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bunnyreaper · 7 months

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𝖈𝖔𝖑𝖑𝖆𝖗𝖘 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖈𝖆𝖌𝖊𝖘 𝔞 𝔰𝔬𝔞𝔭 𝔪𝔞𝔠𝔱𝔞𝔳𝔦𝔰𝔥 𝔵 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔢𝔯 𝔰𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔰 𝖕𝖙 1 — 𝖕𝖙 2 𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊 wc - 5.7k warnings - 18+/nsfw, dom sub dynamic, eventual romance/smut, medium burn? notes - first part of my owner!soap x pet!reader, woohoo! i already regret writing something centered around texting and calling lmao, crying!! the formatting is killing me!! anyway, also on ao3! and if you wanna send a request, pls do! ♥

Lonely girl looking for owner.

Posting on this subreddit again was probably a mistake—but a deep-down part of you clings to the hope that this time will be the time you find someone, the time you get to go home to him.

At least this time, you'll be better at spotting the signs right off the bat—if only you can take off the rose-tinted glasses long enough to take note.

Your inbox is flooded with the usual kinds of messages—unsolicited pictures, low-effort one-sentence wonders, and so-called doms jumping straight to the part where they call you a nasty whore with no actual consideration for the person you are.

You're just about to give up, delete the post, and ignore all chat requests when a message arrives in your inbox.

From: squeakycleanscot

Subject: Lonely guy looking for girl

Hi,

Saw your post and knew I had to message. You sound like everything I'm looking for and more.

I'm a little younger than the age you put on your post, but I think I fit your other requirements. I'm 27, Scottish (yes, with the accent), and in the army, I hope that's a turn-on rather than a turn-off.

When I'm not deployed, I like cosy nights in, preferably with my love by my side. Don't mind a night at the pub either, especially if there's a Celtic match on, not that anywhere near here shows them.

I'm looking for something longer term like you mentioned (would love to collar my girl one day, which is probably ironic considering I'm a wee bit scared of dogs.)

Happy to send a picture if you'd like :)

Hope to hear from you soon,

Johnny.

You reread the message, turning his words over in your mind.

Something about his message has your attention—it at least suggests he has a brain in his head and a heart capable of empathy, and that maybe he's serious.

You begin typing your reply instantly, your fingers moving so fast you have to type and retype so many parts to rid the message of all of the overexcited mistakes.

hi johnny,

scottish?! is it bad im already imagining how your dirty talk will sound?

it's funny, i always wanted to join the army growing up, but it never worked out. maybe it's for the best as now i'm not immune to enjoying a hot man in uniform... which I'm assuming you are ;)

cosy nights in are my favourite too! I'm a bit of a homebody and love being snuggled up more than anything. i have to let you know in advance that you have some stiff competition in the form of my giant teddy bear, barnaby.

i'm looking for something longer term too, or at least not a one night kind of thing—a collar one day would be the dream <;3

if you send a picture, ill send one back, nothing sexy just yet though, if that's okay?

have you met up with someone off here before? just curious about your experiences!

y/n

As soon as the message is sent, the overthinking kicks in—was that too much? Is he going to think you're weird?

You shuffle in bed, turning over between the sheets and trying to flick through other apps as you wait for a reply—otherwise, you'd just be staring at the notifications bar waiting for that silly little robot face to pop up.

Johnny doesn't leave you waiting long, only a few minutes passing from your last message.

Maybe you'll find out sooner rather than later just how my dirty talk sounds ;)

I tried to sneak in before I was old enough, but they caught on. Served since I was 18 though, you'll have a lot of stories ready from me if you're ever willing to listen. Not sure if the uniform is anything like you're thinking though, in my unit it's mostly just t-shirts, tac vests and trousers.

I'll prepare my best snuggling arms for if we ever meet. You should inform Barnaby now about his replacement, mind.

Can't not send a sexy photo though, sorry lass, all my pictures are. I'm sure you understand, lol

Haven't met anyone, had a few conversations but nothing worth pursuing, and had kind of given up until I saw your post.

His message is the perfect mix of sexy, sweet, and sincere—and if that is the essence of the man, you know he's everything you're looking for.

You try not to think too hard about a hot Scottish accent calling you all your favourite names or telling you exactly what to do, or even those stories he has to tell, as the idea is all too exciting.

Reading his message, you instinctively reach out to pat Barnaby when you see he may end up replaced—hopefully the poor bear will understand when he has to vacate the bed for this sexy soldier man.

looking forward to it. can I start putting in requests now for bedtime stories too?

i still wanna see, maybe in your sexy-not-sexy pic?

barnaby will be devastated by the news, and you may have to give him hugs too (but not for too long, or i'll get lonely!!!)

same here, about things not going anywhere... or people turning out to be a bit scary, so you're not allowed to let me down, okay?

Maybe the last part of the message was too much, but your heart is already soaring with unbridled hope—along with that hope comes doubt too.

Each second waiting for a reply drags, and you take to re-reading his messages and clicking on his profile to investigate.

It's largely empty of posts, but there are tons of comments across different communities—including his aforementioned football team, r/Scotland, and eyebleach.

Clearly, he's a softie at heart.

When his next message comes through, it's an Imgur link with a short message.

Here we go, a few months old though now. Don't have anything more recent from work :)

You take a moment or two to steady yourself before you tap the link. While you definitely feel like you and Johnny have already started to click, if he's not your type then it probably won't go anywhere...

It's a situation you've been in before—great conversation, similar interests but no physical attraction, and back then you didn't have the heart to break it off straight away.

You tap the link and are greeted by a full-body shot of a tall, well-built man in tactical clothes. His hair is a neatly trimmed mohawk, and while his face isn't crystal clear, he's clearly fucking handsome. His biceps bulge from the gray tee stretched over his torso, his large hands are covered with gloves and grasping a gun.

Your eyes trail to his long legs, thick thighs encased in camo and strapped with various holsters. All in all, the picture is perfect. You find yourself zooming in desperately to get a better look at his face, the handsome jaw lined with stubble that you can already imagine between your legs. The whole image and every new detail has you squirming in your bed, and cheekily wishing to save the image to your phone.

holyfwucj

holy fuck

Like what you see?

i need a hug from you urgently.

now i feel shy...

It had crossed your mind ever so slightly that Johnny may be out of your league, or that he simply may not be attracted to someone like you, which would be a complete shame. Now you've set eyes on him, you want him even more—want to kneel at those feet and stare up at his hulking figure while he tugs on a leash around your neck.

Hopefully, just like you, he'll be smitten from the first glance.

Scrolling through your camera roll, you decide you don't exactly love any recent photos of yourself. The ones at your last work event have you looking far too corporate, and the only image from your last night out was taking in a bathroom mirror in the local Wetherspoons—neither of which is ideal.

You crawl out from the warmth of your sheets, kneeling on the end of the bed and posing as you point your camera in the mirror that sits across the room and captures you perfectly. Before you start snapping, you adjust your top to make sure too much isn't on display, even though it's strappy and cropped, and definitely a little bit more on the tantalising side as far as your pyjamas go.

Hopefully, Johnny likes the pose and the outfit... and you. You can see your smiling face just to the side of your phone as you press to capture the picture—and when you return to your inbox to send the picture link, a message is waiting for you.

I already know you're gorgeous. Don't leave me hanging, bonnie.

okay. this is me now, all ready for bed!!

Holy fuck yourself.

And I'm assuming that's Barnaby in the background.

If he notices the pose, he doesn't comment on it, instead delighting your heart by commenting on Barnaby instead.

sure is! he's ready for snuggles and sleep.

Can you do me a favour?

That message makes your heart skip because usually when something like that is asked, it's followed with a request for nudes or something sexual—and while that is a large part of something like this, you crave the connection first, crave someone actually sticking around and getting to know you.

depends on what it is!

Tell Barnaby to keep looking after you until I get there, yeah?

does that mean you're coming for me?

One day, if we're both lucky.

seems promising so far, Johnny.

Get some sleep, yeah? Maybe tomorrow night I'll give you a bell.

The idea of this conversation ending is heart-wrenching, but at least sleep will bring you closer to that possible phone call. Hearing his voice, now that will be even more incredible.

how do you expect me to sleep after telling me that? so mean!

Patience, bonnie. Be good for me?

You clench, your thighs squeezing together as arousal rushes through you. It's like he knows exactly how far to go, what buttons to press, what you're looking for.

It's the right kind of commanding, toeing the line perfectly between flirtatious and in charge. A lot of guys you've talked to have rushed it made commands too early, and sent you running. Johnny's words, be good for me? You can't help but want to behave.

okay, but I see how this is going to be :(

Bet you look so fucking good with a pout ;)

now you're just being a cruel tease, Johnny...

Sorry, I'll stop. Sleep, yeah, for me?

cuddling up to barnaby now.

You decide to attach another picture, your eyes screwed shut and cheeks squished as you wrap yourself around the bear and cuddle up under the sheets.

talk tomorrow?

Of course, bonnie, sweet dreams <;3

You lock your phone, your eyes feeling relieved as they adjust to the darkness.

For a brief moment, you just clutch your phone to your chest and recall the picture Johnny had sent, how much you'd love to be wrapped up in his arms tonight.

He's the only thing on your mind as you drift off to sleep.

-//-

Your dreams are tumultuous, starting off with a nightmare of being chased and chased until your legs give out, only for you to find salvation and safety in a stranger's arms—one who seemed vaguely familiar.

The first thing you do when you wake is roll over to check your phone, elation overtaking you when you see a notification from Johnny already waiting there—already he's blessing you with a good morning message.

Good morning, sweet girl.

Attached under the picture is another image link, and clicking on it brings up an absolutely gorgeous picture of Johnny, lazing in bed. There's just enough light in the room for you to see the brightness of his eyes that you couldn't see before—his mohawk is mussed, and his smile is easy, drawing you in.

He's even more handsome in this up close photo, you can only imagine what he looks like in person, right before you.

morning Johnny <3 how did you sleep?

Like a baby. Yourself?

not the best, but I swear you were in my dream.

Sorry to hear that, but oh already? What did I do?

I mean, it was a bulky guy with a mohawk but he didn't have your name, I think it was meant to be you though.

You recall the safety you felt in the arms of the strange figure, it was serene, and everything you hope to feel when you find the one—hopefully that's Johnny.

My dreams were shite, you didn't show up.

i'll try harder to be there tonight!!

Promise?

promise.

God, he's so fucking sweet. It's hard to imagine he's into all the things you mentioned in your initial post, at least right now. But you're all too familiar with how appearances can be deceiving—you wonder what else your sweet Scot is into.

You peel back the covers and head out into the kitchen, flicking the kettle on mindlessly as you keep your eyes fixated on the screen—not wanting to be even a minute late to answering Johnny's texts, even though it seems there's a natural lull in the conversation.

You return your focus to making your tea, and your thoughts don't drift from Johnny for even a moment, as you ponder ways to keep the conversation going. Admittedly, you have a million and one questions you want, but you don't want to come across too... eager? clingy? Like some serial killer fiending for information?

It's crazy the way your heart yearns for him so soon—and it's crazy the way that you wish he feels the same as you do. You wonder how his day is going, and if he's staring at your phone waiting for your message.

With tea brewed, you set it on the coffee table and flop onto the plush couch, rushing to open the app when a new notification pops up.

What's your plan for the day?

lazy day, binge-watching... texting you? wbu?

I have to work for a bit, but I'll message you when I can.

On a weekend? That's horrible, but I imagine they run a tight ship over there.

You rush to follow up your message with something else.

will you still be able to call tonight?

Aye, give me your number, I'll save it!

You send off your number and don't hear anything from Johnny for a good few hours. You pass the time watching one of your favourite shows, and trying to resist the urge to go scroll down Johnny's profile once more.

The next time a message pops up, it's well past lunch.

Cute profile pic on whatsapp.

Johnny has clearly added your number to his contacts and spied your picture on the app. You blush thinking of him seeing you in that costume—especially after he knows what you're into.

it was Halloween, I swear!!

You make an adorable little kitten, lass.

imagination running wild now? ;)

Aye, but I'm a gent.

hopefully not always...

Oh, you'll see. Talk to you tonight, kitty.

talk to you then <;3

Now you're just itching, waiting for the hours to crawl by for Johnny's workday to end, so you can talk to him again, so you can finally hear his voice.

What will it sound like saying your name? Whispering sweet nothings in your ears?

The hours pass slowly until a different notification lights up your phone as you cuddle into your sheets.

Hey, it's Johnny! Just got home.

You scramble to click on the pop-up, spying his own profile picture in the corner—tapping on it to view it closer.

It's the Johnny you recognise, smiling wide with his arm slung around another man. He looks so ridiculously happy, probably due to the pint in his other hand. The more you look at him, the more you can't believe you're talking to this man, that he wants to talk to you.

You quickly add him to your contacts, putting a heart next to his name, before you return to the chat and begin to type.

i'm not the only one with a cute pfp!!

Three sheets to the wind in that picture, actually.

i can tell <3

Ready to call?

whenever you're ready!

The image of him floods your screen, the screen pulsing as it waits for you to accept. Your fingers tremble as you press the button, and you fall silent as you press the phone to your ear, nerves gripping at your throat.

"Hi, bonnie." His voice drifts from the phone speaker, sweet like honey and warm like sunshine, with that gorgeous accent too.

"Hi." You squeak out, silently cursing at yourself for being so nervous and seemingly unable to speak.

A melodic laugh follows your words, amused but not cruel or mocking. "Are you nervous?" His voice is soothing, his concern and sweet nature evident.

You cradle your burning cheek, feeling the way your blush spreads across your smiling face. "Just a little, can you blame me?"

He's laughing again, and you hear a shuffling noise that suggests he's getting comfortable. "Don't be, I'll look after yer, I promise."

Fuck. You could get used to hearing that. "I really like your voice." You admit, whispering into the phone with a ridiculous grin on your face.

"I like yours too, you sound so sweet."

You drop your voice lower, giggling mischievously. "Only sometimes."

"That's what I like ta hear." The way Johnny's voice dips as he says that has your insides fluttering, but you can only assume he's returning the favour. His tone returns to its usual charming tone as he asks, "How was your lazy day?"

"Well, I kind of spent a fair bit of it distracted, thinking about this important call I was going to have tonight..."

"Oh aye, I should get off the phone so you can wait then."

"Funny. How was yours? What do you even do day to day, anyway?" You ask, voice brimming with curiosity—there are so many things you want to ask, but you imagine his job can be secretive.

"Lots of training, and sometimes paperwork, which is right shite."

"Not when you don't have someone under the desk keeping you company." You laugh, taking the chance to flirt. If you were into Johnny after reading his messages, actually hearing his voice is only making your attraction soar.

A quiet fuck can be heard, as the man on the end of the phone heaves out a breath. "I'll have ta look into getting you clearance if you keep talking like that, lass."

"Glad to be of service, what can I say?" You find yourself in a giggle fit at your own silliness, a mix of nerves and joy at enjoying yourself so much.

"God, I love yer laugh." The deep sincerity in his voice makes your chest tighten.

The drug that is Johnny is already so intoxicating.

"I'm so glad you can't see me blushing."

"I'm no'." He sounds so indignant about that. "But I could listen to that laugh all day, really."

If only he could see you pout too. "Now you're just trying to make me blush more."

He chuckles, his voice dropping dangerously flirtatious again. "Maybe I am, nothing you can do about it."

"Now I'm pouting."

"Better not pout in front of me, lass." His suggestive tone makes you shiver.

"Oh, why's that?" You ask, playing coy.

"'Cause I'll just have to start kissing ya, might even nibble on those soft little lips."

You suppress a delighted squeak, already so flustered at even the idea of a kiss. "I'm not hearing a downside."

"No?"

"Nope."

"Might not be gentle with you, though."

"Good thing that I like it rough." The words are out of you before you can reconsider, but they have exactly the effect you intend as you hear Johnny inhale sharply.

"Ach, you and yer wicked mouth."

"You have no idea..."

He lets out a rough exhale, his voice turning gravelly and deep. "Fuck, bonnie."

"Hey, I'm only repaying the favour, I've been squirming desperately pretty much since I picked up the phone."

He whistles approvingly, his voice now teasing and playfully menacing. "Just you wait til I'm really in ya head."

"You're already making good progress." You admit.

"Oh aye?"

You hum contentedly, eyes flickering shut for a moment. "I'll be imagining your voice as I fall asleep tonight."

"I'll just have ta send yer voice notes to drift off to, so I can end up in your dreams again." You can almost hear the smirk in his voice.

"Already spoiling me, too."

Fuck, how is it this man seems to know exactly what to say? Everything that comes out of his mouth takes root in your brain and sends your thoughts running wild—it's like he's already in your head, or as if someone made him in a lab.

"I'll spoil ya every day, if you're ever mine."

You groan in frustration, unbelieving that a stranger can be so seemingly perfect. "How are you even single, Johnny?"

"I could ask you the same. Taking everything in me to not ask for an address right now, if I'm being honest." He huffs a laugh.

While the idea is thrilling, you know you should have at least some sense of preservation, and shouldn't blurt out your postcode for this strange man you barely know. "I'm worth the wait, I swear." You whisper your promise.

"I'm sure yer are. But to answer your question, my work keeps me busy a lot, and this lifestyle isn't for everyone." There's a hint of vulnerability to his voice, and you sense such a fact is a sore point in his personal life.

In the fantasy of all of this, you suppose the reality of the situation isn't something you'd stopped to consider. Life for a man in the military was surely so different from a regular 9-5. "I'm guessing that you're away a lot?"

"Aye, sometimes for just a few days, sometimes for months, all depends." His admission is soft, as if you can hear in his tone that he's waiting for you to bolt.

If that's the big 'catch' when it comes to Johnny, you can breathe a sigh of relief. "Yeah, I guess you need someone strong and loyal to hold on and wait for you."

There's a tense silence, something lingering in the air.

"Hard to come by, I've found."

The thought makes your stomach twist in the worst possible way. Johnny, at least on the surface, seems so worthy of love.

You chance the question that's on the tip of your tongue, hoping Johnny doesn't mind your reckless curiosity. "Have... you been cheated on?"

"More than once, gets less surprising over the years." He finishes with a sad laugh, as you can tell he tries to infuse humour into the whole thing.

"That's... horrible."

Being sent away from your home to face gunfire and warfare, all to keep the people back home safe... only to be betrayed by the people back home who love you, who are supposed to wait for you. It's a gut-wrenching thought, and your heart aches for the man.

"A few of the lads here have a similar story."

"So the army, not for the faint of heart, and dating an army man, not for the faint of heart." You sigh, though you don't feel put off by the thought.

"Exactly. That you then? Faint of heart?"

"No. I mean, inside I'm clingy as hell, and I'd miss you like crazy every day until you got back..." Your emotions overtake you, as you imagine a future where you'd have to kiss the man goodbye for maybe months at a time. "But I get the feeling that what we could have would be worth the wait. Hypothetically of course."

At that, Johnny laughs, and his light tone returns. "Don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves, aye."

You don't want to get ahead of yourself, you know you shouldn't, but the way you and Johnny have clicked is unlike anything you've felt before. "But... I have a good feeling."

"I do too, already dreading putting down the phone."

"I'm not planning on it anytime soon, even if I have to be up early tomorrow."

"So do I, alarms set for 4."

You do not envy his lifestyle one bit.

"That's awful! I'm gonna be so cranky tomorrow, I might have to use my lunch break for a nap." You admit, preemptively yawning into your hand.

"You one of those perpetually sleepy girls?"

You nod, even though he can't see it. "The sleepiest."

"Barnaby is a lucky bear, getting to cuddle up to you so much."

You burst out laughing at the hint of envy in his words. "Are you... jealous?"

"For now, but soon the tables will turn." He faked an evil laugh, that only makes you giggle harder.

"Oh, you think you can give better snuggles than him?"

"Oh, I know I can, bonnie. The bear can't wrap his arms around yer, can't whisper sweet things in your ear..." His voice dips back into that seductive, teasing tone. "... Can't trail his hands down to that pretty little pussy."

Once more, you flush with desire, every nerve alight as Johnny's words wash over you—although it seems like almost everything he says has your body reacting. "You have an interesting way of cuddling, Johnny."

"Didnae say I was actually gonna do anything once my hands got down there."

"Well, I wouldn't be opposed."

"When you're in my arms, you wouldn't have a choice, lass." The dark, dominant voice makes you shiver, makes your submissive instincts awaken.

"Oh yeah?"

He hums slowly. "Once you're mine, you leave the choices to me. Johnny knows best, yeah?"

"Johnny knows best." You whisper breathlessly, the words coming out automatically, like they just feel right.

"Steamin' Jesus, can already tell yer gonna be the death of me."

"Can't have that, your family won't get your death in service payout!" You laugh awkwardly, before a sense of guilt rears its head. "Sorry, grim joke."

"I don't mind. You should hear some of the ones my Lt. comes out with, he's a right sick bastard." He chuckles.

"Never want to make light of it and hurt you, though."

"Telling jokes makes it easier hen, you'll be wishing me dead in no time at all."

You gasp, shocked by the prospect. "I'd never!"

"Not even when I deny you from touching yourself for my entire deployment? Months of nothing at all?" The sick grin is evident in his voice.

"You wouldn't, that's so mean. You're too sweet for that."

"Aye, for now, but don't you like a little bit of meanness, if yer into men like me..." The edge to his voice and the truth to your words has you trembling.

"Maybe..." You singsong in response, not wanting to give away just how much you liked the idea of his mean side.

"Bonnie..." He tuts disapprovingly. "Don't play coy."

You shudder out a breath as you squeeze your thighs together for relief. "I just don't want you to bully me too much right now, I'm already soaked."

"Is that right?" He seems delightfully surprised by such a revelation.

"Mhmm."

"I'm fucking rock hard if it helps, think I have been since last night..." You hear him shuffle, and you try not to imagine what's happening on the other end of the line, or how he looks lying in bed with said hardness.

When he groans hungrily down the line, you feel yourself quake once more. "The sight of you on your fucking knees... Christ alive."

You can't help but giggle at your unintended teasing. "It wasn't on purpose, I thought it was cute more than anything."

"Adorable and naughty, could cum just looking at it." He huffs.

"You're just flattering me, besides, I could say the same about your picture."

Every part of you flushes thinking of the first photo he sent, all muscle and alpha male—it's like he was the physical embodiment of dominance, and just looking at him makes you want to kneel.

"You like the military get up?"

"Love it, more than I probably should."

"Oh aye, bet you'd love for me to order you around?" His words are playful, but underpinned with a hint of promise. "All in due time, eh?"

"All in due time. What's your rank, anyway?"

"Sergeant."

"Wait..." You take a deep breath as you consider your question. "Can I ask for your last name or is it too soon?"

"Mactavish."

Johnny Mactavish—you should remember to give that a quick Google search later.

"Sergeant Mactavish." You test the name on your tongue, trying to imagine him at work, following and giving orders.

"Sounds too good when you say it, bonnie." He laughs.

"Thank you, sergeant." Your affectation of the word is entirely intentional, as you attempt to rile him up with the use of his title.

The throaty groan that leaves him is addictive.

"What else do you like to be called?"

"Depends on what you want to call me really, but I like... sir."

"I like it too, will have to remember that for the future, and just torture you with sergeant in the meantime." You can't help but giggle as you flirt.

"Oh don't worry, am keeping score." He growls playfully. "Wait til I get ma hands on you, bonnie."

"You're keeping score?" You gasp, a heady mix of fear and arousal coursing through you almost urges you to be even more of a teasing brat.

"Aye, spanking arm at the ready."

"My pouting lips are ready."

"Won't be the only thing you use them lips for."

Fuck fuck fuck. Not that you hadn't thought about it already, hadn't already let your mind drift to what his cock might look like—whether it matches the size of the man—now you're definitely thinking about it. Fixated on it, craving it.

Some cards are best kept close to your chest so early on, so you change tack and go a different direction with his flirtation. "Yeah, with you in the room, I'd probably be smiling a whole lot."

The two of you continue to chat, you asking what you can about his work as he asks about yours, and you fill him in on the boring world you live in, which seems especially boring in comparison to taking down cartels and traveling the world.

The conversation never stops being easy, the flirtation and innuendo always right there at the tip of your tongues as you tease each other relentlessly—giving as good as you get. All night, you're practically grinding against your duvet as you get lost in Johnny's dulcet tones, and you find yourself just letting him speak for the sake of getting to hear more of his voice.

As Johnny is about to ask you more about your background, you're overcome with a harsh yawn that you desperately try to stifle. Your eyes have been shut for the last hour at least, but with the command Johnny has over your nervous system right now, it's been easy to stay awake.

"Tired, bonnie?" He asks, voice laced with sweet concern.

"Yeah..." Your voice falls quiet, as the thought of ending the call makes your throat constrict. "But I don't wanna stop talking."

"Me either, but av got bad news."

You know what's coming, and you know it isn't remotely anywhere near the end of the world, despite what your heart is telling you right now. "Go on."

"I have to go." Even he sounds sad about such an outcome.

"It's not even that late?" The clock reads 2 am.

"Gotta get a wee bit of sleep before I hit the gym, and then get off ta work. Don't you have work too?"

"Work from home tomorrow, so it's not too bad. Not fair though, I wanna keep talking." You admit quietly. It's too much too soon, but you're overwhelmed, the tide of your emotions crashing over the edges.

"Tell yer what. Next time we call, we can try leaving it on while we sleep."

Your heart flips, as you almost whimper at how cute the gesture is. "Are you trying to make me fall in love with you?"

"Obviously." There's that gorgeous laugh again. "Is it working?"

"Just a little, but that might be the lack of sleep talking, I might be going slightly insane."

Johnny sighs, and it's clear he's battling to keep a handle on his self-control. "Rest, bonnie, I won't be able to work knowing you're not sleepin'"

You sigh too, accepting your fate. "Okay, just for you."

"Just want what's best for you, you need your sleep."

Your head spins at how utterly sincere he sounds—the care in his voice after such a short amount of time serves to drive you even deeper into this infatuation. "Already?"

"Can't turn it off, am just protective by nature, bonnie. If you were my girl, you'd have a bedtime."

And that makes your cunt clench and your heart soar. "Johnny..." You whine.

"Yeah?"

You hesitate to say what you want to say next, but everything within you is calling out for him, desperate to be in his arms. "Don't make me wait too long to meet you, please."

His laughter is sweet, conveying a sense of understanding more than anything. "I'll try ma best, supposed to be off on Friday."

"5 whole days."

"Sure you don't wanna wait a bit longer?"

You shake your head, mumbling a sound to convey your feelings. "Feels right, don't know how to describe it... do you feel it too?"

Johnny takes a deep breath, his voice shaking slightly as he speaks. "I do, lass."

"Good." You couldn't even attempt to fight the idiotic grin on your face, or how warm you feel inside and out. "I'll get some sleep, talk soon."

"Goodnight, bonnie. Sweet dreams."

You wait for Johnny to end the call, not wanting to push the button yourself and have his presence fade away. When your screen dims, you resist the urge to text him more, opting instead to put your phone on charge and roll over to Barnaby—wishing it was Johnny instead.

#john soap mactavish x reader #john soap mactavish #soap mactavish x reader #soap x reader #soap mactavish #john mactavish x reader #johnny mactavish x reader #johnny soap mactavish x reader #call of duty fanfiction #call of duty x reader #call of duty fanfic #soap mw2 #this is a crime against literature i swear #also a crime against graphic design #crimes all round???#anyway posting and pretending this doesnt exist so the self loathing goes away xox #aaaaaaaaaaah #collars and cages

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barbiedragon · 1 year

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Scarlet Bound Chapter 1

Daemon Targaryen x sister!reader

Rating: T (will be adjusted for each chapter)

Warnings: Canon character deaths, heavy on the angst, shifting perspectives, canon divergence, Targcest, arranged marriage

Summary: Born in 84 AC, you are the only daughter of Baelon and Alyssa Targaryen and the younger sister to Viserys and Daemon. Nurtured at the hands of your grandmother, Alysanne, the red string of fate begins to pull you down your chosen path, beginning with your marriage to Daemon.

WC: 3.5k

A/N: While series are usually not my preferred storytelling method, I had this little brain worm that wouldn’t let go. I did a wee bit of timeline adjusting. A big thanks to @obsidian-hearts for beta reading for me. 💕💕

*comments/reblogs are appreciated

84 AC

“The babe is a healthy girl!” the Maester proclaimed once the newborn was safely emerged and in his hands. This labor had been most strenuous on Alyssa, but she was certain she would recover soon.

“A girl?” Alyssa asked in surprise. She had been certain it would be a third boy.

“Indeed, princess, she is lovely, it seems she has inherited your eyes, but that might change with time,” the Maester replied before he placed the wrapped bundle in her arms. She was surprised to see an eye of green and an eye of violet peering up at her. Unnerving, if she truly admitted her thoughts at that moment, but it was of no matter. She was sure the boys would adore their sister, and Baelon would certainly be smitten.

“I heard the wonderful news,” Baelon grinned as he entered the room. He had oft wanted to be present, but the moment Alyssa would groan in pain, he would be ready to punch the Maester and yell everyone away from the room. He bent to kiss his cherished wife before he held his daughter in his arms.

“I had hoped to give you another son,” Alyssa chuckled.

“You have already given me two, a daughter is most welcomed. The Targaryen line cannot survive on men alone,” Baelon said, feeling his heart swell as he looked down at those same mismatched eyes that he had fallen in love with many years ago. The look of pride in his eyes made warmth spread through Alyssa.

“You were made for battle; I was made for this. Viserys, and Daemon, and Aenya.”

“Oh, so you’ve decided I see,” Baelon chuckled.

“I did bring her into this world,” Alyssa countered with a smirk, “Do you like it?”

“Very much. Our little Aenya.”

“As soon as I am well, let’s make another. I want to give you twenty sons, mayhaps another daughter. An army of your own!”

“Seven hells, I’m not sure how we would handle so many. Let us focus on getting you healed and rested my heart, then we shall see.” Baelon smiled as Aenya closed her eyes. “I heard from the keepers that a fresh clutch was found,” he continued, “and they believe it to be from Meleys.”

“Mayhaps you can take the boys to fetch one for her cradle later,” Alyssa smiled before she winced.

“Rest, my love,” Baelon said fondly, “I will introduce the boys to their sister.”

“I love you,” Alyssa whispered.

Those would be the last words he would ever hear from his beloved wife before the wretched curse of childbirth stole her away, as it had many women before.

Even at a young age, Daemon possessed the fire of a true Targaryen. Fearless and brazen, he dashed his way into the dragon pit to procure an egg for his baby sister. Rumor was that Meleys had laid a clutch, and it seemed only fitting that the egg given to the newest Targaryen princess be from the dragon that belonged to their mother. Unafraid, he darted past the keepers when he spotted the shiny crimson egg that emulated the fiery color of Meleys’s scales. However, he barely managed to wrap his small fingers around it before he was pulled away. He clutched it tightly to his chest as he was carried back inside. He, Viserys, and their baby sister had already lost their mother; Daemon would not lose this small piece of her.

“Daemon, what in the seven hells were you thinking?!” Baelon scolded once the guards had returned the boy safely.

Daemon held the egg up proudly. “For her,” he whispered, lilac eyes filled with unshed tears. Baelon softened as he bent to kiss his son’s silver hair. Alysanne stood by the cradle, her hand resting on the small babe’s stomach as she wrestled with her own grief. Another child lost (Aegon, Daenerys, Daella, Gaemon, and Valerion; names she would never forget - nor Saera, who was now banished), but she swore upon the old and new Gods to protect this one with every bit of her.

“Go and help your brother,” Jaehaerys encouraged Viserys as he gave the boy a gentle nudge forward.

“You picked a good one,” Baelon praised as the boys placed it into their sister’s cradle. “Your mother would have….” His voice caught and broke as tears spilled down his cheeks while he watched Viserys tuck the scaled egg against the pillow. The small babe cooed; having no understanding of the grief that overtook them.

Daemon hoisted himself up to peer in at her. Her eyes were the same as their mothers; one of green and one of violet, but her hair was kissed with the beautiful Targaryen silver. His young heart felt heavy, yet hopeful as he watched her small chest rise and fall with each breath. He would ensure nothing in this world ever harmed her.

The next morning when daylight broke through the room, Baelon wrapped the babe securely against his chest. A sleepy yawn escaped her tiny mouth before she snuggled into him for warmth. The crimson egg - still nestled in the cradle - sparkled in the sunbeams. His small daughter remained in a peaceful sleep during the ride to the dragon pit. The sounds of Meleys braying deeply in her grief could be heard throughout the Kingdom. Vhagar loomed just outside, sensing her rider close by. While Alyssa no longer lived, Baelon was determined to continue the tradition. Viserys and Daemon had flown at this age and now his daughter would as well.

Once secured in the saddle, he commanded Vhagar to fly. When among the white, fluffy clouds and bright blue sky, Aenya opened her eyes and smiled. With one hand on the reins, and one hand gently pressed to her small back to keep her secure, Baelon felt his heart lift for the first time in months. While the fleeting, teasing promise of twenty children did not come to fruition, he dearly loved the three with which Alyssa had blessed him, and he would do everything he must to protect them.

90 AC

“Mumuñus, tell me more about Mama, please?” you requested as you crawled clumsily into Alysanne’s lap while hugging the red dragon egg close to your chest. It had not hatched, yet you still clung to it with wide-eyed hope. You were always seen about the castle with it in your arms. Even your father couldn’t pry it from you when he tucked you in for slumber.

“My darling Alyssa,” Alysanne smiled as she stroked your soft, silver hair that reminded you of the sweet, first born daughter she had lost long ago. “I believed she would be a delicate little princess like my Daenerys, but I was wrong. She was as bold as her brothers.”

“Like Daemon!” you chirped happily. Your small fingers gently traced the Myrish lace that decorated the cuffs of Alysanne’s black sleeves. It seemed the Gods cursed the Targaryens almost (mayhaps more) as much as blessed them. Tragedy seemed to loom in the air for as long as your little mind could remember. Vissera had died three years before and you still had the vague memory of sobbing into your grandmother’s skirt while she prepared to leave on Silverwing for Dragonstone. Your father’s softness for you, and pity for his mother, had allowed you to accompany her. Daemon had thrown a fit, your brother already upset from Rhaenys claiming Meleys, whom he thought should be his once he was older. Baelon’s steady hand on his shoulder settled him. “She will return to us, my boy. Stand strong and firm.”

“Precisely like your mischievous brother,” Alysanne chuckled. “Alyssa loved to spar in the yard with her brothers, ‘tis how she broke her nose.”

“Daemon promised to teach me how to hold a sword,” you informed her.

Jonquil let out an amused chuckle from her post by the Queen’s door.

“Oh, why does that not surprise me? It would be a useful skill,” Alysanne agreed. Her sworn shield was a woman after all. “So long as your Kepa approves, you have my blessing. Just don’t beat the boys too hard,” she teased before giving you a soft tickle that made you squirm and squeal.

“I promise to work on my stitching too, and I told Septa Jenelle that I will learn the lyre,” you smiled.

“You will be very skilled, my little princess. Blessed with beauty too, many will be after your hand.”

You shook your head. “I will marry Daemon!”

Alysanne chuckled, thinking your mind may change as you grew older, but she also understood how strong the pull of one’s heart could be. They had tried to keep her away from Jaehaerys and had failed. Baelon and Alyssa’s love had shone through, and nothing could step between them. Only the cruel hand of the Stranger had been able to sever that strong bond.

“Not Viserys? He is your eldest brother after all,” Alysanne said as she stroked your hair, thinking of tradition. You wrinkled your nose in response.

“I love him, but no. It will be Daemon,” you replied before you leaned closer to whisper into her ear. “I have seen it, mumuñus! In my dreams, leaves of red, my hand in his. Later, he shall wear a crown of bone, then the Conqueror’s.”

You felt her stiffen beneath you. “We shall see, my little dreamer. Now, how about we start our lessons today? Especially if you will be Queen, there are many things you must know.”

You mustered the most serious look your six-year-old face could hold before giving a nod.

“I am ready!” you declared. When you looked back upon your life in later years, the time spent with your grandmother was some of your favorite memories and prepared you for the path the Gods laid out for you. Rocky though it would be.

97 AC

“Daemon kelin!” (stop) you yelled when you saw his fist connect with Willas Bracken’s face, even though you knew there was no stopping him once the fire had taken over.

“Do you think yourself worthy of my sister? That a dragon would marry a horse?” he seethed with rage. All the poor Bracken boy had done was place a kiss on your cheek and present you with a beautiful bronze looking-glass that fit in your hand. It now laid shattered upon the floor.

“Daemon!” Viserys yelled when he finally joined the scene and managed to drag your brother away. It could have been worse than the split lip, bruised eye, and bleeding nose.

“If I ever see you touch her again, I’ll find a hungry dragon,” Daemon growled as he struggled in Viserys’s grip. You heard Aemma’s soft gasp followed by the clack of her shoes as she ran to fetch a Maester. A pang of guilt hit you, knowing that your good-sister was with child and should not be involving herself in such matters.

“I’m so sorry,” you whispered to Willas as you tore a piece from your underskirts to press to his bleeding face before shooting Daemon a cross look. “You behave like the wild dragons at times,” you huffed at your brother before storming off to your rooms.

You did not wish to admit that you were upset over the broken gift, now desiring only to sulk in peace in your chambers. You procured your crimson egg from the chest in which it was always safely nestled and hugged it close. There was no chance of it hatching now, but it brought you comfort, especially during these times.

Lately, it seemed that turmoil and strife churned in the air at every turn. Your uncle Aemon had been killed in Tarth, and your father had been named heir to the Iron Throne, though many believed your cousin Rhaenys should inherit, including your grandmother. You hated to see her in such pain and knew the depression of not being able to ride Silverwing due to a broken hip, along with the loss of so many of her own children, weighed heavily upon her.

You curled into the corner of the chaise while your cheek pressed into the raised scales of the egg. Now in the privacy and safety of your own space, your tears were finally allowed to fall. You remained there well into the night, not attending supper despite your growling stomach. As the hour of the eel approached, your guard opened the door to announce Daemon’s presence.

“Come,” you whispered softly and as the doors were shut, you slowly unfurled your limbs and pressed your feet to the floor. The dragon egg rested by your side.

His head bowed slightly as he held the broken looking-glass he had seemingly attempted to repair. The silver strands of his hair glinted in the firelight before he placed it on the table and then approached you. Neither you nor your brother spoke as he knelt before you, resting his head gently in your lap and wrapping his arms around your legs. His way of apologizing. Your fingers moved gently through the silken strands to show your forgiveness. You never could stay mad at him, and you were certain that both your father and grandfather had already given him severe tongue-lashings. After a few minutes of the warm embrace, Daemon pulled away and reached inside of his tunic, producing two lemon cakes wrapped in clean linen.

You laughed softly before you pulled him up to sit with you while indulging in the cakes. It satiated the hunger pains for now. The night hours drew on, and Daemon fell asleep with you in the bed; neither you nor he were even bothered with changing out of your clothing. You fell asleep with your older brother’s arms wrapped tightly around you, your head nestled under his chin. You did not think such an innocent act would bear consequences the next morning when a guard was sent to summon you both before your grandfather.

Jaehaerys wore a stern look on his face as the two of you stood before him in the council chambers with unbrushed hair and disheveled clothing. You gazed down at your clasped hands and then heard the familiar click of Alysanne’s cane. Your father looked slightly perturbed by this gathering and would most likely blame Daemon.

“A young prince spending the night in a young princess’s chambers…did you think gossip would not spread like wildfire?” Jaehaerys boomed. The lingering legacy of Saera was fresh in his mind and rumors still spread among the castle.

When you lifted your head, you saw Daemon’s clenched jaw. “We merely fell asleep, your Grace. You needn’t worry about it,” he hissed. Your elbow gently nudged his side.

“Daemon,” Baelon warned.

“Aenya?” Alysanne asked you, ignoring the men in the room.

“Nothing happened, mumuñus. I haven’t even flowered yet,” you admitted honestly even if heat flooded your cheeks as you said so.

“Then the matter is settled. Put the rumors to rest,” Alysanne told Jaehaerys sternly.

“You are to take the word of ch —”

She raised her cane menacingly at him, and the old king immediately fell silent. “I take the word of my granddaughter, whom I trust, while you believe the lies of meddling fools. Do not make me leave you for a third time, for I shall not return.” The threat was heavy and rang true in the air.

“Mayhaps we can settle this all with a simple solution. Viserys has already wed Aemma. We should announce a betrothal of Daemon to Aenya,” Baelon said simply. The golden pin of the hand clasped to his black tunic sparkled when the sunlight caught on it.

Butterflies fluttered in your stomach. Many dreams had floated through your mind; images of your hand bound to Daemon’s beneath the red leaves of the weirwood tree, the secret cutting and mingling of blood later, and his lips warm against yours.

Alysanne’s scowl turned into a smile. “I had…thought of the Royce girl for Daemon, but this is a much better match. You show good insight, my son,” she praised.

“So be it,” Jaehaerys sighed as he realized he would not win this round and did not wish to lose his wife in the process.

“Make it your decision, Father. The realm will have reason to celebrate,” Baelon said. A soft smile clung to Daemon’s mouth as he turned to look at you. Those were rare these days and usually saved just for you. After he unfolded his hands from behind his back, he took hold of yours then pressed a soft kiss to your knuckles.

The announcement was made, and preparations began.

99 AC

Aemma and Rhaenys along with your ladies helped to prepare you under Alysanne’s watchful eye. Gnarled fingers gripped her cane while the golden cup laced with milk of the poppy trembled in her other hand. It was clear how much pain she was in, but she was determined to see you wed. There was pride in her heart as she watched her three granddaughters. She did not think she would last much longer in this world. The Stranger loomed close by again, but she’d rather it be her than another young life taken. Gael’s recent death had almost crushed her. There was a soft swell under Aemma’s silver and sky blue gown, a new babe grew inside of her. Mayhaps this one would be born healthy, unlike the other two, lost before they could finish growing inside of her. Rhaenys had produced two healthy children, so hope was not lost. Her elegant, dark hair was twisted in intricate braids on top of her head. A bit of mischief sparkled in her lilac eyes.

“Are you nervous, cousin?” she asked.

“A bit,” you admitted as she helped to lace you into the crimson gown decorated with delicate golden thread and black Myrish lace that rested just above your bust. A gold necklace with a beautiful ruby drop rested at the base of your throat. The bauble had been a wedding gift from your father — an heirloom that had belonged to the mother you would never know. Aemma’s nimble fingers helped to finish braiding your hair as young Alicent Hightower shifted forward with the rubies to weave through the strands. She was only one and ten, but very comely and admired at court. Alysanne thought she would do well in your service. The butterflies in your tummy flapped harder once you were dressed and led out to the Godswood. You glanced up into the bright sky when you heard the roar of Caraxes as Daemon flew him above the castle before landing the large red beast in the gardens.

“Seven hells,” Baelon sighed, watching as the young man climbed off the dragon before he took hold of your hand.

“Taking a page out of my book, cousin?” Rhaenys teased, having done something similar with Meleys when she married the Sea Snake. Jaehaerys called an end to this nonsense while the soft sound of Alyanne’s laughter echoed in your ear as she patted Daemon’s shoulder.

Your fingers laced through his, drawing in his strength and confidence to combat your nerves. The day you had long dreamed of was finally here. You barely heard the words of the Septon while you stared into Daemon’s lilac eyes as the red leaves fluttered in the gentle breeze. You don’t even remember repeating the binding vows while you watched Daemon’s lips move. But you did remember the soft kiss pressed upon your lips and his hand cupping your cheek. Fire bloomed inside of you. His forehead rested against yours as the union was met with thunderous applause.

The celebrations began; flowing wine, delicious food including lobster from Driftmark which quickly became your favorite, and people danced while you took in everything while holding Daemon’s hand under the table. You were nervous about the bedding ceremony that followed, but Aemma and Rhaenys assured you it was not as bad as it seemed.

“We can see the love he has in his eyes for you, cousin. He’ll make sure you enjoy it,” Aemma whispered into your ear.

“You might be as bawdy as your mother,” Rhaenys teased, and it made you giggle. You had heard those tales many times growing up. You trusted Daemon would never hurt you in such a way that other men could. The soft feeling of his thumb rubbing against your hand helped to assure those feelings. The rest became a blur as you were delivered to the chambers you would share with your husband in just a thin sheath. Daemon’s warm laugh chased away the nerves as he hugged you close.

“Avy jorrāelan,” he whispered as his thumb traced over your lower lip before he kissed you.

“Avy jorrāelan,” you repeated, still learning the tongue of your ancestors, but that one you knew well.

“Let us bind our blood,” Daemon said, pulling away to lift the shard of dragonglass off the table.

You wanted nothing more as you eagerly held your palm towards him. A sharp cut followed by a burst of blood before palms pressed together. Nothing would rip you apart.

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#scarlet bound series #daemon targaryen #daemon x reader #daemon targaryen imagine #daemon targaryen x reader #daemon targaryen x female reader #sister!reader #pro daemon targaryen #hotd fic #hotd imagine #daemon x female reader #daemon x fem!reader #canon divergence #targcest

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ineffable-suffering · 6 months

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Why Aziraphale is an unreliable narrator

Part 2: The Story of wee Morag

This is Part 2 of 3 total metas. Here are:

Part 1, in case you want to read about my analysis of the Story of Job first

and Part 3, in case you're impatient and want to jump ahead.

Fair warning though, for the sake of understanding some of the references, you're probably better off reading this chaptered meta chronologically. However, every part should work just as well as a standalone! I'll do my very best to make it so.

Alright, off or on you go beyond the cutty cut!

I'll start this second part off with a very brief summary of the main take aways and points from Part 1, which go as such:

Memory, as opposed to a third party's narration, is not a factual, objective retelling of a story or event. It's mingled and mangled with emotions, imaginations and exaggerations, projecting both the feelings and impressions you had back then as well as those you might have now in the present time back on whatever it is you are remembering. (Which is why we need to put everything that Aziraphale is remembering into the context of what he might have felt in the past, as well as what he's feeling right now.)

While this doesn't mean his (or anyone's) memories are lies, it does mean they're a very subjective and sometimes factually distorted representation of what actually happened, which, in our case, gives us a lot of subtext and a lot of not-there furniture to figure out and look at.

So, let's continue with S2E3 and the Story of wee Morag. We start our flashback with a scene of Aziraphale writing his diary entry on the 10th of November, 1827. Immediately, it's firmly established that this is once again not an outside-point-of-view narration, but rather what Aziraphale remembers and wrote down.

One thing that immediately stuck out to me here, is how helpful and kind Crowley is to Elspeth, pretty much from the very beginning when they meet her in the graveyard. Not only does he take on a Scottish accent so she won't perceive him as English (as she does with Aziraphale), but he also helps her drag the barrel that has the fresh body in it and, in the end, even pulls it all by himself while Elspeth simply follows behind them. Here's a rather poor-quality picture, for reference:

Now, we know that despite not showing it very often, Crowley has always been very fond of the humans and never really put himself on a pedestal simply because he's an immortal being himself. He likes humans, just like Aziraphale does. But, just like this story will tell us, Crowley knows that on top of liking humans, you can't just put them into boxes of good and evil and expect them to always do what is supposedly the "right" or "divinely good" thing to do. (Which is what differentiates him from Aziraphale in the way he understands and treats them, as we're shown in this minisode).

Him immediately and unspokenly helping Elspeth with dragging the barrel therefore might also be a first sign of a tiny projection from present day Aziraphale, as opposed to what Crowley might have actually done (probably just walked beside her, like Aziraphale) because he has the knowledge that Crowley really was so very kind to her in the end, wasn't he? And that he's kind to humans in general. ("Not kind! Off my head on Laudanum!" Sure, babe.)

Most of this minisode, in my opinion, is actually there to establish how Aziraphale's view of morality and good vs. evil used to be quite flawed and elitist –– and how Crowley has always been there to gently nudge him towards questioning his black and white view of heavenly right and hellishly wrong. That's why I think there's not as many hints in this minisode about Aziraphale's memories not being an accurate portrayal of what happened, as there are in the Story of Job or the magic show in 1941. (And, fear not, the latter will definitely be the most hint-heavy one). Alas, there's still a few bits and bobs in the Story of wee Morag that stuck out to me, that make a brief yet good case of the whole unreliable narration thing.

First of all: The way Aziraphale describes all of it in his diary is so different from the way we see him actually remembering it. It's almost like he tried to write this entry (and possibly all of his diary) as a bit of a thrilling short story, with himself as the main character. Which makes sense, given the fact that he adores books and would certainly be keen on dabbling in the art of capital-w Writing himself. It's yet again hinting at the fact that sometimes people (and angels) try to polish and bedazzle stories (and memories) to make them seem more exciting and adventurous, often to distract from the not-so-fun parts of it.

Like when Aziraphale's diary narrates:

"It was with heavy heart we arrived at Elspeth's destination. I was determined to thwart her monstrous plan!"

... and yet we see Crowley and Elspeth casually walking down the alleyway, very obviously not heavy-hearted in the slightest, while Aziraphale nervously scurries on behind them, very obviously not determined to thwart. (Timestamp-wise, it's around 17:38 in S2E3, in case you want to see for yourself.)

We get another cinematographic/auditory hint at the fact that Aziraphale's memory is heavily influenced by what he's feeling that very moment, when Dr. Mister Dalrymple –– FRCSE, thank you very much –– shows him the tumor he removed from the seven year old boy. You can see the shock and horror on Aziraphale's face once he learns of this child's cruel fate. We then proceed to hear Mr. Dalrymple's voice grow sort of echo-y and far away as the sad music swells up and drowns out his voice almost completely. It's awfully similar to what it feels like when really horrible news are broken to you and you dissociate and drift into a state of shock. Here's the clip of it, so you may listen for yourself:

It's clear that this is a very subjective portrayal of what Aziraphale is going through during this part of the memory. He's deeply horrified and saddened about the little boy having passed away so early in life – and we hear and feel this shock with him. Through him, because this is his memory. Whatever it is he's feeling and thinking, we're feeling and thinking it too because we're seeing it through his lense.

Another (less sad) hint at a possible exaggeration is the abnormally deep hole Crowley makes the two graveyard watch keepers fall into. I'm pretty sure he's very much in charge of his miracles, making this random slip-up seem a little silly – which is why I'm also pretty sure the "Might have slightly overdone it on that hole" is a wee bit of a meta hint at this just being another one of Aziraphale's dramatic bedazzlements of this story. For the *flings feather boa around neck* drama!

You know what else might be exaggerated? Hm, I dunno, maybe Crowley growing into the size of a tree for no apparent reason. Sure, yes, he's pretty high on Laudanum which is making him a bit loopy. But apart from that, it does seem an awfully big cinematographic euphemism for him being the metaphorical (and, once again, for the drama of it) literal bigger person in this scenario. He's the one who ends up saving Elspeth and who manages to secure a safe life without poverty and grave robbing for her. While Aziraphale was so tangled up in his own moral journey and main character-ism, missing that wee Morag was seconds away from death already, Crowley is the one who actually ends up growing stepping up for the human in need and saving them for good (pun intended).

In a way, it might just be Aziraphale's view of/feelings for Crowley in this very moment. Watching the demon outgrow what, according to Aziraphale's heavenly logic, is supposed to be a foul fiend, bestowing evil upon humanity – and growing into someone who does the exact opposite and saves Elspeth instead. Another larger-than-life character development, in Aziraphale's eyes. Literally.

Let's switch back to the topic of the diary entry one last time, so I can make my final point of the this minisode's unreliable and a smidge over-dramatic narration of Dr. McFell. If you pay close attention, Aziraphale starts the entry we're all getting to experience with: "Last month, Crowley and I both happened to be in Edinburgh." Which means it didn't actually happen on the 10th of November, but rather at some point in October, 1827. Once we see Crowley get hydro-pumped back to Hell after rescuing Elspeth, the minisode ends with, presumably, the last sentence of Aziraphale's diary entry: "And that was the last I would see of Crowley for quite some time."

Take my hand and let's look at where the furniture isn't: This very clearly means that Crowley couldn't have been gone for more than a month, at best. Read again: "It happened last month and that was the last I would see of him for quite some time." This, albeit indirectly, clearly implies that when Aziraphale had sat down to write the diary entry, he had already run into Crowley again. Otherwise his phrasing would have probably been more along the lines of "... and I haven't seen Crowley since" or "... and Crowley has yet to return from wherever it is Hell's currently keeping him".

What's the point I'm trying to make? Good question. I guess my main point of storyteller Aziraphale being a bit over-dramatic in his narration is simply backed up by this, since A Single Month would barely pass as "quite some time" for an immortal being like him. And yet that's how he puts it, in his little Confidential Journals of A.Z. Fell, Vol. 603.

And another point that has absolutely nothing to do with the topic of this meta (but I'm still gonna make it 'cause this is my memory post): The meeting at St. Jame's Park in 1862 that so many, post-S2, took to be their first run-in after the Story of wee Morag, actually wasn't that at all. They saw each other at least once only a month later, as Aziraphale's diary lets us know. Which explains why he wasn't very surprised or concerned when he met Crowley in London, 1862. If there really had been 35 years in between those two events, the first one ending with Crowley being sucked back Downstairs to receive more than three decades worth of hellish punishment, wouldn't Aziraphale have been at least a tiny bit worried or more interested than:

Just saying.

Alright, let's string this inflated hot air balloon of a post back together so we can outline some invisible furniture. This time with only two humble points:

Crowley through Aziraphale's lense Backed up by how we are introduced to Bildad the Shuhite in the Job minisode (suave, cheeky, smart, passionate in shoemaking and obstetrics), it's growing quite clear that Aziraphale's memories and impressions of Crowley are very fond and impressed ones. He sees him as someone who's not only witty, funny and cool, but also as someone who has figured out way sooner and faster than him that nothing's ever black and white. Not God's plans and not the human's choices either.

Aziraphale as a bit of an exaggerating adventure author With the direct parallel we get of inkslinger journalist!Aziraphale in the present day, it's quite apparent after this minisode that Aziraphale's memory is not only deeply influenced by his emotions, but that he also tends to have a bit of a dramatic touch to him. Although, you gotta give it to the guy: A month without seeing the love of your life, even if said life is eternal, can indeed seem like "quite some time".

Well, would you lookie here, we've reached the end of Part 2! What a journey it was. I hope you forgive me for the fact that I drifted off-course a few times. I just can't seem to reel in my silly little observations, even if they've got nothing to do with the point I'm trying to make. But hey, doesn't that just make me a little bit like Aziraphale's storytelling, in a way?

I'll let you be the judge of that.

See you in Part 3! And in case you haven't snuck a peak yet: here's Part 1 again.

Ta!

#good omens #good omens season 2 #gos2 #go2 #good omens 2 #good omens meta #ineffable husbands #aziraphale #crowley #good omens analysis #aziraphale is a storyteller #but not a very accurate one #story of wee morag #my own meta #aziraphale the Drama Queen #shakespeare who #unreliable but beloved story teller aziraphale

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pinkexpertnerdghost · 8 months

Text

A Rose for You!

Lyney x Gn!Reader

Pt.2 to Watch and Be Amazed!

{ Ok! Ya'll asked for it. I kinda wanted to write more in the first part but it was already kinda lengthy. As in the last part there wasn't much one on one Lyney and Reader moments. But don't fret dear [Name]! You'll be in the lovely company of this little magical menace for a tour around the Nation! }

! Some Spoilers for the Fontaine Archon Quest Act 1 and some nudges to Lyney and Lynettes Backstory/Personal Stories !

General: sfw, fluff, Grin Malkin Cat, small Freminet and Lynette cameo, Lyney being the charming little flirt he is, flustered Lyney, french, a wee bit of angst here and there towards the end,

It was a new day, and you felt refreshed. Truly, Fontaine is one of the most snazziest places you’ve ever been in. Alongside the technological advancements, there was much attention to the intricacies of decorum and an artistic romanticism in the most mundane activities. Although, the air was a bit smellier than the countryside and the stars couldn’t sparkle as brightly.

You had woken up from your slumber, the sun beaming through the thin curtains by the window. Next to your bedside was a small nightstand with a beautiful lamp and the prop card laying face down.

You rolled a bit around in your bed until you laid on your back facing the ceiling.

Your mind wandered to the events that unfolded last evening. The colorful memory replayed in your mind like moving photographs.

The doves, cats in hats, paper butterflies and a pair of soft lilac eyes.

You sighed.

From the walk to your hotel yesterday, you had viciously tried to recount the events that happened. At what point did Lyney slip this note in your sleeve? And why didn’t you notice sooner?

You had trouble sleeping that night.

Lyney couldn’t have been serious could he? It was just a part of the show, of course he would shower you with pretty words and a suave demeanor . It's part of his charming routine, nothing more.

Then again…

Why did he whisper at you so much? Now you thought about it, you were up there for at least one two..TECHNICALLY FOUR ACTS?! Also, he stopped you after the show to talk. AND NOW HE HANDED YOU A CARD ASKING YOU OUT?! No WaIT- Not ‘Out Out’ like a date or anything, an outing as friends? Can you even call him that?! What acquaintance just requests a day to hang out together? HE ISN'T BREAKING SOME PERFORMER AUDIENCE ETIQUETTE REGULATIONS IS HE?!-

Overthinking can lead to a very unsettled mindset preventing you from getting proper rest.

So here you were, laying like a beached seal on your bed. You didn’t bother to get up right away. Too lazy and your head was fizzed out of thoughts.

You shifted your head around, the bedding beneath you shuffled along. On the nightstand was the prop card you had found in your sleeve last night.

You eyed the shiny piece of paper. The little red grinning cat silhouette on the backside felt like it was taunting you. Calling you pathetic as it stared at you from atop his side table throne.

Stretching your arms above your head, you finally sat up.

You reached and picked up the card, holding it with your index and thumb. Once again you carefully read the words that were written on the front in cursive.

“ I hope you had a magical evening, [Name]. Meet me by the bench near the potted flowers by the station at noon tomorrow. If you show up, best prepare for I still have tricks up my sleeve that will leave you dazzled! ”

You stared at it and noticed it was written on what was a blank playing card.

Staring at how the curved letters formulated each word you wondered.

Meet him at the benches by the Aquabus station by noon. Did you really trust this man? Even though he is technically a celebrity, you just met him not even a day ago.

You swung your feet off the bed, card still in hand. Stepping down onto the small bedside rug, you idled around near the window. It looked to be early morning, you’d guess around eight o’ clock.

“ I don’t have much plans today. Other than wandering the streets and walking into what I think will be interesting.” You said, your voice a bit groggy.

You twirled the card in your hand.

You thought carefully of what you’d do next.

“ I think he might it want back.”

Yeah, that’s it.

“I’m sorry, sir?” You yelped. You had to crane your neck a bit to be able to make eye contact? You didn’t think it had eyes, but nevertheless you made the best effort to stare into its face.

Or what looked to be a face.

You had seen some of them walking about freely in the main city. When you were making your way towards a staircase you bumped into one.

The robotic garde halted and nodded.

‘ Ah, so they can communicate.’

It went back to walking down the street, undeterred. Turning around after that odd exchange you went back to the matter afoot.

You were lost. Lyney never specified which station he’d be waiting in. You were almost half convinced he was going to be at the Marcotte Line; the one closest to the Opera Epiclese. Although, the more you thought about it the less likely he would be there.

He did mention that he might be available to take you to see around Fontaine. So he must have meant the main station hub located in the main city.

Even if he wasn’t there, you’d have that station checked off the list of possibilities.

You hurried up the stairs, the small journey reminding you of the Nation of Freedom surprisingly. Although both were vastly different, they did share a similar style of building upward rather than outward.

Reaching the top, you made your way to the station. You kept your eyes open as you scoped out your surroundings hoping to find a tall tophat.

It shouldn’t be hard right? Someone as extravagant as him would surely stand out.

You stood corrected. It looks like many people here in Fontaine take up the fashion trend that was tall extravagant head wear. You had gone over almost every suspect bench near flora, most of them were occupied by either locals, adventurers or both.

He didn’t seem to be near the reception or the inner waiting area.

“ It's almost noon” you turn to look out a window, the sun is high in the sky now.

“ If I were a famous magician with an outgoing personality, where would I be?” You muttered as you had your eyes peeled, wondering in the same space.

Your eyes followed the cheers of children. Near a bench a group of kids surrounded someone.

“ Wow!”

“Where did it go?”

“Could you do it again mister?”

“ Alright! Since you asked nicely. Watch carefully now!~” You heard a jovial smooth voice.

Looking above the kid group you spot him, seated comfortably playing with his card deck.

‘ Of course! You’d be where a willing audience was present!’

You waltzed over subtly. He was entertaining a group of little kids with some card tricks, you’d let him finish his mini performance before you made yourself known.

“ Is this your card little Mademoiselle?” Lyney knelt down and held up a four of hearts card. The little girl with blonde hair jumped up excitedly.

“ Yeah! That’s my card!”

Lyney laughed, a warm expression graced his features. His eyes met yours for a split second. Not knowing what to do, you sent a little wave. Well at least he knows you're here.

His gaze flitted back to the group of kids. He got back up with the card in hand. “ Before I go, I’ll leave you all with a grand finale!”

The children gasped in unison and quieted down instantly.

He brought the card close to his face. He flicked it two times before crumpling it into his hand.

He shook his hand and reeled it as if he was going to throw a shot ball. He brought his hand up in a presenting way and when his palm opened there was a pop sound. It rained rainbow confetti and small cut out paper stars.

The children ooo’d and awe’d, and two were reaching their little arms up to catch the popper’s confetti.

“ Ta-da! This has been a special performance, brought to you by Magician Extraordinaire Lyney!” The magician lifted his cape from behind him and took a bow. The children clapped and cheered.

Two adults came walking up to the mini crowd.

“ Thank you for entertaining them, Mister Lyney. Getting our little Anais to sit still is a magic trick on its own.” An older woman laughed, as she picked up a small girl who wore a Boater styled hat.

“ Alright Hugo, let's go. Our boat will leave in a few minutes. Say thank you to Monsieur Lyney.” A man with a distinguished mustache taped a young boy in overalls. The little boy with his hands behind his back, thanked the magician before he went off with his father.

Lyney waved the kids off as he walked off towards you.

“ Hey there you. I hope managed to get a full night's rest.” He said, there was this sort of bounce in his voice. You may have only known him for a little while now, but you couldn’t help but pick up some recurring little quirks about him.

He wasn’t much different casually like he was on stage. This guy really does live and breathe in the spotlight huh?

“ Sort of. I had a bit of trouble sleeping.”

‘No way you were going to tell him you were thinking about him. That would make the rest of the day awkward.’

“ I did end up getting some shut eye though, eventually.” You mustered up a reassuring smile.

“ Trouble sleeping?” Lyney tilted his head as his index finger came up to chin. His eyes slightly narrowed as a mischief inducing grin made its way onto his face. “ You weren’t laying awake thinking about me were you?~”

You couldn’t help but widen your eyes and sputter out. Is telepathy in his book of magic tricks too?!

“What? No, of course not!” You forced a cough to cover your small blunder. “It’s just, I need to get accustomed to the climate, that's all. It's like that the first few days in a new location.”

Lyney laughed, his smirk melting into a more genuine expression.

“I’m kidding! That might have been a bit much, sorry about that! Hehe.” He said apologetically.

You crossed your arms as you held a small jaded stare at the cheeky magician. You were doubting if he really meant that. You blew out a held breath.

Reaching into your pocket you fetched the prop card

“ I found this in my sleeve when I left the Opera House. I believe this belongs to you.” You extended his card to him. His eyes suddenly lit up and he swiped the card away from you.

“So this is where it went! Honestly, sometimes my card deck has a mind of its own.” He mused as he twirled the card in his hand.

His eyes traveled back to you. “Well since it got you here today, why not take a walk around town! I did say if we had free time we were going to show you around. Call it an encore if you will.”

You looked around you, noticing something amiss after he said that.

“ Is Miss Lynette not going to join today?”

Lyney shrugged as he slid the card back into his deck. “ Lynette had something urgent to take care of, So she can't join us today unfortunately. So it will probably just be little old me and you today.”

He was idly playing around with the deck before he made it disappear. “ Oh, you don’t need to be so formal! Just Lyney is fine.”

You hummed.

“Alright. So any places to recommend visiting?”

At this the magician sported a confident smile and walked ahead of you. “ I have a full day planned out, a surprise around every corner. I want your stay in Fontaine to be an unforgettable glimmering memory.”

He turned on his heel to face you and extended a hand to you.

“ Now if you’d allow me to be your escort, mon cher?”

You could do nothing but stare. You couldn’t come up with any words to say except stepping forward and taking his hand.

With a content smile, Lyney gently pulled you along. His gloved hand felt smooth where his fingers grazed your palm yet there was a distinctive tougher texture where the white detailing was sewn on. The people wandering the streets around you felt like the fizzling suds of a wave.

You felt your face becoming a bit warmer.

He really does have a flair for the theatrical doesn’t he?

Lyney had taken you everywhere, one exciting place following the next. But before anything, he invented you for a meal. It was noon and the complimentary breakfast from early morning wasn’t going to keep you going for the entire day. So you both stopped by a humble cafe. The food was absolutely delicious! The smell of toasty bread invaded your senses and the savory taste of garlic on your tongue made you smile with each bite .

You were perfectly content with the garlic bread but you curiously asked Lyney for any recommended dish for the main course.

His answer was; “ If you want my word, then I’d say try this dish right here!” He pointed to a warm soup bowl as he leaned himself over to you.

After lunch, Lyney brought you to see many sights and places. From the tall waterfalls that made up the borders of Fontaine, you could stare at it for hours. He had to subtly pull you away from the viewing point as you kept your eyes glued to the running water.

You took the Aquabus every so often to get around. You were looking out into the distance. The water seemed to stretch on for infinity, islands broke through the surface making the land seem like one big jigsaw puzzle.

While the ride dragged out, Lyney made quick conversation to pass the time.

“So, what brought you to Fontaine, hm? If my memory serves me right, you mentioned that you don’t get out much.” Lyney sat next to you with his legs crossed.

“ Yeah. I see travelers but I'm never the one traveling. My job is not something exciting like an adventurer or extravagant like an artist.”

You shift in your seat. You folded your arms onto your lap.

“ I’m just a shopkeep. So, you can already say that I live a perfectly mundane life” You chuckled a bit dryly.

Lyney was uncharacteristically quiet. He was paying his undivided attention to your words. You continued.

“With every passing day, I gradually realized that my life had possibly reached a stalemate. Every day felt like a repeat of yesterday. It was the same route, same building, same aisles, and same feelings.” You said. You couldn’t exactly remember when you began to feel like this. It was a thought that had crossed your mind one day. And ever since, it had stayed in the crevices like gunk you couldn’t wipe off.

“ So, I decided that I’m just going to throw myself out there into the world!” You spoke. You couldn’t really say exactly what your ideas were, but you described what you felt.

Comfort. Trapped. Empty. Jealous. Fear. Doubt. Excitement.

“ It may be reckless of me, but If I was never going to do it, I knew I would end up feeling regret for not having done anything about it. And even so, my boss was kind enough to grant me time off.”

You snickered. “ I’m probably just assuming, but I feel like they might have let me have this because they probably noticed something. Not to brag, but I was their best employee. Swooping in to save the day when my colleagues were out.”

You stretched your arms a bit, not having realized how still your body was the entire time. Once you were done it felt nice; it was as if your entire being took a fresh breath of relief.

“ So now I’m here. In Fontaine on an Aquabus with you.” You look up to see Lyney again. His eyes were soft and he had this understanding expression on his face.

Really, any expression he wore felt as if it were through a pair of rosy lenses. Perhaps it was the natural charm artists like him had. Maybe.

Besides,he could get away with just about anything because of his attractive face.

You shook your head away to look out into the Fontaine waters around and below.

“ Well, good on you [Name]! I hope your ventures have been nothing but amazing and brought you happiness! ” He finally spoke. He inhaled deeply before he sighed out. His gaze faced the bow of the aquabus.

“ Do you agree that birds create wonderful music for the ear to hear? Not to mention the splendor of colorful feathers and their ability to fly.”

“Due to their natural charm, they are sometimes kept as ‘decorations’, provided food and shelter so long as they continue to amuse the people.” He said, his tone shifted ever so slightly. It was barely noticeable, but there was a very micro edge to his word.

He crossed his arms, the brim of his hat covered the sun creating a little inkling of shadow cast over half his face blocking out the sunlight that might’ve stung his eyes.

“ But being kept in captivity for too long, it will yearn for the open skies. It’s only a matter of time before the initial luxury turns into a finite cage.” Lyney hummed. His words brought you an unexplainable comfort yet somehow it felt very out of character for him. You subtly shift your gaze to his face. His expression didn’t seem to be exaggerated. His features were calm like a still lake, unmoving. His eyes, although trained forward, seemed to be not fully there. A misty reflection had settled over his lilac irises.

The intermission lasted for a few beats of seconds. His mouth effortlessly shifts up into a cat-like grin. He turns his head back to you and straightens his posture, his signature tophat tips back slightly. His eyes conveyed excitement as the lilac once again seemed as vivid during his performance.

He was no longer a still freshwater lake, but instead a lively and winding river.

“Which is why you’ll get the best tour of Fontaine by yours truly! Mark my words when I said I’d leave you dazzled today, for I Lyney will see to it that you have nothing but laughs and smiles upon your lovely face, mon cher.~” He declared proudly.

You felt dazed. A warm bubbly feeling began to infest your chest. It was very much like when he placed a kiss to the back of your hand.

You smiled happily at his declaration. “Thank you for listening to me. And also..”

You couldn’t help the hot sensation over the apples of your cheeks or your muted heart rate from your ears. Yet you persisted, not breaking away your gaze from him.

“Thank you for being with me today.”

Lyney’s confident facade had faltered ever so slightly for that moment. But he recuperated and mirrored your expression.

“It’s no problem at all, [Name].”

This was nice. He was nice. Despite knowing him for a little while, it felt as if you’d known him for much longer.

However, you barely knew anything about him other than he had a twin sister who was coincidentally his assistant and that he was a popular performer in Fontaine.

It irked you a bit, but you wouldn’t voice this opinion out loud. It is as people said, once you learn the inner mechanism to a magic trick, the magic itself is lost and you're left to face the raw and sometimes cruel trick.

You wouldn’t question why he went quiet. You wouldn’t question if he himself felt similar. You wouldn’t question why his demeanor sometimes felt too whimsical to be true. You didn’t want to ruin the mood. And you didn’t want to linger on the thought any longer.

You both went to many shops, Lyney had insisted you try out anything that caught your fancy. And if you liked it, to get it! Of course you were on a travel budget, but you did end up purchasing two items.

Your favorite stop however was the Hat Boutique. Lyney had a rather interesting insight on what headwear would ‘shape a face better’.

“Hm, you could probably store triple the amount of props in this one.” He studied a scarlet red top hat that looked suspiciously similar to the one he owns. He then looked over to another hat sitting on a display. “But that one brings out my petite and charming face more.”

He turned to face you. “ Help me out here [Name], should I go with this one or that one?”

You looked between the two options, narrowing your eyes and looked closely at the detailings. You looked at Lyney’s face and imagined how he’d look with either on.

“If you want my opinion, why not go with this one.” You walked over to a particular Hat you saw as you were pursuing. It was a Fedora like hat in a rich dark violet color; it looked more like an inky black purple. It had a gray sash wrapped around it that shined slightly silver when the sun hit.

“ It looks nice, and the material feels smooth to the touch. The color brings out your eyes too.” You said as you held up the hat for him to look.

“Oh my, aren't you the charmer?” He smirked playfully.

You avert your eyes to the aisles of material and color, “ It’s just an astute observation is all.”

He took the hat off your hands and studied it. “ Color me impressed! You have quite the eye for fashion mon cherie.” He sent you a proud smile and his eyes glowed with pride.

You shook your head. “ I work full time at a small shop remember, so picking up on the interest of buyers is a skill I’ve gained. I wouldn’t say I’m a fashion expert.” You felt the corner of your lips twitch up into a little smile.

“Are you going to tell me what you mean by that?”

“What do I mean by what?” He repeated your question blinking owlishly

You pouted. You got the feeling he was doing it on purpose.

“The nickname? You refer to me by that sometimes. What does it mean?”

Lyney thought for two seconds before his mouth formed an o shape in realization. He gave you an innocent close eyed smile. “ That’s a secret~! But, I have faith you’ll figure out what it means on your own.”

You gasped and brought a hand to your heart. “ How do I know you're not calling me a mean name? What a cruel scheme to pull one over me like that!” You whisper yelled in an over the top voice of hurt.

His shoulders tensed. Lyney suddenly became the slightest bit flustered. He shook his head, “I-I would never! Honest! I can assure you it doesn’t mean anything like that.”

You let out a quiet snicker. You found it adorable really. He suddenly became embarrassed despite the brimming confidence he usually carries himself in.

After purchasing the hat, he decided to keep his signature cat still on but suggested making a stop by his house to leave the newly purchased hat.

“ It won’t be long I promise! It’s just that, I wouldn’t want it to get weathered by bringing it around with us today. You did end up choosing it and I wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to it.” He reasoned.

It was a small but cute home. It was built in a typical style that the main city carried; geometric edges, a very advanced looking outdoor light, and a beautiful door with a stained window.

“Wait here okay! I promise I’ll be in and out before you can tell I left.” He quickly spoke as he jogged over to the front door. You couldn’t help but laugh a little as he sped off.

So you stood outside. You looked around, and spotted a potted plant.

CLANK TICK CLANK

The sharp sounds of metal and objects clashing made you sharply look at the direction it came from. You suddenly felt a bit confused.

The door swung open and you were expecting to see the charming magician. Instead it was a boy running out the door. He spotted you and suddenly skidded to a sudden stop.

“...”

He had a giant metal helmet next to him. He had ash blonde hair that almost covered the left side of his face. His apparel reminded you of a sailor.

He just stared at you and stepped back a bit. His form seemed slightly shrunken and he held his helmet thing closer to him. Not wanting wrong assumptions to be made you sent the boy the most casual smile you could.

“ Oh, don’t mind me! I’m just waiting on a friend, said he had to drop off something. He should be back any minute.”

The boy didn’t say anything, and just nodded. And he stood there. Unmoving.

Some glances at you and back to the floor.

He taps around his helmet.

Well this was awkward. Should you make small talk?

“Er, cool helmet. What is it for, if you don’t mind me asking?”

The boy nervously glanced at you from the corner of his eye. His eyes were a very vibrant blue color. He didn’t answer for a while. You purse your lips feeling bad. Maybe the silence was better.

“ving…” You barely heard it. You look over back to the boy.

“Diving..a diving helmet.” He spoke quietly. He didn’t make eye contact as his eyes were glued to the floor.

“Diving? As in underwater?” You spoke with some bubbling curiosity. Before the boy could react, the door opened again.

“ I am here! Haha, sorry. That may have taken a bit longer than I thought. I hope you didn’t get too bored while I was away.” Lyney announced himself. He no longer had the hat box with him and he scratched the nape of his neck.

He noticed the other blonde boy.

“Hm? Ah, Freminet! Where are you off to today?”

Oh, he knows him? You thought, glancing between the two.

“I was on my way to the beach.” The young man known as Freminet spoke. His voice sounded soft yet slightly raspy, perhaps he wasn’t used to talking much you figured.

Lyney approached you and eagerly motioned for you to join in the conversation.

“ [Name], allow me to introduce you to my little brother, Freminet. Freminet, this is my new friend [Name]. They were the ones to share the spotlight with me and Lynette during last evening’s show.” Lyney proudly chirped.

Freminet looked a lot less tense. “Oh, yeah. I remember. You rambled on about that show, saying how well they-”

Lyney coughed loudly. You look over at the magician with a raised eyebrow.

There on his pale face was the smallest smidgen of a rosy color. Freminet immediately hushed. But he had a small nervous smile on his face.

“ I’m sorry If I seemed quiet just now.” Fremeniet now said addressing you. “ I recognized you from your appearance, but I didn’t know what to talk about. Or If you would find me odd for knowing about you.”

You shook your head, understanding the full picture now made you feel a bit more reassured. “ Don’t worry about it, really. But, it’s nice to meet you, Freminet.”

You turned to face Lyney who looked a lot more relaxed. “ So you have two siblings? What a nice family you three are! There probably isn’t a shortage of banter or boredom then.”

Lyney chuckled. “ Well, I’m usually the one who does most of the talking. I’m the eldest so it's my duty.”

“Sometimes you take it a bit too far and become a blabber mouth.” A familiar voice suddenly joined the conversation. Looking about you were met with another familiar face.

“Hey Lynette.” You sent the twin a little friendly wave. She turned to you. Smiling a little and returning it, albeit more lazy.

“Really? You see me as a blabber mouth? But Lynette, I mustn't let the audience’s cheers and support fall on deaf ears. Especially that our friend [Name] here has been on a grand tour with me as their guide.” Lyney ground proudly as he placed both his hands on his hips.

“Whatever you say. But, you’ve been taking them on a tour? How come you didn’t invite me to tag along?” Lynette deadpanned.

Huh? You tilted your head in confusion and furrowed your brow. Didn’t Lyney mention earlier that his sister was busy. Lyney must have felt the obvious sudden awkward tension placed upon him as his shoulder tensed and he chuckled nervously.

“A-ah, b-but dear sister, you see since you were busy in the early time of today I didn’t wish to trouble you, so I took it upon myself to show them around. Hehe, please don’t be mad at me.” Lyney stuttered out all while looking at Lynette as he brought his hat closer to his chest.

Lynette sighed and shook her head before she turned to you with a laid back expression.

“ I hope he hasn’t caused you too much trouble, [Name]. He can go a little too far sometimes but that’s just Lyney being Lyney.”

“Hey! I’m right here you know.” Lyney whined sadly. Lynette didn’t bother to look at him and Freminet had turned his head to the side. His shoulder’s bounced and looked like he was suppressing a giggle.

“ It’s really okay. More than okay really. Lyney has been nothing but kind and patient with me. He is a good listener and always manages to make me smile and laugh!” You said happily.

Lynette’s deep violet eyes got slightly bigger with confusion and curiosity. Lyney stood beside you and took a quick glance at your direction. It was quiet for a moment. You suddenly became a bit nervous, was there something wrong you said?

Lyney laughed heartily as he threw an arm over your shoulders. “You see! Take it from them, that I never let my audience down!” You quickly glanced in his direction, not minding the close contact. You could see some red culminating around the tips of his ear and beneath his eyes.

“Well that's good to know.” Lynette crossed her arms.

“ We must get going, the daylight is short so we mustn't waste it idlying.” Lyney said. Before you two left Lyney sent his siblings goodbye. “Take care Lynette, remember to be on alert alright? And Freminet, remember to get back home before curfew! I was about to dive into the waters last time you had forgotten about time.”

“ Okay.”

“Of course.”

Lynette and Freminet replied in unison.

“ Looks like we’re on the move again. I hope to be able to spend time with you Lynette.” You said. You wanted to get to know this family better. Lynette was blunt and to the point but you could tell she cared about the people closest to her.

Lynette nodded and her lips curled up into a small but sincere smile. You turned to Freminet.

“ It was nice to meet you, Freminet. If we ever meet again, would you mind explaining diving to me? It sounds interesting.”

Freminet tensed slightly but managed to nod in agreement.

“ Bye Bye! Take care!”

After you two had left, Lynette turned to Fremeinet with a pensive look.

“ Freminet, do you think our older brother is perhaps getting attached to them?”

“ I don’t know. But, he really seems to like their company. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him being this flustered in the presence of someone else.”

Lynette hummed. “ I hope he knows what he’s attempting to get himself into. Out of all of us, he knows what kind of situation we’re in.”

Freminet was quiet as he fidgeted with the nails and guards on his helmet.

“ Do you think that [Name] would like Per?”

Lynette glanced at Freminet with an unreadable expression. She stood still and thought of last evening's performance.

“Did... Did you go into idle mode?”

“Yes.”

“Huh?”

“ I think [Name] would find Per cute.”

The rest of the day was spontaneous. From a walk by the sea shore, trying out pastries and free samples, Lyney explaining Fontaine history and technology.

It was now close to night time and you were both currently walking through the garden close to the Opera House. The road towards the Opera House was beautiful, ever since you first came here a day prior. You had almost ran late to the Magic show seeing as to how pretty it was. The carved marble statues, the beds of wildflowers beyond the decorative iron railing, and not to mention the fountains. Water was almost everywhere you’d look, it was a given as this was the nation of Hydro.

“Well, today was certainly a fun day.” You spoke softly. You looked up into the sky. It was the final rays of daylight and the sky was a beautiful swatch of evening gradience. All of the orange, blues and reds bled right into each other.

The water beyond mirrored the sky. The land was akin to a watercolor tray, a smokey mixture of cool and warm colors.

“Thankyou, again for taking time out of your day to guide me through the nation’s cities. You didn’t need to know?” You walked alongside Lyney who was too admiring the sky.

“Nonsense. I took you on this little journey because I wanted to. It was one of my prop cards that called to you, yes?” He glanced at you out of the corner of his eye.

“Yes but-”

“And you answered. You could have very well ignored it, even kept the card as a souvenir. But you didn’t. And that choice led you to today.” He spoke calmly.

You said nothing. Lyney was a stubborn man, no matter how many times you could protest against his kindness he would fire back with a reasonable explanation.

“ The card, how did you manage to put it into my sleeve?”

Lyney grinned like a bobcat. “ Uh uh my dear, a magician never reveals his trade secrets.” He mused teasingly.

“ Of course.” You sighed, giving up.

“Have you always had a talent in magic? In performing?”

Lyney finally turned his head to glance at you. Skipping ahead of you, he manages to turn his whole body towards you.

“ If you must know, It is a rags to riches tale!” He exclaimed as he bellowed out his arms dramatically in front of him.

“ As a young lad, me and Lynette were street performers. Everyday little crowds of people would congregate around us on the side of the street. Card tricks, Flower tricks, and even the feathered friends would aid in our little shows.” He exclaimed as he walked backwards.

“We would give it our all and Mora would rain down upon us.” He spoke with a triumphant smile on his face. He slowed down his pace and you managed to catch up. He was now walking next to you like before.

“ You could guess the rest. We eventually became so well renowned, we were able to afford high end venues and quality equipment for our shows. And soon we went from paupers to famed actors.”

You had listened carefully. Despite his colorful disposition, the underlying tone of his small backstory felt off.

“ I’m sorry you had to go through such tribulation. It must have been tough on the two of you early on.” You frowned. Although he framed the tale as a dramatic novel, the implication that he and lynette had been living in the streets tugged at your heart.

He did say when he was a lad, so this probably must have happened while they were both children. Where were their parents? The rest of their family? You decided to stave off these questions as they could be delicate.

Lyney had gone quiet for a moment. He smiled warmly at you. “ It’s alright. There is no need to feel sad for us. That is long in the past now. And besides…” He grinned widely. “ I think a smile would suit your lovely face more!”

He took off his hat and dug around it and pulled out a curious plant. It was a glowing blue color and its shape resembled a pearl. It shined a mixture of a translucent lilac and ocean blue.

He outstretched it out to you. You went ahead and tapped the leaves that looked like sea shells. The flower suddenly released some bubbles. The translucent orbs floated around you. You couldn’t help but pop a few, some giggles escaping you as you whirled around.

Lyney chuckled. “ I did promise you that I would keep that smile on your lips followed by the melody of your laughter.”

“ I-” You brought a hand up to your face. Your heart suddenly began to beat as if you had just ran a distance.

Why did his words have to feel so..so..like this? Why did it feel as if what he said was true? Would that explain why your heart feels like it would sprout wings and fly away any moment?

You were positive your face was burning up. You coughed into your hand.

“You did, didn't you? Thank you for the reminder.” You had managed to sputter out. You heard the soft chuckling of the magician. The flower was no wear to be seen, he must’ve vanished it away when you weren’t paying attention.

“I’m glad we’re on the same page, [Name].” He had a lopsided grin. Lyney was a cheeky man, a person with a silver tongue. He was a conman. And yet…

He managed to make you feel like you had a tornado of butterflies in your stomach all the time.

You were left speechless, as you both continued to walk down a few more minutes. You both made it to the Opera. In front of the opera was a bigger fountain, and a few pairs of people were collected around it.

You went up to the fountain, interested to see it up close. In the water collected at the bottom, you could make out a few glittering coins of Mora beneath the water. You heard a few steps up behind you and guess Lyney must’ve followed you.

“ People wish at this fountain, right? What for?” You looked around at the elegant structure. The reflected moonlight in the water gleamed against the little gold accents around its edges.

“ Fontainians come to this fountain to wish about anything, really. Better fortune, health, and happiness. But mostly, people come to this specific fountain for love or hopes for a healthy baby.” Lyney answered, his hands behind his back.

‘Hmm, the pairs of people make sense now.’ You thought as you glanced around the area. Satisfied you walk around the front of the Opera house. The fountains shooting water high into the air makes you wanna take a closer look. Leaning into the thin railing your eyes stayed glued to the water.

You could feel a ghost coolness of the falling mist from the tall fountain.

Although it was a fun outing today, you had ran around almost everywhere in the nation. Lyney in toe with you, making you ignore the aches you felt for doing so much in such a short time. Now in this still moment, all your tiredness was catching up to you.

Lyney must have noticed, as his lilac eyes flitted between your face and the fountain ahead.

“ Hey, want to see something cool?”

You turned your head over to the cheeky magician with a brow raised.

With your attention now on him, he took off his hat. You leaned more on your arm against the railing with a warm smile. Half expecting him to pull out something out of his hat again, he did something else. He shook it in front of him, emptying it out of nothing. Nothing left the hat.

Lyney hummed aloud. “Hmm, I was sure I had it stored in here.”

You couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Maybe you dropped it somewhere?”

“No no. I was sure It was in here.” He pouted as he now looked in, under and above his tophat. It was rather cute.

He eventually gave up and placed it back on his head. “ You might be right, maybe it slipped out while we were on the aqua-”

Just as he was about to finish, something dangled in front of his face. It moved from side to side, as if it was dusting off his face. Upon a closer look, It looked like a cat tail.

The look on Lyney’s face was endearing, his lilac eyes had dilated in surprise and followed the tail.

“Ah, there it is!” The hat suddenly lifted up his head, floating just above.

To your surprise, you see a smaller tophat along two little black ears pop out. Two little black bean paws followed, grabbing along the inner rim of Lyney’s hat.

Pop

“!!!”

You finally saw its face. It was a black cat with mismatched eyes of a droplet and star. It had a permanent toothy grin on its face. It wiggled in the hat and turned itself to look down at you.

“?!!”

You could make out the red bow behind its back. You weren’t sure what to do so you waved at the cat. It moved its small pudgy body around the hat and twitched its tiny ears.

“!!!”

Lyney let out a giggle at the interaction. “ Aww, I think he likes you.” He managed to grab his floating hat by the rim and brought it down in front of him. The cat in the hat seemed bothered and was now looking up at you. Its tiny hat was slightly tipped back.

“Can I pet it?” You asked almost too excitedly.

“Since you asked, of course! He is a bit mischievous but a glutton for attention.” He mused, side eyeing down on the cat.

You gingerly brough your hand down onto the cat. Its surface was surprisingly smooth yet soft, and the cat wiggled towards your touch. It’s two little ears ducked back as it seemed to love the attention it was given. It’s face never changed, however.

“ Does it have a name?” You asked as you kept petting it. Lyney nodded and smiled.

“ It’s a Grin-Malkin cat! I’m sure you're quite familiar with it, as it’s not only a prop for Lynette and I’s show, but our cute mascot.” He said.

“Prop?” You asked slightly confused. So it wasn’t alive? Then how did it move so life-like?

“ The Grin-Malkin cat is a puppet, but its movements are based off of a real cat.” He said.

You smiled, but kept petting the cute kitty. Even if it was just a puppet, the cat seemed to have a familiar personality. Its little paws stuck out, and one came up to ‘attack’ your finger. You quietly giggled at its playfulness.

“ So, cats are a part of your show’s soul huh?” You asked.

“ If it wasn’t that obvious, yes.” He said with a charming smile.

“ ‘Based on a real cat’, so who was the lucky cat this little bean was based on?” You asked curiously.

“ When Lynette and I were street performers, we managed to run into a lot of stray cats. Lynette was shy, so most of them got along with her.” He said as he looked down to Grin-Malkin.

“But, there was one troublesome cat. He kept on running off with my hat. Apparently, it made for a better cat bed than anything. He would be curled up inside when I found it.”

“ Eventually, I thought of replacing my old friend with a new hat. A hat that wouldn’t disappear when I didn’t tell it so. But, me and the cat came to a mutual agreement. I would bring him along to the show as a replica puppet!” He said with a proud smile. It slightly faltered however as he continued.

“During one particular performance, there was a little mishap that happened. I had forgotten a card in my deck and the trick required that one card that I misplaced.”

You winced at the second hand embarrassment. “Talk about bad luck. What did you do?” You asked. The kitty that you were petting now turned around to look up at Lyney. It looked interesting in his story. So now, it was you and the cat’s eyes on Lyney.

“Well, as I was coming up with an improvised outcome, out came this little guy.” He motioned down to the cat.

“!!!” It bounced slightly in the hat as the attention now was on it.

“ He had the card that I had misplaced and was able to save the show. And ultimately, make it better. The crowd and even I wasn’t expecting such an outcome.” He shook his head.

“Aww, so he became the star of the show.” You laughed.

“!!!” The cat whirled around to face you again and puffed out its chest in pride.

Lyney laughed alongside you. “ That’s one way to put it.”

Once you calmed down you noticed that you didn’t feel as tired anymore.

“ It looks like today is coming to a close.” Lyney said as he looked around. There were now very few people outside, and the sky had turned darker than earlier. The magician tapped the tiny tophat on the cat.

“Before today the curtains come to a close, let me send you off with a grand finale.” He whispered.

The Grin-Malkin cat wiggled its tail and his paw came up to the brim of its own hat. The cat tipped its tophat to you before Lyney grabbed his own and placed it back atop it’s hat.

“With your permission, could you close your eyes for me.” He said as he leaned in close to you, his hands behind his back.

“Okay?” You smiled nervously.

You shut your eyes and saw darkness. You could still hear the rushing of water and a faint sound of chirping crickets.

“Okay, no peeking until I tell you too.” You heard the magician.

You waited for what would happen. You felt someone get closer to you. The ghostly presence of someone close to your face. You refrained from moving, yet your heart began to pick up its pace.

You felt something warm touch your cheek, and something soft tickle your ear. At the same time you felt stiffer material tap against you above your head.

It came as quickly as it went, as you felt a small breeze and you could no longer feel the close presence.

“Okay, open your eyes now.” You heard Lyney say.

You opened and saw the magician in front of you with a warm smile.

“Do you feel anything different? Perhaps something is missing!” He said in a cheery tone.

Your hand reached up to where you felt something earlier.

“Huh?”

There was something behind your ear. Carefully, your fingers outstretched and touched something soft. It was a delicate circlet of petals connected to a smooth stem. Looking up from the corner of your eye, you spotted a blur of prisma like colors.

A blurb of pink and pastel yellow.

“ A rose? How?” You quietly questioned.

“Mhm!” Lyney nodded enthusiastically. “ That is a rainbow rose. A beautiful flower that grows wild only within Fontaine.”

“Ah, thank you! It’s really pretty and soft.” You delicately felt a petal. Beneath the bloom, there were smaller outstretched petals that pressed against your temple.

“ Have you found it yet? The thing I stole from you.” Lyney asked, tilting his head to the side.

You glanced back at him confused. You didn’t feel anything missing from you, as you checked your packets and around your person.

Lyney’s eyes followed your attempts to look for the missing something, slightly amused.

“Given up yet?”

You really couldn’t find anything off.

“ Is this a trick question, because I don’t feel like anything was taken.” You asked.

Lyney raised a closed hand next to his face. He smirked mischievously.

“How strange, because I have something of yours in the palm of my hand.” He teased me. “I’ll give you one more chance, could you guess what it is?”

You nodded. You guessed it was either a prop card or maybe some mora.

“ I give up, what is it?”

Lyney opened his palm and there was…

Nothing.

“Ta-da! The thing I stole from you was your attention.” He exclaimed with glee. He walked over to me and extended his hand over to me.

“Here you go, you can have it back now!”

…

This little-

You may have had the tiniest urge to smack his shoulder. Shaking off that urge, you huffed and played along. Once you reached his hand to get your ‘attention’ back, his finger’s gently encased your hand.

He bowed down dramatically and kissed the back of your palm.

Very discreetly, he cracked one eye open and glanced up at you. You had frozen in place and with a flustered face you could only stare.

He had the gall to smirk and send you a wink.

There was an odd sense of Dejavu, the memory of when you were approached by him after the magic show that evening.

“And it seems that…I have stolen your heart as well ma chérie.” Lyney whispered.

He gently let your hand fall back to your side as he stood back up. He had an innocent smile on his face.

You just stared at him completely dazed.

It was quiet for a very. Long. Second.

Lyney’s pale face slowly became redder and redder although he did not move.

The awkwardness was beginning to thicken and soon Lyney couldn’t take it anymore.

“Ahem…Ahaha hah haa... D-Did you get it? Because I had you focused on me the entire time so I stole your attention right under your nose. And now I just did a chivalrous act to make you feel flustered! I didn’t go too far again did I?” He muttered as he brought a hand to his mouth and averted his eyes.

His rambling snapped you out of your dazed phase and you suddenly became very aware as to how hot your face was. Lyney being in some sort of distress in front of you made you sputter out.

“Nononono, It’s fine! I was surprised, very surprised actually…er that was a nice trick there, very smart. So don’t worry about it.” You went ahead and leaned forward from the railing to look back at the fountain. Lyney might have gotten the message because he did the same.

After a few minutes of cooling down, you turned your head to look at Lyney and see if he was alright. His lilac eyes spotted you out of the corner, and he ducked under the brim of his hat.

“I think it’s getting late, I’ll take the Aquabus back to the main city.” You said, there was a small tight feeling in your chest. You were sad as to how fast the day went, how fast you had to say goodbye.

“Let me walk you back to the station then. It wouldn’t be very gentlemanly to let you walk back on your own this late.” Lyney offered, his voice sincere.

And so you did. The walk back was slightly quieter. Again, he became uncharacteristically quiet.

Was it because of what happened earlier? Did he feel like he did something wrong?

“You know I had fun today, right?” You began.

“It was very kind of you to take me on a tour around the city. I got to learn about the nation, eat good food, spoil myself with samples and sweets, and saw many hats I didn’t even know existed.” you slightly laughed. You heard him laughing quietly too.

“ I met your siblings, met your prop cat and I got to meet you in last evening's show.”

You might’ve never gone out today if you hadn’t met Lyney.

You might’ve never got to know his family if you hadn’t met Lyney.

You might’ve never gotten to meet Lyney like this if you weren’t picked to participate in the final act.

The more you thought about it, the more you became grateful that for some miracle of coincidence you were picked from the audience.

“I’m really happy that I met you. You made my time here in Fontaine feel magical. I’ll keep this day close to my heart, if that’s okay with you.” You smiled happily, the giddy feeling making you feel all sorts of floaty.

Lyney said nothing, only humming in approval.

Once you had gotten to the station, there was already a bus sitting there. The tour guide, or Melusine as you later found out, was sitting and leaning against the bus. Once it heard the sound of footsteps it sat up quickly, it’s tall ears snapping up.

“Ah! Oh, all aboard the bus! No wait, that’s not it..uh- everyone boarding please be careful with your arms, feet and legs inside the boat!” It spoke, half asleep.

You turn to Lyney. “ Are you going to go back to the main city?”

He shook his head.

“ No, I think I’m going to go back to the Opera house. I hate to be the naggy brother, but I just want to make sure Lynette didn’t forget any of the props backstage.”

“ Oh alright. I guess this is goodbye then.”

You had the urge to hug him. You weren’t sure how busy the Magician might be tomorrow, but somewhere in the back of your mind you believed you wouldn’t see him again for a while. The thought once again made your chest feel tight.

“ I believe so.” Lyney said quietly.

Well, no point in delaying your leave.

“Wha- HEY!” You heard Lyney yelp, and quickly you turn back to see what happened. His hat was off its what and seemed to zoom over to you.

The Grin-Malkin cat drove the Top hat like some dune buggy as now right side up was swirled with pyro elemental energy.

The grinning cat raced in the sky towards you, there wasn’t enough time to get out of the way so you braced for impact. But it never came.

The hat had swerved around you, drifting mid air as the cat kept facing you.

Suddenly the thing nudged itself into your face, the Grin-Malkin cat rubbing its pudgy dark body against you. You could almost hear purrs.

“ Hello, nice to see you again.” You giggled as its ears tickled your chin. Wrapping an arm around it you used the other to scratch above its head.

“!!!”

Lyney got closer and smiled nervously. “ I think he likes you too much. It never usually takes off on it’s own.”

He bent slightly down to be on the hat’s level and he put both his hands on his hip.

“Hey now! Come on, back up here alright?” he tried to sound like a scolding parent.

“!!!” The cat shook its tail in his face.

“I’m serious. C’mon, back on Lyney’s head” He pointed to his hat-less head of hair.

“!!!” The cat dug itself deeper into your embrace.

Lyney frowned. “ I know you like [Name], but they really have to go. It could be dangerous for them to be out in the streets this late. The sooner you let them go, the sooner they’ll go back safely.” He reasoned with a reassuring tone of voice.

The cat retracted itself from your hold and glanced down at Lyney. Having made up its mind the cat’s paws extended to you.

You tapped them both. “ Lyney’s right. I have to go. I’ll miss you too.” You leaned down and pressed a small peck on the robotic cat’s forehead.

It wiggled and a paw came up to its hat and brought it down in an attempt to hide its face. Although its features couldn’t exactly express, it looked to be shy.

Lyney had noticed and brought a hand up to his mouth to cover his snickers.

The cat then ducked into the hat, disappearing from view. You looked inside the hat and it was empty.

Grabbing it from in front of you, you flipped it right side up.

“Here, let me help.” You raised it above Lyney’s head. Slowly you set it down and secure it in its place. All the while doing it, Lyney had his soft lilac eyes on your face.

Fixing the hat a bit, you dusted off any dirt that may have gotten on it. “There we go! Now you look as sharp as you usually do.” You grinned.

You didn’t notice but when you smiled, especially at such close proximity, Lyney couldn’t stop the flush of color rising in his face.

You kept staring at his hat and his face as well to see if anything was out of place.

Without realizing your hands hover just above his arms. You weren’t sure if this was right. Maybe ... .Everything was going a step too far. Just as you were gonna reel back, Lyney raised his hands to hover right beneath your arms.

Without saying much but a nod, you hugged.

His cape felt soft, and his arms held you with care and protectiveness. You smiled as your face dug into his shoulder. You felt the hard material of the brim bump your temple.

He smelled like flowers and ash. An odd combination yet somewhat comforting.

For what felt like a full day, you two finally separated. He had a warm and sincere smile on his face.

Most of his smiles are bright grins that could light up a room.

But somehow after a while the spark is lost, and the smiles feel all the same. But this one, the one you saw before your eyes. No, this was different.

The kind of smile that was not rehearsed nor under scrutiny of the captive audience’s eye.

This one felt raw, special, authentic.

It made him look beautiful.

Realizing you were staring, you stepped back.

“ I….really think I need to go, or the Melusine will go back to sleep.” You turned on your heel and headed towards the boarding area. Before you left you took a big breath in. the cold air of the night and mist sending a current of energy through you.

As you were about to step on the bus, you heard him walk behind you.

“When will you be leaving?”

“What?”

“When will you be leaving? You said you were here on holiday, so when will you go back?” He asked.

You stopped and thought. When will I go back?

Go back.

Do I want to go back?

Can I go back after having a taste of what the world is outside of what I once knew?

“I leave in two days. Two days, yes.” You managed to say out almost in a flat voice.

“Why do you want to know?” You asked, you hadn;t turn your back to face him.

I want to see you again.

“ No reason in particular. I just thought you would be around to watch me and my sister perform in three days at the courts theater.” He said, there was a cheapness to his voice.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to go. I'm sorry.”

“Yeah, Sounds like it.” Lyney dejectedly said.

You step onto the bus and Melusine shoots up on it’s tiny feet.

“ Leaving Marcotte Station!” They yelled. You sat down on one of the benches. You didn;t have the heart to look at Lyney as the bus started to move along the river.

You did however outstretched your hand behind your ear. The rose was still there.

“ Ah, a rainbow rose? Oh oh! Did you have someone propose to you?” the Mesuline asked.

“Wh-What?! What do you mean by ‘propose?!’ ” You shrieked. The Melusine set comfy on top it’s little pedestal.

“Oopsie, I’m sorry you probably don’t know the rumored implications of that rose do you?” They asked, tilting their head as their ears flopped to the side.

You shook your head.

“Well, since you're my only passenger for tonight, I suppose it’s okay for me to add on to the guidelines. And I’m tired right now.” It yawned.

“ When someone gifts you a Rainbow Rose, much like the one on you, it usually symbolizes passion and romantic encounters. It’s very common for couples here to gift each other a single rainbow rose or a bouquet of a dozen roses as a way to express their devotion to one another.” The Melusine mused.

“Oh.”

“ But it’s also used to express platonic love for a dear friend or family. Flower gifting is a language that revolves around love no matter which kind.” It said happily.

It hummed a little tune, and the boat sailed along.

“ But for it to be placed behind the ear, someone may be interested in you. Romantically I mean, haha.”

Oh dear…you might realize what the nickname he gave you means now.

“Ah- AHCHOO!” You covered your face as you sneezed.

“ Bless you!” the Melusine said.

You sniffled. Maybe it was the cold.

Lyney had stood there watching the Aquabus get farther and farther away. He had his hat to his chest.

He quickly placed his hat back on his head and walked back to the garden path.

There was no one around. He was alone.

Had his siblings made it back home yet? Probably.

The steps of his boots bore a fast and rhythmic pattern as he stepped.

His lips were in a flat line. His mind was preoccupied on many things.

His sister, his brother, the rest of his siblings, “Father” and you.

You. He shook his head.

He had a blast today. Although he had known Fontaine all his life, he practically lived on the stone walkways for a good part of his life, he never saw it like he did today. It felt new to him, a wondrous view!

Like that of an innocent curious child. Something that he never thought he would experience ever in his life.

He snapped away the thought.

He made it past the fountain in front of the Opera House. Getting past the gates and the lonely lobby he made it into the audience area.

He had met you here.

From when he was looking for a willing participant, he spotted you amongst the sea of eager people.

He spotted you. You weren’t a local, perhaps a tourist. You intrigued him.

Foreigner’s often brought in the best source of intel. A web of secrets and truths hidden beneath the veil of illusions. The normal people and Magicians were similar in that aspect, despite the other living in ignorance.

He never would have expected you to complete the trick well. Oftentimes, stage fright took a hold of the non troupe assistance, some on the spot improv would be on set in case the trick went off the rails.

That is why Lyney wouldn’t often pick from the audience. It was a rare occasion.

He would seek you out. Get you into a sense of comfortability, his silver tongue had a way of making people profess their hearts out to him.

The world was a stage to him, and thus he must always perform his best. At least, that is what “Father” told him.

You didn’t have much useful information. He was hoping for something more scandalous or perhaps a secret you were ashamed of. Instead, you were just some person seeking out the world that you never had stepped foot in despite being born into it.

And yet.

Lyney sat down on one of the cushy seats of the audience area. He crossed on foot atop the other.

Why had he stayed with you today?

Perhaps he was afraid of seeing you upset if he left suddenly to shop for props he needed.

Maybe, he didn’t want to go back on his promise he made to you backstage.

Maybe, he didn’t want to see your angry face if you found out the initial reason he asked you out.

Lyney looked around, his eyes wandered to the stage. No one was performing. It was empty. The spotlight wasn’t shining down. It was devoid and completely useless to its intended purpose at the moment.

Lyney had purposefully left out key information when you had asked about his background in magic.

You didn’t need to know of the desperate times where he pushed through with a smile while the tummies of he and his sister gurgled for food.

You didn’t need to know the cruelty of Nobility and their disgusting greed and wicked selfishness.

You didn’t need to know about the House and the Fatui.

And you didn’t need to know about “Father”.

Lyney exhaled.

All of that would probably make you look down on him with disgust and fear. He much preferred to see a beautiful smile on you.

He didn’t need to see you again. You were useless to “Father”, to the grand scheme of he and his sibling’s mission. You would be a distraction, and distractions lead to silly avoidable mistakes.

Yes, that’s what “Father” would say to him.

And yet.

Lyney scrunched his face. He didn’t like feeling like this. He thought he was over this. After all, he had a home and a supportive family now. He shouldn't feel like this, he had his sister, little brother and the other younger ones to look after.

And yet he wanted to see you again.

You made him feel like he had freedom. It wasn’t like the one he was granted when he and Lynette were free from being street rats. And strangely enough, it wasn’t like the freedom “Father” granted him when she took him away from the cruel mansion.

He felt bliss with you. He felt like how the audience looked in the countless times he performed on stage.

Was that how it felt like to live normally? To live in bliss and ignore the world’s harsh reality, even for a few moments.

He used to stutter a lot as a young boy. Whenever his juvenile performances went wrong or a slip of the tongue in pronouncing large words.

Yet he seemed to awfully flustered around you a lot of the time.

He even gave you a Rainbow Rose of all things.

It’s what felt the most appropriate he thought.

“ Oh no..”

The realization hit him like a Mitachurl’s Axe.

“ Father is definitely going to kill me if she ever finds out about this. Lynette might as well.” He cried.

“ACHOO!”

“Ugh, I should’ve gotten out of the port sooner. I might come down with a cold.” He sniffled.

‘Maybe someone’s thinking of me.’ He thought.

Before you went into your room, you had asked the reception for a vase you could borrow. They immediately noticed the flower on you and gave you a sneaky glance. Ignoring them, you went and filled the vase with water.

Before going to bed you placed the rose in the vase, on your nightstand so when the morning came it would get sun.

The last thing you saw when you fell into slumber was the rose. The memory of that charming magician is still vivid in your mind.

Perhaps, you could delay your trip back home.

After all,

He did steal your heart and had yet to give it back.

A/N: CWNCWNCONCON I WAS KICKING MY FEET AND CRYING WHEN I WORTE SOME PARTS CBKEBCIB The Fonatine siblings have a choke hold on me fr. Fontaine water giving that same energy that 3 am cold crispy tap water- I'm now tempted to make a Lynette x F!Reader fluff were they have a nice little tea party and make paper flower arrangements like cottage core girlfriends Tags: @b0rninh3ll @yukiaei @xiaossocksniffer @nayumeas @scarletrosesposts @sol3chu @rionah @jar-03

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harveywritings92 · 1 year

Text

[A cat wanders into the base and somehow gets into the vents, the 1-4-1 have been trying to catch it but it keep getting away, finally they resort to sending someone into the vents. Soap is that someone.]

Ghost: Soap, go into the vent and get him.

Soap: What!? Have ye gone waxy in yer beester? I canna fit in the wee vent, ye croquet-playin’ mint-muncher!

Ghost, fed up:: Grease yourself up and go in, you ...guff-speaking work-slacker.

Soap: [impressed] Ooh. Good comeback. sir!

[Cut to Soap bursting into R/n’s empty diner.]

Soap: Miss. L/n have ye got any grease?

[R/n looks up from the counter.]

R/n: Yes, yes we do.

[Soap suddenly rips his shirt apart of showing off his chiseled abs.]

Soap: THEN GREASE ME UP WOMAN!

[R/n feels heat creeping up her neck as she looks at Soap’s body with a poker face]

R/n: Okie-dokie!

{Let’s just say Ghost was the one who got jealous this time, as he got to hear all about how his dear R/n had rubbed grease all over Soap’s abs.]

Soap, boasting to Gaz: I tell ya Gaz, Her hands felt like heaven, I aven’t had a back rub that good in ages!

[cut to Ghost brooding in a corner while stroking the vent cat like a super villain.]

#source: the simpsons #call of duty modern warfare incorrect quotes #call of duty incorrect quotes #cod mw ghost #simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley x reader #platonic! Soap MacTavish #john soap mctavish x reader #afab reader #call of duty crossover #kamen rider! reader #civilian! reader #cod mw soap #kamen rider crossover

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astraysimp · 5 months

Text

My Favorite Painting

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀Hi besties! I’m bring you some more dad!skz! So far I have covered Han,Lee Know, Changbin and Seungmin and now It’s our darling dumpling Hyunjinnie’s turn!

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀Summary: Mother’s day is approaching and Hyunjin has the perfect present in mind , for you, from him and his princess

⌦ .｡.:*♡ 이슬 (Iseul): meaning dew– your 8 month old princess

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀Warnings: fluff, pet names, dad!hyunjin, fem!reader, Hyunjin teaches Iseul how to paint

Hyunjin was excited, your first mother’s day was coming up and he wanted to make you a special present. The present being a painting of a bouquet of flowers, the flowers being baby Iseul’s handprints. With the holiday being a few days away, he had to get this done soon. So, he grabbed his art supplies and canvas before going to get his precious baby.Luckily, you had been out grocery shopping at the time when he planned on making the painting.

Iseul had just eaten lunch and was still in her highchair, giggling up at Hyunjin. Smiling, Hyunjin leaned down and pressed a kiss to her cheeks. “ Hi my dew drop, are you excited to make mommy’s present? Mommy’s going to love it so much.” He smiled, as he set the canvas on the highchair tray and laughed as Iseul ran her hands over the fabric. “That’s a canvas, dew drop. We’re going to put your little handprints on it, dew drop. Your cute little hands,” he laughed and grabbed 2 tubes of acrylic paint, turning to Iseul. “ dew drop, do you want to do yellow or pink, munchkin? Noransaek ttoneun bunhongsaek?” He smiled, holding the two tubes up. Giggling, Iseul made grabby hands at the pink paint. “Bunhongsaek, iseul? Pink for my princess,” Hyunjin laughed and opened the tube grabbing a sponge brush. Iseul smiled up at him and kicked her feet. “Is my dew drop ready? It’s going to be cold, princess.” He cooed, kissing her forehead before he carefully took ahold of her left hand and coated it in the paint. Iseul gasped and looked down at her hand, pulling it to her mouth. “Uh oh, no no no, dew drop. We don’t eat the paint, it’s icky icky.” Hyunjin laughed, taking her hand away from her mouth and pressed it onto the canvas, revealing a pink handprint. She giggled and turned to Hyunjin, clapping her hands. “ So pretty, dew drop. That’s your hand! Your little hand.” He smiled and kissed her forehead, wiping her hand with a baby wipe.

“One more time, dew drop, one more.” He cooed, coating her right hand in yellow paint. Smiling, Hyunjin carefully pressed her hand against the canvas, leaving a yellow handprint behind. “Wah, so cute! Look dew drop, your hands! He smiled and kissed her cheeks before wiping her hands off with a baby wipe, before discarding it into the garbage can. Carefully taking Iseul into his arms, Hyunjin sat at the kitchen table, with her on his lap.” Now we need to add the stem and leaves, dew drop. Do you want to help daddy?” He smiled, bouncing her on his lap and squeezing a small dollop of green paint onto a paint palette. Giggling, Iseul squealed and clapped her hands, reaching towards the paint.Hyunjin took a paint brush into his hands, carefully getting Iseul to hold it, his hand wrapping around her small one. “This is how we hold the brush, my dew drop.Now we put it in the paint,” he explained as he dipped the brush into the paint. Gasping, Iseul looked up at him and back to the canvas, as if she asked him what to do next. “See, now we draw a line going dooowwwnnnn,” He said softly, guiding her hand to paint straight lines down from each handprint. “Those are the stems, and now we add little leaves,” he explained, guiding her to add little swipes to act as leaves. Smiling, he gently took the brush from her hand and set it into the cup of water he had out. “Now, dew drop, we’re all done. See? Mommy will love it, princess.” He cooed, picking her up and taking the painting to dry in his studio . Soon after, you arrived home and walked into the house. “Hyun? Baby? Iseul?”

┏━•❃°•°❀°•°❃•━┓┏━•❃°•°❀°•°❃•━┓1 Week Later┏━•❃°•°❀°•°❃•━┓

Today was mother’s day and Hyunjin had made sure your day started off well. He had prepared you a breakfast in bed– complete with heart shaped chocolate chip pancakes, a bowl of fruit cut into hearts, your favorite iced coffee, flowers , a card and a Versace dress(to wear to lunch later). He had brought Iseul into your room, laying her on your chest, to wake you up. Your morning was perfect and now it was lunch time.

Hyunjin had taken the day off work, so he could spend your first mother’s day with you and Iseul. Now, the three of you were at a nice lunch spot he had found. The weather was beautiful so you decided to be seated outdoors. You were waiting for your food, currently holding iseul in your lap and making small talk. “I hope you’re enjoying your first Mother’s day, my love.” he smiled at you , reaching to press a kiss to your cheek. “Oh hyune, it’s been perfect, so far. Thank you so much,” you cooed at him, kissing the back of his hand. Bouncing Iseul on your lap, you pressed kisses to her hair, “and thank you my precious princess. You’re the best present I could ask for, dew drop.” You smiled, as she smiled up at you. Hyunjin smiled, his eyes full of love and pulled out the bag, sitting next to him. “Hey, lovely. Speaking of presents….I have another one for you. I mean, from me and Iseul,” He chuckled, sliding the bag over to you. “Another? Honey, you’ve already done and gotten so much for me,” You pouted, adjusting Iseul as she wiggled on your lap. “Just open it…I think you’ll really like this one,” He smiled, patting your hand.

So, you carefully reached into the bag,pulling the tissue paper out, making sure you held a tight grip on Iseul. Pulling the canvas out, you gasped and felt your eyes water. “Oh my…..are these her handprints?” You sniffled, looking at Hyunjin as you cuddled closer to your chest. Nodding, Hyunjin leaned over to peck your lips and wipe your tears. “Mhm, they are, dove.” He smiled, also kissing Iseul’s cheek. “Oh Hyune, I love it. This is so precious. I’ll cherish it, and you two, forever,” You smiled, holding Iseul up to have her at eye level with you. Kissing all over her face, you smiled, “oh my precious princess. Mommy loves your present so much. Thank you, dew drop. I love you, mommy loves you,” you cooed.Iseul giggled and cupped your cheeks in her hands– the same hands used to make the artwork you were gifted.Feeling himself tear up, Hyunjin snapped a picture of your moment with Iseul and set it as his wallpaper on his phone. Kissing your cheeks, he smiled and nudged the bag towards you. “Dovey, there’s more. Keep going,’” he cooed. Turning back to him, you lowered Iseul into your lap and looked at the bag. “More?Aish, Hyune, this is too much,” You whined, in protest. Shaking his head, he chuckled and pushed the bag to you. “There’s never too much for you, my muse. You gave me Iseul,” he stated, leaning to pinch her cheek. Reaching into the bag, you pulled out a picture frame, holding one of your fondest memories of your little family– you holding ,a then, newborn Isuel angling her towards the camera and Hyunjin sitting next to you on the hospital bed , arms around you with his cheeks resting on the top of your head.Both of you with proud yet soft smiles gracing your faces. Gasping, you teared up and looked at Hyunjin. “Baby……this is beautiful. Thank you,” you whispered. Softly smiling at you, Hyunjin nodded , tears filling his own eyes. “Of course, my dove. I know Iseul wasn’t exactly planned, but she’s changed my life so much, forever. I didn’t know what love was until I met you and you made my heart grow tenfold. Then, you told me you were pregnant and my heart grew more. But…seeing you grow to house her and then bring her into the world, made me realize how much I loved you and will always love you. Thank you for loving me, giving me yourself and her and making me a daddy. I love you and Iseul so incomprehensibly,, my heart.” He whispered, holding your hand, tears falling down his cheeks. “Oh, my baby, There’s no need to thank me. You and Iseul are my greatest gifts and my biggest treasures.”

┆ ° ♡ • ➵ ✩ ◛ °Please don’t steal, modify, copy, plagiarize, repost or claim my works┆ ° ♡ • ➵ ✩ ◛ °AStraySimp2023┆ ° ♡ • ➵ ✩ ◛ °,

𓆩♡𓆪Tags: @straykeedz-recs 𓆩♡𓆪 @straykeedz𓆩♡𓆪 @cheeseceli𓆩♡𓆪@jinnie-ret𓆩♡𓆪@moonjxsung𓆩♡𓆪@channiesbakery𓆩♡𓆪 @hyunsvngs ~open 𓆩♡𓆪

#skz fluff #stray kids fluff #stray kids texts #lee know fluff #seungmin fluff #seungmin x reader #han jisung fluff #jeongin x reader #bang chan #changbin fluff #skz hyunjin #hyunjin x reader #hyunjin fluff #bf hyunnie #hyunjin x y/n #fluffy skz #dad!skz

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emotionally-damaged-carrot · 7 months

Note

Love ur work!! May I pls request Charles Leclerc x Male Reader where we are a super famous singer (like beyonce level famous) and we announce the birth of our first child together via surrogate??? Ty!!

A family of our own

Sry if it's a wee bit too short, did my best, idk how to start it. Hope it's still good, hope you enjoy ✌️

(Didn't proof read)

(Requests are closed)

No warning, just floof :3

"Y/n, cheri?" Charles yelled from the couch of their house.

"Yes?" I yelled back from the kitchen.

"Are you almost done? I wanna talk to you about something important."

"I-is it bad?" I asked as I came into the living room with a tray of food and drinks, and placing it on the table in the middle.

"Depends on how you look at it." Charles said as he sat up straight, seemingly getting serious.

"Go on." I asked now worried as I sat beside him, putting some distance between us.

"Come closer." He said as he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me close, hugging him tight against his body.

"I was thinking, m-maybe we could have a child?"

"W-what?" I asked, surprised.

"Well, a little y/n or a little Charles running around the house causing havoc might be cute." He said with a smile as he lifted my chin to look me in the eyes, my nervous e/c meeting his gentle greens.

"W-well, I'm not opposed to it...But a little Charles might look cuter." I said with a smile as I give him a quick peck on the lips.

"This is why I love you, y/n."

"Love you too."

I said as I got on top of him, and deepened the kiss, food completely forgotten.

—

"As I said before the concert, a surprise will be posted on my IG story after the concert." I said with a huge smile, sweat dripping from my hair and I held the guitar and breathing heavily.

"It's a surprise me, and Charles have talked about a while ago." The crowd went wild as they probably figured out the surprise as I have posted about getting a child prior the world tour.

"Okay, okay, settle down." I said laughing.

I began to play my guitar for the final song, the crowd once again going wild as they recognize the intro.

—

"With that final song, I bid you all farewell, I am in grabe need of a bath and rest. Once again, THANK YOU, MONACO!!!" The echoed of cheers were heard from the neighbouring countries as well.

"And thank you everyone who attended my tours, this is however my final tour for some time." I said sadly, but with a huge grin on my face. "And don't forget the surprise."

(2 days after the concert)

"You think I should announce it?" I asked Charles from my position between his legs my head on his chest and our sleeping 1 year old, Udysses L/n-Leclerc.

"Your choice, bebe, whatever makes you happy. I'm there to support you." He said as he ruffled my hair and gave it a kiss.

"Well... you should probably wrap your arms around Charles junior as well." I said with a chuckle as I reached out for my phone, careful not to disturb his sleep.

Charles laughed as he wrapped his arms around me as I held Udysses carefully with one arm and taking a selfie with the other. I took a couple more before looking for the best one along with Charles.

"pour l'amour de Dieu, they all look perfect, mi amor, because you're both in it." Charles said getting annoyed.

"They need to see the best one." I said as I stared at one picture of us, Charles smiling wide looking down at me and Udysses, his arms around my shoulders as he looked at the camera with squinted eyes. I was smiling wide as well, my eyes closed and baby Udysses sleeping soundly.

"Found it." I said with a grin as I opened Instagram to post the story, only adding music. As I didn't want to ruin the picture with some stupid effects.

"I guess you did." Charles said with a small laugh as I felt his chest rumble.

"Of course I did." I said as I posted the story, seconds later my phone started blowing up, a few congratulations from friends and family and a lot from fans.

"What will happen now?" I asked him as I thought about our future, since we are pretty busy people.

"We'll think about it when it comes to it. Right now, enjoy the moment, mi amor." Charles said as he hugged me close and kissed my hair.

Sorry took some times, hope it was okay ✌️

#x male reader #x reader #y/n #gay #formula 1 #f1 x male reader #f1 x reader #formula 1 x male reader #formula 1 x reader #formula 1 x y/n #charles leclerc x m!reader #charles leclerc x male reader #charles leclerc x y/n #charles leclerc x reader #bottom male reader #charles leclerc #formula 1 x m!reader #f1 x m!reader

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penny-anna · 26 days

Text

i have other things to do but here we gooooo owl house fic recs:

Autism to Autism Communication by Polyhexian

"I understand sarcasm," Hunter said, sounding offended. He crossed his arms. "You didn't do the voice thing." Darius stared at him. "The what?" Hunter put his arms in the air and gave his hands a sarcastic little wave. "I GuEsS I'LL hAvE tO sToP cOmInG oVeR, tHeN," he said in the most over the top and comical parody of sarcasm that Darius had ever heard in his life.

everything by this author is great & this one is a joy and a delight!!

Extant Species by Polyhexian

She'd been called a monster more times than she could count, but she knew what a real monster looked like.

i'd happily rec a bunch of polyhexian's stuff but this lil vee & hunter fic was a highlight. especially enjoy the part where hunter's advising her on how best to go about murdering him. love that for them both!!

Owlet by Polyhexian

"Eda!" Hunter yelled as he shouldered open the door and Hooty cooed and rambled at him, "I need help with my potions homewooooooaaaat the HELL is that?!" Luz looked up from where she was sitting on the couch and reading what appeared to be a romance novel about werewolves. "What is what?" "That!" he yelled, pointing at the hulking behemoth curled up in the middle of the room in a massive pile of blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals. "Is that the owl beast?!"

& 1 more!! short n sweet n cute

With Clay and Star Scraps by SiryyGray

Hunter decided to do some research into Grimwalkers. First discovery: Grimwalkers were outlawed in every city under every rule as far back as the history books go. Second discovery: Grimwalkers have no natural means of death. Third discovery: there’s a caveat to that second one.

some absolutely brutal grimwalker content. SPOILERS: hunter can't outlive belos.

Intrusion by rayrock

'He drops something in. It moves and writhes, but it is clearly exhausted. “Eat,” is all he says, voice barely above a whisper. But it is a demand nonetheless, intimidating enough to send shivers down her spine. She hisses in protest once more. He tucks the notepad and pen into his cloak and pulls out a staff. It unfolds and glows a bright red. He does not say anything more. He is nearly always silent when she sees him.' Or: Vee and the Golden Guard’s relationship is complicated, but it is there

some more vee & hunter content for you

just a little bit left by prodigalDaughter

The first time Darius had seen the new Guard unmasked, the fury and betrayal had risen in him like floodwater, bubbling and steaming out of creeks and sewers. Creed had never told him he had a son. —— Hunter has discovered what he is, but he’s not the only one who has to grapple with assumptions made about his origins.

hey remember the other day when i was talking about 'what if darius thought hunter was the previous golden guard's son'! well here u go someone wrote that fic

Wild and Wandering Cries by PorcelanaRota

So his uncle goes flying into the wall directly above him and he is unable to dodge. And his uncle, who is now more palisman curse slime than he is flesh and blood, splatters on the wall, on the ground, on him. Hunter’s been in hundreds of life-or-death situations. He’s felt real and true and visceral fear that sank into his bones and marinated into terror more times than not. Still, nothing has ever left him so shocked and horrified and just flat-out scared that time has actually stopped.

belos splash zone? belos splash zone.

mistakes (the thrilling saga, in high definition) by quynnyah

"This," Amity says, "is not normal human behavior." (Or: Amity and Hunter volunteer to help Camila on a grocery trip. It goes about as well as expected.)

some banging amity & hunter in the human realm stuff for u

Notched by angelcloves

Belos removes the ear tag from his newest Grimwalker.

tiny wee fic giving a backstory for Hunter's notched ear. i rotate this concept in my brain all the time. absolutely twisted.

There is no open window, but the floors still creep by theprincessofdenial

On Tuesday, they eat Chinese. On Wednesday, Camila once again doesn’t have the time to cook, so pizza it is. On Thursday, she wants to make a proper dinner but there’s a hold up at the clinic, Luz knocks over a shelf, Willow has a wardrobe emergency, and then Amity’s cat goes missing. And Hunter beats Gus up so badly the boy ends up bleeding, so there’s also that.

hgnnnh i would rec this entire series if i could (it's 14 fics totally 200k total). its all so chewy i want to get my teeth into it and rrrrrrrrrr. ANYWAY this is my no 1 fav i've been back and re-read it about 7 times. love the Camila Noceda POV; the way it captures the chaos of all 6 kids in the house and makes it feel so real & vivid; the absolutely brutal Hunter characterisation. if ur a Hunter fan go read this right away.

Distance by theprincessofdenial

For the first minute, they all just stand there in silence and watch the airship slowly disappear beyond the horizon. Even though they’re supposed to react quickly, the cold still comes as a shock. It takes some time for the reality to settle in and for them to realize how useless everything they have brought is going to be when their marrow freezes. Hunter hears some of the Scouts inhaling sharply after they approach the ledge and look down. They turn around, unsure where to start, and they shuffle their feet in the snow (terrible decision, really, this way their boots are going to get wet even quicker). Hunter’s the first one to break the silence, and oh, he does it with style. He has been rehearsing that line for a week. “See you at the bottom, suckers!” he exclaims as he pulls out the staff and disappears in a flash of red light. (or: The Obligatory "Leave Everyone at the Top of the Mountain and See Who Makes It Back to the Bottom Alive" Fic. With a splash of Steve)

2nd rec from this series. exactly what it says on tin. *banging pots together* you like whump come get your whump i ADORE what this author does w Hunter. also Steve is there (whump for Steve!!)

A Potter's Field by theprincessofdenial

The view from the staircase is, well, not stunning, that’s definitely not the word. It’s just that “view” is supposed to be accompanied by “stunning,” and Luz can feel her brain coming to a screeching halt and refusing to process what they’re seeing. It's skeletons. Come on, they both knew it was going to be skeletons. The entire Isles know at this point. (Or: despite what the stories would have you believe, in the aftermath, there are things to deal with. Those things include ruined infrastructure, electing new leaders, and prosecuting those responsible for the old regime. And apparently, also Grimwalker mass graves.)

& third and final. unbelievably chewy post-canon fic. lets get into the reconstruction of the isles in full detail. goes hard as hell. will sit in my brain for a long time i think. cannot rec this enough.

and rats all for now!! i got a bunch more stuff in my 'marked for later' so watch this space

#the owl house #fic recs #the owl house fic recs

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harryyskiwii · 10 months

Text

Summary: Flight Attendant Y/N meets Captain Harry Styles for the first time and they join the mile high club, sort of.

Pairing: Reader y/n X Captain Harry

Word count: 4,207

A/N: Hey everyone! So sorry I haven’t posted in a while. I’ve been on holiday the last week and that is what inspired me to write this 🥰As always, please feel free to request anything! Hope you enjoy!

One of the things you enjoyed most about being a flight attendant was the thrill of being able to visit new places, if only for a brief period of time.

You had worked for British Airways for 3 years now and soon you would be hoping to step up to Team Leader where you could help train and look after new flight attendants.

You usually only did short-haul flights out of your base which was London Heathrow and flew across Europe; the longest flight being 6 hours. Short hail suited you, you typically flew to 3 or 4 places within a day and by 1 am, you were back in your bed. That’s if all went to plan. For today’s first flight, you were heading to Dusseldorf in Germany, somewhere you regularly flew to.

You parked your car in the staff area of the airport, changed out of your trainers and into your small black court shoes as driving in heels was never comfortable.

You pulled out your small case from the boot of your car which contained a spare uniform because you won’t be caught out again; on a previous flight a passenger spilt their red wine all over you one time and you had no spare shirt to change into, your water, your lunch because aeroplane food was awful and some spare makeup to top up with in between flights.

You smoothed out your navy pencil skirt, so old fashioned you thought, and tied the red, white and blue scarf around your neck ready to enter the airport.

You headed straight for security and through the fast track lane since you were crew. Once past, you headed to the staff area to check which gate you had to go through to get to the aircraft.

Approaching gate 7, you showed the staff your pass and they nodded and let you go.

You headed towards the aircraft, where you saw the First Officer; Andy doing the pre-flight walk-around. You had flown with Andy for the best part of a year and you knew him well. He got into flying after he fancied a change in career from being in the police. You always liked Andy, he was a father to 2 girls who he adored and always made the typical dad jokes which meant it was normally a good flight with him

“Alright wee one, nice to see you” he smiled at you. “Hey, how are you?” You smiled back at him.

“I’m good, ready for 12 hours of pure joy?” He joked and you laughed. “Always” you replied.

“Who’s the Captain today?” You asked, always fearing if it would be one of the older, slightly rude Captains or one more relaxed and friendly.

“New guy, Styles his name is. Seems like a good bloke, think Daniel already has the hots for him” he winked and you laughed.

You relaxed at the mention of Daniel who you had become best friends with after you had both started the job on the same day. You loved working with him as he always seemed to make the flight go in faster.

“Hey! Am I glad to see you today” you said once inside the aircraft.

“Hey!!” He said hugging you “I’ve not been with you on a flight for ages, we’ve got a lot of catching up to do!” he said excitedly. You laughed as he always saw working with you as gossip sessions rather than working.

You headed towards the front portion of the plane where the crew placed their bags and got ready for the flight. You glanced in at the cockpit where you saw the Captain sitting doing the necessary paperwork before departure. Although you could only see the back of him you could tell he was wearing his black double-breasted black jacket with the 4 gold stripes on both the epaulettes and the sleeve of his jacket; showing his ranking as Captain.

He had short, dark brown hair which you could tell had been meticulously styled that morning as not a hair was out of place. You had never worked with this captain before, so you weren’t sure what to expect from him; some captains could be so far up their own, you weren’t allowed to speak to them unless spoken so you kept quiet and put your things away and headed back out to the main cabin to find 2 more girls who you didn’t recognise arriving onto the plane.

“Hi, I’m Emma, Team Leader for today. Nice to meet you” the tall blonde girl who was wearing a minimal amount of makeup but still managed to look flawless said to you.

“Hi nice to meet you, I’m y/n” “Lovely name, I’ll go sit my bag down and we can start the briefing” she smiled.

You noticed the other girl who had since boarded, she looked a little more reserved so you decided to introduce yourself.

“Hi I’m y/n, it’s nice to meet you” You smiled at her to help relax her. She looked young and a little unsure, she was maybe 18 or 19 years old so you assumed she hasn’t long qualified as cabin crew. You remember how nervous you were for your first few flights so you decided you wanted to look out for her during the day

“Hey, I’m Holly” she said. “Not long qualified?” You asked kindly.

“This is my 2nd flight” she said and you smiled.

“Don’t worry I remember my first couple of flights, it’s nerve-wracking but you’ll soon get the hang of it. There’s no better way to learn than doing it so if there’s anything you need a hand with today, just let me know. I’m always happy to help” you smiled.

“Come on, I’ll show you where to put your things” You smiled and led her towards the cockpit.

“So you can grab anything you need out of your bag and put it in the fridge if you’ve got a sandwich or anything like that, otherwise you can pop it in here and lock it, we all put our bags in one locker together

“Ahh, I thought I heard some voices. I was just coming to do the briefing” you heard the captain say from behind the cockpit door. You stood up straight and smiled at him coming out.

His eyes fell onto you first and he smiled “Harry Styles, pleasure to meet you” You shook his hand that he had extended for you and took in his beauty. He looked young, maybe 29 or 20. He had green eyes and fair skin which had a slight tan to it, making the dimple on the left side of his face more prominent.

“Y/N, lovely to meet you, Mr Styles”

“Please, call me Harry” he told you and you smiled at how genuine he seemed. Most captains would only allow you to refer to them as Captain and their last name so it was nice to have one who was more relaxed.

“This is our newbie Holly, this is her 2nd ever flight today” you smiled as you introduced the new recruit to him.

“Holly, nice to meet you. I’m Harry, hope you’re settling in well?” He asked kindly as he shook her hand.

“Nice to meet you, Captain Styles, yes settling in very well thank you” she sheepishly replied. It always was a bit intimidating to speak with a captain, especially ones you didn’t know much about.

“Call me Harry please” he smiled. “Shall we move to the cabin and start the brief?” He asked and you nodded, moving to the front part of where the passenger seats were located.

By this point, everyone was now in the cabin waiting to start the briefing. The captain introduced himself to the remaining crew members before you all took seats at the front of the plane.

“So my name is Emma I’m one of the British Airways Team Leaders and I’ll be working as number 1 for this shift. Today we’ve got Captain Harry Styles and First Officer Andrew Simmons on the flight deck. For cabin crew today we’ve got Daniel, Holly and y/n, I think we’ve already met each other by now yes?” Emma asked as she pointed to everyone during the introductions.

“Great, it’s a Boeing 777 we’re on today, I’ll let Captain Styles and First Officer Andy talk more about that in a bit. There are a total of 6 flights today; Heathrow to Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf to Heathrow, Heathrow to Las Palmas, Las Palmas to Heathrow and then Heathrow to Venice and Venice back to Heathrow. Full flights on all destinations so we need to be on top of our game in the cabin, Daniel can I ask you to be number 2 today? Holly, do you mind being 3 today and y/n as number 4?”

Number 1 meant you were looking after the passengers in the front of the plane, number 2 was in the middle of the plane, number 3 was in the back section of the plane and number 4 was an additional person who helped the rest of the team, including the flight crew.

You nodded in agreement, secretly glad you were given the position of helping to look after the captain and the FO.

“Captain Styles, do you want to run through your information?” She asked and he straightened up in his chair.

“Yeah sure I’ll just introduce myself a little more since I’m a new face to a lot of people. I’m Harry I’ve been a Captain now for 5 years having previously worked for Ryanair before moving here 3 weeks ago. Please call me Harry because Captain sounds old and although I’ve recently hit my 30s, I’m not quite there yet” This gained a few laughs from the crew, including yourself.

So he was attractive and funny? The more he spoke the more you found yourself more and more drawn to him. He was charming. But not in a cocky way, he seemed genuine and the fact he was a Pilot told you he was smart. Very smart. You always did have a thing for intelligence.

“We’ll be cruising around 30,000 feet once up in the air, weather looks good, clear skies with a 30% chance of light showers. The weather in Düsseldorf is 23 degrees which doesn’t concern us as we’ll have a 20-minute turnover before boarding to come back to the UK unfortunately, bet you wish you’d chosen long haul now Holly?” Harry joked at the fact that although travelling throughout Europe, you hardly ever got to even leave the plane.

You all laughed and Holly agreed. Harry continued with the briefing, telling you about the time durations, and quizzing everyone on emergencies, something which was legally required to ensure all crew knew what to do in the event of one.

“Thanks everyone, I think we can start boarding now” Harry smiled and Emma nodded, knowing to start the boarding procedure.

“Y/N can you help Holly if she needs a hand opening the rear door?” Emma asked and you nodded.

You headed towards the rear of the cabin with Holly behind you.

Once everything was set for boarding, you headed towards the middle of the cabin to help passengers find their seats and help with any luggage they had.

Luckily, boarding took 20 minutes and before you knew it, you were doing the safety demonstration for the passengers while the plane reversed out of the airport and to the runway. You could hear Andy’s voice informing the passengers of the information Harry had relayed to you earlier about the weather etc to keep them up to date.

With the safety demonstration over and having checked everyone had their seatbelts on, Emma nodded to you to signal that you could sit down and prepare for the take-off.

“Cabin crew take seats and prepare for take-off” you heard Captain Styles say and you smiled a little at the sound of his voice.

You sat down at the rear of the plane next to Holly and fastened your seatbelt.

“I’ve done hundreds of flights and I never get bored of the take-off or landing” you said to her quietly as you could feel the plane taxing down the runway.

“I’ve done a handful and still get nervous” she said and you squeezed her hand a little to let her know it was okay to be nervous.

He must have gone from 50mph to about 170mph in less than 30 seconds because before you knew it, you were being hauled into the air with such speed that you swear your heart fell out of your arse. A “fuck” could be heard under Holly’s breath and you laughed.

That was a sure sign of a good takeoff. For a plane to take off at such speed it requires a good sustained acceleration which was exactly what Harry did.

So he was attractive, funny, intelligent and good at lifting 150-ton planes off the ground? Was there anything this Pilot wasn’t good at?

As the plane climbed into the air, Andy’s voice could be heard over the intercom “Ladies and Gentleman please remain in your seats with your seatbelts fastened until the captain has switched off the seatbelt sign. Thank you”

A common command that was often used for eager passengers who would immediately take their seatbelts off as the plane took off the ground.

10 minutes in, the seatbelt sign was switched off and people started to immediately stand up to use the toilets, it always looked like the hunger games you thought.

Because the duration of the flight was only 1 hour and 25 minutes, only the drinks and snack service were required so you and Holly started with that as one of your first tasks, hoping to keep the passengers settled.

Halfway through the service, the alarm which alerted cabin crew to the cockpit was rung and so as the number 4, you left the drinks cart and headed to the cockpit.

You straightened out your skirt and pushed back a few loose strands of hair before knocking and going in.

“Everything alright?” You asked politely squeezing through the small door and inside the cockpit.

“I’m just gonna nip to the loo” Andy said and you nodded, understanding. It was policy that the cockpit operated a “2-person flight deck” which meant 2 people had to be in the cockpit every second the aeroplane was in use.

Andy exited and headed for the toilet.

“Come and sit down” Harry said to you as he glanced over at the seat Andy had been sat in. You moved and sat down in the First Officer’s chair.

“How’s everything out there?” He asked looking over at you. The plane was now set on autopilot meaning it no longer required the captains' manual control, rather a system was being used to control the path of an aircraft.

“Yeah everything’s good, no difficult passengers yet, although what are the chances I’ve jinxed it now” you laugh.

“For the next 5 flights, we’ll have the worst passengers in the history of aviation” he joked and you laughed at his quick white

God, he looked so good sitting there. He had taken off his jacket which revealed a clean crisp white shirt, still showing the 4 gold stripes on his shoulder, but the shirt revealed tattoos. Tattoos which made you feel there was a lot about the Pilot you wanted to find out about.

“Great takeoff by the way” you remarked to him and he smiled lightly.

“Thanks, I’d practised take-off loads in flight school and then just lots of experience I suppose”

The way he spoke was so gentle but also with such passion for his career in his voice.

“What about you, how long have you been in the air for?”

“I’ve been cabin crew for 3 years now, I love it. I was saying to Holly earlier that no matter how many times I fly, I still get the same buzz each time we take off and land”

You watched as his lips turned upwards into a smirk “You’ve not experienced my landing yet, wait until you do”

You laughed at the comment and right on time, Andy came back.

“Fancy swapping jobs for the day?” He joked when he saw you in his chair. You laughed and got up “No thank you, I’d rather not be responsible for 130 passengers” you said and they laughed.

“You guys need anything before I head back out?” You asked them both.

“Could I get a tea if possible please y/n?” Harry asked you politely.

“Of course, how do you take it?”

“Milk and 2 sugars” he told you and you took a mental note of it.

“Nothing for me thanks y/n” Andy said.

You headed back to the cabin, being stopped multiple times by passengers to ask for certain things before making this Captain his tea.

You knocked on the cockpit door and went in.

“Here’s your tea for you” you said handing it to Harry. He smiled and took it off you “Thanks” You headed back to get a Karen in row 21 the G&T she had previously asked for .

“Y/n!” You heard your name being called by the captain from behind the door of the cockpit you had just been in.

You sighed a little, sensing something was wrong and headed back in.

“That’s the best cup of tea anyone has ever made me” he remarked as he smiled at you.

You laughed slightly “I’ll add tea-making skills to my CV then”

“Honestly it’s perfect, I might have to request you on every one of my flights so you can make me the perfect cuppa”

“Right you two, enough with the flirting. Styles we’ve got 25 minutes until landing” Andy jumped in and you and Harry both laughed.

Andy winked at you and you continued with the rest of your tasks.

You arrived in Düsseldorf, with a very smooth landing from Captain Styles at 7:20 am with the next flight at 8 am, giving you a 20-minute turnaround time to get things ready for the next lot of passengers boarding. It was a quick turnaround and before you knew it, you were taking off from Düsseldorf back to London

Landing back at Heathrow at 9:30 am, the next flight was at 10:15 and already there was an issue.

A nervous passenger was starting to feel unwell and wasn’t sure if she would be able to fly to Las Palmas. You and Emma were trying to convince her that the 4-hour and 30-minute trip would be completely safe and she had nothing to worry about.

“I can’t, I can’t fly. What if the plane crashes or falls into the sea? I can’t swim, I will drown and die. I can’t” the passenger who looked no more than 25 said.

“I completely understand your nerves, I can assure you that aeroplanes these days are made to be very very safe and the chances of anything happening are so very slim” you tried to reason with her.

Meanwhile, Emma had instructed Daniel to tell the flight deck what the delay was.

“Hi, I heard we’ve got a nervous flyer?” You heard the same voice who had complimented your tea-making skills say from behind you. The woman nodded.

You looked up to see Harry standing in the cabin, looking to speak with the passenger.

You stepped back and let him crouch down beside her in her seat.

“I’m Harry, I’m the Captain who’ll be taking you over to Palma today. Can I ask your name?” He asked kindly to the passenger.

“It’s Rebecca” she said.

“Okay Rebecca, it’s nice to meet you. So Daniel explained to me that you’re quite nervous when flying?”

“Yeah, I worry the plane will crash or fall into the water”

“Okay I can see why those are concerns, the risk of a crash or the plane failing and falling into the sea is 1 in 11 million. The aircraft is completely safe and in all my years of flying, I’ve never had an emergency on board, well actually I forgot my coffee once which was a real emergency. I’m a real grump without my coffee” he joked and the passenger laughed, as did you at the comment.

“The team are all here to look after you during the flight and if you need anything at all, you can press this button above your head for assistance and they’ll be right over to help you. Does that put your mind at ease a little bit?” He asked still crouched down beside her.

“It does thank you yes captain” Rebecca smiled.

“Good, we’ll be taking off in around 10 minutes so sit back, relax and try and enjoy the flight as much as you can” He smiled and renters back into the cockpit to being the takeoff procedure.

During the flight, the nervous passenger fell asleep halfway through and only woke up when the plane was safely on the ground. Harry came to check on her as she was disembarking and she couldn’t thank him enough for his kindness in calming her down.

“It’s no trouble at all, you have a good holiday now” he told her as she left the aircraft.

So he was attractive, funny, intelligent, good at lifting 150-ton planes off the ground and great at calming people down. If you hadn’t already fallen in love with this man, by the next 3 flights, you definitely will have.

Thankfully, the following 3 flights were uneventful, except for the drunken guy who had spilt his crisps all over another passenger which you had to clean up.

The last flight from Venice back to base at Heathrow was welcomed. Your feet were sore, your makeup had half melted off and you couldn’t wait to get your hair out of the uncomfortable bun you were required to wear all day.

After seeing all the passengers off the plane, you started to clear up.

“What a day, thanks for all your help guys” Harry shouted down the cabin as he locked it up for the night.

“No problem Captain Styles, hope to be working with you again soon” Emma said to him.

“Likewise, you guys head off I’m just going to do a walk around” you heard him say.

“Are you sure?” Emma said. “Yeah sure, thanks again everyone” he said once more.

You, Holly, Emma and Daniel started to get ready to leave when you felt Harry’s arm touch yours slightly.

“You stay” you heard him whisper into your ear subtly as you passed him to get your bag.

You blushed and swallowed hard “You guys go, I need the loo” you said to the rest of them.

“Go in the airport” Daniel said and you hinted at him to go.

“Weak bladder, you go I’ll see you soon” you smiled at them.

“Text me later!” Daniel said and you smiled as they left the aircraft.

“Weak bladder eh?” The captain raised an eyebrow at you when everyone was out of sight.

You laughed “I couldn’t think of anything else”

He laughed and smirked at you “I couldn’t help but think about you today. That shitty landing in Venice was your fault, I couldn’t think of anything else”

“I’ll just add ‘distraction to pilot’ on my CV as well then shall I?” You joked.

“You’re such a distraction to the pilot,” he said quietly as he leaned in closer to you.

He cups your face in his hands and he leans in and slowly kisses you. The kiss soon starts to grow more intense as moans echo through the cabin.

He’s started to groan in your ear and kiss your neck up and down.

He pushes you down into a seat in the front row by your hips and he kneels down in front of you.

His hands go up underneath your skirt and start to pull on your tights to reveal your bare legs.

"Harry we can’t do this here." You say completely out of breath already.

“You’re right, the toilet is better. Does this count as joining the mile high club even if we’re not in the air?” He smirked as he led you, barefoot to the bathroom.

For the next 10 minutes, you and Harry enjoyed each other’s company in the toilet as he moved his hips slowly inside of you, each thrust getting faster and faster.

You felt like you might collapse soon and he knew it too so he decided to stop just before you orgasmed and let you out of the toilet.

You sat down in the front row, completely out of breath, a little disheartened he’d pulled out before you orgasmed.

He appeared from the toilet, zipping up his trousers and putting his belt back on.

“Let’s finish at my house” he said and you happily obliged. It was fair to say that night you never got any sleep, despite how tired you had been after your shift.

Thanks to Harry giving you the most amazing sex you’d ever had, you had never been more grateful to be an Air Hostess as you had been that day for meeting your now boyfriend, Captain Harry Styles.

#harry styles #harry styles blurbs #harry styles fandom #harry styles concept #harry styles masterlist #harry styles x reader #harrystylesoneshot #harry styles boyfriend #harry styles fanfiction #Pilot!harry #PilotHarry #CaptainHarry #flight attendant #harry styles one shot #hslot werchter #love on tour #hslot 2023 #harrystyles #harry fanfic

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fanaticsnail · 5 months

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Three, Two, One: Part 2 of 3

Okay! This is ANGST. As soon as I saw the initial concept suggested by @terarria-sunflower I thought it was the most beautiful, playful, wonderful thing - and honestly, who wouldn't want to give the blonde chef a wee little smooch? HOWEVER, as soon as I wrote the first part, my mind immediately went to how that would look over time.

Word Count: 2,523

Warnings: Nicotine withdrawal, reassurance, angst, romance, sorrow.

Part 1 here, Masterlist here, Prompt here. "I Found" as the song accompaniment.

Over the next few days, the amount of public affection above decks between the two of you were demonstrated freely and recklessly. The egg-shaped timer was becoming a trigger for the rest of the crew to groan in disapproval, secretly relishing in the fact that Sanji no longer tainted the vessel with the thick smell of tobacco infused cigarette smoke clinging stalely to every crook and crevasse; while absolutely disgusted by the amount of overzealous intimacy was engaged between you.

Things were admittedly beginning to get out of hand. Hands, specifically Sanji’s, shamelessly roaming your body; pulling down the shoulder straps of your blouses to press feverish and hungry kisses against your collarbone and neck. Hands that grasped your waist and raked slowly and deliberately over your back and down towards your ass. Hands that began to toy at the hems of your skirts and pants to bring more flesh of your hips into light and expose your stomach for him to draw his fingertips towards more of your body; all to halt at the vibration and movement of the egg-shaped timer.

Groans and whimpers of dissatisfaction would flee from his lips as his time was complete with ravishing your body with his lips and tongue. His eyes were always completely blown with lust for more, but always staying true to the conditions you laid for engaging in intimacy. He would always halt his movements, raising his hands defensively while scrunching his eyes shut tightly as you let out a playful giggle at his actions. He couldn’t get enough of you, and you felt completely the same.

Nami was the first to suggest the two of you either save it for the kitchen, or join together in one another’s cabins to save the image of the two of you working to bring Sanji’s regular hit of endorphins and adrenaline from branding its image within the minds of the full crew. This led to Sanji, instead of presenting you with the egg timer and bouncing on the balls of his feet with giddy anticipation, to clasp his fingers around your wrist as he guided you to the nearest private area to engage in osculating with his lips firmly attached to you.

As his routine was meticulously catalogued within your journal, you did not live in fear of a pounce from the blonde chef out of the regular cycle of him asking for his hit at all hours. You noticed his movements were beginning to get hungrier and more desperate for the release of endorphins; his hands and body quivering lightly in anticipation and remaining that way after the duration was complete.

On the fourth day of you engaging in this game together; you noticed his body begin to shake more feverishly, his attitude no longer carefree but eclipsed by anxiety and restlessness. That was the first time you saw him unconsciously reach for his tobacco pouch and began to roll a cigarette out of his regular routine, halting as soon as his eyes fell over your body.

As soon as he found his fingertips grazing the pouch, he rose to his feet and set to briskly stride over towards you as you faced away from him. He snaked his arms around your waist and buried his head into your shoulder from behind; you raising your arms instinctively and stiffening under the shock of the firm embrace.

“Are you okay, Sanji?” you asked him quietly, prompting him to hold you further into himself and for you to tangibly feel how anxious his body was becoming.

The Going Merry had just successfully docked against the peer of a town to resupply a variety of items, including groceries on the vast list. Upon feeling how tightly Sanji clung to you and a small whimper falling from his lips; you immediately sought out the gaze of the navigator of your group.

“Nami,” you called to her, “we’re going to hang back here for a bit. Would you mind seeing to the groceries? I’ve written down the different items, please,” your eyes became wide and panicked, “I think we need a bit of time to ourselves here.”

Nami walked her way over to you, glancing towards the hidden face of the blonde chef and then falling her eyes back to you; an outstretched hand and a similar panicked expression falling over appearance.

“Withdrawals,” you mouthed to her, no audible vocalisation fleeing from your lips to alert the carefree Straw-Hat pirates about the chef’s current predicament.

“I think I can manage to convince Luffy to keep us docked for a few more days,” Nami uttered lowly, “could see about getting a suite at an inn.”

You nodded in affirmation of the thought and gestured down to the satchel with your logbook and coin purse attached to it, reaching to unclasp it from your shoulder. You realised that Sanji’s grip was too strong on your shoulder to remove the bag from your body completely.

“Sweetheart,” you turned your face towards him, keeping your tone as low and calm as you could, “if you could relinquish your hold for just a moment?”

Sanji’s hands shakily removed themselves from your waist, but remained his forehead attached to your shoulder. You quickly removed your satchel and held it out for Nami to take from your outstretched hand.

“Expense is a non-issue for groceries or board,” you nodded to her, “if you could do your best with as much of my berry as you need, we would really appreciate it.”

“I’ll do what I can,” Nami nodded, glancing over to Sanji as his teeth began to chatter together with concern before hardening her resolve.

Sanji again laced his arms around your waist, his hands spread with his fingers clutching to your skin as if you would disappear in a gust of wind to fall your body away from him. You brought your hands to rest atop his forearms, soothing over the bare skin that began to glisten with a cold sweat.

“Sanji,” you whispered to him, prompting a small whisp of a whimper to escape from his lips in response, “honey, can you get to the ship’s bathing quarters? We need to set to regulating your temperature.”

He stifled in a gasp at the suggestion, before you felt him nod into your shoulder; his warm breath tickling at your neck.

You took him by the hands and began to lead him below the deck towards the bathing quarters. As soon as you shut the door behind you, you immediately fled to the bath and began drawing the last reserves of fresh water currently available to fill the isolated porcelain tub for the blonde chef.

Sanji leant is back against the wood of the wall, hands shaking as his eyes closed tightly shut to fight the fever overtaking him.

“Sanji, sweetheart,” you cooed at him, prompting his eyes to meet with yours immediately, “I’ve drawn you a bath. Would you like me to leave while I-.”

“I-I didn’t think it’d be-,” he gasped out, his forearms being clutched within his hands, “-I can’t-,” His words halted within his throat as he squeezed his eyes shut again and found the words forming behind his lips, “-I need help.”

“I know,” you soothed him with your voice, reaching your arms out towards him in comfort, “I’m here to help you.”

“Thank you,” he whispered, reaching his arms towards you as you began aiding him in removing his clothes to prepare himself. You unclasped the buttons on his wrists, followed by loosening his black necktie and unbuttoning his shirt down to its place on his stomach. You reached for his belt and began to unbuckle it; the metallic hilt falling away from the leather strap with ease. You halted your next step, removing yourself from his body completely and stepping away.

“Sanji, I’m going to turn around now, okay?” you informed him; “you’re going to finish getting yourself undressed and hop into the water-.”

“-Please don’t leave,” his voice hoarsely commanded you, the last syllable halted by a small desperate sob, “please don’t leave me alone.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” you informed him soothingly, continuing to hold your gaze firmly on the wall in front of you, “and as much as I want to see you undressed, I refuse to do so in your current state; completely vulnerable and suffering with this,” you narrowed your eyes at the wall, “I’ll stay with you, and once you’re in the waters and covered by the cloudy liquid I’ve made with aromatics, I’ll turn back around and help you.”

Sanji released a breathy and shaken sigh through his lips before again uttering, “thank you,” in a small hushed whisper. You heard his clothes pool at the floor, his steps harsh against the bathroom floor as he began his decent into the water with an ungraceful thud; water splashing up the sides of the rim and fall onto the floor.

“I’m going to turn back around, alright?” you declared, but remained stationary until you heard him confirm he was ready to receive your help.

“Okay,” he sighed. You turned your body around to view him. His brows were furrowed, his teeth were chattering and his head was the only visible item above the shroud of the herbal waters eclipsing him.

“Oh, sweetheart,” you sighed in response, your brows downturned as you witnessed his distress, “I’m so sorry. I never meant for it to turn out this way-.”

“-I don’t blame you,” he snapped through clenched teeth, gritting them for every syllable, “this is my fault. It shouldn’t have gotten this out of hand.”

You instinctively reached your hand out for him, halting your action to not offer unwarranted touch in his state of complete vulnerability. You sighed and turned back around, sinking to sit on the floor with your back placed up against the wall of the raised porcelain tub. You drew your knees up towards your body and placed your elbows atop them, bending your right arm back to bring your chin to your wrist as you laced your left hand into your hair.

“I-,” you began, halting your words as a small pause fell over your chest, “-I am so sorry, Sanji.” Your eyes began to pool with a small glisten of tears as empathy struck you like an arrow to the heart at your crewman’s suffering.

“I didn’t think it was going to be like this,” you uttered quickly, a hiccup gathering at the intensity of your words, “I only ever wanted to just be playful with you. Just a game, I didn’t think you’d suffer like this-.”

“-Just a game?” he sighed out in a small whisper, one you nearly missed falling from his lips. His teeth chattered as his eyes snapped open; anxiety and desperation falling from his tone as he rose his torso up out of the water.

You released your hair from within your grasp and turned in your seated position to look up at him, flittering your gaze between his eyes.

“Is that all this is?” he asked you, his voice elevating and booming over you, “is that all I am to you? Something only here to entertain you?”

Your jaw began to quiver at the thought, your eyes widening in shock and sorrow, “Sanji, I-.”

“-I’m sorry,” he cut you off, his eyes attempting to soften while remaining in his manic state, “I-I think it’s just the nicotine leaving my system. I didn’t mean to raise my voice at you. I didn’t think before-.”

“-Sanji, I love you,” you proclaimed, cutting his sentence short and rising to kneel beside the tub to bring your torso to rest flush against the porcelain, “I just want you to know that.”

You held the wall of the bathtub, feeling the warm steam rising from the hot water while the sides top frame remained cool to the touch. Sanji’s eyes widened in shock, floating his gaze between your two orbs as you brought yourself up towards him.

“I loved you from the moment I first flustered you. Your smile, Sanji,” you giggled forlornly, taking your bottom lip between your teeth before promptly releasing it, “from the first pink blush I saw rise to your cheeks, I loved you.”

His lips parted as his jaw fell slack, his eyes beginning to glaze over with the mist of emotion falling to them. He urged his body closer to yours and falling his hands to rest beside your own at the edge of the bathtub.

“Why would I want to start this little game with anyone else?” you questioned him, arching your brow playfully with a small teeter of a bittersweet giggle followed by a small sniffle. Sanji placed his right hand over your left, warm from the bath as the water began to drip and fall down your forearm.

“You were never just a game to me, Sanji,” you nodded, falling your face away to gaze down at the checkered blue and white linoleum tiled floor, “it may have started that way, but I admit that I care so deeply for you-.”

“-I love you,” he confessed, reaching his left hand towards your chin to rise your eyes back to gaze at him, “I just want you to know that.”

You looked between his eyes and triangulated back to rest on his lips before returning your gaze back upwards to him. Hearing your words echoed back to you, falling from the lips of the man you adored was the most beautiful thing you had ever heard, your heart immediately swooning at his words.

His expression was full of adoration, but remaining manic and anxious behind his eyes. His brow was littered with sweat from the heat of the bathwater, and also the release of the chemicals falling from his body.

“Let me help you overcome this, Sanji,” you whispered, “let me take care of you and once you’re well again, I’ll show you how much I truly, deeply, love you.”

A small whimper fell from his lips as he relinquished his hold on your chin with a nod, turning back to fall back within the waters and resubmerge his torso.

“Once I get through this,” he chuckled darkly, shutting his eyes and sighing as the bath aided him in regulating his temperature, “I’m going to destroy that bloody egg-timer.”

“Oh?” you asked him with a smile, quirking your brows up in question, “and why would you do a thing like that?”

“So when I take you into my arms to completely ravish you, worship you with my body,” he looked at you through the corner of his eyes, “I get to determine exactly how long I need to feel you against me.”

The fire within your chest began to rise upwards to blood your cheeks with its warm tint, a pit beginning to form in your lower abdomen; fluttering in anticipation and pool with desire at his suggestive expression.

“For now,” he shut his eyes with a small playful smirk, “you can set the timer and count down until that moment. Give us something to both look forward to, hm?"

Part 3 (smut)

#one piece #opla #opla fic #x reader #one piece live action #sanji #sanji x reader #sanji fic #one piece sanji #black leg sanji

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alovesreading · 11 months

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Chicken Shop Date | Part 6 |

By @imagine-that-100 and @alovesreading

Description: Matty Healy x Reader (Female) | You and your best friend Amelia came up with a very simple idea of taking celebrities on awkward chicken shop dates, and somehow, it’s managed to become both of your jobs. In the past, you’ve found sitting across from some of the biggest stars on the planet and eating chicken nuggets easy. But then Amelia manages to score you a date with the man who you’ve been obsessed with since you were nineteen; Matty Healy.

Word Count: 22.3k

A/N: This chapter is so exciting!!!!! It’s finally the New Years party and we hope you enjoy this as much as we did writing it! It was so much fun coming up with this whole thing and we’re still melting over everything that happens. Especially over THAT cameo *wink, wink* We thank you endlessly for your patience, you lot are the very best!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!! xx

| N’s Masterlist | A’s Masterlist |

The thought of forgetting something wakes Matty up slowly and when he catches a glimpse of the time on the clock you’ve got on your bedside table, he remembers the whole evening in a matter of seconds.

A massive grin breaks on his face when he watches you cuddled up to him, pouty face and breathing so calmly. He closes his eyes again, pulling you in the tiniest bit closer when that nagging thought comes back to him, and it’s right then that he remembers you two have somewhere to be.

In his head, getting five more minutes of you like this won’t do any harm so he allows himself to let the time pass but the next time he opens his eyes, it’s been twenty minutes and he really needs to go for a wee.

Matty curses his biological needs and ignores it for as long as he can, which turns out to be a mere two minutes, until he feels like he can’t go any longer holding it in.

Even though he doesn’t really want to leave you, he definitely doesn’t want to wake you up, so he silently and slowly gets out of bed and sits on the side of it for a second, not wanting to move too quickly because he doesn’t want to disturb you.

He looks at you and all that goes through his mind is how lucky he feels to have you like that. It's certainly refreshing to feel warm inside every time he sees you or talks to you, and he’s completely sure he won’t take anything for granted when it comes to you. He still can’t believe it’s all working so well despite it being so soon in whatever you two were developing, he’s pinching himself time and time again to make sure he isn’t dreaming.

Then he looks up at your wall where you have a lot of polaroids pinned up above your bed. Lots of them are ones from your chicken shop dates so there is a variety of people Matty can point out but then his eyes land on the ones from your date. You have both of your pictures, the one you took of him and the one he took of you, pinned up right above the middle of the bed and he can’t stop himself from smiling seeing them there.

They are the closest to the bed itself, somewhere where you could actually see them when you were lying down if you wanted to. He finds it beyond cute because he can see that your pictures with Phoebe are higher up than his and he knows his date wasn’t the last you had. It warms his heart that little bit more and makes him feel even more special.

After a few seconds doting on the pictures, Matty gets himself up and grabs his underwear and trousers before making his way into your bathroom. He quickly, and hopefully silently, has a shower too and he’s in there for no longer than five minutes before he gets himself out and dry and he leaves your bathroom only dressed from the waist down with damp curls.

He’s pleased to see that you’re still asleep when he opens the door again, and you look so adorable all curled up in bed, he feels bad that he’ll have to wake you up to go out soon. So he decides to give you a few more minutes of peace and he silently slips out of your room to go and get you a drink thinking you might be a little parched after your earlier activities when you wake up.

Quietly he opens your bedroom door and slips out, and as he’s walking through your lounge to your kitchen he stops when he notices a new painting on the wall.

It’s a box painting, a design that he’s all too familiar with and he can’t help but smile seeing that you’ve got one of his best friends paintings on your wall. This one is of a forest, a foggy one that has mountains in the background and it looks amazing. And he can’t help but smile that you own one of these paintings and it sits proudly on your wall.

And he knows it's one of hers because he’s got a fair few of his own up in his house. Not to mention it’s not difficult to recognise his best friend's signature on the canvas.

With his grin unfaltering, Matty makes it to the kitchen and gets a glass of water for you and with quiet steps, he makes it slowly back to your room, giving the painting one last glance and getting excited about seeing the person behind the art piece tonight.

The closer he got to your door, the more he could make out your figure still resting on the messy bed. He feels so bad having to wake you up so he tries to make it as soft as possible.

Matty puts your glass of water down and he tucks your hair behind your ear before he leans down and kisses your temple a few times. He hopes it’ll be a nice way to wake you up and he's happy to see that you don’t look like you want to kill him when you open your eyes.

Initially you let out a little groan, frowning a little as you woke up but when you slowly blink your eyes open and you see him, a tired smile comes to your face. And it gets even bigger when he coos, “Hiya baby.”

“Hi.” You grin, the sight of him above you making you happy.

Matty cups your face and he gently caresses the apple of your cheek as he asks, “You had a nice sleep?”

“Always.” You hum and you lean into his hand.

Chuckling a little at your answer, Matty can’t help but smile at you. He remembers the water he got you then and he picks up the glass and hands it to you, “Got you a drink.”

“Thank you.” You sit up a little and take a few sips of it before putting it down.

Matty smiles at the sight of you still wearing his shirt, and he loves seeing you in his clothes. He already can’t wait to see you in more of them.

Catching himself stuck in his thoughts, he says, “Hope you don’t mind, I had a quick shower.”

“No, it’s fine.” You smile and reach up to run your fingers through his still slightly damp hair, “Get even fresher curls.”

“Yeah,” Matty smirks, “You’ve not ruined them by pulling on them, yet.”

Narrowing your eyes you backchat, “You say that like you didn’t enjoy it each time I did.”

“Details.” Matty narrows his eyes playfully but he’s smiling when he leans down to press his lips against your own.

And you hum in amusement as you quickly kiss him back. When you pull away, you ask, “What time is it?”

He tells you, “Just past nine.”

“Oh shit,” Your eyes go wide, and you sit up a little like you’re about to start rushing, “We need to go.”

“Take your time,” Matty assures you, “It's not an issue what time we get there.”

“I know but it will take a while to get over there.” You say as you rub your eyes to wake yourself up a little more, and you sit up properly now.

He chuckles at your haste, but he really doesn’t want you rushing about, “Doesn’t matter.”

You pull the covers back and twist your way out of bed, “I’ll shower quickly and get ready as-“

But you’re interrupted by Matty leaning in to pecking your lips to shut you up. And once he’s succeeded he just smiles, “Take your time.”

Pressing your lips together, you roll your eyes and get yourself up from the bed. You can hear him giggling as he’s managed to shut you up and you try your very best not to let out a chuckle of your own. You don’t think you’ll ever get tired of hearing him laugh.

You grab a few things before you go in your bathroom, but once inside you shower as quickly as you can and thankfully you’re not in there too long. Getting out you dry yourself off before getting into your fresh set of underwear and you leave the bathroom with Matty’s shirt in hand.

Walking out, you see that he’s now sitting up, leaning back against your headboard where he lay earlier and scrolling mindlessly through his phone.

“Here you go.” You smile as you walk towards him, offering him his shirt back but you watch his eyes focus on your body instead of his clothes.

Looking you up and down before finally making contact with your eyes, he’s dead serious when he says, “Oh my god, you’re asking to be thrown back in bed.”

“No,” You shake your head, unable to stop yourself from grinning at him. “I have to get ready.”

“I’m begging we stay.” Matty leans forwards and wraps his arms around you, pulling you down onto the bed beside him.

You’re laughing at his efforts as you dismiss him, “Nope. I want to dance to Mr and Mrs XCX dj-ing.”

“They aren’t that good.” Matty plays their talent down because he would love for you to remain in this attire for the rest of the night.

But you’re having none of it.

Disagreeing, you frown, “They are.”

Matty smiles but narrows his eyes at you, “How would you know?”

“The Reading afterparty, Matty.” You remind him, “I was around… Just didn’t want to bother you all. The music was great though.”

Realising that you were there makes Matty’s jaw drop a bit. “We could have had this so much earlier.” and you laugh when he pulls you against him, making you lie down beside him.

“Happy to have it now.” You hum, and you don’t miss the way his eyes run down your body, “Plus don’t you think our date was more iconic because we didn’t really know each other.”

“Yeah, we were amazing to be fair.” Matty smirks as he snakes his hand down your body and he rests it on your arse as he tells you, “Need to get you back in those red leather pants at some point. The whole get up was fit as fuck.”

“Maybe someday.” You chuckle.

But the singer pouts, “Not tonight?”

“Nope,” You shake your head, “I’ve got another look in mind.”

After indulging him for a few more minutes, you move away from him to dry your damp hair and Matty happily watches as you blow dry it, loving the view of you still in next to nothing. And because you quite like his eyes on you, you don’t get dressed before you do your make up either.

You do your makeup sitting at your dressing table and you both happily chat to each other as Matty plays a little music from his phone to get you into the partying mood. It doesn’t take you long to get ready, and you’re slipping on your black dress only half an hour after you woke up which you’re relieved about.

While Matty was a little upset seeing you hide away your lacy underwear, he can’t help but appreciate just how amazing you look in the dress you’ve just put on. It stops on your upper thigh, hiding your arse from him but it's tight on your body so your figure is still on display and he thanks his lucky stars he gets to see you looking like this all night.

So he doesn’t hesitate to say, “You look so good.”

“Thank you.” You grin, feeling great about how you look and feel right now as you adjust your dress in the mirror, pulling it down a bit to show a little more cleavage.

Matty can’t help but internally groan. You’re so painfully gorgeous, he can’t believe he’s lucky enough for you to want him beside you, as long as you're willing to put up with him. He can't help but hope it’s a long time.

“What do you think?” You bring Matty out of his thoughts by asking. “Heels or boots?”

“I think you’ll be more comfy in the boots.” The singer points out and you definitely agree with him.

Asking again, you give him your options, “Ankle or knee high?” and you raise both up so he can choose.

The singer thinks about it for a few seconds before he counters with, “You got any without a heel?”

You sigh but laugh a little, and you know exactly why he’s asked. So you tease him with, “Why can't you be taller?”

And you bite your lip when he immediately frowns and argues, “I am tall.”

“That's what short k-”

“Don't you dare call me a short king,” Matty interrupts, “I’m five-eleven.”

“And I’m five-nine.” You raise your eyebrows at him, “So if I put heels on you’re smaller than me… You’re my short king now.”

Both of you look at each other holding your amusement and Matty’s slight frustration back then. He’s so easy to rile up, you’re definitely going to add this to your list of ammunition to use against him when he starts embarrassing you.

“Just put the ankle boots on.” Matty demands, dismissing the subject because he knows you’re right which makes you start laughing.

After doing that, you stay seated on the end of your bed for a minute and you reply to Amelia’s message, telling her the date went well. You tell her that you’ve just changed and that you’re about to head to George’s party, and you can’t help but laugh a little when her next message comes through.

I do wonder why you need a change of clothes but I’m sure I can guess, dirty bitch… Anyway, what you wearing now Slut? x

Matty watches from his seat on your bed as you stand up chuckling. He has to ask, “What?”

“Amelia wants to know what I’m wearing.” You say as you stand in front of your mirror and raise your phone up, “So I thought I’d just send her a picture.”

You take a few of yourself, one with your phone covering your face and your full body in show and in the others you move your phone to the side a little so you can smile.

You decide to move your hair into a different position, and as you raise your phone back up, you can’t help but smile when you see Matty has stood up and he’s walking towards you.

There’s a grin on his face and on yours too but both of your smiles get bigger as you look at each other through the mirror and you're grinning like an idiot when his hand slides around your waist and he pulls you back to lean into him. You indulge yourself in the happy moment and you take the picture.

You look at Matty in the mirror and you watch as he turns his head to you and he kisses your temple. Again you take a picture.

Then you bring your other hand up to lace your fingers with his that is on your waist, and when you both smile at each other through the mirror again, you take another picture.

After that you put your phone down and lean back into him properly. You happily grin at him through the mirror and your heart skips a beat when he whispers in your ear, “Do you know just how stunning you are?”

Your cheeks heat up in an instant, and you press your lips together trying not to squirm as he compliments you. It’s so lovely of him to say but you’re really not used to hearing things like that in such a personal context anymore.

It’s hard to take his compliment. Because of that and because you’re British.

Matty sees your unwillingness to believe him but he’s thankful that you accept his compliment and rather shyly turn towards him, whispering back, “Might need you to remind me.”

Matty smiles at that and he cups your face making sure you look at him as he tells you, “Well I’ll be here to make sure you remember.”

You’re sure he feels your cheeks heat up at that but you don’t care. You just smile, “You’re cute.”

Matty shakes his head a little, “Not as cute as you.”

“Shut up.” You mumble before kissing his pretty lips again.

It’s impossible not to get carried away when he’s holding you close to his chest by your waist and your fingers are tangled in the hair at the nape of his neck. And trying to pull away when you come back to reality is also impossible, as he keeps leaving chaste kisses on your lips.

“You wanna pack a bag for mine later?” He suggests after giving you one last long peck, and he looks at you with the cutest puppy eyes that have you folding in less than a second.

You sigh softly, completely defeated under the effect of his eyes on you, “Yeah, okay.”

“Pack a few days worth of stuff.” He suggests, letting his hand fall a bit until he can give your arse a cheeky squeeze, “Gotta make the most out of the start of the year, remember?”

The way he’s smirking at you has you raising your eyebrows and biting your bottom lip not to giggle away from the anticipation, you can feel yourself burning up head to toe but you cover it by taunting him, “Right. The most of it.”

Humming, Matty presses another kiss on your lips but then he smacks your arse and says “Let’s go,” to get you moving.

A gasp falls from your lips, which only has his smirk getting bigger and to that you can only shake your head, trying hard not to look amused.

It takes you no time at all to pack a bag, and in that time Matty managed to get you a taxi that wasn’t too far away. You both had a vodka coke before you got in the car and when it arrived you both ran to the back of the car because it was still pelting it down with rain.

Matty let you get in the side closest to the door whilst he ran around to the other side with your bag in hand. Once Matty double checks the address with the driver, you’re on your way to the party but what makes you laugh is when Matty settles and he sees all the room between you and pouts.

“You’re so far away baby.” He frowns, and he can’t help but move himself over to the middle seat and puts your bag where he just was.

His arm comes around your waist to hold you the closest he can to himself and with a big grin on your face, you let your head rest on his shoulder. Matty sighs in content, “Now that’s better.”

Your heart swells when the words leave his lips from just how content he sounds, you can’t help yourself when you feel the urge to leave a kiss on his skin. Feeling your soft lips on his neck is something that makes Matty’s insides flip, and he truly feels like he’s on cloud nine when he’s with you.

It’s the way he clutches you the tiniest bit tighter that gives him away and silently you’re just really glad he has the same reaction to you as you do to him. It all just adds to what you’ve been discovering about him for the past week, and somehow it makes your appreciation for him grow even more.

The hour long drive to George’s is rather entertaining as your driver starts talking to you both and you find yourself the slightest bit chattier from how happy you are and the drink you already had.

There’s many times when the man behind the wheel makes you laugh out loud–bless him, working on New Years Eve, still having the energy to be witty–when you catch Matty just looking at you with those eyes you adore.

Under the passing streetlights you can catch them almost gleaming as they are fully stuck on you and you find yourself squirming nervously under his gaze. Every time you’re about to ask him what it was, your driver brings you back in conversation but it’s one last time when Matty does the same thing that has you letting out a little, “What?”

To which he just responds with a toothy grin that reaches his eyes and a kiss to your temple that has your melting right into his side.

After that Matty joined the conversation and it’s not at all awkwards like small chat with a taxi driver usually is. You’re surprised when you get to George’s faster than you expected and after being dropped off by the door, you wave the lovely man away and leave him a big tip for his kindness.

Thankfully, the rain has fully stopped by now and all that’s been left are small puddles in the ground that you avoid as you make your way in. But it’s not trying to avoid the wet patches on the ground that have you fiddling with your fingers and clumsily taking steps towards the front door, you’re actually slightly nervous.

And it’s a bit foolish of you to be, because you’ve met the lads already and spent a whole night drinking and chatting with them but this time it feels different.

Maybe it is just you being aware of this time being Matty bringing you as his date rather than just inviting you over to their greenroom after seeing you were in attendance at their gig. Maybe you’re just more apprehensive of what everyone’s reactions could be due to the change of circumstances.

So you find yourself silently begging for it all to remain the same, just so you don’t find yourself racking your brain about any comparisons from tonight to the night of the banquet records gig.

This time though, Matty is more aware of every single one of your actions and he can read you so much clearer so he doesn’t take long to notice the way you’re hiding into yourself, the shyness in your walk and how your eyes seem to look more at the ground than in front of you when he’s about to get to the door.

To give you comfort, he intertwines your fingers as he opens the door and his thumb rubs circles on the back of your hand as you take your first steps into the house. The loud music and colourful lights drown you both as you close the door behind you but you barely have time to take much in for there’s someone walking by that’s already greeting the man walking in front of you.

“Matty.” You hear the one and only Charli XCX enthusiastically exclaim your date’s name and throw an arm around him to give him a quick hug with her eyes closed.

“Hey!” He says as he reciprocates the embrace, giving her a quick squeeze before letting go.

She pulls back and opens her eyes to look at him when she says, “I was wondering why I had yet to see you.” but right then she catches a glimpse of you over his shoulder and she lets out a loud screech that has you giggling. “Ah! Y/N!”

You take a step forward so she can see you properly and she basically throws herself on you to embrace you, “Hey Charli,” you’re smiling so hard at her reaction to your presence, it starts dissipating the worries that were clouding your thoughts only a minute ago, “Thank you for inviting me.”

“Oh my god, anytime.” She sways you a bit before letting go and you catch the smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth, “How'd the date go?”

You chuckle and so does Matty beside you, “Really good.” Is the shy answer you give her under both their intent stares.

And it makes you so happy that her reaction is a little giddy dance and a, “Yay! I was hoping it would,” to then wave at you both to follow her as she started walking further into the house, “Come with me. Let me show you where to get a drink.”

Before she gets very far though, Matty asks her if he can run upstairs and put your bag somewhere safe and Charli nods, telling him to go put it in hers and George’s room. She leads the both of you upstairs and points her room out to him and Matty puts your bag in a safe spot, all while she shows you around upstairs.

“Your house is stunning.” You compliment, finally being able to let your eyes wander around the gorgeous place. You almost didn’t notice Matty taking your hand again as you looked round you were so invested.

The rooms are all pretty big and the tall ceilings make the place feel even bigger, and you can only imagine it's the same downstairs. The decor is modern but it all feels really homely too. It makes you so happy that George and Charli are serious enough that they are living together, you’ve never been so happy for a celebrity couple.

“Thank you, better during the day when you can see it.” And you can definitely imagine that, the sunlight coming through the massive windows they have must look absolutely stunning washing over their whole floor.

As you make your way back downstairs, you’re brought back from your appreciation of the architecture and decoration when she genuinely suggests, “You need to come over and we can chill properly.”

Not really believing those words just came out of her mouth, you nod your head and give her a stupefied, “Yeah.”

The singer continues sorting out the plan out loud by playfully saying, “Can let the boys make our drinks that day. Keep them busy before they go off touring again.”

And of course, Matty, wanting you to have the best night, jumps on the idea and grants your wishes, “Can do that for you today, Charli.”

Charli winks at you like her plan has just worked and snaps her fingers with a smirk, “Well, hop to it then.” And then waves her hand to show the vast alcohol selection that’s set on the bar.

Yes bar. Mr and Mrs XCX seem to have spared no expense with their new house. There’s a full functioning bar that separates the kitchen from the main room where most people seem to be gathered. It’s like they have their own club in their house with a raised platform for the DJ on the other side of the room, and you can see a gigantic spinning disco ball in the centre of the room too. The club lights and the strobes lighting up the full wall mural that they have too makes it seem like you’re truly at a club, not in someone's house.

Charli smiles and tells you, “Please use anything and everything, we don't want to see any of it left tomorrow so please have as much as you like.”

“What do you want, baby?” Matty asks you first, his thumb still tracing figures on your skin to soothe you but you’re feeling more calm now so you squeeze his hand as if telling him you’re okay.

There’s so much in front of you that you just can’t find yourself making a quick decision so you just go for what you already had before you left your flat, “I’ll have a vodka and coke again please.”

Matty nods and then turns to Charli, “What do you want, queen of pop?”

With a triumphant smile, Charli replies, “Vodka cranberry please Matthew.” and right away, the curly headed boy lets your hand go with a soft squeeze and moves to make your drinks.

As he leaves your side, Charli takes his place and you both take a few steps back to just watch him as he gets your glasses and ice. You’re watching his swift moves, the way he delicately places the glasses on the table and goes to get one more for himself, his curls bouncing as he walks and his brows furrowing as he tries to find a vodka bottle he fancies, when the silence is broken by the woman beside you.

“So…” Charli starts with a slightly suggestive tone.

But you’re so distracted by the view that you fail to catch on to what she means, “So?”

“The date?” She asks a bit more forward this time, turning to you properly, and that seems to bring your attention to her.

“Oh, yeah very good.” You quickly reply, a genuine smile on your face remembering how it went and selfishly taking a bit of time to rewind and play back a little reel of what it had been.

It’s her next question, though, that snaps you right back to reality, “But was he very good?”

“Pardon?” You feel the heat coating your cheeks and you have to bite your tongue not to give yourself away.

It’s too late, you find out, when she sighs playfully and continues, “Babe it's written on both of your faces. Come on, spill, we’re friends right?” She nudges your hip with hers, making you break and let out a little nervous giggle.

You end up nodding your head, because why wouldn’t you admit he’d been very good. It was just your own mind reminding you of your previous thoughts that had you a bit timid about what you wanted to admit to yet, “Yea- Yes.”

“Yes we’re friends or yes he was good?” The singer asks for clarification, clearly wanting to get a bit more than a yes from you.

You can’t help but hope it’s not obvious to everyone though. You’ve met Charli quite a few times since her Chicken Shop Date with Amelia and each time you’d all got on like a house on fire, so a little teasing from her you could definitely handle. But telling her this feels like it’s a bit more personal, and despite knowing you can trust her it takes you aback a little bit that she actually wants to know.

“Charlotte Aitchison.” You say through your teeth, almost scolding her for wanting you to air any details in the middle of the room right in Matty’s presence.

You don’t care if there’s enough music filtering through from the other room to drown out your words. It’s still making your cheeks heat up and you want to hide under her gaze.

She laughs loudly and shrugs her shoulders like it’s just an innocent inquiry, “Hey, I just need to know whether the hype is for nothing.”

Trying your best to keep a straight face, you give into her attempts and admit, “Not for nothing.”

“Ahhh!” She screeches loudly, which makes Matty chuckle to himself and shake his head despite not knowing what you’re both talking about since he can’t hear a thing over the music.

“Fuck, I love this for you.” Charli throws both her arms around you and squeezes you tight, completely obsessed with how it’s all unfolding for you both.

She remembers watching the date with George and wishing that something actually would end up happening between you so the fact that her silent ship is working out has her beyond happy, especially since both of you are who she considers her friends.

You appreciate her excitement for you so much, it feels like such a relief to have more than just Amelia rooting for you and especially people that are from Matty’s inner circle but you want to turn the conversation away from you for a second so your heart isn’t erratically beating out of your chest. Instead, you steer towards the topic of her and George by saying, “I feel like I should ask about George now but I already know the answer if you’ve moved in with him.”

And you can’t explain the happiness that washes over you when she nods and very confidently states, “I’m going to marry that man, he’s not getting away.”

Raising your eyebrows, you chat back, “That good?”

And it’s very confirmed when she purses her lips and nods slowly but surely as she replies, “Oh yes.”

Your conversation is cut short before you can get any more details when Matty is back with both your drinks, “Here you go ladies.”

You both get handed your drinks and thank him before taking a long sip of them while Matty quickly grabs his own and joins you again. As he does, you ask her, “Did you have a nice Christmas in Florida?”

“Oh she had a fantastic time.” Matty chuckles and you can’t help but feel like he knows something you don’t.

And it seems that’s the case when Charli grins, “Ha, he’s right I had a fucking amazing time.”

But before you can question what it is that they’re alluding to, Charli notices someone waving her over from the living room, “Ah shit, I’m being summoned. You’ve got friends in the club and in the studio.” She points in the direction of both places and you two nod, “See you in a bit, have fun and save a shot for me.” She warns with a point of her finger and a wink.

Without Charli there, your eyes are falling back on the pretty boy in front of you and it’s then when you notice he isn’t having the same as you, “What are you drinking?”

Raising his glass a bit, Matty explains, “George saved me a few bottles of red, have a stash in the cupboard.”

You smile at him getting his way, “Perks of the party being in your best mates house.”

“Gotta have some.” He shrugs his shoulders and takes a sip of his red wine and basks in the taste of it.

He lowers his glass back down and puts out his free hand for you to grab, “Shall we go find some people?”

With bubbling excitement in your belly, you nod, “Yeah. Lead the way.”

Like upstairs, the rooms are tall, but you guess that makes sense for a house a gentle giant like George Daniel lives in. Everything looks amazing downstairs too, but you think your favourite feature is the large sliding glass doors that lead out to their garden. You can imagine it being stunning on a summer's day.

The room they are in though has been converted to the dancefloor. There’s a lot of people dancing in the middle to the DJ, who surprisingly isn’t George, but they look like they are having a great time. And there’s a lot of people standing with their drinks chatting to other people too, and no doubt more outside.

But both you and Matty spot a familiar face amongst the many you don’t recognise. And Matty wonders over to him first with a grin on his face as he holds your hand as you walk over.

“Hey.” Matty greets him, a big smile on his face seeing his friend again.

“Hey,” Ross smiles, a little shocked, “Where the fuck have you been?” as he hugs Matty back, but his question is answered when he spots you.

“Ah Y/N!” Ross grins brightly and he all but pushes Matty off him so he can hug you. You hug him back, letting Matty go to hug him properly, but the bassist makes you chuckle when he keeps you in his hold as he jokes, “I hope he wasn’t as annoying as he was on your chicken shop date.”

“Nowhere near as funny Ross,” You play along, and you pull out of the hug and smile up at him, “It's why I need my date with you.”

“Ah,” Ross smirks, gently brushing you off with, “Maybe for the next album.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.” You grin, pointing at him as you raise your eyebrows so he knows you're serious.

He chuckles a little and Matty finds himself laughing too knowing there’s no way it would happen. But he loves that you probably won't quit trying.

Matty takes your hand in his again as he asks his mate, “Did Hann show?” as he’s been looking around and can’t spot him or Carly anywhere.

“No, he did put in the chat but I assumed you haven't seen it because you didn’t call him a pussy.” Ross shakes his head, but his amused smile shines though. He then explains, “He’s staying in with Carly and baby, her Mum and Dad are over aren’t they, so-”

Matty takes over and sighs a little, “So they have babysitters and could have come.”

He really wanted Adam to come so he could introduce you to Carly, and he can’t help but be a little gutted because he knows that you’d get along so well with Mrs Holt-Hann.

“You bully that man enough.” You shake your head, dismissing Matty’s claims, “Give him a night off.”

The curly haired man can’t help but let his draw drop a little as his eyes widen. Ross is smirking as Matty asks you, “Who’s side are you on baby?”

“When it comes to you bullying Adam, whilst it's funny, I’m on his side.” You tell the curly haired man and he freins hurt putting his hand over his chest.

Ross laughs loudly and traps you in a side hug as he says, “You can stick around Y/N/N.”

“Thanks Ross.” You chuckle, leaning into him a little letting go of Mattys hand so you can keep a hold of your drink as you put your arm around Ross’ back.

Matty looking around and still not being able to see his friend who’s the size of a tree ends up having to ask, “Where’s G?”

“He’s around, was doing the music about half an hour ago but not sure where he is now.” The bassist explains, “Might be with the others in there?”

Ross nods over to another room that people keep on filtering in and out of and you see Matty silently ask you if you want to head over there and you nod. You move out of Ross’ grip and you take another sip of your drink as you move to stand beside Matty again.

The curly haired brunette asks Ross, “You joining us?”

“No,” He shakes his head and looks around the room, “I'm going to branch out and socialise a bit more.”

“Is that code for something, Ross?” You can’t help but tease at the way he scoped out the room.

But Ross is quick to fire back, “Was your date code for something, Y/N/N?” and a smile plays on his lips which screams that he knows you didn’t turn up to this party so late just because you were on a date, but you play stupid.

“Nope,” You shake your head and maintain your innocence, “We went on a date, a very nice restaurant actually.”

Matty can’t help but smile at the way you confidently play it off, the same way Ross pretends like he believes you, “Good.”

“I’ll send you the address for when you’ve found someone you like socialising with.” You smile knowingly back at him and before you start walking towards the door he nodded to, you playfully raise your middle finger at him with the hand you’re holding your glass with as you start pulling Matty with you.

Ross just laughs as you and the singer turn away from him and Matty can’t help but grin at what just took place. He squeezes your hand and asks, “What’s got you all feisty?”

“I'm not,” You laugh, “I just think Ross is on the prowl.”

“Good.” Matty nods like it’s something dire, “He needs to get some.”

“Matty,” You laugh at the fact he doesn’t know, “There's queues of people who want him.”

Immediately, the singer’s features scrunch together in disbelief. He shakes his head a bit, frowning as he says, “I don’t think so.”

“Well you need to open your eyes.” You scoff as you laugh, “More for him than you these days.”

Matty pretends to think about it for a second before humming, “Mmm no.”

“Okay,” You chuckle, knowing someday soon Matty will get the shock of his life. “Don't believe me.”

“I won't.” Matty grins proudly, before he pulls you over to the door, excited to see more of his friends before he starts socialising with other familiar faces, “Okay, who's in here?”

When you enter the room, you realise it must be the studio Charli was talking about earlier. There’s everything you could need in here to make music but also chill out as you do it. Comfy seats surround the place, the best being a big fluffy settee, and there’s computers on one side of the room and the rest is set up like a lounging area. But there’s a drum kit in one corner that thankfully no one is playing, guitars surrounding the place with various awards decorating the room.

There’s a lot of people in here as it's another big room, but it’s not as overcrowded as the other. You look around trying to spot anyone you might know, but come up short. Or that is until Matty spots someone who he’s been dying to introduce you to.

“Wheels!” Matty shouts, bringing you out of your thoughts as he pulls you over to meet her.

You watch as she gets up from her seat beside someone you don’t recognise but she rushes over to greet you both.

As she hugs Matty, you hear her say, “Heya Curly.” and Matty briefly lets go of your hand to hug her.

Your heart melts at the scene. It’s easy to see just how much they care about each other, and she smiles at you from over Matty’s shoulder and she looks just as excited to see you as she did him.

“Wheels, meet Y/N.” Matty quickly turns back to excitedly introduce you, and he takes your hand again as he says, “Y/N, meet Wheels.”

“Matty, you have to stop introducing me as Wheels, no one calls me that but you…” She smiles but shakes her head at him before her eyes find yours again and she offers you a hug after she says, “Hi, sorry, my name's Flo. It's so nice to meet you.”

“Lovely to meet you.” You smile, hugging her back.

It’s a little strange to you seeing Flo in person. You’ve known of her and admired both her and her work for years so it’s not really a shock that you end up telling her, “I love your paintings.”

“She does,” Matty grins excitedly, confirming that you do by saying, “She has one.”

Immediately, you look at him a little shocked that he knew that, considering you’d only just put it up when you got back home yesterday. And also because you’re shocked he would out you like that when you’ve just met her. You know no malice was intended but you know he also did it to tease you a bit.

And Flo can clearly see this too because just after George walks in the room and shouts “Matty!” She links your arm and says to you but loud enough for Matty to hear, “Please come with me, let's leave him to suck George off.”

You stifle a laugh at that, especially when Matty narrows his eyes at her and fires back, “He enjoys it and you’re just jealous.”

“Yeah yeah yeah,” Flo nods, a look in her eyes that dismisses him but also confirming that she would be. It amuses you entirely, and you see the amusement in his eyes when you catch each others gazes before you go your separate ways.

You manage to refrain from laughing once she walks you back to where she was earlier and she apologises, “Sorry about him, he gets over excited. Thank you by the way, for what you said about my art.”

“I came to your gallery back in 2018 and I was astounded.” You tell her, not seeing any reason to hide how talented you think she is, before you move on to say, “I wanted to come to the one earlier this year but I had a date and the guest was being an arse so it overran.”

“I fucking love your dates. They are the funniest thing.” Flo gasps, leaning in to tell you sincerely, “I found them over lockdown and I binged them all. I adore them. I even made Alex watch them with me and we were giggling for hours.”

Hearing that from her means a lot too. Just as much as people like Matty, Charli, and Andrew Garfield. It hits a special place in your heart.

“I’m so glad you liked them.” You grin, “They’ve certainly been fun.”

“Your one with Matty is the best thing I’ve ever seen.” She laughs at the memory of the both of you playing up to each other and the top tier flirting from you, “Especially the extended version.”

You chuckle and nod, “It was certainly my favourite one.”

“By the way,” Flo had been meaning to get Matty to ask you, but she forgot, so she's pleased she can ask now, “Your Spanish is impeccable, are you fluent?”

You can’t help but think that is so cute of her to pick out from the date, and you nod and explain, “My Mum is a Spanish teacher and she raised me with both languages, so yeah I'm probably not far off.”

“You can help me, I've not quite mastered it yet as well as the others.” She tells you, and you wouldn’t mind that at all.

Despite being fairly certain of the answer, you ask her, “You can speak French, right?”

“Yes,” Alex Turner appears and answers for her and wraps an arm around her waist as he carries on, “And Italian, so it's really difficult for me around the house when she's mumbling under her breath scolding me for something I don't know I’ve done wrong.”

Flo’s face is full of amusement as he says that, and she doesn’t even deny it. She simply says, “You love it.”

“Mmmm.” Alex hums, not sounding too convinced but then he smiles brightly at you and says, “Lovely to meet you, I’m Alex.” and he lets Flo go for a moment to shake your hand.

“Y/N.” You smile brightly at him and return his handshake. “Nice to meet you.”

As he shakes your hand, he’s telling you how much the both of them love your videos which again makes you want to pinch yourself. Alex’s music, both with Arctic Monkeys and The Last Shadow Puppets soundtracked the majority of your teenage years before you found The 1975, so it’s a little surreal that he even knows who you are. It's an Andrew Garfield moment all over again.

The three of you talk for a while about various different things, them telling you about their favourite date you’ve been on, you telling the two of them congratulations on them getting married this past year. But only about 5 minutes pass before the loud mouth that is Matty bounds back over.

You feel him before you see him, as his arm goes around your waist hugging you back into him as his head rests on your shoulder. He says to Alex, “You better not be stealing another one of my girls, Turner.”

It takes everything in you not to laugh. Matty talks of Flo so much like she’s a best friend, as he does George, that you forget that they are ex’s. It seems that they are all perfectly fine joking about it though because Flo laughs and Alex’s face is full of amusement and looking to the side you see Matty’s holding back how big he wants to grin.

Alex just smirks as he laughs, “No, I'm happy with the one I stole the first time around.” wrapping his arm around his wife again.

Flo smiles hearing that but she also curiously asks your group, but mostly Matty, as she leans into Alex, “Was it really stealing if I shagged him first?”

This, you’re confused by. She went out with Matty from 2011 to 2013, and there were only rumours about her and Alex in 2014 which you remember Flo denying in a drunken tweet one evening. But then it was pretty much a fact that her and Alex briefly got together after a lot more was shown on her Instagram live at the start of 2019 that she probably intended. So needless to say you’re confused, but you don’t show this as you don’t want to pry.

But you can’t keep your shock at bay when Matty laughs and tells Flo, “Losing your virginity doesn’t count, Sweetheart.”

Your eyes go wide and you can’t stop the, “What?” falling from your lips.

Your indirect sexual partners list just reached a whole new level.

“Oh yes,” Matty chuckles at your reaction, remembering you only have the outsiders perspective on past events. He very quickly glosses over it, making a mental note to tell you at some point but for now he leaves you with, “There's a lot more history than everyone ever knew, but it's all good. Their wedding was cute, I was practically the maid of honour.”

Flo frowns a little at that last part, correcting him quickly, “Think my best friend and Adam would disagree with that but you were definitely a bridesmaid.”

Matty hums, “Loved my pink suit to match the dresses.”

“Now I need to see a picture of that.” You smile, leaning back into him a little more so you can crane your neck around to see his pretty face again.

He grins at you with soft eyes and he can’t help but think you look absolutely stunning.

“Oh, I’ve got loads.” Flo grins and proceeds to take her phone out of her pocket.

The four of you chat for a while then, and that is until Matty gets called over by a few people he clearly knows and you talk to Alex and Flo a little longer. But it feels like not a lot of time has passed before Matty is stealing you away from them because he wants to introduce you to a few people.

A few people ends up being almost everyone, because when you’ve finished talking to someone, more come along wanting to speak to Matty so the process continues over and over. Not that you mind, everyone seems very lovely and it's no hardship chatting to Matty and hearing how he knows everyone.

However, when you escape to the bar just the two of you again it’s rather nice just to keep each other company for a few minutes. On the way over, you noticed Ross chatting to a girl you didn’t recognise but they seemed pretty close so you gave him knowing eyes when your gazes met. He very discreetly gets you back for earlier and sticks his middle finger up at you which makes you laugh.

After getting your drinks, Matty pulls you into the kitchen where it’s a little quieter and you manage to greet George properly. He gives you a big hug and once again you're taken aback by just how tall he is.

“You enjoying yourself Y/N/N?” The drummer asks just before letting go of you.

You nod with a soft grin on your face, everything has been going amazingly and you’re glad every passing minute has managed to quiet down the thoughts you had earlier.

“Very much, thanks for having me George.”

Taking a sip of his drink, he hums but then a smirk appears on his face as his eyes go from you to Matty, “How was the date? He wouldn’t shut up about it- about you, in fact.”

You let out a loud chuckle when Matty’s instant reaction is to yell out a mortified, “Mate!” as if that would somehow put you off.

George’s laughter makes you laugh even harder and you see Charli coming into the kitchen intrigued by the reason behind your loud giggles.

Before she can even ask what’s going on, George throws another question your way made to taunt his best mate even more, “Did he at least treat you to a better time than your first date?”

The laugh that was about to fall from your lips turns into a scoff of disbelief when Charli answers for you with a very suggestive, “Oh yes, heard he treated her to the best time.”

The couple in front of you laugh hard at the way both your faces fall and the only thing you can do is hide behind your glass to hope they can’t tell you’re flustered. Matty doesn’t let it affect him long, he smirks then and pulls you into him by your waist, leaving a kiss on your temple.

“What can I say?” He shrugs his shoulders with a smug expression on his face, “You get a date with me, you get the premium package.”

Noticing the loophole in his statement, you push his mistake to tease him, “What, so you do this every date?” You make sure to leave your glass with a thud on the kitchen island, frowning and letting your mouth fall the slightest bit open in faux offence. You take a step back as well so his hold on your waist loosens up and his hand is almost completely away from you.

“No, I-” He tries to interject and correct himself but he’s cut by Charli gasping.

“Matty Healy, you little slag!” She says like she’s shocked, making you have to bite your tongue not to laugh.

George giggles and then raises his eyebrows at Matty, “Fucked it there mate, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t- That wasn’t what I meant.” Matty finally says, as quickly as he can so no one interrupts him.

Trying to put your most unamused face on, you turn to him and talk back, “What’d you mean then?”

“Meant only you get the premium package.” Taking a step forward to be close to you again, he snakes his hand around your lower back and pulls you into his front.

He’s staring at your lips, silently asking if he can kiss you to forget about it but you act like you’re not interested in seeing him so you give him a curt nod and look away, to your friends who are watching it all trying not to laugh, “Right.”

You can almost hear the struggle George is going through not to laugh as he continues adding fuel to the fire, “You’re gonna have to work all night to save this now mate.”

Matty glares at George then and you take his sudden distraction to tease him even more. With your eyes now trying to scan the room adjacent to the kitchen, you start saying, “Might see if Ross is up for more socialising…”

The sole mention of the bassist has the singer whipping his head back around to see you, “No.” He says sternly, leaving a kiss on your cheek, “You’re not going anywhere.” He states again and he holds you tighter when he says it.

You still won’t give him your attention though, trying to take it a bit further, “I’m sure I saw him right outside.” You add almost sighing in disappointment and that’s when your date has had enough.

Matty cups your jaw and pulls you into his lips intently and it’s so quick that you gasp, which leaves your lips perfectly open for him to tease his tongue into your mouth. You reciprocate the kiss in bliss, seemingly growing fonder of having his lips on yours, though it makes you laugh - how a simple comment can get him like this.

So you can’t help the chuckle that you let out which interrupts the kiss for a second, Matty smiling against your lips before trapping them between his again, making you hum.

You forget you have an audience until Charli coos loudly at you two, but George is in the mood to get Matty back for all the shit he pulls on the daily so it’s not a surprise he interrupts the moment by reminding you, “Y/N! He does this every date he has!”

Matty instantly breaks the kiss and glares at him, “Fuck off!” is all he says with a frown on his face and that reaction has you laughing loudly once again.

George cackles just as loudly and that amusement has Matty sighing and deciding he’s had enough for now, “We’re leaving you two now, can’t trust you.”

He shakes his head, as he grabs your hand and starts pulling you towards the door, “We are?” You ask as you take the first step but try to hold him back so you can get your glass before leaving.

The curly headed man nods, intertwining your fingers as he looks at your getting your drink again, “Yes, let’s go back to Wheels and Alex.”

The drummer gives it one last attempt to torment him, “Oh yes, actually do. I’m sure she will out you even more.” he encourages with a smirk and silently hopes Flo actually does continue with the taunting.

All Matty responds to that is with a middle finger and it makes Charli, George and yourself laugh as you exit the room.

The last of your teasing is pointing out Ross is gone from where you’d seen him last and seems to have left the room, Matty shaking his head and stealing another hungry kiss from you at the mention of his other best mate.

It wasn’t hard to find Flo and Alex after that, they were sitting in the corner of the room the furthest away from the DJ desk which you assume is to be able to talk but also enjoy the party.

Matty waves at them and they wave back at you, encouraging you to come over to them. When you get there, Alex stands up so you can take a seat beside Flo and you thank him for it. You thought he and Matty would stay standing in front of you to chat but Alex asks his wife if she wants a refill and she nods with a smile and a soft please.

Taking Matty with him, you find yourself alone with Flo and notice how being in her presence brings you this sense of calmness that you certainly enjoy.

“I believe you wanna take me on a date?” Flo asks as you get comfy in the seat beside her.

“I really do.” You hum, sipping your drink before you sit up a little and say, “If you’re okay with jokes about them two, it could be better than Matty’s.”

And you truly believe that. You think she’s hilarious and with her history and her talent you think you could have such a good date with her.

Thankfully, Flo grins and confirms, “Oh, perfectly fine with it.”

“I have art jokes covered too.” You assure her, not wanting everything about it to be about her dating history, even though she is iconic for it.

She smiles, loving the sound of it already. But Flo can’t help but remember that she wasn’t the only one you were requesting a date with. “Believe you want to take my husband on one too?”

“Yeah,” You laugh, nodding as you explain, “I think he could be funny. And he can be dry back in the date and it not be awkward like it usually is.”

You’ve seen enough Arctic Monkey interviews to tell that Alex absolutely hates having to do them. Either not having the words or not wanting to give away too much, it makes him seem awkward, which is a sharp contrast to his amazing lyricism.

But Chicken Shop Dates are for the satire of it and you’re very good at pretending to be dry when you slip into your character. So Alex Turner is a prime example of someone who would be an excellent candidate for your show. Perhaps even more suited than Matty, but you’ll keep that to yourself.

What you do tell Flo though, is your alternate idea, “Me and Amelia were talking though, we think a double date where we sit down with him and Miles would be hilarious.”

“It would,” She gasps, covering her mouth with her hand before she starts giggling at the mere thought, “Oh my god.”

Miles would be absolutely hilarious. And the side of Alex that he brings out would make it even funnier. Flo laughs as she says, “They would end up flirting with each other and you could interrupt them and say, ‘Excuse me, why are we third wheeling when we’re on a double date’.”

“You’ll have to give me some tips for how to stop that from happening.” You laugh.

She nods, and grins as she says, “I’ll just sit in the corner off camera and scorn them. I’ve got them wrapped around my little finger.”

“I’ll hold you to that when the day arrives.” You chuckle before you take a long sip of your drink.

Organising dates like these on New Years 2022 is something you never in a million years imagined. You can’t help but be a little baffled that this is your reality and not just a hallucination from the amount of alcohol you’ve drank.

“I am down for a date with you whenever you like though, Y/N.” Flo smiles, bringing you out of your thoughts, but you notice she seems to think about it for a moment before adding, “Maybe we could do it before I start showing?”

“Showing…” Your jaw drops a little, but you hesitantly ask, “Are you and Alex…?” but she’s nodding before you can even finish your question.

“Pregnant.” Flo beams, resting her hand on her stomach and nods, “Fourteen weeks, I’m due in early July.”

“Oh my god,” Your eyes well up and you can’t stop yourself from leaning across and hugging her, “Congratulations.”

She chuckles at your reaction but hugs you back tightly, “Thank you, Y/N.”

“I’m so happy for you.” It leaves your mouth before you can stop it, but you don’t care too much because it is the truth.

Flo grins, squeezing you that bit tighter, “Thank you.”

Flo loves seeing people's reactions to the news, and despite you being new to the group she can sense a budding friendship with ease. She already knows you’re going to fit in great and you make Matty happy, so there’s no reason not to be your friend. Not to mention, your reaction is so wholesome considering you don’t know her all that well.

“Sorry,” You say when you let her go, and you drunkenly ramble on, explaining why there's a tear in your eye. “I know you don’t know me but I feel like I’ve known you for ages and I’m just really happy for you.”

“That’s okay, thank you.” She smiles, her heart melting at just how genuinely over the moon you seem for her, “You’re so lovely.”

“I'm so happy for you both.” You repeat yourself, making a mental note that you need to congratulate Alex when you see him again. But then you catch your volume and you control yourself, “Sorry I shouldn’t be so loud. Are you keeping it under wraps or does everyone here know?”

Flo smiles at you being worried for her, especially after she just openly told you, but it's nice to know you respect her privacy. From you apologising, something which you didn’t need to do, she can tell that you’re trustworthy enough with the information and Matty’s definitely found himself a good egg.

“Most of our little group know, like the band and Charli, all the close ones anyway. We’re letting everyone else find out when the little one arrives or when they catch me showing.” Flo explains.

“We told Matty the other day when he came to see us, he cried like a baby.” Flo laughs as she recalls, “Hugged me for about ten minutes straight and then him and Alex were both crying at one point... It was really amusing.”

“That would have been the best news for him.” You smile, picturing it so easily in your head and it makes your heart melt. You have to tell her, “He speaks so highly of you, as he should. I’m really not surprised he got emotional.”

“Christ, if he speaks highly of me, you should hear the way he speaks about you.” She grins, “You were all he could talk about the other day apart from mine and Alex’s surprise.”

Immediately, your cheeks are heating up, “Oh god.”

You pray to every god that there might be that he didn’t let slip the filth you were texting each other the day he was at theirs in Sheffield now.

“Nothing to worry about.” Flo seems to sense you cringing so she assures you, “He’s just being very cute, as he should. You seem amazing, he didn’t sell you short.”

That makes your heart melt, at both the fact Matty had been talking about you to his friends, and the fact that Flo of all people actually thinks you’re amazing. It means a lot coming from someone like her who you’ve looked up to for a long time.

Directing the subject away from yourself, you ask her about her and her art. Both of you chat for a long while about it with Flo trying to explain how she does different things when you ask her, and she ends up saying that you’ll have to join Matty when he next visits so you can see her home studio. She even says she will give you a lesson and you jump at the chance. The only catch was that you had to teach her more Spanish as you did and that was easy to agree to.

The subject moves on to George and Charli and how cute they are, but also your love for Charli’s music. And then it moves on to both of your love for live music and Flo was just telling you about how she’d joined Alex on the previous leg of Arctic Monkeys tour before Christmas.

She also tells you that the tour is how she found out she was pregnant. Flo had apparently been sick the few mornings they were travelling via plane and she went to the doctor asking for something to help with travel sickness and the doctor ended up surprising her by asking if she could be pregnant after she mentioned that she’d never been travel sick before.

Thankfully Alex waited in the waiting room at the doctors with her in whatever country they were in and she ended up doing a pregnancy test there and then and it came back positive. And Flo was just beginning to tell you that she was glad that there wasn’t much left of the tour and they could fly home for Christmas just a week after they found out, but she gets distracted.

You catch Flo’s eyes flick to the door and you follow her gaze when she presses her lips together to hide her amusement. And you understand why when you see Matty pressing into the room and continuing his dance to S&M by Rihanna.

He’s quite amusing, his arms waving in every direction, letting the music seemingly control his body as he intently sways his hips to the beat and sings his heart out to every line of the chorus.

And you’re both amused until he stops his singing when he lifts his hand up and puts the lit cigarette he has in his hand into his mouth.

“What are you doing? Don’t smoke inside.” Flo scolds Matty, giving him a dirty look that only an old friend could give someone, “It's their new house!”

“Yeah, George’s new house, Wheels.” Matty raises his eyebrows and reminds her, “When doesn’t the tree have a spliff in hand?”

“Well it’s not for you to get your fag ash all over.” You tell him, plucking it from his lips and holding it so he has to follow you, “Come on we can go outside.”

Matty frowns, looking between you and Flo as he pouts, but takes your hand, “I already don’t like that you’re teaming up on me.”

“Get used to it,” Flo smugly grins, “I’m going to be inviting her round without you soon enough.”

Matty frowns and scoffs, “Rude.”

“Don’t cry about it.” You fake a pout and you hear Flo laughing as you continue to pull the man who’s eager to get his cigarette back outside.

That apparently doesn’t mean he can’t tease you on the way though, as Matty cocks his head to the side a little and raises his eyebrows as he says, “You’re getting brave, baby.”

“Mhmm,” You grin, “Says the one who’s obsessed with me.”

As you make it through the sea of dancers, you make it outside to the patio and as the curly haired brunette steals his cigarette back, and he wraps and arm around you, pulling you so you're against his chest when he asks, “Remind me, who was on your blanket you got for Christmas?”

In some way you’re glad that nothing seems to have changed now you’ve slept together. Somewhere in the back of your mind you were somewhat worried about it, but considering he’s still trying to make you all blushy and flustered, you know that nothing has changed and you’re really grateful for that.

“The one you got me was plain actually.” You smile and bat your lashes at him, acting dumb to what he actually means.

He doesn’t buy your act so he rolls his eyes, “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Sighing, you don’t let him have the pleasure of you agreeing to what he’s insinuating, “Yeah but you don’t need an ego boost right now.”

Smugly, he puffs his chest out and lets a teasing grin tug at the corner of his lips, “I always do.”

But you won’t have him feeling smug for too long, “Oh right, sorry. I forgot, my cute short king.” Your mocking smile shines on your face, his jaw drops at your audacity.

“I’ll confiscate your boots.” Matty warns with a raise of his eyebrows, as if that would be enough to scare you from provoking him.

Clicking your tongue, you quip back not believing he’d actually do it, “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Ye–” Matty starts but you interrupt him by pressing your lips to his.

You don’t need to hear his empty threats because he’d just be wasting his breath and precious time you could spend kissing which is exactly why you pounce on his lips. He tastes like wine and cigarettes, so Matty, and the fact that you’re growing familiar to that, to him, makes you grow warm inside.

Fingers tangling in his curls, you tug on his hair and he lets a hum of satisfaction out. You give him one back, when his arm squeezes you tighter and pulls you flush against his front.

You kiss until your lungs are aching for oxygen and you find yourself remembering where you’re at when you lean back to see him and your senses seem to take in your surroundings again.

For a couple seconds you scan his face and your hand comes up to his face so you can rub circles on his cheek with the pad of your thumb. Matty melts under your touch, eyes fluttering closed until you stop your ghostly touch on his skin and lean in to whisper in his ear, “You can take them off later.”

His lips fall on your neck and you can feel him smirking then before he leaves a couple of kisses under your jaw, “I hope I can take more than just those off later.” He replies, letting his hand fall a bit from your lower back so he can give your arse a little squeeze.

You grin, holding back from withdrawing into a flustered mess as you promise, “Whatever you like.” before you kiss him again.

As you stand outside with him, Matty slips off his blazer when he realises you’re a little colder than you’re letting on. It warms your heart that he takes it off and just puts it over your shoulders before slipping his arms around your waist and hugging himself into you.

The both of you stay outside chatting and stealing the odd kiss after he finishes his cigarette but then you hear commotion from inside and the music goes down for the moment and you hear George’s voice through the speakers saying, “Five minute warning guys, we want everyone in here by the time the countdown starts!”

Matty sighs, “We best go inside.” and releases you from his hold.

“You’re right.” You nod, and you quickly slip your arms through the sleeves of his blazer before you take the hand he’s offering you.

Once you do, you notice how Matty’s grinning at you and you raise your eyebrows silently asking why and he explains, “I’ve lost that now, haven’t I?”

“Oh yeah,” You chuckle, and as you walk into the now very crowded room, you tell him, “You’ve lucky you got your shirt back to be honest.”

Matty laughs at that and you both weave yourself through the dancing people. You notice that as the last song before midnight is playing both George and Charli are back having fun on the decks, being amazing hosts like you knew they would be. You just know that the set after it hits midnight is going to pop off and you’re so ready.

You notice that Ross is nowhere to be found, and you can’t help but chuckle at the thought of him off socialising somewhere and missing the countdown because of it, so you’ll be sure to comment on that when you next see him. However, you do manage to spot other now recognisable faces, you see Alex and Flo near the entrance to the other room but you can’t help but smile when you notice the way that they’re grinning at each other as they talk over the music. They are so madly in love, it’s so clear to see and your heart melts for them.

But not as much as it does when Matty stops you both and he wraps his arms around your waist, making sure you keep pressed against him. You grin and wrap your arms around his neck letting them loosely hang over his shoulders.

He’s moving you both to the beat a little which you don’t mind and he sings along a bit, but as Charli calls, “Two minutes!” you feel like you need to tell him a little more about you.

“You know, I’ve not had a New Years kiss that wasn’t Amelia for a long time.”

Matty’s eyes go a little wide at that, and he tells you, “Surprises me.”

“Why?” You ask curiously.

“Because you’re gorgeous,” Matty states simply, like it’s obvious that is it, “Do you know how difficult it’s been not to kiss you every second we’ve been here?”

Embracing the way your cheeks heat up at that, you just nod and flip it round on him, “I do actually.”

Because it has been difficult to keep away from him when you’d been so clingy in the afternoon. And just from the way his curls fall and the grin on his face, he’s difficult not to want to kiss in general, let alone when he’s being all flirty and adorable with you.

Matty finds himself blushing that, and you love that you can make him get a little flustered too. You’ll certainly endeavour to be the one causing the blushing more often.

To combat the teasing he knows you’re about to give him for getting shy, Matty leans in to kiss you, but you pull back before he makes contact, “Ah, it’s not midnight yet.”

“Nasty.” The curly headed singer pouts but you just giggle knowing he’ll survive.

But thankfully Matty doesn’t have to wait long for his moment because before either of you know it everyone around you starts shouting, “Ten! Nine! Eight!-”

And it's the way you both can’t take your eyes off each other as you join in for the last few seconds, “Three! Two! One!”

“Happy New Year Baby.” Matty grins and you can’t bring yourself to say it back right now, you’re too eager for his lips on your own.

Your fingers rooted into his curls by the time everyone got to 1, so you don’t hesitate to pull him in and kiss him how you’d been longing to since you got here. This time neither of you care that anyone else is around because most of them are doing exactly the same.

Matty pulls your waist closer so you couldn’t escape if you even wanted to, and you really don’t want to. This feels like one of those moments in life that you wish you could bottle up and savour the feeling.

It’s an overwhelming sense of joy and happiness that you don’t think you’ll ever forget. Never in your life did you think you would be seriously kissing Matty Healy on New Years and he would be holding you against him like he never wanted to let you go. You can’t imagine ever taking the feeling of being in his arms for granted, or the way your stomach floods with butterflies when he deepens the kiss as people cheer and start to dance around you again.

And because you’re not quite done savouring the moment, when he goes to pull away you pull that little bit tighter on his curls to keep him in the kiss for a second or two longer. You certainly don’t think there’s ever been a better start to a new year.

“Happy New Year.” You grin and Matty can’t just let that be it.

He leans in and pecks your lips over and over until the both of you are giggling and you kiss him properly again. Truthfully, he never wants to let you go, and that may partly be the alcohol talking as he knows it would be impractical for you both but he’s truly obsessed with you. Matty wants nothing more than this with you all the time.

It’s truly a shame the moment had to end, but Matty will forgive only because it's his best mate who bursts your little bubble by grabbing everyone's attention.

George played a song to kick off the new year, one that was great but no one really payed attention to, so you understand why they interrupt everyone now and announce, “Me and Charli wanted to kick off 2023 in the right way, with some new music.”

At that your jaw drops and you can’t help but say a rhetorical, “What?” as excitement starts to bubble through you.

“So we’re sharing our remix of Ms Caroline Polochek’s new song Welcome To My Island.” Charli tells everyone and you’re already excited. You can’t believe you’ve about to get a new Charli and George song. 2023 is already the fucking best.

“Oh my god,” Matty draws your attention back to him as he takes your hand, “Where’s Wheels?”

“She's over there with Alex.” You nod, and Matty moves the both of you over to the couple and you say a quick happy new year when you get to them but you’re interrupted.

“There’s no time for hugging,” Matty waves his hands stopping you from hugging Alex, instead he points at you and Flo as he says, “I need your two’s reactions to this song!”

You narrow your eyes a little and ask, “You’ve already heard it?”

“Of course.” Matty tuts like it is common knowledge when you didn’t know the song existed until 20 seconds ago. But you let it go because his excitement is through the roof as he says, “I cannot wait to see this.”

“Am I going to need to remind her she's married again?” Alex asks Matty, and it's impossible for you not to get more excited when Matty nods with wide eyes, meaning it seriously.

And that alone makes you so excited.

“You guys ready?” Charli asks and of course everyone says a loud ‘yes’.

But the performer in her has her shouting louder, “I said, are you guys ready?!”

“Yes!” You and Flo yell back at the top of your lungs and Charli smirks at the room before saying, “Play it baby.”

You don’t think you’ve been this excited for new music since Being Funny dropped, but you knew that was coming. This has just been sprung upon you and you’re feeling all of the build up of emotions you usually do when hearing a new song in the span of a minute.

The intro to the song starts and it easily captures everyone's attention with the distorted vocals and heavy ambient sounds. But as soon as the lyrics kick in you know already that you’re going to love it, and not just because mother and father created it.

You watch with a grin on your face as Charli sings along to her own song, “I like to live my life luxurious, eating caviar toast, buying out the Ritz,” and you absolutely fucking love how much she backs her own music and knows wholeheartedly that its a bop and sings it proudly.

“I won't lie, yeah, I've always been afraid to commit / But now I've fallen so hard, it's a total eclipse,” This has you pouting because you’re so beyond thrilled that Charli is happy and found her man finally.

But before you can dote on that line too much, the next has you gasping for air, “'Cause it's emotional and physical and so legit / He's got my legs wide out like banana split,”

Matty watches as both yours and Flo’s eyes go wide, but it's your jaw dropping and Flo grabbing your arm and he can’t help but let out a laugh. You both see Charli with a shit eating grin on her face at the dj deck with George and you see the drummer avoid eye contact with everyone and pay sole attention to his deck, more than likely pretending to queue up the next song so people don’t pay attention to him blushing.

“It was love at first sight from the moment wе kissed / I want a white dress, country sidе house, and kids,” Once again, this has you and Flo clutching each other as you react to how wholesome this couple can be when they aren’t being sinfully dirty.

Charli has been a friend of yours and Amelia’s for a while now, you’d met her at an event you were given tickets to back in 2019 and you partied the night away with her. You’ve never seen her happier than she is now and the fact she’s with a member of your favourite band just makes their relationship all that more special to you. Especially now as she can picture herself marrying him.

George Daniel is a lucky bastard and you really hope he knows it.

When you tune back in, you hear Charli’s voice saying, “I told him, ‘Catch a flight, see if you can handle it / And if you can then, welcome to my island, bitch’.”

The beat drops and you all but scream and start dancing in your spot, moving your head to the beat and letting your hair fly around everywhere. Matty can’t help but smile as he watches you, you’re looking at Charli and George like they are something otherworldly, he can’t help but picture you looking like that at his gigs, or he hopes you look that happy anyway.

“This is so fucking good!” You grin as you catch Matty’s gaze and he nods at you, still loving your reaction.

The second verse comes back in and you calm down a little, not dancing as much, so you can still pay attention to the song and lyrics, but you're still bobbing your head to the beat. And both you and his best friend don’t disappoint with your reactions.

“'Cause I can be a good girl, d,” Has your jaw on the ground, but what has both you and Flo screaming is the line, “Or you can drive me down to Florida and fuck me for days,”

“Oh I’m so fucking jealous of that bitch.” Flo says loud enough for you to hear and you turn to her laughing and nod in agreement.

“I'm jealous of both of them.” You nod, as you genuinely don't know who you’re more jealous of. It’s definitely a close call.

“Oh yes! You’re fruity like me,” Flo gasps and her grin is huge as he clutches your arm again, “I fucking love you.”

The song plays out and everyone is cheering for the couple, you and Flo amongst the loudest of the group, no doubt making both Matty and Alex roll their eyes but you love the couple so much you don’t care.

Charli and George play the song once more and again you’re taken aback by the filthy lines in the song. You really adore it, they are such a power couple and this song is just fucking amazing.

Everyone in the house is enjoying the new song, Flo and you are dancing to it softly but the one going all out for it is, of course, Matty.

You watch as he goes up to George and yells out something in his ear, brows furrowed in enjoyment as he continues to move to the beat. Curls bouncing with every move he makes, his smile is so big his eyes crinkle and it’s so infectious, it makes you smile almost as hard.

Flo catches the way you’re looking at him and you don’t even notice she’s been watching you until she leans closer to you.

“Tip for later for you Y/N.” She says into your ear, snapping you out from the trane you were on, “Pull him in by his belt loops and bite his lip when you kiss him, he will be putty in your hands in seconds.”

She gives you a wink before she stands back up straight and you giggle, watching her in awe, “I love that you’re telling me this.”

Shrugging with a smirk on her face, Flo continues to say, “Well, I have lots of knowledge about him that can be put to better use now I'm tied down.”

You take a deep breath when you feel the word vomit coming, if you weren’t this tipsy you would definitely hold yourself back from spilling out all the knowledge you have of them. “I know you don't know me and it sounds weird to say but I was really pleased for you and Alex when I found out you got married. I had been a fan of the 1975 since I was nineteen so I was gutted about you and Matty when we found out you split at the time, but I always thought you and Alex were really cute together.”

Not even the loud music makes you miss the gasp Flo lets out, “Oh my god, were you a fan that liked both bands?”

You nod and smile softly at her, hoping it doesn’t seem weird, “Yeah, I always thought the hatred was weird, the music and aesthetic went hand in hand in 2013 so I really don't understand why there was so much animosity between the fans.”

She agrees with a low hum, recalling the many times she’d thought the same throughout the years but then she looks at you with the hints of a smirk showing on her face, “You just liked The 1975 better though I'm assuming?”

Pressing your lips together, you try not to smile when you’re caught, “What gave me away?” You pull on the sleeves of Matty’s blazer making sure it covers your riot tattoo, trying to see if she had noticed it or if she was just making a lucky guess.

But Flo easily replies, “Matty’s love bites on your neck might have something to do with it?” and that’s enough for your jaw to drop.

Instantly, your hand goes up to the side of your neck, “No, please tell me you’re joking?” You change sides because you’re not even sure where the bruise she’s talking about is.

Stifling a laugh, Flo shakes her head, “Nope, sorry. He’s a menace.”

“Oh for fucks sake, I checked before we left and there wasn’t a mark on me.” You were sure you hadn’t seen one when you’d taken the pictures to send Amelia, “Not me about to go and ask Charli for some concealer.” You joke a bit but you’re actually considering, looking over to the singer and see where you could go through to go up to her.

Flo quickly eases your worries, “Don’t bother, we're all friends here.” Her arm comes around your waist to hug you into her side and she pinches your waist when she says, “As long as he showed you a good time, because if not, tell me and I will slate him.”

You see she’s completely serious about it when you turn to her, “No, you don’t need to do that… He was very… accommodating.” You muster with heat coming up to your cheeks, “I can’t believe I just said that to you.”

Seeing how you bring one of your hands up to cool down your cheeks, she lets go of her hold around your waist and grabs your wrist softly, “No, don't be embarrassed. It’s good to hear he still knows what he’s doing.” You cackle at that but the laughter is caught short when she adds, “Oh he’s got a bit of a degrading kink too, so have fun with that one.”

You’re left speechless with that bit of information, your brain going places in a split second and it’s all the scenarios popping in your head that have you heating up entirely. You shouldn’t be thinking all of this in public and here, in front of Flo, but you are and it seems like there’s no way of controlling your thoughts anymore.

Flo laughs watching your face, knowing just exactly what’s going on in that mind of yours but it seems you’re saved by the bell when Alex comes back to where you two are at and, after wrapping his arms around Flo’s middle, he rests his chin on her shoulder and is curious to find out what he’s just walked into.

“Hello again Y/N, is my wife tormenting you yet?” He knows that face of hers so well and it only could mean trouble, so he hopes he’s come to aid you. He knows first hand just how she can be, he absolutely loves it though, Flo’s always keeping him on his toes and he’d have it no other way.

Alex is the slightest bit surprised when you chuckle and give him an answer he wasn’t expecting, “No, she's lovely.”

He wasn’t going to refute, because it was the truth and he guessed you wanted to keep whatever had just happened between you two.

So Alex brings up a topic, he knows you will be rather interested in, “As I recall, you and Amelia asked Helders for a date with me at Reading.”

You smile for a second before you fake pout to say, “We did, very sad. I'm still waiting to hear something official.” But then you go back to your serious self to admit, “It's why I asked Matty to pester you both.”

He offers you a shy smile, “What sort of comments would I be in for and I’ll think about it.”

You almost let yourself gasp aloud but you have to force yourself to keep your cool so you don’t blow your one chance of having him on a Chicken Shop Date.

So quickly thinking about the jokes you’d come up with when Amelia and you started daydreaming about having Alex or Drake or Andrew over in a video, you recall one that will definitely make Flo laugh, “Oh you know, I’d make a joke like ‘Do you remember when you had your goatee?’ and you would say…”

The pause elongates as he’s hesitant to reply but then an “I do.” falls from his lips slowly after a few seconds.

“And I would go, ‘Yeah and so do we, so this is a public service announcement begging you never to do it again’.”

Flo bursts out laughing at that, and Alex pretends like he’s not amused and lets his jaw hang open, before saying a blunt, “Wow.”

“I fucking love you.” Flo cackles and throws her arms around your shoulders, Alex’s hold on her fell when she did that so you wrap your arms around her waist and over her shoulder you can see Alex smiling brightly at you.

You reciprocate the smile, not only because that’s how you know he actually found that funny, but because you also feel so incredibly welcome when you’re with them and everyone in their friend group for that matter, and that truly means the world to you and your overthinking habits.

It’s so easy to not notice time flying past when you’re speaking to Flo, both of you giggling at the stories you tell each other. Especially when she has so much to tell you about Matty’s teenage years, how much of a menace he’s always been and how the lads thought she was lying about knowing the Monkeys.

She’s got so many anecdotes that you know you would’ve died to know when you had just gotten into the band and it just makes you incredibly giddy that you get to hear them all from her now. That, mixed with the alcohol in your system only has you becoming more and more bubbly to the point you have to force yourself to stop giggling so much when you start hiccuping.

Flo then changes the topic onto you again, wanting to know of you and Amelia’s future endeavours and it fills you up with warmth when she shrieks loudly and envelopes you in a tight hug when you tell her you’ve got the Golden Globes coming up soon.

Seems like talking about how you and Amelia are preparing for it, learning a great amount of information about all the nominees and some more attendees, invokes her somehow because all of the sudden you hear a slurred “Oh Y/N!” and you don’t even have to turn around to know it is none other than your best friend.

“Ames!” Grinning, you open your arms for her to walk into your embrace.

You smile even brighter when she throws herself to you and screams “Happy new year!” into your ear, her words tangling on the tip of her tongue from what you can imagine the good amount of alcohol she’s already had before coming here.

“Happy new year!” You say back in her ear only a little lower so you don’t hurt her ear like she’s just done yours with her volume.

When she pulls away, you should’ve known it was coming: she cups your face with both her hands and brings you in for a quick kiss.

The second she pulls away from you, she says, “Now that’s a happy new year!” with a loopy smile and half lidded eyes and that sight has you cackling out loud.

Leaving a loud kiss on her cheek, you give her another hug, “Love you.” And with a squeeze of her waist, you loosen up your hold on her to ask, “Where were you?!”

“I couldn’t abandon Zoe before midnight and I knew you’d be right as rain here. I’ve missed you” She speaks so fast, your laughter escapes you faster than you can think of holding it when she goes to hug you again.

Amelia is very clingy when she’s drunk and it’s always made you laugh, from getting all of her affection to when she got in trouble for being overly affectionate with people at parties.

“You saw me yesterday.” You state biting your tongue not to laugh at her again.

“Yes but you’re all grown up now.” She coos at you like you’re a little kid, pinching your cheeks.

Smacking her hands away from your face, you tell her to “Stop.”

Her need to hear the details of your evening makes her dismiss your aversion for her touch, “How was it?” The smirk on her face and the pinch she gives your waist makes your face heat up and you thank everything that she’s too gone to tease you about it.

“Amazing.” Is the only thing you tell her hoping that’s enough for now.

And surprisingly it is, because she nods with pursed lips and a raise of her eyebrows, “Good.” but you know that she wants to be told more later from just the look in her eyes.

Deciding to ignore her silent petition, you take a hold of her hand and intertwine your fingers so she can follow you around the house, “Come on now, we gotta introduce you to some people.”

Firstly, you go to the kitchen since you wanted another drink and by lucky chance you see a head of curls you had lost a bit ago dancing to the beat of the song currently playing and pouring some red in his glass.

You faintly hear him click his tongue over the music, “If it isn’t Amelia Dimoldenberg.” Matty opens his arms at her with a drunk smile that reaches his eyes.

Amelia rolls her eyes but can’t help the smile that appears on her face, “Hello Matthew. Happy new year.”

Your best friend steps into his arms and he hugs her tightly for a few seconds as he greets her, “Happy new year Dimz.” And when he pulls back, he adds, “Thought you weren’t coming.”

“You think I’d miss this? Absolutely not.” Amelia quickly replies and then adds, “Maybe if it was your party but this is Charli and George.” like it was dead obvious just to taunt him a bit.

Matty scoffs, letting his jaw fall in offence and mutters, “Bitch.” at her just loud enough for you both to hear him.

Amelia cackles loudly at his reaction, you giggling right beside her and she blows him a kiss just to rub it in some more.

The singer rolls his eyes then, taking a sip of his drink and then says, “I’m a kind person unlike you so what’d you like to drink?”

His offer is about to be accepted as you see Amelia thinking for a few seconds and about to speak but you interject before she can suggest anything, “Nothing, she’s had enough.”

She knows she’s been stumbling a bit - a lot - and her speech is a little slurred but it’s not like she’s blacked out yet so she can handle some more, “Christ, Y/N, don’t be boring. Get me a vodka lime and soda please Matty.”

Matty nods and he snorts to himself when you playfully roll your eyes at her request, “Alright, I’ll be a minute.” But your attitude falls when he asks, “You want a refill baby?”

A soft pout appears on your face as you say, “Please?” and it makes him grin bigger.

“‘Course.” He says and turns to get on with making your drinks.

Amelia might be a bit drunk but she doesn’t miss the way you stare at Matty’s back when he’s moving around the kitchen, excusing himself to people around so he can grab a glass for Amelia.

Your best friend loves seeing you this happy, and she will definitely make a mental note to ask you all about the date tomorrow but for now at least she wants you to catch her up on what’s been happening whilst she’s not been here.

“Where’s the rest of the gang then?” Her brain is so caught up with the whole ambient and the amount of people around that she even forgets she caught Ross when she came in.

Licking your lips, you start listing, “Adam’s home, Ross disappeared a while ago, and you missed the hottest, filthiest, most iconic song from Charli and George.”

Her recount of seeing Ross completely flies off her mind when she hears the last bit, “What?!” Amelia shouts and then covers her mouth with her hands in shock.

“Yep.” You nod slowly, watching the disappointment wash all over her, “They did a remix to one of Caroline Polachek’s singles and, bloody hell.” You almost laugh when she starts pouting at you like you could do something about it, “T’was hot.”

Grabbing your hand, she shakes your arm, “I’m willing to do anything for them to play it again.” You laugh at her acting like a child and it gets louder when she switches to a very serious facial expression and sternly emphasises, “Anything.”

Biting your tongue, you raise your eyebrows and tell her, “I’m sure if you say please they will play it again.” slowly, like you would to try and get a child to behave correctly in public.

“I will kiss Charli.” Amelia states with a proud smile, as if knowing by heart that’d work.

Cackling, you point out her actual intention, “I think that’d be for yourself not for the good of the collective.”

And your best friend has no issue shrugging and agreeing with you, “True. But I will.”

“Have fun fighting George.” You tell her jokingly, and you’re about to ask her how Zoe was doing when she loudly fantasises about the scenario you’ve just said.

“Oh I would love to wrestle that man.” It sounds like she almost sighs as she daydreams about that and you can’t help but let your jaw fall and scoff out a laugh.

You scorn her by poking her ribs, “Amelia!” and she loudly yelps in response.

Matty comes back just in time to catch Amelia giggling away after she’s screeched and you with a shocked look on your face, “What’s she saying now?”

He’s holding your drink out for you to take and you thank him with a blown kiss before you go and explain, “How she’s willing to do anything for Charli and George to play their new remix.”

He shakes his head as he laughs and asks, “Anything?” like he needs confirmation.

Raising your eyebrows, you nod your head, “Anything.”

His curls bounce as he turns to shake his head at Amelia who’s laughter is still bubbling up from her chest, “Oh Dimz, you’re thirsty aren’t you? Lucky for you I got you a drink.” He holds out her glass and she gets it the quickest her drunk self can.

She clicks her tongue and takes a gulp of her drink, “Piss off Healy, not as thirsty as you.” Matty is about to ask why when she looks at him like he’s challenging him, “Need I remind you it was you who requested it was Y/N to do the date with you?”

The “What?” that instantly falls from your lips makes your best friend smile proudly at herself for putting your date on the spot with just a simple bit of information.

Your best friend turns to look at you and smirks as she reiterates, “Yes he did.”

Like a grumpy child, he frowns and refutes her, “No I didn’t.”

But Amelia points at him with an accusatory finger, calling him out for trying to lie about it, “Yes you did! At the NME Awards, I remember that conversation perfectly.”

You’re looking at Amelia and you know she isn’t lying so then you turn to look at Matty when he chats back with, “I think your memories are a bit clouded from how much you’ve had to drink.” and you know that he’s full of shit.

You cackle when Amelia fakes being impressed and quips back saying, “Wow, you’re a great gaslighter but no. You did.”

Once you see Matty has nothing to come back with and is just standing there with pressed lips and a frown directed at Amelia, you leap to hug him over his shoulders and coo in his ear, “Awh! You’re obsessed with me!” You leave a loud kiss on his cheek and seeing how he’s blushing already, you add “My cute little simp.” and pat the top of his head to tease him some more.

He pulls back slightly so he can stare at you and tries to warn you, “Call me little again and–”

You interrupt him just so you can challenge him to finish with a raised eyebrow, “And what baby?”

And just like you wanted to, he remains silent as he continues to blush under your gaze. You love it when it’s him flustered because of you, it fills you up with a buzzing feeling that you enjoy every time.

“That’s what I thought.” You pat his chest before letting go of him and take a step back to stand beside Amelia again with a victorious smirk.

“Did you just call him short?” Flo walks up to you and interrupts the moment with a grin on her face, “He always looks like that if you comment about his height.”

Matty scoffs loudly at that, “Oh piss off the lot of you. Didn’t come here to be bullied.”

Flo only waves him off like he’s overreacting for no reason, “Don’t cry about it, same height as Alex, remember?” The mocking grin on her face has you holding back your giggles.

Matty raises his eyebrows, a small smile playing on his lips as he jokes, “Let’s not start comparing me and Alex, don’t want to get you all confused again.”

“You’ve got ten seconds to run.” Flo warns him with raised eyebrows and Matty chuckles and very quickly kisses your lips before bolting from the room. Once he disappears, she chuckles and turns towards Amelia as she says, “Now he’s gone, hi! I’m such a big fan.”

Their pleasantries are exchanged and Flo tells your best friend about her love for the both of you and your show and it warms your heart all over again hearing how earnestly she’s saying it.

Not long after, you hear the hostess squealing from the door, “Oh my god, Dimz is here!” and you and Flo watch as Charli runs up to Amelia and throws her arms around her.

It’s still a little bit mental to you that Charli holds both you and Amelia in such high regard. It feels like a privilege to be called a friend by her and you know that she doesn’t mean it in an industry way. She genuinely considers the both of you a friend and that is one of the most heart warming things that you don’t think you’ll get used to for a long time yet.

After a long hug and a quick chat asking what took her so long, Matty comes back into the room, once again dancing and he grins at you as he does. It’s too hard not to smile back at his playful manner and when he holds his hand out to you, you take it.

This prompts the curly headed brunette to pull you towards him but he raises his arm so you’re forced to twirl around which has you giggling and feeling like a princess. He makes your heart stutter again when he pulls you close and he hugs your waist as he tells you, “You look so pretty baby.”

The ache in your chest gets a little bit more intense hearing that, and you can’t stop yourself from stealing a kiss from him. No, you’re not big on PDA but when you’re tipsy and happy you tend to let things slide so you indulge yourself in having his lips back on your own.

It doesn’t last for long because it’s such a sweet and innocent kiss, but when you pull away and you both stay close. You can feel that overwhelming sense of happiness bubbling through you but it gets more intense when you can feel his smile against your lips and you’re certain he can feel yours, and it's that that prompts the both of you to share another kiss despite the smiling making it difficult.

After that sweet little moment of bliss, you move both of you back over to the others where you’re quickly dragged out of Matty’s embrace and into the other singer you fancy.

“Matty go and get shots for us all,” Charli asks as she hugs both you and Amelia into her, “Please, you promised me.”

“Charli.” Matty sighs, almost pouting, “What am I? A mule?”

“Pleaseeee,” Charli coos loudly, almost begging. But when that doesn’t seem to be working, she uses you to further her ambitions. Her arm falls from Amelia then and she uses her free hand to sweetly cup your jaw, like she's putting you up for display, as she tells him, “Your woman wants a shot, you don't wanna upset her more after what you said earlier do you.”

Charli looks to you then for back up and immediately you nod at her and then at him as if that was what you were after all along. And you see him shake his head slightly at you, playfully scorning you for taking her side.

But it makes him do as he’s told, but not before looking at Charli again and saying, “Blackmail is not a good look on you.”

“Everything is a good look on me,” Charli laughs, loving that the only response he could muster was a fake insult and not a blatant refusal. She asks, “Did you see my last album cover?”

Matty pulls a face and silently mimics her making Flo and Amelia laugh, but you find yourself answering Charli’s question, nodding, “Yeah, it was hot.”

“Awh, thank you baby.” Charli giggles and kisses your cheek, but her saying Matty’s nickname for you has you that little bit more flustered than when Matty does it.

Not so surprisingly this makes Matty frown and he wanders off to get the requested drinks for everyone. Charli shouts after him, “Bring them outside Matthew.” and he flicks his middle finger up as he disappears back into the sea of people as he heads to the kitchen.

Needing some air, Charli moves the three of you outside, Flo staying behind because someone quickly pulled her for a chat but she said she would meet you out there. You can’t lie, you’re thankful for the cool air but also for Matty’s blazer because the temperature has dropped significantly now.

It’s not long before Matty comes back with a makeshift tray, which is a plate of shots for everyone and he’s brought George along with him. He tells you all, “Wheels and Al are coming to do them too so we need to wait a minute so we’re all here.”

Charli asks, looking a little confused, “Where’s Ross?”

George, Matty, and you shake your heads, and you tell her, “Not seen him since just after we first got here.”

“He left.” Amelia surprises you all by announcing.

You frown at that knowing she literally just got here. So you ask, “How do you know?”

“He was leaving as I was coming in.” She tells you, “We said a hasty ‘hi’ and ‘bye’.”

Matty questions her then though, “Why such a hurry?”

But as soon as you catch your best friend's smirk and slight hesitancy to answer, you know exactly why.

Taking a sip of her drink to mute her grin slightly, she lets it slip that, “He had some company…”

A victorious grin is on your face as you turn to Matty and say loudly, “I fucking told you.”

“Told him what?” Amelia asks on behalf of the group because everyone is confused at your small outburst.

You tell your friends, “That people are queuing up for Ross now more than they are him.”

“Oh yeah.” Charli nods in agreement.

But Matty is having none of it. He shakes his head, and counters with a loud, “There’s no fucking way.”

“What's all this?” Flo asks, her and Alex walking up and joining your huddle.

And you don’t waste a second to tell her what you’re going on about, “Matty doesn’t believe that people have the hots for Ross more than him these days.”

“Matty, that isn't news, that's a common fact.” Flo agrees, narrowing her eyes at her friend as if she’s disappointed he didn't already know, “Have you checked twitter lately?”

“Er no.” The curly haired brunette frowns, still clearly in complete denial.

“Well you need to because it’s all about Ross these days.” Flo quips back loving the opportunity to collectively humble the singer.

Matty scoffs, “That’s bullshit, they get all teary eyed if they see me in anything other than a suit. Ross doesn’t get that.”

“He does, but why are you even arsed?” Charli asks with a frown, “You have a sexy piece of ass right beside you. She’s all you need.”

Immediately you’re flustered by her saying that in front of the whole group, especially when Amelia giggles a little. You look at the singer, straight into her eyes and tell her, “Stop it.”

Charli grins before teasing, “I’m sure you were saying the opposite to him earlier.”

You can feel Matty’s smirk and everyone else’s smiles for that matter, but instead of losing your backbone, you give her a taste of her own medicine.

“I'm sure you were saying the same to George in Miami.” You fire back with a smirk.

“Oh my god, cat fight.” Alex announces with slight excitement in his voice, but that’s quickly muted when Flo playfully slaps his chest.

“Oh yes, please can we fight?” You joke, knowing it will get Matty all worked up again and sure enough it does.

“Okay!” Matty steps into the middle of you all and he holds his plate of shots in front of him, making you and Charli laugh at the quick intervention. “Shot time.”

“Wheels,” Matty walks up to Flo and he hands her one specifically for her and says, “Strawberry juice, for obvious reasons, but still your favourite.”

The grin that she gives Matty then is so unbelievably warm and you’re not exactly sure what the deeper meaning is but when she looks like she could almost cry at the gesture, your heart skips a beat and she gives him a quick kiss on the cheek as she thanks him. Matty gives everyone else what looks to be a Tequila or Sambuca shot and it turns out that is actually the case.

It was a roulette of sorts as to who would get the Sambuca, the easier option, or the Tequila and it's after those shots that the night becomes a little more difficult to remember. You know that over the next few hours you do a fair few more shots with both Charli, Amelia, and Matty, all on separate occasions, and Matty keeps disappearing and reappearing with new drinks for the both of you between those times. And you know at one point you’re talking to him for so long about everything that comes to both of your minds and you can’t stop grinning at each other.

What you’re not aware of is that when this was happening, you and Matty weren’t as tucked away from the world as you both think you were despite being in the corner of the room. Unbeknown to you, Flo and Alex are watching you chat from across the room from their spot on the settee.

They have been watching you both for a few minutes, smiling at each other like fools in love and your eye’s never stray from each other. Matty keeps on absentmindedly playing with the ends of your hair as you chat and you blush every now and again at what he says which just makes both of your smiles bigger.

And subsequently, Alex and Flo’s too from watching you.

Alex smiles and says loud enough for his wife to hear, “He looks happy.”

“Hmmm,” Flo hums, watching the both of you giggling at something you just told him. And it’s easy for her to tell when her best friend is down bad for a girl he likes, but there seems to be something even more special about you. So it’s a bold but true statement when she says, “She’s it for him.”

Alex nods in agreement, seeing it too. And he does hope for Matty’s sake that he has finally found the person he’s meant to be with. The singer wishes him nothing but the best.

But then Alex looks to his wife and sees her smiling at the couple, and he can’t help but whisper for her ears only, “I hope you realise that’s how I look at you, Angel.”

“As you should, husband.” Flo smiles like an idiot when she turns and looks at her man, reminding him in a whisper, “I am carrying your baby.”

“And I’ve never loved you more.” Alex grins before he leans in and kisses his Angel for the millionth time tonight.

More time passes then and you got dragged away from matty about an hour ago after Amelia caught him hugging you from behind as you talked to someone. And when it was just the three of you left, she shook her head and looked at Matty's arm around your waist and said, “And you wonder why I came late.”

And before Matty can accuse her of being jealous, you're laughing when she pulls you away and the singer is left to fend for himself. And you’ve not seen him in a while, other than him delivering you new drinks before he disappears off to interact with other people who keep wanting his attention.

It’s almost 4am when you see Matty properly again, and you’re currently outside with Flo and Alex as he’s having a cigarette and you’re chatting away. He’s making a conscious effort to keep the smoke away from his wife which you think is rather cute of him.

You’ve just been chatting about where Alex is off to on tour next, and you were about to ask him another question until a different but more familiar singer grabs your attention again, “Baby!”

Matty wonders over to you pouting as he points to inside, “They’re teasing me for what happened after our date.”

“Who’s they?” You ask, wanting to thank anyone who was teasing him instead of you.

The curly haired brunette reveals, “Amelia and Charli.”

“Why? What happened after your date?” Alex asks, a little confused.

Matty chuckles, “You’re polite not commenting on her bruised neck Alex I’ll give you that much.”

“Oh well,” This makes Alex go all awkward and stuttery, “I didn’t-”

But his wife saves him the embarrassment. Flo grins, “It’s okay, I already did.”

“Of course you did.” Matty grins at her but his eyes find you again quickly.

His eyes are full of adoration, taking every bit of your face and it’s like it’s just the two of you standing there all of a sudden. His captivating gaze makes you forget you’re in the presence of others, and especially when he says, “I can’t stop thinking about it.” almost out of breath.

And it’s just that, the memory of you desperate to get him off has him struggling to get oxygen to his lungs. God, he still feels so fucking lucky to have witnessed it, he can’t help but want to again.

“Is that right?” You watch his pupils dilate and don’t miss how he licks his lips before looking down at yours and then back up to your eyes.

He nods like he doesn’t even believe you’re asking, “Best night of my fucking life. In fact...”

“Baby,” Matty says, getting down on one knee, “That was the best head in the fucking world, I can’t let you go, please be my girlfriend?”

You're grinning down at him entirely amused because there's absolutely no doubt in your mind that he is joking. So of course you entertain him and smile, pulling on his hand so he stands back up and you ask him, “If I say yes does that mean the blowjob song comes back on the next album?”

With one of his arms coming around your waist, he leans in and says, “Anything you want, baby.” against your lips so they brush together and the faint touch is enough for him to cup your jaw with his free hand and press his lips hard against yours.

It’s all-consuming. The feeling of his mouth on yours, his fingers clutching you tighter as he pulls you flush against him, his curls tangling between your fingers as you pull on them, the hum of satisfaction he gets from it and the one you give him back.

You swear you can feel each other's heart beating out of your chests as Matty deepens the kiss, completely forgetting where you are and the audience in front of you. There’s nothing else but him and you wouldn’t have it any other way. You can’t think of a better way to start your year other than being entirely captivated by him.

And it’s like the alcohol in your systems makes you two even more aware of everything that you’re making the other feel. The butterflies flutter in your stomach and it feels like they’re going so quick that you can feel the hum of their wings in your ears. The pads of your fingers brushing the back of his neck making his skin erupt in goosebumps all over his body and bringing what feels like a shock of electricity to every atom in his body.

You break away when you feel like you can’t do without oxygen any longer and your chests heave and meet in the middle as you try to catch your breath. You giggle against each other's lips, tempting each other to steal a few pecks as your holds on each other loosen up just a little.

“Best head he’s ever had.” Flo frowns as she turns back to her husband.

But Alex finds the whole exchange horrendously amusing. Such a Matty thing to do, declaring the best sexual experience of his life as his ex girlfriend is standing right beside his new one.

“Don't cry,” Alex tries his best not to laugh, he just wraps his arm around Flo, pulling her into him as he reminds her, “There's a reason you married me, Angel.”

“Well yeah, I'm definitely the best head you’ve ever had. Your ex’s are dire,” She rolls her eyes, “Especially the last.”

“No need to lower the tone.” Alex frowns.

Flo just chuckles a little though before saying, “El tono se bajó cuando él se puso de rodillas…” (The tone dropped when he got down on his knees.)

At this you burst out laughing, shocking Matty in the process who just kissed you again but you couldn’t hold in the reaction.

“Lo siento mucho,” (I’m so sorry.) Your hand goes up over your mouth as you turn towards Flo straight away, “Me olvido que ustedes estuvieron juntos.” (I forget you were together.)

“Está bien, solo estoy bromeando.” (It’s fine, I’m just joking.) Flo grins and waves you off.

Matty however kisses your cheek this time as he looks to Flo and says, “You’s best not be talking shit about me.”

“You’ll never know.” You singsong and the curly haired brunette doesn’t seem to like that answer because he playfully scorns you before he traps you in another playful kiss.

It makes Flo and Alex laugh, but the kiss ends up being broken by the sound of gagging getting closer to you both. And when you pull away, you see it's none other than your best friend who was making those noises, now standing beside Alex.

You’re laughing as Matty pulls you into his chest as he says to her, “Dimz, you’re so jealous.” and he kisses your temple.

At that, she raises her eyebrows and corrects him, “Jealous you’ve stolen my best bitch, yes I am.”

“Well I'm sorry but get used to it,” Matty tells you, squeezing you tighter against him, “I'm keeping her.”

You’re giggling into him as your heart swells and you hug him back. Even the mere thought at him wanting to keep you around is making you feel all gooey inside.

The night continues like that: giggling away in Matty’s arms as you continue to dance and chat with your new friends, stealing kisses here and there which grow clumsy the more drinks you have, keeping each other on your toes as you joke about with the rest of the group - until eventually, it catches up to you and you find yourself yawning continuously in the middle of conversations.

It’s 5am when you say your goodbyes to everyone. You thank Charli and George for a great night, and you thank Flo for being so lovely and you congratulate both her and Alex again before they leave. Amelia was out for the count and you and Charli put her to bed in her guest bedroom, both of you leaving kisses on her cheeks. You send your best friend a quick goodnight text that she’ll see in the morning that turns out to have many spelling mistakes, but you don’t notice in the moment.

At the same time, Matty was grabbing your bag from his best mates bedroom before he ordered the taxi and he escorted you out once it arrived. You fell asleep on his shoulder for a few minutes in the taxi which Matty thought was adorable of you but then the next thing Matty knows is the taxi driver waking him up and so the curly haired brunette gently disturbs you from your slumber so you can both get into his house.

The air when you get out of the taxi sobers the both of you up a little bit as it’s bone chilling. But it makes Matty thankful he had the heating scheduled to come on at 5am so he knew inside would already be warm for you both.

Once inside his house, Matty finds himself giggling at you many times. The first being when he sees you take everything in like a little kid at a museum seeing dinosaur skeletons for the first time.

“Ooo this is pretty.” You say in wonder as you walk through one of the archways and approach a wooden side table which has a few empty flower pots next to one that homes a pretty peace lily.

The second time you have him silently laughing is when he’s getting you both a glass of water to take up to bed, after he’s picked you up and placed you on the worktop just beside the sink and he sees you looking over at the windows of his courtyard and you sway a bit as you gasp and point, “Oh wow, I've seen windows like these on Instagram somewhere.”

Matty grins when he suggests, “Maybe on my Instagram baby.”

He snorts when you let out an ‘ooooooo’ in realisation and nod, remembering the many times you had indeed seen it on his social media. Which makes you think of more things you’ve seen on there and after that, you find yourself trying to tick off in your drunk mind what you get to see that you remember from his posts and his instagram stories.

Leading you upstairs to his room he notices that you’re almost searching for something, and you also look confused, so when he gets to his bedroom, he makes sure you’re sitting down safely on his bed when he asks, “What are you looking for?

And his heart feels so incredibly warm when you ask him, “Where's Mayhem?”

You start digging through your bag, finding the makeup wipes you packed earlier and you look all annoyed at yourself when you accidentally pull two out instead of one.

Matty grins at your pouting before you start to take your makeup off, “Mayhem isn't here baby.”

“What? Why?” You ask in a shocked voice, looking up at him as he closes the blinds as morning light is already starting to seep through. “He’s your dog isn't he?”

“Sort of,” Matty explains softly, finding your worry about his dog adorable, “But Mayhem doesn’t live here all the time.”

“But- what-” Your drunk brain doesn’t seem to be able to comprehend such a thought as you try and take your makeup off at the same time as talking.

It’s when you frown and pout a little once you’ve finished with your wipes though that has Matty grinning at you again, asking, “What's up?”

“Was excited to see Mayhem.” You pout in a drunken explanation, and you shimmy yourself out of your dress as you lay back onto his bed. But then you ask him, like you don’t have a bag full of your own clothes with you, “Have you got a top I can wear please?”

Matty has to mute his laugh but he does promise you, “We can go and see him whilst you’re here, yeah?” and the singer grabs you one of his baggier tops so you’ll be comfy and he hands it to you after stealing another peck on the lips.

“Okay.” You hum, taking your bra off before putting the baggy top on before getting under the duvet and curling yourself up in his bed.

Matty finishes stripping himself down to his underwear and he gets in bed and he turns the lamp off before he turns to you and wraps his arm around you, kissing the back of your neck which seems to lead to you turning towards him and asking another question, “Can I meet Allen too?”

Matty again almost giggles but he just nods, “Course you can baby.”

There’s no better way you can think of saying thank you than with a kiss, so you lean in to capture his lips on yours and hope he gets just what you’re saying. He kisses you back sweetly at first until your hand appears to have a mind of its own and starts slowly travelling down his chest, a ghost of a touch that has goosebumps breaking on his skin and causes his stomach to flip.

You hear Matty groan when you trace your finger more intently over his We Are Kings tattoo, his hips pushing forwards a bit as he feels his dick twitch in his boxers. By then he breaks the kiss, hot air hitting your slightly agape mouth and his breathing becoming heavier the more you tease the pads of your fingers over the band of his boxers has a smirk breaking out on your face.

Hungrily, Matty pounces on your lips to wipe the smirk of your face and getting ahold of your thigh, he pulls your leg over his hip and, with his hand travelling upwards as he continues to make your head spin with his kiss, he grabs a handful of your arse.

You moan feeling him thrust forward at the same time his hand pulls you closer into him by your arse, the sudden friction and the dizzying kiss making yourself grow hot under the covers.

Trying to open your eyes to look at him after you break the hot kiss is almost impossible, you can barely look at him through half lidded eyes because when you smile at him your eyes close. He giggles at that, struggling to keep his eyes open as well. The light slightly peeking through behind the blinds is not helping either.

His hand goes from your arse to your inner thigh, a mischievous grin on his face as he feels you shudder under his touch the more his fingers trail upwards where you need him most. But then a yawn comes to you that you can’t even control and he lets out a breathy laugh at it.

Matty yawns back and you smile at him, you know you both would love to continue what you had started earlier but you’re far too tired and, quite honestly, being in each other’s arms is the best gratification.

The date went perfectly and your night was so much fun, so finishing it all off - and starting the year - like this, has you both silently thanking your lucky stars.

One of your hands comes up to brush his hair back, curls bouncing right back on his forehead and you laugh softly when catching that as your eyes continue to close against your will. Your fingers tangle through his hair until they end up trailing his jaw and you end up cupping it to lean in and give him another kiss.

This one is soft like the first one, sleepily trying to thank him for it all, and you both keep it that way. Getting slower as you succumb to your slumber, the kiss turning into long pecks and then into short ones until you’re just breathing against each other.

Maybe a minute goes by, maybe a bit more, when you realise you’re falling asleep so you leave one last peck on his lips and then hide your face in his neck, hugging his waist and snuggling yourself closer to him.

If you could have him like this all the time, you know you’d be the happiest girl on earth. You still don’t want to get ahead of yourself but it feels like the start of something that’s going to be good for you, whether that’s temporary or permanent you don’t know. But you guess time will tell, and you can’t wait.

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

A/N: Aren’t they disgustingly cute? *cries* Still trying to process the Wheels and Alex cameo, makes me tear up every time I read it, and I hope you liked it just as much as we do. We truly cannot wrap our heads around how much you guys love this story, it makes us the happiest reading every one of your reactions and we thank you all so much for reading and taking your time to chat about this with us. We cannot wait to have you read the next one! The news from this past month caught us by surprise lol but we’re so happy and this gave us more ideas on how to make the Taylor cameo even better. See you soon with the next one! xx (Also I have a little spin off from this exact chapter planned and I hope I have the time to write it and post it soon hehehe)

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