#oh my god???? this article is gold

[apollos-boyfriend]

did you know that if youre afraid of slenderman you should imagine him as calamari

source: https://www.wikihow.com/Get-over-Your-Fear-of-Slenderman

oh BOY could i

[crystalflygeo]

The dragon and the sacrificial lamb ft. eroded!Zhongli + gn!reader

cw/tags: rape/non-con, angst, bad ending, yandere-ish zhongli? feral/eroded zhongli, biting, crying, restraints (courtesy of improper use of geo as usual ehe)

notes: Alright this is a special one get ready. There's two "version" of this story bc I couldn't decide which path I liked more. This one is the dark/bad ending. Both stories are exactly the same at the start, changing a few word here and there but then reach a point where they divert completely in reactions/emotions and the underlying feeling of the stories are very different. They can be read independently ofc so by all means feel free to choose which tags you vibe with more or enjoy picking up the differences between both!

Bittersweet ending version here!!

Once upon a time…

A long, long time ago…

The people of Liyue revered their beloved Archon Rex Lapis. Just and kind, he led his nation for millennia, upholding order and contracts, defeating countless enemies, and defending their safe Harbor.

It is said the Lord of Geo took a human as partner, and fell in love deep and pure.

And his partner loved him just as much.

A love that would tragically become a twisted obsession.

It is said the God understood that even he himself was not immune to erosion, and it would one day be his downfall. So, he made sure his people were ready to live on without him. That his adepti were strong enough to subdue him if the day ever came.

As for his lover… well…

-----

Your bare feet crunch along the soft grass as you run and run, panting, gasping for air, almost tripping and letting out a yelp but quickly regaining balance and scurrying faster, past the falling golden ginkgo leaves, past the soft sound of rushing waters.

The golden sunset is gorgeous, dying the sky pink and orange with pastel hues but you simply ignore it, having grown tired of it, sick even. It is fake, an illusion. Just as everything else in this adeptal abode.

Everything except, of course, you and the beast you are currently fleeing from.

It is useless to try to escape, this you know, and your heart clenches painfully as tears prickle at your eyes. You’ve done this before, played this game many many times. But at least for one moment… just one moment…

A roar turns your blood to ice and against all common sense you look over your shoulder to see a massive long dragon twisting in the air and diving straight towards you.

Your legs tremble and fail you as you fall down, the grass is soft but your body aches, tired, burning. You scramble around frantically to stare at the beast again and your eyes widen in panic as it lands right on top of you, majestic and terrifying, caging you with its serpentine body. The golden claws alone are as long as your forearms, digging on the ground at either side of you.

You whimper.

The dragon lowers his head, growling at you, fangs mere inches apart and you squeeze your eyes shut, tears running down your face.

“Why do you run away from me?”

“Leave me alone!” You scream.

“Are you not happy with me? My mate?”

At the words you only sob harder.

Mate.

Oh, how much joy did that word bring you once. And now you can only feel your heart shatter.

You feel a shift in the wind, in the energy, in the light around you, and when you open your eyes, the massive dragon has faded to a more human appearance. He changes back to the form you’re most used to.

Long strands of dark hair tipped amber, striking golden eyes with stunning red lines that highlight their sharpness, a handsome face and a muscular body with arms died black, and lines of gold… lines that run along his cheek and down his neck. Cracks, like a broken glass, like scars, under his eyes and around his chest, ruining the pristine skin and unable to disappear despite his ability to change forms.

The undeniable marks of erosion.

You snap back to attention when he dips down and starts nosing at your neck, his hands pulling at the robe you’re wearing, the only article of clothing you picked up before scurrying away from the mansion. It parts open easily, revealing your naked body to his eyes, littered in past bruises, hickeys and bite marks. Claims from the dragon.

“W-wait. Stop-!” You try to push him back, panicked, desperately pressing your palms against his broad shoulders, but of course he’s immovable as stone.

You kick and trash until he gets irritated and suddenly your arms are immobilized, held above your head and pressed onto the ground by heavy geo cuffs.

“Submit.” He growls.

You squirm a little more until your body sags into the ground, exhausted, panting. There is no use. Instead, you shudder as his hands grope and rub all over your body, rough and callous.

He spreads your legs and slots between them as your breath catches. His palm presses at a spot on your navel possessively, a glittering geo symbol engraved on your skin there, glowing subtly like his horns. You whine.

Then his touch goes lower and teases at your entrance, circling the hole and dipping in just barely.

“Z-Zhongli-!”

Another growl comes out of his throat, deep and guttural. “You dare speak another man’s name in my presence? In my realm? When you belong to me?!”

Your whole body shakes, with rage, with fear. Your heart about to burst. You grit your teeth and glare at the dragon god with as much venom as you can.

“I don’t belong to you!”

He snarls, eyes widening to serpentine slits.

“Insolent. No matter, I’ll fill you up again and show you.”

The eroded God leans down to bite at your neck and you yelp, sharp fangs break your skin and you cry as you feel the warm blood spill. His claws prick at your thighs as he starts unceremoniously humping against you. The ridges on his draconic cock making your hole twitch and you gasp as he presses in, dipping slightly inside your thigh warmth. No need to prepare your body after so many years of coupling. Your hole already soft and molded to him like a worn-out toy.

“No, please… n-no.” Your voice breaks, tears running down your face.

Everything turns blurry, fuzzy, and your head spins.

How had things ended up like this?

You see no love in his eyes, no recognition. And you don’t recognize him either anymore. This creature, this beast… he is not your lover. He is not Zhongli…

And hasn’t been for who knows how long…

Zhongli raises one of your legs and rests it on his shoulder while straddling the other and pushes further in the slick warmth, ignoring the sounds you make. “Too big! I can’t-!” You scream and it just urges him to slam it in. “No- Ahh!” Sheathed all the way to the hilt, Zhongli groans as you clench around him.

He immediately starts thrusting and you feel the world tilt. It’s all too much, the sound of skin slapping against skin, your walls getting battered by his thick member, his animalistic grunts and groans, and the way your body betrays you… a speck of pleasure mixed in with the pain.

It's so cruel.

“Sto- gh! Stop it! Zhongli, please…!” You sob.

Zhongli hisses, muscles taut and flexing as his hips buck into yours, finally finding that spot that has you choking out a moan, your body shivers, forced to surrender and feel everything, a hot coil building on your lower stomach where the mark of geo glows as he continues to take what he wants from your struggling form. He laps at your skin and nuzzles there, almost lovingly. “Mine.”

Your moans start turning sweeter, previously pained sounds turning to vocalizations of carnal lust, your eyes glassy. You try to fight it, conflicted, but the stimulation is too much.

You come with a raw cry through gritted teeth, tears flowing down your cheeks and your own juices coating your skin causing you to feel dirty in more ways than one. Zhongli continues through your overstimulated state, chasing his own pleasure as his thrust become erratic until finally, he stills deep inside and moans long and low, painting your insides white.

You feel him twitch inside you and groan, absolutely exhausted, overwhelmed with emotions, feeling sick, used and abused. He lowers your leg but doesn’t bother pulling out, keeping you there as he nips at your skin, murmuring soft words. “My mate. All pretty and filled up. All mine. Love you.”

You can’t bear to hear those words, spoken in the voice you continue to love after all this time. It shatters your soul, breaking it to pieces like the corroded dragon’s destroyed mind.

Feeling about to pass out, you close your eyes and your head lolls to the side, sniffling against your own forearm as tears continue to fall. “I love… Zhongli. Miss him. I hate you…”

He dissolves the geo shackles into specks of gold and holds your unconscious body in his arms, satisfied with the claims and scent he’s left on you. His tail swishes slowly, pleased with himself as he carries you back to the abode’s mansion.

Home.

Were he’ll keep you safe, bound to him.

Forever and always.

-----

…It is said that his lover is the key to keep the eroded God confined.

Trapped by the possessive dragon in a sealed realm, to keep him ensnared, enchanted and bound to them.

Until they both turn to dust.

[angelltheninth]

Oh my god. That feral zhongli I can't– let's mix it up with his half adeptal form,,, the dragon and his fascination with how you bite and hold onto his long tail for life as he breeds you full of his eggs, his brood.

The words 'eggs' or 'brood'... for some reason it gives me flashbacks to the Xenomorph eggs and that fucking, it like scared me shitless as kid. Holy fuck lmao.

Pairing: Half-Adeptal!Zhongli x Fem!Reader

Tags: rough sex, breeding kink, creampie, biting, growling, first time meeting, dragon rut, possessive Zhongli, feral Zhongli

A/N: On a hotter note I really like how Zhongli looks in his half-Adeptal form. The horns and the claws really do it for me.

Entering the cave already felt off somehow, yet there was something beckoning you forward, inviting you in, calling to you

You knew that Rex Lapis was rumored to dwell within those caves

Honestly you were more curious than anything, to see the famous God of Contracts

The moment you entered the cave the air felt different

Instead of the cold, dim interior you expected it was warm, the inside illuminated by yellow and orange crystals

You kept going, not being able to shake the feeling that someone, or something was watching you

"What do we have here?" A gruff voice whispered hot in your ear, "A little human in my domain?" You felt something long and warm wrap around your waist from behind

You went completely still as rough, clawed hands started mapping your body, up and down, to your sides, your front, your breasts, one going all the way to your chin

"You visit me now? In my rut? You must be very brave, or perhaps stupid." His nose buries in the base of your neck, "You do not have a partner, I smell no one on you." He lets out a deep rumbling sound, so close to a growl that it makes your skin prickle

Upon you confirming that you are indeed here to visit the Rex Lapis and that no, you don't have anyone that you're involved with you feel his fingers grip your chin and turn your head slightly to the side

You're met with the most beautiful pair of golden eyes you've ever seen, like melted pools of gold, but shining with fire, with lust

"What a pretty face." He whispers before he claims your lips, giving you a hint of fangs as he does so

The more he kisses you the less in control of yourself you feel, your body getting hotter by the second, your legs shaking, mind going hazy with desire

A moan passes your lips when he kneads your breasts his and grinds his hips against yours, he's rock hard already and just from that one little push he's quite big as well

Not wanting to wait any longer he picks you up in his arms, quickly sprinting forward as he nips at your neck, hungry to taste you more

How you got there is a little blurry in your head but you do remember a blinding yellow light at some point before you feel soft pillows and smooth sheets beneath your back

"How about it little human? You're already here? Will you help me with my rut?" He's already halfway undressed, his muscular body almost shining with sweat, yet he waits for you to nod before he takes his clothes off completely

Heat rushes across your entire body as your eyes land on his big, throbbing cock, thick cum already coating the tip and sliding down in big drops

"I want to tear this off, it's lovely on you but, I'm afraid it's in my way." His tail swishes behind him as he crawls towards you, his teeth clenching, his irises barely there in thin lines, "Let me see all of you."

He sounds so damn needy, has there been no one he's spent ruts with this entire time

He shakes his head, "I haven't had a partner in decades. I feel very fortunate that a pretty woman such as yourself wandered into my domain."

Slowly he takes of your clothes, one article at a time until you're completely naked under him

His long tongue licks his lips a he grips your knees and spreads your legs, your cunt dripping juices onto his sheets, "Lovely." You moan as he rubs his hot lengths along your lips, brushing against your clit

It's slow at first, his cock sliding inside, parting your walls, stretching you out, "Divine. You feel divine around me darling." He breaths out a puff of warm steam as he bottoms out, his hips flush against yours

There's a lot of him, there's so much, you feel like you're about to burst already, and he's not even moving

You moan, eyes searching for his

He smiles at you, "If you need a name to scream, you may use Zhongli." He smiles, showing you just a hint of teeth as his claws dig into the bed and he starts moving

The sheer force of it almost makes you launch off the bed, the only thing stopping you being Zhongli pressing his body against yours

His pace is relentless, which isn't odd given that he admitted to not having a partner in so long

You hear the sound of tearing fabric as his claws shred through the sheets

Your arms wrap around his shoulders pulling him closer and into another kiss, his hot almost too hot against yours, and even hotter is the feeling of his cum suddenly flooding your walls

"I'm gonna breed you, my pretty human. Do you understand?" Right now you don't feel like you understand much of anything, only the feeling of his cock and cum filling you up, and you want more, so you nod, "Good human. Good girl."

He pulls out quickly, a string of thick white cum connecting your pussy hole and his still erect dick

"You still haven't came, I cannot have that." His eyes narrow and in an instant you're turned on your stomach, his body pressing against yours, his fingers tangling with yours and pressing them into the matrass, "Hold still." He rubs his cock against your ass a few times before he plunges it back into your needy cunt, "It's taking me so easily. Perhaps this was fate, perhaps you were fated to find me here, to be taken by me, made love to, breed by me, to take my seed."

You feel him hammer his cock into you, his hips slapping against yours in a wild pace

"I have a lot to give you my sweet. Make sure you take all of it." His lips sink into your neck over and over, marking you up as he releases inside you again and again, seemingly prolonging his own mini-orgasms until he finally hears his name being screamed out from your lips like a chant

It's not enough for him, not yet

He starts again, this time his hands lifting your hips up, angling it so his cock sinks in easier, deeper, long strokes hitting you in just the right spot to keep your pussy fluttering around him, milking him more and more

His tail swishes back and forth, his latest release roared into the room, hot cum spilling out of you, coating your thighs and ass

You lose count of how many orgasms he gives you in the next few days, the sex seems like it one long dream

His tongue is inside you, licking you clean, fucking you, your legs around his shoulders, hands tugging on his hair

His fangs are marking your inner thighs, your wrists, your neck, your breasts, your ass

You're covered with cum, flooded inside and out, your cunt, your mouth, your back, your stomach, your breasts, your face

Your hands clench the torn sheets as Zhongli mounts you again, his cock sinking in so easily, "My pretty mate, are you tired already? Can't you take one more? I know you can, come on beautiful, take my cock, let me feel your sensitive cunt flutter around me as I pump you full of my seed all over again." Fuck, how can you refuse him when he's talking like that, when he's been the one worshiping you this whole time

What more than a mortal ask for than to be loved and worshiped and ravaged by a God

[folkloresthings]

Okay, I know I said the last one was the last one, but I just keep having ideas and you write so much better than I do, I’m sorry (😭).

That said, can I pretty please ask for a NORTHANGER ABBEY with Fernando Alonso and the sunshine x sunshine protector trope? Like his S/O is super sweet and cheery and he wants to keep them from getting hurt? I just feel like that would be so cute!

Thanks in advance, my love, and I hope you’re doing well!! ✨🧚‍♂️💗

thank you darling dolly 💌

WHATEVER IT TAKES. ❨ fernando alonso x reader ❩

✩⡱ warnings: implied age gap bc duh it’s a nando fic

after twenty—two years in formula one, a driver learns how dangerous it can be. not the cars, not the crashes or the risking your life every time you break a little too late. no, it was much more dangerous off of the track, in front of the prying eyes and camera lenses: the lion’s den.

fernando knew well how he was to blame for this cloud of prejudice that followed him around. he’d quickly made a name for himself as a womaniser in the sport, a different girl at every race and a new one at night. that kind of reputation stuck, even at forty—two years old.

you were different. fernando knew, from the very moment he laid eyes on you, he wouldn’t be capable of treating you like a temporary plaything. you were a breath of fresh air, younger than him and oh so optimistic. he was getting old, losing out hope on ever having more than his racing career, and you had come along, bringing a whole new life with you.

hell, you’d even made his time at alpine fun.

he knew everyone on the grid would love you before they even met you, and his suspicions were correct. you were sweet, tooth—rottingly so, and every single person you came across couldn’t help but love you. nearly as much as he did.

the media, however, was not every person. no matter your heavenly goodness, the press would find any reason to belittle you. fernando alonso’s next playgirl, this month’s challenge, formula one gold digger. from the second things got serious, fernando swore on everything that he was to protect you from all of that mess.

it worked, for a while, dodging cameras and hiding nasty articles from you. the little bubble he’d created around your relationship was perfect. he could love you with his whole heart and not worry about anything ruining it. because, god, he couldn’t let anything ruin this — not the one good thing he had.

it was a few days after you’d arrived in barcelona for the race weekend. in fernando’s favourite little summer dress of yours, you skipped along to the track for the first free practice of the week. standing off to the sidelines, sharing a coffee with alexandra, everything was perfect. the sun, the cars, the feeling that everything was falling into place.

“y/n! y/n, can we get a picture!”

“y/n, any comment on fernando’s romantic past?!”

“what do you think about being labelled as the grid slut, y/n!”

the reporters had swarmed you in seconds, coming out of nowhere. tabloids, you presumed, god knows how they got press passes. alex reached for your arm, pulling you back from the mic shoved in your face. she’d gone through the exact same thing mere months ago.

“get away from them, right now!”

that familiar voice, though hollering, relaxed you immediately. fernando had shoved his way through the mob, standing guard in front of you. his hand reached back to grasp at your arm, securing you close to his side, his shoulders heaving with anger.

“any of you bastards speak to her like that again, and i’ll make sure you don’t have a career left in the morning,” he seethes, sending the reporters backing off in seconds. he takes your hand, charles taking alex’s, pulling you both to the safety of the garages. fernando doesn’t slow down until he reaches the aston martin motorhome, face red with anger.

“are you okay?” he asks, taking your cheeks in his palms, eyes desperately raking across your features for any sign that you might be hurt or upset. in truth, you were just shocked. the whole interaction had sprung up out of nowhere, and it had happened in a flash before your eyes, back in the garage before you knew it.

“i don’t— what they were saying…” you mutter, brows furrowed. the words play over and over again like a broken record. slut. the tears that stung at your eyes were hot, willed away with everything that you had.

“don’t listen to them, please,” fernando softens, chest aching at the sight of you welling up. “i… i tried so hard to protect you from this, mi amor. i should have been there.”

you shake your head, nestling your face in the material of his race suit. fernando’s arms wind around your shoulders, squeezing you as close as he can without fear of breaking you. he’d curse himself forever for not being there to stop the reporters, but he would hold you while he could.

“i’m sorry, corazón. you deserve better than all of this,” your doting boyfriend murmurs against the crown of your head, lips moving on soft hair. you shift to look up at him, that familiar light that dances behind pupils making him keel with adoration.

“all that talk is only temporary,” you mutter, stretching up on the tips of your toes to reach his lips. soft and lingering kisses, his hands holding your hips close by. “this, us, is what matters.”

fernando smiles, so deeply you can feel it in your stomach. “i love you, so very much. i’m not going to let anything ruin this.”

he tangles you up in another kiss, pouring every ounce of love he has for you into one searing show of affection. a clear promise: to protect you every day of his life, no matter what it took.

[underclerysclock]

Michael Lucas actually posted The Sun article on Twitter and oh my god the lore it adds.

- he is 39 years old in 1988

- the park he was arrested in was specifically the Chinese Garden of Friendship in Eora (Sydney)

- his talk show is officially called The Gerry Carroll Show

- he won a gold Logie in 1987 (Logies are an Australian TV award. Not really like the Emmys, they're sort of considered a bit trashy.)

- Gerry and Carla were officially married in 1975. That's a year after they met (Jane Harber's Instagram post said they met in 1974).

- They hold extravagant parties for their anniversaries. Which seems very on brand.

- On their 10th wedding anniversary he performed Tell Her About it by Billy Joel live and dedicated to his wife, and called her his soulmate that "no one could ever replace" 😭❤️

- his arrest could see him face jail. Which. Oh man, being a bisexual man in prison for public indecency would be very scary.

[yuwumeniji]

Luxiem as Dating Sim Characters

I... I like you!

WARNING: Please remember that I am writing about Luxiem based on their characters online and not of the people behind their vtuber avatars, thank you!

A/N: Yes.... MERGE ALL OF YOUR INTERESTS TOGETHER (my thought process when creating this side blog lol). There are some references to otome games I've played, I wonder if you can find them all ;;

BTW... requests are open, feel free to brainrot with me too ^^

READ MORE UNDER THE CUT!

GENERAL NOTES

All livers will be parts of different games (vaguely putting that way that is lmao)

I will be making references to games that I've played personally!

IKE EVELAND

The sweet boy-next-door from a Slice Of Life otome game!

Childhood bestie??? OFC????

I can picture him being one of the love interests in a school-based otome game with him being either a senpai or someone of the same age

The type of route to be underrated, but have a dedicated portion of the fanbase

He's got lots of cute CG where you and him are studying together,, having cute after-school dates,, etc.

He also has a little bit of a mean streak... very well known to be very hot/cold with the MC, and can be quite the tease especially during the lovers portion of the route, but the gap moe.... oh my god

His route is like... pure fluff and maybe sometimes that is all we need

His routes consist of a Lover's ending & Friendship ending. Because of the light-heartedness of the game he is from, there are no bad endings (unless you consider being friendzone'd a bad ending lmao)

"Y/N, you silly goose! Well... if you give me a kiss, I could show you how to solve that equation!"

LUCA KANESHIRO

The flirty playboy who actually has a heart of gold! Most likely from an action-drama otome game

Additionally,, he keeps his mafia boss title and you? his one and only journalist!

He meets you while you were on the hunt for some details about the Kaneshiro family for an article and decided to play the role of an unsuspecting passerby who has interest in the family as well!

During his route, he reveals that he intentionally joined us on our sleuthing adventure in order to stamp out the corruption that ran within the Kaneshiro mafia family. He wants the family to have as clean of a name as a mafia family could get - I mean, he eventually reveals himself as the heir!

A route full of action! adventure! crime committing! and to no one's shock - kinda steamy!

There is literally no inbetween for this man and he gives every player whiplash - from his innocent flirting with the MC that makes you giggle and swing your feet to him introducing to the MC what an "adult kiss" is (flushge!!)

A noire-esque type route where you and Luca play cat and mouse - you want to catch Luca for an article, Luca somehow evades you even when he was just arms reach away.

I want one CG where you're patching his wounds up and he's playfully teasing you like

"LUCA !!! YOU LITERALLY ALMOST DIED!!!"

"And? Did you see the look on that officer's fac- ARGH?! Be careful with that one!"

His route ends with a Lover's ending & Bad ending. His bad ending ends with either him dying after getting caught within some internal strife with the family OR he gets captured while trying to evade law enforcement (and you were the one who betrays him)

His lover's ending ends with you being the Bonnie to his Clyde, you eventually join him as his right hand man! (or woman?)

MYSTA RIAS

The prince who just wanted to have fun, fell in love with a commoner. Probably from a historical title with no basis in actual history/vaguely has a place in history.

Surprisingly bittersweet and well written - most fans who see him in the common route would think his route would be the most light-hearted out of the bunch, but the forbidden romance between a commoner and a prince is kinda... you know ;;

I still would like to think he has a relatively light-hearted route despite the bittersweet elements to it lmao

He's literally just some silly guy free him from the palace

He actually spends a lot of the route guarded against the MC despite his displays of affection due to his disposition as someone with higher power than you.

A lot of tear-jerking scenes and a lot of close calls with getting caught before his coronation day.

His confession scene was the most memorable visually. The moon shining on his face as you two sat beside each other in the royal garden after splashing around in the fountains. Instead of the jovial expression he normally has on, his face was stern and serious as he declares his love for the MC

Also full of the cheesiest otome lines known to man

"Even if the world is against you and I, then so be it. I would choose you no matter what."

"As the heir to the next throne, I can promise you the entire world if I have to."

The whiplash between his silly antics and the way he confesses his love to the MC is what made the game's fans go crazy

His route ends with the most bad endings - One where you get thrown in the dungeon, one where you could be executed as someone who usurped the king, one where he breaks off his engagement with you, etc. Just know it's bad all round LMAO

His lover's ending ends with you marrying him and him succeeding the throne. It's a very cheesy end, but according to players, one of the best endings in the entire game.

SHU YAMINO

A dramatic and mystical being from a fantasy/slice of life otome game! I specifically need him to be a character that jokes about being the world's "final boss" while being a cafe regular at the place you work at.

It's got quite the modern feel in contrast to the vintage cafe setting

The game begins as normal, with a few incidents that eventually reveal the true nature the very magical nature of the regulars you usually serve, with Shu being considered the game's "final, true ending"

The kind to order sweet menu items because you suggested it and he actually would rather rave more savoury items.

His route consists of everyday chats; to many that find him in the common routes, shu seems to be the most normal route in comparison to the wacky mythical beings in the game, but dear lord are we in for an angsty rollercoaster

"Y/N?? What are you doing here in this *very obviously* dangerous place!!"

"I came here to get- wait,you're the one from the cafe?!"

He has broken the 4th wall at least once in his route and he doesn't have a lot of fanservice scenes outside of that (the fandom is coping so hard. me, im the fandom)

His route ultimately has 2 endings - True Ending & Lover's Ending

OFC HIS ROMANTIC ENDING IS ONE OF THE HARDEST TO ACHIEVE LMFAO - only occurs if you max out the entire game: collecting all endings for all characters AND if you can max out his romance meter within a certain time frame

The true ending is well.... the truest ending of the game (since I'm trying to vaguely write about whatever this game is, I won't give a proper like... fleshed out ending lmao)

obvs the true ending doesn't sit well with fans and they only accept the Lover's end as the true ending of his route lmao (copium)

VOX AKUMA

An assassin or an army general from a japanese-historical otome game!

He's on a quest to defeat a corrupted shogunate and he stumbled across you while finding a village to retreat to. More specifically, a hidden ninja village in the remote mountains south of the capital (or something like that, i'm not very big on geography or history, but like, picture it lmao)

You were the one to find him bleeding on the ground and, to no surprise, the one who nursed him back to health.

Despite his quest to defeat the leader, he took a liking to you and spends his entire route trying to convince you to join his journey.

You can join him or not join him - but not joining him leads you right into an immediate game over lol

"Do you want to train today? Or perhaps, shall we talk a walk around the village?"

THE BIGGEST MOST FLIRTIEST OTOME GAME CHARACTER EVER . severe whiplash to fans who expected this game to be serious and less of an otome , more of a joseimuke title

He has a number of bad endings - one where he couldn't take you with him, one that ends with him getting assassinated and one that ends with him failing his mission.

Luckily for you - he has one of the most romantic Lover's ending that eventually ends with an epilogue where you both settle down in the hidden ninja village again, living peacefully despite being outlaws LOL

[emitheduck]

Waking Up In Vegas (Aaron Hotchner x Reader)

a/n: I am a HUGE fan of the trope of ‘waking up married’ and this time, i wrote it as a gift for my bff @nanamilkbread

t/w: reader is female, mention of drinking (drinking excess to getting black out), sexual situations-MDNI

MASTERLIST —

(Y/n) groaned as she woke up, her head pounding while she fought to cover her eyes from the sun beam that was shining down right on her face. Clearly, she had too much to drink last night. Feeling the bed shift next to her, and not knowing who was in bed next to her, just went to show she had too much. 

She tried her best to slip out from the blankets as slow as she could; trying to also to get a peak of the mystery person in the bed next to her. Getting out of bed was one success, but seeing that the person in the bed next to her–clearly a man from the bare back–had his head completely under the pillow proved to be a failed attempt at trying to see who he was.

The more that she looked around the room, the more she noticed this wasn’t her hotel room. She was sharing a room with Emily on this case, this room only had one queen bed instead of the others that had two. At least it was the same hotel she was staying at with the team and she didn’t wander around Vegas last night. Oh god, what happened last night? Every memory from last night was blurred. She searched around for her phone, pausing out of fright when the man in the bed started to make noise and moved around. “Babe, are you sure you want to do this?”

“Just fuck me already..”

(Y/n) felt her cheeks flush as she remembered a little bit of the night prior. She could remember the team going out for drinks to celebrate finishing the case, then there was a gap, and she remembered getting hot and heavy with someone–the mystery man in bed. The man from the bed let out a grunt as he willed himself to sit up. When he stood up from the bed, they both made eye contact and (Y/n) let out a silent scream; the sound dying in her throat.

Mystery man was none other than Aaron Hotchner, her boss. 

Hotch looked like a deer in headlights, moving to quickly grab his boxers and put them back on. “(Y/n), did you just come in or were you here?”

“I-I was here when I woke up. I’m so sorry Sir, I didn’t even know, I don’t even remember–” She stammered as she quickly threw on the nearest article of clothing (clearly a mens t-shirt) to cover herself. 

“Don’t apologize and please don’t call me Sir right now.” He sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “I remember going out, and Prentiss practically poured drinks down our throats. And then, I can’t remember anything.”

(Y/n) frowned, going over to the fridge in the room and grabbing two bottles of water, handing one to him which he gladly took and started drinking from. It was one thing that she was embarrassed, but to see her boss like this was on a different level. 

“Check your phone, I was just about to look through mine.” She instructed him, grabbing her phone and going instantly to her pictures. “Tell me if you find anything.” There were the usual pictures from the night out, like taking selfies with Penelope in the bathroom of whatever bar they were drinking, taking pictures of Spencer mid-explanation where someone was usually pretending to be dead in the back (that person usually Morgan).

“It looks like my phone was dead, do you have anything on yours?” Hotch asked as he got up from the bed, trying not to hover over her shoulder.

She didn’t answer him as she continued to scroll. Pictures started to get worse in quality the more the night went on. “From what I see, we all got separated? And then it looks like we went to some kind of bar?”

“I have no idea what would have possessed me to drink this much.” Hotch groaned as he finished off this water. “This photo looks like we ended up at a wedding?” She questioned, holding out her phone to show him the picture. Only then, did she get a good look at the gold band on her left hand ring finger. “Oh my fucking god..”

He didn’t even ask, but grabbed the phone out of her hand to closer examine the picture. “(Y/n), I’m going to ask this as calm as I can. Did we get married last night?”

(Y/n) felt her bottom lip starting to tremble, not being able to look at him out of fear she’d start to cry. “I think we did get married last night, because I’ve never noticed this on my finger before.” She told him, holding out her hand for him to see while she looked down at the floor.

“And judging from both of us walking up naked, it’s safe to assume that we both had sex last night.” Hotch said while he tossed her phone back on the bed, getting a glimpse at the ring on his own hand. “I’ll try to find the number for HR, you’re going to want to call them, probably get a transfer to a different division might be the best–”

“I’m not calling HR, and I’m not going to try to transfer.” She interrupted him quickly, finally looking at him and feeling the blush on her cheeks. “We’re both adults, and sure, you’re my boss and this was something neither of us planned for, but we can figure this out!”

He sighed, pinching his brow as he tried to think. “(Last Name), I would never want to put you in a position where this does anything to your job.”

(Y/n) shook her head. “I respect you so much, and if this makes you uncomfortable then I’ll do whatever you want, but maybe we try and figure this out when we’re not hungover in a Vegas hotel room?”

Hotch nodded. “That seems like the best idea. We don’t bring it up, and we just wait till we get back home.”

“Can I ask you a question, or if I do will you fire me?” (Y/n) asked him, trying her best to smile at the fact he was also giving her a slight smile. “Does this mean I can call you Aaron?”

“Only if I’m allowed to call your Mrs. Hotchner.” He smirked, watching as her face turned bright red. 

“Yeah you got me there.” She winced with a smile, gathering the rest of her clothes from the floor. “I am going to try and sneak back into my room, and we will just, not talk about this for the rest of the time being.” 

MASTERLIST

[sylvies-chen]

POTENTIAL SPOILERS FOR THE MORNING SHOW SEASON 3???

ok TIME came out with a new article about season 3 but especially focused on Billy Crudup and Cory’s journey this season, and these tidbits we’re getting (way less spoiler-y bits than that other article that shall not be named btw) are GOLD!!!

putting them under the cut for those who don’t want to see any spoilers:

the article says quite a lot about cory’s characterization and how the show shines a spotlight on him this season (and much praise to billy’s performance which like, hell yes!! his acting really is fantastic he makes the show) but I really wanna focus on this part cause HIS MOM IS WHAT NOW??

I’m so excited to see cory’s mom actually on screen and to see that relationship reveal itself because the glimpses we’ve gotten into what his upbringing was like are so mysterious and intriguing. Also an “onlooker” calling cory interesting in the way patrick bateman was interesting is killing me oh my god 💀

GIVE ME MORE VULNERABLE CORY AND BRADLEY SCENES RIGHT NOWWWWW ooh the writers are cooking let them cook let them cook!!

[anxious-witch]

NaceKris prompt since you like angst and hurt and comfort: Kris is losing his shit over being compared to his dad again and feeling like he's not good enough, and goes to Nace to vent (I can't wait to read this one this is also very much for my own pleasure)

Sorry this took so long, this drabble got entirely too long. I hope you like it!

That said before reading. I wasn't actively trying to write Kris as autistic, but I might have slipped up. The meltdown he has is definitely...indicatory of that so just heads up for that. In case it may trigger someone, maybe skip this one

Kris stared at the headline of a portal on his phone. He shouldn't click on it. He really, really shouldn't.

Is Gušti's son on a way to surpass his father's fame with his band?

It was a click-bait. Kris knew it was a click-bite. And he knew his day was already shitty so he though: Oh, why the fuck not at this point? He clicked on the article. The article went in depth about Miha Guštin's career, and compared it to Kris'. And in comparison, Kris did not look particularly great.

And then the article ended with saying that a more appropriate comparison would be perhaps between Gušti and Bojan.

Kris closed the article. He put his phone on the table, away from him, but the words haunted him. How could he ever compare?

His whole life he was always walking either in his father's shadow or Bojan's. And he felt like a wilted flower, tired of forever trying to get to the sun.

No. He didn't think that. Being in the center of attention could be even worse. He saw the toll it took on Bojan. How his father still couldn't go anywhere in public without being recognized or photographed.

He just felt so...useless. Plain, in comparison. Bojan used to joke when they were younger that every good main character needs a few interesting side characters. That's exacrly what Kris was. A side character.

There is also a question of if Gušti's son would have ended up on the musical scene at all without the influence of his father.

His breath came in short gasps. Kris closed his mouth and forced hinself to try and breathe through his nose. Breathe in for four seconds, gold for seven, exhale for eight. And again.

He grabbed his phone and dialed a number he wanted before he could think about it.

"Hi, Kris," Nace's deep voice greeted him from the other side.

"Can I come over?"

Nace paused, no doubt hearing his voice wavering. There was sizzling in the background and Kris realized that Nace was probably in the middle of making lunch.

He truly knew how to pick the time for a mental breakdown.

"Of course. But are you...okay? Do you want me to come to you?"

"No, no. It's fine. I'll...we can talk when I get there."

Kris could practically see Nace furrowing his brows. Worrying if Kris was truly well enough to walk to his place, like they didn't live ten minutes away from one another.

"It's fine, really. See you in a few."

He ended the call before Nace coukd say anything else. Even just hearing his voice calmed him down a bit.

The walk to Nace's apartment wasn't long, but to Kris' spiralling thoughts, it felt like ages. When he finally reached it and rang the doorbell, he felt overwhelming relief.

Loud barking came from the other side of the door. Kris heard Nace cursing as he tried to get around Ollie and unlock the door.

Kris did his best to put on a smile as the doors opened.

"Get in quickly, before he gets out," Nace said urgently.

Kris stepped through the door, shutting it behind him. Ollie immediately began jumping at him and demanding attention. He crouched down to pet him and let him lick his hands. He grit his teeth and counted to ten to not flinch from it.

"Right. Ollie, that's enough, let him breathe."

"It's okay. Really."

He was still crouching down, so he had to look up. Of course, that was the moment he noticed Nace was wearing a black tank top.

The bassist didn't wear sleeveless shirts often, but God we he did...fuck. Kris had to concentrate.

"I'm okay, I think. It was. I read an article I shouldn't have and I just..."

...wanted to see you. He swallowed. Thankfully, Nace seemed to understand. He offered Kris a hand to pull him up.

"Let's go to the living room first."

Saliva from Ollie licking his hands suddenly became very uncomfortable. Almost burning. And Nace was probably going to eat.

"I'll just go wash my hands first," Kris said, getting up without taking Nace's hand.

Ollie whined sadly at the lack of attention and Nace gave him a worried look right before Kris dashed to the bathroom.

He took a few deep breaths, avoiding looking at himself in the mirror. Then he thoroughly washed his hands with soap. He stopped when the skin started getting red. He didn't want Nace asking questions about that.

He found Nace setting up the table in the dinning room. He put down two plates. And on the left side, where Kris prefered to sit, there was a fork, a spoon and a knife he liked. His chest felt warm. He never explicitly told Nace this, but he noticed anyway.

"I wasn't sure if you ate already but I figured it won't hurt to put another plate for you."

"Thank you," Kris said quietly.

He sat down and only then did he dare to sneak a look at Nace, who sat at the opposite side of the table. Maybe it was the light. Or the fact that Kris felt shaky and Nace was always so solid and steady. Like Kris could lean on him and he would not crack under the weight Kris was carrying.

Whatever it was, it made tears suddenly run down his cheeks. Like the pressure caught up with him all at once and was now crushing his chest.

There was a sound of chair scrapping against the floor, and it seemed so loud at the moment Kris had to cover his ears. He was sobbing, he realized, almost distantly.

It felt like he was shifting in an out of his body. One moment he was so overwhelmed with all the sensations and in the other he felt completely numb. He knew he was crying but felt none of it.

Then the lights turned off and the radio that played in the background was silenced, too. All he could hear for the moment were his own sobs and heavy breathing.

"Kris?"

Nace's voice was soft and quiet. It didn't feel like someone scratching their nails over his ears. Kris slowly lowered his hands from his ears.

"Can I touch you?"

Kris considered it. He didn't think he could stand that yet, though. He shook his head.

"Okay. How about we go through the exercise we do with Bojan?"

Kris almost snapped that he wasn't having a panic attack. That this was different. That everything was just too much. But that would use up too much air. And Nace looked so worried. He nodded.

"Okay. Only focus on five things you can see, okay? You don't have to tell me which ones out loud, just count them."

He didn't have the strenght to roll his eyes. Instead, he counted. One, Nace. Two, red tablecoth with a horrendous Christmas pattern. Why did it have Christmas pattern? It was October.

"Don't get distracted," Nace gently reprimanded.

Right. Counting.

Three, the table. Four, the plate. Fifth...the fork.

He looked back at Nace and nodded once, indicating he was done.

"Alright. Four things you can touch?"

One, the hoodie he was wearing. Two, his jeans. Three, the chair he was sitting on. Four...

He reached out and carefully grasped Nace's shoulder. Well, a place between his shoulder and neck, so his hand was touching his shirt. It felt more bearable when it was him touching Nace and there was a layer if soft cotton between their skin.

"Three things you can hear."

Nace's voice. Faint buzzing of the refrigerator. Their heavy breathing.

He nodded again.

"Two things you can smell?"

Tomato soup on the table, steaming from the pot. Faint traces of Nace's cologone.

Another nod.

"One thing you can taste?"

Nothing. Just water he drank earlier. He supposed that counted, though. He nodded.

"Okay. Do you feel a bit better?"

He considered it. He felt exhausted but certainly less overwhelmed. And his hand on Nace's shoulder wasn't painful sensation, but just a neutral one. That was a good sign.

"Yes."

"Alright. Do you want to eat, or would you prefer to lie down on the couch for a bit?"

"Lie down."

This time, when Nace offered him his hand, Kris took it. It was warm and slight callused. Steady.

He took him to the living room and covered him with a blanket when Kris laid down. Turned off the lights.

"I will just go get my plate."

So that was how Kris ended up with his eyes closed, listening to Nace eating his soup. And really, it should have been an annoying sound but somehow...it wasn't.

Then Nace put his plate on the coffee table with a dull clank. Kris cracked his eyes open, just to see Nace looking at him.

"Can I get you water? Or juice? Or...something?"

"Water would be nice."

When Nace came back with a glass, he held it to Kris' lips instead of letting him take it. His cheeks warmed. He drank and tried not to think about how suggestive this looked like.

Nace quietly set the glass aside after he was done and sat back down. Silence streched.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Kris huffed. He supposed he should. He did just barge into Nace's apartment and had a meltdown. Potentially scarred his dog, since Ollie was nowhere to be found.

"I just had a really shitty day. My coffee maching broke, so I had to get a coffee to go from a cafe, which meant I was almost ten minutes late to the practice. And you know how that went, you were there. Jan managed to cut his finger on a string badly and there was blood and I couldn't find my first aid kit because Bojan put it in the wrong drawer-"

"Kris. Breathe."

He fidgeted with his sleeve and took few deep breaths. In and out. In and out. He rubbed his hands over his jeans, letting the texture ground him.

"Right. And then I came home and I was scrolling through Instagram and someone mentioned an article that talked about me and my dad. So I looked it up and it went on to essentially explain how I will never measure up to him and they are sort of right because. No I won't, our careers are different anyway, but then I realized how fucking useless-"

He stopped as Nace took his hands in his own. He gently rubbed over his knuckles and suddenly Kris was tongue-tied.

"Sorry. Should have asked before touching you."

"It's okay."

More than okay, now. It was comforting. He didn't always like touch and not from anyone, but he didn't mind it now.

"You are not your dad and you don't have to be. You are your own person, with your own way of doing things."

Kris opened his mouth, but Nace raised his hand to stop him.

"No-don't interrupt me. I know you know that, but you still try so hard to be perfect all the time. Jesus, Kris you sometimes hold yourself to such impossible standard, it pains me to watch."

Kris simply stared at him. No one ever put it that way. It was always just "You don't have to me like your dad". But never "You don't have to be perfect at all, even in a way specific to you".

"Oh."

Nace's expression softened. He gently pulled him into a hug, Kris' face perfectly fitting between his shiulder and neck. Few tears escaped him as Nace stroked his hair.

"You are good enough as you are. You don't have to try. And you don't have to compete all the time with Bojan, either. Life isn't a competition."

Kris chuckled, despite the tears.

"Kind of feels like it for me."

"Because you never let yourself relax and just...be yourself. Breathe. Relax. I promise you are safe."

Nace's words slowly sank in and to his surprise, he felt like he could finally relax. Let all the bitterness slip away for a moment.

He pulled Nace closer, so they somehow both ended up lying on the couch that was certainly not made for teo men their size. Still, they managed.

"Can you help me with that?"

"With what? Being yourself?"

Kris rolled his eyes and slightly pulled back so he could look at Nace. He reached his hand out and cupped his face. Stroked his thumb over his cheek. Finally allowing himself to do it.

Nace's breath hitched, but he didn't pull away. His eyes carefully considered him.

"No. To relax."

"I don't think your definition of relaxing is a good idea right now."

Kris huffed. Maybe it was the bone deep exhaustion that started to settle in, or the fact that he figured that surely, this day can't get much worse. Whatever it was, it made him lean in, pressing a quick kiss to Nace's lips.

Nace didn't kiss him back.

"I'm sorry-"

"I am not rejecting you. I just don't think this is a good idea while you are this upset."

That was...infuriatingly reasonable. Still, Kris felt embarrassed and slightly disappointed. It felt like a rejection.

Nace sighed.

"Kris. I promise we can talk about this later. For now...how about you get some rest? You look tired."

Kris bit his lip. He was tired. But he was also very comfortable with Nace next to him. He snuggled back into his neck.

"Only if you stay."

Nace kissed the side of his head.

"Always."

Not everything was okay, and however his talk with Nace later went, not everything will magically get solved. But maybe for now...Kris could relax. Just for a bit.

With that as his last thought, he drifted off into a dreamless sleep. Safe and sound.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

You people., the ideas you have are gold

Because of you people (Especially @hobiebrownismygod your ideas are GOLD I hope this is okay) I NEED

DiscoPunk for Rolling Stones Magazine

If you don't know, Hobie and my Spidersona Diane are in a musical duo called DiscoPunk

They have an album you can listen to here, called BackAlleyJazzLettuce and they've been on tour in Camden before (tour poster here)

Do you knows how tempted I am to draw a full Rolling Stones Magazine cover of Hobie and Diane

DiscoPunk with huge headlines of them being a genre-defying musical powerhouse

and then writing a full length article from the perspective of as fake reporter interviewing them for their new EP, their second release that's freshly certified platinum (not that they care they're so cool right)

The interviewer asking them questions and they reply as if they were the ones who wrote and performs the songs on the accompanying Spotify playlist I make of songs I pretend they produced

Like the song BRAT by Chrissy Chlapecka is track 4 and the interviewer is like 'that songs a lot more experimental than the others on the EP - what's the story behind that song?'

And Hobies like 'Oh that's a song we wrote together when a guy was bothering Diane at the club so we wrote a song about how he's a dickhead.'

And Dianes like 'i like that one cause there hook is a chop and remixed melody that Hobie was strumming one night. Metro[Spider] Boomin helped produce that one'

And the interviewer describes how they perform and what they're wearing and their demeanor. They talk about their short UK tour and their fans it's Diane and Hobie being adorable rising-rock-stars and undefined lovebirds

Mind you THIS IS STILL IN THE 70S SO IT'S EXTRA COOL

The interviewer is like 'There's been rumors about DiscoPunk being the UK's Eurovision stars - any truth to that'

(could you believe they had Eurovision then I had to google it and they DID wtf)

and Hobie is like 'only if they let me sing a song about burning down Buckingham Palace'

Diane likes 'what's Buckingham Palace'

He's like 'Lizzy's spot.'

And she's like 'oh that ugly ass castle we be driving by in the black cabs? Yeah bomb it it's ugly 😭😭 start over. the castles in France are better.'

Acting like they're a real duo on a real tour dropping a real album

Nothing to do with Spiderman just Diane and Hobie being rockstars

Posing on the cover of Rolling Stone in shirts with obscenities or in matching skirts

(there's also features by Ansi esp Willow's Wait a Minute, and, MetroSpider, and Miguel's wife Moche)

DO YOU SEE IT DO YOU SEE THE VISION

I wanna do this so bad but that's so much work but I WANNA wouldn't it be so rad!!!!!!! I WANNA DO THE WHOLE THING I COULD I HAVE THE PHOTOSHOP IN FRONT OF ME

I'm like 20 seconds away from just designing my own DiscoPunk tour shirt and printing it for myself I should do that I should become God and make them real

[the--blackdahlia]

Two of a Kind (Working on a Full House) (MJF x Adam Cole)

Title: Two of a Kind (Working on a Full House)

Summary: Double or Nothing Weekend in Vegas. What could possibly go wrong?

Warnings: Mild dub-con, implied drunk sex, language, angst with a happy ending, drinking

The lights were too bright as Adam slowly opened his eyes. It wasn’t even that bright in the room, but when the alcohol was gone and just left its nasty aftertaste, everything was too bright. The room was spinning slightly as he shut his eyes, savoring the darkness and enjoying the arms wrapped around him.

What…what?

Adam’s eyes snapped back open. He looked down and, sure enough, there were a pair of arms wrapped around him, holding him close to whoever was behind him. Okay, so he had brought someone back to the room. That would explain why his ass hurt. God, Max was going to kill him for doing that. Especially if he had to go sleep somewhere else.

Glancing over at the bed across from him, he saw it was empty. Either Max had gone somewhere else when Adam brought back his date, or he had left early to get breakfast or something. All Adam knew was he wasn’t there, and he was praying that the person behind him wasn’t Roddy.

Adam was trying to figure out what to do. The arms around him were pretty strong, so he’d have to wake up whoever it was. He groaned softly, trying to figure out what he should do. His phone was right there on the nightstand. He could text Max and ask for his help getting rid of the guy. He slowly reached for his phone when something on his left hand caught his attention. 

A black and gold silicon band hugged his ring finger, right underneath the Dynamite Diamond ring.

Oh.

Oh no.

Adam slowly turned his head as far as he could to see if he could see the face of the man behind him. He could see a mop of curly hair, and he caught a whiff of very familiar cologne. A panic started to overtake Adam as he wiggled out of the arms and quickly stood up.

“Oh god…” Adam gasped. Sure enough, Max was lying there, slowly starting to wake up from Adam pulling away from him. Adam took in the sight before him. Empty bottles on the nightstand by his phone, condoms thrown off to the side, their clothes in a pile at the foot of the bed. Max was naked in the bed, and Adam had been just a moment ago.

Before Adam could stop himself, a scream spilled from his lips, jolting Max awake.

“What? What’s going on?” He asked, sitting up quickly. He and Adam stared at each other. “Uh, brochacho, why are you naked and screaming?”

“Why am I…why are you naked in my bed?!”

“Naked in your…” Max lifted the blanket that had pooled around his waist. Sure enough, not an article of clothing to be seen. He dropped the blanket and caught sight of his own left hand. A matching black and gold silicon ring to the one Adam was wearing. “What the fuck?”

“Trust me, I know!” Adam held up his hand to show Max the ring on his own. Max quickly grabbed his hand.

“Why do you have my diamond ring?” He asked.

“Fuck if I know! Just take it.” Adam slid the ring off and handed it back to Max, just leaving the silicon band.

“How much did we drink last night?” Max was taking in all the same things that Adam had. Adam grabbed a pair of underwear from his bag and slipped them on. “We just had a couple of drinks, right?”

“I think so? I don’t really remember,” Adam sighed. “I just remember Dax and Cash buying beers, and then we decided to go play mini golf with Yuta and Claudio. That was the last thing I remember.”

“Well, the aftertaste in my mouth isn’t whatever white trash beer FTR decided to buy us,” Max rubbed his eyes. “My mother is going to kill me.”

“Why?”

“I got married and didn’t even tell her. She’s going to cut my balls off.”

“...You just found out you married your tag team partner and you’re worried about your mom?!”

“I’m worried about other things too Adam!” Max looked around. “Like where the hell is the Triple B?”

“Did you lose on Collison or something?”

“Now is NOT the time to be making jokes Adam.”

Max was out of bed and tearing the room apart to find his belt. Adam went to look in the bathroom, because weirder things had happened, when he came upon a piece of paper. A marriage license. For the marriage of Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Adam Friedman.

What. The. Fuck.

Adam quickly headed into the bathroom. After not seeing the Triple B anywhere, he decided to use these moments alone to try to compose himself. He splashed some water on his face and looked in the mirror. Thankfully, no Mike Tyson tattoo and no missing teeth. And there was no tiger in the bathtub. There was just a mocking black and gold ring and a pain that proved they had been together the night before. After calming himself down, he headed back into the room to a scene that was anything but calm.

“I can’t find her!”

“Her?”

“The Triple B!” Max had torn apart their bags, their clothes all over the floor.

“Can you put some pants on and we’ll look together?” Adam asked, which got Max to stop for a second, realizing he was, in fact, still naked.

“Don’t like the view hubby?” Max asked, making Adam glare.

“Okay, fine, you can look for the belt yourself.”

“Oh come on babe, I was kidding…”

“Max, thin ice,” Adam growled. “Come on. Let’s get dressed. We’ll see if it’s at the desk.”

After getting dressed and making sure sunglasses were firmly on their heads, they headed to the front desk. Max had to be restrained when the poor desk girl said that she hadn’t seen it.

“Okay, okay. Let’s go get breakfast and we’ll figure something out,” Adam told him. “It has to be around here somewhere.”

The two found a cafe and were seated outside. Adam was not paying attention as Max ordered them mimosas for their drinks. He was too busy looking at the menu and staring at the ring on his finger.

“I really thought after last night, more alcohol would be the last thing you’d want,” Yuta said as he and Claudio took their seats at the table next to Adam and Max. Adam was frozen mid-sip, realizing the orange juice wasn’t exactly orange.

“How much did we drink?” Adam asked, setting the glass down.

“I don’t know about afterward, but with us, shots flowed like water,” Claudio chuckled. “We might have had a little drinking game going.”

****

The Day Before

“You miss, you take a shot?” Yuta suggested.

“We’ll all be too drunk to make a shot,” Adam told him.

“Okay, well what do you have in mind, Bay Bay?”

“Someone makes a hold in one, everyone takes a shot?” Max suggested. He missed the wicked look on Claudio’s face.

“Excellent,” He chuckled. “Let’s get to it.”

By the 10th hole, Max and Adam were starting to feel buzzed. No one bothered to tell them that on top of everything else that the superhuman known as Claudio was good at, mini-golf was on the list. And Yuta had gotten a few too, meaning that Max and Adam were several shots down at this point.

“That was fun!” Yuta laughed, slightly buzzed at the end of the course.

“Fun for you guys maybe,” Adam grumbled.

“Oh come on, at least we didn’t make you do karaoke or something,” Yuta slapped his shoulder. “Maybe you two should go get some dinner.”

“Not going with us?” Max asked.

“We have some things to attend to,” Claudio explained before walking off with Yuta, leaving Max and Adam to their own devices.

****

Present Day

“What happened after that?” Adam asked. Yuta shrugged.

“You guys went off to get dinner and we went to use our room’s jacuzzi.”

“You’re not very helpful, you know that?” Max snapped.

“You’ll have to excuse Max. He lost something very important,” Adam explained, trying to keep the peace. Lord knows he didn’t want Yuta to run and tell Mox that he needed to fight Max.

“His championship?” Claudio looked Max over. “I know that by the 12th hole, you were letting people take pictures with it.”

“I let poors touch the Triple B?!” Max asked, absolutely horrified. To the point Yuta, Adam, and Claudio all started laughing. “Did one of these, these western, desert-dwelling, Fallout wannabes take it?” Adam looked at Max. Did he make a video game reference? To a game that Adam had off-handedly said he was going to play on the plane?

“No, you did have it when we left you,” Claudio told him. Max breathed a sigh of relief, but that was quickly replaced with more worry at where the hell his belt was.

The rest of the breakfast was pretty uneventful. Yuta and Claudio made small talk, and for the most part, Adam and Max did their best to keep it up. It felt like just two couples having brunch. Nothing more. After the pancakes were eaten and the mimosas drank, Max and Adam headed back out to see if they could find the belt.

“Well, at least we know that you didn’t let some random mini-golfer walk off with it,” Adam shrugged. “I just wish we knew more about what we did last night, so we could retrace our steps.”

“We got lucky with Swiss and Yoots. What’s the likelihood that our next piece will fall right into our laps?”

“Hey! What rhymes with homewrecker?” Someone called from the right of them. Max and Adam looked to see Anthony and Max Caster sitting in the shade of some trees, notebook laid open in front of Caster. “Adam should know all about that.”

“Excuse me?” Adam asked, walking towards the Acclaimed.

“After what you did last night? To me?” Caster laid a hand over his heart, and Anthony rolled his eyes.

“He’s just being a little overdramatic because of what happened last night,” Anthony explained. Max and Adam glanced at each other.

“What…happened?” Max asked. Caster glared at him.

“Your little “engagement” at dinner? Remember?”

****

The Night Before

“This place looks nice and sobering,” Adam told Max as they approached the restaurant. Of all places to pick, they were going to Margaritaville. Max had seen a sandwich board with drinks on it, and he wanted to try the pretty blue one. 

“What are you two doing here?” Anthony asked as Max and Adam were seated at a table near them, appetizer and drink orders placed. It was obvious they were having a good time thanks to liquid courage.

“Food. Gotta sober up,” Adam told him. Their brightly colored drinks were settled in front of them along with a large plate of volcano nachos. 

“Yeah, those drinks are not going to sober you up,” Caster laughed.

“I dunno, I’m feeling pretty good,” Max smirked over at the Acclaimed. “Where’s your daddy?”

“Austin and Colton have visitation this weekend. He’ll be back in our custody tomorrow night,” Anthony munched on a stick of celery from the wings that were between the two.

After some banter and burgers between the two tag teams, Max’s eyes fell on a beautiful chocolate lava cake that was being brought over to a table not too awfully far from theirs. He looked at Adam then with a wicked smile.

“Want a lava cake?” He asked.

“Always!”

“Then play along, okay?” Max slipped his diamond ring off his finger and knelt on the ground. “Adam, I know we didn’t always like each other, but these last few months together have meant more to me than you can ever imagine. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?” Adam, in his drunken mind, found himself giddy at the thought of marrying Max. He had a big smile on his face as he nodded.

“Yes!” Adam smiled at Max. People around then clapped and cheered. Even Anthony, until Caster stamped on his foot then booed.

“That’s my boyfriend,” Caster grumbled.

“Not anymore man. He’s Adam’s,” Anthony laughed.

Not long after, the staff brought a cake out for Adam and Max to enjoy, and a couple bought them some more drinks.

The two stumbled out of the restaurant later, full of alcohol and high on each other, holding hands as they left and not letting go as they headed down the strip and out of view of the Acclaimed.

****

Present Day

“Explains how I got your ring,” Adam shrugged. “Doesn’t explain these though.” Caster noticed the silicon bands then and his eyes widened.

“You got married?!”

“Run!” Max quickly took off running, leaving Adam standing there.

“Uh, great seeing you guys!” Adam said before quickly following Max. “Max, why didn’t you ask them about your belt?”

“And give them more material to use in a rap? I don’t think so.”

Adam didn’t really say much more as he and Max continued to try to retrace their steps. They headed to the restaurant from the night before, getting warm smiles from the staff that had been present for their engagement. But they didn’t have the belt.

“You put it on him before you left,” The girl told Max. “Said it made his eyes pretty.”

“I…” Max and Adam both blushed.

“Did you see where we went when we left?” Adam asked, taking over the conversation.

“I think you headed over towards the strip?”

“Thanks for your help,” Adam signed before he and Max headed back out. They were about a block from the strip, and with no idea what happened after they left Margaritaville, their leads had come to an end. “Max, we need to talk about the other thing.”

“What other thing?”

“You know, the marriage thing,” Adam held up his hand. “I know you don’t want this. I don’t want this. So after we find the Triple B, let’s head over to the Clark County Courthouse and get an annulment.”

“Oh…” Max looked more defeated than he had just a few minutes ago, and it absolutely broke Adam’s heart.

“I mean, you don’t really want to be married to me, do you?” Adam asked. Max was quiet for a second.

“Let’s just go find my damn belt,” He mumbled. He didn’t say much, but it gave Adam all the answers he needed. They weren’t supposed to be in love. They were friends and that was it. But maybe there were more feelings behind a lava cake engagement and a chapel wedding than Adam thought. For both of them.

They had just stepped onto the strip when a voice started calling their names.

“Adam! Max!” RJ called. “There you are! Finally!”

“RJ? What’s up?” Adam asked, turning towards him. RJ held out the belt then.

“Thing is a lot heavier than it looks,” He laughed. “I had to stop Charlie from just taking it.”

“You had my baby?!” Max took the belt and hugged it against him.

“You gave it to me last night over at Venus Garden, and then we’re too busy trying not to undress each other to pick it up.”

“Venus Garden? Is that a strip club or something?”

“No. The Chapel at Ceasers. You guys dragged me, Charlie, Trent, and Chuck there as witnesses.”

****

The Night Before

“I can’t believe we’re doing this!” Adam was giggling as Max led him towards the chapel. “Wait!”

“What?”

“We’re not dressed for the occasion!” Adam told him. “And we don’t have witnesses!”

“Hey, there’s some losers over there. Let’s get them,” Max held Adam’s hand as they headed over to Chuck, Trent, RJ, and Charlie, who had just left their own dinner and were going to film some BTE skits for Brandon while Nick and Matt were blowing their money in a casino or a shoe store. 

“Hey fives,” Max greeted as he and Adam approached the group. “Us tens need witnesses.”

“For an alibi?” RJ asked.

“We’re getting married!” Adam giggled, showing his hand with the diamond ring on it.

“Fuck,” Trent slapped a twenty in Chuck’s hand. “I didn’t think they’d go through with it.”

“Are you coming or not?” Max huffed. The four looked at each other before following the couple back to the chapel. They were in complete shock at how loving Adam and Max were being with each other. Adam kissing Max’s cheek, Max holding onto Adam. It was like they had all stepped into the Twilight Zone.

“What names are we putting on here? Adam and Max Cole?” Adam asked, making Chuck laugh. “What?”

“Max Cole sounds like a porn star,” He was trying so hard to not laugh harder.

“You know, Adam Friedman doesn’t sound half bad,” Adam shrugged.

“I totally agree,” Max nodded.

They somehow managed to fill out the paperwork and picked out the rings. Since they were athletes, the lovely woman at the desk suggested silicon rings. She got those ready while everything was set up for the actual ceremony.

“We picked the wrestling package,” Adam told the gius. “It’s going to be awesome!”

That’s how the four were set in pews, watching as someone dressed as Macho Man Randy Savage performed a ceremony for Max and Adam.

“I now pronounce you Mr. Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Mr. Adam Friedman. You may kiss each other.”

Max was so gentle as he cupped the back of Adam’s neck and pulled him in for a kiss. It was so cute, sweeter than anything any of them had seen in a movie recently. To the point that Chuck even had to wipe his eyes.

“You okay man?” Trent asked.

“I love weddings,” Chuck smiled as Trent rolled his eyes.

After making sure the witnesses signed a form saying, yes, the wedding was valid, Max took hold of Adam’s hand and dragged him out of the chapel and down the strip.

“Hey! Wait! You forgot your…” RJ called after them, but they were in a rush to start their wedding night. “Well, guess I’m AEW Champion for the night.”

“Schiavone is more of a champion than you,” Charlie mumbled, making Trent and Chuck burst out laughing.

“Should I go take it to them?”

“Only if you want to see some things that you won’t be able to unsee,” Trent shrugged. “I gotta go find Hunk now.” He and Chuck left then. RJ just tossed the belt onto his shoulder and headed back to his hotel.

****

Present Day

“Macho Man? We got married by Macho Man?” Max asked.

“Are you sure it wasn’t just Jay Lethal?” Adam asked. RJ shook his head.

“Nope. It was an actual ordained person dressed as Macho Man. And we all signed the marriage stuff. You are 100% married.”

“Yeah, and we’ll soon be 100% divorced,” Max whispered. The pain in his voice stabbed Adam straight in the heart. “Well, we got the belt. Let’s go find the courthouse.”

“Sex that bad?” RJ asked, making Max glare at him. “Okay, I’m shutting up. Have fun!” Max stormed off, Adam not far behind.

“Max, wait,” Adam reached out, but Max pulled away. “What is wrong? We got your belt back. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“I don’t want to be divorced at 27!” Max yelled. “You ever think that maybe there was some truth behind this besides being drunk and wanting a lava cake? Why do you think I insisted on sharing hotel rooms with you? Not because I can’t afford them. Or why I bought a fucking, what are they called, Steam Deck? And a Nintendo Switch? And like, I watch your Twitch streams and watch video playthroughs of absolutely shitty people playing really dumb but really pretty Japanese games? Because I fucking love you, okay?!”

“You…you love me?” Adam asked.

“Let’s just go find this fucking courthouse and get this over with. We have shit to do tonight and I don’t want to have this hanging over my head when I’m beating Joe’s ass.” Max pulled out his phone to call for an Uber.

Adam tried to talk to him in the Uber, but anything he said didn’t seem like it would be good enough. Adam wanted to tell Max that he had researched different Jewish customs, that he had taken up listening to the music Max recommended and had even turned it into a playlist that he’d listen to. Or that he always got excited when he’d see Max’s name show up on his Twitch stream and had to fight the urge to call him and get him to collaborate on a video.

Oh shit.

He was in love with Max too.

“Here we are,” The Uber driver stopped in front of the courthouse. Max and Adam climbed out, Adam thanking the driver. Max was already walking into the courthouse and searching out the self-service area.

“Max, wait,” Adam said, but Max shook his head.

“Let’s go sit out on the picnic table and look through this,” Max said. “I’m not too sure about the rules.” Adam followed Max back outside with the paperwork. Max tossed the papers onto the picnic table and sat down, staring at everything.

“Max…” Adam took the papers from him, making the younger man look up at him. “Maybe I was too harsh too fast. Maybe…maybe we could give this marriage thing a try?” He took the paperwork and ripped it in half, making Max’s eyes widen. “I’m willing to try if you are.”

“I’d like that,” Max smiled at him. Adam leaned across the table and kissed Max, smiles on both of their faces. “You made me waste $25 getting an Uber here.”

“Well, gave me time to think.” Adam laughed.

“Wanna go back to the hotel until we have to go to the area?” Max asked.

“I’d love nothing more.”

****

6 Months Later

Word had spread quickly about Max and Adam’s marriage, especially after Roddy saw them kissing backstage and ran off. Things seemed to be going great, they went on dates, they traveled together, Adam was learning more about Max’s heritage, and Max was finding that Adam’s nerdy hobbies really weren’t that nerdy after all.

And then Max’s mom invited them to Long Island. Max had been nervous leading up to the trip, but Adam couldn’t figure out why. She had taken it very well considering her son had gotten married at a chapel in Vegas to his tag team partner.

“Max, I’ve met your parents several times. I don’t understand why you’re so nervous.”

“It just feels different this time…” Max shrugged.

They arrived at Max’s parent's house in time for dinner. Adam was shocked as he walked in and saw his mom talking with Max’s mom. The dads were in the man cave, sharing a beer. And before too long, they were all gathered around the dining room table for an amazing dinner. Adam noticed that Max was fidgety more than normal. 

“Everything okay?” Adam whispered under the cover of conversation.

“Everything’s great!” Max smiled at him. Adam nodded, not 100% sold, but he didn’t want to push too much.

A little bit later, Max stood up. His mom had a knowing smile on her face as he cleared his throat.

“I want to thank you all for getting here,” Max started, turning to look at Adam. “I know that we’re already married, and everything didn’t exactly go the way either of us really planned. I want to do this right. Now over a free lava cake with Cheeseburger in Paradise playing in the background.” Max knelt in front of Adam, holding up a ring box. “Adam Cole, will you do me the honors of properly marrying me?” Adam smiled, nodding.

“Yes Max, I will.”

[blingblong55]

Do you know those pranks where someone says "hold on I'm getting a call" and then someone just obsenely moans, so take that bit

Y/N: Ah shit, my sisters calling me

Y/N: Hey- uh huh, hm, oh-

Soap: Moans loudly near the phone

And Y/N? They look geniunenly horrified. They slowly turn to Soap and just give him a grimace before

Y/N: That was my sister... she's called to tell me my dad's dead

And slooowly Soap's face to nothing but horror. God this'll so be one of those things he stays up late thinking about

Soap: You're- please tell me you're joking

But Y/N just shakes their head. They aren't. Soap nearly dies from how much embarassement and cringe is going through his body. Yes the rest of the 141 saw the entire thing

I bursted out caught while catching a taxi,,,this is gold!!! Also this so so funny to me because I just read an article where an old lady died from too much sex....im so going to hell

I can just imagine the silence that was set in the room. And from a far distance you see gaz cover his mouth.

Soap: ....

Gaz:....

Price:....

Ghost: well that killed the fun

Gaz: dude!

Ghost: what price told me to speak up when needed!

anon,,,you definitely know how to create plot twists

[crappymixtape]

you're never far behind // ( teaser )

EDIT -> full fic pt. 1 posted here — lil teaser here around @carinacassiopeiae's request for childhood friends -> strangers -> friends -> lovers ( holy shit dude this is SO MUCH FUN to write i can't wait to post it for youuuu ♥️ )

SUMMARY: you've been out of hawkins for four years and when you come back to help your dad you find something you hadn't even been looking for, but you quickly realize without it you'll fall apart ( steve x you fic )

Everything was a mixture of cheers and boos and the clock buzzing and the slap of the ball on the court and you tried to ground yourself in it all, but it felt like you were drowning. It was so familiar, but so foreign and as you watched the kids on the other side of the court you tried to remember what it was like. Laughing with each other until you cried or sneaking booze into paper soda cups or not caring at all as you were attached at the face in the stands.

You might have been able to get a grip on shit, might have waded through the night just fine, but there was something else that held you tight like a vice.

Messy brown hair, moles and freckles like tiny constellations scattered across his skin, the same old dirty pair of Blazers on his feet, the curve of his mouth, the way his propped his hand on his hip.

Steve.

You knew you should’ve been watching the game, should’ve been paying attention so that you could hold any kind of decent conversation the next morning in the shop, but you couldn’t pull your eyes away.

Coach Harrington.

Was he the same as he’d been before you’d left? Smug and cocky, but all warm and soft underneath. Shotgunning a beer one minute and holding your hand tight and close in his the next. Singing loud enough in the car his voice cracked and broke until he fell apart into laughter and looked over at you with those eyes. Burnt caramel, warm honey, flecks of gold and green and deep and–

“Hell of a game! My god, paper’ll have a heck of an article tomorrow,” your dad’s voice shook you back to reality and when you looked back up at the scoreboard the time read 00:00.

“Yeah. Yeah, damn. Great game,” you laughed weakly and tried to smile at your dad, eyes flicking back over to the sidelines to see Steve and the rest of the team were gone. Because of course they were. The game was over.

“Well. Don’t feel like you gotta come straight home,” your dad said, giving your arm a squeeze, “I know you probably wanna catch up with your friends.”

“Dad–” you started, brows furrowing together as you pinched the bridge of your nose between your fingers, “I really don’t feel like we’re friends, it’s been years since–”

“Oh don’t be silly, time doesn’t matter,” he waved a hand dismissively at you and stood from the bench, a crutch under each arm, “Just go say hi already. Scaredy cat.”

“Excuse me–” you protested, offense all over your face as you got ready to give your dad the breakdown, but it stalled on your lips as an all too familiar voice cut in.

“Hey! Holy shit, I heard you were back in town. S'all anyone's been talking about."

Fuck. You wished you’d worn something other than jeans and a shitty, old, red hoodie. At least it matched the Chucks on your feet.

[starlightswitch]

Lost: Heirloom Ring

@flashfictionfridayofficial I did this sort of story years ago for Writer's Month and to my surprise it got more interest than normal for me; I wonder what will happen this time?

10:27PM You didn’t tell me you got home so I’m hoping that means you forgot and not that you were in an accident or something.

I got home

Okay

10:38PM I don’t even want to tell you this.

What?

10:50PM I lost the ring – It could literally be anywhere – What am I going to tell Grandma?

Okay don’t – Sorry I didn’t mean to hit send there. I mean this in the nicest way possible but don’t be dramatic. It couldn’t literally be anywhere.

I mean basically – I made the most stops possible on the way home – I got gas twice because the first place was expensive and I got a coffee so I needed an extra bathroom stop – It could be any of those places – I should have left it on my finger. Then I would at least know when it went missing

Or it could have fallen off your finger and rolled down a storm drain. Breathe, okay?

Grandma is going to kill me

Grandma is not going to kill you

She might disown me

Uh, no

She might hate me for the rest of her life and then come back and haunt me

Oh my god. Get back to me when you’re calm enough to remember what Grandma is like.

Ha ha ha ha – Can you at least kind of sympathize? I LOST THE RING

Yes I got that. I have an idea. Where were all those places you stopped?

The usual. The Wawa halfway, that Little River Coffee Co, the usual rest stop, and that last Sheetz before home. Don’t tell me to go back to all of them and look

Of course not

Grandma would call that a fool’s errand

That much driving? It would be a fool’s *quest*. Nope, I’m going to post about it and tag them all

Oh – How are you going to tag a rest stop?

I’m going to tag the Department of Transportation

Jess Kalin Monday, 8:15AM Yesterday, at brunch with my little sister Ella at the amazing Back Door, my grandma gave each of us a piece of jewelry that belonged to our mother (who you may know passed away a few years ago). To me, the pearl necklace she wore for her senior picture and graduation. To Ella, a gold ring studded with tiny emeralds– green being Mom’s and Ella’s shared favorite color. The ring was a tiny bit big for Ella, so she tucked it in her pocket.

After her seven-hour drive home, Ella found the ring was gone.

We are hoping against hope it can be found where she stopped along the way. I’ll drop the exact locations in the comments. @Wawa, @Sheetz, @LittleRiverCoffeeCompany, @VirginiaDepartmentOfTransportation can anyone help us?

Virginia Department of Transportation Not Responding to Comments About Missing Ring Monday, 3:51PM The Virginia Department of Transportation has turned off comments on a post on their Facebook page asking if they will help in the search for a missing ring.

Yesterday afternoon, the Department was tagged in a post by Facebook user Jess Kalin. Kalin’s sister, Ella, apparently lost a ring, a family heirloom that had just been passed down to her, on an interstate drive. The now-viral post led Facebook user Lisa Kowalski to post on the Department of Transportation’s page requesting they help with the search for the ring. The post garnered dozens of comments in a few hours…

7:16PM Hey, isn’t the Back Door the restaurant you really like with the pierogis on the brunch menu?

Yeah, why?

There’s this article about this whole thing with a missing ring and the DOT. I just thought it was interesting the ring apparently got given to the person in the first place at the Back Door (link)

Oh my god

Back Door Restaurant Monday, 8:27AM FOUND: Ring. By the table one back from the window on the wall by the parking lot. (Pic is of the table we mean.) Describe to claim. Please spread the news if you know someone who was here yesterday, it’s a beautiful ring and we’re sure the owner wants it back!

Missing Ring Safe and Sound, “Most People Want to Help” Tuesday, 12:01PM A ring thought to have been dropped somewhere on the long drive from eastern Virginia to western North Carolina has been found.

The ring was given to Ella Kalin by her grandmother, Betty Sorochman, at popular brunch restaurant the Back Door on Sunday. When Kalin arrived home that evening, she discovered the ring was missing and assumed she must have lost it on the drive, prompting her sister Jess to take to Facebook.

Jess Kalin’s plea for help went viral. The manager of the Wawa where Ella stopped contacted Jessica, promising to alert her if the ring was found there. The Virginia Department of Transportation’s Facebook page received an influx of comments asking them to search for the ring at the rest stop where Ella Kalin stopped; the Department did not respond.

However, the ring had never left the restaurant. Employees at the Back Door found the ring Sunday and made a Facebook post Monday morning asking their followers to spread the news to help find the ring’s owner. Marya Logan is the follower who recognized the possible connection to the viral post about the missing ring. She contacted Jess Kalin and sent her the Back Door’s post. Jess confirmed the ring must be her sister’s.

Betty Sorochman went to the restaurant to reclaim the ring, which she will return to Ella. The ring originally belonged to Sorochman’s daughter Kimberly, Jess and Ella’s mother. Kimberly (Sorochman) Kalin passed away in 2019. Sorochman says she would love the story of the lost and found ring. “Kimmie loved a good story, so it’s only fitting now there’s one about her ring,” Sorochman says. “And she always said most people want to help, so if she found out how many people stepped in to help find her ring, she’d say, ‘See, I knew it’.”

[skepticalarrie]

Hiiii Allie

You need to watch this video, I almost cry it's the perfect description of louis, and it's very emotional💗

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMLWYn1Nf/

x Oh my god. I don't remember ever seeing this article and it's just... wow. It's beautiful, it's perfect. And the fact it was written seven years ago and how it relates to everything he went through after that and who he is now, his songs now, the artist he is. I'm glad we get to see him for who he truly is.

Here's the article:

When bravery meets love: Louis Tomlinson

Louis Tomlinson is like a coin with love and bravery as its two sides, two elements perfectly combined to create a human being with a heart of gold and a voice itching to be let free. He’s like a violin string waiting to be touched, to release in the air the most beautiful sounds. This is the Louis Tomlinson that lots of people will never see, the Louis hidden behind a wall made of lies and falsehoods, the Louis separated from us by a layer of dirt waiting to be scraped. Behind this wall of fake smiles stays an hidden treasure, so shining and precious that even imagining it could be difficult.

Louis Tomlinson was only eighteen years old when he found himself stuck in a world of lies, too evil for the blue-eyed boy, but he didn’t hesitate to be part of it, because it meant taking care of his beloved ones. Louis Tomlinson is the boy that for love found himself holding the hand of a girl in front of everyone and lying in front of cameras again and again. This is Louis Tomlinson. Not the rude kid who flips off the paps, but the brave guy, the brave man, who has been forced to do horrible things. And if he agreed to such terms, he did it for love.

Louis Tomlinson is bravery. He is the courage of always fighting back. Because Louis does fight back. He does it with ambiguous words, with his songs, songs that tell a story which can only be sung.

Louis Tomlinson is a flower that, despite having been walked over many times, hasn’t lost the colours of its petals. But there was a time that fans don’t like remembering, when Louis was almost skin and bones and his smiles were rare. When he was always silent on stage and the fans started worrying that maybe those wickednesses he had to bear could have destroyed his light forever. And when we were all wondering where he could find the strength to go on, Louis replied. He answered us with a song which is one of the most beautiful declaration of love of all times: love makes him strong. Love makes him brave.

This is why I get angry when I hear certain comments about Louis, comments of who is still in front of that wall, of who didn’t get past it. If you believe that Louis, with his beautiful heart and his beautiful mind, is a homophobic, or that he knocked up a random girl, then you didn’t understand anything. You let the media corrupt you.

So, Louis, if you’re reading this, here’s my message: I’m sorry.

I’m sorry for what you’ve been through. I’m sorry that you had to change, that they made you control even the most insignificant gesture. I’m sorry that you can’t be yourself in public, that they made you think there’s something wrong with who you are. I’m sorry for the image they made for you. I’m sorry, because if I search your name on Google, the first results are about you clubbing with random girls and not about your charity events. I’m sorry because that’s not you.

But I also want to thank you. Thank you for your courage, for always fighting back. I’m sure you’ll find your freedom soon. Your beautiful soul is itching for it, and we’re itching too. The world is waiting to go past that wall of lies, to see that hidden treasure.

[daydreamtofiction]

The Feature IX // Benedict Cumberbatch x Reader

Series Overview | Previous Part | Next Part

Chapter Summary: ‘Surely this wasn't real. None of this could possibly be real.’

Chapter Word Count: 4.8K

Chapter Warnings: Morally-grey reader, strong language, embarrassment, awkwardness, explicit sexual content (protected sex, biting and hickeys, mentions of bruising, unintentional orgasm denial) Readers must be 18+

Reader Tag List:  @blondekel77 @evelynrosestuff @bakerstreethound @annesthaeticc @aephereal @sharp-cheekbones-locked @sherlux @veryladyqueen @graciebear47 @allurenia @jamerlynn @cottagecore-cat @aysamuka @thegardenerofeden​ @cumbercatchmebaby @inspirationalandrandom @turkisherlockian @swds @weepingdreamerpanda @elzabethann @childofgod215​ @lonadane @briecantopme @lovecleastrange @jaspearl31 @paola-carter @greatburger @azu21​ @xourownsidee

If you would like to be tagged in the next part, feel free to comment or send me a message.

Your heart was still thumping as you walked across the busy hall, your lips still tender, flesh still tingling with the memory of Ben's touch. You pushed your way through a large group of people, mumbling a string of insincere apologies and impatient 'excuse me's as you went, eyes focused on Nick as he sat at a table on the other side of the room.

"Sorry, I just need-" You forced yourself through a small gap of people, accidentally elbowing the woman beside you and spilling champagne from her glass all over her hand. "Oh shit, I'm so sorry."

She was taller than you; her slender frame draped in a pale gold dress, blonde hair falling in soft waves over her chest. She was pretty, even as she frowned at the champagne covering her left hand, the sparkling liquid dripping from a large diamond engagement ring, a thin wedding band slotted perfectly behind it. You looked at her again, eyes darting over her face; so familiar yet-

Wait. Is that... Faye Dennehy?

"It's okay, it's fine," she sighed, as if only reluctantly accepting your apology. "I'm sure it was an accident."

Oh my god. It is, it's her.

"It was an accident," you insisted, looking around frantically for something to dry the spill, before tearing a page from your notebook and pressing it to her hand like a napkin. "Here."

She glanced down at the sheet of lined paper, then back to you, raising one of her perfectly groomed eyebrows.

"I'm a journalist," you said, flashing your press pass. "Here for work."

"Well I'm afraid whatever you wrote on here is gone for good," she said, gesturing to the ink running across the page, the words too smudged to read.

"That's fine, really, I probably wasn't going to use that bit anyway."

You turned on your heels and kept going without waiting for a reply, too focused on making it to the table where Nick sat interviewing another celebrity you couldn't quite remember the name of. He was scrawling quickly in his journal, laughing and nodding along as you pulled up a chair beside him, tapping him on the arm - tapping and tapping and tapping until eventually, he gave in and turned to you.

"What?" he hissed.

"Hey, listen I'm really sorry but I have to go."

"What!?"

"I know, I'm sorry. But look, I'll make it up to you - After tonight, you don't have to do anything else for this article, I'll write the entire thing."

"You were supposed to be writing the entire thing anyway..."

You groaned. "Oh Nick come on! Please!"

"What's going on? Why do you have to go?"

"Because..." You trailed off as a rolodex of lies began to flicker through your mind, but before you could land on a convincing one, he began to speak.

"You're leaving to shag someone, aren't you."

"What? No!"

"You are. You've met someone and now you're going to abandon your friend at an event you dragged him to, all so you can go and get plowed by some fancy famous twat in a nice suit."

"Firstly, 'plowed'?"

He rolled his eyes.

"Secondly, it's none of your business. So will you just say it's okay for me to go?"

He paused, the beginnings of a smirk forming. "Who is it?"

"Ugh, Nick, for fuck sake come on please-"

He rolled his eyes, waving his hand at you dismissively. "Yeah, fine alright, go."

"Thank you."

You had been given a strict set of instructions to follow, a detailed plan that Ben made you repeat back to him before he was satisfied you knew it. The first part was done; you had told Nick you were leaving, though you hadn't expected to run into the ex-wife on your way there. Next, you had to find Ben's publicist.

You walked out into the foyer, the noise from inside the gala turning to a mumble as it made way to the sound of rain against the roof, paparazzi and fans shouting outside. Your eyes fell on the woman you were looking for; older, blonde, wearing a long black coat and holding an umbrella.

"Hi, I think I was supposed to come and find you?" you said as you tentatively approached her.

She turned to you, scanning you quickly from head-to-toe and back. "Ah right okay, come on then."

"'Ah right okay'?" you asked with an awkward laugh as you followed her outside. "Like... 'Ah right okay, I see why he's taking you home'? or 'Ah right okay, each to his own'?"

She gave you an unamused look, remaining quiet as she put up the umbrella and held it over your head, leading you to the end of the red carpet and down the street where a black car with tinted windows was waiting.

"I'm not being kidnapped am I?" you said.

"Just sit tight, we'll be about five minutes," she replied.

You climbed into the back of the car, so warm it almost stung against your cold skin, making your face begin to flush. The driver glanced at you in the rearview mirror and you pressed your mouth into a tense smile as you sat back and began to wait, mind wandering to the narrow corridor at the back of the busy hall; the way he'd kissed you, the things he'd said as he pressed himself against you. You began to chew the same sore spot on the inside of your lip, crossing one leg over the other and squeezing your thighs together, anything to distract from the impatience growing between them.

After a few minutes, you noticed a commotion down the street; a scattering of flashing lights, people screaming, pushing and shoving around the edges of the red carpet. The car began to move, rolling slowly towards the chaos and coming to a gentle stop in the middle of it. You peered through the dark window to see Ben walking out, waving and smiling as his publicist walked closely beside him, umbrella shielding him from the rain.

She opened the door first, climbing into the car and shuffling down until she was sat right beside you, pressing you uncomfortably against the car door. You were annoyed, teeth clenched to hold in the angry huff brewing in your lungs, but as she turned her body away from you, leaning forward slightly as cameras continued to flash in the direction of the car, you realised she was shielding you from it, keeping you hidden. And suddenly, you felt the huff evaporate into a very thankful sigh.

As Ben climbed into the car, closing the door with one last wave, you noticed he'd put his wedding ring back on. Your eyebrow raised curiously, a million questions rattling around your mind; journalism and jealousy combined.

"Sorry about that," he said, breathing a sigh of relief as the car began to drive away. "You okay, Quinn?"

"Yeah," you replied quietly.

You were unsure what you'd expected from the drive back to his house. Perhaps some hand holding, maybe even a sly kiss or two, but having his publicist wedged between you both definitely wasn't on your list of possibilities. You wondered what she was thinking, what she knew. Had he told her why you were there? Or had he made up some kind of excuse to spare you the judgement of a woman whose entire job centred around public image.

But the more you thought about it, the less you feared her and the more irritated you became. This was one of the people who had orchestrated his marriage, who had convinced him it would be good, who had led him down a path of lies and secrecy and utter misery for two years. You wanted to tell her how awful you thought it all was, and how you hoped the seatbelt buckle was digging into her arse as she sat in the uncomfortable middle seat.

The car pulled up outside the house you'd come to know well. The porch light, the path, the door, all providing you with a sense of calm, like you were back on familiar soil. Ben jumped out before the tyres had even fully stopped, as if he were too eager to wait the extra few seconds, or maybe he was just desperate to escape the awkward atmosphere. Either way, within a few seconds he was at your door, opening it for you with a gentlemanly stoop of his head.

You climbed out into the cold, immediately crossing your arms to protect your exposed chest as you waited for him. He was leant forward, speaking to his publicist as she remained inside the car. You couldn't hear what they were saying, and for a brief moment you contemplated taking a small step forward to eavesdrop, but you stopped yourself, staying put until he finally stood up straight and shut the door.

You watched as the car drove away, leaving you both alone for the first time since he'd asked you to come home with him. The street was dark, quiet, the only sound coming from the rain as it bounced against the pavement. He turned to look at you as you looked up at him, both of you breaking into a quiet giggle, as if acknowledging how painfully awkward the journey had been.

"Shall we?" he said as he slipped off his suit jacket and draped it over your shoulders, placing a hand on your lower back to lead you towards the house.

You walked with him, pressing your nose gently to the collar and luxuriating in his scent; a blend of cologne and soap, the faintest whisper of cigarettes. You thought back to how Nick had refused to give you his jacket, while Ben didn't even have to be asked. It made you smile, but it also made you wonder just how deep the gentleman in him really went. A part of you hoped it wasn't all the way.

He opened the door and let you in, closing and locking it behind you. You slipped off the jacket and handed it back to him, watching as he strolled down the hallway and hung it in the cupboard. You remained still, standing near the front door as you watched him; admiring how good he looked in a suit, even without the jacket. How the trousers hugged his thighs, how his chest and arms seems so broad beneath the fabric of his shirt.

He shut the cupboard door with his foot and turned to look at you. "What?" he asked, narrowing his eyes with a slight smirk.

"Just think it's funny." You shook your head with a soft laugh. "It hasn't even been a week since we first met and yet somehow this is the fourth time I've been in your house."

"Mm, I think you might be a bit obsessed with me," he said as he began walking back towards you.

"Is that so?"

"Mhm. Look, even tonight you followed me all the way to an event." He was getting closer, holding back a grin as he spoke. "Cornered me in a back corridor, all alone, no escape..."

"Ah, you're right. That is absolutely what happened."

The smile finally made its way across his face, creating lines in his cheeks, creases at the corners of his eyes. Then he looked you up and down, almost hungrily, taking in every inch of you before speaking. "You look... incredible tonight."

"I should hope so. This dress cost my boss a fortune."

He dropped his head, breathing out a laugh.

"So you should probably be careful," you added, softening your voice to an almost whisper. "Y'know, when you... take it off me."

He brought his gaze back up to meet yours, the smile gone and replaced with a much more serious expression.

You cleared your throat. "In case it wasn't clear, that was a hint that I want to-"

"Yeah, I got it," he said, closing the distance between you and taking your face in his hands.

His lips were soft as they connected with yours, his kiss so forbearing and considerate it caught you off guard. He tasted like mint and champagne, that same suggestion of cigarettes, so slight it was barely there. You brought a hand up to the back of his neck, the other slowly snaking up his chest and resting on his shoulder, pulling him closer to you, making sure to leave no doubt in his mind that you wanted this, you wanted him.

He parted his lips, and you seized the chance to let your tongue sweep gently into his mouth. He reciprocated, his kiss slowly morphing into something more eager, more starved with every brush and flick of your tongues, the slightest grazing of teeth. You could feel your desire beginning to swell once again, the ache deep in your core forcing a soft moan to escape your lips. The sound seemed to ignite something within him as a growl rumbled in his throat, his hands moving to the back of your head, fingers gripping your hair.

"Fuck," he sighed softly, almost as if he didn't mean for you to hear it.

"What?" you whispered back.

He shook his head, stealing you back into another kiss, his lips curving into a slight smile as your hands dropped to wrap around his waist, your palms spread flat across his lower back and pulling him flush against you.

You stumbled backwards, bringing him with you, only stopping when your back made contact with something hard and cold. The front door? He pressed his body against you - seemingly unfazed by the location you'd found yourselves in - his mouth leaving yours to travel down your jaw to your neck, leaving a trail of kisses and soft bites in his wake. You felt one of his hands moving through the slit in your dress to grip the flesh of your hip, bracing you against the door with a firmness that made you shiver with excitement.

Not always a gentleman, after all. Thank god.

"I have to tell you I don't usually do this," he said breathlessly.

"I know. You've been celibate for two years," you replied sarcastically.

"No." He rested his head on your shoulder with a laugh before laying a kiss there. "I meant I don't- this- this isn't-" He sighed. "I just need you to know that I'm not normally the type to do this with someone I just met."

"I'd say me neither but that wouldn't be entirely true."

He laughed again, but this time you caught his eyes with your own. You thought about how scary it must have been; to be someone like him, to know that any and every interaction you had could be the wrong one, and it made you feel terrible all over again.

"I understand what you're saying," you said, putting a hand on his face and running your thumb over the dark smattering of hair along his jaw. "And despite everything that's happened, you can trust me. Please know that."

He returned both hands to your face, leaning in to kiss you once again. It was as if your reassurance had ignited a confidence in him; taken away the last specks of apprehension and replaced them with pure lust.

You could feel him; the rigid length pressed to your stomach as you hastily undid the buttons of his shirt, leaving it open to drag your nails softly down his bare chest, his stomach, and eventually to the waistline of his trousers. There was a deep hum in the back of his throat as he pushed himself harder against you, allowing his fingers to dip beneath the fabric of your dress and ghost over your bare skin.

You undid his trousers and slipped a hand into his underwear, teasing his cock with a too-light touch, leaving him groaning into your mouth and rocking his hips back and forth, searching for the friction you were so cruelly denying him.

"Not fair," he mumbled, hooking a finger into the delicate strap of your dress and dragging it down over your shoulder, revealing to him a bare canvas ready to be marked, branded as his.

He started with your collarbone; teeth grazing softly over it, tongue dipping into the hollow. You let your head fall back as his lips trailed to the base of your neck, eyes closed as you sighed with pleasure. But that sigh quickly turned to a sharp gasp when you felt him draw your skin into his mouth, sucking on it just enough to leave behind an ache as he moved onto the next spot.

"Ben." His name fell from your open mouth, as easily as a breath.

"Mm," he responded, the hum of his voice tingling against your skin as he travelled up towards your ear.

"I need-" you moaned as he nipped your lobe, sending a deep shudder directly to your core. "I need these off."

You moved to take the waistline of his trousers with both hands, dragging them down over his hips along with his underwear. He groaned as you returned a hand to his cock, this time gripping it firmly, silently thanking the universe for his impressive length as you slid from root to tip and back again.

His mouth found yours, his hands disappearing back under your dress and bunching it up around your waist, allowing him access to thrust against you, his cock nesting snugly between your legs, rubbing against your aching centre that was still covered by the thin fabric of your underwear.

"I had every intention of taking my time," he said breathlessly. "And I swear I will. Next time, the time after that, however many times you want. I will make it up to you." He kissed you again, fingers tangling in your hair. "But right now, I just need to have you."

You nodded, intending to speak but instead letting out nothing but a shaking breath.

He broke the closeness of your bodies, hastily stepping back and whipping a condom from the breast pocket of his shirt. The air suddenly felt cold in his absence, your entire body shivering with need as you watched him impatiently tear open the wrapper.

There was a moment as you waited for him to return to you, a fleeting spark of clarity where it suddenly dawned on you that there, standing in front of you, was Benedict Cumberbatch - practically naked, rolling a condom over the cock he was about to impale you with. Surely this wasn't real. None of this could possibly be real.

The warmth of his body soothed you as he returned, melting the shivers and replacing them with a searing heat as he wasted no time in kissing you again, grabbing the backs of your thighs and lifting you off the ground in one quick, eager motion, as if his desire had completely outweighed his civility.

You wrapped your arms around the back of his neck, your legs locked around his waist as he pinned you back against the door, slipping a hand down in the narrow space between you to shift your underwear aside. He hummed in satisfaction as his fingers made contact with your wetness, like he had been starved for a lifetime, and you were the most perfect fruit, dripping with the sweetest nectar.

His grip returned to your thighs, and without wasting another moment, he sank himself into you; cock bullying through the tightness of your walls until it was buried right to the depths of your core. You let out a soft cry, your body clenching as you adjusted to the size of him, the unexpected yet desperately needed intrusion.

"Fuck," he grunted, forehead falling to your shoulder. "God, you're so-" His voice broke, breath hot against your skin.

You slid your hands up to the back of his head, taking fistfuls of short, dark hair and pulling him back to look at you. Your eyes met for a second before devouring each other in a hot, yearning kiss, like a silent agreement that this was right, you belonged in this moment.

He began to move his hips as you kissed, his length stroking into you and making your stomach coil, your eyes roll in utter bliss. You felt him shift on his feet, planting one hand on the door beside your head as he braced to strengthen his thrusts, building up power until he was pounding into you with a steady, vigorous force. The door began to creak and groan under the weight of your bodies, and you could only hope the street outside was still as deserted as it was when you arrived.

You almost couldn't believe this was the same house where everything had gone so terribly wrong. The same door you'd stormed out of, more than once, that he was now fucking you against. Usually, you'd be feeling ashamed in this moment; typical Quinn, can't keep it in her pants. But this was different somehow. You didn't feel guilty or wrong or disappointed in yourself. You felt like this was exactly what was supposed to happen. Divine Timing, as Nick would say.

You could feel the pleasure building in the depths of your core, pouring out and spilling into every part of you as Ben continued his delicious manhandling of your body. He let his head fall to your shoulder again, pressing kisses to your collarbone between heavy breaths and deep groans, his fingers digging into your thigh, so hard you were sure you'd see bruises in the morning.

"Oh god," you gasped, wrapping your arms tight around his shoulders, every snap of his hips sending another shockwave through you.

His voice broke with a desperate whimper, as if he were about to speak but pleasure had overwhelmed him, stolen the words straight from his throat. A shiver rippled through you in response, a moan falling from your parted lips, the sound only fortifying his movements; quickening his pace and adding even more weight to his thrusts.

You could feel it coming; the familiar yet never tiresome swell of pressure and heat. It started deep in your stomach; throbbing, intensifying as it began to spread through you. You were on the very edge, vision beginning to blur, mouth falling open when suddenly, you felt his hips begin to stutter, a collection of garbled moans spilling into the crook of your neck.

And before you knew it, clarity returned, the edge disappearing from sight as if you were falling away from it against your will. The throbbing eased, the pleasure retreating and settling in your core, like a fire slowly dying out.

Ben let out a frustrated groan before lifting his head to look at you, brows furrowed, almost apologetically, like he was more than aware you hadn't come, and he was furious with himself for it. He let out a sigh and rested his forehead against yours, closing his eyes as you both panted to catch your breath.

"I'm sor-"

"So," you cut him off quickly, anything to avoid hearing him say that word. "How does it feel to finally put an end to your drought?"

He paused before chuckling softly. "You are my hurricane, Quinn."

You giggled too, leaning in and placing a reassuring kiss on his lips.

He pulled out of you slowly and carefully lowered you to the ground. You tugged down your dress, fixing the straps back onto your shoulders as you watched him pull up his trousers and button them up. You leaned back against the door, running your hands over the cold metal letterbox behind you, the grain in the wood.

"Well, I've never done it against a front door before," you said.

"Me neither," he replied distractedly, trying to find somewhere to dispose of the used condom in his hand.

"How come you had that?" you asked.

"Hm?" He looked down at it. "Oh, a friend of mine gave it to me at the gala tonight as a joke. Called it a 'divorce gift'."

"Serendipitous."

"I'll say."

You shifted on your feet, your high heels already beginning to hurt. "Mind if I... nip up to the bathroom?"

"No I was actually thinking you could just stand there for the rest of the night." He smirked.

"Are you forgetting I'm writing a piece on you?" You raised an eyebrow. "The fate of your reputation is in my hands... until 5pm tomorrow."

"Well I suppose I better do everything you say then," he replied, still smiling as he nodded towards the stairs, gesturing for you to go.

The bathroom mirror provided a glimpse into the truth of your latest encounter, the harsh overhead lighting drawing attention to every bite and bruise, the smudge of your lipstick, the way your mascara had begun to run in the corners of your eyes.

The sex was good, you thought to yourself as you cleaned your face with water. You just shagged Benedict Cumberbatch - famous actor, international heartthrob. You, Quinn Armitage, just shagged him. And it was... good.

You sat down on the edge of the bath and took off your heels, soothing your bare feet on the cold tiled floor.

I mean, yes you didn't finish, but it was still good. And the man hasn't been with anyone in two years! Can you blame him?

You stood up and walked back over to the mirror, leaning in to examine the trail of love bites he'd left along your collarbone, before turning to inspect the red fingertip marks on your thighs.

Or maybe you just have a magic vagina.

You stepped out of the bathroom and made your way back downstairs, padding barefoot around the house in search of him. You wondered how he took such good care of it, how much input he'd had in its decoration; the beautiful, rich colours, the textures and trinkets and warm, welcoming spaces.

You found him, unsurprisingly, in the study. It was dimly lit by a single lamp on the desk in the corner, curtains almost completely drawn. He was standing near the window, peering out through the gap into the dark back garden, a glass of rusty golden liquid in one hand. You moved quietly across the room, not towards him, but towards the tall bookshelf you'd never had the chance to look at before.

"Did Faye live here with you?" you asked quietly.

"Mm, no," he replied as he took a sip of his drink, back still to you as he spoke. "We had a 'marital home' that we both stayed at on and off. But she spends most of her time in New York, and I've had this place for years."

"Does it get lonely? Big house like this all to yourself?"

"You live alone too."

"Yeah but my flat's a box compared to this. Hard to get lonely when you can hear every move your neighbours make."

He chuckled, glancing over his shoulder towards you. "I suppose I do get lonely. Maybe that's why I work so much."

You nodded, reaching up and sliding a heavy script off the shelf into your arms. You began to fan through the pages with your thumb when you felt him come up behind you, wrapping an arm around your waist, palm against your stomach to pull you back against him. He pressed his lips to the side of your head, as you began to read aloud.

"Doubt thou the stars are fire. Doubt that the sun doth move. Doubt truth to be a liar. But never-"

"But never doubt I love," he finished as he began to kiss your neck.

"You still remember your lines?" You smiled.

He laughed softly against your skin. "I said them enough times."

You looked over your shoulder at him and he lifted his head, your eyes meeting for a moment before he slowly leaned down and pressed his lips to yours.

This room. This room that held so much tension; so much anger and discomfort, so many crossed words you wished had never been uttered. This room that was now bearing witness to your kiss, to the way he looked at you, let you read Shakespeare as you stood wrapped in his embrace. How could it be real? How could any of this possibly be real?

You pulled away, staring up at him, almost in awe. "How the hell did I end up here?" you whispered.

He kissed you once more and gave a shrug. "I don't know, divine timing." You felt your heart stop for a brief moment, the coincidence sending chills through your body. "What did you just say?"

"Divine timing...? Why? Is that not a thing? Or, wait no, divine intervention, is it?"

You shook your head with a laugh, turning in his arms to face him and pulling him down into another kiss, the heavy script wedged between you, one of his hands still occupied by his glass.

"I think we should go upstairs," Ben muttered breathlessly against your lips.

"Why is that?"

"Because I said I'd make it up to you." He pulled you closer, fingers gripping your hip through the fabric of your dress. "And after what happened out there, I have a lot of making up to do."