#the thought bubble took me the longest lol

[self-proclaimed-chaotic-good]

He's Not My Boyfriend | Eddie Munson x Reader

Prompt: Popular

Words: 2108

Fandom: Stranger Things

A/N: Hints at Chrissy’s eating disorder. Sort of redemption for Jason, I guess. He irritated me whenever he was on screen and all I’m saying is that someone should have smacked some sense into him a long time ago. Jason is low-key scared of Reader here and if he don't watch out, reader will steal Chrissy from him lol. Reader is 18 yo here.

Summary: Despite hanging out with the likes of Chrissy Cunningham, your eyes were always drawn to Eddie Munson from across the room.

-

You always thought that social hierarchies in school were arbitrary for the longest time. You’ve seen older kids who were so full of themselves, that they were so important, yet once they were released into the real world, everything fell flat. No one cares that you were high school royalty or the captain of a varsity team or the cheerleading squad. Those who are so used to having things handed to them won’t survive. 

For a while, you were considered one of the nerds, the weird outcast that sat in the back and spoke only when spoken to. It was a shock to people when they saw you speaking to Chrissy Cunningham so casually. In fact, she walked up to you, smiling as she told you about cheerleading practice and the hype behind the upcoming game. People would stop and stare, only moving when you or Chrissy eyed them. Because of this, you were in the middle. Not quite a freak, not quite popular.

You were sharing your lunch with Chrissy, knowing that she wouldn’t eat much food from her plate, but she felt better when it was you offering it. Jason was apprehensive about your friendship with her at first, but after him and Chrissy had an extremely passive aggressive argument at a diner that ended with her storming out, you had to drag Jason to the side and make him realize that she was struggling with something and he needed to be open-minded and understanding. 

They talked and made up with Jason supporting her and encouraging her to eat. You even heard from Chrissy that he stood up to her mom when they were eating dinner at her place. If you hadn’t threatened to smack some sense into him, he didn’t know what would have happened.

Your eyes drifted over to the designated Hellfire Club table like it always did every lunch, seeing the leader of the pack move around animatedly. Chrissy nudged your shoulder and gave you a knowing look, raising an eyebrow as she took a big bite from an apple. You shook your head, looking back just in time to see Eddie Munson climbing on the table.

“Your boyfriend’s at it again,” she whispered.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” you protested, making a point to turn away to down your Coke and immediately regretting it. You felt it bubbling in your chest and you quickly tried to dampen the noise with a hand over your mouth as you burped.

Chrissy let out a fit of laughter, pushing your shoulder as she threw her head back. Jason looked over and smiled at her. Before, she would be more reserved, more prim and proper, at school. Holding herself back from fully expressing herself and shying behind her hand and a mask that had been crafted from years of scrutiny and judgment from her mother. She became stronger and showed more of her true self and it encouraged him to do the same. He didn’t know that he could fall in love all over again.

His attention was snapped away as Eddie started shouting to all the cliques at the school, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify his already loud voice. Jason let out an exasperated sigh, his eyes landing on you as you looked up at Eddie with a fond smile.

“- And a game where you toss balls into laundry baskets!” Eddie shouted, pointedly staring at Jason and the rest of the basketball team.

Jason jumped from his seat. “What did you say?”

Eddie stuck his tongue out and made devil horns with his fingers, making his table snicker. It certainly made you giggle seeing how it ruffled the basketball team’s feathers. They really needed to be put in their place. Eddie’s gaze dropped down to you, his smirk shifting into a smile. He winked before striding away, jumping down and scaring one of the teachers.

“Prick,” Jason muttered, sitting back down. “I don’t know how you can stand him.”

“It’s not that bad,” you said with a nonchalant shrug.

“Yeah, sure.”

-

Hawkins High had finally won a championship game, all thanks to Lucas Sinclair. The team lifted him up as they celebrated, the whole court roaring in cheers. You were clapping along, enjoying Sinclair’s underdog moment. It was all getting too much for you as the students in the stands were surging over to the basketball team to join in with the celebration. You snuck out, sucking in a deep breath of fresh air.

Without knowing it, you ended up next to the main campus building, leaning against the wall and looking out across at the gymnasium. People began to spill out, still high in their victory. Not long after, the double doors of the main building bursted open, the members of the Hellfire club walking out and basking in their own victory. Eddie was the last one, closing up the door behind the group. He finally spotted you, shooting you a curious look.

“Hawkins won, if you care,” you said.

“I don’t,” he said shortly.

“Well, Sinclair won it for us. Buzzer beater,” you continued, “He was really beat up about missing the campaign, but this game meant a lot to him, too.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

You shrugged. “He loves this game. Dungeons and Dragons, right? It was funny to watch the confusion on everyone’s faces when he tried to explain how the game worked. Granted, most of them came from religious families, so he might as well have been explaining a satanic ritual to them. I hope you guys don’t exclude him because of this.”

Eddie’s eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms. “You were the one giggling at lunch. What do you think? You think DnD is a satanic cult, too?”

You huffed out a laugh, looking up to see Lucas eyeing his friends with sadness and longing. They were pointedly ignoring him, talking ecstatically about the session they just had. You remembered the glint in his eyes, his excited hand gestures as he told the story of an old campaign, about their run-ins with a demogorgon and having a TPK after stumbling into a beholder’s lair. 

You always had a soft spot for him, knowing that he just wanted to fit in when he first joined the basketball team. Over time, his gaze usually locked onto you as he spoke about DnD, knowing that the others didn’t care or would criticize it. He even asked you once to join the Hellfire club, but you always held it off. Why can’t he play both basketball and DnD?

“I think it sounds fun,” you said, smiling at Eddie.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise. The kids were calling out to him to hurry up and drive them home, but he simply waved him off. When he realized how serious you were, he grinned, stepping closer. When you didn’t budge, he took another step, relishing how flustered you look while refusing to move.

“We just finished a campaign, but if you wanna do a one-shot…?” He let the question hang in the air, tilting his head.

“Sounds cool,” you said, swallowing. “Can I bring Chrissy?”

He blinked, stepping back. You immediately missed his body heat and refrained from pouting. “Chrissy Cunningham? Queen of Hawkins High?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, and if I play my cards right, I can also get Jason, too. He and some of his teammates owe me anyway. If you want, I can also get a cheerleader or two to come.”

“Bullshit.” He didn’t think that you were the type to stoop so low and prank him like this. He always saw you as an anomaly, a neutral entity. Were you really someone that bought into that social conformity bullcrap?

“Well, that sounded like a tall order, but I still think I can get Chrissy to come with me,” you insisted, regretting not taking Lucas up on his offer the first time to play with them.

“Lucas?” You heard Jason call out.

You turned away from Eddie and saw Lucas making his way towards his friends. The tall boy with the shaggy black hair spotted him and turned his back towards him. Even from this distance, you could see Lucas’s face fall, but he pressed on. Jason and two other teammates followed after him, Chrissy trailing behind in case something happened.

Eddie stiffened as the jocks approached, striding over to the group and stood in front of them protectively. “What do you guys want?” he demanded.

“None of your business, freak,” one of the jocks hissed.

You glared at him, the tension in your posture not lost on Jason. He wacked his teammate and gestured towards Eddie. “Come on, man. None of that,” he said.

Lucas ignored them, trying to break through his friends’ walls. “Guys, we can go and watch a movie or something,” he offered. “Erica, you can come with us, too. I won’t tell mom and dad that it’s a horror movie.”

“You sure you don’t want to get drunk and celebrate with your new friends?” Dustin asked bitterly.

Lucas looked over to you for help. You sighed, stepping up. “Chrissy, you wanna watch a movie with us?”

Her face lit up. You had gotten her into binge watching movies, particularly horror ones that many were surprised about. She never liked those rowdy parties despite Jason’s numerous attempts to make her feel comfortable. It wouldn’t last long, though. Eventually, he’d break away from her to drink with his friends. She insisted that he was getting better and drinking less, but now he respected her decision to not go. She was thankful for that, but at times she wished she just had some quality time with him.

“Sure,” Chrissy said, wrapping an arm around yours. She looked up at Jason with innocent eyes. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t get too carried away tonight, okay?”

“I… wait, Chrissy. It’s a horror movie, though.”

She nodded. “Yeah, I know. I love horror.”

He gaped, trying to find a way to respond to that. “Sinclair, you sure you don’t wanna celebrate with us? You’re our star, after all. It’s your choice,” he said, adding the last part quickly.

Lucas looked back at his friends who were pretending to ignore him. “I’m sure,” he said with finality. “Have fun.”

Jason nodded. “Come on, guys,” he said, then turned to Chrissy, “Uh, be safe. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” Chrissy said softly, catching the kiss that he blew at her.

You stuck your tongue out in disgust before pulling away. Jason rolled his eyes, walking back with his friends to his car. You turned to Eddie who had been silent during most of the exchange.

“You coming?” you asked hopefully.

“Why? You paying?”

“They owe me,” Lucas said, turning to you, “You promised you’d take me to a Rated R horror movie.”

“Did I?” you said, feigning ignorance. 

“Dude.”

-

The group of you took over a whole row at the movie theater with you sitting between Eddie and Chrissy. You propped a medium sized popcorn bag between you and Chrissy, saying nothing as she grabbed a handful and popped it in her mouth one at a time. You felt eyes on you and turned to see Eddie looking.

“What?” you whispered.

“You were serious about playing DnD?” he asked.

You nodded. “Why not?”

“Okay, cool. Cool, cool, cool,” he muttered, his leg bouncing in his seat. “Um, we could -”

“Shh,” Dustin hissed.

Eddie rolled his eyes, turning his eyes back to the screen. “We’ll sort it out later.”

You saw movement from the corner of your eye, a flash of green and yellow as Jason quietly made his way to the seat next to Chrissy. You nudged the popcorn bag to her, silently telling her she could share it with him. She grinned, moving it over to the armrest between them. Eddie took his popcorn bag from his lap and placed it on the armrest between the two of you, giving you a small smile.

A jumpscare popped up on screen, a rain of popcorn falling from rows of seats. There was a startled cry covered by a series of coughing. You looked over and saw Jason hitting his chest as he tried to dislodge a popcorn from his throat. Violent violins started to play, drawing your attention away. You clutched onto Eddie’s arm instinctively as the tension in the movie grew. He grinned, moving his arm until your hands were clasped together. He lifted your hand and kissed your knuckle with a wink before turning his attention back to the screen.

Yeah, he wasn’t your boyfriend… yet.

[tojisun]

I’m new on Tumblr so I’m not sure if this is how I request if it’s not then please do ignore but if it is then honey would you do a little something with Toji inspired in Off To The Races by Lana Del Rey but without any mention of drugs, please, I already have too many troubles with family members regarding that lol 🥲

If u can do that I throughly appreciate that I was listening to that song the other day and couldn’t help but imagine Toji as our old man 🥺 (even tho I’m 22 I like that age gap girl I can’t with him 😩)

OMFG THIS TROPE AND SONG MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH TOJI EVEN MORE!!!

okie so i dont really know what it is you had in mind but i hope you will like this one <33 im sorry it took so long, but thank you so much for this req babes and take care!! // off to the races

!! age gap (reader's in her 20s, toji’s in his late 30s), clubbing, brief mentions of alcohol, possessive toji, hinted sugar daddy toji, smut (slight praise kink and dacryphilia kink)

special shoutout to the amazing feya (@iwaizoomiess) for proofreading my longest smut work and hyping me up <3

There is a steeping desire in Toji’s loins as he watches you dance with your friends, your hands clutching theirs as your hips swayed and your waist rolled along the beat. 

The club is packed and the many coloured lights flicker about but even then, Toji’s full attention is just glued on you. People have even paused to watch you, admiration and desire coursing through their veins. 

Toji knows the feeling. Oh, how he knows the feeling.

You are beautiful as you are. Even with loose pajamas and messy hair; even when you are trembling in sadness and crying, collapsing in Toji’s arms, and whispering wet pleas that he does not leave you—and he would never—you are beautiful. 

But there is a certain beauty rolling off of you tonight as you seize control and attention on the dance floor. You are alight like a beacon of wet dreams—graceful even amidst the hyper bodies, seductive even with the smeared mascara dripping down your cheeks, and so, so tempting.  But they could never come close and touch you because everyone knows. Even though they can’t see Toji, they know. 

You are off limits. 

You will always be off limits to everyone because Toji has no plans of letting you go. Not in this lifetime, not in this universe. 

I’m blessed, Toji thinks as he tips his snifter into his lips and gulps the brandey as though it could quench the thirst that’s been bubbling from the pit of his stomach. There’s a goddess on the dance floor and she chose me. 

Toji places the glass back on the table and stands.

It’s time to bring you home.

You giggle, head thrown back as laughter racks your body from your belly up, shaking your shoulders and crinkling your eyes until all the colours blend together, suspending the world in a singularity driven by the unabashed joy and the booming music. Belatedly you note that there are tears running down your cheeks, washing away your carefully crafted makeup in the wake of infectious laughter.

For the briefest of moments, it felt like fire thrums in your veins rather than blood. You feel the scourge of power beating in your chest that muffles every fear you have ever known and every anxious thoughts that have eaten you up until you are all hollowed.

A touch on your shoulder pulls you back into reality and you peel your eyes open, blinking blearily as your surroundings zone back in. The fire sizzles, leaving your tongue heavy with the phantom taste of ash. The world of music and loud voices, of hands that wander and minds that spiral—this is the world you come to.

(It is the world with him, however, and you feel like you could breathe again.)

You turn, almost lost, feeling the stuttering in your heart as you search for steely eyes. Ah, you think once you meet them, there they are. 

“Darlin’,” Toji whispers, stepping into your space until he is all you can breathe in. “Look at you.” Scarred palms cup your cheeks, stroking where the damp skin is at and certainly erasing more of your makeup, but you stay rooted in your place, peering up at him. 

Toji bends down and noses at your hair, hands trailing from your hips until they are clutching your sides. “So pretty for me.”

A low whining sound reverberates from your throat, your hands coming up to fist his jacket. He chuckles, nuzzling closer, looking pleased at seeing you melt because of him.

“Toji-san,” you whisper, voice breathy and light. Your eyes flutter at each soft caress over your hips where Toji’s thumbs swipe, your skin dimpling at each of their digs. 

“Yes, baby?” He asks, voice grave and deep, almost guttural in desire. 

Your words melt on your tongue, and your mind swims, unable to string any more sentences, rendering you speechless. You are left to gasp out his name in response. 

Toji chuckles, endeared and in awe at how drunk you are off him. 

“My pretty girl,” he says, pressing a kiss on the crown of your head. “Can’t even think right. S’why you need me, yeah?” He drops his lips on the tip of your ear, hovering like a teasing kiss. Goosebumps rise on your flesh, your cheeks bursting in flames as hunger expands in your stomach. 

“S’why you keep making me come for you.” 

Toji’s no longer asking. His voice dropped and you blink, breath hitching at the low timbre of his voice. 

“N-no,” you find yourself replying, voice quiet and weak—just like your denial.

Toji huffs a humourless laugh, shaking his head as he does so, before pulling away. 

No-!

You jolt, hands coming up to grab his leather jacket and yanking him back in your space. He stumbles, eyes growing wide at the action before quickly regaining his footing, his arms encircling around you to keep you two from slipping. Still, despite the fumbling, you do not look away from him, refusing to break eye contact as you find the right words to refute your lie.

Because yes, he’s right. Yes, you need Toji. Yes, you want him to chase you wherever you go. Yes. Yes. Yes.

There is not a world where you do not want Toji bursting from your shadows, ready to pull you back into his embrace because home—even after travelling miles away, hopping around from one hotel to another with your pockets heavy of Toji’s love—is with him. 

There is not a world where you do not need him. Where you do not need his saving.

“Toji-san, I–”

Toji catches your lips and kisses you like he knows. 

He gathers you in his arms, pulling until you are impossibly flushed: your breasts are flat on his chest, your hands clumsily finding leverage in his embrace. A hand cups the base of your head, holding it securely as Toji moves to deepen the kiss. 

His teeth nip your bottom lip and you gasp, instinctively pulling away, but Toji growls—a warning—and you freeze, falling lax and melting, putty in his arms as his tongue finds yours. A mewl creeps into your lips and Toji devours it whole. 

It is Toji who pulls away and you gasp, breathing in air hungrily, your hooded eyes watching the way Toji’s tongue pokes out to lick the sliver of spit in the corner of his lips. 

“Taste good?” You ask, your arms coming up to tangle around his neck loosely.

Toji grins. “Y’r pussy tastes better.” He kisses your forehead softly as though he didn’t just render you speechless. “C’mon princess, lemme show you how much I missed you.”

“Okay.” You kiss his chin.

He smiles. “Good girl.”

Toji pushes the head of his cock in slowly, dragging out the intrusion causing the stretch to burn deliciously. You whine, lifting your hips up from the bed, but Toji just tuts and presses his free hand flat on your belly, pushing you back down.

“Be patient,” he murmurs, going back to pressing another inch in, his sharp eyes zoned in on your trembling hips and your glistening heat. 

“Fuck,” you mewl, clawing the sheets, numb to everything but the steady slide of Toji’s cock. You tremble under him, skin flushed and warm, your breath coming out ragged.

Toji hums, his brows furrowed as he reels from the pleasure. You’re squeezing around him so well, plush walls twitching and hungrily sucking him in. He can feel the sweat building on his palm where it lays on your belly, but Toji stays resolute in taking things slow.

Another inch breaches your walls and Toji watches raptly as you throw your head back into the pillows, exposing the column of your neck. 

Beautiful. You are utterly beautiful.

“Toji-san, please!” 

Weeping eyes turn to him and Toji almost loses his resolve, feeling the last tendrils of his patience slowly ebbing away. His hips stutter as he breathes in heavily, grasping at his slipping sanity before he can ruin his hard-work.

“Just a few more inches, princess. A few more, okay? You’re doing so good for me, baby.” Toji presses a kiss below your heaving chest, peppering a few more over your ribs.

You nod weakly, a broken hum of, “Okay,” making it past your lips before another moan weaves out from between your teeth as Toji pushes himself in more. Your legs jump, feeling the head of Toji’s length brush a sensitive spot along your walls.

A long keen rumbles from your throat, your teeth digging into your bottom lip as you twitch at the sharp pleasure that engulfs you whole. 

“Fuck, y’feel amazing,” Toji hisses, shaking from the exertion, his free hand gripping your waist to tether himself as he feels you squeeze tighter around him. “Just. Just a lil’ more, baby. We’re almost there.”

You whimper, sobbing as you nod weakly. Toji croons, pushing the last inch in, stuffing himself to the hilt. You garble a half-moan and a half-cry, dizzy at the feeling of being so full, and Toji pauses, overwhelmed by how snug your pussy feels around him.

“Good, right?” Toji asks after a moment of numbing bliss, head turned to peer at you and smiling softly as if he’s not hilt-deep in you. You hum shakily, eyes closing as Toji wipes away your tears. He presses kisses over your shut eyes before straightening up. 

Wide palms grip your sides as Toji slowly pulls out, not quite dragging out the slide this time as his patience finally reached its limit, but still not quite frantic yet either.

Yet.

He watches you breathe in deeply and quickly, in awe of the way your body involuntarily flinches at each thrust. 

“Love you, baby,” he says, before slamming in. 

You don’t even get to process Toji’s whispered confession as pleasure bursts in you. 

A scream scratches at your throat and you jolt, dizzy from the sudden change in pace. Toji grunts, eyes screwed shut, his hips beginning to piston quickly. He rolls his hips, angling them to make sure that he hits the sensitive bundle of nerves in you at each thrust.

Your mind is mush.

You moan, sounds chopped up at each heavy thrust of Toji’s cock. Your hands fly to his back, holding on for leverage and scratching when the euphoric ecstasy feels too submerging. 

“That’s it. My pretty girl, taking me in so well. You missed this, didn’t you? Missed me?” Toji drawls on, scarred lips tugged up in a feral smile as he watches you.

There is something so maddeningly beautiful in the way your eyes roll back, your jaw dropping open, and your tongue lolling out. Drool drips from the corners of your lips, making your saliva-slick lips glisten. Tears clump your lashes together, smearing your eyeliner and mascara as it runs down your face in a mess, and yet you look so marvelous this way.

Incoherent. Stupid. Drunk off his cock.

“My pretty, pretty girl. I love you like this. Can you even hear me, princess? Anyone home?”

You can only reply with a warbled moan. Toji laughs.

“So good to me. For me. Oh, doll, what would I ever do without you?” Toji tosses his head back after another sharp thrust, your wet walls hungrily gripping his length as if desperate to keep him nestled in you. He grunts, goosebumps racing over his skin as his orgasm builds.

Toji bends, mounting you, wet lips closing around on a hardened nipple. At this angle, Toji is left to hump your pussy, switching to shallow, but still powerful, thrusts. Your hands find purchase in his hair and you pull, fisting black strands as Toji sucks on your nipple.

“Toji-sa’!” You scream, body tensing as the blinding pleasure finally begins to spill over. “Gon’ cum! Gon’ cu-!” 

Toji growls at the painfully tight squeeze on his cock, biting down on the fat of your tit as he digs himself snug in your walls. With a deep groan, Toji spills himself in you. Your hips twitch as Toji fills you up, and you mewl at the feeling. 

Toji slowly removes his lips from your nipple and rises slightly, closely hovering over you. You sigh as he moves to plant soft kisses over your swollen eyes and on your throbbing lips. 

“You did amazing,” Toji whispers when he breaks the kiss. You hum, brows pinched as soreness finally creeps in after the lust starts to dwindle away. 

Toji pulls out slowly, whispering a soft apology as you hiss at the movement, your face contorting in discomfort. He drops down beside you and wraps you in his embrace gently. 

“Lemme take care of you,” Toji says and presses a kiss on your forehead. 

“M’kay,” you hum tiredly. 

He smiles, his gaze proud and affectionate. You turn away, shying away from all the sudden attention. Toji chuckles, endeared, before kissing your lips lightly again.

(“Do you?” He asked, his hand coming up to pluck his glasses from his face and rest them on the table. 

“Do I what?” You asked back, rising from the loveseat and crossing the space to stand in front of him.

Toji’s lips curl in desire at seeing you wear one of the dresses that he gifted you. He studied you as you walked, going parched at how beautiful you are, especially dressed for him. Dressed by him. 

“Toji-san?”

He danced his eyes up your body slowly, ensuring that you knew that he had been checking you out. Toji is delighted at seeing the blush on your cheeks.

“Do you really wanna stay with me? I’m years older.”

“Yes.”

Toji’s heart thrummed at your immediate response. You took his silence as an incentive to go on.

“Toji-san, I want you. I love you. You think I care about your age?”

Toji grunted. “A fifteen-year gap ain’t a lil’ normal, kid.”

You shrugged before rounding his table and gingerly making your way to him. Toji dragged his chair out slightly, giving you space so you can sit on his lap, and his hands came up to hold your waist tight, guiding you over carefully. 

His eyes locked in on the way your dress rode up your thighs, teasing Toji even more. He thumbs the exposed skin and trembled at the sharp gasp you let out. Toji paused and looked back at you.

“See,” you began. “This—the way you look at me—is something I don’t want from anyone else but you. I want you to be the one loving me, Toji-san. I want to grow old with you. So what if you’re years older? We just. We love each other, anyways, right?”

“Yes.” It was Toji’s turn to be quick with an answer. “We do.”

“Good.” A pause. “So stop with the questions and kiss me.”

Toji grinned, huffing a laugh. “C’mere then.”)

[imdoingaokay]

May I ask for DAI romance companions reaction to their lover making them a LOVELY piece of artwork for them??

Also if you wouldn't mind, Solas’ reaction as well?

Solas will always be included in the romanced companion dai lineup unless stated otherwise, so don’t you worry my dear anon. And so will Varric because I might as well do what Bioware was too much of a coward to do.

Sorry I've been gone for so long, I've been kept busy with nursing school. Good news, I passed my first semester! Woohoo! I'm hoping to get some more stuff out before I go back to school, wish me luck lol!

A rarely seen, but rumored skill that the Inquisitor had was art. Perhaps being raised the way they were, they got exposed to it and just had a knack for painting, more specifically, painting portraits.

If The Inquisitor’s friends were to glance at the leatherbound notebook they kept so tightly to their person, they would see multiple sketches of landscapes, animals, and the people The Inquisitor came across on their journeys. However, The Inquisitor kept this notebook tucked away in their bag or their jacket when they traveled, so it was seldom seen… almost.

One day, during a somewhat slow day of pomp and circumstance, the lover of the Inquisitor just so happened to come across the notebook… unprotected.

The pair had been taking some time away from stuffy nobles and constant threats to enjoy each other’s presence, except, when a messenger came by, claiming that Leliana had a report for the Inquisitor and the Inquisitor alone, they simply got up and left. Not before leaving a kiss on the cheek of their lover. The Inquisitor’s lover knew it was an invasion of privacy, but, it was the Inquisitor’s fault for keeping it there. So, curiosity bubbling over, the lover peered over to see what had the Inquisitor so fascinated moments before.

It was a sketch of them, of their face. A waist-up portrait of them.

Blackwall/Thom Rainer: Rainer couldn’t help but break out into a smile, he had been working so hard on the little griffon he had been making that he hardly noticed how furrowed his brow must’ve looked. His finger lingered on the subtle details spread across the page, some details so small he wouldn’t have noticed had he not picked up the piece of art and studied it closer.

Cassandra: Cassandra hadn’t even thought of the whole invasion of privacy, in a split second, she grabbed the notebook and stared at the Inquisitor’s work. The book she had been reading was long forgotten. And it had all but dematerialized when she saw the sketch of herself. She could feel a blush slowly creep up her cheeks until she was certain her entire face was red. At the slightest noise, she shoved the notebook back to its original spot, only to quickly pick it back up and inspect her lover’s handiwork.

Cullen Rutherford: He took the longest to finally look, pondering whether or not he would invade his lover’s privacy by taking the shortest peek.

He breaks, of course, less than a minute after he begins his internal debate.

He hurriedly flips through the pages and finds their most recent work, and his breath hitches. 

He traces the beautiful sketch and finds himself mirroring the facial expression The Inquisitor caught him in. He can’t help but get lost in the drawings his Inquisitor has created. Still, every time a soldier walks in, it breaks him from any immersion he had, resulting in an innocent soldier watching the Commander fumble with a notebook.

The first time it happens, Cullen decides against looking again, placing it back in its original place.

Dorian Pavus: The second the Inquisitor was out of sight, Dorian casually grabbed and flipped through the pages of his lover’s notebook happily before stopping, the last page was a sketch of him. He pauses for a moment before a cheeky grin spreads across his face. He inspects every stroke, line, and scribble that decorates the page for what feels like ages. And if someone were to walk by, he doesn’t put it away, a part of him wanting to get caught by his lover. Eventually, he hears his amatus’ voice from far away, and after some deliberation, he decides to return the notebook to its rightful place, positioning it to look untouched.

Iron Bull: He’s subtle, his fingers trace the sketch so gently he can barely feel the paper underneath. He hides the book well behind his large hands and smiles to himself as he traces the image with his eyes. He’s impressed with The Inquisitor’s knowledge of anatomy, as every muscle Bull has appeared to be on display in the portrait. 

He’s one of the only ones who keep the notebook in their grasp, watching his kadan tense up and begin to blush.

“If you wanted me to pose, you could’ve just asked me.” He smiles.

Josephine Montilyet: She takes a minute, and assures the Inquisitor is far enough away before she peaks at the sketchbook. A blush creeps up her face before she’s giggling and kicking her feet as she looks at her lover’s drawing. She’s convinced they took a few artistic liberties as she believes she looks far better in the picture than she does in real life.

Regardless, she becomes satisfied, places the sketchbook back down, and settles back in her chair, reinvigorated.

Sera: She’s immediate, completely snatching up the book before The Inquisitor even leaves, if her lover notices Sera, she attempts to hold it away, claiming they were asking for it when they left it out in the open. She does everything to get away, including climbing on the roof. But once she realizes what her lover drew, she pauses. 

Eventually, The Inquisitor finds her and watches Sera slowly look up, “You made this? I… I’ve never seen… a drawing of me before.” Before breaking out into a grin, she whispers, “Why would you hide this?! This is great!”

Solas: He looks, finding himself far too curious for his own good. Once he sees his portrait, he smiles and leans back in his chair, admiring the work his vhenan put into the piece. He waits for his lover to return, nonchalantly handing over the sketchbook and kissing his lover’s cheek.

“You should draw more often.” He says, “Or maybe I should draw you.”

Varric Tethras: This man read Hawke’s personal journal, The Inquisitor should’ve expected him to look. 

He takes a peak, which turns into a long stare, as he becomes enraptured by the portrait. Soon, he breaks out into a grin and waits for his lover’s return, holding the sketchbook like a trophy.

“Maybe you should do illustrations for my book from now on.” He suggests.

[hotsforharlow]

Okay, but alt best friend AU where they both can't be together. Like they went into it with feelings, but they both knew that they couldn't be more than friends with their busy schedules and baggage, but they thought they could just stay friends. Maybe Urban and Druski call up a friend of theirs to flirt with Jack to try and get the reader to make her move, and it works. Ends with hot jealous smut lol

AN:Hi, I hope you like it x

NSFW

It had been nearly a week since you’d last spoken to Jack; the longest period you’d ever gone without speaking to him in years. It was something that hadn’t gone unnoticed in your friend’s group and they didn’t know how to handle it; especially in a delicate way. Not that you were going to entertain them with any of their plans. You curled up on your sofa; sadness wrapped around you as you scrolled through social media. So, you were keeping an eye on Jack..that wasn’t anything new. And it wasn’t for any other reason but being his friend. Well, that was what you told yourself anyway as you watched the stories of their night out.

Your eyes stopped on some random girl who was all over Jack. You paused the story and zoomed in without thinking. “Who the fuck is that?” You whispered to yourself, swiping across to see more. You just couldn’t help yourself. The soft jealousy bubbling inside you was only growing now. Your eyes moved towards your phone as you softly nibbled on your bottom lip. You debated calling but you knew it would be pointless; you had no real reason to do so. It seemed luck was on your side as your phone rang out. Urban’s name popped up onto your screen before you swiped to answer.

“Hey you.” You hummed into the phone, as if you weren't just stalking the friend’s group only moments ago. The soft music blaring greeted you and you wondered how long they had been out. “Hey, Y/N!” Urban called out your name loudly through the phone and you had to move it from your ear. “Hey Urb..you good?” You couldn’t help but giggle and shake your head at such antics leaving your friend. “Better if you were here.” Urban hummed and you rolled your eyes; they’d have fun with or without you. “Hmm, don’t sweet talk me.” You whispered, even though you were half interested in going now, for a completely different reason.

“So, have you decided on coming yet?” Urban asked; his tone something you couldn’t place and you only grew more confused. “Hmm, are you sure it’s not a boy’s night out?” You couldn’t help but ask. “Even if it was, you are still welcome.” Urban babbled and your heart warmed at his words. “Thanks.” You softly mumbled, ducking your head for a moment as your mind swirled with thoughts. “I think I might.” You shook your head at the cheers Urban let out before you said your goodbyes to each other.  

You had taken longer than you’d admit to making yourself pretty. You ran your fingers through your locks. You had chosen a new dress from your wardrobe that clung to your body so perfectly. Okay, and you might have chosen Jack’s favourite colour to paint your lips but that was another thing you weren’t going to admit to. Or the fact it took you a few seconds longer to gain the courage to wander into the club.

~

Jack’s hand settled on the girl’s lower back; close to her arse but he held no real interest as those blues of his moved around the club. He didn’t even know if you were coming but it didn’t stop him from looking for you. He wished things could have been different and he knew things had changed now; the relationship wasn’t the same. Even their friends had noticed but you had both tried to be subtle about the mistake you had both made. But that didn’t mean he didn’t react when he noticed you moving into the club; the lights shining on you as if they were a beacon. Your eyes caught his and you tried to fight off the reaction at the girl on his lap.

It was why you chose to move to Druski first and give him a hug as Jack slowly removed himself from the girl. Those strides of his hand Jack quickly at your side and you couldn’t ignore him anymore. “Hey,” He gently whispered into your ear and Druski moved to the side as you looked up at Jack. “You okay?” You hummed up at him. Jack couldn’t help but reach to touch you as he placed a lock of your hair over your ear. “Yeah, better now.” He whispered; he opened his mouth to continue to speak when the still unnamed girl came over. She linked arms with Jack almost instantly and you had to bite your tongue.

“I’ll see you later.” You called to Jack over the music; not wanting to be the one left for another person. You tried to hide the hurt moving through you and wondered if you should find someone for the night; but that really wasn’t you. God, you’d never felt so out of it with your own friends and you hated it. Urban’s arm moved over your shoulder and kept you close. He hated seeing you like this. “You know, she means nothing.” He whispered into your ear. “And apparently so do I.” You hummed; locking eyes with him. “Don’t say that. You know it’s not true.” Urban whispered but you only gave him a soft, sad smile.

The feeling followed you as your eyes never moved from Jack for long. Your emotions build quickly. The shots that followed had your courage building as you watched Jack whisper in her ear. You couldn’t stand by and watch him anymore. It was your only chance now, you thought to yourself. “Hey Jack.” You whispered as you finally moved back to him. A soft smile coming over your face when those blues of his found you. “Hey..you good?” Jack softly asked and moved to stand. The girl easily forgotten about, and you hated yourself for enjoying that a little too much than you should.

“Yeah..can we talk somewhere?” You softly whispered into his ear over the music and he nodded before following you.

~

There wasn’t much talk between you both as you moved into the private bathroom. Your lips were soon on his. “Baby..I thought we decided..” Jack began to whisper against your lips before you leaned in and wrapped your legs around his waist. “Oh, it’s like that, is it?” Jack teased as his hands moved to unbuckle himself. The passion and love he had for you hadn’t left him and all he wanted was you. “Jack..” You whined before he smashed your lips together once more. Soft pants echoed around the room as you both rushed to feel each other again. “You know, I won’t let you go again if we do this.” Jack whispered his warning.

“I know..” You whispered, not caring if that was the case now. You knew you couldn’t stay away from him. Your hold on his curls tightened as he pushed inside your soaked pussy. “Fuck.” You whimpered, your head falling back as he harshly began to thrust inside you and you only kept him closer. His hands moved up and down your sides, greedily capturing your soft breasts, teasing your nipples. Your stomach was already tightening in desire as you moved to meet his thrusts. “I love you.” You babbled into his ear as Jack leaned to bite at your neck; marking you. “I love you too. Always.” He promised.

His hand moved down to play with your soaked pussy, slowly circling your clit as his teasing nature returned. “So close..” You whimpered out, your eyes fluttering as your face began to prettily screw up in pleasure. “Me too.” He whispered before capturing your soft lips once more.

[theneurodivergentdummy]

CAT CAFÉ

Burgerpants x reader

(if you've read my burgerpants headcanons you kinda know where this is coming from lol)

"Why would you bring me here." Burgerpants said, face bent in obvious discomfort as a cat hisses at him... For the eighth time.

You try desperately to hold in the laughter you could feel bubbling up.

"What do you mean? I thought this would be the perfect place for the date." You comment, the sarcasm rolling smoothly off your tongue.

"I hate this place. This is a terrible date." You grip the hem of your shirt as you try not to laugh once again as a cat slides down his orange face. Getting a hold of yourself, you feint mock offense, putting a hand to your heart for dramatic affect.

"Are you calling my date TERRIBLE?" You somehow managed to make a fake tear slide down your face.

He rolled his eyes at your comical performance, a slight smirk in his lips. You were currently at a popular cat Cafe I your city you had been wanting to try for the longest time. It had a large variety of cats, a spacious interior, excellent food and you had the ingenious idea of bringing your orange boyfriend along with you. (Because it would be funny of course)

Of course you didn't tell him where you were going until you pulled up to the cafe. ...he was not happy... let's just say the waitress agreed with you and also thought bringing your feline boyfriend to the establishment was an excellent comedic choice.

You were aroused from your recollection as the friendly waitress placed a pair of lamented menus in font of you, gawking at the pile of cats surrounding burg. Some of them (mainly the males) were hissing or swatting at him, but most of them were oddly intrigued, taking to cuddling the poor guy. The cats had yet to pay any attention to you, but you didn't mind, finding the scene before you to hilarious to be bothered. Burg had tried countless times to remove or distract the cats but (to your boundless amusement) to no avail. Eventualy he gave up opting to let then do whatever they pleased.

You had taken so many pictures.

Looking over the cute menu, you decided to order the neko burger, a side of macaroni, and a citrus Boba soda. You would order dessert later, if burg was okay with staying for it.

Now don't get me wrong, this was ridiculously funny, but you would never force him to stay here if he was too uncomfortable. You checked if he is still okay with staying here for the first little while and he reassured you with tired eyes and a lazy grin that it was okay. You told him that if he changed his mind the two of you could go to a movie or something instead, but he insisted it was alright, and that this made you happy so he would put up with a few annoying felines.

You held up the menu for him to read, seeing as both of his paws were being preoccupied with the heap of cats. He ordered the alfredo paw-sta, a side of barbecue wings, and a latte art (with a cute cat drawn on top).

"Mmm those wings actually sound pretty good, do you think you could share with me?" You asked, drooling happily at the thought of delicious food.

"ONLY if you share your food too." He countered.

"Deal." You replied, reaching your hand across the table to shake his.

He stared at you, a long haired white cat pawing at his eye.

"Oh right sorry." You said remembering his paws were covered In at least 20 cats, all vying for his attention.

You didn't have to wait too long for your food, and it was, as expected incredibly good looking. You took a couple photos of both your foods, and another of bugerpants for good measure.

Sitting back down you were surprised when one of the male cats who had been very hostile to burg, had curled up in your lap. It was black and decorated with white socks, and a white belly. You flailed your arms, and pointed down at the purring cat in your lap, getting burgs attention. And he just...stared. it was odd because there was the most blatant lack of emotion behind it, and you didn't have a single clue to what was going on inside his head.

"Uh, baby? You all good?"

Silence.

Until the black cat, locked eyes with burgerpants. They sat there for a moment, almost seeming to have a silent conversation, before the black cat makes a light hiss. For a split second, burgerpants had the most outraged face, animosity and jealousy etched in his fur, his hackles standing on edge.

You let out a chuckle you had been trying to hold in, your hands quickly finding themselves at your bumbling mouth. Trying, and failing, to keep control of the flood of laughter that nearly swallowed you whole.

His face switched to confusion.

"Are- wheeze- are you JELOUS!?" You laughed. "Of a CAT?"

You let the floodgates open as the loudest ugliest laugh ripped through your throat. The black cat long gone, having forsaken your lap for a quieter more peaceful place to nap. The waitress shooting a startled glance in your direction. Burgerpants let a smirk pull on his lips as he rolled his eyes.

"Alright, whatever, can we go watch that movie now?" He said, wanting to leave this place as fast as he could so he could spend time with you by himself.

"Y-yeah let me just -wheeze- pack the fooooooood AHAHAHAHA!!!!"

[whompwhompwah]

Riddle, and Leona, with an Bubbly, Carefree S/O!

you are the sun in this darkened world 🌙!!

s/o is gender neutral, second person. spoilers up to ch.3

idk how it happened but leonas is sad lol

pt.2 with Azul, Vil, and Kalim will come out soon :)

//

probably did not like you at first, so carefree and bubbly all the time, you did not follow his mothers advice!

despite you not being in heartslabyul, nothing is stopping him from lecturing you when you have something on your uniform out of place. he dutifully takes it upon himself to fix your outfit while getting you stuck in 20 minutes full of rambling.

let’s just say.. not the best relationship has come from this. while you sorta didn’t mind, almost found him endearing, he didn’t like how casual you were.

post-overblot ? well, he still fusses, but for a different reason.

in reflection, he thought it was very sweet how you went through his relatively aggressive doting with a smile and occasional embarrassed giggle.

it took a while, but he found it in himself to apologize for his actions, before being told by you that you knew it was because he cared, so it’s okay! you constantly forgot to fix your outfit sometime, so it was quite a relief when he came around and did it for you!

THATS when it develops. the abnormal heart palpitations. the heating of his face, his whole body burning as if he’s on fire. the jittery attitude that occurs when he’s around you. the stuttering. the stuttering.

he’s never done that! have you cursed him?? is this a hex ??

not one to immediately jump to conclusions, he confides in trey. who laughs. in his face.

what’s so funny ??? his life could be in danger !!!

he blows up a little in embarrassment, before being calmed down by the lovely vice-dormhead, who sits him down before telling him.

he. can’t believe it. it takes a while to process what his friends words mean. he’s in LOVE with you ?? that’s crazy talk !!! but all the puzzle pieces are in place. it’s logically the only explanation. how could you have cursed him anyways, you don’t even have magic!

after he’s accepted the news, he prepares himself. what could he do to make you like him back? well.. in the most riddle way, he spends most of his time helping you academically. he’s not the best at emotions, so be patient with him!

whether it’s tutoring, letting you copy his notes (it hurts), or gifting you stationary, it’s his way of showing you love and he is doing his best.

what he doesn’t know is you’ve already caught on- and you think it’s adorable! very endearing, what a lovely sweetheart you know. but after a few weeks it occurs to you that he is probably too nervous to confess to you.

no shame, you can do it yourself! you go all out for him!

inviting him to the garden, sprinkling little rose petals onto the floor, all leading to a little gazebo.

his face is brilliantly flushed when he gets to the platform, and you’re similar, with heat radiating off of your skin. you build up the courage and ask him out quickly.

“riddle, ive had the biggest crush on you for the longest time. you’ve sucked me in with how wonderful you are, with how attentive and sweet you tend to be. you’re so caring, it’s really adorable. please, please go out with me!”

his face is all red, but for once it’s not because he’s mad. he stares for a while before nodding his head enthusiastically, not trusting himself to speak.

you audibly let out a sigh of relief, before grinning and hugging him excitedly. he squeaks a little, before hugging back with a soft smile on his face.

you truly are a thornless rose. the most beautiful in the patch.

you are the most annoying herbivore he’s ever met. period.

ever since you stepped on his tail he hasn’t stopped hearing about you. after the heartslabyuls dormheads overblot, you’re the talk of the school, along with three other idiots.

GOD he wishes you would shut up.

essentially, he hates you.

and then hates you even more for messing up his foolproof plan.

his feelings for you after his overblot..? complicated. he’s grateful you saved him (not that he would say it), but he’s also pissed you interfered in the first place.

your bond starts when you get kicked out of your own dorm by the leech twins and the damn octopus. forced to stay in savanaclaw, you two are forced to get along, much to leonas chagrin.

what he doesn’t expect is how.. utterly charming you are. you were so sweet and accepting it was honestly disgusting.

and after years of neglect, it was exactly what he needed.

he could feel himself falling, with no way to stop it. you were so kind, so understanding of his past. you empathized with how he felt, and comforted him despite his many flaws. while he initially was against it, he knew that even if he didn’t end up being your first choice, as he commonly wasn’t, he trusted you enough to not hurt him too bad.

although he manages to keep the friendship a friendship, he can gradually feel himself feeling almost pained with the secret he kept. it burned.

so, he decides to just deal with it and confess to you. he knew you wouldn’t hurt him intentionally.

inviting you to savanaclaw like most days, he lead you to his room awkwardly. noticing his fidgeting, you asked him what’s wrong, in a soft worried tone. his heart clenched.

he sat on his bed, silent, before letting out a rugged puff of air.

“.. i think im in love with you.” he knew he was in love with you. he hoped his word choice would soften the blow. “you’re, very very important to me. I’ve trusted you quicker then I’ve trusted anyone else in my whole life. youre the most special person in my life right now.”

he shifted at your blank expression (not knowing you were just processing- you felt the same, you felt just as passionately, you just didn’t expect it! with all the teasing and banter you two have, you hadn’t expected your feelings to be returned!)

he continued, with a soft voice, reduced to a timid whisper, unseen of him by anyone but you. “please tell me you love me too. or leave, I don’t want to hear you say you don’t.”

you stared, before your eyes softened, your tense figure relaxing. you embraced him in a tight hug.

“I love you too, leona. how could I not?”

with that, the waterworks began. he did not try to stop it, finally letting a positive emotion fill his body with no rejection,

no words were exchanged after that. just soft, domestic love.

you truly were like a spring in the desert. too good to be true, unbelievable. but fortunately, for him, not a mirage.

//

i don’t know how leonas got so sad haha.. im sorry

[adriendeservesbetter]

Hi, I hate that this is a thing

[angelkissedface]

escapism at its finest.

[minaturefics]

Silent Promises

Request: Okay, thank you! ^^ The request was that the reader is part of the Company and when captured by Mirkwood elves, reader tries to keep the peace between the company and the elves which catches Legolas’ attention. Legolas starts seeing Reader secretly, a bond forming. When the company escapes, Legolas questions his feelings towards Reader and decides to leave with Tauriel to find her. After the destruction of Laketown, Legolas finds reader at the beach, relief to see her alive and realizes there are feelings there. Sorry if it’s too much and it’s okay if you don’t want to do it.

A/N: Hello! Sorry this took me so long, lots of things going on in life right now. This is probably the longest fic I've written here, I don't think I can call it a "minature fic" anymore lol. Also I think that Legolas's CGI-ed blue eyes in The Hobbit look hella creepy so I've gone with having them brown (here and the rest of my fics)

I tried to give it a bit more of a realistic take on what would happen, so it may not be overly fluffy or sweet, but I hope you like it all the same!

Legolas x Reader

Fem reader

No content warnings

6.2k words

---

The air was cool and damp, but fresh, as though currents of air passed through unseen ventilations in the rock. The cavernous hall was lit by hanging lanterns of a sort, glowing warm orange and yellow. The faint sound of a waterfall and a bubbling stream could be heard and you craned your neck as the elves led the company deeper into the magical caves towards the dungeons. The metal bindings were cold against your skin, and the chains between you and the next dwarf rattled with each step.

“Move faster,” one of the elves hissed, shoving Kili in his shoulder when he paused to stare at one of the towering carved pillars. “Or are your short legs incapable of such a feat?”

“He’s just looking,” snapped Fili, glancing behind at his brother.

The elf lifted an eyebrow. “So even an uncultured dwarf is able to appreciate the magnificence of the elves.”

“Hah! As if any of this carven stone could rival what a dwarf could do. You do the rock a disservice,” Gloin said.

The elves drew closer to the company, hemming you in as much as they could. Anger flared in their eyes and another spoke, “We could cut you where you stand, dwarf.”

Your hands curled into fists and you thought of Gandalf’s parting words to you.

‘You are crossing now into the realm of the elves, and they have much quarrel with the dwarves. They are not unreasonable folk, but they can be unforgiving if provoked. If things should go ill, I hope my gift to you would be of some aid. But remember, none can guess at your errand for me: Smaug must be defeated, lest the dragon chooses to ally with Sauron.’

You fought the urge to raise your hand and thumb the small pendant around your neck. The elves had not sensed anything amiss with it so far, but it would be best to keep their attention away from it. The less the dwarves antagonised the elves, the less chance there would be that they would search the company more thoroughly than they already did.

“There’s no need for that,” you said, meeting the elf with a level gaze. “Can we not be civil?”

“Civil?” The elves chuckled. “You have trespassed on our land and provided no reason. We have spared your life, that is civil enough I should think.”

“I alway thought that the elves were known for their grace and fair-mindedness.” You glanced at the elves and found some of their hard stares softening. You glanced at Kili next to you and said louder for the company, “And I know that the dwarves are capable of being reasonable and noble. There is no need to hurl insults at one another while we coexist for this time.”

“And who are you to pass such a judgement?” An elf slowed to walk beside you, the one who appeared to be one of the captains. His hair was the colour of pale straw touched by the morning light, and it shimmered like golden silk threads. His keen brown eyes were fixed on yours, almost curious in their gaze.

“Just human. A lady.” You met his eyes. “All races have their follies and triumphs. If we bring old hurts into new ages they will never heal.”

He inclined his head at you, but said nothing else. The rest of the walk to the dungeons was uneventful and quiet, neither dwarf or elf willing to break the fragile truce.

When the company reached the dungeons, the elves began to undo the bindings and escort each of the dwarves to their cells. The elf from before, with the blonde hair, gripped your elbow, firm but not ungentle, and led you to your cell. You paused at the threshold, taking in the rough stone walls and floor. Was this to be where you would spend the rest of your life? Dying without even one more glance at the rising sun? He nudged you forward, his hand insistent on your arm, and you stepped into the dim.

You turned around to face him; a dignity to face your jailor even as he reached for the metal door. His eyes dropped to the small pendant around your neck, lingering on the deep blue luminous stone nestled in a tangle of withered branches, and he took a step forward.

“That is a strange necklace,” he murmured, raising his fingers towards it.

You shuffled back as your pulse lept to your throat. The lie sprang to your lips unbidden. “It is simply a birthday gift from my… grandfather.”

“Must be someone of high standing, to acquire such a thing.” His eyes narrowed at you.

You made a noise at the back of your throat and shrugged. Lies were easiest to sustain if there were fewer stories to entangle yourself in. The grate creaked, his hand around the bars, and you took a final look at him. Haloed by the soft light of the lanterns, he appeared the ethereal being that the elves were thought to be. The sharp line of the jaw was accentuated by the shadows of the dungeon, and the brown of his eyes seemed deeper in the gloom.

“Legolas!” One of the elves called, and he glanced behind. “Your father requests your presence.”

The door slammed shut and you held his gaze, unwilling to flinch or retreat, until he vanished beyond your sight. You sat down on the ground and listened to the dwarves throw themselves at their bars until Balin called for them to stop. You crawled towards the back of the small cell and took your pendant in your hand.

Your eyes fluttered shut and you whispered the words Gandalf had taught you, “Abraza batan, nakkha ne.”

The stone grew warm and the corners of your vision darkened. The bars and the lanterns beyond them faded into another image. Warm light and large barrels. There was water, a strong river or stream perhaps, all around you. A horn call echoed in your ears. Your hands were grasping some sort of wooden plank or edge. Thorin yelled something to the reply of the other dwarves.

As soon as it came, it vanished, and left you with nausea rising in your stomach. You groaned and scrubbed your face with your hands. There would be a path out, an escape. There was the possibility of that at least. You leaned back against the rough wall and hoped that Bilbo would bring help.

--

Legolas kept to the shadows as traced the winding path down to the dungeons. He had paced, restless, through the halls, and lingered, unsettled, in his rooms. More than once in the last few days he had caught his feet turning towards the dungeons, his mind fixed on you. Your diplomatic words cooling the anger of both the dwarves and the elves, your defiant eyes blazing in the darkness, the odd pendant around your neck.

He glanced over his shoulder before descending the stairs to where the cells were. He had snuck away after dinner, with an excuse of wanting some time alone to think, and crept down towards the dungeons.

The dwarves were silent except for a few quiet muttering that passed between cell neighbours. The air held the faint scent of oak and beech, and lingering scent of roast meat and herbed vegetables from the dinner they had been served. He walked up to your cell and paused by the door. You looked up from where you were staring at a rock.

Even after a few days in an unforgiving cell, you were still as beautiful as you were when they found you in the forest. Light danced in your eyes and a smile played about your lips.

“I would like to speak to you,” he said, drawing closer to the bars. “If you can spare the time.”

You threw your head back and laughed. “Unfortunately, I am quite occupied. I am quite taken in by the angle this rock is cut.”

His feet hesitated. Did you mean that in jest or was that a subtle way to tell him you did not wish to speak to him?

“What is it?” You stood up and approached him. “Certainly must be important if they have sent you down to us, Captain.”

“No one sent me, and I am not a captain.”

You arched an eyebrow at him. “Then why have you come?”

He opened his mouth and then snapped it shut. Why did he wish to seek you out? It was almost as if something was drawing him towards you, tugging at his hands and pulling at his feet.

“I am curious as to why a human would follow a company of dwarves on their quest.”

“Adventure called for me, and I answered.” You shrugged. “It is no great mystery.”

“Adventure,” he murmured. When was the last time he ventured out of Mirkwood, if at all? Laketown perhaps, some couple hundred years ago. Dale maybe, before it was ruined. “How far have you come?”

“Rivendell. That is where I joined them.”

“Rivendell? Are you a friend of the elves there?” You nodded slowly. “Why have you not said? You would not be herer.”

You shrugged, eyes drifting away from him. “Elf friend or no, I have thrown my lot in with these dwarves, and so with them I shall stay. I will not abandon my friends to lounge in beautiful rooms while they suffer here.”

His chest tightened. Loyal, noble. Even when imprisoned. Your eyes grew sad and distant, the mirth he saw dancing in them vanishing at your own words. It would not do for you to sit forlorn in your cell.

“Tell me about your adventures.” Your eyes flicked back to him and your brows furrowed. Did you think it was some ploy to get information out of you? “I have not strayed from the borders of my land. I am eager to hear of what is out there.”

Your eyes brightened and you stepped closer, your fingers curling around the bars. “You have hardly left Mirkwood? But there is much of the world that is full of beauty and light and wonder. So much wonder.”

“What wonders have you seen?”

“The Eagles. Oh.” You sighed and rested your head against the bars. “The Great Eagles. They rescued us from the orcs and took us to Carrock. To fly is like nothing else, to sweep across the land and glide through the mountains. It was nothing like I had seen before: the clouds in between the mountain peaks, like soft white rivers, the rising sun spilling its rays across the jagged land.”

“Eagles? You have witnessed the Great Eagles?” He drew closer. What other surprises did you hold? “And they bore you and the dwarves on their backs? This is no small thing.”

You laughed again, bright and merry. “I suppose not, but I had not realised until now.”

He was about to ask you another question when a sound jolted him backwards. He glanced behind him at the stairs. Was that footsteps? Who else would be down here at this time?

“I must go,” he said, and tentatively wrapped his hand around the bars, just above yours. He could feel the soft brush of your skin, the warmth from your hand. “I will come back when I can.”

He hurried off towards the second set of stairs. He glanced behind, slowing on the final step, and found you still peering up at him through the bars. Perhaps tomorrow night he would have more time with you.

--

You curled an arm around your stomach, willing the nausea to stop. It had been a bad idea to use the stone again. Foolish to use the ancient magic for something as simple as finding out more about Legolas. You groaned and twisted to rest your sweaty forehead against the cool stone, your eyes fluttering shut. Legolas was a prince it seemed; the son of the king that held you and your friends captive. There was some fondness between him and the red-headed elf. Tauriel was her name, if you overheard correctly.

You thought of his eyes, curious as you mentioned Rivendell, and his voice, low and melodical. You brushed your thumb over the side of your hand where his had rested. Warm, soft. So much larger than your own. When was the last time someone had touched you tenderly? The Rivendell elves hardly initiated contact, and the dwarves were all hearty pats and rough nudges. Would he come visit you again? Fix those deep brown eyes on you and ask you more questions?

“Are you ill?” Your head snapped towards the door where Legolas peered at you through the bars. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to alarm you. It slips my mind how silent we elves are.”

“It is no matter.” You shifted where you sat, angling towards him. “You have come again.”

He glanced behind him, as though ensuring there was no one else to bear witness to the interaction. “May I sit?” You nodded and he sat down, stretching his legs out in front of him and resting his bow on his thighs. You traced the line of his limber legs up to his slender torso up to his graceful face.

You tugged at your muddied tunic and frayed trousers, and tried to run your fingers through your tangled hair.

“There is no need for that,” Legolas smiled at you. “Your state does little to mar your beauty.”

You blinked at him, flush rising to your cheeks. He thought you beautiful even in a palace full of elves? You pushed down the slight flutter in your chest and cleared your throat. “What do you wish to know?”

His lips curled up into a soft smile. “Anything you wish to tell, I would like to hear it all.”

You felt your flush deepen at his admission and you forced yourself to hold his gaze. Your thoughts drifted towards Rivendell. “Lord Elrond was the one who gifted me my bow.”

“Yes I…” His eyes darted away for a moment. “I have been admiring it. The craftsmanship is very different to ours, though no less elegant.”

You reached out towards his bow. “May I have a look?”

He nudged the bow closer to you. You ran your fingers over the carved wood, brushing over the dense leaves and twining vines. You felt a pang in your chest and you withdrew your hand. It had been so very long since you held your bow or gripped the hilt of your dagger.

“In Rivendell, the forge is upon one of the mountain’s rocks. Waterfalls rush beside it, flowing down through to the green oaks and silver beeches in the valley.” You sighed and your eyes drifted away from him.

“Great waterfalls rush through Rivendell, springing from rock and flowing through the small city. The air is fresh and cool, and filled with the scent of pine. The stone is white and weathered, and it looks as though it was carved out from the mountain itself.

“The nights are filled with the rustle of trees and soft singing, the days filled with poetry in sunlight, or walks through the forest. The whole place is nestled in the mountains, swathed by trees and mist, so cocooned from the outside world. It is as if it exists in a dream. A distant dream shrouded in cloud.

“My room faces east. It would catch the rising sun, and my waking was bathed in gold.” You looked down at your hands, tracing the lines of dirt in your palm, and murmured, “I dearly miss the sunrise.”

Legolas reached out and placed his hand in yours. Unmarked, unmuddied. His fingers curled around yours, tightening in a squeeze, and your heart lurched in your chest. What did he mean by holding your hand?

“I will speak to my father and find a way to have you removed from this place. If you were such a friend to Lord Elrond that you had a room in his dwelling, my father will be compelled to extend our friendship to you.”

You ripped your hand from his. How could you leave your companions?

“Legolas, I —”

“Go, child,” Balin croaked from the cell next to you. “The elf speaks reason.”

Perhaps Balin was right; being free to walk the halls might give you a chance to send a message out to Gandalf or someone else. But what of the vision the stone gave you? Of barrels and water, of everyone’s freedom?

“Please give me some time to think it over.” You looked into his eyes and he nodded.

“I will go now if you wish to think it over, though I am not needed for an hour yet.” He shifted where he sat, as though preparing to leave.

“Stay,” you said. “I have given you some stories, I would like to hear one of yours.”

He chuckled and the sound lifted your heart. “I am not sure I have anything that can rival that of Great Eagles. But I can tell you more of Mirkwood if you wish. It was not always so dark and twisted.” You nodded and he continued. “It used to be lush and green. The trees grew tall and thick, leaves dancing with the wind, and the moss was soft and damp, like a never ending carpet across the wood.

“The forest was full of wondrous things: birds that flew from tree to tree, colourful butterflies that weaved through the flowers, deer danced over the roots and badgers burrowed under them.”

You asked him more questions and watched as light filled his eyes as he spoke. So different to the cold and stern Legolas that you first witnessed in the forest. He seemed almost childlike, speaking so openly about his home, eager to answer your questions about it. Warmth settled in your stomach when he smiled at you, and you found yourself grinning back.

Before long he was called away and he swept soundlessly from the dungeon, taking one last lingering look at you before he ascended into the shadows. You sat back and sighed.

“Balin, do you truly think it is wise for me to leave?”

“Thorin has thrown out any chance we have. I do not think Kili’s strange and fragile connection with that other elf will do us good, and Bilbo… ”

“There might still be a chance.”

“This is our chance, child.”

“Balin, my stone, I saw —”

“Hush! Do not speak of what that stone has revealed to you. Whatever you witnessed, we may not know when it will come to pass. Wait a few days if you must, but do not tarry so long you lose the favour of the king’s son.”

What would be the best course of action? To wait or to follow where Legolas led? You wrapped your hands around the bars, and stared up at the stairs, thinking of his soft brown eyes.

What would happen if you went with him? A chance of rescue for the dwarves yes, but also something else. You could reach out to him and cross the small distance separating the both of you. You could speak to him for longer, have the freedom to meet him as an equal instead of being separated by metal bars.

A chance at friendship, and perhaps, the smallest of hopes for something more.

--

Legolas felt laughter welling in his chest and he pursed his lips. Your eyes were bright and playful, and your cheeks were flushed. He was listening to your story about how you bested a naive archer in a competition.

“It’s true!” You chuckled. “His expression when I shot my arrow through his was worth all the belittling he gave me. Foolish man, I certainly put him in his place that day.”

He leaned against the cool stone wall, angling his head so he had a clear view of you through the bars. Two weeks in a cell, and your spirit was still unbroken; he hoped it would remain that way. Despite Thranduil’s reluctant acceptance to extend his friendship to you, you had decided to remain with the dwarves. He had gone to visit you nearly every night since and he would listen as you told him stories of your adventures.

“No one else tried to challenge me after that.” You grinned at him. “I wager that I could best you in a shooting competition.”

His stomach fluttered, picturing what you said. He would take you deep into the Mirkwood forest to one of the sunny clearings he had found on his patrols. In the dappled light you would walk next to him, your shoulders brushing his, your words just for his ears. He could challenge you to shoot an apple from a tree, or spear a pinecone placed on a rock. He could watch you as you moved, trace his eyes over your form, admiring.

“Perhaps one day,” he said lightly. “If you ever change your mind.”

You hummed and reached up to clasp your necklace. It was a curious thing, ancient and unnerving. You seemed reluctant to speak about it, and whenever he brought it up you would turn sad and wistful.

“What about you?” You smiled at him. “Do you have anything amusing to share with me?”

Amusing? Elves were not known for being overly playful, though he and Tauriel had got up to some mischief in their younger days. Things had been brighter then, when Mirkwood was Greenwood, and life was full and light. Before the loss of his mother, before Thranduil grew cold and distant.

“Tauriel and I once built a small talan in the trees, a hideout of sorts. We had scavenged fallen branches and twigs, and hid it with leaves. We would sneak out there, avoiding our duties and gossiping about the elders.”

Your eyes widened, jaw growing slack. “Did your father ever find out?”

“I think he suspected, though I am uncertain if he ever deemed it important enough for him to search for it.” He chuckled. “I wonder if it is still there now. Would you like to see it? If it still exists.”

Your lips quirked up in a teasing smile. “Perhaps one day, if I ever change my mind.”

Warmth bloomed in his chest and he felt blood rush to the tips of his ears. What were these strange reactions? It was only a conversation, a playful promise of something that would not come to pass. He simply found you interesting, your stories were riveting and you were a spot of levity in the heavy atmosphere of the palace. Nothing more, nothing more.

“Where would you go if you could leave?” You asked.

“Lorien. It is another elven kingdom I have heard much of, and it is not too far of a journey from our borders. It is shrouded in mystery and many who enter the forest to seek to find it do not return.” He sighed. “I doubt I shall ever look upon it.” You threw your head back and laughed. What did you find so amusing?

“You elves and your hidden kingdoms. It is no wonder so many have misconceptions about your people. You hardly allow anyone in to even attempt to understand you.”

The words tumbled from his lips before he could stop them. “You do.” You blinked at him. “It seems to me that you have always tried to understand others. It is a characteristic not present in many.”

“I…Thank you,” you muttered, and he felt his ears redden again.

“My apologies, but I must take my leave. My father is expecting me soon.” He leaned in close to the door and whispered, “Tomorrow is Mereth Nuin Giliath. I will not be able to leave the celebration to come down here.”

“Go.” You smiled. “Celebrate your stars, I will not be going anywhere soon.”

He took in your face, the swell of your cheek, the curve of your lips. It would just be one night without seeing you. He took a breath and nodded. It was only one night.

--

You gripped onto the edge of the barrel, the wood cutting into your palm. Water surged around you, tossing the barrel and filling your mouth. You spluttered and twisted, watching as Legolas ran alongside the river and picked off the orcs.

Time had run out. For you, for him. The stolen moments in the dungeon, the passing touches, the shared laughter. It was washed away with everything else, swept up and carried off with the current.

Whatever tentative thread that tied you to him had snapped. There was nothing more to do but to look forward, to finish the task that Gandalf had entrusted you with. Sauron’s power was growing; there were more important things to be done.

Time had run out.

--

“What about Tauriel?”

Legolas froze and his heart lurched in his chest. “What about her?”

“She went into the forest armed with her bow and her blade.” Legolas turned and strode towards the doors. “She has not returned.”

He stared out at the path leading out into the tangled wood. What was she thinking? To defy orders and her king? Was it for the dwarf she had a fondness for, or was there something more she had in mind? The pack of orcs were tracking the dwarves, which meant they would most likely end up attacking Laketown. The people there were not well armed, well defended.

They would be overrun by orcs.

“My lord? We must close the gates.” The guards shuffled beside him.

He thought of the last time he saw you, you were bobbing in your barrel, shouting for Kili. His chest tightened. Were you gone from him forever? Lost to the neverending call of adventure that seemed to beckon you? He looked down at his hand, running his thumb along the pads of his fingers. Fingers that had curled around yours, that had felt the brush of your skin.

And what of the way he felt with you? The ease, the warmth. Tender feelings of friendship, or something more?

“Wait,” He said, and turned back. “I will go find her, but let me first arm myself.”

“But your father —”

“He cannot stop me. You may close the gate behind me when I leave.”

He would go after the orcs, go after Tauriel.

Go after you.

--

“The lake,” you said and looked at Tauriel. She was bundling the children in scarves. “I will go ahead and find a boat.” She nodded at you and ushered the dwarves towards the door.

You rushed down the steps and your eyes darted between the boats moored to the side of the canal. They were all barely more than flimsy dinghies. You cursed and hurried down the path, searching for something that would hold everyone.

“Here,” you called, beckoning at the dwarves at the foot of the stairs. “Hurry!”

You stepped in after Tauriel, gazing up at the dark shadow that swept above you. Would there be any hope against such a beast?

“Legolas,” Tauriel murmured as the boat pushed off the side of the canal and your head snapped to hers.

Your heart lurched in your chest. “Where did he go?”

“He went after the orcs.” Her eyes were hard. “I do not know if he is still in the town.”

Smaug roared overhead and flames blew from its mouth. The fire raged around you, searing wood and blackening brick. Screams and cries echoed in the chaos, parents searching for children, lovers calling for each other. The bell tolled, loud and hollow, ominous amidst the smoke and ash.

Legolas had gone off to hunt the orcs by himself with a dragon on the loose? He was a good warrior, you knew that, but even the greatest of warriors had their limits. Was he somewhere, trapped by fire or cornered by multiple swords and arrows?

You shifted to get out of the boat but a firm hand on your shoulder stopped you. Tauriel’s eyes were soft but her lips were set in a grim line. “No. Legolas will be fine.”

“But —”

“I do not know what you are to him exactly. But I do know he will not forgive me if you do not make it out of this alive.”

You opened your mouth to protest but a great roar cut you off and Smaug let out another stream of fire. You gripped the edges of the boat, your knuckles blanching white and your teeth clenched. Even if you wanted to help him there would be no way of knowing where he was.

You thought of his voice, soft and gentle. The feeling of your hands in his larger ones, safe and warm. Would you ever see his eyes light up again? Hear his stories about the forest he loved so dearly?

Would you ever get a chance to press your lips to his, to inhale his scent of wood and moss that was always just out of reach?

Your lungs burned with smoke and your eyes watered in the heat. Kili was coughing beside you and Fili thumped on his brother’s back. A beam cracked above and embers rained down on you.

You gripped your pendant in your hand and forced the words from your dry lips. “Abraza batan, nakkha ne.”

The world spun and darkened. Fire and smoke. The ringing of a bell. An arrow, black as night and as large as a spear. The twang of a bow. The roar of the dragon, its body twisting in the air, falling towards the lake. A cold dawn on even colder shores.

“Bain!”

You turned to see the young boy hanging on to the low crane hook. He jumped off it and scrambled down the dock.

“Let him go,” you said, clutching your churning stomach and looking between his wide-eyed sisters and the dwarves. “There is hope yet. Let him go.”

Tauriel’s eyes darted down to your necklace where it still glowed hot on your chest. “That is no mere piece of jewellery.”

“No.” Your eyes drifted up to the sky, searching for Smaug. “But now is not the time for such things.”

She turned back to the front of the boat. “No. But should we make it out of this alive, we shall have words.”

--

Legolas scanned the scene in front of him. Debris washed up on the shore, bodies bloodied and bent among the wreckage, mothers screaming, children crying. Laketown was a blackened,smouldering mess in the distance. Where were you? Tauriel? Did you make it out alive, or did you lie cold and still in the charred ruins? His chest tightened at the thought and he turned away from the sight.

He thought of your amused smirks and melodic laugh, of your hands, delicate but strong in his. There would be no bars separating the two of you anymore. Would you come back with him if he asked? To walk the hidden paths of Mirkwood, to sit with him under the stars.

His eyes drifted towards Erebor. With Smaug dead and the Lonely Mountain reclaimed, there were things to be done. The events of the previous night were but the beginnings of something larger, more deadly. He could feel it in the air, the tension nearly as thick as the smog.

He swallowed. It was not the time for tentative friendships. Not the time to spare a thought for anything more tender than friendship.

His eyes darted between the mass of people and caught sight of Tauriel, the back of her auburn hair and green robes bright amongst the grey. She was talking to Kili, and you were standing a few paces behind her.

His heart stuttered at the sight of you. Even with your hair tinged grey with ash and your tunic ripped and water stained, you looked radiant in the cold morning light. You stood with your back straight and shoulders squared, steady and unfaltering even after such a calamity. He traced the line of your nose down to your lips and lingered on them.

As though sensing his eyes, you turned. His breath caught in his throat.

No, there really was not another more beautiful than you.

--

“Legolas,” you whispered, jaw growing slack at the sight of him.

He stood on a low ridge, his deep brown eyes fixed on yours. His face was unmarked and unmuddied, his hair smooth and shiny. Laughter burst from your lips. Even after single handedly tracking orcs he was as unruffled as he was walking around in the palace. His bow was slung over his shoulder and in his hand was another. You frowned. Why would he be carrying two bows?

You walked towards him, gravel crunching underfoot, your eyes never leaving his. The sun emerged from the clouds, and for a moment, he was cast in gold. Gold, like the early morning sunrises in Rivendell.

“This is for you,” he said, holding out the bow.

You looked down at it, tracing the intertwined carvings, your eyes resting on a familiar chip on the one side. “My bow.”

“I thought you might need it.” His voice was soft and tender.

“There is something coming, is there not? I can feel it in the air.” You took your bow, caressing the wood. “Erebor has been reclaimed. I fear there may be others who will wish to take it for themselves for the treasure that it holds.”

“I fear the same,” he muttered. “My father…” He shook his head. “Will you return with me and Tauriel? Your errand with the dwarves is finished, the dragon is slain and their home returned. You do not have to go with them anymore.”

“Legolas…” You glanced behind you at the dwarves piling into the boat. Kili was holding Tauriel’s hand. It was true that your promise to Gandalf to see the dragon killed was fulfilled. But what of the dwarves? How could you leave them to their halls of bones and dust? If what you feared was true, they would need your aid.

You looked up at him, fingers curling around the wood of your bow. “I cannot go with you.”

You turned to leave, but his hand closed around your wrist. “We could go back to Mirkwood, watch the sun rise from the tops of the trees.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “I would not be parted from you, not while there is still so much left unsaid between us.”

You glanced down at his hand on yours then turned back to face him. His grip loosened and you took his hand between both of yours. “Then do not leave it unsaid.”

He swallowed and his jaw worked. “I… Care for you a great deal. It would pain me to lose you. There is war on the horizon. We can protect you from what is coming.”

You reached up and cupped his cheek. He was warm, so very warm. “I can protect myself.” He leaned into your touch, his eyes fluttering shut. “Legolas, I promise this will not be the last time we see each other.”

“Then let us have this moment a little longer.”

He tugged you closer, his arms circling your waist. Your hand rested on his chest, the other caressed the line of his cheekbone. He brought his forehead to yours, and for a few precious seconds, he was the only thing that filled your world. He smelled like the forest, of wood and water, fresh and clean. His body was hot against yours, his arms fighting the chill of the morning. You could feel his breath on your cheek, the rise and fall of his chest under your hand. He was here, close, real. Your fingers curled into his tunic and his hand came to rest at the base of your neck. You focused on the soft pressure of his arms, the smoothness of his skin.

Legolas. Yours, for a moment.

“Oi, we have to go!”

Your eyes snapped open into Legolas’s. His voice was no more than a whisper. “Go then, meleth nin. We will have our time soon.”

“I will come find you,” you promised, drawing back. “Stay alive for me Legolas.”

“Do not risk yourself unnecessarily.” He pressed his lips to the back of your hand. “Mirkwood awaits your return.”

You shuffled backwards, glancing at the dwarves in the boat. Kili’s gaze was still fixed on Tauriel as he took up an oar. “And the rest of Middle-Earth awaits you. When this is over, let us leave together. There is much of the world I wish to show you.”

His lips quirked up in a smile and you grinned back. You took one last look at him, burning the image of him standing in the morning light into your mind. You paused by Tauriel, squeezing her hand in comfort, before wading out into the shallows after the dwarves. They hauled you onto the boat and thrust an oar into your hand. When you looked back, Legolas and Tauriel were already halfway up the beach, running towards the forest.

Kili sniffed beside you, his eyes red-rimmed, and you laid a hand on his shoulder. “Do not fret, my friend. There will be time.”

You looked out at Erebor, gilded by the morning sun, and smiled. Yes, there would be time.

[fangirlovestuff]

Never Too Late - Chris Evans x reader

a/n- hey lovely people!! i hope you’re all doing well:) i’ve been working on this one for a while, and i’m super excited to finally share it! because it’s Chris’ birthday, i wanted to have some fun with this, so in the story, chris says 3 things that are quotes / paraphrases of some of his characters’ quotes (like 3 things his characters said in movies lol). see if you can find all 3 of them;) enjoy<3

Summary: Romance is an illusion. Unattainable. Absolutely unrealistic. No one can have a fairytale love story. But maybe, you don't need a fairytale. You just need each other. (In which you and Chris have each given up on romance, but then you meet, and… sparks fly.)

Word Count: 9.6k (hello longest oneshot i’ve ever written!!)

Warnings: some curse words, (responsible) alcohol consumption, slight angst?? honestly it’s just obliviousness, slow burn!!!

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

This was a waste of time.

I'm sorry, the text read, something came up. Raincheck? ;)

Douche. He was the one that asked if you could do this today instead of tomorrow, so you moved your meeting. But apparently, that didn't matter, since he wasn't planning to show up anyway.

You blocked his number, leaving your place at the bar and heading towards the exit. You were in the middle of typing out a furious message to your friend who set you up on this blind date, when you collided with someone in your path quite harshly. You rubbed your arm where you bumped into the person and gazed upwards to meet his eyes.  

"Sorry," you both said in unison.

The man let out a chuckle. "Sorry," he repeated, his amused eyes gazing into yours.

"No, I'm the one who should apologize," you said, "I wasn't looking where I was going," you lifted up your phone, gesturing to the reason.

"I'm sure it was important," he made a dismissive gesture with his hand, "don't worry about it."

"It really wasn't. Again, sorry," you grimaced.

"It's fine," he reassured you, "I was actually on my way to get another drink so it's not like I spilled anything, no harm done," he smiled.

"Well, I'm really glad. Have a good rest of your night," you smiled back. Thinking that was the end of it, you turned to continue your walk towards the exit, opening your texts to write that message to your friend, but as you were turning around the man reached out and grabbed onto your wrist, not harshly but enough to make you turn around to face him once more.

He immediately let go of your hand, clearing his throat awkwardly. "Sorry, I don't mean to intrude, it's just… you seemed kind of upset when I bumped into you, are you alright?"

You sighed, shaking your head with a smile, "I'm fine," you looked up at him, "just got ditched by this blind date. Guy didn't show, so I was writing a furious message to my friend who set me up," you chuckled, "that's why I wasn't paying attention."

"Sorry," he said with a sympathetic grimace. "So why were you writing to your friend and not to the guy? I mean, he's the one who bailed."

"No offense, but I learned not to expect as much from the male species," you smirked, and he chuckled in return. "Got bailed on one too many times to have high expectations. Honestly, I was only willing to go on this date cause my friend said this was a great guy and, according to her, I was 'on the sure road to becoming a spinster'. So, I appeased her," you shrugged. Your confession left your lips with such ease, you were almost taken aback by how easy it was to talk to this complete stranger this openly. Maybe, it was easier because you were strangers.

"Ah, I know what that's like. I mean, not the spinster part, the part about appeasing your friends," he chuckled. "They're over there," he gestured to a table a little to the back, "to 'cheer me up'. Said I needed to leave my house more. Although I don't know if they're still sober enough to remember that's why they're here," he smiled affectionately as he looked at his table. Sure enough, the guys looked pretty drunk, but the man didn't seem to resent them for it, he was just amused.

"What did you need cheering up for?" you asked once his gaze went back to meet yours.

"Well, I got dumped. We were together for a few years. I even had a ring," he raised his eyebrows, "but she said it wasn't working out anymore. At least she didn't know about the ring yet," he smiled bitterly.

"Small victories," you nodded sympathetically.

"Yeah," he chuckled, "anyway, she just finished taking the last of her stuff from ou- my place. She was really lingering with it, we broke up like a month ago. Didn't have the heart to rush her."

"I'm sorry," you put a comforting hand on his shoulder, albeit a bit awkwardly. He seemed to appreciate it anyway. "Your sob story's way worse than mine," you joked, getting a small huff of laughter out of him.

"I guess," he said. "But that means I get where you're coming from on the whole no dating thing. It just seems pointless," he shrugged.

"I'm sure this is the part where anyone else would've told you that it'll be okay and you'll find 'your person', but since I'm shittier than that I'll be honest – romance is dead and we'll both probably die alone," you said flatly.

Your blunt tone made him smile, which in turn made you smile, and you nodded as your words sank into the silence between you. You started giggling, and soon he followed, and you were both laughing softly for a while.

"I'm sorry," he said, still grinning, "I don't know why I'm laughing. It's sad."

"Very sad," you agreed, a grin on your face as well. "to be fair, spinsterhood doesn't sound that bad. Except for the cats thing. I'll never be a crazy cat lady," you shook your head, "they hate me, every single one. I'd get dogs though," you mused, "have a little army of 'em."

"Sounds fun," he smiled.

"Right?" you smiled back, "I'm telling you, it's not as bad as people make it out to be."

Wrapped up in your conversation, you were both still standing next to the bar, and another man pushed past you to get to the bartender. The bubble around the two of you exploded, and you remembered that you were still in public, at the bar.

"You should go get that drink you were here for," you said, gesturing towards the bar.

"Alright," he chuckled. Just then, the man finished ordering, so he told the bartender what he'd like to have, then turned to you.

"Hey, romance might be dead, but chivalry isn't. Let me buy you a drink," he grinned.

"Be still my beating heart," you feigned emotion, before a smile crept back onto your face. "I'll have whatever you're having," you shrugged, and waited as he told the bartender to bring you two another drink.  

"So, if you're buying me a drink, I feel like it's only fair I should know your name," you smiled.

"That does seem fair," he sent a small smile your way. "I'm Chris," he put out his hand and you shook it, telling him your name in return.

"So, you come here often?" he smirked, prompting the both of you into another fit of laughter.

"For real though," you said once you got your drinks, "I'm really not looking for anything romantic right now. I hope that's okay."

"Of course," he reassured, "I'm not either."

"Okay good cause this is like, really tasty, so I wouldn't mind having a couple more," you held up the drink he got you with a grin, making him laugh.

You did have a couple more, with Chris. You ended up sitting at the bar, his friends not really noticing he was gone, and talking about anything and everything. You were almost reluctant to end the night, but you really should get home, which is what you told Chris before getting up and getting your wallet.

"Hey, no," he said and gestured for you to put it away, "I was serious, I'll pay."

"Really? I mean, this wasn't a date so I just thought-"

He shook his head adamantly and you put your hands up in surrender and smiled. "Okay. Thank you," you told him as you put your wallet away.

"You're very welcome. Although, there is something I still want to ask you. Can I get your number?"

You opened your mouth to protest, but before you could he spoke up again.

"Nothing romantic, I swear," he chuckled, "but it was really fun hanging out tonight. We should do it again. Completely platonically." He smiled sincerely.

You narrowed your eyes in mock suspicion before laughing. "Alright. Sure, you can have my number," you said, and he grinned before giving you his phone. You put in your number and gave it back.

"See you around, Chris," you smiled before leaving the bar, the smile lingering on your face all the way back to your house.

And when your friends asked you how the date was, you told them he bailed and you went home, never mentioning meeting Chris. You knew how they'd see it, and it wasn't like that, so you just… kept it to yourself. For now.

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

On your way to Chris' house, you picked up the takeout from the place he told you about, before texting him you got it and you were almost there.

It's been a couple of weeks since you met him, and so far he was proving to be a great friend. You texted back and forth most days, but never found the time to meet up again, until today, that is.

You had texted him about your crappy day at work, and how happy you were this week was finally, finally over, so he invited you t his house, and suggested you watch a movie. And well, you accepted. A movie night with a friend was just what you needed to put this shitty week behind you.

"Hi," you greeted him once he opened the door.

"Hi!" he took the takeout bags from your hands and gestured for you to follow him inside, and into the kitchen. "So," he started, while taking out the food, "I realized forgot to tell you; I have a dog," he smiled apologetically, "I don't know if that's a problem, he's in my room upstairs, I won't-"

"Are you kidding?" you nearly squealed, "of course that's not a problem! I told you if I could I'd be a crazy dog lady," you giggled. "Can I meet him?"

"Great!" he chuckled at your enthusiasm, "sure, I'll go get him."

As he went upstairs, you stood there, looking around his kitchen. You weren't sure what to do, it seemed like he got all the food, and it wasn't your house, so… you just stood there.

Fortunately, you soon heard the patter of footsteps, and just as you were about to call out to Chris to ask him if there was anything you could do to help, you heard him yell out.

"Dodger!"

And just then, a big whirl of movement came towards you, and before you knew it a large dog was resting his paws on you, nearly knocking you back. You regained your footing before you crouched down to your knees with a beam.

"Hey," you cooed at the excited dog, who was wagging his tail and still trying to climb onto you, apparently. "Hey," you repeated yourself, rubbing behind his ears affectionately. "It's so nice to meet you," you kept cooing and stroking his fur. He propped himself up and licked your cheek, making you giggle. "Thank you, you're so cute," you scratched his neck affectionately.

"Sorry about him, he gets excited around new people," Chris came into the kitchen apologizing.

"No worries," you grinned as the large dog laid down on his back, exposing his stomach to you in a silent request for belly rubs which you willingly provided. "He's adorable," you looked up at Chris, who was grinning back at you.

"He really is," he agreed, going to finish putting the food in plates before lifting them.

"Can I help with anything?" you asked, still crouched down and petting Dodger.

"Nope, all set," he smiled, "let's go."

He led the way to his living room, where he set the plates down on the coffee table and picked up the remote. "So, what do you wanna watch?"

"Oh, I don't know," you shrugged as you sat down on the couch, "you can pick."

"Well, I would, but we're here because you've had a shitty week, so you should pick whatever you want."

"Ugh, don't remind me. See, Dodger would never do this to me," you turned your gaze to the dog, who has settled at your feet, and started petting him again. "Right? Of course you won't, you're the cutest dog," you cooed.

Chris burst out into a short laugh. "Are you going to steal my dog?"

"It's a very real possibility," you said dryly, shrugging. You turned your gaze to him, your hand still petting Dodger, and smirked.

"Okay, so are you gonna pick a movie now that we've settled that?" he asked, smiling.

"I don't know what to pick," you admitted, "I don't wanna put on anything you don't like, I guess," you mumbled.

"Awwwww, it's fine," he assured with an easy smile, "pick whatever."

You caved and put on a movie you really liked – The Princess Bride. As he realized what movie you were putting on, Chris chuckled.

"Really? That's what you're going with?"

"See? I told you I'd put on something you wouldn't like. Forget it, we can just-"

"No, no!" he cut you off, "I really like this movie," he grinned, "I just wouldn't expect that from someone who claims romance is dead, that's all," he chuckled.

"Well, movies have… dragons in them. Do you think dragons are real just cause they're in movies?" you reasoned.

"Okay, I see your point," he raised his hands in mock surrender.

A comfortable silence stretched over the both of you from that point, the only thing filling it was the sound of the movie playing and the occasional shuffling sound when either of you, or Dodger, shifted on the couch.

A bit later, Chris spoke up. "Hey, want a beer?"

"Uh, I probably shouldn't have any. Driving myself home and all," you shrugged.

"Yeah, that's smart," he chuckled. You were both lowering your voices, as if not to disrupt the movie which was still playing. "Mind if I have one?"

"Not at all," you answered truthfully, "It's your house."

He let out another short chuckle, nodding before getting up. When he heard Chris getting up, Dodger lifted his head from where he was laying, and swiftly followed him into the kitchen.

When they returned, Chris brought you a glass of water, and gave it to you before sitting down. Dodger jumped back up onto the sofa, curling up beside Chris, laying his head on his stretched-out legs.

"Awwww," you softly smiled, "that's adorable. He really loves you."

"Not nearly as much as I love him," Chris replied, smiling and fondly rubbing Dodger's head.

"See, that's good love. Love that lasts," you remarked. Thinking that was the end of it, you turned your head back to the movie.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Huh?" you turned your head back to Chris.

"What did you mean by that?" he repeated.

"Oh, nothing," you shook your head. "Just, you know. I know I seem very opposed to romance, but I'm not against love. I love my family," you shrugged, "because they made me the person I am today. They're a part of me. I just don't think that a love between two people who aren't family can last in the same way."

"Yeah. You're probably right. What about dogs though? They're certainly not blood related to us," he joked.

"Certainly," you laughed, "But dogs aren’t as fucked up as humans, so it's not really comparable. Dogs don’t stay up thinking about something embarrassing they did five years ago. Dogs probably don't even get embarrassed, really. They don't have as many doubts and… restrictions. Barriers. They don't have to make everything complicated."

"But humans do."

"Bingo," you chuckled dryly.

"We really do, don't we?" he sighed. "No one really knows what they're doing or who they are. How can you know someone else enough to truly love them when you don't even know yourself?"

"Exactly. You get it," you toasted your glass of water against his beer bottle. "it's too much effort for something that lasts so little."

"Not necessarily little," he suggested, "but never enough. You know, in movies, love is this big force of nature that draws two people towards each other so strongly… it's undeniable, unavoidable. Meant to be," he chuckled. "That feels so far away from anything I've ever experienced."

"Me too, if that's any comfort," you grimaced sympathetically. "Maybe we're just meant to be alone."

"Maybe. Anyway, that's grim," he chuckled, shaking his head. "Sorry."

"No, it's fine," you smiled. "Every time I talk about it with my friends, I get told I just haven't found the right person yet, and to keep on hoping and everything will magically be sunshine and rainbows," you fluttered your eyelashes cynically. "It's fun to know there's at least one more realistic person out there," you sent him a small smile, which he returned.

You both turned back to watch the movie, which was heading towards the end at this point. The handsome prince saves the brave princess. He's not really a prince, but, you know. Same difference; it's a fairytale, a legend.

Something no one can ever truly have.

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

Chris and you had developed a habit of calling each other on Mondays, since they were the worst, and you both needed to vent. You were in the middle of one of those calls when something he said made you abruptly stop making your dinner.

"How come I didn't know it was your birthday?" you asked, surprised, at his admission that his birthday was yesterday.  

"It never came up," he said. "Besides, it doesn't matter. The party's on Friday anyways, if you wanna come. You can bring some friends too, if you want. There's plenty of space."

"Yeah, okay," you smiled to yourself, "sure. Happy belated birthday, Chris."

"Thank you," he chuckled. "So you'll come?"

"Yeah, I'll be there, I guess," you sighed dramatically, prompting him to laugh.

"Great! See ya Friday," he said.

"See you."

After you hung up the call, you returned to your dinner, but not before texting your friends to invite them along. If you were getting on so nicely with Chris, you assumed the rest of his friends were nice people, so would in turn get along with your friends. Who were also nice people, obviously.

Or maybe, not so obviously.

There was an immediate flood of messages asking about who Chris is and how you met and if he's cute.

You ignored them in favor of finishing making your dinner, and only then sat down with your food and answered their questions, except for that last one.

He's a friend of mine I met not long ago, nice guy, you replied to the group chat.

And?? one of your friends texted.

And he invited me to this party he's throwing for his birthday, and told me I could bring friends, so now I'm inviting you guys. Hopefully, I won't regret that.

But is he cute???

I don't know, and I don't care. You know I'm not looking for anything right now!!

You're no fun. Fine, we'll come and see for ourselves ;P

You scoffed to yourself and continued to eat your dinner, unbothered. Maybe they should come, you mused, just to see that it's possible to make friends without dating them, like a sane adult.

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

"Happy birthday!" you exclaimed as Chris ushered you and your friends into his house. "I brought you a wine," you extended the bottle and he took it.

"Thank you!" he said loudly, to overpower the music that was playing. "Is it good?"

"How should I know? I didn't drink from it, it's your gift!" you joked. He laughed before giving you a one-armed hug and waving at your friends. "I'm gonna put this away," he pointed towards the kitchen, "But you should go to the living room, everyone's there."

You gave him a thumbs up and led your friends towards the living room.

"He even laughs at your bad jokes," your friend cooed in your ear, and you sighed and rolled your eyes.

"We're not a couple!" you reminded her.

"Maybe not yet, but I'm just saying you'd make a good one," she shrugged, a twinkle in her eye.

You ignored her, and continued walking. On your way to the living room, you did see a whole bunch of other people, but still, the party wasn't huge, especially compared to Chris' large house. There were no more than probably about 80 people there, not including yourself and your friends.

Pouring yourself a drink, you sat down next to your friends, who were already making small talk with another group, and joined the conversation.

Some time went by before the conversation turned to romance, and everyone started sharing funny stories about their significant others.

"What about you?" asked a woman from the other group. She seemed friendly, an easygoing smile on her face. "Everyone has a story to tell."

Before you could answer, one of your friends chimed in. "Oh, she doesn't do romance," she teased.

"Sounds mysterious," the woman laughed.

"Yep," you smiled, amused, "that's me. Dark, brooding, and mysterious."

As you were all laughing, Chris came down to sit next to you. "Having a good time?" he asked the group with a smile, a model host.

"Yeah," one of your friends answered, "we were just talking about how this one never dates anymore," she pointed at you, and you caught Chris' look, amused. "What do you think about that?" your friends asked, oblivious to the silent exchange.

"I think she should do whatever she wants to," he answered with a smile.

"Oh, don’t be diplomatic," she said, "don't you think she should find someone?" she pressed.

"I think she should do whatever she feels like," he persisted.

"Whatever," your friend rolled her eyes with a smile. "Every pot has a lid. Sooner or later, you'll find yours," she said, your words pointed at you now.

You were quiet for a brief moment before speaking up. "Oh, you're done talking about me like I'm not here. Sorry, you were saying?"

The entire group burst into laughter, and you caught Chris' gaze again.

Sorry, you mouthed, shrugging.

It's fine, he mouthed back with a small smile.

The urge to kill your friend subsided when you saw Chris didn't take her pestering too seriously.

For the rest of the night, you proceeded to have a good time, making conversation with a few other people and only running into Chris one more time.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked, toasting his cup to yours.

"Yeah. You throw a great party," you smiled.

"I'm glad you think that," he returned your smile.

After that you returned to your friends, and a little while later you all decided to head home. You searched for Chris, thanked him for hosting the party and wished him a happy birthday, and went home.

"You're telling me there's nothing there?" your friend asked you on the ride home.

"There's nothing there," you sighed. "I don't know why you all want there to be."

"We just know what it's like being in love. And we want that for you. It's fun," she smiled.

"Parkour also sounds fun, that doesn't mean I can or am going to do it," you retorted. "You know what I think about being in love. Different people have different paths and abilities. I can be happy without a sweeping romance."

"I know, you're a strong independent woman and you don’t need no man," she rolled her eyes. "Just… don't close yourself off to the opportunity. That's all I'm saying."

"Okay," you shrugged.

Shortly after, she dropped you off, and you went to sleep, thinking nothing of the whole ordeal.

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

She came by today.

When you got the text from Chris on Wednesday, you were puzzled for a few moments before you realized. His former fiancée. I mean, almost fiancée.

Shit

Is everything okay?

It only took him a couple of seconds to reply.

Yeah, I guess.

On an obviously unrelated note, wanna come drink?

You chuckled before texting him your ETA, quickly changing from the already rumpled clothes you had worn all day, and driving to his place.

You texted him when you were outside, and when you walked up to his door it was already opened, and he was waiting for you, a bottle of beer in hand.

"Aw, you drove yourself here?" he asked, before ushering you in, "I told you we should drink."

"Yeah," you chuckled, "but it's not like there's anyone I can ask to drive me on a random Wednesday. It's fine, you drink."

"But I don't wanna drink alone," he whined. "Can't you just spend the night then? I have a guest bedroom."

You opened your mouth to refuse, but then assessed it again. You were in pretty comfortable clothes, you were starting work a little later than usual tomorrow, and well… he needed a friend, and he asked you.

"Okay, fine," you chuckled, "gimmie one of those," you gestured at his beer.

He made a little celebratory motion with his hand before going and getting you another beer.

"So," you started as you took a swig of your beer, "how was your day?"

He let out a short, bitter laugh. "Great. Yeah, just… just great," he took a large gulp of his beer. You waited, giving him the space he needed to speak again. "She wanted to get back together, actually," he scoffed. You frowned, but still refrained from speaking.

"You know, I… I still have the ring," his voice broke and he cleared his throat. "I still have the ring because I wanted her to come back. But when she finally did I… I couldn't say yes to her. Because it's forever or nothing. And I don't think I'm meant to have a forever. Certainly not with someone who broke up with me anyways," he took another sip of his beer.

"If it's any comfort, I don't think there's such a thing as forever," you shrugged, and he looked at you quizzically. "I told you," you said, "all romance is momentary."

"Maybe that's true," he sighed again. "At any rate, I am now stuck with this ring, which is just… fantastic. Really awesome."

"Can't you bring it back to the shop?"

"Tried to. They won't take it back, say it's been too long for their return policy. That money's lost," he took another sip of beer.

"Well, you know, if it's lost anyways…" you smiled, "I think I have an idea of what to do with it. but first," you raised your beer in a toast, "we do need to be a little drunker for this."

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

A few too many drinks later, you and Chris were stumbling in a park near his home.

"How do you know where we are?" he asked, before nearly tripping on his face, making you giggle as he managed to catch himself on a nearby tree.

"I've been here before," you explained, a little less drunk than he was but still positively buzzed. "It's really pretty."

"It is," he agreed, taking in the trees around you as you kept going. "It's also very isolated. Are you going to kill me?" he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"No," your loud laugh rang through the park, breaking the silence of the night. "I'm not gonna kill you. Promise. Now c'mon, we're nearly there!" you beckoned him to follow you as you ran forward.

The rest of the way went by quickly, the both of you striding hurriedly, or as hurriedly as your inebriated minds would allow, engulfed in the comforting silence of the night. Finally, you got to a clearing with a large lake.

The crescent moon reflected in the water, and the lake was shimmering slightly as the wind disturbed it. The only sounds were those of your slightly labored breath, the soft trickling of the water, and the occasional flap of a bird's wings. The silence surrounded you, but it wasn't suffocating, it was as clear as the water in front of you.

It was finally broken when Chris spoke up again.

"You got me drunk so you could drown me in a lake?"

You burst into another fit of laughter. "First of all," you said in between giggles, "if anyone got anyone drunk it's you convincing me to drun- drink."

It was his turn to laugh at your mix-up. "Shut up," you said, slapping his arm lightly. "Now c'mon. You have the ring, right?"

"Yep," he said, fishing it out of his pocket. "But why did you want me to bring it?"

"Well, the fact I'm not gonna drown you in the lake doesn't mean we're not drowning anything."

"My ex-fiancée?" his mouth dropped open into an o shape.

"No!" you facepalmed. "The ring. You're gonna throw the ring in the river!"

"I am?"

"God, I'm starting to think I got you too drunk," you rolled your eyes. "Okay. Here's what we're gonna do. You're gonna think about your relationship. You're gonna reminisce about everything, good and bad, and you're gonna put it in this ring. In your head, of course," you added before he could chime in.

"So I can let go," he nodded in understanding.

"Exactly," you smiled. "We don't need romance. Fuck romance. Fuck forever. You're better than that!"

"Amen!" he said, toasting an invisible glass in the air, making you laugh once more. It was probably the alcohol, but you hadn't laughed like this in a while. It was fun to laugh loudly, freeing. You wondered why you didn't do it more often.

"Alright!" you clapped your hands once, shaking from your thoughts. "Let's get this show on the road!"

You both stepped closer to the lake, and then Chris held out his hand in front of him, his palm open with the ring on it. He stared at it intently for a few moments, then his gaze snapped up to meet yours and he nodded shortly. You didn't speak, you just reached out and closed his fingers around the ring, before stepping aside and gesturing for him to go ahead. He stared at his fist for another moment before taking a swing and throwing the ring as far as he could. You held your breath until you heard the sound of the ring hitting the water, which made you release a breath full of awe.

"You did it," you said softly.

"I did it," he slowly repeated. "I did it!" he yelled out and you laughed in surprise. "I did it!" he yelled again, and in a few short strides he was next to you, picking you up and spinning you around in celebration.

"Put me down!" you shouted at him between fits of laughter, "Lunatic!"

He put you down, grinning widely. "I can't believe I just threw that ring into the lake. That was so stupid."

"It kinda was," you laughed, breathless.

"It was your idea!"

"I know! It's still stupid," you kept laughing, nearly doubling over. "Felt good though, didn’t it?"

"It really did," he let out a bewildered laugh. "Fuck. It really did," he said, and started laughing, which made you start laughing again, and before you knew it you were both laying on the grass, laughing until your cheeks hurt.

"My cheeks hurt," you pouted.

"Awww, I'm sorry," he drawled, reaching out to pinch your cheek, making you swat his hand away, glaring at him. He just giggled again, laying on his back and looking up to the sky.

You laid back as well, staring up.

"I wish I knew something about the stars," he said out of the blue.

"What do you wanna know?"

"Oh, just anything. I don't know jack shit about 'em."

"Well, I'm pretty sure that's Orion's Belt," you said, pointing up to a group of three stars. "So now you know that about the stars."

He said your name, making you turn your head to look at him. "You're a good friend," he smiled.

"You're a good friend too," you smiled back at him.

"No, I'm not. All I ever do is moan about my stupid ex."

"I'm sure she wasn't stupid," you reasoned.

"She was! She was stupid with two o's," he mumbled in disdain. You giggled at his words. "I'm not hung up on her," he continued. "I'm just… disillusioned. I thought she was the one. And now that she's gone… I don't know if there's gonna be a one. Which is sad. So I've been sad," he said matter-of-factly.

"I was sad too when I started thinking that," you whispered, sobering up a little. "But we don’t need 'a one', Chris. Romance is dead, but life goes on. We're on our own, but that doesn't mean we can't make the best of it."

"I spent so much of my life looking forward to spending the rest of my life with someone. And now that I realize that might not be the case… I guess I just realized that this is it. The rest of my life. I needed to throw that ring to make peace with that."

"Glad I could help," you gave him a half-smile, taking his hand in yours and giving it a small squeeze.

"Yeah," he returned a squeeze of his own, "me too."

"C'mon," you said, leaving his hand and getting up, before helping him to his feet as well. "We should get going."

You stumbled your way home, leaning on each other for some parts of the way. Sleepy and still a little buzzed, you finally got to his house, and he led you to the guest bedroom.

"Goodnight," he said, smiling.

"Goodnight," you whispered back, before he turned and walked up the stairs. You listened to him climb, and heard the sound of another set of footsteps, soft cooing coming from upstairs, and then heard the sound of a door closing.

Dodger, you thought with a smile, before closing your own door and plopping down on the bed.

In the last minutes of your wakefulness, you thought about how lucky dogs were.

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

"So, are you dating him?"

"No!" you said indignantly, "have you listened to a single word I said?"

"Oh, so you're just not putting a label on it? you're a little too old for those games if you ask me, but suit yourself," your friend shrugged.

"Come on! He's just a friend," you huffed.

"If that's what you wanna tell yourself," she smirked, but then her look became more sincere. "Look, I know you. I know that every time we talk about him, you're happy. Why can't you admit that you like him?"

"I do like him, as a person! I like all of my friends!"

"You're impossible," she rolled her eyes with an affectionate smile.

"You're impossible," you retorted weakly before smiling at her.

"You know we all just want you to be happy, right? That's all we want."

"I know," you said softly, "and I appreciate it. I really do. But I am happy, on my own."

"If that's the case, then I'm happy for you," she sighed. "I don't want you to feel like a third wheel, especially with Sarah's wedding coming up. You're the last of us who hasn't tied the knot yet."

"I'll be fine at Sarah's wedding," you rolled your eyes.

"I know, I know," she raised her hands in surrender, "But I'm just saying, I know you're anti-romance, but I also know you're not anti-company. Maybe you should bring Chris. As your friend, if you insist" she added when she saw you open your mouth to object. "Just, you know, everyone's coming with someone, and I don't want you to sit alone."

"I appreciate you looking out for me, I do, but seriously, I think you're underestimating my social skills. You do realize I can talk to people I don't know, right?"

"I know," she huffed. "Just… consider it, okay? For me?"

"I'll think about it, I guess," you shrugged.

You had no intention of following through on that. Except, well, it did come up when you were talking to Chris.

"What are you doing Friday?" he asked, his voice mechanical through the phone. "I thought we could finally see that movie you're always talking about."

"Nope, can't do Friday," you said, the phone pressed between your shoulder and your ear as you were folding your laundry.

"Aw, that's a shame. I was really looking forward to you finally shutting up about it," he teased, making you chuckle. "What're you doing Friday then?"

"First of all, if you'd listen to me and see it, you wouldn't wanna shut up about it either, because it's awesome. Second, I'm going to a friend's wedding. I'm gonna sit aside, drink some wine, and make fun of all the drunk couples."

"Sounds like a real fun night," he teased.

"Yeah," you said sarcastically. "I am really happy for her though. I know she wanted it for a long time," you said, sincere now.

"Hey, um, if you want, maybe I could come laugh at drunk couples with you? So you'll have some company," he offered.

"Oh, you don't have to," you dismissed it, "I know it sounds like a bummer, but really, I'll be fine."

"No, really. No one should have to sit alone at weddings," he said.

"Another friend of mine told me that as well."

"Well then, this friend of yours is smart. Believe me, as a veteran of many sit-alone weddings myself, I can confirm it's indeed a huge bummer."

"Fine," you chuckled, "I guess if you want to come so badly you may," you said, making him laugh.

"Great, text me the details?"

"Yep," you smiled. "Talk to you later?"

"Sure, bye!"

You hung up the phone to get up and start putting all your clothes into the closet. After you were done with that, you sent Sarah a text to let her know you will be bringing a plus one at the end, asking her if that'd be okay.

Is it Chris????

Yeah

Then it's fine!! :)))

You chuckled to yourself and kept putting away your clothes.

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

The night of the wedding, as a close friend of the bride's, you arrived at the venue a couple of hours beforehand, along with all of your friends. Chris came some time after guests started to arrive, and it didn't take you long to spot him in the crowds, looking a bit lost. You excused yourself quickly from the conversation you were in with some of the groom's friends and went to greet him.

"Hey!" you waved as you walked towards him, "Chris!"

Grinning when he saw you, he also began moving towards you, until you finally met in the middle.

"I'm glad you could make it," you smiled.

"I am too," he said, "seems like a nice wedding."

"Yeah. C'mon, you're just in time. They're gonna start the ceremony soon," you explained as you grabbed his arm and started leading him towards your seats.

"Oh-kay," he chuckled as you dragged him forward with surprising determination.

As you took your seats, you waved at your friends, and they freaked out over Chris being there, but you paid no mind to them, as Chris was leaning towards you, whispering, "You know, for someone who doesn't seem to enjoy romance, you sure do seem excited about this wedding."

"Well, I'm happy for Sarah. I've learned that me and my friends have a different outlook on that, and that's fine, it's useless to argue about it or whatever. I'm just happy she's gonna have what she wanted, even if I don't really believe in it."

"So how does that work? If you don't think romance is real and bring joy then how come you're happy your friend has it?"

"Chris, if one of my friends told me they found a way to adopt a unicorn, I'd be happy for them, no questions asked. Everyone should do what they feel like," you shrugged. "Now shhhh, they should be starting every minute now."

The ceremony was a beautiful one, and Sarah looked gorgeous in her white dress. As she walked down the aisle with a beaming smile, Chris' words echoed in your mind.

If you don't think romance is real and bring joy then how come you're happy your friend has it?

Despite your quick answer, you didn’t really know. The short answer was the one you told Chris, but the long one…

For the longest time, you believed romance just wasn't durable. Wasn't real. But maybe you just didn't believe that you can have that kind of romance? You just never really had someone to challenge your perception like that, because no one ever took it seriously, they just told you you'd find your person.

But that wasn't something you wanted to think about now, so you filled it away for later.

"It was a beautiful ceremony."

You and Chris were a little far out from the dancing crowd, somewhere a little quieter, but you could still see the dance floor from the bench you had found.

"Yeah, it was," you agreed with him.

"Not beautiful enough to make you cry, I guess?" he teased.

"Ha ha. I don't cry at weddings."

"I could've guessed that," he chuckled. "So what do you usually do at weddings? I mean, all your friends are married, so I'm assuming you've been to quite a few."

"What I'm doing right now. Sitting aside and drinking," you raised your glass in mock salute before taking a generous sip.

"Solid plan," he nodded slightly. "So you've never like, danced at weddings or anything?"

"No," you frowned, shaking your head slightly, "Why would I? I'm not a dancer, really.

"Well, how 'bout we go and change that?"

"Excuse me now?"

"I'm just saying, if you're really happy for your friend, maybe you should show her that. Enjoy yourself."

"I am enjoying myself," you deadpanned.

"Do what people are meant to do at weddings," he rolled his eyes.

"I thought you were here to silently judge everyone with me. Don't make me regret inviting you," you jokingly waved your finger at him as if you were telling him off.

"That's still the plan. We could just probably still do that on the dance floor," he shrugged. "Your call."

There was a short-lived silence before you sighed. "Fine. One dance," you warned.

Getting up, he offered his arm to you, which you took, and you made your way o the dance floor. You started dancing to the end of the upbeat song that was playing, but just then it changed into something a little slower, and people were pairing up.

"This is the money time," Chris winked, and offered you his hand. You took it, almost instinctively, and you started dancing to the song, his other hand on your waist while yours was on his shoulder.

"What do you mean money time?" you whispered.

"Okay. We're gonna turn around, and you're gonna look at the couple that's gonna be behind me," he said, turning the both of you around casually as you danced.

"Oh my god," you suppressed your laughter. "That's… I don't even know what to say. Are they even a couple or is he her da- oh nope, he just kissed her on the lips. God," you grimaced as Chris laughed at your expression. "I at least hope he's rich for her sake."

You both chuckled, and it was only a couple of moments later that you gasped with a smile. "Don't be obvious cause they're pretty close, but look at the couple to my right."

"Oh shit," he chuckled. "Remind me not to go to any secluded corner of this wedding. These two are probably this close to running off to do things I definitely wouldn't wanna see."

"Right?" you said, amused, "They're practically eye fucking. Have some decency!"

You both laughed again, and then Chris nodded his head subtly in another direction. "Look at those two."

They were a couple that wasn't dancing, they were sitting at a table close to the dancefloor, their foreheads touching, seemingly murmuring to each other.

"Betcha they're the kind of couple who does the whole 'no you hang up!' thing," Chris continued with an amused grin.

"Oh they so are!" you burst into laughter. "They probably share a single spaghetti from both ends."

"Lady and the Tramp style," you both said at the same time, prompting you to tear your eyes from the couple and look at each other, giggling.

You continued dancing through the next song, and the next one, and the one after that. For pretty much the rest of the night, you two danced together, continuing to invent silly stories about the people you saw, laughing at each other's cheesy anecdotes.

When it was getting late and the party was winding down, Chris offered you a ride home, since he hasn't drunk, and you gratefully accepted. You came here with your friends, and they were all probably staying longer, but you were getting a little sleepy, so you decided to call it a night.

"Let's just go say goodbye to Sarah," you said and he nodded, letting you lead the way.

"Hey, I'm getting pretty tired, so we're gonna leave. Congratulations," you smiled once you had gotten to the table the happy couple was sitting at. As Chris was shaking the husband's hand, you had bent down to wrap your arms around Sarah in a tight hug.

"So you admit you're a 'we' now? You and Chris?" she teased, whispering in your ear.

"We're not," you rolled your eyes.

"Whatever you say," she smiled knowingly. "Thank you for coming," she said louder once you let go of her.

"It was a pleasure, congratulations," Chris smiled at the both of them, and you all gave your goodbyes.

On the way back, you were already lulling into sleep in the passenger's seat, and Chris smiled to himself.

"Chris," you mumbled from your half-asleep state.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. For coming with me today. You're right. Dancing with you is better than sitting alone."

"Wow, what a compliment," he drawled sarcastically.

"Yeah, don't let it get to your head buddy," you chuckled, before shifting around in your seat so your head was leaning on the window. "Can you wake me up when we get there?"

"Sure," he smiled, "Sweet dreams."

"Thanks," you yawned.

When you got to your house, Chris gently nudged your shoulder a few times to wake you up. You woke up, confused for a second, but quickly regained your composure and thanked him for the ride.

You went into the house, barely changing out of your dress before plopping down on the bed.

It was kind of weird, honestly. Usually, no matter how tired you were, you wouldn't manage to fall asleep in a car, or a plane. Even a bed that wasn't yours was sometimes harder to sleep in.

But you were in your own bed now, so you didn't have a lot of time to mull that over before you sunk into a deep sleep.

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

"Hey," Chris greeted over the phone one Monday.

"Hi! How's it going?" you smiled.

"Fine. I mean, actually, do you wanna come over?"

"Right now?" you frowned.

"I mean, why not? Have the Monday chat in person."

"Um, sure. Yeah, I'll be over in a bit," you said. Hanging up, you didn't think too much of his invitation. He sounded fine, and he said he was. He was probably just being nice.

Soon enough you were knocking at his front door. It opened to reveal a very excited Dodger pouncing on you, and you giggled as you crouched down to pet him. "Yeah, hi Dodger! How's the cutest boy doing?"

"Ouch," Chris joked from the doorstep.

"Hello to you too, I guess," you said dryly, but with a grin on your face.

You all went inside, and Dodger went straight to his bed, curling up. "Your knock woke him up," Chris explained, smiling at the sight.

"Oh, sorry," you gave him a small smile.

"It's fine. As you can see, he has no problem going right back to sleep," he chuckled.

"Yeah," you giggled. "Is everything okay? I mean, is there a reason you wanted me to come except to enjoy my magnificent presence?" you teased.

"Well, that was mostly it," he laughed, "but actually, I did want to talk to you about something. Wanna go outside?"

"Um, sure," you said, frowning slightly before forcing yourself to smile again.

You stepped outside into his garden, sitting in the big lawn chairs.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" you asked, turning your head to look at him.

"That's Orion's Belt, right?" he evaded, pointing at a group of stars in the night sky.

"I'm pretty sure it is," you shrugged.

For a moment, you were both quiet.

"I've changed my mind," Chris started. "This isn't the rest of my life. It's just my life."

"Okay," you said, not getting where he was going with this.

"You know, all these cheesy couples we made fun of at Sarah's wedding? I think they have it right."

"How come?"

"They realized that romance isn't about forever. It's about right here, right now. It’s in the little things. I've been so opposed to romance lately, and I was constantly thinking about how I wouldn't have a forever, so much so that I forgot what's going on now."

"And what's that?" you asked softly.

"Something much simpler than that. Happiness."

You stared at each other in silence, a slight frown still on your face.

"You make me happy," Chris admitted in a soft voice. "You make me really happy. And I don't want to lose your friendship, but I have to ask you this, because otherwise I don't think I'd forgive myself. Do you really not believe in romance? At all?"

"I don't know," you whispered. Clearing your throat, you continued a bit louder. "I don't believe in everyone's version of it. The happily ever after, forever. I don't need anyone to complete me either."

"There's always a middle road. Maybe not everyone has someone, and we don’t need romance, but that doesn't mean we're not allowed to want it. We shouldn't have to sit alone at weddings," he said sincerely. After a breath, he continued. "I'm not asking you for forever. I don't want to. But I want to ask you for now. And I don't think I'd complete you, just like you don't complete me. But you do make my life a whole lot better."

"Chris, you know I'm not looking for anything, I told you that when we met," you said weakly.

"I know. I also wasn't looking for anything. And yet I found… something. And I'd be a coward not to pursue it. We can make our own kind of romance; not a happily ever after, but a happy here and now. No big cheesy gestures, or unreasonable promises, just… being together. And that means I can't promise you it'll work, that it'll be perfect. Hell, it'll probably be messy, and hard, and mundane, at times, but that's how life is. But I can promise I'll try. And even if it doesn't work out, I'm willing to regret you for the rest of my life."

You thought back to every romantic relationship you've had. Every date you've been on. A lot of them were disappointing, but some of them were good.

None of them made you as happy as being with Chris did. Not one of your actual dates managed to top just hanging out with Chris. You didn't know why, but you felt safe with him, like you can be entirely yourself. You felt happy.

You didn't want to risk that. You didn't want to lose that. But what if taking this one risk would make it all that much better? You thought back to all of your friends, how happy they were with their significant other, how in love. What if putting your heart out on the line, for the first time in a long while, would make you happier than you had ever imagined?

Of course, it could also make you devastated. It could crush you. But that's the risk, isn't it?

There isn't any other person you'd rather take that leap with, you realized. In the few months you knew Chris, he already managed to become one of your favorite people in the entire world. You trusted him, cared about him, more than you'd let yourself realize up until now. And like he said, not exploring that would make you a coward. And you're not.

You took a deep breath. Chris gave you the time you needed, simply looking at you softly.

"I haven't dated anyone in a while. I might be rusty," you chuckled finally.

"I'm willing to take those odds," he smiled. "Is that a yes?"

"Yes," you nodded, a grin slowly making its way onto your face. "If there's anyone I would do this with, it's you," you admitted softly.

He grinned, getting up from his chair and extending his hand out to you, and you accepted. Gently, he pulled you up on your feet, using his momentum to bring you to stand closer to him and wrapping his other arm around your waist. Slowly, you two inched closer, until, finally, his lips were on yours.

There weren't fireworks, or butterflies. There was just this moment, right here, right now. No doubts, or hesitations, it was peaceful. It felt right.

This moment was all you could ever ask for. All you'd ever need.

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

"You look so beautiful in the mornings," Chris murmured, burrowing his head into the crook of your neck.

"You too. Happy birthday," You whispered back, weaving your fingers into the hairs on the nape of his neck. He hummed in response, and you giggled, feeling it tickling your neck.

You laid there for a while more, just basking in each other's company. But when you looked at the clock, you started nudging Chris away from you. "We should get up," you said softly, "We have a party to prepare for."

"The party's not until the evening," he whined, "Stay in bed," he wrapped his arm around your waist, pulling you towards him.

You ended up leaving the bed at noon, eating a big lunch before tidying up for the party. A few minutes later, you slipped away, to set up your surprise.

"Hey Chris?" you called from the other room, "Can you just come over here for a second?"

"Coming!"

He entered to find you and Dodger in matching little party hats, and you were holding one out for him too.

"Wow!" he burst into laughter, putting the party hat on his head. "What's all this for?"

"I thought we should celebrate a little before the guests arrive," you shrugged. "And, you know, Dodger looks so cute in that little hat."

"He does," Chris cooed. "How did you manage to put it on him? He would never let me put anything."

"Well, he just likes me more," you smirked. Chris scoffed amusedly. "Okay fine," you rolled your eyes, "I may have bribed him with a treat."

Dodger's ears perked up at the word and you both laughed at the suddenly interested dog.

"I shouldn't have said that," you giggled.

"Probably," he agreed. "Thank you," you put his arm on the small of your back, nudging you closer to his side.

"You're welcome. Happy birthday," you smiled, tilting your head up to press a soft kiss to his lips. He cupped your cheek in his hand, deepening the kiss, but before it could get any further Dodger was barking and putting his front paws on the both of you.

"Yeah, yeah, don't get jealous. We love you too," you and Chris laughed, petting his head affectionately.

Honestly that day was a perfectly normal day for you and Chris. Being in love for the two of you didn't mean big highs and lows. You had your moments, but most of the time, it was just this peaceful bliss.

Later that night, the party was already in full swing. You and Chris separated from each other at some point, but you were making the rounds, so you knew sooner or later you'd meet up again.

In the small crowd, it was easy to spot your friends, sitting with the same group they did last year. You smiled to yourself, going up and greeting everyone warmly.

"How's everyone doing?" you asked, sitting down for a moment.

There was a chorus of "fine"s and "good"s before the conversation continued. You joined in, talking to your friends and catching up with the other group.

"Hey," Chris' voice was suddenly next to you. He came up and wrapped his arms around you from behind, talking softly next to your ear. "I'm gonna get myself another beer. You want anything as well?"

"Um, yeah. Can you bring me one too?"

"Sure," he smiled.

You tilted your head so you could reach and kiss his cheek, "Thanks."

As he walked away, you turned your attention back to the rest of the group, only to find them all looking at you with knowing grins.

"I thought you didn't do romance," said the woman you had spoken to last year, a teasing smile on her face.

"I didn't. I guess I changed my mind," you smiled softly, watching Chris’ back as he dissappeared into the kitchen.

Maybe romance wasn’t so bad after all.

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

did you catch the three references? tell me:)) i hope you like it, and if you stuck through this entire story, thank you so so much for reading!! as always, i’d love to hear your thoughts, and remember to stay hydrated and take care of yourself<3 happy chris day!!

special shoutout for @animnerd who gave me some motivation when i needed it<3 

Taglist:  @horny-nd-bored @shannon124 @perfectlyharolds @wintersoldierslut @iceebabies  @sleepingpapermouse @steverogerswasalwaysworthy @holtzkinnon @angelicl-y @stydia-4-ever @thatoneperson5000 @fangirlfree @kaitcordx25 @bequeening @steve-barry-damon-logan @itscrazycherryblossomcollection @hollandxmarvel @stargazingfangirl18 @readsreblogsfics @onetwo3000 @beritmetal @harrystylesholland @jazbot2000 @anobscurename @xxxtwilightaxelxxx @peggycarter-steverogers @evansphnx12 @starlightcrystalline @procrastinatingsapphictrash @imvivian

Chris & co. taglist: @patzammit

if you wanna join / be removed from a taglist, comment/message me! much love <3

[manonblaqkbeak]

Motel Living

this idea would not leave me alone, despite me having like three other fics barely done. it is very random. i dont even know what to say lol.

2554 words

enjoy!

Today was officially the one month anniversary of Aelin moving into a three-star motel. She did not think she'd be here for long, a couple of weeks at most, but here she was a month later, and on a Friday night no less. She should have been out with her friends, but she opted to stay inside.

She had to tell herself that she shouldn't complain. That there were people that were worse off than her. Living in a motel was fine.

But it still didn't change the fact that Aelin wished she wasn't living in a motel room. Especially one that was popular with long haul truckers whose snores sounded like chain saws and blenders on the highest level. That right now, down in the restaurant/pub that was only six doors down, an important football game was playing and the patrons inside were cheering wildly.

Aelin missed the house that she had been renting the last three years. Last year she had decided to start saving so that she could purchase the house itself, since it was still on the market since the day she moved in. It was hard, but Aelin was a determined woman and she set her sights on purchasing the house—she felt like she practically owned it anyway—up until the day she received a call from the real estate agency telling her that the house had been purchased and she had to move out.

Aelin disliked crying, but the waterworks started the minute she hung up. She really did love that house. Had created a small vegetable and herb garden to make it feel more homely. Made it hers in the three years she had occupied it.

There was a tiny silver-lining, however, since the new owners were coming from the other side of the continent, she had plenty of time to pack and move out.

But that silver-lining quickly disappeared once she started her search for a new home in-between packing and work. Every apartment, every house, every unit she looked out at was taken by the time she handed in her application. Every inspection starting to become fruitless when she knew that she wouldn't be the one to live in it.

Aelin hadn't realised that the market had become so cut-throat. She knew she was the perfect applicant because in all her years renting she never missed a single day, never received a complaint. Even when the landlord dragged his ass to fix something, Aelin kept her temper in its leash and did not throttle him the way she wanted too.

And as her luck ran out and Aelin had started to truly worry about where she was going to live because while she had multiple people in her life, she quickly realised that she couldn't ask any of them if she could move in for multiple reasons:

Aedion and Lysandra were recently married, and Aelin hadn't wanted to burst their newlywed bubble.

Chaol and Yrene were brand new parents, their baby girl born the day Aelin moved out, and she knew the last thing they wanted was someone else in the way.

Nehemia was in the same position as her, but her parents had invited her back home while Nehemia looked for somewhere else. Aelin's parents were dead, and her childhood home had been destroyed in a wildfire a five years ago, and Aelin had used the insurance money to pay off her debts. She cursed herself now for doing that, but Aelin hated being in debt and she did what she had too.

Fenrys lived in a one bedroom unit and had the worlds most uncomfortable couch, so he was out. And while Fenrys was one of her best friends, she didn't really talk with Connall, his twin. Nor did she often talk with Vaughn.

Dorian and Manon were travelling all over Erilea and Dorian's younger brother Hollin was house-sitting. Aelin couldn't stand Hollin for more than a few minutes at a time and she would rather live in the motel for a year than live in with him.

And then there was Rowan. He had been a close friend for years, until five months ago they decided that they had liked each other too much to keep being friends and officially started dating (at Lysandra and Aedion's wedding, of all places). If they had been together for longer, she would have asked him—but she didn't want to rush anything, because Aelin could so clearly see a future with him and she didn't want to hurt that future by moving in far too early in their relationship.

So that left Elide, her lifelong friend that was more like a sister. Elide was purely on the bottom of the list since she knew her friend cherished living alone after living in a shit-hole with her even shittier uncle—but Aelin knew Elide and if Aelin needed a place to stay, then Elide's door would be wide open. The two had gone to lunch and Aelin had been just moments away from telling Elide everything and asking for a world changing favour.

Until Elide had excitedly announced that Lorcan was going to move in.

And Aelin's plan had deflated. Again, Aelin knew that if Elide was aware of how desperate she was, Elide would invite Aelin to stay, but since Lorcan and Aelin didn't particularly get along, Aelin kept her mouth shut and congratulated her friend for the new milestone in their relationship.

So, all her options completely exhausted, Aelin looked for vacant motels, found that this was the best out of all the options and became a long-standing tenant.

Aelin had managed to keep everyone away from her new apartment by claiming that it wasn't ready for visitors. Most knew that Aelin was house-proud, a trait that she had inherited from her late mother, so they knew that when Aelin was ready, she would invite them.

It was getting hard, however, to keep Rowan away. Each date night and hang out ended up at his apartment and Rowan was becoming curious as to how her new place was looking.

Rowan wasn't judgemental, and he wouldn't look down at her for living in a motel room, but Aelin was the problem; she was too proud to show him her new place. Even when she was at her lunch with Elide, she had to beat down her pride at just the mere thought of asking Elide if she could move in.

Tonight, however, Aelin knew in her bones that Rowan would ask to come over. He had a completely shitty day at work—one that ended up in the hospital because for the first time in his career as a carpenter, Rowan had somehow gotten his hand in the way of his nail gun and shot right through the middle of his palm and was off work until it healed, which Rowan hated the most out of the whole ordeal, since Rowan was the type of person that always had to be doing something.

So when his face finally popped up on her phone screen, Aelin muffled a groan into her pillow (because there was no way in hell she was using the standard sheets the motel provided, she needed her bedding or she wouldn't get any sleep), took a deep breath and plastered a smile onto her face.

“How's the hand?” she asked by way of greeting.

“It'd be a lot better if there wasn't a hole in it,” was his groggy reply. “I just woke up from the longest nap and thought of you.”

“That's sweet of you to say,” Aelin said, “do you want me to come over? I could cook you my world famous grilled cheese.” Please say yes, she thought, please.

“As much as I love the sound of that, I just need to get out of my house,” Rowan said, “I know that you're house-proud and if you don't want me to see it, I understand, I'll even wear a blind fold if that'll make you happy, but I just...” he trailed off and Aelin could see his pained expression even though they were miles apart.

“Seeing all your work tools is making you miserable,” she supplied. Rowan grunted in confirmation. Taking a deep breath, Aelin said, “You can come over, I don't mind. I'd be happy to see you.” And she would be. She'd just have to kick her pride in the corner. “There's a pub right around the corner from mine and the cheeseburgers they have are really fucking good, and I mean that sincerely. Do you want me to get you one? Because I only have snacks and canned food at the moment.”

“A burger sounds good, with extra tomato, please.”

Aelin smiled. “Of course, I'll text you the address, and I'll see you soon.”

After ordering their dinner, Aelin tidied up (even though the space was immaculate) and waited, and waited. When a gentle knock sounded at her door, Aelin took the food from the restaurant worker and was just about to go back in when Rowan's truck pulled up.

Even ten car spots away, Aelin could see his puzzled expression from where she stood. Placing the food on the small, round dining table, Aelin waited by the door and gave Rowan her best smile when he stood in front of her.

His puzzled expression melted away momentarily when she kissed him hello, but it was back in full force when they pulled away.

“Fireheart,” was all he said, and it said everything that he didn't say.

“I know.”

“You're living in a motel room.” There was no judgement in his voice, like she knew there wouldn't be, but it was clear that he was confused about the whole thing. She should have just told him. She loved her late mother, but really hated the fact that she had passed her pride to Aelin. She hated the fact that, deep down, she was embarrassed, even if Aelin told herself that she had no reason to. The housing market was insane, there was no where else for her to go, and that she hated herself for not saving more money to buy her home of three years.

“I am,” Aelin said, “but it's not so bad. It's affordable and clean.” Aelin invited him inside and sat him down the small dining table.

From his spot, he took in the space. Saw the bar fridge that could barely hold a bags worth of cold food, her toaster oven and the dual butane stove she had to purchase because she didn't want to have to use the toaster oven all the time. The tiny closet that held a decent amount of clothes, but didn't make a dent in her considerable mountain of clothes that she had put away in the storage unit she was renting.

None of her candles were in sight and no books either. Aelin was taking full advantage of her library apps, but it wasn't the same. Aelin loved the feeling of a book in her hands, but there was no space and it would have been silly to bring in her bookcases.

“Where's all your stuff?”

“In a storage unit. I considered living in there, but it doesn't have an air-conditioner and this place does.”

Before Rowan could say anything, Aelin turned on the TV, put on whatever movie sounded dumb enough and ate her dinner.

Aelin could see the question burning in his eyes as she stuffed her mouth to avoid answering that very question.

Why didn't Aelin ask if she could stay with him?

Aelin wanted to tell him, she really did, but was afraid that if she showed how serious she was, Rowan might admit that he wasn't as serious as her.

But Aelin knew herself, knew that she was going to tell him at one point or another. She could tell Rowan anything and he wouldn't flinch. It was her own doubt stopping her.

“That really is the best burger I've ever had,” Rowan said when he was finished.

“It really is,” was all Aelin could think of to say. Gods, she felt so damned awkward. The question was still in Rowan's eyes, even as he laughed at the movie and its stupidity. So to avoid it for a bit longer, Aelin took the take-away boxes into the dumpster outback and immediately went for a shower afterwards.

When she came out, Rowan was lounging on her bed, his injured hand laying across his chest, the other arm fiddling with her comforter. Aelin dressed in a shirt that she may have borrowed without asking from Rowan and a pair of sleep shorts.

Borrowing underneath her comforter, Aelin rested her head on Rowan's chest and the awkwardness she felt deflated a bit as he pressed a kiss on her head.

Aelin told him how she ended up here. Including her embarrassment and annoyance at herself. Rowan listened attentively, as he always did. That was one of the biggest things she loved about him, that he listened. And Aelin was in love with him, she knew without a doubt. She was certain she fell in love with him when he danced with her at Aedion and Lysandra's wedding.

When the credits started to roll, Aelin took a deep breath and decided to plunge into uncharted territories. She kept her eyes glued onto the screen.

Aelin decided to bite the bullet. If it all went to hell, she would beat herself up later.

“I don't want to fuck things up with you.” Well, that wasn't how she wanted to start this conversation, but she supposed it was the best way to start off. “I wanted to ask you if I could move in, but our relationship is just so new, and I didn't want to ruin our future, because I can see a future with you, Rowan.” Moving so that she could look Rowan in the eye, Aelin took the deepest plunge imaginable and told him, “I love you, Rowan. I'm in love with you.”

The smile he gave her was the most beautiful she'd ever seen. “I love you, too, Aelin.” Reaching down to kiss her, all of Aelin's doubts melted away. When he pulled back, Rowan said softly, “If you wish to ask, I'll say yes. Because I see a future with you too. You're the one for me.”

“Rowan, can I move in with you?”

He kissed her again. “Yes, you can.”

Aelin's cheeks were started to become sore from all her smiling. Maybe it was a good thing after all that she ended up living here.

Hours later, after another bad movie and celebrating the new milestone in their relationship (which was mainly Aelin laughing as she rode Rowan because he kept forgetting about his injured hand), Aelin and Rowan got ready for bed, and as Aelin rested her head on his chest again, she said, “Just to let you know, I'm going to replace your mattress for mine, because yours is hard as stone.”

“That's exactly why I'm letting you move in, I'm in the market for a new mattress.”

Aelin playfully whacked his chest and muttered what a buzzard he was, but soon fell asleep with a smile on her face, ready for her future with Rowan.

[arcadia-city-stories-if]

early-ish in the relationship where no one has said the L word yet - if mc’s quietly tracing their finger on the ro’s skin and eventually the ro realizes mc’s writing “i love you” how would they react? 🥺

The sweet ones always take me the longest lol, sorry, Anon!

I did have one written for Claude/Claudia but I decided not to include it for *reasons* I still wanted to post the other four though.

Toni’s is also pre-relationship. Also for *reasons*

So, sorry about that!

They're under the cut because they're kinda long and I take up enough of peoples screens with my nonsense as it is lol

Murphy -

Murphy lies in bed, staring up at the unfamiliar ceiling.

The muscles in his arm flex as he unconsciously pulls MC closer to his side, their bare skin flush against his own, still fever hot and damp with sweat, leaving the sheet thrown loosely over them clinging awkwardly to their tired bodies.

It should be uncomfortable, but he barely notices.

His focus is elsewhere as MCs leg hooks over his own, their hand finding its way to his chest, running across his skin, back and forth, in a soothing pattern that brings a contented sigh to his lips. I could get used to this.

"I should probably go." His voice sounds worn, his throat sore, whether from too much use or not enough, he isn't sure. "It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

MC hums, a non-committal sound that leaves the decision firmly in Murphy's hands.

The silence stretches out as he tries to convince himself to leave. There's no reason to make this more complicated than it is. If MC wanted him to stay they would have said so. He should go home, take a shower and sleep in his own damn bed.

His thoughts are drawn to a halt as his attention falls to MC, a single finger tracing a nonsense pattern of whorls and loops against his skin...

Except it's not nonsense. And they aren't just whorls. And suddenly his heart is in his throat and there's nothing that he wants more than to hear them say those words out loud.

"I could stay. If you wanted me to."

MC hums again, punctuated it with a soft brush of their lips against his shoulder. He can feel their smile. "Goodnight Murphy."

Shae -

Shae brushes the grass from their trousers as they stand and take in the night sky. The moon is full and the sky clear, a perfect night for charging their crystals. They take a deep breath of the crisp night air and smile, they really do love their garden.

"So, now what?"

MCs voice cuts through the silence and Shae feels themself smile as they turn towards them. They hadn't expected MC to show any real interest in this side of their life, but it had been a pleasant surprise nonetheless. "Now, we wait."

MC nods and it takes all of Shae's effort not to laugh. They're not sure they ever seen MC look so unsure of what to do with themself. They watch as MC looks around before taking a seat on the back step, taking a minute to stare up at the night sky, the view drastically different than the view from their city apartment, no doubt.

Shae pulls their top tighter, wrapping their arms around themself as they take a seat next to MC, the air chilly but not unbearably so. Not yet, anyway.

The silence is comfortable, but Shae is still pleased when MC turns their way, a conspiratorial smile on their face, their voice hushed like they're sharing a secret.

"You know, my grandmother took me to a fortune teller once. She had a crystal ball and the incense smoke was so thick it stung my eyes." Shae raises an eyebrow, curious as to where MC is taking this when they reach out a hand, gesturing for Shae to do the same. "She told me she could read my whole future from just the lines in the palm of my hand."

Shae watches as MCs fingers slide across the back of their hand before turning it over, palm up in the moonlight, their focus intent as they start to trail along each of the lines there. Their voice turns soft as they both stare down at Shae's palm, and the letters now being written there. A silent confession, too loud a thing for the peacefulness of the night.

"I wonder what she would've seen in yours."

Callie -

Callie's laugh is full and rich as MCs hand dances over her bare ribs. She fights the urge to bat them away as MC tells her to stay still once again, seemingly determined to follow the trail of beauty marks that litter her torso.

"It tickles!" She complains loudly for the hundredth time, no real bite in her words as MC shrugs off her complaints, "Come on, Cal, I want to get it right at least once."

Callie rolls her eyes but acquiesces, the laughter quickly bubbling up once more as the gentle loops and curves send shockwaves rippling across her skin. "Enough, enough! I give!"

She pulls her body away from their touch before rolling even closer than before. Her fingertips lightly trace along MCs collar bone as she settles her body against theirs, her eyes sparkling. "Now do I get to have my way with you?"

Toni -

"I think you might be back-dead, dude."

Toni laughs as MC turns to playfully shove at their shoulder, dropping the raised shirt back into place and re-covering the bare skin of their back. "I am not! It's just impossible."

"Uh-huh." Toni hums in fake agreement, smiling to themself as they lean back against the railing, checking their pockets for their lighter. "Whatever you say."

MC rolls their eyes before producing the offending lighter from somewhere. Toni gives a nod of thanks before relighting their joint and taking a long inhale. Cocking their head to one side they consider the almost pouting MC and can't resist rubbing it in, just a little bit. "I'll prove it." They declare, confidently.

They shift in their seated position until they face out across the city, their back entirely to MC. They place the joint between their lips before raising their arms and pulling the back of their hoodie up, exposing their skin to the night air. "Try me."

There's a long moment when Toni thinks they're not going to do it, but when the exasperated sigh comes, they know they've won. They smile to themself as they take another hit, listening as MC shifts around behind them.

When MCs fingers finally brush against Toni's naked skin, neither of them miss the way their shoulders jump of their own volition, the muscles there rippling, as anticipation suddenly tears through them both.

There's a heavy moment of silence before Toni manages to force out a laugh, they're aiming for nonchalance, they're not sure if they manage it. "Well? Are you going to write something?" They glance back over their shoulder, a tight smile on their face. "Can't exactly prove you wrong otherwise, can I?"

MC levels them with a look that makes Toni's smile a lot less forced, before turning their attention back to the task at hand.

MC starts to write and Toni is pleased to find they have no trouble identifying the letters.

Then comes the second word.

By the third, Toni's eyes are pinched closed as they push down the urge to turn to MC, to say those words, to confess every thought they've had but never said, every feeling they've denied, every hope that just will not die no matter what Toni tells themself.

Instead, Toni laughs. "Damn." they say, shaking their head. "I guess you were right after all." The tone rings just convincingly enough that Toni almost flinches. Lies on top of lies.

They drop their shirt back into place, only half hearing whatever non-truth MC offers back to them. The knot in their stomach too distracting to ignore. They deserve better.

[reidamancy]

too soon || spencer reid

summary: When you wake up in the hospital, buried feelings arise and you must now make a difficult decision. (spencer reid x fem!reader)

category: angst

warnings: detailed descriptions of kidnapping, mentions of guns and drugs, mild cursing

word count: 5.6k

a/n: this was really a struggle to write bc i hated how it kept turning out, but now after a month since i posted Too Late, i’m finally happy with it! this is the longest fic i’ve ever written and i hope it did Too Late justice (although i think i still like Too Late better lol)

MASTERLIST

(part one, part two)

(ICYMI: read part one here)

“I’m here, Y/N, I’m here.”

His voice echoed through your mind as you slowly gained consciousness. You smiled as you felt his hand in yours and you gave it a squeeze.

You slowly opened your eyes and greeted the blurry figure beside you. “Spencer,” you whispered with a smile.

“Spencer? Who’s Spencer?”

Your vision refocused as you looked over and saw that the figure was actually your boyfriend Connor. Your eyes widened in shock and embarrassment as you tried to laugh it off. “Sorry, he was the last person I saw.”

Guilt washed over you at once. During this entire ordeal, your boyfriend hadn’t even crossed your mind. Connor must have been so worried about you... while all you could think about was Spencer. You shut your eyes and attempted to shake the thoughts of your ex away, but much to your dismay, they stayed.

Your shallow laughs were cut off with a wince as the pain in your body hit you at once. You grimaced as you placed a hand over your stomach, trying to sublimate the pain. Connor looked at you with concerned eyes, but you waived it off. “It’s okay, I’m okay.” 

Connor shook his head as his eyes filled up with tears. He grabbed your hand and kissed the back of it. “No, you’re not, Y/N.” He leaned over and placed another kiss on your forehead. “Oh God, I thought I lost you,” he whispered as he leaned his forehead on yours. 

You smiled as you leaned into your boyfriend only to feel... nothing. You tried to combat the guilt swirling in your stomach by forcing the butterflies and happiness you felt whenever Connor was around. He’s your boyfriend, why doesn’t it feel like it? 

You bit your lip at your guilty conscience as Connor sat back and ran a hand through your hair. The tension in the air was suffocating; between Connor’s intense stare of worry to your seemingly absent feelings, you had to lighten the mood.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily.” You quipped, laughing.

Connor’s face softened as his laughter joined yours. You heard footsteps enter the room and when you looked to see who it was, your eyes lit up. You ignored your heart’s flutters as you exclaimed, “There’s the man who saved my life!”

You tried your best to mask the overwhelming emotions that erupted once you saw Spencer. You overcompensated your guilty feelings by enthusiastically introducing your ex to your boyfriend. “Spencer, I want you to meet Connor. My boyfriend.”

You cringed at your tone as soon as the words left your mouth. Maybe you were too enthusiastic... And you were too caught up in your own delivery that you didn’t notice Spencer’s face fall. 

But your boyfriend was none the wiser as he walked towards Spencer.

“I owe you the biggest thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without her.” Connor extended his hand for a handshake, but Spencer just nodded at him. 

Spencer gave a tight smile and cleared his throat. “I should uh, I should give you two some privacy.” His eyes stayed on the ground and his voice was weak. He gave you a quick glance and said, “Glad to see you’re awake, Y/N.” before swiftly leaving the room.

Connor sat back down next to you and said, “So that’s Spencer.”

You gave a slight nod and looked away. 

---

Connor left to get lunch, leaving you alone with your thoughts. Seeing Spencer for the first time prompted a confusing set of emotions to bubble up inside of you. You were relieved to see him again; he saved your life and now you could properly thank him. 

But you couldn’t deny that what you were feeling was more than that. 

Why was your first instinct to call your ex-boyfriend, of all the people in the world? And why did your heart leap just at the sight of him? You thought you had buried these feelings long ago but right now, you felt the same as you did six months ago. It was as if your voicemail opened a Pandora box of hidden emotions. Now you just needed to find a way to close it.

Because you couldn’t afford to be thinking this way. You had a boyfriend now. Just thinking of Spencer in a different light felt like a betrayal, and you couldn’t do that to Connor. 

Besides, with all the feelings that Spencer brought back, he also brought back all the pain. No matter how much your heart longed for him, you couldn’t ignore the heartbreak that resurfaced with every thought of Spencer Reid. 

You couldn’t go down that road again. Spencer made no effort to fix what you two had after the fight, so why should you be pining after a man who doesn’t want you back? And you had to stay loyal to Connor; you can’t be thinking about your ex like this. You’ve moved on. He’s moved on.

Just then, the door swung open and a familiar mop of brown curls walked in. You pushed down your conflicting feelings and politely smiled at him. “Hi, Spencer.”

Spencer looked at you and cleared his throat. He looked disheveled, and he carried a large paper pad with him. “Hi Y/N,” he said then cleared his throat. “How are you feeling?” He asked, voice soft.

“Like I just got stabbed by a serial killer.” You deadpanned.

Spencer visibly swallowed and lowered his eyes.

You regretted your answer as soon as you saw him sulk. “Too soon?” You nervously laughed. “It was a joke, Spencer. All things considered, I’m fine.”

Spencer looked back at you and slowly nodded, staying silent. 

You glanced down at the pad he was holding. “I’m assuming you’re here on business?”

He nodded. “I’m here for your police report.”

“Oh, right,” you nodded. “I didn’t know the FBI did those.”

“I volunteered.” He glanced at you before immediately looking back down at his papers. “I uh, I thought you would want a familiar face.”

You did, and you appreciated it. “Thank you.” You smiled.

He gave a curt smile and continued. “Are you ready now or should I come back later?”

You took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m ready.”

“So tell me exactly what happened.”

You sighed as you let yourself recall the most traumatic moment of your life. “I was at the grocery store.” You set the scene again in your mind, trying to remember everything for him. “I finished putting all my bags in the trunk. I went around to the front door. I just opened it. But before I could sit down-” You took a sharp breath, the memories overwhelming you.

“It’s okay, Y/N, take your time.” His voice was sweet as he comforted you. You shut your eyes to calm yourself, trying to ground yourself with the sound of his voice.

“He uh, he put a towel over my mouth and a gun against my back. I froze, I, I should have fought but I couldn’t move and I tried not to breathe, but I couldn’t hold it any longer. I don’t know what I was breathing in but I knew-” A cry interrupted you and a tear ran down your cheek. You hadn’t even realized you started crying. 

A pained expression took over Spencer’s face. He raised his hand towards you but quickly recoiled when he realized what he was doing. He settled on just placing his hand on the side of your bed, lightly patting the hospital mattress. His hands were close, but not touching, your own. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, Y/N.” His voice was a whisper. 

You shut your eyes and cleared your throat, pushing through. “I knew I was in trouble,” you choked out. “Next thing I knew, I was waking up in his car. There was duct tape over my mouth. And my hands and feet were in zip ties, Spencer.” You cried as your voice broke. 

Spencer bit his lip, unsure of where the boundaries were to comfort you. He decided to innocently place his hand on top of yours. You silently thanked him for the gesture.

“I saw everything. I know which streets he went on and what turns he took. I saw the numbers on the building when he got to the warehouse. I don’t even think he knew I was awake.” Another tear ran down your cheek. Spencer’s intense gaze never left your face. You avoided his stare, but if you didn’t, you would’ve seen the immense worry in his eyes.

You took a breath before you began again. “When we got there, he carried me into this room. I tried to fight him, I tried so hard. But he was just too strong,” you cried. Your heart was racing as you remembered the fear and adrenaline you felt in that moment. “And his voice, I- I can’t forget his voice.”

Your abductor’s voice echoed in your mind as you repeated his words to Spencer.

“My, my, look what we have here.”

“You’re a pretty little thing, aren’t ya?”

“Aw, it’s just you and me now. Unless you want someone to help you?”

Your eyes were squeezed shut as his laughter rang in your ears.

“Doesn’t matter. They’ll never get here in time.”

By now, you noticed Spencer had grasped your fingers in his hand. The action was comforting. 

“He- he hit me with his gun and said, ‘Don’t try anything.’” Your head throbbed a little harder as you recalled his strike. “Then he gave me a phone and said, ‘No police. Make sure they answer.’ So, I- I called you.”

You brought yourself to look into his eyes. Tears fell from your eyes and you noticed his were glossy.

“Why?” Spencer asked.

You were taken aback by the question. You ignored the heat rising to your cheeks as you answered, “You’re an FBI agent.”

Spencer stared at you, his eyes narrowed.

You broke away from his gaze.

“Don’t do that.” You said, eyes fixed on his hand on top of yours.

“Do what?”

You brought your eyes back up to his face. “You’re profiling me.”

Spencer opened and closed his mouth, as if he were debating on what to say. “I told myself I’d never forgive you, but the truth is I already have. I can’t leave without you knowing that.” He was reciting your voicemail. “Is that true?”

Your breath hitched in your throat. You stayed silent as your eyes remained on your hand in Spencer’s. You weren’t thinking of the repercussions when you uttered the last words of your voicemail. You just knew you needed him to hear it, even if it was the last he’d ever hear from you. 

But now that Spencer was in front of you, asking for answers, you froze. This was a conversation you never planned on having, and you weren’t sure how to navigate it.

Spencer acknowledged your silence and leaned forward, disregarding his paper pad. “Y/N,” he whispered, voice soft. You avoided his eyes, feeling more tears already starting to form. “I listened to that voicemail 167 times. I memorized every word, every breath, I... Please, Y/N. Tell me I’m over-analyzing. Tell me my emotions are biasing my profiling skills. Tell me the only reason you called was because of my job.” His voice was stern, masking his hurt. If you were looking at him, you would have seen the tears in his eyes and saw that he was practically begging you to alleviate his pain.

But in your mind, all you heard was a cry from a man who didn’t want anything to do with you.

Tears fell from your eyes as you shook your head. You wanted to tell him you only called him because he’s an FBI agent. It’d only be fair. You’d go back to Connor, he’d go back to living his life. You’d both be able to move on. But it wasn’t the truth. 

Deep down, you knew you said those words to him for a reason; there was still so much left unsaid. And as afraid as you were to expose your raw emotions to him, you opted for vulnerability because it was impossible to leave this alone. 

Your voice was strained as you whispered, “I can’t.” 

“I thought I was going to die, Spencer.” You looked at him with teary eyes and were surprised to see his expression mirrored your own. “When he gave me the phone, you were the first person I thought of. I needed to talk to you one last time; there was so much I haven’t said, so much I needed to say, to you and I wasn’t thinking when I dialed. I called you because I needed you, Spencer. Not your badge.”

You let out a sniffle as the pace of your words quickened. “I wasn’t thinking,” you repeated. “I didn’t realize I was calling you until I heard your answering machine. Then everything came back to me. Your job, our memories. You gave me hope, Spencer.” You were rambling, desperate to justify your call before he could shut you down. “So I gave you clues, thinking maybe I could get out of there. But just in case it didn’t work out, I told you what I needed you to hear the most,” you sobbed. “And I know, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have called, I-”

“I never stopped loving you, Y/N.” Spencer interrupted you and confessed for the second time. He had heard all he needed to hear, and he couldn’t stand another minute without telling you. 

You froze. “What?” You breathed.

Your mind was rampant, emotions were bouncing around inside of you as your thoughts scattered.

He, he loved you. He still loves you. This changes everything. You had prepared for your resurfaced love of Spencer to go unrequited. Although a part of you longed to feel that way again, you had accepted that you lost that feeling the day you lost Spencer. You were prepared to rebury your love, but he feels the same way. How could you dismiss your feelings for him if he feels the same way?

He loves you? He can’t. Not after what he put you through. How can he say he loved you, that he never stopped loving you, after breaking your heart six months ago? How could he have loved you while you were struggling to put yourself back together in the aftermath of your relationship? It took so long for you to heal after him, and now he’s claimed to have loved you this entire time?!

“It was never you, Y/N, I-”

You took your hand out of his grasp. “No, no, Spencer. You can’t do this to me.” 

“Y/N, I’m sorry-”

“No! Do you remember the last thing you said to me?!” You held your hand over your chest as you looked at him through teary eyes.

Spencer sighed and lowered his head in shame. “Yes.” he whispered.

“Spencer, just talk to me!”

“Leave me alone, Y/N!”

Both of your minds remembered your last fight at the same time. 

It was late, you had shown up to his apartment uninvited that day. You suggested a spontaneous movie or a quick late-night dinner. He shot you down. Up until then you had tried everything, but the man in front of you was still a stranger in the shell of Spencer Reid. So after weeks of negligence, the two of you got into a screaming match in his apartment.

“I have left you alone, Spence!” You yelled through your tears. “It’s been three weeks. I���ve given you space, time, I’ve kept my distance, but enough is enough! Please, I’m just trying to help you!”

“I never asked for your help!”

“Well, can you help me Spencer?” You were sobbing now, but Spencer’s expression didn’t soften. “I haven’t felt your touch in weeks, when you’re home you feel so far away, you don’t talk to me anymore, hell you won’t even look at me!”

“Then stop being so fucking clingy.” He sneered in your face.

“Clingy?!” You screamed. “Is it clingy to want a relationship with my boyfriend?! I don’t even know who you are anymore!”

Spencer glared at you and you tried one more time. “Please, Spencer. I just want to fix us. I don’t know what happened when you were away but if you’d just let me-”

“I don’t.”

“You don’t...?”

“I don’t want to fix us.”

Your breath had hitched and your heart dropped. “You don’t mean that.”

“Oh yeah? And how would you know? You don’t know me anymore apparently.”

“Spence, I, I love you, and I know you’re going through a hard time-”

“I don’t.”

Hot tears silently fell down your cheeks. You had to be sure what he was saying, even if it broke your heart. “You don’t... what?”

“Love you.”

You bit your lip as a sob racked through your body. “You’re upset. I’m going to leave, and we can talk in the morning.” You turned your back towards him as you began to open the door. But his voice interrupted your action and broke your heart in one sentence.

“Yeah, don’t even bother coming back.”

Tears were now streaming down Spencer’s face as he said, “I didn’t mean it, Y/N. You have to know-”

“No, Spencer. What I know is you broke my heart. You don’t get to come back and tell me you loved me all along. It isn’t fair.”

“No, what isn’t fair is you clearly still have feelings for me and you’re not letting me reciprocate them!” Spencer’s voice raised in pitch as he increasingly became exasperated.

“I, I never said that.” You scoffed, feeling the dryness in your throat. 

“You didn’t have to.” Spencer whispered. He licked his lips and leaned forward. “Y/N, your pupils are dilated. Your pulse is 30% higher than usual.”

Your brows furrowed in confusion as to how he knew that. But then you became acutely aware of the heart-rate monitor behind you and it made sense. You steadied your breathing, attempting to calm down and rid yourself of these involuntary tells. 

He lowered his eyes and bit his lip, “And when I told you I still loved you, your demeanor completely changed. You didn’t have to say anything, Y/N, I...”

“Spencer, stop.”

“You’re probably confused. A near death experience combined with the emotions of a past relationship-”

“Spencer, please.”

“Maybe I have confirmation bias, but everything points to you still having feelings-”

“Spencer, I don’t want to feel this way!” You half-shouted at him.

Your words hung in the air as both of you processed them. The two of you stared at each other, letting out heavy breaths at the intense atmosphere.

“What?” He breathed.

“I don’t want to feel this way, Spencer.” You shook your head as more tears escaped you. “Spencer, you broke me. I truly thought you were the one, but you didn’t even give us the chance. I don’t know what happened, but I would’ve gone through anything with you, Spencer. We could have worked through it together. If you had just let me...” You trailed off as sobs racked your body.

Spencer hung his head as tears fell into his lap.

“Did you know I came back the next morning?” You croaked. You heard a small gasp from Spencer and continued, “I don’t know why. I was staring at your door, trying to knock, but I couldn’t do it.”

“Y/N, why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve...” Spencer started but he trailed off. Even he knew that at that point in time, he would have only hurt you more than he already had.

“What was I supposed to think Spencer? You ignored me for weeks, and when we finally talked, you told me to leave. You obviously didn’t want me there anymore. But I wanted to knock, I wanted to knock so bad. I just, I couldn’t handle being shot down again. So I left.”

You swiped away the tears on your face. “And I figured you’d call me if you wanted to talk again. But you never did. And I had my answer.”

Spencer let out a sob. “I didn’t know it yet, but I needed you.”

“And I needed you, Spencer. Those weeks before our breakup were hell. All I wanted was my boyfriend back.” You cried.

“But I’m here now, Y/N.” Spencer breathed and you shook your head. He continued through his tears and said, “I’m here and I still love you as much as I did back then. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. All I could ever think about was you and how I lost you...” Spencer’s voice became a whisper. He grabbed your hand. You let him. 

“I wasn’t in my right mind, Y/N. I became addicted to dilaudid and I pushed everyone away because I thought I could handle it by myself. But that’s when I needed you the most. If I could take it all back, if I could take back all the pain I’ve caused, I would. I’m so so sorry for hurting you, Y/N.” Spencer sobbed.

“It took me so long to heal from you, Spencer.” you cried. “I can’t go down that road again... but for some reason my heart can’t let you go.” You stared at your hands as you gave into temptation and slowly interlocked your fingers through his. You could hear Spencer’s breath hitch at the small action. He squeezed your hand and the two of you looked at each other with teary eyes. 

“Why can’t I get over you? Why do I still love you even after you broke my heart? I don’t want to feel this way. There are so many reasons I shouldn’t be feeling this way.” You cried. “But I just can’t help it.” You looked up at him through damp lashes and saw him biting his lip.

“I never should have let you walk through that door. I miss us, Y/N. I didn’t know how much I needed you in my life until you left. Please, Y/N. I’ve tried to move on, but I just couldn’t. It’s you, Y/N, it’s always been you. And even after all this time, I still love you... It’s scary how much I still love you.”

“You didn’t tell me he was your ex.” A voice interrupted you and your head jerked towards the door to see Connor standing at the entrance. 

You snatched your hand out of Spencer’s as you stammered, “Con- Connor! How long have you...”

“Long enough.” He rolled his eyes. “Look Y/N. I am no one’s rebound, and I am definitely no one’s second choice.” Connor scoffed. “Here’s your lunch.” He dropped one of his bags down on a nearby chair and left the room. 

“Connor!” You called out to him but it was too late. You sighed as you leaned back against your hospital bed. 

You wiped the tears from your cheeks as you looked over at Spencer. He licked his lips and quietly said, “But I understand if I’m too late. Time changes people. Just say the word, and I’ll leave you alone.” He got up to leave but you reached for his arm. 

“Spencer,” you stopped him. He looked back at you, completely broken. You blinked the tears out of your eyes but no words came out. The two of you stood, frozen in time with unspoken words written over your faces. 

You weren’t sure what you wanted to say. You wanted to say something, anything.

But when no words left your mouth, he gave you a small nod then left the room. 

You were still frozen, your hand in the same position it was when it was on his arm. Your mind was scattered and your heart was torn. What just happened?

---

You stayed in the hospital for two more days. Since then you had a few visitors, but none from the two men you needed to see the most. 

It gave you time to think. You now held two hearts in your hands and you weren’t sure what to do.

With Connor, he was a safe choice. And he was still your boyfriend. Just the thought of betraying him and getting back with your ex didn’t sit right with you at all. Connor was a good guy, he was smart, cute, funny, and a total sweetheart. Not to mention, he was there to pick up the pieces that Spencer left behind. How could you betray him after all of that and go running back to your ex?

But Connor was a temporary high that could never compare to the way Spencer made you feel. Spencer was your greatest love. He showed you what love was supposed to be; Spencer Reid was everything you wanted in a man and more. Your relationship with Spencer was a whirlwind of emotions, and the two of you had a love you could only dream about... up until the last month. 

But were you willing to overlook that, in the name of true love? The spark between you and Spencer was undeniable, but the foundation of a committed relationship was lacking: trust. You didn’t know if you could trust him with your heart again. And the worst part, Spencer Reid had so much power over you because you were still undeniably head over heels for the young genius. 

But could you could forget about him and continue living your life with Connor? Maybe one day you and Connor could have what you and Spencer had. Or maybe you never will. Was it worth the risk?

You looked back on all the memories you shared with Connor, looking for a sign, any sign to stay. You were desperate to protect your heart from more heartache, even if it meant losing Spencer. You thought back to the beginning of your relationship and tried to remember the blissful feeling Connor gave you. How he brought out butterflies in your stomach and made your heart skip a beat. But that’s when you realized that euphoria you used to feel was nothing but a distant memory. Your entire relationship with Connor was based on a short-lived infatuation. An infatuation that ended the minute you dialed Spencer.

Because the entire time, Connor was a distraction from your feelings for Spencer. Connor may have masked your feelings for your ex, but they were still there. They always were. At that point, it was undeniable. You knew you had to follow your heart.

---

After you were discharged from the hospital, you knew exactly what to do. Your plan was simple: you’d make a quick stop before going to straight to Spencer’s apartment. But there was one factor you didn’t take into account. It was the first time you’ve been truly alone since the abduction. You caught yourself looking over your shoulder multiple times, and your heart raced as you rode on the subway. Everyday acts became daunting, and the task at hand didn’t help to calm your nerves.

It felt like years before you found yourself staring at Spencer’s apartment door. Your heart was still beating out of your chest as you stared at his apartment number. You took a deep breath and remembered the last time you were standing here. You weren’t going to make the same mistake again.

You knocked. 

There was the quiet patter of footsteps behind the door, and you felt your heart rate pick up as the shadows came closer. 

Finally the door swung open, and a tired-looking Spencer answered. Once you saw him, you couldn’t hold it in anymore; you immediately burst into tears. 

“Y/N?” He said your name in confusion before instinctively pulling you into a warm hug.

He backtracked when he realized his hug might have been unwelcome, but when you rested your head against his shoulder, he instantly relaxed as he pulled you into a full embrace. He pulled you into his apartment and shut the door, giving the two of you some privacy. 

He held you close as your tears flowed, his hands silently comforting you. You let out a sigh because now that you were in his arms, you finally felt safe. His shirt was balled in your fists as you whispered his name. “Spencer.” You breathed shakily.

His hands ran up and down your back. “I’m right here, Y/N.”

“Please don’t leave me.” You cried as you held on to him tighter. 

He shook his head. “Never, Y/N, never again.”

“Spencer, I’m scared.”

The proximity of your bodies allowed Spencer to feel your heartbeat as it pounded in your chest. Your hands trembled as they held on to his shirt, and he realized the true cause of your tears. 

He held onto you tighter as he said, “He’s never going to hurt you again, Y/N.” He heard you take a shaky breath, so he emphasized, “Ever.”

You took a step back to look at him. Your hands were now interlocked behind his neck as you looked into his eyes. “Thank you,” you weakly whispered. “Thank you for saving me.”

Spencer bit his lip and shamefully lowered his head. “I should’ve been there sooner.”

You shook your head. The odds were against him, and you knew that. But he made it. He was there, and not a moment too soon. Spencer saved your life, and he was just in time.

You released one of your hands from his neck and traced his jawline until you got to his chin. You used your thumb to gently bring his eyes back up to yours. “You were right on time,” you whispered. 

Spencer’s brows furrowed as he eyed your bandages, but before he could say anything you closed the gap between the two of you and pulled him into a kiss.

You both smiled into the kiss as your hands found their way into his hair. Your fingers weaved their way into his curls as he snaked his arms around your waist and pulled you up toward him. You got on your tip toes to meet his tall stature.

As your lips moved in sync, your bodies moved impossibly close as the two of you engulfed each other. Holding each other tight, his soft lips moved against yours until you both had run out of air. He pulled away and let his forehead rest on yours.

Spencer licked his lips. “Um, what about...”

“I broke up with Connor.”

A huge smile broke out on Spencer face, but he quickly regained his composure and nonchalantly said, “You did?”

You nodded. “Yeah, like literally just now.” You let out a small chuckle as you nervously asked, “It’s not too soon is it?”

Spencer laughed and said, “I’ve been waiting six months for this.”

You felt the heat rising to your cheeks as you smiled. Your hands traveled down his shoulders and onto his chest, resting right above his heart. 

“I never stopped loving you, either.” You whispered. 

His hands retreated from your waist and moved up your body until they met your shoulders. His large palms engulfed your shoulders in warmth, leaving behind a trail of goosebumps as they went down your arms and onto your hands. He pulled your palms away from his chest and into his own and you interlocked your fingers.

“Please don’t leave me,” you repeated, only this time the words had an entirely different meaning. Spencer’s heart broke at the implication, though he knew your insecurity was completely valid.

“I promise I will make up these last seven months to you.” He brought your interlocked hands up to his face and kissed the back of your hand. “And I will never lose you again.”

Spencer brought a hand under your chin and lifted your face towards his. “You’re so strong you know that?” You broke out into a huge smile as tears welled in your eyes. You cupped the sides of his face with both of your hands and replied, “So are you.” 

You brought his face down to place a kiss on the tip of his nose. “Addiction is no joke. I wish I could have been there so you didn’t have to go through it alone.” Spencer shamefully lowered his eyes. “But,” you quickly added. You ran your thumb along his cheek bone and said, “I’m so proud of you for overcoming it.”

He smiled and kissed your forehead. “And I’m proud of you, Y/N. That beautiful mind of yours saved your life.” Tears silently fell down your cheeks as you smiled up at him.

Spencer smiled as he used his thumb to wipe the tears away. “I love you so much, Y/N.” He whispered in the softest voice. He pulled you into another hug as he whispered into your ear, “And I’ll never let anything happen to you again.” His breath was warm against your ear, and his voice sent shivers down your spine. “I promise.”

You held him tighter as you said, “I love you, Spence.”

Spencer instantly relaxed at the nickname, missing the way it fell from your lips. You rested your head on his shoulder as his arms held you close. The two of you finally had what you had denied yourselves for six months, and both of you were doing everything to savor the moment. With eyes closed, your bodies swayed together, holding each other tight and memorizing the way you felt in each other’s arms.

After missing him for the past half year, being here with Spencer just felt... natural. It felt like you just came home. He was your home. And for the first time in six months, you were finally where you belonged.

[hournites]

I just thought of a weird, but funny Hournite/Stargirl fic idea/prompt: Yolanda misses out on a JSA mission thanks to her parents & when she see everyone the following day all of the JSA’s personalities have been inverted. Rick is really bubbly & dorky, Beth is bitter, angry, & goth-like, Courtney is sarcastic, mean, & very Queen B. Pat tells Yolanda that the Shade was trying to steal the Wizard’s wand & the ensuing chaos caused the sides of their personalities that the three of them usually never show to turn into their dominant traits. While Pat’s searching for a cure to this problem, Yolanda’s forced to watch dorky Rick swoon over an oblivious & bleak-minded Beth, all while Courtney makes fun of all of them while flipping through fashion magazines & complaining about her broken nails. So... yeah... Yolanda has her hands full lol. Love to hear your thoughts on this!

This got out of hand...

Invert

~.~

While most days as a member of the Justice Society of America consisted of many fun surprises, there were some days Yolanda had no word to describe. Yolanda dropped her school bag at the table downstairs at the Pit Stop, then climbed upstairs. Taking in the scene unfolding in front of her, she realized today was one of those no word days.

Beth was curled up in the corner of the couch, legs drawn up to her chest with a book, wearing a scowl so jarring, Yolanda had to think back to the time she’s ever seen such an expression on Beth's face. Yeah, probably never. What’s weirder was the way Rick’s hanging over her shoulder, leaning against the couch and rambling about his car. He was in a regular t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to look like a muscle tank, biceps on full display. It was almost like he was showing off, trying to impress her. And it would impress Beth, Yolanda was pretty sure. But she wasn’t even looking at him.

“….Hi?”

Only then did Rick notice Yolanda. He brightened up with a wave. “Hi! You missed a lot.”

“I see that,” she answered slowly. “What exactly...did I miss?” And where’s Courtney? “Did something happen yesterday?”

Beth snorted. “You could say that.”

Yolanda frowned when Beth didn’t elaborate.

“The Shade got hold of the Wizard’s wand,” Rick explained, grimacing a little. “We think we got, uh, spelled? I can’t put my finger on what exactly. We’re just different. I feel different, I mean. Like, I think this might be the longest sentence I’ve said to you? And I’m not even done. It’s not bad, it’s just weird. I’ve been trying to convince Beth to go outside with me for the last half hour.” He shook her shoulder. “C’mon, Beth. Please?”

“I’m reading,” she groused.

“You can read in my car and we can go for a drive? I’ll take you out!”

“Yeah…” Beth considered his words. She looked up at him, and Yolanda took a step back. She was wearing thick black eyeliner and her book had covered her matching dark lipstick. “Maybe later?”

“Yes!” Rick cheered, pumping his fist. “It’s a date! Great, I’m excited!”

“Wow...Beth...That’s quite the makeover…”

Beth shrugged. “Yeah. It’s new. I like it.”

“She looks great, doesn’t she?” Rick gushed. He sat at the other end of the couch. “So do you want to go to dinner on our date?”

Yolanda turned around so Rick won’t see her reaction to his desperate crush. The second-hand embarrassment was getting to her, if Rick was his regular self he wouldn’t be nearly this obvious. She’d always known Rick sort of liked Beth, but she’d never seen him so vocal about it. Rick was the type to bury his feelings, even romantic ones, until they explode. Not actively pursue them.

She climbed back downstairs and ran into Courtney. “...What did I just watch?”

Courtney’s hair was straightened and styled up in a high ponytail.

Great, Yolanda thought. More random makeovers.

In all honesty, Courtney looked absolutely beautiful, but any appreciation Yolanda could find in herself to compliment her vanished when she got a good look at the meanness on her face.

Courtney snapped pink gum obnoxiously with a hand on the waist of her sweats. “Are you talking about Rick and Beth?” She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, it’s pathetic. I’ve been avoiding them.”

Yolanda narrowed her eyes. It was not like Courtney to insult their friends. “I was going to say weird...Rick isn’t pathetic.”

“If you say so. Well, you know what is pathetic? The fact you let your parents make you stay at home. We needed you last night and now everything’s messed up because you had to be a goody two-shoes.”

“Don’t talk to me that way, Court.” Yolanda pushed her aside. “You know it’s not easy. If I disobey them they’ll only hate me more. I love my mom, Court. I don’t want her to alienate me.”

Courtney shook her head. “I don’t really care. Hearing you complain about your mom and dad gets annoying. They suck. We get it. Get over it?”

Yolanda blinked back tears. “You don’t understand what it’s like!”

“Oh my god, are you actually crying?”

The hurt in her chest squeezed. Yolanda almost couldn’t breathe. Courtney had always been understanding to her, she’d let her vent and express her emotions, she was a compassionate person, it’s what she’d loved about her best friend so much. But her personality and behaviour resembled nothing like the Courtney Yolanda cared for. “Screw you, Court!”

She sped out of there, wiping at her eyes with the back of her palm.

“Yolanda!” Someone called after her, but she didn’t want to be here anymore. She understood her friends were under the influence of some magic, but she couldn’t stomach the way everything had flipped upside down. “Yolanda! Wait!”

She slowed her pace and turned around when she saw Pat jogging down the sidewalk with her forgotten bag. “You forgot this.”

“They all changed, Pat! Especially Courtney.”

Pat sighed. “I know. I was going to find you but Zeek called and got me all wrapped up in some nonsense, I wasn’t able to warn you on time.”

“So it’s true? They’re spelled?”

“Evidently. The good news is, Mike and Jakeem apprehended the wand back early this morning. We just don’t know how to use it.” He leaned in and gave her a half hug. “Why don’t you head on over to our house? Barb’s also been taking this whole mess pretty badly. We can figure out next steps this afternoon.”

Yolanda nodded, she couldn’t imagine what Courtney’s mom must’ve felt to see her daughter lack any empathy. She took her bag and started to make her trek to the Whitmore-Dugans.

They had to get to the bottom of this, she knew that. But witnessing the inversion of her friends accumulated a dark cloud over her head the longer she thought about it.

What if she was there during the mission last night? Yolanda couldn’t help but wonder what life would feel like unburdened.

What if I didn't care about what others thought about me? What if I didn't feel so cautious and careful about what I do or what I say? Or trusted everyone I met with ease again?

What if I had the chance to feel free?

[domesticblisss]

Nice to Meet You

Jay White x Female Reader Requested Prompt: “Hello! Thank you for opening requests. How about one with Jay White where he’s in New Japan and reader is in WWE and they end up following each other on ig or something and after awhile of messages and such they finally meet and get together? You can change things up if you want I just love the idea of 2 people from separate companies getting together lol ❤️ ” Rating: PG-13 Word Count: 1306 Warnings: Nothing, fluff as fuck with a tiny little bit of angst and some between the lines pinning and a little cursing. Summary: Mutual friends aren't enough for you to meet, but the internet is. A/N: Sorry it took me so long to post it, work has been crazy, then writer's block hit and when the inspirations finally got back to me, I had the shittiest week ever so I couldn't bring myself to write it. I hope it's at least a little bit good, and that my dear requester and you all like it. 💕

He always heard about her and she always heard about him. Only good things.

Shelley always gushed about how their styles were similar, Sabin went off countless times on how they should wrestle as a duo, and against each other, and Candice kept mentioning how they would look cute together.

But the friends in common weren't enough to make them meet each other and their hectic schedule never coincided. Soon, Jay shipped off to Japan full time and she finally got her NXT contract signed.

Jay was the one to take the first step. It was on a late saturday night, one of his few days off, when he finally decided to watch her debut match against Asuka after seeing it trending across social media and different news outlets.

She lost the match, but she gave the NXT Women’s Champion a run for her money. Hard kicks after hard kicks, asuka locks being countered several times, and the most incredibly performed top rope DDT he had ever seen. It was the hardest hitting women’s match he had seen in a while and he was amused with her talent, so amused he had to let the world know.

“@thisisfuryWWE nxt debut match was the best one I’ve seen in a long time. Can’t wait to see more of you 😉”

The message made her smile, the recognition from someone she always thought so highly of warming her heart.

“@JayWhiteNZ thank you! this means a lot coming from the #switchblade 🔪❤️”

With that came the mutual following on social media, then the likes, the casual comments turned into dm’s, turned into phone number exchanges, and soon, they didn’t know a life without each other.

Every day a “good morning” text would be sent by whoever woke up first and “sleep well” texts closed off the night. The time zone was messy, but they always found a way to talk to each other, losing count of how many nights were poorly slept and the amount of coffee they drank on the morning after.

Little “this made me think of you” messages were sent whenever a dog picture or a meme came their way, friends' dinner/lunch dates through FaceTime became a thing and every Instagram post got commented with an inside joke. Friends and fans started to notice the change in their relationship and soon their mentions were bombarded with speculating questions.

“Are you guys together?”

“When are the two of you getting married?”

“@thisisfuryWWE and @JayWhiteNZ get a fucking room already”

“I would if she was near me 🙄”

She was the one who took the second step. After a lot of talk with Candice, she finally realised her true feelings towards the kiwi. It wasn’t easy accepting them at first, she took longer to respond to his messages, the “good morning” texts were no more, and her answers were always short, until the fateful day where she completely stopped answering him.

→ I don’t know if I did something wrong, and I am so sorry if I did, but please talk to me.

She knew that ghosting him was wrong and that she needed to tell him the truth, even if her anxiety got the best of her.

The clock on her phone announced that it was 12:45pm, meaning it was almost 2 in the morning for him and that he probably had just gotten back from the monday tapings, tired and wanting to sleep. “Fuck it, he texted me. It’s now or never.”

Ring.

Ring.

Ring.

He picked up on the third ring, his long, dyed black hair wet, sticking to his forehead, the droplets of water running down his chest.

“Hey! Sorry it took me a while to pick it up, I was just taking a shower. How are you?” He panted like he had just ran a marathon to pick up the phone. “I missed you.”

She had never seen him so vulnerable, the small tone of his voice shot a tinge of pain to her heart. “Can we talk? I need to talk to you.”

“Sure, just let me put some pants on.” Jay laughed.

He sat the phone down on the nightstand and she kept staring at the cream ceiling of his hotel room, thinking about everything and nothing at the same time.

“Is everything okay, I was worried about you.” Noises of shuffling fabric were noticeable in the background, paired with a string of curses after what she was pretty sure was him bumping his pinky on some furniture.

“Everything is fine. Is your toe still alive?”

“Yeah, yeah…”

She looked at him, really looked at him. The dark hair dryer, messy and no longer sticking to his forehead, probably the work of him aggressively running the towel over it. His fair skin pink after a hot shower, blue eyes shy, almost anxiety ridden with anticipation of what could happen next. She let out a modest smile, running the words she had thought about telling him countless times in her head.

“What is it, honey?”

“Jay, I- I need to tell you something. I don’t know how to say it but just let me finish first or I’ll die.”

He only nodded.

“I like you. Really, really like you. That’s why I’ve been off these past few days, I’ve been trying to understand my feelings and I ended up scaring myself because I’ve never felt this way for anyone.” she stopped for a few seconds, hands running over face and hair, taking a moment to breath. “Jay, I– fuck, I appreciate our friendship so, so much and I don’t want to ruin it, but I get it if this makes you uncomfortable and if you want to cut ties.”

Jay kept quiet, staring at her through the small screen, smile getting bigger and until it turned into full, hearty laughter.

“Jay, this is not funny. I’m not–“

“This is why you vanished? God, can’t you see I fucking love you too, you idiot?!”

Silence engulfed the pair again as they looked at each other, not believing what had finally happened. They exchanged smiles and lingering stares before continuing the conversation.

“I’m crazy about you, honey.”

“And how are we going to do this, Jay?”

“I am constantly going back home, you can come over when you have some free time. We will figure it out, baby.”

Three weeks of messages and video calls, three weeks of “I love yous” and “can’t wait to see you”, three of the longest weeks of their lives until they finally meet each other.

Jay opens instagram, her story bubble being the first one to show up. He clicks on it and is met with a picture of her in a red envelope dress and white converse, the same one he was wearing, and a caption that said “today is going to be a great day! ❤️🔪”.

🔥 reaction and a “see you in forty, love” reply sent, her phone vibrated in her purse just a few meters away from him. Little did he know she was waiting for him in the landing room, holding a small poster with “Mr. White” written and little switchblades drawn all over it.

She grew anxious as everyone but Jay left the plane, checking the time and if she was on the right gate constantly.

Five minutes passed, five minutes that felt like hours, and Jay finally came out, with sunglasses covering his eyes and his denim jacket in hand. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her, a smile growing on his face as she ran to him. He engulfed her in a tight hug, kissing her lips in small pecks that grew into one big slow kiss.

They touched foreheads after, smiling and laughing, not believing they were finally in each other’s arms.

“Hey, stranger.”

[starculler]

Lead Me Down Another Road (preview)

Word Count: 2975

I fell into a minor rabbit hole and stand before you now with a scrap from the Crèchemaster Anakin AU I'm working on. The full fic is a few thousand words longer than this (and will go up on ao3 within the week), but this is technically the original bit I'd planned on writing (and is thus self-contained enough that I'm comfortable posting it alone here. As a treat). Hope y'all enjoy it and the glimpse of at least one of several Jedi OCs I've been having to come up with for this lol Note: I'm using crèche-minder in place of crèchemaster because it fits a little better with how I've set up the role in the au -- the particulars of which will be explored in the full fic.

Anakin stood from where he’d sat among the younglings in Targon Clan when he caught sight of his master standing just inside the room, all ten pairs of eyes straying from their painting to watch him stretch. He grimaced briefly at the splotches of bright paint he could already see on his tunic and pants, but made it a point to smile at a scowling nautolan making a grab at his ankle. He shuffled back, just out of reach, and had to dodge another two pairs of eager, sticky fingers with a put-upon sigh that failed to fully mask his amusement. It was the same song and dance every time he was sent to Knight D’nali for crèche-duty, and he’d long gotten wise to the initiates’ tricks.

What made today’s game of Catch-the-Padawan novel was Obi-Wan’s presence hovering at the edges of Anakin’s focus. His master hadn’t come to collect him like this since his first few weeks, confident that Anakin would neither get lost on his way to and from the crèche, nor try to dodge his punishment after that awful first and final attempt. He shuddered at the memory even as he leaped nimbly over a pair of near-humans who’d thought to tackle him from behind. He laughed when they turned, eyes wide and betrayed for a moment before trying for a frontal attack.

He dodged, weaving between ten tiny, determined younglings — baiting them with the promise of his capture before stepping just out of reach once more — until he hit something solid from behind. He blinked, stunned for a second and sure that he’d had enough space still to maneuver around, only to yelp when an arm snaked around his waist and pulled him off his feet with an ease that spoke of more than a little help from the Force.

“Master!” He groaned, his protest drowned out by mixed cheering and jeering from Targon Clan and their minder’s own loud laughter. Anakin shot Knight D’nali as much of a betrayed look as he could while caught, but the traitor only laughed harder. He huffed.

“Well,” Obi-Wan said, grinning and smug and just as much of a traitor as the kiffar knight, “it seems I’ve won a prize to take back with me. A whole padawan all for myself.” A chorus of “No’s” and groaning followed the statement, and Anakin, face warmer than it had been a minute ago, suddenly found the floor much more interesting than a gaggle of disappointed initiates. Obi-Wan, still being a traitor, only laughed.

“Alright, alright. Settle down now,” Knight D’nali interrupted, wading into the chaos so she stood between them and the younglings. “Knight Kenobi and Padawan Skywalker have other duties to attend to, and you little Jedi have a latemeal to prepare for.”

With only a mild amount of protest, the little ones acquiesced. In true, and still vaguely eerie to Anakin, Jedi fashion, they bowed in sync, calling out a discordant mix of goodbyes and thank yous. Anakin nodded in return, starting to wriggle in his master’s grip in a futile attempt to free himself. Obi-Wan held fast even after two of the younglings, a zabrak and the same nautolan who’d first tried to grab onto him, crept around Knight D’nali to hand him four sheets of flimsi splattered with a variety of bright, clashing paint.

He sighed, resigned to the embarrassment of being gifted their paintings under the too-amused gazes of both knights, and murmured a quiet “Thanks” that made the pair smile so wide he thought their faces might split. Their obvious happiness made something warm bubble up in his chest and his hand tingle where flimsi met skin. It was hardly the first time one of the younglings in any of the clans he frequented had given him something small like this to take back with him — he had a wall in his room dedicated to doodles and paintings and a corner set aside, free of his usual clutter, for knickknacks and crafts — but the shock and awe and tingling warmth it left in him never wore off.

Anakin’s gifts had never lied with children. His temper ran too hot and he never quite knew what to say to anyone his age, much less younger than him. It had, in fact, taken months of constant supervision, patience, and teaching from the crèche-minders who’d agreed to take on his crèche-duty punishments for him to build up any sort of rapport with the little ones under their care. It had been hard and frustrating, but ultimately rewarding, work even if it had been borne out of his master’s own frustrated desperation.

The arm around his waist squeezed briefly, and Anakin had to fight down yet another burning flush when he realized Obi-Wan had most likely noticed where his thoughts had wandered. He floundered for something to say or do, but settled for a heavy sigh that drew a brief chuckle from his master.

“I apologize again for stealing Anakin back so early, Knight D’nali,” Obi-Wan said and Anakin could picture the apologetic smile on his face as he spoke.

“No need,” said Knight D’nali, smiling just enough that the wrinkles in her eyes and the upward pull of her cheeks distorted the two, bright red tattoos — one line the width of her thumb and the other no more than half a centimeter — cutting vertically down from hairline to jaw over her right eye. “I may be getting older, but I remember well enough how busy a padawan’s life can be.”

“You’re not that old,” Anakin groused and earned himself a huff from his master and a bark of laughter from Knight D’nali.

“That’s sweet of you padawan, but the gray in my hair tells another story. And not another word about it,” she said the second Anakin opened his mouth. “There’ll be no buttering up this old knight. I told you, if you’re back here in less than a week I will sit this clan down for a four-hour meditation at least. Force knows your master certainly won’t object.”

“Yes Knight D’nali,” he said in the dull tone every chastised padawan seemed to affect, much to Targon Clan’s delight if their stifled giggling was any indication. Knight D’nali simply nodded, satisfied. Obi-Wan, again, laughed.

“And on that note, we’ll be taking our leave now. Knight D’nali.” Obi-Wan bowed as well as he could with an armful of padawan still pinned against him. “Targon Clan.” He offered the still-giggling younglings a much shallower bow. “May the Force be with you,” he said, echoed only a moment after by Anakin, before turning on his heel and striding out into the hall.

Anakin wriggled again and said: “Master, you can put me down now.” Obi-Wan hummed but didn’t so much as slow down until Anakin huffed, rolled his eyes, and added an only somewhat petulant “Please.”

It took him a moment to find his balance when Obi-Wan suddenly let go, but soon enough he was keeping pace with his master, just shy of being at the knight’s side. They walked in silence, past the doors to other clans of exuberant younglings and down the almost confusing pattern of turns that made up the Temple’s Crèche. It was, he knew, meant to be confusing so that intruders would have a harder time reaching the Jedi’s most vulnerable members on the off chance they made it through the Temple, guards, and every Jedi in between. He also knew that Obi-Wan was purposefully leading him through the longest route rather than the faster shortcuts one of the other crèche-minders, a young pantoran knight he’d only met with a few times so far, had taught him.

They nodded at the pair of guards stationed at the Crèche’s primary entrance once they’d finally made it through, and again to any Jedi they passed along the main corridor. Anakin glanced curiously at his master when he led them not towards the dormitory or refectory, but instead toward the salles and meditation rooms. He pursed his lips, unsure if it was a good or bad sign.

The salles meant lightsaber practice — Anakin’s favorite — but he doubted they’d stop there. He had, after all, been in the crèche because he’d let his temper get the best of him again, and Obi-Wan had made a point of steering Anakin away from as many potentially aggressive outlets as he could until he was sure Anakin was cool-headed. That didn’t stop him, however, from reaching for the lightsaber on his belt, shiny and still new considering he’d only just built it less than half a year ago. The trip to Ilum had been terrifying and exciting in equal measure, just the two of them instead of waiting for the next crèche clan’s planned gathering. It still awed him sometimes, to brush the warm, steel cylinder and find it there or to sit and listen to his crystal’s song virtually anytime he wanted.

It was a scrap of undeniable proof that he was a Jedi. That, late-comer or not, he belonged here just as much as any other padawan or knight.

Obi-Wan slowed, looking back at Anakin with the kind of unbearably soft, caring smile that told him his master had probably felt where his thoughts had gone. He held an arm out and Anakin hesitated a moment at the familiar invitation, torn between embarrassed frustration and elation at being invited close in a fairly public space, before stepping up so he was beside rather than behind Obi-Wan. He stiffened when Obi-Wan put an arm around his shoulder, but relaxed before his master could even think about pulling away. Anakin pressed into his side, deciding that, right now, eleven-nearly-twelve wasn’t too old for the show of affection, and just about melted when Obi-Wan’s arm shifted to briefly squeeze his shoulder.

His vain hope for the salles was, of course, dashed as they walked passed to duck into one of the smaller, unoccupied meditation rooms. Despite not wanting to complain, Anakin couldn’t completely stifle a sigh as he took in the room: bland, small, and box-shaped, with a few colorful cushions laid out and more stacked against the walls with a few other types of seating for those who might need it. Obi-Wan flashed him a quick smile, squeezing his shoulder once more before letting go and settling on an older-looking, dark blue cushion. Anakin breathed in, held it for a count of four, and breathed out in an effort to brace himself for the ensuing lecture or meditation he was sure to suffer. He picked up a red cushion from the far wall, calling it to his hands with the Force, and sat himself down in front of his master, close enough that their knees almost touched. Then, he waited.

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan started after they’d sat in silence for a few tranquil-bordering-on-nerve-wracking minutes, their slow, even breathing the only sound in the room. Anakin met his master’s gaze, shifting slightly as a small kernel of icy unease sprang to life in the pit of his stomach. “You’re not in trouble, Padawan.” Obi-Wan smiled, still soft. Still caring. Anakin frowned.

“You don’t usually bring me here unless I am.”

“I suppose I do, don’t I?” He seemed to speak mostly to himself, brow furrowed and a wry twist to his lips, like he’d found something funny. Anakin cocked his head to one side, watching as Obi-Wan breathed deeply a few times like he was trying to center himself. Or, a traitorous part of his mind whispered, bracing himself. Anakin squirmed in place, hardly daring to breathe himself as the unease in his stomach grew a fraction larger. “I’ve been talking to a few of the crèche-minders you’ve been working with.” Anakin swallowed, thoughts flitting towards the many mistakes he’d made the last few months and especially at first. “They’ve given you rather glowing reviews if I do say so myself,” he said, a small but pleased curl in his lips. And Anakin—

Anakin blinked.

“Really?” he asked, and wished the question hadn’t come out quite so bewildered. His master grinned and Anakin swore there was pride gleaming somewhere in his eyes.

“Really. They’ve enjoyed having you there. Knight D’nali says you have an uncanny ability for distraction,” Obi-Wan teased. Anakin stuck his tongue out and earned himself a bark of laughter. “Master Benni,” he continued, sobering once more, “made an interesting suggestion when I spoke to him last week. I—” Obi-Wan stopped. Inhaled.

“Master?”

A fine tremor had started in Anakin’s hands at some point. Excitement at first, quickly drowned out by a fresh wave of nerves. He’d once thought, at first, that Tatooine would drown in rain the day Obi-Wan Kenobi didn’t have a sharp retort on the tip of his tongue. A nearly three-year partnership with the knight had broken the facade a bit by now, but the sight of Obi-Wan struggling to put his thoughts together unnerved Anakin even after his master smiled reassuringly, reaching forward to clasp one of Anakin’s hands between both of his.

“There are many paths to becoming a Jedi, as I’m sure you’ve learned by now. Guardians, Council members, diplomats, teachers … crèche-minders,” he said, emphasizing the last. Anakin’s breath caught, eyes wide as the implication sunk slowly in.

“Did— Did Master Benni,” Anakin started, strangled and halting. Obi-Wan nodded. “But—But I’m horrible with younglings! I’ve made so many mistakes. I—”

“You are learning, Anakin. No one expects you to be perfect at anything. Much less in dealing with younglings.” Anakin opened his mouth. Closed it. Floundered in his incomprehension until—

“Are you … Are you getting rid of me?” he asked, voice suddenly small and hurt. He turned his hand in Obi-Wan’s grip, wrapping his smaller fingers around his master’s wrist as if he would disappear from Anakin’s sight at any moment.

“No,” Obi-Wan said firmly, one of his thumbs stroking the back of Anakin’s hand. “You are my padawan, Anakin, and I will never abandon you.” Obi-Wan paused there, earnest and scorching in his focus until Anakin nodded, more numb than anything else at the moment. Satisfied, his master continued: “But I do think that this is a good opportunity for you.” Obi-Wan’s eyes flicked down to their hands and then back up, meeting Anakin’s once more, steady and confident and calm. “You’ve changed a little since you’ve been around the crèches. I can see a confidence in you that wasn’t there before, and better control. Not just with the Force, though I’ve no doubt entertaining younglings for hours has done wonders.” Anakin flushed, fuzzy warmth buzzing in his chest at the praise.

“You feel things — everything — so strongly, Anakin, and I fear I’ve not been able to help you much in that regard.”

Anakin opened his mouth to protest, but snapped it shut when Obi-Wan held a hand up for silence and settled for a quiet pout instead, much to his master’s amusement.

“I appreciate your faith in me,” he said with a nod, “and I do not doubt that you would learn a lot at my side alone. But I’m coming to realize where you might need more than I am able to give, not because I don’t want to. Force knows I’d do whatever I could to help you, Anakin, but there are simply things I won’t be able to understand. Haven’t been able to understand,” he added and Anakin frowned at the brief, bitter note he could pick out in his master’s tone. “Master Benni’s offer has as much to do with your potential as it does with your connection to both the initiates and their minders. I— We think it’s something you should consider, despite how it’s likely not the path you first envisioned for yourself.

“You will still be my padawan, always,” he said and squeezed Anakin’s hand to reinforce the sentiment, “but you would split your time between myself and a rotating number of the crèche’s minders under Master Benni’s supervision. You’ll be busy, and kept in the Temple more often than not even if I’m sent out on missions. It may cut into your classes or lightsaber training, in which case you’ll have to work harder to keep up, but there’s not a doubt in my mind that you could do it.”

Anakin nodded, mind whirling and thoughts spinning. There was more Obi-Wan wanted to say, he could tell, but Anakin was grateful for the lull granted to him to gather his thoughts.

“I—” Anakin swallowed, his throat and mouth suddenly dry. He held his master’s wrist a fraction tighter. “Can I think about it?” He winced at how his voice cracked, but Obi-Wan only nodded, smile still firmly in place.

“Of course. You don’t have to decide on anything until you’re ready. Master Benni made it quite clear to me that the offer is open to you whenever you wish to take it, whether that time is now or after you’ve been knighted.”

Anakin blinked, balking at the magnitude of not only the offer, but the old Master’s apparent faith in him, even as the buzzing warmth from earlier threatened to consume him fully now. He felt a fresh flush rise on his cheeks and a sheen of stinging tears prick at his eyes, held back by sheer force of will because he refused to waste the water just yet. Slowly, carefully, Obi-Wan squeezed his hand before leaning forward, reaching out and grabbing a fistful of Anakin’s outer tunic. When he pulled, Anakin went as easily as he used to into his mother’s arms, overwhelmingly grateful for the contact just then.

“I’ll think about it, Master,” he mumbled into Obi-Wan’s robes, his face pressed into his master’s chest. “Thanks.”

Obi-Wan only hummed in response, tucking Anakin close and rubbing soothing circles into his back while Anakin clutched at him in return.