#thank you for making my spring so exhilarating.

[quietblissxx]

.

[tongue-like-a-razor]

Less Talk | Part V

Jake Seresin x F!Reader

Summary: Jake can't stand Bradley's best friend. What's more, he's probably in love with her, which really pisses him off.

CW: swearing, pining, unresolved sexual tension, slow af burn

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Masterlist

Jake is watching you shift your weight back and forth in your heels with a mixture apprehension and exhilaration. You’ve got your arms crossed over your chest as though you’re severely irritated, but you haven’t left yet. Which is a good sign. He’s barely looking at your legs; smooth and shiny and perfectly illuminated by the string lights adorning the patio of the Hard Deck.

He’s still wrapping his head around the fact that you are, as of five or so minutes ago, unattached. You’re single. Jake could kiss you right now. You’d probably punch him but he almost thinks it might be worth it.

He shuts his eyes briefly, trying to clear his mind of your pouting lips, and your pretty hair, and your goddamn legs. “So,” he says finally. “You want a ride?”

You look up at him sharply. “From you?” you ask in mild disgust.

Jake takes comfort in the fact that your aversion seems relatively minimal considering he just sucker punched your boyfriend. Ex-boyfriend. He gives you a flat look. “No, from the Tooth Fairy,” he retorts sarcastically. “Yes, from me.”

Your mouth parts as though you’re about to say something but, instead, you graze your teeth over your bottom lip. Jake, in turn, sort of forgets how to exhale for a moment. “Okay,” you say quietly. “Thanks.”

It takes him a moment before he realizes that you’ve somehow, miraculously agreed to his offer but, when he does, he springs into action. “Let’s go,” he says, hoping the casual words are enough to offset the tension in his tone. He extends an arm to point you in the direction of his truck.

You make your way to the passenger door and he follows you, pulling on the handle and holding his hand out to help you climb inside.

“It’s a bit of a step,” he says as you lift your foot into the cab.

You give him a cryptic look before placing your hand in his, a faint smile materializing on your face in response to the gesture. Jake cautiously returns your smile, not quite ready to let his guard down.

You lean your weight into him as you lift yourself off the ground and Jake manages to keep you steady despite his attention being almost entirely usurped by your ass which hovers invitingly in front of his face before you land gently on the seat.

“Thanks,” you say.

Jake breathes out wearily, resting one arm over the open door and the other on top of the roof as he peers into the vehicle. “You okay?” he asks.

You eye him suspiciously. “Yeah, why?”

Jake squints slightly, running his tongue across his teeth in thought. “You haven’t insulted my ride yet,” he says. “You know this thing is a gas guzzler, right?” He pats the roof of the truck.

You smile at him. “Well, give me a minute,” you respond, getting comfortable in the seat. “Let me get situated.”

Jake chuckles, pulling on the seatbelt behind your head and placing it in your hand. “Take all the time you need,” he says, briefly meeting your gaze.

You glance around the cab which, to Jake’s relief, he just recently cleaned. “I mean, if you want my opinion” – you say, but Jake cuts you off with a laugh.

“I think you and I both know,” he says, sliding your seat back to give you more leg room, “that I can’t get enough of your opinions.”

Your smile widens as you glance at him in amusement. “The clearance of your pickup makes it especially dangerous for other vehicles on the road.”

Jake raises his eyebrows. “It makes it especially safe for its passengers in a collision,” he says.

“For you,” you reply pointedly. “Your bed sits so high off the ground, it can go right through somebody’s windshield.”

Jake scoffs. “They should get a truck, then.”

You sigh. “It always comes down to ‘what’s best for Jake?’, doesn’t it?”

He blinks at you. “I don’t like this game anymore.”

You purse your lips and look away, buckling your seatbelt. “You asked for it.”

“I just thought we could talk about fuel economy or the bumpy ride,” he says, feeling slightly deflated. “It certainly ain’t no Mustang.”

You glance at him curiously. “It’s definitely a little rough around the edges,” you say.

Jake takes this as a personal attack and immediately starts defending his truck. “Might be a bit less polished than you’re used to,” he says. “But it’s a hell of a lot tougher.”

You raise your eyebrows. “Mustang’s probably faster.”

Jake narrows his eyes. “You like fast?” he asks.

You let out a laugh. “Not typically.”

Jake pauses to ponder over what that might mean. Then, he gives his head a slight shake and continues, “Truck has more power.”

“Mustang is a muscle car.”

Jake stares at you irritably. “Do you even know what that means?”

“It means it’s just as powerful as your truck with less weight to carry.”

“Truck has higher torque,” Jake retorts.

“What the fuck is torque?”

“The truck is bigger,” Jake continues, ignoring your question as he affectionately strokes the roof of the cab.

You press your lips together to hold back a grin. “Are we still talking about the car?”

Jake glances back at you with a smirk. “Truck’s more reliable,” he says.

Your eyes meet his as you consider his words at length. Finally, you look away, settling deeper into the seat. “Won’t know until you give me a ride, will I?”

Jake nods with a soft chuckle and closes your door. He stands for a moment outside the passenger side door, marvelling at the fact that each successive conversation he has with you seems to be his favorite one yet. He walks around the back of the truck, spinning his keys around his index finger as his heart performs a series of well-meaning flips in his chest, to which he doesn’t take too kindly. He climbs into his seat and sticks the key into the ignition, glancing over at you with a mischievous grin. “Mustang probably doesn’t even have a key,” he says.

You snort. “It’s called a key fob.”

“Oh, is that what it’s called?” Jake asks facetiously, turning over the engine.

“Starts the car all the same,” you respond with a shrug.

Jake reaches out to grab the back of your headrest as he looks over his shoulder to reverse. “I prefer the classic key in lock scenario. Guess I’m old school like that.”

You give him a withering look. “You would.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asks, turning out of the parking lot.

“I mean, the idea of inserting a phallic object into a fitted slot would entice a simple-minded man such as yourself,” you say smugly. “But, just so you know, there are other ways to get a motor running.”

Jake eyes you with amusement. “Enlighten me.” He would love to see how far you could take this metaphor.

You shrug. “You could hot-wire. Bypass the lock cylinder altogether.”

Jake laughs. “Depends on the car, of course,” he notes.

You shake your head with a chuckle. “I think this is the weirdest conversation I’ve ever had.”

Jake glances at you with a smirk, his gaze slipping briefly to watch you rest your hands over your bare thighs. He grips the steering wheel tighter to refrain from reaching over and placing a palm over your leg. “Every conversation I have with you is fucking weird, Y/N,” he responds.

You scoff. “You’re blaming me for the weird?”

Jake grins, watching the road ahead. “You’re the weird one.” Out of the corner of his eye, he sees you cross your arms. “C’mon, you’re not offended, are you? Weird is good,” he says. “Weird is interesting.”

You turn your head to look at him and he grimaces at his slip. “You think I’m interesting?” you ask.

“I didn’t say that.”

“You said that I’m weird and that weird is interesting,” you reason. “Ergo –”

“Please don’t say ‘ergo’.” Jake cringes.

You reach across the console to smack his shoulder.

Jake ducks with a laugh. “Don’t hit the driver!”

“Don’t be an ass, then,” you retort.

Jake steals a glance at you with a smirk. You’re shaking your head but you’re smiling, so he forms the split-second decision to make a detour, turning toward the beach.

“Where are you going?” you ask, noticing the change in course.

“It’s a surprise,” Jake responds, eyeing you cautiously.

You lean forward and squint into the darkness. “Are you heading for the beach?”

“What part of ‘it’s a surprise’ don’t you understand?”

You slump back into your seat with a resigned sigh. “Fine, I’ll be patient.”

“Sure, you will,” Jake replies skeptically, turning into a parking lot.

You peek out of your window at the stairs in the distance leading down toward the water. “Are you planning on going for a swim, Seresin?”

Jake pulls on the handbrake and takes the key out of the ignition. He looks over at you with a grin. “Not without you,” he says.

You start laughing. “No way.”

He shrugs. “Another time, then.”

“What are we doing here?”

“Well, I feel kind of bad for ruining your night,” he says. “Thought maybe I could make it up to you.” He pulls on his doorhandle and hops out of the cab. Walking around, he finds that you’ve already got your door open and your leg out of the truck, a heeled foot dangling about fifteen inches off the pavement. He reaches in to take your hand.

“Thanks,” you say, wrapping your fingers around his and stepping out.

Jake pulls a blanket out from the backseat before shutting the door while you watch him with furrowed brows. “Come,” he says, ushering you toward the back of the truck. He walks around back and lowers the tailgate, then he throws the blanket down onto the bed. “Hop on,” he says.

You look at him suspiciously. “Why?”

“To play duck, duck, goose, what do you think?” he responds flatly.

You stare at him, unamused. “I don’t know what to think,” you say pointedly, but you turn around and place your hands on the tailgate.

Jake grabs your waist as you hop and helps you land your bottom onto the blanket. Then, he jumps onto the bed and sits himself down beside you.

“Now what?” you ask, a note of cynicism in your voice.

“Now, we count the stars.” Jake lets out a sigh and lays his back down onto the truck bed, resting his hands over his chest.

You glance down at him in disbelief. “You’re not fucking serious.”

“Well, not about the counting part.”

You lift your eyebrows and lower yourself backward onto your elbows, still watching Jake. “This is absurd,” you say.

Jake glances at you with a serious expression. “Well, don’t watch me. The show’s up there.”

You look up to see a meteor cut across the inky sky and gasp. “Oh my god! Did you see that?” you squeal, pointing upward.

Jake laughs. “I saw about five while you were sulking.”

“Wow,” you breathe, staring at the night sky as the meteor shower continues overhead. “It’s so beautiful.”

“Get comfortable,” Jake says, nudging your elbow with his shoulder. “This only happens a few times a year.”

You rest your back on the blanket and Jake glances at you furtively as you blink up in awe. “You cold?” he asks. “Want to wrap the blanket around yourself?” he offers.

“Yeah, sure,” you respond absently.

Jake lifts himself onto his forearm and leans over you to grab the edge of the blanket. You glance up at him as he reaches and Jake, thrown completely off his game by the proximity of your face, freezes and stares at you like an idiot. There are about a dozen things he could say or do that might persuade you to dismiss the meteor shower in favor of less dignified pursuits. But Jake is convinced that, even if you were to temporarily let your guard down, you’re not the type of girl he can just get out of his system. And, truthfully, at this point, he probably wouldn’t want to.

You look away first, your gaze focusing instead on his arm, still stretched over your head, mid-reach. Jake fumbles with the corner of the blanket, suddenly aware that he’s been perched over your body for a solid thirty seconds, and pulls it over you as he moves away. “Thanks,” you mutter.

Jake squints up at the sky with a partially suppressed sigh and brings his hands behind his head. “We won’t stay for long if you’re uncomfortable,” he says. “Let me know if it gets too cold.”

You turn your head to look at him, but he keeps his gaze squarely on the heavens. A moment later, however, you’re shifting yourself closer and Jake, without a second thought, extends his arm out so that you could rest your head on his shoulder. He nearly jumps out of his skin when you drape an icy leg over his, cozying up to the warmth of his body. “I’m comfortable,” you say quietly, tucking your frozen hands under his back.

Jake winces.

“Sorry!” You laugh.

He takes his hand out from under his head and holds it out for you. “Here,” he says, reaching for your hands. Tentatively, you put your balled up fists into his palm and he closes his fingers around them. “Better?” he asks, resting your cold hands over his chest.

“Mm-hmm,” you respond softly, and Jake all but melts.

After a short while of watching meteors streak across the sky without really seeing them, Jake brings his arm up around your shoulder, gently pulling you closer. “You warming up?” he asks.

He feels your body shift further into his side. “Yeah,” you say.

Jake swallows nervously and clears his throat. “Sorry I punched your… Mustang.”

You snort. “Sure, you are.”

He smiles. “Well, I am sorry that it upset you.”

“That’s funny,” you mutter. “You usually go out of your way to upset me.”

Jake cringes. “That makes me sound like an asshole.”

 “Hate to break it to you, Seresin,” you respond with a chuckle.

Jake purses his lips. “I guess I deserve that.”

You stir and then sit up slowly, looking down at him. “I accept your apology,” you say.

He nods and lifts himself up. “You ready to get going?”

“Probably should.” You look down at the clock on your phone. “It’s getting pretty late.”

Jake hops off the bed of the truck and then helps you get down, perhaps holding your waist a little tighter than necessary in the process. He walks you toward the passenger door.

“One time I asked Mustang,” you say, glancing over your shoulder at Jake with a playful grin, “if we could drive out into the middle of nowhere and lounge on the hood of his car and just, I don’t know, see if we can make out any constellations.” Jake watches you purse your lips and lower your head. You let out a bitter laugh and Jake furrows his eyebrows. “He said there’s no way in hell we could sit on his car because we could scratch the paint or leave a dent or –”

But before you could finish your thought, Jake bends down to hook his arm under your knees and you yelp in alarm as he lifts you off the ground and sets you down on the hood of his truck. You hold your arms out to balance yourself when he lets go and turn to look at him in shock, hanging your legs off the side. Jake leans into the hood, his arms on either side of your legs. “He didn’t let you sit on his car?” he asks in disgust.

You chuckle lightly and shake your head. “He wouldn’t even let me lean on it.”

Jake stares at you, bewildered. “You are really making me want to key that damn Mustang.”

Your eyes widen but your smile remains. “Are you kidding? That would be so much worse than beating him up. That car is his most prized possession.”

Jake glances over your face with a mixture of pity and disbelief. “And he had you.”

You scoff. “I’m not a possession.”

Jake patiently holds your gaze, confident that Mustang saw you as exactly that, and, prompted by a flicker of courage – or perhaps weakness – he lets his thumb graze the bare skin of your outer thigh. He studies you carefully, preparing himself for a wide range of possible reactions, but you don’t move a muscle. Your eyes bore into his, effectively disrupting every thought process in his head while simultaneously setting fire to his insides. He wants you so badly, he’s probably never wanted anything more in his life. And yet, even within his reach, you continue to be unattainable.

He exhales, finally looking away. Jake isn’t the kind of guy who cares terribly about right and wrong. In fact, a state of obvious vulnerability would be something he might have previously taken advantage of. But not tonight. And not with you.

Jake backs away from the hood, leaving you sitting solo. “Go ahead and scratch it up,” he says nonchalantly, as though the paint job is still the only topic of conversation. “You ain’t gonna hurt it.” He glances up to see you smiling at him and grins back. “I could put you on the roof if you like. You could dance on it. Just don’t fall off.”

You laugh. “Is this all part of your ploy to prove that the truck is superior?”

Jake smirks. “Have I convinced you?”

“I mean, it’s not without its flaws,” you say, tapping on the hood with your palm while you swing your feet.

Jake raises his eyebrows. “Well, completely flawless would be boring.”

You nod. “Let’s just say I’m pleasantly surprised.”

Jake chuckles, shaking his head. “I’ll take it.”

Read Part 6

A/N: Wooh hope you guys liked this one!! Someone requested stargazing and Hangman for my 3k celebration last week and it was so hard for me to not be like just wait for the next chapter of Less Talk! XD Love you guys!!

Muah!

Tag List:

The rest of the tag list is in the comments!

@malindacath

@karleetakeenan

@wandering-wah

@callsign-sunshine

@ghost-heart34

@birdy-bat-writes

@matya4

@wkndwlff

@nyx2021

@bellamy1998

@oliviah-25

@alexxavicry

@army24--7

@thefandomimagines

@dracosluvbot

@smit41

@scenesofobx

@Criminalmindsandmarvel

@lunamoonbby

@malums-trash-can

@toothemoonanddback

@broketraveler87

@atarmychick007

@shanimallina87

@army24—7

@creativitybeware 

@xoxabs88xox

@Yoyop7

@hallecarey1

@nik2blog

@rrocky0ah

@kpopgirlbtssvt

@lilianashomaresparza

@latetedslesetoiles

@Elenavampire21

@starberryhorse

@ginger-gabsq

@sarcastic-sourwolf

@risingtripletaurus

@untoldshortsofthefandoms

@dempy

@lanie-k

@clancycucumber230

@littlebookbengal

@zbeez-outlet

@the-winter-marvel33

@potato-girl99981

@phantomxoxo

@flashyourgreeneyesatme

@thenewdaysalreadyhere

@abaker74

[melanieph321]

Dominik Szoboszlai x Black Reader - The Cliff

I'm expanding my horizons with this fic. 😜 Hope you enjoy!

⚠️ Warning ⚠️

18+

Summary Dominik helps Reader overcome her fear of heights.

Enjoy!

You had always been afraid of heights, but today you found yourself at the edge of a cliff, surrounded by your adventurous friends who were all eager to take the leap of faith. The group of you had driven to this secluded spot, nestled in the heart of the mountains, specifically for the purpose of cliff diving. The crystal-clear waters below seemed inviting, but you couldn't shake the feeling of vertigo that gripped you every time you looked down.

One by one, your friends took turns jumping off the edge, their laughter and screams of excitement filling the air. Each dive was met with cheers and encouragement from the group, urging you to join them.

"I just got my hair done!" You shouted in excuses.

No matter how hard you tried, you just couldn't bring yourself to take the plunge.

"Come on Y/N, jump! The water isn't even that cold!"

It was spring break. A time you would usually spend with your family, going to church, celebrating easter. But the last semester at university had been hard for you. You struggled alot but got through it. "You deserved to have some fun." Your friends told you, convincing you to join them on their annual road trip through Hungary. A big mistake, considering you now stood looking down the edge of a cliff, trying to talk yourself into plunging to your own death.

"Y/N?"

Dominik, one of your friends, reclimbed the mountain for his second jump.

"You still haven't jumped yet?" He asked.

"No."

"Well then, last man down is a..."

You were already on your way down, the mountain trail.

"Hey, come on. Don't leave."

You turned back around.  "Dom, I don't care what you tell the others, I'm not jumping."

"Come on, quit being such a coward and jump with me."

"Um... what did you call me?"

Dominik was know for his cocky demeanor. Only a few people, including you, knew that he was a gentleman at heart. But to most, especially the girls on campus, he was a known fuckboy with a lean body to match his arrogant persona.

"I said take my hand and let's do this. Trust me you won't regret it."

You snorted. "I'll definitely regret holding your hand."

"Y/N."

"Fine."

You walked to the edge of the cliff, hand in hand, peering over the edge. The wind whipped through your braids as you gazed down at the water below. You felt a surge of adrenaline coursing through your veins, but instead of fear, you felt a sense of exhilaration. This was it – the moment you had been pushing aside for so long.

"Don't let go." You turned to Dominik, he looked puzzled. "Of my hand. Don't let go of my hand until we hit the water."

He smiled. "Trust me, I won't let you go."

Taking a deep breath, you closed your eyes. Domink took the lead, stepping off the edge. All you had to do was follow.

Your arms were intertwined as you hurtled towards the water, the rush of the fall making your heart race. Dominik kept his promise, never letting go of your hand. Resurfacing from the deep, you were met with triumphant cheers and applause from your friends.

"Yes, Y/N! Way to go!"

Dominik swam beside you, grinning from ear to ear. "You did it. You finally jumped."

"Thank you." You said, quite humbled by his kindness.

For dinner you and your friends set up to have a nice BBQ around the fireplace. The cliff was located near a known camping spot, that's where you were planning on spending the night.

"Truth or dare?" Someone suggested. It was well into the night and most of you already had alot to drink. Nevertheless, everyone was up for a classic game of truth or dare.

"I dare you to...," said one friend, "sing that embarrassing song from high school that we all used to hate."

"Truth or dare?" asked another, "which celebrity crush do you have that no one else knows about?"

The group erupted into laughter as you watched each other squirm and giggle through the dares. When it came time for you to choose, you decided to mix things up by choosing "truth".

"Okay, what's your biggest fear Y/N?"

"Heights, obviously."

Heartwarming laugher spread around the fireplace.

"Okay, that was too easy. Here is another one. Who here would you let fuck you like there was no tomorrow?"

In a brief state of shock you let your gaze land on Dominik. To your surprise he was already looking your way. His eyes were deceiving and his expression quite hard to read.

"Um...I don't know." You mumbled, once again praising the lord for your melanin skin. It never gave away your flustered embarrassment.

"You have to pick someone."  A girl named Nelly protested.

"Then I guess I pick you." You hissed

The people around the campfire chuckled, someone of them quite impressed with your rapid answer.

Now it was your turn.

"Nelly, truth or dare?"

"Dare."

"I dare you to strip naked and run down to the lake for a swim."

It wasn't a dare for Nelly, it was simply a request. She wasn't shy about her body, everyone knew that. She stood, stripping herself naked with cynical cheerfulness. Asking her to run into the lake was your way of getting rid of her for a minute. She returned to the campfire wet haired, skin glistening in lake water.

"My turn." She said, happily accepting the jacket offered to her by one of the boys.

"Dom, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"Which one of us girls would you rather fuck like there was no tomorrow? Be honest."

He gave away a slight chuckle.

The attention was automatically drawn back to you since Dominik received the exact same question you had. Compared to you the questioned hadn't startled him and he would probably give a better answer than you had.

"Well?" Nelly said impatiently. Like everyone else she was eager to hear his answer.

"Well what?" He smirked.

"Who'd you pick, out of us girls?"

"I'm looking at her right now."

Like everyone else's your gaze shifted curiously. However they were all looking at you.

"Me?"

Your attention was brought back to Dominik. And yes, he was in fact staring at you.

"Ohhh, Y/N and Dominik sitting in a tree...." Nelly teseased.

Giggles and laughter spread around the campfire.

"I knew you guys were taking a bit too long up on that cliff." One guy joked. "What were you two doing prior to jumping."

"None of your business." Dominik winked. At last he broke your eye contact. It had been intense, causing blood to rush to your cheeks.

As the night went on and the alcohol continued to flow you somewhat forgot about the silly game of truth and there, that is, until there was a knock on your cabin door far too late in the night.

"Dominik?"

He stood errect in the moonlight, undoubtedly confident to knock on your door at this hour.

"Zayn and Nelly are going off like animals in our cabin, can I stay with you?"

Nelly was meant to be your bunk buddy, now that she had snucked her way into Zayn's cabin, you had an empty bed.

You let him, crawling back into your bed, however, you were startled by the sight of Dominik, pushing Nelly's bunk across the room.

"What are you...."

"There, much better." He said, once Nelly's bed lay alongside yours, making it a conjoined sleeping unit.

"Are you crazy?" You laughed.

"What?"

He joined you under the covers.

"This is so not happening."

"What?"

"This." You pointed to the two of you.

"Y/N, relax. I just don't like going to bed alone. I'm not really used to it if you know what I mean."

You rolled your eyes and pulled the covers over your body. You slept with your back to him.

"Oh, come on. It was a joke."

You sat up, turning to face him. "It wasn't funny, neither was your answer during truth or dare."

He laughed. "What did you want me to do, lie?"

"Please Dominik. As if you've ever been intrested in me."

"Since the day I met you actually."

You frowned.

"Sure, you seemed a bit uptight at first but I thought hey, at least she will be a fun challenge."

"Wow, so getting with me has been a challenge for you, a game?"

"Hey, Y/N. You've got me all wrong. Why is me being into you so hard for you to understand? A guy doesn't make a jump like that twice, unless he is trying to impress a girl."

"You. Impress me?" It was hard for you to understand. "You're telling you reclimbed that mountain to impress me?"

"It worked didn't it? After that you started paying more attention to me, seeing me for more than just a fuckboy."

"I don't only see you as a fuckboy."

"Please, I hear the way you girls talk when you think I'm not listening. How you warn your friends not to fall for my tricks, as if I have any."

You were a bit taken back. In a way this was your first conversation with Dominik that wasn't infatuated with you calling him out for how he treats women. In a way, fueling his already presumed behavior.

"What are you trying to say Dom? That your into me and want me to be your girlfriend?"

"No."

"Oh."

You played with fire. Fire burns.

"I was thinking we could fuck each other like there is no tomorrow. If tomorrow happens to come around." He shrugged. "So be it."

You leaped forward, kissing him, eager to taste him. He explored you in other ways, his hand already finding you under the covers. You could always tell when a guy knew what he was doing or not. Domink knew what he was doing. He found ways to turn you on with gentle strokes, his hands exploring your many curves and creases. He had rolled you over within minutes of taking your clothes off.

"Turn around for me."

"Like this?" You whispered.

"Yes."

He massaged your ass, his fingers moving roughly over your skin. You lay flat on your belly, legs spread. Domink came to you with caution, bending down to trace kissed down the slope of your back all the way to the curve of your ass. You felt his length press against you, he was big, big and ready.

"Lift your hips up for me."

"Like this?"

You stretched out like a cat, offering yourself to him.

He grunted in satisfaction.

A hand slipped between your legs. He drew a vertical line with his fingers, sperating your folds along the way.

"Dom, please." You moaned, your body begging to have him inside you.

He place himself behind you, aligning his cock with your entrance. He then slipped in with ease. You were that ready for him.

"You feel so good." He thrusted into you. Slow at first but the pace increasing rapidly.

Yes. Harder please."

The bed squeaked with his movment, on the verge of breaking the plank. Once again your heart raced with the thrilling sense of free falling. You were back on top of the cliff, ready to plunge to your death. However without the fear. You had no fear, primarily because you weren't diving into the deep alone.

[qiutls]

TNGDH 014

The festival began in earnest in the North, and the celebration was lively enough to forget the coldness of the winter.

'Hmm, why are they holding such a big festival when it's not even the season of harvesting?'

It's hard to get flowers during this time of the year, since the cold wind blows day and night, it must be expensive to buy them from outside. It's not even thanksgiving, nor spring... Why is the festival celebrated during this cold season?

"Because the day is short."

Sen answered my question clearly.

"It's a period of time where there's less stuff for people to do. And people tend to get depressed easily when the amount of sunlight is reduced. Lethargy makes people sick; the poor starve to death and the pessimists often kill themselves."

I see. I've never thought of that.

I looked up at the red sky beyond the castle walls. The sun was already setting even though it was still early in the day.

"So, His Highness deliberately makes the coldest and darkest times lively. Spending this week, by generously releasing food collected throughout the year and buying people's goods at a high price. Aristocrats from the city are also invited to spend money for the merchants to earn their keep. It's like giving a gift to the people of the estate in order for them to keep enduring until spring."

That means, while Kyle's not hanging out with me, he was taking care of everyone in the estate. I honestly admire it.

"Soon, His Highness will deliver a speech to commemorate the charity event. Do you want to go and see it?"

I nodded.

There's still time left anyway. I tried to meet Belial, but unfortunately, I still couldn't, so I just looked around the castle. Since the time for "Summon" was doubled, I can enjoy this luxury.

"Are they selling food on the street?"

"Have you not tried the festival food? Oh, this can't do! Come on, follow me. I'll treat you today!"

The place Sen led me to was teeming with people and stalls.

'Wow, there's really a lot to eat.'

There're orange-colored candied apples, grilled barbeque and lots of fried snacks and sweets covered in caramel sauce. My eyes, nose and mouth are all satisfied with all the food surrounding me,

'Life in the north is better than I expected...'

Only when there's delicious food can a heart full of love for the estate be born. I watched the vividness of the street while taking a bite at the food Sen bought me.

"Your Highness!"

"Thank you so much, my lord!"

The festival was more exhilarating than I thought, and so was Kyle's speech, which we watched from afar.

It was good to watch him from a distance that could be reached at any time if I wanted. But the Lord of Blake, exuding greatness, who could only be seen from afar, is also pretty cool.

He looked at his subjects from the stage with a blank expression that seemed cold to anyone else.

If you didn't know anything about him, you would misunderstand and think he was a villain or a tyrant.

But I know that's not the case at all. I haven't been with him for a long time, but I already know him well. What more for the people who have been living in this estate for years.

"It was really a good choice to come to the North."

"Who said otherwise? If it wasn't for Your Highness, we would have all starved to death a few years ago."

This was someone's vivid life, which cannot be explained by just a few lines in a novel. The reality is that the energy and passion of the people does not cool down despite the harsh winter wind. Their indomitable determination to live and breathe keeps them going.

"Who said you were a cold and unfeeling Duke of the North...."

If you look at him at any angle, you'd obviously see otherwise. Of course, I like it better like this than what the book described.

"Here, eat this too Shu."

As I stared at Kyle, Sen came to me with honey-coated fruit skewers on both hands.

I took a big bite of what looked like Tanghulu. It was crunchy and juicy, the fruit itself tasted almost fresh, perhaps because of the cold northern climate. Before I knew it, I've already eaten all four of the skewered fruits.

It was a fruitful hour, I ate delicious food and met new people. It almost felt like I was free from everything.

But now it's time to go back, I looked back at everything with regret. My eyes which scanned the street landed on Kyle, who was distributing rations directly to the people.

Hmm, it was a good choice that I decided to save you.

"The only problem is, can I actually do it..."

"What did you say?"

"...Ah! It was nothing. I was just talking to myself. Thank you for the snack, I'm off now."

Sen tilted her head and asked,

"Why are you always in a hurry to leave every day? I haven't even seen you for more than an hour."

"That- It's, well it's complicated."

I want to stay longer too. There's a pile of food to eat from here to there. That beer, that homemade sausage, and beef jerky? Just imagining them is already making my mouth water.

I eventually returned to the castle with a bag of snacks.

'I should get home before Kyle comes back.'

I shouldn't make him worry this day, or else he might turn the study upside down trying to look for a hamster.

However, there was another problem I overlooked.

"Cashew Nut, as long as you're healthy, I have nothing else to wish for."

I ate too many again, so I went home full and turned a blind eye to the nuts left in the bowl. Kyle put the macadamia near my mouth trying to make me it, but I really couldn't take another bite.

The magicians came and said they still didn't feel any mana from me, and Kyle's face became dimmer at the suggestion that he inject more magical power to me.

Kyle wrapped a handkerchief around me and brought me to sleep with him in his bedroom. But what do I do, I can't sleep since I slept a lot during the day.

I spent the whole time tossing and turning around Kyle's sleeping face.

'You're quite handsome...'

This is what they mean by being full just by looking at a handsome face huh?

I can't get enough of it.

*

I have a lot of worries.

I did locate Belial's room. However, it was embarrassing to even pass by because of the knights guarding the door.

Is it tradition for the royal family to set up guard posts outside their bedroom? You live a strict life.

Agh! Listen people, I'm trying so hard to save your lives, but how is it a possible that not a single one of you take me seriously? That villain like chandelier! I get so upset looking at it. That item doesn't care for anyone's safety!

It has already been three days since I discovered Belial's room and have walked nearby to chance upon the prince. What can mulling over it do, I can only confront him and say it upfront.

Now that the banquet is just around the corner, if I keep wasting time like this, I'll end up sacrificing my body when the time comes just to prevent the accident.

There's nothing I can do, if I can't see you today, I'll have no choice but to enter your room through the window.

"Oh-"

Just then, I saw Belial walking at the hallway on the other side. There were several knights around him, but I could see his face when I tip-toed.

I apporached him in a heartbeat. There was no time to think. This is my last chance. My desperate voice called out,

"Prince!"

With a snap.

Belial's green eyes landed on my face the same time his knights drew their swords out and placed them near my neck. I could feel the cool sensation of the blades tightening on all sides of my neck.

If this continues, I might get cut just by swallowing saliva. Please go easy on me hmm. I was just calling out to the prince.

"Uhm, this is a little..."

Isn't this too much for someone who doesn't even have a weapon? Even if I was really crazy and tried to kick Belial, my legs wouldn't even reach his head.

Belial raised his hand.

"It's fine."

The problem was that even though the prince was amiable, the knights were not and started shouting at me as soon as they placed their cwords back.

"Be polite to His Highness!"

What? Why? Is there something I should do before greeting? Should I kneel?

Judging from the atmosphere, it seems like I should. When I stood up after kneeling, the atmosphere seemed to be better.

'I got it. I got it.'

I'm like a dirty, low-ranking commoner.

"I'm sorry to disturb His Highness' business like this but..."

I lowered my head and said,

"Please don't go to the banquet."

I'm not that good at talking, so rather than explaining my actions and why I'm asking him to do this, it's better to just say it directly.

Belial took a step closer to me. His shoes came into my view of the floor. Compared to my shoes which were dirty, his were sparkling clean. Is this the saying children from different families are different.

"There are only two days until the banquet, you don't want me to attend all of a sudden?"

"Yes."

"Even though I just received the invitation from the Grand Duke?"

"Yes."

I answered carelessly.

Why do you keep asking me ah? Are you going to block that falling chandelier with that invitaiton? If you get one shot, you should shoot it. If I can save you, then I'll save you.

I lifted my head slightly.

"I'm just informing the prince." The future of the North can only be protected if you are careful. I know nothing aside from that, I'm just a pet hamster who doesn't even pay for its own food.

"You're saying that as if someone has planned to hurt me at the banquet."

Belial whispered near my ear. His voice was clear and gentle, yet his words were cold and rough.

"That's not true."

I answered casually.

"If you're thinking that His Highness Kyle has plotted to kill you, he wouldn't wait and cause trouble at his own banquet to do it, Your Highness."

And Kyle will never want that to happen. He is a person who will never do that nor even think that in his mind.

He is the leader of the North. His actions are closely linked to the future of the people in this estate. And Kyle knows his responsibility. He is quite different from you who just came here and tried to cause a scandal.

"That's funny."

Belial laughed quietly, as if I had said something weird. Him and Kyle say the same stuff as if they were brothers.

He slid his arm and grabbed my chin with his fingers, tilted my face upwards and made eye contact with me. I thought a man couldn't be both gentle and rough, but he can definitely do it. In this sense, you could say he's a great man.

But of course, to other people, he probably just looks like a gentle and fairy like prince tilting my head to see my face.

"What a strange face. It looks unique."

It's because I'm a native Korean. Your Highness, if you go to Hongdae, or Sangsu or Hapjeong, you would find 500 people who look like me.

"Why are you stopping me from attending so desperately seeing as you're not even from the North?"

What should I say.

I can't just say, I don't want you to get hit by the chandelier and lead the North to destruction.

I feel like I've seen my future in a book if I do say those words to you, my life will end with a sword slicing my throat.

Somebody help me!

Is it possible that there's someone who's fate is tied to Belial, will step in for me, just coincidentally.

"Perhaps..."

They're here.

"They just didn't want you and the grand duke to be upset during the banquet."

I turned my head in delight and saw Sen, who was holding hamster toys and snacks in her arms.

'That's right!'

[ (*≧▽≦)ﾉｼ ]

'... Although I'm still quite nervous.'

It isn't a lie that I'm happy right now.

Sen came closer to me with a smile. Is it just me? There seemed to be a halo around her right now.

T/N I do hope Sen/Serena stays this way and doesn't harm Soohyun/Shu or Kyle in the future ☆ｏ(＞＜；)○

novel ⠀✿⠀ next

[nahoney22]

could i request an nsfw tech x trans male reader? your writing in different tactics was absolutely phenomenal !! i really like the way the way you characterized him in it! i think i would just melt if he called the reader a pretty boy lol

Pretty Boy***

Tech X MTrans!Reader

word count: 1k

As the requests asks 🩵 Tech surprises you with a new wave of confidence in the bedroom.

warnings: NSFW 18+, light smut, oral sex (tech receiving) brief mentions of transitioning (F to M), pet names, swearing, established relationship, fluff, lovers, slightly dom! Tech. Praises.

authors note: thanks for the kind words and so sorry for the delay anon, hope this was okay! Short but sweet.

As the sun dipped below the horizon on Ord Mantell, you and Tech exited Cid's parlor, fingers entwined, exhilarated by the triumph of today's mission.

"I still can't believe we pulled it off! Not everyday you witness someone taking down a Rancor, again," you chuckled, leaning into Tech's side as he nodded in agreement.

"Wrecker is undeniably a force to be reckoned with," Tech pondered, pressing a button on his wrist to lower the Marauder's gangplank.

You thanked him as he let you board the ship first, scanning around and then turned to him with a mischievous smirk, arching an eyebrow. "Guess what, handsome?"

Tech hesitated momentarily, his usual reserve showing when compliments about his appearance were directed his way, but a heat warmed his cheeks nonetheless. "Must I guess, or will you be kind enough to spare my exceptional mind and tell me?" he replied with a small chuckle.

You playfully rolled your eyes and took a step closer, wrapping your arms around the back of his neck. "We're finally alone... for the first time in a while," you hinted, your gaze shifting longingly to his lips before returning to his eyes, which sparkled with intrigue.

"That's excellent news," Tech declared, pushing his goggles up his nose, his confidence surging. He used a finger to lift your chin, ensuring your eyes stayed locked on his. "How long has it been?"

"A while," you admitted a little sheepishly, glancing away. After Tech learned about your transition, you'd been apprehensive about the relationship's future. However, he had reassured you of his unwavering love he had for you.

"Then," Tech said, his chest swelling with confidence, "let's not waste any more time, pretty boy."

Your heart raced, threatening to break free from your ribcage. His endearing nickname left you flustered for a delightful change. As you start struggling to form coherent words, Tech kindly silences you with a tender kiss.

You melt against him, something that’s not so unusual and it’s not long until the kiss fires a bonfire inside both of you. Tech presses into you, his arousal evident against your stomach as he cleverly unclips his utility belt with ease.

“Eager?” You rasp against his mouth, helping yourself to strip off your gear and shirt, letting it drop to the floor without a care.

“How could I not be?” He mutters, eyelids heavy as he breaks away from the kiss, admiring your body before his hands start to roam. “Maker, you’re quite a sight to behold.”

His words made you putty in his hands so much so you pushed him into the cockpit until he collapsed down into his seat. Crawling onto your hands and knees, you sandwich yourself between his toned legs. “Perhaps this angle might excite you some more.” You purr with a wag of your eyebrows, a hand running over his thighs before you start to tug against the hem of his pants. He lifts his hips helpfully as you slide them down to his ankles and you let out a small whine as his cock springs free, leaking with precum already.

“Oh look, I was right.” You chime, mouth salivating already. Tech watches you intently, a coy smirk playing on his lips.

“Someone is doing a whole lot of talking and not a whole lot of pleasuring, darling.” He quips and you can’t help but swoon at his confidence that makes your legs tremble. When you first started dating, Tech was rather quiet during intimate moments but now? He will happily talk you through everything he is going to do to you.

You look at him with innocent eyes, one of your hands coming towards his throbbing length that suddenly twitches under your touch. “Is there a ‘please’ to come with that?” Tone teasing as you pump along his length.

He chuckles, stooping forward and resting a hand on the back of your head. “Please suck my cock… pretty boy.”

Again, the pet name sends you wild as you whine needily in response, allowing his hand on the back of your head to guide you towards his cock, wrapping your lips around the swollen end.

He hissed through his teeth then chewed on his lower lip as he watched you lock eyes with him, your mouth slowly becoming stuffed with his appendage. “It appears to me that you gain pleasure after I - oh yes, right there - give you a certain pet name.”

You hum in response, your mouth too occupied to reply with words. Your pleasure builds as your eyes start to sting as you take his length in further, poking at the back of your throat. You pull back from him, gasping for your breath and graciously wiping the spit from your lips. “Well observed.”

He chuckles, eyes lovingly pinned on your as his fingers play with your hair. “Keep doing a good job for me, and you will be rewarded with more than just a name.”

It doesn’t take you a second thought before your lips are back on his cock, tongue swirling around the tip and tasting the tasty saltiness that he had to offer.

You blinked up at Tech devilishly as his breathing became ragged and heavy, his hand leaving the back of your head to hold onto the underside of his chair.

Your mouth aches but Tech’s moans were too good to cut it short so you powered through just to hear his groans of pleasure as your throat tightened around his cock.

The feeling made Tech crazy, his hips involuntarily thrusting as his climax begins to bubble, praising your name before you let out a guttural grunt and doubled over, shooting his beads of pearly white come in your mouth.

“Good boy,” Tech pants, pushing his goggles up to rest on his forehead as he comes down from his high, watching you adoringly as you shift yourself into the chair beside him and grin softly.

“Was that to your liking?”

“Most significantly,” he wipes the sweat from his temple, flustered and still very much burning with desire, “but now it is time for me to return the favour.”

Masterlist

More Tech Works

tags: @andyoufollowyourheart @littlefeatherr @kaitou2417 @eyecandyeoz @captxin-rex @jesseeka @ashotofspotchka @oohyesplease @theroguesully @mustluvecho @ladykatakuri @jambolska-grozdova @arctrooper69 @padawancat97 @rain-on-kamino @either-madness-or-brilliance @staycalmandhugaclone @ko-neko-san @echos-girlfriend @fiveshelmet @dangraccoon @plushymiku-blog @chrissywakingup @kixs-husband @pb-jellybeans @nunanuggets @sleepycreativewriter @erellenora @zippingstars87 @crystal076 @blustalker

[sage-nebula]

Notes: One last little piece written for Wholesome Brothers Wednesday in the server I'm in, to soothe my own hurt feelings over my Tails figure arriving in the mail broken. ;_; Once again from a potential novelization of Sonic 2, though a little bit earlier in the timeline than the previous piece: this is the one in which names are exchanged, taking place about a day after they met.

Once again, Sonic is eleven, Tails is four.

- - -

Miles had never seen so many robots in his life.

That wasn’t saying much, he supposed, as he watched the blue hedgehog bust open another . . . motobug, he thought the hedgehog had called it. The casing snapped apart with a loud crack, and a ricky tumbled out onto the grass, dazed but otherwise unharmed. The hedgehog paused just long enough to make sure the ricky could sit upright before he took off again; Miles lingered behind just long enough to pick the ricky up and place it on a tree branch.

“Make sure to find a good hiding place, okay?” he said, and rubbed his finger atop the ricky’s head. “Just in case Dr Robuttnik comes back.”

The ricky stared at Miles with wide eyes before it turned and bolted higher up the tree. That was okay; Miles thought it understood what he was saying anyway.

With the ricky safe, Miles took off after the hedgehog again. By this point the hedgehog was a little blue dot amidst the sweeping grass of Emerald Hill’s landscape, but he was still easy to spot. With a whirl of his tails Miles took to the air, flying high above a monkey robot hiding in another tree’s leaves. Up ahead, the hedgehog sped along a corkscrew, running so fast he was able to stay on even as he ran on the underside of it, something Miles had never seen anyone do.

He was so cool! 

The hedgehog cleared the other side with an exhilarated cheer, and came to a hard stop on the grass. He spun on the ball of his foot so that he could look back the way he just came. Miles was just halfway over the corkscrew now, and starting to feel a little tired—but he wasn’t about to say that, not when the hedgehog had just done something so cool and was grinning so wide because he knew it.

Miles grinned back and flashed a thumbs-up—and then froze as something buzzed loud behind him.

The hedgehog’s grin was gone; his lips tugged down in a harsh frown, his eyes narrowed as he shifted his stance to run again. Any panic Miles might’ve felt at the idea that he had done something to upset him was dwarfed by the panic he felt at the ferocious buzzing behind him, and he whirled around to find himself staring right in the eyes of a giant bee robot.

Miles couldn’t help it—he screamed. Loud. And smashed the sole of his shoe right into the bee robot’s abdomen.

The bee robot crashed into the corkscrew hard enough to break apart; screws and springs and metal casing went flying in every direction as a dazed flicky was thrown free. The hedgehog crossed the corkscrew quickly enough to catch the flicky in cupped hands, and set the flicky down on the other side so that it could take a moment to recover in the grass. Miles flew over to join them, and as he landed, the hedgehog looked up at him with another wide grin.

“Good one, Tails! You showed that buzz bomber who’s boss.”

Miles blinked; surprise hit him hard enough that he forgot to keep his tails spinning, and he landed on the grass with a stumble. “‘Tails?’”

The hedgehog stepped back from the still-recovering flicky. His grin didn’t vanish, but he almost looked a little . . . nervous? . . . as he scratched the side of his nose.

“Well, yeah,” he said. “I don’t know what else to call you, and you’ve got two, so . . .” He shrugged.

A familiar sense of self-conscious embarrassment washed over Miles, and he clutched his tails to his chest. When he held them like this, they almost looked like one big tail. But as quickly as the sensation came, it faded. When he’d caught up to the hedgehog for the first time a day ago, to say thank you for the way he had helped Miles with the bullies, he had expressed shock at the fact that—well, first at the fact that Miles had been able to catch up to him, but then at the fact that Miles could fly. He was the first person Miles could remember who didn’t think his tails were weird or gross. He had said they were cool.

Miles let his arms fall, his tails swooping back behind him again. This hedgehog—this super cool, super fast hero—thought his tails were cool, so when he called him Tails . . .

“But if you don’t like that, that’s fine,” the hedgehog said, his tone as casual as his stance. “I just need something to call you, so—”

“No, it’s okay!” Miles said, and he spun his tails a little so he could lift up on his tip-toes. “You can call me Tails. It’s like a—like a nickname, right?” 

A nickname like what friends gave each other, from what he’d observed from other kids in the village. Not that he would go so far as to say the hedgehog saw Miles as a friend—he could only be so lucky—but he at least didn’t see him as a freak, and that was good enough.

The hedgehog laughed. “Yeah, exactly. And my name’s Sonic.”

It took only a second for Miles to remember where he’d heard that word before. “Because you’re fast?” he asked, and before Sonic could answer, added, “Because—because I read in a book that when mil’tary planes go really fast—” he made whoosh motion with his hand, like how he imagined a plane would look, “—they can make shock waves called sonic booms. But that only happens when they go really fast. Faster than the speed of sound.”

Sonic pressed his lips together tightly, his cheeks puffed. It looked like how other kids in the village looked when they were trying not to laugh, but unlike them, Sonic’s eyes weren’t mean. 

When his held back laughter subsided, Sonic said, “Kind of. I’m definitely fast, and Sonic means speed, but I wasn’t named after sonic booms.” He paused, then said with a wink, “Sonic booms were named after me.”

Miles’ eyes widened. “Really?”

Sonic nodded, the very picture of confidence. “Really.”

“That’s so cool!” This time the swift spin of his tails lifted him right off the ground, and Miles felt like he could fly higher than ever as Sonic laughed. “Wow, I hope I could have something cool named after me someday.”

Sonic shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe you will.” 

“You think so?”

“Sure, why not? Stick with me, and anything could happen.” Sonic paused, and flashed Tails another daring grin. “So long as you can keep up, of course!”

With that, he was off, blazing his path back across the corkscrew. His fatigue all but forgotten, Miles—no, Tails took off after, zipping along through the air behind him.

[the-travelling-witch]

Well uh it's my first time asking for anything so I'm kinda awkward but I just wanted to request the "accidental confession" post but with other characters I was thinking like keaya and childe maybe??? Just don't overwork urself stay hydrated and don't forget to eat ♡´･ᴗ･`♡

it´s my first time receiving a request, so thank you very much ♡

i´m very flattered i´m the one you made your first request to which also makes me feel even more guilty for taking so long but i hope you enjoy it nonetheless ଘ(੭ˊᵕˋ)੭

Accidental confessions pt.2

summary: more reactions to accidentally confessing to you!

pairings: childe x gn!reader; kaeya x reader; thoma x reader; gorou x reader

warnings: (mentions of) fighting in childe´s part; minor mentions of war in gorou´s part; this is pure fluff (do tell me if i forgot anything though)

a/n: the necromancy has worked, i´m back from the dead; i´m really sorry this took so long but life´s life and i didn´t want to half-ass a request, so i hope the wait was worth it

find part 1 here!

genshin impact masterlist

CHILDE

Childe is so easy-going and downright chaotic, this doesn´t surprise me in the least

His reaction will just be “whoops” and then he goes about his day

Obviously, Childe´s still very interested in your answer, so if you don´t have one on the spot, he´ll be back to pester you about it at the latest the day after

All in all, he´s very casual about it, he´s confident in himself and he would´ve told you eventually anyway, what´s the harm with doing it sooner than later?

“Come on, you can do better than that.” The ginger knocked the sword you were holding right out of your hands with his own before closing the distance and wrapping his arms around your neck in a chokehold. His voice sounded right next to your ear now. “You seem distracted today. Don´t tell me I´m your distraction.”

It was laughable, really, the fact that you and Childe even sparred together, considering the circumstances of your first encounter. Both of you had been sent to deal with the same target, a guy who royally screwed up by getting in trouble with the Fatui and the people who commissioned you at the same time.

He was foolish enough, however, to think he could benefit from being targeted by two ruthless organisations. In his arrogance he secretly arranged to meet the two of you at the same time in the same place, hoping you would tear each other apart while he made a run for it.

At first, his plan seemed to work and he quickly took off while you and Childe were focused on assessing the bigger threat in the room. Much to the fool´s dismay, you were more evenly matched than he anticipated, both in fighting and reading the room, so you quickly came around to form a temporary alliance after clearing the situation.

You displayed a terrifyingly smooth synergy as you made sure the guy and his associates paid their debt and the price for trying to set you up in full. Once the messy business was wrapped up, the two of you came to an agreement to leave out certain details in your report to your bosses. For you, this was a done deal at this point.

Little did you know, however, that Childe had no interest in giving up a perfectly good sparring partner just like that. So, late one night he practically ambushed you on your way home, eager to cross blades with you again. Although you had half a mind to ignore him and go your own merry way, you´d lie if you said your little scuffle with the harbinger had been anything short of exhilarating. The memory alone had your fingers twitching in anticipation of facing off with him again.

Yet, as time moved forward, your sessions became more frequent and you had become so familiar with each other´s habits and mannerisms, it seemed like you could read the other´s mind. Instead of snappy retorts and biting remarks, you exchanged playful banter and his presence that was once so infuriating was something you started to look forward to.

There was a spring in your step whenever you´d meet up with him and before you knew it you were spending time together outside training. Going around town, exploring the landscape, everything was so fun and exciting when you were with him and you craved the thrill he brought to your life.

That was what you reasoned, at least. The way your heart beat faster around him was only the adrenaline, your body running hot was merely the strain from sparring, being around him was purely a means to get stronger. You could quit at any time, no strings attached. That was what you told yourself…but could you really?

“That´s it, actually,” you panted. “I am distracted by you.”

The moment he slightly loosened his hold on you, that was when you planted your foot behind his and pulled it from under him, making him lose his balance in the process. As you fell backwards, you made sure to put all your weight in when you landed to knock the air out of him. While Childe was busy regaining his senses, you swiped his blade and pressed it against his neck as you straddled him.

“I´m distracted by how slow you are, so don´t get cocky now.” You leaned closer to his face, eyes crinkled in amusement and the corners of your mouth curved upwards. There was a bit of truth in what the harbinger had said but you´d never admit that out loud for him to hear. He´d be insufferable about it.

Catching his breath with a heaving chest, Childe let out an airy laugh. “Using a man´s hopes against him in a single moment of weakness…How did I fall for someone so cruel?”

Both of your eyes widened in shock at that. Yours at the implication his words entailed and Childe´s at the fact he confessed his thoughts to you. The sword's edge dug into his skin as you narrowed your eyes further, searching for something in his eyes, something that gave away either lie or truth.

“Are you saying this just so I´d let my guard down?”  You weren´t quite sure what the emotion in your voice was or if there was any at all. Why did the idea of him taking back his words make you so mad?

“No, I could never lie to you like that. Well, there´s no use pushing this back any longer, so here goes.” His expression was so genuine you almost believed him. Or maybe it was more that you wanted to believe him. “If someone had told me after our first meeting that I´d fall for the person who´d tried to kill me, I would´ve laughed at them. Sure, I was intrigued. Usually, nobody makes it out of a fight with me quite so unscathed, so I came back out of curiosity for your strength. But over time, I started looking forward to learning more about you other than your fighting prowess. How you spent your days, what you like to eat, the flowers you´d like best; all this stuff that I´d never think twice about with anyone else. I wanted to get to know you, not for work or business reasons but because I started actually caring about you. I like you, (y/n). And that´s the truth, I promise.”

“A promise, huh? You know what they say.” It took an awful amount of strain to keep your voice stable. “You make a pinkie promise, you keep it all your life. You break a pinkie promise…”

“…I throw you on the ice. The cold will kill the pinkie that once betrayed your friend, the frost will freeze your tongue off so you never lie again.” Childe laid his head back against the ground and chuckled, never once breaking eye contact with you. “Good thing that I have no intention of breaking my promise then. You´d actually throw me on the ice. So, what do you say? Are you willing to give me a chance?”

“I guess I´ve taken worse risks in my life,” you said, a small smile stealing itself onto your lips. “And if you do break your promise… Well, you said it yourself.”

“You´re way too enthusiastic about that part, have a little faith in your boyfriend. Seems I was right though.” The smirk crossing his face was tell enough something was up and you were proven right when Childe was suddenly gripping your hips and flipping you both over, effectively pinning you to the ground. “You were distracted by me. I win.”

You didn´t miss how his gaze slipped to your lips for a split second and it had you instinctively quirking your brow in amusement as you hummed in mock contemplation.

“Are you sure about that, pretty boy?”

KAEYA

Honestly, he usually doesn´t share enough about himself to accidentally expose himself like that

This is really, really, really rare, you´d better appreciate the occasion

Kaeya will try and turn this situation around on you, doing his best to fluster you in hopes of moving the conversation away from what he just said (don´t let him, bestie, stay strong!!)

He will come clean eventually and it´s time for some honesty from our beloved Cavalry Captain

To be fair, he can probably gauge your reaction pretty accurately, considering he´s been teasing and flirting with you for a while now

It had been a couple of weeks since you made it into the Knights of Favonius, years of hard training finally paying off. To say that you were ecstatic would be an understatement. But being new also meant working harder than ever in an effort to prove yourself to the Acting Grandmaster and the other knights.

What didn´t help your situation at all was your developing crush on a certain Cavalry Captain. Whenever you had to report back while Kaeya was there as well, you fumbled over your words in an effort not to make a fool out of yourself. Yes, you were an accomplished knight, confident in your abilities to handle whatever life threw at you… just not in front of him. Even more so when he graced you with that handsome grin or sent you a cheeky wink.

Why did you have to go and fall for the flirtatious swordsman barely after securing your spot in the first place? Could you be more unprofessional? But no amount of scolding made your heart flutter less in his presence, so you decided your best course of action would be to ignore these feelings in hopes of them dying down without making it too obvious for anyone else. Especially not your best friend in the knights, who, as fate would have it, just happened to be part of the Cavalry unit. You knew they´d never let you live this down if they found out.

You had just handed in some paperwork to your higher-ups when two knights you were fairly acquainted with approached you.

“(Y/n)! Good thing running into you. We´re going for some drinks at Angel´s Share tonight and we wanted to invite you. You know, so you can get to know some of our colleagues a bit better.”

“Thanks a lot, guys,” you said as you gave them an apologetic smile, “but I´ll have to pass, unfortunately. I have the morning patrol tomorrow, so it´s going to be an early start for me.”

“What a shame, really. But if you change your mind, just drop by, high chance we´ll be there for a while.” Judging by their knowing grins, they were already experienced in the matter. You bid them goodbye before going to wrap things up for the day. The advantage of morning patrol was getting off early the day before. Just as you were about to leave the Knight´s headquarters and head home, you heard a familiar voice call out to you.

“Grandmaster Jean, what can I do for you?”

“Oh, it´s nothing that serious.” The blonde smiled at you. “I reworked the patrol plan for tomorrow again and I wanted to ask if you mind taking the afternoon shift instead of the morning one?”

“That works just fine. Do you want me to stay longer today then?”

“No, there will be no need. Today´s rather quiet and you worked very hard ever since you joined the knights. This didn´t go unnoticed by me, so please take the time to relax and get some rest. I will see you tomorrow afternoon.”

You didn´t know if hitting the bar for some drinks counted as “rest and relaxation” but you guessed some “team-building” would come in beneficial in the future. Since you hadn´t asked when exactly the others would meet at the tavern, you aimed for an hour or two after most of them got off work and by the time you arrived the main group were already laughing and chatting over a glass of wine or beer. And it didn´t seem to be their first round either.

At first, your entrance went unnoticed but soon enough one of the guys who had invited you spotted you and waved you over. “(Y/n)! You made it, good to see it. Here, let me introduce you to everyone.”

You acquainted yourself with everyone while ordering something to drink. Looking around for some familiar faces, you neither found your friend from the Cavalry nor his captain. One of the other knights noticed and told you that he saw your friend on the second floor earlier. You thanked him before climbing the stairs, careful not to spill your drink. A certain snippet of a conversation made you halt a few steps away from the top of the stairs.

“Captain, what´s the matter? You´re normally more cheerful when we go for drinks. But you´ve been looking down since earlier. No wait- I want to figure it out on my own. You were still normal after patrol…And also when we entered the tavern… Then one of the guys said that the newbie won´t make it…” The person who had spoken made a drawn-out humming sound, deeply contemplating their options before gasping excitedly. “Don´t tell me that´s why! By Barbatos, our Captain has a crush!”

The whole table erupted in loud cheers which prompted the whole floor to raise their glasses in enthusiasm, even if the other tables had no clue what was going on. With a fluttering heart, you slowly crept farther up to see Kaeya sitting with his back to you, head propped on his right hand. His left hand was nonchalantly waving around as he rejected every notion of that claim being true.

“Oh, come on, Captain, don´t be like that. We saw you, always coincidentally having to talk to the Grandmaster when they have to submit a report,” a knight chuckled. Kaeya´s argument that it was because you were a new recruit and somebody had to keep an eye on you was met with a loud “Excuses!”

“So, you don´t deny always talking to the Grandmaster when (y/n) is also there?” You could practically hear the smirk in your friend´s voice. Another round of boisterous laughter. What had Kaeya done for them to hound him like that? Deciding to no longer hide, you stepped up and headed straight for their table. As much as you tried, you couldn´t suppress your smile completely as your lips twitched up at the corners.

“Look at that! The knight in shining armour arrives! (Y/n), we just happened to talk about you.” You raised an eyebrow in fake surprise and motioned him to keep speaking. For all the playful flirting Kaeya had put you through, you were going to torture him some more. “Actually, our Captain here was just com-“

“Complimenting you on a job well done.” The man in question gave you a charming grin while clasping his hand tightly over the guy´s mouth. “I heard about it from Jean, you´re doing good for a newbie.”

“Thank you, Captain.”

“Oh please, just call me Kaeya. We´re off work after all.” The Cavalry unit called favouritism at the top of their voices. One of them even dared to wolf whistle while his boss´s back was turned. “Though, I have to say your timing is impeccable. There is something I wanted to talk to you about.”

This time your brows shot up in actual surprise. Without asking any more questions you followed him to the balcony outside, the shut door drowning out the murmurs of the knights. Kaeya leaned onto the railing as he focused his bright eye on you.

“So, how much of that did you hear?”

“Huh? What do you mean?” Feigning innocence might be your best option to save both of you some embarrassment, at least that was what you planned. Your counterpart seemed to have other ideas though.

“Don´t play dumb with me now, (y/n). We both know you´re sharper than this.” He crossed his arms in front of his chest, gaze unwavering and face unreadable. It was hard to gauge his reaction, which made you fumble with your words. “Fine then, I´ll tell you what I know. I heard you talk to someone downstairs who told you that your friend was up here. I don´t think it would take a skilled knight multiple minutes to climb some stairs and your arrival was just a bit too timely. Therefore am I correct in my assumption you eavesdropped on our conversation?”

You deflated visibly as you sighed but gave a shameful nod nonetheless. Honestly, you should´ve known better than to try and hide something from Kaeya. At the sound of his low chuckle and approaching steps, you perked up again.

“You´re so honest, it´s cute. A true knight through and through, one might say.” There was something about that glint in his eyes, however, which made you feel more like a deer caught in headlights than a knight. “Mind if I share the rest of my observations?”

“N-no, go on.” You had tried to subtly shift towards the wall, which was a terrible move, as you learned now, because it only allowed Kaeya to come closer without anywhere for you to run.

“Well, seeing as you didn´t go straight back down, you couldn´t have been entirely put off by what you heard. In fact, you looked quite excited. You also didn´t properly greet your friend but instead went with me without any qualms.” If it was possible, he leant in even closer as one hand ghosted over your cheek. “My, you´re growing quite hot. I wonder, is it the drinks or something else that´s got you like this? Personally, I think it´s the latter, if I may go by how flustered you are whenever we talk. Not to mention the glances you steal when you think I won´t notice. Now then, (y/n), is there something you want to tell me?”

This was it. This was karma for wanting to torment him earlier and also the way you´d die. Taking a deep breath, you mumbled a quiet apology to which Kaeya cocked his head to the side.

“There´s no need to apologise. But if you really wanted to make it up to me,” his hand rested now fully against your skin and his smile seemed to soften, “you could let me take you out on a date, that sound good?”

“I- yes, yes that sounds great!”

As he chuckled, he couldn´t help pinch your cheek before turning to go back inside. “Wonderful, I´ll pick you up at 7 this Friday then.”

“Wait, I don´t know if I have to work-“

“You won´t.”

You watched the door close behind him as you sunk onto one of the chairs. What just happened? That couldn´t have been real. While you processed what had just taken place, one question remained:

Why, by Barbatos, did it have to be Kaeya?

[The first day after you and Kaeya started officially dating, a lot of Mora changed hands among the knights of the Cavalry unit…]

THOMA

Thoma is normally rather meticulous with anything he does

So, his first thought when he notices what happened is probably something along the lines of “oh shoot, oh shoot, oh shoot—”

Switches into fixer mode real quick though and just goes with the flow of the situation

The housekeeper of the Kamisato Clan is a naturally social person and he´s used to things not going quite the way he planned it, therefore he´s quick to reboot (you might not even notice something went “wrong” in the first place)

Thoma had been turning the beautiful letter in his hands for hours, staring at the address written in neat handwriting far too often. He had spent the last days and nights trying to come up with a confession he didn´t internally pass away at. And now that it was done, he was contemplating again if he should send it or let it catch dust in his drawer. With an exhausted sigh, he placed the letter on his desk again before getting ready for the day, there was plenty of work to be done around the house after all.

Naturally, he had thought of just confessing to you in person but first of all, he´d have to find a time where both of you were free, he´d have to ask you out and then also confess. Thoma was by no means a shy person and he has always been pretty honest with his feelings, although, after he saw how much trouble he had coming up with the right things to say, he decided on writing a letter. This way he could make sure everything was perfect and he could start over again if he didn´t like the result.

As he was going about his duties as the housekeeper of the Kamisato Clan he nearly forgot about the letter until he turned in for the night. The blond had already taken off his red jacket when he found his desk exceptionally letter-less. But he wasn´t going to panic yet. Checking his drawer, underneath the desk and every inch of the floor he still came up empty-handed. Thoma decided that now was a good time to grow concerned.

He was about to search for someone who might know something but didn´t make it very far. Ayato was just passing through the hallway as Thoma left his room and seemed to notice his friend´s distressed expression.

“Thoma? What´s the matter?”

“Oh, it´s nothing, really. I was just searching for something,” Thoma said, contemplating whether or not to ask if he happened to know anything. “Sir, by any chance, do you know if someone went around collecting paperwork that needed to be sent out?”

“Oh, is this about the letter on your desk? Since the seal and address were already on it one of the staff members collected it and sent it together with my mail this afternoon.“ Ayato could probably see his face drop at that piece of information. “I´m sorry, Thoma. I know you´re always very busy, so I assumed you didn´t have the time to send it out yourself and asked her to deliver it for you.”

“No, no, Sir, you don´t have to apologise. It´s fine. I was just a bit shocked to see it wasn´t there anymore.” He gave a small bow before turning back to his room. “Have a good night, Sir, and rest well.”

“Thank you. You should get some rest as well. And Thoma, again, my apologies.”

You twirled the beautiful letter between your fingers, still in disbelieve something this elegant would be addressed to you. Although considering the Kamisato Clan´s crest adorning the golden wax seal, which you dared not break yet, your surprise lessened the slightest smidge.

Then again, what could the Kamisatos possibly want from you? Hopefully, it wasn´t on the Yashiro Commission´s behalf. As you inspected the graceful lettering of your name on the envelope again, however, you doubted this was business-related. Whoever sent you this letter had put great effort into perfecting each and every letter, nothing a commission official would do. In the back of your mind, a small seed of hope started to grow that a certain someone over at the Kamisato residence had sent the note.

Finally, your curiosity got the better of your nerves and you carefully pulled the letter open. Again, the paper was of the highest quality, a beautiful flower pattern stamped into it. You unfolded it with cautious fingers and were immediately awed by the neat handwriting. Just from looks alone, your heart fluttered, moved by the thought of someone putting this much effort into something given to you. By this point, it was all too clear this wasn´t sent on official business but rather on a personal notion.

Dear (y/n),

Are you surprised to receive a letter from me? I´d bet you are. Well, that is if I actually find the courage to give this to you. You´re probably wondering what this is all about, right? To be quite honest, I would´ve much preferred to say this to you in person but the truth of the matter is that I simply couldn´t and, considering how often I have rewritten this letter, maybe it was the right choice.

(Y/n), I´ve been meaning to confess this to you for a long time now. I can´t deny the feelings I developed for you and whenever we spent time together and you smile at me so sweetly, I don´t think I want to, anymore. And I think you deserve to know how I truly feel about you.

At first, I was scared to risk our friendship and lose you entirely. The longer I waited, however, the more I regretted my decision and thoughts of “what if” started to fill my head. From how I see things now, I think I stand to gain so much if I take the leap that I can´t ignore it anymore.

I like you, (y/n).

As much as I hope you feel the same, please stay true to your own heart and take your time to form a reply. The last thing I want to do is coerce you into a situation you feel uncomfortable in.

While I await your answer, please take care.

With love,

Thoma

If your heart fluttered before, it was positively racing now. It was a good thing nobody could see you clutching the letter to your chest and giddily jumping around like a little child, your grin so wide your cheeks started to hurt.

Without a second of hesitation, you pulled on your shoes and your coat, grabbing your keys as you went, before rushing out the front door. You would´ve written a letter back but it would take some time to reach the Kamisato Estate and you were far too energetic to sit down right now. Besides, your mind was racing a mile a minute, there was no chance you´d be able to come up with enough coherent sentences anyway.

By the time the grand building came into view, you were sure you set a new record on the time needed to reach the Kamisato Estate, yet, you didn´t feel tired at all. You´d been here a couple of times before, so when you explained the reason for your visit to the guards, they let you pass soon enough, even if you were only allowed into the yard.  As luck would have it, you spotted a familiar mop of blond hair tending to some pine trees around the garden.

“THOMA!” Said man barely held on to his garden scissors as your excited shout startled the ever-living abyss out of him. He wasn´t an idiot, he knew why you were here, he´d spent the last days agonising about this very moment, after all.  As you crossed the yard, he regained his composure enough to put on a calm smile.

“(Y/n), what a surprise,” he said, taking in your dishevelled clothes and your chest heaving as you caught your breath. “Wait, did you run all the way up here?!”

“Partly, yes,” you chuckled. “But I couldn´t help myself, not after reading this.”

You pulled out the letter and normally would have laughed at the size Thoma´s eyes had taken on and how he tried to conceal it.

“(Y/n), listen-“

“No, Thoma, you listen. Before you start on this nonsense on how it´s okay if I don´t reciprocate your feelings, let me just say this.” You took a deep breath, eyes trained on his as you failed to contain your smile. “I like you, too, you idiot. And I won´t leave any room for you to think anything else is the truth. You´ve made me the happiest person in Teyvat today.”

This time, Thoma dropped the scissors for good in favour of engulfing you in the warmth of his hug. From how close he was, you were hyperaware of everything that was him; his heartbeat, the scent of freshly brewed tea and pinewood, the soft fabric underneath your fingertips. Everything was so familiar, yet lovingly different all the same.

“While I´m truly flattered by you saying this, I have to call you out on a little lie there.” You lifted your head and peered curiously at him. “There can only be one person in Teyvat who´s happiest right now and that´s clearly me.”

There was no stopping the laughter bubbling out of you at his cheesiness and the sound alone was enough for Thoma to fall for you all over again. His hand moved to cup your face as his thumb gently traced your cheekbone, nothing but fondness swirling in those beautiful eyes of his.

“Let´s see if I can find you some tea and pastries, you must be quite exhausted after rushing here. I wouldn´t mind having you keep me company as I work and I´m sure Miss Kamisato would be delighted to catch up with you, my dear.”

GOROU

Shy bean, absolutely pure

Gorou will be adorably red in the face, his ears are shooting up and twitching and he´s tripping over his words trying to explain himself

He might be an accomplished general on the battlefield but navigating his own feelings is completely new territory for him

Rather dejectedly and somewhat ashamed, he owns up the confession and then apologises, thinking he did something wrong and crossed your boundaries

If you reciprocate his feelings, please tell him immediately and put him out of his misery; his expression will make a 180, tail wagging and all

Stretching your arms over your head, you felt a sense of comfort when some of the tension in your shoulders was relieved and you took it as a sign to take a break, maybe move your legs around a little too.

As you wandered along the streets of Inazuma City an idea came to you. It had been a while since you visited Komore Tea House, stopping by again surely wouldn´t hurt. While climbing the seemingly endless flight of stairs, you marvelled at the change of seasons clearly visible throughout the city.

The streets were much livelier, too. Now that the Vision Hunt decree and the Sakoku decree had been abolished, tourists and returning soldiers bustled around, chatting with vendors or catching up with those they hadn´t seen in a while. A small part of you hoped to spot a certain pair of fluffy ears among those wearing the resistance uniforms.

You´ve known Gorou for quite a while already, the two of you went back way before there was even the faintest notion of war breaking out. So, when the time came for him to be stationed at Watatsumi Island for an indefinite amount of time, a weight seemed to settle over your heart.

As time passed and weeks turned to months and months turned into a year, you started to question why his absence made you feel this empty. After all, you still exchanged letters as frequently as the situation allowed for but it wasn´t really enough and only amplified the want to see him again. One day it dawned on you that maybe you saw Gorou as more than just a friend. While you rejected the idea at first, the hopeful glances you sent around the harbour the first day a ship from Watatsumi Island docked at the pier and your subsequent disappointment at not finding the general among the troupes made you rethink your feelings.

But, sometimes, the universe apparently did listen.

Komore Teahouse came into view and you contemplated what you´d order this day as you stopped in the entryway where you´d normally be greeted by Taroumaru. But the Shiba Inu was nowhere to be seen. Instead, excited barking could be heard from the room over, followed by a defeated sigh.

“I told you already, it´s not that easy.” Gorou´s voice made your heart almost leap out of your chest and although it made you feel a little guilty, you didn´t move from your spot. “First of all, I don´t even know if they like me back. What if I misinterpreted their words? Don´t give me that look, it´s a reasonable possibility!”

Taroumaru gave a very deadpan bark as a response, meanwhile, you were processing Gorou´s words. Did he like someone? You weren´t going to jump to conclusions just from this alone, yet, you couldn´t quite suppress the hope bubbling to the surface. What if it was you he was talking about?

“No, I can´t just do that! What if I make them uncomfortable? We haven´t seen each other in a while, after all.” Well, you checked that box at least. Taroumaru seemingly had something insightful to share. “Hmm, yeah, that might be a good idea. I´ll consider it, even though the very thought of bringing this up with them makes my hair stand on end.”

Deciding to stop violating your friend´s privacy, you went and shut the front door again, this time as noisy as possible. The conversation in the adjacent room subsided and a couple seconds later the Shiba Inu rounded the corner. As he spotted you, his calm demeanour melted into an excited one, tail wagging while he jumped around your feet.

“Hi, Taroumaru, did you miss me that much? I´m sorry I couldn´t stop by more often,” you said, leaning down to gently pet his soft head.

“(Y/n)?!” The shocked general had barely time to realise you were actually there before you had already flung your entire weight against him. His time in the resistance seemingly paid off because he managed to catch you without both of you toppling over.

“Gorou! You´re finally back! I missed you! And I was really worried, too!” Your laughter must have had a contagious effect because you could feel his chuckle against your chest. Yet, as he sat you back down on your feet, the blush painting his cheeks a lovely rose shade was hard to miss.

“I-I missed you, too. And I´m sorry I had you concerned but it was worth it in the end, wasn´t it?” Gorou´s face slowly returned to its original colour, however, the heat flared up again as you showered him with praises on how proud of him you were. You didn´t bring up how his fluffy tail was wagging up a storm in response.

To your feet, Taroumaru was growing restless which was rather unusual for him. When Gorou was fiddling with his hands for too long and looking away from you one too many times, the Shiba started tugging at the hem of his pants.

“Taroumaru? Is something wrong?” The dog in question stared up at Gorou expectantly.  “You understand him, right? Do you know what´s up?”

“Huh? Oh, well, yes, I guess I know…” He sighed heavily. “(Y/n), would you come with me for a second?”

Containing the butterflies in your stomach was quite the task, yet, you didn´t want to raise your expectations too high just to have them crashing down around you. You followed your friend outside and into the shade of a tree near Komore Teahouse. By now, your assumption was almost certain to be correct. Gorou´s ears were twitching relentlessly, a clear sign he was nervous about something. And, as someone who had known him as a normal boy and not a fierce general first, you knew there were few things that could fluster him to this extent. He inhaled deeply again before turning to face you.

“(Y/n), I didn´t think I´d be having this conversation with you now, to be honest, and I really hope you won´t be upset by this. But there´s something I´ve been meaning to tell you for a while now, something I should´ve told you already.” Hesitantly, he reached for your hand, his ears perking up once you held on tighter and gave a little squeeze. “When I said I missed you, I meant it. While I was away, I couldn´t stop thinking about you…Nothing weird, I promise! But I wondered what you could´ve been doing at that moment or if you wanted to see me just as much as I wanted to see you. I´m not an expert on these things but even I realised that what I´m feeling goes beyond what you´d feel for a normal friend. I guess, what I want to say is, I like you, (y/n).”

You clasped your free hand around your intertwined ones, coaxing him to look at you again. There was the same hopeful glint in his turquoise eyes you recognized from your own heart, his whole attention trained on you now.

“Oh Gorou, how could I be upset when you said exactly what I wanted to hear? I´ve come to the same realisation. So many times, I thought about bringing it up in a letter but I didn´t want to add any more pressure on you. I´m somewhat regretting being so considerate now though,” you teased. You flung your arms around his neck again as he picked you up and twirled you around. “I´m so happy right now, I can barely describe it!”

“You just made me the happiest man alive, (y/n),” he laughed.

“I can see that.” Your eyes crinkled in amusement as you ran a hand through his ginger locks to where his ears had started flicking again as his tail rhythmically thumped against the bark of the tree.

[shangrila11]

Stargazing date // Ben Tennyson (Ben 10 UAF) x Alien! reader

‘Ding dong!’

You made your way to the door at the sound of the doorbell. Try as you might, you could barely repress your exhilaration, as evident by the spring in your steps. You opened the door to see Ben smiling. The Mark 10 was parked not too far from him. 

“Someone seems eager,” Ben chuckled. You cleared your throat.

“Sorry about that. I... couldn’t contain my excitement.”

“No need to apologise. I am pretty excited myself,” Ben smiled. “Come on. Let’s go.” He went to his car and opened the door for you. Smiling a little, you thanked him as you went inside. Ben grinned at you before going to sit at the driver’s seat. He started the engine and off the two of you went. You stared out of the window, admiring the scenery that seemed to fly by you. Ben stole a glance at you, smiling at how content you looked. His actions did not go unnoticed by you.

“What is it?” you asked. 

"Nothing much. Just admiring my wonderful partner," Ben replied, a tinge of awkwardness in his voice.

"...Oh. Thank you," you beamed slightly. The rest of the drive went by peacefully with the two of you just enjoying each other's company.

The two of you eventually arrived at a secluded forested area. You looked around to see if there was anyone around. Once you made sure that the coast was clear, you removed your ID mask to reveal your true form. The corner of Ben’s lips curled into a fond smile. In his eyes, you looked great no matter what form you took.

“Shall we place the mat?" you asked, interrupting his thoughts. Ben nodded and voiced his agreement. Together, the two of you carried out the said task and laid on the mat. A comfortable silence settled over the two of you. Ben turned to face you, silently appreciating how relaxed you looked. The two of you had agreed to have the date here so that you could be as you were comfortably. And it seemed to be doing the trick.

"Do you think we can see your home planet from here?" he wondered aloud, turning his attention to the stars twinkling in the clear night sky.

"I don't think so," you chuckled. According to your adoptive parents (who also happened to be Plumbers) and your research, your home planet was very, very far away.

"... Do you ever desire to go back?" There was a hint of sadness in Ben's voice but he forced a smile.

"The thought of reconnecting with my roots did cross my mind a few times," you confessed. "But this is my home now. I got my parents, friends like Gwen and Kevin... and you." You cleared your throat.

"Pardon me. That got a little sentimental.”

“Yeah but it’s cool,” Ben laughed softly. His eyes widened when he spotted a streak of light in the sky.

"Look! A shooting star! Shall we make a wish?"

You blinked a couple of times at his suggestion. Despite having lived on Earth for as long as you could remember, you still found human customs... peculiar sometimes (Why did humans wish upon a falling meteor? There was no scientific basis for it). But you decided to push your questions aside and go along with Ben's suggestion. The two of you closed your eyes and quietly made your wishes.

"You know, it was because I mistook the pod carrying the Omnitrix for a shooting star that I am able to experience all these crazy but awesome stuff, including meeting you. So I suppose I should thank shooting stars for that," Ben grinned. You hummed in agreement and nodded. The two of you smiled at each other before turning your attention back to the sky, simply relaxing and enjoying each other’s presence.

[thesweetnessofspring]

5. Quote one of your fics out of context

32. Which fic would you most like to write a sequel to?

Thank you for the ask! ❤

5. Quote one of your fics out of context

Peeta stares between Katniss and Gale, perplexed. Katniss feels anticipation at such a propo. Would they have to kiss again? Would he hold her? Pathetic as it might be, the idea of playing the lovers again is both repulsive and exhilarating.  As Fulvia begins to talk about locations for such a propo, Peeta blurts out, “I’m sorry, but don’t people know that Katniss and Gale are together now? It won’t work.”

From The Only One

32. Which fic would you most like to write a sequel to?

Kinda random, but Face Paint. It's a one-shot high school AU fic where Peeta is doing face paint at a school carnival to raise money for the drama club and says Katniss should audition for the spring musical they have, which is going to be Beauty and the Beast. He paints scenery/does the make-up for the drama club. In the sequel, my idea is that Katniss gets the lead role as Belle because she can sing, but she can't act. Until the drama teacher (Cinna) notices that when she runs lines with Peeta, the acting comes off very natural and so Peeta steps out of the background and into the main role.

Fanfic writer ask game for you to reblog or ask a question!

[suzitaree]

Flying lesson. (O. Gaunt x reader)

Ominis Gaunt was a brilliant young wizard hailing from a pureblood family with a long history in Slytherin. He possessed a sharp mind and an astute ability to read people, which helped him navigate the complex social dynamics of Hogwarts. However, despite his remarkable intelligence, Ominis harbored a deep fear of flying. As a blind student, he was anxious about the idea of soaring through the air on a broomstick, and had always avoided the sport that was so beloved by his friends.

One of those friends was a girl named Y/N. She had always been drawn to Ominis' quiet intelligence and the way he seemed to see the world in a different way than everyone else. They had become close over the years, and Y/N had long harbored a secret crush on the gentle young wizard.

One bright spring day, Y/N decided to take Ominis on an adventure. She had been practicing her flying skills on her broomstick, and she wanted to share the joy of flight with her friend. She knew Ominis had never flown on a broom before, but she was determined to make it happen.

With a bit of trepidation, Ominis climbed onto the broomstick behind Y/N. She guided him carefully, explaining how to hold on tight and how to lean in the right direction to steer. As they soared up into the sky, Ominis put his arms around Y/N's waist, holding her close as they flew.

For Ominis, the experience was exhilarating. He felt the rush of wind on his face and the sun on his skin, and he laughed with joy as they swooped and soared through the air. And he felt the warmth of Y/N's body pressed against his, the beat of her heart against his chest. He never felt more alive.

Y/N could feel the heat rising in her cheeks as Ominis held her close, and she felt a shiver run down her spine. She had never been this close to him before, and it was a thrill that she could barely contain. And as they landed back on the ground, Ominis turned to Y/N with a smile on his face.

"Thank you for this," he said, his voice filled with wonder. "For feeling the sun on my skin, the wind through my hair, and the butterflies in my stomach. I never knew what I was missing."

Y/N felt her heart melt at Ominis' words, and she turned to face him, her eyes searching his. And then, without a second thought, she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was soft and sweet, full of all the emotion that had been building up between them for so long.

As they broke apart, Ominis pulled Y/N into a tight embrace, holding her close as they both caught their breath. And in that moment, they both knew that they had found something special – a love that would last a lifetime.

[snailor-bee]

Hiii Bee 🐝💕✨ I’m so excited for you to open requests for song fics! I always loved the ones you did in the past!

Could I request one for either Rayleigh, Denjiro or Mihawk, please? Don’t have any special wishes, just whatever inspires you! Thank you so much and I hope you have lots of fun with the requests you’re getting! ❤️

Laleeee you're always so sweet to me! ;o; Sorry for taking forever on this, my weekend has been busy as you know lol. I hope you'll like this though! I've been itching to use this song. > w>

(I asked Lale ahead of time if F!Reader was okay and she said yes to anyone who was wondering why she didn't request a gender and I included one, I felt the song was too heavily gendered to go GN.)

F!Reader / NSFW-ish (suggestive) / 1k

Song: "All the Pretty Girls" - Vera Blue

Like a '90s dream, cool cut, left drop earring Cigarette stuck to the bottom of your lip Saw you standing on the corner of the street You got your own style with the way that you're moving.

The first time you saw him, you almost walked into a building. Tripping over your sandals, your eyes were glued to the figure he made. Towering over the rest—large blue hair bobbing, a smirk stretched across his lips, and with the bright colors of his outfit, it was hard to miss him. 

Your friend finally noticed you weren't by her side and turned back to see you frozen in place. "Something wrong?" 

"Who is that?" you whispered with awe, pointing down the street at the man's retreating back. And what a back it was, your mind whispered to you sinfully. 

She looked at you like you were nuts. "You don't know him? That's the owner of the pleasure house, Kyoshiro." 

Kyoshiro. You felt like the name didn't quite suit him but it was hardly noticeable compared to everything else about him. Handsome, the man was so handsome. You just had to meet him. 

It took some whining but eventually you wore down your friend enough to get you into a party that Kyoshiro was supposed to be at. 

Once you got there, it took a few hours to muster up the courage. You lingered around the edges of the party, feeling out of place and foolish. Kyoshiro was obviously popular, surrounded by followers and women all vying for his attention. 

Still, he was the sole reason you were there and the first moment the man was alone you took the chance and hurried over. As you sat by his side, you could feel the weight of multiple glares from others in the room who had been hoping to do the same. They lingered like sharks ready to spring at the first opportunity. 

Shyly you introduced yourself to Kyoshiro, heart in your throat, and he took you in silently. Then he smiled wide, hiccuped, and wrapped a warm arm around you, pulling you against his side. 

"Nice to meet ya! Let's have a drink!" 

I know your type, I spent too many nights Black mascara dripping from my eyes So I tell myself girl, don't get, girl, don't get too close 'Cause you...

The night was exhilarating. Once the two of you started drinking together, he seemed happy enough to let you stay by his side, a fact that made you feel faint with giddiness. 

You noticed a few dirty looks here and there but you didn't let it bother you. If he had chosen another girl to keep him company you were sure you'd be among the many who were currently shooting daggers with their eyes. 

You make all the pretty girls cry You So easy, you don't even try You spoil us, toy with us when you're looking like that You're standing there heavenly, always leaving us sad You You make all the pretty girls cry

Kyoshiro was funny and flirtatious. You couldn't remember the last time you laughed so much. The way he looked at you, his enormous hairdo blocking one side of his face so you only saw one amused eye and half his charming smirk was more than enough to make your heart flutter. 

He was so incredibly handsome, it was hard to tear your eyes away. And when he suggested the two of you ditch the party, well—

What other choice was there? 

I get turned on, I get strung out on the idea From the chaos and the bad romantic feels But guys like you know what to say to get me naked Give me temporary pleasure There's something you do better

The rest was a bit of a blur. You rarely drank and even when you refused half the time, Kyoshiro made you drink more than you normally would as he shot back more and more saké. 

From then on there are only snapshots of memories—

Stumbling through the streets of the Flower Captial, laughing at the wind. 

Getting to the pleasure house, a mix of scents and colors. Tobacco hung heavy in the air, along with multiple people's perfumes and colognes. It made you dizzy but Kyoshiro easily guided you along. 

Your shaking hands moving along his skin, dipping into the panes of his abs, and feeling all the oxygen leave your lungs when he kissed you breathless. 

You You make all the pretty girls cry You So easy, you don't even try You spoil us, toy with us when you're looking like that You're standing there heavenly, always leaving us sad You You make all the pretty girls cry

Heated kisses pressed against your skin, your fingers scratching down his back. 

Legs thrown open Kyoshiro pressing inside and—

I know your type, I spent too many nights Black mascara dripping from my eyes So I tell myself girl, don't get, girl, don't get too close

Sunlight streamed into the room, making you groan. Instinctively you patted the spot next to you and found it empty. You sat up slowly, a headache pulsing at your temples, and a weight dropped into your gut once you pried open your eyes to see the room around you barren. 

No Kyoshiro in sight. 

Not that you should have expected anything else, you figured as you buried your face into your knees, unshed tears burning hot in your eyes. 

You make all the pretty girls cry (All the pretty girls cry) You So easy you don't even try You spoil us, toy with us when you're looking like that You're standing there heavenly, always leaving us sad

"Oh look you're awake!" a warm voice greeted and your head shot up to met Kyoshiro's grin. He was fully dressed, not a hair out of place and you never have felt so glad to see anyone before. "Grabbed us some breakfast." He tilted his head at you. "Everything okay?" 

He was holding a tray of food and you felt a smile split your face wide, your cheeks hurting with the force of it. 

"Amazing," you answered joyfully. "Couldn't be better." 

You You make all the pretty girls cry You So easy, you don't even try You spoil us, toy with us when you're looking like that You're standing there heavenly, always leaving us sad You You make all the pretty girls cry

[coruscqte]

CONGRATS ON FINISHING IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK!! I literally found it on ao3 the day before yesterday and obsessed over it sm I finished it within slightly more than a day,,, haha,,,

(The last chapter dropped when I was a bit more than halfway through, bless your immaculate timing because I got to consume the whole thing in one go.)

Reading the whole thing was such an experience; I would read one chapter and get cavities from all the tooth-rotting fluff, then angst over the next because EzKayn was going through it. (Let's ignore the fact that it's exam season... and I've just been reading between studying... Your writing is too addicting;;;)

All my rambling aside, thank you so much for investing so much time and effort to write us this fanfic!! 😭🙏🏻 It's made me laugh and cry, but suffering through the sad parts was so worth it and the ending made me so happy :(

Rest well, you did amazing finishing such a long piece, I'll be looking forward to the epilogue in the future!! 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

omg hiiiii!! <3

first, oh my GOD you read this in almost a day??? that's bonkers to me, it even takes me (with my author-glazed-over-read-speed) quite a while to get back through it to look for particular details. i'm amazed you'd read it all that fast. i'm glad you liked it so much!!

(i'm also glad the timing worked out for you, wouldn't want you to be left on a cliffhanger, especially with this work. must've felt crazy good to get that lucky, huh?)

ahhh yes. it was super emotionally draining and exhilarating to write, so i hope that came off the same way for you. i love this fic so much, it's literally been my baby since even slightly before november (it was a meme at first, a part of chapter six was actually the first thing i ever wrote for this fic:

and promptly became the reason i finished the fic at all because i couldn't let the joke go. funny how that happens isn't it?), and ezreal + kayn have really left their mark on me here. i got to explore their lives, emotions, and relationship with each other to such an extent that i'm almost struggling to shake it properly to start work on something new. they really come with so many struggles and emotions to make themselves work together, but it's so gratifying when they eventually slot into each other's lives just perfectly.

also dw, everything up until chapter 12 was also written during my exam season. the siren's call of ezkayn was simply too much to ignore. i'm so lucky i finished the fic before spring finals (wish me luck with those lol) -- i hope you did well on yours too <3

thank you, my friend, for your support! this comment warms my heart so much to hear that you loved it just as much as i did. i hope my next projects will also be some of your favorites <3

[nevergoesout]

Oh, I hope I am not to late! But I'd love to know 12 and 21 for the end of year asks :)

not too late at all ! thank you for sending :•))

12. Talk about a new friend you made this year

hmm lots of new friends at work but one in particular springs to mind as we have been messaging lots the past week ! he is like 27 so an old man to me haha but we get on very well, he always makes me tea at work . we have been talking about drugs and books and feminism and lots of random crap but it’s exhilarating making a new friend because it’s been so long ! and i am proud of myself for going out my comfort zone in terms of starting conversations and such and it paying off :•) he is a bit of a loser stoner haha but just very Nice and kind and looks out for me . and i suppose part of me likes being the more interesting one. he did read philosophy at uni which is cool, and we’ve already established that i would be best friends with his parents as they have my music taste haha . and i am going to lend him lots of books so we can talk about them more >:•)

21. What’s something new about your place of residence (room, home, or general location) now vs the start of the year?

i have moved ! from right in the centre of the city to my lovely little neighbourhood a decent walk out, right next to a big leafy park. and we moved in with friends instead of just me & jam, which is so nice. and i loooove living in an old victorian house instead of a dreary block of 1980s flats

<3

[stanfordsweater]

still doggedly saying happy wincest wednesday, hi ava i hope that the laptop transfers are going well -- q for you -- what's a wincest sex scene/fic that really sticks in your head for being surprising/startling, for whatever reason?

thank you for sending this even though i've been preoccupied :D (currently trying to transfer all my data + gif set up to another laptop, move a friend into her new house, help my sister with her breakup, and deal with ONE OF MY CHILDHOOD FRIENDS ABOUT TO GIVE BIRTH????? AUGUST 7TH. WHAT. it's been A Lot and i really love the chance to sink into sam and dean thoughts so thank you i love you)

and what a question!!

the first one that springs to mind is sam’s experiment with exhibitionism in @applecrumbledore​’s living in god’s blind spot, which feels so scandalous and yet still believable that i know i’ll be thinking about it for a long time. IT’S INSANE. it takes a lot to get me clutching my pearls in spn fandom considering how many fics i’ve read that are sending me to hell, but... there’s something so exhilarating about experiencing dean’s shock and arousal with john RIGHT THERE!!!!! it’s never been my bag, but roni made it work while still tying it into a great emotional plot. IT’S FAB. a rec forever. 

another one that’s stuck with me is the sex scene from evil pajamas from @bloodwritesfic​, which is a great flash fic with a strong emotional core despite the wacky premise; oh my god, it’s hot, and it’s so brief but it’s angsty and delicious and everything i enjoy in my dubcon fics. great example of how to take a funny premise and make it something amazing.

[markrothkono61]

9 10 17 + best of luck with your exams!!

Thank you so much!! I cannot wait for my exams to be over.

9.) what is your favourite environmental season? why?

Spring! I used to be an autumn/winter devotee, but this year I was so emotionally affected by seeing the trees turn green and the parks fill with flowers again, that for the first time I truly appreciated how exhilarating spring truly is. Stirred my soul, made my heart bloom etc etc. I adore nature, and spring is much like seeing an old friend after a long time.

10.) what’s one book you’d suggest every person should read?

This is a bit of a broken record moment because I keep talking about it but, The Magic Mountain!!! While most people I’ve successfully coerced/threatened/cajoled into reading it have not been as excited about it as I was; I truly, genuinely, most desperately think that it is a perfect novel. I will not recommend another book Ever, until everyone has read this one and reported back to me. In general I don’t think there is a book that everyone in the world would appreciate, as people are unique with different tastes (and I like making personalised recommendations), so I will be selfish and demand that everybody reads My very own favourite book.

17.) what’s your favorite painting? and describe how it makes you feel?

That is a very difficult question to be entirely honest I don’t think I can pick one painting that is my favourite. I go through phases of obsessing over various artists and they are all very special to me. However, I will pick the painting that was my first ‘favourite painting’ and I still love it very much today. It is ‘The First Steps’ by Georgios Jakobides:

I first saw it when I was about 7 years old I think, and my immediate reaction was ‘wow there is a lot of love here’. And that is still my reaction today. I think there’s a lot of selflessness in being able to find such joy in someone else’s realisation of the vastness of what the world has to offer.

Honourable mentions:

Ophelia by John William Waterhouse (1889):

Antigone and Polynices by Nikephoros Lytras (1865):

[sergeant-spoons]

43. Third, Second, First

Leslie Sheppard

Taglist: @thoughpoppiesblow @chaosklutz @wexhappyxfew @50svibes @tvserie-s-world @adamantiumdragonfly @ask-you-what-sir @whovian45810​ @brokennerdalert @holdingforgeneralhugs @claire-bear-1218 @heirsoflilith​ @itswormtrain​ @actualtrashpanda​ @wtrpxrks​

Hello, my lovely readers! I don’t often do Author’s Notes these days, but this is a very special occasion: this chapter is the update that surpasses 100k words of Destiny Carries a Wrench. I am so immensely grateful for everyone who has read this fic and supported my writing. I love you all dearly. Here’s to 100k—and, hopefully, 100k more! 💕

I will be making a 100k celebration post soon with an ask game. Be on the lookout for that, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy this unusually long chapter!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Watch your step!"

"I'm not gonna fall, look! Oh, shit—woah!"

"Les! Hold on-"

"Don- Don! I'm just kidding! See?"

Laughter, some a little more hesitant than the rest.

"Think I can jump that gap?"

"Go for it, Skip!"

Laughter mixed with sympathetic groans.

"You okay?"

"'Course I am! Hey, race you both to the fence—last place gives a pack o' Lucky Strikes to the winner!"

"Oh, you're on!"

Laughter all throughout the air, refreshing, warming, loving. 

Leaping from bale to bale, Leslie let out a whoop of exhilaration. She was in the lead, but just barely—Don could catch up at any second, and Skip looked to be saving his strength for the final stretch. She had not expected to spend her first Christmas away from home running amuck through an Aldbourne farmer's field, but she couldn't think of a single place she'd rather be. Home, maybe, but with Skip and especially Don with her, today's shenanigans felt plenty like a winter's day back in Astoria. The haybales they called their stomping ground were dusted with snow, and the flakes kept falling on and off all afternoon as the three friends ran and played. They felt like children all over again, stuffed into mittens and hats and socks against the cold by a watchful mother (in this instance, Easy Company's very own Sergeant Lipton). For a few precious hours, the snow fluttered down and they ran and ran until their chests ached from racing and laughing. 

The war could not reach them here.

That morning had already satisfied Leslie's want for the holiday traditions of Christmas Day. She, Tink, and Kiko had exchanged presents sitting on the floor between their beds. Michael Michaud showed up at their door right after nine with a trayful of gingerbread cookies—"Just for you girls, the fellas can fight over the second batch."—and the girls made him stay for a minute and play craps with Tink's new set of dice. They were debating what they ought to bet with when George Luz showed up at their window with four chocolate bars and saved the day. They pleaded for him to come in and play with them, but he smacked his hand to his forehead and launched into a whole dramatic spiel about why he couldn't thanks to Jolly Old Saint Sobel, and him sneaking off base was trouble enough, and on and on. As he monologued, Leslie saw the way George was grinning at Tink and guessed the fourth chocolate bar had been meant as a bonus for her—his favorite. They managed to convince him to come for Christmas dinner, in the end, and he turned back down the lane with a spring in his step.

After Michael had proved himself a talented baker and won enough chocolate to last him all week, he allowed himself to be dragged back down the street to his billet by his housemates, the smell of gingerbread too enticing to ignore. Tink put away the dice, Leslie threw on her robe, and Kiko went downstairs to deliver the girls' Christmas card to their host. They'd bought her a little something for the mantel, and Mrs. Witchetty wept and thanked them so profusely they became embarrassed at how small a trinket it really was. They all went into the downstairs parlor, the one Mrs. Witchetty used for entertaining her old friends, and admired the twinkling tree until a knock came at the door. Three callers before ten in the morning—it must be Christmas, after all! Leslie looked out the window and saw it was Penkala, so she sent Kiko to open the door. He came in stamping his boots, and they could hear from the parlor when he told his girlfriend it had snowed and stuck on the other end of town last night. Coming into the parlor, he beelined for the fire Leslie had just finished lighting and related that Skip and Don would be coming along shortly.

"They're coming to celebrate with us?"

Penkala shot her a meaningful look. "They wouldn't miss it for the world."

Tink fell asleep on the sofa before noon. She had stayed up after everyone else in the house had gone to sleep, perched on a stool in the hall with the wall as her backrest, waiting by the phone for a call that never came. When it got so late that even hope could not reason its own presence, she still could not find it in her to sleep and so stayed up writing a long-overdue letter home to her cousin and brothers. It ended up being several pages—front and back—and took her straight through the sunrise. Leslie had gone to wake her just before seven, knowing how excited she would be for the day's festivities, only to find Tink wide awake on the other side of the room. She was kneeling by the window, her hands clasped in prayer, the rosary beads she wore around her neck now wrapped around her fingers. She didn't notice Leslie and Leslie did not disturb her. When Leslie went to turn off the lamp by Tink's bed, the bulb was so hot that it almost burned her and she jumped back. One look at the sleepy fluttering of Tink's eyes and Leslie knew she'd been up all night.

Kiko was the first to notice their friend had dozed off, but Leslie bade her stay with her boyfriend and went over to the sofa herself. She roused Tink into a state of consciousness that was not full wakefulness but sufficient to get her on her feet. Leslie guided her to bed to hopefully make up a portion of the rest she had missed the night before, promising someone would wake her in time for dinner. Tink was out like a light, and Leslie drew the shades and shut the door, leaving her to her peace.

Back in the parlor, Kiko and Penk had moved onto the sofa in Tink's absence, enjoying the fire. Penk's jacket had come off and now lay neatly folded over the arm of the couch. Kiko was sitting cross-legged, her socked feet pressed gently against her thighs, facing her boyfriend. Mrs. Witchetty saw Leslie come into the room and nodded as if assigning her the post of chastity-keeper. She left for the kitchen with nary a backward glance, on her way to start preparations for the holiday feast. She had been alarmed when the girls mentioned the appetite of their closest friends but not for the reason they expected—she was delighted to have more guests but afraid she would run short on food! As soon as she was out of the room, Kiko unfolded her legs and moved to sit beside her boyfriend, who could not help a smile. He wrapped his arm around her back and tucked her against his side, pressing a kiss to the pleasant curve of her brow.

"I have a gift for you."

"I do, too."

Leslie, lingering in the doorway, wished for an excuse to leave the pair to themselves and found it in the ringing of the doorbell. She called out to all those within earshot that she'd get the door and dashed down the hall to find two much-loved friends behind it. After embracing them both on the stoop, Leslie drew Skip and Don inside, admiring the way Don's eyes twinkled with the reflection of the early blue sky. They appreciated the tree for a few seconds (pretending not to notice Penk and Kiko's starry-eyed exchanges) before Leslie pushed them further down the hall into the kitchen, the only other currently-available community space. Mrs. Witchetty was more than happy to provide them with hot cocoa, delighted that Skip and Don had thought so far ahead as to bring thermoses for their day out. Hearing this, Leslie stopped short mid-drink. Her confused expression was made ever the funnier to her friends by the sugary froth forming a mustache on her upper lip.

"Our day out?"

Mrs. Witchetty gestured to Skip and Don. "Well, judging by the way your friends are dressed, they're not planning to stay indoors much longer."

Skip laughed. "I am starting to sweat, ma'am," he admitted, and Leslie made a face.

"Then get going!" Mrs. Witchetty cried, and she likely would have shooed them back down the hall and out the door had the oven timer not gone off at that exact moment and demanded her immediate attention.

After a beat, Leslie turned to Don, a question quirking her brow. 

"Alright, spill."

He was trying not to smile. "Spill? Spill what?" he asked innocently, but she was not fooled and jabbed playfully at his chest.

"You've got mischief planned, and I want the details before you drag me along."

"Oh, come on-" He grinned. "-don't you trust me?"

With my life, she almost replied, but Skip beat her to it.

"Not if she knows what's good for her," he laughed, slinging his arm over Don's shoulders as he produced a third thermos from his coat pocket. "Still—you comin' with us, Sparky?"

"'Course I am," she shot back, transferring her cocoa from mug to thermos once he gave the latter to her. "I just gotta go bundle up first."

"Take your time," they called up the stairs after her, "this cocoa won't drink itself."

Indeed, Leslie took longer than she ordinarily would have, for all her clothing was in the dresser she and Tink shared and she had to creep around so as not to wake her friend. She grabbed her boots and hustled back down the stairs with them slung over her shoulder. Skip and Don were waiting just inside the threshold. As soon as they saw her, Skip whistled.

"You look like a real winter adventurer, Sparky!"

"Thanks!" She shot him a flamboyant salute. "But hey, keep your voice down—Tink's asleep."

He winced, apologetic, but asked, "Why?" nonetheless.

"She didn't get any sleep last night," Leslie told him, and her expression let him know that was all the information he was going to get.

"Poor kid." He tipped his chin back and forth. "Maybe some cocoa would perk her up."

"Yeah, maybe-" Leslie ushered them out the door into the chilly morning. "-but let's leave that to Mrs. Witchetty. In the meantime, I'd like to know exactly where it is that we're s'posed to be going."

"Well, since your cold's finally let up," Don voiced, "we thought we could go for a little adventure in the snow."

Leslie looked at the slush on the streets, skeptical, and he laughed.

"Not here, Les. On the other side of town."

"Past the base?"

He and Skip nodded.

"But that's so far," she pretended to complain, and Don hip-checked her.

"Hey, who here had to carry a mortar on his back and march from Toccoa to Atlanta?"

Leslie felt bad, remembering the pain her friend had been in, but Skip seemed to recall a different facet of the time.

"Jeez," he marveled, "that was, what, a whole year ago?"

"Yeah, just about. Give or take a few weeks."

"'Jeez' is right," Leslie agreed. "Can you believe it's gonna be 1944 so soon?"

"Not really." Don flashed her a grin. "But hey, a whole year and we're all still together. That's gotta count for something, right?"

A smile blossomed on Leslie's lips, and though she caught the way Skip started to smirk as he glanced between her and Don, she thought little of it.

"Right."

So here they were, bouncing on (and off) haybales and imagining they were a world away from their responsibilities. Three hours passed in this fashion. Leslie started a snowball fight at one point, but there wasn't enough snow to form decent projectiles and they ended up just tackling each other onto the wet ground, leaving imprints of their roughhousing wherever they rolled about. Skip stayed mostly out of it, and Leslie ended up either on top of or under Don more often than not. She won by group consensus in the end and they went back to racing on the haybales, challenging the sky and the earth to keep them from slipping. After a particularly daring escapade that involved a lot of sliding and even more jumping, they started joking half-seriously that they hoped they weren't ruining some farmer's crop with their hijinks, and that got their boots back on solid ground. They were all worn out by then anyway, and so they gathered by one of the tallest bales and sat in the narrow space it had shielded from the snowfall. The grass was dead but the spirits of those resting upon it were anything but.

"Scoot over," Leslie complained, seeing there was no room for her to sit without getting her legs and such wet, and Don offered her his hand. "What's'at for?" she huffed.

"Not enough room," Don insisted.

"Yeah, so scoot!"

"Nope." 

He grinned and pulled her down, and she squeaked as she fell right on his lap.

"Oy!"

She squirmed. Don kept her there with a bear hug, and when he murmured right into her ear about her not getting wet, her bluffed resolve quickly evaporated. She sighed at her defeat but leaned fully into his chest, tucking her arms against him and drawing her knees up toward her. Skip shot them a gleeful grin that Leslie did not catch but Don certainly did. They sat there for a good fifteen minutes, looking around at the snow (when it began to fall again), the gaps of blue in the sky, the hills rolling on in fields for miles and miles, and whatever else came into sight—a cow, for instance, that was quickly rounded up by its farmer and guided back home over the bluffs.

"Well," Skip said at last, hopping to his feet, "I'm hungry, and if my watch is right—which I'm willing to bet it is—dinner's almost ready back at the witch's."

Leslie started to scold him even as she accepted his hand up, but he just laughed, bobbing his head.

"I know, I know, Mrs. Witchetty is very nice. I'm just kidding! Come on, her name is Witchetty—stop hitting me with your hat!"

Leslie brought her arm back, ready to swat him with her cap (her favorite winter one, with the earflaps and fuzzy interior) one last time for good measure, but a hand caught her wrist before she could. Don spun her around—fully twirling her—and she landed against his chest, a familiar spot not solely concurrent to today. This time, however, she was facing him directly, pressed so near she could feel when his heartbeat skipped.

"Play nice," he murmured, holding her cap behind his back, and seemed surprised when she didn't immediately make a grab for it.

Leslie felt her cheeks heating up. What was it about his voice just then that had given her pause? Sure, he'd spoken to her like that before, teasing, almost purring, but it had never affected her so thoroughly. Her constitution fumbled and she knew the cracks were beginning to show in the mask when Don's smile waned.

"Les?"

She grabbed her cap and danced away from him, crowing, "Never let 'em lull you into a false sense of security!"

It was nonsense, complete bullshit, but Don voiced his agreement anyway, watching her prance about as he ran his hand through his hair, wishing he understood what he'd seen in her gaze just then.

Little did he know, he would see it again later that evening, and this second time, she would leave less room for doubt (yet still manage to conjure more questions than answers).

It was an hour after dinner, an hour and forty-five minutes after they'd changed out of their wet clothes into dry editions, and two hours after they'd gotten back from the field of the haybales. Leslie and Don had gone upstairs into the girls' sitting room with mugs of coffee and the promise to stay up a little while longer, although they were both getting tired. It was just the two of them, this time. Not that they had anything against Skip or their other friends, but they'd both been hoping for some time alone with each other all day. Mrs. Witchetty, Tink, and their guests stayed downstairs in the parlor, stalling their goodbyes over gingersnaps and candy canes. On the sofa upstairs, Leslie curled up against Don's side. Familiarity like this was all they needed to feel like home was within reach, even now. Listening to the muffled chitchat downstairs, they pretended they knew the vein of conversation and quipped about it until they lost the train of logic and fell into loose, comfortable laughter.

"Oh, Don, you've done it again," Leslie murmured as she eyed his chest.

"Done what?"

As she turned to set her coffee mug aside, Don did his best to blink away his bewilderment.

"Here."

She reached out and started to unbutton his shirt. Stunned, he froze, his only motion the rise and fall of his breathing. Leslie kept going, her fingers grazing his skin, heating him up even more than the fire blazing in the hearth just beyond the sofa. Her palm ghosted over his navel and he sucked in a sharp breath.

"You sure this is coffee and not Kahlúa?" he asked weakly, and finally, she looked up.

"The liqueur?" She looked at him peculiarly as if she wasn't sure of the answer herself. "No, I think I would have noticed you getting tipsy, 'Lark, not to mention myself."

"Then, um..." He shifted slightly, trying to be as nonchalant as possible. "What's with the, uh..."

"Hmm?" She looked at his face, then down at where her hands now rested (the waistline of his pants), and blushed. "Oh. Ah-" 

Quickly, she seized the bottom of his shirt and started to rebutton it, and Don was even more confused until she reached the second-top button (excluding the one meant to fasten his collar) and he realized her intention. He was embarrassed at having forgotten her habit but even more so that he had the gall to be disappointed she wasn't making a move on him after all.

"There," she said, and maybe it was his imagination, but her voice sounded a little shaky. "All better."

"Thanks."

"Sure thing."

They went quiet for a moment. Leslie plucked at a loose thread in the couch cushion. Don looked at his watch and brightened up.

"I think it's about time for presents!" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet. "I'll meet you back here in, say, a minute?"

"Better make it half!" Leslie replied, already on her way out the door.

Don was back before her, eased onto the sofa in the same place he had formerly sat. He was fiddling with the buttons on his shirt when she came in but stopped as soon as he saw her. There was a small, round box on his lap wrapped with newspaper and tied with a bow. Leslie held her gift (for him) behind her until she reached him and presented it with a flourish and a smile. Don mirrored her, lifting the present in his lap towards her as he grinned.

"Merry Christmas!"

Leslie insisted Don partake in the present unwrapping first. He agreed but only if she would take the gift he'd gotten for her now and hold it as she watched. She sat down beside him, facing him halfway, one leg dangling off the couch with the other crooked beside her. Her foot was pressed to the side of her knee. She could feel the fuzz of her sock through her trouser leg. Her grin slowly grew as she watched Don stick his hand into the tissue paper inside the bag, feel the item within, and start to smile.

"Is this what I think it is?"

"You'll just have to find out."

He pulled her gift out of the bag, sending tissue paper across the sofa and her legs. Giggling, Leslie gathered it up, but she did so rather clumsily, her eyes affixed on Don's reaction all the while. He recognized the symbol immediately—it was hung all over his house back home, after all—an Irish harp. He cradled the small silver charm in his palm, gently running his thumb over every intricate groove in the engraving. His smile quickly spread from ear to ear as he held up the charm and watched it turn slowly on its bale, gleaming in the firelight.

"You like it?"

"It's beautiful," he said, nestling it in his hand once again.

He looked over at her. His eyes had gone soft around the edges, almost as if he was looking at something he truly loved.

"You're beautiful," he whispered.

Leslie started to reply with something silly, but then Don leaned over and kissed her cheek. She went silent at once, fumbling for a reason why her cheeks had gone so warm all of a sudden.

"I love it. Thank you."

Though Don was still smiling as warm as the fire under the mantel, Leslie's heart refused to calm its pitter-patter, and she didn't understand why. It was just a little kiss. Short and sweet and friendly, that's all.

"You can put it on the chain with your dog tags," she blurted out, and her voice sounded loud to her own ears. "If you want to, I mean. It's supposed to symbolize a fighting spirit-"

"-and long life," he agreed, bringing the chain she spoke of out from under his shirt. "I'll put it on right now."

She watched as he did so, but the deftness of his fingers was nothing compared to the magnificence of his face. It was the firelight glancing off his skin, she tried to convince herself, not the way he stuck his tongue ever-so-slightly out of the corner of his mouth or how his eyelashes lowered just slightly as he focused. It wasn't that she could still feel his lips pressed to the edge of her smile like an affirmation of fondness she never wanted to forget.

"There."

He lowered the chain over his head and tucked it beneath his shirt, and the magic was broken. Leslie blinked awake and remembered they were in England, in reality, not back in Astoria, tucked away in an imagined living room in a nonexistent house that was called home by just her and him.

"Your turn," Don urged, gesturing to the round box. "Open it!"

"What's the rush?" she laughed, her voice giving out a little when Don scooted closer, wrapping his arm around her back.

"I want you to like it, that's all."

"I'm sure I will." 

She opened the box and immediately gasped his name. 

"Don!"

"What?"

"I don't like it, I love it!"

Don's hand felt warm on her waist. Leslie leaped up, clutching her new favorite cap in her hands, and danced about the living room. Don clapped, watching her, and when he started keeping a rhythm, she did a little Irish jig for him, flapping the cap about for performative effect. Soon out of breath—more so from his adoring gaze rather than the activity—she jumped into a sweeping bow. Don gave her a round of applause, joking just a little by rotating his hands in a circular fashion along with his clapping. She bowed a second time, then placed the cap on her head and smartly flicked the brim.

"Bravo! You should start a one-woman show, Les, you'd make a killing."

She skipped over to him, beaming. He moved his legs apart so she could stand between them. Her hands lightly gripping his knees, she bent down and kissed his cheek, the same kind of smooch he'd bestowed upon her earlier. Immediately thereafter, she turned to grab the empty hatbox from where she'd left it beside him and intentionally missed his reaction (she wasn't sure she was ready to know why he kept looking at her that way). Perhaps it was better that she did not see how he brought his hand up to his cheek, then his lips as if in a dream. He was staring at her, undeniably lovesick. Who knows if she would have been able to keep from realizing they were not, after all, 'just friends' had she seen.

"I'm glad you like it."

He didn't sound quite as at ease as he had before she kissed him, but Leslie tried not to take notice.

"Didn't you hear me? I love it."

"Well, then, I'm glad of that, too."

To her relief, Don had started to smile again. Content, Leslie plopped down on the carpet, close to the fire (but not too close), and sat cross-legged.

"Today was fun," she mused, fiddling with the ribbon of the hatbox where it now sat snug in her lap. "I hope there's more snow soon."

"That would be nice," Don agreed, coming down off the sofa to join her on the floor. "Sobel doesn't like running in the snow, so he'll probably cancel our six-mile if it's deep enough."

"I'll pray to the snow gods for you."

He kissed his fingers and raised them to heaven, and Leslie laughed softly.

"What'd we do last Christmas?" she asked after a beat.

Don considered. "Went sledding, I think."

"Oh, yeah." 

"Well, that might've been a few days later, but still." 

A certain recollection made Leslie laugh. 

"Remember how we went flying off that jump? You thought I hit my head when I fell off. You were so worried, came running over like you thought I was gonna die."

"What?" His coloring betrayed him, his cheeks turning pink as he remembered but pretended not to. "No, I didn't."

"Yeah, you did." She giggled, laying down. "Oh, stop scrunching up your face like that—don't you know I think it was sweet?"

Like always, he copied her position, reclining on the carpet to better match her.

"I didn't know that, no."

"Huh. Well, now you do."

He leaned up on his elbow as he looked at her. She could see him out of the corner of her eye. He seemed to be smiling.

"Anything else I don't know about your stellar opinion of me?"

She turned her head, her hands clasped lazily over her stomach, and met his gaze.

"You know exactly what I think of you, Don."

"Do I?"

"You're first-rate," she reminded him, "and don't you ever forget it."

"First rate? I dunno..."

"What! Don!"

He laughed. "I'm just kidding. But hey—you know what I think of you, doll?"

She was about to respond "Yeah?" but the pet name stopped her in her tracks. The last time he'd called her that was his birthday, almost four months ago. They went out dancing that night. Her lipstick got on his collar by mistake and then she added it to his cheek on purpose. He called her doll and told her she was pretty over and over until she believed it.

And tonight, he'd called her beautiful.

Don didn't seem to notice her hesitation. He reached over and pushed her new cap down over her eyes, and that snapped her out of the quicksand that her thoughts had become. She groaned and swatted his hand away, pushing her cap back up.

"What? What d'you think about me?" she asked finally, and he grinned.

"I think you're amazing and incredible and hella talented in roughly fifty different ways—not to mention the prettiest girl I've ever met."

He was expecting her to 'aww' and tease him a bit, but instead, tears came into her eyes. She went all soft and flustered and when she reached over to hold his hand, her fingers were trembling. For the second time that night, he had to remind himself he wasn't dreaming, and a thrill shot through him, raising goosebumps on his arms.

"Don?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm, uh... I'm real happy right now."

"Hey, me too." He chuckled softly, reaching over to brush a sprig of honey-nut hair out of her eyes. "Kinda hard to be sad on Christmas."

She tilted her head back and forth. "Well, yeah..."

"Not what you meant?"

"No."

He sat up fully, crossing his legs and clasping his hands firmly over them.

"No more jokes. I'm listening."

"Thanks." 

She took a deep breath and weaved the ribbon around her fingers, a little nervous although she'd said things like this plenty before.

"I'm happy that it's still you an' me. We've stuck together all this time, and it just feels right, y'know?"

He nodded—yeah, I know.

"I think it's... Yeah. Almost 14 years and counting."

Don let out a low whistle. "Damn."

"I know, right? Can you believe it?" 

His smile turned affectionate. "One thousand percent."

Although Leslie felt uncharacteristically shy, her smile did not show it. 

"I can, too. It's always been us, and it's always gonna be us." 

He heard a thump from downstairs and automatically glanced at the floor. It was only for a second, but that was all her anxiety needed to appear. 

"Right?" she asked, quieter, and when he looked back at her and saw her smile falling, he squeezed her hand and scooted up to her side.

"Right. No doubt about it." He kissed her forehead and wrapped his arm around her to rub her shoulder. "You and me, to the end of the road."

"And may that road be a long one."

"Amen to that!"

They laughed softly, fondly, together.

"Hey, you know what?" Don asked, a twinkle in his eye. 

"What?"

"I've got a second surprise for you."

"No!" she gasped.

"Yes!" he refuted, his smile broadening. "Go on, close your eyes..."

He found her amazement so adorable that he almost didn't want to ask her to hide it. He did, and when she complied, he went over to the corner of the room where he'd left a very special something hidden in the blanket basket just for tonight.

Leslie sat patiently, listening to Don move away from her across the room. He picked up something soft and set it aside. After a beat, she heard the rustling of clothing; he seemed to be taking off his shirt.

"Hey, I just buttoned that!" she exclaimed, and a smile pushed at her lips when she caught his chuckle coming back towards her.

"Okay, open your eyes."

She did. He was coming to kneel before her, and he'd changed like she thought. What she hadn't at all expected was the top he'd replaced his button-up with. It was his Christmas sweater, the one she'd made him years and years ago, the one he wore every Christmas without fail. Here it was, green as the evergreen downstairs, pom-poms and all. Don had brought it all the way overseas, just for her. 

Leslie couldn't help it. She started to cry.

"Uh-oh." Don's smile fell. "Shit. Um, should I take it off-"

"No!" 

She flung her arms around him with such strength that he fell over, narrowly missing hitting his head on the foot of the couch.

"Sorry," she hiccuped, "but no, don't take it off. Please."

Relaxing, he wrapped her in a hug, rubbing her back to soothe her.

"Thank you," she wept into his shoulder, "thank you."

"Yeah, of course." He held her close and warm and safe. "Merry Christmas, Les."

"Oh, Don-!" A hiccup interrupted her. "I could never ask for a better- a better-"

"A better what?" he asked, and his voice was soft but there was a hint of strain beneath it.

They both waited with bated breath for her to finish her thought. They both wanted her to say or do something that crossed the line of 'friend' once and for all. They both wanted her to call him what he'd always been: hers.

Don knew and understood all these things. Leslie, alas, did not.

"A better best friend," she sputtered out at last and buried her face into the crook of his neck and shoulder. 

They shared a silent sigh, feeling the slow rise and slower fall of each other's chest where it was pressed to their own. Leslie would not tell a soul, not even Kiko or Tink, but in that moment, disappointment at her response was not a reaction exclusive to Don.

"Need a tissue?" he asked after a while, and Leslie lifted her head, wiping away the last of her tears with her sleeve.

"No. No, I'm alright now."

She sat up, leaning her back against the sofa but still sitting on the floor. The fire had died down to embers by now. After a few seconds, Don pushed himself up by his forearms and joined her. Leslie stole a glance at him and saw he was not, for once, looking at her. She patted the carpet beside her, wishing her would come closer, and he reassured her by wasting no time in obliging.

"Y'know," she wondered aloud, "I kept thinking we'd be in the thick of the war by now."

Don said nothing; nevertheless, the stiffening of his posture did not go unnoticed by Leslie, whose anxiety fed off his.

"I wonder if the war will ever end," she went on, quieter. "What if it never does? What if we never-"

Before she could say something awful like what if we never get to see peacetime again? or something better like what if we never give up?, Don placed both hands on the side of her face and kissed her right on the lips. He did not let go for a good few seconds, but it was not long enough for Leslie to snap out of her stunned state and reciprocate. He pulled back; she gasped. He turned his head aside, and she, too afraid and confused to try and initiate a second kiss, stared at him as if that might give her an explanation for the first. She saw his neck was flushed, his hands were squeezed together, and his chest was shaking with every breath. She still did not understand. One of his thumbs tugged at the other and he spoke up, his very being charged with emotion.

"Don't- don't talk like that. Please."

"Don?" she asked weakly, still reeling.

"It's Christmas."

She reached out and took his hand. He wrapped his fingers around hers as if on instinct. When she leaned her head on his shoulder and tried to steady her breathing, he did not shy away, but he did not speak again, either. She did not know what to say or do. Footsteps from the downstairs landing caught her attention. Don heard them too. Leslie couldn't decide if the interruption was timely or anything but. Don started to stir, and when she lifted her head, he stood up.

"You're leaving?"

"We've already stayed too late," he said. "Listen—there's George, coming up the stairs."

Indeed, their merry friend poked his head through the door only a moment later, his jolly curls adorned with a floppy red hat.

"Thought I might find you two up here."

"Hey, George." Leslie, using the sofa to push herself to her feet, caught sight of her wristwatch and did a double-take. "Is it really that late?"

"23:00 hours, last I checked." George turned to Don. "We gotta head out before Sobel realizes we're still gone and gives us hell for it tomorrow."

"Shit, you're right."

As Don went to grab his shirt from the other side of the room, George flashed Leslie an apologetic grimace.

"Sorry, Sparky, your boyfriend's comin' with us."

"'S fine," she said through a yawn, only now realizing how tired she was. "It's gonna ice up out there as it gets colder without the sun. Prob'ly already has. Be careful walking back."

"We will," George chirped, a smirk bleeding into his smile, and the look puzzled Leslie, who was so used to his teasing that she had completely overlooked his insinuation of her and Don's romance. George, on the other hand, had caught her nonchalant reaction and hence assumed precisely what he wanted to.

"Take some eggnog with you on your way out," Leslie advised, oblivious to the cause of George's delight, "the guys'll love you for it."

"Good idea," he praised. "Think we could use those thermoses you and Skip brought, Malark?"

"Hmm?" Don glanced between George and Leslie. "Oh, yeah. Sure."

"Great! Oh, shit." George hopped in place, leaning back to look down the stairs. "Someone just opened the door, I can feel the cold coming into the house."

"Then we'd better go and close it behind us."

Don kissed the top of Leslie's head on his way past. The last thing she saw of him that night was not his smile like she wished but the pom-poms swinging from his arms, still clad in that mess of a sweater he loved unabashedly. Listening to the voices downstairs, stuck in place like the sycamore in her backyard at home, Leslie became abruptly aware of her every breath. She heard the front door shut and realized her arms were outstretched, reaching for something (or someone) she did not think she had the right to take. She pulled her hands back and went so far as to put them behind her back, tugging at her fingers self-consciously although no one was there to see.

"Merry Christmas," she whispered to herself and crossed the hall to a bed meant for two but kept by one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~