#oh no i need a cliffhanger i have way more chapters after this

[rise-my-angel]

You did one of my favourite tropes! "Important character dies, and everyone is really sad and hartbroken except the character actually isn't dead". I await the inevitable heartswell moment of "you're alive?"

[longing-for-the-past-times]

Their reaction to seeing you reading

Task Force 141 x Reader headcanons

notes: I don't know if this was done before, but once I got the idea, I couldn't get it out of my head before writing it down. This is my first time writing headcanons, I hope I did the characters justice :). Let me know what you think about it!

find it on a03 masterlist

Captain 'John' Price

He is headed towards the lounging area after staying overtime because of due paperwork. It is already dark outside and, when he sees the lights on, he thinks someone just forgot them that way.

You may understand his surprised reaction when he sees you sitting cross-legged on the couch, a book in your hands.

“Nearly gave me a heart attack, kid!”

You give him a sheepish smile and hide your face behind the book, staying true to the principle: out of mind, out of sight. You didn’t mean to stay long - you just wanted to finish the chapter. But it ended in a cliffhanger so you had to at least begin the next chapter and the vicious cycle went on.

It doesn’t take him long to realise that you are, in fact, holding a book. And he can’t hide his grin when he figures you must have lost track of time because of it.

“Didn’t take you for a reader, kid!”, he raises an eyebrow as he joins you on the couch, his eyes drifting to the cover. “And certainly did not know you read classics!”

“Always full of surprises, Captain!”, you smile at him as you look around, searching for something. A triumphant smile graces your lips when you find the piece of crumpled paper, and you proceed to put it on the page you remained at, before closing the book.

Definitely asks you about the book you’re reading and what else you’ve read, proceeding to compare your literary preferences

He may not read as much as he did when he was younger, but he can and will boast with the filled bookshelves he has at home

Encourages your reading habits when you are at the base and brings you reading snacks when you decide to spend your evenings in the base’s lounging room, curled up with whatever book you’re reading at the moment

Might sometimes join you with a book of his own. Nobody dares to say anything about the two operators who occasionally spend their lunch break with their noses stuck in a book.

Lieutenant Simon "Ghost" Riley

Never been much of a reader as he simply did not have the time, or the available resources

So at first, he does not understand why you are sobbing by yourself in the kitchen, frantically highlighting something with a neon marker

Who did that to you? Did he need to hunt down someone?

It was when he got closer that he realised you were actually reading something and the content must have made you upset

No problem, he’ll track the writer down and-

"Oh, Ghost, didn’t see you there!", you looked up at him, a shy smile on your face.

He is at a loss for words and ends up nodding towards the open book: “Is it any good?”

“Well, I think it would be an insult to say Shakespeare is ‘just good’, don’t you think?”

All he’s thinking of are those literature classes he should have paid more attention to.

He quickly steers the conversation in another direction, asking you about training and whatnot. Something blooms in his chest when he sees you setting the book away in an instant, a warm smile gracing your features as you turn your attention towards him.

He spends the following evening researching Shakespeare’s works as much as he can. He’d caught a glimpse of the book you’d been reading, Hamlet, and he ends up ordering an annotated copy.

It takes him an entire week to get through it, but the look on your face when he asks you about the book is priceless.

You spend the entire afternoon talking about it (you talk, he mostly listens), and he was surprised he didn’t notice your reading habits earlier. When you talked about books, you could light up the room with your enthusiasm and passion.

Is the kind of man who would build you a bookshelf from scratch

“Your books wouldn’t fit in a standard bookshelf anyway. And I can paint the wood to match the tone of your walls.”

Sergeant John "Soap" MacTavish

The type of man that says he’ll wait for the movie to come out

And if there is a book adaptation, he'll definitely make you watch it with him to prove his point

You spend the next hours pointing out why the book was better than the movie, while he tries to convince you otherwise

Constantly teases you about your reading habits, but secretly, he loves to watch you read. The array of emotional states you seem to go through when reading fascinates him.

"Maybe we should start calling you Belle from now on, bonnie. You know, the Belle from Beauty and the Beast - the one who's always with her nose stuck in a book?"

One day a recruit decides to prank you and hides your current read in the men's showers.

Soap takes note of your distracted state, but doesn't push it. He knows you'll come to him when it feels right.

Until he stumbles upon what was left of your book when preparing to take a shower. He recognizes it only by the vibrant colour of the cover as the pages are wrinkled and illegible, due to the water exposure.

It does not take him long to find the culprit. He was too busy boasting about his "achievement" to his team-mates, in the locker room.

Soap makes sure he regrets his actions by assigning him to latrine duty for the following month.

He also makes it his personal mission to buy you another copy of the book. The only problem is that he does not remember the title. Or the author. Or the plot.

"It has this orange cover, with two people on it! And there's white text on it too!"

Safe to say, the librarian is unimpressed by his comprehensive description.

So he has to spend an entire night scrolling through an online library page to find it.

But it's all worth it in the end. He'll never forget the shocked expression on your face when he handed you the hastily wrapped book. Or the wide smile that spreads across your face, followed by a tight and warm hug.

He might buy you more books in the future, just to have you grin at him like that.

Sergeant Kyle "Gaz" Garrick

Like Ghost, he didn't particularly care for reading. It was not that he didn't like it, he just had other priorities

He wasn't even aware of your reading habits until you were both stuck in a safe house, waiting to be evacuated.

You were leaning against the wall, next to him, when you pulled a book out of your pocket.

He had to do a double take- why did you have a leatherbound book in your pocket? Were you carrying it throughout the entire mission? What if you got shot - was the leather thick enough to stop the bullet if it got past your tac vest?

"Gaz, you're staring."

"Just took me by surprise, love."

You playfully rolled your eyes at the endearment, your hand leafing through the pages.

He knew you could feel him watching you, but he couldn't help himself. He felt like he just unlocked a new part of your personality.

"Is it any good?"

"Do you want to read it?"

"I wouldn't mind you reading to me..."

Once again, you rolled your eyes in fake annoyance but complied with his request and went back to the beginning of the chapter.

The story was quite gripping, something about a rich bachelor who must be in search of a wife. Kyle tried to focus on the story, but he was more intent on enjoying your calm and soothing voice.

He unintentionally fell asleep and you did not realise until you felt the weight of his body leaning against your shoulder.

As retaliation, you forced him to join you on a trip to the library. He did not bother to hide the fact that he did not see it as a punishment, not when he knew it would make you happy.

He let you drag across the entire fiction section and patiently listened to you describing all the books you've read. He also took a lot of mental notes on the books you intended to read in the future- if only the covers did not look so similar!

Eventually discovers he's more of an audiobook person.

So he would listen to the novel you were currently reading, excited to meet with you at the end of the day and discuss it with you.

[athenamikaelson]

Klaus Mikaelson x Soulmate!Reader x Elijah Mikaelson Pt. 11

Word Count- 3.8k

Warnings- Mentions of Suicide(Damon trying to die because of his wolf bite), swearing, death, blood, gun/gun-shot wounds, smaller chapter but big things happening cliffhanger ending

“Yes, Elena. Once again, I’m fine. I have to go run an errand and then I’ll see you guys at the square. OK? Toodles!”

I quickly hung up my phone, just in case Elena decided to ask what errand I was running. How the hell am I supposed to tell her I’m going to try to talk a dying Damon Salvatore off the ledge?

It’s been two days since Demon dropped the bomb that he was dying and then disappeared. He hasn’t answered my calls and whenever I ask Stefan about him he says “I’m working on it.” Not well enough, clearly, because the Bunny Eater called me 30 minutes ago telling me Damon just tried lighting himself on fire and he needs my help talking him down. I’m not sure why I’m the one he called for this since I’ve heard Damon on more than one occasion say he’d rather die than listen to me speak. 

Damon and Stefan have made me keep quiet about this, so no one else but us three knows. Which is why I fibbed a bit on my phone call with Elena. I’m not entirely on board with keeping this a secret. What do the Salvatores think is going to happen when the werewolf bite kills Damon? Just tell everyone Damon went upstate to a farm, just like what parents tell their children when their turtles or dogs die.

Although Damon and I have had our differences, I can admit the thought of him dying doesn’t sit well with me. Especially since he got bit trying to stop the ritual. Even though it didn’t stop it, it did save Tyler and Caroline. Who I guess was replaced by that bitch Jules and some random vampire Klaus had in his back pocket. 

I take a deep breath as I exit my car and walk up to the front door of the Salvatore house. I don’t bother knocking since everyone kind of just lets themselves in when it comes to this place. I’m about to call out for Stefan but within a moment he’s flashed in front of me. 

“Oh good lord,” I clutch my chest in surprise. At this Stefan’s eyes widen and he reaches out to me.

“I’m sorry, Y/n! Is it your heart again? Do you need anything? Here take some of my blood,” Stefan frantically says.

I put both of my hands up and shake them, “Stefan calm down dude, okay? I’m good, you just scared me. I’ve got to start getting you vamps little bells to wear around your necks.”

Stefan slightly laughs but I can still see the weariness in his eyes.

“Really Stefana, I’m good.”

Stefan sighs and nods, “Sorry, I just…with everything going on I’m just…,” Stefan rubs his hand over his face and now I can clearly see the exhaustion and sadness on it. 

I take a step closer and wrap my arms around him in a hug, “It’ll be ok, we’ll figure it out, alright?”

Stefan doesn’t say anything but I feel him nod as he wraps his arms around me tighter as if me hugging him is the only thing keeping him grounded. And after seeing his older brother trying to light himself on fire, it might just be. 

After another moment Stefan releases me and smiles at me but it doesn't reach up all the way. 

“He’s down here,” He says and I follow him down to where Elijah was when he was daggered. 

At the thought of the Original my heart sinks. It’s been three days since I’ve seen or heard from him. Each time I hear my phone ring a small part of me expects it to be him with his stupid posh accent telling me he’s sorry for ghosting me, but every time I answer it’s never him. I’ve tried to distract myself with hanging out with the girls, or Theo, and even the occasional phone call with Jenna who talks to me a lot now about the supernatural since we both learned about it recently. Bonnie and I have also been going through her deceased Gram’s grimoires and things to see if we can find anything on why my chest bled and then magically healed itself, but nothing comes up.  It’s disheartening but Bonnie says she won’t stop searching until she’s found the reason. Our time together has made me realize just how good of a friend Bonnie is. She’s loyal and kind and she’d fight for her friends until her dying breath. Which is sadly something she has already done once. I really like hanging out with her and her teaching me more about her world. I may not understand much about witches but it’s nice to see how excited she gets when she talks about it. 

“Are you going to be good down here by yourself,” Stefan leans down to whisper to me.

“What,” I question now realizing he’s been talking this entire time. 

“I have to go to the square to go speak to Elena but after I’ll be back. Just whatever he says, don’t let him out. Ric should be here soon too. He can take your place when he gets here.”

I do a soldier’s salute and he rolls his eyes as he walks back upstairs. Leaving me and Grumpy down here by ourselves. The door that separates us is big and wooden with a small window that has three metal bars. I look through and frown when I see Damon scrunched up, sitting on the far side of the room. 

“Are you going to eat me if I come in?”

“Drinking your blood would be a fate worse than death,” Damon’s scratchy voice speaks up after a moment. 

I roll my eyes as I unlock the door and push it open, I quickly make my way inside and close it. I lean against the door and cross my arms as I look at the dying vampire in front of me. 

“Stefan really thought you of all people would be the one to talk me off the ledge,” Damon grunts out as he puts his head up to look at me. 

“That’s exactly what I said. I told him you’d be more likely to do it again after hearing me speak,” I laugh out.

Damon’s upper lip twitches for a moment and he lets out a strangled laugh, “You’re not wrong. 

We’re both quiet for a moment before Damon speaks up again, “I’m going to die.”

I take a deep breath and sit down against the door mirroring Damon, “At the moment, yes you are.”

Damon raises an eyebrow at me, “So you’re not going to fill me with fairy tales about some special cure and that by tomorrow I’ll be fresh as a daisy?”

I shrug my shoulders, “Is that what you want me to do?”

Damon stares at me for a moment and then shakes his head, “No, I don’t.”

“Alright then. Works for me. You know, Stefan called me to try to talk you down because he thinks what you did was crazy. But… I understand why you did it.”

This captures Damon’s attention as he stares questioningly at me, “You do?”

I nod as I play with a loose thread on my shirt, “Ya. You’re scared. And in pain. You think this is the only way out, but it isn’t. And I’m not saying that because of some magical cure. I’m saying that because you still have time left to say your goodbyes and to be with those who actually care about you. Even though you’re an actual hellspawn. I know that this is scary, you’ve been alive for over a century and now you’re facing mortality for the first time in years. I would be scared too.”

Damon’s jaw clenches and for a moment I think he’s mad but when I see him turn his head to stare at the wall next to him I realize he’s trying to hide his emotions. 

“Damon you can stare at that wall all you’d like but I meant what I said.”

At the sound of footsteps, I stand up. 

“Ric’s here. Try not to be such an ass to him. You’re kind of like his only friend,” When he doesn’t make any noise about my joke I frown and start to unlatch the door, “I’m glad I met you, Damon. I don’t tell a lot of people that, but it’s true. Thanks for bringing out a fire in me I didn’t know I had.”

Damon says nothing and I quickly wipe a stray tear from my face as I open the door.

“I’m glad I met you too, Y/N. Even though you’re a pain in the ass,” I turn and make eye contact with Damon, and even though the room is dark, I swear I can see small tears building in his blue eyes, “I don’t believe in next lives or whatever…but if they somehow exist, I wouldn’t mind meeting you again in that one, Pukey.”

I let out a small sob as I run over to the seated man and throw my arms over him. He lets out a grunt of surprise and after a moment he wraps his arms around me and I can feel the dampness from his tears on my shirt.

“If you tell anyone about this I’ll kill you,” He tries to threaten but his voice comes out strained so it doesn’t hold much punch.

“Ya whatever, Demon.”

—

It’s night by the time I get to the square for whatever movie night the town’s having. Elena asked me to come earlier since she says everyone needs a break from all the chaos that has happened. I’m not excited to see how she’s going to react to the news about Damon. But for now, I’m grabbing my fluffy blanket and walking towards my friends and watching this stupid movie.

Jenna, Jeremy, Bonnie, and Caroline all sit together talking as I walk up behind them. 

“Hey guys,” I say and they all spin around to look at me. Bonnie and Jenna both send me warm smiles and waves, Caroline hops up and guides me over to the group talking my ear off already, and Jeremy tries to send me a smile but that dude looks like he would rather be anywhere else. 

“What errand took you so long,” Caroline questions.

“Oh, Theo just needed some help bringing back his football gear and stuff. I guess the coach has been bothering him to get it back for weeks since the season ended,” I say which isn’t a total lie since I did do that after leaving the Salvatores.

“How is Theo,” Jeremy asks. 

Ever since the funeral Jeremy and Theo have been gaming together. When I asked Theo about it,  he said he was doing it out of pity and that someone as cool as him wouldn’t hang out with an emo like Jeremy. But after passing by Theo’s room and hearing him and Jeremy laugh and make fun of each other over call, I don’t think Theo is really doing this out of pity anymore. After moving here and with everything that has happened with our parents it’s been hard for Theo to make friends. Even though he says otherwise. I know he has people to hang out with at school, but it’s all brainless jocks who probably don’t even care to know my brother’s favorite color. He needs a good friend like Jeremy in his life. 

“Theo’s good. Even though he was pissy this morning because he says you cheated last night,” I admit to him as I sit down next to Jenna and Caroline. 

Jeremy shoots me a look of disbelief, “I did not cheat! That jerk! He’s the one who cheated,” Jeremy lifts up his phone and starts angrily texting someone. A someone, who I’m guessing is my brother.

I look around noticing the absence of my best friend, “Where’s Elena?”

They all look at each other wearily before Bonnie grabs my hand, “You might want to prepare yourself for this.”

I look at her confused for a moment and whisper, “Is this about the Damon thing?”

“You knew?!’’

“What?”

“Excuse me?”

“Bro!”

They all yell out and I raise my hands in surrender, “Hey! Stefana and Demon made me keep quiet. They didn’t want to stress anyone else out more.”

“How long have you known,” Caroline asks me and I grimace, “Like… since John’s funeral.”

“Y/N!”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! It just wasn’t my place to say.”

They think about this for a moment before nodding.

“Elena went to go talk to Damon and Stefan is off trying to find a cure,” Bonnie says.

“Let’s hope he finds one in time.”

We all quiet down after a moment and go back to watching the movie, but 5 minutes later I feel a tap on my right shoulder.

I shoot Jenna a questioning look as she leans down to whisper to me, “Anything from Elijah?”

I just send her a small shake of my head and she returns it with a comforting smile and a squeeze to my shoulder, “His loss then.”

Over the past few days of Jenna and I talking about the supernatural, we’ve also been chatting about other things like school and relationships. It took me a while to open up but after I did I brought up Elijah. Talking to Jenna about Elijah, and everything that’s happened with him has actually made me feel somewhat better. Jenna’s been more of a mother figure to me these past three days than my own mother has in almost 18 years. 

Out of the corner of my eye, Jeremy quickly stands up, capturing all of our attention. 

He hangs up the phone and turns back to us with a nervous look, “Damon escaped and Elena wasn’t there yet so Ric thinks he’s coming here to see her. Ric says the bite is making him hallucinate so he’s not himself right now.”

“Fantastic,” I mutter to myself and Jenna slightly elbows me and shoots me a disapproving look. 

“If Damon is off the rails, there is nothing you can do to stop him. Let us take care of it,” Bonnie gestures towards herself, and Caroline and I want to groan at this. It’s really starting to piss me off how the supernaturals keep pushing us humans away every time we want to help. Just because we don’t have super strength or heal within a split second doesn’t mean we’re useless.  

“You keep doing this! You left me behind before, and guess what, Elena was still killed,” Jeremy exclaims to his girlfriend, “I’m going to find my sister. You go ahead and try to stop me. Y/N, Jenna, you with me?” 

Jenna instantly nods and I shoot a look at Bonnie and Caroline before walking towards Jeremy, “Let’s go.”

—

“There he is!” 

I follow behind Jeremy as we see a wounded Damon staring off into space. Jenna left a while ago to go find Ric, leaving Little Gilbert and I to try to find Elena. “Damon,” Jeremy tries catching the attention of the delusional vamp and I watch with caution. 

“Where’s Elena? I need to see Elena now,” He frantically says and I send him a smile as Jeremy walks closer to him.

“Hey, let’s get you out of here first, alright,” Jeremy grabs Damon, who instantly falls into his arms. I go to the vampire’s other side and grab his arms trying to help Jeremy with the deadweight. 

After a bunch of odd stares and murmurs from passersby, we finally get Damon through the crowd and into the empty Grill.

Jeremy drops Damon off at a table and goes to tell Ric where we are. I’m still holding onto Damon's arm as I watch Jere, but turn around when I feel Damon do the same. And I freeze.

“Y/n, move I don’t want to hurt you,” Sheriff Forbes stands in front of us holding her gun and pointing at Damon. 

I go to try to reason to her but Damon flashes away, spooking Liz and all I hear is the sound of a gun and a piercing in my left arm. 

“Oh god,” Liz looks at me for a moment in shock but when she looks behind me her features go straight to fear. 

A strangled sob escapes my mouth as I watch Jeremy fall to the floor, his once-grey shirt turning red, as blood spills from his chest. 

“What the hell did you do,” I scream at Liz as I run over to Jeremy with tears in my eyes.

 I strip off my sweatshirt and place it over his bleeding chest.

“Come on Jeremy, you’re going to be alright,” I sob, “You’re going to be alright Jere,”

Another sob comes from my mouth as Jeremy’s shaking hand grabs mine for comfort. 

“I know this hurts but I have to keep pressure on it, okay. You’re going to be just fine.”

I can hear Liz call for paramedics as she tries to move my hands so she can hold down the sweatshirt.

“Don’t you dare,” I snarl at her and she sits back.

“Jeremy…Hey! Jere,” I shake my head as he closes his eyes. 

Bonnie and Caroline rush up to us and Caroline gently sets me back so she can try to help Jeremy. I sit there with silent sobs as I watch Bonnie tell Caroline that Jeremy’s ring won't bring him back since the sheriff is human. 

Caroline bites into her wrist and places it onto Jeremy’s mouth, “Go on, Jeremy. Drink.”

“What are you doing,” The sheriff questions her daughter even though she is not the one who should be speaking at all right now. 

“I’m helping him.”

I sit there with tears in my eyes as Jeremy doesn’t wake up and I know it’s because he’s dead. The others must realize this too because they all sit back with sobs of their own. The sound of a door opening captures my attention and I look up to see Ric and Jenna staring over at us.

“Bonnie what’s wrong,” Ric asks as he and Jenna run over to us. As soon as they see Jeremy though they halt. Jenna instantly falls to her knees crying and I crawl over to her ignoring the shooting pain in my arm. I grab her into my arms and she instantly latches to me and sobs into my shoulder. 

“I know what I need to do,” Bonnie says aloud as she stands, “I need you to grab him. T-Take him with us.”

“No, no, no, no. You can’t move him. This is a crime scene,” Liz tries denying which has me wanting to smack her. Jeremy’s dead all because of a prejudice she has.

“Mom, just let them go,” Caroline tells her mother and Liz stands up so Ric can grab Jeremy’s body.

“Okay. Alright, come here, buddy. I got you,” Ric says and I hug Jenna tighter.

—-

Bonnie sits in front of us chanting over Jeremy’s body. Candles around us burn hotter as Bonnie shakes her head, “No.”

“What? What is it,” Ric asks.

“They’re angry at me for coming back here. They don’t wanna help.”

I shake my head in denial.

  “Well, they have to.”

Bonnie looks at Jeremy with tears in her eyes, “They said there’ll be consequences.”

“Well, he’s just a kid. Tell’em to shut up.”

Bonnie continues chanting and the witch house starts to shake.

“Emily! I know you’re there. Please help me. I love him.”

Jenna, Ric, and I watch in silent horror as everything stops and Jeremy is still lifeless. Bonnie cries holding him and Jenna crawls over to her dead nephew. 

I look down at Jeremy and let out a sob of relief as I see him flutter his eyes open. 

I sigh deeply as I watch Jenna and Bonnie hug Jeremy. 

“Y/N?”

I turn to Ric who is staring at my arm, I watch as he slowly lifts his fingers and touches my shirt. I fight the urge to groan in annoyance as I look at the fresh blood on his fingers. 

“Anyone want to take me to the hospital?”

—

“OK, so it appears you’ve lost quite a bit of blood,” The doctor tells me as he tapes gauze over the gunshot wound on my shoulder. I have a gunshot wound. I was shot. What the hell?! Somehow the bullet that killed Jeremy went right through the upper part of my shoulder. 

Ric and Jenna had dropped me off about an hour ago. They insisted on staying, but I told them my mother would be here soon and they should get back to Jeremy. 

“We’re going to have to give you some blood. Do you happen to know what you’re blood type is? It appears that on your medical records, your mother and father’s blood types are listed but yours isn’t.”

I shake my head, “I’ve never had to get blood drawn before so I don’t know.” 

The doctor nods, “That’s fine. We would give you the universal donor blood but for some reason, we’ve had a shortage in blood lately,” I nod along as if I don’t know exactly why that is, “But we’ll take some of your blood and do a test then find out what your type is.”

I nod and thank him.

“We called your mother but it seems she can’t get out of work and your father didn’t answer. Is there anyone else you’d like to call to be with you?”

My heart hurts as I think about how both my parents couldn’t bother to come to see their own daughter in the hospital, “Um...no thank you. I’m alright.”

The doctor sends me a smile, but he looks almost as hurt about my parents not being here as I am. Tell me about it man. I watch silently as he takes a vial of my blood, tells me he’ll have my results soon, and then leaves. 

Great who the hell is going to drive me home?

—

I’m awoken by a small shake to my uninjured shoulder. I squint my eyes to see the doctor from before looking down at me wearily. 

At this, I try to sit up but waves of pain stop me.

“Don’t move sweetheart it’ll just rip open your stitches,” The doctor gently pushes me back down. But the look on his face makes me nervous.

“Is everything ok,” I question. 

The doctor is silent before he shows me a blood bag, “I was able to find a match for you, but… your blood type is Type B,” His tone and words confuse me. Wouldn’t he be relieved he was able to find me blood?

“I don’t understand,” I shake my head in confusion.

“I don’t know if I should be telling you this without a parent present. I could be fired,” He says to himself as if he’s fighting some internal battle. 

“Please… what are you talking about?”

The doctor places a hand on my shoulder and frowns at me, “Your mother’s blood type is Type A, and your father’s is Type O,” At the confusion still clearly on my face he sighs, “Genetically those two blood types combinations can only produce Type A and O children. So…”

My entire world seems to come down crashing on top of me as he finishes his sentence.

“You can’t be related, biologically, to your father.”

[justmeinadaze]

Secret Underneath Part 6 (Steddie X Plus Size Reader)

A/N: No cliffhanger this time, I promise <3.

Warning: Older (Mid thirties) Sugar Daddies Steve and Eddie/ Young (Early to mid 20s) Baby Fem Plus Size Reader, No smut in this one today, ladies and lads. I didn't feel like it worked with this chapter. I was going to make this one long chapter but I thought it better to split it :)

ANGST, Y/N confronts them about the events of the last chapter. Insecurities get in the way of them and that is explored a lot more in this chapter with mentions of their dads as well as Gina hurting them. She is sullying their image by saying lies (mentions verbal abuse and comments on how the plus size reader is "probably being used" by them because of how she looks) , she does have an incident at a bar with a guy being a dick, they defend her.

Word Count: 4853

Series here/ Donate to Me :)

You broke a rule. 

You went on Google and searched for their lawyer’s information through news outlets spouting anything they could in regard to this case. After finding what you needed, you charged into the building and past a secretary who was shouting for you to come back as you opened the door to a conference room where many sets of eyes including their shocked expressions landed on you. 

“Excuse me, gentlemen, but I need a moment alone with these boys for a moment.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Wilson, she just stormed right past me—”

“No, no. It’s alright, Crystal. Um, let’s take a breather and we’ll be back in a moment.”

As soon as everyone had filed out, your angry eyes burned into them as you slid your phone across the table. 

“That thing hasn’t stopped going off since Gina released your names and quite frankly I’m afraid to look at it.”

“How did you find out where we were?”, Steve asked as he rose to his feet.

“I googled your lawyer’s name.”

“Well, so much for that promise.”, Eddie sassed as he leaned back in his chair. 

“And so much for your promise to take care of me!”, you screamed not caring if anyone heard. “Did you really fucking think that I could stay out of this?! Did you think after what she said people weren’t going to wonder and dig into why I was with you at that party?!”

“You wanted to go and we warned you of the risks of being seen with us.”

“Don’t you dare do that! Don’t you fucking dare place blame on me! I don’t care about being seen with you or if people know that we’re together! What I care about is my job, those kids, and you two!! How can I properly help and protect myself if I don’t have all the facts?! Do you know what she’s saying? She’s saying you two promised to take care of her if anything ever happened. That you were verbally aggressive with her and--”

“Yeah, Y/N, we’re aware of she’s claiming.”, the mogul growls. “Since you’re doing your own research did you go on her social medias? Oh, a lot of fun material there. Now that a fucking judge allowed her to talk about us she’s been posting nonstop about how Eddie would demean her and make her feel ugly. That I apparently offered her money to get plastic surgery to make her look ‘perfect’.”, he sarcastically laughs. 

“You should have told me.”

“Because you think we did what she claims?”

“No, Eddie! Fuck, so I can prepare. What if parents suddenly feel like I can’t teach their kids because of the company I keep? What if the school decides that my association with you isn’t worth the attention? Now that this has come to light I need to be aware of what’s going on!”

Neither man said a thing infuriating you more. 

“Did you not tell me because you thought I wouldn’t want to be with you? Or did you think I’d hurt you like she did?” You laugh as you shake your head. “Jesus. I thought you two were different but you’re just like every other scared little boy. I thought I had given you enough reason to trust me but I guess not.”

“Yeah so why don’t you fucking leave then, you little brat.”

You weren’t sure if they saw it in your eyes but you definitely felt your heart break. Wrapping your arms around yourself, you back away towards the door. 

“I’m so stupid.”

When your teary eyes met theirs, you could tell Steve regretted his words but he couldn’t take them back. They couldn’t take any of this back. Furiously, you reach into your pocket and throw their apartment key across the table before leaving the way you came. 

##############

Instagram:

IHateithere: “Oh my god. Poor Gina!”

NeverHave_IEver13: “She’s so sweet and deserves better.”

CorrodedGirl28: “Fuck Gina Frost. This isn’t the first time she’s made claims against a partner! I met Eddie Munson backstage at one of his concerts and he was so sweet.”

E!News: Mystery Woman seen at the Charity Event with Steven Harrington and Edward Munson has been cited by the men’s lawyers as ‘just a friend.’

Twitter:

ElderEmoKid91: That poor friend of theirs. No matter what people will think they dated because of Gina. 

ChaosRains: ‘Their friend’? Yeah right. Probably as much of a whore as Gina Frost!

JusticefortheUnheard: I bet if this was a man with two women he’d be slated as a ‘hero’ but because it’s a woman with two men she’s a whore. Grow up!

Steve Harrington: Eddie and I are saddened to hear that not only has our privacy been violated but Gina Frost is allowed to continue spreading her lies until we get this matter resolved. We never once raised a voice or hand to her and took care of her like any boyfriend would which she constantly took advantage of…

Steve Harrington: In regard to the young lady that came with us to charity event last Saturday, she is a friend we’ve known for a while. We ask politely that you respect her privacy as what is going on between us and Gina…

Steve Harrington: doesn’t involve her. Thank you for your understanding and we will speak more on this situation when we are finally able.

TMZ: Steve Harrington and Eddie Munson release joint statement regarding ‘friend’ and how they feel about Frost ‘spreading her lies’!

YouTube and TV:

CBS: “Gina Frost, thank you so much for speaking with us today. Before we let you go, what are your thoughts on the young lady they were seen with? Do you have any advice for her in regard to Mr. Harrington and Mr. Munson?”

“Run, girl. Get as far away from them as you can. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if they started ‘hanging out’ with a girl like her because of our case. They always wanted me to be perfect. To look like the woman they thought would be equal to them and their status. She’s the complete opposite of what they wanted me to be so dating, or excuse me, being friends with her makes them look good.”

***

You wiped the tears that fell with your knee as you browse Daddies on your computer. Your phone was still dinging constantly so you kept it hidden in your bedside table drawer. Since winter break had started you didn’t have to deal with work and for that you were thankful. 

Your identity hadn’t been officially confirmed but it seemed to be common knowledge at this point; everyone knew it was you. 

Not wanting to be alone, you ran home into your parent’s open arms. 

“Baby! Are you ok? What’s going on? Tell us everything.”

“I’m so stupid, mom.”, you cried.

“No, you’re not, honey. Come on. I made some coffee. Let’s sit down and talk.”

You told them everything minus the exact way you met them but you did tell them that you had been dating them both and how much you cared about them. When you were met with nothing but love and zero judgement, you cried harder. 

Having fully settled in, you felt yourself getting antsy. After everything, you didn’t want a new relationship, just something casual but after having been with the guys you felt yourself cringing more and more at the stupid flirting that hit you. 

“’Sup, pretty girl? Fuck your gorgeous. Wanna suck my cock?”

“Hey babe. You got an attitude? I bet I can fuck it out of you.”

“What are you doing, Y/N?”

Your head straightened at the message from Mogul/Rockstar. You hadn’t heard from them in over two weeks. What were they doing on this site? You couldn’t help the jealousy that flowed through you even though technically you were on the site first. 

2:13am: What do you want, Steve?

2:14am: I want an answer to my question. What are you doing on this site again?

2:15am: What are YOU doing on here?! And why do you fucking care? You told me to leave remember?

2:17am: We’ve been calling you for the past couple of weeks but you don’t answer. We got worried. Steve thought maybe we could reach you through here but I thought naw. She wouldn’t get back on here so fast. Guess we were wrong. 

2:20am: Don’t you dare, Eddie. Don’t you turn this around on me. You have no idea what I’ve been through! I still can’t believe you didn’t talk to me. You really expected me to sit at my apartment while you handled all this alone. Did you really think she wouldn’t pull me into your thing?”

2:21am: Now because of all the secrecy I can’t help but think what I’m hearing is true!

2:22am: Like what? 

2:25am: Answer. Like what?

2:26am: That you only dated me so it seems like you didn’t want her to be the ‘ideal woman’.

You hear your phone vibrate against the drawer it’s nestled. 

2:28am: Answer the phone.

2:28am: No.

2:29am: Now, Y/N. We need to talk.

2:30am: Oh now you want to talk!? Go fuck yourselves!

2:30am: Mogul/Rockstar has invited you to a video chat!!

2:31am: CurveybabywAttitude declined your invitation to video chat. 

2:32am: Y/N. Answer the fucking phone. 

2:38am: Y/N, sweetheart, please.

2:44am: Baby…

2:44am: Please…

2:45am: We love you. 

2:45am: So much.

Uh oh! It looks like this Baby can no longer receive messages from Mogul/Rockstar! This means you have either been blocked or the Baby has deleted their account. 

###################

“Jesus what assholes.”, your best friend sighs as she takes a sip from her glass. “If they loved you then why did they push you away?”

“I don’t know, My. Let’s stop talking about them and dance!”

To get your mind off everything and let go, you met up with your best friend who took you to a new bar that had been built while you were away from home. Dressed in your tightest black dress and black heels, you grabbed your own drink and danced away the pain. 

Your friend took photos, tagging you together with men in the background casually touching your arm or waist. Your limbs found their way around a cute boy you had been talking casually to and allow him to kiss you. You hated the taste, missing Eddie and Steve even more but you pushed down the feeling as you pulled him tighter against you. 

“Take me home.”, you slurred, making the young man immediately jump to his feet. When you tried to do the same you fell backwards. 

“Whoa, Y/N. Maybe, you should let me take you home.”

“Naw, Mya. I-I-I M’fine.”, you assured as you lightly pushed her to the side and stumbled out the front door. When you tripped again the man wrapped your arm around his neck and began leading you to his car. “Wait—Wait. I’m…I need a minute.”, you whine as you take a seat on the brick wall behind you.

“Come on, baby. You can rest at my place.”, the man cooed in your ear causing you to cringe. “Look we don’t even have to go. We can just fuck in my car real quick—”

“Oh, that’s romantic.”

As you stood up and started to walk away, he grabbed your wrist a bit to roughly and in return, you smacked his cheek before stumbling to the concrete. 

“Ow! Fucking bitch—” As the man began to step forward, someone intercepted, abruptly grabbing his collar and lifting him off his feet. 

“Eddie, let it go, man. Not right now.”, Steve whispers before kneeling down beside you to try and help you up. 

“Get out of my sight.”, the rockstar growls, pushing him away from you. 

“Y/N, stop. I’m just trying to help you stand—”

“I don’t need your fucking help!”, you shouted as you shoved his hand away. “I don’t need anything from you!” 

Trying to push up onto your knees, you became dizzy and fell over again causing Steve to try and steady you while blocking your shoulder from scraping the wall beside you. Your hair was blocking your face but when they heard you sniffle, Eddie crouched down to balance on his heels and tenderly reached out to move some of it behind your ear. 

“I did everything you asked… I didn’t push when it came to your past or dig into your information online. I-I-I respected the anon-ymity and privacy when we first met and took a leap of faith going to that party with you. I flew to visit you anywhere you were and didn’t complain when you were gone for weeks at a time. I made myself vulnerable…for you…but still…you don’t trust me.”

“Y/N, sweetheart, we are so sorry—”

“I want to go home, please, Daddy.”

The way you said that shattered them in two. Just in your voice alone they could hear how much pain you were in yet even in your inebriated state you still yearned for them. Selfishly, it gave them hope.

“Y/N, sweetie! There you are.”, your best friend shouts in relief as she runs to you and helps you to your feet. “Get the fuck away from her. Haven’t you done enough damage?!”

“We just want to talk to her.”

“Fuck you! You had your chance to talk and—”

“Mya, please. Sleepy.”, you whine. 

When she tries to lead you away from them towards her car, you stumble over your feet again but Eddie swiftly catches you and lifts you into his arms. 

“We’ll help you get her to your car.”

“Why? So you know which one is mine and follow me back to her house?!”

“No, so we can help you get her situated and back home so she can rest.”, Steve growled. 

Mya blinks, taken a back slightly by their protective demeanors over you. After taking a moment, she finally nods and guides them towards her vehicle, watching carefully as they place you in the passenger seat. The mogul buckles your seatbelt and gently puts your bag in your lap.

Your half-lidded eyes scan his worried face as your head lulls towards him. 

“M’not her.”

“Who, honey?”

“Gina.”

Flashing you a soft smile, he begins to reach out to pet your head before forcing himself to stop and rise to his feet.

“We’re staying at the hotel by the highway; room 118. When she wakes up tomorrow, if you could tell her that, we’d appreciate it.”, Eddie conveys as his sad eyes stay on you. 

“Your fuckers, you know that?”, Mya shouts their way as they start to leave. “Like so much so that I don’t even know where to begin. She used to call me every other day and talk about these new guys she was seeing. She never told me your full names but she told me everything else. ‘Oh Mya, they are so sweet and funny. Steve is amazing at his job and works to hard to make sure everything gets done while still being able to be there for me. I love watching Eddie play on stage. He gets so into the songs and his face lights up when he hears the fans singing along. Falling asleep in their arms is my new favorite place. I finally feel safe.’”

“When the news dropped, I called her but she didn’t answer. I wasn’t worried at the time because the way she described you, I thought ‘Thankfully, they have her and she has them.’ Then she came home and told me about you expecting her to hide in her apartment with zero information on what was happening. How you yelled at her and called her a fucking brat when she called you out.”

“Oh, and the icing on the cake? You tell her you love her for the first time over a dating website AFTER ALL THIS BULLSHIT YOU PUT HER THROUGH! Holden wore his asshole behavior out in the open for all to see. You made her believe you were different, leading her on before breaking her heart. After the stuff I read, I’m starting to believe Gina Frost.”

Both men absorbed what your best friend was saying, different emotions painting their features before finally landing on anger; not at her but themselves. 

“Your right.”, Steve replied in a sullen tone. “We fucked up. Hell, we did more than fuck up…”

“We’ve never cared about anyone the way we do her and that terrifies us. Not just because of our status or who we are even though that’s why Gina used us but…”, Eddie added. “The men underneath the fame and money are incredibly flawed.”

“Gina made us afraid of her hurting us but our own personal bullshit made us afraid of hurting her.”

“So this is better?”, Mya asked.

“My…where…where your phone?”, you slurred as your hand lazily reached in her direction.

“Y/N, I’m taking you back to your mom’s, honey, you don’t know need to call them.”

“No…not mom…Eddie…Steve…I need to make dem come back. They were here an’ an’…”

“How about you call them tomorrow morning, ok? It’s really late and—”

“I don’t want dem to leave again. Mya…please…”

“Hey, hey sweetheart, we’re right here. We haven’t gone anywhere.” Tears start to run down your cheeks again and the rockstar cups your face in his hand. “We’re right here and we’ll be here when you wake up. Just let Mya, take you home and get you in bed. Tomorrow you can call us and we’ll talk then alright?”

After you nod, Eddie adjusts your body again before closing the door. 

“You guys should get going.”

“Do you really love her?”, your best friend asks.

“Yes.”

Again, Mya takes a moment to gather her thoughts as her eyes shift between your now sleeping frame and them. 

“Her parents house isn’t far. You can follow me there.”

***

“Why are they here?”, your father asks in an annoyed tone as he eyes the men up and down. 

“It’s ok, Mr. Y/L/N. They just wanted to help get her situated and then they’ll be on their way.”, Mya answers in equal measure. 

“Is her room up here?”, Eddie inquires as he gestures towards the stairs. 

“Why don’t you come with us so you can get her changed into something comfier.”, Steve follows when your friend nods. 

“Why? You’re her whatevers right?”

“I don’t think it would be appropriate right now for us to do that.”

“I can help you.”, your mom responds out of nowhere. “Come on, gentlemen.”

After they get to your room, your mother turns on your bedside lamp as Eddie gently places you down on your bed. Taping the rockstars shoulder, she hands him an oversized shirt with your college insignia on it and some shorts. 

“Maybe you should…”

“I trust you, Mr. Munson. Plus I’m right here.” Her eyes studiously watch them as both boys work to change you out of your tight garment doing everything they could to not have to look at your body. Steve’s palm carefully cradled your head to make sure they didn’t jostle you around too much as you soundly slept. 

“Do you have a washrag or wipe or something for her makeup?”

Her head tilts at his question, impressed he even thought of that. Disappearing into your restroom, she came back with wet wipes, and Eddie thanked her as he took one and gently cleaned your face.

This was a bit harder to accomplish without moving you as your face scrunched and you whined. 

“Steve…stop…”

“That’s it, sweetheart. Blame him. That way if I don’t do this correctly it will be his fault.”, he teased making you sleepily giggle. 

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”, Eddie whispers.

“Thank you, ma’am, for letting us do this. We just wanted to make sure she got here safely.”

“Hm. You wanted to make sure she got back home in one piece but didn’t think to do that when it came to all this chaos you brought her into?”, you mom scolded as she folded her arms. 

“We did warn her—”

“No Mr. Harrington. You may have warned her about your lifestyle but you didn’t do anything to protect her when the fallout of that lifestyle presented itself. Holden ‘warned’ her about what life in New York would be like but when things got hard he abandoned her instead working with her. Like him, you left her alone.”

Nodding, their heads hung as they began to head towards the door before stopping. 

“I’m afraid.”, Eddie announces. “My mom died when I was young, my dad went to jail, people around me told me I’d never amount to anything, and then our ex did what she did. When we met Y/N, fuck, I thought she was perfect… and that scares me. I don’t want to lose her but I also don’t want to be the reason that spark inside of her dies.”

“Seems like a lose/lose, Eddie. But let me ask you something… what if your relationship with her had a happy ending? What if she didn’t hurt you like your ex and you don’t hurt her like people in your life?” She smiles softly as she pats his shoulder. “It’s a risk, boys, but you just need to decide who is worth taking that risk for. You’re more than welcome to stay in our spare bedroom if you would like.”

####################

When you woke up the next morning, you had a splitting headache, thankful that your pain reliever was still in your drawer by your bed. The sound of soft breathing startled you a bit and when you leaned over your bedframe, you were surprised to see Eddie asleep on your floor using his jacket as a pillow. Steve had placed himself in the reading chair you had in the corner with his head leaning against the wall. 

You didn’t realize how much you missed them till you saw their faces and you took the opportunity to refamiliarize yourself as your eyes scanned over them. The mogul was in jeans and a polo making you smile softly while silently missing the sleek suits that hugged him perfectly. The rockstar was still dressed the same as he usually was but his whole demeanor even while sleeping seemed heavy. 

Your heart broke for them until the last couple of weeks caught up with you and you remembered why you were here. 

Reaching for one of your pillows, you threw it their way, hitting Eddie’s chest before it bounced and hit Steve’s lap. 

“The fuck?”, he grumbled as he rubbed his eyes. 

“The fuck indeed. Why are you both here? How did you even know where I was?”

“Your best friend was posting pictures of you and tagging your location on Instagram. You weren’t answering your phone—”

“Yeah, Steve, for a reason. That doesn’t give you the right to come down here.”

“Thank God we did because some asshole was harassing you and Mya was having trouble getting you to her car to take you home.”

“No, Eddie. You playing hero doesn’t absolve you of what you did. You have no idea what I’ve been through!”

“We tried to call—”

“Oh, fuck you both!” As you start to get up to yell at them, a sharp sting runs through knee causing you to wince and sit back down. 

“Shit. Didn’t see that last night. Um, do you have a first kit or anything thing?”

When you don’t answer, the mogul goes on the hunt himself as Eddie kneels in front of you to look at the scrape on your knee. 

“Yeah, you fell on the concrete outside of the bar with some asshole trying to… I told him to fuck off.” Sitting on the bed beside you, Steve opens the little white box and starts to open a Band-Aid before his friend stops him. “Dude, you have to clean it first. It’s like you’ve never been in a fight before. Gimme this.”, he chuckles lightly as he takes the box and pulls out the antiseptic.

“You don’t have to do this. I’m not… I don’t belong to you anymore.”

His movements only halt for a second before Eddie continues taking care of you. 

“I don’t mind doing this. I like taking care of you.”, he murmurs. “Unless you want me to stop.”

“I don’t want you to but I didn’t want you to cast me aside either.”

“We—”

“Don’t say you didn’t, Steve, because you did.”

“We did.” His response surprised you as you turned your head in his direction. “We talked to your mom last night. She’s a very wise woman.”, he smirks as he watches Eddie continue his task. “Y/N, I worked so hard to get where I am and I don’t just mean taking over my dad’s company and doing the deals I do. When I was growing up, I was never enough for either of my parents but especially my father. In his eyes, I could always be just a little bit better.”

“I could shorten my time by one more second in the pool or get one more minute on the court. My grades could have been one point higher or I could have gotten three grand more out of a deal. He wanted me to be perfect but I learned after I graduated high school that bar was always changing.” When his eyes finally met yours, you saw the pain behind them. “Gina knew all this… that’s why she’s saying that about me. She knows it hurts me…people thinking I’m like my father.”

Eddie finishes placing the Band-aid on your skin and leans back against the wall across from you.

“My dad was a dick…to me and my mother. He cut us down all the time verbally but after she died it got worse. He would tell me I was stupid and a freak just like the people in our town. I left my house with more bruises than I could count on numerous occasions but his words, babe. I carry those everywhere even now. I never once, no matter how angry I was, called her anything demeaning even though I fucking wanted to. She would call us every name in the book but we never once belittled her or laid a hand on her.”

“When we met you, Jesus, I swear there was no girl we had ever met like you.”

“Beautiful, sarcastic, kind, understanding…”, Steve clarified when your eyebrows furrowed. “Y/N, you are everything we’ve ever wanted.”

“Stop…”, you whimper quietly. 

“I feel like somehow she knows that. That’s why she’s saying that stuff about us choosing you because you’re everything she’s not. We wouldn’t change anything about you. Not one thing, princess. But we are so fucking scared of getting hurt again.”

“And we’re afraid of hurting you.”

“That’s not fair.”

“What isn’t fair, honey?”

“Do you think trusting you was easy after what Holden did to me? I upended everything I knew to follow him and he broke my heart. I was terrified of starting over in any relationship let alone with two people but I got to know you and allowed myself to be vulnerable for you… you should be able to do that for me to.”

“You’re right, baby, and we are so sorry. We’re willing to try.”, Eddie pleaded as he leaned up to grab your hands. “We don’t even have to be in a relationship again or do anything sexual. We can start slow and go from there. We just miss you so much, Y/N. The way you smell, your sense of humor, the way you play with my hair when we’re lying in bed or watching tv.”

“The way you listen to us when we talk even if it’s about work.”, Steve chimes in. “Your cute little laugh and the way you wrap your arms around me like you haven’t seen me in years when it’s only been a few hours.”

“Ah good morning, gentlemen and my hung over child. How are we today?”, your mother teases as she grins your way. 

“We’re fine thank you but if you could lower your voice a smidge that would be nice.”, you sass back making her chuckle as both men grin softly. 

“Your dad made breakfast if you and your guests are hungry. Just don’t throw it up or you’ll hurt his feelings.”

You smile as you playfully wave her off before turning your attention back to them. 

“Do you have to go back home for work or anything?”

“No, ma’am. We’re all yours.”

“Unless you want us to go back home.”, Eddie adds with sad inflection in his voice hoping and praying that you don’t. 

“Ok… I’m going to change and then head downstairs. You, um, you should stay for breakfast. Knowing my father, if my mom told him you were staying he probably poisoned something but…I’m sure you’ll be fine.”, you joke as you get up and head towards your closet, tossing them a little wink before collecting some clothes and closing the bathroom door. 

####################

@aol19 @paradisepoisons  @paleidiot @dashingdeb16

@lilaclazer @joannamuns9n @thwippyparker @emotionaldreamer

@aactuaaltraash @alastorssimp @mygirlchaos @starksbabie @imagine-all-the-imagines @nailbatanddungeon

[bratzforchris]

Inked Daisies (Chapter 2)

A series

Summary: For the past year, you've been running the flower shop that's next door to your friend, Matt's, tattoo studio. But what happens when the feelings start to get more than friendly?

Read Chapter 1 here

Pairing: Tattoo artist!Matt x floristfem!reader

Warnings: Mentions of alcohol/drinking (reader and the triplets are 22 here), characters walking in on each other showering, nsfw content (no actual sex), a few uses of y/n (sometimes it's inevitable, y'all :P)

Word Count: 1.7k

A/N: Y'all are about to kill me for this cliffhanger 🤗

“You’re here!” Chris smiled, throwing open the door. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“It was yesterday, Chris,” You giggled. “Now let us in so we don’t drop your dinner.”

“Us?” the youngest triplet asked you, cocking his head to the side. 

Chris opened the front door wider to reveal Matt standing behind you, clearly annoyed at the fact that he hadn’t been let into his own home yet. You were holding a box of breadsticks and drinks from your favorite local pizza place while Matt carried the four boxes of pizza. Despite your protests that you could carry the pizza, the boy had refused, saying that he could do it because it was him and his brothers that could easily slam a whole pizza each by themselves. Secretly, you just thought it was cute that Matt wanted to help you, despite his “tough guy” façade. 

“You guys came together?” a look of what could have been confusion, but also something else flashed across Chris’ face. 

“You’re wack if you think I’m leaving her downtown alone at night. She’s too trusting; it’s like a puppy.” Matt murmured, shoving past you and Chris and into the house. 

“Uh oh, Mattitude’s out now.” whatever expression had been on your best friend’s face was gone now, leaving you with the happy, sunny Chris you had always known.

“Out now? It’s always out.” You laughed, making your way into the kitchen you were all too familiar with.

“I heard that.” 

You giggled to yourself, sitting the boxes down on the island. Breathing in the familiar scent of the boys’ home, any trace of the unease you had felt at Matt’s earlier demeanor disappeared. The triplets had been your best friends since high school, and not much had changed now that you were all adults, other than the fact that your hangouts were less frequent. Just like old times, you all piled onto the couch with your plates of pizza and drinks, scrolling through Netflix for a movie to watch. 

You had sandwiched yourself between Nick and Chris, while Matt sat at the other end of the couch, silently eating his pizza and scrolling through his phone. You didn’t take the silence personally, though. After the conversation at the shop about the man who was making his job more difficult, you couldn’t blame the brunette for wanting a break. Though you weren’t as close with Matt as with the other two brothers, you still cared deeply for him. If that meant him being a little more quiet in order to rest, you didn’t mind it. 

You turned towards Nick, snatching the leftover crust off his plate. “The stickers are selling well.” You stated, taking a sip of your Fanta. 

Being close friends with a graphic designer as a business owner definitely had its perks; for example, the small, cartoon-style flower stickers that read “One Trick Peony” had sold out within three hours of your shop being open for the past week since you’d started stocking them. Despite his busy job as one of the most reputable graphic designers in Los Angeles, Nick still found time to prioritize your business. The stickers had been just one of the hit merchandise pieces he’d supplied you with. 

“Do you know what you should sell?” Chris added, poking your cheek and then smiling when you looked at him fondly. “Alcohol. Lavender martinis would sell like crazy in a flower shop.”

“I’m not getting a liquor license,” You snorted. “Besides, I don’t even think the store has enough room for a bar.”

“Who said anything about a bar? All you need is a bartender.” Chris hummed, pulling you into his lap. 

It was true. Chris had become quite skilled in his ability to make drinks any and everywhere over the past year since he’d gotten his bartender certification. In your opinion, the job was perfect for him. The fast-paced, fun environment and the amount of money you could make if you were entertaining and talkative was right up the brunette’s alley. His good nature made it pretty normal for him to come home on any given Friday night with about 600 dollars in cash. 

You snuggled into your best friend’s chest, breathing in his boyish scent happily. “Maybe one day we can open a flower and brunch place with a bar.” You told him. 

“You guys hear that? I’m the one Y/N wants to run a business with.” Chris chuckled, sticking his tongue out at the other two triplets. 

“Just wait til she figures out how you actually act,” Nick grumbled, pressing play on the movie you all had decided on. “Now be quiet.”

Before looking over at the movie, you turned your eyes towards Matt. He was still withdrawn into himself, curled into the L-shaped corner of the couch now. He had put his phone down, though, and in a feat of chance, turned to look at you at the exact same moment. Matt cocked his head like he wanted to ask you a question, but then shook his head, averting his eyes. You shrugged, figuring it still had to do with the exhaustion and stress from earlier in the day, but you couldn’t help but notice the feeling growing in your tummy at the thought that Matt had been looking at you first.

One terrible, low-budget movie later, you sat up out of Chris’ hold and looked around the living room. Nick had abandoned the movie in favor of his laptop, seemingly editing some sort of advertisement. That was just his personality. If something recreational didn’t immediately capture his attention, he was back to working his ass off. Maybe that was what made him such a successful entrepreneur, but either way, you admired him for helping people bring their dreams for their designs to fruition. Chris was scrolling through his phone, every now and then migrating into his work group chat to chuckle at the stories his fellow bartenders had to share about cutting someone off for the night. Matt, on the other, had fallen asleep, chin resting in his hand. You felt rather bad for him; January was always a stressful month for tattoo artists and piercers because people had Christmas money and gift cards, and they wanted their modifications to be healed by summer time. 

“I’m gonna shower,” You told your two (awake) best friends, standing up and stretching. “Do you guys mind?” 

“You know that’s like asking to shower in your own home, right?” Chris stood up behind you, tickling your sides. 

“It’s…still…the polite thing to do!” You laughed, gasping for breath at the tickling. 

“But yes, we don’t care. Go ahead.” Chris placed a friendly kiss on the back of your head. 

It wasn’t out of the ordinary for you and your best friends to share platonic cheek kisses, cuddles, and hugs, but it didn’t make your heart any less happy. You smiled, making your way to Matt’s bathroom. You had kept shower stuff at the triplets’ home ever since the four of you had moved to LA. After all, you were at their house almost more than you were at your apartment. You trekked towards Matt’s bathroom since it was the closest to the living room. You knew he wouldn’t mind, especially because A) he was asleep and B) you’d done it before. 

You warmed the water up, ridding yourself of your clothes from the day, and stepping into the steamy heaven. You didn’t bother locking the door, knowing that on the off chance Matt did wake up, Chris and Nick would inform him that you were using his bathroom. You began to wash your hair, letting the rose scent of your shampoo fill the bathroom as you massaged your scalp, washing away the worries of both a busy day at your business, and the odd encounters you’d been having with the middle triplet all evening. You were so caught up in thinking that you didn’t even hear the doorknob to the bathroom turn as Matt stepped into the bathroom. 

Matt knew he shouldn’t have. You were one of his closest friends. There was no way he should be watching you showering. It was weird and wrong on so many levels, yet he couldn’t pull his eyes away from your body. You looked peaceful, head thrown back under the water and eyes closed, soft moans escaping your lips as you relaxed. The way the warm water and soap suds caressed your body and curves as they cascaded into the drain made him think about what other white substances would look like dripping down your body in the shower. 

What the fuck? Why was he thinking about railing you? You two weren’t even that close and he didn’t like you like that. Still, Matt couldn’t deny the tightening in his cock at the image of you in front of him, and the image of you in his mind. He told himself that it was just because he hadn’t been laid in so long, but the brunette couldn’t help the soft groan that made its way out of his mouth. 

At the sound, your eyes flew open, head turning towards the door. “Matt?” You futilely tried to cover yourself, knowing it was useless. Matt had already seen it all. 

“Fuck, I…uh, fuck–Y/N, I’m sorry,” he grumbled, clearing his throat. “I was just coming to brush my teeth and Nick and Chris didn’t tell me you were…in here.”

You shut the water off quickly, grabbing the towel you’d thrown over the side of the glass door and wrapping it around your body. “Shit, I’m sorry, Matt. I should’ve locked the door.”

“It’s um, it’s fine,” Matt coughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as his face turned red. “I’m just gonna…grab my toothbrush and use Chris’ bathroom tonight. ‘S all yours in here.”

You watched as Matt grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste and scrambled out of the bathroom. You were still standing in the draining shower, dripping wet and shivering. Part of you couldn’t believe that one of your best male friends had seen you showering, but for some reason, another part of you wasn’t mad about it. Unbeknownst to you, though, Matt was feeling the same way in his cold shower downstairs. 

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[benevolentcalamity]

Code: S.O.S [Epil.][Xenomorph x Fem!Reader]

Hey, I'm back, did you miss me? I felt this needed an extension since cliffhanger endings in... Really anything are the worst if there's not gonna be a sequel.

And for you thirsty bitches that wanted monsterfuckery with the Xenomorph - are you okay by the way - you get a one-shot. If it's popular enough, I'll make a full-fledged series. Scout's honor.

Also, I had an anon before that was digging this series. I hope they come back to see the redone Chapter 3. (Yea I think about anons that give me genuine criticism, what about it)

CURTAINS!

"Vitals are stable, and the medicine's been administered. [Last Name], can you hear me?"

Through the shining haze, you find Yutani's face, squinting as even the minute aches in your legs are ground to nothing. As the anesthesia courses through your blood, she tugs a clipboard and writes on it with precision and speed inhumanly possible. Before long she's finished four forms and put the clipboard back aside.

Comforting, her gloved hand reaches and undoes a few tangles in your oily hair. "How are you feeling?"

After a moment your lips manage to part. "... Hungry..."

A soft chuckle, and she pats your shoulder. Looking over to another crew member, she raises her head. "Tran? We're still well-stocked on supplies, right? Please make sure we have some stew, if possible, after the surgery."

"Understood, Doctor." Some footsteps, and your chin is lifted from your head falling to your chest - and the moving equipment.

"Don't look at the surgery, look at me, alright?" She instructs. Once she has your full attention she sighs, relieved. "I hope you don't mind, we managed to clean out the rest of that ship. The Far Reach is lucky, to have had only one of those creatures on it. You're very brave, to have fought it on your own."

Swallowing, you manage a nod. "... Anderson...?" Your eyes are too tired to move.

"Anderson is okay." She accompanies this with a minute glance toward the door. "... We're very lucky we found you so soon. The alien inside your chest isn't big enough to be a risk to your life during the surgery."

You lift your head, and she stops your motion of looking once more.

"... Do I smell bad?" Maybe a dumb question would help lift your mood.

Yutani chuckles deep in her chest, patting your shoulder. "Like you just crawled out of a bonfire on a carrier ship." The jovial tone in her voice helps you relax further, with her eye flickering towards your chest, and then the monitors. "... Here, allow me."

Before you can question her, her hand sets the pen aside, and rests over your eyes. Harshly you drag a lip between your teeth, inhaling sharply. Weirdly no pain, but you feel the sensation of something clinging onto and then being forcefully removed from near your heart. For a moment your chest spasms from the feeing, with a grotesque squelch and a series of hisses to follow.

Right when you can bear the mystery no more, the machine makes a buzz and a few harsh clicks, before something wet snaps in two. By the time Yutani lifts her hand, the machine is beginning the process of stapling and stitching you back together.

"Not a minute too soon." A relieved sigh makes her heave.

"... Have you done this before?" You ask, eyes falling to the process. By her reaction, the worst part of it is over, and you have no reason to really be scared. Apart from, well, surgery being something you'd rather not be awake for.

"Mhm. This was made... shortly after the discovery of the Xenomorphs," She replies. "We're approaching the finishing of backbursters as well."

What? "Back... bursters...?"

"Oh. There's a mixture of Yautja and Xenomorph out there. While few, we must be prepared for every kind we meet." She taps the pen to her brow along this train of thought. "The only way to win is not to meet them, but should we, well, we're prepared now."

The intercom beeps, both of you raising your heads. An instinctive wish to not be alone has you reaching for Yutani as she retreats to answer it.

Pressing the button, she clears her throat. "Yutani."

"Yutani," Tran's voice rings through. "A call came in for you. It's her."

"Right, send her through." A few seconds after Yutani's go-ahead, her phone rings. In one quick motion it's at her ear. "Hello? Yutani speaking." Then her lips curl upward. "Yes, she's awake and stable - being stitched up as we speak."

Her eyes flicker to meet yours, and the assurance calms you once more. With a nod and a tacit farewell, she passes the phone to you. Swallowing, you pray you don't sound raspy.

"Hello? [Last Name]."

"[Last Name]. My name is Ripley. Ellen Ripley." Her voice carries strength and resolve, like she had fought a thousand battles and remains who they made her into. "Do you have time?"

"Yes, absolutely. It's nice to meet you, Ripley."

[catladyoftheyr]

Too Sweet (Ch 3)

Harvey x Reader

Ch 1 ~ Ch 2 ~ Ch 4

Summary: picking up off last chapters cliffhanger and diving straight into Harvey’s 4 heart event. You resolve the conflict after the incident with George, Harvey gives you a checkup, and you two share a jar of pickles in his apartment. 💘🥒

Authors note: I know nothing about the Air Force I’m so sorry. It’s just for the plot and vibes. He needed a backstory!!

Word count: 1.7k! A longer chapter as a treat

“Harvey! Oh my god why are you here? Wait, no, I don’t mean it like that” the surprise visit from the doctor had you stumbling over your words. “You scared me. And I don’t actually think your mustache is stupid. I just… I was really embarrassed about what happened earlier.”

“I actually stopped by to thank you for backing me up earlier. George can be stubborn, so I’m glad you got him to listen to you.” The doctor averted eye contact and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Do you mind if I join you?”

“Oh uhhh, sure. How much of what I said did you hear by the way?” You hoped silently that he hadn’t heard you call him cute, especially since you’d been talking to a chicken.Harvey slid down and sat next to you on the floor of the coop.

“Just the part where you insulted my mustache,” he replied, stroking his own facial hair. “The farm is coming along nicely. You must be very dedicated to make such a turn around in such a short time.”

Oh thank Yoba you thought to yourself. “Thank you. I guess I’m trying to make up for lost time; I want to honor Grandpa’s memory because he loved this farm and the community. I used to spend a couple weeks here in the summer when I was growing up. I haven’t been back to the valley since I was a teenager. I didn’t think Lewis would recognize me when I came back.” You laughed quietly, an image of you as a gawky adolescent with braces coming back to you

“About earlier, we can put that behind us if you’d like. I didn’t mean to be short with you either. I was startled so I apologize for being curt.” Harvey looked at you with a kind expression before rising from the floor. “I’d like for us to be on good terms going forward.” He extended his hand and helped you up.

———————————————————————————

The bell on the door chimed as you walked in and Harvey’s head poked up from his paperwork. “Hey! Just the person I wanted to see today actually.”

“Oh?”

“I was about to write you a letter recommending that you schedule your annual checkup. If you don’t mind, I’ve got time today actually for a cursory exam.” Truthfully you weren’t very fond of hospitals, or doctor’s appointments. But you were also a terrible liar and had no time to think of an excuse. Better just to get it over with, you supposed.

“I can make it work.” You set the jar of pickles aside temporarily and followed Harvey to an exam room. You sat down on the paper, uncomfortable with the sudden formal shift in your dynamic. You’d gone from friend to patient in a matter of minutes. Harvey placed his stethoscope just under the collar of your shirt and you flinched at the touch of the cold metal.

“Sorry it’s chilly,” Harvey said. “Your heart rate is a little high. Do hospitals make you nervous?” He asked with a slight furrow in his brow.

“A little bit” you admitted. It certainly didn’t help that this was the most physical contact the two of you had shared since you met. He placed his hand on your shoulder and your eyes met. You felt your palms start sweating.

“Take a deep breath for me please” you did as instructed and tried to focus on anything else but the feeling of his hand on you. “Your lungs sound strong.” Harvey was in his element as he checked off the boxes of a routine checkup. He tested your reflexes, examined your ears and eyes, writing down his observations on his clipboard. “So far you seem to be in good health. I just have a few more questions about your lifestyle”

“Ask away, Doc.” Harvey seemed slightly flustered at the nickname but made a quick recovery. He pushed his glasses back up his nose and stood up straighter, clearing his throat

“As I was saying. Working on the farm involves a fair amount of physical labor I assume, so I’m sure you get enough exercise. What do you usually eat in a day?”

“Oh I usually just eat the foragables I find around the valley. There’s a lot of leeks and wild onions out now. I saw a weird looking berry the other day and I ate a couple of those. Sometimes I eat eggs from the chickens, or buy something from Gus for dinner.” Harvey was visibly stressed as he absorbed the information you gave him.

“I would highly advise that you eat a more balanced diet. Foraging is fine as a snack but it won’t provide enough energy for your activity levels. Eggs are good, but I’d implore you to try and eat from all the food groups”

“So this probably isn’t a great time to say I also eat the algae I find in the mines?” You’d never seen the poor doctor so stressed; you imagined most of his patients weren’t quite as odd as you.

“Let’s move on. How much sleep do you get at night?”

“6ish, sometimes less, sometimes more”

“Well, 8 hours a night is recommended but 6 isn’t terrible I suppose. But I’d encourage you to try and find a healthier routine. Farming is labor intensive and if you don’t give your body the care it needs you won’t be able to keep up sooner or later.” He had a look of genuine worry in his eyes and it pulled at your heartstrings. You’d only known each other for several months, but you sensed the beginning of a deep connection.

“I’ll try to be better,” you replied softly. You weren’t used to being chastised, but you understood he meant well.

“Thank you. You’re free to go and have an official clean bill of health from me”

“Well I stopped by to ask a favor actually”

“Oh?”

“I was wondering if you’d do me the honors of being the very first taste tester of my first batch of farm fresh pickles” you grinned and gestured toward the door “I left them on the counter.” Harvey smiled back and held the door open for you.

“I’d be honored. I’m actually about to close up for the day, would you like to come upstairs?”

The two of you headed upstairs to the small apartment above the clinic. Furniture was sparse and well loved, and there was a small kitchenette off the main room. The back wall held a large bookshelf that boasted an assortment of books and some small trinkets. Another shelf was lined carefully with model planes. There was a radio station in the corner by the window. “It’s not much, but it’s home,” Harvey said sheepishly.

“It’s great” you replied, eyes scanning the room with eagerness. You were itching to learn more about him. You took a seat on his small sofa, your heart nearly skipping a beat when he sat next to you, his knee inches away from yours. “You can have the first one” you offered, extending the open pickle jar toward Harvey.

“Don’t mind if I do.” Harvey reached in and plucked out a particularly large pickle before biting into it. His eyes lit up as he tasted it. “This is delicious! You’ve really never made pickles before?” You shook your head. “Well you certainly have a knack for it.” You grabbed a pickle for yourself and were pleasantly surprised at how good they were. You were glad he wasn’t lying to spare your feelings.

“What’s with the planes?” You saw Harvey get a far off look on his face while he thought about his response

“I’ve always been fascinated by aviation. I did a stint in the Air Force years ago. I wanted to become a pilot but it didn’t pan out. It ended up paying for my med school tuition though. The model planes are something I like to do in my free time. I find them relaxing, and they remind me of my time in service.”

“I would have never guessed that. Pilots and doctors are pretty different. What led you down this path?”

“I think I’ve always had an affinity for helping people. I joined the Air Force to serve my country; this feels like a way to serve the community in a different way.”

“That’s actually really selfless.” You toyed with images of Harvey in uniform as you reached for another pickle, not realizing that Harvey had the same idea. Your hands met in the rim of the jar and you flinched back instinctively. The small touch left you wanting more. You adjusted your legs slightly, tentatively letting one fall against his. Harvey made no effort to break contact.

“Tell me more about yourself. You said you explore the mines. Are there really monsters in there?”

“There are! I haven’t made it down very far but there’s all kinds of creatures down there.” You animatedly described the things you’d encountered on your adventures: colorful slimes, stealthy rock crabs, large buzzing insects, agile bats and more. Harvey looked on with a mixture of awe and fear.

His voice grew soft as he spoke “please be careful in the mines. I’d hate to see you get hurt.” Suddenly it was as if a switch had gone off in his mind and he got up from the couch. “Wait here one second!” He bolted across the studio and down the stairs. You heard rummaging from below before Harvey emerged again holding an armful of various medicines and first aid supplies. “Take these.” He thrusted the bundle of supplies into your arms.

“Harvey I can’t just take these from you. These are expensive” you insisted, trying to hand them back to him. A roll of gauze unraveled on the floor. Harvey plucked it from the ground and placed it on a table.

“Nonsense. Consider it part of your checkup.” He looked you in the eyes with a pleading expression. “Please take them. And promise me you’ll keep them with you in the mines”

“I promise.”

[worth-the-chaos]

Adventures in Babysitting - Steve Harrington x female!reader - Chapter 10

Chapter Summary: The Russian invasion and the upside down begin to merge as you meet up with the rest of the crew. You are in the fight of your lives as you scramble to try to stop the monstrous creature from the upside down before it destroys you.

Content Warning: violence, upside down, swearing

Word Count: 5.8k

Author’s Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter. Right now I can’t decide if I should start on season 4 or if it would maybe be best to pick up the story after season 5 drops since it ended on such a cliffhanger. Let me know what you think!

Series Masterlist | Chapter 9 | Next Part

***

The five of you exited the bathroom quietly, merging with the crowd leaving the movie to blend in, hoping that no Russians would find you. Your eyes darted around, scanning for any potential threat as you made your way through the crowd. There were so many people, you were beginning to feel claustrophobic. Suddenly, you felt a hand grab your arm, and your heart jumped to your throat as you turned around and prepared for the worst.

You were met with the concerned eyes of a stranger. You recognized him from somewhere, but right now you couldn’t quite place it. You wriggled free from his grasp as he opened his mouth to speak.

“Hey, are you okay? What happened to you?”

“Oh, I’m fine…yeah, I-I just got into a bit of a…car accident a couple of days ago—while I was out of town!” You quickly added at the end. Hawkins was a small enough town that any car accidents would certainly be reported. He looked skeptical and opened his mouth to speak again, but you quickly cut him off, “I really have to be going now.”

Without another word, you slipped through the crowd, putting more distance between yourself and the boy while you tried to connect the dots to figure out where you knew him from. It finally dawned on you as your mind flashed back to the Hellfire Club shirt he was wearing under his leather jacket. It was Eddie Munson. You never got the chance to really talk to him at school, mainly knowing him via the rumors that circulated around about him being bad news.

“Y/n! Where were you?” Steve whisper-shouted as you finally made your way next to him. His mind had flashed to the worst case scenario when you were no longer beside him, and he was ready to fight tooth and nail to find you.

“I just fell behind a little bit…sue me,” you rolled your eyes, trying to stay casual. You didn’t want to tell him about how Eddie had noticed that you were injured. The more low-profile you stayed right now, the better.

“Alright, we just need to get on the bus with the rest of these people, and home sweet home, here we come,” Dustin spoke up. No sooner had he said the words did you recall a very important detail from your conversation with the Russians.

“Uh, Dustin?” You spoke up hesitantly, “yeah, we might not wanna go to your house.”

“Why?”

“Well, I might’ve told them your full name,” Steve spoke up sheepishly. He felt really guilty about it, but he couldn’t really go back and undo it.

“What is wrong with you?!” Dustin seethed, exasperated with the idiot that his babysitter was somehow in love with against all odds.

“Dude, I was drugged.”

“So? You resist! You tough it out like a man!”

“Oh yeah, that’s easy for you to say,” you rolled your eyes as you came to Steve’s defense. You were in the same position that he had been in and you knew for a fact that you had “toughed it out” and it didn’t make a damn difference with that shit in your system.

“Guys,” Robin spoke up hesitantly. You noticed men dressed in black, checking bags as people left the mall. You immediately could tell that they weren’t some low level mall security guys…these were Russians. One of them turned and made direct eye contact with you and your heart began to race again, mind flashing back to what it was like to be tied up in that underground facility.

“Abort! Abort!” Dustin yelled as you all turned to run the other way. You darted to the escalator, hopping up on the divider between the two and sliding down to the lower level. As you entered the food court, you jumped the counter to one of the various food stands, gesturing for your friends to join you.

“Come on!” You shouted. They swiftly moved behind the counter and the five of you sat with your backs to it as you listened to the footsteps of the Russian guards. Steve’s hand gently began to interlock with yours and you held on tightly, trying to ease the panic that was settling in your chest.

“Y/n, we’re gonna be okay—I’m gonna make sure of it,” he leaned in, his lips brushing against your ear as he whispered ever so quietly. You turned towards him, fear in your eyes as you whispered back.

“I don’t know what to do Steve. It’s not like they’re going to give up,” you started, “they’ll leave when we’re dead.”

Your suspicions seemed to be confirmed as you heard footsteps approaching. It sounded like there was more than one of them, indicating to you that they had found your hiding spot. Your breathing picked up as you braced yourself for the worst. The footsteps stopped and a silence fell across the mall. You squeezed your eyes shut as a single tear ran down your cheek.

Suddenly, a car alarm began blaring loudly, causing you to nearly jump out of your skin. You heard the sound of metal being crushed, and you imagined the car flipping as you felt the ground reverberate with each thud of the vehicle against the tiled food court floor. Slowly, but surely, the five of you peaked out over the counter, taking in the sight of the four Russian guards, presumably dead on the floor.

You looked around, taking in the sight of the crashed car before your eyes finally caught sight of Eleven on the railing. The rest of the kids were with her, as well as Nancy and Jonathan. The seven of them ran down the escalator, meeting you in the middle of the mall.

“What are you doing here?!” Lucas yelled at Erica and you cringed knowing it was on you for putting the Sinclair girl in harm’s way.

“Ask them, it’s their fault!” She pointed at you and Steve.

“True, yeah. Totally true; absolutely our fault,” Steve quickly fessed up, not wanting it to turn into a huge argument.

“I don’t understand what happened to that car,” Robin interjected, her eyes wide as she tried and failed to understand the physics of it all.

“El has superpowers,” Dustin answered simply.

“I’m sorry?” Robin responded, clearly dumbfounded by the boy’s explanation. This was the first time in a while that you realized how ridiculous everything that you had went through in the past two years sounded.

“Superpowers. She threw it with her mind. C’mon, catch up,” Steve rolled his eyes.

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Nancy asked looking at Robin.

“I’m Robin. I work with Steve and y/n.”

“She cracked the top secret code,” you chimed in.

“Yeah, which is how we found out about the Russians,” Steve continued.

“Russians? What Russians?” Jonathan asked confused.

“The Russians!” Steve shouted back.

“Those were Russians?” Max spoke up. Clearly you had all be dealing with different shit and after several miscommunications later, you were still trying to catch everyone up on the latest dangers pervading Hawkins. Suddenly, El collapsed to the floor, quickly ending your very confused conversation as Mike ran over to her followed by the rest of you.

“El! What’s wrong?!” He asked.

“My leg. My leg,” she whimpered, as tears began to run from her eyes. Her face was twisted in pain and your heart ached for her. Nancy unwrapped her wound and you all realized that there was something in her leg, watching as it writhed and slithered underneath her very infected looking skin. She began screaming out in pain and Mike continued to talk to her, desperately worried for his girlfriend.

“Keep her talking, keep her awake, okay?” You looked at everyone before darting off to a storefront in the food court. You pulled several drawers open, desperately looking for anything you could use to remove whatever that thing was crawling in the poor girls leg. You finally gathered a knife, a wooden spoon, and gloves, turning on a burner to the stove and sterilizing the kitchen knife in the flame.

You sprinted back over to the group, who had repositioned El, propping her up. “Okay. Alright, El? This is gonna hurt like hell, okay?” You spoke to her softly.

“Okay,” she gasped in pain.

“I need you to stay very still for me. You’re gonna want to bite down on this,” you handed Mike the wooden spoon and he placed it gently in her mouth, her teeth already biting down on the handle as she cried in pain. Everyone was terrified, and your heart was beating wildly. You didn’t know what the hell you were doing, but given all the weird ass shit you’d been through, you knew you had to get whatever the hell it was win her leg out.

You pressed the knife to her shin, drawing it downwards to make an incision, wincing greatly as she cried out in pain. “I’m so sorry, El,” you breathed out, taking your gloved hand and sinking it into the incision. El screamed out while everyone else exclaimed in disgust. Your eyes started watering and tears began to cloud your vision as you attempted to feel for the thing writhing under her skin but to no such avail.

“No! Stop it!” Eleven dropped the spoon and began yelling at you. You quickly pulled your hand away and scooted back. “I can do it.”

Your heart broke at how pained her voice sounded, and she held up her hand above the broken skin. The slug came back to life as it began to slither across the side of her calf, moving closer towards the incision. She screamed and the storefront windows behind you shattered. Steve and Robin backed up as you darted forward, shielding kids’ heads from the glass raining down.

Eleven finally pulled the creature out of her leg and the sight of it made you immediately nauseous. It looked like a mess of bone and flesh and blood, and she tossed it across the mall from you. It began to skitter away before being quickly smashed under the shoe of the one and only Jim Hopper.

While everybody stared at Jim and Joyce and Murray, you rushed to El’s side, pulling her into a tight hug and cradling her head. She cried in exhaustion as she held onto you. “Shhhh, it’s okay; everything’s going to be okay,” you whispered into her hair, trying to calm her down. You were crying too, tears silently falling down your face as you rubbed soothing circles across her back.

By the looks of it, the three adults had experienced some shit too, and you were afraid of what they had to say as they approached the rest of you.

How much more complicated could all this shit get?

***

After about fifteen minutes of explaining, you were all on at least slightly the same page. It was difficult to wrap your head around it all. It was difficult to imagine all of the people that Hawkins had just quietly lost, disappearing over a matter of days.

“Okay, so, just to be clear, this…big fleshy monster thing that hurt El, it’s some kind of gigantic…weapon?” Steve asked, feeling the need to clarify what he had heard.

“Yes,” Nancy answered. Knowing that her and Steve dated often made you feel small in her presence. Especially since things hadn’t ended quite amicably between them.

“But instead of, like, screws and metal, the mind flayer made its weapon…out of melted people.

“Yes, exactly,” Nancy replied again, her tone indicating that she was a bit tired with his clarifying questions.

“Yeah, okay, just making sure.”

“Are we sure this thing is still out there? Still alive?” Joyce asked. You were grateful the adults were here. Something told you that if you tried to tell any other grown ups about all this messed up shit, no one would believe you. You were glad you at least had the chief of police and probably the most badass mom in all of Hawkins on your side.

“El beat the shit out of it, but yeah, it’s still alive,” Max confirmed.

“But if we close the gate again—“ Will spoke up.

“We cut the brain off from the body, and we kill it…theoretically,” Lucas finished his thought. Hopper looked hesitant and you felt the same way. It seemed like all of you kept going through all of this shit just for it to come back. You were damn tired of it coming back.

“Yoo-hoo! Yoo-hoo!” Murray Bauman’s voice rang out, cutting off your doomsday thinking. He frantically waved papers in the air and pulled Hopper and Joyce aside to explain the maps he’d drawn up of the Russian facility. You hovered behind him, noticing how crudely drawn they were, knowing that his estimates were far off.

“…I don’t know the scale on this, but I think it’s fairly close to the vault room…maybe fifty feet or so,” Murray finished explaining the location of the gate. You scoffed trying to bite back a chuckle at how grossly he’d miscalculated.

“More like five hundred,” Erica chimed in, “What, you’re just gonna waltz in there like it’s commie Disneyland or something?”

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Murray spat at the young girl. Geez, he could use some lessons in babysitting, you thought as you rolled your eyes at his condescension.

“Erica Sinclair. Who are you?” She shot back and you couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes her sass really did pay off…so long as it wasn’t directed at you.

“Murray…Bauman,” he answered, his voice trailing off as he wondered why he was even entertaining her question.

“Listen Mr. Bunman, I’m not trying to tell you how to do things, but I’ve been down in that shit hole for twenty four hours. And with all due respect, you do what this man tells you, you’re all gonna die.”

“I’m sorry, why is this four-year-old speaking to me?”

“Um, I’m ten, you bald bastard,” Erica shot back. You grabbed her shoulders to settle her down.

“Erica!” Lucas scolded.

“Just the facts!” She defended herself.

“She’s right. You’re all gonna die, but you don’t have to. Sorry, may I?” Dustin asked as he sat down with the map. “It’s a bit of a maze down there but between me and Erica, we can show you the way.”

“You can show us the way?” Hopper asked incredulously.

“Don’t worry, you can do all the fighting and dangerous hero shit, and we’ll just be your…navigators,” Dustin assured the man. You couldn’t believe that was even a genuine suggestion the boy had, as you pushed past Hopper, slamming your hands down on the table causing Dustin to jump.

“No way in hell. Literally over my dead body,” you shouted, “what the fuck has gotten into you? I can’t believe you would just—”

Hopper quickly cut you off, putting his hands on your shoulders. “Cool it, okay?” He reminded you before turning to Dustin. “She’s right though. Absolutely no way in hell.”

Hopper moved to start gathering materials and you moved to join Steve as he sat on the countertop of one of the restaurants. “This is all pretty batshit crazy,” you spoke up, hugging your knees to your chest.

“It really is,” he sighed looking around at everyone prepping for the worst. “I mean, I just don’t know how we keep getting ourselves into all this shit, you know?”

“I think we just care too much,” you answered laughing. He chuckled back and there was a pause, both of your minds elsewhere as you tried to process all the shit that was inevitably about to go down.

“Hey,” you spoke up again. He looked up at you and you took in the sight of his bruised eye and his busted lip. “Did you mean it?”

“Mean what?”

“What you said earlier…did you really mean it?” You held your breath as his lips turned up into a small smirk.

“Every word,” he responded simply. When you didn’t really smile in return, he was quick to speak up, sliding towards you as he grabbed your hand. “Y/n, what’s wrong?”

“I just…I-I don’t wanna be another one of your girls,” you repeated the sentiment from your fight earlier, but this time it wasn’t accompanied by seething rage. Instead, it was born of pain and fear. Fear that you weren’t enough for him. Fear that he would leave you. Steve’s heart sank and he wished that he could go back and erase his mistakes, but he couldn’t. What he could do was fix them though.

“Y/n, you’re not just ‘another one of my girls.’ I wish you would understand that,” he started, looking you in the eyes with so much sincerity that you felt compelled to look away, but you didn’t. “You are the girl y/n. I don’t want any of those other girls….I mean, why would I when I have the perfect one right in front of me?”

“But, that’s the thing…I’m not perfect,” you countered as you began to tear up. “I yell at you all the time, and-and I get you into these fucked up situations, not to mention the amount of times you’ve gotten the shit beat out of you so that I don’t get the shit beat out of me, and I’m not pretty like the other girls you talk to and—“

“Woah, woah, woah! Y/n, are you kidding me? You’re fucking gorgeous! Those other girls don’t even come close to how amazing you are. And there’s no one I’d rather get the shit kicked out of me for than you, okay? I need you to understand that,” Steve pleaded. You leaned into him, wrapping your arms around his neck as you held him close. He placed a kiss to your temple, and you held onto each other like that until Hopper came up to the two of you, speaking suddenly and causing you to jump.

“Hey, here,” he said tossing a set of keys that Steve barely caught in time, “I need you to take the kid to his dumbass radio or whatever.”

“Of course, yeah we can do that,” Steve replied hopping off the counter as he reached a hand out to help you down.

“Good…and you two—you’re, uh, being safe, right?” Hopper suddenly asked. You looked at him quizzically, unsure what his line of questioning was getting at before he added, “you know, we don’t need any more kids running around here complicating shit.”

You felt your entire face heat up as you caught on to what he was implying before Steve quickly spoke up, “No—I mean, yes! Wait, no. It’s just, we’re not…we’re not you know—“

“We’re not engaging in any activities that would add to the population,” you answered for Steve, rolling your eyes at Hopper’s intrusive question as you added, “so you don’t have anything to worry about in that department.”

The look Hopper gave you told you that he wasn’t buying what you were selling, and you rolled your eyes again, pulling Steve behind you as you grabbed Robin, Erica, and Dustin, heading out to the parking lot. When Steve saw the car he would be driving, his face lit up and suddenly he didn’t mind being on babysitting duty anymore.

“Oh, man, now this…this is what I’m talkin’ about!”

“‘Toddfather’?” You read the license plate, thinking about how stupid men were.

“Oh, screw Todd! Steve’s her daddy now!” The boy exclaimed as he hopped in the driver’s seat.

“Did you just talk about yourself in the third person?” You asked incredulously.

“Did he just call himself daddy?” Robin added, her question focusing on the more outrageous aspect of Steve’s statement. Steve ignored both of you as he peeled out of the parking lot, chuckling as he honked the horn a couple of times.

“This isn’t a joyride! We’re trying to be inconspicuous here!” You reminded him, a scowl etched on his face.

“Sorry,” he replied but he couldn’t quite wipe the smile off of his face. He thought about how perfect this moment would be if the world wasn’t basically ending…and there weren’t three other people in the car. Just him and the girl of his dreams in a fancy ass convertible, driving as if they had all the time in the world.

Time passed and the glee that Steve was once filled with dissipated, as he continued down the same road for what felt like forever.

“How far away is this place?” He asked Dustin, frustrated and hoping that the boy was relaying the right directions.

“Relax, we’re almost there.”

“This Suzie girl must be pretty special if you lugged this thing all the way out here just to talk to her,” you spoke up, turning around as you smiled at the boy behind you. The young love was pretty cute, you had to admit…even if Henderson was a pain in the ass.

“I mean, nobody’s scientifically perfect, but Suzie’s about as close to being perfect as is humanly possible,” Dustin smiled back at you as he explained.

“She sound made up to me. She sound made up to you?” Erica chimed in, unable to believe the fact that the annoying boy to her left could possibly have pulled a girl as perfect as he was describing. No one said anything, and Dustin’s face twisted into a frown as he looked to Steve.

“Why are you hesitating, Steve?”

“I’m—I’m—I’m not! I’m not! I think she sounds real. You know, totally, absolutely real,” Steve spoke up.

“Left! Turn left!” Dustin suddenly yelled out.

“There’s not a road here?” You replied, turning in your seat to look back at the boy.

“Turn left now!”

Steve cut the wheel hard and you slid in your seat, grateful for the seatbelt holding you in place as you shrieked and Steve began ascending the unpaved hill. The ride was bumpy and as gravity began to work against you, you could feel the car beginning to struggle.

“We’re not going to make it!” You shouted at Steve.

“Yes we are! Come on, baby, come on!” The car stopped as its wheels spun. Steve kept revving the engine, but to no avail.

“Guess the Toddfather has its limitations,” Robin spoke up from the backseat. Steve scowled, putting the car in park as you all got out, walking the rest of the way to Dustin’s radio.

As Dustin gave Murray directions, things were pretty boring for you, Steve, and Robin. You had been drugged during the time the kids were moving through the ducts, so you weren’t useful in navigating. So, you laid on your back staring up at the stars as you waited. Being so far away from Hawkins made them easier to see, and you took a deep breath as you reveled in the moment of calmness, trying to forget about the horrors you were facing, just for a minute.

Your moment of tranquility ended sooner than you had expected, as you heard Steve’s voice ring out. “Hey guys.”

You immediately shot up, joining him as he looked down the hill. You could see all of Hawkins from here and the lights on the mall were going ballistic. You all ran back towards the radio and Dustin screamed into the transmitter. “Griswold Family, this is Scoops Troop! Do you copy? Over!”

You heard a monstrous shriek over the radio as an inhuman scream ripped through the air around you. Dustin kept repeating his call over the radio but it was no use. They were in deep shit back at Starcourt.

Steve got up, sprinting away and you were right on his tail as Erica shouted at you. “Where are you going?!”

“To get them the hell outta there!” Steve shouted back.

“Stay here, contact the others!” You yelled, following Steve to the car.

“Stay in touch,” Robin tossed you a walkie talkie, letting you know that she’d keep the kids safe and far from danger as you hopped into the passenger seat. Steve took off down the hill and you gripped to anything you could hold onto as he drove recklessly back towards the mall.

“Steve, I’m scared,” you spoke up, gripping the armrest of your seat.

“I know, y/n. I am too,” he replied, “but if I know anything about the two of us—after all this shit we’ve been through—it’s that we’ve got this, okay? So we’re gonna get them and get the hell out.” You took a deep breath as he said it, nodding. You drove the rest of the way in silence, trying to control your breathing as you psyched yourself up for the hell you were about to face. Steve described it so simply, but you knew it wouldn’t be that easy.

Just as you were peeling into the parking lot, you saw the familiar sight of Billy’s car…speeding straight toward Nancy Wheeler. Steve pressed his foot to the floor, ramming into Billy’s car just in time to knock it off course and save Nancy from getting mowed down. You would definitely have whiplash the next day, but you decided it was very much worth it if it meant that Nancy was unharmed. You and Steve finally looked up, catching your first glimpse of the massive creature scaling the outside of the mall. It looked exactly like the shadow monster Will had drawn, except it was fleshy and bones stuck out at odd angles every which way.

“Get in!” Nancy shouted, as she pulled her car around and the two of you piled in the back. The monster leapt from the building, following as Nancy sped off out of the parking lot. Your heart raced and you buried your head in Steve’s neck as you grabbed onto him, not wanting to look at the creature anymore.

After getting a considerable distance away from the mall, hearing a weird ass musical number from Dustin and his girlfriend, who against all odds really did exist, you realized that the monster that had been following you had turned around.

“It’s turning around!” You yelled out.

“Maybe we wore it out?” Lucas suggested.

“I don’t think so,” Jonathan spoke up, quickly cutting the wheel and turning back towards the mall. Lucas passed all of you several fireworks and you split up, making your ways to different spots on the upper level.

When you got back into position, the flesh monster was standing right in front of El and Billy, reaching for her as you enacted your plan. You threw the first firework, it exploding in a spray of sparks as the creature shrieked, it exploding against its fleshy exterior.

It was really a sight to behold as the mall erupted into bright flashes of color. It was being hit from all sides, distracted from El, as it continued to get knocked from side to side.

“Hey asshole! Over here!” Steve yelled as he lit another firework and chucked it as far as he could. This is absolutely batshit fucking crazy, you thought as you threw another firework. As you threw them, you thought about all that you had been through. You thought about the young kids around you who had to grow up way too quickly. You thought about Will and Barb and Bob Newby and the horrors they had faced. You thought about all of the people that were killed to form the fleshy creature right before your eyes.

You thought about all that you had lost and you threw the fireworks with all your might.

Your stash was dwindling and as you lit another firework to throw it, Steve screamed over the walkie talkie. “Dustin! We’re out of time!”

“Hurry! Close it now!” You heard Dustin’s voice crackle through the receiver, letting the adults know that it was their time to shine. Steve threw your last firework, which went off in a fiery spray of multicolored sparks, before you realized that there were no more fireworks to be thrown.

You could see Billy standing in front of the massive monster, stoping one of its clawed arms as it reached out towards El. More bony arms appeared, slithering out of the creature as they darted forward stabbing into Billy’s side. You stared wide eyed, in shock and unable to look away. You began to hyperventilate, terror gripping every inch of your body as your legs began to give. Steve was quick to grab you before you fell, quickly pulling you to the floor as he sat, cradling the back of your head as he pulled your face into his neck.

“Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look,” he whispered to you and you could hear the terror in his voice as well, “I’m here, y/n. I’m here, okay?” He wanted to tell you that everything would be fine, but this time he wasn’t so sure. He glanced over at Billy as another arm darted forward, piercing through Billy’s chest. Steve quickly averted his eyes, wishing he had taken his own advice and hadn’t looked. Billy wasn’t coming back from that.

Max screamed out to her brother and you sobbed into Steve’s chest. Suddenly the creature began writhing, screeching and snarling in pain as it stumbled around the mall. It crashed into pillars and Steve was barely able to move you both out of the way as it careened into the railing right beside you. It thrashed a bit longer before finally falling to the ground with a resonating thud. You all gawked at it, and even though it sat in a heap on the floor, you couldn’t help but feel unease at the sight.

You didn’t get to stare at it for long before the army was bursting through the doors of the mall, guns a-blazin’ just as Steve had predicted. You all put your hands up to display that you weren’t a threat as the US soldiers escorted you out of the building. You all sat in the parking lot while they searched the facility, finally torching the mall once everyone was out. It was an elaborate cover up but you understood why it had to remain a secret.

Emergency vehicles soon showed up to attend to the fire and the wounded, and you and Steve sat side by side on a gurney. You weren’t really sure what to say. It didn’t feel like there was anything you could say in this moment. It felt like the world had ended and you were just so damn tired.

“I guess we’re gonna have to find new jobs now,” Steve finally sighed as he spoke up, smirking at you after his statement.

“Yeah….maybe ones with less obnoxious uniforms this time,” you smiled a sad smile back as you leaned into him. He threw his arm around you and it all felt so comfortable. You wished it could be under better circumstances.

After getting checked out by the EMTs on scene, your face was looking a lot better; no longer caked in dried blood. Miraculously, a soldier had located Steve’s car keys in the Russian base, and an EMT returned them to him as you sat there.

“That was quite the fire,” the EMT spoke up. You stared wide eyed and clueless for a second as you tried to gather your thoughts enough to play to the narrative that had been constructed.

“Uh, yeah…we were, um, we were really scared,” you breathed out, deciding it was better to focus on half truths at least. You never were the greatest liar.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” the EMT responded, flashing his light to check your eyes. He continued as he clicked it off, “I just don’t quite get how you both would have sustained injuries like this though. I mean, seems a bit odd considering none of the other kids showed up looking like this. And I guess I’m a bit put off by the fact that the US military is here. Hawkins is a safe town, seems a bit extreme for a mall fire.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, man. There was a fire and we got hurt. And I don’t really have a clue why the military is here; I’m just some dude working for minimum wage at a nautical themed ice cream parlor,” Steve spoke up, his tone very much indicating that he wasn’t going to give the EMT any more information.

“Whatever you say I guess. Anywho, you guys are good to go,” the EMT replied, dismissing you from the gurney. Steve and you walked over to his car, and he opened the passenger door for you and you went to get in, hesitating before you ducked down.

“Y/n? Are you okay?” Steve asked, his hand still on the door. You turned around quickly, staring up at him through your lashes. Your eyes met his and you just stared at each other for a while before you glanced down at his lips. He got the hint and began to lean in towards you, one hand going to the nape of your neck as the other wrapped around your waist to pull you closer.

Finally, his lips were on yours, and it was well worth the wait. Maybe you were two broken people who walked through hell and back, but right now it didn’t matter. All that mattered was the way he was kissing you like his life depended on it. You didn’t care about the way your lip was still split and bruised, reveling in the pain if it meant that you got to have him; if it meant that he could be yours.

Your lips moved with his in such a perfect harmony that you felt like you were dreaming. After a moment, he placed a few more gentle pecks against your lips before pulling away. Your lips chased his, desperately wanting more, but you opened your eyes to look up at him. Your heart caught in your throat at the expression on his face. You’d never seen him look at you like that before.

“Steve?”

He opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t seem to find the right words. How was he supposed to tell you that you were perfect? That you were the only thing really holding him together? That you were the reason that he woke up in the morning and showed up to that shitty job and the reason that he decided to stay in Hawkins instead of trying to move away from his shitty parents?

How was he supposed to tell you that you were his reason for being?

He didn’t think he would ever find the words, so instead he settled on “I really love you y/n—like a lot.”

You smiled up at him and pulled him into a hug. “I think I love you too, Steve,” you chuckled, pulling back to plant another kiss on his lips. He smiled into the kiss, realizing that he would never get tired of kissing you.

***

It was three months later and you and Steve were finally, officially dating. You were rocking out to the radio in the front seat of his BMW, singing off key with Robin as Steve pulled into the parking lot of Hawkins’ Family Video.

“You put your mom down as a reference?” Robin asked incredulously as she stepped out of the car.

“Yeah. Why not? She’s like, super well-respected,” Steve argued and you rolled your eyes, biting back a smile.

“You’re such a dingus,” Robin sighed, stepping through the door Steve held open. You stepped through the doorway after, Steve placing a hand on the small of your back as he guided you into the store.

Your nose twitched a bit when you realized that Keith worked here. He was kind of really icky and had asked out just about every girl you went to high school with. You’d never met someone that desperate for a girlfriend before. When you had handed him your resumes, he looked at you all like you were idiots, clearly irritated that you were wasting his time.

“We didn’t get fired, you know,” you spoke up as you scowled, annoyed with the boy at the counter.

“Yeah, the mall burned down, and like killed a bunch of people,” Robin chimed in. In a way, she was looking for pity…most of the Hawkins’ community knew that you kids had been there when shit went down.

“Thanks for sharing. Didn’t know,” Keith deadpanned. “Three favorite movies, go!” He added pointing at Robin.

“Uh....The Apartment, Hidden fortress, Children of Paradise.” She quickly answered.

“You, go!” He swiveled and pointed at Steve.

“Favorite movies?”

“Did I stutter?”

“Uhhh…Animal House for sure…yeah, uh, um—Star Wars!”

“Which one?” You asked, looking up at him, annoyed that he’d just named an entire franchise.

“The one with the teddy bears, duh,” he smirked back at you as you groaned while he squeaked like an Ewok. “No? Uh…oh, the one that just came out. The movie that just came out—the one with the DeLorean and Alex P. Keaton, and he’s trying to bang his mom,” Steve chuckled while he explained it and you rolled your eyes.

Keith couldn’t really believe what he was hearing and he pointed at you and Robin. “You two start Monday,” he said before turning to Steve, “and you start never.”

“Will you just, give us a minute,” you said gesturing to you Robin and Keith.

“Why?” Steve asked, annoyed.

“Steve,” you warned the boy not to make things more difficult, placing a small peck on his lips which was enough to convince him to move along.

“Oh come on! Steve, y/n? Steve?”

“Listen, I know he’s a bit…he’s a bit of an idiot, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, he’s got other qualities,” you argued.

“He’s a douchebag of the highest order, y/n.”

“He was a bit of a prick to us in high school, I’ll grant you that, but he remains…a total chick magnet,” Robin gestured to you, and you flushed wildly.

“And this is relevant to me how?” Keith questioned, done with Robin’s bullshit.

“Uh, earth to Keith….the ladies will come in just to see him. They’ll come in, in droves. We sold so much ice cream they had to get a second shipment from Michigan! Isn’t that right, y/n?”

“Yep. Michigan,” you confirmed her lie.

“And these ladies are hot,” Robin continued, “they are so very hot. And there are too many of them for little Steve, especially now that he’s unavailable. He needs your assistance Keith.”

“What’s in it for you? Are you guys some sort of weird ass thruple?”

As soon as he said it, Steve clumsily knocked down a cardboard cutout, awkwardly trying to fix it.

“Gross, no,” Robin replied, “we’re just friends.”

Steve turned around the cardboard cutout recognizing immediately the movie it was from. “Oh Fast Times! Fast Times, ever heard of it? Top three for me, Keith.”

You and Robin laughed, and Keith groaned. “Fine, but if he screws up, it’s on the two of you.”

You knew he was gonna screw up, but you didn’t care, running over to him as he pulled you into a hug. “You ready to be coworkers again?” You asked as you smiled up at him.

“I mean, we do make a pretty kick-ass team.”

***

a/n: I hope you enjoyed this! If I end up going on hiatus, send me some requests! I’m definitely interested in continuing writing for Steve as a character. Reblog if you’re feeling generous ;)

taglist:

@season4steve @sassyheroneckgiant @tangledinthegreatxscape @maeve-wileyy @palachannie @chaerfull @usaguisenpaisblog @emilieluckwood @sabrinadelreyy @mochminnie @xprloki @kitdjarin1

[minjoonapio]

🎐 Wind Breaker CH.154: Raging Inferno

💭 THOUGHTS & ANALYSIS

[ ⚠️ SPOILERS ⚠️ ]

💭 Whenever it’s Wind Breaker day, I’m a nervous mess as the time of the chapter drop approaches. It’s worse that it’s my time of the month. I kid you not, when I was reading the chapter, my whole body was icy cold. I hope I get my thoughts across here.

I appreciate y'all for reading and liking my threads. Never expected it.

I wanna take this opportunity to appreciate Nii sensei’s fighting panels. They’re easy to follow and he brings impact on the punches.

This chapter though…it’s triggering my scoliosis 🫠 Twice! In one chapter!

Oh the way Sakura shuddered when Umemiya lifted his bloody face after he punched Chika on the back. The way Sakura stuttered a “H-hey…”

Our boy is scared of our leader.

And now he’s scared for Chika’s life because he believes Umemiya might seriously do a bad number on him even though he’s aware he’s strong too.

I know. I don’t like this either. The fact he had had this close bond with Ume especially after the leader shared his heavy past to him. And now…Sakura looks like he has this urge to stay away from him.

I've mentioned before that if the Old Ume never won against Chika...and with how he is acting right now, Ume might lose. Ume needs to stop being blinded by his rage and be clear of his goal here. Because right now, it just looks like he just wants to render Chika unconscious.

Just as I imagined, Ume would bother the heck out of Chika as he did with Hiragi, Tsubaki and I’m sure even Momose and Mizuki. But Ume tries to speak in Chika’s language. I'm sure he got to know him a little bit through him or their schoolmates. And it led Ume to place bets in their fights for Chika to join him.

"If I win, you gotta join me"

Chika left because most of Furin was getting soft and boring thanks to Umemiya. But most of all, he can't enjoy fighting Umemiya anymore. He enjoyed fighting THAT Ume. The Ume that was struggling and grasping for a change in the gang. The Ume who would do anything to have his goals and ideals met. But Ume was already gaining that. Because Ume was already attaining his goals, he changed; he has gone softer and gentler like the rest of Furin. So Chika left.

When Endo finally noticed, he had to make Furin and Umemiya like how they were before. Angry, unhinged, and desperate…so his dear Chika wont get bored.

Well, here it is. He made it happen. Endo sent that declaration of war, brought the town and Bofurin into chaos, and made sure Umemiya stood helplessly in the rooftop as h watched his found family get hurt...all to bring back that old Umemiya from few years ago. Anything for his sweet Chika Takiishi.

Thinking of what Endo said, we get that Chika has an unfathomable excitement to fight Umemiya. Perhaps it's the thrill of fighting someone as strong as him, someone like a raging fire. But is there something more to it? The way Chika's eyes shine, getting a kick out of their exchange of hands together. Is it to shut Umemiya down? Crush his soul? Break his spirit? (Oh wait. That's reminding me of how Endo attempted to do on Sakura chapters ago... 👀)

If you've been following me (in twitter), I was clinging to this idea that Umemiya would do something scary that would trigger Sakura to act and snap Umemiya out of it. I never thought it would already happen. That Umemiya would lose. As a cliffhanger, it seems so.

I had to zoom on the last page to see if Umemiya's eyes are actually closed. But I wonder what would happen next. In the last page, Chika just lifted his head, filled with excitement and adrenaline, but is he fully aware that Ume is unconscious? IF he is unconscious.

If he isn't, would he be like "Hey! Let's continue fighting!"

But if we're thinking of the weights of their fists, Umemiya would have weighed heavier; if he managed to make his resolve and goal clear in his fight with Chika. But if he's just so blinded by the heat of his emotions, it probably explains why he's knocked on the ground.

But for Chika? What is it he's fighting for? It must be something more than the thrill. Because what if Umemiya...won't fight him anymore?

Ngl, I desperately want to see a point of view of either Chika or Umemiya. So far, we only have been hearing from Endo and Sakura. We are stuck with them as spectators of the fight; which I think is what Nii-sensei wants us to feel. And I'm sure we feel the same way as Sakura: helpless (like Umemiya watching from the rooftop 🥲)

My initial predictions?

This may just be for cliff hangers sake and Umemiya is still conscious. And maybe...we might see another side of Umemiya. Defeated? A pathetic side Sakura's never seen? Because Nii sensei has built Umemiya (even in his character design. Hello, wide shoulders?) to be this protective big brother in the gang.

But I feel like that's kinda farfetched. Umemiya and his friends have worked so hard to bring peace to the town and bring order to Bofurin. He should not be defeated. He wouldn't allow it.

Whatever will happen, I believe Umemiya has to stop being like his old self and be firm with what he needs to do in order to stop Chika.

[sebuckyverse]

for a good time, call [2]

modern!rockstar!eddie munson x fem!reader

series summary: Eddie Munson is a burnt out rockstar, touring the country. When he finds a phone number written on a bathroom wall, he strikes an unusual friendship with a coffee shop barista who has no idea who he is.

warnings: 18+ cussing, m!masturbation, eddie jerks off, smoking, flirting, pining kinda, a cliffhanger, strangers to friends to lovers word count: 3,3k

an: part 2 guys! i hope you like it. don't forget to reblog or leave a comment :p don't come at me for the ending x_x ps! some of you couldn't be tagged :( say hi to Robin's lover @ceriseheaven

chapter one ♫ masterlist

chapter two ♫♪♩·..·

Eddie woke up to his phone buzzing continuously on his nightstand. Blinking the sleep away from his eyes, he reaches over to grab the device, the blue light far too bright for how early it still was, the digits on his homescreen reading 6.14am. He had three missed calls from his manager and two from his drummer. Eddie sat up on the bed and begrudgingly called his manager back.

''Where the hell are you, Munson?'' his manager, James, heckled.

''Good morning to you too,'' Eddie yawned.

''We had agreed to a meeting 15 minutes ago.''

Oh, Eddie remembered. It would be a lie to say he accidentally forgot to set an alarm. Who holds meetings this early anyway. ''Look man, I overslept. I'm tired and I don't want to meet. You can say whatever you want, right here.''

James huffed and puffed on the other side, before relenting. ''Ed, we need to discuss the future. Tour's about to end and we need to announce something sooner or later.''

Eddie could feel his nostrils flare. ''There is nothing to announce. Every normal artist takes a break after a big tour.''

''Well, you're not exactly normal, Eddie.'' Ouch, Eddie has a quick flashback to his high school days. ''Besides, you signed a contract with management for 60 shows this year. We're only half way there. That means, you need to do more shows later in the year.''

''I'm not doing shit. I'm burnt the fuck out, I need a break.'' Eddie bit back, his other fist clenched on his side.

''That sucks, but this is the business. You can take a break after you fulfill your contract, that was the deal and you know that. I'll have the team send out an announcement that the tour is extended.''

Eddie felt helpless, driven to a corner. He knew the contract he signed and the penalties that come with it if he broke it. That's not something he thought about when he put his signature on the paper - this was his dream, what he was born to do. The more time passed, the more bits and pieces of him went missing. Everybody wanted something, needed something from him. No one thought about what Eddie might need. If he was tired, he was being offered drugs to vamp up his system, get him going again. If he was lonely, there was a line of girls (and guys) outside his dressing room. He indulged in it for a while, but soon that wasn't enough either.

''Whatever, man.'' Eddie hung up the phone and stared at the screen, the light illuminating his sunken eyes, the heavy bags under his eyes. Almost in a haze, Eddie found himself searching up Wayne's number from his contacts and clicking call. The line rang a few times until it clicked. It was silent at first, until Eddie heard the distinctly gruff voice of his uncle, instantly filling him with warmth and the obvious guilt.

''Ed? That you?'' Wayne's voice was low, like he had just woken up which might have been the case, Eddie didn't even think about what time it was in Indiana.

''Y-yeah. Shit, I'm sorry, I-I didn't think about the time difference. Fuck you were probably sleeping, shit, we can talk later, I can-'' Eddie was rambling, embarrassed. It was awkward, he hadn't spoken to his uncle in months.

''Stop, stop. It's fine. Are you all right?'' Wayne interrupted before his nephew ended the call, losing him again.

''Yeah, of course.'' Eddie lied, and Wayne knew that but he didn't want to push too much. ''J-just wanted to check in, I guess.''

''Have you been getting my messages?''

''I have, yeah. Been busy, you know...'' Eddie replied quietly, his voice shaking. He wanted to explode, tell Wayne everything, he would know what to do. He always did. But Eddie wasn't ready to hear the truth yet.

''Are you sure you're alright, son? You don't sound like yourself.''

Eddie panicked. ''Yeah, definitely. Living the dream, eh? Look I, um, have to go. It was good to hear your voice though.''

''Ed, don't hang up-''

''Talk to you soon, bye!'' Eddie hung up the call and let the phone drop from his hands like it had burnt him. He walked over to the minibar and fetched a mini size tequila, downing it in one go, hoping the burn in his throat would distract him from the ache in his heart.

.•♫•♬•

It had been a fairly quiet day at work so far. Robin was currently attending to customers, taking their orders while you were sweeping tables and cleaning up the empty coffee cups, bringing them to the back and loading them into the dishwasher. It was only the two of you at the café today.

Robin joined you in the back, keeping an eye out for the front as well. ''Hey, I have a favor to ask.''

''Shoot,'' you shot back where you were arranging the cups in the machine.

''I was wondering if you could close by yourself today. Cherry's taking me to a concert today. It's a few hours away and we might be late if we don't leave sooner.'' Robin looked at you with pleading eyes. Normally, you wouldn't agree so easily, but considering the lack of business today, you figured it wouldn't be too much hassle. Cherry was Robin's... friend. They've really hit it off since meeting at the bar four days ago and to her credit, she did drag both of your asses home that night, so bonus points for that. It probably won't be too long until one of them gets on with it to make it official. From what you've heard from Robin, Cherry is super fun, adventurous, funny and can't keep her hands to herself, which you could've lived without knowing to be honest.

''Ooh, is this your first proper date?'' you smirk, getting up and leaning against the machine.

Robin's cheeks flush pink. ''Yes. I'm really excited!''

''Hmm. Of course you can go, I can finish up here myself. Next time you have to introduce us though, I mean properly. When I'm not wasted.''

''Thank you! I will!'' Robin pulls you into a crushing hug, smacking a kiss to your forehead.

''What concert are you going to, anyway?'' you ask when she pulls away to gather her things, ripping her apron off.

''I actually don't know, it's some rock or metal concert. Not my style, you know that.''

''Well, have fun!'' you shout after her, watching her leave through the back door. Thankfully it was only an hour 'til closing time, so you made your way back to the front and kept yourself busy until then. At one point, your phone vibrated with a new message in your pocket. You were surprised to see it was from your new friend with a fake name, Kirk.

06.37pm - Kirk ''Hi. How are you?''

06.38pm - Kiwi ''I'm good, thanks. What about you?''

06.38pm - Kirk ''I'm fine. Sorry I've been MIA, it's work.''

06.38pm - Kiwi ''That's okay :) What do you do anyway?''

It takes a couple of minutes for him to reply, making you wonder if you didn't scare him off somehow. That didn't seem like too personal of a question, you thought.

06.42pm - Kirk ''I work in entertainment.''

Well that was vague, that could mean anything.

06.42pm - Kiwi ''Are you a porn star? I've always wanted to meet one, I have so many questions.''

06.43pm - Kirk ''Not that kind of entertainment, sorry. What kind of questions though?''

06.44pm - Kiwi ''I'd rather not say. Do you enjoy what you do, though?''

06.46pm - Kirk ''I used to.''

06.47pm - Kiwi ''What changed?''

06.48pm - Kirk ''A lot of things, some that I wasn't prepared for.''

06.49pm - Kirk ''Listen, I have to go. It's work. I'll text you again in a few hours?''

06.50pm - Kiwi ''Sure.''

.•♫•♬•

Eddie was sitting in a car after the show, going back to the hotel. His hands were still clammy for playing guitar for 1,5 hours and his hair was sticking to his face. His eyes were closed as he focused on the motion of the vehicle moving. It didn't take long until he reached the hotel where he would be staying for tonight and climbed out, dragging his duffel bag over his tense shoulder and sauntered to the front desk.

Filling in his contact info, the brunette behind the counter batting his eyelashes when handing him his room card. ''Room 412, mr. Munson. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask.''

Eddie gave the girl a tight lipped smile and grabbed his key card. ''Thank you.''

As he was standing in the elevator, he thought about how the girl at the front desk was basically offering herself to him yet it made him feel nothing. It was a scary thought. Was he this far gone? He couldn't remember the last time he had sex, or jacked off. The exact same time the elevator dinged when reaching his floor, like a lightbulb going off, Eddie realized that the only positive feelings or thoughts he's had in months, have come from interacting with you.

Reaching his room, Eddie threw his bag next to the door and kicked off his boots. He shrugged off his clothes, a trail of fabrics leading from he door to the bathroom. He took a quick shower and strolled to his bed, plopping onto the fresh sheets butt naked and dug through his jeans for a pack of cigarettes, fumbling around until the found the singular joint he had stuffed in with the regular smokes. He lit the joint and took a slow drag, humming to the familiar tangy taste, letting the effects of the drug engulf his overused brain.

Eddie sat on the bed in complete silence, eyes closed. He could only hear the water dripping from his shower. Opening his eyes, he didn’t have to cast a look down to see that he was hard, stiff cock nestled against the tiny pudge of his stomach. Which was to be expected, getting high always made him horny. It’s why he’s cut back recently too, horny or not, he just wasn’t interested in fucking random people anymore and his fist wasn’t doing it for him either.

Right now, however, he couldn’t ignore the ache in his groin. With a sigh, Eddie dropped on his back, feet anchored to the carpeted floor. Wrapping a tentative fist around himself, he gave a couple tugs to test the waters. It sent shivers down his spine, so he continued. Letting go for a moment to spit into his palm, Eddie pumped himself harder, squeezing at the base then running his thumb over the slit, rubbing his pre-cum over the head. His chest was heaving, eyes shut as sparks of pleasure washed over him. He moaned into the silence as the pressure in his belly became too much too quick and sparks soared into a flame as he came all over his fist and abdomen, thick thighs shaking in the process.

.•♫•♬•

You were now back at your apartment, scanning the cupboards for the forgotten pack of Oreos you know you had somewhere. Cursing under your breath, you settled on a glass of white wine and made your way back to your bathroom where the steaming bubblebath was waiting for you to jump in. You set your glass on the closed toilet seat where you could reach it and dropped your towel to climb in the water. You relaxed your head against the edge, your hair held up high and hummed along to the music you set up from your speaker.

It took about ten minutes before your phone dinged with a new message. At this hour, there was only one person who would be texting you - unless it was Robin with an emergency. But it wasn’t her.

01.12am - Kirk “Hey, you still up?”

01.12am - Kiwi “Yep, I’m taking a bath.”

01.13am - Kirk “This late?”

01.14am - Kiwi “I do it all the time when I don’t work the next day. It’s a routine.”

01.14am - Kirk “That’s cool. How was your day?”

01.14am - Kiwi “Slow, you?”

“01.15am - Kirk “Hectic. What do you do for work, by the way?”

01.15am - Kiwi “I’m a barista at a coffee shop.”

01.15am - Kirk “Make a mean espresso then?”

01.15am - Kiwi “Oh yeah, you should try it.”

The wine was making you a bit more forward than usual. He didn’t seem to mind, though.

01.16am - Kirk “Would love to. Tell me something about yourself.”

01.16am - Kiwi “Like what?”

01.17am - Kirk “Anything.”

You thought about it for a moment, almost dropping your phone in the water as the steamy air made your hands clammy.

01.19am - Kiwi “I’m an Aquarius, my favorite fruit is kiwi (surprising I’m sure) and my chosen past time is readying smutty books. Your turn!”

01.20am - Kirk “I was raised by my uncle and I love reading too, but I’m too scared to ask what smutty means.”

01.20am - Kiwi “Don’t even worry about it. Raised by your uncle, he sounds like a great man.”

01.21am - Kirk “He is. Where do you live?”

01.22am - Kiwi “Not sure I should be telling a stranger.”

01.22am - Kirk “I thought we were friends? :(“

01.23am - Kiwi “Fine, but don’t come kidnapping me. I live in New York.”

01.24am - Kirk “Despite my kidnapper look, I’m more of a wine and dine guy.”

01.25am - Kiwi “I might be into the kidnapper look.”

Oh shit, was that too forward?

01.27am - Kirk “Really? People used to call me horrible names because of my look.”

01.28am - Kiwi “I’m sorry, what did they call you? No pressure.”

01.28am - Kirk “Mostly just freak.”

01.29am - Kiwi “Well, I like freaky, so..”

01.30am - Kirk “I might have to test that.”

You were surprised how easily you fell into flirting with a complete stranger to be honest. You kept switching between talking about random stuff and flirting. You learned that he was kind of a nerd in high school, he used to play some board game you didn’t know and he confessed that his favorite band is Metallica (didn’t take a genius to figure that out). You told him about your childhood cat that went missing one night, how you started your job as a barista and what your favorite cocktail is. You thought about asking him about calling instead, as texting was pretty tiring but decided to leave that for another time.

You came out of your bubble when you noticed the water had gone cold, your wine glass sitting empty on the tile next to the tub. You wished Eddie a good night and promised to text him tomorrow. You quickly dried off, chuckling at your wrinkly fingers and toes and put on a pair of comfortable panties, jumping under the covers. Your eyes were at half mast but the sleep didn’t come yet. You were still thinking about Kirk, rubbing your thighs together simply at the memory of him. This hole thing was so unusual, you knew some things about him now, but had no idea what he looked like or what his real name was. You had a picture in your head, but it was vague. You didn’t imagine his face or his body, but more his aura, his energy. It might sound extremely naïve, but he gave off good vibes and he made you feel nice. As you finally drifted off to sleep, it was to the thoughts of him only.

When you woke up the next morning, the skies were gray and rain was tapping against your windows. That turned your original plans of taking a walk later today upside down. You checked the time on your phone, where it read nearly 11am with a good morning text.

09.16am - Kirk ''Good morning, I hope you have a good day. Let me know what you get up to :)''

You'd text him back later, as the grumbling of your stomach was a more pressing issue at the moment.

Once you were stuffed full of eggs, bacon and a glass of apple juice, you decided to do some fall shopping. You visited your go-to stores and ended your day in your favorite bookstore, sitting in the small café area sipping chamomile tea and taking a bite out of a chocolate croissant. Then you remembered you had an unanswered text.

2.14pm - Kiwi ''Hey, sorry for the late reply. Promise I didn't forget you!''

2.18pm - Kirk ''Good, I was starting to get worried.''

2.19pm - Kiwi ''Why, you miss me already? 😉''

2.20pm - Kirk ''Yes.''

You swallowed thickly at his admission. It was weird that he missed you, you didn't even know each other's names. It was weird that you were unashamedly flirted with him. It was weird, because you didn't mind it all. And it was definitely weird, that your tummy fluttered. You blamed it on the tea.

2.22pm - Kirk ''I'm sorry if that freaked you out. I like talking to you, a lot.''

2.23pm - Kiwi ''Don't apologize, I like talking to you, too. What would you think about calling?''

.•♫•♬•

Eddie knew this would come eventually, he had even thought about it himself. He was prepared for it, yet when the question came, he froze. He was rigid, like he was standing on cracked ice and he might fall in any second. He'd just come back from a radio interview, where he was grilled about any updates he might have. With a sour taste in his mouth and the fakest smile he could muster, he announced more tour dates and listed the name of cities they were going to play.

He'd grown more comfortable with you, texting you took his mind off everything else, it was something he was looking forward to more and more every day. He'd also be a liar if he said that you in a bathtub didn't spawn some inappropriate thoughts in his head. You seemed to enjoy his online company too. But what if you recognized him as soon as you heard his voice? Not that he was so presumptuous to assume everybody knew him or his music. What if you'd go googling his name? There are definitely things on there that he regrets doing, most of them even, and things that weren't true.

He was tempted to hear your voice, though. He chose to be honest.

2.30pm - Kirk ''I'm scared.''

2.30pm - Kiwi ''Of what? We don't have to, if you don't want.''

2.31pm - Kirk ''I do want to, really. I'm just kind of.. known.''

Eddie despised the word 'famous' or any other form of that.

2.32pm - Kiwi ''Are you famous?''

Cringe.

2.33pm - Kirk ''Kind of.''

2.35pm - Kiwi ''Are you scared that I might recognize you?''

2.36pm - Kirk ''Yes, I've done some things I'm not proud of.''

2.37pm - Kiwi ''I don't care about that. I know nothing about the celebrity world, so I probably wouldn't recognize you anyway (no offence).''

Eddie chuckled, he felt a bit better about this now.

2.38pm - Kirk ''None taken.''

2.40pm - Kirk ''Can I call you tonight?''

.•♫•♬•

You were lounging on your bed, legs crossed at the ankles with a new book you'd bought earlier sitting on your lap. You had been reading the same page for the last 15 minutes, your eyes sneaking looks at your phone, face down on the bed, taunting you. Thank God you didn't have to go to work tomorrow either, it was almost 2am.

You were waiting for his call. You figured you still had a few minutes to spare, putting your book down and swinging your legs over the side of your bed. Then the phone rang, your heart almost bursting out of your chest. You turned back and flipped your phone, seeing his fake name across the screen. You picked it up, the device vibrating violently.

''Hello?''

[mamaestapa]

Baby Mama Drama

•pairing: Joe Burrow x reader

•series summary: Y/n Hubbard, the younger sister of Cincinnati Bengals Defensive End Sam Hubbard, finds herself in a difficult situation after a steamy hookup with her brothers best friend, who just so happens to be the quarterback for the Bengals. In just nine months their lives will be changed forever. How will Y/n and Joe manage to to go through parenthood together? more so, how will Sam take the news he is going to be the uncle of his best friends baby?

•chapter summary: There's some drama during Emma's baby shower that leaves you in a worrisome situation at the end of the day...

•word count: 7.5k

•warnings: pregnancy, fluff, angst, drama, arguing, mentions of blood, heavy topics toward the end, chapter ends in a cliffhanger...

series masterlist

—————————————————

March 21, 2023

4 months pregnant

"Oh, this is perfect." You said as you picked up a pink flower onesie off of the shelf. Joe chuckled as he watched you add another newborn outfit to the cart. "Y/n, I think that's enough outfits. She's going to grow out of all of those a few weeks after she's born anyway." he grumbled as you looked at him with raised eyebrows, “Uh huh, I know," you mused, "buuut, a girl can never have too many outfits."

Joe just sighed and moved out of the way so that you could put another outfit into the cart.

You and Joe decided to do a last minute target run this morning before you went over to the Hubbard's house for the baby shower later this afternoon. Today is Emma's (your sister in law) baby shower. You haven't spoken to her or Sam for a little over a month now. And even though Sam has been a complete d-bag to both you and Joe, that's not stopping you from attending and celebrating the sweet baby girl that will be your first niece.

As you and Joe were leaving the baby aisle, a onesie caught your eye. Not one for Baby Hubbard, but one for your baby. You stopped pushing the cart, making Joe look at you with a puzzled expression. He watched you walk over to the rack of baby boy onesies. You pushed your bottom lip out as you held up the tiny newborn onesie that caught your eye.

"Look," you said, eyes growing watery as you held up the onesie for Joe, "It says, 'Game Dey Baby'. Isn't that so cute?" The Onesie was white, with orange letters and black tiger stripes in the letters. "He could wear it on game days." you said, pushing your bottom lip out even more. The baby aisle of Target was a cuteness overload that made your pregnancy hormones go into overdrive. You wanted to buy everything in sight for your baby boy. It's a good thing Joe was shopping with you, otherwise you would have bought a lot more—both for your niece and your son.

Joe sighed as he looked at you holding the Bengals themed baby onesie. You certainly didn't need to be buying any baby clothes just yet, but he couldn't say to you when you looked the way you did in that moment. You looked so happy holding that onesie, plus, Joe couldn't deny that it would be cute to see his son wearing that on game days this upcoming season.

"Put it in the cart," he said to you with a small smile, "it would be cute." You grinned and picked up the onesie, making sure to grab one a few sizes bigger so that your baby would be able to wear it for a couple weeks during the season. You started to push the cart again, finally leaving the baby aisle.

"What's next on the list?" you asked, glancing at Joe, who had his notes app open. “Starbucks." he replied with a smile. Joe isn’t much of a coffee drinker, but he knows you are.

You clapped, "Yay! Mama needs some coffee." Joe shook his head and chuckled at you. "Not so fast. Mama can get her coffee, but only if it's decaf."

Ever since you moved in with him, Joe has been extremely protective over you and the baby. Meaning, he sort of controls what you can and can’t eat and drink. Too much sugar? Immediately no. Large caffeine content? Absolutely not. Contains anything that could potentially harm you or his little man? You can go nowhere near it. It’s sweet of him, but a caffeinated coffee and a pint of ice cream or two, won’t hurt you or the baby.

You groaned, "Oh, c’mon Joe. One venti caramel iced coffee won't hurt me." Joe reached out and rubbed the center of your belly with his fingertips. "It’s not you that I’m worried about, it's the little guy." You pulled his hand away from your growing belly and rolled your eyes. “Joe,” you sighed, “he'll be fine, seriously. Doctor Montgomery said I can have two-hundred milligrams of caffeine a day. A venti has one ninety-five."

Joe knew he wasn’t going to win this argument with you. You were going to get your coffee no matter what.

"Fine,” he said, sighing in defeat, “you can get an iced coffee."

"Yes!” you cheered silently, “thank you.” As you “celebrated”, Joe held his pointer finger up as a way to scold you, “but, you can only get a grande. Just to be safe, please?"

You sighed. You wanted a venti, but, you guess you’ll have to give in to Joe’s demand. You still get your coffee, so at least you’ll both be happy.

“I can work with that.” You nodded, getting in line to order your coffee. Joe smiled, “Good.” You and Joe walked up to the counter and ordered your drinks. The brunette barista immediately recognized Joe. She asked for an autograph and a picture, which Joe happily agreed to do.

Joe was in a great mood today. You could only hope it won't be ruined once the two of you see and talk to Sam soon.

After getting your coffees, you went over to where the self checkouts were, paying for all of your items. Once you paid for everything, you and Joe exited the store and made your way out to his car. You opened the passenger door, sitting down and immediately buckling your seatbelt before Joe could say anything. As soon as you were in the car and comfortable, you took a sip of the delicious Starbucks iced coffee you had been craving for days.

"Ugh," you moaned as the caramel flavoring filled your mouth, "I haven't tasted anything this delicious in such a long time." Joe just shook his head and chuckled at you. Once he backed out of the parking spot and got onto the highway, Joe reached over and gently placed his hand on your bump. He kept it there for the short drive to your brothers house. Your nerves grew the closer you got to the Hubbard's house, but Joe's touch brought you instant comfort. You were hopeful that today would be the day that Sam finally mans up and apologizes for his actions from the past month. Only time will tell if your hopes are true or not...

You let out a heavy sigh as soon as Joe pulled into the driveway of Sam's home. Joe must have noticed you growing tense because he moved his hand from the center of your tummy to your thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Y/n, look at me." He said softly. You slowly turned your head to lock eyes with Joe. His blue eyes were soft as he looked at you. He squeezed your thigh reassuringly as he spoke, "Everything is going to be fine." You gulped nervously, "But what if it's not? I know we have to talk to Sam about everything at some point, but," you sigh softly, "what if it just makes things worse, Joe?"

Joe frowned. It broke his heart to see you worked up over this. Even though the majority of the problem is his best friend, he too can’t help but feel somewhat guilty. He was the one that put you in this situation in the first place…

“Then it gets worse and he never speaks to us again.”

“Joe!” You practically whined, “you think that makes me feel better!?” Joe’s frown deepened, “Well it’s the truth, Y/n. If it gets worse, and Sam can’t get over himself and his drama with us, then there’s a chance he won’t talk to us. Maybe not never again, but at least for a while.”

Your chin quivered as you pulled your lips into a thin line. Tears welled up in your eyes as you thought about the possibility of never speaking to your older brother again. You know Sam would never not speak to you ever again. You’re his baby sister, his built in best friend. He’ll get over it eventually for your sake. But there is a chance he’ll never speak to Joe ever again. Joe promised you he was staying around, no matter what. Which means Sam will have to deal with Joe being around when you’re around. He just needs to get over this.

Plus, even though you wanted the truth from Sam about why he made Joe break your heart in college, all you really wanted, was for things to go back to normal. Things to go back to the way they were between you and Sam before you told him you were knocked up by his best friend. You and Joe have no choice but to talk to Sam about everything today. As your thoughts ran wild, you pinched the bridge of your nose and let out a sniffle. Joe sighed softly as he unbuckled his seatbelt. He reached over the center console and did the same to yours. Once your seatbelt was undone he brought a hand up to your head, gently pulling you into his chest.

“It’ll be OK, sweetheart.” Joe soothed quietly as he cradled your head, “I promise.” You nodded against his chest and wiped the tears from your eyes before they could cascade down your cheeks. Joe kissed the top of your head before you pulled your head away from his chest. He moved his hand from the back of your head, tracing his fingertips over your jawline before letting his hand rest against your cheek. He smiled at you as he spoke softly, “You’ll always have me. No matter what.”

“Promise?” You sniff. Joe nodded, responding wholeheartedly, “I promise.” You nodded and gave him a small, teary eyed smile. Joe frowned and pulled you back into him. He rested his chin on the top of your head, keeping his hand placed against your cheek. Stroking your skin with his thumb as the two of you just sat there in silence. You and Joe were both preparing yourselves for what could happen once you enter the Hubbards home.

You pulled yourself away from Joe, giving yourself a couple minutes to settle your emotions and compose yourself before you and Joe got out of the car. Joe wrapped an arm around your waist as the two of you walked up to the door. He gave your waist a gentle squeeze as he smiled at you reassuringly. Joe took a deep breath before he balled his hand into a fist and brought up to knock on the front door. He gave two quick, hard knocks.

"I'll get it Em!" You heard heavy footsteps approach the door before it swung open, revealing a grinning Holly.

"Hi guys!" she exclaimed in her usual upbeat tone, "it's so good to see you." You smiled, "It's good to see you too."

Holly stepped to the side, letting you and Joe enter the house. She shut the door and pulled you into a tight hug, mindful of your growing belly.

"You look so good!" she beamed, pulling away from you and placing a manicured hand on the side of your bump, "How's the little guy?"

"He's good," you smiled, "I think I’ve been feeling little flutters all week for the first time. Joe’s just waiting for him to kick."

Holly smiled and scrunched her nose up as she pulled her hand away from your tummy. She ushered for you and Joe to follow her into the living room where the rest of the guests were. You felt Joe tense up beside you as the two of you followed Holly into the living room. You slowly brought your hand over to his, entwining your fingers together and giving his hand a gentle squeeze. Joe glanced down at you and gave you a small smile before he turned his attention to the group sitting around in the living room.

As the three of you walked in into the living room, you immediately locked eyes with your older brother. Your breath hitched in the back of your throat as you noticed Sam's eyes move between you and Joe, before trailing down to your prominent baby bump. Your bump has grown a lot since he last spoke to you. Emma, who was sitting next to Sam, was in deep conversation with Morgan when she noticed you enter the room. She shot up from the couch, eyes widening slightly as she looked between you and Joe.

"Y/n," she seemed almost shocked to see you. A large grin broke out on her face as she approached you. She wrapped her arms around you, the two of you hugging each other as much as your baby bumps would let you.

"it's so good to see you." she said as she pulled away. You nodded in agreement, "It's good to see you too, Em. I've missed you." She smiled sadly, "I know, me too." She shook the sad smile off of her face, letting out a breath as she gestured to your belly. "Look at you!" she gushed, "you look great." You smiled at your sister in law as you put your hands on your tummy. "Thank you." you gestured to her dress, "but so do you! That pink dress looks perfect on you."

Emma did a little twirl as she cradled her bump, "Thanks." She glanced over at Joe, greeting him quietly before she grabbed the gift bag he was holding. Emma walked over to a table that was set up in the living room, full of gifts wrapped in pink wrapping paper, and lots of diapers. You couldn't help but smile as you looked at the small diapers on the table. All you could think about as you gazed at them was that in just five months, you and J will be going through many of those with your baby boy.

Emma brought you out of your thoughts as she said, "You guys can sit down if you want." Joe nodded, thanking her quietly as the two of you walked further into the living room, greeting everyone before you sat down on the couch. You made sure to stay on the side opposite of where Sam sat. As you sat down next to Joe, you couldn’t help but glance at Sam. He was staring intently in the direction of you and Joe. His light colored eyes eventually looking into yours. You felt your heart sink as you made eye contact with your brother. You wished things weren’t so awkward. Sam used to be your best friend, but that’s clearly changed…

You gave Sam a small smile, deciding to just sweep things under the rug for now. You’d talk to him later. Sam returned the smile before he snapped his eyes back up to his wife, helping her sit back down on the couch. As a few more guests arrived, you and Joe sat on the couch and caught up with Morgan and Logan. They had just gotten back from a week long trip to their home state of Wyoming. It sounded like they had a great trip, which made you happy. You know how much Morgan loves it out west.

Once the baby shower eventually started, Emma thought it would be a good idea to take you and the other girls outside to sit on the patio and catch up a bit, before all of the baby shower activities kicked off. With some help off of the couch from Joe, you followed Emma, Holly, and Morgan into the kitchen. Upon entering the large kitchen, Emma walked over to the china hutch in the corner of the room and pulled out four wine glasses from the cabinet. She placed the glasses on the counter and Morgan poured in some sparkling Welches Rosé, the same kind you had at your gender reveal. You, Holly, and Morgan followed Emma out to the backyard. The four of you sitting at the table on the patio just a couple feet away from the sliding glass doors.

Once you were all sitting, Holly held up her glass of non-alcoholic Rosé. "I just want to make a quick little toast." The rest of you held your glasses up in a toast as Holly gave a little speech. "Today, we celebrate baby girl Hubbard and her beautiful mama. I hope you have the best day celebrating your daughter, Emma. She is going to be so lucky to have you as her mom." Holly finished with a smile.

"To Baby Hubbard!" Morgan cheered, clinking her glass against all of yours. "To Baby Hubbard!" you all cheered in unison. With wide grins on your faces, you each took a sip of your bubbly beverage.

It was so nice to be surrounded by your friends to get your mind off of the Sam drama for a while.

Some time had passed very quickly as you and the girls conversed, catching up with each other over anything that happened since your gender reveal. Morgan talked about her Wyoming vacation with Logan, Holly told you all about her workout program and plans to head home to Michigan for a few weeks, and Emma shared some updates on her pregnancy, excitedly telling all of you that her baby girl kicked for the first time about a week ago. Hearing Emma tell the story of her baby kicking made you even more excited for the moment you and Joe will get to feel your baby move for the first time.

"So what's new with you Y/n? How's baby boy doing?" Morgan asked, giving you a sweet smile. Emma's eyes widened at her questioned.

"You're having a boy?"

You didn't realize Emma didn't know that you and Joe are expecting a baby boy. If Emma doesn't know, that means that Sam definitely doesn't know. Which, you know makes total sense since neither of them went to your gender reveal. But you figured they'd hear the news from someone or somewhere else..

"Yeah," you smile, "I am." Emma nodded, beaming as she said, "That's amazing. I bet Joe's happy."

"He is," you nodded, heart swelling at the thought of the genuine joy Joe got every time he was around you and the baby, "he really is."

Emma's smile faded as it turned to a frown. She sighed softly, "Y/n, I am so sorry that Sam and I didn't go to your gender reveal. I know you must have been pretty upset with us for not going."

Your lips formed a straight line as you thought of how to respond. You weren't upset with Emma, but it's no secret you were upset with Sam.

"It's OK," you sighed softly, "I understand why you didn't go. I'm sure you know, but Sam didn't take the news very well. He and Joe got into it pretty well the night we broke the news to him. I don't think they've talked to each other since then. I know I haven't talked to him."

Emma nodded, "He was pretty upset. Not at you, but with the situation. It really hurt him that you snuck around with Joe behind his back."

Snuck around with Joe behind his back? It was a one time thing! You thought. It's not like you were secretly hooking up with Joe for months before you got pregnant. Besides, it's not really "sneaking around" when the two of you have known history with each other. Plus, Sam was the one that made Joe leave you behind in Ohio all those years ago and you didn't have single clue. If anyone was sneaking behind anyones back, it was Sam.

You couldn't help the scoff that escaped your lips at Emma's words. You rolled your eyes, "He's making such a big deal out of this. I can't believe him." you sighed, frowning slightly as you looked at Emma, "I'm sorry, I know he's your husband."

She shook her head, "Don't be sorry. He's your brother, Y/n. You're family, you have the right to be upset with him when he's acting like this."

You just added, staying silent for a few moments. You hated to pour all of this onto your friends, but you've had this anger with your brother pent up for a month now. You know you need to let it out, and even let them in on a few important details they don't know about.

Morgan reached out and placed a hand over yours, “You look like you just need a minute to let everything out.” You just nodded, causing her to gently squeeze your hand, “We’re all ears, Y/n.”

That’s all you needed to hear before you went on an angry rant. You told them all about Sam’s reaction and how you understood how he took the news, until he did a full 180 that same night. You told them that what was a somewhat calm discussion soon turned to a screaming match between Sam and Joe, resulting in Joe saying he loves you and Sam confessing to breaking the two of you up in college because of his own personal fears.

“You and Joe were together in college?” Holly asked, her jaw dropping in shock. You shrugged, “Sort of.”

You weren’t really with Joe, but the two of you definitely had a connection that was more than just friends.

“What do you mean sort of?” Morgan asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

You sighed softly as you crossed your arms over your chest, “We were never a couple, but he and I definitely had something together. We hid it from Sam and we always had to make sure he wasn’t around wherever Joe and I were together.”

“Sam never knew?” Emma asked.

“Well, we thought he didn’t know. He clearly found out somehow though because according to Joe, Sam was the one that made him break things off with me before Joe went to Louisiana. I was willing to make long distance work, but Joe left me behind.” You explained, feeling a heaviness in your chest as the old memories came flooding back to you.

Holly frowned, “Girl, I didn’t know about any of that. I’m sorry Joe did that to you.”

You shook your head, “It’s not his fault. My brother was the one that made him break my heart. I didn’t know,” you sighed, “I didn’t know it was Sam who told him to do that. I always thought Joe was just using me before he left for LSU, but the truth came out a few weeks ago. Joe never wanted to leave me.”

Morgan got up from her chair and walked over to you, wrapping her arms around her. “I’m so sorry all of this is happening right now. This can’t be easy on you.”

“It’s not,” you said, shaking your head, “but I have you girls and Joe to help me through it. Joe and I had our differences after our “break up”, but I think this baby has brought us even closer together.”

Holly smiled, “I’m glad. You two seem really happy together. Are you together now?”

That’s a tough question. You still aren’t really sure what you and Joe are right now.

“We’re not together, but we’ve shared some moments where it’s obvious we want to see where things go with each other. We said “I love you” the day of our gender reveal, and we’re living together now.”

Holly eyes widened and a huge grin broke out on her face, “Oh my gosh, Y/n!” You laughed, “What?” Holly reached out and grabbed your hands, giving them a squeeze as she said, “That’s so exciting! Have you guys talked about you know…maybe being together?”

You shook your head no.

“Don’t rush into anything,” Morgan advised, “but, I think you and Joe should give it a shot. You know, a second chance at a relationship since your first chance was ruined by your dumbass brother—sorry Emma.”

Emma chuckled, “Nope, don’t be sorry. I’m totally on Y/n’s side. Sam shouldn’t have done that to you or Joe.”

“I can kind of see where he’s coming from,” you reasoned, “but I’m still so pissed at him. With the Ohio State thing and how he reacted to the baby.”

“Have you talked to him about any of this? Maybe it’ll make things better if you talk it out with him.” Morgan said. You nodded, “Joe and I agreed that if the opportunity comes up today, we’ll talk to him about everything.”

“That’s good.” Holly said, letting go of your hands and getting up from her chair. She stood next to Morgan and leaned down to give you a hug, “well whatever happens, you know you’ve got us.”

You smiled, bringing your arms up to hug Holly, “Thank you.”

You girls spent a couple more minutes outside, with each girl giving you a hug and sharing their love and support for you and Joe. Eventually, the four of you went back inside to get back to the baby shower activities. As you walked back inside, you saw Joe standing in the kitchen and talking to the McPherson's. His head snapped over to the sliding glass door when he heard it open. A smile pulling at his pink lips as he saw you walk back into the house. Joe's eyes trailed down your body, taking in all of your features in the simple baby pink sundress adorning your body. You smiled back at Joe and walked up to him, greeting Gracie and Evan as you snaked an arm around Joe's waist.

Joe looked down at you. "Hey," he greeted quietly, doing the same with his arm, wrapping it securely around your waist. "You doing OK?" his soft tone was laced with concern. You looked up at Joe and nodded reassuringly, "Yeah, I'm good right now. I talked to the girls for a bit and that seemed to help. How about you?" He shrugged, "S' a little awkward, Sam's been avoiding me." You frowned as Joe sighed and continued speaking, "but I'm doing good."

Just as you were about to respond, Sam entered the kitchen. His eyes immediatly fell on you and Joe. Joe took his arm off of your waist and cleared his throat. The tension in the air was thick as the three of you stood in silence in the middle of the kitchen. You decided to break the silence, knowing it was best to greet Sam.

"Hi Sam." You greeted, your voice low. Sam gave you a quick nod as his lips formed into a tight smile. "Hey." was all he said before he put his hands in his pockets and walked away to find Emma. You and Joe watched as he walked off, Joe shaking his head in disbelief at your brother.

"It's fine," you breathed out, "if he doesn't want to talk, I won't force him." You pushed yourself off of the counter and turned to Joe, dramatically placing your hands on your hips as you said, "I'm done with the drama. It's had me stressed out for weeks and it's not good for the baby."

Joe nodded in agreement, "No, it's not. I'm willing to have a conversation if he is, but like you said, I'm not forcing anything."

It was good to hear that you and Joe were on the same page. As much as you both wanted to confront Sam, you weren't going to force a conversation with him and his drama. You needed to have a civilized conversation--not another screaming match. If the opportunity comes up today, you'll confront Sam. If it doesn't, then you'll wait. You don't need to stress yourself or your baby out anymore about the situation.

You filled up a cup with some pink lemonade and Joe grabbed a bottle of water before you both headed into the living room to join the rest of the guests--who were getting ready for Emma to open up her gifts. As you and Joe entered the living room, Holly and Joey made room for you and Joe next to them on the couch. You smiled warmly at Holly as you sat down on the couch, Joe sitting down next to you and letting out a soft sigh as he leaned back in the furniture. Joe set his water bottle on his thigh, holding onto the lid with one hand while bis free hand draped around the back of couch. He let his hand rest on your shoulder, making you smile at the feeling of his fingertips brushing against your exposed skin.

Once everyone was situated in the living room, Emma had begun to unwrap the gifts that were sitting on the table set up. Some of the gifts she had gotten were a couple super cute outfits from Morgan and Logan, along with a fluffy, pink baby blanket. Holly and Joey got bottles, a baby book, and a stuffed tiger lovey, while Zac and his wife Sarah pitched in and got the two a crib. Eventually, there were just a few more gifts left, all of them being from you and Joe. She opened the remainder of the gifts, gushing over how precious the outfits were that you got for your niece, and how the cute, pink swaddle blanket that Joe picked out would be perfect for the little girl. After putting all of the opened gifts on the table, Emma and Sam walked around and gave all of the guests hugs, thanking you all for coming and for going them all of the thoughtful gifts. Sam didn't acknowledge Joe much when it was your turn for hugs. He just gave Joe a simple nod and a "thank you". But to your surprise, Sam actually gave you a hug. You were taken aback when your older brother wrapped his arms around you, but you hugged back nonetheless. He thanked you for the gifts and told you he misses you. You just nodded and gave him a small smile in return, unsure of how to respond to him.

Sam misses you? It's his fault for not speaking to you for the last month, not yours. If he missed you, he could've reached out and sorted through his issues with you and Joe...

After your tense interaction with Sam, you and Joe headed to the dining room to get some food. Neither of you had anything to eat yet today, so you figured you'd get some food in your bellies in case you did end up talking to Sam at some point. You didn't want to risk saying something to Sam that you didn't mean to say due to your hanger. That being said, you and Joe stood by the table full of food, filling up your plates with food from the delicious trays full of assortments of food Emma and Sam made and bought for the occasion. As the two of you were standing together, enjoying your food, you looked throughout the room at the different crowds of people. You couldn't help but chuckled as your eyes fell on Emma, who was practically waddling as she headed to the bathroom.

You shook your head, "My best friend is a penguin." you said in amusement as you gestured toward Emma. Joe must have noticed her, because he too was chuckling. He looked down at you, "You're laughing now, but, that's going to be you someday soon." He smiled, resting a hand on your tummy. You smiled up at him, "And I can't wait for that day." Joe caressed your bump with his thumb, "Me neither." he mused.

You had yet to reach the moment in your pregnancy where your bump was big enough to the point where you were waddling more than you were walking. However, you couldn't wait to get to that part of your pregnancy. Because one you get to that point, it means that you'll be even closer to finally meeting your baby boy.

As you and Joe stood around and enjoyed your food together in each others company, you were approached my someone who you least expected to see.

"Hey Y/n."

You turned to your left, eyes widening slightly as you saw Sam approach you.

"Sam," you said, sounding slightly taken aback, "hi." Sam gave you a small smile as he put his hands in his pockets. He cleared his throat before he asked the question you've been wanting to ask him all day.

"Can we talk?"

You took a deep breath as you went outside with Sam. You followed him out onto the lawn, sitting down next to him on the cushioned bench that sat under the pergola lined with fairy lights. You leaned back against the cushion, placing your hands in your lap and looking off in the distance as Sam leaned forward in his seat, rubbing his hands together. He knew he had to talk to you, had to apologize to you for his actions--from both the past and present, but he had no clue how to start that conversation. He couldn't just say sorry, it wasn't that easy.

"So I heard you're having a boy." Sam said quietly, finally breaking the silence. You nodded, sucking in a breath as you said, "Yeah, found out a couple weeks ago."

Sam nodded as he leaned back. He glanced at you with a raised eyebrow, "You happy?" You nodded, a smile pulling at your lips as you spoke, "Yeah, I'm really happy." Sam smiled, his voice soft, "Good. I'm happy for you."

You didn't respond. You didn't know how to respond. Sam certainly didn't seem happy when you told him about the baby last month. The two of you sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, both of you thinking about what you were going to say to the other. As much as you wanted to rip him a new one, you knew you couldn't. even though you're extremely angry with Sam and his actions from the past and now, he's still your brother. You know you'll forgive him at some point, just like he'll forgive you, too.

Sam broke the silence once again, "Look y/n," he sighed softly, "there's a lot that I want to apologize for." He glanced over at you. You just nodded, letting him know you understood and that you wanted him to continue.

"I've been a jerk lately. I shouldn't have reacted the way that I did. I shouldn't have ignored you for the past month, and I certainly shouldn't have missed your gender reveal because I was upset about you hooking up with my best friend again." You scoffed amusingly at his words. Sam continued, "I know I've been a complete asshole, and I'm sorry. That baby is my nephew, not some random kid. I love him, just like I love you Y/n/n." He finished, smiling sincerely at you.

You took a moment to process his words before you cleared your throat and finally spoke. "I'm still upset with you, for more than just how you reacted to the baby news."

Sam's shoulders slouched as he sighed deeply. "I know." Was all he said as his voice grew quiet. You sucked in a breath as a small smile pulled at your lips, "but I love you too, Sammy." Sam smiled once again, pulling you into a tight hug. It made you happy knowing you were starting to finally resolve things between you, Joe, and Sam.

However, just as you thought things were starting to look on the bright side, the situation took a turn for the worse...

Sam pulled away from you, his tone serious as he looked at you with raised eyebrows, "but just because I'm apologizing to you, doesn't mean I'm OK with Joe." Your face turned to a look of disbelief as you pulled yourself away from him. "I still think he's going to leave you, Y/n. There is nothing tying him down to you."

You stood from the bench and crossed your arms over your chest. You couldn't believe you were having this conversation with Sam again.

"You can't be serious right now."

As you uttered those words, Joe had made his way out to the backyard to join you and Sam. He wanted to make sure that you were OK and that the conversation didn't go south. Boy did Joe arrive just in time...

"Everything OK?" he asked, walking up behind you and placing a hand on your shoulder.

"No"

"Yes."

Joe narrowed his eyes as you and Sam eyed each other. In that moment, Joe could tell the conversation had gone south, and that it was only going to get worse now that he had joined.

Joe walked past you and towards Sam, standing next to the bench that Sam was still sitting on. Joe crossed his arms and stared at Sam intensely as he spoke. "What's the problem?"

Sam shook his head, "I'm just trying to help my sister."

"Oh yeah? Like you did in college?"

Sam stood up, getting dangerously close to Joe. Both guys jaws clenched as they started at each other. You snuck past them and sat down the bench, letting out a defeated sigh as you prepared yourself for another screaming match. So much for a civil conversation amongst the three of you about the whole situation.

Sam crossed his arms, "I have no idea what you're talking about." Joe scoffed at his answer, "Bullshit. You were the one that confessed to being the reason I broke things off with Y/n before I left for LSU."

Sam nodded, "I was only looking out for both of you. Long distance wasn't going to work between the two of you, you knew that Joe. You could never make a relationship work in college, whether you were in the same state or not. Hell, while you were sneaking around with my sister I'm sure you had three other flings you felt the same way about. You never stick to one girl, Joe. You never have and you never will." He said, voice dripping with venom as he dug at Joe. Joe was absolutely fuming at Sam's accusations. Joe never made a relationship work in college because he only wanted to be with you. You were his only college fling—at both OSU and LSU. It always has been and always will be just you. But Sam can't seem to understand that.

"I loved Y/n, Sam. I still love her. I didn't want to break her heart like that, I wanted to make things work between us--long distance or not." Joe pointed at Sam's chest, "but you got in my head and insisted that I break things off with her because you hated the idea of your best friend and sister being together. You saw how things turned out between Nick and his best friends sister, so you just assumed Y/n and I would end up the same way they did." Joe looked like he wanted to sock Sam as he started going on a tangent about how your relationship is completely different than what Nick and Jenna's relationship was like.

Soon, the somewhat calm conversation has turned into raised voices and even more accusations being shared between the two of them. You could feel your heart racing as Joe and Sam let all of their pent up emotions out on each other. The bickering back and forth only got worse and even more relentless...

"I knew about the two of you the whole time you were sneaking around. My sister is too good for you, you arrogant son of a bitch."

"I don't care if you never speak to me again, I'm staying around for Y/n and our son."

"You snuck around behind my back and expected me to be OK with it?"

"You snuck around behind my back, Sam! You knew I loved Y/n and you didn't give a shit. You made me break her heart because you cared too much about yourself and your own insecurities."

"This baby deserves someone better than you, Joe. You're going to leave her and that kid behind Joe. You have absolutely nothing tying you down to her. You're not married, you're not dating, hell you're not even living together. You have absolutely nothing."

"Actually we are living together. Y/n moved in a couple weeks ago, and you'd know that if you weren't sulking over yourself and the problems you have with her and I."

The yelling only got worse. You were shocked nobody had a thrown a punch yet. As much as you hate to say it...it's good for the two of them to scream at each other. It's only going to get worse before it gets better. The screaming mean things at each other had to happen before a civilized conversation could be had between them. That's just how it works in a situation like this: a guy being with his best friends sister. Add an unplanned pregnancy into that and it's even more accurate. Deep down you know the two of them will talk it out someday, but for now, they'll stick with what they're doing.

As the arguing continued between Joe and Sam, you could feel your stress levels rising. You were extremely emotionally overwhelmed right now. It's not easy seeing your brother and the man you are in love with, fight like the way they are right now. The whole situation has been weighing pretty heavy on you for the last couple of weeks, causing large amounts of stress and nerves every time you thought about the whole situation. Your heart rate quickened and your blood pressure raised as you listened to the men argue. You leaned forward on the bench and rubbed your hands down your face in agony a few times before you couldn't take it anymore. You snapped your head up, your heart dropping to your stomach as you were beginning to feel different. Something inside of you just didn't feel right. You brushed it off as just being overwhelmed over Joe and Sam's arguing. You stood up from the bench and sighed deeply as you walked away from the scene in the backyard. Neither Sam nor Joe even realizing you had left the backyard, the two of them two engrossed in yelling at one another. You shut the sliding glass door and headed to the bathroom to compose yourself and try to get your heart to stop racing.

As you walked to the bathroom, you still felt off. Something just didn't feel right, and you had no idea what it could possibly be. Until you sat down on the toilet and pulled your light, lace panties down.

Your heart dropped to your stomach and your face grew pale. You let out a gasp as you saw it.

Drops of deep crimson on your light underwear were staring back at you.

You were bleeding. It wasn't a significant amount, but still enough to make your heart skip a beat and your mind immediately fill with worry. Your mind was racing as you reached for toilet paper, wiping yourself off and sure enough, there was a little blood on the toilet paper, too. Your hands were shaking as your thoughts ran wild.

What is happening?

Am I OK?

Is the baby OK?

You didn't know what to think, but you knew one thing was certain. You needed to go to the hospital, ASAP.

You pulled your underwear up and flushed the toilet, quickly and carefully washing your hands before you exited the bathroom and made your way back outside. Your whole body was shaking in fear, and your eyes were welling with tears. Joe and Sam's arguing had died down, but they seemed like they were still quite angry with one another.

"Joe," you called out shakily, your voice full of fear and uncertainty, 'I'm bleeding.”

hey loves!!

wow…a lot just happened in that chapter, huh? and it ended on a cliffhanger too!?

it was kind of all over the place sorry. i promise what happens in this chapter will lead somewhere

i told you this chapter was going to be drama filled and angsty. sam can’t seem to get over himself and now y/n is on her way to the hospital because of complications from all the stress the situation between sam and joe is causing her. this poor girl can’t seem to catch a break!

i promise it’ll start to get fluffier soon…but we have to get through some things first.

i hope you’re all doing well! as always, i appreciate all of the love and support you’ve shown me with this series. i’m extremely proud of it and makes me SO happy seeing all of you excited for more!!🥹🤍

tags: @dandelionwrites8 @joeburreauxsworld @theflawedwriter @mrsshiesty @ann288 @ijustcrypretty @theoneandonlyfanz @wickedfun9 @venus-b @hummusxx @stainednailpolishremover @a-moment-captured @alternativemadchen @erinmartin1987 @sirlewisworld @kkrenae @unhingedfangirl @sublimemusic-rebel @meameagirl @ilovejoeburroww @hallecarey1 @j-worlds-blog @blinkloverx3 @jordyn14 @kristencochefski1125 @ryiamarie @unsaidjaelinrose @sinners-98-world @ozwriterchick @hearts4papayas @emherb10

[stratocumulusperlucidus]

WIP REC

I love love love reading WIPs, the anticipation, the excitement of getting the notification for a new chapter, even sometimes the cliffhangers... So here are some of the lovely fics I'm currently reading!

Oh and if you read these, please consider taking a minute to leave a comment, let the author know you appreciate their work 💖

This Is More of a Comment Than a Question by @caterpills

Rating: Mature | Chapters: 3/10

Three weeks before Henry Fox's tour for his fourth, highly anticipated, awards-bait novel A Brief War in December begins, his publicist Janella breaks her foot on a bunny slope at Windham. Alex can't be mad at her, even though he kind of is. Saying it out loud would be like kicking her when she was down, and she already went down a literal mountain in the worst way possible. Now crammed in Rafael Luna's corner office, Janella is shooting Alex extremely apologetic looks while slumped on her crutches, wearing a bright orange cast. The conversation about who is going to be joining Henry Fox on his multi-city trek across the U.S. is also going downhill. Alex is feeling the same sort of free fall while standing still. Because out of all the publicists available in their tiny underfunded department, the only one left to escort their company's best-selling author is regrettably him. The problem is, well, Alex absolutely hates Henry Fox.

Or: Alex is the publicist for Mountchristen Publishers, and is stuck on a two-week tour with their best-selling, but frustrating, author Henry Fox.

Her Royal Highness by @tailsbeth-writes

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences | Chapters: 5/?

'Shaan, can you please put an appointment in my diary?' 'Certainly sir, what is it for?' 'A reminder to kill Alex for getting me into this mess.' Shaan tried to hold back a smirk as he stepped back, tapping away on his tablet. 'Personally I think the blue glitter really brings out your eyes, sir.' This terrible idea had started like most of Alex’s did, a seedling planted by the most chaotic of the chaos demons; Nora.

or How Prince Henry ended up as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK.

the full spectrum of human emotion by @firenati0n

Rating: Mature | Chapters: 3/6

Alex grips his hand tighter. They’re going to need to have a long, hard conversation in the next five minutes, or else Alex is going to combust right here in Pez’s fancy office. Explode for all of Midtown Manhattan to see. Here lies what remains of Alex, for all the world to witness—taken out by a rogue marriage proposal from his evil boss-turned-fiancé.

Or: Working under editor Henry Fox-Mountchristen was only supposed to be Step One in Alex’s plan of achieving his big dreams—but when his boss winds up facing an even bigger problem, potential deportation, Alex finds he isn’t just a beleaguered assistant anymore. He’s the solution.

It’s fine. They only have to fool his friends, his family, the United States Government…and themselves.

Life Is Not A Movie (But We Can Have The Fairytale) by @lfg1986-2

Rating: Explicit | Chapters: 3/?

Three years after the smashing success of the first Red, White and Royal Blue film, Nicholas and Taylor are preparing to return to their roles as Henry and Alex to film the sequel. After a late night of catching up with each other and reestablishing their close bond just before rehearsals begin, they wake up to find themselves in a crazy twist of fate, where fiction blends with reality and the lines between fictional characters and the actors who portray them become irrevocably blurred.

Or

What happens when Taylor is transported into the movie universe and comes face to face with Prince Henry, while Nick wakes up to find Alex Claremont-Diaz in his living room in the place of his friend and costar? Both pairs must work together to figure out how to get themselves back where they belong, and along the way they discover some things about themselves and each other that has the potential to alter their relationships forever.

take me back to San Francisco by headabovethewater / @getmehighonmagic

Rating: Explicit | Chapters: 2/8

“You don’t look like you’re having a very good time,” a soft voice suddenly startles him from his thoughts. Henry’s entire body jerks and he spills some of his drink down the front of his shirt.

“Oh, bloody-” He leans over to put his drink on the table and starts wiping at his shirt. “No, I’m- It’s not that, it’s-” He glances fleetingly at the stranger and then down at his shirt again, before his brain finally registers that oh, glasses, dark curls, white smile, exposed chest. Henry’s head snaps back up and his lips part in astonishment. Handsome doesn’t even begin to cover it. Him.

“Hi,” the man says, then chuckles. He hands Henry a napkin and gestures towards one of the other chairs at the table. “Would you mind?”

or, Henry and Alex meet on vacation in San Francisco and an instant spark between them has both of them unable to let the other go. With only two weeks to spend together and the knowledge that it can't last beyond that, it's just a massive, insurmountable recipe for disaster.

Or is it?

Unattended / Unsent mails by amnesia_on_ice / @amnesiaa-on-ice

Rating: General Audiences | Chapters: 4/?

Alex is a Singer Songwriter, henry is his arch nemesis Actor but also secretively writer. There is a long running feud between Henry and Alex. Now they are meeting for the first time in person in a vanity after party and the stan twitter have lots to digest of the meeting.

The story of Unattended/ unsent mails.

the drag of your lips by rizcriz

Rating: Mature | Chapter 2/3

Alex isn’t sure how he got here.

Here being pressed into the couch, his roommate straddling his lap and warm against every point they’re touching, soft lips moving against his own in the most sensual, leisurely pattern that Alex’s fingers instinctively flex where they’re clinging into his lower back. He’s hard in his pants, straining towards Henry, but there’s no desperate hands grasping, no drive to take this any further.

Or, Alex just really wants to make out with someone. Henry helpfully volunteers.

Foxden Park by myheartalive / @myheartalivewrites

Rating: Explicit | Chapters: 4/9

“Yes, Alex, what a terrible destiny,” Nora says. “To be hosted for a week by all these charming rich people, who have bent over backwards to accommodate us, including sending their own carriage into town to fetch us. How very dare we drag you into their nefarious scheme.”

—

Invited to a week-long house party at the Duke of Windsor’s country residence, Alex Claremont-Diaz does not expect to find anything to enjoy about his time there. What he does find is Lord Henry, the duke’s younger brother—and a boatload of things to learn about himself.

Seven days in the country in a duke's house. What could possibly happen?

[cinamun]

hey boo. i'm a silent reader but i've been a supporter for a while now and i revisit diff. chapters of your story often. i'm always inspired by the pacing of your chapters. how do you know when an arc needs to end? and whats your process for introducing new people in your sims lives to the rest of us?

Oh hey friend!! Thank you so much for the ask AND for reading and supporting this wild ass story I can't seem to find an ending for so we just bounce from arc to arc and hope for the best lol.

How do you know when an arc needs to end? I feel like each arc has its own "star" so to speak, its own story. In the last chapter that ended up being Mercy, ultimately, but we still had the side stories of DJ's breakup and the Incident at the Hotel™ with Indira. I think I know the chapter/arc is ending when the side stories have wrapped and the main one climaxes. So, in the case of the last chapter/arc Mercy's Battle of the Final Boss™ is where I knew the credits would roll. Most times I don't know how I'm gonna end, I'm chaotic like that lol. Sometimes I feel like things are moving slower so that's when I start to prepare for the Big Ending. You'll start to notice more cliffhangers, more revelations, etc and then BAM! The shoe drops.

How do you introduce new characters? So I've started this thing where, with each new chapter, I introduce a new character. We usually don't see them much again after their little guest starring role. This is because more characters means a higher liklihood of confusion. I think people lose interest when there are too many folks to focus on! My process is honestly just throwing them in your faces and hoping for the best lol. I'm deadass too. Sometimes I have an idea for how I want to use them and then sometimes they just evolve on their own. For Eva, I wanted to introduce her in a way that would get your attention so there was a lot of talk about who this mystery student was which ultimately led to one hell of a chapter. That won't happen every time (as was the case with Kenji). I think its important to bring in fresh blood every once in awhile and at the same time, using those characters to compliment your core cast; the stars of the show, if you will.

Super long ass answer but I hope it helps give an idea of how these 8 braincells work this story out!

[uhohbestie]

There Are Monsters Nearby [Chapter 21]

🏜 Pairing: Grian/Scar

🧟‍♂️ Tags: zombie AU, zombie apocalypse, lovers to exes, slow burn, eventual reconciliation

📖 Summary: The day after Scar breaks up with Grian, the dead come back to life. Knowing that venturing out alone is a death sentence, the sudden onset of the apocalypse forces them to stick together despite the tensions between them. In the wreckage of the world, they're forced to survive side-by-side, coming to terms with the fact that—try as they might—there's still no one they trust more than each other.

Chapter 21 - Finally forced to face how little faith Scar has left in him, Grian resorts to a desperate grand gesture, hoping the salvage what little remains of the burned bridge they have left between them. At the edge of the apocalypse, with no one around for miles, what could possibly go wrong?

📝 Words: 14,258

🔗 Link: Read Chapter 21 on AO3

—

Hesitantly, Grian touches on the fringes of the matter, hands settling on Scar’s back as he takes a seat. “You’re in a much better mood than I expected you to be this morning.”

“Oh, I’m furious,” Scar answers, matter-of-fact. He turns the key in the ignition, the vespa immediately rattling to life. “But what does that matter at this point?”

Grian doesn’t want to hear the answer to the question, but he can’t help but ask it.

“How do you mean?”

Scar sighs heavily, obviously put upon by it. “You’re not going to change, Grian. I get that now, and I probably should have a long time ago. What’s the point in getting upset with you over and over again when it won’t make a difference? Why should I make myself worse when it’s never going to get the reaction I need out of you?”

Grian winces, fingers pressing into the soft leather shoulders of Scar’s jacket.

“Scar…”

“It’s better this way,” Scar insists, not giving room to hear him out—though admittedly Grian doesn’t know what he’d even say, when it feels like every atom of him is being constricted and torn apart at the same time. “I’m over it. We can travel together. It’ll be fine, and we won’t have to fight or argue anymore. Everybody wins.”

Grian can hear what he isn’t saying implicitly and it burns inside him, hot and guilty.

‘As long as I don’t expect anything from you, I won’t be disappointed.’

“Scar,” he tries again, his voice small as the name leaves him, but Scar merely shakes his head.

“I want to focus on driving,” he explains, curt but calm at the same time. “You can tell me how bad I’m making you feel when we take a break.”

—

And that's the end of the second arc, and the midway point of the fic!A cliffhanger, some might say. (Imagine the two of us holding your hand so tightly and saying "please trust us" hahahahaha.)

You can read the whole fic thus-far in the link below!

You may not rest now, There Are Monsters Nearby (on ao3!)

[ofstoriesandstardust]

chapter 8 - renegade (b.r.b.)

a/n: chapter 7 flopped so here’s to hoping chapter 8 doesn’t as we near the end of this story

summary: Bradley is confronted with the aftermath of his decision and Sunshine gets unexpected advice from an even more unexpected father figure. 

main masterlist | top gun: maverick masterlist | flight risk masterlist | ch. 7 - discussions, decisions, and divorces (oh my!) | ch. 9 - i know it won’t work

folks who wanted to be tagged: @justanothermagicalsara​ @fangirl-316​ @herladyshipxx​ @parker-natasha​ @myhomeworksnotdone​ @pulisvertz​ @lass-that-is-gone​ @frenchtoastix​ @coco-loco-nut​ @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy​ @torresbarnes​ @supernaturaldawning​ @you-had-me-at-dead-welsh-kings​ @katiemcrae​ @gretagerwigsmuse​ @the-winter-marvel33​ @some-lovely-day​ @unordinare​ @hotch-meeeeeuppppp​ @annedub​ @hope-love-equality2​ @coyotesamachado​ @hopefulinlove​ @mak-32 @daisyhollyxox​ @loveforaugust​ @earth-to-lottie​ @sometimesanalice​ @cheezit-bradshawseresin​ @none-of-your-bullshit​ @jstarr86​ @caatheeriinee07​ @galacticstxrdust​ @anony1080 @sarcasm-n-insomnia @sammyrenae68​ @redbarn1995​

warnings: alcohol mentions, swearing, insecurities, semi-cliffhanger, it’s angsty, Sunshine needed her own heart to heart

word count: 1.9k

“are you really gonna talk about timing in times like these?/and let all your damage damage me?/and carry your baggage up my street?/and make me your future history?”

You groan, pressing the heels of your palms into your eyes as you lean over on the metal bench. 

You must look ridiculous, you think to yourself.

Tucked away in a corner of San Diego State University’s massive campus, you felt like a fish out of water. 

You’d always wanted to come see the campus, especially with Bradley living in the immediate neighborhood, but had never been able to come up with a decent enough reason to actually visit. 

It was a pretty campus, old Spanish style buildings with the special tile roofs that always adorned the building style, flower bushes and trees shading the sunny campus. It reminded you a lot of the trip you and Bradley had taken to Balboa Park once for food trucks early on in your visit here and you could see why so many students flocked to this campus. 

Turns out, the campus was also good for giving you a place to cry in peace after fleeing from your fake-husband after he contested the divorce for your fake-marriage.  

You pull your hands away from your eyes, glancing at the time on your phone. You take a shaky breath, realizing that you can’t sit here and feel sorry for yourself for much longer, not if you want to make your flight and get the hell out of San Diego. 

Your head throbs from the morning spent crying as you stand up from the bench, navigating back the way you came as you walk in the direction of Bradley’s house. 

Your mind still feels fuzzy as you turn the corner on to Bradley’s street, no clear indication of what you should do. 

You’d never fought with Bradley, never once in the decade you’d known him. You didn’t know how to be angry with him, much less at odds with him. 

Because underneath it all, you were angry at yourself. Angry for getting attached, for failing in love with someone you knew you couldn’t have. 

Except- you could have him. He had tried-

No.

You stamp out the spark of hope alighting in you. 

Bradley Bradshaw had had more than a whole decade to confess how he felt about you and if it took a near-death experience for him to-

You pause, doing a double-take at the car in the driveway. You glance to the front door, teeth coming to worry at your bottom lip. 

With a sinking stomach, you tread the last few feet up to the front door, pushing it open slowly. 

It’s unlocked, you note, as you step through the entrance, walking the few feet into the living room. 

And there he stands, looking at the photo of Bradley at his graduation from UVA. 

The one you had taken all those years ago, when life didn’t seem so complicated, when you forced yourself to be content with friendship with Bradley because you were sure it was all that would ever be offered to you. 

He glances over at the sound of the front door closing as you stand there nervously, hands coming to clasp together in front of you. He offers you a warm smile, taking a step back back from the picture. 

“Admiral Kazansky, I uh- what are you doing here?” 

-

His locker slams shut in front of him, only pulling his fingers back with just enough time before they got crushed by the metal. He glances over at the brunette standing next to him, looking by all accounts, thoroughly pissed. 

“What the fuck Bradshaw?” She hisses. He glances up at his squadron, bewildered as they all look on with varying mixes of confusion. 

“What’d I do?” 

“What’d I do? He asks!” She throws her hands up in the air. “You know what you did Bradshaw!” 

He blinks, staring at her. “Nat, I’m lost.” 

She huffs. “You’re a moron.” 

He blinks again. “Can I be clued into why you’re insulting me or are you just going to keep yelling at me? I’ve kind of already had a shit morning Nat, so I’m not really in the mood for this. 

She narrows her eyes. “Yeah, I’ve heard.” 

“Lieutenant Trace, this isn’t your locker room.” They both turn, seeing Maverick’s figure. He jerks his head to the doors, to which she sighs. 

“This isn’t over yet Bradshaw, mark my words.” She whispers, before turning on her heel and heading for the doors. 

“Uh, Lieutenant Bradshaw-” Maverick pauses as he tugs the black shirt over his head. “Why are you here?” 

“Because this is my job?” 

Maverick sighs. “My office, please Lieutenant.” 

He huffs, stepping over the bench. The short walk to Maverick’s office is quiet and Maverick shuts the door behind him with a sigh. 

“Bradley, if- if you want to take some time for yourself, Cyclone and I- we would understand.” 

“I’m fine sir.” 

Maverick fixes him with a pointed look. “Cut the crap, Bradley. You signed divorce papers this morning. You’re allowed to not be okay right now.” 

He shrugs, eyes drifting up to one of the plaques on the wall. 

The plaque from the mission. 

“Bradley.” 

“I don’t know that I am, sir. Allowed to not be okay.” 

Maverick sighs, moving from where he’s standing behind his desk to in front of it, stepping right into his point of view. 

“Go home, kid. Take some time for yourself.” 

“Yeah, I don’t think Sunshine wants to see me right now. I’d probably be chased out of my own home.” 

A confused look crosses over Maverick’s face. “Why?” He shakes his head, pointing to the extra chairs in the office. “Here kid, sit down. Talk to me. What happened?” 

He sighs as he sits, leaning over to rest his forearms on his knees. “I did something so stupid, Mav. It cost me her.” 

“Kid, what did you do? Tell me what happened?” 

He sighs, reaching up to rub a hand over his face. “Last night, I tried- I tried to tell her that I loved her. She wouldn’t hear it, completely shut me down. Told me I was projecting my unresolved trauma and mid-life crisis on to her. And I just- I panicked. I just wanted to keep her.” 

Maverick reaches a hand out to rub his shoulder sympathetically. “So this morning?” 

He takes a shaky breath, lifting his head to face his godfather. “So this morning, I- I was gonna do it I swear.” His voice cracks on the last word, making him blow out a breath in a pitiful attempt to calm down. “But I- I just looked at her and realized I couldn't lose her.” He pauses, hot tears stinging at his eyes. 

“Mav, I contested the divorce.” 

-

“Maverick texted me. Told me what Bradley did.”

You sigh, crossing your arms. “Okay, so I’m still not following why you’re here. Sir.” 

Tom waves a hand, letting out a laugh. “Please, you aren’t a pilot. We aren’t on a Naval base. Brad married you, please don’t call me sir.” 

You nod, nerves still thrumming through you. “Okay.” You bite back the sir that’s threatened to follow just barely, earning an eyebrow raise from Tom. 

“I wanted to see how you were doing.” 

You shrug. “I’ve been better.” 

“Do you mind me asking what happened?” 

“Bradley’s a idiot. No offense.”

Tom lets out another little laugh. “He isn’t the brightest sometimes, yeah.” 

“He just- he doesn’t fucking listen.”

Tom hums. “He never really has been the best listener.” 

It’s silent for a moment as Tom takes a few steps closer to you and then he sighs. 

“You’re better than what Brad deserves, that’s for sure.” 

You cautiously raise your head from the hole it’s burning into the floor, frown forming on your face. “I don’t-”

He shakes his head, cutting you off. “You are. Not very many people would do what you’ve done for him.” 

You give a half-shrug, feeling your throat close up. “He was my friend.” 

“Was or is?” 

“I- I don’t know anymore.”  

Tom lets out a breath through his teeth. “Look kid, none of us will really blame you if you run as far away from him as possible. Lord knows he deserves it. But he’ll never find someone like you. You’re it for him. He just- he loves you so much. I’ve known it since the day I met you.” 

You swallow. “Thought you didn’t like me very much. Kind of failed at the whole first impression thing.” 

“His love for you is the only thing that ever made me take pause and wonder if I was wrong. You’re a great girl, but I mean it when I say that you’re better than what Brad deserves. I had my doubts, but never about you.” He sighs, resting one of his hands on your shoulder. “I saw how Brad iced out Maverick for a decade. I saw what he was like when he was volatile and vulnerable. I had my doubts that he would let someone like you see those sides of him and stick around. But I’ve also seen Brad at his most loving and he does love you, he really does. He just wants you to let him love you.” 

You give another half-shrug, eyes flickering away from the old man’s face. “I’m not good at this, you know? My parents hated each other. Hated me. I’ve only ever managed to date men who use me and treat me like the dirt beneath their feet and I just- I don’t know how to do all of this.” 

You take a step back from him as you shake your head, a tear slipping down your face. “You say that I’m better than what Bradley deserves but the truth is, he’s better than what I deserve. He’s so kind and funny and he’d do anything for his friends that I just-” 

You break down into tears once more.

“I’m not angry at him. I’m angry at myself for falling for him. I’m angry that allowed myself to put myself in this position when I knew it ended with me getting hurt.” 

“But it doesn’t have to end that way, with you getting hurt.” 

“How could it not?” 

-

“Bradshaw, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at home, trying to fix things with your wife?”

He sighs, taking a long draw from his beer before swinging his head to greet his best friend. “Good to see you too Phoenix.” 

She sighs, shaking her head. “You’ve fucked up.” 

He fiddles with a peanut, attempting to break the shell open. It’s a difficult process, the shell unwilling to budge and finally he sighs, setting it down on the bartop. “Phoenix, what do you want me to say? I know I’ve fucked up. I’ve maybe lost her forever, but- I had to try.” 

She looks at him for a minute before sighing, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms. “Go home Rooster.” 

He shakes his head, eyes downcast on the wooden bartop. “She’s gone. Her flight left this afternoon. and I can’t- I can’t go back to that house, knowing it’s empty. I had her and I lost her.” 

-

The car idles in the driveway. 

He’s not sure what time it is, having lost track between when he left the Hard Deck and drove around aimlessly, avoiding going back to a home full of ghosts. 

But now, he’s even more anxious as his fingertips tap against the steering wheel. 

The porch light is on. 

The porch light shouldn’t be on, not if you left this afternoon like you were supposed. 

Why is the porch light on?

He’d almost be afraid to find out if it wasn’t for the hope suddenly coursing through him. 

Did- did you stay?

[something-tofightfor]

The Truth Is Out There: This Is Not Happening

Pairing: Marcus Pike x Female Art Conservator/Restoration Specialist FBI Agent

Word Count: 2,631

Chapter Rating: M (language, unintentional drug use, the effects of drug use)

Series Warnings: Sex Pollen (with a twist), no use of Y/N, female reader insert, Reader works for the FBI in art restoration/conservation and has a nickname that is used often by Marcus. In this house we cannot stand Teresa and Jane and that is reflected in this story.

Summary: You’re out of the clean room and in the hotel, but that presents a much more unique challenge - especially after finding out what the drug you ingested does. 

Author’s Note: This is a short one (might be the shortest chapter of anything I’ve ever posted, to be honest), but the next ones are not. I left it on a cliffhanger, but please forgive me. Thank you so much for reading and interacting; I appreciate you all so much! 

Inbox is open, as always. Come talk about Marcus with me!

Masterlist / Unrequited / One Breath / The Truth

You were both silent, the steady whir of the filter loud after being in the quiet of the other room for so long. But you felt a charge in the small space, and the longer you looked at Marcus’ back, the stronger it became. I want to kiss him. I want to touch him, and I want … I want him. “Marcus, you don’t need to look away. We can both -”

“That isn’t a good idea.” He tilted his head back. “I feel… strange. I don’t … I don’t know what will happen if I see you like that right now.” What? What did he say?

“I feel weird too. Hot. Itchy. And all I want is …” All I want is to touch you. “Fuck, Marcus. Maybe it’s not a good idea to stay together.” Even though the last thing I want is to leave you right now.

“You guys just about done in there?” Scott’s voice carried back into the tent, the man waiting a few seconds to speak again. “We need to get you -”

“Almost.” Marcus spun back to face you, his eyes roaming over your body before they went to the cart. “Couple seconds.” He reached for his sweatshirt’s hem, pulling it over his head in one smooth motion  before letting it fall to the floor, leaving him bare from the waist up. “C’mon, get changed. The sooner we get out of here, the better.” 

But you were frozen in place, your eyes on Marcus’ chest and the way the muscles there moved as he flexed his arms. He watched you watch him, the man’s jaw tight, though that unidentified look was still in his eyes. Does he feel like this too? “Marcus, I … why is this happening? I’ve never felt like -”

“Not here.” He shook his head, reaching past you for one of the packages and ripping it open. “I know, but not here. Not now.” He didn’t look at you again as he pulled the scrub top on and then began to undo his jeans and belt. I can’t. I have to look away, I have to … 

So you did, opening one of the pairs at random and pulling the top out. You removed your shirt, too, the material falling to the ground as a tremor coursed through you. You were still overheated but shivered almost violently as the cool air washed over your skin, your inhale sharp before you put the new top on. 

It was too large, hanging down to your thighs, but you didn’t want to waste time reaching for a second option. Even though your heart was pounding in your chest as you thought of Marcus - pantsless and only a foot or so away from you - you focused on what you needed to do. Because we have to get out of here. 

After removing your shoes and jeans and then tugging the elastic waistband of the comfortable pants over your hips and shoving your feet into a pair of slip on shoes, you glanced over your shoulder, finding Marcus’ eyes on you. “I’m sorry.” He was fully dressed, both hands stuffed into his pockets. “I couldn’t stop myself. I said I wouldn’t watch and then I couldn’t stop looking at you once I was done changing.” Oh. Wait, what? 

“All it took was foreign substance exposure to make you want to watch me get dressed, Marcus? If I’d known that was the best way to get your attention, I would have tried it sooner.” You tried for a teasing tone and winced as you heard yourself speak, the sound of your voice thin and needy instead.

“You have no idea.” He stepped closer, head moving slowly from side to side as one arm extended toward you. “All I want to do right now is tell you how much I -”

“We need to go.” Scott interrupted, prompting  Marcus to step back and then around you, once again swearing under his breath. I’m pissed too. What was he going to say? What was he going to do? “Please, both of you, follow me.” 

— 

Scott ushered you and Marcus across the street and down the block as quickly as he could without your journey appearing frantic. 

You were focused on keeping up with the two men. And you were also very aware that you’d gone straight from being locked in a clean room with people in HAZMAT suits taking blood samples to walking across the street in the afternoon sunshine and then through the lobby of the DC Waldorf Astoria like you were coming back from an afternoon of exploring the city. 

But the thing you were most aware of was the fact that Marcus’ fingers were twined with yours, the heat from his palm thrumming across your hand and up your arm as you moved. He could have let go. He could have dropped my hand once we left the FBI building, but he didn’t.

You were still angry at him, but that feeling was muted by everything else going on - specifically his increasingly frustrating proximity. “Couple more minutes, you two.” Scott tapped his foot as the elevator rose, letting out a long breath. “You’re doing great.” Are we? What else can we do? 

Risking a glance at Marcus as the doors slid open, you saw that he was chewing on his lower lip, brow furrowed in concentration. “Marcus?” Murmuring his name, you squeezed his hand. “You alright?” 

“No. I’m not.” He didn’t say anything else and so you didn’t either, the man only letting go of you once the three of you were inside of a suite. “Alright, Scott. What the fuck is going on?” You’d never heard Marcus’ tone as scathing as it was in that moment, and at the sound, you gasped. What is he… “You need to tell us now, because -”

“Agent Pike, the two of you are going to be alright, but -” Marcus stepped forward, holding up one finger. 

“No bullshit. Just be honest with us.” Scott looked between the two of you once Marcus had gone quiet then reached up, rubbing a hand over his beard. 

“The powder is a drug, and you did ingest enough for it to impact you. Both of you.” We knew that. “We’ve dealt with it a few times over the last year and a half, but never in the volume you were exposed to tonight. And we’ve never made contact with anyone so close to their initial dose.” 

“You’re welcome.” You scoffed. “Glad we could help.” Scott’s smile was brief, but he nodded nonetheless. 

“It actually is very helpful, so thank you.” He rook a breath, looking between you. “There are two major components to the drug that we’ve been able to isolate. One of them is a derivative of scopolamine, which is -” 

“You’re fucking kidding me.” Marcus stepped in front of you, head whipping back and forth. “Why would anyone include that in a street drug?” He knows what it is? I sure as hell don’t. 

“I’m not. But that’s not the thing that you should be worried about.” Scott shifted, arms crossed over his chest. “The other component is something that we haven’t given an actual name to yet, but they’re calling it Lapis on the street because of the color.” 

He paused and you realized that you were sweating again when you curled your fingers against your palms and found them damp, despite the cool room. The air would feel good on my skin. It would feel better. I should take off - 

Tugging on the collar of your top, you closed your eyes. “I don’t feel so good. I -” You licked your lips and then pressed them together. “I’m hot. I feel like -”

Scott started speaking again, the man cutting you off as a means of distraction. “Lapis is a party drug. Works like an amphetamine, kind of like MDMA, but it also increases your level of sexual desire and the time you stay -” Are you fucking kidding me?

“We got dosed with a sex drug?” You dropped your hand and opened your eyes. “Marcus and I? Together? What the fuck are we supposed to do about that?” 

“Not just a sex drug, Scully.” Marcus turned to face you. “A sex drug that encourages people to tell the truth.” What? What would the point of it even be? “This is a problem.” Is it a problem because you and I got dosed together, or … just because you don’t want to deal with it?

“There are two separate sleeping areas in this suite.” Scott gestured deeper into the room, clearing his throat. “Two bathrooms, two beds, two doors with locks.  You’re perfectly safe here, and we’ll be able to debrief you in detail tomorrow, once it’s worn off. But there’s no point in it until you’ve had time to …” He sighed. “Let it clear your systems.” 

“So what are we supposed to do?” You were near hysterical, your hands curling and uncurling by your sides. “Just sit here and wait it out? The three of us -”

“Oh, I’m not staying.” Scott raised both brows. “I just needed to escort you here and ensure that you’re safely in the room. If this follows the experience that others that have taken this drug report, then …” He checked his watch. “Based on the amount present in your blood test results, you’ve got about twenty minutes before intoxication reaches a critical point.” What does that mean?

“But I was breathing it in before he was.” You frowned. “Wouldn’t that make it worse for me?” 

“It hits everyone different.” Scott stared at you. “But to be really effective, you have to consume a large amount. Just getting a whiff of it isn’t enough. Now the only thing you can do is wait and see how you feel.” 

You dropped onto the couch and buried your face in your hands, trying to control your breathing. “Fuck. This is a nightmare.” What a combination for a drug. 

“Do you need anything from us right now?” Marcus’ voice was steady, and when you looked back up at the two men, you saw that he was eyeing Scott with a curious look on his face. “Anything else, I mean?”

“Just confirmation that if I walk out of here, you understand that only the two of you are responsible for what happens next.” He said your name, holding a hand out. “There is another room available if you don’t want to stay together now that you know. And if there’s anyone you want us to call, we can. We can get them on the line or here to the hotel to spend the night with you or -”

“There’s no one else for me.” It was only a whisper, and you winced as you said it, the truth of your loneliness loud in your ears. “And I don’t want to be by myself.” I want to be with Marcus. You barely stopped yourself from saying it, but clamped your mouth shut in time. 

“You can go.” Marcus’ face was flushed, the roots of his hair damp as he gestured toward the door. “We’ll be alright together.” Scott eyed you again, but then nodded, asking Marcus to follow him.

You couldn’t hear what they were saying as they moved, and so you stopped trying to listen, instead standing and moving toward the window, deep in thought. You’d spent the night with Marcus before - falling asleep watching movies or TV, one of you taking the spare bedroom or pull out couch instead of driving home late at night. But not like this. Not with … 

It was a dangerous thing to think about; spending the next hours with a man that was under the influence of a drug that forced truth at the same time it increased sex drive. It was especially dangerous when that man was Marcus, someone that you’d barely been able to conceal your feelings from under normal circumstances. But we can do it. We’ll get through it and be alright. There’s no other option.

“Scott’s gone.” You froze at the sound of his voice, hesitating before you turned around. “It’s just us now.” Marcus kept his distance, but you could see that it was wearing on him. His eyes darted over your face, never lingering anywhere, and he was shifting in place, socked toes curling against the plush carpet. “You alright?” 

“Not at all.” You scoffed. “But at least I understand things now, like why we were both so honest in that room. Why you were able to finally stand up to her and say what you needed to.” 

“It definitely needed to be said.” He inched closer, one of the man’s hands shoved deep into a pocket. “Maybe not the way it happened today, but you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to say some of that out loud.” He trailed off, swallowing, and you were transfixed by the movement of his throat, the man’s Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. “Do you want the bigger bedroom? I’ll stay out here. Scott said the majority of the effects will wear off after about seven hours, but -”

“Seven hours? Marcus, what the fuck?” You closed the distance, stopping a little more than a foot away from him. “I can’t feel like this for the next seven hours. I don’t want to. I’m hot and I’m anxious and all I want to do is fucking kiss you and I know I can’t, but -”

“Did you mean what you said before? About me and Teresa?”

“Which part?” Your throat clicked as you swallowed. You tried to ignore the way his mouth looked as he spoke, the man’s lips settled into a pout while he waited for your reply. “About being mad at you? About you having to listen to me? About -”

“About me deserving better and being a catch. About getting my attention.”

“Are you serious?” Wetting your lips, you lifted your hand and then paused, fingertips only inches from him. “Marcus, you might be an idiot sometimes, but if you think that that means that I haven’t wanted you since pretty much the moment I laid eyes on you, then  -” 

He didn’t give you a chance to finish, the man leaning in and pressing his lips to yours without touching you in any other way. Oh, fuck me. It took you by surprise after a year of both of you being careful to keep your distance. No. No, not like this.  Instead of kissing him back, you pushed him away with both hands, eyes wide. 

“Don’t.” Moving your hands back and forth, you backed away. “Marcus, please.” But you couldn’t deny that the short kiss had sent flames licking down the center of your chest, the contact enough to crack the barely constructed wall you’d put up since his previous denial so many months earlier. “You’ll regret it. If anything happens between us, you’ll…” 

“I’ll what?” He stepped closer, the warmth in his eyes replaced with heat, the tip of his tongue dragging over his lower lip like he was trying to savor the brief taste of you he’d gotten. “You think I’d regret finally being able to show you how I feel about you?” Finally? What? 

“I can’t go back.” Swallowing hard, you continued to move backwards, letting out a shaky breath. “I can’t do it. It was hard enough a year ago and all we did was kiss before we made that decision.” He was moving with you, taking one step for every two of yours, and even though you knew it was a terrible idea, you wanted him to eliminate the distance - wanted to let him get you. “If we let ourselves go tonight, you’d just avoid me afterward, Marcus.” 

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