#stevie is still stuck in the spiral | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

rogersideup · 1 year ago

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｡°✩ ♊︎ The Gemini♊︎ ✩ °｡

Chapter 8

Twinkles

Series Masterlist

Previous part: Little Birdie Next Part: True Romantic

Word Count: 7,072

Warnings: My blog is 18+ only. All minors or blogs without an age in bio will be blocked. Minors DNI.

A week and a handful of days was exactly how long you actually made it into your two weeks before you found yourself with a mind just as hectic and busy as it was the day you left the compound. But the only difference now was that it was you and your thoughts back on an empty road on the way back to the compound.

You figured that processing your feelings and settling back in at home might've been good for you. Maybe being back in the environment that caused all of the physical and mental injury would help move the healing along faster, help you make amends and tie up all the loose ends you needed in order to really solidify your place in such an environment.

Plus, you still wanted to talk to Bucky again. You needed to bury the fight for good. And Steve... lord knows you still have a lot to figure out between the two of you... and Bucky. Okay... there was still a lot of figure out with the three of you.

The road was so dark and almost lonely with the lack of traffic happening at 10pm on a weeknight. For some reason, not even your playlist or the almost freezing temperatures outside competing with your car heater was distracting your brain from the only thought it could conjure up, which was to call Steve.

You didn't know why you wanted to talk to him, or even what to say, but your fingers even pulled up his contact on your car's display just in case.

It was already late, and you had no reason, but you couldn't stop thinking about him. Wondering if he was already asleep, you took the leap of faith and pressed call.

Your intuition was right, because before you could even press call, Steve's name popped up on the little screen and your car informed you that he had called you first.

"Hello?" You spoke, eyes glued to the open road.

"Hey, Bug." He spoke back, voice deep and raspy as if he was half asleep. "What are you up to?"

"Funny you should ask, I was literally just about to call you but you beat me to it." You told him with a smile, well aware he couldn't see it.

"Oh really? What's wrong?"

"Nothing! I don't know why I wanted to call you, but my brain was telling me I should." You explained. However, you could recognize now with the sound of his voice that there was something going on with him. He sounded sad, or maybe frustrated and definitely tired. "What's going on with you?"

"Funny you should ask" A very fake and lazy chuckle sounded. "I'm miserable at the moment, can you tell?"

"Just a little." You lied. He definitely sounded miserable. "What happened, Stevie?"

"The stupid heater in my apartment isn't working and it can't get fixed until tomorrow." Steve started. "I'm exhausted, but no matter what I do I can't fall asleep because I'm so fucking cold. I was going to ask Bucky if I could sleep at his place tonight but I saw Nat's location was in his apartment so that flew out the window."

It took a slight moment to figure out why Steve was complaining about the temperature when he was usually the kind've guy that could put up with anything. But when it clicked, you felt a billion times worse for him.

You remembered a few times Steve has confessed to you that he can't stand the feeling of being cold.. 66 years of being stuck in ice will do that to a person.

Though he had no memory of all of those long years, his brain seemed to hold onto what he felt during the first few moments of the plane he crashed straight into the arctic.

So every time Steve found himself alone in the cold, he swore he could feel his skin sting. His heart would race no matter how hard he tried to get it to slow down, it felt like the floor would start dropping below his feet, and the entire time he was waiting for pain that never came. The longer he stayed cold, the worse it would spiral.

Your eyes darted to the time displayed in your car, 10:54 pm. Then they read the outside temperature, 36 degrees Fahrenheit.

"That sounds awful, I'm sorry" You pouted. "You have my key, why don't you sleep at my place?"

There was a deep sigh through the phone line, and a few moments of silence as he contemplated what to say next. "It's okay. I'm actually not even too sure why I called you, I think I'm just trying to calm myself down."

Your pout deepened and your heart cracked. "Steve"

"Hmm?"

"Go sleep in my bed." You commanded.

"It's fine, Bug. I just wanted to talk to you. Why does it sound so... rumbly?" Steve tried to change the subject.

"Oh, because I'm driving right now." You explained. "Im using my phone's Bluetooth to turn on the heater in my apartment for you so it'll be nice and toasty when you get there."

"It's so late, why are you driving?" He asked.

"I'm actually on my way home right now." You explained keeping it vague, he didn't know which home you were referring to. "Is 73 degrees okay?"

"Bug, I can't." Steve denied, sounding remorseful.

"You can't what?"

"I can't just accept your kindness like this."

If you didn't know him so well, you almost wouldn't be able to know just from the sound of his voice that he was on the verge of tears. But i in this case, you probably knew him better that he would've liked. "Like what, Steve?"

"I still feel so bad that I hurt you." Steve explained, practically in a whisper. He was thankful you couldn't see the way his hands were shaking or the way he had to breathe through his mouth because of how fast his heart was pounding from the sheer amount of anxiety coursing through his nerves. "I can't just go seek comfort from you and invade your space after what I did. That's not fair."

Now, you felt like crying too. "We already talked about this. We can't keep holding onto what happened or it's going to make us both miserable."

"So you're still feeling better about it?"

"Since the last time I saw you? Absolutely." You reassured him. "What can I do to help you feel better right now?"

"This is more than enough." The statement was filled with the most confidence you've heard since answering the phone.

You knew he was seeking any sort of validation that you didn't absolutely hate him, so you tried your hardest to butter him up with some truthful vulnerability "I miss you"

"I miss you too." He agreed, letting his eyes fall shut. "Any chance I can see you again soon?"

You smiled, but he didn't have to know that. He also didn't have to know that you had a 35 minute ETA back to the compound. "I'm busy tomorrow, but how about Saturday?"

"Saturday works great." He declared, still miserable but he tried to be enthusiastic. "You're coming back to the compound on Saturday?"

"Yep, I'll be there." Again, not a lie. "What do you want to do on Saturday?"

"Sleep? Take a nap? Watch a movie? Take a nap while we watch movies?"

You laughed at his suggestions. "That sounds great. And what are you going to do right now?"

"Hopefully sleep and take a nap and sleep some more."

"Think some warm thoughts?"

"I wish I was a marshmallow on a stick." He mumbled.

"Love you lots, go sleep in my room."

"Love you more, no." Steve denied again. "I'll let you go now. I think I'm starting to feel a bit better."

"You think or you know?"

"I'll only know once I hang up."

"Well if you don't know, just call me back, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you for talking to me, drive safe." He didn't want to hang up, but he also didn't want you to think he was being clingy or dramatic so he decided to cut the conversation short. "Will you let me know when you get home?"

"Sure thing. Think about the marshmallow!"

A very small smile tugged at his lips. "Goodnight, Buggy."

"Sweet dreams, Stevie."

The phone-line ended and your music started again. Much like before, the road was still lonely, and you were still unable to get your mind off of Steve. Maybe even more so now than before the phone call. But there was nothing much you could even do for him from the middle of the highway, so you sang along to your playlist that was playing a bit too loud, and tried your best to ignore the uncomfortable sting settling in your lungs as anxiety took over the closer you got to the compound.

That anxiety only worsened as you pulled up, and parked in your reserved spot. You flung your bags over your shoulder and walked through the lobby to get to the elevator and up to your apartment.

The luxurious smell of the building, the sounds of the automated doors and buttons, mostly everyone walking around in their designated uniform, and all the familiar faces reminded you of the really dark place your mind forced you to live in for the long weeks before you left.

Your apartment was no help either. Dragging your feet through the living-room and into the bedroom made memories of all the hours you were stuck in bed flood back so fast you felt physically nauseated. The tossed around blankets over your couch and your bed left unmade was nothing but evidence of how fast you left the compound in the first place. As if you set out on an emergency mission to save yourself.

Luckily you had a perfect excuse to not linger for too long on your own, so you dropped your bags in the corner of your room before making your bed and let your legs carry you over to Steve's place.

After making your way all the way there, and taking a big deep breath to brace yourself for whatever was about to happen, you slid his key that you never gave back to him into his door.

Then, a voice appeared practically out of thin air. "Oh wow, never thought I'd live to see the day Rogers has a girl sneaking in" Tony commented as he walked right past you in the hallway.

"This is definitely not what it looks like." You denied Tony's remark with a shake of your head, but he didn't stick around long enough to even explain yourself.

You stuck to rolling your eyes as you entered his place. It was odd being in his apartment after so much time away, but it was exactly how it always was. Immaculately clean, decorated well, and it smelled subtly like his cologne that you loved so much.

Though you wanted to stop for a moment to reflect, it did little to keep you from walking straight to his bedroom door and opening it slowly as to not scare him.

The first thing you noticed was that his TV was on and playing a movie you didn't recognize, but it provided enough light for you to see the lump hiding beneath the covers. How you still felt the overwhelming sense of comfort you always did when you'd sneak into his bed during the sad and lonely nights. Then, you realized how cold it actually was in his apartment. The longer you were there, the more the chill in the air seeped through your clothes and raised bumps on your skin.

You couldn't tell if he was sleeping or not, but you walked towards him slowly regardless. Then, the blankets tugged around him tighter. The smile on your face spread when you realized he was awake and hiding from what he assumed was Bucky.

"Not in the mood, Punk." Steve mumbled.

A giggle escaped you as you sat on his bed. "Rude"

You watched as his head poked out just for a moment. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion before he let out a little sound of complaint, and pulled the blanket back over his head.

"Hey! Where did you go?" You questioned, smile stretching wider.

He mumbled out a statement you could barely understand, but you did catch the end. "....... liar."

"What did you call me?!" You questioned, faking offense.

There was no response other than a little laugh so quiet you almost missed it, so your hands weren't shy to grab onto the lump of muscles and anxiety covered in a pile of blankets and shake him around playfully. "What did you call me?!?!" You asked again with a giggle.

This time, he poked out just the top of his head and his stupidly beautiful big blue eyes. It was painfully obvious that he was hiding a smile despite his misery. "I called you a big fat liar" he sassed.

"I told you I was on my way home." You defended yourself with a performative gasp and your right palm straight over your heart. "I never lied!"

"I thought you were Bucky!" Steve continued, still hiding most of his face. He was thankful that the hoodie pulled over his head helped hide his messy hair.

"It's pronounced Buggy" you smiled.

"What are you doing back here so soon?"

"Stop asking so many questions, I'm here to rescue you." You enthused, but it earned another groan and the blanket back over his head. "Wow, you're really going to make my first mission back a difficult one huh?"

More gibberish grumbles sounded from underneath the blanket pile. Even if you asked him to clarify the meaning of his babbles, you knew he was still going to be unwilling to cooperate.

"Fine, you leave me no choice." You huffed while standing up from your spot and kicking your shoes off. Then, you grabbed hold of what you assumed was his shoulder and his waist, then pushed with all your might to roll him over from his back and onto his side.

Laughter he was trying his hardest to contain slipped past his lips when he heard your sounds of struggle. "I'm offended that you're huffing and puffing up there."

"Oh, so now you're speaking crystal clear?" You noted, taking in a deep breath after moving the dead weight of a super soldier. "Sorry for the huffing and puffing, didn't realize you were made of pure muscle and uranium. If I did, I would've warmed up a bit first."

"Uranium?" Steve questioned still sounding miserable, still hiding from you.

"The heaviest element on earth" you clarified, lifting the corner of the blanket pile on top of him before sliding into his bed. "It's a compliment on your big strong muscles, Stevie, don't get it twisted."

"What are you doing?!" His head lifted in confusion as you got into bed with him, under the safety of his blanket fort, and started curling yourself behind him.

The front of your body was against his back, your legs tucked behind his, and your arm wrapped around his waist to hold him nice and snug before you put your chin to his shoulder and propping yourself up a bit so you could see his face. "Providing you with the love and warmth you need to feel better, isn't that obvious?"

His big blue eyes opened to look up at you for just a moment, and when they met your gaze his stomach filled with butterflies and an undeniable blush warmed his cheeks. Then, his pretty eyes gleamed with that familiar twinkle that made the corners of your lips tug upwards.

You were so much braver than he was, because before the big blow out between the two of you, a friendly snuggle here and there was no big deal. But now that you knew the extent of his admiration for you, he didn't know if he would ever find the courage to touch you again. It was too high stakes, and way too nerve wracking for him to risk. Because if he tried his hand at you and fumbled his chance, he'd never forgive himself.

You found that hesitance to be obvious, but sweet and endearing. Much like you found his reactions to your actions to be even sweeter and more endearing.

The 6'4, 250 pound weapon of a man was nothing but putty in your hands now, and that did a number to your capacity to fight off your own repressed feelings for him. If he was putty, then you were melting like a snowman on a summer vacation. Neither of you stood a chance against each other, both of you were letting your walls fall not only down, but also apart.

Steve squeezed his eyes shut so hard that his whole face scrunched up, and let his head hit the pillow once more. "Why am I the little spoon?"

"Because I know you well, Stevenson" Your smile widened.

"What is that supposed to mean?!"

"You have the most obvious little spoon energy of any person I've ever met before." You explained. "That's not a bad thing, it's just a fact. Are you not loving this?"

"That's a trick question" He huffed in complaint before nestling closer to you. "You're so warm."

"See? That'll make you feel better soon. And now you don't have to be alone, so we can take some nice deep breaths until our anxiety floats away... but of course if you hate this too much I can just leave..."

There it was. The biggest relief to Steve's mind and heart... your sassy and sarcastic spunk was starting to shine back through you. Though he still felt like pieces of yourself were lost, the smallest pieces of you were a victory to him. If he was just a little less anxious, he'd find it within himself to bounce off of your sarcasm, but right now he just needed his mind to be less busy.

Steve shook his head shyly. "I really don't hate this."

"See? So just relax." You reminded him as you settled in and let yourself fully lay down behind him. "You're so tense."

"I can never get myself to relax when I'm cold." He explained to you. "It feels like I'm waiting for something that never happens."

You could read between the lines of his words. He was waiting for a plane crash, a physical feeling of pain that he associated with being so cold.

"Nothing is going to hurt you, Stevie." You reminded him gently. Of course he knew that, but sometimes anxiety lies to brain if its victim. Sometimes a small reminder is all you need.

"I know." He agreed with a small nod, trying to get his hands to stop trembling.

"You know it's 42 degrees in here? I read the thermostat on my way in."

"Feels like it" Steve complained.

"My place is a toasty 73."

"That's lovely." He mumbled. "M'happy for you."

"You're so stubborn." You huffed, shoving your face between his shoulder and neck and placing your hand over his heart.

Steve gasped in fake offense. "Don't go searching for my heart rate! That's personal!"

"It's going pretty fast there, Bestie." You smiled, feeling it thunk against your hand before removing it from his chest and sliding it up to his shoulder so you could squeeze him just a little tighter.

"You're not helping, Bud" He admitted, trying his hardest to contain his feelings for you from oozing out through the very loose seams of his heart. The way you were squeezing his body against yours with such a lovely and gentle pressure was not helping it stay in place.

"It's pronounced Bug." You joked again. "It's obvious to me that you're still harboring a lot of guilt and that's half the reason for your anxiety right now, so we're going to stay like this until we talk it through and your hard head softened up enough to realize that I love you, and it makes me sad that you're not feeling great right now."

Steve audibly whimpered and shoved his face into his pillow, hiding away once again. "I just feel bad."

"We've already been over this. All is well."For a few moments, you had a new found sense of guilt. It felt like you had gone way too far in punishing him when it felt as though he was already punishing himself far more than he deserved. "Misunderstandings happen, arguments happen, fights happen, but it's just how the world works and it's a testament to how much we really care about each other. If we didn't care to have each other in our lives then there would be nothing to fight for, right?"

Still in hiding, Steve gently nodded his head.

"I've known you for how long?" You asked.

"Nine months" his muffled voice responded from somewhere between his face and the pillow.

You smiled. "How many days a week have I seen you in those 9 months?"

"Almost everyday, except for the last few weeks" He pouted.

"That's 279 days we've spent together and after every single one of those days, good or bad, I've still chosen to see you, or talk to you, or even think about you. And all of that, all of this has led us to right here, right now. You know why?"

Another grumpy grumble only fueled your fire to complete your mission of soothing the anxious soldier. "Hmm?"

"Because love is unconditional." You stated confidently. "And I can't let anyone I love be somewhere that's making them miserable. That's why you let me go, right? You gave me a chance to leave the compound."

Again, Steve nodded.

"And that's why I can't let you stay here tonight." Your hand squeezed the top of his shoulder. "...are you convinced yet?"

Suddenly, his head popped up "I like hearing you talk so I'm just listening while talking to work up the courage to get out of bed."

Your giggle sounded like heaven so close to his ear as you propped yourself up behind him again. "I had two more tricks up my sleeve, do you want to hear them or are we all good here?"

"I want to hear them"

"Okay the first one was that I was going to use our rooms as metaphors. We could stay here together and be uncomfortable and cold, or we could be cozy together in my warm fuzzy bed but we have to choose to move on."

"So deep and philosophical" Steve grinned. "The second one?"

"Oh the second one is cheap bait. I was going to tell you I have a family size bag of m&m's on my kitchen counter."

"Is that the truth?" He raised an eyebrow, looking back at your face to search for a bluff.

"The whole truth, and nothing but the truth." You confirmed.

"What kind of m&m's?"

One word to seal the deal, you knew it would get him up out of bed and straight into your apartment. "Mini"

"Get off of me, I have important business to attend." Steve joked with a very gentle sense of urgency, shrugging you off of his back.

You let him go and felt a sense of pride when the big beefy soldier got out of bed to follow you.

"Emergency mission?"

"Very important" he agreed, trying not to wince as the cold hair hit his skin again.

"Then put some pep in your step Rogers, we've got a mission to accomplish!"

He giggled and followed you through his room, into the living room and nearly out the front door before he passed a mirror and stole a glance at himself.

Strands of wild blonde hair were sticking out of the front of his hoodie pulled over his head. Socks on his feet, sweatpants, and the very obvious sleep deprivation causing redness under his eyes was not his best look.

"Oh wow, hope the hallways are clear because I'm going to scare people if they see me like this" Steve laughed at his reflection, getting his slippers on his feet.

"Maybe people will start treating you like you're human if they see you in something a little less business casual." You smiled, feeling happy that you got to see the usually put together soldier in such a state.

"I'm accepting it for what it is, because there's no amount of brushing or product in this world that would be able to fix my hair right now." He shrugged, following you out of the door and into the hallways.

"It's cute, you can pull it off."

No longer being able to hide his blushing cheeks from you, he bowed his head to the floor and trailed behind you all the way up to your apartment. His eyes stayed glued to the floor even as you unlocked your front door, he took that moment to fill his lungs with a big breath of air to try and snap out of the anxious daze he was in.

But as the door swung open, a big wave of warm air washed over his body and you took a step aside to let him in first. Only when he stepped into your warm living room did he feel like he could actually breathe again.

The floor felt a little more stable, his legs a little more steady, and the world seemed to have stopped its crashing and burning.

As you locked the front door and kicked off the shoes, Steve looked at your couch and suddenly felt a whole new wave of anxiety over the memories replaying in his head of that very night everything changed all because he sat in that one spot on your couch.

Then he thought of the last time he was here, the anxiety and gut wrenching guilt he felt as he trudged up to your apartment after nobody had seen you for a while, the way his heart dropped into his stomach when he found you asleep in your be-

"Stop thinking." Both your hands reached up and squeezed his shoulders from behind him. "Go to bed."

Immediately snapping out of it, he chuckled at the way you knew him so well before dragging his feet into your room, kicking off his slippers, and burrowing himself underneath your blankets this time.

You walked in a few moments later, bag of m&ms in hand, and a content grin on your face and warmth in your heart at the sight of Steve in your bed. He was already lying on his stomach with his arm above his head, and his head tucked into the ditch of his elbow.

After placing the bag of chocolate on the nightstand, you pulled the blankets over his back and sat next to him.

"Nice and warm?" You asked him, left hand rubbing small circles over his shoulder blade.

"like a marshmallow on a stick" his sleepy voice sounded.

"Cozy?"

"Mhm" Steve nodded.

"Like a bug in a rug!" You enthused, earning his laughter. "I'm happy you're here, Stevie."

"I'm happy that you're here." He turned his head to look at you, big blue eyes twinkling just for you. "A big part of me thought you'd never come back."

You let out a sigh, not being able to come up with much of a good reason why you came back. "Just felt like I had some unfinished business I had to take care of."

"Does that mean you know what you're going to do?"

You knew he was once again asking about your choice in quitting, staying an agent, or becoming an avenger, but you still couldn't quite get the insecure voice in the back of your heart and forefront of you brain to quiet down yet.

"Yeah, but I'm not going to tell anyone until after it's official so nobody tries to get me to change my mind." Your lips pressed together, contemplation turning your smile into a contemplative grin. "So right now I'm going to take a shower as fast as I can so I can get back to the blondie in my bed, then after that I'll probably lay awake all night wondering if I even know how to make good choices for myself."

"Wow, not even me?" Steve faked offense.

"I didn't even tell my Mom" You reassured him. "But I have a meeting with Fury in the morning to make my decision official so, you'll know tomorrow."

"So we're both going to be lying awake all night?"

You chuckled. "No, because I can tell you're exhausted and I already know you're going to fall asleep the second the second I stop engaging you in conversation."

"You're so mean." He smiled, eyes still wide and twinkling.

"Tell me about it." you agreed. "Are you going to be okay if I go shower really quick?"

"Mhm, I'm a big boy." He nodded.

"Okay big boy, you go to sleep, and I'll be right back" You squeezed his shoulder before getting up.

Steve was quick to let the exhaustion close his heavy eye lids, and he focused on emptying his head of it's constant racing thoughts. He listened to the sound of your drawers opening and closing, then the bathroom door closing behind you.

The sound of the shower turning on and the flowing water helped provide some comfort as he realized he finally felt safe and warm again. A lazy smile unintentionally spread across his face when your music followed, but it was playing so low he could barely hear it. One thing he knew about you was that you had to listen to music through completing any task, and you loved to share that music with everyone around you. But right now, it was quiet in consideration of him, and that was far more touching to him that you'd probably ever assume.

But that was just the effect you had on Steve, every little thing you did was so endearing to him and he just couldn't help himself for falling into you as if you were a trap perfectly designed to capture him.

Thoughts of you consumed his mind now, so much so that he slowly started slipping into a dreamy state, that was until not even two minutes after you had left him the bathroom door had opened again and he heard you walking around your room once more.

Assuming you had forgotten something, he paid it no mind. That was until your footsteps approached him, and he heard your voice whispering.

"Stevie?" Your voice was calm and gentle, and the shower was still running. "You still awake?"

"Yeah" his eyes opened again, and eyebrows furrowed in curiosity.

"Sorry, I just- I was thinking about our phone call earlier" You started before sitting down next to him again. "It's just not fair so I didn't want you to fall asleep before I had a chance to tell you."

"Not fair?" He questioned sleepily, forcefully blinking to keep his heavy eyes open.

Your nervous tight lipped grin told Steve everything he needed to know. Maybe it was just the lighting in your bedroom, or perhaps anxiety and exhaustion making him hallucinate but he swore he caught a slight blush on your cheeks.

"I can't help but to feel like maybe some of the anxiety or negative feelings you still have are because I haven't given you enough reassurance, and I'm sorry." You tried to read his expression as well as he was reading yours, but you picked up nothing but exhaustion and relief. "You know how much I love you, right?"

A small grin took over his lips and he let his eyes close in contentment, feeling a little too tired and comfortable to keep them awake anymore. But he nodded nonetheless.

"You know that your friendship and support has been a pivotal part of my career and personal growth, and I'll be loyal to you no matter what we go through?"

"I do now" he nodded again.

"Remember how I said we can explore the cute little twinkles in your eyes when things settle?" You started. "You know that's not just because I'm comfortable with it, but because I like you too, right?"

His eyes snapped open and eyebrows furrowed as if you had just set off a bomb in the bed he was sleeping in. "No, that was not made clear."

Steve swore his cheeks got so hot he could feel his heartbeat pulsing through the skin.

"Okay, well now it was!" You said with a calm and enthusiastic attitude that he could never even dream of achieving if a confession like that just rolled off his own tongue. "Glad we had this talk, I'm going to go take a shower now."

He was in pure disbelief as you stood up and walked away. "No insight on that? No further explanation?"

"You're really tired, don't want to bore you with the details." You shrugged with a playful giggle.

"I'm never going to sleep again" He said louder as you got further away.

"I don't believe you! Besides, the shower is running and I don't want to waste water." You pointed out. "I'll be right back!"

The bathroom door closed behind you, locked, then your faced scrunched up as your silently screamed and danced like a teenage girl. That locked door also gave Steve the space he needed to whimper into his elbow and mourn the person be was before his knowledge of your feelings.

You had simultaneously killed the man he once was, and birthed a new version of him. One whose thoughts were far more insufferable than the last, with approximately 4 billion questions to interrogate you with, and also less and more anxiety at the same time.

As promised, you showered quickly and changed into a loose t shirt and tight shorts you worked out in occasionally before making your way back to your bedroom. Tossing your dirty clothes into the hamper, you quietly turned off your bedside lamp leaving the room dark and slowly got into bed where Steve was, now laying on his side facing the middle of the bed.

As you got under the blankets and settled in next to him, you noticed he had taken his hoodie off leaving him in a shirt with his pretty blonde hair to be crazy on its own accord. Feeling happy that he was finally warm and content, you let your head hit the pillow, your body facing his as well.

You couldn't tell if he was asleep or not, but you didn't pay it much mind. Happy to be back with your best friend and in your own bed, time slipped away from you as fast as your conscious.

Unsure how much time had passed, an undeniable cheeky smile spread across your lips when Steve's heavy forearms reached out to you and planted itself on your waist. His touch was tentative and very experimental, your smile widened as you could feel how hesitant he was to let the full weight of his arm rest on you.

To applaud his bravery and encourage good behavior, you placed your hand on his forearm to welcome him to relax and maybe even come a little closer if he felt like it. But he immediately ripped his arm away.

"...sorry" he mumbled quietly.

You reached over to grab his wrist and pull his arm back to right where it was before deciding that you needed to be brave for him. So you moved your whole body closer to his, pulled his arm around you, and you put your arm around him. "I was trying to pull you in, not push you away."

"Sorry again" he chuckled lazily.

You could feel his body relaxed as you tangled your legs with his, and snuggled your face into his chest. How he always managed to smell like a slice of heaven was beside you, but you were happy to reap the benefits.

Tightening his arms around you and nestling his chin into your hair, he felt like there was nothing that could ever get him to give this up. There was no emergency in the world that could pull his mind away from the happiness and comfort he felt in your embrace. Really, nothing was going to hurt him.

"Comfy?" He asked you, voice deep and raspy.

"Snug as a bug in a rug." You confirmed, making him giggle.

"Sweet dreams, Buggy."

"Goodnight, Twinkles." You said, knowing he would hate the nickname you had thought of.

"How dare you" He complained regardless of being able to hear the smile in his voice.

"Sorry, Twinkles. It's stuck now. Nothing I can do to change it."

"If you insist"

You internally celebrated the win. "Love you."

"Love you more."

As the night fell and the morning rose, Steve didn't remember a single thing. He slept like the dead, and woke up in pure bliss the next morning.

He wasn't sure he had ever been so comfortable in his entire life. The two of you weren't really cuddling anymore, but your sweet little face was still facing him, and your arms still held onto each other while your bodies drifted and sprawled out to their own contentment.

Gentle morning light, your calm and gentle breaths, he could've stayed like this forever.

He looked around and noticed you were sleeping on your tummy now, one of your legs were hiked up so your knee was against his thigh, and you had kicked most of the blankets off of yourself in your sleep. Though the heater was on and he wasn't concerned about you being cold, something caught his eye and piqued his interest.

The back of your shirt hiked up and exposed some of the skin on your back. Steve had seen you in a sports bra countless times before, even naked once, but the difference was now your back was covered in a big scar.

He frowned for you, knowing that there was a permanent reminder on your body of the asshole who went out of his way to make your life a living hell. It also left him wondering what his body would look like if it allowed him to hold onto every scar and mark obtained from battle.

Then, your stupid alarm went off and had to ruin everything. Steve tried his hardest not to curse the universe for taking this moment of peace away from him as he grabbed your phone to turn your alarm off.

He gently shook your arm until your pretty eyes blinked open.

"Time to wake up, buggy." He sweetly smiled at you.

You groaned before shoving your face into a pillow. Now it was your turn to be the dramatic one. "Says who? You can't make me"

"Says Fury, your meeting is in an hour." Steve reminded you.

"You make some good points" Your giggle sounded, poking your head back out. "Good morning, Steven."

"Steven?" Steve questioned with an eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Yeah, short for Stevenson!" You said matter of factly, prying yourself out of bed and swinging your legs over the side of the mattress.

"Oh right, my full name." Steve agreed with you with all the seriousness in the world. He would stop the world from turning just to entertain your humor.

"Mhm, it's on your birth certificate." You nodded. Still sitting on the edge of your bed, you started thinking about the day ahead of you. "Hey Twinkles, I have a question."

A smile stretched across your face as you could hear his sigh at the nickname that definitely wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. "How can I help you, bug." Steve's tone unenthusiastic.

"I just realized I never got my new suit back, so what am I supposed to wear to a meeting with Fury?" You looked back at him fast enough to catch a sneaky smile on his face.

"Oh there is a reason you don't have that back yet, but you don't need it just to see Fury. Wear something nice-ish, you'll be fine."

"And what would that reason be?" You questioned, finally standing up and stretching out your back.

"I guess you'll find out today." Steve shrugged, still laying down, still feeling lazy.

"You boys are exhausting to be around" You joked while disappearing into your bathroom.

Somewhere between you humming along to your music, and your footsteps around your apartment, Steve drifted off again. He wasn't necessarily asleep, but he wasn't really awake either.

Time and space didn't exist in this subliminal place, he was just happy to be around you again. It was the first time since your initial argument together that he had felt truly peaceful, and he intended on soaking in it.

...that was until you threw a pillow at him.

"Hey!" Steve complained, opening his eyes to glare at you. His heart nearly dropped to the floor when he saw how pretty you looked. You had perfectly styled your hair and put on a full face of makeup, while also donning a business casual outfit that suited you perfectly. Out of habit, Steve tried his hardest to hide the fact that he was having heart palpitations. "You are so mean."

"That was payback!" You explained. "I'm leaving now."

"Are you nervous?" Steve asked, trying to get a read on your emotions.

You watched as he finally got up out of bed. "Not really. Should I be?"

"Not really." Steve shook his head with a polite smile. "Should I be?"

You shrugged your shoulders as he approached you. "Not really."

"Good. Then all is well." He opened his arms for you, and you accepted.

Ugh. You even smelled just as good as you looked.

"As much as I'd like to stay here and hug you forever, I don't think Fury would appreciate it if I was late." You smiled against his chest.

"I think he would be mad at me too" Steve agreed with a chuckle and let you go from his arms. "Any chance you'll tell me your career choice right now before the meeting?"

"No, but I'll tell you when I get out" You giggled.

"Far enough" Steve didn't want to push you. "Good luck, Buggie."

"See you later, Twinkles."

Next Part: True Romantic

Tag List: @saranghaey @firephotogrl74 @selella @talesofadragon @ss28 @nekoannie-chan @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @spikeluv84 @crazyunsexycool @callmissrogers @xxxalicerogersxx @whore-for-chris-evans @em8rin @mulbsstuff @qalijahbydior @awkotaco24 @buckybarnessimpp @nicoline1998enilocin @buckystevelove @rogersbarber @mybuck @dbnightingale24 @ynstark @sincerelytlh @alexakeyloveloki @mrsevans90 @smhnxdiii @claralovescaptainamerica @hisredheadedgoddess28 @bigtreefest @whiskeytangofoxtrot555

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tinytalkingtina · 21 days ago

Text

B.A.D. D.O.G.

Several months after starting to date two frat brothers from Sigma Alpha Chi, Eddie struggles to settle into his role in their new dynamic. Maybe someday he won't feel like Tommy and Steve's adopted stray mutt. Rated E | 7.7k words | Ao3 link

SFW-related Tags: Tommy/Steve/Eddie, established poly relationship, M/M/M threesome/polyamory, 2010's frat/college AU, Frat Boys Steve/Tommy, bratty diva Steve, eddie has ADHD and insecurities, Steve is Fast Food Royalty, Steve's Dad owns Scoops Ahoy, Steve has Good Parents (or at least realistic parents who don't understand everything but love their son), domestic fluff NSFW-related Tags: Dom Tommy, Sub Steve, Switch Eddie, puppy play/Puppy Steve, collars, cock rings, butt plugs, vibrators, blow jobs, spanking, anal sex, Bottom Tommy, Top Eddie, orgasm control, sexual overstimulation, nipple piercings, aftercare, cuddling/snuggling (in relation to the aftercare) This is a sequel to B(eta) E(psilon) G(amma) that picks up a few months after Steve and Tommy begin dating Eddie. The two stories can be read as standalone pieces, but feel free to read B.E.G. first to find out how Steve and Tommy introduced Eddie to their dynamic. Author's notes and pings are below the cut!

Eddie groaned and leaned back to balance on his chair’s back two legs. He pressed his hands to his eyes until he saw starbursts.

“This dev class is slowly killing me. Why are 'one-footed skipping’ and ‘hopping’ different milestones, and why does that matter for teaching high schoolers how to play chords and scales? For fucks sake it’s not like I’m gonna force kids to put balls into baskets, like some people I know.”

He waited for a delightfully bitchy little comment in reply to his dig, but several moments of silence passed without any retort. Peeking out between his fingers, Eddie saw his boyfriend staring into space.

“Steve?”

“What?” Steve snapped, making him jump a little. Eddie just stared back.

“Nothing, I just said—”

“Nothing? I don’t have time for ‘nothing’, leave me alone.”

“Excuse me?” Eddie growled back. Steve ignored him, his face stuck in a textbook.

What the fuck?

Eddie rose from his chair and stalked around the table, ready to bat that stupid book right out of Steve’s hands. He stopped short when he realized his boyfriend was swaying, the book held loosely in trembling hands with unfocused eyes.

Oh.

"Steve," Eddie asked, softening his voice. "Did you get any sleep last night, sweetheart?"

“Obviously,” Steve snarked back, still avoiding Eddie’s eyes. Eddie tried not to take the bait. If Tommy were here, he would have told Steve off for lying like that when all he was doing was hurting himself more. But Tommy wasn't here right now to help, and Steve looked ready to topple over onto the desk.

Eddie swallowed, hoping he wasn't overstepping as he added a touch of steel to his voice.

"I asked you a question, Steve, come on, tell me the truth."

“Fine, I didn’t get any last night, and only got a few hours on Monday and Tuesday, are you happy now?” his boyfriend spit out. Eddie had to fight not to get angry at the eye roll that accompanied Steve’s words.

"And why didn't you sleep, sweetheart?" He managed to get out more or less evenly

"Cause I have three prelims next week,” Steve mumbled back. "My dad's already on my case for the education major. If I don't do okay he'll rip me a new one for wasting his money dicking around."

He tugged at the hair sticking out from his snapback so hard Eddie was worried he’d pull it out entirely.

"And maybe he's right, I'm too stupid to do this. Nothing makes sense and it takes twice as long for me to figure it out as anyone else, so what’s the point?"

Steve's face twisted into a painful looking scowl, and Eddie's heart broke. He grabbed his boyfriend's face to break him out of his sleep-deprived spiral.

"Stevie, stop that."

He glanced around. They were tucked away in a cubby deep in the library stacks. He knew there were other students around, but nobody had a direct eyeline on them. Eddie leaned in closer to whisper.

"Don't talk about yourself like that.” Steve started to protest:

"But—"

"No, no buts allowed. My puppy isn't dumb." Steve opened his mouth to argue back some more but Eddie barreled on:

"I'm not arguing with you when you're running on fumes. You gonna behave and let me take care of you?"

Steve went quiet. It lasted long enough for Eddie to start panicking a little. He shouldn't have done this without his other boyfriend, who was he to tell Steve what to do on his own? They hadn't been dating for that long, maybe he'd only made things worse or—

A tinkling noise snapped him out of it, and he watched as Steve dug under his sweater and pulled out his dog tags. He bowed his head and made a little noise of frustration, but otherwise remained silent, waiting for Eddie to make a move.

Holy shit, it worked.

“Thank you, sweetheart, there’s my good boy.”

He gently slid his puppy’s glasses off his face and removed his snapback to card his hand through his hair. Stevie leaned into the touch with his eyes shut. Slowly, his shoulders unwound, and the crease between his brows flattened out.

“There you go. Feeling a little better?”

Stevie let out a little huff as he shifted to nuzzle his cheek into his hand. Eddie couldn’t help but smile.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. Come on, let’s go back to your room. I’m sure Tommy will want to cuddle you too.”

His puppy slid off the chair onto all fours and Eddie mentally smacked himself. Why did he put Stevie down now? Playing around for a willing audience at the frat house was one thing, but he shuddered imagining having to explain to the campus rent-a-cops what was happening: Oh, I’m so sorry, officer. Nonono he’s not on drugs, Steve here’s in dog mode is all. He’s sniffing your butt to be polite!

“I’m sorry sweetheart, but you’re gonna need to be up on two legs for us to go back.”

Stevie made a disgruntled little snort and parked his ass and hands on the ground.

“You know that’s not what I asked for puppy,” he hissed out. All that got him was another haughty huff and a nose in the air.

If Tommy was around and they were behind closed doors, his obstinance might have earned a couple smacks or some alone time in his cage. Here though, Eddie was wary of making too much noise. He kept quietly cajoling, but his boyfriend stubbornly refused to move.

Finally, inspiration struck. He wiggled out of his jacket and placed it on the linoleum underneath their table. His puppy pretended not to be interested, but Eddie caught him glancing as he smoothed it out.

“Go on, lay down,” he said, with a pointed finger towards his jacket. Stevie cocked his head, playing dumb even as his eyes lit up in delight.

“You’re gonna close your eyes right here next to me, okay? I’ll stay the whole time, make sure you’re safe. Please Stevie,” he asked softly, “come on, take a little nap for me. Think how much better you’ll feel afterwards.”

Mercifully, the solution seemed to amenable to his headstrong boyfriend. He crawled over to inspect the makeshift dog bed, his tags gently clinking against each other.

After a few seconds, Stevie made a small noise of satisfaction, circling around to curl up against his legs. Within a couple minutes, he was snoring away softly, and Eddie slumped against the desk in relief.

He took a photo and sent it to his other boyfriend:

Eddie bit his lip. Shit. He should be able to wrangle Stevie himself, right?

His boyfriend didn’t reply for a few minutes, eventually sending a thumbs up. Eddie swallowed his nerves. He’d be fine! Tommy had enough shit to deal with right now, he didn’t need to clean up any messes Eddie had created for himself. His boyfriend didn’t need to see the worst of him, not yet.

He hadn’t been fourteen-year old Eddie in a long time, that distracted fidgety mess of a kid who was so angry at the world. His guidance counselor calling Wayne in for a meeting and handing the two of them a pamphlet on ADHD had been a first step towards something new. But folks in his hometown had long memories. Didn’t matter if Wayne had taken him in and made sure he got his act together enough to graduate, or if he earned a full ride to a state college. They all saw Eddie as screw up Al Munson’s miniature screw up in waiting, ready to follow in his daddy’s footprints any minute.

Getting out of Hawkins had probably saved his life. No one on this campus got to know about his dad’s prison sentence, or that Wayne lived in a trailer park, or hell, even that he took Adderall, without Eddie telling them first.

And he was gonna get there with Tommy and Steve…someday. Well okay, they saw him taking his fucking pill in the morning when he stayed over, so that last one wasn’t a secret anymore. But the rest? He was gonna keep his mouth shut for the time being around them and their silver-spooned brothers. Eddie could enjoy being their drug-dealer turned adopted stray for a little longer.

A snuffle from Stevie pushed him back out of his mind. Shit, right. He had a puppy to get home. Eddie ruffled Stevie’s hair some more and considered his options.

In the end, he let his puppy sleep for another hour. Steve was still out of it when he woke up, but he had climbed back out of his doggy headspace enough that Eddie was able to corral him back home with an arm over his shoulder. Anyone looking at them would’ve assumed the two of them were hungover. Weird for so early in the afternoon on a Wednesday, but not out of the question for someone sporting a ΣΑΧ snapback.

A couple brothers looked up when they stumbled in through the front door.

“Y’know if Tommy’s back yet?” Eddie wheezed. Stupid fucking hill this stupid fucking frat house had to be built on top of.

The blonde guy on the left of the couch nodded. Eddie recognized him as the one who always lost his shirt at parties and bragged about all the T.A.’s he was banging…was his name Benny? Billy? Something like that.

“Just missed him.” Benny-or-maybe-just-Bill smirked. “Looked pretty wiped. Tell him if he’s too tired, I’ll take care of his mutt for the night. Don’t worry, I’ll let you watch. Maybe you’ll pick up some training tips.”

Eddie swallowed a scowl.

“Maybe next Friday, dude .” Asshole.

Ignoring the snickering, Eddie turned and practically dragged Steve up the stairs and into Tommy’s room.

As soon as he caught sight of his other owner, Stevie immediately dropped back down to all fours and ran over to Tommy.

Tommy laughed and fended off his puppy’s ‘kisses.’

“Down, Stevie! I missed you too puppy.”

Fuck.

Eddie’s already bad mood intensified. It was obvious who Stevie preferred, and not like he didn’t have plenty of people lining up to take Tommy’s place. What was the point in competing with any of them?

Caught up in his own head, Eddie didn’t notice Tommy making his way over to the door until his boyfriend was dragging him further inside.

“Thanks for taking care of the sneaky fucker for me. He didn’t give you too much trouble, right? I should’ve noticed Steve wasn’t sleeping. He tried to pull this shit last year around the same time too.”

When Eddie didn’t answer, Tommy gave him a look.

“Dude, helllooo?”

“What?” The snap came out reflexively. Tommy raised his eyebrows while giving Stevie some scritches behind his ear that the puppy was really leaning into.

“Ouch, didn’t realize you were in a bitchy mood too.”

If he’d been feeling better, the tease wouldn’t have come off as a barb that stuck under his skin. Today was not that day.

“Well I won’t darken your fucking doorstep anymore,” Eddie muttered, turning to go. Tommy grabbed for his shoulder.

“Just sleep it off here Eds, you keep saying you want to steal my mattress. I’ll take care of Stevie now, you don’t have to worry.”

Tommy’s bed was a lot comfier than the bed in his apartment. Eddie loved taking naps on that mattress. But his boyfriend standing there so confident, so self-assured, made him furious. Not even sleep deprived from his exam, or worried about splitting his attention between his real boyfriend and a screw up who was only good enough to sub in once in a while.

“Yeah, guess you fucking have to be better at everything, huh?” He bat away Tommy’s hand and turned again, only to find himself hauled around by the back of his shirt. “Hey fuck off—”

“Nope,” Tommy interrupted. “Sit down and shut up.” He shoved Eddie backwards until his butt hit the side of the bed, then full on climbed on top of him. All the air left his body with an ‘ ooof! ’ Before Eddie knew it, he was pinned against the mattress.

“You do know you’re kinda heavy right?” he wheezed.

“Don't really care," Tommy said, busy grabbing Eddie’s wrists to fully immobilize him. "I’m not moving until you’re over whatever the fuck this is.”

Eddie tried to kick out but his skinny legs were no match for someone who played a sport four times a week. He sat there stewing in his annoyance for a few minutes but…g-ddamnit. The weight and warmth of Tommy’s body was kind of soothing. His feet got further squished in while Stevie settled into the improvised puppy pile.

With a deep breath, Eddie let himself sink into the bed. Tommy bonked his head against Eddie’s.

“Better now?”

“…Yeah. Thanks.”

His boyfriend gave him a soft kiss.

“Whatever bullshit it was telling you, tell your brain to fuck off, ‘kay?” It took all of his willpower not to immediately turn into a pile of goo. Stevie gave a little wuff as he pawed at Eddie’s jeans. “See, the puppy says so too.”

At the attention, their puppy barked excitedly.

“Aww, is someone feeling left out?” Tommy crooned down at him, before glancing back towards Eddie. “You up to playing now? Think this one still has some energy to get out.” Eddie nodded, ready to push the focus back off his issues for a while and help Stevie settle better. His boyfriend grinned and gave him a much more forceful kiss in return. Okay, yeah, little Eddie was definitely ready to play now.

“Go get your collar Stevie,” Tommy ordered.

Their puppy immediately scampered off towards the trunk that held his toys. Eddie was mildly impressed that he managed to nudge the top open with just his teeth and nose. On all fours, the sides of the trunk came up to Stevie’s shoulders. He had to tilt his whole upper body in to search, leaving his ass and legs comically dangling in the air. After a few seconds, their puppy yipped triumphantly and tossed his collar out. He fell back onto the floor in a mass of flailing limbs.

Once Stevie re-oriented himself and had his prize in hand (or more accurately, in mouth), he raced over to deposit his collar in front of Eddie, looking up expectantly.

“Oh, umm…” he flushed, glancing at Tommy. “Can I?”

His boyfriend smirked.

“You know he’s trying to butter you up, right? Cause someone ,” Tommy slipped into a singsong high-pitched voice as he pinched their puppy’s cheek, “knows he’s been naughty today. Get naked puppy. Now.”

Stevie shed his clothes lightning fast and sat back on his haunches at Eddie’s feet, bowing his head for him for the second time that day. Eddie slipped off the dog tags and replaced them with Stevie’s collar, fumbling with the clasp in his haste.

Their puppy sighed, turning to nuzzle his face into his legs. Eddie couldn’t help but melt from the sweetness, reaching down to scratch at Stevie’s scalp.

“Oh sure, now that you get what you want you’re behaving,” Tommy complained. “Sorry, puppy, you know the rules. Now, stand and present.”

Stevie pouted, but got back on all fours and arched his back. He spread his legs wide, exposing his balls and hole, as a pink flush slowly spread across his body. Tommy moaned appreciatively. Their puppy turned his head to smirk as he swayed his ass back and forth a little. G-d, Stevie was such a vain attention-seeking diva.

He was also already half-hard from this little bit of show-boating. Tommy moved quickly, lubing up a silicon cock ring to sit just beneath the head of his dick. A matching band fit just above his balls, stretching them out away from his body. Eddie shivered as Stevie woofed happily, knowing firsthand from experience (thanks to a very enlightening weekend spent under Tommy’s hands) how intense orgasms felt with them on, even if their puppy would have to work a little harder to get there.

Once Stevie was properly collared everywhere, Eddie squirted some cold lube without warning directly over their puppy’s hole, enjoying both the shocked yip he got in response and Tommy’s snorting laughter.

He took his time to tease, stroking his fingers along all of the gorgeous skin presented in front of him. As he passed it, Eddie’d let the tip of his thumb just barely catch on Stevie’s rim. Their puppy whined and bucked around, trying to force it deeper.

“Hey, bad puppy, stay!” Tommy swatted at Stevie’s ass hard enough to leave a handprint. “Be happy Eddie’s being so nice, I wouldn’t give you anything after how much of a brat you were to him this afternoon.”

Eddie jumped and moved his hands away, feeling guilty.

“Shit, should I leave him alone?” Tommy cocked an eyebrow.

“Why? He’s yours too. Do what you want to him.” Their puppy woofed and laid his face on Eddie’s feet. Tommy smirked and gestured down as if to say see ?

Eddie flushed a little at the sign of support from both of them and nodded, picking back up with only light touches. He kept at it until Stevie was a whining slobbering mess, barely able to hold back from humping the air. It was only then that he finally picked up the tail-shaped butt plug and gently pushed it into their puppy’s waiting asshole.

Stevie barked and groaned at the intrusion, relaxing his muscles and rocking back and forth on the plug to pleasure himself. Eddie now knew he could take much bigger and thicker dildos, but the curved rubber tail brushing against their puppy’s ass with every movement drove him further and further into that warm fuzzy headspace.

“There you go sweetheart,” Eddie murmured. “Finally filled up the way you wanted?”

Their puppy whined, looking up with big sad eyes. Tommy snorted.

“Upset he didn’t fuck you with that nice thick dick of his first then plug you up?” he taunted. “Not tonight Stevie, you are being punished. Speaking of—” His other boyfriend tossed the remote to the tail’s vibrator towards Eddie. He squeaked in surprise at the projectile, only barely managing to catch it. Stupid frat bros and their jock reflexes. Tommy just laughed again.

“Don’t you go giving me a look too, you caught it, didn’t you?”

“I only quit smoking a month ago, don’t expect to turn me into an athlete anytime soon,” Eddie grumbled. He held up the remote. “What did you have in mind with this?”

“Well,” Tommy wandered over and slipped his hands underneath Eddie’s shirt to toy with his nipple piercing. Eddie let out a happy groan of his own. “Stevie still needs to get his spanking. Why don’t you lose your clothes? Enjoy the show, and keep our puppy on the edge.”

His boyfriend played with his nipples for a long torturous minute before walking back towards Stevie. He grinned at the sight of Eddie’s dick straining within the confines of his tight jeans, a wet patch just barely visible through the denim.

“Don’t come yet, got plans for you tonight too.”

Eddie groaned but nodded. He flew out of his clothes and leapt onto the bed as Tommy settled in on the beat up loveseat in the corner and beckoned Stevie over.

Their puppy crawled over reluctantly, whimpering the whole way. He cowered at Tommy’s feet, trying to appear as pathetic as possible. The groveling might have worked, had he not also glanced back at Eddie and stuck his butt higher in the air. Eddie had to stifle a laugh.

"Come on Stevie, don't give me that," Tommy snapped. "You know the rules. Dogs don't get to make decisions, their owners do. Get up here. Don't make me say it again." He pointed to his lap.

Stevie scrambled up then went limp. He obediently let Tommy arrange him so that he was stretched out over the sofa, his ass centered directly over his owner's thighs.

"There you go. See, it's not hard to be good, is it Stevie?" Tommy ruffled a hand through their puppy's hair, mussing it up and chuckling at the disgruntled huff he got in response.

G-d, the way he looked at Stevie, cheeks flushed and eyes soft, made Eddie's heart clench. His fingers itched to capture this moment in a song, so other people could get just a taste of the intimacy. But. He shouldn't be intruding on such a private moment between the two of them, right? He couldn’t hope to ever have Tommy look at him like that and—

“You gonna use the vibe on him, or want me to start first?”

Huh? Oh right. Belatedly Eddie realized the remote was cutting into his hand from the way he’d been holding it in a death grip this whole time.

Tommy finally glanced in his direction. And look, Eddie knew he was a terrible liar. Wayne had always said he wore his heart fluttering around right there on his sleeve. But he couldn’t help but feel caught out when his boyfriend quirked an eyebrow and gestured for him to join them on the sofa.

Stevie lifted his head enough for Eddie to slide his way into the empty seat, giving a happy little wuff now that he was positioned over both of them. He settled down to bury his nose in Eddie’s crotch, enthusiastically licking at his dick and balls with that heavenly tongue.

Tommy reached over to stroke his thumb against Eddie’s cheek.

“Guess the puppy wasn’t the only one who needed attention, huh.”

“Mhm.” Eddie squeezed his eyes shut and leaned into his boyfriend’s hand, basking in the affection. At least until he remembered he was still holding the remote. Again.

He finally turned the switch on. Stevie, in the middle of slobbering all over his ballsack trying to take everything into his mouth at once, gave an adorable squeal in surprise, and kept wriggling around as Eddie steadily increasing the vibe’s intensity.

His boyfriend caught his eye and grinned. Without warning, he brought his hand down on their puppy with a loud smack . Stevie jolted and cried out, his ass jiggling from the impact. Tommy wasn’t moved by the reaction.

“I barely touched you pup, shush.” He began to rain down blow after blow.

The sight of their puppy’s ass slowly growing redder was driving Eddie insane. Worse, all those little noises coming out of his mouth as he squirmed around vibrated right against Eddie’s dick.

With a lot of effort, Eddie only just managed to pull himself back from the edge.

Tommy saw him panting and paused his spanking. He grabbed one of Eddie’s hands and laid it on top of Stevie’s ass cheeks. Heat practically radiated off of them from the dark red blooming underneath his fingers.

His boyfriend winked at him before grabbing their puppy’s hair and yanking his head up. Stevie yelped, those pretty eyes shut tight from pain. Tommy waited until he opened them again to address him:

“Bad news pup, you distracted Eddie so much that I lost count watching. Guess I’ll have to restart. Poor thing,” he said with a fake condescending pout. “That mouth is always getting you into trouble, isn’t it. Maybe you should do something useful with it.”

He shoved Stevie’s head back down into Eddie’s crotch and started up again, steadily increasing the tempo of his strikes now that their puppy had been properly warmed up.

Obediently, Stevie opened his mouth and swallowed Eddie’s dick down. Every smack from Tommy urged him further and further, until their puppy’s nose was brushing against Eddie’s pubes. Once again, it took everything in Eddie’s power not to cum then and there from the warmth squeezing him tight. Tommy had mentioned that the two of them spent a good couple months training away Steve’s gag reflex and fuck , wasn’t Eddie a lucky bastard to reap their hard work.

He closed his eyes, resigned to the orgasm barreling towards him, when Tommy abruptly stood up, dumping Stevie off his lap in the process. Their puppy was caught off guard and went flying, landing on the floor with a yelp.

Laughing, his boyfriend finally started to take off his clothes.

“Sorry, but he was getting you too close. I told you, I’ve got plans involving your dick tonight.”

Eddie swallowed hard. His eyes traced over Tommy’s bare shoulders and chest, strong and built up from years of playing lacrosse. Unlike their puppy’s comparative jungle, Tommy’s chest only grew a smattering of hair. But there was more than enough for Eddie to run his greedy hands through it and enjoy the soft texture.

Pushing down his pants and briefs in one go, Tommy’s dick sprung free from its imprisonment to stick straight out. He really did have freckles everywhere. One of these days Eddie wanted to lick over each and every one of them.

“Like what you see Munson?” Oops, he’d been caught. Even worse, Tommy was using a jock nickname on him. Fifteen year-old Eddie would have been betrayed by how much it was doing it for him.

Eddie nodded, bouncing up to give Tommy a sloppy kiss. He returned the favor, only stopping to grab Eddie’s hand and gathering them both up in a fist, still kinda slick with remnants of lube.

Tommy directed him through a few rough strokes. Eddie moaned into his shoulder, finally giving into his own urge to bite and suck at the sun-speckled skin there.

A wuff coming from the floor interrupted his one-track thoughts. Stevie tried to hump their legs, only for Tommy to push him onto his back. His boyfriend chuckled as their puppy laid there pouting.

“What, you thought your punishment was over already? Not yet, Stevie. You’re going in your cage so your owners can have some fun together. That’s right, I’m the one who gets to ride Eddie for as long as I want tonight.” Their puppy whined in frustration.

Without hesitation, Tommy grabbed the back of Stevie’s collar and hauled him up so they were eye to eye.

“Behave,” he hissed. “We’re being nice, and letting you watch. Eddie and I could always go back to his place instead. Is that what you want? Locked up, all alone for the rest of the night?” Stevie shook his head and pawed at Tommy’s shirt, gasping a little for air.

Eddie grabbed ahold of their puppy’s shoulders and gently brought him down to the floor. Stevie curled up in his lap but couldn’t stay still, panting heavily and giving half-aborted little thrusts every few seconds. His dick twitched against Eddie’s thigh. Shit, he might gotten closer to coming than they wanted him to be right now.

He turned the vibrator down to a lower setting, enough to keep Stevie hard and wanting, but not in active danger. Their puppy moaned and burrowed deeper into Eddie’s arms. Tears and snot got smeared over his chest, but he didn’t mind.

“It’s okay sweetheart, shhh.” Eddie stroked the soft hairs on their puppy’s nape. “You’re being such a good boy, taking your punishment so well. Just a little more, it’s almost over.”

Tommy pressed a kiss to Stevie’s forehead.

“Think he’s good?”

Their puppy had quieted, his breathing no longer as labored. Eddie nodded.

In response, his boyfriend tilted his chin to stick his tongue in his mouth. When they parted, Tommy smirked at his dazed expression.

“Guess you’re good too. Put that one in his cage.” He sauntered over to his bed and grabbed the lube. “Come on, hurry up, I wanna feel full already.”

Eddie’s breath caught in his chest watching Tommy slick up two fingers on one hand and use the other to push a buttcheek to the side. His exposed asshole, adorned with a ring of freckles, greedily took one finger then another. The wet schlick s as he pumped in and out of himself filled the air, and Eddie’s dick was so hard it could cut glass.

A little moan underneath his feet reminded him of the task Tommy had left to him. Looking down, Eddie could see Stevie was similarly affected: his tongue was out and steadily dripping drool everywhere. If he didn’t act quickly, their puppy was probably thirty seconds away from leaping onto the bed and trying to take Tommy from behind.

Eddie tore his eyes away from his boyfriend’s ass, and ran over to the big dog cage in the corner.

“C’mere Stevie!” Eddie patted his legs and pointed to the plush dog bed inside. “Come on sweetheart, be a good boy, we’ll let you out soon, I promise,” he added hastily, seeing the dubious look on their puppy’s face.

Stevie took as circuitous a route as he could take, but eventually made his way over to the cage. He licked at Eddie’s hand, pleading with those expressive eyes of his. Eddie just barely restrained himself from giving in, and held the cage door open wider. Stevie huffed his displeasure. With his nose high in the air, he stepped into the cage, the picture of regal grace.

Their puppy occupied himself with getting comfy as Eddie locked him inside the cage. It was adorable the way he turned around a few times before curling up on himself, knees held close to his chest. The feigned nonchalance of the pose was ruined when Stevie peeked an eye open to make sure someone was still watching though.

It was Eddie’s turn to snort at this new tactic.

“Okay, yup, you totally don’t care sweetheart.”

A moan from Tommy called his attention back to the bed. Walking backwards, Eddie fiddled with the remote to give their puppy a taste of the vibe’s highest setting. Stevie yelped, limbs flying everywhere for a moment from the unexpected intensity. He glared at Eddie even as his hips ground down involuntarily.

Eddie giggled, giving their puppy a teasing grin. He set the remote to give random hard pulses, just to be a little mean. If Stevie wanted attention, he was going to have to work for it.

By the time Eddie rejoined him on the bed, Tommy was already three fingers deep in his own ass.

“Took you long enough, jeez,” he panted. “Come up here and fuck me already.”

Eddie didn’t need any more urging, and grabbed a condom, nearly tearing it in half in his haste to get the packet open.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tommy trying not to laugh, which only made his fumbling worse, of course. Eventually his boyfriend smacked his hands away.

“That’s it, we’re all getting tested this week,” Tommy muttered mostly to himself as he rolled down a fresh one onto Eddie’s dick. A couple quick pumps had Eddie whimpering too, already close to coming again. “So eager to please, huh? Well here’s how you make me happy Eddie-baby.”

His boyfriend pushed Eddie down onto his back then moved to hover right over his dick. Eddie couldn’t help but stare. Tommy’s muscles barely even moved as he effortlessly held the position. Stupid hot athlete boyfriend with his stupid hot abs.

Tommy moved in close, his breath tickling Eddie’s ear as he whispered: “I want to come on your dick tonight, and only from your dick. Doesn’t matter how much you beg me to stop, not gonna until that happens. Got it?”

Eddie swallowed hard. His dick twitched with every heartbeat, way too interested in what his boyfriend wanted. He was half tempted to beg for a cock ring of his own. Stevie had more than one after all.

As if he could hear his thoughts, their puppy gave another pitiful whimper as the tail kicked up again. Tommy didn’t react in the slightest. He just stared down, chest rising and falling evenly as he waited for an answer. The flush slowly spreading across his cheeks was the only tell that he was even a little bit affected.

A drop of precum landed on Eddie’s stomach. Okay, maybe there were a few more signs.

Tommy’s dick was sticking straight out, and his hole gaped, still loose from his fingers and practically begging to be stuffed full and…oh fuck it. Eddie had always been a competitive little shit anyway.

“I can definitely do that,” he said, putting as much false bravado into his words as possible. Sure, doing theater in high school meant he was forever labeled a dork, but did come in handy for moments like this.

His boyfriend smirked.

“Good.”

Without any warning, he slid halfway way down Eddie’s dick in one smooth movement. All of the air escaped his lungs from the sudden tight heat.

“Don’t even think about coming Munson,” Tommy panted.

The next however many minutes were the longest who knows how long period of time in Eddie’s life. He held onto the sheets for dear life while his boyfriend rode him hard and fast. Eddie could feel his balls drawing up almost past the point of no return when Tommy reached down to pinch at his nipple piercing again, and it was all over. As soon as he finished twitching, his boyfriend pulled off. He tore off the now used condom, pulled a new one down, and remounted Eddie before he could blink, much less have his dick flag.

“I told you,” Tommy panted. “I’m not gonna stop if you come, so don’t bitch and moan too much.”

He winced and moaned anyway, oversensitive and overwhelmed. Not that it mattered though. By the time Tommy groaned and came all over their stomaches, he’d squeezed another mind shattering orgasm out of Eddie.

Tommy flopped over, still trying to catch his breath. Eddie beamed from where he’d melded into the mattress, happy that he’d managed to make his jock boyfriend work that hard.

Belatedly, he became aware of their puppy whining and whimpering in the corner.

“Don’t worry Stevie,” Tommy called out. “Gonna let you out now, as soon as someone gets his legs back.” Their puppy did not stop his begging, the little brat.

Still, he had been in the cage and teased mercilessly for a long while. Eddie blindly fumbled around until he found the remote and turned the tail’s vibrator off. Stevie moaned and relaxed a bit more in relief.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Tommy wheezed, “keep your pants on pup.”

Finally, his boyfriend recovered his bearings enough to stumble over and free their puppy. Stevie tumbled out, equally unsteady after staying curled up for so long.

“You okay to move Stevie?” Tommy reached down and gently massaged their puppy’s legs. After a minute Stevie wuffed, and trotted over to the bed. Eddie reached out to help him up. He got their puppy arranged nicely on all fours before reaching a hand out to stroke his dick. Stevie moaned happily when Eddie slipped his other hand up to tease at his nipples. G-d , he loved how responsive he was.

“There you go Stevie,” Eddie said softly. “Poor thing, you must be aching everywhere, huh? All worked up, with nothing to hump.”

Their puppy whined in agreement. The whines kicked up a notch when the tail in his ass came to life again. Eddie looked over to see a grinning Tommy holding the remote.

“Come on, let’s let the doggy have his bone r.” Eddie groaned at the pun and his boyfriend cackled.

In the end, it didn’t take much. Eddie played with his nipples, Tommy gave a few gentle squeezes to their puppy’s balls, and they took turns alternating strokes to his dick.

The orgasm hit Steve hard. Underneath their hands he bucked and moaned in relief for seemingly forever. He finally dropped boneless to the bed with one last whimper.

Steve barely responded as Tommy went about removing the rings from his junk or the tail from his ass. But when Eddie went to unbuckle his collar, he grabbed his hand to hold it still.

“Five more minutes,” Steve begged, the words slurred and his voice a little raspy from disuse.

Eddie didn’t hesitate or wait for Tommy to give his opinion.

“Sure sweetheart, five more minutes.” Relief written all over his face, Steve closed his eyes and curled up into Eddie’s chest. He made a noise of satisfaction when Tommy slid in to cling to his back like a koala.

His boyfriend flopped a hand over Steve, letting it come to rest on Eddie’s chest. The weight and warmth of it grounded him as he laid there half drifting into a doze.

They stayed like that for a while and let time unspool around them, only broken by Steve’s little snores. Eddie’s brain even shut up for the occasion, not concerned with anything but the present.

Finally, Tommy stirred again.

“Fuck.” He poked at the drying sticky mess all over them. “We need to clean all this shit up, or we’re gonna get stuck together forever.”

Tommy directed Eddie to help him get Steve into the shower since he was still clumsy on his feet. They left his collar on the sink to deal with as tomorrow’s problem. The thing was already marked up with a lot of mysterious stains, what was one more gonna do at this point?

After the world’s fastest shower, the three of them all fell into a pile on the bed.

Steve settled down again in between Eddie and Tommy.

When Eddie finally came back to consciousness the next day, it was to Steve’s stomach growling.

He peeked open one eye to find his boyfriend reading a textbook, supporting it on top of Tommy’s head (who was splayed out and still snoring away on his chest). A beam of sunlight glinted off Steve’s glasses and made the two of them practically glow. Eddie’s heart lurched at seeing such a wonderful sight first thing after waking up.

Steve’s eyes flicked from the book over to him. He grimaced.

“Shit, sorry for waking you up Eds. Forgot you’re a lighter sleeper than Tom is.”

“It’s fine, whatimeisit,” Eddie slurred as he extracted himself from Tommy’s legs and stretched.

“Twelve thirty-ish. Was gonna go make some food, you hungry too?”

On cue, Eddie’s stomach made a noise. Steve grinned.

“That answers that. Hey, Tommy-” his boyfriend poked his human weighted blanket. “Want anything?”

Tommy shooed them both off.

“Shuddup m’sleepn’…” he muttered, flopping over and blindly groping around to find a replacement pillow.

Steve laughed and grabbed Eddie’s hand.

“Just the two of us. Come on, I’ll make some brunch.”

Eddie followed Steve downstairs and into a part of the house he hadn’t been in yet. Here, the fancy wood paneling was darker, and held rows and rows of framed photos of former Sigma Alpha Chi brothers from prior decades.

Just beyond the point where the photographs began to feature late 1800’s suits and silly facial hair, Steve opened a door helpfully labeled ‘Kitchen’, and turned on the lights.

If Eddie didn’t know better, he would have guessed this cavernous space made food for some Michelin star restaurant, with its pristine chrome appliances, glazed terracotta tiles, and white-washed walls. For fucks sake he could see his reflection mirrored back at him on practically every sparkling surface.

“What, no private chef?” he joked, valiantly resisting the urge to tamper with the expensive-looking mixer or leave behind fingerprints all over the island.

Steve shrugged and fiddled with the brim of his snapback.

“Oh, we do, today’s just her day off. You’re gonna love Maggie’s tiramisu, it’s so fucking good man.” Sigma Alpha Chi and their bottomless funds. With his back turned, Steve missed Eddie’s eyes popping out of his skull as he continued talking:

“Tommy’s been banned from coming in here since he freaking lit pasta in boiling water on fire. So, I need you to be my smoke detector and make sure this Kraft survives, okay?” Steve scooped Eddie up and deposited him on the counter next to the stove. If anyone asked, Eddie would deny the extremely manly ‘meep! ’ that fell out of his mouth in surprise. His boyfriend huffed out a laugh, kissed the tip of his nose, then got to work.

Eddie watched Steve putter around. There were still dark circles under his eyes that wouldn’t be solved by one good night’s sleep. But the Steve of this morning, er, afternoon, was nothing like yesterday. He moved around the kitchen confidently, humming like he was supposed to be here. Every so often he’d send little smiles Eddie’s way that absolutely wreaked havoc with his heart.

Twenty minutes later balancing several bowls of steaming yellow cheesy goodness in his hands, Eddie listened to Steve complain about his dad:

“He still not thrilled I decided not to run for and ‘let my boyfriend win.’ Pissed I let the streak of frat president Harringtons die. Like I want Tommy’s job.” Steve gestured to one photo out of the many frames lining the hallway as they passed.

The plaque underneath read "Sigma Alpha Chi Class of '86." In the center grinning at the camera was a guy with Steve's smile and a frankly impressive bushy blond mustache.

"Not that he really understands why I wanna be a teacher instead of following him into the family business either. I'm getting the management degree because he's convinced that by the time I graduate he can get me to work for him.”

"Don't want to join the ol’ law firm? Let him finally put the ‘& Son’ up on the sign?” Steve made a face.

“My mom's the family lawyer and she definitely doesn’t want me anywhere near her cases. My dad runs…you ever hear of Scoops Ahoy?"

"The ice cream chain? Yeah dude. Those commercials with the dorky admiral guy are hilarious. 'Set sail on an ocean of flavor with me!"

Steve groaned and hid his head behind his hands.

“We tried to get him to cast an actor but nope, had to be him. The stupid sailor outfits were his idea too, he's always been obsessed with nautical shit. Every year he hosts a murder mystery on his yacht and makes us all dress up in the dorkiest costumes with him, it's the worst."

Eddie blinked. Then blinked some more. Come to think of it the face of Scoops Ahoy had a very familiar crinkle to his hazel-colored eyes and sure his mustache was grey not blond but holy shit wait a minute—

“He…the Admiral is— your dad owns Scoops Ahoy??" he sputtered.

Oh my G-d he was dating fast food royalty. What was next, would Tommy reveal he was related to the King of Sweden?

With his free hand Eddie grabbed Steve’s shirt.

“Please tell me Tommy isn’t secretly Gustaf the Seventeenth,” he asked, his tone landing closer to ‘manic Swedish-obsessed axe murderer’ than intended.

Steve looked at him sideways.

“What?”

“He’s not from Sweden?” Steve grabbed their lunch out of Eddie’s hands after a couple noodles fell to their demise.

“Dude he’s from some town called Orangeville a couple hours outside of Indianapolis. It’s in the middle of bumfuck nowhere.”

“Okay, great.” Eddie wheezed. “Only one of you is the heir to an empire then. Tommy’s just normal fuck-off wealthy.”

Steve laughed.

“Yeah, I’m gonna regret introducing you to Dad, aren’t I. The two of you are gonna feed into each other’s dramatics, calling it now.” Eddie stopped in his tracks. Steve wanted him to meet his parents?

“Yeah, I’m sure we’ll get along great at graduation.” That’s all he meant, probably. No need to explain polyamory to baby boomers.

“Actually, was kinda hoping you were free for Spring Break, you didn’t mention any plans yet.” A couple spots of pink appeared on Steve’s cheeks. Was he…nervous? Before Eddie could do more than shake his head no his boyfriend pushed on:

“My parents want to meet my music teacher boyfriend and might have invited you to come on this year’s murder cruise. If you want. I won’t let them make you wear the cabin boy outfit even if it’s tradition for first-timers. Those shorts are like, ridiculously tiny and I will get distracted staring at your ass.” Steve grinned, like it wasn’t complete absurdity to introduce him to anyone.

“You’ve talked about me to your parents?” His boyfriend gave him a bitchy look.

“No, I didn’t want to tell my parents about my new amazing boyfriend who can play ten different instruments. Oh, right!” He snapped his fingers. “If you come, don’t bring your guitar. Dad will make you play ‘Barrett’s Privateers’ too many times.”

“What about Tommy?”

“What about him? He’s already called dibs on being the ‘second first mate.’’ Eddie threw up his hands in frustration. In hind sight, Steve was entirely correct to take the mac and cheese away from him.

“Steve, if I’m your new boyfriend, they’re gonna assume you and Tommy broke up!”

“Oh. Nah, my mom would kill me if I broke up with Tommy at this point, she loves him. They think I’m involved in some sort of millennial swingers club, but they sort of get it. And the offer’s still standing if you want to come. Don’t need to RSVP now or anything, think about it. It’ll be nice to have you there.”

Eddie stared at Steve’s face. This had to be a joke, no one wanted to ever take him home. He was the dirty secret, the screw up, the—

“ Tell your brain to fuck off ,” Tommy’s voice whispered in his ear.

Maybe, this didn’t have to be a joke. Maybe, he could meet Steve’s parents with Tommy there and have it go okay. And maybe, he could believe that the two of them wanted him to be there.

“I’ll have to see what my uncle’s plans were, but he’d probably be okay with moving our fishing trip to another weekend. We uh, usually do that, when I’m home on breaks.”

“Yes!” Steve smiled and pumped a fist in the air, somehow avoiding spilling any pasta while he did so like the talented dorky jock he was. Eddie couldn’t help but smile. Maybe things would work out this time, if he could get his boyfriends to smile back at him like that. The rest could come later.

Author's Notes -Thank you to @vthx for beta-ing, you really helped me drill down and nail Steve's mannerisms <3 Also thank you to anyone who sent in an emoji during WIP Weekend. It took six months, but this fic finally saw publication!

-Shout out to @dame-zoom-a-lot for walking me through how to create the cool texting workskin!

-In this story, I wanted Steve, Eddie, and Tommy to have met in college, so only Eddie gets to be from Hawkins! Due to the demands of running a restaurant empire, I imagine Steve lived somewhere near to Chicago so his dad could travel to and from the offices frequently. Tommy's town of Orangeville is super tiny (less than 1000 people) and was picked randomly off the map

-Billy is in fact extremely jealous that Steve chose someone else not once but twice, heh

-Tommy lighting pasta in boiling water on fire is in fact inspired by a true story, unfortunately. The person who did this is now a literal rocket scientist, which thankfully does not require cooking skills Also thank you to saradika for the dog bone divider!

Tag list for this fic (thank you for your patience and continued emoji-based support while it took some time to write <3)

@dame-zoom-a-lot @fkinkindagauche @little-annie @augustjustice

@fuctacles @stellarspecter @griefabyss69

#steddie #stommie #stomeddie #stommy #steve harrington #eddie munson #tommy hagan #stranger things fic #puppy trio #tinawrites #steve x eddie x tommy #stranger things #steve harrington x tommy hagan x eddie munson

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oldestenemy · 2 months ago

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this is why nolan stormgate is a myth wizard it's because his pirate class is privateer in this essay i will--

if i had a nickel for every time a kingsisle class that relied heavily on companions and minions had the color scheme of blue and yellow i'd have two nickels, but it's weird that it happened twice

#wizard101 #stevie is still stuck in the spiral

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aninventoryofthepossible · 2 years ago

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Inspirations for VOID 1680 AM

Earlier this year, I released a new solo TTRPG: VOID 1680 AM. In it, you use a deck of cards, a six-sided die, your music collection and a voice recorder to create your own late-night radio show.

The cards help you dig deep into your collection to reconnect with music you love; they and the die also help you create anonymous Callers and the concerns, hopes and obsessions that drove them to reach out to you, a fellow lone voice in the darkness.

I also included steps for joining the library of Callers for other players to use, and even to submit your full show for broadcast on the "real" VOID 1680 AM. You can see some of those Affiliate broadcasts here. They're genuinely very cool.

You can check out the game here, and I'm proud to say VOID 1680 AM is now a Judges' Spotlight Winner in this year's ENNIES.

Okay, enough table-setting. Let's get into it.

VOID was the culmination of a lifelong obsession with commercial radio; both the technology (which feels retro despite scarcely being over a century old) and the melancholy romance of lonesome voices baring themselves to an audience they'll never know the scope of.

This, to me, is an apt metaphor for the act of making something - anything at all. Speak into the Void, the back cover copy says. You never know who is listening. So it is with putting something you love into the world.

So what inspired VOID? I cite both Anamnesis by Sam Leigh and The Wretched by Chris Bissette in the book itself, two solo RPGs whose tones and methods did much to help me find my own.

But if I'm being truthful, VOID's inspirations mostly reside outside of games. Here are a few things that haunted me profoundly enough to drive me to respond.

The first is Talk Radio, specifically Oliver Stone's adaptation of Eric Bogosian's play. The movie's tagline is "the last neighborhood in America," which to me frames radio's persistent relevance and puts social media - often called a "town square" itself - in proper context as one piece of the many ways people find connection with others, for better or worse.

Contra the VOID DJ, Barry in Talk Radio is very, very aware of how his audience receives him (hint: not well). Barry must be heard, and so must the similarly damaged souls who call in to dump the poison in their brain into his... and everyone who's listening in, besides. It's a host of people who want to connect but don't know how, spiraling in decaying orbit around each other until something awful happens.

VOID 1680 AM was originally much darker before I decided to pull back and let players pick their own tone, and Talk Radio is why.

Oxenfree is a narrative video game about a small group of teens stuck on an island haunted by hungry ghosts who can be tuned in and out of reality with handheld radios. There's more to it than that, but I'll leave you to discover what on your own - because I would recommend this game to just about anyone.

Insofar as VOID 1680 AM can have a "soundtrack," it is this one by scntfc, created using WWII-era radio equipment.

The Vast of Night is a quietly alarming lo-fi/sci-fi set in a small town in New Mexico in the late '50s. A radio DJ and a switchboard operator pick up strange signals, and then... things happen.

This specific radio station (stylized in the poster above) is what I picture for "my" VOID 1680 AM.

Then there's Stevie in The Fog, played by Adrienne Barbeau. She's the bridge between VOID 1680 AM and my earlier solo game, Lighthouse at the End of the World.

She is, yes: a late night DJ. And her radio station is, yes: in a lighthouse. She's living my dream, at least until the ghost pirates show up.

Spoilers, I guess?

But the most important influence? VOID 1680 AM cover artist Jordan Witt's fan art for the podcast King Falls AM years ago. This image took up residence in my head, so much so that I still use it as phone wallpaper despite never having listened to the show it's for.

When it came time to partner with a cover artist, who that cover artist would be was never in question. Entirely unknowingly, Jordan took all these loose ideas in my head and gave them something to cohere to. A beacon, if you will.

They spoke something into the Void, and I listened.

Fun fact: Jordan even jazzed up the original logo I made for VOID 1680 AM when that title only applied to the AM transmitter in my garage. Here's my original - you can plainly see the influence of Jordan's art on that O. It all really came full circle.

Those are the biggest ingredients in the stew that made VOID 1680 AM. It's fun to talk about stuff I like, but also I hope it might nudge someone - anyone - to get going on something they're after.

(That's you. I'm talking about you.)

A project finding its voice is a wonderful thing, but there's no real miracle to it, no outside influence that will tell you what to do. It's just things in your head magnetizing to each other until they got a shape that - with coaxing - can stand on its own.

See you on the dial.

#indie ttrpg #ttrpg design #solo ttrpg #void 1680 am

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g-girlshavingfun · 5 months ago

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December Prompts

30) Spiral stairs - Rachel & Townsend

Set between Cammie and the girls’ graduation and Rachel and Joe’s wedding, Townsend is met by Rachel when he arrives to take Abby out for dinner on her birthday. (4,870)

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It had been a good day.

After countless years of not seeing each other on either of their birthdays, of brief phone calls and delayed gifts, Abby’s layover between assignments had overlapped nicely with her 35th and so she had spent the day with her sister in the dilapidated framework of their second home. Cammie was scoping out Georgetown with her friends, Joe was holed up in the depths of Langley in the process of reverting his death certificate, and Townsend had been stuck in an MI6 debrief until that morning, so it had been just the two of them all day. Feeling like teenagers again, like little girls, they had spent the day roaming the fallen walls and collapsed classrooms of their childhood, reinfecting the limestone with their laughter, restaining the woodwork with their chatter. They had talked endlessly, Abby armed with news on Macey’s Secret Service application, on the latest Baxter drama, on the gossip leaking through the walls of Langley; Rachel countering with updates on the welfare of Matthew’s parents, on Cammie’s plans for Georgetown, on her ever imminent nuptials. A thin shining of tears had touched their day ever so briefly, the unavoidable topic of Matthew never failing to squeeze both their chests tight, but they had pushed through it with typical Cameron determination, banishing the grief from their voices and relighting the mansion with love.

Now, they had taken residence in the remaining walls of her office, one of the few rooms on the upper levels to remain somewhat upright. Rachel was curled up in a charred armchair rescued from Madame Dabney’s classroom, laughter tickling the back of her throat as her sister’s voice trailed through the walls, a mocking imitation of Joe’s reaction to Abby’s suggestion of a stag night making her heart sing.

She felt light. She felt weightless. She felt as though she could float away in her contentment.

Then she spotted a car pulling in to park beside one of the white tents decorating the school grounds and felt the joy die a little in her chest.

“Townsend’s here.”

Through the temporary plastic sheets she had installed to keep the rain away from what was left of her furniture, she eyed the man as he stepped out of the rental town car and climbed through the rubble that was once the schools grand entranceway.

Her little sister popped her head around the corner from where she had been getting ready in the bathroom. “Can you stall him for a bit? I still need to battle with my dress.”

“You just want to make a grand entrance.”

Abby shrugged coyly, whispers of a smirk dancing at her lips. “Maybe a little.”

She disappeared behind the bathroom door before Rachel could offer up any further protests, humming along to Stevie Nicks as she went.

A fond smile crept its way onto her face.

After Matthew went missing, the two sisters had seen one another sparingly, brief meetings over coffee or wine in-between Abby's seemingly never ending assignments. When they did find the time to catch up, Rachel would be struck by how much less her sister seemed. How the sparkle in her eyes had dwindled slightly, how her quippy remarks had become thick and slow, how the strings of assuredness that had held her shoulders up her entire life had been cut. Guilt and grief and loneliness had smothered something so bright in her sister, just as it had torn at Cammie’s heart and squeezed tight round Rachel’s ribcage and pressed hard on Joe’s shoulders, and some hidden part of her had been terrified that she would never see the sister she knew again. That she would become as lost to them as Matthew was.

Recently though, just as Cammie had starting smiling wholeheartedly again and the air had reentered Rachel’s lungs and the weight had fallen off of Joe’s back, the sunshine had returned to Abby’s eyes. Her laughter was once again loud and free, words light and quick, smile wide and shining. The weight of the past few years had been stripped away from her skin and left a glowing shine in its wake. Annoyingly, she looked closer to 25 than to the 35 she now was.

As much as Rachel knew this change was largely thanks to time, to the long searched for secrets of Matthew’s disappearance finally being revealed, to the ongoing dismantling of the organisation responsible for their family’s pain, she also had to acknowledge that a big part of her sister’s resurged happiness came from the man who just arrived.

With that in mind, she uncurled herself from the comforts of the armchair and made her way out of the office, aging bones creaking as she went. Though she had spent the day staunchly ignoring the ramifications that Abby’s increasing age had on her own, the ache in her muscles and the stiffness of her joints were harder to ignore. Descending the spiral staircase that had to be used in place of the collapsed grand stairs situated just past the Hall of History, the protests her knees let out were loud and outdone only by the cries of her back. Not only was her baby sister all grown up, but her daughter, her actual baby, was suddenly a legal adult in a serious relationship and preparing to go to college in the fall. Rachel had never felt older, and her body was making that known. Still, she smoothed any sign of discomfort and weariness off of her features when she saw Townsend approaching the staircase under the gleam of the evening sky, painting her face instead with steely scrutiny.

The man offered her a nod in greeting. “Rachel.”

His entire demeanour was a stark contrast to her sister, who enjoyed making an entrance, who enchanted everyone she met with a bubbly smile and a tangled web of words, who danced in and out of rooms with an aura that made the lights follow her as she moved. They were abnormal characteristics for a spy, most preferring to blend into the background than go out of their way to stand out, but Abby had long since learned how to use her attention-demanding presence to her advantage. On the other hand, Townsend appeared to materialise out of nowhere, stoic and foreboding in stature, concise and purposeful with his words. Rachel could see how their differences could work well together in the field, had experienced first hand how much easier Abby’s carefully crafted diversions made slipping between the shadows she left in her wake. More than that, she could see how their differences might compliment one another outside of espionage, his solidness taming her natural erraticism, her bounding heart livening his tempered indifference.

Loath as Rachel was to admit it, she could see how he was good for her.

“She needs a few more minutes.”

A sigh wreaked through him. “Of course.” Despite the glimmer of humour on his lips, the affection she could see lingering in the corner of his eyes, her gaze became sharp at his words, the beginnings of a glare starting to form on her face. Wisely, he chose not to say anything more.

In the resulting silence that hung between them, neither comfortable nor uncomfortable, Rachel assessed the man who had come to steal her sister away for the rest of the evening.

Adorned in a well fitted suit, matching black hair well combed and styled, he almost disappeared into the gloom of the evening. Sun sitting low in the sky, half hidden behind the clouds of the day passed, it cast only the faintest of lights upon his chiseled face, most of his features hiding in the shadows. Even as he lifted his head back to gaze up at where she paused a few steps up on the staircase, bathing himself in what little was left of the daylight, it was only the deep blue of his eyes that made itself known against the dark backdrop of the fallen mansion. Abby had never had great taste in men or women personality wise, but Rachel had to admit that all the men she dated, Townsend included, were unfairly handsome. In her harshest moments she would blame it on vanity, but truthfully her sister just attracted good-looking men like naive moths to a burning flame.

His hands were empty. It would’ve been the first thing Matthew noticed, and it would’ve enraged him. Her late husband was the type to turn up to every date with a bouquet of flowers in hand, one in each if he was picking her up from her family home. Daisies for her, lilies for her mother, and he once bought Abby a cactus just to make her laugh. Joe was far less traditional in that sense, but the few excursions he’d taken her on that she supposed could’ve been called dates, he had come armed with a singular carnation, a bottle of wine, a necklace.

In Townsend’s defence, when Rachel tried to imagine him presenting Abby with a bouquet of roses or an extravagant piece of jewellery, she could only picture the twisting of her sister’s lips, a frown creasing through the lines of her forehead, a lecture on heteronormative gestures rooted in misogyny brewing on her tongue. Although they were both stubbornly independent, resolute and equal in their stances on feminism, Rachel still swooned slightly at classic romantic gestures while Abby was much more likely to go out of her way to open her own car door just so a man couldn’t do it for her. Perhaps it was a good sign that Townsend had learned that about her already.

Scrutinising his face, Rachel couldn’t quite work out what he was thinking. He didn’t appear bothered by the stretch of silence, but the tightness of his face and the tension in his shoulders and the forced stillness of his feet suggested that he wasn’t entirely comfortable either. He ground his teeth together slightly, jaw locking, and flickered his eyes around her. A nervous tick?

Good. It was only right for her sister’s boyfriend to be a little wary of her, a little intimidated. Healthy even.

Bearing that in mind, Rachel pulled back her shoulders and angled her chin towards the ground slightly, looking down on him from her elevated perch. Her narrowed eyes caught the slightest gulp of his throat, the slightest stiffening of his shoulders, and she had to fight back an amused smile. Townsend’s age and experience clearly made him less easily cowed than his son, who had quivered under a singular raised eyebrow when she had enquired about his intentions with Cammie, but they still looked remarkably similar as they cowered beneath her glare.

“Where are you two heading?”

His voice betrayed none of the intimidation she could read from his stance. “There’s a new Thai place up by the Marina.”

“Thai’s nice.” Rachel had heard only good things about about the restaurant he was referencing, and she knew it was well suited to her sister, so she gave the man a reluctantly approving nod. Still, he clearly didn’t know Abby as well as he thought he did. “Piece of advice, Abs likes Italian.”

The look Townsend gave her was long, contemplative. Some of the tension he carried melted off of him as he cocked his head ever so slightly to the side and assessed her in their shared silence. Rachel’s nose twitched. Her skin felt itchy. She didn’t like the sensation of being analysed at the best of times, but something about his particular inquisitive stare made her slightly nauseous.

“Italian makes her feel sick.”

It was blunt. It was a matter of fact. It was an unambiguous statement read off a report.

It didn’t make sense.

She could cast her mind back to her childhood home, her little sister slurping down endless bowls of pasta. She could remember the early years of her and Matthew’s relationship, of her then-boyfriend stealing Abby away from Roseville on a Saturday afternoon for authentic pizza in an attempt to butter them both up. She could still taste the seafood platters, the Carprese salads, the rosemary focaccia the sisters had shared as their lives stretched into adulthood.

At her continued silence, her unwavering doubt, Townsend’s eyes softened into something sickeningly like pity and dangerously like blame, gaze averting away from hers as the guilt began to creep up on her.

Rachel tried to picture her sister indulging in Italian cuisine anytime in the past few years and came up short. Not since Matthew disappeared. Not since Rome.

She pushed down the sickening feeling in her chest and hurriedly changed the topic before the heat in her skull moved behind her eyes. “What about tomorrow?”

Hesitantly, he gave into her probing, despite the multitude of international laws he broke in doing so. “Yerevan. The Middle East is still pretty unstable in light of recent events. We’ve been asked to consult on a mediation meeting between the Presidents of the countries involved.”

Townsend’s collected and measured nature probably made him well suited to mediation. Despite being quick tempered and cutting when it came to his own dealings, their fight last winter in front of half of her student body coming to mind, he was fair and pragmatic when it came to external disagreements. The only qualities of a good mediator which he lacked, namely charm and general likability, Abby made up for in spades.

Still, international relations wasn’t either of their specialities, so there must've been representatives available more qualified to the task. If Rachel had to guess, the two of them were being sent partly as a tactic to intimidate the world leaders into compliance, they were two of the agents responsible for bringing down the organisation that sought to destabilise the region after all, and partly for their backgrounds in protection. With the level of disarray in the Middle East at the moment, further assassination attempts were not unlikely, and should one be successful during a meeting mediated by the West, the political environment would become even more complicated. Rachel was willing to bet that Abby and Townsend had been tasked with this assignment under the assumption that if an attempt was made on any of the world leaders’ lives, both of them would jump in front of the bullet without hesitation.

The realisation made her bones feel a bit weaker, made her knees tremble in place, made her stomach tie itself in knots.

Though the explosion that ripped through The Gallagher Academy had torn her home apart, it had also pieced her heart back together. Once the shattered remains of that night had been picked up and carefully dealt with, Rachel had been left with her entire family, small as it was, safe in her arms. Her daughter was finally free of the terrorist organisation that had been hunting her for years, could finally relax again and enjoy the rest of her childhood before starting college in the fall. There was a new ring on her finger and Joe’s steady hand wrapped around hers, the feeling of warmth and love and home returning to her after so long. Abby still took assignments sure, but they were relatively short, tame, and spaced out, her sister finally trying to make time for the people that needed her, that wanted her before throwing herself back into her job.

For a few short months, Rachel could breath easy. But now Abby was going back to what she loved and Joe was legally alive and allowed to leave the vicinity of the school grounds and Cammie was going to be an agent with the CIA. She didn’t think she would ever breathe easy again once that happened.

“The ongoing tension must make that trip pretty dangerous?”

Though she tried her best to hide her anxiety behind a guise of curiosity, Townsend appeared to see see straight through her, her plastic expression and glass voice betraying her once again. He shot her his best attempt at a reassuring look, nodding solemnly at her. “We’ll be fine.”

Rachel wasn’t particularly worried about we, and they both knew it, but she supposed it was kind of Townsend to pretend that her fears weren’t so transparent.

Suddenly feeling like the upper hand in this interaction had slipped and fallen where she didn’t want it to land, Rachel squared her shoulders and gave the man another scrutinising look, glaring at him until his teeth ground together once more.

It was a nervous tick then. She wondered if he knew about it.

Towering over him still, she moved stepped down a singular curved stair, the narrowed space between them tight with suspense. A growl hid in the depths of her voice, the stern warning caged within it fraught with preemptive anger. In spite of all his training, Townsend flinched back slightly at her sudden intensity, leaning back on his heels for a moment to distance himself from the heat in her eyes before he recalled his skills and righted himself, shoulders back and torso out in a poor impersonation of confidence.

“When Cammie was little, Abby liked to play this game with her where she’d hold her upside down by one ankle and swing her around a bit. She’d even hold her over her shoulder and go around the house asking if anyone had seen the squirt. Cam loved it.” When Rachel closed her eyes and held her breath, she could still hear the ringing of her baby girl’s laughter echoing through her head, her delighted little screams and breathless giggles. “I love Abby, and I trust her completely, but she was holding the most precious thing in the world to me, so it always made me nervous.” A light of understanding started to spread across the man’s face, his muscles sagging under the weight of his realisation then immediately tensing again as she leaned further towards him. “This one time, she tried throwing her up in the air and catching her by the leg. Obviously her hand slipped, and Cammie would’ve smacked her head on the carpet if Matthew hadn’t been close enough to catch her.” Townsend winced slightly, and Rachel’s breath became somewhat shaky, both the memory and her fear making her uneasy. “I love Abby, and Cam was fine, but in that moment I still could’ve killed her.”

Her unspoken words were loud. You, I don't love, I hardly care about you beyond what you mean to my sister. If anything happens to her, if she’s ever not fine, it will be your fault, and I will kill you for it.

Townsend remained tense as he nodded, still eyeing her warily as though she was going to descend the rest of the stairs and attack him if his response didn’t suit.

Maybe she would.

“I love Abigail too, Rachel.” It took a lot of self-restraint not to blink in shock at his words. Not because she doubted them, Abby had a unique talent for making people love her much faster than they planned to, but because of the intensity and the ferocity with which he breathed them to life. “If anything happened to her, if I hurt her in any way, you couldn’t hate me any more than I would hate myself.”

He looked like he meant it, like he believed his words with every fibre of his being, but he was wrong. If what he was saying was true, it would mean he loved Abby more than Rachel did, and she knew without a doubt that that wasn’t possible.

As it were, his statement just grated on her like a sharpener, twisting her insides until her face, her words, her voice were all stretched into the fine point of a knife. “You’ve hurt her before.”

Between them, an apparition of the woman in question appeared. Pale and hurt and tearful after a long assignment, a failed operation, a heartbreaking battle of words. Abandoned in a hospital bed by the man she had slowly started to give her heart to.

A kaleidoscope of emotions swept across his face. Anger. Regret. Guilt. Pain. She watched them all rise in waves and crash into the beach of his features, dissipating into the sand of his skin as quickly as they grew. Carefully, he cleared the confliction from his expression, soothed out the marks and indents that the crashing water had left on his face. He gave her a slow nod. “We’ve hurt each other plenty, yes. Neither of us want to do that anymore.”

Once again, Rachel was struck by the realisation that her little sister was all grown up.

Warning still lodged in her throat, thickening her voice as it slipped out of its confinements, she put a piece of her heart on a plate and handed it to him. “She’s not as tough as she thinks she is.”

She spends every one of Matthew’s birthdays in tears. She takes anything negative you say to her to heart and lets it stew there forever. She would take all of her loved one’s suffering on herself and let it crush her if she could.

His eyes were warm, and his smile small but kind. For the briefest moment, he looked a little like Matthew, a little like Joe. He looked like someone she could trust with her sister. “I know Rachel. I do.”

All of a sudden, the rhythmic sound of heels clipping against the solid oak of the spiral staircase echoed along the limestone walls, and Rachel watched as she ceased to exist in the man’s eyes.

Pupils darting away from her, both widening and darkening in a single breath, his gaze latched onto the sight of Abby descending the spiral stairs. In the reflection of his eyes, she watched as the remaining beams of sunlight in the sky, the temporary bulbs installed throughout the mansion, and the first gleaming of the night’s stars all rearranged themselves to shine only on her sister, casting the rest of the world into darkness so that Townsend had no choice but to beholden her.

She chuckled slightly at his stunned expression, at the way his jaw dropped ever so slightly. He paid her no notice. She didn’t exist.

Rachel shifted to the base of the stairs, stepping to the side of Townsend and turning to watch her sister make the grand entrance she not-so-secretly desired. Forest green satin clung to the curves of her legs, elongated by the glittering silver heels which adorned her feet, and swept it’s way up her torso into a deep cowl neck. The flesh of her chest and arms and one of her legs was confidently on display, and Rachel could hear Townsend’s breath hitch slightly every time her steps revealed the long slit carving its way up her right side. Sitting prettily around her neck was a simple silver chain with what looked like constellation charm dangling from it, twinkling in the dimmed light almost as bright as Abby’s eyes.

Rachel didn’t recognise the necklace. Perhaps he had bought her jewellery after all. Perhaps she liked it more than Rachel would’ve thought.

“Wow.” She arched an eyebrow at his shaky whisper, the word that slithered out his mouth without thought. Either the man wasn’t as good at dealing with jet lag as he ought to be after a career of international travel, or he was entirely spellbound and struck stupid by the sight of her sister descending the stairs. He quickly shook himself out of it, subtly clearing his throat and feigning a glance at his watch. Less observant women would’ve missed the way he stuttered as he corrected himself. “How. -How after 35 years have you never learned what a schedule means?”

Abby just beamed at him, smile so bright it cut through the hazy gloom that hung over what used to be the entrance hall.

Rachel shifted on her toes, suddenly feeling out of place in the school and with one of the people that had always felt like home.

Once Abby reached the final step, she reached out to fiddle with Townsend’s perfectly done tie, loosening it from its knot and skewing it slightly to the side. The grin she shot him was cheeky, tempered with an edge of softness that Rachel didn’t recognise from her sister. “You don’t look too bad yourself.” Then she grabbed his tie firmly and yanked him closer to her, their height difference even with her in heels meaning his eyes met hers dead on. “Never call me 35 again.”

“Abigail I hate to be the one to break it to you, but you are in fact-” Abby surged forward to press her lips to his, and Rachel awkwardly averted her eyes, shifting her feet to take her further away from the couple. A few moments later, she heard Townsend’s breathlessly croaky voice alert her that it was safe to turn back around. “Never mind.”

Her sister’s laugh rippled across what remained of the mansion, the creaks and moans of the rubble lightening up to sing in tune with her. She hopped off the final step, one of Townsend’s hands moving to take hers and the other unconsciously drifting to adjust his tie, fixing it with a few instinctual movements of his fingers.

Something uncomfortable grew in her chest when Abby moved to depart the school without looking back, her fingers tangled in Townsend’s and her head tilted towards his. It was rough and sharp against her lungs, heavy against her sternum, like the cactus Matthew had once bought her sister, she mused.

It was the first time Abby had looked to any partner before looking to her, the first time she had been an afterthought in her sister’s mind. It was unfamiliar and cold and strangely lonely. It was ridiculous. She was just grown up now, she was in love, she was happy. It was everything Rachel had ever wanted for her little sister, so it made no sense for the realisation to stifle something in her, to twist her organs and tug on her ribs and burn the backs of her eyes.

She wondered if Abby ever felt like that when Rachel met Matthew. When she fell in love with Joe.

Searching deep inside the inferno that was her throat, she managed to find her voice enough to croak a small protest. “Hey.” Immediately, Abby spun on her heel and shot her an apologetic smile, releasing Townsend’s hand and throwing both her arms around Rachel’s neck in a crushing hug. The uncomfortable growth settled into something soft, something warm. Suddenly, she was 22 years old and wishing her sister good luck at her new school. She was 28 and sending her off on her first CIA assignment. She was 42 and saying goodbye as she left the safety of Gallagher with a healing bullet wound in her shoulder. As Abby ducked her nose into the crook of Rachel’s neck, she breathed the slightest of whispers into her baby sister’s ear. “Happy birthday.”

The responding whisper was equally gentle, equally quiet, a tiny breeze of air against the hairs around her ear. “Thanks Rach.”

“Have fun. Be safe.” Feeling the smirk forming against her neck, the giggle building in her sister’s throat, the lewd innuendo dripping from her tongue, Rachel gave her another tight squeeze in warning. She wasn’t referencing tonight and they all knew it. Even though Abby was an exceptional agent, the world of espionage was one where any assignment could be your last if you weren’t careful; Rachel would never not feel afraid sending her little sister off to an unknown fate. Looking up slightly, she eyed Townsend with renewed ferocity. He gave her a stern nod in return, in agreement, in a silent vow, and the air returned to her lungs just long enough to breathe out a whisper. “See you in a couple weeks.”

Abby pulled back and morphed her face into a seriousness that didn’t suit her. “Promise.” Once the solemn nod she gave was returned in kind, a grin reformed across her features, a wink and a teasing tone accompanying her words. “How are you and Wise Guy gonna get hitched if I’m not around to officiate?”

Rachel could only roll her eyes, a small part of her regretting her and Joe’s decision. Unfortunately, it was the only way to resolve the argument of whether to make her a bridesmaid or a grooms-woman, Joe making the fair argument that he didn’t have many other friends and Rachel resolute in her standing that Abby was her sister.

Sighing through her wry smile, she pressed her forehead to her sister’s in farewell, a touch more emotional than their usual goodbyes, both of Abby’s hands held tightly in hers. “I love you Abs.”

“Love you too.”

With that final whisper through reddened lips, eyes clogging and throat thick with emotion, Abby freed herself from Rachel’s grasp and turned away, taking Townsend by the hand and leading them both towards the car. Just before he turned to follow her, Townsend caught Rachel’s eyes and gave her one final smile, one final nod, one final promise.

She’ll be fine.

Rachel found herself believing him.

———————————————————————

Authors note:

My longest instalment yet (Abby is my fave and her relationships with these two are so important to me), featuring a shovel talk, undeniable simpery, and the terrifying ordeal of realising you might not be your sister’s favourite person anymore.

Arguably more of Rachel&Abby and TownsendxAbby than Rachel&Townsend, but literally what else are these two going to bond over.

#gallagher girls #gallagher girls series #gallagher girls fanfiction #december prompts #writing prompts #Rachel Cameron #rachel morgan #edward townsend #abigail cameron #Abby Cameron #townsend x abby #abby x townsend

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oldestenemy · 1 month ago

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are we fully controlling the slime post summoning? or is it following orders?

If the first one, I'm gonna lean more towards life discipline (think...slime mold) if the second, yes myth.

Can any conjurers tell me if summon non-sentient slime seems like a myth spell or if I'm insane?

#wizard101 #stevie is still stuck in the spiral

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oldestenemy · 2 months ago

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playing an npc in game continues to be fun

would love if people stopped assuming i was ratbeard in disguise though

#wizard101 #stevie is still stuck in the spiral #do i put this in duncan's tag?#fuck it sure #duncan grimwater #like the slander and hatred and villain accusations i will take and giggle #but RAT BEARD???? YOU DARE????

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onblondes · 2 years ago

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I've put up some fics about my Tav, Evie, and it turns out I have a ton to say about her! So if you're curious about her as a character then this might interest you!

As far as her background, Evie is from a Kennedy/Rockefeller-type family of sorcerers in Baldur’s Gate. She’s the youngest of three sisters meaning she has a lot of privilege and money but basically no responsibility. No one is looking to her to maintain the family name and barring a catastrophic incident, she will never be its figurehead. She is not Prince William - Evie is one of the ones you see at a royal wedding with a big hat and you’re like, “Oh, isn’t she one of them? Stevie, I think?”

I don’t think this makes Evie a cruel person. She’s just young, directionless, and doesn’t like to get dirty. This start doesn’t preclude her from becoming the leader of the group but she does have to work on it. Imbuing her life with adventure and purpose will really help her flourish. Even after her heel-face turn, Evie will still cut people down for hurting her friends and probably tell them their outfit looks like shit.

How she interacts with each companion is under the cut. I got really into it, as you’ll see.

Astarion: Even with the “dagger to your throat” introduction, Evie and Astarion click immediately. She isn’t as intense about it as Astarion but she does tend to agree that the way the party stops for every bird with a bent wing is a little nuts, right? They are always having fun together even if it’s sometimes a little mean. Evie sees through Astarion’s seduction attempt immediately and thinks that gives her the upper hand but there is no upper hand in a healthy relationship, which she doesn’t realize until she’s already stuck to him for good. She falls into that classic fake dating spiral of “my beloved was just pretending to like me so I can’t possibly reveal that I actually love them,” and she tries to bury herself in all of her new responsibilities.

Once they figure things out, they stay together because they grow side by side and the ways that they support and shape each other will bond them forever. Evie will always look to Astarion to celebrate an accomplishment. Astarion will grumble vaguely about her “being so heroic, ugh,” even while he’s following all of her kind-hearted plans and kissing the crown of her head. Can two vain blondes with bad attitudes make each other better? Yes, I like to think so.

Shadowheart: Evie kind of rubs everyone the wrong way at the beginning of their journey but she scraps the most with Shadowheart. Part of this is just about Evie’s personality when they meet. She’ll really only help after some cajoling and has no tact. Another aspect is that Shadowheart kind of resents Evie for having a secure upbringing where people gave her everything she wanted and loved and protected her. Shadowheart is not in the business of coddling a frivolous noble, and while Evie deserves to have more asked of her, Shadowheart does sometimes border on needling her.

They would be very cute though once Evie has a purpose and bothers to start using her 20 charisma on her friends. Evie will loudly clock every time that Shadowheart is nice to her and Shadowheart will only really play at protesting when Evie hugs her and presses their cheeks together. They both develop big fat crushes but there’s a little too much Astarion in the mix for Shadowheart and Evie to get to that next level of romantic intimacy, even when they’re both free to date. I also don’t think their post-Illithid cure plans would really align, preventing them from being good long-term romantic partners. It wouldn’t damage their bond though and they would stay very close no matter how tangled up their feelings ever became.

Gale: Evie and Gale also clash but not in a “maybe I’d kiss you if you were less annoying” way. Just a standard, by the book, “I don’t really get you” way. They’re both stubborn when they think they’re right and have that natural sorcerer vs. wizard rivalry. Evie probably pushes a little too hard on this rivalry at first and then doesn’t get why Gale is annoyed about it. But Gale never forgets that Evie wanted to keep him around even after learning about his condition. They’re both witty and like doing over the top magic stunts, they can’t stay mad at each other for long. When they aren’t fighting for their lives every day, they’re able to bond over their shared love of fine foods.

Romance wise, I don’t think they’d click. It would not even occur to them to try dating. Evie had ONE really intense sex dream about Gale and spent about a week dropping things whenever he talked to her and avoiding all eye contact. Gale figured she was just really sick of him.

Karlach: Karlach tries to be the most understanding with Evie while she’s figuring out how to be on her own and play nice with others. She’s not afraid to call Evie out but she does it with a lot of love and doesn’t try to make it a big argument. Evie tries to push back but Karlach is so good to her that she crumbles almost immediately and just wants them to stay friends. Karlach calls Evie “kid” a lot and at first Evie hates it. Then one day Karlach tenderly says, “I’m proud of you, kid,” and Evie cries.

Since their relationship is the most similar to an older sibling and her twerp kid sister, I don’t see Karlach and Evie being romantically interested in each other. Once Karlach is cooled off and trying to find love again, Evie is going to want to gossip about every detail of her dates afterwards.

Wyll: I keep thinking there would be a high probability that Evie and Wyll have met before. They probably met at some high society party when they were teenagers and Wyll wrote Evie off as a typical Baulder’s Gate rich kid. He would be pretty shocked to find her in the druid grove but not shocked to see her starting to take charge. Wyll tends to see the best in people and he’ll tell Evie that he always knew she was capable of anything she wanted and that he’s proud of the path she’s taking. He’s definitely not above a little bit of gossip about nobles they both know.

Wyll might be a little too princely for Evie to seriously consider dating. I mean, she’s interested in Astarion and Shadowheart for Christ's sake, she’d probably be worried that asking Wyll out would ruin his life. Evie wants to stay with someone for the long haul but probably not be married right away and settle into domestic bliss. There’s a tiny part of her that wonders what life would be like if they had both just stayed in Baulder’s Gate, if anything could have happened between them. Evie also wonders what it means that she still thinks Wyll is handsome after his transformation.

Lae’zel: Lae’zel will be annoyed if she feels Evie isn’t pulling her weight but she absolutely doesn’t care about any personal abrasiveness. She’s not exactly about to back down from a fight either and expects the same from her companions. Lae’zel is also a soldier and doesn’t mind that Evie kind of wants to be the boss and sometimes tells her no. As long as Evie is standing her ground, Lae’zel can respect her resolve. She will insist that Evie learn a little more physical combat from her if she’s supposed to be their de facto leader. Lae’zel doesn’t go easy on her but it toughens Evie up in a way no one else can.

Romantically, Evie would be a non-starter for Lae’zel. She does not have time for this 25 year old goofball making googly eyes at a vampire and making out with her goth bestie. If Lae’zel isn’t at the top of Evie’s list, then she doesn’t even want to be on it.

Halsin: I haven’t gotten to spend a lot of in-game time with Evie and Halsin yet so my thoughts are still cooking but I think they’d have an interesting dynamic. Halsin never meets Evie when she’s at her worst. He only sees her taking her first tentative steps into adventure, rescuing him from a prison cell and mowing down goblins to save the innocent. I think Evie would have this tiny crisis where she’s like, “What if he only thinks he likes me but he doesn’t really know me? What if I disappoint him when he realizes I’m terrible?” But Halsin is much older and wiser and he’d try to impart on Evie that the “old you” isn’t a distinct different person that you have to be ashamed of or kill. She’s just changing and Halsin appreciates Evie on any part of her journey.

Romantically, I’m honestly not sure yet. I kind of take Astarion at his word that he doesn’t mind his partner wanting to explore some avenues with other people. And I think it would be a little heady and exciting for Evie that someone sees her as competent and heroic. I wonder if their interests might be too different to translate into romantic compatibility. It’s unclear to me.

#bg3 #bg3 fanfiction #my tav #evie wimberley #writing this was like that composing scene in amadeus where they're shouting out notes and quickly passing the sheet music back and forth #except i was both characters #it just poured out of me #i like my kid a lot #m: writing

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sfwregressionfanfictions · 3 years ago

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Billy Hargrove X Little! Reader: Diner Stop

Summary: Maybe Billy has room to grow, especially when he’s comparing himself to his mom.

Part 1. Part 2.

A/N: Sorry for the lack of posting… I’m at college now, in a different state…

WC: 1693

Of course it had to be William “Billy” Hargrove that found her like this! It couldn’t have been Harrington, who was always nice to her or metal head Munson, who she had been tutoring in just about every class. It had to be Billy, who was hateful and mean to everyone. He was gonna tell everyone, or worse, use it to black mail her!

It was her fault, she should have held onto her big headspace for a little while longer! She wouldn’t have been caught sucking her thumb in the clearing, where usually no one goes! Too make it worse, her blankie was half way out of her bag.

Billy stood silently, staring at the girl for a while. He wasn’t stupid, he knows what age regression was and that the girl infront of him was obviously regressing fast as well as heading towards a panic attack. Billy never knew what to do when someone was anxious or crying, let alone when the most beautiful girl in Hawkins high was regressing.

Billy tried to think of what his mom did when he was younger, hoping to figure out how to make this situation better. Usually he would walk away, but for some reason he felt the need to comfort her. Perhaps it was the fact he harbored a small crush on her from their shared classes. He loved asking her for a pencil or pen at the beginning of class, even though he didn’t take notes, just to get to talk to her and touch her.

He was aware she was always shy and skittish, especially around him. However, to see her regressing and breaking down was never something he’d expect for little miss perfect. Soon, he snapped out of the spiral his mind created to distract him from what was happening.

“Umm… Are you okay?” He sounded unsure and hesitant, unlike himself. He was always bold, brash and confident.

“Yes!” A small voice squeaked out, “What are you doing here?!?”

In all honesty, he was gonna smoke. He couldn’t tell her that, I mean you wouldn’t tell a child that right? Instead he said, “I was coming to relax, but I guess you beat me too it!”

This was weird, he was weird. The cogs turn in her head, slower than usual due to the fact she was in-between big and little space at the moment. Why was he being nice? Is this a trick?

“You can sit with me if you’d like…” (Y/N) offered, maybe if she acted normal, he wouldn’t do anything bad.

“I’d love that,” Billy pauses, as he sat down on the ground next to her with a huff, “So why are you still here? Shouldn’t you be at home, watching some cartoons?”

“I wanted to try out for cheer, but tryouts were cancelled!” She exclaimed, caution was thrown to the wind. She wanted to say she was mad.

“Why is that?” Billy asked, picking at the blanket half out of her bag. Slowly pulling it out for her.

“They said they didn’t need losers like me and like the others trying out!” Tears were welling up in her eyes now, “Now I’m stuck here, cause my ride won’t be here until 7 to pick up Dustin!”

“Harrington is your ride?” Billy asked, annoyed at Harrington just for existing.

“Yeah…” She says quietly as to not upset him with Steve’s name.

“I’ll drive you home.”

“Stevie won’t like that…” Steve was protective over her, just like the rest of “his kids”. Although he did not know about her regression.

“Does Har- Steve take care of you when you are like this?” Billy asked, maybe he’d give the son of- I mean Steve a call to pick her up if so!

“No, he doesn’t know… you won’t tell him right?” She stared up at him, with wide eyes.

“Of course not, I’m sure he’d be more upset to know you were stuck out here for hours crying!” Billy said as he started to pack up her stuff.

“Hmmm you are right… But what if I get in trouble?” She asks, however, still following his example and standing up.

“Then you can blame me, okay?” Billy said, smiling. Like the day at the beach. He sounded like his mother. She would always say that when they were getting home late because he wanted to catch one more wave.

“Okay…” and with that, they both headed to Billy’s fancy sports car. He threw her back pack in the backseat aggressively, and waited for her to buckle in. Once she was settled, Billy sped out of the parking spot as he would every other day.

He soon slowed down when he saw the look of fear taking over his precious cargo. How could he be so stupid? He had to be slower and more careful, little ones get scared easily. With his realization, he followed the speed limit, stopped at every sign and even yielded to a car AND a pedestrian.

“So where do you want me to drop you off at?” Billy finally asked, once they arrived near the main streets of Hawkins.

“I live at the yellow house down,” She was stopped.

“You live in the yellow house down the road from me?” Billy interrupted, how did he not already know that?

“Mhmm, see your car all the time.” She says, matter-of-factly.

“How about we stop to get you some dinner, then I’ll drop you off?” Billy asked, this was another trick he stole from his mother. The little diner down the road from where they lived would make any bad day good, and any good day better!

“I can’t, I don’t have money…” She whispered back.

“Of course you don’t, you’re too little for that.” Billy said, it was a statement of fact in his mind. He was merely saying a fact or making a casual observation, “Would you want to go with me?”

“Yeah, but don’t want to make you have to pay!” She answered back.

“You aren’t making me.” Billy said, dryly. He didn’t mean to, but he just sounded that way.

Without another word, the pair pulled into the diner. It looked like one that would have a jukebox and most likely someone’s grandma working to great you. The best kind of diner.

When they walking in they were met with leather booths, and more people than they expected. Billy’s friends were there, but so were Steve and the kids. They tried to ignore all the people as they took a seat however it was short lived as Tommy soon sat down in their booth, squeezing way too close to (Y/N).

“Billy, what are you doing here? Thought you were busy!“ Tommy said, eyes leaving her for only a matter of second before they locked on her again.

“I am busy, can’t you see?” Billy grunted back, becoming a new person. He was rougher, and scarier.

“Ahhh on a date with this sweet piece of-“ Tommy was cut off by Billy.

“Finish that, I dare you.”

“I- I didn’t mean any harm by it man, just meant she was cute!” Tommy said recoiling under Billy’s intense stare.

“I don’t care. Leave.” Billy said, wanting this interaction to be over already, looking at the girl shrinking into her seat. Tommy ducked out of the bench quickly and stammered away.

“You okay?” Billy asked, She nodded continuing to stare at the menu. “What do you want to eat?”

“I don’t know…” she said staring down still. Billy had transformed back to being overly gentle. It was odd, to see him go from alpha male back down to normal. She was scared and regressing fast again.

“Do you want a grilled cheese or nuggets and French fries?” Billy asked as she picked at her menu. His voice came out gruffly.

“Nuggies… please…” She whispered back, voice a little shaky.

“Okay, do you want a kids menu to color?” He asked next. I mean she’s asking like a kid so maybe that would work. His mom would fill those out with him all the time as a kid.

The waitress came by shortly, excited to see the local heart throb sat in her section. Trying to seduce him, she leaned on the table trying to push her boobs together. Before going through the speech about the soups of the day. If it were any other day, Billy would have flirted bad. Tonight, he was looking after a the sweetest girl in the world.

“I want a coke and the original burger with fries. She will have the tenders with fries, a water and an apple juice. Also I want a kids menu with crayons.” Billy says sharply, folding his menu and taking (Y/N)’s.

The waitress stormed off, menus in hand. Billy tried to make the airless tense, unfortunately he was failing. Until the waitress threw the kids menu onto the table while rushing to go to another table. While it was rude, the pair said nothing about it, choosing to start coloring to avoid the awkward silence.

Luckily, food was quickly done and brought to their table by an old waitress. Who cooed at the pair, mentioning how young the pair was. (Y/N) started giggling when she started pinching one of Billy’s cheeks. He wanted to yell and smack her hand away, however when the little baby’s giggles filled the air he had so smile and chuckle a little. ALthough, he still tried to push her hands away from his face. Luckily the older lady was called over by another table.

(Y/N) started to pick at the fries, before trying to grab the ketchup. However, Billy was quicker grabbing it and squirting some on her plate. “Do you want me to break up your nuggies some?”

His mom always cut his food into bite size pieces and even sometimes fun shapes when she had time. “Yes, pease.”

Without another word, Billy was breaking up her food. Until a fake cough was heard.

“AHEM”

The pair looks up towards the sound to see Steve Harrington, standing right over (Y/N)’s shoulder.

Oh No.

#billy hargrove x reader #age regression #age regression fic #little space #little!reader #agere little #sfw age regression #x little! reader #agere #littleone #Billy Hargrove x Little! reader #CG! Billy Hargrove

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oldestenemy · 3 months ago

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yes they are, next question.

playing grizzelheim in w101 right now. are these bears adopting me.

#wizard101 #stevie is still stuck in the spiral

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steddieas-shegoes · 1 year ago

Text

stay for a while

for @steddielovemonth prompt 'love is being late to work' and for @steddieholidaydrabbles pop-up event for Valentine's Day

rated e | 815 words | tags: post-sex afterglow, dirty talk, established relationship, domestic fluff

💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

"You gotta go faster," Steve panted.

"I'm not the one riding me, sweetheart," Eddie replied, equally out of breath.

"Put your back into it."

So Eddie gripped Steve's hips and put his back into it.

When Steve collapsed on top of him, Eddie's cum coating both of their stomachs, they both sighed.

This was the first time they'd managed to have sex in nearly a week. Their schedules were awful lately, and any time they did manage to spend together was usually asleep.

But Steve managed to wake up before his alarm this morning and Eddie was already naked and hard and one thing led to another...

"I'm gonna be late if I don't get up and shower," Steve sighed.

He loved his job as a guidance counselor, but the early mornings sucked. Especially when Eddie didn't have to be at work most days until nine.

Maybe he could call in sick or something today.

"I could join you..." Eddie's teeth nipped his neck teasingly. "Work you up while you wash your hair. Suck you off until you can't feel your legs. Maybe fill you up again and lick you clean."

If Steve's cock wasn't trapped between them, it probably would have given a valiant effort at getting hard again.

"Babyyyyy."

"What?" Eddie kissed his jaw. "I just wanna make up for all the time we've missed this week."

"I know," Steve sat up and looked down at Eddie's sweat-slick chest. "It'll be better next week. I won't be on afternoon pick-up duty and won't have senior meetings to go to."

"And I won't be stuck at the studio with this fuckin' singer who thinks I don't have a life outside of him and his lackluster songwriting skills."

Steve smirked. "Tell me how you really feel."

"I would, but I wouldn't wanna ruin the afterglow, Stevie. You look fuckable."

"I look fucked. There's a difference," Steve leaned down to kiss his forehead.

"Not to me," Eddie pouted. "I could fuck you again. Real quick. Won't even know I'm there."

Steve snorted. "Why are you so horny this morning, Jesus Christ."

"Don't blame him. I just always want you. You're like a potato chip: one is never enough."

"Wow. What a line. I'm melting into a puddle," Steve's monotone voice was interrupted by Eddie's loud laugh. "I'm gonna go shower before you try something."

"But...we still have 30 minutes before you have to go."

Steve glanced at the clock, jumping up and yelping when he realized Eddie hadn't even pulled out all the way yet. "Shit!"

"What?"

"I have a senior meeting this morning! I have less than ten minutes!"

Steve tripped getting out of the bed, his legs still wobbly from riding Eddie for the last 15 minutes.

"Reschedule it!" Eddie yelled after him as Steve ran into the bathroom and started the shower. "Call in sick."

"Not happening! It's Hannah; She's freaking out about college applications as if she won't get in everywhere she applies and if I cancel, she'll spiral," Eddie made his way into the shower as Steve spoke, nodding along to his words, but focused mostly on the way the water was dripping down his body as he rushed to wash his hair. "And then I have a faculty meeting with the rest of the counselors to discuss how we'll implement the new afterschool senior study group because the school board said we can't legally call it a study group unless it's 100% sanctioned by the students, which is just incredibly stupid and also not even remotely important! Like, we're just trying to make sure they can pass their finals, why does it matter what we call it?"

Eddie leaned in to kiss Steve's lips softly, just enough of a brush against them to make him pause.

"Sorry," Steve sighed. "Didn't mean to ramble."

"You know I love when you do, Stevie," Eddie smiled at him, grabbing the shampoo bottle from the shelf to get started on his own hair. "I just hate seeing you so stressed. Kinda wanna help relieve that stress some more."

"Baby, I love you, but if you touch my dick right now, I will murder you."

"Ouch," Eddie clutched his hand to his chest. "Straight to murder over a little handjob in the shower?"

"If that's what has to be done for me to get to work on time."

Eddie sighed. "Fine. I won't touch you. But I'm gonna be sad all day about the lost moments we could've shared."

Steve finished rinsing off the soap on his body and turned to give Eddie a quick peck on the lips. "We can share some moments tonight. Promise."

"Okay, okay. Get out before you're late."

Steve was still late for work, but mostly because he still insisted on packing Eddie's lunch while he was in the shower finishing up. No job was more important than that.

#steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #stranger things #steddielovemonth #love is being late to work #dirty talk #established relationship #domestic fluff #post-sex afterglow

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howdoyousleep3 · 3 years ago

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Part 3

Thursday afternoon, James and Stevie walked into the restaurant fashionably late, the elder figuring that the less time the younger had to sit and stress and get stuck in his own head, the better. He wasn’t worried about Stevie changing his mind, but the blond had a habit of thinking himself into a spiral in any new situation.

Bucky and Steve were already seated in a quiet corner, talking and smiling over glasses of water until they caught sight of the other two approaching. They quickly stood, Steve reaching out to clasp James’ hand in a firm shake, and Bucky bouncing up to wrap Stevie in a soft hug.

“Sorry we’re late,” James said as he popped the button on his suit jacket to take a seat. “Traffic was a bit congested.”

Steve nodded in understanding. “You’d think rush hour would be the same, whatever city you’re in, but that’s rarely the case.”

The small talk persisted until their orders were placed and the food was brought out. James continuously squeezed Stevie’s hand as he started fidgeting and chewing his lip. “We can leave at any time,” he whispered more than once, as Stevie’s knuckles turned white around his fork, or his fingers trembled against his water glass. Each time, the words soothed him to stillness.

It wasn’t until the empty plates were removed and the coffee was brought to the table that the subject was broached.

Leaning back, Steve brought his mug to his lips and pinned Stevie with a stare that made his thighs clench involuntarily. “I know you agreed to come here,” the older blond said at length. “But do you fully understand what it is we’re requesting?”

Stevie nodded, blush staining his cheeks, but not looking away. “A chance for Bucky and me to play with each other under the supervision of you and James.”

“Have you ever played with anyone besides James?”

“I’ve had sex,” Stevie said, understanding that full honesty was necessary if this was going to happen, “but James was my first—and hopefully only,” he shot a shy smile at James, getting a soft kiss against his temple in return, “foray into BDSM and power exchanges. He’s taught me a lot.”

Bucky nodded in agreement. “Same with me and Steve.” He leaned against Steve’s shoulder. “He keeps me safe, and I get to let go of everything and just make him feel good, which makes me feel good.”

James knew the answer, but he figured he’d ask anyways, for full transparency, “Have you played with anyone else, Bucky?”

Bucky’s cheeks flamed, and he shot a slightly panicked look at Steve, who wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. He nodded shyly, ducking his head. “O-only once,” he confessed to the tablecloth. “Da—I mean, Steve-,”

“You can call him Daddy, honey,” James said comfortingly. “We all know who’s what at this table.”

Bucky made a strangled squeak at the back of his throat, and burrowed even deeper into Steve’s chest. James lifted an eyebrow at Stevie, as if to say, “See? You aren’t the only one that’s nervous.”

Bucky cleared his throat and tried again. “D-daddy asked for my help with a f-friend of his, who was being too serious with his boy. I—w-we--showed him how to be softer and nicer, by having me go sweet for Daddy as an ex-example.” Steve pressed a kiss to Bucky’s cheek, murmuring praise.

“Did you enjoy showing those things to Steve’s friend?”

Bucky nodded with a small smile. “It felt really nice after the embarrassment went away,” he said, voice going a little softer and higher as he remembered. “Daddy made sure I felt safe the entire time, and kept his friend from pushing me too far. I liked showing someone how good I was for Daddy, and how happy it made him.”

James sipped his coffee, and held Stevie’s hand under the table as Steve carefully brought Bucky back from the brink, clearing the haze that had started drifting across his face at the memory. Stevie was enthralled; what that how he and James looked? Loving and soft and so captivated by each other? He could only hope so.

“But you know that Steve will be the audience this time,” James finally said as the other two settled back in their chairs. “And Stevie isn’t a Daddy.”

Bucky nodded again, eyes brightening with excitement. “I think it’ll be really fun,” he said, looking at Stevie and smiling. “You’re like me, and I’m really curious to know what playing with you would be like, with our Daddies making sure we’re safe. I like being seen by Daddy, and those he trusts. And you’re really pretty.”

Stevie couldn’t help but giggle. “I think you’re pretty, too, Bucky,” he admitted. “And I’m also curious about playing with someone that isn’t a Daddy. If it’ll be a bit more relaxed. Daddies can be...very intense.”

Bucky grinned and raised his mug in agreement.

“Brats,” James muttered through a smile before turning to Steve. “Alright, my friend. How are we gonna do this?”

Steve set his mug aside and leaned forward, serious, “I figured that I would host, since you’re in a hotel, and Bucky’s apartment has roommates. We’d make dinner, relax, and see where the evening takes us.”

James nodded and pulled a folded sheet of paper out of his pocket to slide across the table. “These are food allergies, hard and soft limits, triggers, aversions, and kinks of both Stevie and myself. You and I may not be participating, but it’s best not to cross too many boundaries.”

Steve plucked up the paper and slipped it into his own pocket. “I’ll compile a similar list and send it your way within the day. I’m annoyed that I forgot.”

“To be fair,” Bucky teased with a smile, “I did kind of distract you before we left.”

“That you did, you little brat,” Steve growled playfully before turning serious again. “Dress-code?”

“We were thinking pajamas,” James said with a glance at Stevie. “Something comfortable that’s easy to get out of. Also, Stevie would like to wear a plug. He doesn’t feel comfortable with fully penetrative intercourse, and figured it would be a happy middle-ground.”

Stevie’s face burned, and his eyes were almost fully crossed with humiliation, but Bucky reached across the table and clasped his hand, smiling through his own blush. “My favorite plug has a pretty blue gem that matches the first collar that Daddy bought for me,” he whispered. “I can’t wait to show it to you.”

The heat of embarrassment slowly shifted to the burn of arousal as Stevie envisioned pale cheeks parting to allow the glimpse of sparkling blue. “M-mine,” he coughed and tried again. “My p-plug has purple gem shaped like a heart.”

“How cute! Oh!” Bucky turned to Steve and poked his shoulder. “Will we be wearing collars? I kind of don’t want to, since it’ll fuzz up my brain, and I want to be able to focus.”

“Alright. No collars. James? Stevie?”

James raised an eyebrow at his lover, who nodded. “Sounds good to us. Would either of you boys like to wear your panties?”

Two pairs of young eyes widened, staring into the other set as they thought about the possibilities.

Bucky grinned widely and took out his phone to slide it across the table to the blond. “Gimmie your number,” he said. “I know the perfect place to pick up something new.”

Stevie smiled as he punched in his number and sent himself a text before handing Bucky his phone back. There was an immediate barrage of buzzes from both boy’s phones as they began making plans.

The older men looked at each other and chuckled.

“Gonna be the death of us,” James repeated Steve’s earlier lament.

“But what a way to go,” Steve countered.

Three cups of coffee later, plans for the play-date—as well as Stevie and Bucky’s shopping trip—were as fully fleshed out as they could be. Both couples stood and headed for the door, stepping out into the golden afternoon light.

“Daddy,” Bucky murmured, grabbing Steve’s arm before the four of them parted ways. “May I please kiss Stevie?”

Steve smiled and bent to nuzzle Bucky’s neck. “I have no problem with that, but you also have to ask them.”

“Of course. Mr. James, may I please kiss your boy, if he wants to kiss me, too?”

James looked in askance at Stevie, blushing and fidgeting at his side. “Wanna take a quick taste, sweetheart?” he purred. “Make sure he’s to your liking?”

Stevie elbowed James in the ribs, but stepped towards Bucky eagerly, grabbing the brunette’s waist and tilting his head in preparation.

The kiss was a sweet thing; close-mouthed and gentle, but it made Stevie shiver and Bucky moan softly. The approving huffs from their Daddies certainly helped. They pulled back with matching smiles and blushes.

“May I kiss Mr. Rogers, Daddy?” Stevie asked suddenly, over his shoulder. “I want...There’s going to be so much happening, and-”

“I understand, baby,” James soothed, clasping the back of Stevie’s neck. “Bucky? May my boy kiss your Daddy?”

Bucky looked at Steve, who was grinning wickedly, then turned back with a matching look. “Only if I can kiss you, Mr. James.”

James laughed loud and long. “I can see why Rogers likes you so much, darlin’. You’ve got a spark. C’mere, then. Stevie, be nice for Mr. Rogers, hm? No teeth.”

“Yes, Daddy.”

Stevie flowed easily from one older man to the other, lifting his face and closing his eyes, but not before catching the flare of heat in Steve’s gaze. “You’re gonna be so good for my Bucky,” Steve growled as he lowered his head. “James is very lucky to have you.” The kiss remained almost chaste, safe for the grip Steve had on the smaller man’s ass, pressing him to the growing bulge in his pants. They pulled apart slowly, turning to catch the sight of Bucky slumping against James, lips red and chin slightly irritated from the other’s five-o-clock shadow.

Steve licked his lips and shuddered, handing Stevie back to James and tucking Bucky under his arm. “Let’s round it out, Barnes,” he rasped, hooking a hand around the curve of James’ neck. “Stevie? Is this okay? Bucky?”

Both boys whimpered and nodded, pressing close as their Daddies leaned in and kissed each other, a bit of teeth and growling present, but no where near what they were gonna do to their babies once they got them alone.

“We’ll see you next weekend,” Steve rumbled as he pulled back.

“Don’t forget our date,” Bucky added, reaching out to squeeze Stevie’s hand quickly. “It’s gonna be so much fun!”

Stevie could only smile and nod, words lost as James started kneading his hip hungrily.

“Let’s get out of here before we get arrested,” the older brunette said hoarsely. “Drive safe, Rogers. Be a good boy, Bucky. See you both soon.”

“Likewise, James.”

“Bye, Stevie!”

“Later, Bucky.”

wildly anticipated, i can't find my heart or my brain or my breath, oh my god shadow. 😭🥺🤤

#askK #self care sunday #but also not anymore #this is self care every day #my shadow tag #part 3 #honestly shame on me if i ever think of anything but the boys and the daddies being passed around at the end of the night for kisses #shame #also Mr. James SENT me why is that so cute omfg #UGH #the communication alone has me hot afffff yes yes yes #this is the absolute best #i lub you shadow

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