#spent all day helping my best friend move into her new flat

[mccleans]

[vivwritesfics]

Hooked On A Feeling

Chapter Twenty-Five - Future Mrs Ricciardo

Daniel is a Formula One driver, but, more importantly, he was a single dad to a wonderful little girl. He wants her to be a normal little girl, to have a normal social life, so he sends her to daycare. That was where she met Milo, her future best friend.

Milo's mother was incredibly stressed. She worked so hard to provide a good life for her son. But then he makes a new friend, a friend who has a hot dad (ofc they fall in love)

1.6K

Single Dad!Daniel x Single Mum!Reader

warnings: light smut

Series Masterlist

Daniel spent all of December and January ring shopping. It was just so difficult, trying to decide on the perfect one. He'd seen the dainty rings she wore on her finger. All of them were flat. None of them were the kind of ring with a rock.

Something flat. Daniel knew she would like something flat, something that didn't have any kind of diamond sticking out. But that made finding the perfect one so much harder.

First, Daniel wanted to ask her and Milo to move into his house. By February, he'd decided it was time, decided he wanted to pick up all of her things and move them to his house. He wanted to see her books on the shelves, her blankets on the sofa, her mug beside his in the cupboards.

Fast forward to Valentines day. Olivia was supposed to be at her mothers house, but Kerry-Ann had a date and begged Daniel to take her.

(She watched the entire interaction, watched the way Kerry-Ann stepped closer to Daniel. Her hand touched his chest and she pouted her lips, begging him to take Olivia while she went on her Valentines date. The fact that she thought she needed to beg showed she really didn't know Daniel at all.)

Olivia and Milo spent the night at Olivia's Grand Parent's house. They watched movies, ate dinner in front of the television and filled in their colouring books until they went to bed.

"I'm thinking dinner and a movie," said Daniel as he pulled her towards him, pulling her onto his lap.

She straddled him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I think I like what you're thinking," she said and kissed him, playing with the hair at the back of his neck. "But I'm also happy with staying here and breaking the couch in."

Daniel couldn't help but frown. "The couch isn't new," he answered, and she bounced in his lap. His eyes widened. "Oh wow," he said. "Wow, yeah, I like that." His hands settled on her hips. "But I do still want to take you out for dinner."

When she pouted, Daniel kissed her and her pout disappeared. "Come on, my love," he said. "It's our first Valentines day together and I want to treat you."

She kissed him again. "Okay. But, instead of a movie, we can come back here and..."

"I love it." He stood up and gently put her on the floor. "Go and get dressed. I wasn't to get you back here as soon as possible." Daniel pointed her in the direction of the bedroom and smacked her ass, as if to get her going.

She got showered and dressed in as quick a time as she could. She dried and brushed her hair, styling it with pins, and did her makeup. If they were going for dinner, she was going to make sure she looked fucking perfect.

When Daniel walked into the bedroom to retrieve a his own clothes, he covered his eyes. "I'm not looking, I swear," he said as he dug through the closet.

He got changed in the living room, folding his clothes and leaving them on the couch. When he was ready, Daniel sat down and called his daughter.

When she walked out of the bedroom and into the living room, Daniel damn near dropped his phone. "Is that my momma?" Milo asked, his face appearing on the screen.

"Yeah, Milo, it is," he said as he strode over to her. He turned the camera around, showing Milo and Olivia just how gorgeous she looked. She did a twirl and took the phone from Daniel, saying hello to the kids as he stood behind her, hands on her hips.

"Well, we'll see you guys tomorrow, yeah?" She said to Milo and Olivia.

"Bye, guys!" Daniel called from behind her.

"Bye!" Milo and Olivia chorused, ending the call.

When Daniel turned her around, she slipped his phone into his pocket. She kissed the underside of his jaw as Daniel gripped her hips. "You know, now I kinda regret insisting that we go to dinner."

She stepped away from him, giving him an unimpressed look as she did so. "I did not get all pretty like this for nothing." She pressed a finger to his chest as she said it. "C'mon, Honey Badger. Take me to dinner."

Dinner was, well, fantastic. It was a small Italian place. Daniel hadn't given his real name when making the reservation, and they damn near shit their pants when he walked in.

They couldn't be more apologetic that they'd sat them in one of the worst seats in the house. But it was Valentines day and it was incredibly busy.

But the food was good, the service was good and the wine went to her head a little bit. Their table was lit by candles. Everything was perfect.

Daniel had his arm wrapped around her as they walked down the street. They didn't head back to the car immediately, instead walking under the stars. "Hang on," he said, stopping to tie his shoelaces.

But his shoelaces were tied already. And, suddenly, he had a little black box in his hand. "Y/N," Daniel called and she turned towards him. "I've got an important question."

Her hands covered her mouth as he pulled open the box. What kind of ring would a man like Daniel choose for her? Whatever it was, she'd wear it with pride.

But the box didn't have a ring inside. No, it had a key. "Will you move in with me?"

She couldn't stop herself from hitting his shoulder. "Asshole, I thought you were going to propose!"

Still, Daniel was on his knee, waiting for an answer. "Yes," she said, taking the key from the box. "Yes, I'll move in with you."

Daniel stood up and kissed her. "Let me take you home, Roomie," he said with a grin, taking her hand and leading her back to the car. "I just gotta know, will you smack me like that when I do propose?"

"Propose and find out," she said with a grin as Daniel pulled open the car door for her.

When the season started a month later, Daniel wanted to take her everywhere with him. He wanted her by his side as he walked through the paddock, wanted her watching him as he drove.

But she was still working and he went alone. But it was okay, it just meant that she'd be at home, watching the race with the kids.

The drivers that had met her, loved her. They asked Daniel about her whenever they got a moment. He loved talking about her. He loved talking about all of his little family and couldn't stop once he'd started.

Only Max knew he was going to propose. Only Max had seen the ring. Only Max knew how Daniel was going to do it. He just needed to give his friend a little reassurance.

It was back in Australia. Daniel had a weekend of no racing and he wanted to get away.

He booked a cabin for the two of them, took her away for just the weekend while Milo and Olivia stayed with his parents. Daniel didn't tell her. He didn't tell her until he was packing their bags (with no idea what to pack for her).

She walked in on him, shoving things into their bags. "Danny," she said softly, placing her hand on his shoulders. "What're you doing?"

He let out a sigh as he stood up. "I... am taking you away for the weekend."

Holy shit, he was going to propose.

Wordlessly, she began putting things into her bag. She grabbed things from her underwear drawer and put them in her bag without letting Daniel see what it was.

Once her bag was zipped up, she turned to him and threw her arms around his shoulders. "Love you," she said as she kissed him.

Daniel could hardly keep himself from telling her as he drove them up to the cabin. He kept his hand on her thigh as he parked up (doing that thing where he drove with one hand, palm against the steering wheel).

Their bags weren't heavy, but Daniel insisted on carrying both of them. The cabin was nice and secluded, the next one a few miles doing the road.

"Have you ever fucked on a porch?" He grinned as he carried the bags into the cabin, flexing like crazy.

They had sex on the porch. They had sex on the rug, sex by the fire. It was damn near impossible to separate them.

Daniel was constantly looking for the right moment to propose. He wanted to, he so badly wanted to. But it wasn't the right moment.

The right moment came on Sunday. They'd spent the night unable to separate, his cock moving through her folds, her body moving on top of his.

In the morning light, with her body wrapped in the white sheets, hair covering the pillow, Daniel found his moment. He wrapped his arms around her mid section and pulled her closer. "Marry me," he said and kissed her bare shoulder.

"Sure," she muttered, fingers tracing his tattoo.

"No, I'm being serious," he said, turning her body to face him. "Marry me."

She grinned and leaned in to kiss him. "Yes, Daniel Ricciardo, I'll marry you."

Suddenly Daniel was out of the bed. He ran to his bag, pulled the ring from its box and slipped it onto her finger. "Future Mrs Ricciardo," he whispered and kissed her, pulling her body against his.

(When they picked up the kids later that evening, Daniel introduced Y/N to his parents as his ex girlfriend. Nobody was impressed by that.)

FIN

TAGLIST (CLOSED): @biancathecool @rewmuslupin @prettiest-at-the-party @hellowgoodbye @spideybv28 @andydrysdalerogers @landossainz @purplephantomwolf @ggaslyp1 @layazul @phantomxoxo @minseok-smaus @gills-lounge @hollie911 @annispamz @lily-ann-b @cixrosie @amalialeclerc @teamnovalak @tallrock35 @chiliwhore @darleneslane @sava207 @thatsusbitch @formulaal @leptitlu @landosgirlxoxo @msolbesg @cherry-piee @bathedinheat @chanshintien @ilove-tswizzle @woozarts @trouble-sistar @mysticalnightenthusiast @lewisvinga @spilled-coffee-cup @starkeyellow @fxrmuladaydreams @viennakarma @lightdragonrayne @millinorrizz @xemiefx @ellies-world61 @the-depressed-fellow

[theemporium]

Hiiiii can you do smt with Remus Lupin? Could it be a best friends to lovers thing? Also could it be smutty? Thank you sooooo much ♥️

thank you for requesting!🖤

.

“This is what friends are for, right?” 

“Yeah,” you breathed out, your shaking hands gripping the sheets beneath you in tight fists. “Friends. Exactly.” 

And maybe the word would sound a lot more convincing if it weren’t for the fact your best friend was currently between your legs, two fingers buried deep into your cunt and the bottom half of his face glistening with your release after he had been teasing you for the better part of the last hour.

It had started off as most your usual lazy days with Remus did. You were lounging around your flat in comfy clothes as you both ordered a takeaway and cracked open a bottle to share between you. You started talking and catching up and the conversation vaguely veered onto the topic of your date the other week.

You confided in your best friend that it was an utter disaster. From the fact it was a blind date set up by a coworker to the fact he had spent the solid thirty minutes you shared in bed rubbing your inner thigh and thinking he was doing something, you had taken a large gulp of wine and grumbled some comment about men disappointing you.

You expected Remus to laugh and sympathise with your misery.

What you hadn’t expected was for him to show you that not all men were, in fact, disappointing. 

“I would never treat you like that,” he had muttered as his lips trailed down the length of your neck and down the valley between your tits. “I would fuck a girl as gorgeous as you dumb, make you cry me some pretty tears.”

The tension between you and Remus was nothing new. You were close, far closer than any two best friends ever should have been. Everyone knew the feelings you harboured towards each other but the fear of losing your friendship had always stopped either one of you making a move. 

But seeing his best friend complaining about some lacklustre wizard between her legs was the last straw from Remus. 

You owned his heart for the last few years, now he was going to own your pleasure. He was going to show you that no man would ever compare to him.

“Remus, please,” you whined as he slowly pumped his fingers in and out of you, watching the way you clenched around him and your hips bucked for more. He didn’t think he had ever seen a sight so pretty.

“Shhh, I’ve got you,” he murmured, his hair falling in front of his eyes as he leaned down to suck your swollen clit between his lips, groaning in delight when he heard you mewl in response. “I know what my girl wants, just gotta trust me, baby.”

“I want you,” you breathed out, one hand reaching out to push his hair back so you could see his face between your legs. “Please.”

“Fuck,” he groaned against your cunt, his free hand reaching to keep your legs spread open. “You sound so pretty begging for me.”

Your fingers tugged on his hair as he lapped at your cunt, as he licked and kissed and sucked until your legs were shaking and your eyes were glossy with tears and you were begging for him to be inside you, to feel him fucking ruin you.

You moaned against his lips when he finally slid inside you, so deep that you swore you could feel him in your throat. Your nails dug into his biceps, the only word leaving your lips between whiny breaths being his name. And Remus couldn’t help but feel smug. 

“That’s right, darling,” he groaned, his hips snapping against yours as he watched your body jolt with each thrust. One of his hands gripped your cheeks, his thumb passing your lips until you wrapped your lips around him and sucked on his digit. “My good girl, hm? Gonna lay there and look pretty whilst I fuck you silly. Gonna fuck the word friend right out of you” 

You could only whine in response.

.

[justanamesstuff]

Chapter 1

Seasons

Matty Healy x f!reader

A/N: Hiii guys, I'm so nervous for this BUT very excited too!! I hope you like it <3

Warnings: swearing a bit?, typos maybe.

Word count: 3 K

MASTERLIST TAGLIST

Every season has its colours, has its smells, has its traditions. Like every season, this love has its particularities…

Around November of 2020, England

“Matty- Oh my god!!“ 

The constant banging on her wall and the high-pitched moaning at the other side woke Y/n up. Quickly, she took her pillow and placed it on top of her face, trying to muffle the horrible sounds reaching her ears. ‘God, is she having a good time? Or he’s killing her?’, the thought crossed the girl's mind. 

Most of the time they weren’t that loud, but during that morning they just seemed to not care.

It was useless, the sounds were getting louder and louder. Y/n couldn’t bear with it any more and knowing that even if they –luckily– stopped she wouldn’t come back to sleep. So, Y/n decided to go downstairs. Maybe one of the guys was making breakfast, which would help with the awful start of her day.

Her prayers weren’t heard. The kitchen was empty and no breakfast was made. She tried to cheer up a little, because Y/n needed to survive the day. To be honest, every day and morning it was getting harder and harder.

After a quiet but long sigh, Y/n started cooking for everyone. Nothing unusual since she tried to do it most of the mornings in exchange for their generosity letting her stay at the boys' studio –which was half Matty’s house as well. Spending the quarantine rent-free with them, listening how they recorded the new album and messing around was a true blessing if she tried to focus on the bright side of everything. 

Well, they kind of forced her because they were very against Y/n spending those months alone in her flat. The boys cared about the girl as a best friend and as a sister too. They were a bunch of drama queens most of the time, but deep down Y/n was enormously grateful with/for them.

Thinking about the first months, Y/n couldn’t deny those were amazing. The entire group spent a lot of quality time, doing the stupidest challenges, doing Instagram lives for the fans, watching a lot of movies, etc. Although everything took a turn when another person joined the party. When Nadia arrived.

It wasn’t like Y/n hated her, in fact, it was the opposite which created a big dilemma for her. Matty’s girlfriend was nice and the idea of having another girl was actually  comforting during the tough times. But Y/n wasn’t so fond of the situation for other reasons.

For a period –a very long one– if you asked her, she endured with it and put on her best –fake– happy face. Y/n’s acting talents were very handy at times. Although, her true feelings were still there, underneath the surface, where no one can notice them. Specially Matty.

 Time went by and the whole thing was making her more anxious, and although the idea of leaving crippled into her mind at every minute, she couldn’t really decide. Y/n didn’t want to leave but watching Matty 24/7 attached to the other girl’s side was taking the best of her mental health.

Y/n’s mind was running fast with thoughts while she cooked, which made her subconsciously ignore the tall man coming down after he heard movement downstairs. George watched his friend move around, knowing more than anyone in the house about her sorrows. George was probably the closest to her out of the four guys. He was the only one who knew all of her secrets and kept it secured as if it was his own.

The drummer stared at her, expecting for Y/n to notice him, but he acknowledged that the girl was in another dimension. She used to do that more than she liked to admit. George could bet ‘the morning moaning festival’ taking place half an hour prior was the main reason.

Y/n finished cooking a big amount of scrambled eggs and turned searching for a plate when she saw George standing in the partially lighted corridor. “Fuck G! You scared the shit out of me!” she exclaimed while resting a hand on her chest.

“Sorry!” the big man shrugged his shoulders. “Didn’t mean to scare you, love.” he apologized, approaching his best friend. “Good morning.” he greeted her properly, and she huffed.

“Good morning to you.” Y/n answered sarcastically after G placed a kiss on top of her head. 

“So, you heard, huh?”

“I can’t stand it any more, G.” she let him know. “It’s just a lot.” she continued, lowering her voice scared another of the boys could hear her.

“I know, love.” the drummer said with an apologetic expression. “But the lockdown is nearly over, and y’know none of us would like you to go.” G said as he searched for mugs.

“Why not? It’s my life, my freedom!” Y/n protested, starting to get annoyed. “It’s getting worse every day…” Y/n desperately moved her hands in the air trying to prove her point.

“Believe me… I know!” George searched for her eyes, keeping eye contact when Y/n looked back at him, waiting for his next words. “I’m not in your…situation, but I’m getting a little annoyed too.” G agreed with her.

“Yes, but it’s his house. He can do whatever he wants…”

“I half agree.” G nodded. “This might be his house, but it’s the place we choose as a studio, so for the time being its our place too…yours too!” George continued rambling, filling the mugs with hot water. “So, they need to stop with the noises.”

A comfortable silence fell between them until Y/n broke it again thinking out loud.

“What the hell can I do?” 

“About what?” A third voice came from the hallway. Matty made his entrance wearing a tired expression matching his gray sweatpants and plain shirt. He approached Y/n, leaving her a kiss on her right cheek. “What can you do about what, love?” he rephrased his question. 

“I- It’s nothing — Morning” she said without looking at him, instead walking towards the table bringing a mug with her.

“There must be something. You sounded worried.” Matty insisted.

“It’s something between Y/n and I, mate.” George said in a joking way, trying to distract him. “Something between best pals, you wouldn’t understand it.” he stated, rounding Y/n with his left arm meanwhile he winked at Matty taking a sip of his morning tea.

“Fuck off!” Matty protested. They usually have a competition about the title which Y/n find equally lame and cute. She easily felt the tension leaving her shoulders, relaxing thanks to their stupid discussion, knowing that for now Matty dropped his interrogation.

“Tell him, darling!” G urged her.

“It’s too early for this fight. Shut up and sit. I’ll bring the cutlery.” Y/n said, detaching herself from George. 

“Y/n is just too nice to tell ya, mate. She loves me more.” the singer continued joking, obviously unaware of the real implication of his words.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Matty.” George answered, sitting at his usual spot at the table.

“Who was the beautiful soul that made breakfast?” Ross entered the kitchen and stopped in his tracks, closing his eyes and inhaling dramatically.

“You know the answer.” John teased as he appeared from behind Ross. “You know you don’t have to, Y/n.” the musician approached her and helped with the forks and knives.

“Yes, for the hundred times…I know, John.” she looked at him. “But we all know that I would feel guilty since you all never let me pay for anything.”

“Because you don’t have to pay us, love.” Matty said from his place at the table with his sight fixed on his phone. He and the damn nicknames.

“But- “

“No but’s, Y/n. We’re happy to have you here!” Ross said as they all sat around the table.

They were serving breakfast when the conversation took another direction -something about the coronavirus and all of that. At the same time, the last resident of the house made her entrance.

Y/n sometimes envied her. Matty’s girlfriend always looked immaculate to a point that you could never think she just woke up. Y/n knew comparisons were wrong, but it was hard to avoid them. The girl felt awful: her hair was all tangled in a messy bun on the top of her head; only wearing an old t-shirt -from a not so famous band--and a pair of pyjamas short; and she was not wearing any makeup meanwhile she stuffed her breakfast on her face.

Nadia was all classy and perfect, the opposite of Y/n. Maybe that’s why he chose her and not his best friend. Y/n knew thinking like that was also wrong, yet again she couldn’t help it.

Y/n witnessed how Nadia greeted everyone and sat beside Matty, flashing him a cute smile he returned. They were in love, and it was obvious to everyone. Y/n was so happy for her best friend to find someone who loved him, although for many years she hoped that person would be her. For years, Y/n hoped Matty noticed her more than a mate.

When they first met, Y/n thought she felt a connection different from with anyone else in her life, although that changed quickly. Matty proved to her time and time again he didn’t want a relationship with her or nothing similar no matter how flirty he was during that first night. And Y/n forced herself her mind and heart to believe it.

Y/n was very unaware that, at the time she met the boys, Matty felt the same way she felt, but the old Matty didn’t want to lose the new friend he encountered. As another way to self sabotage himself, the young Matty did almost the impossible to show Y/n they were friends and just friends. A decision he took while being drunk became a life rule.

Since that moment, since that night, their relationship was kind of determinate. They were friends, the best friends. Not that night, but after a while, Y/n became part of the family and even Matty’s family –both sides– loved her as another member of their family. Y/n felt safe and loved, something she cherished so much since she hadn’t had that kind of love back home. Her family wasn’t like them, the opposite in fact.

For the longest time, Y/n tried to ditch her feeling for Matty. Every time a new girl showed up, tugged under his arm, Y/n decided it was the time to stop getting hurt and move on. Even though, her heart couldn’t do it. It hurt her. And with Nadia was the hardest since all of them could notice it was different, more mature…more serious. Nadia was more than a random girl for Matty and everyone was sure of that.

“Penny for your thoughts.” Matty interrupted Y/n’s inner monologue, staring at her, while his right arm was around Nadia.

“What?” Y/n answered, coming down to earth, with a question. 

“You were gone.” everyone was strangely in silence while they looked at each other.

“I was just thinking about the government lifting the restrictions. Meaning, now I can go home.” she half lied, while messing with the leftovers of her breakfast. Y/n did chat about it with G that morning anyway, and it was a reality Y/n needed to get away from the lovers for a time.

“I told her, none of us want that.” George interrupted their conversation.

“Of course not.” Jaime, who joined the breakfast table, said to her.

“I know, guys. But it’s been almost four months and I- This is not my- “

“Don’t finish that sentence.” Matty warned her, and she looked him directly in the eyes.

“It’s the truth, Matty.” she said, dropping her fork on the plate.

“It’s not, this is your house too, Y/n/n.” Ross, sweet Ross, reminded her. “At the same time, if you want to go back to your flat, I understand. We’ll miss your meals.” his comment made everyone chucked, except Matty who was studying every one of her movements. 

A weak smile was plastered on her face while she stared down towards her plate unable to make eye contact with Matty. “Don’t get me wrong. I love being here with you guys, but I need my space.”

“If this is about some couple…” Jaime looked at Matty and Nadia “Waking up the whole house.” he finished the sentenced winking like a cartoon.

“For fuck's sake.” Matty swore under his breath. “Is it about that?” he looked at Y/n.

“‘Course not!” she looked at him trying her hardest to hide her feelings.

“I wouldn’t blame you if that’s the reason. I’m sleeping on the other side of the house and I can listen to them. You’re right beside Matty’s room!” John emphatically said.

Before Matty could say a word, Y/n exclaimed, “It’s not about that, okay?” she simply lied. 

Y/n could sense George staring at her. “It’s what I said, I need my space, and it’s not like I’m going to disappear.” another white lie. Y/n was planning to do exactly that for a while until her wounds healed again. “You’ll still have to bear with me.” she finished her little speech.

“We can simply send the couple to your flat, and you can stay here in peace” Ross joked this time. All of them except for Matty laughed again.

“Stop with that, he will get angry.” Y/n defended Matty.

“I know it’s not my house either,” Nadia started saying. “If I can say something, I would like you to stay, Y/n.” she continued rather shyly. “It’s nice to have a girl around.” Of course, she was so nice. “I promised we’ll keep it down.” she looked quickly at Matty for reassurance and then again at her.

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry you’ll have to survive with these boys, but I really need to go.” Y/n explained. “Another reason is the fact that I have to prepare to get back to work soon.”

“So, when did you start thinking about leaving? Since you apparently have a lot of reasons to leave.” Matty said with a strange expression on his face.

“Matty-”

“Are you that eager to leave?” ‘He was pissed?’, Y/n thought. 

“Matty- “she protested, not knowing what else to say.  

“No, it’s okay. I get it! You want to leave, it’s okay.” he stood up from his seat gathering the plates to wash them.

“Matty!” Y/n said again.

“It’s fine, Y/n!” he said more sternly, obviously not fine with the situation. 

The rest of the group –included Nadia–, took that as a cue to leave the friends so they could talk. They made stupid excuses, leaving Matty and Y/n alone in the kitchen.

Matty went to the sink, beginning to wash the dishes. After letting a big breath out, Y/n stood up approaching where he was standing.

“Why are you so angry?” she asked him, folding her arms, standing beside Matty looking at his profile. Matty was stroking the plates with more force than needed for the task in hand.

“I’m not. I said that I got it, and it’s fine.” he answered.

“You’re obviously not fine, Matthew.”

“Do you want to know how am I? Perfect.” he stated, turning the water off and drying his hand with a cloth while he turned to look at her. “I really don’t get it why you want to leave so suddenly.”

“It’s not that I want to- “another big lie. She wanted to, she needed to.

“Bullshit!”

Y/n tried to defend herself, “I’m not going to disappear…”

“Bullshit!”

“Can you stop that?” Y/n stood directly in front of Matty. 

“I know you’re going to disappear. I know you. We’re best friends and something is bothering you, I can tell. It hurts that you’re not telling me anything and I fucking bet you told George already.” She couldn’t tell him the truth.

“Is this more about that competition?” Y/n tried to distract him.

“Yes- No- Of course, not- This is about you and me.” Matty said, melting her heart a little. He was obviously troubled with the idea of Y/n leaving.

“Matty, there is nothing…mayor going on. Trust me. I need silence. You said it, you know me. I crave my space…alone.” she told him sweeter this time.

“Yes, I know. But you can find somewhere here-“

“You know that’s a lie.” ‘What a hypocrite I am’, Y/n thought. 

“I know.”

“You aren’t gonna miss me. You have the boy and Nadia- “she moved uncomfortably in her place.

“It’s not the same, you’re my best friend. I’ll miss you, darling.” Matty looked at her with his best doggy eyes.

“Don’t!” Y/n pointed a finger at him.

“What?” he played dumb.

“Don’t give me puppy eyes, it won’t work.” she smiled this time.

“Shit, are you so certain about it?” he looked down, defeated.

“Yes.” Y/n simply said.

“Okay, I understand. You can go.”

“Thanks for your permission that I didn’t ask for.” Y/n tried to joke.

“But- “ he ignored her.

“But?”

“But promise me that you are not going to disappear for too long.” he said, staring directly into her eyes.

“I promise.” Y/n said way too quickly. After a couple of seconds, she had to look elsewhere.

“Can we hug?” he said very slowly. 

Y/n chuckled, placing her arms around his shoulders, at the same time Matty placed his on her waist.

“I love you.” Matty mumbled on her left shoulder.

“I love you too, Matty.” Y/n said, feeling it from the deepest of her heart. There lied the difference. 

Maybe, she couldn’t love anyone like she loved Matty, even though she had to try for the good of their relationship. 

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

Taglist: @hollybrislen

[maggyme13]

Moving above the Underground (9/?)

Ellie just moved into a new flat. Introducing herself to her downstairs neighbor with a cake she did not realize what the future held for her and him. And what had an asshole coworker to do with it?

AN: welcome welcome to a new chapter :P Sorry for the delay. Life is hell atm

Don´t like-> Don´t Read, Minors DNI

Warning: angst, abuse /torture

Wordcount: around 2.4k

Masterlist

Series-Masterlist

Part 8

Ellie hadn´t felt that recovered since the guest had come to visit but there was no time to relax if she wanted to finish the order in time for his departure.

And so she had been in her small workshop since her early-rising husband had left to do whatever Mr. Silver had ordered him to do that day preparing cherry and burly maple wood for the first orders she had to make.  At some point, Tucker had appeared with some food but being in a flow she had skipped lunch and continued working until she was startled by someone hugging her from behind. Someone smaller than her husband.

“Your cake was as delicious as always.”, Alejandro grinned, “Saw Boss eat two pieces. So what are you doing all alone down here? Did the boss give you trouble so you have to skip eating?”

“You scared me.”, Ellie sighed, her heart still stumbling over itself from being startled, “What can I do for you? Hiding from responsibilities?”

“Sorry about that! I just wanted to see how you are doing. Sy mentioned you were stressed. So what are you creating now?”

“Two jewelry boxes and a fitting bureau.”, she answered stretching her back in the process.

“You know, if you ever feel bored, my Office at the Wonderland could need an overhaul. Reminds me too much of the old one in charge.”

“Ask me in a month or so. I have my work cut out until the guest leaves. I have to build three bars like the one we added to his suit, a new office table and a minibar like Mr Silver has in his office.”

“That´s why are you not eating? You know your body needs fuel to function.”, the man asked with a worried look, he had noticed the ice-cold and untouched food standing on her little break table.

“No. I lost track of time. Guess I should go to the kitchen and get something to eat though.”, she frowned, not at all happy she had to leave her little paradise.

“I brought some cake. It´s not as good as yours, but better than nothing I guess. I also have some fresh hot tea and coffee. If you want.”, Alejandro wiggled his eyebrows, earning himself a small laugh from Ellie.

“Why not? Grab yourself a seat, and if you have time afterward you can help me with some heavy lifting. I need to calibrate the tabletop and get the slaps for the bar backgrounds from the bottom of the piles over there. Only if you want to of course.”

“My muscles are your muscles.”, he winked.

The following three hours or so Alejandro spent helping his best friend's wife all the while peppering her with questions both about herself and about the work she was doing. It fascinated him how one could use a dead tree and turn it into all kinds of things that were not limited to firewood.

“Sy hit the Jackpot with you. You cook, are easy on the eyes, and are not afraid to work. Maybe I should try to find me a woman in the trades as well- what about that girl you were at the Wonderland with those two times… What was her name? Jacky?”

“Well, she moved to Sweden for work.”, Ellie mumbled, not daring to add also that she would never want her friend to be pulled into the darkness as well. She had to go low contact after being given to Sy as a wife. At least she had managed to talk him into allowing her to contact her friend once in a while. As to not cause suspicion.

“Weren´t you supposed to finish the Guestlist for the upcoming event at the Wonderland?”, Sy´s deep voice rumbled from the door.

“Why, jealous I spent some time with your Wife and helped her with my muscles?”, Alejandro joked but held up his arms in surrender when his friend sent him a glare, “Well, guess I will leave and do my boring job. A pleasure as always Ellie.”

“I- He said he had nothing to do, I -”, the woman whispered, as if she was scared she had done something to anger the man standing there.

“You did nothing wrong. Come on. I need you to wash up and get dressed in something casual but presentable.”, Sy sighed, the last thing he wanted was to stress her out even more than she already was. Not when he had to tell her he was to leave on a work-related trip for at least two weeks and she had to stay at the villa. Alone.

“Where are we going?”, she wondered when he guided her to his car in the garage an hour later.

“I booked us a table at an Asian restaurant. Hope you are still hungry. Noticed you did not eat the food Tucker brought you.”

“Sorry- I know I need to eat.”

“Good. Now enjoy your food.”, he hummed, the entree had just been served.

“You know, this is the first time we go out to eat. It- it is like the first date we never had.”, Ellie whispered when they both were finished with their main courses.

“Looks like it.”, he mumbled, only then realizing she was right, “A second one will need to wait though I fear. Have to leave for two to three weeks for work. You are going to stay at the villa and finish your work. I´ll have to take most of my men with me. So if you need help you will need to ask Alejandro again.”

“Oh, Okay. Thank you for telling me, I- how...”, she stumbled over her words, a slight fear growing in her heart, what if she did something wrong?

“No need for fear. Just act the same way you do when I am around. No one should bother you about anything apart from some small repairs. I can tell the kitchen to bring you food to our room if you are not comfortable with eating with everyone else while I am gone.”

And that was what she did.

Each morning she was up at seven am, got herself a prepared breakfast tray with a thermos flak with some tea,  left for her workshop where she would work on the orders until lunchtime rolled around and eat the packed luncheon that had been on the tray in the morning. Then after a break of around an hour, Ellie continued with either the started projects or planned upcoming ones and/or ordered Parts and materials before preparing the workshop for the next day, cleaning up, and leaving to return to their room with a quick stop at the kitchen where she would switch her morning tray with a dinner one she would place outside their room after finishing. After Dinner, a hot shower waited for her and then she tried to relax before going to sleep and starting the whole circle the next morning again.

Until that circle was broken two days before Sy was supposed to be back. Ellie was just planning a slap of Canadian Maple when a giant hand got a hold of her shoulder while another turned off the plane causing the wood to get stuck and ruined.

“Why-”, she turned around to the owner of the hand and froze. Her frustration and confusion about the slap were immediately forgotten. Behind her, the man who had searched her the day of her marriage stood with a dark glint in his eyes.

“Times up Bitch.”, and with these words he slung her over his shoulder and left her workshop. Confused, and honestly scared, she did neither scream nor struggle. Only when they walked past Alejandro, whose eyes turned big but could not intervene cause the giant growled a “Bosses orders”, did she let out a short whine.

“Take a seat.”, he laughed just when she was thrown onto an old wooden chair, “Welcome to your new home.” Her arms and legs were bound to the armrests and in the end, only her head could be moved.

“Now you will answer some questions I have. And please try and lie. I wanted to have some fun since the day in the office, but Captain stole that from me.”, he breathed in her face, head tilting from left and right and back left with a sinister grin in his eyes and mouth.

“I -I won´t lie.”, she answered, her eyes not focusing on his face afraid of what they would see.

“We´ll see about that. Now, please tell me who you are.”

“Ellie Syverson. B-born Miller.” “What is your profession Ms Miller?”, he continued, using her Maiden name to play her subconsciousness into a fright response. Not that it was needed, his presence alone was doing that just fine.

“I am a skilled Woodworker, a- and working f-for Mr Silver.”

“And? What else do you do Ms Miller?”

She frowned upon that question. What was he playing at?

“N-nothing, Sir.”

*BAM* her head painfully turned to the left. He had just slapped her with a lot of strength.

“Who else do you work for?”

“N-no one. I am do-doing some woodwork for t-the VIP, b-but that was in Mr Silvers o-order.”, she flinched. Her ears still rang from the impact and stars flowered before her eyes.

This time she was punched in the stomach and bile immediately rose in her throat.

“You know, I believed you were smarter than lying to me. But it seems your Husband was too lax on you and did not teach you proper respect.” Another punch in her gut followed, “Now, I will leave you some time to think and then I am sure you will tell me the truth. Or I will have some more fun.”

Total darkness surrounded her once the man had left. Darkness that only seemed to make the pain worse.

Ellie was sure she had never felt pain like that before, but she soon learned that it could be much worse: Three times he returned with the same questions, and three times he left with her in worse and worse pain. Dried blood covered her face and neck from the cuts and broken nose he had left. Her wrists and ankles were sore from where the ropes cut into them, and her shoulder was at least bruised from where she had landed on it that one time he had slapped her so hard the chair had toppled over. But as it did so, the woodworker realized one thing: it was old and not well maintained. The joinery of the armrests was loose and could break any day now. Knowing she still had her screwdrivers, folding rule, and punch in her trousers, Ellie began to wriggle and move her right arm to get the joinery to give up totally. And after a lot of effort, it did. Now able to more or less freely move her right arm and hand, she managed to get a hold of her tools and began freeing herself.

A short painful laugh of irony left her throat. Her escaping could have been avoided if they had given her the chair to repair. Now she would at least die fighting. At least like that the pain and fear of what would happen would stop.

Curled up in the farthest corner she could reach in total darkness she waited for her fate to step through the door.

The loud echo of a door slamming against old stone walls pulled her out of the exhausted rest that had taken over. A huge dark silhouette stood in the doorway. A silhouette she realized a moment later was her husband. A husband Ellie just threw herself at another moment later, her body shaking from the relieved sobs, seeking his warmth and comfort.

“Let´s get you back to our room.”, he rumbled not doing anything until he felt her nod against his chest. Only then did he lift his wife into his bridal style and carry her through hallways and upstairs until he stepped into their bathroom.

“Allow me to help.”, he hummed hoping she would not push him away for failing to protect her, but he would understand and accept it. No matter how painful that would be for him.  Again she only gave a short nod against his chest, got on one knee ( she sitting on it), and carefully and methodically removed her dirty work clothes. Purposefully not giving much attention to the state of her skin. His attention had to be solely on that task and not drifting away to plan revenge and pain. With her stripped, he shed his outer layers just enough to now cause discomfort to her when showering together and then stepped beneath the warm shower with her in his arms.

Sy used his larger frame to shield her sensitive and bruised skin from the pressure of the water, how little it might be, and gently soaped down her body and hair, being especially careful not to get soap into the open rashes where she must have been bound.

“I have to see if your stomach is only bruised or worse. This will hurt. I am sorry.”, he stated, he hat lifted Ellie´s face so he could see into her puffy, red, and tear-filled eyes. His heart broke seeing the pained and broken look in them.

“Okay.”, she whispered, knowing it was for the best, and if he knew how to do so, she would rather have him do it than some stranger (at a hospital). If she was honest, she only wanted to sleep and hopefully forget the pain. Jolts of pain went through her innards whenever his fingers pressed down on an area, and once or twice a hiss of that pain left her throat.

“Sorry.”, she whispered when he stopped for the tenth time because of her flinching or hissing.

“Don´t be. I have some ointment that will help with the bruises and tomorrow we leave and go home.”, he promised, his voice heavy with his pain and fury, “Would you like some painkillers?”

“Yes, please. W-will you stay with me?”

“If you want me to.”, he hummed glad that she could still seek comfort with him.

“Yes, please.”

“Then let´s get you dry, dressed, and settled to rest.”

Two hours later Ellie´s body had finally given in the exhaustion and she lay curled against his body, fists clenching his shirt with all her might, but still not looking at peace.

Rest for him, Sy knew, would only come once the bastard who did that got what he deserved and her body and mind was healed.

Part 10

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[swoopswrites]

shoulder to shoulder hc's

Remus

is a really good cook from looking after Gracie but refuses to look after himself properly so only ever makes pesto pasta or noodles at uni, but when he's home and in a good mood he whips up the turkish dishes of his childhood for his sister

had a lightning bolt shaved into his short back and sides as a kid because he thought it'd make him faster on the field

originally played nine because he was a mouthy motherfucker at age twelve but when he hit puberty he grew too tall and his coach moved him to fifteen, but he ended up loving it

is actually still on good terms with his secondary school girlfriend, who sometimes takes Gracie on day trips with her and her little sister

he still has all his old jerseys in a box under his bed, saving them for if he ever has kids.

was filmed shirtless for a promotional video for his first world cup and overnight became a figurehead for body positivity and had instagram accounts dedicated to his abs. Sirius finds the latter hilarious and encourages to post thirst traps to his own professional account to give them new content. Remus begins working with charities on campaigns that help children feel comfortable with their visible differences, publicly talking about his scars in a way he thought he never would.

used to tell people Gracie was his daughter when he was eighteen for a laugh and to see the horror on their faces.

moves into a flat in Bristol with Sirius after graduating; equal distance from Remus' training and James' parents house. Gracie moves in with them after four years, after another accident forces Lyall into rehab.

Sirius

joined rugby in year seven because his first proper friend James said it was really cool and he knew it'd piss off his mum

got his tattoo's with a fake ID at seventeen the week after he moved in with the Potter's because he couldn't think of a better way to retake ownership of his body

a prolific vinted seller, makes bank by upcycling the cast-offs of his friends and re-selling them. in his final year, it gets featured in Teen Vogue and the exposure gets him fashion internships for post graduation.

(follow on) can sew. Effie taught him on the long nights he couldn't sleep post-running away, and so many of his clothes he's made himself

aside from his one night stand in first year, Remus is the first person Sirius has done bits at uni with because he was always too scared Peter would find out

swore himself off rugby boys and was so rude to Remus at first because he couldn't bear to admit his attraction

ends up working with NGO's to help queer youth, pioneering for the inclusion of queer kids in sport, helped by Remus' professional connections

Lily

had a weeny crush on remus when she first met him, and spent the first two weeks of uni gushing to her school friends about 'the cute welsh guy in my lectures' until she realised he really needed a friend, and she did her best to be that for him

likes her sleepovers with remus bc as a kid her and petunia used to share a bed but petunia stopped when they were fifteen and Lily always sleeps better next to someone else

used to hate being Ginger but her year 10 crush once told her it made her 'unique' and now she loves her hair

always wearing black winged eyeliner, even just to make a tesco run

has a tiny butterfly tattoo on her ankle that she got matching with her sister before her sister went to uni, back when they were on better terms. she hates it now, and tries to always wear socks

lowkey such a daddy's girl. watches the rugby with him and they have matching Ulster jersey's and scarves

James

had initially wanted to be a cricketer like his dad but his primary school had had a rugby club, and it was love at first training session

was genuinely shocked to be voted captain, doesn't realise how widely loved he is

obsessed with pickled onion monster munch

favourite song is unironically the rockerfeller skank by fatboy slim

his mum insisted he also take bollywood dancing lessons as a kid because she was scared private boarding school would make him lose his connection to his culture

was the main love interest in his year eleven school play after auditioning for a joke with Sirius and now has a genuine love of theatre and can still rattle off his lines

went to primary school with Peter and didn't know how to say no to him when he asked to join their second year house

gets invited to join the England team at the end of his final year of uni, and is genuinely more excited at the prospect of playing against Remus than he is to play for nationally.

he and Remus become known as a 'dynamic duo' amongst rugby fans, and create a fake twitter rivalry as a laugh, before staging a huge 'reconciliation' in the form of running their own summer training camps for underprivileged and disabled children. Gracie is the first to sign up.

[foxintheferns]

Wild Heart - Chapter Five

A Twilight-Paul Lahote Fanfiction

Be sure to read the Previous Chapter !

Harley Sullivan’s POV:

When I woke, it took my brain several moments to recall the events of the evening before. My heart jumped firmly against my rib cage as I joltingly remembered the plans for the day. Cliff diving with my four new friends: Jake, Seth, Embry and Jared. I sighed and rolled over onto my stomach, letting my face smush into my pillow, clenching my eyes shut and telling my anxiety to go fuck itself.

It was 7:45 in the morning. The boys were coming by the cabin around 10 to pick me up before we went to the cliffs.

I decided it wasn’t worth showering, considering I’d be bathing in the Pacific Ocean in a few hours, but tried my best to make sure I didn’t look too disheveled. I stood in front of the bathroom mirror, my hot cup of coffee steaming in its purple ceramic ‘I <3 Maine’ mug on the bathroom counter. I met my own eyes in the reflection, and tried to decipher what I saw in them. They were pools of deep, grayish green. My mom had always told me that my eyes were like the forest; that ever since I was little, my emotions could be seen in them, rolling like wind through trees, gusts of joy, of love, of hurt, of rage. She was one of the only humans on this planet who had understood me, had seen my affinity with feeling so passionately as a strength, not as a weakness or burden. I’d always wanted brown eyes, like her. They were warm, gentle, soft. But they glowed with rich color and sparkled with light when she laughed or sang or danced. The green of my eyes reminded me of my father.

I tried to understand what I saw in them now, but they only stared back at me expectantly. Maybe there was a sparkle to them, now. They looked less dull and flat than they had even mere weeks ago. I began the process of pulling a comb through my dark hair, waves and curls falling in a jumbled heap down my back, knotted and coiling wildly from the salty breeze on the beach the night before. I wet it thoroughly, spraying my homemade leave-in through the smoothed strands and scrunching until they looked fresh and defined. I gave one last appraisal in the mirror. My freckles were making an appearance, a result of all the time spent outside recently. They scattered across the bridge of my nose and along my cheekbones like the aftermath of overspray from a painter’s brush. The rich copper tones of my now damp, dark brown hair seemed to make the green in my eyes flare like glowing orbs. My hair was always something I cherished and loved. That was from my mother.

I continued my preparation for the day, brushing my teeth, washing my face, putting some deodorant on, then anxiously went through my wardrobe in my mind to figure out what I’d be wearing. I didn’t really have swimwear, considering cliff diving or swimming at all weren’t particularly on the forefront of my mind when I’d moved here. I’d given a lot of my clothes to Naomi when I left, who eagerly accepted my hand-me-downs. I knew I had one black cami bra that would be comfortable enough to cliff jump in, and I hoped that pairing it with some of my black boy-short undies would help it pass for a bikini. I wasn’t particularly overjoyed to be the only girl swimming, but I was excited to be trying something new. Doing something fun. And, I had a funny feeling that the boys would go out of their way to not look at my body too obviously. They were all pretty respectful, especially Seth. I couldn’t deny the way that my chest fluttered at the thought of taking my clothes off in front of Jake, though, and tried to push that to the back of my mind. I spent the few hours waiting for the guys to arrive, adding more wood to the stove and reading one of my Jane Goodall books. I’d brought a whole set of novels with me, many of the books old and weathered from the times I’d read them over the years. I eventually got antsy and did some stretching on the living room floor, trying to remember random poses from the few classes I’d taken during one of my fleeting hyper-fixations on Yoga a few years back. In the middle of a deep breathing session in cat-cow, I was ripped from my relaxation with a heavy knock on the door. I gasped audibly and fell onto my elbows on the wooden floor. I’d been expecting to hear footfalls and voices outside before a knock, considering four larger than average men were going to be arriving at the house. But I hadn’t heard them approach at all.

I stood, rearranging my hoodie down over my shorts as it’d ridden up throughout my stretching session. I skipped over to the door, my white knitted socks slippery on the wooden floor. I pulled the door open, unsurprised to see Jacob’s face first. A smile broke out across his features, and I saw his eyes flicker down my legs briefly. A chorus of ‘hey’, ‘hi’, and ‘good morning’s rang out and I laughed, holding the door open wider and stepping aside to welcome them in. Behind Jake, Jared and Seth stood smiling, and behind them, Embry stood next to another face that I didn’t recognize. Jacob jutted his thumb behind him and over his shoulder at the unfamiliar addition to our little group, a stocky, built young man. He was shorter than the others, although still taller than the average man. He had thick muscle wrapping around his arms, neck and shoulders, and shaggy hair that curled around his ears.

“This is Quil, a buddy of ours. He wanted to come along, hope you don’t mind,” Jacob said with a grin. The boy named Quil smiled wide, throwing an acknowledging nod my way. I shook my head.

“No, I don’t mind at all! It’s nice to meet you,” I said, beaming back. Quil returned the greeting with a confident demeanor, and the five of them stepped through the doorway. I heard the murmurs of comments on the mysterious tiny cabin they’d known for years but never seen the inside of as they entered. Everyone but Jake, who stayed by my side while the other boys wandered into the living room, Seth crouching by the fire while Embry sat down on the couch with Quil and Jared. They were already continuing a conversation they must have started on their way here, and I was amused by how immediately they made themselves at home.

It was a small couch, but the boys made it look ridiculously tiny. I had to stifle a laugh.

“So, ya scared?”, Jacob asked with a smirk, his arms crossing as he eyed my face, trying to read my expression for a whisper of fear.

I narrowed my eyes as I stared back at him. I hesitated, crossing my arms to mirror him, staring back defiantly with my chin in the air before I let my shoulders and arms slump in defeat. I realized he’d probably see right through any feigned bravery I plastered onto my face.

“Yeah…,” I mumbled with a shrug, a bashful smile creeping up onto my lips. He chuckled, his eyes remaining on my face as I glanced down to the floor, moving over to my hiking boots and grabbing them before sitting down onto the ottoman in front of the couch.

“Well, don’t need to be. We’re doing the easy spot, like we told you. Plus, it’s like the perfect day for it. 70 degrees, not too windy, even down on the beach,” he mused, watching me as I bent over to pull my boots onto my feet.

I nodded, trying to ignore the racing of my heart as I yet again realized what I’d gotten myself into. This is what I wanted though, isn’t it? New friends and experiences. After fighting with my bulky hiking boots, I was laced up and ready to go. Behind me on the couch, the boys were looking through one of my spotted owl field journals. At the snap of Jacob’s fingers and a flick of his head towards the door, all four boys were up and crossing the room, leaving me sitting on the ottoman and staring at Jake in amazement at the utter control he seemed to hold over the group. He waited patiently by the open door, then awkwardly looked outside before turning his gaze back at me.

“Erm… you comin’?” He asked gruffly, not understanding my moment of hesitation.

I stood up, stretching and grabbing my red backpack off the couch that had my spare clothes, towel and essentials, throwing it over my shoulder.

“Hope you don’t expect me to listen to you like those goofballs do,” I said, reaching out to poke him in the side as I grinned up at him. He dodged my hand effortlessly and smoothly while managing to still hold the door open for me. I slid past him, his woodsy smell filling my senses briefly, and he followed me out onto the porch, firmly closing the door behind him.

“Don’t worry, I don’t,” he grumbled dramatically.

….………….………….………….………….………….………………………

The hike up to the road wasn’t a short one, nor was it easy. My thighs and calves burned by the time we made it through the vast and seemingly never ending green of the forest. The light peeking through at the top of the final climb showed me just how steep the remaining section was. I stopped to catch my breath, my heart painfully pounding and sweat pooling under my shirt and across my lip. I stopped at the base of the hill, hunching over to breathe.

“Jeez, thought you were an experienced hiker, Sully!” Jake’s voice rang out from the front of the group.

I glanced up, searching for his face. When my eyes met his, I saw it was painted with that playful smirk of his.

“Sully?” I asked between pants. I hadn’t heard that nickname since high school.

Jake and the other boys chuckled. Seth, who was the closest to me, put his hand on my shoulder gently.

“It means you’re part of the club, don’t worry. It’s a shocker when these knuckleheads actually call me Seth. Last names are kinda the norm here.”

Seth had been by my side for most of the trek, encouraging me when I’d first expressed distaste for the sheer vertical climb of our summit.

I nodded in response, not really caring for anything much more than the sensation of feeling far too hot under my sweatshirt. I held up a finger for the boys to wait. They all shot each other perplexed looks, which I ignored.

I pulled my pack off my shoulders, letting it slump into the ground. Hooking my fingers under the hem of my hoodie, I pulled it swiftly over my head, shaking my hair out as it pulled through the hole. I wrapped the hoodie around my waist, tying it tightly at the top of my shorts and then bent to pull my pack up onto my back. When I looked up, all five of the men were pointedly avoiding looking my way. I realized with a sharp flow of blood to my cheeks that I’d only put on the black bra I planned to swim in, and had forgotten to put on a shirt underneath the hoodie in my nervous preparation for the outing. Jake shot one quick look at my face before nodding curtly and looking up the trail, prompting the group to continue.

“Just this last little bit, then we’re at the truck,” Jacob called from the front of our little posse. I felt much cooler now, the air lightly running through the trees flowing across my chest and under my armpits. I let out a long sigh, and heard Seth’s soft chuckle from beside me.

I was too exhausted to care about defending my ego when we made it to the top. How were they not as tired as me? I was indeed an experienced hiker, but the sheer steepness of this path was one of the most difficult I’d come across. I decided to blame it on their sheer size difference. Their legs were all long enough to make it easier, surely. It took everything in me to not sit down on the side of the road that the trail finally led us to. My breathing began to settle and relax as the ground flattened. My muscles ached, but it didn’t feel terrible. The feeling was one I missed, I realized. I was coming back to my body still, after years of being an empty vessel for pain, and physical sensations such as this were a kind reminder of that, I decided.

An old, black pickup truck sat along the road next to the tree-line. Jacob strode over to the driver’s side, pulling keys out of his pocket with a jingle and shoving them into the ignition. I stood along the road beside Seth, who looked over at me with a grin.

“You did it! Nice job,” he said excitedly. His compassion was so genuine and reassuring; it was impossible not to smile back.

I exhaled and nodded.

“Thanks, Seth. You’re a good hiking buddy.”

Jared, Quil, and Embry all piled into the backseat of the truck. Jacob slapped the side of the truck from out of his window, whistling at Seth and I.

“Let’s go, kids, we don’t have all day,” he called across the seat out the passenger window. I scoffed and walked with Seth to the passenger door, which he opened for me. I threw him another smile as I pulled myself up and into the truck with a grunt. My legs were a bit shaky from the climb. I plopped down onto the bench seat next to Jacob, accidentally falling against him in the process. I muttered something that sounded like a ‘sorry’. His lips were pulled together tightly, an attempt to not laugh at my struggle. I pulled my backpack onto my lap and huffed, stubbornly refusing to meet his gaze. Seth got into the truck next to me, pulling the door closed behind him.

After a long and windy drive up the rocky jut of mountain along the pacific sea, we finally arrived to the location of our day’s adventure. I felt a jolt of excitement and fear as Jared’s long arm pointed from the backseat at our cliff jumping destination.

“There she is,” Quil exclaimed proudly.

It was slightly lower down than the road we slowly came to a stop on, tucked up above a small inlet that shot off from the main beach below. The water was calmer than the day before and the sun was able to shine directly on it now that it was almost noon. I smiled eagerly to myself at the prospect of the sun warming the rocks despite the constant cloud layer in the sky.

With a shudder of old metal and engine, Jacob turned off the truck and pulled the key out, stuffing it back into his pocket. He glanced over at me with a slightly different expression than I’d seen before, one of contemplation and hesitance, and my eyes narrowed slightly. An impish smile pulled up onto his lips.

“Ready?” He asked smugly as he popped the driver door open and pulled his tremendous frame out of the truck.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I mumbled as I followed him out the same way.

A/N: yall please this took SO long I am so deeply truly sorry, but now im back! I missed writing this story so much so please let me know your thoughts! Chapter 6 already in the works hehe

Who’s excited for Paul to meet our girl? 🙋‍♀️

➡️NEXT CHAPTER

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[ofmermaidstories]

for the love of god do pt2 for the soulmate au DEAR GOD PLEASE IT WAS SO GOOD PLEEEEASE PLEEEEEASE

“The down-payment is ¥500,000,” she says, and your mouth thins before you slide the envelop across to her. Five hundred thousand yen was enough money to pay your rent for a few good solid months or keep you in new books for years. Five hundred thousand yen was emergency money, flee money, start-over-again money—but, you figured, this counted as an emergency, as a way to start over again.

The woman across from you—husky, a round face and her hair piled on top of her head in loose curls—goes to take it, but you keep your hand flat ontop.

“It works, right?” You ask. “I’m not just paying out of my ass for nothing, am I?”

She does you the grace of not laughing, though her lips—full and soft—twitch. “Baby,” she says, and you rankle at the name, “I’m not in the business of ripping people off. My Quirk is the real deal.”

Her eyes are clear gray—like water along stones. Instead of fighting you for the cash she leans back into her chair, taking out a silver cigarette case and tapping it against the table. “Playing around with other peoples’ soul bonds is dangerous,” she tells you, laying the case flat and flicking it open. “Not for me, mind, but for them. People don’t come to me for a joke, Baby. They come to me because they’re bonded to someone abusive, to someone who’s going to hurt them. I don’t do this to accomodate people who change their minds or get bored. I do this because I can; because sometimes it’s a matter of a survival.”

They’re big words; you can feel your frown. “Yeah, you’re big on helping,” you say, churlish. “Is that why it costs so much?”

The woman smiles at you, her eyes crinkling—lighting her cigarette in silence.

You found her on the internet.

You couldn’t be—wouldn’t be—bound to Dynamight of all people. Not when he was already bound to Deku—not when they were both Pro Heroes, and big ones at that, heavy hitters who routinely found themselves fighting for their lives, for each other’s lives, for the country. What would you do with that? What could you do with that? Sit at home and wait for him, knowing that one day he could very well die in his soulmate’s arms? It was alright for someone like Uravity—she might have been Deku’s wife, but she was a Pro Hero in her own right, the chances she’d be there with them were astronomical. You would never be apart of that—you would always have to wait. You, singular.

You had fled from Dynamight as soon as you realised what had planted your feet so solidly there. You hadn’t even looked back—just wretched away from him like he was explosive, and ran. He’d shouted out something—you didn’t care what—and then you had spent that first night in your apartment, pacing, wondering what the hell to do with your elated heart. All the stories people told were right—you had just known. You had seen his stupid face, smooth and unamused and waiting—and you had known. And it was awful. You knew too much about him—you knew too much about his world. There was never any chance.

“I don’t do this with unwilling participants,” the woman across from you says, breaking you out of your thoughts. “Say it aloud: are you sure you want to be unbound?”

You’re in the back of her shop; it’s old, smells of the wooden walls and the dust that’s collected her and the cleaning products sitting in crates nearby. Were you sure you wanted to be unbound? Your best friend from high-school, with his soul-mate-and-rival, complained to you constantly that he hated him, that he’d pay any amount of money to be rid of “the bastard” but even though they both talked like that, neither of them had made a move to do anything about it. They were groomsmen at each other’s weddings, your best friend was the godfather to his soul-mate’s child—they complained about each other, fought against each other constantly on the court, but they loved one another. It didn’t lessen their love for their spouses, or their children, or their friendships. But then—when his soul-mate had gotten into a severe car crash, your best friend hadn’t left his side, waiting. He had stayed until he woke up.

Could you do it, you wondered? You tried to imagine watching Dynamight in the news—watching him go down in flames after Deku, chasing him to the end. Them, together. You, singular.

“Yes,” you say, and your voice shakes. “I’m sure.”

[whatstruthgottodowithit]

Dating Ron Weasley Would Include

He’d be oblivious to you liking him. 

Hell, he’d be oblivious to his own feelings. 

‘Do you like me?’ ‘WHAT?’ ‘Do you like me?’ ‘Y/N.’ ‘Cos I like you Ron.’ ‘I like you too.’

He’d be super nervous about your first date. 

But he’d definitely fish for advice.

Cue the merciless teasing from Harry and the twins. 

So he’d take you to Hogsmede [away from prying eyes].

And he’d get all embarrassed whenever you complimented him or held his hand. 

But he wouldn’t stop you. 

And then back at the castle when you were going your separate ways he’d kiss you out of the blue. 

It would be a little clumsy sure but it would melt you into a puddle.

And he’d learn a lot very quickly. 

And then he’d be insatiable. 

You’d definitely be caught by teachers. More than once. 

You’d spend every minute together. 

Which meant you acquired two new friends as well. 

You and Harry would tease him all the time. 

And you’d join Hermione’s tirade of trying to get them to put in some sort of effort in school.

He’s big on cuddling.

Or just hugging you in general [usually when you’re in the middle of something important]

Mrs Weasley would invite you to stay before he’d even told her he had a girlfriend [thanks to Fred and George]

Some of your school holidays would be spent at the Burrow.

And when the war kicked off you’d spend a lot more time there. 

When the three of them took off you found staying at school unbearable.

The stress of not knowing where he was or if he was alive. 

You’d focus on taking care of others along with Neville. 

He’d become a good friend. 

‘Nev.’ ‘Yeah?’ ‘Tell me he’s coming home.’ ‘He’s coming home…they all are.’

That first glimpse of him coming through the portrait hole would feel like a dream. 

You’d be on him in a flash. Never wanting to let him go. 

Of course the war was hard on all of you. 

But seeing the Weasleys grieve would wreck you. 

You’d move in with them straight away. 

And keep them afloat as best you could with the help of Harry and Hermione. 

At night you’d cuddle into Ron but neither of you would sleep very well. 

But having him home was a little better. 

Eventually you’d get back to somewhat normal. 

And it would be time to think about your careers. 

You’d try a few things before you realised that tending to people like you had done in the war was what you liked. 

Ron would fill [or try to] Fred’s shoes at the joke shop. 

He was good at it. Not the inventing he left that to George. 

But the marketing and hype was all him. 

You’d move into the flat above the shop with him. 

And he’d propose when you were cuddled up on the sofa. No ring. No big gesture. Just very…Ron.

Molly would be beside herself and you knew better than to get in her way.

The only thing you’d keep a secret was the fact you planned to have a seat set aside for Fred. So all the family could be together on the same table for the big day. 

Which of course would make her cry.

She’d nag you nonstop about babies and making her a grandmother [again].

But Ron didn’t want a big family. And you weren’t adamant about trying very hard.

But it would feel right when you got that little positive sign on the test.

THIS IS PART OF MY CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE. I’LL BE POSTING AN IMAGINE EVERDAY FROM 1ST - 25TH DECEMBER. THIS AND ALL IMAGINES WILL BE UPLOADED IN THE LINK POSTED DAY BY DAY.

ADVENT CALENDAR OF IMAGINES

[sunny-bunnys-blog]

A little fic about Ryoga/Shark and Astral/Apis's relationship before he ran away in my New Dawn AU :) btw, the flashback happens before Apis founds out that Adonis is his dad.

Italics = flashbacks

The school roof was always a strange comfort to Apis, even before his new friend group he just... Enjoyed being up there.

Apis had finished his lesson earlier than intended so he was given permission to leave class, this giving him time to be on the roof by his self for some time.

As he breathes in the pure air, a familiar, warm feeling snaked its way into his mind. He missed the days spent with Yuma and the others on the roof of Heartland Academy, but there was someone else he missed

Ever since Astral had used the numeron code, he was able to venture away from Yuma and the key. Though it was nice, it was extremely lonely to do so due to him being invisible to 98% of the population.

One particular cloudy day, he had decided to float to the roof after becoming bored of the lesson that Yuma was no doubt sleeping through. And there, he met a familiar face.

Ryoga Kamishiro seemed to be unkempt, his tie loosely tied and his hair knotted in multiple places, his eyes having bags under them.

There had been a incident after the war where many people turned their backs on the Barians, believing that they were no better than feral beasts, leading to harassment landing upon them. There was no doubt that 'Shark' had fallen victim to some of that horrid treatment.

"Oh, Astral." Ryoga said, looking at him with the dull expression. "Out of all of the people I expected to see me here, you were definitely not on the list. How are things?"

In truth, Astral felt awful for not being able to stop Ryoga and and the Barians from being harmed by people who failed to understand, but he didn't dare say it in fear of being misread and making it about himself.

"It has been well." "I can't help but notice that Yuma isn't with you, is that new? Or were you too scared to leave him before now?" 'Shark' teased, causing the Astral being to pout and turn away.

But even still, he couldn't help to giggle at the comment. "Perhaps. But, what about you? Are you not supposed to be in a lesson at this moment?" The comment made the former Barian emperor fall silent.

It was obvious, even if he didn't say it, constantly having to avoid the harassment had taken everything out of him, and it broke Astral's heart. "I apologize, you do not deserve that treatment, nobody does." "Hey, on the bright side, I don't have to deal with Rio's annoying voice or Vector, so I'm chill with it."

"Let's just say that people aren't treating me and the others the best, especially after all that's happened. So to avoid people ganging up on all of us, we've decided to not be seen together and not show up to lesson." He says, his tone more flat than it ever has been.

Astral laughed a bit more. After that day, they would never fail to meet on the roof each day to just... Talk. Talk about what? Anything really, they had found a comfort within one another that would be considered as taboo not even a year ago.

Apis held his phone and stared at the contact. It was Ryoga's. His mind was telling him to message him, assure him that he was okay and still alive, try to reach out. But his body wouldn't move, he was petrified.

What if 'Shark' didn't remember him? What if he was mad at Apis leaving without telling him? What if he tried to track him down? His mind filled with horrible possibilities before he was brought out of those thoughts by Yuki.

"Hey, Apis! How are ya doing?" Yuki clung around Apis's neck. "Oh! Hi, Yuki. I'm doing well, how about yourself?"

They were soon greeted by their others friends. "Honestly Yuki, and here I thought you only liked me." Minako said, making Yuki let go of Apis before clinging around her girlfriend.

"oh come on, you know you're my fave!" "Ew, get a room you two." Hayate said, smirking as he walked over to Apis.

As per usual, Saki was the last one there by 10 seconds, talking to Apis.

"You alright? I saw you leave class early, did anything happen?" Apis's face softened, putting his phone away before talking to his friends. Telling Ryoga could wait, at least for now

[silverhallow]

Chapter 45 of When We Were Young:

for those not on ao3

You look like a movie You sound like a song My God this reminds me, of when we were young

19 August 2005

Results day was a nervous day for the entire group. In June everyone finished University whilst Sophie and Peter were finishing their exams and did their best to support all of them, as they knew how important it was for Sophie, Peter, Bea, Roger and Matthew to all get good results.

Sophie would have been a nervous wreck if not for Benedict, he had spent the months leading up the exams and the exam period, sending Sophie little gifts, little things to keep her spirits up and coming home almost every weekend to help calm her down.

He even drove back from Oxford late at night on a Thursday when Sophie had been spiralling all day and Peter had called him very worried about Sophie. She’d had a complete mind blank in class when talking about Prokaryotic DNA in Biology which had been first period and her day only got worse making mistakes in all her classes and she’d been nearly catatonic at lunchtime, by the end of school Peter had found her in the library nearly rocking back and forth muttering to herself.

Peter had managed to get her home but by then he was worried about her, she rarely got anything wrong in class and it rarely sent her in a spiral but today she’d jumped off the cliff and forgotten her parachute so he called Benedict and sent him a photo of Sophie curled up rocking back and forth.

Benedict had jumped straight into the car and driven home to see his girlfriend and coaxed her out of her chaotic state, he remained with her for the whole weekend and made sure she took the weekend off her studies and just relaxed.

Something Richard was very happy and grateful for.

By the time Benedict went back to Oxford on Friday, she felt better and more grounded and was seeing things in perspective.

Thankfully during her exams Benedict had pretty much finished his first year and other than some coursework and one painting, he didn’t really need to be at Uni so he came home for the majority of the time to support Sophie.

The guys in Oxford had already started looking for somewhere new to live, after a year of dealing with Kate and Anthony being very loved up, Benedict and Henry had decided to get their own place, Gen and Lucy were moving in with some friends and Simon was doing the same but his flat was just near where Anthony and Kate had found.

Benedict’s thinking was he and Henry and could just take in turns with swapping with Sophie and Peter who, provided they got into Cambridge had been assigned a three bedroom unisex dorm on campus and both had put down a preference for a female roommate, they’d thought about just applying for a room for the two of them but they thought that would bring about unwanted questions and implications but a male room mate could be threatening to Benedict or Henry so agreed that a female one was the way to go.

Everything was all lined up, they just needed the results.

Kate and Anthony had been helpful with Sophie in her revision, Benedict wasn’t as academic as they were so they’d been able to help her and ask her the questions that she wanted to be tested on and whilst they didn’t understand what she was talking about, at least they were able to enunciate the questions.

When the exams had finished, Anthony had asked their father if they could throw a big party, Sophie and Peter both blew off year 13 Prom in favour of a night with their friends, Roger and Bea had decided to not go either and Anthony and Kate had organised a “Prom” style party at Aubrey Hall.

All the Bridgerton’s had come and even Agatha Danbury, their now former headmistress, came along and brought her grandson Gareth to join in.

Gareth had made friends with Richard Jnr and Gregory almost immediately and the three boys had run around wild most of the afternoon except for when they were roped into dancing.

Richard gave Becky and Edmund a smirk when he saw the way Little Lucy and Gregory were trying to copy Anthony and Kate in a rather exuberant attempt at a waltz and then little Hyacinth dancing and arguing with Gareth.

Simon had danced with Daphne, much to Anthony's annoyance and Colin’s friends Phillip and Michael had been invited. Michael had swooped in and ended up dancing with every female in the room, even flirting with them, and Peter much to Henry’s annoyance. Phillip avoided the dancing for the most part but did end up having a dance with Sophie, whilst Benedict was dancing with little Lucy and she suggested he ask Eloise who he’d been talking to for most of the afternoon.

Whilst Eloise was dancing with Phillip, Colin had asked her friend Penelope for a dance and Sophie just grinned at Benedict who’d asked her what, and she told him to ask her again in a few years time.

It had been a magical afternoon, far better than any school Prom and they’d been able to have all their nearest and dearest with them.

Sophie had never felt happier than she had that day, surrounded by all the people that loved her, that had been with her through thick and thin and loved how everyone in her life was so happy at the moment.

She had her wonderful prince charming by her side, she had her confidence back. She’d learned to take everything with a pinch of salt and try not to take things so personally. Benedict being so laid back and chilled seemed to rub off on her more than it did when they were children.

For old times sake, they’d played a few competitive games of Charades and Pictionary with Kate and Anthony, they lost the Pictionary as one again Benedict was trying to be a perfectionist with his drawing and whilst Sophie was able to guess them better, they just weren’t as quick as Kate and Anthony but when it came to Charades, they completely annihilated them.

It ended up being a 1-1 draw and Michael had suggested a game of Twister to try and determine a winner but as the two couples just blushed and spluttered they decided against it and it was Edmund that suggested an assault course around the garden, playing to both couple’s strengths and weaknesses but requiring them to work together as a team.

They’d rowed across the lake, Anthony and Kate both fell in and swam to the shore but they caught up at the tree where they had to climb it. Benedict was a good climber, Sophie was not so he was having to help her up as they both had to pick and collect an apple from the sturdier of the branches.

The race ended in a draw so the Pall Mall mallets ended up coming out and a couples game was started, Anthony and Kate, Benedict and Sophie, Henry and Peter, Gen and Lucy, Simon paired up with Daphne after she refused to be with Colin who got distracted by food, Colin had huffed and said he’d play with Penelope then, which caused Eloise outrage for choosing her best friend, so she dragged poor Phillip into it and Michael declared that he and Fran would pair up.

Benedict and Sophie ended up winning after Kate and Anthony got into an argument half way around after some unhand tactics from Simon and Colin had landed them in a bush.

They did disappear at some point shortly after their argument only to reemerge with branches in their hair and dirt on their clothes.

As the night drew to a close and everyone disappeared to their rooms, Sophie made the decision to sneak into Benedict’s room, it wasn’t too far away from hers but it just felt like the perfect night after the perfect day.

They’d been talking about their first time together, unbeknownst to Sophie that it would actually be the first time for either of them but it was the most perfect night and Sophie and Benedict had never felt happier or closer to one another.

Though they could have done without being caught in bed by Violet the following morning, it did mean that whenever Sophie stopped with the Bridgerton’s, she no longer expected her to be in her own bed.

Whilst summer wasn’t over yet, today was the most important day of the summer so far, it was going to determine if the conditional offers from Cambridge were to become acceptances.

Benedict had a lot more riding on this than Henry. Peter had applied for Oxford as a back up which required a slightly lower grade than Cambridge but for Sophie, if she didn’t get into Cambridge, it was Glasgow or Edinburgh where she’d be going and the thought of having his girlfriend so far away was almost enough to bring him out in hives.

He had agreed to drive her over to the school that morning as he was actually a little afraid she’d crash the car, she had been shaking most of the day before and throughout the night and there wasn’t much he could do to calm her down.

He knew that it would only stop when she got her results. He had been the same the year before, when he had been waiting for his but there wasn’t as much riding on this.

Scotland and London were really far apart and neither of them were prepared to contemplate what that would mean for them as a couple if they were being separated that far.

Kate and Anthony were coming along, the entire group had agreed to come support Sophie, Peter, Bea and Roger as they were collecting their results.

It was a big moment for their friendship group, things were changing and lives were moving on around them but as they had been there for their GCSEs, they said they’d be there for the A-Levels.

Sophie hadn’t managed food that morning, no matter what she was offered. Benedict and Richard noticed that she was a delicate shade of green. Benedict knew better than to tell her that everything that was going to be okay and that he was sure she’d have smashed it.

Even throughout her exams she’d been determined not to talk about them afterwards. Once they were done she didn’t want to think about them, what she might have done wrong, where she might have lost marks, she didn’t want to think about anything like that and for the entirety of her summer holidays she’d been adamant that she wasn’t talking or thinking about results day but now it was here.

She had no choice.

Her greatest fear was that she’d failed them all, that no University would take her…

She was shaking all the way over to the school, Benedict was just talking to her, telling her about Hyacinth’s latest prank on Gregory and how she’d gotten Lucy involved when they were hanging out last week but Sophie was barely listening.

She was desperately trying not to throw up.

Peter had messaged to confirm the time they were meeting, Bea and Roger had sent very breezy “happy results day” text messages that had very nearly sent her spiralling.

Benedict had messaged both of his cousin’s with very rude messages about upsetting Sophie.

By the time they reached the school Sophie was positively green and shaking like bambi on Ice. something Roger was about to point out but Kate punched him as soon as the word Bambi reached his lips.

“Shall we?” Peter said, taking Benedict’s place holding Sophie up. He wasn’t allowed in the school to support her as it was students only and they had to wait outside for them and both boys knew there was no way that Sophie would make it in to get her results on her own without support.

After 20 minutes of anxious waiting, Bea, Roger, Peter and Sophie had all come back outside with their envelopes in their hands shaking. Peter had a hold of Sophie’s who was now a delicate shade of white.

“Have you…?”

“Not yet… we thought it was best to wait til we got outside before Soph passed out” Bea said sympathetically.

Benedict had gone over to his girlfriend and pulled her into his arms and kissed her head “it’s okay” he said to her and she just shook her head.

“Can… can… someone… I… I can’t…” Sophie said about her results just staring blankly at the brown envelope.

Kate rolled her eyes affectionately and chuckled as she held her hand out for the papers from Peter “give it here…”

“After three?” Bea said, looking around at the group who nodded.

“3…2…1” Anthony said watching over Kate’s shoulder to see Sophie’s results, he knew Benedict was just as nervous as Sophie, a lot was riding on this and he didn’t want to see his brother or Sophie heartbroken if it didn’t go to plan.

She needed A’s. That was it… anything more was a bonus.

The sound of ripping paper echoed through the group and there was silence for a few seconds before Roger was the first to break it with a triumphant yell.

“I did it!!” he cried out.

“Me too!!” Bea yelled as she hugged her cousin.

“Pete?” Henry asked his boyfriend tentatively,

“I…” he stammered and Henry looked over his shoulder “2 As and an A Star!! Well done!!” he cried as he picked him up and swung him around excitedly, kissing him before everyone realised Kate and Anthony hadn’t said anything and Sophie looked like she was about to burst into tears.

“For fuck sake just tell us!” Benedict snapped, the anticipation getting the better of him and triggering his anger.

“Sophia Maria Gunningworth you have achieved…” Kate said, unable to help herself, she had had a suspicion that these would have been Sophie’s results but it was just that little bit sweeter being able to tease Benedict and she looked at Anthony who nodded at her

“3 A STARS!” Anthony and Kate yelled together.

The screaming and jubilation that rang out in the group could have woken the dead.

Everyone had gotten the results they needed to get into Cambridge, things were going in the right direction.

Everyone piled into a big hug around Sophie and Benedict, laughing and cheering at the results.

Cambridge may be a little bit away from Oxford but they were all moving on, relationships were formed and it felt like this was the start of the rest of their lives.

Their friendships had been through a lot, death, bullies, trauma and abuse and they’d all stuck together through thick and thin and now they were moving onto the next adventure together.

Their childhoods were over, they were moving further into adulthood where relationships would get stronger, marriages and babies would eventually happen but as the group laughed and cried with happiness, they all knew one thing.

They would look back on these days with fondness and remember all of the things from When they Were Young as they moved on…

But for now…

They were celebrating, and the next adventures?

Well, those stories have yet to be written.

[bisluthq]

I think the new/old lyrics from My Boy makes it about Joe, but the widows (and the maylors that think it's for matty) are interpreting the "I'd play again" wrong.

She doesn't want him back like that, to me at least, it reads entirely like she misses his friendship? And nothing else

Imgonnagetyouback sounds like a completely different type of back together, which makes sense bc that one is definitely 100% for matty

I’m gonna complicate this further tbh. When I first heard the song I heard more Joe/really LTR on it tbh so I do lean towards that in spirit/vibe/atmosphere but I also think her saying this is just about her being really sad makes it more about like both men rather than one of them.

To me, the whole “play pretend / I’d play again” has a very specific and personal meaning and idk that Taylor shares this but here’s my thing: I knew my first ex and I needed to break up when I felt like I was playing pretend with him. It was a very specific moment too. He had moved into his first flat, right, and I didn’t help him move like it took a few days for me to even go visit him and even though he now had his own place (I’d had my own place since we finished school but we used to spend more time at his mum’s than at my place because I always had housemates and his mum’s place had free food and free booze so like big brain energy right why would we hang out with like 2-3 other people and eat pasta and drink shitty booze when we could be at his mum’s place eating nice food and drinking nice booze and watching stuff on the nice big tv like BFFR there was a clear winner there and it wasn’t wherever the fuck I happened to be staying at the time) we actually hung out less? I think because now his living sitch was comparable to mine right and I’d rather deal with my own housemates than his ones and have all my stuff and like there were idk just no benefits to going to his place. But then he hosted this party and everyone got really wasted (surprisingly or, given where this story is going, maybe not so much) I did not. I brought out drinks and like poured out snacks and then everyone, including him, went to bed and I stayed up tidying shit. And I just had this very unreal feeling all around me. Like I’d spent an evening playing pretend girlfriend/wife. Like I didn’t want to do any of this shit right - I didn’t want to be standing there at 1 am washing fucking glasses right and I hadn’t wanted to be pouring crisps into bowls and I hadn’t wanted to be the one to tell him like booze is running low and someone must run down to the store (he went) like… I hadn’t wanted to do any of that shit. I don’t think I even especially wanted to be there that night, let alone like helping to host. I’d rather have been doing other stuff. So anyway, there I was at 1 am washing dishes and I realized full on, in that exact moment, that I’d just been playing house. I’d spent the whole evening playing pretend. And that’s when I knew we were over.

Granted, the whole thing went on for a couple more months but that playing pretend realization hit me before I suspected he was talking to his upstairs neighbor (he was) and before he broke up with me because he thought I’m a lesbian (I’m not).

I also will say that there was a time that he absolutely was my best friend. A long time even. But at the end, I was playing pretend.

and a part of me, to this day, would absolutely play again. Not because I want him back like that in any way - I think if he showed up at my house and said it’s been me all along I’d be absolutely mortified - but because there was a point at which we really were a great couple. We had a lot of fun together. We had a lot of inside jokes. We had a lot of firsts. We learned a lot about ourselves and what we want in relationships from each other. We - almost definitely - messed each other up in a bunch of different ways. And yes, a part of me would play again because it was a special and wonderful time in many respects.

I’ve had that feeling of unrealness/playing pretend since btw and I always know either this thing is about to end or I’m about to have some kind of major life change if it’s not about a relationship (I used to get that feeling towards the end of the school year at uni like not as strongly but once exams started and the weather started getting warmer, everything would start to feel less real).

and again, I would play again because I have a lot of fond memories of my uni summers.

so idk I have specific personal associations with that line and I agree it doesn’t mean you want that person back nor do I even think you necessarily want the friendship back as it was. You want that moment back from before you realized you were just playing iykwim? At least that’s what it means for me and it might well mean something different for Taylor but that’s how I hear it in the song.

[hannahsmusings]

Renee

*I could’ve screamed when I felt his large hand wrap around my wrist, just wanting to be left alone, not sure if I wanted to just get my bearings in the bathroom or just flat out leave and explain to Aliyah later, but Anthony was keeping me from figuring it out and that was driving me insane, I was far too independent now to let someone hold me back* *I spin around, still glaring at him as he speaks, able to see he was upset and hating that but he had no idea how upset I was for so long, how bitter and resentful I still am for how he treated me back then* You left me. That’s what you did wrong. You fucking ditched me. You found new cooler and prettier people and forgot about me. *I spit the words at him, this being four years worth of anger and sadness simmering to the surface* You wanna act all chivalrous tonight when I have a pretty dress on and my ass is on display, but where were you when I actually needed you? When I was alone every single fucking day, waiting on you? Crying to my mom because I didn’t understand what I did to make my best fucking friend abandon me like that? When I stood in a corner at prom all alone because you were supposed to be my date but Lauren Shetty asked you at the last minute so you danced with her the entire night because she was cool and popular and prettier than me? When you spent our last day before college getting drunk at some guy’s house and forgot that we had plans with my family? That’s when I needed your help, Anthony, not now! I’ve learned to navigate life without you and I’ve been doing just fine at it! *since we were alone in the hallway I felt more comfortable saying what I needed to say, regardless of how mean it was, it needed to get off my chest* You embarrassed me tonight and you embarrassed yourself! Connor was doing nothing wrong, I was basically begging him to take me home! He wasn’t the initiator, I was! 

_______________________________________

*I was overwhelmed, full of panic as I try and keep a hold on you as nothing terrified me more than you slipping out of my grasp and disappearing, my primary focus just to keep you close as I’d intended to rescue you from that Connor guy so not sure why you were so angry* R-Renee! * *I flinch at the venom in your voice, so shocked as all I was trying to do was help, Connor clearly was a creep that just wanted to sleep with you* I-I was t-trying to... h-help! *i attempt to exclaim but it slurs out, feeling like my brain was moving in slow motion as I try and catch up to what you were saying, you were speaking so fast and it was hard to focus, utterly confused for a second, not knowing what you were referring to until you mentioned friends, a pit in the bottom of my stomach forming quickly as I realise this anger wasn’t just based on things that I’d done now, having thought that maybe you’d forgiven me for this, my brain feeling like it was underwater as I just blink at you dumbly, only being able to catch certain things you were saying* I-I didn’t forg-*tries to speak before you were raising your voice again, heart feeling like it had been ripped from my chest as you tell me you’d cried with your mom, all these emotions surging through me as I only manage to process that thought before you were on to the next thing to yell at me for, feeling unsteady with trying to keep up with you* I-I can’t..*hiccups as I try and communicate, shaking my head with a groan* I-I don’t understand, please s-slow down. *slurs catching bits of you telling me I’d abandoned you, that I’d left you at prom, so fucking confused as I couldn’t follow this conversation, none of this I was aware of, why hadn’t you told me any of this before?* I d-didn’t know...I don’t know what you’re...I’m s-sorry. *i was getting frustrated and the anger surged with how drunk I was, rubbing my face and mumbling* Fuck! *i was scrambling to keep up, feeling that I should defend myself and try and make this right but it was like nothing I was saying was making sense, you were furious and I wasn’t sure what triggered it, the logic in my brain all muddled from the amount of alcohol I’d consumed* I-I’m confused! I just wanted to help. *murmurs, my words sounding weak and repetitive as I was clearly in no state to explain myself properly as I was far too drunk, just standing clinging to your wrist as you yell at me, blinking as I try and process everything that was going on, closing my eyes and swaying for a moment before opening them again and I was struck by your beauty* *you being so fucking beautiful in a dress and I could smell your perfume and it made me step closer to you, distracted for a moment from your fury as I wanted to pull you in and just apologise for no idea what so you’d stop being mad at me* *my heart was pounding for so many different reasons that I just felt frozen with overwhelm* *I go to open my mouth and apologise before you mention his name again, face dropping into a scowl instinctively before my brain processes your words, you initiated it?* *i dropped your wrist in shock as I felt a sudden wave of nausea rush through me, stumbling back again and going white as a sheet* W-What? Y-You wanted it? *it was the clearest thing I’d said in this conversation, begging internally that I’d misheard, all thoughts of your previous words were gone as I was totally focused on you and him* H-How? W-Why?

[regardstosoulandromance]

review: the getaway list by emma lord

I’ll read anything Emma Lord writes. Her books are fun and charming, full of heart with just the right balance of humor and genuine enthusiasm for the world. Anytime I pick up a new one of her books, I know it will be a fun time, and The Getaway List was no exception. 

To my west coaster self, New York City is a fantasy land that only exists in Nora Ephron movies and novels by Meg Cabot and Emma Lord. To these writers, the city feels like a character itself, a setting so integral to the plot that trying to transplant the story anywhere else would make it fall flat. Emma Lord describes her most recent novel as not just a love letter to New York, “but my aggressively caps locked, mildly unhinged love scream to New York.”

The day of her high school graduation, Riley realizes two things: One, that she has spent the last four years trying so hard to be a Good Kid for her mom that she has no idea who she really is anymore, and two, she has no idea what she wants because of it. The solution? Pack her bags and move to New York for the summer, where her childhood best friend Tom and co-creator of The Getaway List ― a list of all the adventures they’ve wanted to do together since he moved away ― will hopefully help her get in touch with her old adventurous self, and pave the road to a new future.

Riley isn’t sure what to expect from Tom, who has been distant since his famous mom’s scriptwriting career pulled him away. But when Riley arrives in the city, their reconnection is as effortless as it was when they were young―except with one, unexpected complication that will pull Riley’s feelings in a direction she didn’t know they could take. As she, Tom, and their newfound friends work their way through the delightfully chaotic items on The Getaway List, Riley learns that sometimes the biggest adventure is not one you take, but one you feel in your heart.

Riley and Tom’s relationship is the heart of the story. Best friends as children, they come up with the Getaway List as a sort of bucket list of goals. After being separated for years, they fall back together and rediscover their friendship through their list as they explore NYC together. While Riley’s mom is convinced that they rile each other up too much and are nothing but trouble, there’s a clear sense that these characters care for each other, even when they’re trying to be goofy. 

Tom’s frown only deepens. “Your knee is bleeding.”  “It’s okay,” I say, sitting up, “I’ve got another one.”

One of the major conflicts of the novel is Riley’s relationship with her mother. Up until the events of The Getaway List, Riley and her mom had a close relationship, especially since her mother was a single mom. But Riley’s mom not only opposes Riley going to New York, but Riley realizes that the reason she hasn’t been able to cubist Tom for years is because her mother is trying to keep them apart. Mother/daughter relationships are a recurring theme in Emma Lord’s books and I liked how it was done here. 

Another thing I greatly enjoyed in The Getaway List was the side characters. Each character added color to the story, all unique and memorable from aspiring writer Luca to coder Mariella to band member/swiftie Jesse. Despite the full cast of characters, they were introduced organically and fully fleshed out. 

The only thing that kept this book at a four star instead of five, for me, was that it uses the childhood friends to lovers trope. This is entirely a personal preference, I rarely enjoy friends to lovers and almost never enjoy childhood friends to lovers. But it was well done in The Getaway List, the build up of Riley and Tom’s relationship on the page and their eventual romance was sweet. 

Maybe New York felt like the place to run to, but really, that somewhere was in me this entire time. 

The Getaway List was a delightful romp through New York City. Although marketed as Young Adult, it straddles the line between YA and New Adult well, featuring teenage characters coming into their own. I greatly enjoyed it. 

[grad604chloeharrington]

20 Elements Body Copy

Book

I read the sequel to these books and really changed my perspective on books. These books really connected with me on a deeper level as many of the events that the characters went through were quite similar to my own and events that have happened in my family.  I want to use this process of connecting with an audience in my future designs to make more emotional connections with the audience.

Dog

This was my second teddy that I loved as a child. My childhood best friend and I both got these as our dream dogs were golden retrievers due to their friendly and gentle nature. I’ve always taken good care of this toy and she's still in great condition. This reflects back to myself as a creative as I take good care of my creative tool kit so it's lasted so long.

Poodle

This little poodle was my first-ever teddy and my favourite one in my childhood. This little dog came everywhere with me. To this day I have no clue why I gave it such a strange name and never really thought it was weird until I got older and really thought about it. Lamb-chop. It’s stuck through all my moves of different homes and cities I’ve lived in and still, somehow it’s sitting on my bed in my flat now… 20 years later. 

Fitness

Weights from a gym class I really enjoy. This Les Mills pump class is something that I and a couple of my close friends all do together and we all really enjoy it. To me, they represent self-growth and bonding closer as I don’t always enjoy or want to go but when my friends make me go with them I feel great after the class and spending time with them.  Its also a good mind reset for me as I often go when I’m struggling to think of new creative concepts.

Bracelet

My oldest sister gave me this bracelet for Christmas one year. Both of my sisters have this same bracelet that has been engraved with my name and my older sister’s name Brooke on the side. This is my most significant and meaningful piece of jewellery as I received it right before she was diagnosed with her terminal illness.

Headphones

My Beats headphones allow me to block out my surroundings and focus on whatever I put my mind to. They are my go to when I’m getting into my creative zone as they make me feel like the worlds stopped. They are also a huge help when I’m procrastinating as I will use them to go on a walk and reset my mind. 

Rings

My rings are something that I not only an accessories, but also as something I play with when I get anxious and stressed out.  They help me to feel secure and now I feel weird when I don’t have them on as I can’t fiddle with something if I get nervous. They all were given as gifts and most of them aren’t able to be replaced so they have that sense of uniqueness to me.

Shoes

These ceramic shoes are something that represents me and my sister when we were little. We always thought hers was the right and my one was the left shoe, as I’m left-handed and she is right-handed. These little shoes are always on display in our house ever since we have grown up no matter what house we have lived in.

Heart Bowl

I got this bowl crafted from wood and shells in Bali, which was a real eye-opening trip for me. The man who made the bowl didn’t have much and was the most happy and lovely person I had talked to in a while. He showed me how effortless it is just to be a great person, and this is something I’d like to put more into my design work to share to the future world.  

Wall

 Queenstown was always the place we went to escape Christchurch. I ended up moving there for a year after my parents split and I absolutely loved it. This wall in particular was something me and my sister spent a lot of holidays and hours sitting by. It was a place that just felt super safe. 

Glasses

I got these blue light glasses back in lockdown as I was pretty much glued to my device all day every day for way too long. They are also my go-to accessorise when I don’t feel amazing about myself as I feel like I can hide behind them in some sense. These glasses help me get into my creative zone as they add another layer to my having to focus as part of the process. 

Scrapbook

These are my scrapbooks I made while I was in preschool. These have always help so much importance to me as they captured and hold so many amazing memories and milestones in my childhood when times were not always so easy. I love flicking through them and seeing all my little drawings and art pieces i crafted. The collage style art was something I did often growing up and would like to start using it as a planning tool in future projects.

Waterbottle

I’ve recently noticed my habit I’ve picked up on always having my water bottle on me at all times. This was something a year ago i really wanted to improve on to benefit my overall health and wellbeing. It helps me feel like I’m staying in routine and is something I’m proud of now. I invested into a more expensive drink bottle as it keep my water really cold however its turned out to be average quality.  

Pens

These marker pens are my go to when I’m trying to create concepts or rough ideas in my initial start of any design process. They have these brush like tips that give me a sense of freedom when I’m just trying to get my ideas onto my paper. I originally started using them back in my graphics glass in high school when rendering building designs but now they are my all rounder.

Perfume

I received this perfume from my mum as my 18th birthday present and its one of my favourite perfume scents I’ve owned. Its one of the scents that a few of my great friends use that i met in uni halls last year and was something that we both immediately noticed as we meet. 

Laptop

My laptop is one of my more proud purchases at the end of last year my previous one broke. I decided to invest into a more design friendly version with higher specs which meant i had to work harder to get it. Its one of my assets I own that helps me do everything and without it id really struggle as now I also do a lot of my job in my laptop.

Sleep mask

My sleep masks are an essential for me when it comes to having a good sleep. They are my go to when i just want to escape any problems and fall asleep faster as i find them super comforting. All of the ones I own my mum has brought for me as stocking fillers for Christmas and they range from nice silk ones to funny animal ones. 

Candle

This candle is the same one that’s used in my home in Christchurch where all my family lives. Its the scent of lemon-grass and it just makes me have a piece of home in my flat. Its quite a comforting and fresh scent to me that is a really nice reminder of home when I’m missing it, as i don’t have any family in the north island. 

Highlighters

Highlighters are a key component when it comes to trying to process concepts in my head. I always have to print and highlight information to be able to fully understand the context of what I’m trying to learn. Also I love adding any sort of colour to a plain and boring document if its possible. 

Makeup brushes

My makeup brushes are used nearly everyday so they are a key component of my day to day assets. I have brushes for different products and applications, just like if i were doing any other sort of painting. Most of my brushes are all from the same Morphe brand collection however i do have a few rouge ones i have collected over the years that are amazing. 

[peeves-gurl]

Meeting the Juniors

Fred Weasley×Fem!O.C.

Preview: what's in store for Fred eight years after the war, when a new employee joins their shop?

Word count: 4.6 K

Warnings: age gap (legal), angst, mentions of food, mentions of war and injury, slight struggle with body image, family and kids, mostly fluff, mentions of sex, smut in part 3.

A/N: Hey! This is my first ever fic, so I'm very open to suggestions and feedbacks. Huge thank you to @sai-kida134 for editing the story. I hope you like it!

Part 2 || Part 3

Fred Weasley had grown. Though he hadn't changed much, unless one considered the prosthetic limb he had to have attached to his left thigh once Percy had managed to dig him out from under the wall that fell on top of him during the Battle at Hogwarts. It was his only insecurity, even after eight whole years. There weren't many people in the Wizarding World who used a prosthetic limb, that too one that was of the muggle kind. He'd personally come across only one other person, Mad-Eye Moody, who had unfortunately been lost to Voldemort and his Death Eaters months before Fred lost his leg. Out of his insecurity, he used ample charms on it, changing it's colour to perfectly match his skin tone, changing it's texture to make it similar to his skin, and even getting Professor McGonagall to cast a special charm, that allowed him to feel all sensations on the leg, making it pretty much a part of his body, as good as his 'real' leg. But still, in his mind, it was a prosthetic, a weakness that made him different from other twenty-eight year old men, something that he considered a reason for his loneliness.

Ivy Roberts was the newest employee at Weasleys’ Wizarding Wheezes. For a twenty year old, her dreams were quite big and her achievements were running low. She planned on becoming a professional Quidditch Player, a beater, hopefully for the Hollyhead Harpies or Puddlemore United. Her in training seemed to be going pretty well, and with her newest job, she hoped to earn enough to pay her bills and buy herself equipment to keep it going. She mindlessly blamed her lack of achievements on her loneliness, rather than, what she was pretty sure, was laziness. Being the only child to parents who preferred to travel the world than support their daughter, left her alone in London. She had made friends at Hogwarts of course, and during her Quidditch practices too, but none of them could be considered close enough to share every bit of her daily life with. And well, dating had been out of question for quite a while, once she realised boys weren’t as important as she initially thought. Though sometimes, when she walked alone on the streets on Saturday nights, she imagined a handsome, faceless man, holding her hands amidst all the couples that frolicked down the street.

Fred loved the company of his parents, his siblings and their children more than anything else in his life. He spent his free time being the cool uncle to his niblings, spoiling them and playing pranks with them. And yet, each night, when George packed his stuff up and flooed back home to Angelina and their son, Fred was left alone in the old flat above the shop, hoping that someday, he'd find someone who would love him despite his apparent flaw, someone he could cuddle next to while he fell asleep.

Ivy's time at the shop passed rather quickly. She'd usually go to the shop around lunch time, right after her Quidditch training, and spend the rest of her day helping the twins around the shop. She grew close to the two very soon, unlike the three other employees at the store, who seemingly did not share the same closeness with their bosses. Ivy vividly remembered the time she'd told the twins she wanted to be a Professional beater. They seemed to jump out of their seats at the mention of being beaters, and quickly provided her with their best tips, from the time that they'd been on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"Hold your bat closer to the edge, Ivy." Fred had suggested. "It's easier to move it that way. Less force, more impact on the bludger."

"Don't flick your wrist, you'll end up spraining it. Move your shoulders instead." George had said, demonstrating the movement and accidentally smacking his twin in the head.

She was glad to have them, honestly. Barely two weeks into the job, George suggested she should stop calling them 'Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley', like the other employees, and instead went with their first names, more like friends. The level of comfort that she'd achieved with them was something that she hadn't even had with her friends back at Hogwarts. And the fact that they were the best pair of beaters Hogwarts had back in the day, made her time with them even more fun.

And unintentionally, one Saturday, when she walked around the streets, once again imagining a handsome man holding her hand and guiding her through the crowd, her mind flashed the image of Fred Weasley, grinning down at her, sending tingles through her body. But it was just a passing crush, wasn't it? Fred was eight years older, had an amazing career, and was way out of her league. He definitely had a lover, someone as good looking as him, who truly deserved him. He wouldn't want her.

Fred, along with his twin, grew to adore Ivy more than just as an employee. She was much funnier than Michael, Josephine and Veer, their other three employees, and wanted to be a professional Quidditch beater, something the twins wanted to do before they came up with the idea of the joke shop in their fourth year. He'd seen her interaction with the customers, smiling and showing them around the store, confidence radiating off her. She smiled sweetly towards the children, sometimes lifting the tiniest ones up in her arms so that they could get a better look at the shelves, even though she had mentioned not being too fond of little ones. She would not only laugh at his and George's jokes, but instead add something of her own to make it even funnier.

Quite frankly, Fred thought she was amazing in every possible way and was glad to have found a friend in her. And the time she'd mentioned being a prankster at school, a pain in the ass to Headmistress McGonagall, just the way he was once, he didn't think she could get any better. That was until one night, just as he was about to fall asleep, alone as usual, she appeared in his mind for a fleeting moment, resting her head on his chest, intertwining her legs with his own. He couldn't fall asleep then. Why would she ever want him? She did flirt back with him sometimes, but he was always the one to initiate it, and it was obviously friendly, nothing more. She was eight years younger and whole, and she deserved someone like herself not like Fred.

Ivy walked into the store slightly later than her usual time. She'd been hitting bludgers all morning and didn't take notice of the time until her coach reminded her to have lunch. She ran to the changing room, showered quickly and put on her purple uniform jumper along with jeans and immediately apparated to Diagon Alley. She opened the shop door and ran to the backroom, where she could find Fred or George and apologize for her unusual tardiness. Instead, she was greeted with an empty backroom. Setting her bags down in their usual spot, Ivy rushed outside to begin her usual work routine of counting the money at the cash counter and re-stocking the empty shelves.

Fred and George were walking down the stairs that connected the flat upstairs to the shop. Behind them was a very beautiful lady, tall, dark skinned, with beautiful natural curls up to her shoulders. She was sure it was George's wife, Angelina Johnson.

"Ivy." George greeted with a nod of his head and a smile.

"Good afternoon! I'm sorry for being a bit late today. I forgot to check the time during practice." She explained quickly.

"So you're Ivy," Angelina smiled. "I've heard loads about you from these two. Hope your Quidditch is going well."

"Thank you Ms. Johnson. I've heard lots about you as well." Ivy smiled back politely.

"Please call me Angelina!" She said, shaking her hand.

Just as Ivy was about to let go of her hand, her eyes fell onto Angelina's belly, and she was surprised to see the woman was pregnant.

"I have an appointment today," Angelina said, cradling her stomach gently. "And some work later on. George and I came to drop little Freddy with his uncle. He's asleep upstairs."

"That's great, congratulations!" Ivy smiled. "You never mentioned anything about the baby, George!"

"Oh no, you must've missed it Ivy. He talks about Angie and Junior and the new baby all the time." Fred spoke up finally, making George and Angelina blush furiously.

"We have to get going, or we'd be late." George said after a few more minutes of conversation.

"Take care of Freddy, please. Feed him once he wakes up." Angelina reminded Fred.

"Don't worry Angie. I'm the best Godfather." Fred grinned cockily.

"Thanks brother." George patted his twin's shoulder and clutched his wife's hand with his own, ready to disapparate. "See you 'round, Ivy!"

Work at the shop progressed as usual for about an hour, until Ivy saw the cutest child that she could have imagined, running around the shop. He had bright red hair, and hundreds of freckles scattered across his pale skin, and looked like a miniature version of George and Fred. Fred was chasing his nephew around, unable to do any work at the shop, leaving the four employees to manage everything. The toddler's giggles echoed around the premises each time he picked a random item off a shelf he passed, and tossed it in another direction, making Fred dive to catch it before it broke or hurt the child.

"Junior c'mon! It's lunch time, sweetheart!" He called out in his deep voice, earning nothing but another loud giggle from his nephew.

Ivy stood behind the currently empty counter, watching the exchange while twirling her wand between her fingers. Her crush on Fred had definitely grown over the past few days, no matter how much she tried to suppress it. And it was incredibly difficult to not find him attractive, especially when he showed so much love to the young child he was in charge of for the day. From her place, she admired the man, his brown eyes crinkled at the edges as he laughed at little Freddy's actions. He ran his fingers through his ginger hair, messing them up slightly while following the child's every action, preparing to get a hold on him when he was distracted. His clothes were crumpled, and his watch hung loosely from his wrist, and she found the sight more appealing than she could have thought. She was brought back from her thoughts when she heard a rattling sound from the row of shelves Freddy was close to, only to realise that he was shaking it, trying to get something from a height beyond his reach. Right as she watched, a few glass bottles of some potion fell out, headed right towards the boy. Fred was too far to get him away in time, and even though he ran to shield him immediately, he wouldn't be able to avoid the accident. Ivy acted on instinct, swishing her wand and making the bottles freeze mid air, inches from Freddy's head. Immediately, she saw Fred sigh in relief, before grabbing the child around his stomach and lifting him up in his arms. Another wave of Ivy's wand, and the bottles flew back to their shelves, away from the mischievous child.

"That's enough mischief for today Junior." Fred said sternly, and the boy flailed his little arms, trying to free himself from the tight grasp. He carried the child over to the counter in front of Ivy and set him down gently, holding him as he stood up on the wooden table.

"Thank you." He said, his gratitude reflected in his eyes. "He could have got hurt if you wouldn't have done that. Thank you."

Ivy smiled at him, her eyes flickering between him and his nephew, and Fred controlled his urge to kiss her out of gratitude.

"Uncle Fred! Leave me please!" Freddy pouted, stomping his little foot on the table.

"Not until you've finished your lunch." Fred said, pulling out his wand and summoning a little bag from his flat, full off Freddy's belongings for the day.

Freddy looked around for some sort of escape, turning around almost in a full circle, before his eyes landed on Ivy.

"You're new! You're new!" He shouted gleefully to the girl, making grabby hands towards her.

Ivy felt her lips curl up into an involuntary smile at the toddler's actions, and walked up to him to get a closer look.

"Hello!" She greeted.

"I'm Fred Weaseey Junior." Freddy said proudly in his baby voice, holding his hand out to her like he'd seen his father and uncle do when they introduced themselves to new people.

"I'm honoured by your presence, your highness." Ivy joked, taking his tiny hand into her own and bowing slightly. The child giggled at her actions and she gently steadied him on the table with her other hand.

"What's your name?" He asked through his giggles.

"Ivy Roberts, your majesty." She said, adding a quick bow, that sent him into another fit of giggles.

She felt Fred's gaze on her and nodded quickly towards him, allowing him to pull his hands away from the child and pull his lunch out of the bag Angelina had left.

"Okay Junior, let's see what your Mummy's got you for lunch today." He said cheerfully, "Hmm, pasta!"

"No! No dirty brolloci !" Freddy said stubbornly, pointing to the little pieces of broccoli in the pasta. "Ivy!" He pouted, tugging his newest friend's arm.

"What's wrong Freddy?" She cooed, gently running her fingers through his soft ginger hair.

"No lunch please!" He begged.

"Alright. What do you wanna do today?" She asked kindly.

"I... I want to work at the shop. Like a big boy!" He said quite loudly. "Tell Uncle, please!"

"Junior, you can work at the shop when you are a big boy." Fred stated, rubbing the child's back lovingly. "We're going to have your pasta now, okay?"

"No!" Freddy protested. "Now, Uncle Fred. Now!"

Fred looked tired of running around with the child. He was fit physically, so a slight chase with a two year old wasn't what had tired him out. It was the unexpected rebellion that the said two year old showed that exhausted him. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and shutting his eyes to take a moment. Ivy noticed his weariness and decided now would be the right time to help him.

"Your Uncle is being a bit boring today, isn't he?" Ivy teased, causing Fred to open his eyes and cock his head to one side, shooting her a look, as if to say 'oh really?'

She subtly winked at him, turning her attention back to the child who was looking at her expectantly. "I think you'd make a fabulous shop worker."

"Faviolis," Freddy repeated after her, mispronouncing the word with such cuteness that both she and Fred had to stifle their laughs.

"Would you like to work with me today?" She asked him sweetly.

"Yes!" He replied, jumping on the table, causing her and Fred to slightly tighten their grips on him.

"Okay, give me a minute."

Fred nodded towards her with a smile, allowing her to do whatever she was planning. She turned around, picking her wand up again, raising the height of the chair behind the counter to what would be enough to let Freddy sit with his hands on the table. She flicked her wand, and the back of the chair turned softer when a cushion appeared, along with a buckle, making it look like a fancy car seat.

"I think this can be your special chair for the day Freddy. And you can be..." She paused, taking a minute to come up with a fake position for him.

"How about you becoming the shop's President?" Fred asked, playing along.

"Pwesiden." Freddy repeated innocently with approval.

"Then, Mr. President, is it okay if we put you in this special chair?" Ivy asked, earning an excited grin from the child.

She hooked her arms under the his, picking him off he counter and seating him in the chair, fixing the buckles quickly, afraid of letting him slip out and hurt himself.

"What's my job?" Freddy asked, looking at his uncle with utmost seriousness.

"I have the most important job for you sweetheart. You have to sit here and say hello to all out customers when they walk in." Fred said, mimicking his nephew's seriousness.

"No." Freddy said, squinting his eyes suspiciously.

"Yes, yes!" Ivy said, covering up. "It's a very important job, just for the President, Freddy. You need to charm all the customers into buying the products."

Freddy seemed convinced this time, so he sat patiently, waiting for the next customer to come along.

"There's just one rule." She said softly, once she had him settled. "The President needs to eat whatever his Mummy gives for lunch. After all, he needs his energy for the most important job in the shop."

And the President agreed.

Fred couldn't believe what he saw. Ivy Roberts had, somehow, managed to get his mischievous nephew seated silently in a chair, in middle of the joke shop that he wouldn't leave any opportunity to wreck havoc in. And now, she was feeding him dirty brolloci of all things in the world, without any tantrums. He leaned against the counter, taking up her place in case a customer came by, arms crossed against his chest, watching her entertain the child. He couldn't stop looking at her dark hair, flowing beautifully down her shoulders, looking perfect against the deep purple uniform. Her eyes shone with joy as she delicately wiped down the child’s face with a paper napkin, before smiling at something he babbled excitedly, displaying the deep dimples that appeared on her cheeks. And oh, that wink she gave him just minutes previously, even though it meant absolutely nothing, made his heart flutter in his chest. She was showing such pure affection for a child she was no way related to, completely forgetting her apparent dislike towards children. And the fact that this child was his nephew, whom he loved more than anything else in his life, made everything flawless. To him, there wasn't any woman as perfect as Ivy.

Some hours later, the four employees were busy winding up business to shut down for the day, as Fred sat at the counter, keeping Freddy busy with some toys from the shop. Ivy was working close to the cash counter, upon Fred's insistence, since she seemed to be the only one able to convince the child to do anything that day. She was busy restocking shelves for the next morning, stealing occasional glances towards her handsome boss and his giggly nephew, when she heard Fred's deep voice.

"You've been really nice today, Junior." He praised the child, and Ivy looked up to see he was placing soft kisses on his head. "How about we go out for some ice cream in a while, just Junior and Senior, hmm?"

"Mhmm ice cream." Freddy replied instantly, his eyes lighting up with mischief. "Ivy comes too!"

"Aaand you've stolen my nephew." Fred said dramatically, turning towards Ivy.

"Aww don't worry. I'm not going to intrude on your ice cream party." She smiled back.

"No, no you really should come along. He's not in a mood to listen to me today and I might need your help." He said quickly.

"I... Fred no, I can't."

"Yes you can. We're going to Florean Fortescue's, right around the corner." He insisted, and Ivy shook her head to say no once more.

"Pleaseeee!" Both boys said together in a sing song voice, looking at her with the same puppy eyes and their mouths curved into identical frowns.

"That's not fair! How do I say no to that face?" She scolded playfully, but agreed to the idea all the same.

Half an hour later, Ivy was walking on the street next to Fred Weasley, with his two year old nephew sitting on his shoulders. Diagon Alley was lit up with street lights, and she couldn't keep her eyes off the man she was with. The light illuminated his flaming red hair and highlighted the freckles against his pale skin. She felt butterflies in her stomach when she saw him looking at the child with a mischievous glint in his eyes, sharing a crooked smirk, before he sped up, pacing ahead of her on the sidewalk, Freddy bouncing and giggling on his shoulders. Ivy couldn’t help the way her mind drifted back to her own childhood. Her parents had made it very clear to her that she was an unplanned child, interfering with their plans to travel the world. It wasn't like they ignored her. They did love her, but they rarely made her feel it. But looking at Fred playing with the toddler made her feel all of his affection, even if it wasn't directed towards her in any way. Her heart warmed up when she saw the man tickle the boy, making his laughter ring around the street. The look of concern on his face a few hours back, when the glass bottles nearly hurt Freddy was one that showed pure love, something she'd grown up wishing for. Fred Weasley, with his perfect eyes and perfect smile, made her feel it, even though it wasn't for her.

"You're not paying for mine, Fred." She said sternly, standing against the ice cream counter with Fred towering over her.

"Yes I am. I got you here, I pay for it." He said.

"No, I came here to play with Freddy. It was my own choice."

"You came here because we insisted. No more arguments." He stated, handing over the money to the cashier, before setting Freddy down on a table and beginning to feed him the ice cream.

"Where's yours?" She asked, realising he'd bought only two.

"I'll share with Junior." He said, taking a bite when Freddy looked away, and she gasped dramatically.

"You stole a child's ice cream, you vile man!" She whisper-yelled.

"I'll steal yours too if you don't eat it quickly." He whispered back, rolling his eyes and taking another bite.

"Piggyback!" Freddy shouted when Fred tried to lift him onto his shoulders once they were ready to go back.

"Okay then, c'mon." Fred said, leaning a little so that Freddy could climb onto his back.

Instead, the child tugged Ivy's arm, pulling her closer and shouting, "Piggyback Ivy!"

"You love troubling her, don't you?." Fred said, ruffling his hair and looking at Ivy for a response. Ivy smiled, bending down and allowing him to climb onto her back, locking his arms around her neck and holding his feet around her waist.

"Thanks love. I'll take your bag." Fred said, casually slinging her handbag over his shoulder and holding the shop door open for her. He'd just called her 'love'. Out of all the nicknames he could've used, he chose 'love'.

Fred internally cursed himself for it. He thought it had come off as creepy and freaked her out. It might give away the attraction he'd been feeling towards her and that wouldn't be good. Keeping his composure, he turned to look at Ivy, who seemed to act absolutely normal, and he breathed a sigh of relief. She was probably used to being called 'love' by her friends. It's 2006 after all, and nicknames like that can be used in any context.

Ivy on the other hand, had never been called anything but her first name. Not even her family or friends used any terms of endearment towards her. And then Fred Weasley, the man who could make her swoon with one look, calls her 'love' of all things in the world. She managed to sneak a look at him, chivalrously carrying her purse over his shoulder. It wasn't that big of a deal anyways. He probably calls all his friends 'love'. He does seem to be a rather affectionate man, after all.

The three took a turn towards Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes, just in time to see George and Angelina apparate back in front of the shop.

"First one to reach your Dad wins!" Fred shouted to his nephew, before darting off in the said direction.

"Faster Ivy, I have to win!" Freddy said, tightening his grip.

"Let's go!" She said, increasing her pace but not more than a jog since she was afraid to drop the child on her back.

Fred obviously reached faster, grinning proudly with his arm on his brother's shoulder.

"Hi!" She said, once she had joined the group.

"Hey! Up to mischief, are we?" Angelina said, kissing her son's cheek.

"Mummy, we lost the race!" Freddy pouted towards his parents.

"Your uncle's a cheater, don't worry." George said, slapping his twin's back.

"What? " Fred whined, and Angelina rolled her eyes, clearly used to the scene.

"Thank you for looking after him today." She smiled, carefully lifting her son off Ivy's back.

"It was quite fun, honestly. Hope your appointment went well." Ivy said.

"All's well." George replied, patting his wife's growing bump and taking Freddy into his arms.

"Am I having a niece or a nephew this time?" Fred asked the couple.

"For that, you'll have to wait. We're having a gender reveal party sometime soon." George said happily.

"That's new!" Fred grinned. "Just make sure it's not around Wood and Spinnet's wedding, or they'll go mad."

"Oh yeah, we forgot about that. Thanks Fred." Angelina nodded thoughtfully.

"I'm sorry, Wood and Spinnet? You mean Oliver Wood?" Ivy asked before she could control herself.

"Puddlemore United's Keeper, yes." Fred said.

"We went to school with him. He was our Quidditch Captain, before Angie." George added. "We're both his groomsmen, with Harry, and Angie is one of the bridesmaids."

"Wow, that's so cool!" Ivy beamed.

"I'll try to get you an invite, you know. There would be tons if Quidditch players, good for your career." Fred said with a smile.

"Have you found a date for the wedding, dearest brother-in-law?" Angelina asked, clearly thinking of something.

"Nope. I'll show up single, as usual." Fred shrugged.

"Well I've found you a date." She said, throwing an arm around Ivy's shoulder.

"No, no please! You don't have to do that for me." She said quickly.

"Of course we have to! It would be a great experience, meeting all those players." George approved, looking at Fred.

"Yeah, I think we could do that." Fred smiled.

"Okay then, that's settled." George said.

"We'll go now. It's almost dinner time." Angelina added.

"But I lost the race Daddy!" Freddy said sadly, burying his face into his father's chest.

"I have a treat for Freddy, if that's okay?" Ivy asked, looking at George and Angelina for approval, earning nods from them.

Taking her bag back from Fred, she unzipped one of the pockets and dug out a large chocolate bar she'd been saving up for herself.

"Here you go baby. Don't eat too much at once!" She said, handing the chocolate bar to the excited child.

"So that's how you won over him, huh? Cheater." Fred teased, and Ivy gave him a pointed look.

"We'll leave you to set him right." Angelina said, hugging Ivy, and George and Freddy followed. They bid their goodbyes to Fred as well, before disapparating with a crack.