#yelled at a tory before work i love my life

[thefallennightmare]

Fika-Joakim 'Jolly' Karlsson: 1/2

*made by @madomens. check her out!*

*gif created by me. feel free to use, simply give credit*

Pairings: Joakim 'Jolly' Karlsson x OFC.

Warnings: some angst, swearing, lots of fluff, smut, mentions of death.

Summary: To appease her dying father’s wishes, Astrid takes over the family coffee shop: Fïka. Plans to restore it to its former glory: setting her dreams and ambitions aside- that is until she meets an unexpected stranger. This very stranger changes the trajectory of her life.

Authors Note: Ok what originally was a 26k word one shot is now a two parter! I have the link to part two at the bottom of this one! Enjoy my lovelies. I hope you all enjoy my first time writing Jolly. Oh, make sure you all pay attention closely to this 😏 It took me a month to write this btw.

Tags: @thescarlettvvitch @sammyjoeee @somewhere-diamond @concreteemo @ladispo0p @to-be-written @lilmonster218 @whenthesummerdies @lizzieseveride @blackveilomens @malice-ov-mercy @lma1986 @klutzy-kay24 @baddestomens @cncohshit @jilliemiw86 @cookiesupplier

ASTRID

“Son of a bitch,” I grumbled while struggling to carry the large and heavy box from the stockroom up to the front area of the cafe. 

Another curse fell from my lips as I nearly tripped over the discarded and broken coffee machine that I seemed to have forgotten was lying on the floor. Then when I walked past the break room where two of my employees were enjoying their break, one of them waved me over. 

“Yes?” I grunted while pausing for a moment, still carrying the large box. 

“The turbo oven is doing that thing again where it either burns the food or doesn't cook it at all,” Jessica said with a frown. “Any idea when the new one is supposed to come in?” 

I nodded towards the box. “Two steps ahead of you.” 

As I went to push myself through the door that encased the back of the cafe from the front, my other employee, Sean, yelled after me. 

“The front door is getting stuck again! Can you WD20 it again?!” 

“IT’S WD40!” I yelled back. 

Pushing my way through the door, I felt the box beginning to slip between my sweaty fingers and I quickly walked over to the front counter, letting it fall onto it with a loud thud. 

Curious eyes from the few customers landed on me and I smiled sheepishly while shrugging. “Sorry.” 

“Uh, Astrid?” 

Whirling around, I brushed away strands of my white hair to see another one of my employees standing in front of me with an apologetic face. 

“Oh no,” I shook my head. “What’s broken now?” 

“The sink in the restroom is slow to drain and we’re running low on cold foam,” Tori said with her hands behind her back. 

“Low? How?! We’ve only been open a week and that stock was supposed to last us at least three!” I exclaimed with a high squeaky voice; one that only showed when I was stressed. 

“Sean doesn't understand the measurements,” Tori sighed. “I’ve gone over the sheet with him like four times but he still doesn’t get it.” 

Running my hands over my face, I let out a deep and calming breath, which seemed to help until the front door rattled before being thrown open, almost smacking against the black brick. 

“Jeez, you should really get this door checked out.”

Whirling around on my heels with a low scowl, I was ready to lay into this person because frankly, it was one thing after the other and I’ve fucking had it. But when I took in the appearance of these two guys, I quickly shook my head, heart dropping into my stomach. 

“You guys aren’t supposed to be here until after closing!” 

There’s that high-pitched voice again. 

“Yeah well,” the guy carrying a bucket and paintbrush shrugged. “We finished our other job early so we thought we could get started here.” 

I hired this local paint company to paint the tallest wall inside the cafe only because I didn’t have a tall enough ladder to reach the highest point. I painted everything else but didn’t want to bother with this one; it was right in the middle of the cafe lobby. 

“No, that’s not going to work,” I walked around the counter so I could stand face-to-face with this guy. “I have customers and I can’t have you paint while they’re in here.” 

“Listen, lady, all due respect-.” 

I craned my neck to the side and let out a low hiss. “I fucking hate when people say that.” 

The two painters shared a look before the one who seemed to be in charge raised a brow. “What?” 

“Typically when people say all due respect, it’s rarely followed by a respectful remark,” I said with my arms crossed. 

“Did you want us to paint this wall or not?” The guy who had been silent spoke. 

I snapped my eyes over to him. “Do you want my money or not?” 

That seemed to have shut both of them up but my hands were still shaking as my heart was hammering hard in my chest. Ever since we opened this morning, it seemed like it was problem after problem. 

Why the fuck did I agree to take over this place? 

Because it was your father's cafe and his father’s before him. You promised you’d take care of it when he passed.  

Running a tattooed hand through my long hair, I let out a deep breath. “I closed at nine. Can you come back then?” 

The one painter shook his head. “Nope. We don’t work that late.” 

Glancing at my watch, I noticed that it was barely one in the afternoon, and with less than eight hours left, I had to make a decision quickly. 

Biting the inside of my cheek, I eventually nodded. “Fine, you can start now. But please, be respectful of my customers.” 

There were only three customers in here currently, a total of six since we opened at nine a.m., but I didn’t dare let them know. 

Leaving them to do their work, I let the heels of my combat boots thud against the aging wood floors as I walked back behind the counter to go over the mental checklist of my list. 

Unclog the bathroom sink.

Order more cold foam. 

Personally show Sean the correct measurements. 

WD40 the front door. 

Set up the new turbo oven. 

Quickly tying my hair into a braid, I set to work on the list. Had I known the amount of work and updating this cafe needed before I took it over from my father, I would have said no. I was twenty-five years old and had the rest of my life ahead of me, I didn’t want to be stuck trying to keep this place above water. 

Fika first opened sixty years ago when my grandparents came to the United States for an opportunity for a better life. From day one it was a music-themed cafe where they had live music nights every Friday. It succeeded well after they left it to my father when they retired. He hated the live music nights so as soon as he took over, he axed that idea. 

However, when my father got sick about five years ago, that’s when everything went to shit. 

I grew up inside of these walls and saw the stress it brought on my parents until they divorced when I was twelve. My mother wanted nothing to do with this place, claiming it was cursed, so she left. 

My father did his best to raise me solo while trying to run this cafe full-time. I would help out when I could; be here in the morning before school then here right away after school until closing. I would sit in the corner booth in front of the window to do my homework in between bussing tables. It was like that every day until I turned eighteen and went off to college. 

But any weekend I could, I’d be right back here to help my father out. Then when he got sick five years ago, I dropped out of college so I could stay home full-time to take care of him. He was in this place every single day until the day he died a few months ago. It didn’t make a lot of money the last few years so not only did he leave me the cafe, he also left me all of the debt. I wasn’t drowning in it, I still have a decent amount in savings to at least update it but not enough to create a living. 

So that was why I had put the word out that it was for sale if anyone wanted to purchase it. I needed the money to pay off my father's debts and at least survive the next few years until I figured out what I wanted to do with my life. 

With a groan, I stood slowly from my crouched position as I finished fixing the front door and smiled in victory when it didn’t stick. It was after three in the afternoon and peering over my shoulder, I noticed that the painters were finishing up the now black wall and I had to admit, I felt giddy when I saw my vision slowly coming to life. 

I had a red neon sign that read Fika and I planned on hanging it up on that wall and then hanging a bunch of different guitars around it; my grandfather’s favorite on full display. 

Yes, I did have plans to eventually sell the cafe but that didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy getting it to where I envisioned it.  

Wiping my hands on the back of my black jeans, I set to work on reading the manual for the new turbo oven, wanting to make sure that I understood every aspect of it to show my employees. 

“Hi! Welcome to Fika!”

Jessica’s cheery voice greeted a new customer who stepped inside, the little bell that hung above the door ringing. It was a special bell, my grandparents brought it with them when they moved here. It hung up in that same spot for the last sixty years and I planned on taking it with me if this place ever sold. 

I paid no mind as I focused on now setting up the turbo oven in its new spot on the back counter. 

“Uh, Astrid?” 

My shoulders slumped at hearing Jessica’s wavering voice from behind me. I didn’t bother turning around; not yet. Maybe it was a simple fix that she could handle on her own. 

“Yes?” I answered while wiping down the new oven. 

“The credit card machine isn’t working,” Jessica now stood in the side of my vision so I had no choice but to turn towards her. 

“I swear if my hair wasn’t already white, the stress of today would have given me gray hairs,” I joked with a faint smile as I turned toward the register. 

My eyes were cast downward to the small white credit card machine, not bothering to gaze up at the customer. 

“It’s working fine,” I showed Jessica. “You just have to remember to type in the total before hitting payment.” 

“OH! Makes sense,” she squeezed my arm. “Sorry.” 

I waved her off. “It’s fine. It’s a new machine so it will take some getting used to. I’ll ring him up if you want to start on his order?” 

With a nod, Jessica scurried off to make the drink as I finally gave the person on the other side of the counter my attention. 

“Hi, it’ll be $3.25.” 

However, my breath caught in my throat at the sight of the man in front of me. Dark amber eyes shined back at me, long strands of even darker hair cast around his face, and his pink, plump lips curled up into a faint smile. The facial hair that encased around those lips made my stomach twinge in the best way and when I caught sight of the small nose ring, I nearly fell to my knees. 

It wasn’t until I saw the black card in front of my face that I snapped out of my ogling and took it with a blush covering my cheeks. 

Ringing him up, I handed back his card with a slight waver in my hand but ended up dropping it on the counter before he had the chance to grab it. 

“Shit,” I cursed as I went to reach for it but ended up knocking over the small tip jar, coins spilling over the counter. 

“Fucking perfect!” I groaned while throwing my head back. 

Could this day get any worse?

An older couple that was sitting on the stools at the bar a few spaces down from me gave me an ice-cold glare. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to curse,” I apologized with a fake smile. 

Even though I never watched my mouth around anyone, I couldn’t risk scaring off customers because of my vulgar words. 

I made fast work of picking up the spilled change and placed it back in the jar before looking up at the man through my lashes. 

“That will be up soon,” I cleared my throat. 

The man smiled, his dark eyes drinking in every inch of my face. “Thank you.” 

Oh fuck. 

Those two words alone made my cheeks deepen even more in a shade of crimson because there was a hint of an accent to them. I couldn’t place it but it sounded heavenly to my ears. 

Turning swiftly on my heels, I scurried to the back, not wanting to embarrass myself in front of him anymore. 

About an hour later after catching up on all the office work I had, I ventured back up to the front of the cafe when I was told the painters had finished and were waiting for a check. 

“We’re all finished, ma’am,” the older painter said with a thin-lined smile. 

My own matched his when I handed him the check. “Thank you. It looks great.” 

He went to leave but slowly turned around. “Fika? What does that mean?” 

I broke out into a genuine smile when the memory of my grandma telling me why she named this place came creeping into my mind. 

“It's Swedish. It essentially means coffee break,” I answered while pulling my black cardigan closer to me. 

As the painters left, I turned to my right to look up at the freshly painted wall and kept smiling. 

“Looks good.” 

Looking over my shoulder, I nodded to Tori. “I’m just glad they managed to stay out of customers' way.” 

“Speaking of customers,” Tori smirked while pulling me closer; she was fresh out of high school and any chance she had to gossip about something, she took it. 

“That guy in the far booth hasn’t stopped staring at you since you walked out here,” Tori whispered low in my ear. 

I raised a brow. “Who?” 

She rolled her eyes, the color matching the blue apron she wore, and turned my chin to face behind me where I saw the man from earlier, perched in the corner booth; exactly like she said. 

He had a laptop on the table in front of him and a notebook next to it; the pen scratching quickly against the paper. As if he felt me staring, his eyes bounced up from the notebook to land on my face. Our eyes locked in such an intense battle of who would look away first but neither of us gave up yet. With the way he was watching me, it brought a heat to my insides and I swallowed thickly, my mouth suddenly running dry. 

“You should go talk to him,” Tori pushed me a little his way. 

I dug my heels into the ground. “You should get back to work.” 

“Yeah yeah, whatever,” she giggled while throwing a hand over her shoulder as she turned to head back to the counter. 

With one final glance over to the man in the corner booth, I bit my lip when I realized he was still watching me with curiosity in his eyes. I felt this unknown pull in my heart, dragging me over to him, and as my foot took one step in his direction, Sean’s voice called from the back. 

“UH, ASTRID! WE HAVE A PROBLEM!” 

Son of a bitch. 

ASTRID

“Wait-what do you mean delay? I was told the sign would be here last Friday,” I groaned into my phone. 

“I’m sorry, miss, but with all the shipping delays it might be another week until you receive what you ordered.” The sales rep said. 

I pinched my eyes shut and sighed. “I need that sign. It was for the outside of my cafe, right now I have a dingy one that has been here since my grandparents opened and the ‘A’ is barely hanging on so now all it says is FIK so imagine my horror when people keep saying “Oh my, fik is a terrible name, dear.” 

I was rambling on to this complete stranger on the phone because of my stress and nerves. When I first took over the cafe a few months ago, the outdoor sign was old and broken so I ordered a new one but I had hopes that it’d be here before I reopened. 

Wrong. 

“I don’t know what else to tell you. We’re hoping to have it for you by the end of the month.” 

“THE MONTH?!” I nearly screeched as I came to a halt in the middle of the cafe lobby; curious eyes landing on me. 

Sean furrowed his brows while making a drink. Waving him off, I turned my attention back to my phone. “Is there any way you could put a rush order on it? Please.” 

“No,” the sales rep deadpanned. 

“Gee thanks,” I grumbled before hanging up the phone, stuffing it angrily into the pocket of my olive green jumpsuit. 

Running both hands through the long strands of my hair while I muttered a few curses. It seemed as if the last week had continued problem after problem. 

The sink in the bathroom ended up having to be replaced. 

Torri accidentally dropped a stack of brand-new coffee mugs, breaking all of them, so I still need to go out and buy some more. 

The new employee I hired last week didn’t show up for their third shift this morning, meaning we were down a person. When I texted them, they never responded. 

There was a family of raccoons living next to the dumpster outside. Sean wanted me to call animal control but I immediately declined. They weren’t hurting or bothering anyone so they could live there. 

“What are we, a wildlife rehab?” Sean asked with disbelief. 

I raised a brow while crossing my arms. “Sean, are you afraid of a couple of raccoons?” 

He scoffed. “Please. Those things just eat trash and cause havoc.” 

“Well, they’re staying. If anyone doesn't like it, they can come to me with their complaints,” I pointed my finger playfully at my employees.

With a sigh, I busied myself for the next little while cleaning up tables, talking with guests, and helping out my employees with anything they needed. I was a hands-on owner and boss, always helping when I could. Anything to make their lives and jobs easier. 

Every so often, when I mingled with the guests, I let my gaze drift to the empty corner booth; where the mystery man sat every day for the last four days. He never came at the same time but when he did show up, I managed to always be busy with front-of-house things or stuck in my office. But when I wasn't in my office, our eyes would catch every so often. However, it was my nerves that stopped me from going to ask him if he needed anything else or to strike up a conversation with him. 

Flirting in general was easy for me but with this man, his dark yet bright eyes locked me into place with a swollen tongue every time his gaze struck me. 

“Astrid, my dear!” 

Pausing from refilling the straws, I glanced at the open door and smiled at one of Fika’s regulars from when my father owned it; an older man named Phillip. 

“Hi, Phillip. How are you?” I helped guide him to a table against the black-painted wall; still empty. 

I haven't had time to hang up the variety of guitars that were slowly overtaking my office. 

“Fine, fine,” he patted my hand as I slowly helped him into the seat. “Just here for my usual honey tea with-.” 

“One piece of lemon so you can squeeze it yourself and two cannolis,” I finished for him with a nod. “Coming right up Phillip.” 

Turning on my heels, I peered over to the counter ready to tell Tori about the order but raised a brow when I noticed no one standing behind it. Glazing at the clock on the opposite wall, I cursed when I remembered that Tori’s break was now and Sean was busy watching a safety training video in the break room. 

As the door above the bell rang, indicating a new customer, I glanced down at Phillip while tapping the table. “Give me a bit and I’ll hand deliver it myself.” 

He paused reading the newspaper to give me a warm smile. “Of course, dear.” 

“I’ll be right with you,” I then called to the tall man standing at the counter but froze when our eyes met. 

His usual long hair was pulled back into a low bun, showcasing the hardness of his jaw, and I absentmindedly licked my lips. He wore a simple gray hoodie and black jeans but something about this casual outfit made my stomach flip. Since his hair was pulled back I was able to see the small piercing in his left ear. 

“Take all the time you need. I’m in no rush,” the mystery man smiled while holding onto the strap of his bag; the same bag that he brought in every day. 

I’ve come to notice that it held his notebook and laptop, with the occasional book he brought out to read every so often. 

“Th-thanks,” I stuttered while rushing behind the counter to get started on Phillip’s order. 

As I was pouring the tea into the cup, the phone from the cafe rang and I quickly answered. 

“Thank you for calling Fika. This is Astrid.” 

“Astrid!” The cheery and younger voice ran in my ear. “It’s Laura. I’m bringing in my study group, we’re a party of seven so I wanted to give you a heads up in case you didn't have the space.” 

Glancing up to the farthest corner of the cafe, secluded away from the rest, the two long sage-green couches were currently empty. 

“The loft is already booked for a private event for tonight but your usual spot is open. I’ll reserve it for you guys. Thanks for the heads up, Laura! I appreciate it.” 

“Oh please, Astrid. You’ve done so much fueling our late-night college study sessions. We’ll see you in a bit!” 

Hanging up the phone, I placed it on the counter while grabbing the tea mug in one hand and the two cannolis and slice of lemon in the other. As I passed by the tall mystery man, I gave him my best smile. 

“I’m sorry for the wait.”

He peered up from his phone. “No need to apologize. I’m very patient.” 

Ignoring the way my skin pricked and burned at the accent in his voice, I gently set down Phillip’s order with shaky hands. 

“Oh, why so nervous, dear?” Phillip commented. 

I stuffed my hands in my pockets. “No reason. Enjoy.” 

Before I could leave, he gently grasped my elbow. “Oh, I’ve been meaning to tell you. I’m sorry to hear about your father.” 

My body went rigid at the mention of my father. It was rare that a customer would bring him up because they were all new so there was no need to talk about my father which I’d been thankful for since it was still raw. The occasional regulars, like Phillip, were the ones that did. 

I swallowed thickly. “Uh, thank you. We knew for a while how sick he was but still, it was a shock.” 

“And you were the one that found him?” 

Out of the corner of my eye, the mystery man turned his head briefly my way but I kept my attention on Phillip doing my best not to let the tears win. 

“Enjoy your tea, Phillip. Let me know if you need anything else.” 

I tapped his shoulder while making my way over to the two couches in the far back of the cafe and flipped over the RESERVED sign then made my way back to the register. 

“Thanks for waiting,” I smiled up to the mystery man. “What can I get you?” 

“Black coffee with two scoops of sugar, please.” He smiled while handing me his black credit card. 

“Any sweets?” I teased, already knowing his order. 

According to Jessica and Tori, every time he came in he ordered the same thing. 

Black coffee with two scoops of sugar. 

They tried to upsell him into something different or add a sweet for his side, but every time he politely declined. 

The man’s eyes sparked as he looked at me and just as I was about to prepare myself for giving him the total, he surprised me. 

He hummed low. “What do you recommend?” 

Tapping my fingers against the edge of the counter I peered at the display case of all the homemade desserts I baked this morning. 

“Depends. What do you like?” I asked, giving him a small smile. 

I didn’t miss the way his eyes ghosted over my entire form, lingering on my tattoos. First, flowers and a crescent moon chest piece that was visible thanks to my thin straps and the low cut of my jumpsuit. Then he looked at the tattoo on my left forearm. It was of four crows flying away with their feathers falling. Then to the sleeve on my right arm, I called my Witch arm; it had different witch theme designs. 

When I scratched my cheek, I noticed the way he tracked every movement of it, seeing the Medusa head I had tattooed on the back of my hand. I had more tattoos that were hidden underneath my clothes but the thought of him stripping me to trace over them with his tongue made my face burn and I shifted on my feet. 

Finally, he shrugged. “Surprise me.” 

Pursing my lips, I grabbed a plate and the tongs, deciding on two small pieces of my grandma’s famous Kanelbullar. She passed down the recipe to me in hopes I would continue to sell them at the cafe. 

“These are a huge hit with everyone. My grandma’s recipe,” I said while handing him the plate. 

“Oh?” The man raised a brow as he looked down at the plate on the counter. 

Suddenly my palms began to sweat as he assessed the dessert. “They’re called kanelbullar; a famous Swedish desert. Otherwise known as cinnamon buns. Some people are turned off by it at first because of how it looks but I promise, they’re delicious. I made them myself this morning. All of these desserts are made fresh every morning. ” 

Now the man was smirking. “Swedish, huh?” 

I nodded. “My grandparents were born in Sweden and moved here to start their dream of opening Fika. When they retired, they moved back.” 

“Are you Swedish?” 

I cringed. “Fifty percent but don’t ask me to speak it because I’ll butcher it.” 

“How much?” He asked with a laugh while pointing to the plate. 

I waved him off while ringing his total up on the credit card machine. “I’ll charge you just for the coffee, in case you don’t like the kanelbullar. But, it’s a one-time thing.” 

I playfully pointed a finger at him, one he chuckled at before taking his card back. 

“That’s very sweet of you, thank you,” he gave me a smile that made me weak in the knees. 

Clearing my throat, I brushed a strand of hair from my eyes and reached for a cardboard cup. “Can I have a name for the order?” 

“Joakim.” 

I paused mid-writing. “Uh, do you mind spelling it? I don’t want to be the kind of a barista that messes up people's names.” 

“You can call me Jolly,” he chuckled.

“See,” I pointed the marker at him. “That I can spell. Joakim is an interesting name though.” 

I began pouring the coffee into his cup but nearly spilled it when his next words shocked me. 

“It’s Swedish.” 

“Wait,” I set down the pot and cup before turning back to him. “Are you telling me you let me ramble on about a Swedish dessert when you fully knew what it was?” 

The man, Jolly, was full-on grinning now as he popped one of the kanelbullars in his mouth, licking off the sticky cinnamon syrup. I had to force myself to bite back a moan at the sight. 

“Du var söt så jag sa inget,” Jolly said, then took a drink of his coffee when I handed it to him. 

With my furrowed brows of confusion, he chuckled. “You have no idea what I’m saying do you?” 

“Not a fucking thing,” I giggled while scrunching my nose. “I was born here in California and my grandma only taught me the basics but those are long forgotten.”

“How long have you owned the place?” He wondered. 

I tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “A few months now but I only recently reopened. When I took it over after my father, it needed a lot of upgrades and fixes. Which it still does. But I plan on selling it once it is ready.” 

Jolly raised a brow. “You’re going to sell?” 

“Uh, yeah,” I rubbed my elbow nervously. “Owning this place was never my endgame. It’s been in the family for years, yes, but the potential of the money if I sell would help out a lot.” 

Tears gathered in the corner of my hazel eyes when I knew deep down the real reason why I wanted to sell; it reminded me too much of my father. 

“You’ve created a nice place here,” he admitted while looking around at the place. “The plants add a nice touch.” 

I had a variety of different plants littered all over the place as a way to bring life and color into the dull lighting.  

I hummed. “Here I thought it was the coffee that brought you in every day.” 

“Oh, it is, however, I’m more into the barista who made it today,” Jolly winked. 

My cheeks burned all the way to the tops of my ears. “Oh, well. That’s very sweet of you.” 

With the cup in one hand and plate in the other, Jolly winked. “Thank you, Astrid. I’ll be coming back for a refill.” 

“I’ll be here to help with that,” I rushed out a bit fast and mentally cursed myself for sounding desperate. 

But then I realized he said my name and the way it sounded on his lips made my core itch with desire. 

“You know my name?” I asked while twirling my fingers. 

“I’ve heard it quite a lot the last week from your employees needing something,” he joked. 

I playfully rolled my eyes while making a new batch of black coffee so he could have the fresh stuff when he needed it. “I love them. It’s not their fault this place is old and falling apart.

Jolly sat in his typical booth that was near the ride side of the counter, in front of the window. “Do you know the meaning behind your name?” 

“I know it’s Swedish,” I answered with a shrug.

He nodded. “It means divinely beautiful.” 

Now my entire body was inflamed with how Jolly was staring at me, his dark eyes devouring me, but before I could respond, Sean and Tori emerged from the back. 

“Alright, boss. Where do you want us?” Tori clapped her hands. 

Her break was over and Sean must have finished his training video. 

“Tori, you’re working the private party. They should be here by 3 so can you make sure everything in the loft is set up?” I asked. 

She nodded with a wide smile. “Of course. Who’s it this time?” 

When I took over Fika, I noticed there was this huge, unused space upstairs that I could use for either extra seating if we got too busy or for private events. Tonight, there was a local book club that rented out the space. 

“LA’s Book Ladies.” 

“Again? Weren’t they here last week?” Sean asked. 

Nodding, I handed Tori the box of supplies she would need to set up the loft before ushering her away. “They're interested in renting out the space every Thursday for their book club.” 

The bell above the door indicated a new group of customers; Laura’s study group. 

I motioned Sean over to them. “Jessica will be here in five minutes. She can help you prepare their order once you take it.” 

Once Sean scurried over towards the group, I darted my gaze over to where Jolly was sitting, noticing that he had headphones on as he worked on his laptop, the plate empty. 

Before I could bring him another round of coffee and kanelbullars, my phone rang and I immediately recognized the number. 

“Hi, mormor,” I smiled into the phone. 

“Min älskling,” my grandmother’s old, frail voice made me smile even wider. “How are things?” 

With the sudden commotion from the study group settling in, I decided to take the rest of my phone call in my office.

JOLLY

“Son of a fucking bitch!” 

Snapping my eyes up from my phone, I watched Astrid with a small smile as she stepped onto the small ladder to hang up a guitar, only to be a few inches short. She’d been working on hanging up guitars on the black wall for the last ten minutes, something I watched with intent and curious eyes. 

It had been a few days since our first conversation and since then, we shared stolen glances anytime I was here and she was working up front. We talked when she wasn’t busy but it always pertained to the same topic. 

“How's your coffee?” 

“Would you like a refill?”

Astrid did try to deter me from my usual order but I always stayed the same. 

Black coffee with two scoops of sugar. I did, however, let her decide on my sweets. Today it was something simple; baklava. 

Another thing she baked herself. 

When Astrid slid over the coffee to me this morning, I curled a brow at the mug she had given me. She merely shrugged with a coy smile before busying herself with going about and watering all the plants in the cafe. 

I snicked while grabbing the white mug that had ‘Jolly’ written across it and sat in my usual booth in front of the large window. The green velvet of the bench seat and the oak wood of the table I sat at became a sense of familiarity. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I marveled at how her ice-white hair was pulled back into a tight bun, showcasing her defined cheekbones and bright hazel eyes. Astrid’s leg was exposed due to the long slit in her long black skirt and I caught a glimpse of the tattoo on her shin; a moth, a rose, and a half-crescent moon. She was covered in tattoos and I couldn’t ignore the voice in my head that begged me to find out if she had any other ones hidden. 

When I was walking downtown a few weeks ago and saw the opening soon sign on the battered door of Fika, I was curious about who was taking over. I used to stop in every once in a while when Astrid’s father ran the place but ever since my life and work schedule with Bad Omens took off, I came in less and less. 

But that day when I saw Astrid’s faint figure covered in a type of green paint as she painted the walls, I was transfixed. The vision of her took my breath away and I stopped to watch her for a few seconds. The few times I stopped in when her father owned the cafe, I never noticed her. So when I heard that she was the one taking over, I decided to make more of an effort to stop in when I could, however, I never expected I’d be here every other day. 

Noah called me out last week about how often I came here and told me not to “fall in love”. I had no intention to, not wanting to get into a relationship with how often I was gone on the road, but the second my eyes met with hers, I knew Astrid would consume every part of me. 

“I chose the wrong day to wear my fucking vans.” 

Shaking from my thoughts, I peered over to Astrid as she now stood on the tips of her toes to try and hang up a guitar on one of the highest hooks. 

“Need some help?” I asked while rising to my feet. 

She was only a few feet away from where I’d been sitting. 

“Oh, no, Jolly. I don’t want to bother you,” Astrid said, waving me off. 

I shrugged while brushing the hair away from my face; opting to leave it down today. 

“I mean this is the nicest way possible Astrid, but you’re shorter than me. I could reach that hook with ease,” I informed. 

She playfully gawked with a hand over her heart, the other clutching the guitar. “My, I thought you were one of the sweeter ones.” 

I chuckled and motioned her to step off the ladder. “Get off of there before you hurt yourself.” 

“I’ll have you know,” she came down the three-rung ladder, “I did every single update in this place. Without hurting myself.” 

I took the guitar from her with a raised brow. “Are you sure about that?” 

Astrid rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe I tripped over a bucket of paint and cut my finger while setting up the new coffee machine but that’s it.” 

“For now,” I joked while taking a tentative step toward her. 

“Oh, someone thinks they’re funny today,” she crossed her arms but the smile on her blood-red lips told me she was loving our banter. 

With mere inches between us, Astrid peered up at me through her long lashes and swallowed thickly. 

“Well, I must say. You are taller than me,” her voice was quiet but yet loud enough just for me to hear. 

My fingers itched with the want to brush away the loose strand of hair that hung in her eyes. When her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip, I internally groaned at how seductive that simple action was and I almost had to force myself to take a step away from her. One of my hands was still holding onto the guitar, and the other was hanging to my side, so close to Astrid’s that I could feel the heat radiating off of her. Our eyes were locked with each other, my dark ones paled in comparison to her bright hazel ones. They burned deep into my soul, in the best way, and I found myself swimming in their depths. I was hypnotized by her gaze that I didn’t realize our fingers brushed against one another, sparks shooting through my entire essence with the simple touch of her skin on mine. 

“How many do you have left to hang up?” I cleared my throat, breaking the sudden sexual tension, and held up the guitar. 

“Uh,” Astrid blinked. “Just two more. I have to run to the back to grab the last one.” 

With a nod, I let her run off to grab the last guitar as I took the two steps up the step ladder, hanging up the guitar I had on its designated hook. Once back on my feet, I took a few steps back to admire how the guitar wall looked. The bright red, neon FIKA sign was in the middle with one unused hook underneath it. 

“Here we go!” Astrid smiled as she came back to the front of the cafe. “Please be careful with this one. It’s an old one and means a lot.” 

For once, she didn’t have my full attention. It was on the guitar in her hand. 

A blue Teisco Del Rey ET-312. Otherwise known as a sharkfin guitar. Something I made known. 

“You know guitars, huh?” she asked as I gently took it from her. 

“Yeah, I know a thing or two,” I kept my answer simple, not wanting to give too much about me away. It was clear she had no idea who I was outside of the cafe and I wanted to keep it like that for a little while longer. 

As I gazed down at it, Astrid told me the story behind it. 

“It was my grandfather's. He absolutely loved playing it when he wasn’t spending all of his time here. I remember he let me play it one Christmas when I was 7. I was terrible and my parents vowed to never put me into any lessons to save their ears,” she ended her story with a light chuckle. 

“He didn’t take it back with him when they moved back to Sweden?” I asked, remembering she told me her grandparents moved back a few years ago. 

“Nope. He gave it to me. I’m not sure why, though. I never learned to play. Hopefully, he won’t be so mad that I decided to hang it up.” 

Ever so carefully, I went back up the step ladder and placed it on its hook. It wasn’t until I was standing next to Astrid again that I gave her a wicked smile. 

“This looks pretty badass, Astrid. I love how it turned out,” I admired. 

She smiled, eyes sparkling as she looked at it. “Me too. Thank you for your help, Jolly.” 

Astrid bumped her shoulders with mine and not only did the sparks return but so did the fluttering in my stomach. 

The bell above the door jingled, making her jump slightly before turning around, her voice raising an octave to greet the customer. 

“Hi, welcome to Fika!” 

I didn’t miss the ‘woah’ under her breath and with furrowed brows, I turned on my heels but rolled my eyes at who walked in the door. 

Noah took one look between Astrid and me, how close we were standing next to each other, and the corner of his lips curled up. 

“Hi,” he smiled. 

“What can I get you?” Astrid asked as she walked over to the register behind the counter. 

“Oh, I’m fine. Thank you, though,” Noah declined politely while holding a hand over his chest. 

“You sure you don’t want some mochis? I hear they’re pretty special,” I teased. 

Noah shot me a glare, one I ignored by packing up my things. He must have finished his therapy session early and we're going to head to rehearsals for the next two days to prepare for the upcoming week-long festivals Bad Omens were set to headline. 

“You two know each other?” Astrid pointed between us. 

“He’s my roommate,” I answered before Noah could. 

He picked up on how rushed my answer was but knew with my pleading eyes not to say anything else about how we know each other. 

“I’m Noah,” he extended his hand towards her. 

She smiled while shaking it. “Astrid. Owner of Fika.” 

“I’ve heard great things about you. And this place. It’s one of Jolly’s favorites,” Noah said. 

Astrid’s eyes glinted as we looked at each other and I swore all of the oxygen left my lungs with how intense her gaze was. 

She hummed low. “I’m starting to realize that.” 

Hiding my burning cheeks beneath the length of my hair, I cleared my throat and patted Noah on the back.

“We should go.” 

He nodded at me before turning back to Astrid. “It was nice meeting you. Maybe next time, I’ll join Jolly.” 

“Sure,” she nodded, still wearing that beautiful smile. “Oh, here. At least take some coconut water for the road!” 

Astrid bent down to reach into the fridge and I couldn’t help but let my gaze linger on her. Noah snickered next to me which in turn, made me smack his chest. 

“Fuck, man,” he grunted while rubbing it. 

“Here you guys go!” She handed us the two bottles of coconut water and my fingers grazed hers yet again when I grabbed mine. 

This time it was Astrid who seemed affected by it with the way her breath hitched and quickly stuffed her hands in the pockets of her long skirt. 

“What do I owe you?” Noah asked while reaching for his wallet. 

“On the house,” she said.

“Now I can see why Jolly likes you,” Noah ran a hand through his hair. 

The new shorter length was something not only he but I was getting used to. As long as I’d known him, Noah had some sort of long hair. 

Before I could retort, one of her employees came rushing up behind Astrid, needing her attention for something. 

“Sean, they’re just raccoons. As long as you leave them alone, they won’t bother you,” she laughed. 

The noise made my heart ache in my chest, wanting to be the only one to be the reason why she laughed like that. 

“I’m telling you, Astrid. There are at least six of them now. How am I supposed to throw away the trash if they’re living in the dumpster?”

With a deep sigh, she excused herself from us with a small wave and that was my cue to pull Noah along as we stepped out into the late Los Angeles afternoon air. 

He took a long drink of his coconut water as we walked towards his car which was parked down the block. 

“So that’s Astrid,” he noted with a hum. 

“Don’t start,” I grumbled while putting on my sunglasses. 

Noah held up his hands. “She’s cute, Jolly. I can see why you spend a lot of time here. Though it doesn’t seem like she knows who either of us is.”

I shook my head with a thankful breath. “No, she doesn’t. Although you seemed to take her breath away when she saw you.”

He snorted. “You don’t have to worry. I only have eyes for-.” 

“I know, I know,” I waved him off before he finished his sentence. 

It was clear who Noah only had eyes for. It took a long time for him to finally realize that.

We reached Noah’s car and as he stood in front of the driver's door and me on the passenger side, we both rested our arms on the hood of the car. Noah’s almond eyes were hidden behind his black sunglasses but I knew they were assessing my face. 

“Do you plan on telling her who you are and what you do?” He wondered. 

“If I’m being honest, it’s been nice not having her know or treating me differently.” 

Noah nodded. “I understand that. But take it from me, not communicating the truth can delay things. And it’s not healthy.” 

Understatement of the year.

“I’ll tell her; soon,” I said. 

“What is she going to think when you’re gone for 9 days and don’t show up for your daily coffee?” 

“We should go, you know how Matt gets when we’re late,” I said, changing the subject, and opened the door to slide into the passenger seat. 

Noah tapped the roof of his car before he followed my actions. 

ASTRID

“I don’t know what to do, mormor. One guy put in an offer, it wasn’t great but enough to keep me afloat for a while if I do decide to sell,” I spoke into my phone as it was perched between my shoulder and ear, hands busy stocking the cafe. 

“Astrid, I sense there’s something else stopping you,” my grandmother observed. 

I shrugged with my free shoulder. “If I’m being honest, I like running Fika. It keeps me motivated to get out of bed every morning. My employees are great, same with the customers. I have a lot of regulars that tell me I should keep the place; keep it in the family name.” 

One especially lingered on my mind always. His long brown hair, ever darker brown eyes, and that nose ring that seemed to accentuate his face perfectly. 

“Min älskling, it’s whatever you decide. We left Fika to your father who in turn left it to you because we trust you. Don’t feel as if you need to keep it for us. We don’t want to see you do something with regret.” 

I finished stocking the straws and went to work stocking the sugar packets. “I know. I do wish you and farfar could come visit and see what I’ve done with it.” 

My heart sank when I thought of my grandfather and knowing the real reason why they couldn’t leave Sweden right now. My grandmother was still young and healthy enough to travel but she couldn’t leave my grandfather in case something happened to him. 

Alzheimer's had slowly been deteriorating his brain, making life difficult for both of them. It was the same disease that took my father months ago. 

My grandmother sighed. “Someday I’ll come visit. But your farfar-.” 

“I know,” I said suddenly. “It’s alright.” 

We talked for a few more minutes before I said goodbye and pocketed my phone into my jeans. Rolling up the sleeves of my orange cardigan I busied myself with more work. It was Saturday afternoon and Fika was busier than normal; the sunshine and cool LA weather brought everyone out. 

Well, not everyone. 

For the last week, anytime the bell above the door jingled, my head would snap up expecting to see Jolly, but every time my heart would drop when it wasn’t him. I had become so accustomed to seeing him almost every day that when he stopped coming in, I couldn’t help but wonder if it was something I had done. 

Maybe he finally grew sick of your coffee. And you.

Shaking the thought from my mind, I went about mingling with some of my regulars. The cool air slipped inside as someone walked in through the door, tickling the exposed skin of my stomach because of the black lace bralette I wore. 

Deciding to head to my office, I was in my head thinking about what I possibly could have done to make Jolly leave for a week, that I didn’t see the body I collided with until it was too late. 

Strong arms wrapped around me from behind, large hands gripping the small of my back, as my hands sprawled out on the thick chest. Peering up through my lashes, I drank in the sight of those dark eyes. 

“H-hi,” I stuttered while swallowing thickly. 

“Hello,” Jolly smiled as his hands absentmindedly rubbed at my back. 

The feeling sent a shockwave through my veins and I reveled in his touch, desperately needing it all over me. 

His hair was hidden beneath the hat he wore, the hood of his black sweater pulled over that. There was a new look of exhaustion in his eyes, something I hadn’t seen before. It was as if the usual light behind them had dulled since our last encounter. 

However the longer we stared at each other, I could see the light returning. I so badly wanted to ask him where he’d gone the last nine days but didn’t want to make it seem like I noticed. Even though I did. 

I also found myself missing his presence after the third day he didn’t show up. 

“The usual?” I asked after a beat of silence. 

Jolly gave me a warm smile, hands still wrapped around me. “Have I worked myself up to a usual kind of guy?”

I playfully patted his chest. “It's easy when I can make your drink in my sleep.” 

“I like what I like,” he said, keeping his eyes on mine as he did. 

Silence fell between us as we continued to stay in each other's embrace, neither of us ready to break apart. Until Tori’s voice broke through the small bubble Jolly and I created. 

“Astrid, there’s a Jackson on the phone for you.” 

Shit. 

Slowly removing myself from Jolly, I cleared my throat. “I have to take that, but give me a few minutes and I’ll bring you your coffee.” 

“Of course,” he nodded. 

Turning my back to him, I took the cafe phone from Astrid while ignoring her smug smirk as she watched Jolly walk to his table.

“This is Astrid,” I answered the call. 

“Astrid, this is Jackson Hewitt, I’m calling about that little coffee shop you own on the corner of W. 9th Street. Freka.” 

“Fika,” I corrected with a stern voice. 

This was our third conversation and he still couldn't pronounce the name correctly; either he couldn’t or didn’t bother enough to care. 

“Right,” he cleared his throat. “Anyway, I’m calling to check in to see if you’ve thought about my offer.” 

Staying on the phone with him, I poured the black coffee with two scoops of sugar into the white Jolly cup and plated two chocolate chip cookies. 

“You only sent the offer the other day, Jackson. I need longer than that to think if I accept or not,” I said as I made my way over towards where Jolly sat. 

His usual booth in the corner by the large window.  

“Or not?” Jackson repeated my words. “Come on, Astrid. This is probably the best deal you will get for that place. It’s better if you take it now because I can’t promise it will be the same amount next time I make it.” 

I set the plate and coffee down on the table in front of Jolly with a bit of force, not meaning to, so he glanced up at me. 

“Listen, Jackson. With absolutely no respect, I’m not interested in selling my place to someone who’s going to turn it into a chain restaurant. If I lose money, so what? At least I kept my dignity and didn’t sell out.” 

I placed my hand on my hip, still standing in front of Jolly who watched me with a slight smirk. 

“Woah, Astrid. In no way are you selling out. I just have great plans for that space. I know how hard it has been keeping it afloat after your father died.” 

My body went rigid as a low scowl pulled on my lips. This asshole knew absolutely nothing about my father or how well Fika had been doing. The first few weeks were rough but I found a good rhythm and soon, we began to flourish. The income had been steady for everything and everyone involved. 

Plus, I hadn’t smiled or felt this good about my future in a long time. 

“My father and his passing have nothing to do with my decision. You’ve never stepped foot inside of Fika, so don’t pretend you know how my business is doing,” I did my best to keep myself composed in front of the customers, especially Jolly. 

“You know what, I’ll give you another day to think-.” 

“No, I’ve made my decision. Fika is no longer for sale, thanks for your interest but please do not contact me again.” 

Before Jackson could respond, I hung up the phone and pinched my eyes shut; the ongoing onslaught of a migraine creeping its way into my head. 

“You’ve decided not to sell?” 

Jolly’s soft voice made me jump slightly and when our gazes met, it pulled me in to sit across from him.

“Yeah,” I nodded while tapping my fingers against the table. “I’ve talked with my grandma a little bit about it. She supports me no matter what I decide but I couldn’t imagine letting this place go. It has too many memories behind it.”

“It’s a great place, Astrid. You should be proud of what you’ve done here,” he said. 

I smiled. “I am. I’ve slowly put myself into this place so I can’t let it go.” 

“Well,” Jolly took a small sip of his coffee. “I’m glad you’ve decided to keep it.” 

I rested my chin on my palm. “Me too. It helps that the clientele have been so wonderful.” 

A low rumble emanated from his chest as he pointed to his coffee. “Does anyone else get a special cup with their name on it?” 

“No, those are saved for the real special ones,” I winked. 

Something dark flashed in Jolly’s eyes as he leaned farther back into his chair, extending his long legs on the right side of me, locking them at his ankles. My eyes dragged up the length of them until my gaze landed on his eyes, a playful gleam behind them as he caught me staring at him. 

My cheeks burned as I shifted in my seat. 

“Nervous?” Jolly questioned with a sudden darkness in his voice as he leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. 

We were so close now, that I could feel his warm breath across my face. 

“N-nope.” I did my best to remain calm and poised but was failing. Something he immediately picked up on. 

“Are you sure about that?”

Licking my lips, I parted them to speak, something Jolly tracked with intense eyes. My pussy was aching with such a force of desire I was afraid he would be able to smell my desire with how close he was to me. There was this sudden pull between us that made me lean up towards him, Jolly’s lips meters from mine. I almost missed the intake of his breath, the sound muted with the hustle and bustle of the cafe.

“Astrid, the delivery truck is outside!” 

Jumping away slightly from Jolly, I cleared my throat while looking towards the counter, Sean waving me over. 

“I should-.” I threw a thumb over my shoulder when I looked back at Jolly. 

He nodded, adjusting the hat on his head. “Of course.” 

With one final glance, I stepped out of the booth and spent the next long while putting away the respective boxes from our weekly delivery. It was a bit larger than normal so by the time I finished, it was nearing 4 in the evening and when I emerged up the front of the cafe, the large groups that were there earlier dwindled to only a few. 

“How have things been?” I asked Jessica. 

She was wiping down the front counter and shrugged. “Not too bad. A steady influx of customers. But one managed to stay the entire time you were busy.” 

“Almost as if he was waiting for you,” Tori popped up from in front of the counter as she was cleaning the glass of the dessert display case. 

I crossed my arms. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

Sean snorted from his spot in the little kitchen to my left. “Astrid, this guy has been in here almost every single day and stays for a few hours all while looking at you. Take it from me, this guy is interested.” 

While they were a few years younger than me, I didn’t brush off their observations yet. 

“Jolly is a regular,” I started to defend. 

Tori’s eyes widened. “That’s why you’ve been giving him his coffee in that cup!” 

I hushed her with a wave of a hand when other customers peered over at us. Thankfully, it seemed as if Jolly had his headphones in as he clicked away at his laptop. 

“You should give him your number,” Jessica suggested. 

“No,” I shot down with a shake of my head. 

Although the prospect of giving Jolly my number did make my heart flutter. 

“Oh come on, what's the worst that can happen? He ignores you?” Tori wondered. 

I placed my hands on my hips. “Don’t you guys have better things to do than worry about my dating life?” 

“He’s here almost every day and I hate to break it to you, but it’s not because of the coffee. He can have simple black coffee at home but he chooses to come here,” Sean said once he finished cleaning one of the ovens. 

“I’m going to see if he needs anything else,” Jessia piped up, quickly scurrying around the counter. 

Her name fell in a hushed tone as I watched her walk over to where Jolly sat. Their conversation couldn’t be heard from my spot in the cafe but when he smiled politely at her with a nod, my stomach fluttered with those damn butterflies. Every part about Jolly made my skin buzz with electricity and heat. Jessica returned to the front counter with a sly smirk. 

“Jolly said he will take a coffee for the road and a dozen of you famous Kanelbullar’s. Oh, and a pack of those chocolate mochis. Something about a friend of his loving those. But Tori and I can’t make his order because we have to clean the loft.” 

“We do?” Tori asked with confusion which made Jessica smack her arm. “Oh, yes! Right. We do. Sean, can you take care of Jolly’s order?” 

“No can do. It’s time for my break,” Sean said as he walked into the back.

I playfully narrowed my eyes at all three of them. “You guys think you’re so slick but I know what you’re doing.” 

As the three of them dispersed, I went to work on getting Jolly’s to go order together. With my fingers wrapped around the togo cup, I mewled at my decision for a long moment before internally saying fuck it. The worst that can happen is that he ignores my texts. 

And break your heart in the process. 

Choosing to ignore that thought, I scribbled down my number with the letter A on the cup, then filled it with black coffee and two scoops of sugar. As I was bagging his desserts, Jolly came up to the counter with his card in hand. 

“Tell your friend these mochis are a favorite here,” I smiled. 

“I’ll make sure to let him know. He kind of has a weird obsession with them,” he chuckled. 

Ringing him up for everything, I handed back his card then hesitantly his cup and bag of goodies. Jolly gave nothing away that he saw my number written in black ink on his cup. 

“So, see you tomorrow?” I asked, not being able to hide the hope in my voice. 

He ran a hand over his jaw. “I actually have this party that will have my attention all day. But I’ll be back on Sunday. Can't go too long without these Kanelbullars.” 

The front counter stood between us and with the way he smiled, I wanted to jump across it into his arms. 

Instead, I decided to remain professional and nodded. “Well, I’ll make sure to have a fresh batch for you on Sunday.” 

With a wink, Jolly raised the cup to his lips to take a small sip of his coffee. “I can’t wait, Astird.” 

The way my name fell from his lips nearly made me moan in pleasure and I wanted to hear him say it again; the accent doing wonders for it. 

With a gentle wave, I watched him walk out of the cafe before busing myself to help close up the cafe. Every so often I would peek at my phone to see if there was a new message from an unknown number and every time, my heart would sink when I realized there wasn’t. 

Just as I was about to give up hope, my phone buzzed when I was locking up the front door and walking to my car parked across the street. 

Unknown: Hi, it’s Jolly. Apologies it took me a while to text you. I noticed your number on the cup the second you handed it to me. But with work, it pulled me away from my phone. So now that I have a minute, hi.

I grinned as I read the message over a few more times before plopping into the driver's seat of my car. I debated on how to respond for a few minutes. 

Me: Hi :) how did your friend like the mochis?

As I finished saving his contact, Jolly responded. 

Joakim: Loved them. Ate half of the Kanelbullar as well. 

I giggled at the next message that came in; a simple frown emoji. 

Me: Well, I’ll make sure to throw in a few extra just for you next time.

Joakim: I’m looking forward to it. 

With the smile still plastered to my face, I plugged in my phone to my car and for the first time in a long while, enjoyed the drive home after a long day's work. 

ASTRID

I opened Fika about two hours ago, a slow steady stream of customers coming in as soon as the door opened, and I’d been carefully watching to see if Jolly would show up. We texted for a little while yesterday since I was home sick in bed and when he sent me a picture of the outfit he wore to his party, I had to pause my movie to stare at it. Black jeans, black long sleeves, and a black jacket on top. 

With the large mirror I had leaning against one of the cafe walls, something I set up for people to take selfies in front of with their coffees, I brushed away any lint on my black sweater dress and adjusted my tights. I made sure not a strand of hair fell out of my French braid and smiled to myself. 

“You know what they said about Narcissus,” Sean chuckled as he caught me giving myself another once over. 

“Ha, ha,” I narrowed my eyes while resting my hands on my hips. “Shouldn’t you be bussing tables?” 

“Waiting for a certain someone?” He teased with a raised brow before he went to work cleaning up the tables. 

Before I could retort, the bell above the door rang which made me turn swiftly on my feet. My heart rate picked up at the sight of Jolly as he walked in with two other guys on each side of him. His hair was falling to his shoulders in chocolate waves and when he took off his sunglasses, his dark amber eyes immediately found me to scan every inch of me. I felt frozen but hot under his gaze and pulled at the ends of my sweater dress, suddenly feeling as if it wasn’t perfect enough for him. 

“Hi,” Jolly smiled. 

The two men he came in with watched us with curious smiles, the one of Jolly’s left I recognized as his roommate that came in here a few weeks ago. 

"Hey you, the usual?" I asked. 

He smiled with a slight nod. "You know me so well."

I peered over to the two others, pointing to the one I recognized. “Noah, right?” 

The heavily tattooed man nodded while adjusting the hood of his sweater and that's when I noticed the writing along the front of it. 

“Oh, shit. Hereditary! I love that movie,” I exclaimed. 

Noah's eyes brightened. “Yeah?” 

“A24 has made some phenomenal films. Although, the ending kind of fucked me up,” I admitted with a laugh.

As I looked over to the other man who wore glasses, I missed the look that Jolly and Noah shared. 

“Hi, I’m Astrid.” 

“Jesse,” he held a hand against his chest. “Jolly’s other roommate. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about this place.” 

“Oh,” I gazed back over to Jolly, never taking my eyes off of him. “All good things, I hope?” 

Jolly licked his lips. “Definitely.” 

It seemed as if time slowed to almost a stop as we stared at each other and there was a pull deep within my soul that made me want to step into his embrace, letting him wrap those arms around me. 

Clearing my throat finally, I motioned to the coffee machines. “What can I get you guys?” 

Already knowing Jolly’s order, Noah and Jesse gave me theirs and I went to work getting it ready while they sat in Jolly’s regular booth. When Tori came in for her shift, I asked if she could carry Noah’s and Jesse’s drinks while I carried Jolly’s and the large plate of a variety of sweets for them. 

“The one in the black hoodie is cute,” Tori nodded towards Noah. 

I tilted my head towards her. “Oh, what happened to Tyler?

“Ugh, don’t say his name. I want to forget the last two weeks of my life with that man,” Tori stated. 

“Fair enough,” I nodded firmly and chuckled. 

“Besides,” she shook out her long red locks, “I seemed to have found someone else to occupy my mind with.” 

“Tori,” I warned as we walked over to the guys’ table. 

“Here you guys go,” she all but ignored Jesse while smiling down at Noah as she gave him his drink. 

Noah kept his attention on his phone, only briefly giving Tori a smile of thanks before he went back to typing away on his phone. Her confidence deflated but she still kept that brightening smile on her face. 

As I set down Jolly’s cup and plate of fresh kanelbullar as promised, he gazed up at me with a smile. 

“Thank you, Astrid.” 

I shivered at the way he said my name. 

“Of course. Do you guys need anything else?” I asked all three of them. 

“Actually,” Noah spoke up while giving me his full attention. “My girlfriend is meeting us here and asked if I can put her coffee order in.” 

Tori faux sighed before retreating to behind the coffee counter. Jesse watched her with raised brows. 

“Tori will be fine,” I chuckled. “What does your girlfriend want to drink?” 

“Medium chai tea iced with oat milk, please,” Noah smiled warmly as he rattled off the drink; almost as if he was remembering a memory. 

“Oh, a girl after my own heart,” I joked. “What’s her name?” 

After Noah told me her name, I tapped the table twice before stalking back to the coffee bar, feeling a set of hot eyes on my back the entire time. I was quick to make the drink, all while humming a soft tune to myself, and as I turned back to bring the drink to Noah, the bell above the door rang. I watched as a brunette walked in, eyes gazing almost over every inch of my space with a faint smile before she noticed the guys. Quietly, she tiptoed over to Noah and wrapped her arms around his neck from behind, leaving a gentle kiss on his cheek. 

Just watching how the two of them interacted and all the love in their eyes, as they stared at each other before Noah cupped her cheek to lay a kiss on her lips, made my heart yearn for love like that. 

"Sorry I'm late,” the brunette apologized as Noah pulled out the seat next to him. “Chase and Malcolm wanted to catch up after the album release party.” 

"Order for Y/N!" I called out with a smile.

The brunette, Y/N, went to stand, but Noah was quick to force her gently back into her seat. “No, angel. Let me get it.” 

My eyes locked with Jolly’s and he quickly waved off his friends. “I can do it. Sit.”

While he walked towards the counter, I noticed Noah mutter something in Y/N’s ear, her giggling widely. 

“Could I also get a few mochis?” Jolly asked as he reached me. 

I nodded. “Of course. Any specific flavor?” 

“Whichever is fine. Y/N and Noah have a weird connection with them.”  

My brows furrowed as I went about to plate a few of them. “Really?” 

“That’s his nickname,” Jolly smiled as I handed him the plate of mochis and Y/N’s coffee. 

“A nickname, huh?” I wiped my hands on the sides of my dress before leaning my elbows on the counter to rest my chin in my palm.  

“Don’t tell him I told you, he gets uptight.” He chuckled while leaning down towards me. 

I peered up at him while fake-locking my lips. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Have you,” Jolly’s fingers grazed over one of the tattoos on my arm and I shivered under his touch. “Have you ever had a nickname?”

His tattooed fingers brushed back the long strands of hair as I gazed upon the sharp features of his face, the defined cheekbones, and the facial hair that surrounded his perfect, plump lips. 

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever been given a nickname," I answered truthfully. 

“Oh well that’s just a shame,” Jolly shrugged. 

His confidence gave me some of my own and I gazed up at him through my lashes as he continued to stand on the other side of the counter. 

“It is," I tucked a strand of my white hair that somehow fell from my French braid behind my ears. "Any suggestions?”

“Käraste," Jolly said almost too quickly, as if he thought about this before. 

My cheeks burned as I locked eyes with him. Hearing the unknown word fall from his lips made my stomach flip and pussy clench. I squeezed my legs together to curb the itch. 

“What? Too much?” He asked, suddenly self-conscious. 

I quickly shook my head to reassure him while standing straight up on my feet. “No. No, I- I like it. What does it mean?”

With a smirk, Jolly tapped the counter before grabbing the cup and plate of mochis. "I think I'll keep that to myself." 

I chuckled while shaking my head and watched as he walked back over to the corner couch, where his friends waited for him.

For a while, I was busy running the front counter while Sean and Tori worked the kitchen area. There’d been a slow steady stream of customers that kept us all busy but I knew that at some point I needed to slip back into my office for management work. However, before I did that, I brought the pot of black coffee and a small jar of sugar over to Jolly to refill his cup and then set down the sugar. 

“Hi, I’m Y/N!” 

Giving her a bright smile, I shook her extended hand. “Hi, I’m Astrid.” 

Y/N motioned to Jolly. “I’m glad I listened to him about coming here. I’ve been wanting to for a while now, my therapist is right next door, and every time I walk past, the smell of the sweets gets me.” 

“Oh, Dr. Poulos! She comes in every day before her two p.m. appointment and gets a small cup of Greek coffee and baklava to go,” I informed. 

Noah spoke next. “You know, I noticed the to-go bag in her office one time but never put two and two together.” 

Y/N linked her fingers with his to rest them in her lap. “Well, it’s a lovely place you have here. The mochi are delicious.” 

“Thank you,” I smiled. “Well, I won’t bother you guys any longer. If you guys need anything else, let Tori or Sean know and they’d be happy to help you.” 

Before I could walk away, Jolly’s fingers grazed over mine and I peered down at him. 

“Thank you, käraste.”

My cheeks burned as I squeezed his hand and slipped away from them, into the confines of my office to enjoy the way the nickname set every fiber of my being ablaze. 

Since it was Sunday, I always closed Fika at 5 p.m. so I could enjoy the rest of my evening at home. So for the next few hours, I spent time in my office to finish my bookwork. By quarter to five, I dismissed Tori and Sean, sending them home, and walked up front to start closing up. Nearly tripping over my feet, I was shocked to see Jolly was still sitting in his booth. 

“You’re still here?” I asked, coming to a stop in front of his table. 

He shrugged while closing his laptop. “I know the shop is closing soon and wanted to make sure you’re fine closing up by yourself.” 

I quickly shook my head. “Oh, you don’t have to do that, Jolly. It’ll be a while before I’m ready to leave and I can’t ask you to stay around and wait for me,” 

“You didn’t ask. I offered,” he smiled while rising from the table, and going about to help me clean up. 

We worked in silence as I shut down the machines and when I was shutting off the lights, hiking my bag up on my shoulder, I let Jolly lead me out the front door so I could lock it, not before setting the alarm. 

“Can I walk you to your car?” Jolly asked. 

“Yeah, I’d like that,” I bit my lip and nodded. 

The setting sun cast him in an orange hue, with pinks, and purples emanating from behind him and I sucked in a breath and how gorgeous he looked. We began walking step by step to the back alley where I parked my car, Jolly’s fingers grazing over mine and it was just enough contact to make my heart hammer loud and hard in my chest. 

“Your friends seem really nice,” I said, finally breaking the silence, as we came to a stop in front of my car. 

Jolly smiled. “They are. I love them, they’re my family.” 

My lips pulled in a tight line. “It must be a nice thing to have. I’m the only family I have here.”

He picked up on the way my voice faltered with my words but didn’t want to press the issue. Instead, he lifted a hand to brush away a strand of hair, tucking it behind my ear. His fingers were on the side of my neck and I let my eyes flutter shut at the feeling. 

“You’re welcome anytime with us, Astrid,” Jolly’s voice was hushed. 

Now his fingers were wrapped behind my neck to tilt my head up towards him. Opening my eyes, I sucked in a breath at how close his lips were to mine, his warm breath fanning over my bottom lip. 

“I’d like that,” I admitted with my bottom lip caught between my teeth. 

His eyes scanned my face. “We’re having a small party tomorrow night. A little housewarming thing. I’d love it if you’d come.” 

We were so close now, that I could almost taste his lips.

“You would?” I questioned. 

Jolly eyes told me his answer before his words did. “Definitely.” 

When I first opened Fika, I told myself not to fall into bed with the first handsome customer I met because it could spell disaster if things went sour. I needed to focus on my business, not let a pair of dark almond eyes distract me. And yet, here I was sinking further deeper into the abyss of those eyes. 

“Sure, I’ll be there,” I said while my hand gently played with the strings of his sweater. 

One of his hands was still grasped behind my neck while his other rested on my hip. “Käraste, kan jag kyssa dig?”

I blinked up at him, confusion etched on my features, and I shook my head in his grasp. “What did you say?” 

“Can I kiss you?” 

Jolly’s voice dropped to a dangerously low level and it made my insides burn. My stomach flipped a few times over as he repeated the question in Sweden again and throwing out all the negative thoughts on how this could be a bad idea, I stood on the tips of my toes to close the small distance between us finally. 

His lips were warm with the bitterness of his coffee but the sweetness of the kanelbullars. At first, we stood frozen, unsure who would make the next move, but soon Jolly’s tongue brushed against my bottom lip in a way to ask permission; one I immediately granted. His tongue glided over mine and it swallowed my moans when Jolly walked me back against my car, locking me in place with his hips. 

What started as a slow, passionate kiss, suddenly became one with force. Teeth scraped against each other before biting into the flesh of lips, hands grasping at anything they could touch. Jolly's mouth never left mine as he focused solely on making every one of my senses ignite with a blaze that shot straight to my core. He held me in place with his large hands on my lower back while I ran my hands through the long strands of hair, reveling in the softness of them. 

His scent engulfed my senses, making me dizzy, and when I fell into him Jolly made sure to hold me tighter. I felt the hardness of his cock pressed against my clit and dropped my head back against the car to let out a moan, one he quickly hushed by finding my lips again; almost as if he didn't want to let them go. 

To let me go. 

“Astrid,” he muttered against them, pressing his hips into me once again. 

I was nearing release by his kiss and the gentle brush of his cock against me. My body was sensitive to his touch as rough fingers dragged down the sides of my face to pull me closer to him. Our tongues danced together in perfect harmony and I nipped then sucked on his bottom lip just before he pulled away, resting his forehead against mine. 

“Woah,” I whispered while bringing my fingers to my lips. 

Jolly brushed his mouth over them in a feathery peck. “If I’m being honest, I’ve been wanting to do that for a while now.” 

I giggled while wrapping my arms around his back. “I’m glad we feel the same.” 

We began to lead towards each other for another kiss but were interrupted by my phone going off. Reluctantly, I pulled away from Jolly to grab my phone from my purse, only to stare down at it with puzzled eyes. 

“Everything alright?” Jolly asked while brushing a finger over my cheek. 

I smiled into his touch and nodded. “Yeah. It seems like the cafe’s alarm is going off.” 

With quick fingers, I disarmed the alarm from the app on my phone and then gazed up at him. His cheeks were flushed still from our kiss and his eyes were pure black now, pupils blown wide from his own desires. 

Fuck, I wanted nothing more than to jump into the backseat of my car with him. Ride out the now fading high against his thigh. 

Shaking my head at the thought, I motioned towards the cafe. “I should go check it out. Just in case.” 

“Do you want me to come with you?” 

I quickly shook my head. “No, it’s alright. I probably didn’t pull the door shut all the way so the sensor tripped. But I will see you tomorrow night?” 

Jolly’s eyes lit up. “Of course. I’ll be busy helping the guys set up for the party so I might not make it in for my coffee.” 

I made a show of rolling my eyes. “How will I ever survive without you?” 

The corner of his mouth lifted with a smirk. “I’ll send you the address. Can you let me know everything is fine with the alarm then once you're home?” 

My heart jumped into my throat at his request. “Of course. Do you need me to bring anything tomorrow?” 

Jolly brought my hand to his lips and kissed each knuckle. “Just you, käraste.”

CONTINUE TO PART TWO HERE

[gabykatttt]

My sister’s a fraud pt 4

It’s all my fault Veneer said repeating himself over and over again still crying.

No Veneer it’s not your fault KidRitz said petting Veneer’s hair.

He’s right you shouldn’t blame yourself Orchid said.

Oh no Floyd will not make it there he’s gone nothing left Bruce said worrying.

Alright you guys want an encore? Velvet asked her fans.

The fans cheered with excitement.

Oh no she’s taking it too far Orchid said panicking.

She’s sick she going to do encore KidRitz said.

No Branch said.

He will die eventually Poppy said as Viva got closer to her sister and hugged.

Crimp looked at Veneer hoping for him to stop Velvet.

Veneer we need you to sing show the world and prove your sister wrong KidRitz said.

Veneer panicked once more but Crimp comforted.

Look Veneer I know you’re scared right but you need to stand up and prove yourself that you can do this you have talent Crimp said.

I know but I can’t Veneer said nervously.

We know Velvet will kill you but you need to stop her Poppy said.

Please Veneer save my brother Branch said as Bruce,John,and Clay begged.

Alright I’ll do it Veneer said as Orchid gives Veneer a microphone.

We believe in you Veneer the gang said cheering.

Veneer turned and smiled as he got into the pink stage of the yacht.

Here we go Velvet said as she was about to sing her final song but someone turned off the microphone.

Uhh who did that? Velvet asked growling with anger. She turned and saw Veneer holding the microphone.

What do you think you’re doing stupid brother? Velvet asked.

Veneer ignored her as the flying cameras surrounded him.

You guys probably don’t know me but my names Veneer Velvet’s little brother. You guys know my sister right well before I tell the truth about her I wanna sing this song I wrote and hopefully you guys enjoy this Veneer said.

Crimp turned on Veneer’s song he worked hard for and Veneer started singing his song.

Veneer 🎶🎤

Mhm, mhm, yeah

Everybody's got a thing

But some don't know how to handle it

Always reachin' out in vain

Just takin' the things not worth having

But don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama

'Cause I'll be standin' on the side

When you check it out, oh

They say your style of life's a drag

And that you must go other places

Just don't you feel too bad

When you get fooled by smiling faces

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing, baby

'Cause I'll be standing on the side

When you check it out

When you get off your trip

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

(Come on)

Everybody needs a change

A chance to check out the new, yeah

You're the only one who sees

The changes you take yourself through

Oh-oh-oh-ooh-oh-oh-oh

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Oh

Pa-pa, pa-pa-pa-pa

Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa

Pa-pa, pa-pa-pa-pa

Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama

'Cause I'll be standin' on the side

When you check it out

When you get off your trip

Don't you worry 'bout a thing

Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama

'Cause I'll be standin' on the side

When you check it out

Don't you worry

Don't you worry 'bout a thing, mama

'Cause I'll be standin', I'll be standin' for you

Oh-oh-ooh-oh-ooh

Oh-oh-oh

Don't you worry 'bout a thing.

The fans clapped their hands together with cheer. Velvet stood there in shock knowing that her brother mixed with anger and jealousy.

So all this time you can FUCKING SING WITHOUT TELLING ME Velvet said about to hit Veneer but failed.

HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME BROTHER YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ON MY FUCKING SIDE Velvet said still yelling at Veneer.

Veneer ignored her and spoke the truth about Velvet’s crimes.

Listen up Mount Rageous my lovely popstar sister is a FRAUD Veneer spoke causing the fans to gasp in horror.

She’s been literally touring little trolls and stealing my songs and claims it as her own Veneer continued. Velvet gasped and tries to attack him but Veneer snatched the diamond of Velvet’s shoulder pad and break it with his beautiful singing voice.

I’m free Floyd said getting on Veneer’s shoulder. Veneer looked at troll and smiled.

And here’s prove Crimp play the video Veneer said. Crimp nodded as the video started to play.

Velvet’s fans gasped as it show Velvet mistreating Veneer and the trolls to be famous.

Velvet began to be furious as she was about to attack but the cops showed in time.

Velvet you’re under arrest for trollnapping,blackmail,domestic abuse,fraud and tax evasion the cop said putting handcuffs on Velvet’s hands.

YOU TRAITOR Velvet yelled as the cops took her away before that Orchid came up and slapped her.

Ow Orchid baby Velvet said crying in pain.

How could you lie to me? Orchid asked crying in tears.

I thought you loved me but I guess I was wrong Orchid said getting off the stage.

Veneer got off the stage and gave Floyd to his brothers.

Veneer sang once more releasing John,Bruce,and Clay.

We’re free Clay said as Viva hugged him.

KidRitz came up to Veneer and hugged him.

You did it Veneer I’m so proud of you KidRitz said.

Thanks I finally had a reason to sing you Veneer said blushing.

Orchid please tell them I’m innocent Velvet said begging.

Sorry Velvet but you need to expet your consequences Orchid replied as the cops put Velvet on the car.

Orchid head back to the yacht and hugged Veneer.

Veneer there’s something I need to tell you important KidRitz said blushing.

Sure what is it? Veneer asked.

To be continued

[ticklepinions]

The Side Effects of Caffeine

A/N: I know what I'm doing. And I'm not sorry about it. This may backfire in some way but I'm still gonna have a lot of fun. Tagging @writingwitharlo your writing inspired this. And @happyandticklish because you will find out soon enough~. And the lovely @nhasablogg who deserves nothing but happiness.

Warning: mentions of not eating

Word Count: ~1334

Charlie downed his 4th coffee in the past 2 hours. Finals were well on their way, so time was certainly not of the essence. Charlie wasn't a huge coffee drinker, he found it to be really bitter, which is why he pumped a lot of sugar into it. He sat there at his desk, practically vibrating as the caffeine coursed through his veins. Why did math have to be so stupid? I mean who decided that adding letters with numbers was a good idea??? Charlie's stomach grumbled, reminding the boy that he hadn't eaten anything besides 4 large cups of caffeine juice. He didn't have much of an appetite anyway, stress did that sometimes. These problems wouldn't solve themselves, and there wasn't even much time.

His phone was buzzing with notifications from his friends and boyfriend bombarding him with "good luck"s and "are you okay"s. He's been ignoring them for, uh even he doesn't know how long. 

"Someone's here to see you," Tori commented, taking a sip of her water. 

Unfortunately, Charlie was far too focused to hear her.

Rolling her eyes she threw the nearest pillow at the lad. 

"T-Tori what was that for??" Charlie said, turning around with an exasperated look on his face. She had disappeared way before he could even mention the need to study for the "most important test of his life". 

"Charlie..?" Nick said, poking his head in the room.

"Hi… Can't really talk right now, have to study" answered hurriedly.

Nick looked around the cluttered room and back at the boy who he loved, who was sitting slouched over a pile of scattered papers. He could practically feel the anxious energy oozing out of Charlie as he raced to put pencil to paper and muttered incoherent words to himself. Nick could tell he probably didn't sleep much as even his eye bags had eye bags. Not to mention the bed hair- normally, Charlie was more put together than this.

It really hurt Nick's heart to see someone he loved in such a state. He quietly approached him and placed a comforting hand on Charlie's shoulder. The boy flinched.

"Charlie-"

"I love you but I just can't talk right now. I've been working on this stupid problem for forever. I just can't right now I'm sorry" Charlie blurted out, unaware of Nick's frowning face. 

"Charlie…"

"Nick I said I can't talk right now!" he yelled, pulling at his hair. 

Nick didn't know what came over him. There was a vicious protectiveness that just took over his body. He couldn't let Charlie go through this alone. He pulled Charlie out of his chair and threw him on the bed, quickly pinning his arms and straddling his waist.

Charlie wasn't prepared for the whirlwind of events that took place. Nick actually raised his voice at him. Not maliciously of course, but it was loud enough to get his attention. Reality came flooding back and he saw how distraught Nick had looked, all because he was worried sick about him. 

"... Charlie please let me help you, you don't have to go through this alone. I can get you some snacks and help you study. I don't like seeing you being so mean to yourself. And call it selfish or whatever but I demand that you take care of my boyfriend" 

Tears welled up in Charlie's eyes. Nick wrapped him up in a tight hug and Charlie sniffled out a soft thank you. It was a sweet moment, only to be interrupted by a weird item in Nick's pocket that was stabbing him. 

"W-what's in your pocket?"

"Oh! I brought you some apple slices" Nick said, fumbling around until he pulled out a plastic bag filled with a LOT apple slices. 

"I uh thought we could share"

"You're such a dork Nick Nelson"

"Learned from the best~" 

Charlie let out a giggle as Nick sniffed at his neck. 

"Whahat are you doing?" 

"You smell like coffee" Nick said, scrunching up his nose rather adorably. 

"S-sor- hehehey ohohokayyy" Charlie giggled as he was poked in the side.

"No s-words. How much did you have Char?" 

Charlie blushed at being called that nickname.

"Enough that I could smell color" he replied without blinking.

"Charlie…"

"NiCk" 

The boys laughed. Nick kissed Charlie's forehead and pushed him further up the bed. 

"Would a break be okay? I promise I won't distract you afterwards"

Charlie nodded, appreciating being so close to his boyfriend after such a long day. Nick was resting his head on Charlie's chest. Charlie in turn threaded his fingers through Nick's hair, giving his head a kiss every so often. 

"Char?" 

"Mhm?"

"Would tickles help? You could tickle me if you want- or I could tickle you?"

Charlie's cheeks burned. He did want to get his mind off of the test for a while. And he knows that he could trust Nick with his body. But giving an audible answer was something even Charlie Spring couldn't do. Instead, the lad guided Nick's head on his tummy. 

"Let me know if it gets too much okay?"

With that Nick slid his head under Charlie's shirt. Nick couldn't tell if the vibrating was due to the loads of caffeine Char ingested or because his lips were kissing Char's very ticklish tummy. 

With every kiss, Charlie's tummy quivered and a warm feeling was building inside his chest. It felt great but it was tickly enough for a smile to be permanently plastered on his face. Light chuckles began emanating from his lips as he subconsciously wrapped his arms around his middle, effectively trapping Nick. 

A muffled noise soon followed, it sounded something like a "you know I heard caffeine has a lot of side effects and can be dangerous if not treated directly".

Charlie looked at Nick, who slipped out of his shirt, beaming up at him with his classic smirk. Nick's chin was lightly placed on Charlie's tummy, still extremely sensitive from the kisses.

"And one of the side effects is that it makes you more… ticklish"

Charlie threw his head back as Nick's thumbs gently squeezed his hips. His hands grabbing onto Nick's shoulders as he then keeled over in laughter. 

"NIHIHICK NOHOHO-" 

"But I must save my boyfriend from the caffeine! Hmm maybe we can tickle it out of you?"

Charlie squealed as Nick's thumbs dug gentle circles into his hips. That jerk tickled as slow as possible, really letting Charlie feel all the ticklish sensations. 

Nick was having a field day. He always loved to tickle Charlie, seeing him smiling and laughing made him ten times more happy. Now the poor lad was spinning around and around trying to evade his strong fingers. 

"Get back here you~" Charlie had almost slipped away but Nick quickly caught and tickled his waist as he pulled him back. 

Charlie would be lying if he said this wasn't really fun. He was now thrown over Nick's shoulders, absolutely going bonkers as the golden retriever found a new toy to entertain himself with; Charlie's thighs. Peals of laughter deep within Charlie's core echoed throughout the room. 

"NIHIH- NAHA- WHY- DO- SHIT- plehehehease-" 

He could barely get a word out as he squealed between bouts of hearty laughter. His begging wasn't because he wanted it to stop. He was finally at the point where he let go. No thoughts of the stupid math problem plagued his mind. All he could think of was how badly Nick's fingers clawing his inner thighs tickled, and how badly he wanted to give Nick a taste of his own medicine (especially because he made him snort). 

His legs kicked wildly and Nick was struggling to keep him still. And then it happened. Charlie's laugh went silent, and Nick wanted nothing more than to see his face. In a quick turn of events Charlie's back was once again on the bed. Nick loomed over him, just in awe of the blushy boy, the boy who was clutching his tummy, still overtaken by ticklish aftershocks. 

1 rugby lad + 1 anxious nerd = 1 perfect pairing. And that's the only equation that matters at the end of the day. 

[writernopal]

Find the Word Tag

Fair warning this is going to be a FAT post because I had several lovely peeps tag me for this one!

@captain-kraken, here

@toribookworm22, here

@autumnalwalker, here

@squarebracket-trick, here

@talesofsorrowandofruin, here

Thank you all so much!

Tagging (gently): @kosmic-kore @sunset-a-story and @sugar-phoenix

Your words to find will be: deprived, include, major, and hate

***

From Kraken:

faint (AASOAF 1)

And then, I heard a faint sound. A thud? I stopped, struggling to figure out what it might be, but my nervous breaths seemed to overshadow anything that my ears might pick up.

lonely (AASOAF 2)

In any case, they fed and clothed me without complaint and made sure I wasn’t lonely or wanting for anything, even going so far as coming to have supper with me in my recovery room. It was touching.

grow (AASOAF 2)

I looked down at my hands and chewed my lip. “I-I can’t help but feel as though there is something that you are not telling me.” My comment did nothing to make him speak, but I could feel the atmosphere between us grow heavy, sign enough that my suspicions were correct. 

memory (AASOAF 2)

Who did I find? I’d been pining after her so desperately without even knowing who or what she was to me. His question and the memory of her cruel words further overshadowed my momentary happiness at seeing her again.

***

From Tori:

subdue (AASOAF 1)

As terrified as I was, I needed to be brave. I needed to protect Samuel, but to do that; I would have to subdue him, and quickly.

fate (AASOAF 1)

Why was he being cruel? I’d lost my livelihood because of him! Not only that, but managed to save his life once more! It felt like some sort of cruel joke that fate would force us to make such an unfair and savage exchange.

told (AASOAF 1)

She wasn’t even in half-mourning. Husbands had the option to be in half-mourning after the passing of their wives, but wives weren’t given such a choice. She should still be observing it if what she told Xaxxix was true.

believe (AASOAF 1)

Sometimes it was exceedingly easy to believe that they were my underlings. This was one of those times. And with their constant ribbing of one another, one might easily mistake them for brothers.

***

From Autumnal:

broke (AASOAF 1)

“She said wells be portals to the Kin’dom of Frogs, and I wanted to go there to see as so for myself. So I jumped into the first well I could find. Broke my leg and near scared my mother to death.” He said with a nostalgic look on his face.  “It sounds less that she played the trickster and more that you were simply impatient.” I remarked with a giggle. 

flattery (AASOAF 2)

“I’m not buying you more furs, Anise. We can barely afford to feed ourselves as it is. Do you think there is gold just lying about for you to spend?!” I yelled, throwing an angry hand up in frustration.  “You have so much hair.” She said, changing her strategy to blatant flattery, “Wilkes is lucky he gets to sleep in it.” I smacked my lips in an annoyed fashion. “You and Wilkes are lucky I let either of you near me…”

miniature

I don't have this word! Have an AASOAF fun fact instead! I legitimately thought that everyone was going to hate Axtapor while I was writing AASOAF 1 so I was genuinely surprised that so many people liked him when I started sharing my work online.

rattle (AASOAF 1)

I tried to lift my head before a shock of pain thrust itself through the base of my neck. I cried out and heard the rattling of chains in my ears as I fell to my knees. The water is rising. No. I’m sinking. I struggled further and called out to anyone who might hear me, but there was no response. No echo. No sound. 

***

From Kate:

smooth (AASOAF 1)

The pair of smooth sloped horns upon his head, his bright red eyes, and the ruby set in his forehead helped me confirm my suspicions about who he was, though they were hardly needed. He was unmistakable.

free (AASOAF 1)

“Do ye want to be free? Or will ye let them step on ye again?” “Even if I wanted to be, what can either of us do?” I whispered shakily. “It nay matters tell me what ye want.”

broken (AASOAF 1)

“Oxlo, Oxlo. First Mate, broken-hearted Dreamer. Broken man, broken heart, broken Dreamer. Nightmares. Dark. Terror. Oxlo.” “Aye, Kirik.” I responded with a frown as I pulled my pipe from my pocket and began to stuff it with tobacco.

slowly (AASOAF 1)

But we would need to stop to water the horse soon; the poor beast was foaming at the mouth and proceeding slowly after being worked so hard the night before.

***

From Nerissa:

anger (AASOAF 2)

He departed, and while I did my best to temper my anger, it got the better of me as I seized one of the paperweights from my desk and threw it across the room, shattering some glass thing wherever it landed.

opposite (AASOAF 1)

People bustling about and minding their own business seemed to suck whatever unique value such an environment could provide to any new eyes that might lay upon it. I let out a small sigh as I scanned the crowd in the opposite direction and felt my limbs become tense.

continue (AASOAF 2)

Of course, such things would not go unnoticed by her. She knew me well, and no matter how much I dismissed her, she would just find another angle and continue to prod, but where would I even begin telling her about what was troubling me?

answer (AASOAF 2)

I supposed his answer was sweet, and I should be happy that my grandmother would finally have a chance to be with someone who treasured her in the way she deserved, but I wasn’t. When it came down to it, I didn’t like his response at all, and I didn’t know why.

[prongsmydeer]

Ayesha Liveblogs Heartstopper S2

Alright, I have gathered my psychological strength, onto season 2!!

Charlie and Nick's little "hi"s are very sweet to me, they just always seem so happy to see each other

"Kissing at school is a terrible idea," said Nick, both accurate, and in direct contradiction to his actions in the hallway on sports day not so long ago

I understand that Nick is not happy with his rugby friends but it does put him in a rough position to be isolating himself from his long-time companions at a time when he's dealing with a lot of change

What up with Mr. Farouk, why did he yell "QUIET" at the top of his voice like anyone had really been saying anything audibly:

"No chatting, no phones, no annoying questions." Genuinely what is the point of a study hall like this!! Talking to people can help you revise!! The internet can help you revise! Why have desk partners or a study time at all if you're going to be so incredibly restrictive about what resources they use. Mr. Farouk we've just met but you seem like your pedagogy needs some work

The way neither Nick nor Charlie have any respect for authority LMAO. Both texting in class immediately after the teacher starts talking

"I want to rejoin the rugby team." The valiant return of Rugby Romance!!! It is very funny how Charlie's motivation for rugby is 1) Nick and 2) Sport, in that order

"But maybe being weird is how he expresses his romantic feelings." LMAO true

The panic in Tao's eyes upon his romantically-charged friendship touching his hair. A visual demonstration of 🚨WEE OO WEE OO WHAT'S GOING ON 🚨

"How did you know this is my favourite chocolate bar?" HAHAHAHAHA, Heartstopper joining the likes of every Thai show I've ever watched when it comes to sponsor integration. Perfect. Product placement is allowed if it amuses me:

"If we're out by the time we're on the Paris trip, we can kiss on the Eiffel tower." Nick is sooooo romantic. Also it's windy up there

Baffling to me that all these teens are allowed to have a sleepover, not only because of it a being mixed-gender event, but also because half of them are DATING EACH OTHER

Sidenote: I love that Nick does have a support system in these friends

Side sidenote: Whichever tumblr coder took away my indented bullet list ability. Meet me in the Denny's parking lot

Elle and Tao's almost kiss in the garden 🌻💛 This friend group IS incapable of platonic activities

Tao every time Nick says anything: U shut ur mouth, Rugby Boy

"You didn't like me because you're gay." "Well, I... I'm bisexual actually." YEAHHHHHHHHH Nick also fjfhfjhfjk Imogen

It makes me happy how warm and yellow the colouring of this ep is

"Nick is banned from sleepovers from now on." Hater energy, but fair hahahahaha this is what I expected

Quite honestly I am unable to see Tori as any age but 30 LOL. smth about her reminds me of Catherine Tate's Comic Relief skits:

"I can protect him," said Charlie, like he can run faster than homophobia. (I'm with you on the concern, Tori)

Is each season going to have a colour theme? Because this ep looks quite yellow too, where a lot of the last season was blue

Charlie abandoning his schoolwork stresses me out LOL BOY

Rough for Imogen to be dating Ben, he sucks

"It's not my fault he liked me before you." "I hate you because you literally assaulted him." Good for Nick for calling it what it is

"Sorry, am I not allowed to like girls as well as boys?" Ben said, bisexuality is not only for the sound of mind

Nick softlaunching his relationship with a picture of his dog and boyfriend:

Really bold of Elle to declare the art school friends as new friends for life after one (1) day of interaction but more power to her I guess. I love that she is making more friends, and specifically trans and non-binary friends because it really does change your life to meet people with shared identities 😭❤️

Fjkfkfjhf Tao representing my diasporic experience and replying in English while being spoken to in your mother tongue

"He's done some really bad stuff." "What? What'd he do?" "I can't tell you." I feel like you COULD say he assaulted someone without saying who but I respect Nick not wanting to even come close to outing someone

"I don't actually have that many friends." Colour me crazy, Imogen, but I kinda think that's cause you're never at your own school

This GCSE scene with Nick is exactly why I need psychological strength for this show, it's a visual representation of a panic attack

HAHAHAHHAHA the juxtaposition between Tao's mum, who loves Elle and wants her to live in their house, vs. Elle's mum, who refers to Tao as "that boy of yours"

"I just... I just wanted to meet the guy that, you know, turned my little brother gay." Get fucked David, and get out

David said: I am homophobic AND biphobic. I can do both

You know, I'll give my brother this credit, when he found a little gay picture of me he just handed it back and minded his business

Me @ Charlie's mum: Strict parents raise sneaky kids

"Charlie, this is not your fault," said Nick, even though Charlie would take fault for breathing if he could

Tao also representing the diasporic experience of being handed cut up fruit when you're sad

The Elle and Tao pic being Tao's phone background gjkkgjhgjhg

"Honestly, Elle could do better. And she probably doesn't even like me back, and this is probably going to destroy our friendship, it's going to destroy our friendship group, and it's going to leave me devastated for years to come. So, this is probably a really selfish and stupid thing to do, but I'm going to tell her. Help me." Wow, I did not anticipate this level of emotional honesty from Tao. Good for him!

"We're sorry about what happened at the cinema. We should've spoken up." Awwww Rugby Boys Redemption

"I know you and Charlie are really good mates." The immediate cutaway to them kissing is the funniest thing this show has ever done

Ah, well it was only a matter of time before one of the teachers so their many, many school kisses. I hope Coach Singh is cool about it

"Lots of lesbians in women's rugby. That's how I met my wife." YEAHHHHH Coach Singh! Sometimes stereotypes DO comfort me

I loooooove that Nick has a teacher on his side now. Good for him!!

"It's fine. It's done." CHARLIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE why will you take responsibility for everything all the time except the one thing you need to take responsibility for, which is your history essay

Charlie submitting essential coursework five minutes before it's due. Honestly relatable

"You're going to be so annoyed with me after [Paris.] " "Awww, but I love you because of how annoying you are." This is my love language

Wow, Tao, this new haircut and confidence is working for you:

As a sidenote: Cutting your hair when you believe someone else likes you is a bold move. Hair can change a lot kjghgjhgkjh

The way their friends rush them after they agree to go out!!! I love this friend group

Awww, it's fun that Isaac has a newfound relationship in James, even though I am like, 90% sure he's going to be uninterested in romance as a whole

"Look after him, or you die." Tori's Pre-Party Shovel Talk

"Just think of us being out as a couple in Paris." 1) Do you think your teachers will still let you be roommates if they know you're dating and 2) Not terribly convincing when Nick looks like he's gonna be sick

Nick is truly popular against his own will LOL

"You're the one who said we'd always put our friendship first. You promised." "Well, I guess romance does ruin friendship." I do think Elle has been pretty unkind here. I know Tao is acting out-of-character, but he's doing it to impress Elle, and she's responded by inviting her friends, who Tao doesn't know, to the latter half of their date

"Nick doesn't want to talk to you, Harry, piss off." Very assertive of Charlie, good for him

Even though they're in England, it'd honestly never occurred to me that they'd be leaving for Paris on a bus

Counting Isaac and James, there's a lot of Romantic Situations on this Bus:

"What the hell was that?" said Tao, about Nick speaking French, like he doesn't know Cantonese

Skjhkjdhdjh Tao and Isaac immediately preventing Nick and Charlie from sharing a bed

SOMETHING is going to happen between Mr. Farouk and Mr. Ajayi, and while it'd be fun if it was something gay, I think it's going to be homophobic, bc this show just isn't THAT fun

HAHAHAHA Tao just slamming down the apple juice on Elle's table and running away

"I need a drink. An alcoholic drink." "We probably shouldn't drink alcohol." "I need a croissant then." WILL IT be gay? Please sirs

Isaac should also probably take the 'am I gay' internet quiz

"My dad's French." "Since when?" "Since.... his birth?" Nicolas Nelson u are so funny and cute

Does Charlie have a bit of disordered eating? We've seen him beg off having food a few times

HAHAHA the way Elle is like, "I don't want a man who takes me to movies I like, I want someone who jump scares me in museums!"

"It's like all he cares about is having a girlfriend." Probably true, Imogen

Yikes for Charlie @ having to sit next to Ben. Also. Imogen HAS to see what the hell is up here, there's been SO MANY loaded glances

Update from like 1 minute later: Seen, spilled, and SPLIT UP:

"There's no need to call her a bitch," said Harry, suggesting he's okay with homophobic slurs but draws the line at derogatory language towards women

"Everything would be so much easier if I was into girls." Is that true, Imogen?

"You care about your friends so... loudly." A very good way to describe Tao

Tao after Nick compliments him a bunch: I have to leave immediately

Nick said: In the spirit of France, I've decided to try necking

HAHAHAHHAAH the "Oh fu—" cut off on Charlie learning he has a hickey

This is one situation in which it would be better for Charlie NOT to be out because the list of people who could've given him a hickey goes: Nick, Tao, Isaac or James, so I really don't see this being the best situation for anyone

"Charlie didn't give me a chance to figure myself out, and then you came along, and you stole him from me." 1) Can't steal a person 2) You assaulted him, Ben and 3) Figuring yourself out does not equal treating people like shit! See: Nick

"Hey Nick. Is that hickey from you then?" "What if it was? Are you jealous?" YEAHHHHH NICK

"Did Harry just stick up for us?" "I think he did." All Harry required was one (1) empathy lesson from Isaac to develop a conscience

Ohhhhh Tao's comment about accidentally outing Nick from last season makes a lot more sense in the context of him being overheard about Charlie

Little Charlie and Tao are soooo cute omg

Awwwww Charlie making a Charlie and Tao love lock for the bridge ❤️ Sweet boy

"People might think you gave me this hickey if you keep this up." It would be EXTREMELY funny if people assumed that Charlie had somehow gathered a gay boys' school polycule

Is the Louvre background greenscreened kjghkjghg I can't tell

"You don't have to understand your feelings completely to know you like something." Hahahaha Nick being the subtle matchmaker of Elle and Tao this season is something I couldn't have predicted, but I adore

I am growing more and more sure all of the painting scenes are greenscreened haha. I guess renting out the Louvre was out of the budget, very fair

Tao and Elle, while their best friend Charlie is passed out on the floor of the Louvre:

"I don't do poses." "Yes, you do. Go on." I think Mr. Farouk and Mr. Ajayi should develop a little flirtationship. As a treat

"Charlie, I've noticed you, uh, don't really eat a lot. Generally." Me too, Nick

NOT CHARLIE TRYING TO APOLOGIZE FOR HAVING DISORDERED EATING. AIEEEEEEEEEEE

"Sometimes it feels like the only thing I can control in my life." God. godddd. Not to reveal too much of myself, but this is the only fucking time I've ever seen someone in a show with a similar relationship to food as me. Not out of body image issues, or out of personal neglect, but as like. A bad relationship with food and anxiety

"Do you like that fact that I speak French?" Heehee

HAHAHAHAHA Charlie and Nick pointlessly running away from their field trip even though I'm sure Nick would be ALLOWED to meet up with his own dad. Very rebellious

Well, Stéphane, Nick's Deadbeat Dad, made a brief but impactful appearance

"If you're thinking about giving me another hickey..." [High-pitched, lying] "I wasn't thinking about that."

Another stressful moment caused by Nick and Charlie's Irrepressible PDA HAHAH:

"When you don't figure out you're gay until your late 20s, you tend to miss out on those." IT WAS THAT FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND IT WAS SOMETHING GAY!!!!!!!!! YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MR. FAROUK ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

I love that every named teacher in this school is gay. 10/10. I want to give the writers a leetle kees on the lips

"You flirting with me?" "Maybe." Mr. Ajayi!!! 👀❤️

I've not really talked about the Tara and Darcy subplot of Darcy being unable to say that she loves Tara or that her parents clearly don't know she's dating her but I am curious where it's leading

Isaac's No. 1 love is books, and I do love that for him

"To be honest, I sort of had a crush on him last year." We return to Charlie representing The Only Out Kid At School Whom All Other People Figuring Out That They're Some Type of Gay May Inevitably Direct Their Feelings

This is officially THE MOST romantically charged field trip I've ever seen in my life. Even Isaac's trying his hand (and his lips):

"I know I've said some homophobic stuff in the past, but I feel like I know better now, and I'll never say anything like that again." Harry. I don't know if this is going to be enough of an apology to get you into the World's Gayest Birthday Party

LMAOOOOOOOOOOO CHARLIE SHUTTING THE DOOR IN HARRY'S FACE. GOOD FOR HIM!!!

"I know who it was. Me. We're dating." Awwwww Nick ❤️

Also, love love love how when everyone's like "U gay?" He consistently clarifies that he's bi

"I'm going to pretend I believe you have food poisoning." I take back everything I said about Mr. Farouk's pedagogy, he's a real one

Also why on EARTH would they not take Darcy to the bathroom to vom and rally first! Unrealistic, blocked. You would not tell a teacher unless she was DYING

Nick and Charlie's very forthright conversation about how they feel about sex. They're very good communicators! 💟

"I love you so much. I know it sounds like I don't mean it, because I'm drunk. But I really do mean it. I love you." Darcy said: The alcohol was communication juice, actually

Don't look at me but Tara kissing Darcy even though she was just sick is very romantic, I said what I said:

I repeat: THE MOST ROMANTICALLY-CHARGED FIELD TRIP EVER, IN THE HISTORY OF FRANCE:

I feel from the separate delayed glances the night together between Mr. Farouk and Mr. Ajayi did not go that well

Also!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

TAO'S MUM WANTING TO CELEBRATE WITH THEIR ENTIRE FAMILY THAT HE AND ELLE ARE TOGETHER!!! 💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘

The shadowy figures as u enter your house. We've all been there, Darcy

"You probably just haven't found the right person yet." Hoo boy

"Like, being in a world where romance and sex are prized above everything else when you don't feel those forms of attraction. Growing up feeling about something about you is different, but you don't have the words to describe what that is." 1) I love that Isaac is finally finding words for his experience and 2) It bugs me a leetle when people phrase this idea without including the word CISHETERONORMATIVE, because trans and queer romance and sex are CERTAINLY not prized above everything else. It's a necessary distinction

Elle's safe place being Charlie and Isaac and Tao 😭💘😭💘😭💘😭💘😭💘😭💘😭💘😭💘 My heart

"I'm glad you realize what you did was wrong, but you don't get to ambush me into forgiving you." Charlie is SO good at finding words!! He could teach a class

"It's a very attractive sport to women," said Stephane, not knowing he was literally the only person at the table who didn't know his son was dating a guy

Nick said: This is a coming out AND a Deadbeat Dadtervention, get rekt Stéphane

"You have not grown up into the man I'd hoped you'd be, David." WOW. Even Stéphane knows you're wrong, David. That's gotta hurt!

Mrs. Spring, probably: Wow, so your boyfriend comes from a broken home!

"It was nice to meet your... boyfriend. I don't really understand these things, but he seems like a very nice young man." "He is." Alright, Stéphane, you get $0.000000001 knocked off your Deadbeat Dad Debt

"Talk about my brother like that again, and I'll end you." GET HIM, TORI

This show loves a happy/sad juxtaposition, so we must pair Nick and Charlie's semi-successful family dinner with Darcy running away from home

"You should invite him tonight." Gay teachers alliance unite!!!

"And he still carries it all with him. Even though it's over. It still causes him a lot of pain. I don't know, do you think that's true?" "Yeah, I do. I think when something really bad happens, it can affect you for a really long time." Two teenage boys' first endeavour in finding words to discuss trauma

I like Elle's dad, he's fun. I really appreciate that none of the main group's parents except Darcy's appear to be mean

"We've missed you mate." "Yeah. I've missed you too." RUGBY BOYS REUNION 💗

I also haven't really talked about Sahar, bisexual prom guitarist with a frenemieship with Imogen, but I do like her a lot as well

The extra in the green dress staring intently at Tao and Elle is killing me. What a scene-stealer

"I want to go to Lambert." "I know." Shut the fuck up, Elle and Tao are sooooo cute:

"I was going to suggest dinner and drinks next time?" NATHAN ❤️ YOUSSEF FOREVER

Omg. Imogen's little musical note animations on Sahar's guitar!! Is her statement about being into girls going to come to fruition!!!

Heartstopper said: There will be NO relationships that do not involve queer or trans people. Not on my watch!!!!!!!

Nick having six of his closest friends over for a prom night chill is extremely relatable. Heartstopper really does touch upon a lot of memories LOL

Darcy's mum not even giving a shit her daughter spent the night in a public park. Boooooooooooo

"I hide who I am when I'm at home." Darcy 😭😭😭😭😭

I hope and feel that Darcy has a home in her friends ❤️I believe they all have a home in each other

"You never told me about... the bullying." Nick said: I'm going to drastically change the tone of this evening, Charlie

Ahhhhh, I knew Charlie's admission was coming based on the season's warning, but oof

Nick about to tell Charlie that he loves him, like we can't sense it with every fibre of his being

(Aside: I do think both Charlie and Nick should probably be seeing a therapist, or at the very least a (safe) school counsellor. They're carrying a lot)

Charlie about to text it as well!! I wish for nothing but a kinder world and brighter days ahead for these boys:

[theobsessiveloser18]

Random Thought:

Upon leaving his 'office' Johnny found his students grouped and dispersed talking at full volume, The majority formed just by seeing him, but the heaviest insisted on continuing with their work and ignoring the presence of the sensei, with his infallible 'Quiet', those who were missing joined in but none of the boys He stopped talking, the sensei shouted 'Quiet' like he had never done before in his life, everyone was stunned, believing he had dominated them, the blonde was preparing To give her lessons, but a female voice stood out in the silence, everyone turned to look at the girl, who at that moment realized that perhaps she had made a mistake.

Johnny walked menacingly towards her.

“Why haven't you kept quiet, crazy hair, are you deaf?”

The girl tried to sound calm before the sensei's threatening voice, swallowed dryly.

“Sorry sensei”

Maybe he felt a little bad for putting her in that situation, he sighed

“You better have a good reason "So as not to have shut up, because there is a long section of squats that you must lead for all your partners." Faced with the annoying gaze of the majority, the girl chose to tell the truth,Smiling and showing emotion in her voice thinking that her attitude would save her

“I was telling the guys about the free tickets to go to the museum.” Some patted their heads in Frustrated.

“Listen, if it's a lie You are disappointing, you are shameless and you use your wit intelligently, if it is true you are putting me in a difficult situation. Because I wouldn't know whether to fire you for not having learned in 4 months that being a nerd doesn't work here, or to put you to work until you go bald and stop being a nerd.”

She was quite confused but like the good cobra she is, she didn't give up.

“It's more interesting than you might think, sensei, it's an art exhibition.”.

Not knowing what to do, the others smiled trying to alleviate the situation.

“In case you don't know, girl, being a hippie is another way of being freaky that leads to the same nerdy point where you started,Now you understand why Miguel didn't want girls, they distract aspiring men with their sensitivities

“It's an art exhibition about karate sensei,” said Tory, tired of so many detours.

“That's what you had to say from the beginning,” one of her friends murmured.

“Look Nichols, I have nothing against you bunch of lazy people wasting your time on that kind of thing Crap,But I don't know how to distract my space with that, understood” the conversation was about to end

“but sensei, it's not just an art exhibition about karate, it's an art exhibition about history About karate” Miguel intervened, and before Johnny's indifferent look he insisted with a nervous smile “you love karate, we love karate, what better way to see it than for free?”

“Well, go see it because they keep insisting on this damn it?”

“because the exhibition is next week at lesson time”

“Go ahead” he commented with a smile that confused everyone.“But anyone who is not in my class at that time will never set foot in my dojo again in their life.”

“How are we going to be in both places at the same time?” a boy asked, everyone looked at him in disbelief and a girl yelled at him

“We will have to choose which of the 2 places we want to be that afternoon You big idiot, your brain was conceived in a can of tuna?”

Johnny moved towards the motto on the wall. He was finally going to start class but Bert intervened.

“Sensei in fact it would be a good idea for us all to include him in the exhibition, the images transmit the same information as the training of changing ,This learning method will expand the hippocampus of our brains, which will allow us to store more information.”

“What is he supposed to say?”

“I don't know but I don't think he even knows it.”

“What the wet shit are you supposed to say Bert?

The exasperated man shouted.

“That's how you do little genius,” Hawk mocked.

“I don't think you could have done it better Mohawk.” comment penis breath The boy gave him his best look.

“I'm saying facts sensei facts "That benefits us all."

Before the man could send them What dogs did I bite,The person causing the discussion intervened

“That's enough guys Sensei was right This has gone on for a long time”.Johnny smiled satisfied as the They looked Each other confused

“I'll tell y/n I'm going to tell t/n, thank you Give the tickets to others”

“y/n?”

“If Sensei doesn't remember that she works in an art museum?

A little hope seemed to be taking over the situation. The expectation carefully followed the girl's words.

“Well, when she knew that they were giving away tickets for teams like ours, she moved heaven and earth to get them. She was very excited because We were going to see her work, she is going to be the tour guide, she sent the group of us the sexy outfit that she is going to wear, she really has good taste”

“It was not known between Johnny and the boys who was more surprised than what she had revealed, only one thing was certain: you were too calm telling everything, unlike Johnny, who was practically panting and everyone knew better, but they preferred not to guess what was on her mind.

Hawk wanted to add to the contribution

"oh yes, sensei we could see the photo on Tory's cell phone and it looks hotter than a fire, all the guys will beg for her to give them a private party, if I were you I would beat them to it" red haired boy received bad looks from everyone

"what day is it?" the man asked suddenly

“Wednesday of next week,” the girl responded. The adult circled around them.

“If you really want to learn karate you should watch Bruce Lee and Jackie Chang movies, instead of watching that crap of the modern world, even Rocky Balboa teaches more karate than the supposed action movies that you see”

"Actually, Sensei, the first two movies are about martial arts, which is superior to karate and is not what we learn here, therefore," commented another of the dojo's nerds. They all chose to ignore him, but they decided to keep him quiet. The doubts

“one more word, seven less organs”

"As I was saying, I don't think the exhibitions teach much, but if they promised y/n, they kept y/n.”

When the led man turned his back, they had a mini celebration.

"And I'm going with you, I'll make sure you pay as much attention as possible." "The animal that decides to miss will do push-ups for 7 classes, and if it decides not to return to the dojo, I will pay it a visit myself."

“positions” the man shouted and everyone settled back down but not before congratulating the girl with the curly hair for having achieved her goal.

“It turned out better than I expected,” Miguel commented.

“You were expecting something, I still can't believe it worked.”

“Tory, darling, what is this lack of confidence? I never disappoint.” The girl put her arm around your shoulder and shook it friendly.

“Yes, you definitely don’t.”

Bert high-fived you, and those around you couldn't stop murmuring praise.

“You know, I deserve recognition too, help convince him,” Hawk complained.

“Commenting on something he didn't see”

"That's not the point, the point is that I convinced the sensei, with something that we all want to take the hot chocolates home with us."

He and the other boys walked away quite a bit when they saw the look of disgust, disgust and, above all, anger on the girls' faces. the rest

“Come on Tory, I need to hit them.”

“It is better to do it when they are distracted, it will hurt more”

“You're really smart girl.”

“Believe me, not as much as your nameless one” they both smiled,

Getting Johnny Lawrence to comply with his students' whims may be impossible unless he is manipulated

By the way, nameless(no name) is the nickname that Johnny gave her the first time she entered the dojo, he said that he wasn't interested in her name because he didn't see any cobra material.

Fun fact: she can beat Hawk and Miguel with the only one she hasn't been able to do is Tory.

[riarevenge]

some people are so cruel for absolutely no reason uno, there’s a lad who’s had a bit of tough luck lately and has a sick wife and child, and he’s from pakistan and he wanders a couple tube stations and tha to sell some art he makes, and he came up to me so i told him like i’m going in for work right now cos he knows me by now innit, and instead of collecting up his artwork and taking away things he can sell, i just send him odd bits of money whenever i see him if i’ve not been paid yet like £10 here £15 there uno and then i always tell him “i’ll come on this day and buy one of your pieces when i’ve gotten paid” and i do cos it’s basic human decency not to lie and i saw him today and sent him some more money and whatever uno, just having nice convo with him. i asked if he was cold innit cos it’s baltic out here and i buy him one and then he fist bumps me (he’s the cutest on earth) and thanked me and then THIS GRIMY STINKY BLONDE WHITE BANKER TORY LOOKING MAN goes “uno hes probs just lying all them (and then a slur i won’t repeat!) do. jus say you’ll find him another day then don’t come, no use with them lot anyway” WHATTATSUDKFKDKSK HES A HUMAN BEING YOURE DHATTING AHOUT IN FROTNNOF THINAJSIFOKDKWKEKFJF

[babymetaldoll]

"Victory" (Spencer Reid/ Reader)

Requested: Yes

Summary: Spencer's daughter hates her father's girlfriend. But when he is in prison, life pushes them to finally get along.

Warning: Cursing, a little angst, a mean teenager, and fluff.

Word count: 5,4K

A/N: Hello, pretty people! How are you? I've missed you! Life has been a little messy and filled with angst, so writing hasn't come easy in the lastest weeks. Hope you like this story, and I hope I can bring you a new one soon 😉

Masterlist

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Spencer's daughter hated her dad's new girlfriend. And she wasn't subtle about it. She hated that her father was now dating, 'cos she didn't want to share his love. So now she didn't even want to be around him anymore 'cos he was so happy, it was annoying.

It wasn't that she hated her father, 'cos she loved him. But she was never going to face the fact she was jealous. She didn't want to share Spencer with anyone because he was all the family she knew, and they were a team.

Victoria Reid was twelve years old. She had grown up alone with her dad 'cos her mother had ditched the two of them soon after she was born. Spencer had tried to explain to his daughter her mom had left 'cos she wasn't ready to deal with the responsibility of being a mother, which was true. He, on the other hand, was happy to know he was going to be a father, and he repeated over and over again she was the best thing that had ever happened to him.

That was true.

When Spencer and his ex found out they were going to be parents, he was ecstatic. He couldn't wait to hold his baby in his arms and watch them grow. He didn't know his girlfriend had other plans, though, and soon after Victoria was born, she had left the two of them and never looked back.

Spencer wasn't going to lose the chance of being a dad. Even when he knew he was too young, Reid was ready to raise that baby on his own and give her all the love he had.

That's why he and Victoria were so close. Spencer was the only parent she had ever had. He was her world. And though Spencer was only 24 when Tori was born, he had given her his best.

Tori was the BAU's baby girl. Everybody in the team was a part of her life because she had grown up with them. Penelope was her best friend and godmother. Victoria would spend a lot of time with her while her dad was away on a case. Derek was her cool uncle. He helped her train to get into the basketball team and taught her how to dance. JJ was the closest to a mother figure in her life. Tori would spend time with her after school, playing with Henry. Spencer always said JJ was like a sister for him, and that's why they were all like family. Tori actually called Henry and Michel her cousins.

Emily was like her best friend. They could talk about anything, and at least twice a month, they would go out together shopping, just the two of them. Spencer always respected his daughter's relationship with his friend 'cos they were their little extended family. Tori called Rossi "Nono." He had taught her himself, and she loved going to his mansion, 'cos he always had new video games to play with her.

But then came (Y/N). She had joined the team when Victoria was only six years old, and for the first five years, they got along just fine. (Y/N) would come along shopping with her and Emily, sometimes she took Tori out for some pastries, and talked about bands, boys. Victoria loved her.

That until the incident.

She hated (Y/N) after the incident.

Victoria refused to talk to her after THE INCIDENT.

It was a warm spring afternoon, Spencer and (Y/N) had the afternoon off, and they were at his apartment... heavily making out on the couch. That's why they lost track of time.

(Y/N) and Spencer had started dating a few months before. They had been in love with each other for years. Still, neither of them had acted on it until Rossi's birthday party, when they had a little too many drinks and finally confessed their feelings. They wanted to take things slow, but when you make out in front of the whole team, it might be a little harder imagined.

But they had decided to wait for the right time to tell Victoria. But, unfortunately, the right time didn't come soon enough.

- "Dad!! I'm home!!"- Victoria opened the front door and froze in shock at the scene going on in front of her. The twelve-year-old had asked her best friend's mother to drop her home earlier when Penelope told her Spencer had already gone home. In Garcia's defense, she had no idea what was going on in Reid's residence, and if she had known, she would have never let Victoria know her dad was home.

(Y/N) widened her eyes and quickly grabbed a pillow to cover herself. She was shirtless, sitting on Spencer's lap. She still had her bra on (thank god), but anyone could tell that scene was leading to the bedroom in a few seconds.

- "Shit!"- Spencer whispered and closed his eyes as he realized what was going on. (Y/N) held her breath as she stared into the young teen's eyes. Victoria didn't know what to do or what to say, so she simply ran to her room and slammed the door.

- "Ok... so I think Tori knows about us"- (Y/N) tried to ease the mood and smiled at her boyfriend as she put on her shirt. But Spencer sighed and covered his face with both hands- "Oh, come on. It doesn't have to be a bad thing. Let me talk to her."

- "No, (Y/N), let me talk to her first."- Spencer stood up and kissed (Y/N) 's nose- "I know she is mad, and I should be the one dealing with her anger."

Reid knew his daughter well enough to anticipate her behavior. People had often told him he could be a little passive-aggressive when he was upset. And his daughter was just like him.

- "Victoria, open the door!"- he said and waited a few seconds after knocking.

- "Go away!"- the teenager yelled, laying on her bed. She felt betrayed and confused. But most of all, she felt angry that her father had decided to have a girlfriend. He had no right to do such a thing. He had to take care of her and her grandma. No one else.

- "Victoria, we need to talk about this!"

- "You seemed too busy with your girlfriend to talk to me, dad. So go away!"

- "Victoria Marie!"- Spencer knocked on the door but got no answer from his daughter. (Y/N) heard it all from the couch and tried to think of a way to fix things with the young girl.

Sadly, it wasn't going to be easy, and in the months that followed, everything was far from being normal again.

- "I hate her!"- Victoria huffed and left her book aside. Spencer was trying to explain to her why (Y/N) would stay with her and Diana while he took a short work trip for the weekend. But the girl didn't want to hear a word about it.

- "You used to get along with her just fine until we started dating."- Spencer tried to dialogue with his daughter. Still, it was honestly getting harder and harder each time they touched the subject.

- "Used to. You just said it. I have the right to change my mind about people. Why can't I stay with auntie Penelope for the weekend?"

- "Because I want you to make an effort and try to get along with (Y/N) again. Victoria, we've been through this before. I love you, and that's not going to change just because I am dating (Y/N)."

- "This is so unfair! I hate you!!"

Spence tried to stay calm, but after over four-month having the same argument almost every day, he was losing it. Victoria stormed out and slammed her bedroom door behind her back. Maybe it was better not to push it, Spencer thought, defeated, and called Penelope to ask her if his daughter could spend the weekend with her, 'cos he had to travel. Maybe Victoria and (Y/N) weren't going to get along if he forced them to spend time together.

Everyone had already tried to talk to her about what was going on: JJ, Emily, Penelope. But Victoria wasn't ready to give in. She wanted to hate (Y/N), and nothing was going to change that. Or so she thought.

The day Penelope showed up in Victoria's school and announced her something had happened to her dad was engraved in the girl's memory forever as the worst day of her life. Her father had been arrested in Mexico, but Garcia had assured her, the whole team was working to bring him home safe. Meanwhile, she would stay with her in her apartment (she was already there anyway), and Diana would stay home with her nurse.

Victoria's heart was broken. She was basically alone in the whole world. Her father was her anchor. Her protector. Her superhero. Her best friend. And now, all of a sudden, he was gone, and though everybody told her it was going to be ok, she knew it wasn't.

- "Hey,"- (Y/N) walked into Penelope's office and found Victoria doing her homework- "Pen told me you were here, and I thought maybe you'd like one of these."

The young SSA said and handed the girl a box of fresh chocolate frosted with sprinkled donuts and a strawberry milkshake. Her favorites.

But Victoria didn't reply. Instead, she looked at (Y/N) right in the eyes, not moving a muscle, and then returned to her homework.

It had been two weeks since Spencer had been accused of murder, and he had been transferred to Virginia. But the team was far from solving the case.

- "Ok, Tori, please stop this. I know you don't like me dating your dad, but this is not the right time to fight. I know..."- (Y/N) made a short pause and took a deep breath before resuming her idea- "I know how you feel."

- "No. You don't."- Victoria Reid's voice was loud and clear, like thunder, hitting earth with anger. So clear, in fact, (Y/N) widened her eyes when she heard her.

- "You have no idea how I feel. Your dad ain't in jail accused of killing some woman in Mexico. You have no right to tell me that!"

- "My boyfriend and best friend in the whole world is in jail right now, and it doesn't matter if I work myself to death 18 hours every single fucking day; I still can't find the way to help him. I feel lost and alone, and most of all, scared, 'cos I've come to realize I have no idea how to live without him anymore. I'm guessing that's very close to what you feel."

(Y/N) poured her heart with complete honesty to her boyfriend's daughter, fighting the tears back, though you could feel the desperation in her voice. She didn't know if it would be of any use, but she had to take that from her chest. She missed Spencer so much she felt she was going insane. She had no idea what to do.

Victoria stared at her, furrowing her eyes and pouting. She didn't want to cry in front of (Y/N) 'cos she didn't want her trying to console her.

- "Just because you are dating him doesn't mean you have to take care of me. I can take care of myself."- Tori said and looked at the donut. She was hungry, they looked delicious, but the teenager didn't want to accept any gift coming from (Y/N).

- "I am not here because you are my boyfriend's daughter. I thought you were a cool kid way before I fell in love with him."- (Y/N) tried to calm herself down and sat across the table from Victoria- "And I am not trying to steal him from you. I just wanna... make him happy."

- "We were happy,"- the teenager's comeback was like a slap on (Y/N) 's face, but she did her best not to take it personally. She knew it was useless fighting with a teenager.

- "I have a visit scheduled for tomorrow. If you'd like, we could go together."

Tori held her breath. She hadn't seen her father since he left for Mexico. Of course, Victoria wanted to see him and hug him. It was all she wanted in the whole world. But... she didn't want to be friendly with (Y/N).

- "If I go... it doesn't mean I like you."- the young girl whispered.

- "I know"- (Y/N) nodded, feeling already triumphant.

- "And it doesn't mean I'm ok with you dating him."

- "I understand. I just know you miss him, Tori. I really know how you feel, and I'm gonna help you whenever I get a chance."- Victoria didn't answer; she just sighed and grabbed a donut. (Y/N) tried not to smile, feeling she had a small victory.

Spencer couldn't believe it when he saw his little girl waiting for him sitting next to (Y/N) instead of his lawyer in the small grey room. Victoria stood up and ran to him the second the door opened and wrapped her arms around her father as tight as possible.

(Y/N) looked at the guards, thankful neither of them had tried to stop the teenager.

Spencer kissed his daughter's cheek a few times and whispered how sorry he was to put her under those circumstances. He didn't know what to do or what to say. He was speechless. A part of him hated the idea of his daughter visiting him in jail, but he also missed her too much to argue with (Y/N) for bringing her over.

- "I'll go fill a few forms. Be right back"- (Y/N) whispered and saw Spencer's warm smile as he mouthed "Thank you," still hugging his daughter. She whispered, "I love you," and walked outside the room. She knew Victoria would appreciate a few minutes alone with her father, and she didn't want to take that away from them. She really wanted to make Spencer and Tori happy, and spending time together was what they needed.

- "I know this is hard, peanut, but we'll get through it. I'll be out in a few weeks. I promise"- Spencer held his daughter's hands as they sat across the table.

- "I miss you"- her voice was a soft whisper, as she kept trying not to cry anymore. She didn't want to make him feel guilty, sad, or anxious.

- "Me too. How are you? How is living with aunt Penelope going?"

- "Ok... we watch a lot of movies."

- "And school?"- Tori shrugged.

- "Ok, I guess."

- "Victoria..."

- "I got a C on my history paper."

- "Baby..."

- "I know, I know, I should have tried harder, but I really didn't want to do it."

Spencer was torn between lecturing his daughter for getting a bad grade and actually telling her it was ok, 'cos they were going through a rough patch. It was obvious she might get bad grades, all things considered.

- "I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you"- it was all Spencer managed to whisper.

- "Don't say that, dad. I'm sorry I slacked off."

- "You know, you could ask (Y/N) for help,"- Spencer suggested, but Tori just rolled her eyes, annoyed- "She has a master in the subject..."

- "Dad, please don't force me to talk to her."

- "I'm just saying... you don't have to be her best friend, just ask for help when needed, especially when it comes to school. Besides, it's clear she isn't a bad person if she brought you here today."

- "She just wants to win me over."- Tori mumbled and crossed her arms on her chest. But she knew her dad was right in one thing: (Y/N) had done a pretty good thing taking her to see her dad and letting them spend time together on their own.

Victoria thought she was losing her mind after three months had passed and her father was still in jail. It didn't matter that (Y/N) took her every Saturday morning to visit, played her favorite music, and bought her all the pastries she loved. She needed to live with her father again and do all the small things they loved: making breakfast together, playing scrabble, taking long walks in the park, eating ice cream. Tori even missed her father's annoying habits. She missed his rambling and how he always had an answer for everything, even for the things she didn't want to talk about with him.

Spencer was an amazing father, no questions asked, and Victoria Reid knew she couldn't ask for a better dad than him. She just wanted him back.

But things weren't going to improve soon.

When the team found out Diana Reid had been kidnapped, (Y/N) had to take a minute and lock herself in the bathroom to cry her heart out. She felt bad things were never going to cease, and she didn't want to tell Victoria. The girl had already been through so much, adding the abduction of her grandmother wasn't fair. Tori was just twelve. She shouldn't be going through all that.

- "Victoria?"

Prentiss decided she was going to be the one to tell the girl what was going on, and (Y/N) offered herself to look for her. She was in Rossi's office, reading a book curled on his comfy couch. That poor kid almost lived at the BAU by then.

- "My homework is done."- she replied, not taking her eyes from the page she was reading.

- "That's good. And what are you reading?"- Tori sighed and showed her the cover- "Something Wicked this way comes," I love that book"- (Y/N) smiled and took a look around.

- "Figured my father forced you to read it."

- "Actually, I read it when I was ten, and it's one of my favorite books."- (Y/N) looked at Victoria, but the teenager kept pretending to read, ignoring her- "Emily needs to talk to you."

- "And why are you here? Why didn't aunt Emily come? Are you her secretary?"- there was something about Victoria's attitude that reminded (Y/N) of Reid.

- "I wanted to see you, see how you were doing, and take you to the conference room"- Tori sighed and stood up. She hoped Emily had good news about her father, 'cos she was honestly going insane.

But of course, Prentiss didn't have any good news.

- "I'm sorry, Tori, but... you are going to have to stay here tonight"- the girl frowned, confused, and looked at the whole team around her. Everybody looked like they hadn't slept in days. Which, by the way, was very accurate.

- "Why?"

- "'Cos we are going to have to..."- Emily paused and held her breath, staring at her niece's eyes.- "I'm sorry, Tori, but this is the truth: the woman who framed your father has kidnapped Diana, and I'm scared she might try to get you too. So until we catch her, the safest place to be is here, at the BAU. With us."

Tori gasped and covered her mouth with both hands as tears filled her eyes in a second.

- "Nana? Is she ok?"

- "We don't know yet, but we are working to bring her home safe as soon as possible"- JJ caressed Tori's arm and tried to hold her, but she pushed her away mad frowned.

- "You keep saying that, you keep telling me you are working to bring my family home safe, but so far, you haven't done anything!! I am still alone! Dad is in jail, and everybody knows he is innocent! And now nana is gone too!!"

- "Baby, we know it is hard, but..."- Emily wanted to explain to Victoria everything was more complex than they had expected, but the girl covered her ears and shook her head, yelling as she stormed out of the room

- "I don't wanna hear you!! I want my dad!!"

It was painful to hear those things, 'cos the team was doing the best they could for Reid and his family, but they could understand the frustration and, most of all, the fear that little girl felt.

- "I'll talk to her,"- (Y/N) said and turned to Emily- "You guys continue what you were doing. I'll try to calm her down."

- "Are you sure you wanna go?"- Emily asked and cut (Y/N) a short smile.

- "Yeah, for once, she is mad at all of us, not just me."

The young SSA walked to Garcias's office, where Tori was hidden underneath a desk, crying.

- "Hey."

- "Leave me alone."

- "I know I'm the last person you wanna be with right now, and I am sorry I can't do anything to make you feel better. I can only promise you this: we are doing all we can to bring your dad and your grandmother back home safe." - (Y/N) whispered as she walked slowly towards the girl, who sobbed, whipping off the tears from her eyes.

- "Just leave me alone. I want to be alone,"- Tori mumbled and wrapped her arms around herself, sobbing.

- "I'm not gonna leave you alone, Tori. You are not alone here with us."

- "I am alone!! I want my daddy!! I need my daddy!!"- the girl continued crying her eyes out, hidden underneath the desk. (Y/N) kneeled next to her and sat on the floor.

- "Come here"- it was a bold move, 'cos (Y/N) knew the girl was going to reject her, but she didn't care. She couldn't deal with her sadness, and it scared her to think how bad the child was feeling. So, (Y/N) opened her arms and moved the teen closer to her.

Surprisingly, the girl didn't reject her. Instead, she cried against the fabric of (Y/N) 's sweater and sobbed, shaking, as (Y/N) caressed her hair carefully.

- "I swear, we are not gonna rest until he is free and until Diana is home."

- "I want my family back,"- Victoria mumbled and sighed.

- "You'll get it. I swear, I'll do everything I can to bring them back to you."

That was the first time since (Y/N) started dating Spencer that Victoria let her close. In the middle of the mess they were all lost into, it felt like a little break of peace. Another small victory for the young woman.

(Y/N) didn't mind spending the whole night awake going through an endless pile of files if it meant there was a chance to bring Spencer back home. Tori stayed in Rossi's office, where she made something that looked pretty much like a fort on the couch, with blankets and pillows, to hide from the rest of the world.

It was heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time, looking at the girl hidden there, trying to read, trying to draw, trying to do anything to take her mind from reality. Penelope brought her something to eat, but she rejected it, saying she wasn't hungry. Emily and JJ had tried to talk to her, but Tori kindly said she wanted to be alone. Even Morgan had called her and announced to her he was taking a plane from Chicago to help the team looking for Diana.

None of that cheered Victoria up.

- "I bought you this,"

Around ten, (Y/N) opened Rossi's door and walked in, holding a box of frosted chocolate donuts with sprinkles.

- "They always cheer your dad up, so I'm counting they will do the trick with you too"- the young woman tried to joke but found Victoria crying quietly insider her fort.

- "Please, just leave me alone,"- she whispered and hid her face with both her hands. (Y/N) didn't pay attention and sat with her inside the fort.

- "Not a chance."

- "I really don't wanna do this now, just leave me alone,"- the girl sighed, defeated, and continued crying.

- "Come here, I told you, you are not alone."

- "I am alone, (Y/N)! My dad is in jail, my grandma is kidnapped, and my mother left me 'cos she didn't love me!"

- "No, baby, don't say that"- (Y/N) wrapped her arms around Tori and kissed the top of her head.

- "I know my mom didn't want to have me, and maybe she was right... maybe I am cursed, and all this is my fault."

- "Victoria Marie Reid, you are talking senseless" (Y/N) held the girl's shoulder and looked into her eyes.

- "You are an adorable young girl who deserves the best in the world. Why did this happen? I don't know, bad shit happens in life, and we must try to learn something from it. That's it. There's no reason or cause. Shit happens, baby, but we must raise stronger than before. You are an incredible young girl, and I know your dad is proud of you. I am proud of you, 'cos you've been so courageous and brave."

- "You are just saying that 'cos you are with my dad."

- "No. I would say that even if I hated your dad. You know why? 'Cos I am not lying, you are awesome, and I love you, get that into your head. And you are not alone, 'cos I am here, see?"- (Y/N) ran her thumb on Tori's cheek, whipping off a few of her tears- "I'm here even when you don't want me to be, so I don't know if you can tell, but you are doomed, you can't get rid of me now. I'm like a disease, but a good one... I don' know if there's a good disease. I'm sure your dad would have the answer for my random comment right now."

Both Victoria and (Y/N) chuckled at the same time, and the girl nodded.

- "He definitely would..."

- "He would also lecture me why I shouldn't give you sugar after dinner, but he is not here, and I am not telling him, so please don't tell him 'cos he is going to be mad at me... and at you."- (Y/N) handed Tori the box of donuts, and the girl smiled.

- "I won't tell him."

- "Great, we have our own little sugary secret. Eat all the donuts you want; I'm going to be with the team in the conference room. Emily has a meeting early morning with the judge."- (Y/N) kissed the top of Vitoria's head and stood up.

- "If you need anything, I'm across the hall."- the SSA said, and the girl nodded, chewing a donut.

- "Thank you, (Y/N)"

By the next day, the miracle had happened. Victoria couldn't stop crying when (Y/N) announced she was taking Spencer back home. Tori stood in front of his father's girlfriend and felt how the tears filled her eyes in less than a minute. Happy tears, for once.

(Y/N) smiled at her, glad to know the young girl was going to have her life back. It surprised her when Tori hugged her, wrapping her arms around her tight. (Y/N) stayed still for an instant, trying to understand what was happening. She hugged Victoria and kissed the top of her head. The child was crying, and suddenly, so was she. The nightmare was over. At least a part of it. They still needed to find Diana. But the fact they were going to have Reid back was already giving everybody the peace of mind they needed to finish the task.

(Y/N) held Spencer's hand tight all the way from the prison to the BAU. He kept his eyes locked on their hands, fingers tangled together. He couldn't believe it was actually happening. He couldn't believe he was a free man.

- "How's Tori?"- he whispered and turned to his girlfriend. Penelope and Luke were in the car with them, but somehow, Spencer could only register the presence of his girlfriend. Not because he didn't care about his friends, but because he could only take just a small amount of information at the time. It was all too much for him at that moment.

- "Good. She has been incredibly strong."

- "Did you tell her about mom?"- Spencer was afraid to ask but needed to know what was going on with his daughter. (Y/N) nodded and sighed.

- "We decided it was better if she knew what was happening, we had to keep her at the BAU, and she was going to get suspicious she couldn't go to Penelope's... sorry."

- "Don't be. You did what was best for her."- Spencer turned to his girlfriend and smiled at her for a second. It was a short, sweet smile. Almost shy. But it was enough to warm her heart and wake the butterflies in her stomach. She was so in love with Spencer Reid, everything he did fluster her.

Victoria thought her heart was about to burst as he waited for her father to arrive. Spencer looked at (Y/N) one last time, and she squeezed his hand kindly, smiling when the elevator door opened, and all he heard was:

- "Daddy!!"- Tori yelled and ran to hug Spencer as soon as she saw him. He couldn't even step out of the elevator when his daughter nearly tackled him, wrapping her arms around him tight.

- "My baby!"- he whispered and spun her in the air a few times- "Are you ok?"- he held her face with both hands and took a good look at her. She was crying but smiling as she nodded.

- "I'm so happy to see you, dad."

- "I missed you so, so much"- Spencer kissed the top of her head and sighed. (Y/N) smiled, and whipped off the tears from her eyes as she stared at the scene. Garcia and Luke stood next to her, enjoying a brief moment of happiness and peace.

- "Me more,"- Victoria whispered and hugged Spencer again- "I swear I'm never going to fight with you again."

- "I'm taking a mental note of that,"- he answered and felt her body shaking as she giggled. Spencer hadn't heard his daughter laugh, giggle, or even watched her smile in the three months he had spent away from her. And that sound was sweet and warm, like a balm to his soul.

- "I'm sorry, Spencer... but, we have to..."- Emily interrupted the moment and smiled at her friend. They all knew they still had to do one more thing before celebrating. They had to take Diana Reid back home safe and sound. Victoria let her father go and smiled at him.

- "I love you, dad."

- "I love you too, princess."

And as the team walked to the conference room to brief Spencer about the case and update him with the latest information, (Y/N) felt someone hold her hand.

- "Thank you,"- Victoria whispered and cut her a smile that warmed her heart.

- "Come here,"- she answered and turned around to wrap her arms around her for a second. Spencer looked at them, and for once, he didn't know what to say. Victoria and (Y/N) just stood in the middle of the hall, hugged for a few minutes, and Reid couldn't believe it. It was so heartwarming and emotional; he really didn't know how to react.

- "Come on, dad!! You are going to miss the movie!"- Victoria yelled and set the popcorn on the coffee table.

- "You can pause it!"- Spencer yelled from his desk, where he was finishing writing a letter for his mother.

- "Or you can hurry!"- Tori answered and sat on the couch.

- "Here's your tea, your highness"- (Y/N) walked to the girl holding a tray filled with cups and more snacks- "Come on, honey! We are not waiting for you!"

Three months after prison and life had never been so good for Spencer, Victoria, and (Y/N).

- "I had never seen you so eager to watch a Marvel movie, since when are you two fans of Thor?"- Spencer walked to the living room, hearing his girlfriend and daughter laugh.

- "Always, huge fan."- (Y/N) smiled and tapped on the couch. Reid sat between his two women and sighed.

- "I can smell the sarcasm in the air."

- "No, honey. We love Thor, right Tori?"

- "Yes! Big fans, huge, the biggest fans"- Spencer looked at his daughter and raised an eyebrow.

- "Ok, I'll buy it. Let's watch the movie."

(Y/N) and Tori giggled at the very same moments like they were sharing a secret joke Spencer couldn't understand, but he didn't really matter. He was happy, his heart was content, and there was nothing more perfect that minute, 'cos his family was all on the same couch, watching a movie, enjoying an afternoon together. Like he had always dreamt of.

----

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[hawks-supremacy]

Fairytale Soulmates

summary: you gave up on the idea of soulmate's being real when your parents split up, but the cherry blossom on your wrist says otherwise.

pairings: ushijima x reader

warnings: fighting, yelling, hints at abuse, a little angst, mostly fluff

word count: 2k

a/n: i'm thinking about doing a soulmate series, i just love the idea of soulmates. i also like reading soulmate au's.

You never enjoyed the idea of soulmates, to you it was a fairytale you heard the other kids tell during lunch break. Hearing them retell the stories their parents told about how everyone has a person that was made for them. How people were originally created with four arms and legs and two heads and faces, but fearing their power Zeus split them in half. Now people spend their whole lives looking for their other half. The person that finishes the other half of your soulmate mark. You didn’t believe the stories. Even as your half of a cherry blossom stares up at you from your wrist, you couldn’t bring yourself to believe in soulmates, and why should you?

Why should you believe in soulmates when your parents were miserable together. Constantly fighting and yelling, often ending the night in tears. If soulmates were real then why were you the result of two people who didn't love each other unconditionally like soulmates were supposed to. Why were your parents so unhappy just because they weren’t soulmates? If you couldn’t find your soulmate were you destined to be unhappy? All of your questions went unanswered as your parents avoided the topic.

You weren’t always like this, and neither were your parents. You used to be happy, a complete family who never fought and loved each other despite the flaws. Sure you noticed how your father had half a sun and your mother had half of a water lily, but they didn’t seem to care and you didn’t ask. They always laughed at each other's terrible jokes and cared for one another. You used to enjoy the stories of soulmates, listening as kids tell the stories of how their parents met. The stories of soulmates searching the other side of the world to find their other half.

Then one day your parents started fighting and the illusion of happiness ended. You weren’t sure what happened, but one day you came home from school and they were yelling. Maybe they’ve always yelled and screamed until their faces turned blue and they faked being happy for your sake. All it took was one day for all you believed in to fall apart.

You came home early from school on a half day, you were excited to go home and spend all day with your parents. You didn’t stay excited for long, walking through the doors you heard screaming coming from the kitchen along with glass shattering. Hesitantly you made your way to the entrance and poked your head around the corner to see what was happening. Seeing you home your mom wiped the tears from her eyes and greeted you as your dad walked past you and to their shared bedroom.

After that it seemed like the veil fell, the thin sheet protecting you from the real relationship your parents held disappeared. They stopped pretending to be happy, no longer laughing at dumb jokes instead rolling their eyes. You stopped eating dinner as a family, your dad eating before he comes home and walking straight to his home office. They tried not to fight in front of you, waiting until you go to bed to start their dispute, but they were never quiet. They kept you up at night with the shouting that reached your bedroom door, knocking like a reminder your family is no longer really together.

You sat at the top of the stairs listening as your dad left your mom because he found his soulmate. Listening to the rolling of his suitcase across the wooden floor as he walked out the door. Listening as your mom broke down sobbing as the door slammed shut. Listening to his car driving off as silent tears rolled down your face choking back sobs that you couldn’t let out. You never brought it up to your mom, a silent agreement the next day as you both had puffy faces from crying the previous night.

Now you were starting your first year at Shiratorizawa and your best friend Tendō refused to let you be pessimistic. He dragged you to the gym to sign up for the volleyball team manager. His logic being you can’t be pessimistic if he doesn’t let you, and if you’re constantly around Tendō it's the less time you can be a “debbie downer” in his words.

Tendō and you became friends in middle school when you ran into each other turning the corner. He quickly befriended you after learning about your pessimistic view on life claiming he was gonna turn it around so you’d be happy again. You rolled your eyes at his explanation for wanting to be your friend but let him anyway. Since then you’ve been inseparable, always with one another. Tendō was the best thing that could’ve happened to you.

So here you were meeting the volleyball team as Tendō all but skipped to the gym for the first practice. “This is gonna be so fun Y/n, we’ll get to hang out all the time. Now you’ll have no opportunity to go back to your dorm room and think about how much life sucks. Which it doesn’t by the way.” He said as you went to say something about him finally agreeing about your life sucking. “I know you’ve had some hard times but believe me, it’s not always gonna be that way. You’ll meet your soulmate and learn that happiness does exist for you.”

You shook your head at his blind optimism, you knew he wasn’t always like this. That he had his dark moments too and you were right there to pull him out of his dark space like he was you. “‘Tori, we both know I’m better now. I’m not 100% all the time but that’s fine. I appreciate you doing this though.”

He nodded, slowing his pace down so you could catch up to him. “I know you are, but you’re still on the fence about soulmates and I’m determined to help you find yours so you know they’re out there.” You sighed as you walked into the gym having been through this conversation hundreds of times with Tendō before. He’d keep having this conversation with you until you realize it yourself. Just because your parents didn’t work out doesn’t mean that soulmates aren’t worth it.

Tendō soon realized after that maybe you were right. Maybe your soulmate wasn’t worth it, maybe you would be better off just living with Tendō forever like you discussed in middle school. Maybe you were right because Tendō soon found out that your soulmate was Ushijima Wakatoshi. Tendō wasn’t sure if you noticed that Ushijima held the other half to your soulmate mark or not. If you had, you didn’t say anything.

Tendō spent the better half of middle school trying to convince you that your soulmate would be the best thing that happened to you. Then he spent the better half of first and second year listening to Ushijima say he didn’t believe in soulmates either, that his home situation was much like yours. His parents weren’t soulmates and ended up getting a divorce leaving him with his mom. He realized the universe was playing a cruel joke on the both of you. Making you both believe that the other doesn’t exist and if you do it’s some kind of fluke.

It was the start of your third year and you were moving back into the dorms after having a break for the summer. “‘Tori, why are you insisting I hang out with Ushijima so badly? He’s been your roommate for two years now and suddenly you want me to hang out with him? It doesn’t make sense.” Tendō had been trying to convince you to hang out with Ushijima because he couldn’t take not telling you anymore. It was eating him alive that your soulmate was right there and nothing was happening. It was your last year before you possibly never saw Ushijima again and Tendō would never be able to live with himself if he didn’t tell you. “I wanted to tell you, believe me I did.”

“Satori, what did you do?” You said, narrowing your eyes at him. “Ushiwaka is your soulmate. I was going to tell you but it turns out you have the same outlook on soulmates. So I thought maybe it was best if you guys never met, but I’d feel bad if I didn’t tell you. I’m sorry I just didn’t want you to get hurt.” Tendō said, speaking fast and pacing back and forth.

You sat on your bed rubbing your temples. “Are you mad at me?” Tendō asked quietly. You sighed and looked up, resting your elbows on your knees, “No ‘Tori, I Could never be mad at you. I wish you told me sooner, but I’m not mad at you. I’ll hang out with Ushijima but there’s no guarantee that it’ll work out, especially not if you say he has the same outlook as me.” You talked for a few more minutes before Tendō led you to his shared dorm with Ushijima.

Tendō walked in, “Ushiwaka! I have a gift for you!” He said before gesturing widely towards the door as you walked in. “My surprise is Y/n?” Ushijima said, confused. “Yes! Y/n here is your soulmate! Your other half! Now talk!” Tendō said excitedly before walking out and shutting the door behind him, leaving you two alone.

You glanced down at Ushijima’s wrist and saw the matching half to your cherry blossom match. You showed him yours as you sat down on the chair by his and Tendō’s shared desk, “‘Tori tells me that you have the same views as me when it comes to the whole soulmate situation. Don’t particularly believe in them, but ‘Tori’s been trying to convince me otherwise for about four years. I guess I don’t really know where you stand with all of this.” By the time you were done speaking you noticed that his eyes never once stopped looking at you.

“My parents divorced, yes, but they weren’t soulmates. Perhaps it’ll be different with us since we’re actually soulmates.” He said moving closer towards you. “You want to try the soulmate thing? You’re sure?” You asked sheepishly. You spent nearly your whole life swearing up and down that you didn’t believe in soulmates and now that you’ve found yours, you don’t know if you still believe that. “Yes I want to try, but I do get busy with volleyball so I might not have much time for us.” He said and you nodded. You knew that, you’ve been friends with Tendō long enough to know volleyball takes up a lot of time. You’ve also been the volleyball’s team manager long enough to know how passionate Ushijima is about volleyball. You knew you couldn’t ask him to put you first.

“And that’s how I single handedly got Ushiwaka and Y/n together. So you can thank me for this lovely wedding we’re all attending.” Tendō said after telling the story of how you and Toshi met. You rolled your eyes and you jokingly mouthed ‘thank you’ to Tendō. You turned to your now husband who had his hand on your knee while he was laughing at Tendō’s story and smiled. He turned his head and smiled back before giving you a peck on the lips, “I’m glad I met you Y/n.” He said lovingly. “Me too Toshi, me too.”

[miiracleangel]

Shake ass pt. 6

Fukurodani and Shiratorizawa ft. Sakusa

Inarizaki ➪ Karasuno

❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

Bokuto

my baby owl

“y/n, y/n.....y/n” your boyfriend repeats as he pokes your nose.

you scrunch your nose as you slowly stir awake in your bed. Woken randomly from your nap.

“Ko, Ko, Ko What is it”

“I saw a video of a woman’s husband shaking his butt around to prove he wasn’t cheating”

You sit up and rub your tired eyes

“you know you’re really cute but i have no idea what you’re saying” you tell your boyfriend who is very much wide awake.

“i’m saying that i am going to shake my butt around too”

“oooo yummy” youre confused and excited at the same time and get comfortable to see your boyfriends whole show that he very clearly has put togeteher bcs he even knows what song to put on and everything

“Ko i already know you would never che-“

“you wanna see me do this or not”

“no i very much want to see this continue”

so there you were laying in bed looking at your boyfriend

who is only wearing his underwear

shake his butt around your room to prove something you already knew would never happen and this dude

very much jiggles.

can’t help yourself than to grab his ass and smack it too and he giggles at the attention.

“okay all done i want kisses and cuddles now” he says jumping back in your bed and pulls you to cuddle close to his chest. “did you like my show?”

“oh ko it was amazing, yes, thank you” you tiredly exclaim earning a big bright smile from your boyfriend.

He kisses you and grabs his phone

“Now to send the video to Akaashi”

“come again”

“he needs to know i would never cheat on him either and get a new best friend” 

Akaashi

“and he was wearing?”

“just his boxers y/n”

“that’s it?”

“yeah and his reason behind it was to prove he won’t cheat on me and get another best friend” your boyfriend tells you the story on a special video he got of his best friend while sitting back down with you in the cafe.

You stare him dead in the face “it must’ve been an honor for you” you tell him holding back a laugh.

“dont be jealous”

“JEALOUS?!”

“yeah babe”

“Keiji why would i be jealou- ya know what i am jealous”

Akaashi looks up from his laptop at your face with concern. “Jealous that you didn’t get to see Bokuto in his boxers?”

“oh my god no”

You huff “So Bokuto can shake ass infront of his girlfriend, what about you?”

“he did it to prove he wasnt cheating baby, it’s a tiktok trend”

you stare at him

he stares back

staring contest

both very bored faces looking back at one another it’s a sight to see

“I’m not cheating so i’m not shaking ass”

“You are cheating because you aren’t shaking ass”

your boyfriend huffs and gets up, he reaches over the table to give you a kiss on the lips and does some type of Shakira belly dance.

earning many looks from nearby people trying to enjoy their cafe experience.

And then there’s you: spitting out your drink bcs what is this mf doing?

“That’s definitely not what I meant Keiji”

“i proved my innocence leave me to sit here and think about my life choices”

Tendo

Doesnt hesitate

chaos, he’s chaos what did you expect

in fact he’s been so down to do it, he’s been shaking his ass around his dorm for 30 minutes.

You’re sitting at his desk and he’s circling around you shaking around

“Tori you DO know that I get the point and know you’re not cheating, you can stop now”

“no”

“alright”

you continue your work as your boyfriend continues his work

then he starts singing

obviously something he is coming up with on the spot

“i’m gonna sing you a love song now”

“please don’t”

“too late bitch” and que the loud exaggerated singing from your boyfriend

“You fuck face stop” you laugh while throwing a pillow at him.

“i would like to dedicate this song to y/n who has a fat ass and a tight p-“

“Tendo that’s inappropriate” ushijima says walking into his and your boyfriends shared dorm.

“Yeah Tendo that’s inappropriate”

Tendo laughs and bends over to plant a kiss on your forehead and whispers “what’s inappropriate is what we were doing on Wakatoshi’s bed before i was told to dance in the first place”

“What”

you get up frantically “oh my look at the time it’s avoid my boyfriend o’clock” and dart out with Tendo right behind you laughing.

Ushijima

ushy gushy headasaa

You both were sitting at the park feeding ducks

not bread bcs that’s bad for ducks. don’t feed ducks bread feed them seeds thank you this has been a psa

You both sat quietly together and just enjoyed the moment as you both usually do. You’re on your phone until your parents send you a video of them doing on tiktok.

No words just vibes from your boyfriend next to you

duck vibez

“So” you start breaking the silence.

“So” your boyfriend repeats after you.

“There’s this thing I’m gonna need you to do”

“There’s a thing i’m gonna have to do” he repeats.

“My parents did it”

he repeats again “Your parents did it”

“shake ass if you’re not cheating”

“If i’m not playing volleyball i’m with you and if i’m not with you i’m playing volleyball where in that time frame can i cheat” he asks to you, still looking at the ducks.

“well-“

“any free time is done eating and studying obviously” he continues.

“well i-“

“i’m kinda hungry right now actually”

“TOSHI”

“y/n”

“ass. shake. now. please.”

you give him puppy eyes.

“i don’t see the point but alright” he gets up and faces you and in the movement scared some ducks.

“Now the ducks hate me”

“Toshi the dance”

“okay” he mumbles. clearly confused and not wanting to do this.

mans wants to vibe with ducks

he continued to shake his hips side to side and you couldn’t help but squeeze his thigh

“how did that make me a better boyfriend” he asks afterwards

“it doesn’t i just wanted to see if you wo-“

“that’s it waka-chan, out” he send a peace sign your way as you look at him dumbfounded.

he takes and few steps and turns. “come with me i don’t want to leave you here alone”

You smile and go to grab your boyfriends hand and walk back to his dorm.

Sakusa

here are your crumbs sakusa stans

“How about if I teach you a little”

“I’m not doing it y/n”

“See you saying that is like me stuffing you in a full elevator”

“how?” your boyfriend asks looking over at where you laid on his bed next to him.

“That would suck for you right”

“To put it simple sure” he says looking back at his phone.

“yeah so you not shaking ass to prove you’re not cheating will suck for me” you say with your body facing him and your head resting on your hand.

He looks you deadpan in the face. “You doing that will give me a heart attack, me not doing this will just make you a pouty baby for an hour”

“so you want me to be a annoying pouty baby for an hour?”

“yes actually, you’re kinda cute when you’re pouty”

“oommiiiii” you whine

“see, so cute” he says smiling at you.

“OOOMMMMIII” you raise your voice

“that ones not as cute”

“OOOOMM-“

“OKAYYY Y/N” he yells over you trying to get your attention.

you peck his lips “thank you oomi”

“shut up slut”

“i’m YOUR slut, okok now basically do this” you start twerking and moving your hips and ass to show him how it’s done until you hear a light “passsh” noise and a wet feeling on your butt

“you didn’t” you say facing away from your boyfriend standing up.

“it was terrible, i had to” your boyfriend says

“so you’re gonna spray lysol on my pants?” you turn around to see your boyfriend have his shirt over his nose.

“yeah- OKAY so imma do this and you don’t bother me ever to shake my ass ever again right?” he questions cupping your cheeks.

“Dont be cute after what you just did” you say rolling your eyes at him.

he’s still cupping your cheeks while he shakes his ass- it’s not even an ass shake no one knows what it is.

“Thank you Oomi” you say puckering your lips asking for a kiss and he gladly plants one on your lips.

“you owe me bitch” he whispers into your lips causing you both to laugh into your kiss.

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart | Charlie Gillespie

Requested by anonymous: Hi! Could you possibly do a Charlie x reader fic where they are filming season 2 & there is a new character (fashion expert/can see ghost/a little bit of enemies with Luke at first) but off screen they are very close (always hanging out/on ig posts & stories/dance partners/they sing karaoke/adventure) & the whole cast likes to tease them about it but they deny any feelings however they are about to film a very important scene that involves their characters & might change everything between them.

Pairing: Charlie Gillespie x reader

Warnings: fluff

Words: 2,789

Season 2. Finally Season 2. Everyone had been hoping, wishing, praying for a season 2 of Julie and The Phantoms, and after months of waiting, Netflix finally picked it up for a second season. After those months, the actors had just to wait a little while longer while the crew wrote up the first drafts of scripts and made it perfectly save for the actors to do their work. Once all of that’s ready and they’re good to go, the cast finally reunite again in Vancouver. They even meet some new cast members. Like you. You had auditioned for the role of Daniela Ramos, Julie’s cousin and Victoria’s daughter, and got it pretty much straight away. Daniela is a fashion student at a High School in Melrose Hill and Julie asks her for some help with costumes for her next gig with her band. To Julie’s surprise, Daniela can actually see the boys, even when they’re not playing, which causes for a lot of trouble in the band and family, especially between Julie and Luke. This is your first big role on the small screen and you’re the most excited you’ve ever been. You met the other cast members at the summer bootcamp before the filming process would start, and though almost everything had to be done with a face mask covering half of everyone’s face, it still was a lot of fun getting to meet everyone and spend the most fun summer ever. Every day, you grew closer and closer to everyone on set, and soon became best friends with Madi, Jadah, Savannah and Tori, doing plenty of sleepovers. Besides the girls, you also grew closer to Charlie, Owen and Jeremy, but mostly Charlie. For some reason, the two of you just clicked instantly. You have the same humor, the same taste of adventure, the same passions and dreams. You, Charlie and Owen even rented a place together to live in for the time being in Vancouver. You got even closer during filming, especially since you and Charlie have a lot of scenes together. “Oh my God, Luke, you’re so annoying!” you yell at him when the two of you are in the garage, taping a scene. It had taken you about ten takes and you still couldn’t help but giggle at the shocked face he pulled every time. “If I’m so annoying, Dani, why do you keep coming back?!” The angry face he pulls resembles that of an angry kitten, which just makes you crack up again. “God dammit, Y/N!” Charlie laughs now too as Kenny yells “Cut!” “Sorry! Sorry, guys! I promise I’m a real actor!” You hold your hands up in defense, then cough to get ready for another take. This time around, you could finally manage to get through it without laughing. “Yes!” Charlie exclaims when Kenny yells “Cut!” again. He holds his hand up for a high five, which you giddily give him. “Do you need any more takes, Kenny?” he asks the man himself. “Nope, you’re good! You can go on your break now!” he pats Charlie’s shoulder. “Nice job, guys!” “Thanks, Kenny,” you say, the smile growing on your face. “I need food, Gillespie,” you tell your best friend, linking your arm with his. “Let’s go get food!” The two of you head down to catering and sit down at a table with a plate full of food. “What are we doing tonight?” he then asks before taking a bite of food. You swallow your bite of food and take a sip from your drink. “Don’t you have a night shoot tonight?” you ask, remembering him saying something about a late call. “No, that’s tomorrow, after our dance rehearsal,” he replies after swallowing the food. “Oh! Okay!” You start thinking of things to do, “We could go to karaoke? Bring the others maybe?” He raises his eyebrows, looking at you questionably. “I’ve always loved karaoke,” you shrug with a giggle. “Yeah, okay!” Charlie nods his head agreeingly. “Karaoke it is!” The two of you smile up at each other, teeth showing, both of you glowing. “What are you love birds discussing?” Owen asks when he joins them, his voice muffled from the mask covering his face. He pulls it down to under his chin as he and Jeremy join the two at the table. “We’re thinking about going to karaoke tonight with the whole team!” you tell them, completely ignoring the ‘love birds’. “Ooh, fun!” Owen exclaims with a smile that nearly reaches his ears. “Yeah, we’ll leave after shooting the last scene tonight,” Charlie suggests, looking at you for confirmation. You nod your head agreeingly. That night, you and the rest of the cast head to the nearest karaoke place you know. You’ve linked arms with Savannah and Tori, giggling through the night, trying to keep your balance on your heeled boots. Meanwhile, without you realizing, Charlie has been keeping his eyes on you the whole way there. He finds it adorable how your giggle floats through the night air and your hips bump against the other girls’. He couldn’t lie, you had easily become the light in his life. “So, what song shall we begin with?” you ask the gang as you settle into the booth. “Pick the first one on the list,” Jeremy replies when no one else does. You nod your head curtly and press play on the first song, which is Living on a Prayer by Bon Jovi. You can already tell after that first song; tonight is going to be a fun night. You sing a couple of songs with the girls, there are many group numbers, and you even sing one with your roommates. After singing with Owen and Charlie, the latter points at you. “We’re going to sing together now!” he exclaims excitedly before turning around and picking a song for you to sing. When he’s picked one, he grabs your hand to pull you closer towards him. You blink a couple of times, unable to process what’s happening right now. The opening notes to Don’t Go Breaking My Heart by Elton John and Kiki Dee chime through the booth. You glance over at Savannah and Tori, who offer you an encouraging smile. Then you look at Jadah and Madison, but they’re too busy giggling and whispering, and it makes you wonder if that’s about you and Charlie. Your eyes dart over to the boys – Jeremy, Owen and Sacha – who just offer you suggestive smiles and eyebrow-wiggles. Charlie’s voice captures your attention again, and you turn to him. “I couldn’t if I tried,” you sing back to him. The encouraging smile on Charlie’s face calms you down a little up to the point where it almost seems like the two of you are the only people in the room. You have no clue what is happening or why it’s happening. All you know is that you’ve wanted it to happen sooner. Though you wouldn’t ever admit that to anyone. It’s the way he looks at you and the way he makes you feel like you’re the only person on this planet that matters. It’s been the way he’d looked at you since that first day of meeting him. “I won't go breaking your heart,” you sing the very last line to him ever so softly, not even looking at the screen anymore, but instead, looking into his eyes. “Don't go breaking my heart,” he sings back. The song ends and you both lower your microphones, staring into each other’s eyes. If it wasn’t for the rest of the cast breaking out into cheers and applause, you would’ve kissed him then and there. But it startles you, and you step away from him upon realizing how close you are and how that must look to the others. “So, when’s the wedding?” Madison asks teasingly, which makes the others laugh, and you blush. After that night at karaoke, the two of you had silently agreed to forget anything ever happened. Savannah said you were in denial, but you believed you weren’t. You told her it was just the atmosphere in the air that night, the both of you had consumed a little bit of alcohol and it might’ve just been that. No one stopped teasing you though. On every possible occasion, they’d ask you if you’d kissed him yet, or when your next date it, or started singing Don’t Go Breaking My Heart randomly. You just shook it off every time, finding it amusing how consumed the cast was with this ‘relationship’ you had with Charlie. There was nothing more going on than just a really, really tight friendship. Until the dance scene happened. Your character, Dani, was supposed to go to a school dance with her crush, but she was nervous because she had never slow danced with anyone before. When she tells Luke, he insisted on teaching her, saying he’d gone to plenty of school dances back in ’94 and ’95 before he died. You and Charlie know this choreography by heart, you’ve been doing it for weeks on end at bootcamp and during rehearsals. It had always just been fun and games, the two of you being immaculate dancers and bouncing off of each other so well because of your tight friendship. “I could teach you?” Charlie says as Luke, stepping closer to you. You raise your eyebrows at him. “I’ve gone to numerous dances in my days, Dani…” One corner of his mouth curls up into a teasing smirk. “Unless you want to embarrass yourself in front of… Jake.” He emphasizes the name of your fictional crush, to which you react with wide eyes and a blush spreading on your cheeks. “Come on, Dani!” He reaches out for your hand, which you place hesitantly in his. Dani being able to see ghosts, is also able to make them corporeal. The lights on set dim a little, except for one spot on the pair in the middle of the studio, and then the music starts playing through the speakers. Charlie starts singing the song they’d learned at bootcamp, one the cast wrote together during the quarantine. The atmosphere in the studio has suddenly become really intense. You can feel the butterflies erupting in your stomach as the man in front of you sings to you, mere inches away from each other as he leads you in this beautiful dance Paul Becker and Tori Caro choreographed for you. Just like at the karaoke booth, it feels like the two of you are the only people on set. Just you and him. You and Charlie. You and your best friend. There’s no denying you have feeling for him anymore. You knew you did, you just told yourself it wasn’t a good idea and suppressed those feelings, pushing them down. It worked for a while. Until now. “Cut!” Kenny yells after your scene. You step away from Charlie, glancing down at the floor as you try your hardest to hide your flustered face. “That was perfect, guys! It really looks like the two of you were in love!” he claps his hands in excitement, then tells them to do it again. After four takes of the dance, Kenny tells you to go and take a break. Without saying another word to Charlie, you rush off set and towards your trailer where you sit down on a chair, trying to calm your breathing. Charlie might not like you the way you like him. Admitting to these feelings might just ruin everything the two of you have. With this in mind, you grab your phone and text Savannah, asking her to come over to your trailer. Maybe she could help you. “Are you okay?” she asks when she enters and finds you staring at the ceiling. “No…” you reply and take a deep breath, “I think I’m in love with my best friend?” “Oh, sweetie…” Savannah sighs, and pulls you up to take you in a hug, “I know…” You pull her away again to face her properly. “What do you mean ‘you know’?” “Everybody knows,” she starts, “The two of you have been inseparable since the day you met, and everyone can see the way you look at each other. Plus, your duet the other night was a little intense for it to be a platonic one.” She chuckles, and you can’t help but chuckle too. She then grabs her phone from her back pocket, opening Instagram. “You know fans have caught on too, right?” She shows you the comments on some of Charlie’s pictures on his account. One picture is of the two of you, napping in Julie’s bed on set, cuddled up. He even posted pictures from your hikes on your days off. All of them are bombarded with comments from fans saying, ‘I ship it!’ or ‘Y/S/N’. Sav then opens her dm’s which are flooded with fans asking if you and Charlie are dating yet, and how the two of them are so in love with each other. “Charlie isn’t in love with me?” you deny, not believing one bit about it. “He is, though…” This does not come from Savannah’s mouth. Your eyes widen when you recognize the voice, and peek behind Savannah to find your best friend standing at your open trailer door. “Sav, can you give us a minute?” he asks the younger girl. “More than a minute,” she chirps, offering you a wink before leaving the trailer. Charlie steps in completely and moves until he’s in front of you. He takes your hands in his, and chuckles at your overwhelmed and confused expression. “Are you okay?” he asks, that beautiful smile of his persistent on his face. “Y—yeah? No? I’m not sure?” you sigh, trying to get your thoughts in order. “Charlie, wha—?” “Can I talk? I’ve been going over this conversation in my mind a billion times, and if I don’t say it now, I think I’m going to forget what I’m supposed to say…” You nod your head in response. “Y/N, I’ve been in love with you since the very first time I saw you walking in at bootcamp. You looked adorable with your little nervous smile and your polite hellos to everybody. I knew from that moment on that I wanted to get to know you better, and that I wanted to become more than just friends…I didn’t think you’d feel the same way, so I told myself that it was okay if we’d just stay friends. Especially since your character kind of hates mine and you bring Dani to life so convincingly, that I was almost sure you hated me too,” you chuckle at that, “But I can’t hide it anymore, Y/N. I am so embarrassingly in love with you that I could’ve kissed you after that scene we just did and that I could kiss you right now even though I’m—” before he can finish his sentence, you lean up and crash your lips onto his, your hands flying into his hair. He’s a little startled at first, but quickly melts into the kiss and presses you closer to him. “I am so embarrassingly in love with you too, Charlie,” you whisper when you pull away, pressing your forehead against his. “They’re going to be so relieved,” you tell him with a chuckle. He frowns his eyebrows at you. “Who?” he asks. You take his hand in yours and lead him towards the door of your trailer, pushing it open and making it bump against whoever was closest to the door. All of your cast mates scramble, trying to act natural while Owen rubs his forehead since he was the one that got a door in his face. “Ah, them!” Charlie chuckles. “Thanks for the door in my face, guys,” Owen says disgruntled. “That’s on you, buddy,” you tell him with a grin. “Don’t you guys have a scene to shoot or something?” Their eyes widen at the realization and, after yelling at the two how happy they are for them, rush to set in a hurry. “So, where were we?” Charlie turns back to you when everyone’s gone. “Don’t you have a scene with them?” “Shit!” he grumbles and jumps off the small steps in front of the trailer. He starts running towards set but turns around almost immediately to you and kisses your lips quickly, but sweetly, and then runs off. You watch him with an amused smile on your face. There was nothing to be afraid about after all and nothing changed between you two. You were still the best of friends, just friends that kiss and are in love with each other. But both of you happy.

Taglist: @hannahhistorian92​ @marinettepotterandplagg​ @thequirkybookaholic​ @parkeret​​ @lukeys-giggle​ @gingerxarmy​ @lovesanimals​

[headheartbellarke]

Paper Rings | OWEN JOYNER

Requested by anon: “Owen request? A series of events that leads Owen to finally working up the courage to propose to his girlfriend?” PAIRING(s): Owen Joyner x fem!reader WARNING(s): some language, mentions of abuse, panic attack, anxiety, and fluff haha WORDS: 3.7k SUMMARY: Five times Owen almost asks his girlfriend to marry him, and one time he actually does.

0.

    Charlie looks around, feeling out of place amongst the big mirrors, bright lights, and the sparkling diamonds. When his best friend, Owen, told him that he wanted a ‘guys night’ (he’s still unsure as to why he wants to have one: they live together, it’s guys’ night every night – he was expecting bars, or clubs, or fancy restaurants; things they don’t get to do every night, because of work. But he definitely wasn’t expecting to be dragged into a jewellery store.

  “O, buddy, what are we doing here?”

  Owen shushes him, walking ahead to a counter. A woman with kind eyes greets him. “Mr. Joyner!”

  He smiles, familiarity pooling in his eyes.

  Charlie frowns. He didn’t expect Owen to be into jewellery – sure, he buys stuff for his sister and mother, but he always takes them with him.

  He thinks of Y/N, Owen’s girlfriend of about five years – there’s a possibility that he may be buying something for her, but it’s highly unlikely. Y/N has been pretty vocal about the fact that she hates diamonds, and who’s to blame her, really? Her father used to buy her mother a diamond necklace after every time he hit her or when he came home smelling of another woman’s perfume.

  Charlie exclaims, “Owen! I’m gonna die if you don’t tell me what’s going on!”

   “I know, I know.” He shushes him, again, and Charlie feels like a child, even though he’s older than the blonde boy. Owen turns to the woman in front of him, Miranda, as her name tag reads, and says, “I hope it’s ready.”

  She nods, excitedly. “Yes! I have it right here with me.”

  She disappears beneath the counter, and Charlie expects her to return with a big box, like a magician’s apprentice. But, instead, she emerges with a small, tiny box and he wonders –

  As realization dawns upon him, he feels a rush of euphoria. “Oh my god, are you –”

  Owen nods, his face aglow with anticipation, hope and adoration. “I – I walked into this store a couple of weeks ago, after I decided that I wanted to marry her, I mean, I’ve known it for a while, you know? I can’t see myself being with anyone but her for the rest of my life, and I want a family with her. She’s my soulmate, dude. And I – I think it’s the right time, too. She’s got that amazing job, and my career’s going great, so, yeah. I wanna marry her.”

  Charlie sniffs, feeling tears at the back of his eyes. “Bro.”

  His friend grins. “Bro.”

  Charlie pulls him into a hug, but Owen pushes him away, and they swat each other’s hands for a second before Owen whisper shouts, “Do you wanna see the ring or not?!”

  Charlie’s eyes widen and he nods. They turn to the woman in front of them, and she points to the box placed on the counter before them. “If you’re ready.”

  Owen nods, and Charlie feels amazed at the determination clouding his irises. He opens the box, and the Canadian boy gasps.

  Inside sits a simple platinum ring. Except at the middle, there’s a diamond shaped like a star. It’s so beautifully built, every edge looking like they’re fit to cut steel. And the entire ring – it’s so simple, yet beautiful, and Charlie knows why he picked it.  

  It’s a mirror of the way Owen sees Y/N – something gorgeous, something priceless, something elegant, yet something so simple to him, and something that will always makes sense, no matter what.

1.

    Owen inhales, staring at his reflection in the full body length mirror in front of him. He’s going to do it today – he is going to ask his best friend, his soulmate and the love of his life to marry him. He has planned it all – even Charlie went out with the rest of the cast tonight to give the twenty-three-year-olds some privacy. (Charlie, Y/N, and Owen live together in Vancouver, at least while shooting the fourth season of Julie and The Phantoms, so, as one can guess, it’s really difficult to get a moment alone – but since the both of them love Charlie so fucking much, they don’t really mind.)

  He straightens his tie and hears soft footsteps in the hallway outside his room. Y/N’s head pokes in, her face lit up like Christmas lights.

   “Don’t you look sharp!” She says, while walking up to him and wrapping her arms around his torso. Owen smiles, catching her eyes in the reflection. “Are the bad puns ever going to stop?”

  She gasps, dramatically, and exclaims, “You don’t gotta be so mean about it!”

  He shakes his head, and feels love swell in his chest for the woman behind him. “I love you so much, you know that, right?”

  A mischievous glint appears in her eyes. “I could use a reminder.”

  Owen grins, turning backwards and cups her face in his hands, about to kiss her, when a voice stops him.

  “I think I just broke the coffee machine!”

  Y/N’s eyes widen, and she yells, “You did what?!”

  Owen’s brows furrow. “Is that –”

  She casts him an apologetic glance. “Zoe, yeah. I forgot to tell you, but Cece had to go out last minute, so I offered to watch her for the evening!”

  Usually, Owen loves kids, especially Y/N’s cousins like Zoe, but right now, he feels like jumping off a cliff. She seems to sense that as she runs her hands down his arms, and says, “I’m sorry! I know you said that tonight was gonna be just us, but you love Zoe, don’t you? And it’s gonna be fun, I promise!”

  It’s not. Owen had booked a table at Y/N’s favorite restaurant in Vancouver, and he would have proposed midway through the dinner, when the musicians there would start to play ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift, and when they got to the bridge, he would have dropped to a knee.

  Ignoring the weight in his chest, he plasters a smile on his face. “Yeah. Yeah. I’m sorry, I just – it’s been a while since we’ve been alone, you know? With work and all. But I’m sure it’s gonna be great with Zoe, too!”

  She nods. “Thank you. We can go out alone next week when Charlie has that photoshoot with Madi!”

  He nods. “Absolutely.”

  The little black box stays hidden in the pocket of the beige coat in his closet that he never wears.

2.

    As Y/N smiles at him, Owen thinks that this is it. This is the moment he’s gonna ask her to marry him.

  As the light from the fire illuminates her face, he thinks about how perfect this weekend has been. After long days, and even longer nights of filming, they finally got a weekend off, and Charlie immediately booked a cabin in North Vancouver.

  And there’s no one better at planning trips than Charlie.

  Along with Owen, Y/N, and Charlie; Madison, Jadah, Jeremy and his wife, Carolynn, Savannah, Sacha, and Tori are here, too, everyone basking in the peace. Throughout the weekend, they’ve done anything and everything they can do in snow – from skiing, to making snow angels, and finally, as the shades of evening rolled on the last day of their trip, they are tired.

  After dinner, everyone wordlessly returned to their rooms, and Owen knows that they’re all fast asleep, right now – except Y/N, who is still as bubbly as champagne.

  When they returned to their room, Y/N quickly lit the fire – because no matter if it’s snowing or if it’s fifty degrees outside – she is always freezing.

  It’s the opposite in Owen’s case, though – he’s always warm, and that’s why Y/N wasted no time to settle in his lap.

  Owen quickly pats his pocket to check if the ring’s still there. It is, and it’s been there for the whole weekend. He’s been searching for opportunities, but they were always either with someone, or it wasn’t a good time.

  “O?” She asks, her voice soft.

  “Hmm?” He replies, threading his fingers through her hair.

  Her eyes brighten up, putting the fire in front of them to shame. “I’ve just had an idea.”

  “Later. First, I have something to ask you.” He says, his hand reaching into his pocket again.

  She smiles. “I know what you’re gonna ask.”

  Owen’s surprised. “You do?”

  She nods excitedly. “Yeah. Charlie told me!”

  He must have had a horrified look on his face because her eyes widen quickly. “Oh, he didn’t want to, believe me! But, now that I know, tell me, when are you gonna do it?”

  Owen stammers, suddenly feeling breathless in this room. The anxiety starts to pool in his stomach, along with an anger, directed towards Charlie. “I – I – I can’t believe he told you this…”

  She shrugs. “You know that he can’t hide anything from me. He’s like the brother I never asked for. Anyway, so he was showing me some of the designs, and I love you, but I don’t think you can handle a tooth piercing.”

  Owen’s brows furrow. “What?”

  “Like, totally no offence, but you passed out when the dentist came to do a routine check up on your teeth. I don’t wanna imagine what would happen if you got them pierced.”

  “What are talking about?!”

  “Charlie and your matching piercings, dummy! What else would I be talking about?” She looks at him as if he’s grown a third head.

  Owen’s lips part. “We are not getting matching piercings – I wasn’t gonna ask you that!”

  “Oh!” Her eyes widen. “What were you gonna ask, then?”

  He gulps, thinking to himself – this is it. This is it. This is it.

  “Do you wanna go home for New Year’s?”

  He mentally curses when that question comes out of his mouth, and even with Y/N’s bright smile, he starts to feel queasy inside, knowing that he still isn’t confident enough to actually ask her.

3.

    Owen wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans and stands up. “Y/N, I have to tell you something.”

  She nods, her eyes sweeping across the mostly empty LA beach. He brought her here today to finally ask her to marry him – his past attempts have been nothing short of disastrous.

  As he opens his mouth, he feels a pang in his heart, and his mind starts to race. All kinds of thoughts race through his mind, like – what if she says no? what if she hates him for ruining what they have? What if Champagne Problems by Taylor Swift becomes his most relatable song? What if she –

  Y/N stands up, and her hand finds that of Owen’s, a reassurance, and he knows that she can sense his anxiety. She doesn’t ask him to talk about it – she knows that he will, eventually, when he’s ready. For now, she shows him that she’s here for him, and somehow that is enough.

  As she brushes his hair, his mind starts to calm down, his erratic breathing slowing down and involuntarily matching the pace of her breathing. She whispers, softly, “You’re okay. You’re safe. Everything is okay. You’re okay. I love you. I love you –”

  She keeps repeating that, until it’s like a mantra in Owen’s head, turning the racing thoughts to mere background noise.

  He opens his eyes, and looks into hers, and finally feels calm. He exhales. “That… uh....”

  She nods, comfort flooding through her eyes. “I know, baby. But it’s okay. You’re safe now.”

  He shakes his head, taking his hand in hers. “I – I – I think that maybe you and I should, uh, get – um, matching tattoos. Yeah. That’s what I wanted to ask you.” He lies.

  She nods enthusiastically. “Yes! Of course. You don’t even have to ask – we’ve always talked about it, and I think that now is the perfect time! Do you wanna –”

  As Y/N talks about designs, he thinks that he’s a fucking coward.

4.

    As Owen laughs, he feels confident, for once. He knows that tonight he’ll be able to ask her to marry him, especially in front of all his family – he loves his family, and so does Y/N and vice versa. He remembers the first time he brought her home three months after they’d started dating. He remembers feeling absolutely euphoric about the fact that she fit right in with his family. That was also the day that she had told him, for the first time, that she loves him.

  He looks around the table, and watches Y/N talk animatedly to his mother. His parents think of her as their own daughter, especially after finding out about her rocky relationship with her father. Y/N’s mother sits next to Owen, and he loves how carefree she looks – her ex-husband, really, was an asshole.

  He takes the little box out of his pocket, and his cousin, Elias, gasps. “Is that an engagement ring?” He whispers, his face scrunching as if the sentence left a bad taste in his mouth.

  Owen nods. “Yes. Elias, I would appreciate it if you kept it down.”

  His cousin raises his hands. “Always, homie.”

  He rolls his eyes. “Right.”

  Elias looks around. “Hey, do you think that it’s a good idea to propose now?”

  “What do you mean?” Owen’s brows furrow.

  “I mean people do it in private for a reason. What if she says no and then you get embarrassed in front of your entire family and hers? It’s sympathetic looks for the rest of your life, bro. And your parents wouldn’t be able to talk to her, nor to her mom, ‘cause it’d be, ya know, friggin’ embarrassing. Everyone’s probably gonna hate you.”

  Owen’s eyes widen, and he toys with the truth in his cousin’s words. Elias shrugs, and takes a sip of his water. “But it’s up to you, dude.”

  Slowly, Owen slides the ring back into his pocket.

5.

    Owen looks around, checking if any distractions could be in this room. None. How could it, though? He’s standing in an empty classroom, in the middle of winter break. Nobody in their right minds would be here.

  Well, that would mean that Owen’s not in his right mind. To be really, really, really honest – he is kind of losing it. He has been trying to propose to Y/N for the past month, but every time – every god damn time, something comes up and ruins everything.

  So, he decided to break into his middle school. Well, ‘break into’ isn’t the right phrase – he asked the guard to give him the keys for the night, and even thanked him with a hundred dollar note. Unlike his girlfriend, he’s incapable of breaking rules.

  The guard thought that it was very romantic of him, but really, he’s just tired and wants to get married already. He taps his foot anxiously, and finally hears the door opening, signalling Y/N’s arrival.

  God, she looks absolutely adorable. Her nose is crimson from the cold, and she is bundled under what seems to be ten layers of clothing. She huffs, grinning when she notices him.

  “Are we here to make out? Because your house was much more comfortable and so, so warm.”

  Owen shakes his head. “Nope.”

  “Well, are you gonna murder me, O? Because, well, it’s certainly the perfect location.”

  “I have to tell you something.” He says, taking a step toward her. He looks around and sees that there is nothing that could possibly ruin this moment, and smiles brightly, preparing himself. Y/N’s eyes gleam with anticipation, as she nods for him to continue.

  “Y/N, I still remember the day that I met you. I remember the way you smiled at me even though I had spilled black coffee all over you and ruined your very pretty, white dress.”

  She laughs. “I was really mad at first, yeah. But the cutest boy in all of Oklahoma was in front of me, and well, you know that I was a goner.”

  He smiles fondly. “And the beautifulest girl in the world was in front of me.”

  “That’s not a word.”

  “I know. And then you laughed at my dumb jokes, and even agreed to go on a date with me.”

  “To compensate for that absolutely gorgeous dress.” She clarifies, a teasing smile on her face.

  He grins sheepishly. “And then somehow, somewhere we fell in love, and somehow, you became my other half, and somehow, I can’t imagine a world without you. I don’t want to. You are my best friend, and you are the one person around whom I can be completely myself and face no judgements.”

  “No, I do judge you. You’re a little questionable.”

  “And what would I do without your wicked sense of humour?”

  “Honestly? You’d be lost without me. I mean, you forget to even put your socks in the washing machine.”

  “You’re not supposed to wash them. They go on your feet. Obviously.”

  “That is disgusting, and you know it.”

  He laughs. “I wanna be with you for the rest of my life, and I… I… I want a family with you, you know? I know that we’ve never talked about this, and I don’t know how you would feel about one, but still, if you’re up for it, I’m too. But, if you don’t, that’s okay, too. More than okay.”

  For a moment, an unrecognizable expression crosses her face, and he wonders if he’s hurt her. But then the biggest smile blooms on her face.

  “We should have talked about this. But I would like a family with you, too. I mean, I’ve never really wanted one, and you know why. But, after seeing you and your family, I realized that a part of me does want it. I do want to have the home that I never got to have with you and I wanna do better. I know that you’ll be an amazing dad, and I wanna raise my kid the way that kids should be raised. And I want it with no one else but you.”

  Owen feels as if he’s on cloud nine, and he stares at her for a moment, wondering how lucky he is to find a girl like her. He says, “Y/N, I –”

  Before he can ask her the question, though, her ringtone cuts through the silence of the empty classroom. She whispers an apology and takes her phone out from her jeans pocket.

  She accepts the call and speaks into the phone. “Hey, Luka, what’s up? Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down. Luka, slow down.”

  She exchanges a panicked look with Owen.

  Speaking of Owen, he’s losing it. Absolutely. He was so close. And for the first time, he had both confidence and hope. And something had to happen. He starts to feel annoyed at Luka, his sister, and then immediately feels bad about it, but then starts to feel annoyed again.

  “Oh no, you did what? Do you need me to come?”

  At Y/N’s last sentence, Owen bursts out. “Oh, for fuck’s sake!”

  Y/N raises her brows at him. He feels anger replacing all his emotions, anger towards the world, it’s timings, and mostly, towards himself.

  Sensing his rage, Y/N gives him a weird look. “What is wrong with you?” She whispers.

  “Everything. Everything is wrong!” He whispers back.

  He starts to feel breathless, and the familiar sensation of a panic attack starts to overcome him. He looks around, trying to focus on something, anything, when he spots the door.

  He looks at his girlfriend, and says, “I love you, but I’m gonna lose it.” With that, he walks by her, and out the doors, while she yells after him.

+1.

    It’s been twenty minutes since he last talked to Y/N, and he has lost all hope. He’s now sitting on a park bench a couple of minutes away from the school, and he is listing all the reasons why his life is absolutely shit.

  “Hey, you okay?”

  Owen looks up, and notices Y/N walking up to the bench, with a concerned look in her eyes.

  “I – I just… I’ve been trying to ask you something, Y/N, for the past month. And every time I try to do it, I’m either interrupted, or I’m not confident enough. And, today, there were no distractions, and I was finally feeling confident and hopeful and then my sister decides to ruin it – is she okay, by the way?”

  She nods and sits down beside him. “Yeah, she misplaced her dress for tonight.”

  He grits his teeth in annoyance. He loves her, but his sister has the worst timing.

  Y/N rests a hand on his, an odd look taking over her features. “You should know by now that the answer will always, and obviously be a yes.”

  Owen sharply turns towards her. “What?”

  A brilliant smile makes its way onto her face. “You are gonna propose, aren’t you?”

  A gasp involuntarily escapes him. “How’d you know?”

  “Well, you just said some pretty nice things about me. Also, I can see the outline of the ring box, and you keep checking your pocket for it every two minutes, even if you don’t realize it. You’re literally doing it right now.”

  In his defence, he wasn’t, or rather, isn’t consciously doing it. He slowly retracts his hand from his pocket and gives her a sheepish smile.

  She stands up. “Really, O, are you gonna do it or not –”

  “Yep, yep, yep.” He clears his throat and stands in front of her and drops to a knee. He takes the ring out, and flips open the box, and as the diamond’s reflected light dances across her face, Y/N gasps.

  “Oh my god, that’s gorgeous!”

  He grins. “I have great taste.”

  She smiles teasingly. “I know, baby.”

  “Will you ma–”

  “Yes! Yes, yes, yes!”

  “You didn’t even let me finish!”

  “Someone would’ve probably interrupted you and I couldn’t take the chance of you losing your shit again.”

  “You do have a point.”

  “I always do.”

  He slides the ring onto her finger, and she kneels in front of him to match their heights. She wraps her arms around his neck, and he wraps his around her waist, both desperate to be closer, closer, closer.

  “I love you so much.” He whispers into her hair, and she kisses his shoulder.

  “I love you. Forever.”

  She untangles herself from him, and as she kisses him, Owen realizes that he had no reason to be worried at all.

[MASTERLIST]

reblogs are always appreciated!! <3

[minimoxha]

Batfam Valentines Day Special

 The batfamily takes Valentine’s Day very...very seriously.

Characters: Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Damian Wyane, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wyane, Y/n L/n(Batmom), Alfred Pennyworty

Warning(s): None

1,579 Words

Not edited.

(A/N I know Valentine’s Day passed but I got this idea after it so...deal with it.)

All throughout Wayne manor, everyone was preparing for the day known as Valentine’s Day. They were moving so fast it made it seem like they were competing. Probably because...they were. Why? Because today was Valentine’s Day and they all wanted to give you the best day but every one of them wanted to do different things. So when Jason first joined the family, it became a competition to see which one could give you the best time with them.

You woke up to the sweet smell of French toast, a smile Turing on your face. You knew what day it was, possibly one of your favorite days other than Christmas or your birthday of course. Damian was the first to come in your room, Laing down and cuddling with you. No matter how people saw him on the outside, he was a soft and cuddly bear on the inside. “Good morning Mother. You’ll spend time with me first, right? I am your favorite so it’s only natural I go first.” Damien Gloated, making you emit a small giggle. “Dami, I told you that it was dickies turn this year.” You said making the young boy groan in response and get ready to lift up but relaxed his body again once you started to run your hands through his hair. “Who’s cooking for me Dami?” Damien answered your question by counting to five on his fingers. Once he got to five, Jason came through the door holding a tray of food, Bruce with a card and flowers, dick holding cups and apppe juice, (Apple juice is better than orange.), and Tim holding coffee cups.

All four of the men walked into the room, Joining you and Damian on the bed, not before saying good morning to you. “Flowers? For me?” You teased, smelling the roses. “They were from me” Bruce admitted, a smirk crossing his face making Jason roll his eyes. “So who gets you first, ma?”  Jason asked. “Hm...Dickie.” You smiled at your oldest, making him mirror his expression and everyone else groan. It was sweet really, instead of spending time with their friends or significant other they wanted to give the day to you. All of you had busy schedules so these were one of the days they could spend a lot of fun time with their mommy. After everyone finished eating, dick gave you an outfit and waited outside your door for you to change. “So you know that musical you wanted to see? Well I Got tickets, the best seats!” He cheered. You squeezed from inside the room, quickly opening your door. “My outfit looks great on you.” He smiled. You were wearing High waisted black pants and a gray hoodie with no hood that was a little too big for you. 

Dick was right, they were amazing seats. The both of you were in Love with the musical and tried to keep yourselves from singing but failed, earn dirty looks from the people around you. (I didn’t make more because idk but if you want short tories on how the details went during everyones time with Y/n tell me))After you left the theater, the both of you got slushies and cinnamon rolls (Even though it was 11Am, your dentist is pissed rn) and then he returned you home and went to his brothers ti gloat and tell him how the defenitly won and had the best time with you. Next was Jason, right when you walked in he got you and took you back out. “What do you have planned fir me today, JayJay?” You asked following him after he grabbed a bag onto his motorcycle . “You can choose between a Monster Truck Rally and Paint balling Ma.” He said. “Paint-balling” Nodding, he drove off to a paint ball arena with you holding onto his back. He arrived at the place and signed in. The both of you were taken into the back where you got a run down and gear. “Dickies going to be pissed that his outfit is covered in paint.” You giggled, putting on your gear along with Jason and listening to the rules. You didn’t follow them though. The both of you DEMOLISHED every kid, adult, and teen, only getting a few paintballs on yourself. Then it came down to you and Jason. He stalked around you, trying to be be intimidating but failing with a smile. “Theres only room for one paintballer in this town” He said, faking a country accent.  

“Well then, It’ll have to be me!” You yelled, shooting three at him then ducking under a rock. He successfully dodged your attacks making the game go on for what felt like forever for the bystanders but just a couple minutes for you. It seemed like it was going to go on forever until Jason tripped on a rock and fell, giving you the chance to shoot him right in his butt. “Suck it, Jay!” You yelled, doing your victory dance in front of him. Jason smiled, he loved seeing you in this mood. With work, and watching from the batcomptr, you were either on edge or stressed out of your mind, And once you got competitive, you stayed competitive until you won. Constantly, challenging your family to games. “Ill beat you next Time, Ma’” Jason laughed, fist bumping you and standing up to sling his arm around your shoulder and walk to the changing rooms with you. (Not the same one) “Guess what we got the Replacement and Demon Spawn to do for ya.” “Hm I Don't know Jay, What.” 

“I got them to share your time and have a picnic with you.” You sighed then answered, “Jay, I’ll be surprised if there still is a picnic by the time we get there.” Jason laughed at your Joke, getting the both of you on his bike and driving to a beautiful forest. The sun was cutting through the trees who's leaves were falling off. There was an opening, where Damian had lanterns all around while the picnic blanket was in the middle of a flower bed. You got off of Jasons bike and saw through the trees, Damian and Tim arguing, on the verge of turning it into a full blown fist fight. Before things escalated, you stepped in and let Jason leave the three of you alone. “Boys, please don't fight today” With one last glare, they settled down. Damian opened the light brown basket and took your favorite dishes out. “We helped Alfred make all of your favorites, Mother. I hope you enjoy them” Tim opened the Saran Wrap. “Yeah Mom, I hope you like it.” Damian put a couple heart-shaped sandwiches on your plate and poured the drinks while Tim showed you this cool coding project he had been walking on. “So mother, isn’t this the best out of both of the trips they took you on?” Damian asked, smiling slightly after biting into a cupcake and clearly enjoying it.  “I had an Amazing Day with all of you, I won't pick favorites.” You smiled and ruffled both of the boys’ hair. They were amazing children no matter they're faults. The rest of the picnic was amazing, the both of you eating until you couldn’t eat anymore and Joking around. For the first time in a while, you saw a Huge smile on both of the boys’ face. After, Tim called Alfred and he picked the both of you and took you to get your hair done, nails done and a nice dress that they (surprisingly) agreed on. They showed up at the manor and rushed Batmom to the backyard where bruce was standing in a candlelit circle. Inside it , was a couple speakers and Bruce right in the middle. His hair was slicked back and he was wearing a nice suit that matched your dress. He raised his hand out toward you and you excitedly took it.

“May I have this dance?” He smiled, pulling you into his chest. His cologne, being all that you could smell. “you may” The both of you danced like nobody was watching, because nobody was. It wasn’t like the dances you would have at formal events, where you had to dance like professionals. No, it was your own little dance party with only the two of you. You didn’t have to worry about people watching or taking pictures. After about 5 songs, the dancing stopped and Bruce slid a ring on your finger. It was a crown with the tips and middles having diamonds inside of them. “Bruce...this is beautiful” you smiled as you looked at it. Bruce snuck his hands around your waist and put his chin on top of your head. Him being the tall man that he was, he had no problems with hugging or cuddling with you while standing. “Let’s be honest My love, I gave you the best day , yes?” He smirked. Bruce was always very cocky but you found yourself more attracted to him after each word he uttered to you. “You’ll never know, Dear” You teased making him playfully sigh. “I’m the worlds greatest detective, I already know.”

“God, I love all of you so Much” Like every year, Each one of your boys always found a way to surprise you or just make your life better. They meant the world to you and if you could keep life like this you would. This was perfect. Absolute perfection

[bi-bi-buckleydiaz]

i think not | owen joyner

requested?; - yes! Owen Joyner x reader - their characters might not be love interests on the show (readers is possibly a new one for Luke/which causes a rift in Juke) but they are in real life and are trying to keep it on the down low especially during cast interviews and with fans.

word count; 2K

warnings; language, yelling but only like two sentences

a/n; I didn’t know how to end it so the ending kinda sucks sorry. also side note, the character the reader plays on jatp is a character I’m planning on writing an x reggie fic with so be on the lookout for that !

that close up tho 

You didn’t mean for it to happen. 

Not the, relationship, of course. You wanted that to happen. You’ve been wanting that to happen since you were an extra dancer on the first season of Julie and the Phantoms and danced right into Owen on accident during The Other Side of Hollywood. He was sweet about it, of course he was, asking if you were okay when he was the one that got barrelled into. The apology coffee date turned into a movie night at his apartment which then turned into weekly Friday night takeout dates which ultimately turned into Owen blurting out one night that he liked you and wanted to be your boyfriend. 

You obviously said yes. 

Which brings you to now, two years later filming season two of JatP, except this time you weren’t a dancer, but a recurring character - Delilah Alarie, a 17 year old girl who can hear ghosts, but can’t see them, and forms an unlikely relationship with everyone’s favorite bassist in a ghost band. This is where the problem comes in. 

When you and Owen started dating back in 2019, you two decided to keep it on the DL because you both weren’t totally sure where it was going to go. At the time you were both so busy: Owen having his first acting job as an adult so he was getting used to the long hours, and you working what felt like 25/8 to get all the dance routines down pat. So you both just...didn’t tell anyone. That’s not to say people weren’t suspicious. Charlie was present at many movie nights and Tori liked to tease you about you how you’d spend your time between takes staring at the blond drummer and his fidgeting fingers. 

Filming wrapped and you planned to announce your relationship at the wrap party, but a certain 19 year old thought it would be smart to get a little wasted and passed out before you could say “hey, we’re dating.” Then, you all went your separate ways and you and Owen didn’t see the need to inform everyone of the relationship, especially because you had to figure out the whole long-distance thing. 

Then Covid hit. And there really wasn’t a need because you both were fighting so hard to not get insecure and worried about the hundreds of miles between you two. But you got through it. Between many facetime calls, a spontaneous trip to Hawaii, and one memorable meet up at a halfway point between your two states, you were finally back in each other's arms after the last three months apart. Of course, it was on set, where everyone thinks you’re just friends. 

So yeah, there’s a problem. Because you didn’t mean for the secret dating to go on for so long. Life just, happened, and now you two are constantly sneaking around your fellow castmates and trading secret kisses in each other’s trailers and having little rendezvous meetings in the apartment building’s pool after your roommates have fallen asleep. You’re sure Savannah and Tori have heard you sneaking out a few times, but they wisely say nothing. Charlie sleeps like the dead so your certain Owen is in the clear. 

It’s not like you two want to keep it a secret. Of course you want to tell your friends, it's just, since it’s gone on for so long you’re scared of what could happen. If they’ll get mad about the sneaking around and the lying. 

But alas, you knew the day when the secret would slip out would come. And today just happened to be that day. 

Your friends were already starting to get suspicious, you and Owen were starting to lose your subtlety with the sneaking around, and some fans don’t understand the term BOUNDARIES and caught you two outside the apartment building one day. You weren’t doing anything relationship-y, you two were just coming back from a short day on set because you both ended at the same time and were looking forward to some much needed alone time. But you both knew better than to hold hands or kiss in public, which you were glad for that rule when a few girls bombarded Owen when you both walked out of the parking garage to head inside. The girls posted about the interaction online and of course, assumptions were made about why you two were together. The cast brought it up, but you both shut it down. You really thought the secret would be exposed because someone would catch you two together...Owen is not good at keeping his hands to himself despite his own PDA rule. 

But no, the secret came to a head because Owen is a big fat st0upid head and got jealous over his best friend. 

It started as a normal day. You got up at the last possible minute, Savannah and Tori already eating breakfast in the kitchen, knowing better than to wake you up before your alarm. You ate, showered, changed into comfy clothes for the ride to work. Madi joined you and the other girls that day, now being a little older her dad trusted her to be alone with the older cast members and alone on set for a little while. You jammed out to Doja Cat and HSM because “range, Y/N, range.” Then you arrived on set to Kenny calling you and Madi over for an impromptu meeting before any of you could reach hair and makeup. 

“Alright, now that the rest of you guys are here, I have an announcement to make.” You looked around to see that it was just the main four and you, and that’s when trepidation hit. The only scene you knew of today that involved you five was when the boys finally became visible to you, and you and Reggie share a moment. It’s a hug, much like the one Julie and Luke shared in the season one finale. But Kenny had come up to you a few days ago, suggesting adding a little something something. He told you he wasn’t sure yet, had to run it by a few execs, but that Jeremy was okay with it and he wanted to make sure you’d be okay with it too. You had said yes, after all Jeremy was the one married so you were really only worried about how he and Carolynn would feel about the kiss, you didn’t even think about Owen. 

That was a mistake. 

“So, I ran it by a few execs and of course, our own Delilah and Reggie, and have decided that after their big hug moment, a little kiss would really make the scene and ma -” 

“Uh I think not.” It was muttered, but everyone heard it. And everyone froze, Kenny stopping mid sentence to look at the culprit. Owen was looking at his hands, completely oblivious to everyone staring at him. He didn’t even realize he’d said it aloud until Jeremy cut the tension with a little forced chuckle. 

“C’mon Owen there’s enough of me to go around.” Everyone chuckled a bit, but Owen froze in his fidgeting, his face going firetruck red and eyes darting over to you. 

“Shit. Fuck I said that aloud didn’t I?” He groaned, putting his face in his hands and, before you could stop yourself, you walked up to him. 

“Hey. Hey c’mon.” You gently wrapped your hands around his wrists and pulled his hands away from his face. “It’s okay.” You expected him to look stressed. Based on his tone of voice you were preparing for a minor panic attack. But when you saw his face, all you saw was anger. It shocked you, causing you to stumble back a bit. 

“You knew about this?” And okay, yeah, you also expected a bit of that. But not to this caliber. 

“Owen I -”

“No. No you knew and didn’t tell me? Didn’t think to mention that you’d be kissing one of my best friends? What the hell Y/N?” You flinched, not used to Owen being this angry and loud.

“Owen, buddy, hey. Let’s just -” Charlie started, trying to diffuse the situation having noticed you flinching. 

“No! This isn’t a ‘calm down’ thing. This is a “my girlfriend lied to me” thing and I’m very upset about it!” And whoop...there it is. 

“Owen...” 

“God just, really Y/N?” Then he walks away, leaving you surrounded by your confused friends. It’s silent for a few seconds, everyone taking in what just happened. 

“Um...I know this probably a really bad time to bring this up but uh...y’all owe me twenty bucks each,” Charlie said. Then everyone started talking at one. Kenny apologizing for not knowing, Madi berating Charlie for the bad timing, Charlie firing back that Owen is just being dramatic, and Jeremy consoling you with Kenny. His hand on your back jump starts you into action. You quickly excuse yourself to make your way to Owen’s trailer, knowing that’s probably where he stormed off too. 

You don’t knock when you get there, just walk in, making sure to lock it behind you. Owen is there on the couch, elbows on his knees and head in his hands. 

“Owen Joyner what the hell was that?” That’s not what you had wanted to say. You were going to be nice and ease into it. But he yelled first and now you're anxious and stressed and upset. He sighs heavily and looks up at you, eyes red and glassy with unshed tears. 

“I’m sorry. I - Y/N I didn’t mean to freak. I realized halfway here that was not the way to go. I’m so -” You cut him off by pushing him back and crawling into his lap.

“It’s okay. It’s okay I should’ve - I shouldn’t’ve just yelled and I definitely should have told you when Kenny proposed the idea I just got so caught up in the fact it’d be my first on screen kiss and it’d be with a married man who’s in quite possibly the cutest relationship ever and I was worried about -” 

“You’re rambling babe,” Owen says with a smile. It’s a soft thing, one that makes your insides all mushy and your heart starts beating a little faster. “It’s okay. I mean, I would’ve liked to have found out earlier and not in front of our friends - oh my God! I just completely exposed us didn’t I? Oh God!” He whimpers out a whine and leans his head forward onto your shoulder. You giggle at the blonde beneath you, running your hands through his hair as he pinches your sides for the laugh. 

“Babe, I’m pretty sure they already knew.” Owen whips his head up at that, eyebrows furrowed. 

“Charlie mentioned everyone owes him twenty so, i’m pretty sure they were betting on when we’d tell them.” Owen groans and grumbles at that, throwing his head back in a dramatic way to convey his fake frustration. He brings his head back center and smiles softly again at you. 

“I will make sure to steal it from him tonight. That’s our money babe.” You giggle into the kiss he places onto your lips. You two sit there for a few more minutes, exchanging kisses and trading affirmations of love. After a final kiss, one that’s full of passion and heat, you decide to head back to set. 

You walk into the stage with the studio hand-in-hand, smiles on your faces. Madi squeals when she sees you both, running over to hug you. 

“Yay yay! I knew you’d work it out and now I have another couple to fangirl over. Yay!” You hug the small girl back before she bounces over to give Owen the same treatment. 

“Congrats bro,” Charlie says with a smile, clapping a hand on Owen’s back and ruffling your hair up. Jeremy smiles at you two, hugging you both as well. 

“Congrats you two, now can we get back to the meeting? You two dating is old news. Like, 2019 old. But congrats on finally announcing it!” You look at Kenny in shock for a second, before bursting out into laughter, everyone around you following suit. Owen squeezes your hand three times and you look back over at him. You both shoot each other a small smile. 

It’s gonna be okay. 

[heyitsyn]

Put A Ring On It

a/n: lmao tooru would actually beat your booty if you ever date kags

anon request:  hii can i have a hc like the oikawa sister reader x iwa but now with kageyama?? like the reader is literally the princess of seijoh and never liked anyone until he met kags?? tysm! u make such a cute ff

requests open!!

he might not smile much but when he does, its the most beautiful smile I've ever seen

king and queen of the court??

lmao im getting chills

so since tooru went to kitagawa, it would be natural for him to want his baby sister to go there too right?

you are actually 2 years younger than tooru so that would make you about kags’ age

you are well-known throughout the school as oikawa tooru’s little sister and people also flocked to you since you got the good genes as well

but you were never interested in fear that they would take advantage of you for your brother or to just parade you as a trophy

anyways

you liked volleyball like your brother but you didnt want to play in a team so you just went to their practices to help the coaches

youve heard about this prodigy setter named kagayama tobio, who was also the grandson of a known volleyball couch

but youve only heard bad things about him

tooru lit rally comes home ranting and complaining about this new kid who is great at setting and you were just like, ‘okay and?’

‘y/n-chan! theres an outsider threatening to take your brother’s place! aren’t you worried for me?!’

‘nii-chan, its just volleyball’

‘just-just volley-! that’s it im disowning you’

while iwa just watches from the sidelines

oikawa just shouting and yelling in front of the fridge while you sit on the barstool while eating a banana, looking unbothered

keeping up with the oikawas part 2

you kinda knew him because kindaichi, who is your classmate, talked about kageyama, who was in kunimi’s class

‘tooru-nii never shuts up about him’

you complained to kindaichi one day

‘is he really that good?’

you knew the talent you brother had and the hard work he puts in volleyball as you were usually the one who woke up at night to help him with his knee pains

so you slightly understood his threatened feeling of this mysterious prodigy who just suddenly enters the team

‘he’s not terrible. maybe its because theyre the only setters in the team so oikawa-senpai is threatened about his position being taken’

‘but as long as he’s not a starting, then no foul done right?’

wrong

unfortunately, you were there to see tooru break down during practice when kageyama asked him how to serve

since you usually walked home with your brother and iwa-chan,

get yourself protective brothers

you were forced to wait until he was done with practice

captain duties and all that

and you were getting tired of just waiting in the cold so you go in the gym to tell off your nii-chan when you see him raise his hand at this tobio boy

‘iwa-chan!’

you shriek and he was able to stop tooru from hitting their underclassman

‘oi! oikawa tooru!’

kageyama looked horrified and was so scared that he dashed off

ngl, you felt bad for him and you knew that your brother was probably just overwhelmed w the incoming interhighs and he was just getting frustrated

so when iwa nodded at you that he got tooru, you went after kageyama, who was tossing the ball up in the air

he tossed it up once, expecting it to come back down but you snatched it right up

he turned to see a girl who looked exactly oikawa-san and he backed away

you saw him step back and you pouted

‘ehhh~? am i that scary to you, kage-chan?’

omg the way you even talk was like him

‘are you oikawa-senpai’s sister?’

hes heard little about you from kunimi

you nodded and gave him a smile before sticking a hand out

‘oikawa y/n, at your service’

‘ah, k-kageyama tori-bio’

you giggled at his flustered look 

‘what is it? torio? tobio?’

ofc you already knew but he was so cute to tease

‘i-it’s tobio’

he was red at the embarrassment of messing up his own name but you thought he was so cute and a bean

you heard from kunimi that he wasnt very social and mostly keeps to himself or the volleyball team

‘sorry about my nii-chan, kage-chan. hes just stressed right now. dont worry, he’ll come around. i’ll make it up to you in his place, okay?’

your eyes scrunched up as you smiled to try and diffuse the situation and save your brother’s arse

he owes you

‘its okay. its also my fault for pestering him about it so i should apologize’

omg this boy is ADORABLE

DLKAFDKLJAFALSFEJISLKDJ

‘tobio-chan!’

you shrieked before hugging him and nuzzling your face into his shirt

‘youre so sweet! you dont have to do anything!’

he was actually taken aback by your expressive personality and wasnt used to being fawn upon, especially by a cute girl

he remained frozen on the spot and you worriedly let go, thinking he stopped breathing

‘tobio-chan? did you die?! tobio-chan!’

from then on, you just seemed to see him everywhere

for months you didnt even know this boy but suddenly, after the accident, you were just seeing him everywhere

from your classroom, you’d see him at the yard with kunimi and kindaichi as they toss the ball around

i will always think that this trio were initially friends at the beginning!

he seemed to be a very shy boy and was constantly trying to keep his emotions on check

but you saw the smiles whenever he thinks the two arent looking

that was probably why you absolutely had the biggest crush on this boy

but you didnt realize that you had a crush on him

you just wanted to help him come out of his shell and help him smile more bc it was so beautiful

so you cornered him by his locker one day and your cute smile made his cheeks go on fire

‘FIREEE~~~~ BULTORUNE!!’

‘tobio-chan! i want to be your friend!’

he was SHOOK

girls never really talked to him, much less his frightening captain’s cute sister

no words came from him as he just looked at you with wide eyes 

‘o-oikawa-san?’

you pouted at the formal use of your name

‘haaa?! tobiio-chan! call me by some cute nickname too~!’

you crossed your arms and stomped your foot on the floor

omg no stop this at once little girl

he turned even redder and quickly stuffed his things in his bag before dashing off

‘eh?! tobio-chan!’

his days were filled with that

you were constantly yelling his nickname with a smile when you would see him and he would blush then run away 

even during practice, you would basically act as their manager by giving them their towels and water

but it was obvious that you would pamper kageyama more

that irritated your brother

he dragged you home one day and was basically interrogating you

‘n/n-chan, youre not having a crush on that bastard kageyama are you?’

you glared at your brother, offended at the way he called tobio

‘don’t call him that, nii-chan! i will hit you!’

you shrieked and punched his gut

‘HES NOT GOOD FOR YOU, N/N-CHAN! HES A THIEF!’

tooru shouts and thus began the arguments between your fascination with kageyama

but you didnt care because you intend to uphold that promise and reach that goal through

all you wanted was to see tobio smile freely

one day, you were walking to school earlier than your brother when you saw kageyama at the intersection

your eyes lit up and you bounded up to him

‘tobio-chan!’

his eyes widened and he quickly turned around to walk away

ngl that hurted a bit

‘tobio-chan?’

that small voice made him stop and his head turned to look at your watering eyes

‘tobio-chan, do you not like me?’

you were so used to being liked and fawned over your entire life that the thought of somebody not liking you was so hurtful

maybe thats why you liked kageyama tobio though

he was focused on running away from you rather than going to you

for the first time, you would have to be the one who chased rather than being the one running

kags was worried bc his sister always told him to never make a girl cry and here he was, watching your eyes tear up

‘y/n-san, please dont cry’

you watched him walk to you and shakily wipe your tears away

a smile formed on your face at the touch of his fingertips and you hugged him

lmao we really bokuto 2.0

kags didnt know what to do bc if he hugged you back, that would give you a wrong impression of him wanting to be your friend

but he didnt want friends, he just wanted to play volleyball

but he smelled a faint strawberry scent from your hair and he unconsciously leans in, wrapping his arms around your body

at the feeling of him returning your affection, you giggled and tightened your arms around him while burying your face in his chest

‘do you want to be my friend now, tobio-chan?’

you were so insistent on being a friend that kageyama was touched at your efforts

he was just like

f it shes pretty and nice, its fine

he nodded

and thus began a cute friendship

well, more like a one-sided friendship since you were the more lively one than him

you would run to his classroom with kindaichi and eat with kags and kunimi

you would give him parts of your bento and you would hold his hand

thisgirl does not know personal space

one lunch period, you were all eating lunch when you were suddenly thirsty

you let go of kags and stood up, making the boys look at you

‘im thirsty so ill get something. want anything?’

they shrugged and told you to get whatever so you skipped to the vending machine

yall idontknow how to skip so i just kinda gallop

you got banana milk for you and random things for kindaichi and kunimi

but you didnt know what to get kags

you thought you would know since youve started being friends a few weeks ago but you really didnt know what drink he liked

so you chose the only blue thing they have

you went back to the classroom and gave their drinks but you sheepishly smiled when you gave kags his milk

‘i didnt really know what you liked so i got a blue carton because your eyes are blue and they reminded me of you’

kindaichi and kunimi gave you a disgusted look while kageyama blushed at the thought

this folks, is why kagellama tobiyolo is in love w that blue carton of milk

slowly but surely, kageyama has started opening up to you and you were so happy that he was starting to smile more around you

it took a few months but you were finally considered a friend

ofc tooru was deeply unhappy about this and always tried to foil plans between you and him but you were not having that

he was even harsher during practice but since youre always there, you would take a page from iwa’s book and yeet a ball to his face

‘i will hit you, nii-chan!’

it was a shock to the school that you were actually showing interest to someone since you rarely gave anybody else a second glance

and it was to this shy boy, kageyama tobio, no less!

when oikawa tooru has finally graduated, you breathed a sigh of relief 

you were bumped up to best friend by kageyama and you always walked home with him

iwa-chan liked you (in a brotherly, platonic way) enough that he would even keep tooru in his house so you could hang out with kageyama longer

also, kags has finally came up with a nickname for you and has finally called you by something informal!!

imsoproudofhimohmygosh

‘n/n-chan, my mom’s cooking tonkatsu tonight. you wanna come?’

he asked you one night and you nodded eagerly, excited at the mention of your favorite food

‘yes! you dont even have to ask!’

you hummed as you skipped down the road, still holding his arm, and excited to meet his family

but to kags, this was a way more serious affair

youve never met his family before and hes worried that they might embarrass him in front of this cute girl

and he was right

when they stepped in, his sister, who was back from college, peaked and saw her little anti-social baby brother with a really really cute girl

‘mom! tobio brought a girl home!’

he shuts his eyes in frustration but you squeezed his hands

‘dont be nervous, tobio-chan. im right here, okay?’

oml he doesnt deserve you

his mom was so excited that he even had a friend and quickly finished dinner

you bowed in front of his parents and sister before introducing yourself

‘hello, my name is oikawa y/n. its really nice to meet you and thank you for inviting me to your lovely home’

‘omg oikawa-chan is so nice! dig in, everyone!’

kageyama met the eyes of his family and his heart swelled at their approval

it made him like you more

waitt, like?

like, as in, romantic?

like as in, i like you more than a best friend?

like, as in, i want to be your boyfriend?

he choked at that last thought and you hurriedly gave him his water, patting his back

‘daijobu, tobio-chan?’

no luv, life is not daijobu right now

he nodded before sighing in relief

one look at your face and all the thoughts started happening again and he turned even redder

dear god, he actually had a crush on you

nah, itll go away

right?

nope

this is a fanfiction kags, youre meant to fall in love with us

at the passing of his grandfather, tobio was an actual wreck

an emotional, mental, and physical wreck

he skipped school and constantly practiced at the backyard and refused to eat his meals, wanting to stay outside with his ball longer

at his second day of absence, you went straight to his house and when his mom opened the door, she gave you a sad smile and pointed to the back

you saw him trying to do a serve only for him to miss and hit his head before shouting curses

never have you seen him miss a serve

you studied his appearance and your hands trembled

his eyes were red with even more red around his eyes, chapped lips from the constant biting and the bruised knuckles from probably punching something

the last time you saw him was at the funeral after he asked you to go with him and you were so worried that he would turn out like this

‘tobio’

you softly called out and he paused, not moving to get the ball

he heaved a wheeze before choking out a sob

you ran straight to him and gathered him in your arms, cradling the back of his head to your shoulder

throughout your friendship, tobio has never been so affectionate

but right now, you were the only thing that made everything seem normal and he held on to you, so afraid that you might disappear too

as if knowing his concerns, you ran your hands through his hair

‘sshhh, it’s okay. im right here. im not going anywhere, tobio. im right here, okay?’

even you were hurting

everything started because you thought he was beautiful when he smiled so you made it your mission to keep that smile alive forever

but when hes sobbing and in pain, it gives more value to that smile because underneath all that, he was just a shy little boy who had a passion of volleyball

you didnt want to say anything to him but everyone knew that he wasnt exactly the same tobio

if anything, he was much harder with himself and trained even harder

he was staying later in the gym and he was starting to snap at everyone, even kindaichi and kunimi

they got into a massive fight during practice and everyone went home angry but he stayed after, putting his frustrations into doing jumping serves

you watched from the sidelines and when you saw him fall, you rushed over and gently patted his face to get rid of his sweat

‘tobio-chan, let’s go home’

he shook his head

‘no! i need to perfect this-!’

‘tobio-chan, lets go home’

your voice became stronger and firm so he hung his head low

‘you dont understand, y/n. i need to be strong and i want to be the last standing on the court’

you flashed a crooked smile

‘did you forget who my brother is, tobio-chan? i suffered through it with nii-chan so im not going through it again, especially with you. so come on, lets go home’

everyone in the school became wary of the former shy boy who seems to glare at everything and everyone

you were even told, straight to your face, that you were wasting time being his friend

‘ne, y/n-chan. kageyama-kun is so mean so you should stay away from him, okay?’

you glared at them before slamming your book close

‘say one more word and i will shove this book down your throat so youll never be able to utter a single sound ever again’

go off sister!!

you stayed with kageyama, even if he got frustrated and got angry at you, but he was your best friend and youve been friends for years

and you still want to see his smile

tooru was practicing a lot again and your sister and takeru were at tokyo for a trip so you were home alone

so you texted kageyama that you were coming over and he didnt respond which you took as a sign of agreement

so at your trek to his house, you hummed as you swung the bag full of meat buns and cartons of milk when you saw your 3 friends

you were about to shout and raise your hand when you saw kindaichi harshly push kageyama back and kunimi separating the two

‘you-!’

kunimi saw you and hissed at the two

‘stop this right now. y/n-san is over there’

you shouldve known then that everything was falling apart

at this point, you were the only one he let in as his family was too afraid to push him too far

you should be happy, right?

he was smiling around you and only you

only you were able to see such a beautiful thing

but now,

you were not happy with the way he acted towards everybody

during that iconic game in his last year of middle school, he pushed you away too

the locker room was tense and kindaichi was about to yell at him when you knocked 

‘tobio-chan, can we talk?’

he wordlessly threw the towel down and hefted his bag before going outside to follow you

omg im getting flashbacks from my shirabu ff from yesterday

you grabbed his hand and pulled him in for a hug

youve given him many hugs before but this time, it was so strong and different than the others

his arms were around your shoulders while yours was around his torso due to your height and your head was leaning against the place where his heart would be

‘im going to seijoh, tobio-chan’

you paused, gauging his reaction

he didnt say anything, just keeping you in his arms

not iwa-level-bara arms but a healthy-muscular-arms

‘tooru-nii wants me to spend one more year with him before he goes to college and theyre saying my grades are enough to keep me there. but if you dont want me to go, i wont’

‘what? why wont you? its a good school and you deserve it’

his grumbles were still frustrated but he was rather calm whenever he talks to you

‘you wont miss me then, tobio-chan~?’

he could feel you pouting and that made him smile

‘i wont since youll come over to my house everyday’

you pulled your head away with mock surprise

‘everyday?! tobio-chan~! youll really miss me~!’

so you went your separate ways

but you spent every day of the summer together 

much to oikawa’s dismay

and during your first day, he was reluctant to let you go

for 3 years you walked together at the same direction to the same place

but now, youd have to part ways at the same intersection

you softly smiled and giggled when he refused to let go of your hand

im busting uwus just writing this yall

my fingers said ‘free reign!’

‘tobio-chan~! i’m going to be late~!’

you playfully whined and gently pulled your hand from his grasp

but he didnt let go, still holding your hand while the other was in his pants pocket

‘we should skip today, n/n. we can go get meat buns and popsicles and-’

you walked back to him and wrapped your arms around his torso, chin rested on his chest so you could look up to him

‘as much as i want to, my grades and attendance need to be high, tobio-chan~’

he scoffed, ruffling your hair

‘once i become a professional player, you wont need to work. i can support us by myself’

bruh hes already thinking they would get married or something

you scrunched your nose in distate

‘i want to make something of myself. i was given a life so im going to live it’

‘but that means spending less time with me and-’

‘tobio-chan, i know what youre doing. stop stalling and let me go to school already~!’

‘no!’

he refused and caged you in his arms while you wiggled and laughed

‘ill see you later! i promise! now i need to go or nii-chan will yell at you~!’

with great reluctance, he let you go to school, pouting and everything

that cute pout he has oml

as your figure became smaller the farther you walked, you turned around and saw him still standing there and when he saw you look at him, he raised a hand

you jumped and cupped your hands around your mouth

‘MISS YOU ALREADY TOBIO-CHAN!’

i reference my previous works constantly

pedestrians looked at you weirdly and looked at kageyama too causing him to get flustered and run to school, your laughter echoing behind him

seijoh was already expecting the arrival of oikawa’s cute little sister and once you appeared, woohoooo

you got your own fanclub of ladies and genitals

they flocked over to your desk after tooru and iwa dropped you off at your classroom during lunch

‘ne, oikawa-chan, do you see anyone cute today?’

‘iwaizumi-senpai is cute, dont you think?’

‘no! yahaba-senpai is cuter!’

‘matsukawa-senpai and hanamaki-senpai are not bad’

we have matsuhana rights in this household

but you remained quiet, focusing on your phone as kageyama complained to you about some tangerine looking fool

‘oikawa-chan!’

that caught your attention and you smiled gently

‘hm?’

they giggled at your rosy cheeks

‘she has a boyfriend, probably’

you shook your head

‘no. i dont’

‘well, do you have anyone you like?’

you thought about it and shrugged

‘ive never really liked anyone before. i dont care about having a boyfriend either since my brother and tobio are enough for me’

that traveled quickly and soon, everyone was trying their best to woo the little princess oikawa

from lunch suggestions to study dates,

they all wanted to be closer to you

but you always refused,

‘tooru-nii wants me to eat lunch with him’

‘im hanging out with tobio-chan after school’

‘iwa-chan doesnt like you so no’

lmao yes

you were famous around the school for the way everyone treated you and catered to your needs to gain your favor

exactly like a princess

the princess of aoba johsai

the princess of seijoh

she ruled the court alongside the Grand King Oikawa and everyone practically worshipped them

everyone wanted them to like them, just a little bit, but you remained closed off to romantic relationships

when tobio texted you about the upcoming seijoh practice match, you were bouncing on your heels in excitement as you waited for them in the gym

kindaichi and kunimi were rolling their eyes at you

the other members of the team knew of you and were confused at your behavior

‘her boyfriend’s on the karasuno team’

‘the king of the court’

‘eh?! boyfriend?!’

‘y/n-chan, can you hand me my bottle?’

he wasnt answered as you shrieked and sprinted straight to kageyama who appeared at the door

‘tobio-chan~!’

you launched yourself and latched yourself to him, tobio immediately supporting you

‘geez, n/n, not in front of everyone’

you giggled

‘i missed you so much, tobio-chan~!’

‘then transfer over’

‘i cant do that! you know that!’

everyone was S H O O K

‘is she,,,, your girlfriend, kageyama?’

daichi and suga asked but the boy turned red before shaking his head

‘my friend’

‘ehhh?! you have friends?!’

hinata shut up i swear-

you cheered him on despite being on the other team 

you got even louder when you saw your brother playing and he complained about your loyalties

‘you cheer on for your boyfriend but not your brother?! what is the meaning of this n/n-chan?!’

you rushed to give him a towel when he motioned you to do it for him like you always did

‘i want a girlfriend too’

‘we’re not dating you idiots!’

kageyama shouted from the sidelines to the orange hair kid

‘but you act like,,, that’

you smiled

maybe dating tobio wouldnt be a bad idea

i mean, hes cute, adorable, talented, funny, nice

you could deal with it

‘so youre syaing, we act like it already?’

you questioned towards the grey-haired guy who nodded

‘whaddya say, tobio-chan? should we hurry up and put a ring on it?’

he spluttered, almost choking on his water

‘r-r-RING?!’

‘well, you said youd support us in the future, right?’

‘i mean-yea-but’

‘okay then its settled’

both teams gawked at you while kageyama was too busy trying to not have a nosebleed or a heart attack by how fast his heart was beating

you turned to your brother who was looking like his entire world was crumbling

‘OI TOORU-NII! TOBIO-CHAN AND I ARE NOW DATING AND WE’RE GOING TO GET MARRIED!’

oikawa screamed

yall this is so long im--