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clericofshadows · 3 months

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nothing will shine as bright

Description: Post ME2 Prologue Era--Kaidan brings Zaeed to meet his family, and some of Regis's family is along for the ride.

Title is from The Sun, The Moon, The Star - Æther Realm

Pairing: Kaidan Alenko/Zaeed Massani, past Kaidan Alenko/Male Shepard

Sequel to: so let love reign.

The ride over to his family’s orchard was light. All of them making meaningless conversation, getting to know each other and catching up.

The way Vik and Zaeed chatted implied a deeper friendship, but Vik was always the type to be able to engage with anyone. Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that they knew each other beyond basic Omega business. Kaidan had made himself comfortable leaning against Zaeed, looking forward to seeing his parents again but also a little worried about how the meeting would go.

A part of him worried about his age–Zaeed was older than his mother but just under his father’s age. Not that he thought his family would judge him for that, but it was still… a worry.

His father was a bit of an unknown. He loved Regis right from the beginning, even after learning what part he played in the action that ended BAaT. Even considered Regis a son of his before they got together. It surprised the hell out of Kaidan seeing how well Regis accepted the attention from Eduard Alenko.

Again, Kaidan doubted it would be an issue. Dad was always the type to trust his judgment and take no bullshit. Mom seemed to like Zaeed on the vid call, only being caught off guard about how soon it was… Something Kaidan was still a little uncomfortable with if he had to be honest, but Regis more or less blessed their relationship.

Always looking after him, knowing him too damn well.

If all goes well, they’ll make Zaeed an honorary Alenko in no-time. Zaeed never talked about his family, and Kaidan never wanted to pry just yet. Maybe he’ll like the attention. Maybe he’ll fight it off. Time will tell.

Adrian, a good pilot as ever, made the trip smooth and quick, landing the skycar out in the field near the main house. “We’re here!” he announced, opening the doors with a press of a button.

They all climbed out of the skycar, getting their bags and heading towards the house, where his mother was waiting with open arms. “Hope you all had a good trip!” she greeted, walking towards them. “Good to see you both.” She shook Vik’s hand and gave Adrian a hug.

And then she turned to him, breaking out into a smile. Kaidan opened his arms, always ready for one of her warm hugs. “I’m so glad you could make it, sweetie.”

Kaidan smiled. “Of course. Always happy to stop by if I can. Beautiful weather for today!”

“And that’s exactly why your father is grilling out in the back,” she said, pulling away. She turned to Zaeed. “Zaeed, was it? Happy to have you here!”

“Happy to be here,” he echoed with a nod. “You have a nice slice of paradise out here. The kind of gorgeous place I’d like to retire one day.”

“Many generations of our family have been here,” she said, starting to walk back to the house. “And we always love to host friends and more of the family."

Zaeed looked lost, seemingly not knowing how to reply to that. His mother could be intense sometimes with her love of hosting, welcoming anyone into her home. Kaidan reached over and grabbed his hand, following his mother to the house. "She's right, you know. This may be your first time here, but if you make a good enough impression…" he trailed off grinning.

"In which I have no doubt you'll be able to do," Vik piped up from behind.

She laughed. "Tell me if I need to back off and I will. I'm just happy Kaidan has someone outside of us and the Alliance in this unfortunate mess."

"I'm glad I was able to find the time to be there for him," Zaeed said softly. "It hasn't been easy on me either, hearing the news."

“No, it hasn’t,” she echoed. She reached over to open the door, but Adrian beat her to it. "You charmer," she chuckled, heading inside.

"Anyone want anything? A snack, refreshments… I have all kinds," she said, heading straight for the kitchen.

The aroma of freshly cooked bread filled the air as he made himself comfortable in the living room, mixed with other dishes being warmed in the oven. If he had to guess, knowing his mother's preference for comfort food any time she knows he's heading home, there's plenty of baked and fried dishes waiting for him.

"I think we're alright for now," Adrian said, shutting the door behind him. "Need to save room for that lovely meal! Already smells amazing in here."

Zaeed sat down on the couch, leaning against he armrest. "Been a minute since I've had a home cooked meal. Looking forward to it, ma'am."

Kaidan smiled at Zaeed's attempts to make a good impression, already knowing that his mother was bound to rebuke his attempts to be formal if he kept it up.

"Hope it tastes as good as it smells. Eduard is nearly done, if you want to check up on him," she said, busying herself in the kitchen. "And Zaeed? No need for that."

"Just trying to be a gentleman," he replied.

"For me or for Kaidan?" She asked lightly, taking a tray of buns out of the oven. His father must be grilling burgers if she made those.

And here comes her way of telling Zaeed to be more casual. Kaidan remembered when Regis was too formal when he first met his parents, still teenagers healing from BAaT.

Looking back, it was clear then that Regis wanted something more. He fell hard for him, but BAaT lingered around him, preventing him from making that first move, always worried that Regis thought worse of him after what he did.

No, after what they did. Kaidan may have made the killing blow, but Regis's stasis made it easy for him.

Something Regis always reminded him of when his thoughts about BAaT kept him awake on sleepless nights.

He really should tell Zaeed.

Vik laughed as Kaidan watched Zaeed flounder, trying to figure out a way to respond. "Now, Aurelia, be nice to our guest."

"I am! Tradition, I swear. You don't want me calling you 'sir' so there's no need to call me 'ma'am.'" She said, waving a hand towel at him. "But if you insist on being nice, help me out in the kitchen. I could use some extra hands from all of you."

"You don't want me in there," Adrian protested, staying in the armchair.

"I wasn't talking to you," she laughed as Vik got up, already checking on some of the pots on the stove. "How about you, Zaeed? Any skills in the kitchen?"

Zaeed walked over, glancing at the filled oven. "I'm good at following a recipe. But I'm a god–” He coughed. “I’m good at grilling."

Nice save there, love. "Mom won't wilt if you say a few curse words. Remember Regis's mouth?" Kaidan said, joining his mother. “Always tried to exceed the supposed maximum number you can string together.

Kaidan recalled the first time Regis let out a string of curses in front of his parents, damn near burning up on the spot. Eduard burst out laughing and welcomed him to the family.

She shooed him away. "Go help your father. I'll order them around. And he's right. I'm married to an Alliance soldier, remember?"

"I'll keep that in mind," Zaeed said, giving Kaidan an incredulous expression.

He shrugged minutely, already heading to the back door to the patio. "Try not to interrogate him too much, Mom."

"That's what the dinner is for!" She called back. She was probably joking.

Hopefully.

He was not about to recount the details of how they actually got together. Especially about Omega.

Not exactly the smartest place to go, but he and Regis wanted to let loose and well… they definitely did and more.

His father had the grill going, a platter of burgers already piled up and waiting to be eaten. Kaidan took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of smoky meat and the clear air outdoors. "Kaidan! Did Aurelia send you out here?" He greeted, setting down his tongs and opening his arms.

"She enlisted everyone else to help her finish up," he replied, giving his father a hug. "So that left me here with you."

"Well, I could use a food runner in a bit," he said, gesturing over to the table. "Going to start bringing some plates over."

"Always happy to help," he said, waiting by the grill.

"How are you doing?" He asked, temporarily shutting the lid. "I know you spoke to your mother yesterday–and introduced your new beau–but I want to hear it from you."

Kaidan sighed, knowing this was bound to pop up. "Doing better day by day. Zaeed helped me through something I was avoiding, and he's been great. I think we both needed each other," he admitted. "We had history, you know. The three of us, I mean."

"Aurelia said," he nodded. "That mysterious shore leave you went on a few years back, hmm?"

"Maybe," Kaidan said, not quite meeting his father's gaze, staring out into the distance, looking at the beautiful fields of his childhood home. "Regis left me a video that we watched together, and he damn near outright stated that he wanted Zaeed and I to get back together. Basically gave me the blessing to move on."

"He knew you too well. I guess you stayed close with him after your short leave? I remember that you weren't off long." His father’s tone betrayed no judgment.

"Not like you're probably thinking. Stayed friends. Met up a handful of times for drinks. Nothing more until…" Kaidan trailed off, closing his eyes. "We were Alliance soldiers and he was a merc that mostly roamed the Terminus system. It couldn't have worked out."

"But it does now?" He asked, a knowing look in his eye. "Or else you wouldn't have brought him here. Hell, it took you how long to invite Regis over?"

"Longer than it should've," he reluctantly admitted. "Things were a lot different then. That's not a good comparison to make."

His father winced. "Sorry. Does he know?"

There’s only one thing he will be asking about here.

"No. Not yet. I've been thinking of telling him while we're here."

"Don't rush it if you aren't comfortable."

"It's not that," Kaidan said. "He's seen my biotics. He's not the type to judge, and I know he's not going to judge. No, it's just…" he shook his head. "I've never told anyone about BAaT without Regis being there with me. And we both wanted to tell him about it together."

And now we can't.

"He was with me the whole time. Yeah, at the time I had eyes on Rahna, and I know that hurt him. But he stepped up alongside me when Vyrnnus went too far and continued to support me in everything after. Everyone else there feared me, feared what we could do. But Regis?" Kaidan let out a sigh, wondering if he should admit to his father what Regis said to him many times while reminiscing about BAaT.

"He would've traded places with you," his father finished for him, coming to a realization. "Is that it?"

Kaidan nodded. "Yeah," he said, his voice breaking. He cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure despite knowing his father wouldn't judge, not here, not now, not ever. "Always pissed me off when he would say that, but I also knew where he was coming from. After joining the Alliance, I understood the type of man he could be."

"Ruthless bastard with a heart of gold?" he asked, a smile gracing his features. "Dealt with a few of those types."

"Something like that," Kaidan couldn't help but laugh. "And now the Alliance wants another soldier like him."

"Is that what your meetings were about? What are you going to do?"

"Become an N. Work closely with Admiral Hackett concerning high profile missions. Finish Regis's dream of better regimens and opportunities for biotics within the Alliance,” Kaidan explained. His father opened up the grill and motioned for him to grab another plate.

“A very ambitious ideal. Is this something you’re doing for yourself or because the Alliance wants you to?” His father took the ribs off the grill.

Kaidan replied, taking the now filled plate over to the table and grabbing another. “To answer your question: I made sure to do this on my own terms. The Alliance still wants Regis, but I’m going to make damn sure that they cut that shit out.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they start using his likeness as a damn recruitment tool,” he muttered, filling up another plate.

“Neither would I, and honestly I don’t think even Hannah could put a stop to it,” Kaidan said bitterly. He arranged the plates on the table, covering them with foil to keep them warm.

“Coming through!” Kaidan turned to see Zaeed holding the door open for Adrian, who was holding a heavy casserole dish of baked mac and cheese.

“I see she made you the food runner,” Kaidan chuckled, pointing to an open spot on the table.

“You know I can’t cook, so this is the best I can do,” Adrian said, setting the dish down.

“At this point, all you have to do is watch the food,” His father said, shaking his head.

Adrian shrugged. “Do you want good food or not?”

He rolled his eyes, turning to Zaeed who was still hanging out by the door. “Zaeed, was it?”

He nodded, finally making his way over to join them. He stood next to Kaidan, keeping a bit of distance between them. Kaidan pressed himself up against Zaeed, wrapping an arm around his shoulders, squeezing him in close before letting go, trying to get him to chill out and relax around his parents. “Dad, meet Zaeed Massani.”

“Eduard Alenko. It’s my pleasure,” His father replied, setting down his utensils and wiping his hands down with a towel. He held out his hand.

Zaeed shook his hand. “Good to meet you, Eduard. Beautiful place you have here.”

He smiled. “That always seems to be the first thing people say. And it’s true.”

Kaidan laced his fingers with Zaeed’s. He gave him a smile in response, looking at him with open fondness.

“So, you’re my son’s new beau. You see, Kaidan here was a bit cagey on how you met.” Kaidan blushed at his father’s words. “But he did mention you’re a merc.”

Zaeed glanced over at him before clearing his throat. “I am, yes. Mostly out in Terminus, occasionally in Citadel space. These days I’m keeping an ear close to the ground, after all the shit that has happened.”

Seems he has already taken Kaidan’s words to heart.

His father nodded. “All I care about is knowing that my son has someone that’s not family out there with him. Someone to keep an eye on him out in the black.” He gave Zaeed a knowing look.

“I’m aware of exactly what Kaidan’s going back out there for, so I can do more than that,” he replied with a nod, not shying away from his father’s piercing gaze.

“Do you have Alliance connections?”

“Have an old friend in the brass,” Zaeed said, keeping it vague. Kaidan had a feeling his father would be grilling him about it later. “Has its benefits, on occasion.”

His father finished plating up the hotdogs, sending Kaidan off to bring them to the table. He shut the grill down for now. “I’m sure it does. I don’t like that my son is getting back out there so soon.”

“Neither do I, Dad, but… I need to do something. After what we saw, after what I saw… something big could be coming.”

“And everyone is blind to it. Not like we can expect anything different.”

“Amen to that.”

The next few minutes were a flurry of dishes and food, such a large spread for the small group, but Mom would make sure they all head home with some leftovers and well wishes. To his surprise, she even made a set of asari pies using fruit native to Thessia, an exorbitant cost that didn’t escape Vik’s notice.

“You are a treasure on this planet,” they said, recognising the recipe as they brought them to the table. “Did you happen to know this is my favorite?”

“I didn’t! But I’m glad it is. I’ve been wanting to try out some recipes and when I heard you were coming down I had to try it out. Hopefully it tastes good. I promise I won’t be offended if you don’t like it,” his mother replied, sitting down at the table next to Kaidan. Zaeed took the other seat next to Kaidan, and Adrian, Vik, and his father sat across from them.

“I doubt that will be the case. The few times I’ve been here, the food has been excellent. Some of this is admittedly new to me. Earth comfort food is what Adrian called it,” Vik replied, starting to grab food as they passed the dishes around.

“We thought it would be a good menu to have. Simple, but good,” his father said.

“And many of these were Regis’s favorites,” Adrian said softly, placing a hand over Vik’s. They smiled at him in return. “I thank you for that. He would have loved this.”

“Yeah, he really would,” Kaidan echoed. “Didn’t escape my notice either. Thank you.”

“Remember when we ordered that takeout that claimed to be ‘authentic Earth-American burgers,’” Zaeed started, the attention now on him. “And Regis took one bite and biotically tossed the whole bag across the room?”

Kaidan laughed, stopping mid-bite. “Yes! I thought he was going to march to that restaurant and demand our credits back.”

“What stopped him?” his father asked.

“Didn’t want to leave the room,” Zaeed chuckled.

“So, you met on shore leave…” she started, trailing off. “Willing to share any more details?”

“Yes,” Vik agreed, looking at the two of them. Kaidan shared a look with Zaeed, who kept his expression carefully blank. “Remind me when that shore leave was?”

Kaidan wasn’t about to lie to Vik, who was damn good at sniffing them out. Likely from their many years of working on Omega. “Going by the Earth calendar? October of 2180.”

Vik smirked. “You cheeky little bastards. And you didn’t visit me? Ah, I had to hear all about your adventures from the gossip.”

Kaidan shook his head as the table erupted in discussion. Always stirring up trouble, Vik. It’s why they and Adrian fit so damn well together. “You were on Omega?” His father asked. “Explains how you ran into a terminus merc.”

His mother shook her head, laughing softly. “So you two were being scandalous, is that what Vikram is saying?”

Zaeed looked like he wanted to disappear, but he recovered quickly. “They brought me in, hook, line, and sinker,” he leaned in close. “Wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

“Dammit, Zee,” Kaidan muttered, feeling his cheeks heat up. Zaeed mouthed the nickname, tilted his head to the side, and kissed him on the cheek. His mother cooed at their affection.

All good signs so far. Doesn’t mean he won’t escape a grilling later.

“So, you’re saying it's a story a mother doesn’t need to hear about her son. Got it.” She laughed, pulling Kaidan into a hug. “Must have been a good trip if you stayed friends.”

“It was,” Kaidan finally recovered, leaning into his mother’s hug before breaking apart. “And Vik? Sorry for not visiting.”

“I’m just playing, darling. I suppose I should offer my own apology for revealing your hand. Just couldn’t resist,” they trailed off with a knowing grin. “Come on, if you can survive me, you can survive this relationship.”

Adrian lifted up his drink in response. Vik did the same, clinking their bottles together.

“What’s that supposed to mean, Vik? Thought we were friends!” Zaeed said, shaking his head.

“Friends until they can fuck with you,” Adrian said with a knowing look. Vik punched him lightly on the shoulder.

“No comment,” Vik replied. “This food is excellent by the way.” Both his mother and father beamed at the compliment.

The conversation stilled as they dug into the food, making light chatter. Zaeed managed to integrate himself well, fitting into their dynamic damn near seamlessly.

As they slowed down, the conversation changed. “So, Zaeed, where are you from?” His mother asked.

Kaidan didn’t even know the answer to that.

“All around. I was a traveler. Tried out a few different paths, even Alliance at one point,” Zaeed began. “I stayed out of the FCW, but I did eventually venture out in the black. Found myself in Terminus, and here we are.”

“Is that where you got the Suns’ tattoo?” his father asked, touching the bare skin of his neck, the same spot where Zaeed’s tattoo was. The air became tense. Adrian and Vik both froze, waiting for Zaeed’s response. His mother placed her hand on top of his father’s, giving him one of her signature eyebrow raises.

Zaeed didn’t flinch at the question. Instead, he leaned forward. “Nothing escapes your notice, huh? Waiting for a good moment to ask?” His father opened his mouth to reply, his expression carefully neutral, but Zaeed beat him to it, waving it off. “It’s not something I’m ashamed of. Kaidan and Regis were both aware. Hell, I was waiting for someone to point it out.”

Kaidan placed his hand on top of his. Zaeed twisted his hand so that their fingers would be laced together. “Zaeed was one of the founders,” Kaidan said in lieu of his boyfriend, making it clear that he’s well aware of his past. “But that is history.”

“Never said it was current,” his father said, not quite backing down. Not that he blamed him. Kaidan and Regis both knew about his past, about Vido. Not all the details but enough. “I thought Batarians founded the Suns?”

The Suns’ logo isn’t obscure, but he knew it didn’t escape Adrian’s notice for sure. He shouldn’t judge, and maybe that’s what they talked about after Kaidan and Vik talked about the T’Soni footage. He may play at being a fancy civilian pilot, but he smuggles as much as he does legit runs.

He should’ve known his father would recognize it. Maybe his mother did too, not wanting to cause a stir.

“It has long since become a goddamn cesspool,” Zaeed spat out. Talking about the Suns was almost always a sore spot with him. “Did we create it under the greatest of morals? No. I wasn’t a good man then.” I’m not a good man now, Kaidan heard. “It’s a part of me, and I won’t deny it. Judge me if you want, but it’s a reminder that I survived. Yes, you're right. The official story is that the Batarians founded it, but only after I was betrayed when I didn't want to employ them and get involved in their trades.” He pointed to the scar on his face, never letting go of Kaidan’s grip. “I love your son. I loved and still love the one you probably considered one too. And my biggest goddamn regret is not saying any of this shit sooner.”

Fuck. They hadn’t said it to each other yet, but the feelings were understood, underneath the surface.

“I love him too. And my heart will never forget Regis. Isn’t that what this get-together was supposed to be about? Celebrating and remembering him? Zaeed is a part of that. He is a part of me,” Kaidan said, raising his voice. “Of us. And if you judge him, you judge Regis.”

His parents didn’t immediately respond, both seemingly at war with themselves. Vik looked like they wanted to say something, but Adrian shook his head, stopping them.

Kaidan clenched his jaw. “I’m going to get some air. Thanks for the meal.” He stood up and put his napkin on the table, ignoring his parents' protests.

He found himself halfway over to the barn where he and Regis kept their motorcycles. He thought back to the damn helmets Zaeed had made for them, not even knowing about their hobby but wanting them to share in his. Yet another thing that had in common. Yet another thing that would’ve made their relationship great.

Footsteps crunched the leaves behind him, and he whirled around to see Zaeed, hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. “Wasn’t about to leave you alone.”

“Leaving me alone probably would’ve made them judge you even more,” he sighed, leaning against the wall of the barn. “I’m sorry.”

“I wouldn’t make them the damn bad guys yet,” he said softly. “Just worried about their son who lost the love of his life and is shacking up with a guy damn near twice his age.”

“Well, I’ll give them more to talk about.” Kaidan unlatched the door of the barn and headed inside. “Let’s go for a fucking ride.”

“The motorcycles you talked about earlier,” Zaeed realized as he followed him inside.

Kaidan pulled off the tarp that covered the bikes. Regis’s red and black monster and Kaidan’s blue and silver slim machine looked as new and as clean as they were when they bought them a few years ago.

Same condition as they were when they drove off in the country after they returned home to tell the Alenkos the news of their Normandy notification.

“Fucking beautiful machines,” Zaeed breathed, leaning up against him. “You two were holding out on me. Damn, the helmet gifts were selfish on my part, but now I definitely realize how accurate they were.”

Kaidan kissed him on the cheek. “Thoughtful without even knowing it. Regis was a stickler with his monster. I may have ridden it maybe twice as the driver.” He closed his eyes and let out a breath. “But he isn't here to bitch to me about it, so we're going to take his Alchemy for a ride.”

“I can hear him now,” Zaeed said, his voice rough. “Yeah, let's piss him off.”

Kaidan grabbed his helmet from the cabinet and passed a spare one to Zaeed. They weren't in the best gear for riding, but nothing a quick flash forge of tech armor won't fix in a pinch.

His codes still worked and the motorcycle roared to life in a loud purr. All he could hear was the shout Regis would let out every time he got on his bike.

Zaeed whistled. “If I didn't know him I'd say he was compensating for something.”

“It's so ridiculous,” Kaidan agreed with a laugh, ignoring the wetness that started to gather around his eyes. “He loved it.”

“Yeah, I'm sure he did.”

Kaidan hopped on and Zaeed got on behind him, wrapping his arms around and resting his helmeted head on his shoulder. A mirror to earlier today.

With one last deep breath, Kaidan took off and drove towards the dirt road leading to the back of the property heading into the country.

– –

They drove in silence, only letting the sound of Alchemy’s roar fill the air. Zaeed never asked where Kaidan was planning on going, but he did have a destination in mind.

About thirty minutes out is a little clearing next to a small pond, a short walk from the road. A favorite spot of Regis’s, due to the large, lone apple tree that provided a perfect bit of shade.

A secret haven for the locals. Many initials have been carved into that tree or at the wooden table and benches that have made their way over to the spot.

A slice of life he wants to show Zaeed.

The air was cool and slowly the sun was starting to set, but Kaidan didn't care. He needed to get away for a moment, to get away from the judging, but loving eyes of his family and take Zaeed for himself.

Soon enough, they arrived and Kaidan parked Regis's motorcycle off to the side, powering it back down with his omnitool, the roar of the motor quieting down. It felt like he was silencing Regis and his spirit.

“That's one damn good bike,” Zaeed said, unwrapping himself from Kaidan and stepping down from the bike, taking off his helmet. “I can see why he's so protective over it.”

“It amazes me he never went into engineering. He just… forged his own path,” Kaidan said, running his hand down the side of the warm machine before taking off his own helmet. He reached out for Zaeed's hand. “Follow me.”

He was a grounding presence as they walked the well-worn trail heading to the peaceful clearing, footsteps crunching the leaves and a soft breeze rustling amongst the trees. Kaidan took in a deep breath, smelling the outdoors that was his home.

But it didn’t quite feel like home without Regis taking this trip with him.

Zaeed was making it easier.

The trees parted to reveal the clearing, and Kaidan led him over to one of the picnic tables closest to the apple tree, sitting down with a sign. Zaeed settled against him, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him in close to his side. Kaidan rested his head on his shoulder, closing his eyes. “I shouldn’t have stormed off.”

Zaeed let out a snort. “Well, it led you to bringing me here, so it can’t have been that terrible of a decision.” “No, I guess not. They would’ve heard that beast of his and immediately knew where we were going. Fuck, I miss him.” He let out a shuddering breath, trying to hold back the sob that threatened to escape.

“This is where he wanted to propose, wasn’t it?” Zaeed asked.

“Yeah, it sure as shit was. Look,” he pointed with a shaky hand. “We even carved our initials on that tree.”

Many couples had done the same. His and Regis’s were near the heart of the tree.

“You sure did,” Zaeed said softly. “Excuse me.” Kaidan wanted to argue as Zaeed stood up, but he watched him find a spot just underneath their initials and added his own with a dagger carefully hidden in his boot. He put his name above Regis so it was sandwiched between them.

He was the glue that brought them all together in the end.

When Zaeed sat back down and put his arm around him, Kaidan broke, sobbing into his chest, thinking back to that damn video, that damn ring, that damn Regis.

Zaeed held him tightly, and Kaidan chose to ignore the wetness he felt on his head from where Zaeed was resting his chin. Silent sobs wracked them both in the heart of the Canadian country, as the sun set and the stars that became Regis’s grave started to twinkle and shine.

But nothing will shine as bright as Regis and his biotics, a beacon on both the battlefield and in their hearts.

Distantly, he heard the roar of a motorcycle, and they slowly broke apart, still holding each other tightly. His omnitool pinged and he checked it while wiping his eyes.

Dad: May we join you?

Mom: We took your bike. Sorry if I messed with your settings. I have some of the Thessian pie, if you two just want some of that and we can go.

“Think we all should talk,” Zaeed said, clearing his throat.

Kaidan nodded, not exactly trusting his voice right now.

Kaidan: Come on over. If you have tissues or at least napkins… that will be appreciated.

Mom: We sure do.

Kaidan didn’t reply, and tried to steel himself and regain some of his composure before his parents entered the clearing. He knew this is where his mother proposed to his father, a little jewel of the country. It’s a damn shame the apples weren’t in season.

Another thing he so desperately wanted to share with Zaeed. Another thing he wanted to share with Regis once more.

They didn’t break apart for one moment, listening to each other’s heart beat, listening to the other’s breathing. In and out. One second at a time.

The tell-tale sound of footsteps traveling on leaves filled the air, and his mother and father approached them. His mother was holding a picnic basket, while his father carried a small cooler.

“Oh, sweetheart,” his mother said, rushing over to put the basket on the table and passing him and Zaeed some tissues. “I’m so sorry.”

“No,” Kaidan said, his voice rough. “I’m–”

“You don’t have a damn thing to apologize for,” his father interrupted. “If anything it’s–”

“No one’s apologizing for a fucking thing,” Zaeed said with a finaility, all attention on him. “So, let’s cry about Regis, eat some damn good pie, and see where it goes.”

Kaidan started to laugh, which initially sounded like a sob, his shoulders shaking until the laugh bubbled out of him, a loud bark utterly unlike him. Zaeed joined him, squeezing him tight, and soon enough, they were all laughing. Kaidan ignored the tears that sprung in his eyes, blaming them on the laughter.

Hope you’re happy, wherever you are, my love. And also cursing my name for taking out your Alchemy.

When everything calmed and quieted down, his parents reintroduced themselves, Zaeed did the same, and was frank about his tattoo. “I may not be a Suns any longer, but I do run a similar way of life. That goddamn way of life brought me to Regis and Kaidan, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. And now with all the shit that’s going on in the galaxy…”

“You can’t hang up your gun just yet,” his father guessed, and Zaeed nodded.

“And I also made a promise to keep an eye on him. Can’t do that if I don’t have my goddamn gun.” Kaidan leaned in to kiss his cheek, smiling at Zaeed’s words. They must be a blotchy, wrecked mess, but he didn’t care.

His mother busied herself into passing out the pie and some bottled drinks. Just water, knowing they had to ride back to the property in the dark. “Vik and Adrian offered to come, but we didn’t know if you wanted a full party here.”

“Maybe not,” Kaidan said, taking the plate with a nod of thanks. “You took my bike?”

“Aurelia insisted,” his father shrugged.

She nodded. “Been a while since your girl has been out. Quicksilver needed some love. Lord knows Alchemy did. Think he's yelling at you right now?”

Kaidan paused mid bite, tilting his head to the side. “I don't know, actually. Maybe the sight of Zaeed riding it with me could've made him pause.” He sniffed, setting down the pie and reaching for a clean tissue to blow his nose. Reaching back for the pie, he took a bite, humming at the sour, juicy taste of the fruit. “He would’ve loved this too.”

“Right, he always liked sour things,” his father said. “Him and his weird obsession with hard lemonade, for one.”

Even his parents noticed that odd fact about him. Sure, he would enjoy mixed drinks filled with syrup and fruit, but he’d always ask for hard lemonade if someone was buying or grab a case or two when it was their time to buy drinks.

“He got that from Hannah,” Kaidan replied. “Always bugged me that he never shared my taste for alcohol.”

“Make that our taste,” Zaeed said in between bites. “This is excellent, by the way. What did Vik think?”

“Asked for the recipe immediately,” his mother laughed. “Said it was one of the best interpretations of the pie they’ve had in years. And I got the feeling they meant decades.”

“Likely so,” Zaeed replied. “Vik’s been around. And well, I wouldn’t exactly be here without them. Sort of.”

“Really?” Kaidan asked. “I could tell you both knew each other beyond passing.”

He rubbed at the scar on his face. “You already know that Hackett helped me out after I was betrayed. Vik was the one that healed me up.”

Kaidan already knew all the other details. How exactly he was betrayed. His drive for revenge. This adds even more context. Probably even helped explain why Vik also accepted them so readily.

“The same Hackett that is overseeing your new orders?” His father asked. “Small galaxy.”

Kaidan nodded, finishing his slice of pie. “Yeah, same person. Threw me for a loop when Zee told me about their past. Just means we have a good group here.”

“That it does,” his mother said, cleaning up the table and putting the dirty plates in the basket.

“Vik made it clear about their own thoughts on our little… grilling of you, Zaeed. And I know you said no apologies, but I'm sorry for putting you on the spot about your past,” his father turned to Zaeed.

“Like I said, it's fine. I don't blame you one goddamn bit. Thanks for letting me come.”

“It was no trouble,” she said. “Now, are you boys going to head back with us or enjoy the night air for a little longer?”

Kaidan looked over at Zaeed. “There's one more thing I'd like to talk about before we go. About… how I met Regis.”

To his relief, his parents didn't react other than a nod and wishes for a safe drive once they’re on their way, along with a message so they know when to expect them. Zaeed looked at him curiously, but he didn’t protest until his parents were well out of their sight.

“Am I missing something?” He asked. “I thought you two met in biotic training. Unless you wanted some more alone time…” he trailed off, but his concerned look didn’t leave despite his suggestive comment.

Kaidan scooted closer to him on the bench, resting his head on his shoulder. “That’s the easy way to put it.” He took a deep breath, and he launched into the story of BAaT. Of meeting Regis and Rahna and everyone else. Kids under the wrath of a turian merc. Kaidan’s own attitude and where that got him. The friendship he formed with Regis early on, never noticing Regis’s feelings for him until after BAaT.

Zaeed stayed a silent, steady presence next to him as he continued on, talking about their treatment. The conditions they were under, the injuries many of them sustained, the lack of care all for results. The red sand that was introduced for some. Kaidan got very little.

Regis got a hell of a lot more.

“Explains why he smoked those damn Astras,” Zaeed interrupted. “Always wondered how he got into that habit.”

Vik got him into it as a safe way to deal with the cravings. They didn’t expect him to start using them more recreationally. Kaidan wished he still had that old lighter that Regis gave him to hold onto so that he had to go through him for cravings.

Even if he could light the damn things easily with his omnitool, he never did. He was in control of his habit to an extent. Kaidan can’t really say anything, though.

When Regis would smoke, Kaidan would share with him.

Kaidan nodded. “Yeah, they dosed us to see the limits of what we could do. It stopped after they overdosed one of the students. Claimed it was a result of the implant, but we all knew what really happened. Eezo overload and implant failure.”

Zaeed cursed, shaking his head. “And something tells me there’s worse shit you haven’t told me about.”

Kaidan couldn’t help but laugh, which prompted Zaeed to let out another curse. “I’m getting there.”

There was no use delaying it. All the kids who had to use their biotics to build something. The glass of water offered to Rahna, who reached out with her arm.

Kaidan springing to her defense after Vyrnnus broke her arm. The talon to his face and then–a stasis. But too late, as Kaidan already primed his kick and somehow snapped his neck despite Regis’s field.

The aftermath was easier to talk about now, with Regis’s words echoing in the back of his mind. None of this was your fault. We all wanted something to happen to him. One day, they will see it like I do.

I wish it was me in your place instead.

When they took you away, I promised I would look out for you. That hasn’t changed.

That will never change.

When Kaidan finished telling Zaeed about BAaT, he noticed a meteor streak across the sky, a bright white line that quickly faded into nothing. He wasn’t sure what it meant, but he’d take any sign that Regis was out there. “And there he is, still looking out for me. Maybe he wasn’t pissed off about Alchemy.”

“You said he made you a promise, Regis doesn't break them lightly,” Zaeed said, looking up at the sky, waiting for a sign of his own, perhaps.

“No,” Kaidan’s voice hitched. “No, he doesn’t.”

Zaeed was quiet for a moment before pulling him into a hug. “I could tell how fucking hard that was to tell me. I'm sorry you went through that. You both were goddamn kids.”

“Thanks,” Kaidan said, returning his hug and not letting go just yet. “It was just… a heavy burden to have weighing on us. Regis got off easy in comparison, and he tried to make sure I didn't let anyone get to me afterwards.” He closed his eyes. “That's when I knew he loved me. Still took him a couple of years to make the first move. I was too scared, still too afraid of what I could be. I could've worked through it on my own eventually, but he made sure I didn't have to do it alone.” Yet again, he could feel tears gathering.

“And you aren't alone now. Not as long as you have me, godammit.”

“I love you. Thank you for being here.”

“I love you, too. Thank you for letting me in.”

– –

The drive back was quiet, their flash-forged tech armor helping to light the way on the dark roads that led back to his family’s property.

Vik was waiting for them at the barn, sitting on one of the stools in front of the workbench. “Everything okay?” They asked.

Kaidan powered down Alchemy after parking it next to his Quicksilver, deconstructing his tech armor. “Been better, but we're good. Thanks for waiting on us.”

“Don't mention it. Get some sleep, darling. Remember, you're also here to learn some new tricks before you get back out there.”

“Don't worry, I haven't forgotten,” Kaidan tried to return their grin, but it felt forced. Vik luckily didn't comment on it.

“And Zaeed, you are welcome to watch,” they said with a knowing look.

“Might have to take you up on that. I love seeing biotics in action.”

“You'll get plenty of that. Just remember whose home you are staying in,” they chuckled, and Kaidan felt his cheeks heat up at Zaeed's gaze.

“Thanks Vik,” Kaidan rolled his eyes.

“Anytime. Adrian helped get your old bedroom in order. All you have to do is get some sleep,” they repeated again with a pointed look. “I won't lie and say I was silent after you two left, but I think tensions were high solely because of who we were remembering.”

Kaidan was sure Vik was being tactful, and his parents did say that Vik got a few words in. “Regis wanted me–us–to move on.”

“I know. My kid clearly cared for the both of you, and I wish he told me about you three,” Vik said, looking at them both. “But he's always been a secretive sort. You should probably tell Hannah about this. I think she’d appreciate knowing another aspect of her son.”

Would she? Hannah approved of them, seemingly happy Regis found someone that managed to get him in the Alliance he was so seemingly against back when they first met and were talking about their lives and dreams. Sometimes Kaidan wondered if his drive to join the Alliance caused Regis to do the same, knowing he had his own plans with his cybernetics education.

But Regis was happy in the Alliance. Despite Torfan. Despite his mother’s reaction. Despite… the beacon.

Kaidan wasn’t sure how she’d react to him moving on so fast, even if he does give the extra details, send a few pictures, and bring Adrian and Vik in on this to help his case.

It’s a conversation he will have to have soon.

“I’ll talk to her,” Kaidan said, motioning for Zaeed to help him cover the bike. “I had a meeting with her first about what to do next.”

“How was that?” Vik asked. “I’ve only talked to her once since… the funeral.” Still hard for them all to say.

“Fine, if a little… well. You know,” Kaidan said, making a so-so gesture. Vik nodded along. They understood. “I have her support in many ways, though.” “Personally and professionally. Good,” Vik said with a nod. “Well, I shouldn’t keep you. Need you to be well rested.”

“Should I be worried?”

“No, I imagine you’ll be a good student. Reaving, bubbles, and fields can take a lot out of you, so we’ll need plenty of calories. Especialy you.” Vik got up from the stool. “Which means if Zaeed is a good boyfriend, he’ll be supplying that for you.”

“Well, if the Alenkos will let me take over their grill, I’ll be a good boyfriend,” Zaeed said, grabbing his hand and tugging on it to urge Kaidan along.

“So does that make Adrian a terrible partner because he doesn’t do that for you?” Kaidan asked.

Vik laughed. “I love him with all my heart. Keep him as far away from a kitchen as possible. He makes up for it in other ways, and well, we don’t burn as many calories in comparison.”

“Huh, I didn’t know that,” he admitted, locking up the barn and making sure everything was powered down.

“Younger maidens, yes,” they said. “They need more energy to grow, just like your teenagers and young adults. But once we mature beyond that, it evens out. It’s still not the same caloric deficit. I had to learn a lot of adjustments on the fly after BAaT.” After they said the name of the program, they stopped and looked at Kaidan. “Sorry, does he?”

“He does,” Zaeed answered. “Just learned about it. Fucking hell.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

“Not that it’s any of my goddamn business…” Zaeed trailed off, looking at Kaidan and Vik. He knew where this was going.

Vik interrupted, “Why didn’t I teach Regis?”

Zaeed nodded, glancing over at Kaidan. He returned his gaze with a nod, hoping that it told him he was fine with the question. Kaidan honestly didn’t know, and he never asked Regis about it. Considering Regis was always a little pissed at the whole situation every time it was brought up, it wasn’t something worth pursuing. They were here now, and Regis tended to not dwell much on alternatives. What happened, happened, and he was going to deal with it.

Well, with Regis’s unhealthy tendencies to hold a hell of a grudge. What he would give to hear Regis rant again…

“Politics,” they damn near spat, the venom evident. Kaidan wasn’t surprised. It made sense. After all, humanity’s biotics were all about the politics.

“It’s good PR to have the son of a high ranking Alliance officer endorse the program, right? But I know Hannah wanted me to do it, despite me being an old Commando. And I never really got the chance to teach him the way I wanted after he told me that he was joining the Alliance, but alas… I wouldn’t necessarily say that it would’ve been better for him to have learned from me. It brought him to you, after all.” Vik motioned towards him.

That’s what Regis would always say. He never regretted BAaT because it brought them together. Didn’t stop Kaidan’s vein’s from turning to ice. Didn’t stop the feeling of relief that Regis was there anyway. The selfishness of knowing him despite the torture they went through.

No, Kaidan thought to himself, it wouldn’t have been better for Regis to have learned how to control his biotics from Vik.

One thing he didn’t know, however, was that Hannah wanted Vik to do it. “Did Regis know that his mother wanted you to teach him?”

Vik’s eyes widened, their markings stretching across their face. “Wait, she never told him? This whole time, she let him think that she blocked me from…” they shook their head. “Can’t believe she let herself be turned into a bad guy. Explains why Regis never really cornered me about it beyond when he first asked me about it.”

Kaidan knew part of that story. A young Regis asking Vik to be his teacher, to be like the asari commandos he heard stories about as a kid. But Vik only said to ask his mother, and that was the end of the conversation.

“In some ways,” Kaidan continued walking back to the house. “She already was for not letting Regis spend more time on Earth, but that doesn’t explain why she never explained herself. Unless… she didn’t want to poison the Alliance for him? I don’t know.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, there’s really no use speculating about it.”

“And Regis wouldn’t want us to anyway,” Vik said with undisguised frustration. “I’d say the Alliance was poisoned for him long before BAaT. Clearly BAaT and its ties didn’t deter him either, but you had a lot to do with that.” Something… else was lingering in their tone that Kaidan couldn’t place.

He felt bold. “In what way?”

“I’m not saying you forced him. Goddess, darling,” They shook their head.

“What are you saying?” Kaidan tried to keep his voice neutral, but the weariness and emotions of the day were bearing down on him.

“Sometimes I wonder what his life would’ve been like if he didn’t join. That’s it. But I’d imagine he would’ve followed me to Omega and used his cybernetics degree for all the right and wrong reasons, and ended up in another dangerous situation,” Vik sighed. They stopped at the back door of the patio. “Unlike Regis, I think about every damn thing. You think I wouldn't with how many centuries I've been alive, but I've never been good at acceptance. He was destined for greatness and far away from the quiet life. I’m just… I’ve lost a lot of friends and people I loved. I didn’t expect to lose him so soon.”

Kaidan felt like a dick. “Vik, I’m—”

“Sorry? Don’t be. You are looking out for your love the same way I’m looking out for my kid. What’s the phrase? Water under the bridge?” They held out their hand.

Kaidan shook it, feeling the soft hiss of Vik’s corona intersect with his own. A foreign sensation so unlike the field that would form between his and Regis’s.

“Water under the bridge,” Kaidan repeated. “You got it right.”

“Adrian’s a good teacher. He also helped get your bedroom ready to go with your luggage.” Vik stepped aside to open the door. The lights were off in the house. His parents must’ve already gone up to bed.

“Thanks,” Zaeed said with a yawn. “It’s been a long day.”

“Especially for you both,” Vik said as they all walked quietly up the stairs. Adrian waved at them from the hallway. His hair was down from its usual bun, and to Kaidan's amusement, he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt with asari writing on it.

“Hope you had some good time alone,” he said, opening his arms for a hug. Kaidan accepted it, inhaling deeply, smelling the same hint of citrus that Regis loved in his own scents. He knew they used the same hair products, both enjoying taming and styling their curls best they could. Another indulgence Regis loved was expensive self-care products, comparing notes with his uncle.

“We did,” Kaidan said quietly, pulling away. “Thanks for waiting up.”

Adrian waved it off. “Anytime. You’re basically my surrogate kid, so I’m going to be your surrogate uncle and tell you to get some rest. Also because Vik is going to kick your ass tomorrow.”

Kaidan rolled his eyes but was smiling all the same. “We’ll see about that.”

“I look forward to it.” Vik bowed. “Good night to the both of you.”

“Good night,” Kaidan said, and Zaeed nodded, following him to his old bedroom at the end of the hall.

It was nearly as he left it the last time he and Regis visited. The bed was already unmade, piled high with warm blankets and pillows, his old blue comforter a nice sight to see. His walls were still covered with old pictures and posters, and Zaeed looked around, taking them in, grinning at some but never saying anything. He stopped at an array of photos on his old dresser.

Photos from when Regis was visiting in between his classes and when he graduated with his cybernetics degree. Still young and before they enlisted. Kaidan did a bit of schooling online, but finished his biology background by going into a specialty medic track while in the Alliance.

Zaeed picked another photo up. Regis was grinning in his graduation regalia, holding up his degree while Kaidan kissed him on the cheek. He remembered his mother taking that picture, smiling and laughing at their affection.

“He was so young,” Zaeed said. “No tats, no scars… looks completely different.”

“Torfan changed him,” Kaidan said, taking the photo from him and putting it back on the dresser. “Face was still full of metal though.”

“Sure was,” he laughed. His gaze turned to another picture, taken not long after BAaT. It was a selfie of Regis Kaidan had framed, always pulling it back out every time Regis tried to hide it.

It still had Regis with his natural green eyes instead of his gene modded red.

“Didn’t know he used to have green eyes either,” Zaeed said, probably thinking of his own. “We could’ve matched.”

Kaidan has thought about that too. “Not long after BAaT is when he got into body mods. It was like no time at all when he started changing things about himself. Going for a face full of piercings, full sleeves of tattoos… he didn’t get the neck ones until after Torfan. His chest wasn’t long after he got the ones on his neck.”

“And the one on his back?”

“Not long after we landed in Omega,” Kaidan said, wishing he could trace the lines of that cybernetic heart.

“I knew the story behind his neck. Hell, when I got his Black Widow, I saw that skull of his staring back at me,” Zaeed said. “His arms were because of his father, right?”

“Porcelain flowers because of his late grandmother’s tea sets. Yggdrasil directly because his father had one on his back. Treated like a connection to Earth, and I asked Regis if I could get it too.” Kaidan rubbed his leg where the tattoo was. “Damn near knocked me over with the kiss he gave me.”

“I can imagine that… think it’ll be okay if I get some of his flowers on my hip?” Zaeed asked quietly, almost hesitant.

Kaidan leaned in for a kiss, soft and sweet. “I think he–and I–would like that. I was going to get a big piece done on my back as well. Haven’t decided what yet. Maybe a bit of eezo ink too.”

“Sounds like something we can try to do together.”

“I’d like that.” Kaidan let out a yawn. “Best get to bed. Sounds like Vik is going to kick my ass tomorrow.”

“Do you know exactly what they’re going to teach you? Haven’t heard any of that biotic shit before–well, maybe bubbles.” Zaeed asked as he grabbed his luggage, sorting through his bed clothes and grabbing his toiletries.

“A few things. I sort of know the theory behind them, but it’s not going to be easy.” Kaidan started to unpack his clothes too, grabbing what he needed and starting to tug off his clothes before pulling on the soft red plaid pajama pants he stole from Regis. A bit too long on him, but they were something to steal.

He walked into the bathroom and turned on the light. Zaeed settled behind him, shirtless against his own bare skin, wrapping his arms around his stomach as Kaidan began to brush his teeth. “Either way, it’ll be a hell of a show.”

Kaidan hummed, going through the motions before spitting out the paste. “Just wish Regis were here to do it with me.”

“So do I.” He kissed the top of his head and swapped places with him. “My turn.”

So easy to get lost in the domesticity. Kaidan wished they had a few more days.

– –

Kaidan stared at his omnitool while sitting on the edge of the bed, thinking back to what Vik said earlier about Hannah. It was late, but he knew she kept long hours. And he doubted she, like the rest of them, was getting much sleep lately.

Zaeed was already under the covers, scrolling on his own omnitool.

It will be just a quick call. He can also update her on the T’Soni situation from his perspective, hoping that Hackett already had that conversation with her.

“Going to call his mother?” he asked.

“Thinking about it.”

“Then do it. Need a minute alone?”

Kaidan shook his head. “No, but I am going to pull on a shirt.” He reached for the sweatshirt he brought with him, branded with the Alliance marines symbol, and tugged it on. “I’m going to tell her about us and what we had with him, but I won’t make you part of the call unless she asks.”

“She’s going to ask. She’ll know,” he laughed, but it didn’t sound carefree. A little strained, either from the weight of the day or facing yet another meeting with a parent.

Kaidan snorted and got up to sit at his desk, sending her a quick message.

She replied nearly instantly with a link, no message attached to it.

Kaidan took a deep breath and opened the link, keeping his bed out of the view. She appeared on the other side, her dark black hair down in waves instead of its usual bun. She looked tired, older, wearing a purple turtleneck that immediately reminded him of Regis.

“Hackett told me you were with family and to not bother you. What’s wrong?” She asked.

“Nothing’s wrong, but Vik wanted me to talk to you about something. First, need me to talk about the whole thing with T’Soni?”

She waved it off. “Not now. What more can you say? I know Regis didn’t want her on board, and more than that, I realize how idiotic the Council was for not putting her up in protective custody when he asked.” She scoffed. “He made a hell of a choice that day. Though, it shouldn’t surprise me by now.”

“That he’s willing to sacrifice to get the outcome he wants?” Kaidan challenged, unable to prevent himself from striking out.

“No.” Her face was still. “That he was willing to make the ballsy choices that would have nearly every admiral in this leadership squealing. If he didn’t keep back our fleet, he could’ve doomed the goddamn galaxy. Of course, no one’s going to see it that way,” she sighed. “But I’m with you and him on that. He did the right thing. Always tried.”

Kaidan bit back his comment. Should’ve told him that more often.

“I know what you want to say, and trust me, I have plenty of regrets. So, why was Vik wanting you to talk to me?”

Hannah was always good at reading people. But not her son.

How to best start this story… “Remember the man in Regis’s will that he gave his arsenal to? The ones that weren’t on the Normandy?”

“I do,” she nodded, narrowing his eyes. “It wasn’t the time to ask or contest when we were handling it. Who is he?”

Kaidan let out a breath. “Zaeed Massani was an old temporary third in our relationship a few years ago.”

To her credit, her expression barely changed, save for a slight widening of her eyes. “And when you say temporary…”

“A few weeks. An ill-advised shore leave on Omega that showed we were a little in over our heads…”

“And you met him there,” she guessed, not accepting the bait for the story. He was grateful for that.

Kaidan nodded. “It’s a bit of a long story but… yes. We mutually agreed to pursue him and well… we stayed friends after we parted ways.”

“Had to if he willed his goddamn Widow to him. Skull engraving and all?”

“Skull engraving and all,” Kaidan echoed. “He’s not just some friend to us.”

“But I didn’t know him,” she said, lacing her fingers together on her desk.

“Vik and Adrian didn’t either in that way,” Kaidan said. “Vik only knew Zaeed in passing due to their work. Adrian mostly knew Zaeed because of Vik, not because of us.”

“Runs in the same circles as Vik, huh. So, what are you going to tell me next? Don’t tell me he’s part of T’Loak’s circle…”

He was sure Zaeed had to be careful to not make himself known at that comment. “He’s an independent merc.”

She nodded, leaning back in her chair. “Okay. What is this really about, Kaidan? You call me late at night to tell me of an ex-fling of yours that ended up making such an impact that Regis willed his goddamn armory to him. Well, that’s now explained because of his work. But why did Vik want you to tell me this? Another reminder that my son and I never talked to each other?”

Kaidan let her rant, keeping his face still. Here goes nothing. “Regis gave me a separate video for me to watch. I finally watched it.”

“He recorded me a short one too,” she said, her face softening. “What did he say?”

“He wanted me to move on with my life. Find someone else. And in that video, he mentioned Zaeed by name.”

Her face, again, betrayed nothing.

So, he continued. “When I left Arcturus, I met up with Zaeed before even knowing about the video. He just happened to be on Earth. So, I finally faced that damn video with him by my side, and Regis dropped that bomb out of nowhere. Regis hoped that Zaeed would be that person for me to rely on and one day love.” His voice caught on the last word. “And Hannah, I loved your son. I love him still, but… Regis gave me his goddamn blessing and I’m not about to waste an opportunity we both wanted after that shore leave.” He didn’t think he still had tears to cry, but more threatened to fall.

“You don’t need my fucking blessing for anything, kid. Regis… found himself with you. And I am so grateful that he had you, and I’m sure your parents felt the same way about him. Do I think this is too soon? Maybe. You need time, but time isn’t something any of us have these days. Just… introduce him to me at some point. I’d like to know the man that managed to pull both of you in,” she said, crossing her hands on top of each other on the table.

Kaidan never expected that response out of her. Likely due to Regis’s influence, his own thoughts on his mother seeping into whatever opinion Kaidan tried to create on his own.

But there were too many times that made it difficult for Kaidan to paint her in a good light.

“Thank you,” Kaidan said, wiping at his eyes. “I don’t want you to think that I’m just throwing away what we had. We were so damn close to tying the knot.”

“It took Atlas and I years,” she said. “I understand. Find your peace. I wish I could find mine.”

“Vik wanted me to call you because I’ve already brought Zaeed down to meet Mom and Dad,” Kaidan blurted.

This time, she did react, not hiding her shock. “Already? And how did that… no, it’s not any of my business.” By the way she sounded, she definitely thought it was her business. “A couple of rough spots but… they want me to be happy,” Kaidan said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“And I want that for you too, truly. So, you called me to size up my reaction. Fair enough. If he’s okay with that, I want to at least say hello,” she said, quickly recovering.

Kaidan didn’t have to say anything. Zaeed got up from the bed, pulled on his tank top, and moved into the frame.

“Wait a second… you’re Hackett’s old–” she cut herself off.

“He knows,” Zaeed said, moving to put a hand on his shoulder. “He knows I’m his old friend and old beau. Nice to meet you, Admiral Shepard.”

“Just call me Shepard, Massani,” she said with a laugh. “Fucking hell, this galaxy is tiny. Explains why your name kept gnawing on me, but I couldn’t place it. Never been good with names…” she trailed off. “My kid must’ve trusted and loved you a lot to give you his gun. That’s all the endorsement I need.”

“I carry it with pride,” Zaeed said. “I know the meaning of what he engraved on it.”

“Good. Take care of each other. We’ll talk more later. You both look tired.”

“Yeah, it’s been a long day,” Kaidan said, stifling a yawn.

“I bet,” she said, giving them both a small smile. “Between the bullshit going on with that asari, your impending future, and introducing your partner to the family… get some rest. Give the Alenkos my love. I’ll try to make a trip down soon.”

He thought it was funny how she gave meeting the parents the same level of stress as all the other shit going on in his life.

“I will. They’ll be happy to host you.”

“That I know for a fact. Take care of each other. Not just for Regis, but yourselves. Might need to get some stories out of you.” Before Kaidan could reply, she closed the link.

Zaeed squeezed his shoulder tighter.

Kaidan felt a little lighter after having that conversation, but now, all he wanted to do was snuggle up with Zaeed for as long as he could. A part of him also wanted to grill her more on the BAaT story he learned from Vik, but this wasn't the time.

And really, there wouldn't be much of a time without Regis there with them.

#mass effect #kaidan alenko #zaeed massani #cleric's writing #mass effect fanfiction #massanilenko #that's going to be my ship name for them lol #pic somewhat related but I needed something #i've been poking around on this for months #probably filled with errors but i'm tired lol

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duelistkingdom · 1 year

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name: project gold rush (unofficial title)

main characters: violet foxglove & karma carter

plot: violet foxglove, age seventeen, is on the cusp of greatness. capitol records has signed her when she was only fifteen and given her complete creative freedom in her career with only one catch: they get to control her image. it is a more than fair trade in her mind and she gets to work right away on the pop album she’s always wanted to make but could never afford to make. everything is going fine until karma carter, age eighteen, crashes into her life. karma is a nepotism baby, who never wants for anything. an internationally known model with her sights are set on violet, and what karma wants, karma gets. with all the scandal and drama, it’s no wonder the two are in the tabloids all the time - but that doesn’t mean any of them know the truth.

elevator pitch: project gold rush is a romance novel set in the early 2000s and takes place over the course of decades as two rich girls learn what really matters in life.

warnings: closeting, homophobia, sexism, exploitation, manipulation, abusive parents

if you like my work, support me on kofi

She imagined what it would be like if this was real - being accepted for who she was by someone who she loved. It was enough to make her realize that yes, she could write real songs about this relationship, too. It didn't have to all be as fake as her hair and nails. "I got scared that if I told you, you'd tell everyone, and I'd lose out on what I'd been dreaming of."

Alex tilted his head. "Fame isn't what it's cracked up to be, you know. Weirdos stalking you, people thinking that they know you, having to be nice to strangers even when you're tired because god forbid you don't treat a stranger you barely know like a friend."

Violet laughed, shaking her head. Fame wasn't what she was after. She was after something much deeper than that. "Not fame, no," she said, wondering what the best way to put this would be. She tilted her head, mulling it over. "It's more like... you know when you create something, and it's nice? But you want other people to see that it's nice. You want to perform it in front of people, feel the rush of knowing other people relate to it? I want people to see me for me."

To this, Alex grinned. "That's a far better reason to dance with the devil."

KARMA CARTER STUNS IN MILAN! In between her fashion walks and Vogue covers, Karma finds time to hang out with her new budding friendships with Alex Mills of Gods and Men fame and Violet Foxglove. The trio were recently spotted at a tiny gelato shop in Milan. We can't think of a better friendship circle to be part of! Rumors are that Alex and Violet looked so in love that it left Karma wishing for a man of her own! Here's to hoping that Karma soon ceases to be a third wheel to her new friends and finds herself a man! We're rooting for you, Karma.

Pap walks were nothing new to Karma, and she wasn't surprised when Violet came forward with the fact her label expected her to do one with her boyfriend. Which left Karma feeling almost a little put out. After all, she'd been hoping when Violet had reached out for a sleepover, it'd been code for something a little more... intimate. Instead, she was out in public with cameras being shoved in her face while Violet hanged off the rocker with a smile that she wished was for her instead. But she knew better than to look upset about it. She laughed at the right moments, acted like she fit right in with them. Maybe she should talk to her mom about getting her a PR boyfriend so she didn't look like a loser next time she was out with them.

She thought about what the media would say about this. Maybe she could threaten some of the magazine with severing professional ties if they dare to make her out to seem like a desperate third wheel. Not that would stop some tabloids and the trash like TMZ from talking shit. Their whole shtick, after all, was to make people like her look bad for the cardinal sin of being too popular. Too in their face. Women like her, according to them, needed to be taken down a peg. Because how dare she know that she's stunning, she supposed. Whatever. It wasn't her problem to worry about right now.

They headed back to the hotel, and oddly enough, Violet simply hugged Alex goodnight. She wasn't an expert in relationships by any stretch of the means, but it seemed odd to her that the two didn't share a goodnight kiss. Violet turned to her, and Karma's heart leapt into her throat, wondering if she could somehow read her mind and know exactly what she was thinking. It was almost embarrassing how Violet had reduced her to a mess of a girl with her heart in her acrylic finger nailed hands - enough to signal to Karma that there was no chance of anything here. She could almost imagine the slur coming out of Violet's lips if she knew the truth of how she felt. It was better for everyone if she kept all those feelings buried deep.

Some part of her had been hoping that Alex and Violet were fake for the press. Perhaps she still was, since she was reading into the lack of the kiss between the two. Or maybe they just weren't comfortable with PDA. The low waist flare jeans gave Karma a hint of a sliver of Violet's hips, and she could imagine herself worshiping at them like an altar. But she shouldn't. She won't. The Nirvana shirt clung to Violet's breasts, with a hint of nipple poking through - she wore no bra. She swallowed hard, and reminded herself that Violet was more than definitely straight at this point. The unnamed ex-boyfriend, the chemistry between her and Alex... she'd been hopeful for nothing.

While she was a little bitter about that, she wouldn't let her feelings color what could potentially be a good friendship. After all, Violet had seemed so apologetic about the pap walk sprung on them by the record label, and insisted that she'd tried to get out of having to do the walk. It was more than any other person would have done in Violet's position. After all, being seen with a supermodel like Karma would easily raise her stock and make people want to see her perform. It seemed a lot like fame itself was a secondary thing to Violet - she truly cared more about the art. It, unfortunately, only made Karma's crush on her grow. "Shall we get out of here," Violet asked, a sparkle in those dark brown eyes. "You owe me a sleepover, after all."

Karma swore she smelled cherries from the lip gloss that Violet had slathered on and she longed for a taste. She knew better than to go for that in public, however. Last thing she needed was for people to think of her as a predator for liking girls. No, instead, she smiled and nodded. "Let's go up to my room," she said, taking Violet's hand in hers and ignoring how well it fit there. She yanked her to the elevator, grateful to have ditched Alex. "So, what do you think of Alex? He's kind of a hottie, isn't he?" Violet frowned at this, and she couldn't help but laugh. "Don't worry, I'm not trying to steal your man."

A pause hung in the air as the elevator door closed, and instantly Karma was certain she'd screwed up. Violet was looking away from her, staring instead at the floors passing by. It was so uncomfortable that it felt like the air itself was pressing down on her chest. Finally, Violet spoke. "Sorry, I'm not used to hanging out with other girls," she said, her voice softer and more cautious than she would expect from a girl who was filmed in a sparkling body suit in a hot tub filled with champagne and rose petals. A pink blush had smattered across Violet's cheeks - the same color as Karma's favorite lipstick. "Most people don't want to hang out with me."

Now that was something that Karma found difficult to believe. Who wouldn't be clamoring for a chance to be by her side? "Then most people are morons," Karma said, flipping her hair. She eyed them in the elevator's full length mirror and laughed. "You know, side by side like this, we kind of look like sisters."

Violet glanced over at them. The one thing that no one had bothered to mention was that Violet was tall. Karma, at six foot two, had always been considered one of the tallest girls in the room. Violet was at most two, maybe three inches shorter than her. Between the two of them, they could easily make the self-esteem of any man plummet just by stepping into the room. Both of them had hair that could only be achieved from a flat iron, with Violet's hair more towards platinum than the natural honeyed blonde Karma opted for. She was certain that hair like Violet's could only come out of a bottle, however. Not that she could say anything - her hair was usually a dirtier blonde than now. "We're just both tall and blonde," Violet finally decided. "And... maybe similar eye shapes. But my chin and lips are utterly different from yours. And my nose too."

Oh, she'd noticed Violet's lips alright. Red lip usually looked tacky on most people in Karma's opinion, but Violet wore it well. When Violet wore it, it looked classic - like she'd stepped out of an ad for victory red lipstick from the 1940s. It was clear that as much as her record label wanted to push a bit of sex appeal on Violet, they also wanted a broad appeal for her. "People like tall and blonde," Karma said, inching closer. She desperately wanted to put her arm around her. Was that something normal girls did? Maybe Violet wouldn't overthink it. A lot of nerve went into throwing her arm around her shoulders. The heat coming off Violet's body was impossible to ignore. "We'll be unstoppable."

A small smile twitched on those red lips. "So you wouldn't hate hanging out with me again?" She tucked a lock of long platinum hair behind her ear, and Karma could count every single lash on her eyelid. She could see the color in her eyes - dark brown surrounded by flecks of gold and honey. "We haven't even finished this hang out, you know."

There was a twinkle in her eye - a hope that Karma couldn't figure out. Part of her dared to dream but... she didn't even dare to wish it. Whatever hung in the air was better left unsaid. She smirked, squeezing Violet in hopes of having her just a little bit closer for even a brief moment. "Everyone knows if you wanna stay on top of everyone else, you gotta be two steps ahead," she said, stepping away as the elevator reached her floor. "I can teach you some tricks, you know."

"Then show me the way."

#wip wednesday #writblr #queer writing #wlw writing #wlw ocs #queer creator #mywriting #original novel #oc: violet foxglove #oc: karma carter

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thisismysecondrodeo · 2 years

Text

"This Means the World to Me" Part 8

wc: 3.8k

Story Page | Story Tag

AN: At the end this time :)

You weren’t so drunk last night that you didn’t remember your evening but you were so hungover this morning that it took some time to piece everything back together. You had gotten distracted with Jason and forgotten to plug your phone in, so instead of checking it like you normally did first thing in the morning, you leaned over to his side of the bed and checked the clock. It was 11 am, no wonder Jason was out of bed somewhere. It was very unusual for you to sleep that late, especially when you’d be drinking, but it was a very unusual sort of night.

When you finally made your way downstairs, showered but still bleary and yawning, Jason greeted you with a laugh from the living room where he was playing FIFA.

“She’s alive!”

“Ha ha,” you retorted sarcastically, heading into the kitchen for a much-needed cup of coffee. You knew Jason would greet you with a kiss as soon as his match ended and it pleased you that there was this routine to your lives together. Even after the Emmys. Even though most of it still felt unreal to you. You remembered Jason insisting you wear his shoes last night, the picture Hannah sent, his speech when he accepted his award. Your stomach fluttered when you realized those photographs and interviews from the red carpet were online right now, which meant people were surely bombarding you with notifications, analyzing your appearance and your relationship with Jason. Maybe you were glad you hadn’t plugged your phone in after all. You hopped up on the kitchen island as you drank your coffee, able to watch Jason play from your perch.

Just as you predicted you heard Jason tell his friends he’d talk to them later and he found you on the counter, slotting himself between your legs and kissing you deeply. That brought back memories of after the Emmy’s, you and Jason’s suits crumpled on the bedroom floor, the feeling of his mouth over the thin lace of your bodysuit, your hands pressing into his chest as he fell back into the sheets.

“How’d you sleep,” Jason asked, his hands running up and down your thighs. You could tell from the way he asked that this was a pleasantry before a real question, which made you a little apprehensive.

“Like a rock apparently,” you answered, taking another sip of your coffee. “Fun night.”

“Indeed,” he smiled. “You been online this morning?”

“No my phone is dead,” you began, “is there something I should be worried about?”

Jason was still smiling so you weren’t overly concerned yet. And then he asked, “Depends, what does ‘Paris looks nice this time of year’ mean?”

You froze, your eyes wide and a blush creeping up your cheeks. “Fuck.” That was one memory that hadn’t come back so swiftly. Your forehead fell forward onto his shoulder and you spoke without looking at him. “It may or may not…be a reference to a threesome. Oh god, that was offensive, wasn't it? Did I offend you? Or Donald? Shit, I’m sorry, I should delete that,” you moved to get off the counter but he held you in place with a hand at your waist. “I didn’t even think about people seeing that, it was just a funny little joke…”

“Oh, it was a very funny joke. Heather sent me a Buzzfeed article calling you 'the most relatable' and one titled 'Y/N is all of us',” Jason chuckled making air quotes with his fingers. “You are downright viral.”

“Are you taking glee at me accidentally telling the internet I’d have a threesome with you and Donald Glover when you should be upset that I not only overshadowed a wonderful night for you but am also a big ol’ idiot who should know better?”

Jason shook his head and kissed your nose, “I meant it when I said you can do what you want. But it may be worth talking to Heather about it. No matter what, you’re not an idiot, you’re just…what did Heather call it…’chronically online.’”

“That is… accurate. Alright, let me go get my phone and face the music.”

You left Jason in the kitchen and started scrolling through literally thousands of notifications across various platforms, plus text messages and missed calls. You groaned and started with the Instagram post. The reaction was generally positive like Jason had suggested, so you decided to take it in stride. You edited the caption, adding, “Whoever sent this to Jason: you’re on my shit-list because I just had to explain this caption 🥴.” It played into the relatable vibe while also playfully acknowledging that you didn’t truly intend for the post to have the reach that it did. It was the articles and tweets where things fell apart. Though a number of news outlets declared your funny post as proof that the two of you were a good fit together, the negative reactions hit hard. People saying you weren’t attractive enough, you were a nobody, that Jason had downgraded. And even that didn’t upset you as much as the comments making Jason out to be a creep, implying that he was taking advantage of you. By the time Jason came to check on you upstairs with a snack, you were furious. His eyebrows shot up as you immediately started reporting what you had read.

“Maybe let’s take a little break from reading people’s opinions, hm?”

“I should say something. I mean, yeah, obviously I seem out of place but they don’t know us and they don’t understand…”

“So you’re going to make them?”

You sighed, falling back against the headboard, tossing your phone away. “I don’t know. I just hate to let people think you’re some Hollywood creep taking advantage of me because of the age gap.”

“I appreciate that you want to defend me, but the response really isn’t that bad surprisingly. Here, I’ll call Heather now, we’ll talk about it.”

Heather was surprised to hear how upset you are considering the actual media outlets are trending positive about the relationship, but she understands. As a publicist you’re sure if Jason had run the relationship past her, she too would have advised against it. Hell, maybe he did run it past her and then just didn’t listen. Heather suggested that Jason do a print interview, something where he could be thoughtful and charismatic about the relationship without the pressure of being on camera.

“You mean without reminding people I’m old,” Jason smiled. You looked at Jason over the phone he held between the two of you, thinking carefully before you spoke.

“Could we do it together? Like, as a couple?”

“Well, Y/N,” Heather started, addressing you directly, “I’m not technically your publicist, but if you’re game for it I’d happily help facilitate. I’ve read your book, I know you’re good with words. Jason?”

“I don’t want you to put yourself out there like that, unless you want to. You’d be opening yourself up to a world of scrutiny.”

“It seems like I already did that on accident. I want to. I mean it. Besides, people are more likely to believe me when I say you’re not a creep than if you say it.”

“Fair.”

Excerpt from the interview

So, Y/N, Jason, you two come from very different worlds. What drew you to each other?

JS: She is by far the smartest person to ever give me the time of day. I loved her writing before I ever met her, and then I got to spend time with her and found out how funny, and kind, and gorgeous she is, inside and out. We really just connected in a way I haven’t experienced before. You know, creating chemistry with people is kind of my job, but I don��t really have to turn it on with her and I think we still find each other rather charming.

Y/N: God, I need to stop letting him answer questions first *laughs*. I had been a fan of Jason’s since SNL days, so obviously I was attracted to how funny and handsome he is. But he’s also incredibly thoughtful and quick-witted under that midwestern charm. I was drawn to this image I had of him and imagine my surprise when the real thing was even better.

How do you respond to people that are concerned that the age gap is inappropriate?

Y/N: I’m going to say something that will probably surprise people: They should be concerned about people in relationships with large age gaps. You should absolutely be looking out for your friends and people you know that are in imbalanced relationships because there’s so much potential for someone to get taken advantage of. But those people that are concerned don’t know us, and I promise, this relationship is not imbalanced. I’m nearly 30, I had a life before Jason—I’m choosing to be here and I’m choosing him. I think people that are making a big stink out of it are honestly taking away my agency, taking away the idea that I could choose something and know what's right for me.

JS: I don’t think I can say anything more eloquent than what Y/N said except that I am so lucky that she’s chosen me, chosen us. And on top of all that, I wasn't sitting down and designing my dream woman and really hoping she'd be 26 *laughs*. I mean by definition a large age gap relationship that lasts forever still means we're getting less time together than if we had been high school sweethearts and that's a bummer. But it's worth it.

Are your family and friends supportive?

Y/N: You know, I have to say I don’t think I saw anything said online that I hadn’t heard from my parents already *laughs*. But yes, my friends have been supportive since day one. I think at a certain point when you make decisions that are authentic to you, people sort of fall in line with that. Joy can be contagious that way.

JS: Honestly everyone who meets Y/N not only loves her but they’re rightfully so impressed with her. So yeah, my friends and family that have met her, they’re all very happy for me.

But you two haven’t met all the family?

Y/N: No we were in a bit of a bubble until the Emmy’s.

And that instagram post.

Y/N: And that. *laughs*

JS: I thought it was funny. I mean I did literally have to be told what it meant, but after that I definitely got a kick out of it. *laughs*

Y/N: You know, like you said, we come from two different worlds and I didn’t think about the people that would reach, but, you know I appreciate that people were like, “that’s what I would say if I was in your position.”

We asked Donald Glover about it…

Y/N: Yeah? Was he offended?

Not at all. He said he bought your book because of it.

JS: Everyone should, by the way. It’s fantastic.

You and Jason laid low after the Emmys and the interview, letting the entertainment news cycle find a new interest. He spent time with the kids while the two of you were still in California and you were able to meet them quietly and with little fanfare, pleased that it seemed to go well. You were supposed to be heading back home after the weekend, but for the life of you, you couldn’t think of any good reason to, when you were still enjoying yourself. Part of you wanted to go just to prove that you weren’t overly attached to Jason, to prove that you were still your own person. But you truly didn’t feel like you had lost yourself, only gained a new understanding of what you could be.

After a few more days in California, Jason needed to head back to New York to pack for more shooting in London. You were going as well to meet with Sasha face to face and get detailed updates on the status of your book adaptation and then you figured you would finally get back to your apartment and, weirdly, to what your life was like before. That life was quickly starting to feel as unreal as this one.

You watched Jason pack up his things from the bed, in comfortable silence. It only took one look at you for Jason to inquire after your thoughts.

“I can hear the gears in your head whirring over there. What are you concerned about, hm?”

“Nothing really,” you start, but Jason looked at you skeptically, “it’s just, you know, this has felt like a dream for these past 3 weeks and its just starting to settle in that there’s a life outside of this. Not in a bad way. Just…food for thought.”

“Well when we get to London, we can figure out the, ya know, what’s next of it all.”

When we get to London?

“I’m going to London?”

“Oh, I, uh just assumed and bought you a ticket, I’m sorry,” Jason scratched at the back of his neck sheepishly, “I guess I also just got all swept up in the dream. I mean you said it yourself, you had a life before me…I just…I like having you around.”

“Oh, baby, I’m not saying no! I also like being around. I just want to make sure that I don’t go with the flow so hard that I …get lost. Dragged by the current.”

Jason tossed another shirt in his suitcase and came and sat across from you on the bed. You immediately scooted towards him so you could place your head on his shoulder. Talking was always easier with a point of physical contact.

“I don’t want you to get lost either. I want you to do what you need to do. But being away from you for even just a month again…now that I know what being with you is like…it would be rough.”

“I agree 1000%. So let's not be apart for months. We’ll go back to New York for a few days, I’ll see what happens with HBO, you’ll go to London, and I’ll talk to my job about working in a different time zone and meet you there. At least for a little while. We’ll figure out a schedule that works. I promise.”

Jason lifted your hand to his mouth, kissing your knuckles. “Sounds like a plan. But just in case it wasn’t clear, I’m, like in this. I know we haven’t been together that long and I do want you to figure out what your life looks like, but I want to be in it for the long haul, Aaron Paul.”

You chuckled, “Very good Tedism. I, uh, gathered that from the interview and your concerns about dying before me." You both laughed. "I’m in it too, by the way. Getting to be a part of your life, to meet the kids…I’ve never been happier.”

Jason grinned and pressed his lips to yours with a softness that told you everything you needed to know about how he felt.

On your last day in New York, you met with Sasha in her office, with plans for a very fancy dinner with Jason later that evening. You hoped you’d have good news to celebrate, but if it didn’t work out this time you knew this wasn’t the end of the road. Especially because all the extra publicity around you had done wonders for your book sales. You would have been embarrassed about Jason mentioning your books constantly if his support wasn’t so genuine. And so effective.

Sasha wrapped you in a hug immediately, with the warmth of a sister. “Girl, let's catch up on YOU.”

The last time the two of you had truly caught up was before the Emmys so you started at the beginning, all the way through your conversation about figuring out what your life should look like and going to London in two weeks.

“This is truly the unhinged Wattpad romance of my dreams,” Sasha laughed and you had to agree.

“I know, I feel like at any second this bubble is going to burst. After the conversation we had, I know Jason doesn’t want long distance, but I don’t want to follow him around like a puppy. I never pictured myself being anywhere but the town I’m in. But it doesn’t mean it's bad.”

“I am in awe of you. Seriously. To get thrown into the deep end and still have that much self-awareness and presence of mind…,” you raised an eyebrow, surprised at Sasha’s sincerity, “I mean personally I would fuck that man silly all over the globe, but that’s just me.”

“There’s the Sasha I know,” you laughed.

“So,” Sasha switched into work mode, and you were at the edge of your seat, “about HBO. Unfortunately, I don’t have any more news for you at the moment, BUT I know for a fact they’re announcing a new round of programming next week, so if it's getting greenlit this round I expect to hear something in the next few days. With an executive producer attached I really do think there’s a good chance.”

You let out a breath you’d been holding. “Alright. Jesus, this is stressful. I appreciate you though Sasha, I hope you know that.”

“Of course I do, I’m with you every step of the way. Now, show me some pictures of you and your man,” you laughed and pull out your phone.

Dinner was less celebratory than you had hoped because everything felt so up in the air. There was no HBO news and it was a goodbye to Jason, albeit temporary. It helped that Jason looked incredibly handsome sitting across from you in a brown cable knit sweater over a white button-down shirt, his beard grown out temporarily until he got to London and shaved down to just his Ted 'stache. And the cherry on top: his dark brown professorial glasses that he knew drove you crazy. Jason was as warm as ever over dinner, but you could tell he felt the tension too. Since the Emmys, you’d stop needing your 3 rules for figuring out how to interact with him; there was a freedom to things being serious that meant you didn’t have to worry about rocking the boat.

“Are you worried about us? Being apart?”

“Oh, not worried no,” he responded immediately, “I think I’m just surprised at how much I’m dreading leaving you here. Which, by the way, feel free to invite Willa to the house while you’re here still.”

“Oh, that’s a great idea. And also I hear you, but you’re not leaving me here, I’m staying. It’s…different.”

“Uh-huh, well whether I’m leaving or you’re staying it’s two weeks of no Y/N walking around in my shirts, or reading aloud, or putting her—”

You could tell Jason was about to say something dirty because he clammed up as a waiter approached to refill your water glasses and you laughed.

“Well,” you said as the waiter walked away, “rest assured I won’t be putting my anything anywhere until I see you again.” Jason chuckled and was about to respond when your phone clattered on the table. It was Sasha.

“I should take this, I’m sorry. A call is either really bad or really good.”

“No, no go!”

As you get up from the table to walk outside, Jason’s phone also started to vibrate and you were surprised at the coincidence. He picked up his call at the table since you were going outdoors.

“I have two things,” Sasha jumped in as soon as you said hello, “both very important.”

“Hit me.”

“HBO is greenlighting the show.”

As soon as the sentence hit your ears it felt like the world around you slowed and then stopped. The people walking past you, the cars on the street, all sounded like they were underwater. You were thrilled, of course you were thrilled, but you were also reeling. You hadn’t truly let yourself believe it would happen. Sasha was good at her job in more ways than one, but specifically right now, when she stopped talking to give you time to process.

“That is…I don’t have words right now. Just know I am stunned and excited and all of the things. But you said there were two things?”

“The executive producer is Jason.”

You didn’t know how to respond so you laughed. Of course it was. Of course he would.

“Not to mansplain to you,” Sasha says quickly, “but executive producer means that he’s heavily invested in the project. Like he’s bankrolling the whole thing, basically. I need to know if this changes anything for you because you can walk away if you need to.”

“I–”

“Wait, wait, before you say anything. I know you are fiercely independent, that you wanted to get here by yourself and this may not feel like that. But as your friend and agent, I have to say, you still did this. This is still your book. This is still your show. It's okay to let people help you. Less deserving people get by on their connections all the time.”

You breathed out slowly. “Sasha, it doesn’t change anything. We’re good. I appreciate it so much you have no idea. I gotta get back to dinner, you’ll tell me what all this means soon?”

“Of course. Hey,” Sasha paused, using her agent voice, “congratulations.”

When you got back to the table Jason was also done with his call and looked at you with concern. You were sure you looked absolutely shell-shocked.

“Well, I guess you got the phone call too,” you smiled as you sat down across from him, but Jason just looked ashamed.

“I’m sorry. I was going to tell you, I just—”

“No this is amazing, why are you sorry?”

Jason ran a hand over his jaw in thought, his long fingers tapping against his bottom lip. “I just…I know it was white knighting to go behind your back and insert myself in your work. This is your work and I fully respect that. I can take it back, I can offer HBO some other names, or we can figure out—”

“Jason, I’m not mad,” you laughed, reaching across the table to hold his hand, “I’m so fucking grateful and emotional and overwhelmed I’m just not all there right now. I need to process, but I’m not mad. This…means the world to me.”

Jason grinned. “This is you, Y/N. I threw my name and my money at it but this was in the works before me. And you could do it without me. Actually, you remember the day we met, well, the morning after,” you chuckled and nodded, “That phone call that I got was about this. I had told my agent that if the project came up I wanted to be a part of it, this was after the book signing. I wanted to get in on what you had. So I guess I’m also sorry for riding your coattails.” Jason smiled at you and you grinned. You were surprised that he had been able to hold on to that for this long but you knew he probably hadn’t wanted to get your hopes up. He knew firsthand how fickle the industry could be. “Look, if I can make your life easier, ever, I’m going to do it…but I do promise I’ll talk to you about it first next time, even if you’re not mad at me this time.”

The two of you smiled like idiots at each other across the table. The words I love you were on the tip of you tongue, but you decided not to say it tonight. By the way Jason looked at you, you were sure he already knew, and it wasn’t hard to imagine that he felt the same .

“Surprise, baby,” Jason leaned in and whispered dramatically, “you’ve got a show.”

AN: This is a long one! I didn’t really want the kids to be characters here so there’s only passing mentions. There's only three parts left and an epilogue, but let me know if you want to be tagged anyway!

✨Taglist✨: @tedlassostan

#jason sudeikis writing #jason sudeikis #tmtwtm #jason sudeikis fanfic #jason sudeikis x reader #jason sudeikis x yn #jason sudeikis fan #jason sudeikis fan fic #jason sudeikis fic #jason sudeikis reader insert #ted lasso #jsuds #this means the world to me

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theycallmebecca · 2 years

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Drabble: Birthday Fantasy - One Year Later

So @nomadicpixel nagged me yesterday about stopping where I did on Birthday Fantasy but I was adamant that I wasn't writing more of that night... however, that didn't keep an idea from coming to me as a follow up to what happened after that night.

Like the first story this is for my Kinktober Bingo card @the-horniest-book-club, specifically for the Voyeurism square.

Title: Birthday Fantasy - One Year Later

Pairing: Steve Rogers x female reader

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: suggestive, [audio] voyeurism themes

Disclaimer: This work of fiction is not to be reposted, used or translated without my permission.

Usage Disclaimer: This work is for fans only. This author does not give permission for it to be shared, spoken of, referred to in any public manner (podcast, tv, online, etc.) that wants to either make a celebrity uncomfortable, mock fan fiction/fandom in any way, or the author themselves. Requests can be made, but it is unlikely the author will change their mind. If no response is given to a request then the answer is a solid no, not interested and the work cannot be shared, spoken of or even referred to, regardless of the manner or context.

“I told you they wouldn’t be ready,” Bucky said smugly after he and Sam let themselves into the apartment you and Steve shared.

“How do you know they aren’t ready?” Sam asked. Then he heard what Bucky had.

“Oh god, oh god,” your voice carried down the hall.

“Sounds like our boy is doing a good job,” Sam said with a chuckle.

“He better not have stolen any of my moves,” Bucky muttered as you let out a cry that echoed through the apartment.

“And if he did?” Sam countered. “It’s for her pleasure, isn’t it?”

Bucky grunted his agreement that was followed by a long moan from Steve.

“I could have gone without hearing that sound from him again,” Sam muttered.

“Agreed.”

They sat in silence for a moment, listening to the love making happening somewhere else in the apartment.

“The decent thing to do would be to turn on the tv,” Sam pointed out.

“Yeah, but that might disrupt them and then they’d both be grumpy at dinner,” Bucky reasoned.

“True,” Sam conceded.

They both knew that they could just leave and wait for the happy couple at the restaurant, but neither offered it as a suggestion. Instead, they sat silently listening to their friends fucking.

“She’s about to come,” Bucky pointed out, a few minutes later.

“How can you tell?” Sam asked.

“I heard her come like five times that night,” Bucky stated with a shrug. “And once I hear a woman come, I never forget what it sounds like.”

Sam shook his head in disbelief.

Then you reminded them both of something from that night a year ago: you were a screamer.

“When Steve goes deaf, we’ll know why,” Bucky joked.

“His hearing has gone downhill since they started dating,” Sam observed.

———

Down the hall, you leaned in Steve’s embrace as you basked in the afterglow of sex.

It had been a year since you’d met him and had the wild once in a lifetime night with him and his best friends.

In the morning, you had planned to say goodbye to the three of them forever, but Steve had asked for your number. You hadn’t been sure, but when Bucky and Sam had nodded approvingly, you had given it to Steve.

“Bucky was right,” you said into Steve’s chest. “He said next year I’d have friends to celebrate my birthday with. And I do.”

“Friends that will probably be here soon to go to dinner,” Steve said. “We gotta get up and shower, again.”

You laughed and sat up. “You’re right. Let’s go.”

Steve was showered and dressed within ten minutes, but you took a little longer to get ready.

As you left the bedroom, you heard Steve speaking in hushed tones. Clearly Sam and Bucky had gotten to the apartment early.

“No, you said 6:30 pm,” Sam’s hushed voice replied to whatever Steve had said.

“You did, your text clearly says 6:30,” Bucky added.

Your eyes widened and you looked down at the watch Steve had given you for Christmas. It was nearly 7:30, which meant that the guys had been in the apartment when the two of you had been making love.

“There’s no need to be embarrassed,” Sam’s voice rang out louder.

Startled, you looked up and saw him grinning at you from the mirror above the mantle that revealed your location in the hallway.

“It sounded like you two were enjoying yourself,” he said with a grin. “Besides, what is there to be embarrassed by when all four of us have seen each other orgasm.”

“And closely,” Bucky chimed him, unhelpfully.

Pushing your shoulders back, you made your way into the room where the three men were waiting for you.

“Happy birthday,” Sam and Bucky chorused. They each gave you a side hug and a kiss on the cheek while Steve watched.

Bucky’s hug lasted a few seconds longer than necessary and he loudly said, “Let me know if there’s anything that Steve needs some pointers on. I’d be happy to talk him through a few things if it makes you smile like that.”

“Instead of worrying about my love life, why don’t you worry about yours,” Steve offered, playfully putting Bucky in a headlock.

“Stop, you’re going to mess up his hair,” you told Steve. “He needs to look perfect.”

“Why?” The three men chorused.

“Because it’s my birthday,” you stated and then smiled. “And I might have invited some of my girlfriends to join us tonight. My single friends.”

Steve smiled to himself as Bucky and Sam bombarded you with questions as you led them out of the apartment with him following behind.

Had it been an accident that he had texted his friends to come over at 6:30 instead of 7:30? Yes. But while he knew Sam and Bucky were just friends with you now, he wanted to remind them that you were his and that the four of you would never be together intimately again.

#hbc kinktober 2022 #theycallmebecca #theycallmebeccawrites #steve rogers #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers fanfic #steve rogers fan fiction #steve rogers x you #steve rogers x female reader #steve rogers x y/n #Becca writes drabbles

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nitecourtfairytail · 1 year

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Heavy Hearts

Previous/Masterlist

Ch. 8 Safe and Sound (Capital Cities)

“Did you mean to say that back there?” Azriel and Elain been walking for a few minutes. Thankfully, the townhouse was in the opposite direction of the sisters’ apartment, so they could talk without anyone around.

“Mean to say what?” She titled her head trying to figure out what he could be talking about. “I said a lot of things at the bar, what part?”

“You called me ‘my love’. I wasn’t-“

“Is it too soon?! I’m sorry. I know we’ve only been official for like two weeks, but it felt right, and just slipped out.” The words fell out one after the other.

He couldn’t help the fond smile he wore. He had stopped walking, tugging her hand to pull her into a tight embrace. “No, habibi. I love you too.”

“What does that mean? ‘Habibi?’ You’ve said it before.” He looked down at her, tracing a hand up her arm to gently cup her neck, tilting her head towards him. His thumb ghosted across her jaw.

“It can mean ‘buddy’ when said between friends.” He said softly. Her eyes fell. “Or” he continued “between romantic partners it can mean ‘my darling’, ‘my love’, or what I prefer it as: ‘beloved’.”

She lifted her gaze once again. “Beloved” she whispered dreamily.

“My beloved.” He answered. His eyes never straying from her own. She rose up on her tiptoes, their breath mingling together as she rubbed her nose against his cheek.

“I love you.” She whispered.

The hand on her waist gripped her tighter in response-holding himself back. “I have never connected with someone so wholly so quickly, Lain. I love you too.”

“Kiss me.” The words had barely left her before he captured her mouth with his own. They had kissed before-many times. But this. He’d never felt anything like this. His soul shattered and rebuilt. His body turned molten, the fire inside growing stronger every second fueled by desire. Not just for her body. Her scarred heart, brilliant mind, and beautiful, strong soul; She was everything he could ever want, ever need. It was as if her kiss had sparked something in his chest-connecting them.

Her lips parted, offering him entry. His tongue swept in, dancing with her own. So caught up in their passion neither realizing they’d moved until her back pressed against a tree. She giggled into his mouth, pulling him closer to her. Her hands roaming his body. One tangled in his silky hair, the other underneath his shirt exploring the panes of his back, gripping tightly every time he ground his hard length against her. She lifted a leg to wrap around him, opening for him to step closer. He grabbed her thigh to press himself harder against her center, a soft moan escaping her.

They heard a shocked gasp, a woman saying “Look away, dear” and a child asking what was happening.

Elain looked up at Azriel-his mussed hair, lustful eyes, his kiss swollen lips-and laughed. “I guess we can’t say anything about our siblings voyeurism anymore.”

He released her leg, stepping away to adjust himself. “I guess not.” He chuckled lightly and they began the trek to her house once more .

The comfortable silence grew tense the longer they walked. Had he taken things too far? He was following her lead, had he misread her signs? He filled with relief at the sight of her home..and guilt at the thought that he’d upset her.

Once inside, she walked toward her bedroom upstairs. “No one’s home?” She wondered aloud. “Mor?” She called-No answer.

Nu and Cerri were driving tonight, she knew, but for Mor to not be home and not tell her was unusual. She shrugged it off, feeling unusually confident knowing no one else was around.

Three steps away from the landing, she turned toward Azriel still standing in the living room. “You gonna tell me what’s wrong?” She asked. Hands on her hips.

Taken aback by her sudden abruptness, he gaped at her for a second longer “I thought I took things too far and upset you.”

“No!” She giggled. “I enjoyed everything.” Relieved, Az began to swagger toward her “I’d..like to continue, but..” she trailed off when he reached the step she was on.

“But what?” His voice low and raspy. He reached a hand out, slinking it around her waist. Again, she wrapped her leg around him, picking up right where they left off. “We can stop right now” he kissed her neck. She turned her head to give him better access.

His hand slid to grasp her thigh, he felt her push against him. “Just say the word”. He pushed back eliciting a soft gasp.

“No, please, don’t stop” she begged breathlessly. He smiled against her skin, nipping softly and soothing the slight pain with his tongue.

“Yes, please do.”

Az and Elain both sighed, defeated. He rested his head against her shoulder as she let her own fall back against the wall.

“Seriously, Rhys? You just waltz on in here like you own the place now?” Azriel asked in irritation , his head still glued to his girlfriends shoulder. He could feel himself still hardening with the heat of her center pressed to him.

“We got worried. You two were taking longer than you should have, though given what we clearly interrupted, I can’t say I feel bad.” He shrugged and sat on the couch, Cassian, Nesta, and Feyre snickering as they fell in behind him and settled down. Az released Elain’s leg so she could stand on her own again.

“It’s only fair that you join the club, brother.” Cassian agreed with a wicked grin. Nesta smacked his arm in playful reprimand.

Elain pulled Azriel’s face up so that their eyes met. “I love you.” She whispered, and kissed him fiercely, filled with promise. She began descending the stairs toward their family and turned back over her shoulder where he now stood resting his frustrated head against the wall “if you decide to kill them, just don’t get blood on the carpet. We want our security deposit back.”

She sat down on the bottom stair, leaning her shoulder against the wall. “So why’d you all really come here? It’s not because you were worried.” She eyed the two men on the couch.

Azriel finally pulled himself from his self pity and sat on the step behind her, his long legs caging her in on either side to reach the floor. He leaned forward to wrap his arms around her, not wanting to be without her warmth for any longer. She went pliant, letting him pull her to him, resting her head on his chest behind her. She laced their hands together and set them in her lap.

Though every move she made was filled with love and comfort, her eyes never left the intruders now seated on the couch.

It was Cassian who broke first. Turning to Rhysand he threw his hands in the air “Dude, I feel bad now. Look how fuckin cute they are!” His whiney voice emphasized by his gesture toward Az and Elain.”We never should have come here. We should’ve just waited.” He crossed his arms and sank back in his seat after his outburst, looking every bit a giant child.

“So you were worried..and you didn’t think to, I don’t know, call us? ” Azriel asked in disbelief. “I know you well enough, brother and I’m not sure if I buy that.

“The fact that you became a card carrying member of the blue ball club is truly just a bonus for me, brother” Rhys chuckled “I honest to Gods was worried about you. I had a bad feeling that Greyson was going to try something today.”

“Greyson would try something? What are we missing from the bigger picture, Ellie?” Of course Nesta would latch on to that phrase. She was too invested when it came to her sisters.

Azriel lifted a hand to caress Elain’s cheek. “Do you want me to grab the laptop?”

She turned into his touch, kissing his palm. She nodded, resigned to keep reliving her past, wishing she could move forward.

~~~~~~

Az set the computer down on the coffee table, telling his brothers and Elain’s sisters to all scoot in closer so the four of them could see. He found the file and opened it, before walking across the living room to an armchair that faced the back of the laptop.

“C’mere baby.” He reached a hand out in Elain’s direction. “The rules are as follows” he said with authority as he pulled a despondent Elain into his lap. “No questions until everyone has seen everything. Try to keep your thoughts to yourself. And most importantly” he placed his forefinger on Elain’s chin, forcing her to face him. He looked directly into her eyes as if she were the one he was speaking to “remember that she is still the kind, beautiful, generous, Sunshine that she always has been.” He turned to face the others again, “so you’d better not act any different.”

He gave them all a fierce glare. It hit its mark-he saw all four faces blanch. “Now that we’re clear..you can look at the files.”

Elain wrapped her arms around his neck as he drew calming circles on her back with one hand, the other a steadying presence on her knee. She kissed his cheek and whispered as quietly as she could to not draw attention to herself “Thank you, my love.”

Their siblings stared at the computer for what felt like hours-in reality it only took them twenty minutes to look over and read everything she had compiled. She watched their faces-the horror, the rage, the disgust. She could tell when they were looking at the pictures of her bruises-her sisters would gasp or clutch at their neck. The men would grip their fists tighter.

“He did…all of this?” Nesta’s body shook with restraint. Her blood boiling inside her.

Elain looked at her sister, cautious, yet resolute “That’s all that I have proof of.”

“I’ll kill him.”

“No, you won’t, Nes.” Elain commanded, shocking the group out of their shared rage. “That file is collected together because I’ve decided to press charges. I will face him in court, and he will receive the punishment he deserves when the other prisoners discover his crimes.”

She always amazed Azriel, but right now, her head held as high as any queen-if there was any doubt he loved her before it was no longer there. Her strength, her grace, her determination, Gods, her entire being. Outwardly, she was the most beautiful human he’d ever seen, but her heart, her mind, her essence-it made her otherworldly.

She cast her gaze to the men sitting beside her sister “Amren says I may need you two to testify on my behalf. Cerri and Nu as well since you all saw the bruising and heard the phone call that night.”

“You two knew about this?! Why didn’t you tell us?! She emphasized every word with a smack to Cassian’s arm. He turned to her and grabbed her wrists, still flailing to try and release some of her rage “Hey! HEY! IT WASNT OUR PLACE!” He cried out. Her anger turned to sorrow.

Cassian’s voice softened as he released Nesta’s wrists, encasing her sobbing form in his arms. “This is Elain’s story to tell, not ours.” He tilted his head, resting atop her own to look at her sister, still draped across Azriel’s lap, his voice deathly calm “Had we known the extent that first night, there wouldn’t be a need for a lawsuit-there would be no man left to charge.”

Azriel gripped Elain tighter, sitting up to join the conversation. “Be that as it may. You didn’t know, and there is a man to charge.” His eyes turned sorrowful, but there was a deadliness behind them when he turned to his girlfriend “Possibly more than one, actually.”

Elain whirled her head at Azriel, the others did the same. “What do you mean?” She asked with a shaky voice. She swallowed audibly. “What do you mean ‘more than one’?”

“You know I was arrested the other day for a fight at work-“ she shook her head yes. He’d told her about it, but never told her what caused it, what was said to make him snap.

“My site manager, Jurian,” Elain gasped at the name, her eyes widened in fear. “He-he said some awful, disgusting things about you and..” he shook his head, trying to get the man’s words to stop replaying over and over again “I saw red, Lain. The things he was saying, things he claimed he did-I nearly blacked out I was so enraged.”

Elain’s eyes lined with tears-both in fear of finding out what Azriel had heard, and pain for the fact that he fell for her- the woman so broken, she wasn’t even sure what parts were whole.

“What-“ her voice caught in her throat “what did he tell you?

He released his hold on her leg to tighten his hand into a fist, bile building in his throat “He said that Greyson would let his friends….use you.” His stomach turned sour as the words escaped his mouth.

“He what?!” Her outrage pierced the fraught silence following Azriel’s proclamation. “No. No, I’ve always hated Jurian. He was the one friend of Greysons I couldn’t even pretend to like. They were best friends, I don’t know if they still are, but-He ogled me constantly. Propositioned me a couple of times. He’d always try to hug me, or ‘accidentally’ graze my ass or tits with his hands. He was jealous of Greyson..and now he’s jealous of you.”

“So….so he didn’t allow others to..?” He couldn’t bring himself to finish the question.

She looked him in the eye “If he did, he was smart enough to drug me. But Greyson was too possessive. I was basically his property and he was never one to share…I think Jurian was just trying to piss you off.”

There was a collective sigh of relief.

“You never told me what that guy said. Just that he’s the one that sent Gwyn to our house. I’d have beat the shit out of him too.” Rhysand pondered aloud.

“Gwyn? Who’s Gwyn?” Elain cut her eyes at Azriel, then his brothers. “Is someone going to tell me?”

“Sweetheart, Gwyn is nobody.” Azriel said soothingly, hoping to calm her down. “She’s a woman who does the bookkeeping at work. She’s in the main office, away from the worksite-I’ve made casual conversation with her a few times while waiting for the big boss, Helion.”

“So..why did Jurian send her to your house? And when did this happen?” She wasn’t nearly as angry now, just confused by this turn of events.

“Apparently she has a crush on me. When the guys at work found out I had you, they teased me saying that Gwyn would be heartbroken-I didn’t even know her name until then!” He chuckled to himself. “I had to ask them who the Hel they were talking about!” Elain giggled with him, finally starting to piece things together.

“I guess Jurian figured out YOU were my girlfriend, and took it upon himself to try and split us up-Guess he thought you’d be coming over to my place, and gave Gwyn my address. It was the night I stayed over-when you decided to go through with the lawsuit. I wasn’t even home.” The mood lightened significantly with his explanation.

“That was the night before the nipple piercings, right?” Rhysand interrupted, not realizing what he’d said.

“Wait what?! What did I miss?” Cassian yelled at the same time as Azriel’s “Godsdammit Rhysand! I told you that in confidence!”

“Lainey’s got her nips pierced and neither of you told me? Since when?!” Cassian huffed

“I swear it was an accident, Az. Please don’t do what I think you’re gonna do.” Rhysand begged his brother. “I see that look on your face”

“Rhysand’s ex boyfriend was into docking!” Azriel yelled over Cassian’s continued tirade of “Why don’t you guys tell me any of the juicy stuff? I tell you two everything and-“

Elain cackled into Azriel’s shoulder, grateful for the change of topic, as she heard Rhys retort “Oh we’re embarrassing each other, huh? Fine. Cassian has a foot fetish!“

“I’m not ashamed of that! That’s literally the most common fetish in the world” Cassian finally stopped his whining and joined the conversation. “Besides weren’t you the one getting a foot job at the bar earlier today?”

Rhys gave his brother a sly smile “jealous?”

Cass rolled his eyes. “A little bit! Anyways that’s nothing like you having a weird kink for wings.” He waggled his eyebrows at Rhys. “And you used to be into hentai!” He pointed at Azriel

“Oh no. No. YOU brought that dvd home. It’s not my fault I was thirteen and got hard seeing animated t&a! I’m not the one who went and looked up tentacle porn afterwards, that was all YOU, Cass.”

The girls were crying laughing at the brothers. All three of them hunched over holding their stomachs.

“You’re right! Cass DID look up tentacle porn. But I seem to remember you, ASSriel” Rhysand winked at Elain “who got very into women wearing those butt plugs with tails attached.”

“It wasn’t necessarily the tail part. It was the fact that there were nice asses with plugs in them thank you VERY much. And I’m not embarrassed that I’m an ass man through and through. I know what I like.”

Nesta started to catch her breath. “Okay boys. Alright” she wheezed. “We get it. You’re all weirdos and we must be just as strange because we like you three.”

Her sisters giggled nodding their heads in agreement. “Nesta LOVES pedicures. So as long as Cassian rubs her feet sometimes I’m sure she’d be more than happy to let him use them.” Feyre joked.

“Oh. Trust me. She is.” Cass chuckled darkly.

Nesta shot back at her sister “Feyre has gotten into fantasy art recently.. so Rhys can pose nude with his wings for her. I’m sure that’ll work out fine for both of them.”

Feyre’s face turned bright red, as Rhysand gulped at the thought.

Cassian looked up at Elain and Azriel “what about you two? What weird shit do you have?”

Elain smiled at Cassian innocently, batting her eyelashes “that’s for Az to find out.”

~~~~~~

The following morning Elain awoke to her sisters on either side of her, both still asleep, huddled as closely to her as possible. She smiled softly at the comfort it brought her to have them close again. Carefully, she extracted herself from the center of the bed, unsure of what time they had crawled in beside her, but wanting to let them sleep a while longer in thanks.

Tiptoeing downstairs she followed the faint scent of coffee, desperate for a cup after such a draining night, and curious who else was awake. She was used to being the only one up with the sun.

“Good morning, Cheeks” Cassian whispered as she rounded the corner into the kitchen. His back was pressed into the counter by the sink, holding a cup of coffee. He must have woken up a few minutes before her.

“Morning Cass.” She yawned, reaching into the cabinet beside him for a mug. “I’m sorry you guys ended up staying here last night.”

“Why are you sorry? It’s not the first time we’ve stayed over. I’m sure it won’t be the last-especially with your sisters in the picture now.” He shrugged

“Still, though. I’m sure you guys had much better things you could have been doing.” Her coffee prepared how she liked it, she turned and mirrored his stance beside him.

“Trust me, Lainey, there’s plenty of time for that.” He said with a wink.

”What you did last night, showing us everything-even if Az did most of the talking-that took guts. And we all wanted to be here to show that you’re not alone. You’ve got all of us in your corner.” He put his arm around her shoulders. It didn’t feel like when Azriel did it-nothing romantic in Cassian’s gesture. He was being the older brother she’d longed for as a child.

“Cerri, and Nu have always been there along with your sisters, but now you’ve got Mor, me, Rhys..” he trailed off for a beat lost in thought.

“Az would walk through Hel for you. I’ve never seen him like this with anyone.”

She looked down at the coffee in her hands. “It scares the shit out of me, Cass.” She sighed. “How easy this has been. How much I love him already. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. For some kind of sign that this is a dream or a fantasy that I made up to cope with reality.”

Cassian turned to face her, his hip still against the counter. “I can assure you. We’re all real, but when the other shoe drops-and it will because that’s just how life is-we’ll all be here. You’re strong as Hel, but you don’t have to do any of this alone anymore.”

She set her coffee down, turning her body into Cassian, hugging him tightly “I hate everything my horrible ex did, but I can’t help but be grateful that the end result was you three being in my life.”

Cassian huffed, hugging her back “I’m pretty sure one way or another we would have gotten here. But I’m glad you’re in ours too.”

————————-

@karomdr-blog @mis-lil-red 💜

#heavy hearts #elriel fanfic #elriel #elain x azriel #pro elriel #why do I always forget tags

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noforkingclue · 2 years

Note

Can you please do a dark fic for Marcus Isaacson? Where you two have similar storyline when he had that fling with Esther but he doesn’t want to be burdened with her child.

Except in this scenario it’s the opposite, and he wants to desperately be in yours and your baby’s life, even though you make it clear that you don’t want or need him to be.

Note: requests are currently closed

Thank you for the request anon! Always glad to write dark fics :D

Title: Really Helping You?

Warnings: dark fics, period typical attitudes to single mothers

Everything tag list: @greenrevolutionary, @imjustassaneasyou, @spngingerbread21, @layazul, @lov3vivian, @simonsbluee

“Y/n,” you heard your mother call, “He’s here again.”

You closed your eyes and sighed as you threw the skirt you were washing back into the water. Your mother walked into the room and folded her arms and glared at you.

“He won’t go away unless you speak with him.” She said

“Then let Dad deal with him.”

“Almost killed the boy last time,” she said, “Don’t want a murder on our hands.”

“Mum-“

“Five minutes,” she said, “Any longer then I’ll get your Dad. Ok?”

When you didn’t answer she marched over to you and grasped your arm. You pointedly avoided her pleading gaze but knew she was right.

“Ok?” she asked again

“Fine,” you pulled your arm free and stood up, “But five minutes only.”

You didn’t hear her reply as you pushed passed her. Your father stood o the door of his and your mother’s bedroom and scowled at you.

“I can get rid of him.” He said

“Mum said five minutes so I’ll give him five minutes.” You said

“I’ll be counting.”

You stepped out onto the street and for a brief second you thought that Marcus had finally got the message. However, your hopes were quickly dashed when he stepped out of the shadows.

“I thought you weren’t going to see me.” He said

“I almost didn’t.”

“Then why did you?”

“My mother insisted,” you folded your arms, “You have five minutes before my Dad comes out and gets rid of you, so make it quick.”

“You should come back with me.”

“Not this again,” you shook your head and gave him a bitter laugh, “Why won’t you take no for an answer?”

“And why won’t you accept that I’m trying to help you.”

Marcus walked towards you and stopped just in front of you. He raised his hands to grasp your shoulders but one warning look from you had him lowering them. He ran a hand through his hair and said,

“I want to protect you and our baby. I want to look after the both of you.”

It was a stupid mistake. Just one night with Marcus and you ended up pregnant. You had thought you had been careful but clearly you weren’t. Originally you liked Marcus and briefly considered the idea of seeing more of him. However, as soon as he found out that you were pregnant he become utterly obsessed.

“I have my parents,” you said firmly, “Friends. They are more than willing to help me.”

“To help you raise a bastard?”

“Don’t call my child that.”

“Our child,” Marcus corrected, “And do you really think that people won’t call them that? That they won’t be calling them worse and you a whore.”

“I am not a whore.”

“I know that but other’s don’t,” Marcus leant closure and you had to force yourself to remain calm, “What’ll happen when your parents die and friends ultimately leave you? You need me to protect you. I have friends who can make our lives very comfortable. All I need-“

Your front door opened and Marcus quickly stepped away. Your father put a hand on your shoulder and pulled your behind him.

“Y/n said no so if I were you I’d accept that,” he said, “Now I’ll give you five second to leave or my daughter won’t be able to hold me back any longer.”

Marcus gave you one last look before turning on his heel and walking away. You let out the breath you were holding and slumped against the wall. While he was gone for now you knew it wouldn’t last. He’d come back.

#fanfiction #The Alienist #reader insert #request #marcus isaacson #marcus isaacson x reader #dark

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luverofralts · 2 years

Text

Arkhelios University

“When I grow up, I want to be a fire fighter. That and a rock star. I’m going to have my own band.”

Theo resumed holding court in the play area as soon as he’d seen his father leave. He knew some of the kids from school, but a few of them attended the fancy school his father had attended years ago and were unfamiliar to him. Once the other kids had seen what magic he was capable of, Theo was immediately showered with attention, which was still a new experience for him.

“I want to be a violinist,” one of the sisters replied. “I take lessons now and I really like it.”

“You know Dad wants us all to be witches when we grow up,” the dark haired girl said. “You don’t go to witch school now, but you know he wants you to transfer someday.”

“The demon queen probably wants me to work for her someday,” Theo sympathized. “I’ll have to fit her in around the fire fighting. I really like fires.”

“I don’t think that fire fighters are supposed to like fires,” the red haired sister pointed out. “They want to put them out.”

“I’m going to head back to the castle. Keep an eye on the kids,” Abe called out, stepping into the car Maura had sent for him. “I need a proper nap and to sign some forms for the crown to release the money we need to book a caterer for the wedding. Make sure that Theo doesn’t burn the place down while I’m gone.”

“Well, if it isn’t my arranged husband. I’ve been looking for you.”

Roman turned around, curious to see who was comfortable enough to make a joke like that in the presence of Ulyssa.

“I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name,” he said diplomatically. “Did we go to school together?”

The man laughed and shoved Roman playfully.

“Your grandfather tried to marry you off to me a long time ago,” he explained. “My sister regrettably declined the offer, though I bet she would have reconsidered if she knew that you’d grow up to be this handsome.”

Roman blushed at the compliment, suddenly glad that Abe had gone back to the castle.

“Ah, the straight prince,” he replied, trying to project an image that was friendly, but unavailable. “It’s been awhile. We had math class together, right?”

“Well, I may have learned some things about myself in college that challenged the idea that I was straight,” he confessed. “And yeah, we had math together. It’s Ben. Ben Siew. Prince Ben Siew in fact, despite my sister abdicating the throne to Claudia. It’s a useless title with no money or land to back it up, but it’s higher than a duke, if you ever feel like trading up your current title.”

I think my grandfather is spinning in his mausoleum to hear a pick up line like that. All of these rich, titled people want me, and I only want Abe. The prince Grandpa wanted me to marry is all but throwing himself at me, and I’m turning him down. If he were still alive, I’d bet that he’d help Grandma kill another Abe just to get him out of the picture.

“I’m engaged, actually,” Roman replied, displaying the ring on his finger proudly. “I’m marrying Theo’s father and we’re having another kid, so I’m afraid that I’m going to have to decline your offer.”

Ben smiled, a response that Roman hadn’t been prepared for.

“Yeah, I heard. Well, if you ever break up, or you two ever want to hang out, I’m easy to get in contact with. But I imagine you’d hook up with Claudia over me anyway. You don’t look like you’re engaged when she’s around.”

“I’d disagree with that,” Roman said as politely as he could. “Her Majesty and I are just friends, nothing more. She’s invited to my wedding too, just like my other ex, Ulyssa. I appreciate the offer though.”

“What game are you playing, Bellamy?”

Ulyssa glanced over her shoulder, trying to look disinterested in the conversation Roman was having with an extremely interested foreign prince. She was still trying to distance herself from the annoying man still rambling on about some religious based program for kids he was running, but she had the distinct impression that her previous wish for Roman drama had been granted.

That’s that jerk Maura dated for awhile. He’s got to be sniffing around Roman as some kind of payback for me stealing his girlfriend. Which, I mean, isn’t even true. Maura chose me all on her own. But why else would he be interested in Roman? The man never shuts up about Abe, and the few times he does, he’s talking about Adrian. He’s got four kids and he’s nothing special in bed, why is everyone obsessed with him? Is it a demonic thing? It has to be a demonic thing.

“Excuse me,” she said quickly and bolted her way towards Roman.

When I asked for drama, I didn’t mean this.

“Our band is going to be amazing!” Theo gushed, as he sat down to play a very expensive looking piano.

His group of followers seemed just as excited as he was to hear him play. The only problem was that he didn’t know how to play anything. He’d fooled around with the piano at Grandma’s house, but he’d never received any lessons before. As soon as his fingers hit the keys, Theo felt a rush of excitement. All of these kids wanted to hear him play. It was a baby step closer to being a famous rock star. Everyone started somewhere after all.

“Theod-Uh, Theodore, stop that before you break something,” Roman called, catching himself before he shouted out Theo’s birth name in front of a group of magic users. That was a lecture he didn’t want to repeat with an angry demonic sovereign. It was becoming something of a game for him and Abe to think of some other name that began with Theo to shout out instead.

“Your kid is...enthusiastic,” Ben murmured, trying to be discreet with his attempts to cover his ears. “Has he been taking lessons?”

Ulyssa fumed at Ben’s reaction, trying to figure out what he could possibly want with Roman.

He’s obsessed with Roman! How badly does this guy want to sleep with him for him to stick around and listen to this noise? I have to bring this up with Maura, there’s no way he’s this interested in an engaged father of soon to be four. Whatever this is, I don’t believe a word of it.

“Hey, Roman,” she called out, all but shoving herself between Roman and her wife’s ex. “Why don’t you go back to the castle with Abe? He’s pregnant, so you should be taking care of him. Maybe you can work on your wedding plans together. Actually, I’ll go with you. That way I know you’ve made it back to him okay. I wouldn’t want you to get lost or confused, even though your dead husband probably showed you how to get to the castle before. Hey, Ben, did you need a lift back to Pleasantview? I can send someone to take you home; I know you’re not from around here.”

“Uh-”

Ulyssa dragged Roman by the wrist into another room before the stunned prince could even respond.

“Look, Bellamy,” she hissed. “I’m not going to stand here and watch you get taken in by an asshole with a fancy title. I know you’re smarter than that. For once could you just think without your dick?”

“I was just minding my own business!” Roman protested, crossing his arms defensively. “It’s not like I’m going home with him. We were just talking! You’re paranoid over nothing.”

“No, you’re losing your focus,” she replied. “You’re getting complacent, which is a dangerous thing to do. Your father was murdered. Your son nearly combusted with magical potential and has the leader of the demons watching him intently. You are getting married in a ceremony endorsed by the queen of this country when a small minority of people think you had something to do with Adrian’s mysterious death. You’re smarter than this. The Roman who saw his mother do terrible things to the people he loves is smarter than this.”

Roman was silent for what felt like an eternity to Ulyssa. She never knew if the old cocky Roman would emerge and bicker with her, or if she’d see the devastated mess he’d become in the wake of Adrian’s death and Abe’s betrayal. It was always difficult to guess what emotion would win out when Roman was in crisis. At least if he tried running away, she could easily use magic to follow him, but he wasn’t likely to run when Theo was here playing with the other children.

“You’re right,” he sighed, allowing Ulyssa to reconsider her next words. “I’m too focused on Abe and the kids to think about schemes against me. I should be thinking about the danger that seems to follow me around. I haven’t bothered reviewing my security footage for this week and I could always buy-”

“Let’s not get too crazy,” Ulyssa interrupted quickly. If she allowed Roman to spiral with worry, she’d be getting angry messages from Abe for weeks. “Just think twice about penniless princes who want to immediately run to bed with an engaged father, okay? I’m sure that there’s no demonic plot he’s following, so don’t even consider that possibility. Just think about Jolanda back home.”

“Jolanda?”

“If you can picture her pitching something similar to you, maybe don’t trust what the person’s saying. It’s not always some grand scheme cooked up by Dorhack or your mother. There are a lot of shitty people out there.”

Roman pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed again.

“I’m going to go hang out with Abe, if you don’t mind watching Theo and making sure that he’s not breaking an expensive piano. I just...I just need a break from this.”

Ulyssa smiled softly and nodded.

“Of course. I think I can manage to keep Junior out of trouble for awhile.”

#sims 2 #arkhelios #arkhelios university #Roman Bellamy #Ulyssa Durant #sim: theo bellamy #sim: leo toyonaga #sims 2 pictures

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light-the-fires · 2 years

Text

Unquiet Memories

Part I of III

Pairing: Rooster x F!Civilian Reader

Warnings: swearing, alcohol consumption, mentions of alcoholism

Summary: You were a young bartender with a scarred past working at The Hard Deck when you first met TOPGUN student, Rooster Bradshaw. You fell in love in the heat of the summer and amidst the beauty of Miramar’s shores. That is, until he suddenly leaves you with a broken heart and countless memories you’d like to forget. When he walks back into the very same bar years later after your breakup, you’re not sure if he can heal what he’s broken.

Word Count: 5.7K

A/N: Should I have written this during finals? Probably not - but Top Gun Maverick has me by the throat right now. My first fic for the fandom - please enjoy!

The Return

You threw your head back to laugh at a bawdy joke one of the aviators had cracked.

“What about it barkeep? Drink on the house for old times?” Fritz joked with you.

You rolled your eyes, “The only thing your kind has given me has been grief.” There was a sliver of pained truth to the statement but you shook it off as you collected the man’s cash and tip.

The Hard Deck had become increasingly rowdy as it filled with the familiar faces of previous TOPGUN graduates and the usual weekend crowd. You knew that there were a select few returning. You had caught up with Phoenix earlier briefly in the space between orders and pours. You had felt a bittersweet joy at the sight of your old friend.

“They’re bringing back the ‘best of the best,’” she had straightened at the title, “for some secret mission. They didn’t tell us anything. But,” she gave you a long and meaningful look, “everyone is en route.”

You knew what that meant. You knew that he would be arriving soon. Best of the best - his father would have been proud. You try to swallow the sudden lump in your throat, forcing it down as you smile for the next customer’s order.

Penny saddled next to you at the tap, bumping your hip lightly.

“You holding up alight?” she asked.

You smiled brightly at her, “I’m always alright.”

She raised an eyebrow at you, but didn’t say anything as she moved past you for a glass. The night went on and the bar only got more crowded. Your arms ached from distributing beer after beer, but you could at least see the tip jar filling up quickly. You were doing fine. You were fine. You were going to be fine.

At least you thought you were until the door to The Hard Deck opened once again.

And there he was, in all of his glory, looking so heartbreakingly similar to the first time you met him: aviator sunglasses perched precariously at the tip of his nose, boldly colorful Hawaiian shirt, worn jeans. Looking at him, you were thrown into memories that you had tried desperately to forget.

You were decidedly not ok.

The First Meeting

The whirring of the one air conditioner at the bar struggled to cut through the heat of exuberance emanating from the crowd of newly matriculated aviators at the TOPGUN school.

You could barely breath between the flirty winks, shouted orders, and the rapid racking of the tip jar as it filled quickly on the first Saturday since matriculation. It wasn’t as bad as some of the bars you had worked at during your stint in that snooty upscale bar during your years in the Northeast. As it turned out, sailors and pilots tended to stick to what was classic and simple: beer. You were pulling more pints than you ever had in your life; that was better than all of the Old Fashioned’s you had painstakingly muddled back then. Penny had apologized when you came in for your first shift earlier that evening to help set up.

“I’d usually try to ramp you up more gradually on a slow night,” Penny huffed as she poured a new bag of ice into the ice box, “But it’s one of our biggest weekends tonight. Lots of very excited Seamen who are very happy that they’ve made it this far.” She winked at you.

You fought to snort at the memory. You liked Penny. You really did. But there was no part of you that was at all interested in starting anything with anyone, much less someone who was going to be on a ship for six months at a time. You were a bartender, living on tips and the slow growing interest off of your late mother’s life insurance.

A low and slow whistle ripped yourself from your thoughts. It didn’t take you long to find the source. He was tall, towering over many of the other patrons, with slick dark blonde hair and a megawatt smile.

“Hello there, looks like my time here just got a lot better.” He winked at you. You didn’t even attempt to hide your eye roll as you walked over.

“I’m not sure I can say the same for myself. What can I get you?”

He smirked and opened his mouth to say something.

“And please don’t say ‘my number’ - I’ve heard it all,” you interrupted.

He laughed, “Well, let me give you something then. I’m Hangman.” He held out his hand to shake. Penny had given you the breakdown on the concept of call signs. You had heard some amusing ones throughout the night: Bambi, Coma, even Omelet.

You took it, raising an eyebrow. “Ominous, but I’m assuming that’s what you’re going for. So Hangman, what can I get you?”

“Four beers please - I’ll start a tab.” With another wink, Hangman whisked off into the crowd as Penny saddled up next to you.

“You shot him down real quick,” she mused.

“He’s handsome, but seems like more trouble than he’s worth.” You shrugged. He was clearly good looking (and obviously aware of that fact) - but he was too…smooth for you. The slickness of his hair and his words discomforted you. And generally, the All-American look really wasn’t your type.

You continued to work through the mess of sailors and pilots that crowded at your bar, so concentrated on the continuous amber flow of the tap that you nearly missed the abrupt stop to the bouncing pop music that had blasted from the nearby jukebox.

Penny paused, wiping her hands on a clean rag nearby, “Here he goes again,” she murmured with an amused smile.

The sudden tinkling of piano keys broke through your confusion. The crowd roared in anticipation. You walked to the edge of the bar, craning your neck to try to see who was sitting at the piano.

“You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain.”

You caught the profile of the man in question: broad shoulders that were covered by a ridiculously colorful Hawaiian shirt, tousled light brown hair, and a pair of aviators that hung precariously at the end of his sloped nose.

“Too much love drives a man insane. You broke my will. But what a thrill.” His teeth flashed white as he grinned at the crowd around him.

You rested your forearms at the bar, drinking in the joy around you, and watching the man at the piano. There was something incredibly hypnotizing about him and the way he moved. You were used to moving around quickly and quietly from home to home so often as a child that you had adopted that approach to moving through the world.

This man was different. He threw his head back, laughing at the dancing crowd around him. His movements were sure, as if he knew that this was exactly where he was meant to be in this exact moment, in this exact place. There was a magnetism to that sort of confidence.

“Goodness gracious, great balls of fire!”

Your breath caught when his gaze turned to you, winking at you.

“Who’s that?” You asked Penny. You began wiping down the counter in an attempt to appear casual.

“It seems like you’ll find out soon enough,” she responded, grinning at you.

You snorted. The rest of the song was a riot of mostly sober (perhaps slightly drunken) singing and you couldn’t help but join in. You continued to watch him, catching his quick glances every so often. He ended the song with a flourish of keys and the clamor of audience approval.

He stood and bowed to extended and increasingly drunken applause before moving towards the bar, finally standing in front of you. You couldn’t deny that he was handsome, even with the ridiculous mustache that somehow made him endearing rather than obnoxious.

“Hi,” he said. His voice was deep and raspy. He exuded confidence, but not with the edge of arrogance like Hangman. The blush of his cheeks and the stuttering laughs in response to passing shouted praise and slaps on the back revealed his slight discomfort with the spotlight. He seemed softer. Kinder.

“What can I get for you tonight, maestro?” You busied yourself with wiping the counter down once again to hide the slight nervous tremble of your hands.

He chuckled, “I can probably claim that title for the best 60s hits,” he smiled at your laughter, “I’m Bradley - but call me Rooster.”

Rooster’s hand was warm and calloused as it squeezed yours. You gave him your name, and he repeated it to himself like he was rolling the letters in his mouth softly.

You flexed your hand as you took it back, “Lots of interesting call signs today. Sailor or pilot?”

Rooster straightened, “Naval aviator, at your service.”

“Oh well, alert the press then! We have a naval aviator.”

He snorted. You finally got around and asked him what he wanted to drink. As you turned to fill his order, he spoke up above the bustling of the crowd, “Are you new here? I just - I haven’t seen you around here.”

You quickly uncapped his beer, sliding it across the bar to him. “Good eye. I just started today actually. I also come here often, just to save you the trouble of asking.” You weren’t sure where this newfound boldness came from. But you did know that Rooster was easy on your eyes, and he lacked the smarminess of Hangman.

He stepped back, allowing other customers to flood the space with their orders. You fell back into the rhythm of filling glasses, twisting off caps, and collecting tips; however, you were acutely aware of the mustached man in the corner, shooting pool with a gaggle of other pilots. You caught his eye a couple of times, your heart jumping in quick succession every time. Rooster had continued to cruise along casually to the bar throughout the night, casually leaning his own lean form against the warm wood and dropping startlingly hilarious quips about the drunken shenanigans of his fellow Navy men. You couldn’t help but giggle, acutely aware of both Rooster’s warm gaze on you and Penny’s amused eyebrow raise.

However, you eventually lost track of him in the sea of bodies. You tried not to be too obvious in scanning the crowd for his loudly colorful Hawaiian shirt, but no such luck. The bar was slowly winding down with patrons walking and stumbling out, and there was still no flash of bright flowers or colors. You pushed away your disappointment as you turned to address the next customer

“Hope you were looking for me, Beautiful.” Hangman was back and you turned to close out his tab.

“Just making sure you weren’t dining and dashing on us.” You handed his card back to him.

“On you? Never.” Hangman gave a parting wink and you rolled your eyes.

Finally the crowd began to clear, and you had to fight your smile when you saw Rooster still at the pool table, lingering there with two of his fellow aviators. He turned to meet your eye once again, nodding and smirking just a bit when you swiftly turned away with your red cheeks.

As the night ran on, his friends drifted away and he began to head over to the bar.

“Need any help closing up?” He offered when the only other customer had left.

“You’re quickly becoming my favorite customer, Rooster,” you grinned at him, “We can always use a hand clearing the floor and the chairs.”

“You shouldn’t have told me that. Now I feel like I need to be here regularly to defend my title.”

“I didn’t say you earned it just yet.” You winked at him and turned to begin organizing the remaining bottles behind the bar. You felt the flutter in your stomach at Rooster’s presence. It had been so long since you flirted with a man; for the longest time, your life had been about survival. Your mother was, in the most flattering word, a flake. Your entire life until this point had been drifting from one place to another depending on whether your mother wanted to work or drink with her friends. This was the first glimpse of stability, a relief from your peripatetic life. You couldn’t remember when you had allowed yourself the space and energy to appreciate a male specimen like Rooster, much less flirt with one.

You pushed down your musings and began to work. You, Penny and Rooster proceeded to clean, wipe and tidy up the bar.

“You did good tonight kid. I can finish closing up.” Penny took the broom from you. She turned to Rooster, who was stacking the last chair on the table. “If you want to earn that favorite customer title, the least you can do is walk my wonderful new employee home?”

Rooster walked over. “One of the most fundamental duties of a favorite customer obviously,” He turned to smile at you, “Are you ok with that?”

You shrugged in your facade of nonchalance, “My house is only a ten-minute walk away. I’ll always welcome company - there could be sea monsters and all that.”

You gathered your things as Rooster’s chuckle echoed through the room. The humidity of rain hanging over the San Diego shore clung to your skin. The heat made you strip off your jean jacket as you and Rooster made your way across the dark parking lot, quietly listening to the sound of the waves of the ocean as you two walked down the quiet street. It was comfortable rather than awkward. Like you and Rooster were giving each other space to digest the day instead of letting dead air hang.

“So what brings you to Fightertown?” Rooster finally asked.

You tipped your head back, staring into the milky dark of the sky and noting some of the bright stars that had broken through the light pollution. “I just had a hankering for muscles and humidity.” Your lips quirked up at his laugh.

“Well you already know why I’m here - being another obnoxiously arrogant naval aviator and all.”

You chuckled, “No - but actually, it’s much easier to pour a glass of beer than whatever concoction some Wall Street asshole comes up with on a random Tuesday.”

“So you were in New York?”

“Years ago - I’ve been in Charlotte since then - and D.C., and Boston. They’ve all started to blend together for me.” You could feel the brush of Rooster’s shirt as he walked next to you and took a breath to steady yourself.

“Seems like you’ve lived just as fast a life as I’ve had,” Rooster mused to the darkness.

You nodded, swallowing, “My mom - she had a hard time holding down a job. So we moved around a lot - outrunning a lot of people that we owed money to. This is the first time I’ve actually forced myself to slow down and just…stop. I just - I really missed the sun.”

You were surprised by how honest you were with him. Usually you spouted some bullshit about the health benefits of ocean air or something. But the earnestness in Rooster’s eyes (and his ridiculous mustache) just brought it out of you.

You reached the door of the small house you were renting from the kind old lady that had taken pity on the young woman that was traveling through this world alone. You found yourself disappointed. Rooster turned to stand in front of you.

“I’m glad you chose to be here to settle down.” He looked down at you and you were acutely aware of just how close he was. You could smell the scent of his cologne and feel the heat of his body. And you wanted to lean into it.

“I am too,” You breathed.

The silence between you was charged and you waited. He opened his mouth. Then closed it.

“Good night,” Rooster finally got out, his voice strangled. He turned to walk back.

You raised an eyebrow. Maybe you had read it wrong or maybe…fuck it. “I’m free on Thursday next week at 7PM.”

Rooster paused, turning back. He laughed nervously, running a hand through his hair, “I wasn’t sure if this was the right time to ask you.”

“Well it is. So ask me for real this time.” You met him with a smile of anticipation, feeling the light breeze ruffling through your hair.

He grinned at you, “Are you free for dinner next week?”

“Next Thursday at 7PM. Don’t be late, Lt. Bradshaw.”

The spasm of shock across his face made you giggle, “Penny told me about your ridiculous name. Your parents must have a hell of a sense of humor.”

His brow furrowed for a moment. He cleared his throat. “Yea they did - do. Do you mind giving me your number?”

Confused at the rapid switch in conversation, you programmed your number into his phone. You handed his phone back and he caught your hand, squeezing it with his large, calloused palm.

“I’ll see you next Thursday then,” he murmured. Rooster watched you walk to your door. As you unlocked it, you paused, watching him in the glow of the streetlight.

“Drive safe. It looks like it’s going to rain.”

The First Date

He was late.

You leaned against the bar of The Hard Deck. Your shift had just ended and you were finally done catering to the mid-day lunch rush. You had worn your best sundress for this - a lacey blue thing that barely fit you since it rarely left your closet - and your nice pair of sandals.

“It’s something to get used to - especially if you’re going to date a fighter pilot,” Penny said as she organized glasses behind you.

You raised an eyebrow, “You sound like you have some personal experience with that.”

Penny shook her head, smiling with a twinge of sadness, “It’s a long story. Long and pointless. But it takes guts to be with one of them.”

You attribute the rush of heat to your cheeks to a reaction to the air conditioning in the room. “It’s just dinner,” you argued.

“He doesn’t seem to think it is. Not from the way he looked at you last night - or the night before that - or the nights before that.”

“We have good beer,” you protested lamely.

“Not that good, and this is my bar,” Penny said.

The door burst open and Rooster ran in, dressed in a flight suit that was haphazardly unzipped. You bit your lip at the sight of him: sweaty in his white t-shirt and the bottom half of his flight suit. God made sure to take Their time on Rooster Bradshaw.

Rooster was still huffing, “I’m sorry,” he panted, walking towards you, “Admiral made us run extra exercises today to make sure we memorized the formation. I didn’t realize we ran so late - and I don’t have my phone while I’m in the air - and it was dead when I check - and -”

“Rooster,” you cut him off, smiling softly at him, “I’m really hungry and ready for some fish tacos, if you’re ready.”

Rooster hung his head and laughed in relief, “Yea - yea - I’m ready. Let’s go.”

The sun clung to the sky with the last of its strength as you both munched on the delicate white fish from the taco stand on the boardwalk. You two sat on top of the hood of his blue Bronco (“Sweet car,” you had commented. “Thanks - she’s one of the few that puts up with me.”).

The boardwalk was becoming lively again with other couples and adults ready to hit the bars and enjoy the beach food as families trudged with their snoozing children back to their cars. The clouds were coming in, with the wind whipping through the sand and working the water up into a frenzy.

“So,” you finally said once you had scarfed down your second taco (you had tried to pay for your own but Bradley had insisted that “you’ll get the next one” with a wink, and you couldn’t help the flutter in your stomach at the cliche), “why a naval aviator? I feel like there needs to be something that motivates you to hurl your body around in the sky at five times the speed of sound.”

Rooster popped the last of his taco in his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. He cleared his throat, “I’ve always grown up around fighter pilots…my dad was a radar intercept officer in an F-14 Tomcat. They’re considered practically prehistoric now.” His mustache twitched briefly at the thought. Rooster then recounted the tragic story of Goose Bradshaw - how he was one-half of one of the best fighter pilot teams in the Navy; how he had been sent to TOPGUN himself years before with his partner and best friend, Maverick; and how he had died miles away from home in the clutches of that same best friend that wasn’t in Bradley’s life anymore.

Your heart broke as you listened and watched how his grief still weighed him down. You blinked away tears at the thought of Rooster as a child, holding his mother’s hand as he learned that his father wasn’t coming home. “Do you blame him?” You asked quietly.

There was a moment of silence, and you took a moment to take into the screeches of the seagulls and the laughing of the beachgoers around you that seemed in stark contrast to your conversation.

Rooster finally scoffed, “It’s kind of hard not to. Maverick was always so reckless, with his plane, with his friends, with everyone and everything. Only this time - someone paid for it. And that someone was my dad.” He paused for a moment, allowing the crash of the waves to fill the space, “I’ve been flying for a while. Logically, I know this could happen. To anyone,” Rooster shook his head, “But he makes it so easy to be angry with him.”

“So you don’t speak to him anymore?”

“No,” Rooster’s voice was rough. He continued to look out towards the dunes as you studied his profile in the setting sun.

There seemed to be more to the story, but you didn’t want to push him anymore. Something told you that Rooster generally didn’t share this much with anyone else. Perhaps you were kindred in that way.

“What about your mom? How’s she doing?”

He shook his head again, “Cancer. Years ago, before I went to college.”

So he was alone. Just like you. Your heart broke even more for him. You would never wish this on anyone. You tried to imagine the people that had birthed and raised Rooster Bradshaw, the man who was bold enough to unplug a jukebox and serenade a crowd but was bashful in asking a girl out on a date. The people that had the sense of humor to name their child, “Brad” in his first and last name. You guessed that his mother probably laughed a lot, and his father probably had kind eyes, just like him.

“I’m sorry,” you finally said, reaching out and intertwining his fingers with yours. You squeezed it once and twice. “Not only for your mother, but…it’s hard isn’t it? Being alone.”

Rooster turned and his gaze bore into yours with the intensity of the deep brown of his eyes.

“Yea it is,” he cleared his throat, “I mean you had your mom for so long -”

“And she always had the two of us,” you interrupted, “me and the bottle.”

He quieted. And squeezed your hand. Once. Twice.

You wanted to change the subject. “Do you think you would’ve become a fighter pilot if it weren’t for your dad?”

Rooster hmm’ed, still holding your hand. “I don’t know. I can’t even imagine not being able to fly. It’s just - it’s unreal. It’s the purest form of freedom that I’ve ever experienced. You’re just soaring above the clouds into the open sky until you can only see the endless horizon in front and the vapor coming off of your airframe,” the smile that graced his lips lit up his face, “Nothing can touch me up there. And I’m just - lucky, so lucky that I can do this every day.”

He turned to you, and you could see the brightness in his eyes. The passion. Flying was a part of him, just as natural as breathing.

“Feet on the ground, soul in the sky,” you mused aloud.

Rooster chuckled, “Yea, something like that.”

He gathered your long-forgotten empty paper plate and tossed it out. Soon, you were strolling down the beach together, hand in hand, with the warm waters of the Pacific tickling your feet.

“What about you?” Rooster asked, “Any dreams? You moved from the big city to a small town, so you’re already doing it backwards.”

You laughed, “No - nothing like what you have. I don’t know if there’s something in my life that I couldn’t imagine doing.”

“What about something you’ve always wanted to do?” Rooster bumped into you playfully, “C’mon - there needs to be something. Don’t tell me putting up with Hangman’s terrible flirting is everything you’ve dreamed of.”

You giggled, “He tips well though.”

Rooster stopped suddenly, jerking you towards him using the hand he held. You stumbled across the shifting sands into his body, your other hand grabbing onto his shoulder for support. You looked up at him, breathless. You could smell the salty scent of the ocean, and Rooster’s cologne mixed with a bit of jet fuel. His large hand wrapped across your waist to steady you.

“Yea, but I tip better,” he murmured.

He let you go and proceeded to continue walking as if nothing happened, pulling you along slightly as you tried to recover from the proximity. You somehow felt colder without Rooster’s body heat next to yours. It took you a moment to gather your thoughts and find your voice once again.

“Well…there is one thing. It’s just so…boring,” you said.

Rooster chuckled and shook his head, “I highly doubt that; but let me judge it myself.”

“Well,” you paused, “I’ve always wanted to go to college.” You rushed to explain before he thought you to be too dull to continue the date. “I know it’s silly. I only know it from tv. But I’ve always wanted to do it - you know? Just take ridiculous classes on underwater basket weaving, pull all-nighters in a dorm room, join some random A Capella club… learn something valuable.”

“I’ve never heard of anyone who actively wants to pull an all-nighter,” Rooster chuckled.

“I’m attracted to the challenge,” you elbowed him lightly and sobered up, “Forget not having the money - we didn’t even have a steady address for mail and I barely had a consistent academic record. My mom and I always got paid cash under the table, so it’s not like we had any tax records or anything.”

“You have those now though: a permanent address, and assuming Penny isn’t committing tax fraud, you’ll have tax filings this year. You could always get federal aid money.”

You shrugged and looked down at the millions of particles of sand, “I don’t know. It’s kind of just a pipe dream for me. Even if I could get accepted, I don’t even know if I could even do it.”

“You’re right. You don’t know - so why not just try? No sense in tapping out before you’ve even begun.” Rooster furrowed his brow at you.

You shrugged again and didn’t answer. Rooster squeezed your hand once. Twice.

“Just think about it,” he said.

He led you back to the boardwalk, stopping at the entrance of the boardwalk arcade encased in dazzling rainbows of lights and jazzy music.

“Care for a round of pinball?” Rooster let go of your hand and strutted into the arcade with purpose.

“Like I said, I’m always up for a challenge,” you muttered. You followed him in.

The First Kiss

After a few hours of aggressive pin-balling, Skee-Ball, and discovering that Rooster apparently had the ambition of a young Billy Mitchell when it came to Donkey Kong, you both left the arcade, giggling breathlessly. You were clutching a stuffed, smiling plane that you had spotted when you first walked past the prize stand that you thought would be hilarious to get. It had become your and Rooster’s personal mission to win it.

“We definitely spent more money to earn that thing than it actually cost,” Rooster noted as you walked back to his car.

“We were paying a premium for the experience,” you sniffed at him.

He laughed and it echoed across the empty sand.

You reached his car and you tossed the plane through the open window, turning around. Little did you know, Rooster had leaned in to open the door for you. You bumped into his chest, and he grabbed your arm to steady you.

Again, your body thrummed at the feeling of his skin on yours. You turned into him fully, placing your hands on his broad shoulders and his hands wandered down to your waist. You pulled his head down, so close to yours that you could see the gold in the brown of his eyes.

“I wasn’t sure if it was the right moment.”

You didn’t need to ask what he was talking about.

“I don’t really care if it is or isn’t. If it isn’t the right moment, then make it one.”

You didn’t need to ask twice. Bradley leant down the rest of the way and took your lips. He had stolen your breath with that kiss. You closed your eyes and allowed yourself to be enveloped with Bradley’s scent, the tickle of his mustache against your skin that reminded you that this was real, and the feeling of his lips against yours.

The First Dance

Your relationship had progressed from there in the weeks after. You seemed to spend much of your available time with Rooster. You got to meet his friends - namely Phoenix, who had become your close friend as well. The days seemed to blur in a heady mix of delicious food (mostly at your house or on the boardwalk as visits on base took a significant amount of work), deep kisses, soft caresses and long talks about your lives, your pasts. The nights were spent with Rooster coming to The Hard Deck towards the end of your shift if he wasn’t shooting pool with the other TOPGUN pilots. He walked you home often, leaving you with a kiss at the door and nothing further just yet.

Of course, there was the occasional instance when Rooster had to cancel on you or was late due to some training or incident that he had to handle on base. But for the most part, you were happier than you could ever remember.

You felt like you had found a place here, had made your own place here. You enjoyed your job; you liked your boss; you were making friends; and Rooster…well, Rooster was something you had never dared to dream about.

It was the first time in your life that you allowed yourself to think past the next hour, the next day. You found yourself looking forward to the holidays, wondering what traditions Rooster held onto after his parents had passed. You found yourself thinking of how nice it would be to take a vacation with the accrued paid-time off that Penny offered you. Rooster appeared to feel the same way as well, hinting at future dinners, future places you would possibly like to see with him, encouraging you to look into options for colleges nearby.

Maybe it was time you did something for yourself…beyond your survival.

The heat had seemed to worsen this past week and it seemed it was a sentient entity that was rolling through cracks in the windows and enveloping you every time you walked outside. It was one of the few weekends when you weren’t scheduled for a shift. You had your air conditioner cranked way up, much like your radio, which was blasting 60s and 70s pop music.

“You’re ridiculous,” you giggled at Rooster, who was dancing around your kitchen to “Do You Believe in Magic?” Miraculously, Rooster had the day off as well. Something about the heat impacting lift conditions or something like that.

You were reheating some chicken for sandwiches at the stove when Rooster found a battery powered radio in the cabinet above your fridge that miraculously still worked. Thus, the marathon of 60’s pop hits and Rooster’s increasingly frenzied dancing had begun.

“C’mon,” Rooster reached past you to turn the stove off. “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” began playing. He grabbed your hand, spinning you quickly and catching you as you fell with a startled shrieking laugh.

“I don’t know how to dance,” you protested as he placed his hands on your hips.

“Yea you do - just move with me.”

So you did. You weren’t aware that you were a dancer, but you and Rooster twisted and spun together in the cramped space of your kitchen, belting out the lyrics. You weren’t professional singers so it probably wasn’t that good. But it was the most beautiful sound in the world to you. He spun you again, smiling at your laughter, and lifted you up in his arms. You couldn’t stop giggling as he continued to spin you around, clutching at his shoulders.

And there it was. In the kitchen of a home you never thought you could ever call your own, with its faded baby blue paint, in the midst of a heat wave with the sun shining strong on your face through the open window, your heart had never been so full of joy.

The song came to a close and he set you down gently. His expression had softened and he cupped your face, his thumb stroking against your jaw.

“My dad did that, you know? He would always make my mom stop whatever she was doing and dance with him to the radio. She loved it,” he murmured, staring into your eyes.

You swallowed, reaching up and holding his wrist, “Who are we to break tradition then?” you whispered.

He grinned at you, bending down to kiss you. The radio began to play “Dancing in the Moonlight.” Bradley reached for your hips again, sweeping you away into another dance.

As you both continued to dance the afternoon away, you became sure of one single thing: you were falling in love with Bradley Bradshaw.

#rooster x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw #bradley rooster bradshaw #top gun maverick #top gun #top gun: maverick #bradshaw x reader

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moby-writing-and-stuff · 10 months

Text

Gym Jobs: Brawly (NSFW)

Ash Ketchum smiled as he rested his arms on the railing of the boat, enjoying the feeling of the warm, salty sea air rush against his face. “Pikaaaa” his best friend, Pikachu, chirped from his shoulder, as he felt the same air hit his fur.

“Hehe, yeah” Ash said, petting his friend’s head “It’s nice to be back in Hoenn”

Indeed, the newly minted champion of the Alola region was enjoying a bit of a vacation on his own, something he needed, seeing as his last vacation turned into enrollment into a school and getting roped into yet another plot involving hyper powerful pokemon and another Pokemon League competition. He might love pokemon training more than anything else, but right now he was just tired and wanted a break.

“Righto, we should be getting to Dewford in a few minutes” a voice called from behind him. The raven haired teen turned around, smiling as he saw the old captain walking over to him “You ever been here before, boy?”

“Oh yeah” Ash said with a nod “Came here a few years ago, when I competed in the Lily of the Valley conference”

“Ah, you competed in the league?” the old man said with a laugh “It’s great to see a former competitor!”

“Yeah, it was a fun journey” Ash said as he laid against the railing, smiling as he felt a flood of nostalgia. “Didn’t win that one, but I did one later”

“Ah, wait a second…. You're Ash Ketchum, aren’t you?” the old man said with a smile

“Yeah” Ash said with a little chuckle

“Knew I’d seen your face before. I saw you're match with that Alolan professor” the man smiled as he slapped Ash’s back “So, you taking a victory tour then?” “Guess you could call it that, yeah” Ash said with a giggle “Honestly? I just want a break for a while, and revisiting where I’ve been is a good way to do that” “Ah, I take it you’ve been to see Roxanne already?” “Yup, her and Norman” Ash said with a grin “Things have changed a lot, that’s for sure” “Oh definitely” the captain said with a laugh “Ever since Steven retook his title of champion from Wallace, he made a trip round the region and made an effort to update and renovate all the gyms”

“It showed” Ash said, as the silhouette of Dewford Island began to come into view. “Roxanne's gym looks amazing now, it moved from a simple school to a full fledged museum!”

“Hehehe, indeed” the captain said “Lot’s of gyms got very nice new layouts. I visited my grandson in Mossdeep City to watch his Gym Battle with the twins. It was quite the sight, let me tell you”

“Nice” Ash said with a big grin, Pikachu having a matching one “I was planning on heading over after Dewford” “It will be quite the sight, let me tell ya” the captain said, looking back to the rapidly approaching island “Better get back to the wheel. That fancy autopilot is useful for open ocean, but it ain’t good when you're near the docks.” with that, the older man turned and left.

“He’s nice, isn’t he?” Ash asked his fuzzy yellow friend “Pika pika” the electric type chirped with a nod

“Wonder if he’ll be up to taking us elsewhere after the visit here” Ash muttered as the boat slowed down and gently parked in the harbor. Smiling, the teen turned around, tightened the straps on his backpack and gave the captain one more friendly smile “Thank you for the ride sir!”

“You're welcome! Sorry to say I’ll be heading off soon! You’ll have to take a ferry off!”

“Thank you for the warning!” Ash said as he hopped off onto the pier, smiling as the smell of the beach hit his nose “Ah. Right, Pokemon Center first, then we go see Brawly?” “Pika!” Pikachu agreed with a nod. Smiling, the young champion took off to the nearby pokemon center.

“Here you are” Nurse Joy said as she handed Pikachu back to Ash. The yellow rodent chirped and hopped off the Nurse’s hands and clambered up to his trainer’s shoulder

“Hehe, sorry bout that” Ash said with a giggle “Well, that might be the most energetic Pikachu I’ve seen in a long time” the nurse said with a smile “So, do you have any other Pokemon that might need a check up?” “Nope” Ash said with a shake of his head “I just brought Pikachu with me. Not really here to challenge the gyms, its a vacation”

“Ah, alright then” Joy said with a smile “Well, even if you're not interested in competing, I recommend you check out the gym. Brawly has made some interesting renovations”

“Oh?” the raven haired teen asked “What kind?”

“Well, if I remember correctly, he’s exact words to Mr. Stone were ‘I’ve got nothing to do on a day without challengers and bad weather. I’d like it so the gym can be used for more than just battles’”

“Huh, that’s the first time I’ve heard someone say that” Ash muttered “Most of the time, Gym Leaders just care about the gym being in good condition for challengers”

“Yeah, but Brawly has always been an eccentric one” the nurse admitted with a shrug “Nowadays, the Gym is open 24/7 for anyone who wants to use its facilities.” “Wait, Brawly is in the gym all day?”

“Oh sweet Rayquaza, no!” the nurse said with a giggle “No, there’s a schedule for Gym battles now. Brawly is open to them between 9 and 4. The rest of the day, the gym is open terf”

“Huh, interesting” Ash muttered, he and Pikachu sharing a confused look “Well, thank you again Nurse” “It’s no problem” she said with a friendly smile as Ash turned around and walked out of the building. He grinned as he looked around, the warmth of the sun hitting his face, a sensation he had grown used to thanks to the last year he spent in Alola.

“Hey Pikachu, we do have sunscreen, right?” Ash asked as he walked down the sand covered ground of the town. Pikachu turned around and zipped open the bright blue backpack. He dug around for a few seconds before popping out with a big, white bottle with a bright orange cap

“Pika!” the pokemon chirped

“Perfect!” Ash said with a big smile, as he took the bottle from his pokemon, popping the cap off and squirting a big blob of the cream onto his hands, beginning to spread it all over his exposed skin. This was a thing he started doing the last year when he lived in Alola, the nasty sunburns he got a few times when he headed out to the beach pretty much taught him to never go outside without at least one bottle of the stuff to re-apply constantly.

As he spread his protection against the wrath of Volcarona, he slowly weaved and bobbed through the small crowds that were forming in the street. Most of them were kids who were dashing off to play at the beach, and a few were people closer to his age, dressed up and ready to start off their journeys. But what drew his attention was a rather large group of people who were walking to the gym. What drew his eye was that they weren’t dressed like trainers. None of them had backpacks, pokeballs on their belts, or clothes that were made for long journeys.

Most of them were wearing tight shorts, sandals or sneakers and a few were even going without anything on their torsos. All of them had towels, water bottles and various other bits like that.

“That’s weird…” Ash muttered, stopping in his track and watching the large group heading for the gym. Most of them were guys, and they were around his age, a few a bit older, a few a bit younger, but most were in their late teens. Frowning a little, Ash walked a bit faster and tagged along, right behind one of the larger groups. The guys that made it up didn’t even seem to notice him, instead completely immersed in their own conversations. Still confused, Ash slowly krept behind them as they approached the gym.

From the outside it looked just like Ash remembered from his challenge a few years ago. It was on a rather tall cliff a few yards away from the sand covered town, and being the only spot that actually had grass around it. It was still a large white building with a huge orange dome roof, with the roaring of crashing waves in the background. The guys in front dashed ahead, clearly excited about something happening in the place, as they left Ash completely in the dust. Literally, as they kicked up a cloud of orange dirt as they speed ahead, leaving the newly minted champion coughing and waving his hands in front of his face.

“Gah!” he exclaimed as the cloud finally dissipated “Sweet Arceus what was that about?!” “Pika chupi!” the yellow pokemon agreed, sneezing a bit as he cleared his own lungs of the dirt.

“Brawly must be holding a party or something for people to be that damn excited” Ash muttered as he began walking to the gym himself. When he reached the door, he finally saw some of the renovations that he’d been told about. The door wasn’t the old glass paned one from his last time here, but instead was a steel door that shone like it had just been polished. Hanging right above it, in bright orange letters read ‘Dewford Town Gym’. As he walked closer, Ash saw a small plaque that had been placed right next to the door, and like it, shone like it had just been waxed this very morning.

“Huh” he muttered as he read the thing “Attention, due to changes in the layout of the gym, and in the equipment inside, memberships must be renewed early this month. If you have paid already, please bring proof of the payment and you will be excused of the new payment…. Memberships? What kind of gym has a membership?” he muttered, crossing his arms “That would get Brawly in loads of trouble with the League…” shaking his head, Ash steeled himself and took one more step. As he did, the motion sensor of the door finally picked him up and slid open.

Ash winced a little as he was hit with a blast of cold air, as the AC of the gym smacked him in the face. Shaking his head and stepping inside, Ash did not expect what he saw. It was a simple looking waiting room, with a huge pair of doors that looked like they belonged in a school, and a lot of chatting coming out from behind it. As he stepped inside, a smell hit Ash’s nose, a smell he wasn’t that used to smelling. The weird mix of sweat, deodorant and soap that only emerged from a spot where a lot of people went to work out.

“Ah, hello there!” a cheery voice said, snapping Ash out of his thoughts. Looking over to the side, he saw a young man, again close to his age, sitting wearing a tight, compression outfit that had the letter DG stamped on the chest in bright orange.

“Um, hi” Ash said as he walked over. As he did that, Pikachu jumped off and walked over to the large door, sniffing the hair, clearly confused by the smell

“Do you have a membership?” the guy asked, glancing over to the computer “Or do you already have one?” “Membersh- No!” Ash said, shaking his head “N-No I don’t. I-I haven’t been here in a long time, and I wanted to see Brawly”

“Oooh” the guy said, blushing a little “Sorry about that. That’s kinda become my default response to seeing someone come in”

“I-It’s ok” Ash said with a chuckle “So, is Brawly here?” “Oh, no. Sorry” the guy said with a friendly smile “He left about an hour ago to go surfing. I don’t know when he’ll get b-” “How bout righ now?” a laid back voice rang out from behind Ash. The raven haired teen turned around and smiled as he saw a guy a few years older than him, with teal hair and eyes. He was wearing a tight black shirt, fingerless gloves, shorts that matched his hair color, and some of the weirdest footwear Ash had ever seen, what seemed to be a mix between socks and shoes that showed off his toes. Around his forehead was a pair of bright orange sunglasses, and he was dripping wet.

“Hi Brawly!” Ash said, a big smile on his face as he approached the gym leader, holding out his hand for a shake

“Ash Ketchum!” the gym leader said with a big smile, taking a step forewards and grabbing Ash’s hand

“You remember me?” the raven haired trainer asked in shock

“Course I do!” the fighting type gym leader said with a smile “Kinda hard to forget the winner of the first Alolan league!” “Oh yeah” Ash chuckled with a blush “So you saw that?” “Yeah” Brawly said “I’ve been thinking of heading over to Alola during my next vacation, so I thought it would be best to learn who the best trainer there was”

“Hehehe” Ash chuckled, getting even redder

“So, what brings ya here?”

“Decided to take a trip to relax after the league” Ash said with a shrug. “Thought I’d stop by and visit. And holy crap, things have changed…” “You can say that again” Brawly said with a chuckle “Steven came knocking round last year, getting everyone to remodel the gyms and I took advantage of it do to do something extra”

“Yeah?” Ash asked

“Oh hell yeah. See, I noticed that I was pretty much the only guy on the island who was actually getting a chance to work out. Most people here don’t really care much for surfing. So I thought, if I open a regular gym here too, I can get people in here to work out and get some extra cash in my pockets to boot.” “Huh” Ash muttered, looking at the large door behind them “Have to admit, that’s pretty clever” “Yeah. I got the idea after a trip to Unova two years ago. Saw a trio of leaders that also ran a restaurant and that got this swimming round my head.” Brawly smiled at Ash “Say, while you're here, how bout a tour?” “Really?” Ash asked, shocked at the proposal

“Yeah” the teal haired gym leader said with a grin “I’ve got an hour before I need to start the Pokemon Gym part of the day up. Should be more than enough time to show ya around” “Well, alright then!” Ash said with a big smile

“Awesome!” Brawly said, turning to the guy at the reception “Right, Toby do me a favor and bring my board in a few minutes?” “Sure thing, Mr. Brawly” Toby said with a smile

“Awesome!” the gym leader said, walking up to Ash and guiding him over to the doors. Pikachu didn’t waste time and jumped up to his trainer’s shoulder, not wanting to miss the tour “Well, let’s get started then!”

“Alright” Brawly said, throwing the large doors open and leading Ash inside “Here we have the locker rooms. It's nothing too fancy, but they work”

Ash nodded as his eyes scanned around. The place looked like a traditional locker room from a high school, with rows and rows of dull green metal lockers, a tiled floor and steam hovering all around them, as some of the patrons showered.

“So, how many people are members?” Ash asked as Brawly led him through the area, weaving through the discarded clothes and benches that littered the area.

“Oh, not that many. Small town and all that” Brawly said with a smile as he led the young trainer “I think there’s like….. 15? Give or take a few. And they don’t all come in at the same time. We get waves”

“Hehe, guess that’s a bonus for ya?” Ash asked, a cheeky smile on his face. Brawly blinked for a second, before a loud deep chuckle broke out of his mouth

“Oh damn! I walked right into that one, didn’t I?” Brawly giggled as the two approached the another door. Brawly gave Ash a big smile as he rested his hand on the doors “Well, ready to see the main attraction?” “Yeah!” Ash cheered

“Pika!” Pikachu chirped in agreement

“Alrighty then!” Brawly said as he shoved the doors open.

Ash had to admit, he was impressed. He had never been one for working out in the past, as his rather skinny twig like frame could show, but seeing all of these guys and a few girls working their asses off, chatting and clearly enjoying it all, it tempted him slightly to drop down and climb onto the closest machine.

“So, right here we have the lifting area” Brawly said, pointing at a section filled with loads of overly muscled people, who were comparing the sizes of their muscles

“Eh, don’t think that one’s for me…” Ash said, laughing a little “Hehe, oh don’t worry I agree.” Brawly said with a smile “I go over there every once in a while, but its not really my thing. But when I opened up the gym, there was such a demand for it, I had to give in. Who knew the island had that much of a body building fascination”

“Well, to be fair the town once had an obsession with Super Potions” Ash said with a little laugh

“Ha! True” Brawly laughed “Dewford Town is known to jump from fad to fad faster than the sun sets. Anyways, over here we have the cardio area”

The rest of the tour went very much like this, with Brawly leading Ash around and showing him the different spots, explaining how much use it got from either him or from the patrons. Ash listened with rapt attention. There was something about this place that really seemed to drawing him into it. He had to fight the urge to drop everything and jump into a few of the machines quite a few times, but soon, the two reached the end of the tour.

“So, what did ya think of the place Ash?” Brawly asked

“I-I….” Ash muttered, the smell of the place still on his nose, a small cloud in his head. Shaking it for a second, he smiled at Brawly “It was great Brawly. Its awesome that you managed to make something like this” “I know!” the teal haired gym leader said with a big grin. As they spoke, Ash took another sniff and felt that weird cloud come back. Without noticing, his eyes slowly moved away from Brawly and over to the nearest machine, a treadmill. Brawly noticed and grinned “So, interested in giving it a shot?”

“H-Huh?” Ash asked, blinking rapidly as he snapped out of the cloud again. “O-Oh… I mean, yeah. I-I’ve never really done anything like this before though…”

“Oh relax” Brawly said, giving the teen a friendly shove over to the machine. Pikachu hopped off Ash and onto Brawly’s arm with a cheeky grin, before hopping down to the floor. “Go on and give it a shot!”

“A-Alright” Ash muttered as he walked closer to the thing. It wasn’t really anything too fancy, just a run of the mill looking treadmill, except that the tread seemed to be modified to be softer.

“Oh, one thing” Brawly said, walking a bit closer

“What?” Ash asked

“I don’t think you're dressed for it” he said, pointing at a mirror that sat right in front of the machine.

Looking at his reflection, Ash frowned. He was wearing the black capri shorts, striped blue and white t-shirt, red hat and the fancy waterproof shoes he got back in Alola. Looking closer at them, he did realize that Brawly was right. These clothes weren’t made for working out like this.

“You're right…. But I don’t have anything to change into…” Ash said sheepishly

“Oh, don’t worry about that” Brawly said “Just take your shirt and shoes off” “Wait, what?” Ash asked, his eyes going wide a bit “Take my shoes off? Isn’t that a bit-” “Oh relax” Brawly said with a smile “I modified the treadmills so that it would be perfectly safe to run on em barefoot. I mean come on, did you ever see me wear shoes?”

“Hehe, fair point” Ash said with a shrug “Well it can’t hurt to give it a shot” he thought as he grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it off in one clean motion, taking his hat off too, then reaching down and slipping off his shoes, exposing his bare feet. He turned around and handed the clothes to Pikachu “Keep em safe for me buddy!” “Pika!” the pokemon nodded, with a mock salute. Ash giggled at his partner’s antics before turning around and stepping onto the machine.

Taking a deep breath, he turned it on and began running slowly, as the machine slowly but surely sped up.

As he ran, he started at his reflection, panting at little as he jogged. He was really skinny, just like he remembered, and he couldn’t help but smile when he saw that the sunscreen he had bought was working like a charm.

“Good work Ash!” Brawly whispered into his ear “You're doing amazing”

For some reason, Ash shivered as he heard those words. There was something about Brawly complimenting him that felt really good.

“Think you can do better?” he asked, smiling as he saw the look of concentration and pleasure on Ash’s face

“Y-Yeah” Ash said with a dopey smile. Brawly smirked and reached over, pressing the speed up button. The tread beneath Ash began to move faster, and the light jog the teen was doing turned into a sprint, doing his damndest to keep up with the new speed. That strange mix of determination and pleasure he had felt before returned in full force, and he was determined to prove that he could do just as good as he said he could.

For the next ten minutes, Ash ran in the best sync he could with the machine, sweat running down his face as he did so.

“Alright!” Brawly’s voice rang into his ears again. Ash blinked rapidly as he felt the ground beneath him slow down, as the machine came to a stop. “You did pretty well”

“Hahah, thanks” Ash panted, grasping the side of the machine, sweat dripping off his face and to the ground beneath

“Here” the teal haired gym leader said, handing Ash a bottle with a bright orange liquid inside “Drink it, its important to have a lot of liquid in ya when you do this”

“Y-Yeah” Ash said with another pant as he pulled the cap off the bottle and chugged down its contents in two seconds. He shivered a little as the liquid touched his tongue and going down his throat. As it went down, it left a strange burning and tingling sensation. “Gah!” he gasped

“Yeah, drinking after a workout can burn” Brawly said with a smile “Especially after a great one like that one!”

“Great?” Ash muttered, smiling at little at that

“Oh yeah! You were great Ash” Brawly said, walking a bit closer to Ash “Worked out like a good gym boy”

Those words sent shivers down Ash’s spine, and a big dopey smile formed on his face. There was something about hearing those words that made him feel really really good. He wanted to hear Brawly say them again.

He turned around, returning the empty bottle as he realized something

“Hey, where’s Pikahcu?” he asked, looking at the empty spot where his best friend had been standing a few minutes ago

“Oh, he was tired so I took him to the gym’s guest room so he could take a nap” Brawly explained with a friendly smile

“Oh, that’s ok then” Ash said, calming down a little “I guess that my clothes are there too?”

“Yup” Brawly said with a grin “Little guy took his job of guarding them seriously, let me tell ya”

“Haha!” Ash giggled “Yeah, he takes jobs I give him very very seriously”

“Speaking of taking things seriously” the teal haired gym leader said “You took that jog there real seriously” “Oh? Yeah, guess I did” Ash said, blushing a little

“Why are ya blushing? That’s not a bad thing!” Brawly said, smacking Ash’s bare back

“R-Really?” Ash asked “I-I never really cared about stuff like this”

“Oh, trust me stuff like that can happen” Brawly explained “Belive it or not, I didn't care at all about surfing or the beach until my best friend convinced me to give it a shot one day” “Really?” the raven haired teen asked, looking at Brawly with a smile “I find that really hard to believe” “I know” the gym leader said with a smile “Actually, let’s make a deal”

“A deal?” Ash wondered as Brawly led him away from the gym area proper and to a door that led to the back areas “What kind of deal?” “Well, the next boat off the island gets here in a week” Brawly explained as he led him into an area that looked more like the hallway of a house, cleary the area where the Brawly lived. “So, the deal is this. I give ya a free room for you and your chu to stay at till it gets here”

“Really?” Ash asked, his eyes wide in shock “You’d just let us stay here?”

“Yup” Brawly said with a grin “But remember, deal. That means ya do something for me”

“Right” the raven haired teen said with a nod “So, what do you want from me?”

“You attend the gym for that week, at least once a day” Brawly said with a smile “Cause you look like a Suddowoodo, you're so damn skinny. So, that’s the deal. Take it or leave it?”

Ash blinked for a second, before smiling “Hell, I can handle having to go work out for a few days if it means free room!” he grabbed Brawly’s hand and shook it

“Perfect!” Brawly said with a huge smile, shaking Ash’s hand back “Alrighty then! I’ll get ya something better to wear for the gym for tomorrow” he said as they reached a door that was cracked open. Peeking inside, Ash smiled as he saw Pikachu curled up into a ball on a queen sized bed that waited inside the room, along with Ash’s clothes and his backpack. “This is the guest room, but for the rest of the week, it's your room!”

“Hehe, thanks Brawly” Ash said, walking into the room and gently closing the door before taking a seat next to Pikachu, who opened one of his eyes and smiled at Ash “Sorry buddy, didn’t mean to wake ya” “Pika” the yellow pokemon said, closing his eyes again and re-curling up. Ash sighted and ran his fingers through his friend’s fur

“Well, this is gonna be an interesting week” Ash muttered as he looked at himself. “Hope it won't be too hard to keep my end of the deal…”

(===============)

Ash yawned, a few rays of sunlight streaming in through the window and hitting his face. He groaned and slowly sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he looked around.

“Where….?” he muttered for a second, before his sleepy mind caught up “Oh right. I’m at Brawly’s gym….”

“Pika?” he heard a soft chirp coming from a bit a further down. Looking down, he smiled as he saw Pikachu slowly wake up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and stretching

“Morning Pikachu” Ash said with a smile, rubbing the ears of his friend

“Pika pika!” the small yellow pokemon chirped in greeting, enjoying the petting

“Hehehe, slept well?” Ash asked as he threw the covers off and climbed out of the bed.

“Chu!” Pikachu said with a nod as the raven haired teen smiled and stretched. He looked around and caught his reflection on a mirror on the wall right across from the bed

“You know, Brawly has a lot of mirrors in this place,” Ash said with a little giggle as he looked at himself. He looked pretty much the same as always, slightly pale, regardly skinny and still strangely hairless below the neck. He never understood that, but he just assumed it was a genetic quirk of his, so he never really gave it too much thought.

KNOCK KNOCK

“Yo Ash?” Brawly’s voice rang out from the other side of the door “You awake?”

“Yeah, I’m up” Ash said, quickly grabbing his shorts and slipping them on just as the gym leader opened the door

“Morning” the teal haired teen said, smiling as he saw Ash adjusting his pants “Oh, relax. It's not like I haven’t seen anything like that before”

“O-Oh…” Ash stammered, his cheeks lighting up bright red “A-Ah… Well…alright then…”

“Oh man, you're easy to fluster” Brawly said with a grin “Come on, breakfast is ready”

“R-Right” Ash said, his cheeks still red as he quickly grabbed his shirt and slipped it on, following the Gym leader down the hall, his trusted pokemon a few steps behind. The trio quickly reached the kitchen, where Brawly had set up a decent spread for them to enjoy, including a plate filled with Poke-Chow for Pikachu

“Go ahead and dig in” Brawly said as he took a seat himself. The raven haired teen didn’t need another word and sat down, grabbing a piece of toast and wolfing it down. “Damn, you’re hungry today, ain’t ya?” “Hehe, yeah” Ash said, wiping some crumbs off his mouth as he grabbed a nearby glass, which was filled with the same bright orange liquid Brawly had given him yesterday “Hey Brawly, what is this exactly?” “Oh that?” the gym leader asked as he grabbed a glass himself and took a big drink “It’s a sports drink I made” “You made a sports drink?”

“Yeah” the teal haired guy said with a relaxed grin “It’s not as hard as it sounds honestly. Its a blend of berries and a bit of lemonade mixed in. Turned out to be a big hit with the guys coming in, so I decided to make it a real thing. Sales does help give a bit extra cash on top of the memberships” “Huh, cool” Ash said, as he took a drink from the glass, smiling as he felt the sweet flavor flood his taste buds, and when he swallowed, he smiled a little, as it left a pleasant tingling sensation that spread all over his body. He leaned back in the chair and relaxed, letting out a sigh of relief

“Like it?” Brawly asked with a big grin on his face

“Yeah” Ash said with a dopey smile on his face “It’s really good…” “Thanks” Brawly said with a smile, getting up to his feet and walking next to Ash, putting his hands on the teen’s shoulders “It makes you feel good doesn't it?” “Y-Yeah…” Ash muttered, his eyes slowly moving away from where Brawly had been sitting and down to the floor. He frowned for a split second as he saw Pikachu just standing there, swaying a wee bit, crumbs of his just eaten food “W-Wha..” “Shh” Brawly whispered into his ear, holding the glass up to his lips “Drink more. Drinking it makes you feel good, right?” “Ye-Yes…” Ash muttered as he started drinking the bright orange liquid, the tingling sensation growing stronger and stronger as he kept drinking

“Drinking it makes you feel good” Brawly kept whispering “And you drank because I told you to, right?” Ash nodded, not stopping his drinking

“So that means that doing what I tell you makes you feel good” Brawly whispered, taking the glass away from Ash mouth for a second “Say it” “Doing what you tell me to makes me feel good….” Ash mumbled, a dopey smile on his face

“That’s right” the teal haired gym leader whispered again “Say it again” “Doing what Brawly says makes me feel good…” Ash muttered

“Good” Brawly said with a smile, slowly moving away from Ash “Keep saying it until I stop”

“Doing what Brawly says makes me feel good. Doing what Brawly says makes me feel good. Doing what Brawly says makes me feel good.” the raven haired teen kept repeating, the dopey smile on his face growing more and more as he repeated the words. Soon, Brawly came back with something in his hand

“Take a deep breath” he whispered, as Ash looked down to see what the teal haired boy was holding. It was a can of some kind, and Ash did as he was told, taking a big sniff of whatever was inside. He moaned a little as he felt that same feeling from the drink flood all over his body, sending shivers of pleasure all through his nerves. Brawly smiled as he saw Ash’s eyes go wide and the dopey smile on his face growing even bigger, staring off into empty space as he kept mouthing what he had ordered him to say.

“Hehe, this stuff works like a charm” he said to himself as he stared at the raven haired teen “Now, let’s get to work” he grabbed the hem of Ash’s shirt and quickly took it off, Ash unconsciously moving along, as he just kept staring ahead.

“Doing what Brawly says makes me feel good….” Ash muttered, his voice coming back after the blast of pleasure

“Listen to me carefully” Brawly whispered into Ash’s ear again “What I’m about to tell you is the absolute truth. A fact that you will never doubt or think about, it is the truth and nothing else” “Yes Brawly….” the raven haired teen mumbled, that dopey smile still on his face

“You hate wearing shirts and shoes” Brawly whispered “Shirts and shoes are restrictive, useless pieces of clothing that you cannot stand, and never wear them. You always leave your chest exposed and your feet bare”

“Yes Brawly….” Ash mumbled, as the orders found their way into his addled mind and cemented themselves in stone “I hate shirts and shoes…. I never wear shirts and shoes…. I only wear pants and nothing more…..”

“Good boy Ash” Brawly whispered, giving the boy a pat on the head “Now, keep repeating that for the next two hours”

“I hate shirts and shoes…. I never wear shirts and shoes…. I only wear pants and nothing more…..I hate shirts and shoes…. I never wear shirts and shoes…. I only wear pants and nothing more…..I hate shirts and shoes…. I never wear shirts and shoes…. I only wear pants and nothing more…..” the raven haired teen repeated over and over, still staring at the ceiling, the words cementing themselves even more in his brain.

Brawly smiled and took a step back, admiring his handiwork

“Right, a bit longer like that and you’ll be ready to start your first day at the gym!” the gym leader smirked as he looked down at the electric type standing on the ground, who like his trainer was staring into empty space “Now, let’s get to work on you”

Ash groaned as he blinked rapidly, frowingin as he looked around. He was sitting in the kitchen of the gym, a plate of half eaten toast and an empty glass in front of him.

“Guh… What happened?” he muttered, shaking his head as he got up. As he did, he felt his toe brush against some cloth on the ground. Curious, the raven haired teen reached down and grabbed a blue and white striped t-shirt.

“Oh hey Ash!” Brawly’s voice rang out from the other side of the room. Looking up, Ash smiled as he saw the teal haired trainer walking over with a big smile on his face “You done with breakfast I see”

“O-Oh yeah I am” Ash said with a smile “Hey Brawly, is this thing yours?”

“Oh? Nah. I don’t have any shirts like that. Isn't it yours?” “Mine? Arceus no!” Ash said, tossing the shirt to the table “I hate the things, never wear them.” “Ah, alright then. That actually makes my life easier” Brawly said with a smile “Makes it easier to find you some gym clothes” “Hehe” Ash giggled a little as the two walked out of the kitchen, and down to the gym proper. The raven haired teen smiled as he felt the smell of the gym hit his nose. It wasn’t the same as yesterday, when the place had been packed full of people, but it was still strangely familiar, and it sent shivers of pleasure through his body

“Alright Ash, go ahead. Your end of the deal” “Yes Brawly!” Ash said with a smile, shivering a bit more as he said that. Something about listening to the gym leader felt really good.

Not wasting a second, the boy dashed off to the nearest treadmill and hopped on it, turning it on to the slowest setting. He took a deep breath and began jogging along with it.

“Sweet Groudon Ash” Brawly said with a laugh “Next time go get something to drink first”

“O-Oh right… Sorry!” Ash mumbled, his face flushing red as he kept jogging

“No problem. I’ll get you one from the reception’s vending machine. I have to go get my mail anyways” the teal haired trainer said with a quick smile before walking off.

Ash smiled as he saw the back of the other guy retreat past the big double doors, before taking a deep breath and focusing on his running. He closed his eyes and felt his bare feet constantly smack against the soft, spongy surface of the modified treadmill. As he kept going, he took a deep breath, the tingles returning to him as he kept going.

“Here ya go” Brawly said as he came back with a big smile, handing Ash a bottle of the tasty orange liquid

“Thanks Brawly” the teen said, popping the cap off the bottle and taking a big chug, smiling as he felt the pleasure spreading out through him.

“Right, so let’s see what I’ve got here…” the teal haired trainer muttered as he leaned on the wall next to Ash, cracking open the envelopes he had brought “Another resume…” “Resume?” Ash asked in between breaths “What for?”

“Gym trainers” Brawly said, glancing up at the raven haired teen, chuckeling a little at the look of confusion on his face “Right, guess you haven’t heard of that” “Nope. What is it?” Ash asked as he took another drink, a bit of a dopey smile forming on his face as he kept jogging

“It’s a thing that Steven set up” Brawly explained “See, he thought that just the one battle against the gym leader wasn’t a good enough challenge for the people going through the gym circuit”

“So, what are gym trainers? Someone else you have to battle?”

“Essentially” the teal haired trainer said “Gyms have to have at least one gym trainer on staff, and they must be defeated before the challenger is allowed to face the gym leader”

“I’m guessing that you have one…” Ash said, his words becoming a bit slower as he took another drink from the bottle, almost as if it was becoming harder to think

“I did” Brawly corrected “He quit about a month ago, since he was moving. I have around two months to find a new one, but so far no one has really done it…”

“Why…?” Ash mumbled, speeding up his jog

“Eh, they suck mostly” Brawly said “Gym trainers are supposed to be kinda good but still beatable.”

“I see…” Ash mumbled as he kept jogging

“Maybe you’ll like the job?” Brawly asked with a smile.

“Hehehe, nah” Ash said with a small laugh, a small bit of lucidity coming over him “Not really my thing”

“I see….” Brawly muttered, frowning a little before his usual friendly smile returned “Well then, just keep going. So far you're doing really well so far”

“Yeah?” Ash asked, the haze returning to his mind as he took another big gulp of the sports drink “Thank you…”

“You're welcome” Brawly said with a grin “Now I think you should try out a few more of the machines! Can’t just use one all week, after all”

“Y-Yeah… T-That’s true” Ash muttered, his mind instantly agreeing with Brawly. What he said made a lot of sense, since he was doing so well, he might as well expand to the other machines

“That’s a good boy!” Brawly cheered with a big grin as he turned around “I’ve got to man the gym today, so I’ll see ya later!”

“Y-Yes Brawly!” Ash moaned, unable to contain it as pleasure rang through his body at being called good by Brawly. He took a deep breath and re-focused his efforts on his new workout routine. He only had a week here after all, and he had to keep his word. A whole week working out in the gym, and damn it he was gonna go through with it! He panted as he stepped off the treadmill, taking another really big gulp of his sports drink, the weird haze that had been hounding him becoming even stronger. “I think I’ll try out the weights…” he mumbled as he walked over to them, a big dopey smile on his face as he did so.

(===============)

Four Days Later

The teen yawned as he woke up, the familiar sensation of the rising sun streaming through the window and onto his face helping him up.

“Gah! Man I slept great last night…” he mumbled as he rubbed the remaining sleep out of his eyes. His eyes traveled down to the foot of the bed, as if he was expecting a response from someone, but it was empty, just as it had been when he climbed into the bed last night. He frowned for a second, a small ball of worry forming in his chest for a second before it evaporated “Who was I talking to?” he muttered, shaking his head as he threw the covers off and stepped onto the carpeted floor, his exposed member swinging loosely between his legs.

He turned to look at the now familiar mirror that sat opposite to his bed and grinned as he looked over himself. He had to admit, he was making amazing progress. He had gone from the twig of a teen he was a few days ago to having quite a bit of muscle. While he wasn’t a bodybuilder likes the ones he talked to every once in a while in between his workouts, he was still quite fit, especially his legs and his chest. He even had the starts of a six pack forming there.

“Brawly’s advice is really something” he muttered as he flexed a little, enjoying the sight of his new muscles. Indeed, for the past few days, Brawly had been giving him tips and tricks during breakfast. He did remember a few sounding a bit weird, like drinking three bottles of another energy drink that Brawly had made for him, or smelling a specific candle he gave him every morning, but when the teal haired trainer told him, it made perfect sense to do as he told him. After all, Brawly was the successful surfer and the owner of the gym, he must know something about it. “Right, nearly forgot!” the now muscular teen said as he turned to the tiny table that sat next to the mirror and grabbed the small glass bowl that sat there. He held it up to his nose and took a deep smell, moaning loudly as his whole body shook and trembled, his previously flaccid member going hard as soon as the smell hit his nose.

KNOCK KNOCK

“Coming!” Ash moaned as he set the candle back down, and walked over to the door, still in his birthday suit. He grabbed the doorknob and opened it, revealing the smiling face of his host staring at him

“Morning Ash!” he said with a grin, looking over the guy’s body “I see you slept well”

“Oh?” Ash muttered, looking down at his hard cock “Oh that! Yeah, sorry.” he said with a shrug, not really caring that Brawly was seeing him naked.

A small part of him felt like he should care, but that didn’t make sense. Brawly had told him that sleeping nude and letting other guys see you like that was good and normal. And what Brawly told him made him feel really good, so they couldn’t be wrong.

“Now come on, I made a special breakfast to celebrate your progress!” Brawly said with a smile

“Really!?” Ash asked with joy clear in his voice

“Hell yeah!” Brawly said, leading the nude teen to the kitchen. Ash followed happily, quickly entering the small room and smiling as he saw the big spread of toast, eggs, pancakes and about three jars filled with the sports drink he had fallen in love with.

“There you go!” Brawly said, pointing at the spread “Go ahead and dig in”

“Thanks Brawly!” Ash squealed as he dashed over and plopped his ass down on the chair, grabbing the stack of pancakes and starting to wolf them down. As he ate, he looked up to a Pikachu walking around the kitchens and frowned for a second.

Brawly had explained that the Pikachu was his and that he let it walk around the kitchen since he couldn't use him in battle, but that explanation never sat right with Ash. But before he could say anything more, Brawly had walked up to him with a glass of a bright aqua liquid

“What’s that?” Ash asked as Brawly put on the table in front of him

“Well, there’s more than just the food to this celebration,” Brawly said with a big smile “See, I’ve been working on a new sports drink this week. And knowing how much you like the old one and the reformulated version, I thought you might like being the first to try it” “Oh hell yeah!” Ash said with a smile, grabbing the glass and bringing it to his lips, chugging it down quickly. His eyes went wide as the taste danced on his tongue. It was amazing! He never thought that something could top the old one, but this one sent waves of pleasure through him that he didn’t think could happen!

His cock bounced up, harder than it had ever been in the 20 years he’s been alive. He moaned loudly as he leaned back, that strange haze that he’d been feeling for the past few days coming back, stronger than it had ever been before. Soon, he could do nothing except moan and twitch as another surge of pleasure rang through his body.

Brawly smiled as he looked over his new prize. He waved his hands in front of Ash’s clouded eyes, snapped his fingers underneath his chin, blew air into his ears. None of these snapped him out of his arousal induced trance, he just sat there moaning and twitching

“Perfect” he said to himself as he pulled out a chair and sat right next to the moaning raven haired trainer “You know Ash? I always like ya. You had a fun attitude about stuff like this, had a love for battling that I haven’t seen before” “Gyah…” Ash moaned in answer, his eyes trying to focus on Brawly, a big smile on his face as he did so

“Yeah, too bad the Gym Trainer job wasn’t a thing when ya first came through here. You would have been perfect. Well, battling wise” he chuckled a bit “You're body on the other hand? I mean, your cute, but damn its like you were made out of bread dough. Can’t have a gym trainer that looks like that after all. You are perfect for the job. You're a good trainer, but you're not an unbeatable beast, you love you're pokemon and you’re pretty easy on the eyes.” he reached down and rubbed Ash’s twitching cock “Gyah!” he moaned loudly, his cock bouncing up and down at the touch

“Good thing I studied chemistry” Brawly said with a grin “Now, let’s wait for the other effects to set in…” he muttered, looking at Ash’s hair.

He didn’t have to wait very long, as suddenly the spiky raven locks began to grow longer and longer. They didn’t really loose their shape, but soon his hair reached down to his shoulders, as a waterfall of black spikes

“Damn” Brawly whistled “You look damn good with long hair Ash. I should have given this to ya sooner!”

“Guuuuh” Ash moaned, a bit of drool beginning to drip from his mouth “Hehe, yeah guess I should get started on this” Brawly said, moving his chair even closer to Ash and began whispering in his ear.

“Listen to me carefully” he whispered “What I’m about to tell you is the absolute truth. If something in your mind disagrees with what I’m telling you, then you will forget that fact. The only truth is what I will tell you now.”

“Brawly….. Tells truth…..nothing else matters…..” the now long haired teen mumbled through his arousal

“That’s right” Brawly whispered, reaching down and grabbing Ash’s dick, which sent even more shivers through the entranced boy “Now, you have always lived on this island. You have never lived off the island and you never want to. All that matters to you is on this island” as he said this, he gave his penis a good squeeze, reinforcing the order. Ash moaned and nodded, Brawly’s word worming their way into his brain and replacing whatever was there before.

He no longer remembered his journey. He forgot Pallet Town, Professor Oak, becoming the first ever champion of Alola. All of it evaporated in a cloud of arousal and pleasure.

“You have three great loves in your life” Brawly kept whispering “One of those is surfing. You adore surfing. Every second you are not in the gym, you are on the beach, board in hand waiting for that perfect wave. The beach is your second home, and you enjoy basking in the sand, sea and sun on your skin” the teal haired trainer smiled as he gave the member in his hands another big tug.

“The second is working out. Working out is essential for you. Ever since you were a kid you loved working out and do it all the time. You make sure you don’t bulk up too much so it doesn't get in the way of your surfing however. You love surfing much more than being muscular” he whispered again, moving on from simply tugging at his dick to a full on rub, making the raven haired trainer spasm in pleasure

“Gyaaaaah!” he moaned loudly, as it was all he could do as this point. His higher brain functions had pretty much shut down at this point.

“And the third is me” Brawly whispered again, smirking as he looked over Ash’s body “I’m your lover and you're master. You want to do nothing more than please me and make me happy”

“Brawly…….. L-Lover…….” Ash managed to stammer out as the new information was implanted into his brain

“That’s right” Brawly whispered again “You love to obey me and will do anything to please me. You love being my gym trainer and wouldn’t trade that job for anything since it gives access to your three greatest loves at all times. Understand?”

“Yeth” Ash mumbled, his tongue hanging out of his mouth like a panting Arcanine at this point, so lost in the sexual haze. Brawly smiled at that and rubbed his dick once more before going back to the whispering

“Now listen very carefully for this next part” Brawly whispered “I want you to take everything inside that cute head of yours that doesn't match what I told. I want you to move it down through your body. Have it pass through your throat, you're belly all the way down to your groin”

“Gyah” Ash moaned, still panting like crazy. He shivered as he felt all of his now suppressed memories moving downwards

“Now, all the memories and thoughts of before this moment are all packed in here” he patted Ash’s cock, which resulted in a loud yip of pleasure from the entranced trainer “Packed all nice and tight, swirling around and going nowhere else” he said as he started rubbing the dick once again

“G-Gah!” Ash moaned, loving the feeling of a hand running up and down his twitching rod. It was at the same time a new sensation and a familiar one, something that confused him slightly, but the haze of arousal didn’t let him think about it for too long. Brawly didn’t say anything, he just kept rubbing his penis with one hand and reached up to his chest with his other, grabbing one the pale pink nipples that poked out of Ash’s now muscular chest. He squeezed it and gave it a good twerk

“GYAH!” Ash screamed in arousal and pleasure, his hips buckling as he finally came. His dick twitched and bounced as a thick stream of cum blasted out of it, splattering on the floor in front of the two. He kept going for quite a while, two whole weeks worth of arousal and cum being pumped out of him.

“Feel everything in there being drained” Brawly whispered, a grin on his face “Everything from before. All those journeys, all those battles, flowing out of you dick, splattering to the ground as it sends waves of pleasure through you. The moment it splatters down, its erased. Its gone. It will never come back, but you won’t mourn it. After all, you can’t mourn something that doesn't exist, can you babe?” “N……..No…….” Ash moaned, as he kept humping the empty air “Nothing….existed…...nothing to…...remember….”

“That’s right” Brawly cooed as Ash kept pumping his fluids out “No annoying traveling, none of that. All that’s in there is what I said. Surfing, working out and me. That’s all that’s in there now, that’s all that should be in there”

“All thats…… in there……” Ash repeated in a pant, giving one last big hump as the last bits of cum, and his old life, splattered on the tiled floor of the kitchen.

Brawly grinned as he stared at the figure in front of him before turning around and grabbing a small glass bauble from the counter and a lighter. A tune on his lips, he lit the candle inside and smiled as he felt the sweet smell hit his nose, before turing to Ash and putting it right below his nose.

The raven haired trainer sniffed the smoke by instinct, groaning and blinking rapidly as the smell flooded his nose. The more he sniffed, the more the cloud of arousal and pleasure retreated. His dick deflated like a balloon after a minute as he groaned and shook his head

“Morning sleepyhead” Brawly said

“Huh? Brawly? What happened?” Ash muttered, groaning as he clutched the side of his head “Gah, my head. It feel like a Rhydon tap danced on it”

“Oh don’t worry about that babe” Brawly said as he leaned closer and kissed Ash right on the lips. Whatever Ash had been feeling, it evaporated the moment those lips connected with his. He closed his eyes and returned it, enjoying the sparks it sent through him. Nothing else mattered right now other than kissing Brawly. That was all that was important. After snogging for a good two minutes, Brawly pulled up with a big smile “Hehehe, turns out you were excited for me”

“What do you mean?” Ash muttered, looking down at the mess that sat in front of him. “Oh that. Hehehe, sorry bout that babe” he said, not really caring about the fact he was still nude and dripping. Why would he care about that?

“I don’t mind” Brawly said, pinching one of Ash’s nipples “Now come on hot stuff, you need to start your daily routine” “Course!” Ash said with a huge grin “Lead the way!”

(===============)

Two Month Later

Ash yawned as he slowly opened his eyes, the rays of the sun coming in through his window like every morning. He smiled as he sat up and stretched, groaning a little as he heard the bones of his back pop a little.

“Damn….Musta been sleeping crooked or sumethin” he muttered as he threw the covers off and walked to his mirror, like he did every morning. He smiled as he looked at himself.

He looked like the perfect surfer. His skin was a nice bronze, tanned all over with not a single spot missed. He was so happy he listened to his master on that one and finally stopped putting on that stupid sunscreen crap every time he want to catch some waves. He looked way better like this. Well at least that’s what Brawly told him. But then again, that was as good as the truth as far as Ash was concerned.

Continuing his morning ritual, the tanned surfer went on to pose for a bit, flexing and bulging out his muscles to make sure he got a good look at them and the new ink on his skin. He smiled as he noticed that, patting the Poke-Ball ink that now adorned his pecs. Again, he didn’t want to do it at first, but just like with his tan, all it took was a few good words from his boy to convince him he was being a dumbass and to go get inked. He argued that it hurt too much and some nonsense like that, but Brawly told him it woulndt hurt at all, and damn he was right as alway. Ash grinned and moaned about that, which got a chuckle out of him as he glanced down at his dick.

Like the rest of him, it was tanned thoroughly, and it was quite long and big. He didn’t really know how it started growing so quick in these last few days, but he sure as hell wasn’t gonna bitch! It meant that weekends with his babe were even better.

“Gya!” he moaned, the thought of his boyfriend and master sending a wave of pleasure through him and making his dick bounce up “Right, simmer down boy” he said, patting the top of his member “You’ll get action after lunch, like always” he smiled and reached over to the small stool that sat there for him and grabbed his clothes.

It wasn’t much, after all he did not get tanned and ink just to hide under a disgusting shirt or something like that. He slipped on the bright blue swimming trunks, grunting a little as he shoved his piece inside, but in the end he managed and reached over to grab the rubber band and tie up his hair. He love having it long, sure but it could be a real pain if it wasn’t in a ponytail. Finally he grabbed the gift from his lover that was waiting for him and slipped it on.

It was a necklace made of pure white, bleached Sharpedo teeth that sat perfectly over his neck. He grinned as he slipped on, feeling the cold bones against his skin sent shivers through his body

KNOCK KNOCK!

Ash smiled as he heard that and dashed to the door, throwing it open and smiling at the shirtless teal haired guy that stood right in front of him

“Morning babe” Ash said with a smile

“Morning” Brawly said with a smile, leaning in and kissing Ash. The raven haired surfer moaned as the kiss sent sparks through his whole body. The two snogged for a few more seconds before Brawly broke it up “Sleep well?”

“Course I did! I dreamt of you” Ash said with a wink, eliciting at giggle from his boyfriend

“Oh man, when did you become a romantic?”

“When I wiped out yesterday” Ash joked with a cocky grin

“Course you did” Brawly said with a smile “Now, as much as I would love to go and spend the whole day on the beach with ya, we have work to do” “Aw man, really?”

“Yeah yeah, I know babe” Brawly said, giving Ash one more peck on the nose “But we do need cash, so come on. Can’t open the gym without my best gym trainer on the grounds, now can I?”

“Right ya can’t” Ash said with a huge grin “But you owe me for ruining my dream afternoon with you”

“Oh?” Brawly said, hugging the black haired surfer as the two walked down the hall “How bout we have an extra long bed time this saturday?”

“Oooh that sounds amazing” Ash moaned, enjoying the sensation of Brawly’s arm around him.

He loved Brawly more than anything else. Sure, he adored working out and surfing, but compared to Brawly? They were nothing.

And he wouldn’t trade this life for anything in the world.

==================

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#hypnosis #mind control #pokemon fanfiction #himbo #surfer #gay

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mypoisonedvine · 3 years

Text

𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘝𝘐𝘐 - 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙚) || sub!bucky barnes x dominatrix!reader

(𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘐) (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘐𝘐) (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘐𝘐𝘐) (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘐𝘝) (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘝) (𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘝𝘐)

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮 || the finale.

𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩 || 3.5k

𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 || fluff, angst, implied smut, domestic goodness, more EMOTIONS!!!

six months ago...

Bucky wrung his hands a few times before knocking on your door, feeling his heart beat a little faster when he could hear the sounds of your footsteps on the other side. He'd been dreaming of a day like this for so long— the day he finally acted on this secret obsession he had, the day he stopped fantasizing and started realizing— but all this time, part of him had never really thought he'd go through with it. I mean, there's a pretty big difference between jerking off to videos of dominant women and actually getting spanked, slapped, and choked by a dominatrix after paying her an insane amount of money per hour.

But frankly, Bucky needed a big difference from what he'd been doing. He'd been alone for a little too long, he needed someone else's touch before he lost his mind. And he knew that he needed something more substantial than a hook-up, someone who wouldn't expect him to be dominant at all. Even in a kink-less, vanilla hook-up, there’s still an onus of dominance, that’s what Bucky had realised. He’s still supposed to initiate, to guide, to be fully in control… and he hates how it feels to be in control. He’s not used to it, and it doesn’t feel right, and it just makes him sure he’ll do something wrong. So here he was, standing at your door, hoping you’d take away his freedom to do something wrong.

The latch turned and you opened it.

Fuck.

You looked great. Too great, almost overwhelming. Even better than the pictures on your website.

You looked so much softer than the women he saw whenever he searched up femdom porn (yes, that was pretty much the first thing he did once he figured out google— thankfully he had also figured out incognito mode), but your presence was twice as commanding. Your eyes scanned over him quickly and your face stayed annoyingly stoic.

You invited him in; And since then, you’d had him wrapped around your finger.

Even knowing to a certain extent what he was getting into, he could’ve never prepared for how quickly he’d fall for you. Not that he was exactly new to the feeling, but he thought guilt might eat him alive: because of course he felt awful for developing real feelings for you. You were just doing your job and he was falling into the same trap that probably every dumbass client fell into.

Or maybe they actually knew what they were doing and understood how to separate fantasy from reality. He couldn’t decide which one was worse.

He spent a few hours trying to decide while staring up at his ceiling— certainly a better way to spend the time than being social or taking care of unfinished business, right?

But leave it to you to change everything with just three words. Make me yours.

He hadn’t stopped thinking about those words— or about the way you said them— since the moment you spoke them. He hadn’t stopped changing his mind on if he could really believe you were his or not. He wanted to, more than anything; and in those brief moments he did, he felt a joy that he had no idea what to do with.

He frowned as he turned his back towards the mirror, looking over his shoulder to watch his finger run over the fading scars on his back. They’d be gone for good in less than a week, but he knew you had left plenty of permanent marks on him— just unfortunately not those that anyone else could see. He liked the way these scars looked under your fingertips much more than his; he liked everything about being in your arms.

Since you’d texted him to ask if you could have a serious talk with him soon, he worried he wouldn’t get to feel that again. In fact, nothing worried him more.

He was typically antsy as he waited for you to answer the door— he had been since that very first time so long ago— but this felt entirely different: not as jittery, but a thousand times more anxious.

At first he’d been wishing you’d answer it right away, but then he heard your bolt turn and panic landed on him like a dangling anvil dropping on a cartoon character. Suddenly the last thing he wanted was for you to open that door, to be standing there looking all perfect and shit, to smile at him and greet him and invite him in. He didn’t want it; he couldn’t take it.

But you did it all anyway, though it was obviously and immediately a new situation entirely, compared to every other time you’d done it.

You were dressed differently, still formal but definitely toned down. Nothing sexual, at least not objectively. And your smile, though it still made his heart skip a beat just like always, was noticeably softer and maybe a bit sadder.

He stepped in past you, and you surprised him by sitting next to him on the couch rather than across from him on your chair. “Do you want, like, water or anything?” you asked, breaking the silence for a moment.

“No, I’m fine,” he nodded.

Bucky had gotten pretty good at silence these past few years; it didn’t bother him, in fact he barely even noticed it. But this silence made him remember why everyone else hated silence so much: it was heavy and thick and made him overcome with the need to blurt something out. “Everyone calls me Bucky,” he finally admitted. You smiled.

“Do you want me to call you that?” you asked.

He considered your question, trying to imagine you saying it. “I… I used to think it would be better, but now I like the way you say ‘James’ too much.”

“If you thought it would be better, why did you ask me to call you James?” you pressed.

“Because I didn’t want you to know who I was.”

“I know who you are,” you informed him. “I always knew.”

He swallowed as the pit formed in his gut, glancing away to hide from your gaze. “You did a good job of… of pretending you didn’t. You never seemed scared of me.”

“Because I wasn’t. And I’m not.”

He couldn’t imagine how; but then again, if there was any truly fearless woman, he figured it would be you. “I thought you’d beat me up better if you knew what I’d done,” he admitted, almost smiling but not exactly feeling very happy. “Thought you might want… revenge.”

“Surprised that didn’t make you want to tell me.”

He laughed a bit at that. “Yeah, fair enough.”

You asked him a very different question next, one that made his throat suddenly dry: "Have you ever had something that was all your own?" you spoke gently.

"Not for a long time…" he trailed off, letting his eyes unfocus as he stared down at your floor before finding the courage to look up at you again. “Is that what you wanna be?” he asked, already wishing he hadn’t said anything in case it was too presumptuous, but you just smiled back at him in a shy sort of way.

“Something like that,” you mitigated.

His eyes darted around your face— from your eyes glancing away, to your lips that you gnawed on for a moment, to the little crease between your brows— and he found himself leaning forward before he even realized it. “Can I kiss you?” he asked quietly.

You didn’t answer, you just kissed him first; he was so relieved that you did it, too, that you took control so easily and just let him melt into your kiss. As good as it felt to submit to you, he enjoyed the new freedom he had in this moment as well— the freedom to reach up and grab your waist, to brush his hand over your hair, to tilt his head and deepen the kiss further.

It was hard to define exactly where it went from innocent to sensual to sexual, but by the time you were straddling his lap and running your fingers through his hair, it was definitely sexual.

“I want you,” you breathed against his lips.

“Have me,” he offered immediately, “I’m yours. Always was.”

He breathed in sharply when you moved your hips just right to rub up against his swelling cock through his jeans, making him grip your waist a bit harder. “Good boy,” you whispered. “You’re so good, James.”

He believed you this time, finally.

For your first real date, he took you to Coney Island. Not the classiest affair, and he promised to take you somewhere really nice next, but you didn’t mind. It was jarring to see you in casual clothes for the first time, something summer-y and light which was everything opposite to how he was used to seeing you; but he liked it, and he liked knowing a secret about you as you walked through a crowd of carnival-goers that were none the wiser.

He walked you through the fair and explained how he remembered it, showed you the few things that hadn’t changed much. He bought you a hot dog and even won you a prize at one of the games; that one where you throw a baseball and it measures your pitch speed? Yeah, it’s rigged, but he pitched lefty and it seemed to even everything out. (It’s not cheating, okay? It’s beating them at their own game, literally.)

So with a massive teddy under one arm and his waist wrapped in your other, you two walked through the winding pier, under twinkling lights and over walkways towering over the ocean below. And then you fooled around a bit on the ferris wheel. It was the ideal Coney Island experience, for sure.

Bucky didn’t have a ton of friends, per se, but he was excited for you to meet them. Meeting friends was certainly a step, though; hopefully a step you were willing to take, but he didn’t want to ask you to do it without at least having a title to introduce you with.

“I want you to be my girlfriend,” he finally told you.

“I kinda thought I already was,” you laughed.

And so, with more pride than he might have ever had for anything before, Bucky finally got to take you to meet everyone (‘everyone’ being a mix of his friends and his coworkers, who may or may not be his friends because he couldn’t always tell) and say “I want you guys to meet my girlfriend.”

Of course you were amazing with all of them; you continued that tactful “I know who you are but I’m pretending I don’t to be nice” thing that you’d started with him, and everyone seemed to appreciate it. You cracked a couple jokes, everyone laughed.

You lied about how you and Bucky met, or at least answered very strategically. Everyone at least pretended to believe you.

Afterwards, they all said something about how great you were or about how lucky he was. The only thing he ever said back was “I know.”

Now that he could kiss you without breaking any rules, he never wanted to stop. He hardly ever did, actually. He kissed you basically whenever he could get the chance; you two didn’t even go out much anymore because he wasn’t very good at keeping his hands to himself, but you weren’t exactly complaining about staying in. You were too busy kissing him back, and teasing him mercilessly while you were at it, to do that.

You had already found the fastest way to get him needy and begging, not that any way took very long. If you kissed him while you straddled his lap, wrapping your arms around him and slowly grinding against him, he lost it in minutes. And you really seemed to get a kick out of watching him lose it, just as much as always.

It made him realize that the way you looked at him before, in sessions and scenes together, was a lot less of an act than he’d assumed at the time. He just thought you were a really good actress, or that he was really whipped; and maybe the first was true, and the second was absolutely true, but regardless it had become clear that you had it almost as bad as he did from the beginning. It gave him even more respect for how well you controlled yourself, he certainly hadn’t had much self-control at the time— after all the whole ordeal was about losing control, and occasionally about trying to gain it back.

He didn’t ask you to quit your job. He didn’t want or expect you to; but you did cut down your hours, which gave the two of you more time together.

To be totally honest, part of him got a bit titillated to imagine you with your other clients. He didn’t like the idea of other men touching you, but he smirked at the thought of them begging to touch you and being denied; he liked knowing that you didn’t do with them even half of the stuff you’d done with him when he was your client.

But he wasn’t your client anymore. He was your boyfriend, and he wanted the world to know it.

six months later...

He let you struggle to reach the top shelf for a moment, just because you looked cute on your tip-toes with the tip of your tongue sticking out of the corner of your mouth, before he finally relented and helped you grab the bottle of rice wine vinegar.

“Thanks,” you smiled as he set it in the cart.

After that you let him grab everything, content to stand on the end of the cart and push you around as you reminded him what else you needed.

“We’re out of Captain Crunch!” you remembered as he passed the cereal aisle, pointing to try to get him to turn.

“Yes, and we need to stay that way,” Bucky explained sternly, “that shit is addictive. Only way to avoid it is to not have it in the house.”

You frowned but accepted that he was absolutely right, though you groaned when he took you to the refrigerated section to stock up on chicken breasts. “I swear, you would eat these for breakfast if you didn’t think I’d judge you for it,” you joked.

“What’s wrong with chicken breasts?”

“They’re just so… bland!”

“Not if you season them right,” he corrected.

“Which you don’t,” you rolled your eyes. “Come on, at least splurge on some chicken thighs. They’re basically the same but so much more flavorful.”

“Fine, but no more making fun of my cooking,” Bucky decided, placing the breasts back on the shelf and grabbing two packs of thighs instead. “I’m still adapting to 21st century sensibilities.”

“Right,” you nodded, though he caught your smile in the corner of his eye— you knew he couldn’t exactly claim to still be as conservative as he was raised to be in every way.

Like any well-planned grocery run, it ended at the frozen section where you got some fruit bars and frozen vegetables (you had this theory that frozen vegetables tasted better in fried rice than fresh ones, and so far you’d proven him right) and he got a pizza to have for dinner in a pinch. When shopping alone before, he always did self-checkout to avoid being seen anymore than he had to… he still did it with you, but he didn’t even think about who might be looking at him, because all he saw was you.

You drove for this trip, and he always felt oddly soothed by riding passenger with you at the wheel. He liked to close his eyes and lean back a bit, or occasionally look over at you (but if he did it too much you complained that he was being creepy and distracting you). It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that he enjoyed the feeling of you taking control, considering everything, but it was one of those little ways that he hadn’t expected. He just felt so comfortable, so safe with you, and never he felt like he was a burden for asking you to take the lead when he didn’t trust himself with it. And that applied to everything— driving, cooking, speaking up in crowds, all those little things that sometimes made him anxious.

There were some things he didn’t have any trouble being dominant about, though. He was very protective of you, for example, and tended to be uptight about how late you went out for walks or where you should be going alone. And he didn’t struggle to ask you for what he wanted— he was getting a lot better at asking for help, specifically.

He used to ask you to say that you loved him, instead of just saying ‘I love you’ himself, because for some reason it was easier to make you do it first. It started as something he’d beg for in the throes of passion, fingers digging into your skin as his eyes watered (as they often did in intimate moments): please, say you love me— jus’ need to hear you say it, please? And you were always sweet about it in return, of course I love you, James, my good boy, I love you so so much. But then he’d ask you to say it whenever he felt like it— he’d come up behind you while you were reading or cooking or something and kiss the top of your head or the shell of your ear and try to act nonchalant as he asked you love me, right?

You’d laugh and roll your eyes before you answered, but it was, thankfully, always a ‘yes.’ Eventually you figured out how often you needed to say it to make him stop asking all the time, which was probably a little too often.

“I love you,” you blurted out randomly as you turned on your signal and leaned a bit to make sure it was safe to make a left— case in point.

“I love you too,” he answered back with a smile.

“I don’t mind saying it so often,” you added, “but you know that I love you even when I’m not saying it, right? I love you all the time.”

It was a simple question, probably mostly rhetorical, but it hit him harder than he expected. “Yeah, I know,” he managed to get out evenly enough that you didn’t notice he was tearing up a bit.

He put the groceries away while you took the trash out; you liked to keep the fridge pretty organized, and it was an adjustment at first, but by now Bucky had it down pat. Before you, he hadn’t even considered that the contents of a refrigerator could be aesthetically pleasing.

Dinner was leftovers in front of the TV— you two were almost done with Frasier, but after that you had ten seasons of Friends to get through. You had tried to encourage him to watch more challenging stuff— you know, True Detective, Hannibal, dark cerebral stuff with arguably more artistic merit than classic sitcoms— but Bucky had had enough darkness in his life that he didn’t need it in his fiction. Maybe he’d find the time to catch up on the last 80 years of dramas and murder mysteries after he caught up on the last 80 years of comedy.

After dinner you were going to do yoga and Bucky, not in the mood to embarrass himself with that, retired to the bedroom a bit early to read his book— he’d heard a lot about this Harry Potter guy and now that he was on the fourth book and could hardly put it down, he understood the hype. He related a bit to the unwilling war hero in its protagonist; most of the time the series enthralled him, but occasionally something would hit too deep and he’d have to put it away for a couple days. At the moment, though, he was in one of the easy parts where it was just about schoolwork and childhood antics.

He instinctively glanced at the door when he heard you open it— he wasn’t sure how long it had been time-wise, but he’d gotten through quite a few pages— but he only quickly looked up at you as you shut the door behind you, before returning his attention to the book he was reading. “So, Bucky…” you began.

“Yeah?” he mumbled.

“James.”

It wasn’t any one thing that got his attention— not just the tone of your voice or the way it got a bit deeper, not just the look you gave him, not just the way the air of the room seemed to shift all at once. It was everything about you that made his body react instantly. He shut the book and set it aside, sitting up straight to look at you expectantly.

And you seemed to notice his instinctual obedience, considering you just barely smirked at him, raising an eyebrow as he spoke his reply: “Yes, Mistress?”

#sub!bucky barnes x dominatrix!reader #sub!bucky barnes x domme!reader

981 notes · View notes

chronosaurusnot · 3 years

Text

VIP boy

pairing: dom!bangchan x bratty sub!reader

genre: smut

word count: 2.1k

warnings: +18, night club, mentions of alcohol, teasing (with minho), jealousy, possessiveness, bratty behavior, explicit sexual content, bathroom sex, choking, pet names, degrading, slight humiliation, fingering, oral sex (m), rough sex, unprotected sex (stay safe please), cumming, creampie

note: so the original idea was a request from my friend about chan in a night club, but after that teaser i can't get out of my mind that scene of him choking hyunjin from behind. so, this is a mix of both things, i hope you like it!

as always, i’d like to clarify that english is not my first language, so please let me know if there are any mistakes, and feel free to give me suggestions<3

-----------

you ended up in the night club again with your friends; another night when you don’t know why you are there. it’s been a rough week, full of work and with stressful exams, so your friends insisted on getting you out to distress yourself a little bit. but between the time you’ve spent on getting ready plus all the sweaty people pushing you all around right now, you could swear you would’ve been better in your bed watching a movie or something, or even sleeping. it’s been already an hour maybe? you don’t know so you go straight to the bar to get some drink to see if time gets faster; hopefully it’ll make you less grumpy.

but when you are there, you see him on the vip section of the first floor. chan is there with his friends, talking and looking good as he always does. you start feeling like the night could maybe get a little more interesting, but when you get to see him talking with a girl that feeling changes to anger. sure, you agreed on being friends with benefits -if that was even a title or smt- so you both could be with anyone else you wanted, always respecting each other. so if he didn’t know you were there, in the same way you didn’t know he was coming too, it was okay if he wanted to be with someone else, right? but all the logic didn’t seem to care to your emotions, because you were now in a horrible mood.

you took your drink from the bar and drank it in less than a minute without taking your eyes off him and that girl. that dumb girl, she really thinks he’s hers tonight. but it’s stupid to feel like fighting over a man, so you get your mind clear and go back with your friends to tell them what you just saw to laught about it.

but when you look up again, you see chris leaning on the railing looking at you. he smiles when he notices your stare and waves at you, and after you wave back he makes gestures to let you know you can go there with them. you really wanted to play hard but you go there with your friends, following his instructions like a puppy obeys his owner.

“hey princess, you didn’t tell me you were coming” he greets you with a smile on his face. “yeah, the girls insisted on going out to destress a little bit, but i think i would have been better sleeping” you answer, trying to hide your growing excitement to see him there. “oh don’t be grumpy y/n, it’s early, we can still have a good night” he said in a cute and smirky way, an attitude that you hated and loved at the same time.

“yes i see you were already having a good time” you answer, and chris looks kinda confused. you point with your eyes to the girl he has been talking to, and he smirks at your reaction. “don’t be jealous princess, i was just talking”

you rolled your eyes at his stupid answer, and he just smiles. you hated how flirty he was and his fuck boy vibes, but there was something about him that eventually made you like him; maybe way too much. it all started as just a sex partner, but since day one you discover he was actually a super sweet, caring and fun guy, so you got really atractted to him in a matter of time. friends with benefits sounded right for both of you, but you always wanted more from him. maybe it’s his fault, cause he’s always giving you everything you want, but not only sexually; he is a pleasant man, you know he would give and do anything for his girl. and you wanted to be that girl. his only one.

and especially tonight. how could someone be so fine? he was all in black as always: black pants, black leather jacket and a black silk shirt that let you see his whole chest. “what a fucking fuck boy” you said to yourself, trying to hate him.

“what do you wanna drink, babygirl?” chan said, bringing you back from your thoughts. “your favourite one?” he continued while taking off his wallet from his pocket. you knew he was just doing it to show his hands; chan knew exactly the power his hands hold on you.

“yes, please” he smiles at your answer and goes to the bar for your drink.

but as soon as he goes, minho comes to you. “come on change that shitty face and dance a little y/n” he says while grabbing you from your arms to force you to dance with him. he takes you maybe way too closer to his body considering he is chris’s friend. but you think to yourself that maybe it’s a good idea; using this to get chan’s attention, to look at you, to make him jealous, and taking advantage to dance with a man so fine like minho. you wouldn’t be with him, sure, he is his friend; but it would be nice to at least flirt with him a little bit.

you sincerely got lost while dancing with him, so close to each other; till you notice chan looking at you both while leaning on the railing with the two cups on his hands. he looks at you in a challenging way, like wanting to see how far you can go.

and you accept the challenge, getting minho even closer to your body without cutting the eye contact with chris; you can see how his eyes turned darker, and you just smirk at his reaction. you dance a couple more minutes with minho, his hands on your waist, yours on his neck; after deciding it was enough teasing, you go back to chan playing the innocent. “he was helping me to cut out the bad mood, he’s so sweet. thank you for the drink channie”

“yeah i see, you should hang out with him.” he answers, his look darker; you prouder. “oh you think so? i mean, he seems to want to help me out to not be bored.” you answer, loving to see how your dumb plan worked.

“oh you just want to have fun, mh?” he says in a dark way, making you feel nervous and taking a big sip from your drink. “i know a place when you could have fun”.

you finished your drink in a couple of seconds, so he just takes your cup away from your hand. “why don’t you follow me, princess?”

he lefts the cups in the table, and takes you by the hand to guide you through the place. he talked to you calmly, but you knew he wasn’t not only because of the way he looked at you, but also cause he was holding you rough.

“get in, princess” chris says, letting you place to came in the bathroom. you get shocked; is a public space, but you are feeling so aroused with this situation that you just got in. chan locks the door behind you and turns you around to put you against it, resting his hand above you.

“you’ve been such a bratty, babygirl” he says, using his free hand to caress your cheek, slowly moving down to your neck. “if you were just bored, you should have told me instead of acting like a slut with my friend” chan continues while adding pressure on your neck, making you shut your legs from the feeling. he notices it and smirks in a mocking way. “are you already turned on, y/n? are you that desperate?”

he keeps on adding pressure, driving you crazy. you felt your panties getting wetter as every second passed by. so you decided to keep pushing his limits. “you’re not the only one who pays attention to me, chris. you should try better” his smile turns devilish.

“do you want me to remind you how good i fuck you, y/n?” he keeps choking you, but uses his other hand to touch you under your skirt. “do you want me to remind you whose name you repeat endless times while moaning?” he moves your panties to a side and start touching your pussy while still choking you, making you moan at the feeling of his cold hands rubbing against your clit. he laughs mockingly again at your desperate face.

“did you get this wet while dancing with minho? do you prefer his fingers over mine?” he never desease the smirk on his face, his nose touching yours and the feeling of his heavy breathing so close to you while you were cutted out of air made you go crazy. but you let out a moan after he gets two fingers inside you, making him laugh again.

“tell me, princess. tell me whose are you” you wanna answer, but he curls his fingers inside you while increasing his pace and makes you even harder to breathe. “i’m yours” you answer, and he takes his fingers out of you to put them in your mouth. you suck them instinctively, keeping eye contact with him, seeing the arousal in his eyes.

“you’re mine, y/n. no one else” you keep sucking on his fingers while his other hand finally moves from your neck to your waist, getting you closer to him. he softly moans at the feeling of his hardened dick rubbing against your hot core. “you are my baby slut, and the only one i want to please”

that was everything you needed to hear for being now completely at his will. the only thing you wanted was to be his only girl, the only one who he pleases, the only one who pleased him. you were feeling more desperate than ever now, getting crazier at the way he was rubbing his bulge against you in such a needy way, with both of his hands now on your hips, guiding you to make the touch rougher.

you remove his jacket and your eyes travel all over his chest, revealed by the thin silk. one of your hands caresses his chest, shoulders and neck, while the other one unzips his pants to get his cock out, making him moan louder at the feeling of your skin. “let me please you too, chris” you tell him in a whiny voice that makes him shiver.

you kneeled before him, and as soon as your lips touched the tip of his cock he rested both of his hands on the door that was behind you, moving his head backwards between deep groans.

“you’re such a pretty slut for me, y/n” he says and you speed up your pace. he starts to feel uncomfortable in any position, battling his urge to cum only to have you sucking on his dick for a longer time.

just when you feel his precum in your mouth he lifts you up, getting his eyes teary due to the denied orgasm. “turn around, princess. i’m not over yet”.

chan pushes your body against the door, guiding your ass close to him and lifting your skirt. he kisses your neck before pulling his cock inside you, making you both moan at the feeling of your stretched and wet pussy. “tell me who can fuck you this good, y/n?” he says while keeping a painful fast speed, tears forming in your eyes from the intense excitement.

“are you still thinking in minho, mh?” he says while he chokes you from behind, the other hand guiding your hips to move on his cock even harder. “tell me again, babygirl, who do you belong to?”

the feeling of his fast and hard pace, his hand holding you hard from your hips, his other hand cutting your air, his heavy breathing on your neck, his possessiveness, his moans; everything was making you feel extremely sensitive, desperate for a release of the tension that’s been building up. “you, o-only to you” you cried out in a broken voice.

his now clumsy moves showed you he was close too, getting weak to your submission. “only mine, y/n. f-fuck.” his last words whispered in your ear made you hit your orgasm. the feeling of your release all over his cock made him cum inside you, groaning your name in a completely fucked up way.

after a moment to catch up your breaths, he turned you back, facing you with a relaxed smile. “you’re still my girl after this, y/n. and i’ll always please my girl.”

#kpop smut #kpop imagines #kpop x reader #kpop x y/n #stray kids smut #stray kids imagines #stray kids x reader #stray kids x y/n #skz smut #skz imagines #skz x reader #skz x y/n #bang chan smut #bangchan smut #bangchan x reader #bang chan x reader #bangchan x y/n #bang chan x y/n #bangchan imagines

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reidingmelodies · 3 years

Text

Finders Keepers

A/N: It’s been ages since I’ve written anything, so I figured it was about time I got back into it! Hope you enjoy, any feedback is appreciated :) Warnings: None Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader Word Count: 2.7K

“What’s wrong with you, Pretty Boy?” Morgan questioned as Spencer rushed into the BAU Tuesday morning, fingers threading through his curls and a look of pure agitation gracing his features. As if he didn’t hear the question directed towards him, Spencer continued to storm through the room, nearly stumbling into Morgan in his quest to reach his desk.

Pupils dilating, Morgan looked towards JJ who had taken stock of the scene from her chair, brows already furrowed and legs moving to stand and head towards her fellow colleague.

Taking the lead, JJ swiftly headed to Spencer’s side, moving to place a hand on his shoulder before thinking better of it and placing both hands on the edge of his desk instead, Mama Bear instincts dialed all the way up. “Everything okay, Spence? You seem annoyed.”

Morgan scoffed before thinking better of it, “I’d say he’s a bit more than annoyed, JJ”. No sooner than the words had left his mouth he was given a swift elbow in his side from JJ and an eye roll from Spencer and all that was left for Morgan to do was raise his hands in defeat.

Sighing, Spencer turned back to his desk before mumbling a response back to them, “I’m fine, guys. I think I lost my copy of War and Peace on the Metro this morning. It was in my bag when I left my place, it must have fallen out when I was trying to grab my umbrella. I thought maybe I just forgot and left it here, but apparently not”.

“You and I both know you don’t forget anything, Pretty Boy,” Morgan chimed in, visibly less tense now that he knew there wasn’t any immediate danger.

“Actually Morgan that’s not entirely true. I have an eidetic memory which means-”

“There’s the Reid we all know and love,” JJ chuckled, heading back to her desk to get ready for the day ahead of them. Morgan followed, leaving the bullpen in search of Garcia and Spencer sighed, trying to move past the fact that one of his favorite books was no longer in his possession. Logically, he knew he could buy a replacement copy after work, but deep down he knew it wasn’t the same.

The words dancing across the page would be the same ones that brought him entertainment and the comfort found in familiarity throughout his life, but the book within his hands wouldn’t hold the same nostalgic memories. He wouldn’t look down at the tattered cover and reminisce on his first jet ride with the BAU, thinking back on how he brushed his fingers against the book’s familiar spine while trying to calm his stomach filled with nervous jitters at the prospect of working with unfamiliar people. He wouldn’t look at the dog-eared pages and remember how the words on those exact pages brought him comfort on nights he would escape to his bedroom and try to leave memories of aggressive classmates and whispering peers behind.

Any thought of potentially buying a new copy of the book after the workday was dispelled though as Garcia called everyone into the conference room to discuss a pending case in Phoenix, no sooner followed by a “wheels up in thirty” announcement from Hotch. Grabbing his go-bag and leaving the bullpen, Spencer filled his head with thoughts of the case, half of his brain racing ahead to connect victimology and significant locations while the other half was stuck repeating a never-ending mantra of “it’s just a book” in the back of his mind.

***

As Spencer was boarding a jet to head 468 miles north, Y/N was playing with a loose thread on her sweater, thinking about the long day of work ahead of her. Breaking her trance, she looked up and instead glanced up at the now empty row of seats in front of her. Her brows furrowed as she saw a book stuck in the crack between the far left seat cushion and the back of the chair, and before she knew it her curiosity overtook her. Y/N found herself standing from the seat, travel mug and bag in tow, before reaching for the dictionary-like book that was calling to her. The title War and Peace glared back at her, and a quick turn of the cover revealed faded words written in blue ink proclaiming that the book was the “Property of Spencer Reid”. With the announcement of her stop blaring over the loudspeaker and the weight of someone else’s book in their hand, Y/N made a split second decision to stuff the book into her bag, leaving the Metro with not only thoughts of the upcoming workday but visions of whom the mysterious Spencer Reid could be.

The workday passed by slowly, each passing second filled with the overwhelming desire to search for Spencer Reid on Google. By the time Y/N was on the Metro ride home, any and all motivation to search for the book’s rightful owner went out the door as her irritation grew with the rising heat of the increasingly packed subway car. Needing a distraction, her hand reached into her bag, initially moving for her cell phone but making a last second switch as her hand brushed the spine of the book. May as well spend my time doing something productive, she thought as she gently pulled the book out of it’s temporary home. With a final sigh, she turned to the first page and began to read.

As Y/N was tearing through the pages of War and Peace at an alarmingly quicker rate than she anticipated that night, Spencer was filling out a WMTA lost and found form in the hopes that someone had the decency to return his book. Knowing his luck, he assumed it was long gone and in the trash somewhere, but he figured it wouldn’t hurt to make one last ditch effort at finding it. Groaning, Spencer called it a night and went to bed, silently vowing to find his book the second he stepped foot off the BAU jet again.

***

Six days later the BAU team landed in Quantico, making plans to head to a bar for a drink before a well deserved day off. As designated drivers were assigned and phone calls home were made Spencer gathered his things, making a beeline to the door in the hopes of reaching the WMTA’s designated lost and found area before it closed for the night. He was a foot away from the door before a soft hand grasped his wrist, immediately stopping him in his tracks.

“Skipping out on the bar tonight, Reid?” Emily questioned, head tilted as she noticed how frazzled her friend was.

“I’m just gonna go home and watch a bit of Dr.Who” Spencer began, desperately trying to think of something that would let him out the door without further questions. “Speaking of Dr. Who, did you know that it was originally created to be an educational show for kids? It’s actually really interesting-”

“Say no more, Dr. Reid,” Emily laughed, letting go of his wrist and heading back towards the others, “enjoy your night”. Spencer tightly smiled, leaving the bullpen and making his way to downtown DC in search of his book. An hour later and he wasn’t any closer to finding his book, ultimately giving up and heading to the bookstore to buy himself another copy.

It was at that same time JJ and Derek found themselves hysterically laughing at a corner booth in the bar, thinking about how Spencer probably missed out on meeting the love of his life that night- a woman sitting in the booth directly across from them, War and Peace open on the table in front of her and a pen and highlighter busy at work marking up post its that were being meticulously placed on the book’s pages.

***

A month and a half went by and Spencer had officially given up hope on finding his lost book. In the six weeks since he had last seen it he refrained from reading his new copy, not willing to give up the small amount of hope he had that he would be reunited with his original book. That evening though, as the Metro had yet another delay and the subway car continued to get hotter and hotter, he figured there was no better time than the present and pulled out his new copy of War and Peace. A few pages in, a sudden jolt of the car made him glance up and almost immediately he locked eyes with the woman across from him. In the span of ten seconds, his thoughts ranged from she’s beautiful to hold on- she’s holding my book and before his legs fully alerted his brain what was happening he found himself on his feet and sitting in the empty seat directly next to her.

As Spencer’s brain began to register just how bad of an idea it was to sit next to a stranger as abruptly as he just did, the woman next to him gripped her bag slightly tighter, tilting her head to the side as she peaked a look at the man next to her.

Her mouth opened to speak, but before she could do so Spencer interrupted her, desperately trying to save himself from any embarrassment her words could bring.

“That’s my book,” he bluntly stated, mentally hitting himself as he watched her adorably confused features morph into a look of defense.

“No.. that’s your book,” she pointed down to his lap, where his new copy of War and Peace was resting between his palms.

“No it’s not- well, it is but it isn’t really?” Spencer tried to explain, his face growing more and more red with each word that left his mouth.

“So it’s your book, but not your book?” She questioned, lips curling up into a slight smile as she witnessed the sweet agitation of the man in front of her.

“Yes! I lost my book on the metro almost two months ago. This is just my replacement copy, and I don’t know how I know, but I’m positive the book in your hands right now is the one that I lost.” Spencer finished his spiel, watching as the woman’s eyes widened in realization and her mouth formed an “o” shape.

“You’re Spencer Reid?” she asked, and now it was his turn to play the part of the confused companion.

“I- yes? But, how do you know my name?” As soon as the question left his mouth the image of the title page of his book filled his head and all too soon he was practically yelling with joy in the poor woman’s face. “Wait, that is my book then! Does it say Property of Spencer Reid on the cover page?”

The woman laughed, and Spencer watched as any traces of tension left her body. “I’m so sorry! I found it on the Metro on my way to work, and I meant to look you up- not in a creepy way,” she continued, growing more flustered with each passing second. “I was gonna try and find you to return it but then I started reading it and I liked it more than I thought I would and I just,” She stooped, taking a breath and giving him the most adorable set of puppy dog eyes he’s ever seen. “I’m just really sorry, I shouldn’t have held onto it as long as I did”. She finished, and held the book up, holding it out towards Spencer’s hands. “I think this belongs to you”.

“It’s not a problem at all, I promise,” Spencer reassured her with a warm smile on his face, “thanks for keeping it safe”. Something about her filled his stomach with joy, and as he looked at her he saw a similar smile mirrored back at him. It was at that moment he knew he would do anything to keep that look of happiness on her face, stranger or not. “You know what,” he continued, “you should keep it- finders keepers and all that”.

Y/N laughed in disbelief, immediately shaking her head and pushing the book closer to its rightful owner. “It’s bad enough I’ve had it this long,” she admitted. “It belongs with you”.

“At least take this one then?” Spencer’s brain continued to be a few steps ahead of him, and before he knew it he was taking the book in the stranger’s outstretched hands and placing his new copy in her grasp. “It looks like you still have a hundred pages or so left and I wouldn’t want to keep you from finishing it. Besides, I definitely don’t need two copies”.

The woman smiled and gave him an enthusiastic nod, and Spencer couldn’t help but think he just made the best decision of his life. The speaker above them announced the next stop, and with a sudden jump she left her seat, discarding the new book into her bag and turning towards Spencer on her way to the door. “Thanks, Spencer!” she exclaimed, “maybe I’ll see you around sometime”. Another smile was sent his way, and before he earned up the nerve to ask for her name she was gone, disappearing into a growing crowd of commuters desperate to get back to the comfort of their homes and begin the weekend ahead.

***

The following morning, Spencer found himself in his living room with a mug of coffee in his hand, completely lost in his thoughts. He was trying to calculate the chances of seeing the mystery woman again, considering it took six weeks after losing his book to see her for the first time at all.

He groaned, inwardly cursing himself for his lack of courage the day before and wishing he at least had a name to match to the face that wouldn’t leave his mind. As the coffee cooled, he found his gaze wandering to the coffee table where he had laid the book and his satchel the previous night. With a sigh, Spencer picked up the book only to notice a bright orange post-it sticking out of one of the pages.

“The strongest of all warriors are these two- time and patience” was written in loopy writing, highlighted in yellow with exactly twelve exclamation points in red ink under it. He was a man of science, but he couldn’t help but feel as though finding one of his favorite quotes from the novel staring up at him was a sign.

As he continued to skim the pages, he found note after note filled with quotes, reactions, and doodles and he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of admiration for the stranger who put them all there. It was a book that held countless memories for Spencer, but already he could tell that this was going to be his ultimate favorite.

Backtracking to the front page, Spencer saw his familiar scrawl had been slightly covered by a light blue post it note. “If this book gets lost a second time I don’t want to make the same mistake as the first guy… please call Y/N at-” Spencer laughed, immediately grabbing his phone to dial the number before he has time to talk himself out of it.

As the phone began to ring, he thought about how he couldn’t picture her name being anything else. It was as beautiful as she was, and he longed to properly meet the woman who managed to get his heart racing with just a few post-it notes.

“Hello?” the voice on the other end of his phone answered, and Spencer could immediately tell it was the same woman from the subway.

“Hi, is this Y/N?” he began, fingers nervously twiddling together. At her hum of acknowledgement he continues, “This is Spencer, the guy who’s book you had? I was just looking through the post-its you left behind and I love the perspective you have on the book. Plus, it was so nice of you to even hold onto it in the first place so I was wondering if you’d wanna get coffee, maybe? So I can say thank you for everything and talk about the book with you?”

The opposite end of the phone was silent and Spencer’s face grew red, his hands moving to his hair because how could he possibly think she wanted to meet him, she didn’t even know him and-

“I was hoping you’d find that post-it note,” she giggled, and with the sound all of Spencer’s worries completely washed away. “Absolutely”.

***

Link to join my taglist ♡

#Spencer reid x reader #spencer reid #spencer reid x y/n #spencer reid x you #spencer reid self insert #criminal minds self insert #criminal minds fanfiction #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid imagine #criminal minds imagine #dr spencer reid #spencer reid fluff #ash writes

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ultraintrovertedgryffindor · 3 years

Note

Can you do a fic about you being Will’s celebrity crush and him talking about it in an interview? I love your writing so much

Of course, sweet Anon!😊Such a cute idea, I was pretty much giggling and smiling like a baby while writing this honestly lmao

~~~~~~~~~~

Will wasn't normally the type to talk about crushes that he had, especially during interviews, but there was just something about you that made him unable to shut up.

"So, who is this special person that you love talking about so much?"

Will immediately blushed, grinning nervously at the interviewer's question. "How'd you know about that?"

The interviewer laughed. "Your costar, who I interviewed before, said you kept going on and on about this actor. They said I should bring it up."

"Oh, of course they did. They love embarrassing me. Okay, um, recently I've been a bit enamored with this actor I discovered. Y/n L/n."

"Oh! I've heard of them! Been in a lot of fantastic movies. I can see why you're so smitten."

Will knew he must've been beet red, his face so hot he felt like it was going to melt off. Thankfully, the interview ended quickly and he didn't have to embarrass himself further.

It wasn't that long ago when Will first found out about you. He went to see a movie with his friends, and it happened to be a movie you starred in. After that, Will made it his new hobby to watch every movie you'd ever been in. Even the first films that you were in. Watching interviews of you, you seemed like such a nice person. He shared a lot of your views and opinions, he almost couldn't believe you were real.

Being in the same career field, Will held out hope that he'd meet you one day. But alas, he's never even been in the same area as you yet. Of course, his friends had to tease him about his newfound crush. But they were also supportive in the idea that he'd meet you one day. He didn't think it would be any time soon. But that voice in the back of his head loved to focus on the "what ifs."

Will was on a press tour for a new movie he was in, so he was almost too busy to even think about possibly meeting you, which he was kind of thankful for.

In your neck of the woods, one of your friends sent you a link to a YouTube video.

Now, your friend loved trolling you, so most of the videos you got sent were just Rick Rolls. The thumbnail was of Will Poulter smiling during an interview, and your friend knew how much you admired him as an actor. You knew it was probably just another troll video, but your curiosity got the better of you.

You were surprised to see that it was, indeed, an actual interview video. But you were even more surprised to see your name in the title.

Will Poulter On His New Movie and Celebrity Crush: Y/n L/n! 😱😱

Clickbait, obviously.

You usually hating feeding in to that kind of clickbait shit, but you were anxious to see if Will did mention you at some point in the video. You were pretty much giggling like a school girl as soon as you got to the part where he talked about you. You awed out loud when you quickly noticed how red his face turned, but you kind of started to hate that interviewer and their line of questioning. You were pretty private about your personal life during interviews and the like, so you could imagine how uncomfortable you'd be being asked questions like that. But, you could only speak for yourself.

Then, you got a mischievous idea.

You were acquainted with one of Will's costars, so you decided to send a quick DM to them with an idea.

A few days later, Will was exhausted from all the press stuff he had to do for the new film, but it was a good exhaustion like it usually was. He had one more interview to do that day then he'd have a couple days off to relax, which he was excited for. He was thankful he didn't have to do the interview himself, a couple of his costars would be joining him this time.

The interviewer came in, did the usual greeting and congratulating on the success of the movie and expressing their positive opinions. Will could've answered all the questions in his sleep, having to answer so many that were pretty much the same. It was almost like he could put himself on autopilot if the interviewer focused on asking questions to his castmates.

The interviewer directed a question at Will, and he internally sighed. "So, have you gotten the chance to meet that actor you love so much?" The interviewer grinned excitedly.

Will hated how easily he blushed just at the sound of your name. "Ah, no. I haven't. I doubt it'll be anytime soon, if ever, so I'm not going to get my hopes up. But as of right now, I hope I don't meet them cause I'd probably embarrass myself."

"Aw, that's a shame."

Will froze, tensing up and his blush deepening. He turned around in his chair to see you, grinning beautifully. "Oh my god..." He uttered, too shocked to say anything else.

"Hello, everyone!" You greeted, giving a quick hug to your friend.

Will looked at his costar in disbelieve. "Did you do this?" Will's costar grinned proudly, nodding confidently.

"Well, if you don't want to see me right now, I can leave."

"No!" Will quickly blurted out, much louder than he intended, causing you to giggle. "Sorry, uh," He was at a loss for words, your presence such a surprise that he could barely form a sentence.

"That's okay! I wasn't planning on crashing for too long. I'll see you guys when you're done." And with that, you left the room, leaving the interviewer to finish their questions.

Will was pretty much in a stunned silence for the rest of the interview, which elicited some teasing from his castmates. He was so anxious for the interview to end that it felt like it was going on forever, so when it ended, Will all but ran out of the room to see you waiting patiently outside the building with your headphones on, mouthing along to whatever you were listening to.

You quickly noticed Will's presence, taking off your headphones and walking up to his with an approachable smile. "Well, hi there! Hope I didn't give ya a heart attack in there!" You laughed, it was like music to Will's ears.

Will shook his head with a nervous smile. "I've never had a heart attack before, but I imagine that's as close as I've gotten so far."

You laughed, placing a hand on his arm. "Sorry!"

Will tried to shake of the immediate spark of electricity he felt at your simple gesture. "It's fine. It was good, it was really good, you got me. So, I'm guessing that was my castmate's idea?"

"No, it was mine, actually."

Will furrowed his brows with a small smile. "Really? Why?"

"Well," You drew out flirtatiously, "I saw that interview."

Will groaned, running his hands over his face as he felt his face heat up for the third time that day. "Oh god..."

"Hey, don't worry! I thought it was really cute." You smiled.

Will looked through the crack between his fingers to look at you. "You did?" He tried to hide his wide grin.

You nodded. "I did. I really wanted to meet you. And since you were close to my town, I thought I'd surprise you."

"Well, consider me surprised." Will chuckled.

"So, if you're not doing anything later, wanna go get a drink with me or something?" You smiled while slightly nibbling on your bottom lip.

Will smirked and nodded. "I'd love to."

~~~~~~~~~~

Wow, I actually love how this one came out. It's so cute and my mouth hurts from smiling😂

#will poulter #will poulter imagine #will poulter x reader

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reidgraygubler · 3 years

Text

just my type (spencer reid/reader)

Title: just my type

Request: kinda, not really

Couple: Spencer Reid/Fem!Reader

Category: Smut

Content Warning: SEXUAL CONTENT (daddy kink, loss of virginity (reader), praise, fingering, overstimulation, multiple orgasms, after sex cockwarming, groping, heavy petting, tipsy sex, innocence kink, hair pulling, crying during sex (but the VERY end)), dom!Spencer, sub!Reader, Professor!Reid, age gap, aftercare, swearing, drinking, making out in public places, incredibly brief mention of necrophilia, mentions of absent father, ooc!spencer, professor/student, brief mention of drinks being drugged (not actually happening)

Word Count: 8,194

Summary: Reader sleeps with a man she met at the bar. The next day she finds out that man was her new professor, Spencer Reid...

A/N: this was writing for pom’s discord server fic swap! My partner doesn’t have tumblr, but their wattpad is babyleaf1! I took a few of her favorite tropes and prompts she likes and came up with this! It’s loosely based off the song campus by vampire weekend. Spencer and reader’s ages are undefined, but there is a gap between the two. thank you all so much for the support! i really do appreciate it. check out my masterlist!

{***}{***}{***}

Going to the bar wasn’t exactly my scene. Sure, it was nice to kick back and have a drink after a long day. I’d rather be at home with a glass of wine and watching a movie. But when a friend I haven’t seen in a long time asks to go to the bar, I’m gonna go to the bar with her.

My eyes scanned the crowded room, searching for my friend who was no doubt already drinking. The room was filled with drunk people. I didn’t expect so many people to be drinking on a Tuesday night… who am I to judge though?

When I finally saw my friend, I rushed to her. She was sitting at the bar with a drink already in hand. I wondered how many drinks she had before I arrived.

The moment I appeared by her side, she let out an excited squeal before throwing her arms around my body.

“It’s so nice seeing you!” she squealed into my ears. I laughed as I carefully pushed her off my body, and tried to regain some personal space. “It’s been so long!”

“Yeah, yeah. Been busy. School and stuff starts this week.” I nervously laughed as I sat down on the stool beside her. She leaned over the bar as she called for the bartender.

“That’s right! School!” she exclaimed as she looked back at me. I looked away from the bartender and at my friend. “That’ll be fun!” she added, trying to sound excited, but epically failing.

“I sure hope it’ll be fun…. But it’s hard to say. You know, college,” I chuckled and looked down at the counter. The bartender placed the two drinks on the counter, pushing them towards us. My eyes widened once I saw the brightness of the drink. The brightness of the liquid was unnatural. So of course I was going to drink it. What’s the worst that could happen?

A couple hours had passed and the conversations between us seemed to flow fluidly. I was thanking God that that was the case because I don’t think I could do awkward drinks. I like to think I was concentrating on her and her words pretty well.

And then he happened.

A man walked up to the bar and looked right at the bartender. He held up one finger as he sat down behind my friend. He had an exhausted look in his eyes, which were hidden behind shaggy brown hair. Suddenly my concentration was out the window and I couldn’t take my eyes off the man. My friend definitely noticed too, but thankfully she didn’t comment on it.

Then he looked over at me, and I was met with honeyed hazel eyes. They were more intoxicating than my drink. A small smile grew on his lips when he realized he captured the attention from someone.

I just assumed he would have gotten his drink and returned to wherever he was sitting. But I was so wrong. Maybe the bar counter was where he was sitting and he just got here...

“So… What’s your type?” my friend asked, looking over at me with a small smile on her lips. I struggled to look away from the attractive man sitting just behind her. It was a relief when his gaze dropped from mine when my friend asked the question. But a small smirk grew on his lips as he, and my friend, waited for my answer.

“I… I, uh,” I finally looked away from him and down at my drink. The two black stir straws leaned against the glass, and I realized that I should probably stop drinking soon. My face grew really hot, and I couldn’t tell if it was from the alcohol I had consumed, or the thought of telling my friend my type in men I’m interested in, or even worse… That the type of guy I’m interested in standing right behind her…

“C’mon, can’t be that bad… Unless you’re like… A necrophiliac,” she laughed as she leaned closer to my body. I moved away from her before looking back at the man behind her. He was looking back at me, an amused smile on his lips. “Well,” she asked, slipping closer to me. I locked eyes on the man before licking my lips lightly.

“Older…” I made sure to be loud enough that I knew he would hear. I watched as he choked on his drink before looking over at me.

“Ooo! Girl,” my friend exclaimed as she moved closer to me, “How scandalous,” she whispered as she wrapped an arm around me, “How old are we talking?” she looked up at me. Her eyes were glossy, and I knew there was no winning this one.

“Is this really a conversation we… we should be having?” I asked, my voice shaky as I spoke. She looked at me with wide eyes.

“We talkin’ old enough to be ya daddy… if ya know what I mean,” she mused as she began falling into my body. The man behind her looked over at me, his smile telling me he was clearly listening in to our conversation. And he obviously enjoyed what was happening in front of him.

“Ye-No!” I cut myself off with a shout, “No! Not at all!” I continued, backing away from her body. I couldn’t tell if I was being serious or not, and something was telling me my friend and the man didn’t believe me either. “Wh-why are you suddenly…” I let my words trail off as my train of thought suddenly vanished.

“Because… You’re young, you’re single… And you’re… you know…” this time it was her words trailing off. I looked at her with wide eyes, my face getting hot again. “A virgin,” she said in a normal tone, even though I think she thought she was whispering. The man behind her choked on his drink again before slowly turning to face me and my friend.

“Will you shut up?” I whispered as I tore my eyes off the man and looked down at my friend. She sat back in her seat as she looked at me with a smile.

“OH!” she shouted as she looked down at her drink. She slammed the rest of it in one go before standing up, “I have to pee! Stay here! If I’m not back in 10 minutes, assume I went off with that hot guy.” She slipped off her chair before pointing somewhere in the bar. I looked over my shoulder and at a group of guys who were closer to our age than the guy behind her.

“O-okay,” my words stumbled as I carefully pushed her body off mine. I held back my chuckle as she stumbled away from me and towards the bathroom.

I turned back to the counter, my head dropping so I was looking at my drink. My fingers fiddled with the straws as I waited for my friend to return. The bright blue liquid sitting with ice wasn’t as good as it looked. Which was very unfortunate because I’ve had maybe two of them… Working on my third...

“Your friend… She’s rather excitable,” someone spoke from beside me. The seat my friend was once sitting in was now occupied by the man who sat beside her. I perked up and looked away from my drink. He was hunched over the bar, holding a small glass with an amber liquid.

I didn’t realize I was staring at him till he cleared his throat and looked back at me. I jumped, looking down at the bar. I didn’t exactly know how to respond to him, words not coming from my mouth properly as I struggled to speak. So, I shrugged and stared at him.

“Y-yeah, yeah she’s like that… Especially when she’s drunk… She doesn’t know how to hold her booze,” I laughed as I lifted my drink to my lips. I searched for the two mixer straws with my mouth, closing my eyes before taking a sip. “Y-you didn’t hear anything she said,” I asked, my words slurring slightly from nervousness, "Did you?" I added as I leaned on the counter. The man looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Uh, erm,” he looked back down at his drink, not directly answering my question. I sighed deeply as I planted my face into my hand, leaning against the bar.

“She was being really loud,” I laughed as slowly slipped off my stool and into his body, “Oh, sorry.” I looked up at him as I held onto his arm, “I think I should stop drinking,” I laughed as I recollected myself and moved away from the stranger’s body.

“It’s okay.” The man looked at me, helping me get back on my seat, “I’m going to get you water.” He looked between me and the bartender.

“Listen, listen, yeah, whatever, like so what, I’m still a virgin… I just have my bar set way too high for men,” I started as I turned to face him, “I should lower that bar and my standards,” I mumbled as I leaned against the counter. The man looked down at me with a raised eyebrow. Why did I think my friend would be embarrassing to me when I can just do it myself?

“Definitely getting you water,” he laughed. After a moment of silence, the bartender placed two glasses of water on the counter in front of me and the stranger. The man looked over at me before pushing the glass closer to me. “Drink it, you’ll feel better,”

“Is it safe, right? Like…” I let my words trail off, hoping he’d clue into my worries. He looked at me with raised brows, like what I had said was absurd that I would even suggest something like that.

“It’s safe… just water and ice,” he returned, his tone telling me he was mildly offended that I'd think he drugged water. But to be fair, he's a random stranger in the bar, talking to a girl who's had a few drinks.

“Thanks,” I muttered before lifting the glass to my lips. The icy coolness of the water hit my lips and tongue and I already felt a million times better. I couldn’t help but let out a pleased hum.

“Spencer... by the way,” the man finally introduced himself to me. I swallowed roughly as I looked up at him. My eyebrows knit together as I stared at him, my words tumbling from my mouth as I introduced myself.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, looking around the semi-filled room of drunken adults.

“After work drinks,” he spoke softly. He didn’t sound too enthused by after work drinks. Part of me wondered why that was… Maybe all his friends ditched him too.

“Sounds boring,” I laughed as I looked back at him, “My friend wanted to get drinks… But she wanted to catch up and to… Well, just drink,” I sighed as I leaned my entire body against the counter, “As you can see, she ditched me… Like always,” I scoffed before looking over at where my friend actually was. She was standing beside the cute guy, leaning close to him. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’d be gone with him the next time I looked over at her.

“Maybe it’s your turn to leave her at the bar.” Spencer watched as I lifted the glass of water back to my mouth. I nearly spat water all over the place with his words.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked as I moved my chair closer to him. He seemed content with where I was sitting, and how close I was to him. To be honest, I wished I could be closer to him.

“Could mean anything you wanted it to mean,” he replied with a shrug. I stared at him for a moment, slowly leaning closer to him, but not getting too close.

“You’re right.” I smiled as I stared at him. He looked away from his drink and nodded. “Like going home before her to go to bed early.” I laughed. Spencer returned the laughter and shook his head.

“If that’s what you want it to mean,” he smiled at me. I rolled my eyes and shrugged.

“Nah, I don’t think I wanna go home yet,” I sighed, resting my head on my fist, and my elbow on the bar counter. We both stayed quiet for a moment, letting the silence carry our “conversation”.

“So… Older men…?” Spencer asked after the long silence. He looked down at me with a smug smile. I froze in my seat, my eyes on the glass of, now, ice in front of me.

“You did hear that conversation,” I lazily laughed as I looked up at him. I couldn’t help but nibble lightly on my lower lip as I looked at him. “Nah…” I looked up at him, feeling a small smile grow on my lips. Spencer looked down at me with a raised eyebrow and a sly smirk. “Maybe… Possibly… Definitely older men…” My head fell back in laughter. Spencer kept his eyes on me and his smile grew more amused than smug.

Spencer definitely met my standards in men. He seemed to be older than me, I wasn’t exactly willing to question that though. There was a certain… gentlemanly-ness to him that I infinitely enjoyed. He was definitely not like any other guy I’ve talked to. And he 100% wasn’t some 20-something-year-old guy who claims he has all the experience in the world but doesn’t. Spencer seemed very experienced, in what? Well, everything I guess. I could just sense it by the way he talked to me and the way he held himself.

“My last boyfriend was 10 years older than me, and the one before that was 7 years older…” I paused, staring at him. I wondered what he was thinking, and if he was thinking what everyone thinks… ‘This girl has totally got daddy issues.’ “I don’t have daddy issues,” I rolled my eyes as I gravitated closer to his body. I looked up at Spencer, my hand falling to rest on his thigh as I moved closer to him. His body tensed slightly at my touch. I felt a little bad at first, but when I went to move my hand, he stopped me. His hand reaching out to grab my wrist.

“Even if you did, I don’t think that would influence your taste in men.” He looked down at me. It was then did I realize just how close our faces were to each other.

“That’s good to hear because most people just automatically assume that I have daddy issues,” I murmured as I looked between his lips and eyes, “Although… It’s just a lie… I tell myself that because people always say women with daddy issues are sluts… But I’m not…” I whispered as I slowly moved closer to him.

“I didn’t think that,” Spencer furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head, “And I’ve known you for all of 45 minutes,” he laughed as he removed his hand from my wrist.

“Good,” I laughed lightly. “Can I kiss you?” my voice was a murmur as I looked into his eyes. Spencer licked his lips before parting them slightly. He didn’t seem too shocked or taken aback by my proposition. But when he spoke he was a little… nervous.

“If… If that’s what you want,” he whispered as he looked at me. I took a deep breath, my hand resting on his leg shifting a bit as I moved closer to him. Spencer took a shaky breath as I looked up at him.

“Do you want it?”

“I… I’d be lying if I said no, but I don’t want to take advantage of a woman under the influence,”

“It’s what I want,” I leaned even closer, not even an inch between us. I could feel his breath through my nose, that’s how close we are. “And I’m not under the influence,” I spoke, losing my confidence with each word. It was also an obvious lie too. We both knew how many drinks I had. “I’ve had two glasses of water and a handful of bar nuts, and it’s been like an hour since my last drink. I’m okay,” I whispered as I leaned totally on him.

Spencer looked down at me, his face still as his eyes examined my face. He slowly brought a hand up to my face, resting it gently under my chin. I smiled, feeling my face heat up again. When he squinted his eyes, I felt my heart rate spike.

“Please,” I begged. The bar and world around me simply vanished as I became so involved with Spencer and everything about him. In that moment, I was obsessed with him. “Kiss me,”

Spencer let out a soft breath of air from his lips before pressing them to mine. If the cool water didn’t sober me up, this kiss sure did. But at the same time, it was so intoxicating. Sure I’ve kissed men before, but this time it was… Different. Something else was going to happen tonight, with Spencer. But I couldn’t exactly place what it was that was going to happen.

My free hand lifted from its place beside me and went to his head, my fingers getting tangled in his hair. My other hand stayed put on his thigh, my grip slowly hardening on his leg. I tried to be quiet as a moan came from me, but I obviously failed. Spencer moaned right back into my mouth. I suppose I was happy he didn’t have an issue with our volume. Thank God the music was loud enough to drown us out.

When I pulled away from him, I nearly fell into the bar. Thankfully Spencer looked at me, his hand going to my hip to keep me from crashing into the counter. I looked up at him, taking a deep breath to get my head clear. But it was hard when I went back to him, my arms wrapping around his neck as my lips crashed back into his.

Spencer’s hands moved quickly over my back, resting on my hips, lower back. Anywhere he could reach, he would touch. He turned more to face me, allowing me to stand between his legs.

“We… We should stop… Before one of us does something we’ll… We’ll regret,” he whispered softly. Spencer pressed his forehead to mine as he spoke. I took a deep breath, my chest rising and falling quickly.

“No… No, we shouldn’t.” I looked up at him, my hands getting knotted up in his hair again. Spencer looked at me, a certain softness on his face. “I think… You… You meet my standards, Spencer.” I blinked at him.

Spencer quickly looked over at the bartender before fumbling for his wallet. I looked at him, watching him pull out more money than needed and shoving it in the bartender’s hands. He looked back at me, wrapping an arm around my waist and guiding me out. I smiled as Spencer dragged me out of the bar.

For the first time ever, I was leaving the bar before my friend… And I didn’t care about her.

Spencer looked back at me as we stepped outside and the semi-cool air of the night felt really good against my hot skin. Inside I almost couldn’t breathe, but outside it felt like it just came to me. It was so… refreshing.

I didn’t realize Spencer had called a taxi till he was pulling me to the vehicle. I looked up at him, blinking slowly as he pulled the car door open. Swallowing down the sudden excitement and fear mixture, I slid into the taxi before him.

I wasn’t scared because I was having sex for the first time. No, I was scared that I was going home with a strange man. Anything could happen, honestly. What if he was a murderer?

“Where to?” The taxi driver looked up in the rearview mirror at me and Spencer. I was the quickest to talk, giving him my address before Spencer could give his.

Spencer glanced at me, watching as I nervously played with the hem of my dress. When I glanced at him, I noticed that he was turned to face me more, whereas I was still, facing the seat in front of me.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice low and soft. I moved my head a little too fast as I looked at him.

“Mm, yeah, yeah, I’m fine. I’ve never done something like this before, that’s all,” I whispered, looking at him as I bit my lower lip. Spencer nodded as he looked at me, watching as I shifted closer to him.

“We don’t… We don’t have to…” Spencer started but stopped when I maneuvered to straddle his legs. He looked up at me as he carefully rested his hands on my hips. I swallowed roughly as I looked down at him. My hands pressed to his chest to hold myself upright, and my head occasionally hitting the roof of the taxi with every bump we went over.

“I know... I know we don’t have to do anything…” My heart slamming in my chest as I stared at him. I moved my hands from his chest to gently cup his face. His cheeks were stubbly, prickling at the palms of my hands as I held his face. With one final deep breath of air, I pressed my lips to his, this time a lot more passionately than before.

Spencer pressed his lips down my face, and neck while his hands roamed my body. My hands stayed planted on his face, keeping me in place over his body. I was so into him just… touching me that I didn’t even realize his hand had slipped in the front of my dress. His fingers gently stroking the skin on my inner thigh.

My head fell to the side as he pressed his lips down my neck more before going towards my chest. A huff of air came from my lungs as I pushed my hands through his hair.

“Uh… We’re, uh… at your destination…” The poor taxi driver spoke from his spot in the front. I moved Spencer’s head away from my body and I looked down at him.

“You… you pay him.” I stared down at him, feeling a certain embarrassment grow in my stomach, and across my face. Spencer quickly fumbled for his wallet before pulling out more money than necessary and tossing it to the driver. After he shoved his wallet back into his pocket, he wrapped his arms around my waist before exiting the taxi. A squeal came from my mouth as he carried me out of the vehicle and towards my complex.

“Spencer!” I screamed as my arms wrapped around his neck. A dizzying feeling took me over as a hard bulge pressed between my legs. I almost couldn’t hold back a moan.

He laughed before putting his lips back on my neck, nipping lightly on the sensitive skin. And I couldn’t help but let out a soft moan, almost a whimper.

“Keys,” Spencer muttered into my neck. I took a deep breath, my chest pressing into his body more.

“Unlocked,” I gasped as he nipped my neck again. He hummed as he opened the door and entered my home. He put my back down once we were inside, door shut and locked. I grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hall towards my bedroom.

Spencer pushed the door shut and pressed me against it, pressing his lips to mine like I was the last woman on earth. His arms were propped up on either side of my head, blocking me between the door and his body. It’s a good thing I didn’t feel trapped because I otherwise wouldn’t have allowed that to happen.

My breathing picked up when he pressed his hips against me. A pit grew in my stomach, and I couldn’t tell if it was actually anxiety or excitement. I was willing to bet it was both.

As the anxiety slowly melted away, a new feeling took over. A feeling of want and hunger. It was the type of feeling that could be satisfied by another person, or by my own doing. But, I knew I wanted it from Spencer. I needed it from Spencer.

“I need to feel something,” I whimpered against his lips as he pinned me against the door, “Please, I need to feel you.” My leg wrapping around his waist to pull him closer to me. I almost couldn’t breathe, my excitement getting the better of me.

Spencer looked down at me, a hand slowly coming up to my face, resting gently on my cheek. My eyes blinked slowly as he examined my face. I wondered what he was thinking, and if they were good thoughts. I only wondered what he thought because of how he looked at me. His features were soft and gentle like he was a child holding a fluffy, white dandelion. But the way his eyes moved across my face… They were hungry. Unlike his soft facial features, his eyes wanted to destroy everything in sight…

And I liked it. It should have scared me, right? A man looking at me like he was about to destroy my life… But the way he did it… I liked...

While he kept one hand on my face, his other hand was high on my upper thigh. His thumb carefully moving back and forth on the soft skin. I wonder if he knew how desperate I was beginning to feel. And he only fueled my desperation the further up his hand traveled.

A sharp gasp fell from my mouth as his hand finally moved against my underwear. His fingers were gentle as they ghosted over me. I wondered if he could feel how aroused I was through my underwear. Probably, it was impossible to hide that…

The way his hands touched me and held me was weird. He was still gentle, but there was a certain hastiness to it that I noticed. Like he was trying to claim something that wasn’t his.

“Please,” I whimpered as he trailed kisses down my neck. My chest began heaving as he began tracing his finger over my underwear. Okay, now he had to know how desperate I was. Spencer groaned once he pressed his lips back to mine.

“You’re so wet, Princess,” he whispered as his hand on my face fell to my chin. Another gasp came from me at the pet name. He took the opportunity to pull on my lower lip with his teeth. “I’ve hardly done anything,” he moved his head away from me and smiled, “Hardly touched you at all.”

I looked up at him, my lower lip pouted out slightly. It was hard to say what his next action was, but I heavily anticipated it. He smiled softly as his thumb pulled down my lower lip. I wasn’t sure what to do, but I yelped when he pushed my underwear to the side, and carefully slipped a finger between my folds.

Spencer looked down at me with a pleased smile. It was clear to me that he enjoyed my struggle. I placed my hands on his arms to keep myself up. And even though my body was pressed against the door, and I braced myself against him, my knees still wanted to give out.

I’ve never had another person touch me like this before. My previous relationships didn’t last long enough for them to do something like this. And, I’ve never exactly had this feeling before. Well, let me rephrase that, I have felt this feeling before. I’ve never felt this way from another person. I’ve masturbated before, after all I’m lonely, not Catholic. But, the feeling happening because someone else is causing it.

“Do you like it when I touch you like this?” Spencer whispered as he slowly pressed a finger into me. I looked up at him and nodded as I pressed my lips together. “Use your words,”

“Yes, it feels so good… s’good, Daddy,” I whimpered as I looked at him. I swear I saw the corner of his lips twitched slightly. Did my title for him do to him what it did to me? It was obvious he liked it.

Spencer stared at me for a moment before harshly pressing his lips back to mine. It felt as if he was taking the breath right from my lungs with everything he was doing. His hand between my legs moved a little faster, my hips grinding down on him in reaction.

“Say it again,” he murmured against my lips. The way he moved his face caused our noses to squish together. My heart was slamming in my chest and I could hear it in my head. It felt like at any moment it’d break out of me.

I softly yelped when he carefully inserted a second finger in me. His pace quickened slightly and I couldn’t concentrate on anything.

A tension grew in the pit of my belly, and slowly grew as the seconds ticked by. I wasn’t sure how long I’d make it till the tension cracked. I wondered if Spencer sensed that too.

I removed my hands from his arms and wrapped my arms around his neck to hold him closer to me. It was so hard to hold back the soft whimpers and moans I was feeling getting trapped in my throat. Although, Spencer seemed to enjoy my struggle.

It became more of a struggle the stronger the tension grew. It was close too.

“Say it again.”

“I’m s’close, Daddy,” I whined, my head involuntarily falling to my shoulder. Spencer looked down at me before moving to press his lips to my neck. His lips attaching to the base of my throat before sucking gently on the sensitive skin.

Again my body reacted by trying to get closer to him. The closer I got to him, the faster he went. I could tell that he was trying to bring me closer to the edge, to finish the moment.

“Let go, it’s okay,” Spencer whispered. I swallowed roughly, my head falling forward onto his shoulder before my body slowly fell into his. It was hard not to stay quiet, my sounds getting louder as I finally finished.

I stayed against his body, trying to recollect my breathing for a moment. Spencer rested a hand on my back, rubbing soothing circles on my shoulder. And after I had my moment, I stood back up, leaning against the door behind me.

Spencer looked back at me as he pulled his hand out from my underwear. He looked down at his hand, more specifically the two fingers he just had in me. I nearly lost my balance again when he put those exact fingers in his mouth. And it didn’t help at all when he moaned.

“You did so good, Princess.” He looked at me with a soft smile. Part of me was worried that was all we were going to do. Sure it was nice, but that was that the end of it?

He cupped my face again before pressing his lips back to mine. His arms were wrapped around my body before he led me towards my bed. But I didn’t realize we were going to my bed till the edge of it hit the back of my knees.

A breath of air was knocked from my lungs the second my back collided with my bed. I looked up at Spencer, watching as he fought to take his jacket off. But when he finally did get it off, he was back over my body, his lips on mine while his hands roamed my body. My fingers quickly unbuttoned his shirt, and his hands were pushing up my dress. His touch was like wildfire across my body, and it felt near impossible to breathe.

“Please, Spencer,” I whimpered as his lips reattached to my neck. My eyes fluttered shut as he gently sucked a spot on the base of my neck. His hands pushed the top of my dress down, making it sit around my hips.

"Tell me what you want, Princess," he spoke against my skin.

"You… I just need you…"

It was really… strange. I had just met him not more than 2 hours ago… and I couldn't get enough of him. Even though I knew this would be the only time I'd ever see him, I never wanted the moment to end. I needed him more than I needed air, it felt like. I needed the night to last as long as possible.

Spencer looked down at me for a moment before getting off the bed. I had to hold back my laughter as he struggled to take his pants off. And after throwing his shirt to the ground, he was back over me, his body between my legs. My chest tightened, and at the same time, my heart sped.

I tried not looking further than his neck. But it was so hard. Did I want to see what he looked like before anything happened? Or would it make me want to back out?

I shouldn’t look...

“Will it hurt?” I brought my eyes to look up at him. I wasn’t exactly scared. I was more worried about it hurting than anything else, I think. I wanted this.

“Maybe for a moment, but not too long,” he whispered as he brushed his thumb over my cheekbone, “If it hurts too much we can stop… But you have to tell me,” he spoke so softly.

“I can do that,” I whispered, keeping his eyes on him. My arms wrapped around his neck as he pressed a soft, yet passionate kiss to my lips. His hips slowly started to lower towards my sex. That was when my breathing picked up, and my chest heaved slightly.

“It’s okay, you’re doing such a great job,” he whispered against my lips, “I got you.”

A soft wince came from my mouth when he carefully entered me. My fingers knotted in his hair, gently tugging it as he slowly kept going. I struggled to take a deep breath. My head fell back and my lips opened.

“Spencer,” I whined, finally allowing air to enter my lungs, “You’re so big,” I moaned as I pressed my head into my pillow. One of my arms fell from his body and landed on the bedding beside me. My hand gripped the bedding.

“You’re doing a great job, Princess,” Spencer whispered as he grasped my hand and held it. I looked up at him and nodded lightly. “You’re okay?”

“I’m okay,” I whispered and stared at him. After a moment, he carefully moved his hips, and soon after fell into a steady rhythm.

“Please… Please don’t stop doing what you’re doing,” I gasped. I slowly ran my hands up his chest to his shoulders before wrapping my arms around his neck. Spencer looked down at me, his eyes half-closed as he stared. “It feels so good,” I whimpered as he started to slowly move his hips.

My legs tensed for a moment when he bottomed out in me, and I could feel the wind being knocked out of me. Spencer looked down at me as he brought a hand to rest on my cheek.

Spencer grabbed my hand and moved it to rest against my belly. An unfamiliar bump hit my hand through my stomach and caused me to gasp and look up at him. Spencer smiled and nodded lightly.

“Do you feel how deep I am?” he whispered softly.

“You… You’re…” I took a deep breath as I stared at him. He pressed his lips back to mine. His movements hastened and he pulled his hand away from mine, moving it between us and to where our bodies met. A small whimper fell from my mouth, again, as he began rubbing a finger on the already sensitive bundle of nerves. “Daddy,” I whined as his hips quickened for a moment before faltering.

I cried out as an unfamiliar warmth spread throughout my body. Spencer moaned into my ear. My legs were wrapped around him, clinging to him as he rode out our highs together. And, as I came, I couldn’t help but moan out his name.

My chest was heaving as my breathing tried to catch up with the extreme movements I was just doing. I couldn’t move my legs off him. I wasn’t ready for him to leave me just yet.

“Don’t move…” I gasped, looking up at him, “Please, Daddy… stay inside me…” I cried as he began moving away from me. My hands gripped his arms, holding him above me. Spencer looked down at me, his eyes glued to the way I squirmed beneath him. There was such an intense gaze in his eyes as he looked at me, I wasn’t sure what to do.

He lifted his hands and rested them on my cheeks. The way he held himself over me without actually crushing me was impressive. What was even more impressive was how he carefully pressed his hips back to mine.

“It’s okay, I got you,” he whispered, brushing the apple of my cheek with his thumb. I stared at him, my chest quickly rising, only to fall just as fast. It felt hard to breathe, my body still feeling full with him. “You did such a good job, Princess,” he pressed his forehead to mine.

I didn’t even realize I was crying till Spencer’s thumb moved across my cheekbone. I looked up at him with wide eyes.

“Are you okay?” Spencer whispered as he kept his eyes on my face.

“I’m good. I’m okay. I promise.” I wrinkled my nose and nodded. Spencer smiled softly and returned the nod. “I’m-I don’t know why I’m crying,” I laughed lightly before sniffling my nose, “I’m sorry.”

“Sex can be an emotional thing for some people. And since this was your first time, it was an emotional experience. You’re okay. You don’t have anything to be sorry for.” Spencer reassured. I stared at him and nodded, agreeing with what he said. “I’m going to get you water and a wipe or something.”

“Uhm… Yeah that’s okay… I guess. Bathroom is over there. I should have a cup in there. And there should be paper towels too.” I nodded as I gestured towards the bathroom. Spencer pecked my lips one last time before pulling away from me and leaving the bed.

‘It’s just a one-night stand,’ I kept telling myself just so I wouldn’t forget what this really was. And, in the morning, I’d never see him again.

{***}{***}{***}

My body jerked slightly when I woke up. An arm was wrapped around my middle, and the body that was connected to the arm was close to mine. Her head was resting on my chest, her ear right over my heart. She, and like my surroundings, were unfamiliar.

“Crap,” I whispered, looking down at the girl and her sleeping form. She hummed as she nuzzled her head more into my chest. I pulled on my lower lips as I carefully pulled her arm off mine. I had to be quick as I slipped out of the bed.

Usually, I wasn’t the type to just sleep with someone and then leave them the next day. To have a one-night stand, if you will. If today wasn’t the sort of day it was, I’d stay with this girl till she woke. But I had to leave to get ready for a new semester at the college.

I quickly grabbed my shirt and pants, throwing them on my body as I quietly and quickly left her apartment. My feet dragged quietly across the ground as I got closer to the front door. I pulled the door open at just the right time. Or maybe it was a bad time.

A young woman was standing with a carrier filled with coffee cups, her fist was lifted like she was about to knock. Our eyes locked before hers carefully looked down my body, lingering in spots that made me very aware.

“Holy shit,” she stared at me with wide eyes, “She wasn’t joking when she said she likes older men,” she stated, the shock in her tone was so apparent that it left me in shock. It was her friend from last night.

“I-I’m sorry.” I looked at her with furrowed brows.

“You’re old enough to be her father,” she spoke before pushing past me. I turned as she entered the apartment. “She’s got balls of steel to fuck a guy like you,” she spoke as she set the carrier on the coffee table, “But, I’m happy she did… Hope her first time was good,” she chuckled before winking at me.

“I-I have to go,” I nodded before leaving. I pulled the door shut. I tried not to linger in front of her home for too long. She’d probably be awake soon, and I really didn’t want to stick behind.

I kept my head low as I ventured on my walk of shame to the closest coffee shop. And then, from the coffee shop, I’d get a taxi to return home… To return to my home.

The second anyone finds out I had a one-night stand, I’m dead. I’m leaving. I could only hope it stayed between me and those two girls.

{***}{***}{***}

I looked over at my coworker and nodded, only half paying attention to what they were saying. Which, in turn, made me feel bad. This morning is not my morning and there were only so many reasons why.

Then I looked across the grounds, looking at all the new and familiar faces returning for a new semester of classes. My eyes landed on a familiar girl walking beside a friend. She was laughing and smiling at whatever her friend said.

“Fuck,” I muttered as I stared at the girl. Then she looked up and saw me. An embarrassed look grew across her face as her gaze fell from mine. I kept my eyes on the girl across the campus for a moment longer, long enough to notice that the friend she was with had spilled coffee over her shirt.

“I have to go…” I grimaced as I looked at my colleague. They looked back at me before slowly nodded. I kept my head low as I walked back towards the building and towards my lecture hall.

Thankfully I was the first and only person in the room. Enough time to prepare over everything. To free my mind of… of her and what we had done last night. But oh dear God, it was so hard.

I thought I had a lot of time on my hands, seeing as the class didn’t start for 5 more minutes. I thought it was bad when I saw her across the campus. Then she entered my lecture hall, clearing her throat to get my attention.

She introduced herself like I had no idea who I was. As if this was the first time we ever met. Maybe she forgot? But she definitely wasn’t drunk enough to forget. I wouldn’t have taken advantage of someone wasted as Luke or Derek would say. She was lucid, I know that much. Hell, she was able to give the taxi driver her address.

“Spencer… Reid… Professor Reid is fine... Reid... Doctor Reid. I'll-I’ll answer to pretty much anything,” I rambled, feeling as if I couldn’t stop myself from talking. She looked at me with a knowing smile, and I wondered if she thought ‘Oh, I know you’ll answer to anything… Daddy,’ That’s probably a bad thing to think, right?

“Oh! It’s wonderful meeting you, Professor Reid,” she kept talking as if she didn’t know who I was.

“Pleasure meeting… Meeting you too,” I paused with a forced smile at her, “Can’t wait to have you in my class.” I stared at her. The way she stared at me confirmed that she was pretending that she didn’t know me. I thanked God or whatever other Deity was out there that she was pretending. I don’t think I would have been able to survive if she acted like we knew each other.

“Can’t wait to be in your class.” She nodded at me before going to the first seat in the front row. I stared at her for a prolonged moment, noting the way she crossed her legs at her ankle, and looked down at her notes. She held her pen between her thumb and forefinger, the end of it just barely between her lips. I couldn’t stop hating on myself for just leaving her this morning.

Then I noticed she was staring back at me. She had a smug smile on her lips as she looked at me. It felt as if she was reading my mind as if she knew every thought that had passed my mind from the moment she entered my lecture hall.

‘Shit,’ I thought as the memories of last night forced themselves to the front of my head. All the things I said to her last night stood in the spotlight. The idiot part of me that said the stuff about impregnating her and how she kept calling me daddy stood out loud and clear. I broke this poor girl, and it was too late. And the worst part about it is… I’d do it again if I had the chance.

My pants tightened and my face grew hot. How the fuck was I supposed to get through the day? Let alone this semester?! That’s the thing I wasn’t supposed to do.

I was happy when the end of the class came. Everyone stayed in the room for a moment, bantering with each other for a moment before leaving.

I kept my eyes, and head, low as all the students filed out of the room. A few people stayed around to ask me their questions, or give me their comments. It was until the last standing student had exited the room did I realize someone was still at her desk.

“Is there something-” ‘I can help you with,’

“Why’d you leave this morning?” she asked, standing up from her spot. I looked up and away from the paperwork I was “working” on. Swallowing down my own pride and unnecessary fears, I stood. My fingertips resting on top of my desk. “Woulda made you coffee… Breakfast even…” she whispered with a shrug.

“Right…”

“You were hoping I was so drunk I forgot who you were, right? That’s what it is?” she asked, her eyebrows knitting together as she spoke. I watched as she stepped around her desk and approached my own. “I thought… I don’t know what it’s like the morning after… But if that’s what it is… Then I don’t want it,” she scoffed as she stared at me. I didn’t mean to hurt her as much as I did. But it was already too late, and the damage was done.

“That’s not what it’s like. I promise,” I whispered as I looked at her. I wasn’t prepared to make up excuses and lies as to why I just left. But I also don’t think she’d believe my truth either.

“Then why did you leave,” she ask-No, she begged. Begged me for the truth.

“I-I, uh, I had to leave because of this. I needed to get ready for this class,” I tapped down on the hard surface of my desk. Her eyes dropped down to the desktop. I could see the range of emotions on her face as she looked at all the papers scattered on my desk. Maybe she would believe me. Again, I don’t think I would have been able to come up with a believable lie.

“You could have woken me up, still… I seriously would have made you coffee,” she muttered before shrugging, again.

“Next time then,” I swallowed roughly as I stared at her. Her eyes shot up from the desk and landed right on my face. I could tell she was trying to keep her sudden excitement hidden. But I knew she was excited because of the way the corner of her lip twitched up slightly, and the way she shifted her stance, and the way her grip on her books changed, and all the other things I could list off but won’t.

“Next time?” It was obvious she struggled to keep her voice low.

“I mean, never say never, right?” I asked, shoving my hands in my pockets. She looked at me with a smile as she hugged her books closer to her chest.

“Right… Never say never,” she whispered as she looked back down at the desk, “It was nice meeting you, Professor Reid,” she paused before looking up at me, a smug smile back on her lips, “And, it was nice seeing you again, Spencer,” she winked at me before walking out of my lecture hall. I swallowed roughly, staring at the space she once occupied.

Fuck.

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