#my sister had a excuse (it was super hot when she got the cut) but me?

[caramelmochacrow]

i want to get aoi's cut so bad..... like. i really want it but im afraid of people/family members asking me if im a guy bc of my short hair.

[thehighladywrites]

The Airhead Chronicles

… and the explanation

-> pairing: cassian x bimbo/ditzy reader, nesta archeron, feyre archeron

-> summary: You meet the third Archeron sister, what could she possibly want? Secret and past relationships get discussed

-> warnings: light angst, I had to vilify Nesta, even tho I adore her. Feyre is just fucking hot in this, cuddling, hurt to comfort, reader getting flashbacks/thoughts about her old life, cassian protecting his mate, oh and giving him a blowjob so nsfw lol, also reader is fucked.

-> amara’s note: sorry for the wait, i changed the plot like a million times. seriously, there are versions with super angst, versions where nesta poisons cassian and brainwashes him, there are just crazy plots but i hope you like this one💗💗 also this is probably the final chapter bc i have nothing else left. there will be one vacation chapter later and that’s it💗💗 soon i’ll be posting nerd azriel x bimbo reader, stay tuned👀👀

part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4

“Cassie, baby, who is she?”

Anger filled cassian at the vulnerability in your voice. How dared Nesta speak to you like that? In his anger, he hadn’t realized that he had flinched away from your touch. Looking down at you, his hardened eyes softened.

You looked up at him with a worried expression, eyes filled with fear. He realized what this looked like and hurried himself to explain.

“She’s Feyre and Elain’s sister.”

Nesta’s scoff echoed through his chambers as she stalked closer, keeping eye contact with him. You hadn’t even realized what she was wearing, she was dressed in a very short night gown and robe.

Wait, was she in here for Cassian?

No, Feyre and Rhys told you that Nesta wasn’t present at dinner today but she was aware of the two of you.

This isn’t making any sense, maybe she’s confused. Because no one goes after a mated fae, right? Yes, that’s it! She must be confused.

She had to be fucking confused because you really didn’t like how close she was standing to him.

Stepping forward you gave her a sickly sweet smile,

“You’re like really pretty, I can tell you’re their sister but you’re too close to my mate. Back off.”

Nesta looked at you bewildered,

“Excuse you? I'm merely talking to him. Are you not allowed friends, Cassian? Don't you find that a tad controlling?” she delivered with a mix of disdain and sharp sarcasm, her words cutting through the air like a blade.

She stepped closer to you and you had never seen so much hate in a persons eye.

“And who do you think you are? I’ve known him for several years, so if I want a moment to talk to him then it’s what I shall have.”

You smiled at her ready to punch her,

“You’re dressed like a slut in his room. I mean there’s nothing wrong with it, we all should embrace our inner sluts but just not with my mate, okay? Either back off or I’ll make you back off and that’s just a hassle. I mean, I just got these nails and my outfit is too cute for blood!”

Before she could step closer, Cassian grabbed your arm and pulled you back as he kept an unreadable face towards Nesta.

“Give us a moment.”

Your stomach dropped as you caught her secret smile. Why did they need to be alone? Had you done something? Oh Gods would he go back to her now? He wouldn’t do that right?

Flashbacks from your past came back, men would have their fun and then leave you. It was a big insecurity you had and you just hoped it wasn’t like that.

“But-”

“One moment.”

His firm words made your throat close up, you always got emotional when someone raised your voice at you, so to save face, you ripped your arm out of his grip, not once looking back as you hurried out of his room ready to leave.

—

Cassian’s pov:

As the doors closed, Cassian glanced back at the door with nausea as he heard your sobs. In that moment, he wished he could be closer to you. The safety he felt with you was incomparable to anyone else. The need to comfort you was taking over.

“She is as stupid as a bag of rocks. You’ve seriously mated with her?”

Cassian's head whipped towards Nesta, anger simmering in his eyes. He couldn't stand her condescending tone and the comment that belittled you.

Cassian's voice was firm and filled with a lethal edge as he addressed Nesta,

“I don’t know what the fuck you think you’re doing, but you need to leave. I don’t care what you think we had, if you ever speak to my mate like that again, I’ll kill you.”

His words were clipped as he practically spit them at her. Nesta still not grasping his rage and annoyence, started pulling on the strings of her robe, trying to undress.

“Please, you know you would be happier and more satisfied with me. Don’t you remember the times you took me like some rabid beast in bed? You can’t honestly tell me you don’t miss me.”

She got closer and closer, but before she could touch his body, he grabbed her forearm.

Cassian maintained a strong grip on her, pulling her closer. His voice was unwavering, “As I said, you insulted my mate and you’re directly ignoring what I’m saying. I don’t miss you in the slightest, Nesta. I’m finally happy, and I feel sorry that you must resort to this.”

She pulled her arm back roughly and again scoffed,

“Love always made you disgustingly weak.”

Cassian chuckled, “Loving you sure did. But with her, it has made me stronger than ever. It's a pity you don't understand that strength.”

He pivoted and stared out the window as he delivered his last words to her.

“Even if she wasn’t my mate, it would have never been us. So, don’t ever disrespect her like this again. And if I find out you’ve said anything else to or about her, there would be no one in this world stopping me from getting you.”

His words were casual and promising as if he wasn’t talking about literally murdering her for even speaking ill to you.

——

You tried not to cry, but being the sensitive soul you were, tears just couldn't resist. Ugh, talk about embarrassing! How on earth were you supposed to face that girl again? And when you replayed his tone in your head, the waterworks just cranked up a notch.

Trying to find your way through Rhysand's massive mansion, you got easily distracted. Oh, look, a beautiful painting! You gazed up at the massive artwork that covered most of the wall. It showed a life-sized scene with Rhysand, Feyre, Elain, Amren, Mor, Azriel, and—hold on—Nesta and Cassian sitting very close. Wait, no, she was sitting on top of him. What the fuck? Were they a thing before you? Why didn't he tell you? He just casually mentioned she was the third Archeron sister, conveniently skipping the whole history chapter.

Great. The male you mated with was just like every lying piece of shit out there. You rolled your eyes at the situation, irritated that you once again realized that males only wanted one thing from you and after they were done, moved on to another. You couldn’t lie, it really stung, especially with the bond but you’d survive.

“I was supposed to throw that away tomorrow.”

Feyre's gentle voice reached your ears, prompting you to lift your head in her direction. With a sorrowful expression, you acknowledged her, doing your best to hold back tears.

Feyre had been a true friend; you had loved her from the moment Rhysand introduced her to you. She was incredibly funny, offered great advice, and was the perfect companion for gossip. Many times, you had found solace in her arms when someone broke your heart, and you knew that if she asked how you felt now, tears would be inevitable.

“Oh, hi Fey. Is this a secret painting or something?”

She gave you her signature soft smile, moving closer as she looked at her painting.

“No, honey, not secret. Old. This was something I painted a few years ago. And it is not needed anymore, so I was getting rid of it since no one wanted the reminder up.”

“Be honest Fey, were they a couple?”

She looked hesitant to answer but sighed and explained,

“They thought they were mates. They were together, yes, but there was a lot of miscommunication and fights. Nesta became very closed off and wanted nothing to do with Cassian after a while. They broke up, and it became a big shift in our family. Now she lives in her own apartment, and we barely see her. Every night we invite her for dinner, but she doesn’t even bother declining; she just doesn’t come.”

Your brain just focused on the fact that they were almost mates. And now she was upstairs in a closed room with your real mate. What the hell was she doing here if she deliberately declined every dinner Feyre invited her to?

“Well, surprise, she’s here. Yeah, that’s right, she’s upstairs talking to him right now.”

“Wait, what? She’s here? What is she doing with Cassian? She said she never wanted to be around him ever again.”

You felt nauseous. She was trying to win him back. Your man, she was wanting YOUR man now that he was locked up and unavailable.

Feyre’s muffled words pulled you out of your thoughts as you asked her to repeat herself, too busy in your own mind to hear her the first time.

“I said let’s go up to them. What could they possibly be talking about that you don’t need to hear? Let’s go.”

She grabbed your hand, and you could tell she was totally pissed off. You smiled a little to yourself. Maybe you didn’t even need to say anything after all.

You climbed up the stairs as your heels clicked against every step. Ugh, you really needed a few inches off.

You froze at the thought. Had you really reached rock bottom? Shaking your head at the rash thought you kept climbing. You’d rather fucking die than not use your many, many heels.

The door opened up, and both of you stopped in your tracks. Nesta stepped out of the room and looked between you and Feyre before her lips twitched in a cruel smile. She pulled her robe tighter and glanced back into the room, fixing her hair as she shoved right past you, all while smiling and hitting both of your shoulders.

You felt like time stopped. Your stomach dropped, and your throat closed up. Honestly, you didn’t know who to confront first – the homewrecking bitch or the cheating bastard.

There was no missing her insinuation. Come on, you saw what she wore under her robe – a piece of lace and nothing more. And now she was pulling it tighter to her? Yeah right, they totally fucked.

Okay, the cheating bastard it was since Feyre turned around and grabbed Nesta’s arm, pushing her into the wall.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? You ignore my invitations, and now you’re back in Cassian’s room? To what? To show him how distasteful you are? Why, in the Mother’s name, would you go inside, dressed like this when you know he has a mate? I thought you, of all people, would know more about class, Nesta.”

Nesta looks you dead in the eyes as she just smiles again and shrugs Feyre off.

“He will come back to me eventually. Cassian knows where his true feelings lie.”

“I’ve never called another girl a bitch, because that’s like so weird but you’re the biggest, grade A bitch i’ve met in my life. I’m mated to him, not you. And keep one eye open, because I will so kick your ass when you least expect it.”

You had an acrylic nail pointing to her. You also give her an annoyed look before turning around, leaving her with Feyre as you open up the room to see Cassian looking out the window.

“Please, tell me she didn’t do what I think she did. Because I will actually kill you both.”

Cassian turned around with a tired expression and stepped forward before picking you up with one arm and bringing you to the foot of his bed. He began undressing, leathers and siphons discarded on a nearby table. He pulled you closer and began undressing you too which put a crease in your brow.

“I love getting fucked but sex isn’t the answer, Cassie. I don’t like feeling left out, so just explain.”

He looked at you with soft eyes before kissing your forehead and lifting you up again. He strode to the other side of the bed before gently putting you down and sliding underneath the sheets. He pulled you impossibly closer until you were almost on top of him with your head on his chest and took a breather before explaining.

“She tried to undress and then get me back, but I made it clear that it wasn't something I wanted. It's a really long story, but Nesta used to be closed off, pushing people away to shield herself from getting hurt. After facing a lot of challenges, we got together, but we just weren't a good fit. We clashed a lot, and she eventually reverted to her old ways. The breakup was messy, but honestly, we're both better off without each other.”

Tears welled up in your eyes as you listened. Sympathy and pain for them surged within you, yet a selfish relief that you still had him to yourself.

“Tonight, she panicked when she saw you. I said no, asked her to leave, but then she tried to undress. I firmly kicked her out. I'm sorry for dismissing you like that, sweetheart. I know her well, and she might have said something to you. I don't think I could have held back if she did.”

Oh, that explains why she was fixing her robe! Phew, the sight nearly made you sick.

While you briefly considered telling Cassian about Nesta's earlier words about where his feelings lie, you decided to leave it at that. You're definitely planning to kick her ass someday, just not right now. Your current priority is to snuggle up to your Cassie and comfort him.

A sweet kiss and blowjob, just as you promised, seems like the perfect remedy to make everything better.

You shift your head and look up at his tired face.

Maybe just the kiss today, you decide. He looked very tired and-

“A blowjob sounds mighty fine, sweet girl.”

Your eyes widen a bit as your cheeks heat at his words. You then remember that he knew what you were thinking because of the bond. He could be really forward sometimes, your perfect match.

“I was just thinking of giving you one but you seem really, really tired, Cassie. Ya still want one from me?”

He shifted, grabbing your hips before sitting you upright on his lap so that you straddled his lying body.

“Sugar, I’ll take anything you have to offer me.”

He let out a deep chuckle at the way your face lit up with a smile as you let out a shriek of excitement.

Your hands eagerly tore the blanket away, shifting down to get eye-level with his cock.

“This is all mine, no one in the whole world will ever get it, ever. Just mine.”

Cassian raised himself onto his elbows, gazing at you before offering reassurance,

"Only yours, sweet one. Forever."

You smile at him before you wrap your plush lips around his leaking tip, humming when he groans in pleasure.

Your entire body heats at his needy sounds. There was nothing you loved than making Cassian feel good. His hisses and little ‘ fuck, right there baby’ was filling you up with pride and was really giving you an ego boost. It was you making him feel like this, you who he loved more than anything.

The thought alone made your pussy wet. The scary 6’7 general of The Night Court, one of the most feared and skilled warriors in history was nothing more than a babbling mess infront of you.

Cassian lets you take your time, allowing you to get used to his size. He lets you take control even though all he wants to do is bury his cock deep in you. So when you run your tongue into his slit, his hips jerk and his cock hits the back of your throat, making you gag on him.

“There’s my girl, so fucking perfect for me. Can you take me all the way, baby?”

You nod and take him deeper before you swallow, making your throat contract around his whole lenght. He gasps then pulls out with a pop, looking at you bewildered. You however just stared at him irritated, huffing at the disruption.

“Cassie, I wasn’t done! Why did you pull out, I almost had you,” you whine at him.

“Exactly. And we’re not done yet. I plan on fucking you until you can’t think straight.”

Cassian pulled you closer, putting a fat kiss on your lips before getting on top of you and fulfilling his promise to you.

He fucked you so hard, you passed out from the intensity. You had cum over and over again, time not registering in your brain.

As you sat together, the atmosphere turned sweet, and you found solace in the connection. All you knew was the comfort of his being, engulfing you.

—

You both lay there exhausted, wrapped in each other's arms, the once turbulent bond now a tranquil river of love and understanding.

“You wanna tell me about your shopping trip yesterday, sweets?” he asked, eager to hear your voice light up with excitement as you shared details about your latest fashion finds. Your ability to bring a sense of peace and light with the simplest conversations made Cassian feel an unmatched warmth. He knew he'd never love anyone as deeply as he loved you.

Throughout the night and into the next morning, you talked about everything under the sun. You even took a moment to explore his old room, running your fingers over his old possessions and playfully trying on his oversized leathers. The connection between you two felt stronger than ever, a testament to the depth of your bond.

Again, he thought about how there was no one he would ever love as much as he loved you.

Cassian was in deep, deep water and he wasn’t planning on ever getting out.

🏷️ taglist: @danikamariewrites @amara-moonlight @willowpains @cleverzonkwombatsludge @stonerpersona @starsinyourseyes @phoenixgurl030 @dreamlandreader @fxckmiup @infintyfandoms @ayme301 @sevikas-whore @fightmedraco @sweetshifter @stasiereads @rowaelinsdaughter @redbleedingrose @clairebear08 @thelov3lybookworm

[buckets-and-trees]

He Bought a Studio

Fandom: MCU Title: He Bought a Studio Characters/Pairings: Bucky x Natasha Word Count: 4.3k Summary: In an alternate universe where Steve stayed, Natasha lived, and everyone settled down in the Big Apple, this chronicles a Winter Soldier's decent into opening up a dance studio for the Black Widow he's become totally besotted with in super soldier retirement, and many things that come with it. Almost titled, "Five Times Natasha Romanoff Was Right To Be Suspicious Of Bucky Barnes."

Content Warnings: brief smut (oral female receiving), fluff, feelings, a goddaughter, soft former assassins

Additional Notes: Filling my eighth square for Bucky Barnes Bingo @buckybarnesbingo - B4 "Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow" and clocking in week 7 of Hot Bucky Summer to fill the prompt "Who's This?"/my pet, my lover, my slave.

↠ Masterlist | Aspen's Ask Box | Field Guide to the Forest

ONE

With reputations that rivaled each other as the world’s most efficient assassin and effective spy respectively, Bucky and Natasha were too suited to each other to ever forge a life with anyone else. They could compete in skill and intellect, they challenged each other, but more than anything else they understood each other – bleeding ledgers something they didn’t have to explain, good and bad days reconciling the past something they didn’t have to clarify. No judgement.

It's also difficult for either of them to surprise the other.

But she can admit she was not expecting anything even close to this.

She blinks furiously, using the pretense of rotating on the spot to take in the space – its smooth hardwood floors and pristine mirrored walls haunting in the mostly-darkened room, one of three or four in the facility if she had assessed correctly – to turn away from his intense gaze directly on her face for a moment.

“You bought a ballet studio,” she says, the words still thicker through her throat than she had hoped they would be.

The feelings competing in her chest are at once heartbreaking and hopeful.

He just hums in confirmation.

“You bought a ballet studio,” she repeats, this time a whisper, but she knows he hears. He hears everything, including the racing of her heart.

Bucky reaches for her hand and tugs her back to him. “Don’t you want to know why?”

“Because you have too goddamn much money from the government settlements?”

“That and my sister loved to dance. You loved to dance. You could dance again.”

“You gonna dance with me, Barnes?” she teases.

He shakes his head and laughs, opening his mouth to protest, but she cuts him off.

“No excuses – between when you grew up and the dance training all Russian assets got, I know you can dance.”

“Agree to run the dance side of the Barnes Ballet Academy and I’ll dance with you whenever you want,” he says, pulling her into his chest and arranging them into an appropriate dance position, one hand holding hers, the other moving to the small of her back.

She yields for a moment, resting her head against his shoulder, and he begins to sway them back and forth slowly to some imaginary music.

“Why did you really buy a ballet studio, Buck?”

He sighs, then kisses the top of her head. “We can’t have everything together, but I can give you this. It’s not…”

He can’t or won’t finish the sentence, but she swallows painfully and then finishes it for him. “It’s not kids.”

“But these rooms can be filled with them every afternoon. Since I bought the studio, I will take care of all the business, and you can just worry about dancing and coaching. Besides, what else is a retired super soldier supposed to do?”

TWO

When she closes the door of the Brooklyn apartment behind her, it’s the wrong kind of quiet.

She fully expected to hear Bucky in the kitchen getting dinner ready or maybe on the phone with the contractor, a choreographer, another instructor, or the parent of a potential student.

“Barnes?”

No answer.

Something is not right. The lights are on like he’s home, but there isn’t a single sound, and all her instincts from her former life kick in, eyes scanning the living room, weight shifting forward on her feet, adopting a predatory stance. Moving down the hallway, she slips her hand behind one of the pictures on the wall, retrieving a gun stashed there only she and Bucky know about, and continues moving slowly and silently on.

Then she hears a scoff from the study.

Natasha’s brows knit together. A scoff?

As she rounds the corner into the study, an immediate assessment of the room is enough to tell her she has no need for defense and lowers her gun. Her boyfriend is on the couch, back to her, engrossed in watching something on his phone with noise-cancelling headphones in. She glides back into the hallway to replace the weapon so it’s at the ready in case of a real threat in the future, and heads back to investigate. She places a hand on his shoulder, and he turns abruptly, smiling when he sees her and pulls out an earbud.

“What’s a girl got to do earn her supper around here?”

He glances at his watch. “Oh, sorry, Nat! I lost track of time with this,” he says, gesturing to the iPad on his lap.

“What are you even watching?”

He smirks, but she can detect a trace of embarrassed color his cheeks. “Save the Last Dance. Here,” he takes her hand off his shoulder and tugs her around the couch and pulls her onto the cushion beside him. He then grabs the remote, turns on the flatscreen television, and throws the movie up from his tablet so they can both watch. “I was only ten minutes in, so we can start over from the beginning.”

Natasha snorts. “You’re really watching this?”

“Of course, I’m watching it! I own a ballet studio! It’s important for me to have a full understanding of the cultural benchmarks and stereotypes that are part of the dance world.”

“What, are you going to watch every dance-centric film and television show out there?”

“Maybe I will,” he responds, a defiant cock of his chin.

Now she just grins and cuddles up into him. “Fine, but I’m ordering in Thai,” she says and taps away quickly at her phone to secure their dinner. When she sets her phone down, she notices there’s also a stack of DVDs on the shelf under the TV, and she can see four of them are from the Step Up franchise, a copy of Center Stage, and Dirty Dancing and Dirty Dancing: Havannah Nights.

For the next few days, Bucky seems to be watching one of the many films he’s continuing to accumulate or an episode of So You Think You Can Dance or Dance Moms either actively or in the background whenever it’s convenient. He’s always a bit incredulous though in his idle commentary and many unconscious scoffs when the latter is playing.

“You know you don’t have to finish that,” she says.

“I always finish what I start, Romanoff.”

“But you do know there are eight seasons, right? It’s important to me that you know there are eight seasons.”

“And I will happily watch them all.”

“Happily?” she jeers.

“I said what I said.”

“Nerd.” She rolls her eyes, but affectionately, and heads out for her meeting with a potential guest choreographer for the girls. There are so many parts of this life she never would have predicted for herself, and a boyfriend obstinately binge-watching reality tv about the dance world wouldn’t even have made the bottom of the list of possibilities.

THREE

For all the dance tv and movie consumption she’d had by proximity when Bucky had started down this ballet studio ownership journey, nothing had prepared Nat for the reality of it.

The way these girls showed up was endearing.

Some of them were a little trying, but they also all tried to do their best. Ballet was demanding and it could be competitive, but Nat worked diligently to establish a teaching staff and culture that focused on grit and community as much as it did on technique.

It was harder with the parents. Some of them still jockeyed for standing both for themselves and their offspring.

She certainly appreciated some of the parents and guardians more than others, but she didn’t want to discount any of them since, for better or worse, they all played integral parts in the lives of her girls, and those experiences affected how they could show up any given day on that dance floor.

Steve’s one of the parents who plays a part in the community, his five-year-old Sarah – Nat and Bucky’s goddaughter – just old enough to start in the youngest class of ballerinas. Steve’s somewhat adopted one of the giant hulking men – Kyle, who’s a single father to one of the other girls in Sarah’s class – always making sure the working-class man feels comfortable and like this can be “the village” that helps.

Nat’s speaking with both men when she feels the intensity of a gaze she’s grown intimately familiar with.

Bucky’s leaning against the wall, arms crossed, and he’s in conversation with his assistant and two of the community dance class instructors (ballet runs every afternoon, but to make use of the facility and to generate enough money to make it financially sustainable, he’s implementing evening classes across disciplines for adults from simple barre and Zumba to ballroom).He’s talking to them, but he’s mostly looking at her, and when they lock eyes, he glances down to his own hand, then flicks his eyes back up to her before returning his focus to the three people in his immediate vicinity. She takes the hint, and watches as his right hand taps out a message in morse code on his vibranium bicep:

Need you in the office.

Natasha doesn’t frown in front of Steve or Kyle but gives a believable excuse to extract herself and makes her way to the office, navigating with purpose but without drawing attention to their office. He knew the schedule of this place like clockwork, and so to pull her away this close to a class almost never happened.

Within forty-five seconds, she hears his steps approaching and then the turn of the doorknob ahead of his entrance.

She arches one eyebrow, but, Oh…

She knows exactly what that look means.

She can’t help the low laugh that erupts from her chest, but it’s cut off immediately as he crosses the room and claims her mouth in a kiss, lips searing heat, desperate, consuming. His hands were already slipping into the top of her leggings, and his fingers hitched into the band of her underwear, pulling them down in one smooth motion as he forced her back to his desk. He’s never miscalculated anything in his life, so she doesn’t hit the desk clumsily – he lifts her deftly to deposit her on the smooth wooden surface the split second before her hips would’ve knocked into it.

No one else had ever engulfed her with this kind of passion, and she would never get enough of this, of him.

And yet as he trails his lips down the column of her throat, she has to protest, “Buck, I have to be back out there in five minutes.”

“I know. Still need you.”

When he laves his tongue at the juncture of her neck and shoulder, her head rolls back, and she moans, but then she pushes against his chest. “You can wait, you’ll survive.” Though she isn’t quite sure she could now that he had her blood running hot for more.

“Fine, I don’t need you,” he concedes, but then he looks directly into her eyes and his voice drops, “I want you now, and you know I always finish what I start, Romanoff.”

His hands move up her bare legs, thumbs caressing the crease at the top of her thighs, too close to her cunt not to make her heart race, and he smirks.

“Barnes…”

He sinks to his knees, ducks under the fabric of the only partially removed bottoms, and slots himself between her legs, pulling her hips to the edge of the desk before he spits on her slit.

“I can apply my efficiency,” he asserts and presses a kiss onto the tender flesh of her inner thigh resting over his shoulder.

“Cocky bast–”

His mouth directly on her clit cuts her off abruptly. Her folds were slick for him with the intensity of the previous moments, but he mixes her arousal and his spit with his thumb and then slips two fingers inside her channel, seeking the spot he knows so well, the one he knows will quickly bring her to her peak. He makes only a few slow strokes while licking her bud before speeding up, determined to make good on his promise.

Natasha hands go to his head, fingers both carding through and gripping his hair. He hums against her pussy, and her breaths come in short gasps as he continues hurtling her toward ecstasy on the tips of his fingers and tongue. He earnestly strokes her g-spot and then turns his licks to fervent sucking of her bud, and that does it, white heat breaking over her, all her muscles seizing up and then relaxing as he pushes her through it.

She shakes her head, laughing again when he looks up at her, the expression on his face one that would be too smug if he hadn’t earned it. He truly knows her expertly, intimately, in every way.

He extracts himself from between her thighs and helps her redress while she catches her breath. “I wanted you now,” he says, “but for the rest of the afternoon you’ll be thinking about how much I’ll need you later.”

Nat glares at him teasingly. “I have to go out there and–“

“Or you don’t. You have an assistant coach.”

“Unlike some of us, I’m nothing if not a goddamn professional.”

“In every way,” he agrees, though his tone changed. Warmer. Softer. “I’m more than aware.”

And now her heart races again, not due to the physical ministrations but for the undeniable devotion behind those words. She pulls him close again for a sound kiss, which he returns, encircling her softly in his embrace.

After a moment he pulls away and lets her go.

“Two minutes to get to the classroom,” he says. He opens the top right drawer of his desk and pulls out a tin of mints, offering them to her and taking a couple for himself. 

FOUR

Natasha hears the clink and slide of metal as Bucky’s key finally slots into the lock of the front door, and so she slides off the counter and turns on the panini press. She doesn’t make much else, but she’s become a bit of a sandwich artist and can make many a good combination, upping her game with grilled sandwiches after the acquisition of the panini press for her birthday.

God, they were so stupidly domestic now, and it was terrible and wonderful all at once.

“You’re finally home!” she calls out from the kitchen, hearing him stride down the hallway towards her. Strange, he usually drops his keys and hangs his jacket before settling in.

“Hi,” he says, popping his head around the corner.

Nat frowns. “Barnes, why are you home so late?”

They often took turns getting home late with different things going on at the studio, but usually it was with a hello and straightaway the explanation since they both care so much for everything happening in their dance world.

He slowly steps around the edge of the doorframe and into the kitchen, cradling the bulge of something held within his jacket.

“Barnes?”

He takes a few steps closer. “My queen–“

“You have never one day in your life called me your queen,” she interrupts, still wary, but now also bemused.

“I could, though. You know I'm your lover, a willing slave to your every wish.”

“You are two feet away from me, stop pouring on the charm and stalling and show me what’s in your jacket.”

His eyes are sparkling with mischief and his smile is sheepish as he looks down. It made her heart already melt and want to bend for whatever is coming. The thought crosses her mind that it’s a look he must’ve had on his face countless times when he was growing up.

“I didn’t ask you before buying a dance studio, and, full disclosure, I already bought everything we need – that being part of why I’m so much later tonight – and we can take it all back if you say no, but I rescued a cat from the alley behind the studio today.”

And with that, he turns and opens the front of his leather jacket to reveal a snow-white cat who looks very cozy tucked in where she was against his chest. Nat knows how comfy it is to be tucked up against that exact spot, it’s one of her favorite places to be.  

Nat just grins and shakes her head. Stepping forward, she slowly extends her hand toward the cat. The feline inclines her head, sniffs the tips of her fingers, then bumps her head to stroke herself against Natasha’s hand.

“You are such a softie,” she says, pulling Bucky down by the collar and planting a kiss on his lips.

“So, we can keep her?”

“Yes.”

He kisses her again, then leans down and places the cat on the kitchen floor. “Right, Alpine, you stay here with Nat, and I’ll be right back with your things.”

And in less than a second, he’s already out the door.

Nat puts the sandwiches she had already prepared on the grill, pulls the press closed, and then turns back to look at the cat, who is sitting primly back on her haunches and watching her.

“Alpine, huh?”

The cat blinks up at her.

“This man. How’d HYDRA’s most ruthless assassin end up like this, eh?”

Alpine takes a few steps forward and brushes up against her leg before turning and then heading out of the kitchen, likely back to the door to wait for Bucky.

FIVE

Nat approaches the bedroom doorway silently, preparing to surprise the two individuals laughing inside, but then the peals of laughter and tiny giggles cease, and she hears two bodies plop onto the bed – one big, one small. The door is slightly ajar, and she can see the super soldier and his goddaughter panting, sprawled out on the bed, shoulder to shoulder, staring at the ceiling. She loves seeing Bucky like this with Sarah and so decides to give them another moment and observe from the darkness of the hallway.

“I still don’t want to go to bed.” Nat’s face splits into a smile, knowing this Sarah mode all too well. Though it is difficult, summoning up all her godmotherly skills and fortitude, she can handle it well enough when necessary, but Bucky? No way.

“I know. But you’re already on your bed. I’ve won.”

“I don’t want to go to sleep, Uncle Bucky!”

“I’ll read you two picture storybooks or as much as you want from a chapter book, and then sleep. How’s that for a deal?”

“Deal!”

Nat stays in the shadows as she watches Sarah jump down from the bed, run to her bookshelf, and return with what looks like one of her Ramona books. Sarah thought she’d gotten the best deal, tricking her godfather into more reading with a chapter book, but Nat knows Bucky always wants Sarah to pick the latter because it means he’d read to her until she is softly snoring.

Sarah Marie Rogers has the former Winter Soldier irrevocably wrapped around her tiny fingers – had done since she was born and had only become more adept over the years at making him melt time and time again.

And it is as she’s watching him smooth Sarah’s hair down and pull the covers up over her little body with such tenderness that Nat knows why he’d brought home a cat last month, bought a building to turn into a dance studio a year and a half ago, and asked her on a date three years ago.

Her.

Sarah had changed everything.

Logistically, Steve had retired, and that removed him from the orbit of their team and their missions, resulting in slightly more time that she interacted with Bucky before they retired, but she’d never sat back and critically analyzed what had changed before that.

Sarah had changed her, too, no question.

But now she can see it.

Sarah was the first baby born close to Bucky, and he’d been smitten and over the moon about her immediately.

She was the first thing the man had loved unconditionally and without apology, a love unrestrained that he had never experienced in possibly any way similar since before he went away to war. Bucky didn’t have to justify it, it just blossomed, taking root in his soul, fully uncovering in a flash the warmth that had mostly been buried for ninety years and probably would have taken so much longer to emerge otherwise. 

“Sar, I gotta ask you a question,” Bucky says as he settles in next to Sarah with the book, drawing Nat’s attention back to the moment at hand.

She knew that tone – playful but with something serious underneath. She is always suspicious of that tone.

“Okay.”

“Let me show you something first.” Bucky digs into his pocket and pulls out a sparkling engagement ring.

Nat’s heart leaps into her chest, and it is only due to a lifetime of training to be imperceptible at all times that keeps her from gasping outright at the sight.

Sarah did gasp and ooooh appropriately though.

“Is that for Auntie Nat?” she chirps with excitement.

“I think so. I know you wanted me to marry you, and I still will if that’s what you want, but what if I married Auntie Nat?”

“Hmm,” she reaches out and delicately traces her tiny fingers over the ring Bucky was letting her examine. “That might be okay.”

“You sure?”

“Well, I was thinking, you’re going to be really old when I’m finally ready to get married.”

“Oh, that might be true,” he agrees, barely holding back a laugh.

“Yeah. You might be really wrinkly when I’m done with school, and I was thinking maybe I would marry someone else instead.”

“Sar… you say that like you already have someone in mind…”

“I don’t know for sure, I’m still deciding if I want to marry them or not!”

“Is it someone in your class?”

Nat bites her lip, grinning. She was certain she knew exactly who was being considered after seeing the kids in Sarah’s class picking up her goddaughter a few times from school.

“Maaaaaybe.”

“Well, okay. Only if I approve. Do you approve of Auntie Nat?”

Sarah nods eagerly. “I do. She is pretty, and kind, and the best ballet teacher, and she makes you laugh, and she does my hair in the good braids, and she is so smart, and always takes me for ice cream when I ask her, and has loved me my whole life, so I think it would be okay if you marry her.”

“Those are some of my favorite things, too,” Bucky says. “If you promise to keep it a secret that I’m gonna ask her, I promise you can be the flower girl at the wedding, deal?” He palms the ring and extends his pinky finger.

Without hesitation, Sarah locks her pinky with his. “Deal!” she agrees, beaming up at him. “Now read me my book.”

She snuggles down into his side, and he rolls his eyes. “You are a demanding little thing.”

“Daddy says it’s good to let people know exactly what you want.”

“Of course, he does.” Bucky leans down to kiss the top of her head, then wraps his arm around her and opens the book on his lap so they both can see as he starts to read, and Nat decides to retreat to the living room to let them have more time together.

SIX

Nat rolls her shoulders and yawns, turning to lay on her back. She frowns upon discovering Bucky’s side of the bed is uncharacteristically empty, the happy weight of Alpine sleeping atop the blankets at foot of their bed missing as well.

Then she registers a piercing stare from across the room and leans up only to see Bucky sitting in the decorative armchair they almost never used. He is stroking Alpine behind the ears, happily curled up in his lap, but his eyes are locked on her.

“Um, good morning, Cyborg.”

“You know.”

“What?”

“I wasn’t certain when it happened, but then I thought about it all night.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I had grand intentions, but you overheard everything last night. I didn’t hear you creep up on us, which means you must’ve gotten there when Sarah and I were making a ruckus, but I did hear you slip away when I started reading her Ramona, so you already know I’m going to ask you to marry me.”

Nat sits up and smiles. “Oh. That. You can still pursue your grand intentions.”

“Nope, they’re ruined.”

“But I don’t know what your grand intentions are! You could still surprise me!”

“Nope, you’re expecting to be surprised.”

“You love that kind of challenge!”

“Nope, I’m obstinately averse now. I’ve decided I won’t be satisfied by anything else than seeing my ring on your finger straightaway.”

“Then you better get over here and ask me,” she says simply.

He stands, depositing Alpine softly on the chair behind him, crosses the bedroom, and kneels next to Nat’s side of the bed. With one hand, he grabs both of hers, with the other, he holds out the ring, gleaming against his black vibranium fingers. Then he lifts his gaze to hers, and all the sullen staring from moments before has melted away leaving only the pure adoration he holds for her.

“Will you?” His voice is thick with emotion.

“You know I will.”

“I don’t want to do anything except share the rest of my life with you,” he says, delicately but decisively slipping the ring onto her finger.

Nat pulls his face up to hers in a fierce kiss, and he crawls up onto the bed with her, wrapping her up in his arms, and laying her back down, ready to express again, as they had so many times over the past few years, how much they mean to each other in every way. They make vows with their words, their lips, and their bodies, giving themselves over completely as they already had, and as they would in perpetuity.

↠ Masterlist | Aspen's Ask Box | Field Guide to the Forest

[thedawningofthehour]

I meant to send this yesterday, but did you ever mention what exactly Josh is? I honestly don’t remember there ever being clarification (and if there was it totally went over my head) and while i was rereading for the umpteenth time Josh was referred to by splinter as “the copper one” and my mind kinda went “Excuse me, Copper???” I figured he was a Yokai of some kind but then we know that Rose is a witch/from witch town (right?) so whenever I vision Josh is just a very wobbly image of some nerdy buff guy idk and he’s always wearing a blue shirt for some reason :P

Lol well you're pretty close! Josh and his brother and sister are all witches from Witch Town and look vaguely humanish, as Yokai witches are shown to be.

Like yes, these people are undoubtedly Not Human, but unlike many other Yokai they don't seem to be anything else in particular. (in general-I see Lion Dude up there, but he's an outlier) (I've actually thought a lot about the lore of Witch Town and I have no idea if I'm going to end up using any of it so I might do a write-up one of these days)

Josh and his family (his twin sister, their little brother, and the little brother's husband, and maybe his niece I haven't decided if she exists here) all live in Witch Town and run an apothecary. They actually met Bella because the little brother Reed (who I apparently haven't even referenced by name yet, sorry Reed) was her bodyguard while she competed in the Nexus. He got into some debt and the debt was then purchased by Big Mama, and he refused to fight for her. Big Mama basically rigged his contract so he could never pay her back, effectively enslaving him, and had his tongue cut out for talking back to her too many times. He got assigned to Bella because she already knew how to sign, they became friends, and when she left she bought out his contract. Turns out his sister was hot and his brother was her platonic soulmate, so happily ever after. (Bella and Reed are still really good friends, they're just less reasons to mention him because his skills aren't really plot-relevant)

Josh is definitely a nerd, he's pretty tall and broad-shouldered but skinny. He's kind of pink, not intensely so but definitely a few shades into 'not a human skin color'. His hair is either blond or he's a very light redhead, depending on how I feel that day. He has an extremely prominent nose, which...I just realized that doesn't sound good, considering he's Jewish. Okay, to be fair, when I designed him he was not Jewish. He's a Dishonored OC, the Dishonored world does not have any real-world religions, they have one twink who is also a whale as their god and their religion is centered around hating on him. I made Josh Jewish because Bella was Jewish and I kind of liked the idea of her bonding with him and his family over that. (I don't know why Bella is Jewish, she just Was) (also Bella and Josh aren't religiously Jewish-they're atheists)

Rose looks pretty similar, except she's much shorter (which vexes her greatly, as she's the oldest) and her hair is more of a ginger color. Reed however is massive, taller than his brother and super buff, like 'body of a Greek god' but unironically. His coloring is more pinkish-purple and darker because he has a different father. Everyone thirsts over him and he is entirely oblivious. His husband got a lot of high-fives when he put a ring on it. (and a lot of jealous glowers, especially when the story of how he proposed with a BBQ sandwich came out)

Splinter calls him 'the copper one' because their last name is Copperspoon but he couldn't remember. (he's old) And they have that name because their mother is this bitch:

Delilah Copperspoon, bisexual poly witch and bastard daughter of an emperor. She's such a wonderfully evil character.

[coldflasher]

you know i have to ask about coldwest for the ship thing

hmmm yeah, this one isn't for me really :/ not my cup of tea

jokes, can you imagine haha. i am the captain of coldwest. yo ho ho and a bottle of why-the-fuck-didn't-they-get-more-screentime

What made you ship it?

Honestly I had never even thought about shipping them until Redhead's fic "Needs Must, As the Devil Drives" got me super into Coldwestallen, and from there I spent a lot more time thinking about the Coldwest side of that dynamic and what a fun and complicated relationship that would be... then the rest, ngl, was largely built from my own headcanons and bits of dozens of fics that hopefully, one day, I will actually finish...

2. What are your favorite things about the ship?

So many things!! I think the first thing that comes to mind is that I feel like Coldwest offers a great opportunity to put Iris out there in the field. The show kind of tends to keep Iris out of the action a lot. Like she is a hugely important member of the team, obviously, but she's generally sitting in S.T.A.R Labs running tech support, and aside from occasionally getting temporary speed powers or occasionally aiming a gun at a threat, she often takes a back seat to the action. Barry in particular has this tendency to want to get Iris as far away from a fight as possible, and while I get it, I love seeing Iris kick ass. We know she can shoot, throw a punch, whatever, but she rarely gets the opportunity to get out there as much, and whenever she does, it's panic button time and she gets whisked to safety. I feel like Len, with his tendency to get into trouble, his love of adrenaline and a fight, and the thrill he clearly gets while fighting, would love to have Iris on his side in that kind of situation, and he wouldn't hesitate to get her involved. He'd actually encourage it, if anything. Which also provides fun conflict with Joe, who would already be seething that this criminal is dating his daughter, but now he's encouraging her to put her life at risk and possibly commit crimes? Oh, the drama >:) I love writing Coldwest team-ups where Iris gets to use her skills as a reporter while Len uses his skills as a thief, and they kind of play off one another... with lots of back and forth arguing and snark, of course.

I also personally like that, in my view, Iris would have a better handle on Len than anyone else. Like he's more willing to let her boss him around than he would be with another partner. As mentioned, she doesn't take his shit, she's not as amused by him and she will tell him to cut the crap if he's being a dick. In contrast, though, I also feel like he'd be softer than her than he would with another partner. Sure, he'll pull her pigtails and make mean, sly comments, he wouldn't be Len if he didn't... but he also admires and respects her, he's a fan of her work, and I think that Iris is just such a kind and gentle person that I think being around her would soften him. He'd never admit it, but in my head, he's so gone for her, and while it might take a while for him to let his guard down, if you'll excuse the terrible ice pun, he'd melt for her. Like. That small smile he gives to show he's proud of his sister---that kind of moment, all this affection and pride that he keeps private and only lets out when no one's looking, but when they're alone, he lets her see it. Just a little. Sigh.

Also, I kind of like that it's such unchartered territory wrt canon. Like GOD my kingdom for more coldwest scenes, but also, the fact that we get to see so little of them together on screen means that there is so much to explore there, and canon cannot tell me no (like it would stop me anyway haha). It really does give me free reign to think about how they would interact and what kind of scenarios they'd get involved in.

Oh yeah, and I also think they're both extremely hot and I wanna see them bang seven ways to Sunday, so there's that

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

I don't really know. It's such a small ship, I don't really know what opinions are out there haha. Hm... I guess maybe that I think Iris would call him babe. Cos generally Len is NOT a petname person and I think if anyone else tried to call him babe, he would make them regret it, but with Iris, he's like a cat being pet and secretly liking it but pretending not to... he's like "I'll allow it. Maybe." but secretly smug like yes. I am babe

Send me a ship and I'll answer three questions based on whether I ship it or not

[hearts-hunger]

(sweet gvf besties, please feel free to crop this pic, edit it, repost it, whatever! tag me if you want so i can see!)

full story of the best moment of my whole entire life below the cut!

my sister and i saw last night that the boys were in the savannah area, and since we're only half an hour away, we decided to go down today to see if we could meet them! (actually, we just went down to see if we could even glimpse them from the car, lmao). we had no idea if they were even still there, but we're nothing if not full of crazy hope, so to sav we went.

we walked around for a while, keeping a lookout, but mostly we were just wandering. it's still crazy to me that the time we spent walking around was the PERFECT amount of time. we checked instagram and saw someone had tagged danny and jake in a post half an hour earlier, so we knew they were at least still in town! we walked around some more, and we'd kind of hit a point of being like “well, i guess it's just not gonna happen for us,  c'est la vie.” and literally as soon as we'd made up our minds to head home, WE SAW JAKE!!

he was across the street, and i KNEW it was him because he was wearing his slutty little unbuttoned shirt and his chelsea boots, and he looked like the prettiest girl in the world. i grabbed my sister's hand and said “is that —?!” and she said “YES???” we both had a moment of pure panic and excitement and nervousness at just a GLIMPSE of him.

he went into the winery across the street, and while we were busy hyperventilating and calling our parents (our dad was like “no hell you did not just see him” and we were borderline crying like “YES DAD HE'S RIGHT THERE?!”) we saw all four of them in the winery (you know they like their little wine tastings). we debated going in, and we hadn't made up our minds (i was SO NERVOUS!!) when they came out. danny and jake came out first, and danny was carrying a case of wine, and his hair looked so good and his ARMS LOOKED SO GOOD!!! and then, a few seconds later, josh and sam came out. my sister practically dragged me across the street and said “excuse me, hi, sorry!” after them.

sam and josh both turned around, and WHEN I TELL YOU MY HEART STOPPED!!!! they both looked so good, josh's cheeks were all flushed and rosy, sam was so TALL, and we were absolutely starstruck. my sister went up first because i was too shy to, and she said “hi, we're huge fans! we love you! can we get a picture with you guys?”

sam had the BIGGEST sweetest smile on his face, and he said “i'd love nothing less.”

me, my sister, and josh all looked at him — nothing less? what did that mean? was that a polite way of telling us no? (josh was NOT tracking with what his little brother said lmaoo)

i looked straight at sam, and, trying for some lighthearted (slightly despairing) banter, said “less?”

he looked so panicked, bless him — he laughed and hurried to say “and more! i should have said more!” he seemed so upset that we might be upset, and it was the sweetest thing.

we came up to them, and they were both so smiley, and my sister said “thank you so much, it's such an honor to meet you!” josh said it was an honor to meet us too (PLEASE) and he got very close to my sister and said “i love your earrings, by the way!” she thanked him and showed off my earrings too — we told them we'd made them, and they were inspired by tears of rain. josh looked close at my earrings and said “that's wonderful! i love them!”

we were both a blushing mess at having josh look at us so closely and compliment us so genuinely, and my sister pulled out her phone for the picture. sam said “let's do it!” and they both pulled us close (THEY moved close to US!!) and i honestly think i blacked out for a second hehe. the only thing i recall with certainty is that sam is SUPER skinny, and smelled SO nice, and was cool to the touch (where i was all flushed and hot). my sister said later that josh put his arm around her waist and squeezed. we took the picture and when we separated, both my sister and i were so flustered that we couldn't think of anything intelligent to say — i'm pretty sure we said thank you and waved goodbye, and josh said it was a pleasure to meet us.

we probably hadn't made it five steps from them before we collapsed in slightly hysterical giggles, and i like to think the boys thought it was cute :) it was such a sweet, genuine interaction, and i really believe we all just spoke from the heart, because they looked a little nervous to talk to us too 🥺❤️ the thing that will stick with me forever is their smiles — they were really genuinely happy to be talking to us, and their big sweet smiles showed it.

so, yeah ❤️ josh complimented our earrings, and i flustered sam a little bit and made him laugh. they weren't dismissive or impatient at all — they took the time to talk to us and be sweet to us even when they didn't have to, and i'll cherish that as long as i live ❤️

[separatist-apologist]

Hey ! Could you write a little one-shot (or Multiple if you are feeling it) of Elain being super jealous that Lucien is getting attention from other females? I feel like she would be super territorial and I really think you could run with it!

I'M SO EXCITED! I've always wanted someone to send me a prompt! Tell me what you think!!!!

You wanted to keep this a secret, Elain reminded herself, sipping the too-sweet drink in front of her. It was her mantra; she’d live and die by those words. You wanted to keep this a secret. Everything was too new with Lucien, too fragile and Elain didn’t want a million eyes watching her every step while they very carefully courted. She didn’t need any extra opinions, especially after the heated evening they’d spent kissing in his apartment. Lucien was so rarely in Velaris to begin with that no one batted an eye when he did arrive and she just so happened to have errands to run.

You wanted to keep this a secret, she thought a third time as Mor dropped beside her, sweaty from dancing. They’d all gone to Rita’s and though both Elain and Lucien had tried to make their excuses, Feyre was not taking no for an answer, and Rhysand and Cassian had somehow convinced Lucien to join them. She could see Lucien across the room, leaned up against the mahogany bar holding a glass between two fingers. She’d noticed how well fitted his dark pants were, giving the whole bar a perfect view of his thighs, his ass, his everything if she was being honest. He’d removed his cream-colored jacket to drape it over the back of a nearby chair, revealing a hunter green shirt that was just as well-fitted, tucked neatly into his pants and buttoned politely up to his neck. The color off-set his thick, red hair that fell down his back, framing lovely, golden skin and a too wide smile.

A smile not directed at her, but a blonde woman who was standing just a little too close. She was laughing at whatever Lucien said, head tipped back. Elain bit back her scowl. He wasn’t that funny, she grumbled.

“Want to dance?” Mor interrupted Elain’s musing, unaware of her thoughts. “You look lonely.” Elain tore her eyes from Lucien to look down at the pink drink in her hand. “This isn’t my kind of dancing,” she admitted.

Feyre joined Mor, wiping her sweaty hair off her flushed face. “Have you seen Rhys?” She asked, swaying slightly despite being seated. “I lost him on the dance floor.”

“He’s right there,” Mor replied, gesturing in Lucien’s direction. Elain turned again, irritated to see a brunette had joined the laughing blonde and was touching Lucien’s arm. Elain’s vision went red for a moment. Touching, her brain screamed, demanding retribution. Elain looked back at the wood grain table, allowing the thrumming music to wash over her. To calm her.

You wanted to keep this a secret.

“Lucien’s popular tonight,” Feyre giggled, drawing Elain’s attention back to the bar. A third woman, another blonde, was at his side, her finger practically in his drink. Lucien seemed utterly oblivious to the attention. What was he talking about?

Mor waved a hand dismissively. “Rita’s is always a little too excited when Lucien comes in.”

Feyre giggled wildly. “Because he’s Autumn Court?”

“You hush right now,” Mor warned, her brown eyes flashing. “But yeah, I think so.”

Elain blinked. “Why would it matter if he’s Autumn Court?”

Feyre burst out laughing while Mor choked on her drink. Elain didn’t dare look back over at Lucien even as embarrassment flooded through her. She was obviously missing something, some kind of insider knowledge about Autumn Court or Lucien that everyone else knew.

“Rita’s doesn’t see a lot of Autumn Court, that’s all,” Mor told Elain kindly even as her red lips twitched with amusement. Feyre was laughing so hard she slid from her chair, drink sloshing all over her tight, black dress. Mor sighed, exasperated, and hauled Feyre back into her seat.

“What’s got her in such a good mood?” Cassian grinned, sitting beside Elain, one muscular arm draped over the back of her wooden chair.

“Lucien,” Mor replied, nodding her head in Lucien’s direction. Cassian looked over Elain’s head, his grin widening.

“Good for him.”

Elain bit back her scowl, practically double-taking when she caught the fourth woman resting her forearm on Lucien’s shoulder. All of them were laughing like they were in a comedy club. She clenched her hands so hard her nails bit into her palm.

“We were explaining to Elain that Lucien is always popular at Rita’s, right, Cassian?” Mor asked, though Elain barely heard her over the roaring of blood in her ears.

“Oh, right. Yeah, I think it’s the—”

“The fire in his blood?” Feyre interrupted, choking on her laughter. Elain looked up at Cassian just in time to catch him roll hazel eyes.

“He’s hot, no fire needed,” Mor swept in quickly, cutting off whatever Cassian planned to say. “Which is why there are five females—” “Five?!” Elain screeched, furious at the red head touching his hair.She stood abruptly, nearly knocking her chair into the people sitting behind them. Cassian caught the furniture smoothly with one broad hand.

“Pay up,” Cassian demanded from behind her. Elain didn’t stick around long enough to see what, exactly, Cassian was collecting on. She was seething as she stomped up to Lucien, dripping in women.

“He has a mate,” she informed the group, waving her hands around as though to shoo away birds. Lucien turned, surprise etched into his features, mouth parted to ask her what, exactly, was her problem.

You wanted to keep this a secret. Not anymore, she decided, lifting up on her tiptoes to kiss him, both to illustrate her point and stake a claim. Lucien wrapped an arm around her waist, his other hand still holding his drink, his kiss enthusiastic if not a tad confused. Elain didn’t care; for a moment she forgot they were in Rita’s at all. Something about him always melted the world around them, made her surroundings an afterthought.

“What happened to keeping this a secret?” He asked, mouth inches from her own.

“I changed my mind,” she told him primly. Lucien arched a brow, both russet and metal eyes roaming down her body slowly before coming back to her face. The women were gone, intimidated by Elain’s possessive show. Good, she thought with satisfaction. She was tempted to stomp towards the front of the dance floor, cut the music, and announce to everyone that Lucien Vanserra had a mate, and the bar needed to stay away from him. Perhaps she’d hang flyers just in case anyone forgot or became too tempted. He was handsome, too handsome for shabby Ritas, she thought smugly.

Mine, she declared, kissing him again.

Lucien peered over her head, a smile dancing on his lips. “I don’t think we were ever a secret, Elain.”

“What? Why do you say that?” She demanded, whirling on her heel when Lucien gestured behind her with his head. Standing beside a card table was Rhysand, grinning like the devil as he handed five women little bags of coins. When he caught her gaping, he smiled, too, holding up his hand to indicate it had taken five women to crack her. Elain narrowed her eyes.

It is so on, she thought loudly, well aware he was listening. Rhysand tipped his head back to laugh.

“Want to get out of here?” Lucien murmured, his lips pressed into her hair. A shiver of anticipation slithered up her spine.

“Yes,” she agreed breathlessly.

Lucien brought his glass to his lips, intending to swallow what remained when Elain asked, “Why did Feyre say you were so popular because you were Autumn Court and had fire in your blood?”

Lucien choked, holding his glass away from his chest as he turned to face her younger sister.

“She said what?” He wheezed, hair falling in his face. Elain thumped him on the back.

“She said you were popular with women because—”

He held his hand up to stop her, gulping down air. “Let’s get out of here…I’ll show you what she meant.”

Elain looked up, surprised by how dark his expression had become. Realization dawned. “She meant—”

“Yes. C’mon. Let’s get out of here.”

[demonslayedher]

The Sound Pillar past, I have heard that explore a bit in databook about being ninja.

Also what happened his sibling that still remain.

Also what there react

Combining info from the fanbooks and Chapters 80, 87, and 90 we get the following narrative of Uzui Tengen and his family, as complete as I could fill it in. It's always possible the anime version will expand and give us more, but here's what I've got in chronological format.

Uzui Tengen's father was the leader of their clan, one of a few ninja clans who lived in close community. Ninja were regularly sent on missions, but it is not clear what those missions were. Women and children were also expected to undergo strict training and go on missions, but women were primarily only valued as baby-makers, and it was common for one man to take multiple wives. The wives, at least in the Uzui case, were chosen upon agreements between families. (For more commentary on the unusual and cult-like nature of the Uzui ninja clan, please see this post.) In Chapter 80, Makio recalls how she never used to be afraid of dying because she was so brainwashed to believe her only value as a kunoichi (female ninja) was to put her life on the line in support of the strong male ninja. Tengen is the oldest of nine children. Of note, Fanbook #2 states that he has a mother and father from whom the nine children came, but as multiple wives is the norm in this village and Uzui was 15 when they were forced to fight each other, I think it's reasonable to assume many of them were half-siblings (even if all with one very busy wife, that would make the youngest one only around 7~9 years old or so, by my guess. But, it doesn't seem unreasonable in this clan that an 8-year-old would be expected to take part in this fight.)

Tengen had his three wives by the time he was 15. Since he is 23 when canon takes place and Hinatsuru (from a ninja clan second in rank to the Uzui clan and who has a good balance of core ninja skills) is 21, Makio (physically a highly capable ninja but her short temper causes her to fail her missions and yes, she is Tengen's cousin, please restrain your knee-jerk reactions and accept the cultural difference and move one) is 20, and Suma is 19 (and yes, Fanbook #2 said she likes both men and women), that means his wives were respectively 13, 12, and 11 when they fled the village. As Suma's younger sister was originally the one being considered as a bride, this means they were willing to marry off girls even younger than that. See this post for more commentary on multiple wives in the Taisho period, and as an added note, the legal age for women to marry in Taisho was 16. The Uzui ninja clan was entirely counter-cultural in the first place, though, so this doesn't apply very directly to them. Furthermore, due to their curse, the Ubuyashiki clan had very usually early expectations for children to wed, and they always run a not officially recognized organization. Otherwise, most of the cast seems to follow more usual Meiji/Taisho family patterns. Of the nine siblings, three of them died before Tengen turned 15, simply due to the lifestyle. When Tengen was 15 (clarified according to Fanbook #1), Tengen's father pit the remaining six siblings against each other so that only the strong would remain. They were all concealing their identities and did not know they were fighting their own siblings. According to Fanbook #2, Tengen killed two of them, and his younger brother (second oldest) killed another two, and Tengen was pissed when he realized what was happening. He couldn't bring himself to kill his remaining brother, though that brother was just like their father when it came to his values that only the strong should survive, and he really didn't care about killing his own flesh and blood. This was when Tengen decided he didn't want to live like this, and he took his wives and fled. For a while (according to Fanbook #2), he often said he should go to hell, but this made Makio angry, it made Hinatsuru cry, and it made Suma bite him so he stopped saying that. He did continue to think that he should eliminate the rest of this evil Uzui clan, but he could never bring himself to kill his father and little brother. (So, fanfic writers, grab your pens, we can assume the Uzui clan is still active.) Anyway, once he was free of that lifestyle where he had to constantly hide his presence, he thoroughly rebelled and embraced the flamboyant.

It's unclear when and how Tengen learning Breathing technique. It's possible there was knowledge of this technique in some form or another among the ninja (though his wives don't seem to display it), and it's also possible he learned from a cultivator. Sound is an off-shoot of Thunder, but it's unclear whether Sound was established before he came along, or if he created this Breath to make extra use of his keen hearing. (What I would give to see Tengen/Kuwajima interactions, preferably arguing about which Breath is superior.) It's unclear how much time passed between fleeing the clan and joining the Demon Slayer Corps. Given his ninja skills, as soon as he found out about the Corps (and perhaps by extension, demons), passing the Final Selection was probably a breeze for him. It was either right after the Final Selection (and therefore still waiting for his uniform), or just as he had made up his mind to join the Corp that he declares his new rule to his wives: their lives are #1 priority. #2 priority is morally upright humans, and #3 is Tengen himself.

And they're like, "whaaaaaaaat."

But sure enough they all accept the demon slaying mission, and before long, Tengen and his wives meet Oyakata-sama one fine spring day, I assume upon attaining the rank of Sound Pillar. Oyakata-sama sympathizes with how hard it must had been for Tengen--for all of them--to go against what they were raised to believe, and to fight to protect people in what they've deemed a morally upright course of life. Tengen's like, "this guy gets it" and becomes as big a fanboy as any other Pillar is for Oyakata-sama. It's purely conjecture, but I'm guessing he and Oyakata-sama both were somewhere around age 15~17 at this meeting (again, we don't know how much time has passed since Tengen left the ninja. Due to Kanae and Tengen's shared presence at later flashbacks, he couldn't had been older than 18~19). Tengen goes on to be super popular. The most popular Pillar in the Corp, Taisho Rumor has it. His wives all help on missions too, but there's an agreement that they'll get out and live a happy domestic life once they've bagged an Upper Moon--enough of a contribution to, perhaps, to feel they've atoned for the sins they committed as ninja (or at least, this was how Hinatsuru proposed the idea). Once the arm gets chopped and the eye gets cut, Tengen gains a really good excuse for retiring, but it was just his luck to have declared three Tsuguko within hours of his forced retirement. (Like, I doubt this counts for anything. And if he ever calls them that again his trio of Tsuguko are probably going to be more confused than anybody else.) Anyway, Nezuko brings him back from the brink of poison-induced death and he basically walks home. While still involved in the Corp in training the rank and file members and guarding Kiriya upon his becoming Oyakata-sama (meaning he, like Himejima, was trusted with knowledge in advance about Kagaya's very flamboyant exit plan). After that he truly goes into domestic retirement mode and makes friends with a fellow lop-sided former Pillar, however drab he always thought that person was. He takes enough of a liking to said former Pillar that he brings him along on co-ed hot spring dips and lets him hold his first child. Which of the three wives birthed the first child, we don't know. And then one of his descendants goes on to be a flamboyant gymnast, but still gathers once a year under Ubuyashiki's leadership to perform the Sound Breath forms as a sacred Kagura dance. And we still don't know what became of Tengen's brother. For all we know, modern gymnast Uzui Tenma and his six other siblings regularly avoid explosive attacks on their life from a generations-held promise to eliminate them. PARKOUR---but more flamboyant. (I hope it's obvious that I am being silly here and have no canon basis for this.)

[thechangeling]

She burns like rum on a fire

Why did I do this to myself ughhhhh?

So @adoravel-fenomeno and I were talking about Kit potentially getting into an abusive relationship given that he's statistically likely too given his roots. So now I give you this fic! Sorry. Kit is using he/him in this fic because he hasn't really gone on his gender quest yet.

The title is from Cherry Wine by Hozier. I reccomend you listen to Cherry Wine and Trauma by NF while reading this.

Cw: Mentions of physical and verbal abuse, abusive, controlling behavior, negative self talk and extreme denial. Also brief mention of blood.

2013

Don't cry.

Don't cry Kit told himself over and over inside his head as he tried to get a hold of his breathing. As he lay on his bed at 2 in the morning, desperately refreshing his conversation with Autumn.

Autumn or as his best friend Janessa liked to call her "the virus" was Kit's girlfriend. His very first. A mundane with the sight. They had been dating for a few months now. When they had first gotten together everything was amazing, it so it seemed.

They had some much in common and they had fun together. Autumn was hot, funny and charasmatic. She had this way of making him feel like the only person in the room. She showered him with gifts and complements that made Kit finally feel worthy for the first time in his life.

But as time went on things shifted. Autumn insisted on spending almost ever waking second with him. Kit didn't mind at first, he loved hanging out with her. But he missed his parents and his sister, and he knew they missed him too. Whenever they had family movie night, or they wanted Kit to watch Mina, Autumn threw a fit. She insisted that he was ignoring her.

She didn't want him seeing Janessa either, or Nessie as Kit called her for short. Autumn always insisted that she was plotting to steal Kit away from her, which was ridiculous but nothing could change Autumn's mind when she was in a mood. So Kit had found himself blowing Nessie off to hang out with Autumn and making excuses for it.

Kit always felt super guilty for making Autumn so upset. He tried to get out of his agreements if it to stop her from crying but sometimes Tessa and Jem wouldn't let him. It was frustrating when they didn't understand. She would rage for awhile, calling Kit stupid and worthless. Sometimes she would make comments about him being adopted, telling him that Tessa and Jem didn't really love him and they only saw him as a free babysitter for their real child.

She would make jokes about all kinds of things. How Kit wasn't a real shadowhunter, his weight, his past, his bisexuality, his ADHD. Kit knew that Autimn didn't really mean anything by it. It was nothing personal and she didn't really mean it. She loved him. And he loved her.

Tonight had been different though. His grades had taken a turn for the worst because he had been blowing of the tutoring sessions the school had payed for as a part of his accommodations. Because he had been spending that time with Autumn. Kit knew it was a bad idea to miss those, but his girlfriend needed him. She didn't have anybody else. She couldn't count on her parents like he could, and she didn't really have any friends.

But Kit was in big trouble. Tessa and Jem were mad. The school was mad. People were saying that Kit was ungrateful.

Ah yes because every disabled person should just bend down and kiss the feet of every person that deigns to give them what they're legally entitled to.

But Kit knew that he had really screwed up this time. He tried to explain to Autumn that he couldn't see her as often as he used to anymore because he needed to fix his grades. And she absolutely lost it. Which he had been expecting.

However what Kit hadn't been expecting this time was for her to hit him.

And she hit him hard. Punched him straight in the nose. And sure it wasn't that big of a deal. Kit was a shadowhunter and he was pretty much used to being hit. But he hadn't been expecting it.

And there was just so much blood.

Autumn of course instantly apologized profusely. She kissed him over and over and told him that she loved him and she didn't mean to. And Kit knew she was telling the truth but-

But he still felt a sinking feeling in his chest that he couldn't explain.

But Kit had applied an iratze, wiped off the blood, and now everything was as good as new. When he had arrived back home, his parents had noticed anything or asked him any questions.

Now he was lying awake at 2 in the morning, filled with guilt and worry as he waited for Autumn to text him back. He gnawed on his bottom lip anxiously as he tried not to over think things.

Maybe she was still mad at him? Was there something else Kit was supposed to say or do? Or maybe he should just leave her alone for awhile?

It was maddening.

Kit turned off his phone and threw it down in frustration, pulling his giant red and black flannel over his shoulders and curling in on himself. He felt strangely exhausted, but unable to sleep. His nose and left eye socket still throbbed a little despite the fact that they should be healed.

Kit thought about using another iratze but his steele was across the room and he couldn't bring himself to stand up to go get it.

God he really was pathetic. Maybe he deserved this. Tears welled up in Kit's eyes.

Don't cry. Don't cry.

This time Kit couldn't hold it back. So he let himself cry. Tears came streaming down his cheeks as he tried to muffle his sobs with his hand. Deep down he knew it was his fault. It was always his fault.

But with Autumn he had really tried. Sure he wasn't perfect but Kit really cared about her. And it wasn't good enough. He wasn't good enough.

Kit couldn't help but think of the last time he felt like this. The last time he was rejected. He had been careful about trying to keep all thoughts of Ty Blackthorn out of his head for awhile. Autumn was a good distraction, even when she was screaming obscenities at him. It was still a distraction.

Kit closed his eyes and conjured the memory of holding Ty up on the roof. If he squeezed his eyes tightly enough, Kit could still feel the softness of his hoodie and the slight tickle of Ty's dark hair against his skin. He could conjure the smell of Ty's skin and the way he had trembled slightly against Kit's body.

I should have kissed him. Kit mused, hugging himself tightly. Just once. Even if Ty had pushed him away in disgust, it would have been worth it. Just to know what it felt like.

Suddenly from the bottom of the bed, Kit's phone lit up with a call. He scrambled to grab it, thinking it was Autumn, but it was actually Janessa. Kit cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound normal as he answered the phone.

"Why are you calling me at 2 am Nessie?"

"The better question is why are you still awake at 2 am," she pointed out, sounding smug. "I'm a vampire. Creature of the night remember? It's kinda prime time for me Kit Kat."

Kit smiled as he felt the previous angst wash away. "Yeah fair enough. But still, why are you calling me?"

Kit heard her sigh into the phone. "Well honestly because this is probably the only time you're free now a days," she said spitefully. "You know thanks to she-who-must-not-be-named." Kit rolled his eyes.

"That's my girlfriend you're talking about, Janessa!" He snapped.

"Well your girlfriend's a total bitch!"

Normally Kit would argue with her and tell her that she was way off base. That Autumn wasn't so bad and that she was trying. That she loved him. But today he just couldn't.

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "We got into another fight tonight," he admitted. "Just a few hours ago actually."

"I'm sorry love," Janessa murmed. Nessie wasn't British. She was actually Canadian. But she had moved around the world with her previous band before settling in Devon and leaving them to go solo. She had picked up on some British expressions though.

"I wish you weren't going through this. But Kit, you gotta break up with her! She's bad news!"

Kit rested his face against the palm of his left hand. "I can't," he groaned.

Janessa let out a frustrated yell on the other end of the phone. "What the hell are you planning on doing Kit!? I mean are you just gonna wait into she hits you or what?" She spat.

"She already did," Kit responded instantly without missing a beat.

He gasped and slapped a hand to cover his mouth. Kit had no idea why he actually told her. Impulsivity maybe? Or maybe he just needed to get it out. But he instantly regretted it.

There was a long uncomfortable silence on the other end of the phone. Kit was just about to ask Janessa where she went when suddenly she spoke.

"I'm coming over."

Kit tried to protest but she hung up on him.

Before he had time to panic or scream or throw something, there was an aggressive tapping on his window. Of course. Janessa had vampire speed. He looked up to see Nessie perched on his windowsill looking solem.

Her long black curly hair was pulled into a high ponytail and she wore what by her standards was probably a casual outfit. A black long sleeved low cut crop top and white ripped skinny jeans tucked into thigh high heeled leather boots. And of course, she wore a full face of makeup. Even after the facial feminization surgery she was still a little insecure about going out without makeup on.

Nessie banged on his window again, more impatiently and Kit jumped up to let her in. She landed on his bedroom floor with the grace of a cat, making no sound. She stared at him silently with an expression that Kit found hard to decipher.

"Show me where," she whispered in that deep raspy voice of hers. She reached for his face and Kit let Janessa cradle his face with her hands and tried not to wince as her cold skin came into contact with his.

He shook his head. "No you won't see it, I put an iratze on it already. It's done." Janessa scoffed and stepped back.

"You know the damage isn't just skin deep Kit," she said pointedly. "No matter how much you want to pretend it is."

He glared at her. "Wow that's so insightful Nessie!," he said sarcastically. "What else you got?"

"Oh come on Kit you know I'm right," She hissed. "You have to end it!"

Kit shook his head. Why does she keep saying that?

"No. Why should I?" Kit retorted. "She loves me." He tried to sound as confident as he could, but truthfully he wasn't so sure anymore.

Autumn had gone above and beyond to make Kit feel loved and appreciated yo the point where she was almost obsessive. But she could also be cruel and spiteful. Kit had convinced himself that he should be happy with what he had because it was as good as he was gonna get.

And the sad part was that was still true.

"No she doesn't," Janessa breathed desperately. To Kit's horror, it looked like she was about to cry. Kit couldn't remember if he had ever seen her cry. Not once.

"Somebody who really loved you could never hurt you like that!" She protested shakily, her voice warbled as tears spilled down her face.

Kit could feel his tears returning at the sight of Nessie crying. He rushed towards her and pulled her into his arms, burying his face in her neck. In the comfort of his best friend's embeace he allowed himself to finally sob. He cried for that broken niave part of himself that kept getting hurt.

She rested her chin on the top of his head, (she was taller then him,) and held him close. "Please promise me you will break up with her," Janessa begged.

"I just don't get it," Kit whispered against her skin. "I did everything right. I did everything I could." He blinked back tears. "Why doesn't she love me Nessie?"

He felt her shake against him. "I don't know Kit," she sobbed. "But I love you ok? I love you and your parents love you, and Mina loves you so much!"

Kit sighed, pulling back to wipe his tears. "I know, but what if I, you know-. What if I never find someone? Like romantically?"

Janessa studied him, raising her eyebrow. "Well do you need to find someone? Who is this arbitrary someone who can give you something a friendship can't?"

That's actually a good point.

"I mean," Nessie continued, crossing her arms and shifting her weight. "If you do end up in a relationship then cool, it's whatever. But the way I see it is you shouldn't focus all of your energy on looking because you're gonna end up missing out on some pretty cool stuff in the mean time." She smiled.

Kit thought about it. He knew logically Janessa had a point. But he just couldn't feel it. He was too depressed and defeated. And as ashamed as it made him, Kit still missed Autumn. He tried to smile along with Nessie but it must have looked weak because she looked concerned.

"Hey," she cooed, reaching for him.

"Can you sing to me Nessie?" He asked. Kit  felt a little pathetic but hopefully she wouldn't judge him.

She smiled lovingly at him. "Sure." Janessa took his hand and led him to his bed.

"Any requests?" She asked as she pulled off her boots and lay down on Kit's bed. He followed her, snuggling up against Nessie with his back to her.

"No not really," he murmered, closing his eyes. Kit was finally starting to feel how exhausted he really was.

Janessa wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close, resting her head slightly against his shoulder. "Ok," she whispered very softly.

Kit heard her clear her throat softly before the sound of her breathy angelic alto filled his ears.

"I'm turning out the lights, to remember how to see. Till the renaissance takes place, Until a renaissance takes place, and resuscitates the color of paint and divinity."

Kit smiled sleepily at the sound of his enneagram song, something Janessa had introduced him to.

He yawned and let the sound of Nessie's voice lull him to sleep, putting all thoughts of Autumn behind him.

In my head Kit is like 5'4 and Janessa is 5'9. Originally I had her at 5'11 but I wanted her to be closer in height to Kit. Also did I name Kit's abusive girlfriend Autumn after my toxic controlling ex best friend? You bet I did!

Tag list: (you know the deal) @playwithravenclaw @lavender-scented-rat @jazzkaurtheglorious @waterlillies   @nott-the-best @stxr-thxif @magnus-the-fabulous-entp-bane @foxglove-airmid @littlx-songbxrd @clarys-heosphoros @queenlilith43 @arangiajoan @hardlymatters @the-wckd-powers @thomas-gaypanic-lightwood @adoravel-fenomeno

[fangirlovestuff]

Hiii how about Chris x reader where they meet through scarlett?

a/n - hey nonnie!! this was kind of a broad request but i hope this is what you wanted:) i don’t know how to calssify this since it’s probably longer than a blurb, so like, a ficlet maybe?😂 anyways, enjoy!<3

Chaperone

Scarlett was like a sister to you, and you loved her to death, but really, was this party necessary?

Well, it was her birthday. So maybe it was. But still, you couldn't fathom why on earth she would rather celebrate it with a whole bunch of people she didn't know instead of a small gathering.

In her defense, it actually was supposed to be a small gathering, but one thing turned into the other, and well, here you were – at a huge party with a ton of celebrities you didn't know. You weren't even sure Scarlett knew them all.

"Scar, I don't know anyone here. I know it's your birthday and all, but maybe I should head home soon," you pulled her aside as soon as you could, saying it close to her ear so she'll hear you.

"Nonsense. You just got here, and it's my birthday," she pouted, "you can't leave."

"I'll just end up embarrassing you," you argued, "you know I'm not great with… Hollywood people," you gestured around you.

She was about to answer before her gaze fixated on something behind you, you turned around, but couldn't figure out what, or who, she was looking at among the dense crowd. When you turned back to her, she had a smirk on her face that could only mean trouble.

"What?" you eyed her suspiciously.

"I have just the solution for you. There's someone I want you to meet," she took your arm in hers and started leading you through the crowd in the direction she was looking at. "He can chaperone you if you're so worried about being embarrassing."

She started waving at someone, and you opened your mouth to speak but you just gaped wider when you realized who she was waving at.

"What? No, please don't tell me that's who I think it is! You can't pu-" your objections were cut off by Scarlett's steps accelerating, pulling you forward with her and before you knew it you were both standing in front of non other than Chris Evans.

Fuck.

"Hey Chris!" she pulled him into a warm hug, which he returned. She introduced you to him, or at least you thought that's what she was saying, too preoccupied with the warm smile he was sending you and his glinting blue eyes to really pay attention.

Until Scarlett said the next thing, "So, this one right here, was worried she'd act embarrassing in front of 'Hollywood people', and I was thinking, you could chaperone her."

Chris laughed at that, and you sent a glare at Scarlett before smiling politely. "That would be a little pointless, considering Chris here is just another Hollywood person, no offense," you turned to him but didn't wait for him to respond, "for me to embarrass myself in front of, which I already have. Sorry for that, by the way," you smiled, hoping your demeanor would hide how embarrassed you actually were.

"Hey, I get it," he chuckled. "This can be… a lot," you gestured at the room around you.

"Speaking of," Scarlett said, cutting in before you were able to respond, "I better go around greeting my guests. See you later!" she smirked before effortlessly disappearing into the crowd before you could make a peep.

"Well, I guess I'm chaperoning you after all," Chris grinned in amusement, offering you his arm. As you hesitantly took it, he spoke, "since you already embarrassed yourself in front of me, I'm fine, right?"

"You are seriously underestimating the capacity of my awkwardness, Evans," you chuckled. "But yeah, I guess you'll do."

You spent some time with him, but talking over the loud music proved more difficult than either of you thought.

"Wanna go get some air?" he asked, and you gratefully nodded as you made your way to the small yard outside of the house.

"Much better," you sighed in relief as you relished in the relative silence.

"Yeah," he breathed. "I don't really like these big parties as well. I mean, they're nice, but sometimes the music just gets a little too loud."

"Well, at least there's a benefit to chaperoning me, cause I'm you excuse to, you know," you gestured vaguely, "go outside."

"I'm not chaperoning you, you know," he smiled.

"No? Then how come you talked to me the whole night?" you smiled back.

"I wanted to," he came closer. "Scarlett told me you were cute, she just didn't tell me how much. Wonder I didn't meet you sooner."

"Wait a second, Scarlett told you I was cute?" you frowned, "you're like, a super hot mega superstar, why would sc-"

Your words were cut off by his lips softly touching yours, giving you a chance to pull away before seeing you didn't take it and deepening the kiss, cupping his cheek in his warm hand.

"I'm sorry," he breathed, "I figured it was the best way to stop you from rambling. Plus, you know," he smirked, "I wanted to."

"Well, you were told to keep me from embarrassing myself so that was a good call. Saved my ass probably," you smiled, slightly biting your lip when he laughed. "Superhero instincts and all," you teased.

"Yeah," he grinned. "You do have a nice ass. Shame if I didn't save it," and now it was your turn to burst into laughter.

"That was bad, I'm sorry," he chuckled.

"No, it was… it was fine," you smiled, laughter still lingering in your eyes.

"Now I feel like I should shut up," he said.

"I can help with that," you smiled, closing the distance between you with a sweet kiss to his lips.

[leossmoonn]

Belle of The Ball [Kol Mikaelson]

masterlist 

pairing - kol mikaelson x fem,gilbert!reader

type - fluff

note / request - “since your TO requests are open can i request a kol fic where the reader is a gilbert and is kinda shy and kol invites her to the mikaelson ball” enjoy!

summary -  the middle child of the mikaelson family takes interest in you and invites you to the mikaelson ball

warnings / includes - your jeremy’s twin, mild language, kissing, suggestive flirting, underage drinking (drink safely), mention of sex

————

*gif isn’t mine*

“I think Connor likes you,” your friend, Karina, nudged you. 

You looked over to the cute, brunette boy that was staring at you from across the hallway. “Yeah, right,” you muttered.

“I’m serious! Oh, look! He’s coming to ask you out!” Karina squealed. 

You looked away from your locker, straightening up as Connor was approaching you. He flashed you a charming smile. 

“I’m gonna go. Meet me by your car!” Karina smiled. 

“No! Rina!” You whisper-shouted. 

Your attention was turned to Connor as he stood in front of you. 

“Hey, Y/n,” he greeted. “Hey… Connor,” you smiled shyly. 

“I wanted to ask you a question,” he said, leaning against the lockers. 

“Y-Yeah, go ahead,” you nodded. He smiled at your nervousness, moving closer to you.

His scent filled your nostrils and you felt yourself going dizzy. You leaned against the lockers, hoping it would help you not trip and fall. 

“So, I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date with me at Mystic Grill. We can get dinner then go back to my place and watch a movie,” Connor suggested. 

Your eyes widened. You were pleasantly surprised. You had liked Connor since school had started, which was a few months ago. You had been trying to get him to notice you, which was going horribly until now. You were way too shy to go up to say anything to him. You guessed that Karina had something to do with him asking you out. 

“Um, Earth to Y/n?” Connor asked, waving his hand in front of your face.

“Huh?” You blinked rapidly. You looked at him, getting even more embraced and shy when you realise you got lost in your own thoughts. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I’m just um… not really used to people asking me out, you know? I’ve never really been on a date before. My Aunt Jenna used to say that was okay since I’m only in junior year and stuff, but my brother has already had sex with Vicki Donovan and my sister is already on her second boyfriend. It’s kinda sad how un-loveable I am and-” 

You were cut off by Connor chuckling. You cussed yourself out in your head for being so awkward.

“I’m sorry, again. I ramble a lot, too,” you apologised. 

“It’s not worries. It’s really cute. You’re really cute. Anyways, what do you say? Come with me to Netflix and chill?” Connor asked. 

You smiled, opening your mouth to respond, but you were rudely interrupted. 

“She has plans Friday. Sorry, mate,” an all-too familiar Australian accent sounded behind you. 

You clenched your jaw and balled your fists. You turned your head, glaring. 

“Kol, go away,” you said through gritted teeth. 

“No can do, darling. Jeremy asked me to watch over you,” Kol smiled. 

“Uh, who’s this guy?” Connor asked. You turned back to him. “Oh, just a uh… family friend. Don’t mind him, he’s super annoying.”

“Actually, do mind me. I’m here to pick Y/n up. Elena wants you home, now,” Kol said. 

“Oh. Well, if you need to be home, go ahead,” Connor said. 

You sighed, “Yeah, um, I do. But it’s a yes to the date.”

Connor smiled widely. “Awesome! I’ll pick you up at 8.”

“Great! Can’t wait,” you smiled sweetly. 

Connor walked away, leaving you grinning from ear-to-ear. 

“You can do so much better, Y/n,” Kol said. 

You rolled your eyes, turning 180 to him. “Go away, Kol. I know for a fact that Jeremy and Elena didn’t tell you to watch over me.”

“Hm, true. That was just an excuse,” Kol smiled. 

“An excuse for what?” You asked. “Well, I needed and excuse to talk to you,” Kol shrugged. 

You sighed, going back to your locker and grabbing your textbooks. “About what?” You asked. 

“Well, I know my family hasn’t made it easy for any of you, so we are throwing a ball! My mother’s idea, really. We are allowed to bring dates and I’d like to bring you,” Kol explained. 

You started to feel all flustered. “Uh… Wh-Why?”

“Because I like you, Y/n. I think you’re cute, funny, and all the good parts of a woman. I’d like you to ditch that Connor-nobody and be my plus one!”

You slammed your locker shut, walking away from Kol. 

“Y/n, darling! You never answered me!” Kol exclaimed, trying to catch up with you. 

“Yeah, I did that on purpose,” you muttered, knowing he could hear you because of his vamp hearing. 

“You are so rude. I take it your parents didn’t teach you any manners? Not like they can teach you them now,” Kol joked. 

You scoffed, not believing what you were hearing. “Like you can talk. And plus, why would I want to go to the ball with a jerk like you?”

You waked out of the school, spotting Karina over at your car. 

“Y/n, wait!” Kol called out, reaching out to grab your wrist.

“What!” You exclaimed, turning to him. 

“Look, I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean that, but I really do want you to accompany me to the ball,” Kol said, staring you right in the eyes. 

You stared at him for a few moments, your eyes flickering down to his lips. Once you noticed him smirk, you looked away, pulling your wrist away from his grip. 

“I appreciate the invitation, but I’m going out with Connor,” you mumbled. 

Kol sighed, “Fine. But if you reconsider, it’ll be at our house.”

“Thanks,” you said, looking up at him through your lashes. “I need to go, okay? My friend is waiting for me.”

“Alright. I hope you reconsider, Y/n. I’d be a shame if I didn’t have a date,” Kol said. 

“As if you can’t get anyone you want,” you rolled your eyes. 

“But I only want you,” Kol admitted. 

Butterflies fluttered in your stomach. As much as you wanted to stay and ask him if he really did want you, you knew you’d end up a blubbering mess. And you definitely didn’t want to be like that in front of a devastatingly handsome Original vampire. 

“I gotta go,” you murmured, turning away and stomping off to Karina. 

“Hey, who’s that?” Karina asked once you approached. 

“Oh um… An annoying friend of Jeremy,’s” you lied, running your fingers through your hair. 

“Hm, well he’s hot,” Karina bit her lip, looking at Kol who was still where you left him. 

You rolled your eyes and started to twiddle with your fingers. “No, he’s not.”

Karina narrowed her eyes at you, gasping in realisation. 

“What?” You asked, full of confusion. “You like him!” Karina grinned. 

You scoffed, “Hell no.” 

“Hell, yes! You’re doing that thing you do when you talk about a guy you like,” Karina giggled, pointing to your hands. 

You looked down and sighed, putting your arms to your sides. “I do that when I’m nervous.”

“Oh, yeah? Are you nervous about Mr. Hottie?” Karina wiggled her eyebrows.

“No. I’m nervous because Connor asked me out this Friday,” you explained. 

“Oh, my God! Babe, that’s awesome!” Karina squealed, jumping up and down, clapping while doing so.  

“Thanks, I know,” you smiled sheepishly. “Well, what day is it? Wednesday, right? We need to shop!” Karina exclaimed. 

“No, no! I'll just wear jeans and a cute top. There’s no need to shop,” you said. 

“Have you seen your closet? You only have one cute flora top and a pair of black baggy jeans. The rest of your closet are sweats and sweatshirts. You don’t even have any date-appropriate dresses!” Karina said. 

“Not true!” You protested weakly. 

“Mhm,” Karina said, pursing her lips. You rolled your eyes, knowing she was right. 

“Fine, but we are only going to buy one outfit. ONE,” you said, holding up your first finger. 

“I’ll take it! Wanna go now?” Karina asked. 

“Sure,” you nodded. “Yay! We can get lunch at the Grill, too,” Karina suggested, opening the passenger door of your car. 

“Alright,” you nodded, going over to the driver’s seat. 

You drove to the outlet mall, parking in front of the shop. Karina and you walked inside, Karina immediately pulling you to the jeans section. 

“God, I hate jeans,” you muttered. “Why?” Karina asked. 

“Because they’re tight and I have to jump to get them on,” you explained. 

“Well, that’s just because you have a nice ass,” Karina smiled.

You smiled, “Yeah, right.” “I’m serious! Your figure is to die for! I’m jealous, honestly,” Karina said in a sincere tone.

You chuckled, “Thanks, Rina.”

“Of course. Now, let’s see what jeans they have. Do you want black, dark wash, or light wash?” Karina asked. 

“Dark wash,” you answered. “High-waisted or low-waisted?” Karina asked. 

“(Your choice),” you said. 

Karina pulled out two pairs of jeans, handing them to you. “Now, for the shirts! Do you want a ruffled top, knot front, or button-up?” 

“Um, ruffled, I guess,” you said. “Alright… Well, I know you like plaid… So, what about this one?” Karina pulled out a black and white top that was cropped. It was long sleeved, the sleeves ruffled slightly. The bottom of the shirt was stretchy and the top had buttons. 

“Wow, this is really cute. Simple, too. I like it,” you smiled. 

“I knew you would! Now, go try it on,” Karina said, going over to the changing rooms.

You put on your cloths, buttoning up the top and turning around to the mirror. You raised your brows, surprised by how good you looked. 

“You done?” Karina called out from outside. 

“Yeah,” you said, going out of the dressing room.

“You look so pretty. Y/n. The jeans highlight your figure perfectly!” Karina exclaimed. 

“Yeah,” you smiled, “And the top isn’t as cropped as I thought it would be.”

“I am amazing at dressing you! Maybe I should become a professional dresser?” Karina said.

You chuckled, “You should. Well, I think I’ll get this. I’m not interested in shopping anymore and I’m hungry.”

“Alright, well, I have some things I want to try on. So, give me 15 minutes tops and get us a table at the Grill,” Karina said, holding up the clothes she found. 

“Sounds good,” you said. You went back behind the door and changed out of your clothes. You paid for your outfit, walking out and going to the Grill. 

You got yourself seated quickly. 

“Y/n, hey!” Matt exclaimed. “Oh, hey, blue eyes,” you grinned. 

“How have you been?” Matt asked. “Good! How about you?” You asked. 

“I’ve been good, thanks. How is Elena?” Matt asked.

You chuckled, “Elena is good. I’ll tell her you asked about her.”

“Alright, sounds good. So, I heard Connor Askren asked you out,” Matt said. 

“Oh, yeah,” you smiled happily. “Good for you. I have to warn you, though, be careful,” Matt said. 

“Be careful about what?” You asked. “Well, Connor has a reputation of asking girls out then bailing on them,” he explained. 

“Oh,” you frowned. “Well, he seemed really excited to ask me out.”

“I'm sure he was. I’m just saying. You’re like a little sister to me. I don’t want you getting hurt,” Matt explained. 

You smiled gratefully. “Thanks, big bro.”

“No problem. Anyways, are you here alone or is Karina with you?” He asked. 

“She’s with me. She’s at the clothing store. I just came from there, hence the bag,” you said, holding up your shopping bag. 

“Ah right. Let me guess, she wanted to try some stuff on and she let you go?” Matt asked. 

“Yep,” you laughed. “That’s what Caroline does. So, do you want to get started with a drink or anything?” Matt asked. 

“Yeah, sure. Can I get a Diet Coke, chicken tenders, and cheese fries?” You asked. 

“Coming right up. Do you know what Karina would want?” Matt asked. 

“She’ll probably want lemonade, a chicken wrap, and onion rings,” you said. 

“Alright. Be right back,” Matt smiled. 

You gave him a goodbye wave. You sighed once he left, looking at your shopping bag. You would be lying if you said you were’t worried about Connor. You hoped that he was different than what Matt told you. 

————

Friday came sooner than expected. You were currently at home and getting ready for your date. Karina had helped you with your makeup, putting eyeliner on you and letting you borrow her lipstick. You were strapping on your heels when Karina told you she was leaving. 

“Text me if you two kiss,” Karina winked. 

“Highly doubt we will, but noted,” you smiled. 

“Alright, I’m gonna go. You look amazing, Y/n. Have fun!” Karina hugged you before leaving.  “Thanks,” you giggled as you shut the door. 

You looked at your phone, seeing it was 7:57. You smiled nervously, grabbing your purse and waiting at the door. The 3 minutes passed by slowly. It was soon 8 and he wasn’t there yet. You shrugged it off, knowing that he would probably be there in a minute or two. But as you waited, 2 minutes passed, 5, 10, and 20. Each time you checked your phone, your hope in Connor disappeared and your fear of what Matt said becoming true increased. Once it reached 8:30, you realised that Connor wasn’t coming and he had in fact stood you up. 

You stomped off to your room, tears falling down your cheeks. 

“God! How stupid are you, Y/n? Thinking a guy like Connor would want to go out with you? A football player? A guy with one of the highest GPA’s? Fat chance,” you sobbed to yourself. 

You took off your heels and wiped your eyes with the back of your hand, smudging all the makeup that Karina had done. You took off your clothes, slipping into sweats and a tank top. You washed your face of all the makeup, going into your kitchen. You went to go and get some chocolate, but someone interrupted you.

“Don’t look so glum, Y/n. Connor is an ass.” You turned around sharply, surprised to see Rebekah there. 

“I… Rebekah, what are you doing here?” You asked rudely. 

“I’m here to give you your dress and get you ready for the ball!” Rebekah smiled. 

“I’m not going,” you mumbled, going back to getting your food. 

Rebekah sped to you, grabbing your wrist. “Yes, you are. I don’t like you very much. I don’t like any of your family, but Kol seems to have taken an interest in you. I have no idea why, but I just got my family back and want to make everyone happy.”

“Well, I don’t like Kol. So you can tell him to shove off,” you said. 

“Hm… No,” Rebekah grinned. “C’mon, you’re going to the ball whether you like it or not. Your sister and brother will also be there.”

“Another reason not to go,” you stated. 

“Oh, please! If you don’t go I am sure Kol will kill Elena and Jeremy,” Rebekah said. 

“No! I… I don’t want to. Kol doesn’t even like me. He just likes to piss off all my friends,” you said.

“Y/n, look at me,” Rebekah said. You looked at her dully.

“Kol likes you. Hell, I think he’s in love with you. All he talks about it you and quite frankly, it’s sickening, but a little heartwarming to see him care so much for someone. So, please, come to the ball. If you want to leave after a little bit, I’ll make sure you go without any issue. But just try it out,” Rebekah begged. 

Your heart fluttered once you heard Kol might be in love with you. If you were completely honest, you had a little crush on Kol. How couldn’t you? He was charming, handsome, and even nice to you. You never pursued the crush because one, you were too shy for that. And two, you knew your family would kill you. But you knew Rebekah would just kidnap you and take you there, even if you said no again, so you deciding to say yes. 

“Fine, I’ll go. But don’t expect me to have fun,” you mumbled. 

Rebekah took her hand off your wrist, smiling widely. “Great! Let’s go and get you ready, we’re late.”

You nodded and went back to your room. Rebekah sat you down and did your makeup. Giving you a fox eye look with a red lip. She then got out your dress, to which you gasped at.  Your dress was a long red ballgown. The top of the dress had jewels all over, the skirt then puffing out like Cinderella’s. The sleeves of the dress were made to go across your shoulders, letting the top of your breasts and your collar bone show. 

“Wow I… Wow,” you gasped. 

“Amazing, right? You’ll be the belle of the ball! You’ll even outshine Elena, who’s dress is disappointingly gorgeous,” Rebekah smiled. 

“Thank you,” you smiled. 

“Of course! Now go put it on, I’ll help you with the back,” Rebekah said handing it to you. 

You took it gently, going to your bathroom to get changed. You came out, letting Rebekah tighten the dress for you. You then slipped on your black heels that you were wearing earlier, and took a look at you reflection. 

“Wow, I actually look like a princess,” you smiled.

“That you do,” Rebekah smiled. “Now let’s go. Our ride is waiting.”

You nodded, lifting up the bottom of your dress so you could walk. You and Rebekah walked out to the limo, going over to the Mikaelson house. 

“Hey, Rebekah?” You asked. “Yes?” She answered. 

“Why are you being so nice to me? Besides making Kol happy,” you asked. 

Rebekah sighed. “Well, I think you’re good for my brother. You make him more bearable to be around. Kinder, warmer. A lot less murderous. I know you like him, too. I can see the way you look at him when you think no one is paying attention. He’s head over heels for you and I think you could be the same for him after tonight.”

“Good to know,” you smiled. 

“Mhm. But don’t tell anyone I ever complimented you or helped you out tonight. I don’t need your friends thinking I have a good side,” Rebekah said. 

You chuckled. “Alright, deal.”

You two arrived at Rebekah’s house, stepping out of the limo. Rebekah and you waked to the doors, opening them. As you stepped into the ballroom, all eyes went on you. Your entrance elicited gasps from everyone. You smiled shyly, your smile faltering once Elena, Damon, and Jeremy approached you. Rebekah left you to deal with your family.

“What the hell are you doing here!” Elena exclaimed. 

“Having fun, El,” you answered. 

“No, you need to go home now,” Damon said. 

You shook your head. “No. Connor stood me up and Kol invited me to this thing, so I decided to take the opportunity.”

Elena’s angry face fell as she heard what Connor did. “Connor stood you up? That jerk!”

“It's okay. I’d rather be here and in this dress than with him and drunk,” you admitted. 

“Need me to beat him up for you?” Jeremy asked. “I’m good baby bro, but thanks. Uh…. have you guys seen Kol?” You asked. 

“Nope,” Elena said. “And I wouldn’t advise looking for him. He might kill you,” Damon frowned. 

“No, I won’t! Like she said, I invited her here,” Kol said from behind them. 

Damon turned, a grimace on his face. “Why?”

“Because I am in love with her,” Kol smiled, his eyes meeting you’s.

Your blood ran cold and you looked down, holding the skirt of your dress tightly. 

“I’d like to dance with her, if that’s alright,” Kol said.

“No way,” Jeremy said. “You put a hand on her-”

“Jer, it’s okay,” you said. “I’ll shout if I’m in trouble. Please, just go.”

Elena sighed, “Fine. I have to go and see Esther anyways. Do not hurt her.” Elena warned Kol. 

“I never would dream of it,” Kol smiled. 

The three left, leaving you and Kol at the entrance. Kol approached you, you putting your head down again. 

“You look ravishing, Y/n. If we were alone, I’d rip that dress off of you,” Kol said, looking over your figure. 

“Thanks,” you chuckled shyly. 

Kol put his hand on your chin gently, lifting your face up to meet his. “Don’t be so shy, Y/n. And don’t self-doubt yourself, either. I know that asshole Connor stood you up, but you are still the most beautiful, kind girl ever. He doesn’t deserve you anyways.”

“And you do?” You challenged. 

Kol chuckled. “No, but I’m hoping you think differently.” He then offered you his hand. “Dance with me?”

“Sure,” you nodded, taking his hand hesitantly. 

Butterflies threatened to rip out of you as you touched his hand. Goosebumps rushed up your arm as you grasped his hand. Kol walked you two to the ballroom floor. You put your free hand on his shoulder, him putting his free hand on your waist. You two swayed for a few moments until you broke the silence. 

“So, um… How did you know Connor stood me up?” You asked. 

“I had Rebekah spying on you,” Kol admitted. 

“Wow, not creepy at all,” you muttered. “I wanted to be ready for if he stood you up, so Rebekah could then go and get you ready,” Kol explained. 

“Makes sense,” you said. 

Kol smiled at you, not being able to keep his eyes off of you. You kept adverting your gaze. Too nervous to actually look at him or more than 5 seconds. 

“You’re very cute when you’re tense,” Kol complimented.  “Thanks. Not a lot of people think that,” you chuckled. “Well, those people are out of their minds then,” Kol said.

“Why do you like me?” You asked suddenly, looking at him. You had been wandering this all night, waiting until you were here with him to ask. 

Kol smiled. “Well, you’re different. You’re not aggressive like your brother, or so moral like Elena. You’re quiet and calm. You think through things rather than be impulsive, which seems to be how everyone is around here. Your eyes are so beautiful, I get lost in them. When I see you smile, it makes my dead heart come alive. And when you do that hair-twirl thing, it’s so adorable. You’re also extraordinarily stunning, which is a big plus.”

Your heart skipped beats as he told you his reasons for liking you. As you looked at him and watched him pour his heart out, your liking for him grew. You subconsciously moved closer to him, too. Your body doing its own thing. 

“Wow,” you breathed out. “You really um… Thought about this.”

“Well, you are all I think about. Besides who’s head I want to rip off,” Kol smirked. 

“Gross,” you grimaced. “I’m kidding! But I’m serious about you. I’ve never liked someone as much as you, Y/n. I hope that I can prove that I’m a good choice for you,” Kol said. 

“Well, you’re proving it now,” you admitted. 

Kol grinned, “Fantastic.”

You two swayed in silence again. As the music got slower and slower, and the lights got lower and lower, you two moved dancing positions naturally. You were quite scared to move closer to him. You were already so close, practically hugging. But your bodies were like magnets, pulling each other close. So tried to go with everything and relax. 

Both of your arms went around his neck and both of his hands wrapped around your waist and went to the small of your back. You two scooted in until your head was on his shoulder. You closed your eyes and breathed in his scent nonchalantly, enjoying his cologne. Kol nuzzled his cheek onto the side of your head, him also breathing in the scent of your shampoo. 

You two danced for a while before Kol got an idea.

“Do you want to get out of here and go to the balcony?” Kol asked. 

“You’re not gonna kill me, are you?” You joked. 

“No promise,” Kol winked cheekily. You giggled, “Alright. Let’s go.” Kol nodded and kept his grip on your hand, walking you to the balcony. On the way, you took two glasses of champagne. You handed him one as you stepped out on the terrace. You put your elbows on the railing, sipping the champagne. 

“So, why’d you bring me out here?” You asked. 

“To gaze at the stars,” Kol answered simply, walking next to you. 

“Hm,” you hummed, looking up at the night sky. “Did you ever stargaze back before you all were vampires?”

“Yes, all the time. It was one of my favourite things to do,” Kol said. 

“That sounds nice,” you said. “It was,” Kol said. 

“Do you ever miss being a witch?” You asked. Kol sighed, taking a sip of champagne. “Sometimes. But I love being immortal.” You smiled, “Makes sense. If I were a vampire, I’d be the same.”

Kol turned to you, “I can turn you.”

You shook your head, “No. I like being human. Being a vampire seems to complicated. Plus, I want kids.”

“Hm. Sounds nice having your little perfect, human life. I miss that,” Kol said. 

“You were never human, though,” you smiled, turning to him. “Yes, but I was once mortal,” Kol said. 

“True,” you nodded, taking a sip of your champagne. “Hey, um… I want to thank you for inviting me. I know I said I didn’t want to go, but I’m really glad I did. I’m having a really good time.”

“Of course. I knew you would. I know you’re not the girly-girl type, but every girl deserves to experience to dress up for a ball,” Kol said. 

“I agree,” you nodded. “And I’m also glad that you are warming up to me a little bit. You’re not so much of a blubbering mess anymore,” Kol smirked. 

You chuckled, “Yeah, I take a little to warm up to new people.”

“Well, I’m glad I’m that person you’ve warmed up to,” Kol said, stepping closer to you. He put his hand on your’s, looking at you flirtatiously.

You grinned at the moves he was making, deciding to make a move of your own. 

You leaned into him, your eyes boring into his the whole time. You were standing toe-to-toe to him, your mouth parted as his eyes glowed dark brown. He smirked at you, his hand leaving your’s and settling on your waist. You wanted to move closer, but your skirt was so puffed out it restricted you from doing so. Kol noticed your slight frustration with your dress, setting his glass down, and putting his other hand on your waist, pulling you impossibly closer.

“Kol, my dress is too big,” you chuckled. 

“Not too big for me to do this,” Kol grinned, leaning his head down. 

Before you knew it, he was kissing you. Your eyes widened as his lips met your’s. A few moments passed before he pulled away, confused and scared. 

“I’m sorry, I must have read the room wrong. I-” Kol started to apologise, but you put your hand on the back of his head and pulled him in again. 

This time Kol was surprised. He didn’t waste any time in kissing you back, though. Your lips moved together in perfect synchronisation. It was like his lips were made for your’s as they fit in-between your’s like puzzle pieces. Both your fingers entangled themselves in his hair, pulling slightly as he pulled you impossibly closer. Your stomach did a million of flips as his tongue swiped your bottom lip. You opened your mouth slowly, Kol’s tongue slipping in gently. As your tongue’s fought, Kol’s hands went to your skirt, finding your legs under them. He put his hands under your thighs, lifting you up with ease. 

You pulled away, breathing heavily. Kol’s eyes opened, going down to your lips and smiling as your lipstick was smudged. Your chest heaved up and down as you stared into his eyes. 

“I just wanted to um… To tell you that i-if you were planning on having um, sex. I’m not ready. This um… This was my first kiss, too. Sorry if you were expecting to get lucky tonight,” you confessed, blushing profusely. 

Kol smiled at you, setting you down. “It’s alright, love. I wasn’t expecting anything from you tonight. I hope your first kiss was good.”

“It was really good,” you giggled. 

“Good. Now, do you want to continue to make out? Or we could go back out and dance,” Kol suggested. 

“Um… can we dance again?” You asked, going back to your shy nature. 

“Of course we can, darling,” Kol smiled, holding his hand out for you to take. 

He led you to the ballroom. You two danced for a couple hours until you started to get tired. Kol drove you back home and you went into your house, Kol kissing you goodbye. You closed the door, smiling widely and squealing to yourself. 

Your phone rang and you answered it immediately, seeing it was Karina. 

“Hey! How did your date go?” She asked. 

“Um…” you sighed, the feeling of Kol’s lips on your’s still there. You smiled again, fidgeting with your fingers.

“It was good. Really, really good.”

————

Like and Reblog!

taglist form

[peachbear88]

Tale as Old as Time (Pt 2)

A/N: Part 2! We're getting there people!

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

The metal gates swing open with a rusty whine.

Your eyes snap open and you grab your chamber pot, and club the figure over the head.

"Ow!" The figure exclaims, falling over.

You brandish the pot as menacingly as possible, given the awkward angle.

"Who are you?" You demand, your voice cracking. He rubs the growing lump on his head.

"You hit hard madmoiselle," He responds, ignoring your question. Another set of footsteps, heavier ones echo off the stone tower. You gulp, as the figure arrives to reveal a skinny but tall man wearing what appears to be a gold pendant.

"Don't scare the poor girl Pietro. In fact, you shouldn't even be letting the prisoner out!" The man chided. The blond boy (supposedly) named Pietro laughed, ruffling his hair. He zooms over to where the man is, leaving a faint blue mist behind him.

"What's wrong doc? Scared what'll happen when my sister finds out?" He teases and the doctor shoves him away, wrapping his floating red cloak tighter around him.

"Oh shut up." Pietro turns back to you.

"So. You're the new prisoner." He looks you up and down. You drop the pot and it hits the floor with a loud clang, making him flinch.

"Yep, that's me. Come to kill me at last?" You question, raising your arms as if to embrace death. He bursts into laughter, slapping the tall man on the shoulder.

"Oh man! Strange, did you hear that? She thinks we're going to kill her!" He keeps laughing while the man named Strange rolls his eyes, muttering something about stupid kids.

"So... You're not going to kill me?" You inquire hopefully. Pietro's laughter dies off as he wipes tears from his eyes.

"Kill you? When you could be the one to break the curse? I think not." He shakes his head as if you were the foolish one before thrusting his hand out. "After you."

You walk down the stairs hesitantly, the bright walls of the hallways a stark contrast to your dim cell.

After a few moments, you can't take it anymore, your curiosity getting the best of you.

"What was that you said about a curse?" Pietro instantly pales, shoving you rather forcefully along the hallway.

"Did I say curse? I meant uh-" He stutters, his eyes frantically scanning the area for an excuse. "I mean purse!" He waves the bag in front of your face. "Break the purse!"

You stare at him.

"Break the purse." You repeat skeptically. Strange pushes you along, seemingly in a hurry.

"Oh look! We've arrived at our destination." He pushes the grand golden doors open and your jaw drops. A beautiful, extravagant bedroom lays behind the doors, the ceiling arching up and curving into a golden dome.

"Wow..." You gasp, twirling around in the room.

"Mistress wanted you to have the finest." Strange replies, bowing low. You snort.

"That girl from earlier?" You look him up and down. "No offence but you look more like you should be her master." He opens his mouth to reply but Pietro cuts him off, shoving him out of the room.

"Well, we'll let you get settled! We hope you'll join us for dinner!" With one last shove, the two disappear from the doorway, leaving you to your own devices.

The moment the door slams shut behind them, you scan the room, your eyes landing on the silken sheets adorning the mattress. You make quick work of it, tearing it into long, thin strips.

"Okay. I can work with this."

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

A small knock sounds out and you frantically shove the long strip of cloth away.

"Come in!" You call out and a menacing looking woman comes in, followed by a boy around the age of 15, wearing a red and blue costume with what appears to be a spider on it. You gape at the odd duo.

"Is that... A spider?" You murmur and the boy bounds into action, sticking his arm out for you to shake.

"Hi! My name's Peter. Peter Parker." You smile at his bubbly demeanor.

"Y/N." The woman's eyes never leave you, examining you. You shrink under her gaze.

"Right! This is Ms Natasha Romanoff. She may look really scary but she's actually a massive softie." Peter whispers confidentially and Natasha smacks him on the head. You laugh at their familial dynamic.

"It's a pleasure to meet you sweetie," She curtseys and you smile. "Please ignore this dumb child." She gestures to Peter.

"Hey!" He exclaims indignantly. You giggle.

"Well, we came to welcome you to our humble abode. Cup of tea?" She proffers and you smile, accepting it. The scent is heavenly, the right amount of sweetness and bitterness. "I find that a perfect cup of tea is just what we all need when it gets rough."

You smile weakly.

"Thank you. Why are you being so nice to me?" Natasha sighs, watching Peter swing around your room, little webs coming from his wrists.

"Well dear, we're all prisoners here as well. Might as well make the best of it." She shrugs and ushers Peter out of the room, leaving you deep in thought.

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

Steve sighs, his feet in Sam's lap, warming his frozen fingers by the fire. The noise of the pub does little to raise his spirits.

"How could she possibly reject me? The most handsome man in the village!" He sighs again while Sam massages his feet. Sam throws the feet off his lap.

"Gosh it disturbs me to see you Steve,"

"Looking so down in the dumps."

"Every guy here'd love to me you Steve!"

"Even when taking your lumps." He cries, massaging Steve's ears.

"There's no man in town as admired as you,"

"You're everyone's favorite guy."

"Everyone's awed and inspired by you,"

"And it's not very hard to see why."

He drops a few coins into the bar musicians hand.

"No one's slick as Rogers,"

"No one's quick as Rogers,"

"No one's neck's as incredibly thick as Rogers!' He exclaims, twisting the neck of a rather large man rather violently, a large crack echoing around the pub.

"For there's no man in town half as manly."

"Perfect, a pure paragon!" The fair girls pipe up from behind Sam. He hops onto the bar, sitting in between 3 very drunk men.

"You can ask any Tom, Dick or Stanley,"

"And they'll tell you whose team they'd prefer to be on..." He slaps them on the back of their heads, giving them a pointed stare until they catch on.

"Who plays..."

"Darts like Rogers!'

"Who breaks..."

"Hearts like Rogers!"

"Who's much more than the sum of his parts like Rogers!"

Steve warms up to the attention, flashing a debonair smile at everyone.

"As a specimen, yes, I'm intimidating!"

"My what a guy, that Rogers!" The people cry, raising their mugs and splatters beer everywhere.

"I needed encouragement,"

"Thank you, Sam." He exclaims, slapping Sam on the shoulders.

"Well there's no one as easy to bolster as you!" He wraps Steve in a tight embrace for a bit too long.

"Too much?"

"Yep." They disentangle their limbs from each other.

"No one the fights like Rogers,"

"Douses lights like Rogers." To emphasize their point, Steve licks both his hands and slaps them onto the candles, extinguishing them with a satisfying hiss.

"In a wrestling match, nobody bites like Rogers!" Sam pulls his shirt up to reveal a deep bite on his abdomen. A few people squeal.

"When I hunt, I sneak up with my quiver,"

"And beasts of the field say a prayer."

"First I carefully aim for the liver,"

"Then I shoot from behind."

"Is that fair?" Sam pipes up.

"I don't care."

"No one hits like Rogers,"

"Matches wits like Rogers,"

"In a spitting match, nobody spits like Rogers!"

"I'm especially good at expectorating!" He throws his head back and hocks up a good chunk of spit which lands in the pot Sam is holding.

"Ten points for Rogers!"

"When I was a lad, I ate four dozen eggs,"

"Every morning to help me get large." He grabs nearby woman by the waist and lifts her onto his right arm. The fair girls swoon.

"And now that I'm grown, I eat five dozen eggs,"

"So I'm roughly the size of a barge!" He slowly grabs Sam and lifts him onto his left arm, making the crowd gasp.

Steve drops them both and jumps onto the long table, tap dancing with the two other ladies. Sam grabs decorative swords and tosses them to a few men while Steve keeps dancing. They jump onto the table, brandishing their swords menacingly. The ladies jump out of the way as Steve draws his own sword. He clubs one over the head, spinning around and pretends to stab another dramatically. With a large flourish, he raises the sword to mimic the mural of himself on the wall behind him.

"Who has brains like Rogers?"

"Entertains like Rogers?" Sam belts out but Steve pushes him aside.

"Who can make up these endless refrains like Rogers?" Steve bellows, raising his arms.

"I use antlers in all of my decorating."

"Say it again!"

"Who's a man among men?"

"Who's the super success?"

"Don't you know? Can't you guess?"

"Ask his fans and his five hangers-on."

"There's just one guy in town,"

"Who's got all of it down..."

"And his name's S-T- Uh... I believe it's a D after?" Sam begins tentatively as Steve glares at him. "It just occurred to me that I'm illiterate, and I've never actually had to spell it out loud before..."

"Steve Rogers!"

The crowd bursts into a final round of applause, settling down as they dive deep into the hazy fumes of alcohol again.

"Ah, thank you Sam! I don't know what I'd do without you." Steve exclaims, plopping back down into his cushioned armchair. "How is it no woman has picked you up yet?"

"Well, I've been told I'm clingy but I don't really get it." Sam mutters obliviously, his arms draped around Steve's shoulders. Steve nods awkwardly.

A loud bang echoes into the pub and Tony comes rushing in, disheveled.

"You must help me! She's got Y/N! Please, you must help!" He cries, falling to his knees. Steve stays back while Sam rushes forwards.

"Tony, calm yourself. Who's got Y/N?" He asks soothingly.

When Tony looks back up, fear shines through his glassy eyes.

"The witch."

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

Taglist: @username23345 @musicinourlips @gingerbreadcookieforlife @xxxtwilightaxelxxx @ima-gi--na-tion @nicole-rayleigh-hot @olsensnpm @peabrain112 @yeetus-thyself

[urmomsmainbitch]

american idiot - chapter one

link to wattpad story // link to series masterlist // link to writing

word count: 2.7k

warnings: the bowers gang, weapons, violence, basically the whole thing (if you're not comfortable with violence or abuse -- which henry faces during the movies and during the book -- then i recommend you don't read, but i'll try to tag appropriately!)

a/n: i hope you don't think it's ass but this is probably going to come out every other friday or so but this is more of a trailer than the start of the actual series

HENRY DIDN'T REMEMBER a better time in his life than when he heard the news that Tommy 'Gun' Lee was coming back to Derry for the summer. To him, nothing topped the moment where is dad was slurring over his dinner (leftover hot dogs -- again), and let it slip that the "ungrateful little bitch" was coming back for a few months over the summer, and that "your whore of a mother" didn't mention if she was staying for the year or not.

He remembered huffing and puffing, grumbling something under his breath before excusing himself, and running to call Patrick like it was fucking Christmas morning.

Something about his darling little sister coming back made his heart race and a smile light up his face, and it was evident from the way he stepped into Derry Middle on the last day of school.

Oh, this summer would be perfect! His deal with Denbrough was over, the gang was all together, and his perfect sister was coming back from San Diego for the summer. Tommy Lee Bowers, he knew, would make this the best summer he;d ever had -- and by fucking God, he wasn't going to let anything stand in his way. Not that stuttering freak or the stupid Tozier kid who's mouth ran a mile a minute or his father's thriving alcohol addiction -- absolutely nothing.

His Tommy Gun would rule that fucking school the second she stepped in to pick him up, and every one knew it.

Word travels fast at Derry Middle, and when it got around that Bowers had a little sister coming, the first thing Bill Denbrough did was panic.

She couldn't be too different, could she?

The same blood ran through their veins, the same color skin on their bones, and most likely, the permanently upturned smirk tattooed to their lips. His hopes didn't improve when he saw the girl himself, waiting outside on the hood of Butch's car, throwing rocks at little kids passing by as she sat patiently for Henry to come outside.

He'd promised her a tour of the school -- it's only fair, he put it, that a queen knows her kingdom before taking it over. Henry had no doubt that Tommy would run the school when it was her time in September. A grade below Tits and the rest of his ugly friends, it would be more embarrassing than anything else to watch them suffer socially at the hands of a twelve year old girl.

(Henry very much looked forward to that moment. So much so, in fact, that he near goddamn skipped his way to the front of the school to open the door so they could start the tour. It helped that he was getting out of math class.)

It was only in the few moments before she walked in the door (immediately claiming the whole goddamn building with a footstep) that Bowers caught him by the bag and dragged him into the bathroom, away from the rest of the kids, and most likely, where he'd lay dying for the rest of the school day and foreseeable future (Stanley refused to shit in the school bathrooms, and seeing as he was the only one on this side of the building, he was screwed.).

Bill had never liked being alone with Henry Bowers. Nothing good ever came out of it, and he didn't want to stick around this time to find out why he'd been pulled into a bathroom and away from the rest of the student population. Henry let go of Bill's bag, letting him stumble around for a second or two before straightening up and backing him up against the wall.

"W-what d-d-do you w-want, B-Bowers?" Bill nearly spat, looking the older boy in the eyes. Henry's permanent smirk seemed to grow a few inches on either side, because he just chuckled softly -- albeit cruelly -- and looked down at the Denbrough boy. Bill could smell his breath, even though the two weren't standing particularly close to one another.

"Well, B-b-billy," he mocked, nearly laughing as he relaxed his posture a little bit and backed away from him. (Any one is passing who didn't know them might have said, "Hey, I bet those two boys are damn good friends.") "I have some news for you and your group of stupid fucking friends, and let me tell you" -- Henry stopped to laugh for a second, like he was cracking himself up -- "it's going to make your life a living hell."

Bill gulped. He didn't think, realistically, it could get much worse.

"You got a free ride this year because of your little brother," Henry reminded, smiling a little bit, seeming genuine. "But the ride's over Denbrough. This summer is going to be the worst summer of your entire life."

(Bill didn't expect him to say anything else -- but honestly, every summer was the worst summer of his entire life. He didn't catch a break from the older boy and his group of goons, but there was a feeling down in the pits of his stomach that told him that this time, this time, for real, was going to be the worst summer vacation he's ever going to have as long as he lives.)

"But I do have a little piece of extra advice I'm gonna give you."

Bill huffed. "You're so generous," he started, rolling his eyes, as he tried to walk out of the bathroom. Henry grabbed onto his backpack, "but I think I'll have to pass with this one."

He was cut off as Bowers kicked him on shin and onto the cold bathroom tiles. So much for being brave.

"I think you might want to hear this." Henry squatted down to look Bill in the eyes. There was still a hint of a smile on his face. Boy, this is gonna be good. "If you think I'm a pain in your ass--"

"I d-do think you're a p-pain in m-my a-ass."

Henry paused for a second, sending a menacing smile, and pushed him back on the ground as he got up and stepped over the boy on the floor, before beginning to make his way out of the bathroom before looking back, before lending Bill a hand to get up. He hesitantly took it and brushed off his pants, lips pressed tightly together as he looked at Henry. "Then you're gonna hate the girl sitting on Belch's car."

"Why's that?" Bill asked, feigning confidence, already knowing the answer. Henry could tell, just exhaling and giving him a big mischievous smile, hands behind his back.

"Not important, but she's not gonna be as nice as I am," he said with a grin, "but I'm just looking out for you, Billy Boy. Wouldn't want Tommy Gun to whip your ass without some working, right?"

With that, Henry left the bathroom, a smile plastered on his face as he went to greet his sister, and Bill raced out of there like his ass was on fire -- warning Richie not to talk to or about the pretty girl sitting on Belch's car.

-- -- --

"Best feeling ever!" Stan groaned, grinning ear to ear as he dumped out everything from his backpack. School had finally let out for the summer — no more stupid math classes or dumb reading assignments and annoying history tests, just Stanley and his bird book for three whole months.

A piece of his own personal heaven. Points if the pretty girl on Belch's hood was with him but hey, he wasn't picky.

"Really?" Richie asked with a grin on his face, "Try tickling your pickle for the first time." Eddie rolled his eyes, but Bill smiled. Stan let out another groan -- not a good one, this time -- even though, if he had to be honest, this seemed like it would be the best summer of his whole entire life.

Richie felt it too, if he were going to tell the truth (as he so rarely did -- or at times, so bluntly did), that this felt like it was going to the be the absolutely best summer he would have for the rest of his life. He had a whole checklist and everything for things he wanted to do (kiss some girls), things he wanted to see (some girls' boobs), and things he wanted to experience (there were a number of interesting things on this list).

And quite frankly, he felt as though every single thing on every one of his lists could be accomplished with the girl sitting on Belch Huggins' car hood, smiling mischievously as she watched the kids coming out of school.

God, did she really and truly look like an angel. Deep brown hair, straight in some parts and wavy in others, came down a little bit past her collarbone (not super cared for, but neither was his), cherry red lips, and a cute line of freckles going across the bridge of her nose. She was the most impressive tan he'd ever seen in his whole life, a very deep beige from the summer sun — even though it was only June.

The top part was being held up by some clip, and Richie could see his own Hawaiian shirt going over her tank top instead of the open button down she was wearing on top. It was lazy looking and careless and little bit disheveled, but that day, Richard Wentworth Tozier II was convinced he saw the hottest girl to ever be created.

Eddie interrupted his dream, snapping him back for only a second. "So what do you guys want to do tomorrow?"

"I start my training," Richie responded immediately.

"Training for what?"

"Street Fighter."

"You're going to spend your whole summer inside of an arcade?" Eddie couldn't imagine that prospect, but with Richie, anything was possibly -- no matter how disgusting it might seem.

"Beats spending it inside of your mother, oh!" Richie's goofy grin came back in an instant and leaned over for a high five from Bill when his hand was brought down by Stan. "And, 'course, my summer bucket list."

Eddie sent him a pity glance, "No girl's gonna let you fuck her this summer, Richie. If they have any brains at all, no girl is going to let you go within a ten foot radius of her without realizing what she's doing." Richie pressed his lips together. Of course Eddie would be cynical, it's just because — "and don't tell me that I think it because I just haven't hit puberty yet!"

Richie gave him a toothy grin, "Aw, shucks, Eddie Spaghetti, you know me so well. When you see a pretty girl, like say, that one over there—" he pointed discreetly towards the girl on the hood —"you'll get that feeling of butterflies in your stomach and just think, 'Wow, I've just seen an angel.' I don't mean Bowers, I just-"

"Yeah, you mean his little sister." Eddie looked up to Richie for a response, only to see him at a loss for words, jaw dropping and face paling.

For once, Richie Tozier was speechless as Eddie laughed and slapped his back as Bill mentioned something about the Barrens and Georgie and finding him — even though everybody had long accepted the fact that Georgie wasn't just missing.

It was like a switch. Everything changed in that instant. It was like she grew fangs and claws, and he watched Patrick look at her like she hung the fucking moon. It was incredibly painful, but he assumed, in a sense, they deserved each other. It took a second before he realized what this would actually mean for him: having to worry about a double in the hallways — a hot double that could potentially fool him into forgetting her Bowers-ness — and someone else to make fun of him in ways that he'd never tjough imaginable.

Sure, Bowers wasn't awfully bright, but he sure as hell was creative when it came down to it.

"Gunner!" Richie heard Bowers (the boy one) laugh as she shoved him in the side, cackling along herself, cigarette never leaving her mouth — opting just to talk out of the side of it.

Oh, so her name must have been Gunner. That's unfortunate, he thought to himself. But then again, she seems awful, so maybe she just deserves it. He smiled to himself. "Tommy Lee, we've gotta start heading out soon."

Wait, so was it Tommy Lee? Or was it Gunner? Was that just the gang's nickname for her? More importantly, if it was, why the fuck would they choose a name like Gunner for her? Nothing was settling about that fact, and although Richie wasn't typically one to spiral, it was hard to control himself.

"You didn't tell me you had friends, Henny!" Tommy exclaimed girlishly, making Patrick spit out his sofa and slam his hand on the car hood, flicking out her cigarette and letting Patrick snuff it out. She put a hand on her heart. "Oh, you've grown up so fast! I remember it was just yesterday you took a massive shit in that kids backpack and had to do forty hours of community service!"

Richie could tolerate a lot of things. One thing he couldn't tolerate though, was not being able to chime in when his story was being used and told all wrong — or mentioned without his name. Luckily, he was spared his intervention by a howling Belch Huggins.

"It was four eyes!" Huggins nearly screamed, warning a howling laugh from Tommy and shove from Victor, followed by a point led by Patrick. "Yeah, him!"

Richie could feel his face heating up, but before he could say anything, the bright blue TransAM was firing up the engine, and was getting ready to peel out of the school parking lot like a man man was driving.

Bill was the first to say anything. "Sorry about that, Rich. Bowers is a real asshole."

"So is his sister," he made out through his teeth.

Richie saw himself as a 'go with the flow' kind of guy, but goddamn it, he wasn't going to let Tommy Lee shit all over him and get away with it.

He was too stubborn, too arrogant, and too proud to let that happen, but with only a second or two of knowing she existed, he knew she was the exact same way. He could get tell it with the way she walked and talker and immediately took control of some of the scariest kids in Derry Middle.

But she wouldn't come out on top of this one.

There's no way. He refused to let it happen. Letting her win would show everyone else that he was just a loser who couldn't stand up to a girl who's was going to beat the living daylights out of him if he looked at her the wrong way.

She already had Henry and Patrick and Belch on her side — an even, if not better, match to four decently sized seventh graders. There was no excuse for them to get beat.

Grinding his teeth and tearing his eyes away from her, laughing mischievous and almost secretly as she put her cigarette out on Belch's hood as not to be noticed by he coo around the corner (Rich didn't know that the cop around the corner was her father who would beat her till she couldn't stand if he caught her smoking) he said, "So, Barrens tomorrow, right Bill?"

And right as Tommy Lee Bowers and her newfound gang pulled out of the parking lot, she and Richie Tozier locked eyes and made a silent pact — an agreement — something they both agreed on — something he'd be thinking about all night and the whole next morning:

Derry is two small for the two of us.

[just-another-ficwriter]

Holidate - Part One

Pairing: Sweet Pea x Reader

Words: 3000ish

Warnings: Overbearing parents, alcohol

Summary: Tired of being alone on holidays, Sweet Pea and Y/N decide to be each other’s plationic plus-ones all year round. What could go wrong?

Notes: I’m super late posting this and I feel awful about it!! I just couldn’t decide how I wanted it to go and ended up rewriting it three times🤦🏻‍♀️

“No Mom.” Y/N pinches the bridge of her nose, irritation seeping into her words. There’s already a dull ache drumming behind her temples and she hasn’t even made it home yet. “I’m not using this as an excuse because I’m running late.”

“Well I simply can’t just drop everything and come get you, I’ve got to stuff the Turkey and cut the vegetables and-“ She lets her Mother’s voice drowned out into background noise with a frustrated sigh on her end.

She hates Christmas, she thinks. Hates the decorations, the songs, the cheer. Every last bit. Nothing’s been the same since the truth came out about Hal and-

“Is Jug there?” She cuts her own thoughts short, desperate not to think of her Dad and all the things he’s done right now.

“Of course Forsyth is here!” Y/N can almost see Jug flinch at the correction and bites back a laugh. “But him and Betty have already opened a bottle of wine.”

“Can you just ask him for the number of his Dad’s garage please?” Another five minutes of Alice rambling on passes before Jughead’s voice appears on the other end with a joyful ‘Merry Christmas’ and a direct contact to someone who might be able to help.

She thanks him quickly, hanging up before she can even finish saying goodbye, so he doesn’t have a chance to hand the phone back. And as she leans against the car behind her, the same car that had given up on her just as she passed the town sign, she dials the number and hopes she’ll make it home in time for dinner.

Otherwise, she might never hear the end of it.

-

“Again, in English?” Y/N cocks an eyebrow at him, the string of words he’d just said sounding almost foreign in her head. 

 She doesn’t mean for it to sound as rude as it does, but she can’t help it. She’s tired, exhausted even, not to mention cold. The snow fall had picked up five minutes after she’d called the number Jug had given her and it had taken him, or Sweet Pea as he’d introduced himself, almost 40 minutes to reach her. 

But he just laughs it off, smirks before firing it straight back at her. “You aren’t getting anywhere in this car, anytime soon princess.”

“Great!” It’s official. Her mom’s going to kill her and she’ll be blamed for ruining Christmas. She throws her hands up in defeat, kicking a tyre in the process. “Just great!”

“If it makes you feel better, this isn’t how I planned on spending my Christmas Eve either.” He watches her amused, another laugh passing his lips before the sarcastic remark follows, his arms now crossed over his chest and she almost feels guilty. 

“I’m sorry for being such an inconvenience.” She throws a false apology at him along with  a fake grin that falls into a frown almost immediately. 

“Apology accepted.” She’s scowling at him now, eyes rolling back but he simply ignores it, happy to keep winding her up. “Want me to give you a ride somewhere while I tow this back?”

“Only on one condition.” She points a finger over her shoulder towards his trunk, the radio still on loud. “We find a station that isn’t playing Christmas music.”

“Hey, it’s either Mariah Carey, or you walk Sweetheart.” He shrugs, walking backwards, watching her make the choice. 

He can’t help but laugh again when she sighs and runs to the passenger seat, desperate to seek shelter from the snow. 

-

10 minutes after Sweet Pea kindly drops her off at her childhood home, Y/N finds herself still on the porch out front, mentally preparing herself for what’s about to come.

She sucks in a breath. Two, three. And with a fake smile so sickly sweet it makes her stomach hurt; she lets herself in.

Polly’s the first to spot her, catches her the minute she walks through the door and pulls her into a hug before she can even drop her bags. She can’t help but sink into the embrace, it’s always nice to see her older sister alone like this, but Y/N doesn’t even get the chance to ask her how she is before the twins descend down the stairs and push past them in a blur.

“Juniper put the presents down- Dagwood no!” She feels Polly gently squeeze her hand in a silent way of saying they’ll catch up later before she’s chasing after them, joining an exhausted looking Jason who pauses long enough to wave a quick hello before he resumes pursuit.

She moves further into the house, away from the chaos of the living room and towards the interesting smells wafting from the kitchen. It’s impossible not to hear her Mother barking orders from where she stands over the stove, while Jug and Betty listen to every word, working on the dining table and it’s fixtures like a well-oiled machine.

“Y/N/N you’re here!” Betty looks up with a soft smile but doesn’t dare move from her task and face the wrath of Alice Cooper.

“Finally!” It’s Alice’s turn to look at her now, a perfectly shaped eyebrow arching in distaste as her eyes roam over her middle daughter. “Please tell me you aren’t wearing that to dinner?”

Y/N lets out a breath she didn’t realise she was holding and prepares to fire back when a gentle arm lands around her shoulder with a calming chuckle.

“Oh come on Mom, Y/N looks fine.” Charles plants a quick kiss to her forehead before ruffling her hair and they both laugh. Her brother had always been her saving grace in situations like this, the only one brave enough to stand up for himself and the others, ever the mediator. But not even he was enough to put Alice off her persistent questioning, she was already sick of her Mother’s judgement and they hadn’t even touched on her job or her relationship status yet.

-

“You’ve definitely told them we aren’t officially together, right?” Sweet Pea takes one last, slow drag of his cigarette before stomping it out under his boot. Josie nods at him reassuringly but one look up at the exterior of her parents house has his stomach in knots. “They know we’re just casual?”

“Sweet Pea would you stop?” She playfully pokes at his ribs, but he just sighs and rubs a nervous hand down his face.

He couldn’t help it, that sick feeling rising from the pit of stomach by the second. The idea of spending Christmas with Josie’s family, a girl he’d only been dating for a month, was absolutely terrifying on all levels. But Fangs had ditched him to spend the holidays with his boyfriend in New York, not that he could really blame him, and he had no other family in town so when she originally offered, he’d jumped at the chance of not spending the day alone.

Part of him had regretted it since.

If Sweet Pea thought the outside of house was impressive, with it’s perfectly placed lights and overly decorated windows, it was nothing compared to what was waiting for him on the inside.

Myles and Sierra McCoy welcome them at the front door with bright smiles and open arms that engulf Sweet Pea before he even has the chance to say hello.

Josie joins in, the four of them becoming one big, massive group hug like he’s been part of their family his whole life and not just a stranger potentially only passing through. All three of them squeal in excitement before someone yanks him in doors.

If he had doubts before, he thinks, he’s almost certain he’s in over his head now.

-

Betty gets engaged on Christmas Morning.

Right in front of the Christmas tree, just after the last presents are opened and the twins are happily distracted by a mountain of toys; Jughead drops to one knee and pops the question under twinkling lights. 

The minute Betty gasps the word ‘yes’ the family erupts in cheers, fawning over the couple. Of course Alice is already crying, Polly demands to see the ring, while Charles and Jason pat Jug on the back. 

Y/N however stays put, her eyes falling down into her mug of spiked coffee that her mom had scolded her over, eyebrows raised over the rim as she knocks it back. 

“Aren’t you going to congratulate your sister?” Alice sends her a pointed look, catching her before she can slope off into the peaceful confines of the kitchen. 

“Congrats Betts.” She pulls her into a hug and paints on the biggest smile she can muster as she mumbles into her hair. “I’m so happy for you.”

And she is. Her sisters getting everything she’s dreamed of with Jug, of course she’s happy, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that her younger sister will be married before her. 

Even Charles has betrayed her this year and invited a date to Christmas dinner leaving her the last single Cooper. And her mom wasn’t prepared to let her forget it anytime soon. 

-

Sweet Pea successfully manages to make it through family movie night, forcefully sat between Josie and her mother, hot cocoa in hand and surrounded from all sides. He even grins and bares the series of photo albums that follow, another embarrassing photo of Josie lurking behind every page turn, but he draws the line when the marriage talk starts, declaring he’s suddenly tired and turns to run up the stairs so fast he’s surprised he doesn’t pull something on the way.

Sienna wakes them up on Christmas morning with a soft knock at 8am sharp, wearing a bright red Christmas jumper and holding two more for the both them.

The mere idea of it makes Sweet Pea’s skin itch as much as the material does once he begrudgingly pulls it over his head.

The rest of the morning is spent sipping coffee, watching the three McCoy’s exchanging gifts. He’s too distracted, wondering if it’s still too late to find a way out of the whole thing to even notice Josie standing in front of him until she’s shoved the present right under his nose.

“Merry Christmas my love.” She places it down on his lap and Sweet Pea finds himself wanting the ground to open up and swallow him whole.

“Jose I… I thought we said we weren’t doing gifts?” All three pairs of eyes are now on him, burning their way into his skin and he’s sure he’s never felt embarrassment like it.

“But that was just a joke, right?” He smiles awkwardly when she laughs, but the sound is humourless, and he can already see the anger bubbling behind her eyes. She doesn’t even give him the chance to reply. “What, so I’m good enough to sleep with but you can’t buy me a gift?”

He chokes, shocked by her transparency around her parents while his cheeks redden by the second.

Ten minutes later he’s out on the drive, bags thrown in the back of his truck, scrambling to get away as fast as he can.

-

Christmas Day ends the way it started.

Miserably sat at the kitchen table, sipping on something alcoholic held in her hand.

Polly and Jason had slipped off not long after dinner, taking two sugar high kids and all their loud noises with them. Betty and Jug now sit on one couch, his arms wrapped around her shoulders, her head resting on her chest, content in their own bubble of love while Alice sits on the other, quizzing Kevin Keller, Charles’ surprise date. She’d feel bad for him if she wasn’t already feeling relieved that her Mother’s attention had turned to someone else for five minutes. Her brother sits besides her, topping up a glass of red.

“He seems nice.” Charles hums in response, biting back a laugh. Was she missing a joke? “What?”

“If I tell you something, you can’t tell the others.” A quick eager nod and she’s shuffling closer so he can whisper his secret. “Kev’s just my Holidate.”

She blinks back in shock. “Holidate?”

“Just a date for the holiday, someone to keep Mom off my back.” He shrugs like it’s nothing, like it’s the simplest solution to the problem. He sips his wine while he waits for her to process it. “There’s no strings attached and I don’t have to spend events alone. I’m even heading down to his parents after New Years to return the favour.”

“Thats...” Y/N breathes out, she’s a little envious she hadn’t thought of it herself. “What an idea.”

-

Y/N sinks into a booth at Pop’s Chocklit Shoppe two days later with a sigh of relief, happy to welcome the peace that comes with being away from her family.

She loves them, her siblings, her mother, the twins, of course but it’s exhausting. The intruding questions, the never ending merry go round of pity and interfering. She knows deep down it’s only because they care, but sometimes she wished they’d just leave her alone.

Pops promptly brings her order of curly fries over, with a soft smile and an extra chocolate shake on the side she didn’t order. It’s been two years since she last stepped into the place, yet he still remembers her favourite like it was yesterday.

“It’s good to see you Y/N.” There’s something in his tone that just feels like home and she finds herself welcoming it, it’s been a long time since anything in Riverdale has felt anything close to that, not since the truth about her dad.

Pops doesn’t stick around, a light pat to her shoulder before he’s a retreating form, leaving her to her thoughts. She barely makes it through a fry before someone’s sliding in opposite her.

Sweet Pea pushes the key across the table, grinning cheekily as he helps himself to the basket in front of him. She barely knows him and he’s already stealing her food. “One fully functional car.”

“Finally!” She snatched them up, hiding them

in her bag and he can see the tension practically melting from her shoulders. “Now I can get out of the hell hole.”

“Christmas went that well? He asks, curiosity peaked.

“You could say that.” She presses herself further into her seat, huffing as she rubs the palm of her hands against her jeans. The anxious look in her eyes tells him that what ever she might say next won’t necessarily make sense and she’s a little embarrassed by it. “My sister got engaged.”

“To FPS son right?” He vaguely recalls his boss proudly telling anyone who would listen that morning. “And that’s a bad thing?”

“She’s my younger sister, and now, as I’m about to be the only official unmarried Cooper daughter my mom has even more of an excuse to interfere in my love life.” The words just slip out and she finds part of her gladly confessing her thoughts to a virtual stranger instead of keeping them in. He smiles in a way that tells her he gets it.

“Yeah well, bet you a chocolate shake mine was worse.” He ignores the glare she sends him when he innocently brings her existing milkshake to his lips and continues when she says nothing. “I spent it with someone I’ve been dating for four weeks and her parents.”

She almost chokes on a curly fry. “You got serious that quick?”

“Of course not, and we both knew it.” She stares at him like he has two heads, he knows she can’t quite fit ‘causal relationship’ and ‘family Christmas’ together so he does it for her. “Didn’t want to spend the day alone so I took her up on the offer. Cue overbearing parents, the cringest matching jumpers and the ultimate gift exchange where I got her nothing because we agreed no presents.”

“Aren’t you old enough to know by now that no gifts definitely means get her a gift?” She laughs when he rolls his eyes.

“Ended with her kicking me out before dinner.” She shakes her head, laughs again as she calls him tragic and a tiny part of him agrees. “And now I’m officially dateless for New Year’s Eve.”

“Thanks for reminding me I have to come back in a few days to attend Riverdale’s Annual Blossom New Years Eve Party alone for the second year running.” She wrinkles her nose in disgusted, unprepared to have her friends on her back as well as her family, and ends up missing the way his eyebrows raise in surprise.

“You know Toni and Cheryl?”

“T’s been my best friend longer than I can remember and Cheryl’s brother is married to my sister, guess you could say I know them pretty well.” She tilts her head to the side, eying him slowly, like she suddenly sees him in a different way. “How’d you know them?”

“Guess you could say I spend more time than I should at the Wyrm.” The mention of Toni’s bar lights up her face. “Plus Toni’s been a really good friend to me since I got here, I was actually meant to be taking Josie to their party.”

“I think I know a way to solve our little problem.” A plan suddenly forms in her head, he doesn’t know whether to be worried or not as he watches the smile on her face widen. “Sweet Pea how would you like to be my Holidate this Friday?”

“Your holi-what?”

Forever Taglist: @p-marie-sp

Sweet Pea Taglist: @80sand90simagine @wildberryyyy @hopelesslylosttheway @be-gay-do-crime-cutie

Holidate Taglist: @popcrone818

[applepi-1]

Sleep over?

Akira x you

Summary: You get into a fight with your parents and you headed to Akira's house, who is your crush, who you are sure he hates you.

ENjoy

Y/n-Your name

-1558 words-

--

You paced back and forth as the rain fell around you. Sighing while rubbing your face, letting your fist hover over the door. Before you could blink you felt your body betray you and knocked. After a few seconds, you began to panic and pace back and forth again. Hugging your arms closer to you. "Uh, Y/n?" You looked at him as he opened the door.

"I... I'm sorry, it's late, I know. But... I... I don't even know what I'm doing here." You went to turn around but his mom came over.

"Who's this? Come in dear, it's freezing outside." She didn't really give you a choice as she wrapped your arms rubbing them. "You're freezing." She closed the door behind her, Akira followed you. "Hunny, can you make some hot chocolate."

"Or no, it's fine. I don't want to intrude." His mother rolled her eyes rubbing your arms.

"Right, you came for Akira, right? Love, take her to your room give her a shirt or something, Honey, make the hot chocolate, we'll bring it up, or Akira can bring it to you."

"Thank you, Mrs. Kunimi." The woman smiled at you before you followed the boy upstairs, they didn’t even allow you to take your shoes off.

"Take what you want, I'll go get the hot chocolate." You sighed before turning to his closet, seeing a long sleeve shirt. Slipping off yours, you immediately put on the long sleeve shirt. You looked in the mirror sighing. What are you doing here? At your crush's house, in his clothes, when you know he hates you. You sighed again remember the first day y'all met.

--

You stretched and looked around the class. Your eyes landing on a boy who looked incredibly bored. You threw a piece of paper at him making him look at you. You stuck out your tongue and he gave you a blank look. Hmp, rude. You threw another piece of paper making him sigh and look at you again. You smiled widely at him catching him off guard a little before it turned back to a blank look. Hmp. 'I'm (Y/n).' You mouthed making him give you a look. 'I don't care.' You rolled your eyes as he turned around, you threw another piece of paper at him. You saw him sigh loudly and look at you. You gave a small smile, he mouthed, 'It's Akira.' You smiled in success. But he just turned around making you pout.

--

Since then, you tried talking to him, but you'd notice he'd immediately stop taking and ignores you. At first, you thought it was because he was shy, but then you'd notice him talking to other players, just not you. To say it hurt was an understatement. "Looks good on you." You jumped turning around seeing Akira with a cup in his hand.

"Thanks... for the hot chocolate." You took and sipped it, exhaling at the hotness.

"If you don't mind me asking, why are you here?" You sighed placing it on his nightstand before sitting on his bed.

"I guess I owe you an explanation." You sighed rubbing your legs.

"Yeah. Kind of."

"I... I got into it again with my parents. They want me to be like my sister."

"Isn't she the school slut?"

"Yeah, she is. Which is what I asked my parents. And they yelled at me, saying not to say rude things about her." You bit your lip looking down. "Doesn't matter that I'm... the smartest kid at the school, or that I'm doing great things. TO them, it's... pointless. To me, it's not. I rather open a book than open my legs. But to them, they wish I was... different..."

"And it doesn't help that the guy you like... hate you, right?" You looked up at him, confused. "I heard Atsumu and Osamu mention it. Once or twice."

"Yeah... that fact doesn't help." You sighed and let out a shaky breath. "I'm sorry for being here, I don't want to intrude, it's just. I heard the twins mention you lived nearby, and my dad... he... he found out I was texting Atusma and..." You froze looking down at your legs. "And... uh, he..." You felt tears fall at the memory.

--

“You want me to be like your daughter? She’s the biggest slut in the school.”

“Excuse me, you will not talk about your sister, like that.”

“Why?”

“If she’s the slut, then who’s Atsuma and Osuma.” You looked at your mom and scoffed.

“You go through my phone?”

“Well, duh.”

“Why?”

“Because we can. Are you sleeping with them?”

"I’m not having sex or seeing either of them." You yelled quietly.

"Quit lying!" He marched over to your phone, throwing it at the wall, but that was just the beginning. He began knocking anything in his path to the floor including our family photos. You have no clue what to do when he picked up an expensive glass vase.

"D-Dad, please stop!" You pleaded as you watched him throw it to the floor, glass shards flying everywhere. "I said stop." You snapped pulling him away from picking up a picture frame. His eyes met yours and softened a little. "Please." He turned his head away from you. "I swear I'm not sleeping with them." You cried you looked to where he was looking, seeing an old photo of you and the volleyball players at the beginning of school. He shoved you forcefully causing you to hit your head on the ground, missing glass that littered the floor in inches.

"You deserve to rot in hell. Get the hell out of my house!”

You stammered to your feet away glass cutting all different places of your almost bare feet. You opened the front door leave at 10 pm, only knowing one house nearby. You sobbed, slipping on your shoes, and left the house.

--

And now here you are, in Akira’s home. He listened closely as you told him the story. He looked down at your shoes and slipped them off, you hissed as your fresh cuts hit the cold air. “Shit, Y/n.” He ran to his bathroom and wetted a rag. He worked in silence, you let out a hiss every now and then, other than that, it was extremely quiet. He hates you... you hate you. You hate that part of you was scared... how he'd react. When he was done, he didn't bother to look up at you “How long…?” You barely heard him.

“Uh, a couple of months, now…” Since your sister became a senior she’s never been home. She doesn’t know what they do when you don’t meet their goals.

“Why didn’t you tell someone?” He looked up at you finally, you wiped the tears and laughed.

“I did… my dad paid them off. I-I’m sorry I came here… I just… had nowhere else to go, and… god, I hate people seeing me cry…” He watched as you wiped your tears, laughing slightly.

“You still look beautiful, even when you cry.” You stopped moving, looking down at him confused.

“I… Sorry, what?” He placed his hands on your hips, looking you in the eye, but before he could speak, you let out a giggle.

“Are you ticklish?”

“No.” You tried to sound strong but you ended up in a fit of giggles. He smirked to himself before tickling you again. “Aki-ah-ra. St-ah-op.” He laughed along with you, you slid your hands up his shirt trying to push him off, but you both ended up stopping. You looked up at him as your hands rested on his toned abs. Shit. His hand was somewhat under your shirt, resting on your ribs. “Akira…” He looked down at your lips then at your eyes.

“Y/n…” You flicked between his eyes than his lips as he slowly leaned down. You met him halfway, kissing him softly. His hand squeezing your side before trialing down to your thigh, lifting it a little. You never thought you’d be in this position when you knocked on his door. You sighed into the kiss as he began to trail sloppy kisses down your neck.

“Fuck….” He smirked against your neck before sucking on it. “Ah, Akira…” You brought your legs around his hips forcing his hips to hit yours. He let out a low groan.

“Damn…” He brought his mouth to your ear nibbling on it. “Let me show you how a guy treats a girl they like.” You felt your cheeks heat up, he likes me? Before you could think, his lips met yours again.

“Love, oh.” He pulled away quickly sitting up, you turned your head in embarrassment. “I just brought you some snacks, I’m leaving.” She laughed and walked out the door.

“Sorry about her…” You didn’t meet his eyes. “Ah, look. The guy you like is an idiot.” Did he just call himself an idiot? You laughed lightly. “What, I'm being serious. He is an idiot. How can he not like you? You’re like the prettiest girl in our grade, not scratch that, in our school. And you’re like super smart, and kind. It’s hard being around you and… not being able to kiss you.” You looked at him slightly shocked, is that why he ignored you? “It’s kind of why I avoided you. It was hard being around you especially after you told the twins about your crush…” You leaned up, crashing your lips to his.

“You’re the guy I like, Akira, it was always you.” He looked down at you and smiled, he actually smiled.

“Well then, would you be mine?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

[lizacstuff]

Your thoughts on the epi? And the trailers? I'm loving the in love Edser! We've waited so long for this!!!

This episode was so fun and fluffy! I don't know about you, but I am enjoying the tone during this second season. A lot. I don't care how stupid the audition process was for the spot in the school, it gave us some very good comedy and a lot of USTy, sexy, flirty goodness.

And like you, I also love in love Edser!

Thankfully this episode was dominated by Edser, and with Kiraz at Granny's house we even got some alone time. The supporting characters were used to good effect this episode, Engin and Piril were the funniest they've ever been, Kerem and Pina served to poke Serkan about his mentoring style, and it was actually nice to have an excuse for Ayfer and Aydan to share a storyline again.

(more under the cut)

However, we'll start with Burak and Melo. UGH. I mean I love Melo and Elcin has done a really good job of showing Melo's heartbreak and trying to hide her melancholy behind her usual bubbly personality, but I really can't stand that it's over such a dud of a character. I know I'm a broken record here but Melo deserves better than this fool. Honestly, he's such a bland sad sack I don't really get why Melo loves him, Eda wants to be friends with him and Ayfer thinks he's so great she wants him for a nephew-in-law. Well, for Ayfer the only qualification is that he's not Serkan, so never mind that question.

However, maybe there's some hope? Before this episode it seemed certain they were heading in a romance direction, but the way he told her she was like a sister to him? Is there really any coming back from him saying that after he remembered kissing her? On the other hand we're barreling towards the end here and there's not really enough time to introduce anyone new for Melo (and no indication from spoilers that they have) and I'm pretty sure Ayse and the writers want to give her a romantic happy ending (although I'd be fine if they didn't and instead had her go off and do something entirely for herself like go back to school or travel or open a shop). So we'll see, because even with the sister line they left some room open because Kerem was the one who suggested he say that (it wasn't necessarily his own idea) and with Melo he seemed to be coming from a place where he assumed he had forced himself on her and she was angry because she didn't want it. Which we know is not true, so might be a misunderstanding that leads to something more. Anyway, I guess we'll just have to endure whichever way they go.

Personally, I like the Serkan-Kemal father storyline. I think it's a good way to add a bit of drama in the waning episodes, gives Serkan a bit of an identity crisis, interestingly mirrors his own situation with Kiraz, and it just makes sense with everything we know of the characters. Because were we seriously supposed to believe that someone as sniveling as Alptelkin sired Serkan? I mean Serkan is the epitome of BDE, he has an inherent charismatic and commanding presence. Sorry to the actor who played Alptekin, but he didn't really have any kind of presence, however Sinan who plays Kemal, does. They've done a great job of casting, because it just feels true. I believe Kemal and Serkan share genetics.

However, even before that storyline starts in earnest, it's interesting that Serkan was being a big baby, not wanting his mom with a man she clearly loves. I wish Eda would have pushed back at him a little more when he was going off that Aydan shouldn't pursue love at her age! Does he think he'll be out of love with Eda by the time he's in his 50s and 60s? Of course not! I'm guessing Eda, though, is just letting him blow off some steam and come to accept the relationship on his own terms. Don't get me wrong, though, after all the meddling Aydan's done with Edser, she more than deserves to have Serkan's opinion of Kemal negatively impact her!

Loved that Kiraz and Can found out first that Kemal is Serkan's father! Cat is out of the bag, Aydan, you can't make a deal with a 5 year old, lmao. It put a nice ticking clock on the whole thing and gave us some good comedic moments where Kiraz is speaking the truth and everyone thinks she's just really fond of the dude. Hee.

Also I enjoyed the Aydan and Ayfer moments. To be honest, I also used to enjoy their true friendship moments when we got them, like when Kemal first appeared and Aydan was freaking out and needed Ayfer and Seyfi around her, and when they were trying to hunt down Deniz after the fake wedding turned real. After so much animosity, it was nice that Ayfer recognized that Aydan was truly in distress and needed a friend and they were able to actually talk. Also we got some (mildly) funny comedy with the two of them and the school lady. Speaking of Ayfer, thankfully she finally realized some consequences to her actions in pushing Burak at Eda. She hurt Melo! Glad she finally opened her eyes to see what should have been obvious to her (Eda never saw him that way, and Melo obviously did) and apologized to Melo. I'd like it if she would apologize to Eda as well, (and Burak deserves an apology as well because she most definitely gave him false hope) but since Eda wasn't influenced by her we probably won't see that.

Switching to Eda and Serkan this episode gave us lots of good stuff. This was a great episode for showing us where each of them stood. Eda is terrified of getting hurt and trying to hold him at arm's length even while he clearly is inching back into her heart, and Serkan is dreaming of their future together, and taking every opportunity to tie them together. How much did I love Serkan admitting he was poking at Eda, and doig things to make her angry, just so she would talk to him? Interesting that he's doing it and love that he's being honest and admitting it to her. One of my favorite relationship dynamics between them is around "talking." In the very beginning Serkan did a lot of complaining about how much Eda talked and how she never shut up, but starting around episode 18 all he wanted was for Eda to talk to him. And this is just more of that. The thing he wants most is to talk to her.

Plus watching domestic Edser is just so much fun, I could watch their full grocery shopping trip in real time and be perfectly happy, lol. At the age of 35 it's time that Serkan learn how to do a few things for himself, I don't care how rich he is, so it's nice that we see him evolving a bit as he embraces the dad role.

The jealousy gambits, even as mild as they are, are getting pretty eye roll worthy since Eda and Serkan are living together, care so much, and obviously are still so hot for one another. It's a bit more understandable from Serkan since Eda is the one creating the barrier between them, but are we really supposed to believe that Eda is jealous of Deniz when Serkan is so obviously in love with Eda and planning their future together? Especially when he clearly can't stand Deniz and tries so hard to avoid her? I suppose it's to show us that Eda is in a jumbled state, her head is trying to keep space with Serkan, while her heart wants him badly and is scared he's going to take her rejections seriously. Even so it was quite irrational for her to get angry at Serkan for having lunch with Deniz when she ordered him to leave with her. Poor Eda is in emotional turmoil.

It was hard to tell with shaky translations, but I guess Serkan claimed to have been injured while rescuing Eda and that's how he talked his way into her bed? Impressively done, Serkan. Love it because it meant we all got to wake up to snuggly family, snuggling together. This gave us another glimpse into Eda's psyche, she wakes up first, and is clearly enjoying it and feeling at home in his arms, until the sleep clears enough and her head realizes she's not supposed to be enjoying it. But once again Kiraz knows how to handle her parents and their complicated relationship beautifully and fixes everything with a pillow fight. That is one smart cookie.

One of my favorite moments of the episode is when Eda is trying to convince Serkan to go to Aydan about the school. Eda knows that her big eyes still work on him, and they did. He still can't say no to her, another one of my favorite relationship dynamics of theirs. I'm super glad some things never change. Speaking of their visit to Aydan's, how great that they went to meet the horse without a name as a family, and then Serkan finally came up with the perfect name. Definitely a star.

Love, love, love that Serkan and Eda beat Engin and Piril when it came to the 'how well do you know your spouse' game. They may have been separated for 5 years, but they both have a genuine interest in the other, so they remember things, and they always made a much more compatible couple than Engin/Piril who have absolutely nothing in common. Of course I adored all the fake married hijinx this gave us, not to mention all the opportunities for Serkan to touch, kiss, and hold her. SO MUCH UST!

The heart-to-heart on the bench was well done and it finally gave us Eda opening up and telling him what's been holding her back. She's scared. Of course she is, the poor thing. Serkan might have thought he was doing it for her own good both times, but he ripped her heart out twice (not even counting all the heart ripping he did during amnesia) how could she not have fears? Of course she's afraid! Whenever she lets herself love him and be loved by him, it's ripped away horribly, and often in ways that feels like it's him doing the ripping. She can take into consideration the circumstances, which she has or else he wouldn't be anywhere near her, and still need time to be sure she's not just setting herself up to get emotionally demolished again.

For Serkan's part all he can do is keep being there, being honest with her, and showing he's in it for the long haul, which I think he's doing and which is why they are where they are at the end of this episode.

Engin and Piril's dance practice is probably the first Engin/Piril alone scene that I thought was genuinely funny and fully enjoyable. I can't think of another... message me if you think there is one, lol. Elsewhere, I saw some folks saying that Engin and Piril should have won the dance competition, because they actually danced, and Eda and Serkan didn't. LOL, you think? I'm pretty sure that was the point. That Eda and Serkan didn't really dance, all they did was get up there and turn their sexual tension and intense smoldering towards one another up to eleventy and won because it's that powerful.

It's sort of a metaphor for this whole series. Sen Cal Kapimi is 100% powered by their chemistry. Of course they can win any competition by just pressing their bodies against one another! They can turn a ditzy Turkish summer romcom that probably should have gone 13 eps into an international hit that's going on 50 episodes, just by looking at one another.

I'm glad that the school officials overheard their conversations and dismissed them, any organization that requires this of the parents, is going to be a lifelong pain-in-the ass, lmao. Also it was good to see Edser and EnPir make up by the end.

Now, on to that ending. I'm glad the subject of the tatoos was brought up, interesting that Eda kept hers until a few months ago. Also interesting that she moved it... can't blame Serkan for wanting to see it. Was that one great seduction line, or what?

I join with everyone who thinks it was a slightly awkward place to leave the episode. We only have 13 (probably) episodes this season, and we've only had one kiss so far. That was definitely a moment for a kiss. Part of me thinks they were going for the cliffhanger, what will Eda do? Will she kiss him or slam the door in his face? Tune in next week to find out! Except that audiences have to wait no time at all for the fragman and that makes any such cliffhanger moot. So what's the point? Have her pull him in, kiss him, and the show can end with them passionately making out and the door slamming with the camera outside the house.

Oh well, it is what it is, and we can only hope they pick up next week right where they left off. As for the fragman, obviously they are fully back together for this episode which means she lets him in to hunt for her tattoo. (please oh please give us that internet ozel because I don't think I can stand being online in this fandom if they don't. Thankfully I'm traveling next week and will be too busy to spend much time on twitter.)

As I said in another ask, I'm not surprised Serkan is barreling them straight towards marriage. When you know, you know, so why wait? Once they emotionally commit to one another, they need to just get married. No waiting for psychos to interfere, family to meddle, or tragedy to strike!

Seriously can't wait for a full episode of them together and Serkan figuring out how to propose. I'm also looking forward to the Kemal/Serkan stuff, it will be interesting to see how he reacts once the news sets in... should be a great episode!