#this is the single sappiest thing i have ever written

[startrekfangirl2233-writes]

Interlude 4: A Valentine's Day Letter

Part 14 of Sometimes All You Need (A Getaway Car)

Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x Reader

Description: You've never understood Valentine's Day. You're not a flashy person. You've never felt the need to flaunt your happy relationship in front of other people. Last year, you didn't celebrate Valentine's Day even though you were dating Jake. This year, your fiancé has been dropping hints, like he's planning something special. What you find waiting for you on Valentine's Day is far more special than you ever would have expected.

Disclaimers: None! This is the sappiest fic I've ever written

Warning: Female Reader

Word Count: 3185

Author Note: Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Here, have some Jake and Gorgeous Girl to celebrate the day! I had an absolute blast writing this fic and I hope you all adore it!

Thanks to @desert-fern for beta-reading this fic for me and catching all of my weird phrasing!

AO3: Cross-posted Here!

Wattpad: Cross-posted Here!

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You’ve never understood the thrall of Valentine’s Day. As far as you’re concerned, it’s another capitalist excuse for spending exorbitant amounts of money and parading a happy relationship around. God forbid you’re single on Valentine’s Day, too. You’d made the mistake once of going to eat at a restaurant alone on Valentine’s Day. Faced with so much pity, half-hidden and cloying from the waitstaff and the happy couples in the restaurant that day, you’d nearly given up reservations you’d made months before. Since then, you’ve sworn off going out on Valentine’s Day. In any case, you can get the best parts of the holiday, the candy, the next day, all half off.

Coming up on your first Valentine’s Day with Jake, you’re not sure what to expect. He was deployed on Valentine’s Day last year and then in the hospital. Given how stressful that time was for both of you, it makes sense that you never celebrated. It didn’t bother you then, and it doesn’t bother you now. You've never doubted Jake's love for you. He loves to show you how much he loves you, but he’s never overtly demonstrative about it - something that suits you just as much as it does him. Jake usually saves his flashy tricks for when he’s Hangman up in his jet. But you’re still worried. Your fiancé is the reason why.

Jake's been dropping hints for weeks, practically since you both got home from Texas. He’d started with a simple, “You’re not planning anything for Valentine’s Day, right?” At your nod no, he’d grinned, kissed you, and then drove to work like he hadn’t upended your whole day just by asking that question. Since then, you’ve been noticing these furtive, hidden conversations Jake has been having on the phone. He’s keeping secrets, and you know he is. 

You’ve never been good at rolling with the punches, is the thing. If something is happening around you, you’d much prefer to know. Jake knows this, which is why you’re standing in your short robe at five o’clock on Valentine’s Day, staring down at the envelope and rose on your bed. Jake always makes the bed in the morning, and it’s still crisp and pristine now, hospital corners and all. The only thing marring the cream-colored duvet is the bright red rose and the white envelope. You huff as you breathe in the scent of the fragrant bloom and open the envelope, pulling out sheets of paper. The letter, for that’s what it is, is written on creamy, thick paper scented with roses. Jake’s spiky hand peppers words across the sheets, and you slump carelessly on the bed to peruse his words.

My Gorgeous Girl, Happy Valentine’s Day, beautiful.  I know, I know. You have a thing against Valentine’s Day. I can almost hear your voice rise up in complaint as I write my love letter to you. “Come on, Jay! You can’t tell me you want to spend hundreds of dollars just to show the world you love me when we both know how much we adore each other!” It’s true, Gorgeous. We don’t have to show the world how much we love each other. But I don’t think of Valentine’s Day as a reason to show you off. Let’s be honest. I don’t need an excuse to show my Gorgeous Girl off. Any day, any time, I’m ready to scream how amazing you are from the rooftops. But today? I want to show you how beautiful you are to me, and I guess that’s why I’m writing this letter. Do you remember that first night we met? When that idiot James had the prettiest girl in the entire place sitting across that small table from him, and he didn’t realize? I fell in love with you for the first time, that night. It feels like fate, looking back at that night. If you can believe it, I wasn’t supposed to be in that restaurant at all. I don’t think I’ve ever told you why I was there, but I was stood up that night. It was supposed to be a blind date, some girl who was a friend of a friend of Will’s. We were supposed to meet out by the fountain, and after an hour of waiting, I was in desperate need of a drink. It felt like a magic spell came over me when I walked through the doors of that restaurant.  You were the first thing I saw, believe it or not. You were wearing that gorgeous purple dress, sitting in that chair by the dance floor with your hair curling around your face and the prettiest smile. I nearly walked right up to you and asked if you’d like to dance when I realized you were on a date. So I convinced myself you wouldn’t want a stranger butting in and settled in to watch you. I promise I’m not as creepy as I sound, Gorgeous.

You have to gasp and giggle a little at this point because it makes you giddy, realizing that Jake was just as enraptured by you at first sight as you were by him. You can’t believe a man as wonderful as Jake could ever get stood up, but you can’t help but be thankful that he was. Because now he’s yours, and you are never going to let him go. You sniff at the rose again and pick up the page.

You were fiddling with the drink in your hand, and every time you took a sip, I was enraptured by the little grimace of disgust on your red lips as you sipped on it. By the time you left the table to get a drink, staring at your phone like you were praying for a savior, I was a couple of drinks in and ready to do anything to make you smile for me. So I muscled up to the counter next to you and tried to steal your drink. It’s not the most original of moves to get a girl’s attention, but well, it worked, didn’t it? Fuck. My Gorgeous Girl, if you took my breath away sitting in a crowded room, then you have no idea how hard I found it to breathe when you were standing right next to me. I pushed that Old Fashioned into your hand and begged you to tell me what was wrong. You didn’t know it, but I was already gone for you. One word in that pretty voice, apologizing for trying to take my drink, and I was half in love. I would have done anything for you then. If you’re not aware, beautiful, I’d do anything for you now, too. When you told me how terrible James made you feel, I was ready to march right over and deck him. But then you let go of my hand, and I ached for that contact again. So I asked you to dance. If I thought you were beautiful walking through that door and at the bar, I was lying to myself. Hearing your laugh as I said any outrageous thing that came to my mind as we twirled around that dance floor, I knew you could never be more beautiful than you were then. I was lying to myself again, but I’ll get to that soon. Neither of us was expecting the night to end like it did, with the two of us running out of the bar and James screaming at us as we peeled out of the parking lot. But I’m so glad it did end that way. Because it meant I got to kiss you that night, feel the heat of your perfect body pressed up against mine as you sat in my lap in my truck and made the prettiest noises. Baby doll, I had to summon up strength I wasn’t sure I had to keep from ravishing you that night. The second time I fell in love with you, it was that night on the beach. The one when you found out how I got my callsign. I told you that night that I’ve never had someone defend me as staunchly and openly as you did. It’s true. I fell in love with you all over again in that moment. You listened to me spill my heart out and kissed me after I was done. I’ve never told anyone else what happened, at least nobody other than my therapist. I half expected anyone I told to run away from me like I was a monster. There you go again, undermining my walls and tearing them down like they’re made of flimsy sheets of paper rather than bricks and mortar.  I told you that you brought me back to myself. I was shipped to Lemoore after my air-to-air kill on the behest of your dad, Gorgeous. I forgot about it until I sat down and thought about that night while I was writing this letter. I’m not sure you noticed, and it was probably a mere footnote at the end of your dad’s Navy career. But it changed my life. If my CO hadn’t listened to Admiral Kerner during those days, I’m not sure I’d be alive and here. All my family would likely have left of me is a medal in a box on a mantel. And I wouldn’t have you.

The words swim in front of your eyes as you cry. You don’t want to mar the letter, not when it’s the only love letter you’ve ever received, and you want to keep it for all eternity. You blot the tears away and pull the pages back towards you.

Can I just say how I’m so happy to have you, my Gorgeous Girl? Because I am. You give my life meaning.

We’ve been through some rough times since that night, and I hate that it made you cry. When I crashed that day on the aircraft carrier mere days before I was supposed to come home to you, you were the only thing on my mind. I regretted never telling you how much I loved you. You know something, baby doll? Before I met you, I thought I handled deployments well. I missed my family; of course I did. But it was easy enough to feel close to them when I got the care packages and letters as frequently as I did. But with you? Fuck, doll. You’ve spoiled me. That first time we talked on the phone when I was on the carrier, all I wanted was to wrap you up in my arms and never let you go again. As you can imagine, that’s a difficult feeling to be having when you’re miles away from the love of your life. It’s frowned upon to steal a jet for a joyride across the ocean for a reunion with your girl, though I would have risked it for you. I think I was a knife’s edge away from a dishonorable discharge for the entirety of that deployment. All I wanted was you. I thought about you, dreamed about you, and god, did I ache for your body next to mine in that horribly uncomfortable bunk at night.

So yeah, you were the last thing on my mind when I passed out because of the pain that day. I never wanted to hurt you, Gorgeous. I just wanted to come back home to you. Of course, when I woke up three weeks later and saw your pretty face, I knew I’d hurt you just as badly as if I’d stabbed you in the heart. Baby doll, did you sleep at all in those three weeks? And is it cheesy for me to say you’ve never looked as beautiful as you did when I opened my eyes again in that hospital bed? I promised myself then and there that if I recovered and if I could fly again, I’d beg you to marry me. I wasn’t sure if you’d want to stay with me, in all honesty. I know it must be stressful to have your significant other in danger for months at a time. I shudder to think how I’d act if it were you in a jet and me waiting for you back home, not knowing and praying that I’d see you again.

Of course, as I’m writing this now, I understand how scared you must have been when I told you I was going back to work early. I didn’t understand it then when everything seemed to blow up in our faces, and you told me to “Go back to base. Go back to killing yourself with workouts before you're ready. Go back to having a multi-million dollar missile strapped to your ass going faster than the speed of sound.” I have those words memorized because I think you broke my heart that night, Gorgeous. And you did it to save yourself more heartache. I spent a lot of the time I was drinking in that bar, thinking about you. It shouldn’t be surprising. I’m pretty sure I think about you more than I think about anything else. Some would say I’m just obsessed. But I think I’m just a fool in love with you. The bartender straightened me out with more than just a few strong pours of whiskey. He was talking to me the entire time I was sitting in that bar, feeling sorry for myself. By the time you came to pour me into my truck and take me home, I was ready to beg on my knees for you to take me back.

Instead, I just made you cry again. I always noticed, love. I knew every time you cried those months when I was in physical therapy and healing from that crash. You spent half the day with your pretty eyes rimmed red and your nose cherry red from blowing it. You’ve said so many times that you’re an ugly crier. You’re wrong. You’re beautiful no matter what you do. I don’t understand why you took me back. I still don’t. But I promised myself that I’d be careful when I’m up in the air again. And I have been. I have to be. Those rough few months taught me to care for myself. Because I’m not just keeping myself safe; I’m keeping your heart safe, too. Love, you tell Roos I wrote something this sappy, and I’m never going to do that thing with my tongue that makes you melt ever again. That was the third time I fell in love with you.

You snicker through your tears and re-read that paragraph again. This is why you chose to fight for your relationship with Jake that day. In spite of the Navy, you chose to fight for Jake because you can’t see yourself making a life with anyone but him. Not anymore.

The fourth time I fell in love with you wasn’t that long ago, honestly. It was on Christmas Day when I asked you to marry me, and you said yes. I still can’t believe it, you know? I can’t believe that you would want to marry me, especially after all the pain and heartache I’ve put you through. Really, I wasn’t sure you would want to keep the ring after realizing how horrible my dad is. I know I’ve got just as many of his bad personality traits as the good ones I’ve cultivated since I left home. How do I know I won’t be as terrible to our kids as he was to me? I hope that because I have you, it’ll be enough to keep me from turning into a monster of his making. Gorgeous, I so want to have that family with you. To wake you up in the morning with breakfast in bed and our kiddos toddling about on little feet screaming for their mama.

I know we’re a long way away from that right now and that neither of us is ready to have kiddos running around. But I want that with you, love. I want every bit of the heartbreak and pain and tears that life brings us. But I also want all of the happiness, all of the laughter, all of the joy.

I love you, Gorgeous.

Forever Yours,

Jake

When you set the pages carefully back into their envelope and turn around, you see Jake standing there.

“Did I make you cry again, sweetheart?”

“Yeah,” You can feel your face crumple as Jake tugs you into his arms. “I love you so much, you ridiculous man.”

“Why’m I ridiculous, huh, beautiful?”

“Because you make me fall in love with you more and more every day.”

When his body shakes with laughter, you smack his arms with a pout on your face. “Hey, stop smacking me, baby doll! Come on, gorgeous. Wear your pretty purple sundress and come downstairs. I’ve got something special waiting for you.”

Before he walks away, you tug him down and kiss him, slow and sweet. His hands slide under your robe to squeeze your ass, and you moan into the kiss.

“Not yet, gorgeous. Get dressed.”

You’re pouting and grumbling as you tug the sundress on and braid your hair. But stepping into the kitchen and seeing candles lit, you’re melting again.

“What’s all this, huh?” You’re smiling at your fiancé as he hands you a glass of wine.

“We never got the chance to celebrate Valentine’s Day last year because I was hundreds of miles away.” He smiles and shrugs gently. “I wanted to celebrate you last year, but I wasn’t sure how much a bouquet of flowers and a gift would help when I wasn’t here to celebrate with you.”

“So I wanted to go all out this year.”

“And the letter?” You step into your fiancé until there’s barely an inch between the two of you. His eyes flutter closed as you slide your fingers down his cheek while sipping on your wine.

“The letter?” He chuckles, dipping down to kiss you teasingly, a barely-there brush of his lips against yours. “Step One in my master plan. Tell my girl how much I love her in the only way I know how. Without making a fool of myself, that is.”

“What’re the next steps in your plan then, Jay?” 

“What do you think of dinner and dessert?” He tugs you by the hand a leads you to the dinner he’s prepared for you, your favorite meal, and then grins.

“So I see dinner, cowboy,” You pout softly. “Where’s my dessert?”

“Baby doll, you’re looking at him!”

“What if I want my dessert before dinner, then?”

Jake’s eyes widen at your audacious words, and you laugh, the sound echoing through the house, as he takes the wine glass out of your slack hand and pulls you upstairs.

“I think that can be arranged, Gorgeous. Dinner can be reheated whenever you’re hungry.” He winks, “For actual food, not just me.”

As far as Valentine’s Days go, you can say this one is the best you’ve ever celebrated. All you needed was Jake.

I DO NOT CONSENT TO HAVE MY WORK POSTED, TRANSLATED, OR PUBLISHED ON ANY SITES OTHER THAN ON AO3, ON WATTPAD, OR ON TUMBLR BY ME. IF YOU SEE MY WORKS ANYWHERE OTHER THAN AO3, ON WATTPAD, OR TUMBLR, THEN THEY HAVE BEEN POSTED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION AND I WILL BE WORKING TO TAKE THEM DOWN.

Taglist:

@love2write2626 @little-wiseone @eli2447 @djs8891 @shanimallina87 @chaoticassidy @kmc1989 @dempy @mamaskillerqueen @abaker74 @marvelouslyme96 @daddymack01 @essie1876 @desert-fern @horseshoegirl @dakotakazansky @sarahsmi13s @teacupsandtopgun @callsignspitfire @roosterforme @mak-32 @beyondthesefourwalls @thedroneranger @cherrycola27

[planetpiastri]

hello hello, I desperately need "spinning your lover into a kiss on the dance floor" with rooster like. lets be honest that prompt was made for him.

omg you're SO right this is SO rooster. this might just be the sappiest thing i've ever written teehee. enjoy love<33 | [wc - 0.8k] | join my prompt party!

Some twangy love song filtered over the reception hall as couples and singles alike swung around the space, laughing and drinking and having a lovely time. Across the dance floor, your cousin and his new bride were sitting at the head table, her head on his shoulder, watching the floor with peaceful, contented smiles.

As you sat at your own table, you swirled the last dregs of your champagne around the bottom of your flute. Your legs were crossed, and you were jogging your foot. There was nothing you wanted more than to get on that dance floor before all the guests got overly sloppy, but you’d promised Bradley you’d save him the first dance of the night. 

He was corny that way, but that was part of why you loved him.

Right on cue, you felt a hand gently land on your shoulder, and Bradley bent down to give you a quick peck on the lips. “Hey,” he said, passing you a plastic cup of water. “Sorry, that took a while. I bumped into Hangman at the bar and he would not shut up.”

You laughed, drinking half the water in one gulp before jumping to your feet and leaving your drink at the table. Bradley barely had time to set down his own water before you’d grabbed his hand and dragged him out to the dance floor, just as the song changed to Baby Love by The Supremes.

Bradley pulled you into his arms easily and naturally, one hand on your waist and the other grasping yours tightly. You danced a simple little two-step, smiling and swaying in time with the music. It was as easy as breathing between the two of you. It wasn’t until you’d started seeing Bradley that you’d even liked dancing. Now, it was one of your favorite things to do with him.

“Thanks for waiting for me,” he said, smiling down at you as you rocked back and forth. “I know it must have been hard.”

“Oh, it was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” you said seriously. “I was worried I would die.”

“Well, I’m very glad you didn’t,” said Bradley, matching your grave tone. “I’d be completely heartbroken.”

“I hope you’d learn to love again,” you said, playing along.

“I’ll try,” he sighed, puffing up his cheeks, “but it wouldn’t be easy. It’d take years of therapy, I think.”

“You’re a sap,” you teased, unable to keep the smile off your face any longer.

“That’s what you like about me.”

“Yes.” You were sure everyone looking at the two of you at that moment would be tempted to vomit from the sheer amount of saccharine-sweet heart eyes happening between the two of you, but you didn’t care. You loved this man in your arms, and you couldn’t imagine a time when that would ever change.

“I love you,” you said.

Bradley didn’t speak. His smile broadened, and then he stepped back. You laughed, knowing what was coming. Keeping hold of one of your hands, he twirled you in a tight spin before pulling you back to his chest and capturing your mouth in a soft kiss, his other hand coming up to catch hold of your chin.

“I love you, too,” he mumbled against your lips.

Fondness and affection welled up in you like a shot of good whiskey. You wrapped your arms around Bradley’s neck, pressing another chaste kiss to his lips before resting your head against his chest. The song changed to something slow and sweet. He held you, and the two of you rocked gently side to side there on the dance floor.

Later that night, Coyote and Hangman would get everyone to take too many shots with the bride and groom, and you and Bradley would stagger out of the Uber back to your apartment. You’d giggle loudly all the way up the stairs, pressing sloppy fingers against your lips and shushing each other before pressing even sloppier kisses to the corners of each other’s mouths and cheeks. He’d fumble with the keys, drop them twice, and eventually get the door open. He’d sweep you up and carry you over the threshold, loudly and drunkenly humming ‘Here Comes the Bride,’ and you’d call him a sap and kiss him again.

Then you’d pour two glasses of water and set out four ibuprofen, and Bradley would put on one of his dad’s old records, and you’d meet him in the living room. You’d hold each other in your arms, pressed cheek-to-cheek, and you’d sway in lazy circles around the space, your eyes shut blissfully.

And in the morning, when you got up to make breakfast, you’d do it all again.

[yuebings]

fic writer meme

thank u @fruitdaze @uhuraisgay @cairoscene @englishsub for tagging me!

How many works do you have on Ao3?

44 currently! double 4s? during MY lunar new year? i gotta change that up quick

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

315,042 words

3. What fandoms do you write for?

my most written-for fandom is mdzs, but i don't really write for it anymore...if you look at my ao3 profile u can kinda tell i'm a sporadic one-and-done type when it comes to fic hehe no one can predict where i'll go next. my latest fandom is jujutsu kaisen!

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

so you've been robbed by a musuem

the stone-filled sea

the family-dodging bathroom-dwellers association

and his wanting grows teeth

diving blind

it's like a wangxian sweep except for the last sambucky lol

5. Do you respond to comments?

i am trying to get better at that! sometimes i don't have the energy to go through and respond to every single one but trust me when i say that seeing the wonderful comments people leave truly makes my day

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

tbh i don't think i've ever written straight-up angsty endings (or at least the way i see straight up angst). every 'bad' ending has a ray of hope in it, or at least an acceptance that like...yes, this is the way it was meant to be, and to reject the outcome would be to reject everything that came before it. sometimes things were meant to go to shit. there was no other way to go. we were doomed but at least we loved each other. i will suffer but at least i can remember you. so on so forth.

with all that said, it's a toss up between the longest journey (di feijing & lei chun), or all things in pain (wen ning character study). 'angsty' endings, if only in the way i described above

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

a lot of my happy endings aren't super-sweet happy endings per se, but rather a promise or hope that things will get better. idk what that says about me lol like maybe i have more interest in the "how to become happy" part than the actual happiness itself...? but ANYWAY i'd say the sappiest ending is i have is uhhhh feel like a brand new person (msr take edibles together) because 1) their mutual attraction is finally acknowledged 2) they're making out 3) they're high as balls. what's better than this

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not any time recently! i've rarely had negative comments before and all of them have been of such a ridiculous nature that my only response was like "lmfao ok"

9. Do you write smut?

nope! not yet, at least. maybe some time in the future i'll feel like it

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you have written?

haven't written any, don't really read them either! i keep my blorbos locked up in their separate cages. siloed.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

yes! kind of. if this counts, a couple years ago someone on wattpad stole over 100 wangxian fics (including mine) from ao3 and reposted them onto their own account without credit. we got their account taken down tho so all is well...but this is why i say in my ao3 profile that i do not allow reposts. please tell me if u ever see my work reposted anywhere........

i've also come across a fic in a diff fandom that was VERY clearly "inspired" by one of mine (lifting certain scenes and lines beat for beat) and gave no credit. so there's that as well.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! it's always an honor when someone wants to translate my work :)

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope! my creative process is so erratic that i feel like i'd be a nightmare to co-write with, so this is probably for the better

14. What's your all time favorite ship?

this is a hard question to answer. i don't have an ultimate favorite that always stays at the top of the pile, cuz my interests change all the time! right now i'm really enjoying platonic yuuji & megumi & nobara & gojo. in terms of what i go to most often when i want a comfort re-read...finnpoe.

15. What is a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

omg. you want a DEEP CUT? i have a wip for a rarepair in an already sparse fandom...yeongshin/seobi from kingdom on netflix (the historical korean zombie drama). i LOOOOVE that show i comfort re-watch it all the time. i love their bonded-thru-trauma-frenemies healer/warrior dynamic and i have this wip going for yeongshin getting bitten and seobi developing a zombification-reversal cure through sheer willpower and spite alone........there's maybe 2k written and i was relying on a season renewal announcement to motivate me enough to get the rest of it out but uh. fellow kingdom warriors if you're out there. i think we may be losing this battle............kingdom season 3 announcement save me..............

16. What are your writing strengths?

as a haver-of-siblings, i think i do general family dynamics pretty well! someone has told me in the past that i am good at packing meaning into very few words. i also think i'm good at angsty emotional beats (i sure like writing them, at least)

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

bro if there is any action scene in my work, writing it is like pulling teeth. what do you mean he's getting hit. what do you mean i have to think of an interesting way to describe punch #1 and punch #2 and punch #3. STOPPPPPPPP I CANT DO THIS.

in terms of technique i used to struggle with this thing where i NEED to perfect the writing i'm working on before i can move on. like i'd waste huge amounts of time rewriting a three sentence paragraph over and over and over again until it was perfect before i could move onto the next scene. i'm getting a lot better with that tho!

18. Thoughts of writing dialogue in another language in fics?

i've never done it myself, like, full on written-in-a-diff-lang dialogue, but i think it's cool as long as context clues/some form of translation is provided. and if proper research is done if the writer isn't a native speaker

19. First fandom you wrote for?

the man from uncle (2015). lol. napollya could have won in an alternate universe where armie h@mmer wasn't a piece of shit

20. Favorite fic you have written?

HOO. i gotta say it's my sambucky ghost fic the boy who cried ghost. it's by far my longest fic (even tho it isn't actually very long compared to others ive seen LOLLLL) and it took me AGES to write and ended up being quite personal!! part of the reason it took me so long to finish was bc i couldn't bear to write about sam struggling with grief/guilt when i was also going through something similar, so when i finally got around to writing the moment of catharsis i kinda felt like i was helping myself, too! which was a very interesting experience, and definitely served to lodge this fic in my heart forever and ever. it's not exactly popular but i'm proud of it :)

tagging @tantai-jin @bluecrystalrainingdaggers @vinelark and anyone else who wants to participate!

[foreveranevilregal]

Can we have a snippet where Pepa is insecure about her looks compared to her sister and asks Felix if he really wants her and Felix just starts comforting her and listing everything he loves about her and it lasts an hour or so?

Ugh, my prompts are technically closed for the time being, but I love this one so much and I have no self control. Warning for body image issues.

Félix and Pepa have always been more the hands-on type...

It was a gorgeous sunny day. Like most people, Félix and Pepa had decided to take advantage of the nice weather and spend some time outside. They were sprawled out under a tree in the park, enjoying the sunshine in a sleepy stupor, when Pepa spoke up.

“Why are you with me?”

“What do you mean, why am I with you?” Félix gaped at her. “I’m with you because I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Pepa sighed, propping herself up on her elbows. “I know, but why me? There are so many other women in the encanto you could choose over me.”

“There is no one in the encanto I would choose over you.” Félix pressed a kiss to her lips. “You are the only woman for me.”

“Why though?” she persisted.

“Why?” Félix tapped his chin, pretending to think. “Well, you’re incredible, strong, smart, kind, hilarious, beautiful, brave, full of life, and did I mention beautiful?” He offered her a toothy smile.

She whacked him on the arm halfheartedly. “Don’t lie to me.”

“Who’s lying? I meant every word I said.”

“Yeah, right. You’re just trying to make me feel better.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“No, really.” He turned to face her. “Which part don’t you believe?”

She averted her eyes bashfully, mumbling under her breath.

“I didn’t catch that, mi amor.”

She took a deep breath. “I said, I’m not beautiful.”

Félix did a double take. “Are you serious? You, not beautiful?”

Pepa glared at him. “Yes, Félix. I know I don’t look like all the other women. Take Julieta-“

“I don’t want Julieta, I want you.”

Her glare darkened. “I didn’t mean literally,” she gritted out through her teeth. “Julieta looks like a proper woman, with curves and everything. Which is how every woman looks, except for me, apparently.” She gave her body a dismissive once-over, casting it a dirty look. “No, I had to be flat chested and straight up and down. I look like a boy.”

“Pepa, you do not look like a boy.” He reached out for her hand.

She yanked it away. “I do too,” she sulked, twisting the ring adorning her left hand. “You should go find someone better to be with. You deserve better than me.”

“Like Julieta?” He grinned. “Ow!” He winced when her hand made contact with his arm. “I was kidding!”

“It’s not funny,” she grumbled. “Boys always thought she was prettier. The only reason they talked to me at all is because she’s so quiet. I was always their second choice.” She exhaled. “I was the one they settled for when they struck out with her.”

“Come here.” Félix sat up and curled his arm around her, pulling her into his side.

Against her will, she found herself leaning onto his chest, savoring the feeling of his fingers running through her hair.

“You are not now, nor have you ever been, anything other than my first choice,” he spoke gently, combing through her hair. “And if you don’t know that, then I’ve really failed you.”

“Félix, that’s not what I meant…” she backtracked. “You’ve always been very kind. I’m just insecure.”

“It’s my job to ensure you know how loved you are,” he asserted. “How lovable you are, in every way. I wish you knew how I see you…”

Her hand stopped rubbing circles on his chest. “So tell me.”

“Tell you what?”

“Tell me how you see me. Please,” she pleaded. “Because I cannot for the life of me understand why you’d rather be with me than anyone else.”

“Okay. Well…” he started, his fingers still running through her hair, “I already went over your personality and how amazing it is.”

“You left out ‘moody’,” she pointed out with a stormy look in her eyes.

“Pepa, I’ll say it as many times as I have to. I want all your moods. I want all your weather. I want all of it. All of you.” He brushed aside her bangs to kiss her forehead. “Any other objections?”

She shook her head, snuggling closer to him. “I think that covered it.”

“Good. Now as I was saying, your personality is amazing, and I’m not just here for your looks.”

“That’s a relief,” she scoffed. “Imagine that disappointment.”

“Don’t interrupt me,” he chided softly, tracing patterns over her arms with his fingertips. “As I was saying, I’m not just here for your looks, but Pepa…you’re stunning. And I’m gonna tell you every part of you that I love and why I love it.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Oh? Shouldn’t take long then. Go on.”

“Let’s start at the top…” His fingers returned to her head. “I love your hair, Pepa.” He tangled his hand in her hair.

“My hair is too unruly,” Pepa deflected. “And too bright.”

“Your hair is as spirited as you are,” Félix corrected her. “It’s big and fiery and the way it gleams in sunlight…” he sighed wistfully. “Well, I could just look at that forever.”

“You’re such a sap.” Pepa’s words didn’t have any bite to them.

“Only for you, mi vida.” He pressed a kiss to her hair. “Now where were we?”

“There’s more?” she asked incredulously.

“Of course there’s more! You didn’t think I only like your hair, did you?”

“You do really like my hair…”

“I do, but that’s far from the only thing I love about the way you look. We’re going to be here a while.”

“I don’t have anywhere I need to be.” She closed her eyes, savoring his warmth against her skin.

“Next, I love your freckles.” He lightly poked a few spots on her face.

“My freckles?” She scrunched her nose.

“Yes. Someday, I’m going to kiss every last one of them.”

“That’s going to take a really long time,” she commented.

He shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m in no hurry. But stop trying to distract me!” He kissed the tip of her nose. “I love this too. When I kiss it, it scrunches up like a little bunny’s nose.”

Her eyes fluttered open. “You’re being ridiculous.”

“How could I forget?” He clapped his hands to his cheeks in mock horror. “I love these too.” His fingertip traced over her eyelids. “I love your eyes: green and vibrant like a spring day. And I especially love the way they light up when you’re happy.”

“Félix…” She rolled her eyes, feigning exasperation. “Are you actually going to sit here and tell me you love every part of my body?”

“Yes, I am,” he answered simply. “Because they’re all part of you, and I love you.”

Pepa huffed but made no further protest.

“I love these especially,” he flicked her lips with his thumb, “because all my favorite things come from them. Kisses, jokes, conversations, songs, laughter. They’re the keepers of so many wonderful things.” He leaned down and kissed her deeply.

When they parted, she looked at him in a daze. “You’re not too bad yourself,” she flirted.

He shook his head. “We’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you. About why you, Pepa, are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.” He continued. “I love seeing the little gap between your teeth.”

She was taken aback. “Really? Why?”

“Because you only show your teeth when you’re smiling, so when I see it, I’m seeing you at your happiest.”

She beamed, a rainbow springing up above her head.

“Just like that.” He pushed her hair behind her ear and started peppering kisses down her neck. “I love this because I love to see the way it makes you unravel.”

Her breath hitched. “We’re in public,” she reminded him breathily.

“That’s too bad.” He detached his lips from her delicate skin. “Because I love the way it looks after I’m done sucking on it.”

She pursed her lips, holding back a moan. Wisps of fog swirled around them.

“Yeah, I know you like that too,” he crooned, trailing his fingers down her neck to rest on her shoulders. “But like you said, we’re in public. And my list is far from finished.”

“How much more could there possibly be?” She wondered.

“I’m just getting started, amor.” He kissed her shoulders, pushing her sleeves off to uncover bare skin. “I love the way these shimmy when you dance.”

“I am a good dancer,” she conceded, a proud smile blooming on her face.

“You’re spectacular,” he agreed. “The way you lose yourself in the music and just let it take over you is a sight to behold.”

“I just feel it,” she said. “I don’t know how to explain it. It becomes part of me.”

“And everyone watching can see that. It’s a joy to watch you dance.” His hands left her shoulders, walking down her arms to her hands. “I love these.” He held up her hands to his face. “I love the way they feel in mine. And these.” He kissed each of her fingers individually. “Though, I have to say, this one is definitely my favorite.” He wriggled her left ring finger, the sun glinting off the ring gracing it. “Because it means you’re mine.”

She blushed. “For as long as you’ll have me.”

“Forever, then.” He squeezed her hand, then continued his journey, ascending up her side. “Of course, I’m sure you already know I love these.” The side of his finger grazed the edge of her breast.

Pepa scowled. “They’re inadequate and disappointing. You need a magnifying glass just to find them.”

“You sell yourself far too short.” His finger ran over the small swell hypnotically. “Sure, they’re not big. But there’s enough there to satisfy both of us.” He lowered his mouth to her ear. “Especially when I use my mouth…”

Pepa squealed. “Félix…” she whined. “Not here.” She squirmed in place, fighting for breath in the sudden humidity.

“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it.” His hands left her breasts, settling into her waist. “I love the way my hands fit here.” He gave her sides a small squeeze, then moved one hand to caress the flat plane of her stomach. “And this I love because it’s where our babies are going to grow. The start of the family we’re going to build.”

She hummed contentedly. “That’s beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful,” he stressed. “It’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. And these,” his hands gripped her hips, “these I love to watch shake to the beat of the music.”

She chuckled. “Does someone want a special dance when we get home?”

He gulped. “You know I’ll never turn down a dance from you, mi corazón.” His hands stretched lower, squeezing her ass. “You already know why I love this.”

She smiled at him seductively. “I do, but I wouldn’t mind hearing it again.” She batted her eyelashes at him.

“Ah, too bad we’re in public.” He shrugged his shoulders, smiling playfully. “It deserves some more private appreciation.”

“Is that so?” she purred, practically pawing at his chest.

“Easy,” he warned. “Don’t start something we can’t finish here.”

“You’re no fun,” she complained, but there was still a sliver of a smile on her face.

“Just a few more things on my list,” he assured her. “I’ll hurry up, I promise.” His hands ran down the length of her legs. “I love these; they’re so long and beautiful and look amazing when you walk, and dance. They also feel pretty amazing wrapped around me,” he quipped. “You know, when we…”

“Félix!” she hissed, turning a deep scarlet and eyes widening. “Not here!”

“Oh, I guess we better hurry up. I never said I loved your patience.” He smirked. “Because you have none,” he clarified.

“Shut up!” She groaned. “Come on, finish your list so that we can finish.”

“Only two more things,” he promised. “I love your feet,” he nudged one of her feet with his own, “because they move so gracefully on the dancefloor. And finally,” he placed a hand over her chest, “my favorite part of you.”

“What is it?” Pepa asked, awestruck, her heart thumping wildly.

“Your heart, Pepa. It’s so filled with love, and you choose to share that love with me. What more could I ask for?”

“Hopeless romantic,” she muttered, covering her blushing face with her hands.

“You love it.” He took her hands in his own, looking her in the eyes. “Do you believe me now?”

“I do.” She kissed him. “Thank you.”

“Anytime, Pepi.” He reciprocated the kiss.

“That was a very thorough list,” she noted. “Although…” she trailed off.

“Although…” he prompted.

“It seemed to be missing some parts of me that I know for a fact you appreciate.” She tilted her head suggestively, glancing downward.

“I seem to remember mentioning something about showing some more private appreciation to those parts of you.” He snaked his hand around the small of her back, splaying it out, and pulling her even closer to himself.

Her lips on his ear brought shivers down his spine. “What are you waiting for?” she whispered. “Let’s go.”

[andaxay]

Fever and Soup

Fiona has a fever, Rhys takes care of her.

Prompt number 14 from "Grumpy Affectionate Starters" by @drink-it-write-it.

200 word sappy Rhyiona to celebrate hitting 200 kudos on AO3. THANK YOU, SERIOUSLY, <3

Also available on AO3.

"Ew. Get away from me." She blinks up at him, the haze of delirium clearing for a moment. "No- not you. You stay."

"'Not sick', huh?" He sits, melts backward into the cushions. Smiling, he reaches over and gently brushes a soaked strand away from her clammy face.

She reaches up, grasps his shirt and pulls herself to him with weak arms, rests her head against his chest. "What is that bowl of vomit on the table?"

"Soup. For sick people. Lovingly made by yours truly." He wraps her in an embrace. She's hot to the touch.

"I'm not sick," she insists, closing her eyes against the throbbing headache, "and that is a bowl of vomit."

"I admire your ability to puncture my ego even when battling a fever." He smiles affectionately and pulls the blanket further over her shoulders.

"Someone has to. Too hot for that," she says, frowning, trying to shrug the blanket off. He lowers it, gently brushes her bare shoulders with his hands, one human, one metal. "No- put it back, I'm freezing."

He exhales a laugh through his nose as he obliges. "Go to sleep, Fi."

"Mmm. Don't go."

Smiling, he kisses her fever-soaked forehead.

[phonoix]

Lil Sambucky head canon cuz I'm soft

We can all agree that Sam has a refined taste in music, right?

Perfect, so let me pitch you this:

'Sam Wilson LOVES Taylor Swift'.

Don't worry I WILL elaborate on that.

I'm talking Jake Peralta and Jessica Day kind of love.

He weeps to every one of her songs, he's always been a fan and he's not ashamed of that.

Everybody thinks that it was probably Sarah that dragged him into this ✨magical world✨ but it's the other way around.

And she's sooo annoyed when he starts to ramble about '- how deep and poetic her lyrics are, no you don't understand this goes beyond everything you've ever heard, SARAH DON'T YOU ROLL YOUR EYES AT ME.'

Sarah won't ever admit it but she's very fond of and amused by his rants.

(This might be loosely based on me and my sister because she loooves Taylor to the highest level and I love her so I happily like to listen to her TED talks)

He MOST DEFENETLY has a Facebook post of his 22nd bithday with a quote from ''22''.

He will listen to her songs everywhere.

Again, I know he has immaculate taste in music but that dosen't exclude the fact that he'll sing ''Shake it off'' during Avengers training.

He has karaoke nights with Steve, Nat, Wanda and Clint because they're all softies. <3

Also for the sake of my mental stability:

Bucky plays the guitar and is an amazing singer.

You guessed it, he's the guy you bring at a party, he'll be like 'Oh sweet, you have a guitar!' and once he's a little loosen up he'll sing songs with the guest's guitar. But won't categorically sing Wonderwall.

And if asked kindly, in every single language Sam knows, he could actually sing something (maybe even one Taylor Swift song) for his boyfriend. And only for him.

Anyways, Bucky bitches him about it.

'What are you a teeneger thinking about their crush!?'

Of course the little shit makes fun of Sam but he's been caught red handed by Shuri listening to Celin Dion while crying.

She has all of that on tape.

He pretends he hates Sam's rambling but he just looks at him with heart eyes cuz he loves him and he's so passionate about TAYLOR F*CKING SWIFT.

Bucky's favourite song is ''No body, no crime'' cuz 'Good for her'.

And they listen to all of her discography on the way to Sarah's place and -let me repeat myself- Bucky just stares at Sam with literal heart eyes while he sings his lungs out to each one of her albums, like he's the most precious thing in the world. (which he is)

Bucky proposed to Sam by quoting ''Love Story''.

If you thought it wouldn't get any sappier, I'm afraid to disappoint you,

Bucky's wedding vows are the ones from "Lover".

The whole verse.

I- I can imagine him saying 'I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover.'

'Swear to be overdramatic and true to my lover. And you'll save all your dirtiest jokes for me. And at every table, I'll save you a seat.'

Causing his husband the ugliest cry of his life.

That's it. I'm done, if English were my native language and I had a single writing bone inside of my body I would've written a fic about this, but I'll leave it to the professionals. This is the longest and sappiest thing I could think of, I'm disgusted.

[toast-the-unknowing]

do u have some random headcanons for your foster care adam verse/childhood friends verse, that you'll like to share with us? if you want to of course, i just think that's your most potentially teen drama fic you have ever written, and i say that not in a bad way, i just think it's such a fun and comforting au :')

In sixth grade, they start middle school, and Adam gets bumped up a grade in math. He ends up in the same class as Declan and develops one of those awkward kid crushes you only realize is a crush years later. Ronan bugs Adam to finally get Debbie and Bill's permission to have Blue sleepover, so they all end up hanging out at his house more and at the Lynch house less. It does not occur to Adam that these two facts might be related.

In seventh grade Adam's adoption goes through. Adam continues to call Debbie and Bill by their first names; he thinks that they'd like it if he called them mom and dad, but they never actually say anything about it. It just feels too much like lying, to Adam, like pretending that nothing his parents did to him ever happened, and anyway, those aren’t good words to him.

In eighth grade, Blue and Ronan's running competition for who will get the bigger role in the school play backfires when they are cast as the two romantic leads of the spring show. Adam laughs at them a whole lot to distract himself from the weird emotions that he gets watching them hold hands and pretend to be in love. They stop acting after that show and go into the tech crew instead, which both Ronan and Blue claim was THEIR idea.

Freshman year, someone makes a joke about Blue having two boyfriends. She's not really surprised -- the jokes aren't new, although they're getting grosser and more uncomfortable as she gets older -- but she's kind of surprised about how pissed off Ronan gets. It's late enough at night that Adam (who has the earliest curfew) is already home and isn't around to be the voice of reason. They commit some light vandalism in revenge and then go grab ice cream to celebrate. Blue asks Ronan why it bugs him when people insult her. The answer is at least half that she's his friend okay, Jesus, what is he supposed to do, just let people talk about her like that; but instead of saying that what Ronan actually does is blurt out all of his feelings about Adam in the middle of a Dairy Queen at eleven o'clock at night. Blue's verdict: they are definitely going to need more blizzards to deal with this.

Sophomore year, Ronan's dad dies. Ronan doesn't handle it well. Adam gets worried about him one night when Ronan stops responding to his texts, and he sneaks out to find him and make sure he's okay. The next morning Adam isn't at school. Ronan feels like shit on top of everything else for getting Adam into trouble, until Adam shows up after lunch; Debbie and Bill let him sleep in since he was out so late, and then they wanted to make an appointment for him with his social worker, in case he needed to talk to someone about what he’s going through. He is super grounded, though. Blue takes over "make sure Ronan doesn't do anything stupid" duty. She doesn't to let him get away with anything.

Junior year, Adam and Ronan start dating. The getting together part is easier than Ronan had ever expected, and the dating part is everything he ever wanted; the hard part, the part that he hadn't really thought about, is keeping it secret. He wants to tell everyone: classmates, teachers, random people walking down the street, and yeah, his mom, why wouldn't he want her to know something so important about his life? But Adam isn't ready to; the first time they really talk about it he tells Ronan if your mom freaks out about it she can't send you back, which doesn't even make sense -- Bill and Debbie are super chill, for old people, plus they're those parents that volunteer for every field trip and shit, plus Adam is adopted so where the hell would they even send him to -- but Ronan doesn't have to get it to get that it's what Adam needs. So he keeps it a secret. Even though it's so fucking hard. The only person he gets to talk to about Adam is Blue, who is sick. to. death. of hearing him, quote, "writing the sappiest romance novel of all time, seriously, I'm gonna hurl," close quote.

(Adam's eventual coming out to Bill and Debbie goes just fine; they're kind of awkward but very supportive for him and they tell him that they love him and that "we always thought Ronan was a nice young man." There's at least one (1) Pride parade where they are very earnest and very embarrassing and Blue has zero sympathy for that, either, because seriously Adam you went to Pride with your parents, what did you think would happen?)

Senior year is weird, for Blue. She's happy for Adam and Ronan, obviously she's happy, that's what you are when your two best friends are happy, is happy. It's just that the three of them were always the three of them, and now a lot of the time Adam and Ronan hang out just the two of them and Blue's just...Blue. There's nothing to do about it, though, no one thing, so she does a little bit of a lot of things to see what helps. Dating doesn't -- Adam and Ronan have found the only two decent teenage boys in town, each other, and after a few attempts she gives up in disgust. She goes to a lot of parties for a while and turns out to have a terrifying aptitude for flip cup, but that's just all the same people she doesn't want to date and doesn't want to hang out with at school, and being around more people doesn't actually make her feel less alone. She tries some new clubs and new electives, likes shop a lot more than she expected, likes art a lot less than she expected, although some of the art kids aren't so bad. She sinks a lot of time into her college applications, all the same state schools that Adam's applying to, a bunch of West Coast schools that he isn't. She doesn't say anything about it to him; she's probably not going to get in and she can't afford it without a bunch of scholarships anyway, so there's no real point in hurting anyone's feelings. Just, if she's on her own, she wants to have things that are her own. She can have that and have Adam, who still lends her all his favorite books so they can talk about them, and gets a job at the same restaurant she does when she complains about how boring her shifts are, and comes over to watch readings and seances at her house, half-skeptical and half-enthralled. She can have that and have Ronan, who still gives her rides to absolutely anywhere she needs to go no matter how far it is, and goes thrift store diving with her for things that might make good costumes for the theater department even though every single opinion he has about clothes is WRONG, and texts her to tell her every time he goes to the bathroom, like that's something anyone wants to know. They're still the three of them, even if they have to rearrange things a little bit, and Ronan and Adam are still the people she shares everything with. When she gets pissed off her first day of classes in Berkeley, they're the first people she texts, you will not BELIEVE this jerk in my history discussion, he tried to pay me to be in his study group and they immediately support her -- or, Adam does; Ronan texts how much? but that's what support looks like, from Ronan. That's what she wants, for all of them, and she's happy, she's really, really happy.

[fandom-imagines-stories]

Mamma Mia AU  2 It’s a Rich Man’s World

Mamma Mia AU (With the boys)

Words: 1507

Summary: Your two best friends arrive on the island just in time for everything to fall apart. 

Notes: Hello lovely humans, I don’t know if the link that I sent you guys works, so if you have comments, I guess just message me? Yes I know the band name is cheesy, please help me. (Also, I’m posting this at 11:12 P.M. my time so it is technically still Monday)

New to the series? Here’s the trailer made by @childhood-imagination: Mamma Mia AU Trailer

-

While Lili and Kat were the first ones off the ferry, your friends took a little longer to get through the group of passengers. It didn’t help that Priyanka had her gargantuan suitcase trailing behind her. You could pick that red sun hat out of any crowd. 

“For one night!” You shouted once most of the other people had filtered away. “And one night only!” 

“Farrah…”

“And the…”

“Fates!” You ran across the dock, colliding in a big group hug. You must have sounded like a group of middle school girls the way you were giggling and squaking. You hadn’t been called your stage name in years, but hearing them say it took you back to when you were all young and carefree and you didn’t have a business to keep a float. 

“I’ve missed you guys.” You sighed, pulling back to look at your two best friends in the whole world. Priyanka smiled. 

“You should come and visit us sometime! Once Daisy and KJ have flown away from the nest.” 

“Are you kidding?” You laughed, shaking your head. “Who would run this place? It’s falling apart as it is.” You helped them put their luggage into the trunk of the jeep and you all climbed in. 

“Then we’ll just have to come here more often.” Scarlett suggested. “When her majesty is in between press tours and photo shoots… and husbands.” She poked at Priyanka mockingly who swatted her hands away. Priyanka had become a pretty popular model throughout Europe, but she’d cut away this time to come to the wedding. She had also been married a few times- three, to be exact. But she was happily single at the moment and always ready to party. 

Scarlett, on the other hand, wrote books in her lovely cottage up in Ireland. She wrote some of the sappiest self-love books you’d ever seen, but she was always the best shoulder to cry on. And boy, had you cried on it many times. 

-

Twenty One Years Ago

“We’re going to be late!” Scarlett shouted from outside the bathroom door. It was your first gig as a group and you’d been throwing up all afternoon from the nerves. 

“I can’t do it!” You cried, sitting on the cool, tiled floor. “I’m gonna screw it up and then we’ll all look like idiots!” 

“Sweetie, you’re not going to screw it up.” She assured you, though Priyanka’s face was starting to look skeptical. Scarlett pinched her arm. 

“You’ll do great.” She yelped, swatting Scarlet’s hand away. “Now come out here so I can fix your make-up, or I swear, Y/N, I will break down the door.” You thought for a moment, realized that she actually would, and scrambled to your feet to unlock the door. 

“You look fine.” Scarlett smiled and Priyanka placed a hand on your shoulder. 

“I’ll just do a couple touch-ups.” 

The makeshift stage wobbled under your feet as you walked on. The festival was swarming with people, but not many had stopped to listen. They all just passed by, ignoring the three of you completely. While your crowd only consisted of an older woman selling flowers and a man in a worn band t-shirt and jeans, you would make the best of it. You blew out a nervous breath and just let the music take over.

“Tonight the super trooper lights are gonna find me. But I won’t feel blue. Like I always do. Cause somewhere in the crowd there’s you.” You sang out your opening solo, your voice a little unsure at first, but as soon as Scarlett hit the button to play the tape and the music you’d written started to play, you’d never felt more confident. With your best friends by your side, you could stay on the stage forever. 

More of a crowd had formed and people were starting to cheer, fueling your energy. It felt like everything was blurred into one, the crowd, the music, Priyanka and Scarlet. By the time you reached the end, you were practically glowing. 

“Tonight the super trooper lights are gonna find me. But I won’t feel blue. Like I always do. Cause somewhere in the crowd….” You did your final dancing spin, but your foot caught on one of the creaky, loose boards and you tumbled off the edge of the stage, the crowd collectively gasping. Instead of the ground, however, you landed in the strong arms of the t-shirt clad man with beautiful brown eyes and a gorgeous smile. “There’s you.” 

The crowd cheered and the man gently set you on your feet, his grin sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck. 

“You okay?” He asked and you nodded, unable to form actual words. “You must be Farrah?” He pointed to the poorly made banner that hung over the stage. You just stared at him, lost in those perfect, perfect eyes. 

“Ahem.” Priyanka coughed, drawing you out of your trance. You felt the blush rush to your cheeks. He just kept smiling at you, a quiet laugh escaping his lips. 

“Farrah is my stage name.” You admitted. “My real name is Y/N.” 

“Well, Y/N, I don’t think I’ve ever had that much fun at a concert before.” He beamed and you could feel the butterflies in your stomach go wild. “You guys are really really good.” He looked up at Priyanka and Scarlett who looked as wide eyed over his good looks as you were. 

“T-thanks.” Scarlett stammered. Priyanka rolled her eyes at you and Scarlett’s awkward natures. 

“We were going to grab a drink in between sets…” She gave you a suggestive look, darting her eyes between you and him. It took you a second to catch on. 

“Oh!” You exclaimed, more blush turning your face red. “Would you like to join us?” He stuck his hands in his pockets and rocked forward on his heels. 

“I’d love to.” 

“Oh my god, how rude of me,” You turned to introduce your bandmates, “This is Priyanka,” She flashed him one of her show-stopping smiles, “and this is Scarlett,” She gave him a small wave. He nodded politely and his eyes fell back to you. 

“I’m Pedro.” 

- 

Present Day

The trek up the stairs was painful and had the two women huffing and puffing by the time you reached the top. You, of course, were used to the hike and couldn’t help but snicker. 

“Why did I wear stilettos?” Priyanka exclaimed dramatically. They set down their suitcases with a thunk. 

“Here, let me get those.” KJ offered with his usual charming smile. 

“Guys, meet KJ, he’s the leading man for Friday’s shindig.” You introduced and he chuckled. 

“The lucky man.” He beamed. “You must be… Priyanka.” She nodded and he pulled her into a hug. 

“Wow.” She mouthed over his shoulder. He turns to Scarlett.

“And you must be Scarlett.” 

“I am.” She nodded with her usual welcoming grin and hugged him tightly. He helped you take their things to their room before scampering off to gather supplies for a date he was planning with Daisy. 

“Just one more night together before things start to get a little crazy for the wedding.” He explained. He was right. Today was probably the last day before set-up would be in full swing. Daisy wanted a big wedding and oh boy, that’s what she was getting. As soon as KJ left, Scarlett fell back onto her bed. 

“I want to stay here forever and never get up.” She groaned, rubbing her aching feet. “Why do you have to live on a freaking mountain?” 

“I’m lucky I didn’t break a heel.” Priyanka added in agreement. 

“Well the two of you better get used to the not so luxurious life here for the next few days.” You snorted. “The walls in here need a new coat of paint, the floors creak, and the toilet doesn’t always flush correctly.” You laughed, shaking your head. “Nothing works around here, except for me.” 

You flopped down on the bed next to Scarlett and Priyanka joined on the other side of you. You grabbed onto their hands and felt powerful again. 

“It’s all money, money, money out there.” You sighed. “And without snatching a wealthy husband, I’m stuck doing the laundry and the dishes and everything else around here.” You chuckled to yourself, mentally scolding yourself for sounding so whiny. 

“Speaking of husbands…” Priyanka wriggled her eyebrows. 

“Here we go,” Scarlett laughed, “Husband number four!” 

“Not for me, for you!” Priyanka exclaimed, poking Scarlett in the side. “There’s got to be some Greecian god around here somewhere.” 

“No.” She waved her hand for emphasis. “No thank you. I’m fine all on my own, thanks.” 

“What great examples for Sohpie you two are; The Serial Bride and the Little Hermit.” You threw your head back with a laugh. While the three of you reminisce over your ‘glory days’, your daughter had her hands full down on the beach, staring at the three men bickering on the dock; one of whom was her father.

-

General Tag: @rae-gar-targaryen; @takemepedropascal; @childhood-imagination

Mamma Mia Series list: @materialisthicc; @holybatflapexpert; @mandoandyodito;  @justawriterinprogress; @fangirl-multifandoms; @thelupusonyx; @arrowswithwifi; @mylovegoesto; @ahopelessromanticwritersworld; @kata1803 Pedro Tag List: @halefirewarrior;  @c-ly-g

[totaldramafan-lauri]

Precious

I wasn’t originally gonna put this here, since it’s not a full fic, just a small drabble I wrote on Discord a couple days ago. But it got a very positive reception, s-so.....after sitting on it, I figured why not. This is one of the sappiest things I’ve ever written, b-because I was in a mood when I wrote it, and I don’t think it’s my best work, but I might as well post it. >////////>

As for actual fics, there’s one I’m working on that should be done next week unless I get lazy.

Content warning: No explicit N/S/F/W, but implied.

You clung to her as if your life depended on it, letting her ravage you all she could. Her lips on yours, her tongue in your mouth, one hand on your head, the other wandering under your shirt as you sat still for her...You could barely breathe, but you didn't care. You didn't want it to end...it was complete and utter bliss.

All your worries about bothering her...about being too needy...were vanishing as you melted into her, the noises you made encouraging her even further. Not only were you grateful to be getting what you wanted so much - Her touch, her love, which you never thought you truly deserved - but it let you know that this was what she wanted, too. You didn't need to change...This was how she liked you...

Eventually, she broke the messy kiss, finally letting you gasp for air. The room felt so very warm, and your heart raced in your chest, unable to slow down. As time finally resumed, you panted heavily, your mouth hanging open, almost like an invitation for her to continue. Though your eyes were closed, you could imagine the expression she was wearing...no doubt a satisfied smirk, always happy to make you a mess.

You heard a small chuckle, and your already quick panting hitched as her hand slowly trailed up your back yet again. It felt so good...Unable to calm down, you whined. She didn't let you savor that moment for very long, for you soon felt her tilt your head to the side, and she moved down to kiss your neck. A shiver ran down your spine in pleasure as you clung tighter, anticipating what was to come shortly after...

You gave a high-pitched whimper as she bit down, claiming you. It wasn't a big bite, but it was big enough, as she know just how hard it needed to be. She was experienced at that by this point. She ran her fingers through your hair, knowing you liked that as well.

Once she pulled back, you leaned against her, afraid of her letting you go. "Spinel..." you whined, still trying to catch your breath after she had taken it away again. You wanted more, but words had escaped you. That was the effect she had. "Spinel..."

"Shh, shh, shh..." she hushed you, and continued petting your head. You subconsciously leaned into the touch, whimpering softer. "I know, doll...It feels good, doesn't it~?" she cooed. At your response, another whimper, she chuckled again. "Awwww, what a good girl...what a good, sweet girl you are for me~..."

She suddenly pushed you onto your back, and you finally let go of her and opened your eyes in surprise, squeaking when you looked up at her face as she hovered over you, her hands continuing to slowly wander up you teasingly. Her smile was softer than usual...A caring smile.

"Ya understand now, babygirl? Every single part of you is beautiful to me~" she said, in your favorite tone of voice, the one that gave you goosebumps, "Every inch of your body, every cute little noise you make...everything you share with only me~" She leaned down, slowly bringing her face closer and closer to yours. "So please don't think you're not good enough...Don't worry about botherin' me, ever...I always have time for you, my sweet little doll...I love you, and I'm so happy you're mine~"

You could feel her breath hitting your face, and you could hear your heart beating out of your chest...It was like time had stood still for a moment, before she took you further.

"Never forget, you are precious..."

Her lips met yours again, her hands playing with your shirt. This was going to be another night you never wanted to forget.

[complicated-innocence]

Joker’s Appreciation

The Joker was not one to read. He rarely had the attention span for it, first of all, and even when he could focus long enough... Well, the clown prince had never found an interesting book, and he doubted he ever would. They were always too slow or too boring, and the villain never won, which was just unfair. Honestly! As a villain himself, he was always so sick of the hero coming up on top, or, even if the villain did win... It was always people like Lex Luther, and, frankly, Lex Luther had no flair. That made him bad if you asked Joker. He wanted to see a chaotic villain win, one like him, but... Normies didn’t want those sorts of villains to come out on top, of course. And so he had yet to find a book he liked, even in the ones he had somehow read all the way through.

There was one specific genre he particularly despised, though; romance novels, like the ones Harley would obsess over from time to time. It had taken him a single page to realize that, considering he had grabbed the book from her one night and started reading from exactly where she left off. It was the sappiest, most melodramatic and cliqued thing he had ever read, and it disgusted him beyond comprehension. Or so he thought, but that couldn’t be entirely true...

After all, there was one exception to his distaste for reading; Harley’s poetry, which she wrote oh-so-rarely but Joker had collected almost religiously for the past few years. The influence of those terrible books could be glaringly obvious at times, but, nonetheless... He adored them. He adored the poetic ways she described everything, especially when she described him. He loved her attention to detail, the way she seemed to pay attention to his every move and cherish it all, even when they fought or argued... And he couldn’t help but read the parts about his eyes with a special fondness, too, as they often came up and were mentioned in detail. It was precious, really, and it fed his ego even more. What wasn’t to love about that?

While she did write about other people and other things, he only really paid attention if it was about him. He read all of the others, sure, but... The ones about him were held to different esteem, and those were the only ones that made their way into his collection, even if it took some time, as he waited until she had all but forgotten about them to act. Sometimes, that meant a few hours of it sitting there, untouched... Other times, it meant a few days. As soon as he could, though, he claimed the forgotten poems and added them to the box beneath the photo of him and Harley, all neatly folded and packed away until he could reread them later. He dated them all, and would often go through and read them when she was away, but never once did he tell her about it. He never planned to, either; it was his secret admiration of her, something too soft for her to know.

Or it was, until the day came that Harley barged in on Joker’s reading time. It was at night, hours after the two had fought in the morning... And, honestly, by then, Joker couldn’t remember what their argument had been about at all, nor did he exactly care to. Obviously, she wasn’t overly miffed either, or else she wouldn’t have been back already, but... He didn’t have time to linger on that thought or to even really registered the fact she was home earlier than usual.

He hadn’t even realized she was back until she announced herself. And that announcement was, admittedly, sudden; she barged into his office out of nowhere, and, before he could do a damn thing to hide the poem, she was upon him.

“I’m back, Puddin’!” She chimed cheerily, giggling as she slung her arms around his shoulders, shimmying as she gave him a hug. Her eyes were shut, and Joker knew it.

“Oh, so you are,” he chuckled as lightly as he could, looking around at his desk for what he could do to hide it while he had the chance. “Back so soon? Too dull at the plant’s?”

“Aw, don’ be like thaaaat...” She huffed, still hugging him. “It was jus’ a lil disagreement.”

Its box was too far out of reach for him to avoid disturbing her moment, and, even if it wasn’t... Well, he’d have to fold the paper first, which simply wouldn’t work, and then if she released sooner than he expected, she’d see the other poems, too. One would be bad enough. His eyes skipped away again. He knew he was running out of time to decide. He felt the clock ticking down in his head, based on how long she usually hugged him... Ten seconds left.

“I suppose...” Joker sighed, as if he had any idea what the argument had been about. Panic was setting in, though; he was running so low on time. At the last second, though, he realized the obvious option; hide it under the other papers on his desk! He instantly tried that, but...

He was too slow. Her eyes snapped open just as he had moved the other paper, and so the poem was still up on top. Shit.

“Yeah-- But nevermind that! Whatcha workin’ on~?” She moved to rest her head on his shoulder, peeking down at the desk. He knew it was too late by then. “Written pla--? Wait.” She already read it. “Izzat--?”

“NO! This is absolutely not your concern or what you think it is!” He panicked immediately, throwing a paper down on top of it.

Harley stepped back from him in an instant, an eyebrow cocking up instead of her usual head tilts. Her whole demeanor shifted into something more serious. His heart dropped... That meant he had two options; surrender and let her see, or let her be mad and run off with her other partner again, probably for a month. He internally groaned at the thought. He didn’t particularly want to deal with her being gone so long, not when he had finished bigger plans where he would need her help, and so... He didn’t move to hide it, as much as his pride was screaming at him.

“... Any chance you won’t look at it.” Joker asked, glaring slightly. He knew the answer, but it was worth a try.

Harley simply moved to the side of the desk and, while making direct eye contact, grabbed the paper. She then looked down at it, still side-eyeing him.

His heart sped up as she read, as he observed her... He watched her as she blinked slowly, her eyes skipping back up to reread the first line, her eyes going over the same word again and again. She straightened up, and his heart skipped a beat. She kept reading from there, and then she reread the poem again. Once, twice, and her cheeks slowly colored as she verified more and more that, yes, that paper was her’s. And it wasn’t a newer one, either, although he had those as well. He groaned as her whole demeanor slowly softened, especially when her eyes settled on the date in the corner. He knew damn well that she knew his writing, and that was confirmed when he noticed the fact her eyes practically became hearts after a second.

Harley hugged it to her chest, giggling happily... And then she looked up at him, all love and affection and all the things he despised.

“... Not a word, Harley.” Joker sighed bluntly, leaning back in his chair with a pout. His cheeks were starting to go pink.

“But--!”

“Not. One.” He repeated, his voice getting firmer. He added in a glare.

“It’s sweet, Puddin’! I didn’ know y’kept this one,” She giggled, hugging him. “Didja keep my others~? Least, the ones ‘bout yooooou...”

Joker didn’t respond, and, instead, he tried to shove her away, his cheeks reddening and his pout deepening. He tried to avoid looking at her, too, but... Well, Harley didn’t feel like playing that game, not with this new discovery. She sat in his lap, releasing half the hug for long enough to grab his face and pull it towards her, albeit gently. When she saw his expression, a grin spread across her face.

“Y’did! Really?!”

“... Fine. I did,” he huffed, trying to shove her off his lap... But she was prepared for that, apparently. She caught his shoulders, keeping herself in place. “What of it?!”

“It’s adorableeee~”

“It’s not adorable!” He snapped, trying to push her to the floor again. It still didn’t work, as Harley giggled and nuzzled her face into his chest happily. He groaned again, but... It was useless to fight her, and he knew it. He didn’t try again.

She kissed him, before cuddling back. “Don’ worry~ It’ll be another a’ our lil secrets.”

“... It better be,” Joker grumbled. Harley’s smile grew, but... Well, she didn’t push him any further, and he relaxed some.

They stayed like that for awhile longer, all cuddled up in his chair; he didn’t quite want to move yet, despite his pride being wounded. No. Instead, he hugged her closer to him, one hand lightly petting her hair as he rested his chin on top of her head. He closed his eyes, settling down... And not a word was said, not for a few minutes, until Joker broke the silence again.

“... They are good, Baby. You should write more.”

[mxliv-oftheendless]

Let’s Fall in Love

Now I know what you’re all thinking: “But Livvie, you’re always so vocal about your opinion of Valentine’s Day and its inherent capitalism and societal pressure to be in a relationship and general stupidity! Why have you written a story for it?” Well, turns out when you have a soul, you can’t not get caught up in the romantic spirit somehow *shrugs*. This is by far the lamest, sappiest thing I have ever written in my entire life. It took me a while to finish writing because I did my French homework beforehand and my brain got fried (side note: learning a foreign language is exhausting). But I got it done, so yay me!

I’ve also written this because IT’S @cosmicrealmofkissteria ‘s BIRTHDAY! And since she wrote an epic story as a present for me, it’s only fair I do the same. Hope you enjoy, Shandi, and happy birthday!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The camera opens on Gene, who smiles and waves. “Hey there. If you’re watching this, this is the first video I’m making for my new flash drive, because I used up all the storage on my last one.”

From beyond the camera comes Paul’s voice calling, “Again!”

“Shut up, Paul. Anyway, you know the drill…”

“Who are you even talking to?” Paul’s voice comes again. Gene rolls his eyes and turns the camera around to Paul, who is sitting in a chair with his legs over the armrest and his laptop in his lap. “You keep saying you’re recording these for posterity, but… are you just talking to yourself and lying about it?”

“Shut up, Paul.”

“I’m just saying, man. I mean, I know why you do this. But from an outsider’s perspective, it’s kind of weird.”

“And from an outsider’s perspective, your obsession with stars is weird.”

Paul is silent for a moment, then nods. “Fair.”

He turns back to his laptop and Gene turns the camera back around. “Anyway, as I was saying. You know the drill. I’m Gene, I’m a co-owner of the awesome wine bar known as Cellar 82. I’m 33, and I am still single. But, oddly,” Gene shrugs, “I haven’t spent a lot of time thinking about how sucky that is. I guess FRIENDS was wrong about that.”

“FRIENDS was wrong about a lot of stuff,” Paul’s voice comes again. “They tried to make us think Ross wasn’t a total loser.”

Gene nods. “That is true. Anyway, yeah. Still single. I’ve been on some blind dates with people my friends keep telling me are “just perfect for me!” but… nothing’s worked out. And that’s fine.

“Let’s see, what else… Paul finally got me to watch a bootleg of Phantom of the Opera.”

“It’s amazing, right?”

Gene shrugs, but is smirking slightly “Eh. The book was better.”

“… I know you’re trolling me, but I’m prepared to fight you on that.”

Gene laughs. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Seriously though, it was pretty good. At least it explains why Paul keeps dramatically reenacting it in the shower.” He looks to the side and laughs. “Paul just gave me the bird.

“Anyway… that’s all I can think of to say right now. So that does it for this video. Bye for now!” He waves. The camera screen goes black. 

--

The camera opens on Gene, who is smiling. “So get this: I met someone last night. I probably sound like a teenage girl, but it’s pretty exciting. His name’s Vinnie, he’s got long hair down to about here,” he gestures to just below his shoulders, “and green eyes. But… and don’t tell Paul I said this… they’re really nice-looking green eyes. And it gets even better: he’s an Egyptologist. I never thought I’d meet one in real life. He’s in the graduate program at the university. He was at the wine bar with his friends because he apparently just got back from a research trip to Egypt and they dragged him out to celebrate. You’d never tell he was in Egypt, though; he’s kind of pale. But a pretty kind of pale.

“We got to talking because he heard the rock music playing and asked if it was Deep Purple. I didn’t even think he would know who they were, but he did. He knows a lot of rock bands. We could have talked about it more, but he went off to be with his friends.”

Gene rubs the back of his neck. “Is it weird that I kind of want to see him again? I’ll cop to it; he’s not the type I would normally go for. But I liked talking to him. He has a nice laugh, too. I told him he and his friends could come back anytime, and he said he thought it was a nice place so they might. I hope he comes back…”

--

The camera opens on Gene again, who is lying on his stomach looking sadly at the camera. “It’s been two weeks now, and Vinnie hasn’t come back. And I haven’t seen him around, either. In other news, another blind date. This one was set up by Eric with one of his fellow librarians. She was nice enough… but the date was really awkward. I don’t think it’s gonna go anywhere… as usual.”

Gene sighs and runs his hand through his hair. “I dunno what’s wrong with me, but I can’t stop thinking about him. Vinnie, I mean. Do you think he liked me? People say I’m kind of unapproachable… but he didn’t seem to mind, or have any problem talking to me. I just want to see him again, and maybe then I can finally work up the balls to ask him out.

“But then there’s… well, this, to think about. What if, if I ever see him again, it goes somewhere, and I show him I do this, and he gets weirded out by it? It’s not like what Paul said before is a lie—people who don’t know what this is to me think this is weird. But maybe… maybe I can cross that bridge when I get there—if I even get there at all. I haven’t even seen him again yet.

“Well… here’s hoping I see him again. Anyway, as for the rest of my life…” He shrugs. “Same old shit. Bar’s still getting good reviews… but it’s had good reviews since we opened, so that’s not new. No new episodes from Buzzfeed Unsolved yet. Rick and Morty… still a wild show. It’s gotten even wilder if possible. But I can make a separate video about that. And, uh… that’s pretty much it. So I guess I’ll sign off for the night. This is Gene Simmons, signing off.”

--

The camera opens on Gene, who looks giddy. “You’ll never guess what happened: scientists proved ghosts are real.

“No, I’m just kidding. I wish, but anyway… Vinnie came back! Turns out he and his friends do a tri-weekly Guys Night Out, and they’re really serious about it. They would even FaceTime Vinnie while he was in Egypt. They liked the wine bar so much they decided to come back for their next one.

“So I got to talk to Vinnie again—he remembered my name, can you believe that?—and like I said I would, I worked up the guts to ask him out. And he said yes! I’m gonna pick him up from his loft—he and his friends live together—and take him out to this coffee place down the block from the wine bar.” Gene holds up crossed fingers. “Here’s hoping it goes well.”

--

We see Gene, who is lying on his stomach and looking happily at the camera. “So I just got back from my date with Vinnie. I suppose you’re wondering how it went, huh? Well…” He slowly bows his head…

… then looks back up at the camera with a big smile. “It went really well! We talked about our favorite bands, and Vinnie’s job… you should’ve seen his face when he was talking about Egypt. He was so into it. Then he asked me how the wine bar got started, so I told him about how Paul and I decided to open it together. He thought it was really cool how we know so much about different wines.

“Actually, we were there for a pretty long time. I was hoping it would last an hour, at most. But as we’re getting up to leave, I look at my watch, and it’s been three hours! I’ve never had a date last that long, or one that seemed to go by that fast. We made plans to meet for dinner next week.” Gene checks his watch. “I should probably sign off for now. I told Tommy I’d take over his morning shift tomorrow.” He flashes the camera another smile. “Today’s been a good day. Can’t wait to see Vinnie again.”

--

Music is playing in the background. The camera has opened on Paul, who gives a smile and a peace sign. “Hey there, posterity. It’s me, ya boi. Check this out.”

He turns the camera around to reveal Gene moving around the kitchen area. Paul zooms the camera in on him. He looks to be in a very good mood as he pours cereal into a bowl, nodding his head along to the music. The camera turns back to Paul, who gives the camera a lost look and shrug. “He’s been like this all morning. He’s only had one cup of coffee so far. Oh, and you probably can’t hear it on the recording, but he’s humming. Actually humming along to the music. I’ve narrowed down the possibilities of what could’ve happened to him to two: either Trump’s been assassinated, or his date last night with Vinnie went really well. And since Trump’s unfortunately still alive and well, then that means it was his date with Vinnie. I just—” Paul stops and looks up. His eyes widen as a voice can be made out. “Oh my God…”

He turns the camera around and zooms in on Gene again. We can now hear Gene singing along to the music. “—fall in love/Our hearts are made of it/Let’s take a chance/Why be afraid of it…”

The camera turns back around to a shocked Paul. “He’s singing along now!” he whispers. “Oh my God… I’m so glad I decided to make a recording of this. This is a historic moment, people!”

“Paul, what are you doing?” Gene’s voice suddenly says, making Paul look up at him. “Is that Shannon? Paul, what are you doing with Shannon?”

“I’m documenting history, Gene. Also, I still say you could give your camera a better name than ‘Shannon’. Peter’s cats have better names than that.”

“Fuck you, Shannon’s a great name.”

“You could’ve named her Diane. Then at least more people would get the Twin Peaks reference.” Paul watches Gene for a moment, then sighs and turns back to the camera. “And he just flipped me off. Well, looks like the moment’s gone. But at least you got to see it for yourselves.” He glances up at Gene. “I should probably give Shannon back to him now before he tries to snatch it. So I guess bye for now, posterity!” He blows a kiss at the camera and turns it off.

--

Gene is sitting on his bed, leaning back against the headboard. He has a nervous look on his face. “Hey there. So, um… I did something kind of impulsive today, and… everything was fine, but…” he sighs and runs his hand over his face. “I don’t know. I guess I should give some background first.

“So as you probably know, I’ve been dating Vinnie for nearly three months now. Given how he’s a part-time research assistant and working his way through grad school, that probably isn’t that impressive. He keeps apologizing for having to decline going out together, but it’s fine, I get it. Tommy and Ace were like that when Ace was working on his astronomy PhD. So I get it. But the thing is… Vinnie actually works to make time for going out with me. Like, he’ll message me things like…” The camera shakes as Gene fumbles for his phone and opens it. “Like this: I can ask Lita if I can leave early on Thursday. It’ll be short notice, but she probably won’t mind. And I just…” Gene runs a hand through his hair. “No one I’ve ever had a long-term relationship with has ever done that for me before. They would always say things like, Oh, sorry, I can’t, I have Such-n-Such at seven. I remember my high school girlfriend said one time that she couldn’t go out because she had StuGo till five. And I said, ‘well, how about afterwards?’ And she got all snippy and said ‘no, cuz I have to do my homework when I get home.’ Actually she was also the one that dumped me for that blond fuck Vince… Anyway, point is, no girlfriend or boyfriend I’ve ever had has ever done that. It was either they could or they couldn’t. Except Vinnie…

“But I digress. Anyway, Vinnie and I’ve been dating for almost three months, and whenever I do see him…” Gene sighs and smiles a little. “It’s great. We haven’t just gone out to restaurants; we’ve gone to the movies, I went over to his and his friends’ loft once and he comes over here…” Gene smirks a bit. “I’m happy to report I still got it in the boudoir. His friends seem to like me, and Paul likes Vinnie. It’s been… pretty amazing. I really like him. He’s really smart, even if he knows next to nothing about horror movies, he’s got good music tastes, he’s funny, his laugh is… like music to my ears, and he’s incredibly attractive. Actually, he’s sort of insecure about how he looks—can you believe that? I don’t give a damn that he looks kind of feminine, he’s beautiful. And whenever I’m with him, I just think, how can someone this amazing exist? And want to spend his time with me? I just… fuck, am I digressing again? Sorry.

“Anyways, to get back to what I started this with… I told him about this. About Shannon and my video diaries. I didn’t tell him why, because… well, I kinda chickened out of that. He was curious about it—apparently, he’s never met someone who makes video diaries. So I told him about when I first got started making them, and went on from there. And the whole time he never looked put off or weirded out by it—he just looked really interested. And I guess that’s what made me say what I asked next: I asked if he wanted to be in one.”

Gene presses his mouth into a line. “Yeah… I didn’t realize what I said until after I said it. He just stared at me for a second, I think I took him by surprise. I was sure he was going to say no. But then… then he said sure, if I felt okay about him being in it. He’s coming over tomorrow.

“I definitely feel like I should be more excited than I actually am. This… well, you know how much this stuff means to me. I’ve never shared this with any of the other people I’ve dated. This is my own personal thing. But Vinnie… it just sort of slipped out. Does that mean something?”

Gene sighs and runs his hand through his hair again. “God, what am I doing… I’m psyching myself out again. It’s probably not going to be as bad as I’m worrying it’ll be. He didn’t seem to judge me when I was telling him about it, so he probably won’t judge me tomorrow. He’s not like that; he’s better than that.” Gene slowly smiles. “Yeah… Yeah, I think it’ll be fine. Paul’s gonna be home tomorrow too, and he gets it. Yeah, it’ll all be fine.

“Well, I guess I’ll sign off for now and go to bed. Stay tuned tomorrow for when you finally meet this Vinnie I’ve told you so much about.”

--

The camera opens on a black shirt, then rustles and is lifted up. Vinnie is sitting on the couch, looking at the camera. “Is this fine?” he asks.

“It’s perfect,” Gene replies from behind the camera.

“Okay… So, what should I do?”

“How about… your name, your age, your job, your favorite band, and one fun fact about yourself.”

Vinnie laughs. “Okay.” He smiles and waves at the camera. “Hi! I’m Vinnie, I’m 30, I’m an Egyptologist and work as a research assistant, my favorite band is…” he laughs nervously, “I don’t know, there are so many good ones…”

“You don’t have to say one if you can’t think of one,”

“Okay. I have a lot of favorite bands. And a fun fact about me is…”

“You’re short,”

Vinnie scoffs at Gene. “Well, we can’t all be over six feet tall. Here’s a fun fact about me: I like Star Trek more than Star Wars.”

“Take that back,”

Vinnie smirks at him. “Why don’t you make me?”

“You’re kidding, I know you’re kidding,”

Vinnie laughs. “Okay, okay, I’m kidding. A true fun fact about me is… I’ve seen every season of Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” The scene is quiet. He looks at Gene behind the camera. “I’m serious.”

“… You’re actually serious?” The camera zooms in on Vinnie’s face. “You need to explain. Now. Because I’m sorry, but if you’re a fan of the Kardashians I may have to question our relationships.”

Vinnie laughs. “Don’t worry, Genie, I’m not a fan of the Kardashians. Never in a million years.”

“Thank God. But you still have to explain.”

“Okay, fine. What happened was, Mark and I had a bet where the loser had to binge watch all the seasons of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, and I lost. I spent the next two and a half weeks watching every episode whenever I had free time, and they’re two and a half weeks of my life I’ll never get back.”

“How was it?”

“If you think watching their drama every week is bad enough, try watching all of their drama at once.”

Gene winces. “That sounds horrible,”

Vinnie nods. “Like I said, two and a half weeks of my life I’ll never get back.”

“Ugh, did I just hear Keeping Up With the Kardashians?” Paul’s disgusted-sounding voice comes from in the background. “I’m sorry, but if you’re gonna be talking about that crap, you’re gonna have to leave.”

“Shut up, Paul,” Gene replies. “He’s not a fan.”

“I had a bet with Mark and lost, and so had to binge watch the whole show,” Vinnie explains.

“And?”

“Absolutely hated it,”

Paul’s voice sounds satisfied. “Good. Gene, you better not lose this one; he’s a keeper.”

Vinnie laughs, while Gene’s voice is embarrassed. “Don’t you have a Phantom of the Opera number to reenact?”

“It’s fine,” Vinnie laughs. “I don’t mind.”

“You say that now, but after you spend some more time around him, that may change,”

Vinnie shrugs. “I doubt it; I do live with Mark and Dana, after all.” He gives Gene a cheeky smile. “Am I a keeper, Genie?”

“Welllll…” the camera zooms in on Vinnie’s face, while he tries not to laugh. Then it zooms back out again. “Yeah. You’re a keeper, alright.”

Vinnie smiles. “Thank you. So are you.” The camera feed is silent for a beat. “So… should I say goodbye, or…”

“Oh! Oh yeah, uh, yeah, you should.”

“Okay.” Vinnie grins at the camera and waves. “Well, it was nice to meet Shannon. She’s a very nice lady, very efficient. Once again, I’m Vinnie. Bye!”

--

The camera opens on Gene. He is lying on his stomach on his bed, and gazes sadly at the camera. “Hi. It’s Gene. And… my life’s been a mess the past few days. Vinnie and I… well, we’re not talking. We haven’t even texted, except for…” Gene’s eyes blink rapidly, “for just now. Um, I should probably start at the beginning, huh?

“So, Vinnie’s video diary was about a month ago. And since then we got… more serious. He was—been—fuck, I don’t fucking know grammar anymore, my life’s such a mess. He’s been coming over a lot more. We made dinner together once. We watched movies, and… all that. It was great. And after he seemed to be totally fine with me making video diaries, I started making more videos with him in it. And at first it was fine—he just laughed and went along with it. But after a while…” Gene sighs and runs a hand over his face. “Fuck, I didn’t even realize this until I thought back… After a while, he started getting… less fine with it. I think—no, he was definitely more annoyed than he let on. But I never noticed; I was just so happy that he didn’t think I was weird for doing it. I-I should’ve paid more attention…

“Um, anyway, that brings me to… to a few days ago. Vinnie came over to watch… what was it? It was… I don’t even remember. Not that it matters. He came over to watch a movie, and I… he looked so handsome and I couldn’t help myself and… and pulled out Shannon while he was making popcorn. When he saw Shannon, he sighed heavily, like a really frustrated sigh, and asked if I could turn it off. And that’s what got my attention: he’s always been careful to call Shannon “her”, and this time he called her “it.” So I was kind of caught off guard, so I turned her off and asked what was wrong. And… it took him a few seconds to answer, but… he really didn’t have to in the end. He was trying to give me an excuse other than the truth.

“He… He asked me why I’m always pulling Shannon out and making videos, even when I don’t have to. I told him it was for posterity, like I usually do. But that… that, um, wasn’t enough for him. He said I should try to spend time away from making video diaries for a while, and unplug. That’s the word he used: unplug. And…” he sighs heavily. “Does it even matter what I said to that? It doesn’t seem like it matters much now; the ending’s still the same. I got kind of put off by what he was saying, he got more annoyed at me, which got me more frustrated at him, and… well, one thing led to another, and… and eventually we were just shouting at each other. We were yelling back and forth, and—and throwing insults at each other… until finally he just stormed out.

“And… And that’s it. I haven’t talked to him since. Haven’t gone to try and see him when he’s working, haven’t called him… I only worked up the balls to text him an apology a few hours ago.” He laughs humorlessly. “Can you believe that? I apologized over text instead of in person… how pathetic is that? No wonder he took two hours to respond… I was sure he wouldn’t even respond at all, even though at the same time I was checking my phone every five minutes. Then when he did respond, all he said was…” Gene swallows roughly. “It just said, I don’t want to talk right now. That’s it. Nothing else.”

Gene sighs and runs his hand across his face and through his hair. “I can’t believe it. Four months of everything going amazing and I fucked it all up because I’m too emotionally attached to my camera. Fuck, I wonder what Dr. Aucoin would say if he could see me right now… this probably wasn’t what he was thinking of when he suggested I start making these. I took it too far… This is my fault. I can’t believe Vinnie didn’t get annoyed sooner. He’s too patient…” Gene gives a wet laugh. “Goddammit, Vinnie’s amazing. He’s a treasure. I don’t care about all the stuff about him I get bothered with. I don’t care that he’s such a perfectionist. He’s too good for me… He has been from the moment I met him. And now he might want to break up with me over this… and he would be totally justified in wanting that.

“Well, you heard it right here. Once again I manage to fuck up everything, only this time I managed to fuck up the best thing that’s ever happened to me in years… maybe my entire life. I, um, don’t know when the next time I make one of these will be. It might actually be never this time. So, if this really is my last video diary…” he shrugs sadly. “I’m sorry. I wish I could end things on a lighter note, but… guess I can’t. So…” he waves despondently at the camera. “Possibly for the last time ever… this is Gene Simmons, signing off.”

The screen goes black.

--

The camera opens on Vinnie, who is staring sadly at it. He looks like he’s been crying. “Hi, it’s… it’s Vinnie. Um… you probably know what’s been happening… and it’s my fault. I could never understand why Gene’s always making these video diaries, always documenting everything… but now I know. Paul gave me all the flash drives, all the videos he’s ever made, and I watched them all. I…” He sniffs and wipes his eyes. “I feel so horrible. This is all my fault. I… I had no idea. I’m so sorry… I-I wish I could tell him how sorry I am. But I’m… I’m scared. What if he doesn’t forgive me? If I were him, I wouldn’t forgive me. But I want him to forgive me. At the very least I want him to know how sorry I am, and how ashamed of myself I am. Gene is… he’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met. He’s sweet, he’s funny, and he makes me…” Vinnie is getting closer to tears now “he makes me so happy. I… I think I—”

“Vinnie?” Gene’s voice is suddenly heard from off-camera. Vinnie jumps and whirls his head around to the side. “What are you doing?”

“I-I… I…”

Vinnie quickly fumbles with the camera, and the screen goes black.

--

The camera screen shakes for a couple seconds, until it is raised and focused on Gene. He’s lying in bed on his side, shirtless, and smiles. He speaks quietly. “Hey there. So, turns out that wasn’t my last video after all. Which… thank God. I missed getting my thoughts out to a cold, unfeeling camera lens.” He smiles wider and chuckles. “Not that Shannon’s cold and unfeeling. She’s a good listener. Which reminds me…”

Gene sits up and fumbles with the camera. He turns it around and aims it at his bed. Lying in bed asleep, also shirtless, is Vinnie. His body is turned towards Gene’s side of the bed. Gene keeps the camera on him for a couple seconds, then turns it back around to himself, smiling. “Yep. We talked, we talked a lot actually, but we talked everything out, told each other we were sorry and then that we forgave each other, and then…” He trails off and grins. “Well, I’m sure you can connect the dots yourself.

“It’s actually kind of funny how it started. Apparently, Paul got tired of seeing me moping for the past week and a half, and decided to, without telling me, tell Vinnie why exactly I make my video diaries. So he got all my flash drives together—and I mean every single one—he even made a copy of the videos on my current flash drive—went over to Vinnie’s loft, and gave them to him, telling him to watch them all. And… And he did. He was over here at our place because he was returning the flash drives, and while he was in my room he saw Shannon. And that’s when I walked in on him talking to Shannon and looking like he was going to cry. He, uh, he actually did cry. And then… we talked. He said he was sorry for everything he said, and for not realizing what these mean to me, and I said I’m sorry for how much I was aiming Shannon at his face.” Gene shrugs sheepishly, smiling. “I mean, I still feel bad, but can you blame me? He’s got a pretty face.”

A hand suddenly passes up his chest to wrap around his shoulders and the top of Vinnie’s head appears. His smile widens and he looks down. “Good morning to you.” He leans down to kiss the top of Vinnie’s head.

“Morning…” Vinnie sits up to lean his head on Gene’s shoulder and rubs his eyes. “Mmm… I woke up and you were talking to yourself…” He sees the camera, and smiles. “Oh.” He rests his head on Gene’s shoulder. “Good morning, Shannon. And… what’s the word you used?”

“Posterity?”

“That’s it. Good morning, posterity.” He smirks a bit. “It’s me, ya boi.”

Gene groans and rolls his eyes. “You got that from Paul, didn’t you?”

“It’s what he uses whenever he makes an appearance… I know he does it to annoy you, but I thought it was kind of funny.”

Gene smiles a bit. “It’s less annoying coming from you… You have a way with words.”

Vinnie looks up at him and smiles. “Well, thank you.” He leans up to kiss Gene’s cheek. Gene turns his head and kisses him full on the lips.

When they pull away Gene speaks. “I just thought of something,”

Vinnie puts his head back on Gene’s shoulder. “Mmm hmm?”

“You apologized to me… but you never apologized to Shannon.”

“I…” Vinnie looks up at him blankly. “What?”

Gene nods his head at the camera. “Shannon. You never apologized to Shannon. You called her an it, Vinnie. She’s had a pretty hard time coming back from that, especially after how you were so nice to her before.”

Vinnie glances at the camera. He’s smiling slightly, but there’s also some guilt on his face. “I did do that…”

“Yeah. Plus you didn’t even thank her for letting you record yourself yesterday.” Gene says all of this in a very serious voice. “So? Does she not deserve an apology?”

“Yes, she does.” Vinnie turns to look apologetically at the camera. “I’m sorry I called you an it, Shannon. I was annoyed at how much I saw you; that was rude and wrong of me. And thank you for letting me record myself yesterday.” He looks up at Gene. “Does she accept my apology?”

Gene leans in off to the side to look at the camera, then leans back smiling. “She forgives you,”

Vinnie smiles happily. “Thank you, Shannon. You’re a special lady. Also,” his smile turns suggestive as he glances up at Gene, “I had no idea your user was that good. Last night was fucking amazing.”

Gene’s smile widens. “I should be surprised at hearing you swear… but I heard enough of that last night.”

Laughing, Vinnie waggles his eyebrows at the camera. “What can I say? I forgot my manners.”

“Also, I’m not sure if I ever mentioned this before, but Vinnie has an ankh tattoo.”

“Mmm hmm,” Vinnie nods proudly. “I got it in Alexandria. It’s about as big as my hand, and it’s black, but I regret nothing.”

“Wanna show them where it is?”

Vinnie laughs. “No thanks.” He winks at the camera. “Sorry, but only Gene will ever know that.” He sits up a bit and smiles suggestively at Gene. “Want to see it again?”

Gene grins back. “I’d love to. Just gimme a sec.” He fumbles with the camera and turns it off.

--

When the camera is turned on, with Paul holding it, we see the interior of Cellar 82. It is crowded with people, and voices and music fill the background. “Hey, posterity,” Paul says, raising his voice so he can be heard. “It’s me, ya boi. I’m borrowing Shannon, but Gene probably won’t mind.” He turns the camera away from him and moves it to pan around the room. “So as you can see, we’ve got a full house here in Cellar 82 tonight. Why, you ask? Well…”

He moves the camera and zooms it in on Tommy and Ace, who are dancing together in the middle of a makeshift dance floor. He zooms out and turns the camera back to himself. “Ace finally proposed to Tommy. They took things seriously slow while he was working on his PhD, moved in together after he got it, and to celebrate being ten years sober, Ace finally decided to pop the question. About fuckin’ time, if you ask me.

“But while Ace and Tommy are great together, they’re not why I’m borrowing Shannon.” Paul grins wickedly at the camera. “Gimme a few seconds, and I’ll show you the real reason why.”

He turns the camera away from him and starts to move through the crowd of people. Eventually he comes to a corner that is a bit more private, and zooms in on the people sitting at the table. It is Gene and Vinnie; Vinnie is in Gene’s lap and they’re in the middle of making out. The camera turns back around to a smirking Paul. “Yep, that’s why. Gene sometimes forgets personal space is a thing when he’s had enough to drink, and you didn’t hear it from me but apparently Vinnie gets a little loose when he’s had enough wine. And when you put ‘em together… you get this.” He turns the camera back to the couple, who are still making out. “Hey, lovebirds!”

At his shout, Gene’s eyes turn in his direction, then widen. He turns his head fully around. “Paul, what the hell are you doing?” he shouts. Meanwhile Vinnie looks up, sees the camera, and hides his face in Gene’s shoulder.

“Smile, you’ve been recorded for posterity!” Paul replies gaily.

Gene gently pushes Vinnie, who nods and gets off his lap. As soon as he is off, Gene bolts to his feet and starts to advance on Paul. “I’m gonna kill you, Paul!”

“But Gene, I’ve got Shannon! You wouldn’t hurt our lovely gal Shannon, would you?”

“Shannon? Never. You? You better fucking run.”

The camera shakes violently as Paul turns and runs, laughing.

--

Gene is sitting at the kitchen table, wearing a red button-up shirt and a black blazer. “Hi. I’m about to head out to go pick up Vinnie and take him out to dinner. We’ve officially been together for one year… which I know because I have the day marked in my calendar. So I decided to take him out to a nice place. He doesn’t even know what’s going to happen; all I told him was to dress nice.”

Gene runs his hand over his hair. “I’m also planning on doing something else today. I’ve thought about it for a long time now, I think ever since we made up after that argument we had… and I’m pretty sure of it now. I’m in love with Vinnie. And after we come back here from dinner, I’m going to tell him.

“Y’know what’s funny? When I first thought that I might be in love… I would’ve been less scared if Jason Vorhees burst through my window. Because I’ve never been in love before. I love Paul, but not like that—never in a thousand years like that. And for all my other past relationships, I thought in the moment it was love, but then when it was over I realized it was just a really strong attraction. But this… I’ve thought about it for months, and I know it’s actually love.

“I’m gonna tell him tonight. Despite worrying that he doesn’t love me back, I’m still gonna do it. I just wanted to get my thoughts out before I left. Which,” Gene glances up at the clock, “I should probably leave now.” He smiles hopefully and holds up crossed fingers. “Wish me luck!”

--

The camera is aimed at the bed, then shakes as it is lifted up and turned around to reveal Vinnie. He smiles. “Hi,” he says quietly. “I woke up first and decided to borrow Shannon for a second. I’ll be quick; I just wanted to say something. But first…”

He turns the camera around and aims it at Gene, who is lying in bed on his side, still asleep. “I could get used to waking up to this,” Vinnie’s voice is soft and affectionate. He turns the camera back around. “I’m sure Genie’s already said something about it, but last night marked us being boyfriends for a year. Gene took me out to a nice dinner, then we came back here. And then…” Vinnie turns from the camera to look down at Gene, then smiles and turns back. “Gene said he loved me.” He laughs. “I still can’t believe it. He’s really in love with me.

“I didn’t say it then, because… well, I wasn’t sure enough of myself to feel confident enough to say it. But I am now. I love him too. And I’m going to tell him right now.”

And with that, he turns off the camera.

--

When the camera turns on, Gene’s shirt is the only thing in frame. He adjusts something, then moves backward to sit next to Vinnie. They are surrounded by stacks of boxes. Gene smiles and waves, while Vinnie follows suit. “If you’re watching this, this is the first video being recorded in our new apartment.”

Vinnie grins happily. “We moved in together!”

“We’ve been together for two years now, almost three, and we decided we were tired of not seeing more of each other.” Gene grins at the camera. “So, now we’ll be seeing each other all the time.” He turns to Vinnie. “Seriously though, I should probably take the time to apologize in advance.”

“For what?”

“Y’know… anything I do that bothers you or makes you uncomfortable. Paul told me one time that I snore.”

“Well, I’ve slept right next to you hundreds of times, and you’ve never snored.”

“You’re kind of a deep sleeper, though,”

“I guess that’s fair,”

“But anyway… sorry in advance.”

Vinnie smiles and shakes his head at him. “Okay. I forgive you in advance. I guess I should say sorry in advance for anything I do that bothers you.”

Gene smiles back. “I forgive you in advance.” He kisses Vinnie. The kiss slowly becomes deeper, until Vinnie falls back onto the floor with Gene on top of him.

“Mmph… Gene, the camera.”

“Right.” Gene gets up and moves to turn it off.

--

The camera turns on, and we see the interior of Cellar 82. The camera is pointed at Gene and Vinnie, who are sitting at a table.

“I’m sorry, I know I probably shouldn’t talk,” Paul’s quiet voice comes from behind the camera, “but I’m too excited! Today marks Gene and Vinnie being together for four years, and tonight’s the night Gene decided to do something very special.”

After a few moments, Paul gasps and zooms in on Gene’s hand as it reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out a small black box. Gene seems to grip it tightly for a second. The camera zooms out to have both men in frame as Gene speaks. The words are inaudible on the recording. Then Gene opens the box, places it on the table, and pushes it towards Vinnie.

Vinnie’s mouth drops open and he covers his mouth. Then he slowly nods his head. He lowers his hands to reveal a blooming smile, and his reply of “Yes!” can be faintly heard. Gene stands and goes around to Vinnie’s chair, picks up the box to take out the ring, and slides it onto Vinnie’s finger. Vinnie jumps up and they kiss passionately.

--

The camera opens on a wall of a bedroom, then is turned around to be on Gene. He grins at the camera and speaks in a quiet voice. “If you’re watching this, you’ve found the one video of my honeymoon I’m doing. The next two weeks are going to be completely radio silence. And to be honest? I’ve never been more excited.”

The camera is turned around to the bed, and zooms in on a sleeping Vinnie. “There he is—the one I’m gonna spend my life with, and the one who somehow wants to spend his life with me.” The camera zooms out and turns back to Gene. “Is it normal when you’re married to still wonder how the hell your partner puts up with you?” He shrugs. “Guess I’ll find out.” The camera turns back to Vinnie and zooms in on him. “Look at him; beautiful. He was the first one to fall asleep after last night.” His voice turns proud. “Not to brag, but I kind of outdid myself last night. I’m kind of surprised no one heard him.”

As he speaks, Vinnie shifts in bed and slowly opens his eyes. He lifts a hand and rubs them, then turns to blink blearily at the camera. “Mm, Gene… what are you doing?”

“Showing the world my beautiful husband,”

“I thought you said you weren’t going to bring Shannon along,”

“Don’t worry, this is the only video I’m taking,”

“Mmm… okay.” Vinnie rubs his eyes and props himself up.

The camera zooms in closer. “Vinniiiiiie…”

Vinnie looks at the camera, smiling amusedly. “Yes, Gene?”

“Got anything you wanna say to Shannon?”

“Shannon, you’re a lovely woman, but Gene’s legally mine now. If you could stop trying to steal him from me, that would be great.”

“Very funny. I meant something like saying hi. For posterity.”

“Okay, okay,” Vinnie smiles at the camera and waves. “Hello, it’s me, Vinnie. As of two days ago, I got married to the beautiful man behind the camera…” Vinnie laughs. “Who is now blushing.”

“Shut up,”

Vinnie laughs. “Well, assuming Gene keeps his promise, this is the only video being taken during our honeymoon, so… enjoy it.”

“Well said,”

“Thank you,”

“How’s the bed?”

Vinnie shifts. “Mm… comfy. Really comfy.”

“It is pretty comfy,”

Vinnie grins at Gene beyond the camera. “It’d be perfect if a certain someone would put Shannon away and come back to bed.” He bats his eyelashes. “Please?”

Gene sounds like he’s grinning. “Well, since you asked so nicely…”

The screen goes black.

[cjxkpopxwriting]

SINDAY DRABBLE: Happy birthday, Jagi

Author’s Note: this is a Drabble written specifically for Raquel @gloomyoongs for her birthday! Jin’s coming for you. 😍💋😈 I Hope everyone can enjoy it too.

-

It wasn’t like he hadn’t celebrated Westernized birthdays ever before. Even after their exposure to other types of celebrating, the guys had made it a thing to celebrate on their individual birthdays as much as the big one on the 1st of the year. But this was his princess. His queen. His Jagi. And he had to go all out.

The mood was set. The whole room was perfectly cleaned, organized, the table tuned to just the right angle. He’d made sure candles littered the room in the sappiest way he could imagine. Rose petals on the floor. On the table cloth. Two place settings with gleaming silverware and plates and perfectly folded napkins that had taken him hours to do. In the middle of the table was placed a dish full of her favorite pasta, complete with decoratively twisted breadsticks coated in garlic butter.

Of course he’d not missed a detail. He had his hair perfectly combed, a full suit on. He wore his best cologne, and had a dazzling smile as she texted him that she was almost there. Fussing over the food, he made sure it was still hot, accidentally blew out a candle, and had to relight it, w text that she was here. The door opened and she gasped, making him jump and turn to look at her.

“Ahhh, Jagiya! You didn’t text!” Raquel shook her head, eyes wide. “Oh yes I did! Jin... did you do this... is this for me?” Jin blushed brightly, his smile soft and then quirked to the side as he closed the door and took her hands, tugging her gently to the table. The surprise wasn’t necessarily ruined, but the whole serenading her bit was out. “It’s your birthday. I didn’t forget. And... I know it’s not going out and being crazy. But sometimes a night in is good.”

His eyes turned to her, drinking her in, and he sighed. “You are so beautiful... so so beautiful, princess.” She has been invited over under the guise of movies, pizza, and maybe a quickie. But with everyone gone, he had been able to plan something wonderful. “Come and sit... I’ve made your favorite.” Her eyes shot open in surprise at the pile of pasta and chicken coated in a lemony garlic sauce that smelled absolutely divine. He grinned victoriously as she beamed back up at him, and pumped his arm. “Oh yeah. Team Kim Seokjin for the win!”

Jin quickly served the two of them plates of pasta, salad, and breadsticks, feeling accomplished. She smirked at him. “What?” He finally asked, and she shook her head. “No entertainment? Kook and Jimin aren’t gonna jump out to sing for us?” Jin scoffed. “You want singing? From them? What am I, chopped cabbage? Hello! I can sing!” She giggled back at him, his face looking more perturbed. “And I’m worldwide handsome! Are you not entertained woman?! Seriously? Fine!”

Getting on his knees beside her chair, in a suit that could easy match the price of one of those little box cars, he began to serenade her with Epiphany. Shoving him lightly, she shook her head. “First, there’s no rain you dummy! And second, that’s not even close to romantic.” Jin grumbled and sat in his chair, shaking his own head. “You are impossible to please! And to think I was going to share Japanese style cheesecake with you!”

It was her turn to pout and he threw his hands up. “Yah! Impossible! Fine! I’ll share! Only because it’s your birthday!” The dinner between the two of them was interrupted by a video chat where Jungkook and Jimin did actually sing to her and everyone wished her the best night ever. While she finished her video call, Jin served up the dessert for them, and slid the plate with one lit candle in it in front of her. “You idiots quit yammering and sing again!”

Letting her blow out her candle, the guys finished singing and cheered when she silently made her wish. “Go find someone else’s date to crash, you savages! Bye!” Hanging up on them as they laughed, he sat back down and took a bite. “Mmm, try it!” Jin looked like he was on pins and needles as she began to bite into the cheese cake. Oh please be the right slice. Finally she scooped up a large bite and stuffed it in her mouth only to sputter for a moment and spit out whatever was hard and cold and... “oh! Is that a ring! Jin!”

That was a massive rock. Holy shit.

The man was on his knees again (sorry, Gucci) and he met her shocked gaze with a lopsided grin, trying not to giggle. “I waited all dinner to watch you nearly choke on that 5,000 dollar engagement ring...” he began, making her swat at him, which he easily dodged, catching her hands to hold them. “Will you make me the handsomest, smartest, most talented, happiest man alive? And marry me, Jagiya?”

Tears filled her eyes as she tackled him to the floor, cheesecake covered ring forgotten on the table as she kissed him. Cradling her against him, he laughed and rubbed the back of his head. “So is that...” “yes you idiot! That’s a yes!” Jin shouted victoriously, scrambling from the floor to dance around for a second. “Oh... my Jagiya. My baby. My princess...” he began, kissing all over her face, and she added “fiancé” between kisses, making him laugh. “Mhmmm. Fiancé. God I love you.”

The kisses began to get more desperate and hungry, the tiny woman pressed against him shoving him back towards the room he shared with Yoongi. “I’m so glad they’re not here... that means I can be as loud as I want.” Jin was wide eyed as she undid the buttons on his jacket and shoved it off, tugging his shirt out of his pants too. “Hey! Take it easy! This is quality stuff! I swear if you...” He added as a button popped off, and then growled at her. “Oh that’s it. You’ve ruined my suit. Now you pay!”

Squealing as she was lifted and promptly body slammed (gently) into the bed, Jin finished the shirt off by ripping it off Superman style. “Always wanted to do that for a girl. Yesss.” Her hands slid up his abdomen and chest and across those wide shoulders, lips finding his neck as he climbed back over her. “I love you so much. Gotta make love to my fiancé on her birthday... yesss.” She giggled, but the sound shifted to something wild as his hand slid into the front of her dress, shoving it higher.

“Oooh. Lace. Very nice... what color is it... mmmm.” The black lace hugged her curves, contrasting her skin perfectly and he bit into his fist, nodding. “I knew there was a reason I wanted to marry you. Yes!” As she sat up he peeled her dress off and allowed her to strip his shirt off his arms, her fingers flying to his belt right after. “Slow down baby. I have all night.” Her chuckle made his lips pout out and she nodded, explaining, “I know we have all night but if we get the crazy, clumsy round out of the way I’ll get at least two really good ones.”

Gasping, he covered his chest. “How dare you? Ya! You’re not getting any unless you say every round is the best round, you monster!” Giggling again, her lips found his. “Ok, I’m sorry. Every round with Mr. Worldwide Handsome, my fiancé, is AMAZING.” Looking satisfied, ego thoroughly stroked, he preened and nodded. “Good girl.” Standing up, he pulled his belt off. “Birthday spankings... now. On your knees.” Obediently turning over to expose her lace clad ass to him, she gasped when the sharp sting of his belt met her flesh, arousal turning over her senses to him. “Again, Jin. Please.”

He let her have two more swats so she got three total, and nodded in satisfaction. “You’re overdressed.” He added, and she agreed, shoving his pants open and down his hips. “So are you. I need these off. And I need you inside me.” His fingers slid around her back to fight with her bra, and after a few tries, he finally got it loose. “Black lace... god I love it. Jagiya...” Plush lips wrapped around a nipple, sucking hard while his fingers found the other, twisting teasingly and then kneading the entire breast.

“So beautiful baby. I am so lucky. You have no idea. Everyone will call you Mrs. Worldwide Handsome... because you look so good. Like me.” His lips wandered down to kiss right above her navel as he tugged the lace off her lower half and slingshotted them across the room. “I have no idea where those landed. I’m sorry.” Being yanked down for a kiss, he was quiet again, her hands deftly working his boxers lower. Freedom. Oh it was so good and-

“Ahhh.”

Her fingers wrapped him and pumped slowly, his jaw falling slack as he leaned down to kiss along her jaw and neck. “Yes baby... mmm.” She was slow, teasing him with each pump of her fingers. “You’re so hard and ready to go baby. Eager to please me?” Jin gave her a playful grin and nodded. “Perhaps. Yes... ok god, I want it. I’ve waited all day..” Her eyes met his, so full of love for the mess of a man over her and she knew this was it. This was the love of her life. And now she would be his forever very soon.

Jin kisses her passionately, lips eager but gentle and slow, parting her thighs with his body and sliding close enough to take her. Finally where he wanted to be, he gripped himself, stroking a few times, soft wines leaving his lips. “Condom? No condom? How do you...” But she was already dragging him closer, reminding him of her use of birth control in a whisper against his lips. Not needing to be told again, he connected their bodies with a single stroke of his hips, jaw dropping when he bottomed out.

“Always feels like the first time, baby.” She nodded in agreement, having briefly forgotten how big he was, body flexing around him to accommodate his girth and length. Having been together for over two years, there wasn’t a thing Seokjin didn’t know about her body, and quickly put that knowledge to work, hoisting her leg higher to bury himself deep. Maintaining even strokes and grinding with each one, he already had her maxed out.

One orgasm. Two.. could he get a third?

“Jin... oh my god are you on something? Jesus...” Jin kisses down her throat and chest, slowing as he had to back himself off of his own release. “Just high on your love, baby. Please, take one more?” Nodding, she kissed his lips slowly, deeply, passionately, only breathing between when he did it so good she couldn’t help it. “Jin... I’m so... close... please don’t stop.” He managed a hiss in response, hips jerking harder as he fought to stay in control.

Her face scrunched up, eyes rolling back in her head, and he knew that was it. Hearing her cry his name out into the echo of the empty house, he tumbled over the edge with her, slamming himself as deep as possible to keep everything inside. Her fingers slid up his back and shoulders and into his hair, keeping him close as they both panted to catch their breath. “I love you.” He stares back into her eyes and she smiles back, heart melting in her chest as she cradles his face in both hands. “I love you too.”

Jin is already getting off, running out of the room and she’s left confused and dripping and staring at the ceiling. “Jin!” He quickly returns with the ring and a paper towel, drying it off after he’d quickly rinsed it off in the sink. “I have to make it official. I just realized your hand didn’t feel right. Come on.” Sitting up, she offers him her left hand and he quickly slides the ring on her finger, cheering at the perfect fit. “I love you so much, baby. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you. Happy birthday, Jagi.” And with a snort, he begins round two.

[aspiratinganxiety]

Birthentine’s Day

@rock-x-kpop-fangirl:

Hey 💜🖤, first of all, I hope you are having a good day/night :) Secondly, could I please make a request for a fic/imagine with Jason Todd where the reader (his ‘partner’ in vigilantism and life 😂) dislikes Valentine’s Day because it’s also her birthday and she’s always found that awkward. Plus she claims to hate all the cliche lovey things because she tries to be dark but in reality has a soft spot for some things? I am so sorry if this is weirdly explained, I wasn’t really sure how to put it into words 😂😬 Thanks anyway 💜🖤❤️

 I got this fic done the night before so that I could be sure to get it up for you this Valentine’s!!! Have a good one, babe. I hope that this fic makes you feel the love.

Tag List:  @possiblyelven, @thepuckishrogue, @jinkies-its-a-writer, @queeniepearls (If you want to be tagged, let me know! For more fics, check out my masterlist.)

“I don’t like this,” you mumble again, squeezing your eyes shut too tightly in an effort to ignore the sticky sensation of Jason’s sweaty palms on your face.

He chuffs behind you, eager like a schoolboy and unperturbed by your repetitive negative comments. “You said the same thing last year, and we had a great time.”

“No,” you correct him. “You had a great time. I had an allergic reaction to the dehydrated strawberry powder that some asshole decided to sneak into hot cocoa mix.”

“Oh, right. I forgot that happened.”

“Yup, the same way you forgot that I was allergic to strawberries.”

Jason shrugs in response to your petulance. He directs you out of the elevator and down the familiar hall of your apartment complex with his hands still covering your eyes.

“Don’t be dramatic,” he says. “You get some itchy hives; it’s not like your throat closes up or anything. Also, I will remind you for the millionth time that I didn’t know the hot cocoa was actually chocolate-covered-strawberry cocoa. It wasn’t written anywhere on the packaging. I picked that basket for the flowers, not the other junk that came with them.”

You scoff, unsoothed. Not being one for overt gestures of affection, the contrariety of falling for someone like Jay isn’t lost on you. Jason Peter Todd remains the sappiest grown man you’ve ever met, even after years of being brutally teased by both Roy and yourself. Managing to tread water as the sole target of all his intense romantic focus is a wonder. That your sweet boyfriend never lets your mopey cynicism thwart his elaborate conglomeration of birthday and Valentine’s plans is nothing short of an incomprehensible act of God.

Back before you were dating he’d bypass all of the lovey-dovey pink shit and make sure February 14th was about nothing more than you racking up another year. It was nice to have a buddy willing to ditch girlfriends and ignore the pleas of other single friends not wanting to slog through an awkward evening of mockery and embarrassment alone. The memories of those previous birthdays are treasured far above any of the attempts Jason’s made to mix the two celebrations thus far.  

You genuinely appreciate Jason’s dedication to making your birthday special without overlooking the couples’ holiday of the year. However, you just aren’t in the mood to welcome any of his efforts this evening. The best shots he gets at sweeping you off your feet fall on anniversaries or during unexpected moments of spontaneity, not in observance of poorly-timed cesareans and crappy Hallmark holidays. Jason knows these to be your preferences, even if he doesn’t know your food allergies.

Your sense of dread deepens as the door to your apartment gets unlocked. Jason pushes you into the warm interior, and you half expect a repeat of the surprise birthday party he’d thrown for you almost five years before. When no one vaults from behind your furniture shouting, you take in the smells around you. No baking smell or tacos. Homemade dinner of champions had been a part of your birthday requests last year.

Upon reflection, last year was a pretty great time. Strawberry debacle aside. Not that you’re willing to admit that to your boyfriend until he recognizes the danger of feeding you anything to do with those dastardly little fruits that are so popular this time of year.

Your jitters get the better of you, and you stop trying to guess. “Jason, lemme’ see.”

“You sure?” he teases, setting his chin on your head and weaseling up close behind you.

An impatient huff escapes your throat as you go about tugging his hands off of your face. It takes a moment for your eyes to adjust, having been covered for quite some time. The scene that greets you melts your heart along with your reservations about celebrating Valentine’s Day. Your couch is covered in a brand new plush throw blanket. Though it is pink, it looks soft enough to be worth the eyesore. Snacks are piled on the coffee table, a wide selection of everything from luxury chocolates to your favorite flavor of potato chip. The TV is paused over the opening titles of the Netflix original you’ve been trying to make Jason binge with you for nearly six months.

You are so touched trying to take it all in that you almost miss what Jason’s saying: “-so I figured, why not both? You told me that time we watched a ton of stupid 90s movies and ate garbage was your favorite birthday.”

“All of the snacks and colors are from Valentine’s day,” you observe, tilting your head back into Jason’s chest.

“Well, accept your cake. And the chips and popcorn. And those nasty frozen pizza things you like.”

“You got me the bagel pizzas?” Your eyes practically have stars in them at this point. This revelation, by far, is the most heartwarming part of the night. Jason loathes the quick frozen foods you’d been living off of before the two of you moved in together and he took initiative in the kitchen.  

Jason grumbles, pretending to be put upon where he’s victorious. “Yeah, I got you your damn gross bagel pizzas.”

“And you baked them in the oven?”

He speaks as though resigned to the childish back and forth, but he loves it. You know he does. “And I baked them in the oven.”

You swoon theatrically while Jason pouts in a good-natured fashion. He catches your weight easily, scooping you up and plopping you on the couch on top of a mountain of heart-related plush items and a bag of those chalky heart candies with corny sayings that nobody likes, but everyone remembers eating.  

You beam at him and snuggle close when he settles in beside you.

This is perfect. Low-key, just the two of you at home, good-bad food, and an awesome show.

How could you have ever doubted him? Jason Peter Todd is a genius, and he’s the best boyfriend with whom you could spend Birthentine’s Day.

[veliseraptor]

2018 Fanfiction Round-Up

Total Year-Long Wordcount: According to my spreadsheet, it’s 523,355 words, which does also include some essay writing and original fiction but is by and large fic.

This year I wrote and posted: Roughly, 119 fics? This is not, probably, a correct calculation, as it probably includes multiple chapters of Life in Reverse/Halfway House as separate fics, and the entirety of like the restless sea (not all of which I wrote this year), but I don’t feel like doing more math. It’s almost 12 pages on Tumblr.

Overall Thoughts

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d predicted? A little less than last year, but on the other hand...idk, I don’t tend to think about my year in terms of how much fic I’m writing while I’m in the middle of it. Honestly if I did I’d probably be a happier person who was less often like “OH NO I’M NOT WRITING ENOUGH.” That’s what’s nice about this meme - it really provides me with perspective.

So, like, technically I wrote less than I did last year, and that is not surprising considering the shape my life took this year (job meltdown, new job, three weeks of bedbug crisis), but...I still wrote a lot, especially with all of that considered, and wrote a lot better, I think.

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted in January? WELL I DIDN’T SEE MYSELF COMING BACK TO DOCTRINE OF LABYRINTHS IN FORCE BUT HERE I AM WITH FIVE NEW WIPS

What’s your own favorite story of the year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you happiest? Man, I don’t know. There are a number of things that I’m pleased that I did for different reasons? Like, Will to Live feels like an accomplishment. But do I count finishing Life in Reverse for this year? Or the fact that I think Steve Rogers’ Halfway House for Notorious Supervillains remains one of the better written things I’m putting out (also possibly the best title)?

Maybe I’ll settle with it’s the season of possible miracle cures because that fic has been six years in the making and I finally got Steve and Loki married and it was the sappiest thing ever and I stand by it. Also I made myself emotional while I was writing it, which is usually a good sign.

OH NO ACTUALLY how could I forget? I think it’s the enemy of my enemy. I’ve missed writing Clint and Loki, and that fic was so fun to write, and now I want a whole AU of it. I’m like. Deep into a second chapter and have no idea where it’s going but I’m going with it.

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them? I sure did write a lot of second person. I feel like that doesn’t count as a risk per se, though, because every case where I did it...I did it because it felt like the story needed to be in that point of view? I mean, I wrestled with off to the races trying to write it in third person limited like usual and it just...really wanted to be in second person. So basically - does it count as a risk if it wasn’t something I chose to do?

Otherwise...I feel like I’m not a very adventurous writer most of the time. It’s one of the things I don’t love about myself as a writer.

From my past year of writing, what was….

My most popular story of this year: Cutting out Life in Reverse and Halfway House, as fics that are ongoing and skew the scale significantly (especially the former): based on hits it was escalated almost to an art. Based on kudos, Reckless Self-Endangerment, and based on bookmarks the same. That...actually really surprises me.

Most fun story to write: Probably Will to Live. That fic...took me totally off guard and just - spilled out of me. It was a joy to write from basically start to finish, and other than a plot hole hiccup that was resolved with some invaluable beta help, really just...came together almost on its own. And it was, truly, so many things mashed together that I’m into. I haven’t ever written that much Thor POV, I don’t think, and that really caught me by surprise as far as how much I enjoyed it, too.

Story with the single sexiest moment: I feel like...hm. I’m not sure. I guess it depends on whether we’re going with “conventionally sexy” or “shit I shouldn’t be into this sexy” because those are two different answers. But I do feel like the sex in An Ever Expanding Circle is definitely up there.

Most “Holy crap, that’s wrong, even for you” story: I’m still pretty sure nothing I do will ever live up to the bar set by The Vivisection Mambo, but...escalated almost to an art probably is up there. I mean, it was definitely the story where I was most “holy shit what am I doing” while I was writing it. Though making love with his ego was also pretty damn dark and also...had a much more downer ending than I was originally planning.

Actually, though, I feel like the worst is probably One Wrong Turn because of the set up (Remember This Cold AU) and where I went with it as far as breaking everyone involved (except, as usual, the Grandmaster).

Story that shifted my own perceptions of the characters: uhhhhh. I always have a hard time with this question, because I don’t really know what it means? My perceptions of characters tend to shape how I write a fic, not so much the other way around. I guess maybe - oh, no, I’ve got it. It’s only one part in one story, but writing Shuri in Breathing Room gave me a better understanding of her character, I think, than I have before. Which is mostly down to @portraitoftheoddity​, so I don’t know if I can actually take credit for that.

Hardest story to write: God. So many stories are hard to write in so many ways. always ready for a war again was definitely a challenge, as writing stories from a different character POV usually are. I struggled a bizarre and moderately hilarious amount with how fluffy the wedding fic ended up getting; I thought I might be going too far. (That’s such a me thought to have.)

Oh - writing like 500 words of Mildmay’s POV was absolutely one of the most nerve-wracking experiences of my writing career. And I’m going to keep doing it. Whoops.

Biggest Disappointment: Myself, for the fact that despite having 41 pages written, I’ve only managed to successfully post two chapters of Tear My Castle Down.

Biggest Surprise: Other than stumbling and falling face first back into writing for Doctrine of Labyrinths as a fandom? Possibly writing Crimson Peak fanfiction. I didn’t see that happening. Otherwise...the number of new kinks I wrote for reason of Frostmaster definitely caught me off guard.

Most Unintentionally Telling Story: I feel like everything I wrote for Loki/Grandmaster this year could be called “unintentionally telling.” It’s like...if you’ve been following me for the last few years, this might not have been something you were aware of, but hoo boy has it been there.

Favorite Opening Line(s):

Loki had a smile like an air raid siren: attention grabbing and screaming danger. (untitled)

His first memory was a silver mask with rectangles for eyes and mouth, looking down at him. “Attempt four-hundred and thirty-two,” it said, “success.” (how you gaze upon my bones)

When it was over, when all was said and done, the dust settled, the universe rebuilt, Steve walked away. (blackbird singing in the dead of night)

Away from Allerdale Hall, Lucille felt as though she’d disappear. (we too (three) could be glorious)

You were born with two names. (always ready for a war again)

Favorite Line(s) from Anywhere:

1. Loki slipped in and out of consciousness, clinging to life. Held back from the edge like he was a ship at anchor, wood groaning at the pull of the rope. He could almost see death, a reef where the waves broke, that he could break himself on. (your blood like ice)

2. The Void was not empty, as everyone had thought. The Void was full of monsters. One of them found Loki, and plucked his body out of space, and forced him back to life. He mended Loki’s fragmented consciousness with all the gentleness of a carpenter hammering together pieces of wood, and when he was a rough approximation of whole the being who had found him told him who he was, and what he wanted. (the years after the fall)

3. He pressed the thumb of his right hand into the palm of his left. The gesture felt familiar, and yet when he actually did it, strange. Someone else’s hands. Someone else’s lungs. (down to the bone)

4. Loki’s stomach sank. He recognized the feeling. It was the one that meant he was about to do something stupid because of Thor. He hadn’t felt it in a while, and he didn’t appreciate its return. (Captive Audience)

5. Your people bleed names. Names torn away by force, broken lineage, and even when you’re free the names you get aren’t really yours. I am N’Jadaka, son of N’Jobu, you said, and thought you were taking your birthright, but it wasn’t yours. You’re too much Erik Stevens, too much Killmonger, too much American. You don’t belong here. (always ready for a war again)

6. The Grandmaster did not just make his point (I own you, everything you are is mine to do with as I please). He hammered it home, wrote it in Loki’s flesh, crucified him with it. He pulled Loki apart, cooed over him and promised to put him back together only to break him down further into smaller and smaller pieces, and it occurred to Loki that up until now the Grandmaster had been merciful. (it’s a mean world that I’ve known)

7. As it was, even with the windows open he was still trapped within the confines of his skull - a far deadlier snare than even the cruelest jailor could devise. (Stitching)

8. “Getting yourself killed doesn’t prove anything,” Thor said, finally. Loki snorted.

“Wouldn’t it, though?” He said, eyebrows raised. “Everyone loves a good self-sacrifice. I wrote a whole play about it.”

Thor’s expression spasmed again. Still not amused. “I would rather have a living brother than a dead hero.” (Reckless Self-Endangerment)

9. In the winter, she thought distantly, they should go to the Alps. There, the snow would come down clean. (we too (three) could be glorious)

10. “I wonder,” he said, “if hounds hunt wolves with such alacrity, for envy of their freedom.” (Will to Live)

11. Loki's nostrils flared. "You say we," he said, "but I am not a participant in this. And you still do not understand. There is no making this better. This is what it is. My pain is part of its design, its purpose. And even if it were not, even if you somehow could prevent the binding from hurting me at all - it would still be a binding. You still own me. Coat that in honey as you will, but that will never be anything but wormwood." (Tear My Castle Down)

12. Thor. Even thinking the name was like a wound, so he held it there, letting it dig in. Could he, he would open his chest and carve Thor’s name on every one of his ribs. (half a league onward)

Top 5 Scenes from Anywhere You Would Choose to Have Illustrated:

The scene from making love with his ego where the Grandmaster loses his temper with Loki and flexes those cosmic powers.

The Steve/Loki wedding from it’s the season of possible miracle cures.

Thor and Loki cuddling in we don’t know where tomorrow ends or drown my woes in a lake of fire.

Any part of the Steve/Loki/Thor smut from An Ever Expanding Circle.

The scene from I am frail, be you forgiven with Loki holding Thor’s hands, one on his heart and one on his neck.

Fic-writing goals for 2019:

Well, last year I said my goal for 2018 was finishing Life in Reverse so I’d be like “goal for 2019: finishing Halfway House!” but that is just plain not realistic. So, uh, on the more realistic front:

write and finish the next Remember This Cold plot-fic

be less scared of self indulgence

write less fic and more original fiction

get another essay published on Tor.com

try to chill out and remember that if you take breaks it doesn’t mean you’re worthless

[sweetboybucky]

Parent Drabble Series - Epilogue

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Word Count: 1100

Warnings: None

A/N: Hi, everyone! So, the final part is here. I know that it’s longer than a drabble, but I had a lot to say in this one. It’s also the sappiest thing I’ve ever written. And that’s saying a lot, coming from. 

Once again, thank you so much for your amazing support on this series. I’ve loved writing it so much and will miss it like crazy, but I’m so excited to share some other things with all of you. Anyway, enjoy! 

Part 18 II Series Masterlist

*** 

You never really thought this day would come.

Children and parents mull around you. Step in and out of the school every second. Backpacks with princesses and cowboys and pirates printed on them rest on tiny shoulders. Sneakered feet slam against the concrete path as you walk toward the front doors.

Becca steps beside you and Bucky occupies her other side, Steve walking behind the three of you - your daughter insisted her favorite Uncle tag along and Steve’s happy expression made it impossible to deny her request. You and Bucky each have one of her little hands in your grasp. Fingers squeeze tighter as you finally approach the teacher waiting outside, greeting everyone.

A smile brightens your daughter’s face as she says hello to her new preschool teacher. As she shakes hands with her new fate and you prepare yourself to say goodbye.

You spare a glance at Bucky. Notice his pained expression and find the same one on Steve’s face when your eyes cut to him, though he’s more subtle. You give them a tight-lipped smile.

“Okay, Becca,” you say, turning to your daughter and trying to keep your voice steady. “You have everything you need?”

“I think so, Mama,” she says, swinging your hands between your bodies.

She stands tall next to you, smiling and looking around at the other kids filing into the building, at the other preschoolers waiting for their teacher to take them to class.

You remember complaining about her growing up too fast. Whining with Bucky about wanting her to stay your baby forever. It’s funny, you think, how ill-prepared you were for today.

Years have passed, now. And you’ve loved every second of it. Every minute you’ve been able to share with your family.

Seeing her now, standing in front of you, five years old and ready to take on the world, you want so badly to turn back the clock. To do it all over again. To lock yourself in a time where you can be sure that the world won’t sharpen her edges.

But you can’t do that. You know you can’t. And you think she’ll be okay for a little while longer, anyway. Your beautiful, strong, wonderful baby girl.

Yeah, you think. She’ll be just fine.

“Alright,” you whisper, smoothing her long, dark hair out of her face, losing yourself in how much she looks like Bucky for a moment, “we all want hugs and kisses. We’ll be back to pick you up in a few hours, okay?”

“Even Uncle Steve?” she asks.

“Even Uncle Steve,” Steve cuts in, lunging forward and scooping her up. Hugging her to his chest and smiling when she wraps her arms around his neck, when she laughs and places a wet kiss on his cheek.  He kisses the side of her head before letting her wiggle down. “Have fun, kiddo,” he adds.

She turns to Bucky, then. Looks up at him with a fond smile. He looks down at her with watery eyes, kneeling down and pulling her into a tight hug.

“I love you, baby,” he whispers, squeezing his eyes shut and nuzzling into her hair. He pulls away after a minute, settles his hands on the sides of her face. Kisses her forehead and says, “Have fun, okay? Draw me a picture or something.”

“I love you, too, Daddy,” she tells him, kissing his scruffy cheek and then turning to you.

God, you’re not ready for this.

You grab her hand, anyway. Pull her toward you and wrap your arms around her. Let your nose fall into her hair, breathe in her scent and will yourself not to cry.

“Have an awesome day, sweetheart. We’ll be back soon. I love you.”

“Okay, Mama.” Her response is muffled into your chest. “I love you, too.”

She pulls away. Flashes you one more grin before stepping toward her teacher. Grabbing her hand and following her into the building.

You watch as she walks through the doors. As she turns around long enough to blow the three of your a kiss. You see Bucky make a show of catching it out of the corner of your eye as you do the same, pressing your hands to your chest. Holding her kiss next to your heart.

And then she’s out of sight.

Steve mumbles something about going back to the car. Looks at you long enough for you to notice his eyes are a little red, even through your own tears.

Bucky steps up next to you. Curls his arm around you and kisses your temple. He takes in a shaky breath and you look up at him. Catch the single tear sliding down his face with your thumb.

“You said you weren’t gonna cry,” you whisper. He looks down at you. Wipes the wetness off of your cheeks.

“So did you.”

“Well, I’m pregnant,” you reason. “I can cry whenever I want and get a free pass.”

“Oh, right,” he laughs, letting his hand fall on your swollen belly. “I forgot about that rule.”

“To be fair, the last time I was pregnant was five years ago,” you remind him. “And you’re an old man. Memory loss is common with old age.”

“Very funny,” he deadpans, turning his head to look back at the doors. Watching the kids move around through the glass.

Bucky sighs. Rests his forehead against yours and complains, “This isn’t fair. I told her she wasn’t allowed to grow up.”

The baby kicks his hand at the moment. Draws a chuckle out of both of you.

“Your son is yelling at you. Reminding you that you’ll have another baby to fawn over in a few months.”

“I hear you, pal,” he murmurs, placing both of his palms on your abdomen. Laughing when he kicks again. “Get out here soon. I wanna meet you.”

Affection blooms within you. Your hand rests on the back of your soldier’s neck as you pull him toward you for a kiss. You smile against his mouth, laugh and pull away when he tickles your sides.

“Come on.” Lips brush against your nose. “Steve’s waiting.”

You let him pull you to the car. Open the passenger door for you and buckle you in, kissing you before moving over to the other side, sitting in the driver’s seat. You look back at Steve as Bucky starts the car. Smile at him and mutter a small, “Thank you,” as Bucky starts driving.

The school fades from your view, the city stretching out before you in no time. Another tear slips down your face as you lean your head back against the seat. Reach over and grab Bucky’s hand. He kisses your knuckles. You feel the baby kick.

Your baby is grown up, now, more grown than you ever imagined she would be. But you know you still have so many years left with her. So many years left with you beautiful soldier and your beautiful babies - even the one you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting yet.

You know that your little family’s journey has only just begun.

MAIN TAG LIST:

@solarbarnes II @akamaiden II @my-meant-to-find-blog II @marvelous-avengers II @jack4xx II @buckyforbreakfast II @theglowstickofdestiny II @bucky-at-bedtime II @notimetoblog II @estelgilvala II @teawithbucky II @veronicalei II @part-time-patronus II @thunderous-flower II @thelostverse II @delicatecapnerd II @pizzarollpatrol II @laurfangirl424 II @stevieboyharrington II @yknott81 II @bucky-smiles

PARENT DRABBLE TAG LIST:

@jhangelface0523 II @call-me-a-motherfuckin-princess II @buckybarnesappreciationsociety II @im-beautifully-sewn II @nanna022

[thevampslyssa-blog]

C11- The World and the Road Dogs

{June 8th, 2009 Arlington, Texas Cowboys (AT&T) Stadium Nick- 16|Mel-14}

It was getting closer and closer to the boys' first "World Tour", everyone and their mother were excited. It was going to be one hell of a year, to be quite honest. The Jonas Brothers were set to perform in many countries all around the world till December of that year, with little to no break, while flying out to Canada to film Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam.

From the last time we had heard from the boys, a lot had happened, Nick and Melissa had a stint there were they had broken up for a few weeks. At the time they had fought about the fact that there were rumors that Nick had cheated on her with Miley. Melissa being young and naive, believed the media over someone that she had known her whole life. So they had split up, the time apart was good for the two teenagers, Nick had gotten some good songs out of it for the upcoming album, and Melissa had learned to be alone for a while.

As time went on, they started to realize how silly it all was, and Melissa had apologized to Nick, knowing that she was in the wrong. There was silence for a day or two, then he showed up at her doorstep with flowers and the biggest, sappiest smile in the world, and they were together again. I mean they do belong together, correct?

Since the Jonases and Melissa had once lived in Texas, it was easy for them to be doing rehearsals for the tour, as Denise and Kevin Sr. had recently bought a house in Dallas.

Nick and Melissa pulled up in Nick's new shiny black Camaro, as it was bright and early in the morning on the first day of tour rehearsals. "You sure you wanna stay all day babe?" Nick asked, their hands still interlaced together.

She nodded, taking the Road Dogs hat off of her boyfriend's head, and slipped it on hers. "I-I'm sure baby." she smiled and kissed his cheek.

They got out of the car, and Nick came right around to her side, interlacing their fingers again as Rob Brenner, their tour director came up and greeted them.

"You're late Jonas." he joked, grinning as he chuckled. Nick smirked at him, "sorry, we got stuck in traffic." he squeezed Melissa's hand, knowing that wasn't exactly the truth.

The hours passed by and the boys were all bouncing ideas off one another, it was amazing to see how once one good idea came to mind, a million more came out.

"Okay, so we're gonna run through the show once more, Melissa do you want to run through Before the Storm with Nick?" Rob asked, coming up to the young teenager who was sitting in one of the seats that were set out.

Melissas's head immediately shot up at the sound of her name, her glossy eyes looking over at Nick who was getting his guitar ready. "I-I don't know. I mean, Nick do you wanna?"

His brown eyes glanced at her, "We can, yah." he said softly, they both knew why the song was written, and what it meant for the both of them.

Melissa nodded, and went to go get the in-ear set up. "It'd be between Can't Have You and Video Girl correct?" she asked.

Eleven songs later, and Mel was standing next to her boyfriend, a little bit of nerves running through her. "Ready?" she whispered to him, and leaned over to kiss his cheek before Joe waved to them as the lift brought them up to the stage.

Nick began strumming his guitar, as Melissa began singing the song that they both loved more than anything, but it was also the one that broke them down.

"I know this isn't what I wanted I never thought it'd come this far. just thinking back to where we started, and how we lost all that we are."

Before Nick began singing his part, Melissa stepped back and turned herself around so she could look into his eyes. Sometimes she couldn't believe that she was so blessed to have that boy not only as a boyfriend, but as a best friend.

"We were young and times were easy, but I could see it's not the same. I'm standing here, but you don't see me. I'd give it all for that to change.

And I don't want to lose her, don't wanna let her go."

Nick's eyes wouldn't leave hers as he sang his part, they both thought back to the moment that Melissa had heard the song. It was a very emotional time for the two young teens, but the first time that she had stepped into that recording booth to lay down her vocals... she could barely finish the song.

Even with the fact that when they recorded it, their relationship was fine, they were perfectly in love... but the sheer thought of losing one another again; it hurt more than anything.

"I'm standing out in the rain, I need to know if it's over, Cause I will leave you alone. Flooded with all this pain, Knowing that I'll never hold her Like I did before the storm... yeah. Before the Storm." ———- {June 20th, 2008 Arlington, Texas Cowboys (AT&T) Stadium Nick- 16|Mel-14}

"Boys, it's time to get in the boxes." Paul came up as they were all getting ready to go on stage. Even Melissa who had already been in hair and make up, "once we get all three of them to stage, we will come back and get Melissa."

Nick looked over at his girlfriend who was pacing, she had never done this big of a performance before, "babygirl, you sure you want to do this?" he asked, coming up to her.

She looked up at him, chewing on her lip, "I-I'm sure. As long as you're with me. I'll be okay." she said softly, leaning over to kiss his lips lightly before she let him get into his box.

"Love you." they both whispered to one another, before one of the stage hands closed Nick's box and the two teens were separated.

About ten minutes had passed and Paul was wheeling back Nick's box, "he said to keep the little light on, it gets a little scary in there." Paul smiled at her.

Melissa giggled, and climbed in the box, she immediately saw the all of Nick's stickers, and his little personal touches he added to the interior of the box.

Her heart immediately melted as she saw the little note taped to the black wood, with "Lyssa" scribbled on it. She opened the note, tears welling up in her eyes at how sweet her boyfriend was,

"Angel💕,

I know i'm gonna see you in a matter of minutes, but i wanted to let you know how much i appreciate you, and how much i love you. you mean everything to me, and without you, i'd be lost.

but i want to take a minute to let you know that you are the one thing that keeps me going everyday, and i'm grateful that i can wake up every single morning with you beside me. you are the light of my life. i hope you know that i will never ever let you go. it's you and me forever, right baby?

i love you princess, see you in a sec.

-your Nicholas💕"

Her heart was pounding as she read the sweet note, wondering when the heck he would've written it, as she had been with him literally all day.

Within minutes she had gone over the huge bumps, and was surrounded around thousands of screaming fans. She was pushed underneath the stage and the latch on the outside of the wooden box was opened by none other then her boyfriend.

"Hey baby, have fun?" he grinned, his guitar strapped across him.

She blushed, as he helped her get up and she hugged him, kissing him softly, "Yes I did, thank you for the note. I loved it." she whispered in his ear, slipping the beloved note in her back pocket for safe-keeping.

"Nick! to the stage! now!" Kevin interrupted the two lovebugs, and summoned his little brother to him. Melissa pouted, but let the teen go. "Good luck boo. I'll be out there watching in a second." she whispered, kissing him once more before she let him go. "love you."

The beginning of Paranoid was soon being played and Melissa smiled big, hurrying out of the stage with Aunt Denise who wanted to see her boys doing what they loved. ———- {7/15/2009 Newark, New Jersey Nick- 16|Mel-15}

It was a beautiful day in Hartford, Connecticut, the weather was beautiful and everyone was beyond excited for the game against ESPN.

Melissa and Nick stepped off the bus, hands interlaced as both of them were decked out in their Road Dogs gear. Melissa wearing some cute shorts instead of the softball pants that everyone else was wearing.

"Ready for the game Captain Nick?" Melissa asked, smiling over at her boyfriend as they walked towards the field. As they began to get closer, the fans could be heard more and more. Her anxiety beginning to get the better of her.

"Definitely, are you ready to cheer me on angel?" Nick asked, smiling big as they both had picked out what would be on the back of Melissa's jersey.

The back said; Nick's Angel

Nick's grip on her hand tightened as they began to walk through the crowd, "don't let go baby." Nick whispered in her ear, as the girls surrounded them. "Let us through girls!" Nick exclaimed.

Melissa's head spun slightly, yes she always been apart of this life with them, but she still wasn't used to it.

After a few minutes, the girls finally listened to Nick's request, making a path for them. They quickly made their way through and as they went to the field, Joe's eyes lit up as he saw the two lovebugs.

"Finally you two decided to show up! Hey Popstar, are you okay?" Joe asked, coming up with worry written all over him.

Melissa, who was standing next to Nick, clutching onto him as her heart pounded still. She was completely out of it, "H-Hey S-Superstar... y-yah, yah I'm okay." she stuttered out, leaning her head against Nick's shoulder.

Nick glanced down at her, then back up at Joe who was looking at the young girl skeptically. "We went through the group of fans out there, she's just a little on edge at the moment."

Joe nodded, "you'll be okay boo." he smiled weakly at the couple, "just take deep breaths." he told her, then made his way back over to the team.

Nick pulled the girl to a seat and set her right onto his lap, "will you be okay? if you stay with Dani?" he asked, interlacing their fingers together and let her distract herself by playing with them.

She looked up at him, her eyes glossing over, "Y-Yah, I will be. I'm sorry my mood changed so quickly... I-I don't understand what happened." she said softly, trying not to have her voice crack so much, but she wasn't successful.

"Don't worry about it Angel." he whispered, and kissed her gently before helping her up. She smiled at him weakly, then followed the team out.

Danielle came up, smiling at Melissa, "you okay babe?" she asked, standing next to her in the dugout.

Melissa looked over at her, "the boys talked to you, huh?" she chuckled softly, "Yah, I'm okay. Just the crowd of girls wouldn't move... never had experienced them not listening like that. It's like they don't care about the boys, or the loved ones around them." she explained, sighing as she looked down.

Danielle nodded, "I understand that, the first time I experienced it with the crew, one of the fans pulled me back... literally grabbed my shirt and yanked. Kevin was so furious, he wanted to sue the girl." she recalled, her hand resting on Melissa's back. "You'll get used to it sooner or later."

A couple of hours later, the Road Dogs had won the game, and everyone was rushing back to the buses to either take showers there or two gather their things to take a shower when they got back to the venue.

Halfway through the game, Melissa had asked Danielle to take her back to the bus, as she still wasn't feeling herself and she had too much on her mind.

"...yah mom, I just don't know if I can deal with it anymore, the fans don't respect the boys or their privacy at all. I mean, I love Nick... with all my heart, more than anyone... but I just can't do it anymore..." Melissa was sitting in Nick and her's bunk, a fluffy blanket wrapped around her body.

She had tears falling from her eyes as she knew that she couldn't live without Nick. "So what do you want to do?" her mom asked on the other line.

Melissa wiped her tears away, "that's the thing I don't know what I want to do." she mumbled, and she flinched as she heard the bus door slam open, "Lyssa?" Nick's sweet voice flowed through the bus.

"I gotta go mom, love you." she said softly, and ended the call immediately.

"Baby, what happened to you out there?" he called, and she peeked her head out, "I-I'm okay baby." she whispered and smiled weakly as her brown eyes landed on Nick —who was all hot and sweaty... damn.-

Nick came and sat next to her interlacing their fingers together. "Is it because of earlier? Lyss... you know, I'd never let them hurt you."

"That's what Dani thought too..." she thought, but smiled at him, as his gentle hand came up and moved a stray piece of hair back behind her ear.

Every time he touched her like that, she tell more and more in love with him... she wanted to be with him. He was her soulmate, but the fans always seemed to get in the way.

"Let me take care of you angel. Let me in. Lemme inside that beautiful head of yours." he whispered, his eyes not leaving hers, as he leaned over to kiss her lovingly. "Let me love you." ————