#this article was such a sweet and intelligent piece i fell in love

[mangoslixes]

Toor’s scenes possess a kind of solemnity or quietude that does not suggest equilibrium so much as tender regard. Toor’s protagonists, obvious stand-ins for the artist himself, at least at an earlier moment in his life, seem held in suspension between two worlds, Old and New, never entirely at home in either. But he also holds them at emotional arm’s length, as if these images were tempered by time, less observations than memories, and they begin to assume the lineaments of archetype, despite their depiction of technology à la mode.

(Many of the pictures have an overall green palette, appropriate, perhaps, for the nocturnal illumination of bars or apartment parties—although more readily suggesting fin de siècle gaslight—but also reminiscent of the discoloured varnish of old paintings hanging for generations in smoke-filled drawing rooms.)

on Salman Toor

[kitthepurplepotato]

Shouto’s journey to self-love

Pairing: Todoroki Shouto x GN Reader (both aged 25+)

Genre: Angst, fluff, comfort, (happy ending, SFW)

Word count: 5K

Warnings: Season 6 spoilers, description of a panic attack, mentions of self harm in the past, depression, blood (because of a fight scene), self hate

+ so sweet you might need a dentist by the end of it.

16+ for safety!

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Todoroki hates himself more than he hates his own enemies; or at least until he meets Y/N who’s more than keen on the idea of making Shouto love himself and his flaws.

This story is about two broken people mending each other’s hearts and becoming one with another.

I was in a terrible mental state due to a tragedy in my family so I used up my pent up emotions and healed myself through Todoroki-kun, thank you.

English is my second language, be kind.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Todoroki Shouto is a perfect example that blood doesn’t mean anything.

Everyone thought the Todoroki name was forever destroyed after his father fell from being the Number 1 hero to a lonely old man hiding in a cottage far away from everyone due to his old, terrible deeds.

Todoroki himself was also sure his life will be stained forever by his father’s terrible reputation; but things… didn’t go the way he thought they would.

After his father’s scandal died down, Todoroki slowly but steadily made his way to the top; hand in hand with his best friends, he reached the heights his father never could; Todoroki might not be the Number One Hero in Japan but he is sure one of the most liked, most respected and most desired hero in Japan.

And also, being on the second place isn’t as bad as his father made it seem like.

Shouto Todoroki is a great person. The press loves him; he’s mysterious, but kind; he’s comedically dull but also extremely intelligent; he’s hot and cold in every single way possible.

Most people think Todoroki Shouto has no flaws whatsoever; there’s never a mean article about him in the media, no love scandals, no drunk fights, no nothing; he lives happily in his massive mansion on the side of the city, surrounded by his friends and family, maybe even a secret lover.

But the truth is…

Todoroki Shouto is a broken soul.

As someone who grew up in an unloving family, far away from caring hands and warm hugs, Shouto has an issue with human touch. He got better since he was reunited with all the important family members he had to keep a distance from when he was a child, but being hugged and caressed by a stranger is Todoroki’s personal nightmare.

Why, you ask?

Because he’s undesirable.

Todoroki is absolutely sure he is the most repulsive person the world has ever seen; nothing but a mess of random genes, a poorly made work of “art”, a human trash bag filled with nothing but unimportant, rotting bits and bobs, rolling on the side of the road waiting to slowly decay and disappear into nothingness.

Todoroki Shouto wants nothing more than to be born again; in a different body, with a different soul and a less broken mind.

He really tried his best to achieve his “dreams” after he graduated (if you can even call a piece of paper stating the completion of his course a “graduation”.); his wrists wearing the constant reminders of his “hard work”, masterfully hidden by his long sleeves from spring to winter.

Todoroki might be a loner, but he is also surrounded by the bestest friends a person can ever have; he never really understood how he deserved to be so loved and appreciated by anyone in their right mind; but maybe they are all just messed up in the head. There is no other reason for a person to willingly hang out with him and stay with him for longer than a day; yet there they were, slapping him out of his stupor after trying to end everything, naively hoping it will make all the pain go away; there they were, sleeping on the little plastic sofa next to his bedside in the hospital; there they were, taking his hand and forcing him out of his little, safe bubble, giving the half and half hero a chance to find the ultimate happiness he was always dreaming about.

Todoroki Shouto is a carefree, cool person in the eyes of the media; but no one knows the real struggles of the hero and no one ever will.

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The present

“You are a bit out of it today.”

Shouto gets shaken out of his stupor by a pleasant voice; his sidekick/soon-to-be hero partner, Y/N.

It took Midoriya years of begging for him to get a sidekick. Todoroki is a lone wolf; he might be trying his best to be as different as he can be if it comes to his cruel father, but he still has this one thing in common with the old man; he can’t trust anyone enough to work with them in a team; or at least he thought, until Y/N came in the picture.

Shouto knew right away that Y/N is different; they were the first person Shouto could feel a little connection with; the first person who didn’t try to fake a smile for the sake of a good first impression; the first person to look into his eyes without any kind of ulterior motive. Y/N was the first person to immediately see through Shouto’s facade and see the broken, young boy hidden in the 27 years old body.

It only took Y/N a month to melt Todoroki’s frozen heart; to break all the walls sheltering him into tiny pieces.

It only took a few more months for Todoroki to realize he just found the missing puzzle piece he’s been subconsciously looking for all his life.

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The first time meeting an interesting stranger.

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The past.

Todoroki Shouto is not really listening to the interviews anymore; he’s done with hearing the same clichè answers every single time, over and over;

“I want to work with the best people!”

“I’m a big fan!”

“I want to be the best hero!”

This is all nice and lovely, but Shouto isn’t looking for the perfect pupil; he’s looking for a partner he can trust and he can talk with, about more than just the weather and the current stock prices.

After two hours of mindless chatter and fake smiles, Shouto raises his head to a strong, extremely honest voice.

“Apparently, I can’t run away from my problems, so I might as well just do something useful with my life.” Says Y/N nonchalantly while playing with the hem of their sleeve. Shouto knows the indication of that motion way too much.

He also knows that this person was Midoriya’s recommendation even without looking at his paperwork in front of him.

“I sent someone over to you, someone really dear to me. They reminded me of you.” Shouto recalls Midoriya’s conversation with him a week ago.

Y/N was saved by Midoriya a few years back when he started his hero work; or to be exact, Deku was saved by Y/N after he made a terrible mistake during his rescue.

After the big war, the government opened a special program for civilians with special quirks. To enroll, they needed to be recommended by the heroes working on the field; it’s similar to the way All Might found Midoriya, just on a bigger scale.

Y/N was the part of the first course back then, graduating with the highest score possible.

“I know you already answered this question, but knowing your friendship with Midoriya… why are you here exactly?” Shouto asks, startling the other team members around him; this is the first time he was willing to ask anything from anyone. He barely looked up at the interviewees until now.

“Midoriya is great, but I don’t want to be the best hero in the world. I just want to find a reason for my existence. I want to have purpose. Izuku’s overly excited team is too much for me and he knows that.” Y/N looks straight into Shouto’s eyes by the end of their sentence with a sad, but honest smile on their face.

Shouto knows this interview is over. This is what he was waiting for. Honesty.

“I want them on my team.” He speaks up and closes the folder in front of him.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

Shouto doesn’t believe in love at first sight. Shouto barely believes in “love” in general.

After years of struggling with emotions he managed to get the hang of them though; he now understands friendships, understands what missing someone feels like and understands how worrisome it is when someone goes radio silent for a week without a single word, just because they don’t feel like talking - Shouto can thank Bakugou for this one and his sudden midlife crisis at the young age of 25.

Shouto can also endure a hug from a close friend now; he still squirms in Kirishima’s arms, but he tries his best to hug back anyway.

What Shouto can NOT do is to survive being touched by anyone else except his close friend group - or so he thought, until Y/N has arrived.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The first time sharing an office.

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Shouto is having a hard time sharing his private office space with someone new.

While he’s excited for the new journey and he’s already thankful to Midoriya for finding him such a perfect companion - Y/N is quiet, understanding and a little bit fucked up in the hand just like him - a shared small office space come with huge difficulties; like close proximities when working on the same paperwork, fleeting, accidental touches when passing by one another; and also the weirdly constant assessing of the other person’s face for signs of distress.

This might sound silly and childish but putting two socially awkward people together in the same room can get really weird, really quickly.

And just like that, Y/N sighs into the awfully quiet space between them, utterly done with being stared at every 5 minutes.

“You and me. The sofa. Now.”

If this conversation would be between Kaminari and someone else, Denki would probably make a really dirty joke. But Shouto does non of that; without a single world, he stands up from his comfortable chair, walks up to the sofa and sits down; his posture straight, shoulders tense with clear worry on his otherwise cool and collected face.

“Let me guess.” Says Y/N, slowly sitting down on the other side of the sofa. “You are not a fan of human interactions nor understand any of them.”

The sigh leaving Shouto’s mouth is loud and dramatic; his shoulders slowly slump from their uncomfortably straight posture, his body now one with the soft sofa. No need to answer with words; he’s clearly a mess of emotions.

As he slowly looks up at his new office partner, terrified to see the disappointment in their eyes, he’s met with dazzling, curious eyes staring into his soul.

Shouto, for the first time of his life, feels butterflies in his stomach when he hears Y/N’s amused giggle from the other end.

“I am not a fan of this either, you know.” Smiles Y/N. ”But I’m glad it’s you I can be so uncomfortable with.” Shouto can’t help, but giggle. This is the weirdest, and the most honest compliment he has ever gotten in his life. “I am opening up to you and you have the audacity to laugh in my face, alright!” Laughs Y/N, not even trying to act “offended”.

Funnily enough, this is all it took for Shouto to let himself completely loose, tension evaporating from his body like the summer rain on the hot concrete in the middle of a heatwave.

“I am really glad it’s you, too.” Shouto can’t help but smile; actually smile, a sudden surge of happiness running through his veins making the corners of his mouth turn up. Shouto’s eyes shine with the sudden emotion, making him look younger and carefree.

If Y/N’s breath hitches by the sudden sight, Shouto does not realize.

What he does realize though, is his own alien emotions towards the person on the other end; the butterflies, the shared happiness, the sudden need to protect their bubble; because what was once Shouto’s little secret hideout is now a home of two; it took Y/N a day to claw their way into Shouto’s heart permanently.

“So I had this idea… Can I scoot closer?”

Y/N’s voice is full of childish excitement and hidden awkwardness; while his body twitches uncomfortably by the thought of being so close to a stranger, Shouto’s heart thinks otherwise; he can’t help but nod with anticipation. Y/N indeed scoots closer after a few moments of hesitation; and for Shouto’s surprise, he doesn’t mind the sudden closeness - if you can even call sitting next to each other that - at all. He can’t help, but search for the eyes of the other; deep inside, he’s still terrified that people will see the ugliness of his soul when they’re too close, or his ugliness in general. His scar might look cool and edgy from far away, but he’s more than aware of how disgusting it looks like up close with it’s bumps and random discolorations through half of his face; but instead of disgust, his eyes are met with pure wonder; Y/N’s eyes shine with appreciation, looking deep into the heterochromatic eyes; Shouto can’t seem to look away as he usually does when someone tries to make an eye contact; he just stares back, dumbfounded, incapable of words.

“This went better than I expected” A sudden blush appears on Y/N’s face, making them look soft and adorable; personality traits Shouto never thought will ever see in another human being with his own eyes.

“Cute…” mumbles Todoroki, not even realizing he said the words out loud. As soon as his brain catches up with his mouth, the left side of his face literally flames up, making his companion jump in their seat. “I… didn’t mean to say that… out loud.” Shouto looks away while cooling himself down.

“So… your quirk acts up when you’re embarrassed.” Y/N states the obvious with a soft smile on their lips. “That’s so…sweet.” Giggles his companion with an obvious blush on their face.

“So what’s the idea?” Asks Todoroki, still hot from embarrassment.

“This is the idea. Well, a part of it.” Comes the answer.

Weirdly enough, even though it makes no sense for the mismatched eyed hero, he doesn’t question it further. The happy smile on Y/N’s lips is enough for him as an answer.

This is how it all starts; with innocent conversations on the office sofa, early in the morning and late at night; when eating breakfast, lunch and dinner; if Shouto comes in sooner just to have an hour chatting with Y/N before his official start time, that’s a secret he will take to the grave with him. Shouto also doesn’t question why Y/N is in the building an hour before their official start; he surely believes he is the only one who’s stupid enough to spare so much of his free time on a random stranger.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The life of a hero isn’t just about chats and giggles on an office sofa and filing paperwork.

Shouto was so comfortable with his new side kick he almost forgot the constant worry of loosing the other while in battle. As Y/N wasn’t allowed on the battlefield before completing their newcomer training, which is a month worth of training and studying while Shouto fought his battles alone as always, the first time Shouto sees Y/N in pain, it breaks him completely.

Shouto was always known to be a bit sensitive about his friends getting hurt “because of him”, especially after he had to fight his own brother to save his friends from a gruesome death, but this feeling in his chest was on another level.

Shouto always thinks it’s his fault when his partner gets injured; he thinks it should be him and only him baring scars and burns all over his body, and not being able to prevent others getting hurt next to him is nothing but an utter failure as a hero.

The half and half hero is usually cool headed enough to put his harmful thoughts away to think about them later, knowing it’s only the aftermath of all the trauma he had to live through in his childhood; but this time, his vision gets blurry with anger and frustration, his mind blank with the need to avenge, heart beating with the urge to terminate the villain who left his favorite person bleeding and terrified.

Today’s mission is the first big case the two had to work on since Y/N started. They spent the first few weeks doing smaller gigs to not make Y/N overwhelmed, but this case needed all the people available in the area.

The plan was easy; scatter around the area and catch the massive villain gang in the middle of the act.

Shouto and his agency was lucky enough to find the leader’s hideout, but they acted too quickly; their team was heavily outnumbered.

Being outnumbered wasn’t the main issue though; Shouto’s constant side glances to Y/N gave the leader the idea of making Y/N the main target to fuck with the famous hero.

This brings us to the the present Shouto, judgment clouded by fury and concern, the leader pierced to a wall by sharp icicles.

The mission is technically successful; except for the fact that the main villain has several icicles poking out of his body and is bleeding heavily to the floor under him.

“We are not murderers. We are fucking heroes, what the fuck were you thinking, Todoroki?!”

Shouto doesn’t know when did the fight end or how he ended up sitting on the floor, staring into the distance, with no thoughts or feelings whatsoever, nothing but heavy heartbeats and the lack of oxygen taking over his mind as the rescue team and the police takes over the area.

“I think he’s having a panic attack.” Comes a calm voice from next to him. When did Shinso join in? “I can brainwash him to breathe if you want.”

“D-don’t.” Interrupts a stuttering voice; a voice Shouto wanted to hear; no, NEEDED to hear.

“Shouto… breathe. Please.” A body plops down in front of him like a bag of potatoes, covered in blood and dust. “Sorry, I am going to touch you.” Y/N takes Shouto’s hand and puts it on their heart. They take a deep breath in, then out, slowly, their chest expanding and contracting under his cold hands. “Can you do this for me?”

Shouto can’t help but nod. He tries to mimic the motion, slowly but steadily taking an actual deep breath again. As Shouto’s dizziness disappears, he looks up at his savior; Y/N’s cheeks are dusty and tear stained, their costume torn and bloody in several different places. He can’t help the sudden urge to put his head on Y/N’s shoulder for a moment of peace, his hands slowly snaking around their waist to pull them close.

Shouto has no idea how does he even know how to embrace someone; he never in his life felt the urge to initiate such an intimate contact himself, but here he is, clinging to Y/N like a hurt Koala, walls down, surroundings ignored.

“You are hurt because of me.” Shouto sobs into Y/N neck, making their breath hitch from the sudden warmth on their shoulder. After a moment of hesitance, Y/N’s right hand finds their place in Shouto’s hair, slowly caressing the back of his neck, their other hand clutching the clothes on his back. Shouto can’t help the shiver going down his spine from the pleasant touch as he molds together with the broken body opposite of him, taking everything the other can give and giving it right back.

“WE are hurt, because we stupidly made our friendship obvious. But we lived and we learnt a good lesson today.” Mumbles the other, not letting go of the hero until the tension leaves his body at last.

The aftermath of the fight is awkward; Y/N and Shouto doesn’t talk about their warm embrace after they let go and the team decides to not mention the fact that they were staring at the two the whole time, utterly confused by the whole situation.

The first aid team does a quick job of cleaning up their wounds and Shouto gets shouted at by the police for almost killing a villain.

He takes the feedback with a straight face and goes back to his office like nothing happened, with Y/N by his side; words unspoken, feelings completely ignored.

“We will do better next time, Shou. The first time is always a mess.” Smiles Y/N, and Shouto’s not hundred percent sure if this is about the fight, or about the hug or both and he honestly doesn’t care.

“Hm.” He answers, lost in his own thoughts, barely listening.

Yeah. They will do better next time.

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First time touches.

Todoroki Shouto doesn’t feel awkward about sitting so close to Y/N anymore - instead he feels a sudden emptiness every time his new friends stands up to do the actual work they are payed for.

Y/N became much more to him than just a side kick; first, they became friends then evolved into companions; Y/N knew most of the secrets Shouto tried to hide all his life by now, they new about every scar Shouto wore inside and outside, and weirdly enough, Shouto didn’t even think about his inner “ugliness” anymore; Y/N’s honest, caring smile was enough to soothe his raging, self-hating soul. Their teamwork also got better since the accident; they learnt how to mask their emotions in a fight, they learnt how to work well as a team but the unspoken words were still trapped in Shouto’s heart, and he’s not sure he will ever be able speak up about them.

Since the “accident” the only touch they shared were the accidental leg bumps on their office sofa and some softer touches while accessing each other’s body for damage after a fight, but the feeling was always there, in both of their hearts, eating them up from the inside, craving for more; fingers twitching between them on the sofa with the urge to caress the other’s skin for comfort, to get lost in the scent of each other after a dreadfully long day… He also felt the urge to feel the warmth of Y/N’s body slowly melting his ice cold heart so it can beat properly once more.

Shouto ignores all of his feelings once again; he probably doesn’t even know what they mean, to be honest; it all feels like a weird itch in the bottom of his heart; an itch he can’t physically scratch.

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“Let’s get some work done, boss.”

Shouto feels like he just woke up from a weird fever dream when Y/N turns their head to the office table, which is flooded with half-done paperwork.

“5 more minutes?”

The hero is really… needy today. Waking up drenched in sweat because of a terrible nightmare does that to people.

“My shift has started 15 minutes ago.” Y/N giggles, clearly amused by the longing look on Todoroki’s face. “I’ll stay if you give me your hand.”

“Okay.” Comes the easy answer, which makes them both extremely surprised by the sudden change of attitude - Why does he feel excitement instead of the usual dread, when Y/N takes his hand to hold it in their own? What is this weird electricity in his body? Why is the itch worse now, Wh….

“You okay?” Y/N gives Shouto’s hand a concerned squeeze then lets it go, worried about him being uncomfortable; but the truth is, Shouto’s not uncomfortable, just extremely confused; confused by his own racing heart as Y/N’s soft fingers touch his cold skin, confused by the warmth spreading in his chest after the short contact, confused by the sudden emptiness and longing when the contact ends.

Shouto never understood the word “touch starved” - until this moment.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have done that…”

There is a lot of things Shouto hates, but what he hates the most these days is the lethargic look on Y/N’s usually cheery face.

“You know that I hate when people touch me.” He admits with a slight blush on his face.

“I’m sor…”

“Let me finish.” Interrupts Shouto and takes Y/N’s hands in his. Y/N’s eyes are filled with tears and utter confusion; he hates this misunderstanding so much. “I panicked.” He admits, slowly exploring Y/N hands with his fingers; he takes a mental note of every curve while he speaks. Why? He has no idea. “I panicked because it feels… different. It’s warm and safe. I trust you so much it freaks the shit out of me.” Says Shouto, voice trembling just enough to make his internal breakdown obvious.

Y/N’s tears fall from their face, their thumb slowly caressing Shouto’s scarred hand with the utmost care and love.

… Love?

Is this love?

This tight feeling in his chest every time he sees Y/N smile at him, the sudden change of his heart rate after their sudden touch; the exact opposite of how he feels with everyone else… and the longing every time Shouto goes home after a long shift… is this why he can’t stop thinking about Y/N, even when he’s dead tired?

His internal struggle comes to an end when Y/N asks the most dreaded question of Shouto’s existence:

“Do you trust me enough to let me touch your scar then?”

Shouto’s not sure if the question is for him or it’s just an accidental internal monologue coming out loud, judging by the look on Y/N’s face. They look conflicted by their own question but they don’t back up, so neither is Shouto.

“I do trust you enough for that, Y/N, yes.” He answers with a slight blush on his face. “But why would you want to do that?”

“It’s a part of my old plan; because I see you looking in the mirror and changing the angle so you don’t need to look at that side of yours. And it breaks my heart.”

Shouto is not sure if he wants to cry or he wants to run away or both. When he looks into Y/N’s eyes he can see a slight hesitation; he nods and releases Y/N’s hand, his posture tense but ready for the challenge. As their hand gets closer and closer to the dreaded area, he flinches out of habit; no one ever touched his scar with pure intentions.

“Why do you look so scared?” Y/N stops in their tracks, their hand barely touching his cheek. Their fingers slowly find the burnt scar, slowly caressing the sensitive area, feeling out every bump hidden under the soft skin. Shouto’s eyes prickle with unshed, happy tears; there are no words to describe his feelings right now, but if he would need to try he would say it’s… the feeling of being accepted or the happiness of being touched by the most important person in Shouto’s life - Because he can ignore his feelings as much as he wants to but even Shouto is emotionally intelligent enough to know how important Y/N is to him, in every way possible.

“That scar is not… too pleasant to touch.” Mumbles the hero while putting his hand over the one on his scar. He slowly takes Y/N’s hand off his face and puts it in his lap to save them from the “terrible experience”. For his surprise, this doesn’t stop Y/N, it only encourages them to do more; in just a few seconds, Shouto’s senses are filled with Y/N, soft lips touch the broken skin on his cheek, peppering small kisses all over the scarred area. Shouto’s breath hitches while his body tenses up, but as Shouto’s nose gets filled with his favorite scent in the whole world, his body deflates and melts into Y/N’s arms. His heart might have a hard time with the sudden closeness, beating out of his rib cage giving him a slight anxiety, but for the first time in his life, Shouto feels like he’s where he is supposed to be; he’s safe, accepted and loved with all his flaws and “ugliness”.

“Nothing about your is ugly, Shou. You are the most beautiful person I’ve ever met, inside and outside, and I’ll do everything to make you understand that.” Y/N moves back just a tiny bit to be able to see Shouto’s face, their hand now back on the burnt area to prove their point.

So this is what it feels like to love and to be loved; because fuck, Shouto is head over heels for this person, he always was; from the first moment he looked up from his interview papers a year ago; his heart couldn’t stop racing, every time they were in the same room.

He can see it now; the truth behind all the mysterious feelings he felt in the last year. It was adoration.

“Everything?” The sudden eye contact makes Y/N blush even more; they can feel Shouto’s breath on their lips with how close they are to each other. “Can you kiss me, then?”

Even Shouto is surprised by his own bravery, but he can’t help himself; the sudden wave of new emotions make him feel like he can have anything in the world.

“I thought you’ll never ask.” Smiles Y/N and closes the gap between the two.

First, Shouto has no idea what he is supposed to do; he feels clumsy and useless, but the feeling of Y/N’s soft lips on his is so good he stops caring after a few moments of hesitation.

Shouto slowly moves his lips and indulges in the tickling sensation; the kiss is warm and sweet like the freshly made coffee on the coffee table, and it only gets sweeter when Y/N finally melts into his arm completely and there isn’t a single inch between the two.

“We really need to work now.” Chuckles Y/N between two wet kisses. Shouto murmurs something under his nose, and initiates another deep kiss, making Y/N shiver in a new way.

“5 more minutes?” Shouto beams, not even waiting for an answer; the hard press on Shouto’s lips is enough of an answer itself.

Todoroki Shouto hated himself more than he hated his enemies, but with Y/N by his side, he feels like he will be able to love himself a little bit more.

Y/N’s plan worked perfectly.

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

The present

“So what’s going on in that complicated mind of yours that makes you ignore me of all people?” Y/N pouts in the distance, clearly offended by the hero’s neglect.

“Is it too cheesy and “gross” to say, I was thinking about you?” Smiles Shouto, wider than ever, his whole face beaming with happiness and love.

Y/N can’t help the blush crawling up their neck. They slowly make their way to their favorite sofa and plop down in Shouto’s lap.

“If it makes you smile this sweetly, I don’t mind the cheesiness.” Y/N smiles, their hand around Shouto’s shoulders, leaving a tiny kiss on the man’s lips before going back to work.

Shouto doesn’t even try to hide the lovesick smile on his face; for the first time in his life, he’s happy and proud to be alive.

The End

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~

[xoxo-teddybear]

Whatever Katsuki Wants - Bakugou Katsuki

Bakugou x f!Reader

Warnings: ANGST, violence, blood, cursing, lowkey little yandere Bakugou, smut, toxic relationship

Request: can I get Bakugou comes across a criminal on one of his bad days and he goes straight feral with an insane satisfied smile as he beats the shit out of them till they die. (Dark Ik, sorry😂) but as he beats the man, a video is taken of the scene and instead of posting it the anonymous person sent it to quirkless!FemaleReader. How would that play out?

BAKUGOU’S MASTERLIST

“Fucking hell!”

Bakugou ran through the dark city chasing an annoying ass criminal. It wasn’t even a villain per say, more like a petty thief wanting to ruin someone’s day. His day. Now usually, the number 2 hero wouldn’t be pursuing this type of crime, but the damn prick ran into a bank, held hostages, and got away with over 5 grand.

The pro was already have a pissy day from the second he woke up. He couldn’t wake up next to his Teddy Bear because you had to visit your parents for something that started before even Katsuki had to wake up, then he burned his breakfast because a damn bird flew into the kitchen window, he was late to work and got put on night patrol, he probably wouldn’t get to see you when he got home before you knocked out because you also had a night shift, and now this.

Every second that passed caused his damn blood to boil. He was mad at....well, existence. Not his, just existence in general. For everything. He was so close to catching this damn bastard that when he finally pounced the guy, he didn’t realize there were footsteps coming his way.

Bakugou pinned the criminal to the ground in an alleyway and completely disregarded his quirk. He needed to take his anger out on something and this poor man happened to be in his grip. Bakugou threw punch after punch, kicked the man in his stomach until he coughed up blood, he stomped on the man’s head, threw him against a wall, etc. He ended it with a strong and fiery blast at the unconscious body. Finally, after 2 minutes of silence, Bakugou began to sinisterly laugh. A psychotic laugh with a crazed look in his eye. He was hunched over with his arms loose as he walked towards the dead man, picking him up by his skull.

“Sorry buddy, you caught me on a bad day,” he laughed out and whispered into the lifeless body’s ear. He threw the body into a pile of trash cans before walking out of the alleyway. When he turned the corner, he took notice of a trembling civilian, holding a camera at him. “The hell?! THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT DAMN CAMERA?!”

Bakugou barked at the random person with devil eyes before sending a blast to the phone. The person ran away screaming, pissed at the hero for doing that. To be petty, the “extra” (as Bakugou would say) wanted this video to be exposed. Not to the media, this person wasn’t cruel enough to destroy someone else’s career, but he wanted to send it to someone to have the hero learn a lesson.

Now it was no secret that the pro was in a relationship. In an article, it was revealed that the two of you had been together for the past 4 years. With that in mind, the damn hacker found Dynamight’s longtime girlfriend’s number and sent the video her way.

—

At Bakugou’s nice home, his perfect little oblivious girlfriend hummed a tune to herself as she made some spicy curry for her precious Suki. Now it’s not that Y/N was dumb. She was actually very intelligent. But when it came to Katsuki, she was just a cute little “housewife” that loved him.

Flashback

When Bakugou first met you in the grocery market, he couldn’t help but notice your tiny but voluptuous figure, you were struggling to reach a box of cereal until Katsuki came along and helped.

“Here you go, Short Stack. Maybe next time you should ask your mommy to help you reach the high shelves.” He teased with a wink to the nickname.

You looked at the handsome blonde with a blush at first sight but when he teased you, your blush grew more ferocious with a pout and pointed brows. “I don’t need my mom to help me in the grocery store. I’m 22 for God’s sake!” You said, reaching for the box that he now held over his head.

“Hm, woulda said 17.” He teased again. You ignored his jokes and jumped to reach the box and take it out of his hands. You failed multiple times and he still stood tall with a smirk as he looked down at you.

‘Now she’s fucking cute’ he thought to himself. His eyes traveled down to your busty hips and tiny waist, then taking notice of the way your chest bounced around when you jumped and reached for the cereal. ‘Pretty damn sexy too.’

“C’mon little bear. You can do it.” He said with a shit eating grin. You pouted some more and stomped your foot before coming to a realization and began smirking. You dropped to the floor and swooped your legs to kick at his ankles and made him drop to the floor. As he fell, he let go of the box and you caught it midway before turning your back to him. Usually, Bakugou would be a little pissed, but his anger died down at the sight of your juicy ass.

“Yes!” You cheered.

“Woah..” Bakugou said in a trance. You turned to him with a confused look before he quickly hid it with a scowl. You giggled at his place on the floor and stuck out your hand to help him up.

“Sorry, but maybe you should’ve just given me my cereal. Anyway, thanks for the ‘help’ I guess..uh..” you asked, hinting for his name.

“Bakugou.” He answered and you nodded and gave a soft smile before speaking.

“Bakugou.” You said, finishing your previous sentence. “Well, I’ll be off now,”

You began to walk away but felt Bakugou tug on your arm. You looked back at him with another confused look but was only met with a cute smirk.

“Hey, I helped you with that cereal, the least you could do is give me the pretty girl’s name.” He said. You blushed a bit more before giving him a dumb look.

“Who? Me?” You teased.

“Nooo, the old hag at the cash register,” he joked. You both laughed at his comment as you settled with his hold on you, not minding the contact at all.

“Y/N L/N.” You said.

“Alright Y/N L/N, was nice meeting you.” He said with his hands in his pockets while holding a smile. A real smile and not a smirk.

“I know.” You said with a cocky smile that he could only chuckle at. “Was nice meeting you too Bakugou. I’ll see you around,” you said walking away with a waving hand.

As you walked, Bakugou couldn’t help but admire your curvy body and drool at the sight. He didn’t know what it was but something was pulling him to you. He wanted you. He needed you. That little interaction was not enough. It’s not even that he wanted to fuck. Sure you had a banging body, but your playful self caught his interest. He wanted your mind, body, and soul. He wanted to make you his.

Through the help of technology and his access to police files and hero reports, he was able to find your name, address, where you worked, and all that. He worked hard to “coincidentally” run into you constantly, up until the point where you two became quite acquainted. You eventually asked him to hang out (as friends) and that’s where the relationship grew. A few months had passed before Bakugou successfully asked you on a date, and that’s when you both found love within each other. Or more so, you found love in him. He loved you at first sight and he knew it for a fact.

After a year of dating, Bakugou asked you to move in with him and you of course said yes. Once settled in, he worked even harder to constantly fuck you stupid, break you down but build you up at the same time. He made it clear he was in charge and you were his little toy. A toy he loved with his entire being, but still a toy.

You became his dumb little girl. You had a job but Katsuki encouraged you to not work so much. “I don’t want you to raise a finger pretty girl. Just let Daddy take care of you,” he would say as he bounced you on his cock.

You had a little dance hobby that Katsuki also encouraged you to take a break from. “You don’t need to put on a show for anybody else but me, Princess. Daddy’ll give you all the attention you want.” He’d say as he kissed your cheek and finger you in front of a mirror.

You used to have friends before Bakugou found out they were trying to warn you of his abrasive behavior. Growing pissed at that, he convinced you they were against you and were no good for you.

“Those little friends of yours could never make you feel as good as I do, baby. They’re no good for you. They just want us to be apart. They’re jealous. They want you to leave me, but you don’t want that, right princess?”

“N-No daddy!”

“That’s right princess. You definitely don’t wanna leave me. Because no would could take care of you like I do, right? No one could. Nobody but me,” he would say as he pounded into you and whispered in your ear.

Eventually, Katsuki became your whole life. You would work one day a week so that you had more time for Katsuki. You would wake up next to him and cuddle with him until he had to leave for work. You would clean the house and cook for him, and you would wait for him to come home during the late hours of the night so you could smother him with love. Often times, you guys would fuck. Matter of fact, the day you first moved in, you Christened every place and piece of furniture in his house. It was the same routine that you learned to love. Wake up, cuddle, clean, cook, love, fuck.

Being Katsuki’s precious dumb baby girl, he couldn’t let his baby bear see all the damage he does as a hero. Oh no, that would scare you way too much. Your precious little self wouldn’t be able to handle it. He would tell you he was a pro hero, the number 2 hero, saving lives, and he was satisfied every time he saw the sparkle in your eyes as you looked at your hero boyfriend with a proud look. He never told you about the dark side of hero work though. The bloodshed, the kills, the deaths. Horrid things your sweet baby mind wouldn’t be able to take. He would keep his princess oblivious to the terrible things he has to do as a hero and you being his dumb little bear listened when he said you wouldn’t be able to find any videos of him. Why bother to check if he was right? Your Katsuki would never lie to you. He would never do wrong by you. All and all, Katsuki can’t risk her getting scared and leaving.

That was until....

—

Ding!

You were busy finishing up dinner when your phone went off. You looked down to the screen to see a random number had sent you a video. From the preview of the video on the banner, you took notice of that easily recognizable tuff of spiky blonde hair. You grew excited at the small sight of your boyfriend and swooned before you watched the video.

After you pressed play, your smile remained as you watched your boyfriend. However, as the video went on, your smile slowly dropped and became replaced with an open mouth. Your eyes became filled with fear as you watched your “sweet” boyfriend ruthlessly murder a man in an alleyway. You listened to his crazy laugh and felt your heart skip a few beats. Your mouth became dry and your palms grew sweaty as the video continued to install fear in you. Finally, your boyfriend threw the dead body into a pile of trash cans before you saw him look to the camera with those eyes. Those ruby gems that you used to love turned into blood drops as he gave the camera a scary glare. He barked at the man behind the camera before aiming a blast his way. The blast came at the camera and made you jump as it felt like the attack was going to hit you. You flinched and dropped your phone as the video finished and your breath grew heavy as you began to sweat and look around.

You immediately ran to your shared bedroom and pulled out your laptop. Katsuki always said you would never find anything about Dynamight online, but all you had to do was type in his name to find multiple videos of his deathly battles. You watched countless recordings of him mercilessly killing people left and right with his quirk and bare hands. Your body began to shake as your pupils dilated with fear. After a terribly gruesome fight video, you threw your device aside in fear and ran into the living room. You settled the slightest bit before growing nervous once more. All around the house were pictures of you and Katsuki. He was everywhere in the house. And those dangerously red eyes followed you everywhere. You began to hyperventilate until the sound of jingling keys invaded your ears.

You looked at the door in fear and after a few seconds, the main man walked in. Katsuki Bakugou. He seemed exhausted but once he took sight of you, he visibly became at ease.

—

Bakugou walked into the door, pissed off and tired as fuck. Luckily, that all changed when he noticed his precious Teddy Bear in the living room. He assumed you came to greet him again like you always did and he smiled at that.

“K-Katsuki! Hi..” you nervously said but Bakugou was too intoxicated with you to even notice. He walked to you with a smile and wrapped his arms around your waist before peppering your face in sweet kisses. You flinched due to his touch but Bakugou just assumed it was because of his stronger caramel scent. He did use his quirk a lot today after all.

“Hi baby,” he said. He didn’t stop his kisses as he spoke in between them. “Had such a bad day this mornin’.....was so upset......missed you a lot baby...did you miss me?”

“Mm..y-yes.” You once again said in fear. You definitely missed him throughout the day, but now with this new information, you wanted nothing more than to get away from him. Bakugou moved his kisses to your lips and placed a long, loving one on you. He had his eyes shut and so did you, but his were shut in content and yours were scrunched in fear. The entire time, you could feel your rapid heart rate pulse all throughout your body.

Bakugou started a heavy make out session with you as his hands traveled to the swell of your ass and gave it a grip and smack. He spoke to you throughout the kiss and kept his lips hovering when he spoke before diving right back into it. “Not my best day today......but you can make it better, right baby.....you wanna help Daddy feel better?”

“Mm!” You didn’t say yes but you couldn’t say no either. You didn’t know how to. Not when it came to Katsuki. At the cute little sound, Bakugou picked you up and placed you down on the couch, too eager to dive into you right away.

He placed you on the wide couch and began grabbing at your body. Your tiny waist, your curvy hips, your pretty titties. That was when he finally felt you tense up. A few nervous thoughts infiltrated his mind. Did you not want this? You never said no to him though. What was going on? He pushed those thoughts away as he continued. Maybe you were just extra sensitive today. Things were starting to change when he moved his hand down into your panties and you tried to squirm away from him.

“Baby?” He asked you as he separated from your lips and gave you a confused puppy look. He finally took notice of your nervousness and looked at you with worry. “You okay, princess?”

“Umm, yeah! I’m-..I’m okay it’s just, you don’t wanna take a shower before we do anything?” You asked as an excuse. Bakugou chuckled and a few of his nerves began to settle.

“C’mon princess, I know I just got off of work but it’s always just smoke and caramel with me. Besides you love it, I know you do.” He said and smirked as he began to lick at your neck. You nervously laugh and pushed on his chest to back him up.

“Aha, yeah, but don’t you wanna be a little more comfortable?” You asked again.

“I’m already comfortable right here. If anything, I’d be really comfortable if we were both bare already.” He said against your neck again. You pushed him off again and placed a soft hand on his cheek while giving him the sweetest smile as you spoke.

“Please love, for me?” You asked. You watched as Bakugou gave an exasperated sigh with a smile and roll of his eyes before leaning down and giving you a sweet peck.

“For you.” He said before pecking your cheek. “Everything for you, baby.” He said and finally got up to go wash up.

Once he was out of sight you released a relieved sigh. With him gone, you felt yourself began to shake again as you crowded into a corner on the couch and held yourself. You covered your mouth as you began to silently cry and sob. That-..that killer was so close to you. He was pressed against you. His once loving and comforting presence now became dangerous and scary. You didn’t know if you could take it.

—

As Katsuki walked up the stairs to the master bedroom, he couldn’t help but feel the nerves begin to bubble back up again. Why were you acting so...disobedient? It kind of irritated the blonde but he settled nonetheless. Maybe you were just having an off day. Bakugou walked right into the room and went straight for the shower after tossing his phone on the bed. The sooner he washed up, the sooner he could get to ravish you. He was quickly in and out of the shower and once he went back into the room, he threw on a pair of Gray sweats. Before leaving, Bakugou went to grab his phone but noticed your laptop opened. He looked to the screen in curiosity and felt his heart drop to his stomach once he saw what he did.

‘PRO-HERO DYNAMIGHT’S MOST LETHAL ATTACKS’ was the video you were watching. Bakugou took notice of the setting and remembered that battle. The battle where he grabbed a villain by their neck and blasted off into the sky before using an explosion to hurl them down to the ground again, killing them in the end.

Why the hell were you watching this? How the hell did you find this?! Why did you even think of looking for this video?! Bakugou felt his heart rate increase as his breath became huffs of frustration. His eyes grew fierce as he grabbed the laptop and ran downstairs. Once he walked in, he saw you cornered in the couch, hugging your knees with your head down. “Y/N!”

You immediately looked up when your boyfriend called your name. He finally saw your teary eyes and feared face when you looked to him. Then it finally clicked. This is why you were acting so off. You found him. You found the other side of him. The Katsuki you knew was sweet, teasing, loving, and a romantic. The Katsuki he hid from you was ruthless, violent, feral, and borderline insane. And you were acting off because you finally found out.

“Mind telling me what the fuck this is?!” He shouted. Now this wouldn’t be the first time Katsuki’s yelled at you. While he was in the process of breaking you down, he had to yell to let you know who was in charge. It’s not like he was heartless though, he hated it every time you forced his hand and made him yell at you. He felt so guilty and made sure to cater to your every need after he would freak out on you. Thankfully, you were a quick learner and it’s been years since you’ve gotten reprimanded by him.

You stood to your feet to try and defend yourself and get a grip. “K-Katsuki! I-..I swear it’s nothing! I wasn’t doing anything!”

“You’re gonna fucking lie to me now, Y/N?! Why the hell did you go and look for this video?” He fiercely asked. You remained silent as you were terrified and just trembled at you chewed at your lip. “ANSWER ME!”

“I-...Someone-..Somebody sent me a video...of you...and what you did tonight.” You hesitantly said. Bakugou slammed to your laptop shut and threw it to a wall, destroying it in the process.

“Show me the video.” He demanded. You were still shaking as you looked to him in fear and shock at what he just did. “NOW!”

You scrambled to get your phone and give it to Katsuki. He watched the video with a numb expression but his grip on the phone gave away all his emotions of anger and fury. Once the video was done, he looked at you with an insane smirk. You stared at him in fear as you watched his every move and right then and there he crushed your phone in his hand.

“K-Katsuki!” You shouted as you looked to your now destroyed devices. He dusted off his hands and walked to you. You tensed up at his approach and when he raised a hand to cup your cheek gently, he felt the way you shook in extreme terror.

“It’s okay, baby. You can tell me whatever you’re thinking right now. I won’t get mad.” He softly said with a smile. He was so close to you now. His hand was caressing your face oh so sweetly that it made you believe him the slightest bit. You don’t know if it was love or fear that caused you to tell him but you did.

“I-..I’m..I’m scared of you Katsuki.” You said with tears in your eyes. Katsuki just continued to softly stroke your face with his gentle smile as he nodded his head and encouraged you to go on. “You didn’t tell me..about anything of that. You told me you saved people..but you were..killing them.”

“It’s how I have to save people baby. People who become too dangerous need to be put down. It’s my job baby, you understand, don’t you?” He asked with his gentle tone. You shook your head as he still held it softly.

“No..I- I don’t.” You looked at Katsuki with hurt eyes and you took a small breath before you boldy said the next words. “I-..I think we should take a break.”

At that, Katsuki tensed up again. His eyes went wide for a second and his smile dropped before he shook his head and the kind eyes and warm smile returned. He stared at you for what felt like forever before his sweet face turned into a scary look and his hand quickly wrapped around your neck to put you into a small choke hold. Bakugou flipped you onto the couch and pinned you there. You began to scream and squirm but he covered your mouth and held you down with his legs to keep you steady.

“Careful Teddy Bear,” he said with a maniacal look, “shout and scream too much and you might just lose your breath,” he said and tightened his hold the slightest bit. “And we wouldn’t want that now, would we?”

You began to silently sob as his hand covered your mouth and you stopped moving under his hold. You nodded your head as tears began to spill down your face. Katsuki pouted at you before leaning down to lick away a tear. “Awe, don’t cry baby. There’s nothing to be scared off.”

At his words, your eyes grew angry and you bit his hand to remove it. He shouted at the bite and removed his hand as he looked down at you in anger. “You! That’s what I’m scared of Katsuki!” You said with anger and sadness.

Bakugou didn’t take too kindly to that and clenched his fist before he smacked your face. Your head turned to the side at the hard slap as you gasped at the contact. Bakugou grabbed your face with his large hand and made you face him.

“Dirty fucking bitch. You fucking love getting smacked by me don’t you?” He said with a crazed look. “Listen to me very carefully Y/N. I’ve loved you since I first laid my fucking eyes on you. So you’re not allowed to leave me. Understand?” He asked. You began to squirm again and he smacked you again to get you to stop. “ENOUGH OF THAT! You’re not leaving me Y/N. If you run, I’ll find you again the same way I did in the beginning. If you hit me, I’ll have to punish you. You remember all your punishments, don’t you? So stop fighting it. You love me and I love you. We’re not splitting up.”

You narrowed your eyes at Bakugou before spitting on his face. His eyes grew feral as his hold returned to your neck to give it a squeeze. You could still breath..but barely. “Answer me this baby. Answer wrong though and I’ll do what has to be done. Do you want to leave me?”

You looked at his eyes to find any hints of danger. Sadly, everything about this whole situation screamed danger. You still had love for Katsuki, you knew you did, but this was a whole different level. You didn’t know who this was. “.....Yes.”

“Wrong answer.”

With that, Bakugou began to rip your clothes off along with his own. You watched in fear as he did everything. The entire time, he had this excited grin on his face with insane eyes.

“K-Katsuki! What are yo-“ before you could finish, Bakugou had taken your panties and used them as a gag for you. He shoved them in your mouth and you made muffled sounds. You were both now completely bare on the couch, just like he wanted when he first came home.

“Relax baby,” he said before kissing your cheek softly as he pulled you to him. “I’m gonna make you feel so good..I’m gonna do something so nice that you’ll never want to leave.”

You shook your head with tears in your eyes. You tried push him away but he pulled your hands down. “Stop that. I’m not a heartless monster baby. I promise you’ll enjoy it.”

He grabbed both your hands and pinned them above your head in the couch. Both your tiny hands were able to be held by his one giant palm as his other hand traveled to your lower region and began rubbing soft circles on your clit. You arched your back at the pleasant feeling. As much as you didn’t want this, as much as you wanted to run away and leave, your body couldn’t deny the pleasure he gave you. He knew you inside and out. He was able to break you from a single touch.

“Feel good?” He asked with a smirk. You shook your head in disagreement. His smirk fell into a determined frown. He knew you didn’t want this now but he would make sure you would soon enough. His movements picked up speed and your legs began to shake. Katsuki finally shoved two fingers in, causing you to shriek with the muffled sound.

His pumps gave no hesitation with their speed as they went in hard and fast. You were practically screaming behind the panties once he gave in another 2 fingers. His thumb played with your clit as he continued to whisper dirty things into your ear.

“My little slut really thought she could leave me? Huh? Cant you hear the sounds your pretty pussy is making. Your mouth may say you don’t want me but your mind and body says otherwise.” With that he slipped in his thumb and you’ve never felt so full. You had his entire fist pumping in and out of you as your felt your legs growing weak. “Fuck baby, look at you. Taking my fist so well. Feel good? Feel full? Hm?”

This time, you moaned in agreement. You couldn’t help it. This was going to be your last time with Katsuki, might as well make it last. However, that was never Bakugou’s plan, no. He loves you too much to let you go. You aren’t leaving him and he’s making sure of it.

As he continued, he felt you tighten around his fist. He smiled once again and sped up his movements. “C’mon baby, let me hear you.” He leaned down and pulled the panties out of your mouth with his teeth. He tossed them aside and allowed you to voice your thoughts.

“F-Fuck Katsuki! M-More! Please!” You begged. He only looked down at you with wide eyes and a grin.

“More? What more could I give you baby?” He said, leaving down to you. “Tell me what you want Y/N.”

“I-...I-“

“You- you- you what teddy bear? Tell me. Do you want..me to stop?” He teased.

“N-No!” You cried out.

“Do you want me to slow down?” He asked.

“No!”

“Then? What do you want, baby?” He asked.

“Mm! I- I want you to fuck me Katsuki! Please! Fuck me with your cock!” You cried out and Bakugou’s fist came to a stop.

“Good girl.” He then pulled out his fist and quickly replaced it with his dick. You both cried out in euphoria. He wasted no time in ramming into you, using a quick speed. He held onto your hips as you velvet walls swallowed him in. “S-Shit baby! Fuck, after all that you’re still so- fuck! So fucking tight.”

His fingertips had a grip on your hips that was sure to leave bruises. The way he was pounding into you caused your breast to bounce and dance right in front of him. Not that it wasn’t anything Katsuki hasn’t seen before, but it’s the fact that he loves the scene so much. He licked his lips at the sight of your voluptuous mounds before taking one into his mouth. The feeling of his teeth sinking in had you gasping and your hands found way into his hair, pulling him in closer.

“K-Katsuki!” You cried out. He smirked at the sound and released you from his mouth.

“You don’t even know how good you look. How good you will look when I knock you up and fill you with my kids.” He said against your bare skin. This made your eyes pop as you looked at him in fear.

“W-what?! No! Katsuki! Please, I don’t want thi-“

“Shut the fuck up!” He screamed over you. He placed his hand around your neck as his cock completely took over you. “Yes you do! Don’t you remember baby? You always talked about starting a family with me. Now you can have it!”

“K-Katsuki..please! Please stop, this is rape!” You urgently whimpered. Bakugou merely ignored your cry as he continued his motions.

“I said, SHUT THE FUCK UP! It’s not rape if you enjoy it baby.” He said in response. He continued to touch you in the dirtiest of ways, bringing quiet moans out of you no matter how hard you tried to fight it.

“No! I don’t want it anymore! I don’t want you Katsuki!” You cried. Tears now flowed down your face in fear. You’ve always wanted a family with him. But that was before you knew how he truly was. Your words only angered Katsuki and so he punished you with a harsh smack to the face. Your head turned to the side as you gasped at the stinging feeling that almost felt like pleasure in a way.

“I’m gonna give you brat, and you’re gonna stay. You’re gonna stay with me and we’re gonna be a happy family! Because I love you and I know you love me.” He said. Your legs were growing weak as his relentless thrusts never stopped.

“P-Please. Please, I’ll stay. But I don’t want this. Not now.” You whimpered. At your soft voice, Bakugou slowed down the pace but his hard thrusts continued.

“Sorry baby, but I want this. I’ve spoiled you for too long. I give you everything under the sun and you reward me by trying to leave. Especially over such a small instance? I don’t think so. The least you could do for me is give me the family I want with you. Don’t you agree?” He sweetly said with malice intent.

You only continued your whimpers as you allowed him to do as he pleased. You weren’t getting out of this. Katsuki gets whatever Katsuki wants. If he wanted to fuck his child into you, he was going to do so, one way or another. Katsuki allowed his moans to fill the room as the once sweet sound of skin slapping grew louder and louder, coming faster and faster. Eventually, you reached your release and even squirted all over Katsuki’s chest. He very much enjoyed that and it brought him closer to his climax. He kept to his word and filled you up to the brim. You both threw your head backs and cried out in ecstasy.

Once he was done, Katsuki remained inside of you as he laid on top of you. He peppered your face in kisses as you continued to make soft sounds. You both remained on the couch for some time before he pulled out and walked to the kitchen to get a rag and clean you and himself up. Once done, he picked you up and brought you to the bedroom where he placed you down under the sheets and joined you. He cuddled with you in bed feeling happy and joyous while your head was stuck in thought.

‘If his plan worked, I’ll be a mother soon. There’ll be a baby growing inside of me.’ You silently thought. Bakugou snapped you out of your thoughts with a kiss on your lips before he began speaking.

“..I know what you saw on the footage was scary, but that’s not the only part of me. I’ve shown you every other me. The me that loves you and wants to be with you forever, Y/N.” He said and picked up your hand to give your knuckles a kiss.

“....I understand that your job isn’t the purest. I understand that sometimes, a life will be lost. But the video that was sent to me, showed you killing a petty robber. You took it too far.” You argued quietly.

“Tch. Whatever. He deserved it anyway-“

“And it’s not only that, but you’re the reason why I have no friends, no job, no money, no family, no nothing. In the beginning, it was amazing because I thought I knew you. But now, I’m just scared of you Katsuki and I have no one else to go to.” You began to get choked up. This was the man you loved but you felt like you didn’t know him anymore. Right now, in your eyes, he was a killer. A scary monster.

“If you left me, who would you go to baby? You’re absolutely right. You have no friends. No job. No home. You have nobody but me. You need me. Say it.” He demanded. You remained quiet to rebel against his wishes until he took hold of your face and squeezed it tight. To stop the pain, you forced the words out.

“I-...I need you!” With that, he released his hold on you and his hand rested on your cheek. He stared into your eyes and you looked at him with the sad and confused look you had on ever since he came home.

“I love you Y/N. Do you still love me?” He asked.

“......I do.” You said. A smile grew on his face.

“Then we can make this work,” he said and pulled you into his chest, holding you tight. You whimpered into his chest but nonetheless held onto him tight as well. You did love him. You knew you did. But you didn’t love who he truly was. Or at least, what part of him was. A killer. A murderer.

He was right though. You had nowhere else to go. Katsuki really was your everything. And so, you were going to allow this relationship to go on. His child will come from you and you will start a family with him. Whether you want it to happen or not. As long as he wants it, it’ll happen.

Whatever Katsuki wants.

A/N: THE ENDING IS SO RUSHED AND HORRIBLE! IM SORRY!

Tag list: @sxcker4you @aomi04

[renee-writer]

Chasing Waves Chapter 15

AO3

She paces in front of the door that leads to the printers. It isn’t that she has never had a front page piece before just never had one that had such a personal angle. A flush raises on her neck as she thinks of how personal.  The kisses with the waves hitting them. The kisses that might just have become more had his Godfather/manager not came up.

 

“Interesting surfing lesson Jamie lad.” He stood over them. “I came to observe and be a life guard but seems neither is needed.” His bushy eyebrows had risen to his hair line. She chuckles recalling their reaction. Jumping up and almost being taken down by their boards. He had shown Murtagh what he had taught her. They arranged for another lesson for later.

 

Geillis just knew of the surfing. All else would wait. The last few days are spent putting the finishing touches on the article. Her nights in restless dreams of Jamie, her and Jamie. Damn.  Another circuit around the room.

 

Chasing Waves, catching up with Jamie Fraser, was the headline. A picture of him, huge smile, wetsuit on, holding his board, is under the banner. More pictures are inside. Geillis said it is the best article she has ever written.

 

“There be a heart to it.” She had said, her own eyebrows raised, “Like something a love one would write. Not that it isn’t professional. It is. Just with heart.”

 

Good. That is good. She wanted to portray him as more then just the hot dude his PR is wanting. A family man, intelligent, giving, yeah. That and so much more.

 

“Claire?” she turns whipping her hair around her face. “Hot of the presses.” The first copy is handed to her. She smiles and nods her thanks before sitting down at the table and laying it out before her.

 

Yes, the picture captures him. The surfer, yes, but also the gleam of intelligence in his eyes, the smile shows his sweet personality. She moves down to the words printed under her byline. She wants to see them in print and to see what quotes are highlighted.

 

“James Fraser is many things. A world class surfer, a family man. A wonderful storyteller, teacher and, an all around sweet man.” She smiles at the opening sentence. A perfect setup.

 

She reads on. The first highlighted quote comes a fourth of the way down the page.  “Surfing is in my blood. I was born to surf. My da started me on it with the purchase of my first boogie board.” 

 

The next was at the bottom of the page, next to a picture of him at home. She had taken it and is fascinated by the look in his eyes. They glow at looking at her. “Aye, I miss the Highlands. Miss my family. It will always call me back. But, here, next to the ocean, steps away from the waves, well, it calls me in a different way.”

 

She smiles. He will love that.

 

“He keeps his private life just that. Despite rumors of a lass on every shore, Jamie wants the answer to that kept off record. This is a request that this reporter will honor.”

 

“Under biggest regret, he speaks of his late father.” “He knew that this would be something other then a hobby. On my twelfth birthday, he bought me my first real board. Soon after a stroke felled him.” He shakes his head, his blue eyes turning stormy, “I wish he could see me. To know his faith in me was justified.”

 

She stops and catches her breath. She recalls his raw grief there. A shuddering breath and she continues.

 

“His sport isn’t an easy one. This reporter found that out as he offered her a surfing lesson. Even after one lesson, her arms and back are sore from using unfamiliar muscles. She did manage to ride the waters surface, as he is an excellent teacher, but catching the face of a real wave will take a few more lessons.”  She flushes recalling what else he taught her, the anticipation of what else he has to teach her and she him.

 

The article concludes with an overview of his championships, from his first at thirteen up to the world championship he was going for this year.

 

“He will love it.” She thinks as she fetches some other copies and goes to deliver them to him.

[yikestripes]

For the First Time

humans of tumblr, friends and fans of my blog, mamma mia here we go again. ya girl is BACK and better than ever with her new obsession, criminal fuckin minds. this was such a fun one shot to write; enjoy!

Summary: You’ve been working for the FBI for 3 years now, and have never seen the sights. Spencer,  of course, volunteers to take you along for a wild ride. 

“Spence!” You called as you entered the BAU, your bag swinging wildly on your shoulder as your crazed (Y/E/C) eyes searched for the lanky doctor. Although it was mildly quiet despite the typing on a few keyboards and phones ringing here and there, the office was nowhere near as excitable and filled as it usually was on a Friday morning. The man in question poked his head out of the break room, quickly accompanied by the rest of his body as he strode across the catwalk.

“Yeah, (Y/N)?” He materialized at your side and held out a coffee mug with your name on it. You grabbed it gratefully and sucked down a few gulps before recollecting your thoughts.

“I was up half the night thinking about it, and I think I finally understand!” Spencer gave you a confused look, scrunching up his face as he thought through whatever it was he said that could have confused you.

Compared to the other members of the BAU, you were the only one who understood what he was saying at least 95% of the time- something that Spencer found both impressive and is what initially drew him to you. Here you were, 3 years later, on the anniversary of your joining the BAU. Little did you know that this was the day Spencer had realized his feelings toward you were a lot more than friendly. Nevertheless, the boy genius was terrified of how you would react, whether that be to laugh at him or possibly worse- feel sorry for him.

Taking in the confused look on his face, you giggled and your hand flew to his arm in excitement.

“The Star Trek theory you were talking about to Morgan and I yesterday- I finally figured it out!” Spencer smiled and took a careful sip of his coffee, taking in the easy-going smile that was plastered across your face and the accompanying gleam in your eyes. They say that the eyes are the window to the soul, something that based on his current job, was very apparent to him. He could spend hours staring into your eyes, whether it be to distinguish each different color that presented itself and understand why your particular set of eyes were so beautiful, or to finally get some sort of a grasp on why he fell so hard for you so quickly. It would take a lifetime, he thought, to finally understand what made you so different from all the other people he had met in his lifetime.

Meanwhile, you had been going on for a solid 3 minutes about his Star Trek theory, he could only nod along, buried so far in his own thoughts that he couldn’t even hear you.

“You know?” You finally said, taking a second to catch your breath. Just like Spencer, you had a hard time with knowing when to stop talking without being told to do so. You tended to ramble, so if no one stopped you, you would go on forever.

Spencer simply smiled.

“Yeah. I know.”

Several hours had passed when you were finally able to move the mountain of paperwork from your desk to Hotch’s. You grinned, this was one of your favorite parts of paperwork days. You fiddled with the stack in your hand to reach up and knock on Hotch’s door, when you heard him already saying come in from the other side. He knew you were coming, considering how clockwork-like your work habits were.

“Hey Hotch, these need to be processed for Monday.” Hotch tried his best not to crack a smile at the smirk displayed on your face, and give you the pleasure of making him laugh. He thought you were hilarious, constantly having everyone in stitches throughout the day to make the reality of your careers a little less heavy- which is one of the reasons every person at the BAU loved you immediately. You were sarcastic and creative, and had great dad jokes to boot, ready at any opportunity.

“Thank you. Does Garcia need to see any of this to upload it into the system?” He asked, returning to the stone man he was previously.

“Nope.” You popped the P as you headed towards the door.

“(Y/L/N).” Hotch said. You turned around and he hadn’t even looked up at you. “You did some excellent work this week; grab Reid on your way out, I don’t want to see either of you for at least 3 days.” You grinned and wished him a good weekend, as he watched you walk out smiling. He shook his head and buried his head back into his work.

“Hey Professor,” You called as you bounded down the stairs. Reid flashed you a tight lipped smile as he so often did, and raised his eyebrows in response to the nickname.

“We’re done for 3 whole days!” You said as you packed your stuff haphazardly into your backpack. Spencer grinned and began packing his own things much more meticulously.

“Do you have anything exciting planned for this weekend?” He asked.

“Nah, unless you count going home to Gerald something exciting.” You said with a laugh. Reid smiled at the thought of the orange tabby that was oh so fond of him.

“Did you know that cats are actually an excellent judge of character? In a newspaper article I read from the early 90s, cats are actually extremely perceptive of humans upon first or second meeting, meaning that they can distinguish between good and bad based on a human character and emotion.” He said.

“I KNEW my cat hated Steven for a reason!” You said, recalling how your cat would do nothing but glare and his at your ex boyfriend, who ended up using you. “Do you have anything going on?” You asked. Spence shook his head, before looking at you with a small grin.

“How long have you been living in Virginia?” He asked.

“I don’t know, 3 years? Whenever I started working here I guess, why?” You hadn’t really given it much thought, it seemed like whatever life you had been living before this one seemed so far away. It hadn’t originally occurred to you that today was your 3rd anniversary of being with the BAU, and meeting Spencer.

“Have you ever been to the tourist sights?” He asked, pausing his stride outside of the elevator. You thought about it for a minute, and realized quickly where he was going with this.

“Nope! I always thought they were way too crowded for me whenever I got the free time to go.”

Spencer grinned. “Well then, Miss (Y/L/N), today is your lucky day.” You grinned back. No idea could have been better for your third anniversary of knowing and secretly loving Doctor Spencer Reid.

You had parted ways at your cars to shower and change, before meeting up around 8 pm so Spencer could show you around without tourists.

His hands were deep in his pockets as usual, as he carefully explained each monument in great detail. Considering you were a history major in college before going to FBI training and schooling, you were appreciative of Spencer’s long winded rambling, even able to inject your own knowledge in the quiet moments.

“And last but certainly not least, one of my favorite places in the city.” He said as you entered the World War II memorial. The water from the fountain was glistening in the moonlight as you took a deep breath, both from the breathless feeling Spencer gave you whenever he was around, and the sight before you. The stars and the moon lit up the night sky before you as the memorial itself framed it. No wonder this was one of Spencer’s favorite spaces, it was breathtaking. Then again, so was he. Very fitting.

“Spence…” You began, unsure where to go. You took a seat on the stairs behind you and took in the feeling in that moment, where you felt so relaxed and happy, beside your favorite person in the world.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” He said, looking at you and smiling softly. “Really, really beautiful.” he whispered. You glanced in his direction to see his attention was focused on you, not the sky or the fountain beneath it. Your breath hitched in your throat.

“(Y/N),” Spencer swallowed hard and licked his lips quickly, a habit he had when he was nervous about something he had to say. “I-I don’t know how to say this but I’ve kind of been in love with you for about 2 years now. Sure, I knew you were beautiful the first day you stepped into the BAU but once I got to know you, the real you, when you really let your guard down and allowed me to fully understand how truly intelligent, kind, and hilarious you are is when I fell hard for you and I’m sorry it took me so long to say it but I’ve always been so afraid that you wouldn’t fe-” You grabbed Spencer’s face and pressed your lips onto his, immediately feeling him soften into the kiss after a moment of anxious surprise.

You pulled away first, your eyes wide and your mouth hanging slightly agape. Spencer just looked mildly surprised, before softening into a shy smile.

“I love you too, Spence. I knew the day I met you, that you were going to be the most unforgettable human being I had ever known.” You said softly, rubbing your thumb gently across his cheek.

“Um,” He looked down and flicked his eyes upwards, gently tucking a piece of hair behind his ear. “Can I kiss you again?”

You grinned and met him halfway, the second kiss equally as sweet as the first.

[lia-jones]

Growing Together - Chapter Nineteen - Hamsa

CONTENT WARNING: This chapter contains a suicide letter, mentions violence, drug abuse, and rape. I tried to keep it light, but if you are easily triggered by such subjects, avoid the parts in italic.

Let no sadness come to their hearts

Let no trouble come to their arms

Let no conflict come to their eyes

Let their souls be filled with the blessing of joy and peace.

Hamsa Prayer (adapted by the author)

Victor sat in his study, staring at the three folders on his desk.

The covers were bare and unidentified so any potentially prying eyes wouldn’t guess their importance, but Victor had gone through them so many times that he could name all three without even opening them, knowing them just by the dents and folds on the cardboard cover. Needless to say, he could just as well set them on fire, he knew their contents by heart.

The first folder on the left contained intelligence regarding his long-time adversary, Lucien Xu. It contained detailed information cataloging his whereabouts and activities before and after the Blackout. Lucien Xu, AKA Ares, like all evolvers, had lost his powers and been given no choice but to live the life of a mere human, appearing to have abandoned the ambitions he had as an important member of Black Swan’s council.

Victor never knew exactly what had happened to Black Swan, as his memories of that time were hazy at best. He was able to recall some pivotal moments, like him being the one that caused the Blackout, or rescuing Mia from the Queen, but not much else. However, from what he did remember, he knew that he had been involved in some violent physical altercations. Consequently, it was easy to assume that a head injury or something similar was making it hard for him to retrieve all the data and connect the dots.

He had looked everywhere for the other members of BS, but only found a few, also leading normal lives far away. The rest of them were mysteriously gone, probably in hiding. Unfortunately, there was no new information that could help him piece together what had really happened. But most importantly, there was no logical answer as to why Lucien had decided to show his face presently or why he had taken such an interest in his wife.

It wasn’t unreasonable to assume that revenge was all Lucien was after, and Andrea was an easy target, given the role she played in Victor’s life. But Lucien wasn’t a careless fool; he wouldn’t risk his life because of a vendetta, especially now that he didn’t have his Evol to protect him. There had to be something else that Victor didn’t know, or worse, something he couldn’t remember. It was imperative that he discovered what it was. Maybe he would have to play some trump cards he would rather keep up his sleeve, but his wife’s safety was at stake. For her, he would stop at nothing.

The second folder’s cover was badly mistreated, due to the many times Victor had gripped it in anger. It concerned a man he hated with all his heart: Daniel, Andrea’s abusive ex-boyfriend. Besides some information about the shady operations the spineless piece of scum conducted---embezzlement and a few indiscretions of a sexual nature---the pages described extensively and thoroughly the progress of his current case in court, including the accusation and defense strategies and the evidence both sides possessed to corroborate it.

Daniel’s legal team had tried to extradite him to Portugal, knowing the bureaucracy that the country’s judicial system entailed would delay the reading of a sentence for years, providing him with plenty of time to either try to retaliate again or simply take all the money he had stolen and disappear. Naturally, Victor would never allow for either to happen, so after a few phone calls and the intervention of the CEO’s own legal team, Daniel’s request for extradition was denied. All that he had to do now was to ensure Daniel would get the heavy sentence he deserved. He would make sure the man who threatened his wife would spend the rest of his life behind bars, where he couldn’t hurt Andrea or anyone else, for that matter.

His wife knew nothing about his interference in Daniel’s trial, and it was critical that she remained ignorant of his actions. Despite understanding firsthand the gravity of the situation, she would never condone Victor using his influence to their own benefit, disregarding someone else’s rights, even if they were the ones of the man that had taken so much from her. Although Victor could understand the sentiment and usually despised such acts of nepotism, in this particular case he felt he was being quite benevolent: for someone who had hurt the woman he loved above any other, and had the audacity of trying to hurt her yet again, Daniel was lucky to see his life spared.

The third file was the most recent one, and the one that worried Victor the most at the moment. It was a background check on Pamela Cole, Owen’s biological grandmother. Victor had to admit, the woman was smart, she had played her cards right. Anyone who had ever read a magazine article about Andrea could see she was highly praised for not only her insightful mind, but also her kind heart, which made her a formidable woman, and also an easy target. Obviously, when the old woman humbly entered Andrea’s office telling stories of regret and hopes of forgiveness and reconnection, his wife’s heart softened. Victor, however, knew better.

It was obvious this woman wasn't concerned about her grandson, or else she would’ve looked for him sooner. Victor also didn’t believe her story of trying to turn her life around, he knew first hand that rarely ever happens. A mother who allows her own child to get molested by strangers isn’t the kind that changes or sees error’s in her ways. And judging by her clean criminal sheet, it wasn’t like she had acted out of suffering or despair. She had been careful; she didn’t want to get caught. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time someone had tried to tug at Victor’s heartstrings for his money. As soon as she got her hands on Owen, she would manipulate him, surreptitiously extorting money from Victor through his son. And that he would not allow.

No matter what Andrea said, that woman would never see Owen. Should she try to obtain visiting rights judicially, he was prepared. Even if her records were clean and he had no way to prove she was a bad influence on his child, he had one thing he could use. He opened Pamela’s folder, retrieving from it an old envelope. This piece of paper contained Owen’s inheritance, the very last proof of his mother’s love, her suicide note. This was his only weapon against that woman, where the girl clearly stated she didn’t want her mother to raise Owen. Victor couldn’t stop his hands from shaking as he unfolded the old notepad sheet, stained with tears. What he read there was cruel and hurtful, but it was also a testimony of Owen’s mother’s love for her son.

My name is Rebecca Cole, and I’m 21 years old. The little boy that you’ll find next to me is my son, Owen. He’ll probably be scared. He loves chocolate milk, so give him some, maybe he’ll calm down a bit.

I never amounted to much, although I did try. My life is full of bad choices and evil people, except for the one that helped me conceive this little boy. I don’t want to name him, he doesn’t even know Owen exists, and that’s for the better. He’s in medical school now, he must be able to move on with his life without paying the price for my poor life decisions.

As you may have already noticed, I don’t have much to leave to my child. In fact, I own nothing that you see. Everything belongs to Stan, he’s buried in the back. I’m sorry, I had to do it. I couldn’t let him hurt anyone else.

There is no will, and no inheritance, just a story. A story that will maybe help you understand why I did what I did, why I left a sweet child behind. His heritage is ugly and troubled. But it is my story, and I want him to understand that I didn’t leave him. When I do what I’m planning to do, I have his best interest in my heart. Mommy loves you, Owen. That will never change. I promise I will always take care of you, even from Heaven, if it will have me.

I was born in the back of a rusty Honda my mom bought to escape her own mother. You see, my grandparents were religious and ashamed that their daughter was pregnant out of wedlock. They forced her to give me away, so she ran away with 20 dollars in her pocket, a duffel bag full of clothes, and the old car she bought with her meager life savings. After she heard my first cry she cut my umbilical cord with a pocket knife, wrapped me in an old sweater, and drove away in the rusty and bloody Honda.

At first, she did her very best to raise me. She worked as a waitress and would take odd jobs here and there to support us. But one day, I must have been around five, she ran into a friend from high school. That’s when she started resenting me. I lost my mother the day that old highschool friend told her she was married, living in a beautiful suburban house and with a baby on the way. All my mother couldn’t have. She wanted more, and I was the thing stopping her from having it.

I could tell you about the beatings, but I don’t want Owen to read about them. I could tell you that I was kicked around the house like a football and treated like I was some monster she had a hard time facing, let alone loving. I could tell you about the men that often shared her bed, only to hours later share mine, after she fell asleep. My mother would turn a blind eye to it, telling me that life was full of men that wanted things for free, and it would be better for me to just get used to it. So I did.

Funny how people sometimes talk about self-respect and dignity with their mouths full. A social worker once told me that I didn’t have to endure violence, but she doesn’t know my life. She doesn’t know what it’s like to be so love-starved that dignity and self-respect are merely ideas compared to the physical pain lack of love brings. I’ve seen men risk their lives with their families, comfortable lives, not because they need to satisfy a lusty hunger, but because they need to fill the holes in their chests.

As a teenager, boys didn’t interest me, as I already had men I didn’t want in my bed. But there was one that stole my heart: the only one that actually showed kindness towards me, Owen’s father. See, when you are love-starved and someone actually gives you love, even in a very limited way, you feel like you can conquer the world. I know he probably didn’t love me as much as I loved him, but he was nice to me. He took care of me and iced my bruises when things were a little rougher at home, and stayed with me by the bridge smoking joints when I was hiding from my mother or one of her boyfriends. And because of that, I gave my body and soul to that red-haired boy. I let him touch me like those other men would touch me, and though I could see he wasn’t as experienced, he was more loving. I got pregnant at 17.

The bad thing about heritage is that it’s like a story that tends to repeat itself over generations. I didn’t escape my mother’s house, but I was kicked out the day I turned 18, my belly large and round as a full moon. I did not have my son in a rusty Honda, but I did have him on the kitchen floor of the diner I worked at, also as a waitress. The cook cut my son’s umbilical cord with his kitchen knife. The owner helped me find a shelter until I could get back on my feet and gave me a small raise to help me raise my baby. In six months, I was able to rent a one-bedroom old crooked house in the suburbs. The owner sometimes would give me diapers and cash for some special favors. I did them all gladly. All I ever did was for my son. We lived happily for a year, sleeping in a queen-sized bed, watching cartoons during my free time. Owen was incredibly smart and learned to talk real soon. His hair grew to have little red curls, just like his father, and he was my true companion. I don’t know if he understood all the things I told him, but he always listened to me.

My bad choice was Stan. I was love-starved. I had only met one man who had ever been kind to me, and it was a boy with hopes and dreams of becoming a doctor. The burden of raising a child was too big for me to bear, and I needed someone to lean on. When Stan came with flowers and a promise of a happy life, although I didn’t love him, I took it. Owen needed a father, and I needed a husband. I didn’t want to become my mother. Her bed had seen more passengers than the city bus.

But Stan had no love to give. Stan was no different than all the other men that came to touch me at night. He only had demands and violence, and a bad taste for drugs. Whatever he had to give me, I took, I needed to numb the pain. I needed the high to stop caring, to stop feeling. But the high also made me stop caring for my son as he deserved. He deserves only the best.

When my son gets old enough to understand, tell him I’m sorry for not caring, tell him I’m sorry I left him alone with Stan so many times. I didn’t know, or didn’t want to believe, and it was only when I saw the bruises in this little body that I fully understood what was happening. That is my biggest regret. That I didn’t see it fast enough.

I could see the red flags rising, my heritage catching up with me, and this time I had to do something about it. I waited until Stan fell asleep and injected him with enough heroin to drop a horse. I know what will happen to me, I know soon enough I’ll be in jail, maybe for a lifetime. And I can’t burden my son with that. And to be honest, I’d rather have a quick death than a slow painful life.

I know Owen can survive my death. He is a beautiful and smart child, he will find someone who loves him. This is my gift to him. A ticket out of here.

This is why I do this. Because I want to end this shitty heritage. Look for no kin, the only one left is my mother, and I don’t want her raising him. This must end with me. With me gone, he gets another chance to be someone else. A bad one or a good one, I have no idea. But surely a different one. Whether he is a doctor like his father, or a waiter like his mother, I hope at least he is not love-starved. If one day he asks why I died, tell him it was because I loved him more than my own life. He should feel loved at all times. Please love him like he deserves.

With all the gratitude in my heart,

Becca

Victor folded the letter, putting it back in the envelope. He didn’t know Becca, but he knew despair. And he knew what it was like to love like that. So deeply that life was meaningless if it wasn't devoted to the loved one’s happiness.

The knock on the door made Victor shift his focus to reality, quickly taking the three folders and putting them in his drawer. A second later, he heard a familiar, loving voice.

“Are you done with work? I’m going to get Owen in bed.”

Without a word, Victor got up from his chair and walked to his wife, taking her in his arms, planting a kiss on her hair.

“Everything ok?” She watched him carefully. “You look tense.”

“And you look tired.” He playfully turned her in his arms so she would face the door, pushing her to leave. “Come on. We need to put our son and then you in bed.”

His whole world fit perfectly in Owen’s bed: the boy in the middle, Victor and Andrea laying beside him. Despite being able to read perfectly at the age of 5, Owen began to appreciate the comfort of a bedtime story and would ask for one whenever possible. Andrea would convince Victor to read it because she loved how he would use different voices for different characters. And although he was extremely embarrassed at first, as soon as he saw the excited look in his son’s eyes and heard his wife’s amused giggles, he fully embraced his part, using the deepest voice to depict a big scary monster or a higher pitch to illustrate a naive princess.

As he reached the final pages of the book, Victor put aside the voices as usual, using his softest tone to lull his son to sleep. That particular night, his technique worked way too well: as he closed the book and gazed at his slumbering son, he found his wife curled against the little boy, eyes also closed, breathing slowly and deeply. He took the time to watch them, sleeping soundly, unaware of the evil in this world.

He would do anything to keep this bliss. His bliss. He would keep them safe, their smiles bright and happy, without the shadows of this world. No matter what it took.

[queenxxxsupreme]

Can i request a Tony Stark angst imagine when you both are childhood friends but you never admit that you are head over heels to him? You’ve seen him with a lot of girls until you both are adults and he finally realizing it was always you all along?💕 your writing is amazing!

You had just left work when you saw the article. In big, bold letters at the top of your phone screen read ‘Stark Industries C.E.O. calls it quits with the Iron Man.’ You stopped in your tracks in the middle of the parking lot, furrowing your brows as you read through the article.

A car honked its horn, scaring you. You jumped and got out of the way so it could pass. You decided to go to your car to finish the article but as you were sitting down in the front seat, your phone rang. It was Tony Stark, your best friend since grade school. 

“Hey, Tony.” You answered the call. “It’s been a while since I heard from you. I was, um, I was just thinking about you. Thought about giving you a call to check on you.”

“That’s sweet of you, Y/N.” His voice was raspy and quiet. “Have you heard?”

“About you and Pepper?”

“Mhmm.”

“I just saw it.” You murmured, looking down at the steering wheel. 

“She left me three days ago. Took all her shit. Left her ring on the kitchen sink.”

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner, Tony?”

“Didn’t want to bother you.”

“You know that’s bullshit, Tony. You never bother me. You’re my best friend.”

“Yeah, but you’ve got your own life. You don’t need to be worrying about me.”

“Oh, sweetie, I always worry about you.” You chuckled softly. 

“I just, erm, I just wanted to see if you were busy tonight. I need a distraction and a Star Wars marathon and greasy pizza sound like a good idea.”

“I’ll bring the pizza.”

“You’re the best, Y/N. Drive safe.”

“See you later.”

You ended the call and stared at your phone screen for a moment. 

You felt sorry for the man. He sounded so broken and lost.

But a part of you couldn’t help feeling like maybe this was your chance. Maybe this was the part where you finally swoop in and save the day. Maybe he’d suddenly fall in love with you. 

You shook your head and almost laughed at how stupid your thoughts were. He wasn’t in love with you. He loved you, sure, but you were just a friend. You always had been just a friend. For as long as you could remember, friends were all you ever were. 

You were absolutely head over heels for the man. It had been that way since high school. He was charming, intelligent, and funny. He had this ability to make you forget all your worries just by flashing you with a smile and saying something witty. 

You let out a sigh, rubbing your forehead.

***

“Just make sure you keep an eye on him, Y/N. If you need anything at all, don’t hesitate to text me.”

“I’ve got it under control, Rhodey.” You held the phone between your shoulder and ear as you held three pizzas in your arms. The elevator doors opened on the living room floor of the Avengers Tower and you stepped out. It was surprisingly empty but the television was on. “This isn’t the first time I’ve handled Tony Stark after a nasty breakup.”

“This one’s different, Y/N. It’s not just a breakup. Pepper’s already filed for a divorce.”

“Shit.” You placed the pizzas on the bar and picked up your phone. “What did he do?”

“It was a build up of a lot of things. You know he hasn’t been the same since Rogers decided to go rogue. He just got to be too much. The stress was too much. I don’t blame her, to be completely honest.”

You stayed quiet. You knew Tony was difficult. You’d experienced it first hand numerous times throughout your life. But you knew he never meant any ill-intent. He just struggled with many things. From a shit childhood to the traumas he had endured while being Iron Man, he often struggled to keep his head above water. He always seemed like he was on the verge of drowning. 

“I’ve got to go, Y/N. But you have my number.”

“Thanks, Rhodey.” You smiled softly then hung up.

“Was he calling you to make sure you’d babysit me?” 

You turned to see Tony walking out of the elevator. He was in a pair of gray sweatpants and a black AC/DC shirt. 

“You know how he worries.”

“He’s just like his mom.” Tony shook his head, muttering under his breath as he approached you. “Worries about every little thing.”

“He’s got a right to worry about you.” You opened your arms to embrace him in a hug. You squeezed him tight, inhaling his scent. “How are you, Tony?”

“Better now that you’re here.” 

Hearing those words made your heart soar. You bit back a smile as you pulled away from him and tucked a few pieces of hair behind your ear. 

“What movie are we going to start with?”

“A New Hope. Duh.” He rolled his eyes at you. “Let’s take the pizza up to my room. God only knows who might wander through here and I don’t want to be around people.”

“Does your team know?” You grabbed a pizza while Tony took the other two boxes. 

“Yeah. Just don’t wanna talk about it.”

***

You placed the empty plate on the stand next to Tony’s bed. He was laying across the bed behind you on his side propped up on one elbow. You two had been silent since the movie started. You wanted to ask him how things were, if he was really as okay as he tried to let on. 

You waited until the movie was over to try to get him to talk.

“How long have we been friends, Tony?” You asked him quietly, turning your head to look at him. 

“Hell, I can’t keep track anymore.” He wiped his fingers off on a napkin. His brown eyes flickered to the ceiling as he thought. “We met in ‘78.”

“Damn.” You shook your head, bringing your eyes down to your hands. “It doesn’t seem all that long ago.”

“Thirty-eight years.” He nodded. “Why do you ask?”

“Just…. I just feel like we take advantage of that, you know?” You leaned back against his legs. “We don’t hang out much anymore like we used to.”

“We aren’t kids anymore, babe.” He spoke quietly. Your heart raced at the pet name. He called you ‘babe’ since high school. Sometimes it would be ‘baby’ but usually it was just babe. It was meant to be lighthearted and tender, but it always felt like a knife to the chest knowing he’d never mean it in an intimate way. “We’ve both got jobs and other priorities.”

“Other priorities.” You repeated, just thinking out loud.

“I didn’t mean it in the shitty way, Y/N. I meant as in I have the team and Pepper. That was hard enough to balance and you can see how it turned out. And you, you had your research and that guy. What the hell is his name?”

“Derek.” You answered with a little smile. “His name was Derek.”

“Was?” Tony furrowed his brows together as he looked down at you.

“Yep. We, um, we broke up three months ago.” You nodded your head, meeting his gaze. 

“Three months ago? Why the hell didn’t you tell me, Y/N?” Tony sat up and folded his legs so he sat criss cross. 

“We had other priorities.” You answered with a tight smile. 

“Oh come on, Y/N.” Tony rolled his eyes at you. 

“It was right around the time that you had that shit with Captain Rogers going on. You had other things to worry about. My shitty excuse of a love life isn’t a priority.” 

Tony watched you for a few moments but you couldn’t hold his gaze. Your eyes dropped down to your hands. 

“What happened with you two?” He spoke softly. 

“I, um, I walked in on him one too many times with another woman.” You messed with your nails. 

“You deserve better than that, babe.” Tony moved to hug you, pulling you into his arms. You accepted, wrapping your arms around his torso. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Your words were muffled into his chest. 

Sometime during the Empire Strikes Back, the two of you stopped paying attention to the movie and instead chose to talk. You were laying on your side facing Tony. He was on his back staring at the ceiling with one hand behind his head. 

“I remember way back when…. we made a pact, didn’t we?” He turned his head to face you.

“What?” You furrowed your eyebrows together. 

“I think it was in eighth grade. You were over at my place and it was…. some ungodly hour. We said that if we weren’t married by thirty, we’d marry each other.”

You brought your hand up to cover your face. 

“That ship has sailed, Tony.” You laughed. “We’re over ten years past when we were thirty.”

“Yeah.” He looked back to the ceiling, a smile dancing on his lips. “Just thought it was…. it was funny how we thought back then. We thought everything would be easy.”

You said nothing and instead, chose to watch him. 

“It feels like a million years ago.” He sighed. “So much has happened.”

“That’s life.” You sighed gently. 

Again, you guys stopped chatting and finished the movie. However, once Return of the Jedi was on, you both somehow found a topic to talk about. 

You were settled against the headboard of the bed while he had his head in your lap turned. He was on his side facing the tv so he could watch the movie. You were brushing your fingers through his graying hair just to keep your hand occupied. 

“You ever think you let someone go that you thought was your forever?” He turned his head to look up at you. You tilted your head down a little, gazing at him silently for a few moments. 

“I don’t know.” You wanted to tell him, to confess to him that he was the one you thought you could spend the rest of your life with. But you thought he was talking about Pepper. He would probably end up going back to her in a few days after everything settled down. 

He turned his head back to the movie and silence fell between you two again. 

***

Tony watched as the sun began to peak over the horizon. He was sitting on the edge of his bed with his back to you, hunched over with his elbows on his knees. You had fallen asleep sometime around 4a.m. so Tony didn’t start another movie, afraid to wake you up. 

He’d been thinking and thinking. He missed Pepper but he knew she wasn’t coming back. She was done with him, with his antics. 

You shifted around on the bed. He looked over his shoulder to make sure you were okay. Your hands were folded underneath your head and your knees were bent just slightly. 

Tony smiled softly at the sight of you peaceful and resting. It had been far too long since he hung out with you. You had this ability to comfort him even when you did absolutely nothing. You could just be there and he could feel the constant anxiety and worry in his stomach fade away. 

It dawned on him then that you had been the one thing in his life that never changed. You were always there for him through thick and thin. 

When you heard about what happened in New York back in 2012, you were quick to call Tony and check on him. You were out of the country for your work but you made an effort to call him every day to make sure he was getting better after the alien attack on the city. 

When Tony had doubts about his work due to what had happened with Ultron, you were the first person he called. You ensure him that his intentions were good and that he never meant to cause destruction. He always tried to do what was best and sometimes that’s all one person could do.

You stirred in your sleep and mumbled Tony’s name sleepily. It was almost like you knew he was thinking too hard. 

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Your eyes were only opened a little bit before you closed them and stuffed your face into the pillows. 

“Just thinking.” He hummed softly, a little smile crossing his lips. “You awake, babe?”

“I can be.” You brought your hands up to rub your face as you rolled over on to your back. Once the sleep was cleared from your eyes, you looked at him. “What’s up?”

Tony looked down at his hands, shaking his head softly.

“I just…. I love you, you know that right?”

He was quiet and soft. You sat up, brushing your hair out of your face. 

“Is everything okay, Tony?” You furrowed your brows.

“Yeah, yeah.” He nodded his head. “Just…. Just thinking.”

“About what?” You tilted your head to the side just a little.

“Sorta everything.” He turned his head to look at you. “I think I take you for granted sometimes.”

You didn’t say anything, unsure of where he was going with this. 

“You’ve always been there for me. You’re always by my side even when you aren’t here.”

“That’s what I’m supposed to do. You’re my-You’re my best friend, Tony.” You shrugged your shoulders softly. “I care about you.”

“You’re so good to me.” He sighed out, running a hand over his face. “I don’t deserve it.”

“Don’t say that.” You put your hand on his arm. “You deserve to be just as happy as the next person.”

Tony stayed quiet for a few moments. 

“I’ve been so blind, so stupid.” He stood to his feet and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. “I couldn’t see it all along but it was right in front of me.”

“What was, Tony?” You were starting to worry about him. What was he talking about? Had he finally hit his limit?

“You.” He turned to face you, his eyes meeting yours. “It’s always been you, Y/N. You’re always there for me. You’re the one person I can count on twenty-four seven.”

You could hear your heart beating slowly in your ears. Your lips parted but no sound came out.

“When you’re around Y/N, it’s like-like I can finally breathe.” He shook his head, putting one hand on his chest. “When you’re gone, the anxiety and-and the fears and worries-They all come flooding back and I’m drowning, Y/N.” His voice cracked. 

You pushed the blanket off of your body and crossed the bed, motioning for him to come to you. While you were on your knees on the edge of the bed, Tony moved towards you. You silently wrapped your arms around him and held the back of his head with one tender hand.

“I’m here, Tony.” You murmured softly. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Though you were excited and sort of confused, you knew he needed to calm down. He was on the verge of either making himself pass out from his nerves or having a panic attack.

“Thank you, Y/N.” He breathed out, closing his eyes as he hugged you tightly. 

You couldn’t help but smile. Was this some sort of dream or was this real? 

You quickly realized that what was happening was indeed real. Tony was squeezing you tight enough to make breathing difficult.

“Tony, you’ve got to loosen your grip just a little.” You urged, giggling softly. “You’re squeezing me to death.”

He pulled away from you and brought his hands up to cradle your face. The way he looked down at you like you were some sort of exquisite, expensive painting made you melt. 

“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Y/N.” He whispered. 

Your smile only grew as he leaned down to kiss you tentatively. It was quick but soft and sweet. He was just testing the waters. He pulled away and brought one hand down to rub your side. You bit your bottom lip, feeling your cheeks flush.

“I can’t tell you how long I’ve felt something for you.” You admitted, your hand brushing along his arm. 

“You’re kidding.” His smile grew, ecstatic that you felt the same way. 

“No, I’m not.” You laughed a little. 

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” He drew his brows together. 

“Because I didn’t want to risk losing you.” You shrugged your shoulders. “I’d rather have you as a friend then nothing at all. I didn’t want to make Pepper hate me or not want me around either. You could imagine how much trouble it would’ve caused.”

He sighed gently then pulled you back in for a hug. 

“Well, we don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

With your ear pressed to his chest, you could hear his steady heartbeat. You closed your eyes and let out a soft breath, a smile still resting on your lips.

Taglist: @groovyenby @tone-stark @malena-stark @wayward-dream @trenchcoatedwings @spoopy3000 @jennylovelyheart @romancebibliophilia

[brianandthemays]

Love is a Polaroid (Roger Taylor x reader) Chapter 5

A/N I”m super exctied for y’all to read this chapter! I had a lot of fun writing it.

Of course thank you to @sweet-ladyy​ for beta reading and editing. She’s such an angel for putting up with me oml, please go check out her writing.

Word Count: 3k (y’allll longest thing I’ve written)

Warnings: Fluff, flirting, angst if you squint

1, 2, 3, 4

-_________________________________________

You never spent so much time deciding what to wear on a first date. You threw another dress on your bed, where your sister, Katherine, sat. 

               “(Y/N), it’s just a date,” she insisted. “A first date.”

You rolled your eyes and threw a skirt at her. “Yes, but a first date with him!” 

You turned back to your closet and go through the racks, making a silent note to go shopping for better clothes later. 

               “Why don’t you wear this blouse with the skirt you just threw at me,” Katherine suggested, holding the two pieces together. You bit your lip looking at the combo, coming to sit on the edge of the bed. “Seriously, you’d look amazing in this!” 

               “I suppose it’s not too bad,” you conceded, taking the articles of clothing from her. 

               “Plus the skirt gives easy access,” Katherine smirked. Your face turned red quickly and you smacked her leg. 

               “That is not what I want on my first date,” you growl. Once you were changed, she helped you do your hair in a simple half-up, half-down bun and a simple face of make-up. Looking at yourself, you didn’t see anything special, just another girl looking to impress a guy she liked. 

               “What’s wrong?” Katherine asked, noticing your frown. 

               “Nothing!” You shook your head as you stand up and brush past her. “I just… really want him to like me.” 

Katherine gazed at you sympathetically. “He remembered you for six months after looking at you for five seconds while you were wearing ripped jeans and a shirt with a stain on it,” she reminded you. “If he could do that, this will blow him away.” 

You struggled to keep a smile off your face at her words. She was right. “How do you always know what to say?” 

               “Because I’m the best big sister in the world, now go grab your purse,” she instructed pointing towards your closet. You march in that direction and begin going through your purses. Just as you found one, your heard a knock at the door. You felt your blood rush with adrenaline, realizing that it was finally time. 

                “I’ve got it!” your sister called, rushing to the front door. 

“Wait, no,” you shouted at her, struggling to get out of your closet. As you exited your room, you heard  the front door open and the sound of greetings came through the house. 

“Flowers! Wow, how nice, she’ll love these.” Katherine’s voice was loud, obviously trying to make you hear her. You rushed to the door, pulling her out of the door way and shooting her a dirty look. 

You turned your attention to the man in the doorway but your found your words caught in your throat. He looked angelic in the setting sun, his hair shining and his eyes glowing as he looked at you. He was holding a bundle of roses in his hand, and he cleared his throat. 

               “Hi… Roger,” you said finally, smiling shyly. 

               “Hello, love,” he replied and smirked, making you shudder and swallow deeply. “I got these for you.” He held the roses out towards you. You took them from him, your fingers brushing each other briefly, sending a shock down your arm. 

              “Thank you… come inside while I get these a vase.”  You motioned for him to come inside, closing the door behind him. “Um, this is my sister Katherine. Katherine, this is Roger.” 

She waved at him, raising her eyebrows, making you shove her as you walked past. You heard them chatting faintly as you grabbed a vase and put the flowers in them. You stared at him, wondering why one earth he had spent the money on flowers for a girl he just met. You walked back out into the living area. 

               “Alright, we can go,” you announce, looking straight at Roger. He smiled at you, looking you up and down, making you feel very hot everywhere he looked. He nodded, sending a friendly smile at Katherine. The two of you made your way outside. 

               “I want her back by 10pm sharp.” Your sister joked as he opened the car door for you. You sent her a look and she laughed and closed the door behind her. 

               “She seems nice,” he commented, getting into the driver's seat. You rolled your eyes and shook your head. 

               “Annoying is more like it.” You chuckled, gripping your seat nervously. 

               “You look great.” 

               “What?” 

               “You look bloody amazing,” he said, glancing over at you as he began to drive. You blushed and loosened your grip slightly. 

               “Thank you,” you said softly. “You clean up quite well, yourself.” 

A gentle silence fell over the two of you. You weren’t quite sure what to say. Your grip on your seat stayed tight until he reached over with one hand and grabbed yours. 

               “You don’t need to be so tense,” he insisted, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. Somehow, his touch calmed you down almost instantly. You relaxed in your seat and looked over at him. 

               “Sorry, I just haven’t been on a date in a while,” you explained. 

               “I find that hard to believe,” he scoffed. 

You frowned. “Why’s that?” 

               “Cause you’re gorgeous,” he said as if it were obvious. 

               “Well, I don’t want to go out with every guy who thinks I’m gorgeous,” you replied. 

He didn’t reply but you continued to look at him. His features. The way his mouth creased when he was in thought, the way his hair fell slightly into his eyes, behind his sunglasses. You looked back out the window as he pulled into a park. 

               “Where are we?” 

               “I was thinking we could have a picnic,” he told you. “If I’m honest, I’m a little short on money right now so I just—” 

               “Roger,” you interrupted him. “It’s brilliant.” 

He smiled at you, setting you even more at ease. When he gotten you out of the car he took your hand again, leading your through the park. He took you into a small clearing, where he set out a blanket.

               “Brian told me about this place,” he explained as he set out plates and silverware. “He said it’s the best place to look at the the stars in all of London.”

He looked up and you followed his gaze, seeing a perfect looking glass into the sky through the trees. There was a perfect circle of branches. 

               “Wow.” 

               “Guess he was right,” he laughed. “I don’t usually go for this type of thing. Normally I take girls to a bar or a pub. Get them to dance with me and—” 

               “And then take them home for a shag,”  you finished, arching your eyebrow. “Well, why am I any different?” 

               “I was going to say, and then see a local band,” he clarified, making you roll your eyes. “But you seemed different. That’s why I asked Brian.” 

You finally settle down across the blanket from him, adjusting your skirt so it didn’t ride up your thighs. He began taking food out of the basket, an array of fruit and vegetables, as well as some homemade ham sandwiches. 

               “Rog, can you tell me something.” 

He froze slightly, at the sound of the nickname, but just for a second before he continued his actions. 

               “Anything, love.” 

               “The other day, on the phone, you seemed… upset that I didn’t think you really knew biology.”  

He glanced up at you slightly. “Uh, it’s nothing, love. My parents…” You nod at him to continue. “my parents just… wish I hadn’t stopped studying Dentistry. They think I’m focusing too much on the band.” 

You move so your sitting closer to him, nudging him to continue. He looked down at you, feeling a sudden comfort from your eyes. He reached down and took your hand again. 

               “I just, I want them to see I can do both. I can do well, and be intelligent, and be in my band.” He rubbed his thumb over your hand. “But I seem to keep screwing things up.” 

               “How do you mean?”   

               “I get in trouble, a lot,” he admitted. “I don’t mean to, I just…” He shook his head. “Let’s not talk about it. Brian made us some sandwiches, it’d be rude if we didn’t at least try them.” 

You wanted to press more on the subject of his parents, but decided against it for the time being. You reached forward and grabbed a sandwich, careful not to lose your grip on Roger’s hand. 

               “It’s nice of Brian to help out so much,” you said, taking a bite of the sandwich. 

               “He likes you,” Roger smirked. “He thinks you’ll be good for me.” 

You laughed a little, tentatively settling closer to Roger’s side. He noticed and squeezed your hand in approval. 

               “So, tell me about yourself, love.” 

You shrugged, taking a bite of one of the sandwiches.  “Not much to tell.” 

               “Oh don’t give me that, bullocks,” he groaned, rolling his eyes. 

               “What are you talking about,” You said, shrugging. “I don’t have much to say. I’m not exactly exciting.” 

               “Well, where are you from?”

               “Feltham… in West London. That’s where I grew up,” you told him, looking at your feet. “It’s nowhere special.”

               “Well it is if you’re from there,” he mused. You shoulder him, giggling at his overt flirting. 

               “Who knew you were such a sap.” You turn your cheek over your over shoulder. 

               “There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Using his knuckle, he moved your cheek back so it’s facing him. Your noses were so close, all you needed to do was move forward a few centimeters and you would be kissing. You considered it for a moment, staring into his eyes you felt like you could do anything; but something warned you against it and you moved your head away again.  “Don’t you want to know?” 

               “Know what?” you dared, distracting yourself by digging into the fruit.

               “What you don’t know about me?” he supplied, cocking his head at you. 

               “Tell what there is to know.” You shoved a strawberry into your mouth with a pop. 

               “Well, I was almost a dentist.” 

You almost spit out the strawberry in surprise. He laughed at your reaction, grabbing a strawberry for himself as you cleared your throat. “I do not believe that.” 

               “Well, you better believe it, love.” He flashed one of his signature smirks at you. You blush and duck your head away from him. “I love that.” 

               “Love what?” you asked.

               “How you blush whenever I smile at you,” he grinned. 

You sputter, trying to come up with some way to defend yourself but he just chuckled at you.

               “It’s alright, love. I think it’s cute.” He raised your hand to his lips and pressed a slow kiss to the back of your hand. Somehow, his action broke the ice you had formed between the two of you. You grew more comfortable in his side, relaxing into him a little more.  Your conversations became more natural as he told you about his life and growing up in Norfolk and going to school for Dentistry  and quitting to study biology and focus on his instrument. You loved the way his eyes lit up when he talked about playing the drums and being in his band. 

               “Maybe you can teach me to play the drums sometime.” 

The sun had set by now and you were both lying on the blanket looking up at the stars, still talking about your lives. 

               “I’d love to.” 

His thumb was drawing lazy circles on the back of your hand. You stared up at the stars, looking at the twinkle of lights forming a tapestry in the sky. Suddenly, a flash of light shot across the sky and you gasped, pointing with your free hand. 

               “Did you see that, Rog? A shooting star,” you exclaimed. 

               “Beautiful.” 

You turned your head to look at him, but he wasn’t looking at the sky, he was looking at you. Looking at you like you were the most special thing he’d ever seen, the brightest star in the darkest sky, the only thing that mattered in the world. You blushed, but in the dark, you doubted he could see and like magic, you suddenly found you couldn’t look away from him. His eyes reflected the night sky and they enchanted you. He brought his other hand up to your face, stroking your cheek gently, as he stared at you. He rubbed his thumb over your bottom lip, dragging it down slightly, and letting it snap back up as his dragged his thumb down to your chin. You nodded slightly giving him the permission he was looking for, and for the first time all night, he disconnected his hand from yours. 

He took your face in his hands and placed his lips on yours passionately. You reciprocated immediately, wrapping your hand around his neck,trying desperately to bring him closer. You pulled away for just a moment, leaning your forehead on his to catch your breath. 

               “(Y/N),” you murmured. “My name is (Y/N).” 

His eyes opened and he gazed at you. Your eyes were staring up at his as you gauged his reaction. His lips turned upwards into a lazy smile and he let out a breath. 

               “(Y/N),” he repeated. “It’s perfect.” 

He placed another kiss on your lips, shorter but just as sweet. 

               “(Y/N), (Y/N), (Y/N), (Y/N)” he said you name over and over again, placing a kiss on another part of your face each time. Your cheek, your  jaw, your forehead. He rolled so he was hovering over you, pausing for a moment to stare at you. “I’ll never get tired of saying your name.” 

He leaned down and pressed yet another sweet kiss to your lips. You brought your hands up to tangle in his hair while he moves his down to your sides, tilting his head slightly to deepen the kiss. While you were enjoying yourself, you felt a wave of panic rush over you. Things were moving very quickly. Quicker than you had intended. You were still on your first date and you were practically sucking each others tongues out. You felt his hand start to slide further down your side and your eyes shot open. You pushed him off of you gently, sitting up quickly. 

               “(Y/N)? Are you alright?” he asked, sitting up as well and resting a hand on your back. 

You shot him a wary glance but rest into his touch. “I’m fine… it’s just…” You paused, feeling foolish for your caution. “I’m not… I can’t.”

You looked over at him, pursing your lips, cringing your own words. But he wasn’t angry, he nodded in understand, hooking his arm around your shoulder to tug you into his side. 

               “I’m sorry,” he began “I don’t want you to feel pressured.” 

You close your eyes and rest your head on his shoulder. It was crazy to feel so comfortable with someone that you just met. It felt as if you’d known him forever; that you had been separated and reunited. All you knew is that you wanted to stay here, tucked into his side for the rest of the night; just sitting there in his warm embrace forever. He was intoxicating. His scent, his touch, it all lingered in just the right way.

               “(Y/N), (Y/N), (Y/N).” He was still murmuring your name in your ear. Even the way he said your name made your heart melt, and wished you had told him sooner, just so you could hear him say it more. 

               “Say it again,” you begged softly. 

               “(Y/N).” He kissed the top of your head. 

               “Roger,” you breathed out. 

               “(Y/N),” his voice was low, and had a gravel to it that made you shiver. You pressed a kiss to his shoulder before leaning away. He whined quietly and the sudden loss of warmth but you shook your head. 

               “It’s too fast,” you said “All of this, it’s too fast.” You took a shaky breath and covered your face in your hands. 

               “It’s alright, love,” he murmured, leaning into your ear. “We can go slow.” 

Though truthfully, Roger didn’t know how he was containing himself. The way you were saying his name made him want to have you right there until it was the only thing you could say. But, he also didn’t want to ruin this. He hadn’t felt this way before; so connected to a person that all you wanted was to be near them. 

               “How ‘bout I take you home, yeah?” He rubbed his hand in comforting circles on your back. 

               “I’m sorry,” you said quietly, keeping your face in your hands. 

               “It’s alright, love, you don’t need to apologize,” he assured you. He cleaned up quickly, taking your hand as the two of you walk back to the car. You still felt guilty for ruining your moment. You knew he was used to girls who would put out for him on a moment's notice, but you couldn’t do that. You were afraid to lose him now. Your hand tightened subconsciously in his grip and he noticed. He set his picnic basket down and stopped moving. 

               “Hey, look at me.” He turned your body so you were facing him. You still avoided his gaze but he moved your face gently with his hand so you were looking at him. “I’ve never felt the way I feel when I’m around you. And yeah, things are moving slower than I’m used to,” he admitted with a sigh, “but I’m willing to wait for it. For you.” 

You nodded, looking at your feet. He continued on to the car and opened the door to help you in. On the drive home, you drifted off to sleep, feeling secure with your hand in his. You didn’t wake up when you arrived home. You didn’t wake up when he picked you up and carried you inside. You didn’t wake up he when he laid you in bed and kissed your forehead goodnight. 

When you did wake up the next morning, you rolled over and saw a white note sitting on your bedside table. You picked up the note and rubbed the sleep out of your eyes to read it clearer. 

               See you next time?

                               Rog XX

___________________________________

Let me know what you think!

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[thedeviltohisangel]

How The Night Changes//3//Out Of My Head

 Duncan and Olivia go public.

Smut warning

For the other parts go to my URL /writing, drop any future wishes for these two in my ask box or DMs!

Olivia watched from the sidelines of the briefing room as her mother deftly avoided almost every single question that was sent her way in the manner only she knew how. She had to stop herself from rolling her eyes knowing that at least a few cameras were glancing at her every once in awhile.

Once her mother had had enough of the press pool, she allowed her secretary to retake the podium and joined her daughter as they exited the room.

“I would like you to take on some new tasks, Olivia.”

“I have enough on my plate with my new dance company. I don’t know how much more my bandwidth can stretch.” Her mother stopped walking so the entourage around them stopped as well.

“A moment with my daughter please.” The crowd dispersed save for the one agent that simply moved a couple steps away. “You are not allowed to criticize me, Olivia. I need you to take on the traditional roles of the First Lady. I cannot be both and you are the only person I trust.” She allowed to eyes to roll now.

“You are not my ruler, mother.”

“I am your president and I am your mother.”

“In that order?” Olivia questioned with a smirk. “You want me to pick china and visit schools, fine. But just know the owed favors are stacking up.” Clare smiled at her daughter with a knowing a glint to her eyes. She had no one to blame but herself for the cutting tone her daughter’s voice could take. As much as Olivia would hate to ever admit it, she had been made in her mother’s image. She was as much a part of the Underwood rise to power as Francis had been. Even if Olivia wasn’t an Underwood.

The next day, Olivia found herself at Fort McNair to reveal a plaque dedicating a library to her father. She held her smile and handshake firmly for as long as it took for the cameras to stop flashing. The press had seemed thrilled to find that she was going to have a more public persona as First Daughter and Olivia’s newly appointed assistant informed her that morning that chatter about her fashion had caused one of her favorite boutique website to crash leading up to her first official appearance. It was a boost to her confidence as she had stood pacing before the dedication, mumbling her speech over and over again even though there had been no need to memorize it. Olivia was constantly thinking of worst case scenarios and coming up with her contingency plans. Her father had instilled in her that, in case of emergency, save yourself first.

“Heading home, miss?” Henry, her head of security, asked as he shut the car door behind him.

“No.” He didn’t need elaboration on where that meant she wanted to go. Ever since Duncan had gifted her a key a few weeks ago, Olivia had been spending more time at his apartment than her own. He had offered her a drawer, some space in his closet but when he saw just how much stuff she was transitioning over to his place he quickly purchased another dresser and had a contractor over to discuss a closet expansion. Annette had asked him, last time she was over, why he had a collection of Bath & Body Works candles in his linen closet and Duncan had barely stuttered out that he was getting into the Christmas mood early this year. It was getting more and more difficult for them to attend public events separately and after the last charity ball when Duncan threatened a man that if he ever touched Olivia like that again he’d lose his hand, they decided that their domestic bubble would have to burst. He promised he’d devise a perfect way to do it but Olivia had also given the strategy some thought. A lot of thought.

She called his name as she slipped her black leather boots off by the door but he didn’t answer so she assumed he was still at work. With a deep sigh, she made her way into his kitchen intent on finding the bottle of wine they had opened the night before but hadn’t had time to finish because of the way his hand was creeping up her thigh under the table.

A piece of paper on his island caught her attention and she opened it to find his blunt handwriting.

Olivia,

You’ve left before I could wish you luck for today and assure you that you’re going to kick ass today. With any crazy thing your mother decides to throw at you. I promise, my little sweet pea. Just don’t let the new media attention get to your head. I’ll always be here to remind you that you’re not Meghan Markle but you are more than a princess to me. You are my Queen and I your loyal follower.

Forever in love with you,

Your donut

PS May dropped off an entire green bean casserole for you in case things didn’t go well today and you need comfort before I am home.

Olivia wiped the tear that was gently tracing it’s way down her face at his kind words. She doesn’t know why she was lucky enough to have the boy who kissed her behind a tree in South Carolina when they were eight grow up into a man who made her wildest dreams come true. The boy who she had a crush on grew up to be the man she loved and loved her back.

She brought the bottle and a bowl of casserole sinfulness into the bathroom with her, undressing and applying a watermelon scented mask to her face before dipping into Duncan’s underused tub.

Duncan walked through the door to his apartment, the SUV parked across the street from his building alerting him to her presence even before the ankle boots discarded by the door did. He draped his suit jacket over the tall chairs sitting at his breakfast bar, letting his AP watch drop to the counter as he made his way to the only door with light slipping from underneath.

“Hi, Donut,” she murmured as her eyes stayed closed, showing no signs of removing herself from the tub of relaxation and self-care she had nestled herself in.

“Something happen today that didn’t make the news?” He had been following her day as closely as he could from his office, watching her speech as she gave it, reading up on articles after the fact. “You sounded wonderful and intelligent. Everyone from the Times to fashion blogs were praising you.” She turned just her head in order to look at him.

“I felt like a little puppet. Selena wouldn’t let me write my own speech. Jennifer burnt me trying to steam my shirt while I was wearing it and didn’t even bother to apologize. Colonel Maysel said it was a let down the President wasn’t there. I sounded perfect, Duncan, but I felt like a sheep in wolf’s clothing.” She looked away from him again. Olivia wasn’t sure if she would ever feel comfortable being vulnerable in front of him but she was trying. He loved her and it was daunting to feel less than perfect when he was constantly looking at her like she was.

“First, let me help you wipe that pink stuff of your face so I can kiss you properly.” Duncan was methodical in everything he did and the first step into making her feel better, in his mind, was to remind her that he loved her. He pulled a washcloth from the vanity and sat down next to the tub, dipping it into the warm water before gently smoothing it over her skin.

“I’m sorry for dumping on you. No one asked me how I was today. I haven’t had a chance to talk about it until you got home.” His heart fluttered at the notion that his apartment was home to her. That it was a place they inhabited together and was the foundation for the life he hoped they continued to build together.

Once he was satisfied with how much of her face mask he had gotten off, his lips pecked hers quickly at first before she leaned over the edge further in order to urge him closer to her. When Duncan felt the need to come up for air from kissing her, he held her forehead against his and kept their eyes locked.

“You are in the innermost circle of the most powerful person in the world. You have power, Olivia, and yes today maybe didn’t go the way you were hoping but the potential is there. Don’t let anyone sideline you. Use the platform your father and mother gave you and make everyone regret they ever doubted you. Show everyone around you that your mother isn’t the only Underwood with power.” Her gaze shifted to the wall behind him as the gears started cranking at an inhuman speed inside of her head.

“My turn,” she whispered. Duncan nodded.

“You’ve done so much to help them, Olivia. Prove you’re so much more than just their asset. You’re the fucking centerpiece.” Her eyes snapped back to his.

“Our turn.” It was the first time she ever saw a look of confusion sweep across his face. “Think about it. My mom, your mom. Your uncle. We’ve both been their assets for our whole lives. I’ve gone above and beyond to get my parents what they have and where has that gotten me? You...You are the most intelligent, driven man I’ve ever met and where is your output going? Into a shared pot that you get almost none of. We’ve hidden in their shadows, willingly, for so long-”

“We reclaim the light,” he breathed, finishing her thought for her.

“We’ve been so nervous of them finding out about us but we take our insecurity and make it our power. We get out there first, we start and steer the narrative. For our benefit.”

“I’ve never been more fucking turned on in my life.” Duncan was strained against his pants, standing up in order to remove them and his shirt before helping Olivia rise from the tub. There was no time to get to the bedroom with the way the blood was thumping in his head, telling him to fulfill his most basic instinct of loving her and claiming her.

She pulled him down on top of her so her back was on the shag rug, helping his briefs down with her feet and not at all surprised when he sprung free already slick and hard.

He moved to kiss her chest and to begin working his way down to the apex of her thighs when she pushed him just far enough for their roles to be reversed, her straddling him.

“I’ll let you worship me all day tomorrow. Now I just want to fuck you.” She sank down onto him as a string of expletives fell out of his mouth among his breathless moans and pants. He knew that eventual the girl that was obsessed with the color blush and tulle and making vanilla extract from scratch would return to him but for now he was going to enjoy his most sacred fantasy he used on nights without her. Her hips moved with him inside of her with an ethereal grace he had only ever known her to possess. His hand twisted into her hair, giving him access to her neck and something to ground himself as his climax started to build.

“Fuck, Olivia. Slow down,” he panted as he involuntarily bucked up to meet her with each pulse.

“Hold on, Duncan. Come with me.” Her hand moved from where it had been cupping his face to her clit and Duncan surprised himself by not finishing right then and there at the sight of her touching herself.

“Dreams do come true,” he whimpered into her neck as her own breaths came quicker and quicker before the two of them were cascading over the edge of ecstasy together. They stayed chest to chest, catching their breath, Duncan pressing feather light kisses over every inch of her face that he could reach.

“You dream about me touching myself?” she whispered into the silence they had surrounded themselves in. He chuckled.

“After than time in Wales, fuck yeah. I feel like a little boy who still has a massive crush on you and can’t help but remind myself you’re really with me sometimes. It was an inopportune time to say something so cringey-”

“You had a crush on me?” she giggled.

“I’ll start tickling you,” he threatened which only served to make her laugh more prolonged. Duncan loved that sound. The sound of her happiness. She had been told for so long that her happiness was secondary to the power and prominence of those around her and he was certain he would never let her feel that way again. “How about we order a bunch of those rolls from the bakery down the street and watch Pretty Woman until we fall asleep?” Olivia nodded excitedly, carbs and Julia Roberts sounding like the perfect night to her.

“And we can plot how we will take back our throne,” she replied dramatically.

“I thought you said my jaw was your sturdy throne?” She merely hummed as she kissed him once more. Tomorrow Olivia was stepping into the light and she was only hoping she didn’t get burned.

The next day when Olivia arrived at a local elementary school to participate in their pretend election in honor of election day, Duncan was with her. Hand in hand they strolled into the school and visited the classroom where kids had written letters to her mother to celebrate her being the first female president.

They hadn’t missed the gaps and whispers at how she had company this time nor did they miss the heightened flashes when he had whispered into her ear causing her to blush and smile. Duncan was acutely aware of the fact that his phone had not stopped vibrating since he had stepped out of the car to the lens of cameras.

Olivia sat at a tiny desk next to a little girl who was coloring a picture of an American flag. “Is that your boyfriend?” the little girl giggled as she pointed her crayon at Duncan who was watching silently from the side. Olivia looked directly into the camera as she spoke, imagining it was her mother.

“Yes, he is. And I love him very much.”

[wristic]

Now You’re a Real Criminal (Part 2)

Pairing: Edward x Reader Word Count: 2200 Warnings: none! Just a lovely unintended date between an excitable murderer and his hostage underling!

-Part 1- -Part 2- -Part 3- -Part 4-

@uoseok @ceridwenofwales @xxtaylorsingerxx @growingtwist @papill-on @someonexsomeone @jokerhastakenmeover @dark-as-love @fandomsfluffandstuff @bohemian-nygma @bookswillfindyouaway @geeksareunique

“So, you and Nygma huh?” Tandy took you back, a big smile growing like she pulled one over you. The truth of the matter was you knew this would happen eventually, just not so soon. But then again, persona wise, you and Ed were opposites. If anyone liked watching chemistry, the obvious favored choice would be between the people who have none.

Pushing out the sweetness you gave an innocent, “Me and Mr. Nygma?”

She slid in across your desk until she was up on it. “Don’t play innocent with me! I know whats going on behind closed doors!”

“We’re just friends!”

“Just friends, uh-huh, I got ya, wink wink.” Reaching back she pulled a piece of folded paper from her pocket and shoved it in your face. In it’s center was a simple question mark written in green highlighter. “Saw him leave this on your desk this morning.” Your brow knitted, reaching out to take it when Tandy yanked it back from you. Unfolded and read allowed, you overcame with embarrassment for the people standing by.

“You and I are bound by impish delights, The passions of violation ignites, One and one, Me without you would be half as fun.”

You sighed as the answer came to you. Tandy slapped the letter on your shoulder, “Impish delights? What’s that all about huh? Tell me these impish delights you two have been sharing!” She looked back at the words, “Sounds incredibly naughty.”

“Tandy.” It was a struggle to keep down the firmness in your tone. Trying to grab the letter again, she snapped it back out of reach again. “It’s not what you think it is!”

She used it to fan her face, feet swaying playfully, not caring for the people avoiding getting kicked as they skirted around her. “Sounds an awful lot like a sexy love letter to me.”

“Well it isn’t!” Finally able to rip it from her hand, you adjusted your glasses and read it over again. “Although… I can see why you might think that...” You slammed your fists on the table. “But it’s not!” Making her chortle at your theatric. “I happen to already know what this is about and it’s not at all as filthy as you want to imagine.” You hoped anyway.

Not even at the top step and you were grumbling and groaning. How could he dump you into his arsenal for a laugh? How could you let yourself get caught by him? Why were you standing in front of his door instead of running away? Letting out a long sigh, you knocked.

When the door swung open you were hit with the aroma of cooked and marinated meat, surprising you to say the least. “If you’re in the middle of dinner-”

“You got my letter!” Edward bristled with excitement. "What's the answer?"

You rolled your eyes, pulling the note from your coat pocket and landing it on his chest. “I sure did Partner in Crime. But next time you might want to avoid words like ‘passion ignites’ and being ‘bound’. My friend and now by extension everyone thinks we’re secretly dating and into some kinky stuff.”

“What?!” He took it and backed up to let you in, reading it over as he shut the door.

Unbuttoning the top of your coat, you slowed as you looked at the sight across the room, under a big window to the city. “Hey, Nygma… you meeting someone or was ‘Partner in Crime’ not the answer?”

“Oh course it was the answer! And,” He gave a frustrated shrug, “maybe I can see where it might be interpreted differently but-” Looking up he saw you pointing with a smirk to the small table set for two, complete with candles and wine glasses. The silverware was placed but no plates yet as the stove was still sizzling a small ways beside him.

Offended you would assume such a thing of him, Ed nearly stamped his foot, “I just thought we could celebrate!”

“Celebrate?”

“Yes! On our first job together!”

“Oh~” You chuckled, slipping off your coat. “Well it’s beautiful, I must say this is the nicest not-date anyone has set up for me.”

“Is that because all the guys you do date are nimrods you plan to steal from?” He snapped, red in his cheeks from the string of mishaps and assumptions.

Either he did some serious digging in your life or he was that good at guessing, either way, “Low blow, Nygma. Low blow.”

Ed got his snide half smile in before going back to his kitchen. You moseyed your way over, trying to hold back your pout. Yet he had to push a little further. “I’m only saying, maybe you wouldn’t be so surprised by some fine dining if you dated some decent guys.”

You peeked around his shoulder, him giving you an annoyed glance at the invasion of space. On the counter was a prepped bowl of salad already mixed with balsamic dressing and sprinkled in a kind of white cheese. The two stakes were crisped and browned deliciously in a wide skillet, the steam of them making your mouth water. “Who was it a decent guy like you killed that landed you in Arkham again?”

You quickly turned away with your prideful smile, not wanting to get cold feet and apologize under his glare.

“What would you know about that?” he growled.

“Enough.” You chimed, picking up a wooden ball with lines along it, seemingly at random. “After I realized my mistake in stealing money from a renown underworld crime lord, I looked into your past since you two seemed like buds.” You realized the lines were actually pieces, pulling one out. Suddenly very interested in the toy, you set it down and took it apart, your back trying to block his view. “Killer starts with a detective and co-worker, then the file manager, who happened to be dating said detective and co-worker? Sounds an awful lot like a good old fashion love triangle situation to me.”

“Yeah. I guess it wouldn’t be that hard to…” Ed pulled out a tray of tin foil wrapped baked potatoes from the oven when he caught you at work. Leaning over as far as he could with the tray still in his gloved hand, he spotted the puzzle already half finished and twisting around in your hands, pieces methodically placed and planned out before it was finished. “For curiosity's sake, do you know what your IQ is?”

You paused and gave a bit of a grump to the question, the memory of a certain private school for gifted children always leaving a bad taste in your mouth. “I don’t like numbers to those kinds of things. Always gives people an insufferable ego.” You pushed in the last piece and spun the wooden globe, walking away to the elegantly set up table to take a seat. “I like games that’s all, I don’t see why it has to be anything more than that.”

“And creating an overly complicated, near untraceable trail of theft is a game?”

“Heck yes!” You started balancing the silverware in what looked like an impossible balancing act on the empty wine glass. You never could stop yourself. Pushing back your real intelligence all day caused this build up of energy in your head and hands. When you got home, it all came spilling out with your boredom. You weren’t home, but your act was long lost on Edward anyway. “Even if anyone cared enough to look into a measly 500 hundred missing out of thousands: the numbers are split between five parties. Alluding to a non-existent ring. Concealing a motive far too simplistic for so many people and such great efforts. And of course different people picking up the checks every other week, further pushing that ‘crime ring’ idea. But~ it's not. It's only me. Havin' some fun.”

“Every answer is crafted to be the opposite of the equation.” Edward concluded with a smile as he finished a display on one of the plates.

“Speaking of which, I’ve been wanting to ask, how did you find me out exactly?”

As he walked over and set down two beautifully set dishes, he gave a curious glance to your use of the utensils before fixing his glasses, “Hm? Oh, your clothes.”

“My clothes?”

“On the banks cameras. You were wearing some of those articles for your disguises. Especially the shoes, you seem to favor them. Also they are rather expensive for someone who works only a hair above the minimum wage.”

You gave a small pout as you were wearing those exact shoes now. “They look good on me." You mumbled before asking, "Why did the banks let you view their cameras?”

“I’m the Chief of Staff.” He proudly exclaimed.

“Oh, that.” Being so far in the background you tended stay out of the events. Also every time you saw Eds face you tended to throw the paper across the room or change the channel. Giving him a bit of a stink eye you tried to defend yourself. “But you wouldn’t have been able to point that out and link it to me if we didn’t work together every day!”

“Wouldn’t have cared enough.” He corrected with a smile. Reserved to pouting again, you tapped a finger while he fetched a wine bottle and began pouring it. 

“You know, you don’t sound like you need a sidekick.”

“I don’t; but, you know, plenty of people have their partners and underlings. It looks like fun! Might as well make it someone who’s half as smart as me.”

Distracting your irritated air, you looked to the dinner before you. The hairs on your arms rose a little, your heart speeding up as he sat down on his side. It was such a nice dinner. It made you feel a little thrown off your feet taking it in. Yeah you conned your way through relationships, they were never the best people. Yet here Ed was, not exactly a prime example of virtuous character, and that didn’t stop him from making a lovely date for your blossoming ‘partnership’.

“What?”

Ed was already downing his meal when you hadn’t so much as touched yours, absorbed in your oddly jealous state. A bit startled, you fell back on distraction. Dismantling your silverware balancing act you concentrated hard on cutting the thick steak. “So what was it you wanted me to do? And I’ll say now,” You pointed with a block of stake at the end of your fork. “I won’t kill anyone for you, and I’ll never take a bullet for you.”

Placing the piece in your mouth, you were so glad he was more concentrated in his plate. You couldn’t stop the twist of delight as the savory taste melted on your tongue.

“We are going to find out who the Red Hood Gang is, dismantle them, and kill them!” He looked at you, your brows raised in defiance and he corrected with a roll of his eyes. “Okay, I’ll kill them, but you’re going to help me unmask them!”

“What have you found on them?”

“Absolutely nothing. And we’ll not have anything until we get into a forensics lab.”

“Good luck with that.” You snarked, forgetting your words in an uncontrollable moan. The creamy spuds stuffed inside its crispy shell was mixed perfectly with the sprinkled herbs. You took him more for a takeout kind of guy but damn, some of the restaurants you’d treated yourself to didn’t hold a candle to what he made. “Wow, and this literally pains me to put aside my spite and admit, you are a ridiculously good cook.” You tried a bit of the salad only to whisper is awe, “Oh my god.”

Basking in the flattery, Ed happily noted, “What is cooking if not a science. Anyway, I want you to forget any plans you have tomorrow and come to the GCPD precinct with me.”

The eating slowed as you took that in, Edward not noticing. “That would kind of conflict with my whole... persona thing.”

He scoffed, waving off your concern, “You don’t need it. It’s annoying anyway.”

“Okay, but, like,” His brow furrowed at your sudden nervousness, “I kind of, like, I do need it. I worked hard getting everyone to buy it and to suddenly just break out of character? I-I don’t like that.”

Sitting back and sipping his wine, Ed took his time considering you, “Why is it so important for you to do your 'stupid' act?”

“I think you meant wholesome and innocent,” You accused before shrugging, “And probably some psychological reason doing with some childhood trauma, I dunno.”

“You know that’s... probably the exact reason right?”

With a grimace you snidely pointed out, “Well I’m not going to get into it with you, tall murderous man who's taken my life hostage.”

He conceded with a tip of his glass. Sighing, Ed offered, “Well, a bunch of idiots might think we’re dating but it’s convenient at least. We’ll promote you to my personal secretary and no one should question it in the least.”

Tossing your head back you groaned, “Yeah except you won’t have to deal with TAAAAANDYYY.”

“I thought you two were friends.”

“We are! She's a wonderful friend! She's a wonderful person! But, she, sometimes she just, she-" You made a strangle gesture with a growl. "You know what I mean!?"

Ed thought a moment before a fond smile came to him. "Yeah, I know a few people like that."

[hornedwyvern]

Dew Drops in March ❈ Chapter 3

Im really happy that everyone is enjoying this. With all the good feedback of the previous chapter on here and Ao3 Ive decided I will write a wedding scene once I complete this fiction. I will probably knock out a few chapters of my other fan-fiction of FFXV (Which is here!) before doing that. I actually have full head canons and story plots for children I can see these lovelies having. I have no idea if I will write a fiction about them but their names are; Evangeline, Barnaby and Scarlet. Two look similar to Chise; having human like forms then one resembling more like Elias. Shoot me a ask if you’re interested in learning more. Anyway! Enjoy this chapter!

Word Count: 4,291

Chapter 1 ❈ 

Chapter 2 ❈

Cooking and baking became a calming past time in this screwball of a world. It was a easy science that Chise understood, balancing her ingredients like she would with making medicine but in most cases this ended up tasting a lot better. Only a pinch of cocoa powder here, a sprinkle of salt there. Maybe even some cherry extract to add flavor. When she’d lived on her own in America she’d once had a studio apartment for a brief time -- it was extremely cramp especially when Ruth manifested into any form. It was a incredibly depressing time for both parties. Though in those small, few months she learned quickly how to fend for her self; preparing most of her meals at work. The office kitchen wasn’t always stocked with the most fresh food or coffee.

Guess it was a trait that just stuck.

There sat a mixing bowl on the long counter’s of Silky’s kitchen. Everything was arranged nicely and stored perfectly. It really looked like a kitchen you’d see in those magazines at the doctor’s office or in department stores. The intelligent house sprite would never allow clutter or mess in her most favorite room of the house. If Elias was even caught misplacing something she’d surely tan his hide for it. Whom was master of whom? Chise smirked thinking about it as she blended a group of ingredients in the clear cylinder bowl, folding it with a spatula. All coming together as one, the scent of chocolate in the air.

Chise drew her finger over the edge of the bowl, scooping a dollop of the dark, confection batter that she licked clean off. It was rich, a twinge of mild fruitiness there too. The sweet, chocolaty taste riveting her tongue. These were probably going to be the best brownies she’d made in a long time. Simon told her to add cherry extract for a bold flavor and she surely did not regret that decisions. The thick batter found it’s way into a oiled pan that was ancient looking, how long has Silky had this? The House Sprite was a mysterious being indeed.

One of the kitchen windows was opened ajared, it was just enough to let in a chilling breeze. It hugged the back of Chise’s neck; making her reddish neck hair stand on end. Even with the glowing flame of the oven and her toil of blending the ingredients did it freeze her from top to bottom. She quickly fed the tray of uncooked brownie batter into the oven’s mouth, closing it quick. Her face was now warm but the rest frigid. Quickly the red-headed woman trotted to the open window, latching it close. The frost growing like mandalas of the flatness of the clear glass, Chise drew a heart in the fog.

Snow had fell that night before and now the hills were masked in a blanket of fluffy, powdery snow that crumbled through your hands like cold grains of rice. It was the perfect weather for building a snow man, Chise thought. Maybe Ruth might enjoy that later? Her reflection looking back at her as she gazed at the ever green pines and pillowing winter clouds above them. At least the sun was out, dismal but awake and exulting joyful rays of endearing warmth.

Looking at the viridian pine trees that stood tall, like a wall into the forest beyond their hillside home; Chise thought about the Yule time and how the house smelled of cinnamon and cedar. Her green eyes closed, breathing in the winter air that had escaped in side. This Yule was very refreshing, it brought back old memories as well building new. Chise’s face started to grow a roseate shade from ear to ear. Thinking about a certain moment during the twelve day period, her fingers reached to her parted lips. It was the first time she’d kissed Elias -- directly.

It seemed like a regular day aside the the wicked cold. They’d both gone to collect some items from in town. There wasn’t abundance growing in the garden aside a few seasonal vegetables and fruit but they were no where close to harvest. The couple had their reserves but there was plenty delights stored in town as well giving them a reason to get out of the house and do a smige of socializing. Elias held Chise’s hand the whole walk home. The gentle grasp was enough to keep her gloved hands more than warm enough.

In the crook of Elias’ free arm sat some supplies and Chise held a burlap bag full of books and wrapping supplies along with a few articles of clothing; gifts for friends back in America and Japan. She wanted to send them right away so they would arrive in time for Christmas. The idea of gift giving was very new to Elias,Chise and Angie was the only ones he’d given stuff too but listening to Chise speak about her friends and what she was planning to give was amusing to the old mage. His cloaked face fixated on her for a good chunk of the walk home.

Their home -- a wonder of faint, flickering lemon colored lights from the several windows. Years ago this had been Elias’ home, hers as well but now it felt like she had imprinted on it. Like as if it was a living thing; It’s soul and walls grasped her presence and welcomed it any time she proceeded through it’s doors. There was no better place ever than here and she realized that soon after returning. The overhead porch light like a beacon, Chise gave Elias a tug forwards.

The door opened with a crack, frost breaking off it’s frame.

“Silky!” Chise alerted the fae. “We’re home!”

She was likely upstairs, her foot steps creaked above them. Elias lifted his cloak.

“She must be busy.” Elias said, having dropped his supplies off on the side table, closing the door behind them. He examined the lot but then realized a piece had been missing. Maybe it dropped the way here or when they were pushing to escape the cold? Elias had already shed his winter cloak, opened the door to the outside. He pulled at his over jacket and spotted the missing item -- a collection of sage for a cleansing spell he had planned for the new family living to the south.

“Elias? What’s wrong?” Chise stood in the door way with a printed shawl around her shoulders.

“I dropped this.” He responded after rapidly nabbing the collection of herb, it’s scent of cedar breaking into the air around them. The mix of saffron light from the porch lantern and carpeted snow was a sight for Chise, Elias looked very handsome in this evening. The shadows of his face gave a certain intensity aside the puffs of white smoke he breathed. In the States she’d dated a boy or two -- even found the company of other woman nice too. None of them seemed the same to the depth she felt for him. His crimson eyes traced her blocking figure in the doorway.

A long time ago when he’d found the time to visit her, she was some what involved with another gentlemen and Elias found that out. She’d never seen him act so strangely, like a piece of what they were had broken off. Their letters to each other became non existent-- well from Elias at least, he never replied more than once every two months. Chise truly believed he he was mourning the lose of what their connection was as Student and Pupil as well the thought of her loving him.

But this was a different chapter for them though. They had no idea what they were to each now -- Chise really liked that for some reason.

“Chise? Are you going to let me in?” She’d zoned out. He was clearly trying his best to not shiver.

“S-Sorry!” Like a door she turned to let him in. His broad body coming in and closing the door behind them. The sage found it’s home next to the other purchased herbs. It smelled glorious in the hall now. Chise still stood beside Elias, turning to her with a questioning eye. Her ungloved hands twiddling together, unknowingly asking something of him.

“What’s wrong?” His voice intrigued. She was looking at him with love struck.

Chise’s emerald eyes took evasive action, spotting the Mistletoe above them.

“The mistletoe.” Mumbling it, Elias asked her again. “The Mistletoe!”

Both gazed up at the collection of lush green leaves and carmine berries twisted with lace above their front door way. A tradition that was required every year in the twelve days of Yule. It was a blessing to the Winter Goddess whom would favor any house decorated by it. Being that herself and her companions have encountered such a being, to be in her graces was a necessity. Along with her and Elias would kiss underneath it as well. They did it in the many years as student and master? Why not now.

“Ah, yes.” Elias turned back to Chise, leaning down to her. “Do you want to kiss me?”

He said it so nonchalantly, breaking away from him and living with people her generation; it really showed how much he didn’t know of human nature or expression. Chise couldn’t help to break into a blush when he said that, she wanted to give him a knock on the head but instead just nodded. The mage realizing she was reddening, his wide palm cupping the side of her face.

“Like we do every year.” Chise tried not to stutter, their bodies close.

“Do you want me to crouch down this time?-- Or.. “ His voice broke, her hands clutching his coat.

“Or?” One of her thin eyebrows raising. Elias’ view looked to be some where else than her. What was he getting at?

“Might we try something different?”

“Different?”

“Yes. I was thinking that I might try this year to kiss you like a normal man would?” Elias’ thumb grazing over her febrile cheek. For some reason she was feeling very nervous but expecting the rest of what he might say “But I have been hesitant to ask you.”

“What do you mean?” Chise pulled at his question, the mage’s eyes glued to her dreamy face.

“By using my glamour. It resembles the human body like yours. It may not be the real thing but I was hoping to know what it felt like to kiss you with it. If you consent to it.” It was something Chise already knew he was getting at but how could she deny him with a face like that longing at her so. His voice said the words crystal clear, it was a very perplex situation.

Chise nodded, a otherworldly blackness absorbing Elias, shifting his form into that of a man with silvery blond hair and turquoise eyes. She knew it was him, underneath this shell and still smelled like him, like patchouli and fresh-cut flowers. Would it really feel the same kissing him like this? Now at least she could read his expressions and tell some what better what he was thinking -- and right now it seemed more like a piqued experiment than a kiss to him. Chise inhaled a hitch of breath.

Their bodies got closer, she could wrap her hands around his biceps a bit easier than before. She’d kissed people before but a frightened nervousness boiled in her gut. Chise did her best to meet Elias in the middle; their lips touching at last. Of course his lips were soft, he never wore this form out other than to be around humans, yet he lingered a certain taste. That of black tea, faint hint of dark chocolate and his own essence. Her hands naturally looped around his neck, rolling their lips gently against each other.

Whatever they had left behind, they could never go back to the way they were. Their kiss only made sense. Like two flames that had slowly been inching towards each other; igniting into a bigger and more beautiful blaze. It was only that of a few seconds in that Chise felt her back held against the hardness of the door behind her, Elias’ body weighing against her. They were both inflamed in the moment with each other, their lips longing to be together deeper. Elias’ racing for more, both of his hands had her cheeks cup; she wouldn’t be able to escape even if she wanted to.

Though as time passed, their passion grew. It became more lip pulling, graze of the tongue and heated breaths. It was only when Chise made a lascivious sob that Elias pulled away quicker than a whip. His face nonplus, staring at Chise just as red as her. Truthfully it look like someone had slapped him, not the face she expected after inducting into such a ardent kiss as that. Chise breathed for the air she had missed.

There was a long awkward pause, Elias dumbstruck. His form shifted back into the original mold.

“I--..” He began, stopping. His sleight beggy bracing herself against the door.

‘Chise? You okay?’ Ruth questioned her in their mind. She couldn’t think at all, all she could focus was the towering mage just a few feet infront of her.

‘Yeah.. Im fine..’ She was, this was just entirely new perspective of Elias.

“My apologies if I became a bit brash!.” Elias suddenly sputtered out, remembering. He rushed to console Chise, petting her like a cat. “I suddenly started to feel.. something new--! And it wanted you. Closer. My heart was beating like a drum, Chise!”

She understood the emotion he was feeling and tried not to overthink about it, Chise lifted her hand over his arm. Giving the fretting mage a soothing smile.

“It’s okay. I felt it too.”

“What was that feeling? Never once have a felt it!”

Would it be smart to lie? He would eventually find out, he always find out. Maybe if she worded it right? They found their way into the heat of the living room, joining each other on the couch. A thick woven woolybug blanket like a cocoon, hugging their sides. Chise didn’t realize how cold she was until after Elias had let go of her.

“That was just a different form of love.” Her eyes flickering a reflection of the dance of the fire ahead of them, salamanders resting between the burning logs.

“There is different forms?” Elias always questioned with the innocence of a child, Chise felt his jaw move above her; she was practically sitting in his lap.

“Yeah. There is types like a mother to her child. A brother to a sister, a friend to another and a one shared between lovers. Love is complex yet beautiful.”

This made Elias think for awhile, a comfortable silence lingering while the fire crackled and the sound of his breathing. The salamanders would hum at each other but usually go back to resting in their warm hearth.

“And.. What did it feel to you? With me.” The mage’s words dripped out slowly like he was afraid to ask them. The hold he had of Chise becoming tighter.

“I-..” She didn’t want to force things out. She wasn’t ready to answer this question. “I felt something very good.. I can’t put my finger on it but..-”

A small hand clasped the larger’s under their blanket’s safety. They didn’t entwine but just laid together, just making sure that the acknowledged touch was there.

“It was good, like something woke up. I will admit. I see you a bit different now.” The words shook Elias, He leaned snout by Chise’s shoulder to get a good look at her face.

“Is that a bad thing? Do you think of me poorly?” He questioned so sincerely, yet the tone of his voice still echoed the nervousness from earlier. Chise reverberated a calm chuckle.

“No. Like I’m no longer looking at the Elias I knew as a child. Im seeing you through a different lenses. It’s like Im relearning all of you and what you mean to me.”

This made Elias go silent again, the cogs working through that large bonehead of his. It took Chise by surprise when he dropped his chin on her shoulder. Like as if he was sulking and she was his oversize human teddy-bear. Even ten years later this old man acted like a child in the oddest of ways, Chise pet the length of his cold muzzle, the now tepid air making her a bit hot for this chunky blanket with Elias inside of it.

“I feel..similar.” He mumbled into her collar bone.”You are very important to me, Chise. I have lived hundred of years but while you were gone it felt like time stopped, I became an abyss and it didn’t go away until you came home.”

A few more followed but she couldn’t understand him without a prompt ‘Huh?’ Elias gave her another squeeze, hesitant to ask the words especially after what happened less than 15 minutes ago.

“Will you sleep with me in my bed together? I’m feeling very strange and it’s making me feel .. unbalanced, conflicted. I would appreciate if I had you near me for the rest of the evening.” Chise tried not to laugh, only sealing her lips with enthusiastic smile. She gave his hand a pat and nodded.

With a unearthly muster of strength and swoop, Chise found herself in the Magus's arms. Holding her like a bride, the blanket laid around his shoulders. It was like a band-aid had been ripped off her whole body as well enduring the shock of being lifted so quickly. Chise shot Elias’ a painful leer.

“Just no funny business!” She exclaimed, kicking her legs, almost losing a slipper.

“Funny Business?” He parroted obliviously, no idea what she was even talking about.

“Never mind! We still have to put our stuff away so put me down!” Even as Chise complained, Elias found a chance to give her a nuzzle at the top point of her cardinal red hair, he breathed a content sigh as he relished in his most favorite person’s presence. Even if she demanded to be let go..

❈

The timer broke Chise from her book about medicinal herbs found in India. It was a key piece of literature to helping her complete a remedy she’d been wanting to make for on of the townsfolk. It range with the utmost annoyance but at least the kitchen and lower half of the house smelled like fresh baked brownies. It drew Silky in like a predator to prey, initially peeking her head in to see Chise’s figure.

With decorative floral oven mitts, a piping hot tray of chocolate delights emerged. Chise could already taste the flavor in her mouth. Silky inched closer to see what she had baked, it certainly look good to her for a odd reason. Perhaps it was made with cream? Even Ruth manifested from the shadows to watch the even unfold, his ghostly tail wagging behind him.

“Silky could you start some hot water as I get these ready for afternoon tea? Im sure Elias would appreciate something fruity to go along with these.” She said setting the hot tray on the stove. Powder sugar would go perfect on these once they had cooled down. "I'll promise to leave you a cup of cream on the mantle~"

The hermit mage was locked in his study most of the morning, working on who knows what. The church had asked him for a few favors earlier that week but he still couldn’t be working on them? He’d been acting very odd the last two weeks since he’d returned from London. Watching her, sometimes avoiding, asking random irrelevant questions at the oddest of times.

Which he was preparing, Elias was looking for the perfect time to ask Chise to marry him. Today he’d been gifted with inspiration to write something heart felt to her but understanding the few emotions that he didn’t quite know still wracked his brain. Notes of mindless scribbles laid out before him on piece of blanched paper, some like hymn and others like poems. Maybe he should ask her bluntly, getting answers out of her was always easiest when he did that. How could he describe the right words to express to her? He’d never said ‘I love you’ but clearly had shown it. Was that valid enough?

The door opened with a creak, It was Silky and whom followed was Chise with a large silver platter in hand.

“Is it that time already?” Elias said looking at the time on his watch. Before Chise got too close he cleaned the desk of papers, shoving them all into a filing cabinet by his ankles. Good thing too, she would been able to see everything where she had placed the platter at. What sat upon it’s silver throne was a grey tea pot decorated with pink flowers and matching cups as well a small pitcher of thick cream and a plate of lemons. Beside them was the platter of Chise’s brownies dusted with powder sugar and lavender petals. The aroma of the summer lemon and raspberry tea gave a festive ambiance to the study.

“What refreshing change of pace for this time of year. I wonder what you had been up to earlier.” Elias complimented their work, enjoying the scent as Silky poured both cups. Chise has found a seat from across his desk.

This had been the room Elias taught most of their lesson at, the amount of frustration and toil she spent between these four walls. But it was Elias’ teaching that helped he obtain such a good job when she lived in the states, thank goodness for his stubbornness, she admired him from across the way as he took his saucer and tea cup.

“I thought we could brighten it up.” Accepting her own cup as Silky offered it, “Ive been a bit bored with the robust teas lately.”

They idled over chatter for some time, fading in and out of conversations. It was when the tea started to run dry and half of the platter had been emptied .. primarily due to Ruth, had Elias stopped the conversation. His glowing rose colored eyes viewing Chise as she took a bite of her brownie. Powder sugar dusting the pinkness of her lips. She might have thought it ungraceful but Elias found it endearing.

“Chise, Ive been meaning to ask you something lately. It's been on my mind the last few weeks.” His words left without thinking, Chise chewed, watching him with a wondering eye. He’d been storing the ring in one of the compacts of the radiant desk he found himself working at every day. Chise never pried in the drawers, it was a secluded spot that was just his, when he’d been acting like he’d been pulling put a pen to note something down Chise said, he slipped the velvet box into his coat pocket.

“Efh-hmh?” She mumbled with her mouthful. There was still a shred of child someone where in her.

“Ive been over thinking about it and it would ..--” He stopped, relaying what he was saying. Chise had swallowed by now but Elias rising from his seat made it hard to go down, he was standing in front of her less than a moment later. The sleigh beggy’s body began to shake, she knew what was coming and had to hold her weak heart in from bursting out of her chest.

“It would be the most blessed honor if you could..” A doubt started to shake his heart and rib cage. How he got to crouching beside Chise in her chair was even a mystery as well he’d taken her hands too. It was having extremely fast, with each second he remained dumbstruck infront of her; Chise’s expression got more red and frantic. She was stuttering in her chair beside him.

“If you could--” He wasn’t able to say it nor did Chise seem like she was ready. It wasn’t the right time or place. It was too cramped. “If you could teach me how to bake like you? Your delights are always superb.”

“What?” Her voice fell flat, hands clasps around Elias’ like wrenches. “You.. want to learn how to.. bake?”

Was he serious? Her heart had fled away as she stared flummox at the gentlemen before her sitting figure.

“Umm! Yes--.. I do, so then I can bake you something nice one of these mornings.” He played off the potential proposal the best he could. “Like plum and apricot scones or the carrot cake during the Spring months that you like.”

“I mean if Silky allows you to work in her kitchen I do not see why not? Would you like to try tonight? Im sure Ruth would like some pecan pie or pumpkin pie.” The second Chise mentioned it the large black dog who had been lying on the floor behind her chair perked up his low hanging ears, his tail batting the floor like hummingbird wings.

“Pie? I like pie.” Ruth said with the most eagerness in his deep voice, the rose color of his eyes glimmering up at his beloved soul sibling. This both concluded a laugh from Elias and Chise, their hands still clutched together.

“See? We have your first taste tester.” Chise indulged in gentle smile to Elias, he looked a little flustered but so was she. In their silence they under stood it wasn’t time but in the mean time Chise could kiss the knuckles of Elias’ gloved finger tips. He felt a special warmth under the touch of her hued lips, parting from the silk fabric. Even if they had both tripped there a few moments ago, the right time would come soon. It would happen naturally like anything good.

“You’ll need to take these off and put a apron on, you know? Unless you want to be covered in flour and batter.” Her voice meekish, Elias nodded in agreement.

“That is fine with me, I have one of the best teachers!” Elias found him to his feet, helping Chise to hers. With cups assembled, making sharp porcelain noises and plates scattered with crumbs and sugar adjourned, they carried out the wide platter away. Chise sharing the last brownie with Ruth who gobbled it up. That pup sure did love his sweets, was chocolate even healthy for fae?

“Prehaps we can even make a pot pie for dinner?” Elias mentioned, that was one of his favorite dishes. Chise liked the idea of that, they had a abundance of vegetables that could go to good use.

“Maybe.~” Together, both mages exiting the dim lit study with Ruth in suite. They would start by baking something easy, something that might actually taste good if it was a little burnt.

[shazyloren]

The Dragon Club: Chapter 20 - Nerves and Clothes

Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/12018519/chapters/27749457

------

Jon's stomach was in a knot as he arrived once again at Valyrian headquarters. You got this, he kept telling himself, a sense of deja vu creeping into him as he remembered the first time he ever came to this building. Daenerys had been unknown to him; someone he'd never thought about, and now everything was so different. His whole life had changed in a matter of six weeks. He'd come to find such compassion and kindness in her; and it scared him slightly at how easy he'd reached this conclusion.

"By the Seven" He muttered as he parked his car in the underground parking and turned the ignition off. Leaning his head against the rest he closest his eyes for a moment, it had seemed a lifetime since he last saw that silver hair, those violet eyes and that small frame. But in reality it had only been ten days.

Muttering to himself he got out the seat and began retrieving the stuff out of his car boot. His camera and lighting equipment, hauling it all onto his shoulders before locking the car door. With two bags in his hands he made his way into Valyrian building and signed in with the receptionist (who shamelessly flirted with him for the duration of his short stop there). He entered the lift and waited.

He took a deep breath, in and out. He'd longed to see her, to be around her wit and intelligence. Inhaling sharply, he held onto the memory of his fleeting kiss on her cheek. He let it feel his sensed, remembering the smell of coconuts. The faint whiff of alcohol, all mixed together. She had tasted sweet too.

As his brain decided it needed to stay calm or it wasn't going to function properly, the elevator arrived on the top floor. The doors open and there she stood, waiting for him. He felt his confidence leave his body, she was steely gazed, a small smile starting to form on her mouth. "Jon"

"Daenerys" He stepped out of the elevator and walked to only a feet or two between them. "You ready?"

"Always" She beamed. She signed for Jon to follow her as they went into her office, a scene he knew all too well. This was where she'd decided she'd wanted her photos taken, it was more homely she'd told Jon. He'd noted that the office had changed slightly, a new bookshelf had been installed next to the violin with a few novels and decorative pieces on it. There was a few more paintings too; Jon liked it. A lot less surgical. "Well, I need to go get ready in the next room; I'll leave you to set up"

"One thing" Jon said stopping her from going away. "About our... date" She raised an eyebrow. "Tomorrow?"

"We'll see, Jon Snow" She had a glisten in her eyes which one again made them look like they were purple flames dancing in the night. Jon could get lost in them. Daenerys promptly winked at him before walking out of the room.

Wondering whether Daenerys would end up being the death of him, Jon set up his lights in the far corners opposite the desk. It was a spacious desk and Jon had to chastise himself for a small image of Daenerys laid across the desk. This is neither the time or place for that Jon, he bitterly thought. Another half an hour and he was all good to go; that was when both Missandei and Daenerys entered the room. Jon felt his throat tighten at the sight of her.

A floral bustier that fell into a dress with a slit up the side. There was a brown belt with gold studding and black heels which looked so shin it was as if they'd been polished on her feet. Her hair fell into loose curls all around her but one side, her left, was tucked behind her ear. It was a heavenly sight. Missandei looked great too. A maxi skirt of different colours and a yellow and black camo crop top. Her hair was in it's natural afro. His eye kept glancing at Dany's physique in the dress, he couldn't get over how good her legs looked.

He had to shake his thoughts however, it was photo time. He took several good pictures over the next hour, some of Dany leant against her desk, some of her looking out of her window, even one of her playing the violin. Missandei was a natural, while he had to be a little more encouraging with Daenerys. She glowered at him a few times which only made him laugh. He then caught the photo he'd been looking for; the light from the early spring sun seeped through the window and illuminated her silver hair, she was smiling and looking down. Missandei was stood next to her, throwing her head back, shoulders shaking as Jon made a horrific pun to set them off. That was it, that was the cover shot he'd been waiting for.

"That's great, ladies" Jon clicked away on his camera, praying they would look good. "I do have something to ask..."

"No more horrendous puns!" Missandei demanded as she held her sides from laughing.

"My puns are great" Jon said pretending to be offended. "I don't want my photos retouching or photoshopping or airbrushing. My work is my work and I've never photoshopped any of my photos and nor do I want to"

"But, my smile lines..." Missandei said with a sour face.

"Are beautiful as they are and your millions of readers will agree" Jon shrugged. "We all smile"

Daenerys hadn't said anything, she was just staring at Jon, confusion creeping on her face. Jon shrugged again before he began to pack away some of his equipment, he still had the interviews to do and that would take another hour (providing Daenerys didn't kick him out). Missandei nodded, understanding. He hoped that when she saw them she'd understand. Missandei went to get some water as people came and went from the room now the photoshoot was over, letting dany know certain issues. She still had a business to run even with the cover shoot.

It gave Jon time to think about what he was going to do on a date with Daenerys; something that excited her. Not too romantic, she wasn't the type and a first date wasn't the place for a steamy one to one (not that Jon wouldn't like that). There was a place he took Ygritte sometimes, Rhaenys hill, near the ruined Draguna amphitheatre where you could see the whole of King's Landing.

"You continue to be a surprise, Mr. Snow" Jon looked up to see Dany stood smiling.

"I try not to be" He said, folding light stands away and winding up cables.

"A man who is okay with our flaws" Dany grinned. "Perhaps you're a keeper"

"Perhaps" He grinned too. "You ready to be grilled?"

"In a second, I wanted to talk to you first" Daenerys said getting a little closer, Jon struggling to concentrate on anything but her leg which was peeking out of the slit in her dress. Jon tore his eyes away and stood up to meet her gaze. he felt the connection and now knowing she did he couldn't help but feel his chest swell. "What made you invite me to that wedding?"

"I'm sorry?"

"I've been trying to get my head around it" Daenerys said honestly. "You probably have women swarming you, yet you asked me"

"I don't have women swarming me" Jon blushed. "And I didn't necessarily ask you, my sister and her husband coerced me into being a man that leaves the house on the odd occasion" He felt a heat flush his face. "I'm a quiet man, but when I'm around you, it's like I'm this whole other person. Arya recognised it and said I had a plus one and should invite you, I think they knew before I did that I liked you. I was unsure, thought you might reject me, thought perhaps... you'd not want any further contact, I don't know"

"Do you have no self confidence?" She asked quietly.

"Sometimes, sometimes I hate myself" He smiled. "I hate myself for not keeping my damn mouth shut in our first interview"

"Believe me, I'm over that" She said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're a good man, my life was just the daily grind until you walked this way. You've flipped my life on it's head, I'm doing things I've never done before. I went food shopping in a gown for god sakes!"

"That wasn't really my doing" Jon chortled.

"No, but you make me think outside the box, think of something different" Dany's lips were very pink, Jon's thoughts turned very raunchy as he imagined them doing many things... but he needed to stop it, he couldn't do the interviews while fantasizing about her.

"I'm glad I can help" He whispered softly, almost just a small breath. Dany shivered notably and Jon couldn't help but smirk. "I wasn't going to come to your dinner, then sansa persuaded me, I think you may have to thank my sisters for stealing my phone at every opportunity"

"Stealing your phone?" she asked, her brow creasing.

"Yeah" Jon didn't know how to say what he wanted. "I'm not the most... ever since Y-Ygritte I've not been able to, communicate with women well. I just get nervous and ultimately never bother texting them if I get their number. I think they'd had enough of me feeling sorry for myself all the time, they want me to move on from her but it's hard you know. So they stole my phone and helped craft a text to you that didn't sound stupid or... conceited or weird"

"Jon Snow" Daenerys laughed. "You're an adorable puppy, having your sisters text me for you"

"Not by choice, by force" He laughed.

"what happened to the confident reporter that came into my office the day we met?"

"When I'm doing my job it's different. But when I'm falling for someone..." Jon trailed off as if he had said to much. Daenerys had a shocked look on her face, her eyes alight with surprise. He hadn't even wanted to say that, it had just slipped out. Well done, idiot, now she's gonna think you're madly in love with her!

"Jon, I don't..."

"Don't say anything, I get it. I shouldn't have opened my mouth, sorry" Jon sighed as he looked down at his own feet. She didn't feel for him in that way, she liked him, but it wasn't as intense as he liked her. Jon felt disappointment and self pity surge through his body. "I should get this interview done, so I can write your article"

And without looking at her directly again, he conducted the interviews before packing his stuff away and muttering a small 'bye' before getting in the elevator and leaving his feelings behind in the office of Daenerys Targaryen.

[jillmckenzie1]

I’m Right Behind Me

Like all right-thinking people, I’m a gigantic fan of Key & Peele. If you’re reading this, the odds are that you are too. It’s possible, though, that maybe you aren’t familiar with their stuff. If so, that’s okay! I try to be mindful that not everyone comes to the same material at the same time.* Good art has a way of coming to people when they’re ready for it.

Created by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, their sketch comedy show ran on Comedy Central from 2012 to 2015. Beyond getting truly goofy, Key and Peele genuinely had something to say, and they made their points with wit and style. Give a couple of episodes a watch, and you’ll notice patterns. A fondness for moments of surrealism. Razor sharp takes on race in America.

Jordan Peele in particular adores horror. Many of their sketches either make fun of horror or have disturbing undercurrents that a lesser show like Saturday Night Live is too timid to attempt. Take a look at their “Marbles” sketch** and you’ll see a piece that flirts with psychological horror while still being funny as hell.

Now that Peele is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker, he’s leaning more in the direction of horror, the dark mirror image of comedy. The irony is that when Get Out was released in 2017, many filmgoers who would ordinarily sneer at a scary movie fell all over themselves to praise it as “elevated horror” or a “psychological thriller” or nonsense like that. I suspect Peele noticed that reaction, because there’s no mistaking his newest film Us as anything but a horror movie.

During a summer night in 1986, a young girl wanders along a Santa Cruz boardwalk. This is Adelaide (Madison Curry), and while she doesn’t say much, we can sense she doesn’t miss much. Her father Russel (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) drains a beer a little too fast and searches for another. Her mother Rayne (Anna Diop) frowns, probably not for the first time. Adelaide becomes separated from them, and she stumbles upon what looks like an abandoned funhouse. Inside, something awful happens.

Time passes to the present. Adelaide is a grown woman, now played by Lupita Nyong’o. She’s married to lovable lunkhead Gabe (Winston Duke), and their children are Zora (Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex). This is the Wilson family, and they are returning to their vacation home. It’s a peaceful house, located not far from Santa Cruz.

The plan is to spend the weekend hanging out at the beach with their friends Kitty (Elizabeth Moss) and Josh (Tim Heidecker). Adelaide does not love this plan, and she really doesn’t love being back. Seeing a string of odd coincidences and a homeless man with a bleeding hand and a sign reading “Jeremiah 11:11”*** doesn’t help. Gabe thinks she’s overreacting. Thanks for that, Gabe.

That evening, the family is preparing for bed. They are disturbed, and not for the last time, by something truly bizarre. A family of four stands outside in the darkness. All of them wear red jumpsuits. All of them carry golden scissors that are preternaturally sharp. Only one of them can speak. They are exact doppelgängers of the Wilson family, and they have arrived to wipe them out. They will not stop.

Look, if it were up to me, I’d give you guys one of the shortest reviews in the history of film criticism. I’d tell you to see Us, then see it again. But my editor and the owner of this fine website expects more from me than that, plus I don’t want to get the hose again. Further talk of the plot would be unforgivable, so let’s move on.

There are some filmmakers out there that, when you see their films, you’ll know within a few minutes that only they could have directed this movie this way. That’s the case for Spike Lee, David Fincher, and Martin Scorsese. We can say the same thing about Jordan Peele. I’m gobsmacked that this is his second feature film since it’s directed with astonishing confidence. Along with cinematographer Mike Gioulakis, he’s made a film with deep and rich colors shot within eye-catching locations. Beyond being pretty, Peele’s pacing is brilliant. He allows scenes to run as long as necessary in order to crank up tension just so. Horror and comedy both depend on flawless timing, and Peele knows when to relax and let us hang with the Wilsons, when to inject quiet dread, and when to let the narrative go flat-out.

His direction is paired with a script that’s ferociously intelligent and witty. It periodically drops crumbs of information, just enough to give us the gist of things, while spinning off the narrative in clever directions. It’s not a grim and joyless slog, however, as there were several moments where something funny would happen right on the heels of something alarming. Peele has written a screenplay that’s an onion. There are multiple layers here, each with something thoughtful to say, and multiple viewings will reward us.***

Peele’s film only functions properly with the right cast, and he’s got just the right actors here. As sweet doofus Gabe, Winston Duke just destroys playing a lame but goodhearted dad. Elizabeth Moss and Tim Heidecker have spiky chemistry as the Tylers. This is ultimately Lupita Nyong’o’s film, and she’s extraordinary, particularly so when she’s in scenes playing Adelaide and her doppelgänger. Both characters she plays move and speak distinctively, and a scene where they do battle has a weird, balletic energy. This is an Oscar-caliber performance, and I’m hoping Nyong’o isn’t ignored the same way Toni Collette was for Hereditary.

 Right now I wish you and I could sit down over coffee or a good scotch and talk about Us. Has he made a film as strong as Get Out? I’m not sure. It’s definitely a weirder movie that’s exploding with ideas, perhaps too much, but I’ll need to see it a few more times and mull it over. What I know for sure is that Jordan Peele is a cinematic force to be reckoned with, and I’m fascinated to see what he does next.

    *Just now, I’m making my way through the first season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, only six years behind everybody else.

**Which you can watch here.

***Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them. KJV

****A good rule of thumb while watching Us: don’t lock onto the plot and meanings too much; focus on the emotion instead. We’re going to be thinkpieced to death with this film, particularly articles “explaining” what it all means. There isn’t a single correct interpretation here. Just trust your gut.

from Blog https://ondenver.com/im-right-behind-me/

[duanecbrooks]

Completing The Trioka     All right, dear reader, we've come to the point wherein you're going to be informed as to what is My All-Time Third-Favorite Media. And what has that distinction is...TV Guide's (yes, that TV Guide) 2000 article on my gal Robin Givens.               The article--entitled, in a marvelous slice of irony, "Gloves Off"--kicks off in top form, with the writer asserting: "As the Alanis Morissette song goes, isn't it ironic [This article and the issue of TV Guide that enveloped it, don't forget, came out in 2000]? The host of a syndicated talk show all about forgiveness [Forgive and Forget] is a woman who not long ago much of America loved to loathe: Robin Givens." Said writer goes on to offer greatly perceptive descriptions of where Robin was concerning that time in her life and career ("Givens is, at 35 [this was 2000, remember?], an exotic beauty...has had a successful career as an actress in such well-received films as Boomerang and A Rage in Harlem...as well as the television series Head of the Class and Sparks...is the mother of two adorable boys, an adopted son, Buddy, 6, and William, 7 months"). From there Robin quite movingly goes into her "complicated" (Robin's word) time with Tyson ("He was an angry little boy who had all this power. He kept telling me that things would be better if I only did what he wanted me to do. It was all about control...[referencing Tyson's slugging her before their 1968 wedding day] [H]e apologized, he sent flowers, he cried. It sounds sick and I guess it was, but I thought, 'This really must be love'").                 And the article proceeds to be alternately chilling and warming. In response to the writer's question: "Why did this smart Sarah Lawrence grad marry this violent street kid?", Robin touchingly replies that she fell in love with him "because he was there for me. When he'd say he'd be somewhere, he was...There was nothing stupid about Michael; he could size up and manipulate any situation. He had the savvy. I didn't." My girl keeps on impacting the heart as she tells of her continuing to see Tyson even while she was divorcing him: "We'd sit in my house watching him talk about me on television...I had such a love for him that it was painful to give up the fight. And we had such good times. He just got me, in my sweats and with Oxy 10 on my face." And Robin makes the blood boil when she tells of what was, for her, the proverbial straw that broke the proverbial camel's back: "I always believed he was ashamed of what he had done [Tyson slammed her against the wall before fighting Michael Spinks in 1968]; that he was sorry when he cried in my lap. [But actually] his tears were a lie."         The piece stays eminently readable when it moves into Robin's life post-Tyson. Robin is eloquent and stirring as she discusses her time as a Brad Pitt Girl ("He was a beautiful distraction, comforting and sweet. He'd hold me and I'd cry...[Pitt] was not at the place, rightly so, to handle what was [still] going on [between her and Tyson]. It was just impossible for anybody to handle it or for me to ask him to"). Following are the revelations that 1) William's biological Dad is the tennis player Murphy Jensen, with whom Robin became romantic; 2) she and Jensen are still close; and 3) he has nothing but praise for William's Mom ("Robin is one of the most caring, intelligent, devoted and complete people I've ever met. She's the best mother in the world. I admire her tremendously"). There's even some very tantalizing intrigue, as our writer gets into whether or not my woman played a role in having this one (black) actor fired from a video she was set to do because the aforementioned actor portrayed Tyson in a Home Box Office film that very aggressively smeared her.             And, happily, there's more. The Robin TV Guide piece stays engrossing as it takes up Robin's post-Tyson career ("I lost all confidence. I was just so embarrassed and guilty about what I had put my family through...I realized that my work is my world, and if I'd given that up then Michael would have won"). We also discover that the veteran casting director/picture producer Reuben Cannon is so taken with our mega-luscious subject that he wants to...make a made-for-TV filmic biography about her ("What we rarely see in Hollywood are portraits of ambition with African-American talent. There's an opportunity here to show someone who had a dream and had some bumps along the way. And recovered"). We get very uplifting words as to how Robin's career was doing (a made-for-television flick featuring Robin as a murderer who is dispatched to Cuba to conduct a rescue operation was scheduled to be presented that April on the USA Network) and equally uplifting words from her regarding her then-talk show, Forgive and Forget ("I totally believe in the power of talk. I know it's entertainment, but I want to remind people that they have  purpose for being on earth. I'm so grateful to God that's how I feel now").         As the piece winds down, it keeps on being illuminating, as there are highly perceptive words concerning Robin from one of Forgive's executives ("[S]he's taken to the [talk-show] format like a duck to water. It's good for people to see her out there again. She's got a lot of talent"). And the Robin article concludes on an intensely high note, as it has her (very believably) contending: "Forgiveness is a process. Mike Tyson has so little to do with it now. The biggest person I have to forgive is myself ."                 And there you have TV Guide's 2000 article on my lady Robin Givens, in all a quite searching and quite revealing look at a chick whom I for one have long loved (albeit, to quote words from the classic number, "The Impossible Dream," "pure and chaste from afar"), a piece that in the main has you easily seeing why Glamour magazine in two consecutive years named Robin its "Sexiest Actress Alive."                         It was a longtime (male) TV journalist who once told Time magazine: "No one with an IQ significantly over 85 reads anything in TV Guide except the listings." It is said publication's 2000 story on my heroine Robin Givens that is one of its scant handful of redemptive factors as far as those of us "with an IQ significantly over 85" are concerned.