#someone said he dropped the cake and provided pictures and I can’t stop laughing at the idea

[redpandaramblings]

Sweet Treats  Sero Hanta x F!Reader Birthday fic.

Happy birthday, @reinawritesbnha!!!  Wanted to write you a silly little fic that I hope you enjoy.

Content Warnings:-  Not SFW situations, cake destruction, nudity, crude humor, Mineta mention, awkward situations, mentions of food, mentions of drinking, probably incorrect Spanish, aged up characters.

Spanish translations are provided at the very bottom of the fic.  I suggest waiting to look them up to avoid spoilers.

Y/n protested playfully as her friend dragged her towards the well known restaurant.  “Come on, this place is too fancy.  Pro heroes eat here!  There’s no way we’re getting in without a reservation.”

Her friend laughed, continuing to lead her towards the door.  “One, it’s not too fancy for your birthday.  Two, we do have a reservation!  It’s a weekday, so it actually wasn’t too difficult to get in.  Sucks a little that we can’t party as hard, but we get to celebrate on your actual birthday, so it all works out!  Now come on!  Everyone else is inside already getting everything set up.”

Y/n rolled her eyes, but followed along without further protest.  She really had wanted to go here.  They served some of her favorite foods, and had fabulous service by all reports.  The place was really popular with the pro hero set because of their discretion and their private rooms.  Y/n hoped to maybe catch a glimpse of one of her favorites, but honestly, chances were slim.

Without any fuss, a waiter took their names and escorted them to their reserved private room.  A cheer greeted them as they walked in.

“Happy Birthday, Y/N!!!!”

“Let’s get this party started!”

And get started they did.  Drinks were served and food orders were placed.  Laughter and conversation bubbled around.  Someone pulled out Cards Against Humanity and everyone was cackling and cracking jokes, trying to find the most inappropriate answers to all the prompts.  The fun is briefly interrupted as someone knocks on the door.  A few waitstaff wheel in a covered table holding a rather large cake.  They place it in a good position before bowing and hurrying out.

One of y/n’s friends stands and walks over to it, brows furrowed in confusion.  “This doesn’t look like what we ordered…  It’s way too big.” They murmured.  “What we wanted shouldn’t need it’s own table…”  They rapped their knuckles on the table a few times to emphasize their point.

Suddenly it was like the cake exploded upward.  Flecks of frosting scattered about the room as first a brunet head, then a muscular torso came into view.  Shapely arms pose into a flexing position.  A masculine voice booms “Congrats on making the top…  fifty….”  His voice trailed off as he took in the shocked expressions of everyone in the room.  “Youuuu are not Denki.”

Y/n shook her head as she tried very hard to keep her gaze above his waist level.  A man had just jumped out of her cake.  A naked man had just jumped out of her cake.  A naked pro hero that she happened to have a massive crush on had just jumped out of her cake.  Y/n discretely pinched herself on the thigh.  Yep, it hurt.  Which means Sero Hanta was currently naked in the same room as her, his very nice looking cock covered in cake and cream.  She snapped her gaze back upward as the blushing hero began muttering to himself, clearly on the verge of a panic attack. 

“That was…  The knocks were the cue…  I mean…”

The hero sank to his knees, the messy remains of the box and cake giving him a little bit of privacy.   

“Mi vida se acabó.  Me acurrucaré en este pastel y moriré ahora.  Puedo ver los titulares.  El héroe profesional Cellophane encontrado desnudo y muerto en un pastel.”

Y/n quickly stood up, hurrying over to where the leftover party supplies were.  Luckily, there was a leftover tablecloth, since the restaurant had supplied their own.  She cautiously walked back over to Sero, holding out the tablecloth.

“Hey, it’s alright.  Promise.  Want to cover up with this?”

Sero blinked a few times, taking several deep breaths before he nodded, reaching out and taking the tablecloth.  He hurriedly wrapped it around himself, recovering some of his modesty.  “Gracias.  Lo siento.  I must have been wheeled into the wrong room.”  

Y/n nodded as one of her friends brought Sero a drink to help calm him down.  “Want us to get some staff or find your friends?  I don’t think you want to wear a tablecloth the rest of the night, though it is a rather bold fashion statement.”

Sero closed his eyes, taking a gulp of his drink as he thought for a moment.  “Flag down some staff, but ask them to bring Kirishima here?  He should have my clothes.”

“No need to get dressed on our account!”  One of y/n’s friends chirped.

“In fact we could strip if you want.  Make it all an equal playing field.”  Another friend said as they headed out the door in search of someone to help them.

Y/n buried her face in her hands and groaned.  “I’m going to murder you all.  No court would convict me.  Murder is legal on your birthday, right?”

“Wait, it’s your birthday?”  For the first time since he popped out of the cake, Hanta took his time to actually look around the room.  Black, white, and yellow balloons hung in the corners.  Crepe paper twisted around the edges of the room.  Some presents were piled in one corner.  “Oh Dios Mio, it’s your birthday.  My naked ass ruined your birthday.”

“Not ruined.”  Y/n chuckled, dropping her hands so she could look Sero in the eyes.  “Unexpected for sure.  You’ve definitely made this the most exciting birthday I’ve had.  Will be telling the story for years.  The time I accidentally got a naked man for my birthday.”

Sero raised his eyebrows.  “Not gonna mention the pro hero part?  Some people would pay good money for that, I’m sure.”

Y/n vigorously shook her head.  “No way!  I wouldn’t want to hurt your career like that!  You’ve got lots more important stuff to do than to do damage control on your public image.  I promise it doesn’t leave this room.”

The others in the room nodded and spoke up in agreement.  “Yeah dude.  Honest mistake.  We’ll laugh about it amongst ourselves, then forget about it.”

About this time, the door burst open.

“Dude!”

A blond rushed into the room.  Denki, took a moment to take in the scene in front of him before he doubled over, howling with laughter.  Kirishima, Bakugou, and Mina followed shortly behind.

“Sorry,” Kirishima rubbed his head, slightly embarrassed.  “Once Denks figured out what was going on, we couldn’t stop him.”

“This is better than if it had gone right!”  Denki wheezed, flopping over onto the floor.  “Happy birthday, nice to meet you!  Here’s my dick, give it a lick, it tastes like vanilla!”  Kaminari dissolved into nearly hysterical laughter as both Sero and y/n flushed scarlet.  Bakugou gave Denki a less than gentle boot to the ribs.  “It’s not that funny you fucking overgrown phone charger.  You really need to quit hanging out with Mineta.”

“I don’t know, guys, I think it’s pretty funny.”  Mina grinned as leaned against the doorframe.  “And I must say, the tablecloth toga is on point.  Should consider it for your next costume redesign.”

“Hardy har.  Didn’t realize this was comedy hour.  Now, did any of you payasos bring me my clothing?”

Kirishima held up a bag and gave it a shake.  “Clothes and wipes to get the gunk off ya.”

“Gracias, Eijiro.  You’re the only good man here.”

“Hey!” Bakugou objected.

“You’ll make the buen amigo list again if you manage to get services comped for these lovely folks.”

“Already did that as soon as we figured out what happened, soy sauce face.”

“Excellent.  Thank you.”  Sero sighed.  “Now can you please help me out of this table so that I can get dressed and quit intruding on the party of this encantadora dama?”

“Nope!”  Mina laughed.  “Or at least not right away.  First, pictures!”

“¿Imágenes? ¿Seriamente?”  Sero groaned.

“Absolutely!  We need to capture this moment forever!”

“Agreed!  I’ll take the pics so everyone else can crowd in and hand me your cameras if you want!” y/n’s friend piped up.

“If any of these pictures get out…” Bakugou growled.

“We’ve already been over that.  Personal mementos only!  Scout’s honour!”  y/n’s friend placed a hand over their heart and tried to tame their grin into something more serious.

And so that’s how y/n found herself perched next to her favorite hero, as flash after flash went off, taking group shots.  And it seemed that also just as quickly, Kirishima was helping to haul his friend out of the cake and cardboard remains.  They took over a corner, Denki and Kirishima holding up the tablecloth like a privacy curtain while Sero got himself cleaned up and dressed.  It was around this time that a very apologetic staff member showed up with a large angel food cake, placing it on the table while assuring everyone that their bills had been taken care of.  They wheeled out the other cake as they left.  After Sero was fully dressed, y/n cleared her throat and said,  “Would you like to stay for cake since yours is gone now?  Or have you had enough cake for the night?”

“Well,” Sero drawled, a mischievous grin on his face.  “I’m not rude enough to refuse a lady her wish on her birthday.”

“You had me at cake!”  Denki exclaimed, already sliding into a chair.

Everyone gathered around the table.  Happy Birthday was sung, candles were blown out, cake was cut and distributed.  Conversation flowed surprisingly easy, talking about jobs, and pets, and birthdays past.  Y/n shared about the birthday they’d almost accidentally set their nan on fire due to an unfortunate silly string incident.  Sero told about the birthday that was the day his quirk fully activated and he had accidentally taped himself to the ceiling.  It had taken his family half an hour to find him.  Bakugou claimed to have never had an embarrassing birthday, and threatened to explode his friends' faces when the rest of the Bakusquad started listing one thing after another.  And so several hours flew by with everyone enjoying themselves.  Bakugou finally looked at the clock and stretched, standing up.

“Hey nerds, place if going to close soon.  We need to go grab our shit.”

The others glanced at the clock before also scrambling up.  “Shit, yeah, completely lost track of time!”  Denki headed to the door.  “Later, gators!  Had an awesome night!  Should do it again sometime.  And happy birthday, Y/n!”

“Thanks, was a great night!  And congrats on cracking the top fifty!”  Y/n called.

Denki waved as he walked out the door.  Mina, Kirishima, and Bakugou also said their goodbyes and headed out.  Sero, however, lingered for a bit.

“It did turn out to be a good night.  But I am still sorry for interrupting your party like that.”

“For the last time, it’s fine”  Y/n laughed.

Sero cast his eyes down, bashfully, mumbling protests. But then, he noticed something attached to your bag. He interrupted his own rambling apology to ask “Is that a Cellophane tape dispenser key chain?”

Really, he didn’t have to ask. He knew all his own merch. That particular key chain was one of his first products. It hadn’t sold very well, and had only lasted one small run. They were really hard to find anymore. 

Before y/n had a chance to reply, her friend clapped her on the shoulder and said “Yep! She has three of them. One on her purse, a spare in case this one breaks, and one to keep in pristine condition.”

“Shut!  Up!” Y/n hissed.

Grinning, her friend continued.  “Pretty sure she has at least one of everything of the official merch.  She’s been a mega fan for years.  Total simp.  That’s why the party colors were black, white, and yellow.  Low key Cellophane themed.”

Y/n closed her eyes, resigned.  “If the floor doesn’t swallow me up right now, I’m burning your Dynamite body pillow next chance I get.”

Sero blushed as he grinned, one long arm raising to scratch the back of his head.  “Well now I don’t feel quite so bad about what happened.  One of a kind birthday show for my partidaria número uno.”

Y/n could feel their blush creeping down their neck.  “Really, it was just an honest mistake!  No big deal!”  She squeaked.

“Regardless, I do want to make it up to you, hermosa.  So, how about we exchange numbers?”

“What?!”  Y/n’s squeak reached an abnormally high pitch.

“Well this way we can get in touch, and I can make it up to you somehow.  Some exclusive merch.  Tickets to an event…  A date perhaps?”  Hanta’s grin spread wider.

Y/n’s brain stalled.  Her friends were quick to jump in.  “Yes!”

“She’d love to.”

“She’s free next Friday and Sunday!”

Y/n’s brain started to kick back in “Guys, what?  No!”

“So you wouldn’t like to go out with me next Sunday?”  Hanta whined with an exaggerated pout.

“No!  I mean…”  Y/n drew a deep shaking breath.  “I’d… I’d like that.  If you actually mean it, that is.”

Hanta pulled out his phone and handed it to y/n.  “Absolutely.  Just put in your number and I’ll text you.  No voy a dejar pasar esta oportunidad.  Tendríamos la mejor historia para contarles a nuestros hijos cómo nos conocimos.”

Y/n furrowed their eyebrows, only managing to catch a few words of the Spanish as they entered their number in.  “I didn’t quite catch all that…”

One of y/n’s friends called from across the room.  “Hey slick!  Es mejor que al menos haya una propuesta antes de planificar los hijos.”

Hanta blushed bright red while laughing.  “Noted.”

Y/n handed Sero his phone back.  “Neither of you are going to tell me what you said, are you?”

“Nope!  I’ll be texting you soon, hermosa.  But for now, hasta luego.”  Sero waved before jogging out the door and down the hallway, heading back to his friends.  Y/n waved, before going to help clean up, ignoring the giggles and teasing of her friends.  Soon enough, everything was taken care of.  Y/n said her goodbyes and headed out.  She hadn’t even made it to the car before her phone buzzed in her pocket.  When she pulled it out, there was a text from an unknown number that read “I can’t wait to see what the future brings.  Happy Birthday,  Princesa.”

My life is over.

I'll curl up in this cake and die now.

I can see the headlines. Professional hero Cellophane found naked and dead in a cake.

Thank you.  I’m sorry.

My God.

Clowns

Thanks

Good friend.

Lovely lady.

Pictures?  Seriously?”

Number one fan.

Beautiful.

I will not miss this opportunity. We would have the best story to tell our children how we met.

There better at least be a proposal before you plan of children.

Princess

Taglist- @kat-unzel

[p1nkwitch]

Just wanted to drop this cause im tired.

Enjoy some lonelyeyes reincarnation au in a coffee shop.

Peter works.

Its not something that particularly bothers him much. His sister laughs and jokes around with him, while moving around serving her orders.

Their cafe is small and cozy but also sort of lonely, they have the oddest shifts imaginable, mostly working the graveyard shift.

Peter cooks the pastries while Judith and Aaron take the orders and serve the food. Clara has her music show on fridays and Lydia works at the art gallery but spends most of her time helping around as well.

The five of them are happy.

Simon was happy to help them pay for the Tundra Cafe. He hums under his breath while Judy sings along, there weren't that many people so they could do it without shame.

He is content.

…

At least he thinks he is. And honestly why shouldn't he? He has a good job, he has a good relationship with all his siblings, his adoptive dad loved them unconditionally.

By all means he should be nothing but happy.

And yet.

He feels… as if something was missing.

It was like an itch that he could not get over with.

It probably started back when he got a crush in one of his college professors that he realized-

That he really was missing something important.

Mister Wright was older than him sure, but he was handsome and Peter wasn't one to care much about age. However, the few times they spoke it was-

It was like there was something not right, it soured him somehow, but perhaps it was for the best, the man was married and he just had a stupid silly crush. It still did not take away the fact that he felt as if there was something off with him too.

He thinks his eyes should be a clearer grey than they were.

The next time he realized something was off was when he met Elias Bouchard.

Again it was embarrassing how quickly he seemed to get a crush on him, he just saw him a few times and his mind got stuck on his face. He was handsome and this time he was around his age. They had a few classes together so despite his anxiety he actually spoke with him.

And it was….

Dull.

He was dull as a wall. It did not lead up to anything else, beyond a few greetings later on, but it stayed on his mind.

Any other attempt at dating or going out turned out badly for him and its not as if he didn't try! It just was never… right.

Clara said that if he kept looking for the perfect person he would die alone and miserable. Lydia hits her and tells him that its ok, sometimes people don't click, he just needs to find someone who gets him.

He tries, but between his social anxiety, personality and perhaps his lack of interest in sex during the best of times, people are more or less put off with him. His sisters and brother are all offended on his behalf but Peter has resigned himself to not think too much about it.

Maybe he is like Lydia and he is better off alone.

That makes all of them look at him with tight faces and he blinks confusedly at them.

“What?”

“Nothing, nothing, just, you have us and dad Peter you're not alone” Judy holds his hand and Aaron nods.

“I- i know, i just meant like relationship wise, maybe i just have to be alone. I know I have all of you. We live in the same building block. I don't think we could be alone if we wanted” That makes them all sort of laugh and the tension breaks.

His siblings talk and joke and he ponders.

He wonders why sometimes they all act weird with him when he speaks about being alone. Why his adoptive dad always made sure to let them know he loved them. Simon was fun and took care of them, but it always felt as if he wasn't saying something.

However he sees his family be happy around him and he ignores that feeling of wrong that always permeates around him. He won't dampen their happiness with his own pessimistic thoughts and paranoia.

So yes, Peter bakes, makes models of ships on his free time, takes pictures a lot-

He found out he enjoyed keeping pictures of things he liked, plus taking odd ones of his siblings. It was just… harmless fun, more often than not he went to the port to take pictures of the ships. He wondered how it would feel to have his own.

Still that's a dream for someone else.

Peter Fairchild is happy with the quaint little life he has.

It stands to reason that his life would be upturned on a Tuesday, Peter has a personal hate towards that day of the week and it makes sense that this happened then.

Aaron was running late, he had to help a friend move out and it took longer than expected, the cafe opened earlier than usual and there were a lot of people. Judith could not take all the orders on her own, and their sisters would not be able to help at least for another hour. So with a sigh and discomfort he goes to take orders.

They work faster like that at least.

Its when he asks about the order of some guy working on his laptop that he gets hit with something familiar.

“One black coffee and a chocolate croissant” The order rings alarm bells on his head so he looks to the face of the owner.

A man with curly auburn hair, red glasses and freckles gives him a practiced strained smile that he sees in more clients, but what actually makes him almost drop the paper he was writing on was the eyes, they were such a cool shade of grey.

He flounders and the man raises an eyebrow impatiently, so he writes quickly and goes back to get order. She gives him a puzzled look since she is usually the one taking them to the customers, but Peter shakes his head and works.

His hands move on autopilot to make the coffee, and even if he says black he puts just the right amount of milk and sugar that his mind provides.

Picking up one of the freshly made croissants and after hesitating a chocolate chip cookie he goes and gives it to the man quietly and without a word. That done and his sweaty palms and his heart going faster he goes to hide in the kitchen, expecting to get yelled at for messing up the order-

But nothing happens.

Judith comes to check on him, but Peter was at that point just cleaning up a little bit and waves her away. Nodding she hesitates and hugs him a little bit before going out. He lets out a breath and sighs.

Lydia and Clara come 10 minutes later and he can stay cooped out in the kitchen in peace. Still he can't help but to be nervous about the customer he gave the coffee and cookie.

Why did he change his order? It was insignificant but it just sounded right. Fretting a little he finishes cleaning the plates. Nothing else comes about and by the time they close the man is gone.

The feeling of loss becomes stronger.

He doesn't see him again for at least another 3 weeks, in fact the only reason he realizes is because Clara says there is a sour red head giving her and Judith the stink eye every time they try to get his order. His lips twitch upwards and he suggests sending Aaron, she rolls her eyes but asks the younger boy to go.

Its not five minutes later that he comes back just as perplexed.

“Is he trying to just get the wifi for free? I'm going to kick him off” Peter dries his hands and quietly prepares the order. Once he is done he sneaks out and delivers it to him, the man gives him a critical look that sends shivers down his spine. Both in disgust and familiarity.

“I didn't order yet”

“... Well you didn't let anyone take your order anyways” His lips purse in thought and he picks up the drink taking a sip. He puts the rest of his things down and goes to turn around to leave, when he asks how did he know how he takes his coffee.

Peter doesn't have a clue.

“You just looked like you needed something less bitter” He sees his mouth fall open slightly and Peter goes while feeling his ears burn, oh god why did he say that?

Once back in the safety of the kitchen, Judy gives him a look but pats his shoulder and goes out.

Ok, ok, he is fine.

The man keeps coming and refuses to let any of his siblings pick out his orders. So Peter is the one in charge to talk with him. Albeit that is an understatement. They merely snark a little, he gives him his order and goes. Whoever is working that day is supposed to charge him, Peter is only obligated to present the food. However the interesting thing is, that just as their cafe opens at weird hours of the day, the man appears there just as well, its kind of eerie how well he seems to know when it's open considering they have the oddest schedules.

Its in fact in one of those times they work at night that he sees him again. Usually he is very put together, but this time he looked… well messy. His hair looked as he had run his hands through it several times, his eyes were red and puffy and he honestly looked miserable.

Peter was completely baffled, the worst part is he wasn't sure what to do, or if he should say something.

The place was almost empty, his sister was keeping watch, so he just stands there and asks what he wanted that night.

He looks up to him and Peter has that feeling that this man should not be looking like this, he should be smug or sure of himself not… whatever this was. He also wanted to pull him towards him and that thought made his cheeks heat up.

“Just- heh, just surprise me i guess. Its been… its been one of those days” He is not sure what he means, but he nods and goes to make him something. Most of the names of the drinks and desserts were Lydia's ideas, the rest of his siblings alongside him were terrible at picking names. He is surprised they even let him pick the one of the cafe, but considering the other options, it was the least weird one.

Still they do have some that they chose for the orders.

Case in point.

The chocolate tower cake lovingly named the panopticon and his special coffee the watcher. It was named like that when it was proven that it had so much caffeine that it made you unable to sleep. He is sure he saw a guy stop blinking for like five minutes after insisting on drinking it, despite the warnings.

So once he grabs it, he takes it to the table and warns him.

“We are not responsible for the repercussions of drinking the watcher” The man looks at him and for the first time since he started to come he sees him smile, soon it turns into laughter. Peter watches while clutching the tray and feeling butterflies in his stomach.

He has a lovely laugh.

“What- what is so funny?”

“You- i- it doesn't matter. I get the name now I suppose. The cake?” The small chocolate tower had several fillings and it was very spongy and full of chocolate.

“Mm the panopticon is the best cake we have, surprised you didn't try it before little man” The slip up comes and he freezes expecting the man to say something or get annoyed, but all he does is sigh and smile more sadly at him.

“Thank you” Its weird and he is unsure what happened but he smiles back awkwardly.

He doesn't come back for 2 weeks.

Its raining when he sees him again.

It was Lydia and him and the place only had two clients sitting around drinking and talking amicably. He doesn't pay attention to the little whistle that lets them know someone entered, Simon thought it would be more fun than a bell.

Still his older sisters comes inside looking-

Frazzled?

Lydia is the most calm out of all of them so he immediately goes to see if she is fine, instead she shakes her head and points inside the cafe.

When he looks he sees the man, but he also realizes he has an awful bruise on his eye and chin as if someone had punched him. His heart sort of seizes and his sister goes out with him.

“Are you-”

“I want another watcher and panopticon” He doesn't let him finish, he is sitting close to the register. The man looks even more tired and wiped out.

“... I will get it?” Lydia elbows him. “Do you- do you want some ice for your face?” He can feel his sister disappointment and need to hit her forehead, but he honestly doesn't know what to say. The man, and he really needs to get a name, nods, so Peter prepares the order and gets some ice wrapped up for him.

“Thank you”

“You are welcome um..-?” He drifts and the man looks at him with one eye squinting due to the swelling.

“Jonah. In Jonah Magnus” He seems to be expecting something, yet Peter just nods.

“Peter Fairchild pleasure to meet you?” Lydia is giving him looks. Jonah seems to deflate, but smiles a little, albeit is tainted by the grimace of pain.

“Now that we have names can i eat?” He scowls but nods and lets him be. Still he checks on him from time to time and everytime he peeks from the kitchen window he sees him staring back at him. Peter blushes and works.

He leaves and he is left with questions.

Lydia acts very oddly and concerned about him and the man, but he waves her off.

Jonah comes back, still with the bruises but he looks more calm.

“I wanted to apologize for the scare, I had an altercation with… a friend. That went poorly as you can see” Peter nods and gives him his cookies.

“So- um.. I was wondering if perhaps as a… you know, treat for being so nice, you would like to go out to eat? Or well i was going to suggest getting some coffee but i think you might already be tired of it by now” It takes him a few seconds to realize he is asking him out. When he does he chokes on air and after thinking it a little he nods.

He sees Jonah smile become more real and realizes he was concerned he would say no. He also sees his cheeks start to slowly become more pink the more he stares. So he looks elsewhere and says they can pick a date later. Jonah nods, grabs the writing pad from his hands brushing their fingers and puts up a number.

“So we can arrange it more easily” Peter nods and laughs nervously while walking away. He feels them tingle pleasantly.

“YOU HAVE A DATE!!”

“With the weirdo Ju, i'm sure Peter can do better than him-”

“Cla don't be mean, plus he said yes so he is interested-!”

“That he is interested doesnt mean its good for him Aaron!”

“Don't be so sour-”

Lydia sits with him and they just watch TV calmly while the others talk in the kitchen making dinner. It was Saturday so they were having it in her apartment.

“Do you think it will make you happy?” The question is too particular, but his sister is always like that so he nods.

“It feels… right, more real than anything i suppose, i know its weird but i just…” He just sometimes feels as if he is sort of existing in some sort of empty space and that everything is his imagination.

Life is good. He has siblings that love him, a dad that cares for all of them instead of their original family that was terrible.

Peter has a job-

Life is perfect.

And yet-

This man is more real than anything else.

Like a splash of color in his grayscale world, he is infuriating with his answers when they have small talks at the cafe, but the banter is familiar, it gives him an ache that doesn't understand.

The same ache he thinks he got when he met James and Elias, only this time its because its right. Jonah is right. He is put out of his musings by a hand on his arm.

“I get it Peter… i really do. As long as you are happy its fine. Just… just know that we love you ok? Don't forget it” He tilts his head and sighs before giving her sister a side hug, the top of her head is a little below his collarbone, so he kisses it and says that he could never.

They meet up to actually have lunch.

Its… its nice.

Jonah is a little bastard and they spend time judging and betting on the people around. He also learns more about him.

He is working mostly in management, which he thinks suits him way too well, he seems bossy enough.

“Rude!” He grins at him and feels…

At ease.

The man likewise seems far more calmer and happy, it makes him oddly happy to see him like that.

They keep going out, sometimes for lunch, sometimes they get coffee somewhere else. But they do and the more he gets to hear him talk, the more he feels as if he had always know him, but just could not remember it. Sometimes Jonah seems that he knows him too and its sort of perplexing. Clara would say he stalked him, but its- there are such small things that its not possible for him to know, even if he had.

Its at their 6 date that he asks him to eat at his place. He looks surprised but nods.

When he opens the door and sees him, he almost stammers a holy fuck, he barely manages to get a hold of himself. Jonah looked-

Handsome, so so handsome. It sort of fried his brain a little bit.

So he lets him and tries to finish cooking to distract himself from saying something stupid or embarassing like-

Marry me.

No, no he is not that stupid.

Still Jonah offers to help and they work in tandem and it is such a familiar feeling he is left breathless.

They move as if they both already were used to having the other in their space, its… nerve wracking. Peter wants to know why.

The dinner is delicious and they end up curling on the couch watching tv, Jonah is using him as a giant pillow and Peter can't complain, the weight on top of him actually makes him feel comforted and also sleepy…

He sees the man yawn and before thinking it better asks if he wants to crash here since its late and they are both tired. Jonah blinks at him and he sees him hesitate, so he assures him he won't take it bad if he says no, it was merely a suggestions and-

He laughs and nods before hiding his face on the crook of his neck. He lets out a breath almost as if punched and feels his cheeks warm up while grinning like an idiot.

Once they change and he offers the man a shirt that hangs a little bit too loosely around his frame they get in bed and Peter sort of… stares, Jonah does the same.

“Hey” His lips twitch.

“Hey yourself” It's not clear which one of them moves first, but the next thing he knows they were kissing. It wasn't rushed or anything merely a press of their lips that sets him aflame inside. God he loves him doesn't he?

He loves-

He-

…

Oh.

Son of a bitch.

He bites his lip lightly making the man complain and then he pulls back.

“You sneaky bastard” He sees him frown and then light up with realization.

“Oh”

“Hello Elias” He frowns.

“Jonah if you don't mind” Peter mulls it over, thinking of James and Elias. It wasn't the body that he wanted.

It was the smug bastard that was piloting it that he loved.

“Jonah” The man shivers “I died” He sees him lock his jaw and close his eyes. How peculiar, he would not have hidden away before or shown… shame for what he can see on his face, he wonders what changed in this life.

Peter sees him swallow.

“You did” Nodding he thinks. He died, there were fear gods, he was a Lukas once upon a time, but now he was a Fairchild even if by adoption.

He grew alone, he grew with his siblings.

He was lonely, he was loved.

Peter sees a small tear escape Jonah along with his body being tightly coiled, as if waiting to sprint out.

The punches make sense now, if someone else remembered...

Letting out a breath and pulling at his hair in thought, Peter closes his eyes too and lets it all go over him. That was a life ago, and now? Now he is here and he was… content, but not happy.

Not until he found him again. Or more like Jonah found him.

Its easy honestly, the answer to what he wants to do with him and this chance.

Peter in his first life had only cared about two things, his god and Elias. One is gone, the other.. changed, but was still the same. The same man he had fallen in love with so many times, and in different ways through the years of their marriages and divorces.

The only one that had some form of hold over his heart.

“Come here my little siren” Jonah’s eyes flash open and he blinks a few more tears away before scrambling to his open arms. Its raining outside and the sound its what they hear beyond their breathing and the beating of their hearst. The lights of the room are dimmed and Peter finally feels right, he pulls the covers up and tangles their bodies together, fitting perfectly together.

Without forsaken he can admit it freely, that he loves this, loves the feeling of Jonah pressed against him, a different body, but also always the same.

He just needs to get used to it again, slowly playing with his hair he speaks.

“You are quite a bastard, but so am i and… as nice as this life is… i think its much better with you in it” Jonah shivers.

“What i'm trying to say is i missed you, even if i didn't remember you before. It was always like there was something amiss. A hole in my perfect little life”

“I-” He smiles tiredly.

“You didn't, i know, but its ok. I know you” Jonah shakes his head.

“I did- i just didn't know it either, i thought it was Barnabas at first, then the others, but… it was you. I missed you Peter, I really did…. Even- even in the apocalypse I still did, I would look into the lonely often. Useless sure, but i did” His plan had worked, but at the same time that was no longer their issue.

“Well I guess we are at an impasse. What do you want to do?”

“... I want- i want to stay, please” He thinks of his apartment, big enough for two.

“You will have to deal with my siblings and Simon, this time we stayed close” He snorts.

“If they don't kick me out, i was… an ass with them” Kissing his forehead Peter laughs.

“You were, but… they are happy for me”

“... then yes i would like to stay”

“Good, Jonah?” He looks up to him again, and Peter sees the eyes are the same, that this time they are right, leaning down he kisses him. They fumble in bed for a long while and when they are both sated and more used to each other's bodies, Peter lets the smaller man hug him from the back to cuddle and finally fall asleep.

“You know one would think you would enjoy the opposite of this-”

“I do, but i missed you, so hush and just sleep” He stays quiet for a little bit.

“Night Peter”

“Night, I love you”

“.... i love you too” He smiles.

In the morning they will make breakfast, Jonah goes to his place and he prepares to work. Once he sees him come in later on during the day he presents to him his order and gets a smile.

They will try to make this life count.

He wonders how long till he moves in with him.

On his way to buy groceries he sees a box with a familiar kitten left to the side of a building and he sighs. Better take his cat to the vet now, food can wait.

His sisters will be ecstatic.

Aaron not so much since he is allergic, but well.

It is his cat.

Life truly is good now.

He got his husband, his cat, family and job.

Humming along with the kitten pawing at his arms softly he feels the most happy as he has ever been.

[thewildomega]

Star in the Sand Ch.19

Walking into the stock room Bentham placed down the crate of fruit and let out a sigh. It had been a close call today but they had all gotten what they needed and gotten back safely. Still he was confused about that woman. He knew he had seen her before. She had even known his name. She wasn't like most of the prisoners here, she hadn't begged to be freed or for food. She had willingly given him back the fruit he had dropped. Kindness was uncommon in a place like this, as was manners. Just who the hell was she?

Tapping his chin as he walked back down the hallway and towards the main room he was so deep in thought he hadn't heard one of the occupants of the bar calling his name until he spoke again. 

"Queen Bentham? Is everything okay?"

"Ooo?" he said and then turned towards his friend Ken, "Oh I'm just trying to figure out a familiar face. This woman on level 5, one of the prisoners, she returned the fruit I dropped and knew my name. I know I have seen her somewhere before I just can't place her."

"You don't think she was just acting in hopes you would help her do you?" Ken asked as he sipped his drink. 

"No she didn't seem the type." he hummed. "Y/n...Y/n... where have I heard that name?"

"Y/n... I've heard that too." the bartender spoke. 

"You have?"

"Yea I wait a second..." 

Watching the woman walk away he blinked and looked to Ken who just shrugged his shoulders. As the woman walked back over with an old newspaper in her hand he moved closer to the bar. 

"Yep, here you go I knew I had heard that name before." She said, handing the queen the old paper. 

Taking the newspaper from her he lifted his nose as he looked down at the page and saw the woman's picture, her bounty. "Firelocks Y/n... yes that's her." he grinned. Dropping his eyes down to the other part printed he felt his mouth fall open and his eyes go wide. "Mr. Zero?! She's... oh my.... oh I have to go help her!" he spoke dropping the paper and going to run away. 

"Wait Bentham what's going on? Who is she? And who is this Mr. Zero?" Ken asked, grabbing the queen's arm as he went to run away. 

Showing him the paper he pointed to the woman, "This is her, Y/n and she is apparently affiliated with Mr. Zero..."

"Crocodile? The Ex warlord?" Ken questioned leaning closer to the pictures. 

"Yes. He was my old boss. Oh I cannot just leave here there to freeze to death, I must go help her." 

"But Queen Bentham you don't even know her..."

"It matters not, I like to think Mr. Zero and myself were at least somewhat friends and I can not allow what could possibly be his bonded to perish in that hell." He exclaimed to them. 

"Okay well even if you want to get her out we will have to wait and devise a plan. We can not go for her today not when there was such a close call earlier." Ken spoke, being the voice of reason. 

Sighing and dropping his shoulders Bon looked down. "I suppose you are right Ken-Ken." Snapping his head up he held up his finger, "Very well then in three days time we will go and rescue Y/n." he declared and saw them nod. 

...............................

"...Without you there'd be no sun in my sky There would be no love in my life There'd be no world left for me And I, baby I don't know what I would do I'd be lost if I lost you If you ever leave Baby, you would take away everything real in my life And tell me now How do I live without you I want to know How do I breathe without you If you ever go How do I ever, ever survive..."

Mumbling the lyrics to yourself as you laid on the bench you stared at the picture of Crocodile with lidded eyes. You were so cold, you couldn't much feel anything anymore but still your arms stayed wrapped around your middle where the warmth was needed most. Hearing a distant sound made you stop your quiet singing. Sighing you closed your eyes, meal time. While you should be excited to get the little food you so desperately needed you hated having to move and listen to the men in the opposite side of the cell harass you. Staying put you kept your back to the guards as they tossed in your cell's food rations. It was strange that you didn't hear the men fighting over it instantly, normally they were like a pack of starved dogs.

Waiting until the guards were gone you finally turned over to look towards the food. Seeing the four men sitting back eating on the half frozen food quietly you furrowed your brows. Glancing down to the floor you saw a small portion of meat and bread still laying there. That was odd, normally they would be trying to reach it as hard as possible, the chains on their wrists holding them to the walls, digging into their skin enough to drawn blood. Maybe they knew they couldn't reach it. They didn't even seem to be paying you much mind. Maybe they finally got the point. Moving your stiff legs over the side of the bench you stood, feeling those pins and needles as you started taking steps over towards the food. As much as you hated moving you had to get the food before it froze to the point of being inedible. Not that it was to begin with but you couldn't complain much, you needed food, your baby needed food. 

Taking a glance to the men again you still saw them eating their own food, their eyes not even glancing your way. Bending down you winced as your joins protested lifting the piece of bread and meat you went to stand when suddenly you saw the men move. Quickly going to run back to your side of the cell you stumbled when your numb limbs took too long to move. Feeling a hand wrap around your ankle you gasped and let out a cry as you were pulled back to the ground. Kicking and struggling as much as you possibly could you stared down at the man that had managed to grab you. 

"Got you now bitc..."

Landing a hard kick to his nose you felt his hand release you and rolled over to crawl away when you were stopped again. "No... let me go..."

"You fucking cunt." the man yelled, holding one hand over his bleeding nose while the other one grabbed her ankle again. 

Feeling another hand grab the other ankle you growled and thrashed but hissed out when you were snatched backwards, your back burning in pain as you were drug across the frozen ground. "No! NO! Let me go!" Yelling you fought then to the best of your ability but it was four against one and you were already very weak. Going to scream you heard them laughing, a hand slapping over your mouth while others held you down. 

"This could have been much easier for you if you would have come willingly when we told you to the first time." 

Still trying to thrash in their hold you heard as their chains rattled and then the sound of ripping before your felt what little warmth the clothes provided get taken away. Tears filled your eyes when rough, cold hands started touching you none too gently. Screaming at the top of your lungs around the hand you closed your eyes tight, feeling the warm tears run down your temples. 

"I get her first." 

Looking up through blurry eyes you saw the larger man, the one with the long beard and messy hair move overtop of you, pushing himself between your legs that were being held open. Seeing him smirk at you as one of his hands moved down you felt true fear take over, your soulmates name coming out as a muffled scream. As soon as you felt the warmth from the man's body it was suddenly gone and you snapped your eyes open at the familiar voice. 

"You bunch of sickos. How dare you." 

Watching as Bon Clay kicked the man in the throat before turning on the others you shook. Scrambling up when you were released you wrapped your tattered shirt around your body as best you could. 

"Taking advantage of a defenseless woman like that." he yelled, swinging his foot across all of their faces. 

Flinching when you felt someone else touching you you snapped your eyes up to see another man. His skin was a medium brown and his black hair was curled upwards into a ball of sorts. 

"Shh it's okay sweetheart I'm not going to hurt you." Ken told the frightened woman as he wrapped the blanket they had brought with them around her trembling form. 

Hearing a splash you turned back to see Bon Clay and a woman tossing a bucket of water onto the group of men who were laying unconscious on the ground. As the two turned towards you you swallowed hard. 

Seeing the slight fear in the woman's eyes he smiled at her. "Come on Miss Y/n let's get you out of this retched place." 

Before you could object you were being lifted up and looked to see the brown man from before carrying you in his arms out of the cell. They stopped only for a moment to close the cell door before you all were walking into the forest that you had passed on the way in. Your heart beat like a hammer in your chest and you couldn't help but still shake as you were carried towards level 5.5.

"Tell me Miss. Y/n how is it you know Mr. Zero?" Bentham asked. 

Swallowing hard you looked to Bon Clay, "h..he is mmmy soulmate."

Smiling largely he clapped his hands together and spun around, "Ooo how wonderful. I knew there was a soft side to Mr. Zero." 

Being carried into a room and sat on a padded table of sorts you saw boxes labeled as medical supplies laying around. There was a screen of sorts separating the room and you started to look around but didn't get to look far before Bon Clay and another man or woman , you couldn't quite tell was walking over to you. The person wore a white lab coat that was cut short and fishnet stocking. Their blond hair was done up into a beehive look and make up was caked onto their skin in what reminded you of the old pin up style. Still their red lips pulled up into a large warm smile as they came to stand in front of you with Bon Clay. You clung to the blanket that was wrapped around you earlier, your body still trembling even though it was rather warm in the room. 

"Miss. Y/n this is Hilda, our medic of sorts. He's going to give you a quick check up." Bentham told the woman and saw her nod. 

"Now honey let's drop this down for a moment so I can look at you." Hilda spoke as he gently pulled the blanket off her curled up shoulders.  Seeing the shirt on her torn he looked to Bentham and saw the queen give him a look he understood perfectly. "Can we take this rag off of you?" he asked and gently pulled on the fabric, feeling her slowly release it from her trembling fingers. As the shirt was removed he saw her curl up some, her arms wrapping around her lower abdomen. "Queen Bentham could you get a warm bath prepared." he spoke and saw the man nod and walk away behind the screen. 

Slowly you relaxed a little as the doctor went about looking you over. It came as no surprise that you had a good amount of frost bite but Hilda said that they could fix that with some soaking in warm water. You back had been scraped up when those men had drug you across the ground along with a few other scrapes and forming bruises. The self proclaimed doctor remained kind and patient throughout your exam, pulling a sheet over you when he noticed your bashfulness. He had taken your vitals to make sure there was no other cause for worry but when he had went to feel you stomach you tensed and quickly covered the area with your arms. 

"Did I hurt you honey? Is something wrong?"

Licking your lips you felt your heart beating hard against your ribs. The whole time you had been here you had managed to keep your pregnancy a secret. While no you didn't know if your unborn child was still alive you wouldn't risk something happening to it if someone knew. It was no secret how much you and Crocodile were hated and unfortunately that hate would no doubt roll over to your child.

"Now honey you can tell me, I am a doctor after all and if something's wrong I can help." Hilda told the woman placing his hand on her shoulder reassuringly. Watching as the woman continued looking down for a moment before her teary eyes slowly lifted to his he furrowed his brows until it clicked. Covering his mouth with his hand he felt his eyes go wide. "Ummm Bentham sugar we've got a situation over here." he called, his voice rising in pitch a little. 

Seeing Bon Clay hurry from behind the screen and look to you and Hilda you took a deep breath when his slightly worried filled eyes looked you over. 

"Would you like to tell him or should I?" 

Licking your lips you looked into his make up lined eyes, "I... I'm pregnant." 

"WHAAAA?!" 

..............................

Waiting outside of the room Daz leaned against the wall with his eyes closed and his arms crossed over his chest. He could hear the deep, growl of his Captain inside of the room and sighed as a choking gasp was heard shortly after. There went another one. Standing there for a few short minutes after he heard the thump he pushed off the wall and moved towards the thick wooden door. Opening it he saw only the back of the black leather chair, smoke coming up from behind it. Glancing down to the floor he rose a brow at the drained corpse laying there. "I take it he didn't agree to the terms?" he asked in a calm voice. 

"He thought he could get cocky with me." Crocodile responded in a cold voice. 

Humming Daz moved to the now empty sofa in front of the desk and sat down. "So what now?"

"Find me another person more suitable for the job." 

"You keep killing off people and no one will be willing to work for you." to this he only heard a grunt. That had been the fifth person to face Crocodile's wrath since they had settled on this island. It had been four months and one week since Y/n had been taken, sentenced to Impale Down and since then the man had changed. Crocodile had never been a people person, he was hard to understand and even harder to work for but once the woman had come into their lives he had become bearable, more reasonable. That had all changed now. Y/n had been the only person alive that had the ability to calm the beast that was Crocodile. Most wouldn't have been able to tell the difference but he could, he had known the man for close to ten years. He'd go to say that the man was even more cold now than he was during their time in Alabasta. Loosing his soulmate and child had changed him. When Y/n had been taken he was sure she took Crocodile's heart with her. 

"Why are you still here?" Crocodile asked, feeling the presence of his right hand man still in the room. When there was no response he puffed on his cigar, "If there is something you want to say, say it." 

Opening his eyes that had been closed he stared at the back of the chair and took a deep breath. "You can't keep doing this." 

"Going soft Daz? You never had a problem with the killing before."

"Before it was business, this time you are killing because you think it will help take that hurt away..."

"Daz." he warned, his teeth biting down on the cigar in his mouth. 

"Do you think she would have wanted you to become this? How do you think she would feel if she knew others were loosing their lives because of her.."

"Get out." 

Hearing the man's voice drop to an almost animalistic growl he closed his eyes and sighed. Standing he grabbed hold of the dehydrated body and moved towards the door, stopping in the frame. "She loved you and more than anything she wanted you to be happy."

His response was a blast of sand that was slamming the door closed, leaving him alone in the dim room. He listened to Daz's footsteps grow further down the hall before the sound of the main door being closed filled the empty manor. Staring out the large window he watched it rain, the sky darkening as the hidden sun made it's way below the horizon. Blinking slowly he breathed out the smoke that had been filling his lungs. Happy. She wanted him to be happy. He knew that, she made it obvious, always doing whatever she could to make him smile, to make him laugh. Closing his eyes he let himself drift back to those boring days on the ship. 

Writing in his log book he puffed away on one of his cigars. Rain beat against the ship that rocks in the rougher seas. It had been raining all day and he wasn't the only one that was bored, the sighing and groaning coming form the bed every few seconds proof enough. "You are acting like a child that can not go outside and play." 

"Better than being a grumpy adult like you." she grumbled. 

"I'm working." he told his soulmate but heard her only grumble even more. 

"It's so boring." 

"Draw something."

"I don't feel like it." 

"Read a book." 

"I already finished them all." 

Sighing he tapped his pen against his hand, "Find something to do, you are keeping me from my work." It was quiet for a moment and then she spoke again. 

"How much does a pirate pay for corn?" ..... "A BUCK-an-eer."

Blinking he adjusted the cigar in his mouth but didn't make another sound. 

"What does the sign on an out-of-business brothel say?" ........ "Beat it, we're closed." 

Biting down on the rolled tobacco he felt the corner of his lip tug upward but tried to focus back on his log pose. 

"How do you spot a blind man on a nude beach?"... "It's not hard."

"How did the pirate get his jolly roger so cheap?".... "He got it on sail."

Huffing out he wrote the events in his book. 

"What did one broke hooker say to the other?"... "Can you lend me ten bucks till I'm on my back again."

Not being able to stop the small chuckle that left his throat he stared at his book, wondering what it was he was going to write. 

"What the elephant say to the naked man?".... "How do you breath out of that thing?" 

Closing his eyes he rolled the cigar and shook his head, his lips lifting into a smile that he was trying desperately to hold back. Placing his pen down he plucked his cigar from his lips to tap it in the ashtray. 

"I would tell you a BDSM joke but I'm working out all the kinks." 

"If blue birds have baby blue birds and Robins have baby robins then what kind of bird has no baby birds?".... "Swallows." 

Laughing he stood from his desk and turned to walk over to the bed, his soulmate laying on it looking up at him with that carefree smile on her face. Laying beside her he held his head up in his hand, his left arm thrown over her with his hook by her hip. "Are you happy now, you've pulled me from my work again." he asked her. Feeling her hands wrap around his neck, her fingers playing with his hair, he saw her nod. 

"Just doing my job."

"And what would that be?"

"Making you smile."

Huffing he leaned down to meet her lips in a kiss.

What he wouldn't give to hear one of her jokes again. To see her smile, to feel her lips on his. He'd do anything to have her in his arms again. Give up this life, the life of a pirate, the life he'd worked so hard to achieve. He'd settle down on some rural island, work a farm like he did when he was a boy. They'd live a quiet life, raise their child together... probably make a few more. He wondered what they their children would have looked like. Would it have been a boy or a girl, a son or a daughter. He wouldn't have cared either way but he would have loved to have a boy, a son, someone to carry on his lineage. He wondered if they would have looked like him or her, maybe a good mixture. Her eyes though, he would want them to have their mother's beautiful eyes, those striking sea blue eyes that he could spend hours starring into. His favorite time to stare into her eyes were when they were making love, when she was looking up at him with him on top of her. Those beautiful eyes although lidded and hazy with lust always looked at him like he was the whole world, her world. It was a look he would never see again. 

Opening his eyes he stared at the droplets of water running down the window pane. Standing he walked from the room and down the dark hallway towards his room, his cold, lonely bed. Feeling that sharp clenching in his heart he grit his teeth, it was a pain that never fully went away but occasionally would worsen. He knew enough about soulmates to know that it was times like this when she was hurting, that she was suffering. Going to his bathroom to shower he removed his scarf and unbuttoned his shirt before removing his hook. Shrugging his shirt from his shoulders he went to unbuckle his pants when the pain in his chest became almost unbearable. Gripping the counter to hold him upright he closed his eyes. 

CROCODILE!

God it was like he could hear her screaming his name in his head. Gritting his teeth, the pain was suddenly gone and he was left feeling drained and alone. Alone, his inescapable fate.

.............................

Staring down into the steaming water you rubbed your hands over your still flat stomach where life still grew. Your baby was alive. Hilda had confirmed it, he had even let you listen to the baby's light heartbeat. While Hilda had said that you were far underweight and so your baby was most certainly well below the size a normal four month fetus should be it was alive. You and Crocodile's child still grew in your womb. Biting the inside of your lip you felt tears fill your eyes. 

"Did he know?" Bon asked from where he sat a little ways from the tub. 

Nodding you swallowed hard and looked up to the man that had saved you from freezing to death. "We had just found out the night before I was taken. H...he was happy." you said before having to sniffle. Looking down you saw your tears fall to the water, ripples moving out to the rim of the wooden tub. "It's funny, I was the one that was unsure, worried about how he would react but he remained as calm as ever. H..he told me we would be okay... that we would take it on together." not being able to hold back your small sob you closed your eyes. "I..I'm sorry." 

Sniffling Bon shook his head. "No no. Don't apologize it's good to let it out." 

Wiping your eyes with your fingers that you were starting to get feeling in again you took a deep breath. "I think about him constantly... I didn't... before I didn't know if it was still alive. I know it probably sounds horrible but at times I wished it wasn't. It isn't that I don't want it I just... I didn't want it born into this. Now that I know though I... well I'm happy but at the same time it doesn't feel right. Croc he... he won't ever know... our baby will never know their dad. We'll never be a family." you cried. 

Dabbing away the tears that filled his eyes as he listened to Y/n's sorrows he sniffled. Looking down from the broken woman she finished he blinked. Silence filled the air for a moment before he shot his head up. "Yes he will."

Looking to the Queen you knit your brows. "Wha..."

Standing he struck a pose, "If it is the last thing I do I will make sure you and Mr. Zero are reunited."

[everlarkbirthdaygifts]

Happy Birthday, mellarkablegirl!

Happy Birthday, @mellarkablegirl​! We hope you’ve had a wonderful day so far, and that there is some epic cake forthcoming in your future! To keep your party going, the lovely @endlessnightlock​ has written a story just for you!

I hope you enjoy this best friends to lovers Everlark! Rated M for content of a sexual nature.

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

I toss another rock into the air, and, just like the first one I threw, it pings off the window of Peeta’s bedroom. I wait anxiously, worried it could be his mom or dad I’m going to wake up, since there’s no sign of movement inside his house at all, and certainly nothing from his room. 

Yes, it’s one a.m., but he ought to know to look for me by now. We wake each other up like this all the time. I know things will be awkward after everything that happened the other night, but still- that doesn’t mean he’s going to ignore me now, does it?

I cross my arms over my chest and huff. What in the heck is Peeta doing up there? 

“Peeta!” I loud-whisper his name harshly, irritated. I should probably just let things go for tonight and let him sleep, but I won’t have any peace until I talk to him- I’ve been going crazy since the other night, and I know we can’t keep ignoring each other, can we?

Besides, he’s used to me waking him up by now anyway. 

We've been best friends and next-door neighbors since we were six- Peeta brought me over a picture and a chocolate cupcake the day my family moved into the house next to his. After that, we played in my back yard for hours, digging up bugs and playing made-up pretend games, laughing together the rest of the afternoon.

Fortunately, I’m not left debating whether or not to go home for long, because his window opens and a head full of tousled blond curls appears. I’d recognize Peeta anywhere with that hair- the color is so light the moon reflects off it. It doesn't matter that I can’t see his face. 

“What are you doing out there?” he says, his voice thick like I woke him out of a dead sleep. 

”I wanted to talk to you, ” I say, shrugging.

“Why didn’t you just send me a text or something?” he clears his throat and leans further out the window. 

I frown up at him- and with the way I'm standing underneath the security light, I know he can see my face. What does Peeta think he’s going to do- have a whispered conversation with me from up there- doesn’t he want to talk to me? It makes me wonder if he’s been avoiding me, too, as I suspected. 

“Can you come down here, please? I wanted to talk to you.”

He glances behind him, hesitating. Anxiety rears its head and starts gnawing away at me. Did I ruin things between us?

“Yeah, just give me a few minutes,” Peeta says, sounding resigned. He quickly disappears inside his room and shuts the window behind him. 

While I wait for him to come downstairs, I climb up his back porch steps and sit on the wooden swing. Leaning back further, I pull my hands inside the sleeves of the sweatshirt I’m wearing to keep them warm- it's one of Peeta’s from freshman wrestling, and I swiped it from his room three years ago. It’s warm and comfortable, and it smelled like him at the time. 

While the scent is gone, his sweatshirt is my go-to comfort item, paired with shorts or sweats. It's not like Peeta would have worn it much longer anyway- he had his big growth spurt that summer, and he got so much taller and broader than me I would drown in his clothes now. 

It was around the time I started feeling differently about him, I realize now. We’d always been close- Peeta’s my best friend, and I love him as much as I do my sister or my mom and dad. But until that year, I’d never fixated on the way he smelled or how his eyelashes would light up in the sun or how his shirt sleeves grew tight around his biceps and forearms. 

I’d certainly never given any thought to the way the edge of his underwear and that strip of skin between the waistline of his pants and the bottom of his shirt would peek out if he lifted his arms above his head. That left me so hot and itchy every time it happened; I couldn’t look him in the face after.

“Hey,” Peeta greets me quietly, stepping out on the porch and closing the door gently behind him. I scoot over on the porch swing to give him room, making sure to provide him with a wide berth. He won't look at me; shame makes my face burn.

I was planning on being the one to bring it up, but suddenly it's as if my mouth is frozen shut. Darn it- there are so many things I need to say. 

I open my mouth, glance over at him staring down at his hands like he doesn’t know what to say either, and rapidly shut it again. 

You're the one who began this, I tell myself, you need to start this conversation.

”Peeta, hmm, listen.” He turns his head to look at me, and I force myself to speak again, staring into those blue eyes I know so well. ”I’m sorry-”

Peeta’s face drops, and he interrupts me. ”Please don’t say you're sorry, I can take anything but that right now, ” he says, “just don’t say that.”

I look down at my hands. ”But I ruined everything.”

He groans, and I peek over at him again. ”What do you think you ruined?” he whispers, a bit frantic-sounding. ”Katniss-”

It was about the same time- late enough so that Mr. and Mrs. Mellark were both in bed. Neither sets of our parents used to let us stay out so late, but since we’ve both turned eighteen and it’s our senior year, I guess they figure we’ll be out from under them soon anyway, so why bother with a curfew. Either we’re going to get into trouble, or we’re not.

We’d been sitting, talking about the dumb shit going on at school, namely some drama involving Josh Marvel and his on again off again girlfriend Clove Adkins. 

Peeta groaned- ”Dude just won’t shut up about her in the locker room. Katniss-” 

We were laughing together, and god, how happy his laughter made me. It warmed my body that night like sunshine on a freakin spring day, and while I know how sappy that sounds, it's the truth. That feeling- it made me feel reckless. 

”He won't stop talking about how she's the hottest girl in our class-”

”You don’t think she’s the hottest?” 

Peeta looked at me like I had lobsters crawling around on top of my head. “Are you kidding me? Hell no. No, not at all. You know I'm not an ogler.”

I laughed. ”Don’t act like you don't.”

He was growing uncomfortable, I could tell, but that didn’t stop me.

“Who do you think is, then?” I prodded him.

Why was I doing this to myself? I knew I wouldn’t like whatever answer he gave me. 

I guess I had a perverse wish for some honesty from him because, at that moment, it seemed better to know what he thought, even if it meant I would be found wanting in comparison to the Cashmeres or the Lavinias of the world. 

”I don’t think I want to answer that,” he said, his voice tight.

“Why?” I asked, turning in my seat. I was going to hate myself for it later, I knew it- but as an idiot in love with her best friend, I wasn’t already pathetic enough. This display tonight would definitely push me over the edge. “It’s not like I’m going to go hunt her down for you or anything.”

He turned away from me then, staring straight ahead. My stomach plummeted the moment I realized I was going to get my answer. 

“What exactly do you mean by the hottest?” He finally asked.

“I think the term hottest is pretty self-explanatory.”

Peeta shifted on the swing. “No, because there are all kinds of attractiveness. I mean, I’m not attracted to guys, but Finnick and Gale are both pretty hot-“

“You’re avoiding the subject,” I said flatly. Bringing up other guys was a rookie move- “come on.”

“Who do you think is the hottest then?” He asked, turning to face me.

You, I wanted to tell him- and you're not just the most attractive, you’re the kindest, and the warmest, and I’d probably give my life for yours. “I’m not the one who’s supposed to answer!” I said, instead.

“It’s only fair,” Peeta said. “You know, you’re so- I wonder if you’ve ever been attracted to anyone, Katniss, even a little bit.” 

I scowled at him, covering the hurt with a frown. Where was he getting at with this, turning the tables on me? And how dare he say that- he had no idea how I felt or how attracted to someone I was. He didn’t get to do that.

“Not that there’s anything wrong if you aren’t,” he continued, the words spoken too easily considering the way he’d broken my heart with his carelessness. “I like you the way you are- you’re just so pure. You don’t even notice what’s right in front of your face half the time.” He looked over at me then, with a weird half-smile. “Come on, Katniss- tell me I’m wrong.” 

I stared at him, hating myself for beginning this conversation almost as much as I hated him for saying those things to me.

Peeta’s eyes held a challenge, sitting on the porch swing in the dark the way we’d sat for years and years leading up to that night . Endless nights during which we’d grown up together. I’d say I fell in love with him here. 

And now, my heart was aching. I bit down on my lip to keep it from trembling.

I can’t say precisely why I did it: maybe it was the way he was looking at me, perhaps it was the frustration I felt with my inability to just say the words to him. 

Whatever caused it, at that moment, I think I lost my mind. 

While Peeta’s gaze remanded steady and unwavering, I moved closer to him. My heart was racing a million miles a minute, but still, I got my knees beneath me on the swing and leaned in, resting my hands on his shoulders for support, balancing in that precarious position. 

And then, before I had time to talk myself out of it, I kissed him. His breath rushed out against my face right as I pressed my lips to his. 

I’d never kissed anyone before. I was terrified, hoping I wouldn’t screw it up. 

But there was also exhilaration and feeling completely overwhelmed by Peeta’s soft, warm lips under my own. 

It was perfect. 

He was perfect. 

The breath caught in my lungs when he stiffened under my hands and mouth, and for half of a second, I panicked. Before I had time to think about it, he relaxed as if he’d only needed a moment to get used to the idea that I was kissing him.

I pulled back a little, closing my eyes and resting my forehead against Peeta’s. His skin was so warm against mine. I wished it wasn’t so dark, and I could see him better, those minute details of his face I’d never been close enough to take in before.

“Did you just…” Peeta began, but his words trailed off. 

Instead of saying anything else, his hands came to my face, framing it for a moment before tilting it and kissing me back; I guess it wasn’t the time for words. I knew he’d kissed a few girls before, so I wasn’t surprised when he took over what we were doing, but not aggressively. He moved his lips against mine, and I responded. It felt like gentle, tingly caresses. 

Peeta’s arm went around my waist, and he pulled me closer. I wasn’t sure where to go, so I just leaned into his body. 

God, it was amazing- all my senses were in overdrive, his body felt so good against mine, and the way he smelled? I just kind of wanted to bury my face in the side of his neck and never leave. 

He shifted a little, and I wobbled, still unbalanced. I was positioned awkwardly next to him, but I wasn’t sure how to rectify it. If I moved, he might stop kissing me, and I never wanted him to stop. It felt like we were in some alternate reality, in a bubble that would burst if one of us had a misstep.

Peeta must have sensed my trepidation; I don’t think he wanted to stop either. “Sit on my lap,” he murmured between kisses, “it’ll be easier that way.”

My pulse was pounding as I swung my leg over his thighs. As I settled on him, I swallowed roughly- I couldn’t believe we were doing this. His body felt so sturdy and warm and hard under me, and I was shocked to realize just how much straddling him affected me. My lips weren’t the only thing tingling- my whole body was a live wire.

“Katniss,” he murmured my name, his voice lower than I ever heard it sound before. His hand went behind my neck again, and he moved into me. This time, his lips parted, and mine opened automatically, my tongue darting out to meet his without a thought. Everything we were doing seemed as natural as breathing, each move requiring no thought. Instinctual.

I moaned into his mouth as his tongue caressed mine. I had no idea this would feel so good, all of this. We were both breathing hard, and I ran my fingers up the sleeves of his t-shirt to touch those strong arms I’d been admiring for years.

He sighed.

Peeta used the arm around my waist to pull me closer to him, and I had no choice but to lay against him, my breasts pressing into his chest as my bottom landed on the hard lump of his erection between my thighs.

Oh my god- it was like all my fantasies were coming true.

And then Peeta said those words that put a screeching halt to everything we were doing. “It’s you,” he pulled away from my lips just long enough to tell me, “only you.”

“Only me what?” I asked, ready to kiss him again. 

My brain must’ve taken leave of my body. I couldn’t remember what we’d talked about while sitting on Peeta like this. The only thing I could think about was how good it felt with him beneath me.

“The hottest- the most beautiful. Whatever you want to call it, it’s you.”

His words froze me in my tracks. 

Why couldn’t he have kept quiet? “You don’t have to say that,” I said, sitting back to look at him. His lips had swollen, and his eyes looked heavy-lidded as he stared up at me.

I didn’t want to talk about this- I didn’t want to consider that my best friend would flatter me that way just because we were fooling around. I mean, he’s a guy. Of course, he was going to enjoy doing this. 

Couldn’t I just have this night? I was under no delusions that things would go further than this. “I’m not-”

“You don’t believe me,” he said incredulously, his eyes darting back and forth between mine. “Why don’t you believe me?” 

I shuttered my eyes, finding it was impossible to look at him. “There’s no way you think that about me. How could you?”

Beneath me, Peeta’s whole body went rigid. He was silent for so long, the air between us grew tense. It was strange having him suddenly so distant while we were in such an intimate position. 

“Are you saying I’m lying?” he finally asked.

I shrugged- yes, I did think that. What was there to say?

I guess my gesture spoke volumes because, just like that, every one of those good feelings between us dissipated. 

Without looking at him, I climbed off of his lap and stood next to the swing. I don’t know exactly how I managed it, but everything seemed screwed up now. “Peeta, I’m-”

He wouldn’t even look at me, staring down at his hands. “I don’t know what you want me to say-” he interrupted.

“I don’t know what you want me to say!” I countered, “I just, I don’t want you to lie to me. Just because we did, just because we did that,” I waved my arm at the swing before quickly tucking it back around myself in a protective move, “doesn’t mean you have to tell me that. God, I just- I expected better from you.”

“Better from me? Katniss-”

I couldn’t do it. I just- “I’m just going to go, okay?” I stopped him. I felt like I was going to be sick. 

Peeta heaved out a loud sigh. “Of course you are,” he sounded tired. 

He stood abruptly, going inside the house with a slam of his door, leaving me second-guessing everything we’d done. 

“Why did you assume I was lying to you that night?” Peeta asks, warily.

“Why did you sat that to me?” I counter.

“Because I meant it, every word of it,” he says, shifting restlessly in the porch swing, his fingers trailing the loops of a chain suspending us from the porch ceiling. “I’m not a liar, Katniss.”  

No, he’s right. I’ve never known Peeta to lie, let alone lie to me. Sometimes he can be brutally honest when he’s frustrated. I think I figured out that he was telling the truth already. I just didn’t know what to do with that information.

He turns to face me again. “Why did you kiss me? You weren’t just trying to prove a point, were you? I don’t want you to kiss me to get me off your back or something.”

I let out a breath. “That wasn’t it. Well, it was a little at first, but you were an ass.” “Katniss, the only reason I want you to kiss me is that you want to kiss me.”

“I did want to kiss you,” I say. “I did,” I add at his look of skepticism. “I liked it,” I admit shyly.

“Why, just to see what it was like- did I seem like someone safe to fool around with?”

I frown at him. He makes me want to smack him- is he that obtuse, or does he think I’m shallow enough to kiss him, my best friend, because I wanted to kiss someone, anyone? 

But the more I study his face, the more I realize he’s anxious, and his anxiety soothes mine. He seems to be hanging on by a thin thread, waiting for my answer. 

Does this mean he wants me too?

And just like that, I know I’m the one holding the cards, as crazy as that seems. 

Lucky for Peeta, he’s the only prize I want to win.

“Because I like you,” I say the words confidently as I sit close to him, hip to hip, laying my head on his shoulder and turning my face into his t-shirt. “I want you to be more than my friend. I have for a while.”

“How long is a while?” Peeta asks, and I can’t help but hear the happiness in his voice as he threads our fingers together and rests them on my leg.

“How long has it been for you?” I ask, instead, feeling shy. He needs to fill in some details- I’m not comfortable being the only one laying my feelings out. 

“Since I met you.”

“That can’t be true,” I say.

“It’s completely true. Ask Dad- that night after you moved in- when we stayed out until the lightning bugs came out? That night I went home and told my dad I was going to marry you.” Peeta lifts my hand to his; he plants a kiss to my knuckles and rests his head against mine.

I stare at our joined hands, my mind racing. 

“So I thought you were just fooling around with me, and you thought I was a liar,” he continues. “And neither one of us was right.”

I think I’m in shock over the way this evening has changed everything between us- it’s like I don’t quite know what to do with myself. “I mean, if you want to say yours was a lie of omission, then that was true. And I liked kissing you,” I admit, teasing Peeta.

“Yeah?” he asks, scooting forward on the seat and turning to face me. He drops my hand to push those loose hairs that escaped from my braid out of the way, tucking them in behind my ear. His fingers linger under my chin, the flat of his thumb caresses my cheek. 

I shiver, my reaction giving me away. 

“Me too,” Peeta says, smiling widely, “does that mean you want to do it again, now?”

And then we’re kissing- and on the Mellark’s porch swing at least, all is right with the world.

[introductions-are-a-spook]

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Fifty miles from the Chapman house and twenty years ago, rain fell over an English boarding school. Children ran from building to building, clutching their bags under hunched chests in an attempt to protect them.

Visible through a window, one student sat huddled on a library bench, nose deep in a book. And of course they didn’t see through their concentration to the rambunctious upperclassman arguing with the librarian.

“I told you before, my father tore the book, not me. I can get the money to pay for it, it’ll just take a couple days!”

“That’s ridiculous. Just why in the world would a parent do that, hmm?”

“You obviously don’t know him like I do,” he snipped under his breath.

After a moment more of this, he sauntered over to where the bookworm- maybe a grade or two below him, sat. Flopping down, he groaned.

Finally the quiet one spoke. “Mrs. Kingsley’s going to wring your neck if you don’t replace the book soon, you know.”

“Yeah, I get it already. Geez.” The older boy looked at the younger with a raised eyebrow. “Hey I know you, you’re in my chemistry class. Mary, right?”

“Er, it’s Maxwell. And yes, what about it?”

“Isn’t that a bit too hard for you? You’re what, twelve?”

“Fourteen. You?”

“Aww, a little shrimp. I’m seventeen. Andrew, by the way,” although teasing, his tone lacked any genuine malice. He held out a hand to shake.

“Nice to meet you, prick.”

Andrew laughed. “Damn right. Whatcha reading?”

Maxwell tilted the book. A collection of Sherlock Holmes stories. “I want to be a detective when I get out of school, so I’m studying now.”

“That’s cool. We better get to class though, the bell’s gonna ring soon,” Andrew said, standing up and checking his watch.

Maxwell reluctantly closed his book and nodded. “Just try to pay for the book soon, okay? Mrs. Kingsley isn’t the only one who cares about this library.”

“Oh sure. I’ll just steal the money from my dad while he’s at church or something,” he said with a mischievous grin. “Nice meeting you, Maxwell!”

“Same here. Criminal!”

Andrew laughed and walked off. Maxwell allowed a chuckle as he went the opposite way.

~*~

Six pictures were laid out in front of Andrew. All of various bedrooms. Half he recognized- Maxwell’s, Isabella’s, and his own. The other three varied. There was a rather plain, maroon themed bedroom with several camera monitors in one corner. Another was coated wall-to-wall in weapons and a bright scarlet palette. The last of which was more pink and the most homely, with picture frames full of people everywhere. All belonging to Maxwell’s siblings, most likely.

And yet, Andrew was not confused. In fact, he was quite disturbed. He sat with his ferret, Brie, in his arms, petting her in an attempt to calm down.

He had finally worked up the courage to read the letter. Mr. Antigone had left a graphic plan of all the horrible things he would do if Andrew didn’t leave Maxwell as soon as possible. He detailed all the ways he could get away with it, and included the pictures as proof of his deadly seriousnessand capability.

Well if he hasn’t killed me yet, it probably means he wants me alive. He must be trying to beat me into submission.

What a mess. Within just a few weeks of going out with Max, Andrew’s world had turned upside down. Of all the people in the world, he had to fall in love with a detective.

A knock at the downstairs door stirred him. Quietly putting Brie in her pen, he cursed himself for not burning the letter as told. Walking down to the front on tiptoe, he slipped a kitchen knife into his pocket- just in case.

Another knock. Andrew took a deep breath, prepared for the worst, and opened the door.

“Maxwell! Oh, it’s just you, thank god,” he sighed in relief.

Maxwell raised an eyebrow. “Of course it’s me, who else would it be?” He cut Andrew off before he could respond. “Nevermind, it doesn’t matter. We need to talk.”

A twinge of fear settled in Andrew’s gut. “About what? Is everything okay?”

“Given that you feel the need to answer the door with a knife in your coat,” he gestured to how poorly it was hidden, “No, things are far from okay.”

Andrew studied Maxwell’s face. His handsome features were pulled into a grave expression, his demeanor uncomfortable.

“Why don’t you come in,” Andrew said, holding the door ajar for the other man.

“Thank you,” Maxwell responded, sitting down at an empty booth in the main shop. Andrew sat down across from him, and they sat in silence for a long few moments.

Maxwell slowly tapped his thumbs together. Andrew could see how his eyes faded in deep thought.

“Andrew.”

“Yes?”

“Are you…” he took a shaky breath. “No. I know you’re the thief.”

Andrew’s stomach flipped, but he calmed himself. “You’re good. Guilty as charged. Is this my day of reckoning, then?” His tone was bitter, almost scared.

For the first time since arriving, Maxwell looked Andrew directly in the eye. “I have an idea.”

“You didn’t answer my question, but go on,” he said with a dry chuckle.

“Tell me, who is Nikos Antigone?”

Andrew stood up suddenly. “What do you mean, has he contacted you? Have you met him?”

“So you do know him. He sent me a letter- or, as it turns out, two letters. The first ‘anonymously’ telling me to run away from you, the second saying that you robbed him. Tell me, have you ever used violence in your hijinks?”

“I don’t know how much you’ll believe me, but no, I haven’t.”

“I figured as much. So it was Antigone that broke your nose a couple weeks back?”

Andrew hesitated. Was this an interview? But Maxwell seemed so genuinely worried. “Yeah, basically.”

“I’m very sorry,” he said, brushing a finger over the bridge that was still sore. Andy winced slightly, causing Max to draw his hand away.

“I’m not going to turn you in. I want to help, but to do that, I need answers. Could you tell me more?” He was now surprisingly soft.

So with a heavy sigh, Andrew spilled his guts about everything, even ousting Isabella’s involvement in the process. He also provided some insight on Jennifer. She was the daughter of a nobleman, one that rudely broke off dealings with the Antigone family’s crime loop, when she was just a baby.

Despite this, all four of them had attended the same school without realizing. She and the young Nikos were the best of friends, before they all went their separate ways, and Nikos followed in his family’s footsteps. Andrew was doing jobs for him simply to make him money and to be a jewel in his crown.

“You won’t have to be for long. If we can find a way to get him in the wrong place at the wrong time, we can pin all of your wrongdoings on him.”

“Maxwell, no. You could lose your job if you did that!”

“I’m more than willing-“

“And besides, I’m the one at the wheel, I should take the blame-“

“You think I haven’t shuffled blame before? You know neither of us have ever cared about morals and virtue.”

“That may be true, but this is still a huge risk. One I’m not willing to let you take for me!”

“Well too bad, because I refuse to allow you to keep on like this. If you don’t let me help, I’ll find a way to do something on my own.”

“Max, what the hell has gotten into you? Why can’t you let me sort out my own problems- or just throw me in jail already?”

“Because I love you, you nitwit!”

There was a long, charged silence. The tension of argument melted away, leaving something else entirely in its place.

“I… I think I love you too. And I don’t want you to get hurt. You have no idea the things this guy will do to you.”

Max held Andy’s hand, up on the table. “You’re right, I don’t. But I know with our combined minds, we can outsmart him.”

Andrew took a deep, shuddering breath. “Do you really think so?”

Maxwell nodded. “The Antigone family has done enough damage. It’s about time someone put a stop to it. I only have one condition.”

“That being?”

“For both of our sakes, you need to drop your game. Once Nikos is in prison, well…”

Andrew nodded and pondered for a moment. “I’d need something else after the fact- to keep me entertained. But yes, for you, I will.”

“Then our plot can be your last heist. Any ideas as to a replacement?”

“You could marry me, and we could run away together. Be musicians in Vienna till’ we’re old,” Andy smirked.

Max giggled. “Ask me again in three years.”

And then he gave Andy the most lovestruck look. Andy returned it. They glanced at their pose- they were awfully close.

“I’d ask if I could kiss you, but there’s a table in the way,” Andy whispered with a quiet laugh.

“Just get over here, you,” Max then pulled a laughing Andy by his tie to the nearest wall, moving close, only to be stopped.

“Hang the hell on, you’re the short one, shouldn’t you be the one-“

Max swatted Andy’s arm. “Oh, shut up.” And with that, they finally closed the gap.

Andy smelled like fresh cakes, and Max like old books. Where the thief tasted like strawberries, the detective was like tea with milk; both felt like smooth butter.

Andy’s arms were strong as he lifted Max and held him so close. They stood like that for a long time, pausing only to dash upstairs. Andrew had only one thought before his mind went blank with bliss.

Antigone thinks he can use me as a puppet. Poor man has no idea what he’s messing with.

[chayacat]

Devil’s Sweet Star (18)

Fandom: Dead by Daylight

Ghostface x Female Reader  

Rated M for Violence, Language and Smut  

***

Life is like an endless road. Sprinkled with pitfalls, choices, regrets, happiness, doubts... so many things that could keep you going... or to end the journey permanently. At every important moment, two paths are open to you. and every path you take will have consequences. This is called the butterfly effect.

But when you look at Danny's life, you quickly notice that he continues on his way even though it should have stopped. Already just during his childhood, he escaped death twice. The violence he suffered because of his "father" almost cost him his life. then when he lost Carla. At first, our dear assassin wanted to end his life before changing his mind at the last moment, feeling unable to do so. That's when the truth came out. That's when his life took a whole different path. And the rest you know.

And there... there is another way opens up. The path you've opened. But how far will this path go? Only time will tell. But one thing is certain: Jed will have to disappear. Danny still can't believe you prefer Jed to him. Such a boring life is almost unbearable! While a life with him... exciting, dangerous is what makes him feel alive! We're going to have to really work on that. As for McKellan.... his time is running out now.

It's all set. All that remains is to wait. Once the discord between him and Hoggins gets to a certain point.... He will strike. It is not in his style or in his habit to blame someone else. But he has to admit that it was fun to make Wilhelm go around in circles. He couldn't wait to see his face when he found out that Danny had put him on a false trail.

“A little romantic dinner, huh? I knew that under those glasses and that nerd look there was a romantic boy.” said Melinda suddenly, bringing Danny out of his thoughts.

Oh, that's right. Have dinner. With you. He sent you a message to see if you'd prefer a restaurant or a meal at his house. And your answer was not long in coming, with a nice touch of humour, you told him that you would like to taste his cooking.  He is not a great Michelin-starred chef but for you he will be able to make a meal worthy of the greatest restaurants. And with a little luck... he will be able to enjoy the softness and warmth of your body for the night... what? Don't forget that he is a man, above all! A man with needs... important carnal needs.

“I may be a nerd, but I'm not an idiot either. And then it was you who told me that I had to think more often about my personal life than professional, right?” said Danny scratching his head.  

“that’s true, but I didn't think you'd listen to me. And also, at home. this story could end well ... If you know what I mean.”  

“Not on the first night. That's not her style. Plus, we're not really ... Together. Maybe tonight will be the beginning of a relationship but... It can also be an embarrassing misunderstanding. I'm not sure it's reciprocal. She can always change her mind...

“Don't start telling you that the war is lost if you haven't fought in one battle! You don't know anything and that's normal! tonight it will be the perfect opportunity for both of you to be sure that it is reciprocal. And if that's the case... then this may be the best night of your life.” replied Melina seriously.

“Yeah, you’re right. I'll see what happens tonight. the boss's plan seems to be working. Apparently Hoggins is going to press charges against the Georgia newspaper. And he's not even aware that we've published it.” said Danny, re-placing his glasses properly.

“The most amazing thing about all this is that Hoggins has a tooth against McKellan! Apparently, he thinks he was the one who sold the wick to the journalist. it's going to create tension...” said Mattew, stretching his arms.

“That's going to spice things up. It can only be beneficial to us. Now don't make mistakes. If hoggins learn that it is us and that in addition they were stolen from his home ... we can say goodbye to life.” said Melina.

Jed nod while Danny smiled slyly. He will be dead long before he tries anything. Because of course Hoggins is going to die. When and how Danny doesn't know, but one thing's for sure: he'll kill him. Then maybe he will consider living somewhere else... You never know. and if he could take you with him... that would be the icing on the cake. He can't wait to see you tonight. More than ever. He wonders what you're going to wear... something soft for sure.  

But it won't be the most interesting... the most interesting will be how the evening will end... He took the opportunity to bite into one of your pastries, since your reopening, you provide the newspaper with pastries and coffee. and everyone appreciates it! But Hembrook is the greediest. His personal order was rather.... Long. the latter passed through the offices, a brownie in hand before stopping in front of our trio.

“Don't forget you have a Ghostface article to write! I'm counting on you my little Jed to get a quality article!” He said with a proud smile.  

“Of course, sir. You can count on me, I'm on my way.” respond Danny with a smile.  

“This little bandit of Wilhelm does not give us much info. Did you find anything on your side?”

“Well... I shouldn't talk to you about it but... I found pictures... really horrible pictures... I didn't think he could do that. I... I dropped them off at your office.. So, you can see it for yourself. But I don't mean to offend you... you had a criminal among your employees.” replied Danny, holding back from smiling.

Two actually, but that, old man, you don't know. Because compared to Mike, Danny is a real cover-up pro.

“Yes... I can imagine the worst. Even though he was a drug addict, I can't even imagine what kind of crap he was doing. I'll be in my office. By the way, you'll tell your friend that I love her cakes! I'll pay for it at the end of the month. At work little kids!

Danny and the others resumed their work, the latter working to catch his article about the drug dealer they recently found. With Mike's murder, it's a big job but it doesn't scare our young reporter. All he cares about is your little face-to-face tonight. Just him and you... both in the same room. The little rabbit trapped by the big bad wolf.

The day passed quickly, the lunch break allowing everyone to take a breather, Danny took the opportunity to watch what he could cook you tonight. A Milanese cutlet with spaghetti was his final choice. He has everything at home to do them. What? Did you expect him to have only sandwiches and ready meals? Danny is a fine mouth and he likes to cook despite his ...bloody inclination. and you're going to be able to see his culinary skills tonight. Actually, Jed's skills from your point of view.

He has to make his alter ego disappear. once and for all. He was tired of being the nice little Jed Olsen. He wanted to be himself. He left his job and came to pick you up as usual. You were exhausted but delighted with this little meal between you. The way home was a laughing as usual and you separated in front of your apartment doors. Danny had three hours in front of him to prepare dinner. He's got plenty of time.

He put his things in his office, took a change, and went to take a good shower. hey he must be presentable tonight! no glasses, no hair tied, it's a very different "Jed" that you're going to see tonight. He left the bathroom, wearing a short-sleeved black T-shirt, black jeans, and grey sneakers. Well, they were white at the base but ... let's say that time has done its work. He was handsome, he knew how to showcase himself, without any artifice. Natural beauty is all that attracted him and made him attractive.

He began to prepare the meal, being careful not to be wrong. He has to make a good impression! if he has calculated his shot correctly, he will have to cook everything when you are there. He'll have a good half hour of conversation with you before he gets to the table. everything was calculated, like his murders. I told you, Danny is meticulously meticulous. Once the meal was ready, just waiting to be baked, Danny prepared the table, simple, sober, but effective. He opened a bottle of wine and tasted it before he smiled. A quality wine for a quality meal.

He placed the bottle on the table and checked that everything was in place and once that was done, made sure that the door of his office was locked. We never know, curiosity is a nasty flaw, and nothing says you won't try to get into it. He barely had time to return to the drawing-room, when he heard knocking at the door. A sneaky smile came to his lips. It's time.

He opened the door, and what he saw left him speechless. You had styled your hair in a beautiful bun, leaving two thin strands of your hair on either side of your face. You had very slightly made-up, very discreet that it does not even seem that you have any. You were dressed in a white and blue striped dress, flesh-colored tights and small navy-blue ballerinas. An angel, you were an angel. And visibly, Danny didn't leave you indifferent either.

“You’re...you’re beautiful.” said Danny, regaining his spirits.

“So are you. I wonder if I'm at the right address. What did you do with the real Jed Olsen?” You said laughing, making Danny laugh at the same time.

“Oh, let's say that when night comes, the little nerd I am is giving way to a perfect gentleman. Especially when I'm in perfect and charming company. But come in, please. The evening will be more pleasant inside than in front of my doormat.”  

“Thank you, my dear little gentleman.” you replied, coming in while Danny smiles slyly, closing the door behind you.  

“dinner is practically ready, but I'm saying we could... chat a little bit. Unless you're really hungry and then I better cook everything before you become a little demonic creature.”

“Really Funny Jed, don’t worry I'm not like Mattew. By the way, everyone enjoyed my cakes?”

“Yeah, especially Mr Hembrook, he's a real glutton, you would have seen him he wouldn't have stopped if you'd brought him more. But keep it to yourself, he's supposed to be watching his line. In fact, his wife does it for him. I met her once and I can confirm that these two there was meant to be together, they are literally day and night. But as they say, opposites attract each other, don't they?”

“It’s true. Melina told me that... that we were all connected to our soulmate in one way or another. and that all our lives we were guided to him or her. After that is it true ... In a sense when I think of my parents, or the Lawsons, I tell myself that it's true. But when I see some couple separating after years of married life.... I tell myself that it doesn't necessarily work every time. Or that we wanted to thwart fate and it put us back on the right path.” You answer shrugging your shoulders, looking at him.  

“Sure...Well, Can I have a drink for you? If I remember correctly, you are not very friendly with alcohol then... Can I buy you a cup of tea? You'll still drink wine at least? just have a drink if you really don't want to, to make me happy.” He asks smiling.

“Yes, for the tea, and just one glass of wine, to make you happy.” You respond, smiling in return.  

Danny serves you a small cup of tea and then give it to you before serving himself and sitting on the couch. You join him and talk for a good half hour. You discuss everything, Danny of his work, you of yours, recalling your little feat of yesterday. Danny smiled, the thought of you mastering this poor fool made him laugh inwardly. Who would have thought that this fragile little body was capable of such a thing? After this half hour of discussions, he got up and put the cutlets into the oven. He pulled out a jug of water that he had put in the fridge, to place it on the table on your side. He then turned on the pan where the spaghetti has cooked to warm them up a little before serving on the plate. Once the cutlets were cooked, he placed them gently on the plate and took them to serve on the table.

“I'm not a great Michelin-starred chef but... I hope you like it.” He said scratching his head.  

“Oh, come on! I'm sure it's very good! Don't underestimate yourself like that! and at worst... You'll be my guinea pig for the next three months.” You respond laughing.

“Well, if it means free cakes...Why not?”

You start eating and he's taking only a bite to congratulate Danny, or rather Jed on his meal. Jed smiled as Danny smiled more widely, of course his cooking was good. He told you, you would be treated like a queen if you preferred him to Jed. The meal went in good spirits, from the dish to the dessert.

“It was really delicious Jed. Thank you. It's been a long time since I've had a... one-on-one with someone. If we ignore the meal, we made at the Chinese restaurant of course. And in the end, you do very well in the kitchen ... Carla was really lucky to have you.” you said smiling.

“Carla taught me everything. If she hadn't helped me with cooking, I would have been a great instant noodle addict.” Danny responds.  

“... There's something I'd like to talk to you about. It's... It's about the two of us. I... I know you can't turn the page since... I mean, you know. But lately, we've both shown signs of affection...”

“We kissed. Twice. The first time was you and the second time was me. And you wonder if... if it's reciprocal on my side. You want to know for sure.” Replied Danny rising from his chair to stand beside you, his eyes staring at yours. He laughs slightly, seeing you nodding, blushing.  “It's true that... I'm having a hard time moving on. Carla... was everything to me. She was the only one who didn't treat me like... someone different. And since we've known each other, I've felt that way again. So, if that can answer your question...”  

He kissed you, without warning, and this time the kiss lasted longer. The softness of her lips added to the softness of his... It's a double feeling of silk touch, both for him and for you. As he was about to release you, Danny was surprised when, against all odds, you kissed him again, not wanting to let go of his lips for a second. Both eventually backed off and a smile was exchanged between the two of you.

“Is that okay with that answer?” he simply asks.

“Yes. You know I don't promise to be the perfect girlfriend...”

“I don’t promise to be the perfect boyfriend too. We're probably going to fight one day. For anything and everything. But know that if you have problems ... I'll be there. I won't let anyone near you. To hurt you, of course.”

“Me too. I... I’m started to be tired. I'm going to go to bed.” you replied, rising up and starting to walk you to the door. Danny hugged you and kissed you one last time.

“Good night my love. Have sweet dreams.” He simply said.

He let you go and addressed his angelic smile when you close the door. He cleared it all, wash the dishes, changed and went to bed. Looking at the ceiling he let himself be dragged by sleep. No stalking tonight. But in his mind one thing was clear:

When it all ends. When no one is on his way, whether it's McKellan, Hoggins, or those who will approach you... He'll have to be the only one in your eyes. Jed will have to disappear.  

FOREVER.

***

(Done! well I took my time and start writing only since Wednesday, but I did it! I hope you’ll like it like the others! time for me to rest this week-end! have a good week-end everyone! See ya!)

[bbykpoper]

𝓒𝓵𝓸𝓾𝓭𝓫𝓮𝓻𝓻𝔂 💐

Inspired by this post 🌼

Pairing: florist!yeosang x photographer!reader

Index: Jongho // Hongjoong // Seonghwa // San // Yunho // Wooyoung // Mingi

･*:༅

“We have the best wedding photographer on hand, she is currently at a photo shoot, so if you wish to see her work you are more than welcome to.” A tall young man spoke to the couple in front of them with a smile. “May I just say, it would be an honour to do your photos. Our whole studio simply adores your sweets!”

“Say it louder, I don’t think they heard how desperate you are Johnny.” 

“Shut it Mark.” 

Glares were exchanged. Small breathless laughs followed the exchange between the boys as the couple nodded in assurance.

“We’d love to work with your studio, and it would be really awesome if we could see the photographer at work!” Song Mingi exclaimed as he held his fianceé’s hand. “When do we leave?”

“Oh, you guys don’t have to go far.” The boy in the hoodie with glasses, named Mark, spoke from the corner. “They’re on the roof.”

“Wonderful, let’s go!”

Johnny was quick to guide them up the steps and through the door. The couple was met with a sight out of a fiction novel. There was a young beauty in a white dress standing in the middle of a field of dandelions the sun beautifully shading her figure on the ground as a bubbly you jumped from one side to another, your dark hair adorned with a very badly made flower crown. 

“That’s her right there, the jumpy rabbit.” Mark pointed at the you in the cargo pants and flower crown on your head. “She’s overly excited sometimes.”

“Y/N!” Johnny yelled out, making you stop and turned to him, your facial features designed to murder him.

“What do you want Johnton?” You asked with a sigh. “Can it wait until the sun rises fully, I’m getting some good material here.”

“Oh yeah, no problem.” He waved. “We’ll just observe the magic.”

“Yeah yeah.” You ignored him as you went back to work, now bringing in the groom as well.

Mingi and his significant other watched you with vigour in their eyes, happy that they decided to go with their guts and come down to this particular studio to get a photographer for their big day. Johnny and Mark stood beside the couple and nodded knowing that you had just convinved them to pay you for a photo shoot.

“Congradulations on your day.” You said to the husband and wife as they happily left the vacinity of your studio. With a small smile on your face you turned towards your friends/roommates/co-workers and their new clients, a big question mark above your head. “Hi, I’m y/n. The main photographer here at NCT photos.”

“Hi, I’m Song Mingi and this is my future wife.”

“Welcome, take a seat please.” You said and sat in between Johnny and Mark. “How can we help you?”

“Our wedding is in a month and our photographer quit on us last minute.” He began explaining to you. “And a friend of ours reffered you guys, so we came here as soon as we could to see if we could book you guys to do our wedding.”

“So which date would that be?” You pulled out a small planner littered in stickers and opened it to the calendar page of the next month.

“It’s on the 7th.” 

“That’s in a week.” Mark deadpanned his face embodying the pikachu meme. 

“Yeah.” Both of them scratched their necks. “To be honest, I proposed three weeks ago.”

“Wow.” Johnny whistled and looked at his friends. “You think we could do this?”

“Where is the wedding?” You asked, just nodding at Johnny’s question.

“It’s going to be at our little home. The back yard is vast and there is space to do the shoot as well as hold the wedding.”

“Can we decorate the shoot according to your wishes?” 

“Yes. We’ll provide you guys with everything. Except the flowers...” Mingi looked at you. “I want to have flowers which will fully bring out my future wife’s beauty. So I was hoping you could help me out.”

“Sure, no problem.” You gave a thumbs up. “I’ll just go down to Jihyo’s place later.”

“Great, we have a friend who works there.” Both said.

“You do?”

“Yeah, Kang Yeosang.”

･*:༅

The wheezing laughter that came from Mark had your eye twitching in annoyance. The three of you sat at Sugarberry’s, Johnny patting your shoulder in reassurance while Mark just kept on wheeze laughing while he tried to drink his watermelon flaovured lemonade. Ever since Mingi and his fianceé came by their studio wanting to book them as their photographers and the notion that Yeosang, your not so subtle fan, was their friend and your future co-worker had Mark dying.

You were friends with these two since elementary school. You guys went to the same middle and high school, only parting ways with Mark in college but still living together ever since. Johnny and you opened this small but very well known photography studio in your senior year of college and Mark jumped on the band wagon as a film maker and editor. Ever since then you guys were thriving in your job.

“Can you stop laughing?” You groaned out, sinking deeper into your hoodie. “I don’t think it’s that funny.”

“But it is.” He said, brushing off a tear from his eye. “You’ll be finally working together with Yeosang. How is that not funny?”

“You’re mean.” You mumbled underneath your breath.

“Come on Mark, y/n didn’t make fun of you when you had a crush on your visual arts teacher.” Johnny sighed, taking a bite of his pastry. “Remember, the teacher that had you all hot and bothered?”

“But why don’t you just admit it to yourself that you like him?” Mark suddenly straightened up at the mention of his college visual arts professor. “I mean you do like him?”

“I don’t know okay?” You sighed, playing with the straw of your coffee. “I do consider him to be attractive physically, but how can I like someone who I don’t even know?”

“Well, the easy answer is to get to know him.” Johnny shrugged his shoulders. “For now, you can at least tell him you’ll come to visit the flower shop.” He pointed at the blond boy who smiled shyly at you and waved, having you wave back.

“He didn’t hear our conversation, right?” You asked with an awkward smile on your face.

“I don’t think so.” Mark added, turning around to say hi to him. “You’re good.”

With a deep breath you stood up from your table and walked over to the boy who patiently waited in line to get to order his drinks. You softly tapped his shoulder to gain his attention and his ears turned a soft shade of pink when he figured out who was trying to gain his attention.

“Hi.” You softly greeted.

“Hi.” The smile which glowed on his face almost blinded your cat-like eyes.

“Came to get a drink?”

“Yeah. Jihyo has some orders and couldn’t go out to get us something to drink.” He nodded. “You guys done with work?”

“We’re just beginning.” You sighed. “Mingi booked us to work his wedding. I was surprised he decided to go through with a wedding only after three weeks of engagement.”

“Yeah, they actually pinned for each other for the past two years but were too dumb to notice the other.” Yeosang looked over at Mingi happily whistling in the back and making some cakes. “Oh to be in love.”

You looked up at him and got lost in the warmth he radiated from his body. The afternoon sun nicely shaped his facial features with those deep shadows and you had to control yourself as to not blush or show just how much it affected you.

“Yeah, must be nice.” Your eyes longingly stayed on him. “By the way, I’ll be dropping by the flower shop tomorrow. I need to pick out some flowers for Mingi’s photo shoot.”

“Really?” His eyes seemed to light up even more. 

“Yeah, really.” You smiled at him.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

･*:༅

Jihyo sat in silence and observed the two as they went about the shop considering some flowers which were supposed to fit the couple. Johnny also stood on the side next to Jihyo and snorted when both Yeosang and you touched hands as you went to take hold of a gardenia flower at the same time. 

“Please tell me they’re not dumb like Mingi and his girlfriend.” Jihyo commented.

“No. They know that the other likes them, but y/n has a problem connecting with others who she doesn’t know on a friendly basis.” Johnny added. “It’s a good and bad thing at the same time.”

“So, they just need to be friends first?” Jihyo asked.

“I mean they technically are...?” The tall man sighed. “But yeah. They need to hang out a bit more.”

Jihyo sat in though for a few minutes before motioning to Johnny to follow her lead.

“Guys, I need to go out and pick up some stuff for the shop so I’m leaving this little task of picking the best flowers to you Yeosang.” Jihyo said, and grabbed Johnny to drag him out. “I will need Johnny’s help too. Have fun y/n.”

“Good luck.” You waved at them, not really paying attention or mind to anything.

Yeosang caught on quickly to Jihyo’s plan because she basically gave him a thumbs up and wink to go for it. He suddenly became very nervous and skittish and you noticed it.

“What’s wrong?” You asked him.

“Nothing.” He simply answered. “How about making some flower crowns for them? I know Mingi’s wife would like some.”

“Great idea!” You exclaimed clapping your hands together, but quickly coming to terms with a small problem. “Only... I’m shit at making those.” 

“You can’t be that bad-” You pulled out your camera and showed him some pictures of Mark mocking your hand woven flower crown. “-okay, you’re just not experienced. But I can teach you.”

And so, you spent the next two hours learning how to properly make flower crowns and finally succeeded in making a beautiful one out of the small flowers of a cloudberry. 

“I did it!” You smiled at Yeosang widely.

“Yeah. You did.”

The dreamy look in his eyes had you blushing furiously as a sudden thought ran through your mind. Somehow you’ve come to know Yeosang a bit more through this little activity the both of you did and it gave you courage that maybe, the crush you had on him, and the crush he had on you, could work out into something more. But you had to be sure, so you took the next step.

“So, because I have to get everything ready and in order for the wedding next week, do you want to help me out?” You asked, your ears burning from the heat your cheeks produced.

Yeosang blinked a few times but nodded, shy and small, a smile playing on his lips.

“I’d love to.”

“Great. Is it okay if you come over tomorrow after your shift?” 

“As in, come over to your home?”

“Yeah, I share an appartment with Johnny and Mark next to the NCT studio. Both of them have other business to attend to so they won’t be home and we can work in peace.” God this seemed to be so intimate but not at the same time. “You can say no if you’re uncomfortable.”

“No!” He suddenly said making you frown and avert your gaze. “No, I didn’t mean it like that.” He quickly corrected himself. “What I meant to say was that I am not uncomfortable and it’s totally fine being alone with you.” Great Yeosang, now she will think you’re desperate. “I’ll come over after 4 p.m.”

“Awesome.” Johnny came in with Jihyo just as you said. “Johnny look, I finally made a normal flower crown.” You flaunted your handy work to your friend. “All thanks to Yeosang.”

“Nice. Let’s go show it to Mark and make him suffer for ever mocking your crooked ones before.” He laughed. “See you around guys.”

“See ya.” You waved at them both and left the shop.

“So did it help being alone with her?” Jihyo asked, glancing at a blushy mess of a co-worker.

“Yes. I’m going over to her place tomorrow.” He whispered out, squating down and holding his face in his arms. “God, I feel like a high school kid who had his first kiss.”

Jihyo laughed and patted the man’s shoulder reassuringly. You managed to make Mark swallow his words and admit you did an awesome job with these new flower crowns. The day had ended with you laying in your bed, your head on your soft pillow with thoughts of Yeosang drifting you off to sleep, the flower crown you made proudly placed on your bed-side table as the night shifted darker.

･*:༅

“We made quite a lot haven’t we.” Yeosang commented as he finished his 40th dandelion crown since he came over. “What are we gonna do with so many?”

“Give them out to the guests. It’ll look nice in the photos.” You shrugged your shoulders as you texted Mingi’s future wife to tell her the plan. “She agreed to it. And Mingi seems to be excited.”

“Yeah, he does that when it comes to her.” Yeosang smiled solemnly. 

“We’re done for today. The rest of the work is mostly on Mark and Johnny’s shoulders now.” You smiled and looked outside.

It was about 5.45 p.m. and you knew that soon the sun was going to set. You looked over to the window and noticed the furry friend you were waiting for and opened the glass which separated you two to have him jump into your arms and lick your nose slightly. 

“Where have you been Dandelion?” You asked the grey cat as he purred in your hold. “Want some tuna with that love of yours.” You joked and placed him down before opening a can and placing it in his bowl so he can freely munch on it.

“You have a cat?” Yeosang asked, observing the interaction with soft eyes.

“Yeah. Technically he is a stray but likes to cuddle from time to time. He hates Mark and Johnny for some reason, but likes me and dandelion flowers, hence the name.” You shrugged your shoulders as you petted his head while he ate. “By the way, wanna see something cool?”

“Sure.” Yeosang stood up as you jumped out the window onto the connecting roof of a building next to your appartment. 

He followed your lead as you kept walking and climbing on to a spot which had an outdoor lounge are filled with bean bags and a small wooden table.

“This is a secret rest area for the NCT studio which I usually use to take pictures of the sunset.” You said, plopping down on one of the bean bags. “Take a seat. You want something cold to drink?” 

“Sure.” You grabbed two iced-teas and turned to give him one but were met with Dandelion cozying up to him instead. 

“So he likes you.” 

“It seems so.” He laughed and took the tea you offered him, opening it swiftly with one hand. “It’s so beautiful.”

You looked over at the setting sun. “Yeah. It is.” You took a sip of your tea and sneakily took a photo of Yeosang and your cat. “By the way. I have something to tell you.” You were now certain.

“What’s up?” Yeosang turned to look at your profile which was being bathed in the setting sun.

“I like you.” You said, not daring to look at him before taking a deep breath. “I like you more than a friend.”

Your eyes met for a brief second, you holding your breath as you waited for any type of reaction. The sudden blush which creeped up to his ears and down to his neck was a bit worrying but you still waited. He looked down at his hands and pinched his cheek to see if he was dreaming or not.

“I like you too. More than a friend.” He whispered out and laughed to himself holding his face in his hands, before finally pulling you to him, and placing his chin on your head. “I’m so happy. Like really happy to know the feeling is mutual.”

“Me too.” You said, burrying your face into his shoulder. “I want to try dating. Like, couple stuff too. And everything that goes with it.” You mumbled. “I think I can trust you.”

“Then we will do all that!” He said looking at you.

The both of you placed your foreheads against each others, smiling like idiots. The sun set in the background peacefully as Dandelion purred in Yeosang’s lap. Life was beautiful, serene and fluffy.

Just like the clouds and berries of this series.

[lovelyirony]

File Away for Later

for @stony-starks, with a very nice thank you to your wonderful tags! i hope you enjoy. 

The Avengers don’t have many secrets. 

But there is a glaringly obvious one. 

No one knows Fury’s birthday. They don’t know why he doesn’t like to share this information, as someone else knowing your birthday guarantees free cake. Tony lets everyone in the New York-area that it’s his birthday on the off-chance that he gets more than one cake. 

He does get more than one cake. He gets on a power trip. It’s bad. 

But Nick Fury won’t let anyone know his birthday. Not even Natasha can figure out his birthday, and she’s figured out where he buys his groceries, which was said to be impossible. 

“We can’t find out,” Natasha says. “I have tried for years. I even took money from Steve!” 

“No you didn’t,” Steve says. 

“It was from your wallet, I stole it,” Sam says. “I wanted to know if money provided different results. I filed it under scientific research.” 

“Why didn’t you steal money from Bruce, then?” Steve asks. “He’s the scientist.” 

“Everyone at this office fears me more than you could ever dream of,” Bruce answers, not even looking up from his paperwork. “Also, you are incredibly easy to steal from. I feel bad every time I steal your five dollars to get a latte.” 

“So I wasn’t just losing it?!” 

“No, I owe you over three hundred dollars that I won’t be paying back,” Bruce says. “Good luck. Win the next bet that Bucky poses and I think that you’ll be fine.” 

“Let’s not talk about Steve’s trusting nature, we’re supposed to be discussing how to figure out Fury’s birthday.” 

“Short of breaking into the Pentagon, you can’t,” Clint complains. “I tried.” 

Tony blinks. 

“We’re allowed to break into the Pentagon?” 

“It is a federal crime, possibly punishable by death depending on which judge you get,” Rhodey reasons. “But I don’t see how you couldn’t do it. Haven’t you done it before?” 

“For legal and personal reasons, I refuse to answer,” Tony says. “But I will be in the basement looking over files in the next hour if anyone was wondering.” 

- 

Fury knows they’re looking for his birthday date. He also knows they won’t find it because he’s not a little bitch who lets just anyone try. 

(His birthday is in December. He just doesn’t like it because it’s so close to Christmas, so then he just celebrates it then. He doesn’t see a point in having a specific date. He’s weird.) 

But he doesn’t want his team knowing it because honestly? It’s kind of...fun to stop them. Over the years it’s been more elaborate. Steve’s attempts are always pitiful, Natasha tried once and got the closest, and Tony only got as far as accessing New York records, which Fury then decided to crash the whole system. 

But he feels like something is happening. Bruce hasn’t looked up from paperwork once, which is highly suspicious because Bruce will take any excuse to look up from work that he hates. 

There is also the fact that Tony is reorganizing files. 

So Fury decides to pay a visit. 

He even ditches his official coat and opts for gym shorts. 

“Good afternoon, Stark,” Fury says. Tony’s head whips around, hands dropping the file box. 

“I am horrified and yet intrigued that you own athletic wear. I should have known but the coat...” His voice trails off. “What did you need, Director?” 

“Just wanted to know why you’re reorganizing files. You hate doing that and frequently trip Barnes into doing the task by promising him something...illicit.” 

“I never promise him anything illicit,” Tony protests. “Mostly wine and occasionally bedroom fun.” 

“I would like to recommend that you never tell me that ever again or bring it up again in conversation for all time,” Fury responds. “I will...leave. After you tell me why.” 

“Jim is behind on files and wanted to get it done before our weekend,” Tony says. “Just file things, you know how it is.” 

Fury has no reason to be suspicious. He still is, but he gets the feeling it’s a diversion as he hurries up the stairs. 

- 

Fury wasn’t exactly wrong. While he was away, Natasha did pick the lock on the door and get personal things, like a cellphone or any schedule. Fury preferred pen and paper. 

Unfortunately, Fury knows that those are weaknesses and has prepared. He also carries a lighter and burns notes as soon as he is rid of them. 

There is nothing in his office other than the possibility of Natasha being caught, which is precisely going according to plan. 

A laptop can fit into a file cabinet. This is precisely according to Tony’s plan. 

“We are a go,” Natasha says. “Now.” 

Tony starts typing again, grinning. 

“Rhodey, you’re on go for now,” Tony says. 

Rhodey’s whole job for today is to be as suspicious as possible. This includes using Tony’s office, getting shifty looks, and asking Bruce to create a diversion. 

Bruce is fantastic at creating diversions. 

“No causing diversions,” Fury announces. 

“I will do what I want under the Constitution,” Bruce says, not even looking as he flings the whole drawer of silverware onto the floor. 

“That’s not even a good diversion,” Fury says. “Now all you have to do is pick it up.” 

“Or will I?” Bruce ponders. “Due to federal regulations, I am legally required a lunch break. Which perhaps I will take. And then perhaps Thor will fall severely sick.” 

“I need a doctor’s note.” 

“And I happen to have one that I will send a picture of,” Bruce says, not even looking away as he backs to the door. “I am going to my lunchbreak and potentially staying home with my sick husband so I can be a loving spouse and force-feed him chicken noodle soup.” 

Fury sighs, pinching his nose. This was going to be a long day. 

- 

Tony committed a felony! 

- 

Fury’s birthday is December 21st. According to his uncle who lives in Vermont, they celebrate it at Christmas, per his request. 

“Wow,” Steve says. “So he just...celebrates it on Christmas? Like. It’s not even his day?” 

“Oh no, it is,” Fury says. “I’ve made Christmas my motherfucking bitch. But I figured kill two birds with one stone. Did you seriously break into the Pentagon?” 

“I am wanted in two other countries, might as well have made it my home one as well,” Tony says pridefully. “Besides, they don’t think it was me. I don’t leave clues. And Bruce went home and emailed you a doctor’s note because Ross will suspect that it is him because I gave him my pumpkin bread last year.” 

“The pumpkin bread was the start of this?” Fury asks. 

“Exactly,” Tony says. “Director with all due respect, you don’t take me as a class idiot, do you?” 

“Of course not,” Fury says. “I’m just impressed that you planned something in advance. You usually stick to getting work done after procrastination.” 

“I prefer to do my best work under pressure.” 

“Is it your best work?” 

Tony laughs, but flips Fury off after a few moments. 

“Yes, it is my best work. But, now I believe that I will celebrate your birthday every twenty-first, and you will have to suffer me bringing you cake and presents and potentially embarrassing you with a long and drawn-out social media post.” 

“I will be hosting a surprise party at some interval,” Bucky tells him. “You won’t know when.” 

“You just told me, now I have to remain constantly vigilant.” 

“But did I tell you which date?” 

Fury blinks. 

“Exactly,” Bucky affirms. “I did not. See you soon...Director.”

Fury sits down in his office and smiles to himself. Sure, the team wasted time trying to find out something so trivial, but he can’t deny it did pair well with his plan to have the team bond. And if it means committing crime...well. 

Worse things have been done for his birthday, in his opinion.  

[wonkasmissstarshine]

The Chocolatier’s Rose {Willy Wonka x OC} Ch.29

GIFs not mine. Credit go to owners.

Summary: Next on their wedding plan list, is a stop to see Eleanor about providing her musical talents.

Tagging: @holdmeicant​ @willymywonkers​ @sleepiesapphicxoxo​

Their next stop was to see Eleanor. Rose wanted her to handle all the music considering her talent on the violin. And Rose has heard Eleanor singing before. She has a lovely voice. The elevator stopped in front of Eleanor's house. Rose, Willy and Charlie all walked up to the front door. Rose rang the doorbell.

"Someone is at the door, Eleanor!" a woman's voice called from inside.

"I can hear that, mum!" Eleanor called back. "Dad, why can't you get it?"

"I'm watching the telly!" her dad called back to her.

An audible groan was heard from the other side of the door, before it opened and revealed Eleanor. She perked you when she saw who it was. "Rose! Willy! Charlie!"

"Hello, Ellie" Rose greeted her, while Willy and Charlie simply waved at her.

"Who is it, El?" her mum called from the kitchen.

"It's my friends, mum!" Eleanor called back, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice. "You know, Charlie, Rose and Willy!"

"Oh!" At that point, Eleanor's mum came out to greet them. It wasn't hard to see where Eleanor got her beauty from. "Pleasure to meet you all! Eleanor talks about you three all the time"

"This is my mum, Tina. And my dad, Stan, is in the living room watching the telly"

Rose smiled at Tina. "Nice to meet you, Tina. I'm—"

"Rose!" Tina answered. "I know, and my El wasn't lying when she said you were beautiful" Tina looked down to Charlie. "And you must be Charlie"

"That's right, ma'am" Charlie nodded curtly.

"Oh, my dear boy, please call me Tina" Finally, the woman looked up to Willy. "And you're the famous Willy Wonka. You wouldn't believe how much Eleanor goes on about you two" Tina looked between Rose and Willy. "She goes on and on and on. Says that you're the cutest couple she's ever seen!"

"Mum!" Eleanor whined.

"Please, come on in!" Tina extended an invitation towards the three of them. "I've just finished with lunch"

******

Everyone was seated at the table for a lunch consisting of pasta and garlic bread. Eleanor's parents sat on either end, while Charlie and Eleanor sat together on one side, and Rose and Willy were on the other.

"So," Stan started, looking up from his plate to Rose and Willy. "Our El tells us you two just got engaged"

Rose and Willy looked at each other and smiled. "We sure are!" Willy said happily.

"And we're currently planning our wedding" Rose added. She looked over to Eleanor. "Which is what brought us to see you, Eleanor"

Eleanor's eyes lit up with curiosity and excitement. "Me? What possibly for?"

"We want you to be in charge of the music"

Eleanor gasped as her fork slipped from her hand and landed on her plate with a clank. "Really? You must be joking with me"

"Of course we're not joking with you, silly" Willy said to her. He giggled at her and then his face stiffened to a serious expression. "We're being very serious"

"So, you two want me to be in charge of all the music?" Eleanor asked again.

"Well, only if you want to" Rose said. "We just figured, you're real talented with the violin..."

"She's talented with other instruments too!" Tina spoke up. "Piano, guitar, flute, cello, the triangle. You name it, and she can play it!"

Stan also decided to brag about his daughter's musical talents. "Our El is quite the musician. See that shelf over there?" He turned around and pointed to a shelf full of trophies, ribbons and awards. "All those were won by Eleanor"

"Oh, this is so embarrassing..." Eleanor groaned, hiding her face in her hands.

"What do you say, Eleanor?" Charlie asked. "Will you do it?"

"Absolutely, I will" Eleanor answered. She opened her mouth to say something else, but then closed her mouth just as quickly, shaking her head as well.

"What is it, Eleanor?" Rose asked.

"It's a silly idea" She muttered.

Willy laughed as he shook his head. "There's no such thing as a silly idea! All silly ideas are the best ideas"

"Okay then" Eleanor said and then she asked her question. "Do the Oompa-Loompas know how to play any instruments by chance? If I'm going to be playing at your wedding, I'd like a band of Oompa-Loompas"

"That's a wonderful idea!" Willy said excitedly, clapping his hands. "What do you think, starshine?"

"It is!" Rose agreed. "The Oompa-Loompas are talented musicians"

Willy then added on. "You can come to the factory tomorrow and start arranging things with them. They'll be really excited. They like to perform in front of an audience"

Eleanor grew an excited grin. "I'll definitely be there!" She then let out an excited squeal. "This is gonna be so much fun!"

******

After lunch, the three of them decided to stick around for a bit. Charlie was with Tina and Stan in the living room. They were playing a fun tune on the piano and singing a song to it. It's clear where Eleanor's musical talents came from. Rose and Willy stayed with Eleanor in the kitchen. She was showing them a scrapbook filled with her and the many instruments she's played over the years.

"When did you learn to play so many instruments?" Rose asked.

"Oh, I don't know" Eleanor said with a shrug. "My dad used to be in a rock band and my mum used to be in an orchestra. I guess music is just in my blood"

A particular picture in the album caught Willy's attention, mostly because it was Eleanor with an instrument he had never seen before. "Ellie, what's this one called?" Willy asked, pointing to the long instrument resembling a tube.

"Oh, that's a didgeridoo" Eleanor answered.

"Didgeridoo" Willy repeated. An amused giggle came out of his mouth. "That's fun to say!" Rose giggled with Willy as she held onto his arm and leaned against him.

Eleanor smiled at both of them. It was easy to see that they were so in love with each other. Now, one of Eleanor's flaws was that she was a nosy person, especially when it came to relationships. Curiosity got the best of Eleanor so she couldn't stop herself from asking. "What are your plans for after the wedding?"

Rose looked over to Eleanor. "I don't know. Carry on with life as usual, I suppose. The only difference is that we'll be married"

"No, no. I mean, what are you going to do after the wedding?" Eleanor asked again with a raise of her eyebrows.

Willy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "We're not following what you mean, Eleanor"

Eleanor knew that hinting at it wasn't getting anywhere. So, she had to be straightforward. "Are you two planning on having your first time together on the night of your wedding?"

Rose and Willy both fell incredibly silent. Both of them knew what she had meant. They tried to meet each other's eyes but they couldn't. Having sex with each other was something that they hadn't discussed.

Eleanor realized that she had went too far by asking and her face dropped. "Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked" She could hear her mother calling for her. "Mum wants me. Please, excuse me" Eleanor left, leaving Rose and Willy alone.

There was silence between the two of them, before Willy broke it. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Rose looked at him. "About what?"

"You know..." Willy paused as he shifted in his seat. "It "

"Oh, that" She looked down at her hands which were folded in her lap. "Would you want to?"

"Of course I would" Willy admitted shyly, a smile forming on his face and a blush coming to his cheeks. "But only if you want to"

Rose looked up again, giving Willy a loving smile. "I would" She reached over to place hand on his cheek. Willy closed his eyes and nuzzled into her hand. "I love you, cocoa bean"

"I love you too, starshine" They both leaned in, connecting their lips in a passionate kiss.

Neither of them noticed Charlie or Eleanor standing in the doorway, watching them with smiles on their faces. "You must be really happy that they're getting married" Eleanor said to Charlie.

"Very" Charlie said. He looked up and noticed the deep-in-thought look upon Eleanor's face. "What are you thinking, Ellie?"

"Your sister and future brother are giving me an idea for a song" She explained.

"You write songs?" Charlie asked curiously.

"From time to time" She looked down at Charlie. "I want to surprise them with the song at their wedding. That means you can't tell them"

"Your secret is safe with me" Charlie assured. Eleanor thanked Charlie with a hug. She then walked back into the living room, humming a tune that popped up into her head. Charlie had no doubts that it was the song Eleanor was going to sing for Rose and Willy.

Charlie reached into his pocket and pulled out the wedding to do list that Rose entrusted him with. He found a pen and checked music off the list. That only left a few more things to do. All that was left now was decorations, food and the cake, and the floral arrangement for Rose's bouquet.

[nerdzzone]

Light After Dark: Chapter Five

Summary: Brooke Harris was trying her best to be grateful. As the world tackled the COVID-19 pandemic, she was healthy and safe and so was the rest of her family, but her dreams had very quickly been crushed by the economic fallout. Trapped on the quaint island of Jersey with nothing, but free time to wallow in her mistakes, Brooke’s mental health was taking a hit, but when she collides with a handsome stranger she starts to realize that the future might not be so bleak and there might still be a light at the end of the tunnel.

Pairing: Henry Cavill x OFC

A/N: Any names or info about Henry’s family is completely made up and all the gifs I found on google (feel free to contact me for credit if they’re yours!). I would love to hear any feedback on the story so far! :)

______________

May. 5. 2020

"Mum!" I shouted from the kitchen as I admired my creation on the counter. "Where exactly do the Cavills live?"

I heard brief footsteps before my mother's head popped into the kitchen.

"Oh, wow, Brookie," She gasped. "That looks incredible!"

I grinned proudly at the beautiful cake on the counter. It was three tiered and designed to look like Superman. The top being his head, the middle being his torso and the bottom being his bottom half. Complete with cape, curl on his forehead and Superman logo all made out of fondant icing.

"Thank you. Do you think I could walk it over or would I need to take the car?"

"Hm, walking might be safest," She mused as she grabbed her phone off the counter to take a picture. "It's not far and I can come with you if you don't mind. I wouldn't mind saying hello to Marianne."

"That would be great. I'd feel better having someone else to help support it."

"Perfect!" She nodded. "Honestly, darling, this is magnificent. The detail is amazing."

"Thanks," I smiled. "I just need to change quickly and we can go."

She didn't answer as she was so wrapped up in photographing my work so I scurried off up to my room, buzzing with excitement.

****

May was always a tricky time for choosing how to dress. It wasn't overly warm, only about fifteen degrees, but the cool weather we'd had the week before made it seem a lot warmer than it actually was. Carrying the cake would be tricky and I didn't want to show up to Henry's house all sweaty and gross, but I also didn't want to show up dressed for the middle of summer and have him think I was insane.

I groaned as I tossed another shirt disapprovingly onto my bed and heard a giggle from the door.

"Are you struggling?" Cassie teased as she moved into the room and sat on the bed. "It looks like a hurricane has been through here."

"I don't know what to wear," I whined. "I've not seen him in person since we've started talking, I want to make a good impression."

"You're just dropping off a cake, Brooke, you're not even going on a date."

Her statement was intended to calm me down and take the pressure off a bit, but it did the opposite. My cheeks heated up and I suddenly felt incredibly silly.

"I know," I bit my lip as nervous anxiety bubbled in my chest. "I'm blowing it out of proportion, aren't I?"

"A little bit," She nodded. "It's nothing to stress about, hun."

"Was I stupid for making the cake at all?" I asked, "Is it too much?"

"What?" Cassie's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Why on earth would it be too much? That wasn't what I meant at all. I just meant that you don't need to get yourself all worked up over something silly like what to wear."

"It's just weird," I groaned, dragging myself away from my closet to sit on the bed next to her. "We've been talking for almost a month now, but it's hard to figure out where we stand when we can't actually see each other in person. I don't want to overstep if maybe I've read the signals wrong."

"Okay, well, first of all, he asked you to make him a cake so even if he only asked you because he knows you're a baker and he wants a really nice birthday cake then you're still not overstepping," She reminded me. "And second of all, I've seen your conversations. He likes you. He'll be just as excited to see you again as you are to see him."

"Do you think so? I mean, I think we're flirting, but I'm notoriously bad at reading the signs and he's fucking Superman for god's sake, why would he want to flirt with me?"

"Because you, my darling sister, are hot," Cassie smirked. "And you're funny and sweet and thoughtful. You're a total catch and even if he is Superman, he's the lucky one in this equation."

I couldn't help, but smile at her kind words, knowing she meant every one of them.

"Thanks Cass," I said softly, feeling some of the nerves in my stomach dissipate slightly. "I just don't want to get ahead of myself. It's fun talking to him, but it's hard when you can't actually meet face to face."

"Well, from all the giggling that comes out of this room when you're talking to him on the phone, I would say that you have nothing to worry about," She assured me before standing from my bed and heading to my closet. "Now, let's find you something to wear."

By the time Cassie was done styling me I was wearing a long black sleeve shirt under short style overalls. It was a good mix of warm, but cool for a sunny spring day.

"Are you sure I don't look like I'm dressed up as a farm girl?"

Cassie giggled at my question, but shook her head.

"No, you look adorable," She insisted. "And it shows off your legs. You have great legs."

I looked down at them in the mirror and thought they looked pretty average, but I took her word for it, thanked her and headed back downstairs to meet my mum.

"I thought you said 'quickly'," She scoffed as I walked back into the room. "You've been gone almost half an hour."

"That is quick when you're getting ready to see the man you've fallen in love with."

I spun around to scowl at my dad who'd appeared by the kitchen door.

"I'm not in love with him," I argued. "We're just friends."

"Quite the extravagant cake to make for a friend," He teased. "You've never made me anything like this."

"I make things for you all the time," I mumbled, letting my hair fall in front of my face to hide my red cheeks. "Just because I'm living at home again doesn't mean you need to tease me like I'm fifteen."

"You just make it too easy, Sweetheart," He grinned. "But I'm sure your boyfriend will love his cake."

I groaned as my mom smiled and scolded her husband on my behalf.

"Alright, we should get going," She told me. "If we leave it much longer we'll catch them in the middle of their supper."

She was being dramatic, it hadn't taken me that long to get changed, but I nodded and slipped my phone into my back pocket before gently lifting the cake off the counter.

****

The walk over was slow going. It should have only taken maybe ten minutes to get to the Cavill's house, but I was so terrified of dropping the cake that it took almost twice as long. Focusing on that was a good distraction though and by the time I was placing the cake stand on their doormat I felt less nervous and more excited for him to see it.

Once it was safely placed on the ground, I knocked loudly on the door and scurried back to where my mom was waiting on the other side of the porch, six feet away.

"I hope he's the one who answers the door," I thought, voicing it out loud to my mother. "Or someone might end up very confused."

She laughed quietly beside me as the door swung open and Henry was standing there only a few feet away. They say that you tend to build things up in your mind when you go without it for a while so there was part of me that had thought there was no way Henry was as handsome in person as I remembered. But he was.

My breath caught in my throat for a minute as he glanced down at the cake and then up at me with an ear to ear grin on his face.

"Happy birthday!"

"Wow, thank you so much," He chuckled. "I didn't think you'd actually make me a cake."

I dropped my jaw in an exaggerated way before rolling my eyes.

"You absolutely did," I insisted. "I was worried if we didn't get it here soon you'd come looking for it. You've mentioned it almost every day."

"Alright, I did," Henry admitted with a smirk as he picked up the cake. "But, wow, this is next level. It's amazing!"

All the commotion had drawn a crowd to the door that came into view as Henry moved the cake to a little table on the porch and set it down.

"Sue! Hello!" A woman called as she made her way outside. She was around my mother's age so I assumed she was Henry's mum. "How lovely to see you!"

"Oh, it's lovely to see you too!" My mum smiled. "Brooke said she could use some help carrying this cake over so I jumped at the chance. Isn't it awful being cooped up at home all the time?"

"Gosh, it's just terrible."

"Mum," Henry called, interrupting the little reunion as he lifted up the dome I'd used to protect the cake. "Look how amazing this is."

There was a chorus of 'wows', impressed gasps and various other praise and I felt my cheeks go red from the attention.

"Did you make this all from scratch?" Henry asked as a curly mass of brown hair flew through the door and over to the table. "Whoa, careful Alfie, don't knock it down."

Henry grabbed the boy, who looked to be about eight, gently by the shoulders to stop him from getting too close as he stared at it wide-eyed.

"That's so cool," He whispered in awe. "It looks like Superman!"

"It looks like Uncle Henry!" Another, slightly younger, boy shouted as he scurried over as well. "When Uncle Henry's in the movies!"

"I'm glad you think so! I tried my best to make it look like him," I smiled, drawing their attention away from the cake and towards me. "And yes, I did make it all from scratch. But I did wear a mask and gloves the whole time and I thoroughly sanitized the kitchen before I started so it's completely germ free. Not that I have any germs to pass on, I promise."

"What a strange time we're living in that you have to provide such a disclaimer when giving your friend a cake."

That observation came from an amused woman standing in the doorway and, as if he read my mind, Henry spoke up.

"Sorry, I should do some introductions," He realized. "Brooke, this is my mother and Father. My brother, Simon, and his wife, Louise, and their three kids, Alfie, George, and Amelia. Everyone, this is Brooke and her mother."

My mother spoke up before I did, informing him that she'd met them all before at one time or another, but once she was done I offered an awkward wave.

"Hello, everyone! It's nice to meet you all."

"I can't believe that after my brother almost broke your ankle, you made him a birthday cake," Simon smirked as he balanced his daughter on his hip. "It's not poisoned, is it?”

I giggled as Henry rolled his eyes.

"It was just as much my fault as his," I insisted. "It's just unfortunate for me that he's as solid as a brick wall."

"Sometimes those muscles do more harm than good," His mum smiled fondly, putting her hand on his shoulder. "Now, who wants cake? You'll stay for some, won't you?"

My mother leapt in before I could answer.

"Oh, that would be wonderful!”

There was a flurry of commotion as Marianne rushed off to get plates and the kids immediately started arguing over which piece of cake they wanted. I heard Henry softly clear his throat and, when he caught my eye, he nodded his head to the side. He didn't wait for me before sneaking off quietly down the stairs and I followed, but not before catching the knowing look my mother was throwing at me.

"Be careful," She warned quietly. "We're still in a pandemic and you're still vulnerable."

"I know," I assured her, biting back the urge to remind her that I wasn't a child and could look after myself. "I won't be long."

I rushed off after Henry before she could give me anymore advice or we caught anymore attention.

****

I found Henry just around the side of the house standing in quite a spectacular garden.

"Happy Birthday," I repeated with a smile, alerting him to my presence as I walked closer until I was the appropriate distance away. "Are you having a nice day?"

"I am, thank you," Henry returned my smile. "It's been as relaxing as can be expected in a house full of children, but it's been nice seeing them all try to make my day special. Until you came and upstaged everyone."

He playfully shook his head at me and I felt the nervousness fade away. He may be drop dead gorgeous, but he was the same Henry I'd been messaging.

"I didn't mean to," I insisted with a laugh. "You wouldn't shut up about the cake so I had to make it something special!"

Henry chuckled at that.

"Seriously though, I really appreciate it. Thank you very much," He grinned at me, making my cheeks heat up at his praise. "It must have taken you hours."

"It took all morning," I nodded with a smile, not admitting that I got up at just after six am to make sure I had enough time. "But it was really enjoyable actually. I haven't felt much motivation to bake fun things so it was nice having an excuse to get back into it."

"Oh, well then you're welcome."

His words were said with a smirk that made me roll my eyes, shaking my head, but just as I was about to tell him to be quiet a massive black and white ball of fur came bounding around the corner from the back of the house.

"Oh my gosh," I gasped. "Is this Cow?!"

Henry barked a laugh at that as the big dog ran around both of us in circles, his tail wagging at top speed.

"It's Kal," Henry corrected. "But yes, this is my dog. He's probably incredibly thrilled that he's getting to meet a new person for the first time in months."

I smiled and squatted down to wrap my arms around his neck.

"Awe, well, I know we're supposed to keep our distance from people's pets now too, but how could I resist you?" I cooed to the dog who danced in place while licking my face. "My goodness, you're the sweetest thing I've ever seen!"

"He is pretty great," Henry agreed, a hint of pride in his voice, but after a few more moments of me fussing over his companion he spoke again. "You know, I've always liked how Kal stole the attention away from me, but I think this might be the first time it's actually making me a tad bit jealous."

My head snapped up in his direction, worrying for just a moment that I'd actually upset him, but the soft smile on his face put me at ease. Nevertheless, I stood up, much to Kal's dismay.

"Wow, Henry, that's pretty self-centered," I teased. "I know it's your birthday, but that doesn't mean the attention needs to be on you every minute of the day."

"It doesn't? I was under the impression that was exactly what it meant."

"Nope," I shook my head. "It just means that you're one step closer to those senior discounts."

"Oh, please," Henry rolled his eyes. "Thirty-seven is really not that old."

"I was debating getting you a walking stick to go with the cake," I teased. "You know, because you might need it any day now."

Henry glared at me for a moment, but it quickly melted into a laugh.

"If I'm days away from needing a walking stick with these muscles," He paused briefly to flex his biceps which, despite making my breath catch in my throat at their size, earned an amused shake of my head. "You must already be a cripple with those weak ankles of yours."

"Oh my god, I can't believe you just did that," I laughed. "Trying to impress me again, are you?"

"I don't have to try," Henry smirked. "I can tell you're impressed."

I opened my mouth to protest, but resigned myself to a simple shrug as I crossed my arms.

"Well, yeah, okay, of course I'm impressed," I admitted with a smile. "You're sculpted like a Greek god."

"It really is mostly for practical reasons,"  He informed me, his usual humble side returning as he scratched Kal's head. "You can't wave swords around for hours without hurting yourself if you're not strong."

I cocked my head to the side suspiciously.

"I don't remember Superman using a sword."

"He didn't, but there was a lot of dangerous stunt work and did you see the suit they made me squeeze into? I had to be in top shape or it wouldn't have fit."

"Alright, that's fair," I nodded before a realization hit me. "Oh my gosh, do you even eat cake?"

Henry stared at me blankly for a moment before laughing.

"On my birthday? Of course I do!" He nodded. "I do try to keep a pretty healthy diet, but on holidays or special occasions I don't restrict myself too much."

"Thank goodness," I breathed a sigh of relief. "For a moment there I was panicking that I should have made you some kind of healthy protein cake creation instead."

He pulled a face at that suggestion, making me giggle at his over the top look of horror.

"If you're going to do cake, you have to do it right!"

"I'm glad you think so," I smiled. "Because there is a lot of sugar in that icing. It's probably about a thousand calories a slice."

I was being a bit dramatic, but it earned a full body laugh from Henry and I felt a warming in my chest at the sight. He was such a lovely person to be around. Lovely might seem like a boring description, but it fit him perfectly. He was genuine, funny, easy to tease and quick to tease back. He was constantly impressing me with how down to earth he was and he had a very calming presence that made all my anxiety melt away. He made me feel lighter.

He asked a few questions about how often I made such fancy cakes, about the different techniques involved and how I'd come up with the idea and for the first time in a few months it actually felt good to talk about my baking. I'd been really crushed by my failed attempt at opening a bakery. Sure, it wasn't really a sign of my skill or business management abilities, but opening a bakery just for it to be permanently closed a few months later was pretty defeating. It had left a bad taste in mouth in regards to baking anything that wasn't practical food.

We got lost in our conversation only pausing when a deep 'boof' came from the dog that had been circling us. He was staring in the direction of the gate so we followed his gaze and saw Henry's tiny little niece toddling towards us. A grin burst onto Henry's face, making my heart melt just a little bit.

"Hi, sweetheart," He cooed as she came over before lifting her arms to be picked up. Henry did so happily, resting her on his hip. "Did you enjoy the cake? It sure looks like you did!"

I laughed as he wiped some of the icing off of her cheek. It was all over her face as she smiled up at him and nodded. She shyly told him that it was yummy, eyeing me suspiciously the whole time.

"This is my friend, Brooke," Henry told her. "She made that cake for me. Can you say thank you?"

"Thank you..."

She still seemed wary, but I smiled in what I hoped was a reassuring manner.

"You're very welcome!" I told her. "Now, I can't remember what your Uncle Henry said your name was, can you remind me?"

"Amelia."

"It's lovely to meet you, Amelia!"

As I spoke, her mother appeared at the gate, relaxing in obvious relief when she saw Amelia in Henry's arms. She shouted over asking if we were okay with her, but Henry waved her off before turning his attention back to the child.

"Can you tell Brooke how old you are?"

She held up two chubby little fingers and I held back an 'awwe' at the sight.

"Two? Wow. Uncle Henry must seem pretty old to you then," I teased him earning a roll of his eyes when she wasn't looking. "He's thirty-seven!"

"Well, she is almost three," Henry clarified. "So she's almost as old as me really."

"No!" Amelia protested, disgust written all over her face. "I'm little!"

"You're little?" Henry gasped in mock shock. "Weren't you just telling me the other day that you're a big girl now?"

She shook her head insistently and I laughed at the pair of them.

"Don't worry, Amelia. He keeps trying to say that I'm as old as him too and I'm six whole years younger."

She giggled at that and looked up at Henry before scrunching her nose.

"You're old."

"Thanks for that," Henry laughed, shaking his head in my direction. "I'm not old, Amelia. Don't listen to her."

He tickled her tummy making her squirm and giggle in his arms. It would have been almost impossible not to laugh along with her, but once she got herself under control her face got very serious as she leaned in to whisper something in her uncle's ear.

"Oh, I'm not sure that will be possible," Henry chuckled earning a very over the top, but heart-wrenching pout from his niece. "Your birthday is a long way off, we might not all be here together by then."

From what he said, I had a rough idea of her request, but I gave Henry a questioning look, prompting him to elaborate.

"She wants to know if you would make her a birthday cake on her birthday."

"Oh, honey, I would love to make you a cake if you're still here on your birthday," I smiled. "When is it?"

She mumbled something incoherent as she rested her head on Henry's shoulder so I turned to him again for clarification.

"July twenty-ninth."

"My birthday is on August fourth," I told her. "That's pretty close together, hey? Maybe I can make a giant cake for both of us!"

Her eyes lit up at that suggestion.

"A fairy princess one?"

"Is that what you would like?" I asked as she nodded frantically. "Then it's a deal. If we're still here on you birthday, I’ll make us a giant fairy princess cake to share."

She grinned at that information and wiggled to be put down before running off through the gate under Henry's watchful eye, presumably to tell her parents the exciting news.

"What a sweetheart," I smiled. "She's adorable."

"She is and she knows it," Henry chuckled. "But she's quite quiet and calm so she tends to get overshadowed by her brothers who have an endless amount of energy. It's been hard for them having to stay home so much so they end up with most of the attention because if they're left to their own devices someone usually gets hurt."

"It must be hard not being able to go to the park and burn off all that energy."

"Exactly," Henry nodded. "But luckily the garden is fairly big so there's a lot of football and playing chase with Kal, anything that lets them blow off some steam, but Amelia doesn't like those things so I've been trying to spend some time with her too. She loves reading so we've been doing a lot of that while the boys wreck havoc."

"That's very sweet," I smiled as my heart fluttered at the thought of the giant, muscled man in front of me sitting with his tiny niece curled up in his lap as he read to her. "She must love that."

"She does and really, I do too," Henry admitted. "Don't get me wrong, I love running around with the boys, but it's nice to have those quiet moments too. It's one positive thing that's come out of this whole mess, getting to really bond with them all."

"I've felt the same with my niece," I nodded. "She's probably about the same age as Alfie and I always made an effort to see her as much as possible, but it's nice to have an excuse to be around all the time and really get to know her little personality."

"It is and honestly, I can't wait to have a family of my own," He confessed with a sheepish smile. "So it's nice to get some practice in."

A smirk slid onto my face.

"Well, after seeing you with Amelia, I'm sure you'll be a super dad."

Henry shook his head at me and sighed dramatically, but despite his incredible acting skills, he couldn't help, but laugh.

"You're hilarious," He told me, his words dripping with sarcasm as I grinned proudly at my joke. "Always have a pun ready to go, don't you?"

"They just come to me," I giggled. "It's a gift."

"If you weren't such a good baker, I'd suggest you do stand up comedy."

His words were once again laced with sarcasm, but I just smirked.

"Maybe I'll do both," I shrugged. "Maybe that was part of my downfall, there wasn't enough comedy to go along with the pastries. I should have set up an open mic."

"Ah, yes, because it's well-known that the British just love the awkwardness of amateur comedians."

"True, that might be a bit too cringey," I admitted with a wrinkle of my nose. "But I could have at least come up with some clever, play-on-word names for everything. What a missed opportunity."

"It was, especially for someone as clearly multi-talented as you."

I couldn't help, but laugh at his flat delivery, but quickly forced it into a glare.

"Alright, that's enough sarcasm out of you," I playfully scolded him. "We both know that I'm at least funnier than you and really, that's all that counts."

"I think we both actually know that it's the other way around," Henry raised an eyebrow. "Or was that another one of your jokes?"

I shook my head at his teasing, but before I could argue, Henry's brother shouted over to us.

"Henry! Brooke! If you want some cake, come get it now before George eats it all!"

A tiny voice shouted his protests at being blamed as Henry and I laughed.

"Well, it sounds like we should get back before I don't even get to try my own cake," Henry chuckled. "But thank you, Brooke. All jokes aside, I really appreciate that you put so much effort in to making me that cake."

"Don't worry about it," I assured him, feeling my stomach flutter at the genuine kindness in his eyes. "Just because we're all in lockdown, doesn't mean that you can't have a nice day. I'm glad I got to help make that happen."

Henry smiled and nodded understandingly before walking past me towards the gate. We'd stayed pretty much six feet apart the whole time we'd been talking, but he broke the rule as he walked by, brushing his hand just briefly against mine. It was subtle and fleeting, but his pinky wrapped around mine and squeezed gently.

He didn't even stop walking so as fast as it happened, it was over. Perhaps I was just feeling rather touch starved from not being near anyone but my family since our last meeting, but the brief connection left me buzzing. I'd always assumed the novels and movies that describe the electric sensation when two people touch were being dramatic, but it suddenly seemed very real. My skin felt like it was on fire and it was suddenly like my mind had gone completely blank of anything that wasn't how soft his skin felt.

Kal broke me out of my trance with a lick to my hand and I took a deep breath to get myself back down to earth. I thought to myself how embarrassing it would have been for Henry to see what an effect his simple action had on me, but when I looked up and saw him standing by the gate with a smirk on his face I was pretty sure that he was very much aware.

[cali-holland]

Hard to Get- Tom Holland One Shot

Pairing: Tom Holland X Reader

Prompt: After countless attempts to get Tom’s romantic attention, you decide to go for the “hard to get” approach.

Word Count: 1300

Masterlist   Tom Holland Masterlist

*Gif is not mine*

~~~

“You sound awfully disappointed.” Your best friend, Lottie, told you.

“Ha,” You huffed, throwing yourself on her bed, “Disappointment is too soft of a word.”

“I’m sorry, I really thought something would have happened between you two by now.” She shrugged in pity as you watched her fan spin on the ceiling.

“Yeah, you and me both.” You stated. After a moment of silence, you groaned and sat up.

“What? Do you have an idea?” She perked up in beanbag across the room from you.

“I think I’m done.”

“Done? Like giving up?” Lottie asked in a concerned voice. In all the years she had known you, you had never once given up on anything.

“Basically.” You nodded, definitively. “If Tom wants to date me, then I’ll date him. If he’s going to ignore all of my social cues, then I’m done. I’ll be there if he wants me, but I’m not going to desperately wait around for him.”

“So you’re going to play hard to get?” She asked, beginning to see eye to eye with you.

“It’s a great idea, isn’t it?” You laughed, leaning back down on her bed in content. Today, you would stop jumping through hoops for Tom Holland.

You had known Tom for about 4 years; when you became best friends with Lottie, Harrison’s sister, you then also signed up to become close to Tom and Harrison alike. Your slight crush on Tom had developed into something bigger, and now you were just annoyed by it. It bothered you that you were always thinking about him; it bothered you that you could picture his smile clear as day; it bothered you that, every time he hugged you, butterflies would swarm in your stomach; it bothered you that, no matter what you did, your mind always wondered to ‘what if Tom was here’; but, most of all, it extremely bothered you that the boy was clueless. At this rate, you felt that you were making a fool out of yourself, constantly finding ways in which you and Lottie could run into Tom and Harrison. But, now, you were done. You wanted to move on, and this new stage of ‘playing hard to get’ would be a stepping stone in that long process.

~~~

“Hey, Harrison, are Y/N and Lottie still in town?” Tom asked, casually walking into his friend’s home as if he owned the place.

“Yeah, what about it?” Harrison replied, barely looking away from the TV to greet his friend.

“We just haven’t seen them in a few days. I feel like they’re always gone when I come around now. Did I do something?” 

“I don’t know, did you?” He teasingly asked. “Yeah, I guess we haven’t seen them recently, but, yet again, I’ve seen my sister so often that I’m fine going a couple days without her.”

“We’re home!” Lottie’s voice came bounding through the house right as Tom sat down to watch TV with Harrison. You followed Lottie inside, both of you barely sparing a glance at the boys.

“Speak of the devils.” Harrison muttered, before calling out, “Where have you two been?”

“We went shopping.” She replied as if it was obvious by the few bags you both held. You sighed as the two of you got into the safe haven that was her bedroom.

“That went well.” Lottie stated.

“Yep, I only looked at him once.” You replied with a jokingly confident tone.

“I say we go out to the pool for the afternoon, just to tease him a little.” She suggested.

“Any excuse to work on my tan, right?” You two laughed as you began to get ready.

You felt nervous as you followed Lottie out of her room. Despite knowing each other for a while, Tom really had only seen you in a swimsuit once, and, despite moving on over him, you were still stressing over looking as good as possible. As Lottie said, “You gotta show him what he’s missing”.

“Going swimming?” Harrison asked as you and Lottie walked through the living room to the backdoor.

“Just sunbathing, honestly.” Lottie said.

“Hey, Y/N. What’s up?” Tom smiled at you.

“Hey,” You replied with a small smile, before heading outside after Lottie.

“Smooth.” Lottie laughed as she closed the door behind her.

“I can’t exactly hold a conversation with him if I’m supposed to be blowing him off.”

“No, no, your response was good. I’m proud of you for trying.” She said as the two of you laid out your towels.

~~~

Two weeks of limited attention spent on Tom went by. It wasn’t until Harrison’s birthday party that you were forced to confront him. Lottie needed your help in preparing his cake during the party- as in adding candles and putting it atop a nice platter.

“Lottie, mum wants pictures right now.” Harrison said, coming into the kitchen with Tom following closely behind him.

“I’m doing the cake right now.” She replied as you focused on not dropping the cake.

“Tom can help Y/N. Now, come on, you know how mum gets about this sort of thing.” He stated, beckoning her out to where the rest of their family was. Lottie sighed, but went with her brother, allowing for Tom to replace her in helping you make the cake even more presentable.

“You and Lottie did good on the cake.” Tom said as the two of you slowly placed it on the platter, attempting to not smear the edge of the frosting.

“Thanks.” You replied, pushing down the butterflies that just emerged in your stomach.

“Is everything okay? I feel like you’ve been more distant lately.” He asked, casually adding candles to the cake.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” Your response was short and to the point as you desperately tried to maintain your “hard to get” persona.

“Harrison told me the craziest thing the other day.” Tom started and you hummed in acknowledgment, “Well, he said that he overheard Lottie discussing “play hard to get” on the phone, and it was about me.”

At his words, you froze, knowing you secret was out. Tom continued anyway, “You’re not hard to get at all. You’re hard to earn.” He kept speaking when you provided no response, “I didn’t make a move because you don’t deserve me. You deserve someone who can be by your side all the time, not someone constantly away.”

“You don’t get to make that decision. I make that decision, and I have decided that I do deserve you. It’s up to you to decide if you deserve me or not.” You finally spoke up, looking him dead in the eye as you did so. You hadn’t felt like this in a while. You were feeling confident that you could, at last, openly express yourself; and there was a dash of sorrow because you wanted so badly to move on from the boy who frustrated you for so long; and you felt a hint of happiness because his coolness with your own feelings displayed that maybe, just maybe he could feel something more too- maybe, your hopeless crush wasn’t so hopeless after all.

“If I decide that I deserve you, because that is what I decide, then what does that make us?” Tom asked, setting down the candles and stepping towards you.

“Something more.” You smiled as he leaned down to kiss you.

[tacanderson]

Super-Borg Chapter 1

My book, Super-Borg Dies, is out now. You can purchase it here or read the first chapter below. You can also sign up for my newsletter here. 

Chapter One

“Stupid wannabe superhero,” a bulky man holding a metal pipe said, swinging it at Super-Borg, “why don’t you go home and read your comic-books?” Super-Borg had already disarmed the man of his gun but was surprised by the man’s resourcefulness when he pulled out a metal pipe. 

Super-Borg ducked the wild swing and brought his clenched, reinforced glove up into the man’s jaw, shutting him up. He hated banter. He stood over the unconscious man, catching his breath and wiping rain away from his goggles. His black exoskeleton-enhanced, military-grade personal armor creaked when he bent over and zip-tied the man’s hands behind his back. 

As he stood up, two bullets struck Super-Borg in the back. The carbon-fiber reinforced plates in his suit absorbed most of the blow, but it still hurt. He dove behind a garbage can as another shot fired; it didn’t provide much protection. He spotted the shooter standing fifty yards away, which placed Super-Borg directly between the shooter and the Space Needle. Super-Borg bolted from his cover, staying low to the ground. 

Even in a crouch, his powered suit allowed him to cover half of the distance quickly. He straightened up and then, as more shots whizzed by, he jumped, letting his suit propel him eight feet into the air. At the peak of his jump he threw a disc, about the size of a hockey puck, at the gunman. The disc struck just above his eye, and he crumpled with a grunt. 

Super-Borg landed and slid on the mud, crashing into a bush. He stood up, extricated himself from the bush and picked trash off his mud-caked suit. It wasn’t the most graceful landing, but it worked. Super-Borg sprinted over and zip-tied the man’s hands behind his back. “Let’s hope the cops find you before your friends do,” Super-Borg said to the unconscious man. “And hopefully the cops aren’t your friends.”

A bullet struck the tree next to him, and he ducked instinctively, jumping behind the tree. All this gunfire was bringing more unwanted attention. Yelling echoed through the vacant grounds around the Space Needle. What few lights that worked did little more than create small lighted cones of rain and mist. His disc was at the base of the tree but he didn’t bother to pick it up. He had lost so many that people were collecting them and reselling them online. Periodically he changed the design of the “SB” stamp he put on them, just to make the older discs collectible. People were funny. Even with all the chaos and economic instability, people still collected things. 

 The Space Needle, with its boarded-up gift shop and graffiti-covered cement supports, loomed ahead. The Neuro-syndicate was a gang specializing in the theft, production, and sale of neuro-enhancing drugs. Neuro enhancers were used by everyone: from corporate employees trying to stay sharp while they put in twelve-plus hour days, to professional gamers looking to get an edge in their next online tournament, or even school kids looking to pass their prep-school admissions tests. While it would be hypocritical for Super-Borg to object to people using neuro enhancers, the Neuro-syndicate killed people, and the stuff they cut their neuro enhancers with caused long-term brain damage and sometimes death. When neuro enhancers weren’t covered by a person’s corporate benefits plan, the black-market stuff was all most people could afford. 

Super-Borg was there to stop the Neuro-syndicate from making a major sale, but he did not expect them to have this much armed support. The deal must be bigger than he thought. 

“Super-cycle, deploy the drones and release smoke bombs between my location and the Space Needle.” Super-Borg used drones for several purposes. He was surprised more supers didn’t use them. But most supers weren’t rich. Super-Borg wasn’t Bruce Wayne rich, but he was rich enough, and after dropping out of med school he had earned a degree in engineering, so he could build most of his own equipment. He relied on drones to survey his surroundings and record his excursions. He used the recordings to make videos he released online to his followers, to watch for his own personal training, and he occasionally used them as evidence in court. Drones were also invaluable for providing a distraction. He could see the small flock of drones in the heads-up display built into his goggles. Soon dense smoke filled the park. 

His super-suit featured large, modified high-tech goggles that provided a heads-up display and video link from his drones, an open-face reinforced motorcycle helmet, and a face mask covering his nose and mouth. The mask was wired to receive his voice commands, amplify and alter his voice, filter out all smoke and toxins, and supply extra oxygen when he was exerting himself like right now. Sensors in his suit adjusted oxygen levels as needed. 

People yelled loudly, calling out to each other in the smoke, trying to get a handle on what was going on. An occasional shot rang out when someone saw — or thought they saw — something. 

An alert on his display warned him that his heart rate was elevated. He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing. “Keep it together, SB.” Super-Borg took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. “Someone has to do something. This is what you do. This is who you are,” he said, repeating the oft-invoked mantra. He took a deep breath, “Up, up, and away,” he whispered, and sprinted for the Space Needle.  

_____________________________________________

Who brings rocket launchers to a drug deal? Super-Borg thought, running to get clear of the falling Space Needle. Beams, bolts, and concrete built to survive a 9.1 earthquake began to scream as if in unbelief that they had finally failed. As he ran, Super-Borg was still looking up at the falling Space Needle. It was like a bad dream. He was trying to not run directly in the path of the falling mountain of architecture, but there seemed to be no escaping it. He tried to change direction and tripped — over what, he didn’t know — and fell sprawling into the mud. He cursed himself for not watching where he was going, scrambled to his feet — determined to watch where he was running — and kept his head down as he ran. He was so intent on running and watching where he was going, that he failed to see the furniture dropping out of the old top-floor restaurant. A chair slammed on the ground immediately in front of him. He didn’t have time to hurdle it, so he tried to kick it, but his foot got stuck in the armrest and he fell again. Debris and concrete rained down. He curled up into the fetal position as Seattle’s most iconic landmark buried him.

_____________________________________________

Trent was coughing on water and his head was throbbing, but he wasn’t awake enough to open his eyes. 

“Trent? Trent, can you hear me?” His father’s voice sounded like it was coming from very far away. “Trent, I need you to wake up.” His head shook slightly, and water sloshed around the side of his face, like it was bobbing in the ocean. 

Trent’s eyes snapped open, his head hurt, and he was still coughing. 

“He’s awake,” his father said, sounding relieved. “I think he’s okay.” His father was looking at him, but he wasn’t talking to him. 

“That’s great, Mr. Daeshaun,” a woman’s voice said from overhead. “Help is on its way, just hang in there.” 

It came back to Trent then. Headlights swerving into their lane. His dad swearing. Tires screeching. The world spinning. 

“Trent. Buddy. Can you hold your head up? I need to let go.” Trent realized that his head was being held up out of the water by his dad, who was turned around from the driver’s seat — one shaky arm holding Trent’s head up so he wouldn’t drown and one hand pushing against the steering wheel, giving him the leverage that he needed to reach Trent. Trent nodded and lifted his head up. 

“Mr. Daeshaun, how are you doing? How are your legs?” the woman asked, with an intentionally calm voice — not emotionless or robotic, but not worried either, just appropriately concerned. 

“I still can’t feel my legs. I’m feeling light-headed.” Trent’s dad glanced back at Trent and then added with the best smile that he could muster, “But I’m fine. I got my boy here with me, so everything will be okay.” Trent’s dad was a cop, so he knew how to lie convincingly. 

Trent was twelve and knew when his dad was being a cop and when he was being a dad. Right now, Officer Daeshaun was in the driver’s seat, and everything would be okay. Trent knew when his dad put on his work persona in front of him: it was either because he needed immediate and unquestioning obedience, or when he needed to lie because whatever was going on in the world was out of his control and he couldn’t face his son with the truth. For the first month after his mother died, he lived with Officer Daeshaun and didn’t see his dad much. 

Trent always thought he looked like a faded version of his dad. He had seen pictures of his dad as a kid and they looked so much alike, except Trent had his mother’s lighter Indian skin. His mother was beautiful, but he had always wished he had been darker like his dad. He spent a lot of time looking at his dad’s complexion and had learned what the subtle changes meant. He could tell when his dad blushed because his cheeks and ears turned a richer color of brown. When he was sick or light-headed, he looked like the chocolate Easter bunny Trent had forgotten about for almost a year that had developed a gray-tinted film over the surface. His dad looked like that now. 

“Dad, what’s wrong?” 

Officer Daeshaun looked back and met Trent’s eyes, “We were in an accident. Help is on the way. It will be okay.” 

“Dad, you’re shaking. You don’t look good.” His dad was shivering severely. 

“Don’t look good? You calling me ugly?” The laugh that followed was weak — even weaker than the joke. Trent said nothing. 

Trent’s dad sighed, “The wreck was pretty bad. We’re lucky to still be alive. My legs are trapped. I also think I lost a lot of blood.” 

“That’s why you’re shaking so bad?”  

“Probably a combination of shock and the adrenaline wearing off. But the blood loss isn’t helping.” 

“Mr. Daeshaun,” the voice spoke from their car speakers, “the paramedics and the police are arriving now.” Trent could see the flashing lights and hear the vehicles pulling up. “I’m in contact with the officer in charge. I will leave the line open until you are both out of the vehicle.” Neither Trent nor his dad bothered to respond. They were both transfixed by the emergency vehicle lights. 

“Mike?” They could hear footsteps and the sound of a belt full of equipment bouncing as the officer it was attached to ran toward them. “Mike?” A flashlight moved closer, breaking away from the emergency vehicles parked along the road, like a bright white scout sent out from the hive of flashier, colorful lights. 

“Here. We’re here.” Trent’s dad called out. Tears filled Trent’s eyes and he wasn’t sure why, he tried uselessly to wipe them away with a wet hand. 

Light filled the windshield and then came around to the driver’s window. The car had rolled into the lake, but they were near the shore where the water was shallow. Trent sat in the backseat, passenger side — his dad still preferred him to ride in the back so the airbags wouldn’t hurt him if they were ever in a wreck. Trent almost laughed as the tears ran down his face. The one time they were in a wreck, and the airbags failed to go off. 

“Mike, thank God you’re alive.” It was his dad’s partner, Jose, and Trent knew he was crossing himself. His dad teased Jose about how much he crossed himself and uttered little prayers. Trent was glad Jose was praying for them. 

“Jose, Trent’s in the back. Get him first.” The flashlight turned its stare on Trent and panned back and forth.

“Trent, you hurt?” Jose said.

“I don’t think so.” 

“Trent, can you unbuckle yourself?”

“I think I can,” Trent said, reaching down until he found the buckle and unlatched it. 

“Bring me a stretcher,” Jose yelled back toward the flashing lights. “Trent,” Jose said, in his soft, but still firm, everything’s going to be okay if you do what I say voice, “I’m going to pull you toward me and then out. Okay?”

Trent nodded and slid toward Jose. Large hands reached in and grabbed him. Trent began coughing again.  

_____________________________________________

Super-Borg woke up coughing on dust and his whole body was in pain. His mask had come off, it was dark, and dust filled the air. He was trapped and concrete dust coated everything, forming a sticky paste as it mixed with the rainwater. His head hurt and his ribs screamed in pain when he coughed. “Broken rib, great.” The display on his goggles wasn’t working. There was a cold breeze and drops of rain splashed around him. His leg felt trapped, and he didn’t have much room to move, but he was thankful to be alive. Trying to lift the slab of 1960s concrete that trapped his leg proved impossible as there was no power from his suit, and without it he wasn’t strong enough. 

A sharp pain in his knee pulsed like someone was stabbing it with an icepick in time with his heartbeat. The concrete rock kept him from bending his leg, but he moved his toes and then his foot. “I don’t think the leg’s broken, that’s good.” There was a large gash on the armor over his chest where a large piece of rubble had bounced off and broken his ribs. He was lucky to be alive. 

He coughed again and forgot about the icepick in his knee as pain shot through his chest. He could feel his ribs shifting when he coughed. Between the dust and the broken rib, it was hard to breathe, and he felt light-headed. 

“I can’t believe they dropped the Space Needle on me. What the hell?” His voice was rough and scratchy from dust and coughing, but talking to himself helped to keep him calm. 

No power in his exoskeleton or in the goggles meant the suit was in sleep mode, out of power, or the impact had somehow shut everything down. It was also possible the suit was critically damaged, but he didn’t want to think about that. Opening the cover of the touchscreen on his arm, he poked at it a few times. Nothing happened. He coughed again and grimaced through the pain. The suit would need a hard reboot. 

Lifting a panel built into the armor on his shoulder, he flipped open the small breaker box. Sliding the switch inside to the off position, he counted to three and then slid it back. The slow, electrical whining of his suit waking up filled his little cave. He lay back, exhausted but smiling.  

Looking at the screen on his forearm, he could see his suit’s power was at 20 percent. There was also a problem with the right knee joint. All of his drones were still circling the area, collecting data. They reported that his immediate vicinity was clear — the Neuro-syndicate must have bolted. The police weren’t there yet, but an alert told him they were on the way. Super-Borg had no desire to talk to the police. They disliked supers, and Super-Borg was a vocal critic of the privatization of the police force. Whenever he had to deal with the police, they went out of their way to make things difficult for him. He still respected the badge, but he knew even his dad wouldn’t like what had become of the force. His best option was to try and get out of there quickly and quietly, and file his community marshals incident report later. 

With the power restored to his goggles, he turned them to night-vision mode and located his mask. He braced himself, then used the power of his suit to lift the chunk of man-made rock off his leg. Even with the suit doing most of the heavy lifting, his ribs still screamed at him. The rock shifted and he stopped, catching his breath, trying not to cough.  

Taking a slow breath, he repositioned his hands and lifted again. The concrete slowly shifted, causing a small avalanche of rubble to fall on his helmet. 

He slid his leg out and slowly stood, leaning against the same rock that had been trying to crush him. There was a piece of rebar wedged into the knee joint of his suit. The rebar had cut a large gash in his leg. Blood dripped down his suit, mixing with the dirt and rainwater, but he thought how incredibly lucky he was that it had not skewered his knee. He grabbed the piece of metal and pulled it free, inhaling sharply as it dragged across the cut. The mechanized joint on his suit was useless, but he could still bend his knee.   

It was only a few blocks to where he had parked his motorcycle. He hoped no video of him limping away from the scene would turn up online. 

He made it to the super-cycle without any hassle. He called it a super-cycle, but it looked like any other motorcycle. That was the point. He pulled a large, black hoodie from the storage compartment under the seat and covered himself up. As he rode away, shame and embarrassment flushed his cheeks. This was bad. He would have to call his publicist. 

  _____________________________________________

Super-Borg Limps Away from Destroyed Space Needle

 We are receiving reports that today’s collapse of Seattle’s iconic Space Needle happened during an altercation between the Neuro-syndicate and the community marshal known as Super-Borg. Amateur video of Super-Borg fleeing the aftermath of the fallen Space Needle has been posted online.

Today, Super-Borg has given more fuel to the fire for those who think the community marshals cause more harm than good when he was involved in an altercation that resulted in the collapse of the Space Needle. Losing the iconic Seattle structure has many residents calling for the disbanding of the community marshals. While some call them superheroes, others call them reckless vigilantes. 

Fredrick Harman, the owner of a vegan hamburger truck called, Where’s the Beef, who lives in an apartment near the Space Needle, doesn’t see the purpose of the community marshals anymore. “They just run around playing superhero and doing more damage than they prevent. We lost the Space Needle today. Is it worth it?” 

Deputy Veishea of the local community marshals’ office has continuously stated that because the police are now privately funded, their priorities don’t always align with those of the public. 

The Space Needle is owned by the city and has been condemned for years, so there were no police assigned to the area, but they are looking into the use of banned weapons and explosives that reportedly brought it down. 

From The Seattle Wire

[feferipeixes]

Innocence Is Not Knowing That You’re Innocent (2/5)

Belle knows her brother pretty well. He likes comic books, he cheats at board games, and he wants more than anything to be human again. So, when he wakes up one morning with no memory of the fact that he’s a demon, she figures there’s no reason to remind him just yet. He deserves some time to just enjoy being Dipper, and not have to be Alcor.

Unfortunately, she can’t hide Dipper from the demon forever.

Chapter 2: Trouble in Paradise (link to chapter 1)

Special thanks again to @toothpastecanyon​ for beta reading and being super cool!

(See the most updated version on AO3!)

===

“Dipper! Belle! Dinner!”

Belle, jumping around in her room and jamming to Evaporate the Dancefloor by &ndra, pulled out her earbuds. “Is someone calling me?” she yelled.

“Yes, I said it’s dinner time!” Lionel called back.

“Oh. Coming!” She dashed out of the room, ran down the stairs, and took a seat at the table. A plate of spaghetti sat before her. Belle eyed it, frowning.

“Something wrong?”

Belle balanced her chin on her fist. “Dad, what was your artistic intent with this dinner? I love the direction, but, I don’t know, I’m just not feeling it, yknow? It just doesn’t speak to me.”

Lionel gave her a thin smile. “My intent was to make sure you don’t starve.”

“Oh, I’m starving alright. I’m emotionally starved!” She leaned back in her chair, resting the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically. “This might be good enough for you and Dipper, but I need a dinner that makes me think!”

“If you don’t like this, you can make an emotionally stimulating dinner for the three of us tomorrow night. Speaking of which, have you seen your brother? His dinner is going to get cold.”

“I’m here,” Dipper said, shuffling into the room. He took his usual seat at the table -- next to Belle -- and his whole body seemed to droop. Belle raised an eyebrow. She glanced at her dad, who seemed to be having the same reaction

The three of them were silent for a minute, and then Lionel coughed. “So, how was school, you two?”

Belle leaned over the table, putting her weight onto her palms. “It was great! Mindy and I presented our history project and Mrs. Riviera seemed to like it! I personally think bedazzling the poster board is what put us over the top -- Mindy says it was the extra detail we put into finding primary sources about gnomes instead of relying on Wikipedia, but I guess we just think differently!” She slid back into her seat, a satisfied grin on her face.

“Good job. I know you worked hard on that project.” He turned to Dipper, and his smile faded a bit. “Dipper? How about you?”

Dipper poked sullenly at his spaghetti with a fork. “It was okay.”

Belle bopped him on the shoulder. “Come on, you big nerd, you like school too much to not have anything to say about it.”

He shrugged, and swirled a noodle around his fork.

“Didn’t you have a test today?” Lionel asked. “How’d that go?”

Dipper jerked upright, looking like a deer in headlights. “Oh… y-yeah,” he stuttered. “It, uh. It didn’t go so well.”

Belle put down her fork and tilted her head. “Why not?”

“I don’t know, it was weird.” He started fiddling with his fork, trying to avoid making eye contact with either of them. “I thought it’d be a piece of cake, but then I got there and I didn’t know any of the answers. I don’t know why -- I thought I knew this stuff, but it’s just... gone or something.”

“Aw, that’s okay, my bromide! It’s not, haha, it’s not like you’re supposed to know everything!”

“That’s the thing -- for some dumb reason, I didn’t even study! I thought I’d just know.” He turned to Lionel, and shrank back into his seat under his father’s gaze. “Sorry dad… I know I’m supposed to do better than that.”

“It’s alright,” Lionel responded. Dipper picked his head up again, looking even more confused than before. “It’s great that this matters to you, but everyone makes mistakes.”

“I, uh… I just failed a test. Aren’t you mad at me?”

“No….?” Lionel trailed off as Belle furiously tried to signal him to stop, change lanes, take an immediate U-turn, stat! Unfortunately, none of that meaning seemed to be getting communicated to him. He furrowed his brow in confusion, cueing Dipper to look at her too, and so she stopped.

“Anyway,” he continued, “it’s not the end of the world if you don’t know everything. I’m sure it’ll be back by next time.”

Belle bolted out of her seat, jostling the table and spilling some pasta sauce onto her skirt. “Hey dad! Can I talk to you alone for a moment?”

“We’re in the middle of dinner. Can it wait?”

“I guess so,” she responded through clenched teeth.

She sat back down and stared at her plate, trying to ignore the suspicious glances Dipper kept sending her way. He seemed confused enough at her outburst to have stopped asking questions for the minute, and Lionel must’ve taken some amount of the hint as he didn’t try to restart the conversation, so the three of them ate their spaghetti in mostly silence.

It felt wrong -- Dipper usually had some wild conspiracy theory he had been investigating and couldn’t wait to talk to literally anyone about, so he’d regale them at the dinner table while Belle provided comic relief and Lionel watched his kids with amusement and pride. That had been before Gravity Falls; they still had interesting dinner conversations after Dipper found out that he was Alcor in disguise, but they were of a different calibre, because conspiracy theories no longer tickled his interest when he had infinite knowledge. For now, he was basically human, and he should be getting to enjoy the mystery of unsolvable conspiracy theories again, but instead there was silence and Belle felt the pit in her stomach grow and grow.

This wasn’t good, but it was fixable. After dinner, Dipper went to the bathroom and she cornered her dad to remind him that he couldn’t talk about demon stuff around Dipper. When he got out of the bathroom, she pulled him into the TV room and put on Pony Magic Academy, but left the remote near him so he could quickly snatch it up, change it to something else, and forget his suspicions amidst a sibling squabble. It was the tried and true art of distraction, and it seemed to work, but the heavy feeling in Belle’s stomach just got worse as she thought about how easily she was manipulating him.

It’s okay to be protective of him, she thought, as he put on Ghost Hunters and glued himself to the screen.

It’s for his own good, she thought, as they went upstairs and listened to his favorite top 40 hits.

He’s happier not knowing, she thought, as she got into bed and bid her twin goodnight.

I’m doing the right thing, she thought, as she closed her eyes and wandered off to dreamless sleep

---

Belle poked at the food on her lunch tray. It kind of wobbled in response, which was weird because the lunch room had advertised it as “Chicken Soup”. The quality of food in the cafeteria wasn’t usually incredible, but this was something else.

She looked up as Dipper dropped his tray across the table from her and sat down. The gelatinous cube on his tray was reddish-brown instead of green -- he must’ve gotten “Meatloaf”.

“Well, this sucks,” he said. Belle was rather inclined to agree with him. “Do you have any of that rainbow sparkle sugar glitter you always carry around?”

Her eyes lit up. Dipper never usually agreed to letting her put candy sparkles on his food, citing the fact that it “wasn’t technically food” and “had that FDA-banned type of denser sugar that was way more potent than normal sugar”.

“Do I!” she squealed. She fished around in her backpack, and her expression fell. “No I do not.”

They both sighed. He speared a piece of jelly with his fork and looked at it wistfully. “If I die eating this, you’ll tell dad I love him?”

“Only if you come back as a ghost and do the same for me.”

“Yeah, right. If I become a ghost, it better be for a much cooler reason than that. Like… to take revenge on whoever killed me, or maybe ooh to play pranks on hotel guests. You know how they always do that, in the movies? Imagine just pranking rich people in hotels for eternity.”

He laughed, and Belle’s stomach did a somersault. “Yeah but you wouldn’t want to be a ghost, right?”

“If you’re asking whether I want lethal cafeteria food poisoning, the answer is no.”

“No… yknow…” Her eyes shifted nervously. “If- WHEN you die, would you want to be a ghost?”

He seemed to consider it for a few minutes. “I’d say probably not,” he responded finally. “From what I’ve read about ghosts, they’re kind of obsessed with whatever their reason for becoming a ghost is. I’m not really the obsessive type, so I wouldn’t want to get stuck obsessing over something until some ghost hunter puts me out of my misery.”

Belle screwed her face up, torn between relief at the reassurance that she was doing the right thing by keeping Dipper in the dark about his true nature, and amusement at the idea that Dipper wasn’t an obsessive nerd. She settled on a smile, but then the picture wandered into her mind of a demon obsessed with tracking down reincarnations of his human sister, and the smile melted away.

“Hey!” A cheery voice broke into Belle’s thoughts. She looked up to see Onika holding a gold encrusted lunch tray. “Mind if I sit with you two?”

“Sure thing!” Belle trilled. “What’s up?”

“Oh, everything’s great. There was a test in the spells class I’m in and I aced it with flying colors! Literally, the test was to create a rainbow. Most of the class only succeeded in making it rain hair bows. Hey…” She elbowed Belle, and pointed at Dipper. “Why’s Mr. Reality Bender giving me the stink eye right now?”

“Hey Onika, I have to go the bathroom!” Belle babbled, shooting to her feet before Dipper could even open his mouth.

“Okay… good for you…”

“Yeah, but uh, girls always go together, so come on!”

She hooked her arm around Onika’s and dragged her away from the table, leaving behind a very confused looking Dipper.

“What’s going on, Sterling?��� Onika asked when they got to the bathroom. “Spill.”

“Don’t mention any demon stuff!” Belle hissed. “He doesn’t remember that he’s Alcor!”

“What? How does he forget something like that?”

Belle rubbed her temples, frustrated that no one seemed to immediately understand the genius behind her madness. “His body’s glitching or something, his memory will come back soon, but I want to hold that off as long as I can because look at how happy being human makes him!”

Onika looked nonplussed. “He seems kinda pissed, if you ask me.”

“Yeah, but he’s always like that! I know he’s happier this way -- he told me when he had his memories that he wishes he could just have a normal, human life, and not have to know what he really is. Now he gets to, at least for a little while!”

“Okay.... that sort of makes sense…” Onika replied, with the air of someone who did not think it made any sense at all, “but if he doesn’t remember that he’s not human, why would he be happy that he doesn’t remember that he’s not human?”

Belle stared at her, opening and closing her mouth several times, gears in her head grinding against the grain to try to fight off a series of thoughts she didn’t want to be having. First dad, and now Onika? Did no one care about Dipper’s happiness other than her?

A sly smile crept onto Onika’s face at the lack of response, and Belle pouted. “He just is, okay? It’s deep inside of him or whatever, I don’t know.”

“Alright, you’re the boss. I’ll just pretend your brother is a normal human that I’m allowed to have a crush on again.” Belle’s jaw dropped, and Onika laughed. “Kidding! I’m kidding. Can we go back to the table now? I’m done not-peeing.”

Dipper had the same annoyed look on his face when they got back. It looked like he’d hardly touched his food in the meantime, and was practically following her eyes as she sat down.

She giggled nervously. “How’s it going, bro-bro?”

“Not bad,” he said slowly. “Having a great lunch over here by myself. How was the bathroom?”

“What? Oh yeah, so much fun. You know me, I love a good bathroom!”

Onika looked back and forth between them. “Hey, is this a weird conversation or is it just me?”

“No, everything’s fine!” Belle replied at the same time as Dipper said “No, it’s weird.” The two of them locked eyes for a moment, and Belle broke into a big, saccharine smile. Dipper rolled his eyes, and went back to his food.

Onika whistled. “Wow, having a sibling the same age as you must be exhausting. Good thing my sister’s 24. Anyway, the reason I came over was to ask if you two are doing anything for Halloween next week. My parents are throwing a party -- it’ll be very fancy and a downright bore, but maybe you’d want to come and keep me company.”

Belle clapped excitedly. “That sounds fun! I bet none of the fancy pantses are gonna use your antigravity pool -- we could take a swim!”

Dipper seemed to sink into his seat, and continued to spoon coagulated meatstuff into his mouth. Belle snapped a finger in front of his face. “Hey! Dipper! Did you hear Onika? Wanna go air swimming on Halloween?”

He shrugged. “That sounds fun, but… it’s Halloween, shouldn’t we be out getting lost in the woods or hunting ghosts?”

Oh yeah. Alcor could fly whenever he wanted. They should spend Halloween doing stuff that a demon wouldn’t enjoy in the same way a human would. She glanced at Onika, who hopefully had come to the same conclusion.

“Hunting ghosts definitely sounds better than a fancy dress party,” Onika said. “Well, I at least figured I’d ask. See you two later!” With that, she got up from the table, dropped her tray in the garbage, and strutted majestically out of the room.

Belle whistled. “She’s really something, isn’t she?” She smiled to herself, and then turned back to her brother, who had somehow sunk even further and was at risk of falling out of his seat altogether. “Hey, what’s going on down there?”

“Nothing.”

“I’ll say, cause it looks like you’ve forgotten how gravity works!”

She grabbed his arm and tried pulling him back into his seat, which he obliged to with a large groan. He slumped over, cheek pressed into the table, not caring about the scraps of unknown food he was lying on. Belle prodded him in the forehead a few times, and then cocked her head.

“Well, I guess my brother is broken! I’ll have to find a new one! Seriously, what’s up?”

He sighed. “Okay, it’s just… embarrassing, so don’t make fun of me okay?”

“Definitely not, and that’s a Belle promise!” She mimed zipping her lips and throwing away the key. For some reason, that made him flinch.

“Okay. I’m just tired of only hanging out with your friends. Don’t get me wrong, Onika’s great, but it’d be nice if I had some friends of my own.”

Belle slapped herself in the forehead. “Ohhhhhh, duh! How could I be so delightfully naive? Yeah, you should make some friends! I can help you! I’ll give you tips!”

“You’re weirdly enthusiastic about this,” he said, picking himself up. He grimaced at the sticky patch that his shirt had received from lying on the table. “Thanks, though. Twins?”

Belle beamed and fist-bumped him. “Twins!”

The bell chose that moment to ring, and the room was filled with clattering as people scrambled from their seats. “Oh, heck-a-poo, we’re gonna be late for gym class!” Belle babbled, jumping up.

“Maybe later we’ll figure out some Halloween plans?” Dipper asked, after they’d emptied their trays and were heading out of the room. “If I’ve got new friends by then, we can -”

He was cut off by a carton of milk colliding with his face and exploding. He stumbled, eyes closed and sputtering, and Belle gasped.

“Hah, nerd!” chortled a voice in the crowd of people streaming from the room.

“Are you alright?” Belle asked, pulling him aside. At that moment, the bell rang again, and Dipper’s eyes sprang open in panic.

“Crap, we’re going to be tardy!” he yelped. He grabbed Belle’s arm and ran down the hall to his locker.

“Bro-bro, you’ve got milk on your face.”

“It’s fine! I’ll clean it off in the locker room! If I could only find my gym clothes… argh!” He rummaged through his locker, pulling notebooks and binders out and tossing them aside. “Crap, crap, crap, where are they? I’ll get in trouble if I don’t have them!” He slammed the door shut, and slid down the face of it until he reached the floor.

“It’ll be alright, we’ll just tell Mr. Plinker that you left them at home…”

“No, you don’t understand! This always happens!” His fists were clenched and his face was starting to turn red. “Someone stole them, I know it!”

“What? This always happens?”

“Yeah, some jerks are always stealing my gym clothes and hiding them in toilets, the dumpster, whatever!”

“I, uh…” Belle started to feel like her mind was caught in a taffy puller. “Always? Even… last week?”

“Yes, always, since the start of the year! I’m sick of it, it’s so stupid! I wish I just magically knew where everything was without looking for it!”

He slammed his fist into the locker next to him, and the sound rang abnormally loudly through the suddenly empty hall. Belle opened her mouth to respond, but faltered when she noticed the goop on his face, the icky lumps of dairy left behind as the milk he had been splashed with mysteriously curdled on his skin.

She bit back a gasp -- this didn’t have to be a demonic powers thing, he might have just assumed that the milk was spoiled in the carton, or maybe he hadn’t even noticed because of how angry he was. Now wasn’t the time for her to be planning her next lie (and oh how she wished that wasn’t something she was seriously setting aside time for now). She grabbed his arm and helped him to his feet. He grumbled some fashion of thanks, and she walked him over to the boys bathroom so he could wash his face off. She offered to go in with him, but for some reason he wasn’t quite comfortable with that.

So, she was left waiting for him in the hall (she was already late for gym class, so she might as well be as late as him), and it was there that the soup of unwanted thoughts in her head started to curdle too. He’d said that people had been stealing his gym clothes since the beginning of the year, which meant that it’d been happening even when he knew he was Alcor. He definitely could’ve gotten them to stop with his powers, so he must’ve been letting it happen.

But why? Was it because he didn’t want to blow his cover and reveal his true nature? Or… did he actually like being bullied, because it felt like the other students were treating him just like any other teenager? But Dipper without his memories was clearly really upset at being bullied, just like he had been before Gravity Falls. And that led Belle to the thought that she’d been stomping her foot down on more times than she’d like since this whole memories thing began: was Dipper actually happier with his memories than without?

She was still dwelling on it when he came out of the bathroom, face a little less red and all traces of milk gone. He grumbled some more at her, but she barely parsed it, so distracted she was by the way her mind was turning itself over and over again.

It’s okay to be protective of him, she thought, as they walked down the hall to the gymnasium.

It’s for his own good, she thought, as Mr. Plinker yelled at him for losing his gym clothes.

He’s happier not knowing, she thought, to block out the snickering when the two of them walked by a crowd of students on the bleachers.

I’m doing the right thing, she thought, and she felt worse and worse with every passing rationalization until she found herself wishing that this entire thing was just a bad dream from which she’d soon awake.

(AO3 link)

[something-in-the-seas]

November 18th, 1968

Ryan proves that he has not learned a thing since Bioshock. 

“Sally can say whatever she wants, just because she was one of the millions born today does not give her authority over me.”

One would think that after nearly ten years of dealing with Andrew Ryan, Jack would be immune to his rants and demands, but his father was exhausting. Truly exhausting. Just attempting to have a simple conversation with him was draining.  He could say the sky was blue and Ryan would then argue that the sky was actually green. Or, he could say that the weather was nice, and Ryan would then complain about how it was too hot or cold for his liking. Nothing ever satisfied him.

Jack supposed it was to be expected given how devoted he was to his beloved city. He put his heart, soul, everything he had into its creation, including his billion-dollar fortune, which, in turn, kept him trapped here; with them. None of his rich buddies in New York cared enough about him, Ryan alienated practically every ally he had there by considering them too ‘simple’ for his grand utopia. Besides, if any of them were as callous he was, they would have laughed him right of the city for daring to ask for a handout. Hell, not even the media cared. When word got around that he had somehow been spotted on the shores of Saratoga Falls after nearly twenty years, the only mention of it was a small paragraph in The National Enquirer. The grand return of the prodigal son was instead a fizzle; unbefitting for the once richest man in America.

 And so, Andrew Ryan was stuck in a small town, full of people he loathed, depending on his ‘greatest disappointment’ to provide for him in his senior years. It was like some twisted purgatory for him, but instead of somehow learning from this and bettering himself as a person, he decided to make everyone as miserable as him. If he couldn’t be happy, no one could.

How very collectivist of him.

“Dad, it’s gonna take five minutes tops,” Jack said as he rubbed his temples. Yep, there was that migraine. “Come on, all she wants is for everyone to be here.”

“Everyone will be here, and when they arrive, they can go to the fridge and take a slice,” Ryan replied with a wave of his hand. “I’m sure there will be plenty left unless your wife sucks them down like the human vacuum cleaner she’s become lately.”

Jack scowled. “You don’t talk about Elizabeth like that, you got me?” he warned, wagging his finger.

And the older man crossed his arms and huffed, as if he were a child being scolded. “General Hospital is almost on, it is the one fulfilling thing I have left in my life, so I demand silence while I watch it.”

“You want to watch your soap opera? Fine, you can watch your soap opera. I’m sure Sally will compromise with you and we can do cake during a commercial break.”

Ryan shook his head. “No, that will not work.”

“What do you mean that won’t work?”

“ABC’s commercials are only thirty-seconds long, I’d miss too much in the time it takes for you to gawk at the cake, snap unnecessary pictures, and harmonize off each other like hyenas in coitus.”

Leta, who had been silent the entire time, cringed at that lovely metaphor. She looked at her father to see what he was going to say next, but frankly he didn’t know how to respond. His blood pressure was sky-rocketing. It was taking everything in him not to lose his patience, which was exactly what his father wanted so he could have the upper-hand.

If Ryan’s stubbornness was genetic, Jack was really going to be in trouble in the next few years with the baby.

Thankfully, what sounded to be a herd of elephants stomping down the steps meant that his two other girls. Sally and Masha, were coming down, and with them, his wife. Finally, a united front. Dealing with Andrew Ryan was a family affair and he desperately needed reinforcements.

Ryan reacted appropriately for a man of his age when cornered by his son, his pregnant daughter-in-law, and three teenage girls. He huffed like a toddler during a tantrum. It was a pitiful sight. For a man who used his wealth and talents to build the most advanced societies ever conceived to get away from welfare to pout in his bathrobe and bunny slippers as he relied on his son to survive must have been humiliating.

But, Andrew Ryan would never admit defeat. That would take away the last shred of dignity he desperately clung onto. From an underwater city full of deranged addicts to soap operas and birthday cake, he’d go down kicking and screaming, never admitting being wrong or pinning the blame on someone else.

Sally’s the first one to speak. Unlike the other girls, who were much more combative and aggressive when it came to ‘debating’ with their grandfather, she had a different approach. “Grandpa, I know you want to watch your show,” she began as she sat on the edge of the kitchen table, playing with one of the straps of her faded, pink denim jumper shorts. “And, of course, your happiness matters. So, we can do cake after your show is over, how does that sound.”

Ryan paused for a moment. His brows furrowed as he put a hand to his chin. Jack was impressed. It was looking as if she had him, a nigh impossible feat. “No.”

“What do you mean no?” Sally, taken aback, asked incredulously.

“What, you can’t spare five minutes of your time to sing?”

“No, I cannot, Elizabeth,” the older man replied matter-of-factly.

Leta, who had been silent since entering the kitchen with Jack, finally chimed in. “You get to watch your show, though? Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“After the show is over at nine, it will be my bedtime.”

“Bedtime?” Masha scoffed with a smirk. “What are you? Five?”

“No, it is called aging, Masha!” Ryan snapped, his eyes narrowing at the fifteen-year-old. “And while it may be hard to understand due to your youth and the seemingly infinite energy that comes with it, as people grow old, they get tired earlier. Therefore, they have to go to sleep earlier.”

“Oh, so you’re Benjamin Button, then? Got it, with every passing year, you turn more into a man-child.”

“Very smart, Masha. I’m surprised you knew that reference. I would think it’s too old and complicated for your small, feeble mind, unlike, say The Beatles high on whatever brain-frying drugs they take to spew their bolshevik propaganda garbage-”

Elizabeth put her hands on her hips. “Sally’s willing to hold off and wait until your show is over, and here you are, doing what you always do: being selfish and inconsiderate of everyone else around you!” Her lips pursed. “One day. That’s all we were hoping for. One day of you just going with the flow and not arguing-”

“Well, then let’s just do cake now then!”

“We’re waiting for Janice and Rosie! I want everybody here so we can all do this as a family!” Sally said, though her sweet facade was beginning to crack and show a hint of annoyance.

“And there will be plenty of cake left for them when they are here!”

The stress-induced migraine Jack had finally reached its boiling point. He was putting his foot down, figuratively and literally. He pressed his finger into his father’s chest. “You’re doing cake with us no matter what time we do it, and that’s final,” he hissed. “I don’t care if it’s three in the morning, your ass is going to be there.”

“Or what? You’ll drag me out of bed?” Ryan asked, staring down at his son’s much larger finger as if it were a joke. “Frankly, this country may be a husked shell of what it used to be, but I know I am well within my rights to go to bed when I please and you can’t force me to do anything.”

Jack scowled. His index finger poked deeper.

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“You thought that ten years ago,” the younger man said. “You really want to test that hypothesis again?”

That seemed to change Ryan’s tune. His bemused, smug expression dropped as his brows raised and eyes shot open. He glanced down at the finger jammed into his chest and then back up at his son’s frown for a few seconds before slowly brushing away his hand. “I see, you have made your point.”

“I know what’s going on.” Masha chortled, nudging at Leta with her elbow. “He doesn’t want to meet Janice’s new boy-toy, Daniel-”

“David,” Elizabeth corrected.

“Yeah, sure, David,” Masha continued, rolling her eyes. “Why else would he want to do cake now and run up to bed with his tail between his legs?”

“I’m not running with my tail between my legs. As I recall, I am not a dog, but a human being, Masha, and human beings do not have tails-”

“Oh, shut the fuck up-”

“Hold on, this is what the problem is?” Jack put his hand up, silencing everyone. Now it was all starting to make sense. “Janice’s boyfriend? Really?”

Ryan crossed his arms. “You know how these college kids are today! They all fall into the collectivist group mentality and are pumped out by schools to hate the free market! The very same system that has given their mommy and daddy wealth and the cushy, comfortable life they have!” He turned his head away and huffed. “Especially in California, the breeding ground of parasitic degenerates like those goddamn hippies.”

“You haven’t even met the kid and you’re already got him out to be a bum!” Jack cried.

“Oh, but I have heard plenty about him! He’s from California! I bet he’s ‘free-spirited.’ A real ‘bohemian.’” Ryan said with finger quotes. “The last thing we need is her bringing a hippie into the house. They don’t bathe because they believe all the water on Earth is going to magically dissipate, so they roll around in their own filth. Like bringing a farm animal into your home.”

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. “Janice wouldn’t date a slob, Andrew.”

“You don’t know what that college has done to her! It’s changing her!”

“Whatever you say.” Jack shook his head. “Listen, they’re going to be home in the next ten minutes so I’m expecting you to be on your best behavior-”

Ryan was flabbergasted. “I am not a child, son-”

“Then stop acting like one,” he replied as the group began to disperse. “You’re going to be there for cake and you’re going to be nothing but polite to David. End of discussion.”

“Now, wait a minute-”

Jack wrapped his arm around his wife and led her out of the room, but not before waving his hand, his back turned away from his father. “No, no, this discussion is over.”

And before Ryan could open his mouth again to argue, he was alone in the kitchen. He turned his attention down to the floor, where Spot, the nine-week-old Australian Shepherd laid, completely exhausted from barking at a beetle an hour prior. The puppy blinked at him.

“I’ll tell you this,” he said. “I’m not shaking that parasite’s hand. I’d rather not risk getting the bubonic plague, thank you.”

Spot tilted his head. His big ears flopped over. 

“Well, at least you listen.” 

[lilyvandersteen]

Out of the Blue: Chapter 10

Cover art: @redheadgleek​

Beta extraordinaire: @hkvoyage​

Links: AO3, FF.net 

Author’s Note:

You don't mind gratuitous nudity, do you? Not at all? All right then, carry on and enjoy :-)

Chapter 10: The Hamptons

“It is difficult indeed – it is distressing. One does not know what to think.”

“I beg your pardon – one knows exactly what to think.”

(An excerpt from Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

Kurt watched Blaine go with a sinking feeling in his stomach that he had somehow messed up. Big time.

But… But… Try to kill him? Chandler? The very thought was ridiculous. Chandler was harmless! He might come on a bit too strong and make Kurt feel uncomfortable, but that was the worst he was capable of, right? Right?

His thoughts whirling, Kurt sank down onto the nearest chair and stared blankly at the table. He felt someone sit down next to him, and looked up. It was Cooper, and he looked uncharacteristically serious.

“My brother may be rude sometimes, and loses his temper a lot, but he never lies.”

Kurt stared at Cooper, and when the man seemed like he expected a reaction to his statement, nodded mutely.

“What did Chandler tell you about Blaine? It must have been bad, or you wouldn’t have dressed him down like that.”

Kurt told Cooper, who let out a long low whistle. “Well, no wonder you reamed him out. It’s not true, though. They never dated. Not for a lack of trying on Chandler’s part, but Blaine turned him down. And Chandler didn’t take the rejection well. I didn’t cotton on until the incident at the jeans ad, but Blaine mentioned it before. How Chandler would cause quarrels on set and make deliberate mistakes to make us look bad.”

Kurt frowned. “What incident at the jeans ad?”

“Remember that bang and flash?”

“Vividly.”

“Turns out that was Chandler, throwing a sparkler at your horse to scare it. Thank heavens you’re a good horseman, or you might have broken your neck.”

“Oh.”

“Yes, oh. And all these problems at the wedding today? Chandler had a hand in that, too. He seems to hate you even more than he hates Blaine and me.”

Kurt’s eyes widened. “What? But it wasn’t even my wedding! Why would he ruin such a special day for people who are strangers to him?”

“Because he knew it meant a lot to you.”

“Oh.”

“You don’t like Blaine much, do you? Not even before Chandler’s smear campaign.”

Kurt’s eyes flashed. “He dissed all that I did for Brittana’s wedding. Called it cheap. And then when we shot the jeans ad, he kept snapping and glaring at people. What’s there to like?”

Cooper hummed. “You like dancing with him well enough. Both now and at the Halloween party. You guys had a great time back then. I really thought you’d become an item.”

Kurt stared at him in utter bewilderment. “What? And uhm, I don’t remember a thing about that party. I got way too drunk, and it wiped my memory.”

Cooper’s eyes pierced right through him. “I see. Are you drunk now, too?”

“No. And you’re right, I like dancing with Blaine. He’s good at it.”

“But you’re not interested?”

Kurt frowned at Cooper’s insistence. “I…”

“Never mind. I’m going to head out, I’ve got an early flight tomorrow. And Kurt… I can’t believe I’m saying this, but… Maybe it’s for the best if you stop inviting me to the weddings you plan. Blaine will bounce back from this, I’m sure, but he’ll need some time. Well, I’d better go say goodbye to the newlyweds. See you around!”

Long after Cooper had left, Kurt stayed frozen in his seat.

What was that all about? And did I misjudge Blaine so much?

He got his answer to that last question when he checked his mail on his laptop the next morning.

There it was, a long e-mail from Blaine, with pictures and videos attached. Kurt read the whole thing, then read it again, and then checked out the attachments.

When Burt came downstairs looking for coffee, he found his son watching a video, over and over, looking like he could throw up at any moment.

“What’s wrong, bud?”

Kurt shoved the laptop in Burt’s direction and pressed Play again.

Burt cursed when he saw Chandler throw the sparkler. “Who’s that? And why would he do such a thing?”

Kurt closed the video window and showed Burt the e-mail. “Read it. I don’t mind.”

Burt read mostly in silence, mumbling under his breath every now and then. Then he shot his son a piercing glance. “So you and this Chandler kid are dating? Better break up with him right this instant, if that’s how he treats you!”

“No! We’re not! I don’t know why Blaine would think that!”

A memory of Chandler taking his arm at the restaurant and calling him sweetie flashed through his mind. Oh. Yep. That would be why.

“I knew him way back in high school. We met at the music store. We tried to date, back then, but it didn’t work out. No spark.”

“Says you, or says him?”

Kurt shrugged. “Mostly me, I guess.”

“So this kid still bears you a grudge for dumping him?”

Kurt spluttered. “Dump… I didn’t dump anyone! We were never in a relationship. We just went out together twice, and that was it!”

“To you, maybe. Seems like this Chandler kid thinks differently.”

Kurt shuddered. “He always seemed so sweet. I’m scared, Dad! This is just… Creepy beyond belief.”

“This says he’s behind bars. Will be for quite some time, if they can pin everything on him. And with the evidence they got, that should be easy.”

Kurt nodded and swallowed with difficulty.

“Seems like you have an apology to make. I’ll leave you to it, bud.”

Burt filled two mugs with coffee and went upstairs again.

He was right. Kurt owed Blaine an apology. And a rather big one, too. He’d wrongly accused Blaine of abusing his power. In front of all those people.

Kurt groaned. How could he ever make things right again?

In the end, he managed to compose a short answer to the mail. His apology sounded stiff and overly formal, but he guessed it was better than nothing.

Before heading back to New York, he met up with Mercedes one more time, at the Lima Bean, and by the end of their conversation, he felt even worse.

Not only had Blaine never done what Chandler accused him of, but he’d also single-handedly saved Sam and Mercedes’ wedding. He’d stopped Chandler from destroying the wedding cake, he’d found Mike and had him brought to the hospital, he’d gone and bought new wedding rings and even had them engraved, he’d bought everything for the barbecue, and he’d sent a riot control team to get rid of the protesters at the church. He’d even paid for a band to perform the song for the first dance and provide music for the rest of the evening. Wow. And how had Kurt thanked him? By telling him he was horrible.

Kurt thunked his head against the table a few times, and Mercedes giggled.

“Aww, he’ll forgive you.”

“His brother won’t. Told me to stay away from him from now on.”

“Ouch.”

He wished Mercedes a happy honeymoon and went back to the Hudmel residence to pack up and go home.

Back in New York, he felt restless, full of a jittery energy that he could not get rid of however much he cooked, baked, cleaned, worked out, or did any other activity he thought might help.

After a few weeks, Rachel was so fed up with him waking her up in the middle of the night with noises from the kitchen that she booked them a house in the Hamptons for the weekend. “At least there, you can go swimming any time you feel like you’re jumping out of your skin. I’ll invite the others as well. There’s plenty of room, and the weather’s so nice.”

Accordingly, that Friday, Kurt was sitting in a gorgeous garden, chatting with Rachel and Dani and Elliott and sipping a cold drink.

It soon led to them singing and dancing. The houses next to theirs seemed deserted, so they could be as silly and as loud as they liked. Dani spilled her drink on her dress, though, and Rachel went inside with her to help with getting the stains out.

Elliott excused himself to call his boyfriend, who’d be arriving later, after work, and left Kurt alone in the garden.

He hummed to himself as he admired and smelled the roses growing on the gazebo, and then looked up sharply when he heard a noise from next door.

He saw the glass door of the veranda slide open, and out came an Adonis, completely in the nude, who sauntered towards the parapet and leaned on it to take in the view, providing quite a spectacular one of his own.

Kurt had to remind himself not to swallow his tongue, because wow, what a sight!

The guy wasn’t overly tall, but his body was nicely toned, and his ass was such a perfect specimen that it made Kurt whimper and his dick twitch.

Naked Adonis snapped on a pair of swimming goggles and dove into the swimming pool.

That broke the spell, and Kurt stopped gaping at the naked stranger and gulped in a breath of fresh air.

Oh wow. Clearly, the Hamptons are where it’s at. I’ve been missing out.

He walked toward the house to get inside before anyone caught him perving, but froze when Elliott’s head appeared from behind the screen door, yelling, “Kurt, did you want to cook tonight or do we order take-out?”

“I want Indian,” came Rachel’s voice from within the house. “Vegetable samosas please.”

“Lamb curry for me,” added Dani.

Kurt laughed. “Looks like the girls have decided. Indian it is.”

Elliott gave him a thumbs-up and headed back inside, his voice trailing off as he said, “Okay. Honey, could you go to Ganesh and pick up some take-out before you come here?”

Kurt shook his head and chuckled to himself. Mark was the only one of them who’d been working all day, and now he’d have to pick up the food as well?

“Kurt?” said a voice behind him.

Uh-oh. I know that voice.

And yes, when he turned around, he saw that the Naked Adonis, now with a towel around his hips and so close that Kurt could see drops of water slowly making their way down his chest, was none other than Blaine Anderson.

Awkward!

Instead of looking Blaine straight in the eye, Kurt chose to focus on a water drop on his shoulder, and at once felt the insane urge to lick it off. His dick throbbed in his shorts.

No, no, no, down, boy! Focus on his face!

But Blaine’s wet curls and lashes were turning Kurt on just as much as the rest of his body, and his smile made Kurt’s stomach swoop.

“Hi!” squeaked Kurt.

“Good to see you! I didn’t know we were neighbours!”

Kurt laughed. “Oh, we’re not. We’re renting this place for the weekend.”

“Who’s we?”

Just at that moment, the screen door banged again, and Elliott’s voice floated towards them. “Did you say anything, Kurt? Oh… Who’s this?”

Blaine’s smile dimmed a little, but he stayed perfectly amiable as he shook Elliott’s hand.

“I’m Elliott.”

Blaine nodded. “You were the officiant at Brittany and Santana’s wedding, weren’t you? I’m Blaine, nice to officially meet you.”

He proceeded to chat with Elliott for a while, and they discovered that they were both studying at NYU and that they had a few classes and even a friend in common.

It wasn’t until Blaine’s stomach growled that he laughed and announced he’d better go inside and make himself something to eat.

“Hey, you should stay and have dinner with us!” Elliott offered. “We’re having take-out, and there’s always plenty to go around, ‘cause we plan on leftovers.”

Blaine’s eyes widened, and he started babbling about not wanting to intrude.

“Nah, don’t worry about that, man! The more the merrier! Right, Kurt?”

Kurt nodded. “Sure, join us!”

“Oh, okay, then,” said Blaine. “That sounds great. My brother has a date this evening, so I’d be on my own otherwise. Thanks for the invite.”

“Hey, do you sing?” Elliott asked. “I brought my guitar ‘cause we planned on practicing for our gig after dinner.”

That made Blaine beam ear to ear. “I love to sing! I’ll go fetch my guitar, too.”

“And maybe put some clothes on,” Kurt muttered under his breath.

Blaine gave him a cheeky wink before turning around and walking to his house. Before he reached the glass door, the towel slipped, exposing Blaine’s butt again in all its glory.

Kurt told himself to look away, but his eyes stayed glued to the vision in front of him, and he felt his shorts tighten again.

“I see you stayed in the garden for the lovely view,” Elliott remarked drily.

Kurt’s cheeks glowed, but he didn’t rise to the bait.

“Wasn’t that the rude brother of that billionaire? Changed his tune, hasn’t he?”

Kurt shushed him. “Hush! He’ll hear you!”

“I’m just saying. I thought you hated the guy.”

Kurt shrugged. “He’s all right, really.”

“And hot.” Elliott whistled long and low. “You should hit that, Hummel. I’m betting he gave you a sneak peek ‘cause he wants in your pants.”

Kurt nudged Elliott with his hip, muttering “Shut up!!”

“Admit it, Hummel, you want to tap that sweet booty!”

Kurt opened his mouth and then shut it again without saying a word, choosing to go inside and find the girls. Elliott’s laughter followed him in.

An hour later, he heard someone tapping on the screen door, and hastened to open it and welcome Blaine. “Come on in, we’re all in the living room.”

Introductions were in order, seeing as Mark had arrived in the meantime, and he and Dani had never met Blaine before.

As before in the garden, Blaine was polite and charming, and soon had everyone talking and laughing and generally having a good time.

Kurt looked on in amazement. Was this the rude and surly guy he knew, or had an alien taken over his body?

Mark put the bags of Indian food on the dining table. “Dig in!”

There was a rush to the cutlery drawer, and then everyone stuck their noses in the food boxes and picked their favourite, munching away happily.

Blaine, to Kurt’s astonishment, didn’t raise his eyebrows at them eating straight out of the boxes. He did like the others, laughing as he ceded the vegetable samosas to Rachel and took the spicy chicken ones instead, and taking such a big bite that the sauce he’d dipped the samosa in dripped down his chin.

Kurt handed him a paper towel and got a big grin in thanks.

Yep. Definitely an alien.

Later that evening, they sang together. They practiced the songs for Pamela Lansbury’s gig first, Blaine clapping enthusiastically after every song. Then Elliott and Blaine jammed together for a bit, coming up with a new song about a glitter vampire. It was silly, and Kurt found himself giggling along with the girls, until Elliott told him it was now his turn to sing.

Put on the spot like that, he didn’t know what song to pick, and in the end, he decided to go with “I Have Nothing”.

He got a nice hand of applause, except from Blaine, who stared at him in wordless wonderment for a minute or two. Then a smile slowly unfurled on his face. “That was pure magic. You gave me chills.”

“Thanks. You’re up next,” said Kurt, and answered Rachel’s griping with, “Because I say so. We’ve heard you sing a million times. We haven’t heard Blaine.”

“Yes, we have!”

Kurt shot Rachel a glare that silenced her at once. “Mr. Anderson, the floor is yours.”

Blaine fiddled with his guitar for a bit, took a deep breath, and then started to sing. He’d chosen a familiar tune, the musical equivalent of pink bubble gum, but somehow it got a deeper meaning as Blaine put his whole heart and soul into his performance.

Blaine seemed to sing straight to Kurt, his eyes never wavering. When he sang “My heart stops when you look at me”, it was Kurt’s heart that skipped a beat, and by the end of the song, Kurt’s cheeks ached from smiling so hard, and he clapped until his hands hurt.

He didn’t pay much attention to anyone singing after that, gravitating towards Blaine as a matter of course and talking the rest of the night away.

In the morning, he woke up feeling sweltering hot. He wanted to throw his blankets off, but they wouldn’t budge. Frowning, he opened his eyes, and as soon as they’d adapted to the morning light, he saw that there was someone sleeping on top of him, and holding onto him like a koala.

It was Blaine, his face relaxed and young in his sleep and his eyelashes impossibly long. His hair was wild. One of his curls touched the tip of his nose every time he breathed in, and it made him wrinkle his nose in the cutest way.

Kurt carefully swept the curl away, and winced when that movement made his muscles protest.

Ugh, I fell asleep on the sofa again! My back and my neck are going to hate me for the rest of the week…

He tried to extricate himself from under Blaine without waking him up, but failed. Blaine’s eyes fluttered open, and he made a noise that was a protest and a question all in one.

“Sorry, I need to go pee,” Kurt whispered. “Go back to sleep, it’s early.”

Kurt stood up and stretched, his joints popping and cracking all over the place. He found a blanket on the floor, where it must have fallen off of them, and tucked Blaine in.

Blaine pouted and made grabby hands. “Come back, please?”

Kurt found himself smiling as he tiptoed to the nearest bathroom.

When he came back, he saw that Blaine had fallen asleep again, so he shrugged and headed to the kitchen. He’d promised Rachel to make cinnamon rolls for breakfast, so he’d better get started on that. And maybe a fruit salad?

The smell of baked goods spreading through the house woke everyone faster than Kurt would have believed possible, and the first batch of rolls were grabbed and devoured before he could even apply the glaze.

“These are so good,” Mark said with his mouth full, and Blaine moaned in assent and helped himself to another.

“Give it to me, there’s no glaze on it yet,” Kurt ordered, and quickly slathered the roll in glaze.

Blaine took a big bite. His eyes widened as he chewed, and the moan that came out of his mouth was positively pornographic.

Kurt felt the tips of his ears redden, but laughed it off with, “Even better with the glaze, right?”

“Best breakfast EVER,” Blaine told him, and then put his hands together and implored, “Marry me, Kurt.”

Everyone laughed.

Mark eyed both of them and then casually asked, “So… The two of you…”

“Fell asleep on the sofa, yes,” Kurt sighed. “I don’t think my neck will ever forgive me. Next time, please wake me up and tell me to go to bed.”

He took a cinnamon roll for himself and bit off a piece, not noticing Blaine’s crestfallen expression nor the meaningful glances Elliott and Mark exchanged.

“I should get going,” Blaine said softly, and stood up. “I’ve overstayed my welcome.”

Kurt looked up from his breakfast and frowned. “No, you haven’t. Seriously. We’ve got people staying over at our place all the time. Don’t worry about it. And sit back down, you haven’t had any fruit salad yet. Or coffee. How will you be able to function for the rest of the day without coffee?”

Blaine laughed, but it sounded a bit off. “No, I should go. Coop might be worried if he comes home and can’t find me. I never let him know I was going somewhere.”

Kurt’s frown deepened. “Okay. Take some rolls home with you, we’ve got plenty.”

He quickly filled a plastic container with rolls and handed it to Blaine.

“Thank you. And thanks for inviting me.”

Kurt smiled at Blaine. “We loved having you. Come over again tonight if you’re still here.”

Blaine hesitated. “I don’t know… My brother…”

“He’s welcome here too if he’s got no other plans,” Kurt offered.

“I… I’ll pass on the message. Bye, everyone!”

“Bye, Blaine!” everyone chorused.

Kurt sat back down and continued eating. It wasn’t until he started stacking plates to bring them to the sink that he noticed Blaine’s second roll was still on his plate. He’d only eaten one bite of it. “Weird that he left all of a sudden, without even finishing his roll.”

“Are you really that dense or do I have to spell it out for you?” Mark asked, taking a few mugs to the sink and opening the dishwasher.

“What?”

“Blaine likes you. Like-likes you. But you keep blowing hot and cold. Elliott says you were totally eye-fucking him in the garden, and then when he talked to Elliott, you were all frosty. Then last night, you were all over him after he sang to you, and you two slept together, and now at breakfast, you behave like nothing ever happened!”

Kurt spluttered. “Because nothing happened! We just talked. And then fell asleep. Why do you make it sound like I had sex with him? I didn’t. We didn’t even kiss. Nothing like that.”

“But Blaine sure wanted to.”

Kurt rolled his eyes. “You’ve watched too many Hallmark movies.”

“Anyone can see how much he’s into you. The guy has hearts in his eyes whenever he looks at you. He SERENADED you, for crying out loud.”

Kurt smiled at the memory.

“And there you go again, smiling dopily like you’re all gone on him too. No wonder he gets his hopes up time and again. If you’re not interested, tell him so, okay?”

Mark’s vehemence startled Kurt, who held up his hands in a defensive gesture and looked at his friend warily.

Mark sighed. “Sorry. It’s just… I’ve been there. Not a fun place to be. So… Think about what I said, and do the right thing.”

Mark patted Kurt on the back and walked away.

Kurt filled the dishwasher on autopilot, thinking hard. He’d disliked Blaine so much and for so long, but actually, he’d proved to be a decent guy. Plus, he was a great singer and dancer, could talk about fashion or Broadway or classic movies for hours, and was ever so handsome and charming. Yes, if Kurt let himself, he could fall head over heels for Blaine. For sure.

Why was Kurt holding back? Because he felt ashamed that he’d assumed all sorts of wrong things about Blaine? Well, then, maybe it was time he apologized in person, and let bygones be bygones. But would he get the chance to do so?

That afternoon, he found out he would. Cooper came over to invite all of them to dinner, all charm and smiles, and joined them for cocktails in the garden.

Next door, Blaine was diving and swimming again, this time around wearing a pink speedo, and Kurt excused himself and went inside before his boner became too visible. He whipped up a summer fruit pavlova to take to the Anderson’s summer house that evening, and then spent the rest of the time before dinner deciding what outfit to wear.

                        It was with some trepidation that he entered the house, letting his friends go first. He needn’t have worried about being unwelcome, though. Cooper seemed to have forgotten he wanted Kurt to stay away from his brother, and Blaine seemed happy to see Kurt, and impressed with the pavlova.

Dinner proved to be fancy barbecue, with Blaine grilling everything from rosemary and pepper steak, chili-spiced prawns, glazed pork belly to stuffed salmon and lobster with a lemon and butter sauce. Rachel wasn’t forgotten, by any means. For her, he provided halloumi burgers, corn cobs, sweet potatoes, peppers and aubergines, as well as a peach mozzarella salad. Everyone ate until they were stuffed, and Kurt praised himself lucky he’d brought a light dessert, or no-one would even have tried it.

Afterwards, they all played Pictionary, laughing their heads off at the others’ questionable drawing talents.

When Rachel started clamouring for karaoke, Blaine took a seat next to Kurt, and whispered, “Will you sing for us again?”

Kurt swallowed and whispered, “Maybe later. Blaine, can I talk to you for a minute?”

They walked into the garden together, and Kurt apologized as best he could, though Blaine insisted it wasn’t necessary. “I said some pretty harsh things too. Now we’re quits. And from now on, we’ll try not to judge too fast. Deal?”

“Deal.”

Inside the house, Rachel started to sing a duet with Cooper, “Hold Me”.

Blaine’s eyes were pools of liquid light as he held out his hand to Kurt. “May I have this dance?”

Kurt laughed and took Blaine’s hand, letting himself be swept away. It was all incredibly romantic. Dancing under the stars, with a partner who made sure he didn’t stumble even once, and who looked at him as if… As if…

Out of the blue, soft lips covered his for a moment, and then Blaine drew back looking anxious. “That… I… Was that okay? I should have asked.”

Kurt reached out and cradled Blaine’s right cheek in his palm, moving in for a kiss of his own. His lips tingled when he came up for air, and he grinned at Blaine. “More than okay.”

[daydreamdanganronpa]

you’re absolutely right and gonta deserves to be one of the wonders of the world (he makes an appearance in oumas one here~)

another really long one! under the cut we go

AMAMI

On one of your trips to the arcade, the contents of a certain machine caught your eye, making you gasp in enticement. Pressed up against the glass, your eyes glittered seeing the collection of cute plushies packed into it. 

“Amami-chan, wait, I have to win like, every one of those.” You said seriously, pulling out your wallet. Rantaro chuckled-- while he knew how rigged these machines were he couldn’t bring himself to say no, knowing your weakness for cute things. It’d also be fun for him to see you try.

You rolled the coin in the slot enthusiastically and began to operate it. However, this enthusiasm slowly dwindled after every failed attempt, and as you got down to your last few coins, your patience was wearing thin. Rantaro, who was looking on in amusement, stepped forward.

“Wait,” He said, moving you over gently. “Let me.”

“Oh?” You challenged. “You seem confident. I’ve never seen you play one of these before.”

“Hey, I’ve plenty experience.” He said playfully. “This was how I budgeted buying gifts for all my sisters.” Truthfully he was exaggerating as he bragged-- he had only frequented arcades with one of his sisters and been successful at a claw machine once or twice.

“Okay,” You hummed, taking his words with a grain of salt. Your eyes followed the path of the crane he was now controlling.

“Now,” He said, bluffing. “Witness me.”

So you did. And watched as his crane lowered, grabbed a plush toy shaped like a fox ...And landed straight into the chute.

You gasped, not expecting for the machine to actually play in your favour. “Oh!? You did it!”

Trying to internalise his excitement, he held it up coolly with a smile and handed it to you.

“Sorry __-chan.” He laughed. “I couldn’t get you all of them, but this ones all yours.”

You shook your head, smiling. “Don’t worry about that!” You held it close and wrapped your arm around his.

“It’s perfect.”

KIIBO

You were walking past a patisserie on the street when the display caught your eye. With a gasp you ran over to the shop window, pulling him with you. “Kiibo, look! These are so, so cute!” You pointed at the sweets in question. 

He tilted his head, processing what you were showing him.

“What are they?”

“They’re donuts! But they’re shaped like animals, see?” You said without giving him a chance to reply, rushing into the shop. He quickly followed suit, with an indignant cry to wait for him.

Awaiting inside were much more assortments of desserts, and you immediately swooned over each of the cute pastries— some of them breads shaped like turtles, cakes with bunny toppers, butterflies iced onto cupcakes… Kiibo had to admit they were cute, even if he disliked the robot made out of fondant glaring at him in the corner.

“Hm~” He heard you say. “I’ll take three of those, a box of donuts, one of each of these… Ooh, and this too!” You excitedly placed an order to the rather overwhelmed cashier.

Kiibo placed a hand on your shoulder. “W-wait, __-chan, do we need to buy so many? I can’t even eat and there’s no way you’ll be able to finish them all by yourself.”

Without hesitation, you turned to him with a grin. “I know what I can handle.”

Kiibo gulped in response and took a step back, letting you do your thing and listen in distress to the steadily rising amount of sweets you were ordering.  You twirled out of the shop leaving with your wallet a little lighter and a very confused Kiibo holding a stack of toppling dessert boxes.

KOREKIYO

You hadn’t felt like getting up from your current position for what felt like hours. You felt content relaxing in the park with your boyfriend Korekiyo, your head leaning against his shoulder.  Amidst your sleepiness, you perked up as you saw something across from you.

“Oh! How adorable!” You exclaimed, nudging Korekiyo next to you. He jolted, eyes darting around to see what you were talking about.

His eyes fell upon a bunch of preschoolers holding hands as they all crossed the road together in matching uniforms and tulip name tags.

“Aren’t they so cute and innocent? I just wanna take them all home~”

“Hm…” He mused. “I do think our careers as Ultimates would provide a steady enough income for us and a few children. Though I cannot picture a whole nursery, the thought is amusing.”

“Although…” He was completely lost in thought now, and you knew when he was in this state it was difficult to stop him. “A house or even a fairly sizeable apartment would be nice-- I’d like some space to display my artefacts. And I wouldn’t mind the companionship of a cat or dog; some reptiles or such to observe even.”

You stared at him as he rambles on, face flushing red at his implications. He was really describing you two living the perfect domestic life with a straight face.

Korekiyo looked back at you and smiled, confusion still written on your face as you tried to process the tangent he just went on. He pressed a kiss to your cheek.

“You say the most wonderful things that make me look forward to the future. Now, let’s go home.”

With that, he promptly got up and started walking. You remained motionless on the bench, still blinking at his words. Suddenly you snapped out of it, and quickly rushed to catch up with your boyfriend.

“I-I didn’t say anything!”

GONTA

He was showing you his bug collection in his Ultimate Lab, describing each of them to you when your eyes landed on a shiny ladybug.

“Oh!” You dropped to eye level to look at it closer. “This one's really cute!”

“__-chan can hold it, if __-chan wants!”

“Really!?” You gasped. He nodded, and opened the bug catcher box it was residing in. It flew out immediately, and you stared after it in awe.

“Ladybug for making wishes. Good luck if it lands on you.” Gonta smiled.

Your eyes followed it as it flew around his lab, and giggled when it landed on Gonta’s forehead. He exclaimed in surprise, crossing his eyes to try and look at it so he could make a wish.

“Bug-san, Gonta wish luck on __-chan.” He announced, transferring it from his forehead to his hand. Then he turned to you, and gently held yours as he let it walk across to your palm.

“Here.” He said softly.

You let out a soft gasp of amazement. “It’s adorable! Isn’t this the cutest thing you’ve ever seen!?” You squealed. You cupped the ladybug into your hands, and showed Gonta with a wide smile on your face. He returned the smile— he loved seeing his two favourite things together; you, and bugs.

At your question, however, Gonta looked puzzled for a moment, staring as you continued to shove it closer to his face.

He gently took hold of your hand and lowered it so he could clearly see you.

“Gonta think you the cutest thing Gonta ever see.”

KAITO

When you were walking one day, excitedly chatting to each other, Kaito suddenly stopped mid-conversation. “Woah, wait— babe, slow down.” He said seriously, putting out an arm in front of you suddenly. “Look.”

You focused your attention ahead; sure enough, a trail of ducklings following their mother was crossing the road. It was highly amusing seeing someone like him become so protective over tiny ducklings, but it was endearing. Behind him, you clasped your hands and smiled.

“How cuuuuute! Let’s keep them, Kaito, I want 50!” You exclaimed, eyes sparkling as you approached them.

He grabbed your wrist from behind. “Y-You can’t! As much as I want to, too, you really can’t!”

You squirmed in his grasp, trying to break free. “Then I’m just— I’m just going to pet it!” You said. He knew that was a lie on your part, if he let you pet it you’d soon scoop it up and hide it in your coat.

“No, __-chan, they’ve got a mother!” He argued, struggling with your determination. “You’re gonna break up a family!”

When enough time had passed and he was sure you wouldn’t try to disturb them anymore, he released you.

You frowned in displeasure as you stared at their leaving forms.

“Kaito, let’s go to a pet shop later.”

RYOMA - cross referenced from an earlier ask!

“I’m not falling for that again.”

The two of you were in a cat cafe and playing with the cats when you asked to take them home. You were particularly attached to the one curled up on your lap, and didn’t want to say goodbye. It wasn’t a surprise to you that he shut down the idea, but you frowned anyway.

“Just this one, then?”

“None.”

“But they’re so cute, and they’re all up for adoption! Just one more won’t be too bad, right?” You pouted.

“Don’t do this to me, __.” Ryoma sighed, but there was a sternness in his voice. “That Kaede just dropped off a box of them, too. We’ve got way more cats than we can handle. Every time we adopt ‘just one more’, it adds to our problems.”

“Our catastrophe, you mean!”

“No cat puns, either.”

“I’m just kitten around~”

At that, he gave you a piercing stare. “...We can take it home if you promise not to make another pun.”

“Yes!” You cheered, as he sighed in defeat again. You always knew how to wear him down.

SHUICHI

On a casual stroll with your boyfriend through the park, you noticed something was rapidly running towards you. It was unmistakably animal, and its speed alarmed you. 

Shuichi squinted. “What’s that getting closer--” He began, but didn’t get to finish his sentence when the wind was knocked out of him suddenly. “W-Woah!?” Shuichi yelled, stumbling backwards. You spun around, looking at what just attacked him. You blinked, realising it was just a dog. The dog, a golden retriever, had jumped on him suddenly and tackled him to the ground, tail now wagging and licking his face.

You laughed at the sight, even snapping a photo of it on your phone as you gushed over it.

At this, the dog perked up and bounded its way over to you.

“Really?” Shuichi complained. “It’s so much nicer to you…”

“Don’t you know animals are only nice to the pure of heart?” You teased back, smiling as you patted the dog and even got it to sit and give you a handshake.

Soon enough, someone rushed over-- you assumed it to be the dog’s owner, who was bowing and apologising for the trouble.  You shook your head with a smile much to a certain detectives dismay. “No, it’s okay! He was very well behaved.”

The owner apologised again before walking away with their dog, leaving you to help up a very rattled Shuichi. When he looked back into your eyes and saw them glittering with excitement, he gulped, knowing what you were going to suggest next.

“We should adopt a dog, Shuichi! They’re so cute, and honestly, I’d want like 50 pets.” You chirped, as you looked back at the dog in the distance, tail still wagging. When you looked back to your boyfriend, he was shaking his head profusely.

“Please, no...” He let out, breath ragged. “Let’s just get a fish, or something…”

OUMA

He didn’t expect this to go as poorly as it did.

Ouma was introducing you to his friend Gonta, and much to Ouma’s dismay, your eyes lit up as soon as you laid eyes on the taller boy.

“Oh my, you’re so cute!” You exclaimed, not letting Ouma finish what was going to be his half-assed introduction of Gonta. “I love your glasses— where did you get them!? Gosh, can’t I just take you home!? You’re adoooorable!”

Gonta was noticeably blushing at this, laughing as he scratched the back of his neck and answered your questions awkwardly.

Ouma was standing idly by, narrowing his eyes. His pout went unnoticed by you as you fawned over Gonta’s soft hair. Ouma grew irritated as more and more attention was placed onto Gonta and not on him.

“Okay, okay, cut it out!” He said, annoyed, and began to pull you away from him. “Let’s go have lunch already, __-san.”

You turned your head around to wave at your new friend as you were dragged away, Gonta waving back albeit his confusion. When he let go of you, he slumped into his chair, appearing to be very concentrated on his bento in an attempt to avoid eye contact with you.

“Aww. Were you jealous, Ouma-chan?” You tease, ruffling his hair.

“I-I wasn’t!” Ouma said indignantly, choking on a bite of his rice. “He’s just an idiot, is all.” He grumbled, batting your arm away.

You raised your eyebrows. He was totally jealous.

You let his comment hang in the air for a while, knowing his neediness for affection would show itself. Soon enough, he suddenly grabbed your hand and placed it on his head again, prompting you to continue.

“Okay, so I lied! Whatever. Maybe a little.”