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hulhudhonado · 1 year

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Ornithophile

Synopsis: Jing Yuan is a bird magnet. As harmless as it sounds, it seems to lead to misunderstandings.

CW: Nothing

HC: Reader works under Yukong. Reader is gender-neutral.

Characters: Jing Yuan, Yukong, Fu Xuan, Mentions of Tingyun and Yanqing

Note: Genshin to Honkai pipeline is real omg. Honestly I am not that interested in Honkai Star Rail or any of the Honkai games but I do play it and let me tell you I love this man. The characters in this game do not miss. Already making drafts for a Sampo fic. My one goal is to max them out. Also anyone interested in Aeons fanfic? Just asking. Anyway, please make sure to like, comment or reblog. Interactions with the post lets it reach a wider audience. Requests are also open! Enjoy.

Jing Yuan was used to the attention given to him, it wasn’t shocking to him. An individual of his status always would draw attention amongst the crowds. However, most people tend to divert their eyes or at least make an effort to pretend they weren’t staring, especially when they weren’t supposed to. It was considered a decent thing to do. However you on the other hand clearly did not understand this concept.

The first time he had caught your eyes, he waited for you to shyly look away like most people did, however to his surprise you kept a stern gaze towards him, refusing to move. It did phase him a bit, how strange that you had no shame to look away knowing that you had been caught. He chuckled to himself, that time he gave you the benefit of the doubt. Maybe you felt it was more awkward to look away.

However, the staring continued. You stared at him whenever you had the chance. He could feel your gaze burning from the back of his head. How were you so confident? Does he not scare you? Do you not understand authority? Maybe you just didn’t have the shame to hide the fact that you adored looking at him. He tried not to crack a smile every time he did catch you staring. He didn’t want others to know why he was laughing at himself.

It wasn’t a surprise to him, having people fall for him. Tingyun was already making sales from his looks, so it was clear that many people were head over heels for him. Maybe you were just like them, an admirer who was terrible at keeping a secret. He didn’t mind, he was already used to the attention.

—

“You seem to be distracted these days. Is your age finally catching up to you?” Fu Xuan jabbed. Jing Yuan let out a chuckle “ I don’t know what you mean.” He answered, unphased. Documents were piling up and Yanqing still didn’t have a decent partner to train with, he had too many unnecessary things piling up on his head. Fu Xuan was clearly here to mess with him for letting things go on for this long.

“Don’t try to hide, you have been laughing to yourself or cracking smiles out of the blue! Have you finally lost it?” She asked once more. Honestly not what he had expected her to say. He thought she was here to clown him for not finishing his work on time, he didn’t realise he had got caught. She continued. “If so, I’m willing to take your place any day for your ‘early’ retirement.”

Jing Yuan rolled his eyes, looking back at the screen in front of him. “If you don’t have anything better to do you’re free to leave. My mental state is perfectly fine.” Fu Xuan let out a smirk. “It won’t be for long.”

Jing Yuan turned to her, he didn’t want to give her attention especially when he was this busy, but Fu Xuan was not going to stop fishing for answers. Raising an eyebrow he decided to take the bait.“And what makes you say that?” Fu Xuan let out an almost sinister laugh. Jing Yuan could only frown, he didn’t like the sound of that.

“I recently foresaw a future of yours.” The room felt cold in an instant. Jing Yuan was now fully focused on Fu Xuan, who continued to smirk victoriously. It didn’t seem to be serious but it didn’t seem to be a good thing either. “What did you see?” He asked nervously, he tried his best to hide it, he didn’t need to give Fu Xuan any more openings.

Fu Xuan pretended to think, withholding the information rather than stating it at once. Jing Yuan sighed, of course, Fu Xuan would want to have the high ground. “I’ll repeat, what did you see?” He stated once more, a more serious tone plaguing his words.

Fu Xuan scoffed. “You’re no fun.”

“If it involves me then it involves Xianzhou Luofu and its people. I would rather not be left in the dark about this.” Fu Xuan shrugged. “It isn’t something serious. If it was, I would have told you about it instantly. You know I am not one to take my time.”

“Then why hide it from me?” “Because it’s funny.” Jing Yuan sighed. “Just tell me.”

“Don’t feel like it.” And with that Fu Xuan's hologram disappeared. Jing Yuan huffed, how annoying. It seemed that people around him were forgetting what respect meant.

—

Yukong never made physical trips to meet with Jing Yuan regarding any issues on the Xianzhou Luofu. It was a big ship, and it was a waste of time to constantly travel back and forth when they could communicate via holograms.

However it was always safe to bring confidential documents face to face, a third party might cause leaks. To his surprise, you tagged alongside her during one of their rare trips. However, for once, you didn’t look up to look at him. He tried his best to focus on what Yukong kept saying but his eyes kept wandering back to you. Why were you not looking up? Was it because this was the first time you had seen him face to face? However he didn’t like this, he wished you would just look up like usual.

“Tingyuan couldn’t make it?” He asked, trying to focus the shift on you. You jolted up, now nervously looking at Yukong who also was caught off guard. Yukong looked back at you, before turning back to Jing Yuan trying to seem unphased. “Yeah, she was assigned a task alongside the trailblazers. You had assigned her to them.” She asked.

“Hmm, I did? “ Jing Yuan asked in a playful tone. You still didn’t turn to look at him, now just looking down at the floor to not draw any more attention. He couldn’t hold a smile on his face anymore, he was getting annoyed. Why today of all days you decide not to look at him?

He wanted to see your face properly, not in his hologram form. As advanced as things were in Xianzhou Luofu, when he is in his hologram form he can’t see everyone clearly. It was like being stuck behind a screen. Now that he was finally face-to-face with his ‘staring partner’ he wanted to see what you looked like.

“Well, since things in the Xianzhou Luofu are not settled yet, I would prefer if you could hand me documents face to face from now.” Yukong blinked, before realising what he had stated. “But sir, that would take some time, and I can’t always make trips here when I need to take care of my team.” Jing Yuan tilted his head, pretending to be oblivious to his schemes. “You can just ask Tingyuan, or your companion right next to you. If you trust them to accompany you then I’m certain they can help you bring me these documents. Am I wrong?”

His statement finally made you look up. He believed he was ready to face your gaze, but he was being too cocky it seemed. When he had locked eyes with you he almost looked away with how sudden it was. Your gaze was sharp and strong, just as the times you had looked at him before. You had a poker face, attentive to your work since Jing Yuan had personally entrusted you to do Yukong’s work. It seemed the hologram way of communicating had dulled down the intensity of your gaze full of determination. Jing Yuan didn’t expect to get such a whiplash.

He held his ground, he didn’t need any reason to feel shy now. Fu Xuan’s words started to replay in his head, he wasn’t sure why. You couldn’t be the reason for his downfall, could you? There was no way.

Yukong sighed, interrupting the spiral Jing Yuan had going inside his mind. “Of course. We won’t disappoint you. “ She answered. “I’m glad to hear that.” Jing Yuan smiled, his gaze never leaving you as you did the same.

—

It wasn’t surprising that you made most of the trips. He found out that you were new to the job, at least to Yukong’s sector. Since Tingyuan was busy with the trailblazers and Yukong had her duties to attend to, you ended up being the special courier for any confidential documents. Most of the documents were digitised so your trips weren’t common, but Jing Yuan made it his mission to make sure you somehow ended up in his office.

Was this corruption from the higher-ups? Probably, if anyone knew what he was doing they would think he was bullying you but he didn’t mean any harm. He just likes the mini-staring matches you both have. Not many people look at him with such confidence.

It also didn’t seem to be an issue as it seemed that you liked the job. No matter how many times you were told to bring in documents, you always followed through without complaining. Tingyuan tended to ask for bargains while Yukong would straight up avoid making rounds. You on the other hand would be ready to make a delivery in an instant. It was probably due to the fact you were still new to the job, but he liked to pretend it was because you wanted to see him often.

He smiled to himself thinking about it. He didn’t like how much of a narcissist he was. He knew people loved him but having his delusions of someone liking him more than just the ruler of the Xianzhou Luofu must be his breaking point. Fu Xuan was on to something, you must be his downfall.

—

It was like any other day, you made the delivery and you were going to head back to your station. However, Jing Yuan was getting tired of this. It was any day now that the trailblazers would be done with the Stellaron attacks and he would finally have to step in to fix what was left. This means everything would return to normal and your trips wouldn’t be necessary anymore. All these trips didn’t make you both any closer either, you were keeping a distance between the two of you.

He also noticed how you reduced staring, it seems you had caught on the fact that he knew you were staring. He honestly was surprised you didn’t realise it sooner, it wasn’t like you were hiding it. But now whenever he would catch your eyes you would jolt up as if he caught you doing something horrible. If it was in the past he wouldn’t have minded, but now whenever you looked away he felt frustrated.

As the day was going to end as it usually did, Jing Yuan finally snapped. He needed to change this routine you both had created. “May I ask you a question?” He asked. He caught you so off guard you dropped the documents on the ground. Scattering them all over the floor. In an instant you dropped down, to collect the papers off the ground. He followed suit, trying to help.

“Oh, you don’t need to do that sir!” You try not to stutter. You didn’t expect him to ask you anything. You guys never spoke anymore than anything related to work, so the sudden question caught you off guard. “ Don’t mind me, I just wanted to ask a question. I didn’t think it was that shocking.” He chuckled.

You nervously laugh, continuing to gather all the materials before he could get any more. To your horror, he had already collected most of it. However, the piles of paper were now in a mess, completely unorganised from how it was originally arranged.

“You can sit with me and chat while we organise these.” He stood up smiling, mockingly shaking the documents towards you while you tried not to get embarrassed. “My apologies sir.” You mumble, standing up with the little amount you were able to get. “I’ll forgive you if you answer my questions.” The way he spoke was so calm. He was a ruler for a reason, his voice was loud in battle and comforting to his citizens. You instantly felt at ease when he didn’t seem to mind.

“I’ll take you up on that offer, sir.”

—

When he said questions, he meant a lot of questions. He asked why you chose the job, what you liked, your interests, and your hobbies. He was ticking off everything at this point. You of course answered. The way he articulated the questions and the calm sound of his voice seemed to have entranced you. You were certain if he was a lawyer he would have gotten the answers right out of you in an instant. It was no wonder he was in such a high position.

“You seem to stare a lot don’t you?” A question that you didn’t expect. He smiled, eyes closed ready for an answer. Did he catch you off guard? He hoped so, he wanted to tease you a bit, making you realise that your silly little crush on him was already discovered. Maybe it was sudden but with how truthfully you were answering his questions he didn’t expect you to lie your way out of this.

You could feel the rush of blood on your face. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to stare! It’s just…” you cut yourself off. He patiently waited for your answer. What could it be? Did you like his face? Many people did, it was the reason Tingyuan was making a fortune for so many years. Or perhaps you would be bolder and say you liked his body? His clothes and armour enhanced its appeal. Or maybe his hair? It reminded of a lion’s mane to most and Yanqing would always mention how elegant it looked, even after he had spared the entire day. He wasn’t even sure how it stayed in such luscious conditions.

He tried not to tap the table, eager for your answer. He could hear his heartbeat increase its speed, he didn’t realise how nervous he was. What was it about him that you just couldn’t help but look? He needed to know now.

“ The bird.” It was almost a whisper when you spoke. He wasn’t even sure he heard you properly. “The bird?” He repeated, a bit dumbfounded. You nodded, guilt leaving your body but suddenly feeling sheepish. You can’t believe you were going to admit this.

“ You always have a bird in your hair. It’s so unphased I always wondered whether it was tamed.” You continue to say. You watched Jing Yuan stare at you, unable to speak. You took this as a sign to continue. “Well you see, I love looking at birds. Especially since in Xianzhou Luofu, they are quite rare. But you have one always on your shoulder! So when I first saw it I was so shocked. If you don’t mind me asking, could you tell me what type it is? Is it a Zebra finch? A Waxbill? The red beak makes it a bit prominent but I couldn’t see its feather pattern so I couldn’t tell what type it was.”

As you continued to go on and on about the bird, Jing Yuan was trying his best not to show any signs of embarrassment. He couldn’t believe this. He had thought this entire time you had looked at him due to admiration. Honestly, it was his fault for making up delusions on his own but he didn’t expect this. You were staring at the birds that usually landed on his shoulder and hid around his hair. He was so used to it he completely forgot they even stuck next to him while he worked.

A sudden notification came to your phone which made you stop your little bird talk. You read it and immediately stood up an instance. “Oh no! The time!” You almost shout, your worried gaze not looking away from the phone. You look at Jing Yuan sadly, and he could feel his heart was close to bursting. Not only from his embarrassment but also how unhappy you looked knowing that you would have to depart from him.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t organise all the documents in time. I’ll make it up to you next time sir!” You begin to gather your things and head out. As you near the door you turn back to him shouting. “I apologise if this is inappropriate, but I hope to talk to you again!” You say. You take a bow before turning back and running out the door.

All Jing Yuan could do was stare as you left. Suddenly he could feel all the emotions he had held back to save face flowing out. He slumped on the desk, hands on his face trying to cover his face which was completely red. He could not believe this had happened to him.

He heard a little chirp near his ear. He looked to the side, to see his little bird friend peeping at him in glee. “You did this to me.” He grumbled, glaring at the bird who continued to chirp, almost as if it was laughing at him. Sighing, he slumped back on his chair, trying not to think about what just had happened.

He couldn’t help it though. It made sense now, you probably were curious about the bird, trying to figure out what kind it was. He was the one overthinking it, making up stories in his head where you profess your love to him. No wonder Fu Xuan said what she did. She knew this was going to happen.

He sighed, picking up his little friend off his shoulder onto his hand. After making a mental note on finding a way to get back at Fu Xuan, he began to think about you again. He was already too deep into this, he was going to make you like him back. He stroked the bird’s head as it peeped in delight. He looked down at it as it playfully nipped at his finger.

Another idea popped into his head. The last words you said played in his head again as he stared at the bird who danced around in the palm of his hands. He felt a smile creep on his face.

“Well, at least I can figure out what we are going to be talking about next time we meet.” He chuckled to himself, humming a tune alongside the bird. He was already too deep into this, and he was not going to let you go that easily.

He was going to make you look at him the same way he looked at you, one way or another. Who would have thought a love of birds would lead to this?

Good luck!

#jing yuan x reader #honkai star rail x gender neutral reader #honkai star rail x reader #hsr x gender neutral reader #hsr x reader #jing yuan x gender-neutral reader

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jo-harrington · 1 year

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Corrective Action (Eddie Munson x Store Manager!Reader)

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Reader

Summary: Reader and Eddie have been hanging out for a little while and a lot of people seem to think it’s ok to voice their opinion around her.

Previous Part: Interview Prep

Warnings/Themes: AU where the Upside Down doesn't terrorize Hawkins. Reader works at the Claire's at StarCourt. Eddie works at TapeWorld. Mutual pining and slow burn (yes still, always). Bullying, manipulative/helicopter parents, ACAB, all around shitty people that might trigger some things. Thick skinned reader who is sick of said shitty people. Sad boy Eddie. Hurt/Comfort. Pinky promises.

Note: I really hope this one is good guys, I feel like I wrote half of this in an airport wishing I was actually drinking (I did and I was, but I'm sober and kind of currently wishing I wasn't). If this is me fishing for compliments...I guess this is just yummy bait.

You can find my masterlist here for more featuring our resident Store Manager (in chronological order because I’m chaotic and I’m not gonna stop writing this way) and all of my other random Eddie Headcanons.

Please do not interact if you are not 18+.

Enjoy!

---

It started with Stacey at work.

You were sitting at the little desk in the stockroom, working out payroll and the next schedule, when she came to clock out.

“Hey, good job today on upselling diamonds,” you told her, incredibly proud. While she was great at customer service, she really had a hard time getting customers to add to their basket. You had worked on coaching her and she was quickly becoming your best sales associate. “I’m proud of you, you’ve been doing so great!”

“Yeah thanks! All of these rich PTA moms I swear to god,” she rolled her eyes. “I guess my mom was only a hard ass if I asked her to buy me things though. If anyone else tried to sell things to her, she always caved.”

She continued going on about her mom getting all the upgrades when she got a new car.

“…Mr. Harrington almost started singing when she finally signed the lease.” She laughed but then sobered up, glancing around the stockroom to see if anyone else was around. Stacey cleared her throat. “Hey I’ve been meaning to ask…”

“What’s up?”

“Are you, like…dating Eddie Munson?”

It would have been an innocent enough question if not for her tone. Or the way she grimaced and scrunched her nose, as if just saying his name put a bad taste in her mouth.

Eddie had been wary of your interactions with Stacey from the beginning, you recalled. And when you had asked him why later on, he beat around the bush a little before giving in.

She was someone who had been in his classes for as long as he could remember, she was not a cheerleader but certainly one of the popular girls, and when her jock boyfriend got a job at the local insurance office after missing his chances at getting an athletic scholarship, she stayed behind too and made all of the local gossip her business.

And for some reason, even if he swore he never remembered saying more than two words to her at any given time, she made rumors about him her specialty.

You’d been at a loss. On the one hand, you knew Eddie dealt with bullies and rumors even if he never outright admitted it to you. But on the other, you had no reason to distrust Stacey. All you knew about the people you worked with were just what they told you and what you were able to witness while working together. And you knew Stacey engaged in all sorts of gossip. But Eddie’s name had never exited her mouth.

Until now.

“What?” You were so shocked at the entire scenario that you didn’t even realize she would take that as an invitation for her to continue.

“Well he’s been hanging around the store and I’ve seen you guys sitting together sometimes. But like…well, haven’t you heard?” She got closer and sat in the chair next to you. “He, like, sacrifices virgins in the woods and has, I don’t know, summoned demons before. He’s a Satanist, a freak.”

You bristled at the name-calling and the accusations.

“Stace—“

”And you’re new so of course you don’t know—“

“Stacey I’m gonna stop you right there,” you held up your hand and she immediately shut up and sat up a little straighter. “First of all, it is incredibly inappropriate to ask me about my personal life. About any aspect of it, outside of what I willingly share with you. I am your boss, I’m not your friend, this isn’t high school. We are all entitled to privacy and I am incredibly uncomfortable discussing this with you.

“Second, again not that you need to know, but no. I am not dating Eddie. Eddie works here in StarCourt and you make friends with people when you work at a shopping mall. That being said, Eddie is not only an employee at StarCourt, but also a human being and a neighbor to all of us—”

“Ew no he isn’t. He lives in that—“ she started but you weren’t having any of it.

“And because of that he deserves some respect. Calling someone a freak and spreading rumors isn’t respectful. Which leads me to the last point.

“One of the values of this company is integrity. Doing the right thing, even if it’s hard to do. And I’m sorry but bullying, under any circumstance, is not the right thing to do. So even though you are off the clock, you are still on company property and you are certainly not operating with integrity. I’m incredibly disappointed that I have to have this kind of conversation with you, but I will consider this a warning for next time.

“If I hear talk like this coming from you again, there will be disciplinary action,” you concluded. “Do you understand?”

You hated to do it, you hated to put on the manager pants. You hated that Stacey’s eyes welled with tears the longer you talked and that she trembled as she finally nodded. But even if Eddie wasn’t your friend, you wouldn’t condone this kind of behavior. You held your team to an incredibly high standard and this wasn’t it.

You sent Stacey home and got back to the schedule with a sour taste in your mouth.

---

The next time, you were actually out with Eddie.

He had told you that the sunrise at the old quarry was second to none and when you confessed that you had never actually watched the sunset or the sunrise before, he immediately figured out the best day for you to go together.

He had put together a picnic with all sorts of breakfast foods, because apparently no one made pancakes, bacon, and eggs better than he did—

“Got an A+ in home ec, thank you very much. Didn’t help me get my GPA up but Wayne is pretty happy when I have breakfast waiting for him after a double shift.”

—and treats from the gas station since he insisted that you needed to experience all of the convenience food he loved. There was a thermos full of coffee and a boat load of blankets in the back of the van. He picked you up at your apartment, ringing the bell at ass o’clock in the morning looking way too energetic for someone who woke up so early.

“What do you mean? I never went to sleep!”

The radio was low as he drove you towards the outskirts of town; he’d also surprised you with a replacement of your old Boston cassette that you had nearly played to death, and he hummed along and tapped his fingers against the steering wheel along with Foreplay.

You reached a certain sign on the road signaling the quarry was up ahead, only for the tell tale lights and “whoop whoop” of a squad car to sound off from behind you. Eddie cursed and pulled off to the side of the road.

“Sweetheart can you grab me, uh” he motioned for the glove box. You’d already popped it open and dug through to find his registration as he pulled the wallet from his pocket. “Thanks.”

The crunch of gravel caused Eddie to look at this side mirror and groan a low, drawn out “fuck.”

“Munson,” the officer greeted roughly once the window was rolled down.

“Callahan,” Eddie replied. “Hopper got you on traffic patrol now huh?”

“Very funny,” Callahan deadpanned. “You know why I pulled you over.”

“Actually I don’t,” Eddie chuckled dryly. “License plates are up to date, I wasn’t speeding, and that tail light you busted last time you pulled me over is fixed.”

What the fuck?

"I don't like the tone you're taking with me, kid," Callahan spat. "Not a respectful bone in your body, any time I have to pull you over. It's for your safety after all. And the safety of the entire town."

How many times had this guy pulled Eddie over? 5? 10?

“Anyway, we just broke up a party over in Loch Nora about an hour ago, lot of kids high and wasted,” Callahan continued and there was no way you could have guessed the words that were coming out of his mouth next. “I know how you like to hang around parties like those, do a few deals. Maybe you decided to take advantage of some pretty girl who doesn’t know where she is.”

Callahan leaned down a little further and shined a flashlight into the van, directly at you.

“How you doing tonight miss? Can you tell me your name please?”

Your world was shaken to the core.

“Excuse me?” You scoffed, clenching your fists.

“You got your wits about you, or do I need to call an ambulance or something? Maybe your mom, if she needs to come pick you up?”

“I’m fine, officer, but I don’t like what you’re implying about my friend here.” You responded harshly. “Or about me. I am a grown woman, I am in this van of my own volition, with full mental capacities other than the fact that I’m maybe a little tired because I just woke up 20 minutes ago to go see the sunrise with my friend.”

Callahan stumbled over his words for a second, immediately backtracking as Eddie sat speechless in the driver's seat.

“We were never at a party in Loch Nora. Eddie didn’t kidnap me. Neither of us are drunk or high. So I’m pretty sure this is an unlawful traffic stop officer,” you concluded.

Both officer Callahan and Eddie looked at you with dumbstruck expressions.

“What, it’s true. So unless you have another reason to have pulled us over, officer?” You asked. “Can we be on our way now?”

He cleared his throat and handed the license and registration back to Eddie.

“Must have seen another van outside the party. An easy mistake to make,” he replied. “Got yourself a smart girlfriend there, Munson. Don’t fuck it up like you usually do ok?”

Callahan did another “whoop whoop” before pulling away and heading back to town, but Eddie continued to sit stiffly, refusing to move.

“You ok?” You asked, putting a hand on his arm.

“I can’t…he didn’t…” Eddie stumbled over his words. “I’m not like that ok? I don’t…I don’t take advantage of girls at parties. Fuck. Please don’t think—”

“I didn’t,” you assured him.

“Callahan always has it in for me, man,” He explained. “I don’t even know what I did. Caught me smoking weed on school grounds with the guys one summer way back and it was like a permanent target was placed on my back.”

“Small town cops with a big ego,” you explained, knowing fully well how douchebags like that were. “And you’re the resident bad boy.”

“You gotta stop calling me that,” he groaned in, what you believed to be, embarrassment.

---

And it kept happening.

Whispers when you went out for pizza, eyes watching you at the grocery store with pity or disgust, you didn’t know for sure. The one time you both stopped in Montgomery Ward on lunch to get a new dress (and for Eddie not to spend his lunch alone) and the saleswoman kept hovering as though you were about to steal.

Well, not you. Eddie.

No one usually dared to say anything to your face but you could still hear it. “She hangs around that Munson boy. Ugh such a troublemaker. Poor girl. Someone should tell her. He’s a trickster, that one.”

And no, you knew it wasn’t everyone. Just the busybodies who didn’t know what they were talking about.

You’d usually roll your eyes and continue on with your day. You could take whatever was thrown your way—some people just sucked and they couldn’t keep their mouths shut—but you knew how it affected Eddie. You could see it when you were with him, how deflated he became.

Your friend, one of the best people you knew, regardless of your stupid crush on him. He became distant, shrunk like he wanted to take up less space in the world.

You just about had enough of it.

And it all came to a head one day, a week after you hired Chrissy Cunningham as a part-time associate.

Her mother dropped her off after Cheer camp one day and wanted to see the new store.

You had a pretty solid parent policy that you made known to your teenage associates, just as your old store manager did when she first hired you at 16. Parents could come in and visit, shop, sure. But they weren’t going to interfere with the business. No calling to complain if the schedules conflicted with family nights. No calling in sick on their kids behalf.

“If you’re old enough to take on the responsibility of a job, you’re taking all of the responsibilities, ok? Even the not so nice ones.”

Chrissy, just like the others, understood.

Chrissy’s mom, on the other hand, had a bit of a problem with that.

You were nice enough when they first got in, getting to hear how the whole family was so excited about her first job, how it would look great on college applications come Fall. Chrissy, of course, had told you all of this in her interview; she was a sweet kid who clearly was trying to take on a lot and once you met her mom, you understood where the pressure was coming from.

Your mom was like that too, in her own way. Picking and picking and picking.

“Oh actually,” Mrs Cunningham started and from her tone you knew it was just going to be the beginning of a whole to-do. “I was meaning to ask if Chrissy could change her schedule? I saw you had put her on Saturday afternoons. But there’s a junior cheer team at the park district that she helps coach and they have meets on the first Saturday of the month.”

The too-big, overly-whitened smile was an unspoken threat of “you’re going to give me what I want or else.”

You explained that weekends were a mandatory availability for your associates who were still in school, but it didn’t mean they would always be scheduled. You had already told Chrissy that you would give her the days of her meets off, if she let you know the dates at least 2 weeks in advance. It was only once a month, after all.

That smile fell, like it always did, when someone like Mrs. Cunningham, like your mother, like all the other Stepford-wife types in town, didn’t get their way.

She tried once again to explain, this was important to Chrissy and she could trade Saturdays for another day. Maybe Thursday afternoon? Only if she didn’t have too much homework, of course.

But there was no way to know that when you were writing the schedule two weeks out, you argued.

"Then I guess you'll just have to find a replacement for her shifts if she can't come in," Mrs. Cunningham argued.

“Ma’am, I leave the responsibility of schedule and availability to my associates when I hire them,” you explain. “Not their parents. You said you were excited for Chrissy to have a job. It’s only been a week. If she thinks she can handle Saturdays—or even if she doesn’t—I’ll leave it up to her. School hasn't even started yet; let's just give it some time before we try to make changes ok?”

And as one does when they feel attacked, she went after low hanging fruit.

“I wouldn’t expect you,” she sneered, “to know a whole lot about responsibility…or planning ahead for the future. You work in this little shop; it's not even a real job. I’ll bet you didn’t even go to college.

“And Chrissy said you’re friends with the Munson boy right? That he shows up sometimes to talk to you. He’s never known a day of responsibility in his life. He’s…he’s a drug dealer, a troublemaker—”

“Alright that’s it,” you interjected. “This is a place of business—my place of business—and we’re getting busy, so I will have to ask you to leave Mrs. Cunningham. Unless you want to stay for a piercing, I do have paying customers to tend to. I will discuss the schedule again with Chrissy. I promise.

“But for now, thanks for stopping by, it was so nice to meet you.”

---

“God she was such a bitch,” you complained as you watched Eddie throw cardboard boxes into the bailer.

This was typical for lunches spent together. You would both run trash down to the loading dock and complain about work while Eddie smoked—allowing you to luxuriate in his secondhand smoke for a little while—and then you would head to the food court to eat and just…spend time together.

Listen to music, talk about movies or books or whatever else came to mind.

This friendship was still new, there was plenty to talk about.

You kind of hoped there would always be something new to talk about. And that you two would be talking and having lunch together for a long time.

Best not get your hopes up though.

Currently, you were recounting the interaction with Mrs. Cunningham, purposefully leaving out the way she brought him into conversation.

What he didn't know wouldn't hurt him. Right?

“Poor Chrissy,” you sighed.

“Poor Chrissy?” Eddie scoffed. “Yeah, really sucks to be on top.”

“You know, she might be on top at school—”

“And her family might be rich, and she might live in a big house, and she might only need to work so it looks good on college applications. See where I’m going with this?”

“—but it sucks to have a parent constantly shitting on you. Even if they do it for ‘your benefit...'.”

“Why can’t you do anything right?”

“I stayed at home with you kids and this is the thanks I get?”

“I can’t make you respect this family. But don’t you have any self-respect?”

Maybe you were just projecting...

“Speaking of Queen Bee, here she comes now with her lover boy,” Eddie said, batting his eyelashes dramatically, and then he made a gagging noise. You were exiting the service corridors and spotted Chrissy, who had clocked out for the day, walking towards the food court with a very clean, athletic-looking blond boy.

“Now if you wanna talk about a bitch, look no further than Jason Carver.”

He proceeded to tell you all about how Jason and Jeff were neighbors, how they used to be friends as kids. How they stopped talking once Jason started up with sports, and he started picking on Jeff once he made varsity.

“He had some macho, roided up growth spurt last year, and that paired with the self-righteous bible thumping meant that Hellfire was an easy target. Those meathead jocks picked on us before, sure, but…I dunno, Jason is a whole other level of cruel.

“And he doesn’t hesitate to beat up the younger kids, but if I’m around…well needless to say they’re a little scared of me, they don’t want to take a chance that I’ll put a curse on them or something.

“I’ll do whatever I need to, I’ll be their villain, if it means keeping those kids safe.” He rubbed the sleeve of his flannel against his nose and sniffled lightly. “But it’s not like there’s anything I can do aside from that. I have to just sit there and take it, let my friends take it, because if I don’t…if I don’t, then I become everything they say I am. Angry, dangerous, a menace, a criminal.”

“Eddie that’s terrible,” you grumbled, Chrissy’s mom and your own troubles forgotten. "You don't deserve to be picked on like that."

Eddie hummed in contemplation for a moment.

“Ok enough of them, do you want to share chili cheese fries?” He diverted. You hesitated, not wanting to drop the subject entirely, but also not wanting to push him. Eddie flashed you those big, pleading eyes, though, and you caved.

Asshole knew exactly what he was doing.

“Sure,” you smiled.

“And you’ll let me buy today,” he continued, holding his hand out before you could argue. “Because you feel bad for me you’re gonna let me do it.”

“What logic is that?!” You exclaimed. He giggled maniacally and motioned for you to find a table before he practically skipped to the line to order.

He was lucky that he was cute.

---

Chrissy approached you the next time she had a shift together; you were planning to pull her aside at the end of her shift to double check that she was sure about her availability and to go over the parent policy once again. It was kind of a relief that she took the initiative instead.

“I’m sorry about my mom,” she began timidly. “She shouldn't have come in here just to interfere. It's just that I do have a lot going on, and when I told her I wanted to work at the mall too...well, she just..."

"Chrissy, I understand," you interjected. "Really I do, you don't need to explain. I knew when I hired you that you had a lot on your plate."

"Thank you again, by the way."

"I just want to make sure that you're sure this is the right move. Do we need to look at your availability again?" you asked. "If your mom comes back to have this conversation again, I'm not going to stand for it. I need employees who are responsible for their own time."

"No I know..." she sighed. "I'll talk with her. I really do like working here."

"I like having you work here," you reassured her. "You're doing a really great job so far."

"R-really?" she smiled, eyes getting a little glossy. "Thank you. I'm trying. My mom...never seems to be happy with anything I do. If it's not what I do, it's how long it takes, and if it's not that, then it's how I look, and--" She was starting to breathe a little heavily and you sighed.

"Hey listen, I get it," you said gently. "Mom's...well, sometimes they can be the worst. They know exactly what buttons to push. And I don't want to sound insensitive because I want you to know you can talk to me any time, I'm here for you. But we are on the sales floor.

"I know your shift is almost over, if you want to take a few to go in back and settle down before you leave, you can," you encouraged her. It wasn't a busy day; you could afford to give her a few extra minutes to herself.

"You're sure?"

"Yeah, Mindy will be back from lunch in a few and I can come and grab you if I need you."

Chrissy gave you a watery smile and then headed back into the stockroom.

There were a few minutes of restocking bracelets before the shop bell rang as a new customer walked in.

"Hey! Welcome in!" You greeted brightly, mindlessly, before looking up to find Chrissy's boyfriend standing there. He smiled and nodded in greeting.

"Hey, I'm here to pick Chrissy up," he explained.

"You're a little early," you laughed, trying to be cordial despite Eddie's words about him echoing in your mind. "She's just in back finishing up. I'll let her know you're here."

"Nah, that's ok," Jason shrugged. "I wanted to talk to you really quick."

You frowned at him and narrowed your eyes.

"Boyfriends unfortunately don't qualify for the employee discount," you stated lightly, hoping that this was the only thing he had to ask. "So if you have a little sister or something--"

"No, it's about Eddie Munson," he continued. "You really need to stay away from him."

Yeah. That was exactly what you were afraid he would say.

Ugh, you were really getting tired of this.

And it wasn't just that you were sick of people meddling, it was this boy in particular who was really rubbing you the wrong way. Gossipy sales associates with jock boyfriends, useless troublesome cops, nosy housewives, and well-meaning grandmas were one thing.

But a high school boy who was still wearing a letterman jacket in July, with a too nice smile and the audacity to have a savior complex when he was the one tormenting other kids?

That was where you drew the line.

You just wondered if you were willing to lose your job because of him.

“I'm telling you this for your own good. The crowd he’s a part of…,” Jason leaned closer as though it was a secret. “They’re a bunch of wastoids, listening to that devil's music, trying to lure virgins into the woods to sacrifice. And if you want to sit with the right crowd at lunch when school starts--”

You barked a laugh at this, right in his face, and he backed away looking confused.

Ok, so this wasn't "lose your job" worthy.

You mentally pulled on both your Disappointed Older Sibling and Angry Store Manager pants to gear up for this fight.

"Ok kid, real talk," you started, clapping your hands like a coach would. "I'm not in the business of yelling at teenage boys. And as flattering as it is that you might think I'm still in high school, there is no way a teenager would be managing a store. So there's point number one. Number two, don't assume a lady's age ok? At all. In either direction. That's a life lesson I'm gonna give you for free.

"Number three, and not that this conversation isn't...just really lovely, I need to get a point across and I'm sincerely doubtful you're gonna listen to me anyway. I just need you to understand that...like, whoever is hanging out with who, or going where, or doing what, is generally none of your business. Especially your girlfriend's boss. It's really disappointing that a nice boy like you is gonna cause his girlfriend to lose her job because he can't mind his own business."

And that was the punctuation at the end of the sentence to make him look nervous and a little sweaty.

You felt a little bad saying it, because no, you weren't going to fire Chrissy because of this dumb boy. But hopefully this would be a lesson learned.

"E-e-eddie was hanging around Chrissy the other day," he stuttered, looking extremely out of his element. Never been the person who had to face consequences before; you knew the type. "I saw him in here when I came to pick her up. She said...you were his friend and he was just waiting for you."

"I'm sure he was waiting for me."

"He always had crushes on the cheerleaders," he explained. "He was sniffing around this girl Julie a few years ago and she found out he was into this satanic stuff...I figured either you or Chrissy were next..."

"Oh buddy," you sighed. "And you figured if you came in here and told me not to hang around him, I would be spared...and Chrissy would be too?"

"See? You get it."

"Except that's really not how things work in real life or at a shopping mall, kid," you said. "Everyone is allowed to go wherever they want and talk to whoever they want. And I, as one of the managers in this building, am able to assess what is a danger to myself and my employees and Eddie certainly isn't one of them. Except for his corny jokes, he is harmless.

"You on the other hand," you continued, savoring the moment Jason's eyes got a little wider. "Approached me with a very distinct and threatening energy. So unless you want me to call mall security and make sure you are no longer allowed on the premises, I will need you to...re-evaluate your tone of voice and your intention of visiting.

"So, what was your name again?"

"J-Jason Carver, ma'am."

Ew. Ma'am. Ok you weren't that old. But you could deal with it.

"Jason Carver," your tone changed immediately, back to the sickening Store Manager voice you defaulted to on a regular basis. Eddie had called it unsettling before, to hear you go from your regular tone of voice to that. Jason's eye twitched and you grinned maniacally. "It's so nice to meet you. Chrissy was telling everyone it's your anniversary coming up?"

His eyes shifted slightly, and he laughed nervously.

"Ye-yes ma'am," he agreed.

"And what are you planning to get her as a gift?" you asked. He froze again. Ok, no gift; Chrissy definitely deserved better than that. "I think a necklace would be really lovely. Not from here, I can see you looking at the jewelry wall. But there's a really nice jewelry store downstairs that has birthstone pendants and stuff. I think she would really love something from there."

"I-I think that's a great idea," he nodded vigorously.

The door to the stockroom opened and Chrissy walked out with her bag in hand, ready for you to check it.

"Ok, I'm all set to go then, thank you so much for--Jason!" Chrissy smiled when she saw her boyfriend. "I thought you were going to wait for me downstairs."

He cleared his throat and composed himself.

"Figured I would come up and surprise you," he grinned smoothly. "Met your boss, she's...really cool, just like you said."

Nice save.

Ok maybe he wasn't as stupid as you originally thought.

Chrissy waved goodbye as they left, and Jason had the right sense to keep his mouth shut.

---

You waited outside Tape World as the mall started to slow down and get dark. There was a little coin-operated horse right outside of the store and you leaned against it and wondered, if it was a real horse, how fast it could take you and Eddie out of this shit hole of a town, away from all of the people who said horrible things.

You had nothing to complain about though. Eddie had to deal with it for years. He did so much to protect his friends...all you wanted to do was to protect him too.

The gate opened up and Eddie ducked underneath, grinning at you once it was locked and he was upright once again. He muttered a quick goodbye to the associate who closed with him before he approached you.

"Hey, it's only Thursday," he laughed. "Did I forget we had plans? I thought you opened."

"No, I was a mid," you shrugged. "But I stayed because..."

Should you tell him? You didn't want to upset him, or have him pull away from you, like he always did whenever talk of his reputation around town was mentioned. You wanted your silly, carefree, wonderful best friend not to have to suffer because of narrow minded people anymore.

"Beeeccaauuuuseee." He hums for a moment. "Because you knew that I was planning a Little Debbie taste test for Sunday and that all of the snacks were in the van right now?"

"What?" you laughed. "Oh my God."

"You said you were more of a Hostess person. I am trying to change your allegiance to the Dark Side of the Force." He stood taller, theatrically trying to mimic Darth Vader. "What better way than with a joint or two and a shit ton of snack cakes at the lake."

"Eddie!"

"What? Don't tell me you have never smoked before," he said in mock offense. "What rock have you been living under? I'm going to have to call your parents, young lady. They did too good a job raising you."

You stared at him for a minute as he laughed and you couldn't help yourself; you quickly closed the distance between the two of you and wrapped your arms around his waist. He went stiff for a second before placing one of his arms around your shoulders and his other hand on the back of your head.

"What's wrong?" he asked quietly. "I mean, I know I did good with the Little Debbie, but you don't have to smoke if you don't want to. I was just kidding."

"No, it's not..." you sighed.

Hugging Eddie was nothing like hugging a girl friend--all squeezes and giggles over something silly and stupid--or hugging a relative--stiff and a little cold, your family not really ones for outward affection to begin with. He was just the right hug shape, his arms at the right height, the right length to wrap around you. His cheek at the right height to rest on the top of your head if he really wanted to (which you really hoped he did). His stupid waist that was perfect for you to wrap your arms around and soft enough that you could squeeze a little bit and he would actually give instead of just stiff and there.

An Eddie Hug was a perfect hug.

And hopefully your hug was perfect for him too, so that it wouldn't hurt him or scare him away as you told him...

"You remember last week?" you began. "You said Jason Carver is the biggest bitch I'd ever meet?"

"Y-yeah," he replied hesitantly, getting a little stiff in your arms, but he did nothing to pull away from you.

"Well, I met him and he is," you continued.

"What did he do?" Eddie asked, irritation evident in his voice. "If...if he did something, said something to you, I swear to God I--"

"I handled it," you cut him off. "He tried to scare me away from you. He said...well, it doesn't matter does it?"

"I'm sure it's what everyone says about me."

"And I told him he could get fucked," you said.

"What?!" Eddie finally pushed you away from him, hands gripping your arms tightly, as he laughed. "No you didn't."

"No I didn't," you shook your head. "But I might as well have. I think I scared him."

"Did you do the creepy voice?" he asked.

"Yeah," you giggled.

"I fucking hate that," he shivered.

"One day, Eddie Munson, you will answer the phone with a 'y'ello' and you will forever be turned to the Dark Side too," you mimicked his Darth Vader impression. "Just you wait and see."

"Never, I would sooner die!" He threw an arm across his eyes dramatically and turned away from you. After a moment had passed, he stood up straight again, hands fidgeting at his sides. "So, uh, are we cool?"

"Why wouldn't we be?"

"Because everyone tells you to stay away from me," he shrugged. "That I'm no good. That I'm a freak. I've been hearing it all my life. But I don't think I could stand it if I heard it from you too."

"Eddie," you started, worrying at your lip for a second. "I know how soul crushing it is to constantly have to hear how bad you are, how you're never gonna live up to whatever expectations others have of you. But listen to me, and listen good: you are absolutely wonderful.

"A wonderful neighbor, a wonderful coworker, a wonderful friend. Who cares what other people think about you; who cares, even...what I think about you?"

"I care," he shrugged.

"But it doesn't matter how many people tell me that you're bad, I'm never gonna think that about you ok? You're so many things but you're also just...good. Ok?"

"Ok," he nodded, eyes getting progressively more watery by the second.

"And don't you start with the self-deprecating shit around me anymore either," you weakly swatted at his shoulder and his torso, and he laughed. "I can't take it. Only one of us can be a miserable piece of shit, and I'm older, so I have dibs."

"You're not a miserable piece of shit," he chuckled. "You're wonderful too."

"No more of this...sad sackery then? From either of us?" you asked and held out a pinky to him. "You can't break a pinky swear."

Eddie wrapped his pinky around yours tightly.

"No more. Upon punishment of death."

---

Next Part: Standard Operating Procedures 1.04

Tag List (can I call you guys the Sales Associates? OMG, that's what it's gonna be): @gaysludge @storiesbyrhi @tayhar811 @spookybabey @word-wytchh @maidenofartemis @dreamlandcreations @wickedbelle

Let me know if you want to be added to the tag list! I'm sure I missed some tag requests, but I have been out of town with shoddy internet access so blame that, not me.

#Eddie munson fluff #Eddie munson x reader #Eddie munson imagine #store manager verse #stranger things imagine #stranger things drabble #Eddie munson fic #Eddie munson stranger things

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gatheredfates · 2 months

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SEA'S COMMUNITY COMPENDIUM UPDATE

Second update in a weekend? Wild! I wanted to push this one out before I went back to work and my capacity to update the Compendium would diminish. However, huge thanks to those who submitted new resources to the Google Form — it's appreciated! 🪻

As of 04/14, I have added the following resources (in no particular order) to Sea's Community Compendium for FFXIV Creatives:

LARGE SCALE

CARBUNCLE PLUSHY'S FFX|V FISH TRACKER APP — A website focused on tracking fish windows, bait, guide videos, and fish trains for community events.

PASSIADB — A list of houses for sale in Final Fantasy XIV, how many lottery bids are on each, and where to contribute using the PaissaHouse XIVLauncher plugin.

MISC

@stars-and-clouds thought they could escape me in their tags. "I have more resources!" Oh, I found them. I found them. (affectionate). All of the below are created by them!

ISHGARIAN POWER HEIRARCHY — An exploration of the power dynamics of the Ishgardian theocracy and High Houses.

A QUICK REFERENCE OF THE EORZEAN UMBRAL AND ASTRAL ERAS — A visual guide providing a summary of each Umbral and Astral Era.

Want to submit? You can either fill out the google form here, send me an ask with the relevant information contained on the Compendium, or join my Discord at SEAFLOOR (21+ only)!

As a reminder, the answer to the question of "Is my resource/community applicable to the Compendium?" is almost always a resounding yes. I want to know what's out there. I want to feature your project!

However, for the sake of clarity, I'll pop the FAQ from this post below in a read more for you to check out if you're worried. ✨

I want to put my community on the compendium but we have an application process. Is this okay?

Yes! Just note somewhere in your application that's a requirement. The only thing that is mandatory for the Compendium is that you must be open to new members or have a public-facing/accessible facet. There's no point advertising a community if no one can join it in some way!

I want to put my community on the compendium but I only have x number of members —

Also totally okay! People don't start with large communities. Activity is a must but, whether your server has two or two thousand members, if you're looking for new people to join, I'd love to help you find people.

I want to put my community on the compendium but I worry its too niche?

Okay, and? If your Eorzean Fishing Alliance has four members but you roleplay every second weekend, I still want to know about it.

What resources/communities can I add if I'm not the owner of them?

Mutual consent is extremely important to me, so anything that isn't a large-scale community OR a publicly accessible resource must be endorsed by the owner/admin/moderators in order to be added to the compendium. I operate under the assumption that a resource posted to a public space (tumblr, googledocs, youtube, etc) is open to all. A large-scale community is one with a significant member count or openly advertises itself as being accessible to everyone for whatever purpose it serves. If in doubt, please get in touch with me. I'm happy to contact your community owners for you!

How active does a community need to be?

If you find a community has not been active in about two/three months, send me a message and I'll take a look at it. Communities have ebbs and flows, especially event spaces that may take hiatuses depending on member interest/life events. I'm not strict in my implementation provided a space isn't dead. If a link or anything is broken, absolutely contact me about that.

I have [insert a question not stated here]?

No drama! Send me an ask or use the #Compendium channel in my Discord!

#final fantasy xiv #ffxiv #crystal rp #crystal roleplay #｡･ﾟﾟ･ — sea's community compendium #thanks again everyone!!

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seabeck · 1 year

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Trout fishing for beginners on a budget!

Do you ever look at salmon fillets in the supermarket and water at the mouth but find the price far too high? Well this guide is for you! I tried to keep this guide fairly short and to the point so if you need more info, feel free to ask.

Reasons to fish for trout:

Trout taste quite similar to salmon, a fish that's typically unaffordable expensive even here in the PNW (I find trout to be better because they're much more mild and don't overcook as easily, ymmv)

They can be caught without a boat and you don't need an expensive set up.

Fishing licenses fund conservation!

It's fun and allows you to see where your dinner is coming from, from start to finish.

Before you start: Get your fishing license. You can purchase these at Walmart in the sporting good section, stores like Cabellas, online, and many other places. Some states have separate saltwater and freshwater licenses (you want freshwater), others may require a separate stamp to keep trout in some areas. Once you have your license, find a place you can fish. Check if it’s been stocked, when, what size the fish were, and how many. Bigger fish and more recent is always better. Regulations can very a lot from body of water to body of water and state to state. Some lakes may be catch and release only, no barbed hooks, etc and it is on you to know. There are also disabled only lakes (with wheelchair friendly docks). Your fish and wildlife department will have the info online. Some states, like WA, even have interactive map apps and you can always email or call them as well.

Gear on a budget: Rods and reels are expensive new, even low end ones. Check out garage sales, thrift shops, outlet malls, Craigslist, etc. You can often find a good rod and reel combo for cheap. Check to make sure all the parts are in order, things that spin will spin and things that don’t, don’t. Minor wear and tear can often be repaired with a dab of superglue. When buying second hand spools of line, make sure time and the sun hasn’t made it brittle, give it a test tug to see if it breaks. You’re less likely to find artificial bait and hooks used but luckily those are fairly cheap even new, and sometimes you get lucky.

Rod: 5-7′, rated for no more than 10lbs is perfect. It should be flexible to allow it to cast far and not snap when you get a fish on. Ideally your rod should split into two pieces for ease of storage.

Reel: We’re going to be talking about spinning reels and spinning reels only. You want a lighter weight one where the line comes off smoothly. Make sure everything spins as it should and doesn’t make noise (some older styled ones have an intentional clicking sound that will drive you up a wall very quickly, apparently that used to be cool). The side the arm is on can be changed easily.

Line: 8-10lb test, anything more is overkill and may scare the fish. Braided for the mainline, fluorocarbon or monofilament for the leader line. Mono can be used for the mainline too but braided is tougher/stronger. Good line is worth it, here’s what I use for my mainline. You want your reel full of line so it doesn’t catch on the reel and so you don’t hit the end while casting. I recommend a cheaper mono line to tie onto your reel for the first many feet to help fill it up, then tie on your good leader line to the mono line using a double uni knot.

A leader line is useful when you get a snag or a fish takes off with your gear, instead of losing all your line, you just lose your leader.

Hooks: Size 6-8 octopus, circle, or bait hooks. Barbed if legal and if you plan on eating what you catch, barbless if you plan on releasing or regulations require it.

Swivel: Medium/small sized, get snapping ones

Weight: Get egg sinkers in a variety of sizes (they often come in mixed size kits). Note: Most fishing weights are lead, do not consume them or allow pets/children to play with them. Steel weights are an option but they have less size/shape variety and will be bigger than their same weighted lead counterparts. Some places do not allow for the use of lead weights.

Bead: Used to prevent wear on the line/knot from the lead. I personally only use one on my leader line, not below my lead, and that’s my weird angler superstition. They’re very cheap, buy a smaller sized one if you plan on using them.

Net: Seems really self explanatory but I recommend a catch and release friendly net (not knotted, typically a softer material). It's better to have that kind than the kind that may damage their scales in case you need to or decide to release.

Slip/sliding sinker rig:

Ideal for floating bait, the leader line length will depend on the depth the fish will be at (which varies with weather and body of water, 2′ is a good starting point). The lead will sit on the bottom while the bait floats and suspends itself in the water column. The sliding egg sinker weight means the fish won’t feel resistance when it tugs on the bait, fish don’t like resistance. Watch for your line moving away, then set the hook with a quick upwards motion with the rod. Sometimes you won't even need to set the hook because the fish will already be running with it.

Fixed bobber rig:

This set up can be used with or without a leader line but as always I recommend a swivel + leader line (this would be below the bobber). This set up is ideal for sinking baits or when you need to keep all of your gear and line off the bottom of the lake because of weeds, snags, etc. Most bobbers allow you to easily change the length of line below it, useful if you started out with too much or too little line. Since bobbers float, they will move with the current or the wind, this may be a pain or may be a blessing. When the bobber goes down, fish on!

Bait options:

Earthworms/nightcrawlers. This is your cheapest option, you can dig them from your own yard for free. Earthworms sink so they’re best with a bobber set up unless you buy worm blower. I do not use live bait as I find it rather cruel (and most earthworms are not native to my area, no need to help them spread further) but ultimately it’s up to you. Crickets, superworms, mealworms. waxworms, etc are also options, some of which you can breed at home easily.

Fake worms: some float (1, 2), some don’t (1, 2). Don’t get those giant rubber worms meant for bass.

Dough: Ideal for slip sinker set up. Scented Playdo textured dough. Roll enough out to cover your hook and make it float, but not so much that it’s a waste. While this stuff works well, it doesn’t like to stay on the hook. Treble hooks will hold dough on better but they aren’t always allowed and are not suitable for catch and release (if that’s your goal). Also comes in nuggets (costs more per oz). I recommend pink, orange, or yellow.

Artificial eggs: Ideal for slip sinker set up . My preferred bait, I use 3 on a hook and often can reuse the same eggs for several trout. You don’t even need to buy these, they can often be scavenged from places where anglers gather. My mom did this (or used ones I bought) for months with great success. Power eggs and similar ones typically float but there are sinking ones, always check the label. I personally use red, white, or gold ones that are half clear but I’ve also caught them on solid yellow and pink. A family or group of friends could buy multiple colors and split them.

Trout Magnet(tm): Never personally had much luck with these, they can be recasted over and over as a lure or used under a bobber, they do sink. Also useful for panfish.

Lures: I’m not really going to go over lures much since that’s a whole other can of worms, but they are very reusable and can often be found for free in bushes at lakes. They require a different set up and more work to use than bait still fishing. Some do function under a bobber hence the mention.

Now to the actual fishing!

Set up your rig, whichever one you're planning on using, and adjust your leader line accordingly.

Hold the rod with your dominant hand, you want about a foot of mainline hanging off the tip of your rod

Align your line roller (labeled diagram of a reel here) to be pointing your rod.

Use the index (or if you're weird like me your middle) finger to hold the line against the rod

Use your non dominant hand to flip the bail up. Line can now freely fall from the reel so it's important to keep your finger on the line.

Bring the rod over your head, I personally have mine like this before casting. Use a forward throwing motion and release your line. The last step will take lots of practice and I personally recommend practicing at home with just a swivel + weight on. Always be aware of your surroundings, you don't want to hook someone or lose your gear in a tree.

When you feel a bite, set the hook with a quick upwards motion while holding the rod. Sometimes the fish will hook themselves just fine.

Once you have a fish on, reel in! Large fish may need a looser drag and to be played a bit (let them run with the line, then reel in, repeat until fish is tired) but most stocked trout come quietly.

Once you've reeled your fish in, use a net to catch it (if needed) and decide if you're going to release it or keep it for dinner. Fish you're planning on releasing need to be handled gently and with wet hands to protect their fishy coating. Don't take them out of water for too long. Remove the hook quickly with fishing pliers.

If you're going to keep it, it needs to be killed quickly and humanely. Please don't be that person with a bunch of half dead fish on a stringer, or letting your fish aspirate, it's cruel. How you kill your fish is up to you and will depend on the size. For smaller ones I do cervical dislocation, head bonking and cutting the head/spine also work. If I'm killing a fish I always wait until after to remove it's hook so it suffers less.

Cleaning your fish: Ok you have a dead fish, now what? Find the fish butt, it'll be before the tail fins. Insert your fillet knife in and carefully slice up the belly. Ideally you don't want to slice too far in lest you rupture the intestines. Remove the guts. I personally toss all the guts back into the water, as to return the nutrients but there are fish organs you can eat. Use a fingernail to scrape the kidney off of the spine and rinse. From there you can fillet or cook the fish whole. Here's the video that helped me learn to fillet. Keep fish on ice until you're home. They can be frozen, cooked immediately, or refrigerated for a few days.

I hope this guide helped you and as always, if you have questions feel free to ask!

#fishing #fish #trout #I personally recommend salmon meuniere but it also makes great fish tacos

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littlefluffbutt · 1 year

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SALE POST

Our oven died and we have some upcoming bills looming so I’m selling some things I’ve made; I take paypal and am located in the US. I will ship internationally but keep shipping costs in mind.

All crocheted yarn items are made with 100% acrylic yarn and stuffed with polyfill.

Dinosaurs approx 6″ tall or long. Stegosaurus and Triceratops (the ones on either end) are $15 each the rest are $12 each. Take all six for $75

Mermaid with fish friend $20 The fish is separate; I’ve just tied it to her hand so it won’t get lost lol. Her face is done with embroidery floss. Top is not removable.

Variegated sea creature bag $55 comes with octopus, crab, fish, lobster and bait bag to carry them in. most are around 5-6″.

sea creature bag $55 comes with octopus, crab, fish, lobster and bait bag to carry them in. most are around 5-6″.

Lobsters! Large ones are $12 and have bead eyes; small ones have embroidered eyes and are $10. I have small red and large red, blue and camo ones ATM but I can do them in other colors too.

LeisureArts 268 outfits (from L-R)

top row purple and pink dresses with hats and purses $35 each; wedding dress and veil $30, purple variegated dress and hat $35 (blue dress not for sale)

Bottom row: blue coat with hat and brown coat $15 each; jacket and skirt set $20, red PJs $25 with doll, $20 without (doll has bangs cut), 4 piece poncho outfit $20, blue top and shorts $8 (doesn’t fit anyone well), green jumper $8 (fits 80′s Skipper) ballet outfit $8 (fits early Skipper)

Doll house items from The Attic pamphlet $150 for the set OR

Wedding dress and mannequin, veil, and bouquet $50. Dress can NOT be removed from mannequin. Back of dress had to be widened to fit the mannequin.

Couch/bench with two gold throw pillows, trunk and yellow rug: $30

Checkered quilt or pinwheel quilt $20 each

Baby dolls $15 each

Teddy $10

Hat box set with hats (red bowler and yellow sunhat) $20

corset : (not made to fit anyone) $10

If you have any questions/requests message me:) Thank you!

#sale #crochet #Barbie #doll clothes #toys #lobster #crab #fish #octopus #doll furniture

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wardenparker · 2 years

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Starting Over - Chapter 8

Marcus Pike x female reader Co-written with @absurdthirst

Recently arrived in Texas and only slightly removed from his divorce, Marcus finds himself smitten with the women at the housewares store that is helping him furnish his new Austin condo. It becomes a more complicated situation than he could have expected, but Marcus has never been one to shy away from a challenge when love is on the line. ✨This fic takes place *before* the events of The Mentalist.✨

Rating: E for Explicit! Word Count: 13.9k Warnings: *Blanket warnings for this fic will include divorce, past abusive relationships, deceased mothers, father issues/family trauma, unplanned pregnancy.* Cursing and food mentions, unplanned pregnancy, pregnant reader, threats of violence, discussions of dom/sub dynamics, pregnancy symptoms, somnophilia, oral sex (f and m receiving), general fluff and being very much in love. Summary: It’s time to take that eagerly awaited trip to Washington DC! Notes: As things start to heat up, there is clearly more tension and trouble on the horizon. The trip is a much needed break from the day-to-day rigors of life - especially when one of those rigors of life is Amanada.

Ch 1 ~ Ch 2 ~ Ch 3 ~ Ch 4 ~ Ch 5 ~ Ch 6 ~ Ch 7

Clock watching while you wait for Marcus to get home from the office is one of the things that makes you the most antsy these days. It used to just be impatience - excitement to see him mixed with those nerves that come with the beginning of any new relationship. Now it’s like a torturous countdown waiting for mercy to walk through the door. Every day from the second Marcus leaves the house until the second he returns; Amanda has done nothing but aimlessly snack on the ever-growing list of foods that the Pike-ette is causing you to be repulsed by. Everything is magically hidden the second he walks in the door and it’s only the security cameras planted around the house that allow him to see how she’s hiding everything. But as soon as he throws it all out, she goes and buys it up again. It’s a war of stubbornness that never ends and your pregnancy symptoms are right in the middle.

The last three weeks have been non-stop at work on top of it all, and it has had you looking forward to a long weekend in DC for even more reasons than knowing you are going to be proposed to. Two of your salesgirls have quit in the last two weeks and this morning the very first thing that happened after your district manager showed up to inspect the store (the only reason you even did a half day at work today at all) was that they wrote up one of the Sales Leads for poor customer service. Upon discovering that it was the Lead’s third write up, the young man was immediately fired. The whole thing put your management team in an uproar, but your manager promised you could still take your long weekend away.

Amanda huffs, annoyed that there is a trip being taken than she has no clue where it is. Marcus has changed his passwords to his travel sites. “I hope you aren’t going to the beach.” She calls out, fishing for information. “There are supposed to storms along the Gulf Coast.”

“Interesting!” You call back, coming out of the bedroom you share with Marcus with your small suitcase packed and ready. Marcus would march you back upstairs to repack if you had tried to use one of your weekender bags for this trip. He rarely even lets you lift groceries anymore and you’re barely at the end of your first trimester.

Scowling, she tosses the shrimp flavored chip back in the bag, pissed off that you didn’t take her bait. You had gotten smarter since she had dumped you and it irritates her. Unfolding her limbs from the sofa, she gets up and moves over to the staircase. “I’m surprised you’re willing to leave me here alone for the weekend.” She smirks.

“You’ve been alone in the house before,” you point out, though you have to admit that you’re surprised she hasn’t found any of the cameras in all that time.

Her smile is ugly, calculating as she starts up the stairs to the second floor. She hates you. If it weren’t for you and that thing in your belly, Marcus would have taken her back already. “You know, it would be a shame if you…fell down these stairs.” Sugar coats her words, but there is nothing that can hide the venom underneath.

You know the way your eyes dart up to meet hers betrays your surprise at the comment, but as far as Amanda has ever gone with psychological and emotional warfare, you really didn’t think she would be capable of physical violence. “That would be extraordinarily bad for everyone involved.” You tell her flatly, knowing that if she ever even tried, there is a camera pointed directly at the stairs that would capture the assault.

“Oh sure.” Amanda brushes off your comment, knowing you don’t have any teeth in you. “It would such a tragic thing.” She pouts. “Marcus’s little mistress snapping her neck on the stairs, and he would just be heartbroken.” She sighs. “I, of course, would console him.”

“Do you think he’s dumb or something?” Shaking your head at her, you stand your ground at the top of the stairs and don’t go near them while she’s still standing there. “If anything happened to me, he would suspect you instantly.”

“Please.” She rolls her eyes and shakes her head in disappointment. “He knows I would never.” Glancing down at her nails halfway up, she smirks up at you. “But accidents happen.”

“I promise you; he would know.” You can’t help the way your hand goes protectively to your belly though. The idea of anything happening to you isn’t half as terrifying as something happening to your baby.

“Whatever you want to tell yourself.” Amanda raises her brows. “Weren’t you coming downstairs?”

Like the angel with perfect timing that he is, Marcus walks through the front door in the same second that you open your mouth to attempt some kind of clever reply, and your frozen feet on the landing are suddenly free again. Whatever she might try when you’re alone, she would never try anything with Marcus in the house.

“Christ, I’m sorry.” Marcus huffs, shaking his head. “I got caught up in traffic. But we will make it to the airport.” He promises, looking up to see the two of you on the stairs. His brow wings up and he asks you a silent question.

“It’s okay, my workday was shit, too.” You barely shake your head just once to tell him you’re okay, and you breeze past Amanda on the stairs with your suitcase now that Marcus is home to bear witness to everything in person. “Greg got himself fired. It was a nightmare.” The conversational tone of your voice will hopefully annoy Amanda, like you’ve already forgotten that she was literally just threatening to kill you.

“I’m sorry, baby.” Marcus might have his briefcase in his hand, but the other arm immediately comes around you and he gives you a kiss right in front of Amanda. “Soon we will be on our way to a relaxing weekend. Just let me go put my gun in the safe and change.”

“No problem.” One more kiss before you let him go, and you sit down on the living room sofa to take a load off while he hustles up to your bedroom.

Amanda waits for Marcus to disappear upstairs before she walks back over to you, staring down the way that your hands are over your stomach. “He will come back to me.” She predicts. “When you’re fat and frumpy, he’s going to be sick of you. You two aren’t having sex. I know.”

“What he chooses to do is up to him.” These daily assaults of hers are getting worse, and your now-raging hormones aren’t making it easy for you to keep a straight face very well anymore. The only thing you can really count on for a constant is Marcus. That his love has never wavered even once and you know in your heart it never will. “But I truly think that you’re sentencing yourself to a life of disappointment if you’re simply going to wait around for Marcus to come back to you. Because he never will.”

“Marcus doesn’t like to be alone.” She reminds you. “He will come back. He loves me.”

“No.” Standing up when you see him reappear at the top of the stairs, you just shake your head at Amanda solemnly. “He doesn’t. And I’m sorry you’re having trouble accepting that.”

Amanda’s frown turns into a smile as Marcus hauls his own suitcase downstairs. “Baby, don’t you think I should know where you are in case something happens?” She pouts, stepping closer to him. “You always tell me where you’re going.”

“We’ve told someone.” You don’t say who, figuring she might try to ask around, but it is Marcus’s trusted coworker who has never had any contact with Amanda before in her life that has your flight and hotel info in case of incident. You’ve never even said this particular agent’s name in the house, just in case. To Marcus, you offer a smile and your hand. “Ready to go?”

Marcus nods, smiling back at you and lacing your fingers together. He turns towards Amanda. “Our bedroom is locked, and the house better be exactly as we left it when we get back.” He warns, his voice slightly stern in that ‘I will be obeyed’ federal agent tone.

“Goodbye.” Are the only words you say before Marcus shuts the door behind you, and you breathe a heavy sigh of relief to be outside away from the smell of shrimp chips and mustard. “I promise I’ll act surprised whenever you do it this weekend, but you did pick up the ring this morning, right?” The voicemail from the jeweler on his phone two days ago had made both of you a little giddy, and Marcus had chosen to celebrate with a rare night of eating you out before you both passed out in each other’s arms completely satiated.

“Yes, I did.” Marcus grins and pats his jacket pocket where it is safely nestled. “I’ve triple checked it’s there four times since I put this jacket on.” He jokes. He wants this weekend to be perfect for you, he’s not blind to the bullshit Amanda is pulling.

“I would do that same thing if I were you.” You load your small suitcases into Marcus’s car and he holds your door open for you until you’re comfortable, then closes it and hustles around the hood to get in beside you. “Sometimes I just keep my hands on my belly for ages just for a hint of the baby moving. I know it’s too early for him to kick, but they say sometimes you can feel flutters before that.”

“I can’t wait to feel the baby kick.” Marcus can’t help but reach over and rub your stomach before he starts the car. “Everything okay today?”

“Work sucked, she’s accumulated more snacks that smell like death somehow, and I’m just really glad to get away this weekend.” The airport isn’t far, which is good because you’re a little short on time, and Marcus is on the road a second later. “Now we’re not only down two sales associates, but a sales team lead as well. I’m gonna be pulling a lot of doubles when we get back.”

“Anytime you feel like it’s too much….” He doesn’t finish the sentence, knowing that you are going to say no, but he wouldn’t mind if you quit and stayed home while you are pregnant. Although he knows you won’t simply because of Amanda being home.

“We’ll be okay again once we fill the positions.” You promise him, one hand resting gently over his on your knee as he drives. “And once I’m at the point where I should be off my feet more, my boss is going to transition me to more desk work. Customer service. It’s arguably more stressful, but it’s less physical work. Don’t worry baby.”

“It’s my job to worry.” Marcus shakes his head. “You grow the baby and I worry.” His hand squeezes hers gently.

“Not this weekend.” You shake your head and pick his hand up to press a kiss to his skin. “This weekend we’re going to relax and walk around beautiful museums and eat fantastic food and enjoy ourselves. We’re not going to worry this weekend.”

“God yes.” Marcus practically groans. “No Amanda and her bullshit, just me and you and the little peanut.” He smiles over at you. “I’m going to spoil you.”

“Champagne and rose petals waiting in our room?” The soft smile on your face grows imagining all the silly little things that could theoretically happen in some romantic fantasy world. “Candlelit dinners? Dancing?”

“I’m going to hold off on the champagne until the peanut is born.” He hums. “But the others? Absolutely. Whatever my fiancée wants, she will have.”

“I love dancing with you.” The couple of times you’ve gone it’s always been supper clubs and the kind of place with crooners behind pianos or a vintage-style band. Twirling around in each other’s arms like the dreamiest part of an old movie flashback. “And I want to hear all the random factoids you know about all your favorite art in the museums.”

“And I want to explore the inn we are staying in with you.” Marcus can’t help but dream a little with you, wondering if something like that would fit you better than the stress of retail. “Go to the Outpost and dream about how we should have met.”

“It was a mansion before it was turned into an inn in the 1920s, so maybe we’ll find a trick bookcase or secret stairwell.” You squeeze his hand in yours and offer him a dreamy smile when he glances over at you. “I’m glad we already had this weekend on the books. You’ve been working really hard and deserve a break.”

“You deserve one too.” He knows how badly Amanda has been treating you. He’s seen and heard it and it’s frankly disgusted him. However, he knows that the best thing to do is to continue piling up evidence in the instance of having to fight her for the divorce. She’s hanging herself every day.

“I’m just going to enjoy a few days with the love of my life in my favorite city, that’s all.” The traffic has mercifully lightened, and at this point getting to the airport should be a breeze. It will be late when you get to DC, but the inn already knows to expect a late-night check in. “I love you, baby. So much.”

“I love you too.” Marcus assures you. “But I’m nervous.” He shoots you a grin. “I’m proposing to this amazing woman I want to spend the rest of my life with and I’m not sure if she’s going to accept. She might not like the ring. Or want a family with me.”

“Hmmm.” The little game makes you giggle, and you move his hand gently from your knee to your belly as he drives. “We better ask the Miniature Oracle what they think.” You take a long pause, humming and pretending to be reading the vibrations in your belly before you giggle again. “Nah, the Oracle says you’re good. Just make sure it’s reeeeeeeally romantic and cheesy. She likes cheesy.”

Snickering, his hand caresses your belly gently. “She, huh?” He lifts a brow and sighs. “Are we talking about this woman? Or are you giving me a clue about who you think the Oracle is?”

“We’re talking about the woman.” Though it’s too early to be able to tell on an ultrasound or any other kind of way, you’ve been having dreams about your baby for a week now that have you convinced of the sex. “I started calling them the Miniature Oracle when I started having dreams about them,” you admit. For the last couple of nights you really haven’t said anything, not wanting him to either get his hopes up or get self-conscious about your intuition.

“You’ve been dreaming about them?” His voice is soft, hopelessly in love with the idea. His dreams have been less than ideal, so he loves the idea of having wonderful little dreams about the baby nestled under your heart. “Hopefully nothing but bliss.”

“Well, when I dream about labour I never feel it, so it could be a lot worse.” You tell him off-handedly, making both of you laugh. “Honestly, sweetheart? I’ve been dreaming for a week straight about having a little boy. I don’t know if it’s wishful thinking or if the baby is just making himself known - that probably sounds insane - but either way…that’s what I’ve been dreaming about.”

“It might be.” He caresses your stomach once more and then reaches for your hand so he can pull it up to kiss the back of it. “Honestly? I just want a healthy baby and momma.” He promises you. “I don’t care about having a boy first or at all. We could have four little girls and I’ll be over the moon.”

“I know, love.” He lets go of your hand to turn off the highway exit for the airport and you cradle your barely-changed belly in both hands again out of instinct. “Maybe I’ll have a week of dreams about having a little girl now, I don’t know. But I may have added a few more boy’s names to the notebook this week out of an abundance of inspiration.”

“We can spend all weekend dreaming up more names for our notebook.” Marcus follows the signs and pulls up to the ticket machine for the parking. “I am so glad that we are doing this.” He admits with a grin. “And I might have found a place for a couples massage.”

“Oh yeah?” The eyebrow you raise at him comes with a smirk. “That’s very sexy of you.”

“I thought you would like that.” He teases as he pulls into the parking garage and winds through the layers until he finds a parking spot.

“Let’s do this! Come on, baby.” To both the Pike and the Pike-ette with one word makes you giggle and grin broadly at Marcus. “Both of you.”

Marcus unloads the trunk and insists that he will handle both pieces, sending you a small frown. “You have your purse.”

“Which is in no way equivalent to rolling a suitcase, but okay.” It’s useless to give him sass about it and you know that. The man hasn’t let you carry anything since you finished moving in, and even that was a struggle.

“I like taking care of you however I can.” He reminds you with a grin, winking at you playfully.

******

The flight is easy. You chat with the new mom and her surprisingly well-behaved baby across the aisle for the first hour or so before people start turning off their lights to nap, and then Marcus pulls out his earbuds so you can listen to a book on tape together that he found. “Ghost Radio” is about halfway through when the flight attendants come around to let everyone know that the descent into Washington is about to begin, and you flash Marcus a giant smile. “I only got nauseous once. I think we can count that as a huge victory considering we’re going to have to fly up to see my Dad soon.”

“I can’t wait to meet him.” Marcus is nervous but hopeful that the man will give him a fair chance. “I’m thinking that we plan another weekend next month? Give us another escape to look forward to?”

“Perfect.” Your Dad knows you’ve been seeing someone and that it’s serious, so the phone call asking to come visit so he can meet your boyfriend won’t come as a surprise at all. Except that by the time you get there, you’ll be showing and wearing an engagement ring. Those will be the surprises. “He’s going to love you, honey. And he’s going to be so excited to be a grandpa. I predict stoic grunts of joy in public and a few tears in private.”

“Stoic grunts of joy.” Marcus snickers and shakes his head. “You don’t have to worry about that.” He tells you. “I’ll cry whenever something amazing happens.”

“Dad’s never been an overly emotional guy.” You tell him honestly as the plane begins to descend. “Maybe that’s why I like that you cry at every happy thing.”

“Good.” He leans over and kisses you softly. “Because it’s gonna happen.”

******

The first floor of the inn is buzzing when your cab pulls up, and you pay the driver while Marcus pulls the bags out of the trunk and then offers you his hand. “Looks like a party,” you grin, watching people duck in and out of the lounge and ballroom of the grand hotel, with its Art Deco decor gleaming under sultry lighting. A stylized sign in the lobby advertises the big band that will be performing all weekend and it looks like some people have even dressed up on theme.

“It looks like.” Marcus grins and takes in the atmosphere, instantly knowing that this weekend is going to be exactly what the two of you need. “How about we check in and then join the party?” It gives you an option of saying no if you just want to relax.

“I think the Pike-ette is hungry,” you turn your biggest eyes on Marcus as the two of you head for the check-in desk. “Do you think we could order some room service and turn on TCM? Maybe party tomorrow night instead? The sign says the band is playing all weekend.”

“We absolutely can.” Marcus grins at you. “There’s also a soaker tube in our room. If you’re good, I’ll see if I can’t make sure you can soak in a bath and watch tv.”

“I’m always good.” Those pleading eyes turn mischievous in a second and you both laugh as you walk up to the concierge desk.

Marcus sends the woman behind the desk a friendly smile. “Reservation for Pike?” He offers, pulling out his wallet and sliding his ID and credit card across the antique wood veneer.

The woman chats amiably while she checks you in, obviously overdoing it in good manners so you suspect there’s something in your reservation notes where Marcus let them know it was an important weekend. “If you need anything at all, please don’t hesitate to ring the desk. And room service is available until 2am. Your Presidential Suite reservation includes a reserved table in the hotel restaurant for any lunch or dinner, so please let us know when you’ll be joining us.”

“Absolutely.” Marcus beams, happy that everything is going well and turns to hand you the large brass key, a charming throwback to the history of the inn. “I think you might be in love with this place.”

“Is that so wrong?” The dreamy sigh you give him tells him that he’s completely correct, and you walk along beside him to the rather grand elevator. “Presidential Suite, huh? You must think this weekend is very special.”

“Well it was this or the luxurious accommodations at the Motel 6.” He smirks slightly. “They leave the light on for you, don’t you know?”

Rolling with the joke as the elevator dings brightly and opens up in front of you, you just snicker and follow him into the car. “Ah yes, I believe their restaurant has been Michelin starred.”

“A quality assortment of snacks from the vending machine by the ice machine.” He turns and lets go of the bags so he can tug you close for a kiss once the doors are closed. “We’re here.” He murmurs against your lips.

“Our own little paradise.” You hum back, slinging both of your arms around his neck to deepen the kiss.

Marcus groans, feeling his entire body respond to your kiss. It’s been so fucking hard not to take things farther. He’s gotten over the guilt of touching you. Fingering you until you cum or eating you out. Sometimes he will let you go down on him, but it isn’t often and now - here - his body is on fire.

“Sorry…” You really do try not to get him too riled up, always keeping in mind to be respectful of his boundaries. Stepping back with a slightly guilty expression, you can’t help the underlying flustered smile. Even after almost three months together, kissing him still makes you giddy and eager like the first time.

“It’s not your fault you’re gorgeous and sexy and the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.” He takes a deep breath and smiles at you. “Just— eager for this weekend.”

“I can wear my bathing suit in the tub if you need me to,” you tell him, stepping away again to a respectful distance. There will be time for intimacy for the rest of your lives. But that won’t mean a damn thing if you don’t have the foundation of respect that you’re building right now in the midst of all the chaos.

“No.” Marcus isn’t a schoolboy who will die if he doesn’t get laid. “I’ve had plans for getting you in that tub.” He admits softly. “Making you cum on my fingers while you whine my name as loud as you want to.”

“The doctor says second trimester is usually the most active for expectant mothers,” you remind him, waggling your eyebrows at him and giggling at how silly it must look.

“God.” Marcus groans and reaches down to adjust himself so his hard on isn’t obvious to everyone. “You’re killing me, baby.”

“Sorry.” Mercifully, the elevator opens on the third floor a moment later and you’re off to find the door that matches your beautiful bronze key.

He’s been thinking hard about the boundaries that he’s set in place. It’s practically all he’s thought about. Amazing how accepting you have been over the sex-less relationship and how it’s crushing him. Because you are gorgeous and there is a slight caveman affect that happens every time he thinks about you pregnant with his child. “Hopefully the room is as good as it sounded.” Marcus trails after you with the bags, smiling slightly at the way you are craning your neck to take everything in and sneaking glances of the way your ass sways.

“This place is amazing.” Trailing your fingers along the molding on the walls as you go, there are those small signs of wear and tear always present in an old property, but for the most part the place is sparkling. The large double doors that presumably once opened into the master suite of the grand manor house are now marked with a brass plate that reads Presidential Suite and the ornate doorknob matches the key in your hand perfectly. “I’m excited,” you glance over your shoulder to grin at Marcus and find his eyes glued to your ass, which only makes you laugh and smile wider. Instead of any other remark, you bend over dramatically to put the key in the suite’s lock while you wiggle your ass at him for fun.

“Fuck.” Marcus hisses, unable to resist reaching out and smacking your ass playfully.

“Babe…” As soon as you open the door, the smell of roses is the first thing to hit you. Nearly every single surface has a vase of long-stemmed red roses on it and there are candles burning - and you wonder now if he wasn’t sending a text to the front desk when he was fiddling with his phone on the cab on the way over. A gold wrapped box with a chocolatery logo sits on a tray on the coffee table in the main room along with two beautiful champagne glasses…and a bottle of ginger ale sits chilling in the ice bucket alongside them. The thoughtfulness, beauty, and a fair few hormones have your eyes brimming with tears as you throw your arms around Marcus’s neck and bury your face in his neck after you kiss him. “It’s perfect. You’re perfect.”

“I want this weekend to be everything you ever dreamed of.” Marcus gushes emotionally. You are the one he is meant to be with, and he wants to erase the negative you had with your former fiancé just like you erase all the bad with Amanda. “I love you, baby.”

“I love you too, baby. So much.” Even if tonight was all the entire weekend was, it would be beautiful. Perfect. Just like him.

“Let’s get settled in and decide what we want from the room service menu.” Marcus kisses you again and reluctantly lets you go. He knows you will explore every nook of this room by the time you leave in two days.

It's only a few days so it takes no time at all to get unpacked, and less then ten minutes after walking in Marcus is perusing the room service menu while you inspect the variety of bath salts and bubbles available for the tub. "How does rose and sandalwood sound?" You ask, holding up a bath bomb shaped like a rose in swirling pink and tan.

“Whatever you want.” He means that, smiling at you and motioning you over to look at the menu. “Pick out what you and peanut are craving.”

"I don't know about the peanut, but mama is looking at the orecchiette with lamb and cannellini bean ragu." Pasta sound gorgeous and filling right now, like a warm hug.

“That sounds good baby.” Marcus grins, watching you drool over the menu. “Do you want to order desserts or eat some of the chocolates?”

"What do you think?" You pass the menu back to him and snuggle into his side, connected to his energy like the most powerful magnet in the world. "As long as they're chocolate, I don't care how it's prepared."

He chuckles, having notices your preference for chocolatey things lately. “How about we split a piece of their triple chocolate three-layer cake?” He asks with a grin.

“Perfect.” Popping up from their seats, you away over to wear the ginger ale is chilling and pluck out the bottle to pour two glasses. “We’ll run the bath when we’re finished eating. It’ll be the perfect way to unwind before bed.”

“I’m sorry it can’t be champagne.” Marcus isn’t but he will make the appropriate noises for your sake. He’s stopped drinking a beer when he gets home in solidarity of your pregnancy, not wanting to tempt you with things you can’t have.

“I have the best reason in the world not to drink,” you remind him, handing over a glass flute full of soda before pouring your own. “I don’t mind anymore. The Pike-ette needs to be as healthy as possible.”

“So do you.” Marcus fusses over you sometimes, especially with as sick as Amanda is making you with her snacks. “You are doing amazing, you know that?”

“I’m doing my best.” It isn’t easy, considering the impossible situation that the two of you are in, but the light at the end of the tunnel is your happy, healthy family without a single trace of Amanda anywhere in sight. “I’m just glad that my best seems to be working.”

“It is working.” Marcus reaches up and rubs your shoulder with one hand and touches his flute to yours. “To you staying healthy and happy this entire pregnancy.”

“This weekend is about both of us, love.” Of course Marcus would put the sole focus on you, but you know he struggles far more mentally and emotionally with everything that’s going on than he wants you to know. “To us.” You murmur, tapping his flute again with yours. “And our happy future.”

Smiling softly, he leans in, pressing his lips against yours gently. “You are perfect.” He praises before he pulls back to take a sip of the soda. “You sit down and I will order our dinner.”

“I’ll find us a movie.” There isn’t any use debating with Marcus about who’s more perfect, so you just sit back with your drink and relax. This weekend is going to be just what you both have been needing.

Picking up the phone, Marcus orders the food that you wanted, plus his own dinner. There had been so many good options, but he wanted the honey citrus seared salmon with micro greens in a balsamic glaze. He had zero doubt that you might want to steal a bite or two, but he was happy to share. Once done, he sighs, the anxious ball of worry he’s had in the pit of his stomach since you told him you were pregnant is finally unwinding. He loves that you are carrying his child, it’s only the issues with his ex that put a damper on things and makes him worry.

“Cuddles while we wait?” You hold your arms open to him on the sofa in the suite’s sitting room. Uninterrupted snuggle time with Marcus and no Amanda around to loudly eat snacks that make you want to be sick? Yes please. “There’s a Hitchcock marathon on this weekend, apparently.”

“And how are we feeling about that?” He doesn’t want you to worry about pregnancy nightmares, knowing you have plenty to worry about as it is.

“To Catch a Thief is a classic.” As he settles down next to you, you nuzzle into his side immediately. “Trusts me, if Psycho or The Birds comes on next, I’ll be changing the channel.”

His arm comes around you automatically and he hums contentedly. “Good. I don’t want you having some dream of me wielding a knife and throwing birds at you.” He jokes.

“No one warns you that pregnancy will give you weird nightmares.” When you had brought it up to your doctor with concern, she had assured you that odd dreams and nightmares were perfectly normal pregnancy symptoms, which just seemed unfair to you at the time. At least they abated in favour of lovely dreams about your little boy. “So what do you want to do tomorrow? Which museums are on the docket?”

“I was thinking the Museum of Natural History and maybe the Freer Art Gallery?” He asks. “Walk around the Mall and just anything that catches our eye?”

“Sounds like a nice place to start.” You hum in agreement, placing a kiss on the corner of his mouth. “Maybe Air and Space in the afternoon?”

“I love the idea of the Air and Space.” He flashes you a grin. “I wanted to be an astronaut when I was younger.”

“I idolized Amelia Earhart.” The small similarities between you still make you grin whenever you discover them, even though you seem to discover them quite a lot. “They have her Lockheed Vega in the museum.”

“Plus the moon rock you can touch.” Marcus is honestly a little giddy to explore this with you. Amanda had never cared for anything that was free and open to the public. Something he hadn’t realized until he was looking back.

“I’m adding Amelia to the baby name list!” You announce with glee, reaching for your purse a few feet away on the ground, and honestly wondering why you hadn’t before. “Amelia Pike is a cool ass name and she’d be named after a bad ass.”

“I love that.” He really does, grinning as you flip the book open and scrawl the name the list and circles it happily. “I would say that’s my favorite one so far.”

“Really?” Any name Marcus notes as a favourite gets a little star next to it, but you put two next to where you’ve written Amelia and smile at it for a moment longer. “Mine too, I think. Maybe we’ll have our memories jogged over some favourite historical figures or painters whose names we can add this weekend.”

“Absolutely.” He gives a happy little chuckle and presses a kiss to your head. “I’m sure you will be writing names like crazy.” He predicts with a smile, loving how enthusiastic you are about it.

“I don’t know what I’m gonna do with this list after all the kids are born.” There are already several pages of ideas noted down, and it’s only been three weeks since you bought the thing. “I’ll have to start writing stories or something.”

He snickers. “Well, each kid should have a pet...” he offers, smirking at you, imagining all sorts of critters with the names you had chosen.

“Four kids with four pets?” Rolling your eyes at him only makes him laugh harder, and you end up laughing with him as you toss the notebook aside. “You better be planning on taking whatever promotion you’re up for next if I’m going to be staying at home with the Pike-ettes and their fluffy buddies. Because I don’t think I could do that to a babysitter.”

“We will make sure our babysitter is very responsible.” He promises. “Because having a turtle is tough.”

“A turtle, huh?” The look you give him is dubious - like a librarian peering over her spectacles. “Which kid is getting a turtle?”

“Whichever one wants a turtle. Or a bunny or a gerbil.” Marcus would never expect to pick out his kid’s pets. But he could always encourage animals that weren’t high maintenance.

“No bunnies.” On that you are adamant. “They’re cute and sweet outdoors, but if you try to keep them caged indoors they stink and get angry. And bite.” Your head tilts a lot and after a second, you shrug. “Then again, if I were in a cage, I would probably shit everywhere and bite people, too.”

“No cage play - got it.” Marcus grins, shooting you a disappointed pout. “I’m a little disappointed.”

“What if I asked you to collar me?” You raise an eyebrow at him in challenge, wondering if he’s just teasing you or if he does have some possessive or dominating proclivities.

Marcus had been joking, but when you say that, he can’t help but give a small grunt of interest. His cock twitches and he bites his lip.

“Oh really?” Both eyebrows raise now, and you sit up a little his arms. “Did I accidentally hit on something?”

“No.” He knows he sounds slightly defensive, but it’s something that could be controversial to some and he doesn’t want to cause issues. It’s not been something he’s really thought about much. Not like Amanda was interested.

“Hey, don’t do that.” Taking his chin between your thumb and forefinger, you make him look at you. “Talk to me. If there’s things you want to try, I want to hear about them. Even if it’s only talking right now and not trying them yet.”

“I’ve not given it a lot of thought.” He admits quietly. “You know….” He doesn’t have to say it, since you know what he means. “I just don’t want you upset.”

“I’m not going to get upset.” You promise him, knowing that talking about Amanda isn’t nearly as bad as living with her. “Healthy communication, baby. And healthy experimentation, too, if we decide to.”

“It sounds like it might be fun.” He admits after a long moment searching your face. “Nothing too heavy, though. I would never want anything extreme.” He snorts, shaking his head. “Could you see me trying to be some hardass dom?”

“No.” You wrinkle your nose a little, not out of distaste but because you definitely couldn’t see Marcus ever being domineering. “But I have to admit that the fact that you don’t let me pay for anything, cater to everything I need, and would completely love me being at home waiting for you every day makes me think that all those sugar babies out in the world definitely have the right idea.” The wink you send him is exaggerated and comes with a kiss to his cheek. “I think you like the idea of being a caretaker, baby. And sometimes that can translate into softdom territory. But only if you want it to.”

“Maybe we could research it together?” He asks, slightly hopeful since you seem to get him. It’s not that he wants you to be his maid or his keeper, more that he wants to provide for you. Let you do whatever you want.

“Do you want to look things up while we eat?” There are times you truly do think that the thing that would make Marcus happiest in the world would be to come home to his fully-provided for wife and small army of children, and even you - who would have railed against it in the beginning - see why. It’s not to do with subservience, it’s about him providing not only finances for his family, but love and care as well. The love and care that he feels he never got as a kid. He wants to give every inch of himself to loving his family, and that is something you fully admire about him.

“Only if you want to.” Marcus is insistent on that. “Besides, this entire thing revolves around you being comfortable.”

“So let’s look it up.” Both of your phones are in your pockets, and you offer him a soft smile of encouragement. “If we don’t like what we read, we don’t have to try it. It’s as simple as that.”

“Okay.” He still makes no move to reach for his phone. Enjoying holding you way too much right now.

“You wanna read over my shoulder?” His arms are tight around you but you slip your phone out of your jeans easily and waggle it at him. “If I’m pushing, you can tell me, honey. I’m only asking because you reacted to it.”

“No, you would never push.” You are positively the last person to push him, so he knows that’s not the case. “Maybe you are interested too?”

“I’m interested.” That much can be made perfectly clear, and you bite your lip to keep from smirking. “I know you say good girl every now and then without thinking, but you could say it literally anytime you wanted, and I would just magically lose my panties.”

“Really?” Now it’s his turn to smirk and he does so immediately. “You like when I call you a good girl?” He doesn’t even try to hide the fact that he wants a reaction out of you, dropping his voice down slightly.

The pout on your face might seem like a dramatic change from how you were just laughing, but that tone in Marcus’s voice is fucking delicious. “Fuck — Yes.” You nod, straightening up a little more.

“My good girl?” He asks, smirking even more when you let out a small whimper. He loves how you want him. It’s a soothing balm on his previously lonely and hurt heart.

“Yes sir.” You try out the little extra sign of authority, wondering if Marcus will like it as much as you - surprisingly - do.

“Fuck.” His breath comes out in a rush, punched from his lungs in a harsh exhale. “That’s something I can say I like.” He admits quietly, his hand that had been on your stomach sliding to your core and cupping you over your clothes.

The physicality of his reaction - that instant possessiveness - makes you whimper again slightly and you can practically feel your pupils dilate. “You like being called sir?” You ask with a raised eyebrow, interested to see how he reacts to you saying it again.

Marcus Pike has never slapped a pussy in his life, honestly kind of shaking his head at the idea when it came up on a porno and writing it off as some macho fantasy that the girl performing just goes with. But right now? It sounds sexy. His hand draws back and he swats his hand down on your clit, just to see your reaction.

The sensation is sharp - and surprising - and the little half-yelp, half-moan you let out when the quick flick of his wrist snaps the seam of your soft pants directly against your clit is amazing. “Was that a punishment or a reward?” You ask, voice breathless as you try to figure out how to get more of this out of him.

“Depends on how you feel about it.” Marcus hums in your ear, knowing you had to enjoy it from the way you moaned. “Do you want me to do it again?” He teases, rubbing your clit gently through the leggings.

“Mmhmm.” Actually you can barely believe how much you want him to do it again, but you’re nearly squirming in his lap as you chase the staccato sensation. “Please.”

His chuckle is dirty, and he wants to do it again. Nuzzling against your neck, he lets his teeth scrape over your skin. Hearing you inhale sharply, he pulls his hand back to smack your clit again - only to have a knock on the door stop him before he can bring his hand down. He groans quietly into your ear. “The food.”

“Nooooo!” Your frustrated groan at the bad timing is mirrored in how deeply you pout at Marcus as he lifts you off his lap.

“Don’t be a bad girl.” He teases, although he’s just as disappointed as you. “At least the interruption is food.”

“Which is literally the only reason I’m not begging you to ignore it and touch me again.” You don’t want to say slap my pussy again too loudly, just in case the door is thin or something. Although you’re sure the walls of a luxury hotel have heard far weirder things.

Marcus smirks, leaning down and kissing you before he straightens up and adjusts his hard cock. “Later.”

You manage not to protest how badly you want him now, because it’s slightly useless all things considered. You’ve wanted him endlessly since about two seconds after he walked into your store and it has only gotten more intense with falling in love with him and being pregnant with his child. But the physical end of your relationship has to be secondary to the emotional, and you accepted that.

Marcus opens the door, greeting the server who has been sent with the cart with a friendliness that is covering his sexual frustrations. “Thanks, just anywhere is good.” He offers as he digs in his pocket to tip the man.

The man is there and gone in a flash, and you don’t miss the way he tries to be subtle about sneaking a peak at your hand. Marcus must have told them the reason for your stay when he requested the roses and ginger ale.

“Food is here.” Marcus states the obvious but winks at you. “Come eat baby, I know you are hungry.”

“Yes, sir.” You’re going to keep the game up as long as it’s still fun for both of you. And it is definitely fun.

“God, keep it up and I’ll eat you.” He growls playfully.

“How exactly is that supposed to deter me?” The smirk on your face as you move to the bistro table in the corner to sit and eat with him is pure playfulness.

“Maybe it’s not.” He challenges with a smirk of his own. “Maybe I want to see how the food tastes cold.” He’s joking, because he heard your stomach growling.

“I’m afraid your son isn’t going to allow that.” One hand goes to your belly as you sit down, traveling up to your rumbling stomach a second later. “Pretzels on the plane was definitely not enough.”

“We should have eaten before the flight,” he admits, slightly annoyed with himself. “But I wasn’t sure how the flight would mess with your stomach, and I didn’t want you airsick the entire time.”

“I was nervous about it, too. Don’t worry, love.” You throw him a wink from behind your glass. “You can have me for extra dessert.”

“Fuck yes.” He loves every opportunity he has to explore your changing body, even if it hasn’t changed much so far. “Eat.” He tells you with just a touch of sternness as he points to your plate.

“I’m liking the little bit of sternness,” you admit, picking up your fork with a grin. “If I weren’t literally about to have your baby, I might have asked to call you daddy.”

He groans, shaking his head. “Maybe before the first one starts using that term.” He tells you with a grin.

“We’re in the mood to discover tonight, I see.” Teasing is good - it’s light and fun and something you don’t get enough of at home - but the first bite you take off your pasta has you moaning with almost as much enthusiasm as when he goes down on you. “Holy shit this is amazing,” you groan, eyes drifting shut while you savor.

He stops with his own fork halfway to his mouth, watching in appreciation as you savor your food. Licking his lips unconsciously as you swipe at a little sauce that you missed. “Good?” He asks hoarsely, even though you just said it was amazing.

“Fucking amazing.” Picking up another mouthful of your dinner, you hold it out to him with a devious smile. “Wanna try?”

“I always want to try…” Marcus grins and wraps his lips around the fork and winks at you as he pulls his mouth back. “Hmmmmmm.”

"I'd try just about anything with you." He digs into his own dinner with another grin and you go after your own with enthusiasm. Eating for two is a very real thing.

“So, did you pack the most comfortable shoes you have?” Marcus asks. “There’s a lot of walking on the menu.”

"I brought my sneakers." Taking the cue that he would rather not flirt during dinner, you nod in between bites. "Dresses, leggings, and sneakers all weekend."

“Perfect.” He sends you a little wink. “Even though this is a special weekend, I want you comfortable.”

"I have a feeling it's going to be plenty of snack stops and resting here and there while we go through the museums." Even though the physical changes are minimal, your appetite has definitely increased and the back and ankle pan is something that is starting in small amounts. "I want to do as many as we can, though. And join the party tomorrow night. We deserve to enjoy this weekend."

“We do, just tell me when you want to stop and we will sit down, have something to eat, relax.” He promises, knowing that this weekend is supposed to be easy and relaxing rather than pushing yourselves to see everything.

"Whatever we don't see this time, we'll just have to come back and see it on an anniversary trip." The idea of coming back here one day with your kids makes you smile, loving the idea of showing them so much art and history and science all in such a beautiful place that means so much to you.

“I like the way you think.” Marcus forks up another bite of his food. “The future Mrs. Pike is a smart cookie.”

"So here's a question." Your dinner is absolutely delicious, and you feel like you're absolutely inhaling it but can't bring yourself to care. "If you ever got transferred back here. What part of the city would you want to live in?" With promotions in the FBI, all roads lead to DC, and you have to admit that you're curious as to what he would choose.

Marcus hums, reaching for his napkin and wiping his mouth. “Honestly? Probably Georgetown or Capitol Hill.” He admits. “The amenities are nice, and the neighborhood is safe.”

"I don't know if I agree with Capitol Hill being safe, necessarily, but I like the idea of Georgetown." The area of it that you're in right now - where the inn is - has always been one you've found beautiful. "The Palisades has great schools, too."

“It sounds like you would be okay with a transfer.” Marcus raises a brow and grins at you.

"I miss DC." And you don't mind admitting that. "I mean, don't get me wrong. Austin has some amazing schools, too. And the condo is so well furnished," you laugh, shaking your head at your own joke. "I am proud of you and everything you do. But I'm also in a weird phase where I'm looking up public and private elementary schools in every city I can think of that you could be transferred to just to know."

“I promise you that I will let you know if and when we have to transfer.” Marcus reaches out and takes your hand. “I want you to be happy. And since you miss D.C? I’ll see if I can’t find a spot here as my number one option.”

“I want you to take the job that makes you happiest, no matter where it is.” This is a cycle the two of you get into, each always wanting to put the other first, and you recognize it with a breathy little laugh. “We’ll think about transfers when the time comes. For now, let’s just agree that we’ll make the best of it when it does.”

“I would say that sounds like a plan.” He flashes you a grin, noticing that your dinner is nearly finished. “Are you ready for dessert? I’m sure the Pike-ette is craving that cake for their momma.”

“I was going to be polite and wait for you to finish,” you admit, albeit with a sheepish smile. That just makes Marcus’s grin grow wider and you reach for the slice of chocolate cake without another second’s hesitation. “Is the food here actually amazing or am I just a ravenous pregnant lady?”

“A little bit of both.” Marcus chuckles and gives a small shrug. “The food is great, but you were moaning over a peanut butter and jelly sandwich two days ago.” He teases, remember how you had just cooed over him bringing you a sandwich upstairs so you didn’t have to risk running into Amanda.

“You used my favourite jelly. It matters.” The expression on your face is dead serious - peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a staple of your diet right now. “Plus you sacrificed yourself to an encounter with the Wicked Witch to make it for me. You’re my hero.”

He grins and leans in to kiss you. “Anything for my fair maiden.” He promises with a wink. “Besides, she doesn’t try too much shit when it’s me. You’re the one getting the brunt of the nastiness.”

“Well sure.” That makes you roll your eyes, but only out of exasperation, as you pat your belly with one hand. “Because I’ve got the golden ticket.”

“You do have the golden ticket.” He smirks happily, never not happy about his child. “I don’t mind that at all, but you tell me when she gets worse.”

“It’s nothing I can’t handle.” There’s no way in the world you’re going to tell him that Amanda threatened you right before leaving for your mini vacation. There’s no need to bring the mood down at all.

There’s something in your tone that makes him suspicious, but he doesn’t press. He’ll check the camera feeds later on. Instead he nods and snatches up the fork for the cake and gathers the first bite to offer you. “Tell me how it is?”

Giggling at yourself when your response to the first bite is to moan again, you nudge the plate toward Marcus. “Sharing is caring,” you remind him, knowing that literally anyone else would get their hand slapped if they tried to eat your chocolate cake right now.

Marcus hums and takes a smaller bite for himself, groaning in appreciation of the moist, chocolaty cake. “That’s great.”

“Right? Second only to my Mom’s chocolate cake. Like a close second.” Your bites are distinctly less dainty than his, but Marcus only smiles when you have the good manners to apologize for being a bit greedy.

“You are enjoying it baby.” He loves that, watching you inhale the cake. “Next time we’ll get a glass of milk too.”

“If my appetite keeps growing like crazy I’m gonna have the doctor check that there’s not already four in there,” you joke, offering him another bite before you totally demolish the thing.

“Oh god.” His eyes widen dramatically, even if it’s playfully. “Can you imagine quadruplets? You would kill me.”

“On the other hand?” Shrugging slightly, both of your hands cradle your very full belly for effect as you sit back in your chair. “It would be a very good thing that we bought all their first stuffed animals at once.”

“Yes it would be.” The stuffed animals had a place of honor on the chair next to the window in your shared bedroom and Marcus grins at them every time he sees them.

Stretching a little in your seat, you give a small groan as a few joints pop and glance over at the clock. The time difference between Austin and DC may be small, but it's enough that you pout at the clock. "It's later than I thought it was. Do you still want to take a bath before bed, baby?"

“You sound tired.” Marcus immediately looks over at you and gives a small frown. “Do you want to go to bed?”

"I don't want to ruin the fun." You throw him a pout but end up yawning, immediately clamping both hands over your mouth to stifle it. "I guess that's a yes," you admit begrudgingly.

“Then let’s save the soak in the tub for tomorrow morning before we take on the day.” Plans are always easily changed in his opinion.

"You don't mind?" He never does. Marcus Pike is probably the most accommodating man on the planet, which might have a little to do with why his not-quite-ex-wife is still in his house. Either way, though, you haul yourself out of your chair and reach your hand out to him. "We can cuddle until we pass out. It'll be nice not to have to hear her clanging around downstairs or in her room while we try to fall asleep."

“Yes it will be.” You don’t know how many conversations he’s had with his lawyers about getting Amanda out of the house. How many arguments he’s had with them. He’s tired of the way you seem to be taking the brunt of this, he’s even wondered if he made the right decision in moving you in.

"Come on, handsome." With his hand in yours, you lead him back to the suite's bedroom and flip on the light, enjoying the casual intimacy of nighttime rituals as you grab your toiletries bag from your suitcase. "Fair warning, the only things I brought to sleep in barely qualify as coverings."

“I have zero problem with that.” You are tired, so even if he wanted to touch you, he wouldn’t. “I can’t wait to snuggle into this large bed with you.” It might test his patience, but he will survive. The most important thing is that he has you in bed beside him.

Crawling under the covers beside him a few minutes later, you burrow into Marcus’s side and sigh happily when his arms come around you immediately. “I already know this weekend is going to be perfect.” You stifle another yawn and grin guiltily, stretching up to press a kiss to the sharp line of his jaw. “I love you more than anything, baby. Sweet dreams.”

******

The next morning begins perfectly in Marcus’s opinion. You are curled against him, your ass pressed against his cock and your soft murmured snores telling him that you are sleeping peacefully. Something you’ve been missing out on since moving in. He smirks and unwinds his arm from around your stomach, shifting under the covers and moving lower, wanting to wake you up right on the day he is going to propose to you.

The dream you’re still deep inside of is perfect - a sunny, sandy beach with Marcus on your honeymoon. Gorgeous crystal-clear water and blue skies like a picturesque magazine spread. The kind of trip everybody always dreams of taking, but without the cocktails since even in the dream you’re still pregnant. The air is thick with the smell of sweet flowers and spicy food, and there is nothing to do but relax. It’s paradise inside your mind, and you sigh happily in your sleep.

Marcus smirks when your grunt is soft in protest when he slowly rolls you onto your back. He doesn’t know what you are dreaming, but you wants to stay there.

Waking each other up like this - the intimacy of it and care - is something you had talked about long before you ever shared it with each other. It’s something Erik had never found the appeal in and farm work demanded early rising without leisure, so the first time Marcus woke you up with pleasure you had spoiled and pampered him for the next two days in thanks.

For Marcus, there is something delicious about a woman’s taste when she’s been asleep for hours. It’s rich and earthy, potent and tangy on his tongue. Hot and musky in his nose as he slowly probes your folds with the gentle pass of his tongue, not ready to have you wake up just yet. You squirm slightly under him, unconscious movements that mimic the way you’re settling into your beach chair with a sigh in your dream as the pleasurable sensations start to register on the edges of your mind. Nothing ever feels as good as Marcus does in real life, and you hum softly from inside the dream.

He keeps his touch light, the gentle way he presses your legs a little wider under the covers, the soft morning sun filtering in through the white sheets the perfect amount of visibility to look at the way your hips roll up. You still haven't woken up, and that's good. Making him kiss your clit softly and circling it in a slow pattern.

Soft sighs come slightly more often as you start to build toward your peak, and your dream has turned distinctly dirtier. Marcus has you laid out on the beach with your bathing suit ripped away, feasting on you like he hasn’t had a crumb to eat in weeks. His name is a distinct sigh in that hotel bed as you cry it out in your dream.

He feels the way you come apart for him, it's soft and fluttery, but still intense as you sleep through it. Marveling at how you can still be asleep as you cum, soaking his chin in your juices while he continues to softly work you through it. He's never had you stay locked in your dreams, and he wonders what you will say about them when you wake up.

It takes another moment before your eyelids start to flutter, a soft moan parting your lips as the morning light permeates everything. “Morning…” You stretch to reach for him beside you, but Marcus isn’t there. “Baby?”

Marcus chuckles, finding it adorable that you are awake enough to know he's not where he is supposed to be but still asleep enough that you haven't figured out where he is. "Morning." He murmurs before he kisses your clit one last time and reaches up to pull the covers down over his head. "Sweet dreams?" He can't help but grin and wink when you look down at him.

“Mmm…” The soft hun of realization on your lips morphs into a dirty, throaty laugh when you stretch again and beckon him up beside you. “So that’s why my dream turned sexy.”

“I figured you were cumming in your sleep.” He kisses up your body with light kisses until he drops one on your lips. “I love that you slept through it.”

“You were eating me out on a beach on our honeymoon.” Chasing another kiss, you pull him back to you before you let him settle down at your side.

“Yeah?” He grins against your cheek and hums into your skin. “You envision a beach honeymoon, huh?”

“Maybe…” You would go anywhere with him, and you’ve imagined a hundred different trips in your mind. “A Caribbean beach, or Paris for the art, or Southeast Asia for the amazing cuisine and completely different culture. Anywhere you want to go.”

“No…” he shakes his head. “I like the idea of a small island, maybe one of those that you can rent the entire thing. Making that dream of yours cum true.” He throws you another wink with his pun.

“Dirty.” You giggle softly, rolling over to be closer to him, enjoying the gentle softness of the morning and how that translates into deep, lazy kisses.

Marcus sighs into your mouth, relaxed for the first time since the one night you had truly spent together. Even if he was still turned on, just knowing that today is the day he is going to propose, makes a tingle run up his spine.

“Baby…” Marcus hasn’t been this pliant or eager in weeks - maybe months - and the twitch of his hardness against your leg as he kisses you has you moaning. “Can I— is it okay today?” You don’t want to ask too much, but you’re really hoping that he’ll be okay with a little more intimacy on this trip.

There is a space in time, his heartbeat stops and his stomach twists in the most divine combination of pleasure and pain. Despite everything, you have never pushed him for more than he can give, and he shoves away the gnawing ache of guilt. “Whatever you want.” He tells you softly. Meaningfully. He means it. You are going to be his wife. He doesn’t want to deny you, or himself, anything today.

That is not the answer you expected. You pull back from him, searching his face for any trace of anything that goes against the words coming out of his mouth, but all you find is soft determination. “Tonight, baby.” You offer, wrapping your arm around his waist. “Tonight we’ll dance and make love and fall asleep tangled together. How does that sound?”

“That sounds perfect.” He has to admit he’s a little disappointed now that he said anything goes. Halfway expecting you to jump him, but you might need to process that change in your relationship and he can’t blame you for that.

“Doesn’t mean I’m going to neglect you now.” It’s your turn to kiss him - earnest and deep - before trailing your lips down his body. It would be unfair to spoil the moment by admitting that you’re actually a little nervous about having sex with him again - you’ve built it up in your mind so much since that one night that you need to give yourself a little time to come down out of those proverbial clouds. This morning, though? This morning you’re going to suck his soul out through his cock so he doesn’t have the brain power left to overthink his decision.

He hasn’t let you make him cum often. A combination of guilt and honestly not wanting to do anything to activate your gag reflex. It’s been bad enough with the morning sickness and the shit his ex is pulling, he doesn’t want you sick because of sucking him off. However, this morning, he’s moaning when you scrape your teeth over his nipple and his cock twitches again. “Fuck.” He murmurs, looking down so he can give you the obligatory ‘you don’t have to’.

“Don’t even say it.” You order, practically wagging a finger at him as your face hovers maybe a whole three inches from his achingly hard, leaking cock. “You never let me suck you off and for once I’m not feeling nauseous first thing.”

“I have.” His protest is weak, because he last time he let you suck him off was the day he found out you were pregnant. You had jerked him off a couple of times, but he had always tried to focus on your pleasure more.

“Once.” And you remember every perfect second of it like it was yesterday. “You did say whatever I want.”

“I did.” He reaches down and cups your cheek, giving you a soft look. “And I meant it. Although…please don’t stick a finger in my ass?” He jokes.

“Dammit!” You huff dramatically, playing along with the joke for a second to make you both laugh. “Fiiiiiiine. I guess just a regular blow job will have to do.”

It’s fun to joke about this with you, needed, really. He grunts, even with a grin on his face. One that quickly changes to pure bliss when your duck your head down and lick a long line up the underside of his cock. “Shiiiiit.”

“That’s it, baby.” You coo, looking up at him as you kitten lick the head of his cock and use the hand that isn’t bracing your weight to cup his balls the way you know he likes. “Let me hear you.”

“Jesus.” Marcus pants out the word, loving the sultry look in your eyes and the way you touch him. He doesn’t bite his lip, instead letting out another soft moan, just loud enough for you. Since it was early and there are other guests.

Humming approvingly, you sink down on him just about halfway at first, just to make sure that he really is okay with this and that you don't accidentally make yourself gag. This is bliss for you. Not just because you like giving head - although you definitely do - but also because there isn't a trace of worry or guilt or stress left in Marcus's whole body. He is relaxed and focused only on pleasure, something that he has actively denied himself for a long time. The way he moans when you start to bob up and down on his length is genuine and indulgent, and you honestly can't wait to be able to hear this sound every single day.

“Fuck baby.” His groan is filthy, matching the way that his body reacts to the feeling of your wet, hot mouth around him. Watching your lips stretch around his shaft. “Good girl.” He praises breathlessly, stroking your cheek while you press him just a half inch deeper.

Those words, and thinking about last night at all, have you moaning around his cock. It makes you want to just shove his cock all the way down your throat but you don't dare, for now just bobbing a little bit more on the next pass and wrapping your hand around the base of his shaft that your mouth can't reach.

He can barely keep the soft whine from slipping through, loving the firm grip you have on the base of his cock. Even if you haven’t sucked him off often, you have been quick to learn exactly how he likes to be touched. “Love you.” He moans quietly.

Your soft hum has to be enough reply for now, as you steadily work him up with your hand and mouth, tongue swirling around his head to greedily pick up every bit of his musky taste. You can shower him in affirmations all day, and always do, but the chance for the physical - the lustful - expression of what he means to you is rare.

“God.” His whimper is punctuated by your name. “You love this, don’t you baby?” His fingers curl around your jaw and your hum makes his stomach clench.

“Mmhmm.” You won’t deny that for a second, and you look up at him with mischief in your eyes since you can’t exactly smirk with your lips stretched around his cock.

There’s something about how you love him that just makes Marcus melt. The way you want to please him. His heart stutters every time, even if he doesn’t let you do this often. “Gonna cum baby.” He gasps a warning, letting you know. He doesn’t want you to swallow if you don’t want to.

Marcus is always attractive - without fail, even on his worst days - but he is gorgeous when he falls apart. He’s uninhibited and completely himself, far away in a world of pure pleasure. It’s a blissful sight. One that you love as much as he loves watching you drink down every drop of cum he has for you.

Every time he cums with you, it’s such a fucking struggle to keep his eyes open. Wanting to see you when he reaches that peak and feels nothing but pleasure rushing through him and making him cry out your name again.

“You are an absolute vision when you cum.” You murmur, leaving a kiss on his hipbone before shifting back up the bed to lay down beside him and offer him a place in your arms. “I love you, baby.”

“I love you.” Marcus promises, knowing that the two of you could get into a playful back and forth on who loves the other more, but he just wants to relax with you. “I think this might be my favorite morning so far.” He murmurs softly, covering your stomach with his hand.

“With a lifetime to go.” Giving him a bright smile, you put your hand over his on your belt and sigh happily. “How do you want to start the day? Quick bite and off to the Smithsonian? Or leisurely breakfast and a stroll through the city?”

"However you want to." On that Marcus is adamant, he wants today to be exactly what you want. "What do you and our little Pike-ette want?" He hums with a smile as he caresses your stomach.

The already large smile on your face widens unapologetically, and you lean over to kiss him before popping out of the bed. “I don’t want to wait around for the morning sickness to kick in. Let’s grab a bite and hit the museums.”

"That sounds perfect." He grins and watches you, leering slightly was you walk over to the antique bureau that you had put your clothes in. "Although I'm liking my view."

“Look all you want.” You wiggle your hips to shake your ass at him as you grab clean panties and a bra from the dresser. Your dresses are in the closet, all neat and pretty because you wanted to look your best this weekend. “I’m all yours, love.”

“You will be.” He murmurs softly, smiling as you put on your bra and move over to the closet to pick out a dress. “Wear your favorite.” He suggests, wanting today to be perfect. “And I’ll wear your favorite outfit for me.”

You have an overwhelming instinct to call him out, but you don’t. Whatever he has planned you have no desire to spoil it so instead you just pull out the dress you wore on your first date and pull it over your head easily. From his hanging shirts you grab a rusty red coloured linen shirt to go with his jeans and his favourite black shoes that he was wearing yesterday. “How’s this?”

"That looks great." He knows that you have some kind of inkling that something is happening today, but he hopes you enjoy the suspense. "I will wear whatever you want."

“I’m not going to ask you to weather your leather jacket in a heat wave.” You tease, having always been fully upfront with him about how much you love that particular piece on him. “But I like this shirt on you. It brings out the gold in your eyes.”

There is a slight way that his chest puffs out slightly at your praise. He loves that you are attracted to him and you seek to let him know that. Men need compliments just as much as women do and he didn't realize how starved he was for that until you started showering him with affection and little phrases of esteem building praise.

“Breakfast downstairs?” Keeping things light and fun is the order of the morning, and you pause to kiss Marcus quickly as you pass by him to go into the bathroom to wash your face, brush your teeth, and all those good parts of your morning routine.

"Yeah." Going downstairs was a big part of today. He had to make sure that they had put together his little request to take with you when you leave for the day. "I'm sure that they will have some tea for you."

“My one doctor-approved dose of caffeine a day.” That leads you to a chuckle from the bathroom while pining and prodding at your hair. When your doctor had said you could still have small amounts of caffeine during your pregnancy you had almost jumped for joy, but the baby vetoed coffee consumption about two weeks ago. Now you’re on a single cup of tea per day instead of your single six-ounce cup of coffee.

"As soon as you have the baby, I will make sure you have a coffee in your hand every morning." He promises, rubbing your belly before he picks up his electric razor to shave quickly.

In a few minutes you’re both ready, hand in hand as you head downstairs to the inn’s restaurant for their apparently much-lauded breakfast buffet. Marcus’s need to book the biggest and fanciest room in the place means that the price of the morning meal is built right in, so you don’t hesitate. Especially not when you smell fresh bacon and crepes from the doorway.

Marcus smiles when you are eagerly hunched over the buffet, allowing him to turn to the woman who was carefully watching to make sure anything needed to be replenished. “Hi.” He greets her with a grin. “Marcus Pike.”

“Oh! Mr. Pike, of course!” The young woman nods eagerly, her eyes following his as she tries to figure which woman he is with - she didn’t see him walk in. “Everything for your basket is ready. I’ll go and get it for you while you’re having breakfast.” She grins but tries to smother it when she figures out who he keeps looking at down the buffet table. “The chef had quite a bit of fun putting it together.”

“Thank you so much.” He can’t help but lean in to give her a quick hug. “Today is going to be amazing.” He promises. “And she will be teary eyed over the idea of a picnic lunch from the inn. She’s been talking about this place since she decided she wanted to stay here.”

“Peanut butter, cilantro, and chocolate are pretty good as far as cravings go, she’s lucky.” She has seen the request in the system just like everyone else and a few of the women on staff were running bets on where exactly the proposal would happen. “May I ask how long you’ve been together?”

“Three months.” Marcus isn’t ashamed of that, even if he knows others with raise their eyebrows. “But she’s been a trooper the entire time.” He won’t go into details, those are more private, but he can’t help the sappy smile with his heart in his eyes as he watches you pile up the bacon.

“Well, we’re all very excited to hear how it turns out.” The staff have been pretty excited about it, actually, her included. “My name is Alana, I’m the front of house manager on duty today, so if you need anything please don’t hesitate to call the desk and ask for me.”

“Thank you.” Marcus gives her another smile and tilts his head back towards you. “I better make sure she eats something other than bacon.” He jokes. “Although do you have some tea?” He asks. “She’s needing a little caffeine but not too much.”

“I’ll bring out a selection for your table.” Alana nods and returns his smile before disappearing behind the pristine chestnut stained door that leads to the kitchen. She’s about to put together the best tea tray of her career, because that man is very in love.

Marcus finds you, his hand on your waist. “I asked for some tea, sweetheart.” He murmurs, pressing his lips to your cheek. “But I’m going to get you some orange juice now so you can take your vitamins.”

“Thank you.” With your hands full of two plates, you hadn’t even reached the drinks yet. You turn your head to catch him in a kiss before he’s too far away and smile softly. “You take such good care of us.”

“It’s my pleasure.” He won’t call it his job or responsibility, even though it is. It’s his pleasure to take care of you and his baby. He quickly brings two orange juices over and sets them down before he goes to fix himself a plate.

“And I appreciate the fact that you think of it like that.” You tell him honestly. “I’m the luckiest girl in the world.”

Marcus is coming back to the table when the lovely woman, Alana, approaches you with a tray of tea options.

“You have no idea how much I appreciate this.” He hears you saying to the woman as she sets the little silver service tray with hot water, and teacup, and a selection of teabags down in front of you. There’s even a little pitcher of cold milk and a bowl of sugar cubes despite both being available a few get away on the drinks section of the buffet. “Everyone’s been so nice since we got in last night and the food here is incredible.”

“We like to make a fuss.” Alana smiles at you, noting how your eyes immediately find your soon to be fiancé when he comes back to the table. “Especially for lovely couples like yourself.”

“Well, thank you.” Nothing could possibly beat the sunny sight of Marcus returning to your side, and you grin back at the woman - Alana - before he sits down. “I told him he’d like this place. That’s my proof. He loves to make a fuss.”

"A man in love always loves to fuss." Alana can't help but send you a small wink before she moves away from the table, wanting to go check on the cooler the chef prepared for the two of you one last time. It needed to be perfect since the two of you were obviously perfect for each other. She could tell these kinds of things.

“I think you have a fan,” you tease, shooting Marcus a grin as you drop a sachet of floral-smelling black tea into the China teacup on the tray and add water. “Does the whole place know why we’re here or something?” Not that you would mind, honestly. It would be very over the top. Very Marcus.

Blushing slightly, Marcus picks up his orange juice and takes a sip. "I might have mentioned why we were spending the weekend here." He admits with a small, pleased grin. "They have made us a picnic lunch for today while we are out."

“A picnic?” That has you practically squealing, and you reach over in your chair to plant a wet kiss on his cheek. “I haven’t been on a picnic in years. This is so sweet of you baby, thank you.”

He's giggling slightly, in relief, at your happiness. He had wondered if it was a little too boring for you, but he wanted to just make sure you were well fed and watered, relaxed and happy spread out on the lawn of the Mall when he proposes. "Good." He murmurs. "I'm glad you are excited."

“According to this handy map I snagged from our suite before we came downstairs.” You flap the folded map of the National Mall at him playfully before you open it up. “The National Museum of Natural History is right across the Mall from the Freer Gallery. Shall we start there and go for Air & Space after our picnic?”

“That sounds perfect.” Marcus will agree to whatever you wanted to do. “We can work up an appetite moving around from exhibit to exhibit.”

Breakfast doesn’t last long but it’s delicious and filling, and as you’re wiping your mouth from a particularly juicy strawberry when Alana reappears from the kitchen with a small cooler case bearing the hotel’s insignia.

“Everything you requested is in here.” She tells Marcus with a smile, offering him the cooler. “The ice packs will keep everything chilled until at least two o’clock in case you aren’t hungry right away.”

“Thank you,” you hum, eyeing the cooler with an air of excited anticipation. “We’re looking forward to a really memorable day.”

______

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