#oc: eavesdropper | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

kumkaniudaku · 4 months ago

Text

Midterm

Summary: When Asia's in need of a few lessons regarding matters of the bedroom, her colleague and friend, Kelvin, offers his expertise.

Pairing: Kelvin Harrison Jr. x Black!OC

Warnings: Mature Content (18+)

Word Count: 6k

MASTERLIST

Reading a congratulatory email with kind words and instructions to sign a lucrative offer was easy. Simply slip out of your third boring morning meeting, disappear into the surprisingly vacant courtyard, and spend no less than 30 minutes oscillating between excitement and sheer panic while clicking through pages of contracts to add your digital signature to an encrypted document. Kelvin followed the plan to the letter and then some.

The hard part was stifling the urge to scream at the birds and trees during peak business hours.

Voice low and eyes shifting in search of potential eavesdroppers, he sat in pensive silence to contemplate the gravity of his decision. In a little over a month, he'd be a Chicago resident. He'd wake up in his Chicago apartment, walk the Chicago streets, pass by Chicagoans on the way to his Chicago office, and then grab dinner ingredients at a Chicago grocery store. His license would change. Mail would need a new forwarding address. Updated voter registration, new doctors, a change in insurance, learning a transit system; change after change both excited and unnerved Kelvin all at once.

Part of him wanted to barge into his Head of Creative's office and slam his resignation on the table before clicking his heels together on the way out the door. Fuck this job. New and greener pastures were on the horizon! The other part, the terrified part of him that'd been worried sick since Saturday morning, couldn't even say the words out loud for fear that the wooden benches would absorb and tell his secret before he'd had time to craft poetic, well-thought-out lines.

In his mind, Kelvin thought he'd managed to maintain an impenetrable poker face. To a stranger or work acquaintance unschooled in Kelvin-ology, he could come across as convincing enough to overlook. For Asia, watching him from the communal kitchen, worry causing his knee to bounce in triple time told a different story.

"You know you can just go out there and talk to him, right?" Savannah's sarcastic introduction to an otherwise quiet moment cut through Asia's brain fog enough to garner attention as she shifted her weight from one side to the other. "I'm joking," Savannah laughed, trying to ease the tension between them. Asia's quick glance at the back of Kelvin's head provided the final number of a winning lottery sequence. "Wow, you really like him. Like, you two are a couple! I knew it."

Asia tried to remain casual as she crossed her arms and shrugged. "What are you talking about? Kel is my work friend."

"Must be a hell of a work friend for you to spend the night from his place. I noticed the cabinets, but I couldn't confirm until later that day when Kelvin took a meeting from the same place."

Savannah's cheeky grin sparked fear in Asia's heart. Widening her eyes, she craned her neck to see who may have heard her business in the area.

She leaned closer, keeping her voice low as she spoke. "You can't say that out loud," she cautioned. "We're being discreet!"

"Love you so much, Asia, but literally everyone knows."

"Everyone like who?"

"Asia," Savannah reiterated. "Every. One. The main crew has a group chat and everything. You just won me $20 bee-tee-dubbs. I'll share, promise."

Panic should've set in for Asia. Maybe dread and a tinge of fear. They'd broken another rule and crossed another carefully considered boundary in the pursuit of each other. Asia should've been nervous about how their not-so-secret pining had run through the office rumor mill and what it might mean for perceptions of her professionalism as one of the few Black women in the building. But relief was the only emotion worth exploring in the immediate aftermath of Savannah's revelation.

No more hiding. No more planning entrances five minutes apart or driving separate vehicles in busy morning traffic when one would suffice. They could share dinner leftovers during lunch and stop sneaking quiet giggles at jokes shared via text. No more hiding.

Relief helped Asia slowly release the extra air tightening her lungs and expanding her chest. She nodded at nothing in particular. "I expect my cut in all ones. It's for our strip club fund."

"Oooh, spicy," Savannah sang, stepping closer to speak in a hushed whisper. "So… how's it going with you two? How different is personal time Kelvin from work Kelvin?"

"Uh, I mean, you know. He's…you know."

Any sense of calm that offered a reprieve from an onslaught of complicated feelings was quickly replaced by the need to run out of the room and vomit. Knowing was one thing. Asking questions and wanting the scoop on something Asia deemed sacred and untouchable in conversation beyond what she chose to share was different.

Words sputtered from her lips as she tried to offer an explanation vague enough to get Savannah off her ass. The quiet roar of glass panes sliding on a metal track clipped Asia's start-and-stop sentence, turning all attention to Kelvin as he stepped in, looking like he'd just had his heart ripped in two and was trying but failing to keep his emotions intact. Savannah didn't seem to notice when she flagged him over. Asia couldn't take her eyes off his frown and sullen expression. Kelvin knew his face had betrayed him as soon as he was close enough for a thorough look at the questions knitting Asia's brows together.

Trying to play it cool, he swiftly pulled his hand out of his pocket and offered a wave to both ladies. "What's up?" A greeting he'd used a million times suddenly sounded bizarre. First mistake.

"Hiii!" Savannah's severe lack of subtly pulled a reluctant laugh from Kelvin before he shifted his gaze to focus on Asia.

"Asia. You good?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm good. What about you? You good?"

"I'm good now, yeah."

Anxieties feasting on his mind momentarily paused in reverence for Asia's presence. A true breath of fresh air. One he'd fight tooth and nail to keep in his life, distance be damned.

Savannah stood between the pair and their smitten grins, looking back and forth to see who'd make the first move. "This is just the cutest shit ever. I can't take it." Googly eyes slowly turned into blank stares aimed in her direction. Hint taken. "No, you're so right. I should get out of here. Asia, remember to put the thing on the slide at some point. In the one deck."

"Bye, Savannah!" Kelvin and Asia watched Savannah awkwardly scurry off to do only God knows what until they were safely alone.

Without a buffer to fill in the gaps, all the nausea-inducing worry from the morning's events came flooding back for Kelvin in another crushing wave. Had he been thinking straight, he would've opted to save such delicate news for the privacy of his living room when all the thoughts sitting jumbled like Soul Train board letters were sorted into the proper place. Unfortunately, life-changing information sure to shake the still-wet foundation on which they'd built their relationship ran off with his rationale long ago.

Kelvin opened his mouth to speak, then closed it when words didn't come out. He tried again. Then, one more time before finally forcing, "I have…something to tell you," into the atmosphere.

Asia tilted her head in curiosity. "So do I. Is yours good news or bad news?"

"Doesn't matter," he answered, trying to smile through the rapid thudding in his ears. "You go first."

Don't press, Asia. Resist! An inner monologue determined to usher Asia away from the sins of her past forced back 101 questions to make way for her surprise. "You know how the Moët client is looking for new artists for that summer series activation?" Kelvin nodded, vaguely remembering project details he'd contributed to in a past life. Asia reached into her back pocket to showcase two laminated passes on lanyards. "I convinced Chris and Sid to give me their passes so we could pull up. Now, we don't have to go all the way to Australia to see RINI. Fun, right?"

Kelvin recognized the big reveal as something he should be excited about. And, had present circumstances not reared its ugly head, he'd have no trouble sharing Asia's toothy grin and silly dance. He tried to fight the heavy haze clouding his day by raising his hand for a high five and flashing a vacant smile. "That's great, baby. I'm excited. Really."

So much for honesty.

Asia couldn't hide her skepticism, pushing her eyebrows high, and Kelvin couldn't hide his discomfort, which made him fidget with the contents of his front pockets.

"Yeah," Asia answered, disappointment in his half-assed reaction instantly stealing the light in her eyes and turning her bright smile into a shell of itself. "Um, what was your news? Anything good?"

Tact was never Kelvin's strong point. Breakups over text and ghosting were more his speed, no matter how much he hated that fact about himself. What everyone else saw as sleazeball behavior reserved for fuckboys deserving of eternal banishment to hell, he saw as protecting feelings.

Promises were promises, and Asia was worth more than slipping back into bad habits. Kelvin had to rip the band-aid and deal with the residual blood later. "Remember the Chicago job?" he asked, wringing his hands.

Oh no. Intuition and a random tarot reader told Asia to be on the lookout for roadblocks, but, dammit, she thought that meant traffic on the interstate or an annoying client ask, not the nagging tug of the Midwest.

"Yeah," she answered cautiously.

Kelvin adjusted the hydrant-red beanie on his head and sighed. Rip. The. Band-Aid. "They…called me back with all my negotiation demands met. And…”

"You took the job."

Patience was never Asia's virtue. Why beat around the bush when they could lay all the bad shit on the table and try to salvage a few pieces good enough to keep for fond memories later?

"Yeah." The finished sentence turned an abstract concept into reality, weighing so heavily on him that he found looking Asia in the eye and lifting his head too difficult. He repeated after her in a low, measured voice, "I took the job."

Suddenly, Asia couldn't help but hyper-fixate on her surroundings. The low hum of two French door refrigerators holding employee lunches was annoying. It always had been, but today, it sounded like an army of flies buzzing around the mess Kelvin's news had created. Distant laughter made her nostrils flare. How dare someone find joy in a time like this? The kitchen was too big and too open to contain the grief rising within her. Then, the stupid ping of notifications on Kelvin's phone threatened to blow her gasket. The stimuli converged simultaneously, bringing fresh tears to prickle at her waterline.

Asia forced them all back while Kelvin waited for her to say something to prove she didn't hate him. She extended a closed fist in his direction to match a closed-mouth smile. "Congratulations, Kel. I'm so proud of you. If we were somewhere else, I'd hug you."

"Hug me to sneak in for a choke or a real hug?"

"A real one," Asia chuckled, the sound of it returning to her stilted and lacking the mirth she intended. "I know you're bored here. You gotta do what you gotta do, right?"

Past all the hurt feelings and rage bubbling in her chest, Asia couldn't allow herself to stomp out Kelvin's fire with negativity. She'd save that for a tearful phone call with Sabrina or a good cry in the shower. Kelvin needed reassurance that he'd made the right decision, not the moaning and wailing she had planned for a moment alone.

"Yeah…" Kelvin paused to scan Asia's face for any sign of an impending adverse reaction but found none before he answered. Nothing. Not a shred of any identifiable emotion presented itself to Kelvin. Anxiety gripped him again. "Asia, don't shut me out. I know you have questions and fuckin' feelings. C'mon. Don't leave me out here by myself."

"Not here." An almost undetectable waver in her voice was enough to shatter Kelvin's heart into a million pieces. He watched her blink back tears to speak again. "Can we just be happy, please? For a little longer?"

He sighed, accepting defeat. "Okay." A mental reminder to add 'needs a moment before tough conversations' to his running list of things to know about Asia ran through his brain like neon letters on a marquee.

His index and middle fingers brushed across his puckered lips, collecting affection he quickly passed on to Asia. She kissed the spot his lips once occupied as a silent promise to revisit the subject when heightened emotions had time to return to baseline.

"You hungry? My treat."

An olive branch. Collective ease passed between them once Kelvin flashed a toothy grin at Asia and gestured ahead of him toward the courtyard doors. "After you."

What Kelvin couldn't have in her raw, unfiltered thoughts, he was more than happy to gain in a spare moment of mindless chatter over sushi a block away.

Something was better than nothing.

If left up to Asia, Chicago and all its complications would disappear because of her commitment to ignoring them.

City sounds and radio chatter on Saturday evening had spent more time filling silent gaps of conversation than Kelvin and Asia had for two straight days. The elephant in the room quickly became the elephant at the dinner table late Thursday night when Asia side-stepped the topic to discuss Married at First Sight instead, the elephant in the bedroom when the thought of Chicago kept her mind wandering too much to enjoy Kelvin feasting between her legs, and the elephant in the backseat while she pretended not to notice her boyfriend stealing glances at the red light.

Given the chance, Asia could avoid broaching the topic for weeks. Kelvin, on the other hand, couldn't ignore issues festering into resentment day by day. Before long, he'd carefully label boxes and precious belongings to ship to their new home. Being on the brink of drastic change without a resolution wasn't an option.

Standstill traffic and a small car accident separating them from their destination provided the perfect opportunity to catch Asia in close quarters and force the issue. Kelvin took a deep breath and slowly turned the volume down on one of Tyler the Creators' piano-heavy tracks, earning a confused side-eye for his behavior.

"Everything okay," Asia asked, shifting her body towards Kelvin so he could feel the full weight of her annoyance.

He shrugged. "You tell me, Asia. I'm not the one tiptoeing around some really important shit right now. Is everything okay?"

"Kelvin, not right now. We can talk about it when we get back tonight."

Arms crossed at her chest, and a deep frown sent Asia retreating into herself, frustrating Kelvin to the point of no return. When he imagined the first roadblock in their relationship, hogging the covers or choosing the thermostat's temperature came to mind. He expected little hurdles to make room for the big stuff. The relationship-altering, make-or-break whammies either strengthened a couple or sent them careening toward total implosion. This behemoth was a tsunami of complications he didn't expect but wouldn't allow to throw him off course.

"You said that last night and the night before. I'm tired of 'tonights!' It's happening, Asia! We can't get around the shit. So, talk to me right now!" Kelvin's body vibrated in time with his hands gripping and releasing the steering wheel until he practiced in and out deep, soothing breaths brought him back off the ledge. Asia watched his shoulders slowly slump away from his ears before he reached over to rest a warm palm on her inner thigh to stroke his thumb against smooth denim, his eyes apologetic as he looked over at her. "I didn't ask you to be with me for no reason. Can we talk about what all this means for us?"

Asia rested her hand atop his to twist the ring on his finger while she tried to gather words and explanations she'd practiced for days on end. "I don't know."

In all her soul-searching and reckoning with the inevitable, she realized that she had no idea what the next steps were.

She always had the answers, the plan, and the foresight to know how to proceed in any situation. This one, though – this flurry of warm feelings filled with complicated explanations and head-spinning romance – she couldn't figure out. Not even when she turned to practical skills and timeline plotting to make it all make sense.

I don't know. Kelvin wasn't sure what he expected when he decided to corner Asia for an answer, but that wasn't it. Not knowing was worse than not caring. He could deal with the finality of no longer giving a fuck. However, the uncertainty in what he thought was a reasonably black-or-white scenario was unnerving. Kelvin let the gut punch settle until Asia spoke again to soothe the pain she'd inflicted.

"How…how would it work," She questioned in a small voice, her eyes low to avoid cracking the nerve she'd built. "Tell me you have a plan. Because, if you don't, I –"

Kelvin rushed to reassure her. "I have a plan. Trust me." For once in his life, Kelvin was moving intentionally. No stone left unturned; no possibility left up to chance. "I leave in six weeks. Give me two to get my shit together, and you're on the first flight into O'Hare."

"And after that?"

"We'll talk every morning and every night. Then I'm on my way to you every other week, baby. And every other month, I'll make sure you get to me. Nonstop flight. The price doesn't matter. All you need is a packed suitcase. Or not. You can be naked the whole time. That's fine by me."

Two nonstop flights a month, airport pickups and drop-offs every other week, Fridays in, Monday mornings out, constant connection over the phone when the physical was out of the question—simple enough. There was no fluff, only a concerted effort to make a less-than-ideal situation work. The happiness didn't have to die if they didn't let it.

Still, Asia wrestled with separating idyllic assumptions from reality. What happened when schedules presented challenges? Or when the weather interrupted? Did distance make the heart grow fonder or help intertwined lives push away the realities of life together hundreds of miles apart.

Kelvin could see the wheel turning for Asia while she mulled over his proposal from every angle. "Give me a little more time, okay?" Deflating. The air in Kelvin's sails came through his nose in a disappointed huff just as traffic began to pick up enough for steady motion. She held his hand in place, hoping he could feel the intention behind her hesitancy. "I'm not closing the door on us. I need to make sure we're prepared. That's all."

The absence of an enthusiastic yes wasn't a no – another tidbit to add to Kelvin's growing Asia file. He'd have to find comfort in the details to keep her in his life. And damn, did he want to keep her in his life. His plan had more legs, including a permanent address change for Asia.

"That's okay. Take your time," he answered as he laced their fingers together and brought the back of her hand to his lips. "Just don't leave me hanging like that again."

"I won't. I'm sorry."

Relationships came with a learning curve Asia had to experience to understand. No one in her life had prepared her for conflict resolution. Being an only child taught her how to play by herself and keep her secrets close to her chest. There was nothing in the manual about coexisting with another human she cared for more and more each day. She didn't know how to share items or feelings. But Kelvin made her want to try. That had to count for something.

Once tense quiet returned to the comfortable, wordless quality time Kelvin and Asia had come to enjoy, it followed them for miles to the venue until the need to mix and mingle took center stage.

In a room full of strangers intermixed with a few familiar faces, they moved around like a couple for the first time. Introductions as a tandem flowed naturally. Seeing them move from group to group hand in hand amused but didn't surprise team members who'd long had their suspicions confirmed by Savannah. 'Alvin' as one member of the group named them. Not their preferred choice, but good enough for the moment.

As alcohol flowed and inhibitions were disarmed, smooth crooning and soul-stirring baselines from the artist of the hour pushed tomorrow's problems further down the road.

Kelvin kept a hand on Asia's hip while she allowed her body to sway along with RINI's soulful cover of Leon Bridges' "That's What I Love." Hearing his voice beyond the warbling of his JBL speaker from Asia blasting music far too loudly reminded Kelvin of the first time she shared her new favorite artist with him. She made him listen to Ultraviolet twice all the way through, forcing him to commit more lyrics to memory than he ever did for any other artist. Truthfully, the music didn't hit the same when she wasn't in the room. He tried listening on his own, but it was missing something or someone to add the depth he needed to make the album spin worth his time.

Applause filled the room just after the final strum of RINI's guitar reverberated. Asia beamed from a spot toward the back. Asia claimed she was fine where she was, but Kelvin knew she was too scared to get close and act like a crazed fan. His lips found her temple for a quick kiss as RINI prepared to end his showcase.

"I gotta find a way to get out to the States more. This is great," he laughed, causing the audience to join him. "My time is ending, but I can't go without singing the song that put me on your radar. Big thanks to Moët for letting me spend some time with you tonight. I'm excited to get to work this summer. Until then, this is Meet Me in Amsterdam. I hope you enjoy."

Asia couldn't contain her squeal, earning a low laugh from Kelvin once the open notes of her favorite song began.

I would sail across the world

Row this boat from dusk till dawn

Kelvin and Asia had heard the song plenty of times together, so much so that Kelvin was tired of its slow drone and accompanying music video. Both RINI and Meet Me in Amsterdam were on his list of things he could live without and still die a happy man.

Until the lyrics started to circle too close to home. A plea for the songwriter's love to make the leap and meet him in a foreign land felt like a page ripped directly from Kelvin's journal. Had he possessed the talent, he would've sung into Asia's ear while she leaned against him, caught in the rapture of beautiful lyrics.

She didn't need Kelvin's additional vocal performance to know her partner had fallen victim to the magic. She was right there with him, letting the music speak where neither her heart nor mind could reach.

Won't you come closer; let it take over

I don't need anything; I just want you

"I just want you." The words came out before Asia could stop them. She was never one to fall into the melodrama of romance, but maybe she'd never had an adequate opportunity. Maybe all she needed was a few glasses of white wine and a man looking back at her like universes formed in her eyes to give in to what she'd always considered unrealistic and a little corny.

Kelvin wrapped an arm around her waist before dipping his head to meet her parted lips as she craned her neck to get a better look at his face. "You got me."

Turning in his arms, she faced him head-on. "I want to try. For you. Let's make it work."

"Every other week. I swear."

"I know. I believe you."

Rolling waves filled with blinding passion set their bodies aflame, connecting them for a kiss too searing to start and end in a room full of people. Some things were best experienced behind doors clumsily kicked closed after Kelvin and Asia burst through the door of his apartment connected at the mouth.

Small items clattered on the ground as they bumped into the wall, sending anything not bolted to Kelvin's entryway table scattering in the darkness. The moonlight streaming through his balcony door was the only light to illuminate their path. They couldn't care less. Kissing and fondling were their only priorities on the way to shedding extraneous clothing.

The bedroom was too far, and the couch didn't provide enough leverage for what Kelvin wanted to do for Asia. The counter was too high off the ground, unfortunately. The table, though, was perfect.

Kelvin thanked God for weightlifting as he hoisted Asia up into his arms, tongues still dancing as he walked them across the room. Asia used her forearm to swipe decorative mats and rattan charger plates to the floor so her backside could fill the empty space.

Soft panting and the light smack of lips coming together and separating rhythmically filled charged cold air. Asia flinched when Kelvin slipped his hand beneath her t-shirt to reach her bra's front clasp.

"Take this off. Hurry up," Kelvin demanded as he stepped back to pull his crewneck over his head. He didn't have time for frilly language and sweet kisses. Maybe later, when they'd calmed down from their high. This first fuck was for all the sessions they'd missed between quiet nights in and words left unsaid. A little something to take the edge off.

Zippers sliding down, garments rustling, and leather sliding out of thin loops made Kelvin's apartment sound like a department store dressing room until they were reconnected in mind and body.

Half-dressed with goosebumps pebbling an expanse of rich brown skin, lovers let their hands roam freely while they grinded against each other.

Asia moaned at the feel of teeth gently tugging her bottom lip before pulling away to breathe. "C'mon, Kel. Right now," she rushed on in one breath. "I need it."

"What about the condom? It'll only take a second." Kelvin asked, half-hoping but not expecting Asia to abandon her primary stipulation.

"Fuck a condom. C'mon."

The go-ahead to proceed with caution thrown to the wind put them on a path to the sort of carnal and fleshly satisfaction Kelvin's father warned him about before he left home at 18.

Sorry, dad. This shit feels way too good to miss out on, Kelvin thought to himself as he slid into Asia's warmth inch by inch. He was weightless for a moment, floating in otherworldly bliss while he fit himself inside her body. "Fuck," he whispered.

"Oh…yes. Yesyesyes." Asia's toes curled, gripping at nothing in a desperate attempt to remain tethered to the atmosphere. "Wait a second. Don't move." Crossing her ankles at the small of his back, Asia pulled Kelvin in a little deeper, smiling at the small groan he muffled against her skin. She just needed to feel him. In six weeks, they'd have to plan moments of intimacy and simulate sex through a screen, waiting for the day they could be together in the flesh. Tonight, with his body filling every dip and ridge like the final piece to a puzzle, they could kick the can down the road for a few more days. "Okay. I'm ready."

Agonizingly slow thrusts helped them get acquainted with one another in a new way. Kelvin lifted his head from the crook of Asia's neck, yearning to look her in the eyes for an added layer of closeness. He pecked her nose, lips, chin, cheeks, and lips again, trying to keep those three words at bay.

"Faster, baby." A firm request teetering on begging broke through Kelvin's haze while Asia tried to pull him into her body by his shoulders.

He smirked. "Oh, you can talk now?" His taunting made Asia squirm against him for extra friction before he stopped and held her in place. "You up for another lesson?"

"Mhmm," she forced out, hoping her compliance would get her closer to the real fun.

"You been quiet all week. Imma need to hear you tonight if you wanna cum."

A horny, exasperated sigh preceded a short whimper. "What? I don't know how t –"

"Yeah, you do," Kelvin encouraged. Tell me what you want, and then I'll give you what you need."

Near painful throbbing has Asia ready to agree to anything if it meant she could finally come off some of the pressure from a stressful week. Quick agreeance earned her a return to Kelvin's slow back and forth, a shiver hitting both their spines as he took a shallow dive inside.

Asia took a deep breath and tested her voice. "You - you feel so good?" She closed her eyes, hoping Kelvin would take pity on her feeble attempt only to be rewarded with nothing. She tried again. "Right there, baby."

"We'll be here all night. Relax. Be confident."

Relax. Be confident. The gentle reminder and suckling at her neck helped Asia partially release the valve on her nervousness. Kelvin rocked into her expert precision and care, waiting to hear more.

A choppy moan caught in her throat before she could speak again. "You fuck me so good. You really thought I was gonna let you get that far away from me?"

Kelvin groaned and sped up enough for Asia to notice. She smiled, palming the back of his head to keep him close.

"There it is," he whispered. "Keep goin', beautiful. Tell me some more."

Bingo. Electricity sparking between them opened up a whole new world of vocal possibility. "I want all you got tonight, baby. Can you do that for me? Fuck me until I can't take anymore?"

"Uh-huh. I got you."

Asia rubbed circles at the nape of his neck, feeling a jolt in her body from another change in pace. "Mmm. Deeper, baby. You can do better than that, right? For me?" Her provocation ignited a burning desire for Kelvin to perform. He needed the glory. Asia dropped her talking display long enough to moan through her man putting his entire being into testing the limits of his little circular wooden table.

If sweet talk couldn't get him to knock the rings out of her, goading him with a challenge undoubtedly did the trick. Scratching against his back, demanding more depth, more speed, and more kissing spurred Kelvin into fast, furious fucking.

In no time, they were close. Deliciously, dangerously close. No protection meant no staying for the final hoorah. He had to time his exit perfectly for the right mix of precision and mutual satisfaction. Though Kelvin seemed to care, Asia was just hitting her stride.

"I think about you all day, waiting for you to fuck me just like this. I want you so bad sometimes." Asia confessed while Kelvin fucked her on his toes. "Even at work, when we’re not supposed to. That’s when I need you the most.” Grabbing the sides of his face with both hands, Asia forced him to look her in the eye. "Be good for me, baby. Make me cum."

Instructions? A command? A simple slip of the tongue? Kelvin couldn't bring himself to waste brain power distinguishing. He needed to focus. Focus on Asia's nipples rubbing against his chest and how her breaths and his started to become one. Then, the light sheen of sweat helping their bodies slide against one another. He focused on the sticky coating of arousal inviting him to rub his thumbpad against her clit.

Asia squealed, then licked Kelvin's open mouth. He rasped out a command of his own. "Come on! Come on!" Resolve began to wane. Any longer, and they'd be in the nearest drug store taking the walk of shame toward the Plan B pills.

If the walls ever decided to talk, they'd blush when recounting the vision of Asia forcing Kelvin's mouth against one of her breasts, trying to balance the sting from his hand colliding with her thigh with his warm tongue tracing braille on her areola.

Her body seized, making it almost impossible for him to pull out. Every other week on a stuffy flying bus sounded like hell, but if he had this to look forward to after the wheels touched the tarmac, he could drum up some enthusiasm in no time.

At the last moment, Kelvin forced himself out of his favorite place on earth just in time for the fruits of a mind-bending orgasm to spill from his head onto Asia's inner thigh. Together, they watched fresh semen coat supple skin, their chests heaving and ears ringing. Kelvin couldn't speak. He could only watch as Asia gathered a small amount on her fingertip and swiped it against her tongue.

Kelvin moaned when Asia moaned to relish the sensory experience of his taste. "Did I pass?" Her question fell on deaf ears, with Kelvin more focused on gathering more semen on his fingers to pop into her mouth. She treated him to a show, sucking the digits clean. She spoke again. "Answer me, baby. Did I pass?"

"With flying colors," Kelvin finally answered. Asia smiled into a searing kiss, reveling in her accomplishment. A new skill had been unlocked, and one more accolade had been added to her mental trophy case.

Another lesson to take her mind off of the inevitable. At least until the morning rolled around to wash the fresh coat of paint she'd forced over a very real, immovable problem.

RINI blasting from phone speakers dampened behind the bathroom door reminded Asia of the night before and how she'd allowed the heat of the moment to lock her into a contract she'd neglected to read the fine print on.

Facing the bedroom window, Asia snuggled deeper into warm sheets and scanned the pros and cons list on her phone. Pro #1: She could eat deep-dish pizza every other month. Con #1: Her man wouldn't be nearby multiple days a week. Which was more important. She couldn't decide. Food or the comforts of stable, local partnership?

She had started typing a new con when Kelvin emerged from the bathroom naked and moisturized from head to toe. "You awake now?"

Fuck. Asia thought she had more time to plaster on her happy face. She used a pretend yawn as her buffer. "Yeah," she answered, faking the funk. "Good morning, baby."

"Morning." Unbrushed teeth could never stop Kelvin from getting his first kiss of the day. He nuzzled his nose against hers before speaking. "Sleep okay?"

"Mhm. You?"

He nodded and slipped into bed beside her. "For the most part. I gotta show you something, though." Kelvin reached back to retrieve his phone from the nightstand's charging station. A few taps against the screen presented a short list of apartment options for Asia's inspection. "I started looking at some spots in the middle of the night. This one has a crazy second room for an office. Look at that view."

A wall of windows overlooking the downtown cityscape made Asia's stomach churn. Reality smacked her in the face. He was leaving and waiting on her approval on an apartment she couldn't stand in a city she wished didn't exist.

"That's so nice, baby. You can get a nice couch in there as a gaming room, too."

Kelvin considered her suggestion and nodded. "Damn, that's a good idea. I need to take you with me when I look next week. You down?"

"Uh…yeah. Yeah, I'll come." Asia shook off her rapidly increasing heartbeat and scooched closer to rest her head on Kelvin's shoulder. "Can you show me another one?"

Enthusiasm fading into meaningless sounds turned Kelvin into Charlie Brown's teacher as he gushed over layouts and natural light. She nodded along to nothing in particular. Smile. Rub his arm. Act supportive. Be the perfect girl. Just be happy for a little longer.

Reply if you'd liked to be tagged. DM if you��d like to be removed.

TAGS: @planetblaque @wvsspoppin @thatone-girly @avoidthings @slutsareteacherstoo @eilujion @amyhennessyhouse @yaachtynoboat711 @jenlovey @pinkpantheris @blowmymbackout @onherereading @becauseimswagman1 @thiccc-c @hrlzy @urfavblackbimbo @blackburnbook @ashanti-notthesinger @xo-goldengirl @ariiijestertheklown @blyffe @tvchi @wabi-sabi1090 @flydotty @aldrigmer444 @ash-ketchumzzz @nayaesworld @ms-mosley-ifunastyyy @writingsbytee @teddybeerz @trippyscotch @theogbadbitch @thevelvetwhispers @wowitsafemale @kindofaintrovert @sexysativa605 @jvzmine19 @turn-thy-paige @lapateeserie @simplyzeeka @supremechae @palmstreesallday @blackmoonchilee @ovohanna24 @prettypynklemonade @gwenda-fav @itsash-okay @sparklytemi @blackchickinthedesert @miyuhpapayuh

#kelvin harrison jr.#kelvin harrison jr. x black oc #kelvin harrison jr. smut

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shiorihyugawrites · 2 months ago

Text

Red Regrets

Twelve years ago, Levi Ackerman made the hardest decision of his life—he left behind the only woman he ever loved, believing it was for her own good. But fate is cruel, and when a fiery redheaded boy with a familiar scowl crosses his path, Levi is forced to confront the past he abandoned. The truth he never knew. And the woman whose heart he shattered. (Levi x OC)

Chapter Twelve

It was the final evening before the Survey Corps would embark on their high-stakes mission to retake Wall Maria. The weight of that knowledge hung in the air like an ever-present shadow, yet tonight, the scouts gathered in the mess hall under the warm glow of lanterns, determined to seize one last night of respite. Commander Erwin had ordered a feast—a rare treat of freshly cooked meat, hearty bread, and whatever else the quartermaster could spare.

The mess hall was abuzz with chaotic energy: tables pushed together to accommodate the entire regiment, voices overlapping in heated banter, and the mouthwatering aroma of sizzling beef wafting through the air. Soldiers, young and old, jockeyed for positions near the serving area, clamoring to grab cuts of meat before the platters emptied. Among them, Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Connie, and Sasha were especially animated—Sasha had proven so ravenous that two recruits had to tie her to a chair temporarily, lest she dive face-first into someone else’s plate.

Levi sat at one of the longer tables, side by side with Commander Erwin and Hange, a half-finished plate of meat and potatoes in front of him. He chewed methodically, gaze sweeping the room. Despite his usual stoicism, a faint, almost imperceptible smile curved at the corner of his mouth whenever he saw one of the younger scouts break into laughter. Moments of genuine joy were sparse in their line of work, and he couldn’t deny the comfort it gave him, seeing these brats—some barely older than Preston—act like normal kids for once.

“Levi, are you even eating?” Hange teased, noticing how Levi seemed more focused on the swirling commotion than on his own meal.

Levi grunted, shoving a forkful of roasted meat into his mouth. “I’m eating,” he retorted, voice flat. “And for once, it’s not stale bread or watery soup. I guess the budget went all in for tonight.”

Commander Erwin leaned back, surveying the hall with calm satisfaction. “They deserve it,” he said softly. “All of them. We’ll be riding out tomorrow, and… well, we don’t know how many will return.” A subtle pang crossed his face, but he masked it quickly, turning to Levi. “What’s on your mind, Levi? You’ve been quiet, even by your standards.”

Levi continued chewing, letting the taste of the well-seasoned meat linger before swallowing. He glanced around again, ensuring no eavesdroppers were too close. The scouts at other tables were engrossed in their own banter, passing plates and refilling cups. “Nothing in particular,” he muttered at first, but Hange shot him a knowing look, as if to say, Don’t lie.

He sighed, setting his fork down. “It’s Preston,” he admitted finally, voice low enough that only Erwin and Hange could hear. “He’s been hinting—no, more than hinting—about dropping out of school to enlist. The brat is eleven. He’ll be twelve soon, which is the minimum age to join the cadet corps. He’s eager, determined to follow in my footsteps.” Levi’s brows drew together. “It’s the last thing I want.”

Hange’s face lit with excitement, the spark in her eyes was unmistakable. “Preston wants to be a scout,” she mused, a grin tugging at her lips. “Just imagine—a third Ackerman in uniform. We’ve seen what you and Mikasa can do. Another Ackerman could be unstoppable.”

Levi’s face hardened, eyes narrowing in displeasure. “Shut up, Hange,” he snapped, though not too loudly. “That’s exactly the kind of talk I hate. He’s not some weapon to brandish. He’s my son, and he’s still a kid. I don’t want him anywhere near the front lines.”

Hange’s eyes widened in immediate regret, and she raised her palms defensively. “I’m sorry. I got ahead of myself,” she apologized, earnestness softening her tone. “I just couldn’t help the thought… but I understand. You’re right, he’s just a child.”

Erwin offered Levi a small, sympathetic nod. “This must weigh on you,” he said gently. “Especially with his heritage. The Ackerman instincts. Preston might feel compelled to prove himself.”

Levi clenched his jaw. “He’s more than just an Ackerman,” he said, voice taut. “He’s… special. Smart, too. And Penelope—she wants him to finish school, maybe become a scholar or a doctor like her. Something normal, safe. That’s all we want for him.”

Erwin’s gaze flicked to the side, watching Mikasa and Jean tussle over an extra piece of meat. Mikasa ended up with it, of course. Erwin spoke carefully, “Children often have dreams that push them beyond safety. If Preston idolizes you, he’ll pursue the path he believes is yours. He sees you as a hero, no matter how much you try to dissuade him.”

Levi’s expression darkened with frustration. “Hero,” he echoed with a scoff. “He doesn’t realize how many people I’ve lost. How there’s nothing heroic about watching your comrades be eaten alive and not even having a body to bury. I can’t watch that happen to him—see him devoured by Titans. I don’t want him to endure the same nightmares.”

Hange gently patted Levi’s shoulder, a rare, comforting gesture. “Levi… we all know how horrific it is. But sometimes, kids want to shape their future according to what they see in us. If you had told Eren to never be a scout, do you think he would have listened?”

Levi snorted. “Eren’s a suicidal maniac, but it’s different. Preston’s my own blood. It’s not the same as ordering some recruit around.”

Hange’s eyes darted between Levi and Erwin, uncertain if continuing the topic would set Levi off again. Commander Erwin rested his arm on the table, leaning forward. “You can’t hold children back from their chosen destiny, Levi,” he said, voice quiet yet firm. “If Preston truly wants to join, I doubt anything will stop him. Not even you.”

Levi clenched his teeth. The logic stung because he knew Erwin was right—Preston had that stubborn glint in his eye, reminiscent of Levi himself at that age. If the boy fixated on something, he’d chase it relentlessly. “I’ll still try,” he muttered, frustration bleeding into his tone. “I refuse to just let him sign away his life.”

Hange eyed Levi sympathetically, then changed the subject, noticing how tense he’d become. She gestured to the far side of the mess hall, where Sasha had apparently escaped her bonds and now threatened to devour Jean’s share of meat. “Look at them,” she said, forcing a lighter note into her voice. “Acting like wild animals. Hard to believe some of them might become heroes this next expedition.”

Levi made a soft grunt, half an agreement. He tried to push aside thoughts of Preston. But the image of his son, wearing the Survey Corps uniform, fighting Titans, lingered in his mind like a grim specter.

…

At a table not too far away, the Special Operations Squad was indeed in the middle of a raucous meal, stuffed with more meat than they’d seen in months. Eren’s energy was subdued as he was lost in thought at the impending battle, still he stuffed a few slices into his mouth, while Mikasa nibbled hers more slowly, scanning the room for potential threats. Jean, Connie, Sasha, and Armin formed the rest of the circle, passing around a pitcher of water and exchanging banter.

“Captain Levi sure was edgy tonight,” Connie remarked, gnawing on a piece of beef. “He snapped at Hange like that. Usually, he just grunts or says ‘tch.’ But that seemed personal.”

Sasha, mouth half-full, tried to speak but ended up spraying some crumbs. Armin winced. “Sasha, please swallow,” he said gently, wiping crumbs off the table.

Sasha obeyed, swallowing with difficulty, then repeated, “He’s been kinda on edge for weeks, to be honest. Ever since we found out about his son.”

Jean nodded, leaning back in his chair. “Yeah, Preston, right? Captain Levi’s discipline was intense. He battered the kid for picking fights at school apparently.”

Mikasa’s dark eyes flicked among them. “He’s an Ackerman,” she said quietly. “That means he’s strong, and from what Captain said, he awakened his instincts. I can’t imagine how exactly that must’ve gone. Maybe he’s just being protective. I don’t think Captain Levi ever had a father figure himself, so he’s learning the hard way.”

Armin, thoughtful as ever, chimed in, “Exactly. He probably wants better for his son, so seeing Preston do anything violent must upset him more than normal.”

Sasha nodded vigorously, ignoring the bit of sauce on her lip. “Well, if the kid ends up enlisting, he’ll be unstoppable. Another Ackerman, plus all that training from Captain Levi. He’d be terrifying in a Titan fight.” She let out a tiny, excited squeak before noticing how Jean rolled his eyes.

“Sure, Sasha,” Jean said flatly. “But also think about how Captain Levi feels. That’s his only kid, imagine sending him into the scouts. It’s a death sentence half the time. I don’t blame him for being pissed at the idea. He probably wants to keep the kid safe at home, in school.”

Connie scratched his head. “Still, the kid’s gotta be proud that Captain Levi is his father. He’s basically a celebrity. Maybe that’s a double-edged sword.”

They all fell silent for a moment, imagining the pressure Preston might feel, overshadowed by his father’s legend. Then Eren cleared his throat. “I remember seeing that kid in action around the time we found Dr. Iverson in the Reiss chapel fiasco,” he said, voice subdued. “He looked tough, but also scared. Jean, you had a crush on the doc, didn’t you?”

Jean’s cheeks reddened instantly, prompting laughter around the table. “Shut up,” he snapped. “She’s just… she’s very beautiful, okay? But I’m not dumb enough to try to step on Captain Levi’s toes”

Armin and Connie snickered, while Sasha teased, “Aww, poor Jean. Captain Levi’s cornered the market on Dr. Iverson’s affections.”

“Whatever,” Jean grumbled, cheeks still warm. “It’s obvious Captain is in love with her anyway, so I stand no chance. And honestly, I’d rather not get my head smashed in by him.”

Mikasa sipped her water, eyebrows raised. “They have a child together so they must’ve been close.,” she murmured. “I heard they were childhood friends. Then, well, they separated for a long time. Now they’re… reconnecting, maybe.”

Connie smirked. “Bet they’ll get married or something after we retake Wall Maria.”

Sasha sighed dreamily. “That’d be so romantic. Another wedding in the corps. Then we could have real food again!” She paused, remembering their reality. “But we gotta survive first, right?”

A solemn hush settled, each of them reminded that not everyone here might see the next dawn after the mission. Eren set his fork down, face determined. “We will survive,” he insisted, as though to banish the heaviness. “And if Captain Levi has a family waiting for him, that’s even more reason for him to come back.”

Mikasa nodded in agreement, features softening. “Exactly.”

Together, they watched from across the hall as Levi, Erwin, and Hange continued talking in low voices, the tension lines on Levi’s face etched deeper than usual. The Special Ops Squad could only guess at how complicated it must be, for a father who’d never had a father, trying to protect a son determined to follow him into danger.

…

Meanwhile, back at Levi’s table, Erwin noted the shift in Levi’s posture, as if the conversation about Preston had tapped into a wellspring of paternal worry. Gently, Erwin set his half-empty cup on the table, turning to Levi. “Have you and Penelope decided anything else about the boy’s future? School or otherwise?”

Levi let out a breath, picking at a piece of bread absently. “Penelope just wants him to finish school. She grew up in the Underground, had no chance at formal education, so she’s adamant Preston must do what she never could. And the brat is smart. He could be a scholar or a doctor, like her. But he’s got it in his head that the military is his destiny.” A flash of frustration broke through his usually calm tone. “I keep telling him: there’s nothing glorious about war. He nods, but I know the moment he’s old enough, he’ll try to enlist.”

Hange, resting her chin on one hand, watched Levi sympathetically. “But if he truly wants it, Levi, can you stop him?”

Levi’s grip on his fork tightened. “I can try,” he muttered. “At least until he’s older, sees more of life outside. Maybe he’ll lose interest. Or maybe he’ll realize not everyone has to fight Titans.”

Commander Erwin gave Levi a small, almost sad smile. “In a way, you’re living the dream for him. You’re revered as the strongest soldier, the hero who kills Titans without flinching. No matter how many times you explain the horrors, he’ll see you as unstoppable. Children often can’t comprehend the cost of that strength. In his eyes, you survived the worst. So can he.”

“That’s exactly the problem,” Levi retorted. “He doesn’t see the nights I can’t sleep, remembering corpses. The regrets. The burden.” He exhaled, forcing a calm facade. “I won’t let him throw himself into this. If we succeed in retaking Wall Maria, maybe… maybe it’ll pave the way for a safer future. Then he won’t feel compelled to fight.”

Hange’s gaze flicked around the lively mess hall. “Maybe a safer future for everyone. That’s the hope, anyway.” She then leaned in, lowering her voice conspiratorially. “So, about Dr. Iverson—she must be worried sick, huh? With you leaving tomorrow, and Preston pushing for the military?”

Levi’s jaw clenched at the mention of Penelope’s name. “She tries to hide it,” he admitted, “but I know she’s terrified. She hates the scouts. She lost trust in me long ago, and we barely started to mend things.” He swallowed, face darkening with a swirl of guilt. “If I don’t come back… well, let’s just say I’m not giving her that option.”

Erwin placed a hand on Levi’s shoulder, a fatherly gesture from the Commander. “Then survive, Levi,” he said simply. “Return to her, to your son. That’s all you can do.”

Levi nodded once, grateful that the conversation ended there. He didn’t like baring his personal affairs so openly, even to close comrades. But these last hours before the mission demanded honesty; too much could be left unsaid if tomorrow’s dawn brought death. He finished the last of his meal in silence, occasionally glancing at the younger soldiers who still bickered over scraps of beef. It reminded him of Preston’s fights, though on a kinder scale. “Kids,” he thought, a faint sadness welling in him. “They shouldn’t have to face war.”

…

Eventually, Commander Erwin stood, announcing it was time to retire for the night—morning would bring final logistics, gear checks, and a march out of Wall Sina. The recruits and veterans slowly dispersed, leaving behind plates stacked with bones and leftover scraps, the air rich with the smell of cooked meat. A few scouts lingered, cleaning up or joking in small groups. Levi took one last glance around the hall, searching for any sign of leftover trouble. Satisfied, he departed alongside Hange, who stifled a yawn.

“You heading back to your office?” Hange asked casually, walking the corridor with him.

Levi nodded. “Yeah. I need some rest.”

Hange patted him on the back. “Then best of luck,” she said softly. “And if you ever need a listening ear about the father thing… well, I’m usually busy, but I like collecting stories about human behavior just as much as Titan research.” She winked.

Levi rolled his eyes. “Thanks, but I’ll pass.” Still, the corner of his mouth quirked in subdued gratitude. Then they parted ways, each heading ina different area, the corridor’s torches flickering in the hush of the night.

His conversation with Erwin and Hange echoed in his head. The mission was imminent, and though they all believed in retaking Wall Maria, the outcome was uncertain. “I have to return,” Levi told himself fiercely. “For Pen… for Preston.”

He pictured Preston’s bright grey eyes, then Penelope’s tear-streaked face from that emotionally charged evening. The memory of their kiss – the first one in over a decade – made his chest tighten with longing. He didn’t want to leave that behind. Not again.

Perhaps Erwin was right: no matter what Levi wanted, he couldn’t change Preston’s destiny if the boy insisted on becoming a soldier. But that battle could wait. First, Levi had to survive. He turned, gazing at the walls’ silhouette under the moon, steeling his resolve. “I’ll come back,” he muttered. “That’s a promise, Preston. I won’t break it this time.”

With that vow echoing in his mind, Levi trudged toward his office, footsteps echoing in the quiet. The night soared on, the scouts bedding down for one last slumber before tomorrow that would see them ride forth into the unknown. And in a small home in Wall Sina, Preston lay dreaming of the father he idolized, while Penelope, restless in her own bed, clung to the fragile hope that Levi’s promise would hold true.

…

Morning broke with an uneasy hush over Trost District as preparations for the mission to reclaim Wall Maria reached a fever pitch. The Survey Corps buzzed with restless energy—horses stamped impatiently in their makeshift stables, soldiers hustled about, fastening gear and double-checking provisions. Overhead, the sky bore faint streaks of dawn’s golden light. By the time the sun climbed higher, a crowd of onlookers had already gathered at the walls of Trost to witness the Scouts’ departure.

Typically, the Survey Corps left under a quiet veil, with only a handful of bystanders hurling curses or tearful goodbyes. This time, however, word had spread of Commander Erwin’s plan to retake Wall Maria, and something like hope—an emotion the people had nearly forgotten—flickered in their chests. Eager citizens, families of soldiers, and curious well-wishers assembled in the district’s main square. The buzz of excitement rivaled the tension: for once, no one threw rocks or shouted about wasted taxes. Instead, they cheered for Commander Erwin, for Hange’s brainy brilliance, for Eren’s Titan power, and, perhaps loudest of all, for Captain Levi—whose renown had grown to nearly mythic proportions.

Levi himself paid the cheers no mind. Dressed in the standard green scout cape with the Wings of Freedom insignia fluttering, he stood near the front lines of the formation. He wore his usual stoic mask, scanning the crowd. The rest of the squads lined up behind him, adjusting harness straps, shifting on restless horses. Some were wide-eyed recruits, others veterans with grim faces. Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Connie, and Sasha formed part of Levi’s Special Operations Squad, each carrying their own nerves. This was it: they would pass beyond the walls in a bid to wrest back territory stolen by Titans.

Near the giant platform used to hoist the horses up and over the outer gate, Commander Erwin supervised last-minute logistics, while Hange checked on supply wagons. The commotion rattled through the square: squeaking machinery, whinnying horses, the murmur of the crowd behind cordons. Levi narrowed his eyes, forcibly reminding himself to remain calm, to focus. This mission would require every ounce of skill, and he had to be in top form. He told himself not to dwell on personal concerns. Then he spotted a sudden movement in the throng behind the lines, and his heart jolted.

“Captain Levi?” a soldier asked, noticing him step forward. “Everything okay, sir?”

Levi raised a hand, signaling them to hold. Because in that instant, he saw two familiar figures pushing gently through the mass of onlookers. That vivid rose-red hair and eyes that shone a molten gold in the morning light. Penelope. Beside her, smaller but with the rose-red hair as his mother, was Preston. The boy clutched the edge of his mother’s coat, glancing around nervously. They’d managed to slip through the crowd where families of other soldiers also waited, some carrying baskets or children. Levi swallowed a sudden lump in his throat. They came.

He parted from the group with purposeful strides, ignoring the curious stares from other scouts. Words had spread quickly these past days: Captain Levi had a son. Some recruits openly gawked at the sight. Indeed, the rumor had rattled not only the Survey Corps but seemingly all of Paradis—no one ever imagined Levi Ackerman as a father. Now, here was the living proof.

Stepping away from the formation, Levi approached Penelope and Preston. His face betrayed little emotion at first, but inside, relief and a pang of ache churned. He hadn’t expected them to journey all the way to Trost. For a fleeting moment, he worried about how the crowd might react, but then he pushed the thought aside. All that mattered was that they were here.

He stopped just a pace away, letting his gaze flick over them: Preston’s puffy eyes, red from crying, matched the anxious tension in his posture; Penelope’s proud stance, shoulders set, yet her jaw clenched. Her face was stoic, but Levi knew her well enough to sense the turmoil underneath.

“Why are you here?” Levi asked quietly, voice edged with both gratitude and concern.

Penelope lifted her chin, refusing to let the watchers intimidate her. “We came to see you off,” she replied simply. “I— we weren’t about to let you leave without saying goodbye.”

Levi felt a knot tighten in his chest. So they had come despite the jostling crowd, the journey of traveling from Wall Sina to Trost. He managed a small nod. “I appreciate it.”

Preston took a half-step forward, trembling with emotion. The child looked so earnest it almost hurt to see. The boy’s lips parted, but no words came at first. Then, as though overcoming a wave of emotion, he lurched forward, flinging his arms around Levi’s waist.

“Dad,” he whispered, voice muffled by Levi’s uniform.

Levi stiffened at first—public displays of affection still felt foreign. But as he glanced around, noticing no ill will from the spectators, he slowly rested a hand on Preston’s back. The boy’s shoulders shook, silently sobbing. Levi’s heart twisted. He’d only recently become used to hearing that word—Dad—and now he had to leave? The cruelty of timing weighed on him. He placed a second hand on the boy’s shoulder, drawing him in gently.

“Hey,” Levi murmured, voice low so the boy could hear. “What did we talk about? I told you I’m coming back.”

Preston, face hidden in Levi’s cape, nodded shakily. “I know,” he breathed, tears soaking the fabric. “I’m just— I’m scared, okay? Everyone says this mission is so dangerous. Some say it’s suicide. But you’re the strongest… you can’t die, right?”

Levi’s throat felt tight. He swallowed. “I’ll do everything I can,” he replied, voice hushed yet firm. “But until then, you need to be strong for your mother. Don’t let her worry, and don’t cause trouble.”

Preston sniffed, pulling back slightly, watery eyes meeting Levi’s. “I won’t. I promise.”

Levi wanted to say so many things: “I love you,” “I’m proud of you,” “You’re my reason to survive.” But the words tangled on his tongue, refused to come out. Instead, he raised a hand and gently ruffled Preston’s hair. The motion was small, but the child lit up, understanding the unspoken affection behind it.

Just then, Penelope stepped forward, clearing her throat. Levi’s gaze flicked to her. She still held a small package in her hand. The memory of nights in the Underground flooded back to him: how she used to bandage his wounds, cursing him for being reckless. Even now, she stood taller than him by a few inches, an imposing figure in her own right.

She offered him the package, her eyes betraying a swirl of emotion she otherwise kept tightly in check. “I— I put together some bandages, salves, antiseptic… in case you or any scout needs them.” Her voice wavered only slightly. “You never know what might happen out there.”

Levi swallowed, accepting the bundle. “Thank you,” he said quietly. He turned it over in his hands, the worn cloth wrapping reminiscent of the times she’d fussed over his scrapes in dimly lit corners of the Underground. He risked a glance up at her face. “You didn’t have to go through the trouble.”

Penelope lifted her chin, forcing a small, tight-lipped smile. “I couldn’t just… do nothing,” she said. “I want you all to have at least some extra protection. Even if it’s just bandages.”

Levi nodded, carefully tucking the package into a pouch on his horse’s saddle behind him. “We’ll need every advantage we can get,” he murmured. He paused, staring at her for a moment, heart pounding with unsaid feelings. The crowd’s roar in the background felt distant. Eren’s name was chanted, the clatter of hooves echoed off stone, but in this small bubble, it was just them.

He hesitated, then reached up, curling his hand around the back of Penelope’s neck. The difference in their heights made it easier for him to lean forward, pressing his forehead gently to hers. The motion stunned her momentarily, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she closed her eyes, tears slipping down her cheeks.

“I’m coming back,” Levi vowed softly. “No matter what.”

Penelope’s tears fell more freely now, though she tried to maintain composure. She nodded against his forehead, voice catching. “You’d better,” she whispered, words trembling with a fierce mixture of love and fear. “I’m holding you to that, Levi.”

He inhaled slowly, letting the moment stretch. Over her shoulder, he saw glimpses of soldiers loading horses onto the massive platforms. The mission was nearly at hand. A thousand unspoken truths coiled in his chest: he loved her, had always loved her, and the thought of leaving her and Preston behind twisted his soul. But he would fight. He’d survive.

Gently, he slid his arms around her shoulders, pulling her into a full embrace. She stiffened at first, but then returned the hug, burying her face against his collar. Preston hesitated, uncertain if he was intruding, but Levi hooked an arm outward, beckoning him. The boy flung himself into the embrace, and the three of them stood there, locked in a quiet trifecta of support.

Penelope’s tears dampened Levi’s uniform, but her arms tightened around him and Preston. She whispered something Levi couldn’t catch, perhaps a prayer or a plea. Preston sniffled, leaning his head against Levi’s side, eyes squeezed shut. In that moment, Levi felt the most profound sense of belonging he’d ever known. This was his family. He silently swore he would not fail them.

A short distance away, Connie and Sasha, who had been walking by, caught sight of the scene. They slowed, exchanging wide-eyed looks. Sasha nudged Connie, muttering, “Captain Levi… hugging.” Connie rubbed his eyes, as though to confirm it wasn’t a dream. Then they both quietly backed away, not wanting to intrude on the deeply personal moment.

Finally, Levi pulled back, though he kept a hand on Penelope’s shoulder. She sniffed again, hastily wiping her cheeks, trying to regain composure. Preston stepped aside, eyes glassy but determined, hugging himself.

Levi cleared his throat, scanning the area. Commander Erwin stood near the base of the platform, gesturing for the troops to mount up. Time was up. He turned back to Penelope, a thousand words crammed in his throat, but only a few made it out. “I’ll come see you both once we secure Wall Maria,” he said hoarsely. “In a few days. Or however long it takes.”

Penelope swallowed. “We’ll be waiting,” she whispered. “And if… if you’re hurt, you better come to me. I’ll patch you up, just like I used to.”

He forced a small smirk, tears pricking his own eyes though he refused to let them spill. “Yes, doc.”

Preston, stepping forward, gave Levi one last, quick hug around his middle. “Dad, come back,” he repeated, voice cracking. “We need you.”

Levi gently ruffled the boy’s hair. “I will,” he said, no hesitation. “Now be good. Take care of your mother, yeah? And don’t forget to clean your room.”

Preston tried to smile through his tears. “Okay,” he croaked.

Levi took a step back, ensuring neither mother nor son saw the raw anguish that threatened to break through his facade. He turned, heading toward his waiting horse in the staging area. The crowd parted slightly as he passed, some people cheering, some whispering. He caught a few murmurs: “That’s his kid… never thought Captain Levi had a son… and that woman, is she his wife?” He ignored them, mounting his horse with practiced ease.

Commander Erwin spotted Levi and gave a curt nod. “Ready?” he asked simply.

Levi jerked his head in a short gesture of confirmation. “Yes.” Then he glanced over his shoulder one last time, locking eyes with Penelope in the crowd. She stood with Preston, arms around his shoulders, tears still glistening on her cheeks. The heartbreak in her expression pierced him, but he forced a stoic veneer, silently promising to see that face again soon.

Erwin raised an arm, signaling the final call. The giant mechanism groaned, hoisting horses and scouts up the side of the Wall. One by one, the squads lined up in precise formations, dust swirling around hooves as they readied for departure. The watchers pressed forward to see better, some cheering, some praying.

Levi guided his mount into position, scanning the ranks. Everyone was set. He took a breath. This was it. The mission to reclaim Wall Maria, the ambition that might shift humanity’s fate. If he had any fear, he buried it, focusing on that vow to come back alive for Penelope and Preston.

As the massive platform shuddered upward, carrying them closer to the top of the wall, a roar of applause and cheers erupted from below. People yelled Commander Erwin’s name, some cried out for Hange, and many shrieked for Levi Ackerman, the indomitable hero. Levi felt the vibrations under his boots, barely registering the crowd’s praise. All he cared about was the fleeting glimpse of red hair and gold eyes in the throng.

He didn’t wave, didn’t smile—he seldom did. But his gaze found Penelope’s once more, just as she tilted her head up, pressing a hand over her heart. Next to her, Preston gave a small wave, eyes brimming with tears and admiration. Levi inhaled, swearing again that he would see them soon, that he would not break the promise.

Some soldiers around him sat straighter in their saddles, hearts buoyed by the supportive crowd. “We might actually succeed,” a new recruit murmured in wonder. “They’re cheering for us!”

Jean, guiding his horse nearby, murmured, “Guess we’re not useless after all.” Sasha sniffled, tears mixing with excitement at the thought of real support from the people. Mikasa merely kept her calm watch, though her lips curved at the corners.

Commander Erwin stood at the front once they reached the top of the wall, scanning the horizon. The gates opened, revealing the expanse of land beyond—a land swarming with Titans, the path to Shiganshina. He turned, letting his eyes sweep over the assembled scouts, then raised a clenched fist. “ADVANCE!,” he commanded, voice echoing. Cheers rose again, though now from the soldiers themselves, a fervent cry of determination.

Levi took a final look down into Trost, the crowd below diminishing as they moved out, horses clopping on the ramp that sloped beyond the outer gate. He drew a sharp breath. “Wait for me,” he thought, picturing that final hug with Penelope and Preston. “I will come back.”

As the Survey Corps galloped forth, dust kicking up behind them, an eerie hush fell over the watchers in Trost. Many families huddled, tears in their eyes, hoping for the safe return of their loved ones. Among them, a tall, red-haired woman cradled her trembling son. They stood at the edge of the crowd, watching the scouts vanish into the distance. Neither spoke for a long while, each lost in their own tangle of fear and love.

At last, Preston sniffed, wiping his face with the back of his hand. “He’ll come back,” he whispered, as if trying to reassure himself.

Penelope’s throat constricted. “He promised,” she said softly, staring at the horizon. Her thoughts turned to the stolen kisses, the quiet vow Levi had given her, the warmth of his arms around her in those final moments. She pressed her lips together, holding back fresh tears. “He promised he would.”

Mother and son lingered there, long after the dust settled and the hooves of the horses were out of earshot, each clinging to the hope that Levi would return to them once more—alive, triumphant, and ready to build the future that all three deserved.

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roanofarcc · 2 months ago

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BABYDOLL: CHAPTER FOURTEEN. EAVESDROPPERS NEVER PROSPER

jj maybank x fem!routledge OC // read on Ao3

In which a boy with zero self preservation falls in love with a girl clawing at life.

chapter summary. at work, lottie eavesdrops on partners in crime. jj buys a hot tub and everything spirals from there.

word count. 3.4k || masterlist

a/n. sad jj in this one folks :(

previous chapter < >next chapter

If it had been up to Kie, Pope, and John B. Lottie would have called off work. Being held at gunpoint and almost robbed seemed like a good enough reason to call in sick to work, but Lottie felt like she needed a sense of normalcy to calm her nerves. That, and despite living with the Cameron’s, she didn’t want to be too much of a burden on the stupidly rich family. Or, rather, she didn’t want to grow dependent on the rich man’s dime that wasn’t her own. She’d throw in the towel at the Island Club after they successfully cashed in their gold. Until then, she’d sit on the lifeguard tower and make sure little Kooks didn’t drown while their parents ate finger foods and drank top-shelf liquor.

��Rumor has it you and your friends have gone off the deep end,” said Frances, Lottie’s favorite coworker. He leaned against the tower in his red lifeguard swimsuit with his sunburned chest nearly the same color.

Despite living on the island his whole life, Frances burned like a dry log on a fire. It didn’t matter how much sunscreen he applied before and during his shift, he always managed to get a sunburn. Lottie asked him why he didn’t move to a job inside the club, and he said he preferred the Kook kids to their parents. You could back-talk a kid and get away with it, not so much their mother and father.

“Is that a pool pun?” Lottie asked with an unimpressed raise of her brows.

Frances flashed her a gap-toothed smile. “Maybe.” He shrugged. “But seriously, JJ was arrested at Heywards, your brother’s seen running around with Sarah Cameron, and all of you’ve been snooping around weird places on the island. What the deal?”

“What, are you a part of Kildare’s gossip column now?”

“No, I just hear things.”

With a sigh, Lottie went to pick at her nails, but the band-aids JJ had wrapped around them were still there. Instead, she restored to tapping her fingers against her bare thighs. “We’re treasure hunting.” Frances blinked, not looking like he believed her. “JJ’s thing was some payback shit and my brother’s got it bad for Sarah.”

“Damn. Remind me not to get on JJ’s bad side.” Normally, Lottie would have laughed or at least smiled at that, but since JJ ran off she’d been on edge. It wasn’t like he had never done that before, but with everything going on, she didn’t like him being alone and reckless.

“I never pictured your brother with a Kook, especially Sarah Cameron.”

“She’s not so bad, actually,” said Lottie.

Frances opened his mouth to ask more questions but was cut off by Abby, the overlord of the Island Club pool and water activities.

“I need you to grab some more water bottles from the bar,” Abby said, looking at Lottie.

“I’m on duty-” she started to say in protest, but Abby’s look was sharp on her round face.

“I don’t care,” Abby said. “Frances is just standing here; he can make himself useful.”

Frances offered Abby a tight-lipped smile before he turned his back to her and mouthed ‘sorry’ to Lottie before they switched places. Lottie slipped on her flip-flops and left the pool area, padding over to the outside bar.

The bar patio was swarmed with mostly teens, sipping soda they probably spiked. Lottie kept her head down as she weaved between them, but it was hard to blend in in her bright red bathing suit.

The extra cases of water were stashed under the bar, warm from the summer heat but not boiling in the sun. They were for staff only because heaven forbid the club waste ice on ‘the help.’

Lottie heaved a heavy case up, balancing it on her hip as a distant yell echoed through the air, calling out Rafe Cameron’s name. She had missed the blond on her walk over, but as she turned at the noise, she spotted him narrowing his gaze in confusion toward whoever called his name. Topper was at his side, following him like he always did.

She was going to ignore it and return to the pool before Abby got even more pissed off for no reason, but as she started to make her way back, the yelling of Rafe’s name became more distinct.

Then, Lottie saw him, the same dude who had just tried to rob their gold and held a gun to their faces, Barry.”

The case of water nearly toppled from her hands before she corrected her grip and backtracked to the wall that acted as a partition between the bar and parking lot to avoid being spotted by Barry. She sat down the case of water and peeked out from behind the wall, watching as Rafe steered Barry back into the parking lot. There was only a thin fence that separated the club from the lot. The more logical side of Lottie’s brain told her to ignore whatever confrontation was about to go down between the drug dealer and Rafe Cameron and return to her job, but her brother’s inability to let things go had started to rub off on her. She had an itch to know what they were talking about, just in case it pertained to the Pogues.

Staying low, Lottie crept toward the fence, looking crazy as she crouched behind it right where the two boys talked on the other side. The panels of the fence were thick enough for her not to be seen through them, but she’d be spotted easily if they decided to reenter the club. Just in case, she pulled down her sunglasses as a lame way to shield her face, at least from Barry who had only seen her once.

One of the staff members who monitored the entrance eyed her oddly, but she pressed a finger to her lips, and he shrugged, ignoring her.

“Why’s your family think I’m some bitch they can shit on?” Barry said to Rafe. “First your dad kneecaps me at my house-”

“You got your money,” Rafe interjected. Lottie grew confused at the mention of Ward Cameron.

“That ain’t the point, man! I’m asking you, what am I? Am I just some little bitch? Is that what your family thinks of me?”

Rafe scoffed. “No!”

“No? Then why is your little sister and her surf-rat friends runnin’ around stealing 25k out of my house? Can you tell me that?”

Lottie’s hunch had been corrected, it was about them. JJ’s robbing of a drug dealer wasn’t some little game, it would have consequences that would fall right back on all of them.

Rafe laughed. “My little sister robbed you?”

“That’s why I’m here.”

“Sarah wouldn’t even pick up a dollar off the street. What are you even talking about?”

“Do I look dumb to you? You don’t think I know what’s goin’ on here? Because I’m tellin’ you right now, you better sort this shit out with your sister or I will.”

Lottie cursed under her breath as she strained to hear Rafe, his voice low in battle with Barry’s anger. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“The Pogues are all around Outer Banks, stealin’ shit from people’s houses and you got no idea? Your sister’s in on it!”

“Oh, right. Sarah Cameron, home invader. You know how stupid-”

Rafe’s voice was cut off by an angry grunt from Barry, followed by a hiss of pain. If they were fighting, it was quickly stopped by Topper’s vocal and Lottie assumed physical interjection.

They were even closer to the fence, their voices even more clear. Lottie held her breath, fearing that one of them would spare one glance over the top of the fence and see her. She couldn’t leave yet, though, as their conversation continued.

“Get my money back from your sister, or I’ll do it myself,” Barry threatened before his footsteps led back toward the parking lot. Rafe replied with a promise to get the money, but once Barry was seemingly gone, he muttered a long string of curses.

25k was probably nothing for the Camerons, Rafe could likely shell it out if he wanted, but there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d do it if it would mean paying off the Pogues debt. The second he got confirmation Sarah was hanging around them and involved in their “stealing of shit,” Rafe would probably leave Sarah to fend for herself. It was unlikely she’d ask her dad for help, not without having to give up being with John B. and the rest of Pogues by proxy. That, and Ward would likely kick them out if he knew Sarah picked up a hobby of home invader from them.

All they had to do was cash in the gold, pay back Barry - even if he didn’t deserve it at least it would get him the hell off of the backs, maybe - and that would be that.

Before Rafe and Topper reentered the club, Lottie booked it for the case of water and hurried back to the pool, her head spinning.

On her bike ride home after work, Lottie called Sarah.

Forgoing a greeting, the first thing Lottie said was, “Your brother knows.” She launched into explaining the conversation she overheard, not letting Sarah get a word in until she was finished and slightly winded as she peddled down the dark streets.

“I know,” Sarah replied with a sigh. “He chased John B. and me down on his stupid bike like a psycho, yelling about how Barry's a ‘bad man’ like he didn’t literally hold us at gunpoint. I swear, he’s-” She cut herself off. Lottie thought she dropped the call, but suddenly Sarah’s voice filled her ear laced with slight panic. “Wait, you said Barry came to the club. Holy shit, are you okay? Did he see you? Did Rafe say anything to you because I’ll-”

“No, no, no.” Lottie quickly brushed off Sarah’s misplaced worry. “As John would say, I was on some ‘super secret spy shit.’”

Sarah laughed. “He appreciated that,” she said, having relayed their conversation to Lottie’s brother. “Pope’s drawing up the full plan on how to get all of the gold out and where to store it until we can cash it in without dying or being ripped off. After John B. gets back from fishing with my dad tomorrow, once it’s dark, we’ll go for the gold. Until then, I think the plan’s just to lie low.”

Thank God for Pope, Lottie thought. Without his beautiful brain, Lottie didn’t know how’d they manage.

“Are you coming back to the house tonight?” Sarah asked.

“I’m gonna see if JJ’s showed up at the Chateau yet.” If he was too stubborn to face the rest of the Pogues yet, she hoped he’d at least come to her. She always kept her window unlocked in case he didn’t want to be caught by John B. after a fight with his dad, or to evade their dad who wasn’t supper happy with JJ spending the night in his daughter’s room. No matter how mad Lottie was at JJ, she’d let hell freeze over before she made him stay the night at his house.

“Okay,” replied Sarah. “Just be careful.”

Lottie bid Sarah the same as she continued to bike ride, following the little light fixed on the front of her handlebars.

After she pulled into her drive way and parked her bike beside Pope’s truck, she was greeted with an odd sight in her yard. A hot tub sat in the grass, one that certainly was not there when she left for work. Its jets sprayed water and its light slowly changed color. Hanging above the hot tub, from the tree it sat under, more lights were strung with the white ones Lottie and John B. hung up a couple of years ago for their birthday party. The new lights were also colorful, but not nearly as confusing as the hot tub. No one was outside, either; the tub was empty.

The light inside the house was on and Lottie made her way inside to where her friends were. “Guys?” she said, greeted by the sight of Kie and Pope sitting on the couch. “Anyone wanna explain how a hot tub got in the yard?”

Kie and Pope exchanged a look before Kie stood up, her face tightly pinched with emotion. “JJ…” she started to say but trailed off.

Lottie groaned. “Please tell me you’re joking. Please tell me JJ did not use Barry’s money to buy a hot tub of all things.” Frustration flooded her tired system. What was he thinking? If he wasn’t going to give the money back, he could have used it a million different ways. He could have paid off his restitution or saved it for something a little more important than a hot tub.

Before Lottie could voice any of her thoughts, Kie shook her head. She looked on the verge of tears, which was even more confusing. Lottie’s expression softened slightly as she placed a hand on Kie’s shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

Pope had risen from the couch, moving to stand beside Kie. He too looked upset, but there was a hint of anger in his eyes.

“Lot,” he said. “It’s JJ. It’s…it’s bad.”

Lottie was quiet for a moment, taking in the expressions on her friends’ faces until it hit her with the same force it always did. The look was a specific one, worry, anger, and sadness rolled into one, and overwhelmed with a loss of what to do. It was the same look the two had when they first learned that JJ’s dad was a piece of shit. Lottie and John B. had known for years by that point, but they had different ways of dealing with it.

John B. could be level-headed, sometimes, but he had moments of hot-headedness that usually came when one of his friends was hurt. He got angry, which wasn’t always the initial response someone like JJ needed. Lottie was angry too, of course. But she swallowed that anger down when John B. couldn’t.

“It was really bad,” Kie added.

“Where is he?” Lottie asked. They both nodded toward Lottie’s shut bedroom door and without another word, she headed toward it.

JJ sat at her desk with his knees pulled up to his chest and his chin resting on top of them. He looked small, hugging his legs and staring out the window until she closed the door behind her and dropped her belongings onto the ground in their usual spot.

He snapped out of his daze and turned around, his damp hair falling into his face but not enough to hide the guilty expression he held. “I’m sorry,” were the first words out of his mouth. He cleared his throat and averted his gaze at the floor. “For the hot tub. I know it was stupid, okay? I was just…I wanted to do the right thing, you know? But I screwed it up.” He roughly rubbed his face as he finished talking.

Lottie said his name softly as she grasped his bare shoulder. His skin was cold under her fingers. She pulled away and went to the drawer of JJ, Kie, and Pope’s things that they had left behind at the Chanute. The drawer was a collection of borrowed and forgotten clothing that Lottie kept in case any of them needed to change. She dug out a sweatshirt of JJ’s and handed it to him.

The second he stood up to pull the sweatshirt over his head, Lottie saw what had made Kie and Pope sick and sad. Across JJ’s torso were large bruises changing from red to black and blue. They hurt just to look at it; Lottie couldn’t imagine what they felt like.

JJ had always found himself in fights, even in elementary school. Whether he was starting them, joining in to help a friend, or ending them, he had a habit of getting roughed up. But with his dad, it was always tens times worse than any fight with a Kook or some drunk spring-breaker. His dad was supposed to be one of the few people JJ could trust and who was supposed to patch up wounds, not cause them. Yet, his anger was always pointed to and taken out on JJ. He inflected more pain than just physical.

JJ slipped the sweatshirt on with a wince and used the sleeves to wipe away trace of tears or hurt from his blotchy face.

“You went home,” said Lottie, a frown resting on her lips and a knot in her gut.

“I thought my dad would be glad that I got the money to pay off the restitution.” JJ laughed humorlessly and tiredly. “I’m an idiot for that. The second I showed him the cash he thought I was just giving it to him so he could buy booze or fucking coke. He said I owed him that and more.”

Lottie’s rage simmered just below the surface of her skin, just under the sadness that ached in her chest at the sight of her best friend with bloodshot eyes from crying. It made him look a lot younger than he liked to act, just like the little boy Lottie met all those years ago.

She crossed the short distance between them and placed a hand on his shoulder once more, running her fingers over the short fabric of the sweatshirt. “You don’t owe your dad anything.”

He shook his head. “I fought him back. I-” His voice cracked but he tried to cover it up with a forced cough. “I was just…h-hitting him and I didn’t want to stop.”

“But you did.” JJ chewed down hard on his lip, like he was trying to stop himself from crying more. Lottie pulled him in for a hug, placing one hand on the back of his head as he dropped it onto her shoulder and hugged her waist. “You’re not your dad, JJ,” she whispered into his ear.

He said nothing in response, only hugged her tighter as his shoulder shook slightly. They stayed like that for a while, until JJ sniffled and lifted his head. Lottie wiped a few stray tears from his cheeks and smiled softly, a little sadly too.

“Can I stay here tonight?” JJ asked as if he had to.

“You can always stay here,” Lottie replied.

They had a routine at that point, the same one they adopted when they were kids. Lottie changed out of her work clothes and got ready for bed as JJ made himself comfortable under the blankets. She climbed into bed before switching off her bedside lamp, then moved to lie face to face with JJ in the darkness.

They were quiet for a moment before JJ whispered, “The hot tub’s pretty nice.” Lottie laughed. “A shitty use of the money, but it’s sweet.”

“It’s a horrible use of the money,” Lottie corrected. “But it does look pretty cool. Very Kook-y.”

JJ yawned and closed his eyes, but a small smile played on his lips. “Just practicing in case we actually manage to get the gold out of that old bat’s house.”

“We will,” she said, and not because she was certain their plan would work or that they’d successfully pawn off that much gold without questions, but because she wanted to JJ it- a future without his dad in the picture. He wasn’t the kind of person to plan for anything, certainly not the future. That was probably thanks to his dad, who probably clouded his ability to see anything beyond spending the rest of his life in the Cut, on drugs and bitter about life.

“It won’t be like this forever,” Lottie added, reaching out to brush some of JJ’s hair back from his face. There was a half-way healed cut on his forehead and the cut on his lip had been reopened during his fight with his dad.

His eyes remained closed and his body still. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. We’ll be different.”

“Different from what?”

“Our dads.” Her dad was nowhere near like JJ’s dad, but Lottie still longed for a different path, whereas she wasn’t sure John B. felt the same anymore after successfully finishing their dad’s treasure hunt. She wanted the gold, but she wanted to use it to do something different with her life than waste away obsessed with a hunt for the next great thing.

JJ hummed in response, his breathing evening out as he slipped into sleep. Lottie couldn’t will herself to close her eyes yet, her fingers still softly running through JJ’s hair as she thought of a different future for the both of them.

#outer banks #jj maybank #jj maybank x oc #jj maybank x original character #pope heyward #rafe cameron #kiara carrera #sarah cameron #barry obx #obx #obx fanfiction #jj maybank series

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filmoflifeburst · 6 months ago

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POV: You break into a private room at the Walden.

You drank so much that you couldn’t find your way back. Driven by the effects of alcohol, you wandered up the stairs next to the restroom to the second floor of the Walden. This level was usually reserved for distinguished guests, with numerous mysterious private rooms lined up. Strangely, it seemed unusually quiet today. From the last room, you heard the voices of a few men in conversation, interspersed with a cold, female voice. Recklessly, you guessed it belonged to a young woman. Something about it seemed familiar—was it the daughter of your neighbor, one of your teachers from boarding school, or a news anchor on the radio? Driven by curiosity, you rashly approached the curtain, hoping to hear more of that voice. You stood still for a few seconds like a lurking eavesdropper, but then someone lifted the curtain. No, two people did.

The first figure you saw was a man in a sharp suit standing closest to the woman with her back to you. The second was a man who looked like a Sicilian mercenary—you guessed his profession based on his sly, cruel grin. Behind him stood the barkeeper of the Walden. Forget Me Not frowned and then tilted his chin upward. It was hard to tell whether his expression conveyed contempt or resignation, but it was likely no different from the arrogance he often displayed without effort.

Finally, the only woman present slowly turned to face you. You didn’t recognize her, and in that instant, you regretted barging in. Her face bore an expression, but her features were as blank and innocent as a sheet of white paper. Her eyes were a muted gold, and her long hair was braided and draped down her back. Like Forget Me Not and the young man standing beside her—who you guessed was no older than eighteen, perhaps younger—she was dressed predominantly in black and white. Yet, she appeared the simplest of them all. Her plain black linen dress bore no patterns, resembling the austere style of a nun in penance. Suddenly, you realized what lingered in her expression was a mixture of compassion and innocence, two unrelated emotions. Then, your gaze fell upon the pure gold short staff she held tightly in her hand, gripping it like a dagger.

You remembered the rumors about this bar. She was an arcanist, a witch, and that was her wand — wrapped with a snake that flicked its tongue! You wanted to flee, but your feet seemed rooted to the ground. The figures behind the curtain became like a frozen oil painting, all staring at you in various ways: with pity, indifference, disdain, or malice.

Then you heard her voice again, devoid of emotion: “I’m sorry.”

Ah, she was a venomous snake without a hiss. That was the last truth you realized.

*Commission

*My OCs and Pavinot

#reverse 1999 #pavinot #forget me not #reverse 1999 forget me not #reverse 1999 pavia #pavia #reverse 1999 oc

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thisreadswhatever · 2 years ago

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Anything For The Club: Part Four

series masterlist

[description]: jax teller x fem!reader, nero padilla x fem!reader, oc characters x fem!reader

[wordcount]: 1.2k+

[summary]: Things start heating up after you receive a threatening phone call.

[series cw]: 18+ minors do not interact! female reader, swearing, sexual harassment/assault (non-canon characters), alcohol use, mix of fluff, smut and angst throughout, p in v sex, teasing, violence, gun use, mentions of blood, murder, blackmail

Nero spent the next few hours poking fun at your office escapades, highly amused at the whole thing. It wasn’t the first time you and Jax had fucked in your office, but the first time everyone realised it was happening when you were in the act. You continued to work as usual, and The Club headed out for some business.

You were trying to avoid Mandy and her questions about the letter as best as you could, so you decided to spend the rest of the evening on the front desk, greeting clients and assisting the girls in assigning their rooms.

The front desk was always easy going. The phones never really rang in Diosa, only the occasional caller interested in opening times or room availability. So when the phone did ring, you always had the girls answer it. Sofia was one of the front desk staff who had been working at Diosa for only a few weeks now, she was young, blonde and always overly cheerful to everyone she met. She answered the call, before turning to look at you, holding the phone against her chest to avoid the caller from hearing her speak. “It’s for you, y/n. Says we are overdue on an invoice for maintenance services.”

“It’s almost midnight, they’re calling about a payment now?” Sofia shrugged her shoulders, and extended the phone to you. You took it from her, and placed it to your ear.

“Y/N speaking, can I help you?”

“Ah, just the voice I wanted to hear.”

You instantly recognised his voice from the night before. You felt goosebumps cover your whole body and a sickening feeling twisted in your gut. You shifted away from the incoming clientele, trying to avoid any eavesdroppers hearing you.

“Why the fuck are you calling here? If I wasn’t clear enough, you and your crew are no longer welcome at Diosa”, you were hostile in tone despite the fact you were whispering.

“Relax, sweetheart. Only wanted to ask you on a date.”

“Listen asshole, I’m not interested. Don’t ever call this number again.” You slammed the phone in the holder, but your hand never left it. You stood there, hand on the phone hook, frozen in shock at the audacity of this man. He was taunting you, first the letter, now this? What the fuck did he want?

The phone rang again and you answered it briskly, “I just told you to not fucking-”

“Shut the fuck up and listen. Otherwise your pretty President is going away for a long time.”

You didn’t respond.

“Good girl. You can take instructions after all. Now listen to me carefully. Tomorrow you’re gonna be at the diner just outside of Charming, Highway 23. Tell a member of SAMCRO and they all go to prison for exchanging AK’s across the Mexican border. This ain’t a bluff. If you aren’t there tomorrow, Jax and his shitty little club goes down for life. Do you understand me?”

You wanted to respond, but you couldn’t get your mouth to move. You were utterly broken in shock, with no repair in sight.

“Do you understand me?” he repeated.

“Yes.”

“Good girl. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow. Wear a sexy dress for me.”

The line hung up.

Fear had frozen you solid to your core, a feeling you hadn’t ever experienced before. Nothing usually scared you. Until now.

“Who was that?” Nero appeared behind you, making you jump. He placed his hand on your shoulder, leaning in to meet your eyes, “Easy ese, are you good?”

You swallowed back the lump that had forged in your throat. “An overdue invoice I forgot to settle. I’ll figure it out tomorrow.” Your voice cracked as you spoke.

“At this time of night? Who's the bill for?” You really didn’t need Nero’s interrogation right now.

“Maintenance. Guess they really need their money.”

“If there’s somethin’ you’re not telling me.. I can’t help you if I don’t know. We’re partners, remember?”

“Everything’s fine. Can you lock up again tonight? Jax left his keys and can’t get into the house.”

He narrowed his eyes, not buying the story you were pushing. “Get back to Jax, I can handle it tonight.” “Thanks, Nero.”

You practically ran out of Diosa, fumbling with your keys as your hands couldn’t keep up with your brain. As you drove home, you kept replaying his words in your head. He must want money, you told yourself. Why else would this guy be so up your ass? What was he getting out of threatening the club?

You recalled what Nero had told you last night, Vagos was a crew involved with the cartels south of the border. You didn’t doubt with those connections that he could have dirt to bring down The Club. You figured he must’ve seen Diosa and thought The SONS were raking it in, and he must want a piece of that. It still didn’t make sense why he would want you to be the cash mule, when it was known old lady’s had nothing to do with club business. The Club couldn’t get you out of this one, and you sure as hell couldn’t tell Jax.

Your ears were still ringing from his words, Club goes down for life. You weren’t ever going to let that happen.

You were hoping you were home early enough that Jax would still be at the clubhouse. As you pulled on the drive, you saw the hallway light was on, and he was home.

You signed to yourself, “fuck.”

You weren't sure how you could see him without him realising something was going on. Jax could read your face from a mile away.

When you got into the house, he was at the kitchen table, shirt off and covered in oil, as he wrote in his journal. He was surprised to see you, smiling ear to ear. “Hey darlin’, what are you doing home so early?” He stood from the table and embraced you, kissing you like you hadn’t been sprawled across your office desk for him that same afternoon.

“Quiet night. Nero said he could handle it.”

He peered down at you in his arms, before kissing you on the head. “I’m glad you’re back now, I was just finishing up and then gonna shower. Wanna join me? Round two?” He grinned at you and rubbed his nose against yours.

“Actually, Jax, I’m pretty tired. I was just hoping to get to bed.”

He pulled from your embrace, holding you at arms length, searching your face for what was wrong.

“Something’s up with you.”

You were pleading with his eyes for him to let it go. “I just don’t feel great. I’m fine.” It felt so wrong lying to him.

He didn’t let up, eyes completely locked with yours as he stood back. “What aren’t you telling me?”

You shook your head, hoping you could sell your lies well enough for him to back off. “Nothing, Jax. I’m okay. Just had a long few days and I’m kinda run down. But I’m okay, trust me.”

He pulled you in again, pressing your face against his chest, your cheek rubbing against his warm chest.

“Alright, I'll join you in a bit.”

You stood on your toes to reach his face, planting a kiss on his lips.

“Love you.”

“Love you more, darlin’.”

You hastily walked to the bedroom and shut the door behind you. He could see straight through you. He knew you were hiding something, he just couldn’t figure out what it was you were keeping from him.

———

part five

find my masterlist here

#jax teller #reads writes #jax teller fic #jax teller imagine #jax teller x reader #jax teller x y/n #sons of anarchy #jax teller fiction #soa #sons of anarchy fic #fanfic #jackson teller

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paradoxbeta · 11 months ago

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humanized slugcat ocs

#rainworld #my art #oc: angel #oc: caramel #oc: orazets #oc: unicorn #oc: shredder #oc: leech #oc: eavesdropper #au: humanized

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almosthonest · 6 months ago

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hey boppers with potential ocs! i've got something for you! write about how your oc got their gang name and/or got initiated into their gang (whether if be a gang you made up or in an already existing one from the movie/musical/game!) here's mine!

─────────────── ✦ ───────────────

And You Shall Be Reborn as Peart

His own drumsticks saved his life. Although, snapped in fours, he had other pairs. It was no worry. But, too bad, for those had been his favorite pair of drumsticks. Broken up on the ground, and he was maybe broken on the ground, too. Buried, bloodied after the battle he had with the fucking Turnbulls of all gangs. That Hector Lavoe looking motherfucker. He got him good. So good that he passed out on the way to the bar that he usually slept at.

Sawyer realized he wasn't there anymore when he woke up. Some light blinded him, and he already had the worst headache you could possibly imagine. When his vision finally kicked in, he realized that he's on someone else's turf instead of the place he's sleeping at.

"Aw, fuck, not again, man," he muttered to himself as he finally sat up.

"Hey! Hey guys, he's awake!"

Sawyer didn't even know where the source of the voice came from. He looked around. He didn't know where he was. Not until he peeped one of the vests. He recognized their colors almost right away. The Rogues.

Even though, he looked half dead, Sawyer had to look alive. The last thing he wanted was to show that he was confused. Or even worse, scared.

"What the hell am I doin' here?"

"You're very straight to the point. Don't you wanna know who I am first?"

Sawyer didn't even have to ask. He knew immediately. He could identify almost all the leaders by heart. He shook his head. "I already know who you are, Luther."

"Oh, so you do your research."

"It's not research when people are actively talking about it," Sawyer told him.

"Oh. So you're an eavesdropper. Good to know," Luther said back, his other gang members laughing behind him.

Sawyer scrunched up his nose at the laughter. Immature. They don't take anything serious. That's what he observed. He also knew that they didn't fight fair. At least, from what he saw and heard.

Then, Luther practically threw something at him. He looked down. They're his broken drumsticks from earlier. Hazel eyes look up at Luther, his nose still scrunched up.

"You took on the Turnbulls with a pair of drumsticks. I say you've got good combat."

Sawyer raised an eyebrow. "Okay? And?"

"And? Is that how you talk to your new leader?" Luther grumbled.

"Dude, you're not my leader, I'm not even initiated," Sawyer told him, "and besides. I roll on my own. I don't need no gang."

Sawyer didn't need to be in one. He could hold his own. He had been doing it for years. Parents kicked him out when he was fifteen. He's been sleeping at the same bar since he was seventeen. He's a lot older, wiser, street wise. He's been on his own for years. He could handle more.

"No?"

"No. Three gangs have already asked me. Same answer every time. No," Sawyer told him, "besides, who the hell took me here anyway?"

"Don't worry about it," Luther grumbled, "god, you talk a lot."

"You're not really good at convincing me. What's in it for me? If I join?" Sawyer asked.

It was a question that he gave every gang, and every gang so far couldn't answer it. Wreaking Havoc was already something that Sawyer did on his own. And he didn't even do that, he just stole to survive.

"Well, what do you want?" Luther questioned.

"A new pair of drumsticks for one," Sawyer mumbled. It's sarcastic, as he had a few more pairs in the bag that he carried, "no, but seriously. The one thing I want is not to use the subway anymore. I hate trains."

"You're in luck. We have a hearse."

Sawyer looked up at him. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," Luther answered, "it's why we have an advantage."

"So. When's the initiation?"

That was fast. But Sawyer would rather ride with a gang by hearse rather than on foot or subway. He never knew what trains to get on, he never knew what letters represented what. It made him feel stupid. And Sawyer? He hated feeling stupid.

"Right now," Luther answered, "you know the Furies?"

"Those mute dudes with the bats that only come out at night? Who rule near the West Side? Yeah, I've seen 'em," Sawyer told him, "why?"

"They've got somethin' of ours, we want it back. If you manage to steal what they took from us and get it back, you're in."

Sawyer scoffed. "That's it?"

"The Furies are no joke, man," said another guy. Sawyer had no idea who he was, and honestly he didn't even care.

"I know it."

"So, if you succeed, you're in. If not, you get to roam the streets on your own again," Luther told him, "so we have a deal or not?"

Sawyer ran a hand through his hair. It's gotten long and shaggy the past couple of years. All ten of them, really. He looked at the Rogues gang leader.

"Yeah, alright. We have a deal."

──── ✧ ────

Sawyer got it. Now he had to get out of there as soon as possible. He ran through the park, the Furies are after him. He ran through the park, though he was trapped. He scoped it out, see what he can use. Sawyer is surrounded, drumsticks in his hands, artifact in his bag. Whatever it was. He didn't fucking know. All he knew was that he had to get back to the hearse.

From swings to seesaw, Sawyer maneuvered quickly. More broken drumsticks, more bumps and bruises. Furies fell all over the park, the rest of them fled. Blood on the ground, even his own. Hair messed up, the Furies leaders chased him through the park until he got halfway through to the hearse.

More drumsticks are broken. Unfortunately, he's broken his last pair, and he's resorted to fists. Punch to the nose with one of the members, kick to another.

"They're down! C'mon!" One of the Rogues shouted.

Before he even goes back to the hearse, he spits in the Furies faces, blood from his mouth. He looked back, Cropsy staring, almost in awe, Luther in satisfaction. Sawyer quickly ran back to the hearse, he got in, and they sped off.

Sawyer took the item out of his own bag, placing it on the armrest. "There."

"You're good," Luther said, almost impressed.

The hearse is quiet. Sawyer is rubbing the blood from his nose. Maybe wearing white was a bad decision, especially since there was now so much blood on the sleeves. Bruised, bloodied. He didn't even know if it was worth it. Not until ...

"Peart."

Sawyer looked up. "What?"

"Peart," Luther repeated.

"Like, Neil Peart? The drummer from Rush?" Sawyer asked.

"Well, it fits. You kick ass with those drumsticks," Cropsy said back.

"And that's who you shall be," Luther added, "You shall be reborn as Peart."

#spence writes #warriors musical #warriors (2024)#warriors concept album #warriors (2024) original character #original character : sawyer (peart) thompson #i thought it would be interesting to have a rogue oc so (i am aware that they are not good people peart isn't a very good person either)

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fireflies-owl-city · 1 year ago

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Arrogant Whelp (CRK modern AU)

Tags: modern au, purecacao fluff and angst, my oc, clotted cream being a dick, lots of swearing, my oc beats up clotted cream but there isn’t a ton of gore

Summary: a modern take on the big reveal from cookie odyssey, taking place in Caffeines bar.

It was just after sundown, and Dark Cacao, Hollyberry, and Pure Vanilla were hanging out in Caffeine’s bar, Night and Day Cafe. It was a coffee shop by day, and a bar at night, and the three found themselves there often. Cacao would often get himself a coffee before work and pick up a tea for Vanilla, and Hollyberry had spent countless nights there drinking “berry juice” and talking with Caffeine about their current adventures. Unfortunately, despite being close friends, it had been forever since they had been able to hang out together just the three of them. They would have invited White Lily and Golden Cheese as well, but Lily was still recovering from her several year long coma and Golden decided that with a little kid in the house, it would be best that they do something during the day so she could introduce the gang to Fettuccine. So here they were, Hollyberry having her usual drink while Dark Cacao and Pure Vanilla treated themselves to cocktails they didn’t drink very often. They were chatting, catching up on major life events, joking around about the relationship between Crunchy Chip and Wildberry, and even getting Caffeine involved in the conversation whenever the topic switched to travel plans or some sort of crazy event they felt she would be interested in. And of course, Cacao and Vanilla teasing her slightly whenever she got flustered from Hollyberry’s responses.

Then, as any lovely outing among friends would face, it was ruined by a rather arrogant eavesdropper, more specifically, a regular at Night and Day that Caffeine did not get good vibes from.

His name was Clotted Cream.

“Well, hello there,” he started, glancing at the three from across the bar while swirling his drink, “fancy seeing you here.”

Dark Cacao stifled a groan. He knew Clotted Cream, as well as just how annoying he was. He would constantly try to get between Vanilla and Cacao, making comments on their parenting skills, trying to reveal lies (even though they were almost always just surprise anniversary gifts), and even outing Vanilla as bisexual to Dark Cacao, as if he didn’t already know that. He was constantly trying to get between them, get under their skin, do whatever he could to trigger any sort of drama for his own personal entertainment. He didn’t even have a crush on one of them, although he did try fake confessing to Pure Vanilla a few times. He just enjoyed the drama, and seemed so defeated every time his stupid tactics didn’t work. It was pathetic, really, and even Caffeine had jumped in and shut him up a few times. However, this time he took it too far.

“What do you want, Clotted?” Pure Vanilla asked, “my husband knows I’m bisexual, he knows I don’t love you, he knows that Dark Choco’s angsty teenager phase took a really dark turn, and we both know that we have surprise anniversary gifts for each other that we would like to stay a surprise.”

“It’s almost funny how desperate you are to cause problems between them,” Hollyberry chimed in, “I mean, it’s pathetic, but it’s practically turned into a game where we make bets to see what bullshit you’re going to be trying this time.”

“Oh, I know my last few plans were a bit… unsound, but this time, I actually have no intention of hurting you, just… warning you of something I feel you deserve to know.” He turned to Caffeine, “Does she have to stay here? This is really something that should only be shared among friends.”

“I can stay,” Caffeine replied, “I mean, they come here often enough that I view them as friends, and they include me in their conversations enough, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind me listening in. But that’s up to them.”

“She can stay.” Dark Cacao grumbled through gritted teeth, “what are you ‘warning us of’ this time?”

Clotted Cream smirked. “I’m so glad you’re willing to hear me out, because it’s regarding some people rather… close to you. You know that gang that your eldest was part of? The cookies of darkness?”

“Of course,” Pure Vanilla replied, “but he left months ago! We’ve since been reunited and have been living very nicely together, thank you very much.”

“That’s not the point, but I’m glad you know who I am talking about.” Clotted glanced at Dark Cacao, “Although, you wouldn’t happen to know who runs that whole operation, would you?”

“It was Red Velvet’s mother, whoever that is.” Pure Vanilla replied.

“I wasn’t talking to you, Vanilla.” Clotted snapped, “Dark Cacao, you wouldn’t happen to know the true identity of Red Velvet’s mother, would you?”

“No, I don’t, none of us do,” Cacao replied, glancing around at his friends, “we have a detective looking into it, but as of now we don’t know much.”

Clotted Cream snickered. “Well, what if I were to tell you that I know who it is? As well as the fact that one of your dear ‘friends’ here knows the truth as well?”

“What are you getting at?” Cacao grumbled.

“What I’m getting at, is that the person behind the whole operation, Red Velvet’s mother, the one who took your eldest son away from you and turned him into a monster, is none other than White Lily, also known as Dark Enchantress!” He announced.

Tears started to well in Pure Vanilla’s eyes. “No…” he whimpered, “no, no, no…”

“And, if that wasn’t already enough of a betrayal,” Clotted Cream added, “your darling husband here, Pure Vanilla, has known the truth all along and has been lying to you for months! I’m sure if you ask him he’ll make some excuse that he ‘didn’t wanna hurt your feelings’ but no matter what excuses he makes to try and defend himself, he’s still the monster that just wants to defend his childhood best friend.”

At the sight of Pure Vanilla’s now sobbing state, Dark Cacao saw red, and he attempted to lunge at Clotted Cream.

Seeing Dark Cacao ready to attack, Hollyberry wrapped her arms around him from behind, restraining him before he could do any damage to himself or Clotted Cream.

“Let go of me!” He bellowed, clawing at the air and trying to fight out of Hollyberry’s grasp, “I will end that arrogant whelp!”

“Dark Cacao, come to your senses! This won’t help anything!” Hollyberry replied, tightening her grip.

To Clotted Creams demise, while Dark Cacao was restrained, Caffeine was not, and she took this as the perfect opportunity to punch him square in the nose, causing him to fall out of his chair and slide across the floor quite a bit. Exiting her station behind the counter, she stomped over to Clotted Cream and stepped on his chest, firmly holding him in place.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” She yelled, “all they’re trying to do is have a nice family outing, and you have to come and ruin it all, like the pathetic little dipshit that you are! The White Lily that you claim is Dark Enchantress has been in a coma for years! And even if it was true that Pure Vanilla knew all this and didn’t tell anyone about it, has it ever occurred to you that maybe he’s still grieving the loss of his friend? That maybe the reason he hasn’t told anyone is because he’s still processing it and doesn’t know how to properly say it? No matter what the goddamn situation is, that gives you no right to barge in here like some hotshot celebrity and ruin everyone’s night! That was personal information that you just revealed, and if you know as much about this as you’re letting on, I could easily call the police and claim that you’re withholding evidence! Wouldn’t that just be fucking wonderful for everyone, you behind bars being interrogated while everyone just goes on their merry way and enjoys their peaceful lives!”

“I’m sorry!” Clotted yelled back, putting his hands up in mock surrender, “I just thought they deserved to know before the real villain of this story ruins everyone’s night for real!”

Caffeine chuckled darkly. “Oh, it’s too late for bullshit apologies. You’re the villain in this story, not White Lily. Now get the hell out, and never. Come. Back.”

Caffeine released him from underneath her boot, and he was quick to run out of the bar. She then turned to her friends, who were now sitting quietly.

Hollyberry had let go of Dark Cacao, who was now sitting in his chair, trying to contain his anger while Pure Vanilla quietly sobbed into Cacao’s shoulder. Caffeine returned behind the counter.

“I’m really sorry about that guys,” she apologized, “I should’ve banned him a long time ago, you guys didn’t deserve to have to deal with that.”

“It’s okay, Caff, Hollyberry replied, “trust me, it was bound to happen eventually. I’m just glad it happened here where you’re the only one who witnessed it. You could’ve lightened up on the aggression though.”

“Well, he needed to be put in his place.” Caffeine then turned to Pure Vanilla, “Are you okay? Was any of that stuff he said true? You don’t have to tell me anything if you’re uncomfortable.”

Vanilla sniffled and nodded. “I’m okay, and what he said was true- sort of. After Almond started looking into the case, I started doing my own research as well. From what I’ve gathered, White Lily and Dark Enchantress are sisters, and while White Lily was in a coma, Dark Enchantress stole her identity to try and stay hidden from the police. I’ve given what information I gathered to Almond, though it’s not much. I’m sorry for not telling you guys, I just didn’t know how to.”

Neither of them replied, and Dark Cacao started to get up from his chair to leave.

“Wait, where are you going?” Vanilla asked, “I promise you, I never intended to hurt you, and I wanted to tell you everything!”

Cacao smiled weakly and pressed a soft kiss to Vanilla’s lips. “You did nothing wrong, love. I know you would never hurt any of us, I just need to cool off right now. I’ll see you at home.”

Dark Cacao walked out, and after a couple of minutes, Pure Vanilla left as well, leaving some cash on the counter to pay their tab. Only Hollyberry and Caffeine were left now.

“Do you want a refill?” Caffeine asked.

Hollyberry handed Caffeine her glass and nodded. “Yes please.”

“Coming right up.”

Taglist: @janayuga @c00kietin @katsunemillennium @trustymikh

#cookie run kingdom #cookie run #crk #cookie run oc #crk modern au #hollyberry cookie #dark cacao cookie #purecacao angst #purecacao #pure vanilla cookie #clotted cream cookie #cookie odyssey #white lily cookie #dark enchantress cookie

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sigmxnd · 8 months ago

Note

okay im very nosy and i wanna know the lore :d

there were lotsa questions so i picked some i thought looked fun from that one rb !!

and if any of these don't interest u or dont apply u can skip em :33

---

Who does your OC love? (platonic) :3

Who does your OC love? (familial)

Does your OC love anyone? (romantic)

What is the worst thing your OC does in their story?

Is there a canon character that your OC needs to ask forgiveness towards?

Is there a canon character your OC needs to forgive?

Is there anyone who your OC would die for, or a canon character who would die for your OC?

Which canon character does your OC not respect at all? Why?

Who would your OC most likely to get a puppy-crush on? (but it can't be the cc they're actually shipped with!)

Who has your OC made cry?

Is there someone your OC didn't like at first, but then got along with later?

Which canon character doesn't respect your OC whatsoever?

Which canon character does your OC respect a lot?

---

(if i missed any u wanted to answer u can throw those in i wont tell :3)

the first 3 i answered for all of them here :3

worst thing done in their story?

Sleepy - (first one wasn't alwayd her doing [one was an accident], but she's made herself think it was/was convinced for a long time that it was) tie between murder and marrying a highly dangerous individual

Sigmund - got with Duncan

Leo - gotten into physical fights (he's won every one though)

Aaron - extreme eavesdropper. he gossips so much. #1 drama spreader

Pebble - got with gnarly

Malcom - gay and won't admit it (/j he's just a bully 💀💀 probably a step higher than vic but still not as bad as henry or patrick)

canon character that someone needs to beg for forgiveness towards?

Sleepy - not anyone alive, she'd have to have an emotional moment or 5 through her dreams

Sigmund - not that he can remember

Leo - he apologizes to everyone immediately even if he hardly did anything, so probably not (except for the people in the aforementioned fights lmao)

Aaron - probably, but he's not going to

Pebble - the smiling friends, but it's not his fault that his boyfriend and his boyfriends boyfriend are like that

Malcom - most definitely, but he's not going to

canon character someone needs to forgive?

Sleepy - no, cause she's forgiven nearly everyone if they didn't do something really bad to her, and her ass is NOT gonna forgive demons

Sigmund - not needs to, there's no one he's required to forgive

Leo - see above

Aaron - see above

Pebble - i don't think so

Malcom - yes, but it's complicated

would anyone die for them? would they die for anyone?

Sleepy - yes, her wife + family, and yes, everyone she cares about

Sigmund - maybe (it depends on what the death is) and yes, friends

Leo - yes, everyone he cares about, and yes, same answer

Aaron - yes, friends, and depends on who it its

Malcom - probably (he can't say for sure), and yes, his boyfriends

canon character someone does not respect?

Sleepy - too many to list, for too many reasons

Sigmund - chris mcclean, self explanatory

Leo - chris mcclean

Aaron - chris mcclean and most of the roti cast (they piss him off)

Pebble - he won't say it to his face, but grim. just a little bit

Malcom - the entirety of the losers and butch bowers, you get the idea

anyone they're likely to get a puppy-crush on?

Sleepy - avril lavigne. yes she exists in her universe

Sigmund - shawn, he'd ask him SO many questions and listen with all the attention he could muster

Leo - jasmine, idk i just think he'd find her really cool lmao

Aaron - he's always wanted to meet izzy. study her mind and all that

Pebble - probably charlie, he strives to be that chill

Malcom - idk. if he was sane in the modern day then probably kesha

who has made them cry?

Sleepy - a lot of people 💀💀

Sigmund - chris mcclean, probably heather, probably duncan too

Leo - chris mcclean, probably also heather

Aaron - chris mcclean. besides that nobody has good enough insults or mental torture that challenges the weight that chris has

Pebble - also a lot of people 💀💀

Malcom - his boyfriends. he won't tell anyone about it though

anyone they didn't like at first, but liked later?

Sleepy - ivy (ppgz), though it wasn't necessarily her, it was the association between her body and the demon that possessed her

Sigmund - noah. he didn't like his sassy quips at first, but eventually he found them funny

Leo - nobody really, he kinda liked everyone immediately (except for heather)

Aaron - scott lmao

Pebble - no one, he was just kinda indifferent about everybody?

Malcom - henry mostly, but he was hostile towards everyone

who doesn't respect them under any circumstances?

Sleepy - sarah is OUT for her 😭😭

Sigmund - heather and probably a few others

Leo - heather

Aaron - anne maria

Pebble - grim, but he pretends to because of gnarly

Malcom - the losers

who do they respect a lot?

Sleepy - her younger sister Sigmund (yes it gets confusing), and Pebble. "they're tougher than they look" (a quote from her)

Sigmund - Aaron. "he can take a punch, but damn can he swing on someone too"

Leo - Sleepy. "she's reserved, but very calm and protective"

Aaron - Sleepy. "i dunno she's cool. like the second mom i never had"

Pebble - Sleepy. "we share a lot more in common than i thought. and not to brag or anything, but she said i'm her favorite :]" (he did not actually say "colon bracket" for that)

Malcom - Sleepy. "she's big and scary. i mean not to me, but to a dumb [flag] definitely. we could use her on our side, if she wasn't, y'know, a girl" (he asked to be censored)

(my choices time :3) does anyone say someone is their best friend? who would they call their best friend?

Sleepy - she'd say Ornery and Sentra (and their respective canon hosts) are her longest standing (alive) best friends, and they'd probably say the same for her. also her WIFE💍😝✨️💥💥

Sigmund - Leo, Aaron, Cinn, Zeke, Mike, and Pebble are his best friends, and they'd all say the same (he leaves out duncan and scott on purpose to be an ass lmao)

Leo - Sigmund, Aaron, Cinn, Zeke, Mike, Duncan, Scott, Pebble, and Sleepy (he would include Malcom, but he's never been able to get close to him. both in an emotional and literal sense)

Aaron - Sigmund, Leo, Cinn, Zeke, Mike, Duncan, Pebble, and Sleepy (he leaves out scott for the same reason as sig)

Pebble - Sigmund, Leo, Aaron, Gnarly, Sleepy, and Malcom (everyone cannot figure out why pebble is the only one who can get close enough to him [its because they share some experiences and pebble is probably the best with feelings out of all of them])

Malcom - he doesn't HAVE "best friends." what is he, a child (but he would consider pebble to be the least threatening out of all of them, so it's kind of a friend thing? friends and friend feelings are hard for him)

which canon character is pissed off by the general presence of them?

Sleepy - too many people 💀💀

Sigmund - heather

Leo - heather

Aaron - anne maria

Pebble - mr. boss, funny enough (pebble is unaware of this)

Malcom - any authority figure

how do the partners feel about each oc? how do the others feel about each others partner? (YIPPEE I GET TO LIST THEIR BOYFRIEND/WIFE'S OPINIONS)

Sleepy - "duncan is annoying at best, at worst i don't wanna know. ezekiel is nice, he says hi when he sees me and stuff, seems like a sweet guy. treats leo as good as the guy treats him. scott is somehow more annoying than duncan. gnarly i was wary of, but he's good with peb, so he's fine to me. he leaves me alone most of the time, which i appreciate. and, uh.. malcom has more than one partner? i've seen one, and he was fine i guess, but apparently there's more. cass says they're a fucking pain, so that's about all i have to go off of."

Sigmund - "i haven't seen much of cassandra, but she seems to be on the same level as sleepy. just kinda chill, doesn't give fucks or take shits. ezekiel is about the best guy in the world, just a little.. what's the word. misguided, sometimes. but i've known him for a while, so maybe i'm biased. scott can be a little shit, but he's more manageable when aaron's with him. gnarly i've hardly ever seen, but he kinda looks like the reddit freaks they tell you to look out for in high school, or they'll like, hate crime you. pebble says he's okay though, so i trust him. i've seen one glimpse of malcom's partners, and they looked WILD, but i guess when you come right out the 80's to the 2020's, you kinda get your shit rocked. i didn't talk to eli, but i liked his jewelry. they're bullies, right? awesome, i hope they make duncan shave that goddamn unibrow. or maybe they'll do it for him, that'll be even better."

Leo - "cassandra i've seen a few times, very intimidating at first, definitely has a dark past. but she's nice to us, which i like. duncan i'm used to by now, even if he can be kinda annoying sometimes. he seems to be more chill when he's with all of us combined. scott hasn't been much of a pain to me specifically, but he targets sig a lot, and has lots of banter with aaron, and i try not to laugh at every horrible insult they throw back and forth at each other. gnarly looks like he'd ask me if i want some crack out of his trenchcoat, which would make me uncomfortable, if he wasn't a giant dweeb. in a positive way. i've only ever seen one one of malcom's partners one time, and it was the same day we found out he'd showed up. eli, i think his name is? didn't talk to him, but he seemed about the same as malcom, whatever that is. i know there's a group, but from what i heard, i'm okay with not meeting the rest."

Aaron - "cassandra's cool, she recommends music to me. duncan is like my boyfriend, which can piss me off sometimes. zeke is cool, he got me my earbuds for my birthday. gnarly looks like he'd call me a slur, but pebble says he's nice. i dunno, i'd have to wait and see if that's true. malcom's partners have never come out of their room, except for one, but i hardly percieved him. i don't think the rest are real, with how much malcom hides them, and how ridiculous they sound."

Pebble - "cassandra is super nice, she and sleepy helped me get settled in on my first day of getting into the space. her and sleepy have a lot of history together, and it shows. duncan used to pick on me, but he doesn't anymore, so he's okay. ezekiel is so incredibly sweet, him and leo are perfect for each other. scott also picks on me, and he's stopped doing it as much, but it still happens sometimes. he's like a 4/10 in my mind. i think i'm the only one that's actually seen malcom's other partners? two of them, at least. i met him at the door that connects our rooms one time, and two of them locked eyes with me. it was kinda creepy. malcom tells me stuff about them when nobody's paying attention, and they're very on and off. usually on with him, though. overall more 5/10, since i haven't had any firsthand experiences with them. but malcom says he doesn't want me to have any."

Malcom - "i don't care about their stupid boyfriends. and i wish they would stop saying the gang are my "partners," i'm not gay. the weird blue one is the only one that gets that."

Cassandra - "i can hardly stand any of them, except for ezekiel."

Duncan - "cassandra scares me, but you better not tell anyone i said that. zeke is okay i guess, but i couldn't have guessed he was a gay until leo came around. i don't care if that was a long time ago, it still surprises me. scott is pretty funny. gnarly is fucking awesome, i don't know how people can't like him. the gay little gang of weirdos threatened me once, and i would've taken them easily, but cassandra threatened to beat the shit out of all of us, so nothing happened. they do not take her seriously at all, and it's hysterical to watch. i can't laugh though, but it's whatever."

Ezekiel - "cassandra is real nice, eh. she always lets me leave the room before she gets all loud and scary. duncan and scott are just okay, i don't talk to them much. gnarly gives me weird looks, but i try to ignore them. that little group is straight up freaky though, they told me they'd skin the "giant rat on my head" if i didn't leave them alone. i didn't even have rats on my head when they said that! and i do leave them alone, eh! but they still come around and pull wicked knives on me! not cool."

Scott - "everyone in there is either annoying, bearable, or cassandra. she's creepy, not just when she gets obnoxiously loud. she told me she wished she had her "precious metal babe" with her sometimes, and i've spent enough time with pappy to know what she means by that. the traveling circus of knife wielders fits into the annoying category, i just don't show my shark tooth to them in case they try and steal it. i could take 'em, easy."

Gnarly - "the guys are okay, cassandra is whatever. those little boys are nails on a fuckin' chalkboard, though."

Henry - "i don't give a shit about those stupid [flaggots]." (he was censored against his will)

Patrick said the same thing as Henry.

Victor didn't respond.

"Belch" - "i'unno, whatever henry said."

[jury's still out for Eli]

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