#nestor x ofc

[drabbles-mc]

WIP Game

Thanks for the tag, @passionatewrites! These games always read me for filth but I love them. 😂 If nothing else, it proves that every time I make a post or ramble in tags and my author's notes about "having a wip that..." I'm not full of shit and the wip actually does exist 😂💯

Rules: share your unpublished WIPs. No updates to ongoing fics, just new shenanigans :)

I'm doing multichaps and only a couple of my one-shots because if I did all of my one-shots this post would be way too fucking long lmao

Please feel free to send me asks about any of these! Snippets, questions, lore, whatever you want! I'm always more than happy to talk wips!

Multichaps:

They Were Roommates (Nestor x OFC, Angel x OFC): Based off a request that someone sent in literal years ago at this point but I've been trying to pull it all together ever since. Nestor starts seeing a girl who is new to town, but what he doesn't know is that her roommate is dating one of the people he dislikes most in the world: Angel Reyes

Untitled Gilly/Tasha Fic (Gilly x OFC): When life with her family in Northern Cali starts to fray at the seams and get messier than she can handle, Tasha packs a bag, gets in her car, and drives to the one person she knows will take her in no matter what: her Uncle Bishop. What was just supposed to be a couple weeks-stay to cool off suddenly becomes much more complex when she meets the men from the MC.

Bloodline OBX Crossover (Gen Fic): After finally managing to get back to the mainland from Poguelandia, JJ brings all of his friends to the only person that he has left anymore, and truly he doesn't even know if the man is still going to know who he is. Lucky for JJ and the Pogues, Danny Rayburn never forgets anyone.

Bad Ideas (Canche x OFC): Bad blood between charters and the aftermath of the shoot-out at the clubhouse means hell for the MC> None of that is really on Lia Reyes's radar when she stops by to check in on her brothers who have gone radio silent. In the midst of all the drama, the last thing she expects is to strike something up with the one person that her brother can't stand, and who can't stand her brothers. It all becomes a waiting game to see how long it takes for her last name to come into play.

Untitled The Bear Fic (Marcus x OFC, Carmy & OFC): Carmy finally broke down and started going to Al-Anon meetings, not expecting to actually get anything out of them, certainly not expecting to make his approximation of a friend. Lucky for him, Ray hasn't ever stopped herself on someone else's account. When bad luck and family troubles bring her to The Beef, she finds Carmy and a whole lot more.

Your Mess (Nacho x F!Reader): Being new to town meant that you had no idea what you were really getting yourself into when you met Nacho and extended an invitation to him. He knew, though. It wasn't long until you both realized why you should've taken the first 'no' he gave you and ran.

For Everything (Happy Lowman x OFC): Everything about the Teller family spells out bad luck, but it doesn't stop Happy from falling into bed with one of them. However, before the curse of the Teller family can catch up to them, ghosts from Happy's past rear their ugly heads first.

Brick by Brick (Opie x OFC): In the aftermath of getting out of prison and finding that his entire family had taken off while he was still behind bars, Opie tries to put the pieces of his life back together again. Despite his better judgment, he allows someone close to help with it all.

There and Back (Nestor x Erin): They only got along because proximity didn't allow otherwise when they were teenagers, but as time went on and everything in life got more complicated, their feelings did too. Both of them promised not to be the type to fall hard and fast, but Erin was the only one who kept her word no matter how many years went by.

Coming to Terms (Rafe x OFC): Despite all the fight that he put up about it, Rafe finds himself drying out and thrown into more therapy sessions than he can keep track of in some rehab center on the mainland. He was determined to fake and lie his way out until he met someone who frustratingly calls him on his shit at every possible turn.

Boxing AU (EZ x OFC): Fresh out of prison and looking for something extra to keep him from going back inside, EZ finds himself walking through the doors of one of the most old-school boxing gyms in Santo Padre. He's expecting a ring, some sparring, a coach who gives him more grief than necessary. What he doesn't expect is the woman who meets him at the door and flips his entire world upside-down.

Against All Odds (Juice x OFC): Juice knows better than to think that getting involved with Jax's younger sister is a good idea. He knows it's not. But as time goes on and tensions start to thicken, it's not enough to stop him. What he wasn't ready for, though, was realizing that their relationship was the least of their problems.

Pieces Into Place (EZ x OFC): College AU. From Stanford all the way to Harvard, EZ has been one-track minded. Always focusing on school and the next step beyond it. When someone comes in and pulls his focus from that, it's a breath of fresh air, at first. But the familiarity of it comes at a cost that EZ isn't ready to pay, and has him putting up walls before he can stop himself.

Tragic (Angel x OFC): EZ going to prison caught everyone off-guard Nothing made sense to Angel, or their childhood best friend. Both of them lost with no one else to turn to, they turn to each other in an attempt to figure it all out.

Figuring It Out (Happy & OFC): Happy showed up to the tattoo shop looking for one particular person to give him one particular tattoo. When that person wasn't there, though, he settled for the young woman who was at the shop. One smiley face later Happy realized he had no say in the matter of having her in his life from then on out.

From The Start (Opie x OFC): Falling for his best friend's little sister hadn't been part of the gameplan, but it was too late to go back on it now. The problem was, that for as good as it all sounded in his head, the reality of who he was dealing with was far harsher than Opie bargained for.

How We Got Here (Coco x OFC): Despite not knowing her his whole life, Coco couldn't remember a time before Daniela Reyes. Pain was what brought the two of them together, but it was also what drove the two of them apart. Coco clung desperately to everything that happened in between, hoping to mend those fences one panel at a time.

Untitled Juice Fic (Juice x OFC): Desperate to get out from under the thumb of the club for a night, Juice finds himself in a bar just outside of town, getting far drunker than he should. The bartender who could have and should have tossed him right out onto the street extended a little kindness instead, unknowingly creating an entire web of secrets for the two of them.

Love Triangle (Carrillo x Reader, Javi x Reader): You hadn't known Javi as long or as well as you'd known Carrillo. You certainly didn't expect that to change as things with you and Carrillo got more serious. However, as things start to disintegrate between you and the Colonel, you start to wonder if there's more to Javi offering you a shoulder to lean on.

Chaos at the Lakehouse (Gen SOA & OC's Fic): Years after everyone had grown up and moved away, the entire crew that had once called Charming its home base all decide to get together again. Everyone is grown with their own families now, and life looks different for everyone, but in a lot of ways they all pick up right where they left off.

One-Shots:

Beautiful Stranger (Bucky x Natasha): After losing Steve, and losing just about everything else, Bucky and Natasha both take off separately, desperate to start over in different corners of the world as people with a little less pain to carry around with them. However, after a lot of time and a lot of moves, they somehow end up on opposite sides of the same bar together and realize that maybe they just aren't supposed to be staying away from each other.

Lovers to Enemies (Carrillo x F!Reader): Things that seem to good to be true, usually are. If anyone was well-acquainted with that fact it was Carrillo. And yet, when you came traipsing into his life, he couldn't help but to hope that he was wrong. But. He wasn't.

Better Than That (Coco x F!Reader): In the aftermath of a messy breakup between you and Angel, you find yourself growing closer to one of the last people you expected.

Like I said before, if any of these make you go 👀 then feel more than free to send me an ask about it! I'm more than happy to gush about them all! 💖

Tagging (no pressure as per usual): @garbinge @bullet-prooflove @spaghettificationandpretzels @artemiseamoon @darqchilddaydreamz and anyone else who wants to gush about their wips! (or hold themselves accountable like yours truly lmao)

[kilojulietsierra]

Unexpected - Part Two (Nestor Oceteva x OFC)

I loved the original so much that I had to do a part 2!

She still wasn't used to waking up with Nestor in her bed. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to 'get used to it', she loved the way it made her heart flutter and made her feel young and carefree. He was warm and solid behind her, his hand on her hip had begun to wander so he was obviously awake. Unable to resist, she shifted back against him, her breath catching when the arm under her head and the one around her waist wrapped around her and gripped her tightly.

"Morning cereza." He mumbled the words, heavy and rough, into the side of her neck as he pulled her against him.

"Morning." She whispered back, enjoying his embrace, trailing her fingers over the ink that covered his arms.

His morning hug complete, his hand slid back to her hip and began to wander once again. Over her waist, her hip, down her thigh and back up to squeeze her backside where it was pressed against him. He kissed and nipped at her neck as he slipped his hand between her thighs, groaning when he found her wet as she often was in the mornings. "Hmmm." He hummed and used his other hand to prompt her to tilt her face so he could kiss her.

Chari gladly did so, a little breathless as his fingers worked over her slit. His motions slow and steady as they kissed.

Eventually she couldn't take his early morning, tedious pace and she rolled over to face him properly, throwing one leg over his hip before she returned to kissing him. Now much more heated and purposeful as he once again pulled her tight against him, his hardness pressing against her thigh, so close to where he belonged. When her arms wrapped around his neck he shifted their weight easily.

Her back now pressed into the mattress, he settled in the cradle of her legs and groaned when she bit his bottom lip and wrapped her long, lean legs around his hips. Without waiting he pulled back slightly and watched her intently as he slid inside her. Nestor loving the way her eyes fluttered as he moved deeper and deeper until they were completely joined.

She dug her fingers into his shoulders and sighed, airy and content as he dropped his lips to her neck and chest, exploring her skin as he began to rock into her. Soon her hands could not keep still. She grabbed at his sides and hips, digging her nails into the back of his thigh as she silently pleaded for him to move faster, to go deeper. Which he did.

His hips drove down into her, his right hand dragging her leg higher up his waist, until her knee was bent up next to his shoulder, his fingers pressing divots into her thigh as she moaned at the change in angle.

Her voice was barely a whisper as she arched her back, "Oh, holy shit..."

Nestor smiled, taking her earlobe between his teeth briefly before he spoke into her ear, "You gonna cum for me mami?"

Chari shivered and her back involuntarily arched once again as she nodded.

"Yeah?" He changed his pace, speeding up, his hips slapping against hers sharply until a high pitched gasp and whine escaped her throat. "You wanna cum mi cereza?" His voice was strained with his effort, "I can feel it, how bad you wanna cum for me."

She whined again, nodded again, her nails digging into his back. Her whine turned into a groan as he pulled out of her suddenly. Her eyes flew open, surprised, but instantly rolled back behind her eyelids as Nestor flipped her over and slid deep into her once again.

This time the whole of his weight pressed into her as he laid over the top of her. Immediately his hips picked up the deep, harsh thrusts again and he buried his face in her neck. "Is this what you want?"

Her face buried in her pillow, the same pillow he had slept on last night, she nodded.

He kissed the back of her shoulder and slowed his thrusts, "Say please."

She pushed back into him, wiggling her hips back and forth, "Please papi." Chari smiled and wiggled her hips again as she felt him falter slightly. The smile quickly transformed into a silent snarl, her teeth gritted together as Nestor responded by slamming into her immediately and relentlessly until they were both groaning and trembling through their release.

~~~

Chari was laying in bed ogling Nestor as he got dressed, a pair of jeans, dark t-shirt and his hair in a messy man bun.

He caught her looking in the mirror as he did up his jeans and grinned at her, "You gonna get out of bed?"

"Eww no," She pulled the blankets up higher, "It's early..." Chari rolled so her face was hidden between the pillows.

Nestor rolled his eyes as he came back over to the bed, crawling back over the top of her, biting at her asscheek through the blankets on his way up her body. "Better not be late for work." He wove a hand into her still tangled hair and turned her head so she faced him.

She was trying and failing not to smile, "Or else?"

He dropped a kiss to her temple, hand still buried in her hair, "Or else you're gonna be in trouble..."

"Promise?" She bit her lip and locked eyes with him.

Nestor hummed, "Mhmm," against her lips as he kissed her goodbye. "See you in a bit." He kissed her again.

Charity nodded and caught his lips one last times as he backed off the bed, slapping her ass as he went.

~~~

Chari later met Nestor in a hallway of the Galindo home on her way to find Emily. They knew they were alone and so they spared eachother tiny smiles. Nestor stopped in front of her, standing closer then necessary, "I'm going to go pick up Marcus. His Escalade broke down. You good?"

"Yeah," She nodded, "Boring day for the Mrs. so I'll be close if you need me."

Nestor nodded, "I'll see you later." He moved to pass her in the hall, discreetly pinching her thigh as he passed, giving her a wink.

Chari watched after him, smirking over her shoulder as she continued down the hall to find Emily.

~~~

She had been wrong. Mrs. Galindo's day was far from boring. Which is how she found herself following her through the dress warehouse, muttering under her breath that this lady was gonna get her killed. Chari offered a knowing look and an apology to the first guard Emily shoved past and said a prayer for the one that tried to keep her from the room where Miguel was holding his little meeting.

As soon as they blew through the door Chari and the other guards were spewing their apologies to Mr. Galindo, Charity doing her best to respectfully collect her charge and remove her. Before she could do that the door opened again and Charity saw Nestor.

Her stomach dropped and turned and her jaw clenched. He was battered and bloody, being carried in by one of his men and it took Chari's breath away to see him so. He looked at her once and then looked away quickly. Before she could do or say anything she heard Miguel, "Get her the fuck out of here!"

Chari had no choice but to take Mrs. Galindo from the room and the warehouse, then wait anxiously before she herself could learn what had happened.

~~~

The car doors slamming out front told her the men were back. Charity was mad, she should have been with them, she had heard nothing from Nestor and Emily had spent the afternoon being sneaky. She hated all of it.

She was filling her water bottle when she heard the footsteps come up behind her. When she turned the knot living in her stomach all day tightened, "Jesus."

Nestor looked like hell, patched up but tired and beat down. He shook his head, forced the best attempt at a smile he could, "Estoy bien, mi cereza, I'm fine." His voice was soft and rough and he stepped into her personal space. Too close for the middle of Galindos kitchen but if he didn't care neither did she.

"You scared the shit out of me today." She didn't touch him but, God was it hard not too.

"I know." He looked from her eyes to the floor for a moment, "When I saw you at the warehouse, I couldn't look at you. I knew as soon as I looked at you I'd break, and I couldn't do that." He looked her square in the eye then, "I'm sorry cereza."

Chari was shaking her head, "I know. I understand." She forced a small smile of her own. "You're okay, so I'm okay."

He nodded, "Good. You got time to give me a ride somewhere?"

~~~

That somewhere had been back to the warehouse and through the tunnels. Chari had never been 'under' the border before but Nestor knew where he was going and so she followed him. She wasn't sure what she was expecting but she was not expecting to come up through the floor of a Mexican doctors office and be escorted to the room where Marcus Alvarez was being put back together.

If Nestor looked bad Marcus looked terrible and she'd never admit it but her eyes burned as she watched Alvarez give Nestor the praise and respect he deserved for a job well done.

The short exchange finished, Charity was surprised when Marcus spoke to her, "Charity," the room froze as she looked to the consejero, "Make sure he gets home safe, and take good care of him tonight huh."

At a momentary loss for words she gave a minute nod and left the exam room, Nestor close behind her. They were silent all the way through the tunnels, the trap door, through the warehouse and to the parked SUV. Once they were seated, doors closed and engine idling, Charity let out a shaky breath, "He knows."

"Yes he does." Nestor agreed immediately, swinging his gaze to meet hers in the glow of the dashboard lights. Eventually he chuckled and then smiled. The good smile, the real smile, that showed his gold tooth and Chari new everything was okay. With a laugh he let his head fall back against the headrest and his eyes slip closed.

~~~

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder as he slid out of the Escalade, and she happily took the weight, not caring whether he did it to pull her close or to hold himself up. She slipped her arm around his waist and they leaned into eachother as they walked to her door.

Inside Chari turned on the kitchen light and pointed Nestor towards the living room while she dropped the keys on the table along with her gun and both their phones. She caught up to him as he toed out of his shoes in front of the couch, "C'mere." She rested her hands on his shoulders from behind, gave them as squeeze as a signal to let her help him shrug out of his shoulder holster.

Even from behind she could see him wince at the movement.

She took the set up and laid it carefully on the coffee table, "You wanna take a shower?" Chari stood in front of him as he slowly sank down into the couch.

He groaned and shifted his weight around, an attempt to get comfortable. "Eventually." Once he found some relief he sighed and sank deeper into the cushions, "For now I just wanna sit." His eyes had already fallen closed.

Charity stared at him for a minute, considering her next best move.

Before she could decide Nestor raised a hand out blindly to grab for hers, "Come sit with me mami." His eyes still closed, he gave her hand a tug.

Unable to say no she sat down at the end of the couch, this time she gave his hand a tug, "Promise not to fall asleep." It wasn't a question. She chewed on the inside of her lip as she watched him twist and turn and eventually lay down with his head in her lap.

He let out a long sigh and darted his tongue out to lick his lips when she slid her hand inside the collar of his shirt and settled her hand on his chest. They sat there in silence, her fingers traced back and forth over the tattoos on his chest by memory. The steadier his breathing got so did hers. The familiar motion comforted them both.

Nestor's voice was low, tired. "My fuckin' head hurts."

"I'm sure it does." Chari stilled the hand on his chest and laid the other on the top of his head, her thumb brushed over his brow in a slow, repetitive, motion. "Want me to take your braids out?"

He made an attempt at a nod, "Por favor."

Chari worked carefully untying the ends and unraveling them each, one twist at a time. First one, then the other, until she was able to comb her fingers through his hair. "There. Go take a shower." She scratched her nails gently over his scalp as she spoke. "I'll make something for dinner quick and put some fresh bandages on when you get out."

~~~

Nothing felt as good as Nestor's arms as they wrapped around her from behind. He felt warm and smelled clean and fresh. she breathed in the comfort of him as he pressed close against her back. He wound his arms around her waist completely and rested his lips against her neck. "Smells good." mumbled into her skin, punctuating the sentence with a kiss

Chari turned her head to see him out the corner of her eye, "I said I'd help." She stared directly at the new steri-strips and bandage on his face.

He huffed out a breath meant to be a laugh, "I've been bandaging myself up for years, cereza."

With one hand she turned off the stove and with the other she patted the backs of his hand so he would loosen his grip. She turned to face him, "Coming from the guy with a missing tooth and a scar through one eyebrow." Charity chuckled, her hands moving to rest against his ribs when Nestor chuckled and immediately winced.

"Don't make me laugh." He mumbles the words against her lips. Tension leaving his body even more with the hot shower and the feel of her lips opening under his. He couldn't help but think how fucking good if felt to be there.

Reluctantly they pulled apart, Charity still held her hands at his sides, "Sit and eat," and they did though neither of them cleaned their plate.

Nestor watched her intently as she cleared their places and put the dishes in the sink. Gingerly, he slid off his stool and once again approached her from behind. His hands on her hips and his chin resting on her shoulder, "Can we go to bed?"

Chari turned in his grasp and rubbed her hands up and down his arms, eyes boring into his trying to decide if she should let him sleep after the knock he had taken to the head.

Apparently knowing exactly what she was thinking he shook his head, "Baby I'm fine, just come to bed with me." His hands moved from her hips to her ass and pulled her close. His eyes and dark and tired as they bounced from her lips to her eyes and back.

"Nestor..." She sighed even as his lips pressed against hers. "You're hurt." She mumbled into his kiss.

He finished kissing her before he responded, "But I'm not dead." He attempted a smirk but it was a weak attempt.

In silence they kissed softly, looked into each others eyes, and Chari eventually relaxed into it seeing clearly in those eyes what he was thinking. In turn she knew he could see into her thoughts as well.

Silently, in what felt like slow motion, she took his hand and led him to the bedroom where she gently nudged him to sit on the bed. Chari stepped into the space between his legs and hummed as his hands wrapped around the back of her thighs. Her own hands she worked into the mess of his still damp hair and began to massage his scalp with slow, gentle fingertips.

Almost immediately he leaned his forehead against her torso and wrapped his arms around her thighs completely.

"Does that feel okay?"

"Mhmm"

After a few more strokes she spoke again, "Lay down."

It took him a minute to sit up straight but he did and he complied, carefully stretching out in the middle of the bed, eyes immediately slipping closed until he felt Charis hand on his thigh and her lips pressed against a bruise on his chest. He watched as her lips brushed over every scrape and bruise on his chest, sides and torso until her hand moved to cup him over his sweatpants. He sucked in a breath and released it slowly as her hand stroked up and down and her lips kissed over his stomach and his hip bones.

She stilled long enough to look up at him and lock eyes. One of their silent conversations that had now become such a huge part of their relationship. They can see it all in each others eyes; their fear at almost losing each other that day, the trust required for him to willingly show this vulnerability, the tenuous joy at the fact they are here together at the end of it all

With one hand Nestor tugged her back up to him and wasted no time in kissing her. Against her lips he asked, "What're you doin' cereza?"

Chari kissed him again, but let her hand slip inside the waistband of his sweats and took him in her hand. With a smirk, much closer to her normal, mischievous smile than he had seen all day, she murmured back to him, "Taking care of you." Then she kissed her way back down his bare chest and stomach until she was back where she had started.

Nestor's eyes rolled back in his head, all of his pain forgotten, the only thing he could feel was Charity's lips and her fingers tangled with his.

~~~

As the world around them seemed to become more and more unstable Charity did her best not to let it shake her. Nestor was her main... her only.... source of stability. As Emily and Miguel drifted apart, after Ditas death, after the border shut down, everything around them wavered. Everything except for the two of them it felt like.

Then one day Nestor showed up, middle of the afternoon, eyes glazed and obviously shaken.

"Nestor," Charity started before she saw the way he closed the door behind him and approached her like a man on a mission. "Nestor, what's wrong?"

He came up beside her and took hold of her elbow. "Where is Emily? Cristobal?"

"There upstairs. Why? Nestor, tell me what's wrong?" Before she could even finish her question Nestor was leading her across the big empty house and into one of the guest rooms, pulling the door closed behind them. "Nestor, what the fuck is going on?" She grabbed a fistful of the shirt at his side and gave a tug, "You're making me nervous."

He kept his hand around her arm, holding but not hard. "Was everything here okay today?"

"Yes, I mean... normal. Why? Nestor, what happened?" Charity hadn't seen Nestor this way the entire time she had known him. He wan't frightened but... something had him concerned, off balance.

"Paco." His eyes locked on hers, tinted by the yellow sunglasses he had not taken off, "Chari, Paco is dead."

Her heart skipped a beat. Caught off guard. "What? What happened."

"Chari... just promise me you will be careful and let me know if anything happens. Anything." His eyes drilled into hers, making sure she understood he was serious.

"Nestor, please tell me what happened."

He finally pulled his eyes from hers to glance out the window and then at the closed door behind them. "Miguel killed him." He paused, tightening his hold on her at the shock on her face as if to hold her steady. "He shot him."

"Jesus Christ..." She swayed on her feet but Nestor held firm. "Nestor what the fuck is happening?"

He licked his lips and looked to the floor, "I don't know. I don't know but... mi amor, promise me you will be careful. That you'll let me know if anything happens. Promise me."

Heart still racing and head spinning Chari nodded, "I promise."

~~~

Nestor had stopped at his apartment for the first time all week to grab some clothes and take a shower before heading to Charity's. He was hardly ever here anymore and so when he heard knocking on his front door he was surprised. He had pulled on a pair of shorts, answered the door and lied to Mikey's face.

He hadn't really thought about it, just done it, but done it in a way that had protected the wrong people.

As soon as the door had shut behind Miguel Nestor got dressed, grabbed the bag he had been packing, his phone and keys. He dialed Charity's number as he jogged down the stairs.

"Hey."

"Where are you?"

"Home. Why?"

"Are you alone?"

"Por supuesto! Por que? What's wrong?" Charity was immediately on edge.

Nestor thew his bag in the passenger seat of his SUV and climbed in, "Baby, listen to me. Don't do anything until I get there okay." He turned over the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot without buckling his seat belt. "Don't answer your phone, your door nothing okay. Escuchame mami, nadie mas que yo, entiendes?"

"SI, yo entiendo, pero... Nestor you're scaring the shit out of me. What's going on?"

"I'm on way over now, I'll be there soon."

~~~

"Nestor, you can not go out there with him! Not now."

"Babe, I've already lied to Mikey. I have to see this through now." Nestor put his now empty coffee mug in the sink. He'd lost track of how many cups they'd both had last night. Neither of them sleeping.

"And exactly what the fuck does that mean?" Charity stood across her small kitchen island from him, shadows under her eyes.

"I don't know what any of it means. All I know is that Mikey wants me and Marcus to meet him, and I have to go." If Charity looked tired, Nestor looked exhausted.

She circled to island to stand in front of him, grabbing the front of his shirt in both hands. "And what? I'm just supposed to go to the fucking house like i don't know any of this?" She looked up at him, still barefoot and in the shirt she had meant to sleep in. "If Miguel knows about the tire tracks, if he's calling you and Marcus, he knows, Nestor, he fucking knows, and nothing good can come from that."

Nestor took her hands in his and pulled them up around his neck, so he could wrap his arms around her waist. "I know mi cereza, I know. But, I don't have a choice. I have to go, for Marcus mi amor."

When she looked into his eyes she saw something had changed in him. She leaned into him, letting him squeeze her tight. She knew. Nestor wasn't doing this for Miguel, not because of his loyalty to him or his fear of him. He was doing it because what he had said put himself and Marcus in danger, and he was not going to let Marcus go into this alone.

Charity took a deep breath and nodded slowly, "Promise me, no matter what, you come back to me. Whatever you have to do to make that happen, I need you to do that for me."

"I promise."

~~~

"What's going to happen?" Charity sat next to Nestor in his Escalade. Her fingers tapping against the side of her cup as he drove her to the Galindo residence.

"I'm not sure. All I know is that today I'm going to ride with Marcus and make sure he can follow through with what Mikey is asking of him."

She stared out the windshield, but didn't see anything. "And if he can't?"

"If not..." He slowed down for the last stop sign before the house. He put the SUV in park and tipped her face towards his, "Then it's up to me." He looked at her intensely, "Can I have a kiss before we get to the house?"

Charity smiled weakly but leaned into him, kissing him until a car pulled up behind them and honked. "Remember what you promised me."

Nestor nodded and gave her one last quick kiss before putting the car back in drive.

~~~

Mrs. Galindo wasn't right, she hadn't been for awhile now, but today something was even more wrong.

Charity sat across from her at the table, Cristobal next to them munching away at his lunch. She watched her employers wife ignore a call only for her own to ring a moment later.

"Yes Sir." She handed the phone to Emily and waited.

"We have to go." Emily grabbed her bag and shoved away from the chair.

"What's wrong?" Charity stood.

"We need to leave, now." She grabbed her son from the table and Charity followed her out the door of the diner.

They rushed out to the SUV and Charity helped get Cristobal settled in. "Emily, tell me what's going on."

She seemed to be battling over something internally and then she locked eyes with Charity, "I need you to help me."

~~~

Nestor stared at the TV Screen, listening to the phone vibrate over and over again on the table. He and Marcus were so quiet that both of them flinched at the knocking on the front door.

Marcus stood up. Nestor moved a hand to the pistol at his back.

When the door opened to reveal Charity, Nestor jumped to his feet. Marcus stepped aside and let Charity and Nestor meet each other halfway, arms thrown around each other in the middle of the kitchen.

"I'm so fucking glad you're here!" Charity gasped into his shoulder as he picked her up and hugged her tight. "I did something stupid and had to ditch my phone and I couldn't get a hold of you so I came here. I'm so glad you're here."

Nestor set her feet back on the ground but did not let her go, "What do you mean; you did something? Charity, what did you do?"

She stepped back a little, looking from Nestor to Marcus and back, "I helped Emily get out."

"What?" Nestor ducked his head to catch her eye and Marcus stepped closer to the pair.

"What do you mean?"

Charity took a deep breath, "Miguel called, she freaked, told me what he did... I helped her get out of town. Gave her the car and let her go. I called Luis to come get me, he took me home and took a message to Miguel." She took a shaky breath, clinging to Nestor, "Miguel kept calling so I got rid of my phone and came straight here." That seemed to shake her free suddenly, "Wait. What happened with EZ?"

The men shared a look and then Marcus shook his head side to side slowly.

Then she looked at Nestor, looked at her hold on him and his hold on her. Realized the two of them were embracing in the middle of Marcus Alvarez's kitchen. She chuckled slightly, catching Nestor's eye, "He definitely knows now huh?"

Nestor smiled, lifted her arms to wrap around his neck and kissed her cheek before hugging her tight again, "Yeah cereza, he knows."

~~~

"What happens now?" Charity and Nestor sat on the Alvarez's back step staring at few stars visible.

Nestor shook his head, resting his chin on her shoulder where she sat in front of him, "I don't know. I didn't really think further than not shooting Marcus."

She snorted, "I mean, that was a good decision and I'm proud of you, but now what?"

Before Nestor could answer, the back door opened and Marcus appeared. "Sorry to interrupt, but I was hoping to have a word with Nestor quick."

Charity stood, "No worries." She leaned down and braced her hands on Nestor's thighs as she gave him a soft kiss. "i'll go inside and help Izzy." She gave him another kiss and climbed the stairs. Nestor's fingers holding onto hers until the last moment.

Marcus lowered himself, slow and carefully, down onto the step next to the younger man. "What happened today..."

When Nestor opened his moth to explain himself Marcus shook his head, "All I want to say is I'm proud of you Hermano. I know that wasn't an easy decision. We haven't had many easy ones lately, but I hope you know I mean it when I say you're a good man." He chuckled darkly, "Not just because I'm still alive, but because you made your own decision."

Nodding, Nestor clasped his hands together in front of him, elbows braced on his knees. "I should feel bad..." He couldn't look Marcus in the eye. "I betrayed Mikey but I... I can't feel it. All I can think of is something Charity said to me awhile ago."

Marcus nodded now, "And what was that?"

"She said my loyalty was one of her favorite things about me, but that Mikey... Miguel didn't deserve it." Nestor stared at his boots and Marcus waited patiently. "That's been playing on a loop in my head all day."

"She's a good woman."

Nestor smiled. Nodded.

"Men like us need women like that. Strong enough to take us down a peg or two when we need it. Smart enough to call us on our shit. Tough enough to wear down our sharp edges. Soft and sexy enough to trick us into falling in love." He laughed and Nestor smiled a little wider, ducking his head bashfully.

"I don't know what happens next, but what I do know is this." He stood up and offered his hand to Nestor. "You have Charity, and you have us." Nestor took his hand and stood up. "La famila, verdad? Whatever happens, we're in it together."

Nestor didn't know what to say but Marcus seemed not to mind. He pulled the younger man into a firm hug and then nodded to the door.

They walked into the kitchen together and Marcus walked straight to his wife, wrapping his arms around her from behind while she stirred something on the stove, kissing her on the neck, the two of them laughing together.

"They're cute huh?" Charity walked up to him, wiping her hands on a kitchen towel. "Gives us a little hope." She stepped in front of him, smiling when he accepted her easily with a strong arm around her waist, pecking her lips as she leaned against him.

Nestor wondered if she knew how he was feeling, what he was thinking, how his internal compass had been spinning wildly all day until he had her in his arms again. He never would have thought the day would come that he would turn his back on Mikey, Miguel he reminded himself, but he also never thought the day would come that he would be standing in a kitchen with a woman he loved in his arms, kids running around the house and friends... no, family getting ready to sit down to dinner together.

He pulled her closer and kissed her temple, reveling in the warmth of her hand on his chest, "This is better than I could expect, better than I deserve." He glanced at Marcus and Izzy again, daring to hope like Charity had said.

"No." Her voice was soft but firm, "This is exactly what we deserve."

~~~

Finally finished!! Let me know what you think!

Thank you for reading!!!

[sweetnestor]

On Days Like This | Epilogue: The Second Gold Chip

teamiplier + oc, romantic/angst/platonic

PREVIOUS FICS (if you’re new here then I suggest reading these first)

previous chapter

In the end, separation was a good thing. Helena had told me and Ethan to spend some time apart, seeing as it could help ease the lingering tension. It was a thing married couples would do if they didn't want to divorce. It was pretty easy for Ethan and I to do so, seeing as we had spent two weeks crammed together on a bus with far too many people on top of the problems we were already facing. We needed time to ourselves, so straight after that therapy session, we went to our respective apartments.

The temporary separation included me staying in LA while Ethan went to Maine for his birthday. It was an order from Helena, which meant that I didn't have to tell Ethan that I couldn't go anyway. It was his 21st, which meant that he was planning on getting fucked up. Nope, I could not be around that. He was in LA for a few days, and then he flew off, taking an Uber to the airport instead of having me drop him off.

Aside from that, I was glad to be back in my own bed, in my own apartment. It was little blessings like this that made me glad I hadn't moved in with Ethan yet, even though we had briefly discussed it over the last few months. But despite the fact that I was savoring my solitude, the aftermath was starting to kick in tenfold.

I was waking up alone, eating alone, going to bed alone. I had nightmares that consisted of giving birth to a corpse and bleeding out on stage. Since returning home, I woke up most mornings by clutching the space next to me in my bed and remembering I couldn’t go to Ethan for comfort.

Mind you, I did mention in the team group chat that I was cutting off communication for the time being to recollect myself. No one seemed to mind. I wanted it that way, to recharge and spend some time with myself, yet the desire to drink was stronger than it had been on tour. I didn't have anything to keep me busy anymore, and my thoughts were racing at a dangerous pace. Being alone was getting dangerous.

Thankfully, I caught myself before I could relapse. I got out of bed and got myself ready for the day. By that I mean, I took the initiative to put on an extreme push up bra, a particularly low v-neck shirt, and a dark lip makeup look. Then I took a selfie, focusing on the cleavage, and sent it to Ethan over Snapchat.

I got a screenshot notification in response. Then, through text:

“I'M WITH MY FAMILY”

Not the first time I was told something like that. It did take my mind away from the deadly liquid for a moment. It was exciting, getting to tease him from the other side of the country. Hadn't felt that in a while.

But he wasn't here. I still felt like drowning in whatever hard liquor I could get my hands on. If I drove, then I couldn't drink. That's a good plan. I got in the car (after changing into a t-shirt) and drove to the first place I could think of.

Thankfully, Mark and Amy were at the office. They had been out and about lately with this new, totally-not-creepy white van Mark had bought. I was expecting them to be busy, already knee deep in a new video. They were discussing potential ideas until they heard my steps up the stairs.

They were quite surprised to see me. Chica, on the other hand, was excited, and I definitely needed to pet her for a bit.

“Hey, Bella,” Mark greeted. “Thought you were, uh, detoxing the human race?”

He wasn't wrong. That was how I worded my text. I had been keen on keeping that promise until I received my four month chip and the desire to ruin it all.

“I decided to cut the detox early,” I said, but then I decided to be honest. “I'm not feeling the best. I need to be busy.”

Both Mark and Amy looked concerned. They gestured for me to sit with them on the couch, so I did. Chica put her head on my lap, almost like she knew I needed comfort.

“Have you drank at all? Are you alright?” Amy asked me.

“I really feel like drinking,” I told them. “It's been bugging me since we got back, and even more now that Ethan's gone.”

“Okay, so you're here because…” Mark trailed off.

“I gotta be around people who can help me stay clean.”

Mark smiled and shared a look with Amy. I could tell he was touched by this statement. We had come a long way, now that I had willingly come to him and his girlfriend and opened up to them. I should be happy about that. I should appreciate having these people in my life.

“So how can we help you?” Amy asked as she placed her hand on my arm.

“I need distractions and other things to think about,” I replied.

“Perfect!” Mark exclaimed. “Wanna make a video with us?”

~

We drove out to a pumpkin patch on the outskirts of town. We were also joined by Mark's assistant, Evan, who would be wearing the camera harness and act as the viewer yet again. The purpose of today's video was to show who was not acting as the viewer, so we would eventually be joined by Tyler, and then we would find a way to squeeze in Kathryn and Ethan, who were both out of town.

Amy and I were under a little hut, waiting for Mark and Evan to arrive. We were giving off the impression that we just happened to be at this place, and to reveal that neither of us were behind the camera.

“Oh, hey!” Mark greeted when he, Evan, and Chica showed up.

“Hey, what are you guys doing here?” Amy asked, sounding pleasantly surprised.

“Is this your house?”

“Yeah, we live together now,” I said with a smug smile. Amy put her arm around me and pulled me into her side.

Honestly, I wasn't sure how the viewers felt about Amy and I being friends. Not that I should care, I mean. I'm sure it was bizarre to see Mark's ex-girlfriend and his current girlfriend interact nicely on camera.

“It's still really hot,” Mark said as if nothing happened. He looked around at the hut.

After some banter, we went off looking for pumpkins. Evan took the temperature of many pumpkins, Chica got distracted by some goats, and my makeup melted off under the sun. Amy and I stuck together and went our own way, while Mark and Evan went off somewhere else in the patch.

Eventually, Amy and I sat on a thing of hay in the shade. She was comfortable in her red baseball tee and shorts. Meanwhile, I was pretending not to die in my black tee, black leggings and black boots. I did not think any of this through. Then again, I hadn’t planned on going outside today.

“Have you talked to Ethan?” Amy asked me.

“Not since this morning,” I replied, sighing a little bit.

“Are things still… off?”

I shrugged. “I don't know. I just miss him.” I could have said much, much more, but Mark called for Amy.

“Be right back,” she said as she went over to the man with the pumps.

In the meantime, I checked my phone. Nothing from the birthday boy. My heart sank a little bit. Would it be bad to ask how he's doing? The separation wasn't exactly strict, we were allowed to text and such.

Anyway, I had to participate in the video. Mark picked out two small, matching pumpkins for me and Amy to carve later. He picked one for Tyler as well. Then, Mark and Evan went to the little petting zoo set up and hung out with some goats. Then, it was time to pick up Tyler.

Evan, Amy, and I all squished together in the back of the van so the tree man could sit in the front. I stayed busy on my phone to avoid the crippling nerves running through my veins. The rest of the group could banter without me.

“Oh, are you gonna be here for the charity livestream on Saturday?” Mark asked Tyler.

“I can guarantee that I'll be there for part of it,” he replied.

Mark then pointed at Amy. “You gonna be there?”

“Afternoon,” she said.

“You?” He pointed at Evan, who silently fist nodded. “And you, Bella?”

“I'm there,” I said, not looking up from my phone.

“Cool, it's gonna be on Saturday, around ten A.M.”

Finally, we parked somewhere and all piled into the back of the van. It was time to carve the pumpkins. I went over to the back doors of the van and plopped down next to Evan.

I was about to roll up my sleeves until I saw patches of makeup near my wrists. The heat and the fabric of my shirt must have rubbed my hard work away. My stomach sank a little bit. I had no choice but to settle with staying uncomfortably warm and making a mess on myself.

Carving a skull design into my pumpkin turned out to be therapeutic. It was like hitting a punching bag. At one point, tracing little details and intricate designs onto my skull was just calming. I forgot about my worries for a moment there.

“Look at her, she is stunning,” I said when we all presented our pumpkins.

“Where did that inspiration come from?” Mark asked me.

“Emotional turmoil.” I smiled, but quickly took it back. “Joking, joking. It's almost Día De Los Muertos, so I made this baby.”

Turns out, they all made silly, half-assed decorations on their pumpkins. Standard jack-o-lanterns. Mine was the only one with a serious, detailed design.

Mark and Tyler pretty much handled the rest of the video. They placed our pumpkins on top of the van, and then they FaceTimed Kathryn and Ethan to pick out the best one. Mine won.

After finishing the video, however, Tyler pulled me aside. Mark, Amy, and Evan were cleaning up the pumpkin scraps and the pretended not to overhear us.

“Emotional turmoil?” he repeated suspiciously.

I chuckled. “I can make jokes.”

He gave me a look, and then I cracked.

“I think I'm gonna fall off the wagon,” I admitted. “Once we're done here, I'm gonna go to a meeting.”

“Should someone go with you?”

Knee-jerk reaction: no, I'm fine. I can handle this. Don’t worry about me. Logical reaction:

“Yeah, if you don't mind.”

We went back to the office where I had left my car. Then, Tyler and I said goodbye to the others and went off.

Today's meeting was an open discussion, so Tyler was able to stay in the room while people shared their stories. I rarely participated unless it was a closed discussion. Sometimes just listening to other people's experiences helped my tense emotions.

Today though, I had things to share. I went up to the podium and faced the sizeable group of people. Maybe the fact that I had a friend in the crowd helped give me the courage I needed. I didn’t have Ethan here to help me, but I had a friend.

“At the beginning of this month, I had a miscarriage…”

~

“And so it seems I broke your heart My ignorance has struck again I failed to see it from the start And tore you open til the end”

I felt noticeably better when the meeting was over. I didn't feel as close to the edge as I did before, but Tyler was still going to spend the night at my place just to be safe. Now, I was watching back the cover I recorded.

“Sorry to my unknown lover Sorry that I can't believe That anybody ever really Starts to fall in love me”

“One last time,” Tyler said as he took the seat next to me on the couch, “are you sure you wanna make this whole thing public?”

I had spent the last hour working on this cover. I had been practicing this song for months, and now felt like the perfect time to post it. It was a sad song, “Sorry” by Halsey, and it resonated with me deeply when I first heard it. It was my breakup song for a breakup that I wasn’t even sure existed yet.

Let me just say that I had no intentions to end things with Ethan. I only had this song just in case. It was like a doomsday kit. I had a breakup playlist deep in my Spotify account, I saved many ice cream coupons, and I had friends I could rant to should doomsday actually hit.

But no one had to know that. I just wanted my cover out there without having to explain the details of my personal life.

Tyler had sat on the other side of the camera as I sang and played piano in the living room. My little performance almost reduced him to tears, which meant that this song’s intensity wasn't all in my head. Now that I had the whole thing recorded, I was in my laptop, getting ready to post it to my channel immediately.

“Oh, I'm more than sure,” I told him. “I've been wanting to do a cover of this song for months.”

“Someone will love you But someone isn't me”

Speaking of my unknown lover, I had been getting drunk texts from the birthday boy since I got home. He turns into quite the fuckboy after a few drinks. I wasn't really in the mood for whatever he wanted, so I just played dumb.

“Send nudes”

“lol you're so cute”

“Send me nudes!!”

“ur drunk bubby it's not right”

“If u don't send me nudes I'll die right now”

“well we can't have that now can we”

I had no other choice. I sent Ethan individual pictures of nude colored lipsticks. I would have sent my entire collection had I not been busy with my video, so i just screenshotted various products from the Sephora website and sent them over. Thankfully, Ethan took the joke.

“Shit I'm half mast… send more bby”

It took all my will not to laugh out loud right there. His exaggerated responses were cheering me up. The look on my face was easy to read though, according to my house guest.

“I take it Ethan's having fun?” Tyler asked.

“Oh yeah,” I said. “Kinda wish I was there with him, but I'm triggered enough as it is.”

“You feel weird when he gets drunk?”

“Yeah, but it's something I gotta get used to, I guess. I mean, I didn't mind looking after him when he got really tipsy after tour. But it did leave me feeling like… crappy because I want to drink but I can't.”

Tyler nodded, listening intently.

There was more I wanted to say, but I hesitated. “Ahh, I don't wanna be a whiny girlfriend.”

“Hey, it means you care,” he reassured.

Then it suddenly came out like word vomit. “He said he's in love with me…”

For a moment, Tyler didn't say anything. “That's good, isn't it?”

I shrugged and shifted in my seat. My phone buzzed again, but I didn't pay any attention to it. “The first time he said it, we were fighting, so I didn't think he meant it. Then, he said it again before he left for his birthday. And, well…” I sighed and spilled it all out, speaking quickly. “What if, while he's away from me, he realizes he's better off? What if he feels more like himself and more liberated because I'm not there to bring him down and hold him back? What if I'm here missing him, and he's over there, literally not even thinking about me? What if this is it for us?” I caught my breath after and nearly burst into tears.

Tyler placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. “If he says he's in love with you… and he's texting you right now… I think it's a good sign. You know he never replies to anybody’s texts, and you’re his first serious relationship.”

“People say things they don’t mean all the time,” I retorted. “People always say things and then realize they don't actually mean it. Mark said it, and look what happened!”

“Oh, I get it now. I understand that that stuff stays with you, but you can't let your past affect your present. Things are different now. And you definitely don't hold Ethan back. If anything, you've made him better.”

Hard to believe. I'm a toxic person. It's only a matter of time before he and everyone else realizes. That impending doom made me want to cry more, so I changed the subject.

“I have something for you.”

“What? Me?”

Silently, I took the black case off my phone, taking out the two coins I kept inside, one red and the other gold. I took the gold one and held it up.

“Four months,” I began. “I've been giving my chips to people who have helped me stay clean. I have my first one, Ethan has the second one, Mark has the third. I was debating between you and Kathryn for this one, but Kathryn’s outta town so…”

“So I win by default?” Tyler said with a chuckle.

My phone buzzed several times in a row. Ethan was probably off his rocker. I ignored it for now.

“Well, you were there for me to lean on,” I said. “You helped me keep my sanity during tour, and even now.”

Tyler was all too humble. “You need to give yourself some credit too, Bells. You made all the choices necessary to stay sober.”

“Yeah, but I couldn't do it alone.”

That's what made him accept the coin. “Thank you. I'm honored.”

~

Ethan was back in LA only two days after his birthday. He took an Uber home. It made me anxious. Maybe he didn't want to see me. Maybe there was nothing left to say, and it was over now.

I wanted to avoid my phone and stay attached to it at the same time. If he texted me, I wanted to know, but if he was going to ignore me then I didn't want to know. Instead, I tried to focus on the feedback from my “Sorry” cover. As expected, people were wondering who hurt me so bad that I had to sing a sad song. So I went to Twitter.

@bellasanti: I know it sounds strange but sad songs are my favorite ones to sing. I've been singing emotional songs on my channel for years. It doesn't necessarily have to reflect what's going on in my personal life lmao

@bellasanti: those of y'all making assumptions and trying to figure out why I posted such an intense song, here's why: I felt like it. ty ily 😙

Ethan silently liked those tweets. Usually, he would respond with kind words of support. Or maybe I was just overthinking. Surely he was mad at me, right?

A few minutes after those tweets were posted, he texted me. My heart pounded and my mind started racing.

“Come over D:”

Is this where it ends? Could I prolong this ending?

I managed to get ready without having a nervous breakdown. By that, I mean I put on pants, grabbed my keys, and left the apartment. The drive to Ethan's place was short, which didn't give me enough time to panic. I tried to soothe myself as I walked up the steps to his front door, but it only made me want to cry.

It was stupid to knock because I had a key to his apartment. I realized that after I knocked, so I started to fumble with my keys to unlock the door, but Ethan beat me to it. Somehow, the door swinging open still made me jump.

He smiled brightly and opened his arms, wanting me to hug him. It was almost natural for me to accept the gesture. I couldn't help it. He hugged me tight and held me for a little bit, which was a little surprising. Then he kissed me, which was even more surprising. Was he not going to dump me?

“I missed you,” he said as he pulled me into his apartment.

I chuckled nervously, not knowing how to respond to that. “I'm sure you were too busy having fun to miss me.”

“No, I'm serious,” he told me. “Everyone asked for you. I didn't tell them about your sobriety, so I said you were sick. I did have fun, but I still missed you a lot.”

My heart jumped a little bit. I was starting to think that maybe I read too far into the situation.

“I missed you too,” I said softly. Tears welled up in my eyes before I could stop them.

“Aww, don't cry!” Ethan said quickly. He placed his hands on my upper arms. “Uh, here! Let's dance!” He awkwardly rocked us from side to side and hummed a random tune.

It helped a little bit. I sniffed and wiped away my mascara. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…” And I spilled out the thought vomit I told Tyler the other night, except with more tears and less eye contact.

Ethan hugged me again once I really broke down. “You don't hold me back,” he mumbled. Then he leaned back and made me look at him. “Hey, it's okay. I'm not going anywhere. And I wouldn’t be better off without you, I need you. I feel… more like myself when I'm with you. You're the only girl I've dated that really understands what I do. And you understand me as a person. I can't put it into words the way I want to…” He paused for a moment. “And I’m sorry for how hard things have been with us lately… But I think spending time apart helped because I really did miss you and I really am in love with you…”

That was the third time he said it. The nerves and fear showed on my face.

“I'm in love with you.” Four times. “Brutal honesty.” Oh my god.

And suddenly a goofy grin was growing on my face. He wasn't lying, after all.

“I love you,” I said. I would need time to say the advanced version.

______

the end??? i think???? im still writing a fuck ton of one shots????? thanks for reading??????? holy fuck?????

[crowfootwrites]

crowfootwrites masterlist

18+ / NSFW / Smut pieces marked with 🔥

Star Trek Works:

New Arrival [Odo (ST:DS9) x Fem!Reader]

Devotion & Diplomacy [Daro (ST:TNG) x OFC] Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX 🔥

Diel [Taurik (ST:TNG) x Fem!Reader]

Warm Welcome [Neelix (ST:VOY) x GN!Reader]

Eaha’le [Senator Kimara Cretak (ST:DS9) x GN!Reader]

What Happens on Risa [Gul Macet (ST:TNG) x Fem!Reader] 🔥

Stardew Valley Works:

December Drabbles [All Characters, currently updating]

Mayans MC Works:

The Boyfriend [Taza Romero x Fem!Reader] Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV

Bruises [Nestor Oceteva X Fem!Reader] | Part I | Part II

Hair [Nestor Oceteva x Reader] (Drabble)

Hoodie [Coco Cruz x Fem!Reader] (Drabble)

It’s Easy [Nestor Oceteva x Fem!Reader]

June Drabbles [All Characters, unfinished]

Los Guardianes [Nestor Oceteva x Fem!Reader] Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII

Mayans Take Their Kids Trick-or-Treating | Headcanon

Nightmare [Taza Romero x Fem!Reader]

PTA [Creeper Vargas x Reader]

Safety [Nestor Oceteva x Reader]

Show Off [Angel Reyes x Fem!Reader]

Softer [Hank Loza x Reader]

Study Buddy [Coco Cruz x Reader]

Sugar [Miguel Galindo x Fem!Reader] 🔥

Suspension [Gilly Lopez x Fem!Reader]

Together [Bishop Losa x Fem!Reader]

Undone [Nestor Oceteva x Fem!Reader] 🔥

Sons of Anarchy Works:

Ache [Juice Ortiz x Reader]

Assumptions [Chibs Telford x Fem!Reader] 🔥

The Dream [Chibs Telford x Fem!Reader] 🔥

Memories [Bobby Munson x Reader]

Rough Night [Tig Trager x Fem!Reader] 🔥

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Works

The Bath [Rafael Barba x Reader]

A Night on the Town [Rafael Barba x OC] 🔥

[spinningintheshadows]

Meaningless

Pairing: Ethan Nestor x OFC Words: 1015 Request:No. Author’s Comments: This part one of a series. I hope you enjoyed it! Requests are always open.

 meaningless. adj. Having no meaning or significance 

Heavy breathing, sweaty bodies, breathy "I Love You"s. It wasn't the first time they'd been in this situation, but if it was up to Eloise Sanders, it would definitely be the last time. Ethan had a girlfriend, Claire, who was absolutely gorgeous, even if she was a thundercunt to Eloise, who had been his best friend since literally the first day of Pre-K, and this situation wasn't fair to her. His "I love you" was meaningless, and she knew it, but somehow she always found herself in his bed as soon as he called. All Ethan had to do was flash her his blue-green eyes and she was practically a puddle for him. Yes, she was in love with her best friend, it was undeniable, but she was tired of being a fuck toy for him. In a week, she was moving to Los Angeles for college and he was staying here, going to state college and going to get a business degree. She'd been accepted to one the most prestigious art colleges in the country, full ride scholarship for Photography. Sure, she would miss him, but she needed to get away and since she was so busy packing for the move to California, she'd told him this was the last time this could happen. He'd agreed, he loved his girlfriend. But now, as they laid in his bed, trying to catch their breaths and he traced the tattoo on her wrist that she'd gotten for graduation, a sunflower with her brother's initials. They'd always been Luke's favorite flower because they were big, beautiful, strong. Ethan loved it, loved tracing it with his finger tips. This was as intimate as he'd get with his best friend, and he wanted it to last. Yes, he loved his girlfriend, wanted to spend his life with her, but right now in this moment the only thing on his brain was Eloise and how she was leaving him for California in a few days.

"You're going to keep in touch, right?" He mumbled, looking over at his friend. She let out a sigh. He knew the answer. She wanted to get out of Maine, to forget. She wanted to forget that her parents were fighting, that she'd been the one to find her brother the day he accidentally overdosed on a medication he took on a daily basis, but for some reason had an adverse reaction to it. That she blamed herself for his death, even though doctors and her parents assured her that there was nothing they could have done.

"I'll try, Ethan. I'm going to be really busy with school." she said. "And you'll be busy with school, and Claire. Plus I'll be three hours behind you." Ethan sighed.

"I could come with you." He said. "Leave Claire behind, come to California."

"You're not leaving your girlfriend for me." she said. "I'm your best friend. You deserve Claire, which is why this is the last time we're doing this."

"But maybe I want you." Ethan told her. "Did you ever think about that?" He wasn't thinking clearly, they both knew. He was in love with Claire Hanson, and someday he was going to marry her, be successful and have a houseful of kids with her. He couldn't figure out why he started sleeping with Eloise in the first place, but he knew he wanted her to be a part of his life for as long as possible, and that couldn't happen if they were 3000 miles apart.

"You don't trust me." She told him, rolling out of bed and searching for her clothes. "I need to get home, finish packing."

Four days. That's how long it took Ethan to text her saying he'd be at the airport to say goodbye. She'd shipped her stuff to her new apartment two days before. While she was nervous to be moving so far from home, she knew that in four short years she could come home and start her own business. Her hometown was a great place to take pictures, and it, along with Ethan, were what got her into this college in the first place. She was sitting in the passengers seat of her dad's SUV, listening to her favorite band, All Time Low, and dreading the flight. She hated planes, but also didn't want to have to drive all the way to California. Grabbing her carry-on, she said her goodbyes to her parents, hugging them both tightly and shedding a few tears with her mother, before going into the airport and finding her best friend standing there, staring at the flight board and sighing. He was wearing a beanie, despite it being August and hot as hell here, and had his hand shoved in his pockets.

"Ethan" She sighed, setting her suitcase down and running over to hug him. "I'm going to miss you."

"This where I get down on both knees and beg you to stay, right? I can't do that, I know you deserve this, you need this. I'm gonna be right here when you get home, okay? I'm still gonna be your best friend. High school reunion, five years from now, we're going to walk into that high school arm and arm just like we left it in June." he mumbled hugging her tighter than she thought possible. "And you're going to be successful and I'm still gonna be lost."

"Don't say that. I'm gonna own my own business and you're going to help me run it, Mr. Business Major." she laughed. They chatted for a while, until her flight was announced to be boarding. She left him there, watching her walk away, hands in his pockets, looking heartbroken. For some reason, her stomach was in knots as the plane took off, not because of her fear of planes, but something deep down told her that their hook ups hadn't been meaningless to either of them. Maybe there was a chance for Ethan to be hers after all, but she shook the thought from her brain.

All it was meaningless sex and it needed to stay that way.

[buckybarnesappreciationsociety]

♫♪♫You Are My Sunshine♪♫♪

Summary: James Buchanan Barnes loved his best girls, Y/N and  8 year old Cassidy Brielle. After an especially grueling mission, Bucky retreated into his head. Cassidy decided to write letters to her daddy!!

Word Count: 1,382

Characters: Bucky Barnes x Reader OFC: Cassidy Brielle Barnes, Steve,     Tony, Nat, Wanda, Thor, Scott, Rhodey, Clint

Warning: Mentions of blood, angst sprinkled with a healthy dose of fluff!

A/N: Thank you to my beta extraordinaire, @rebelslicious!! Please enjoy reading and as always, feedback is always appreciated.

Deep in the French Alps, a HYDRA base pinged on SHIELD’S radar. Vasily Karpov’s son, Nestor, wrangled agents and guinea pigs to do his bidding. He resurrected the Super Soldier program, using men and women with nowhere to go. Nestor told his prey life would be better with him.

During the briefing, Steve and Tony admonished Bucky to sit this mission out. “Buck, you know what could happen. Why don’cha-” Ever determined, Bucky reminded his childhood friend his expertise with other super soldiers. “I ain’t sitting this out, Stevie.” Tony added, “Yeah Ice Pop. What if you’re triggered?” Snapping, Bucky replied “You know damn well those words are out of my head..” Tony retorted, “That doesn’t stop your fucking nightmares.”

Slamming his hands on the cherrywood table, Bucky ranted, “LOOK, I’M GOING ON THIS DAMN MISSION. I NEED TO GO!!!”  Everyone turned their gaze towards the door. Shaking her head, Nat’s apprehension became warranted. “He’s not ready to face Karpov again. Not to mention other super soldiers.”

Steve noticed the light from Tony’s eyes dimmed. Pulling him into an embrace, Steve reminded him Bucky was a stubborn man. “Babe, he’s not gonna give up. I hope he’s okay out there.” “Me too.”

As Bucky packed his “go” bag, Y/N sat quietly on their king size bed. “Lemme, guess. You don’t want me to go?” Picking at the hem of her pajama shirt, Y/N tearfully expressed her feelings about the mission. “James, I NEVER  want you to leave us.”

Crouching in front of her, Bucky vowed to take at least 2 months off when he got back. “Doll, this is the last one. After that, we’ll take a family trip to Hawaii. How does that sound? Y/N threw her arms around Bucky’s neck. “I’d love it, James.” She embraced him tightly.

“M’gonna let Cassidy know I’m leaving.” Y/N nodded. Sitting on her blue duvet, Cassidy played on her iPad. Staring at her daddy’s “go” bag, Cass gave him the once-over. Closing her electronic, “Are you going on another mission daddy?” Bucky hugged her. “I’ll be back in a few days. Then, m’gonna take 2 months off and we’re going to Hawaii!!”

Excited, Cass jumped into Bucky’s arms.“Really daddy? I can’t wait!! While you’re gone, I’ll write you everyday.” “Good, I’ll have something good to read when I get back. Take care of your momma.  Love ya Cass.” “Okay. I love you too, daddy.”

Bucky boarded the quinjet with the rest of the team. He knew this would be difficult. The other super soldiers were genetically modified and would be difficult to take down. The entire ride, Bucky sat by himself staring at a picture of Y/N and Cassidy. He whispered, “M’gonna kill’em once and for all.”

Upon arrival, the Avengers were met with a hail of gunfire. Returning fire, Nat and Wanda partnered with Bucky. Team 2 consisted of Thor, Steve, Scott. Tony Rhodey and Sam who provided air support, Clint was perched high in a tree catching the guards off guard.  Bruce waited on standby in the quinjet.

Bucky went ahead of Nat and Wanda, scoping out the hallway. A super soldier caught Bucky off guard, slamming him through a wall. Regaining his balance, the battle ensued. Strength against determination. Bucky’s entire demeanor changed. The Winter Soldier joined the party..

Racing towards the computer, Nat pulled out a USB flash drive, uploading vital information. Wanda battled another soldier, using her powers. Steve and Thor took on two super soldiers. It proved difficult taking them down.

Nat gathered the necessary information, joining Wanda in the fray. Rounding the corner, Bucky heard a sinister snicker. “Well, what do we have here? The Winter Puppet.” “Karpov, m’gonna kill’ya just like daddy.”

Clicking his tongue, Nestor taunted Bucky. “Рщцэы нщгк афьшдн,” (How’s your family?) “Црфеэы ше ещ нф,” (What’s it to ya?)

“Your daughter’s really pretty, no?” Bucky stepped closer to Nestor. “If you so much as sneeze in my direction, your wife and daughter are DEAD!!” “What did you do Karpov?” “You butchered my father; I’m simply returning the favor!!!”

The only thing on his mind were Y/N and Cassidy. In one fell swoop, Bucky lunged at Karpov, using his vibranium arm. “YOU SON-OF-A-BITCH!!! NO ONE MESSES WITH MY FAMILY!!!”

“Buck, do ya really wanna go down his road?” Growling, the pissed super soldiers’ grip tightened. Before anyone could get to Bucky, he’d squeezed Karpov’s throat so hard, one of his eyes popped out. Then, he proceeded to stomp him. Thor, Steve, and Tony restrained Bucky.

“He’s dead pal. He’s dead. Nothing more ya can do to ‘em.” Snatching away from their grip, Bucky pushed through them, heading back to the quinjet.

Cassidy’s Letters:

 February 2, 2018

Dear Daddy,

Mommy and me are fine. She cries a lot though. Guess what? Got my report card. I made A’s and B’s!! Momma took me for burgers and ice cream. I hope you’re o.k. Well, I’ll write tomorrow. Love you, Cass.

February 3, 2018

Hi Daddy,

How are you? Okay I gotta tell you something. Ronald McNally pulled my hair at lunch. I sorta hurt him. Auntie Nat taught me a move to keep him off me. He’s mean. Momma came to the Principal’s Office. He’s got a black eye. I’ll bet he won’t mess with me again!! I gotta go. I’m on punishment till you get back. Kisses, Cassie.

February 4, 2018

Daddy, I’m bored. Momma’s still cries sometimes. She misses you so much, me too. Hope you’re home soon. Cassie.

February 5, 2018

I know you’re home, but can’t come home yet. Momma says those mean HYDRA men did something bad to you. I can’t come see you. Please get well soon. Uncle Steve and Aunt Nat tried to tell me what happening to you. Maybe I can sneak down and visit. I don’t care what those bullies say. You’re James Buchanan Barnes, my super hero daddy. See you real soon. Your best girl, Cassidy Brielle Barnes.

After the encounter with Karpov, Bucky was emotionally detached from everyone. Steve recommended time in a holding cell. His nightmares returned with a vengeance. So, instead of risking his family’s safety, he moved to a holding cell. During his time there, Bucky slipped deeper and deeper into his head.

Y/N visited her husband everyday. He scooted back to the wall, staring into oblivion. Cass had an idea about visiting her daddy, but she’d have to disobey everyone who told her to stay away.

She stealthily glided to the elevator, pushing the medical ward button. Exiting, Cass found her daddy’s holding cell.

Bucky didn’t acknowledge her presence. “Hi daddy. It’s me, Cassie. Guess you already knew that.” Stepping to the intercom, Cassidy whispered, “Do you ‘member when I had a nightmare? You sang to me. So, I’m gonna do it for you.

♫♪♫You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.

      You make me happy when skies are gray.

       You’ll never know dear, how much I love you,

       Please don’t take my sunshine away♪♫♪

Tears rolled down Bucky and Cassidy’s faces. She blew him a kiss. As Cassie walked away, for the first time in 3 days, Bucky spoke. “Cass, I love ya.” “Love you too, daddy.”

Standing in the door, Y/N, Tony, Steve, Nat and Wanda watched as Cass broke the spell Bucky was under.  ‘C’mere baby girl.” Tony punched in the code and Cassie sprinted to Bucky’s outstretched arms.. Y/N joined her husband and daughter.

Afterwards Bucky agreed to rigorous therapy, one-on-one and with his family. He took time off. He, Y/N and Cassidy travelled to Maui for 3 weeks of sun, fun, and togetherness. While there, she and Bucky conceived baby #2!!

@rebelslicious @omalleysgirl22 @pegasusdragontiger @suz-12 @papi-chulo-bucky @supersoldierslover @sgtjamesbuchananbarnes107th @papi-chulo-bucky @mydragulesebastian @debzybrazy @getinmelanin011

[kilojulietsierra]

Unexpected - (Nestor Ocetava x OFC) Oneshot

I've had this written and sitting on my laptop for awhile now, waiting for the inspiration to fill in some gaps.

Rather than waiting longer I decided to go ahead and post it as is and if/when inspiration strikes, I will add to it!

Canon Typical violence and language, allusions to smut, 18+

Nestor couldn't argue with the logic but he still didn't care for the idea. Not that his opinion mattered beyond his input on her resume. Alavarez had found her within a week of Mikey requesting a female bodyguard for Emily. Nestor didn't blame him; after everything with Potter and Dita and with Emily insisting on being more "inside", it made perfect sense. The woman that was hired came highly recommended and with an amazing resume. She was well educated, well trained, bi-lingual, attractive and had several years of military service under her belt before her last few years experience in private security.

When Alvarez had brought her file to Nestor to get his input Nestor was annoyed but begrudgingly impressed when he reached out to his own contacts and heard nothing but high praises. So, the Galindo household security team had a new member.

~~~

As the car door slammed behind Mrs. Galindo, Nestor turned to his guys, "I'm goin' to ride with Charity. We'll follow behind." Everyone nodded and Nestor turned to walk to the last vehicle lined up in front of the Galindo home. He couldn't help the small shake of his head as he approached the blacked out Escalade.

Charity stood beside the SUV, talking to another guard. She was trim and lean but not in a fragile way, wore dark skinny jeans tucked into a pair of boots and a simple top under a leather jacket. She stood out glaringly next to the other guards as they spoke, but she blended in perfectly when she stood next to Emily. Her and the guard next to her fell silent before they nodded to each other and separated as Nestor approached.

"You're driving." Nestor nodded towards the vehicle and walked straight past her to the passenger door.

The trip was longer than he was really comfortable with but according to Emily it was absolutely necessary. Two hours in Nestor was sick of the constant hum of engine and the God forsaken true crime podcast Charity insisted on listening to. If he gave her credit for anything it was her ability to sit silently and drive without the need to torture him with small talk or letting the silence between them turn awkward.

When she did finally break the two hour long silence, her voice was calm but firm, "This car behind us is coming up pretty fast."

Nestor shifted to look in his mirror. She was right. The highway had been quiet all morning, few cars aside from their own. He checked the SUV and town car cruising ahead of them. When he looked back to the mirror the approaching vehicle, another SUV was even closer, obviously speeding.

"If he tries to pass me here I'm gonna take that as a bad sign." Charity glanced at Nestor and their eyes locked for a split second before they each looked back to their respective mirrors. The strange SUV was gaining on them and now driving down the center of a no passing zone. Of all things to do Charity let her foot off the accelerator.

"What the hell are you doing?"

She ignored his question, "Call the lead car and tell them to drop back, let Emily's car in front and speed up." When Nestor continued to stare in borderline anger at her audacity to give him orders, she raised her voice, "You hired me now fucking trust me. Call em!"

He did just that, watching the two lead cars change positions and accelerate just as the approaching SUV flew past their own. Obviously making a beeline for the car.

Charity shifted slightly in her seat and muttered, "Might wanna grab the oh shit handle," before she set her boot to the floor and raced after the SUV she had just let pass her.

"Oh shit handle?" Nestor muttered back, one hand still holding his cell phone, his eyes swung back to the mirror. "There's a second car back there."

Whether she heard him or not he didn't know. He looked up to the windshield just in time to see the front bumper of their Escalade come into contact, hard and fast, with the rear quarter panel of the attackers SUV. The contact felt like nothing more than a large bump in the road but the sound was ear shattering as it absorbed the impact and the speed and weight of it sent the other SUV skidding and spinning and eventually flipping, barrel rolling down the road and into the ditch.

Nestor swayed in his seat as Charity compensated for the hit and immediately slid the vehicle to a stop across the road. Effectively blocking the way for the second car approaching from behind them. He was still reorienting himself when he heard Charity chuckle next to him as she reached into the backseat,

"That's the oh shit handle." She nodded to where his hand had instinctively grabbed the handle above the door.

He watched for the five seconds it took her to pull an automatic rifle from the back seat and jump out the door before he came to his senses and grabbed one of his own pistols. With the second car less than 100 yards away he moved to raise his pistol but stopped when he saw Charity standing by the SUV, elbows braced on the hood, rifle in hand. A steady squeeze of the trigger sent a burst of rounds into the oncoming vehicles windshield, followed by another burst and a third before it's tires screeched and it careened into the ditch not far from its counterpart.

Reflex kicked him out of his shock, at Charity not at the ambush, and he immediately moved towards the wrecked vehicles, handgun held in front of him, eyes sighted down the barrel. Peripherally he felt Charity fall into step beside him and heard the familiar engine of their second Escalade approaching. Coming back to assist. There was a singular, loud, ringing pop as a surviving attacker fired off a shot. Then all that could be heard was gunfire on all sides.

~~~

Her lungs burned, her knees hurt and her throat was sore and dry but Charity pushed harder. The night was dark and humid, and she was tired after a long day. Her first week at her new job and her team leader hated her and she'd already been in a fire fight on an empty desert road. It had gone in their favor, obviously, but even twelve hours later when she returned home she knew she had to burn off the excess adrenaline. So she ran. She ran until she could feel her heartbeat pounding in her ear drums and then ran a little further.

She had just jogged around the corner of her apartment building, completing her cool down lap, when she caught sight of a very familiar man leaning against the hood of a very familiar SUV. She slowed to a walk, pulling out her earbuds as she did so. "Shit."

Nestor had watched her from the moment she turned the corner and continued to until she was standing in front of him. Neither of them said anything, only Charity heaving in deep breaths of air, still winded from her run. Finally she spoke, "Are you here to give me my pink slip?" She stared pointedly at his ever present shoulder holster.

It had not escaped her notice that Nestor, who was technically her boss, was not pleased with her joining the team. He had never been outright rude, but he had never been warm and welcoming either. Charity didn't take it personally, but she also felt like she was on thin ice every day. Especially today.

He stared at her a moment longer before he replied, "I'm here because I owe you an apology." That catches her off guard and she knows he noticed. "I underestimated you, and for a very stupid reason." He paused. His hands had been clasped in front of him but he moves them, maybe relaxes them even, to hook his thumbs in his belt. "I'm sorry that I doubted you and I'm sorry that I treated you as less than. You proved me wrong and I am very glad you were with us... with me... today."

Charity was speechless. She had been fully prepared for this man to put a bullet in her head and bury her in the desert. She knew she worked for a fucking cartel now, she wasn't stupid. She knew, although still just vaguely, the kind of men she worked with. She knew what this man in front of her was capable of. She had been prepared for a number of terrible, painful scenarios at this mans hands. She had not been prepared for Nestor's apology or the sincerity in his eyes when he offered it. She was at a loss for words and so, she did what she had always done in uncomfortable situations. Resorted to sarcasm to ease the tension. "Is it 'cause I'm white?"

It was a feeble and admittedly not very tasteful attempt at easing the tension but it made her chuckle and after a second she even caught Nestor biting back a smile.

He kept his response simple, "No." and stayed silent a moment, staring at her intently.

She sees him open his mouth, sees him begin to form the words 'good night' but she cut him off, "Nestor, you really didn't have to come here tonight and tell me that." She studied his face, attempting to read his reaction to what she had to say, "But it means a lot to me that you did."

This time he does smile, barely.

"Buenos noches." Charity smiles back at him and turns to climb the stairs to her apartment.

She continues to smile when she feels his eyes follow after her. She wonders if it's his training telling him to keep a watchful eye or maybe the yoga pants that caught his attention or the grip of her Glock sticking out of the waistband.

With no good reason why she looks over her shoulder, catches him watching her.

He doesn't flinch, doesn't look away, just returns her, "Buenos noches" and climbs into his SUV.

~~~

After that something had clicked between them. They worked well together and made a good team. Nestor was now comfortable enough to admit that having a woman on the security team was working much better than he had originally thought. Charity was able to go places with Emily he and his men could not go, blend in in places where heavily tattooed Hispanic men stood out.

Her presence seemed to be much more calming to Emily and even Cristobal, Dita and the nannies. Easier for them to pretend the woman standing off to the side was just another friend and not what she was in reality, just another trained killer and/or bullet catcher.

The men slowly came to care for and respect her and soon the ripples of her first week were cleared away.

Now if Emily left the house, Nestor and Charity rode side by side in the front seat. If Emily had a lunch date Charity sat at a nearby table across from Nestor, each keeping their eyes on the surroundings and each others blind spots. If Emily went for a run Charity kept her on pace, if Emily got her nails done Charity was in the chair next to her, if Emily went shopping Charity spared her male counterparts the agony.

Now, anytime Emily slid into the backseat of her car Charity slid into the front passengers seat. She and Nestor would share a quick look, an unspoken 'all is well' and Nestor would put the car in drive.

That became a habit. Searching each other out. Whenever one of them entered a room, Nestor or Charity, they would seek each other out. Even at a distance. Their eyes would meet, some form of silent communication would take place and they would settle in.

That's how it started anyway. As glances, as one or the other entered or exited a room. Just checking in. Then their communication evolved into actual verbal check ins. Instead of silent glances and nods they were crossing the room to speak or in passing, "Everything good?" "Heading out for a run." "Lunch meeting in town" "I'm gonna grab a coffee." "Everyone is upstairs for the night, I'll be out back if you need me." Not exactly earth shattering conversation, just... checking in.

Then "Everything good?" evolved into actual conversations about the day and plans for the following day. "Lunch meeting in town." evolved from sitting across from each other out of necessity to Nestor pulling out her chair and always allowing Charity to steal fries from his plate. "I'm gonna grab a coffee." evolved to Charity reappearing from the kitchen with two cups in hand, one for Nestor and one for herself. "I'll be out back if you need me." went from being an update to an invitation.

Like tonight.

The Galindos were all tucked in for the night and Nestor had just finished a last check of the property before he sent half the team home for the night. They rotated nights, that way each of them got the chance to sleep in their own bed at least two nights a week. Depending on what was going on in the business at the time. Tonight it was Nestor, Charity, Mondo and Luis. Nestor had stopped in the kitchen and found Charity sipping a glass of sweet tea. "I'll be out on the patio if you need me."

Fifteen minutes later after sending the others home and checking in with Mondo and Luis, that's exactly where Nestor found her. Sitting on one of the pool chairs, her glass of sweet tea mysteriously transformed into a bottle of beer. She heard him approach and held a finger to her lips, "Don't tell the boss, he can be a real prick sometimes." She chuckled and held up a second beer to him.

He shook his head, knowing it was against not only Mikey's rules but his own, and yet he took the beer anyway. "I'm going to hope you are referring to me and not the head of the Galindo cartel."

She winked at him and took a sip of the beer, slouching back into the chair. "Whichever makes you feel better Nestor."

He sat down in the chair next to hers, with his feet on the ground and his elbows braced against his knees. "Long day?"

They both chuckle at the ironically ordinary question, but he knows she's not breaking the rules just for the sake of breaking them. Even she isn't that contemptuous.

"Feels like it." She takes another sip.

Nestor weakens a little looking at her. He's worked with her long enough now, known her long enough now to see that something heavy is weighing on her mind. Heavier than normal. "Chari, you know you can talk to me. If something is goin' on."

She looks at him and the light from the pool catches her eyes just right, they reflect the light making the green in them match the green glass of the bottle in her hand. "I know." She smiles, "Just not sure if it's my place to ask what I'm thinking about."

They stare at each other, intently, not for the first time. He answers her unasked question by allowing himself a sip of the cold beer she had given him.

"You're loyalty is one of my favorite things about you Nestor. I respect that, maybe more than you know. But, aside from some history, I don't see what Miguel does to deserve that loyalty."

Nestor doesn't answer, just takes another sip of beer. He almost goes into the automatic rhetoric about knowing him so long, his brother, and everything when he realizes her point.

Charity must see the realization in his eyes because she continues on, staring up at the desert sky and not at the man next to her. "You would die for him. Willingly. I know you would. But what has he done to earn that loyalty from you? Would he take a bullet for you?"

The silence continues because Nestor knows what he wants to say, but he doubts whether it's the truth. "Mikey is a good man,"

Charity cuts him off. "Miguel is a glorified drug dealer." That seems to catch them both off guard but she continues, "Drug dealers are a dime a dozen Nestor. Men willing to live, kill and die for the people they love are... far more valuable." There's a long, tense silence where she stares at the stars and Nestor stares at the light dancing in the green glass in his hand. When Charity breaks the silence, her voice is softer, "At least in my opinion."

Their conversations usually aren't this deep or this uncomfortable. Something was shifting, gears turning in her brain for her to bring this up. For a long time they sat next to each other staring in their respective distances until Nestor chose to share something that had been on his mind for awhile as well. "You really are not at all what I expected."

Charity snorts out a laugh, pulls her gaze away from the stars and back to him. "Have you decided if that's a good thing or a bad thing?"

He meets her gaze and holds it for several heartbeats, reveling more than he cared to admit in the unwavering way she stares back at him. "Yes, I have."

She nods, chuckles, "Well that's good I guess."

He doesn't say anything. Turns his gaze out towards the desert and waits patiently, carefully biting the inside of his cheek to keep his face in check as she stares at him. Obviously frustrated.

"You're not going to tell me which it is are you!?"

His face cracked slightly, "No, I am not."

She lets out a dramatic, "Ugh!" and rolls her eyes as she starts to laugh and then he can't help but smile with her, even laughing when she mumbled, "Que grosero." under her breath.

Then they're staring at each other again, this time with smiles on their faces, content to not say anything. Nestor runs through all the things he thinks he sees in her eyes and something in her smile changes, almost like she can truly read his mind, when he wonders what it would be like to sit with her like this in their free time, away from this house and these people, alone.

He watched her sit up and swing her legs off the chair, so they sat facing each other, her posture mirroring his now, so close to each other. Then a phone vibrated on the table next to them.

~~~

"Mrs. Galindo?" Charity carefully interrupts the discussion. She feels out of place among the masters degrees and Armani outfits in her jeans and simple black top, especially when everyone at the table turns to scowl at her. She takes some solace in the flinch of one of the men when her shirt rides up enough to expose a glimpse of her concealed handgun. "It's your husband for you." She extends the phone to Emily and follows her a respectful distance away from the table.

Charity watches as others at the table take this as an unofficial signal it's time to take a break. Two women excuse themselves to the restroom, one man stands and heads to the opposite corner to make a call, the others all entertain themselves with their phones or small talk.

After a brief conversation Emily hands the phone back, "We'll be leaving soon."

"Yes ma'am. Are you okay while I bring the car around?"

Emily nods and goes back to the table while Charity goes to bring the SUV to a side door.

Ten minutes later they're walking out the door to the idling SUV when a bullet ricochets off the brick building behind them. On instinct the two women duck. A second bullet shatters the drivers side window. Emily covered her head with her hands and screamed. Charity pulled her pistol with one hand and with the other pulled Emily towards the fender of the SUV. Once she had Mrs. Galindo safely cowering behind the engine block Charity pops her head over the hood to try and return fire but has to duck back down before she could spot any shooters.

Charity holds the cell phone in Emily's face, "Call for help!"

More rounds hit the far side of the SUV, another window shatters. Each bullet gives Charity a better idea of where they're coming from and in a lull she stands up and shoots across the parking lot in that direction. She's aware that beneath her Emily is hitting redial again and again but nobody is answering. Charity let another burst of rounds fly towards the attackers until she heard the unmistakable click of an empty chamber. She crouches and releases the magazine from the pistol as she's reaching for her spare, slamming it into the grip and racking the slide to chamber a fresh round.

With bullets whizzing past them Emily has tears in her eyes, "Miguel isn't answering!"

"Fuck." Gun in her right hand, still taking cover, she dug in her jeans for her phone with her left. Quickly as she could she unlocked the screen and called a familiar number.

Nestor picks up on the second ring, "Hello."

"I need help!" Is all she said before she dropped the phone, with the line still open, and returned more fire.

~~~

"Chari? Chari!" Nestor holds his phone away to see the call hasn't ended or dropped. He can hear gunfire on the other end of the line. Some distant and some closer, ringing through the speaker. Chari, shooting back.

Nestor jumped into action. "You two stay with Mikey, you three with me!"

Without question his men responded. Two stayed behind to wait for Miguel to get out of his meeting and the rest tore off in the SUV while Nestor pulled up the GPS on Chari's phone. He still could hear gunfire over the open line, mumbled speech, a metallic click followed soon by another, different sort of click. She'd loaded a new magazine. "Turn here!" Nestor listened and his stomach dropped. The gunfire he could hear closest to the phone, Chari, had changed. Instead of multiple shots at a time he started to hear a pattern. Bang, bang. Pause. Bang, bang. Pause. Bang, bang.

He knew what that meant.

She was conserving ammo.

~~~

Lord knows how many stop signs they blew and red lights they ran but they pulled into the parking lot just in time to run over one of the men approaching Charis bullet riddled SUV. All four men bailed out of the vehicle guns drawn, and firing. They mowed down the remaining few attackers once they'd been scared from their hiding spots. One already lay dead about twenty feet from the SUV.

Nestor walked to the nearest body and put another two bullets in his head on his way to the Range Rover. Only to have Chari meet him half way, pulling a shaking Emily with her.

They had one of their silent conversations and then focused on getting Mrs. Galindo to safety.

At the mansion Mikey held a still shaking Emily, shaking with fear, adrenaline and Nestor thought possibly some anger as well.

Nestor listened as his boss murmured to his wife in English and Spanish, his words whispered directly into her ear until her breathing became steady enough to control herself.

Mikey turned to Nestor, who's eyes jumped from where Chari was standing in the corner back to Mikey, with his arms open wide, "Mi hermano," He wrapped Nestor in a hug and thanked him for saving Emily's life.

Nestor returned the hug but his eyes stayed on Chari. He saw the hurt in her eyes, the darkness there. And it hurt him too. It was Charity Mikey should be thanking. It was her that held off four gunmen long enough for him and his crew to get there. She was the reason that Emily was alive. She was the reason Nestor had been in such a hurry to get there.

~~~

The knock on the door scared her, she hated to admit that. Charity slid off the stool at her kitchen counter and abandoned her reheated pasta to grab her pistol as she walked across her small apartment to answer the door. She didn't expect to find Nestor on the other side. She was equal parts terrified and relieved.

They stared at each other, in that way they had, having a conversation without saying anything out loud.

But then Nestor surprised her. With no pretense or hint of small talk, "All I could think about was getting to you..." His eyes were dark and his jaw was clinched. "Nothing else mattered."

All the nerves and fear and adrenaline drained out of her at those words. She stepped back opening the door wider, saying nothing, Their eyes still locked together he took her invitation to come inside and stepped into her apartment and then into her personal space. Charity looked up at him and breathed out a deep sigh as his hand settled on her elbow and slid softly down her arm. His fingers trailed over her soft skin and left goosebumps in their wake.

His lips hovered over hers, his eyes asking her one more time, before he finally kissed her. Slow and careful, she felt him take the pistol from her hand, where she still had it hidden behind her back, and set it on the table by the door. She let him take it easily, all to glad to occupy her hands by wrapping them around Nestors neck and pulling him closer. Deepening the kiss.

He pushed the door closed behind them with one hand, locking it, before he settled his hands on Charis hips and gave her his full attention.

His hands pulled her hips closer as his lips move over hers and Chari couldn't help but mold herself against him and wrap her arms fully around his neck.

When he pulled back slightly she became nervous but his hands slid from her hips to her back and she could tell that he didn't plan on letting her go. As if he could sense her hesitation he dropped another kiss on her lips before he pulled back to look at her again.

There was another silent conversation. A gathering, arranging and processing of these new thoughts and feelings. Charity could tell that the way he looked at her wasn't new exactly but maybe their acknowledgement of what it meant made it feel that way. She could see it, the moment he made up his mind. She nearly laughed at how clearly she saw it; 'I want you, now hurry up and let me know that's okay'.

It was her that froze in that moment, too many thoughts at one time. She took an unsteady breath and asked what she thought was a relatively safe question, "Are you supposed to be at the house tonight?" She kept her fingers busy fidgeting with the collar of his dress shirt.

His grip on her tightened, barely enough for her to notice. His eyes searched hers, obviously curious. "Only if you tell me to leave." Then he was silent, only his thumb rubbing over the small of her back and his gaze boring into hers remained.

Chari thought about that statement and what it meant. When she met his gaze she felt more sure of herself and her decision, "I don't want you to leave." Her grip on his collar tightened and she barely had the chance to smile before he was kissing her again. More intentional this time as his lips pressed against hers and his hands dropped lower on her back to pull her closer.

She sighed, long and deep, which only encouraged Nestor to hold her tighter and kiss her harder. Her brain registered the sensation of his hands moving over her hips, up her back then down dangerously low. She slid her own hands from his neck and down to his sides. Still exchanging long, thorough kisses with Nestor she took a tentative step backwards. Internally celebrating when he stepped with her, his hands and his lips never once missing a beat.

After the second step he caught on and it was no longer Charity tugging him along behind, but Nestor walking her confidently backwards towards her bedroom. When they did pull back from each other, Chari reluctantly letting Nestors bottom lip slip from between her teeth, they kept their eyes locked together.

Nestor paused, his eyes swiveled from her to the empty space behind her and after a second he smirked, "Are you seriously listening to a murder podcast tonight? After everything that happened today?" He stared down at her, his scarred eyebrow cocked in question. When she smiled back at him, laughing a little at herself, he rolled his eyes, "I don't know how I feel about that."

"Oh yeah? That's rich coming from you." She cocked her own eyebrow back at him and with a smile Charity confidently stepped back, out of Nestors grip, and took his hand in hers. She watched his eyes dart down and back to hers before she moved to pull him the rest of the way to her room.

He followed her obediently, pursued her intently, through the door into her dimly lit bedroom. He was still grinning, shaking his head slightly.

The little confidence she had gained on her way down the hall abandoned her when she looked back to see him in actually standing in her bedroom. Her own words from the moment before rang in her ears as she watched Nestor close the small distance between them. Here she was standing in her bedroom, making out with a dangerous man, a killer, a true sicario. A dangerous man with braids, tattoos, dark eyes, grey morals and a pair of handguns in a shoulder holster.

Her heart raced at the mini epiphany she was experiencing. She knew this man and what he was capable of, but working with him and taking him to her bed were two very different things.

"Charity."

Nestors soft voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She must have paused longer than it had felt.

His hand held hers, his thumb rubbed over the back of her hand, his question asked with his eyes. 'You're sure this is okay?'

When she smiled it cleared away any doubt that remained between them and he stepped forward to kiss her again. '

The hand that held hers moved around behind her back to pull her flush against him and all the air rushed out of her lungs. When she felt her thighs bump against the mattress behind her she knew nothing would be the same after this. With each shirt button undone, each gasp and moan, she knew she was crossing a line. They. They were crossing a line, but the weight of Nestor on top of her and the feel of his hands on her bare skin, his lips against her chest made the line blurry and hard to find.

His gaze heated and determined, he looked up at her as he nipped and kissed the inside of her bare thigh.

Charity met his stare and smiled softly, biting her lip and giggling to herself, as his beard brushed over her sensitive skin. The sensation sent a shiver up her spine, nothing compared to the sensations that followed, and she dropped her head back and let her eyes roll closed. Her breath caught, when she had dropped a hand to grab a fistful of comforter and she had felt Nestors fingers tangle with hers.

Cracking her eyes open once more, finding his gaze again as he watched her from between her legs. They had a silent conversation, short and sweet.

'This is not what I expected.'

~~~

This story now has a Part Two!

[drabbles-mc]

My Treat

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Jessica Thomas)

Series of one-shots inspired by this anon request: Can I please request a fic where Emily’s super innocent cousin moves in with the Gallindo’s and Nestor immediately falls for her? But she’s new to the area and doesn’t speak any Spanish or anything like that and he offers to teach her? Thank you!

Warnings: 18+, language, Nestor having an inkling of an emotion

Word Count: 3k

A/N: Just some low-stakes fluffiness for these two absolute goobers. I love them so much. 🥰 (For other Nestor x Jessica stories go Here)

Mayans Taglist: @paintballkid711 @buckybarneshairpullingkink @thesandbeneathmytoes @tomhardydallasstarsgirl @queenbeered @kelpies-shed @sesamepancakes @yourwonkywriter @chibsytelford @gemini0410 @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @plentyoffandoms @georgiaaintnopeach @twistnet @garbinge @themoonandthewicked @bucky-iss-bae @encounterthepast @bport76 @rosieposie0624 @mylittlelonelyappreciationtoo @mijop @xladymacbethx @blessedboo @holl2712 @lakamaa12 @masterlistforimagines @lilah1903 @toni9 @shadow-of-wonder @crowfootwrites @redpoodlern @punkgoddess-98 @black-repunzel99 @lexondeck @fanfic-n-tabulous @amorestevens @angelreyesisdaddy04 @mijagif @frattsparty @winchestershiresauce @bellisperennis0​ @beardburnsupersoldiers​ @mveggieburger​ @thanossexual​ @xeniarocks​ @choochoo284​ @littlekittymeow​ @beardsanddetectives​ @bruxasolta​ @i-love-scott-mccall​ @slut-bitch-brat​ @withmyteeth​ @flacalatke​ @passionatewrites​ (If you want to be added to any of my taglists, let me know!)

Nestor was trying to figure out whether or not he was enjoying himself as he and Jessica walked through the plaza together. She had shopping bags hung in the crook of her elbow, gawking at all the shops they passed by. He kept his head on a swivel the way that he always did, but whenever he took the time to really look at and focus on her, there was always a smile on her face as she talked.  Nestor wondered if she was always this chatty, or if it was just because he was a new person to her.

“You know,” she looked over at him, “if you feel like contributing to this conversation at any point, please feel free,” she laughed, her grin only growing wider when Nestor turned to her with raised eyebrows, “You’ll get sick of my voice eventually, Nestor, and that’s okay. I talk a lot.”

He didn’t say anything in response, just giving a small nod as they continued down the block towards the next place she wanted to go. She got distracted from her original mission when she caught a glimpse of a small café across the block. Stopping in her tracks, she grabbed onto the back of Nestor’s arm to get his attention.

The contact put him on-edge, not used to casual touch. He whipped to look at Jessica, only to find her excitedly staring at the small coffee shop that was less than one hundred yards away. She looked up at him, beaming with excitement, “Coffee?”

“You want coffee?” he didn’t care either way, but if she wanted to go, he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to talk her out of it.

“I always want coffee. Come on,” she started walking, hand falling back to her side as she did.

Nestor easily caught up to her, silently falling into stride next to her. Despite the fact that she was shorter than him, Nestor almost had to work to keep up with her fast pace. He wondered if she was able to move so fast because of all the caffeine she apparently consumed in a day.

The two of them found their way to the back of the relatively short line to place an order. Jessica looked over the menu. Despite the fact that it was in Spanish, she knew most of the important words, a lot of them very similar if not the same to their English counterparts. At some point she was going to have to reckon with the fact that she didn’t know Spanish, but it wasn’t that moment.

She turned to ask Nestor if he wanted anything, and saw him looking down at his phone screen with a pensive look on his face. He was about to hit the accept button when she asked, “Before I lose you—what do you want?”

He shook his head, muttering out a quick, “Doesn’t matter,” before answering the phone, “Yea, Mikey?”

She couldn’t stop her eyebrows from lifting at the greeting. She knew that she was going to be inquiring about that later. She watched him silently, listening as he spoke quickly and quietly, switching over to Spanish once he felt her staring at him.

Pulling the phone away from his ear for a second, he spoke to Jessica, “I gotta take this.”

“Pick something to order before you go, or I’m gonna pick for you.”

“Told you,” he was already walking away, “Doesn’t matter.”

“Psychopath,” she shook her head as she muttered under her breath, not understanding how someone could play Russian roulette with a coffee order like that. It definitely mattered.

When she walked back out of the café and onto the sidewalk, Nestor was just hanging up his cellphone and tucking it back into his pocket. Looking up, he almost looked surprised that she had gotten their order that quickly. What was more surprising to him, though, was the drink choice. He didn’t know what exactly it was, but never in his life had he drank anything that had whipped cream on top.

Jessica saw the slight shift in his expression and immediately burst into laughter, “Told you that I was gonna choose for you!” she handed him his cup, “I asked what her recommendation was for something really sweet and very caffeinated.”

“Her?” Nestor was inspecting the cup.

“The barista! I always do that when I try someplace new,” she took a long sip through her straw, “I think I might be in love with her, because this is so good. Did you know they make their own coffee syrups and stuff there?” she could tell that Nestor was having a hard time wrapping his mind around the way that she operated, switching gears just slightly, she said, “Don’t worry, I asked them to put less sugar in yours. You seem like a hot, black coffee kind of guy so I tried to be a little nice.”

“Couldn’t just get me a hot, black coffee?”

“You couldn’t have just asked me to get you a hot, black coffee?” she paused, keenly aware that he hadn’t taken a sip yet, “Try it! If you don’t like it, I’ll go back in and get you something boring. Promise.”

His lips flattened into a thin line at the sarcasm, but he tried the drink nonetheless. He was fully expecting to hate it, but much to his surprise it was really good. He wasn’t going to ask for the name of it, knowing that he wasn’t going to start becoming the kind of man who rattled off a long, complicated coffee order, but he wasn’t upset about having to finish the drink in his hand.

A triumphant smile spread across Jessica’s face when Nestor didn’t immediately look disgusted, “Ha! Look at you, growing already,” she started walking back towards the shops again, “I think I’m good for you, Nestor. We should hang out more often.”

Multiple times throughout the day, Nestor had to remind himself that he wasn’t there because Jessica was in danger. It wasn’t really about protecting her from anyone trying to get her. If anything, the only people he was trying to protect her from were the people she was living with, himself included. He didn’t allow himself too much time to ruminate on that. His role for that day was simply to keep her company and make sure she was having a good time. He couldn’t help but to think that it would take an awful lot for someone like Jessica to have a bad time.

She hadn’t been lying when she said that she talked a lot. Nestor thought that for sure at some point, she was going to run out of things to talk about. It wasn’t that there were never any bouts of silence between them, but she just always seemed to be able to conjure up another topic of conversation. Something around her always sparked another story, another tangent, or another question that Nestor did his best to answer while giving as little information as possible.

He was trailing behind her as she strolled through the bookstore. She was plucking books off the shelves, reading the back and inside covers of whatever jumped out at her. Every now and then, she’d even read the first page or so of the story if it piqued her interest enough. Nestor watched, seeing the way she would instant become invested for a couple minutes before sliding the book back onto the shelf. She typed the titles of a few into the notes on her phone, planning on going back and buying them when she was in her own place again.

“So,” she started as she put another book back on the shelf, “I’ve gotta ask, what’s with the Mikey thing?”

Nestor was idly messing with the straw in his drink that was nearly finished, stopping when he registered the question, “What?”

“You called Miguel Mikey earlier,” she rounded the corner into the next aisle of books, “I just, I don’t know, I don’t think I’ve ever heard that nickname for him before. I’ve only ever heard people call him Miguel.”

No one had ever asked him that. Anyone who had met Nestor in recent history, met him under work circumstances, and they knew better than to really question anything that he and Miguel said or did. But she wouldn’t know that.

He thought about his response for a moment, “That’s just what we always called him.”

“We?” she poked her head back around the corner.

He inwardly cursed himself for opening that can of worms, “Yea, me and my brother.”

“Oh,” more questions were on the tip of her tongue, but she saw the way that Nestor recoiled a bit after his statement, and she let it lie. Rather than prying, she shrugged and gave him a smile, “Cool,” when he joined her in the next aisle over, she continued, “If you can call him Mikey, then calling me Jess shouldn’t be a problem at all.”

“I haven’t—”

She cut off his protest with a laugh and a wave of her hand, “You haven’t called me ma’am. You haven’t called me anything. Don’t think I didn’t notice. I know that trick! I use it all the time when I forget people’s names,” she opened another book, “But I know that you didn’t forget mine.”

Nestor watched as she read the book in her hand, one finger trailing underneath whatever line she was currently reading. He felt his lips fighting to tug up into a smile and stopped himself, shaking his head before walking into the next aisle over, granting himself some distance.

As they exited the bookstore, Jessica pulled her phone out of her pocket. After responding to a few missed texts, she checked the time. She looked over at Nestor, who was scanning the area around them. She wondered if he ever stopped, if he was even capable of it. This was the most low-brow day that she’d had in a long time and she had to assume that that was also the case for him, and yet he was still constantly on the lookout.

“Lunch?” she broke his train of thought.

“What?”

She laughed, “You eat, right? Wanna do lunch? Or do you have to get back?”

He shrugged, “Whatever you want to do.”

“Know any good little spots around here? My treat,” she gave him a cheesy grin.

He wanted to go home, but he also knew that she didn’t want to. And the whole point was staying with her and letting her do what she wanted to do. So instead of recommending going home, he nodded towards the main street.

“Good spot a few blocks that way.”

She beamed, “Great! I’m starving.”

Jessica let Nestor lead the way, falling into stride beside them as they made their way down the sidewalk. She wanted to ask about where they were going, but she had the feeling that she was going to be met with a response somewhere along the lines of, “You’ll see when we get there,” so she refrained. She was very curious, though, to see what kind of place Nestor liked going to, what kind of place he thought that she would enjoy too.

The farther they strayed from the main drag of shops and stores, the quieter things got, not that it was an overly loud town anyway. It was a nice change of pace for her, something that she could get used to. She was looking around, watching the way the types of stores began to change as they got a block or so away from the plaza.

She was looking across the street, completely in her own little world when she felt her shoulder bump into someone else’s. Turning, she was already offering an apology before she even saw who she had bumped into.

Resting her hand on the older gentleman’s shoulder, she gave him an apologetic smile, “I’m so sorry—was too busy gawking at everything. Are you alright?”

His smile was soft, kind as he shook his head, brushing his hands off on his apron, “It’s alright.”

“Okay,” she did her best to shake the mild embarrassment from her mind, “Sorry, have a nice day.”

“You too,” he nodded, but when his eyes shifted over to Nestor, there was a change in his expression. It was slight, but still noticeable.

Jessica looked over at the man that she was walking with, seeing the way that he’d tensed up a little bit as well. Neither of the men said anything to each other one way or the other, and she didn’t know how to take that. Clearly they weren’t strangers. Her eyes found their way to the sign above the store. Her brows furrowed in thought as she read it. Carnicería Reyes. She wondered what tension there could possibly be between Nestor and this man who worked at the butcher shop. It seemed like another thing he didn’t want to talk about, though, as they continued their walk down the block.

“Okay,” Jessica set the menu down on the table, propping her elbows on the table and interlocking her fingers so she could rest her chin on them, “two things. One, this place is very cozy and I’m surprised that you do cozy,” she laughed, hesitating before she continued, “And two, if I tell you something, you need to promise not to give me shit about it.”

He lifted his eyes from the menu in front of him, not that he really had to look at it. He already knew what he was going to get but it was better than just sitting there and staring at the woman sitting across from him. His eyebrows raised just the slightest bit, “Yea?”

“I don’t know, like, any Spanish,” heat rushed to her face and she fought the urge to bury it in her hands, “I know a few words. But if I got stranded in the middle of town or something and couldn’t find someone who was fluent in English, I’d be fucked,” nervous laughter spilled from lips.

He leaned back in his chair, studying her face, “You don’t know Spanish?”

“No,” she shook her head, “I never really thought about it until I got the job offer down here. There has never been a time in my life that I regretted taking French in high school more than when I decided to move down here.”

“You don’t know anything?” it was difficult to wrap his head around, spending so much time around and over the border, everyone knew Spanish. A lot of the people he was close with were more fluent in Spanish than they were in English.

“Alright, I’m not an idiot,” she laughed with a shake of her head, “You don’t have to say it like that. I can use, you know, I can use context clues. There are similarities with some words across languages and all that stuff. But, yea, I’ve never really learned Spanish.”

“You should,” he paused as the waitress set waters down for each of them, asking her for an extra couple of minutes when she asked if they were ready to order. Returning his attention to Jessica, he said, “Emily didn’t mention that maybe it would be good to learn before you moved down here?”

“This all came together kinda fast,” she admitted sheepishly, heat creeping up into her cheeks again, “Hence me having to stay with them in the first place. Rosetta Stone wasn’t really on my supply list.”

“Hm,” his lips twitched as he thought about everything she’d just said.

Jessica watched him, keenly aware that this was the most he’d spoken all day, seemingly the easiest it had been for him to talk to her, too. Figuring the worst he could do is say no, she asked, “Wanna add Spanish tutor to your resume along with tour guide?” she punctuated her statement with a laugh, letting him know that if he didn’t want to, she wasn’t going to make a big deal about it.

“Well,” he closed his menu, leaving it on the table, “you gotta learn it if you’re gonna stay here and do…” his voice trailed off, realizing that no one had mentioned to him what Jessica’s new job was going to be.

She laughed, seeing that he didn’t know, “I’m starting at a small law firm next week.”

“Lawyer?”

She nodded, “Yea.”

“Then you really need to learn some fuckin’ Spanish,” he laughed.

Jessica’s eyes widened at the sound. She wasn’t sure if laughter was something that he was even capable of. She tried to tone down her expression, not wanting to make the situation uncomfortable, “So is that a yes on the tutoring thing?”

“You can’t not know it.”

She smiled, giving a small nod before letting her eyes drop back to the menu. It was as much of a confirmation as she needed. A small laugh slipped past her lips, “First thing you can do is help me with this goddamn menu.”

Lunch was quiet, but comfortably so. Jessica couldn’t talk while she was eating, and it wasn’t like Nestor was dying to turn into a chatterbox. Every now and then between bites or sips she would ask a question or make a comment, but nothing ever dragged on. She wasn’t expecting it to feel as comfortable as it did. She did tell him that he had a good choice in restaurants, though, and she was totally planning on coming back again, with or without him. Nestor fought the urge to make a joke about her not being able to order without his help, but he wondered if it was a little too soon for that.

The waitress came and set the check down in the middle of the table, smiling at each of them before turning and walking away. Jessica reached for it, but Nestor snatched it up before she could. She laughed, shaking her head as she tried to reach across the table and take it from him.

“I said it’d be my treat!”

He shook his head, sliding his card into the check holder, “You got coffee.”

“I forced you into that,” she smiled.

“I got it. Next one’s on you.”

“Next one?” she gnawed at her bottom lip as she tried to contain her grin.

One end of his mouth fought to lift into a smile, “Yea, next one,” he paused, looking at her from across the table, “Lessons, right?”

She chuckled, nodding “Right.”

[drabbles-mc]

Making Friends

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Jessica Thomas)

Series of one-shots inspired by this anon request: Can I please request a fic where Emily’s super innocent cousin moves in with the Gallindo’s and Nestor immediately falls for her? But she’s new to the area and doesn’t speak any Spanish or anything like that and he offers to teach her? Thank you!

Warnings: 18+, language, alcohol

Word Count: 2.7k

A/N: Regardless of what my writer’s block is doing, these two always help me get words on the page. I love them. Plus we get to see a little bit more of Jess away from Nestor, too. (For other Nestor x Jessica stories go Here)

General Mayans Taglist: @thesandbeneathmytoes @buckybarneshairpullingkink @paintballkid711 @tomhardydallasstarsgirl @queenbeered @kelpies-shed @sesamepancakes @yourwonkywriter @chibsytelford @gemini0410 @louisianalady @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @plentyoffandoms @georgiaaintnopeach @twistnet @garbinge​ @themoonandthewicked @bucky-iss-bae @encounterthepast @bport76​ @rosieposie0624​ @mylittlelonelyappreciationtoo​ @masterlistforimagines​ @xladymacbethx​ @blessedboo​ @holl2712​ @lakamaa12​ @mijop​ @lilah1903​ @toni9​ @shadow-of-wonder​ @crowfootwrites​ @redpoodlern​ @punkgoddess-98​ @black-repunzel99​ @lexondeck​ @fanfic-n-tabulous​ @amorestevens​ @angelreyesisdaddy04​ @mijagif​ @frattsparty​ @winchestershiresauce​ @bellisperennis0​ @beardburnsupersoldiers​ @mveggieburger​ @thanossexual​ @xeniarocks​ @choochoo284​ @littlekittymeow​ @beardsanddetectives​ @bruxasolta​ @i-love-scott-mccall​ @slut-bitch-brat​ @withmyteeth​ @flacalatke​ @passionatewrites​ (If you want to be added to any of my taglists, let me know!)

They weren’t friends. At least, that’s what Nestor said to Miguel and Emily any time one or both of them made a joke or a comment about him and Jessica. They weren’t friends. The Galindo’s asked him to keep an eye on her, and that’s what he was doing. Sometimes he kept an eye on her at the house. Other times he kept an eye on her while they went to lunch, or when she dragged him into town to “window shop” which was one of the most ridiculous things he’d ever heard of. He didn’t necessarily mind it, but he would never admit to enjoying it. He certainly wouldn’t ever tell his boss and his boss’s wife that he looked forward to it. Because he wasn’t friends with Jessica. He was doing Emily a favor. That was all.

“Oh, good, you’re here!” Jessica came nearly tumbling down the staircase as she tried to tuck her blouse into her slacks while she was walking.

Nestor looked around, realizing that he was the only one in the vicinity. Still, he asked, “Me?”

Jessica laughed, nodding, “Yes, you. I need your help real quick,” she reached the bottom of the stairs and saw the look on his face and couldn’t help but roll her eyes with a smile, “Alright, I could really use anyone’s help. But you’re the one who’s here. So it’s gotta be you.”

Tucking his phone into his pocket, he stood up from the chair he was sitting in, “What do you need?”

A cheesy grin broke out across her face as she gestured back and forth between the two of them, “Ayudame?”

The look of pride and slight confusion on her face got Nestor’s neutral expression to crack with a tiny smile, “With what?”

“Wait, wait,” she walked closer to him, studying his face carefully, “Did I say it right, though?”

He shook his head, trying to keep a laugh in, “Yes.”

She beamed, “Perfect. Okay, back to business,” she waved for Nestor to follow her over towards the front door, “I just don’t want to make two trips to the car. Help me out?” she gestured to the boxes that were on the floor.

“Moving out already?”

She laughed, shaking her head, “If only. No, this is just stuff I need to bring to my office.”

“Right,” he nodded as he lifted up one of the boxes.

“Big first day,” she almost sang the words, but there was still a trace of nerves in them.

He didn’t know her well enough to know what she needed for reassurance. So he went with the basics, “You’re gonna be fine.”

She let out a nervous laugh as she crouched down and picked up the other box on the floor, “And you’re never wrong, right?”

He shook his head as he watched her pop the door open with her hip, “Never.”

She walked through the door first, Nestor following and kicking the door shut behind him. She was talking at a mile a minute, which wasn’t necessarily new or out if the ordinary, but he could tell that it was nervous rambling instead of her usual rambling. She wasn’t even looking at him as they walked to the car, but Nestor still found himself nodding along as she spoke, just in case.

“I’m sure as time goes on,” she set the box on top of her car, “I’ll have more stuff to bring there. But this is a start. I don’t want to be the person who brings a U-Haul on their first day.”

“No U-Haul,” he propped the box against his hip as he watched her fiddle with the door to open it, “but the flowers made the cut for the first day.”

She laughed, shaking her head as she finally yanked the back door open, “They said my office has a window! I couldn’t just pass up the opportunity. Gotta bring them in right away. I can only ever keep plants alive for a couple weeks at the most. Never got the hang of it. But I keep trying because they look so nice while they’re alive.”

She slid the box carefully onto the back seat and Nestor followed suit. He watched as she shifted them around to try and make sure that they wouldn’t skid off the seat while she drove. While she was wrapped up in that, he took a moment to really look at her, the way that she was dressed. She looked so different from the woman who had been at the house the last few days. No more oversized shirts and running shorts. Her beat-up sneakers got swapped out for some very classy and sensible-looking heels. Her hair was mostly tied up in a bunch, a few wisps sticking out here and there from the waves in her hair. She looked professional, beautiful even, but so different.

She tried to shut the car door but it didn’t quite latch. Huffing out a sigh, she pulled it open, toyed with the lock button, and slammed it closed. She gave a triumphant nod more towards the car than Nestor.

“Sure showed him,” his expression was neutral as he made the comment, nodding towards the car.

“Her,” she laughed, “But thanks.”

“Don’t know if anyone told you, but they sell new ones now.”

“Cars?” she rolled her eyes as she laughed, “You know, the thought never crossed my mind,” her laughter softened into a smile, “New car isn’t in the budget right now anyway. Besides,” she patted the roof, “She’s a mess but I’m just not ready to let go of her yet. First car I ever bought!”

He nodded, “I can see that.”

She reached out, giving him a light, playful shove, “Shut up. She’s beautiful for her age. Even if she’s a bit of a mess.”

He almost stumbled a step, not expecting that from her. He couldn’t help but to press her buttons a little bit more, “Should I teach you how to ask for a mechanic next? Just in case?”

She rolled her eyes, but she had to laugh. She also couldn’t deny that the conversation was easing her nerves about the day. She wanted to tell him that, but she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. It felt like she was finally, sort of, getting to know him a little bit.

“I’m not putting those bad vibes out there, Nestor. Especially not today.”

“Fair,” he saw the way that she was twisting her fingers, fiddling with all the rings that she was wearing. He fought the urge to reach out and to us her shoulder as he spoke, “Hey. You’re…you’re gonna be fine, Jess.”

She smiled at the sound of him saying her name. She wanted to believe him, “Let's hope you’re right.”

He smirked, “Always am.”

The day was a bit of a whirlwind, the way that first days often were. It was good, though. It was going to be an adjustment, but something in her gut told her that this was going to end up being the right thing for her. While that was a comfort, it didn’t shorten the list of things that she had to get taken care of during her first week. By the time that she was grabbing her bag to head home at the end of the day, she wasn’t sure how much of it she really even remembered. She knew that not every day would be this hectic, that once she got into the groove of the new office and her new coworkers, she’d feel at least a little less frazzled. Still, as she walked out to her car, she felt like she was taking her real first deep breath since she’d left the house that morning.

It wasn’t late when she got back to the house, but she still thought that everyone else was going to be home before her. As she parked in the driveway, though, she saw that it was only Emily’s car parked there and one car that she assumed belonged to whoever was on security duty for the day, or the overnight shift.

Walking through the door, she was expecting to be met with silence since she and Cristobal seemed to be the loudest people in the house. She assumed that Miguel was gone, along with whatever other men came and went from the house that worked with him. However, even with the lack of people, she still walked in to hear the tail end of an argument. There wasn’t any yelling, but she knew the tell-tale edge in Emily’s voice. Apparently, it was a family trait because Jess had heard it with Emily’s mother and her own.

The conversation sounded like it was coming from the dining room, so Jess tried to silently make her way towards the stairs. She slipped her heels off before walking, quickly padding over to and up the staircase. Whatever the argument was between Emily and Miguel’s mom, it wasn’t her business. The last thing she wanted was to get in the middle of family issues.

Shutting her bedroom door behind her, she let out a sigh. All she wanted to do was shower, and change back into a comfortable pair of clothes. As she looked over at her bed, she was thinking that she was just going to switch right back into her pajamas.

She waited a couple minutes, and when she was fairly certain that the argument downstairs was done, she grabbed a towel and her clothes and opened her bedroom door. She got a couple steps into the hall when she nearly ran into Emily, who was walking out of her and Miguel’s room.

“Oh,” her eyes widened in surprise, “I didn’t even hear you come home.”

“Yea,” Jessica was good at a lot of things, but lying wasn’t one of them. She knew better than to try, “You were a little, um, busy,” she nodded towards the stairs.

Emily’s shoulders slumped a bit, “Sorry you had to hear that.”

Jess shook her head, “No need to be sorry. You’re alright?”

“Yea,” a dry chuckle slipped past her lips, “I love Dita but sometimes she…oversteps.”

“Something about moms,” she said with a laugh.

“Yea,” Emily shook her head as she thought about her own mother, about Jessica’s, “I guess so,” she paused, “Did you eat?”

“Not yet,” she held up the towel, “Wanted to shower first.”

“Okay. Well, dinner’s almost done, so if you don’t feel like ordering you can eat with Cristobal and I. Tell me about the big first day,” she offered a smile.

Jess nodded, “Sounds good.”

When Jessica came back downstairs to join them at the table, Emily couldn’t help but to laugh at the sight of her cousin already in her pajamas when it was hardly seven o’clock. It was just the three of them at the table, and it was one of the few times since she moved in that it was just Jessica and Emily. Cristobal sat happily at the end of the table, going back and forth between eating his food and playing with it. Both women kept glancing over at him, laughing at his antics before getting back to their conversation.

Emily asked how the day went, what the office and the people there were like. Jess went on between bites off food, telling her cousin how she had a good feeling about the whole thing. She couldn’t quite say what it was exactly, but it felt right.

“That’s good,” Emily nodded, leaning back in her chair, “It’s hard to find things that feel like that sometimes.”

“You know, I always thought that you were going to be one of those lawyers like you see on TV, making bad guys cry and confess on the stand.”

Emily laughed, shaking her head, “I don’t think I was ever on track for that. Business law ended up working out,” her eyes traveled back to her son.

“I always forget that’s how you two met,” Jess glanced around the house, “Where is he, anyway?”

“Had some late meetings,” she brushed it off nonchalantly, not wanting to open the door for questions that she would have to lie to answer, “I don’t think he’s getting back in until late.”

“Nestor go with him?”

Emily nodded, “He usually does,” she kept her smirk at bay as she said, “Nice to see you’re making friends.”

Jess laughed, taking a sip of her wine before replying, “I don’t know if Nestor would call us friends. I do think I’m wearing him down a little bit, though. I might get multiple full sentences in a row out of him soon.”

Emily couldn’t help but laugh. It was so interesting to see the way that Jessica perceived everything since she didn’t have all the facts. It was entertaining to hear someone talk about both Nestor and Miguel in such a casual, almost flippant manner.

“I have to ask,” Emily swirled the wine around in her glass, “Is he teaching you Spanish?”

Jessica’s eyes widened, “For someone who doesn’t talk, he’s got a big mouth,” she shook her head, trying to sound more annoyed than she really was as she chuckled, “What a little shit, going and telling—”

“He didn’t,” Emily came to his defense through her laughter, “He didn’t tell me anything. I just, I thought I heard him explaining something to you the other day. I just needed to confirm—I found it a little hard to believe.”

“What? That I moved down here not knowing Spanish?” Jessica shook her head as she remembered all of Nestor’s little jabs throughout their lessons.

“No,” she took another sip of wine, “I couldn’t believe that he was taking the time to teach you. He’s not exactly that type. Or,” she shrugged, a smirk curling her lips, “maybe he is.”

“Don’t,�� Jess saw the look on her face, laughing and pointing at her from across the table, “Don’t do that. Don’t make that face. It’s not a thing.”

“Okay,” she held her hands up, laughing, “it’s not a thing.”

Jess stood up, collecting her plate from the table before leaning over closer to Cristobal, “Your mom is an instigator, you know that?”

That was the last either of them said about it, letting the conversation shift to other things. It wasn’t too long before it was time for Emily to put her son to bed, and Jessica took the opportunity to go back to her room and start leafing through some of the things that she’d brought home from the office. Getting comfortable on her bed, she put her headphones in and started skimming through, trying to get her bearings for where she was going to pick up the next day.

Time quickly got away from her as she sat there reading things over. When the batteries on her headphones finally died and she was forced to come back to reality, the first thing she did was check the time. Blowing out a long sigh, she shook her head as she started packing all of her stuff back up. It was later than she would’ve liked, but it could’ve been worse.

She was about to crawl back into bed after putting her paperwork back into her bag when she heard something happening downstairs. Her knee-jerk reaction was to assume the worst, despite the fact that Miguel took home security more seriously than anyone else she’d ever met in her life. Slowly opening her door, she quietly crept towards the stairs to peek and see who it was.

The relief that went through her at the sight of Miguel and Nestor making their way through the house nearly made her sink to the floor. She wasn’t quite sure what she had been gearing herself up for, but the sight of the two of them, just exhausted and mumbling about their plans for the next day, was about as close to a best-case scenario as she could think of.

“Go home, Nestor,” Miguel clapped him lightly on the shoulder, “Get some rest.”

“Alright. Goodnight, Mikey.”

He turned to make his way towards the door when he caught a glimpse of Jessica standing at the top of the stairs. Even though he wanted to, he didn’t say anything. Maybe it was late and she was over-tired from the day she’d had, but Jessica could’ve sworn there was something reminiscent of a tiny smile on his face as he nodded towards her. She returned the gesture, giving him a small wave before he finally let himself out. Jess lingered only for another second longer before turning and going back to her room, determined to get whatever sleep she still could.

[drabbles-mc]

Moving In

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Jessica Thomas)

Request by Anon: Can I please request a fic where Emily’s super innocent cousin moves in with the Gallindo’s and Nestor immediately falls for her? But she’s new to the area and doesn’t speak any Spanish or anything like that and he offers to teach her? Thank you!

Warnings: language, and I think that’s pretty much it??

Word Count: 3.7k

A/N: Okay SO I wasn’t able to fit everything from the request into this but have no fear! I’m already planning on writing more for these two. I love them. They’re gonna have their own little AU now I’m speaking it into existence. 😂 I had so much fun writing this. Stay tuned for more because it’s gonna happen.  (For other Nestor x Jessica stories go Here)

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“Thank you again for this,” she lugged one of her suitcases up the lavish staircase, “I promise, I won’t have to stay here long. A couple months, tops.”

Emily smiled, shaking her head as she helped carry another one of her cousin’s bags, “It’s fine, Jessica, really. Honestly,” she pushed the door to the guest room open, “it’ll be nice to have someone here to talk to.”

“Seems like you’ve got more than enough people around for that,” she chuckled as she thought of the men who had been in front of the house, and the others that she saw patrolling around the back by the pool.

Emily laughed, “They’re not exactly chatty—you’ll see soon enough, I’m sure,” she set the bag down on the edge of the bed, “This room is yours for as long as you want to stay here.”

“Holy shit,” Jessica set her bag down beside the one that Emily had just dropped as she looked around the room, “I think this room is the size of my entire apartment up North.”

“Make yourself at home. I’ll have Nestor bring up the last of your bags. If you need anything, need to go anywhere, he can get it for you or take you there.”

“Oh,” she shook her head, “Em, really, I don’t, that’s okay. I don’t need like, an assistant,” she laughed.

She shook her head, waving her hand dismissively, “It’s a big adjustment, moving and starting a new job. He’ll just be here to help if you need it.”

“One of the not chatty ones?”

Emily laughed, nodding, “Yes.”

“Well, I’ll see what I can do about that, then,” she smiled before stepping in to hug the woman in front of her, “Thank you, seriously.”

“It’s no trouble at all. I’ll be downstairs if you need anything, give you some space to settle in a bit.”

Emily left the room, shutting the door behind her as she went. Jessica stared at the door for a few moments before returning her attention back to the rest of the room. She hadn’t been lying when she said that the bedroom was easily at least the same size as her previous apartment, if not larger. Their family might’ve been rooted in money but she’d never taken any of it once she got older. College, rent, car, and everything else she paid for herself. Agreeing to stay here with Emily was the closest that she’d gotten to accepting charity from her family since she turned eighteen, and she still wasn’t comfortable with the entire idea. But she didn’t have much money or any other place to go, so she wasn’t going to talk herself out of a good thing.

Opening one of the suitcases, she started moving her clothes into the dresser closest to the bed. It was a relatively mindless task, which allowed her thoughts to wander. She couldn’t remember the last time that she saw Emily. Her wedding, maybe? That seemed right. That also seemed like an awfully long time ago at this point. They’d always gotten along well enough, but they had never been close. She knew that most of their family had issues with Emily and her husband, but no one ever actually told Jessica why, and the few times that she’d met Miguel, he’d been perfectly pleasant. She didn’t understand where all the tension came from. At this point, she didn’t really want to ask, either. She just hoped that the fact that their relationship had always been a relatively positive, albeit a little distant, one, would work in her favor. She hadn’t even been sure if Emily was going to help her out when she had called a few weeks before asking for a place to stay while she got some things sorted out for herself, but there was no resistance to the idea.

So now here she was, in what was essentially a mansion if anyone asked her about it, hoping for the best. She hoped that the hardest part was over, that it would only get easier from here. She just had to work, save and find her own apartment. She could do that. She’d done it before, she could do it again. No problem.

She was sliding one now-empty suitcase underneath her bed when there was a knock at her door. She was still kneeling on the floor, trying to push the suitcase far enough underneath so she wouldn’t be blindly stubbing her toe on it every time she got up in the middle of the night to pee, when she called out for whoever it was to come in.

Looking up from her spot on the floor, she expected to see Emily again, or perhaps even Miguel since he hadn’t been there when she pulled in, but it wasn’t either of them. Her eyes widened at the sight of the man in front of her as she scrambled to get to her feet. The few locks of hair that had escaped her ponytail fell directly in front of her face, and she quickly blew them away, a nervous laugh coming past her lips.

“Hi,” she twisted her hands in front of her, unsure of what the protocol was, “Nestor, right?”

He nodded, “Yes ma’am.”

Jessica laughed, shaking her head, “Oh, yea, um, no. Let’s, let’s not do that,” she smiled, walking over and holding her hand out, “I’m Jessica. You can call me that, or Jess. I’ll even respond to Jessie if it means you’re not calling me ma’am.” He set down one of the suitcases so he could shake her hand, his expression still painfully neutral. When he didn’t say anything after a few seconds, Jessica couldn’t help but to chuckle, “You can call me Jess, or I can start calling you Nessy. That’s the ultimatum here,” the smile on her face was genuinely sweet.

It was sweet enough, in fact, to make Nestor wonder what she was doing staying in the Galindo household. Everything was plated here, in gold, in decency, but she seemed genuine. It made her seem out of place.

“I’ll go grab your last bag,” he paused longer than necessary, “Jess.”

Her laughter was laced with triumph at her small win, “Thank you, Nestor.”

While Nestor disappeared to grab the last of her things, she continued to unpack what she already had. She almost didn’t want to, not wanting to let herself get too comfortable since she was still planning on moving out as quickly as possible. But even if she was only there for a month or two, that was still a long enough time to justify having access to her entire wardrobe. All of her other things were in storage, not wanting to fill Emily’s house with boxes of appliances and silverware.

He cleared his throat when he reappeared in the doorway of her room. She looked over at him with a smile, vaguely gesturing towards where her other suitcases were to let him know he could set her last bag in the same place. Even though her eyes weren’t stuck on him, Jessica was still trying to get a good look at him in her peripheral. It would’ve been a lie to say that she wasn’t intrigued by him, or at the very least a little infatuated based solely off of his appearance.

“Anything else I can do for you, ma—” he stopped himself, “Jess?”

She chuckled softly, shaking her head, “I don’t think so, no. You know, I, I told Emily, I really don’t need, you know,” she tried to find a way to say it without being insulting, “There’s gotta be other stuff you’d rather be doing, right?”

He gave a small shrug, “I’m just here to help.”

“Thank you,” she paused, and when she saw that Nestor was about to turn away, she asked the question that’d been on her mind since she showed up, “Hey, Nestor?”

He turned back to her, “Yea?”

“Is Miguel here? I feel weird setting up shop in his house without even saying hello to him first,” she chuckled.

He shook his head, “No. He’s got business over the border—won’t be back until late.”

“Ooo,” she laughed as she opened her next suitcase, “sounds fancy and important.”

He was looking for something in her expression that he couldn’t find, “Something like that,” he started to walk away again, “Let me know if you need anything.”

She turned back to offer up some semblance of a goodbye, but he was already gone. Shrugging to no one but herself at that point, she re-immersed herself in the job of unpacking. The house was extremely quiet, quieter than she thought that it would be. She tried to match the energy and not make too much noise, but she had to wonder if it was always like this. When she had her own apartment, she almost always had music playing or the television on just to have some background noise. She wondered how much it would throw everything off if she plugged in her phone speakers to play in her room. Until she got a better lay of the land on that front, though, she opted to put in her headphones so she could at least unpack to a beat.

Nestor came back down the stairs to see Emily sitting at the large table, paperwork spread out around her. Cristobal was babbling happily in the living room with Maria, and it was the only noise in the entire house. Walking over, he waited a few moments to see if Emily would notice him without him having to say anything. When she didn’t, he quietly cleared his throat to get her attention.

She looked up from the binder that she had been burying herself in, “Yes?”

“Sorry to interrupt, ma’am,” he interlocked his hands behind his back, “I had a question.”

It caught her off-guard. Nestor never really asked her about much of anything, “Oh? About?”

“Jessica.”

Her brows began to knit together, “What about her?”

“Does she know…about Mikey?”

The slight look of urgency in his eyes clued Emily in to everything that he wasn’t saying. She sighed, shaking her head, “No. If she did, if her mother, or Diana, or any of them really, had gotten their claws into her and told her, she wouldn’t be here.”

“Alright…”

She tilted her head slightly, “What, Nestor?”

He shook his head, “Nothing.”

“You don’t have to lie to me, you know,” she didn’t say it, but her tone implied the second half of that sentence: I’m not Miguel.

He still hesitated before responding, “What if she finds out?”

Emily shook her head, “She won’t. She’s going to be so busy, Nestor, with her new job in a new town. And she won’t be here too long—I believe her on that. Plus,” she tapped her pen and gave him a bit of a pleading look, “I was hoping that you would help run interference if necessary.”

He fought the urge to sigh. Doing Miguel’s bidding my keeping an eye on Emily was about to transform into doing Emily’s bidding by keeping an eye on Jessica. It wasn’t her cousin’s fault, but it wasn’t exactly what he had signed on for. Still, he wasn’t in a position to be saying no.

“Right.”

She could sense the lack of enthusiasm, and she was at the very least sympathetic about it, “She’s sweet, Nestor. Keeping an eye on her will feel like a vacation for you. Low-risk.”

He nodded, already stepping back from the table, “Okay.”

It was the middle of the night when Jessica snapped out of her sleep. She jolted upright, being torn from her dreams by the feeling that she was falling even though she was lying safely in the middle of a king-size bed. She’d never been anywhere where someone had a king bed in their guest room, but she supposed that between Emily and Miguel, they could more than afford it. She sighed, running her hands over her face and through her hair before deciding that since she was already awake, she might as well go grab herself a glass of water.

The house was completely silent as she crept down the hallway. She couldn’t even hear anyone snoring. She never thought about whether or not she snored until now. If she did, did it echo against the intense quiet? She shook her head at herself and her thoughts as she quietly padded down the stairs towards the kitchen.

There were a few very dim lights scattered throughout the house, most likely there for situations just as this—people getting up in the middle of the night for a drink or a snack or a quick run to the bathroom. It was just enough to be able to navigate, but not so much that anyone could make out the details of anything.

Jessica tried her hardest to be as quiet as possible as she opened the cabinet to grab a glass for herself. She was hoping that turning on the tap wouldn’t feel obscenely loud in the dead of night. She’d keep the trickle slow, and hopefully that would help.

All of that nearly didn’t matter, though, when Jessica turned around from the cabinet and came face-to-face with Nestor. Her eyes popped open as she gasped, trying her best not to scream in surprise. Her hand tightened around the glass, praying that it wouldn’t break but also that it wouldn’t slip from her hands to the floor.

“Holy shit,” she whispered, nervous laughter bubbling out of her, “I didn’t hear you.”

“Sorry,” he tried to casually tuck his gun back into his waistband without her seeing, “Heard someone in here and got nervous.”

She shook her head, “It’s…fine?” she wasn’t sure how else to describe it. Pausing for a moment, she tried to get a better look at him in the minimal light by the sink. She noticed how he was still in the same set of work clothes that he’d been in earlier when he brought her bags to her, “Do you, like, live here?”

“No. There’s always someone here overnight,” he shrugged, “My shift tonight.”

“Really? Overnight?” she shook her head as she filled her glass, “Seems like overkill. Is Miguel just, like, really paranoid?” she chuckled softly.

Nestor huffed out something reminiscent of a chuckle as he watched her, “Something like that.”

“How do you stay awake?”

He shrugged, “I keep busy.”

She took a long drink from her glass, “Couldn’t be me,” she smiled at him as she set the cup in the sink, “Need company?”

He shook his head, “Working solo is better for me.”

She yawned, stretching her arms above her head, “Whatever you say. Goodnight, Nestor.”

He quickly averted his eyes from the strip of skin along her stomach and side that was exposed when she lifted her arms. He was a professional, sure, but he was still human. And the human side of him was wondering what the rest of the tattoo creeping up her side was. Clearing his throat, he retreated back to where he’d originally come from in the house, “Goodnight.”

It was creeping into the afternoon when Jessica woke up the next day. She wasn’t normally someone who slept late, but she was exhausted from the previous day and everything that had been leading up to her moving in with Emily in the first place. It all caught up to her at once when she’d gone back to bed after her brief middle of the night run-in with Nestor. She almost couldn’t believe it when she saw the time on her phone. Letting out a sigh, she stretched and peeled the blanket off of herself so that she could get changed and ready for the day.

She pulled on an over-sized t-shirt and a pair of running shorts, not really caring that the shirt completely covered the shorts. She threw her hair up into a ponytail before making her way over to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. For the first time since she’d gotten there the day before, she heard the slightest bit of commotion in the house. And it wasn’t even commotion, really, just the sounds of people talking, something to break up the silence. She didn’t pay too much attention to it, but one of the voices sounded vaguely like what she remembered Miguel sounding like. She was still a little too groggy to be certain, though.

When she made it downstairs to the kitchen, feeling a little more awake and alive, she was greeted by the sound of Emily’s quiet laughter as she poured herself another cup of coffee, “Was starting to think you weren’t going to wake up at all today.”

Jessica laughed, shaking her head, “Only got a couple days to sleep in, might as well take advantage of them, right?”

“Any plans today?”

She shook her head, “Not really. Maybe I’ll go wander around town. See what there is to see.”

Emily nodded, “Good. You should take Nestor with you. Make him play tour guide.”

“That sounds like something that would be at the absolute bottom of his list of things he’d want to do,” she laughed.

“Miguel is going to insist that he goes with you anyway, so the request might as well come from you.”

Jessica chuckled, “You ever tell that guy that he worries too much?”

Emily let out a quiet hum of laughter, “I don’t think it’s going to change anytime soon.”

“Crazy,” she smiled as she poured herself a cup of coffee as well, allowing Emily to excuse herself and get back to work.

It was only a handful of seconds later when Miguel and Nestor walked into the kitchen together. Jessica listened intently to the two of them, their voices were somewhat quiet and they were speaking quickly, and in Spanish. They both had serious expressions on their faces and in that moment Jessica would’ve given damn near anything to know what the two of them were saying.

Miguel’s entire expression shifted when he saw her standing at the counter, though, a smile appearing on his face, “Jessica,” he walked over, wrapping her in a brief hug, “good to see you. Sorry I wasn’t here when you got in yesterday.”

She smiled, shaking her head dismissively, “It’s fine. Not like you won’t have plenty of opportunities to see me while I’m staying here,” she laughed for a moment before letting her expression sober up a bit, “Which, thank you, by the way. I appreciate it.”

He gently rested his hand on her shoulder, “You’re family. Whatever you need, just ask.”

“Good to know,” she smiled before turning her attention to Nestor, “Which reminds me, I’ve been told that you might know of some places for me to check out? The Top 10 Tourist Traps of Santo Padre?” she made herself laugh, “Try saying that five times fast.”

Nestor’s brows furrowed together, “Me?”

Jessica shrugged, “I mentioned to Emily that I wanted to get out for a bit today, just try to check things out and maybe get my bearings a little bit. She signed you up for tour guide duty.”

Miguel chuckled, clapping Nestor on the back, “That should be good for both of you.”

She watched as Miguel refocused his attention completely back onto the man next to him. His facial expression changed and the two of them had a few more quick exchanges in Spanish, tight nods and clenched jaws all around. She wondered what the sudden shift was about, but just as quickly as it happened, it went away and Miguel eased back into his family persona.

“Let me know if you need anything, but you’re in good hands with Nestor,” he excused himself with a nod.

It was just the two of them in the kitchen, and Jessica couldn’t stop herself from staring at the man on the other side of the counter from her. She noticed that his clothes were different, but she also knew that he couldn’t have gone home for very long considering how late he’d been there the night before.

“Did you actually go home and change?” she asked, sipping on her coffee, “Or do you keep spare clothes here to change into?”

“I went home,” his tone didn’t allow for any follow-up questions on the matter.

She wasn’t going to try and push it, “Right. Well. Let me just grab my shoes and I’ll be good to go sight-seeing,” she laughed. She saw the way that Nestor’s face took on a hint of confusion as he looked at her outfit and she couldn’t help the giggle that slipped past her lips, “What?”

He shook his head, “Nothing.”

“I know what you’re thinking,” she lifted the hem of her shirt to expose the running shorts she had on underneath, “I’m wearing pants. Promise.”

“I didn’t—”

She didn’t give him the chance to finish the thought, “Be back in two minutes.”

She was taking off up the stairs before he could get a work in edgewise. Shaking his head, he took a deep breath as he waited for her to come back down. Something about her was like a breath of fresh air and he was waiting for his brain to adjust to that.

“Okay,” she came clamoring back down the stairs, sneakers on with her purse barely hanging off her shoulder, “I’m ready. I think.”

“Okay,” he waited, trying to get a feel for what exactly she wanted to do, what she was up for, “I can drive.”

“Oh, no, you don’t have to do that. I have my car here and everything,” she saw the look on his face and laughed, “Something tells me you’re not a good passenger, are you?”

“I’m not.”

She smiled, “Okay. That’s fine. You can drive,” she shook her head, “But what’s the one rule of the day?” she saw the confusion on his face and she playfully pointed a finger at him, “No calling me ma’am. Got it?”

He sighed, giving a slight nod, “Yes.”

“Yes…?”

It was a little amusing to him even if he’d never admit that to her or anyone else in a million years, “Yes, Jess.”

“Wonderful,” her laughter filled the kitchen before she headed towards the door, “Let’s go, Nestor.”

[drabbles-mc]

Giving Out

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Jessica Thomas)

Series of one-shots inspired by Day 23 of the August Prompts and this Anon request: vintage and Can I please request a fic where Emily’s super innocent cousin moves in with the Gallindo’s and Nestor immediately falls for her? But she’s new to the area and doesn’t speak any Spanish or anything like that and he offers to teach her? Thank you!

Warnings: language

Word Count: 2.7k

A/N: I almost forgot how much I love writing for these two. I missed them. (For other Nestor x Jessica stories go Here)

Mayans Taglist: @buckybarneshairpullingkink @thesandbeneathmytoes @paintballkid711 @queenbeered @kelpies-shed @sesamepancakes @yourwonkywriter @chibsytelford @gemini0410 @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @plentyoffandoms @amorestevens @garbinge @themoonandthewicked @bucky-iss-bae @encounterthepast @bport76 @rosieposie0624 @mylittlelonelyappreciationtoo @mijop @choochoo284 @blessedboo @holl2712 @lakamaa12 @masterlistforimagines @shadow-of-wonder @withmyteeth​ @crowfootwrites​ @redpoodlern​ @punkgoddess-98​ @lexondeck​ @fanfic-n-tabulous​ @i-love-scott-mccall​ @mijagif​ @frattsparty​ @winchestershiresauce​ @beardburnsupersoldiers​ @mveggieburger​ @thanossexual​ @xeniarocks​ @littlekittymeow​ @beardsanddetectives​ @bruxasolta​ @passionatewrites​ (If you want to be added to any of my taglists, please let me know!)

She blew into her office, travel mug full of coffee in one hand, briefcase hanging in the crook of her other arm. She felt like she was running hours behind schedule, when in reality she’d only left the house about twenty minutes late. It was a long twenty minutes fighting with the ignition on her car, though. She was about two failed tries away from calling an Uber, or calling Nestor. Neither of those were options that she wanted to take, though. Under most circumstances she wouldn’t mind having Nestor drive her around, but if he knew it was because her car wasn’t working, she would never hear the end of it.

But she managed to get it started and once it got going, she was fine. She sped down the highway towards her office, the car not giving her a single issue at all. She was thankful for that while simultaneously understanding that she was definitely pushing her luck. It was a reality that she was going to have to come to terms with sooner or later, and she just hoped that it was later.

That was all behind her now as she tossed her briefcase down onto the surface of her desk. She took a deep breath, her harsh exhale blowing a few wisps of hair up into the air before they fell back in front of her face again. She shook her head at herself before taking a long sip of her coffee, setting the mug down out of the danger-zone that was the center of her desk where she was always moving her files around.

Running twenty minutes late usually wouldn’t have made her feel like it was the end of the world. On the days when she was just handling paperwork and locked up in her office for the day, getting there early or on the dot wasn’t a big deal. Honestly, if she had managed to walk through the door at a somewhat normal speed, most of the people in the office wouldn’t have even noticed that she was running late that day. But she had a meeting that was supposed to start in ten minutes and it was with a new client, so today it very much mattered if she was late.

“Jessica,” there was a soft knock on the door to her office.

She looked up from the files she was hurriedly unpacking and organizing, “Yea, Elena?”

The young girl had tried to flag her down as she walked in, but Jessica’s tunnel-vision didn’t allow for it, “Sorry, just wanted to let you know that your meeting this morning got cancelled. Client called first thing saying they needed to reschedule for later in the week. I added it to your calendar.”

Jessica let out a sigh of relief, shoulders instantly becoming less tense, “You’re a saint. Thank you, seriously.”

She chuckled, “No problem at all. Anything else you need?”

She shook her head, “I think I’m good. Thank you.”

When Elena walked away and shut the door behind her, Jessica immediately collapsed back into the chair at her desk. She ran her hands over her face and back through her hair, trying to fully accept and ease into the fact that she was no longer on the time crunch that she thought she was. Reaching for her coffee, she took another long sip, taking a beat to savor it this time.

She dove into her usual morning routine after that, getting wrapped up and lost in her work the way that she usually did. She didn’t even notice how much time had gone by until she felt her stomach starting to growl. Prying her eyes away from the papers in front of her, she glanced over at her phone to check the time. Her eyes widened as she shook her head, pulling open the drawer of her desk to grab a snack for herself. Turning to look out her window, she saw the little flower pots that she’d brought in a few weeks before when she’d first started. And, just like she had said, they didn’t last very long. She watered them, made sure they got sunlight, but for some reason she could just never seem to get plants to last.

She stood up, chuckling to herself as she thought back to the brief exchange she’d had with Nestor about them when he saw that she was bringing them with her. Opening up the camera on her phone, she took a picture to send to him, attaching a text that said, “Esta muerta :(“ She slipped her phone back into her pocket, not expecting to get a response from him any time soon.

Just as she was about to sit back down in her chair, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Checking to see who it was, she couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t a little excited to see that it was Nestor getting back to her so quickly. She swiped the notification open, laughing softly at his response, “Have you tried watering them?” She rolled her eyes as she texted him back, “I knew I was forgetting something”

They didn’t text often. But there had been a time when Jessica wouldn’t have believed that the two of them would ever text at all. It started off as the two of them swapping numbers in case of an emergency. It wasn’t explicitly stated, but Jessica was smart enough to know that it was more in case she had an emergency and needed to call him for help. She was hard pressed to think of a scenario in which he would be needing her assistance with anything. She texted him a few times out of the blue with specific questions, usually about words or phrases in Spanish that she needed to know for work, things she didn’t trust Google Translate for. If he was bothered by the inquiries, he didn’t show it.

But now she would text him every now and then for no reason, just silly little things like that. Sometimes she didn’t get a response from him, most times she did. It wasn’t something either of them ever really brought up when they saw each other in person. She liked it, though, and while she’d never admit it to him there had definitely been more than one occasion when she went back and reread through their little quips just to make herself laugh when things at work were too stressful.

The day ticked right on by, and before she knew it, the few people that she was starting to get to know somewhat well in the office were poking their heads in to say goodbye to her. She almost talked herself into staying late, but she’d been doing that so much since she started, trying to make sure that she was completely on top of everything that was getting thrown on her plate. With the way her day started, she figured that it wouldn’t be the worst thing to actually leave on time for once. So she packed up her things and grabbed her keys to head out to her car.

It only took about twenty seconds of sitting behind the wheel trying to get her car to start to make her remember exactly why her day had started the way it had. She rested her forehead against the steering wheel as she let out a deep sigh, trying not to let herself get too upset. The worst case scenario was that her car was finally shot, but hopefully she just needed someone to give her a jump.

Grabbing her phone, the first person she dialed was Emily. She let it ring and ring until she went to voicemail. Trying not to sound as exasperated as she really was, she left a quick message saying to give her a call back as soon as she could before hanging up. Going back into her list of messages, she hovered over Nestor’s name for a moment before going out on a limb and hitting the call button. This wasn’t exactly an emergency, but she’d much rather get help from him than from a tow company that was going to charge her.

It rang a few times and she was ready to get sent to voicemail again when she heard the click of the line getting picked up. There was a couple seconds of silence before Nestor’s voice came through from the other end of the line, “Jess?”

“Nestor, hey,” it was more of a relief to hear his voice than maybe it should’ve been.

“Everything alright?”

“Yea. I just, um, are you busy?”

“What’s going on?”

“My car…” her voice trailed off for a moment, “I think it just needs a jump. I tried to call Emily but she didn’t pick up—she might be in a meeting or something. If you can’t come I totally get it, I’d just rather—”

“I’ll be there,” he didn’t let her finish the thought, “Text me the address.”

She let out a sigh of relief, “You’re a lifesaver, Nestor. Thank you.”

“I’ll see you soon.”

As soon as the two of them hung up the phone, she sent him the address for the firm. She didn’t know how far away he was, but she had to assume that it was a small enough town that it wouldn’t take him that long to get to her. Grabbing her headphones from her bag, she put some music on her phone and leaned the driver’s seat back, trying not to let herself get more stressed out than she already was.

It was less than half an hour later when someone knocked on her driver’s window. She jumped, one headphone falling out as she turned to see who it was. The shock to her system died out a little bit when she saw Nestor standing outside her car, but her heart was still racing in her chest.

She was laughing as she opened the door, throwing her headphones back into her bag before stepping out, “Scared the shit out of me.”

“Think you’re finally ready to call it on this thing?” he asked as he popped the front hood of her car, jumper cables draped over his shoulder.

She shook her head as she walked to stand next to him, “No way. This thing is classic. Vintage, even.”

He looked at her, the yellow tint of his sunglasses doing nothing to hide the disbelieving look on his face, “Not everything that’s old is vintage, Jess.”

She rolled her eyes, a smile curling her lips, “You gonna give me a jump or not?”

He hooked the cables on, and Jess realized that it was a minor blessing that Nestor seemed to drive exclusively large SUV’s—cars that wouldn’t have any trouble starting hers up. The two of them stood there, and Nestor could see it on her face that she was hesitant to try and start her car again, not wanting to deal with the consequences of it not working.

He nodded towards her still-open driver’s door, “Give it a shot.”

She sighed, letting her head drop back before getting into the car. Even through the windshield Nestor could see the dramatic rise and fall of her shoulders as she took another deep breath before putting the key in the ignition. She turned it, and the car stuttered for a moment, almost sounding like it was about to kick back on before dying out completely.

Jess collapsed back against the driver’s seat, hands raking along her scalp as she tried to keep herself together. She gave herself a moment, taking a few deep breaths before pulling her keys out of the ignition and getting back out of the car, shutting the door with more force than was necessary. Walking back over to Nestor, she tried to seem less upset about it all than she really was.

“Think you could wait for the tow truck and then give me a ride home?”

He nodded, purposely not commenting on the tears that were starting to well in her eyes, “Sure, yea,” he paused, “You want me to call?”

“You know someone?”

He wasn’t going to mention the fact that usually when he was calling for someone to get rid of a car, it was usually because he needed someone to do it discreetly. Still, it did mean that he did know someone who could easily tow it to a scrapyard for her, “Yea, I know someone.”

“That’d be great,” she nodded, thankful for the small win.

“Yea,” he rested his hand on her shoulder for all of a split second, “give me a minute.”

He stepped away to make the phone call, and to shut off his own car and get everything back in order on that front. Jessica heard him speaking quietly, rapidly in Spanish. She knew more than she used to, but she still couldn’t listen half as quickly as he could talk. She busied herself with grabbing her things out of her car. She didn’t keep much in it anymore, but it was a strange feeling to know that the car she’d had for so long was finally spent. There might be a sliver of hope that a good mechanic could fix it, but most likely it was the end of the road.

Nestor walked back over after shutting the hoods of both cars, “They’ll tow it to the shop, see if there’s anything they can do to fix it. If not, they’ll see what they can get for it from the scrapyard.”

She put her few belongings in the back seat of Nestor’s car, “Sounds good,” she shut the door, leaning back against it, “First the flowers, now my car,” she shook her head, “Everything’s dying on me today.”

“From the look of that picture,” he came and stood next to her, a tiny smirk lifting the end of his mouth, “those flowers died way before today.”

She laughed despite the stress weighing on her, bumping her shoulder against his, “Shut up.”

The two of them didn’t talk much while they waited for the tow truck to show up. It was the first time that she’d ever really been quiet around him and he would never say it to her face but he would much rather listen to her chatter. When the tow showed up, Nestor let her do most of the talking, giving the guy her information and letting him know that if there was anything that they could do to fix it, that’d be great, but she knew that it would be a longshot. She watched him get her car up onto the flatbed, taking the business card that he handed her before he hopped back into the cab of his truck and took off.

She turned back around to Nestor, and for the first time ever he saw her looking defeated. He couldn’t really blame her, but he didn’t quite know what to do to make her feel any better. She sighed, toying with the business card in her hands.

“Sorry this turned into such a thing,” she shook her head.

“Don’t be,” he pulled the passenger door open for her, “Come on, I’ll take you home.”

Nestor let her pick the music for the drive home. It got a smile out of her, even if she still wasn’t feeling overly talkative because of everything. They were almost home when her phone rang, and Nestor focused on the road as Jessica talked to Emily about everything that had happened since she left a voicemail on the woman’s phone.

He pulled into the driveway of the Galindo’s house and immediately got out to help Jessica carry her stuff inside. She insisted that she could do it herself, that he’d done enough to help her already, but he swore that it wasn’t a problem. She allowed him to carry it upstairs to her room, setting the miscellaneous items on top of her dresser before following her back downstairs again.

He checked the time on his phone before looking back at her, “I gotta run, but I’ll come by for you in the morning.”

She shook her head, “Nestor, you don’t need to—”

“I’ll drive you. It’s not a problem.”

She smiled, “Thank you.”

He nodded, “It’ll be fine, Jess, alright?” he pulled his keys out of his pocket, “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“See you in the morning,” she gave him a small nod before letting him turn and head out to wherever he was supposed to be going to next. It wasn’t until she saw the door shut behind him that she turned and headed back towards the stairs, desperate to wash off the stress of the day.

[drabbles-mc]

Learning Curve (2/?)

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Kiara Rojas)

Warnings: fluffy goodness and Halloween spirit

Chapter Index

Word Count: 3k

A/N: This is a bit of a filler chapter but I couldn’t resist the urge to write a Halloween story for it. So enjoy some fluffy happiness for Spooky Season. xo

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The following week, Kiara found herself carefully setting the container of cupcakes on the floor behind the passenger seat of her car. Doing her best to make sure it was tucked safely so that it wouldn’t tip over, she shut the door and opened the front passenger side door to set her bag on the seat there. Swinging the door shut, she made her way over to the driver’s side. It wasn’t until she was sat down and put the key in the ignition that she actually let herself take a breath. Giving herself a couple seconds of stillness, she finally buckled herself in and put the car in drivee so that she could head to the school.

When she got there, the parking lot was practically empty except for the cars of two other teachers she knew also always showed up early. She had always been the type to show up ahead of schedule, but even more-so on days when they were having parties of any kind. Halloween had always been one of her favorites—it was something that all of her students always enjoyed celebrating. While the actual holiday wasn’t until the next day, the school always did their activities on the Friday before if it fell on the weekend. She never planned a lot in the ways of actual academic lessons for the day, but what she did plan usually revolved around the Halloween theme. The afternoon was dedicated to the school’s Halloween parade, and of course the classroom parties after the fact. There were a decent number of parents who had volunteered to bring in snacks and drinks for the students, but Kiara always made a point to bake a couple things herself to bring in for her students. Baking was one of her favorite pastimes to begin with, so it was nice to put it to good use. Seeing the excitement on her students’ faces when they saw whatever goodies she’d made for them sent a wave of warmth over her every time.

Flicking on the lights in her classroom, she took a moment to admire all of the decorations that she’d put up the night before. Each year that passed she always added a couple more fun decorations to her collection. Her favorite newest one was the small skeleton dog that she situated to help prop the door to her room open.

She safely stashed the cupcakes behind her desk for the time being, hoping to keep them out of sight from her students until they could actually have them. Pulling her phone out of her purse, she double-checked her hair and makeup, hoping that it would last until the party later.

She was in the midst of getting their morning meeting questions set up for the day when she heard the clicking of heels at her classroom door. Turning, she smiled when she saw her friend all dolled up for the holiday as well.

“Who knew,” Anna laughed as she walked into the room, “That The Very Hungry Caterpillar could look so cute?”

Kiara laughed, twirling slightly so that the skirt she’d decorated poofed out slightly, “Can’t go wrong with a classic,” she took in her friend’s costume, “I see you did more than alright with the Rainbow Fish scales.”

“Thanks to the half-dozen DIY videos you sent me,” she laughed as she poked at the felt glued to her top, “You’re a lifesaver for that, by the way,” she cocked her head to the side as she looked at the fruit decorating Kiara’s shirt, “Did you paint all of that on yourself?”

She shrugged, “I got a lot of time on my hands after school,” she laughed.

“Apparently,” Anna smiled, “Alright, I just wanted to make sure that I wasn’t the only one who followed through with the whole plan. If the rest of them don’t—”

“We’ll still look cute,” Kiara cut her off before Anna could get herself worked up over nothing.

“Right,” she nodded as she walked back towards the door, “The antennae pigtails were a nice touch, by the way.”

That was the last that Kiara got to talk to anyone before all of the students showed up. Everyone came tumbling off their buses or their family’s cars with extra bags in tow for their costumes or supplies for their class’s party. The air was teeming with excitement and Kiara couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t just as excited as all of the young children filing their way into her room.

By some miracle, she got them to focus on the few lessons that she had planned that day. Most of it was games, which helped. They also did scary story read-alouds and talked about their favorite Halloween monsters. Before they all knew it, though, lunch was over and it was time to start getting everyone changed into their Halloween costumes.

In no time, Kiara’s room was running amuck with all manners of superheroes, ninjas, firefighters, and princesses. She loved to see some of the homemade costumes that came in, seeing that families had their children help make their own costumes. They were all bouncing around the room, candy buckets and bags swinging happily in their hands as they all talked about who they were dressed up as for the day.

She was doing a headcount to make sure that none of her students had wandered out of the room in the midst of all the excitement when she heard a very quiet, sad voice coming from behind her. Turning around, she saw Cristobal with tears in his eyes as he held part of his costume in his hands.

“Miss Rojas,” he sniffled, clearly trying hard not to cry, “the tail came off my costume.”

“Oh no,” her heart genuinely hurt for him as she crouched down to get a better look at what was going on with it, “What happened?”

He handed the green dragon’s tail over to her, “Diego stepped on it. It was an accident,” he quickly made sure to include that part, “He said sorry. But now I can’t be a dragon for the parade.”

Turning him around, she looked at how the tail attached to the rest of the costume. It wouldn’t be the perfect fix, but she had the feeling that she’d be able to patch it up at least to get him through the parade, and possibly whatever trick or treating their family was planning on doing that weekend when it was actually Halloween.

“Stay right here, Cristobal,” she rested her hand on his shoulder for a moment, “I think I can get this back on. You might still be able to be the scariest dragon in the school,” she smiled before getting up and heading over to the supply closet.

There were very few things in a first grade classroom that hot glue couldn’t fix. Despite his anxious jitters, Cristobal was able to stand surprisingly still while she set about giving his costume a little temporary fix. When she was done, Kiara gave it the slightest tug to make sure it would be able to hold while he was running around during the parade, a huge sigh of relief coming out of her when it stayed put.

“Alright, honey, you should be good to go,” she smiled at him as she stood up and smoothed out her skirt.

“Thank you!” he beamed before going back into the fray.

Kiara chuckled at how quickly he recovered and got right back into the spirit of things despite the fact that he had been on the brink of tears only minutes before. Taking a deep breath, she started attempting to get all of them lined up so that they could do the parade. Rounding up six and seven-year-olds wasn’t easy on a regular day, let alone on the day of their Halloween celebration. But somehow she managed it.

The parade went off without a hitch, thankfully. Family members for all the kids in the elementary school showed up. Countless photos were taken, and truthfully Kiara wouldn’t have been able to tell anyone which grownups showed up because she was so focused on her students.

It wasn’t until they were back in her classroom that she took stock of who was there in terms of family members. A couple of the parents were semi-dressed up, or at least had accessories for the holiday. Kiara appreciated the effort, and she couldn’t pretend that she didn’t like the compliments that some of the families gave her on her own costume. The hand-painted caterpillar that wound around her torso had certainly been a labor of love, and possibly a costume she would wear again the next year.

She was finishing putting goodie bags on each of her students’ desks when she heard a familiar voice speaking up to get her attention, “This is all so amazing, Kiara,” Emily remarked as she looked around at the classroom full of decorations.

Kiara smiled, nodding in appreciation, “Thank you—I try to make these sorts of things as fun as possible for the kids. I only get them for one set of holidays, you know?”

The two of them were making small talk while Cristobal dragged Miguel around the classroom, showing him just about everything there was to see. The room wasn’t overly large, but apparently there was still plenty for the young boy to show off.

Over the excited buzz of everyone, Cristobal’s voice rang out, “Uncle Nestor!” he dropped his father’s hand as he ran over to his father’s head of security.

“Whoa,” Nestor smiled as the young boy body-slammed into him, “What has this dragon done with Cristobal?”

Cristobal’s laughter filled the room as he flipped the hood back, “It’s me!”

Nestor chuckled, ruffling the boy’s hair, “Phew, scared me for a second there.”

Somehow, Kiara managed to make it over to him before either of the Galindo’s did. There was a soft smile on her face as she greeted him, holding out her hand for him to shake, “Nice to see you again, Nestor. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Heard that this was the place to be to see the scariest dragon this side of the border, so I couldn’t pass up that opportunity,” there was a hint of a smirk tugging at the edges of his mouth.

“Miss Rojas fixed my tail!” Cristobal turned so that Nestor could see the tail of his costume still safely fastened to the rest of the outfit.

“Well that’s good,” he nodded, “otherwise you’d be flying in circles,” with a laugh the young boy went and joined a couple of his classmates, leaving the adults alone again, “Teacher and dragon veterinarian?”

“I wear many hats,” she laughed.

“Including costume designer?” he gestured towards her costume.

“Hopefully I can get a couple years out of this. Cross your fingers that the department wants to go with the book theme again next year,” she smiled as she toyed with the hem of her skirt, “Oh, if you’re looking for Miguel and Emily, they’re over by Cristobal’s desk.”

“Thank you,” he gave her a slight nod.

“And try to grab a cupcake before they’re all gone,” she smiled, “It’s another hat I wear.”

Before he got the chance to respond, she was off and socializing with the rest of the family members that had shown up that day. He lingered in his spot for a moment, just watching the way that she was able to interact with everyone so effortlessly. The kids in her room came from very particular, not always warm and fuzzy families—Cristobal included. It was impressive to him that she never seemed fazed by it all, not even in a poofy, hand-painted caterpillar costume on for Halloween.

Nestor made his way over to Miguel and Emily, who greeted him with smiles and brief embraces. Despite the fact that they’d seen him that morning, the couple still exchanged pleasantries with him.

“You didn’t have to come out for this, Nestor,” Emily smiled and shook her head.

He shrugged, “I don’t mind. He’s a good kid.”

“Well,” she gently patted his arm, “he was very excited that you showed up.”

As the afternoon began to draw to a close, most of the students were taken home by their family members that had shown up. It always warmed Kiara’s heart to see them all walk out together, the children swinging their goodie bags in their hands while their family carried their backpacks and the regular clothes they’d shown up in.

There were a couple students left who were still going to be taking the bus home, so Kiara let them choose a movie to watch for the rest of the day until dismissal. They camped out at a table together while she set about beginning the long process of cleaning up from all the events of the day. There were still a few parents with their children who were in the midst of packing up, the Galindo’s being one of them. Kiara made sure to say goodbye to everyone as they left, but she was caught slightly off-guard by the young boy walking over and giving her a hug.

“Thank you for fixing my tail,” Cristobal beamed up at her.

She smiled down at him, “Of course, chiquito. Can’t have a dragon with a broken tail, can we?”

She finished saying her goodbyes to Miguel and Emily, Nestor only a step or two behind them trying to give them some space. He was very aware of the fact that the dynamics were different, and he was still trying to figure out how to navigate it. For the time being he settled for following their lead.

Kiara turned to him with a smile, “It was nice of you to come—clearly Cristobal was happy about it.”

“Been hearing about the famous dragon costume for a couple weeks now, so I figured it was only right that I showed up.”

She chuckled, nodding, “You’re a good uncle.”

It was strange to hear him referred to that way by someone other than Cristobal or his parents. It gave him the feeling that he was someone else entirely, and he didn’t know if that was a good thing or not.

“Enjoy the rest of your day. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that they pick the same theme for you next year,” he smiled.

She laughed, “Thank you, I appreciate it.”

They finished their brief goodbye and Kiara went back to tending to the rest of her students. Nestor was playing catch up with Emily and Miguel, but still looked back over his shoulder one more time before leaving the room completely.

At the end of the day, when all of the students had left and the rooms were cleaned up, Kiara made her way down the hall to Anna’s room. She was sitting at her desk, wrapping up what was left of her grading for the day. She heard Kiara’s footsteps as she approached the room.

“What’re you thinking, Miss Rojas?” Anna looked up with a smile.

“Wanna go grab drinks?”

Anna’s eyebrows furrowed, “I don’t have a change of clothes.”

“So?” Kiara laughed, “It’s the Friday before Halloween. Besides, everyone there knows we’re teachers.”

There was a beat of hesitation but Anna caved with a nod, “Fine. But only because it’s been a hell of a week.”

The next day reminded her of just how much she loved living where she did. She was thankful that she managed to find such a nice apartment for a reasonable price. It was the first story of a two-family house, and she’d lucked out with having nice neighbors that lived above her. But the area was nice enough and family friendly enough that each year she got kids stopping by while they were trick-or-treating. Every now and then she’d see students that she had that year, or in years prior, and it was always so heartwarming for her.

There was another knock on the door and she stood up, happily grabbing her bowl of candy as she made her way towards the door. When she pulled it back, she was met with a dragon that looked all too familiar.

She smiled as Cristobal held out his candy bucket, a giant smile on his face as he spoke, “Trick or treat!”

She laughed, nodding, “Happy Halloween!” she crouched down so that he could get a better look in the candy bowl, “You can look and take two of your favorites, okay?”

She was so busy being enthralled with her student that she didn’t even think to look at who had been the one to bring him out for the night. It wasn’t until she heard someone casually clear their throat that she looked up. She couldn’t hide the shock on her face when she saw it was Nestor, her natural assumption was that the boy’s parents would’ve been the one to go with him.

“Oh,” she stood back up with a smile on her face, “Hey, Nestor. Didn’t expect to see you.”

“Miguel and Emily had some work stuff come up, so I said I’d take Cristobal trick-or-treating,” he paused, a smile creeping across his face, “Nice to see that you at least got a second use out of the costume.”

She laughed, feeling her face starting to heat up, “Might as well stay in the spirit of it,” she tilted her head slightly, “I’d offer you candy, but you seem to have forgotten your costume.”

He chuckled, “Didn’t have time to pull one together at the last minute.”

“Better plan ahead next year, then,” she smiled before returning her attention to Cristobal, “Cuidate, hm? And have fun.”

That was all the sendoff that Cristobal needed—he was immediately heading down her steps and off to the next house, calling back to her over his shoulder, “Happy Halloween, Miss Rojas! Hasta lunes!”

She chuckled and shook her head, “Better play catchup,” she tossed him a fun-sized candy bar, “For being a good sport.”

Nestor caught it, unable to hide his smile, “Thank you,” he turned and started making his way down the steps, “Have a good night.”

“You too,” she called after him. She watched as Nestor did a little bit of a half-jog to catch up to Cristobal, who was impatiently waiting on the sidewalk for him to catch up, not wanting to go too far ahead without his designated adult. Kiara chuckled, shaking her head at the sight the two of them made together before going back inside.

[drabbles-mc]

Learning Curve (1/?)

Nestor Oceteva x OFC (Kiara Rojas)

Warnings: fluffy goodness, language

Chapter Index

Word Count: 2.3k

A/N: Me? Starting another multichap??? It’s more likely than you think! I’ve been mulling over this idea for a long time and I’m trying to keep myself motivated to keep working on it. This story is a long-game type of deal. Sorta slow burn??? But I’m planning on having Alvarez and Izzy play a large part in this down the line and I’m super excited about that too. We love a good old fashioned opposites attract type of deal.

Mayans Taglist: @thesandbeneathmytoes​ @paintballkid711​ @tomhardydallasstarsgirl​ @queenbeered​ @kelpies-shed​ @sesamepancakes​ @yourwonkywriter​ @chibsytelford​ @gemini0410​ @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead​ @plentyoffandoms​ @georgiaaintnopeach​ @twistnet​ @garbinge​ @themoonandthewicked​ @bucky-iss-bae​ @encounterthepast​ @rosieposie0624​ @mylittlelonelyappreciationtoo​ @mijop​ @xladymacbethx​ @blessedboo​ @holl2712​ @lakamaa12​ @masterlistforimagines​ @kkim120​ @toni9​ @shadow-of-wonder​ @crowfootwrites​ @redpoodlern​ @punkgoddess-98​ @lexondeck​ @lovebishoplosamiguelgalindos​ @amorestevens​ @angelreyesisdaddy04​ @mijagif​ @frattsparty​ @winchestershiresauce​ @bellisperennis0​ @beardburnsupersoldiers​ @mveggieburger​ @thanossexual​ @xeniarocks​ @choochoo284​ @littlekittymeow​ @beardsanddetectives​ @thewineandthewomen​ @slut-bitch-brat​ @i-love-scott-mccall​ (If you want to be added, or just tagged for this fic specifically let me know!) 

“Fuck me,” she mumbled as she crouched down to gather up all the small packets that were littered across the ground next to the trunk of her car.

“Here,” someone crouched down next to her and started to toss them into the canvas bag that was beside her.

She looked over, smiling at whoever had stopped to help her and instantly noted the long braids falling over his shoulders, and the ink that decorated the side of his neck, “Thank you. Last thing to put in my car and of course that’s what breaks,” she laughed as she shook her head, scooping up a few more of the plastic packages from the ground.

“Not easy being so passionate about fruit snacks,” he chuckled as he held a hand out to help her stand back up.

She laughed, shaking her head, “In my defense, they’re not for me, they’re for my kids.”

“Don’t gotta explain yourself to me,” he smiled, giving a slight nod, “Have a nice day.”

“Thanks, you too,” she set the bag in the trunk of her car and shut it. She turned around, about to offer up a final word or a better goodbye, but he was already gone, disappeared into the rows of cars. She pursed her lips for a moment as she looked around before shrugging and getting into her own vehicle.

Over the next few days, she didn’t really think much about the entire interaction—she didn’t have the time. In random fleeting moments she would think about it, like when she was getting a packet of fruit snacks out of the cabinet for one of her students, but other than that she just filed it away as the kindness of a stranger and moved on with her life.

That was until one of her students didn’t get picked up at dismissal and she had to call home. A very frustrated-sounding man on the other end of the line said that someone would be there to pick his son up in less than twenty minutes, and that he was sorry for the inconvenience—there had been a miscommunication with him and his wife. It wasn’t the first time she’d heard that story before and she didn’t let it ruffle her feathers. Besides, Cristobal was a fun kid and she didn’t mind having a little extra time to spend with him.

She was looking over worksheets that the class had done that day while Cristobal colored on a page in his sketchbook, happily picking through the communal box of crayons that was in the middle of the table. Every couple of minutes she would look over and comment on what he was working on, praising his hard work or asking a question about it before letting him get back into the zone.

There was a knock on the classroom door and both of them looked up from what they were doing. A huge grin spread across Cristobal’s face as he leapt up and ran towards the man in the doorway, “Nestor!”

He chuckled, crouching down to catch and lift the small boy running towards him, “Hey, sorry I’m late.”

She stood up, trying not to let the surprise show too much on her face as she walked over to the two of them, “Hello…”

Nestor looked at her, recognition instantly lighting up his face, “Oh, hello,” he suddenly felt very exposed for some reason.

“You’re…not who I was expecting to be picking him up,” she laughed quietly, “Are you his…” she trailed off, waiting for him to fill in the blank.

“I’m good friends with his father.”

“Miss Rojas,” Cristobal smiled brightly at her, “this is my Uncle Nestor.”

She chuckled quietly while holding out her hand, “Nice to officially meet you, Uncle Nestor.”

He felt his face get hot for a second as he shook her hand, “You too, Miss Rojas,” he set Cristobal back down on the ground, “So this is what you meant when you said that the fruit snacks were for your kids.”

She laughed, nodding, “Yes. Do either of you want a pack for the road?”

Nestor smiled and shook his head, “I’m alright. But,” he glanced down at Cristobal who was vibrating with excitement.

She smiled, “Let me grab that while you pack your stuff up, okay?”

The little boy nodded and immediately went back to his table to start throwing his things into his backpack. Nestor lingered just inside the doorway, feeling like he was intruding on the classroom. It felt like such a bright and happy place to be, and that was mostly what made him feel like he shouldn’t be there.

“Alright, thank you for being so patient, Cristobal,” she handed him the packet of fruit snacks, “Be good.”

“Bye, Miss Rojas.”

“Hasta mañana, chiquito,” she ruffled his hair.

“It was nice meeting you, Miss Rojas,” Nestor nodded, trying to subdue the smile wanting to spread across his face.

“You can call me Kiara,” she laughed, “But it was nice meeting you too. Have a good night.”

She lingered in the doorway as she watched the two of them walk down the hallway towards the main doors of the school together. She smiled to herself as she watched Cristobal talk with his hands as he told Nestor about all the things that happened in school that day. Nestor would glance down at him and nod with a smile, prompting the small boy to continue. Once they turned into the school’s lobby and out of sight, Kiara finally let herself walk back into her classroom to finish cleaning up and getting things ready for the next day.

She was straightening up a stack of papers to bring home when she heard someone else walk into her classroom. Glancing up, she let out a chuckle at the expectant smile on her coworker’s face as she perched herself on top of one of the tables in the classroom.

“So,” she crossed one leg over the other, “who was that?”

“Don’t start,” she laughed as she closed up her bag.

“C’mon, Miss Rojas,” she chuckled, “give me some good gossip. What do you know about Mr. Handsome and Mysterious?”

“There’s no gossip to give. He just came to pick up Cristobal. That’s all.”

“Okay, maybe. But you got that little smirk on your face that tells me there’s more to this one way or the other.”

She rolled her eyes, “You’re gonna be the death of me, Anna, I swear,” she rose from her chair.

“If you don’t want to talk about it now, fine,” she followed Kiara out of the classroom, grabbing her own bag as they walked out the door, “You can tell me all about it during happy hour on Friday.”

“I never said I was going,” Kiara smiled as she fished her keys out of her purse.

“Yea but you always do,” Anna laughed as she started to walk away towards her own car, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow,” she chuckled as she unlocked her car and carefully tossed her bag over to the passenger seat.

She walked up the front steps that led to her apartment, taking a deep breath as she turned the key in the lock. She could hear the quiet clamor of her upstairs neighbors, their two kids running around chasing each other, and she had to smile. She never considered them to be noisy, and truthfully the happy ruckus was more than welcome to cut through the silence that usually filled her apartment. Shutting and locking the door behind her, she turned on the lights and pulled her curtains open to let in what little was left of the day’s sunshine.

Setting her work bag down in the living room, she made her way towards the kitchen to start pulling dinner together for herself. Cooking for one was always a quick endeavor, and she was thankful for that all the time. She was good at cooking, but she didn’t particularly enjoy it, especially if she was only cooking for herself. Pouring herself a glass of wine, she set about getting ready for her evening.

While she was obsessing over her lesson plans and finishing her wine, her mind wandered back to what had happened that afternoon in her classroom. They were a couple months into the school year, and she liked to think that she had a decent grasp on the lives of her students—she tried her best to be as informed and involved as possible. With a sigh she went and pulled up her attendance roster with each student’s information. She found Cristobal’s entry and she scanned over the names and numbers listed for emergency contact. Nestor was nowhere on the list, but clearly, he had a good relationship with the boy’s parents if they sent him to pick up their son. She’d only seen a couple very specific people show up to get him each day. Truthfully, if Cristobal hadn’t had such an immediate positive reaction to Nestor, she wouldn’t have let them leave together without calling Miguel again first. She’d heard her fair share of rumors about the Galindo family, but they’d been nothing but kind to her so far so she didn’t let what she heard impact how she spoke and dealt with them. However, there was something about the way that Nestor carried himself despite being so good with Cristobal that made her wonder what the young boy’s life was like at home.

Drinking the last swallow of her wine she closed out the window on her laptop and finally let herself officially clock out of her work day. Picking up her remote, she scrolled until she found something that was a little mindless to watch until she was tired enough to go to sleep. Her mind kept wandering back to her work, her students, the way that it always did. Her friends told her that she needed to find a better work-life balance, but if anyone really took the time to ask her, she wouldn’t say that she felt at all unbalanced. If she wanted to spend less time and thought space on it, she would, but what would be the point?

Meanwhile, Nestor was standing off to the side of the kitchen as Cristobal finished up his dinner and started getting ready to head to bed. Nestor could sense the growing tension between the boy’s parents, and he just hoped that they would keep it together long enough so that their son was tucked in and out of earshot before the argument ensued.

“Oh,” he hopped down from his chair, happily making his way over to his discarded backpack, “look what I made after school today!”

He brought the paper over to Miguel, a proud smile on his face. His father returned the expression as he took in the drawing, “It’s great, mijo,” he pulled his son in and pressed a kiss to his forehead, “This your way of asking for a pet?” he smiled as he handed the paper over to his wife.

“Miss Rojas said that every dog has a different nose print,” he wiggled his fingers, “like we do on our fingers.”

“Really?” Miguel chuckled, nodding as he listened to his son, “That the fun fact of the day?”

“Yea!” the excitement was evident in his voice, “She has a one for us every day during science.”

There was a soft smile on Miguel’s face as he looked at his son, “Looking forward to tomorrow’s, then.”

Emily stood up from her seat, motioning for Cristobal to come with her, “C’mon, let’s hang this on the fridge and get you ready for bed.”

Miguel and Nestor both watched the two of them make their way through the kitchen towards the staircase. Once they were out of sight, and not within listening distance anymore, Miguel turned to the man on the opposite side of the kitchen from him.

“Thank you, Nestor, for today,” he shook his head slightly, “I apologize for the last-minute change of plans.”

Nestor shrugged, shaking his head, “I don’t mind. You know I’d do anything for your kid, Mikey.”

Nodding, he rose from his chair, “I appreciate that,” he paused, “Did his teacher seem upset? It’s…not the first time this has happened.”

There was no hesitation in Nestor’s response, “Not at all.”

The relief was visible as his shoulders relaxed, “Good,” he crossed the kitchen and pulled Nestor into a half-hug, “Thank you, Nestor. I think we’re all set here. Go home, rest.”

“You sure?”

“Yes,” Miguel kindly waved him off, “You’ve done enough today. Hopefully you won’t be on school pickup duty again anytime soon.”

Nestor chuckled as he made his way towards the front door of the house, “Right.”

He made sure to lock the door behind him before making his way down the steps towards his car. He was simply going through the motions on his drive home, not truly aware of everything that he was doing because it was so second-nature by that point. The street signs and lampposts went by in a blur as he made his way home. The music coming from the radio cut the silence of the car, but he didn’t really hear any of the words that the singers were saying.

It wasn’t until he put his car in park in his driveway that he snapped out of the mechanical habits he’d developed over the years. Glancing down into the cupholders between his seat and the passenger seat, he saw the now-empty packet of fruit snacks that Cristobal had torn into on their drive back to the Galindo household. A quiet chuckle passed his lips as he picked it up, closing his hand around it so that he could dispose of it once he got inside the house. He didn’t realize that the small smile didn’t fall from his lips as he grabbed his bag from the back seat and made his way in for the night, finally closing out the day.

[drabbles-mc]

WIP Game

The loml @acrossthesestars tagged me to post all the WIPs I’ve currently got in rotation. Every time I do one of these games the number of WIPs only gets higher instead of lower and I’m just accepting that. 😂 To try and keep the post a manageable length, I’m only gonna post the WIPs that I haven’t already started posting on here.

For the game, send the fic title and I’ll post a snippet or answer whatever question you wanna ask about it! As always, feel free to send me messages/asks about any of these or even the WIPs that I’ve already started posting on here. It gets my brain going with ideas 👀

Bad Ideas (Canche x Reyes!OFC)

Tragic (Angel x OFC)

Boxing AU (Mayans x OFC)

Untitled Prospect Nestor Fic (Nestor x F!Reyes!Reader)

Against All Odds (Juice Ortiz x Chris Teller)

Clueless (Javier Peña x F!Reader)

They Were Roommates (Nestor x OFC)

Make It Up (Revised) (Mayans x F!Reader)

Brick by Brick (Opie x OFC)

Beautician AU (Leticia Cruz & OCs)

Figuring It Out (Happy Lowman & OFC)

From the Start (Opie x Chris Teller)

Better Than That (Angel Reyes x F!Reader / Coco Cruz x F!Reader)

For Everything (Happy Lowman x Natalie Rose Teller)

Diego Scenes (OC Diego Ramirez x F!Reader)

Chaos at the Lakehouse (SOA x OCs)

Still Alive (Angel x F!Reader)

On Your Mind (Carrillo x OFC)

There and Back (Nestor x Erin)

How We Got Here (Coco x Daniela Reyes)

Tryst (Kozik x F!Reader)

Recovery (Juice x F!Reader)

Coming to Terms (Rafe x OFC)

5 Times (Jax x Diedra Lowman)

Always (EZ x F!Reader)

Honest With Me (Juice x OFC)

Favorite Place (Riz x F!Reader)

Pieces Into Place (EZ x OFC)

I hate that this list is shorter than it would be if I actually took a stab at writing for the fandoms that I’ve been thinking about lately 😅 I’m out of control and must be stopped.

Tagging (no pressure if you don’t want to have to come to terms with your WIP folder the way I just did lmao): @thatsfuckingpathetic @lady-writes20 @passionatewrites @ashlingiswriting @narcolini @lovebarefootblonde @twistnet and anyone else who wants to share! (Also if I didn’t tag you but you post please tag me I love seeing people’s WIP lists 👀)

[drabbles-mc]

Hoping to post the first part of my Nestor x OFC fic tomorrow and I’m pretty excited about it I can’t lie 👀

[drabbles-mc]

Can I please request a fic where Emily’s super innocent cousin moves in with the Gallindo’s and Nestor immediately falls for her? But she’s new to the area and doesn’t speak any Spanish or anything like that and he offers to teach her? Thank you!

Your request is up! I addressed this in the author's note as well, but I wasn't able to fit everything into this one story. HOWEVER I hope to make up for that by turning this into its own AU. Everything you asked for here WILL get addressed, I just didn't get it all done in this one because I wanted to build out some backstory and other stuff since I wanna make these two their own little thing. 🥰

Hope you enjoy! xo