you were making and the way you were clenching around him, having half the mind to reach down and press down onto your stomach just so he could feel himself inside of you.

“Doing so good baby, my sweet girl.” His voice was raspy as he spoke the sweet words to you and your heart clenched again at his tone and words of endearment.

It didn’t completely miss you that he was treating you so gently, taking care of you in a way you hadn’t experienced in almost two years. Heeseung wasn’t just trying to fuck you, trying to help you forget your troubles and be done with it, he was making love to you.

“Feels too good.” You hiccuped out and he grunted with agreement, perfectly wrecking you as he kept fucking into you at a slow and deep pace. He was kissing you again but you were both in a haze of pleasure, mainly just breathing against each other.

You were rocking together as he fucked against you, doing almost all the work considering you were too overwhelmed to even form proper sentences. He felt perfect inside you and you were reaching your high sooner than you ever had, clutching on to him tightly as you tried to give him some warning.

He was nodding his head in understanding, feeling you get impossibly tight around him as you started to come undone with him still inside of you. For a second he was panicked thinking about your lack of protection before remembering that fact you were on birth control, having packed it as he watched when you went camping earlier this year.

He hoped you weren’t worrying about it either as he reached his finish seconds after you, wanting to assure you that he was clean and hadn’t been with anybody since he had met you.

Deciding against it, knowing it might just be too much for you to handle right now, he instead opted for rolling over slightly and pulling you with him so you were resting against his chest. He kissed you softly and rubbed your back like you had been doing to his the entire time you were touching.

You weren’t saying anything and he was suddenly worried that you would regret this as you left your sex driven haze.

“Y/N.” He was murmuring, trying not to spook you and you shifted your gaze so you could look him in the eyes hesitantly. “Are you okay?”

You were nodding but it obviously wasn’t the truth considering you immediately winced and laid back down on his chest, finding it easier to speak when he wasn’t watching you. “I know I shouldn’t be with him… but it still doesn’t make this right.”

Your words hung heavy in the air as you both fell into an uncomfortable silence, not expecting to talk about your current situation only a few seconds after you finished having sex with him. He felt slightly hurt by your statement but he also knew he should’ve expected such a talk and for you to feel guilty about being with him.

“It isn’t right but neither is the way he treats you. Plus, you know I won’t tell him if you don’t want me to.” He added the second part despite the crack he felt in his chest, knowing their was a chance you’d go back to Jake and let this remain your little secret.

“You have to tell him.” You were countering and the way your face vibrating when you spoke caused a tickle on his skin. “We have to.”

You said the words like they meant something important, picking up your head to look at his reaction even, but he wasn’t quite sure what you were insinuating, tilting his head as he stared at you and waited for you to explain what you wanted him to understand more clearly.

“We can tell him together.” You furthered your words and his stomach flipped with nerves. “Tell him about us.”

You stressed the word so there wasn’t any room for further confusion, clearly implying that you were seeking the same thing he was and you were open to trying things out with him after you officially ended things with Jake and convinced to him what you’d done.

He was breaking out into a wild smile and nodding his head in agreement, not even caring about the consequences of telling your boyfriend and his best friend, no doubt losing that connection. He’d seen it coming for a while now and as much as it saddened him to watch his friend mold into somebody unrecognizable, it was becoming unhealthy to stay his friends and enable his behavior.

You looked nervous at his lack of verbal response but you felt better when he pulled you back down into a kiss.

[clxja16]

Since Day One

Part Three

Arthur Leclerc X Reader

Genre: childhood friends to lovers

Warnings: language

Word Count: 4K

Author’s Note: okay this is it, I don’t think I’m gonna do a part four. Unless idk if you guys absolutely beg for a part four. But yeah this is it. It is insane how many people like part two and asked for a part three. I was genuinely stunned, idk what to say guys. Thank you so much for showing this so much love. I’m sorry if this doesn’t live up to expectations, i felt like I made you guys wait long enough for it.

Part one, Part two

————————————

Charles and Arthur had to be in Austria before Thursday to prepare for the next race. You were adamant about not going, saying you did not prepare to be away from home for more than a week. That even staying in the UK for the weekend was setting you back in a multitude of things.

“You said you weren’t gonna stay away anymore,” Charles said. As all of them, Charles, Charlotte, Arthur, and Lorenzo, crammed into your hotel room before going to the airport.

“I’m not trying to stay away,” you said, shoving more things into your luggage, as Arthur and Charlotte deliberately unpacked things.

“Then why can’t you come to Austria with the rest of us?” Charles asked, crossing his arms.

“Because I did not plan to be in Austria,” you exclaimed. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to go, but Austria wasn’t in the original plan. “I’ll come to Monza.”

“What is it that you are really rushing back to Monaco for?” Charles looked you dead in the eye.

“It’s not your job, you said you were able to work remotely,” Charlotte deduced.

“It’s not your parents, because they don’t require you to be home like before,” Lorenzo added, he always kept in close contact with your parents.

“It’s not a guy, because you just told me that the last guy fell through when you found out he was a Ferrari fan,” Arthur then added.

“It can’t be money, your job pays you more than enough to travel with us,” Charles said.

“You know, I have no clothes for the rest of the trip, nor a plane ticket to Austria like the rest of you,” you said, trying to give any excuse to not go to Austria, “not to mention I was planning on splurging on a trip for my parents and their anniversary, and I don’t think a last minute trip to Austria will fit in the budget.”

“I’ll cover you for Austria,” Lorenzo, Charles, and Arthur said in sync.

“We’ll cover your expenses for Austria y/n, we really want you to be there with us,” Lorenzo said.

“You’re not taking no for an answer huh?” You said, looking at the three Leclercs. All of them shaking their heads. “Let’s go to Austria then,” you sighed in defeat, as all of them cheered.

“Okay good, here is your ticket,” Lorenzo said, pulling the paperwork out of his pocket. You looked at Lorenzo absolutely dumbfounded, “when you showed up for Arthur's sprint race, I knew you would have to come to Austria with us, so I got the ticket then,” Lorenzo revealed.

You took the ticket from Lorenzo, waving it in his face, while saying “normal people don’t do this Lo,” then you looked at the other two brothers, “normal people don’t expect their friends to be able to drop everything and travel to a different country with them.”

-

Unfortunately for you, Lorenzo couldn’t get you on the same flight as the rest of them. You were leaving the UK the same day as them, but several hours later. Lorenzo and the rest of them will arrive in Austria, Tuesday afternoon, while you will arrive closer to Tuesday night. You really didn’t mind it all too much. The few hours alone will allow you to gather your thoughts. Or so you thought.

“Y/n,” you heard your name from across the airport. “Y/n,” it was Felipe Drugovich, “that is you.”

“Felipe,” you said, going to hug him, “it’s been a minute.”

“It has, how have you been? Are you coming to the races again?”

You smiled, you weren’t close with Felipe, but the two of you always had a friendly relationship. “I’ve been good, and I don’t know if I’m gonna be able to attend all the races, but I’ll definitely start coming again. What about you though, race winner”

“Only a couple,” Felipe smiled, he was always so humble.

“A couple? You have three feature race wins, and you’ve scored in almost all of the races,” you smiled.

“Not all, and you’ve kept up with us?”

“Just because I’m not attending the races, doesn’t mean I didn’t keep up with them.”

“Just surprised you kept up with F2, there isn’t a Leclerc in F2 at the moment,” Felipe joked, raising an eyebrow at you.

“There doesn’t need to be a Leclerc for me to keep up with something,” you took slight offense.

“I’m just saying the Leclerc princess was only focused on the Leclerc's last season,” Felipe said. You let his statement sit for a moment, and watched as Felipe realized what he called you. His face changed from cocky to shocked.

“The what?”

“You weren’t supposed to know that,” Felipe quickly corrected his mistake.

“Leclerc princess? Who is calling me that?”

Felipe sighed, knowing that he was going to have to explain now. “It was a joke between the F2 guys last season because you were only focused on the Leclercs and you were treated like a Princess by them,” Felipe revealed.

“Please don’t tell me that you guys actually thought that,” you were absolutely shocked. You knew the boys always took care of you at the races but you didn’t think you were being treated like a princess.

“Y/n, it’s fine,” Felipe said, trying to make amends. “Arthur them we’re taking care of their friend, we understand it.”

“I didn’t…”

“I promise we never called you that with malicious intent,” Felipe didn’t know if what he was saying was making the situation better or worse. “It was stupid Robert who started the joke because you rejected him, and Arthur told him off about it. I promise that nickname wasn’t made with vicious ideas.”

“When did Robert try to get with me?” You asked not recalling any moment when Robert tried to ask you out.

“Are you serious?” Felipe didn’t know what to say, everyone knew about Robert trying to get with you. “In Monaco, Robert asked if you wanted to get dinner after the race. You said that you had dinner plans with the Leclerc family and you would text him about getting dessert together, then you never texted him or spoke to him again. Then Arthur told Robert to stop bothering you.”

“I, I didn’t know he meant like a date. I actually had dinner plans already that night, Auntie Pa made food and Arthur kept bugging me that night, I must’ve completely forgotten about Robert.” You slapped your hands against your face, completely dumbfounded that you had forgotten about Robert. “I promise I never told Arthur to say anything.”

Felipe did nothing of the sorts to help you, just laughing at your recount of events. “It’s fine y/n, Robert has gotten over it, and Arthur wasn’t mean, he just told Robert to back off a little.”

“I feel terrible,” you said, not knowing what to do, not knowing how to apologize to Robert.

“Don’t even worry about it, princess,” Felipe teased further, causing you to blush further from embarrassment.

-

After checking into the hotel, and getting all of his stuff into the room, Arthur headed back to the airport to pick you up. He adamantly volunteered to pick you up, instead of sending a Uber for you, because he wanted a few minutes of you to himself. The drive from the airport to the hotel wasn't long but Arthur insisted he pick you up and he insisted on picking you up by himself.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” Charles asked again.

“I’m sure, I’m just driving to the airport and back, I’ll be fine,” Arthur insisted.

“Text us when you got her,” Lorenzo said, before the two started back into the hotel.

Arthur wanted a few minutes alone with you because he didn’t want either of his brothers to be revealing any more information. When Lorenzo said ‘Arthur has a crush on you’ to you, Arthur felt his heart drop. He didn’t want you to reject him in front of his brothers. That would have been too much embarrassment for him. Instead you just said, ‘we’ll talk about it later, yeah?’ To which Arthur nodded, he had hoped that the drive back would be the perfect time to talk about it.

When Arthur got to the airport, he was still early, so he found a spot to park, and headed towards baggage claim to wait for you. He found you easily, you were talking to someone. As he made his way closer he noticed you were talking to Felipe. Felipe then grabbed your bag from the belt, while saying something that made you laugh. Arthur felt his heart stop for a moment, what did Felipe say to make you laugh like that? Was all he could think.

-

“I think your ride is here,” Felipe said, you followed his gaze to see Arthur standing there arms crossed. The sight of Arthur waiting for you, causing your smile to grow. You and Felipe end up being on the same flight, sitting right next to each other. “Still the Leclerc princess I see.”

“Shut up Felipe,” you blushed at the nickname that Felipe has been continually calling you the entire flight. “I’ll see you at the track,” you said, as you began to walk towards Arthur.

“See you then princess,” Felipe said, causing you to turn more red, blushing brighter. You were shaking your head at the nickname.

As you walked towards Arthur, you felt your smile get bigger. You tried to stop yourself from smiling, but you couldn’t contain it. You had to repeatedly remind yourself that Arthur still has a girlfriend. “Hi,” you said to Arthur.

Arthur hummed in acknowledgement, taking your bags from you. It wasn’t like him to be this silent. “Everything okay?” You asked.

“Didn’t know Felipe was on your flight,” Arthur huffed out, his tone causing you to stifle your giggle.

“Are you jealous Arthur?” You asked, beginning to tease. “Are you jealous that me and Felipe were on the same flight together, and sitting, and talking together the entire flight?” The opportunity to tease Arthur, has been few and far between in your friendship with him. Being around Charles and Lorenzo his entirely life, had built Arthur up. There was nothing that you could say that would bug him. So whenever you did find something to tease him about, you would take it and run.

Arthur didn’t give any answer to your teasing, silently putting your bags into the car. Arthur didn’t respond because he was actually jealous. Why did Felipe get to be with you and not him? Why did it have to be Felipe? Couldn’t it have been someone, anyone else next to you. When Lorenzo told Arthur, he bought you a plane ticket to Austria. Arthur begged Lorenzo to change his flight to be with you. Why did Felipe get to be on your flight and not him?

You teased Arthur the entire car ride to the hotel, when you finally pulled up to the front. Arthur put the car in park for the valet boys. However before you could open the door to get out, Arthur locked the doors, stopping you. You looked back at him slightly confused, and all Arthur said was “yes I am jealous.” He then unlocked the doors and got out before you.

You rushed out after Arthur, to see him already grabbing your bags. “Arthur,” you said to grab his attention. Arthur instead of answering you, turned to hand over the keys to the valet. He then walked past you carrying your bags. You followed after him, “you shouldn’t be jealous,” you said just loud enough for him to hear. Arthur didn’t say anything, continuing to remain silent, “after all Felipe isn’t the one I’m rooting for during the races, nor is he the person that I’m gonna be with this weekend.” You watched as your words curved a smirk onto Arthur’s face.

-

Arthur had brought you up to the room, “so mine and Lorenzo’s room is just a couple doors over, and Charles and Charlotte’s room is a few more doors down.”

“We’re all on one floor?” You asked as you began to unpack your limited clothing.

“Lorenzo booked all the rooms together, so they put it all on one floor,” Arthur said, trying to find the courage to continue the conversation. “Y/n, don’t you think we should talk?”

“Talk?” You knew exactly what Arthur meant, but you were hoping to avoid the conversation just a little longer, in hopes that maybe your feelings for him would go away in a few hours. “Talk about what?” You didn’t meet Arthur’s gaze, because you knew the moment you looked into his eyes, you would fold.

Arthur grabbed your arm, pulling you away from your luggage, “you know what we need to talk about.”

When you looked up at Arthur, his eyes looking hurt, “don’t you have a girlfriend.” You watched as Arthur’s face changed, first being confused, then realization.

“No,” Arthur said with relief, “I forgot to tell you, we broke up.”

“Arthur did you actually break up,” you turned back to your own unpacking, “you and her are always going on breaks and getting back together…”

“I promise,” Arthur said, jumping onto your bed to look at you, “we’re done, for real this time.”

You looked at home suspiciously not really believing it, “well just because you broke up with her, doesn’t mean you and I are just gonna become a thing.”

“Why not?” Arthur sat up confused.

“Because you know how bad that will look, that you just left your girlfriend and started dating someone new. Everyone will think you only left her because of me.”

“What does it matter what anyone else thinks?” Arthur asked, as he got off the bed, coming towards you. Taking your face in his hands.

“Arthur,” you spoke softly, pulling his hands away from your face, “it matters the most. I…”. You paused, unsure how to admit your feelings about the situation. “I love you Arthur, I will always love you, but…”

“But what?” And all over, Arthur became unable to read. You couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“Maybe,” you pulled away completely, turning your back on Arthur, “I shouldn’t have come to Austria.”

“Fuck y/n,” Arthur shouted out, “what are you talking about not coming to Austria?” You turned back to look at Arthur, who was red in the face, “you said,” Arthur pointed his finger at you, his words laced with venom, “you weren’t gonna stay away and now that I tell you how I feel, you’re just gonna run away.”

“That’s not,” you started to shake your head viciously, “that’s not what I meant Arthur, I…”

“Then what is it?” Arthur shouted once more, “you say you love me, you said you weren’t gonna stay away but now you don’t want to be here with us, with me.”

“Arthur please,” you felt the tears rolling down your face. Arthur has never yelled at you before like he’s doing at this moment. “Stop yelling at me,” your words were whispers, that fell on deaf ears.

“I am in love with you y/n, and I have spent years thinking I will always be second to Charles,”

“You’re not second,” you couldn’t find it in yourself to speak louder. “Arthur, I am in love with you.”

“Then why don’t you want to be here, with me?” You could finally see the tears welled in Arthur’s eyes.

“I can’t,” you broke down in full sobs, “I can’t take your fans.” His fans, “I can’t take the constant bashing from people that don’t know me, I ran away because I couldn’t take it. I am weak and I am ashamed,” you wiped away your tears, staring at the floor instead of Arthur, “and I just can’t handle it like you or Charles or Charlotte, I want to.” You looked up back at Arthur, his features had softened, “I wish I could do it Arthur, I do. I want to be at every race, under every podium, to be with you, always, but I don’t think I can, I’m sorry.”

Arthur wrapped his arms around you, pulling you closer than ever before. You began to sob, feeling ashamed that little comments from strangers messed you up this bad. You buried your face deeper into Arthur’s chest, feeling safety in his arms.

-

“Where is y/n?” Lorenzo asked Arthur, as he was in the middle of training.

“Not sure,” Arthur shrugged, as he continued on unbothered. Lorenzo looked a little confused, because Arthur was the one that took your absences the hardest among the three of them. Why wouldn’t he take it the hardest though?

Just a few moments later, Charles joined Arthur and Lorenzo. Whenever their, Charles and Arthur’s, race weekends aligned together, the two would train together to prepare for a race. “Where’s y/n?” Charles asked, as he scanned the room, thinking he would see you tucked away in a corner. Arthur, not verbally acknowledging the question, shrugged.

Now it was Charles’ turn to be confused. Charles missed having you around very much, and it meant a lot to him that you were there in Silverstone. However Charles knew it meant more to Arthur that you were there, than it did to him. Charles exchanged a look with Lorenzo, to which Lorenzo just shook his head and shrugged as well.

“She’s gonna be at the races though, right?” Charles tried to ask nonchalantly.

“She said she would be,” Arthur answered, even more nonchalant. Charles and Lorenzo exchanged another look, trying to determine if you and Arthur got into a fight or what.

-

You currently sat at lunch with Charlotte, while the boys were doing their training.

“So, did you and Arthur talk?” Charlotte asked, after your waiter dropped the appetizers.

“We did,” you smirked thinking back to your conversation with Arthur.

“Your smirk indicates it went well,” Charlotte's eyes widened in anticipation.

“Well,” you paused thinking further about the entire conversation, “it ended well.”

“Ended well? It started off bad?” Charlotte let out a little chuckle.

“Yeah,” you laughed out, “Arthur mentioned he broke up with his girlfriend.”

“Oh, but that was a long time coming already,'' Charlotte reasoned, as she began to pick away at the appetizers.

“I know that, I just didn’t want Arthur to think that just because he broke up with his girlfriend. I would just jump into a relationship with him. Not to mention how that would look.”

“So you and him are not together then?”

“Umm no, yes,” you chuckled some more.

“What happened in that hotel room?” Charlotte laughed, trying to understand what the two of you talked about. “Something not innocent?” Charlotte eyebrows raised, as she giggled some more.

“No no, nothing like that,” you quickly corrected with a laugh. “We just talked, talked about a lot of things. Tried to make him understand what I felt.”

“That’s good,” Charlotte reasoned, “you definitely need to communicate more.”

“Me and Arthur are going to try being in a relationship together, slowly though and privately.” You began to blush at the thought of Arthur and you, together.

“That’s very good,” Charlotte smiled, she smiled a proud smile at you. In a way, Charlotte felt relieved, she would never admit it though. Charlotte knew that Charles will always feel some type of love for you, but Charles would never betray his brothers. A very small part of Charlotte will forever be jealous, and worried about your relationship with Charles, however now you being with Arthur she can rest a little easier at night.

“I don’t know if Arthur told his brothers yet though”

“Why wouldn’t he tell them?” Charlotte asked, slightly confused. The three of them were three peas in a pod, always telling each other everything. Charles and Lorenzo would be the first people on Arthur list to tell anything to.

“I don’t know, when I told Arthur I wanted a more private relationship, he was fine with that, but he insisted on being the one to tell his brothers,” you said with a shrug, not really understanding Arthur’s reasoning.

“Well Charles knows nothing, when I told him about lunch today, he told me to figure out what’s going on between you and Arthur.” Charlotte said with a giggle, recalling Charles' words from this morning.

-

Later that night, after all the marketing duties, training, and media request, did Arthur finally return to the hotel. Lorenzo had told Arthur that he would be having dinner with some people about Arthur’s future, and that he wouldn’t return until later. Arthur made quick work of showering and getting into a comfy outfit, before leaving his hotel room, and going up a couple doors to your hotel room.

As soon as the first knock came, you opened the door for Arthur sporting the biggest smile you could manage. “Hi,” you smiled more, that Arthur could only chuckle at you.

“Hi,” Arthur smiled, back before walking into your room. “Miss me?”

“Always,” you said, as you pecked Arthur’s lips. Arthur wrapped his arms around you, pulling you closer that every part of your body touched his, as you wrapped your arms around his neck.

“You know, I love coming home to you,” Arthur whispered against your lips, before planting another small kiss against them.

“This isn’t home though, this is a hotel,” you smirked.

“Home is wherever you are.”

That night as you cuddled closer to Arthur, the two of you lay in the middle of the bed. Watching whatever movie sounded funny.

“You know,” you started off, thinking about everything you and Arthur talked about today, “when I said going slow with our relationship and keeping things private, I didn’t mean not telling your brothers.”

“I know,” Arthur smirked, “but I want them to sweat a little, they currently think we’re fighting.”

You furrowed your eyebrows looking at Arthur, “how do you know they think we’re fighting? Why do they think we’re fighting?”

“Because I know them, and I know they won’t ask directly what’s going on, they’re just gonna wait until I tell them”

“Are you punishing them for exposing you a few days ago?”

“Maybe,” Arthur chuckled, looking down at you cuddled into his side. “They deserve it, either way.”

You cuddled closer to Arthur, trying to soak up as much heat that was emitting off of him, as possible. “Thank you for respecting my wishes to keep our relationship private for now.” Ou spoke softly into Arthur’s chest, instead of to him.

You could feel the vibration from Arthur’s chuckle, “I’d do anything for you, anything to keep you by my side.”

After your initial disagreement with Arthur, the two of you talked more about the situation in Amsterdam last year. You talked about how the fans made you feel, how you thought staying away would be best for everyone, why you thought that as well. You made sure Arthur understood your viewpoint on the entire situation. Especially that you no longer felt safe being around any of them, because you thought whenever you were with them, you were on display for the world to judge.

Arthur spoke of how you made him feel, his disagreement with Charles, and just exactly how your interactions, although not meant to hurt him, did. Arthur made sure that you understood how he felt. He felt like you were staying away because that would be easier for Charles. Arthur thought that you cared more about how Charles felt rather than how he felt.

After the two of you talked extensively, did you guys begin to discuss your relationship. You finally admitted to having romantic feelings for Arthur, and that you wanted to be with him. Arthur admitted to always being in love with you, and just forever thinking that you loved Charles more than him. The two of you agreed that you would be in a relationship with each other, but that it would go slowly, and privately. Arthur was gonna do everything in his power to ensure you felt safe being around him. That you were no longer on display for the world to critique, that you were just the girl he’s in love with. And you had never been so in love.

[redflagshipwriter]

Hi, it's Tim (just Tim)

CHAPTER TWO

Masterpost

It turned out that Kon was free to meet that day. Tim wasn’t surprised: he’d know about any missions.

'I wonder how often Kon flirts with civilians like this. Does he get dates this way a lot?'

It was a casual curiosity. This wasn't going to go anywhere. Kon was open about how he saw sex and relationships– he'd forget Tim in a couple days and probably not even recognize his face if they met again. He was just one in a string of cute teenagers that caught Superboy's eye for a weekend. And that was fine! Tim was normally the kind of guy who straight-up dated and tried to make a relationship work, but he felt sanguine about Kon. It was kind of nice to be an attractive nobody.

Tim finished his first coffee and washed it down with a grape juice while he considered what he wanted to do with his day. He had planned to either be doing fieldwork or be dead, depending on how things went with Ra's, so his schedule was wide open now.

Honestly? If he was going to go on a date, he didn’t want to do it in yesterday’s clothes.

Going back to the Manor was an absolute non-starter. He was meant to be gone until the evening. Alfred would instantly know something was going on. And god, what if Dick was there?

Tim grimaced at the thought. No… He’d kinda rather die than have to admit to Dick that he was going on a date with Kon. Dick would try to help. They were absolutely going to find out Kon went to a hotel room with him, assuming they didn't already know Superboy had taken him to the hotel. At this point he might as well go have fun before someone could hunt him down and drag him to the cave by an ankle to give him the combined safe sex/secret identity PowerPoint presentation.

Fine then. He needed money. God knows that Kon didn't have a dime to his name, so Tim expected to be paying for what they did. He didn’t have much on him, since he didn’t want to have anything in his pockets that Ra’s would be able to get use out of if things went wrong. He had left his stuff at the safehouse on the way to Blud in some sad little two story apartment complex in an area easily navigable only by car. That one didn’t get much use, but it was furnished pretty well. He was pretty sure it had been one of the ‘independence’ steps Dick took when he was fighting badly with Bruce.

…Oh. Yeah, he could just go over there and change into civvies in the storage there.

‘It’s kind of far,’ he mused. ‘It would take all morning to go there and then come back here.’

Well. It wouldn’t take Kon nearly that long to meet him there. It probably wasn’t too rude to ask. Tim crammed a miniature cake donut into his mouth and typed out, ‘thoughts on picking me up from my brother’s place in Blud in a couple hours? I need to go get a change of clothes.’

He cleared out while he waited for a response, back to the hotel room. He used the complimentary toothbrush and hopped into the shower to scrub down efficiently. Tim grimaced when it came time to put back on yesterday’s clothes, but it was his only option for the moment. He was drying his hair when he realized he had a message waiting.

‘Yeah of course!!! Just let me know where to go.’

Tim sent a thumbs up and finished his hair. He checked out and used the petty cash he’d allotted for this trip to get back to the lot where he'd left his bike. He drove to the safehouse, where he set coffee to brewing while he took a second shower.

He felt a billion times better when he smelled like himself again. He dug through Dick's selection of safehouse clothes to find the least atrocious combination possible. Tim settled on a pair of dark gray skinny jeans that were more of a loose fit on him, a white sleeveless tank top, and a designer sweatshirt in an eye-searing shade of electric blue.

Kon had messaged. Tim checked it, typed out the address of a café a few blocks away, and dropped the phone onto Dick's saddest sofa. He gave himself a quick check in the mirror and decided to do a little damage control with a little bit of hair wax to fight a cowlick and some black eyeliner (so that he looked hot, obviously.) He took a blue sucker out of the blue candy bowl Dick kept by the door for whatever reason compelled Dick to do uh, anything.

He was out the door and punching in the lock codes less than an hour after arriving. Tim shoved about 40% of his hands in Dick's tiny silly jeans pockets and scowled before admitting defeat and taking them out. These were women's jeans, weren't they? That was why the pockets were so small. He pulled the wrapper off his candy and stuffed the crinkling cellophane into his teeny pocket and shoved the candy in his mouth. He sucked on it hard as he walked. Cotton candy. God, that was disgusting. He made a mental note to put a rubber snake in Dick's locker for the next time Nightwing patrolled in Gotham.

The walk to the café felt like it took forever because he didn't have his headphones on. He knew Kon was close because he could hear the excited clamor of fans begging for his attention.

Kon was preening under the attention. He stood head and shoulders above the gaggle of preteens vying for his attention.

Tim rolled his eyes. It took an instant to run through a mental checklist of pros and cons. Was it really worth it? He clacked the hard candy against his teeth as he thought it over. Kon was really hot, for sure. He was hot and Tim wanted to press his whole body against Kon to soak up his heat and maybe feel his arms. But on the other hand, he was an absolute fuckin loser who drank up attention and approval through a mega straw.

Yeah, no. He should salvage his Sunday with something else. Tim shot Kon with an unimpressed look and turned around just as Superboy finally noticed him.

"Oh, hey!"

Tim kept walking. He didn't need this. He'd somehow forgotten how poor Kon's boundaries were with the general public. It had felt so normal last night- no, better than normal, as if they were the only two people who existed- but he'd clearly hit his head at some point in thinking he could hang out with Superboy outside of the Tower.

"Tim!" Kon yelped.

'Don't say my name,' he cursed internally. He wasn't a household name outside of Gotham but still. The odds of someone recognizing him were not zero.

There was an oof and the sound of a scuffle. Tim picked up the pace, hoping to get around the corner before anyone realized who he was.

There was a whoosh of air that pulled on his clothes as Kon came to an abrupt stop at his side. Tim sighed and gave up. "Where can we go so that we won't get mobbed?" He asked shortly. If they didn't get out of sight soon, someone was eventually going to recognize his face.

"Uhh… can I pick you up?"

He made a dismissive "go ahead" gesture with his hand and then huffed when Kon scooped him up in a bridal carry.

"Taking off," Kon said cheerfully.

Tim wound his hand around the lapel of Kon's leather jacket and closed his eyes. His stomach swooped out from under him as Kon took them up high. The chatter on the street flooded away for the whoosh of air.

Ugh. Tim screwed his face up and turned it into Kon's ribcage to hide from the sun. "I'm going to burn," he complained.

"... You're from Gotham, huh," Kon said, as if he'd forgotten. His fingers tightened ever so slightly on Tim's back. "I was going to take us to the beach."

"Only if you want to die," Tim said pleasantly. If Superboy stranded him in the sun, he was going to let Bruce put Kryptonite in his utility belt.

Kon laughed, delighted. Tim chose not to let him know that he should take any threats to his person seriously.

He was gonna add some survival training to the next Titans training session, though. He would make it clear that it was Kon's fault and then let Cassie and Bart socially punish him.

"How about a cave?" Kon proposed. He was probably joking.

"We don't live in caves." He sighed and rolled his eyes. "You're thinking about isopods, not Gothamites. Easy mistake."

"I was thinking more like a bear, actually," Kon cheerfully corrected. He changed course mid air. "You're the one who brought the topic over to damp caves."

"If one of us is a bear it's you." Tim tugged hard on the leather jacket to distract from the fact that he didn't know what that meant, either. "If we zip up your jacket and mess up your hair, do you think we can be in public without getting mobbed?"

"...Secret identities are more work than that," Kon lied badly.

Tim looked at the underside of his jaw and judged him brutally. He lifted an eyebrow in a way that he knew was devastating. But he didn't say anything, because Kon was definitely already thinking about Superman's stupid glasses trick and the fact that it worked (horrifying.) "I should have grabbed one of my brother's sweaters and a hat."

".…Would his stuff fit me?" Kon teased. "Your brother's, I mean."

"You're a little short but it'd be okay," Tim lied easily. "Maybe just a little smaller across the shoulders than he is." Fuck you, Kon. You're barely bigger than Dick.

He was silent in a way that came across as very offended. Tim grinned into the jacket, secure in the knowledge that Kon couldn't see his face at all.

"So you uh… you don't wanna be out with Superboy." Kon's heart rate picked up. "You wanna be out with just Kon, huh? Embarrassed to be seen with me?" He tried to turn it into a joke at the end but there was real vulnerability there.

Yuck, weakness. Tim graciously chose not to take advantage of it. "Mortified," he said flatly. It was kind of true. "That was a whole scene back there. That's what happens when you go to a coffee shop?"

"Yeah, well." Kon cleared his throat. "It happens when you're famous, I guess."

Tim Drake-Wayne, 17 year old member of the rich, famous, and beautiful set who also happened to have an internationally famous alter ego, said nothing. But he very loudly thought, 'No, it happens when you egg it on. Be less approachable.'

Whatever. Superboy wasn't Tim Drake's problem to fix. So he sighed and relaxed in his loser friend's arms. "Let's try the change of clothes thing, alright? Let me dress you."

"...not undress me?" Kon flirted.

"Maybe later," Tim said blandly. But yes, obviously. Bruce was going to kill him for being seen with Superboy in a hotel. He was going to at least shoot his shot. "But first let's see how you look in another color."

"It's not going to work," Kon said sulkily, but he took Tim to a mall. Tim hummed noncommittally and let Kon put him down on the cement parking lot. "I'm guessing I shouldn't come in, since you don't wanna be seen with me."

There was a seed of insecurity under the joke. Tim sighed. The things he did for people. He reached up to wind a hand into the short hair at the back of Kon's neck and pulled down.

Superboy went stock still and didn't bend with the movement. Tim changed tracks and scratched at Kon's hairline like he was a nervous cat. Superboy shivered. He twisted his wrist up so that he could get his fingers around some of Kon's longer curls. "Maybe it's you who doesn't want to be seen with me," he teased. Kon didn't know it but it really was not in his best interest to be too cozy around Tim Drake. Bruce was going to freak. "Now tell me you trust me, kiss me goodbye, and go bask in the sun until I'm done, alright?"

"I trust you," Kon said, and then turned bright red. "Um."

Ha. He was pretty cute like that.

Tim laughed at him and disentangled his hand from Kon's hair. "10 minutes," he promised, starting across the parking lot. "I'll call you if I need you, hero."

[cowboyfromh3ll]

Red Dead Redemption 2 College AU !

I'm ignoring reqs for a bit to indulge in my own thoughts and ideas and write some hcs for my college au on what i think their majors/lives as students/professors would be like, ahem... Long post ahead. Also this isn't too well thought out as of now, just wrote down some fun thoughts. Plz tell me your own headcannons

Arthur Morgan - Fine Arts

THE MOST UNEXPECTED MAJOR FOR A GUY LIKE HIM. He's the guy who's seen around campus wearing leather jackets, riding his motorcycle, brooding over a cup of coffee while he stares off aimlessly into the sky. So imagine him walking into your visual arts class with some of the most beautiful drawings you've ever seen. Has his own apartment near campus and his roommate is Charles. Entire place is littered with sketches and art supplies and billions of projects. His hands are constantly stained with charcoal. Takes his major VERY seriously, he don't play about his drawings and paintings. Works at a college bar and constantly comes home with a new story. Frequently visits John and the others after joining the frat, especially when they have parties. Never misses out on those. Became friends with Lenny through these parties.

John Marston - Civil Engineering

Probably one of the most miserable engineering majors you'll ever see. And that's only because he doesn't stress out over his work and procrastinates like he hasn't a care in the world; seemingly forgets he's in college. That is until the deadline is 11:59 PM that night and he has to cram two weeks worth of assignments into one night. Complains about heart palpitations when the area surrounding his desk is littered with energy cans. Joined a fraternity as soon as possible and lives in the housing. Party animal, drinks on weekdays with Sean and Javier. Throws absolute ragers on the weekends. Is the guy to yell "IF YOU'RE NOT PART OF THIS FRAT, THEN GET THE FUCK OUT" before turning to you and asking if you had fun. Has missed his 9 AM several times because he either slept in or is hung over. Was probably community dick for a while. Works at McDonald's part time, people genuinely don't know how he handles the stress. 60% of his paycheck goes to liquor/alcohol.

Javier Escuella - Music Theory

PASSIONATE about his major. HE DON'T PLAY ABOUT HIS MUSIC. But I can totally see him as the type of dude to sit around on the campus lawn with a guitar as a group of girls surrounds him and listens to him play. Is in the frat with John and lives in it as well. Also plays his guitar at parties with girls surrounding him, starkly contrasting the EDM and house music in the background. Shows up to class regardless of hangovers, he is very serious about his education. As serious as he is about partying. Shows up to class fitted every single time. Probably has outfit changes between classes. Type of guy to have his fits laid out next to his bed. He does the most. Was also probably community dick. Works as a cook at a restaurant, constantly flirts with you there. Gets all giddy in the kitchen with his coworkers when he manages to make you giggle.

Charles Smith - Anthropology

It's him and his laptop against the world. He's super neat, everything in one place. Any papers he gets are all neatly kept away and categorized per class. Is hard at work on writing an ethnography and is frequently out and about for observations. If he's not out then he's at home working on assignments. Also a frat member but like I said, rooms with Arthur. Has gained the quiet serious type reputation in class but once you start talking to him discover he's very friendly and nice. Probably works on campus as a student ambassador. Is very involved with school and activities; runs an enviornmental sciences club. Dedicates several hours a night to studying/working on assignments. Amazing student all around. The way he has his life together is enviable.

Kieran Duffy - Equine Studies

LITERALLY PERFECT MAJOR FOR HIM. Literally the happiest student around, his classroom is the stables. Works at the stables as well. Just spends 99% of his time at the stables so catching him outside of there is nearly impossible. Gossips to the horses and tells them about his day. I feel like he'd fall behind in his other studies though because he'd be way too focused on the horses. Typical, struggling student. Joined a frat out of pressure, got the WORST of the hazing. I don't even want to begin to imagine what the rituals were like. Probably gets black out drunk at frat parties, ends up on the front lawn and wakes up half naked every weekend somehow.

Sean Macguire - Business Administration

He's just insufferable like that. Whenever people shit on his major he just finds a thousand bullshit reasons as to why his major is better and more lucrative. Complains to John how hard his homework is and when John asks to see his screen it's addition with pictures. Probably went to college to party and realized "oh shit I actually gotta do school". Googled the highest paying and easiest majors and chose it like that. Puts more thought into what beer he's going to buy at the liquor store than his studies. Hotboxes his car 24/7. His room REEKS of weed and so does he. Attempts to disguise it with ax body spray. Will always ask you if you want to wake and bake; regardless of if you do or don't accept he's showing up to class high and with sunglasses. Goes nonverbal when he greens out. Works at McDonald's with John, is constantly late and is warned he might get fired but never does. Just fucks around in the back. I can imagine he and Karen are constantly on and off but when they're off he brings a new girl home to the frat every night.

Lenny Summers - Literature Major

Joined the frat because he thought he'd make good connections (LOUD INCORRECT BUZZER). One of the youngest pledges, went easier on him with the hazing. He's incredibly focused on his studies. You'd be surprised to find out he's a party animal as well because he's constantly reading a book in his free time. Definitely joined a book club with Mary-Beth and is taking Dutch's English class. Works on campus as well as the library; prides himself on his work and education. I believe he'd dorm because there's no way he's living in that filthy frat. Super organized dorm. Became really good friends with Arthur during one of the parties, also became close with Sean. Frequently gets driven around by Sean and gets second hand high from being in his car.

Bill Williamson - Army

Out of everyone he went to the army instead of college. But he definitely still hangs with the frat when he can simply because he's friends with a few of them. Frequently buys them liquor and supplies it to the younger members. Asks them how their classes are going and ends up falling into a rabbit hole where he's learning about infrastructure planning or astrophysics and tries his hand at doing their homework for them. It goes terribly. Drives a beat up pickup truck and you can hear that mf coming down the road 3 blocks away. Subtly tries (and fails) at flirting with some of the frat members.

Micah Bell - Criminal Law Major

Insufferable. Need I say more. Very money centric. Definitely thinks he's better than you because he's a law student. Kisses the professors’ ass all the time. Joins study groups and acts as if he's the smartest one there, tries to lead conversations, and views it as a challenge if anyone says differently than him during said discussions. He probably has an internship at a firm. Oh my god I can just imagine how sleazy he is. Also part of the frat and several of the members do not like him. Harasses the girls that show up. I can see him cutting off people during class or talking over them. Type of guy to say "not to be devil's advocate, but..."

Pearson - Culinary Degree

Came back to school to get his culinary degree. Mostly keeps to himself but has become acquainted with a few people and is actually decent friends with some. Pretty serious about his studies but is also chill, you can just tell he's extremely passionate about what he does. Excuses himself from hangouts by saying "sorry I got a pie due at 3." Loves it when he's able to sell some of his products back to students/general public and see how people react. Dreams of opening his own restaurant so he takes the accounting/marketing aspects of his degree very seriously.

Abigail Roberts - Education Major

I CAN JUST SEE IT YK. I can totally see her being a teacher, and she's super hardworking. I feel like her schedule is jam packed so she hardly ever has time for fun. Studies, does homework, student teaching, and takes care of herself and her son. So yeah imagine how busy she is all the time. Occasionally leaves Jack with his grandparents for a night of fun but that is few and far in between. Joined a sorority for support but wouldn't live in the house. Lives in the same complex as Arthur and they get along, sometimes he offers to babysit Jack. Drops off food for her when she's real busy with her studies. NEVER late to class. And besides handling ALL THIS, she'd work as a waitress at a restaurant by campus. Talk about hard working.

Sadie Adler - Agricultural Sciences

Definitely moved to live on campus from a rural town to pursue her degree. Joined the sorority early on but dorms. Suffered a breakup and found solace in the community the girls provided. Works at a local supermarket and volunteers at a community garden nearby. Her dorm is full of potted plants. Became really good friends with Arthur through Abigail, who has her over at times. I feel like she'd be asked on dates frequently but she always turns em down because she's still struggling to accept her breakup. I'm not making it a death because this AU isn't that BRUTAL. Argues with the boys often. Pearson frequents the supermarket she works at and she always makes a comment on the strange ingredients he buys. Thus leading to a weird tense air between them that they never directly address. Enjoys her coursework and never falls behind. She's on top of that shit. Also very outspoken in class.

Karen Jones - Biological Sciences

PREMED BABYYYY. On the path to becoming a nurse. She procrastinates a lot, is often late to class, BEGS her professors for extensions. Truth is she's a party girl and she will NEVER give up that party life. Constantly at several different frat parties, gets black out drunk on Saturdays, and on Sundays she's studying for her bio exam on Monday. Complains to her sorority sisters about boys, particularly Sean, to the point where they all HATE any man she gets involved with. And the next time they see Sean in public they're all glaring DAGGERS at him. Parties aside she does her work even if she puts it off... Her grades are decent, definitely passing, but everyone tells her she's gonna need to do better if she wants to go to med school. I can see her working at a retail store like Walgreens. Most miserable cashier you'll ever see. Probably lets you walk out with your items for free if she's particularly pissed off at work that day.

Tilly Jackson - Physics Major

SHE IS A SMART GIRL. One of the most hardworking on this list. Her grades are top notch and she don't play about studying. I can see her offering tutoring for math and even getting paid for it. She is not one to be underestimated when it comes to her academic abilities. Occasionally parties (aka gets dragged along by Karen) and enjoys herself, but I can't see her being a major party animal. Offers Karen lots of advice as well as helping the girls with math assignments when they need it. Joins study groups as well as math clubs. Works at a cafe on campus where Mary-Beth and Lenny visit her occasionally. Generally well organized. Has her shit together.

Mary-Beth Gaskill - Literature Major

ALWAYS has her nose in a book. Becomes extremely engaged in class discussions and has probably read every single book required for the semester already. Works at a bookstore and frequents the campus library. Is on the chiller side of partying but still accompanies the girls. She's very reserved but can be quite friendly. Writes fanfiction in the back of class while her professors think she's just passionately writing a report. Always gets extensions from Dutch, always. Even when she doesn't need em. I can see her reading a lot of philosophy books. Also an Otessa Moshfegh fan. Colleen Hoover is her guilty pleasure. Runs a blog about the books she reads. I can also imagine her being part of the school paper. Real close with Lenny as well, often hangs out with him at the cafe Tilly works at.

Molly O'Shea - Cosmetology

Shows up to her 8 AM with a BEAT face. Full face of makeup, decked head to toe in designer: designer purse where she keeps her macbook, designer shoes, outfit, accessories, etc. Probably wears brands you've never even heard of. Has a crush on Dutch, only reason she has perfect attendance in his class. Has a grudge towards Mary-Beth. Dorms for sure, even though she'd be able to afford housing nearby. The only times she's at the dorm is in the morning getting ready for class or at night to sleep. Hardly talks to her roommate either, not even a hey. Gained the stuck up rich girl reputation from her peers. Seen at cafes in between classes and is always alone. Is out of town and has been struggling to make friends. Lots of guys ask her out on dates and she only accepts when she's bored and wants a free meal. WILL make y'all go to a steakhouse, WILL order the most expensive thing on the menu.

Dutch Van Der Linde - English/Philosophy Professor

This guy definitely speaks about philosophy with a PASSION. His class is very engaging, though I do believe he'd play favorites with a few female students... This goes for both classes. Constant open ended discussions. Type of professor to ask you "but what do the blue curtains mean...?" Hardass with assignments unless you're one of those favored female students. No late assignments with him ever. You either turn it in at the deadline or you don't ever. I feel like he'd forget to take attendance frequently despite being a hardass about that too. Probably the type of professor that tries to integrate himself with the student body and try to fit in. Mildly successful.

Hosea Matthews - Theatre Professor

THE SWEETEST, KINDEST, MOST COMPASSIONATE PROFESSOR. ALWAYS excuses late assignments and very lenient, will not deduce points. His class is very fun and engaging as well! Does what Dutch tries to do and makes genuine connections with his students while keeping it professional. Tells his students they can always talk to him and come for advice. Frequently has lunch with Dutch and Susan and talks up just how great his classes are. Frequents the library and local bookstores; also goes to the cafe Tilly works at. I also feel like a lot of his relationships would have a fatherly air around them, like he's a second dad for a few of the students (we know who...).

Leopold Strauss - Business Professor

YOU CANNOT TELL ME HE WOULDN'T UGH. Probably a super boring class I'm not gonna lie. His accent would probably make it hard for some students to understand what he's saying, not to mention he probably speaks super softly and not loud enough for everyone to hear. He should've retired by now but he refuses to. There is no syllabus week with him, you got homework on the first day. But it's probably not even hard c'mon. Sean is probably the most lively thing about his class, but he's definitely falling asleep in there frequently. Always late to his own class, doesn't even say why, just gets into lecturing. NEVER seen without a cup of coffee. Sometimes there will be long moments of silence between lectures as he tries to figure out the technology. Falls asleep in his car after class.

Orville Swanson - Theology Professor

Also a super chill professor. He's probably super open to his classes about his struggles. He's able to facilitate well structured discussions and keep things civilized amongst his students. I feel like it could get boring because it's mostly lectures and slide shows but he'd still find a way to keep his students engaged, especially on discussions. I feel like he'd also be lenient about assignments, but his assignments would be rather large. Back to back papers. Type of professor to say hi to you in the halls or outside of campus and ask about your day. 10/10 guy.

Uncle - Biology Professor

How is he still working here. HOW hasn't he retired. WHY hasn't he retired. SOMEONE PLEASE make him retire. There are pros and cons. You will learn NOTHING in his class, so if you're unfortunate enough to land his class you better drop that shit as soon as possible. If you for some reason stay, you must be some sort of masochist. Probably has the best stories. As soon as you think he's about to start lecturing he goes on a tangent about a story that happened to him the other day. He has weekly tests and you might as well teach yourself the material because his ass definitely isn't doing it. Also has plenty of labs so he can leave you all to your own devices amongst each other while he sits at his desk and does who knows what. You can probably find him sleeping in a student lounge at any time of the day. Also the frat guys have definitely run into him at the liquor store.

Susan Grimshaw - History Professor/Sorority Mother

She's hard on you but only because she cares. Isn't very lenient when it comes to assignments but she's involved with her students. If she sees you struggling she'll pull you aside and ask what's up and figure out a plan to help you out in her class. Likes to remind her students she isn't their mommy but has a very motherly air surrounding her. And she is VERY on top of her girls. As a sorority mother, she makes sure they eat well, stay on top of studies, and deals with parents. Encourages the girls to keep up the general cleanliness of the house and tells them to work as a unit. Extremely proud of each of them.

[nighttimescribbles2]

spare keys

You gave Kento the spare keys to your apartment in case of emergencies. He defines emergencies differently. nanami kento x reader; fluff wc: 2584 a/n: inspired in part by Queen @shrekisshrimpthesimp 's uni gripes. fight on, girl! there's a light at the end of the academic tunnel! written for shrekky and for octoberians graduating this month (are there still any of you???). congrats, babes! i swear i intended for this to be no longer than 1k or so 😬 also unedited because i aint got time for that rn 😬😬😬

Nanami spent all weekend helping you move in.

You protested; said you could handle it yourself over concerns that you were eating up his weekend, the only time he had to rest and decompress. He waved your worries away, said he wouldn’t be able to rest anyway until he was sure you were all right and fixed up.

True to his word, by Sunday evening, the last of your boxes and modest furniture had been crammed into the tiny studio apartment you rented on a graduate student’s budget, your futon and a few basic things unpacked, and all your sockets, gas ranges, and fuse box thoroughly checked. Nanami said goodbye at the door and you saw him off, admiring the way he looked in a work shirt and jeans.

“If you need anything at any time, call me,” he said. “Anything. Any time. Understand?”

You nodded. You were so full of affection for man that if your heart had to expand any more to contain it, you were sure it’d burst.

He offered you a slight smile and couldn’t resist reaching out to pat you on the head. “Good night. I’ll see you at the station at eight o’ clock tomorrow morning.” 

He was turning to leave when you remembered and suddenly caught him by the sleeve. He paused. “Something else?”

You nodded sheepishly and from out of the pocket of your sweatpants produced a key. “I had a duplicate made,” you explained, “and was wondering if you’d keep it for me. You know…for emergencies?”

Your scatter-brained tendencies and occasional clumsiness were widely known. Nanami didn’t have to think twice. 

“Of course,” he said, and as both of you stared at the silver key so relatively tiny in his hand, promised, “I’ll keep it well.”

—

The first emergency occurred a few months into your residence at your new place. You’d suddenly dropped off the face of the earth without any warning whatsoever, and after a week of only seeing your perpetually online status without hearing anything from you, Nanami’s increasingly morbid intrusive thoughts finally prevailed. 

He called you. What followed was an outpouring of desperation over the most hectic week of your semester, and relief at finally speaking to another human being after back-to-back days spent only with your laptop and the looming deadlines for several big papers.

Nanami kept you company that night, listening to your academic tirades and talking you down from overwork until, several hours past midnight, you dropped off at last at your desk, cup of extra-strength coffee unfinished.

The following day, you crawled back from study group to a dim apartment fragrant with honeysuckle. Slightly concerned, you flicked on the light to find a small vase of gerberas and your favourite honeysuckle scented candle on your desk. It had run out right before you moved, and in the ruckus of life that followed, you hadn’t yet had time to replace it. 

In the opposite corner beside your collection of stationery was your favourite bubble tea, still ice cold and thoughtfully parked on a coaster. Tacked to it was a sticky note with Nanami’s careful handwriting,

Put away the coffee for tonight and rest well.

You called him, bawling.

“You were here today.”

“Only for a little while, love.”

“Why didn’t you stay?”

“You weren’t home.”

You blubbered about how that didn’t matter; he should have, anyway. “How did you get in?”

“You gave me a spare key, remember?”

“Oh.” And still exceedingly touched by his gesture, “I thought it was only for emergencies.”

“It was an emergency,” he said, extremely serious. “You were unhappy. I had to do something about it.”

You had only sweet bubble tea instead of coffee that night, but your heart pounded away like you’d just gulped a triple-shot espresso.

—

Over the next year or so, you had a few small emergencies that necessitated a spare key. Every time, Nanami came to your rescue and wouldn’t hear of your apologising for it.

“That’s what a spare key is for,” he’d say. “I’m happy you call me when you need help.”

Then the day before your graduation, Gojo surprised you just when you were leaving campus after picking up your toga and guest invitation cards. He literally materialised at the gate and grabbed your arm. You started, and would have screamed were it not for Yuuji’s popping out from behind his mentor with the widest, most ridiculous grin you’d ever seen.

Like a double negative, the succession of surprises neutralised each other, leaving you sighing exasperatedly (affectionately) at Gojo and his antics.

“We hear you’re graduating tomorrow,” he said, indicating the rest of his students. Nobara and Megumi hung behind, one visibly more excited than the other. 

“Thank you for remembering.”

Gojo beamed. “I always told Nanamin he should learn from you. That should sweeten his temper.”

You laughed and surreptitiously tried to edge away. You got as far as a few inches before colliding into Yuuji, who grabbed you by the shoulders and gleefully declared,

“Sensei, we better get a move on. The celebrant is attempting to escape!”

“What?”

The bag containing your toga slid down your arm. With a long-suffering look, Megumi loped forward and took it.

“I’ll hold it for you,” was all he said before he started down the street, leaving the lot of you behind.

“What is going on?” you demanded. Both Yuuji and Gojo looped an arm around each of yours and cheerfully hauled you down the street after Megumi. Nobara grinned encouragingly and chanted a cheer about some party as she skipped along.

You tried digging your heels in to no avail. Both men were infinitely stronger than you; you’d only wear yourself and your shoes out. Alternatively, if they grew tired of dragging you along, they could choose to simply lift you between them instead. That would be an infinitely mortifying experience.

“Where are you taking me?” you gasped. 

“Roppongi,” Gojo said.

“Karaoke,” Yuuji helpfully added.

“Karaoke at Roppongi,” Gojo confirmed.

“At this hour?” You had stuff to do. You had made afternoon plans, and getting kidnapped to accompany Gojo and Co. on one of their zany pastimes was not on the calendar. Besides - “It’s high noon, Satoru! The karaoke lounges aren’t open yet.”

He grinned at you. In his hand was a shiny bit of ultra-exclusive membership card.

Your heart sank.

“I have special membership perks,” he announced. “And I made reservations. We’ll get in without a problem.”

There was no use arguing. Making a face at him (Gojo laughed), you dug in your heels all the way to your destination.

—

Despite your protestations, you did have fun. Satoru was genuinely lighthearted when he wasn’t called upon to work. He knew how to throw a party and knew how to enliven them to fever pitch. Before you knew it, you had drunk more than you intended to (drinks mixing was apparently another secret talent up Gojo’s sleeve) and sang until your throat began to hurt. The afternoon passed without you noticing and it was only when you casually glanced out the window during a bathroom break that you realised with a jolt of panic how pitch-black the sky had become.

You slammed back into your private room (startling the first few regular customers who had begun to trickle in and interrupting Nobara mid high note) wide-eyed and guilty, and hurriedly gathered your things.

Gojo tried to persuade you to stay.

“I have to go,” you kept repeating. “I got nothing done today!”

“You partied with us.”

“Oh, Satoru,” you wailed, loaded down with coat and bag and things and nearly out the door. You felt awful about coming off ungrateful for everything. 

“Thank you, “ you said, and meant it. “I enjoyed myself and it was wonderfully thoughtful of you to do all of this for me -”

Gojo grinned, expecting you to stay after all.

“- but I really, really have to go.” And before he could say anything more, you gave him a brief hug and dashed for home.

Yuuji banged out the door to try to chase after you, yelling something about having to carry out their orders. His teacher stopped him with a hand on his shoulder and instead beckoned for him to rejoin the party that, by now, even Megumi had deigned to let loose at.

“We did our best,” he said. “Nanamin had all afternoon to finish the job.”

—

Nanamin stared at you with a deer-in-the-headlights look. He was perched high on top of a step-ladder, head nearly grazing your ceiling. 

The whole place blazed with light. The floor was carpeted with bags in varying stages of being unpacked, all apparently filled with party decor. Hands full of tape and scissors, your boyfriend had no choice but to hold a blow-up balloon between his teeth. He was still in his workday suit, though sans jacket and tie and with his sleeves rolled up.

Your apartment door slowly clicked shut behind you.

With the straightest face, Nanami retrieved the balloon (transparent, decorated with curlicues spelling out ‘Congratulations!’ and filled with gold, star-shaped confetti) from his mouth, trapped it between his wrists, and intoned,

“Welcome home.”

Behind him, the mismatched ‘Happy Congratulations’ banner (obviously from two different sets - ‘Happy’ originally intended for a little boy’s birthday) came away from the wall and fluttered to the floor.

Soundlessly, your mouth still gawping like a fish’s, you staggered into the nearby wall for support. All your things clattered to the floor.

It had been a really long and incomparably weird day.

—

The Great Scrambling followed where you bore witness to Nanami’s true power. Never before had you seen a human being move so fast putting up (yet again) banners and streamers, pumping balloons, and warming up food. You were still processing everything when you were thrust at the speed of light into a two-person celebration complete with party hats and flutes of champagne.

You looked at Nanami completely bewildered. 

He was perplexed. He wanted to surprise you to make you happy. But perhaps he was doing something wrong? Deficient in some way? Admittedly, party-planning was not his strongest suit.

“Should I…sing?” he tentatively offered, though the only song that came to mind was ‘Happy Birthday’.

Your expression contorted into deeper confusion. “What?”

He cleared his throat. “People…people sing at parties, don’t they? And this is your…” he gestured helplessly.

You stared at each other. And then, quite unexpectedly, a giggle began to form in the pit of your stomach. It travelled up, higher and higher until you were chortling and then laughing and then bent over double with amusement.

Nanami smiled.

“I don’t need a loud party with the works,” you told him when the giggles died down and you were able to speak again. “Celebrating with you is more than enough.”

That was how you found yourself cuddled up with him on your beanbag in a dimmed apartment lit only by the twinkling fairy lights he put up and the leftover brightness from outside filtering in through the glass doors of your balcony. Champagne and a pair of glasses sat on a tray on the floor beside you.

“I can’t believe it was you who put Satoru up to that.” You shook your head, smiling as your recounted your strange day.

“I asked him to keep you busy and away from home. I didn’t know he was going to keep you at a karaoke bar for hours.”

You leaned back into Kento, resting your head against his collarbone as you admired the decor. ‘Happy Congratulations’ glowed from the wall, the effect of the surrounding fairy lights reflected by the balloons around them. 

“You almost can’t see the tape from here.”

“Hm?” He bent to press his lips to the top of your head. An arm wound around your waist and drew you even closer to himself.

“The tape,” you repeated, pointing to the multitudinous bits of plastic criss-crossed on the string between every letter of the banner. He’d used up nearly a whole roll of tape to keep  it up, but now they faded into the soft shadows of the fairy lights. “You can’t see them anymore.”

He hummed again, distracted with nuzzling into you. You reached up to cup his cheek.

“Thank you for all of this. It’s perfect.”

“As you deserve.”

“I can’t believe you took a whole day off to set this up.”

“Needed time. I had to make sure I got everything right.” Then he frowned at himself. “In the end, all shops ran out of ‘Happy Graduation’ signs.”

Laughing, you twisted out of his grasp, wriggling until you had planted yourself sideways on his lap. The mental image of your stern, serious Kento going door-to-door around the all the party supplies shop in town, totally absorbed over a selection of party hats and balloons just for you, made your heart throb in the nicest way. You leaned in to be nose-to-nose with him, his face in both your hands.

“You must know that I appreciate the effort. Very much. But on earth did you manage to break in to do all this?” you wondered. You lived on the fifth floor of a residential building.

Nanami’s lips quirked up. Hands roamed your thighs and settled on your hip. “You gave me the spare key, remember?”

“Oh, right!”

He closed the distance to kiss a corner of your mouth, his nose brushing over your cheek. You returned the favour, pecking him back with short kisses as felt all over his chest. 

“There was no emergency this time, though,” you teased in between kisses. Your nails caught on the buttons of his shirt so you absently began undoing them, slowly popping open one button after another and dipping your fingertips into the warm skin underneath.

Kento grunted appreciatively. “There was an emergency,” he retorted. “You’re graduating.”

“Tomorrow. So?” You moved across his face, kissing first one furrowed brow and then the other. 

“Today’s the eve of it.”

“What then?”

He struggled to find the words. The hands on your hip tightened their hold, digging in deep you covered him with affection. His shirt was open halfway down his stomach already, and the little hands that pressed over his abs and dragged up to his chest were wildly distracting.

“I -” he began when you cut him off with a feather-light breath under his earlobe that made him shiver.

“I needed to see you -” he tried again, and again was halted when your wandering hand tangled in metal. Bewildered, you drew back, and looked down to discover a white gold chain around his neck. Hanging from it like a pendant was the spare key you’d entrusted to him for safekeeping.

“For efficiency,” he explained, hand closing over yours. “In case of emergencies - mine and yours.”

You tilted your head in question.

“So that when you need me, I can come right away.”

You beamed. That was terribly sweet of him. “And what’s your emergency?”

He paused to squeeze your hands. “So that when I need to see you, I don’t have to climb five stories and break into your apartment.”

Your peals of laughter rang around your tiny studio. They were silenced only when Nanami, grinning and self-satisfied, pulled you to himself and finally kissed your mouth shut. 

You wound your arms around his neck. And as you pressed up against him, your heart stammered until it finally burst with a wash of bright warmth against another of its kind - one key-shaped and snug between your bodies.

[sweetandgentlecreature]

Colder Weather

Author’s Note: Hey, y’all! This week has been crazy. Between work and getting the kiddo started off at the new daycare, I’ve barely had time to hop on here. My TBR is crammed full for this weekend though, and I can’t wait to read all the new works that have come out! This is Part 5 of Somethin’ Sweet, loosely based on the song Colder Weather by the Zac Brown Band. I’m in the process of moving all of the parts to AO3, so keep an eye out for me there as well. Thanks for reading!! 

Summary: Sy learns the truth.

Pairing: Captain Syverson x Female OC 

Warnings:  Depictions of anxiety and PTSD triggers, talks of past relationships, adult language, and lots of angst. I am an adult, and due to the nature of this content, all works created by me will be rated for those 18 years and older. Minors, DNI.

Playlist

Sy was out of his comfort zone. He felt so out of place here, sitting alone, a thousand miles away from home. The lights were low; the music was loud. His shirt felt a little too tight, even after he’d loosened the button up top. It seemed to fit just fine when he’d put it on a couple of hours ago, but here, now, he was smothering. At least she didn’t make him wear a tie. Or worse, his dress blues. Fuck that.

 Most people were drunk by now, stumbling around the dance floor and singing off-key while he nursed the same beer he’d had since cocktail hour. He would’ve loved to let loose, to throw back a couple more and let his two left feet lead him out to the dance floor. In another life, maybe he would have. Heavy bass thumped loudly from the speakers as sweaty bodies bumped and grinded to the beat. He was equal parts surprised and impressed by the sheer mass of rap lyrics his girlfriend knew. He didn’t even know she listened to rap. 

They’d met her parents earlier that day, when they’d gone out to use their kitchen. Merrin had done as much prep work on the cake as she could beforehand, but that also meant that they had to drive the 16-hour trek north rather than fly. They seemed like nice enough people. Her father had a firm handshake when he welcomed them inside. For such a petite woman, her mother’s bear-hug nearly knocked the wind out of him. He could see her in their faces; her father’s eyes, her mothers nose and lips. That smile, though…that was all her own. The walls were lined with photos, framed milestones from every era of her life. Pigtails and wide eyes of childhood; shiny braces on the smiles of adolescence; awkwardly posed prom photos and graduation announcements; anything he wanted to know, anything he wanted to see displayed proudly on the walls of her childhood home. He liked seeing the little glimpses into her life before him, and made him curious about their future. Would their children have her eyes? Maybe they’d get that dimple in their chin, just like he has. 

Merrin seemed very close with her father. Watching them together made his heart ache, just a bit. He wished he’d had that kind of relationship with his father. It felt childish to be jealous of that, considering his circumstances. Clayton Sr. had gone to serve overseas when Sy was just a kid. He’ll never forget the look on the officer’s face when he answered the door that day. He’ll never unhear the cries of anguish from his mama, crumpled to her knees on the front porch as they delivered the awful news. Sy didn’t cry that day, or any day since. He was the man of the house now. He had to be strong for her. Sitting here now, he ran a hand down his face and sat back heavily against his chair. He knew what he had to do, if he wanted that kind of bond with his own kids someday. Some things would have to change. 

The tempo changed, as did the mood on the dance floor. Some people left for the bar to get a refill, some paired off to sway to the music. Sy groaned softly as he stretched his legs, when a delicate hand was placed on his shoulder. A soft, familiar voice pulled him from his thoughts. “Care to show an old lady to the dance floor, Captain?” When he met her eyes, he couldn’t help but smile. 

“Pardon me, ma’am, but I don’t see an old lady anywhere. I’d be more than happy to dance with you, if you’ll have me.” Pushing himself to stand, he offered his hand to Merrin’s mother and let her lead him out to the floor. He let her guide him into proper form, taking his hand and placing it politely on her waist and letting the other fall into his open palm as they swayed. He was mindful not to step on her toes, and though she could feel the tension in his shoulder, she didn’t seem to mind his fumbling. She squeezed him gently, reassuring, and beamed up at him. 

“You’re light on your feet. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone,” she teased. Sy chuckled and shook his head, the tips of his ears burning bashfully.

“Thank ya, ma’am. My mama taught me ta’-”

“Oh, please Clayton. Call me Lisa.”

He laughed again and relented. Mama Syverson would never stand for that, but be it as she was many, many miles from here, he felt safe enough to comply. “Right,” he grinned. “Thank ya, Lisa.”

They fell into a comfortable silence as they swayed together. Glimmers of light danced from the disco ball and painted the room in fleeting beams. Lisa’s gaze shifted to settle just past him as she spoke again, drawing his along with it. 

“She seems good. We’ve been so worried about her since she left home.”

At the bar, Merrin was up next. She’d stopped off to grab them each a beer and hadn’t noticed them yet. Sweeping those beautiful mahogany locks over her shoulder, she leaned across the bar to place her order over the noise of the crowd. The dress she’d picked was perfect, a satin little number with delicate straps and a split up one thigh. It hugged every delicious curve perfectly, and she nearly knocked him on his ass when she’d first come out of the bathroom with it on. It took him a moment to pull his attention back to the woman who stood before him, and he nodded as she spoke. 

“Yeah, things are good. She keeps busy with the shop. You should see the line that waits for her to open every mornin’.”

Lisa’s expression changed. Apparently, they weren’t on the same page. Was there more to be concerned about, besides her youngest child moving clear across the country? What was he missing?

“That’s…that’s good,” she said softly, then took a breath. “She hasn’t told you, has she?”

Told him what? Sy’s mind raced as he tried to gauge his girlfriend’s mother’s tone. Had Merrin been keeping something from him? Standing dumbly in front of Lisa, he waited for her to continue. They stopped moving altogether as she braced his shoulders. 

“Oh, honey…I thought you knew. The reason Mer left the Springs was because of Travis. She’d been living down at Fort Carson with him when he got shipped out. They’d never been apart, not for a second, ever since high school. She’d call home every week just to read me the newest letter she’d gotten in the mail.”

Sy’s heart beat out of his chest as he urged her on. He swallowed thickly, but his mouth was too dry to soothe the sting from the bile that built up in the back of his throat. Lisa’s eyes shifted down to her feet for a moment, then back up again. 

“Travis, he…he didn’t make it home. Mer was heartbroken. The day after the funeral, she packed up and left. Couldn’t stand to be here anymore. Reminded her too much of what could’ve been.” She squeezed his arms to get his attention again, but his mind was miles away. “You can’t do that to her, Clayton. We were shocked to hear about you. We thought she’d learned that lesson. You seem like a great guy, truly, but there’s still time. You have to let her go. If something happens to you, she won’t be able to recover.”

He could barely hear the rapid beating of his heart over the loud ringing in his ears. The room was closing in, and he couldn’t breathe. His hands trembled as they fell to his sides. He nearly ran right into her when he turned on his heels to book it out the door. Merrin stumbled a bit and spilled some beer down the side of her dress at the brief moment of impact. Confused, she watched him disappear, then turned to look at her mom for answers. “What happened?” 

Lisa fiddled with the corsage on her wrist to avoid looking her daughter in the eye. She didn’t even have to say it, before Merrin gasped. “You didn’t.”

“I’m sorry, Merrin, but he deserved to know. You should have told him.”

Lisa had struck a nerve. Merrin’s nostrils flared as she shoved the amber bottles into her mothers open hands. “I didn’t have to tell him shit, mom, and neither did you!”  She took her exit quickly, the loud clicks of her heels against the dance floor echoing in the lull between songs. Merrin ripped the door open and headed outside to the parking lot. A lingering drizzle of rain left misty drops in her curls as she rounded the corner of the venue to find him propped up against the brick wall. He fumbled with the lighter as he struggled to light the smoke pressed between his trembling lips. It fell to the ground unlit when he looked up again. 

“Why? Why didn’t ya tell me?” 

This wasn’t how tonight was supposed to go. She’d thought that maybe they’d have a few drinks, dance a little, then maybe fool around a bit back at the hotel. She hadn’t even gotten the chance to tell him how good he looked in that button down. Now, he looked as if he’d seen a ghost. Merrin sighed, ran a hand through her hair and collected her thoughts. 

“I tried. I tried to tell you, Clay, and I just didn’t know how to–”

“You knew exactly what you were doin’ with me. You tried to push me away.” 

He wasn’t fighting fair. 

“Yeah…I did, and look where that got me.” 

She felt like a wounded animal, backed into a corner, trapped and lashing out. She hadn’t realized just how fresh the wounds still were. It felt like a lifetime ago when she’d gotten the call. If she listened hard enough, she could hear the crash of her favorite mug hitting the floor. He didn’t have any family. She was his emergency contact. Sy could see the pain in her eyes and watched as all traces of warmth drained from them. 

“I tried to tell you, but you wouldn’t listen. I tried to push you away, but you wouldn’t stay away. You didn’t want to hear it, so I didn’t tell you what really happened. It was none of your business, and it wasn’t her place to tell you. So…What happens now? You’ve got your out. Are you gonna take it?”

Had he been looking for an out? Sy wasn’t sure. Thinking back on their time together, he realized that she was right. She had been trying to tell him all along. It was hidden in the little things, the small details, the fine print, but it was there. “You’re not my boyfriend, Sy,” the night of the fair. “Don’t you dare tell me that life isn’t fair. I know life isn’t fair,” she’d lamented that day in the airport. “This is cruel.” 

This is cruel. Asking her to do it all over again. To wait for him, to worry about him. To put her life on hold so that he could go out there and risk his own. It broke his heart to think back on it now. Maybe her mother was right. She’d be better off without him anyway. 

“We should go,” was all he said, as he headed for the car. Merrin glanced back at the reception hall, then out to where he’d disappeared into the dark. He had the keys. She’d done enough damage for one night. No need to make it worse. Swallowing thickly, her hands trembled at her sides, but she didn’t move. 

“Go ahead. I’m…I’m gonna stay.” She’d catch a ride back with a friend. Right now, they needed space, and she needed another drink. 

Sy let his gaze linger only for a moment before he tore it away again. If he wanted a sign, this one was as clear as day. Clearing his throat, he gave a solemn nod, opened the door, and stepped inside. Merrin watched as he pulled out of the lot. She’d gotten her answer too, as tears of sorrow welled in her eyes and blurred her vision. She stood there until the glow of the taillights disappeared from sight. 

__

He was gone by the time she made it back to the hotel that night. Not a trace of him was left, as if he’d been nothing but a ghost that breezed through her mind and left her haunted. The kind lady at the front desk let her know that he’d called a cab and headed for the airport. “I hope everything’s alright. Seemed pretty urgent.” Merrin didn’t blame him. She’d gotten what she’d asked for. They’d let each other go. 

She’d decided to stay an extra night, but not in the same bed they’d shared only hours before. Instead, she headed for her brother’s place. They’d be leaving for their honeymoon the next day. He looked at her with pity in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Mer. You know mom. Couldn’t keep her mouth shut to save her life.” 

She wanted to be angry with her mom. Though it really wasn’t her place to tell him about Travis, Merrin knew that she’d done it out of a mama-bear reflex to protect her daughter. Lisa had seen first hand how she’d handled the loss of her first love. Things got dark, and the only way to pull herself together again was to get some distance from this place. It was Travis who’d wanted to go to Houson, to get away from the snow and the cold. She did it for him. It was Merrin’s fault for not telling the truth sooner, and now she was right back to where she’d started. Alone.

When Merrin got in late the next day, she’d come home to find a box waiting for her on the front porch. She didn’t have to open it to know what was inside. Clothes neatly folded, toiletries and cosmetics she’d left behind. She wasn’t surprised to see that he hadn’t left a note. There was nothing left to say. She dumped the box into the corner of her room and left it there to collect dust. Everything inside could’ve been replaced. He was just too kind to get rid of it for her. 

Time passed slowly. Three weeks of silence. Three weeks of going to work and coming home to sit and stare at the same four walls, only to do it over again the next day. Merrin could handle silence. It was what she wasn’t doing that drove her crazy. She wasn’t driving out to his place for pizza and beer on Thursday nights. She wasn’t dancing in his kitchen as they washed dishes together. She wasn’t calling him up to see how he was doing, just to hear his voice, though she’d almost done it more than once. She wasn’t in his life anymore, and she had no one to blame but herself. That’s what hurt the most. 

The early morning rush was over. Merrin used the downtime to clean up a bit and replenish the bake case for the afternoon crowd. She was in the back, pleating the crust on top of a beautiful peach pie. The last of the season, when autumn would give way to winter and she’d be left with nothing but apples. Finishing off the last of the crimp around the edge, she slid the pie onto the rack and dusted off her hands on the back of her jeans, when the bell rang. 

Merrin froze. Deep down, she already knew who it was. It couldn’t be…could it? Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself to go out and face the music. Brushing through the swinging doors, she stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes stung with the threat of tears to fall, and a slow, soft smile spread across her face. Hearing his voice again felt like heaven.

“Hello, Darlin’.”

__

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@liveoncoffeeandflowersss @enchantedbytomandhenry @just-chirpin

[seat-safety-switch]

The world is changing now. Soon, it will leave me and all the knowledge I accumulated during my life behind. It's not too late for me to get into the permanent record, though, with this information about a long-lost art of car ownership. I speak, of course, of the car stereo installation.

Nowadays, car stereos are largely an extension of your phone. And why shouldn't they be? Your phone can access any music you desire, conjure up pornographic visions from the ether itself, and tell you how to get out of the corn maze that you and your borderline-sentient 1979 Firebird Formula have gotten stuck in during your latest secret-agent shenanigans. Car manufacturers make terrible stock stereos, and so it just makes sense for them to step aside and turn them into "big screen that phone makes go."

It is for this same reason that, before the ubiquitous smartphone era, we wanted to swap the stereos in our shit-box Hondas. In the late 90s and early 00s, new standards were coming out practically every weekend. You didn't want to be the dope with an AM/FM/Tape combo when it was possible to be the brave technologist who accidentally bought a stereo on sale that only understood uncompressed Mini-Discs and the Diamond Rio 600. You could go to the store and buy a "head unit" (car stereo dweeb speak for "car stereo") and jam it into the dashboard, yourself. Sure, there were semi-professional installers out there, usually working at that very same store. Those installers cost money, though, and surely you can connect between 15 and 200 wires together in a way that doesn't burn your car down, right?

Wiring a stereo wasn't really that hard. It was just one of those death-by-a-thousand-papercuts deals. You pull out the old stereo, a task which ranges between "annoying" and "holy shit I don't think my car will ever go together again." Then, you unplug it from the wiring harness. They call it a wiring harness, because you get whipped by it and still somehow enjoy the experience.

It's at this point that the driveway-installing amateurs are separated from the driveway-installing pros. A smart person gets a little plug-in wiring adapter that translates from the car's wiring to the stereo's wiring. Someone who forgot to buy the little wiring adapter from the stereo store, and doesn't want to go back there because their car is torn into a million pieces, decides to hack and slash, twisting and soldering the car into the stereo permanently. This works too, but it will be a problem in about two weeks, when the MP3-CD player you just spent your paycheque on becomes obsolete, and is replaced by a Tokyo-24-HotSauce-WMV-DVD player.

Now comes the harrowing. You have just made your car's stereo harness much, much longer, and also likely much fatter. You gotta cram that shit back in the hole it came out of, ideally without getting in the way of anything else inside the dashboard. This is the point at which you must decide whether you will spend eight more hours routing wires, potentially re-doing the wiring work you just completed, or explain to your significant other that the heater controls only go two-thirds of the way to "cool" now. You will pass through this crucible and emerge a stronger, angrier person. You will have opinions on electrical tape for the first time in your life. Your neighbours will call the cops to have you killed after you swear loudly enough to wake their babies. The cops will laugh as you nearly pass out from heat exhaustion underneath your dashboard.

And in the end, you will be able to play an MP3 file from a burned CD. Congratulations. It was all worth it, until you go over a slight bump and the damn thing skips a bunch. I hear the new ones on the shelves now have a bigger anti-skip buffer. And those stock speakers, well, they sound like shit, now that you have this fancy new stereo blaring 64kbps Napster rips through it. Maybe pick up a new amplifier while you're at it, and an upgraded alternator to handle all that new current demand, and...

[poppylovestowrite]

Can I request karma x reader cuddling while it's raining? Mostly pure fluff

Homework Can Wait

The weekends were meant for you and Karma. It was a deal you made with him when the two of started dating. You see, you're quite a busy bee, especially on the weekdays. You have school to worry about, club activities, and cram school. But, on the weekend, you make time to see Karma. 

You wanted to make that happen, but today you had to bend that deal a bit. Because your nightmare of a math teacher decided it would be fun to ruin everyone's weekend by dumping mountains of assignments.

This brings you here, sitting on your living floor, doing your homework on a Sunday afternoon. 

If only you weren't busy yesterday, then maybe you would have had your Sunday off. You could have used your free time to be with your boyfriend. Then the two of you could have gone to that food festival.

You furrowed your brows and glance up to see the rain coming down through your window. Er. Actually, that wouldn't have happened regardless. Not with all this rain going on. Still, the two of you could have been spending time together.

You sighed and moved your attention back to your homework. What a shitty day. 

No, that's not entirely true. Karma came over, even in this weather just to be with you. You felt a little bad when you told him that you were too busy, but that wasn't enough to turn him away. Your parents were out at work so Karma figured he keeps you company as you worked. 

He can stay here, under the condition he doesn't distract you. You let him play with your video games so at least one of you guys won't die of boredom. 

Somewhere half through an assignment, Karma paused the game, walked over to you and sat down. He didn't say anything and just watched you work for a few seconds. 

"Need help?" Karma offers. 

You still didn't look at him and shook your head.

"No, these questions are easy. Just tedious."

As a response, Karma poked your side causing you to squeak. 

"I meant if you need help to relax?" Karma chuckles. "You're so stressed." He says it so lightly, almost playfully, but you can pick up his concern. And because he was concerned, you choose not to scold him for poking you like that.

"I'll take a break when I'm done," you assured him with a smile.

Before going back to work, you lovingly tapped the bottom of his chin.

Karma hummed passively at you, then scanned his eyes at the other assignments you still have to do. It looks like it's going to be hours before you're going to give yourself a break. He could help you. In math, at least. His best subject, so he can definitely help you breeze by these questions.  

Karma doesn't say anything else and lets you get back to work. He knows how stubborn you are and knows you won't accept his help. So no use in arguing with you.

He goes back to your couch to continue playing video games. You don't get distracted that easily, but he still kept the volume pretty low for you regardless. 

While Karma was killing zombies, you were trying to kill this math question. 

Yes, some of these questions were easy and tedious, but when you got to the ones you struggled with, you wished Karma were to help you. It's not too late to ask him for his help. 

You shook your head and stubbornly kept quiet. 

You sighed, growing more and more frustrated over time. Your legs were falling asleep, your wrist was cramping up, and you were beginning to see numbers every time you blinked. 

Maybe you could use a break right now. 

For the first time in hours, you put your pencil down, closed your textbook and got up to sit with Karma on the couch.

Karma kept his attention on the game but did acknowledge you by speaking up. 

"Finally realized your sanity was breaking?"

"Yeah." You sighed tiredly. "Sorry that I'm using our time together to study."

"If anyone has to apologize to me, it would have to be your teacher," Karma says. It didn't sound like he wasn't going to hold this against you, which is good, but you still felt bad. You know he's been looking forward to spending some time with you this weekend.

You scooted closer to him and tugged his shirt, causing Karma to pause the game to look at you with a questioning hum.

"C'mon, let's do something together." You said. "I really could use a break."

"Oh~" A devilish smirk made its way across his face. "So now you want my attention?"

You frowned. "C'mon on, don't be like that. I want to hang out with you."

"Hm~ how badly?" Karma taunts, wanting to beg, and you knew that. 

"Very badly."

"You sure?"

"Yes!" You huffed. 

Karma's mischievous side started to fade as he chuckled fondly at you. 

"You're cute." He began to lean in. "Come here."

The soft whisper he used was enough to get your cheeks to turn pink, but what got you to go completely red was when he pressed his lips against yours. 

The sound of the raindrops tapping against the window and the faint sound of Karma's video games was all you heard as you kissed your boyfriend back. Your homework and just school, in general, have been completely wiped from your mind. The only thing on your mind was Karma.

Karma pulled away far too quickly than he usually does when he wants to make out with you, only because he wants to see you pout. And when you did, he softly chuckles but continues to kiss you since your lips were too addictive to him.

This time Karma had no intentions of pulling back. He kept his lips on yours until you became too shy and flustered to continue. He stopped and suggested watching a movie.  

You went back to worrying about your homework for a second there, but the soft reassuring touch Karma gave you was enough to get you to convince yourself that your homework can wait. 

You let Karma pick the movie since you were too tired to debate which movie is better to watch on a rainy day. And whenever you let Karma pick, he would always choose Sonic Ninja. The first one, since none of the sequels appeal to him as much.

You found yourself pressed up against Karma, arms wrapped around his torso and watching the movie with some interest. You wouldn't say you enjoyed Sonic Ninja as much as your boyfriend, but the movie was a good distraction from your work. The fight scenes were at least fun to watch, and some of the characters provided you with enough entertainment so that you can sit through it whenever you and Karma watch the movie.

Admittedly though, whenever the boring parts came, you did think about all the assignments you still had to do.

When the movie did end, Karma thought you would quickly leave his grasp and get back to work as soon as the credits began to roll. Karma expects you to jump out of his arms and head back to work as if you have some sort of timer built into you. 

Karma glances down at you.

"Do you want to get back to work?"

You lazily shook your head. No. No work right now. Sure, you got a good 2-hour break, but it wasn't enough for you. You didn't want to leave Karma's side.

To put you in a more comfortable position, Karma laid down on the couch, letting you rest on his chest. You smiled and appreciated the comfort he gave you as he wraps his arms around your waist.

"Play with my hair." You mumbled. 

"Hm... Sure, but what do I get out of it~?"

Ah, he loves to bargain with you, doesn't he? Well, considering all he wants is a kiss, you don't really argue with him.

You lifted your upper body and planted a soft kiss on his lip. When you went back to rest your head against his chest, you felt your boyfriend gently run his fingers through your head. A satisfying smile formed against your lips.

As the rain continues to fall, Karma kept playing with your hair with no complaint. He knows how much you've been working and just wants to help you relax now.

"I don't want to go to school tomorrow," you mumbled. 

As studious as you were, even you get burnt out from all this work. 

Karma chuckled. "You and me both. But, unlike you, I have the balls to skip class."

You huffed, slightly jealous of his "lazy but brilliant" persona. He does little of the work yet has one of the best scores. 

"I would skip if the school didn't contact our parents when a student is absent," you confessed, then groaned and nuzzled your face against his chest. "What a pain."

Karma gently patted your back, sensing how tense you were getting over the thought of school tomorrow.

"Okay, okay, enough school talk." He shushes in his honey-coated voice. Just focus on your cute boyfriend."

"Cute and annoying boyfriend." You bluntly reminded him.

As punishment for that comment, Karma ran his fingers down your side to tickle you. You squirm and laughed at this action.

"Hey--"

Before you can push yourself off to get away from him, Karma was merciful and stopped tickling you. He laughs playfully at your reaction, and as annoyed as you were, you couldn't help but chuckle. 

Instead of tickling you, Karma chooses to gently stroke your back. You smiled and snuggled closer to his neck. 

You only meant to shut your eyes for a couple of seconds, but Karma's scent and warmth were putting you to sleep.

"(Y/n)?" Karma said when he heard a light snore from you. He gently patted your back, and when you didn't respond, Karma knew that you must have fallen asleep.

The redhead cranes his neck to the side and spots the clock hanging on the wall. Normally, at this time, you would be sending Karma home by now. Even on a weekend, you like to keep a schedule and follow through with it. But, he doesn't have the heart to wake you up. You deserve some rest.

Karma relaxes his head, trying not to move so much to avoid waking you up. The only sound he would allow was the raindrops hitting the window outside.

He would let you sleep here as long as you want, then he would insist on helping you with your homework, no matter how much you refuse his help. But not before taking out his phone and taking a picture of the two of you. 

[eveandtheturtles]

Massage

Yay, this one is finally donezooo. This was a request from.... I don't remember who, I'm very sorry but it's past midnight on Sunday night and I need to get to shower and sleep REALLY soon. Enjoy y'all! And lemme know if I did any good lol Reblog! Don't repost!

Tag for: @madammuffins @turtle-babe83 @thelaundrybitch @pheradream15 @dilucsflame33 @sharpwindow (anyone else who wants on this list let me know!)

Rating: E, like Explicit. Like Eyyy, this is some smut!

Pairing: Leo x fem!Reader.

Summary: You were stressed, Leo got ideas.

You were stressed and anxious. It was nearing the end of the finals, your job was trying to cram more shifts into your already busy schedule and your old ass mattress wasn’t helping you get proper sleep. On top of that your vigilante boyfriend was busy trying to bust some gang operations in the city. It all resulted in you being a bit more on the cranky side.

You tried to stay strong, it soon should all clear out and you’ll get your long overdue cuddles. Yeah, you could do that.

You pulled your headphones back on and tried to focus on the text. When 10 minutes later a bottle of soda got placed in front of you you jumped up a little turning to see who the intruder was.

“Leo!” You exclaimed tearing your headphones off of your head. Immediately you stood up and wrapped your arms around his neck. “I missed you so much.”

Leo leaned down to make it easier for you but his hands were a bit too busy holding pizza and a plastic bag of snacks to hug you back. 

“We bagged the baddies early, I thought I might surprise you,” he said and you two kissed sweetly.

“So thoughtful.” You chuckled relaxing against him for a second, then you snatched the pizza. “What did you get?” You opened the box all giddy. The smell reminded you you haven’t really eaten in the past couple of hours. Truly, Leo had the best timing. “Pepperoni!” You answered your own question and he huffed a little laugh.

Soon you both were on your bed with your laptop in his lap as you watched some new Netflix show. You were only half watching, enjoying how his fingers felt over your shoulder and neck while he stroked your skin absentminded. His cheek was resting over the top of your head and he’d kiss you from time to time. He really enjoyed the texture of your hair.

You tried to snuggle even closer despite almost laying on top of him but the angle you chose was a bit off and your back decided it will not have that.

You hissed and sat up.

“What’s wrong?” Instantly, Leo was alert.

“It’s just my back. It’s been difficult couple weeks,” you explained. “Not - crime-fighting, life-risking difficult but y’know.”

“Hey, don’t sell yourself so short, okay?” He frowned. “Just because we deal with different things doesn’t make it more or less hard. Let me see.” He coaxed you gently to turn your back to him.

“Is this going to be the bit of a sexy massage montage?” You joked and then hissed as he pressed his finger to a particularly hard knot on your back.

“Nope.”

“Aww…”

He was right. It wasn’t, it hurt like hell before it felt good. And when it felt good you quickly fell asleep. Then Monday rolled by you wrote your exams and the week just blurred until it was the weekend again. 

You finished your shift at work and were about to head back home when your Donnie-issued cellphone dinged with a new text. From your boyfriend. You smiled and opened it.

FearlessInBlue: "Do you have time tonight?"

You wondered what he could be planning. 

"Yeah, what's up?"

FearlessInBlue: "Drop by the lair. Everyone will be out."

A thrill bloomed deep low inside your belly. 

"I'll be there in 3 hours?" 

FearlessInBlue: "Awesome."

You raced to your place to get ready and then to get to the lair. You looked around and confirmed that indeed everyone was out.

“You’re early.”

You almost jumped out of your skin when you heard Leo’s voice right next to your ear. You spun around to face him and felt a rush of blood to your head. The way Leo was looking at you was simply dangerous. The intense blue gaze eyed you head to toe, hungry.

“Y-yeah.” You swallowed hard. “So, um- where is everyone?”

“They all went to watch a game,” he said. His body swayed a little as he wrapped one arm around your waist. “I said I had plans with you.” He pulled you close and nipped at your ear.

“O-oh.” You bit your lips.

“Come on.”

He pulled you with him to his room. When you stepped inside it you let out a deep sigh. It looked so intimate. Leo placed some loose red fabrics on the walls and lit up candles giving the room a soft glow. There were rose petals scattered around; elegant, white bottles, towels; a brown, mystery basket and soft pillows all of it around the centerpiece that was the mattress. The room also felt warmer than usual.

Leo stood behind you, his hands on your arms, and he kissed your shoulder.  

“You did all this?”

“I just ran with your idea,” he admitted with a low chuckle.

“Sexy massage?” You raised your eyebrow, amused.

“Sexy massage,” he nodded sagely.

You both smiled, Leo breaking character a little, as you pulled him further in with you. 

“Will you help me undress then?” You wrapped his arms around his middle looking up at him.

“I was planning to, yes.” He leaned down for a sweet kiss.

His wandering hands were already attempting to remove your shirt. You parted but held each other's gaze. The shirt slipped off of you to the floor. Next, Leo knelt down in front of you. He kissed your bare stomach, while his hands slipped around your waist. Off went your bottoms and underwear. His palms glided down your legs and took off your shoes.

Your breath hitched watching him work. The gentle way he moved made you feel like a deity. Worshipped.

“Lay down,” he whispered. “On your stomach.”

You obeyed and waited. 

Leo moved on his knees closer to the mattress. He opened the basket first. You eyed him curiously. The very first thing that came out of it was a feather. He tickled your ear and you giggled. He smiled softly and trailed it over your shoulder blades, down your spine, setting pleasant shivers in your body. The feather ghosted over the small of your back, circled each of your cheeks and down your legs. Your toes curled a little as he did all that and managed to make it so sensual. 

You certainly wouldn't be falling asleep any time soon.

Next he took one of the white, ceramic bottles and some kind of liquid dripped onto his hand. He worked it between his fingers for a moment, warming it up. You were getting excited just by watching him. So focused on his task. He noticed your look and huffed a chuckle. 

“What?” He asked.

“I love you.” You smiled

“I didn’t do anything yet.” He shook his head but leaned down to kiss your head. “Let me know if you ever feel uncomfortable, okay?”

“Okay,” you agreed.

Soon you felt him touch your back, slowly working your back muscles. From your shoulders moving down. The gentle kneading, the way the heel of his palm and fingers were undoing all those kinks you got over the week. The oil made it all smoother, the repeated motions warming you up.

“Mmm, god you are so good at this,” you sighed.

“Thank you. This is just a start," He promised. 

That's when he slipped over your ass. The thumb and forefinger spread pressing over the cheeks and going down. Then with a stronger grip of his whole hands. 

You let out a soft groan. It was getting to the good part. You felt his nails getting in on the action with gentle scratches over your skin. 

"Turn around," he told you and you eagerly did so. 

Now you had a much better view of him as he began to massage your arms. The slow, circular motion was turning your bones into goop. Then he got to your hands. A gentle press of his thumb, a kiss on each knuckle. He basically studied and explored your hand. And then sucked on a digit. His eyes were on you with such intensity… the way he slowly took your finger in his mouth, the sensation- you couldn't help but moan. 

A victorious, lustful smirk bloomed on his mouth. 

"Tease," you jokingly complained.

"That is the point." He said, proud of himself.

Then he repeated his magic on your other arm. 

Next, his thumbs rubbed over your clavicle, loosening the muscle there. You were already feeling like putty in his hands but were not protesting. You shivered as his hands slid down between your breasts. With the back of his fingers and knuckles, he circled lightly over them, stroking the undersides then squeezing them lightly. Always avoiding the hardened, dark peaks of your breast. You whimpered and shakily inhaled. 

He continued to tease for a minute, two, it stretched into infinity. Your nipples stiff almost painfully from the anticipation. You groaned, impatient.

"Leo."

"Shh," he shushed you. "Patience."

But he rewarded you. When he lightly pinched them between his knuckles, you moaned loudly. He lowered his mouth, helping himself to you. 

Feeling the rough texture of his tongue on you, you arched and cried out. Your oiled fingers tried to grip on his head but you kind of slipped. 

He chuckled, then took your hands then placed them back down. 

"No touching, sweetheart~" he kissed you sweetly and you whined in protest as he moved away.

"Fiiiiine."

He moved back down, slowly rolling your nipples between his fingers, pinching and pulling. He tested different strengths and watched your reactions. He implemented his tongue, slowly rubbing it over the stiffened peaks, making your toes curl. You were panting, gripping onto the fabric underneath you. 

Regretfully in your opinion, he moved away from your breast. Now it was time to knead your sides. He tickled your belly a little and made you laugh, giving you time to catch your breath in this high-intensity situation. 

You inhaled and exhaled as he positioned himself between your knees. He now was rubbing circled over your hip bones and traced kisses over your underbelly. 

You bit your lips. The next sensation was his nails lightly scratching the insides of your thighs. The knowledge of how close he was to your sex built up the anticipation further. You suspected that you were going to fall apart the moment he'd touch you there.

Leo could see the wet stain you created on the sheets and felt incredibly proud of himself. You were shivering with pleasure under his touch. All he did to you was making you breathless and the thought of that just swelled inside him. 

"You're gorgeous," he said and kissed your thigh. "You're like my personal deity." He kissed the other one. "I wish to worship you every day of my life."

You moaned hearing his honeyed words.

"Leo… please."

"As you wish," he said and kissed your nether lips, making you jump a little. 

Gosh!

He was definitely taking his time, frustrating you further. You could feel your core just scream for him already. His tongue, his finger, his cock. 

"Just fill me up," you whined but he didn't obey. 

He licked over your folds, then kissed over them. His tongue slowly pried them open to trace the edges. You realized he was tracing his name over you. Each letter was precisely licked and engraved over you. L, E, O, N, A, R, D, O. With one hand up he reached up to your breast, to tease it while he worked. 

Then with the tip of his tongue, he rubbed the seam between your clit and entrance. He put more pressure in there, movements rougher. He was tracing the now sensitive muscles that led inside you and you begged the gods for him to breach it. You were so fucking close. 

He didn’t. Instead, his mouth wandered up again. Wrapped around your pearl and gently sucked.

You cried out, your legs wrapped around his head, locking him in a tight prison and you wouldn’t let go. What’s more important he didn’t. He continued to stroke and suck on your clit, stronger, harder, with a vicious purpose. Your body was victoriously wrecked with wave after wave of orgasm. You didn’t even know you were crying out until you stopped, whimpering helplessly and your throat burned.

You laid there before him, completely boneless, head empty, twitching and whimpering when he pulled back as he gently pried your legs from around his neck.

He must have seen something in your eyes because he hovered over you and gently kissed you. His whole beak was soaked in you and you could taste herself on his tongue.

You couldn’t talk. You were just in pure bliss.

“Was it good?” He asked and you nodded. “Good,” he chuckled with a sense of accomplishment and a job well done.

He tried to pull back but you stopped him. A question appeared on his features.

“More,” you managed to utter. Your jelly knee nudged his waist. You were not going to let him sleep after that.

He pushed down his pants, stiff and ready after all that he did to you. He laid between your legs and slowly pushed himself in. 

You moaned, hands going around his neck and nails into his skin. 

“Yeeeessss,” you moaned into his ear. 

Oh, god this was so good. Just to feel him stretch you, fill you. You nearly sobbed you wanted him so close. 

“Don’t let me go,” you begged him. 

“I won’t,” he replied. He remained still for a moment, letting take it all in. Your breath evened out and you nuzzled his cheek.

“Move,” you ordered and he did.

He tried to be slow, but you could tell he wanted to chase his pleasure as well. He was so good to you.

“Please, Leo, fuck me,” you hissed into his ear. Your inner muscles squeezed him tight. You heard him moan and you knew you won this time. He may have still been going slow, but the hard and sharp thrusts were bringing stars into your vision as he bent you in half. Your tights were going to have his imprint on them and you definitely ruined all the fabrics he had gathered for the scene. And by God, you loved every second of it.

Hours later, both of you sweaty and barely conscious, laid on the mattress, entwined together in a way you couldn’t quite tell where you ended and he started. You were so happy.

“So,” you spoke from atop his plastron, “I will rate this massage experience 10/10, will you write me down in your books for another appointment?” 

“Sure, let me just check my calendar,” he replied.

Your eyes met and you both started laughing. You kissed but kept on giggling. Mmm, yes, an experience to repeat for sure.

[damagedintellect]

Trafalgar Law x reader

💌 Fake it till you make it: Chapter 1 💌

Summary: To avoid an arranged marriage set up by Doflamingo, Law needs to bring home a girlfriend during the Christmas break and you just so happen to be a theatre major in the same dorm at One Piece University. What could possibly go wrong?

Tropes: College AU, Fake Dating, Idiots in love, [Later chapters have🍋]

Chapter Navigation: [1]  [2]  [3]  [4]  [5]  [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

💌 Word count: 4,416 💌  | Next Chapter =>

The common room was as packed as ever as finals had approached. It only got busier with the holidays around the corner. Luckily for you being a theater major had its perks in that your finals weren’t the traditional two to three hour long exam of your entire course curriculum. Unlike the rest of your social circle you got to sit back and relax as they crammed as much of the semester as they could remember into their already burnt out heads as they existed entirely off of coffee and other caffeinated beverages. You attended One Piece university which prided itself on being the most diverse and upstanding college of its time in that it was the top rated university across several different majors. One Piece of everything or something like that. It was interesting how oddly enough each of your dorm mates seemingly came together in such a tight knit group despite very few of you actually being in the same classes.

You had already turned in your final paper and the production you were cast as the lead in closed the weekend prior leaving only your dance and voice finals which were later in the week but all in all you were sitting pretty. You lazily stirred from your spot on the couch. It was still exhausting being a theater major but you had always been a night owl. Rubbing your eyes in an attempt to wake yourself up was a mistake as black ink smudged the backs of your hands. You could hear a chorus of snickering around you.

"Shishishishi (Y/N) looks like a raccoon dog!" Luffy keeled over draping an arm around Chopper causing him to spill a few papers from the stack he was working on. He only sighed but you could feel the annoyed rage bubbling up in his study partner as Law looked like he contemplated hitting the prankster with his thick medical book. "Oi, Mugiwara-ya if you're not going to study you could at least stay out of the way." Luffy only continued to laugh through his apology. Nami snapped a photo before she handed you a mirror "Guess that means I was right!" She giggled as Robin passed you some make up wipes to help get rid of the marks. You could also see Franky and Usopp stifling their laughter in the corner as they worked on their inventions.

You frowned "Okay haha, I take it this is Ace's handy work?" Not surprising. You had pranked Ace earlier in his burnt out sleep deprived state making him think he was late to his final only for him to realize halfway through taking someone else's exam that it was Tuesday. He didn't even have class on Tuesday. Moreover it was the Latin final he walked into. It made sense why the exam seemed like it was in a different language. You supposed this was payback that you should have seen coming.

Sanji passed you a cup of tea sitting in between you and Robin "He was here not too long ago. Said he was going to the library before you could hunt him down." You laughed while taking a sip from the tea. "As if that'd stop me but I'll let him live for now." You smiled at your mug. It was very good tea.

"So what's everyone doing for the holidays?" Ussop asked, wiping his hands as he joined everyone else on the couches. It seemed like most people were going home. You sighed knowing you'd be stuck in the dorms again. There was no point in going home since there was no one waiting for you.

Last year Zoro stayed back at the dorms with you but he ended up practically hibernating the entire break. You don't mind being alone but you're going to be really bored. There were only so many video games you could play and Netflix you could watch before you go stir crazy. If you weren’t a broke college student it wouldn't be that bad you could always go on a trip but theater consumes all of your free time and expendable cash is not exactly your best friend.

The conversation was put on pause as Law's phone rang. The opening theme to "Sora warrior of the sea" fills the silence as he grimaced hastily packing his things up giving Chopper last minute tips as he rushed out of the room. In his rush it seems like he dropped his wallet. As the conversation resumed you picked it up and walked out to catch up with your favorite medic.

—

"I don't need you guys to play matchmaker for me. You can tell Doflamingo to shove it up his ass."

Law pinched the bridge of his nose. When he went home last year he was less than pleased to find out that Doflamingo had tried to set him up with the daughter of a business partner but he declined. He left early for good measure when he tried to threaten him with an arranged marriage. When he saw Corazon's name on his caller ID his stomach sank at the thought of him continuing the sentiment. He kept in contact with his adopted family through mostly texts and the occasional visit during the holidays it was very rare he got a phone call. At this point he was expecting the worst.

"I know my brother isn't a good person all the time but you're twenty-six and he just wants you to make sure you’re taken care of."

Law rolled his eyes, "I can take care of myself," truly he had no interest in romance but if it meant he could shove it in that smug bastard's face then he was prepared to die on this hill "Besides I already have a girlfriend." Law said without thinking about the ramifications.

You turned the corner hearing the tail end of his sentence. Since when did Law have a girlfriend? He hated his fangirls and you could have sworn he was wing manning for Shachi the other night. On top of that you always thought he swung the other way. Thinking back about it, maybe he just had a soft spot for Luffy, most people do. When your eyes met he raised an eyebrow but you held up his wallet. He wasn't paying attention to what Corazon was saying and quickly agreed without a second thought as he reached out and took it from you.

On the other end of the phone he could barely make out the over joyed "Fantastic! I'll tell Doffy you're bringing your girlfriend with you this year! See you soon, love you!"

"Yeah yeah, love you too." Law’s eyes widened as he realized what Corazon just said. It was already too late he heard the call end. Stunned by his own stupidity he spaced out.

You snapped your hand in front of Law’s stunned face and you laughed "Earth to Law? Since when did you have a girlfriend?" He slowly turned to you with a light bulb going off in his head "(Y/N)-ya you're an actor right? What are you doing over the break?"

You blinked at him "I was just going to stay at the dorms, why?" You had a feeling you knew where this was going. He wasn't serious was he?

"If I paid you, would you come with me to Dressrosa and pretend to be my girlfriend?" That's the one benefit of going to One Piece Law thought, it was convenient having people in every trade under the same roof.

You were taken aback by the request but you do like money and you had to admit Law was attractive. He was your type that's for sure. It definitely would be interesting to peek behind the veil that was Trafalgar Law. The self proclaimed "surgeon of death" was a mystery to most. You weren’t really sure where you stood with the other. You and Law would talk if you had the time in passing but you never went out of your way to hangout outside of the friend group. To you Law was easy enough to get along with and you knew how to play the doting perfect girlfriend. Money, room and board, and a fake family experience was like winning the lottery over being single, sad and alone for Christmas and New year's.

"Sure, why not. I got nothing else better to do." You shrugged nonchalantly "Sounds fun if I'm being honest." You rocked back on your heels thinking about how you wanted to play it off. What kind of girlfriend would you be? You had so many options. What kind of girl would Law have fallen for?

Law sighed in relief. Step one was complete but he wasn’t out of the woods yet. Fooling Doflamingo would be hard. He knew you were a good actor. Bepo had begged him to see the show. He was kind of impressed with your range. That wasn't the problem. It was mostly him that he was worried about. Doffy knew how to get under Law’s skin, and who knows what kind of trap he'd be walking into.

He needed to be ready for anything the blonde could possibly throw his way. Law needed a plan. He stared at you intently, he really needed to sell this to get his family off his back but he never gave relationships a second thought. Sure he's had his share of drunken one night stands but those were hardly intimate. Emotions and feelings were never really his forte but obsessive pda wasn't going to be believable, would it? No, that wouldn't cut it.

At some point Law had folded his arms as he leaned against the wall closing his eyes lost in thought. He almost forgot you were there when you stripped him of his iconic hat placing it on your head as you decided to take some selfies.

Law scowled at you which only made you laugh and take another picture with his frown. He glared at you, almost snarling as he grabbed for his hat "What are you doing?"

You dodged out of the way "I need a new lock screen. It'd be weird if we didn't have any pictures of us together right?" You threw your arms around him trying to get a good picture, surprised that he didn’t push you away. You pulled back to check how it turned out when Law rested his chin on your head and pulled you into his chest. Your cheeks flushed at the sudden closeness as you see him follow suit snapping a photo of his own much to his dismay.

"Like this?" He showed you the picture. You're not going to lie, you two made a really cute couple. "That one's actually really cute. Send it to me, that'll be my home screen."

He nodded before asking "Should we take more or should this be enough?" It was a good question.

"We should, but later. After we change or something it would probably look suspicious if all our pictures were in the same outfit at the same location." You scrolled through your camera feed sending some candid shots Nami and Sanji have taken of you earlier in the year.

"Just in case you never know, right?"

He slipped his phone back in his pocket after saving the photos. You agreed to meet up with him later to go over specifics. Things that you both should know about each other and general boundaries. You laugh at the thought, being an actor and all kinda skews your perception on what makes other people uncomfortable. It's just like another show, you're pretty much okay with the notion of doing everything a normal couple would do. On top of that you've had to kiss your fair share of people, guys, girls and everything in between in front of a large audience. This makes no difference to you but this is Law we're talking about and the only people who are physically affectionate are Bepo and Luffy. Although Bepo practically grew up with Law, and Luffy doesn't know what personal space means.

When later rolled around you ended up in Law’s room with a thick packet detailing an elaborate plan that you thought was completely unnecessary. "You do know the more shit you make up for our backstory the more shit you have to remember right?" You said as you flipped through the pages skimming through the borderline script he's conjured up.

"Yeah no sorry to say but none of this is going to be believable. I can’t see you acting to save your life and this is a long shot even for you."

Law sighed out of frustration "Then what do you suggest." His jaw clenched clearly irritated with the idea of having to take direction from you but hey this is what you major in. The art of deception.

"Well the closer our story is to the truth the more believable it is. Your family knows you so it's best if you just act natural. Saying we met at a party when you never leave your room and you hate people sounds pretty sus."

"Tsk"

You rolled your eyes "You know I'm right. None of this sounds like you, it sounds like some bad cheesy romcom?" Law flinched; it was true he had written it based on what Shachi and Penguin told him instead of trying to fit himself into the puzzle. "Think of it this way. What kind of girl could you see yourself falling for because right now this sounds like one of the fangirls that you so adamantly avoid." He grimaced looking over what he wrote down.

You leaned back in his desk chair "The way I see it right, you wouldn't be interested in any normal girl. It'd probably be one of two ways, one being that we would have absolutely hated each other's guts because we found the other insufferable until we realized how well we compliment each other when there is a common goal. Or two I pretty much decide from the get go I was going to be your friend against your protest like Luffy and eventually you got soft on me."

Law hummed it was probably true given his friend group "Sounds about right. I didn't like you when you first moved in either." You stared at him flatly "You didn't like anyone when we moved in. Even now I'm pretty sure you just tolerate our existence but what made you warmup to me?" Who could blame you, you were curious.

Law folded his arms leaning back on the headboard "Well for one you're not a diva and you are actually good at what you do. Overtly confident people annoy me when they don't have the skills to back up their claims." You hold eye contact with him and when he doesn't look away you smirked.

"Didn't know you thought so highly of me." You were met with another neutral expression. You hope you can read him by the time you're at Dressrosa it would be easier if you could.

He shrugged "I can hold an intellectual conversation with you without wanting to kill myself." You laughed at that knowing full well the amount of effort it takes him to have a conversation with Luffy.

"Good that’s better to work with than, our eyes met across the room butterflies in my stomach crap." You playfully teased knowing you were tiptoeing around a time bomb. "God I get it already. Are we done here?" He already wasn't fond of the situation but you knew what you were doing. You stood up to stretch a thought dawning on you that you never brought up "I guess so, oh since you're paying me I really don’t care about personal boundaries. Holding hands, kissing, cuddles whatever is fine with me. I'm your girlfriend now so don't be shy." You looked over at him, his expression unreadable as ever. You grinned "Or do, you're pretty cute when you're flustered." You shot him a playful wink as he rolled his eyes and scoffed.

You sat on the corner of his bed seeing how far you could tease him "What not the affectionate type? I'm just saying if we get caught under the mistletoe it'd be weird if you hesitate." He didn't budge, only sighed knowing it was true. There was so much he had to keep track of because he couldn't keep his mouth shut. Doflamingo pissed him off to no end and he tends not to think rationally because of it.

"This is already annoying but it beats an arranged marriage." He leaned back partially laying down. "Oh shit, really?" What kind of family does Law have?

Law only rubbed his face nodding "When you meet them you'll understand why. They're kind of a big deal but I'll tell you more later."

—

The next few days breezed by quickly with you and Law secretly meeting up to take pictures and talk about general information. You had to force most of it out of Law though despite this all being part of his plan it seemed he didn't want any part of it. Which was fair enough this was all just to avoid that arranged marriage but still. He could work with you a little right. It took forever to even find out that man's hates bread with a severe passion. Something about his uncle Trebol being a disgusting excuse of a human being. Other than that you both were getting along fine.

It was weird, you know you were both friends before but now you felt as close as Shachi or Penguin and on their last day in the dorms they even invited you out with them. You ended up making fun of Law for most of the night. He stayed on his stool at the bar and you kept making eyes at him from across the room similarly to his failed attempt at writing. He muttered something about getting revenge that you wouldn't see it coming but you only laughed. It wasn’t until you were four or five drinks in that you realized Law had been the one ordering them not the hottie from across the room while also telling the bartender to make them stronger. They almost hit you all at once but you were feeling good. At one point you even wingman for Penguin and you're pretty sure they even went home together.

You had fun dancing around with Bepo but you would glance over at Law occasionally. He wasn't sporting his usual frown; you could almost say he was smiling. You couldn't stop yourself from asking "You think Law’s having a good time?"

Bepo laughed "Since the two of you started hanging out he's definitely smiled more but he likes to sit and watch at these. I heard you're going to Dressrosa." You perked up, you didn’t think he would have told anyone about it. You nodded not wanting to fight the music. Bepo put a hand near your ear so he could whisper into it. "Don’t let Doffy win. He has a way of getting Law to do what he wants whether Law is aware of it or not. Make sure you bring him home okay."

"I will."

The rest of the night was a blur but you vaguely recalled Law trying to wrangle you in his car. When you came too you were not doing too hot. Your head was pounding but how could you say no to free drinks. When your eyes finally opened it was to the snap of a camera. This had been a set up. Law was sitting next to your bed grinning at his phone as he showed you said picture.

Your hair was unruly and all over the place, your makeup was smeared, mouth hanging open, limbs sprawled out twisted around your blanket and the dress you were wearing was falling off your shoulders. You were a mess.

"Revenge sure is sweet."

It was too early in the morning for him to be this chipper. "Okay I'll admit you got me. Now help me get rid of this headache." Surprisingly Law helped you get back to rights. Mostly because he did this to you and partly because he didn't want you blowing chunks on the way to Dressrosa.

You were in and out of it for the drive. Part of you thinks Law did this on purpose so he didn't have to deal with you asking too many questions he wasn't ready to answer yet. You ended up taking a nap for most of it. It was a few hours away so you should get there late afternoon, evening. When you were around twenty minutes away Law woke you up.

"We're almost there. You feeling better now?"

You looked out the window the sun was on the cusp of setting reflecting off of the fresh fallen snow. It was very beautiful "Immaculate! Are you ready to do this?"

Law sighed gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white "As ready as I'll ever be" You wondered what kind of place it would be as you passed more and more lavish estates you start feeling nervous and you were never nervous. You wondered if he was going the right way. Law cleared his throat "There’s one thing I forgot to tell you before we left." He paused trying to collect his thoughts "You know how I'm adopted?"

"Yeah?" you were hesitant as you noticed a huge manor on top of the hill you were approaching "I was adopted by the Donquixote family."

Your jaw dropped, you knew the names sounded familiar. Doflamingo Donquixote, founder of Smile Corp, the biggest toy manufacturer in the nation. Law’s family was practically royalty. "You decided now would be a good time to tell me!" You stare at him.

"I admit, it probably wasn't the best idea but the look on your face was priceless." Law pulled in to the open gates and parked "But now you see what I mean."

"No wonder they want to arrange your marriage." You looked at Law in disbelief "I just have more questions, like how'd you end up at One Piece? Not eager to take up the family business?"

He grimaced at you while getting out of the car "You could say that." He walked over to help you out of the car. You were still shocked just staring at him. You couldn’t see him with a significant other let alone being married. This is what Law had been hiding all this time. He put his hands on your shoulders "You're not thinking of backing out now are you? I never took you for a quiter (Y/N)-ya." He challenged you, being smug about it too. Seems he knows you so well.

You finally snapped out of it "As if you could get rid of me that easily." You were on a mission. You promised Bepo, the payment was just an added bonus almost forgotten at this point.

A tall blonde with a black feathery overcoat nearly sprinted across the courtyard. Right before he made it over he slipped on the ice but quickly recovered. Law gave you a reassuring look as if this happens all the time before the taller gentleman spoke "Law! Long time no see!" He encompassed both of you in a hug lifting you off the floor.

When he set you back down Law gestured to you "Corazon, this is (Y/N)-ya, (Y/N)-ya this is Corazon he's my adopted father. Doflamingo's younger brother." The blonde looked you up and down before extending his hand to you. You went to firmly shake it but he pulled you in for another hug "Thank you for taking care of Law. I know he can be a handful. It means a lot to me that he's finally found someone who tolerates him."

"Hey, I am right here ya know!" Law frowned at Corazon while pulling your bags from the car. You only laughed at his frustration before addressing Corazon. "Someone has to look out for him. Especially with his work ethic," you clicked your tongue "Someone has to make sure he sleeps." You smiled back at Corazon. He looked like he was so happy he could cry.

"Again, I am right here." Law held out your bag glaring at you. Although you noticed his cheeks were lightly tinted pink and you could see the faintest spot of red tint on his ears. You grab your bag from him as others come out to meet you. He only groaned and Corazon put a hand on his shoulder as presumably his sister came to greet you both.

"Heard you actually got a girlfriend. So how much are you paying her?" She threw an arm around your shoulder "Blink twice if you've been kidnapped." You smiled purposely deciding to have a staring contest with the green haired women.

Law rolled his eyes and scoffed "This is Monet, don't listen to a word she says she likes causing trouble." He gestured to the black haired woman with a cute ribbon tying back her hair "That's Baby five, be careful when asking her for help she is incapable of saying no and next to her is sugar who despite looking like a ten year old is actually in her twenties like us."

Baby 5 dropped herself on your other shoulder. "It's okay, you can tell us if he's holding you hostage." You laughed but gave them both a quizzical look "Is it really that unbelievable that I'm willingly dating your brother?"

Sugar finished the handful of grapes in her mouth before answering "Yes! You're too pretty and big brother isn't nice at all." She pouted and popped another grape in her mouth "Plus you're the first girl he's ever brought back. We've been waiting to make fun of him."

You looked back to Law who looked like he was having a conniption, a vein even popping out of his forehead glaring at his younger sisters. You gently slipped out of the girl's grasp before gracefully taking Law’s hand in yours. With the most smitten expression you could muster you tried to ease his suffering by giving him an out "Show me around?" You softly smiled at him as his eyes pleaded. He pulled you into the manor but you could still hear Corazon say "Well I like her."

___

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[momotonescreaming]

This started as me word-vomiting into @unclewaynemunson 's inbox, and thanks to them encouraging me to flesh it out - I now have this whole thing. Wayne Munson and Scott Clarke build a home together. Clarkson. (3.5k)

Looking back, it seemed inevitable, the pair finding a new home together.

Scott would have never felt comfortable moving into Forest Hills, packing up a whole house worth of stuff and cramming it all into a trailer not even half the size. Living in the middle of many other trailers, where you could hear everything your neighbours did. Mrs. Carter, from the trailer behind them, turned her TV all the way up and you could hear the show as clear as anything from the Munson’s own living room. John and Katie, from just down the way, had screaming matches whenever he got home late from the bar, drunk as anything.

Everyone knew everyone’s business in the trailer park.

Wayne didn’t begrudge Scott that, the same way Scott didn’t blame him in the slightest for not feeling comfortable in the suburbs. In his big house on a street full of semi-identical houses. Full of middle class families with 2.5 kids and a white picket fence, who knew who Scott was, and loved to gossip even though they claimed they didn’t. His house was too quiet, too big, too different.

So they would stay the night, or a weekend, and then drift back to their separate houses. It was fine at first, as they figured out their relationship. Where they stood, how the other worked. But the more time passed, and the more time they spent together — the more Wayne could feel the ache in his chest when they parted. Settling low in his ribs when he had to leave for his shift at the plant, gripping at his chest when he went back to his trailer.

It wasn’t pleasant, but it was enough knowing that he had Scott, even for those short moments.

Then he lost his job at the plant, found himself working during the daylight hours now, and the aching grew worse when he could finally spent full nights curled up in bed with Scott. He knew exactly what he was missing when he left.

Wayne had taken that ache, the longing that seeped into his every pore, and let it grow into something solid. Something he could hold in his hands, run over in his mind. And when it was finally something he could grip, something he understood, he talked to Scott.

In the quiet of Scott’s house, in his bed, when it was just the two of them and the moonlight shining through the gap in the curtains — Wayne held Scott’s hand and asked him if he had ever thought about getting a home together.

And that was how it started.

Wayne would look at the houses for sale in the paper, circling ones he was considering. Scott visited the local real estate office, looking at photos and brochures of what they had on the market. It was a little touch and go for a while, the pair figuring out where the balance was between Scott’s nice suburban house, and Wayne’s cosy trailer.

Eddie had helped, pointing out houses that he said had charm, that told a story. Ones that were fun, or unique, that he thought would be cool to live in. To say that you own.

They had found it eventually, their perfect house. Wayne always thought it was cheesy TV drama, when those couples in real estate shows talked about how they ‘just knew’ when they found their dream home. It didn’t seem so cheesy now that he had it himself.

The house was advertised as a ‘Fixer Upper’. A cosy future home in need of some TLC. A semi-secluded house by the lake front, down a long gravel drive in a small clearing  and surrounded by the forest. Two bedrooms and a detached garage.

Wayne and Scott had discussed it intensively — making sure it was what they wanted, it was the right move, if they were able to fix it up or not. Wayne had talked to Eddie, and to Steve. Running it past both of his boys — while Scott had talked to the bank. Getting opinions, calculating every variable, dotting their I’s and crossing their T’s.

And then there was no reason for them to refuse. So they bought it. They owned a house together.

The real estate agent wasn’t lying when they said it was a fixer upper. The paint was peeling off of the siding, and off the windows. The wallpaper was old and faded. The ceiling leaked. The kitchen didn’t work, and the plumbing was iffy at the best of times. The land was overgrown, and there was a long list of minor things to fix. It was barely inhabitable.

It was perfect.

And so Wayne kept his trailer, and Scott kept his house, and they slowly started to pack things away as they spent weekend upon weekend working on their house.

They get Eddie and Steve round to help clear the long driveway of branches and rocks, to strip the wallpaper and start to give the whole house a deep clean. Eddie only complains the whole time. Wayne smiles at Scott as Steve threatens to dump a bucket of soapy water over Eddie’s head, laughing all the while.

Many an evening is spent flipping through wallpaper samples and paint swatches, Scott passing one over to Wayne to ask for his opinion, only for Wayne to reply that he’s really not an expert on these things. The walls stay bare for a long while. Scott continues to show Wayne colours, determined to find one he will have an opinion on, while Wayne focuses on getting the house habitable first.

Each weekend they make a little more progress. Wayne puts his handyman skills to work, steadily working his way through the house. Scott helps out with the electrics — checking the light fixtures, the switches, making sure nothing major is wrong. They do a lot of cleaning. A lot of cleaning.

But it isn’t always hard work, thankfully. Wayne doesn’t think his back could take it, if it was. There are cool afternoons spent wandering through the empty rooms of their house, cracking open windows to air the place out. Drifting through the rooms with their hands entwined together, discussing what should go where.

How they should lay out their living room, what furniture to keep and what they can get rid of as they merge their things together, do they want curtains or blinds. Shelves and hooks for Wayne's mugs and hats is a given. Scott says so offhandedly, casually — of course they’re going to display his collection in the living room —  and Wayne smiles softly in return, kissing his partner on the cheek.

Scott spends ages talking about where to put the snake tank — telling Wayne about climate and temperature control, adequate space, snake behaviour and the need to hide. He gestures with his hands as he talks, the excitement and sheer joy lighting up his face. Wayne smiles fondly, and it’s nice knowing he doesn’t have to hide that here. He can smile at the man that he loves, and doesn’t have to worry about anyone else, about the outside world. It’s just them, together.

Wayne didn’t realise exactly just how happy this would make him. He knew he loved Scott, and he knew he wanted to be with him, but the sheer happiness of building up their home together had him feeling giddy. He was almost embarrassed about it, how excited for the weekend he was — because he knew he would be wiling away the hours working on making their house a home.

They’re not quite sure who bought it up first, but they end up with an air mattress on the floor of their new master bedroom, piled up with old pillows and spare blankets. The embarrassment fades when Wayne realises that Scott is just as excited to start this new chapter of their lives together. They’ll spend the night on their mattress on the floor, clothes neatly piled up on the hardwood floor next to them.

None of the rooms have curtains yet, so the cold of the forest seeps through the glass window, but Wayne finds he doesn’t mind. He can hear the chirping of the crickets, and can see the stars out the window. It’s nice, he thinks, having their bed face the window so they can see the forest outside. There’s no metal trailers, no raccoon eating trash, no nosy neighbours.

Scott pulls himself closer, entangling his legs with Wayne, wrapping his arms around Wayne’s middle. Their blankets trap the heat, and the cool of the air around them makes the warmth more enticing. Everything is soft and slow, as if the room has slowly filled with molasses. He curls up to Scott, eyes fluttering shut, feeling the warmth of his breath on his skin. Wayne falls asleep to the soft murmurings of Scott softly describing the constellations to him.

--

Wayne wakes up slow, mouth dry and eyes bleary with sleep. He’s warm, limbs heavy as he slowly slips into waking. Blinking, he opens his eyes to find that him and Scott have shifted even closer in sleep; can see that they’ve entangled themselves laying face to face, legs still entwined. Wayne’s legs are bare, having taken his jeans off to sleep only in his boxer briefs. Scott brought a spare pair of pyjama pants (he always did feel the cold a lot more than Wayne), and he can feel the soft fabric of them where Scott’s leg is sandwiched between his own.

The sun is only just rising, sky dusted with soft pinks and oranges. It’s beautiful, but Wayne can’t help but ignore the curtain-less window to watch Scott. He’s still asleep, breath warm and steady as it brushes Wayne’s face with hot air. Face lax, still weighed down by sleep, lit only by the soft glow of the dawning sun. Shifting his arms, Wayne holds Scott loosely, slowly rubbing one hand up and down Scott’s back — feeling the bumps of his spine.

Scott hums contentedly, still asleep, and nuzzles closer to Wayne. He brings his other hand to rest at the base of Scott’s neck, fingers slowly running through his hair. They don’t have anywhere to be, there’s no rush to get to work or school, so Wayne lets himself lay there watching Scott. Feeling the warmth of his body pressed into his, the soft fabric of his undershirt underneath his hands. He doesn’t know how long he stays there, watching Scott sleep, feeling the sun slowly rise as the warmth of it shines through the window. The birds are singing happily in the trees, chirping and tweeting at each other.

He could get used to this; waking up to the sounds of the woods, and the sun, and his lover wrapped in his arms inside their house. There’s a shifting, the air mattress moving underneath them as Scott slowly drags himself into waking. He blinks, eyelids fluttering open and then immediately scrunching shut at the light. Wayne chuckles, leaning over to kiss Scott on the cheek. The mattress squeaks underneath them.

“Mornin’” Wayne whispers, not yet daring to speak at a normal volume. They’re in a sleepy little bubble, wrapped up in their blankets, and it feels as if one wrong move will make it burst, and then they’ll be shocked back into reality. There in the early morning, with his love by his side, on the floor of their new house, the world doesn’t feel real yet. It’s just them, together.

Scott peels his eyes open slowly, sluggishly, smiling at Wayne’s lips on his cheek. “Morning,” he mumbles in return. Half asleep — still barely awake — Scott drags his hand so its resting on Wayne’s waist, thumb running in gentle circles. They melt into the moment, still heavy with sleep and the knowledge that they don’t have to be anywhere else. They can stay in bed, in the rising sun, watching the love on each other’s face.

Drawing his other hand up to cup Wayne’s cheek, Scott gently presses and draws Wayne closer. There’s no pressure, no rush, as Scott leans in to kiss him. Wayne lets himself be handled, sinking into the kiss in return. It’s languid, familiar. A slow, sleepy drag of lips against lips. Scott’s body is warm where it’s inching closer to his, and his 5 o’clock shadow scratches against his own. Wayne smiles against Scott’s lips, joy bubbling up inside, wriggling in his stomach. His hand trails down to settle at the small of Scott’s back, resting there, not pushing or pulling.

There are no expectations, no goal — except for kissing Scott. Scott, who hums happily against Wayne’s smiling lips, feeling it rumble in his chest. They follow the motions of the kiss, not deepening it — hungry and eager — but letting it settle as something soft and sweet. Feeling sleep heavy and a little love drunk.

“I could get used to this,” Scott murmurs into Wayne’s mouth.

“My thoughts exactly,” He replies, their kissing slowing down, morphing into quick pecks, gentle presses of lips in between words. “Good thing we have a house then.”

Scott smiles softly. Another gentle kiss. “Can’t wait for it to be ready.”

“You just want to put me to work,” Wayne jokes, tone light and voice still quiet as he kisses the corner of Scott’s mouth, feeling it draw up into a smile beneath his lips.

“You do look very handsome in a tool belt.” Scott laughs, his voice honey sweet. He presses a quick kiss to Wayne’s cheek, and then leans back, smiling, raking his eyes over Wayne’s face. He looks happy. “Thank you. For doing most of the work on this place. I know I’m not the biggest help.”

“You help plenty.” Wayne replies, gaze softening at Scott’s words. “I couldn’t do this without you. I wouldn’t want to.”

“Thank you,” Scott replies, slowly drawing away from Wayne. He misses the warmth already . “Speaking of helping, I’ll make us coffee.”

They kiss quickly, Scott pulling himself upright and stretching with a sleepy grunt. Wayne follows the motions, letting his hands drift along Scott’s sides as the other man sits up. He lays there for a second, watching Scott, before slowly peeling himself out of bed with only mild grunts at easing his aching back off of the air mattress.

Scott stands there, next to the mattress in his undershirt and pyjama pants, smiling fondly down at him. “You don’t have to get up. I was going to bring the coffee to you.”

“Not as nice without you,” Wayne simply says with a subtle shrug of his shoulders, as if it was a known fact. The sky is blue, the grass is green, and everything was nicer when Scott was there.

“Come on then,” He says, holding his hand out for Wayne to grab, using it as leverage to ease himself off of the bed and into a standing position.

They don’t speak as they get dressed, falling into a familiar routine. Words aren’t necessary here. He can see Scott’s fondness on his face as he smiles, can feel it in the simple way he hands him his pants before he can even reach for them himself. Knowing that Scott’s eyes raked over his body and saw him shiver in the early morning air — anticipating his need before he can.

So in return he brushes away Scott’s hands, looking up at him through his lashes and buttoning up his shirt. Making sure it matches up, he hasn’t missed a buttonhole, leaving the top buttons undone, just the way he knows Scott prefers. He runs his hands over the fabric, smoothing it out and brushing off imaginary dust. Feeling the warmth of Scott’s chest, and the familiar fabric underneath the rough callouses of his hands.

Scott smiles at him, before leaning over to pick up Wayne’s discarded flannel shirt. He helps him into it, straightening the collar so it lies flat. Wayne smiles back. It somehow feels more intimate helping someone put their clothes on, than it does taking them off.

He follows Scott out of their bedroom, and into the kitchen. It needs a lot of work, and Wayne can’t help but notice it every time he enters. There’s no fridge, the oven is broken, half the cupboards have broken hinges, the floor might need re-tiling. But it has nice big windows that look out the back of the property — over the woods and the lake, the sun reflecting back at them.

Wayne can ever so clearly picture them spending their lazy mornings here together. They’ll put a little table by the window, and Wayne will smile when Scott calls it a ‘breakfast nook’. He’ll cook — making them eggs and toast, or a big stack of pancakes — while Scott brews them up some coffee. They’ll be in their slippers and dressing gowns, fighting off the cold. He’ll be reading the newspaper, while Scott flips through one of those science magazines he’s subscribed to.

There’s a click, and Wayne watches as Scott turns on the small gas cooker they bought from the camping supply store. It’s a small cheap thing, but it does the job. They’ve sat it on the counter, next to a large jug of water they’ve been boiling to help clean off some of the more stubborn dirt. Scott puts a pot on, fills it with water, and lets it heat up as he sets up some of the supplies they prepared. Some of Wayne’s mugs — ones that he didn’t mind leaving at the house, instant coffee, sugar, milk powder.  Some basic groceries that would last, should they need them while they worked on the house.

Wayne gestures with his head, lets Scott know he’s heading outside, and leaves through the back door just off the kitchen. The door is still sturdy, with peeling red paint and a small stained glass window in the middle. It leads off onto the back porch, fairly large, with a white railing and a set of stairs that led down into the clearing out the back. The one with the path that led down to the lake.

They had talked about putting Wayne’s porch couch there, on this new porch, so they could have a place to sit and look out over the lake. It was a nice idea, but for the moment it laid bare, save for an old ashtray. Wayne leans on the railing, and considers why he actually came out here. He doesn’t feel the itch to smoke, the urge shaking his hands, and is surprised but not complaining. So he leans, and breathes, enjoying the sounds of nature and the shimmering lake.

There’s a dock down there, jutting out over the water. Some of the boards were loose, and damaged with time — but it was theirs. Scott had checked with the agent, that dock was theirs to use as they pleased. One day — Wayne wanted to fix it up. Make sure it was sturdy with no risk of breaking any time soon.

He can picture himself using it to go fishing in the early morning, sitting on a deck chair, watching the water and waiting for the sun. Enjoying the chirping of the birds and buzzing of the insects. The sound of the water gently lapping at the dock. Or perhaps a small boat. He can picture Eddie and Steve, heading down to the dock in the heat of the summer sun. In the afternoon, when it was hottest and most oppressive. They’d jump off, splash around, swimming in the lake until their fingertips wrinkled.  He can picture Scott sitting on the end, dangling his feet into the water, smiling at him. Maybe he’s reading a book, maybe he’s sitting next to Wayne, telling him all the assorted fish fact he’s picked up over the years of teaching.

The smell of freshly brewed instant coffee draws him back inside. The back door creaks, but Wayne finds he doesn’t mind. Scott’s at the kitchen counter, stirring their coffee with a cheap plastic spoon. He turns when he hears Wayne enter, smiling at the sight of him, before holding out one of the mugs. It’s white, with a a decal of a fish in the middle of some text that read WOMEN WANT ME, FISH FEAR ME. Eddie had laughed his ass off when he gifted it to Wayne, knowing the pair of them were as gay as anything. Scott’s mug was a faded shade of brown, with looping text in the centre that advertised IT’S COOL TO BE A COWBOY. He smiled at it. 

Wayne takes the coffee, thanking Scott, enjoying the warmth of it as it seeps into his hands. He leans against the counter, and takes a sip. It’s perfect. Exactly how he likes it. Scott smiles at him fondly over the top of his own mug, steam curling up into the cool air, almost caressing his face.

The coffee is instant, the cracked tiles cool underfoot, and none of the appliances work — but Wayne wouldn’t have it any other way.  Not with Scott looking at him like he does, in a house that’s theirs.

[luverina]

Heyyyy cyn!!

this year i’m going into high school and i was wondering if you have any advice?

hi lovely!!!! first of all CONGRATS ON GRADUATING MIDDLE SCHOOL ☺️ so so proud of u 🎀✨ as someone who’s entering y12 this september (junior year! my system goes until y13) i have MANY thoughts so here are your secrets from a girl who’s seen it all on surviving high school ₊˚⊹♡

i'd like to start off by saying high school is not that deep!!! im assuming you might be a little worried about entering hs, and while i didn't experience a shift between middle school and high school myself (since in my system its all just secondary school), i def DID notice the shift in people's maturity levels as i went into higher secondary which is close/equivalent to your guys' high school ♡ my first couple years of secondary (aka middle school) were HELL ON EARTH 😭 everyone was starting drama and also it was covid for the majority of the time, so in general i wasn't enjoying it. however i feel like in high school people become more focused on their studies and grades than they were before and are also more open to making friends, myself included!! :) so don't be afraid to approach people and make new friends if you'd like, because you'll def need them to survive the last 4 years of school 😫 if theyre other freshmen like you, chances are theyre also pretty nervous and you might be putting them at ease by socialising!!!

HOWEVER.... make sure you make GOOD friends. i can't stress that one enough as someone who's been friends w "the wrong crowd" and suffered the consequences, its very very important to make friends with people who align with you and your goals and can uplift you instead of bring you down! if you recognise that someone's doing you more harm than good, don't hesitate to cut ties with them 😣 for the longest time i was the kind of person who was SO easily influenced by literally anyone who was just a little nice to me and looking back now i really wish i had my guard up more and was able to actually break friendships off instead of just wait for everything to explode in my face 😭 if you feel the need to cut ties w someone, make sure to do it in a civilised manner and not start drama because the last thing you need is friendship drama stressing you out along with schoolwork

speaking of schoolwork.... focus on that! you might go thru classes thinking you dont really need to pay full attention right now since you're just a freshman, but the years go by SO quickly and the info accumulates and all of a sudden you're trying to figure out things you should've learnt years ago 😭 trust me as someone who had to cram 2 years worth of work in 2 months for my exams last school year its not fun at all 😬 keep your notes neat and organised, have folders or binders or whatever works for you and keep everything because you never know what you'll need to go back to someday!!! ive had so many instances where i was studying n realised i shouldn't have thrown away that worksheet from 5 months ago 😫

have a very strict routine and try your best to stick to it, it'll help a lot w your mental health and your studies! its scientifically proven that waking up and sleeping at the same time is very good for you (and also proven by me if that matters LOL) so set a wakeup time and bedtime! i have 2 each depending on if its a school night or weekend but in general i still wake up and sleep early just so that my body can be used to that! def dont pull all nighters, i haven't done them personally because im not the kind of person to study at night (i like to get everything done first thing in the morning LMAO) but i know people who have and trust the side effects are not worth it 😣 aim to study for a certain amount of hours every day just for the sake of consistency! i think w school in general consistency helps a lot

do not cram PLEASE do not cram unless u know absolutely nothing do not cram 🙏🏼 dont try to stay up all night the day before an exam, dont try to shove content inside your head on the ride to school, end your studying the day before and leave it at that!!!! cramming is the biggest lie EVER because all you're doing is stressing yourself out for no reason and then when you enter the exam you'll be so worried the info you worked so hard to remember will leave ur head ☹️ TRUST ME if you've studied well for an exam, you'll remember the information once prompted by the question 🤍 trust yourself and your hard work!!

save some time for self care and having fun!!!! high school can be super stressful sometimes, so try to make it a little fun and less worrying for yourself by taking care of yourself! too much studying is equally as harmful as no studying at all 😚 find a middle ground and stick with it and you should be fine

these are all off the top of my head and might not make any sense because its past my bedtime but i rly wanted to answer this LOL i might rb w more stuff tmr if i remember anything else but feel free to ask for any more advice if you need it!!! i answered an anon ask ages ago talking in more detail ab study tips because i have a lot but i cant find it anywhere unfortunately, might make some tip posts leading up to the new school year if anyones interested though!!!! take care angel, you've got this 🎀