#so did he think of dec when he said that? was it a tiny bit of wishful thinking maybe?

[quicklyandrogynousfox-blog]

jungle club - iac 2023 day twenty two

[mountttmase]

Winter Sun - Chapter 3

Note - chapter three already I can’t 😭 honestly thank you so much for all the love and interaction on this it’s really warming my cold little heart 🥹 enjoy this one kiddos and let me know what you think 🩷 also sorry if the tag list didn’t work last week I think I’ve fixed it for this one 🤞🏻

Pairing - Mason Mount × Reader

Word count - 7.1k

Warnings - series will contain fluff, smut & angst

Masterlist

After your late night between the sheets, you treated yourself to a lie in the next morning. Waking to find a text from Carly to meet her by the pool with the others when you were ready, so you quickly threw on a bikini and shorts before throwing over a shirt and grabbing your things to go and find her.

You knew they shouldn’t, but Mason's words from yesterday were playing in your head a little bit still. You knew he meant nothing by it and was just being his cheeky self but you didn’t want to be a customer of his no matter if he meant it as a joke or not. It made you feel as if you were in a long line of girls he picked up whenever he felt like it and yes you were technically just friends but you couldn’t help but feel upset about it. Especially after the awkward good night you’d suffered through after you were both done last night and you felt like the whole arrangement you had going on was a bit weird now.

By the time you were outside pretty much everyone was there bar Woody, Kayla and Mason and you quickly said hello to Dec and Lauren before making your way over to Carly who had Ben's head laid in her lap as she played with his hair.

‘Morning lovebirds’ you smiled, standing at the end of their sun lounger before Carly patted the one next to her.

‘I’ve saved you a seat’

‘Oh, that’s a double though I don’t wanna take up a whole one to myself’ you told her, looking to see if one of the single ones were free but they were on the other side of the pool so you wouldn’t be able to speak to her.

‘There’s plenty for everyone else, come on it’s fine’ she pouted and after another quick scan around you realised she was right so you got yourself comfortable. The pair of you sat chatting and catching up until the others emerged and about half an hour later Mason showed up. The sight of him making your mouth water as he made his way over to everyone.

You’d seen him in a lot less by now but the tiny black swim shorts were making your tummy churn as they accentuated all your favourite features of his. Low on his soft hips but his thighs were still strong and the mole on his tummy was driving you wild. You kept your eyes down though and pretended to read as he made his way over to you.

‘Morning all’ he chirped and you sent him a quick smile before going back to reading. It didn’t deter him from flopping down next to you though and when you didn’t look at him, you felt his hand gently trail up your thigh before giving it a quick squeeze.

‘What are you doing?’ You whispered, heart racing from the feel of his fingers. Gulping down a nervous lump and quickly flashing your eyes his way to look at him. He was giving you his usual cheeky, innocent smile but you knew he knew what was happening.

‘What?’

‘Don’t, people might see’ you told him, moving your leg so his hand dropped onto the cushion with a thud and you could see his scowl from the corner of your eye.

‘What’s wrong?’

‘Nothing, I’m fine’

‘Did you sleep okay?’

‘I said I’m fine’

‘Y/n, I grew up in a house full of women. I know fine doesn’t mean fine’

‘I just wanna read my book’ you told him lowly and after a small nod he slowly got up and made his way over to the pool.

You felt awful instantly, watching him over your glasses as he swam a few laps with a solemn expression. You knew Mason and you knew he meant no harm with what he’d said yesterday. This was a tricky situation, lines were a little bit blurry but there was no use being snappy with him for something you knew he meant as a joke and you were being sensitive over. No matter how much he’d made you feel like it was something else, even in this short space of time, you were friends and the friendship comes first.

The longer you watched him, the more guilty you felt and you watched as he propped himself up at the end of the pool. His chin resting on his arms as he faced away from you and you knew you had to talk to him and apologise so you carefully got up to go and see him. Plonking yourself down at the edge of the pool next to him so you could dangle your legs in the water before looking at him in hopes you could catch his eye.

He looked up at you instantly, his big brown eyes making your tummy sink so you reached out to gently grasp the back of his head so you could pull him closer to you and he thankfully went with it. Your heart leaping when he settled himself between your legs, arms wrapping around your thighs before he rested his cheek on top of one so he could look up at you.

‘Sorry Mase. I didn’t mean to be moody’ you told him quietly and the small smile on his lips filled you with relief.

‘S’okay. Are you alright?’

‘I’m fine, I promise’ you reassured him, feeling even worse that he didn't seem to mind your mood swing. He just wanted to make sure you were okay. ‘Maybe I should have stayed in bed a bit longer, huh? I’ll be fine after a nap’

‘You’ve only just woken up’ he chuckled, eyes brighter than before which caused you to smile as you knew you were okay again and you let your hand get lost in his hair.

‘Hey, naps can be taken anytime of the day’

‘Very true’ he giggled, squeezing your thighs gently. ‘Let me know when you’re taking one I’ll join you’

You weren’t sure if it was the sun bearing down on you or if it was Mason himself but you felt warmed from the inside and as your hand was trailing over the top of his back and you were surprised at how warm his skin felt too. ‘Have you put sunscreen on?’ You asked but he shook his head shyly. ‘Come on, I’ve got some let me help you’

‘You don’t wanna come for a swim?’

‘No thanks, waters not really my thing. You should be thankful I’m even sat here’ you laughed before he kissed your thigh and swam back slightly to let you up.

Mason managed to dry off a little bit before he sat at the end of the sun lounger with his back to you and you slid in behind him to get to work. You'd never really taken a good look at his back before but he was much broader than you realised and you loved the way his muscles contracted under your touch. Taking your time to really look at him and feel him before telling him to turn and face you.

You let him get comfortable, one leg stretched out on the lounger now so you could sit yourself closer to his body. Noticing the way he shivered as you applied the cold cream to his skin before sending him an apologetic smile. He didn’t seem to mind though, a soft smile playing on his face as he watched your every move and you hoped he couldn’t hear your heart going at a mile a minute as you touched his chest and down to his abs.

It felt weird having these feelings. Mason was a friend and you knew that. But he was a gorgeous, funny and kind friend with an incredible body and you couldn’t believe you were sat here touching him up like this in front of everyone. Only made worse when his hand reached out to touch your thigh carefully.

The sound and feel of his belly rumbling as you applied the sunscreen to his body made you chuckle, eyeing him curiously as he laughed at himself before you rested your hands on his hips.

‘You not had anything to eat yet?’ You asked, watching him shake his head before you let out a little sigh. ‘Why not?’

‘You didn’t make me anything’

‘Oh so it’s my fault?’ You laughed, squeezing his sides playfully and watching him giggle and squirm before he nodded his head.

‘Well sort of yeah. It’s sort of your job whilst you’re here’ he winked causing you to roll your eyes but you knew he was right.

‘Fine. Just your face to do then I’ll make you something’ you smiled, applying some more cream to your fingers before awkwardly pushing your sunglasses up your face so you could get a better look at him. Thankfully for you the sun was behind you so you could see him perfectly and the sight almost took your breath away. Admiring all the tiny freckles that littered his face, the curve of his nose and the fullness of his lips. He really was beautiful and you used the excuse of putting sunscreen on his face to look at him like you never had before.

You knew he was watching you too, his bright brown eyes following you out of the corner of your eye but as soon as you tried to make eye contact, he looked down and a rosy tint began to flush over his cheeks.

‘I’ve never noticed how many freckles you have before’ you told him quietly, letting his eyes flicker up to you again before looking away. ‘They’re really pretty, I’m actually very jealous’ you whispered but before he could reply the sound of someone else’s voice caught your attention.

‘Oi Mase, why are you so red?’ Ben laughed from behind you and the fact that Ben had noticed only made it even worse. ‘Are you blushing?’

‘No, fuck off. It’s the sun’ he retorted, his hands suddenly retreating from your leg as he played with his fingers in his lap and you felt your heart sink a little bit.

‘Ben’ you suddenly heard Carly moan. Drawing his name out in disappointment followed by the sound of a gentle slap to the back of his head. ‘Will you stop it. Leave him alone’

‘What? I’m just-‘

‘No you’re being mean’

‘Come on, let me go make you something’ you smiled softly, standing up and offering him your hand even though you knew it was a bit risky but he took it anyway and let you pull him up before following you into the kitchen. ‘You want anything in particular?’

‘Whatever the chef recommends’ he winked and after a quick look in the cupboards you found everything you needed to make pancakes.

Mason sat and watched as you got everything together, asking if he could help in any way so you passed him a few bananas for him to slice up so they were ready before asking him to get the drinks ready. When you finally placed his food down in front of him he sent you the most appreciative smile and your heart thudded at his wide grin.

‘Thank you, Muffin. These look amazing’ he smiled as you put your plate down opposite him and watched him dig in. You loved waiting for Mason's reactions whenever you made him something to eat as he was always seemingly blown away and this time was no exception. Shovelling it in like he’d been starved for weeks as he let you know how good it was in between mouthfuls.

‘What’s going on here?’ You suddenly heard, turning to see Dec walking in, eyes on your plates as he licked his lips before sitting down next to you. ‘Why is he getting special treatment?’

‘He’s not’ you laughed, cheeks flushing at the thought of being found out. ‘Do you want something?’

‘No thanks, Lauren made me something earlier’ he teased whilst nicking a few blueberries from Masons plate.

‘Why are you moaning then?’ Mason laughed, moving his plate away out of Declan’s reach so he couldn’t take anymore of his food.

‘Cause that looks better than what I had’

‘You wait till I tell Lauren that. You won’t be eating for the rest of the week’ Mason teased, watching Dec’s face drop before standing up.

‘You do that, and I’ll make things difficult for you’ he scoffed before grabbing a few bottles of water out of the fridge. ‘Now hurry up you two, we need someone else for water volleyball’

‘I’ll be out in a minute, y/n can keep score’ Mason told him, sending you a quick wink as if he was acknowledging what you told him earlier and once you were both done he quickly helped you wash up before meeting them outside.

Kayla had also decided to sit this one out so you sat with her, pretending to keep score as you got to know each other a little better and you were pleased to find out how suited to Woody she was. She seemed to really care for him and when Woody jumped out the pool to grab his glasses she blushed as he placed a quick kiss to the top of her head.

‘You and Mason seem sweet together’

‘Oh we’re not together’ You told her, ‘we’re just friends’

‘Oh I’m so sorry’ she panicked, face going ever redder and she tried to hide in her hands but you just laughed which seemed to make her feel better. ‘I just assumed, thinking it was a couples holiday. That’s why I was so confused about you having separate rooms, you seem really close’

‘Its okay, we are pretty close and I think since he’s moved away i just miss him a bit more than usual. It’s nice to be with him again for more than a couple of hours’

‘Oh trust me, Woody doesn’t shut up about him and then every Tuesday at 8pm on the dot they have their little weekly facetime. Sometimes I think I should be worried’

‘You should speak to Lauren about that’ you laughed, watching Mason try and climb on Ben's shoulders so he could reach higher for the ball. ‘I think she’s genuinely worried Dec might leave her for him one day’

After another 20 minutes or so everyone was ready to get out, Woody stealing Kayla away to their own lounger and you’d noticed Mason had sunk down on the one you’d been occupying earlier. His eyes caught yours straight away as he called you back over so you gathered up your things to go and sit by him again.

‘Mase you’re all wet’ you complained as you got there, walking round to his side so you were further away from Carly and Ben and hopefully out of ear shot before watching him shake his hair like a dog as he sent you a lopsided smile.

‘It’s alright, I’ll dry. I wondered if you fancied that nap you spoke about earlier?’ He asked and you couldn’t deny him. Placing your things down on the floor but he was quick to stop you before you tried to lay down. His hand on your thigh to cease your movements causing you to look down at him in confusion. ‘I have conditions, and those are that those shorts and that shirt need to come off’ he told you quietly. Fingers dancing over the backs of your legs as he teased you but you figured two could play at that game.

‘You wish is my command’ you laughed, stepping back and away from him so you could remove the open shirt off your arms before unbuttoning your shorts and pulling them down your legs so you were just left in your white bikini. ‘That better?’

‘Perfect’ he smiled, his tongue darting out of his mouth as he looked you up and down before helping you back onto the lounger. He wasn’t sat down for long though, quickly getting up to pull the umbrella over you so you could both be out of the direct sunlight and you smiled to yourself at the thoughtful gesture. ‘I’ll try and have a think about what I want for lunch next’ he teased, laying beside you as you turned to face each other.

‘Hey Mase, why don’t I have a FaceTime time slot?’

‘What are you on about?’

‘Kayla told me you and Woody facetime every Tuesday at 8 and I bet Dec and Ben have a slot. Where’s mine?’ You teased, watching his face hide in the pillow as he laughed before facing you again with a wide smile.

‘I can add you to the rota. I’ll have my receptionist send over my availability’ he teased but you just rolled your eyes before turning onto your back.

‘Very funny’ you huffed, shutting your eyes as you could feel them becoming heavy but the feeling of Mason's pinkie linking yours made your heart thud and when you opened an eye to look at him he was still on his side but his eyes were shut.

You woke up a little while later pressed up against something warm but soft. Opening your eyes to find yourself laying on Mason's chest with your arm across his waist whilst he rested his hand on your back, dangerously close to your bum.

‘You make sure you’re behaving, Mason’ you whispered, noticing he wasn’t fully asleep and the little chuckle that fell from his lips let you know he’d heard you.

‘I always am’ he smiled. Pressing a light kiss to your forehead as his fingers danced just above the waistline of your bikini bottoms. ‘You’re not a bad sight to wake up to, Muffin’

‘Gee, thanks Mase’ you laughed, attempting to move but he didn’t let you. Holding you tighter to him as he trapped your leg in his and you knew better than to try and escape.

‘Don’t go, I’m comfy’ he breathed so you stayed where you were even though you knew it was risky but by the looks of it everyone else was asleep too so you basked in the feel of him while everyone else napped around the pool.

After you’d made Mason some lunch, you topped up his sun cream and he offered to help you with yours. Your skin tingling as his hands massaged you slightly and you had to bite your lip so you didn’t start laughing.

You and the rest of the girls went off to get dressed early, going all out tonight and the four of you were in the upstairs sitting room so you could do your makeup together before you popped downstairs to slip your outfit on. You hadn’t got dressed up like this in a while and you couldn’t wait to see Mason's reaction to your frilly lemon two piece that was showing off your tan perfectly.

The plan was to meet in the kitchen at seven so at two minutes too, you grabbed your bag and made your way out of your room. Just as you closed the door behind you, Masons opened. Standing there dressed in cargos and a baggy blue button up but his face was a picture. Eyes wide as they scanned your body fully but it was his tongue nearly falling out of his mouth that made you laugh.

‘Do I look alright?’ You asked, giving him a little twirl but the shuddery breath he let out told you all you needed to know.

‘Are you joking? I’m an actual dead man. Have your worn this just to taunt me?’’

‘No, I just thought it looked cute’

‘Well that’s one word for it’ he breathed, letting you walk in front before he gripped your hips and placed a kiss behind your ear. ‘I think yellow might be my new favourite colour’

‘Come on Mase keep your hands to yourself’ you chuckled, a tingle heading straight down your spine at the feel of his lips on your skin and you were hoping there would be more where that came from later.

‘How can I? I know what you’ve got hiding under here now’ he teased but he slowed down on the stairs so it looked like the pair of you weren’t too close.

Once you were out for dinner, Mason sat next to you again and his arm was back around your chair as you all casually chatted amongst yourselves. Laughing and joking as the boys told stories from camps and all the adventures they’d been on and you felt so full of happiness to be there with them enjoying moments like this.

You’d known it all day, but you were so thankful for Mason and his kindness. You knew you wouldn’t be here without him and you were having the best time so when you caught his eye and he sent you a wink, you had to hold yourself to your seat so you didn’t lean over and kiss him.

The club you were all going to wasn’t far and all the girls led the way with the boys trailing behind and it’s like you could feel Mason's eyes on your bum. Feeling his hand on your shoulder as you neared the entrance so he could lead the way in and over to your reserved table.

Carly ordered your drinks, four pornstar martinis showing up a little while after for all the girls as well as a few bottles of some sort of spirit the boys had ordered and you made it your mission to let loose tonight. Accepting as many shots that were thrown your way, even pouring them straight into Carly’s mouth at one point until Mason cut you off for a little bit and even though you sent him a pout you knew he was just looking out for you.

You were buzzed enough to join the girls for a dance, thankfully not being touched up by any random men this time so you could finally let go. Not caring about what you looked like or who was even looking at you in the first place. Just you and your girls having the time of your lives.

You had to take a break eventually, running out of steam so you plonked on a table in your section and Mason appeared as if by magic with a glass of water ready for you.

‘You’re a lifesaver, thank you Mase’ you gasped, gulping the whole glass down as he looked at you with a funny look in his eye.

‘That’s alright, Muffin. You having a good time?’

‘I really am. Honestly thank you so much Mason, I’ll never be able to repay you or say thank you enough for letting me come here’

‘Don’t be silly. You belong here with us’ he teased, bumping his shoulder into yours playfully but you knew he was just feeling a little shy.

He sat with you for the next 15 minutes or so, talking about the boat trip tomorrow and if you were going to be okay on there. Promising if you didn’t like it he’d get you off and you could spend the day on the beach together but you let him know you’d be fine and you were excited as long as you stayed in the middle.

‘Hey Mase, come join the boys’ you suddenly heard Dec shout from not too far away but Mason just scoffed at him.

‘I’m fine here’

‘Mate come on’

‘I’ll come in a minute, I’m in the middle of a conversation’

‘Look mate I’m not gonna lie, you’re ruining my plans’ Dec told him seriously but you both looked back at him unsure as to what he meant. ‘How are we supposed to find y/n a shag when you won’t leave her alone’

‘Dec I’m not here looking for a shag thank you very much’ you laughed. ‘This trip is supposed to be about us spending time together’

‘Yeah yeah whatever, I’ve made it my mission to get you a man’

‘Dec, I don’t need your help’

‘Sure you do now come on, who’s got your eye’

‘I’m not having this conversation with you’ you laughed as Mason finally stood up.

‘I’ll take one for the team and go with him’ Mason laughed, squeezing your thigh gently but as you looked up to Dec you knew he’d seen so Mason quickly scurried away to go and sit with the other guys.

‘I’ve got my eye on you’

‘What do you mean? What have I done now?’

‘I’m not sure yet, but I’m watching you’

The girls were back soon, coming to sit with you so you could order more drinks and take silly selfies before joining the boys again. Noticing Mason was standing just off to the side on the phone and you wondered who he was speaking to before he walked back over, rolling his eyes.

‘Mase? Everything okay?’ Carly asked but he just let out a huff before speaking.

‘No the bloody security alarms going off in the villa. They’ve tried turning it off remotely but they need someone to put a code in. It’s fine it’s not loud or anything and they said it can wait but I’d feel better if I sorted it out. I’ll pop back there now it won’t take me a sec’

‘I’ll come with you, just to be safe’ you offered and even though you could see him trying to hide a smile you knew it would take some convincing.

‘You don’t have to’

‘No these shoes are killing me, I can change them while we’re there’ you replied and that seemed enough for him.

The house wasn’t far away and it was a nice night so you suggested walking, only making it two streets before your shoes became unbearable and Mason noticed straight away.

‘Shall we just get a cab?’ He laughed, pulling his phone out before you even answered but you were grateful for his suggestion. Popping yourself down on the wall next to the pavement so you take them off and the sympathetic smile he was giving you made your heart melt.

‘I’m wearing flats the rest of this week’ you huffed, looking up to find Mason taking a picture of you but he just shrugged when you raised your brow at him.

‘You look cute tonight’ he winked, popping his phone back in his pocket before taking a seat next to you and you knew you were blushing. ‘Cab shouldn’t be much longer’

‘Thanks’ you nodded, pulling your phone out and taking a picture of him unaware and when the flash made him look up you sent him a wink. ‘What? You look cute tonight’

‘Very funny’ he rolled his eyes, before holding his hand out for you to take. Pulling you flush into his side so he could wrap his arm around you. ‘Can I ask you something? About this morning?’

‘Of course, what’s up?’ You asked, unsure of what he wanted to talk about but he seemed a little shy about it.

‘Are you okay? You know after this morning when you were a bit upset? I know you said you needed a nap but I just wanted to make sure you’re fine’ he explained, your heart melting at his concern for you but you knew you’d have to be honest with him now. ‘I know I keep saying it but it really is fine if you don’t wanna carry on-‘

‘No mase, that wasn’t it’ you laughed, resting your hand on his thigh and he smiled at the gesture.

‘What was it then? You can tell me, even if it was me. I just want you to be comfortable with everything’

‘I am, I promise. I just… you said something last night and I couldn’t stop overthinking it but I realised earlier I was being silly and it’s fine. You’ve done nothing Mase, I promise’

‘What did I say?’

‘I’m gonna sound ridiculous’

‘That’s okay, you normally do but I’ve learnt to just go with it’ he joked and you playfully scoffed as he tickled your side.

‘Thanks Mase’

‘I’m kidding, please tell me’

‘Last night, you said you like to keep your customers happy. I don’t know it just felt weird being referred to as a customer of yours and I know that makes no sense but-‘

‘No, it does. Sorry I shouldn't have said that I was just trying to be funny’ he told you, rolling his eyes. ‘I’m sorry Muffin, I didn’t mean anything by it’

‘I know you didn’t, and I didn’t mean to have a strop, like I felt awful for how I spoke to you’

‘Let’s just forget about it yeah’ he laughed, placing a kiss to your forehead but wished he’d kissed somewhere else. ‘But if I say something stupid again just tell me’

‘I will’ you laughed, squeezing his thigh gently. ‘And if I have a strop again please just ignore me’

‘I’ll try. You’re pretty hard to ignore though, Muffin. Especially dressed like this’

You didn’t have time to say anything else, the taxi pulling up and you both jumped in the back seat so you could take the short journey back and before long Mason was carrying you on his back up to the door.

‘I’ll call the people, you change your shoes and we’ll head back, sound good?’

‘Yes sir’ you winked, watching his eyes nearly rolling back in his head at your words.

‘Fuck, don’t do that’ he groaned, laughing as you ran away from him before he could reach for you but the growl that left his lips gave you butterflies.

‘Behave, Mason’ you told him, trying to give him a cheeky smirk. ‘Go sort the alarm and I’ll meet you in a sec like we promised’

You were just pulling on your left shoe when Mason knocked on your open door, turning to find him leaning against the frame with a sweet smile on his face

‘Alarms off’

‘Perfect, I’m good to go now too’

‘You want me to get us a cab back?’

You didn’t have a chance to reply, your phone ringing as you walked out into the hallway to stand by him and as you took it out of your bag you saw Carly calling.

‘Hey, you alright? We’re just leaving now’

‘Yeah good, don't worry about coming back if you don’t want to. Woody is feeling a little fragile so him and Kayla are heading back and we’ll follow shortly. The boys just want to finish their drinks so give us about 40/45 minutes and we’ll be back’

‘Oh okay’ you breathed, looking up at Mason's confused face but the fact you now had some alone time made you smile, much to his confusion. ‘In that case, I think I’m gonna have a shower and head straight to bed then but I’ll see you tomorrow yeah?’

‘Yeah I think we’ll all do the same’ she replied and after a quick goodbye you popped your phone back in your bag before wrapping your arms around Mason's neck.

‘Woodys not well. He’s on the way back with Kayla but we’ve got about 40 minutes until the others get back’

‘Oh really?’ He smiled, wrapping his arms around your waist as he backed you up against the doorframe to your room. ‘You know now that we’re here, we could use this time to our advantage’

‘Oh yeah?’ You teased, running your fingers through the back of his hair as his face got dangerously close to yours. ‘You know I was thinking of taking a shower’

‘Funnily enough so was i’

‘Maybe we could share one? Save water and all that’ you offered, causing him to squeeze your sides playfully.

‘You’re a very smart woman you know’ he winked but he didn’t give you a chance to reply, kissing you with a moan as he tried to back you into your room, kicking the door shut behind him so he could press you up against it. ‘God I hate this no kissing rule. I’ve wanted to do that all day’ he confessed, whispering his words against your neck before pushing himself off of you slightly. ‘Wanted to take this off you all night too’ he mumbled, reaching for your skirt and not caring to look at how to undo it, so you pushed him off with a laugh so you could get it off without ripping it.

‘Well calm down, this was expensive’ you laughed, blushing from his words and how needed he seemed for you but you were just as needy for him too so you carefully unzipped the back and pulled it off before doing the same with the top. Thanking your lucky stars that you remembered to put one of your new underwear sets on and you could see him practically drooling at the sight of you in your strapless lacy set.

‘You’re the biggest tease I’ve ever met in my life’ he breathed, pulling you into his still fully dressed frame and as you let out a little giggle he captured your lips again in a hungry kiss. Feeling his hands dip into the top of your underwear and grip you bum tightly as you moaned into his mouth and you swore you could have stayed there kissing him forever but you didn’t want to wait any longer for him. Reaching to the collar of his shirt so you could start undoing the buttons before trailing your fingers up his body and under the shoulders so you could push it off of him. Feeling him shiver under your touch but he just pulled you closer afterwards so he could feel your warm skin on his.

You were frantic, pulling away from him so you could focus on unbuttoning his trousers but he didn’t seem to want his lips to part from you. Kissing all over your neck and shoulders as you finally pushed them down his hips and to the floor before he hugged your thighs and threw you over his shoulder so he could take you into the bathroom and you squealed as he lifted you. Holding onto him wherever you could before he popped you down and shut the door behind him. Making sure to lock it just in case someone came in on the off chance.

The pair of you quickly rid yourselves of your underwear and walked behind the glass. Giggling like kids as you took each other in your arms so you could pick up where you left off outside the bathroom before Mason broke away, fiddling with the shower panel to make it come on so you used this time to kiss over his chest. Sneakily leaving a little love bite by his nipple before you felt his fingers thread through the back of your hair so he could tug you away and his dark eyes made your knees weak as he tutted softly.

‘Thats naughty’ he whispered, lips attaching to your jaw so he could kiss along up to your ear. ‘Turn around for me’

You did as he asked, turning away from him and walking towards the shower wall as he held your back and walked with you. Propping your hands on the shower wall as he pressed you right up against it, your head turning to the side so you could just about see him over your shoulder before his lips came to your ear.

‘Good girl, that’s it’ he mumbled, placing his knee between your thighs so he could inch them apart. One hand gripping your bum and the other grabbed hold of himself so he could guide himself in. ‘You ready for me?’

‘P-please Masey’ you breathed, hearing him groan one final time before he pushed himself in gently. Knowing there wasn’t much foreplay involved so he needed to take his time but the stretch of him felt delicious. Moaning louder than you’d intended to but the slow movement of his hips were speeding up by the second until he was pounding into you. Your back pressed firmly against his front as he laid some of his weight on you whilst his hands reached round to grab your chest. Slowly kneading your flesh before you felt his teeth ever so slightly sink into your shoulder.

‘M-Mase, fuck that’s so good’ you panted, wanting to grip onto something more tangible as you fingers were slipping on the wet shower walls so you reached behind you to grab onto him and the feeling of your hand on his lower back made him plough into you even harder.

‘Arch your back for me, Muffin’ he asked, pulling your hips away from the wall and with him a step, forcing you to stick your bum even higher in the air before his hand came to hold your waist so he could control you a bit more. ‘That's it’

‘Mase’ you whimpered, this new angle hitting even better. Feeling your knees almost give out but his strong grip was holding you up as he used your body how he wished.

‘You can take it, I know you can’ he panted, the sounds of skin slapping in skin making your brain go foggy but you knew you’d never felt like this before. ‘God you feel so fucking good’

You had no idea Mason had the power to be like this with you, to be rough with his touches yet make you tingle with his praise. You wanted to be good for him, to take what he wanted to give you and make him feel good too and from the way he was moaning and groaning behind you you had a feeling he was enjoying it just as much.

You were close, closer than you wanted to be as you were enjoying this far too much and he must have felt it as he slowed down ever so slightly before pulling out of you and spinning you so your back now pressed against the tiles.

Your eyes followed his every move, letting him hook your leg over his arm so you were more easily accessible before he was pushing back into you. Your hands settling on his shoulders so you could support yourself as his free hand held your waist.

He was taking things much slower this way round. Gently rocking himself in and out of you but you weren’t sure if this pace was better or worse for you as you felt your high build once more.

‘You’re doing so good, I can feel you wanna cum though so just let go for me okay?’

‘Okay’ you whispered, letting him pick his speed up again and it didn’t take much more for you to be tipped over the edge. Moaning his name as he still went at you relentlessly until you felt his hips stutter, a string of curse words falling from his lips before he slumped against you slightly so you could both get your breath back.

‘Was I too much? I was still thinking about you calling me sir just before and I think I just went a little crazy’ he laughed in your ear, pulling out of you with a hiss so he could pull you straight into his arms and under the running water. Your heart thumping at his sweet gesture.

‘No mase, I liked it’ you laughed, holding him around his waist as he did the same to you and you couldn’t help but mirror his shy smile.

‘As long as you’re sure?’

‘Positive’ you winked before he pressed a sweet kiss to your forehead.

You didn’t spend long in there, quickly getting washed and out before meeting Mason in the main part of the bathroom where he was sitting on the closed lid of your loo. Beckoning you over to come and stand in between his legs but as soon as your hands made contact with his skin you knew something was off.

‘Mase, your shoulders look a bit pink’ you told him. His skin feeling hot to the touch and he slightly winced as you stroked his skin.

‘Yeah they feel a little weird I think I’m a bit burnt’

‘Stay there, I’ll put some after sun on for you’ you told him. Reaching for the bottle on the side so you could apply it but you felt bad as soon as he flinched when the cold cream hit his skin so you rubbed it in as soon as possible. Feeling his muscles relax under your fingers as you massaged him slightly before he looked up at you with his big brown eyes.

‘What’s all that stuff up there?’ He asked, nodding to the shelf under your mirror and you smiled when you caught onto what he was referring to.

‘My skincare’

‘Why do you have so much?’

‘We weren’t all blessed with clear and baby soft skin like you unfortunately’ you teased, tapping the end of his nose lightly which caused him to blush. ‘Would you like to try some?’

‘Okay’ he whispered, watching you with curious eyes as you applied various creams and serums to his face. His hands holding the backs of your legs the whole time and when you were done you pressed a light kiss to the end of his nose without even thinking.

‘All done’ you smiled, taking a step back to you could reach for the after sun and start to apply it to yourself but he took it from your hand and stood behind you. Massaging it into your shoulders as you caught eyes in the mirror in front of you.

‘Do you think we need to tone it down a bit?’ You asked, picking up your cleanser so you could start on your own skincare. ‘I don’t want anyone to suspect anything and I’m pretty sure Dec’s picking up on some vibes’

‘I’ll tell him to back off, don’t worry’ he laughed, hands smoothing over your skin still even though the after sun was all rubbed in. ‘Plus if we go too far the other way they’ll be suspicious too’

‘I guess you’re right’ you shrugged, Turing in his arms after applying the last of your moisturiser before covering your face with your hands so he didn't see you yawn.

‘Aww is my little Muffin sleepy’ he teased

‘It’s been a long day’ you defended with a light laugh so hand in hand he walked you to your bedroom door and with a quick kiss to your forehead he walked across the hallway to his room opposite.

‘Oh wait’ he suddenly called, just over the threshold of his room and by the time you looked up he’d removed the towel from his body and was standing there completely naked. ‘You can have this back’ he laughed, throwing it in your direction and thankfully it landed on your head so you couldn’t see him anymore but you heard the door click and the sounds of his muffled laughter ringing through the halls.

y/n

liked by masonmount, laurenfryer_, woody_ and others

y/n yellow to make the boys say hello 💛

view more comments

declanrice yeah right you wouldn’t leave our side let alone say hello to anyone. I know your game

y/n wow sorry for wanting to spend time with my friends 🙄 won’t bother next time

laurenfryer_ don’t listen to him girl 😩 we’ve got the whole week to find you a man 😉

masonmount who’s that handsome devil in the last picture?

y/n no idea, I don’t see one

benchilwell I don’t either

woody_ neither do I

masonmount ☹️

okaylaaa girly you look delectable 🤭 like a little lemon cupcake I’m living

y/n SAYS YOU 🥹 you’re actually the cutest

conorgallagher92 Mason I think that shirts a little too big mate

masonmount it’s called fashion

y/n if you say so

conorgallagher92 good to see you in blue 😉

carlywlms_ my beautiful bestie 🥹 so excited for our week together like you don’t understand 🩷

y/n trust me I think I might be more excited than you 😭

masonsprivate hello

y/n 👋🏻🙊

Tagged: @footiehoemcfc @prideofpd @yoursselo @chelseachilly @willow-writer-ivy @mm-vii @katharinanadiaa @mmountseb @carlottawllms @saltyheartnightmare @masonmtxo @harvestmount @chillymountsjess @treblebluesblog @pulisicsgirl @bluesswift @feelinglikeineedlotsofnaps

[myobsessionsspace]

Hello!!!

It's great that you're open to Jikook questions 😊

There's something that's been hunting me since I first saw it.

What's your interpretation of Jimin's reaction during the Vminkook live in Dec 2021- I'm referring specifically to Jimin's reaction after V said he was going to release a song with Jungkook? His reaction was super interesting, and so was Jungkook's.

We now know that V was playing around, and his statement wasn't true. Nevertheless, I think it caught Jimin by surprise, and my take is that he was a tiny bit jealous 😅 bless Jungkook, I think he was in a little bit of trouble there 🫣

Youtube link here:

https://youtu.be/5ufxVvjNbL4?si=UCbXNJxUfkz0c7i6

The moment I'm talking about starts around minute 45:00.

Thanks 💜

Hi Lovely!

This is a great ask, it’s something I’ve had convos with my friends about before! I’ve always found it highly entertaining when any variation of vminkook are together and get into skit mode or when Tae & Jungkook tease Jimin just to get him to go into super cute mode!

It’s what they do and have been doing for years.

This live was so chaotic VMinKook style from the jump. If anyone hasn’t watched it please do **everyone please watch original content**

It was chaotic because it was initially Tae’s solo live but he said how nervous he felt doing it alone and asked for staff to get Jungkook to join him.

NB: all image are gifs unless stated otherwise, please watch as they are there to support statements made. Original links to lives are at the end 💜

Jimin then came as he heard Tae needed company and Jimin had been with Jungkook. Jungkook eventually joined later.

Due to nerves on Tae’s part and it being an unplanned live that Jimin & Jungkook didn’t intend to be having there were many times where they didn’t know what to do or the purpose of the live and would defer to Tae for direction. Tae had a running skit with Jimin about being the host of a show (the vlive) and Jimin and later Jungkook being his guests.

Not a gif. Still picture

They also had funny moments where Tae would name drop different brands (this was funny as the group had contractual obligations with brands and they know in their profession they can’t name drop brands without consequence).

TMIs, games and more skits.

credit: onlyluvkpop. Some of the fun and teasing they were having

As I said the live was fun, chaotic but also at times stilted due to its unplanned nature of it becoming a trio live and nerves.

There was a point where Tae whilst trying to engage Jungkook tried (in my opinion) to run a joke with JK on army? I’m thinking he was hoping Jungkook and Jimin would catch onto it with him?

But cutie Minie Jagi was losssstttt 😭

Jimin’s face in the live side by side with confused Jimin face from post Hobipalooza live

VMinkook love their role playing and teasing and even if Jimin hadn’t caught on, I do think nothing was done to intentionally exclude any of the three. All three tease each other in different combinations

So no, not jealousy in my opinion, Jimin has absolutely nothing to be jealous about. But confused and slightly lost, as to if it was another skit or really work related that he didn’t know about.

Maybe a tad annoyed with it being live and no hints that he was catching on to, to work with, giving a look to Jungkook like ‘are you guys serious? Why aren’t you giving me a hint on the joke’ or ‘why am I hearing about a song for the first time in a live? You guys aren’t making sense’ and Jungkook’s kinda like ‘I’m as lost as you are’ or ‘what did I do? I’m just going along too!’

Maybe he was probably also thinking to himself when did Jungkook have a chance in between eating chicken together, working out together, Jungkook coming to his room all the time?? 😂

Not a gif. Still picture

Also Tae literally talked about a Christmas song earlier on in the live when it was just Jimin and Tae

Normally though, when V & JK are teasing Jimin, he knows it, and loves it 😂

But Minie was lost that time and he told us so

Tae & JK sometimes find a lost Jiminie, to be a cute Jiminie

Original Source: Weverse

Ultimately (in my opinion) Tae was mixing some facts together, which had JK quicker to the draw in playing along, but JK too was also confused at the beginning of their skit. When Jungkook caught on, he too teased Tae a bit and tried to get an expensive gift promise from Tae

Reached my media limit so ss the transcript instead, but like always, please watch the original lives for yourself

I’m assuming that the two had been vibing together and having fun making little play songs and singing, which is why JK said “what is it?” And “How can we release that?”

Tae did have a Christmas song in the works, just not with JK.

But for anyone that wanted a Christmas song from Jungkook, that’s ok, don't worry, him and Jimin have already done one together!

Not a gif. Still picture from Dynamite Christmas remix MV

Original source: BANGTANTV

I really appreciate your ask @irmi3454, I had fun!

💜

Original Weverse Links for Live

Live Part 1

Live Part 2

Live Part 3

[tiikerikani]

I think I’m gonna cry

2022 Dec 03 – Lallintalo, Köyliö

One of the merch ladies was like "HEY IT'S CAPE LADY" when I showed up. Does nobody else actually wear this thing?? It also seems like they still haven’t sold all the blue ones for some reason.

I bought the new poster and a hoodie. I even brought a poster tube from home so it’d be safe getting back to my place. I’ve been hemming and hawing about the hoodie for a while but there were discounts on all the merch because reasons so it was a good time to.

I caught up with Senpai at the reception and asked the burning questions:

Did the letter I gave to him in Joensuu back in March in any way inspire them to add Kirottu yksinäisyys to the set when I saw them again two weeks later?

(I had thought it highly unusual since it was an older song that I had otherwise not heard them play, and it disappeared from the list as quickly as it had appeared.)

[paraphrase] ”I remember we talked about [the letter] after that performance. [usual apologies about being busy and not having written back]”

(I’ll take that as a yes.)

Are the posters because I asked?

[not paraphrase] ”Yes.”

He REALLY did not need to do any of this for me.

He also said that the one date in June that got cancelled had to do with the organizers misunderstanding their requirements (or something like that).

I gave him the illustration that I had brought with me to Lahti. I had since spruced up the wrapping by putting a tiny bouquet of paper roses on it (I am very NOT subtle).

It occurs to me that I didn’t chat with any of the other members before the show but I'm not sure what I'd want to talk to them about.

I’ve never been to a live auction so that was kinda fun to experience. I made somewhat perfunctory bids on a few things. I bid 100 on the vinyl I wanted but the pair of blonde fangirls outbid me so I let them have it. (They seem very ... close with the band? At least with Heini, since I've seen them engrossed in conversation with her at least twice.) I already have the poster to put on my wall (outside the covered shrine), even though it’s not my favourite photo. Blonde fangirls also dropped some 260 (I think?) on a pair of hats.

While I wish I had the kind of disposable income to give a hundred or two to charity, everything that Senpai has done for me means so much more than owning a piece of one-of-a-kind band memorabilia.

Unlike the other time there was a warmup act, I've actually heard a few of Mikko Harju's songs on the radio, so I wasn't completely out to sea. At one point he wanted to know from how far people had come to be here, and the one guy from the gaggle shouted he was from Germany so of course I had to join in and it all took Mikko a bit by surprise :P

So I guess by extra-long set they just meant 20 songs instead of 18 so there weren’t any real surprises except for the acoustic arrangement of Meissä asuu elämä at the start before the set proper, but since we were told they would play everything from the album, even that was only a half-surprise I guess. People on EPIC FAN BUS didn’t seem to know that the song (not the arrangement) HAS been performed before but I guess they’re not from Helsinki so they weren’t there when I heard it.

Maybe they should record an acoustic album???

Finally Senpai found different #1 fans to gesture at during the song. (But ok I’d already received 3 hugs from him during the evening and that is quite enough.)

People brought their own balloons for the balloon song.

At one point he threw his towel to somebody in front of him; I'll never quite understand the appeal of owning somebody else's piece of dirty laundry but ok

The #foreveralone section

(Tumblr keeps eating the following paragraphs and I'm tired of writing it for the third time. I think it's the "read more" break that is, well, breaking it, so I'm removing that and sorry this post is long.)

The fanclub founder/admin was on the EPIC FAN BUS and she has SO much to say all the time. The van was packed and I was squeezed into the corner and while I was laughing along and reacting to the conversations I could hear, nobody asked for my thoughts so I did the one thing that always turns heads and started singing. (It wasn’t great because I was cramped there and was going acappella.)

It didn’t make any difference, even though people know me as that foreigner with the covers and there are some FAQs I expect to get related to that. Several of the people were friends and family so of course they had plenty of chatter. I’m not certain but I might have been the only one in the van travelling not only alone but not being friends with anybody. I hate having to say aloud that I would like to be included in the conversation, because it seems rude, but we’re all here with at least one common interest that we all have individual opinions and stories about, come on.

The gaggle guy doesn’t speak Finnish, yet people seem to know him and talk to him, so I’m not taking that as an excuse. Heck even I gave him a drive-by high five ("foreigner party!!") at one point. But then, he’s been fanning for much longer, and is a bit flamboyant/recognizable (the gaggle had matching Santa hats with name tags, which (the hats) I understand are merch inspired by a song from a much earlier album. The name tags are velcro and sometimes appear on different hats). But time also doesn’t change anything if nobody ever approaches you to begin with. 

The line is

Sun täytyy luottaa ja mun täytyy tulla sua vastaan

Which I take to say that you have to put yourself out there (and I do) but others also have to make a move.

People probably know me as Cape Lady and I sometimes go around and wave to people I recognize (for example superfan couple and the blonde fangirls) and sometimes they do that to me. But when I go to shows it still often feels like I exist as, like, more than a face only to Senpai. And I don't know if he notices this or only because my second letter was about this.

// Meissä asuu elämä

Ei voittajaa

Rodeo

Korkeapaine

Turunlinnan muurilla

Nuoriherra

Nena laulaa ilmapalloistaan

Älä lopu yö

Kolme hyvää vinkkiä

Kuka nyt tahtoisi

Kukaan ei koskaan

Tummilla teillä

Wallander

Faarao

Pitää sanoo ei

Ei se rakkaudesta mitään tiedä

Onnellinen mies

Arlandan portailla

// Kohti sydänpeltoja

// Turisti

[1ddotdhq]

💿Sun 13 Dec ‘20💙

Happy Birthday, Fine Line! Have a Louis show! (Seriously, why can’t I get cool shows for my birthday like that??). So today’s been a busy week, huh? 

It is, of course, Fine Line’s anniversary, and the celebration kicked off last night, with a twitter emoji (it's Harrrry! Doing the FL pose so so tiny!) and the DYKWYA website changing. It’s pink and black and blue and white, and now tells us that we’re “loyal” and “marvelous” and “memorable” and “powerful” and “rare” and “real” and “staying six feet apart” (or 70 other lovely options). So either HSHQ got their thesaurus out, or they tuned into Louis’ show last night, because that’s EXACTLY how I would describe it. Anyways, the day started with a Harry sighting! Well, a video from last week that is, of him doing a MakeaWish FaceTime in a blue snapback. And then there was a Harry Lambert interview, where he directly addressed the discourse around Harry’s fashion choices, saying, “Harry will never wear something that he doesn’t want to wear...I always say, 'I‘m not doing my job if I’m making someone wear things' because I just think if someone gets comfortable in what they’re wearing, then it doesn’t matter if I think it looks good.” He went on to say, “There’s never an element of me forcing him to wear anything”. So - TAKE THAT, transphobes! We all recognize that saying “the mean gay man is making Harry look gay/genderqueer” is, uh, a REALLY bad take, right? Anyways, hopefully that’s the end of it, but we all know it won’t be. He also told us that Harry chose the (fake) pearls, asking “can I just wear these every day?” and they were only replaced with real ones after that strand broke, that he tried to get H out of the Vans for the Golden vid but he said nah, and about the Golden and WS videos “I kind of saw it as the same man just in a different place in the world” which, well- yeah? But the implication that that man was not Harry is interesting. Aside from that, we got some more terrible merch from HSHQ (including a shirt that is a glove with legs stuck on it, wtf), a few celebratory tweets from HSHQ, The Forum, Jeff Azoff (there's a theme here lol) etc, AND! A post from Harry himself: “I couldn’t be more grateful for you all continually finding new ways to change my life. Thank you for listening, and for everything else. I love you always, but especially today. H”. What? That’s his name, isn’t it? 

But, of course, H wasn’t the only one celebrating online today! Louis came back and answered some of our questions about the show. The first is that he sold over - are you ready for this? - OVER 160,000 tickets for the show, making it the biggest online show of 2020 by a solo male artist, and the third largest overall of the year. Even the Sun had to admit how “exceptional” that is, describing the show as "the equivalent of eight nights at London’s O2 Arena." Doing the math, this means he raised over $3.1 million from ticket sales alone! HOLY SHIT! Hearing that, Louis came on twitter to say (in reply to a quote by his PR company lmao), “This is truly incredible. No major label, no radio, yet here we are. The feeling of support I get from you all every time I do something is unbelievable. Forever Thankful! And they never see us coming!”. Of course, this incited another round of label discourse, wondering if this means he is still an unsigned artist. Does this simply mean the livestream wasn't put on by a label, yes, does Louis absolutely know about the discourse and is he being deliberate, I would also say unmistakeably yes. Which is not to say we know ELSE it might mean -- is he signed to an indie? Still label shopping and waving how much more they need him than vice versa in the hopefuls' faces? Signed but the contract doesn't start until there's a record in play (which when you negotiate your own contract and establish artistic freedom, as we can be very sure was Louis' priority, is what labels DO - they don’t manage every aspect of an artists career)? Signed by a major label, but shading the FUCK out of Syco about radio play for Walls? What we DO know is that it wasn't a label that put the livestream on, and damn if that doesn’t make it 1000% more badass. “Memorable”, “powerful”, and “rare” indeed! He’s still early in the process of LT2, as he told us yesterday, so we might have to wait a little longer to figure out what’s happening business-wise, but he made sure to tell everyone that his fans were an integral part of his processing the most inspiring way possible: “the power and the magic comes from the people you guys,” I COULD CRY that's MY inspirational leader THANK YOU. He goes on to say “don't undermine your role in all this... together with your support we're unstoppable!” He also called us “fucking relentless” (god knows that's true) as Walls hit the charts AGAIN, and talked about how the money raised will go a long way. “WE did that!!”

And with that, let’s talk a little bit more about last night’s (“bold”, “extraordinary”) show! ‘‘Copy’ is making its rounds on the internet, but YouTube continues to take down recordings of the show, which SUCKS, because everyone should be able to see it! Maybe in a few days when some time has passed, they’ll let it go up without an issue, or maybe they'll answer our pleas (come through one more time Louis!) and put out a DVD (and live album too how about, YES? Yes.), til then there are the downloads going around tumblr! Good thing we got Louis' seal of approval or just imagine the discourse. The ‘H’ shirt Louis was wearing last night is a Reebok shirt, which was being distributed in a few different places, such one where you could get a discount if you used the code ‘HL40’ and another where it was $28, lol. Was it the loudest Louis shirt ever- I mean I would say an unqualified NO but many are voting YES and are reeling so that's really fun! Welcome to the gang guys. Not likely to win any awards for being loud with such incredible competition but still very good SBBing-- Louis was wearing a stuffed bear t shirt in rehearsal pics. When you know you know, I guess! ;) The band is also soaking in the praises (as they should!) and have been re-posting fans’ stories on Instagram all day (as did LTHQ) - cheers, boys! 

Today’s Liam and Roman alarm was ALL us (well, not allll us, Roman did explain that the alarms would feature fans every Sunday, but then he handed the mic over). “Waking up to Liam and Roman is the best thing EVER! I don’t know why it gives me so much serotonin,” said one fan. I do! It’s because Liam is a real, live puppy dog and he’s so genuinely sweet to his fans. Love him lots, but I love him even MORE when he’s ON the advent alarm!

[sylvie-writes]

Pixie

pairing: steve rogers x wife!reader x daughter!sarah rogers

prompt: Dec 12 - Elf On The Shelf 

warnings: none that i can think of! 

word count: 1814

author’s note: pardon any mistakes! this is my first entry for @the-ce-horniest-book-club Home For The Holidays!

another a/n: I’m sorry that the writing style on this isn’t superb. I have a lot to do today and I totally forgot about this, yet I still really wanted to write it. Hopefully you all still enjoy! xoxo

PART OF MY CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION (check the tag for the masterlist)

(gif below is not mine, nor do i take credit for it

“Look, Daddy. Teacher says every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings!” Zuzu looked to her father and he sweetly smiled down at her. “That’s right, that’s right.”

With that the movie ended and the credits rolled. Tonight was the first day of Steve’s holiday break, allowing him to spend some family time with you and Sarah. Since Steve was still trying to catch up on new movies and such, you suggested It’s a Wonderful Life. It was released just a few years after he went into the ice so you assumed he would enjoy it, as would Sarah. The toddler shared a love for vintage things just as he father. To her, it was so fascinating that Steve was from another time that she always begged for stories. 

At the moment, you three were curled up on the couch in your humble and small Brooklyn apartment. Sarah’s tiny figure was half laid on your lap. Her head was resting on your sweatpants-clad thighs while her own legs were tucked into her body to retain warmth. As for Steve, you were leaned up against his chest, laying at an angle while the man remained faced forward, one muscular arm wrapped around your shoulders. Occasionally he’d turn his head to shower you in some form of affection. 

“So, how’d you like the movie, Stevie?”

Steve shifted in his seat, now enveloping you with both arms, careful of Sarah who was still sleeping. He smiled down on you with a dopey yet adorable and loving smile. 

“I think that it was a great suggestion, doll.”

With vigor he immediately cut off your unspoken words and kissed you deeply. Suddenly, Steve’s not so innocent kiss was cut short when Sarah made you both remember her presence, the ever so quiet and sleepy “eww” making you both laugh. 

“Well hello, sleepyhead.” 

Sarah pushed herself up from her laid out position and tiredly scrambled to her feet. She then ran to stand between Steve’s legs and leaned forward to lay against his chest. 

“M‘sleepy, Daddy.”

Your daughter’s eyes started to close and Steve took that as a sign to go ahead and scoop her up in his arms. Steve did so and then bent over a bit for you to kiss the dozing little girl goodnight. 

….

As Steve helped Sarah get ready for bed, you got did your nightly routine as well. Once you had finished and made it to bed, Steve soon joined you, the two of you ready to turn in for the night. 

By the time the lights were out and both you and your husband were sleeping soundly, it was a bit past midnight. 

For a few hours you slept comfortably, occasionally intertwining your legs with Steve’s and such, especially since that man was such a bed hog and he didn’t even know it. 

Around four in the morning you suddenly popped up having remembered one important thing. 

Today was December 1st.

To the average person it was just another day, but to your daughter Sarah, it was the time for her elf on the shelf, Pixie, to arrive home for the holidays. You mentally scolded yourself for forgetting such a thing as Sarah had been talking non stop all week long about Pixie’s upcoming visit. She was so excited and her little friends at school told tales about their elves on the shelf making your daughter even more excited. 

Without second thought, you popped out of bed despite your body screaming at you to go back under the oh-so inviting sheets and to wrap yourself into Steve’s warm embrace.

As you had gotten out of the bed, you pushed Steve’s heavy arm off of your waist, and let’s just say you could have been a bit gentler with your actions.

“Woah (y/n), what’s wrong?”

Somnolent yet very much alert, Steve now sat up in the bed, even reaching to turn on the lamp, blinding you both. 

After a bit of a hiss, you scurried to his side of the bed to turn off the nuisance of a light. You had calmed down a bit and just quickly ran your fingers through Steve’s messy hair while kissing his forehead and purposely coaxing him back to sleep.

“I have to go and find Sarah’s elf on the shelf. She’ll be heartbroken if Pixie isn’t out tomorrow morning.”

Steve nodded having understood the matter. He then got out of bed despite your pleas for him to go back to bed. 

From there, you and Steve spent a good half an hour searching through your shared closet in search of that disguised cardboard box that held a select few of Christmas decorations, including Pixie. Sarah has always had a knack for finding tucked away gifts or just anything you’ve hidden from her for that matter. That is why you and Steve decided to throw the elf on the shelf and its accessories in that box so she wouldn’t find it. 

Eventually, you found said item. The whole process would have been faster if it wasn’t the middle of the “night”, but with it being so early in the morning, you two had to carefully dance around each other in hopes of not waking your sleeping angel. 

Together, you and Steve quietly tiptoed down the squeaky hallway. One would think that after all of those stealth missions, you and Steve would be able to handle sneaking around your own apartment, but alas, children are a lot more attentive than the enemies you have dealt with in the past. 

After spending a few minutes tediously assembling Pixie and her accessories, you and Steve finally came to design a finished project you both thought Sarah would enjoy. 

You and Steve had decided to set Pixie on the kitchen counter with her own bowl of cereal as Sarah was always up before you both. The little miss would be preparing her bowl of cereal and hopefully catch sight of her elf friend. 

Steve looked to you and groggily grinned, the two of you now a bit awake from the minimal adrenaline rush. 

Unfortunately, that lasted for a very short time because the minute you laid your head on Steve’s shoulder, your eyes shut and apparently you unintentionally fell asleep. It was no use fighting the sleep as it was inevitable at this point. Steve just chuckled at how easily you succumbed to the slumber as you were just energetically talking to him not even seconds ago. He then tenderly placed his hands upon your back and scooped you up bridal style, carrying you back to bed for a few more hours of much needed sleep. 

That morning you and Steve both woke up, same time as usual, and to no surprise, found Sarah in the kitchen. Although, before you both rounded the corner to step foot into the kitchen, you heard Sarah’s voice as she attempted to whisper. Looking to Steve with furrowed brows he looked back at you with shrugged shoulders. It wasn’t until you quickly peaked your head around the corner that you realized she was talking to Pixie. 

When you both found that out, you decided to stay behind the wall for a minute more to let her finish telling the elf what she wanted for Christmas. Luckily, either you and Steve were always to overhear what she’d ask for from Santa. Of course she still wrote a letter to Santa and you both would use that, but sometimes she’d drop a few things here and there to elf on the shelf. 

Though this time when you heard her request, it caught you off guard. 

“Hi Pixie, Mommy and Daddy are sleeping right now and I wanted to tell you this now before they wake up.”

Sarah placed her finger to her lips and made a shushing sound. You quietly laughed as did your husband. 

“Anyway, Daddy never gets to stay home for Christmas and I know this is a lot to ask for, so I wasn’t going to ask for anything else. I was hoping you could tell him I said this. As Mommy says, it’s always better to ask in ‘vance.” 

With that Sarah blew a kiss to the elf and turned back to her bowl of cereal. 

As quietly as possible, you once more turned to Steve who was practically breathing down your neck. Little had Sarah known that her father had indeed taken off the whole month of December. 

Sarah was just an angel, but what really tugged at the strings of your heart was when she asked for this and was willing to sacrifice a few silly toys just for her father to stay home this year.

That child was just as selfless as her father. 

Communicating with your eyes, both you and Steve silently agreed to tell her now. That way she’d still ask for some real gifts because what’s the fun in Christmas for a kid if they can’t open something from under the tree? 

So maybe you and Steve liked to spoil her during Christmas…

What? Sarah was your only baby and as any parent would do, you’d spoil her, and only because she was such a good child. 

With that, you and Steve finally walked into the kitchen where Sarah excitedly greeted you both. 

“Hey honeybun, Daddy and I have something important to tell you.”

You rested your forearms on the kitchen counter, where Sarah sat directly across from you. 

Steve came to join you by your side, a bowl of cereal in his hands. 

Sarah set down her spoon and intently looked at you both. 

“You know how I’m not always home for Christmas, hon?”

Sarah sadly shook her head, looking to Steve who was currently talking. 

“Well… I was able to talk off some time so I get to spend all of December with my two favorite girls!”

Immediately Sarah jumped from her chair, making you freak out for a second, and then she ran around the counter to hug Steve who welcomed her with open arms.

She wrapped her arms around Steve’s neck and he swayed back and forth as you watched the adorable interaction between the two. 

When you both weren’t looking, Sarah discreetly waved to Pixie and sent her a quiet “thanks.” 

Steve’s crazy frequency of hearing undoubtedly picked up the sound and he tried to look over his shoulder where Sarah was resting.   

“Did you say something, doll?”

Sarah picked her head up from its place on Steve's shoulder and she leaned back to be face to face with the man. Nodding her head “no,” she kissed his nose and you adoringly smiled at the two. 

Needless to say, that was the best Christmas gift Sarah could have asked for. Well, besides for the puppy she put on her list. And no, you and Steve didn’t cave on that one. 

[prettylightsbigcity]

Day 28 - Prophecy

Dec 22, 2021 Here's a really fluffy future fic partially inspired by a trip I took to New Orleans with my partner! Rated G, about 2500 words, read below or on ao3.

***

Simon

I cannot believe Baz and I are back in America; I never thought I’d see the day. Granted, it’s been ten years since our ill-fated road trip. On that visit, I thought I was losing Baz (losing everything), and everything I did was a last hurrah, a final farewell. This time, I’m on my honeymoon, and every day feels like the start of forever. We thought about going somewhere tropical, like Bali or the Caribbean, but neither of us are much for just lying on the beach all day. Baz would need gallons of sunscreen, for a start. And I start to itch if I spend too many days in a row not doing anything. 

Eventually, we settled on New Orleans. It might seem an odd choice to someone who doesn’t know us, but Baz is absolutely bursting with excitement over all the magickal history (and regular history), and I want to try all the food and go dancing. Today is our third day in the city, and I finally feel like the jet lag fuzziness is lifting from my brain. Baz is clearly not having the same experience; he’s sprawled out in bed next to me, one hand resting over his head and his hair spilling over his pillow and onto mine as he sleeps blissfully on. We agreed not to plan things in the mornings, so we could wake up when we felt like it and have leisurely breakfasts together every day. Which is great, except… I really want to wake him up. I think if I do it right, he won’t be upset with me at all. I grin and duck underneath the covers.

Several hours and many cups of coffee later, Baz and I are walking hand in hand down a colorful street. He’s spelled my wings neat and tidy, and my tail is wrapped snugly around my waist for now. We breathe in the late morning air, humid, but not too hot yet. All the houses here have so much personality; it’s nothing like the row houses back home. It feels a bit like a storybook city, to be honest. People are friendly here too; an old lady in a brightly colored dress sitting on her front step waves to us as we pass by.

“Lookin’ good, boys!” she calls out, and I flush to the tips of my ears.

Baz just smirks and tips an imaginary hat towards her. The woman slaps a hand to her chest and fans herself, and even Baz has to giggle. Everyone here is so full of life and laughter; it feels like someone cast a kind word on the whole city. There’s a tiny restaurant just down the street from our Airbnb called The Sneaky Pickle (that’s its actual name), and the owners there are so nice that they made me suspicious at first. We stopped in there the night we arrived for some dinner, sitting on their tiny patio under a climbing wisteria vine. Well, Baz said it was wisteria; I just thought it was pretty. A chubby little tabby cat leapt up into my lap, and I froze, my eyes widening. 

“Babe, there’s a cat on me,” I whispered.

Baz looked like he could barely contain his laughter.

“Yes, love, I can see that. Clearly the creature has some sense of self-preservation; it chose you over me.”

I rolled my eyes at him as the petite blonde woman who seated us came back over.

“Oh shoot!” she exclaimed, “I’m so sorry about him— that’s Meatball, he loves sitting with customers. He begs for food, but don’t you listen to him, he gets fed plenty at home!” 

She put down our menus and gave me a smile before bustling back inside. Meatball the cat settled down into my lap, kneading my thigh with his little paws as he started vibrating. 

“Baz, babe… I think he’s purring,” I said in a hushed voice.

“He must like you.”

I tried not to breathe for the next thirty minutes as we waited for our food. Meatball fell asleep with his tongue hanging out. He was very warm and soft. He stayed there when our food arrived, and the blonde woman and her partner, the chef, came over and lingered at our table to chat. Turned out they owned the place; they asked us where we were from and what our plans were in New Orleans. Thankfully, Baz did most of the talking, because my mouth was full of the absolutely delicious food they served us. I didn’t even know what some of the things on the menu were, but Baz helped translate. Red snapper crudo, macaroni and cheese, fresh hand cut chips, smoked corn, fish and yucca croquettes… we’d ordered everything that looked appetizing, and boy, it was good. I had a long moment of being completely absorbed with a mouthful of pasta, and I sort of lost track of everything else, but I tuned back into the conversation just in time to hear Baz explaining that we didn’t have a car, but we were planning to take the bus downtown. He’s come so far. To my surprise, the restaurant owners offered to lend us their bicycles; they swore it was the best way to see the city, and they told us we could just bring back the bikes at the end of our week here.

“But you don’t know us at all!” Baz had protested, and the man just laughed, clapping him on the shoulder.

“Welcome to N’awlins,” he’d said.

Then he gave us grilled oysters that his friend had caught that morning. On the house. I think I’m going to love it here. 

A car horn pulls me out of my reminiscence and I snap my head up to make sure we’re not about to be run over. Baz has an alarming habit of jaywalking without looking both ways. It turns out the car is honking at a traveling band moving towards us down the sidewalk. A trumpet wails, and Baz squeezes my hand, stepping to one side as the sound of music gets closer. We watch the musicians pass by, dancing as they play an upbeat jazz song. Baz points to something on the other side of the road as the band moves on. 

“Look Simon, we’re right across from City Park; it looks like there’s some kind of market happening.”

He’s right, there are rows of tents sprawling over the green pathways of the park.

“Shall we?” I ask, and Baz nods. 

We have a cemetery tour scheduled for this afternoon, but we have a couple of hours before that. We have time to explore. I tug Baz’s hand, pulling him across the street (I looked both ways, twice). We start down the wide pathway, pausing almost immediately so Baz can examine an artisanal soap shop set up under a purple tent. I squeeze Baz’s hand and then wander over to the next stall, which appears to be selling various pieces of folk art, all sporting the slogan “Be Nice or Leave!” We wander along, taking time to look at whatever catches our fancy. I buy a pair of beaded earrings for Penny, and Baz picks up a book called A History of Voodoo. He insists it’s all going to be nonsense, but I can tell he’s looking forward to reading it. A tent made of silky red fabric catches my eye, and I tug Baz’s sleeve gently, distracting him from a tent filled with leather goods. “Let Mama Dani gaze into your future!” a hand painted sign proudly proclaims, and then in smaller text: “palm readings, tarot, and prophecies for all brave enough to enter.” Baz snorts. 

“A sideshow fraud, surely,” he mutters to me under his breath.

“C’mon babe, it could be fun. Let’s get our palms read!” I beg. 

Baz pretends to think about it, but I can already tell he’s going to give in. His mouth is soft at the corners, and his eyes are sparkling with happiness. 

“Very well, Snow,” he finally relents with a put-upon sigh. 

He lets me lead him over to the tent. It’s one of the only fully enclosed ones in the whole market, and we duck under the sheer fabric hanging across the entrance. It’s dark inside, and I pause for a moment to let my eyes adjust from the brightness outside. 

“Welcome to Mama Dani’s table, children,” says a creaking voice from the gloom. 

Baz leads the way further into the tent, where a tiny, hunched woman sits in a massive intricately carved chair behind a round table. 

“Come, come, sit with me awhile,” she croaks.

She sounds like she smokes two packs a day. Baz sits in one of the two chairs opposite the old woman, and I take the other. None of the three chairs match each other or the table, but somehow it all works together. 

“I am Mama Dani,” she says, extending a small, twisted hand. 

Baz takes it gamely, shaking politely as he replies, “Pleasure to meet you.”

I opt for a friendly wave, and the woman bobs her head in my direction, smiling a toothless grin. 

“How can Mama help you today, young friends?” she asks, then continues, “Ah, wait, I see. Mama knows. You seek to know your futures. I will peer into the shadows, and I will tell.” 

Baz and I look at each other. He gives a nearly imperceptible shrug, and I nod.

“Alright, sure, tell us our future,” I say. 

Mama Dani lights a candle and closes her eyes. She takes a deep breath, and then she starts to sing in a deep, low voice, warm and rich. I don’t understand the words; I think it might be French, or something similar. Baz’s eyebrows twitch together in the middle as he tries to puzzle through the lyrics. I just listen, letting the heavy melody wash over me. Her knobbly fingers touch mine, and I look down to see her holding out her hand, offering. My other hand is holding Baz’s under the table, but I let her take my free hand. Her grip is surprisingly firm. She takes Baz’s hand in her other one, completing the circle. Her song finishes, and a moment of silence rings clearly through the tent. I can’t even hear the busy festival just outside. Mama Dani smiles. 

“Yours are blessed lives,” she tells us seriously, “to find love so pure is a rare and precious gift. But I can see that you have both battled fiercely for this happiness. You will not surrender it lightly, no. Mama Dani can see, there is much happiness and sorrow before you both, but you will never face it alone. Never again,” she adds, looking right into Baz’s eyes.

His throat bobs as he swallows. 

“And you,” she says, turning her piercing brown eyes to me, “a time will come when you will be asked to lead once more. Do not be afraid. It is not what you can do, but who you are that gives you your power.”

I blink hard, feeling a bit off-kilter. 

How does she know I used to be a leader…?

“There will be a child,” she continues, and smiles a bit as she speaks, “a child with sunshine in her hair and fire in her heart. Do not be afraid,” she says, looking at Baz again, “you will never fail her. And you will find the words she needs,” she says to me, “this child will want for nothing, and she will bring happiness far beyond imagining.”

She pauses for so long that I think she must be finished, and then Mama Dani takes a shuddering breath. 

“Losses will come, and the world will feel a dark and bitter place. Above all, trust in the love. Protect it. Nurture it. It will bring you back to the light.”

She goes quiet again, and then her chin tilts forward, resting on her chest. Her eyes are closed. I give Baz the side eye.

“Is she…?”

Mama Dani lets out a gentle snore, and I stifle a laugh. Baz looks as bewildered as I feel. We look at each other, and in unspoken agreement, we get up out of our chairs. There’s a little basket beside the door with a price list over it. Prophecies are listed as twenty dollars. Baz plucks a twenty and a ten from his wallet and drops them in the basket as we make our way out of the dim tent. The daylight outside is startling. It seems like there are fewer people wandering along the path than before, and some of the vendors are starting to pack up their wares. I turn to Baz. 

“Is it just me, or was she—”

“Strangely insightful?” Baz finishes, “And undeniably magickal?”

I nod. 

“I felt it too,” Baz says quietly, “I don’t think she’s a mage, but she’s certainly… something.”

“Do you think that means what she told us was true?” I ask, feeling oddly hopeful.

Baz looks thoughtful for a moment, then grins, wrapping an arm around my shoulders to pull me close. 

“I thought you didn’t believe in prophecies, love,” he teases. 

“I mean, obviously I still think they’re bollocks,” I huff, “but there was something about her that made me want to believe what she was saying.”

Baz’s lips are suddenly right next to my ear.

“Well I predict that you’re going to have an excellent time if you come home with me right now,” he whispers, his cool breath washing over my neck and making my hairs stand on end.

“I uhh… I thought we had a cemetery tour?” I question.

Baz kisses my earlobe. 

“Would you be terribly upset if we did that tomorrow instead?” 

I shake my head; he’s so close that I’m bumping against his nose.

“Let’s go home— I mean, to the Airbnb. You know what I mean.”

I set off decisively, leading the way. Baz laughs and catches me by my elbow. 

“Wrong way,” he says, and I flush. 

“Right,” I say, spinning around to head in the other direction. Baz keeps pace easily with his long legs. We cut across the park, passing couples picnicking and kids playing football. Someone is playing a guitar, and the sun is starting to turn everything warm and gilded as it slips towards the horizon. I reach out for Baz’s hand. He gives me an easy smile. 

This is it, I think, I have a whole future full of this to look forward to.

***

The Sneaky Pickle is absolutely a real restaurant, and I highly recommend it should you ever find yourself in New Orleans. Meatball the cat is real, too. On a side note, I reached 1000 hits on ao3 for this COC compilation today, and nearly 100 kudos! Those are both firsts for me, and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who's been reading. It's my first time doing something like this, and it's been so lovely to have you all encouraging me <3

[lsmu]

14 Days of Winter - Day 6: 가지마

KIM HAJOON'S JOURNAL ENTRY FRI, DEC 18TH, 2020. 11.48 AM GMT. The Savoy. Junior Suite. My Room.

Journal-nim,

Something unexpected happened today.

Okay. I'm still shaking as I'm writing this... But... Here goes.

I woke up today feeling like shit. Maybe it was the cold weather, maybe it was the food last night (That pie did taste a little weird)...

But it was most probably because today was supposed to be our last day together. I was supposed to move to another room today. I was supposed to be separated from Minjeong.

All my belongings were packed, my suitcases were already standing up proudly by my room's door. As I showered and shaved, I decided that I shouldn't look like I was dreading today. Minjeong would finally get her freedom. The mistake that happened five days ago was supposed to be over today.

Thus... I put on my biggest smile, and I went out of my room to have breakfast.

But, to my surprise... Minjeong was looking dejected too.

That couldn't be right, could it, Journal-nim? That disappointment I picked up from her tone yesterday when I told her that the front desk called and told me that the room was indeed vacating today. That had to be my wishful thinking, right?

"Morning, Hajoon-hyung..." she said softly, biting her toast.

That wasn't the Minjeong I had gotten used to these last few days. The Minjeong I knew was cheerful, super confident (a little over confident at times), and beyond cute. This Minjeong looked sad. She didn't talk much during breakfast, only the occasional smiling and making small talk.

She confused me, Journal-nim...

Was she really disappointed that I would be leaving the suite? But... Why? She'd enjoy this absolutely huge suite on her own. She can talk with her three friends to her heart's content, she can roll around the carpet in the living room if she wants, she can practice her singing again...

Gosh... Her singing.

I knew I'd miss her voice. Haven't I told you? It was as clear as a bell. It was the most beautiful voice I've ever heard.

After we finished breakfast, the hotel staff knocked on our door, and when I opened it he asked me if I was ready to move out. I nodded, then I turned to look at Minjeong.

"Well... This is it, I guess..." I said, forcing a smile. She smiled too. (Gosh, Journal-nim... That smile). "Yeah... It's... Goodbye, I guess..." she said slowly. I chuckled. "No... We'll still go out on the same day, right? We'll meet again next Wednesday at the lobby!" I told her, trying to sound cheerful. She chuckled slightly and nodded. "Yes. I'll see you next Wednesday at the lobby! Then you need to show me Twining's shop at The Strand!" she said, sounding a little bit more cheerful, but her eyes were red.

Yes, Journal-nim. Her eyes were red. Maybe the cold weather made her eyes dry.

"Right... I'll get going then, it's been a pleasure knowing you, Kim Minjeong from Yangan-si..." I said. "Mm!" she replied cutely. "Likewise, Kim Hajoon from Yongin-si!"

We chuckled awkwardly. At that moment, Journal-nim, we stood there, staring at each other, not knowing what to do.

To be completely honest, I wanted to hug her. But that would make me an absolute creep, so I restrained myself.

Instead, I smiled at her one last time, and turned myself around. The hotel staff opened the door, and I wheeled my luggages out...

That, Journal-nim...

Was when the unexpected thing happened.

Okay... I'm shaking...

Here goes.

...

Journal-nim...

She grabbed my hand.

"Don't go..." she whispered.

I was stunned, and the hotel staff was too (of course he did. Number one: He didn't know what 가지마 meant. Number two: KIM MIN JEONG HAD JUST GRABBED MY HAND!). I turned to look at her...

And there she was, clinging to my hand with both of her tiny hands, looking down to the carpeted floor. I stared at her, not fully comprehending what she said.

"Don't go..." she repeated, then she lifted her eyes to look at me.

Her eyes were teary.

"... I don't want to be alone."

Okay.

OKAY. OKAY.

OKAY OKAY OKAY!

I'm shaking. Shit. I'm absolutely shaking.

Alright. Calm down, Hajoon. You're an intellectual.

Okay. Where was I?

Ah yes. She said that.

She said that... And my heart melted on the spot.

It melted into a puddle.

"M–Minjeong?" "Don't go. Don't move to the other room. Please just stay here with me. I'm... Fine. We have separate rooms anyway. I... I don't want to be quarantined alone. Please stay, Op–"

She bit her lips, and her face blushed as red as the Queen's Guards' uniform.

There she went again.

She had just almost called me 'Oppa' instead of 'Hyung' again.

I can't, Journal-nim. I can't. My heart will burst if it continues like this.

Question: What do you do when an absolutely adorable girl asks you to stay with her and not leave her alone?

It was a trick question... OF COURSE I STAYED!

I wanted to just jump up and hug her right then and there... But, again, it would make me an absolute creep. So... Again, I practiced restraint. Gosh. At this rate I'd pass as a Catholic priest.

Disclaimer: The hotel staff ended up thanking us profusely when we informed him that I would stay instead of moving to the other room. He said the hotel was going to be packed anyway, so any extra room would be great. So... Yeah. I did it for the greater good of Great Britain. I'm such a patriot... To a foreign country. Okay. That's beside the point.

Anyways!

Yes, I ended up staying, and so we wheeled my luggages back to my room, and Minjeong insisted on helping me unpack. Now, Journal-nim... That's when I noticed.

She looked so happy.

I tasked her to unpack my school stuff, and she did so with a huge smile on her face, humming a weird song about... Snakes? (She kept singing 'Black mamba... Ma-ma-ma-mamba...' and then 'Ayayayayayaya'). ...

Okay that was really weird.

But... She looked absolutely happy. And that was all that mattered.

I don't mind a little weirdness.

So... That's how the story goes this morning. We finished unpacking, and once everything was in place, she smiled from ear to ear and skipped out of my room, telling me that she'd talk to me again during lunch. That was supposed to be right about... Now.

"HAJOON-HYUNG! BAB MEOKJA! LUNCH HERE!'

No, Journal-nim. I didn't write it in all caps by mistake.

She did just SCREAM those words out loud. Now I'm hearing her laughing. She's evidently so happy.

Journal-nim... Why was she so happy?

She....

She couldn't, could she?

[magnoliabloomfield]

Garden of Heathen- 15 Heebie Jeebies

Masterlist

When Gally's eyes landed on Aussie the thoughts of love dissipated like a mist. His brows furrowed and his head cocked to the side when he saw her hunched over the paper, rubbing the pencil over it in quick, broad strokes. She'd covered about half the page in lead already.

"What are you doing?" He questioned as he strode over to her.

She looked up at him and it took a second for her eyes to focus properly.

"I know this looks crazy but I promise it makes sense," she assured him a bit manically. "You know how... when you have a note pad or a stack of papers and you write a note on the - on the top one, the top piece of paper, the pressure kind of copies the words to the page underneath? And when you rub a pencil over it you can see the words?"

He did know exactly what she meant and his eyes widened. There could be more to this note than initially met the eye. He leaned over her to see what had come to light so far.

"It's not easy with the creases from the folding, but there's definitely something here, and Gally?" She stared up at him with a spooked look in her eyes. "I think it's ... my handwriting."

"Your handwriting?" He repeated as his brows furrowed deeply. "How is that even possible?"

"I dunno. I don't know if it is mine, or if it just looks like mine, or how it could be possible-" she rubbed her forehead then ran her hand over her mouth.

"It's ok, it's ok," he said as he placed his hand on her back in an effort to calm her down. "That's not important right now, let's first see what it says, alright?"

"Ok," she agreed with a sigh. She bent over and continued to color in the page.

Gally kept his hand on her back as she worked. Something caught his eye and he looked up to see a shaft of light coming down from up stairs.

"Did someone come down here?" He asked her absently.

"I thought I heard the door open earlier," she confirmed without stopping her work.

Gally shrugged it off as Gertie or one of the others checking on them. Maybe they hadn't closed the door all the way behind them when they came down. He soon forgot all about it, thoroughly distracted by, not only the mystery of the note, but that he was alone with Aussie, breaking the No Touching Rule.

"Ok, finished," Aussie slapped the pencil down on the table, the side of her palm covered in grey lead. She stood straight and held the note up. Gally's hand traveled up her back to rest on her shoulder as he leaned in for a better look. He held one side of the paper and she held the other as they leaned further under the light, trying to get just the right angle to see the faint words.

Chan el or Pa e Th is not w t I si ned u for. Y u dec ve me. I ver wa ed an ne to et hurt. I ca t do t is an more.

At this point neither of them noticed the light begin to sway.

If you do t stop im d tly I will be f rced to t ke act on. W t yo re do ng to th se kids wro g and I can't al ow it to co tinue. Th trials must end ow

Trials? What was it saying about trials? Aussie could hardly see with the shadows moving across the page.

Wait. Aussie looked up, wondering where these shadows were coming from. She was just in time to see a metallic claw, like some kind of robotic chameleon foot, reach out and grab the top of the paper. She followed it upwards and saw it was attached to an equally robotic body, like some kind of toy insect. It was hanging from the light bulb and it was trying to steal the note.

Aussie didn't let out a stereotypical high pitched scream, but she certainly did scream, startling Gally half to death. Luckily she had sense enough to wrench the note away from the thing, it's little claw keeping just a tiny scrap of paper. She had grabbed ahold of the front of Gally's shirt by the time he had noticed and reacted to the thing as well, and was pulling him toward the stairs faster than he thought she could go.

"What is that what is that whatisthat??!!" She yelled as they thundered up the steps, the note clutched protectively to her chest.

Gally slammed the door behind them, hoping the thing wasn't faster than them and was now trapped in the basement. They both stood there, breathing heavily but trying to be quiet and listen for whatever that was. Gally looked up, making sure there was nothing on the ceiling here. He wondered if that thing had friends. His question was answered when Aussie screamed again, kicking her leg violently and sending a metallic blur slamming into the wall of the hallway. Unfazed, the little beetle corrected itself and made a beeline for Aussie again. With another, smaller yet equally horrified, yell she tucked tail and ran for the front door.

Gally was so confused but quickly shook it off and caught up to Aussie and her pursuer outside. She had quickly balled up the note and stuffed it down the front of her bra as she ran but that thing was still after her with a single minded determination. Gally was able to get a good kick in and the thing went toppling head over arse into the grass.

"Where'd it go? Where did it go?" Aussie asked as she clutched the back of his shirt with one hand, the other placed over the note in its hiding place.

Gally kept her behind him as he looked for any sign of the thing coming back.

Aussie was not relishing the thought that this thing might be the one that stings people and there was none of this grief serum to be had if it was. There was a scuttling noise in the grass behind her and she freaked out. A few frantic seconds later found her half way up Gally and showing no sign of stopping till she was on his head. The whole thing was not graceful as he was trying to watch his own back while helping her climb higher onto him, they were throwing each other's balance off with all the moving.

The spectacle did not go unnoticed by the girls who were now up and about doing their chores.

"What is going on here?!" Joan yelled as she ran up to them spear in hand.

"Watch out!" Aussie yelled, one leg thrown over Gally's shoulder and her arms wrapped around the other one. "There's a - a little robot thing, it's attacking me for the note!"

Joan looked at her like she was crazy... but who could blame her?

"Ah! There it is!" Aussie yelled as she pointed. "Get it! Getitgetitgetit!!!"

Gally held onto Aussie as best he could and quickly backed away as the little gremlin charged again. Joan was shocked to see they were telling the truth but quickly took action. The thing was just leaping up at Gally and Aussie was screaming when Joan's spear came hurtling through the air, pinning the thing to the ground between Gally's legs.

Almost all the girls in the garden were now gathered round the scene. Aussie craned her neck to look at the thing. It was going through some kind of death throes of spitting sparks and pathetically waving limbs till it zonked out completely.

"What the heck?!" Gertie yelled as she bounded up for a closer look at it.

"Are you ok? You good?" Aussie asked Gally, rubbing the top of his head to let the dazed looking boy know she was talking to him.

"I'm good, are you good?" He replied, squeezing her thigh that was thrown over his shoulder as she was splayed across his shoulders.

"I think so," she answered. "Do you guys see any more of those things?"

They stood there like some kind of deformed totem pole as the girls looked around for more robots.

The girls all answered the same, no more creepy critters as Aussie had decided to call them. The rest of the guards encircled them with spears ready. Only then did Aussie release her death grip on Gally. He helped her gently to the ground and saw her blush.

"I'm so embarrassed," she admitted. "That was so cowardly of me, I'm so sorry."

"No it wasn't, we... we were both protecting the note," he said as he caught his breath.

"Right," Aussie dived a hand down her shirt and produced the extra crumpled note and sighed. "They know about it now."

"You're never going in that basement ever again, are you?" He asked her.

She just stared at him for a second and then the giggles broke out.

Masterlist

@frequentlychangingfandoms @quackquackbi @sweetseunghyun-poulter @crazysheeplyca @pre-google @neilox @thesuitkovian @carp3d1em @cottoncandy-dreamxd @emilyhadenbaker @a-ravenclaw-into-tardis-221b @shardsofstarlight @piscesgvancouverite @tooty-fruity

[argumentl]

The Freedom of Expression, radio version - Ep 65, Dec 2016 - Christmas, Controversial Fabreeze CM, Rocker Uchida Yūya.

Kaoru starts that by saying that its Christmas Eve today, but then corrects himself because as the show is always broadcast at 1am, its actually now Christmas day. Joe asks Kaoru how old he was before he stopped believing in Santa. This is actually a question that came via email last week, Joe had just forgotten to check it. Kaoru then repeats the question, 'Did you believe in Santa? If so, how long for?'. Kaoru thinks he probably believed in Santa until about 1st or 2nd grade of elementary school. The trigger for him no longer believing is when his parents took him to buy a Christmas present together 🤣. Joe asks what type of stuff he bought, and Kaoru replies that Doraemon was big when he was a kid, so he used to get Doraemon stuff, but also sometimes Ultraman stuff, or Robocon stuff. Joe then asks whether Dir en grey ever do Christmas events. Kaoru says they don't, neither have they every made a Christmas song. (*Imagine a Dir en grey xmas song!* 🤣)

Kaoru then reads out another email, this time from a woman who says she has recently fallen in love with a man who is super into heavy metal, and she has no idea what to talk about with him. She really wants to make him fall in love with her, so she asks Kaoru to play some heavy metal on the show that she can use, to impress the man she loves with her knowledge. Kaoru says that he himself doesn't know a lot about metal. He is not sure whether this is metal, but he decides to play one of his own songs - Tsumi to batsu.

After playing the record, Kaoru comes back on-air, saying he felt so nostalgic hearing the song, he started sweating. He then wishes the woman who sent the email well in her quest to snare her man.

Kaoru's first topic this week is about a controversial CM produced for the de-oderising product Fabreeze. The cm shows people smelling a dried, fermented fish product called Kusaya, while pulling faces, and saying it stinks. They then smell it again after using fabreeze to demonstrate how well the product eliminates bad smells. This cm has angered the residents on Hachjōjima, an island know for the production of Kusaya. The question has since arisen of whether its ok to use Kusaya as a symbol of stinky things. Kaoru and Joe are both quick to say that this food does smell bad, thats why its called 'Kusaya'(*in Japanese, stinky = kusai*). Joe says it can't really be helped if it has this kind of association, that is the identity it has. Kaoru says that it could alternatively be seen as good promotion. Joe agrees, and says there are probably a lot of young people who have never even heard of kusaya, so this might be a good chance for the makers of it to spread awareness of it. On top of this, says Kaoru, comedy shows have been know to quite often use kusaya as the typical stinky item, so he's not sure what difference this cm makes. Being stinky is its selling point. Joe says that in the current age, its so difficult to get people to take notice of things when so little info is provided. So even though this may be portrayed in a slighly negative light, the fact that it is actually getting public attention could be the starting point to revealing the true charm of kusaya to the public. This is a good chance for the people of Hachijōjima. Kaoru agrees. Kaoru thinks that commercials used to be a lot more offensive than they are now. Joe confirms that they were, and says that society used to also be much more tolerant of offensive material than it is now. Kaoru thinks the old way was more interesting. Joe continues to say that the world in general is becoming too intolerant. If anything is even a tiny bit wrong, people are so quick to go on the attack these days. He wants the world to be a bit more tolerant. One person's bad could be another person's good. Kaoru states that nowadays there is less and less for young people to aim for in terms of careers, as the world becomes more strict in its opinions. For example, in the Shōwa era becoming a teacher used to be thought of as a good job, but now becoming a teacher means having to face monster parents, so is much less appealing. Joe feels more tolerance is what the world needs.

Tasai joins them next, and Joe says he is glad its Tasai joining them on Christmas Eve, and not Hiranabe. Hiranabe would probably be full of filth. Tasai's news is about legendary rock star Uchida Yūya, then 77 years old. Tasai says that despite suffering a fall when he was recently in the UK, which resulted in him being unable to walk, Uchida (now back in Japan) has since attended a Roman Porno event. 35 years ago Uchida had starred in the Roman Porno movie 'Aaa onnatachi waika (嗚呼！おんなたち　猥歌). During the event he told a story about an actress on the movie whom he labelled 'useless' after she lost her temper. He apparently said, 'I shouldn't say who it was...but it was Takahata Atsuko'. Uchida's appearance at this event was supposed to be for a 30min talk session with director Yukisada Isao, but Yukisada only managed about 30 seconds worth, Uchida talked about his own things for the whole rest of the time. He ended the talk saying he wanted to go home, and the food there was disgusting.

They all think Uchida is pretty great. Tasai comments that Uchida's way of life is often described as 'rock', but what is the definition of 'rock', what does that even mean? Joe says he knows Uchida quite well, and there are plenty of things he can't repeat about him, but he tells a story from after the 3.11 disaster struck Tōhoku. The photographer Kurigami Kazumi had seen Uchida riding through Tōhoku on his bicycle then at over 70 years old. Kurigami had described this as 'rock'.

Joe says that Uchida is also responsible for discovering a lot of new musicians, and he was also know to many big overseas musicians, including Frank Zappa. Uchida said about himself, 'There is no one else who has contributed as much as I have the world of Japanese Rock, and has also made as little money as I have'. Kaoru says Dir en grey were once invited to Uchida's annual New Year event, but were unable to attend due to timing. They all say again that they think he is pretty cool. Joe says that Uchida did have a serialised column in Rolling Stone magazine, and for his first entry he wrote about getting arrested at Harajuku police station. Tasai thinks he would get on well with Kami.

Kaoru finishes by saying he's glad he got his new bgm finished before the show ends. He had promised to do it during the summer, but never did. He then plugs the aknot dvds, the Uroboros and Moab tours (including one date in Okinawa), tells listerners to look forward to the last episode of this radio show next week, and ends by saying 'Merry Christmas'.

Songs - Dir en grey/Tsumi to Batsu, Limp Bizkit/Nookie, Dir en grey/Ain't Afraid To Die.

To radio top

[deepperplexity]

Prompt: 3. Smiles

A/N: Here we go, day 3 of SNAPEMAS and today we get Smiles as a prompt! :D I decided to play with one of my favourite Snape love tropes in this one; age difference. So while you are young - a mere 21 of age, Severus is 43 (so, 22 years age difference - same as my grandparents btw xD)

Also, please know that I use the term 'Christmas morning' since some celebrate on the 24:th (Christmas Eve) and some celebrate on the 25:th (Christmas Day). I don't want to limit it by writing Christmas Day Morning or Christmas Eve Morning ^^ Same goes for when I write Christmas - rather than Christmas Day or Christmas Eve :P

Setting: Diagon Alley, Sugarplum's Sweets Shop

Pairing: Snape x Reader

Word count: 1467

Warnings: Fluff, Age Difference

Masterlist page // Masterlist post // SNAPEMAS POST

Diagon Alley was brimming with activity, teeming with merriness and joy as people rushed here and there. But you, however, did not rush. You simple walked slowly through the crowd with your boyfriend next to you. Your arm wrapped around his. Your heavy coats kept you nice and toasty as tiny flakes of snow sifted through the cold air.

You could not have been happier. This would be your first Christmas with the love of your life. Your first Christmas by his side. The first time you exchanged presents and the first time you'd wake up on Christmas morning and be able to cuddle in his arms. Oh, how you longed for Christmas to actually come around so you could make many new memories with your beloved.

It would be different this year of course. Your family had shunned you after you got together with Severus; he was more than twice your age and your family did not approve. He was almost as old as your own father - but what did it matter? You loved him, he loved you and you never felt as cherished as you did under his loving gaze. He was all you could ever have hoped for. And you chose him, you would always do so.

"Do you want to go in?" Severus asked as you had stopped in front of a second-hand bookstore. You shook your head, today was not for books. You both usually got stuck and the whole day would be lost. No today you wanted to be with him, in every way. "Let's go there," you said and pointed towards a very pink store called Sugarplum's Sweets Shop. Severus's lips tugged in a half-smile as he nodded. "As you wish, love," he said and your heart pounded at his voice and the utterance of the word 'love'.

The store was quite full of people but they seemed to clear a path as Severus strode in with his commanding presence. He always did that, it was just who he was and you loved it. His command, his aura, his posture and the respect he seemed to demand just by breathing. You relished in his strength and felt as soft as cotton in comparison. As brittle as glass. Yet he was like a barrier between you and all things that could break you. You were safe with him. Strong with him. Happy and carefree with him.

You looked around, there were sweets of all kinds; and pastries. The air was thick with a sugary scent and it was too hot with the heavy cloak you wore. But it didn't matter. You took his hand and dragged him over to the liquorice corner. So many goodies, you thought as you let go of Severus and looked at all the sweets. You smiled so broadly, had you not had ears it might have gone all the way around your head.

"What should we get?" you asked and turned towards Severus. He smiled at you, one of those smiles he never gave to any other person, as his arms laid crossed over his chest. "Whatever you wish, love," he said in that rumbling voice of his that made your heart pound a little harder as your knees grew a little weaker. You gave him a joyful expression before you turned back to the liquorice. you grabbed a bag and started to fill it with four pieces of each candy you wished to eat and share with him.

You walked around the store, filled your bag with care and grabbed a few pastries as well. You wanted to share them with him, with your beloved Severus and see his smile as you both shared such a sweet little moment in private. You were well aware that he had a different persona in front of others. That he had to, it was like a protective wall of his own. Like he was to you. But you didn't mind. You knew his true nature and the love he held for you. Just thinking about it made you all giddy.

He came up behind you as you were pondering whether to take the pumpkin pastries or the cinnamon rolls. He gave the top of your head a kiss and whispered in your ear, "Take both, darling. You know you will regret it later otherwise." You giggled as he gave your warm ear a little nibble before he kissed your jaw tenderly. You grabbed both the pastries and the rolls before he led you to the register.

Your goodies were packed, Severus paid and out the door you went. Your arm yet again wrapped around his as he carried the bag with all the goodies in his free hand. You talked animatedly about how you wanted to decorate his house, buy a tree, make a Christmas dinner among many other Christmas related activities. He barely said a word but every time you glanced up at him he wore the brightest of smiles. Despite being in public. Despite the looks everyone gave you. Despite the whispers and the people who swirled to avoid walking in his path. He smiled so brightly. You could not help but smile just as brightly as you walked down Diagon Alley.

When you arrived at Severus's house at Spinner's End you hung up your coat, kicked off your snowy boots and slipped your feet in the fluffy slippers he had bought you a few weeks ago. You had only complained once, once, that the floors were a little cold and just an hour later he presented you with the cutest little bunny slippers that were so soft and warm it felt as though you walked on sun-heated clouds.

You had grabbed the bag from him before you headed to the kitchen. You unpacked the goodies and placed them in different boxes to keep them fresh in the hopes you would be able to enjoy it all for a few days at least. Severus came in on muffled steps. His arms wrapped around you as he kissed the top of your head again. You leaned back into him and that smile was back yet again.

"If you don't stop my cheeks are going to hurt," you chided softly as your hands landed on his forearms that were wrapped right over your chest. "Stop what?" he murmured softly and the words vibrated through your entire body as his voice seemed to reach every inch of you. "Making me smile like this," you hummed and closed your eyes, completely content.

Severus chuckled and kissed your temple. "Never. It is my mission in life to keep you smiling," he said and you giggled. "Sev, you're so sweet." "Hm, perhaps for you. For you," he murmured and kissed your temple again, "I will be as sweet as I can." His words made you tremble and you felt so adored it nearly burst out of you in pure energy.

"This Christmas will be the greatest one ever," you sighed happily as your thumb stroked his arm. "I am sorry your family has not-" "Oh hush, they can rot in their mansion without the joy of watching the golden star on top of the tree." Severus leaned back a little and you looked up at his pondering face. You smiled wickedly on a soft shrug of your shoulder. "It's mine, the golden star was a gift from my great grandfather and it always sits at the top of the tree, every Christmas. Well, except, this year it will sit at the top of our tree," you said with that wicked smile and he let you go on a soft hum.

You spun around and embraced him as you tilted your head back to look him in the eye. "It is mine and it will be where I will be. And I, I will always be with you, from now and until the end of time." Severus's arms encased you in warmth as he gave your smiling lips a soft kiss. "You are a wicked delight, my love," he chuckled, "and I am the happiest man in the universe to be with you." You reached up and kissed him to convey all the feelings you had for him. He returned the favour.

You kissed while you smiled and everything seemed right in the world. Warmth, light and heavenly love filled you up as he refused to let you go until you wined about eating the goodies you had purchased earlier. And even then he only let go a little bit, so you could reach the goodies before he walked you to the living room with his hand at your lower back. His face in such a bright smile it made you feel as if the brightest of Christmas lights had nothing on his shine.

Day three of SNAPEMAS and this was just a pure joy to write - I so rarely stick to just fluffy love stuff ( I don't feel I'm really good at it so xD ) but this was so rewarding to write. I feel as though our lovely Snape deserves to have some pure love and joy in his life. Especially around Christmas!  

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and please join me for SNAPEMAS - it is not too late! :D 

Masterlist page // Masterlist post // SNAPEMAS POST 

Tags: @lizlil​  Want to be tagged? Please tell me! :D

[Dec:2020]

[comradelup]

@taz-channukah-event / dec 17th: author’s choice!

“Yeah… no, I get it… I’ll tell them, we’ll be fine,” Taako says into the phone, peering out the curtain. The snow falls in big fat flakes, and there’s billions of them. He can barely see the end of the driveway.

He walks away from the window and starts pacing back and forth, very much aware of the three pairs of eyes on him.

“We should just be a tiny bit late, it isn’t that bad,” Lup says over the phone.

“They can’t hear you, Lu.”

“…Yeah, we won’t make it.”

Taako sighs heavily, a hand coming to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Okay. Okay. That’s fine.”

“It’s not! We wanna spend Channukah with our babies!” Lup whines, sounding very much like a baby herself.

“Well, first off, your youngest is five, hardly babies,” Taako says, sending a grin the kids’ way as he says it. Gordie, the five year old in question, giggles. “Second, it’s just one night, they’ll be fine.”

“…I guess you’re right.”

“Of course I am!” Taako says jovially, placing a hand on his hip and winking at the kids. “Uncle Taako’s always right!”

“Yeah!” the kids cheer, and he can tell Lup heard it, because she laughs wetly.

“It’s settled then!” Taako announces, adopting a goofy gesture as he addresses his sister. “You and Daddy hide at Grandma Marlena’s house, while Uncle Taako and his anklebiter army fights off the snowstorm monster!”

Gordie and Izzy giggle at that; Jo is the oldest and least entertained by this but they still smile at the silliness, which makes Taako feel a little less bad about how ridiculous he must look right now. He’s learned that uncle-hood means a lot of sacrificing your dignity for kids.

Izzy says, “Can we say bye to Mommy?”

“Duh!” Taako says, and he puts the phone on speaker to let the kids yell at Lup.

He lets them trade goodbyes and “Happy Channukah”s and everything else that parents and kids talk about. Once the call’s over, he pockets his phone and claps his hands together.

“So! We’re home alone with free reign of the place.” He leans down to grin conspiratorially at them. “What do we do first?”

“Let’s make latkes!” Gordie exclaims.

“I wanna play dreidel,” Izzy says.

“And what about you, fireball?” Taako asks Jo.

“I, uh… I gotta go to the bathroom,” Jo says quickly, standing up and darting away.

That’s… probably something to look into later. But for now Taako lets them go, yelling after them, “Make sure to wash your hands, dirty bird!”

The other two giggle, as intended. Taako crouches before them and says to Gordie, “But I guess I should be telling you that, huh pipsqueak?”

Izzy laughs at him. “Yeah, babies need their diaper changed.”

“I’m not a baby! I’m five,” Gordie says, holding up his hand for emphasis.

“Oh yeah? Well I’m seven,” Izzy says, holding up seven whole fingers while blowing a raspberry.

“And I’m four hundred and twenty-three,” Taako says, “Count that on your fingers.”

Izzy stares at her hands, trying to find a way to do that, but Taako scoops up Gordie into his arms before they get too into math, yuck.

“I’m up for latkes! Who said latkes?” he asks, spinning Gordie in a big circle to elicit a laugh from him.

“I did!” Gordie cheers.

“Then let’s go, latke boy!” Taako says, making an airplane noise as he flies Gordie into the kitchen, Izzy trailing after and saying something about getting a turn.

(Of course, she gets one. The duties of an uncle includes nearly tossing a tiefling girl into the air and not impaling yourself on the way down. At least she’s not the one who bursts into flame when too excited.)

They’re almost done with their first batch of pancakes when Jo leaves the bathroom. They sit down at the kitchen island looking rather gloomy. That’s not gonna fly, not in Taako’s (sister’s) kitchen.

“Hey, you’re ten, not sixteen, no emo angst,” Taako tells them, pointing a spatula at their face.

“I’m not emo,” they reply, sounding… empty.

Taako might not be as good an uncle as he thought; his kids shouldn’t be sounding like that.

“Gordie, Izzy,” Taako says, turning to his little sous-chefs. He tasked Izzy with (carefully) grating potatoes for their second batch and Gordie with cracking an egg into a bowl and (gently) beating it. But they both stop what they’re doing and turn to him.

He plasters on a mischievous smile and says, “Go into the guest room and get the dreidels from my bag on the bed. I brought all of my collection, so pick your favorites.”

The two practically get stars in their eyes and run off to go retrieve the tops. Taako turns back to his pan.

“Spit it out, what’s up with you?” He doesn’t phrase it as a question.

“…I don’t wanna talk about it,” Jo says.

“Is it ‘cause your parents aren’t here?” Taako asks, and his voice gets softer. He glances over in time to see Jo nod silently.

He sighs. At this age, Jo won’t be distracted from stuff with games and food, they actually think broadly. Fuck, Angus is their age and look at all the thinking he does! …Point is, Taako should’ve expected this.

“Listen,” he says, unable to have a formal heart to heart due to having to keep an eye on the food. “I know it sucks, I want ‘em here too. You think I’m happy spending a Channukah night without my twin sister? No way.”

“Then why are you acting like this?” Jo asks, looking impatient. “Don’t just pretend they aren’t here!”

“I’m not pretending, I’m distracting. Look, your siblings would whine and cry if I acted like you are right now. Do you want them to cry?”

“…No.”

“No, ‘cause I don’t wanna deal with the headache that’d give me,” Taako jokes, but Jo doesn’t smile. Taako sighs, moves the pan off the heat, and leans on the island across from them.

“I get that you're sad and I’m not telling you to not miss them, I get it. But we’ll see them tomorrow, and we can all spend the last night together.”

“But… I just miss them,” Jo says, and they’re pouting a little.

“I know kid, me too,” Taako says, “But! That’s the point of me being all upbeat and shit— don’t say that word.”

“I won’t.”

“Good. See, your parents would be mad or sad or whatever if they think you didn’t have any fun. All they want is for you to enjoy the holiday. Like, they’re probably having tons of fun at your grandma’s.”

(Lup and Barry are probably cuddled up on a loveseat and telling stories of the kids to Marlena; fun for them, but Taako would’ve fallen asleep five minutes in.)

Jo still doesn’t look totally convinced. Time to break out the big guns.

Taako leans in as close as he can while his feet are still touching the ground. “You wanna know the secrets to cheating at dreidel?”

Jo looks up at him. “You can cheat?”

“Oh yeah,” Taako says with a smirk. “She doesn’t do it with you kids, but your mom is the queen at cheating at that game. She would walk away from the table with her arms full of gelt.”

Jo looks delighted. Lup never lets her chaotic side show in front of the kids, so Taako’s stories about it are guaranteed to be attention grabbers.

“I can show you how she does it, if you want.”

“Yes,” Jo says, leaning in with their hands on the table. They may be adopted, but that wicked grin on their face just screams Lup.

“But you gotta promise that it doesn’t leave this kitchen, got it?” Taako asks. They can’t have the other two learning about it and they especially can’t have their parents learning he taught them.

“Promise.”

Taako smirks and stands back up to go back to his cooking. “Good.”

Soon they were all gathered around the dining room table with bellies full of latkes and trading gelt back and forth. Taako winks over every cheated spin, and Jo is laughing.

That’s the reaction uncles should be getting. Much better.

[therealrosebuddies]

Slow dancing can be dangerous too

Warnings: none!

Pairings: The Mandalorian x Reader

Other drabbles: 1, 2

Description: Maybe part of a series I’ll write? I was just feeling like writing a little bit of fluff- that’s really all this is! 

The Mandalorian woke to the sound of soft music. 

It was a slow way to come out of sleep, slow and comforting. Those feelings were almost alien at this point, a peculiar sensation- but not one that he minded. The melody created a warm haze, projecting the allusion of relaxation and safety- almost like he didn’t live the life he did. Like he didn’t have to keep a constant vigil or keep his guard up. It felt perfect.

But soon, the music grew a bit too out of the ordinary for him to ignore it.

The bounty hunter groaned softly, pulling himself out of the pilot's seat. As he did so, his helm clanged against the low hanging ceiling and sent him stumbling back against the chair. Mando shook his head as he leaned away from the seat, stopping for a moment to listen.

The music was still there- it hadn’t been a dream.

In fact, the music was coming from below. If anyone knew what these sounds were, it was you. 

The Mandalorian made his way down to the cabin of the ship, pausing by the ladder to glance downward. He… He didn’t see you.

Brows furrowing under his visor, the Mandalorian took the ladder two steps at a time, leaping to the ground before he had reached the last rung. With one sweep of the cabin, he saw you weren’t anywhere to be found.

And neither was the child.

A sudden spike of pain shot through the bounty hunter’s chest and propelled him towards the door, the momentary sense of comfort forgotten. His gloved hand punched the keypad, while his other arm lay ready at his side, blaster a fingertip away. If anything had happened to either of you-

The Mandalorian stopped, almost flinching in surprise.

Framed in the soft glow of the town below and swaying with the music, stood you and the child. Well, you were bent over and hobbling, trying to stay low enough so the child could grip your fingers and still dance. It looked uncomfortable, but your open-lipped smile said otherwise.

Your bounty hunter let out an inaudible sigh of relief, leaning against the door frame. Leave it to you to look like you were suddenly missing, only to be messing around outside the ship. Sooner or later, you were going to kill him.

He watched as you swayed in your crouch, careful to not let your fingers slip out of the green fists that held them. The child’s eyes and mouth were wide, a gaping smile that let out random noises of delight, especially when you swung them. It was the way a child should have ought to have spent their time, but the Mando hadn’t been able to give that to them.

Luckily he had you. 

The Mandalorian knew he was cold at times and unable to play as much with the child as a normal parent would have. He tried his best, but sometimes his best wasn’t good enough. Especially when he had no idea what species the child was. But now that you were here, his burden felt lighter. Through your combined efforts, there was a chance that the kid would end up all right… and Mando was grateful for it. For you.

You spun the child in a circle, holding onto its tiny arms as you lifted it close, now again swaying to the music. As you turned, your eyes landed on the Mandalorian. The corners of your eyes crinkled with the force of your recognizing smile, making the bounty hunter’s palms go sweaty. 

You were beautiful.

Of course, he had known that from the moment he had met you, even when covered in sweat, dirt and little bit of blood. It had always been a fact- an unimportant one that never really seemed to register. Before, it hadn’t been important. You had hired him- you had been his client.

But now he realized that had changed. He didn’t know how or when- but it had.

His breath caught as your smile turned to a smirk, swaying closer to the ramp of the ship.

“Finally awake?” You asked, though not expecting an answer.

You leaned in time with the music, glancing down at the child as you teetered comically far, the child letting loose a scattered peal of laughter.

“Why are you out here? I didn’t know where you were.” The Mandalorian reported, trying to keep his tone cool as he walked down the ramp to meet you.

You cocked an eyebrow, unfooled by his tone. Pressing closer, you narrowed your eyes, still swaying.

“Was somebody worried?”

The Mandalorian stayed his ground on the grass, trying to maintain his impassive demeanor. Unfortunately, you had been his only crewmate for too long- you knew him too well. You smiled again, breaking eye contact and twirling in a circle around him, the kid in tow.

“Dance with me.”

“No.”

“Dance with us?” You asked again, holding the child close to your face, sticking out your lower lip.

The Mandolorian stayed silent and watched you sway backward, now standing in front of him. Your teasing expression ebbed, falling into a soft affection that felt like a punch in the gut. For a moment you stayed like that, giving him a once over that made Mando’s armor feel useless. You seemed to see straight through his stiff words, to the real feelings he was hiding.

But then the child began to squirm, arms, legs, and body wriggling. They no longer wanted to be held. You let out a betrayed breath, shoulders sagging as you realized your ally was abandoning you. Shooting a glare up at the Mandalorian, you lowered the baby to the ground.

“You did that. He’s copying you.” You bemoaned, smile gone, “You’re a horrible fun-sucker.”

The bounty hunter cocked his head at your word choice, watching as you turned your back to him. You had offered those last few words as a joke, something that had meant to feel light-hearted. He knew you hadn’t meant for him to take them seriously. But he had seen your expression as you turned around. You were honestly bothered by no longer dancing. Mando had felt the laidback air rush out of you as soon as you realized you were outnumbered. Your rare carefree attitude was gone, replaced by a cut-off, embarrassed silence. And it was his fault.

So before he could stop himself, the Mandalorian was walking towards you. 

You twitched as you heard him coming closer, obviously surprised. He watched you look over your shoulder, hair framing your jawline. Your frown wasn’t guarded anymore… it was confused. For a moment, Mando almost stopped there. Your obvious perplexion to his simply walking closer was almost enough to send him back towards the ship, safe from your knowing gaze. But he knew how you would end up if he did.

“You weren’t dancing right.”

“What?” You blurted as your eyes widened in disbelief, looking like a eopie in the headlights.

The Mandalorian steeled his nerves, taking the last few steps till he was practically toe to metal boot with you. He reached up slowly, taking your bent forearms in his hands. He wasn’t looking at your face. He couldn’t.

The music from the town below still swelled up to the small hill where you stood, just loud enough for the beat to be followed. Mando tilted his head slightly, finding the rhythm of the slow tune.

Then he stepped backward, pulling you stumbling along with him. He felt your hands scrambling against the plating of his arms, recovering from the surprise. As much as you had professed wanting to dance, you didn’t seem very prepared for it. Ironic. The thought would have made him crack a smile, if his heart hadn’t been hammering so hard.

Your dance partner guided you across the grass, steps slow and controlled, much more thought out than the twirling movements you had been performing earlier. The bounty hunter felt your hands relax against his elbows, falling into the gap in his armor. It was then that he finally risked a look at you. Though instead of a comforting smile, he found something much, much worse.

You were staring up at his helmet, eyes still uncommonly wide. The rosy complexion on your face failed to be hidden by the low lighting, drawing attention to your flushed cheeks and parted lips. His gaze lingered on your lips much longer than he should have, taking in their soft shape and curve. When he realized what he was doing, his gaze snapped back to your eyes, which were only slightly less disarming.

But then you were smiling, arms twining cautiously around the Mandalorian’s shoulders. He let you do so, a warm pit growing in his stomach as you grew closer. 

“I didn’t know you were a dancer.” You murmured, voice soft and heavy, almost fading in with the music.

“I’m not,” Mando answered, hands tentatively ghosting across your hips before finding their place.

The warmth of your body seemed to seep through the gloves, which usually would have made him nervous. But now the sensation just felt familiar. The rhythm of your breathing, the glow of your smile, and the basic form of your company was enough to put the Mandalorian at ease. The two of you swayed in tandem with the music, letting a comfortable silence fall between your steps. As you moved about the grass, the child watched, following the languid movements of your legs. It was hypnotic enough to put a baby to sleep. Which it eventually did.

“Do you think we should take him inside?” You whispered, arms shifting against his neck.

“Soon. But he might stay asleep there.” The Mandalorian offered, hating the way his stomach dropped when he thought of letting you go.

You turned back to him hazily, all surprise and guard gone. The expression you wore was almost identical to the one he had found you with before he had unwillingly ruined your fun. It was the type of gaze that would have disarmed him before, prompting him to run away. But something was different now. The Mandalorian was slipping, and at the moment- he didn’t care. The same feelings that used to send him running were now doing the opposite, tethering him tight to the spot next to you. It was a dangerous game to be skirting the edge of... but the lull of the music and your proximity made it hard to think. 

But for tonight, he decided that it would be fine- letting his guard down.

[mareebird]

Santa’s Little Helper

It’s my Christmas fic, y’all.

Not relic universe.

TITLE: Santa’s Little Helper

Summary: Loki wrangles Thor into playing Santa at the mall.  Family feels are had.  It’s sacherine and fluffy.

Wordcount: 2400 (because it’s Dec. 24...)

-----

In retrospect, it had been the enormous cinnamon roll’s fault.

Loki was half-way through his snack, and half-way to regret over purchasing it in the first place, when he saw the long queue of children waiting to meet the mall Santa.

He was determined to finish the roll, of course, as sickeningly sweet as it was—much like Christmas in general, but Loki rather surprisingly enjoyed that part.  Thor had promised to split the dessert with him, but his promise had been empty.  One bite and he was satisfied.  He had never shared Loki’s love of sweets.

And, well, Thor had put on a lot of sympathy weight since Loki’s last visit.

But part of the problem was that Thor was laden with bags upon bags of Christmas presents.  He was responsible for all of the shopping this year.  Jane was in no condition to help and Thor was taking his duties very seriously, as he always did.  He refused to let Loki vanish anything away, even for the sake of freeing his arms.

So in order for him to share the roll, Loki would have to feed him by hand.  And that was not going to happen.

Oh well.  More Cinnabon for me, thought Loki.  That was before the nausea set in.

But the line of children had spilled out of Santa’s Workshop and was now circling around a fountain and trailing all the way toward the entrance of Bloomingdales.  Loki frowned and tilted his head.  Thor must have thought he was actually looking at Bloomingdales, because he gestured and mentioned something about buying yet another gift for Jane.

“That line is far too long,” said Loki.  “It’s deplorable.”

“Huh?”

“Children should not be made to wait that long to see the Santa.”

“The Santa?”

Loki began tapping his foot on the floor.  He tapped his fork against the side of the roll, as well, before stuffing another mouthful of what was mostly icing between his teeth.  It tasted like pure childhood.  The amount of sugar was beginning to make him vibrate.

“That line must be hours long.  The children look as though they are being tortured.  Visiting the Santa should be fun.  It should be a happy memory.”

“First of all, it’s just Santa.  Not The Santa.”

Loki did not care for the correction.  It failed to embarrass him, but Thor had been in a very agitated mood as of late, and it was grating on everyone else.  Jane had all but begged Loki to take him off her hands for a few hours.  He was constantly overwhelmed, constantly worried, and though he had every reason, even Loki thought he might be overdoing it a bit, and that said something.

Then again, the pressure was not on Loki.  He was only going to be an Uncle.   Jane was due with his nephew any day now.

“They wait in lines like that every year," Thor went on.  "You’ve never been to the mall at Christmas before.  How do you even know what meeting Santa is?”

Loki shrugged.  Context clues.  Never mind the fact that the modern-day Midgardian Santa was heavily influenced by Woden, a Germanic interpretation of Odin…

Loki liked Santa far better.  A jolly old man who adored children of every race and creed?  It was a vast improvement, in his personal opinion.

He sighed.

But Thor was right, Loki had never been to the mall at Christmas.  He did spend a good amount of time on Earth these days, paying visits to his brother and Jane that probably out-stretched his welcome, but this was his first visit to encompass a major Midgardian holiday.  Loki had quickly decided that Christmas was a good thing and all his favorite parts were the ones that celebrated the happiness of children.

Surprise surprise.

Children made to wait for hours?  Loki did not care for that.  “I think something’s gone wrong.”

“Wrong?”

Loki pointed with his fork.  “See those gnomes?  They appear to be discussing grave matters.”

“Gnomes?  You mean, elves?”

Elves?  Hm.  Loki had a very different concept of what elven peoples looked like.

One of the elves was on the telephone.  The others were milling about with furrowed brows, wringing their hands.  They looked like lunatics, and sounded like them, too, with jiggling bells sewn into their clothes, but it still plucked a minor chord in Loki’s heartstrings.  Perhaps his sugar rush was already crashing.

“I don’t know what to tell you, Brother,” sighed Thor.  “The line is long because everyone wants to meet Santa.  He’s very popular—Loki, where are you going?”

Loki was going to find out what had gone wrong, that was where he was going.  If this holiday was about bringing children joy then, by the Norns, he was going to see to it that it did not bring them tears instead.

He stuffed the remainder of his cinnamon roll into his mouth and discarded the evidence in a trash can.

“Excuse me, is something the matter?” he addressed one of the fretful employees, a teenage girl who looked as though she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.  From behind, he could hear Thor running to catch up.

“I'm sorry.  Santa’s been...detained,” she said, maintaining meager poise in her polite reply.  “We’re gonna close the workshop.  Can you come back tomorrow…? Oh my god, you’re Loki.”

“What do you mean detained?”  Loki ignored the girl’s shock at seeing him.  It was a typical reaction, even if he was on better footing with the humans these days.  PR was everything.  Having an Avenger for a brother helped.  But that wasn't important right now.  Loki distinctly remembered seeing Santa when he and Thor first arrived, seated upon his Christmas throne, taking photographs with the children.  So where was he now?

"He left for lunch and we haven't heard from him…  Oh my god, you’re Loki.  And Thor!” gasped the second elf.  The bells on her pointed hat rung with her surprise.

“Yes, yes...” Loki sighed.  Thor laughed with Santa-like jocularity.  In the spirit of Christmas, Loki refrained from jabbing him in the ribs.

The third elf had been on the telephone this whole time: an ancient, tan device with a curly cord—how it was able to contact anyone was beyond Loki.  Abruptly, she hung up.  “I got a hold of him.”

“Where is he?” the other elves asked at once.

“The hospital."

"What?!"

"His son was in a car accident…  Oh my god, it’s Loki and Thor.”

Of course, Loki had always known the man dressed as Santa was an actor, but hearing about something so grizzly was jarring.  The trio of elves flew into a flurry over the news.  The son was hurt, but not seriously.  His father needed to mind the grandchildren until someone else could step in.  Everything would be fine.  The only tragedy was that he could not return to the mall until later that night.

They needed to shut down the Workshop for the rest of the afternoon.

“Would you like the two of us to step in?” asked Loki.

The elves might as well have been smacked upside the head, the way they suddenly lost their balance.

Thor made a sound as though he had choked.  “What?”  Suddenly, his hand was around Loki's elbow.  "That enormous Cinnabon went straight to your head.  Are you crazy?"

"That's irrelevant."

"Jane is expecting me home."

"No, she's not," protested Loki.  "She kicked you out so you would stop driving her mad with your incessant fawning—"

Thor winced.  Loki shut up.  He felt a bit bad about pointing out just how annoyingly intense Thor's caregiving had been as of late, but it was the damned truth, although he could hardly blame Thor.

"These gnomes need our help," Loki pressed on.  The sugar would power him through.  "Are you not sworn to protect this realm?"

Thor rolled his eyes.  Loki scowled.  How could Thor not understand?  It was of the utmost importance that they not send these children away.

"Please."

Thor blinked at him.  Slowly.  “You really want to play Santa, Loki?”

Loki haughed.  "Oh no.  Don’t be silly.  You’ll have to play Santa.  I'm just your agent.”

Thor looked down at himself, frowning, half-dazed.  “I admit, I’m not in the best shape of my life, but playing Santa—”

Loki waved a hand.  They did not have time for Thor to be ridiculous.  “I’ll have to disguise you.  Obviously.”

“Wait a minute.  You’re the one who actually wants to…”  Thor stopped himself, looked around, and lowered his voice.  “You’re the one who came up with this idea.  You be Santa.”

“Do you want to go back and forth on this?  I could never play a believable Santa, even in costume.  It’s not my type.  It’s laughable.  Are you going to do this for the children or not?”

Loki knew he was manipulating his brother, but only the slightest bit, because he also knew that even if Thor began to walk away, he would only turn around and march straight back.  He was Thor to a fault.

Slowly, Thor placed his bags on the floor.  Loki vanished them away before he could even begin to change his mind.

"I'm not… as good with children as you are…"  Thor muttered.  He met Loki's eye.

"You'll be fine.  I promise."

"Will I, though?"

Loki's breath caught, as he realized Thor might not be asking about the children in the queue.

One of the elves jumped up and down and clapped, unaware of the silent exchange.  “Oh my god, I can’t believe this is happening.”

Loki’s heart broke just the slightest bit for his brother, but there was no time to have a family chat now.  Loki cast a spell over Thor.  With a sound like the wind, his clothing filled out and became bright red, a far more brilliant hue than the standard mall costume.  Loki much preferred the older depictions of Santa he had seen on Christmas cards, as far as fashion went.  He finished off with a long red coat and buttons trimmed to look like cookie icing, and the hat was a proper nisse cap.

“I’m going to sweat to death in this,” said Thor.  Loki had kept his face the same beneath it all, but one could hardly tell beneath the long, white beard that extended all the way to his lap.

“You’ll be fine.  Think of it as losing your sympathy weight.”

Thor shot him a tiny glare.  “And what are you going to wear?”

Loki hardly had to think before changing into a sharply tailored, velvet, forest green suit, complete with a silk waistcoat.

“You look like a butler,” said Thor, wrinkling his nose.

“This is proper attire for one of Santa's handlers.  No offence.”  Loki glanced at the elves and, with a shrug, gave himself a pair of pointed ears.  Thor rolled his eyes, but Loki did not pay him any mind.  He was too busy pushing Thor toward his throne in the Workshop—although why a workshop needed a throne was beyond him.  “All you need to do is make this a magical and perfect experience for each child.”

“Piece of cake,” Thor said dryly, or at least, he sounded as though he had said something like that.  It was possible that parts of Loki's cinnamon roll had lodged themselves in his brain, never to leave.

A roar of clapping and cheers erupted from the exhausted crowd in the queue.  "Your Santa is here!" Loki shouted above it all, and the cheering only grew louder.

Thor waved.  Then, he slowly began to grin.  Loki had do doubt that his brother would do an excellent job, with his help.  This would be a learning experience.  Thor was right, Loki was better with children, probably because at heart, he still was one—even if his heart was a bit crusty around the edges.  Christmas was an excuse to shed all of that.

A little girl was at the front of the line.  Loki could hardly fathom how long she'd been waiting.  He met her at the gate and took her by the hand.

"I'm ever so sorry for the wait. I'm...Charles...the North Pole butler.  What's your name?" He asked, while one of the mall elves guided her parents to the side of the Workshop.

"Violet," she said, in a sweet, chipmunk-like voice.  She was wearing a dress the color of plums.  She could not have been more than four years old.

"Oh, that's right!  I remember now.  Hello, Violet.  Are you having a nice day?"

She nodded.

"Excellent!  Santa will be so happy to hear that."  Loki guided her to Thor, who still looked more nervous than Loki had hoped.  He really did need more practice with children before his own arrived.  "Mr. Claus, this is Violet.  Remember her?  She wore such a lovely dress."

"Yes.  And...the color matches her name!"  Thor's face lit up, no doubt pleased with himself for making the connection.

The three of them chatted for a minute or so—not for too long, because there were dozens and dozens of children to see. Violet asked for a playhouse for her yard.  Photos were taken.  Candy canes were passed out.  Loki was satisfied.  No, not merely satisfied, but genuinely contented, which was a Christmas miracle of its own.

He moved to meet the next child at the gate.  Thor pulled him back by the hem of his sleeve.  "How are you so good at this?"

Loki thought for a moment.  A few memories stirred in his heart, some of them happy, some of them sad; feelings he did not know how to explain.  In the end, he shrugged.  "I'm not entirely sure.  I just make it up as I go."

"That's how you do everything," said Thor.  Loki laughed.  Thor's eyelids fluttered and his eyes glistened behind them, pleading for something a bit more meaningful than a joke.  For reassurance, perhaps.  It stirred Loki's heart.  

Loki cleared his throat.  "All you have to do," he said, "is make sure they know they are special to you."

Before they both needed to wipe away a tear, Loki turned away.  He dove both fists into the basket of candy canes.

"And if ever they need a little cheering up—"  He tossed the sweets into the crowd.  The whooped and giggled and waved their eager hands.   "I heartily suggest lots of sugar!"

[heyitmelexie]

Hey 🥺 could you do Proposal and Gift Giving for the dec. writing challenge please? with Max Lord 🥺🥺🥺 — and tag me in it too! if they’re not already taken, ofcourse. thank youuuu 🤍✨

Proposal

Maxwell Lord x GN!Reader

Word count: 2336 Warnings: soft!Maxwell Rating: General audiences

A/N: I know I’m a bit late, but at the moment I’m kind of struggling to keep up. Sorry!

Day 10 for the December Writing Challenge by @honeymandos! ❤️

I’ve had quite the struggle writing for Maxwell. He’s a more complex character than I expected. That and my brain refusing to work properly... Yeah. I hope you still like it ❤️ 

 I’m not describing the outfit that reader wears, because that’s all your choice to make! I know from personal experience that I often don’t like the outfits described or shown in reader insert works, so I’ll let you all think about what you’d wear!

I absolutely love calling him Maxie tbh haha

(It’s December in here)  ❤️

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

“Come on, baby, hurry. Why are you always taking so long?” You hear Maxwell groan from your bedroom next door, while you are getting ready in your dressing room.

Today is yours and Max’ third anniversary and of course he wants to take you out. Weird was just that he said you should dress a bit more comfortably and warm. Not fancy as usual, dressed head to toe in clothes worth more than a small car.

No, tonight he wants you casual and cosy. And you aren’t complaining, he looks magnificent in his crème-coloured woollen sweater with simple dark jeans and comfortable sneakers.

“Almost done, Maxie!” you call back, checking yourself in the mirror to see if everything is the way you want it to be.

Satisfied with your choice of clothing, you walk back into the bedroom where he stands in front of the bed, arms crossed over his chest.

As soon as he takes a look at you, his features soften and he gives you a gentle smile, the smile only you are allowed to see and it makes your knees weak. He hums in approval and pulls you flush against his chest, pressing a tender kiss to your lips.

“You look absolutely gorgeous.” His rasp sends a shiver down your spine and heat creeps up your face. He grins at you and gives your bum a soft pat before taking your hand to lead you downstairs.

“Are you gonna tell me where we’re going?” you ask him, reaching for your coat. He gently swats your hand away and takes the coat before helping you into it.

“Nope. It’s a surprise” he answers before putting on his trench coat and then his silk scarf. You pout and put on your own scarf. He just chuckles at that.

“Come on, baby, we’re already late.”

You both go outside and get into the car. Maxwell gets into the driver’s seat, which seems a bit weird to you because he doesn’t often drive himself. But you get into the passenger’s seat anyway and a moment later he starts to drive.

*

You had met Maxwell about four years ago. He chose you as his new personal assistant, deeming you the perfect choice after reading your application.

This new job brought you good money, which you really needed, and working for Maxwell was not as bad as everyone else around you were saying.

Maxwell treated you quite well. He was polite towards you, regularly assuring you that you were doing a good job for him and these subtle praises were doing quite the things to you, honestly. You noticed his occasional flirting which left you flustered and flattered. But it was not the pushy flirting other employees had told you about, no, it was subtle and… gentle in a way. Shy. As if he was afraid to scare you away.

You had seen him snap and scream at other employees when they made just the tiniest mistakes, which made you wonder why he was so different with you. But although he was nice to you, you were still afraid to overstep your boundaries, so you held back that question.

One evening you were staying with him in his office until way after 11pm again, helping him with some of the tasks he had to finish. When he looked at his clock and saw how late it was, he had told you to go home and get some sleep, he would finish the rest alone.

“It’s fine, Maxwell” he had offered you to just call him by his name instead of Mr. Lord or Sir a few months into working for him. “We’ll finish this quicker together, you need to sleep as well. Come on, just pull through and we can both go home.” You smile at him and he just huffs, but smiles as well and continues.

“Can’t believe I got so lucky with you. I’d be long lost without you by now” he had said. His praise made your heart beat faster and your smile grew wider.

You worked in comfortable silence for another hour. Once all the tasks were finished, the two of you quickly tidied up the desk and then made your way to the elevator together.

“Let me drive you home. Well, let my chauffeur drive you home. It’s late and I don’t want you to wander around the city all on your own” he said as you stepped into the elevator. He had brought you home before and you always felt more comfortable with him than when you were going home alone. So you accepted, grateful that he offered to drive you (or, well, his chauffeur to drive you). You didn’t want to bother him, so you never asked yourself if he would take you home. You always waited for him to offer it himself.

During the drive to your apartment building, you two made comfortable conversation. Upon arriving, you went to get out of the car, but he gently stopped you by putting a hand on your arm.

“This might be a bit sudden, but can I take you on a date? Tomorrow night maybe?”

You look at him, eyes wide, blinking rapidly. You tried to process what he had just asked you.

Maxwell Lord asked you to go out with him? This must be a dream.

“I uh… I mean, I, yeah why not” you say, still not quite believing he actually asked you out. He flashes you a bright smile that makes your knees wobble, grateful you were still sitting down.

“Perfect, I’ll pick you up at 7pm” he said before taking your hand and pressing a gentle kiss to the back of it.

You muster up a shy smile before exiting the car and walking to your door, grinning like an idiot.

That first date had been wonderful. He had taken you to a fancy, but not high-class restaurant, knowing you wouldn’t feel comfortable. You had told him that once and were surprised to notice he remembered it.

The two of you ate and talked about anything that came to your minds. Your childhoods, how school was for you, college/university, what your dreams were when you were younger. Even about tiny little things like favourite songs, favourite colours, what sort of ice cream you liked the most. It was pleasant and comfortable, you hadn’t wanted the night to end.

When you were back in the street you lived, he got out of the car and stepped around it to open the door for you. He had never done it before and it made your heart stutter for a moment.

Maxwell walked you to your door and when you turned around to say goodnight he just pulled you towards him and kissed you so gently you had to hold onto him, fearing your knees would give out under you. It left your stomach vibrating with the force of thousands of butterflies fluttering in it and your body covered in goosebumps.

After you said goodnight and closed the door behind you, you leaned your back against it and just smiled to yourself, feeling happier than never before.

You proceeded to go out regularly, at least once a week and after the fifth date Maxwell had asked you to be his. And you had happily accepted, loving every second you spent with him and always feeling like a literal deity in his presence.

*

He holds your hand in his during the entire car ride. It’s still light outside but the sun slowly starts to set. Soft snow is falling from the sky in big flakes, covering the roofs of the houses you pass.

You had left New York, wondering where he would take you tonight.

After another 30 minutes he pulls up in front of a small cabin in a little village, a thick layer of snow covering the floor and the roof. You look at him in confusion but he just smiles and gets out of the car, coming around to open the door for you.

You take his hand and step out of the car. He then takes a little suitcase from the backseats which you hadn’t noticed before.

“When did you pack that?” He doesn’t answer and just grins, taking your hand to pull you into the little cabin.

The cabin is cosy. It has a big fireplace with a big couch and a fluffy carpet in front of it. The open kitchen is small but rather modern and a little staircase leads you upstairs to the small bedroom and bathroom. You instantly feel comfortable and smile at him, practically glowing while he attempts to light a fire.

After a few minutes the flames are finally appearing and slowly growing, covering the room in a soft, orange glow.

Maxwell then gently pushes you towards the sofa where you sit and he bends to take off your shoes. You smile at him, gently kissing his forehead.

“You’re so soft tonight, Maxie” you hum, gently caressing his cheek. He turns his head and kisses your palm before making his way into the kitchen to start cooking something.

You didn’t even know he could cook. So you sit there, eyebrows furrowed and mouth slightly agape, watching him cook something that, after a little while, smells absolutely fantastic.

What was he planning? He had never cooked for you before.

“Maxie that smells wonderful. Why have you never cooked for us before?” you say, smiling at him when he turns his head to look at you. He just winks and continues to prepare the food, chuckling softly.

“I usually let others cook for us so I can have you in my arms every second or just so I can look at you all the time. But tonight I wanted to be completely alone with you and cook something nice myself. If you’d like it I can cook more often, love.” You hum and nod.

“I’d love that, Maxie.”

You just watch him while he works, admiring the way his back flexes sometimes.

After dinner, the two of you lay on the carpet in front of the fireplace, limbs tangled together. Maxwell gently caresses your arms. It’s peaceful.

“You know… I wanted to ask you something tonight” he says, intertwining his fingers with yours.

You look up at him and smile, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

“Why so mysterious tonight? You always just ask me when you have a question, baby. What’s wrong?”

His thumb gently strokes over your knuckle and he seems to think about his words.

“Nothing is wrong, darling. I just…” He seemed nervous.

Maxwell Lord, nervous? That worried you.

“Maxie, what-“ you start, but he puts a finger to your lips and gently stops you.

“You know I’m not good with expressing how I feel, verbally.” You nod at that, knowing he is more confident in showing you how he feels.

“But I want to try. For you” he says, a soft blush appearing on his cheeks. You gently squeeze his hand in assurance and wait for him to continue.

“The past almost for years with you and three years of our relationship have been… wonderful. I realized you were the part in my life that was missing. And you complete me, you filled that gap and suddenly it was all… good.” He blinked, trying his hardest to not mess this up.

“I love you like I’ve never loved anyone before and that fills me with… pride. I’m proud that I can make you feel good and wanted and loved. I never thought loving would be easy but with you it’s like I’ve never done anything else.”

That brings tears to your eyes and his free hand gently cups your jaw.

“Maxie…” He softly shushes you, pressing a kiss to your lips.

“I can’t imagine a life with you anymore. I’d rather die than lose you and I know I could never love anyone like I love you.” He moves to take something out of his back pocket and when he holds it in his open palm you can see a little black velvet box. Your eyes grow wide and a gasp escapes your lips.

“You deserve an hour-long speech where I tell you how much I love you but there aren’t any words that can actually describe my love for you. You’re the most precious thing in my life and I will set the world on fire if anything ever happens to you.” He opens the box and it reveals the most beautiful ring you have ever seen.

“I want you to be mine forever. I want to love you until death tears us apart and I want to continue loving you even after. That is, if you’ll have me. So… do you want to marry me?” He looks at you, puppy eyes, nervous you could reject him.

But how could you ever say no to marrying the love of your life?

You could never.

“Maxie, how is that even a question. Of course!” Tears are streaming down your face but you flash him the biggest smile and he immediately relaxes, a big smile forming on his face as well.

“Fuck, I thought for a moment you’d say now…” You laugh and gently swat his chest.

“Idiot. I love you, Max. I could never say no to marrying you. You’re the love of my life” you whisper, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

He smiles at you and takes the ring out of the box. You hold out your hand for him and he slips the ring onto your finger. It fits perfectly.

You wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him, putting all your feelings into it and just showing him this way how much you love him.

He hums lowly and wraps his arms around your torso, pulling you into him.

This is the first step into forever with Maxwell. And you can’t wait to spend the rest of your life with him.

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

Hope you enjoyed! ❤️

@absurdthirst @tangledlove27

[deviantofthemind]

Sanders Sides Ficmas 2020

↪ 𝔉𝔦𝔠𝔪𝔞𝔰 𝔐𝔞𝔰𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔭𝔬𝔰𝔱 🎁 Dec 9: Snowflake - Logicality Rating: E He was eternally grateful for Patton's foresight and preparation because when the time came, he just had to say one word. OR Logan announces a code snowflake and Patton delivers on it.

Logan's jaw was aching. Not because he had gotten into a fight with Roman, or anyone, for that matter but because he had been gnashing his teeth all day.

Sitting with everyone else on the dinner table was grating on his nerves, he had things to do and the ache from his jaw was slowly creeping upwards into his temples. It had been a few shitty weeks, with lots of unnecessary and aggravating drama.

He was so tense he could barely eat and he was sure that Patton had a very disapproving eye on him. After dinner, he and Patton were left to deal with the dishes.

“You okay, Lo? Need anything?”

It was an innocuous enough question and would have not been worth a second thought if he hadn’t come from Patton. As it stood Logan was not exactly okay and he almost always <i>needed</i> Patton, in the, you know, metaphysical sense one tends to need the person one loves. 

“I guess not?” Is what he says, instead of the very concrete thing ghosting around his mind, that would probably be incredibly useful and good right now.

“You sure?” Patton asked softly but neutrally, wiping down the table while Logan dried the dishes. He reconsidered. And Patton seemed wholly unperturbed by his silence, going about putting the cutlery away.

It would be a new thing. An intriguing thing. A thing that they had prepared for and Logan was very thankful for Patton's sensible foresight since it had taken them quite a while. He did want, right now, to get a bit out of his head, to relax, to enjoy his evening like any other person. It would cost him just one word and Patton would <i>make him</i> enjoy his evening like, maybe not, every other person.

Logan exhaled deeply, putting the last stack of dishes away. “Snowflake.”

He turned slowly to face his partner, now Dom, he guessed and Patton’s smile was patrically lighting up the dim kitchen. He stepped close, right into Logan's personal space to kiss him gently, both hands on his jaw, open-mouthed and gliding tongues. That was from zero to hundred real quick and it left Logan's head spinning a little but Patton was not letting go even after their lips parted. 

“Perfect.” Patton breathed, “Get upstairs, my room, undress. I’m with you in a second.”

Logan felt a little breathless, shaking his head to clear it, then nodding it to indicate that he had understood but Patton still was not letting go of his face.

“I can’t hear you, Lo.” Patton said sweetly, smiling a little when confronted with the visible confusion on Logan's face before understanding was taking over.

“Yes, Patton.” he simply said, getting rewarded by another peck and being released.

He was fast about his task, sprinting upstairs getting out of his clothes, shivering a little when newly naked. It wasn’t cold in Patton's room, it never was, and the newly installed fairy lights gave everything an even softer, warmer glow. So probably just nerves on his part. He wondered if it was okay to sit on the bed? 

“Hey love, here I am.” Patton interrupted his thoughts, putting a small basket down by the desk before coming over, “Perfect, very good. Please lie down, face down.”

Logan did, listening intently to Patton rustling around for a few more minutes before the bed dipped next to him and he turned his face to the side. He already felt weirdly calm and anticipatory at the same time. This was working better then he had hoped, and nothing had actually happened yet.

Pattons hand stroked down his back and ass with even pressure, almost massaging but not quite. “Okay. Something simple for today, yeah. As a first and also because you should actually take advantage after and sleep as much as you can. Remember your safewords?”

Logan nodded again, knowing his safewords and knowing what something simple meant, before remembering and almost tripping over his words to correct. “Y-es, Patton.” he turned his face back into the comforter and concentrated on breathing evenly. He knew Patton was smiling, maybe even laughing a little, even though he was out of sight, and that pleased him on a level he frustratingly struggled to explain.

The first few hits on his ass and thighs were startling and louder than he had imagined. Also he could see it potentially be humiliating, in some different setting. But it was not hurting in the way he had been prepared for, or maybe hoped for.

But then Patton checked in, placed a warm splayed hand between his shoulder blades and established a downright hypnotic rhythm. And it did fucking hurt after a few minutes. Logan could hear his own ragged breathing, his fingers were gripping the pillow like a lifeline, and there was sweat beading down his neck, his whole back a slippery plain. 

Patton checked in again and Logan was flabbergasted when he almost choked out his <i>green</i> with an accompanying sob. “Fuck, fuck- I..?”

“You’re okay, Logan, love. You can just relax, c’mon. You’re doing great. How’s your head?” Patton murmured softly, brushing a hand through Logan's sweaty hair but not waiting for the answer.

Logan's revelation that his head was indeed fantastic, that he wasn’t thinking, that his mouth was open slightly, relaxed and his tongue not pressed to the roof of his mouth was drowned out by Patton resuming his steady obliteration.

They stopped eventually. But Logan had a whole lot of difficulties sorting out his sense of time or anything really. So he let it be. The sweat, starting to rapidly cool him down, was very gently wiped away, whispering praise that Logan didn’t need to examine too closely a soothing background noise while he was floating a bit. Cool balm on his hot skin. He would feel this tomorrow, and wasn’t that wonderful?

Maybe directly after, maybe after some time he was cradled into his boyfriend's arms, leaning against his chest. A cute kiss. Patton always did cute kisses. Sometimes filthy, but always kinda cute. Logan giggled.

“Hey there you...feeling good Lo?”

“Yes, Patton.” Logan croaked a bit, but he couldn’t care less.

Patton pressed a bottle of cool water into his kinda numb fingers and made him drink a considerable amount.

“Need something else, love?” Patton asked again. But Logan didn’t. This was pretty neat, he felt a little more aware now but still bone tired and in the perfect state to fall asleep.

“No, perfect.”

“Indeed, that was perfect.” Pattons tone, tinged with pride and softness, made Logan blush a tiny bit while he curled tighter into the embrace as Patton lowered them both down to sleep.