#oh to fall asleep at a robot's chest while it gently holds you close and sing you to sleep

[itty-bitty-sunshine]

A few months old, but to complete the daily life shenanigans combo: Eclipse version

Aka my profile picture

[theemporium]

Oh, please write for Mat! What about something fluffy with surprising the partner at home?

thank you for requesting!🫶🏽

.

You were dragging your feet by the time you reached your apartment after work.

The exhaustion you felt went beyond lack of sleep and long days, it was set deep in your bones and made every part of your body feel ten times heavier than usual. Everything felt harder than usual. From falling asleep at night to getting up in the morning, from focusing in classes to paying attention during your shifts, from just pushing your body to work on some twisted sense of routine that made you feel like you were a robot completing tasks to the fact you hadn’t felt like yourself in a while.

It was tiring, it was exhausting and you didn’t know what to do about it. And coming home to a completely empty apartment didn’t help settle the unease in your chest, the one that had been bubbling since Mat left for a roadie over a week ago. 

However, being on the other side of the country only put a damper on your already shitty mood. By the time you could manage a conversation over message or call, it was late for you and you were fighting to keep your eyes open, even if you knew you would inevitably be tossing in your bed for a few hours trying to fall asleep. Though, you never did sleep well when Mat was gone.

Despite every cell in your body screaming for you to forget dinner and curl up in bed with the hopes that you could manage more than a few hours of sleep for your first day off in almost two weeks, you knew there was still so much buzzing in your mind for you to do and you didn’t even think the comfort of being home would help. 

You were so lost in your thoughts that it took three attempts before you managed to slot the key into the lock, turn the handle and shuffle inside. You hadn’t even acknowledged the extra pair of shoes by the door or noted the bag dumped a few feet away. 

You didn’t even catch on to any of it until you lifted your head and found Mat standing there, dressed in a pair of sweatpants and hoodie, with his arms spread open and a massive grin on his face as he stared right back at you. 

“Surprise!”

You blinked, your brain unable to even process the sight in front of you.

“We decided to take a late night flight because the early morning one got cancelled so we came home early,” Mat explained as he closed the distance between you, grinning at your silence thinking you were just shocked. “Couldn’t wait to get home to my girl.”

The second he was close enough, Mat wasted no time in winding his arms around your waist and tugging you close until you practically fell into his chest. He grinned down at you, so giddy and happy to just be back home with you that it took a few seconds before he noticed your silence, before he noticed the dark circles under your eyes and the glaze over your eyes like you weren’t fully focused, like you were disassociating. 

“Oh baby,” he murmured, his voice softer and quieter as he raised his hand to gently cup your face, to let his thumb brush over the apple of your cheek as your body instinctively sagged against his touch. 

“M’just a little tired,” you tried to wave him off, but this was Mat. This was Mat who wasn’t just your boyfriend but your best friend, the one who saw right through your bullshit and bad excuses. “I’m glad you’re home. I’ve missed you.”

“I missed you too,” he murmured, his lips twitching upwards before he leaned down to place a soft, lingering kiss on your lips. “And I’m glad I’m home too, can take care of my girl like she deserves.”

You sighed. “Mat—”

“Let me take care of you, baby,” he whispered, a glint in his eyes that made your heart race in your chest. “Please.”

“Just hold me.” You hated the way your voice cracked as you spoke. “I just really missed being in your arms.”

His grip on you instantly tightened as he brought you closer, as he wrapped his arms around you and hugged you close until your cheek was pressed against his chest, the smell of his hoodie so comforting and so him. It was overwhelming in the best way possible.

“Always,” he answered as he pressed another kiss along your hairline. “How about ordering from that Thai place you like?”

“I thought you hated it,” you mumbled into his shirt.

“I like some of it,” he argued weakly but you could hear the smile in his voice. “Tonight is your choice. Tomorrow we can order something obscene I like that will make the trainers cry.”

You laughed lightly, and the sound made his grin widened. “Deal.”

“Good, now go get changed into something comfy,” Mat murmured as he pulled you away from his chest, lightly pushing you in the direction of your shared bedroom. “M’gonna put on that show you like.”

“And you won’t get offended when I ogle Damon Salvatore?” You questioned, mostly teasing as you took a few steps backwards.

Mat rolled his eyes, but still smiled as he placed his hand over his heart. “Scout’s promise, baby.” He paused for a moment. “Even if I’m much hotter than him.”

“No doubt about it, baby.”

.

[dca-prompts]

(at this point I am the resident sun X moon creator for this place, because so many of my prompts have had celestial boyfriends in mind, so it’s time I finally create a one shot)

It had been a long day, the megamall was packed with more people than last week, setting a new record for the busiest day for fazbear entertainment.

Because of this, parents just casually dumped they’re young children into the hands of the daycare, leaving the solar animatronic to deal with more kids than he was programmed to handle. He cared for each child to the best of his ability, his battery, running thin by nap time.

He was lucky that he & his lunar counterpart, swapped places for nap time, giving him ample time to recharge. Go to recharge, didn’t seem to matter as his battery was pretty low by the end of the day.

Only one child ever remained in the daycare after closing hours, Freddy was usually the one to pick him up, though today Chica had to come for him. Sun was confused, but chica explained Freddy was stuck in parts and service due to damage sustained during one of the meet and greets.

Sun seemed satisfied with the explanation and left the child in Chica’s care, telling her to keep an eye on him ”Oh, I know!” Chica said, waving her hand as she picked the child up, most likely heading off to rockstar road.

‘Finally.. I can take a break..’ the sun animatronic thought, stumbling towards the ball pit. He stopped at its edge, summoning the wire he and his counterpart used to navigate the daycare. He lazily hooked the cable to his back and yanked on it a couple times, signaling it to raise him to the balcony. Once there, he unclasped himself from the cable and swung onto the balcony, just barely making it. “I really need to stop doing that” he said to himself, making his way into the room he and his coworker shared.

The lunar animatronic noticed Sun stumble in, giving him a warm smile as Sun made his way to him. As soon as Sun reached Moon, he slumped on top of the moon themed animatronic, letting out an exhausted sigh.

“Long day sundae?” Moon asked, gently rubbing Sun’s head as he grabbed a cable from the wall, plugging it into the solar animatronics head. “Mmhh” Sun murmured, nuzzling into moon’s neck. “There were soo many kids..” He added, sounding tired.

“Heh, normally you’re more energetic.. did they drain your battery that much?” The lunar animatronic asked, giggling at how clinging Sun was being. “I’m down to 20% if that answers your question.” Sun responded, wrapping his arms around Moon.

The moon themed animatronic let out a soft chuckle, wrapping one arm around Sun as he kept rubbing the solar robot’s head. “I guess I’ll cancel our plans to head over to El Chip’s, huh?” Moon said, already being the process of canceling their reservation. Sun gave a tired nod, tightening his grip on his lunar counterpart.

Sun was too exhausted to do anything at the moment, he just wanted to fall asleep with his moon. As Moon finished canceling their reservation, he looked at Sun & smiling, gently rubbing one of his rays with his thumb. Sun looked at Moon for a moment, his face said everything as he gave his lover a sleepy kiss.

“Night Moonpie” Sun said, nuzzling into the moon’s chest as he began to power down. “Night Sunshine.” Moon replied, holding Sun closer to him.

(& scene. I hope you enjoyed reading this one shot, I wanted to do something fluffy since most of my other prompt/oneshot prompts are more angst filled. A so I give you sleepy sun. I think this could also count as a prompt usage considering I kind of had my clingy sun prompt in mind while making this. However, that’s up to the blog owner to decide.)

[annadier]

Domniţă {Part 3}

Summary: The Winter Soldier was hired to protect you, guard you, risk his life for you. You are important. Your family is important. You become intrigued by the blue-eyed stoic man who stands by your side, and something brews between the two of you. Set during the Cold War. Winter Soldier!Bucky Pairing: Bucky x Reader Word count: 1178

Masterlist

Part 1 | Part 2 |

“Are you okay?” He asked you. It felt strange to hear his voice muffled by the mask he wore. You almost did not reply. Then you looked into his eyes, steel blue, and saw real emotion in them. Concern. Fear. To think once upon a time you had theorised that he was a robot with how reserved he normally is.

“Yeah.” The word left your mouth infused with shakiness. You tried to calm down your heart, but it was still racing from the attack. He noticed. Of course, he did. He walked over to you, carefully kneeling to pick you up. Your back ached from being pushed into the ground. The cry you let out when he lifted you off the ground told him as much.

“Can you walk?” He asked you. You barely heard him, focusing on the three men on the ground unmoving. “Y/N!” He said a bit more emphatically, grabbing your attention.

You snapped your head back to him, looking at him. Concern. Fear. Worry. “Can you walk?” He asked again. Slowly, you nodded a ‘yes’ and let him hesitantly lower you.

Instinctively, you rubbed your wrists where they had grabbed you tightly. It stung. You let out a hiss without realising and The Soldier was onto you instantly. He grabbed your hands, inspecting them carefully. Fear was gone from his eyes now. Anger replaced it. Anger. Concern. Worry. You caught him glance over at the thugs. “I’m fine.” You said softly. “Just bruised.”

He didn’t say anything to you now. He simply stepped back to call your father, talking in hushed muffled tones, informing him of your safety and that the situation had been dealt with. You focused on the thugs, taking careful steps around them, just out of reach if one miraculously woke up.

The call was made. More men arrived and took the thugs away. “Are they dead?” You asked him.

There were people around. You honestly were not expecting a response, that was not his normal. You had no idea why you had asked him in the first place, but you were in shock, you would later argue with yourself. And yet... he replied. “No. Your father will want to question them.” He said it so bitterly, as if he had wanted to kill them. That scared you.

Logically, you knew that a bodyguard’s job is to protect you. That involves killing people. He had literally killed to protect you the first time you had ever met him. And yet. This time, his desire to kill felt less like a professional obligation. He drove you back home, taking someone’s car. You were not sure whose but it had to have belonged to your father’s men. The drive was silent, the only sound that registered was when the hum of the engine cut abruptly as he got out to open your door. He never spoke unless spoken to, and you had nothing to say. This was your own fault. You had sneaked out without anyone. You knew it could have been dangerous – and oh Lord, how it was! – everything about this was on you.

“I’m sorry.”

Two words broke the silence as you walked to your room. You did not say anything. So, he must have. But why would he be apologising? You stared at him in confusion. This time, he didn’t stand outside the door, like a dutiful statue. He walked right in with you, closed the door and sat beside you.

“I should have been there. That was my job.�� He sounded pained and mournful. It hurt you to think that this was probably the most human you had seen him look in two years. Whoever he truly was, It was beginning to peak through. "I'm sorry."

“No, no.” You denied. “I ran outside. I knew what I was doing.” No you did not! You argued with yourself. If you knew what you were doing, you would not have needed to be saved by him!

“I should have noticed sooner. I should have been there to protect you!” His voice raised, almost in panic. A thought filled your mind: what would have happened if he had not arrived when he did?

Tears welled up in your eyes. How could you have been so foolish? “We’re they going to kill me?” You asked him in a voice that could barely constitute as a whisper. Your lip trembled. He pulled you close. He did not answer your question. He did not know what they had planned for you, but he wished he could have killed them all the same.

He let you lie across his lap, and cry silently to let the fear out. He shushed you when you blamed yourself, he run his hands through your hair until you calmed down. Not for the first time, you we’re grateful he was there.

He watched you slowly ease into drowsiness as the adrenaline and fear faded away. He moved to stand up and lay you back in your bed but from where you were sitting now that he gently pushed you off of him, you grabbed onto his hand before he became out of reach.

“Stay?” You asked in a small voice. “I don’t want to be alone. Please?” He looked at the door with a concerned look. “I’ll say I needed you here to feel safe. I do, really. Please? Just…just tonight?”

“Okay.” He nodded without hesitancy. And really how could he deny that? Keeping you safe was his job, that was his mission.

You climbed under the covers and insisted he join you There was some hesitancy now. He insisted sitting on a chair next to you, What would happen if your father came in? Fear climbed back up your throat. Father. Thugs. You could have died? What if you had died, and this was a dream, a last minute of peace before the great beyond? He did not need to hear your thoughts to read you like an open book. When tears began to well, he gave in.

His body was warm. There was space on your large bed, but you found yourself drawn towards him. It was nice, but every time you closed your eyes, all you could see was the brutality of tonight. “Can you hold me?” You weren’t sure if he heard you, or if you had even really said it out loud but his arms wrapped around you, holding you close to his chest. It was almost like he needed the reassurance of your life. It was in this warmth that you finally found enough comfort to fall asleep. When you woke up the next morning, he was standing dutifully outside the door with his hands clasped behind his back. You barely missed the slight smile that peaked as you walked passed him before he drew his mask back up.

You would never know this, but that night, the Soldier had never slept. He forced himself awake incase a new threat came into the room while you were vulnerable - either enemies or your father.

Part 4

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[jungshookz]

EEEK cee imagine grumpy!yn and jimin where jimin falls asleep on the floor in their lil hangout spot bc he stayed up the night before and yn jus secretly admiring jimin’s adorable sleeping face while caressing his hair THEN jimin wakes up when yn leaned in for a kiss on his forehead :3:3:3

➺ pairing; sunshiney!jimin x grumpy!y/n

➺ genre; of course this is fluff!!! fluffier than the clouds that jimin makes y/n look at and tell him what animal she thinks it looks closest to :D (he thinks it looks like a bunny and she thinks it looks like a.,,. idk man that’s literally just a lump) 

➺ wordcount; 1.3k 

➺ p.s. you’ll be able to find this in the teeny tidbits masterlist later on :’) 

(unfortunately i wasn’t able to track down the original maker of this gif but this is where i sourced it from! all credits go to the original creator of course :-))

                                     »»————-　☁️　————-««

“oh my god, do you hear that?” yoongi gasps, placing a hand on your shoulder before holding a finger up in the air, “that’s incredible.”

?

“what are you talking about?” you frown, looking around as well before shrugging his hand off your shoulder, “i don’t hear anything.”

you and namjoon exchange confused glances and he offers you his own shrug before looking over at yoongi for further explanation

“exactly. it’s nothing. it’s… silence.” yoongi whispers, “i haven’t heard it in so long because jimin’s always destroying it with his motormouth-”

oh

okAy

now you see what he’s going on about

“hey, cut it out-” you roll your eyes before shifting your shoulder slightly so that jimin’s head isn’t at a weird angle and that he won’t wake up with a weird kink in his neck, “he was up all night working on a paper and he’s tired.” you murmur, reaching over and pulling your cardigan up so that it covers his chest a little more

“you know, you were way more fun before you started dating jimin.” yoongi scoffs, pursing his lips in disappointment as he leans back against his palms, “when two people are making fun of someone, it’s all fun and games, but when it’s just me doing it alone, i look like an asshole-”

“oh, cry me a river.”

“see?? why can’t you be like that when you’re talking about jimin?? i miss the old y/n.” 

you move to shove yoongi down to the ground but you stop yourself when you realize that you could accidentally wake jimin up prematurely 

poor jimin was up until six this morning working on a dumb twenty-page report for one of his courses - he read his schedule wrong and it turns out that the report was due this tuesday and not next tuesday, and to be honest, he’s really not sure how he even made that mix-up in the first place because he’s usually always on top of things (you were on top of him when he was typing all of this into his phone so that might’ve had something to do with it)

and he normally gets up around seven-ish on a regular basis which means he literally only got an hour of sleep before he had to get up and get ready for the day

you already knew that he had pulled an all-nighter (you even offered to stay up with him and make him coffee if he needed it but you ended up falling asleep around twenty minutes after you’d made your bold offer) so you weren’t too surprised when you looked over halfway through lunch to see that he’d fallen asleep leaning back against the tree with his mouth wide open

yoongi nearly persuaded you into dropping a chunk of dirt into his open mouth but luckily you decided against doing that

and it didn’t look like he was very comfortable which was why you scooted yourself closer to him and gently pushed his head down so that he could rest on your shoulder

but that was an hour and a bit ago and jimin’s still fast asleep

and you’re pretty sure there’s dried drool on your arm but that’s okay

“-you know, it’s like i don’t even know who you are anymore.” yoongi tuts, shaking his head at you, “one minute, you’re happy to roll your eyes and insult jimin to his face, and the next, you’re cozying up to him like his girlfriend and straight-up fawning over him-”

“i- i am his girlfriend, you dolt-”

“i know, but like- well, you know what i mean.” yoongi flicks his wrist to dismiss you before turning his nose up towards the sky, “you get it.”

“i can honestly say i truly don’t, yoongi.”

yes, it’s fairly evident to see that you’ve changed quite a bit since getting together with jimin, but you like to think that you changed for the better!

you don’t wake up with a scowl on your face every morning which is definitely a good sign, right?

and now instead of staying silent during lunch and looking like you want nothing more than to watch the world burn, you actually contribute to conversations with everyone else and genuinely enjoy talking to them as long as jimin’s right there next to you 

of course, you have to admit that you still have a slight issue with PDA (which is why you’ve been moving your shoulder and trying to get jimin to wake up without making it seem like you’re purposely trying to wake him up) but that’s a conversation for another time

the point is, things are good with jimin

things are really, really good with jimin.  

you crane your neck to look back down at your boyfriend again, reaching over to brush some of his hair away from his eyes

his nose twitches slightly and he mutters something under his breath before turning his body towards you and snuggling into your warmth, wrapping his arms around your elbow and squishing his cheek against your shoulder

“cute.” you hum, reminding yourself to suppress your grin of delight so that no one teases you about how squealy you’re being right now 

you find yourself leaning down a little so you can give jimin a kiss on the forehead, your lips lingering against his warm forehead for a second before you pull away and look back to make sure that no one just saw you do that (god forbid anyone see you show even an inkling of affection for your boyfriend!) 

luckily it seems like the late afternoon sun beaming down on you guys is making everyone feel a little lethargic so no one was paying attention to y-

“did you just kiss my forehead?”

you freeze immediately when you hear jimin suddenly speak up and you clear your throat obnoxiously before raising your shoulder so that he gets his head off of it, “what? no. i think you were probably dreaming or something because forehead kissing is-” you chuckle lightly, pulling your legs up slightly and dusting some dirt off your calves, “it’s not something that i… i don’t do things like that, so- no. no, i didn’t kiss any foreheads.”

your eyes widen in surprise when jimin suddenly lies down and flops his head down on your lap, grinning up at you with twinkling eyes as he reaches up to poke the tip of your nose, “you soOoooOo have a crush on me.”

side note: it’s truly baffling to you that jimin never wakes up groggy

he’s always ready to go as soon as his eyes open and it doesn’t make any sense whatsoever

it’s almost like he has an on and an off switch somewhere and if that’s the case you would very much like to find his off switch so you can shut him up before someone else decides to chime in to the conversation 

“we’re- we’re dating, jimin-” you scowl, flicking his hand away from your face before clearing your throat again, “...obviously i have a friggin’ crush on you if we’re in a goddamn relationship-”

“what are you grumbling about over there now, y/n?” namjoon interrupts you from across the circle, glancing up at you and jimin for a split second from behind his screen, “i’m trying to get some work done and i can’t focus with all the secret muttering-”

“y/n has a crush on me.” jimin teases, crossing his arms over his chest before closing his eyes again, “a super FAT crush on me.”

he cracks an eye open just to see your reaction and he’s pleasantly surprised to see that your entire face is basically beet-red from this fun little game he’s playing

what do you have to be so embarrassed about??

you already said yourself that the two of you are dating so it’s an obvious fact that you have feelings for him

he just likes to remind everyone that you, a typically emotionless, cold-hearted robot, have feelings for him!

“oh, we know!” namjoon plays along with a grin, loving that you look like you want nothing more than to curl into a ball and just scream, “you think we didn’t see that forehead kiss?”

“park jimin, you sick... twisted man.” yoongi purses his lips as he shakes his head slowly, “look what you’ve done to her! you’ve ruined her!!” 

🎙️help me help you make your wishes come true (send me a request!)

✨why don’t you explore the rest of the library while you’re here?

💫or perhaps you want something shorter to read?

🌟or something even shorter?

[jobean12-blog]

Playtime

Pairing: Bucky x reader (Dad!bucky au)

Word Count: 1,112

Summary: You’re spending the night at Bucky’s and you two need some playtime but someone has other ideas...

Author’s Note: Thank you for this lovely request sweets! And thank you for your kind words, I’m really happy you’re enjoying them! I would never ignore you! I have some requests I’m still working through so I’m always so thankful for everyone’s kindness and patience! Inspiration strikes in all different ways and at different times! Dad!bucky is a love of mine so I hope you like this! Thanks again! Thank you all for reading and much love always! ❤❤❤

Warnings: Sweet, soft fluff filled love with a sprinkle of spice! ;) Dad!bucky <3

Bucky watches as you lay on the floor in his living room, carefully choosing the next block for the princess castle you’re building with his daughter. “Oh, good choice y/n! That one will look pretty.” Sam’s smile is permanent as the two of you play together, her sweet 4-year-old voice full of happiness, “I think we should make the tower real high!”

You agree enthusiastically and start to stack the blocks higher and higher. She squeals in excitement when you pick her up so she can reach and place more blocks on top. “What do you think Sam? Tall enough? Her chubby finger taps her chin, “hmmm. Let’s ask daddy!” You put her down and she runs into the kitchen, pulling on Bucky’s sweats, “daddy, please come see our castle.”

Bucky dries his hands and picks her up, resting her on his hip, “of course baby. Let’s go!” When he sees the castle, he makes sure to get overly excited and fawn over how beautiful it is. “It’s perfect!” Sam claps and kneels back down to look for more blocks. Bucky’s arm slides around your waist and he pulls you into his side, “I love seeing you two play together. She really loves this time with you.”

Your blush is hard to hide so you dip your head into his chest, circling your arms around his middle, “I do too Buck. Thanks.” As soon as Sam catches you two in an embrace she rushes over and wedges herself between your legs, hugging tight to as many as she can hold. “I want hugs too!” Bucky chuckles and kneels down, the three of you know squeezing each other tightly.

Once bath time and reading are finished you help Sam into bed and tuck her in, kissing her cheek before she and Bucky have their special nighttime routine. Bucky walks back into the bedroom and shuts the door before nearly launching himself onto the bed. “I’ve been waiting for this all day. No offense to Sam.” You purr against his lips, running your fingertips over the hard muscles of his back, “oh me too, especially after all your teasing this morning.”

Bucky has the audacity to laugh and you smack his ass, “it’s not funny. Interrupted or not you can’t leave a girl like that all day.” His large and warm hand slips under your shirt, “let me make it up to you then.” He’s just about to pull your shirt over your head when you hear the shrill voice of Sam from the other side of the door, “Daddy, I can’t find teddy.”

Bucky’s head drops to your shoulder and he groans before trailing several kisses along your neck and standing, “I’m coming sweetheart.” He shuffles to the door and opens it, slipping through and closing it behind him. Only a few minutes pass before the door opens again and he walks in with a devilish smirk, “now where were we?”

You part your legs so his large frame can settle between them and help him out of his shirt, yours following just a second later. His lips make their way down to the soft skin of your stomach and just when he reaches the waistband of your leggings you hear Sam call for you. “Shit!” Bucky grumbles, pausing and looking up at you. “Give her a minute. Maybe if we don’t answer she will get the hint.”

It’s hard not to laugh and you quickly cover your mouth, whispering, “she’s 4 babe!” Bucky hovers between your legs, placing open mouth kisses over the thin fabric of your leggings, “I can’t wait to get these off you.” Your laughter quickly turns into a moan when his mouth brushes against your most sensitive parts and you take a fistful of his hair in your hand, tugging him closer. He growls against you, hooking his thumbs into your leggings and slowly peeling them down.

“Daddyyyyyyy! Y/n! I can’t sleep!” Your head drops back to the pillow and Bucky sighs, pushing himself up and walking toward the door. “Wait Buck! I have an idea!” You stand up, throwing his shirt over your head and pulling up your leggings, “do you have Christmas lights handy?” He gives you a weird look but says, “yeaaaaa. Why?” Giving him a quick kiss and a wink, you reply with, “just get them and meet me in Sam’s room!”

He smacks your ass on the way out and you screech, making a bee line for her room and shutting the door quietly. “Hi baby. Can’t sleep huh?” Sam’s bottom lip trembles and you rush to her bed, tucking her under your arm and lightly brushing your fingers over her scalp. “You know what I do when I can’t sleep?” She looks up at you with big blue eyes that match her dad’s and you nearly melt, “what?”

You don’t say anything and stand up, gently pulling her from the bed and grabbing the pillows and blankets. “I make a fort!” She watches in silence while you carefully build a cozy space of soft pillows and warm blankets with just enough room for her to cuddle in. Bucky arrives just as you finish and holds up the lights. “Wow, that’s some fort!”

Sam jumps up and down, throwing herself at you in a flying hug, “thank you y/n! It’s perfect.” You give her a mischievous smile, “we aren’t done yet. Watch this!” You take the string of white lights from Bucky and plug them in by her dresser, carefully winding them along her wall using whatever is available. When you’re done her room is aglow with the soft twinkle of the lights and Bucky is standing there looking delighted.

“What do you think?” Sam can barely contain her happiness as she climbs into her fort and curls up. “It’s the best fort EVER! Thank you!.” You give her cheek a soft kiss and start to head out, but she quietly calls for you, “what is it baby?” Fiddling with the ears of her teddy she asks, “can you tell me a story? Just one. Before I fall asleep.” You happily agree and sit down by the bed, launching into a story about a princess who lived among the stars.

By the time you finish Sam is fast asleep and Bucky’s eyes have glazed over with love, “you’re amazing. You know that.” He’s seated in the rocking chair at the far corner of the room and you saunter over, standing between his legs. “I know. Hopefully now she’ll sleep through the night.” He pulls you down into his lap, “I hope so, because I literally can’t wait to get my hands on you.”

@addikted-2-dopamine @bugsbucky @breezy1415 @buckys-henley @bisousbucky @buckstaybucky @book-dragon-13 @chuuulip @eurynome827​ @hiddles-rose​ @hailmary-yramliah​ @hawksmagnolia​ @harrysthiccthighss​ @ikaris-whore​ @godofplumsandthunder​ @jeremyrennerfanxxxx123​ @jhangelface0523​ @jewels2876​ @loricameback​ @lorilane33​ @lokilvrr​ @littledarlinhavefaithinme​ @littleredstarfish​ @lookiamtrying​ @marvelandotherfandomimagines​ @marvelgirl7​ @nano--raptor​ @pinkdiamond1016​ @randomfandompenguin​ @jamesbarnesappreciationclub​ @tuiccim​ @this-kitten-is-smitten​ @the-wayward-robot​ @yansi1923​ @saiyanprincessswanie​

[2-cute-4-school]

𝘕𝘊𝘛 𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴

requested by the lovely @m4rshm4llow​ (*ૂ❛ัᴗ❛ั*ૂ)

Mark Lee

i think mark is quite good with children too when he’s not frozen in awkwardness

but i wouldn’t trust with him alone with a kid for too long tbh

like i see him as someone who could probably entertain a kid for a couple of hours succesfully but taking care of them?? yeah no (˵¯͒ བ¯͒˵)

so let’s say he had to tag along with you to babysit because he didn’t want to waste any time he could spend with you *let my boy receive his love*

but he’s not thaaaat excited he just hopes that the kid will get K.O.-ed early in the night so he could have some alone time with you( ͡~ ͜ʖ ͡°).... TO CUDDLE ya nasties

so when you arrive at your cousin’s house and you come in

he surely DIDN’T expect a kid to literally throw himself onto you and cling to your legs while chanting your name o(*^▽^*)o

the only way you can get him to detach so you can walk is if you pick him up in your arms

“y/n, who’s he?” mark just stares at the chubby finger pointed at him and produces an *HIGHLY AWKWARD* smile like (*′☉.̫☉)

“oh this is mark, my boyfriend”

*silence* “ew”

now hold on rewind

did a kid just ‘ew’ at mark (｡☉︵ ಠ╬)

and then he had THE AUDACITY to cling to your neck while rambling about his new robot toy and mark had to THIRDWHEEL the entire night

now he’s sure you have superpowers how could you tame that!!??!?! even haechan could be considered mild in comparison to... this ʕ •̀ o •́ ʔ

he’s pouty the entire evening while you play and take care of the newly spawned devil in town who HOGS your attention the entire time

so when he finally runs out of energy a bit later than mark would have hoped for, he’s quick to envelop you in his arms and drag you into a well deserved cuddle session ༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ

“what took you so looong?”

“sorry sorry, i had to look under his man for boogeyman”

“pffft i think boogeyman is the one looking under his bed for that kid”

but he does melt when he remembers the way your eyes sparkled as the child giggled excitedly on your lap while imagining himself in the picture too (๑°꒵°๑)･*♡

Huang Renjun

renjun as we all know is just a bit short tempered so i’m not sure where he stands in his relationship with kids 눈_눈

but also he brings up his younger cousins quite often and he seems very fond of them whenever he talks about them

so i guess he likes kids but like good kids ya know Σ(-᷅_-᷄๑)

so let’s say you’re shopping in like one of those bigger supermarkets

and you hear cries

your mother instincts literally GO OFF LIKE CRAZY

renjun doesn’t even have the time to blink before you’re dragging him in the direction of the noise with such precision you might as well have a radar at this point ᕕ༼✿•̀︿•́༽ᕗ

turns out a little girl was lost between the tall aisles

renjun is a lil bewildered cause what is he supposed to do? not like he’s tall enough to see other the aisles in his dreams maybe

but you seem to know EXACTLY what to do as you crouch down in front of the girl and speak to her so gently not even renjun can hear properly

and then as if nothing happened she stops crying

just like that so renjun decides to try his luck too o｜◕ˇ▽ˇ◕｜ツ

“come on, let’s go find mommy and daddy”

and lemme tell ya the little girl sprung into your arms and clung to you with everything she had as she mumbled into your neck

“i only wanna go with miss” (つ﹏<)･ﾟ｡

his eye twitched a lil ngl （；¬＿¬)

and that’s how you end up taking a stroll to the announcement desk with a whole child gripping onto your hand

renjun would have never imagined his grocery run to turn into this

he only wanted some damn carrots not a frickin child ಠ╭╮ಠ

thankfully it didn’t take long for the parents to run over and thank you for returning their child safely but there was only one problem left

getting her to let go of you

that was a whole ass dramatic goodbye

poor renjun was left exhausted after this he gave up any grocery run he intended to do and dragged you home pronto (ﾉTдT)ﾉ

he admires you so much for how you handled the situation and how you seemed to be so natural and in your element he can only think of how great of a mother you will be in the future with his beside you hopefully

Lee Jeno

one word, his greatest asset: PATIENCE

i see jeno as a man of patience which is more than just helpful when it comes to handling children ❀.(*´◡`*)❀.

he’s also volunteered in all these programs that involved children and he did really well if you ask me soooo he’s a good ally to have (︶.̮︶✽)

and you really REALLY want to volunteer together at one of those like emergency centres for children or something

and who is he to deny his love? he couldn’t have even if he wanted to, you’re too cute in his eyes so he lets you get your way anyway

so before you step inside one of the caretakers gives you some advice

warns you that the new kid, a little girl still in primary school, is still very closed off and wary of everyone

but as you step inside the kids get drawn to you like moths to a flame, swarming around you and asking you questions while dragging you in the living room to play with them

jeno just trails behind, watching the entire commotion with his soft eye smile as he understands (◍•ᴗ•◍)

he knows that you just have a way with people, he’s been in the same position mesmerized by you, it’s one of the reasons he loves you so much and seeing you so purely happy surrounded by children

MELTED HIM ♡(.◜ω◝.)♡

eventually you drag him into the happy circle too and he seems to fit in just right by your side with giggling children everywhere around you

he ends up using his muscly arms ᕙ[ ˵ ͡’ ω ͡’ ˵ ]ᕗ as swings

“hey!! i’m stronger than you!!! let’s have a fight!!!!”

you just giggle as you colour some pictures with a few kids but stare at your boyfriend from the corner of your eye

jeno is so simply happy and comfortable he doesn’t even notice when you disappear from the crowd at first

but when he does his eyes search wildly for you like a lost puppy Σ(ﾟﾛ､ﾟ;)

but then he spots you

curled up on a small couch in the corner of the room, deep in conversation with the new girl whose eyes seemed just a little brighter as you clutched her hand in yours warmly ｡ﾟ.(*´◡` )

and jeno just realises again

you’re just working your charm once again and once again jeno falls for you for the nth time, deeper than the last time and lighter than the next

Lee Donghyuck

this manchild right here smh ୧༼◔益◔୧ ༽

now don’t get me wrong i’m pretty sure he’s decent at least with children

given he has two younger siblings and he often talks about hanging out with his little brother also have you seen that vid with the little girl?? the was he talked to her ⊂（♡⌂♡）⊃

buuuut BUT he’s also DYING like a fish out of water without attention

so when he invites you to tag along to his hangout with his lil bro

he didn’t expect TO BE THE ONE THIRDWHEELING!!!! (╬ಠ益ಠ)

you keep feeding and pampering his brother who basks in your full attention half because he loves it half because he loves the annoyed look on hyuck’s face

“babe i want some kimchi too” (*ﾟ∀ﾟ*)

“oh!!! sure, i’m sorry for hoarding it all”

and as hyuck awaits with his eyes closed and his mouth open with a pleased smile

you plop a bowl of kimchi in front of him and turn back to his brother as he tugs on the sleeve of your shirt

hyuck, muttering to himself: ‘i should have left you home, you lil brat, both of you traitors!!!!!’ (ノTДT)ノ ┻┻

he pouts and sighs dramatically with crossed arms the entire night while watching you interact oh so sweetly with his little brother

but he can’t deny the warm feeling of fondness swarming is his chest seeing you get along so well with his family and being so genuinely happy when you’re with kids

still complains to you when he gets you alone

“i can’t believe you love my brother more than me!!! ME, YOUR SWEET LOVELY CUTIE BOYFRIEND!!!” ‧º·(˚ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧º·˚

“first of all, i wouldn’t stretch it that far-” “how is that stretching-?!??!”

“i’m sorry i’m sorry, my sweet lovely cutie boyfriend, i just missed him, he’s so cute and i haven’t seen him in so long and he seems to grow so fast every time we meet” (oꆤ︵ꆤo)

NOW hyuck is real soft how can he be mad at you when you’re THIS ADORABLE AFSKSGDFSAF-

hyuck just presses a sweet smooch to your temple and mutters

“he only acts that cute with you, he’s a devil at home”

“sheesh, i wonder who he takes after” *pointed look* (￢ε￢　)

Na Jaemin

my man here will most likely compete with YOU for the CHILD’S attention

it’s like GAME OVER for him if a child rejects him ε-(≖д≖﹆)

he’s never gonna get over this betrayal from both sides

so let’s say he takes you with him when he offers to babysit a cousin or neighbour idk you get where i’m getting at

and he’s already ‘play buddies’ with him as jaemin likes to put it (,,꒪꒫꒪,,)

and you’re slightly acquitanced with him from a previous visit to jaemin’s house when you coincidentally met

so when jaemin opens the door and announces his presence LOUDLY, the little boy doesn’t waste A SECOND to waddle in the hallway and meet you both ლ(＾ω＾ლ)

and jaemin crouches to meet him midway and-

and he *swooshes* past jaemin and into your open arms while giggling

jaemin, a lonely man in the middle of a hallway: (ಥ⌣ಥ)

the entire day, your boyfriend tries to steal the kid’s attention or bribe him over with sweets or toys

now you’re wondering who the real brat is

is salty about the UTTER rejection but also can’t help but watch you both so fondly with a proud hopefully in future for real fatherly smile (*ૂ❛ัᴗ❛ั*ૂ)

“are you practicing, y/n?”

“pardon?”

“practice, are you practicing?”

“for...?” ∑（´△｀○）

“ya know” *wiggles eyebrows* “taking care of our future children”

“learn how to control your own brat at home read jisung first and THEN we can talk, jaemama”

jaemin can’t believe this low blow, how could you after everything he’s done: cooking for you, taking you on bike rides even though he was the one who wanted to, even buying pads!!! or even worse!!!!! STRAWBERRY YOGHURT!!!!!! ∑(ﾟ台ﾟlll

he’s still pouty as you all put on an animation and snuggle a blanket

but then!!!! you fall asleep with the little boy in your embrace

and jaemin!!!!! just!!! CAN’T!!! stay mad!!!!!! cause you’re both just SO absolutely irrevocably CUTE!!!!!! ♡( ૢ⁼̴̤̆ ꇴ ⁼̴̤̆ ૢ)~ෆ♡

so he just HAS TO lay a *meaningful* smooch on your forehead as he sleepily moves closer to you both, one arm wrapping loosely around you while the other caresses the child’s head, lulling the both of them to sleep his protecc instincts kicked in y’all

Zhong Chenle

he has already expressed his wish to have a family someday since he wants to live the same happiness his brother does with his own family

which i think is ABSOLUTELY PRECIOUS

and we all know he’s WHIPPED for his nephew ˞♡ฅ(ᐤˊ꒳ฅˋᐤ)

but unfortunately

that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s good with children yet

let me give you a context over here

so he’s left alone for a short while with his baby nephew which shouldn’t be too bad since technically chenle is an adult at least legally okay??

and right things are all good until BABY STARTS TO CRY i’m talking about the actual baby here although chenle might cry too at this point

and chenle just PANICS when he realises that just shushing won’t work and whacking a hand over his mouth *cough* like he does to jisung *cough* isn’t an option (╬⁽⁽ ⁰ ⁾⁾ Д ⁽⁽ ⁰ ⁾⁾)

but thankfully, you’re there!!!!!!

“may i?” you ask chenle as you stretch out your arms in his direction

chenle has never passed over anything faster in his entire life џ(ºДºџ)

so when you coddle the baby in your arms and just gently bounce him a little he just settles down so cutely and most important QUIETLY as he stares up at you with curious eyes, small fingers curling up around a necklace swung around your neck or just the fabric of your shirt

chenle is all like (๑•́o•̀๑)!!

HOW DID YOU JUST DO THAT!!!!

and he watches with eyes even more curious than his nephew’s eyes as the baby slowly dozes off peacefully in your arms (꒡ ω ꒡ )zzz

it just hits him just how natural the scene looks

he approaches carefully once he’s sure his nephew fell asleep and lays a gentle hand on your head as he peers down at the cute chubby baby face

“you’re a life saver, how did you even manage to do that?” ◎ܫ◎

“you know, i have to take care of you all the time so-”

he flicks your forehead faster than you can finish that sentence

way to ruin a moment (oT-T)

but *SIKEEE* the baby fusses a little as soon as you frown and chenle immediately freaks out

he showers the spot on your forehead with kisses and his nephew settles down once again as you smile at him proudly ໒( ͡ᵔ ▾ ͡ᵔ )७

chenle rolls his eyes as if he doesn’t wish for this scene to become familiar to him sometime in the future

Park Jisung

this chick is still a baby who barely hatched

so he’s still in CONSTANT WONDER of the world ༼ つ ◕o◕ ༽つ

and in this episode of ‘jisung the explorer’ he’s discovering... ACTUAL babies

so you were on a date at the local mall when you met with a family friend of your mom’s who was struggling with her fussy baby girl in a carrier while trying to shop for some baby products

so you offer to watch over the girl until her mom finishes up (•́⌄•́๑)૭✧

but just as you’re about to attach the baby carrier to yourself, an old woman asks for directions around the shop

so you pass the baby to jisung for literally a minute to show the lady the way └(>ω<。)┐

and jisung is HIGHKEY PANICKED

he holds the baby by the underarms at arms length and obviously she doesn’t enjoy that and just starts wailing in the middle of the shop

and people just... stare (,Ծ_Ծ,)

and jisung is all like ‘IT’S NOT MINE!!!!! AND I’M NOT STEALING OR MISTREATING IT EITHER!!!!!!’

the moment you’re back in his sight, he’s THRUSTING that tiny loud bald creature in your arms it’s a child jisung ║ * ರ Ĺ̯ ರ * ║

and he expects for you to panic too but right away

the baby quietens down as you cuddle her close to your chest and coo softly in a hushed baby voice

and she plays with your shirt while you glare at your boyfriend (눈_눈)

“y/n, you sorcerer, how did you just shut it off?”

“i didn’t ‘shut it off’, she’s a baby not a tape recorder”

“oh REALLY, i couldn’t tell the difference for a moment there”

you just might consider returning jisung and keeping the baby（ ಠωಠ）

he watches in wonder as you entertain the baby for the next few minutes until her mother comes back

and he swears his heart skips a beat when he sees your smile widen with tenderness once you get a small giggle out of the baby (*ฅ́˘ฅ̀*)

he supposes maybe she isn’t so bad since she makes you so happy

even though she was louder than even chenle which is an accomplishment at this point

and when jisung notices your slight pout once you gave the baby back and parted ways he makes sure to shower your face in kisses until you regain the same smile that made him fall so deep in love with you

[professortennant]

Please write some more ted/rebecca domestic fluff. 😍😍😍

i hope you like ted/rebecca/henry moments

i.

It's Henry's first time visiting when she and Ted are something and it feels like a test of some sort, though Ted would never say that nor put that pressure on her. She loves children, has held Nora in her arms and rubbed the tip of her infant nose with the pad of her finger and promised to protect her, to love her always.

It's the broken promises that haunt her.

She doesn't want to let Henry down, doesn't want to let Ted down.

So she runs to the toy shop at the top of the high street, buys out their selection of dinosaur figurines, a handful of wind-up robots and little techno figures that light up, and a build-your-own robot kit intended to be more educational, she thinks, than functional.

The toys are set up in neat, enticing little lines along her desk and she wonders if it's too late to run up to the store and pick up coloring pencils and art paper, too.

(The previous night Ted had been ecstatic, bouncing around the house and humming softly to himself, stocking their refrigerator with peanut butter and jelly and their cupboards with fruity-flavored cereal. But Rebecca had a brick settling in her stomach, stony-faced and twiddling her thumbs at the table.

Ted squeezed her shoulders, dropped a a quick kiss to the top of her head and nuzzled at her hair a little. "Relax, sweetheart," he drawled, leaning over her shoulder and pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. "He's going to love you as much as I do."

But not even Ted's belief in her could soothe her anxiety.)

And now, there was the frantic pitter-patter of feet just outside her office, Ted's deep voice of, "Henry, wait--", and then there he was: Henry Lasso, nine-years old and bouncing and brimming with enthusiasm.

"Hi, Rebecca!"

Heart thumping in her chest, thoughts of broken promises and a determination to not repeat the past, she stepped forward and knelt precariously in her heels to meet the little boy's eyes. "Hello, Henry."

Ted followed in behind his son and stood in the doorway, eyes soft and bright, watching the interaction. Rebecca felt his gaze like a weighted blanket upon her.

Henry appeared to wilt a little, his confidence dipping as he looked behind him at his father who gave him an encouraging smile. Ted then turned that encouraging smile to Rebecca who felt a surge of strength.

She gestured behind her to the line of toys. "Your dad told me you're into robots? I--"

But she couldn't get the rest of her words out, Henry's eyes lighting up and his little body darting by her to fall to his knees in front of the table, hands reaching eagerly for the T-Rex and light-up robots.

Ted reached down to help her up, steadying her on her feet. She gave him a wry grin. "All that worry for nothing. I just needed to ply him with toys."

He leaned forward, brushed a kiss to her cheek, forehead resting against her temple for a moment. "You didn't need to do anything, hon. Just be yourself."

Still, Rebecca watched the young boy play with the figurines, listened to him make beeping noises and dinosaur roars, and wondered if it was that simple--just be herself when herself hadn't been good enough.

And then--

"Rebecca?" Henry's shy little voice carried across her office and she looked up to meet the little boy's eyes. He held out the build-your-own robot kit to her and bit his lip, looking uncertain. Ted's hand drifted down to her hip, squeezing softly before drifting to her backside, tapping it lightly in encouragement.

She stepped forward, heart in her throat. "Yes?"

Henry held out the kit to her shyly, eyes flicking to his father for a moment, before lifting the kit higher towards her. "Do you wanna build a robot with me?"

Suddenly, her throat felt thick with unshed tears, her chest tight at the sudden whopping feeling of this little person's trust and acceptable. She nodded, cleared her throat, and took the kit from him.

"I would love to, Henry."

ii.

Henry is ten and comes off the plane and into the arrivals area of the airport dead on his feet, eyes bleary and forehead burning up, skin clammy and looking dreadful.

"Dad," he whimpers, falling into Ted's arms and curling up against his chest as best as his ten-year old body can manage. Ted wraps his arms around his son protectively, cradling the body against him, hiking him up higher on his hip and silently asking Rebecca to grab Henry's bags.

She does so immediately, drags the rolling suitcase behind her and falls in step beside them and keeps her hand on the little boy's back, rubbing soothing circles there.

But one look at Ted's worried, panicked expression, the white-knuckled grip on his son, has her hand drifting from Henry to Ted, her hand resting on the small of his back, hooking over his hip and squeezing gently.

"We'll take care of him," she tells him, voice low to mask her own concern. Ted flicks his eyes to hers before cuddling his son closer and picking up the pace.

At home, Ted helps Henry strip out of his clothes, soaked with sweat from his fever and reeking with the sink of ten hours' worth of airplane, and into the tub. Rebecca busies herself with turning down the little twin bed in the spare office they'd turned into Henry's bedroom, brews a strong cup of mint tea and leaves it on the bedside table, along with a cold compress and a thermometer.

Freshly showered and swimming in an oversized AFC Richmond jersey, Henry snuggles down into his bed with a sleepy sigh and a string of coughs.

Ted sits next to him on the edge of the bed, smooths his hair back, rubs his forehead across his son's forehead. Rebecca is touched by the sight of them; doesn't know how she forgets Ted is a father sometimes when caring is ingrained in every bone of his body.

"Okay, bud, we're gonna let you rest up, alright? And when you wake up, you're gonna feel better and we're gonna get dinner."

"'Kay," Henry sighs out, eyes already fluttering closed, cheeks flushed red from fever and travel and a warm bath. Her hands clench at her side and she fights the urge to mimic Ted's movements, to brush her thumb along his cheek and tell him it will be okay. But she's still not sure where, exactly, she fits in.

"You need anything?" Ted asks, voice low and soft and soothing.

"Will you read 'til I sleep? Just for a bit."

"Yeah, bud, of course. Which--"

"Uncle Roy's book," comes the eager response, Henry sounding a little perkier.

Rebecca hides a smile, squeezes Ted's shoulder to keep him in place, and crosses the room to Henry's small but ever-growing bookcase and plucks A Wrinkle in Time off the shelf, returning to the Lasso boys and giving it to Ted.

But then--

"No," Henry says, voice strong and stern. "Can Rebecca do it?" Then, shyly, "She does the voices better."

Ted leans forward to kiss his son's forehead before standing up and handing the book right back to his girlfriend, kissing her softly. "You've been chosen," he teases.

But the words hit her in the chest and settle there, heavy and solid, like a medal around her neck. She takes Ted's place on the edge of Henry's bed, smooths the blanket, and opens the book and begins reading.

Somewhere after she introduces Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit, and Mrs. Which, she feels Henry's hand settle along side hers and his breathing evens out, eyes closed and form asleep.

Gently tucking the bookmark into place, she leans forward and kisses his forehead, still warm with fever, and murmurs, "Sleep well, darling."

Out in the living room, Ted slides his arm along the back of the couch, opening a place for her by his side which she takes gratefully, curling against him and tucking her feet beneath her. His lips find her hairline, his hands find her shoulders, and she lets herself sink into him, exhausted from worry.

"Thank you," she whispers into the silence, her hand sliding across his belly, scratching slightly.

"For what?"

The words are hard to get out but she needs him to know she loves him and his little boy and the opportunity that being with him presents. She clears her throat, turns her head into his shoulder and kisses his shirt-covered chest. "For letting me be a mum," she confesses. "Just for a little while."

Ted exhales harshly before moving quickly, hand lifting her face to his and his mouth finding hers, kissing her deeply, lingering at her lips to kiss her again and again, holding her close.

When he breaks away, he leans his forehead against hers, nuzzles their noses together. "There ain't no one--no one--else I'd rather co-parent with."

Their hands entwine, their fingers tangle, and they settle into the couch and wait for their boy--their boy--to need them, both of them.

iii.

All she can hear from the bathroom is Ted's soothing tone, his 'coach' voice as she's come to think of it--a little performative, a little deeper, a little sterner--and Henry's giggles along with the sound of splashing water. She pushes the bathroom door open and watches her boys--because she knows this now, they are hers--lean over the bathroom sink, safety razors in hand, Ted's voice walking his son through the motions of how to shave. Henry is twelve now and has just enough peach fuzz on his lip and sideburns that Ted had agreed to teach him how to shave.

But she doesn't want to miss out on the fun, doesn't want to miss this moment.

Henry laughs when Rebecca comes in and starts putting shaving cream on her own face, hands rubbing together and lathering the foam over her cheeks and across her lip. “Don’t leave me out, boys.”

“Rebecca, you look like Santa,” Henry laughs, his own face covered in patchy shaving foam.

“Well, I’ll take that as a compliment then. Ho ho ho.” She uses her pointer finger as a faux-razor and wipes the cream from her face in long, clean drags, before leaning in to kiss Ted. It's these casual demonstrations of affection that she cherishes the most, the gestures she thought she'd never get.

“Oh, one sec—“ Ted cups her cheek and wipes a bit of cream off her chin before leaning in to kiss her properly, kiss lingering. “Be done in a bit,” he murmurs against her mouth, kissing her softly again.

Henry pretends to gag into the sink and Rebecca rolls her eyes, drops a kiss to the top of the boy’s head, ruffles his hair affectionately and just barely resists rubbing shaving cream into his hair. “Dinner’s in five,” she calls out over her shoulder, leaving her boys behind in the bathroom.

She turns, watches them a moment longer—her family.

iv.

She never forgets for a moment that Henry is part-Ted. She sees it as he grows older, that boundless energy never quite settling, endless curiosity as he insists on all three of them exploring every nook and cranny of London, wants to know each bit of history that has tread over the cobblestones or sweated into the brickwork.

(She'd spun a bit of a tale, told Henry that London was built on magic, enchantments woven into each alleyway. He'd given her an awestruck look and when Rebecca looked up to give Ted a wink, she'd found his face just as awed, just as enraptured in her tale. Like father, like son.)

They go to museums where he and Ted both press their faces eagerly to display cases and drag her into display halls and beg her to give the suits of armor a voice. It only takes one look at their identical Lasso puppy dog eyes to get her to crack, snap to attention beside a gleaming suit of armor, and put on a rough Cockney accent, saluting her boys, "At your service, sirs!"

It sends them both into a fit of giggles and Henry leans against her side and looks up at her. "You're silly, Rebecca."

She taps his nose and ruffles his hair. "And don't you forget it."

She catches Ted's eyes over the boy's head and the sight of his expression--warm, hungry, and so nakedly, openly affectionate--punches her in the chest, sends her staggering back. She tries to steady herself on Henry's shoulder but he's already gone, the attention span of his father, and bouncing to the next exhibit.

"Don't get too far away from us," she calls after him, sighing when he throws her a thumbs up and scampers away into a pirate and nautical themed room.

And then Ted is there, his arms around her and pulling her in against him, mouth finding hers, kissing her desperately, fiercely. It's more public affection than she's used to from him--usually keeping it to holding hands or an arm slung over her shoulders--and it catches her off guard as she remembers that expression she'd seen earlier.

"What was that for?" she asks breathlessly, steadying herself against him with her hand on his chest, swaying back towards him on instinct wanting more.

"Because you're you," he says simply, tucks a curl of hair behind her ear. "Because you love my son. Because you love me."

Tears spring to her eyes and she reaches up to cup his cheeks in her hands, feels his stubble scrape along her fingertips. "You both are easy to love," she says, voice wavering. She grins and adds, "Annoyingly so, might I add. You melted me."

"Naw, you were already a squishy melty marshmallow," he teases, kissing her softly and slipping his hand into hers and following Henry into the next room.

"I was not," she protests half-heartedly. "They were calling me the ice queen in the bloody papers! I was, y'know, tough."

Ted kisses her temple. "Absolute marshmallow."

v.

Four years ago, her office was relatively barren--filled with stale, lifeless paintings worth too much money, overpriced decorative statues on her surfaces, and a clean, blank glass desk. Nothing too personal, nothing to show who she was.

Now, though. Now.

Now, there are collages of photographs hanging on the wall. Pictures of her at galas and events with Ted on her arm; front pages illustrating AFC Richmond's Cinderella story, Ted surrounded by the team drenched in water holding a shiny trophy aloft; articles featuring her new approach to handling of club ownership and empowering those around her.

Now, along the windowsill facing the pitch there are pictures of her and the team: Sam and Dani on either side of her in some club with shots of tequila in hand, another with Keeley on her back, heels in hand, Rebecca giving her a piggy-back ride, both of them grinning broadly into the camera.

Now, there's a Jurassic Park-themed blanket folded over the back of her office couch where a rapidly growing little boy collapses onto it after running around with the players at training as best as he can and a duffel bag with spare clothes for Ted in her closet next to her coats. Little places in her life carved out for them.

Now, on her desk, is a framed picture of her and Ted, their arms wrapped around each other, kissing softly at the Higgins' vow renewal ceremony, the frame hand-made by Ted out of painted popsicle sticks, little hearts and marshmallows and footballs painted into one corner and Always yours, Ted scribbled in the other corner.

Now, the only other picture on her desk is a hand-drawn picture from Henry of four figures--a mustachioed man, a petite woman with long hair, a young boy, and a tall, blonde woman, all holding hands. The labels are what's important: Dad, Me, Mom, and Mum.

And beneath it all, in blazing, declarative glory: My family.

[hnderyx]

Askkgssjj will you do a WayV reaction to their s/o having nightmares? Also I just found your account, your doing amazing! :) 💕💗💕💕❤️❤️💕💕

WayV reacting to their s/o having a nightmare

Thank you so much for your ask, and for the praise ❣️

I'm still a bit new to this Tumblr stuff but I'm learning :))

I hope you like the reactions 💕

Kun:

Kun awoke to the sound of your muffled cries and an excessive amount of tossing and turning

It was pretty much heartbreaking

He reaches over and gently tries to wake you 

“y/n, hey..”

There’s no reaction from you- you just continue to cry in your sleep

So he sits up and flicks on the bedside lamp

He nudges you with a bit more force

Still trying to be somewhat gentle to not startle you

“y/n, honey, wakey wakey..”

At this point, you start to somewhat wake up

You try to focus on his form in the dimly lit room

But the amount of tears in your eyes and the fuzzy feeling of being half asleep somehow makes him seem slightly more threatening than just your typical Kun

Kind of like when you’re half asleep and you roll over and see the pile of clothes on your computer chair and you think “huh, that looks suspiciously like the grim reaper coming to steal my soul”

So you kind of freak out and pull the duvet over your head, hoping that the demon Kun your half-asleep brain has fabricated in place of your basically harmless boyfriend disappears

You hear a soft chuckle from outside of your duvet haven

“y/n, you know I’d never hurt you.. you seemed to be having a bit of a bad dream. Your cries woke me up”

He begins to pull the duvet from your hands down to your chest

He lays down before reaching out and gently wipes the tear streaks from your cheeks

“Come here..” he pulls you to his chest and holds you close “I won’t let anything hurt you..”

Ten:

It wasn’t abnormal to not have Ten by your side when you fell asleep

Which was of course, heartbreaking

But it was the reality of your life together

The reality of your lover having an insane work schedule

So when you woke from a horrifying nightmare to see the other side of the bed empty

It was just another hit of that cruel reality

You decided to get up and make yourself some tea while you waited for him to come home

You were partially worried about experiencing the dream again if you did fall asleep too fast, anyways

So as you sat on the couch with a teacup in your hands watching late night TV

You heard the front door slam and an “oops” echo down the entrance hall of your apartment

Seconds later, an extremely tired Ten enters the living room 

Both of your forms illuminated by the ancient episode of Robot Chicken playing on the flatscreen

“What.. are you up for, y/n?”

“I had a nightmare and didn’t want to fall asleep without you here”

On some level, he could understand

So he proposed the idea of you two taking a shower together to calm each of your nerves

And then you two would fall asleep in each other’s arms, safe from everything and anything the world had to throw at you. At least, for that moment

Winwin:

A blood curdling scream woke this poor guy out of a dead sleep

Like when I say ‘woke’

His eyes flung open and he sat up in probably less than 2 milliseconds

It scared the living hell out of him

When he finally came to his senses and started to realize who he was and where he was

He noticed soft sobs from your side of the bed

Oh,

Unfortunately this was a regular occurrence for you

You’d often have a reoccurring dream

Something along the lines of ‘there was a zombie apocalypse and you and Sicheng had to somehow survive with hoards coming at you 24/7′

Sensing your very obvious discomfort

He lays down again and pulls your sleeping form close to him

He still didn’t really know what to do when something like this happened

So he was torn between holding you close and letting you continue your slumber, hoping for it to become more peaceful with his body spooning yours

Or to wake you and potentially scare the living daylights out of you

So he settled for a mix- holding you close and trying to wake you gently 

His hand ghosted down your forearm before finding your hand

He began rubbing gentle circles on the top of it as he whispered things to hopefully slowly pull you out of your sleep

“y/n.. you need to wake up now..”

You stirred and he spoke again

“You’re safe here, you just need to wake up..”

Eventually, after a bit, he finally succeeded in his mission

You woke and pressed yourself more against his body, just wishing for him to hold you for eternity

“Thank you, Sicheng..”

“Shh, just relax and try to sleep again. I’ve got you..”

Lucas:

Lucas knew pretty much how to deal with your reoccurring nightmares

Like holding you close to him and whispering things along the lines of “it’s alright, y/n” to you as you sleep is a pretty decent way of handling the situation

He figured if you wanted to wake up, you would

And he’d be there for you

So during your 2:17am nightmare, he held you close 

He whispered things to help calm you

Until you woke up and wrapped your arms around him

You began to softly cry against the fabric of his shirt

As you did this, he rubbed your back softly letting out the occasional “shh..”

Until you managed to pull yourself together

After a few moments of silence, he reached for the TV remote off of his bedside table

“Maybe we should just watch TV for a little to calm down..?”

You gave him a slight nod

So until you two drifted off to sleep together, you guys watched some old black and white movies

At some point you questioned why you even have this channel, isn’t it for old people?

Xiaojun:

As foolish as it sounds, how you and Xiaojun deal with these situations is to go for a ~3am walk together 

So when you wake from your nightmare, you nudge him a little

Eventually waking him and earning a ? face from the guy

You pull him into a hug

“Nightmare, Dejun..”

A soft ‘ah’ leaves his mouth as he rubs your lower back

“A quick walk, then?”

You nod before detaching yourself from him

You two both pull on some sweats and a hoodie

He makes some chamomile tea for you guys to drink as you walk along the quiet street

Honestly, getting some fresh air was just enough to calm you 

Having Xiaojun and the tea was just an added bonus 

When you two finally arrive back home around 45 minutes later

All you want to do is climb back into the warm bed

And snuggle close to him, of course

As you fall asleep with your head resting against his chest

Listening to his heartbeat

He sings you Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

(That was a song my mum used to sing to me all the time when I had a bad dream-)

Hendery:

This was something you both experienced for the first time

Dozing in and out of a nightmare as you try to grasp onto the real world

It’s quite horrifying

So when Hendery hears your voice calling for him during his slumber

He’s immediately woken out of his sleep

Poor guy gets more panicked as you get more panicked

"y/n, are you okay?"

He is so confused

He eventually manages to wake you up out of your sleep and helps you sit up

When you explain to him that you had a terrible nightmare, he pulls you into a tight hug

He rubs soft circles into your lower back as he explains that "it's just a dream, you're here with me now"

You know this, of course

But just hearing these things from him immediately soothes you

Yangyang:

It wasn’t a rare occurrence for Yangyang to stay up until the crack of dawn playing FFXIV with his older members

He was often pulled into ‘just one more dungeon’ by Xiaojun, who just wanted to get better loot

So he was already awake when he heard the shuffling of the bedsheets, signifying a lot of tossing and turning

Shortly after the tossing and turning started, the soft sobs began

Fortunately (or not, idk), you managed to wake yourself

“Yangyang..?” 

He turned to see your face covered in tears

His heart broke in two

“What are you doing up, y/n?”

The real question was what was HE doing up?

“Nightmare..”

You sat up and wiped your tears against the sleeve of your (his) hoodie

“Okay well.. You wanna come sit on my lap and watch me play for a bit before we both go to bed?”

With a slight nod, you stood and trudged over to him

You placed yourself in his lap and cuddled close to him

You ended up falling asleep in this position as he continued to play

But the feeling of him there was enough to give you a sense of absolute security

[gureishi]

I really love your writing! Could I request #2 for Saeyoung? Perhaps a hurt/comfort :)

Ohhhh, thank you so much!! That makes me really happy to hear ♡

And here is the fic! I think a lot about making Saeyoung go to sleep and honestly don’t know how I’ve never written this scenario before. Darling sleepy overworked boy.

two: fall into your arms again

SaeyoungXReader, T, words: 1764

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・

You’re dreaming of driving when he calls you—it’s a recurring nightmare of yours, where you’re at the wheel and suddenly you realize the car has no brakes. The ringtone makes its way into your dream, and you’re panicking, you’re panicking—where is the phone, why can’t you stop the car?

You wake abruptly, eyes flying open in the way they sometimes do after a nightmare. The phone is still ringing. You scramble for it and find it tangled in the sheets.

You squint at the screen: it’s after three in the morning.

“H-hello?” You yawn as you answer, your head falling back against the pillow.

“Ohh…did I wake you up? I guess I lost track of time,” he laughs, but it sounds forced. You push yourself up a little in bed.

“Saeyoung, are you okay? Did something happen?” There’s a sinking feeling in your stomach. Things have just finally started to go well.

“No, no!” He’s too loud, too enthusiastic. “We’re okay! Saeran is asleep.”

“Saeyoung, it’s almost four in the morning.”

He yelps. “Really? I didn’t even notice! I’m sorry, babe. Ignore me and go back to sleep. Please.”

You sigh, sitting all the way up, propping the pillows behind your head. “Will you tell me what’s bothering you?”

“God Seven is bothered by nothing! God Seven was just doing some work and wanted to hear his kitty cat’s cute voice! Ha-hah!”

“Saeyoung…”

“Activate kitty communication mode! Meow! Meow? Meeooow!”

He’s too adorable—his distraction tactics are too good. Once upon a time, you would’ve given it to it, would’ve let him ramble nonsensically until he wore himself out. You know better now.

“Saeyoung, when was the last time you slept?”

You hear him counting to himself. “Twelve, thirteen, fourteen…twenty-six, twenty-seven…” Oh no. “Forty-four hours ago!” he sings triumphantly.

“Saeyoung!”

“Whaaat?”

“Forty-four hours ago was when I last spent the night. You haven’t slept since then?”

“Nooope. But it’s okaaaay! God Seven can work for much longer without sleeping because it’s what he was programmed to do!” He draws out his syllables, speaking in a sing-song.

“Hey. Stop. Listen to me.” You know he hears the frustration in your voice because he shuts up right away. “You do not work for the agency anymore. Even Saeran is sleeping right now, like a normal person. You do not need to work through the night anymore.”

“But I do,” he says. His voice sounds a little more subdued now. “The agency may be done, but there’s still so much cleanup work to do. There’s so many loose ends. If I’m resting, they’re tracking Saeran, tracking Vanderwood, tracking you… I can’t—”

“No,” you say. “Uh-uh.” You’re already slipping out of bed, groping around in the dark for some sweatpants. “I know there’s still work to do and I know you’re worried about keeping us safe. And you can do that work. After you’ve slept for eight hours.”

He laughs and it sounds almost like a sob. “I’ve just found him,” he says, so quietly you can barely hear him. “I’ve just got him back. If anything happens to him…”

“I know,” you say. “I know, babe. But none of that matters if you work yourself to death in the process.”

You’ve got pants, you’ve got shoes. You grab a jacket and the keys to the rental car Saeyoung insisted on paying for so you wouldn’t be reliant on him while he was holed up in his bunker with Saeran.

“Hah,” he says. “It would take a lot more than a few hours of work to kill me.”

You’re outside, the cool air bracing you, waking you the rest of the way up.

“I’d like you one hundred percent alive instead of just barely hanging on,” you tell him.

You throw open the car door with perhaps slightly too much force.

He hesitates. “What was…are you outside?”

“Yes. I’m coming over.”

“You—g-gah, what?!” He sounds frantic. You hear a crash—almost as if he’s sweeping something (realistically, a pile of junk food) off his desk.

“I’m coming over right now and putting you to bed. If you don’t want me to stay, I won’t, but you are going to sleep one way or another,” you say. You start the car and you know he hears it through the phone—you’re not playing around.

“I’m perfectly capable of—” he whines.

“Thirty minutes. Love you,” you say, and hang up before he can respond.

。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。

You get there in no time because the roads are empty. He’s cleverly disabled the car’s built-in GPS so that the rental company can never access any of the data, never pinpoint his address (not that his bunker actually has an address). It doesn’t matter: you know the way by heart.

You give the password that will let you into the garage, park, and peer into the retinal scanner by the door—he’s added this feature for you, only for you. The door welcomes you by name and swings open with a soft click.

The bunker feels bigger and emptier at night; it’s completely dark except for the tiny ray of light coming from his office door, which is cracked open just a hair. You sigh. You’d had hope—just a little—that knowing you were coming would guilt him into just going to bed already. But he is stubborn.

You pad across the huge living room and knock gently on his door. He knows you’re here, of course—he’s probably been watching you on the cameras ever since you pulled into the driveway. But just in case—he’s not someone you want to ever catch off guard.

“Hi,” he says softly—his voice sounds far away. You push open the door.

“Oh, Saeyoung…”

His office is never exactly tidy, but this is a disaster zone.

There are chip bags and other assorted wrappers strewn over the desk and on the floor around it. Several creepy, half-built robots lay at odd angles on the couch and floor, as if he’s been fiddling with them as he works and then tossing them aside—one blinks eerily at you with its single eye. There are clothes thrown over the couch and the backs of his various desk chairs, as though he’s been managing to periodically change outfits without ever setting foot in his bedroom.

And there he is, your precious, anxious, manic boy, sitting in his chair with his knees pulled up to his chest, hunched over his desk, fingers still moving over the keys even as he turns to look at you.

“You didn’t have to come,” he says, his voice hoarse.

“That’s a crappy greeting for your favorite person in the world who just drove here in the middle of the night,” you say, but you’re not not really angry at him—how could you be, when he’s in this state? You cross the room, stepping over the piles of junk. Up close, he looks terrible—there are dark circles under his eyes and he has that pale, hollow look he gets when he goes too long without seeing the sun.

“I’m sorry,” he mutters. “Bright, wonderful people like you should be asleep at this time of night.”

“Everyone should be asleep at this time of night,” you tell him. You brush the messy, tangled hair off his forehead and kiss him on the cheek. He closes his eyes for a moment, humming contentedly; then he reaches for you, tilting his head up for a proper kiss. 

“Nuh-uh,” you say, and he deflates, pouting. “Find a stopping point—the first possible stopping point. Then you are going to bed.”

“Orrrrr…” he murmurs, nuzzling his head against your waist. One hand trails up your leg, leaving goosebumps in its wake.

“Saeyoung.”

“Fiiiine.” He reluctantly spins his chair around, types another line. “You go get in the bed,” he says, eyes on the screen. “I’ll be there soon.”

“Nope.” You cross your arms and sit on the couch, moving aside half of a robot dragon. “I don’t trust you.”

He makes a sound somewhere between a hiss and a groan and starts typing more quickly. Good. If he’s motivated to finish faster because you’re now losing sleep, then so be it. At least he’s stopping.

The sound of his typing soothes you. You fiddle with the little dragon—it will be very cute, once he builds the other side of its head. His typing slows. He hits a few more keys. You recognize the sounds of him finishing up—god knows how much collective time you’ve spent listening to him work.

“Okay,” he says at last, and you look up to see him getting out of his chair, a little clumsily.

“Yes?”

“Yes.”

You skip to him and grab his hand. “Bedtime,” you say seriously, tugging him behind you: through the door, down the hall. He laughs, and it’s the most genuine he’s sounded all night. You throw open the door to his room and take a running leap onto the bed. He’s still laughing, watching you from the doorway with warm eyes.

“Come,” you say, wriggling yourself into the blankets, holding out your arms to him. Obediently, he shuts the door and comes to you, falling headfirst onto the messy pile of pillows and blankets and you. He groans quietly, his shoulder muscles finally relaxing. You pull him toward you and he settles his head onto your chest.

“S’feels nice,” he slurs, snuggling into you. You see how hard the exhaustion is hitting him now that he’s closed his eyes; you make a snug nest of blankets around him, tucking them up to his neck.

“I’ve got you,” you whisper. “You can rest now.”

“Mmmmmm but…” His words are hard to make out, his voice already thick with sleep. “But there are soooo many other things we could be doing…in this bed…”

He tries to lift an arm, vaguely brushing his fingertips over your neck. You giggle.

“Shhhh, love. Maybe in the morning,” you tell him. You kiss the top of his head, nuzzling your nose into his messy, sweet-smelling hair. He doesn’t respond. “Babe?”

His head is heavy on your chest. You feel his breath on your neck, slow and steady. You smile to yourself—he’s already asleep.

So you wrap your arms tightly around him and close your eyes, head propped on top of his. You are a mess of blankets and limbs and heartbeats and you feel impossibly, indescribably safe. “Goodnight, Saeyoung,” you whisper.

[dothwrites]

97, maybe? For the prompts? :)

---

#97--When you smile, I fall apart

---

Dean watches silently as Cas rolls yet another t-shirt before putting it into his suitcase. Neither of them have spoken in what feels like days but has only been several hours. Their silence isn’t angry, nor is it comfortable. Dean doesn’t bother to pretend like he isn’t watching Cas’ every move as he carefully removes every part of himself from their dorm room. 

His posters have already been taken down and rolled carefully. Cas told Dean he could sell them or throw them away, and Dean had nodded like he was agreeing, but Cas’ posters are currently taking up some prime real estate in the back of his closet, where they’ll stay for damn near forever. Cas’ pens, pencils, and other various supplies are carefully hidden in his desk, while his furniture sits, forlorn, on his side of the room. His mattress is stripped bare. The only thing which remains is for Cas to empty his drawers, which is a task becoming shorter with each shirt that disappears into his suitcase. 

With a sensation like feeling his chest rip in half, Dean watches Cas examine each drawer. He closes them with a sense of finality before he turns to his suitcase. Tight lines of tension hold his shoulders in a defensive posture as he zips the case closed. Afterward, he continues facing away from Dean, his gaze fixed on the blank wall. His fingers curl into the stiff fabric of his suitcase, but he doesn’t speak. 

That task falls to Dean. 

“So, I guess this is it, huh?” Dean’s voice is too loud even to his ears, harsh and discordant in the silence of the room. “E.T. goes home.”

“Not particularly,” Cas answers. He keeps his face turned away, giving no indication to his mood. “It’s not home. Not really.” 

“It’s not stopping you from going back.” Dean knows his voice is surly and hurt, but he can’t stop himself. Maybe if he hadn’t held all of this in, Cas wouldn’t be leaving. 

“We’ve talked about this. I have to.” 

Dean clenches his jaw and says nothing. All of his arguments--Your parents never cared about you, what difference does it make whether you go home or not, you shouldn’t throw away your future for people who don’t give a shit about you--have already fallen on deaf ears. 

What tortures him are the unspoken arguments, the ones that have never been spoken aloud except to an empty room. 

Please don’t leave me. 

I love you. 

Dean bites his lower lip to keep those words stoppered within him. He won’t say it, not now. Those words are like blackmail. If he said then, then he’d be no better than Cas’ shitty family, using ties of loyalty and obligation to force him into a decision. If Cas doesn’t decide to stay on his own merits, then Dean doesn’t want it at all. And Cas hasn’t decided to stay. 

Three years, two of them as unlikely roommates, countless all-nighters and drunken binges, several extremely dicey situations, some of which made Dean think that maybe his interest in Castiel wasn’t as unrequited as he originally thought, and it all ends here. On an unremarkable Wednesday afternoon, with Cas’ bags packed and them waiting for the Uber that will take Cas away to the airport and out of Dean’s life. 

“It’s not forever,” Cas finally says. “I’ll be back.” 

“To visit,” Dean says, unwilling to be bought with pretty lies. 

“To stay,” Cas insists. Dean wishes he would turn around. Cas is a difficult guy to read on the best of days, harder when all Dean has to go on is the shift of his shoulders. 

“Yeah. Whatever.” 

The second Cas got the call from his brother, Dean knew it was over. Cas’ father was dying and Cas’ presence was expected. He wouldn’t be able to finish the semester and would be forced to take an incomplete. His scholarships were in jeopardy, his re-admission status in peril. Cas had told him all of this and somehow managed to sound hopeful about this whole thing, but Dean had heard the unspoken truth underneath the words.

It was over. Cas wasn’t coming back.  

“Dean.” 

Dean looks up and meets brilliant blue eyes. Now, as always, he’s taken aback by their hue and the emotion which shines out of them. For all the times he’s accused Cas of being a robot, when you get down to it, Cas doesn’t have a damn poker face. He can keep his expression as stoic as he wants, but those baby blues betray him every single time. Right now, his eyes are welling over with an overabundance of emotion. 

Dean’s breath catches in his throat with a painful hitch. He can’t do this right now. Not when his heart is ripping in two and Cas is standing less than an inch away from him. “Cas,” he says, trying for jovial and failing miserably, “your Uber is gonna be here soon, man.” 

“That’s why I have to do this now.” 

Dean opens his mouth and closes it, like a particularly stupid goldfish. For all of his reticence and silence, Cas has a habit of dropping hard truths right out of the blue, like the time they were in sophomore year and a little bit drunk and Cas grabbed his shoulder and stared him down with all the intensity of a slightly tipsy robot. “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had,” Cas had said, his normally rough voice gone subsonic. “We share a profound bond,” he continued, over Dean’s protests. 

So Dean’s a little leery now that Cas is looking at him like he hears the ticking clock and that he realizes this is very much a go big or go home moment. 

“I know that you don’t believe me, but I will be back.” Dean opens his mouth to argue, but Cas steamrollers directly over his objections by cupping Dean’s cheek. His hands are huge against Dean’s face, sturdy and warm. They’re hands Dean could trust, hands Dean wants to catch him every time he stumbles. 

“This isn’t what I want. Dean, I know...” Cas falters, his thumb rubbing at the soft skin underneath Dean’s eye. “I know it’s a shitty time to do it, and I would understand if you tell me to leave and don’t want to talk to me anymore, but I...” 

Dean can’t ever recall a time when Castiel had to grope for words. It’s happened twice in the past thirty seconds. Then Cas looks at him, his eyes like blue steel, and Dean gets ready for some hard truths to be dropped on him like an anvil on Wil. E. Coyote. 

“You are the best person I’ve ever met. Everything about you--your kindness, your humor, your generosity--Dean, you’re my best friend.” 

Dean’s heart sinks at that, but apparently Cas isn’t done dropping anvils. “And it’s stupid to want anything more, but I do, Dean. Dean, I want...” 

Three times now that he’s rendered Cas speechless, but Cas has never been one to lose gracefully. Cas renders him speechless, thoughtless, weightless, and dozens of other ‘lesses’ as he leans forward and presses his lips gently to Dean’s. 

It isn’t until Cas starts to pull away that Dean regains any semblance of rational thought. The thought of Cas leaving him is incomprehensible, unthinkable. Dean curls his fingers in Cas’ shirt and pulls him closer. 

Cas’ lips are just as stupidly chapped and rough as he thought they would be, but he never could have imagined how soft they would feel underneath his. Even in his wildest fantasies, he never could have conjured up the rough, needy sound rumbling up from Cas’ throat as Dean licks across the seam of his lips. Cas opens his mouth and deepens their kiss, his fingers pushing into Dean’s hair as he pulls them closer. 

“Oh, Dean,” Cas whispers. He doesn’t move from where he’s perched atop Dean, his forehead pressing into Dean’s. “I’m so sorry it took me this long to pull my head out of my ass. If I’d been thinking correctly, I would have told you how I felt years ago.” He tilts his head to kiss Dean’s cheek.

Dean’s heart cracks. 

“You stupid idiot,” Dean says, before he takes Cas’ lips in an almost brutal kiss. “You could get so much better than me.” 

“Impossible,” Cas tells him. “I could never want anyone else other than you.” He places a soft kiss at the corner of Dean’s lips. “Every time you smile, I fall apart.” 

Dean lunges forward, wrapping Cas in a tight embrace. He wants to pull Cas into him, wants to wrap himself around Cas in such irreparable ways that Cas will never be able to scrub himself clean of Dean’s influence. 

Dean’s arms wrap around Cas’ shoulders, as he grabs at the short hair at the back of Cas’ head. He licks into Cas’ mouth, determined to get to the root of him. He’s just pushing forward, Cas softening to accept him, when Cas’ phone rings. 

It’s like someone dumped a bucket of cold water over his head. Dean pulls back, staring in muted horror at Castiel’s pocket. 

His phone is ringing. Cas’ Uber is here. 

“Cas,” Dean says helplessly, pulling Cas towards him. Their kiss is messy and desperate, teeth and tongues clashing as their fingers yank and tug. “Cas, don’t go, please don’t go--” 

Cas’ hands frame Dean’s face, forcing Dean to look at him. “I’m coming back,” Cas promises. He grips Dean’s hair almost to the point of pain, but it keeps Dean’s mind from shattering. “Dean, you have to believe me. I’m coming back.” 

He stares at Dean for one long, eternal moment, before he kisses him. Dean melts into Cas, clutching him so tightly that it’s a mystery as to how Cas winds up at the door, but he does. Dean leans towards him, feeling empty and cold. 

Cas turns and looks at him. A dozen expressions cross his face as he allows his eyes to roam over Dean one last time. A thousand words swell in Dean’s chest--Don’t go, come back, don’t forget me, I love you, I love you, I LOVE YOU--

But then the door closes and Cas is gone. 

Dean collapses back on Cas’ bed, its mattress scratchy and uncomfortable without a covering or sheets. He curls into himself, knees pressed to his chest, and settles in to wait. 

---

Three months later, Dean is awoken by the sound of the door creaking. He groans and shoves his face deeper into his pillow. “Benny, if you need your shit, it can wait until tomorrow. For now, I am asleep.” He drags his comforter up over his shoulder to punctuate the statement. 

He thinks that is the end of it. That should be the end of it. Benny, while occasionally wildly inappropriate, will usually fuck off when told to fuck off. However, his hypothesis is shattered when his bed dips at the middle with the weight of someone settling onto his mattress. 

“Benny, what the fuck--” He rolls over, freezing when he sees the silhouette of the person sitting on his bed. 

Benny doesn’t have that particular level of messy bedhead. Or those shoulders, tapering down into strong arms, almost delicate wrists, and elegant fingers. Benny certainly doesn’t have a thousand yard stare that manages to pierce through him even when the lights are off and the only available source of illumination are the faint lights from the sidewalk three floors below. 

Dean chokes on nothing but air and scrambles to sit up. His heart is beating a million miles a minute as it tries to crawl through his chest and out of his mouth. 

“Cas?” he finally chokes, clutching his comforter to his chest like a quivering Victorian heroine. 

A flash of white, a grin in the darkness. A strong warm hand, a hand that Dean can trust to catch him and lead him through the world, rests on his bicep. Dean feels the heat of it through his t-shirt. 

“Hello, Dean,” Cas says. 

[straightlikewetspaghetti]

@samanthadalton here it is, I hope you like it ✨

Five More Minutes

f!Sam x MC (Anna Schuyler)

Warnings: none

The clock struck twelve at night as Anna and Jenny opened a bottle of expensive wine, relishing the blissful silence after putting the two beasts to sleep. The boys had been so riled up that it was a miracle the apartment was still standing in one piece. Fortunately Anna's cavalry arrived and the two of them put the boys to sleep.

"So are you going to tell me yourself what it's like to have a rich, hot lady for a boss, or should I wait until we finish this bottle?" Jenny's voice brimmed with excitement, which was perfectly normal with her when it came to her best friend's romantic life.

Anna just waved her head in disbelief and took a sip of wine, reflexively swirling the liquor in her glass. It wasn't her favorite topic. "There's nothing to say here, she's the boss and I'm the nanny."

"She's the boss and I'm the nanny." repeated Jenny sarcastically, earning a murderous look from Anna. "Girl, If I lived with a hottie like that, I would have gone to her office a long time ago and..."

"Jenny!" Anna tried not to raise her voice, but the vision that was creating itself before her eyes was worse than the sight of Sam kissing Sofia. She shuddered again as she saw Jenny kissing the air in a comical way.

She was about ready to talk some sense into her friend when she heard a rustle in the hallway and the sound of small footsteps. She put her glass down on the table being at once in full alert mode.

After a short while, the twins entered the room and without asking, sat down next to Anna, each on one side. The woman smiled softly and embraced the sleepy boys pressing them tightly together and ruffling their hair.

"When's Mommy coming back?" Mason's voice was sleepy, making it sound soft and vulnerable. Anna's heart always cut when the boys asked about their mom, and she had no answers to offer that would satisfy them.

Unable to answer she just started gently stroking their heads, hoping that the boys would go back to sleep and when they woke up, Sam would be waiting for them ready to give them the hugs and love they deserved.

The sound of the key turning in the lock woke the sleepy boys and four pairs of eyes went to the door where an equally tired Sam walked through.

Mason and Mickey experienced a miraculous reawakening and the two of them found themselves in the blink of an eye hanging onto their mother who, with reflexes worthy of a master, caught them.

Anna smiled at the sight and the earlier anger disappeared to give way to a more pleasant feeling of joy at their reunion. Through the preoccupation of this scene she didn't even notice how Jenny secretly slipped into her room with the rest of the expensive wine and a glass.

"Can we sleep with you Mommy?" asked Mickey, and moments later he was mirrored by Mason serving up the strongest weapon he had: the puppy eyes.

Sam laughed quietly and ignoring Anne sitting on the couch, collapsed next to her like a freshly cut log on the ground. With a satisfied sigh she sank into the soft upholstery of the couch.

Anne, who was watching her, giggled taking one of the boys into her lap and letting him get comfortable.

"You're amazing" Sam's voice sounded sleepy, but it was clear enough that Anna couldn't have misheard her. "I really don't know what I would do without you."

The woman looked over at the brunette, who had her eyes closed the whole time and was cuddling Mason. Her chest was rising and falling steadily, so it was possible that she was already on the verge of sleep and was only daydreaming.

What happened next, however, proved to Anna that the woman next to her was not sleeping at all. Sam reached out for her and, as carefully as she could, pulled her close while at the same time dropping the rest of her body onto the couch.

Anna's face turned red from the sudden closeness with the brunette. The now worn but still strong scent of perfume entered her nostrils, soothing her and lulling to sleep.

The woman had to admit that Sam was agile, because she didn't even notice when her arm efficiently wrapped around her waist, while at the same time resting on the already hard-sleeping Mickey.

And although it was an idyllic moment that Anna would have preferred not to be pulled out of, somewhere in the back of her mind thoughts crept in, that it was inappropriate and incorrect of her.

She was ready to get up now, but Sam's hand tightened with every movement she made, until finally something resembling a growl came out of her throat.

"No." She said shortly continuing with her eyes closed and holding Anne tightly around the waist.

"You should go to bed yourself, you'll be more comfortable there. You're after several hours of work." Anna tried to refer to the rational aspects, but the brunette seemed deaf to her argument.

"Five more minutes." muttered Sam.

Anna rolled her eyes, but a genuine smile graced her face anyway. Sam had her moments when she could be charming and this was one of them. She loved it when the brunette acted like a human and not a money making robot.

To Samantha's displeasure, Anna wasn't kidding and after the five minutes had passed, she chased the boys off to their rooms, previously assuring them that they didn't have to sleep with their mom to keep an eye on her to make sure she didn't disappear again.

When she came out of the boys' room, the brunette was waiting for her leaning against the kitchen counter and looking much more alive than before. For some reason the room they were in seemed much smaller to Anna than before.

"What I said earlier..." Sam began scratching her neck nervously. "I mean it." The woman looked at her questioningly, not really understanding which moment she was referring to. "You're amazing Anna."

There was that blush again, this time accompanied by a faster heartbeat. Sam always knew what words to use to elicit such a reaction. This was a dangerous game, and Anna was too tired to defend against it.

As Sam shortened the distance between them, Anna watched her from behind half-closed eyelids, almost as if she was deliberately tempting fate. The brunette stopped right in front of her adoringly watching her entire figure.

"You know what motivates me the most to work?" she asked mindlessly playing with a strand of her hair, Anna only raised an eyebrow in response. "Coming home." The woman's eyebrow went even higher. "But not to this apartment, just to the kind of views I found today." Sam smiled softly, as if thinking back to that moment when Anna sat huddled with the boys looking like their mom at the time. "Mason and Mickey are my home, but you've become one too, Anna."

The woman blinked several times unable to process the words Sam had spoken in her direction.

It was so bizarre that for a brief moment she felt like she was asleep.

But what she felt was real, just like what she saw. And she saw before her a woman who, despite carrying a scar on her heart, was trying to find her place again.

"Anna?" Sam's voice no longer sounded as confident as it had a moment ago. She looked tense, as if she had crossed a line without thinking.

"I... I mean... We... Oh damn it!" Unable to form a meaningful sentence she grabbed Sam by the collar and brought their lips together, pushing the brunette onto the kitchen counter.

Sam took a second to process what was happening and when she regained control of her thoughts and body, she embraced Anne around the waist and pulled her tighter as much as possible.

"Does this mean Anne is going to be our new mommy?"

"Jesus!" a distracted Samantha almost screamed hearing the voice of one of her sons, while Anne on the contrary started laughing hiding her face in the crook of the brunette's neck.

"You mean yes or no?" Mason inquired while watching the two women closely. "Because if it is, then I promise to remember to brush my teeth daily before bed!"

"I'll remind him!" echoed Mickey, standing right behind his brother with equal amounts of excitement and hope in his voice.

Sam smirked and sank her face into Anna's hair, laughing quietly. "In that case, I guess you have no other choice."

"Don't push your luck, Dalton." Anna threatened, though there was more laughter in that than actual threat.

Finally after a brief moment she freed herself from the brunette's embrace and turned towards the boys bestowing upon them the brightest and most sincere smile she could muster.

This time the boys' eyes were not glistening with tears from yawning.

[padfootagain]

The King And You (XII)

Part 12 : Heaven Sometimes

 Hi everyone! I'm back with a new chapter for this fic of mine! I know it's been forever since I updated it (and any fic for that matter) but my mental health is not great rn, so I'm struggling a little to write. Now, that being said, here is a new chapter and I hope you will enjoy it :)

Only fluff for this one! Tooth-rooting fluff all over the place! Enjoy ;)

Pairing: Caspian x Reader

Word Count: 2534

The light was perfect. One of the reasons why you loved your flat was the view from your window, down onto the busy streets and, in the distance, the skyscrapers tickling the sky. And this afternoon more than ever before the light that came in from your window was perfect. Yellowish and yet bright. Charged in dust just enough to create rays falling onto glistening rooftops. The sky still blue was starting to turn orange around the edges, a line along the horizon that became golden.

You let out a satisfied sigh as you mixed the pigments and the oil with a brush, studying the painting you had started a couple of hours before. You still had some work to do, but the shapes were beginning to change into what you wanted to represent, the buildings now for the most part recognizable by anyone who would look by your window.

A record was playing in your living room, an old hippie music filled with soft guitar ballads that breathed of sunshine and spoke of love. Soft, calm, sunny. The music felt like the light bathing the city that afternoon. And from time to time, the soft rhythms were disturbed by shuffling sounds coming from the couch behind you.

Caspian was sitting on your sofa, he was reading one of your books he had picked up from your shelf. But he didn't seem very interested in the story, as he spent most of his afternoon watching you.

The way you moved your pencil across the canvas, and the little frown that settled upon your brow as you focused on your task, the hues staining your fingers and your old t-shirt as you made a mess, the way the light danced across your features and changed the colour of your eyes as time ran by… Yes, his view from the sofa was much more interesting to him than the piece of fiction he had selected from your collection. A dreamy smile brightened his features as he studied you, as if he were in a museum admiring an ancient statue. Not only through your beauty was he reminded of the feeling, but by the peaceful feeling that settled across his chest too. This soft and quiet peace of mind and heart that creeps through anyone who looks at a piece of art and can't look away, wondering whose hands had carved the stone to create them, or bathed the brushes in the right hues. There is a ceremonial, almost holy feeling that hovers over art pieces of that kind, a sort of respect that both draws you in and pushes you away from their world. Caspian felt exactly this way as he stared at you, like he had found the piece that moved him to his bones and yet that was unreachable, a kind of beauty he longed for and echoed through his soul, and yet he would never deserve.

You knew he was staring at you, and had it been anyone else, you would have felt extremely uncomfortable if subjected to such scrutiny, but coming from Caspian, it merely brought warmth to your cheeks.

None of you were talking, hadn't uttered a word since lunch over four hours ago, but none of you were bothered by the silence that filled the room. It was a soft kind of silence, the comfortable one that could only appear in a room filled with people in love. Affection sometimes makes even nothingness beautiful.

A few days had passed since your confession in the park, and a few more remained before you would both travel to London, but the journey ahead of you was for now out of your thoughts. For now, all that mattered to both of you was to spend as much time as you could together. To the excitement and happiness that came along a new relationship slowly coming into blossom was added the knowledge that, no matter how happy the two of you were and how right being together felt, Caspian would soon be gone. Your days together being counted, you didn't want to waste away the time you had left together by worrying. Instead, you chose to live your love for him day by day, you would take whatever the wind would blow your way in the end. For now though, you painted the street you had drawn a thousand times before with a new softness showing in every shade you chose and every stroke of the brush that you applied. Love has a way of making art better, after all.

Caspian seemed to have chosen the same path as you, and had not mentioned again the trip to London, nor what would happen there. You were both locked in a bubble that you knew would explode soon, but protected you for now.

Eventually though, Caspian stood up and walked over to your spot in the room, wrapping his arms around your frame to press your back to his chest. He kissed gently the top of your head, before resting his cheek right above your ear. His gesture made you chuckle, a grin appearing across your lips.

"Do you need something? Or are you just being clingy?" you asked with a playful giggle.

"I guess I am clingy," Caspian admitted with a chuckle of his own that made his chest vibrate against you.

"You're a hopeless romantic, that's not surprising," you teased.

"Maybe I am. Or maybe you are turning me into one. Although, I should point out that so far, you have not protested against this part of me in the slightest, and have rather encouraged it, in fact."

"What are you insinuating? That I'm as sappy as you?"

"I'm afraid so, my love."

You hummed contently, forgetting about the subject of the conversation completely as you settled more comfortably into his embrace.

"I like it when you call me like that."

"My love?"

"Hmmm… yeah, I love it."

Caspian chuckled, kissing your temple.

"Who is being a hopeless romantic now, huh?"

"Oh, shut up!"

Caspian tried to fake outrage, but could only smile instead.

You checked your watch, for the first time in this afternoon, realizing at last that time had been flying by faster than you had realized. You heaved a sigh, but put down your brush.

"I'm gonna prepare dinner, what would you like?" you asked Caspian, who tightened his hold on you as a response.

"Wait for a little longer."

"Aren't you hungry? It's quite late."

"Yes, I am. But… If you move away, it will mean that the afternoon is over and… this moment is too nice to end just yet."

You rested your hand on his over your shoulder, intertwining your fingers with his and drawing silly patterns of stars and circles over his knuckles with your thumb.

"You're right. Five more minutes, then."

You closed your eyes, and were quite certain that you had fallen asleep when Caspian moved away from you, although not without placing one last chaste and tender kiss on the side of your head. He walked over to your shelves filled with books, and seemed to be bruising across your collection. You guessed that the one he had picked earlier really wasn't to his taste, and the thought made you chuckle as you shook tenderly your head at him. You left him to his search for a better story to get lost into in favour of preparing a meal, your stomach now painful with hunger. You were almost done when Caspian came to join you in the kitchen, helping you to set up the table.

"Did you find an interesting book?" you asked as you brought the pasta dish you had prepared to your tiny table.

A mischievous and yet saddened smile appeared on Caspian's lips.

"You can say that," he elusively answered.

He was standing by the table, and by now you were used to having him not sit down before you. Some kind of extra-politeness, you guessed. He pulled the chair for you when you walked to your side of the table, and you thanked him with an amused smile while he was sitting down himself.

"Why so mysterious?" you insisted. "What book did you get?"

"Oh… huh… something about… robots? It's some kind of… machine, that… lives? Very strange but… interesting."

You shook your head at him, surprised that he would be curious about something so different from the world he knew. But then, he kept on surprising you a little more every day.

Caspian glanced at the clock up on your yellow wall, that seemed to glimmer in gold as the sun was setting, ending its course beyond the tall buildings of New York City. He heaved a sigh before speaking again.

"I should go back to Agatha's after diner, it will be quite late already by then."

"Oh… you want to go back there?"

Even if you had spent most of your time together for the past few days, Caspian had always spent the night at Agatha's, and you were fine with that. After all, it had been but a few days since your kiss in Central Park, and a few weeks since the two of you had met. And despite your time together being limited, you didn't want to rush into things either. You wanted to take things slow, wanted to simply enjoy the moments you had with him.

And maybe, despite how abundantly clear Caspian had been, there was a little part of you that still held to the hope that maybe all of this was just a misunderstanding, that perhaps Narnia, despite the odds, wasn't real at all. And then, if that was the case, Caspian wouldn't have to leave.

So you wanted to take things slow, but still, things were going so well with him, and there wasn't any denying that your new boyfriend was extremely attractive. And maybe you were ready to do a little bit more than hugging him and talking with him for hours.

Meanwhile, Caspian stared at you with a puzzled expression.

"Well… I hardly have any other place to stay."

"You… you could… stay here," you hesitantly stuttered.

Caspian considered your offer for a moment. He did want to spend more time with you, but your sofa was really too uncomfortable, and he knew he wouldn't be able to get any sleep if he had to settle there for the night. And that was even without mentioning that the knowledge of having you sleeping down the hall would make it impossible for his mind to calm down enough to succumb to slumber.

He offered you a warm smile, a little teasing, with one end of his mouth turned upright and an amused glimmer shining in his brown, almost black eyes.

"Thank you for your offer. I do have to admit that it is tempting, we would spend more time together this way. But – and I hope you don't take this remark badly – your sofa is way too uncomfortable for me to stay there all night."

He was expecting you to laugh, maybe to shyly get a gulp of your water to hide this divine smile of yours. But you didn't. Instead, you were frowning at him, as if you didn't understand what he meant.

"The sofa? Why would you spend the night on the sofa?"

It was his turn to look at you with puzzled eyes.

"Well… where else would I sleep?"

"I meant… I meant to ask you if you wanted to stay the night… with me…"

It's only by the look in your eyes that he finally understood what you truly meant. And his reaction was to fiercely blush, all the way up to the tip of his ears.

"Oh… I… I…"

"It's okay if you don't want to or… if you're not attracted to me or…"

You let your sentence suspended in mid-air to hover over the room. You were all shy now, closing yourself from him, and Caspian could recognize the signs of your uneasiness. Maybe he wasn't reacting to this the way he should…

"I… I can't…"

He took a deep breath, remembering that you were from another world. And so, he adopted a different attitude.

"Is it normal in your world? To… be this… intimate before… marriage?"

You frowned at him again, but seemed to make the same realization too that, despite the two of you getting along so well and understanding each other to such a degree, you were not from the same world, and your two societies worked differently.

"Yeah, it is… not… for you?" you asked back.

"No. No, it isn't."

"Oh…"

"It… it would be… disrespectful if I…"

"I understand. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

"It's okay. I… I just… I don't know…"

"Caspian, you don't have to justify yourself. I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable."

You seemed to be the one who was uncomfortable then though, and you stood up to clean your plate even if you hadn't finished your dish. Caspian followed suit though, not allowing you to simply drop the subject and flee so easily.

"Y/N… I…"

"It's okay, Caspian. I promise you, it's okay. I just… I guess I feel a little stupid to have offered to take a… a new step when it's not something your people does."

You seemed fragile then, your confidence quite shaken. Caspian heaved a sigh, forcing you to stop cleaning your plate as he took your wet hands in his.

"It is not our way. But I… I want you to know that… I… you are beautiful, Y/N. This is not the problem, here. But I was raised with the idea that being this intimate with a woman one is not married to is disrespectful. And disrespecting you is the last thing I want to do."

You nodded, notably relaxing, and when you looked at him again, there was a spark of mischief shining in your gaze.

"I understand. And I would never want to do anything that makes you uncomfortable or disrespectful to you. But… please, tell me your people don't condemn cuddling, because I love your hugs too much to give up on them."

Caspian let out a laugh, although he was blushing fiercely once more. He pulled you closer to him, capturing you in this brown stare of his you had quickly learnt to recognize like home.

"I cannot say that it would be… accepted without a few rumours and judging glances but… I will happily pay that price. To be honest, I could not resist holding you even if I wanted to."

You giggled in the most adorable of ways, hiding your face in his shoulder.

And as he breathed in the scent of your shampoo, sugary and delicate that reminded him of afternoons spent walking through the gardens, with the air filled with the fragrance of wildflowers, Caspian knew that he wouldn't have any rest tonight. How could he waste any minute he could spend with you?

His back would kill him the next day, but a few hours on your uncomfortable sofa were a small price to pay to have a chance to hold you close.

[spooderboyandtincan]

Please Don’t Kill Flash

TW: Mentions of death, mentions of blood, mentions of guns, violence

~~~~~

Peter pulled out his phone. 

SpiderChild: HAPPYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Where r u????

Happy responded three minutes later. (record timing)

aSpunkyUncle: Sorry kid. Traffic is bad. I’ll be there in a while.

Peter sighed. Happy was often late. He didn’t mind, really, but he was starving.

Tony had been dragged to a meeting by Pepper, and couldn’t escape for at least another two hours. 

He wanted to talk to Tony. His spider-sense had been buzzing in the back of his mind. He could barely focus on his classes. Whenever he hugged Tony, though, the humming would disappear. 

He was always safe with Mr. Stark.

“Hey, Penis!” 

Peter suppressed a groan. 

Flash bounded up to him, elbowing him in the ribs. Before the spider-bite, that would have left a bruise. 

“What do you want, Flash?”

“What, can’t I talk to my buddy?” he said, slinging a heavy arm around Peter’s small shoulders. “C’mon, Penis, don’t be a spoilsport!”

“Leave me alone,” Peter muttered, shaking off the arm. 

Flash slapped his back. “In a bad mood, are we, Parker? Well, I’d try to cheer you up, but…” he shoved Peter forward. “This is much more fun!” 

He let Flash drag him and shove him against the wall, slamming his head on the bricks. “Listen, Penis,” he snarled, “you’re gonna pay for what you did!”

“Which is what, exactly?” Peter snorted, unfazed.

“Decathlon practice, remember? You embarrassed me in front of the whole class, even though I’m smarter than you, Parker!” 

Peter tried not to roll his eyes. “Okay, Flash, sorry. Sorry for knowing something you didn’t. Sorry for trying to help you out.”

“I don’t need help!” Flash raised a fist. “I told you, Penis, I’m smarter than you!”

“Flash, that’s-” Peter winced. A hot pain pierced through his head.

Danger.

“Flash! Get down, get away-!” he tried to shout. 

Until the muzzle of a gun was pressed to his temple. 

He froze. Flash stared at him with wide eyes. 

Peter knew he could get out of this. In just a few seconds. 

But no way would he risk Flash’s safety.

“Okay, dude, okay,” he said, raising his hands slowly. “You can chill with the gun. I’m not gonna run.”

He just had time to think, Hey, that rhymes. 

Then the gun slammed into his forehead, there was a shout from Flash, and everything went dark. 

~~~~~

“Parker!” Flash whispered. “Parker! Wake up!” 

Peter remained still, his head against his chest, his arms bound with thick rope behind him.

Flash groaned, tears in his eyes. 

He’d been kidnapped.

He’d been fucking kidnapped. 

“Hey!” he shouted. “Whoever you are, you’re gonna pay for this! My parents will kill you!”

That was unlikely. They probably wouldn’t notice he was gone. 

Peter blinked, his head throbbing. “Flash?”

“Parker! You’re alive!”

“‘Course. You okay?” Peter tried to clear his head. 

“I’m good. I guess. What do we do?”

Peter lifted his head. “We wait.”

“We just wait? Do you think they’re ransoming us?”

“They are, I think. We’ll see when they come in.”

Flash stared at him. He was so calm.

“Why would they ransom us?! What do we do, Parker?!”

“I’m sorry,” Peter said. “They were looking for me, you were just there.” He looked sadly at Flash. “Don’t worry, though. We’ll be fine.”

You can’t promise that, Flash thought. “Why the hell would they kidnap you? You’re poor, you have, like, no money!”

Peter raised his eyebrows. Flash really didn’t know that Tony Stark had basically adopted him?

Flash watched as Peter flinched violently. “Parker?”

“Flash, don’t move, stay still. Don’t talk. They’re coming,” Peter muttered. 

The metal door swung open.

Three people walked in, all dressed in red, wearing white theater masks over their faces. 

“Look what we have here,” the woman purred, stepping in front of Peter. She tilted his chin up with her sharp nails. He glared. “Stark’s precious son? You’ll bring us a lot, honey.”

“But who is this?” she asked, gazing at the cowering Flash. “An extra?”

“He was there too, miss,” an older man said. “We didn’t want a witness.”

“I see. We can dispose of him later.”

Flash gasped. “No! Please don’t hurt me! I’ll do anything!”

“Anything?” the woman pondered, rolling the word in her mouth. “Anything at all?”

“Yes, anything! Please!” 

Peter motioned frantically for Flash to stop talking. He could tell the woman was just toying with her prey. She had no intention of letting him live.

“Hey! You said you wanna ransom me?” he said loudly. “Well Flash here, he’s worth a lot! You don’t know it, but he comes from a pretty wealthy family! They’ll pay you to get him back!”

Peter wasn’t good at telling lies, but this one couldn’t be denied. Flash did come from a wealthy family. But he doubted they would pay ransom for him.

“Will they?” she asked. “I doubt it. You can tell this little brat doesn’t appreciate his parents much. So I doubt they appreciate him.” 

Flash turned pale, staring wildly between Peter and the woman. 

“Harold? Hand me my gun, won’t you?” 

Peter stiffened, testing the ropes.

No, he couldn’t let this happen.

The safety clicked off.

He broke the ropes apart.

The bullet fired.

Peter jumped.

~~~~~

Flash screamed, eyes clenched, waiting for the pain.

It never came. 

He heard a curse from the woman, and rapid footsteps leaving the room.

He blinked. 

Peter lay in a puddle of blood, panting. 

“Parker! What the hell?!”

Flash knelt by his side. “What do I do?! Parker?! Hey! What the hell should I do?!”

Peter groaned. “Press on the wound. ‘S okay. I’ll be fine.”

Flash pulled off his sweatshirt and nervously pressed down on the bullet hole.

Peter fumbled with his watch. He pressed a small button, nearly invisible, three times.

“What’s that?” Flash asked. 

“‘S for… ‘mergencies. Only,” Peter slurred. He blinked slowly.

“Hey, no! Parker, you gotta stay awake!” He slapped Peter’s cheek. 

Peter whimpered. “Misser Stark?” 

“What? No! I’m Flash!”

“Oh. Where… where ‘s M’sser St’rk?”

“Who the hell is that?! Why would I know?”

“Mmm.”

Peter’s breathing slowed, irregular, uneven. 

“No, no, Parker, stay awake!” Flash cried.

Peter lifted his watch to his face. He pressed a finger to it, the screen turning red, the clasp undone. “Call him. M’ss’r… Tony. Dad.” 

Flash took the watch, fumbling around until he found the contact button. There were three on speed dial, labeled IrondadMan, AuntMay, and Doctor Cho.

“Who should I call?”

“Firs’ one. Dad.”

Dad? Peter was an orphan. He only had May, as far as Flash knew.

He pressed the icon. Halfway through the first ring, it picked up.

“Peter?! Peter, are you okay?! I’m coming, baby, hold on!” The voice was deep, panicked, rushed. Flash could hear heavy, scared breathing.

“H-hello? Uh- who is this?” he asked. 

Peter smiled wearily when he heard the voice. 

“Who the fuck are you?! Where’s Peter?!” the voice snarled.

“Uh- he’s here, sir! He- he told me to call you! He got shot, I don’t- I…” 

“He got shot?! Is he awake?! Talking?” the voice sounded even more terrified. 

“H-he’s awake. There’s a lot of blood. He needs help, sir!”

“Oh god,” the voice whispered, horrified. “Keep him awake, hear? Do not let him fall asleep!”

Flash turned to Peter, slapping his cheek. His eyes drifted lazily to his.

Peter opened his mouth, trying to choke out a word.

Instead, all that came out was blood.

Flash gasped and dropped the watch. Peter coughed and choked, blood dribbling down his chin. 

Flash could hear shouting from the watch. But Peter’s eyes had closed.

“No! Parker!”

~~~~~

It seemed like only minutes had passed. 

Flash kept his hand on Peter’s wrist, where his pulse beat unsteadily.

“Please don’t die, Peter. Please.”

He blinked back a tear.

And then the entire building shook. 

Concrete crumbled from the walls, gunshots sounded, people shouted. 

There was a tremendous roar that shook the foundations. It sounded like the Hulk.

No way.

Flash’s eyes widened as the heavy metal door flew open and landed with a crash.

Iron Man

The Iron Man

This was possibly the worst and best day of his life.

The faceplate lifted, and Tony Stark himself stumbled out, eyes wide, face pale.

He collapsed to his knees, unceremoniously shoving Flash out of the way. 

Tony tore off his professional black coat, pressing it gently against the bullet wound.

His hands were shaking, Flash noticed. The great inventor’s incredibly steady hands were shaking. 

Tony cupped Peter’s pale face, whispering words Flash couldn’t hear. 

He was crying.

Iron Man was crying. 

Tony set his fingers on Peter’s pulse, turning frantically to the suit. “FRI! Get Cho here faster!”

Flash jumped when a woman’s voice, strangely robotic but still human echoed through the room.

“Boss, the med team is coming as fast as they can. The structure isn’t safe for them to enter, however. I would recommend bringing Peter to Helen.”

Tony breathed shakily, then leapt into action, the suit forming around him. He ever so carefully lifted Peter up, cradling him against his metal chest. 

“Wait- what about me? Are you leaving me?” Flash cried, before Tony could blast off.

The blank, unforgiving mask turned to him. “Kid, I really don’t care right now. Someone from the team’ll pick you up.”

And then he was gone, sprinting down the hallway and blasting into the sky.

~~~~~

Flash sat numbly on the ground, farthest from the blood, until the Falcon swooped through the doorway. 

“Flash, right?”

“Yes sir, I am. Flash. Flash Thompson.”

“Huh. Need a ride, kid?”

“Yeah, thanks!”

Flying with the Falcon was more terrifying than he’d expected. 

He was screaming most of the time. 

~~~~~

Flash stood stunned in the doorway. 

He never thought he’d see Tony Stark collapse to his knees and sob, tears flowing like a river.

“Is he gonna die?” he asked nervously. 

Tony looked up, his face forming a mask of fury. “No. My kid is not dying.” He stood up, striding towards Flash and wiping tears from his face. “I want you to get out of here, now. Out.”

“Sir… I-I’m sorry!”

Tony nodded. “I know you are. Now get out.”

Flash stumbled from the room. 

~~~~~

Flash sat on the cold floor of the medbay hallway. The lights were off, and he regarded every shape with wariness. 

Loud footsteps sounded near him, and then Pepper fucking Potts was bending in front of him. 

“You okay?”

He shrugged. “Y-yeah. I guess. Thanks.”

She sighed. “Tony didn’t mean to yell. He’s very protective of Peter. Overprotective, most of the time.”

“He was so mad,” he whispered, sniffing.

“He was terrified. Tony snapped.”

“But- but all I asked was if Peter’s gonna die!” he protested.

Pepper winced. “I don’t think you should say things like that, Flash. Everyone here loves Peter, especially Tony. What you said- it’s unimaginable for him.”

Flash stared. “The Avengers love Parker? But- but he’s just some pathetic kid!”

Pepper’s eyes turned to stone. “I do not want to hear you say that again.” She straightened. “Isn’t it about time you went home? I’ll call your parents.”

“No-no, wait! I wanna stay here! I wanna make sure he’s okay!” he cried. 

Pepper sighed. “You can stay until Peter’s out of surgery. Then you’ll have to go, understand? Your parents will be worried.”

I doubt it, he thought.

~~~~~

Flash sat in a hard plastic chair. Tony was leaning against the wall by Peter’s surgery room, head in his hands. Pepper rubbed his back comfortingly. 

And May Parker knelt by Tony, her arm around his shoulders.

They were a family.

Flash stared. He had been doing a lot of that.

~~~~~

Cho opened the door. Tony jerked his head up.

“He’s okay,” she said, smiling. “You can see him.”

Tony lunged up, and before Flash could blink, he was through the door. 

~~~~~

Tony leaned his forehead against Peter’s, clutching both his small hands in one of his. Flash could tell he was talking, murmuring words of comfort.

This was, by far, the strangest day he’d ever had. 

Tony Stark was crying in front of him.

He had flown with the Falcon. 

Peter Parker, apparently, was the son of Tony Stark? 

And the Avengers loved Peter? 

The nobody from Queens?

Flash stood there silently, feeling like a nobody himself.

May and Tony were both cooing over Peter, kissing his face, stroking his curls.

After minutes (was it hours?) Tony sat up, still holding Peter’s hand tightly. He glanced around, eyes red, tears staining his white shirt. 

When he saw Flash, however, his eyes gleamed with a murderous hint. 

“Get him out! Get him out of here, now!” he snarled, standing up. “I don’t want him anywhere near my kid!”

“Tony.” May said, setting a hand on his arm.

“I don’t want him here-”

He spun at the sound of a whimper.

“Petey?”

“M’ss’r... M’ss’r Dad?” Peter choked, tears spilling down his face. “D’n’t kill Fl’sh! ‘S not his fault.”

“Petey,” he whispered, cupping his cheek. “It’s okay, don’t cry, baby, I got you. I’m not gonna kill Flash. It’s okay. Please, don’t cry, sweetheart, I got you. Don’t cry. It’s okay.”

Peter’s big eyes found his. “Not gonna kill him?”

“Shh, no, Petey, it’s okay. I got you. Dad’s here, mimmo. I’m here.” Tony kissed his cheek. “It’s okay.”

Peter smiled. Tony gently wiped tears from both their faces, combing his fingers through his curls. 

Peter was okay.

He hadn’t killed Flash. 

But he would kill for Peter, without a second thought.

~~~~~

Tag List: @imissyoutoo @aj-that-person @tonystark-deserves-better @nathaly-ab @skeeter-110 @peter-and-tony-vlogs @teammightypen @joyful-soul-collector @loveliestdisappointment @hold-our-destiny @depuella @pixiethefirecat7 @spider-man-lover @jami161 @honeythepooh @bringitonvoldie

If anyone want to be added/ removed let me know!

~~~~~

/DO NOT TAG OR REBLOG AS ST*RKER/

[jobean12-blog]

Iris

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader

Word Count: 1,263

Summary: Bucky has a rough night and afterwards he needs some reassurance. 

Author’s Note: This is for the HBC’s @the-ss-horniest-book-club​ 24 hour surprise drabble challenge: Inspired By Song Titles and @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan​ Hamilton Lyric Challenge and the prompt: I’m never gonna stop from Guns and Ships. Also, my beautiful friend @nano--raptor​ had sent me a request for a Bucky fic based off of the song Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls so I thought it was perfect for this. I love this song and I hope you love this! Thank you all so much for reading! Much love always! ❤❤❤ PS I PROMISE IT ENDS HAPPY :) 

Warnings: Angst at first but it’s soft and filled with love and the end is fluffy mostly and it has a happy ending! :) 

“Steve. Steve!” You hear him fumbling with the doorknob and you wait with a knot in your stomach for him to open the door. He yanks it open, almost too hard, and stands there looking disheveled and half asleep. “What? What’s wrong y/n?” Your fingers hurt from wringing your hands together and your voice is hoarse from crying, “I can’t find him. I don’t know where he is.”

Steve’s forehead crinkles in worry and he takes your hand, pulling you in for a hug. “When did you see him last?” Your body shakes with your tears and Steve patiently waits while you to catch your breath. “Everything seemed fine last night. We had dinner, watched a movie and read together before bed. But then he had a nightmare. He hasn’t had one is so long. And when I woke him up, he looked so scared and broken. I thought he had gone back to sleep but when I woke up this morning he was gone.”

You can feel Steve’s shoulders sag, your own already bowed under the weight of your worry, “ok, it’s ok. I think I know where he might be.” Wiping your eyes with the back of your hand you sniffle loudly and pull Bucky’s hoodie tighter around your body. “Just gimme a minute to change.” You nod and wait on the couch. Your heart is in your throat and you try to stop your body from trembling with each breath.

“Ok. Come on.” Steve leads you out the door and onto the street. He walks fast, his arm looped through yours and his hands in his pockets. When you reach the small park Steve stops and looks down at you, his eyes soft, “he loves you. More than anything. You have to remind him that you see him for who he really is.” You squeeze his hand, “thank you Steve.” He watches you walk into the park, “call me if you need anything. I’m not far.” You wave and turn the corner, sucking in a breath when you see Bucky sitting on a bench, his head dropped low.

“Bucky?” You can barely hear yourself over the beating of your own heart but when he looks up it’s as if everything comes back into focus. He stands and starts to move toward you, his long legs making the trip short as you launch yourself into his open arms. He holds you so tightly to his chest you can’t breathe but this time it doesn’t feel like you’re dying, it feels like home.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” He says it over and over and you hold onto him like it’s the last thing you’ll ever do. “I shouldn’t have left. I’m just scared. I’m still broken. I can’t lose you.” You can feel his large body shake with emotion and your heart breaks all over again. “Bucky. I love you. I love you more than anything in world. I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

He walks you to the bench and sits down, pulling you into his lap, “you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I want to be everything you need but I’m afraid people will think I’m not good enough. They only see me as one thing.” The tears that fall from his eyes match your own and you touch his face, brushing the stubble that lines his cheeks before gently running your thumb along his lips. “I see you Bucky. I see every piece of you, and I know who you are.” Your hand slides down his neck and rests against his chest, over his beating heart.

His metal hand covers yours, his thunderous heartbeat slowly becoming steadier, “I don’t wanna go home yet. Can we stay a bit longer?” Your lips touch his in a barely there kiss, your eyes locked on his, “I want to be wherever you are Bucky. You’re all I need.” His lips are warm when they meet yours, his hand curling into your hair and tugging you closer. “Bucky, I love you. I’m never gonna stop.”

Resting his forehead to yours he lets the words sink in and wash over him. When his eyes meet yours again, they look clearer and more alive. “Thank you. Thank you for loving me.” Your brush the hair away from his face and cradle his jaw, stroking your fingers along his cheek, “that’s all I want to do.” He leans into your touch and closes his eyes before he kisses the palm of your hand and curls his own around it.

You sit quietly, just breathing in each other and letting the world melt away.  It isn’t until you hear the loud bark of a dog that you lift your head, smiling when a large fluff of white bounds toward you. The dog’s tail is wagging a mile a minute and Bucky reaches out to pet her, quickly pulling his hand back when he realizes it’s his metal one. You take his wrist and pull him forward, letting the dog sniff it. The dog’s nose wiggles this way and that before she nudges her head under Bucky’s hand for pets.

Bucky beams and scratches behind the dog’s ears, laughing when she positions her butt between his legs for more pets. “She definitely likes you.” A young man comes rushing over, panting and trying to catch his breath, “I’m so sorry guys! She loves the park and got away from me in her excitement.” You smile brightly and notice he’s wearing a shirt from the animal rescue nearby. “Oh, it’s no problem. She’s an absolute sweetheart! I think she loves my boyfriend.”

Bucky gives your waist a little squeeze and continues petting the dog. “I can see that. It’s great because to be honest she’s been really shy around most men, so this is really good.” It’s hard to tell who’s happier and you ask, “is she available for adoption?” The guy nearly bursts with joy, vigorously shaking his head yes. Bucky looks up, first at you, your eyes excited and hopeful, then to Winter. “Want to take a walk?” You jump off his lap with a squeal and the volunteer hands Bucky the leash, “she’s a great girl. I can tell you more about her while we head back.”

You walk hand in hand with Bucky, listening to Winter’s story and how she came to the rescue. You can tell Bucky is smitten and Winter clearly reciprocates the feeling. His shoulders seem lifted and his smile is genuine. When you reach the rescue Bucky pauses, handing the leash back to the volunteer, “can you give us minute please?” Winter whines but goes inside and Bucky takes your hands in his. Holding your finger to his lips you quickly speak, “before you say anything I just want you to know that dogs are an excellent judge of character.” Bucky smiles and dips his head, “I know. “I just. I need to say this. I love you. You’ve found parts of me that I didn’t know existed and in you I found a love I no longer believed was real.”

It’s hard for you to find the words to respond, your eyes now wet with fresh tears, so you kiss him and hope that all you’re feeling comes through with it. When you finally pull away for a breather, Bucky’s eyes are still closed and he brushes his nose against yours, his whispered “thank you,” telling you everything you need to know. Later that afternoon, you make your way back home, now a family of three.

@addikted-2-dopamine​ @bugsbucky​ @bisousbucky​ @buckstaybucky​ @breezy1415​ @buckys-henley​ @book-dragon-13​ @chuuulip​ @eurynome827​ @hiddles-rose​ @hailmary-yramliah​ @hawksmagnolia​ @harrysthiccthighss​ @ikaris-whore​ @jhangelface0523​ @jeremyrennerfanxxxx123​ @jewels2876​ @loricameback​ @lorilane33​ @lookiamtrying​ @lokilvrr​ @littledarlinhavefaithinme​ @littleredstarfish​ @marvelandotherfandomimagines​ @marvelgirl7​ @nano--raptor​ @pinkdiamond1016​ @randomfandompenguin​ @sallycanwait68​ @tuiccim​ @the-wayward-robot​ @this-kitten-is-smitten​ @yansi1923​ @sassenachsansa​ @nerdypinupcrystal​

[earthspirit10]

Ninjago Angst Week: Day Six - Sickness

@ninjago-angst-week​ klasdjfal;sjdfas AHHHH I’m sorry this is like, five days late, but I’ve been really busy and stressed and then research, but, uh, it’s here now? Hope it’s not too late :P

And well, this one isn’t as good as the others, in my opinion. (Well, I think it’s better than Day One, but for the others? Meh.) Writing someone sick (especially if I’ve never gotten that . . . particular disease before) is hard and I’m not even sure if I even got it all write. Also, Zane. Zane is hard to write too.

Trigger Warnings: Sickness (because that’s enough to be grossed out at), mention of death

---

As a nindroid, it wasn’t possible for Zane to get sick. He wasn’t a real lifeform like the others, nor was he prone to malfunctioning due to water or anything else a normal robot would suffer from. He was grateful for that, for even though he wasn’t physically human, he was human in his heart. It meant that he could take care of his siblings better without getting sick or injured himself.

When Jay had suddenly doubled over coughing, everyone had rushed toward his aid. Zane, of course, had helped whatever he could—he’d cooked warm meals for him, given him medicine, and made sure he was comfortable. (The others practically had to wrestle him into bed.)

It wasn’t unusual for Jay to be coughing these days due to a cough he’d developed, which wasn’t very uncommon or worrisome, but Zane was worried that the cold had progressed into something worse.

Zane opened the door to Jay’s room and poked his head through to check on his brother, who seemed to be curled up under layers and layers of blankets.

“Jay?”

Jay peeked out from under the blankets and blinked blearily, coughing a few times before giving Zane a reassuring smile. “Hey, tin can.”

Closing the door behind him, Zane entered the room and sat down on the bed next to Jay. He wasn’t afraid of catching whatever sickness his brother had, mainly because it was impossible. Still, he made a note to disinfect himself should he ever get close to any of his other siblings.

“How are you feeling?” he asked gently, remembering that Jay had sensitive hearing even without being sick.

“Bored,” Jay grumbled, huffing in indignation. “I mean, there’s nothing to do! I’m not even allowed to do anything! No video games, no tinkering, no—” His body suddenly shook as a coughing fit overtook him, and Zane watched anxiously as it dragged on. It seemed to take hours—though his internal clock told him it was only twelve seconds—before it passed, with Jay shivering and panting for breath.

Coughing. Fever. Chills. Immediately, Zane scanned the blue ninja’s body, his optical sensors switching into X-ray vision. It was difficult to do so with all the blankets surrounding Jay, not to mention that he was curled up.

“Jay,” Zane said softly, trying to keep his voice as even as he could. Jay blinked again, head tilting up in question. “Are you able to sit up?”

Jay nodded, though his expression still remained confused. Shifting around in his blankets, he sat up slowly, coughing weakly.

Now that his brother was sitting up, Zane was able to fully scan his chest, eyes narrowing. And as soon as he detected something, his metaphorical heart dropped, and he inhaled sharply, sensors switching back to normal vision.

No. That couldn’t— his brother couldn’t have—

“Zane, what— what is it?” Jay asked frantically, his voice edging on borderline panic. “What’s wrong?”

Zane swallowed, turning his head away. Now with this new knowledge, his advanced senses could clearly detect the wheezing whenever Jay breathed, the rapid pumping of his heart, the abnormal air flow in his lungs.

More worrying symptoms of— of—

“Zane, please, you’re really starting to worry me—”

Abruptly, he stood up, cutting off whatever Jay was going to say. Turning, Zane set his shoulder back, plastered on a smile, stopped his hands from shaking. He answered cheerfully, “Oh, nothing you should worry yourself about.”

Jay stared back. “Are you . . . sure?”

“Of course.” Zane nodded, already moving toward the doorway. “You should rest. Try not to exert yourself.” He said the last few sentences with more emphasis than he would normally put in.

“It’s not like there’s anything else I can do,” Jay sighed, but he flopped back onto the bed. Almost immediately, his body was wracked with coughs, but he waved aside Zane’s concern. “I’ll be fine, Zane,” he rasped. “Not goin’ anywhere. See?”

Zane eyed his brother for a few moments, then he exited the room, closing the door behind him. As soon as the door was closed, he laid his head on it, pressing his hands to his eyes.

Why was he overreacting with this information? It wasn’t like this was fatal, nor was it dangerous, so why was he acting like Jay had a life-threatening disease that could potentially take him away any moment? It wasn’t— it wasn’t like—

His back sliding down the door, Zane buried his head between his knees, tears springing to his eyes, tears that weren’t supposed to be there in the first place, and yet he was human enough to have them.

Sometimes, he wished that he didn’t have emotions, that he didn’t have to feel the pain, the guilt, the worry.

If Jay’s illness worsened, if fate decided to be cruel again, Jay might die. It was Zane’s fault for detecting it so late, for not scanning him the first time he’d shown signs of a cough a week ago. And that meant a higher risk for this sickness to become deadly.

And they had let him participate in training, in patrols, in crime scenes. Mainly because Zane had told them that it was okay, when it wasn’t okay. Not anymore.

What kind of brother was he?

Footsteps approached him, and Zane raised his head, blinking as his vision sharpened on Cole’s face.

“Zane?” the earth ninja’s voice was concerned. “What’s wrong?”

Zane inhaled. Exhaled. He shouldn’t lie to them. Shouldn’t give them the false sense of security he’d stupidly given to Jay.

“Jay has pneumonia.”

⸺

After that, everything basically descended into chaos and panic. Calls were made, antibiotics were bought, and new rules and patrols were assigned. Zane had to hold Kai back from bursting into Jay’s room and fussing over him, mainly because this type of pneumonia was contagious, partly because Kai looked incredibly mad and that wouldn’t do well for Jay’s mental health, which could also affect his physical health.

Eventually, Zane had to tell Jay of his condition, which he oddly took well. At least, considering how much the blue ninja would normally panic.

“It’ll just— it’ll just pass, right?” Jay asked hoarsely, though there was a hint of fear in his voice. “Nothing much to worry about?”

Zane could tell that the others were pressed against the door of the room, anxiously eavesdropping on the conversation.

He nodded. “If you get enough rest and medicine, and there are no complications, then you should be fine.” The word should echoed ominously, silently, and he knew that all of them knew that not everything went as it should go.

Jay breathed out a sigh, before he dissolved into a bout of harsh hacking. Immediately, the mood spiraled into worried buzzing, and the door creeped open the tiniest bit. Zane rubbed his brother’s back, anxiously waiting for it to pass.

“Jay—”

“‘m fine,” Jay murmured, voice raspy from all the coughing. He closed his eyes, snuggling closer to his blankets.

Zane eyed him for a few more moments, heart clenching at his brother’s pitiful form. Swallowing, he stood up and patted his shoulder. “You should rest,” he whispered. The lightning ninja didn’t reply, but the slow rise and fall of his chest indicated that he was already asleep.

Zane turned on X-ray vision for a brief moment, scanning for any other unusual activity, then on to infrared, before he switched back to normal human vision. Slowly standing up, he exited the room, closing the door softly behind him, and was immediately met with the anxious gazes of his other siblings.

“He’s fine, for now,” he told them, keeping his voice carefully even. “He’ll simply need more rest and medicine. His immune system will do the rest.”

They all relaxed, if only slightly, but Zane knew that they would never truly be at ease until Jay was completely healed. After all, they had a bad history with luck.

⸺

As the days passed, Jay only got sicker. Almost the entirety of the week was filled with him coughing, the tense atmosphere rising every time it worsened. Still, Zane knew better than to give him cough medicine, especially since coughing was meant to help with the pneumonia. He made sure to monitor his brother every hour, checking on his lungs, his heart, his blood pressure—basically everything. It hadn’t gotten bad to the point where Jay would need to be admitted into the hospital, but he was dangerously close.

Once, as Zane left Jay’s room, he nearly bumped into Cole, who always hovered near. He nodded silently at the earth ninja and was about to resume his day when he suddenly felt a hand grabbing his wrist, holding him back. Surprised, Zane glanced back, and he blinked in alarm at the barely noticeable tears in Cole’s eyes.

“I—” Cole swallowed, looking away, as if embarrassed. His hand let go of the ice ninja’s wrist. “Jay’s going to be fine, right?” His voice was small, but it was pleading, desperate, almost like he was afraid of Zane’s answer.

Zane closed his eyes for a brief moment, then opened them. “He will be alright,” he said quietly and firmly, but he couldn’t help the fear that surged in him as he heard Jay emit another cough from within the room.

“That’s what the doctors told me,” Cole whispered, squeezing his eyes shut, and Zane wasn’t sure if he was talking to him or himself.

After a while, Cole shook his head, his eyes reopening. “I— well, when I was little, my mom— she was really sick.”

Oh. Oh. Zane stared back at his brother, not sure if he liked where this was going.

“A-and the doctors said that she’d be okay, that she was going to survive, but—” His voice stuttered to a stop, and Cole made an odd noise that sounded like he was choking, and he turned away.

The silence stretched on, very painfully loud, with Jay coughing occasionally in the background. Zane continued staring at his brother, not sure what to do in this situation. He wasn’t used to seeing Cole like this—so vulnerable and open, and it made his mechanical heart clench.

But he knew loss. All of them do, all too well. And he knew how it felt to feel so hopeful, hopeful for the future, only for that hope to be shattered.

So Zane did what anyone would normally do. He hugged his brother, wrapping his arms around him. Cole stiffened in surprise, but eventually, he relaxed into the embrace, hugging the ice ninja back.

Patting Cole’s back a little awkwardly, Zane whispered, letting his emotions seep into his voice, “Jay will be fine.” A beat. “I promise.”

And it wasn’t an empty promise. Logically, Zane knew that pneumonia wasn’t deadly, especially since Jay had a really good immune system. But for the sake of his family, for the sake of Jay, Zane wasn’t going to let his brother die.

He’d die himself before that would happen.