#I realized I needed to get yard work done and so like. When the weather's been nice I've done yard work

[moongothic]

MCM Shelf Saga

Part 1 - Introduction, Commencing Stripping Hell

Spring has come, which can only mean one thing. It's time for another furniture refinishing project.

So you might remember this chair I've refinished before, and you might remember how I mentioned in the backstory of that post that my late mother had painted three pieces of furniture (a chair, a desk and a shelf) in matching colors, the three having been left to collect dust in one of our attic closets for the past few decades.

Indeed, this is one of the three furniture pieces, and just like with the chair, I ain't keeping it if it looks like that. It's either getting refinished or yeeted, and since I don't want to waste perfectly good furniture, it's the former. And since the weather now allows it, it's time for me to get started on working on this beast of a project.

Now there's actually two things I had to do before I could begin this project. Step one was disassemble the entire unit because, TL:DR; we could not move it out of the tiny ass closet without either moving a fuck ton of furniture and storaged items out of the way and maybe break something while hauling this outside, OR just disassemble it 'cause it needed to get dissambled anyways.

So, with dad's help we did just that (with relative success, we did have to break some of the original screws because they had dug into the wood and made disassembly impossible otherwise, but it's fine that hardware can be replaced) and brought it to the patio where I can work on it.

The other thing I had to do was actually quickly check if the shelf was safe for me to work on. If you want more info you can read the chair post but long story short, I was worried there could be toxic car paint under this paint layer and if there was, I was going to refuse to refinish this piece. But all I did was gently sand some paint off a shelf to see what was underneath and it was wood so! Safe it is!

So this is probably somekinda MCM shelf, the style looks like it and the color of the wood could suggest it. The main unit of it is made of just veneered chipboard but hey, it's vintage chipboard, and there's nothing wrong with it, so it's still worth giving a second (a third?) life to

Didn't take a photo of it with the drawers and the sliding door still inside but I doubt that matters. Parts of the inside of the unit did get painted over which is. Not great for me, but it is what it is

Intrestingly, the sides of the shelf (that make both the feet of the unit as well as where the shelves hook onto) seem to have been black originally, as the inside facing parts never got painted over. Meanwhile the main unit has some veneer damage right where the sides were... Like it's not great but since that part does get completely covered it's not a huge deal

And the shelves of the shelf. As you can see, I did a quick test on them to see what was under the paint and it looked safe to work on

So I actually kinda started by testing my paint removal methods on one of the shelves. When I did the above check up, I noticed the paint was quite hard to just sand through, so just sanding it didn't seem like a great option. I did also soon discover the paint was quite hard to scrape.

Now, I did't want to use paint stripper since it causes me that severe nausea, so I decided to try out a hot air gun to remove it. And it did work! However

First off I just wasn't excited about using electricity 'cause. Energy crisis. Y'know. Shit's expensive.

While it worked it wasn't super effective? It might've been just poor technique on my part but I felt like I had to stand there blowing hot air onto the paint for a long time for it to start reacting before quickly sweeping in to scrape a tiny section clean before starting again on another tiny tiny section

And the main thing... Under the paint there seemed to be an old finish of some kind. Probably a poly coat, IDK. But I was getting worried of how it was reacting to the heat. Like. IDK I was worried it might melt and damage the wood or something

So. I had to go crawling back to the paint stripper. Because in the end, it felt like the safest option for me to use (nausea aside). From the chair project I knew it would be able to remove the paint easily and knowing this whole thing has a lot of thin veneer all over it, it'd probably be the best way for me to ensure I didn't damage the veneer too much.

Goop time it is

I did one coat of paint stripper and let it sit over night (plastic wrapped so it wouldn't dry out)

Here's what the sides were looking like after one round of paint stripper. It really wasn't going to be enough so what I ended up doing was that I applied another coat of paint to the top and let it do it's thing for like an hour (while I was walking my cat), before coming back. I then did another round of stripper on both sides while I finished removing the paint residue from the top

So here's what two rounds of paint stripper did to the top, as well as one round to the inside bits. It seems like the paint may have permanently strained parts of the inside where the wood was raw as it did not want to come off at all, though fortunately the worst parts are the parts that'll end up getting covered by the drawers so it could be worse

Now the paint stripper did not make the old finish come off the main unit really. It did soften it, but that didn't make it easier to remove, it made it just kinda goopy and unpleasant to remove but, since I had no other choise, I kept on going at it and scraped it away along with the remaining paint residue

After I finished working on the top I went back to remove the rest of the paint from the sides and the old finish. Eventually getting to this point

The veneer is not in great shape, there seems to be some possible water damage marks on the wood (possibly from the stripper??) OR there might be just more of the old finish there that I haven't managed to remove yet

The veneer is super thin. I could keep on scraping and sanding it, but I'm just really afraid I might go through the veneer and do some really bad damage, so... I kinda wan tto try using oxalic acid first. If there's water stains, the acid should be able to remove the stains, meaning there's less sanding for me to do in general and less of a chance of me sanding through that veneer.

But I don't have oxalic acid at the moment, and I kinda wanna finish stripping the paint off from the entire unit first, so this first part is coming to an unsatisfying end.

The main unit has been put to the side while I finish stripping the rest of the unit, starting with the drawer fronts!

((Sidenote: I am planning on staining the wood dark/black so the stains aren't super worrysome for me, the dark stain would end up hiding most of them I'm sure))

Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 (Finale)

#Refinish Diary #Mine #furniture refinishing #furniture restoration #mcm furniture #This was not gonna be a multiparter but I remember Tumblr has max 30 images per post #And I was already at like 20 so. Guess it's gonna be a multiparter #For the record I started working on this in mid April and haven't worked on it since #I realized I needed to get yard work done and so like. When the weather's been nice I've done yard work #So much yard work #And when it's been ass I haven't bothered to lift a finger #I'll get back to it soon I swear there's just a little more yard work for me to do!! #And I just wanna do this when the weather is nice!! Leave me alone!! #I can't have the shelf pieces blocking the patio entrance anyways so I need to finish it sooner than later #It'd be nice to use the patio as a patio and not as a DIY space lmao

[lowkeyerror]

Ms. Romanoff pt2

Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Word Count: 1.4k

Warnings: Masturbation, Phone sex (kind of)

Summary: Trapped alone with Natasha, Y/n tries her best to finish the yard work. However, Natasha is one of the best distractions that Y/n has ever had the pleasure of losing focus too. So much so that even when she gets home, Natasha is the only thing on her mind.

Pt1 Pt3

Masterlist

James leaving, put Y/n in a really tough spot. She didn't realize how tough the spot was until she moved on to the pool in the backyard.

When she initially started on the pool, it was fine. The heat was still intense, but nothing she hadn't dealt with before. It was when Natasha walked into the backyard in a black bikini with a sun hat and shades to match, that she realized how fucked she was.

Something that caught her eye immediately was a bottle of sunscreen she sat on the pool chair next to her. It was almost as if she was daring Y/n to ask if she needed help applying it.

Though the sunglasses hid her eyes, Y/n knew she was watching her. She knew that Natasha was probably dripping from seeing her sweat.

For a good chunk of time, Natasha let Y/n work in peace. It wasn't until she saw that Y/n was actually tired that she spoke," Y/n, come sit. You're working too hard."

The girl couldn't even open her mouth to deny it. Y/n plopped down on the chair that had the sunscreen on it. She moved the bottle before completely lying back. Her eyes shut for less than a second, and then she felt freezing cold water splash over her body.

Her mouth was open in shock as her body reacted similarly. She turned to Natasha who had a wide smile on her face and an empty bottle of water in her hand, "Whoops, I meant to pass it to you."

Once the shock subsided, Y/n got up from her chair and walked over to the garden hose.

She turned it on full blast and sprayed Natasha," Oh I'm so sorry Ms. Romanoff, I was aiming for the pool."

An evil smirk was present on the young girl's face. Now they were both drenched in water and laughing.

" I suppose karma comes instantly sometimes," Natasha laughed.

Y/n couldn't help but notice the way the bikini clung to Natasha's body when it was wet. She wondered what it would like if it was off.

" Y/n, honey, if you keep looking at me like that… I don't know what I'll do."

Feeling bold, Y/n took a few steps closer to Natasha," You're one to talk, Ms. Romanoff, you've been staring at me since I got here."

" You could call me Natasha if you like, maybe even Nat," the red head matched Y/n step for step.

"I have to call you Ms. Romanoff."

" Why?"

Y/n stared Natasha down," because if I call you anything but Ms. Romanoff, I might lose my best friend."

" Over a name?"

Y/n gave her a look that said 'really'," Over the implication of what calling you, Natasha, might do to us."

Even saying it on her tongue right there felt intrusive. It was like Y/n could taste Natasha's name and the flavor was perfect.

" See like that," Y/n saw Natasha's eyes darken as she spoke her name.

Natasha took a step back from the shirtless girl," Y/n, I know what I want. I know it's wrong and selfish, but I want it. James leaves in two days, and he'll be gone for a week. If you want what I want, then you should stop by one of those days."

Y/n's head was spinning, she needed to clear her mind. She hurriedly finished the pool, luckily James came in right then.

" Pools clean, yards done, I gotta get going buddy," Y/n says, trying to leave the house as soon as possible.

" You aren't staying for dinner?"

The girl stutters," I um, I can't today, maybe when you get back from your grandparents."

" Don't you need a ride?"

Natasha reappeared," You keep cleaning, I'll take Y/n home."

" You don't have to Na- Ms. Romanoff," Y/n's slip up had her cursing herself in the head.

" I couldn't possibly let you walk in the heat, after you've already worked up such a sweat helping me," her choice of words made Y/n shiver in the 80 degree weather.

The girl accepted the ride. She was hesitant to even sit in Natasha's expensive car. The older woman raised an eyebrow at the pause.

" I'm really sweaty & dirty."

Natasha rolled her eyes," Leather can be cleaned, detka."

Y/n got in the car with a huff," What does that mean?"

Natasha giggled," What do you think it means?"

" Well, it's a term of endearment."

Natasha keep her eyes on the road," Somewhat, how about I just call you Printesa instead."

" Princess?"

Natasha smirked with her eyes on the road," Good girl using context clues."

Y/n couldn't string together a sentence. The rest of the ride was her stealing glances at Natasha.

When Natasha pulled up, Y/n tried to exit the car, but Natasha turned on the child lock. So Y/n was trapped in the car with her.

" Why do you do that?"

" You almost called me Natasha at the house," the woman pointed out.

Y/n ignored it," Almost doesn't count."

" My offer still stands for the week, I hope to see you Y/n," she unlocked the doors.

Y/n bolted out of the car with a quick," Goodbye Ms. Romanoff."

The house was empty as usual when she arrived. Tonight, she didn't care because she had so much sexual frustration. Doubling checking to make sure no one was truly there.

When she was sure of her loneliness; she went in her room and locked the door

Y/n's clothes were gone fast, taking up the entire middle of the bed. Her phone surfed for any video to accompany her.

She found a good one and spread her legs. Two of her own fingers were shoved into her mouth. She found pleasure licking them. Her tongue swirled and with a satisfying pop she took the well coated fingers out of her mouth.

She shoved two fingers inside of herself. Y/n did her best to keep her breath steady as she pleasured herself.

Her eyes were glued to the video she was watching. The wetness only grew as she began to palm her clit, but it wasn't enough.

Images of Natasha flooded her mind every time she closed her eyes. She wanted Natasha, it was wrong, but her back arched at the thought.

All she knew was that she'd be really close, but unable to properly finish. That's when a thought crossed her mind and she snatched up her phone.

She dialed Natasha's number and then sat the phone down. Her efforts to keep quiet were abandoned with her new plan.

Once she heard Natasha pick up, Y/n closed her eyes and began rubbing her clit. The sound of her wetness was loud, but her moans were louder.

"Fuck, Natasha."

Y/n's tongue trailed over her lip as she tried to picture the red head's reaction to this.

" Are you- ?" Natasha stopped herself from finishing the sentence, as she knew the answer.

" I need you, Natasha. Say I can cum, please, I need it. My pussy needs it," the steady breathing practices went out of the window as Y/n began to beg.

" You're doing so well, printesa. I can hear how wet you are all for me. Fucking yourself on your fingers, I bet you're all spread wide for me. I want you to cum all over those fingers, detka."

The lewd sounds leaving Y/n's mouth couldn't be covered up. She was loud when her release finally came. The girl nearly jumped straight out of her bed at the force of her climax.

" That's it, good girl. Now suck your fingers for me," Natasha's voice was low and deep over the phone.

Y/n did exactly what the older woman asked. The taste of her own pussy caused her to moan as if she was eating her last meal.

Her eyes closed, and her breathing started to steady. She hears Natasha chuckle over the phone," I could give what you really want and even more, printesa. All you have to do is pay me a visit."

" Natasha, your son is my best friend."

" Y/n, I know that, but I can't help it. Neither can you."

Y/n cursed herself in her head. Natasha was right. She was just guilty, but being guilty never felt so good. Just hearing Natasha speak gave her one of the best orgasms of her life.

Truth be told, her mind had been made up when she called Natasha in the first place. She only had one thing to say before she ended the call.

" I'll see you next week, Ms. Romanoff."

#lowkeyerror #natasha romanov #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha x reader #natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff x reader

[yamanaka-shin]

@kankuroplease has done me the great honor of taking a commission to draw my boy and the love of his life. she never ever fails to impress with her work and I am in love with this 🧡🧡 so in turn I did another small drabble to go with it.

~~~~~~

These are one of those times when he really has to swallow his pride and admit that ridiculous partner of his had a good fucking point forever ago when they told him he didn't have to stay in a dead end job that he wasn't happy with. Sure the fallout of that realization kicked off one hell of a quarter life crisis, but he knows damn well it really was for his own good. A then-stranger turned unwitting acquaintances had read him for filth and given him directions that sounded off the walls at the time. Now, that stranger was his significant other and that dire need of a change in careers was paying off handsomely. Kouta had to face the facts and tell Shin that they had given him the best possible advice. Again. Just like he had to confirm it the day he'd gotten his current job because he knew it would make him very happy.

That new job he had been able to snag a few years back had truly turned out to be the best possible place for him. It gave him a creative outlet without demanding too much interaction with too many members of the public all at once. And the owner of the shop he had gotten the job at was officially handing the entire business to him in order to retire. That still barely sounded real. Kouta, the Takigakure runaway, in charge of an entire glasswork shop he'd only been working in for what seemed like such a short time. And he owed it all, deep down, to his shamelessly forward partner for pushing him to get a job he liked better in the first place. He sighed through his nose and mentally prepared to have that conversation.

He quieted his conflicted internal train of thought the best he could, which was no easy feat considering how surreal this all still felt, and tried to see if he could sense if his other half was home. Kouta really wasn't any sort of sensory specialist but he liked to believe he wasn't entirely dense either. Besides, it was impossible *not* to easily locate Shin even if your sensory skills sucked absolute shit. They just had such a sunny and unmistakable chakra signature that they were like a beacon no matter where they went. So he mentally sniffed around the property but could not locate their being inside of the main house. Huh, maybe they were outside elsewhere on the grounds. They had to be here *somewhere* because he knew they were coming here today to talk to their family about something. So all Kouta had to do was follow the process of elimination.

The backyard was his next immediate location to scour. In order not to stretch his senses too thin, he strode in the direction he was intending to scope out as a way to meet his mediocre skills halfway. There were no positive results as he rounded the corner of the dwelling to get a good view of the expansive yard behind the physical building. Dammit. Where has they scooted off to? Hopefully not already over to the Yamanaka grounds to hang around Sai because that would be a fair walk from here he wasn't looking forward to. No, he was hoping Shin had only decided to head in another direction that still remained under the classification of Nara land. Perhaps the forest was where their whims took them. Gods he sure hoped so.

Since there really was no other place he could think to look right now that didn't also include quite a trek in another major direction, Kouta let his feet carry him down the main path snaking into the beautiful forest the Nara were so well known for. At least the weather was beautiful and there was a nice level of quiet out here at the moment. In fact it was almost *too* nice out because his hoodie began to feel a bit too warm to keep on. If he really felt like it was too much of a hassle to tough out, he could just take it off and tie it around his waist. Hopefully it would stay out instead of falling off only to risk getting stepped on. Gods he didn't want to do laundry today. Not today, no.

So lost in his own head was the musteline artisan that he didn't even register the ultra familiar presence scoping him out from a perch up a tree. It was only when a long, low whistle reached his ears that he bothered to peek up and look around. Kouta followed where he believed the sound to have come from and his entire demeanor pivoted as his eyes landed on the visage of his "missing" partner up there on that branch. Playful dark eyes peered down at him and soon their expression morphed into a smile that seemed to be between happy to see him and very willing to immediately get down to mischief. But he beat them to the punch without hesitation.

"I wasn't aware that you were planning to play ambush predator with me today, Shin. What would you have done if I hadn't noticed you?" He made sure his voice came off as falsely scolding. They had to be aware of his exasperation that wasn't truly genuine. "Think over your answer carefully now."

"That's sure an unusual greeting. Hello to you too, weasel." They easily shrugged off his posturing and laughed. "Proud of you for thinking to look for me back here. Seems you found what you were after."

"Haha very funny. Now you should definitely come down here because I'm not gonna strain my neck looking up at you. I have news." Remaining "professional" was getting harder for him by the second because there was a genuine sense of pride surfacing in him at the thought of letting his partner know of his luck. And to be honest, he was looking forward to hearing about what they had been up to today as well.

Shin did not have to be told twice to come down to their partner's level. In a few careful steps they had descended the tree and stepped over to stand in front of him. Kouta, a little indignant in that moment, set his hands on his hips and looked up into their eyes as if to dare them to rib him for being seven inches shorter. He could read it all over them that they had definitely been considering it. A little friendly icebreaker, that's how they looked at it, and even if he would instantly fire back every time he appreciated their efforts to distract him from any bullshit he might be going through when they pulled this stunt. Their sense of humor made it easier for him to cope with any sort of stressors. Quietly he expressed his thanks for this fact.

"Sooo?" They drew out the word a little on purpose. "Tell me what's new in the world of the uptight ferret."

"Watch it." He pointed a finger up at them to remind them to watch their place but damn near broke into a small chuckle because he was so amused at their lack of off switch. Always keeping him on his toes. "You're lucky I can't resist sharing things with you immediately. Call me uptight again and that might change."

They crossed their arms over their chest and cocked one eyebrow up just a little. "I don't think you have it in you to do that. Go ahead and prove you're capable of keeping a secret from me."

Kouta sighed through his nose and ran one hand through his hair lightly. "Okay, I admit I'm not up to a challenge like that yet. But this ain't about my weak foundations. Listen to this."

"Tell me what's up. Promise not to hold it over your head if it's funny."

"Wouldn't be the first time you held something over my head, you love to remind me I'm shorter than you." He finally does give in this time to the urge to chuckle. Then he shakes his head and realigns his intentions. "Kiui-San has stated his intentions to retire. Probably by the end of the season."

He knew he was being a little obtuse by stringing them along like this but he was entitled to a little suspense dammit. This was a big shift in his life and it was only fair that he could be a little self serving about how he informed his love. They didn't let his behavior deter their interest and even excitement at his words sway their desire to know the rest of the news. For that Kouta was thankful, it really took a lot to throw his partner off the trail when the promise of intrigue was dangled in front of them. And he also was well aware they could easily get him back after this anyway. There was zero doubt in his mind that they would play up the events of their day as much as possible when it came time for their turn to share.

"And I wanna assume he told you what's gonna happen to the shop, right? Can't imagine he'd leave you hanging." Shin was playing along nicely. It only made him more thankful.

"You could say that." A small smirk made itself visible on Kouta's face before he continued. "It'll be my shop as soon as he's truly done. I get to run the place all on my own till I decide if I wanna hire some help."

The next thing that Kouta knew was that he was being swept up in his partner's embrace and they did not miss a beat as they followed up by pressing a kiss to his cheek. He was a little physically rattles because of the sudden force but not enough to truly upset him or knock him on his ass. As he centered his balance and his awareness again, he wrapped both arms around them loosely and waited for them to pull away once they were satisfied with their display of affection. He looked a little ruffled by the display but it truly was only a ruse, and not even a convincing one. His other half smiled again and quickly gave him one more chaste kiss, this time on the lips. It almost made him wish it had lasted a little longer because now his pride in his work was being stoked. He'd done so well at the job Shin helped him get and he wanted to remind them of how thankful he was.

"Hey, nuisance animal." He spoke a little lowly just then, making sure to convey a slightly serious tone as he tightened his old on them just a bit. "I owe you for this. Big time. I'm not sure how I'm gonna pay you back just yet but I wanna. I love you."

"I love you too. And you're welcome." There is a cheeky expression on their face, like they know there was no way he'd be unhappy with this big life change he urged them to make back then, but they made sure to keep any questionable tone out of their voice as they spoke back to him. Shin was well aware of when to joke around and when to be serious. "Proud of you too. I hope this will make you happy."

"I do too, love. I really do. Obviously it won't be easy but I think I can manage it." He breathed out, without a trace of negative to be found, and then changed the subject. "But enough about my flawless work with fire and glass. Tell me what the hell you've been doing today and why you're out here now."

They laugh again, easily transitioning from one subject to another, and make to answer him. "You sure you wanna know? It's not as interesting as that was. I'm sure you'll be more bored by it than you think."

Kouta raises one eyebrow at this and allows himself to be just a touch smug. "Somehow I don't believe that anything you do while I'm away is boring. But sure, lay it on me. I'll even give you a pass if you wanna poke fun at me for any reason while recounting the tale."

"Don't say I didn't warn you." And they throw an arm around him just as he loosens his hold again, allowing them to lead him back toward the house as they begin the summary of the day's events.

#Naruto #Naruto Shippuden #Root #Foundation #Anbu Root #canon/OC #Naruto OC #Beware Of Shin #Kouta

[annieintheaair]

It's written on the walls and in the sign in the yard, we both know it's over; moving out, moving on.

The weather held out for the wine festival. Julie and I ended up having a really great time, despite the crazy wind. I booked a hotel to stay there for the night but long story short, I ended up coming home instead. I was in my pajamas on my couch by 7pm, getting some work done and relaxing. Considering the storm overnight, I was actually relieved that I had come home and parked my car safely in my garage.

Due to my work schedule, even when I tell myself I need to go to bed early when I'm home, I still can't get myself to bed early. I was on my couch watching TV until around 11pm, when I finally got into bed. Honestly, it's probably a good thing that I stay up late to make the transition easier on my work nights.

This morning, I got a slow start and thought about having a lazy day in my pajamas. I ate breakfast and then I decided it was actually probably better for me to just go to church in Fort Worth to get myself out of the house and be around other people. Even when I watch church on TV, it's not the same because I get distracted being at home. I wasn't able to make the trek to Grapevine this morning so the Fort Worth campus seemed like a good compromise.

Cliffe Knechtle was speaking this morning and started the sermon talking about love -- how it's a choice, not a feeling. I knew, at that moment, that God sent me to church this morning for a reason.

The couple sitting next to me turned out to also live in my town and weirdly enough, their daughter's boyfriend lives in my old town. It was nice to be up this morning, out of my house, talking to other people.

I ran a few errands after church to get a birthday present for my niece, Lucy, who is turning 4 on Wednesday. I also ran into Target and picked up Lysa TerKeurst's newest book, a devotional, Clear Mind, Peaceful Heart. I'm almost done reading one of her other devotionals, You're Going to Make It so I figured it was time to prepare for my next one. This new one is made for reading before bed and luckily smaller than the other one so I can even bring it to work with me.

As I sat on my couch last night, I realized that my own peace was so much more important. I've been overly stressed about my life and trying to plan a move. I feel like I'm frozen and can't make a choice. Every decision feels like it's impossible right now. While I know that technically choosing not to make a decision is actually a decision in itself, I decided I need to just take a pause. I have a very busy work month ahead of me as it is and trying to add a move and everything else just seems like too much. I've been praying about it a lot, asking God to guide me to the right choice.

I made some decisions last night to remove and block Todd on all social media. I realized I no longer wanted him to have any access to me and I'd rather just remove him forever. When I woke up this morning, I felt like I had some clarity on the apartment situation, too. As great of an apartment it is and as excited as I was that I got approved for it, now isn't the time for me to move. I decided that I would take this pause-- not move, and just stay until my house sells.

I'm not totally thrilled with any of the decisions right now but at least it gives me more time to get my life back together. I think I need that more than anything right now.

xoxo

Annie

[jaderimehardt]

I miss working with resin, adkjaskdj 🫠

Past few days I've been watching a ton of resin vids and I've been spending my 💰💸 on more resin things with a bit of... ehh... I don't want to say carelessness, but I can't say I've been sparing about it either, lol 😅

I'm trying to be smart about it, by just getting the "necessary" things, but then I see a Youtuber I'm subscribed to use Pinch Bails on these pendants that are massively thick, and I'm like "Omg! Why didn't I think to use that with my pendants instead of stringing ribbon through them?"

🤔 And then I realize, "Wait, I have Pinch Bails... Did I try them, and they just were not large enough?" So, I have to go back through all my stuff and re-measure and sure enough... yep! 🫠

Why are things more complicated than they should be? Lol.

But I mean... lookit them now, with the correct size pinch bails! 💖 (I ordered two more packs because I'll be using these on ALL my pendants)

I got a new mold, in addition to a handful of others I got a few months back. So, I have many new goodies waiting for me. What I need to do is go in my backyard and front yard and pluck a bunch of flowers when it's not so wet (like after it's rained, or during the rain for example) and dry some flowers to use in my resin projects. That's something I've been slacking on.

Also need to get some alcohol inks if I'm going to start working with epoxy resin. Mainly white. If I don't get other colors, that's fine. But I need white for oceans.

A thing I've been doing recently in these blog posts is plugging in names of Youtubers I've been watching, that have been giving me ideas, inspiration, motivation, learning tips, etc.

For resin those people would be SteveMcDonaldArtsandCrafts, daniel..cooper, and ClairesCraftyCorner.

(I don't know if the @ is necessary in the front of their names or not? I removed it, but just add it in if it is 🤷🏻‍♀️. Also yes, Daniel's name does have two periods.)

I watched their vids when I was a total newbie, took a small break and then started watching again. They're really great at what they do and teaching others.

Guess I need to go distract myself with my other hobbies until the weather warms up and I can return to my garage, lol 🙃 (easier said than done, it's clear where my heart truly lies)

(In music~ 🎧🎶 with the ocean~ 🌊🐙🪸 in the cosmos~ 🌌✨ and working with resin~ 🎨💎)

#jade.blog

[chandran2015-blog]

Life is an all-inclusive resort

It was the worst snow storm ever in Canada. It had snowed heavily all day and much of the evening. When my wife and I  got up at 5 a.m last week and looked out of the window, all we saw was an expanse of white, covering everything around. There we no roads, no yards, no driveways, just a thick layer of snow covering everything.

In this weather, we took a taxi ride to the airport to catch our flight to Cancun, Mexico, in near total darkness. Our taxi driver was a genius, he found thinner patches of snow that could be called  roads. We made it to the airport in time, dashed through the security check and finally boarded the plane.

Then our aircraft got stuck in the snow before take-off. Heavy machinery was brought in to finally get the plane moving. The very brave ground staff loaded our luggage in extreme weather, we could see them struggle with opening the luggage hatch.

After two hours on the ground, our aircraft  took off in a snow blizzard. Five hours later we landed in a tropical paradise. In just five hours we escaped from sub-zero conditions to a balmy twenty degrees Celsius in Cancun. Another one hour on the bus, and we finally reached our destination, an all inclusive resort just off the beach. We were in good company because twenty other relatives joined us from all over North America for this unique family vacation.

We are now a few days into this vacation and it has taught me so much about life and, of course, relativity.  On the first day of the vacation everyone ate a lot; the drinkers amongst us imbibed as much as they could. We filled up our plates and wasted food. We were loud and we were noisy, and most of us simply could not stop talking. 

We got up at sunrise, and explored the beach, the water sports and all attractions in this resort. The evening ended late; some of the youngsters partied till midnight. All ages were represented, from  ten to eighty years, in this august gathering.

On the second and third day, we sobered down quite a bit. I started eating much less, and, wasting a lot less food. We became more selective about our activities. I went to cavort with the dolphins, a unique experience. Some of us went snorkelling, observing the fish and the tortoises in their natural habitat. We still walked a lot, averaging seven kilometres a day. 

Slowly, our bodies starting taking charge of our minds. Some of us had stomach cramps, from eating too much  good food. My body hurt in more ways than I could ever imagine. My wife was in bad shape, with aches and pains all over. Still, it was great fun for all, and a great family bonding time.

Mid way through our vacation I had a moment of insight.

What if we are already living in an all - inclusive resort on planet earth, without even realizing it?

This planet gives us everything we need to have a great life, and we have already paid for it with our previous karma. In what way is it any different from an all-inclusive vacation? 

We can eat what we like, drink what we like, and take what we like as long as we  remember that we are only guests here. We don’t really own anything here, the material goods are only for our temporary use. Once we are done with them, others will use them. Once we check-out, others will check in. Sure, we have to work for a living, but if we enjoy what we do, it is not really work, it’s just a vacation.

We come to this resort called life with  a  group  of our own  people from our own community, and we can have a great time in each other’s company. However, we must not be disruptive to other groups, because after all they are also guests and have a perfect right to be here.

We have to watch what we consume all the time. If we lack discipline, our body will discipline us very quickly. Also, there is no point in stealing anything from this all-inclusive resort, because nothing here  belongs to us anyway. 

We also have to be very respectful towards the myriads of workers who maintain this resort. In our Mexican resort, there were hundreds of workers who worked for low wages and kept the place running smoothly.They prepared food for us, served us drinks and kept the place very, very clean.

It’s the same with the world we live in. It’s the every day low wage workers who keep the world running for us. If we had a few less politicians, or businessmen, or even academics, the world would still function. We could do with a few less engineers, too; there will  just be less things to build and destroy. However, take away the plumbers, the electricians and the sanitation workers, and the world as we know it would come to a stop very quickly.

Let us enjoy the all-inclusive resort called planet earth for as long as we can. We are here for a very short stay and there are others just waiting to check-in. 

As the poet TS Eliot says:

“Hurry up please, it’s time.”

Before we know it, it will be time to check-out.

[randomshyperson]

Wanda Maximoff x Reader - The Right Time

Summary: Taking place after Tony's funeral, your sister Natasha's recovered belongings need to be placed somewhere. You will take them home to Ohio, and a certain little witch will keep you company on the trip there.

Warnings: (+16), angst with happy ending, many mentions of trauma and death, domesticity and road trips, mutual pinning and buried feelings, friends to lovers, kissing, make out without smut, brief talking about self value, a closure to Yelena (also, she's Kate's age in this, 'cause I make the rules). || Words: 12.527

All Works Masterlist || AO3 || Wattpad ||

--//--

There was an insistent hissing in your ear.

You knew it was anxiety - all the others sounds muffled as your hands moved - but that didn't stop it from happening. Two boxes later, you realized you were shaking.

Control your emotions. They make you weak and vulnerable.

Breathe in and out.

The trembling didn't stop, but the boxes did. A gentle tap on your shoulder almost made you jump with fright, your heart racing in your rib cage. But when you looked to the side, green orbs came into focus, and all the sounds came back.

"Everything all right? I've called you a few times." Wanda's tone was gentle, she was always gentle. Well, not really, you remember her being snarky and moody, but that doesn't make the fact that she was always kind any less true. She offers you a small smile, looking tired. She probably is, it's all so recent. The battle, the funeral. You swallow dryly and force a smile too.

"Sorry." You say wiping the little bit of dust from the boxes on your own clothes. "I was spacing out. Do you need anything?"

Wanda twiddled her fingers, shaking her head. "Just checking. Are you going already?"

Your instinct is to glance at your wristwatch, and you frown slightly as you do so. "Not really." You reply. " Wanna grab a drink?"

Wanda's smile returns, and she nods in the affirmative, making you smile as well. You close the trunk, the boxes are all inside now. The folks are leaving the ceremony, and you have agreed to say a decent goodbye to everyone before you travel. Natasha would be happy with the cordiality.

Clint wanted to join you, but you insisted that after everything that had happened, he needed to be with his family. There was much to be done, and he understood that it was your time to be with yours too. Saying goodbye to little Morgan was honestly heartbreaking. She grabbed your neck, and you carried her across the yard, humming a song until she decided she was going to join Happy for hamburgers.

Wanda wanted an iced drink. It was surprising because it is autumn, but she never had trouble really surprise you, even in the little things. You finished saying your goodbyes and got the car.

"Have you talked to him yet?" is your third question since you sat side by side, she with her legs bent on the seat and you with one of your arms resting on the window. The first question was about the weather, the other more of a confirmation of how things were going. Wanda took her eyes off the highway - Of course, Tony had to live so isolatedly, and to get a simple drink you had to make a trip to the nearest town - and looked at you.

"Who?" you gave her a look, and she knew, sighing slightly. You looked away again. "I did."

"And how was it?"

"Weird." She answered lightly enough to make you chuckle. She smiled. "But it was good, it was... important to put a close to it."

You hum, looking down the road. Wanda realizes there is more to your silence, and insists, "What is it?"

This time you let a larger chuckle escape. Five years and she still reads you like a book.

"Nothing, it's just..." You begin, trying to find the right words. You sigh softly before speaking again. "I guess it was weird before."

Wanda lets a sound escape - something like a grunt of false offense - and gives you a gentle pat on the shoulder, which only widens your smile. She is smiling, too.

"Don't be mean!" She says good-naturedly. 

"What? I'm not lying." You insist in the same tone, and she giggles, settling herself against the window.

There is a pause, she lets her fingers tug at some loose threads from the seat, and you run through a green light.

"We weren't together anymore, you know that?" She declares to the surroundings after that moment - the bass music from the rock radio suddenly departs from your ears like the air from your lungs, but you only exhale, once and twice. - You make a gentle turn with the steering wheel to enter the city and just mumble in signaling that you are still listening. Wanda looks out over the landscape. "I don't think we'd work out anyway. With or without the stone."

You swallow dryly, nodding and meeting her gaze through the rearview mirror before swerving. The drive is close by warns the GPS.

"But how was it?" you repeat the question then, and Wanda smiles at her reflection in the corner mirror. She looks at you, but you are looking at the small line of cars ahead. 

"It was good, I promise." She says. "He explained to me all the technical part of the thing, how he was turned back on and so forth. And he held my hand and said he was sorry he could no longer match my biological needs."

You let a chuckle escape, naturally. Wanda laughed too, watching you with intensity. You felt your cheeks flush with embarrassment, wondering if you had offended her. Tact was never a very strong quality.

"Sorry, it's just..." You started with another short laugh, "He's just the worse. But if you say it's okay, I believe you. If it's not, I can take you to break some things too." 

Your suggestion makes her smile fondly, but you don't see it because you're being served at the drive-through, and you're ordering her favorite drink without asking, and Wanda is swallowing dryly and looking at the scenery again because she thinks she'll end up confessing something if she doesn't look away the same second your fingers rub together as you hand over the glass of iced coffee.

The music comes back on, a soft melody that fills the car parked on the street, heading toward Tony's house - because you were going to drive her back, and then you were going to travel and be away for who knows how long - and Wanda was trying not to think about that as you two drank in silence.

"You guys aren't going to try again, then?" You ask and she wants to laugh at how insistent on this you are being. It's almost comical, but it must make sense because you are respecting the fact that for her, five years have not passed. Just a few weeks. Wanda wonders if it hurts to pretend that nothing has changed.

She chuckles nonetheless, straightening in her seat to look at you without having to keep turning her face away. 

"No, Y/N!" She says with more certainty although the amused tone does not leave her speech. "Vision and I aren't going to happen anymore, like, ever. It wasn't working out well before, with him signing those agreements and I didn't. We tried, and it didn't work. And then, you know." 

You nodded, taking a big sip of your coffee. Your chest filled with warm, liquid hope in contrast to the cold drink, and you almost coughed. Wanda didn't notice.

"Sorry for being pushy." You mumble clumsily. "I just figured it would be strange for you to see him like that again."

"It was." She says with another laugh. "But White Vision is better than a dead vision." She jokes, and it's so slightly macabre that she grimaces, but you share guilty giggles, drinking in silence for a while.

"And how has it been for you?" Wanda asks, her fingers circling the top of the cup. 

You swallow dryly, frowning slightly.

"I'm fine." You answer almost immediately as if the question were silly. As if you don't have a hole in your chest right now. And Wanda can see right through you. "Really, I... I just need to finish this, and I can get back to work."

Wanda doesn't smile now. You don't hold her gaze because you feel like you might start to cry. She twists her straw with some hesitation.

"You don't have to do this alone, you know." She starts then, looking down at her own drink. You raise your gaze from your lap to her. "I could...if you want, of course, be by your side."

You are sure your cheeks are reddening, but you offer her a small smile. "Wanda, are you inviting yourself to go with me?" You joke, of course, you joke. Wanda has missed it, all your little antics. She bites back a laugh, rolling her eyes and pinching you between the hips like she's done a million times between training sessions and you almost break the distance between your faces, but you just laugh with her as she pulls away to lean her back against the door again.

"I'm just being a nice friend, asshole!" she retorts in the same tone so rudely and you think she's the most beautiful woman you've ever seen. Her red hair fell to the side of her face, and her chipped fingernails fiddled with her coffee straw. 

The word friend, however, puts tension on your shoulders. You exhale and force a smile.

"I'd love for you to go with me, witchy." You finally invite, and Wanda grimaces.

"Don't bring back that nickname!" She complains pushing you again, and you laugh, trying to keep you two from spilling coffee.

"What? You prefer Magic Fingers?" It's your response back that makes her laugh with red cheeks.

"God, I changed my mind, you can go alone!" She retorts between giggles and pinches. Eventually, the laughter ceases, and the drinks run out. 

You go out and throw the empty cups away, and Wanda counts your steps until you are back while playing with the door latch.

When you sit down, you buckle your seat belt before speaking. "Do you have anything you need to pick up?" Is your question.

Wanda swallows dryly, and looks at you, nodding in the negative. There is nothing left. 

You don't say a word, and start driving.

–//–

It shouldn't be so surprising how good it is to be in your company.

Wanda remembers this. Hours and hours in the tower, in the compound, on missions.

She wonders if she missed it more before the Accords or now. 

When everything happened, the Avengers collapsing and the world turning upside down, she had Vision, but suddenly she didn't have you. How you two got so far apart might have had more to do with you leaving earth than anything else, it still hurt just the same. You needed to go, and you wanted to go. That was a painful truth. You wanted to leave, you wanted to help Thor, not stay with her.

Wanda knew that was selfish. To think like that. But she couldn't help it.

But still, at times like now, sitting in the passenger seat while you drive beside her, occasionally stealing glances through the rearview mirror, makes her think she wants to be very selfish about keeping you.

"How far is Ohio?" Wanda asks a few minutes down the road. She is flipping through one of the magazines you left stored in the glove box, and you run a hand over your face before answering.

"Not that far really."  You reply. "We could do it in a day, but I don't like driving at night. We'll stop for a rest and should get there early tomorrow morning."

"Can we have dinner in a dinner?" She asks and you chuckle, taking your gaze off the road for a moment.

"What? Why?"

Wanda sighs. "Because it's like in the movies!" She says as if it's obvious. "We'll have a decent road trip."

You laugh affectionately, shaking your head. "Of course, Miss Maximoff."

"Don't call me that, it makes me feel old."

You laugh again. "Please, you haven't aged in five years. I almost catch up with you." 

You tease making her laugh. It's probably wrong in some sense to joke about such things, but you've always been like that. And so has she. Honestly, it makes sense how quickly you connected.

"I can't believe I missed so many of your birthdays." Wanda complains then, and you smile shyly.

"Don't worry, it's not like they have many parties in space." You say, causing her to frown.

She settles back into her seat, leaving the magazines on the floor and hugging one of her legs.

"Speaking of which, we still haven't caught up on your whole space era, Miss Romanoff." She starts with a tone of fake seriousness that makes you laugh. "How was all that time out there?"

You shrug, sighing a little, "It was good, I guess. Really different from here, but the places Thor took me looked a lot like the black markets I had to work in back in the Red Room days, only with bizarre creatures around." You recount not being able to keep your gaze on Wanda because you were driving, "We split up after Asgard, he wanted to rebuild his community, and I guess I wanted to find out more about myself. I joined a group of space pirates, and that must have been the coolest phase."

Wanda laughed affectionately, resting her chin on her knee as she looked at you. "I bet you must have had so much fun, dorogoya."

"I wish you had gone with me." The confession escapes before you can contain it. Wanda's gaze wavers, and you swallow dryly. Before you can apologize, she nods softly.

"I wish I had said yes." She returns half hoarsely. "The day you invited me. I... I don't know why I hesitated actually. I should have said yes."

You give her a sad smile, shaking your head. "Don't worry, Wands. You had Vision, you two were going to try, weren't you? I'm the one always running away, I guess. That's what space was for me back then. An escape."

"What were you running away from?" She questions with a frown. You grip the steering wheel hard before letting go and force a smile.

Of you, Vision, and your perfect relationship should be the honest answer.

"The end of the Avengers, I guess." You say with little certainty. "Or maybe finding out about that whole Red Room thing that was still going on. Nat and Yelena were safe, finally. I just needed to get out of this place, find a purpose again."

Wanda nodded in understanding. You waited for two red lights in silence before she commented:

"When did you get back?"

"When you were gone." You tell her without looking at her, and Wanda wants to hug you, but it wouldn't be a good time to crash the car. You force a smile, however, turning a corner as you continue to tell, "Carol and I found Tony in space, brought him back. That's when I..." You interrupted yourself, your chest filled with emotion, and cleared your throat. Wanda was right beside you, and the memory of the day you found out she was gone still hurt like it was happening. "Anyway, after that, I couldn't leave Natasha again. Not after I knew we had lost Yelena too. I stayed around, helped with what I could, and now we're here."

"Have you called your sister yet?" Wanda asked.

A sigh and a nod. "As soon as the battle was over." You spoke up. "It was hard, probably the hardest thing I've ever done. We were on the phone for a couple of hours, the whole memorial thing had to be done but the Stark Industries and SWORD people were taking care of everything. Yelena asked me to get everything done in Ohio, so that is why I haven't been around as much these last few days."

"I figured, especially when I saw you and Clint getting the car." Wanda comments as she remembers the last few days since Thanos. She twists her fingers together, looking at the back seat for a moment before glancing back at you. "The boxes are Nat's stuff, aren't they?"

"Yeah." You confirm with a sad sigh. "Everything they were able to recover from the wreckage. I don't think you heard about it but I bought a house."

"What?" Wanda asked in surprise, and you giggled.

"Yes, shortly after the blip." You count. "The same one where me, Nat and Yelena grew up. I didn't use it much because of the chaos at work, but it's mine. It's where Yelena is waiting for us, where I'll put Nat's things, decide what we can donate and what Yelena will keep for herself. I haven't had the courage to look yet, I wanted to do that with her."

Wanda nods in understanding, one hand moving to your shoulder. You smile, at the same time wishing she would stop touching you before you melt, and also wish she would never stop.

"I can't wait to meet Yelena." Wanda comments making you smile affectionately.

"You'll like her, she kinds of reminds me of Pietro." You retort and Wanda feels her heart skip a beat. Anyone else saying that would have hurt her deeply. But you, she thinks, is sweet. You are the only person she could casually talk to about him anyway. "Wow, and she likes old rock music, so you guys must enjoy the same bad bands."

Wanda lets out an exclamation of false offense. "Excuse me, but my musical taste is flawless!" She defends herself theatrically, getting a laugh from you. "And to prove how right I am, I choose the music from now on."

"Whatever you say, Miss Maximoff." You scoff at the nickname just to annoy her, and you don't mind the gentle pinch in the ribs because you're laughing.

–//–

You don't want to think about buried feelings when Wanda falls asleep in the passenger seat. 

You don't, and yet, it's all your brain can produce. Dozens and dozens of thoughts rush through your head at high speed.

Wanda shifts in her sleep as you are setting the GPS to the nearest motel, and lazily opens her eyes to look at you.

"You're being loud." She whispers, still sounding very much asleep. You let out a short giggle, imagining that she is complaining about the little struggle with the electronic device.

"Sorry, honey, I was trying to set up..."

"Not with that." She interrupts her tone suddenly much more awake. "In your head."

You swallow dryly, and suddenly all thoughts are gone. A little trick you learned in the Red Room, and have perfected with the telepath at your side. You are smiling, and going to tell her it's settled when Wanda sighs and puts a hand on your thigh.

"I didn't mean for you to stop." She whispers, looking at your face, but you are tense in your seat, trying to continue driving normally with the warm touch. "You don't have to block them out for me, I won't look without your permission. I just want you to know that you can tell me what's bothering you."

You swallow dryly, once twice, until your heart stops beating wrong. But it only gets better when Wanda removes her hand from your thigh and settles better on the seat to look at you with a frown of concern at your silence.

"I'm just a little tired." You say. "Don't worry, Wands. My head gets noisy when I'm tired, you know that. Let's just eat something and go to sleep and I'll feel better."

Wanda doesn't believe you one hundred percent. You can tell by the way she sighs almost in defeat, deciding not to push you. But she says no more than "All right." and looks back at the road.

A short while later, you park the car at a Dinner so typically American that it makes the face of the girl in front of you light up with excitement. She is getting out of the car first, and when you delay, there is red magic gently nudging you to encourage you to move, and you laugh, mumbling that you are coming as you finish stretching.

You and Wanda sit in opposite seats, but you find yourself wishing you had sat next to her.

"Would it be bad if I ordered ice cream?" Wanda asks softly making you laugh as you both look at the menu.

"I think you deserve to eat whatever you want, darling." You comment and she smiles, turning her attention back to the list of dishes.

Then you are served by a grumpy waitress, but the food - a real dinner for you, and waffles with ice cream for Wanda - is really quite good. The redhead steals your fries at least four times before you give her one last warning look.

There is a report about the battle of Thanos, and consequently the fallen Avengers, playing on the Dinner TV that takes your hunger away. As soon as she notices you pinching the meat with your fork, Wanda uses her magic to change the channel, and you want to laugh at the way the diner's staff can't understand why the remote simply doesn't work, but you're more busy thanking the girl in front of you with a look and a whisper.

When you finally left the restaurant, you walked, playfully nudging your hips together as you did so, to the roadside motel a few yards ahead.

It was simple and cheap but looked clean enough.

"I'll take the couch." You say as soon as you two are inside to the single green duvet double bed, a backpack with the personal items you needed that you took from the back seat in your hands. Wanda laughs in front of you, taking off her shoes.

"Please, we've shared a bed before." 

Yes, when I was too young for you to notice me and didn't have a trillion gay feelings buried in my chest, you think, but all it does is give her a nervous chuckle. If Wanda can be calm and mature about it, so can you. It doesn't have to be awkward. 

"Here, soap and toothbrush." You handed the items to her. "They were the best in the machine, unfortunately, they didn't have a red brush but you'll have to live with that pain."

Wanda laughed, rolling her eyes and giving you a nudge on the shoulder before thanking you and turning toward the bathroom. She commented something about the towels being in the bottom drawer before closing the door.

You decided to check your phone while she was in the shower. 

"I'm already here. Your place is nice." Yelena texted.

"Please tell me you remembered where I said the key was."

"Why? Wasn't I allowed to break the window?" 

You groan softly, but your sister texts afterward:

"I'm just messing with you. I could hear you whining from here, grumpy. Under the plant, yes?" And she sends a picture of the golden key to confirm, making you sigh with relief.

"I'm taking a friend with me. Wanda. We stopped for the night, and should be back tomorrow before lunch."

Yelena didn't send anything for about five minutes. And then:

"I can't wait to meet your girlfriend."

You blush too hard at the text, and to make matters worse, Wanda opens the bathroom door, and you shove your cell phone so quickly into your pocket that you almost knock it to the floor. 

"I saved you some hot water, but I recommend you wear slippers." Wanda says as she leaves, and you laugh awkwardly because she is simply wearing a towel and you think she is staring. "Y/N?"

Yep, definitely staring. Clearing your throat, and rising in a jump from the couch, you stumble your way to grab a clean change of clothes from your backpack and head to the bathroom.

"You can take any of the items from the backpack, there's a t-shirt, pants, underwear..." Suddenly your suggestion list is too intimate, and you are shutting up, your face warmer than before. Wanda watches you with curiosity. "I'm going to take a shower." You declare and walk into the bathroom, slamming the door.

You could do that. Not awkward at all.

Wanda bit back a small smile as soon as the door closed. She missed that, your clumsiness. Or just your anxious manner anyway. She went to the backpack you had brought and picked up a set of clothes of some sort. It smelled like you and didn't calm the way her heart was beating.

She decided to distract herself with the television while she waited for you to return, but the mentions of the blip and the Avengers didn't make her feel very good.

When you came out of the bathroom, you smelled like lavender. And your hair was wet, and Wanda had to squeeze the pillow she was holding against herself to keep from getting up and walking over to you, her every desire being to be the one to towel-dry your hair as you were doing.

"We should get some sleep, we're getting up early tomorrow." You mutter as you go to put the towel out to dry. 

"Let's share the steering wheel tomorrow." She declares, and it's not even a request, and you smile, nodding as you move to pull out the sofa bed. Wanda frowns. "What are you doing?"

"My bed?"

"I thought you were going to sleep with me." She almost pouts. You laugh sheepishly.

"Wanda, you're a flirt." You joke, of course, humor is easier than dealing with the way your stomach flips at the image of the intense gaze and flushed cheeks of the girl in front of you. Wanda bites back a smile.

"God, you're the worst." She complains in an affected whisper while you are laughing and setting up the bed.

But in the next few minutes, when you two are lying in opposite corners, and Wanda has used her powers to turn off the light, neither of you is smiling anymore.

"Y/N?" 

You move at her whisper, turning your face toward the bed. "Yes?"

"Did you miss me when I was away?"

You frown immediately and almost sit up in indignation. "What kind of question is that, Wands? Of course, I did!"

She sighs. "I'm sorry." Wanda says almost so small that you want to get up and hug her. "I just...I really missed you when you were in space."

"Oh." You murmur in surprise, staring at the ceiling. Wanda twists her fingers in her lap, and you bite the inside of your cheek. "I missed you too. When I was in space."

Wanda gives a sigh that sounds more like a short laugh. "Even though you were with your super-cool space pirate friends?"

You laugh, running a hand through your hair. "Especially then." You confess softly. "All I could think was I wish Wanda was here to meet these guys. She would love the music, and hate the weird food. But hey, I sent you postcards! You make it sound like I forgot about you."

Wanda props herself up on her elbows to look at you. "No, I didn't mean it like that!" She defends herself even though you're not really angry. "Honestly, I don't know what I meant. I just... it's weird. I saw you last on a ship, and then the blip happened and we were fighting and you were here again. Like no time had passed, and now we're driving to a house you bought in the time I was gone and-"

You pushed the thin blanket off your body and climbed into bed, reaching for Wanda in the middle of your anxious mumbling. "Come here." You ordered as you wrapped her shoulders in a tight embrace, and she fell silent, matching the squeeze. You let your weight fall on her, aligning yourself as you kissed her forehead.

"I missed you every second you were away from me." You confess. "And I wish I had come back sooner to tell you that."

Wanda lets a shallow breath escape, and her hands close around your waist as she buries her face in your neck. This is too much. Too intimate, too good. And you still don't have the heart to pull away.

"Sleep here with me." She asks against your skin, her fingers tightening before she purrs, "I want to feel you again."

It is your turn to let out a sharp breath. Your brain is screaming at you to remember the platonic meanings. To feel a friend who stayed away for a long time, someone who used to fall asleep in her bed on movie nights. There was nothing more than that.

But when she settled to cuddle up with you, it was hard to think of it as completely platonic.

–//–

You sleep heavier than Wanda, it's always been that way.

She likes it because it gives her time to admire your features while you are asleep. She can barely contain her smile or the way her heart races as she watches your sleeping figure, the soft breaths, and the slightly open mouth.

It's not the ideal position for her poor heart though. Your face is on the pillow beside her, your legs entwined under the mattress, and the hand around her waist has a few fingers in contact with the skin under her blouse, probably having found space there during the night. She feels her face heat up at the thought that she wishes your hand would go just a little higher, or worse, lower...

With a not-so-great movement, she is suddenly pulling away, and you are waking up confused by the sudden movement, but Wanda does her best to disguise it by saying that you two shouldn't be late. Lucky for her, you believe anything when you are sleepy enough.

Many minutes later - just after a decent cup of coffee at Dinner - you are back on the road. Wanda is feeling particularly anxious this morning, maybe it's the possibility of meeting Yelena, or maybe it's the way you wiped her face with the napkin that kept going through her head in a loop, but she was tapping her foot on the car floor a few insistent minutes ago and you were chuckling.

Before she could ask, your hand found her thigh, a simple request for her to stop that caused her to choke on her own breath.

"Is everything okay, sweetheart?" You asked, and Wanda gave a short giggle. She needed a quick answer.

"I thought we were going to switch directions." She says then, and you are taken aback, but you smile, your hand gives her skin a light squeeze that almost manages a sound that Wanda knows would make things awkward.

"Do you want to drive now?" You ask half confused, and Wanda is nodding because honestly, she thinks she will agree to anything you ask while you are touching her thigh. You give a surprised giggle. "Okay, let's switch." And with that, your hand moves out for you to park the car, and everything runs on automatic in Wanda's head for the next few minutes.

She is just grateful to be able to breathe properly again now that the touch is gone.

"You can follow the GPS, and I'll let you know if I have to change routes on the way." You comment as you buckle up and Wanda starts the car again. All you get in return is a hum of knowledge, and it makes you frown in concern. Wanda is acting strange. She is a quiet person, it is true, but she seems nervous. You don't want to pressure her, though, and decide to let the trip happen until she relaxes better.

She definitely gets more excited as Ohio approaches. You smile from the passenger seat, watching her let out short exclamations about the scenery or at how beautiful she looks listening to the short stories you have about this place.

You arrive at your old house before half-past eleven. Yelena is on the porch, mowing the lawn and wearing a pair of overalls. She wipes her hands in her pockets and looks a little hesitant as you get out of the car, but as soon as you get close enough, she smiles and runs to hug you.

"Я так скучал по тебе, сестричка. (I missed you so much, little sister)." You say as you hold her and Lena lets out a tearful laugh, tightening her arms around your neck.

"Я тоже почувствовал твое. (I missed you too.)" She retorts. You only let go a long moment later, and you exchange a knowing glance at the person missing from that embrace before you force a smile and turn to introduce the person getting off the car.

"Yelena, this is Wanda Maximoff, a friend from the Avengers." You say, and ignore the look the blonde throws you as she approaches to shake the redhead's hand. "Wands, this is Yelena Belova, my younger sister."

"It's nice to finally meet the famous Wanda Maximoff." Yelena declares and you already want to dig a hole in the ground. Wanda raises an eyebrow in confusion.

"Famous?"

"Nat and Y/N talked about you all the time." She counters. "Nat sounded like a mentor, but Y/N....

"Like a friend!" You cut off almost in despair, laughing nervously. "Because we were-are friends.  And I talk about my friends."

Wanda watched the scene with a confused frown, but Yelena laughed at her reaction. "Of course, Y/N. You talked about all your friends equally, in the same amount and frequency." Yelena says in a teasing tone that makes her cheeks blush.

"You two go inside I'll get the stuff from the car." You decide to call it off, ignoring the giggles of the other two.

You hear Wanda start to pull a conversation with your sister, but lose focus on that when you open the trunk and find Natasha's boxes inside.

The hissing comes again. 

Taking a deep breath, you place one box on top of the other and ignore your trembling hands to take them inside.

You find Wanda and Yelena in the living room, the blonde presenting the place as if it were her home and not yours.

"[...] And here you can see that she chooses the worst decor in all of America, and clearly doesn't know how to clean the carpet properly." Yelena said making Wanda laugh and you roll your eyes with amusement.

As you placed the boxes on the kitchen countertop, you commented, "I'm sorry I'm not an expert in interior design, Belova."

"I think the place is lovely." Wanda says to you, making you smile in appreciation, but suddenly Yelena is sighing as she sees the boxes.

"Are these...?" She asks, and you swallow dryly before nodding. Yelena hesitates, moving a little closer, "Can we do this later? I have a thing, I was just waiting for you guys to arrive."

"Oh, sure." You say half surprised. "Will you join us for lunch?"

"Yeah." She says forcing a smile that doesn't last as she faces the boxes again. Clearing her throat, she moves toward the door, where she begins to exchange her work boots for regular sneakers. "I'll be going now, but I'll be back in a couple of hours. Continue the tour of the house, Y/N, don't be a bad host." She mocks softly getting a roll of your eyes.

Soon, she is gone as quickly as you arrived, and you turn your face to Wanda.

"That was weird, wasn't it?" you ask, and she laughs softly, reaching over to take your hand.

"Totally, but come on, show me around."

The house is simple and was restored just before the blip, so despite Yelena's comments, you particularly think it's very nice. You show Wanda everything, even your makeshift, little-used office - of which you're sure Yelena has messed all over - and the abandoned attic. 

"It has empty rooms." Wanda comments and you nod in agreement.

"Yes, we were in three after all." You say. "It's a big house, I did the office just to use space really, but there ended up being another empty room left. Maybe I'll make a playroom." You joke, but Wanda doesn't smile, because the possibility of you staying here and not in New York with her isn't exactly funny.

"Are you thinking of moving here?" She asks before she can stop herself, and you are surprised by the seriousness in her voice.

Your hesitation only makes Wanda feel worse, but you force a laugh. "I don't know, I guess I haven't really thought about it yet." You say. "It's not like the job is going to go away."

"I guess so." Wanda murmurs thoughtfully, and makes her way back to the kitchen, while you follow her half-heartedly. 

"Do you think Yelena will be long?" You ask as soon as you enter the commode, and Wanda mutters distractedly that you are the one who should know because she is your sister, and the passive aggressiveness surprises you quite a bit. Mentally going over what you might have said wrong in the conversation to upset her, you remain silent as the two of you stand on opposite sides of the kitchen.

"Can I make your lunch?" Wanda suddenly declares, and you blink away from the bubble of confusion in your head to look at her. 

"Lunch?"

"Yeah, lunch." Wanda confirms with a smile. "It's getting late, and you look hungry. You can help me prepare if you promise to behave."

You let out a huff. "I always behave." You say, but you both know that's not true. Wanda has cooked enough times in your presence or rather tried to cook while you were doing everything you could to torment her, to know that it wasn't true. She laughs, shaking her head to check the cupboards.

Yelena has bought enough to use for meals, and you are happy to sit at the countertop while Wanda cooks - she says you can help, but she really doesn't need to when she has magic to move things around for her - and you are more than happy to watch her while pretending to be on your cell phone.

Yelena doesn't take two hours. She arrives almost 40 minutes after she left, just as Wanda is finishing the food.

You listen to the truck and smile, but when you hear a bark, you frown. In a moment the door opens, a smiling Yelena enters, and along with her, a furry, fluffy creature barks and jumps with enthusiasm. You widen your eyes in surprise, but Wanda lets out an equally excited laugh, dropping the spoon to approach the dog.

"Who's that?" Greets the redhead as she bends down, smiling and petting the animal. Yelena closes the door with her foot.

"Say hello to Fanny!" Your sister announces, and you let out a confused giggle.

"You bought a dog." You say the obvious, your gaze split between your sister, Wanda, and the animal rolling around on the floor on its belly as the redhead strokes it. "Why?"

Yelena laughs, shrugging. "I always wanted a dog." She says simply, letting go of the collar and leaving the car key on the kitchen counter. "I saw a donation ad at the market and decided that was a sign."

"But..."

"Stop thinking so hard." Yelena cuts in with a laugh. "It's just a dog."

"You don't even live here." You reason ignoring her request. "How are you going to get the puppy back to Russia? How are you going to take care of a dog while you work? Are you sure that..."

Yelena laughs again, letting Wanda play with the dog as she moves closer to put her hand on your shoulder. "Y/N, relax. I really wanted a dog, okay? Don't you remember, we had that conversation before you left."

You swallow dryly, nodding. It's true. Just before you meet her again and take down the Red Room.

"Have you ever thought about having children?" Yelena asked, as you opened the beers and Nat changed her bandage. The redhead laughed softly.

"Have you?" She returned with a question.

"I want a dog." Yelena replied making you smile. "Why do I feel like Y/N wants both?"

Nat laughs, nodding. "She definitely does." She commented almost in mockery, making you blush. "A bunch of kids and puppies with Wanda Maximoff."

"Shut up, you two." You cut off embarrassed, handing the beers to them, and receiving giggles in return.

You pushed the memory away, clearing your throat and moving away from Yelena's touch.

"I'm going to finish lunch." You declare, and take a quick glance at the animal. "He's cute."

You return to the kitchen, and shortly after, the food is ready. Little Fanny is really adorable, and while you and Wanda prepare the table, Yelena shows him around so he can get comfortable. 

The little creature is very happy in your armchair, and you cast a half-hearted glance at him, but you don't insist as you take one of the seats at the table.

"Are you going to stick around, Y/N?" Yelena asks as soon as she joins you again, washing her hands so she can eat. You exchange a look with Wanda before putting your food back down.

"I haven't decided yet." You mutter. "I still have work from the Avengers."

"I thought you were going to sell the house." Yelena says as she walks over to the table with a clean plate. You grimace.

"Why?"

She shrugs. "If you're going to stay with your fancy friends in New York, you don't really need Ohio."

You chuckle sheepishly, shaking your head and looking at Wanda to clarify, "Lena is super jealous of the Avengers, she thinks I find you guys cooler."

Wanda laughs, but Yelena rolls her eyes in stubbornness, "Please, I know I'm way cooler than them. No offense, Wanda."

The redhead laughs softly. "No taken." She murmurs watching the interaction intently as she pours herself some food.

You eat in silence for a while, occasionally exchanging comments about the trip or the television, but you can feel the tension growing over the untouched boxes in the corner of the room.

It is only in the afternoon, when Fanny has fallen asleep in Wanda's lap in your chair that and you and Yelena have no more excuses to put it off that you take a deep breath and finish washing the dishes, turning to find your sister already standing, twiddling her fingers as she stares at the closed boxes.

You offer her a small smile, but she does not reciprocate. "Come on, Lena, we can do this."

Yelena takes a deep breath, and you round the kitchen counter - exchanging a quick look of reassurance with Wanda in the room - before moving to pick up the boxes and carry them to the empty table.

"Okay, this one first..." You say as you open the first. Yelena stands beside you half hesitantly, but you smile as soon as you see the first item. A small brooch from the Avengers. "So cheesy." You comment as you take it out, raising it in the air for the girls to see. Yelena smiles, and it suddenly everything feels lighter.

You see almost all the contents of the first box with several smiles and giggles. Wanda stands up at some point - just after you call her over to look at some lost photographs that had her - and stands beside you. 

But in the second box the hissing returns.

You choke softly as you pick up the cassette tape. Yelena is distracted by a little box of button sewing, and you for a moment wish you hadn't opened any box at all. But then she looks at the item in your hands - her own name in handwriting - and is taking it from you.

"Lena, wait...." You try but she is already moving away with the tape in hand, running out to her own truck. Wanda looks at you in confusion, but you are following your sister out.

Yelena is sitting in the car with the door closed, leaning over to put the tape on the car. You stop beside the window, resting your hands on the open gap, but she doesn't look at you, static as she waits for the sound to start. You hear Wanda's footsteps behind you, but she stands some distance away.

At the first notes of American Pie, Yelena sobs. You swallow dryly and make mention of saying something, but she gives the radio a hard squeeze, changing the track. It only gets worse when the soft sound of Natasha's laughter comes on.

"Hey, dekta." The message begins. "I really hope you didn't take your birthday present without asking, it took me a while to make this one. I put in all the bad tracks you like, especially your favorite, this old song. You're going to be 23, and it's your first birthday with us since, you know... and also the last one before Y/N travel for a while, so I wanted you to have something to keep us close while you study in Russia with mom and dad. 

Yelena hugs one knee, hiding her face from you. She is crying.

"I didn't mean to make it so emotional, but I think I'm doing the right thing now, Yelena." Nat continues in a voice half-husky with emotion. "You and Y/N are my family, and now you are safe. And the Avengers are like family to me too, and being with them, making sure you have a future that I couldn't, makes sense to me. Keeping you safe for dozens more birthdays and getting more bad gifts. I can't wait to see you in college, Y/N promised she would come back to this planet just to see you graduate."

Yelena turned off the radio, and opened the door hard, almost hitting you. You took a step back, but she pushed you anyway.

"Tell me what happened!" She demands in a mixture of anger and emotion, and you sniffle softly.

"I already told you." You say, but she shakes her head.

"It doesn't make sense!" Yelena retorts in excitement, gesturing to the air. "She wanted to be here! Then how come she's not?"

"Yelena..."

"No!" she interrupted pushing you again, and you let the tears flow. "How come Barton is alive and she's not? What's happened? How come you're here and she's not?"

You sigh sadly, running a hand over your face. "I told you what happened." You insist more calmly. "Natasha made a choice."

"I don't believe you." Yelena retorts bitterly, and you laugh tearfully.

"What, Lena?" You let your emotions overwhelm you. "Do you think I wanted this to happen? I tried to stop it! Clint tried too."

"You should have tried harder." Yelena says, and you know she's just hurt, and she's trying to hurt you too, and she succeeds. You look down at the floor, letting the tears fall.

"It was a soul for a soul." You repeat what you said on the phone, so many days before, and it breaks you the same way. "There was no other way, Yelena. I wanted to jump, but Natasha trapped my suit. Clint fought her, but she was always a better fighter than all of us put together." You recount with a tearful laugh, remembering everything clearly. "I let go at the last moment, I...I held her. She insisted it was the right thing to do. She said it was okay."

"Were you going to jump?" Yelena asked hesitantly, and you let out another humorless laugh, running your hand through your hair.

"Of course, I was going to." You say. "I don't have anything, Lena. Natasha is made for this, to take care of you. She could pretend she didn't, but she was also the leader of that team. And Barton had his family. I was more than willing to give myself over for the stone, but as I said, Nat made her decision. She cut the rope, and I watched her fall."

You sob at the last sentence, shaking your head as you walk away. "So, I'm sorry if I'm not the sister you wanted here today, Lena, but I assure you that I fought for Natasha to be here." You declare and Yelena shakes her head, her eyes full of tears. She makes mention of coming after you, but you slip inside before she has a chance to do so.

–//–

Wanda packs up the boxes and feeds Fanny while Yelena goes upstairs to the second floor. You are in the empty room, sitting on the floor, and she knocks on the door before you say she can come in.

"I have to apologize to you." Says the blonde as she closes the door, and leans on the wood. You laugh short, hugging your knees.

"Do you want to?"

She nods, and you swallow dryly, hitting the empty space beside you. Yelena approaches unhurriedly and mimics your position.

"I'm sorry." She says after a moment, and you sigh, nodding.

"I'm sorry, too." You say. "For yelling, and for, dropping all that on you." You continue sincerely. "This is hard, and we're both hurting."

"Yeah, but, you don't have to apologize for that." Yelena retorts, resting her chin on her knee and looking at you. "You can scream, and cry, Y/N. You never do that, and you don't have to apologize for having emotions, you know? I'm the one who has to apologize for treating you that way." She explains, and you frown slightly, pulling at loose strands of your shirt as your sister looks away again. "I shouldn't have made it seem like I wanted you not to be here. It's not true, you know. I'm really glad you are."

You swallow dryly, shaking your head. But Yelena moves one of her hands to yours on top of your knee.

"Natasha was my favorite person, but so are you." She says. "I'm sorry if I ever made it seem like I liked her more than I like you."

You laugh softly, shaking your head and interlacing your hands together. "It's okay, Lena. Natasha was my favorite person too, and so are you."

Yelena smiles, moving to rest her head on your shoulder. 

"Are we going to be okay without her, YN?" She asks softly, and you swallow dryly.

"I don't know." You answer truthfully. "But I will try to take care of you like she did."

Yelena smiles, nodding. You stand in silence, just enjoying each other's company for long minutes until you hear Wanda and Fanny playing in the backyard from downstairs. Yelena stands up to look out the window, and laughs at the scene, beckoning you to join her.

Your chest heats up at the scene, and you smile sweetly, a look that your sister notices.

"You were wrong before, Y/N." Yelena says suddenly, and you look at her with confusion. She gives you a sad smile. "Natasha could see that you had something. Something worth living on for."

You swallow dryly, looking away from the window to your sister, "I didn't want her to have made that choice for me."

"It wasn't fair what happened, but I'm glad at least one of you is here." Yelena says passing an arm around your waist to hug you. "Just make her sacrifice worth it, Y/N. Stop being a chicken and tell that girl how you feel."

You laugh sheepishly, hugging Yelena back. She squeezes before letting go and pats you on the cheek. "Let's finish with the boxes. Enough of the sad talk."

"Yes, ma'am." You agree with amusement, escorting her out of the room.

As soon as you were downstairs, Yelena commented that you should go to the market, giving you a gentle nudge with her hips.

"Are you hungry already?" You scoff making her laugh, but when you understand the look on her face, you nod. "Okay, okay, I'll get the things for dinner. You two behave yourselves."

Wanda smiles half lost in the interjection, but as soon as you give her a wink and turn away to head toward the car, and she meets Yelena's mischievous gaze, she knows she has fallen into a trap.

"You and I have a lot to talk about, Maximoff." Yelena declared as soon as you started the car. She watched you drive away and Wanda caress Fanny before she decided to join in the playtime, and her phrase got a nervous chuckle from the redhead.

"Okay." She mumbled clumsily, and handed the little ball she was tossing to Fanny to Yelena - the animal bouncing excitedly between them in search of the object - who thanked her with a nod, and tossed the object further across the yard to the dog before commenting:

"You care about my sister."

Wanda smiled. "Of course I do." She said. "She's my best friend."

Yelena hums half-suspiciously, and Wanda doesn't think that's the right answer, but doesn't understand why. She decides to just go with the flow of the conversation though.

"Sorry for earlier, I think we needed to get some things off our chests." Yelena then says, and Fanny returns with the ball. Wanda nods in understanding, and it is her turn to throw the object away.

"It's all right, Yelena." The redhead assures. "I mean, it's not really, because all that talk about Y/N jumping scared the hell out of me but I want to give her some space before we talk about it."

Yelena sighs, nodding. "Please do." Says the blonde. "I apologized, for the way I made it sound like I didn't want her here, but still, I don't think she believed me. Maybe she'll feel better if you tell her that."

Wanda gives a sad smile, and Fanny brings the ball up again. She reaches up to pet him, and Yelena smiles at the scene.

"Did she still do that thing with her thoughts, the empty head trick?" Yelena asks then, and Wanda lets out an almost frustrated exclamation.

"God, yes!" She grumbles, tossing the ball away and watching the dog run before focusing on the blonde next to her. "It's infuriating sometimes. She blocks everything out and even with my magic I can't tell what's wrong. But I feel bad about pushing."

Yelena nods in understanding. "You should push, I know that's strange to hear, but it's true." Says the blonde. "She learned that in the Red Room."

"How? if you don't mind telling me of course. Y/N doesn't like to talk about it." Wanda says quickly, and Yelena gives her a sad smile, deciding to sit on the grass and hug Fanny when he comes back with the ball.

"Well, we come from different generations of widows." The blonde begins. "Nat went through brainwashing, and I went through chemical subjugation. Y/N was in the middle of it all, I guess. They fragmented her mind into several pieces with the serum enhancement tests, and put what they wanted in place. That's why it took so long for her to find Natasha after she ran away, she couldn't even remember who she really was and what was put in there." 

Wanda frowns, feeling her stomach clench. She remembers you before, when you joined the Avengers, how distant you really were even though you were Wanda's favorite company, sometimes you didn't even seem to be there entirely.

"Anyway, she learned that thing better than anyone." Yelena continues. "It's a battle tactic, because emotions make you vulnerable, you know? Thoughts distract you. She breaks them, and they go away, and she becomes a perfect assassin."

"I've seen her use it in battle before." Wanda comments distractedly, a few flashbacks of missions with the Avengers running through her head. "She gets completely focused."

"Yep, it's scary." Yelena retorts with a sad little laugh, "But she's been getting better at not doing it I guess. I was snooping around her office and found her space travel journals. She wrote about the destinations, she's trying to remember things now. She has also made friends. A certain Captain Danvers seems to be important to her."

Wanda looks down at the floor, a bitter feeling suddenly fills her stomach. It's stupid to feel jealous of someone she barely knows, who was part of your life while she was away, and yet she feels it burn. 

"Do you think she will stay here?" Wanda asks deciding she didn't want to talk about your other friends anymore. Yelena shrugs her shoulders as her hands caress the animal that decided to lie on her lap and play with the little ball.

"She said she has the Avengers, right?"

"Yes, but, things are different." Wanda retorts. "I don't even know if they exist anymore. And honestly, Y/N could use a break. She should at least, take some time off to grieve."

Yelena sighs, nodding. "Yeah, I agree." Says the blonde. "I'm going  back to Russia, spend some time with our parents. Y/N doesn't have the same connection with them, especially with Alexei, she thinks he could have fought better to prevent our rupture, but that's past business. I would like her to rest."

Wanda nods. "I will suggest it." She says, making Yelena smile.

"Are you staying here?" The blonde asks surprising the other, who gives a nervous giggle.

"Me? With her?" She asks, and is blushing at the other's expression. "I don't know. Only if she wants me to."

"Oh, she definitely wants you here, Maximoff." Yelena assures only worsening the redness in Wanda's cheeks, who laughs and shakes her head.

"Then maybe I'll stay."

Yelena smiles. "Just please convince her to buy a rug that isn't so hideous." Jokes the blonde making Wanda laugh.

They fall into comfortable conversation after that. You return only half an hour later, with paper bags in your arms, commenting that some people at the market insisted on having their picture taken with you and it was a very strange thing to experience.

When you got back into the house, Yelena said she was going to call Melina to see how things were going, and gave you a look that meant 'talk to Wanda' but you decided to rearrange Natasha's boxes.

The items that Natasha left for Yelena were going back to Russia with her, and you got the other box that had some shirts, a collection of Nat's classic movies, and the Avengers brooch.

While Yelena was on a video call on the balcony with Fanny on her lap, Wanda leaned on the countertop, watching you finish tidying up.

"How are you doing, Y/N?" She asks once the last box is closed, and you raise your eyes to her.

"I'm fine." You answer immediately, with a small smile. Wanda crosses her arms gently.

"But how are you really?"

You let out a hesitant laugh, moving closer to stand beside the redheaded girl, figuring you couldn't lie by looking into her eyes. "I'm still trying to figure it out." You choose to say, it's vague, but true nonetheless. Wanda uncrosses her arms to slide one of her hands against yours, and you swallow dryly, turning your face to look at her. "You don't have to worry, Wands."

"But I do." She says in a whisper. "I care about you, Y/N. Very much."

"Well, that's what friends are for, right?" you joke, deflecting the intensity of the moment, and Wanda frowns, trying to chase your gaze but you turn your face away.

"Y/N..." She tries, but you are already releasing her hand and moving away.

"I'll check to see if Yelena wants us to prepare dinner already and-"

"Stop running away from me!" Wanda interrupts before you can leave the kitchen and you freeze in place, your back tense. Wanda lets out a raspy breath. "Talk to me. Please."

You sigh, turning your face toward her. "What do you want me to say, Wanda?"

"Anything." 

"No, you want me to say something specific." You retort impatiently. "But I'm not going to guess."

"Say you miss Natasha. Say you are angry at what she did." Wanda retorts with emotion. "Say you wish it had been you, or worse, Clint! Anything!"

You give a short laugh. "I don't need to say that, because you already know all these things, Wanda." You accuse taking a step toward her. "You know me by heart, and I don't need to say any of this for you to see. But there's something else you want me to say, isn't there?"

Wanda swallows dryly, her back slamming against the kitchen counter. "I don't..."

You cut her off with a short laugh "And I'm the one running away."

You comment with bitterness in your voice, and turn to leave the kitchen. Wanda can hear the heartbeats in her ears, but takes a sharp breath, and says:

"Tell me why you left."

You stop, and take a deep breath, looking back at her. "You know why."

"No, I don't."

"Wanda..."

"Please." She insists taking a step forward, suddenly even with the brave tone of voice, she feels very small. "I thought... I thought that for a second, you maybe, cared about me the way I..." But Wanda falls silent, she is babbling, and her face is burning hot. Her heart feels like it's going to jump out of her throat, and you're swallowing dry and being brave for her as you step closer and bring your hands to her cheek.

"What do you think happened that day?" You ask studying her face. Wanda closes her eyes for a second, taking a deep breath.

"I just remember you leaving." She confesses. "But when I think about it, I think it was my fault."

You sigh, caressing her cheek. "I went to Norway to see you, we went out drinking, and I asked you to go into space with me after too many drinks. You said no, and I left. That's what happened, Wanda, it wasn't anyone's fault."

She denies it with her head, her eyes filling with tears. "I heard you." She confesses in a whisper that takes all the air out of her lungs. "Before, before the invitation, before the bar. Vision was there, we were saying goodbye but I guess it must have seemed like something else. Then you're there, and you invited me for a drink and I thought maybe it was the one you promised me."

You widen your eyes, steadying your hands on her face. "Wanda, do you still remember that?"

She nods letting the tears fall. "Y/N, you were only 17 when we met. I told you to buy me a drink when you were old enough, and I meant it. But you pushed me away, and I figured it was a stupid crush you grew out of, but you were there when you turned 21 and I thought you were going to tell me you loved me as much as I love you, but you didn't."

"I said I was leaving." You completed in an emotional whisper, and Wanda nodded with a weeping face. 

"I couldn't leave with you, because I didn't think I could handle being around you knowing that you got over me and I couldn't do the same." Wanda confesses raising her hands to your forearms. "But I should have been brave, and told you to stay. Because I really wanted you with me, by all means."

You gasp, pulling your hands away to hug Wanda tightly by the neck. She hugs you back around the waist, sinking her face into your skin, sighing heavily against you.

"I'm not going anywhere, Wanda." You assure her in a whisper. "I'll stay with you, I promise."

Wanda gave a tearful sigh, tightening her arms around you, but you broke the grip to return your hands to her cheeks. "And this talk of getting over you? That's nonsense. I've loved you, from the first moment I saw you. And I've waited for you, here and in space. And I'll wait longer if I need to."

Wanda lets out a tearful laugh, her chest filling with happiness all at once. "You don't have to wait anymore. Come here." She whispered, tugging at the collar of your shirt to bring your faces close together. The kiss was intense but sweet. You sighed into each other's mouths before breaking, your foreheads touching. "I've wanted to do that for so long, dekta."

"Me too." You confess in the same tone, moving your hands down to her waist, and Wanda lets hers run down your neck. "I can't believe we wasted so much time."

Wanda nods but is breaking the distance, kissing you more slowly now until every hair on your body stands on end, and your body heats up. It feels really good.

A noise outside - Fanny knocking on the door - and you break the kiss with a soft sigh, smiling into each other's mouths.

"Perfect timing." You murmur annoyed, making Wanda laugh. She looks up at you with passionate, narrowed eyes, one of her hands finding your cheek.

"I think so, actually." She retorts in the same tone. "We're finally at the right time."

You smile, your hands around her waist. "Maybe just a little late..." You tease depositing a kiss behind her ear, making her shudder softly. "But it's okay, we'll make up for lost time." You promise as you bite the lobe of her ear, and Wanda laughs softly, tightening her arms around you.

Yelena enters the room shortly after, with a raised eyebrow at the guilty expressions of the two of you.

"I thought there was somebody making out on in my kitchen, but it must have been an illusion because I wouldn't have come all the way from Russia for such free trauma." She declares causing Wanda to laugh, and you to mumble in embarrassment.

"First, this is my kitchen." You complain. "Second, stop snooping."

Yelena laughs, shrugging as she puts her cell phone away. "I'm glad you guys worked it out. Can we watch a movie?"

"Sure, Lena."

For the rest of the afternoon, you sit in the living room to watch Natasha's movie collection. It's quiet and peaceful. You wanted to say that you were surprised at the ease in which Wanda's hand finds yours under the covers, but you really weren't, it just felt even more right.

Yelena would be back in Russia the next day, and after dinner, while you were making the bed, you wanted to ask if Wanda would stay.

"It's not like I have anywhere to go." She answers your question before the question is out - she is wearing pajamas borrowed from you, and her hair is damp from her recent shower - when she appears at your bedroom door.

You inhale deeply at the image, and smile at the small intrusion. "Nosy." You sneer without really being angry, and she bites back a smile, crossing her arms as she stares at you in the doorway.

"You're not blocking them from me." She comments and you shrug, turning your attention back to the freshly folded blanket.

"I used to hide how I felt from you, now that you know, I don't have to anymore."

"I'm sorry." 

You turn your head to her again. "Don't worry." You say with a smile. "Come here." Wanda moves in the same second and uncrosses her arms when you touch her forearms. "I think you should go to the airport with Yelena tomorrow, and go back to New York."

Wanda blinks in confusion, frowning in concern; "What? Why?"

You smile, your fingers caressing her skin. "That doctor we met, Strange. He's magical like you. He could help you with your powers."

Wanda hesitates. "But I want to stay with you."

"And I want you here with me." You assure without stopping smiling. "But you're something else, Wanda. I've seen you fight, sweetheart. You're so much more powerful since the last time we saw each other, it was fascinating to watch, but I can hardly imagine how curious or confused you might be feeling about your powers. You should see him, ask him if there's anything he can teach you. I'm not going anywhere."

Wanda swallows dryly; she knows you are right. She nods, and breaks the distance between your faces, kissing you softly. You smile and break the kiss after a second.

"Please learn how to make those portals first. That way you get back to me as fast as you can." You joke with a certain seriousness, making her laugh with excitement. 

Wanda kisses you again, harder this time, and you sigh but she moves forward until your back hits the wall. She is kissing and kissing you again and again until all the air is out of your lungs, but when you want more, she breaks away. 

Her eyes are dark and her lips puffy, and she gives your bottom lip a gentle tug while one hand stays on your neck, keeping you from chasing her mouth when you want to. 

"Good night, baby." She teases against your lips, her accent thick and her voice husky, and gives you a quick kiss before pulling away completely, casting you a darkened glance before dashing out the door. You almost melt to the floor, feeling your body catch fire, but you just laugh breathlessly to yourself, running a hand over your face to calm your own heartbeat.

–//–

Yelena wanted to visit Natasha's grave before she left, so the next day the three of you got up early and drove after breakfast to the city cemetery.

It wasn't a pleasant trip, but you felt less worse having Wanda's hand in yours on the way.

Fanny ran around, and the redhead gave you a kiss on the cheek before going after the dog.

Yelena cleaned up some of the grave, pushing a few decorations away before kneeling down on the side. She whistled and you blinked in confusion.

"What's that?" You asked feeling your heart racing in your chest. Yelena raised her eyes to you, each hand on the side of the stone.

"What?"

"This noise you made."

She giggles. "It's our secret whistle, Y/N. A shame you don't remember it since you invented it."

You swallow dryly, blinking back a few tears. A memory formed in your head, three little girls running around in a backyard. The oldest one suggests they play hide and seek, but the smallest one is scared of getting lost.

"Don't worry, if you get scared, just whistle like this and we'll find you." You're the one who says it before you demonstrate. Yelena and Nat try a few times until they succeed. "See, it's easy. Now whenever we need, just make that noise and we'll find each other."

Yelena's touch on your shoulder made you blink out of the memory, startling yourself a little. She looked at you curiously.

"Is everything okay?" She asked. You sniffled softly, but forced a smile, moving your arm to hug her from the side.

"It will be." You say.

Yelena leaves before dinner. She hugs you tight and puts Fanny in the back seat. Wanda got the ticket too and goes in the passenger seat after kissing your face several times and then your mouth, intense and passionate until Yelena makes a disgusting noise from the steering wheel and you break down laughing.

She promises to call you every day.

She stays away until Christmas, which is when Yelena calls and says she is going to spend the holidays with Clint Barton and a girl she seems to like. You wish her happy holidays and call Bucky and Sam as well.

Wanda doesn't call you every day, but she texts you whenever possible. Some days she is busier than others, but you know that she is learning to be a much more powerful witch than before just by the little demonstrations she makes in video calls. Sometimes she falls asleep on the phone with you, and your heart races in your chest to hear her breathing.

You work on the house renovation. The empty room becomes a library, and many of the books in there are from the street fair, ranging from occultism to quantum physics - it is a gift to Wanda, and there are many empty shelves for her to put hers on. The third room is for guests, but you can't help thinking that maybe one day it will belong to someone else. You move your studies to the attic, it's better than leaving Natasha's things in boxes.

Christmas, you are thinking of going into town to see the lights, but just as you consider getting up from your armchair, another kind of bright light is opening in the middle of the room.

Wanda stumbles out of the magic portal with little class, muttering to herself as someone on the other side says she needs to improve her concentration, but the redhead just nods in thanks before the magic closes. You give her half a second before you are jumping on top of her, hugging her so tightly that you lift her in the air.

She laughs in your grip, dropping her bag as she hugs you back.

"Merry Christmas, darling!" She says contentedly. "I think you missed me."

You laugh too and break the embrace to kiss her. It was supposed to be sweet, but as soon as she kisses you back, you are melting against her.  

You stumble into an affected gasp, and Wanda shudders as she feels your tongue slide into hers. 

She wants to say that she missed you as much as you missed hers, and pour out all the news, but all she can think about is the feel of your hands on her hips, squeezing gently as your lips move together.

You sigh against her lips as you pause for breath, and she swallows dryly at the sight of your fully dilated pupils.

"Hi." You greet hoarsely, and she smiles.

" Hey." She says bringing her hands to your neck. "Take me upstairs." She asks brushing her lips against yours, and you gasp, squeezing her waist.

"We don't have to." You remind her in a gasping whisper, finding it hard to keep your eyes open. "W-we should talk, and catch up. And we don't have to..."

"We'll do all that." Wanda assures rubbing the back of your neck with one of her hands. "We can go see the Christmas lights and have hot drinks while you tell me how you've been and I'll tell you about magic. But right now baby, I want to kiss you and I don't want to stop."

You nod and break the distance between your mouths again. It's better than before because Wanda slides her tongue against yours with intent. She doesn't wait for the room, however, and you struggle between panting whispers and curious hands, and at some point, you trip over her purse and fall onto the couch. Despite the muffled giggles, she kisses you until it's too hot to wear clothes. You're not complaining.

--//--

A/N: A little idea that came to me coming from a series I never finished where Reader was the middle sister, and helping Natasha take down the Red Room after Civil War. In this one we have White Vision being reactivated during the Blip, because Reader took care of everything, I don't know if anyone will be interested in that little fact, but there it is. Let me know what you think, I think until the release of MOM, this will be my last fic here. After this movie I'll probably just write multiverse stuff and order magic because I have a soft spot for soulmates.

#wanda maximoff x reader #wanda x reader #wanda x you #elizabeth olsen x reader #avengers #avengers imagine

[moemoemammon]

Ok. I need to get this idea out to someone. Solomon and mc are messing with potions for class and he accidentally gives mc a “youth” potion that makes you look younger. It turns mc into like a 4 year old for like a couple of days. What do you think would be the demon brothers (any) reaction to babysitting their master? What would they do? Idk i think it would be a little funny.

You’ve Gotta Be KIDding me, MC!

(Feat. GN!MC and the Demon Bros)

✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦

Lucifer

He'll be exchanging words with that sorcerer bastard later. You can bet on that.

Lucifer doesn't take kindly to the idea of MC having run ins with magic in general, but at least this seems to be on the tamer side of the magical spectrum. And he had to admit, it's sort of amusing.

He intentionally watches you try to handle things on your own. Be it reaching for things too high up, stubbornly carrying things too heavy for your tiny arms, or making messes when you try to tidy up, Lucifer waits patiently until you ask for help (or until he can't take it anymore).

Treats you like he always does, despite your size. He doesn't talk to you like a child, or try to force toys and nap times onto you, but may or may not tease you when it's only the two of you. After all, you may look like a child, but that doesn't mean you are one. It's still funny to harass you a little, though.

"As independent as you may be, please refrain from trying to climb up onto the counter. If you need something, ask one of my brothers, or myself. If that isn't obvious enough, perhaps a 'time-out' is in order?"

Mammon

When Mammon recovers from laughing for twenty minutes, (and also making threats on Solomon's life) he then decides to take a billion pictures of you. Now calls you 'munchkin' and variations of it.

And if you thought he was clingy before, just wait till you see how he is now. You're ACTUALLY helpless and vulnerable. I mean, you'd hardly make an appetizer for a random demon! So Mammon's gotta keep an eye on you. Maybe even a toddler leash-

Unintentionally treats you like an actual child. His older brother mode kicks in, and he finds himself taking care of you as naturally as breathing. Mammon? Being responsible?? It's more likely than you think.

He hands you a cup of juice before you can say 'I'm thirsty'. He'll slide over some sliced up fruits before your stomach has a chance to growl. You're tired? No kidding. That's why he's got a blanket and pillow on the sofa for you.

"Where do ya think you're goin', short stack? Nowhere without ME, that's where! I already told ya, if there's somethin' ya need, just tell me!" "Huh? I'm spoilin' ya too much? S-so what if I am?!"

Levi

Solomon came in with a child in tow that looked a hell of a lot like MC, and this man nearly had a heart attack. There's no way... did those two have a secret love child?! Th-that's just-!! Oh, it's only MC.

WAIT A MINUTE...TH-THIS IS....! ISNT THIS JUST LIKE 'DETECTIVE C*NAN'? Uwaaah... Just look at you! You're still just as smart as before, but you've become super small! Talk about the ultimate gap moe!!!

Levi isn't a big fan of the idea of tiny, sticky hands touching his things, so he's glad you've still got your normal brainpower. That being said, he finds himself talking to you normally. Maybe even easier than before!

It kinda throws him off that you guys can't do the things you'd normally do together. Your fingers don't have their usual dexterity so playing games is a challenge, and your attention span is a little shorter so these TSL marathons are killing you. But have no fear, Levi knows a ton of other things you could do together! He won't let something like this spoil his time with his dear Henry!

"If you can't use the controller, let's try something that doesn't need one! I've got a new Ruri Hana VR game with REAL motion and voice tracking! If you say the spells out loud, you'll cast them in game! Ah, and it auto-adjusts to the player's height, so there's nothing to worry about!"

Satan

HES DOING HIS BEST NOT TO LAUGH. SATAN WILL HANDLE THIS WITH POISE AND GRACE, BUT MAN....

Watching you struggle to enter the House of Lamentation in your oversized RAD uniform nearly sent him to the stratosphere. He inhaled tea when you almost tripped over your blazer and had to get a couple of slaps on the back from Asmo.

Does his best to find a cure for your 'little' problem, but the most that can be done is waiting it out. In the meantime, would you like him to read you a story? Large books are probably difficult on your tiny hands.

Constantly catches himself treating you like a tot. He's not trying to, but he can't help himself when he sees your round eyes staring up at him, or when he watches you try to climb up onto an armchair.

"Up we go- There. It must be hard for you, having to climb up into the chairs like that. I've got a stool if you'd like to use it? Though, I don't mind if you sit on my lap, too." "Hm? I'm embarrassing you? I-I didn't realize how overzealous I was being. Ehem...."

Asmo

Oh that Solomon and his silly spells and potions, always making trouble! It's just one of his many charm points! And seeing as there are no permanent consequences from this harmless mishap, Asmo's enjoying it to the fullest.

Can you blame him? You're SOOOO cute~! So tiny and adorable! Why would've know that was possible?? Look this way, MC! He wants to take some pictures of you! Lowkey uses you as a photo op prop

He used to work part time at a daycare, you know? Asmo's great with kids! But that also means he's treating you like one. There's personalized snacks, cute little nicknames, and he's already gone and bought you a week's worth of clothes. Nobody tell him it'll only last a day-

He can be a little annoying with the baby talk and all the little activities he's planned for you, but you can tell he's enjoying himself.

"MC, look~! I've got plenty of ribbons to decorate your hair with! I'll let you choose your favorites, and then we can set out in town!" "Hm? Where are we going? To the playground, silly! You must be dying for a play date after being stuck in this dreary house all day, right?"

Beel

He was kinda teetering between whether or not he should throw Solomon across the yard like a football when he saw him carrying a teeny MC, but all was forgiven when he learned it was an accident.

Has now designated himself the permanent MC carrier. Your feet will never touch the ground so long as you're a child. And it's no problem for the likes of Beel, when you're as light as a feather! That makes him a little more conscious about being careful with you though-

Be it piggybacking or carrying you in his arms, he hasn't released you since he's spotted you. And don't think he's forgotten about feeding you. Beel's also taken your meal prep upon himself. You'll prefer things that've easy to eat, right? Though it kills gum to give you smaller portions than usual.... it feels cruel...

Somewhere between babying you and treating you as usual. He speaks normally to you as he always does, but prioritizes your needs over everything else. He wants to make sure you're well taken care of until this potion wears off.

"You're sure you've had enough to eat? I know I gave you a snack earlier, but... to think you really can't eat as much as before.. I'll talk to Solomon again. It must be torture to have such a tiny stomach, I'll do my best to get you back to normal."

Belphie

There's obvious opportunity here, and Belphegor won't let it go to waste. (No not for murder)

He's getting a kick about your new mini mode. How's the weather down there? Do you need him to pick you up so you can reach the high shelves? Don't worry, he'll get you a sippy cup.

When the teasing has settled down, he pays attention to a more pressing matter: you're now the perfect side for cuddling. You're a living hot water bottle, not too big, not too small, tiny and soft and adorable. Er, he won't mention that last part though.

Anyway, Belphie thinks a little kid like you should go on and take a nap now. It's exhausting having such short legs and wandering around the house all day, right? He gets it. You look tired and he knows the solution.

"Ah, you're just as cozy as I thought you'd be... Though, it feels kind of weird holding you like this. It's like holding a stuffed animal, but you're not nearly as cute." "Pfft, what's that face for? Sorry, sorry, I was only teasing."

#there's some subtle foreshadowing for the next CYA here #also might do a pt. 2 of this because I like the 'turned into a kid' trope #obey me shall we date #obey me! shall we date? #obey me! #obey me #shall we date? obey me! #shall we date obey me #obey me headcanons #obey me imagines #obey me scenarios #obey me writing #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me levi #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmo #obey me asmodeus #obey me beel #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphie #obey me belphegor

[drarrily-we-row-along]

Day 124: Joke

"Draco?" Harry asked as he twisted his fingers in Draco's hair.

He hummed, feeling too content and comfortable to use any actual words or even lift his head from where it was resting over Harry's heart. Lightly he trailed his fingers over Harry's rib cage in response.

"Do you think-" he broke off and Draco felt him swallow, "I want to tell my friends about us."

He froze for a moment, unable to quite believe his ears.

"Or not," he said hurriedly, "If you're not-"

Draco sat up and pressed his lips to Harry's because he knew it was the fastest way to get him to stop talking. And because he couldn't quite believe that he would ever be someone that the other man would want to tell the world about, he'd never imagined Harry would be proud to be with him.

Harry sighed into the kiss, wrapping Draco tighter in his arms.

When Draco pulled back he said, "Do you mean it?"

The corner of Harry's mouth tipped up and he nodded, "If it's okay with you." He brushed his fingers over Draco's cheek, "I really like you," he confessed, "and it just keeps getting harder and harder not to tell my friends how happy you make me."

Draco swallowed past the lump in his throat, "Really?" he whispered.

Harry nodded, tucking a strand of Draco's hair behind his ear. "Would you come with me? Maybe we could go out to dinner with them?"

"Yeah," he said, "Yes, if you want me to."

"I'd like that," Harry replied.

"Can we tell my friends, too?"

The smile that Harry gave him made him a little breathless, "If you want to."

"I'll owl them tomorrow."

Harry kissed him again and if they didn't get much more talking and planning done for a while after that who could blame them? They had far better things to do.

(Read more below the cut)

As fate would have it, they went out to brunch with Pansy, Blaise, and Greg first. They met at a muggle restaurant that wasn't far from Harry's apartment and when they arrived, Draco's friends were quite taken off guard by Harry's presence.

Harry held the door for them and Draco stepped through, Pansy following close behind and hissing, "What the bloody hell is Potter doing here?"

"Relax," he said, hooking her arm through his and following the hostess to a table.

After they ordered drinks Draco cleared his throat, "There's something I wanted to tell all of you," he started and Harry draped his arm over the back of the chair behind him, brushing his thumb over Draco's tricep in a silent show of support. "Harry and I are dating," he said, glancing over at Harry and giving him a little smile.

"I'm sorry?" Pansy asked and Draco glanced over at his friends' shocked faces.

"We've been seeing each other for a few months," he said.

"And we're serious about each other," Harry added.

Draco nodded, "So we thought it was time to start telling our friends."

Pansy blinked at him and Blaise was still staring with his jaw dropped but Greg just nodded, "Congratulations."

"Thank you," Harry said with a smile at Greg.

Greg looked between the two of them, gave a nod, then opened his menu, "So what's good here?" he asked and Harry started to list off some of the dishes they'd enjoyed when they'd come on lazy Saturday mornings.

He glanced across the table to find Pansy still staring with an inscrutable look and Draco felt a tingle of apprehension at the base of his spine.

Everything was fine while they ordered and ate their breakfasts, it wasn't until Harry got up to use the loo that Pansy started to speak frankly.

"Draco, you're not serious," she hissed.

"About?"

"You dating Harry Potter! This is an elaborate joke, even for you, how on earth did you manage to convince him to go along with it?"

He shook his head, "I'm completely serious. We ran into each other at work, started talking and realized how much we enjoyed doing that. Then we started fucking and realized how much we enjoyed doing that too. And it just makes sense," he said with a little shrug. "We spend all of our free time together and I can't even remember the last time I slept in my own flat-"

"Draco, be reasonable," Blaise said. "He can't possibly," he broke off as though he didn't want to finish that sentence.

"He can't possibly what?" Draco asked, putting years of practice making his voice sound cold as ice to good use.

"Darling, it's just that you're you," she said, "And he's Harry bloody Potter."

"The press is going to destroy you," Blaise added. "Imagine those headlines."

Pansy shook her head, "And not only that but don't you think that Potter is going to end up with someone that the wizarding world will approve of? A wife who'll give him three kids, a home, the whole nine yards."

"I think it's nice," Greg said. "He looks happy, you look happy. What more is there?"

"Thanks, Greg," he replied with a nod.

"Oh sure, trust the person who's been single all his life to give you dating advice," Pansy said, rolling her eyes. "By all standards, he's too good for you and everyone knows it."

Blaise cleared his throat then, "What do you all think of ordering a few of those delicious looking cinnamon buns to share?" he asked.

"Sounds good to me," Harry replied as he slid back into his seat and bumped his knee against Draco's. "The only real question is if you want the iced ones or the honey ones," he said, turning to look at Draco, "What do you think, love?" he asked.

Draco looked at him and something cracked in his heart, Pansy and Blaise were right. Harry Potter was a dream and it couldn't last. He swallowed, "Let's do the iced one."

He supposed a little while longer before he talked some sense into Harry wouldn't hurt too much.

----------

Harry was in a great mood when they got back to his flat. "Well," he said as he toed his shoes off at the door, "That went well, didn't it?" he asked.

He didn't reply, he just stared at the other man and wondered how to tell him that they were never going to be able to work.

"Tea?" Harry asked, oblivious to Draco's inner turmoil as he headed into the kitchen without waiting for a response.

"You should break up with me," he blurted.

Whatever Harry had been holding shattered as it hit the floor. "Shite," he murmured. "Reparo." Then he returned to where Draco was still standing, a few feet away from the door. "I'm sorry?" he asked.

Draco couldn't quite meet his eye, "You should break up with me now," he said, "Before either of us can get more invested."

"Draco, what-?"

He shook his head and a tear slipped out, "You're too good for me, Harry, and when the press catches wind of this-"

"Stop it," Harry said, clasped Draco's shoulders, "What on earth has gotten into you?"

"Even my friends, the people who have loved me through some pretty dark places, say it's true!" he exclaimed, "Even my friends think you're too good for me, that I'm being delusional."

Harry took his hands in his and it was only then that Draco realized he was trembling. "Hey," he murmured, leaning in so their foreheads were touching. "Your friends are arseholes. I am not too good for you. Draco, I can't even match my socks properly."

And it was such a ridiculous thing to say that a startled laugh burst from his mouth.

Harry tilted his head up to kiss his nose. "Look, they won't be the last people who spout of complete nonsense about us. I'm sure that comes with the territory," he added. "But it doesn't change who you are."

"An ex-death eater," he said. "A school bully, a complete-"

"That's not who you are," Harry said, leaning back so he could see Draco more clearly. "It might have been a part of who you were but it's not who you are." He pressed a kiss to Draco's cheek, "You are brilliant," he said, "and you are gorgeous, and you're kind. And you've got a wicked sense of humor. You're passionate and you work hard."

"I've had to."

Harry nodded, "You're not the boy you were when we were in school just as I'm not the boy that I was when we were in school."

"But people will always remember-"

"What they think or remember doesn't matter," he said. "Because I know who you are and I don't give a rat's arse about what they think."

"I don't know, Harry," he said softly. "My past-"

"Do you think I'm the person they paint me to be?" he asked.

Draco shook his head, "Of course not but the wizarding world isn't going to accept this."

"I love you," he said simply. "And you, as you are, are more than enough."

"It's not going to be easy," Draco said softly.

The other man kissed him softly, "You're probably right," he said. "But I'm all in, if you are."

He pulled Harry into a tight hug and Harry hugged him back, "I'm in," he whispered.

"Then that's all we need," Harry said with a nod.

And Harry was right their friends came around but they found that they could weather the storms. There wasn't any trial or challenge they couldn't overcome when they were both willing to fight for the other.

-------------

Day 123: Feather | Day 125: Accidental Bonding (Part 1)

#100 drarry drabbles in 100 days #one year of drarry drabbles #drarry ficlet #drarry drabbles #coming out to friends #love #sorry i'm pretty tired today so this definitely isn't my best work

[stayatiny]

Little Dolly Chapter 1 ~ Yandere Seonghwa

(Gif made by me)

Pairing(s) – Killer/Yandere Seonghwa x Virgin! Reader

Series warnings – Violence, mentions of murder, swearing, blood, smut and lose of virginity (later on), yandere behaviors, Stockholm syndrome. (seriously this is going to be darker than some of my other fics. If this makes you uncomfortable, please do not read.)

Chapter Warning(s) Mentions of murder, guns, someone getting shot, just the overall violence, let me know if I missed anything.

A/N - Hi everyone ^^ Im back at it again. I decided to make a little mini series still deciding on who and what to do the next series on. Enjoy.

Why did I wander home alone? I knew that this wasn’t a good idea. Now I’m here stuck in a cage in the basement of a killer. I’ll never do it again if I get out alive…

“Aw. Aren’t you a cute in that dress I picked out for you? I think I’ll just keep you,” he said, shutting the door of the cage. That was a couple of days ago…I think. The man was dressed nicely in a button up and slacks like a businessman and absolutely gorgeous. If he wasn’t a killer, I would swoon over him so fast. He opened the cage door and placed a sandwich and some water in front of me. Is this how I die? A poisoned BLT…what a way to go out. I looked at the man and then back at the plate of food.

“Why aren’t you eating?” I didn’t say anything. He leaned forward into the cage grabbing the plate. I whined as he pulled back. He took a bite of the sandwich and then put it back.

“When I ask you something I expect an answer,” he growled. I nodded and started to eat and drink the water he left me. His frown soon became a smile. He wasn’t going to kill me yet or he wouldn’t bother with wanting to feed me. Once he placed the plate back down, I snatched the plate up and started to scarf down the sandwich and water. I was so hungry almost starving. He had been giving me water but no food till today.

“Good girl,” he purred still sitting in front of the cage. He even leaned forward again and patted my head like I was a child. I finished eating and drinking the water. He took the plate placing it on a table. He leaned down and gently grabbed my arm.

“Come here. I don’t want you in this cage anymore.” The man leads me down the hall of the basement, away from the dungeon, to a small apartment like area. There was a mini fridge, a microwave, bed, and a bathroom off to the right of some stairs. I figured they led to the upper part of the house. I let out a small sigh being able to stretch my legs from being in a cage.

“You will be staying here from now on,” he said, holding my hands. I looked up at him. What was he talking about?

“What do you mean? I thought you were going to kill me,” I say. His smile is sinister.

“Aw darling. I’m not ever going to kill you…unless you make me.” I swallow hard. I didn’t want to end up like the other men and women that’s he’s killed.

“Why me?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking like an idiot. He frowned slightly then pulled me close to his chest. He was really warm but there again I blame the cold weather and damp basement dungeon for lack of warmth.

“I’ve been watching you for a while thinking that would just be another victim of mine, but you are too pretty, sweet, and so innocent. I have to protect you from the world. So I’ll be keeping you here with me,” he says, patting my head. My heart jumps into my throat. I need to get out of here…

“You don’t even know me,” I say trying to pull away from him. He grabbed my arms pulling me close to him once again.

“I don’t know a lot about you, but I know that I need you to stay here with me.” He sounded like he was almost begging me to stay here. I don’t think I have a choice. I’ll stay here until I can find a way out.

“What is your name,” I asked. I needed to play into this to stay alive. I couldn’t act so scared cause then he’ll know that he’ll have a hold over me. The man smiled.

“I’m Seonghwa, but you can call me Hwa if you want,” he said, smiling. I nodded and looked around the room. I was too afraid to walk away from him.

“I’m sure that you are tired. I want you to get cleaned up and head to sleep,” Hwa said, handing me some clothes. I nodded and did as he was told. Once I was done, he was gone and back upstairs. I laid down on the bed after turning off the lights.

Th next morning, I feel the bed dip down on my side. I open my eyes to see Seonghwa looking down at me. I jumped a little.

“Good morning little one,” he said petting my hair. He smiled. I sat up slowly.

“Come upstairs with me. I want to eat breakfast with you,” he said grabbing my hand. I follow willingly or else. I didn’t want to know what he would do to me.

“How did you sleep last night? I know that isn’t very comfortable but it’s all I have but it’ll do until I trust you enough to stay in a bed with me,” he said then opening the door. I wanted nothing more than to bolt out the front door, and I thought about it until I saw the gun sitting on the dining room table. I would definitely get killed if I ran. I didn’t answer him except for stare at the gun. Hwa grabbed then hugged me tight.

“Don’t worry about that. I won’t hurt you unless you make me use it,” he whispered, right into my neck. I shivered scrunching myself even closer to him, unintentionally. Hwa kissed my head then pulled me to the kitchen island. I looked through the window to see that we are outside the city literally in the middle of nowhere. My heart started to pound. Hwa put up the gun back in a lock box and put it up in the living room. He came back to the kitchen with a smile.

“Here I made some scrambled eggs and bacon for you. I didn’t know what you liked so I guess. Maybe later you can tell me what foods you like,” he said, smiling. His smile would have been comforting if this had been a different situation. I didn’t want to answer him, but the image of the gun flashed back into mind.

“It’s okay. I like bacon and scrambled eggs,” I say quietly but a little louder than a whisper. He frowned slightly.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me. Like I said I won’t hurt you unless you deserve it.” I nod then taking the plate from him. I started to eat while he sat next to me with his plate. Hwa also put some fresh fruit on my plate. I scarfed down the food again.

“Slow down sweetie,” he said, then kissing my head. I stared at him. He wiped my face from the little bit of egg that was on my lips. I went back to eating while he cleaned up. When I was done, he grabbed my plate and cleaned it. Once he was done, he escorted me back into the basement. He turned to leave when I started to whine.

“Sweetie, I have to get some work done. I’ll be back down at lunch time.”

“Please don’t leave me down here, Hwa,” I beg. He kissed my head. I took the chance. I punched him as hard as I could causing him to fall to the ground holding his face. I didn’t waste the time before running for the door. Once in the kitchen I slammed the basement door shut then putting a chair under the handle.

“Sweetie, let me out,” he said from behind the door. His voice unnaturally calm for someone who is locked into the basement. I ran to the front door even taking a pair of his shoes. I quickly slip them on still hearing Hwa banging on the door and slamming against it. I jerked the door open and ran out trying to get to the road. Hoping I meet someone who could help me. I reach the gate at the end of his driveway only for me to realize that I have up to get to the other side. I started to climb up when I feel a searing pain in the back of my thigh. I scream only for me to see Hwa standing a yard or two behind me with his gun. Fuck me…

“Baby, come back. I said I wouldn’t hurt you,” he said, sing song like. I jumped over the fence and ran. The adrenaline keeping me going and from feeling the pain in my leg. I cover the wound with a scrap of my dress to keep from Hwa following the blood trail. I hide behind a big oak tree away from the road I just ran down. Somebody help me…

#yandere ateez #yandere seonghwa #ateez fic #seongwha

[after-witch]

Baby Mine [Yandere Overhaul x Reader]

Title: Baby Mine [Yandere Overhaul x Reader]

Synopsis:  The first time you laid eyes on your child, you knew: You had to get out. Set in the ‘White Picket Fence’-verse. 

For request: Something with Overhaul + the reader’s children and manipulation (I’m sorry I accidentally deleted the original message so I don’t remember the exacting wording!)

Word Count: 3328

notes: yandere, stockholm syndrome, abuse

From the instant you laid eyes on your daughter, the moment your gaze took in her fresh, wet skin and her small, blinking, uncomprehending eyes, you knew: you had to get the fuck away from Chisaki Kai.

The realization was instant, like a flash, peeling away years of manipulation and training and forced self-acceptance of your situation. Years of justifications and excuses that had wormed their way under your skin, forcing you to see the bright side, to see his side, and let yourself get wrapped up in its candy-coated, fluffy cotton bullshit--gone, ripped away with brutal, exacting force. All that was left was the stark realization, a single driving force shoving you forward: you and your daughter were going to get out.

That was four years ago.

Four years of agonizing pretending. Of forcing yourself to put back on the coat you'd worn before, the false version of yourself that loved him and accepted him and excused everything he ever did to you. It was hard. It was harder to pretend that you accepted this than to actually accept it, to indulge in his control. But every time your resolve weakened, it only took a glance at your child to remind you of why you couldn't just give in.

You had to get out, not for yourself, but for her. To give her a normal life. A life where she could be free, where she could have friends, where she could run outside and not be limited to the house or, if the weather was nice, the secure, high-fenced backyard that Kai had only built within the last year.

Four years of pretending. Four years of planning. And, most difficult of all, four years of waiting. Trust was not easily given by Chisaki Kai, even to the mother of his child.

So you waited.

You waited for Kai to move you two--no, three now--into a house, a real house; not in a populated suburb (another broken promise that you swallowed deep, deep down) but an offshoot of some protected compound in a remote area, where it could be secure and guarded. But what mattered is that its doors connected to the outside, not to some unknown underground bunker.  You could manage, if you were connected to the outside.

You waited for Kai to ease up on the restrictions that built up around you during your pregnancy, rules to keep you under a far more watchful eye, rules that made it harder to find a way out. Inches of trust, gradually earned, which made it possible for you to think concretely about escape.

You waited for your daughter to get old enough to run, old enough to survive without needing to be fed every few hours, old enough to know how to stay quiet when told. Watching her grow up only made you want to leave, more. She had a personality now. Stubborn but accepting when she knew she wouldn’t win; sweet in her own way, an unusual way, likely one that came from a lack of interaction with anyone but her parents and a handful of trusted Shie Hassaikai members.

It was one of those trusted members--you never have learned their name, a secret Kai (nor they) were willing to give--that would be your key to escape.

 They loved your daughter, too, in time. They were drawn in by her precociousness, her insistence on formalities and pleases and thank-yous. But it was her bubbliness and inherent interest in the world and people around her that made them decide to love her, too.Her big eyes and bubbling laugh when you two were allowed in the yard, sometimes under this member’s supervision. 

To your daughter’s delight, they didn’t simply watch you like the handful of others did; they joined in the fun. Just a few weeks ago, she’d convinced him to push her so high on the swing set that she’d gone all the way around--even your heart briefly froze until she’d emerged on the other side, cackling with delight, safe and sound.

They were loyal to Overhaul. Of that there was no doubt. Had they killed for him? Maimed? Tortured? You tried not to think about the things that were done in Overhaul’s name.

Yet they’d betrayed him, all for the sake of your daughter. Part of you feels bitter that they wouldn’t betray him for the sake of you--but then, what was that saying? Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

It was with their help that you were finally able to secure that last necessary piece of the puzzle for your escape: getting out of the secured, monitored gate surrounding the house unnoticed. He told you in hushed, intense tones that he would be on watch duty the night of your escape, that he would take care of the other member assigned that night, and that all you had to do was get out the door at the agreed time with your bag, your daughter, and a good pair of walking shoes. He would drive you as far as he could, and then you two would run, run, run after that.

It was going to work. Your daughter was going to live her life, a real life, not one carefully constructed in captivity. What would you do first, once you were free? The thoughts sometimes made you so giddy that you pinched yourself to calm down. So close, so close to the finish line, and you must be vigilant.

Tonight. You and your daughter are going to leave tonight.

Your daughter is in her bed, tucked in safe and secure. Her eyes are already closed, and Kai is sitting at the edge of the mattress, as always, smoothing down her hair and pressing a chaste kiss to her forehead. You watch from the doorway with your arms casually crossed, a small, tired, end-of-the-night smile on your lips. It's all so normal, so domestic, isn't it.

"Good night," he says, so soft and sweet that, if you hadn't been pulled out of your deluded coping mechanism, you might find it endearing. Instead, your thoughts scream: This will be the last time you ever see her, you fucked up piece of shit bastard. Oh, do you have a potty mouth when your 'husband' can't hear you...

He leaves your daughter to her dreams and clicks off the little lamp on her nightstand. When he crosses the doorway, you make room and he lets you slide your arm around his, linking yourselves together for the walk to your shared bedroom.

"Tired?" He asks, and you nod. You are tired. Not for the reasons he thinks, and not for the reasons you'll give, but the telltale darkness under your eyes belies the stress of planning your escape from a years-long ordeal.

You sigh, as soft and sweet as his voice was earlier. "Mmhmm. She didn't want to focus on her lessons today. I got a bit frustrated. Sometimes I don't think I'm cut out to be a teacher." By now you're in your bedroom and you casually take off your day clothes, dropping them in the labeled hamper in front of the closet. Your stomach twinges with the memory of how he used to look away when you took off your clothes.

But that was long ago, and now he continues the conversation casually as the pair of you strip and change into your respective pajamas. You slip a pink nightie with ruffled bottom over your head as he

"You just need more practice. Are you reading the lesson books before you start class?"

I wouldn't have to read any lesson books if you let her out of this house, if you let her out of school, if you weren't--you stop your thoughts, afraid that they might show on your face. Afraid that you might lose everything at this last, crucial moment.

But you know you look frustrated, so you roll with it. "Yes," you say, voice just the right amount of annoyed in retort. "But if she doesn't want to sit down and focus, me reading the lesson beforehand isn't really going to help, is it?"

He stares at you, and you wonder in a flash if you went too far. But in the next moment, he's simply continuing to button up his shirt. "Is it going to help our daughter learn if you take out your bad day on your husband?" His voice is dripping with the natural condescension that once had you questioning whether or not it was okay to be upset that he'd kidnapped you, and you hate it. But at least it's a sign that he bought your excuses.

You feel a warm flush of shame at the way his condescension still makes you feel less-than. You slide yourself into bed, under the covers, instinctively grabbing the book on your end table and staring down into it like you could simply disappear inside the pages. You can't mess up anything right now. The weight of what you need to do tonight feels so heavy and you can't stop your hands from trembling slightly.

"Sorry," you whisper, voice thick with emotion. "It's just hard sometimes. I feel in over my head."

It's Kai's turn to slide under the covers, though he doesn't bother grabbing his own book. Instead he gently pushes on your hands until you set the book on the covers. You know he wants you to look at him, so you do. He looks so gentle, so calm. Did he kill anyone today? Did he insult some hapless victim who crossed his organization, spewing venom with his words, before kissing your daughter goodnight hours later?

His gloved hands tip your chin up and it's a familiar feeling, an intimate feeling, when he pulls you in for a kiss. When he pulls away, he's smiling softly, indulgently. You aren't in trouble. You're good.

"I'll come home for lessons tomorrow and see what I can do. Would you like that?"

I'd like you to drop dead and make this easier on us, you think.

"Yes, Kai."

You smile. You nod. You let out a shaky sigh and lean your shoulders against his, picking up your book and signaling an end to the crisis. He lets you read quietly for a while before turning off the lamp on his side of the bed; it's a wordless signal that you already know: time to sleep. You're a dutiful wife and you put your book away and turn off your lamp and then turn back to your husband and whisper,

"Good night, Kai."

**

You wait until he's deep asleep to ease your way out of the bed. Every step you take in your padded socks makes you cringe. Will the floor creak? Will you make too much noise? Will you have to come up with a half-assed excuse as he comes to, groggily asking what you're doing? You feel like you can't breathe, but you do breathe, soft and shallow as you make your way to the bedroom door.

 You didn't dare keep anything related to your escape in your shared bedroom. The door feels like it weighs a thousand pounds as you ever-so-slowly open it, keeping your head turned towards the man sleeping on the bed all the while. He doesn't stir. He simply continues to snore, even as the door opens enough for you to slip out.

Your heart is pounding in your chest as you cross the hallway and into the spare room that you used as a playroom and, lately, a makeshift school. The bag you packed is in the closet, tucked behind bags of school supplies that you'd asked Kai to pick up in order to make sure that your escape bag didn't stand out. You grab it swiftly, along with your daughter's outdoor shoes, and make your way to the most dangerous element of your escape: your daughter's room.

She did so well. You remind yourself to praise her once you're away from the house, once you're in a car and making noise isn't a life or death dilemma. You built up the idea of your escape bit by bit over the past few weeks. You couldn't tell her that her father was a monster who kidnapped you, but you could prey on her desire to see more, to go beyond the rules established in her father's domain.

Don't you want to meet other kids? Go to the beach, feel the sand underneath your feet? Meet... your grandma? We'll just take a secret trip, you and me, and then come back to Papa when we're done. Then he'll see that it's safe to leave and come with us next time. But you have to keep it a secret. You can't tell him a thing, or we won't be able to go. You can keep a secret, can't you?

You kneel next to your daughter's bed and gently wake her up, whispering her name and stroking her hair, so she slowly opens her eyes in confusion before her gaze lands on your face and ah, a smile--it's just mom.

"Mama?" She asks, a bit too loudly for your liking.

"Shh baby," you say. "Yes, it's mama. Are you ready to go?" You see the tentativeness, the childish confusion in the way she nods. She doesn't know what real life is yet, she doesn't have an inkling of the freedom that she's lost, but she will.

You don't bother changing. You have a pair of clothes in the bag and you'll change when you're in a safer space. For now, you take her hand and lead her down the staircase, your chest tightening with every step. You can't help but glance back at the still-open doorway leading to your bedroom. You pray to whatever is listening that he won't wake up. Each step is a step closer to freedom. Each step is a terrifying risk that you or she might slip, might make noise, might wake him up.

Your spirits lift when you reach the bottom of the stairs. All you have to do is get out the door and he'll be waiting there with the key and a getaway car and freedom.

You clutch your daughter's hand, your own palm now sweaty; you nearly trip on a toy you forgot to pick up earlier, but thankfully the light in the entryway was turned on (you must have forgotten to turn it off) and you see it just in time to avoid disaster. You squeeze your daughter hand and turn the corner that leads to the entryway of your home--

Where Chisaki Kai is standing, waiting for you, his eyes practically illuminated by the glowing lamp light.

You drop the bag.

"No," you say. "No." Your mind suddenly feels fuzzy, like its buzzing, drowning out all of your thoughts with a pure denial of what you see in front of you.

"How--how did you--" you sputter, unable to continue voicing your question. It was all planned. It was all practiced. You pretended, you waited, you planned--for four years. How? How did he know?

He doesn't have to answer. You know the moment that your daughter's grip slips out of your hand and she runs up to her father, feet thumping on the floor. She clings to his side and doesn't look at you, and he runs a hand through her hair without taking his eyes away from your shaking form.

Of course she told him. Of course she told her papa that you wanted to leave. She loved him. Why wouldn't she? It was all she'd ever known. You were breaking the rules, breaking the structure that dominated her life since she could remember. 

"Please don't be mad at me, mama." Your daughter whimpers against Kai, and you can hear the tears in her little voice, and your heart aches for her in so many ways.

"I'm not," you whisper. "I'm not mad at you, baby." You're just sad, so sad. It hurts. All of it.

"Sweetheart," Kai says, voice surprisingly calm despite the events, "go back to bed while I help your mother unpack your things, all right?"

Your daughter nods and suddenly she's against you, hugging you in a tight, childish way; you only have enough energy to pull your arm around her, limp and heavy, patting her back without really feeling it before she scampers up the stairs.

You're left alone. With him.

He approaches you slowly and you feel like an animal. There's wildness hammering in your heart and the thought comes up, unwillingly: could you still run? Escape on your own? And hope that some day, your daughter escapes and finds you? But the thought of leaving her behind is impossible to indulge in for more than a second, and you know that without her, your life isn't worth living. The thought of abandoning her to Kai Chisaki brings up an immediate sense of revulsion and guilt and shame.

"What were you thinking?"

You aren't looking at him, but you don't have to be looking at him to know that he's glaring at you. Looking down on you with his gaze filled with righteous justifications. You glance and--yes, he is, but there's something darker, something you’d forgotten, underneath. Your stomach suddenly feels loaded with weights and your legs move backwards, pulling you away from him, away from the anger that feels like it's radiating off him in waves.

He suddenly grips your chin with brutal force and yanks your jaw forward, forcing you to look at him.

"I had to kill one of my most trusted men today because of your..." His eyes dart back and forth for a moment, before he spits out the apparently perfect description of your escape attempt. "Hysteria. An absolute waste of potential, all because of your ridiculousness."

Your mouth is dry. Your voice is hoarse. But you speak up, anyway. You've already lost everything.

"It's not ridiculous to want to get out of here." 

The weight of the years seems to press down on your shoulders, pounding into your bones, screaming in your ears. 

"It's not ridiculous to--to want to take my daughter away from the man who kidnapped me and forced me to pretend like I was happy here, like I was happy living in some--" you cough, needing moisture, but not daring to stop to swallow lest you lose your courage. "--glorified dollhouse while you tell me what to do and what to wear and how to act and when to fuck you and when to have a baby and fuck you, fuck you, just fuck you Kai. I hate you. Oh I fucking hate you."

You don't notice as your voice gets louder, emboldened by the adrenaline that's been crashing through you since you opened the bedroom door, until his hand is gripping your upper arm in a show of brute, vise-length strength.

"Lower. your. voice." 

His grip strengthens until you cry out, and then it gradually loosens without letting you go completely.

For the next few moments, you do nothing but stare at one another. Your mind feels hazy, darting from thought to thought. It was all for nothing. The last four years, all for nothing. But you think about your daughter, about what she may have been able to accomplish outside of these walls, and even the fantasy of a free life for her made it worth something--didn't it?

It's his voice that lowered, now, as he lets you go completely and straightens himself up. All business now. But what business will he engage in, this time?

"Perhaps you do need a vacation," he says, finally. Firmly. He's made a decision.

You wonder if he's lost his mind and you're about to ask as much before he continues.

"Did you know this house has a secret room? It's nice and quiet. The perfect place for you to recuperate until you've regained your senses."

The room, the room, the room.

Your hand instinctively claps against your mouth as you cry out.

After all, you don't want to wake your daughter up with your screams.

#yandere overhaul #yandere chisaki kai #yandere x reader #overhaul x reader #afterwitch writes

[ohheyitsokay]

Home

this all takes place in my poly frontier universe

pairing: triple frontier guys - Will “Ironhead” Miller, Santiago “Pope” Garcia, Francisco (Frankie) “Catfish” Morales, and Ben “Benny” Miller x (f) reader

wordcount: 3k

warnings: obviously a poly relationship, which includes kissing, domestic intimacy with all of them (not just with the reader, but not in-between Will and Ben because nope), mild sexual themes

summary: scenes at the beginning of making a house with five people feel like home

<<

The manicured grass is soft where it peaked around the edges of your sandals. Hands running over the grooves of they key in your pocket, you gaze around the little front yard, mind conjuring daydreams that fit on the weathered porch of the house.

Two bathrooms will be enough right? Your thoughts are running - creating and erasing images of the future, trying to squish them like magic into the home in front of you. The yard is big enough to extend the garage and for plenty of home projects…

Across the fence and a long stretch of field, a woman is hiking her skirts up, making a beeline for you. The neighbor’s house is a considerable distance away, being out in the countryside, but she must have been watching your tour from her garden with interest.

The others had left moments before, Santi promising to come back whenever you were done. After weeks of looking at houses, it became a little ritual of yours, to spend a few minutes looking around without the clutter of wonderful distractions.

“So which one of those strapping young men is your beau?” She asks conspiringly, eyes gleaming. It catches you off guard �� the lack of introduction, but she seems harmless enough.

Your smile is equally mischievous, and your head tilts a hair.

“Well, which one do you think?”

The woman considers, boot tip tapping away at her grass. You replay the moments she could’ve seen, which were few, wondering if you’d leaned in any particular direction, and wait.

“Now that I think about it, I haven’t got a clue,” her smile is wide, softer and more genuine than before - polite. “As long as you’re good neighbors,” she explains, “I guess I wouldn’t care if it was one or all of you next door.”

You smile, thanking her as salutations ring in your ears, watching with grateful eyes as she hikes back towards her home. Then you move, wandering through the empty rooms for long, quite minutes before you peak over the fence again. The woman had gone inside, and if you squint you can see who you think is her husband, sleeping with a dog on the porch.

In the other directions, there isn’t a house within a reasonable distance. A knot loosens in your chest, as an unexpected feeling of freedom from judging eyes blooms in its place.

When Santi comes back to pick you up, you take his hand across the console. His skin is warm, and his thumb automatically begins to gently move across your knuckles.

“I think it’s perfect, Pope.”

He looks at you curiously, minding his thoughts for a moment.

“Yeah, love?”

The sun was beginning to set, and you look at the peaceful little home in the rear view mirror, and smile.

“Yeah.”

-

“What?”

“We need to … break in every room.”

“I’m just saying -"

“Oh he’s talking about – wait are you really horny, right now?”

“There are boxes everywhere, idiot.”

You walk in carrying a single plant and a stack of pizzas and the conversation hushes.

“Ah – payment,” Frankie kisses your cheek, moving the plant by the window as Santi clears the table.

Someone makes a quip about it being Santi’s house and you wince, the utopia popping.

“We don’t get paid to move our own stuff, Catfish.” His dark hair is damp with sweat but he seems otherwise unaffected by the hours spent hauling. It was still surreal – that this is actually happening, that this unanimously became a long term desire.

He has the most money and Will has the best credit score, so they bought the house to save you all from questions. The movement isn’t lost on your Ironhead, and he rubs a soothing circle on your shoulder as he reaches for a plate. Of everyone, he was the one who most understood your anxiety – close proximity always led to arguments at first.

“You got lucky,” Benny takes the first slice, accepting a napkin for an additional piece. “You fell in love with a pretty good moving crew.”

“I think so,” you grin, trying to ignore your anxiety. He inhales the food, pulling you into his lap as he bickers with Will about whether or not more needed to get done today.

Eventually Frankie dictates that at the very least some cleaning should be started and the bedding should be unpacked for the evening. The agree with varying degrees of enthusiasm and after a handful of innuendos your loves begin to disperse, too dutiful to let work go unfinished. The bedframe practically builds itself, and a portable speaker makes Santi’s hips twitch as he floats through the half-barren rooms.

When Will rolls his eyes at Frankie’s choice of screw, you duck away, nerves thrumming.

And you wander around, fake cleaning, until you find your Benny clearing pizza plates. Even amongst boxes and bins and old blankets, he could be at a photo shoot. The evening light make his hair look like silk, and his eyes shine like he’s making you promises this very moment.

“I wouldn’t worry too much,” he says, drawing you into his arms as your head tilts. “We spent years in bunks and tents, and we were younger then.”

His chest was warm and you press your cheek to it, nodding. You hadn’t thought he had noticed, how anxious you’d been about the change, but you had been foolish. Even through his shirt, you can feel the thumping of his giant heart, steady as a drumbeat.

Replaying the evening in your mind, you let go of some of your worries, one by one, and he kisses the top of your head. It’s a thoughtful thing, and it never ceases to amaze you how easily he can wrap you around his finger.

“Ben?”

He makes a noise, somewhere between a hum and a grunt.

You pull his face down to yours, kissing him hard. It was a kiss that says you're grateful, and a kiss that says you love him for being… him.

He accepts it eagerly, and tiredness from the day long gone ad he presses hot, open-mouthed kisses to your lips. The world spins and you feel him shove something heavy off the couch before replacing it with you.

The cushions are dusty from everything but he makes space, and you stop caring as he moves on top of you.

The others would find you soon, their instincts kicking in, but you savor it. Benny, pressing into you, kissing you in the evening light.

The beginning of their conversation from earlier blooms in your mind and you grin as his lips trailed down your neck. It suddenly didn’t seem implausible that he planned this.

“Breaking in” aside, this was the first room you where you truly felt like this could be home.

-

You feel his hands gently replace yours on the zipper and you jump a little - he stands just outside the mirror reflection as you watch the skirts around your ankles. Behind you the big bed is made neatly, there’s a ridiculously large closet, and a tangle of phone chargers.

The bedroom: the place that set apart your home from others. The room that housed five individuals, a web of relationships, a miracle of mixed bodies and minds and hearts.

It looks big, behind you.

Warm, daft fingers tie the extra strings, a neat little bow hanging just between your shoulder blades. The silence is thick, weighted with adoration, but when he breaks it, it’s as if he can’t resist.

“You’re beautiful,” he moves closer, kissing your temple and drinking you in. Turning, your heart aches.

Will is in his dress uniform, crisscrossed with crisp lines and newly shined awards. His hair is lighter after the summer, and he tried to comb it neatly to one side. Compliments catch in your throat as you stare and he smiles, turning you gently so he can kiss you properly. His mouth tastes like mint and you can smell hints of his cologne lingering on his skin.

“Look at you,” you murmur, lips still brushing over his. Letting your hands wander over his face, smoothing his eyebrows, you feel almost in awe of him. Still, he flushes, pleased at your reaction.

“Thank you.”

His chuckle is warm, almost raspy as he tries to enjoy the quietness of your conversation, and he shakes his head. Really, you were sure he was thankful that he was been the only one free for your special evening.

“Thank you,” you correct him. “You didn’t have to do any of this.” The dinner, for your job.

In the mirror, he looked like diamonds and sapphires and gold. Will was like an action figure sometimes, solid and sculpted and stoic, but… he was looking at you like you’d hung the stars in the sky.

It made you blink, his eyes sliding over you, pupils just a little more blown than the lighting required - a gentle reset demanding your attention.

Looking back in the mirror for a moment, the room didn’t seem quite as big, or quite as revealing. It was comforting, how out of place the two of you looked, dressed to the nines because… this was your place. The softness surrounded by details perfectly woven into your life.

Turning, you slip your arms around his neck, gently musing his hair, and his eyebrows draw together, accepting, but confused.

And as you tuck your hand into his elbow and step into your heels, you resist the urge to thank him again.

“I like it better like this,” you admit, and he flushes again, beaming. Looking around, you realize you’re actually looking forward to coming home more than you’re excited to leave. It’s a new feeling, in this space with the four of them and it hits you, hard in your chest. Still, the man beside you is unwavering and you let the feeling consume you, knowing that you’re safe.

-

“Frankie, what is that?”

He flinches, nervousness cutting the excitement on his face.

“Rhetorical question,” Santi says, grinning at you. “He got it from a friend who was going to toss it out.”

It’s a hot tub, taking up a decent chunk of your back porch.

“If anyone can make it work like a dream, it’s Catfish.” Will’s tone is matter-of-fact, all honesty and pride.

Your sweet Francisco drops his tool and grabs your hand, his dark eyes big. “¿Cariño, por favor? From me, to you?” You can see his laptop up, replacement parts on saved tabs, and you tiptoe to kiss his cheek. He likes to have projects, needs to have somewhere to do things, fix things, create things. Maybe at one point it was because he liked the distraction, it was a … replacement coping mechanism, if you will, but it became his pride, to use his hands to improve your lives.

It doesn’t take long, two weeks at most, between his job and his loves, and his long list of honey-dos, but he does it.

“Please and thank you,” you say, and when he kisses you, slow and deep and happy, you hear cheers and high-five and you almost can’t kiss him because he’s smiling.

And it takes awhile to fill, (Will thanking the stars that the water bill is reasonable,) and even longer to heat, and then it’s ready. The boys yank on swim trunks, thanking Frankie with enthusiasm, and you watch them sink into the steaming tub with as they sigh.

You have a bathing suit, of course you do, but you pull on one of his work shirts, knowing he won’t mind the chemicals from the water making the stains blur. And you pair of shorts you caught him watching your butt in, thinking of acknowledging his hard work in your own way.

The volume of your bodies makes it overflow, hot water sloshing onto the ground, but it’s bliss. It’s big, and they shout over the bubbles, talking excitedly about the future, and your heart feels warm in your favorite way.

The others leave early, taking loud laughter with them, and it leaves you and your Catfish. You let yourself float, moving right on top of him, and his hands grab at your hips, slipping and sliding over your skin as he kisses you once, twice. Slow.

It’s late – the stars stretch, there’s a bit of a breeze, and there’s not a light on for miles.

“You like it?” his voice is raspy, quiet, intense, but almost shy. Like if you said no it would break him in two.

“Of course I do, Frankie.” He looks pleased, hand absentmindedly running under his shirt and over your side. Even with the heat of the water, his hand feels like socks warmed in the dryer some cold winter morning. Comforting, maybe a little electric.

You let out a long, happy sigh, and settle against him, content to stay with him until you’re pruny.

“I think…. This is exactly what this house needed.” He starts a little, surprised, but it’s not an exaggeration.

There was always work to do and things to change, but it was the first time you looked out, and didn’t feel a twinge of fear, that anyone was looking in. It would’ve felt vulnerable, intimate to be so exposed, but… it was perfect, because he created it for you. Confidence and pride bubble around you, and Frankie’s eyebrows dip as he smiles – understanding.

-

“Yeah.” Its simple, not too hot, not too cold. Just… right.

It feels like… tar and lava, hot and dark and thick, bubbling and sticky and you want to punch something. Or scream, or cry.

Your Pope finds you standing rigid, smudges of flour on your skin and clothes, pans and spatulas strewn.

“Are we out of sugar?” To your credit, you try to keep your voice even, but he knows you better than that.

Santi shakes his head, plucking it from the pantry and looking guilty. Your mind pauses it’s rampage, and you wince, because you should be the one making that apologetic face, not him. Hot tears bubble in your eyes and you hate it, hate that they’re coming for what feels like no reason.

“Baby,” he says, tone pleading, setting the sugar down and reaching for you. The afternoon sun makes his eyes like rich, deep pots of gold, his hair somehow both soft and statuesque.

When he pauses, the tears fall against your will, just two thick drops down your cheeks. His hand encompasses your whole jaw, thumb gentle as it rubs away the saltwater, and he looks a tad helpless.

And there’s understanding in his eyes and through the blur you think maybe it’s pity. He stands, and your heart clenches, knowing he’ll go get Will, or someone because you’re being ridiculous but… he doesn’t.

You’re saying something about how the kitchen is wrong, how it’s been building for days, you’ve been here almost a week and you can’t fucking find anything. Panic and frustration locked horns in your chest and you couldn’t breathe and all you wanted to do was make something nice –

Instead, he’s pulling out things and piling them onto the floor in categories around you. It’s almost comical the stacks he makes but he seems determined and in your confusion the tears slow to a stop.

“Santi –” he hushes you. The cupboard doors hang open, and he guides you, lifting you up and up and into his arms. It’s solid and grounding, and he’s not as tall as the others and you needed him desperately.

And slowly, you begin to put things away where it makes sense, to you, and he helps. Not once does he argue with you, not even a moment when his dark eyebrows knit together in judgement. Dutifully he cleans and places everything just where you tell him, and you can almost feel the steam rising off of you as you begin to cool.

The final pile is a mountain of cloth, aprons and oven mitts and… something you’ve never seen before. Or actually, something you had, just not in your house. A set of hand towels you’d wistfully looked at awhile ago, before talking yourself out of the purchase. You had dozens at this point and didn’t need more but…

The man seating on the floor, folding them into perfect squares, is the answer to the question your mind produces.

You feel like you’ve been hosed down from head to toe, almost cold from the absence of frustration in your blood.

Pushing the pile to the side you climb into his lap, as determined as he was, and he looks surprised. It’s silly: sitting in your lover’s lap on the kitchen floor, but it feels more real than a movie. It’s your kitchen, yours and his, in this moment.

You kiss him, slow and purposeful and –

He knows you like the back of his hand.

-

You’re sitting on the bathroom counter distracting Santi as he shaves when Benny bursts in to tell you a story.

Will trails behind him, patiently waiting for his brother to take a breathe so he can set the record straight. Absentmindedly he weaves between them to pick up a fallen hand towel, passing it to Pope to wipe the shaving cream from his jaw. They share a moment and Benny’s story stutters out. Looking up from your nails you see Frankie leaning against the doorframe, a toothbrush hanging from his mouth.

There’s hardly room to move – and you couldn’t have it any other way.

His eyebrows are bent as he takes in the four of you, crammed into the spare bathroom, and Ben laughs.

<<

taglist:

@fangirl-316 @scribbledghost @writeforfandoms @beautyagegoodnesssize @princess76179 @mrsbentallmadge @horton-hears-a-honk

for the poly frontier:

@grogusmum

#triple frontier poly fic #poly frontier #will miller x reader #santiago garcia x reader #francisco morales x reader #benny miller x reader #maybe i dont know people

[awakeshedreams]

sugar and spice ( 2 )

pairing : resident bad boy!jjk x model student!reader

setting : highschool!au x stepbrother!au

summary :

a messy highschool!au x stepbrother!au where model student reader who has quite a few dirty little secrets sees her world take an unexpected turn when her mother comes home one day with an engagement announcement, to the father of none other than the school’s resident bad boy…. Jeon Jungkook.

genre : smut, for laughs, kinda pornish, slow burn with collosaly overwhelming sexual tension

rating: soft m ( for now ) due to adult content

warnings : unconventional relationship of sexual nature, tropes and clichès, teenagers partaking in porn-esque activities, made up things with made up people happening in a made up world, don’t like don’t read XD

wordcount : 3k

a/n: honestly overwhelming response for the first part. thank you so much 💜💜💜😳

here's the second.

somehow, this took up a new genre for itself while editing and became sort of a bit enemies to friends to partners in sin.

that is to say, I have a template for this but this could go any ( dirty ) way.

let me know if you like this and are curious to know how things play out.

also, spot the cameo. it's so dumb but still. I couldn't think of anything else.

enjoy.

1 2

Paranoia was an old friend of yours.

Very real, very scary and not very nice to you, your peace of mind or your tested soul.

In your head, you already played out a million different ways the image you’d spent years building could come falling apart.

All because of him. Jeon Jungkook.

Though much to your surprise and fortune- he didn’t tell anyone.

You spent the entire weekend fretting over nothing.

It was almost like none of it ever happened.

Like your parents weren't about to tie the knot soon. Like you weren’t about to become step siblings.

Like he didn't walk in on his said step sister to be masturbating in front of a camera.

In the aftermath of that inexplicably humiliating incident, you had to make up some dumb excuse to satiate your viewers for ending the stream so abruptly.

It was your cat they heard speaking, you told them.

Cats don’t speak of course, certainly not in a deep baritone. But they were effectively distracted by the string of full nudes you posted soon after that.

Those few accusatory comments saying that you did have a boyfriend after all were buried by those coming from very horny people who were over the moon about the little apology gift.

That was out of the way, but you had a more pressing matter at hand.

That night, Jungkook had walked out after saying what he had to say without another word, leaving you feeling stunned and oddly cold.

It was like all the heat in your body just ceased to exist the moment he closed the door behind him and left you there all on your own. You didn’t even get to finish but that was beside the point.

The point was, you thought that meant like with many other things, and as people should since this was a free world, he didn’t give a shit what you did with your free time or your body.

But as the days progressed, you couldn’t help but wonder if you were gravely mistaken.

Because contrary to that, he seemed to be up to something.

These days, he came around very often. Completely unprovoked and on his own accord.

It didn’t help that your mom loved having him around and feeding him.

Sometimes he was there for lunch after school. Other times he was there to fucking read the books in the study.

It was all ridiculous and quite honestly it was starting to get on your fraying nerves.

He didn’t even live there! You grumbled in pure frustration internally every time your mom asked you to add an extra plate for him on the dining table. This was your place!

Intentional or not he seemed to just love spending his time at your house for some reason.

But that just wouldn’t do.

The thing was you didn't know how to tell him you’d like to have the peace of mind he’d robbed you of by being all up in your living space every other day back.

He couldn’t just keep coming around.

Things were awkward enough without you having to see him often so already in between fleeting glimpses at school and lingering glances over the occasional dinner.

He might have been able to play it cool because it didn’t matter to him but this was a big deal for you.

He knew your secret and what else were you to do but be on edge and fidgety around him even though it seemed like he wouldn’t say a word of it?

But in the end, you couldn’t voice out your concerns. Not to him and certainly not to your mom.

So you were stuck here.

In between a massive rock and a very hard place.

Forced to endure even though you really felt like you’d been pushed past your limit.

Because he was there all the time.

For the most random reasons doing the most random things at the most random places at the most random time.

One time he had been casually listening to music while smoking by the pool and stroking the strings of his damned, matte black guitar.

You had been so stressed from all the work at school with the elections for new committee members amongst the juniors coming up so you thought to go for a swim to relax your self.

You honestly thought no one was around.

It was a Wednesday at noon so your mother was at lunch with some friends from high school. Plus, in the back of your mind, you’d reasoned that Jungkook usually only ever came over when she was around.

So you put on your best little bikini, grabbed a floatie and a soft drink and you went out.

Only to pause when you saw him sitting on one of the white lounging chairs, just looking at you with his earphones on, fingers having stilled mid strumming with a soft veil of smoke over his face.

You didn’t need to think twice to turn back.

There had been something about how his heavy lidded gaze took you in through the smoke as he did that thing where he cocked his head to the side that made you step back and quickly go back in.

You felt yourself get impossibly hotter when you realized you were probably giving him an eyeful of your poorly covered ass in motion.

You knew he was looking. You could feel his stare. Heavy. Intent. Dark. Swirling.

Like when he'd walked in on you.

You were hot and bothered the entire day.

In the end you couldn’t get anything productive done with a straight mind. And it was all his fault.

.

It took you about two weeks to crack.

That particular evening you were decided on telling your mom about this dilemma you were in.  

Coincidentally, your mom had gone and invited him and his dad over for dinner.

Great. Just great.

You had no choice but to deeply consider the possibility of having to spill the beans another time.

Because choosing now to tell your mom meant you would probably need to tell his dad as well since they were attached at the hip every time he came over.

But no, you wouldn’t expose him in front of his father too. You weren’t cruel. Also you didn’t need the school's menace resenting you for making his strict, uptight dad turn on him.

If he didn’t have a reason to expose you before, he certainly would have one if things spiraled out that way.

So you bit your bitter tongue.

This time around, dinner was a more relaxed affair.

The weather was nice so your mom decided on a barbeque at your back yard.

This meant you wore a flowy sun dress like your mom did and he wore a loose navy shirt with the sleeves rolled up and some black casual beach shorts.

His tattoos were on full display.

You stared.

You were only distracted by them and how the patterns dance on his skin when his muscles flex as he flips whatever he is cooking on the fire because she’s never seen them in full before, you strongly reasoned.

Even with his sleeves rolled up when he was uniform, you'd only seen what he had on his forearm briefly other than the ones on the back of his hand.

That night didn’t count. It was too dim to see well. Also, that night technically didn’t exist.

Your eyes were particularly drawn to the little something peeking out the collar of his shirt.

You were too busy trying to figure out whether the curling ink around his collar bone was the flick of flames or the end of a dragon’s tail to notice that he’d lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe at the dots of sweet at his brows.

When you do, you suddenly found yourself being given an eyeful of impossibly ripped, ridged pure muscle.

You almost dropped your glass like you did your jaw.

What the holy fuck?

At that exact moment, he lifted his gaze and caught you staring.

He was probably expecting you to look away. Any decent human would expect that if they caught someone staring at them so openly. Gawking, to be completely honest.

But you didn’t. You quickly recover, pulling yourself together, and you met his gaze squarely.

You clutched the drink in your hand tight. Your pride wouldn’t let you look away.

In your own way, it was your little pay back, weak as it was.

He held your gaze with an unreadable look on his face for a moment with that signature slight tilt to his head and an added lift to his brow, before he looked away. Wordlessly, he let his shirt fall to push his hair back with his hand and went back to grilling.

You let herself breath then and tried not to think about how his biceps flexed at the motion, how his hair slicked back made him look even more dangerous and how the little smirk you caught on his lips was making you feel things she shouldn’t be.

.

Your mom suggested you all hang out at the pool once you were done eating.

You hadn’t been there since that day with him and quite frankly, you would rather not be.

Not with him.

You knew your mom had a swimsuit underneath her dress. She made you wear one as well.

She probably told them to come prepared for a swim too.

Just thinking about it made you short circuit.

You tore your gaze away from where he was standing with his father at the poolside, staring blankly at the surface as the older man talked to him about something.

You'd just come back from clearing the table with your mom.

When you guys got close enough, the men look your way. Jungkook’s eyes immediately landed on you. Meanwhile you just stare at your mom, trying to ignore his inexplicably fixed attention on you.

‘It’s shame we can’t swim.’

Your mother said, reaching for her boyfriend’s hand. She gave Jungkook a soft, apologetic smile.

‘Maybe once the weather is not so chilly.’ She sighed regretfully. ‘If I had known you were sensitive to the cold I would have suggested something else.’

‘It’s fine.’ Your eyes flicker to him. The smile he puts on is small and polite. ‘I’m not a very good swimmer anyway I’m afraid.’

‘Nonsense.’ She dismissed in good nature. ‘I heard you were quite the athlete in middle school. It’s all your father ever talks about sometimes. Right, honey?'

His father just grumbled.

You couldn’t hide your surprise at this revelation. You didn’t know this before.

Jungkook was quiet for a moment. Then he smiles a little with a shrug.

‘That was in the past.’

Your eyes just glided to him when he said that.

The tug at his lip looked wry and sad.

You’d never seen him like this before.

Solemn. Sombre. Not serious or intimidating or indifferent.

It felt like you were viewing him in a new light.

.

You settled on drinks by the pool. It was what your mom does to lighten things up.

It seemed like the gloom from earlier wasn’t all part just a part of your imagination.

Her mother suddenly chirped in between the light conversation.

'Why don't you guys get together and have a little group study?'

You suppressed the urge to groan and roll your eyes to the back of your head. You knew what she was trying to do and you wanted no part in it.

You had the words no way sitting at the tip of you tongue.

You had the words no way sitting at the tip of you tongue.

He beat you to it.

'That sounds nice,' he dared to say, even politely addressing your mom with Mrs. alongside her surname in the end uttered just the way she liked. 'I'd like that.’

You gawked at him in disbelief. Complete and utterly speechless.

Was he insane ??

'Doesn't it? Great!' Your mom is over the moon. 'Dear, take him to the study. You guys can do your teenager things and get along over books there.'

.

Your mom was loving and caring and she only ever wanted the best for you. You knew this.

Maybe she wanted them to get to know each other. Or maybe she just wanted to have some alone time with her man.

Either way, she practically shoved you two into the house with so much enthusiasm you wondered if she really loved you because suddenly you found yourself stuck inside your house with the last person you wanted to be with and you did not feel safe or rested.

The walk up the spirally stairs to the study had got to be one of the most intense, dragging moments of your whole life.

He remained a few steps behind you all through out the journey, following your lead in his own leisured pace.

A few steps too damn far behind in your opinion.

From that angle, you had a strong inkling that he could see your underwear from beneath your dress.

You knew this because you were familiar with what it felt like when he was staring.

What you couldn’t quite explain is why you didn't do a thing about it.

.

If awkward silence could manifest into a solid form for being so intense, there would have been a third occupant in the room the moment you two walked into the study.

It would’ve been so massive, all the high shelves and wooden tables lined up would have been demolished.

Jungkook remained the quiet person he was, looking around and skimming through the books on the shelves.

You were standing a safe distance away from him, absently doing the same. The books were interesting and all but you were admittedly more taken by the ink on his skin.

Up close you could clearly see the artistic patterns and symbols etched onto him.

While staring at the tats on his knuckles you couldn't help but also notice that the titles he picked up were rather complex.

Certainly not the kind of thing even high intellects reached for. Evidently, those tomes had been collecting dust in there for ages.

You were decidedly curious. Itching to ask. Hell, dying to know.

You dived before you could overthink it and find reasons not to satiate your rabid curiosity.

'You like Reader?' he paused and looked at you from the corner of his eyes. At his questioning look she gesture to the book he was holding. 'That's the third book of theirs you picked up.'

'Yeah.' he said casually, nodding a little while flipping through it. 'Their books are nice.'

A crippling lapse of silence ensues.

You tore your gaze away from his profile to stare at the titles in front of you with a burn at your cheeks, fiddling with the polished spines.

How fucking awkward. All of this.

He probably felt the same.

What were you even doing?

You thought about telling him to ignore your mom’s attempt at trying to make the two of you get along. He obviously wasn’t looking for company or a friend. Quite frankly, neither were you. Certainly not from him. You were just trying to be not rude. Something you aren’t really surprised he probably failed to understand in all honesty.

But then he spoke, dragging you out of your reverie.

'What about you?'

Your head shot up and you found that he was standing a lot closer than before, having moved to reach for yet another complicated book to idly browse through at the top shelf.

This close, you could can smell him. Soft mint and clean soap and moonlight, not smoke. He disregarded the pages in his hands to give you a side way glance.

‘What do you like?’

There was a perpetual spark swimming in the dark depth of his eyes. It was striking. Pretty even.

When he lightly raised a brow at you, your thoughts jumbled all over before it fell back into place and you realized you were staring very openly.

But this time was different from the last time. When he had been miles away, flashing you his ripped abs.

In your reverie, you hadn’t notices that he had leaned a little to meet your eyes, and that he was real close. Like real close, looking at you intently with his head cocked to the side questioningly, like he was wondering what was going on inside your head. You could feel his breath fanning your face.

Shit.

'Uh,’ you scrambled for an answer, quickly tearing your gaze away from him to appraise the bookshelf. Your face felt like it was on fire. Considering how he hadn’t moved, he could probably see just how blazed in the face you were. Out of pure instinct, you grabbed a random book and shoved it into him to make some space in between your bodies.

Maybe with a little too much force. There was a dull thump and it made you wince.

'This.’

You hated how squeaky and breathless you sounded. Like you’d just ran a marathon. Might as well have, with how hard and fast your heart was pounding.

Jungkook took it from you, and you allowed yourself to look at him as he looked the cover over, completely fine, like you hadn’t just smacked him in the chest with a book.

The corner of his lips lifted a little as he flipped it over, cocking his head the other way before he chanced you a glance, making you blink rapidly and stand on edge.

'You sure?' he asked, sounding pretty amused. You were confused for a moment until he held  it up for you to see, flashing you a full on toothy grin like you’d never seen on him before. 'You like books about horse gentilia?'

The jump in your chest was something you quickly dismissed as being one of sinking dread rather than anything else.

All the color that had been congesting your face washed away.

If there was a time you truly wished the ground would swallow your entire existence whole, it would be right then and there.

 

word is telling me I made up the word genitilia but I’m pretty sure it’s real because it just rolls off the tongue ( smooth ) like butter like a criminal under the cover.

the hole is one of the recurring characters so please be nice to it.

alot of things happening here if you squint and look closely.

any-whomst've, hope you all liked it. let me know if you did and I don't know come say hi? 😳 have a nice day 💜

#bangtan #bts #bts imagine #bts fanfic #bts smut #bts imagines #bts scenario #jeon jungkook #jungkook scenario #jungkook imagine #jungkook smut #bts x reader #jungkook x reader #bts high school au #jungkook high school au #bts au #jungkook au

[calwrites]

Fearless

Prequel to Don’t You

Pairing: Sebastian Stan x reader

Word count: 4.5k

————————

“Looks like it finally stopped raining.”

The murmur of the coffee shop was replaced by the sounds of the city as you followed Sebastian outside. The humidity seemed to hit you like a truck, making you miss the air conditioning you had just left.

“Finally. I thought I was going to be stuck in that coffee shop with you forever.” You laughed at the faux offended look on Sebastian’s face. “That’s what I get for not checking the weather.”

“Next time I’ll let you wait out the rain by yourself,” Sebastian threatened. His grin made the corners of his eyes crinkle a bit. Had they always done that? Had you just never noticed before?

“At least then I won’t have a bunch of teenage girls taking pictures of me the whole time. They’re scary. How do you deal with that all the time?” It had been disconcerting to have the group of girls staring at you and Sebastian as you sat and chatted. For a moment, you had thought you were crazy when you noticed them looking. The first thought you had was that you had something on your face or needed to fix your hair, but you realized why they were so focused on your table when they walked over to ask Sebastian for pictures.

Sebastian let out a sigh as he shrugged. For a second you were worried that you had said something wrong. “I just try to ignore it most of the time. I’m polite if they come up to me. I’d rather they like me than hate me.”

“I’m sure you have lots of stories. You’ll have to tell me sometime.” Your eyes widened when you realized what you’d said. What if he didn’t want to see you again? “I mean, if you’re staying in the city long. I’m sure you’re really busy.”

“I’ve got some promo to do soon, but I’m not filming again for a few months. I wanted a bit of the break.” Sebastian waved his hand. “Let’s not talk about my work. What about you? You taking the business world by storm?”

“Well I did just get a raise, so now I can almost afford my rent, groceries, and student loans.” The joys of living in New York City.

“Ah sounds like everything’s going well then. Are your parents still around?” Your parents had basically fallen in love with Sebastian when they first met him freshman year. A group of your friends had come over to your house for a movie night and Sebastian had insisted on staying to help you clean up after everyone else had left. Your mom had spent the next few weeks not so subtly dropping hints that she thought you should date him.

 “Yeah they’re still in Jersey. They tried to convince me to move in with them, but I told them I didn’t want to have to commute into the city every day. Of course, that set them off about how that’s what they’ve been doing my whole life because they didn’t want me growing up without a yard or whatever.”

“So it sounds like they haven’t changed much?” You shook your head slightly to force yourself to stop watching Sebastian as he laughed.

“No they have not.” You bumped your shoulder against Sebastian’s gently. “They’re your number one fans, you know.”

“Oh they are?” His eyebrows raised in surprise, and he was already fighting a smile, no doubt waiting to hear what embarrassing things your parents had done since high school graduation.

“They see all of your movies in theaters.” Multiple times, but you didn’t want Sebastian to think they were weirdos.

“Even the bad ones?”

“Even the bad ones. I did tell them that they aren’t allowed to buy any of the Bucky dolls.”

“They’re action figures.”

You rolled your eyes, but found yourself matching Sebastian’s smile anyway. “Whatever. It’d be weird seeing a mini version of you at my parents’ house. It’s bad enough that they still have a bunch of high school pictures hung up.”

“My mom does too. She’s going to be so excited when I tell her that I ran into you. You were always her favorite of our group.”

You stopped suddenly, grabbing Sebastian’s arm. He looked a little alarmed, but you ignored it. “Are you serious? I was always so scared of her. This is the best day of my life.” You had met Sebastian’s mom a couple of times throughout high school, but had never been able to tell whether or not she liked you.

“Scared of her? Why? Because of the accent?”

“The accent didn’t help, but really it was because she’s hot. That makes her intimidating.”

Sebastian groaned and pulled a face. “No. You can’t think my mom is hot. That’s not allowed. Take it back or I’m sending your parents all of the Bucky dolls I can find.”

“It’s not like I wanted to bang her or anything. I just think that she’s an attractive woman. Which makes sense considering how attractive you are.” Your mouth snapped shut. You weren’t sure who was blushing more, you or Sebastian. “Let’s forget about this whole conversation.” Sebastian laughed slightly and nodded.

It was silent between you two as you continued your walk through the streets. You weren’t really sure where he was going. You were heading to your car, but you couldn’t tell if Sebastian was also going somewhere or if he was just following you. If you had looked up, you would have noticed that Sebastian was watching you carefully. But you didn’t look up. Your eyes were on the pavement, watching the glow of the lights in the reflection from the rain.

“Do you remember that poster that was in our English class freshman year?” you asked suddenly. Sebastian’s brow crinkled slightly as he tried to remember, but then he followed your gaze to the glowing pavement and smiled.

“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.” The two of you laughed slightly as you remembered your slightly eccentric teacher. “We made fun of that poster so much.”

“It was a stupid poster. But remember it was raining when we were leaving the homecoming dance freshman year and we started dancing in the parking lot-”

“And all of our friends thought we were crazy,” Sebastian finished. “To be fair, we were crazy. That was probably the most fun part of the dance though.”

“Are you saying that I was a bad date?” You gasped and brought your hand up to your mouth as if Sebastian had offended you. Both of you dissolved into giggles.

“I’m saying that I was probably a bad date. I was so awkward. I had such a big crush on you.” Sebastian rubbed his neck uncomfortably. You definitely didn’t notice how the action made his arms look.

“Wait really?” This was news to you. You had always kind of assumed that Sebastian didn’t like you very much. He had always seemed to just tolerate your presence.

“Oh yeah. All the guys used to make fun of me because I got so awkward around you. That’s why I never talked when you were with us.”

“I just thought you were shy or something.” Or that he secretly hated you.

“Well that too,” Sebastian admitted with a small grin.

“You should have just told me. I had a crush on you too. I was so excited when you asked me to the dance.” You were so engrossed in conversation that you almost walked right past your car. “Oh, this is me.”

“Oh.” Was it your imagination or did Sebastian look disappointed? Before you could figure it out, he was smiling again. “It’s been nice catching up. We should hang out again. You still have the same number?”

You assured Sebastian that you did and the two of you exchanged more pleasantries. After sliding into your car, you watched Sebastian continue down the street. The memory of the two of you dancing wildly in the parking lot while the rest of your friends complained about the rain made you smile. You kind of wished you had asked him to dance again.

————————

Part of you already wished that this weekend would never end, even though it had barely even begun. You had finally made it out of the city and still had a couple hours of driving left, but you were already dreading having to go back into the office on Monday.

You and Sebastian had been hanging out more since running into each other last month. Most of the time, you got away without any pictures of the two of you getting out, but recently that had been getting harder and harder to do. Now, through what you could only assume was some sort of social media stalking witchcraft, people had managed to figure out who you were. The hundreds of notifications had freaked you out at first, but after deleting all of the social media apps from your phone, it was totally not a big deal.

Until your coworkers had found out. Some magazine had printed a picture of you and Sebastian, including your name underneath it, so now everyone at the office was either making fun of you by pretending to take paparazzi pictures whenever you walked into a room or constantly asking about Sebastian. Needless to say, you desperately needed this weekend away.

“Hungry eyes,” Sebastian sang, rather poorly though you suspected that was on purpose. You had seen him in musicals in high school. He half turned towards you, reaching out with one hand while the other stayed on the wheel, as he continued to sing along to the music. “One look at you and I can’t disguise these-”

“Keep your eyes on the road,” you scolded, though you couldn’t help but laugh at his bad attempt to hit a high note. “You know, I was worried that you would get us killed at the cabin, but now I know you’re going to get us killed before we even make it there. And stop caressing my hair.” You slapped his hand away for emphasis.

He reached out again to run a hand down your hair. “I am not caressing your hair-”

“Definitely were.”

“-and I am not going to get us killed. We are going to have a nice relaxing weekend at a cabin that I rented and am graciously letting you stay at without paying me back. And we aren’t going to worry about paparazzi or annoying coworkers or random people on the street with cell phones.” There may have been a incident earlier that week where you had almost gone up to a random person in the street to yell at them about taking pictures of you and Sebastian. It turned out they were just a lost tourist who barely spoke English. That was when Sebastian decided that you needed a vacation too.

“I think I’m paying you back by forcing myself to spend time with you. You’re very hard to get along with. Plus, I have no money for vacations. We can’t all be actors in Marvel movies.” The trees blurred by as Sebastian drove down the highway.

“You know, I could probably get you in the next Captain America movie. You might not have any lines, but you could stand in the background.” Had he ever offered any of your other friends from high school roles in his movies? No, you couldn't let yourself get caught up in these kinds of questions.

“Sebastian, thanks again-”

“Stop! I told you to stop thanking me-”

“Thanks again,” you continued loudly, “for inviting me. I know that you were looking forward to a relaxing weekend away before you have press stuff. If you want, we don’t have to talk to each other. I don’t want to ruin your relaxation.”

Sebastian shifted uncomfortably in his seat at your thanks, but then shot you an incredulous look. “How would you ruin my relaxation? I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t want to spend time with you.”

“Promise?”

Sebastian sent you a smile that was so full of warmth that you could have melted right there. You were definitely getting caught up now. You tried to snap yourself out of it by thinking about all of the reasons you could never date Sebastian. First, he was Sebastian. He knew what you looked like when you were young and awkward. He had seen the awful bangs you cut yourself sophomore year. Second, he was Sebastian Stan. Surely he’d never date a nobody like you. Not that he was stuck up now. He was surprisingly similar to how he had been in high school. It’s just, he could date models if he wanted to. You were definitely not a model. And you wouldn’t even want to date someone in the spotlight like him. Third, you had been on like two dates with the skeazy guy from accounting. If you ignored most of what he said, he was only a little skeazy. Barely tolerable really. You could work with that.

But then Sebastian ran his hand through his hair, and you had to bite your lip to stop yourself from saying anything stupid. Did he know what he was doing or was he just naturally this cool now? Either way, it was going to be a long weekend.

————————

The dance was not fun. Whoever was writing the prom scenes in all of those cheesy movies was full of crap. The decorations looked bad, your dress was uncomfortable, and you were so busy making sure everything was running smoothly that you weren’t even getting to enjoy your senior prom. You never should have agreed to head the prom committee. Surely the night would be more fun if you didn’t have any responsibilities.

Except you’d probably still be standing on the edges of the dancing watching as all of your friends danced with their boyfriends. You had thought that this would finally be the dance you had a boyfriend for, but then your boyfriend broke up with you less than two weeks before because you were spending too much time working on prom. Great. Wonderful.

It had been difficult to mentally prepare yourself to go to senior prom without a date after working so hard on it.  It had seemed almost poetic when Sebastian asked you. The two of you had gone to your first high school dance together and now you were at your last high school dance together.

Except Sebastian had barely talked to you all night. In fact, he had barely even looked at you. At least, that’s what you thought. Sebastian later confessed to you that he was scared he’d get in the way of your prom committee duties so he watched you from afar as you took care of the last minute issues. But you didn’t know that yet.

“Decided to actually acknowledge me?” you snapped when Sebastian leaned against the wall beside you.

Sebastian rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. He was probably already regretting coming over to talk to you. “I probably deserve that. You just seemed busy.”

“There were a couple of issues that I had to take care of. I still want to enjoy the dance though.”

“So let’s enjoy it.” Sebastian held his hand out to you and nodded to the dance floor. You smiled gratefully at him and took his hand, letting him lead you out.

Neither of you were great dancers, and the dance floor was maybe a little too crowded, but you made the best of it. After bumping into another couple one too many times, you and Sebastian retired back to the wall, perfectly content to watch the others and whisper amongst yourselves.

“So have you had fun tonight?” Sebastian asked. You had, which was surprising considering how badly the night had started out. Sometimes you forgot how well you and Sebastian could get on. It was so rare to talk to him one on one. You really didn’t know how prom could have gone better. You were kind of disappointed that prom was wrapping up. Already, the dance floor had begun emptying as people left for various after parties.

“I did.” Sebastian grinned, obviously pleased with your answer. “But it wasn’t nearly as good as homecoming freshman year.”

Sebastian's smile faded as he tried to recall the dance you were talking about. “Wasn’t that dance really awkward though?”

“Sure the actual dance was,” you shrugged. “But dancing in the parking lot after was one of my favorite high school memories.”

Sebastian threw his head back to laugh, his hand resting on your shoulder to steady himself. “I’ll admit that I’m kind of glad it’s not raining tonight. My mom was not happy that I got my suit wet. But we can still dance like that tonight. There’s plenty of room on the dance floor.”

“Absolutely not,” you scoffed. “We’d look crazy.”

“Everyone here is either our friend or someone who we’ll probably never see again.” Sebastian held his hand out to you. You bit your lip as you considered before meeting his eyes. He raised an eyebrow in challenge.

“Fine.” Sebastian laughed as you took his hand, once again allowing him to drag you onto the dance floor. He was truly fearless in his dancing this time. Obviously you had to follow suit and ignore the looks people were throwing you as you and Sebastian twirled and spun and jumped around. By the time it was time to leave the dance, you both were red faced and breathless with laughter. The sky was perfectly clear as you walked through the parking lot, but part of you wished it was raining so you could once again dance in a storm in your best dress with Sebastian.

————————

“I thought you weren’t talking to me because you didn’t really want to go with me.”

“What?” Sebastian took his eyes off the road quickly to look over at you. “Why would I ask you if I didn’t want to go with you?”

“I don’t know. Maybe our friends told you to since neither of us had dates.”

“You’re crazy. I was so intimidated by you that I didn’t want to get in your way.” You scoffed and started to speak but Sebastian shushed you. “You’ve always been the most impressive person in the room.”

You weren’t entirely sure how to respond to that. Sebastian Stan thought that you were impressive. But what exactly did that mean? That he thought it was neat that you managed to wrangle high school students enough to plan prom? He said ‘you’ve always’ which seemed to imply that he still felt that way. Right? But he was a successful actor. He worked with people way more impressive than you every day.

The thoughts flashed furiously through your head as Sebastian continued to drive slowly through the town. He had certainly achieved his goal to get away from the city. It was hard to believe the small town you’d spent the weekend in was so in the same state as the city. Paparazzi had certainly not been a worry for the two of you. Eventually, the car reached the end of the road. Rather than turning around and heading back into town, Sebastian put the car in park.

“I don’t want to go back,” he sighed. You had to agree with him. You wanted to stay right there. It had been so relaxing to get away from it all. No paparazzi. No fans. No coworkers. Just you and Sebastian. But it couldn’t last. You had work, and Sebastian had interviews.

“So let’s stay here,” you suggested. “We’ll stock up on food and then barricade ourselves in the cabin. We’ll obviously have to defend ourselves when Marvel comes looking for you and my company comes looking for me, but I have complete confidence that we can take them.” Not that you had reached a position in the company where they would notice you were missing. Maybe after a week or two they’d notice something was off. Marvel was sure to be quicker though.

“Ha ha you’ve made your point.” He sighed again. “This has been the best weekend I’ve had in a long time. Thanks for coming with me.”

“Thanks for inviting me.” Your voice sounded small in the sudden stillness of the car. Sebastian’s eyes flickered over your face, going from your eyes to your lips. “What did you mean earlier?”

“About what?”

“When you said that I was always the most impressive person in the room.” You were a little nervous about his answer. There was a good chance you’d made it out to be deeper than he meant. But then you remembered how fearless and free you felt when Sebastian led you out onto the dance floor at prom, and you knew you had to know the answer.

“Exactly that. I’m constantly in awe of you. The way you were the smartest person at school. I mean, I think you’re still the smartest person I know. I don’t understand anything you’re saying when you talk about work. You always knew exactly what to say to diffuse any of our friends’ drama. You’re kind and funny and always keep me on my toes.” Sebastian paused for a moment. You tried to speak, but all you could do was look at his beautiful blue eyes. “Running into you might be the best thing to ever happen to me.”

“Sebastian,” you murmured. Before you could think of anything else to say, Sebastian’s lips were on yours. You smiled into the kiss as you ran your fingers through Sebastian’s hair. It was the perfect length. You tried your best to capture the memory of this moment. The feel of his lips. His hand on your cheek. The faint sound of birds chirping outside. The patter of rain on the car roof. It was all perfect, and you wanted to remember every second of it.

————————

You didn’t know how life could get better than this. Sebastian’s hand was entwined with your own as you walked through the streets. You had been nervous about this at first. What would his fans think? So far they had been curious but benign when it came to you. Hopefully that wouldn’t change now.

You had almost cancelled when Sebastian showed up at your door. A night in suddenly sounded really good. He hadn’t let you though. Instead, Sebastian had grabbed your hand and pulled you out onto the street. You laughed as he twirled you, causing the skirt of your favorite dress to flow out.

“Good thing it’s not raining today,” Sebastian had laughed. “This would be much less enjoyable if we were getting rained on.”

“I don’t know about that. I think we normally have a pretty good time in the rain.”

 You had managed to walk to the restaurant without being spotted, though you had noticed some people taking pictures as you were eating. By the time the bill had been paid, you were more than happy to take Sebastian’s hand and follow him outside. A short walk later and the two of you were strolling around a park eating ice cream on the way back to your apartment.

“So did you have fun tonight?” Sebastian asked.

“I did,” you admitted with a smile. “It was a lot better than I was expecting.”

“Ouch.” Sebastian made a faux wounded expression that ended up making you both laugh. “I didn’t realize you thought I’d be a bad date.”

“It wasn’t you I was worried about. Your fans kind of terrify me. Not gonna lie. I half expected them to show up at the restaurant and start pelting me with rotten fruit or something.”

“That would certainly kill the mood, but I don’t think you have to worry about people throwing fruit at you.”

“No. I just have to worry about what people are going to be saying about me online.”

“Hey, stop.” Sebastian caught your hand and pulled you back to where he had stopped walking. His hands cupped both sides of your face as he looked seriously at you. “It’s going to be ok. Yeah, there are going to be some people who say some mean things. Just ignore it. It’s why I don’t bother with social media much. It doesn’t matter what they say.”

“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one they’re going to accuse of dating someone just to latch onto their fame or money.” Soon after you and Sebastian had started hanging out, the posts about you trying to use Sebastian’s game to get ahead had started. It didn’t really make much sense. Being friends with an actor wasn’t going to get you promoted any sooner. Still, they had annoyed you and sometimes made you feel weird about being around Sebastian.

“I know that you’re not using me. You know that you’re not using me. Everyone that matters will know that you’re not using me. If anything, I’m getting the better end of our relationship. I’m getting to date the most amazing woman ever.”

“Most amazing woman ever?” you repeated. “I’m not sure I have the necessary qualifications for that title.”

“Would you like to hear your qualifications?”

“Yes I would.” You giggled slightly, feeling like a kid with a crush, when Sebastian slung his arm around you and pulled you close so that he could whisper in your ear.

“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You are the smartest person I know. You’re kind and funny and you know all of this already because I’ve told you it before.”

“Yeah but I wanted to hear it again.” Your face was so close to Sebastian’s as you whispered back to him that your noses were almost touching. You hardly dared to breathe as your eyes flickered between his eyes and his lips. 

Sebastian just barely started moving closer when you both heard “Is that Sebastian Stan?” coming from a nearby group of people. You jumped back almost immediately, blushing like a kid who was caught holding hands on the playground. Sebastian sent you a small smile before turning to face the fans who had come up to ask for pictures. Once he was finally finished with that, he took your hand again and led you back towards your apartment. Hopefully, no one had gotten a picture of you two in the park about to kiss. Despite what Sebastian had said, you were still scared of what people would say. Your hands shook slightly as you walked, so you slipped your hand out of his, hoping he hadn’t noticed.

Quicker than you would have liked, you were back outside your apartment building. “Do you want to come up?” you asked when he stopped on the sidewalk.

Sebastian shook his head. “I have to be up early tomorrow, and, if I go up, I’m never gonna want to leave.” Sebastian grabbed your hands, which were still shaking, and pulled you close before resting his hands on your hips. “I had a great time tonight.” He smiled, making you feel a bit more brave. This was just Sebastian. The same Sebastian you had known for years growing up.

Slowly, Sebastian brought a hand up to your face, giving you plenty of time to stop him. But you didn’t want to. He was making you feel a bit fearless. You grinned as he kissed you softly. Even though it wasn’t your first kiss, it certainly felt like it. Although technically, it was your first kiss as an official couple. And it was your first kiss out in public, where someone could take a picture that would make its way through the Marvel fandom.

But that didn’t matter to you now. The kiss was flawless. And despite whatever people online were probably already posting about you, you would never regret this moment. Life with Sebastian was undeniably better than life without him. 

————————

tags

@bbl32

#sebastian stan #sebastian stan x reader #sebastian stan x yn #sebastian stan x you #sebastian stan imagine #sebastian stan fluff #sebastian stan oneshot #calwrites

[felix21im]

"Ice Cold", a Leon Kennedy x reader fanfiction

As an Art and Design student all you want to do is just knuckle down and finish that one goddamn piece you've been working on for months. Too bad your time is constantly stolen by your Waiter job with minimal pay, but hey, at least the tips are good if you unbutton your shirt that one more time.

Masterlist

Chapter 8: Alone

You woke up early the next morning. The sun shone through the big window next to your bed and warmed your skin. You slowly opened your eyes and looked over to Leon. His breathing was calm so you figured he was still sleeping. You made sure to get up quietly, making sure not to wake Leon up.

You went to the bathroom to have a quick shower and change into something nice to wear. Since the weather was good you chose a white polo shirt and some shorts. After brushing your teeth and styling your hair you went back to the bedroom and sat down on Leon‘s side. You brushed some hair out of his face and placed a kiss on his forehead. You felt him move and he slowly opened his eyes. “Good morning, Sleepy. I hope you don't mind me waking you up.” Leon covered his eyes with his arms to prevent the sun from shining in his face. He didn't answer you but instead grabbed your wrist and pulled you into his arms. You chuckled lightly as he hid his head in your chest, reminding you of a little kid. You two lay there for a few more minutes before you sat up again next to him. “Come on now, Leon. You wanted to go out to eat breakfast, right? So get up!” You turned around to see him lying on his stomach and hiding under the blanket. You shook your head and laughed as you began pushing him out of the bed until the thud of him falling on the floor was heard, followed by subtle laughter. Moments later Leon lay on the ground beside the bed looking as tired as ever. You were laughing too hard so you didn't even hear him standing up and grabbing a pillow from the bed. The next thing you felt was the soft cushion hitting your face, stopping your laughing. You looked at Leon surprised and opened your mouth to say something but before you had the chance to, another pillow was thrown into your direction. You stood up from the bed and grabbed the two pillows Leon threw at you before. Instead of throwing them at him though, you ran around the bed and started hitting Leon with them. Leon was able to take one of the pillows out of your hand and tried defending himself. At some point you two were laughing too hard and didn't have the strength to continue fighting anymore. You lay on the bed together, legs hanging from the side. You turned and looked at Leon who was now also looking at you. “I love you, Leon.” You said with a smile on your face without even thinking twice about it. Leon looked at you surprised before saying it back after a short moment. He kissed you on the cheek before finally standing up and going to the bathroom. You let out a deep sigh as he closed the door behind him and closed your eyes for a second. You then decided to clean up the mess the two of you created and put the pillows and blanket into the bed again. After you were done you grabbed your phone and fixed your hair again. You didn't have to wait long before Leon came out of the bathroom. He was wearing some dark jeans and a light blue button up. His hair was also looking as perfect as ever, no signs of the pillow fight from before. You grinned at him as you stood up.

“Ready to leave, Buttercup?” He asked as he grabbed his wallet and his fancy sunglasses. You nodded as you put on some sneakers and put your phone in your pocket.

You realized you didn't bring sunglasses so you looked at Leon and pointed at his pair. “You don't have another pair of sunglasses by any chance, do you?”

Leon let out a small laugh and shook his head. “You didn't bring your own? Give me a second, I think I actually have another pair.” He turned around and went over to his suitcase to look for them. A few minutes later he came back to you and handed you some fancy looking round sunglasses. You thanked him as you put them on and opened the door. You two left the room together and walked the long hallway to the front door.

As you left the building the morning sun was already hot and warmed your skin. You took a deep breath as you looked around the front yard.

Your face went back to Leon as you heard him unwrapping a piece of paper. As it turns out it was a map of the city, which made you laugh. “A map? Really Leon? You know we both have working phones, right? If you wanna go somewhere I can just look it up online.”

You went to grab your phone out of your pocket but Leon stopped you. “I want this day to be phone free. I just want to enjoy the time with you. And also using this map feels more like a vacation, don't you think?”

You let out a small laugh again as you nodded and put your phone back. “Alright, whatever you say, Mr. Kennedy.” Leon also smiled now and soon after began walking into one direction. You quickly followed and put your hand in his to keep up.

Leon led you through the streets and as the day started more and more people filled the streets around you. He ended up leading you to a small bakery and brought you to a small table outside. It felt like you had been walking for days when realistically it was only a few hours. “Perhaps some breakfast will help you walk a bit faster?” Leon chuckled as he poked at your slow walking pace.

You rolled your eyes as you sat down at one of the tables outside of the bakery. “Not all of us are superstar athletes, Leon.” He still continued his laugh as he sat down too. “Oooo! Pastries!” You got excited at the selection of foods available, back home it would always be quickly bought junk food as neither you nor your roommate had time to cook.

“You like pastry?” Leon looked up from the menu. “You could have just asked Angel if that's what you ever wanted, we would have bought it specifically for you.”

Your face went hot from the embarrassment. “Oh please no, I’m honestly so grateful when Angel cooks for me, I don't want her to think I’m taking advantage by ordering something specific…”

“How about I ask then?” He smirked as he then looked back down at the menu. “I think I'm going to go for the brioche and some coffee.” He announced as he then tucked his menu back to where he found it.

You smiled at him as you began to read out what you were struggling to pick from. "I’m not sure if I want to go with the pain au chocolat or the cornetto…”

“Well the first one is actually French so that depends on if you want to stick to italian foods or not, but personally…” He scratched the back of his head. “I think both.”

“Both?” You flurried your eyebrows. “I’m not that hungry Leon, a-and these are expensive! Twelve euros for a coffee?!” You whisper-shouted for the last part, sure they were extortionate prices but maybe it was worth it?

“Really, Buttercup? You do realise that money isn’t an issue, right?” He smirked.

“I just feel guilty spending your money, that’s all..”

“Trust me, Buttercup. I like seeing yo-”

“Buongiorno!” A small woman exited the front of the bakery with a notepad and a pen in her hand. “What can I get for the two of you?” She asked as she looked at Leon so he went first.

“Would I be able to get the brioche and a shot of espresso?” He asked politely as he gave her his million dollar smile.

“And for the compagno?” She asked as she wrote down Leon’s order.

Just as you were about to state your order Leon did it for you. “They’ll have both the pain au chocolat and the cornetto, with a moka coffee please.” Leon then turned his head to smile at you as you chuckled and smiled back. The waitress nodded her head and then went back into the bakery, preparing your food. “Now you get to try them both.”

“I have had them both before, you know…” You shook your head at him.

“Oh… Well now you get to try them… Italian style!” He smiled again as he dramatically waved his hands, emphasising the ‘Italian style.’ You simply rolled your eyes at him and smiled. The two of you waited quite a while for your food but it didn't annoy either of you as it simply meant that it was being made fresh for you, besides it also gave you time to look at the view of both the ocean and Leon. Considering you never left the US and you stayed landlocked you've never actually seen the ocean before, sure you saw big lakes and stuff but this was so much more intense. Not only was it humongous it was almost crystal clear. “How about we go snorkeling or something once I'm back?” Leon suggested.

“I would love that.” You nodded your head and just as you answered your waitress came over with your dishes and drinks. You simply squealed to yourself as your senses engulfed the food that sat before you, not even stopping to talk to Leon once. Eventually you looked up at him and you noticed he was simply smiling at you, lost in his thoughts as he watched you eat. “Leon?” You lightly waved at him and you raised your eyebrow.

He then snapped back to reality. “Sorry, just thinking about how at first you said you weren't very hungry.” He chuckled as he took a bite out of his own food.

“I guess pastries just do something to me?” You replied to him as you went back to eating your food. Leon simply took his time, he slowly drank his coffee and ate his bread as he looked at both you and the view on his left.

“Much different than the view at home. Here we get flowers, the ocean and beautiful trees, whereas at home we get a jungle… a concrete jungle..”

“How about in twenty years time when you retire, just move to Italy?” You joked at him in response to his little monologue about the different landscapes. “You can get a beautiful little villa on the mountain side that looks over the ocean, all you would need is three kids and a beautiful wife so that you can have the american, nuclear-family, dream.” You copied his hand gesture from earlier and chuckled.

“How would that be the american dream if i'm living in Italy?” He questioned as he placed his empty cup on the metal table.

“That was what stuck out to you about that entire bit?” You raised your eyebrow at him as you wiped your hands with your napkin. “Are you not going to eat your food?” You asked him as you looked down at his plate, him only being about halfway through.

“Sorry, sorry.” He picked up a piece. “I just wanted to take my time so we could be together longer. Just before we got here I got a text from Chris saying I had to meet him after we ate, thought I could drag it out as much as possible.” As he spoke he held out his free hand on the table, wanting you to place your hand in his. Obviously you accepted and he lightly squeezed it. You let him continue eating his food as the two of you sat in comfortable silence until the waitress came and collected the dirty dishes, replacing them with two new coffees for the two of you.

You took another sip from your mug as you noticed how Leon's eyes scanned the area and he seemed to be deep in his thoughts again. You put your mug on the table again and searched his eyes. He didn't notice you staring and only reacted when you mentioned his name. "Leon? You still there?" You snapped your fingers in front of him, making sure he was listening.

Leon turned his head and faced you. "Oh, sorry Buttercup. Did you say anything?"

You shook your head in response before talking again. "I'm worried about you, Leon. Even though we're here together, you seem so far away. Are you really okay?" You looked at him with puppy eyes and reached out to his hand. He just shook his head and looked away again. You sighed and felt hopeless. It was the first time Leon took you with him on a big mission, so of course you were worried. You always were when he was away, even though it wasn't the first time for him to do this stuff. Whatever it really was that he was doing now.

"Leon, please don't do this now. Tell me what's going on, maybe I can help you, distract you or whatever. Anything to help you, okay?" It took Leon a minute before finally giving it. He sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

"It's just.. this mission is different. I didn't get much information beforehand and I don't know. Something feels odd. And now that you're here, too, I'm just.. worried about you. Maybe it was the wrong idea to bring you with me." He said the last sentence more to himself than you, but you still understood every word of it. Even though he probably didn't mean it like that, you felt hurt. Did he think you were a helpless child who would only cause trouble? You didn't really know what to say but you had to do something about his mood.

"Leon. Listen to me. I don't know what you do all the time when you're gone, but you always manage. I'm sure everything will turn out fine, alright? And you don't have to worry about me. I'll stay inside the hotel or around your big bodyguards, I'm sure they could take care of tons of bad guys." You gave Leon an optimistic smile, hoping he would lighten up a bit.

"Yea, you're right. I guess. I just never.. had someone close to me in this kind of situation."

"Everything that matters now is that you're concentrated, Leon. If it helps you can tell me the information you already have, maybe we can work on this together. And who knows, maybe I'll end up being a better agent than you." You jokingly said and finally Leon let out a laugh as well. As you waited for his response you saw a pen on the table behind Leon so you ran to grab it, getting ready to write your notes on a clean napkin.

"Yea sure, whatever you say, Buttercup." You two continued joking for a while longer before ordering something else to drink. As the drinks were delivered to your table, you noticed someone sitting at a table close to you. You didn't know why exactly he caught your eye so you shrugged it off and continued talking to Leon. Soon he began talking about his mission and all the information he had. Which was, as he said before, really not much. All he knew was that someone in this city intended to initiate a virus-breakout similar to ones Leon had to fight before. You wrote down what he said but it wasn't really the equivalent to much. You sighed as you tried your best to help him out. Sure, he was a professional, but it was worth a shot. Especially if you could make him smile with your stupid ideas. In the end that's all that mattered to you, anyways.

You two continued chatting a while longer before Leon's phone suddenly rang. He excused himself, showing you who called. Chris. Leon stood up and left the table to talk to him in a more quiet place. You watched him walk away as you noticed the man from before staring at you again. He seemed to have seen you noticing since he suddenly looked away. You raised an eyebrow, a bad feeling growing in your stomach. Even though you were worried slightly, you didn't want to tell Leon. Maybe you were just starting to imagine things and you didn't want to make Leon worry any more. Speaking of him, he finally returned to the table. He didn't seem too happy though, so you knew what was coming next.

"Chris is already waiting for me. I guess I really tested his patience today. I'm sorry that it has to end so abruptly, Buttercup, but I really have to go now. We have new information and it seems like quite a big deal." Leon grabbed his wallet and handed it to you. "Get yourself something nice with it if you want. And don't forget to pay for our breakfast. I really need to go now, please be careful on your way home." He gave you a kiss on the forehead but you stopped him before he went to leave. "I love you, Leon. Don't worry about me and please come back soon.." He nodded lightly and gave you another kiss, this time on the mouth. You didn't want this moment to end but you knew there was no other option. You watched him leave and suddenly felt so alone and lost. Sitting down again you waited for someone to bring you the bill.

A few minutes passed until someone came over to your table, grabbing the last dirty cups. You asked them for the bill and after paying a ridiculous high amount of money for breakfast you left the table and went back to the main street. You sighed as you thought about what to do for the rest of the day since it was still not that late. With no destination in mind you just started following the street and seeing where it would take you.

Leon carefully closed the door behind him as he was escorted into the home. “Couldn’t have picked a basic home?” He shrugged as he looked over at Chris who was sitting at a table in the kitchen. “This mansion is fucking huge.”

“The fuck you mean?” He snarled at Leon as he pushed back the chair adjacent to him for Leon to sit in. “We’re in an upper class neighbourhood, it blends in.”

“Where’s Angel and Daisy?” Leon asked as he sat down in the chair and gestured at the two empty ones opposite him.

“Miss Badawi and Miss Chu are doing some recon.” He passed over a singular folder and Leon opened it to the first page.

“You call me by my first name, why not those two?” He always thought it was weird but now that it was just those two alone he actually was able to ask.

“Neither of them have passed the required rank for me to call them my equal, meaning they haven’t deserved the right yet."

“They’ve both saved your life countless times-”

“-Oh please! You think we care about validation from some old white man?” Angel laughed as both her and Daisy entered the room and sat down at the table.

Now that all three of them were sitting opposite Chris he could begin his briefing.

“We’re going to be heading to a small provenance called Valtorta, there’s no such thing as tourists there which means this is a stealth operation. Miss Chu, your favourite.” Daisy smiled and lightly clapped her hands together as she heard about the standards of the operation.

Angel raised her hand. “Miss Badawi?” Chris accepted.

“Where is Valtora?” She asked.

“Near the border of Italy and Switzerland.” He replied as he flicked Angel’s folder to the map page. “Around a two hour drive from Milan which is where we’re going to be starting after a three hour helicopter ride. Which means a five hour trip so that you kids can catch up on your podcasts or whatever it is that you guys do nowadays.”

“I’ve been listening to this really interesting podcast about a woman who kills her boss because he didn't give her a payrise… Pretty inspiring if you ask me.” Angel smirked as she looked towards her boss, Leon.

“Depends on how good you do after this operation, and if you can get some pastries for us to bring back home.” He replied as he looked up from the folder and at Angel.

“I think that’s a very fair trade, croissants for an extra one hundred percent markup on your pay?” Daisy smirked at her girlfriend.

“How about we focus on our jobs rather than the pay?” Chris interrupted them. “So the woman we’re looking for is Leona Capulet.” He placed a photo of the woman holding a small child onto the wooden table. “Forty five, six foot tall and batshit crazy.” He then placed another photo on the table. “For the last four years she’s been attempting to recreate another virus, called the LC-020-Virus. Ever since we found out about it we’ve been calling it the ‘Loco-virus’.”

“Let me guess…” Angel interrupted. “Rather than it turning you into a zombie it just makes you go crazy?”

“Bingo.” Chris nodded as he placed another picture on the table. “Blueprints of the town, and the suspected laboratory Capulet has been working in.”

“How have you got so much information?” Leon asked.

“Inside man.” Chris replied. “Capulet’s son, Valentino, has been helping us. Once his mother tried to use him for a human trial experiment he had enough and tried to shut her down. After failing he turned himself in and he’s been helping us for around four months now.”

“And you trust him?” Daisy asked as she looked at the picture of Leona. “How do we know it isn’t a trap?”

“The boy is a millionaire and he gets nothing out of betraying his family, it's personal to him.” Chris picked up his pictures from the table and placed them back into his folder. “But that doesn’t mean we can fully trust him, we all need to stay vigilant.” Chris stood out of his chair and tucked it under the table. “Our mission is to capture the target Leona Capulet, destroy any trace she has of the virus and figure out where her funding comes from. Any questions?” All three of them nodded their heads as they looked at Chris. “Great. We’re heading out at nine A.M. tomorrow morning, I expect everyone to be ready with a maximum of two standard issue duffle bags with the essentials needed for the maximum of two weeks.”

“A fortnight?” Leon asked. “I was told only three days.”

“A maximum Leon, just in case. If we all work well enough we can be back here within two days so let's all get some sleep so we can make that happen.” Chris left the three of them at the table. Angel and Daisy just began chatting amongst themselves about what they were going to do once they were back and could enjoy their time together in the countryside, whereas Leon was thinking about you. He pulled out his phone and called your number but to his surprise you didn’t answer, he looked at the time and saw that it was around seven at night so he thought that maybe you were in the shower, at home you usually showered at that time. So rather than calling you again he simply sent you a text message.

‘Done with work for the night so give me a call when you can. Leon <3’

The sun began setting as you felt your stomach growl. You've been walking around for so many hours, you didn't even think about stopping somewhere to eat or drink anything. Thankfully, you weren't somewhere in the woods but rather close to the city. Your phone battery died a while ago, so you didn't have a chance to just google where to go now or call a taxi. "I should have taken the map from Leon earlier." You muttered to yourself as you scratched the back of your head. Instead of giving up though you tried to follow the signs all around the streets. Most of them were in Italian but you still managed to find your way back.

Even though it wasn't that late, or so you assumed since it was not dark yet, there weren't many people outside. You hoped to find a store to get something to eat and drink and maybe ask for the time or your current location but it felt like you were going in circles and as the time passed you felt really tired. Suddenly everything felt like too much and you had to sit down. You almost fell to the ground, feeling the effects of not eating or drinking for a few hours in the heat. Your head was spinning and your vision blurred and you just barely saw a silhouette walking in your direction. You rubbed your eyes in hope of seeing clearly again. A young man stood before you, reaching a hand out. He soon seemed to notice that you didn't understand what he was saying, so he repeated himself in English. "Are you okay? You look really pale and I'm assuming you're not from here, right?" You slowly nodded your head and tried forming words in your mouth.

"Water.. Do you have water?", was all that came out in the end. The man let out a small laugh and nodded. He pointed towards a house just on the opposite side of the street before helping you get up.

"That's where I live. There aren't any stores open around here so that's all I can get offer now. If you feel comfortable with it you can rest a while before continuing your way."

You looked at the man and thanked him as he supported you walking. The two of you slowly walked towards his house and you waited in silence as he opened the door for you. You walked inside the small house and looked around. It was something completely different from the hotel you slept in last night, but it seemed very friendly. The man led you into the living room and you sat down on the old couch. He left the room to get you something to drink and shortly after returned with a coke, a bottle of water and some cold lasagna.

"This was my dinner today. I'm guessing you are hungry, the way you look. Please eat as much as you like." He went over to a cabinet and got a plate, a fork and a knife. He placed it on the small table in front of the couch as you gulped down the coke. You already felt better as the sugar spread through your body.

"Thank you so much. Where I come from most people wouldn't care for strangers, like you're doing right now. I don't know how I can repay you." You said as you put down the can and took a piece of the lasagna. The man put up his hands and shook his head. "Oh please, don't worry about it. This is nothing, I'm just glad to be helping." You smiled at him in return and enjoyed the rest of the lasagna in silence as your body finally regained strength. After you were done you leaned back on the sofa and sighed. "Now that was a really good lasagna. I definitely need the recipe!" You said jokingly and the two of you laughed.

You two talked for a while longer before you noticed the time on a clock hanging on the wall. It was almost 11pm. You opened your eyes in shock and stood up abruptly. "It's so late already?! I'm so sorry, but I think I really need to go. Please, if there is any way to thank you, tell me." The man now also stood up and walked you to the front door. "Like I said before, I don't want anything in return. I'm just grateful to be of help." You smiled at him and went for a hug. It just felt right at that moment. He returned the gesture but you soon parted again. You unlocked your now almost fully loaded phone and checked the route to the hotel.

"Thanks for letting my phone charge as well, I don't think I would ever find my way back without it." You laughed as you stepped outside. By now the moon was shining high in the sky, making the night light up.

"If I'm not mistaken your way back shouldn't be too long. Please text me when you're back so I don't have to worry." The man said as handed you a piece of paper with his number. You smiled as you added him to your contacts.

"Oh, I don't think I've gotten your name, did I?" Now it was his time to laugh. "That's right, I believe. My name's Leonardo." You couldn't believe what you were hearing and let out a laugh. "No way. That's kind of a funny coincidence, my boyfriend is actually called Leon."

"Oh, well.. That really is a funny coincidence." Leonardo scratched his head as you two laughed again.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Leonardo, but I really have to go now. Maybe our paths will cross again." You waved him goodbye as you put in your earphones and followed the route that was presented on your display.

As you followed the instructions you felt like you were being watched. You looked around, not seeing anyone. Shaking your head you began walking faster, the feeling of being watched never vanishing. Just when you thought the feeling of being watched had gone you heard some footsteps behind you. You slowly pulled out your earphones and looked back. Nobody. "Jesus.. What is wrong with me?" You could already see the tall building you left earlier this day and felt relieved. Only a few more minutes and you were safe. From whatever it was that you felt afraid of. Not realizing you started walking faster again you suddenly tripped and fell to the ground, your phone sliding away. "Fuck.." You rubbed your knee and felt blood on your fingertips in return. You stood up with a pain filled groan and slowly went over to your phone. Just before you were able to reach it something hard hit the back of your head, sending you in a realm of darkness...

----

Taglist: @trinswhimsys @dixanadu @oppsie--channie

#resident evil #re2 #re4 #re6 #resident evil vendetta #leon kennedy #leon s kennedy #leon x reader #leon kennedy x reader #leon s kennedy x reader #resident evil x reader #x reader #x male reader #x female reader #x gn reader #x gender neutral reader

[fictitious-little-stitious]

Our Walkin’s Done

Frankie “Catfish” Morales x GN!reader

Read on AO3

Summary: At summer’s end, you and Frankie go through the motions of your last evening together.

Word Count: 456

Warnings: Angst, alcohol consumption, being in crowds, inevitable separation

A/N: Thinking of my beloved @mesmorales . I got this idea quite a while ago, but then you posted about your upcoming birthday so I kicked it into gear to get this done on time. Happy birthday, dear heart and most definite pal. 🥰🥳 I adore you to no end. I am thankful for you every day. ♥️ This ain’t much, but it’s honest work. Many thanks and lovins to our @acrossthesestars for encouraging me and making me use my critical thinking. Title is from “None But the Rain” by Townes Van Zandt.

~≈~≈~

September plays host for many bittersweet moments. The last of the golden days will soon cede to a stagnant chill. It is a period of mourning the sun-kissed afternoons that stretch long into the evenings before those pleasures have even been lost yet. Although there are weeks of pleasant autumn weather ahead, several shops are either in the process of closing for the season or already closed, dormant til the spring when tourists would flow in again.

Frankie meets you at the pier. You feel yourself pulled into his space, no prompt by touch or beckoning necessary. The pier is empty save for you as music and food vendors keep all visitors occupied downtown.

You and Frankie have reached your September.

You reach for his hand and he leads you off the pier and up the shoreline. Aimlessly walking the beach shoulder to shoulder. The conversation can hardly be called a conversation, each topic starts and stops haltingly. You realize something needs to happen. You need direction.

Both of you are too preoccupied to see you have the rest of the night to enjoy. Instead the evening has been altered by a prolonged adieu akin to that awkward walk in the same direction after already saying goodbyes. Except now it’s hours later and you’re still awkwardly together. Delaying the obvious inevitable that neither can bring up. Avoidance,disappointment even, are to be expected. But there are no cheerful attempts to distract each other from it either.

…….

He pulls you along to dance back by the mixing table, away from the bulk of the crowd. You stay close, but it’s less from his grip and more that there’s nowhere else to be.

“I love you.”

He tenses, as do you, then mutters about getting you each another drink from the beer gardens. You nod noncommittally, but he leaves without seeing. He’s tended to do that, even before tonight. After losing sight of him in the crowd, you try and fail to focus on the band. The open patio lets in the sea breeze, but it does little to clear the stuffy air that hangs over everyone. You seek refuge outside. Even before tonight, you’ve tended to do that.

Frankie, with two bottles in hand, sees your departure. He doesn’t hurry since you haven’t given him reason to. Several yards down the beach, you curl up on a large driftwood trunk. He joins you. And you talk.

You feel your pull to Frankie recede.

It drifts away with the ebbing ocean.

Untied and no tide.

He leaves but not before seeing.

Seeing the acceptance that mirrors his own.

You and Frankie have reached your September.

But October is just around the corner.

And there are no ties.

~≈~

Mary, I swear you’re gonna have a happily ever after with Frankie one of these days, we just gotta write it. 😭😂 Happy birthday again, my dear. 🥳🧡

Songs I Had on Repeat: “Anything But Mine” by Kenny Chesney 🧡 “September Song” by Jeff Lynne 🧡 “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding 🧡 “The Last Time” by Lee Ann Womack 🧡 “None but the Rain” by Townes Van Zandt 🧡 “Apocalypse” by Cigarettes After Sex

Thank you for reading! ♥️

Tagging (let me know if you would like to be added or removed)

@acrossthesestars

@hnt-escape

@mesmorales

@oonajaeadira

@sharkbait77

@writeforfandoms

Banner created by @ acrossthesestars 💚

#friend and most definite pal mary #this is my writing alright #frankie morales #frankie morales x reader #frankie morales fic #frankie morales x you #frankie morales angst #pedro pascal character fanfiction #frankie catfish morales #francisco catfish morales