#one day I'll polish this up and color

[pocket-notebook]

"You give me the creeps!"

"You give me... a boner -- here, it's a femur"

Had to sketch this joke I loved from the musical for April Fools

[hydrachea]

I can't stop thinking about Blade saying gifts are unfamiliar.

And I can't stop thinking about Kafka and Silver Wolf, hearing that, and making it a mission to bring him gifts whenever they travel somewhere for their script - even if he's there with them. About the confusion in his eyes when they steal buy something and turn right around to hand it to him.

About his room starting out completely empty except for the bare minimum necessities, a few spare clothes and what he needs to take care his Shard Sword, but filling up with little trinkets and gifts over time. Clothes and jewelry and perfume from Kafka and posters, figures and plushies from Silver Wolf. About them also bringing food back, expensive specialties swiped from a restaurant and the weirdest option they could spot in a lone vending machine, a category of gifts that doesn't leave anything behind (except the photos they both take of the three of them eating together, or of the faces he makes when Silver Wolf manages to trick him into trying a suspicious snack while he's distracted with polishing his weapon).

About Kafka spending hours finding clothes and jewelry she thinks would suit him, because that's her love language. She gets him makeup too, refusing to let his good looks go to waste. She knows he can't put it on himself, they both do, and he doesn't care for his appearance enough otherwise - but he'll let her do his makeup for him anyway, because she enjoys it, and because he finds it soothing.

About Silver Wolf also buying him clothes, but the ones she gets aren't his style at all, and just barely his size. She gets them for him, but just so she can steal them right back - her love language is quality time, and she fills Blade's room with gifts she can borrow along with a moment of his day. It still counts as a gift, she insists, practically swimming in an oversized jacket she swiped from his closet.

About how in another life, Yingxing gave gifts to the people he loved and in this one, Blade receives them from those who love him.

[orcelito]

My nails r getting kind of long. Almost to claw mode. I kinda don't wanna cut them tho bc I kinda wanna paint them for my birthday weekend

Nonzero chance of seeing my mom on mother's day. By my own choice, I guess. And I'm still not sure how I'm feeling about that. But ykno what, it'll be my birthday weekend, and I'm going to make sure to live it to the fullest..!!!

[mid-knightowl]

I have so many WIPs to work on but I cannot stop the plotbunnies and ideas when they hit me. Take this fem!jay+jaydick 80s inspired drabble that I may never finish *cries*

--

If anyone asked, Jaye always had a thing for fast cars and neon lights. She grew up in Crime Alley, blocks away from the red light district, and the infamous row of theaters and strip clubs. Fancy cars, rich men, fur coats, white powder, and shiny hubcaps were a common and welcomed sight for her.

When she first started working on the streets, that's what drew her in. Not the people—even if she never forgot a face, a sneer, a laugh or grin—not the drugs or guns, or the money passed from hand to hand. It was the cars, the lights, the music.

She loved and hated them. The Alley was gorgeous in it's own fucked up way but it was also an ever present danger. A thrill and adrenaline rush all in one, it made her heart pound in her chest, it made her sick to her stomach, it made her bare her teeth in a fierce grin.

She was never not memorized by the way the lights flickered in her eyes, or the way the sun set over the skyline, the darkened hues of orange, red and pink smeared over the blackened smog of the city. And how, at just the right angle, at just the right alleyway, these neon lights illuminated the clouds, striking through the dark like the Batsignal.

A reminder to the rest of the city—we're still here.

She hated it too. The way it killed her parents and the way it hurt her friends over and over. How the corruption seeped into every crook and cranny of the Alley. How it made people desperate.

So, when she had to pick between drugs, sex, and cars—she picked cars.

If anyone asked, Jaye would lie and say that stealing the tires off the Batmobile cemented her love for fast cars, bright lights, and danger.

But it wasn't. A desperate act to survive, which in turn gave her a family was nothing short of a dream. And she'll always be grateful that what she loved and hated in equal measure brought her to them.

It's the sleek black and blue Z28 Camaro, the warm black leather seats, the cassette tapes in her hands, the wind tangled in her hair, and Dick Grayson's laughter over the radio that cements her love for fast and dangerous.

His hair was curling to his shoulders, undecided on whether he would actually keep the mullet-inspired look or cut it short again. His leather jacket was laying in the backseat and for once, he wasn't wearing somethin atrocious and low-cut (not that teenage Jaye ever minded but it was a little embarrassing). And his eyes sent electricity singing across her skin, sizzling down her spine just like those neon lights flickering over the strippers and cars.

Her stomach dropped, her heart pounded in her chest so loud she could hear it, and she bared her teeth as he laughed, foot on the gas pedal and the engine roaring underneath his hands.

She never understood the nickname, Golden Boy, until that day. The sun shimmered across his skin, catching on the glitter in his hair left over from a "Titans mission" and his chain necklace. A halo, a spotlight made just for him.

Stay gold, ponyboy, she had thought to herself, mesmerized and wide-eyed.

Fast, dangerous, and golden.

She never stood a chance.

--

He watches Jaye stretch out in the backseat of the car that somehow made it through all the shit of his Titan years, of his early years in Blüdhaven, and thinks-knows she's a dangerous type of trouble. Terrifying, but addictive.

He can't get enough.

She grins, all teeth in the backseat like she can read his mind. His hands clench around the steering wheel, the leather creaking under the pressure. She tips her chin up, showing off more of her bare neck as she quietly laughs at him.

She's in one those corset-like bras. A deep, dark red lace. Her underwear matches, a dark and intoxicating red peeking out from under the bunched up fabric of her short skirt.

She's wearing his leather jacket.

He exhales harshly, putting the car in gear.

"Get up here," He growls out, pulling out on the street. He doesn't look in the rearview mirror, hearing the rustling of his jacket as she moves.

"So bossy," She murmurs in his ear as she slides across the center console, her hand trailing down his neck and arm. When she sits in the passenger seat, leaving her skirt bunched up against her upper things, he guns it.

The roar of the engine and the hum of his old cassette tapes reverberate through his head and she laughs. Loud and bright and biting and he can't help himself. He twists his hand in her curls and kisses her.

She opens up to him without complaint, hands clawing at his shirt as he stretches her neck into an uncomfortable and painful arch. It's bruising and brutal, more teeth than tongue. She tastes like strawberries and sugary sweetness.

He nips at her bottom lip as he leans back, turning back to the road. He tugs at her hair once more, watching as her eyes flutter at the touch, before moving his hand back to the shifter. She huffs, her hand ghosting over his chest and playing with chain as she glares-pouts at him.

He shifts gears, hitting the main drag. A smile curls on her reddened lips, her eyes alight as she watches the road race underneath them. Her hand teases down his arm, only stopping to entwin their fingers together around the shifter.

"How come your polish isn't chipped?" She suddenly grumbles, lips pursed as she gazes down at their hands. She plays and wiggles their fingers—his black and blue nail polish gleams in the passing street lights compared to her chipped and matte red polish. He squeezes her hand and gives a soft smile as he whips the car down the next street.

"New brand and a clear top coat." He explains, tapping his middle finger against hers. Her face scrunches up and he can't help his chuckle. She leans over, squeezing his hand right before she bites into his shoulder.

"Jay-" He hisses, his muscles tensing under the assault of her teeth. She quietly laughs, rubbing her face against his shirt before giving it a soft kiss. She gazes up at him through hooded eyes full of mischief, and he feels the grin against his shirt.

"You're so mean to me," He murmurs with a crooked smile, finally reaching the highway ramp. He takes their hands together and shifts gear. Her quick and sharp inhale makes him grin as he races up the ramp and swerves them into traffic.

He weaves them through the last dregs of the nightly rush hour, her hand squeezing painfully around his and the shifter as he dodges car after car.

"You deserve it." She probably means to be cruel and vicious, but her words are soft, more of a low, breathy sigh than a cutting remark. He hums and shifts gears one more time, hoping to hear more of those pretty noises. And fuck, he wishes he could just throw her into the backseat and do it himself. Take her apart in his jacket and his jacket only.

She shifts in her seat, and he watches her free hand twist in the edges of her skirt from the corner of his eye. They're tearing down the highway, the road signs mere blurs as they pass by. The speedometer twitches over 95 and she hums, low but loud. It almost sounds like a muffled moan.

And he's a weak man.

He takes their entwined hands and trails their fingers over her exposed skin, ghosting over her thighs with the barest amount of pressure. She gets the hint, guiding his hand over the scars and the edges of her skirt. She arches just a bit, shifting her hips forward and tilting her head towards him.

She catches his gaze, but she doesn't move her hand any further, holding it there.

"Faster." She says, eyes dark and filled with an insatiable hunger that tingles down his spine. He shudders at her words. There are no more lights to illuminate her, just the moonlight and the low lights of the radio. And gods, it suits her like the sun suits him.

He curls his fingers into her skin, kneading at the muscles that could easily kill a man, thighs he would gladly spend the rest of the night between.

Without a word, he presses down on the gas pedal and watches the speedometer gradually move past the 100 mark. When it reaches close to 110 and they blow past the Bristol exist, he gives her a look and flexes his fingers.

"So good to me, aren't you Bluebird?" She murmurs, biting her lip as she smiles at him. He jerks, a sharp inhale-exhale, as the leather of the steering wheel creaks under his hand. He gives her a choked hum, positive that if he opened his mouth to speak all that would come out is desperation and need.

She laughs and he so badly wants to kiss her again. But then she's moving his hand—their hands—to the thin edges of her lace underwear and he loses all train of thought.

[punkshort]

Swept Away | Chapter 4: Tropical Heat

Pairing: sugardaddy!Joel Miller x f!reader

Chapter Summary: The first day on Glenn's yacht is much more dramatic than you originally expect.

Chapter Warnings: language, slow burn, sugar daddy/baby vibes, food and alcohol consumption, intoxication, reader gets drunk and snippy, mentions of past infidelity, flirting, sexual tension, jealousy, one tiny daddy reference, nausea/vomiting, joel gets mean but he makes up for it (he sucks at feelings)

WC: 8.5K

Series Masterlist

"I'm so excited for tomorrow. Glenn's yacht is supposed to be massive. Like, full crew, multiple levels. The type you'd usually charter but he actually owns it." Zoe sighed dreamily next to you at the hotel salon. You were listening but your eyes were pinned on your nails, watching as the technician managed to make your hands look like they were out of a catalogue in less than an hour.

"Yeah, that - it sounds really cool," you replied. "Should be fun. Joel said there's some tiny islands we might check out or something."

Zoe nodded excitedly. "Zach said there's one called Monu Island. We're supposed to have dinner there the first night."

"Dinner? How?" you asked. She looked at you like you had two heads.

"The crew brings the stuff to shore for us and cooks?" she said as if she were explaining how to ride a bike. Shit. You probably should have known something like that if you were pretending to be in the upper, upper class.

"Oh, yeah, I knew that," you said with a nervous laugh, "I meant how are they going to get us off that yacht? The more I keep hearing about it, the harder it's going to be to pull me away from it."

Zoe giggled and you inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Maybe you can convince Joel buy one for yourselves. He can certainly afford it," she told you with a wink.

"Yeah, and Zach can't?"

She shrugged, smile still stretched across her face but you could see something shifting in her eyes. "Can I tell you something?"

You nodded and leaned a little closer.

"I don't think Zach's doing very well. Business-wise."

Your eyes widened, encouraging her to continue.

"I don't know for sure, but I have overheard a few conversations and I get the feeling if he doesn't win this bid, his hotel chain is done for."

"Oh, no," you breathed, brows crinkling with concern. "Zoe, I'm so sorry."

She gave you a confused look but quickly recovered. "Oh, thanks. It's no big deal, you know. I'll be just fine."

What did that mean? Zoe would be just fine if Zach went bankrupt? How?

You wanted to press her further but you could tell the door closed. She was looking down at her freshly manicured nails with a huge smile then held them up to your face and wiggled them around.

"What do you think?"

She had picked a white nail polish with a faint hint of sparkle. The color did look very nice against her tanned skin and you told her so right when your technician released your hands, announcing you were all set. Pulling your fingers from the blue light, you admired them up close.

"Alright, I'll admit it. I questioned your color choice before but damn, that looks so pretty on you," Zoe said enviously as she examined your hot pink nails with a glitter top coat.

"Thanks," you gushed, hardly able to tear your eyes away after you left the salon and headed for the elevators. You could count on one hand how many times you ever got your nails done in the past and it was always for a special occasion: prom, a wedding... maybe once when someone got you a gift certificate for Christmas. It felt like such a treat and it gave you a nice little confidence boost.

You waved to Zoe when she got off on her floor, vowing to see each other in the morning bright and early on the dock, then rode the elevator the rest of the way to your floor.

It was difficult to contain your excitement when you entered the room, but you remained quiet because you heard Joel's voice carrying from the living room. He had someone on speaker who was discussing budgets and employee turnover so you snuck past him and headed towards your room to pack.

How much does one person need for two days? Not a lot, probably. But you weren't very clear on the dress code. Was this going to be casual? You already noticed if Glenn organizes the parties, the vibe is much more relaxed but Mary tends to make it a little more formal when she handles things.

After packing a swimsuit, two coverups, one set of pajamas (which you agonized over when you remembered you would be sharing a bed with Joel), and three different options for daytime wear, you went back out into the living room to see if Joel would know what you should pack for the evenings.

"Joel?" you asked softly when you spotted him sitting quietly on the couch with his eyes closed. He tilted his head to the side and slowly opened his eyes. "Are you okay?" you asked. He nodded and stood with a groan.

"Just tired," he said right when his laptop chirped with two new emails. He began to walk towards the table but you were closer. You bravely closed his laptop with two fingers and he froze.

"C'mon, what're you doin'?" he asked, taking another step, but you shook your head and leaned forward, resting your weight on the arm that was holding his computer closed.

"You need to take a break," you told him firmly. He scowled and crossed his arms.

"I'll be takin' a break when we're on the damn yacht."

"Taking a break on the weekend is a given. You work around the clock, Joel, you need to slow down."

"I don't got time for this," he told you with a shake of his head. "I'm busy, I got a company to run."

"Well that's just too bad because I have dresses to try on and I need help picking ones to pack," you told him just as sternly. His eyes flickered up to yours and you could practically see the gears in his head turning. "I think that's far more important than some emails, don't you think?"

His mouth twitched and you could see his face soften and you knew you had him.

"Fine. Ten minutes," he relented. You grinned and skipped off to your room, and only when your back was turned did he allow himself to smile.

Joel sat patiently on your bed while you tried on the handful of dresses you grabbed and put in the bathroom, waltzing back into your room every few minutes with a new one to show him.

"Darlin', I already told you. You look good in all of these."

"Yeah, but which ones are your favorites?" you pressed, doing a little twirl so he could see the back of the pink dress you were currently wearing. "And what will we be doing? Like, how formal are these evenings going to be?"

He shook his head, his eyes glued to the curve of your back when you spun around again. "Not that formal. One night we'll be on the beach, the other night just on the deck."

You nodded and tapped your chin with your finger. Any of the dresses you had would do now that he told you it wasn't that formal, but you were pushing twenty minutes of no laptop or cell phone useage and you really wanted him to take a longer break from work, so you had an idea.

"Okay, just one more. I'll be right back," you told him, scurrying off to the bathroom to slip into a deep purple dress that just so happened to be the shortest one in the bunch by a mile. You weren't sure what Joel's assistant was thinking buying you something so short and tight. When you looked in the mirror, the fabric clung to your curves, leaving very little to the imagination with only two thin spaghetti straps to hold it up.

Obviously it was too inappropriate to wear on the yacht, but that didn't stop you from taking a deep, nervous breath and strolling back into your bedroom with what you hoped was an air of innocence.

He was leaning back on his elbows when you walked in, eyes drifting around your room and taking note of the items you kept on your nightstand, but when he saw what you were wearing he straightened right up.

"What do you think?" you asked as you twirled, but that time you made sure to take it slow.

"It's, uh..." his throat when dry when he saw how perfectly the dress hugged your ass and he had to clear his throat. "Nice," he finally managed to say. You fought back a smirk when you heard the strain in his voice.

"Yeah?" you asked, looking down at the dress. "I don't know, the material is a little rough."

Joel swallowed when you ran your hands slowly down the fabric, your palms traversing over your soft curves, making his fingers twitch.

As if you read his mind, you looked back up at him with a little pout and asked, "you wanna feel?"

Without hesitation, he spread his knees and beckoned you over with two fingers. You grinned and stepped forward, stopping when you stood between his legs, his mouth mere inches away from your stomach.

You could feel his hot breath through the dress and you had to suppress a tingle down your spine, but when he lifted his hands to cup the backs of your bare thighs, you couldn't hide your reaction that time. You made a little noise in the back of your throat when his fingers squeezed your legs and he looked up at you, eyes so dark and filled with lust that it took your breath away.

"This okay?"

"Mhmm," you hummed, your hands coming up to his shoulders so you could balance yourself. His fingers inched up your legs slowly, tentatively exploring without giving into his deepest desires. But fuck... if he wanted to, you would have let him.

He slid his hands up the sides of your thighs, his fingers catching a bit on the hem of your dress before reaching your hips. He caressed the material there with both hands, each of you still pretending as if the fabric of the dress was any concern.

"See what I mean?" you whispered. Slowly, he nodded, but his eyes remained pinned on your body, his gaze drinking in every inch of you, committing you to memory.

"Fuck, you look good," he murmured as if it pained him, letting the facade slip for a moment. Your heart fluttered in your chest and you began to play with the curls on the back of his head. He tilted his chin to look up at you, his lips parted and his cheeks a little flushed. Nothing else had happened since that afternoon in the ocean when he kissed you other than leaving you completely confused about the nature of your relationship. But in that moment, you couldn't care less. All you wanted was to feel his lips on yours again, to feel that spark of electricity over your skin, so you leaned down a fraction, your gaze flicking from his eyes to his lips, making your intention crystal clear.

Just as you were about to brush your lips against his, he pulled his head away and dropped his hands. Immediately, you straightened back up, embarrassment warming your face while you tried to figure out what you did wrong.

"We can't," was all he said, eyes drifting to look everywhere except at you. You nodded and quickly stepped back, shame coursing through your veins.

"I'm sorry," you said, your voice cracking a bit. You cleared your throat and repeated yourself then hurried out of the room to get changed.

Joel called your name, asking you to come back, but you were too ashamed. Instead, you slipped back into the bathroom and practically ripped the purple dress off out of anger, vowing to tuck it way back into the depths of your closet so you wouldn't have to look at it the entire rest of the trip.

By the following morning, you forced yourself to brush off the awkwardness with Joel from the day before. You had three more weeks to spend with him pretending to be his fianceé and you refused to let one uncomfortable situation dictate the rest of your time there. So you plastered on a big smile for him the next morning when you exited your room with your bags in each hand. You could tell he wasn't sure how to react. He tiptoed lightly around you, making sure he didn't even accidentally touch you as you both moved around the hotel room collecting everything you would need.

In the elevator ride down to the lobby, he tried to bring it up but you cut him off before he could even finish his sentence.

"Did you remember your seasick medication?"

He floundered for a moment, scanning your face for any sign of bitterness, but he found none. If you wanted to pretend it never happened, that was fine by him.

"Yeah," he finally said, and you nodded before turning to stare straight ahead at the closed elevator doors.

He didn't try to mention it again.

When you arrived at the dock with the sun just beginning to peek over the water, casting the ocean in a beautiful golden hue, you felt your mood instantly improve. You were in fucking paradise and nothing was going to ruin that for you.

The crew was loading up your belongings and you were chatting with Glenn and Mary about how excited you were when Glenn's phone pinged in his hand.

He tugged his glasses out of his shirt pocket so he could read the text and he let out a disappointed groan.

"Ian's got food poisoning, Harry says," he told the three of you, "they can't make it. That's a damn shame."

"Oh, that's terrible. I hope it's not too serious," Mary said sympathetically.

You heard the telltale sound of heels tapping on the wooden planks behind you and you turned around to see the rest of the couples, along with Trevor and Brooks, arriving. The crew hurried past to assist with their bags and for the first time all day, Joel wrapped an arm around your waist. Your muscles stiffened at first and he felt it. Guilt washed over him before he cleared his throat and lifted his other hand in greeting. Zoe spotted you and waved excitedly, her energy just as infectious in the early morning hours.

When you spotted Tammy a few yards behind Zoe, your smile faltered a bit. You still hadn't brought up what you learned to Joel. Did you even have a right to know about his past with Tammy? You thought you did given how it could blow your cover, but maybe it was just gossip.

Still, it got under your skin.

When Zoe greeted you with a hug, you caught the look of distaste Tammy shot to Lynne before turning her head to gaze out over the ocean. It couldn't just be in your head at this point. There was definitely something going on with these women that you were not privy to yet.

Joel took your hand and lead you aboard the yacht, once again feeling the discomfort at his touch radiating off you.

He handled everything all wrong, he knew that almost immediately. It was all his fault. He was weak that day in the ocean and couldn't stop himself from kissing you, and now you were confused and hurt, but there was a reason he didn't want a traditional sugar baby agreement. He needed to keep his eye on the prize and stay focused, not standing there pretending to admire the lavish sitting room Glenn was showing everyone while wondering if you were wearing the lingerie he purchased for you.

How the hell did you manage to weave your way into his psyche so fast?

After the tour of the yacht, which was luxurious and had three levels, you were shown your private rooms, all of which included your own bathroom and a window so you could admire the sea from bed.

Joel ticked his jaw to the side as he looked around while you began to unpack a few of your things.

"I can sleep on the floor," he said. Your back was to him but he saw your hands freeze inside your bag before you took a deep breath and continued to pull out your toiletries.

"Don't be ridiculous. We can manage two nights in the same bed."

Even though you couldn't see him, he nodded anyway. He should just say it. Say he's sorry. Sorry for all of it. Sorry for leading you on, sorry for hurting your feelings, sorry for staring at your legs and wondering what they would feel like wrapped around his head.

The guests slowly made their way into the indoor sitting area once they settled in. If there wasn't an entire wall made of glass so you could look out the back of the yacht, you would have thought you were in another mansion. The carpet was plush and white under your feet. When you saw how pristine it was, you almost wanted to ask if you should take your sandals off, but instead you took Joel's lead and left them on.

There were three long, white couches that formed a U shape around a large, cherry wood coffee table. Above your heads the ceiling was dotted and lined with soft lights, giving the whole room a very warm and inviting glow. Abstract art hung on the walls but there wasn't much space: any wall that bordered the sea was made of glass. And across from the couches, built up against an interior wall was a bar that appeared to be stocked with every liquor and mixer known to man.

The crew had poured glasses of champagne and mimosas and left them on the bar. They were standing at attention against the wall near the kitchen, waiting to jump into action if need be.

Joel picked up two mimosas and handed you one. You nearly declined when you noted the early hour but decided to take it anyway with a quiet thanks.

"Meant to tell you, I like your nails," Joel said, pointing to your fingers wrapped around your glass. You gave him a small smile before looking back down at your glittery, hot pink nails.

"Thanks," you said, wishing you felt as excited about them as you were yesterday.

Glenn clapped his hands loudly, commanding the attention of the room. He let everyone know breakfast would be served on the dining room on the deck in ten minutes and encouraged people to grab a drink before heading out.

The moment the glass doors were opened, your senses were overcome with fresh, sea-salt air and an occasional fine mist that was being vented above the partially enclosed area.

Everyone found a seat around the square table that was already set with beautiful white plates trimmed in gold with matching bowls and mugs. When the crew began to place trays of fruit, baked goods, meats, eggs, and yogurt on the table, you leaned into Joel and tapped his shoulder.

"Did you take your medicine?" you whispered.

He smiled and put his glass down so he could fish the bottle of pills from his pocket.

"Thank you. That woulda been ugly," he joked, making you giggle before reaching for the tray of fruit. His chest warmed at the sound, pleased to see you smiling again but damn near giddy that he was the one to make you laugh.

You weren't terribly hungry but you nibbled at some fruit and yogurt, knowing you should at least try to eat something if you were expected to keep up with the way the group drank.

After about an hour at the table where you nursed the same mimosa Joel had given you earlier, Glenn stood up and suggested the men go to the top floor for cigars and poker.

"Looks like it's just us, ladies," Mary said gleefully when all the men began to place their cloth napkins on the table and, collecting their own drinks, stood to follow Glenn up the stairs.

"You good?" Joel asked softly before he left. You quickly nodded and shooed him off. You were still feeling rather vulnerable from being shot down the day before but you could feel yourself coming around. Maybe some distance and distraction would help.

If only you knew what the day had in store.

By noon the sun was blazing, the heat seared your skin as you laid out on your lounge chair with the other women. You could smell the faint hint of cigar smoke and hear the laughter from the men up above, but you couldn't see them from where you were. Occasionally you would hear Joel's voice, his southern twang becoming deeper and louder the more he drank and you found yourself smiling.

You were at least three drinks deep and you felt completely relaxed. All your concerns drifted away, getting twisted in the breeze and floating over the water. You even managed to find Tammy somewhat tolerable as you listened to her tell the group about her teenage son and a girl he was dating.

Maybe Zoe was wrong. Maybe it was just a rumor. Tammy seemed to be happy and fulfilled. She had what appeared to be a very strong marriage with Scott and they had two boys. By all accounts, they appeared to be a very happy family.

"I think I'm gonna take a break in the shade," Zoe announced, fanning herself while she picked up her things.

"Okay, dear. There should be chilled bottles of water out but if not, just ask the bartender. He can get you whatever you need," Mary told her while she adjusted her enormous sun hat.

"I think I'll join you," you said, suddenly feeling like your mouth was coated in sand. You couldn't even remember drinking any water since the hotel that morning.

The three other women waved politely when you stood and followed Zoe back inside where the air conditioning embraced you like an old friend.

"Oh, god, that feels nice," you groaned. The room was empty except for one bartender who was taking stock of the liquor with a clipboard. He quickly set it aside when Zoe approached and asked for two waters. You picked a couch and set your things down next to you with a sigh, then thanked Zoe when she handed you a frosted glass bottle of water.

Both of you practically chugged your respective drinks in under a minute, then giggled when you realized how crazy you must have looked.

"We gotta pace ourselves," Zoe said with a grin and a shake of her head. "It's gonna be a long night. Zach said we aren't supposed to reach the island til six, and with the time it will take for the crew to set up and cook, we'll be eating dinner late."

"That means we'll be getting back here even later," you said, finishing her thought.

She nodded and tossed her hair over her shoulder, her eyes a little glassy and her cheeks a little pink, either from the sun or alcohol or both. But based on the way she couldn't stop laughing at the smallest thing, you suspected alcohol was the bigger reason. When she glanced at you and erupted into a fit of giggles again without having to say a word, you knew for sure she was a little past tipsy.

"What?" you laughed, her silly mood too contagious to resist.

"Nothing, nothing," she said with a wave, then seemed to think about it for a second before giving you a mischievous grin and leaned forward, cupping her hand around her mouth in an attempt to muffle her voice, but it didn't work.

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

You shrugged and nodded. "Sure."

She giggled again, slapping her palm over her mouth and tucking her chin against her chest. You frowned and laughed at how ridiculous she was acting and wondered what on earth she was about to say.

She cupped her hand over her mouth again and whispered loudly, "how is Joel in bed?"

Your eyebrows shot up in surprise at her question. Instantly, images and daydreams of what you thought Joel would be like in bed flashed across your mind. What the weight of his body would feel like pressed against yours, pushing you into the mattress. How his lips would feel wrapped around your nipple, his teeth teasing and pinching your skin. Would he kiss you slow and deep or passionate and needy? Would he groan your name when he buried his cock deep inside you? What was his favorite position?

All these things and more you had found yourself wondering more times than you could count since a few days ago in the ocean. He had completely taken over your mind to the point where you could hardly remember the girl you were when you first met, sitting in his office ready to storm out because of his abrupt and seemingly unpleasant nature.

You cleared your throat as you bought some time to scrounge up a lie.

"He's... good. Really good," you added. She nodded excitedly and rolled her wrist, urging you to continue. "He's attentive and... he doesn't rush." You could feel your cheeks heating up when you realized you were just telling her what you wished he was like, what you wished any of the men you had been with were like, only to always fall short in some way or another. "I'm not saying he can't be-" you glanced over your shoulder before lowering your voice, "rougher, because he can. There's been times I can hardly move after," you giggled and she gasped enthusiastically. "But he's always so sweet when we're done. He takes such good care of me, gets me whatever I need, tells me how beautiful I am." You swallowed, feeling only slightly pathetic at how you were turning yourself on with your own lies.

"How about Zach? What's he like?" you asked, changing the subject. Her face fell and she waved you off before taking another sip of water.

"Girl, c'mon, you know the answer to that."

Now it was your turn to gasp but the corners of your mouth twitched into a playful smile.

"What do you mean?"

She rolled her eyes at you and sighed. "You've seen him. He's not hiding anything spectacular, I promise you that."

Zach was significantly older than Zoe. Their age difference especially showed when he stood after sitting for a while, groaning deeply and usually needing a hand to steady himself, or when his phone alarm went off at various times during the day, volume practically maxed out, reminding him to take some pill. But you never got the impression Zoe was unhappy until now.

"So why are you with him?" you asked. Of course, you had to assume his money had something to do with it, but her answer was still not what you expected.

"Can you keep a secret?" she asked conspiratorially. You nodded and leaned forward. Zoe glanced around to make sure nobody else snuck into the massive sitting room before she whispered, "I'm a sugar baby."

"Y-you're... what?" you asked, your voice wavering. Fuck, you really wished you didn't have that last mojito. You were trying to keep your cool but your vision was swimming and your mind was buzzing.

"I think Tammy and Lynne suspect something. I think that's why they don't like me," she said, leaning back and gazing out to the ocean. "Nobody knows for sure, you can't say a word," she said, fear suddenly gripping her. "If Glenn found out, it would be over for Zach. Glenn holds way too much weight on family shit. He already isn't thrilled with our age difference," she sighed, gazing down at her freshly manicured nails. "But between you and me, I hope he doesn't get this land. He wouldn't be able to afford me anymore. Like, I want what's best for him and I want him to be happy, but this relationship is running its course, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah," you breathed, "wow, I had no idea."

She shrugged and picked up her phone. "It's really not a bad gig, but it would be a hell of a lot better if the guys looked like Joel instead of Zach," she giggled.

You laughed softly and took another sip of your water, your mind reeling. The pressure to pull off this little stint was mounting. Joel wasn't the only one who noticed Glenn was a man with family values and tried to do the exact same thing, and now more than ever Joel's alleged affair with Tammy seemed like a huge loose end that could jeopardize your whole lie.

Your nerves got the best of you. Looking back on it, you should have realized that before having two more drinks with lunch, but Zoe's bombshell left you rattled and you got carried away.

Around four in the afternoon, the men returned from the upper deck with their skin pink and their shirts a little damp from sweat, but they were all smiles when they stepped out onto the deck to find their partners with the exception of Glenn's sons, who came by themselves.

Joel didn't notice at first how tipsy you were because you did your best to hide behind a pair of sunglasses and a large hat. He sat down on the lounge chair near yours, looking like he had a couple drinks himself but not nearly as many as you. He appeared relaxed and at ease, no doubt pleased by whatever progress he made with Glenn in the past few hours.

"How's everythin' goin' down here?" he asked, his eyes scanning around the crowd of people who were beginning to mingle.

"Good," you said, "I found out some very interesting information that-" you hiccupped and covered your mouth, "that you would find interesting."

He raised an eyebrow at you and smirked. "Interesting information that I would find interesting?"

"Mhmm," you said, nodding vigorously this time. "I will tell you later," you added, unnecessarily enunciating each word, "when we're alone," you whispered, not realizing your voice was still rather loud. It didn't matter anyway, nobody could overhear you when the guests were all breaking up into groups and talking over each other, but still.

He grinned and glanced around the deck, "Alright, then," he replied. He was about to say more when his eyes landed on someone over your shoulder and he stiffened. You were too slow on the uptake to see what Tammy was mouthing to him, but when he subtly nodded and stood up, you glanced behind you to see her walking discreetly into the yacht, leaving her clueless husband behind.

"I'll be right back," he said to you, and before you could say anything to stop him, he strolled off in her wake, leaving you all alone.

You could blame the alcohol and pretend you weren't jealous, but you were absolutely fuming. Zoe had to be right. How could he be so careless? Did he really think nobody would notice? How could he not tell you about his history with Tammy when it could all blow up in your faces?

Then something occurred to you that made your stomach roll and you had to take a few deep breaths to fight back the wave of nausea.

What if they were still having an affair?

Is that why he didn't want to take things further with you? We can't, he had said. Was he fucking another man's wife this entire time?

You never felt so stupid in your life. Of course, that's what it was. No wonder he put a clause in your contract stating that sex was not to be part of the agreement. How fucking pathetic of him to act so faithful to another man's wife.

What if he was fucking her right now?

You stood up too quickly and lost your balance, but fortunately an arm shot out to steady you.

"Hey, you okay?"

You glanced up over your sunglasses to find Brooks, one of Glenn's sons, standing there with his hand wrapped around your arm looking concerned.

Quickly, you shook your head and forced a smile. "Yeah, the sun got to me, I think," you told him, then after another moment you realized his grip around your bicep hadn't loosened. Your eyes slowly drifted down to his hand and you gave your arm a little tug. Finally, he released you and you gave him a polite chuckle before fixing your cover up so you would feel less exposed in your bikini under his gaze.

"My dad says we should be reaching the island soon," he said, shoving his hands into the pockets of his board shorts. They were neon blue and hung low on his hips. Almost too low, as if he were trying to draw your attention to it.

"Yeah, it sounds great. Should be fun," you mumbled, glancing around the deck, still not finding Joel or Tammy.

"Ever been here before?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. You shook your head.

"To Fiji? No," you answered.

"I'm surprised. It's a pretty common vacation spot for people in Joel's circle," Brooks said. If you were a little less distracted you might have picked up on the fact that he said Joel's circle and not your circle, but you didn't. You were too fixated on your anger and you were fueled by one too many drinks.

"Yeah - would you excuse me? I need to use the restroom," you said, gathering your things in your arms.

"Sure thing," he said, taking a step back so you could brush past him. "See you at dinner."

You gave him what you hoped was a polite wave before storming towards the glass doors that led into the yacht, but just when you were a few feet away, the door swung open and Tammy stepped out. It could have been your paranoia, but you thought she had a little smirk on her face when she passed by you and after that, all you saw was red.

You breezed through the sitting room. The only other people around were two servers who were quietly packing up dishware to take to the beach, then Joel suddenly appeared in the entryway that led back to your room wearing a different shirt than before and you clenched your teeth.

"Hey, was just comin' to get you," he said, not yet picking up on your anger. "You should get ready for dinner, we'll be there soon."

You narrowed your eyes at him and crossed your arms, uncaring that you could be overheard when you spat, "whatever you say, daddy," your tone clipped and dripping with disdain.

The muscles in his jaw twitched and his nostrils flared when he finally sensed your energy. He looked up, catching the eye of one of the crew members, who quickly averted his gaze and pretended not to have overheard what you said, then grabbed your arm.

You had the presence of mind not to fight him and cause a scene, but once he hauled you halfway down the hallway towards some privacy, you wrenched your arm out of his hold.

"The hell's the matter with you?" he seethed. "Are you fuckin' drunk?"

You rolled your shoulder, trying to fix your coverup that slipped down your arm while staring daggers at him.

"What's the matter with me?" you repeated, "what about you? What are you doing? Do you really think nobody sees what's going on?"

He furrowed his brow in confusion and made a face. "What are you talkin' 'bout?"

You took a menacing step forward and lowered your voice. "I'm talking about Tammy, Joel."

His eyes flashed with something you couldn't identify and you hardly had a chance to react before he grabbed your arm again and practically dragged you the rest of the way down the hall towards your room. Once you were safely inside, he slammed the door behind him and stalked over to you, making you stumble backwards in surprise.

"What the hell do you know 'bout that?"

You scoffed and rolled your eyes, trying to push down the wave of envy that bubbled up. "So it is true."

"Answer my fuckin' question," he growled, his eyes steely and his breath coming in quick. You shrugged and tried your best not to look nervous while being the target of his wrath.

"That you're having an affair," you said simply.

He stared down at you for what felt like hours before he exhaled and stepped back. He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head before murmuring, "who told you?"

"Zoe," you sneered, taking one step backwards so you could rest your head against the wall. "Guess that means Zach knows, too."

"Fuck," he grumbled, then dragged his palms down his face in agony. "Fuck!" he said again, but shouted it that time and pounded his fist on top of a dresser.

You watched him nervously as he paced around the room, his anger beginning to sober you up a bit.

"You should have told me," you snapped. He swiveled around to look at you, his jaw so tight he could have cracked a tooth. "You could have ruined this entire thing but you're lucky I was quick on my feet and covered for you."

"You only need to know what I say you need to know," he said darkly, sending a shiver down your spine. "You were hired to do a job, so fuckin' do it."

You swallowed the lump in your throat when you saw the look in his eye.

"I'm trying, but you-"

"No," he said, cutting you off and closing the distance between you. "You were hired to look pretty and act like you're in love with me. That's fuckin' it. Everythin' else is none of your goddamn business."

You were just digging your own grave at that point so you figured there was no harm in tossing one more barb his way.

"Suppose it would have been too much to ask for you to at least tell me why you left sex out of our arrangement, but at least I know now it's not me. It's 'cause you're getting it somewhere else."

He inhaled sharply, his scowl cutting you in half.

"That's what this is 'bout?" he asked, stepping even closer. "You got your feelin's hurt yesterday?" His tone implied insincere pity and it sent a jolt of embarrassment through you but you remained quiet and held his gaze. He somehow had managed to cage you in against the wall, his arms bracing around your head as he leaned in closer. You could now smell a hint of toothpaste on his breath from when he came in earlier, without you, and you couldn't stop your next words from tumbling out.

"Did you bring her back here and fuck her in the bed I'm going to sleep in tonight?"

He smirked. He fucking smirked and you never in your life wanted to slap someone more.

"Jealous, baby?" he cooed. You shook your head but he just continued to give you that smug look. "Oh, I think you are. And you know what else?" He was taunting you now and you should have pushed him away but you just couldn't bring yourself to do it. He leaned in so his lips brushed against your ear when he whispered, "I think you would let me fuck you right now, if I wanted to."

Tears sprung up in your eyes unexpectedly so you quickly slid them shut. You refused to let him have the satisfaction of your humiliation.

Finally, he pushed himself off the wall and gave you space so you could breathe. With your eyes still closed, he spoke again from the other side of the room.

"I was gone ten minutes. Gimme some credit. I ain't fuckin' anyone in ten minutes."

You heard him yank open the closet and you managed to crack open your eyelids with a pathetic sniffle, watching as he tossed a black dress onto the bed.

"Get ready. We'll be leavin' for the island soon." Then disappeared through the door.

It only took about five minutes before Joel calmed down when the guilt crept in again. Once more he handled another situation with you as poorly as possible and to top it off, he was fairly certain he brought you to tears when he left.

He was so fucking stupid. He should have just told you the truth. He should have told you he hadn't slept with Tammy in over a year and what they had was over, but he just had to keep pushing and pushing. How did he keep making mistake after mistake? You weren't wrong. He should have given you a heads up about Tammy, but he never thought anyone else knew. And instead of admitting it, he lashed out, taking his anger out on you when it wasn't even your fault to begin with. It was his, for being careless and stupid enough for others to find out.

When you emerged from your shared room looking refreshed and fucking stunning in the dress he had rudely thrown onto the bed, he almost apologized. He wanted to, but one look at you told him you were not at all ready to hear it, so he swallowed his words and gave you some space. Well, as much space as he could allow when you were surrounded by ten other people on a deserted beach at sunset eating dinner.

He resisted the urge to drape his arm around the back of your chair or brush his fingers against yours where they rested on the table. Please forgive me, I'm sorry, he kept thinking every time he glanced your way, but you avoided all eye contact and focused on the conversation around you.

During dinner, he noticed you had not one but two more drinks and hardly touched a thing on your plate. He wanted to say something, he wanted to encourage you to at least eat a little more, but he couldn't risk setting you off again, especially in front of everyone. So he bit his tongue and smiled politely when he needed to but mentally he was scrambling to come up with a way to make things up to you.

You stretched your neck with a sigh at one point, drawing his attention, his eyes lingering on the way your fingers trailed down your throat, then watched when you pressed two fingertips into a sore spot on the base of your neck.

How could you ever think he wouldn't want you? Of course, he wanted you. Anyone in their right mind would want you. The second he laid eyes on you it was all he could think about. How could you not see that?

Fortunately, the entire group seemed to be tired so nobody really noticed or cared that you and Joel were not very talkative. On the boat ride back, he instinctively reached for your hand when the boat swayed a little in the choppy waters, but you quickly pulled your arm out of reach and turned away.

It was past ten and the waves were rockier than earlier. He wanted to thank you again for reminding him to take his motion sickness pill but he refrained. Fuck, what he wouldn't give to go back to that part of the day and do everything over.

When the boat reached the yacht, you practically leapt off and jogged back inside, his heart sinking in his chest at your retreating form. He offered his good nights and slowly followed you with his head hung low and his hands shoved in his pockets, but when he finally reached your room he realized the real reason you had been in such a hurry.

The moment he opened the door he could hear you retching in the bathroom and his eyes widened. He closed the door behind him quickly and he rushed to the bathroom, pausing on the other side of the door, unsure what to do or say.

"Are you alright?" he finally asked.

"Does it sound like I'm alright?" you shot back before gagging once again. He winced.

"I'll get you some ginger ale and crackers," he said, spinning around the room until he found a mini refrigerator stocked with a few necessities. As expected, some seasick items were supplied, and he picked out a few things he thought might help. Setting them down on your end table, he turned around and scratched his chin.

While he waited for you to emerge, he got himself changed into more comfortable clothes and then went in search of your own pajamas to lay out for you when you were ready. In one of the drawers he found a few motion sickness bags and he left one out for you when an idea struck. Quickly, he rummaged through his pants from earlier and triumphantly pulled out a little plastic bottle of pills.

When was the last time he ever tried this hard for a woman?

Just as he was about to call out to you again, you swung open the door. Your face looked pale and your eyes were red but you remained defiant and refused to glance his way. You spotted the clothes he laid out for you, and then the items on your bedside, and he thought he saw a flicker of affection in your eyes before you blinked and it was gone.

"Here," he said, holding out the bottle for you. "Take one of these, it'll help."

You stared at it for a few moments as you weighed your options, then begrudgingly snatched it from his hand and tapped one out into your palm. Tossing the bottle onto his side of the bed, you swallowed the pill with the water he set out for you and picked up your pajamas before retreating back into the bathroom for some privacy.

By the time you had changed, Joel had already switched the television on low to some bright sitcom he thought you might like and had turned down the bed. He sat on his side of the mattress, shamefully staring down at his fingers laced together in his lap, then glanced up when he heard the door open and the light turn off.

"Thank you," you murmured before sliding into bed and pulling the covers up to your chin.

"You're welcome," he said softly. He watched you silently for a few minutes while the corners of your mouth twitched occasionally at something that was said on the television, then he cleared his throat, warning you he was about to speak.

"I'm sorry," he said, brows pinching together. You looked up at him in surprise but said nothing, so he continued. "I shoulda told you 'bout Tammy. You were right. And I shouldn't've said... that other stuff," he added weakly, looking down at his hands again. "I ain't any good at this," he continued, pursing his lips in thought. "I push people away, I say all the wrong shit, always have, and now I'm doin' it to you. And it's... it ain't right."

You scanned his face, your resolve crumbling when you saw the sincerity behind his eyes.

"It's okay," you finally said, your voice sounding so small from underneath the plush comforter.

He shook his head. "No, it ain't."

"No, but I forgive you, anyway."

He finally dragged his eyes up to meet yours and smiled. "Thank you, darlin'."

You sighed and readjusted a bit under the covers. "I'm sorry, too."

"Nothin' for you to be sorry for."

"I got too drunk and embarrassed you. It won't happen again."

He scoffed and gave you a look of disbelief. "Half the people on this boat got just as drunk as you. These people are borderline alcoholics," he said, making you giggle a little. He grinned, his heart soaring when he heard the sound. "None of 'em probably even remember we went to dinner."

You laughed a little louder at that and he joined in with a chuckle under his breath. He could feel his muscles relaxing, his nerves settling. He may have just salvaged things yet.

Joel leaned back and tucked his legs under the covers, watching the sitcom but not really absorbing anything. In the past, when he let his mind wander, it was not exactly the way he pictured being in bed with you, but it was still nice.

"Things are over with me 'n her, by the way," he said after a long, comfortable silence. Your body stiffened and you tipped your head in his direction.

"Why didn't you just tell me that to begin with?"

He grinned and shrugged. "Maybe I liked it when you got jealous."

Your cheeks flared with heat and you pulled the bedding up tighter around you.

"Asshole," you muttered. He laughed, making you smile.

"I deserved that."

He could tell when you began to drift off. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw your head tilt towards your shoulder and your perfect lips part ever so slightly. You began to snore so softly, it almost seemed fake. No one looked and sounded that beautiful when they slept. Especially after being sick. But of course, you did. He should have known.

Joel reached over and flicked the lights off, washing the room in the television's glow, then slid deeper underneath the covers. Quietly, he turned the TV off and waited until his eyes adjusted to the darkness before rolling his head to the side to look at you.

What the hell were you doing to him?

It had only been a week and he could already feel himself falling, already doing things out of character and feeling more at ease in general.

So what was one more thing?

Carefully, so as not to wake you, he inched forward and wrapped one arm around your middle, pausing to see if you would stir. When your breath remained steady and even, he got a little closer and pulled.

You took a deep breath and sighed, then rolled onto your side. He closed the remaining space between you and tucked you against his chest while snaking one arm under your pillow, the other still around your waist.

The last thing he remembered thinking was how your hair smelled like coconut and vanilla, a comforting scent he wanted to wrap himself in that was so soft and addicting, it put him right to sleep.

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[spider-ghoul]

Babysitting <3

Percy Jackson X gn!reader (fluff)

In which: a call from Sally Jackson leads you to help with her youngest, and spend the night with her eldest son. Lingering glances and sleepy confessions only to be forgotten by morning.

Warnings: Reader is mentioned to be smaller than Percy once, kissing, none I can think of but as always lmk if there's anything!!

this might be complete shit lmao I finished this at like 3:00 am last night but I wanted to get something out to feed the beasts of this website

~~𓈒ㅤׂㅤ𓇼 ࣪ 𓈒ㅤׂㅤ⭒ 𓆡 ⭒ㅤ𓈒ㅤׂ 🫧~~

At six o'clock on a Friday, normally I'd be rotting in my bed after the week of school. And that was the plan, until Mrs. Jackson mom called.

"Oh- (y/n) I'm so sorry for asking but do you think you could watch Estelle tonight? Me and Paul had a date but Percy was going to the movies with Grover tonight and we-"

"Mrs. Jackson, yeah, it's fine. When do I need to be over?"

"Six is when we're leaving."

"I'll be there at five fifty."

"You're a savior."

This was perfectly fine. Me and Percy were friends and i was the only half-blood who lived around here. I watched Estelle a few times before too. No biggie. Except for the fact I'd been in love with Percy Jackson for...a while.

I mean, he was  kinda my friend. But god, he was Percy Jackson.

At five forty, i headed out. I grabbed my backpack, making sure i had the baby sitting essentials for any four year old: nail polish, beads, and my old rainbow loom (i also spent a extra minute making sure my hair looked okay so that if i saw a certain older brother) I figured that and the t.v. would be more than enough to keep us occupied till her bedtime at eight.

I got there right on time (surprisingly), and Sally greeted me with another thank you. She tried to hand over a few bucks cash, but i pushed her hand away.

She rushed out of the door with Paul after a few more (failed) attempts of paying me, leaving me with an excited two four old. And before too long, she had me watching Bluey (Though i do thoroughly enjoy that show), and making bracelets for us.

She watched as i showed her how to bead the string and make sure the letter beads where on the right way, and then she helped me choose colors.

To start i made one with her name in purple and white. She giggled and slide it on her wrist. I started working on a second one, and she told me to tie hers. It was all blue and had me spell out 'Percy' with beads for her.

"Is this for your brother?" She nodded excitedly, "well, we'll give it to him when he get here, okay?"

I got a solid hour with the beads before she got bored, and by the end both of our wrists had a fair share of bracelets littering them, and a small pile of three bracelets for Percy.

I seriously hope she's awake when he gets here, I can imagine the teasing that would come with handing him bracelets and saying, "oh yeah sorry I'm at your house haha baby sitting- oh me and your sister made you bracelets-". Or i could imagine our hands touching causing me to panic. I could imagine a million things actually.

I think this whole crush is really getting out of hand, especially with me becoming his mom's go to sitter now a days.

Estelle broke me from my thoughts with requests to watch 'Nemo', her favorite. We've watched it every time I've babysat. Part of me wonders if Percy likes it too, I mean with the whole sea god thing. 

As for her request, I made a bag of microwave popcorn and set her down in front of the TV.

I vaguely remember the opening, and Estelle fell asleep next to me before i dozed off myself.

I woke up a bit later, maybe half an hour? The movie wasn't finished, but Estelle was already fast asleep. I took the liberty of scooping her up and placing her in her own bed before going to clean up the main room.

It wasn't bad, just putting away my beads, and getting the popcorn bowl out of the way. I was tired enough, school was rough this week. I just planted myself back on the couch, finding Nemo not quite finished as I did.

I'm not quite sure when i feel back asleep, just that i did.

I'm also not quite sure when Percy Jackson sat down next to me, but he did.

I woke up, curled around a throw pillow, the end credits were playing. I rolled onto my back, and that's when I saw him.

Maybe i was too tired, or maybe he was just smiling, but i didn't feel all that anxious. At least not like i normally do around the son of the sea god.

"Do you always fall asleep to Nemo or is this a special occasion?"

"Do you always watch me sleep or is this a special occasion...?"

He laughed and my heart fluttered.

"Uhm, sorry your mom had me come over to babysit, I didn't know you'd be home yet." I say awkwardly smiley as i sit up, yawning. 

"It's fine, y/n. She texted me, sorry to have you waste a Friday."

"Oh its fine, better than doing nothing. Your sis was an angel, like always." I say, shifting, my shirt bunched up around my waist while I was sleeping. I was also pretty positive my hair was a mess. 

"Oh and speaking of my mom- before i forget." He pulled out a twenty, "now I figure you aren't gonna want to take it, but it's sally's orders."

"I'd feel bad, its just a favor. Your mom is always so nice, she patched me up after a monster attack once, this is just me repaying her."

"She did? When?" His eyebrows furrowed together, his eyes filled with concern.

And i felt my face getting hot again.

"A few weeks ago, your house was closer than mine, it's fine." I mutter, looking down. 

He sighed, "what happened?" he said, reaching out to put his hand over mine. I short wire for a moment, looking back up at him. 

"Just something on my way home from school, it wasn't bad."

After a brief moment of silence, i wanted to crawl out of my skin.

He sighed, "as long as you're fine." he lifted his hand off of mine, though I could still feel his warmth. 

I smiled weakly, "oh uh..what time is it?" 

"Uh.. ten-ish?"

"I should be getting home." I say, sighing turning away from him. 

"It's pretty late, I wouldn't want you to walk back alone."

"It's not far-"

"I'm sure my mom would say the same thing, you know."

I sighed, knowing he was right, "i don't want to intrude." 

"Neither me or Sally would care."

"...."

"...can i bribe you to stay with waffles?"

"...yeah you can." I sigh, any of Sally's food was enough to make me do just about anything. 

Percy smiled, making my heart melt.

"Great, it'll be like a sleepover. Do you need to borrow a shirt or something?"

"Yeah, that uhm- that would be great." I mutter, pushing myself up off the couch. My neck was sore, who would have guessed that a throw pillow wasn't great for sleeping? I stretch my arms out over my head, yawning again. 

"tired?" He chuckles, raising his eyebrow. 

"well you did just wake me up-" I resort, rolling my eyes. I always forget how nice Percy is. I always worry about stupid things, but when I'm with him none of it really matters.

"You woke up on your own- I was simply..." He trails off, and I laugh:

"Watching me sleep?" 

"What can I say? You looked so.. pretty." He look down at me, and I could swear my heart stops, but I don't look away.

"...Yeah, whatever." I mummer quietly,  staring into his eyes and blinking a few times before finally breaking eye contact.

After a short moment, He mumbles something about getting me to bed. I nod quickly, following him to his room, which is surprisingly clean. He digs though his dresser drawers for a moment, pulling out some old band tee, and blue plaid pants. He hands them to me. 

"Is this fine for you? might be a big big, just let me know-" 

"it's fine. No worries." I say quickly, taking them, making sure to avoid his hands. "Thanks." 

He smiles again, and I leave for the bathroom, my heart pounding in my ears. 'pretty'? it's nothing, Percy is just nice like that. 

I change into his clothes, the smell of ocean engulfing me as the soft fabric hangs from my body.  I can't help but to push my head into my shoulder. It smells like him. 

I ball up my jeans and tee shirt, shoving them into my backpack. I slipped out the bathroom once I calmed myself down enough to talk to him again. 

I walk up to Percy's door, "Hey, I'm gonna go lay down do you have a blanket or something I can use..?" 

His eyebrows furrowed as he looked up at me from where he was laying on his bed, "You don't seriously think I'm making you sleep on the couch-?" 

"Well I kinda assumed..?" 

"Get over here you dork." He said, scooting over on his bed, "Plenty of room- you don't mind, do you?" 

Part of me lit on fire, and part of me was desperate to put it out. My ears got hot, but I managed to nod.

"No, I don't mind.." 

I place my bag on the floor by the door, walking up and sitting on his bed, sliding my legs under the covers and sliding down to lay next to him. I was stiff, worried to so much as touch him. But eventually, I relaxed, turning to lay on my side, facing him. 

I looked at him through half-lidded eyes, my body already starting to sink into his bed, ready to get a proper night's sleep. My eyelids slowly drifted shut. 

I was woken when Percy broke the silence. 

"Y/N?" Percy whispered, almost silent. 

"Mhm..?" I mumbled back, not bothering to open my eyes. 

"I really like you, you know that?" 

If I wasn't half asleep, maybe I would have said something different. If I had the energy maybe I would have been flustered. 

"... I really like you too." 

I only heard him chuckle before he placed a hand on my hip. 

"Get some sleep, yeah? I'll confess my undying love when you'll properly Remember it." 

I must have frowned, because he laughed lightly and pulled me a little closer. 

It didn't matter though. I slipped back to sleep, and when I woke up I didn't  remember. 

I remembered waking up some point in the night, but I didn't know what was said. 

And in the morning, I got the promised waffles and left the Jackson's apartment. 

The ever chivalrous Percy Jackson (who I woke up cuddling with), offered to walk me home. 

We took the long way, and when we reached my door step, he pressed his lips to mine and told me he couldn't wait for me to babysit again, though he wouldn't mind me coming around before then. 

He left me breathless and giddy, and so so happy to have accepted Sally's offer.

[martiniluvr]

Dick is away on a mission. He said he'd only be gone a few days but it's been a week and there's still no end in sight. Of course youre frustrated, in more ways than one, and you spot something perfect while out shopping.

Running home straight after and changing into your pretty blue lingerie that always drives dick wild, you have three of the same pair because he keeps ripping them in his desperation, moving to your bathroom you pull out the item. A nail polish, a blue nail polish so perfectly colored it made you freeze in the aisle.

Painting your nails quickly, a pattern of his blue and black, you try to let them dry first but the anticipation is killing you. You can't resist sending dick a "thinking about you 💕" text, he responds almost immediately.

"Thinking about you too princess. What are you doing?"

Of course he knows. He always knows when you need him. Laying back on the bed you snap a pic, just so he can see the lingerie, he cant see the nails yet.

"Fuck. This mission was supposed to be over already. I swear I'll be home soon baby, gonna make it up to you"

You can't help but laugh to yourself as you imagine him groaning at the sight of you. Now its time to set your plan into motion, leaning back and pulling your panties to the side you spread yourself open for him and take a picture. Perfect sight of the nails in his color, over the pretty pussy he owns. Sending it you feel the same butterflies you had in your stomach the first time you and dick slept together.

He sees it. Hes typing. He stops. Hes typing. He stops.

Ten minutes go by. You dont know what to say, did he not like it? Was it too much? You almost send an apology text when your bedroom door is slammed open, dick is standing there panting and covered in sweat, you can't even get a word out before hes on you

"You think you're fucking funny? I was on the other side of the city, don't even know how many traffic laws i broke getting here."

He almost snarls into your mouth as he kisses you, the kiss is hungry, one of those teeth clashing, lip biting kisses that make your head spin.

"God i love you. Lemme see those nails. Wanna see how they look wrapped around me..."

Inspired by my nightwing colored nails. (I got a nail polish that was exactly nightwing blue down to the hex code and i picked it out by eye in a row of like 30 shades of blue... I need help)

sexting him while he’s busy doing Other Things…..dare I say one of my favourite tropes ever? like….there’s nothing to add to this. u cooked, served, ate, and licked the plate I fear. also dick getting turned on by seeing you in anything nightwing blue—his blue—is SO real bcus he’s definitely that cocky. wow. leah…beloved…you’ve done it again 🤞💘

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hi there!

If you still take stardew valley requests please write hurt/comfort with Shane and (gn) reader about Shane getting progressively more worried about the farmer each time they go mining because of all the injuries they get there to the point where one day he snaps and breaks down in front of the farmer. It would be nice if you could show shane slowly loosing his mind each day but that would probably make the fic longer so no pressure. just pls make sure theres comfort after the hurt, bad endings make me sad :(

Thank you in advance, and even if you choose not to write this i hope you still have a lovely day.

I'm always down for Shane angst <3

In my main file I fear he's like this bc I'm constantly coming back from the dangerous mines/skull caverns on like 1 hp at 1:50 am

......

(Spring, Year 1)

"Hi, Shane!"

"God, what do you want now?"

"Nothing. I'm off to the mines." You grinned at the rugged man in front of you, holding up your pickaxe. "I'm shooting for level 120 this time, and hopefully I can pick up more gems along the way."

Shane raised a brow. "...and I care because?"

"You don't have to. Just thought I'd let you know."

'What? Like you think I'll go looking for you if you pass out? Forget it. Whatever happens is your own damn fault."

"I know the risks, but thank you." You politely answered, ignoring his blunt rudeness before checking the monster slayer guide. "The Adventurer's Guild wants me to slay a ton of bats...only 200 more to go."

""Adventurer's Guild?" Sounds stupid and childish." He grumbled, taking a swig of joja cola in his grasp. He was already running late to work, and he didn't want to get yelled at by Morris.

And he certainly didn't want you, the new farmer who made it their mission to annoy the shit out of him everyday, being the reason.

"Well it's neither of those things. It's actually thrilling." You chuckled, before digging an emerald out of your pocket. "I meant to sell this yesterday, but you can have it."

"...the hell? What am I supposed to do with this?" His brows furrowed at the green mineral you shoved into his hand.

"Keep it..for good luck, I guess?" You shrugged. "You can put it in your pocket and forget about it if you want. I just wanted to give you something nice. Plus, not to be weird, but...it kinda reminded me of your eye color."

Normally, any other villager would've been thrilled that you wanted to befriend them with gifts that reminded you of them.....

Yet Shane just stared at you as though you've confessed to stalking him.

"If you wanna give me something that's actually "nice", buy me a beer at the saloon next time." He sneered, brushing past you and continuing towards JojaMart, while you headed north of town, already knowing what you're gonna do tonight.

When you looked over your shoulder, you could see him pocket the emerald rather than throw it away despite him passing by several trash cans.

And you smiled.

.

.

.

.

.

.

(Present Day)

"Awh, you still held onto that emerald even after all this time?"

"Yeah, so what? It was the first gift anyone's really given me.." Shane confessed, heat rising to his cheeks as he held the mineral between his fingers. "I never believed in all that crap about crystals and "energy" that Emily talks about. But..I just like keeping this one around. It's like...erm..."

"A testament to the start of our friendship and eventual marriage?" You cheekily grinned as you polished your weapon, before looking to your husband.

He nodded. "Exactly what I was gonna say."

"I know you so well." Chuckling, you walked over to kiss him on the cheek. "I'm gonna head to the mines, okay? Welwick says the spirits will shower everyone in good luck. I wanna see if the fabled prismatic shards really do exist."

Almost immediately, Shane froze..and he found himself wanting to desperately say "no" and convince you to stay on the farmhouse.

But he didn't know why.

From the moment he met you, he knew you sought adventure and profits in the mines, fighting all sorts of monsters for the Adventurer's Guild. He's seen skeletons, mummies, and golems caged up at Spirits' Eve festivals, but never the wild ones below the surface who attacked you relentlessly.

Yet you never let the constant dangers deter you from exploring.

Mining was exhausting work, yet rewarding every time you cracked a stone open to find a diamond or discovered a treasure chest. With the materials you've gathered, you were able to craft some rings to wear, enchanted with powers to help make your excursions easier and safer.

Despite being well-prepared, though, Shane did have his concerns...especially as once you came home after clashing with skeletons, a scar on your head from a flying femur bone that still hasn't fully healed.

You only went to Harvey to get it checked out after your husband--who was your boyfriend at the time--insisted on it.

Even before that, he'd see you around town, bearing a new bug bite, scratch, burn, bruise, or bandaid on your body.

It never worried him before, but after that skeleton incident, he finally understood that those monsters were real and you were seriously getting yourself hurt.

He'd go to the mines with you if not for his fears that he'll only make things worse. There's a good chance he'll slow you down and find himself getting swarmed by slimes, bats, bugs, and whatever the hell else was there....and he wasn't exactly the most fit to swing a sword or pickaxe.

Simple walks made him tired.

What good would he do?

"Shane? What's wrong?"

Blinking, he snapped out his thoughts and saw your concerned face. "Nothing, sweetheart." He dismissed, giving you a little smile. "Just be careful out there, alright? I'll take care of things here."

"Thank you, baby." Smiling back, you gave him a kiss before heading out the door with your backpack and tools. "Off to the bottom of the mines I go!"

Shane tensed.

"Wait-"

As quickly as the door opened, it slammed shut, and he was left by himself in the cabin.

It was an uncomfortable silence.

'Maybe I should've tagged along.....buh, what am I saying? They'll be fine. They do this all the time. Stop getting so worked up, idiot..' Clearing his mind yet again, he went off to check things around the farm for you, deciding to watch TV later on.

There was gonna be another Tunneler's game tonight, so at least he had that to look forward to.

Nothing like that, some good food in the fridge, and this cozy cabin he got to call home...

And it was all because of you.

If you could build everything here and still having the energy to go mining and fight monsters, why should he worry?

.

.

.

.

.

1:20 AM

After a productive day, Shane managed to fall asleep early for once.

Only be woken up by the creak of the bedroom door.

Light almost immediately flooded his vision, stirring him from his slumber as he grumbled and tried to shield his eyes, wondering what time it was.

"Fuck..morning already-?"

"No, honey..it's...just me. Sorry.."

He blinked, sitting up to see that it was only you coming into the room, removing your rings. One of them served as your light source, yet it didn't hide the numerous scratched and bruises that littered your skin.

And they were all fresh.

"Babe, wha...are you okay?" Shane was now fully awake, watching as you peeled off your jacket and trousers, tossing them into the corner of the room before dragging yourself into bed.

Only then could he see your injuries up close and personal, and his heart began racing. "What happened? You look like hell."

"I'm fine, Shane. I just..need to sleep it off.."

"B-But...there's blood everywhere.." He mumbled, his eyes going to the clothes in the corner. "I can call Harvey-"

"No..don't. I already patched myself up. I'll be fine in the morning..I just wanna be here with you." Smiling weakly, you kissed him, before putting the prismatic shard into his hand. "Look. It exists...haha...it's so pretty, right? It's yours."

He didn't know what to say, staring dumbfounded at the mineral.

What hell did you go through to get this?

And as much as he loved it..why get it for him?

Why risk your life?

But when he looked back to question you further, you were already passed out beside him, looking peaceful despite the wounds on your body.

Eventually, he slid the prismatic shard under his pillow and laid back down, only to hesitate in wrapping his arm around you.

All he could do was gaze at your exhausted face..and the dried blood under your nose.

Least to say, he had trouble falling back to sleep.

..........

Ever since that night, Shane's grown increasingly worried over your safety during your mining trips. And it began to affect his usual routine around the farm.

In fact, calling it "worry" at this point would be a heavy understatement..

It became straight-up paranoia.

Whether you headed off to the mines or Skull Caverns early because of an "extra lucky day" or simply because you needed a specific resource, you'd always come back home the same way:

At later hours, with more injuries and bandages than last time, constantly on the verge of passing out and barely able to hold a conversation with him.

Of course, you'd have breakfast with him, and you'd never leave the farmhouse without giving him a kiss...but it did nothing to ease his mind, as he'd constantly see your wounds and dread whatever horror stories you were about to tell him.

Even though you're perfectly nonchalant as you talk about a serpent who tried wrapping itself around you and squeeze every last breath out of your body, it made Shane feel utterly sick to his stomach.

How could you be so calm after so many brushes with death?

He didn't understand.

On the surface, he seemed fine with you leaving. But when you did, he'd find himself turning to beer to calm his nerves..although most days he was able to resist the urge and occupy himself with farming tasks or video games.

Despite this, he hasn't outright told you anything. He knew mining was your passion and thought you'd chastise him for "worrying over nothing".

So he kept it to himself, thinking his anxiety was being stupid.

Then the final straw came the evening when he got a call from Harvey's clinic around 5PM.

One that he hoped to never hear:

You passed out, and were currently being treated for serious injuries.

He bolted out the cabin, all the way to the town square and damn near broke the door down. There, Harvey, Linus, and Marlon were at your bedside, the latter two having brought you in after seeing you fall unconscious in from of the elevator, covered in blood and shrapnel.

Fortunately, you were expected to make a full recovery with just stitches and some IV fluids to rehydrate your body...but you still owed Shane one hell of an explanation.

This time around, you landed in an "infested" area of the 100s, trying to use a bomb to kill off most of the monsters.

Only to trip over a stupid lava crab and drop the bomb after you just ignited it, damn near losing your leg trying to kick it away from you in time.

And by the grace of Yoba, you were able to limp your way back to the ladder, return to floor zero, where Linus so-happened to be passing by the mine entrance.

You gave the poor old man quite a fright, as he didn't know how much blood on you was from the monsters...or you.

In the end, the bomb left shrapnel in your flesh, searing your clothing and requiring stitches to ensure you didn't bleed out. You appreciated Harvey for his quick work and for Linus and Marlon for taking you to him.

However nobody in that clinic was more terrified over your condition than Shane, who was in disbelief that you were able to stand and walk back home with him after getting discharged.

He wouldn't talk to you, although his hands shook as he helped you into bed, still sleeping beside you like he did every night before this.

But this time...he had the worst nightmare possible.

He was down in the mines with you, except he felt stuck and couldn't do anything to warn you or save you from the impending danger.

It was like he was spectating a game, instead forced to watch as the bats and monsters made of shadows descended upon you with their teeth bared and claws out, tearing into your body. You had yelled for him to save you, to stop being useless, damning him for not stopping you from leaving...yet their horrible noises drowned out any further shouts.

Then you were gone.

You were gone and he failed you.

And it was all his fault.

It made him joltbwide awake at 3 AM, and he felt like his heart was about to burst from his chest. His mind kept going to you, constantly checking to make sure you're still breathing, unable to fall back to sleep for a while.

When he did, he was in tears.

..........

"No."

"Shane, I know last night was bad. But I'm not-"

"You're not going to the mines today. I mean it."

Dumbfounded, you gazed at Shane, who was physically blocking you from leaving the cabin. A scowl was written all over his face.

You sighed and rubbed the side of your head. "It's only the first few levels, honey. Willy needed bug meat for-"

"Right. The "first few" you say, and then I'll get a call from Harvey at 2 AM about you needing emergency surgery again." He gritted his teeth, tears coming to his eyes. "Whatever he or anyone in this damn town needs in those mines can wait. Why can't you just stay?!"

"I don't understand.." Your eyebrows furrowed. "You never cared before if I went there. What changed?"

"What changed....? What changed is that I've been having a lot more of sleepless nights lately! I can barely eat or do anything except worry and worry about you. And it's because...because..." He trailed off.

"Because what?"

"......."

You sighed. "Shane, if you're not gonna tell me what's wrong, then I don't see why-"

"Because you've been scaring me to death okay?!" His hands now gripping your shoulders as he stared at you. "You think you're invincible, but you aren't. What don't you get?! How badly are you gonna let those things hurt you?! Or be the reason YOU DROP DEAD AND DON'T COME HOME?!!" He screamed.

Your own eyes widened, stunned by his words..and eventually you saw the realization flash across his face as he blurted out his true feelings.

The ones he tried to hide from you, yet consumed him for hours upon hours whenever you left for the mines.

It made your heart plummet.

His breath hitched, and you then saw the tears beginning to fall from his greenish eyes.

"Shane..."

"[Y/n], you saved me from throwing my life away. And...i-it's like you're throwing away yours for no reason!" He sobbed. "Night after night, I have nightmares of seeing your limp body..a-and....and I can't save you. I can't do anything except scream and beg them to stop hurting you! But they never listen! A-And...I just...I-I don't wanna lose you. I can't lose you..."

He looked totally shattered, making you finally realize how serious this was.

Your guilt right now was immensurable, watching the man you loved fall apart right in front of you.

And it was your fault.

"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry..." You pulled him into a tight hug, and he completely broke down in your arms. His quiet crying became muffled by your shoulder. "I..I had no idea you were feeling that way. Why didn't you tell me about the nightmares sooner?"

"You would've thought..th-they were stupid. Or that I sound "needy" or controlling.." He sniffled. "I-I know I can't stop you from going, but...I just..a-after what happened to you last night, I...I.."

"Oh, honey..that was my dumb mistake. The monsters had nothing to do with my injuries." Rubbing his back, you gently kissed his head. "I was tired and got clumsy with a stupid bomb..but I promise it won't happen again. You're right. I'm not invincible. I need that reality check sometimes."

He didn't say anything, instead holding onto you tighter.

You never realized how badly your mining trips and injuries were affecting him...affecting this very relationship.

The Shane you met back in Year 1 could care less if you dropped dead. He outright said he'd never go looking for you and that whatever happened was your own fault.

But the Shane you knew now was crying in your arms over the mere thought that one day you'll go into the mines and never come out, holding it all in until he couldn't anymore.

You've really helped him open up to you, but now you were tearing him apart inside and never really knew it until this point.

"W-Will you just..stay here today, please?" He finally spoke, not caring about how needy or pathetic that sounded.

"...I will." You answered. "I'll take a break from mining for a good while."

"....you would do that for me?"

"Of course. I'd do anything for you, Shane. Hell..I'd give that up altogether if you wanted me to."

You felt him shake his head, and you chuckled, squeezing him tightly. "I'm only kidding, but I promise. No more mining this week."

Shane raised his head up, looking to make sure you were serious. And he saw nothing but sincerity in your expression.

You sighed softly and cupped the sides of his wet face, seeing the torrent of anxiety and frustration raging like an ocean current in his eyes. "You must've felt so lonely and terrified, baby..I'm sorry. I won't make you feel that way ever again."

He sniffled again as you brushed away his tears, before taking ahold of your wrist to kiss your palm...where your first scar from a rock crab came from.

How badly did he wanna kiss away every scar those bastards left on you until none remained.

Some faded with time and care, but others were more permanent--testaments to your survival down in the mines..as well as your several brushes with death.

Heat rose to your cheeks, watching him become so affectionate and gentle with you, even though he knows you're not made of glass whatsoever.

Eventually, his tears ceased as you both decided to go lay down on the bed together, with Shane cuddling up to you and resting his head on your chest. All he could hear was your strong heartbeat drowning out the noise in his mind.

It was still kicking, like you.

"Thank you..god, that was exhausting.." He mumbled. "I'm sor-"

"You don't have to be sorry for being honest with me." You reassured, petting his hair. "I just..wish I picked up the signs sooner."

"INah, I should've been clearer...and maybe that would spare myself this headache I got now.."

"Hmm..how about we sleep in until you feel better? Then we can check on the chickens."

Feeling him nod and wrap his arms around you, you took that as a "yes" and chuckled softly, knowing you weren't gonna leave this spot anytime soon.

But that's okay.

There's no other place you'd rather be. Not even the mines.

[savanaclaw1996]

The Lion in the Garden-Leona Kingscholar x Fem! Reader

As you know, today is August 10th, and that also happens to be World Lion Day! And so, we celebrate the day honoring the renowned King of the Beasts, the lion! So here's a little fic to get us all in the mood!

Enjoy!

Word Count: 1,260 words.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You just couldn't believe it. One minute you were on your way towards your next class with your friends, and the next, you were suddenly whisked away by an unseen force.

It was just another day at Night Raven College. (Y/n), Ace, Deuce and Grim had just finished ancient history and were moving on to your next class, alchemy science.

The four of you were just talking and walking down the hallway when suddenly, there was a loud commotion and the students before you suddenly started running and yelling in panic.

"Lion! Lion! There's a huge lion in the hall!" one of the students started screaming. You raised an eyebrow, confused. Ace, Deuce and Grim also looked bewildered. "Huh? A lion? In the hallway?" you wondered. That couldn't be right.

But sure enough, as the crowd quickly parted, you saw a giant lion running towards you, Grim, Ace and Deuce. The lion had uber umber-colored fur and its large, shaggy dark chocolate-colored mane shook as it ran.

To see a wild lion running through the hall would definitely scare the living daylights out of anyone who crossed its path, for you, Grim, Ace and Deuce already started screaming in terror and scrambling to get out of its way.

Then the lion suddenly locked eyes with you. Like a deer caught in headlights, you froze. The lion's eyes were the color of summer, a brilliant green, shining like finely polished emeralds.

Before you or anyone else could do anything, the lion suddenly charged towards you at full speed. "Henchman!!" Grim screamed as he tried to reach you, but he was too late. The beast crashed into you and knocked you down to the floor.

"(Y/N)/HENCHMAN!!!" Ace, Deuce and Grim all screamed at the top of their lungs in horror. You, on the other hand, let out a frightened squeal, too shocked to even scream.

The lion had you pinned to the floor, its large frame covering yours. You stared up at the beast, your heart was pounding hard against your chest. Then suddenly, the lion reached down towards you and grabbed your jacket collar in its jaws.

With a yelp, you were suddenly lifted onto its back and the lion took off like a shot, taking you along on its back. All the while, Ace, Deuce and Grim could only watch helplessly and panic fearfully while you were whisked away by the lion.

"WH-WH-WH-WHAT DO WE DO?!?!" Ace shrieked. "I-I-I-I DON'T KNOW!!!" Deuce screamed. "HE'S GONNA EAT HER!!!" Ace wailed. "I'LL NEVER SEE HER AGAIN! SHE'LL NEVER FEED ME AGAIN! HENCHMAN!!!" Grim cried, fat tears rolling down his furry cheeks.

"Silence, puppies!" a voice suddenly demanded, followed by the crack of a whip. The three boys immediately went silent. Walking up towards them was none other than Divus Crewel himself.

Deuce quickly ran towards Crewel. "Crewel-sensei...! We need your help! T-Th-There was a big lion, and it-!" he stammered. but Crewel cut him off. "Yes, I know. There has been an accident in the lab. Kingscholar was caught in the explosion and had transformed into an actual lion." he replied.

"Eh?!!" Ace, Deuce and Grim all exclaimed, gawking at Crewel before he continued, "Despite having transformed into an actual lion, it seems that Kingscholar-san has still somehow maintained his cognition."

"Even so, it still would be wise to create a potion that'll change Kingscholar-san back to his former self. I will be in charge of creating the potion." He then gave the three boys a stern look.

"In the meantime, you puppies will have to keep an eye on Kingscholar-san and (Y/N)-san. Make sure that nothing terrible happens to either of them." Ace, Deuce and Grim all nodded. "Yes, sensei!" they all chorused.

"Good." With that, Crewel went to create the potion while Ace, Deuce and Grim ran down the direction Leona and (Y/N) headed down to. After 5 minutes of searching, they finally arrived at the Botanical Garden.

"Where are they?" Deuce asked as they looked around inside the garden. Grim turned his head and his eyes widened. "Ah, there they are! I see 'em!" he said. Ace, Deuce and Grim all hid behind the bushes as they looked at the scene before them.

(Y/N) was sitting under the shade of a tree in a grassy area with the large lion lying beside you, his large head on your lap. (Y/N) was softly humming a sweet tune as you gently stroked the lion's mane.

The lion then let out a yawn, revealing its large, sharp canines before it turned his head towards your face. He then softly chuffed at you, and you lowered your head towards his snout, rubbing his cheeks affectionately.

"Leona-senpai. You smell so good." (Y/N) cooed as you gave Leona a little smooch on his nose and another kiss on his chin. Ace shuddered at the sight. "Jeez, kissing a lion like that. (Y/N) sure has some guts."

Meanwhile, Grim was fuming that (Y/M) wa being affectionate towards Leona, giving him pets and kisses. He was supposed to be the one getting pets and kisses, darn it! This ISN'T fair! Grim then hopped out from his hiding place and marched towards (Y/N) and Leona.

"Hey! I want pets and kisses, too, y'know?! I'm your boss!" Grim yelled. Ace and Deuce all cringed. "Grim, you idiot! You're supposed to hide!" Deuce hissed.

Leona's ears twitched as he turned to face Grim. Sensing an intruder interrupting their little session, Leona immediately got up and growled at Grim, making him stop in his tracks.

Leona let out a low, rumbling growl at Grim and bared his fangs at him. Grim's fur on his back stood on end as sweat dripped down his forehead and his little paws began to quake with fear. Grim then realized that Leona was still bigger than him, and if he wanted to, he could easily rip him to shreds.

"Leona-senpai, stop!" (Y/N) yelled. "Don't hurt Grim!" Grim then slowly backed away, wisely giving Leona a wide berth. "F-For-Forget it..." he whispered as he quickly ran back toward the bushes where Ace and Deuce are still hiding.

"Whew! Even as a real lion, Leona is still scary as heck, y'know!" Grim exclaimed. Ace just sighed. "Consider yourself lucky that (Y/N) was there to stop him before he turned you into lion chow." he said.

And so, Ace, Deuce and Grim just watched as (Y/N) and Leona just sat under the tree, enjoying each other's company. It wasn't long before Crewel came in with the potion for Leona. Since Leona won't allow anyone except (Y/N) to touch him, (Y/N) had to be the one to give Leona the potion that will change him back.

And so, (Y/N) gave Leona the potion and changed him back into his beastman self. Leona stretched as he yawned. "Well, that was something." he said casually.

(YN) chuckled. "It doesn't surprise me that you'd still be cuddly even as an actual lion, Senpai." you replied. Leona smiled at (Y/N). "Well, now that that's over, I've gotta get back to the potions class". he said.

Before he left, Leona turned to (Y/N). "Meet me in Savanaclaw later, 'kay?" he asked. (Y/N) nodded. "Yeah, sure! See you there." you nodded. Leona smirked. "That's my girl." he said as he and Crewel left.

(Y/N) sighed dreamily. You couldn't wait to spend the rest of the night with your boyfriend, Leona. Whether he's a lion beastman or an actual lion, it hardly matters. What matters is that Leona will always be your Leona, no matter what.

[hydrobunny]

breakup songs

tags: fluff! (I promise), established relationship, taylor swift songs

"cause i was there when you said forever and always...you didn't mean it baby," you sang passionately with the car's radio. "i don't think-"

the music stopped suddenly. "i don't like this song," sae itoshi grumbled. "pick something else."

you frowned, turning in your seat to face your long term boyfriend. like a good driver, he kept his eyes on the road, expression passive.

"but i like it," you huffed. "and you said i get aux privileges for the next week."

bright teal eyes flicked over you for a moment. "no."

your jaw dropped. "sae! at least tell me why."

"just pick a new song, y/n." his fingers tapped a steady rhythm on the steering wheel. "or i'll do it for you."

pouting, you opened your spotify. "stupid football players and their stupid egos. so used to getting everything they want," you mumbled.

sae ignored your complaints.

"you better like this one."

for the nth time that day, taylor swift's oh so familiar voices leaked through from the high quality speakers all around the car:

"once upon a time, a few mistakes ago-"

sae's hand jumped up to hit the power button. "we're going in silence."

you sputtered nonsensically. "it's another hour until our destination! what's wrong with my music?"

he opened his mouth and closed it. as you fired at him, sae itoshi shrugged silently.

you leaned back into the leather seats, crossing your arms. you couldn't understand why sae was being so shifty. it's not like he had ever minded your music choices before.

in fact, the pro football player had always let you belt out any song you wished, even joining in with enough pleading. it was only in the past week or so that he'd been more annoyed.

frowning, you chewed on your lip nervously. this wasn't a good sign, was it? maybe sae had finally gotten sick of you- found someone better.

you saw him glance at you again. avoiding any eye contact, you turned your gaze toward your hands.

god, when was the last time you had gotten your nails done? your previous polish - a reddish color that matched sae's hair - was chipping from all sides already. you almost frantically picked at the peeling paint.

"y/n," sae's voice was steady. "leave your nails alone."

you jumped, head snapping towards him. "huh?"

he raised one eyebrow, pointedly staring at your hands.

you reddened. "it's not a big deal- keep your eyes on the road. pretend i'm not here or something."

with a narrowing of his eyes, sae turned back to the road.

it was another three miles before you heard him sigh.

"they're breakup songs," sae muttered quietly.

"what?"

the light in front of them flashed red. with another sigh, sae turned his upper body toward you.

"your music. they're always breakup songs now. that's why i don't like them."

you gaped at him, feeling way too much like a goldfish. "what?"

he stared at you. anyone would have assumed he was as indifferent as ever, but you could see that hint of red climbing up his neck.

sae itoshi was embarrassed.

"you're kidding!" you blurted, grinning like a maniac.

he immediately turned his attention back towards the road, but even he couldn't hide the twitch of his lips.

"you're sad because i sing breakup songs?" you managed out past your laughs. "sae, that's so cute!"

"and now i take it all back," he mumbled.

you leaned towards him suddenly, landing a kiss right onto his cheek. sae cursed, car swerving slightly.

"y/n, what-"

"i love you," you said breathlessly, effectively shutting him up. "and i would never break up with you, no matter what taylor swift says."

he snorted. when he replied, his voice was soft all the same. "i love you too."

"...can i have my music back now?"

sae groaned, but there were no complaints as you eagerly tapped through your phone once again.

"we can leave the christmas lights up till january..."

reblogs & feedback appreciated!!

[samofmine]

"de, can i do yours next time?" sam says, big smile on his face, wiggling his feet excitedly as he watches dean painting his nails with a light shade of pink.

"no way, sammy" dean says, "stop moving or i'm gonna screw it up."

he gives sam a stern look, holding his leg still.

sam sighs, "you'd look good with it, though. i could paint yours green! to match your eyes."

dean shakes his head.

no way in hell he'd ever do that. what would dad think?

sam came up with this idea and dean agreed to do it, because there's very little dean won't agree to when sam asks, but only while dad was away and as long as he'd take it off before he came back.

the next day, dean took him to the mall and bought a set of nail polish of different colors. sam was happier than he'd been in a long time and dean felt proud of himself. he was an awesome big brother.

one day, though, john caught them. sam was wearing a red nail polish. he didn't say anything, just gave dean one of those looks that got him sweaty and nervous.

after that, sam doesn't feel the need to hide it from dad anymore.

"see? i told you he wouldn't even notice!"

but yeah, he noticed. dean is glad sam didn't realize it.

but there's no way dad would be cool if dean were to do it.

he finishes the last nail and applies some oil.

"you know the trick. careful with your hands."

sam holds his palms in the air, admiring dean's work.

"i think this one's my favorite." he smiles, showing it to dean.

sam has nice hands.

dean misses when they would hold hands all the time, sam demanding to be by his side wherever they went.

the pale pink color contrasts with his pale skin. he looks softer, prettier even. something in dean's mind makes him want to lock sam up and stop people from seeing him. he knows how to deal with this feeling now, ignoring it until it fades almost completely. almost.

"yeah, pink is definitely your color, baby brother." he messes with sam's hair as he teases, but sam doesn't get dean's tone and just smiles as if he just heard the best compliment ever.

"thanks, de." sam leans in and kisses his cheek, like he always does after dean finishes painting his nails, and dean can't help but melt every time.

"any time." he says softly. he means it.

sam needs to get ready for school and he complains that he should have dressed and brushed his hair first because now he can't use his hands. and dean just pretends he didn't think about that.

"stop whining." he says, dressing sam up in fresh clothes.

sam watches while he brushes his hair. it's getting too long again, but dean won't let him know. he likes it like this.

dean pats his knee when he's done, "alright, i'll start the car, go get your stuff."

dean drives him to school and watches sam talking with his friends, showing off his painted nails, and his chest fills with pride from being the one who did it.

(something in him wants to mark sammy in other ways, have him showing off more things he can leave on his body. he ignores that as well.)

maybe he should get the damn green nail polish. sammy holding his hand carefully, eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he tries to do a good job, his attention fully on dean the entire time... yeah, that's too tempting.

he drives to the store right away.

[flwrstqr]

— PAINTING DAY

₊˚⊹ notes ~ bf!heeseung x gf!reader ⋆⭒ synopsis: you have many favorite moments with heeseung but your favorite is especially when you paint your boyfriend's nails for fun ⊹ ࣪ warnings: petnames, lots of kisses, nail painting ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 word count: 500 ꩜⋆ ˚｡⋆˚ genre: fluff | AN: my writing for the polaroid love event !! | LIBRARY FOR MORE...

YOU FIND YOURSELF LOST IN THE mesmerizing world of nail art, where every stroke of polish is like a tiny masterpiece. It started innocently enough, just painting here and there with different colors, but now, it's become an addiction.

Your latest victim? Your boyfriend, Heeseung.

"Come on, Heeseung, just this once!" you plead, waving a particularly vibrant shade of blue nail polish in his direction.

Heeseung laughs, shaking his head at your persistence. "You know I'm terrible at sitting still for this, baby."

You pout, "I'll do anything for you!"

"Anything?," he asks, a small smile playing on his lips. You gave a quick nod, hoping he would agree.

"Then 10 kisses, 1 kiss for each nail you paint." Heeseung grinned.

Your eyes widened at his deal, "Fine, deal! But you better not leave me like last time." Heeseung nodded as he settled down as you placed all your nail polish and started painting his nails.

You grin mischievously, already thinking of what to paint. As you carefully select the perfect shade, you can feel Heeseung's eyes on you, his gaze warm and fond. It fills you with a fluttery sensation that dances in your chest.

You begin to paint his nails, your touch gentle. Heeseung watches you intently, his expression softening with each stroke of the brush. His fingers twitch slightly, but he remains perfectly still, allowing you to paint smoothly.

When you finally finish, you step back to admire your handiwork. Heeseung's nails are a work of art, a masterpiece of color and design. He stares down at them in awe, his lips quirking up into a soft smile.

"They turned out not that bad," you grinned, admiring them.

"Now, where's my 10 kisses?" Heeseung asked, raising his eyebrow with a playful glint in his eyes. You laughed softly as his sentence to then lean in and leaving a soft kiss on his lips.

Within minutes, you were lost in a playful exchange of kisses, each one a sweet reward for your efforts. Heeseung's lips were soft against yours, his touch sending shivers down your spine. With each kiss, the world seemed to melt away, leaving only the two of you wrapped up in your own little bubble of affection.

Eventually, you pull away, both of you breathless and grinning like fools. "Okay, okay," you tease, "enough with the kisses. We need to admire your fabulous nails some more!"

Heeseung chuckles, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "Alright, alright."

"Thank you for letting me paint your nails, pretty boy," you say softly, a smile tugging at the corners of your lips.

Heeseung reaches out, his hand finding yours and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Anytime, my love. It's moments like these that I cherish the most."

You lean in, resting your head against his shoulder, feeling the warmth of his embrace enveloping you.

Together, you sit in comfortable silence. It's a simple moment, but it's yours, and that's all that matters.

Eventually, Heeseung breaks the silence, his voice soft and full of warmth. "You know," he says, his gaze meeting yours, "I think I might just have to let you paint my nails more often."

You grin, the excitement bubbling up inside you once again. "Really? You mean it?"

Heeseung nods, his smile wide and genuine. "Of course. As long as I get my ten kisses every time."

You laugh, the sound echoing through the room like music. "Deal," you say, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. "You've got yourself a deal." And as you sit there, hand in hand with the person you love.

[netherworldpost]

Once more social media companies are starting down the path of "hm, what if we roll in a feature... everyone will hate..." so I am again reposting my very basic in progress to being polished HOW TO MAKE A ZINE post

I will expand it when the blog launches and I don't know when the blog launches, but this will get you started. Or at least closer.

...and now...

... a ramble...

For Netherworld Post Office:

I'm going to stay where I am on various platforms

Continue building our "Let's Stay in Touch Occasionally" mailing list

I'm fleshing out a blog that is 2/3rds "slice of life stories of monsters living in paradise stories and comics," 2/3rds "Here is how and what to mail, how to make it fun and vibrant, cheaply" and 2/3rds ramble. Also discount math advisories.

The blog will be on a WordPress site. Free, no subscriptions necessary, open to read.

I'm working on a $2/month (USA postage included, global shipping a bit extra but not much) zine. Full color, 8 pages, decorated envelope, discussing Halloween, mail, and Halloween mail.

Spoiler if you're working on a zine and scrambling "how can that zine be $2?!" we lose about $0.05 - $0.10/zine and this is an acceptable loss. Marketing costs money. The strategy is people will subscribe to the zine and then once or twice a year say "oh wait I need a birthday card, I should get it from Netherworld Post" and that 1-2x year order will cover the loss + add profit to our coffers.

This point is made because I'm not seeking to start a pricing war on zines.

I AM seeking to make something fun and enjoyable and as affordable as possible so as many people as possible will say "huh that's neat."

When the blog goes live and the page about how to make a zine goes live, I'll go into the numbers on how I am making it and offer ideas and tips on how You as a Maker of Things For Sale can make one

I'll also offer tips and ideas on how You as a Maker of Things Not Necessarily For Sale can make it too, it's not exclusively for art shops.

There are no zine laws.

The split is purely "do you care about shaving $0.24 per outbound envelope because you're going to send lots or not"

Here is my reality:

As a person, I enjoy Tumblr. As a business, it's been very good to us.

Our Instagram isn't going anywhere. I'm preparing for the eventual bleed of people using it. Maybe it'll affect us, maybe it won't.

This is NOT a doom-and-gloom EVERYTHING IS DYING post. I'm not nearly online enough or smart enough to offer thoughts beyond general vibes and feelings.

I am saying "enough people have commented enough times they enjoy my business ramblings that I want to share what I know/am doing because I strongly feel a diversification of outlets helps more folk make more art and more folks making more art means there is more art and I'm going to enjoy it."

It takes at least a year -- far more likely a few years -- to build up a sizable social media following.

Sizable = "posting on Platform is more valuable to meeting our goals than Doing Something Else"

You can throw money at the problem (ads and/or hiring a consultant and/or an agency). This will scale you up far faster because they'll build the shortcuts do the research and the yadda yadda.

The reason Netherworld Post Office is able to offer very inexpensive, very high quality greeting cards, at a very low shipping price is because we are largely focusing on "What can we do in-house? How can we get smarter, more clever with our very limited resources?"

We just wrapped up Phase 01 and are about to head into Phase 02 on this plan. It's working well.

Slowly

An agreeable pace but well.

The new app-of-the-day, Cara.

Will it be great? No clue!

Will we post there? Probably not!

Why am I offering this part to the news above? I don't want to gate-keep information I have! Recurring theme to my rambles :)

There is a significant chance that someone who says "It makes sense for my personal goals to make Cara" and then that's great.

The key to building a shop or ongoing project is realizing:

There are many paths available

You have to figure out what path is right for you

It will be a unique combination exclusive to you -- elements can be shared but ultimately every path is going to have it's own unique aspects

This path will change over time

You have to tinker constantly

That's part of the fun :)

Final Link List Now That I Am Done Talking Above Image is My Producer's Reaction When I Finish Talking

Netherworld Post Office shop

Netherworld Post Office Let's Occasionally Stay in Touch email signup

Netherworld Post Office first draft writeup on how to make zines, a tumblr post, because I love zines

Netherworld Post Office final disclaimer for reasons: Your art path is your own, it will look unique to you, it will share elements with many other folks but at the very core? It is unique to you :) All above is shared purely in hopes of giving back to the small art shop community that helped get me to where I am

Cheers everyone

I hope we all make it :)

[hothothotch]

hotch requests, you say? How about our favourite unit chief embracing his feminine side a bit when jack gets teased at school for his painted nails. Hotch would 100% be the type of super supportive dad to rock some of his own in solidarity. I can see him wearing pink friendship bracelets under his cuff, or starting to sport more pink and purple ties etc, letting jack do his makeup on his days off.

And who can question him, when he levels them with his signature frown.

hey hello! Rome, I love you!!! this was so fun to write <3 i wasn't sure if you wanted something with reader in it, but i loved their friendship so i had to! hope you like it <3

Requests are open!

“You want me…” you pointed at yourself, your eyes slightly narrowed in confusion, even if there was a small — almost unnoticeable — smile on your face, “To paint your nails?”.

You expected Aaron to flinch, to double take his decision or to put a smile on his face and say something on the lines of ‘nah, I was just kidding’, but the only thing to cross his face as he gave you a single nod was resolution. Sincere, almost confusing (for you) resolution.

“Okay…” you whispered, your own pose faltering slightly as you pointed at the inside of your apartment, “I’ll just grab my things and see you at your apartment in five minutes?”.

“Sounds good” Aaron nodded again, this time his face changing into a more soft demeanor as he grabbed his wallet on his pocket, “How much-”.

“Don’t worry about it” you waved it off quickly, “Just tell me the story behind this decision and I’ll be happy”.

Aaron smiled gently at you, muttering a quiet ‘okay’ before he turned his back and walked to the apartment across the hallway — his own —, only closing the door halfway in a clear message that, when you wanted to go in, you could just open the door and make your way towards the living room where you spent a lot of your time.

You didn’t move when he disappeared behind the door, biting your bottom lip quizzically as you leaned against the doorframe, your mind losing itself into a whirlwind of questions. Questions you knew could only be answered by the person next door.

"Okay, then" you whispered one last time before quickly moving outside your home to grab your work material, double-checking if you had everything you needed before rummaging to his apartment.

Aaron was waiting for you in the living room, lost in a manila folder you didn't need to look at for long to know it belonged to his job (even if the FBI insignia was huge on the front); his concentration was immediately brought back to the real world when he heard the soft sound of your steps moving towards him, his eyes immediately darting up to look at you, his smile appearing once again as he immediately grabbed all the files on his coffee table, brushing them aside as he pointed at the empty seat in front of him, "I'll just put those in my office".

"Take your time" you replied, grabbing the first nail polish — a nude color — and placing it on the coffee table, "I'll just get everything settled".

Aaron didn't take long to return, and by the time he sat in front of you, his eyes studying the polishes curiously, you were already ready for your story and for the wild ride you knew this moment would be.

He might have noticed your excitement since he placed his hand in front of you almost immediately, not waiting for your cue to start his tale — and by the time he said his first word, you understood exactly what that was about.

"Jack was bullied last week because of his nails" he explained, a deep sigh escaping his lips as he averted his gaze from you. You weren't sure if he was ashamed or if he was sad — maybe both —, but you knew there was more to that story than he had said, so you only remained silent, "His teacher told me his friends were making comments because the nail polish was pink, and he'd been sad ever since".

"Oh!" you whispered, your eyes focused on Aaron's hand as you tried not to hurt him with the pliers, "Did she tell him not to paint his nails again?".

"It was very much implied" Aaron replied, and you looked up with a brow raised, "But she didn't use the words. She only stated that if he kept using those colors, female colors, as I came to understand, Jack was deemed to be bullied".

You hummed, your face contorted in displeasure, "And what did you say?".

Aaron shrugged, "That I'd talk to Jack, but if the boys had a problem with it, maybe they should be taught not to care about those things" he stopped for a moment, sighing heavily, "Unfortunately, that's not how all those boys are raised. It took me you to understand that".

You smiled proudly at his comment — at yourself.

You had been the person to paint Jack's nails the week before, even if he had been the one to ask for the pink color. At the occasion, it took Aaron a while (and a very long speech about gender and how colors had nothing to do with it) for him to agree that there wasn't a problem with Jack sporting pink nail polish.

The fact that he had to be convinced was exactly why you were a bit uneasy about his out-of-the-blue request.

"So you talked to Jack?" you asked, receiving a hum as response, "What did he say?".

Aaron gave you a funny look, a joking smile appearing on his face, "He gave me his own version of your gender and colors speech" he made a pause, and you couldn't help but laugh at that, "You've made quite an impression. But I'm happy he understood at least half of it. He said, 'Daddy, men wear pink and women wear blue and everything is okay', but I think this is as far as he understood".

"That's quite a lot, I didn't want him to understand a ten minutes speech on sexism" you returned his joke, exaggerating (you hoped) on how long your speech had gone on.

"He got the important part" he replied, offering one of the nail polishes to you, your eyes widening a bit at the purple color he had picked. Aaron probably noticed the look on your face, since he immediately cleared his throat, "I just thought nude wouldn't quite make a point".

You smiled in understanding, but you needed to hear it. If you were doing this for a major purpose, he might as well talk about it, "Which is?" you asked tenderly, showing that, no matter what, you'd be there with him.

"That I stand with Jack" he replied intensely, "No matter what".

Maybe you shouldn't have grinned as big as you did, but you didn't care. Not when you were sitting in front of Aaron Hotchner, purple nail polish in hands, pride bursting from you.

"Well, Agent Hotchner... then we should get started".

...

Aaron should've seen it coming.

Actually, he did see it coming — at the moment Jack got back home, his smile growing wide as he saw Aaron's purple nails, a wild rambling taking place as she talked eagerly with you about how much everyone at Aaron's work would love to see it.

They did. Penelope more than anyone.

JJ seemed to have understood the reason pretty quickly, not even questioning his motive as she took pictures of his nails. The rest of the team — who seemed to be having the best time of their lives — were supportive when he explained what happened, and Strauss (who happened to spend the whole week at the Bureau) hadn't made comments about it, but she was clearly not pleasured.

Aside from that, the murmurs and small chuckles he spotted weren't enough to unsettle him — and when they did, Aaron would only give the Agents a look, and suddenly his purple nails were the less important problem.

He stayed with the nail polish for three days before he knocked on your door, asking for the acetone to take it off, the corners already peeling.

"I have a meeting tomorrow" he explained, walking inside your house when you offered to remove it yourself, "I don't think it would look good".

You knew the meaning behind Aaron's words was that he didn't want to be seen in purple nails in a work meeting, so you didn't discuss it. It was one step at a time.

"What are the two of you doing here?".

Aaron knew by the grins on your and Jack's faces that he shouldn't have asked, that maybe the best option would've been just to brush it aside and ask you out for lunch, but he also knew that you never visited the Bureau (you believed there was a strict division between your workplace and personal life, so suddenly appearing at his job was a no-go), and the fact that you came in with Jack had him worried for a second before he saw the way Jack fidgeted with a small packaging on his hands.

"Jack and I were taking a walk when he saw something..." you started explaining, squeezing Jack's shoulder encouragingly, "And he wanted to give you a gift. Right, Jackers?".

Jack nodded shyly, offering the packaging to Aaron. It was small enough to fit his hand, and it's square and velveted blue surface reminded Aaron of a jewelry box — the ones that come with expensive rings; Aaron would've believed you and Jack spent a lot of money on it, if it wasn't for its touch (Aaron had bought enough expensive things to know that real velvet had a touch like any other).

"What is it, buddy?" Aaron asked, clearly interested in what was inside the box. When he finally opened it, a smile cracked on his face at the sight of the small — but not too small — pink and purple bracelets with your and Jack's initials in each one, "Those are so nice, buddy!".

"Yeah?" Jack asked, his eyes shining in sheer happiness, "We bought friendship bracelets! Here..." he showed his own bracelets, nudging you so you did the same, "Because you're my best friend, and now we're all best friends!".

Aaron looked up at you, and you could see the tears forming in his eyes before he pulled Jack for a tight hug, kissing his son's forehead before moving away to put on the bracelets, "Now we're best friends".

...

"Stop blinking, Daddy!".

You laughed at Jack's complaint, taking the eyeliner from his hands as you moved back to face Aaron, your legs crossed as you waved at him in a silent request for him to come closer, "Now, stop blinking or I'll pierce your eyes".

Aaron shuddered, cursing when he blinked once more, your eyes meeting his reprehensively — how in the hell was he able not to blink at work, but couldn't keep himself quiet while you put on some eyeliner in him.

It was honestly pathetic.

"And... done," you said happily, passing Jack a brush and an eyeshadow palette, "Pick a color, Jackers".

"Red!" Jack replied, pointing at the color before scrubbing the brush in it. You thought about telling him it would ruin the brush or the color, but he was so enthralled on it that you let it go — you could but a new one in the future, "Close your eyes, Daddy!".

Aaron did as told, and Jack waited patiently for your instructions before starting to pass it gently on his father's eyes, pouting whenever he stopped to analyze if it was good enough or if they needed any more makeup.

"Do you have glitter?" Jack questioned, looking up at you with hope in your eyes.

You smiled broadly, ready to say 'yes' when the doorbell rang, causing Aaron to open his eyes quickly, a silent plea in it — don't use glitter, for God's sake!

You smiled, patting on his knee assuringly. Maybe next time you could use glittler, but again, slow and steady wins the race.

"I think I forgot mine at home, Jackers" you replied, already standing up as you avoided Jack's slightly disappointed pout, "But I promise to bring it next time, okay? I'll see who's it on the door".

"Please, use the peephole" Aaron gave you a pointed look, aware of the fact that you very rarely used it, always opening up the door to whoever knocked on it.

You were almost sure there was a story behind it, but Aaron had never told him, and pressuring him to get answers wasn't something you were keen to do, so...

"Sure" you nodded, "I'll be right back".

"This isn't good enough..." Jack mumbled, "Close your eyes again, Daddy".

Aaron chuckled, closing his eyes once more as he listened to your voice in the hallway, trying to identify the newcomer's muffled voice to be ready for whoever it could possibly be.

"You got just in time, Dave" Aaron heard you say, and he almost cringed at David's name — it was better than being Derek, sure, but he was aware he'd never hear the end of it, "Jack just opened his own makeup business, we're lacking models".

Aaron opened one of his eyes (the one Jack wasn't passing the red eyeshadow) to look up at David, who had a smile on his face, "I see".

"Come here, Uncle Dave!" Jack waved quickly at the older man, and Aaron had to move out of the brush's way, not wanting it to hit his eyes. He saw when you tried to muffle a laugh, giving you a pointed look, "I'll put green eyeshadow in you!".

Dave exchanged a quick look between you and Aaron before smiling at Jack, shaking his head slightly, "I don't think I'll look as good as your Dad does, Jack" he said, but took a seat on the couch, his smirk not faltering when you moved to sit beside Jack again, Aaron offering his hand so you wouldn't fall, "But I'll let you three have fun".

"Hmmm..." you started, not letting go of Aaron's hand when you sat down, "Looks like someone needs to hear our speech, Jackers. What do you think?".

"Oh, I think you're right" Aaron replied, grabbing the eyeliner himself, "And while you speak, we can prepare Uncle Dave for Jack's great day, can't we?".

"We sure can!" You agreed immediately, moving to grab the glitter, "Oh, look what I found here!".

"Glitter!" Jack screamed happily, "Close your eyes, Uncle Dave".

"Yeah, Uncle Dave..." Aaron started, close your eyes.

That would be fun.

Thank you for your request ✨

[authormars]

I forget how many of you don't know the extensivity of my universe for obey me. Hell, my gf (love her to death) doesn't know all of it. And I've been telling her stuff for a literal year! So, in honor of this, I'm going to put some silly headcanons here!

Lucifer is amazing with children and has been known to be able to calm any crying child. Diavolo witnessed this when they were in the human realm for important business (I'll talk about it after this) and Lucifer saw a mother attempting to calm her baby down. He simply walked over, asked if he could hold them, and in less than 3 minutes the baby was calm. Diavolo asked how he knew what to do and Lucifer simply responded "When I was in the celestial realm, I was assigned to the Sun room when Michael was too busy to train me. I learned a lot there"

Once a month, Diavolo and Lucifer disappear for the day on "important business." If you ask them what they were doing, they'll simply respond "tempting souls." Though that isn't lying, it isn't the full truth either. Every month, Diavolo sets aside one day to go down to the human realm with around 2k Grimm, exchange it for whatever the currency of that country is, and go out and buy food and walk around giving food and money to homeless people. Lucifer comes along to tempt souls (they go to mainly major cities) of major corporation higher ups so Diavolo can keep his adventures a secret and Lucifer can tempt a soul or two.

Lucifer didn't choose his own nail color. When Satan was younger, the way Asmo would connect with him was by painting his nails. One night, everyone was in the living room and Asmo was painting everyone's nails (to make Satan feel included in the family) When Asmo got to Lucifer and asked him what color he wanted, Satan knocked over a bunch of open nails polish containers on the carpet and stormed off. Lucifer sighed, cleaned up the mess with a spell, and followed him.

Satan was self destructing in his room (like he did a lot back then) and someone sat him down and got him to stop picking at his neck and pulling at his hair. When he looked up, he found Lucifer staring back at him. Lucifer simply motioned to the bed beside Satan and said "May I sit?"

"What happens if I say no?"

"I won't sit down, I suppose"

"..you can sit"

Satan and Lucifer had a long talk. Satan talked through his identity issues (which he'd never done before) and Lucifer told him he wasn't him, he was his brother. Or child? Satan decided brother. Lucifer also admitted some flaws, showing Satan that he wasn't the perfect god he pretended to be. Eventually, they sat in silence.

"Are you ready to go back?"

"..what if I say no?"

"Then I can stay here with you or I can leave and let you be here alone"

"I'm ready to go back"

Satan and Lucifer walked back together. When Asmo asked Luci what color he wanted, Lucifer asked Satan what color he wanted him to wear. Satan chose red. Every time Asmo repaints their nails, Lucifer always chooses red, as a sort-of truce.

Sorry, that last one was a drabble lmao. Thanks for reading if you've come this far! I post Dialuci, so if you like that, I post a lot lmao

[echantedtoon]

A Lovers' Circle (Poly Haishira x Reader) Ch6 Date Weekend: Saturday

(Warning for some nudity mentioned in the boys part but absolutely nothing rude or nsfw!! Also it's cannon Hinatsuru and Makio can cook like really good in Kimetsu Gauken and Mitsuri.knows ballet from what we saw in s4 with flexibility training. My own headcannons are being slapped into here! AND NO ONE CAN STOP ME!)

Taglist: @shadyd3ar @jcrml @tengensangel

@miniverse-zen

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The colorful assortment of delightful sweets filled the eyes with childlike wonder. Cream and icing. Glaze and powdered sugar. Milky chocolate and sweet vanilla. All of which melted in the mouth and shook the senses with sweet dreams of sugary delight.

In in Mitsuri's case starting to stock up on food.

You sat down at the table with the other girls after the fun game of push ups. Taking your time to look around at the big but nice looking kitchen. Kyojuro must've had a good paying job if he could afford this. The nicely furnished space had pretty much a top of the line appliance set up complete with a nicely polished giant cherry wood table. Of which was stuffed to the brim with food. Three boxes of extra large pizzas took up the far left right corner, next to it was a box of hot wings, and a few six packs of different sodas and what was left of the canned coffee after Sanemi ravished through Obinai's gift. Two pink boxes filled up with day old sweets like donuts and mini cakes, what was left of the ohagi you made, and a few burgers Giyuu picked up. And a small pot of something you couldn't make out but it smelt like beef broth. Maybe a beef soup or hot pot?

It certainly was a lot of food but considering how many people there and how big Gyomei and Tengen were.

"Let me get you some food," Hinatsuru offered gesturing to the boxes of pizza stacked on the table. "We have pizza, burgers, cake- What would you like?"

A hand held up to her. "Oh no. It's ok. I can get it myself."

"Nonsense. You're our guest so I'll get it for you."

"Well alright then. Some pizza please."

"Sure! Pepperoni, sausage and mushroom, or meatlovers?" Hinatsuru was already shuffling towards the boxes Mitsuri was already rummaging through. 

"Pepperoni is fine. Thank you!'

You only smiled politely as the others say down or most of them grabbed ahold of whatever food was available for them, but you noticed only one of them had a tray instead of a plate. Mitsuri had taken out a large tray, the kind you'd use to carry breakfast in bed to someone, and just started piling on food after food item onto it. There must've been at least two or three slices of every kind of pizza they had, three small cakes you could make out including a fourth one just added to it, a few burgers peeking out from just under the pizza, and right now her main target was the pot.

The smells of beef filled the air with a snack of her lips looking inside excitedly. Producing a bowl from no where she proceeded to just scoop out boiled eggs, mushrooms, chunks of beef- Oh. So someone did bring a hot pot. But she wasn't done yet. She practically pulled two bottles of the soda to herself as a can of coffee got caught up also in her grasp and your poor ohagi was her next victims. Three ending up on top of their fallen pizza brethren. She plopped down right across from you as you continued to stare wide eyed. You didn't even notice Hinatsuru placing down a plate and cup of more soda in front of you.

"Here you go!" She smiled at you but slowly blinked noticing your wide eyed surprised look. "Miss Y/n?" Her face followed your direction and froze as she and everyone else saw the massive pile of food Mitsuri had in front of her and the fact that she was already shoveling a whole mini strawberry shortcake into her mouth. "M-Mitsuri!"

"Hm?" 

She happily looked up at the half horrified half worried faces around her, cheeks puffed up like a chipmunks. Huh? What was with those looks? She made sure not to take everything this time. It was only when green orbs caught the state of the girl in front of her. It was then that the before mentioned talk about everyone being on their best behavior and ensuring that they made a good first impression for Gyomei punched her brain in the memory bank. She sat there quietly and wide eyed, cheeks puffed up, and some strawberry syrup on her chin. Somewhere to the far right Makio groaned and facepalmed loud enough to a smack sound to be heard.

You blinked and that motion seemed to spur Mitsuri's panic as she quickly swallowed and held up her hands. "Um- Uh- ...HEY! No one touch this food!" She nervously laughed before pushing the tray away from her nervously smiling self to the middle of the table, a few boxes getting pushed aside as she did so. "Y-You know that I-..Uh! I-I always make sure there's a nice healthy serving out aside for the guys! Haha! Hmm!" She tapped her chin in thought glaring at the stacked up tray in pretend scrutiny. "Yep! Th-This will definitely be enough for all of them! Haha!"

She froze as a couple hot wings wobbled and fell lower on the pile of food she had created. Someone mumbled a 'nice save' somewhere as your eyes slowly looked away from her and down at the pile of food in front of everyone... before your face scrunched up into a funny looking face before you opened your mouth and-..

Started to laugh??

A series of giggles enveloped from her mouth and a hand reached out to cover those giggles to no avail as everyone stared at her.

"....Ok. Did we already break her or is she making fun of us?"

Your head shook as a hand waved. "N-No. It's just that-..Well, It's nice you're all going through all this effort to make me comfortable but Gyomei's already mentioned about this." To her surprise the tray was slid back over in front of Mitsuri who looked widely at you. "As I said before I want you all to be yourselves around me since I genuinely want to meet Gyomei's friends, so please don't hesitate to eat."

Mitsuri stared stunned by your smile, looking you up and down.... before just smiling back to her food and a second later she literally bit a burger clean in half as she hummed contently. Her happy face and bloated cheeks made more giggles escape her mouth. 

"That's quite the appetite you have there," you pointed out without being rude, "Do you like sweet, savoury, or spicy things better?"

She swallowed what was left of her first burger quickly before answering. "SWEETS! But I don't mind others things either! Bitter and sour things are good too if you make them right!" As if to hammer home her point, she practically devoured an entire hot sauce covered chicken leg minus the bone. The hotness didn't even seem to bother her because a slice of blueberry cheesecake was next. "Shoo yummy!~" She gushed between snacking.

Despite it you still smiled at her completely unfazed. Her eating was fast and not normal by any normal person's standards but unlike Jake's she wasn't rude about it at all. She wasn't chewing loudly or open mouthed, she didn't try to hog everything, and she DEFINITELY wasn't trying to get anyone's else's foods or getting food anywhere. ..Well except for the traces of said food on her mouth which you handed over a couple napkins she thanked you for. The others seemed completely unfazed by her appetite so this was probably a usual occurrence for them.

"So you aren't like grossed out or anything by..?" Makio gestured towards the pink haired girl like it was obvious.

"Not really. Why would I be?" You shrugged before picking up a piece of your own pizza. "She's not being rude about it so why should I care? Although I am a bit surprised at how much she eats. When Gyomei told she she had a big appetite I wasn't expecting it to be so literally. Not that it's a bad thing of course!"

Surprised looks land silence was what everyone gave you minus Mitsuri still eating the quickly shrinking pile of food. Eventually Shinobu broke the silence with her brows raised high. 

"Holy shit...Gyomei found a dam unicorn!"

"Shinobu!"

"He did.' shinobu rolled her eyes at her sister's scowl. "She said to be ourselves around her right? How is she supposed to know us if we aren't?'

"But the cussing? Really? First Nemi and now you."

"I really don't mind," you smiled at her. "I'm not offended at all. Really."

Kanae blinked but frowned at Shinobu's wide smile. 

"Subject change!" The blue eyed girl, Suma if you remembered right, shot up a hand and waved around her full arm. "This entire thing was to get to know her better! So let's do that instead!"

"Good idea, Suma!" She quickly changed the entire subject probably to avoid any awkwardness. "So. Y/n, how did you meet Gyomei? He told us briefly but I don't think he explained the entire thing." 

You paused a moment staring off into nothing. You smile had turned to a thin line and you turned to her so slowly that she thought she might've said something to offend you. "....Have you ever had a really bad date?"

Her pink eyes blinked. "I-...Well, it did rain once when I was on a double date with Kyo and Makio. We didn't get to do anything we planned."

"Oh. Well trust me. You haven't heard nothing yet. Let me tell you EXACTLY how I met the most kindest man of my life...after meeting the worst most vile human. It all started when this rat's parents paid my Auntie to set him up on a date. She's a REALLY good matchmaker you know and that's why they paid her and she needed the extra money because her car broke down, so she asked me to go out with him. I figured it was just a free dinner so what did I have to lose? BOY was I surprised!"

You told them the entire story. Starting from the very beginning from before you even met Jake the Snake to how he late he was to how Gyomei.actually noticed you first to how he acted and on and on. Most looked on in pity or disgust but Shinobu never lost that small smile. You nearly lost your appetite again remembering that night but the memory of Gyomei's smiling helpful being brightened up your entire outlook. 

"So one thing led to another and we ended up going on a coffee date." You shrugged drinking a little bit of the soda Hinatsuru was nice enough to get you. 

"That's so mean! How could a man be so cruel and rude?!," Mitsuri loudly protested. 

You shrugged again. "Spoiled too much by his parents I guess. But that's all in the past now." You smiled Brightly. "Gyomei is much more better than most of the men I've dated. Tonight is our third date actually."

"AW!! THAT'S SO SWEET! IT'S LIKE YOU BOTH MET OUTTA A FAIRYTALE!!" 

"How did you guys meet anyways?" You were curious about how these people met and got together especially when they were all polyamourus. You've never heard of twelve people in a relationship before but you guessed there was a first time for everything.

"Most of us are actually childhood friends and we met way back in elementary school!," Suma piped up and bit down into a pizza slice. 

"Yeah..most of them. A few of us didn't meet until like nearly graduated from highschool..." Makio shrugged. "But it is what it is."

"That reminds me. How did you three end up marrying Mr. Uzui? I've heard of having more than one partner but this is the first time I've ever seen someone be married to three people at once before. Um..no offense."

"None taken." Makio waved you off with a bored look to her face. "It was arranged between our parents a long time ago, I don't think Tengen's old man was too happy at the idea of him dating Kyo back in highschool and decided to give him a few beautiful ladies to change his mind."

"Oh that's awful." A hand covered your mouth. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. It all worked out in the end."

"Really? He just agreed to it?"

"Yeah. He figured just going through with it would be easier, and we all got married right out of highschool..." Her gaze looked far away from the table as if gazing of into nothing. "..You know he offered all of us to divorce the day after? Said he wasn't going to force any of us to stay if we didn't want to."

Your brow rose at her. "But..you didn't?"

"No. I could've though. I could've divorced him and then left. Maybe I'd be somewhere studying something like cooking or maybe I'd be married again to a really, really handsome rich guy who's a renowned millionaire complete with little kids and a nice big dog. ...I could've had that, or I could stay with a guy who's 'flamboyant' butt cried when I said I loved him for the first time."

"Aw!" She was lightly surprised when you gushed. "Did he really cry?"

"Oh yes. I remember that." Hinatsuru finally got a cheeky look on her face looking at her other wives. "You two remember that right? He was so worried that Kyo would be mad at him for falling for us and he was so scared that we hated him from the start that he cried for a whole hour."

"I REMEMBER THAT!! HE'S SO CUTE!!"

"Yeah. Besides, where else are we gonna get a free portrait?"

Her joke wasn't lost on you either and a giggle escaped you. So they all grew up together? That's a cute love story! Well you guessed minus Tengan's wives who everyone met in highschool technically but you still were curious about one thing in particular.

"I do hope you don't mind me asking this but I'm curious about something," you slowly spoke catching most everyone's attention other than Mitsuri who was almost done with her giant tray. "If you don't want to answer it's fine, but how did you all.. Y'know. Well-.." You were trying to try to find a way to word it without sounding rude. So you made a half circle motion around the table gesturing to everyone.

"Find out we were all poly?," Kanae asked answering you.

"YYYes. I'm sorry if that's a sensitive topic."

She shook her head, pretty hair swaying. "Not at all. You've been nothing but respectful this entire time and honestly you're one of the few people who didn't make it weird." She shrugged her shoulders holding up her hands. "To be perfectly honest with you, it just sort of happened. Mitsuri used to date my sister back in middle school but they broke up and then she started dating Sanemi-" She gestured to Mitsuri. "-and she dated Obanai for a little bit before we all just shifted to who we wanted to have our main love be!"

"Oh..I see. So how did the whole main partner thing was figured out?"

"Simple. While I love all my partners, Sanemi is the only one I want to officially marry and start a family with." Her head tilted at you with a worried brow. "Do you think that's strange?"

A him escaped her throat as her eyes glanced over in thought. "...Well I can't say no because I guess to someone like me who isn't in a relationship like yours it would be weird. But-" orbs looked directly back to her pink ones. "I can't really judge you. Mostly because your relationship isn't any of my business so I shouldn't stick my nose where it doesn't belong, but also because it's really incredible."

"Hm?" Pink eyes blinked confused. "Incredible how so?"

"You guys have the healthiest relationship I've ever seen!" 

Kanae. Blinked. "What?"

You nodded. "I mean I've seen arguments but if-.. Sanemi, I think was his name, really wanted to punish Tengen I think he would've punched him square in the face. But it just looked like one big couples fight to me..Not the really bad kind but I don't think-" You stopped seeing everyone stared at you again. "Um..Was it something I said?"

"I told you. A dam unicorn."

Kanae shot her sister another glare before sighing. "Well to answer your question, we really just sorta melded together once we realized that there was more than mutual feelings. It took some time for everyone to come to terms with it especially Nemi and Obi but it works out for us."

"And your families?"

Clink-

You blinked as Hinatsuru suddenly placed her fork down and went quiet, a sad look suddenly found on her face making you blink and then noticed that everyone else had similar looks either looking away uncomfortable or sad. Mitsuri's eating had also ceased leaving her holding up an empty burger wrapper. Eventually Shinobu sighed.

"Some of our families have...Not been very nice hearing about it let's just say. My folks for example were pretty shocked but now they're the most supportive people on the planet. However... People like Tengen's dad or Obinai's family.." A grimace and 'yeesh' sound escaped her. "You'd think a guy who's entire family was mostly women wouldn't care if he dated girls-'

"I think I get the picture." You politely held up your hand and looked around feeling suddenly guilty about the mood dropping. "...You guys said you're studying to become teachers right?" You perked back up and changing the subject to a lighter tone. "What kind of subject do you want to teach, Mitsuri?" You asked the most cheerful person hopefully her bright happy attitude would help the situation.

Like you hoped she immediately lit up in a smile. "DANCE! Specifically ballet!"

"I didn't know you knew ballet!"

She nodded. "Mm hm! I love it!"

"And what about you two?"

"I'm focusing on biology and Shinobu is taking classes for becoming a health teacher," Kanae answered with a new smile. 

"Hina n' I are working through the thought of culinary schooling."

"OH! OH! I WANNA BE A PRESCHOOL TEACHER!!'

"You'd certainly fit right in."

"Makio! Don't be so mean to me!"

"Guys please."

You couldn't help but giggle at the lot of them in the end and went back to eating your pizza and waiting for Gyomei's return. 

"Hey. We're all going to the beach tomorrow!" You paused mid bite of your pizza before looking at Mitsuri who smiled widely and hopefully at you. "It's one of the few times we can go before it gets too cold. Why don't you come with us?"

"Oh. I'd really like to..but I can't." Your hand was held up. "I have a project to take care of before I can turn it in Monday and I have to clean. But I appreciate the offer. Are you guys going out the entire weekend together?"

"Oh absolutely! Tonight's just a big sleepover with a movie!" Mitsuri started quickly motioning with her hands with excitement. "Then tomorrow we're going to spend all day on the beach together and then Sunday it's just gonna be the boys hanging out with each other and we're all going SHOPPING!~" She sang out that last part throwing up her hands. "And then we're gonna go to the spa and get massages, and have our nails done and a whole bunch of stuff between those things! Then we're all going to meet up with the boys for a sauna and public hot springs!" She then gasped hands smacking her cheeks. "OH MY GOSH!! YOU SHOULD TOTALLY COME WITH US!!"

You blinked leaning back a little bit. "What?"

"ARE YOU BUSY SUNDAY?! IT'S PERFECT!! YOU CAN COME WITH US AND WE ALL CAN HAVE FUN TOGETHER!"

"I don't want to intrude on your guys' date and besides as much as I would like to, I'd only be a third wheel for the entire thing. On top of that I don't have much money for me to spend."

"Uh.. Didn't Gyomei literally win you three hundred fifty dollars?" 

You paused staring at them blinking.

"THAT'S RIGHT! You can totally still come with us then! Please say you will! You really didn't get a chance to really meet the guys yet and I promise it'll be so much fun!"

"Well I -.." You let out a light sigh. "Well I guess so. It might be fun."

"Oh this is going to be so much fun! I can't wait for you to see my favorite cat cafe! I'm sure the guys are just as excited!"

"You think so?"

"Absolutely! Why I bet they're thinking of fun things to do together right now!"

SMACK-

"OW! WHAT THE HELL, SANEMI?!"

Warmth spread off the tiles lining up the walls and floors. Most rising to coat their bodies like fog which was probably a good thing considering that most of them were completely in the nu- A loud smack loud disturbed the peaceful sounds of running shower heads and scents of men's brand soap and shampoo. The snack itself stopped Obanai from helping Gyomei get his back and the blind man tilt his head-

Buuuutt the very girly sounding squeal that left Tengen's throat had caused the rest of them to peer over. A stinging sensation throbbed from the side of Tengen's behind from where he was struck by something fast, and instinctively his hand clutched onto the now reddened skin. Magenta eyes narrowed with a snap of his neck and immediately found the culprit with a wet wring up towel in his hands. 

"OW! WHAT THE HELL, SANEMI?!", Tengen's voice angrily echoed off the walls.

The smaller white haired man gave Tengen one of those evil grins he always gave when annoyed and his fists squeezed around the towel harder making it creak in her hands. "Consider it payback for the stunt you pulled! I would've won if you hadn't distracted me!"

"Oh please. I would've won if you hadn't twisted the rules and tricked my wife." Tengen hissed rubbing at his bottom. "Fuck that hurt. Y'know if you wanted to smack my butt that badly-"

"SHUT UP YOU SHINY MEATBALL!!"

"Are those two still going on about that? I thought we all agreed Gyomei won fair and square."

Gyomei only sighed at Giyuu's words deciding not to engage with the argument other than shaking his head and sinking further down into the tub of comforting warm water. Those two would normally fight like cats and dogs if it wasn't with Obinai. He knew the routine of these fights. They'd be angry anywhere between a few hours to a day and then either forget about it or make up somehow. Even if the current cussing at one another over 'distracting him and making him lose' or 'sanemi didn't have to attack him with a towel' was starting to give him a bit of anxiety. He sure hoped they weren't loud enough for the girls to hear them.

"YOU WANT TO KISS ME SO BAD IT MAKES YOU LOOK STUPID!!"

"STOP BEING SO FUCKING PRETTY!!..PETTY!! I MEANT PETTY!!"

"Uh huh. Sure.~"

"RRRRRRAAHH!! FUCKING STOP IT!!"

"THEN MAKE ME, SHINAZUGAWA!!"

There was a small silence other than the sounds of the others ignoring their friends' usually arguments and continuing to finish up and then sounds of running water...but after a moment of nothing his head did turn in question towards the nearest person.

"Are they quite finished?"

"Yep. They're hate kissing again."

Even though he couldn't see Obinai, he knew the man was rolling his eyes. "I see. Well at least perhaps now they'll stop clawing at one another's throats." Water rippled in his wake as he moved to stand back up. "And I have to be seeing off Y/n soon. It's very impolite to keep her waiting for me on a date twice on a date."

"Relax, Mei. You brought her here for the sole purpose of meeting us. Let her get to know them. I'm sure Mitsuri's already talking about her cats or Suma's talking her head off. She'll be fine."

"Well..I should at least make sure it's going well."

"*sigh* If you say so. And will you two get a room?!"

Sanemi's answer was to chuck the clean but wet towel he had been holding and expertly nailing Obanai in the face without even looking up from where he was gripping Tengen's head to make him lean down enough to kiss. A loud smack sound again echoed beside him and a moment later Obanai fell into the tub with a splash. ...Gyomei only groaned rubbing his face.