#I say broke in because it knocked down the stuff we put inside our cat door

[muffindaddystyles]

Hates to, Hate you.

Word Count: 8k

Summary: Harry realizes that hurting Y/N broke him into pieces and tries to win her back with the confession of true feelings, will Y/N let him? If yes, how? How will he walk through fire for her?

Pairing: Famous!Harry x Reader!with anxiety.

AU: fake dating, slow burn, sexual tension, enemies to lover!

Warning: Mentions of violence, sexual assault, language, adult topics. 

PART 1, MASTERLIST

"Please, stop." He says dolefully rubbing his eyebrows to get rid of the ache pounding in his head. 

He's miserable. It hurts to not have her with him. It's been two tragic months of going through constant sleepless nights, disrestless stomach, intoxicating himself to forget her,  staring at things like a hawk and missing her terribly.

He was alone before her and never felt this lonely.

He sees her everywhere. In his dreams and her shadows in his drawing room getting excited over a ceramic vase someone gifted him. Dancing in his kitchen to the beat of pink floyd and hip-checking him for a cheerful nudge, in his back garden rescuing a sparrow who broke it's neck and in his attic stressing over her assignments. 

Everything reminds him of her. The fruity drinks that the barista's handing to the people, the fairy lights upon their heads and how she used to fond over them —- buying it for his bedroom too and when he refused to hang them, she just brushed off his snarky comment and did it herself. 

The ring in Harris finger floods back all the bitter-sweet memories of the time he refused to have a lil fun with her, (Y/N and Harris made friendship rings and bracelets for eachother with the colorful beads to spend their boring time in his home waiting for him to write some lines before they went to a gumball shop) as they try to knock some senses in their friend's brain, "You tried to dodge a heartbreak and still ended up shattering your heart, yourself." They worry about him. That he's been bearing the pain all alone and not sharing it with anyone. 

His voice croak-y and hoarse, "How's she?" The question haunts him. She blocked his phone number and even in the wee hours of night he wrecks his mind whether he should call her or not, he couldn't because she doesn't want to hear his voice. 

He misses her voice. He misses her complaints and whines as if they filled the stoic parts of his life with happiness. 

"How'd I know?" Harris lowers down to rest their elbows on the table, "I -- I thought . . she isn't in contact with ye'?" When Harris shakes their head with a gesture that he's being truthful it sinks his heart furthermore. 

He clears his throat, twisting the jewels on his hand and sucks his bottom lip to muster some courage, "I've been seeing someone." Harris chokes on the boba they were chewing on for so long, "You what?" They are completely perturbed at his statement. Even though they've been working together and been friends before Y/N came in the picture, she's still their bezzy and we don't betray our bezzies like that. 

"Yeah, someone to help me sort me feelings out." Harry frowns confusedly and then realization washes upon him so he becomes frantic in his chair, "No . . not what you're thinkin'." He runs his fingers through his hair to subside the twitch in them. 

"A therapist, 'm talkin' bout a therapist . ." He sighs watching his tea waft down sympathetically. 

"Oh. That's a good start, Harry!" Harris tries to bring the same dimply boyish smile that used to flutter over his lips whenever she used to tease him, unfortunately it never appears. 

// 

Y/N didn't handle her first ever heartbreak well. She lost her appetite, her focus on her studies and to her surprise didn't shed a single tear –-- it just kept piling in her chest and she waited for the moment it'd burst until she saw those pictures plastered all over social media. Pictures of him with some model that isn't a shorty pants like her at all, totally how those ladies described his type to be and someone with whom he wouldn't be embarrassed to hang out with. 

She's everything, Y/N's jealous of. Those sparkling blue eyes compared to her boring brown ones, handsome figure and the radiance of richness. 

Then she got stuck into her life responsibilities and worried about other things such that; she wasn't able to pay any bills and her flat's rent despite doing two part time jobs along with doing her class-fellows assignments in return of money and still got kicked out of it. Her close friend offered her to live in her studio and she has made it her kitchen, study, sleeping room with her stuff and clothes scattered everywhere.

She lives on noodles and toasted breads sometimes treating herself with delights of kit-kat bars in the middle of nights. 

Watches her friend do her work and leave when the night comes by —- she has never felt this lonely in her entire life. 

"So, was it love at first sight?" Nora her friend asks, handing her cuppa tea and a scone. Y/N let a weak sad smile slip, shaking her head and reminiscing all those moments where she was falling in love with him without even realizing, "Falling in love slowly patiently is the most beautiful . . . at some time I used to loathe his existence but staying with him and after knowing him, it was like --— an escapeless tunnel. I didn't realize it, till one day I woke up and my heart saw him in a different light, where I wanted to give him all me lovin' but he wasn't ready for it." She shrugs sipping the hot beverage and doesn't flinch from the burn that tingles at the tip of her tongue. 

When she put her cup aside Nora takes her hand assuring her sweetly, "You'll have that person soon -- he's just on his way, with a big bouquet of roses and a teddy bear to give you the lovin' you deserve." Y/N giggles at that waving her off and not showing how her person is still Harry. What does she do to forget him? To fool her in thinking he isn't her first love.

"Aish, Nora aren't you gettin' late? Gooo." She had some clients to meet before she stopped here at studio to grab some things but it turned into a girlie hangout, "Take care honey and don't forget to put a bucket there." She points to the corner where water's dripping from the rooftop and Y/N exhaled an exasperated sigh of breath when the door clicks leaving her alone yet again. 

// 

It was past twelve and when usually she pulls an all nighter to study -- today she decided to sleep early. Her bad habit of overthinking kicks in again, this time it's not over some silly thing but she ponders over where she went wrong? She should've kept her feelings to herself and atleast would have been sleeping in her bed cuddled with her chonky cat Zippy. 

She misses Zippy badly. 

A noise of door unlocking loudly drags her from her reverie and her heart pounds against her ribcage ready to break it. Who could be at this hour of night? It could be Nora since she's the only one who got keys to the place. 

Sitting up quickly she squints against the blinding lights and watches someone's boot stepping over her blanket that flopped onto the floor from the sofa she's sleeping on. 

"Kevin? What are you doing here?" He's Nora's boyfriend and her classfellow. He just shrugs tumbling his way towards the sofa and she tries to scoot back from him as much as possible, "I'm here to see you. . ." He slurs. It knocks her breath out, filling terror in her veins as the heels of her feet rub against the leather of the couch in her effort to be away from him. 

"What? This's not appropriate I -- I . . suggest you to call Nora s –- so, what're you doin —-" She squeaks in fear sinking into the couch when he towers over her and traps her under him with his hands on either side of her body aggressively, "I like you. Why don't you get it!!" She flinches when he shouts angrily with bloodshot eyes and the smell of alcohol disgusts her springing tears in her eyes. 

"Please, stop . . ." She whispers with silent tears running down her throat using all her strength to push at his shoulders but he grips her hips tightly and yanks at her sleeping shirt revealing the strap of her bralette. She couldn't even cry for help. It's useless so putting some belief in herself for the last time she uses all her power and kicks him in his crotch pushing him roughly on the floor. 

His nails tear at her delicate skin but she doesn't care before running out of the studio ignoring the names he's calling her from behind.

She runs away, away and away. Not thinking twice where she's going before crossing the bridges and tunnels. It feels like her ears are bleeding with the echo of loud horns of traffic and the hopelessness of her life makes her fall on her knees. She cries all the tears she was bottling up for months feeling like she's running out of time and reaching dangerously near to her end. 

She's been in the same neighbourhood she's been before many times. The chilly wind doesn't prick goosebumps over her skin, the night's darkness doesn't scare her and the stray dog that's barking somewhere in far doesn't affect her at all as she stares at the door from where she has stepped into her comfort space many times. 

Harry's with Scottie. His childhood friend who's here in London for some shoot. They were lounged in the living room talking their hearts out and their cringey memories from when they were small when he halted mid-talk, jaw slacking when his eyes took the sight of someone standing at his main door from the multiple security screens appearing on the telly. 

He doesn't believe at first. Thinking he's hallucinating and that maybe he just saw a flicker of a ghost but when she looks up revealing her sad face and those big brown eyes he rushes to open the door. 

"Fuck." He breathes out working on the heavy cold locks of the oak door with shaky hands anxiously and she was about to walk away with her back turned to him when he spurts out her name in haste, "Y/N." She listens to him. Insides breaking with the nirvana and scent of him surrounding her. 

His breath hitches in his throat when she spins to meet his apprehensive gaze and she doesn't give him a chance to have a proper look at her before falling in his arms, her head hitting his chest and body shaking vigorously as she sobs sadly. 

"Darlin'?" He asks worriedly, slipping his arms around her shoulders to lull her in his embrace, "Are you oka?" He feels like his stomach ate his heart as he anticipates an explanation from her and she isn't doing anything but crying. 

"You're scarin' me, pet. What happened honey?" He pulls away to cradle her face in his calloused palms. His chests pangs with hurt and remorse upon seeing her tear stained cheeks, wobbly blue lips, and disheveled state. 

He steps inside with her still in his arms and rubs his hand down her spine to calm her down as little sad sniffles and hiccups keep slipping out of her mouth. 

He sits her on the sofa squatting down infront of her and Scottie brings her water. When she refuses to drink it because Harry strokes his thumb against the apple of her cheek, "Shh, 's okay . . you're okay. You're with me now, sweet girl." It's like the world and anything else has blurred around him and his ever priority's focusing on her only. His observant gaze dawdles from her face to her bruised shoulder emitting an afflicted gasp of trepidity from between his lips and it deepens to a growl when it fell over her hip-bone where the fabric of her pyjama's spotted with blood.

He glances up at Scottie who gives him a knowing look of horror. He gets closer to her and she doesn't retract as his thumb streaks away the blood oozing from her shoulder gently, saying nothing as he examines it. 

After a brief pause Y/N's heart skips a nervous beat when he tilts her chin to have a better look at her face, taking in the evidence of someone handling his petal so brutally it left scratches at her face. 

Harry looks her dead in the eyes. His anger barely restrained tippling from the pot ready to leave burns, his voice is tense and quite, ears heating with wrath. 

"Who did this to you?" 

"Kevin." The tears are back at her waterline more concerned that he's panicking because of her and Scottie sits beside her massaging her shoulders. 

"Kevin, who?" Harry's question is curt controlling himself from finding this mother fucker himself and beat the shit out of him, "H -- he's my friend's boyfriend, I though --– was sleeping in her studio 'n 'n --- when he . . . he —-- " She hides her face in her palms unable to speak but Harry quickly pulls her down in a comforting hug whispering sweet things to stop her crying. 

She parts from him with puffy eyes and swollen lips shaking her head at her stupidity, "I … I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come here, 'm gonna leave — ' " She's a weeping blubbering mess trying to stand up on her jello legs with the help of the couch's armrest. 

He catches her wrist crying out, "No! Don't! please, please stay . . . . fo' me?" Scottie has never seen him like this. Bended out of shape for a person, begging them on his knees to protect them as he rambles loudly. 

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a burden on you, I -- I'll go in the morning." Since she has nowhere to go it's better she sleeps here for a night instead of on the streets. 

Harry finds it ironic. That once he didn't want her overnights now he wants her all days and weeks, perhaps till the end of his life. 

He's gonna win her back.

He hands her his tattered comfy sleeping clothes and the spare toothbrush leaving her to it. When he comes back downstairs Scottie's waiting for him at the main door. 

"You should report a file against that bastard the first thing in the morning." Scottie tells him seriously and he nods. His head snaps when she spoke softly, smiling at him, "You're in love." 

"What?" 

"I haven't seen you like that with anyone, Harry. Make it to her foolish boi -- tell her what you feel." She laughs, jolting him with his shoulders and he smiles timidly bidding her a good-bye. 

The door to her room's ajar opened as he peeks inside to make sure she's okay and sighs deeply when finds her staring blankly at the ceiling. The floorboard creaks when he pads inside quietly and her stare diverts to him while he stands on the foot of bed, "I read somewhere that cuddlin' helps ye'sleep better, you w'na try?" She hums in return, fisting the duvet under her chin and slip shuts her eyes remaining stiff in her spot when he slides under the duvet closer to her. 

She turns into a puddle when his long arms wrap around her tummy, "Is this okay?" His voice a mere whisper of care earning an honest nod from her -- his thigh strings over her legs to cocoon her in his warmth completely, ". . and this?" She again nod at him so, 

He smushes his cheek into the crook of her neck and she could feel something moist on her skin while his lips puckered to speak, "Y/N?" He murmures broken and sad snuggling more into her. 

"Hmm?" She hums, the exhaustion from walking and crying this much forcing her to sleep, "I've missed you, terribly." Her heart leaps and she wants to exchange the familiarity of emotions but her tongue remains heavy in her mouth. 

// 

Her toes curls and fingers clutches the wrinkly fabric of the pillow case she had her head rested on but now it's slipping down from over it due to her body shaking vigorously as she tries to escape those filthy, gruesome hands like a terrifying shadows of evil choking her throat and sucking the life out of her. 

Harry's head snaps down to where she was snuggled to his side moments ago when she murmur-yells no,no,no,no'. He feels like someone placed a heavy brick over his chest at the sight of his lovie writhing like a leaf petrified of whatever she's dreaming of and his shoulders rolls back while he perches on his elbow to shake her gently out of it. 

"Y/N . . ." He remains dulcet. Chewing onto his already swollen bottom lip since he didn't even close his eyes the entire night manipulating the plush flesh, he doesn't know what kept him awake —- but it sure was this sense of responsibility to make her feel protected under his wings. She smacks his arm away pushing at his chest with her all might to skid away to the edge of the bed in her sleepy state, so he quickly hunches on wobbly knees to catch her before she falls. 

"It's just me, Angel, Harry –- wake up darlin'," His heart beating ominously frantic and head jumbling with horrible thoughts of what she's going through as her warmed up cheeks soak with tears, he has never seen her like this, he never wanted to see her for the first time after months like this --- shattered to pieces and drained of her energy.

He smooths his thumb to caress her cheek slightly and swipe those sad tears away. She wakes up with a gasp making him jerk his chin back, blinking rapidly to confirm her surroundings and her fearful vision zeros to his panicked features. She places her palms against his pectorals to make sure he's real and there and that ugly nightmare just ended, "Harry?" He gulps the thick web of tears down his throat and bobs his head. 

"Yes, sweet girl, Harry . . ." The very streaks of golden rays sneak through the curtains and dances between their faces as she fists the hem of his shirt, "It was just a nightmare." He assures her running his hand up and down her arms to calm her down. 

"Don't be afraid, dovie' won't let anybody hurt ya from now on, g'na protect you —--" It was the last straw for her before she flipped him over and climbed out of his bed to get out from his room. 

"Shit." He drives into a state of frenzy following her down the stairs like a puppy almost missing a step or two as she wears the slippers she came in last night, "Where ye' goin'?" His muscles twitch in a hurry to make his next move and save whatever's between them that's keeping him sane, " Dunno, away from you." She shrugs, lost in her own fog and the sting in his heart's unbearable with the inflammation of hurt. 

"Why?" He tumbles through the last step and infront of her, eyes bloodshot and heart how from the squeezing agony of loosing her for second time for the same cause. 

"Because, I w'na forget about you!!" The scream she had in her lungs to convey her anger gets stuck in her throat. His shoulders slump from the burden of guilt and regret. 

"Why?" He feels like throwing up with the unbearable anguish of him hurting to a point he wants to wash his memories out of her mind. 

"Because you make me so confused, Harry…" Her face pinches into an exasperated expression of hopelessness while she nudges him aside to pass by him and to the main door but he catches her wrist before she could step outside and never come back to him, "I wouldn't confuse you from now on …. 've been better fo' you y/n, 'cos I want you to know that I'm yours." His confession springes her off guard by pure stupefaction and when she looks at him -- he's already gazing at her as if she's the moon surrounded by singing stars. 

"Please, let me fight for you baby." Tears springs at his waterline ready to welcome a sob out of his lungs. Because he knows he'll be unable to live his life without her, his love will rot in the cage of his heart because he'd never be able to express it for anyone except her. 

He continues not holding back anything from her instead unlocking another love language and that's being vulnerable and completely defenceless to her, "While being with you I still thought a part of me was in love with my ex and I didn't want ya to be me second priority, could neve', was so so wrong 'cos even though you're not my firsts you're gonna be my lasts. I'll make sure that you're." He gulps down the tears blocking his wind pipes and making it difficult to speak. 

"I want you to give us another chance, to forgive me and give me a proper chance to love you 'cos that's what you deserve . .." The sincerity and genuineness in his stained smaragdine irises turns her pudgy in his hold, ". . . you deserve all the lovin' in this world, honey." 

"Work for it then." She tells him and his pretty eyes widen adorably as of some golden fish, a vivacious smile adorns his features and he doesn't take a moment before swiping her off her feet and into his arms to hug her tightly. 

His insides feels like nourishing after a time with contentment and satisfaction. 

To have his loved one in his arms. 

In his life.

"Thank you, Thank you, Thank youuu." He rambles into the crook of her neck, elated and joyful. Swaying their bodies together and making her smile softly after a prolonged time of suffering. 

She'll heal. 

He'll make sure to put ointment of affection and love on her wounds to help her heal, for herself but nobody else. 

// 

"You've got to be kidding me!" She mutters putting the alcohol swab on his torn bleeding knuckles and he squeaks locking his calf around her ankle, "Ouch! Ye' mad woman." 

Harry and her went to file a report against Kevin, along with Nora who became her witness because she despises that disgusting of a man to be even around her and her studio let alone her boyfriend. 

Harry was her biggest support through the whole process and dropped her off assuring her he'll pick all her stuff from Nora's place. There he was, Kevin. Stumbling at the footpath after Nora kicked him and his luggage out. 

Harry's very patient and optimistic but not when his loved ones get hurt. He didn't know what was happening around him before he sprinted towards Kevin and punched him square in his face, breaking his nose and busting his own knuckles with a fierce shout of "y'son of a bastard!" 

"If I ever . . . ever see ya near her, I promise that you wouldn't be able to see the living daylight." He grunted, resisting to hit him in the shin with his boots and walked past him to the studio to collect her stuff. 

He was grief stricken seeing the way she had to live and not finding her pet cat anywhere. His heart could be heard cracking into tinytinytiny pieces when Nora told him that Y/N gave it to the vet since she was unable to afford it. 

When she catches him staring up at her like a love-stricken puppy she huffs wrapping a band-aid around his knuckles, "'M mad at you." He seems unfazed making her gasp when brings her closer with his legs wrapped around her's, "Why . . . you're always mad at me." He whines jutting out his bottom lip and she shakes her head at his silly dotiness. 

"You -– you can't go hurtin' yourself fo' me, H." She's very unaware, because certainly he'd do it as many times. 

She narrows down her eyes to squint him in offense when he brushes her comment off with nonchalance and raises his bandaged wrist up to her face, "Will you kiss it better' fo' me, pet?" Her insides crumbles like dry rose petals falling from a beloved book of her favourite romances. 

"Hmm?" He nudges it in a questioning suppressing a smirk. She wipes her clammy and antiseptic hands down her trousers not meeting his gaze while taking his hand awkwardly but delicately closer to where her soft mouth is located; she halts glowering at him, "Only if you ask nicely." 

"That wasn't nice? Thought I was being a good boy there." He mumbles diligently pulling at the hem of her shirt and she bites down a smile, fingers still wrapped round his wrist. 

"Pretty please…?" He wheezes his words out begging-ly -- upper lip curving, pupils dilating and she shrugs, "..if you insist so.." His grin was immaculate that of golden sun when she pressed her lips to his knuckles carefully giving it a gentle pat afterward. 

"Not doing that again." She breathes out the air she was winding up inside her for so long. Spinning on her heels to turn her back towards him and put the first aid back under the sink, "We'll see 'bout that, let's do some grocery." He stands up patting his thighs loudly, "Wouldn't be surprised if we'll find bugs in me cabinet instead of goodies." 

// 

They've been roaming isles for an hour now and they always end up fighting who will push it. Harry doesn't let her because she keeps on filling it with instant noodles, chocolate bars and sakurai oreos. 

"How about we try to live till our fifties wouldn't be that beautiful?" He follows behind her closely. His chest brushes against her shoulders everytime she makes a stop to cooes over some brightly coloured food and candies, "'M trying to make it till next year, dunno 'bout you." She mutters grumpy-ly tossing another packet of cherry lollipop inside the trolley.

He puts it back. 

With a strict warning glare to her way. 

"I want you to stay healthy." He says sternly glaring up at her from his ducked position. She tosses the lollipop back from the shelf, "'M paying for my things." She dismisses him off panning deadly. 

"Fo' fucks sake, 's not 'bout money!" He grits annoyed at her stubbornness and she arches her brow leaning against the trolley, "Harry…'m not an actress or some high-paid model. Lemme enjoy real things, okay? Or just say you'd look too outta my league standing next to me." Her brows pints down into a frown and her shoulder slumps with her body further relaxing against the trolley. 

She's up for a debate with him right in the middle of the junk food aisle if that's the case.

"See. That's why I don't want to be married!" A couple from far banters off in astonishment catching Y/N completely off guard. 

"Uh-ah!" She yelps getting startled from the boom of interruption and a high-pitch squeaks leaves out of her petite lungs when the trolley rolls from under her perched elbow making her stumble for a nice trip but the bang never came as Harry coiled his arm around her waist to pull her on stable feet with a firm hand over her smallest of back. 

His gentle pupils flicker between her frenzied one's, noses tickling and teasing each other with each spurt of breath that rushes out of her parted soft mouth and against his cheek. 

"Maybe it's not that bad after all." The couple who were planning their future based on another couple, who's not even a couple yet but trying to work on it with their shared amount of affection; sighs in awement leaving Harry and Y/N in their own bubble. 

He takes her by the elbow and helps her with his lips thinned, "Careful there." His mumble is deep and coherent husk. 

She didn't whine about his green vegetables, boring low fat cheese and planned meals, celery or whatever that shit is, after that. Walking by his side like a kid who just got relief from his time out punishment. 

While on the counter she asked him politely rather than biting his head of, "Lemme pay please. I'm already imposing on you by staying at your place." She knows that he wouldn't let her. Harry wants to take care of her -- in every way. He just hopes she warms up to him slowly that there will be a day she thinks of his home as hers too, oh how the table turns! 

T'not make her think that his love for her is only restrictive to materialistic things he lets her pay --- but for half of it. 

"D'ya got a change, miss?" The cashier asks her and she cranes her neck up to him. He denies waving his credit card with a disappointed expression so she quickly takes a chewing gum from the racks beside in return for the change. 

He stops in his tracks. Watching her with glinting eyes more like fawning at her when she sways on her feet happily swinging the bag in her hold side by side. 

"C'mon Harry!" She grins twiddling her fingers in a gesture to usher him where she's standing beside his car, "Yup. On your command, darlin'." He shakes his head. To fetch himself from the fond-land he always enters with anything she does. 

// 

There's a low hum of telly buzzing in the room as they sit crossed legs on the coffee rug with their knees brushing if any of them moves their bum a tad, while they slurp onto the remaining soup in the noodles cup. 

This whole time he wanted to say something, to talk to her, his heart out and make it a domestic routine of sharing stuff while they eat comfy in eachother's presence but seems like his tongue betrays him everytime and his needy eyes always want to admire her and the little things she does. 

He licks his lips, nodding profusely when she asks for his cup and chopsticks to take to the kitchen. A huge sigh of relief vanishes out from his chest when she disappears inside giving him time to re-collect himself, he rummages through the bag to take out the chewing gum they bought at the last moment. 

He rips the packet with his teeth but it remains pressed there between his morals when he senses the familiarity of the foil --- she bought a fucking condom out of accident! 

At the same moment she pads outside halting in her tracks infront of him with a horrendous expression as her peepers wouldn't stop blinking. He doesn't not know what got into him but he throws it her way as if he's utterly disgusted by it. 

Sinks into the couch and refuses to meet her gaze. She throws it back at him, "I don't want it, keep it you might need it." There he goes. The smugness fuels back as he outstretches his arm over the back of the couch and man-spreads scrutinizing the way her eyes linger at his meaty thighs before flicking them away with a nervous gulp. 

"You've already planned it all out, hun?" He smirks rubbing the belly of his nose with his pinky's knuckle and she folds her elbows under her breasts shaking her head at his teasing, "Yeah planning to . . . murder you t'night." She laughs out evilly when his eyes widen comically. 

"Hmm. I see. Didn't know ye' were this kinky 'n naughty." She rolls her eyes at his edgy nip. She wouldn't admit it but him testing her patience turns her hot and flustered. 

"Night, H." She yawns and his heart grows ten times bigger at the softness of her appearance. She cranes her head against her shoulder to look at him from the spot she's standing at when his voice calls for her, "Y/N!? Ye'really into knives? In the bed I mean." His grin mischievous knowing fully well what he's doing to her as he waits for her answer propped on his knees. 

She slams the door at his face and he plops back into the sofa with a pouty victorious smile. 

// 

Harry didn't realise that in the middle of watching Gilmore Girls on the telly he fell asleep straining his neck from keeping it in a weird angle, his arms hugging the pillow and feet dangling adorably nowhere. He groans knuckling away the sleep and tries to wake up when he heard a feeble noise of someone taking his name until he looks up and finds Y/N towering him with her fluffy cream blanket pinched around her head darlingly. 

"What happened, pet? Y'okay!?" He gasps trying to sit up and take her precious face to inspect her properly but she shakes her head and lays him back gently. 

Her nose runny and cheeks rosied as she asks for a favour from him, "Can I -- um," She wipes her nose with the sleeve of her sweater paw. He doesn't question her further and opens his long arms to welcome her for a warm embrace. 

"C'mere, pet." His whisper delicate to her. 

She lies down pressed to his front resting her head on his sprawled arm and scooches herself closer to him smiling shyly against his hoodie where a Harry is embroidered in pink thread. It's like a gust of fresh spring and dew of nighty mountains as Harry takes a relaxing breather snuggling her impossibly affectionately close to himself, petting down her sweet smelling hair. 

"Y'can talk to me 'bout anythin'." Their heart-beats in sync as he keeps his palm spread at her back to protect her from falling, "Ye' know that right?" He pulls back to cradle her chin between his fingers and look her in eyes sincerely. 

"I know that button. Sleep for now, hmm?" He smiles softly, shutting his eyes from giving out how much a mere love name's enough to fuse him into a cloud of giddiness. 

// 

In the morning though, Harry's a small spoon and Y/N a big one. Her limbs trying to latch to his body in every way possible with her cheek smashed against his shoulder blade. 

His lips quirks up into a lazy loopy smile full of contentment and peacefulness as he weaves his each finger into her's to bring her knuckles to his mouth and smother it in kisses, "Rise n' shine you furball." He rasps. chin doubling adorably as he tries to look at his squirmy girl. 

He turns to face her side, temples touching and lips hovering over eachother's skin. He feels her smiling against his chin as she cuddles up into him, "I'd like to make you a brekkie…." She murmurs playing with baby curls on the nape of his neck. 

"Dunno 'bout that. What if you poison me, t'death?" He giggles and she smacks his belly pouting grumpy-ly. 

"Offer, expired. no more brekkie for you." She tells him wiggling out of his grip and walks towards kitchen but burst into gleeful laugh when he wraps around her calves like a koala bear, "Was jokinnnn', babe." He emphasizes his words with a twinge of whine and she meanders her hand in his ruffled curls. 

"Kay! Kay! But, I could only make you omelette and sour bread." He jumps back on his feet enthusiastically looping his arm around her clavicles, "No problem. Glad t'eat  anythin' made from your lovely hands."

She made him brekkie and he made fabulous peach tea for them. She blabbered off and he listened with careful ears. He praised her with glinting proud eyes and she treasured these praises in her heart. 

While she chewed slowly he messaged his manager that he couldn't come to any working place for a week or so. He wants to make it special and memorable for them, their honeymoon phase. 

"D'ya have any class today?" He asks her leaning towards her atop the counter, "Nope 's Saturday dummy." She chuckles flicking her thumb against his forehead and he gives a dimpled grin with bolted shut eyes.

"Yeah … silly me." 

"Why?" 

"So that I could take ye' ona date." His inners bouncing desperate to know her answer, "Me?" She points at herself surprised with parted lips.  

"Yes you, is there somebody else sitting with us? Hello?" He calls for that non-existent person and she suckles her bottom lip to subside her squeals down. She breathes out, "Some ghostie? Evil spirit? Jesus himself —-" She cuts his banter of. With a light slap to the back of his hand. 

"Okay." She says with an excited shake of head happiness bare in her words and Harry literally slips from his seat padding towards her in haste, "I'd love to." She confirms with a sweet smile and he hooks his nimble finger around her jeans loop to pull her closer to him for a fervid emotional hug. 

//

She was a frolic mess in her room trying out her outfits and fitting into her skirts, trousers anything that could match perfectly. Deciding to terminate any ideas to wear cotton floral sun-dresses instead ends up tucking a baby pink sweater into her chequered white and black plaid trouser along with a pair of Mary Janes booties. 

She took huge puffs of breath to calm her wild heart down when the knock on her door appeared. He decided to be a full on romantic today doing all the date rituals without any shame dressing up in a silk shirt three shades lighter than her's, with a pussy bow around his neck and she thinks she couldn't be more in love with him as he has a bunch of sunflowers and jasmines in the cracks of his jewels adorned fingers. 

"Well, well, well, Look who came to their enemy's door holding presents." She smirks and he scowls, "Oh cut it. 'M here to pick y'up fo' our date." 

What makes her lose her mind's Zippy on his shoulder.

"Oh my goodness! Harry!" She leaps towards him and takes her fluffy beast in her arms and showers Zippy's crown with many many kisses, "Thank you!" She cries out joyfully wrapping her free arm around his waist and cuddles him for dear life. 

"I lo —-- " She thinks it'd be embarrassing to say it on the first date and Harry almost had a mini heart-attack but she changed her words, "I can't be more grateful to you, thank you so much." 

"Now, stop thankin' me hunny." He gives her the flowers he plucked himself from his backyard and kisses the apple of her cheek turning her into a gooey mesh. 

"Where is it?" She avoids checking him out. 

"Why should I tell ya?" He nudges her to lock her elbow around his and she gazes up at him with loving eyes, "'cos 'm your date that's why."

"Bribe me then." He grins bashfully. 

"Harry!!" She gasps and huffs tipy-toeing timidly to plant a soft kiss to his chin but it lands against his throat making him thin his lips to give out a noise that could embarrass both of them. 

"Not telling you." He squeaks dragging her outside into the porch and she whines, "You leech!" 

// 

"You did not!" She snaps her neck in utter exhilaration from the view in front of her and towards Harry who's watching her with puffed cheeks to not to give out his bunny smile as her face turns guppy. The sunshine dawdles around them and she pulls him down to her level with the tug of their intertwined hands, "You're somethin' else, Styles." It warms his blood. Bursting sentiments of pure love and amiability through each orifice that leads to his heart. 

"Only fo' you." He whispers stroking the plush of her cheek -- restraining to place his needy  lips on her alluring pillow one's inviting him to have a good taste of their sweetness before they could taste the ripeness of strawberries growing at the farm he just took her. 

"Uhm. Let's see who could collect more!" She grins pushing herself three steps away from him with support of his pecs, "What's the prize?" He asks pawing at her hips to keep her in intimate distance and she giggles tapping his chin. 

"A feeling of saccharine-ss and sweetness when we'll eat those strawberries out." She tries not to step on heavy branches that are still growing and makes her way to the fresh patch, "Perhaps, that could be acquired from eatin' somethin' else out too." His wet lips brushes against her earlobe as he speaks, sending a shiver down her spine. 

"You're being very loud and lewd." She pokes him in ribs. Squatting down to pluck a juicy perfectly sized strawberry and hovering it against his mouth to give him a taste, "Hmm what could I say 'm a man of dirty words." His eyes darken to an intoxicating shade of emerald as his heart-shaped magenta lips wrap around the strawberry to split it in two with his teeth. 

He still remembers. How her mouth tasted that night, how her lips came molding around his's like a stamp of a lover's letter and her body fitted against his's like a lost piece of puzzle. 

Just made for him. 

"Harry …" She's out of words. Maybe, breath. 

"Yes dovie?" He hooks his finger into her belt's loop to saturate the thread like distance between them and makes tight hold at the nape of her neck to crane her head up to meet his honey eyed gaze, "D'ya know how to make strawberry mochi?" His shoulder slumps at her question and he rests his cheek atop her temple cutely. 

"Noo." His voice sort of whine-y. 

"No, problem. We'll make it together." She chuckles turning back to collect the strawberries into her basket. 

She never had this fun. Messing around with him. Feeding eachother the sweet fruit. Him scaring her that some rat sprinted by her feet and enjoying the way she jumps at him, only wheezing comically when she throws a blow at him. 

Her giggles bounces off each and every ivory flower and leafy plant as he pins her to the viridescent grass, with his thighs and tickles her non-stop. What started as raspberries turns into sloppy smothers of kisses all over her face. 

"Harry!!" She bursts into another fit of laughter, "Stop." She warns him squeezing her thighs around his waist and he giggles challenging her. 

"O'what? Huhh?" She closes her eyes nuzzling into his arm that's trapping her down, "Or I'll kiss you…" Her voice gentle and dulcet making his grip loosen and heartbeat fastens like a thunderbolt. 

"'M not afraid of that." He gives a toothy grin sneaking a glance at her hand which's gliding up his throat to cup his cheek, eyelids fluttering like petals from breeze as she smudges her sweet mesh coated lips against his's in a tenderly ardent, and yearningly amiable kiss feeling her pulse ring in her ears with so much force. 

His fingers make their home down her smooth hair to cup the nape of her neck, elbows digging into mud when he lifts her up to deepen the kiss sloppily. Just her. Only her. Swirling inside of him as his very thought. 

Their noses crooking perfectly, skins kissing and bodies hitched to eachother with the knot of souls. 

She whimpers into his mouth squishing the poor strawberry she was holding in her free hand from the intensity of fierce sentiments she's spiraling in; to have him all and swallow him all because he's that damn gorgeous. His tongue pokes and tickles the plush insides of her small mouth tasting the strawberry straight from where he loves the most. His belly burning with the fire of desire feeling the way her body's reacting with puriency to his subtle touches of affection. 

He was dying to have a kiss from her the day she gave him her lips that night and he couldn't resist but to think about it regularly. 

A wet filthy sound bubbles around them when they part away with the remnants of spit in the form of intricate strings connecting them; that breaks when he relaxes his forehead against her's taking a good breather of mossy air. 

"S' messy." He tuts when his eyes fall at her palm covered in strawberry pulp. 

She gasps giddy-ly when he pokes his pink tongue out and takes a huge swipe up her palm with an erotic hum that rattled her insides. 

"H -- arry." She nibbles at her bottom lip to filter noises she's unable to hold meanwhile he sucks her fingers one by one to clean them, her panties twisting with an ache of want. 

"Hmm. All nice 'n clean, now we should go." He says flipping her wrist to act as if he's inspecting it. Brushes the dirt of his trousers leaving her baffled and grumpy. When she doesn't stand up he squats down at her level arching a brow at her and before she could know what's happening she's thrown over his broad shoulder like a rag doll. 

Her squeals hearty and giggly as she tries to punch his back but her breath gets caught in her throat when his large hand comes spanking her butt-cheek. He waits for her reaction —- grinning cheekily when she sucks in her weak mewls and grabs the back of his neck blabbering his name off. 

He puts her back on the ground once out on the gravel path and hands her the basket piled with strawberries. Ducks down to sponge a kiss to her cheek telling her to stay glued to her spot as he leaves to pay. 

She smiles down at her feet then at the sky revinding all the moments and their lovely kiss that makes her feel all warm and stupidly gooey. 

While boarding the train he wiggles his finger behind himself to get a hold on her and keep her close to him, craning his neck with a lopsided sly smile, "Hold me hand." 

"If you insist." She nods with a grin slipping her fingers over his palm and he wovens them with his own with a firm grip stepping inside the train and helps her to do so with his free hand behind her head. 

She sighs. Sitting with her back pressed against the window of the train. One leg folded and other dangling from the seat as she stares at Harry with a pouty smile. 

"Don't ya think you're sittin' too far away from me?" He says, grabbing her knee, "Come here." And slides her towards himself now their thighs overlapping. He doesn't like even the mere distance between them —-- might sound sappy but he wants to be like her scent. 

"Happy?" She pinches his cheek and he winces dramatically ruffling her already loose tresses of hair making her look as if she was on a roller coaster minutes ago, "aren't you a one clingy bunny!" She huffs trying to blow away the hair falling in her eyes. He bobs his head in agreement and slings his elbow around her shoulders to tuck her under his chin protectively. 

// 

"Okie, now add some sugar in it —- aish slow down …" She coughs waving away the sugar dust tickling her nostrils as Harry poured so much sugar all at once. He has his chin rested on her head and her hips crooned against his thighs as they make the strawberry and vanilla mochi together. 

His puffer jacket on her shoulders (To the time they went to buy grocery stuff it started being cold and Harry being a mommy he took out his jacket and bundled her up in it) —- She sneezes and he quips pecking her hair, "Bless your heart." Fetches her a tissue too. 

"Thank you, bubs." She giggles grabbing his jaw bringing him down to smooch a kiss to his lips. She pulls back but he persists snaking his palm around the nape of her neck to keep her put —- she gives in with her heart fluttering like candle flame in a destructive storm. 

Turns in his embrace and hooks her elbows behind his head patching tiny, tiny, tiny pecks on his pillowy lips until he gets desperate to kiss her mouth and tongue pushing her to his front by gliding his hand into the back-pocket of her jeans. 

Her head lulls. Feeling as if the kitchen got filled with candy clouds floating around her when he cradles her cheeks in his both palms lapping at her bottom lip and nips at it with every whimper of desire that falls, "Mine." He breathes out rubbing the bridge of his nose up and down her cheek like a puppy nuzzling into his favourite plushie. 

"Yours." She says without any hesitation. 

He smashes his wet lips back on hers. Swirls of gleeful colours surrounding them as he feels like he could kiss her forever. 

She gasps gazing down lustfully at his wine cherried lips when he holds her from waist and sits her on the wooden counter, "I want you to take me." She murmurs nailing at the silk of his top and he paws at her hip-bones cravingly, it makes her feel like one the most desired women alive. 

"I'm all yours to pleasure you lovie'," He looks her in the eyes with so much love and affection it melts her whole, "Just ask me and I'll give me girl what she wants …. " He says trailing sloppy kisses down her throat. Her head falls against the tiled wall giving him more access to her skin --- so he could mark her as he wishes. 

The heat from his mouth to her bare skin arouses her to an extent she feels wetness sticking to the insides of her thighs with each grind of his crotch against her's. 

She tugs at the roots of his curls, mouth parted around a moan when he grazes his touch over her plump breasts, "Is this okay?" He asks breathlessly and she bobs her head vigorously latching onto him. 

"Yes, please, more … " He blinks to let reality sink in when she raises her arms in the air for him to get rid of her clothes. 

He smiles. Hard. Crinkles forming by his eyes and cheery lines around his mouth as she looks up at him with those doe eyes glinting with his own reflection. 

She squirms grumpily and he cackles loudly when she hooks his fingers into the hem of her jeans as a sign that "just undress me right now and fuck me hard over this counter." But, the romantic sap he's just keeps on being a tease. 

"Fuck me already." She huffs locking her ankles behind his back. 

"Trust me, I want it as bad as y'do but are you sure —-- " 

"I'm --- just fuck …. " She cuts him off, cupping his cheeks and kisses his mouth. He groans when she sucks his swollen lip in between his teeth and lifts her pelvis grinned against his swell lining in his trouser to elaborate her neediness through actions, 

He undresses her finally folding them and putting them away nicely while she stays a breathless mess just in her undies, her sheer panties soaked in her juices and profanities of moans fuses into air from both of them as Harry places his hands on her knees. Irises darkening with lust when he looks at the delicate lines of her drippy pussy lips forming from underneath the material. 

"Spread your legs, I want to feel how turned on I made you feel." His voice an obscene grunt and it tingles her core making her feel she should obey him, "Fuckin' hell." His moan is dirty as he rubs the pad of his long digits against her soaked centre. His piercing gaze flitting between her thighs crumbled her in the best way possible. 

She fists the hem of his top, tugging at it with the blabbering of his name. 

A series of pornographic whines leaves her through her nose when he demands her to raise her bum so he could get rid of the last thing being a bother to them. 

"Oh my — " She arches her spine when his fingers withered in her stickiness, between her glistening pussy lips to her mound pinching her clitoris in the way and listens to the soapy noises he's creating while lathering his hand with her juices he'd love more to coat his tongue with. 

"This is what you want, hmm? For me to bend you over this counter right fucking now and pump me thick cock inside your sweet cunt from behind till you're screaming for me to ram harder inside you, so deep that you feel me in your little tummy and I keep it there for hours making you cum on it again and again — many time that you're milky and cramped around my prick like a filthy girl you're." He dips his impossibly sweet pink tongue inside her mouth and makes her sip down his dirty words through her throat not letting her mewls slip out as his lengthy finger slicks inside her causing her melt against his chest with a turmoil of emotions and heat she never felt before. 

Her brain whirles with the mantra of fuckfuckfuck but her guppy lips says otherwise, she coils her arms around his shoulders scratching her nails down his neck — eyes rolling back as she shakes with the build of ecstasy. 

"You're so snug and warm, sweets. Can't wait to be inside you." He husks curling his digit to give her upper wall a good rub, "Harry!" Her scream comes out gruff vibrating with a sexy octave. 

"Yes, baby." He pinches her chin between his thumb and forefinger staining soft wet kisses from the corner of her lips, to her rosy cheeks and down her throat sewing love bites along her veins.

"Does it feel good, hmm? 'M g'na stuff you full of my prick bet it'll make you feel like heavens --" Her brows tenses up as he forces her to keep her eyes locked with his's and groans with the throb in his cock bound to implode with each whimper of his name she lets out hiking up her knees on the counter — the heels of her feet sticking firmly against the edge of the counter giving a carnally pleasing view for him to enjoy and ooze with sticky precum. 

He huffs out breathily, fingers sliding in and out at a fast pace while he moves down to take her perky nipple between his teeth teasing it with nip of his tongue, "Fuck. Mhmm baby I've so many dirty things to d'to you, would you be an atta girl and be naughty with me?" He nuzzles his curls against her skin grinding his knuckles up and down against her swollen clit. 

"Yes, yes, yes." She moans trying to sink impossibly deep on his fingers. He admires her in amusement as her belly twists into ripples and she thrashes in his tight hold —- broken into pieces of vulnerability foxily. 

He withers his gaze to where he's driving his fingers roughly inside her and a cold shiver runs down his spine, eyelashes fluttering and he sucks his bottom lip brutally praising her softly, "yes just like that darling taking my fingers so good —- they'll look pretty down your throat too while I'll fill your other holes with me, all me." He wraps a hand around her throat giving it a light squeeze and it was enough to spread warmth and the saccharine feeling of fullness in her every tissue gushing over his fingers. 

"You're mine." He growls nipping at her sweet spot –-- wearing her out with his continuous different motions inside her. His wrist glistening with her come and her head lulls on his tanned shoulder, eyes slip shut, chest levitating with shallow breaths. 

She cups his cheeks wrapping her trembling legs around his waist and kisses his smile, it's sloppy and barely a kiss with their lazy effort to keep their mouths on each other to soak into intimacy. 

Next they're a moaning and crying mess on the kitchen floor with her knee hooked around his hip to keep him close as he stretches her out leaving a pleasurable burn against her squishy inviting walls. 

His cock sits warm inside her pussy and his balls snug against her bum. It's torturous waiting for her to give a signal that he might move because he couldn't resist but to be rock hard inside her and fuck her for hours but his knees are laughing at him for being unable to bear the sting of cold tiles. 

"You can move, 'm okay." She whispers hugging him for dear life and he nods grinding his hips slowly, the bulbous head of his dick hitting all the right spots —- he's so good at fucking. 

He takes her fleshy tits in his palms caressing them with each lewd stroke of his cock inside her and treats her glistening lips from his spit back to his mouth, pecking it generously. 

"Pull me hair." He groans pushing hard and guides her hand into his swirl of sweaty curls — hips stuttering, eyes rolling back into his skull erotically when she does so peppering loving kisses under his earlobe, "You're g'na ruin me lovie … fuck me please." He whines grabbing her ass and lifts her pelvis to slide inside her dripping pussy with much more roughness. 

She has never seen him like this. Shredded to seams for her, sweat beading down his gorgeous face like glimmer of pearls and eyes mossed with so much lust and desperation it knocks air out of her lungs. 

He rolls them over gently and her squeal turns into a shameless yawp when he feels much more bigger than before inside her with her being on top of him —- he was right she could feel him in her tummy. 

She's clueless what to do. Not that she's gonna show it –- she doesn't want to give him an impression that she knows barely anything about riding but the way she begins with zealous back and forth movement digging the heels of her palms against his pecks wrecks him havoc. 

"You're doin' so good pet, yes, yes, yes. Use me baby. Use me like your little fuck toy 'm c'mon." He grabs the nape of her neck and brings her down to skim his tongue over her lips, manipulating the plushiness of them with his teeth. His balls slapping against her skin as she bounces on his cock diligently and he fists the soft flesh of her bum with both of his hands to help her ride him knows she's labouring herself out, "I'm all yours." He says caressing her sides to make sure she's okay and brushes the wisp of sticky hair behind her ear. 

"You're looking so sexy sitting on my dick like that -- how about I don't allow you to cum so you could keep me warm with your pussy like that fo' hours?" His pants out gripping at her thighs as his prick spills with wetness inside her and she cries out shaking, "No!" He smirks crinkled forming by his eyes and takes this chance to drive hard up inside her making her flop onto his chest. 

She gasps moistly, pulsating around him feeling every ridge and vein of his cock stroking against her walls creating obscene noises of skin meeting skin and their moistures mixing soapily like gooe.

"Cum fo' me baby -- squeezing me s' tight. I know you're there." His pants laboured and heavy as he sucks his own digits coating them with his spit nicely and glides them down pressing them to her weeping bud, then flickers it in prolong circles. Toes curling. His thrusts consistent and fast. She crooks her nose against his's murmuring to him with a wavering voice. 

"I'm gonna cum, fuck." 

"You're gonna make me come." 

Her eyes widen in surprise but her body reacts otherwise albeit she has never experienced it —- but her moans were uncontrollable when he spanked her butt cheek and she crampied down at him jolting tremendously with the wave of insanity spreading to her bones.

"I'm a naughty boy, give it to me." He kisses his teeth together man spreading and throwing his knees up to ram up inside her perfectly.

His eyes shuts till he could see white spotting behind them -- he spills inside her in form of thick ribbons and milks her cunt with it riding her out of her high. She clings to his body and snuggles into him to tone down the shivers running down her spine with each tiny orgasm she feels rushing out with his lazy thrusts.

"I'm jello." She tells him and he looks down at her with a mishevious grin, "Does that give me a reason to eat you whole?" She rolls her eyes poking at his cheek with a grossed out expression. 

"I'm still inside ye', remember?" He stirs his hips to make her realise and she yelps not know if it's making her feel hot or utterly sensitive, "You're insatiable." She mumbles pouting her lips to indicate him she's dying for his lips to smooch kisses to her. 

"No kidding I love the noises you make when you come undone." She confesses timidly drawing stars at his chest and he giggles kissing her temple gently, "Stop before you wake me buddy up again –- he quite fond of you." He blushes hiding his face into the crook of her neck with tiny voice. 

// 

They're canoodling under the fluffy blanket on the sofa watching telly after they just took a bath together, shampooing eachother with peach scents and drying eachother off with warm towels. She's nuzzled into his side wearing one of his baby yellow robes, his arm stays around her shoulder thumb addicted to caressing her silky cheek, sometimes spreading his fingers down her throat to tip her chin up to smooch sweet kisses on her lips.

"You're cute when you're not a pest." She giggles and he frowns comically pretending to munch her alive, "That's very rude -- you should be thankful that I lov — " Her heart almost stops functioning. 

They were sipping onto their green teas and nibbling onto the strawberry mochi they made and refrigerated before when the doorbell rang making them groan in laziness.

She stood up going to see what took Harry so long on the door and got revealed to him talking instinctively to whoever rang the bell. 

"Hi, Y/N." Scottie smiles at him. Carrying her luggage and Y/N looks down at her attire for a second then forwards her hand shyly. She was so scared that day –- it's a blur to her but now she watches Scottie properly she realizes …. She's the same girl from all the paparazzi photos.

Something switches off inside her. The rainbows and confettis, the moonlight and stars and the nebula of the whole galaxy she had consumed in her little body from making love to Harry just shuts down into a white noise.

Her bottom lip plumps into a pout. Eyebrows trembling from this confused feeling of some invisible thing squeezing the life out of her. 

She's jealous. 

"I just came here to say bye." Scottie's voice makes her focus back into reality. 

"Oh…" She just nods. She doesn't return the hug even though her brain guilt trips her for that and when Scottie leaves with the air thick and tense, Harry corners her in between a wall and piece of furniture cradling her grumpy face in his careful palms speaking gently to her. 

"You don't 'ave to worry 'bout her, she's just a friend …. Infact you don't have to worry 'bout anyone because I love you so so much baby that I don't see myself spending me life with anyone else." She glances up at him twice, jaw falling slack from shock and he chuckles smothering her in kind-hearted kisses when she stares at him like a hawk. 

"You what!?" 

"I love you, Y/N." Her eyes closing like a moth flapping nearer to fire and finding peace in burning inside it. 

"I love you too so much." She whispers and welcomes his lips melting against her ardently. With the passion only lovers hold. Amiability she couldn't find anyone else but in his embrace, in his kisses and his lovemaking. 

"Can we go back to cuddlin'? Me feet gettin' cold baby." He whines treading fastly into the living room while carrying her like a kitten from behind and makes squeaky noises once snoozed under the warmth of the blanket. 

He touches their foreheads. Kissing the tip of her nose adorably. 

"I love you." Then burst into giggles. When she returns the passion coyly. 

"I love you too." 

#Harry Styles #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles smut #harry styles one shots #harry styles fanfic #harry styles angst #harry styles fluff #Harry Styles fluffy duffy

[olivia-anderson-fanfic]

Stalker X Stalker, Part 12

First

Previous

Next

Perma taglist: @nathleigh @peachmuses

Stalker x Stalker taglist: @aespades @jayjayspixiepop @blueslushgueen @fan-written @seraphichana @nerd-nowandforever @toodaloo-kangaroo @khneltea @raeuberprinzessin

Tim had exactly zero idea what was going on.

Marinette had disappeared into the shower so he’d figured that, hey, work was over and he was 90% sure it was the day she usually shaved (something he knew because every time she shaved she excitedly asked him to touch her leg because it was smooth) so he had time to kill…

He walked over to her jewelry box.

He’d already bugged all of the new jewelry he had bought her but her old stuff was perfectly intact and he kind of wanted more insurance. Sure, they lived together now so it was unlikely she would have much reason to leave without him, but he was known for his millions of plans and contingencies and he wasn’t about to mess up when it was someone he cared about.

So, he went to work on the first necklace he grabbed. It had a tiny cat with green emeralds for eyes.

He looked at the tiny black pupils that the cat had. He pulled a tiny pick out of his pocket and carefully started carving a circle in it for the bug.

And then a bug-shaped god came flying out of the door for something.

There were a few beats as Tim and Tikki stared at each other.

Tikki broke it with a loud groan.

He watched her float past him for the towel hung on Marinette’s bedpost and then go back inside.

Shit.

He darted towards the bathroom, only to pause at the door. He really didn’t want to burst in while Marinette was probably naked, that was a huge breach of privacy, but he also didn’t want Tikki to tell him about all the bugs he was planting! Shit! He bit his lip, considering.

“Here’s your towel, Marinette,” Tikki said with a sharp edge to her tone.

“... are you mad?”

“Not at you. Where are the cookies you baked last night?”

“Uh, the fridge --?”

“Thank you.”

Why hadn’t she told her? Tim wasn’t complaining, of course, but he was a little confused. She was clearly mad about it and he doubted that Marinette had made some rule that said ‘you can’t tell me about people bugging me’ because that was oddly specific and not a very good idea… so… what?

He didn’t know. He was just going to thank the god of luck -- he was pretty sure that was Tikki -- and continue what he was doing.

~

Marinette didn’t have to struggle to keep everyone inside the first night. She liked that. More time to plan.

But how did she get herself let out, you may ask?

Remember how Tim had said that all-hands-on-deck situations are the only exceptions to the Stay Inside While Injured Rule? Well, guess what had happened.

Arkham had had a huge breakout and Marinette wasn’t going to complain… even if her kwami might be a little disappointed in how happy she was about it.

She was even happier when she’d found out that one of the people that had broken out was Scarecrow. She’d been meaning to tell him about her guesses about his brownie recipe for a while and she hadn’t really had a chance to do it when she was talking to him through a phone with a thick glass between them.

Batman -- Bruce? -- didn’t need to know that they’d broken into a bakery for the night to test out their theories before she had taken him back to Arkham.

He’d thank them when he got the brownies (the missing ingredient was Mexican cinnamon!). Or, at least, she hoped he would.

~

Tim had to say… Marinette's plan to get everyone in her house was working.

He could warn his siblings but, honestly, he found it kind of funny.

He was surprised to see Jason show up first. He raised his eyebrows at his brother. “Didn’t know you were in town, Flamebird.”

Jason did an exaggerated eye roll that Tim swore he could see despite the domino. “Marinette said she had something she wanted to show me.”

And she did. She walked over and dropped the Harry Potter books onto the window ledge beside him. “This is terrible and I hate you for making me read them.”

“It gets better later on --.”

“I read two books. That’s six hundred pages. If you can’t get your shit together in six hundred fucking pages then you don’t deserve my time.”

He scoffed. “They’re not that bad.”

“Oh yeah? Read it. It’s been years for you, right? Get to book three and tell me it’s good.”

Jason scowled and grabbed the books, taking a seat in the armchair.

Tim grinned and rested an arm around his girlfriend. “You don’t actually hate Harry Potter, do you?”

“Only the book version.”

He frowned. “I think we need to break up.”

“Nope. Not allowed to break up with me.”

“Oh, well, if I’m not allowed then I guess I won’t,” he said, leaning down to press a tiny kiss to her lips.

There was a groan from the window and they both rolled their eyes, turning to look at Damian.

“Why must you sully my good mood so early on with your disgusting displays of affection?”

“It’s our apartment, you just so happen to be here,” said Tim, glaring at his brother. “We can do what we want.”

Marinette, bravely, stepped between the two of them with a bright smile. “Now, boys, it’s not the time.”

“It is not the time for your libido, and yet...” argued Damian.

“Please, that isn’t even close to libi --,” Tim started, only to get elbowed in the stomach.

She gave him a look that told him to let her handle it and, while he didn’t think that was a good idea, he held up his hands in surrender.

“Robin, it’s unbecoming of you to argue with everyone you meet,” she chided lightly.

… did she speak Damian or something? Because Damian actually looked a little reprimanded at that and Tim needed to learn her ways.

Then, she leaned down with a grin. He could see her hands start to rest on her knees but she thought better of it at the last second. “I got some new stuff from the pet store and I wanted to know if you wanted to help test them out on Vanelope.”

Damian narrowed his eyes slightly. “What kinds of new things?”

“A bunch of cat toys.”

“... I suppose I can test them out for you.”

“I mean, I said you could help --,” she started, but Damian was already heading towards Vanelope without her.

Tim looked over at his girlfriend. She didn’t seem all that put out by this.

“You really had something planned out for everyone?”

She smirked and took a seat on the windowsill. “Yep. It should take Flamebird about two days to finish the first two books -- assuming he can even get through them that quickly -- and Robin is sure to be very thorough in his testing of all the cat toys.”

“Oh? And what’s your plan for everyone else?”

She shrugged just slightly. “Guess you’ll have to wait and find out.”

When Dick appeared she set him up with Beat Saber, saying that she was curious about why the VR glasses gave her a headache and wanted to see if he had the same problem. Tim knew the problem was that they were made for men and therefore sometimes had negative side effects for women, but he bit his lip before he could offer to get a set custom-made for her in favor of watching Dick select the poppiest pop song in existence and instantly get addicted to the game.

Tim raised his eyebrows slightly when Steph appeared, textbook in hand.

“How did you know everyone would show up?” He asked once Marinette had set her up with a particularly long and difficult worksheet to make sure she got the lesson.

“Well, Spoiler shows up every Saturday night for tutoring, Robin comes by every other day or more and he didn’t stop by last night, Nightwing pops by most weekends, and I called Flamebird over myself… speaking of which…” She pulled out her phone and tapped a few buttons. “Right, Signal said he’ll be here in ten minutes seven minutes ago… so, he’s almost here.”

Tim grinned. “You forgot Cass.”

“She only ever really shows up to get away from all of you guys so, with everyone here, she’d have no reason to come over.” Her face split into a sheepish grin. “Also, she’d see through me pretty quickly.”

“Don’t you want B to have no help?”

She shrugged. “It should be a light night since almost everyone important is in Arkham right now but that doesn’t mean that the two of them can deal with all of Gotham’s petty crime on their own. I give them until three or four before they crack.”

“... you might be a little scary.”

“You don’t last long as a vigilante if you’re not at least a little smart,” she chirped. “I just choose to turn my brain off most of the time.”

He smiled. “Oh? And the exception is what? Making you stay inside?”

She waved him off. “Kind of. It’s more that I only put effort into making sure I’ll never be bored. What’s the point of thinking about anything else? All that does is make you sad.”

Well that didn’t sound healthy, now did it? Tim was pretty sure that was just repression but, honestly, he had no clue. His family famously did not use therapists.

Before he could figure out how to address that there was a knock on the door.

Marinette grinned and opened it to reveal Duke, who was holding a computer.

Duke looked around the apartment, raising his eyebrows at all the people there. “Uh… should I ask?”

“I’m spiting Bruce.”

“Wild. Whatever. Ready for GBBS?”

“Sure. Tim, you gonna watch it with us?”

He hesitated. Steph had been sending him pleading looks since she had gotten her worksheet and he felt kind of bad for her… but then Duke and Marinette sat on the couch and she rested her head on his shoulder lazily to get a better view of the computer and Tim figured that Steph was smart enough to do the worksheet on her own if she really tried.

He took a seat beside her and smiled a little when she switched to lean against him instead.

“So, who’s your favorite person for the season?” He asked.

She thought for a minute before shrugging. “The guy that always wins but keeps being anxious about his bakes. Forgot his name, though.”

“Rahul?!” said Duke.

“Sure.”

Duke frowned. “I’m not sure whether to be happy you like at least one contestant, be proud it’s Rahul, or be annoyed you didn’t remember his name.”

“Character development takes time,” said Tim wisely.

Marinette scoffed a little. “Just put on the damn show. I’m tired of listening to you assholes talk.”

Duke grinned. “Fine. Fine.”

Time passed as the three of them watched the show.

Other family members slowly made their way over one by one. Damian brought the cat with him. Jason came over to give his brain a break after all the reading he had done (and then, when Marinette pointed out that you never take breaks while reading good books, had gone straight back to Harry Potter). Steph decided she didn’t want to pass her class and came to lay across the top of the couch. Dick eventually got tired and rested his body after the intense game that is Beat Saber.

… B released her at almost exactly three thirty. They ignored their comms in favor of continuing to watch the season finale.

~

Marinette bit her lip anxiously as she preemptively turned off the notifications on her phone. Tim did the same.

They typed up matching tweets about how they were moving in with their partners, tagged each other...

Their fingers hovered over the tweet buttons.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I’m sure one of my siblings will do something stupid in a few days and the media will leave us alone,” said Tim.

She smiled awkwardly. “That isn’t what I’m worried about.”

He frowned just a little and slipped his arm around her. “Well, can I help with whatever it is?”

She hesitated. It would be better to warn him, she supposed. “Not really. You’re going to get the ‘shovel talk’ --.”

“My dad is Batman, Bean, I’ll live.”

“-- by the person who currently controls the embodiment of chaos and destruction.”

His face paled a little (which is dangerous, considering he was already pale enough). “Does Chat Noir not know we’re dating yet?”

“Nope.”

���... so he’s going to find out through the media?”

“Yep.”

“Shit.”

She nodded her agreement, curling into his side and glaring at the phone.

Adrien was going to be pissed. Especially since he was going to learn through the media. Sure, that was the intention, she was hoping that Tim would be left more or less alone because her friend would be too busy being hurt about not being told to focus on his anger at her boyfriend… but, yikes, she didn’t really want to deal with that just yet.

Also, she thought with a wince, Adrien was going to be even angrier when he figured out that she hadn’t exactly given up, as he called it, ‘stalking’ the people she was interested in. Marinette was pretty sure that Tim already knew about some of it but she wasn’t completely sure and, just in case, she wanted to keep it a secret for a while… a few years, at least, and she wanted to be the one to tell him because she was sure that Adrien would be a lot harsher about it than she would. He already called it ‘stalking’ when it was clearly different, she didn’t want to know what he would say if she let him talk about it in more depth.

Unfortunately, though, Adrien wasn’t stupid. He’d eventually catch on. The longer they dated without him knowing the guiltier he would assume she was.

She sighed and took his face in her hands. “I’m leaving it up to you. I’m not sure. I’m leaning towards being public but...”

He bit his lip as he considered it. She fought the urge to stretch his face until he let go.

He smiled hesitantly. “Well, I’ve lived long enough, I think.”

“Don’t worry, darling, I’ll summon a lucky charm for you,” she half-joked.

He gave a puff of laughter that wasn’t quite real and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Thanks, Bean, but I doubt that’ll be necessary. This is Gotham, no one dies here.”

“We don’t know how long that’ll take, though,” she said with a pout. “I’d prefer to have you back as soon as possible.”

He rolled his eyes. “You’ll always have my siblings.”

“But I want you,” she huffed. “You’re my favorite.”

She felt his cheeks warm beneath her hands.

“I’m your second favorite,” he reminded her. “Cass.”

She snickered. “True. You’re my favorite until Cass accepts my proposal.”

“Hm. I’ll have to enforce the bro code to make sure that never happens.”

“Oh no! I guess I’ll be stuck with you forever, then. What a shame!”

He smiled brightly. Sometimes she lamented the fact that he didn’t give a lot of genuine smiles. The grins and smirks were nice, of course, but she liked to watch the way he would duck his head slightly to try and cover his face with his bangs. Still, in the privacy of her own head, she had to admit that the fact she could get such a smile out of him when few others could made her heart rate spike. He smiled for her. Who wouldn’t be flattered by that?

She pulled the smile that she loved so much down for a kiss.

~

The first time they stepped out the door as an official couple they were hounded by reporters.

Tim wanted to ask how they knew where they lived. He settled for asking them to blur the area around them.

It was more than a little annoying to be harassed on your way to the grocery store. They had just wanted eggs, milk (Marinette kept leaving it out for some strange reason), some cat food, and enough miscellaneous snacks to keep Cass occupied. They did not want cameras shoved in their faces.

But years of being public figures had trained them to keep pleasant smiles on their faces and to answer questions with as little information as possible.

Finally, though, they made it inside and a manager kicked out the reporters.

Marinette let her shoulders slump a little beneath his arm and Tim flexed the muscles in his face before it could get stuck in that awkward half-smile forever.

He squeezed her a little. “You alright?”

She shrugged as much as she could without displacing his arm. “Yeah. Just… hate reporters.”

He nodded his understanding. He pressed a kiss to her temple.

“Want to buy some Oreos while we’re here?”

Her face lit up. “Can we?”

“I’m rich. Of course we can.”

And, so, they did. He made a mental note to start buying oreos in bulk. All the flavors, just in case she ever got sick of the normal version.

They glanced out the door and, though they couldn’t see the paparazzi waiting just outside, they were sure that they would be back soon. They ducked through back alleys to try and get away.

Only to stop in the middle of a dark alley at the high-pitched cry of: “Give me your money or else!”

Tim sighed and set down the cat food to hand over everything in his pockets. A glance back at Marinette confirmed she was doing the same --.

And then he stopped short. He turned more fully to look at their mugger and then started to laugh.

“I’ll… I’ll kill you!” Said the mugger, who was just a kid. They might not have even hit puberty yet.

“With a pocketknife?” Tim said.

Marinette turned around as well at that and a grin spread across her face. “Oh my gods, that’s so lame.”

“It’s Gotham, you gotta do better than that,” said Tim. He reached into his pockets and pulled out a butterfly knife. He handed it over. “Here, have this, at least. Christ, that’s terrible.”

The kid didn’t seem to know what to do about the fact that his would-be victims were laughing at her and apparently helping her mug people.

Marinette handed over everything except for the necklace Tim had given her. “Here, kid. And get a mask or something to hide your face, it’s not nearly dark enough in here for you to just go with a hood.”

“Oh, and here’s my address,” added Tim. He typed it into his phone -- damn, he should have brought more than a pager -- and then handed it over. “We always have a lot of extra food, so if you ever need it just knock on the window.”

“... thanks?” said their now adoptive kid (they didn’t make the rules, this kid was theirs now).

“Yeah, yeah, no problem. Can we go now? One of his siblings is coming over soon and he will start our show without us.”

“Uh… sure?”

~

Marinette sat on the kitchen island, squinting at the cast on her arm. Was it worth taking off for the sake of doing work? Maybe --.

Tim’s voice crackled through her ear and she perked up a little at the sound, smiling. He was talking, greeting guests it seemed. Right. He had a meeting today, Janet had mentioned it earlier that morning.

Marinette sighed a little at the reminder that, while she might not care about her broken arm, her boyfriend did. Yeah. Tim would probably be stressed if she took off her cast before the doctor said it was okay. She settled to lay back on the counter, head resting on her good arm, and stare at the ceiling as she listened to his voice...

Only to dart up when she felt a tap on her arm.

She looked over, eyes blown wide, and only relaxed slightly when she realized she recognized the person.

Adrien stood over her, arms crossed over his chest despite the glasses/miraculous he had hooked to the collar of his shirt, but he apparently wasn’t angry enough to not accept the usual kisses on both cheeks that Parisians did as greeting.

He said something that she couldn’t really understand with the part of her brain still concentrated on Tim explaining some sort of chart.

She sighed and reached a hand to her ear to turn off the bug. “Hey, can you repeat that?”

He didn’t. Instead he squinted at her ear suspiciously. “Does your ear hurt?”

“... no?” She said slowly, a little confused.

“Whatcha listening to?”

She paled. Shit. He was going to be pissed (or, at least, more pissed than he already was) if he found out that her supposed ‘stalking’ was getting worse. She needed an excuse.

“Uh, that one rapper, uh --.”

“BS. You don’t listen to rappers.”

He held a hand out and, reluctantly, she handed it over to him. She might as well get her murder over with.

He set it in his ear and, after a few attempts, turned it on. His face soured even more, somehow.

“This better not be who I think it is.”

She gave a tentative half-smile.

That was all the answer he needed. He grabbed her by the back of her shirt and started dragging her through the streets.

No one helped. Not that she expected them to, it was Gotham, but it was still a little hurtful.

Adrien stopped suddenly after a few minutes of walking.

“... wait… where’s his office?”

#ignore me i need to yell about my dentist appointment in the tags #so they let me watch movies in there right #well i sit down in the uncomfy ass chair and guess what #i watch an ENTIRE FUCKING MOVIE before they even come over #and then the people doing it dropped things in my fucking mouth #and then they had the AUDACITY to comment on the fact that i was shaking #like bitch youve cut my mouth three times already of course I'm scared #fucking dumbass #alright im done #stalker x stalker #AND ANOTHER THING #jkjk #maribat #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #tim drake #red robin #timinette #timari #timmari #shutterbug

[noladyme]

La Cuervo - Chapter 25

She is used to the biker-life, having grown into a woman in the familiar embrace of SAMCRO. A bad decision and a gun-shot later, she gets whisked off to Santo Padre, and put under the protection of another club. What is supposed to be a short stint in the Mayan headquarters just north of the border to Mexico, turns into something more; when la quervo begins to develop feelings for el angel - and he seems to return them in kind...

TW: violence, blood, drug use, alcohol, smut, fluff, angst

In the spirit of "The Crown Princess of Charming", this is a story about O.C. Nina and Angel Reyes. It is obviously non-canon, as characters who have passed on, on Mayans M.C., are present in it, and others have been excluded completely. Nina is written as a cis-female, but I have tried to keep her race and looks as ambiguous as possible. Should you find any of this story offensive, please let me know.

25.

After their middle of the night conversation and subsequent make-up sex, Nina and Angel got a few hours of sleep.

The sound of the birds in the tree outside, and a hard knocking on the front door, woke Nina up. Turning her head, she saw that Angel was still sound asleep, with Bug nuzzled up in the crook of his neck. Finding the sight too adorable to disturb, Nina quietly crawled out of bed, and put on her sleeping shorts, and one of Angel’s shirts. Putting a bit more weight on her pained leg than she’d been able to a few days earlier, she made her way to the front door, and looked out the peep hole; before opening.

“Good morning”, EZ said; holding up two paper cups of coffee. “He’s still sleeping”, Nina said, and moved so he could enter. “In the bed?”, EZ asked disbelievingly. “He told you…”, she muttered. “He’s my brother. He told me you guys weren’t doing so good… But, you’re better now?”. “We’re working on it”, Nina shrugged. “I’ll go get him, so you can give him that”. She nodded towards the coffee. “No, this is for you”. EZ held out a cup for her, and she took it confusedly.

She limped over to sit on the couch, and lit one of the cigarettes from Angel’s pack. Bug slipped out through the crack of the bedroom door, and when he saw EZ, he hissed. “What the hell is that?”, the prospect asked. “Bug… Her cat”, Angel grunted, as he came out after the cat; rubbing his eyes. He’d taken time to put on sweatpants and a beater. “Our cat”, Nina reiterated. “It looks… sick”, EZ said, giving Bug’s one and a half ear and skinny body a hesitant look. Angel walked over, and gave the cat a quick scratch behind the ears. “He’s a fighter”, he said, and went over to sit down next to Nina.

EZ sat down on the recliner, and looked down at his own coffee. “I would have gotten you one, but I didn’t know if you’d already left”, he muttered at Angel. “It’s good bro”, Angel said, and nabbed Nina’s cigarette. The prospect gave Nina a half smile. “It was kind of a peace-offering. You’ve been staying away from the clubhouse”. “I’m not mad at you”, Nina said. “I’m just… I don’t know if I’m ready to face Bishop and Taza”. “Taza hasn’t been around either”, Angel said. “You guys didn’t… He’s ok, right?”, Nina asked worriedly. She was angry, but she didn’t want Taza hurt. “We haven’t done anything to him… But we have a vote later today”, Angel said. “We need to decide whether he and Bish’ are keeping their posts”. “Why?”, Nina guffawed. “Because they went behind the club’s back; pulling that shit with you and Palo”, Angel said. “Bishop has stepped down temporarily, until we decide what to do. He’s been around, but Tranq’s taken the head of the table for now… He ain’t president material, though”. “And Taza?”, Nina said. “If we vote Bish’ back in, I’m guessing he’s gonna want him back as VP… If we let Taza come back at all”, Angel said.

EZ took a sip of his coffee, and leaned forwards; giving his brother a hesitant look. “Where do you stand on all that?”. Angel took a deep draw from the cigarette, and blew out the smoke while shaking his head. “I’m not sure, man…”, he admitted. “As prez’ and VP, I didn’t ever have a problem with them before. But they lied to the club… And this shit was personal to me. They put Nina in danger”. “You don’t have a problem with Taza being…”, EZ said, trailing off. “It’s called gay… homosexual… He likes men. You can say it”, Nina scolded him. “Yeah, I can say it…!”, EZ exclaimed. “It’s just one of those rules I’ve had trouble dealing with. I follow the club on a lot of things; but that…”. Nina gave him slight smile; happy that he felt like she did. “I don’t have a problem with that”, Angel shrugged. “No one should”.

Taking sip from the cup, Nina then traded Angel the coffee for the cigarette. She took a deep drag, before stubbing it out. “Well, it looks like you have stuff to do today”, she said. “I guess me and Bug will just hang out here”. The cat came over to brush against her good leg. He’d been good with leaving the pained one alone. “Hank wants you at the clubhouse…”, EZ muttered, giving her a hesitant look. “He sent me to get you… We didn’t know if you and Angel were talking”. Nina sighed. “I don’t know… EZ, all that shit that went down…”. “That’s why he wants you there”, EZ said. “He wants the club to hear your side, before they take the vote”.

Looking up to meet Angel’s eyes, Nina found nothing but warmth and support in them. “I’m not gonna make you do anything. It’s up to you, ma’”. She took the cup from him, and emptied it; before getting to her feet. “I’m gonna need more coffee…”, she grunted, and limped in to the bedroom to get dressed.

---

The scrapyard seemed like a completely different place to the last time Nina had been there. There was tension in the air, as EZ and Angel – with Nina behind him – rode up to the clubhouse. Chucky gave her slight wave from the front office, when they passed it.

Coco and Gilly came down from the porch to greet them as they arrived, and Nina gave both of them a warm hug. “Are you ok?”, she asked. “I know there was at least some fighting the other day…”. “We’re good, niña”, Coco said. “How’s the leg?”. “Much better”, Nina said. Letting Angel put his arm around her waist, they all walked up to the porch, and into the clubhouse together.

Inside, the rest of the charter – except for Taza – were spread throughout the room. Bishop sat alone by a table in the corner; and gave her short look. He almost looked embarrassed. Hank walked straight up to Nina, and put a hand on her shoulder. “Thanks for coming”, he said warmly. “We need your take on all this”. “I don’t know what you want me to say… I’m not happy about what happened”, Nina said. “We just need you to be honest”, Riz said, having come over to join them. “Shouldn’t come as a problem…”, Creeper muttered sarcastically, and stubbed out his cigarette. Nina frowned confusedly in his direction. “Where are we doing this?”, Angel asked. “Templo…”, Hank said. “And we should get to it. We got Reaper incoming soon”. Nina swallowed thickly. Being in the room with Bishop was hard enough, but having to face Filip was something she hadn’t been prepared for. “It’ll be ok, cuervo”, Angel said below his breath. The nickname struck her as odd at the moment, but Nina decided against challenging him on it; and simply let him lead her into templo. EZ stayed behind in the bar area, looking worried, and prepared for anything to happen.

Letting his hand brush against his usual chair, Hank went to sit at the head of the table. He looked very uncomfortable with his current station. “Please…”, he said, and gestured for Nina to take the seat at the other end of the table. The rest of the Mayans took to their own seats; with Bishop taking the one furthest from his regular seat. This meant he sat just around the corner of the table from Nina, making her unable to ignore him. Angel shot her a comforting smile, before looking to his temporary president.

Seemingly waiting for someone else to begin, Hank finally realized that was his job; and cleared his throat. “I guess… we should get started”, he said. “Nina; thanks for coming. I asked the prospect to bring you, because we have an important vote coming up; but we need to know what to base our decision on”. Riz let Hank out of his misery, by taking over. “We already heard from Bishop. He let us know that you weren’t aware of his and Taza’s decision to go behind our backs…” “Yeah, they behind our backs, but so did she…”, Creeper interrupted. He looked hard at Nina. “You might not have known the real plan, but you went against the club’s decision; and snuck off to do your own shit”. “Sure, but she’s not a member of the club”, Gilly said. “Pretty damn close”, Creeper said.

Angel looked at Creeper; the promise of a serious beating almost written in neon over his head. “What are you trying to say? You wanna punish her?”, he said. “I didn’t bring her here to get…”. “I’m just telling it like it is”, Creeper said. “Nina tricked me in to letting her sneak away”. Bishop chuckled slightly. “Maybe you shouldn’t be so easily tricked…”, he said. “Careful, Bishop”, Riz said. “You’re the one on trial here, and Creep isn’t wrong”. Nina threw up her hands, and sighed. “Why don’t you just get to it then. Punch me around, and degrade me to toilet-cleaner. I’ve been through much worse lately!”. “Everyone calm down!”, Hank said. “Nina, you did go against the club. You broke our trust…”. “At the time, you didn’t even know Bishop was in on it; so, on top of that, you went against the president’s direct orders”, Riz said. Creeper nodded in agreement.

“Ok”, Nina said. Every face at the table turned to her. “What? You wanted me to apologize? I was trying to save your asses”. “Technically, she did”, Coco said. He grabbed a cigarette from his back and lit it; before sliding both the pack and his lighter down the table to Nina. She took one of the smokes, and lit it; sending Coco a slight smile. “If we’d gone to war with VM… fuck”, Coco said, visibly shuddering. “We voted for war”, Creeper said. “You didn’t seem like that’s what you wanted at the time…”, Gilly said. “But that’s how this shit works!”, Creeper said. “This club is a democracy…”. “El Padrino was in on it”, Angel said. “At the end of the day…”. “He doesn’t call the shots here”, Riz said.

Nina took a deep drag of her cigarette. “Riz… I’m sorry you’re angry that I went against the club by going with Taza. I’m not gonna apologize for actually doing it, though. If the plan he told me about had worked out, it would have been the best move for your club. That’s a fact you can’t deny”. Unable to come up with a reply, Riz shrugged in something resembling agreement. “It didn’t work out, though”, Creeper said. “That’s not my fault”, Nina retorted. “And honestly, I think your butthurt mostly has to do with the fact that another woman managed to trick you”. “Nina…”, Angel said warily. Creeper’s expression grew saddened. “If you’re talking about Camille, you’re right. She got to me. But that was just a fling with a hangaround…”. His brows furrowed, and he shook his head defeatedly. “You’re family… You were supposed to have our back… My back. Not lie to me”. Nina swallowed thickly, feeling choked and ashamed. “You’re right… I’m sorry for lying. I don’t want you to feel like you can’t trust me anymore; but I understand it”. She sighed deeply. “I’ll take whatever punishment the club decides to give me”. “There won’t be no punishment”, Angel said. “If there is, I’m out of here”. “Angel!”, Nina exclaimed. “Nah, mami… They ain’t touching you”.

“We’re not going to punish Nina”, Hank declared. “She’s right. Taza’s fake plan would have been a good move; and she did what she did to help the club. She wasn’t a part of the official vote, and she’s not a patch. She doesn’t owe us to follow orders; and she didn’t owe us to try to help the way she did”. He looked deep into Nina’s eyes. “You risked your life for the MC… Thank you”. Angel relaxed in his seat. “I get what you’re saying, but…”, Creeper began. Hank slammed his fist into the table. He looked angrier than Nina had ever seen him; but then again, digging through her memories, she’d never seen him angry. “I’ll be happy to take it to a vote; but even with Angel stepping out for being biased, it still looks like punishment will be off the table”. Creeper raised his hands in defeat, and leaned back in his seat.

“If no one else has anything to say, then let’s get to why we’re here”, Hank said. “Nina, what’s your view on what happened the other day?”. Nina took another drag of her cigarette. “Taza called. He said he had a way of avoiding a full-blown war, and asked me to meet him; so we could go see Palo”. “Did you know he’d told Palo that he would hand you over?”, Riz asked. “Yes…”, Nina said, meeting Angel’s eyes for a short second. Anger ghosted his face, but he held his tongue. “He told me we’d be able to reason with Palo, and I thought so too. He seemed about to go for it as well, but… He said he wanted his pound of flesh; and that’s when they brought in Angel”. “Which wouldn’t have happened if…”, Bishop began. “Fuck you, Bish’!”, Angel said. “You ain’t president right now. I’d be happy to show you around the cage…”. “Angel!”, Hank said. “Nina, please…”. “Palo wanted me to shoot Angel, but Bishop and the rest of them arrived in time to…”. She couldn’t finish the sentence; feeling tears welling up. “Taza killed Palo, and that was it”, she finished, and wiped her eyes. “And how do you feel about being lied to about what the real plan was?”, Riz asked. “Come on, Riz…”, Coco said. “I’m not trying to stir shit up, man”, Riz said. “We asked her to come here, to tell us about her experience with all this”. “Yeah, but this ain’t Oprah”, Gilly said. “It’s fine… I’ll answer”, Nina said. “I feel like shit. My decision to go with Taza on this, was based on me not wanting anyone else to get hurt… But Sala was shot, and Palo’s neck was slit right in front of me”. She stubbed out her cigarette. “I might be safe from VM and Palo, but it came at the cost of even more lives… Daniella; Camille; Sala; Palo… Those were all because of me, and what I did to Gael in that alley two months ago…”.

Self-hatred washed over her, and she got her feet. “I don’t think you should punish Bishop, or kick Taza out of the MC… All of this is my fault. I’m sorry I came here and messed up your club”. Ignoring the pain in her leg, Nina stormed out of templo. EZ and Chucky – who’d come in to the clubhouse, while she was in templo – gave her confused looks, as she ran out of the clubhouse, and slammed the door shut behind her. She sat down on the stairs, and buried her face in her hands, letting her tears fall.

The door opened and closed behind her, and she looked up; confused to see Creeper sit down next to her. “This isn’t your fault, Nina”, he said. “I thought you were pissed at me…”. “I was… I am. But not because I think you’re to blame for all this. You worried me… us. Putting yourself in danger like that…”. He sighed deeply. “The thing about you going behind our backs… You’re a part of the family. I expected you to act like a patch; but that’s not fair. We won’t let you wear a cut, so I can’t assume that you’ll act like you are”. “I’m sorry for tricking you”, Nina croaked. “I should never have come here… You lost your president, your VP… You almost went in to full on war!”. Creeper put his arm around Nina’s shoulders. “We haven’t decided on Bishop and Taza yet”, he said. “And war with the Vatos has been under way for a long time. Even before you got here”.

Nina sighed, and looked intently at Creeper. “Don’t punish Bishop and Taza. Don’t take away their flashes”, she said. “They had to make a quick decision; and they wouldn’t have done it if they didn’t think they were doing what was best for the MC… Just because they’re leaders, doesn’t mean they’re infallible. Give them a chance”. Creeper narrowed his eyes at her. “I know Angel said you were smart; but that was almost sage wisdom”, he smirked. “Where do you get it from?”. Nina let out a soft laugh, and wiped her eyes. “I knew a guy who had to make a lot of hard decisions”, she said. “Some of them were really shitty, but they all came from a place of love for his club and his family”. Creeper pressed a kiss to her forehead; then got to his feet, and helped Nina up to stand. “I’ll tell them what you said”, he smiled. “But I won’t use words like infallible. I don’t think half of them know what that means”. There was the sound of glass shattering from inside the clubhouse. “You should get back inside. Gilly’s physically holding Angel down in there”.

He supported her weight back to the door, and opened it for her. Chucky was sweeping up a broken beer bottle, and Angel was struggling to get free from Gilly’s grasp on his arms. Nina walked over to him, and as Gilly let him free, Angel wrapped her into his arms. “Are you ok?”, he whispered into her ear. “Yeah… I’m ok”, Nina said. “He…?”. “We’re good. Really”. She got on her toes, and caught his lips in a warm kiss. “Go vote… Make good decisions”. Angel nodded, and stole another kiss from her, before following his brothers back in to templo.

Nina limped over to sit down by a table, and blew out a deep breath. After four days of hiding at the house, eating microwave dinners, and cursing her own inability to cook; she was overjoyed when EZ came over, and placed a Tupperware box in front of her. “Gaby?”, she asked with bated breath. “Uh huh”, EZ smiled. “I’m serious, Ezekiel. I will marry her myself, if you don’t!”. The prospect let out a warm laugh, and sat down next to her, producing two forks. Chucky came over with two cold cokes for them, before going over to count the chairs in the room, for some reason. “Chuck? What are you doing?”, EZ asked. “I need to make sure we have enough seats for the wedding”. Nina laughed, feeling herself brighten up slightly.

They were seated, eating straight out of the box, and trying to keep each other’s moods up, when the door opened, and Taza stepped inside; his cut hung over his arm. He nodded solemnly at them, and walked over to the ornate door of templo; seemingly taking a deep breath before stepping inside, and closing the door behind him again. “What do you think that means?”, Nina muttered. “I don’t know…”, EZ said. “Hopefully it’s good news”. He noticed Nina’s strained expression, and squeezed her shoulder. “Are you ok? I know you’re not happy about how things went down…”. Nina sighed. “You all keep telling me I’m family… But they forced me to be a part of something I was trying so hard to avoid. Is that how you treat kin?”. “If family doesn’t know what’s best for them, then maybe… yeah”, EZ said. “Palo wouldn’t have let you go. You’d be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life. Hurt feelings; you can get over shit like that. But death is kind of final”. “Maybe… But I wish they’d told me the truth”.

They sat in silence for a long moment. “Is you dad mad at me, for stealing his truck?”, Nina asked quietly. “You parked it by his shop. He was ok”, EZ replied. “Yeah, but…”. “Nina, you make Angel happy; and pap’ sees grandkids in his future”, EZ chuckled. “You can do no wrong in his eyes”. “I’m not pregnant!”. “Not for lack of my brother trying, I’m guessing”, EZ smirked. “We’re not having this conversation!”, Nina said. Ezekiel shrugged in surrender. “Just… If you do make me a tío, don’t let Angel name the baby”. “Why?”. “He named your cat Bug!”, EZ laughed. Nina punched his shoulder. “That was me…”, she pouted.

The door to templo opened, and Hank stepped out, giving them a warm smile. Bishop came out behind him, and they gave each other a warm and very masculine hug. “Thanks for taking the gavel when needed”, Bishop said. “Thanks for taking it back”, Hank smiled. “That chair is uncomfortable”. Nina couldn’t help but smile, and Bishop met her eyes; giving her a half smile in return.

The rest of the Mayans emerged from the room, with Taza coming out lastly; wearing his cut. Nina let out an audible, relieved gasp. Getting to her feet, Angel went over to support her. He let her lean against him, as she walked up to Bishop and Taza. “It looks like we have you to thank for keeping these flashes”, Bishop said. “I think we’ve got more than that to thank you for”, Taza smiled softly. Nina shook her head. “Just… trust your family with the truth in the future. It might be painful, but it’s the better way out”, she said. “Alright”, Bishop said. “Still; thank you…”. Nina grinned at him. “You’re fishing for a hug again, aren’t you…?”. “Yes he is”, Taza said.

Nina put her arms around the president, and hugged him tightly. He gave as good as he got, and turned to whisper in her ear. “I’m sorry, mija…”. “I forgive you”, she replied. Taza was next, and Nina gave him a short kiss on the cheek. “I forgive you too, Scarecrow”. Taza pulled back, and looked down at her. “I’m not that sharp on my Judy Garland, but I’m pretty sure the line is I’ll miss you the most… Are you going somewhere?”. “Nah”, Nina said, and looked around at the faces of her family. “There’s no place like home”.

There was a rumbling of bikes outside, and EZ looked out of the window. “SOA”, he said. Nina took Angel’s hand, and let herself be tucked into his side. “Better break out the Jameson”, she said. “Can’t Chibs drink anything else?”, Angel asked. Nina sighed. “It’s for me…”.

---

Happy, Tig and Rat came through the door, and made a beeline for Nina. It was a clusterhug, that ended with her having to waving her hands in the air, to be allowed to breathe. Once released from their grasp, Nina looked behind them with a confused expression. “Chibs?”, she said quietly. “Outside…”, Tig said. “Did you vote yet?”, Nina asked hesitantly. “What vote?”, Happy asked. “You think we’d take the chance to let Tiggy be president?”. Rat visibly shuddered, and Tig smacked the back of his head; making the younger biker let out a yelp. “We get why he did it”, Tig said. “We didn’t like it, but… He’s not the first SAMCRO president to make decisions behind the club’s back, to protect a family-member”. “That’s what he was doing. You know that”, Happy said. Nina sighed, and began moving towards the door. Rat grabbed her arm to halt her. “Rat, I’m sorry for tricking you, but…”, she began. “No… I get it”, he said. “I just wanted to say; don’t be too hard on him. He loves you”. Nina nodded, and went outside.

Filip was leaning against his bike, when she came down from the porch. “Hi…”, she said quietly. “Hello… I didn’t want to come inside, if you didn’t want me there”, Filip said. “It’s not my house”. “Yes, it is”, he smiled softly. Limping halfway over to him, Filip hurried over to grab Nina’s arm. “Is that leg not doing better?”, he asked. “Yeah. I’m just cutting down on the painkillers”, she said. “Good… That’s smart. But you shouldn’t overexert yourself”.

He led her over to lean against his bike. “How angry are you?”, he asked. “Very… You knew how I felt about the bloodshed… Too many people had died already”, Nina said. “But I understand why you did it. You were trying to protect me”. “I really was, luv’”, Filip sighed. “But it’s like you didn’t respect me enough to make me part of the plan”. “I respected you too much, Nina!”. Filip grabbed her hand, and held it tightly. “You’re too good for decisions like the ones we had to make that day… And what you said about Jax…”. “I shouldn’t have brought him up”, Nina said. “No, you were within your rights to”, Filip said. “But… I think he would have made the same decision, little sister. Anything to keep you safe”.

Sighing deeply, Nina pulled at Filip’s hand, to make him wrap his arms around her. She threw her own arms around his neck. “I love you, big brother…”, she croaked. “But don’t ever lie to me again, or I’ll stab you in the balls with a rusty screwdriver”. “That’s oddly specific”, Filip muttered. “I wanna make sure it’s extra painful”. “Fair enough”.

He kissed her temple, and together they made their way back to the clubhouse.

---

“That’s a long ass ride to take, just to come see me”, Nina said, as she sat on Angel’s lap, surrounded by her SAMCRO brothers. Apparently, the Mayan felt that they’d spent too much time apart in the last four days, and after she came back inside with Filip, he hadn’t left her side. “We never left”, Happy said. “We’ve been staying at Vicky’s… It’s quite comfortable there”, Filip smirked. “Venus good with that?”, Nina asked Tig. “We’ve been doing facetime”, Tig winked at her. “I don’t need any of Vicky’s girls, when I got a woman at home waiting for me”. “You thinking about putting a ring on that?”, Angel asked. “She wants to fully transition first”, Tig shrugged. “I told her, I don’t care, but it’s important to her”.

EZ came over with a tray of shots. “What’s this?”, Rat asked. “Mezcal”, EZ said, and shot a smirk at Nina. “In that case, I’m out”, she said. “Just plain old tequila, then?”, Creeper asked, and set down a full shot glass in front of her. Nina rolled her eyes, and picked up the glass; cheering with the bikers. “It is time for us to go, though”, Filip declared, once he’d finished his drink. “We have a business to run”. “Wouldn’t want the line in front of the shop get too long”, Angel smirked. “People need their ice-cream”. “We do milkshakes too”, Rat smiled brightly. The rest of the Sons laughed at their endearingly naïve brother, and got to their feet.

Saying goodbye was less melancholic this time around. Nina managed to avoid completely soaking Angel’s shirt, as she hid her face against his chest, after waving goodbye to her Charming brothers; when they drove off the lot. Chucky, on the other hand, had to take a few minutes to himself in the garage. Coco went after him, and they emerged moments later, with Chucky wiping his eyes, as Coco muttered encouraging words in his ear.

After they all went back inside, Bishop cleared his throat. “Yo. Listen up”, he barked. “It’s time to get back to business around here. We’ve got a few runs to prepare for, and the yard looks like shit”. “It’s a scrapyard, jefe”, Coco said. “It’s supposed to look that way”. “Let’s take the day off”, Taza said. “We can get back to it tomorrow”. Bishop grunted in agreement, and the Mayans all looked like excited frat boys. Creeper and Gilly got to work, calling in some hangarounds for an impromptu party.

Nina – tears dry, and peaceful at heart – got on her toes, and kissed Angel’s cheek. “You can stay… I’m not really in the mood for partying”, she muttered. Angel snaked an arm around her waist, and brushed his lips against his ear. “Nah… I’ll go with you. The only party I wanna go to, is in your panties”, he hummed. “You’re so eloquent”, Nina chuckled. “So elegant…”, Angel nodded, and squeezed her butt; before quietly leading her out the clubhouse.

---

“Ow!”. “Sorry, mami… Maybe try turning the other way”. “My hair is stuck in the handlebars…”. “There… You’re free”. “Someone might see!”. “No, we’re good… Fuck! Don’t stop moving like that”. “Ok, yeah… Wow… Angel, please…”. “Fuck, yes! Put your foot on the fender… That’s right. Take it!”. “I’m so close… Angel!”. “You gonna come?”. “Uh huh… Holy, shit… Harder!”. “Me too… You feel so good…”. “Yes!”. “Oh fuck… I’m coming…! Ahh… Shit, I love you…”. “Te amo, papi… Wow. That was…”. “Uh huh…! I can’t believe we pulled it off…”. “Yeah… Now we just gotta figure out how to get your bike out of the front door again”.

---

To be continued…

tags: @cole-winchester @doloreschanal

#angel reyes #angel reyes fic #angel reyes x oc #angel reyes smut #mayans mc #mayans mc fic #ex reyes #coco cruz #sons of anarchy

[thefloorisbalaclava]

pragma - part one

Pairing: Frankie “Catfish” Morales x Female reader

Warnings: none for this part

A/N: My brain wouldn’t let me rest until I started writing this story that’s been floating around my head for awhile. I hope someone likes it. And please let me know what you all think :)

Summary: Your lives took you in two different directions but when you meet again you realize time hasn’t done much to rid you of the feelings that once held everything together.

 pragma masterlist

The rain had been coming down in sheets the day you decided to go back to the place you had called home for eighteen years of your life. You swore you would never come back when you first left five years ago, but here you were—and nothing seemed to change. The house you grew up in was still standing and most of the mom and pop shops were still going strong—something that made you smile.

If anyone had asked why you left, you wouldn’t be sure what to tell them. The real reason was a childish one, now that you look back on it, but back then you were truly hurt. Now that you had lived through a marriage and were going through a divorce, you liked to believe you were stronger. You had done well for yourself and it wasn’t easy, but you always told yourself that relying on others was never an option.

You pulled into the parking lot of the small pub that you frequented with friends all those years ago. You wondered how they all were. The last you heard they were military men and that didn’t surprise you at all.

You got out of the car and turned on the alarm, cautiously eyeing the men who stared at you and your car in a way that made you suspicious. Yeah. It had been too long. That type of thing would have never bothered you back then.  

The bar was bustling—typical for a Friday evening, but you found yourself a table in the corner. You ordered a beer and took in your surroundings. Not much had changed except for the bartenders and the tables were nicer. You smiled when you thought of the time you and your buddies used fake IDs to get in and got found out immediately. It had always been you, Santiago, and…Frankie.

Frankie.

Now, we’ve come to the reason why you had avoided this place for so long. Yes. A fucking man. You had let a man get to you so badly that you ran far away and never looked back.

Until now.

Until now.

You sipped your beer and took out your phone to check your email. Most of them were from your divorce lawyer these days. You never knew it would be this hard to get a man to sign divorce papers. No matter how many meetings and mediations you two went through, he still found a reason to keep dragging this out. You didn’t want to think about how much money you spent over this these past few months. Just as you put your phone down on the table and put your head in your hands, someone called your name over the din of the bar. You searched for who it could have been but couldn’t find them until he called your name again.

“No fucking way!” he exclaimed as he made his way over to you.

“Santiago?!” You stood and he kissed your cheek before pulling you in for a long hug.

“Hermana…I can’t believe it’s you.” He held you at arm’s length and shook his head. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Just…visiting,” you said. Why were you there?

“How long has it been?” he asked.

“Too long. How have you been, Santiago?” You grabbed his hands and squeezed. You hadn’t realized how much you missed him until he was standing in front of you.

“I’m good.” His face said otherwise but you weren’t going to press it. He looked down at your hand, feeling the ring you still wore.

“Ah, look at that! My little hermana all grown up and married.”

“Eh…for now. What are you doing here?”

“Met up with Frankie for a few drinks.” You stiffened at the sound of his name. “Said he had to go to his truck for something…oh, there he is. Frankie!”

You couldn’t look up. Santiago still held your hands which kept you grounded for the most part but right now you wanted to run and hide.

“Look who I found,” Santiago said enthusiastically. Maybe he didn’t remember what happened all those years ago. But you hadn’t. You never would.

Frankie said your name and you finally looked up. “Hi,” he said awkwardly, putting his hands in his pockets. That hat. You got him that hat. He still wore it?

“Frankie…hey.” You forced yourself to smile though there were tears swimming in your eyes. Santiago had finally let your hands go and you grabbed your arm sheepishly. Frankie’s eyebrows shot up and you knew he had saw it—the ring.

“How you been?” he asked trying to look you in the eye but not being able to take his eye away from the rock on your finger. “Good it looks like.” He nodded at it.

“Oh…uh…yeah, I guess.” You tucked your hand into your jacket pocket.

“Let’s get a pitcher for the table.” Santiago walked away to order the beer and left you and Frankie standing there.

“How have you been?” you asked.

He shrugged and scratched at his scruff. “I’m okay.”

You sat back down but Frankie hovered until Santiago returned with the beer and glasses. “Cat, why are you just standing there? Sit down.” Santiago took the seat across from you, so Frankie was stuck sitting in the chair beside you.

“Santiago…”

“Why so formal?” he teased. “So, why didn’t we get an invite?” he asked as he passed you a glass of beer.

“Oh…um…it wasn’t a big thing…” That was a lie. It was a huge destination wedding.

“Maybe she was ashamed of us. Didn’t want us around all her new rich friends,” Frankie bit out. You rolled your eyes at him and drank your beer.

“You guys were all busy with your army stuff,” you said, and Frankie scoffed. “It doesn’t matter now anyway.”

“Well, are we ever gonna meet the guy?” Santiago asked.

“No.”

“Why? Are we not good enough?” Frankie snapped.

You turned and looked directly into his eyes. “Because I divorced him!” You stood and finished your beer before slamming the glass on the table and walking out. Your hands shook as you pulled your keys out and tried to press the button to turn the alarm off. The keys fell from your hands and you cursed loudly. As you bent to pick them up, you were met with a familiar pair of boots. You grabbed the keys and avoided his gaze as you stood.

“Look…I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” Frankie mumbled.

“No, you were too busy trying to make me feel bad,” you retorted. You shook your head and sniffled. “What happened to you, Frankie?”

“I don’t know. I guess I just wasn’t expecting the woman who broke my heart to show up today.”

You wanted to scream at him and call him every name under the sun but instead you calmly approached him then pulled on the bill of his cap.

“It was good seeing you, Frankie.” You turned away but he spoke again, stopping you in your tracks.

“Why’d you do it? Why’d you leave?” he asked. The rain had begun again as if it felt your sorrow.

Because of you, you wanted to say. Instead, you shook your head and smiled sadly. “I was getting nowhere staying here.”

“I thought about you every day…all those years,” he revealed. “You ever think of me?”

“Of course I did.” You lowered your head. “I should go.” You got in your car and started it as Frankie knocked on the window. You rolled it down and waited for him to speak.

“You gonna be around?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“Can I ask you something? Why do you still wear the ring if you’re divorced?”  

“I guess I just got used to wearing it.” You sighed before continuing. “And I’m not officially divorced yet,” you confessed.

“What does that mean?” He bent to stick his head in the window slightly.

“He won’t sign the papers,” you mumbled.

“Why not?”

You smiled then shrugged. “He loves me.”

“He’d be a damn fool if he didn’t.”  

You giggled shyly then reached into your pocket to pull out your phone. When you handed it to him, he looked at it then at you.

“Go on and put your number in.”

He smirked. “This is a little different than scribbling it down on a piece of paper and passing it around in class, huh?” He put his number in and handed the phone back.

“Yeah,” you laughed.  

“So…you better use it now that you have it,” he said pointing to the phone. “Even if it’s only for one of our late night/early morning talks. Remember those?” He smiled fondly.

“I was always getting in trouble for being on the phone with you…but it was worth it.” Something came over you and you touched his face gently. “You haven’t changed.” You still saw the boyish charm in his eyes that drew you to him in the first place.

“I changed a little…”

“Yeah, maybe the hair. And this scruff.” You pulled at it softly. “And look at that…someone’s a little grey,” you teased.

“Yeah, ha ha.” He pushed your hand away and rubbed at his beard.

“You guys should drop by some time. I’ll text you my address. It’s only about forty-five minutes away.”

“You’ve been forty-five minutes away this whole time?” he asked.

“Yup.”

“You gotta go like…right now?” There’s the Frankie you remembered. Not quite able to just say what he wanted to say.

“If you want me to stay a little longer just ask.”

“Alright. Stay a little longer, please? If you drink too much me and Pope will make sure you get home okay.” He stood up straight as you opened the car door.

“Just like old times.” You looked at him. “Speaking of old, I can’t believe you still have that cap.”

“I can’t believe it still fits my fuckin' head.” He held the door for you as you walked inside and headed back to the table where Santiago was still seated.

“What the hell were you two doing? I was ready to send a search party out.”  

“We were…catching up,” you said which was partly true.

“She asked for my number,” Frankie bragged. “I think she likes me.” You nudged him and you all laughed.

“Damn, I missed this,” Pope said.

You smiled at him then looked at Frankie. “Me too.”

****

After five pitchers of beer and a lot of conversation, you sat in the backseat of your car drunkenly listening to Frankie and Santiago argue about what they were doing.

“How the hell do you start this thing?” Frankie asked.

“It’s a push start…I think. Yeah…that button right there.” The car started and you laughed loudly. Both men looked back at you.

“Why do you have to drive such a fancy piece of shit?” Frankie complained.

“Oxymoron!” you exclaimed. “I think…”

“We taking her home?” Pope asked.

“I don’t know where she lives.” After some contemplation, Frankie spoke again. “She can, uh, she can stay with me. I got that empty room…”

You couldn’t keep your eyes open after that and gave into sleep.

You opened your eyes when you felt yourself being pulled then lifted. “Santiago?”

“It’s me. It’s Frankie.”

“Oh. You smell good.” You buried your face in his shirt as he carried you. “Are we home?”

“We’re at my place.” He struggled with getting his keys out and unlocking the door but refused to put you down.

“Why?” You suddenly remembered what happened the last time you were at his house years ago. You weren’t drunk though and there were a lot less clothes involved.

“You need to sleep this off. You can go home in the morning.” Once inside, Frankie carried you to the end of the hall and pushed the door open with his foot. “Here.” He laid you down and you held onto his hand.

“Are you gonna lay with me, Frankie?” He was tempted. God, was he tempted, but he shook his head and stood up straight.

“Not like this,” he said quietly. He covered you with a blanket and kissed your forehead. You reached up and scratched at his scruff. His eyes closed but he reluctantly pulled himself away. “Goodnight.” He waited until you fell asleep again before walking out of the room, leaving the door cracked just a bit. His dreams would be full of you tonight though he knew you wouldn’t dream of him.

But you did.

[two]

#Frankie Morales #frankie morales x reader #francisco 'catfish' morales #triple frontier #pedro pascal #headcanon #i dunno y'all lol

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

The Wedding Date (Part 3)

Summary: When the reader is in desperate need of a date to her sister’s wedding, she calls a service to fulfill the need and ends up meeting Dean Winchester…

Masterlist

Pairing: AU!Dean x reader

Word Count: 5,400ish

Warnings: language, family angst/drama, fluff

A/N: Enjoy the final part!...

_______

You woke up to Dean stretching in bed, his arms raised up overhead before he tucked them back in his chest and burrowed down in the blankets. He smiled at you and you rubbed your eyes, closing them again.

“Sleep good?” he asked.

“Yeah. I don’t really want to face the world just yet,” you said. 

“When’s the rest of the family get here?”

“Tomorrow people will start trickling in. I was supposed to have some girl’s day thing with my two sisters. I’d sort of rather jump in a vat of lava right now.”

“We can still go home if you want to,” he said.

“It’s still my sister’s wedding. I can’t ruin it,” you said. 

“Okay. Then let’s kick today in the ass and see if we can make it better than yesterday was,” he said. “We can make fun of your brothers at breakfast if you want.”

“Oh that does sound fun,” you laughed. Dean reached a hand up and ran it over your head. “Still hurt?”

“My hand? I told you I’m fine,” he said. “Just a little scratch.”

“I know you were scared last night,” you said. He stopped moving his hand and you turned your head. “I was scared.”

“Yeah it was scary,” he said quietly. “But I’m okay. I’m gonna shower quick before we get something to eat.”

“Okay. I’m gonna get dressed,” you said. Dean smiled and rolled out of bed, popping into the bathroom. You watched the door shut and sat up, running your hands over your face. 

At least you could try to face the day. Maybe if Dean was there today wouldn’t be as horrible as you imagined it’d be.

After a minute you got up and went to your bag, throwing on a pair of ripped jean shorts and a band tank top you normally wouldn’t be caught dead wearing in front of your family. You put your hair up in a bun as Dean walked out in his towel.

“I’m all set in the bathroom,” he said, standing in front of his bag, pulling out a few things. “Is today more casual?”

“Today I stop trying to impress my family,” you said.

“That’s my girl,” he said, giving you a big smile. “You still planning on going out with your sisters?”

“Yeah. I said some things last night to them both. I think facing just the two of them at once will be better than my whole family,” you said. “My brothers were going on some hike to get drunk with the guys. You were invited to go along on that.”

“I think I will,” he said.

“Don’t murder them please.”

“I won’t. But I can’t guarantee I keep my mouth shut and play nice the whole time. It doesn’t matter if you’re their half sister. Treating you like an outcast for a mistake your mom made was completely wrong. There’s a line between teasing older brother and being mean and they crossed it.”

“...I know. Go easy on Jason. He’s the only one that was willing to tell the truth. He’s the one that dragged me inside last night and came to check on me,” you said. “I’ll uh, be ready to go in a minute.”

“Take your time.”

You slipped into the bathroom to finish getting ready, exiting a few minutes later to see Dean in a short sleeve henley and a pair of black shorts, a baseball hat on his head. You were both quiet as you headed down stairs, Dean taking leaning back against the elevator wall as you rode it down.

“We going to talk about last night?” he asked.

“I thought we already did.”

“I mean the me kissing you thing.”

“What’s to talk about?” you asked. He straightened up and you watched the doors open. He moved to leave but you grabbed his hand. “I didn’t say I didn’t like it. If something happens, it happens.”

“Alright,” he said. He had a big smirk on his face before he kissed you, humming as he pulled you after him out to the hall. “So where’s breakfast?”

“Dining...room,” you said, shaking your head at him.

“Take your breath away?” he teased.

“Oh, don’t get cocky, Winchester,” you said, slapping his shoulder. He hummed, chuckling when he caught the smile on your face. It was wiped away though when you walked into the dining area and you saw a few family members sitting at a table off to the side. You swallowed and went to the opposite side of the restaurant, your dad coming over after you’d ordered.

“Morning, sweetie,” he said. “Dean.”

“Mr. Y/L/N,” said Dean.

“How’re you doing?” he asked you.

“I’m just dandy,” you said. 

“Your sister doesn’t want you to feel uncomfortable. If you don’t want to be part of the wedding anymore, she says that’s okay. She won’t make you stay if you don’t want to,” he said.

“I guess now that the cats out of the bag, no need to even pretend anymore, right? That’s fine. If she doesn’t want me here, if any of you don’t, then I’m gone. But I’m staying gone,” you said. 

“Y/N she doesn’t want you gone,” he said. “No one does.”

“Yes they do. You know they were mean to me as a kid. You didn’t care. I don’t blame you. I’m not even yours,” you said as you stood up. “Dean, I think maybe we should get breakfast on the road home. Tell people whatever you want, dad. Obviously this is already a thing and it’s Lauren’s wedding. Let her have what she wants.”

You brushed past him, not even waiting for Dean. A moment later you were back in your room and finishing up with your bags, Dean slipping inside with a cautious look.

“What.”

“I think you need to decide if you want to cut off your family for good or not because the vibe I was getting in that room, if you leave this wedding, they won’t forget that and you’ll never be close to them again. It might be there but it’ll always be in the back of their minds that you doubt them and the back of yours that they don’t want you.”

“What does that mean?” you sighed.

“It means maybe the assholes love you. My father can be a bastard, king of the assholes. His heart attack and life choices are the reason I’m standing here in this room. I’ve spent a lot of time angry at him for that. But I love him and he loves me. I think for the first time they know that they hurt you all these years. Giving them a chance is up to you but this morning in bed, you sounded like you were willing to give them that. So give it to them.”

“...how’d you forgive him?” you asked.

“He didn’t ask to almost die. I remember how scared I was that night. Last night your family tried to protect you from what they thought was danger. Somewhere under the snide comments, there’s the real deal,” he said.

“I’ll give them a chance,” you said. “Come on. Let’s go see if our breakfast is still there.”

“You sure you don’t want me to go with you?” asked Dean as you saw your sisters in the lobby after your meal, the two of them staring at you.

“It’s a girls day. I’ll be okay. If I’m not, I’ll text you that I want to get the hell out of here,” you said.

“Okay. You’ll be alright,” he said, giving your hand a squeeze before you headed over to them. You swallowed, Lauren and Aria sharing a look.

“Is there a problem?” you asked.

“No,” said Lauren quickly. 

“We were thinking of ditching the girls day thing,” she said.

“Oh,” you said, crossing your arms and kicking at the ground.

“If you still want to we totally can,” said Lauren. “Whatever you want, Y/N. Promise.”

You stared at her, watching her force a smile on her face.

“If you want me to go home, just tell me,” you said. She was already shaking her head, giving Aria a quick look that made your oldest sister sigh.

“Let’s just go to the pool and get drunk,” she said. She grabbed both of your hands and started pulling you along, Dean giving you a small wave as you left. She released you when you followed Lauren and stuck your feet in the pool, Aria leaving for a moment and coming back with three very fruity looking drinks. 

You sipped at yours, watching Lauren nearly knock the whole thing back. You raised an eyebrow as Aria sat on your other side.

“What is this?” you asked.

“I’m sorry,” said Lauren. You turned your head and she was already crying. “I didn’t know I did that to you. I didn’t…”

“Lauren had an eating disorder too,” said Aria quietly. “We talked last night. It was around the time she had hers that we think you got yours.”

“I just thought...no one would notice I wasn’t eating if I wasn’t the only one so I said shitty stuff and then you wouldn’t do it too and mom and dad never said anything,” she said, her shoulders tarting to shake. “I’m sorry. I know how horrible it is. I’m sorry, Y/N. I don’t-”

“Lauren,” you said. “Calm down.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, wiping her face off and keeping her head low. You stared across the pool, Aria leaning back.

“I’m sorry too,” said Aria after a beat. “I’m sorry I ruined relationships for you and I’m sorry that you felt like you had to hire a guy for a stupid wedding. No offense, Laur.”

“S’fine,” she mumbled.

“Why were you always so mean to me?” you asked quietly.

“You know how last night we said there was an incident when you were little,” said Aria.

“Mom and dad said not to talk about it,” said Lauren.

“Talk about what?” you asked.

“When you were three, the rest of us...we were all 10 to 18 years old. Things had been a little funny since mom was pregnant with you. She and dad seemed off but we never talked about it. You guys were out of town. Mom and dad took you to disney, remember?”

“Kinda. Did something happen there?” you asked.

“It happened at home,” said Lauren, glancing over to Aria.

“A man broke in the house looking for you. Jason and I tried to get him out but he hit Jason and then me. Lauren and Brent made it upstairs but he found them. He had us all sit down in the living room and wanted to know where you were. Jason didn’t want to tell him. Something was wrong with the guy. But he said some things, this guy did, about what he’d do to us. Jason said no again and-”

“He got the shit beat out of him, right in front of us,” said Lauren. 

“I told him where you were,” said Aria. “He left after that. Jason was in the hospital a few days. I figured you were safe with mom and dad all the way down there with all those people. Jason was the biggest and toughest out of all of us. If he didn’t stand a chance against the guy, none of us did. So we got scared and we’d been threatened and Jason nearly died, all because of you. It’s not why it happened but we were stupid kids. We’ve always thought he might come back someday.”

“I get it now,” you said quietly.

“Doesn’t make it right,” said Aria. “I was sixteen. You were three. I threw you under the bus and we all talked shit about how that wouldn’t have happened to us if it weren’t for you. When mom and dad told us the truth about that guy being your dad, it was fuel on the fire.”

“You were still kids,” you said, kicking your feet in the water some. “He ever come back?”

“We don’t know. We all had some weird stuff happen to us but we can’t be sure,” said Aria.

“You’re quiet,” you said to Lauren.

“I don’t like to think about that night,” she said. “Jason was in bad shape.”

“He was trying to protect her, Lauren,” said Aria. “He’s the only one that ever has. We’re just assholes. He’s always been the one stuck in between.”

“This guy hurt you too?” you asked. Aria shrugged and you sat back.

“It sorta felt like that time I got hit in the face with a volleyball during a game. It was a long time ago. Like I said, it doesn’t matter. We just...we fucked up, Y/N. It was never your fault. The longer it went on, the easier it got to be that way,” said Aria.

“Do you guys hate me?” you asked.

“No. I hate how I’ve acted but not you. We bullied our kid sister because we were scared. It’s never been because we hate you,” she said. You turned towards Lauren, her head still hanging low.

“I don’t know when I got it in my head that everything that went wrong was your fault but that’s what happened. Last night...I guess I realized what a horrible human being I am,” she said. “I mean you freaking hired a guy to be your date and I made that stupid mean teasing comment and I knew it’d piss you off and-”

“Lauren,” said Aria. “Babbling again.”

“I know. I’m sorry,” she said. “I don’t hate you, Y/N. I really do want you to be one of my bridesmaids. I do.”

“S’not alright,” you said, turning your head, looking at them both. “But I’m willing to give you guys a second chance. I’d like to have sisters for once.”

“We don’t deserve a chance,” said Lauren.

“Hey. I’m the self-depreciator, not you,” you said, bumping her shoulder. “I’m sorry that stuff happened. I’m not going to be over it all in one day or one week but you guys are my sisters, even if it’s only half.”

“Okay,” she said.

“Sounds good,” said Aria, finishing off her drink. “Is that Dean guy sticking around?”

“He’s cute,” said Lauren. “And super into you.”

“I think he has a crush,” said Aria.

“It’s gotten complicated,” you said, rubbing the back of your neck. “Obviously I hired him to pretend but yesterday we spent the day talking a lot and then last night we got drunk and he kissed me but he did it again this morning so I don’t know. He’s kinda the one that encouraged me to try and make up with you guys.”

“Well he’s head over heels so I wouldn’t worry about him running off,” said Aria.

“His butt is cute too,” said Lauren. Aria reached around you and whacked her.

“I mean, she’s not wrong. I saw him in just a towel this morning,” you said.

“Lucky you,” said Aria with a smirk. “You see him without the towel too?”

“No! I am so not ready for that. We’re just...going slow with whatever this even is. It’s so weird,” you said.

“Oh, it’s not that weird, right, Lauren?” teased Aria. Lauren’s face started to blush and you raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t you tell Y/N how you and Calvin really met, hm?”

“I take it that it wasn’t at that fundraiser?” you asked.

“He worked at a strip club,” she said. You stared at her, a smile growing on your face. “Oh my God. I don’t like, go to those places. It was for a bachorelette party and he was the guy and there was a definite vibe between us but he steered clear and I steered clear and I had to pay him when he was leaving and I needed a date for that stupid gala mom and dad hosted and I blurted it out and paid him and then after that he made fun of me for doing that but like in a nice way and we went on a real date and I found out he was doing that to pay off his student loan for med school and-”

“You really do ramble a lot,” you said.

“I know!” said Aria, a big laugh coming from her. “So I guess you’re not the only one to meet someone unconventionally.”

“It’s been a day, let’s slow it down,” you said.

“Think he’s going to get along with the boys today?” asked Lauren.

“Honestly, I have no idea.”

“Hey,” you said, spotting Dean come back to the room around dinnertime. He gave you a smile and kicked off his sneakers.

“Hey. You look like today went better,” he said.

“It did. I found out some things now that things aren’t so heated. It’s gonna take time but I think you were right. They didn’t hate me,” you said.

“Good. I got that feeling from your brothers today. They seemed pretty worried, Jason especially,” he said.

“I need to talk to him,” you said.

“I need a shower anyways. I’ll meet you downstairs for dinner when I’m done?” he asked.

“Sounds good. I think steak is on the menu tonight. I asked the guys in the kitchen if they could make a pie for dessert too,” you said.

“I can get behind that,” he said. “I’ll see you in a few.”

You slipped out of the room and outside, finding Jason in one of the dining table chairs drinking a beer.

“Hi,” you said. He spun around in his seat and gave you a smile. “Can I join you?”

“Sure. I was going to have dinner out here with the girls. Maddie doesn’t want to wear her dress,” he said.

“She’s four. Let her wear what she wants,” you said.

“I know,” he said as you sat down next to him. “Dean seems like a good guy. He seemed pretty adamant that he’s your friend, maybe boyfriend. He’s not sure yet about that.”

“He go easy on you today?” you asked.

“He was pretty quiet this morning but he eased up some. He was angry with us at first,” he said.

“I talked to Aria and Lauren today, found out some stuff,” you said. He sighed and offered you his beer, letting you take a long drink before you handed it back. “Are you okay?”

“It was a long time ago, Y/N. I’m fine,” he said.

“Why didn’t you just tell the guy what he wanted to know?” you said. 

“Because I didn’t know anything. We didn’t know what was going on. When some crazy guy breaks in your house demanding to know where your 3 year old kid sister is, you think a lot of bad shit. He said a lot of bad shit. There wasn’t really a decision, Y/N, not to me.”

“They said it was real bad.”

“Y/N-”

“No more lies. Tell me the truth.”

“I was in the ICU for two days and then a normal room for four more,” he said. “Yeah, the guy probably would have killed me if Ari didn’t say anything.”

“Why didn’t you say anything you dumbass?”

“Because I’m the big brother, dumbass,” he said, giving you a hard look. “He would have hurt you. My baby sister. I was living it and feeling it. There was no way I ever was going to say hey, this is too much for me, why don’t you go take it out on her. No, Y/N, that wasn’t going to happen. Period. Aria did what she had to and looked out for the rest of them when I couldn’t.”

“Thanks,” you said. 

“Last night...I thought he was back. I knew Nancy would get the girls but you were just...walking straight out there for your damn boyfriend and all I could think was no way in Hell was he getting ahold of you after all these years.”

“Where is he?” you asked. “Shouldn’t he have gotten in trouble?”

“He did. He got twenty five years. He was let out about five ago for good behavior. We all have had odd things happen. We knew he was back. Why do you think dad likes that you live in a little middle of nowhere town with no job, no bills, no nothing to tie you there? It’s safe,” he said.

“Safe would have been telling me the truth,” you said.

“Yeah. I know,” he said. He was quiet as you tucked your feet up onto the chair. He rested his head on your shoulder and looked up at you. “Forgive me for being the worst older brother ever?”

“You are not the worst older brother ever, Jason. You tried to protect me. Even when you were scared. I forgive you if it makes you feel better but honestly, I just want to have real siblings again,” you said.

“I think we’d like that too,” he said. “Would you be willing to have dinner with us tonight?”

“Yeah, I think that could be arranged.”

“We’re heading up,” said Brent late that night, Peter pulling him back towards the resort. “Night.”

“Night guys,” you said. You and Dean looked at one another, your parents still quiet on the other side of the fire pit like they’d been all night. “You guys going to talk to me ever again or what?”

“This morning didn’t go so well. We thought you might want your space,” said your dad.

“What I want is to be part of this family. I know the truth now and guess what, the world didn’t end. So what if mom cheated? That is a problem for the two of you to work out and since it’s been years, I’m guessing you did. What I want to know is if I’m still in danger,” you said.

“There’s always a chance,” said your mom. “I didn’t realize how crazy this man was when we had our very brief affair.”

“Did you tell him you were pregnant?” asked Dean. 

“No. I was keeping my family together.”

“Did it never cross your mind that maybe he was angry you hid the fact he had a daughter and he never knew? That he never got to see her? He had a right to see her back then,” said Dean.

“Oh,” said Dan to himself on your other side. “Oh, that makes sense now.”

“What does?” asked your mom.

“He thought you stole her. He said a bunch of stuff that night. We thought he was nuts. But he said stuff about you giving her away, hiding her from the world, getting rid of her. He thought you’d made her disappear. It’s why he was so angry and snapped at Jason. He thought we all were a part of it,” said Dan.

“He nearly killed your brother,” said your dad.

“You guys weren’t there,” said Jason. “It actually makes a lot of sense now. I have two little girls and if someone hurt my kids, yeah, I’d lose it and go beat the shit out of someone too.”

“He’s violent and dangerous,” said your mom.

“He’s also my birth father,” you said. “I think Dean and I had a long day and we’re going to go up too.”

“Night,” said your brothers. You sighed as you walked back up the path with Dean, his arm going around you before he kissed the top of your head.

“Your family is bat-shit crazy you do realize, right?” he teased.

“Yeah, I do,” you said. “I kinda like ‘em though. Do you want to get some food for the room and watch a movie or something?”

“Yeah, I’d like that, sweetheart,” he said.

You wrapped your arm around his waist as you walked inside, the two of you heading back into the kitchen. One of the workers was back there, working on some kind of dessert from the looks of it.

“Hi, can we order something up to our room?” you asked. He glanced over his shoulder and stared at you, a long look before he turned away.

“Of course, Ms. Y/L/N. What would you like?” he asked, returning to the batter he was working on.

“Are those gonna be brownies cause that looks good,” said Dean.

“Two ice cream brownie sundaes?” you asked. “And some cheese fries?”

“Sure. I’ll have that ready in about forty minutes,” he said.

“Hey, can I ask you something?” asked Dean. “We can take a bottle of something up to our room, right?”

“Of course. We’ll put it on the room’s tab,” he said, keeping his back to you both.

“Buddy, you might be fooling these people but not me,” said Dean. “I saw an older picture of you today from one of her brothers. I was told to keep an eye out. Different hair and color and the beard is a good touch but I can tell the difference.”

He stopped stirring the batter and looked at you both, staring at you.

“I never meant to hurt the boy,” he said, shutting his eyes. “I thought he knew what they’d done with her. They made it sound like they’d gotten rid of her.”

“What is going on?” you asked.

“Y/N,” said Dean, waving his hand. “This man is your biological father.”

“You nearly killed my brother,” you said. 

“I know,” he said. “All I have ever wanted was for my daughter to be safe. I thought they’d hurt you or dumped you somewhere and never told me. You were my daughter. So I got angry and made a mistake. I paid for it. Maybe I snuck into your siblings homes a few times and looked through a few papers to get your address but that’s all. I wanted to see you. Eventually I did. I saw you in that cafe you go to sometimes on the main street. I was going to leave you alone. I was never going to bother anyone again. I didn’t want to ruin your life. I just wanted to see you every so often. It’s why I got a job at one of the resorts. I thought, maybe I could have a few seconds here or there and you’d never know.”

“Dean, what do you think?” you asked.

“I think your father had a lapse in judgement years ago and he served his time for it. Ultimately, I think it’s going to be your brother’s call but I do know that last night he was the guy that came outside to help me,” said Dean. “I think if he wanted to do something, he would have.”

“You terrified my siblings,” you said.

“I know,” he said. “I can disappear if you want.”

“...They’re still afraid of you. I think it’s time they stopped being that,” you said. “You and I, we can work on us. Slowly. But I will give you a chance.”

“I don’t want to upset anything with your family,” he said.

“A little late for that considering this week so far,” said Dean. 

“What he means is, if you want to be part of my life, we can do that, no matter what they say,” you said. “They made mistakes too.”

“Thank you,” he said. “You grew up beautifully. I think that’s your mother’s genes.”

“I can see some of you in her,” said Dean with a friendly smile. “Y/N, do you want to save this for the morning or now?”

“I think he’s waited long enough,” you said. “Come on. Let’s go figure this out.”

“Sweetheart,” hummed Dean the next afternoon from where he lay beside you on the diving dock out on the lake. “I may or may not be seeing things but I think Jason just gave your birth dad a smile over there.”

“Everyone in this family could have avoided so much if they just talked and got things out in the open,” you said, closing your eyes behind your sunglasses.

“Agreed,” he said, propping himself up, a shadow falling over your face. Your eyes flickered open as your shades were taken off of you, Dean tilting his head at you. “You know, we have this clause in our contracts for the company I work for. If you have feelings, you’re supposed to decline any job offer. I sorta broke that one immediately. I went after you at the cafe cause I liked you, Y/N and I didn’t want you to go yet. It sort of hit me out of nowhere.”

“What are you saying?” you asked.

“I’m saying maybe I should do what your insane family never has and tell the truth. I really like you and I’m returning the money you paid me. We don’t have a contract anymore. I’m only here because my friend asked me to be her date to her sister’s wedding. It’s that simple now,” he said.

“I’m not taking the money back,” you said. “I am perfectly happy with the date though.”

“Y/N.”

“Dean.”

“It’s a lot of money and I’m not a charity case,” he said.

“I know you like working on cars. Why don’t we call it a business investment and I will match what I gave you to a local charity that teaches kids technical skills after school to prepare them for the job market,” you said.

“Oh, that’s sneaky.”

“You hate the business stuff and business stuff is in my blood. It could be fun. Local small business signed up with a charity could really boost your revenue...maybe get you enough money to go to a Yankees game or two,” you said.

“Is this a take it or leave it deal?”

“No,” you said. “Just want to help my new boyfriend and maybe some kids.”

“...Fine,” he groaned, laying on top of you. You giggled and he rolled over, kissing you slowly. “Excited to have dinner with your dad tonight?”

“Yeah. Nervous. I know they’ll never all completely get along but no one was perfect in that situation. You’re coming with me, right?” you asked.

“Of course. Not leaving you alone just yet,” he said, wincing at his hand before he sat upright. You followed him up, taking his bruised hand and giving it a kiss. “Maybe it’s a little sore still.”

You kissed it again and he smirked.

“I’m really glad you came with me, Dean.”

“Me too,” he said. “The rest of your family isn’t this fucking nuts though, right?”

“Oh, wait until you meet my Uncle Ben,” you laughed.

“You’re lucky you’re cute, sweetheart,” he said, kissing the tip of your nose. “Want to go for a swim and cool off?”

“After you, Winchester.”

_______

#supernatural #spn #dean x reader #dean winchester #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester x reader #dean #winchester #dean spn #au

[abalonetea]

Just Keep Breathing: Chapter Two

I was partnered with @the-dot for the @originalfictionbigbang​! Thank you for working with me, Dot!

Here is the first chapter! I’ve split the first 10k words between four chapters, and will be posting them all in a masterpost in just a moment!

Summary: It’s the height of storm season and everyone in Hi-Banks, Florida is getting ready for the bad weather. It should be a year like any other - but on the tails of a national pandemic, a new disaster strikes. More than one new disasters. So many disasters that Eddie Carver would like to put some of them back, thanks. He’s just a down on his luck guy living in the local trailer park with his boyfriend. He’s not interested in dealing with the revival of an old murder case - which he knows nothing about, thanks -, the storm season of the century, or…zombies?

Yeah. Absolutely not interested in the zombies.

This black-comedy follows the inner workings of a small town as they band together to survive, and the young man - reckless, mean, angry, written off b the big city folk come to look into a cold case - that might hold all of societies survival in his hands.

Forget about society.Eddie’s only interested in keeping his friends alive.

Chapter Two – The Hunt Shop

The Mason family has owned a bait and tackle shop out on the north edge of Hi Banks for almost a solid four generations. It’s a good twenty minute walk from the trailer park, which isn’t that bad when it’s not also pouring down rain. As it stands, they’re both soaked by the time they hit the long dirt road that winds towards it. The sides are pitted out from constant tire tracks, turned into thick puddles of standing water and mud.

The rain lets up to a light drizzle, but it’s too late for that to be helpful. Eddie makes a point of splashing his feet in as many of the puddles as he can.

Carson’s the one who calls out, “truck,” when twin headlights appear in the distance. It’s got a massive dent on the passenger side and the fender looks like it’s held on with duck tape.

Lincoln Wiltshire, the deputy, pulls over. He’s a tall, skinny man with a hooked nose and a scar on the side of his neck. Every time he’s asked, Lincoln tells a different story about how he got that scar. Eddie’s pretty sure it’s something mundane and stupid, like a fishing accident.

“You boys having trouble?” Lincoln asks, rolling down his window and half leaning out it.

“Truck still won’t run,” says Carson. “We’re stuck hoofing it everywhere.”

“And the power’s out at the trailer park,” adds Eddie.

“Shit, already? I was hoping it might stay on a while longer.” Lincoln scratches at his side burns. “Wonder if it’s out where I live, too.”

“Store had power last time I was there,” says Eddie. There’s no need to specify. Everyone just calls it The Store.

Carson asks, “you coming from Red’s?”

“Was getting some more shells.” Lincoln gestures at the brown paper bag in his passenger seat. “I wouldn’t hold my breath on anything with him today, boys. He’s in a rotten mood.”

“Eh, we’ll take the risk. I want something hot to eat tonight, you know?” Eddie says “Shit. You think he might have some of that soup still?”

“Maybe,” says Carson. And then, to Lincoln, “can you do me a favor? I was only at the docks for like an hour earlier, but Clancy didn’t show up.”

Lincoln frowns. “Now that ain’t like him.”

“No, it’s not. He’s always there, doesn’t matter the weather,” says Carson. “Figure maybe you could swing by his place, see if he’s...I dunno. Gotten into something.”

“Sure, sure, I’ll do that before I go home. Thanks for the heads up, Carson. You two stay out of trouble now, you hear me? I don’t want to get any calls out there.”

“That wasn’t our fault!”

“I don’t care who starts the fight, I’m the one that has to pull pants on to come finish it. I’m looking to not leave the house again tonight, so. Behave.” Lincoln jabs a bony finger at them.

Carson rolls his eyes. “Whatever.”

Eddie parrots, “yeah, man, whatever.”

“Maggots, the both of you,” huffs Lincoln, but he makes sure to pull away slowly so as not to splash them in muck.

They get about ten steps before Eddie asks, “so, uh, you worried about him?”

“I mean, yeah. Sort of.”

“Ain’t he a jerk?”

“Sure. But like, not all the time. And it’s weird. He’s always at the docks. Like, I’ve NEVER not seen him at the docks, Eddie. I dunno. I’ve just got a bad feeling about this.” Carson shrugs.

Maybe it makes Eddie a worse person, but he’s not too concerned about Clancy one way or the other.  The guy has a mean streak the size of the Grand Canyon, and a habit for acting like he’s the boss down at the docks. He’s not, clearly, but the guy has been working there forever at this point, so everyone mostly just ignores it.

Silence falls over them. The sloshing of Eddie’s boots is the only thing between them, until the shoddy looking wood building of The Hunt Shop comes into view. There’s a massive concrete raccoon statue out front. It gets decorated every time a holiday comes around. Right now, it’s got a massive yellow tarp wrapped around it in lieu of a rain coat.

The front door is propped open, the heavy twanging bass of the radio thudding out. Eddie ducks in first, glancing around.

For the most part, the hunt shop hasn’t really changed in...well, ever. There’s an old singing bass above the gun rack, and a mounted deer head on the wall just behind the front counter. Red is stretched out on a chair behind it, booted foot flung up onto the counter next to the register and an open can of beer.

“Lincoln was right,” says Eddie. “You look pissy.”

“Ey, if it ain’t my favorite scarecrow.” Red thunks his boot back down onto the floor. “Lemme guess, the power’s out.”

Eddie finger snaps at him. “Bingo!”

Carson stomps in just behind him. “Cat broke our damn window.”

“A cat?” Red snorts. “You know, I think you might have worse luck than I do.”

Eddie hops up onto the counter, next to the register. He helps himself to the open, half-warm beer. “Lincoln says you’re in a pissy mood. What’s up?”

“Ugh. This damned weather,” says Red. He uses his foot to push the wheeled chair away from the counter, and then spin around so he can slap a hand against the calendar hanging up behind him. “Look at this. I’ve got two days, and then I’m supposed to be going on my hunting trip.”

“Damn, is it that time already?” Eddie passes the mostly empty can to Carson.

Carson rolls his eyes. “Thanks.” And then, “isn’t that storm supposed to hit this weekend?”

“I’m thinking about just hunkering down out there,” says Red.

“That’s stupid,” says Eddie.

Red slaps the calendar again. “I’ve never missed a trip. I’m not gonna let it get passed over because of some rain. It’s, what, a cat two? I’ve spent worse storms out on the swamp. I figure there’s no power out there anyway, so what would I be missing?”

“The sun,” says Eddie.

At the same time, Carson says, “the hunting.”

Red scowls at them both. “Neither of you know the meaning of the word fun, you know that? I swear, I don’t know when you guys got so boring.”

“Around the same time we started dying from hunger,” quips Eddie.

“Fine, fine, we’ll go get something to eat. C’mon. I was gonna close up anyway.” Red hauls himself out of the chair and around the counter. He leads the way out of the shop – Carson closing the door behind them when he brings up the tail – and around to the back of the building where his camper’s parked.

The radio is already on inside, a woman’s voice, “and as if the predicted overly active storm season isn’t enough, we’re having more and more cases of this unknown virus showing up. We actually have managed to get an interview with Charlie Santero, the governor of Florida, where we get his personal thoughts on the situation.”

“Ugh, shut that off. I hate that guy,” says Red.

Eddie slaps the radio off. “So, food?”

“Chili,” answers Red. He grabs a bowl out of the fridge and shoves it into the microwave.

“Gross,” says Carson.

Red flips him off. “You’re the ones that came over.”

The microwave beeps. Red pulls it out and tosses it onto the little table on the other side of the kitchenette. He grabs three spoons and drops them down, too.

“Alright. Dinner’s served.”

* * *

It’s dark by the time they leave Red’s, all three of them loading up into Red’s old wood backed pickup. They roll the windows down, letting the stiff Florida air into cab.

Eddie sits on the far end, arm flung out so the mosquitoes slap into it as they rush past. “So, think we’re gonna get hit bad this summer?”

Red groans. “Do we have to talk about the storms? I’m trying to think happy thoughts about this week.”

Carson says, “I’ll check up on the shop for you.”

The tires catch in one of the ruts, splashing mud up onto Eddie’s hand. “Gross.” He pulls it in, wiping his palm off on his shorts. “I’m thinking it’s gonna be a small one. Just because it’s always small when the people on the radio talk about it. They’re always wrong and stuff.”

Red whacks the back of one hand against Carson’s shoulder. “Smack him for me, will ya? You’re gonna jinx my trip if you keep talking like that, scarecrow.”

Carson shoves at the back of Eddie’s head, pushing hair into his face. “Don’t jinx him.”

“Ow!” Eddie rubs over dramatically at the back of his head. “Fine, fine, I won’t – hey, knock it off already!”

They pull all the way through town towards the trailer park and are almost at the chain link fence around the place when the flash of red and blue lights come into view. Red cuts the engine. “Alright, nope. I’m checking out. Whatever you two did - “

“We didn’t do nothing,” says Eddie, the words a low sort of whine. “I’m telling you!”

“Looks like you did something,” says Red. “And I’m not interested in being involved. Sorry.”

Carson grunts, giving Eddie the stink eye.

Eddie shakes his head. “I didn’t. I’ve stayed outta trouble and you know it, man. I’ve got – fuck, nothing on me right now.”

“Whatever,” says Carson, slinging open the door. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Red doesn’t have a record, per say, but he likes to steer clear of the local officers all the same. The moment that Eddie and Carson are out of the truck, it peels into reverse and vanishes, a squeal of tires on the pitted pavement and a spray of muddy water up onto the other side of the road.

Carson says, “you’d tell me if I’m about to walk into something, right?”

“Yeah, man, I’d tell you,” says Eddie. “But I swear, this has nothing to do with me.”

“Ugh,” says Carson, and Eddie totally agrees with that. They head up into the trailer park and true to their luck, the sheriff’s car is parked right outside of their little hovel, along with a little shiny black car that doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of Hi Banks.

Sheriff Bianca is sitting on the hood of her car smoking a hand rolled cigarette, short black hair pushed away from her face, the thick scar over her cheek visible even in the wane light of the street lamp. “There you are. We were waiting for you. This is - “

“Agent Smith,” says another woman, long blonde hair pulled back away from her face and an ashy pallor to her skin. “and my partner, Agent Russo.”

“We didn’t do shit,” says Eddie, lower lip jutting out.

Carson shoves him. “Idiot. Stop running your mouth.”

The corners of Bianca’s mouth twist up at the edges, just a little bit, and then instantly take on that hard slant again. She slides off the car, putting the cigarette out on the bottom of one mud caked boot and then tucking it into the front pocket of her uniform shirt. “Boys, they’re here about the Mulborne Case.”

There’s a beat of silence.

One.

Two.

Three.

Eddie lets out a bark of laughter, just can’t help himself. “What, really?”

Smith asks, “does that mean you know the man?”

“Of course I do. Everyone knows Benny,” says Eddie, with a shrug of his sharp, bony shoulders. “Ain’t this thing solved?”

“Yes,” says Bianca, a little tersely.

“On a local level,” answers Russo. “But we’ve recently been informed of something that’s brought the case into a larger light.”

Carson squints. “You two aren’t cops.”

“We’re with the FBI,” says Smith.

Eddie snorts. “Bullshit.”

That takes Smith off guard. “Excuse me?”

“The FBI out in Hi Banks? Yeah, I don’t buy it,” says Eddie. “This town’s barely on the map. What the Hell would send you people out here, huh?”

“We’re not allowed to discuss that information while the case is still under investigation,” says Russo. “You’re - “

“Eddie, yeah, and he’s Carson, and I’m sure the sheriff’s gone over all’a this with you. You realize how late it is? Some of us actually have to work,” says Eddie.

Smith gives him a tight lipped smile. “I’m sorry about the time. We got a little turned around on the way out here.”

“Not my problem,” says Eddie.

Russo says, “it might be. It’s been brought to our attention that you had contact with the men who were murdered.”

“They went missing,” corrects Bianca. “There was no proof of foul play.”

Eddie juts out his lower lip. “Yeah, sure. I fixed up their van when they came through, big fucking whoop. How about I just make this real easy and tell you exactly what I told her?” He jerks a thumb at Bianca, who rolls her eyes. “Their van was trashed. I fixed it. That’s my job, okay? That’s it. They paid in cash, big bills, and then they left and I never saw them again. End of story.”

Carson says, “you should try and find someone smarter to ask about it.” He slings an arm around Eddie’s shoulders and hauls the other man up against his side. “Eddie’s got a brick for brains. Even if something weird was going on, there’s no way he would’ve noticed it.”

“Bitch,” mutters Eddie, but he doesn’t protest. Easy out’s, right?

A phone goes off, some lame shrill tone. Russo excuses himself and steps away from the group and Bianca asks, “did you figure out where the machinery went?”

Carson grunts. “Probably Milo hawked it. Pretty sure his ma’s rent was due this month. We didn’t really look that hard.”

Smith questions, “machinery?”

“Carson works at the docks,” says Bianca. “A few parts went missing earlier this week.”

“Not that it’s any of your business,” says Carson, gruffly. “Look, no offense but we’ve already done this once. We don’t know anything else about it, and I’ve got work tomorrow. Can we wrap this up?”

A car door clicks open behind them. Russo, still on the phone, waves Smith over. Smith nods and then excuses herself, all polite, “thank you for your time. I’m sure we’ll be in touch,” before heading over. They climb in their little black car and leave.

Carson scowls at Bianca. “Seriously?”

“Trust me,” says Bianca, dryly. “It’s not my idea of a good time, either. I thought that we were done with this.”

Eddie snorts, already heading towards their trailer. “Yeah, fuck off about that. I am done with it.”

He’s pretty pleased when Carson just goes on and follows him, not so much as a goodbye tossed Bianca’s way.

#wip jkb #my writing #zombies #writeblr #original fiction big bang

[bechloeislegit]

PITCH PERFECT HORROR WEEK 2020

DAY TWO (#HW202) Unusual Familiars

Summary: The Bellas are witches. Jessica and Ashley have not been assigned a familiar (their spirit guide). One day an unusual animal shows up and appears to be Ashley's familiar.

________________________________________________________________

"Hey, where did you come from?" Jessica asked as she knelt down to pet the somewhat large pig.

"Jess?" Ashley called out. "Emily needs your help."

"I'll be right there," Jessica called back over her shoulder.

"What is she doing?" Ashley mumbled as she walked over to Jessica. She stopped and looked down. "Where did that come from?"

Jessica looked up at Ashley to see her pointing down at the pig she was petting.

"I don't know," Jessica said. "She just showed up. You don't think she's a spirit guide, do you?"

"I don't know," Ashley said, kneeling to check out the pig. "Most familiars are cats, aren't they?"

"I guess," Jessica said. "Let's ask Chloe, she'll know."

"Good idea," Ashley said, standing. "Let's go. Emily still needs your help." Ashley lowered her voice. "A spell got away from her."

"Again?" Jessica asked with a sigh. "I thought we told her not to do any spells on her own after she blew up Beca's car."

"We did," Ashley said. "She didn't listen."

"What happened this time?" Jessica asked, knowing she wouldn't like the answer.

"I don't think you'll believe me if I told you," Ashley said. "You'll have to see for yourself."

Jessica ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Let's go see Emily."

Chloe's car pulled into the driveway and Jessica breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Beca and Chloe. They got out and grabbed several grocery bags from the back of the car.

"Who is this?" Chloe asked, seeing the pig at Ashley's feet.

"I don't know," Jessica said. "It just showed up a few minutes ago. Could it be Ashley's spirit guide? Neither of us has received ours yet."

"Anything's possible," Beca said, reaching down to pet the pig. "What are you going to call it?"

"Maybe it already has a name?" Ashley said and mumbled an incantation for the animal to speak. "What is your name?"

"My name is Fat Amy," the pig replied.

"Why Fat Amy?" Jessica asked.

"It's actually, Amy, and because I'm a pig I'll only get bigger," the pig replied. "It's just easier if you start calling me Fat Amy now."

"Why do you have an Australian accent?" Beca asked.

"Because I'm from Australia, Einstein," Fat Amy replied.

"You don't have to be so rude," Beca said. "Keep it up and I'm changing you into bacon if you catch my drift."

Fat Amy snorted but didn't say anything more.

"Beca, be nice," Chloe chastised. "Let's get these groceries inside."

"I almost forgot," Ashley said. "We need to hurry. Emily needs help with a spell that didn't quite work out how she planned."

"Oh, God," Beca moaned. "I just got my insurance money from my old car. I don't think they'll believe my car was stolen and blown up a second time."

"It's not your car we have to worry about," Ashley said and led the girls into the house.

"Emily?" Beca called out. "Where are you?"

"She's in the attic," Ashley said. "If she talks, you won't hear her."

"Why not?" Beca asked.

"You'll see," Ashley responded.

The girls entered the kitchen and placed the groceries on the center island. They turned as one and went up the stairs toward the attic to find Emily.

Chloe was the first to enter the attic, followed closely by Beca, Jessica, and Ashley. Unbeknownst to them, Fat Amy had followed them into the house and up to the attic.

"Emily?" Chloe said, looking around. "Where are you?"

"She's over there," Ashley said. "In the dollhouse."

"In the dollhouse?" Beca asked.

"Yep," Ashley said. "She's in the dollhouse."

Fat Amy walked over to the dollhouse, her pig's hooves clicking against the floor. She began sniffing around. "Something smells yummy," Fat Amy snorted.

"Ahhhh!" Emily screamed. "Shoo! Go away! I'm not food."

"Emily, are you in there?" Chloe asked as she ran over to the dollhouse, grabbing Fat Amy and pulling her away. "Fat Amy, get away from her. Emily is our friend, not food."

"I'll take her," Ashley said, taking the pig. "I'll put her out back for now until we figure out what to do with her."

"Emily," Chloe said, kneeling on both knees while looking into the dollhouse. "I'll stay next to the dollhouse and tell everyone what you're saying so we can hear you."

"Okay," Emily said.

"She said okay," Chloe repeated so the others could hear.

Jessica had walked over to their spellbook and was reading the page that was open.

"Emily, is this "shrink spell" the spell you used?" Jessica asked as she read through the spell.

"Yes," Emily said.

"Yes, that's it," Chloe responded.

"Can you reverse it?" Emily asked. "It's scary being so tiny and thought of as food. Sorry, Beca, no offense."

"Emily wants to know if you can reverse it?" Chloe relayed. "She said it's scary being so tiny. Then she apologized to Beca and said no offense."

"I wasn't offended until you said that," Beca said, crossing her arms over her chest while glaring down at Emily.

"I said I was sorry, Beca," Emily said.

"She said she's sorry, Beca," Chloe said.

"I accept your apology, Em," Beca said. "Jess, can you reverse Emily's spell?"

"I think so," Jessica said. "I'm going to need a few things first."

"What do you need?" Beca asked.

"Bat's blood," Jessica said, looking at the spell. "Hair of a newt, and a fly's wing."

"I used the last of the bat's blood to do the spell," Emily called out.

"Emily said she used the last of the bat's blood to do the spell," Chloe said. "That means someone will have to go get some more so we can do the reversal spell."

Chloe looked at Beca; Beca looked back at Chloe.

"You know I hate shopping at Lilly's, Chloe," Beca whined. "That girl scares me."

"Fine," Chloe said. "I'll go. You come and stay near Emily so if she says something you can hear her and relay it to Jessica."

Beca did as Chloe told her, kneeling so she could see Emily and Emily could see her. Chloe went to stand near Jessica.

"I'm going to see what else we need to replenish," Chloe said. "Then we can restock everything when I get back."

"I'll write down some stuff I know we need," Jessica said.

"Look out!" Ashley yelled just before Fat Amy came running into the attic. Ashley was right behind her. "Grab her, Beca!"

Beca made a grab for the pig, but Fat Amy slipped through her arms and hit the table the dollhouse was on. Beca heard a small scream and she, Ashley, and Chloe ran to the dollhouse and looked inside. They saw Emily lying on the floor.

"Emily!" Chloe yelled. "Are you okay?"

"I, I, uh, I think so," Emily replied as she tried to stand up. "It felt like an earthquake hit."

"Don't be such a whiner," Fat Amy said.

"Fat Amy," Chloe said. "Leave Emily alone and get away from there."

Beca grabbed Fat Amy and pulled her toward the door.

"Did you forget what I said outside?" Beca asked as she pushed her out of the attic. "I swear I'll turn you into bacon if you don't leave Emily alone."

"Squeal, squeal," Fat Amy cried out as she ran down the hall to the steps. Ashley ran after the pig.

"I have the list ready," Jessica said, handing it to Chloe.

"Thanks, Jess," Chloe said. "Beca, you're on guard duty. Make sure Fat Amy stays away from Emily and the attic. Okay?"

"Got it," Beca said. "Be careful."

"I will," Chloe said, smiling at Beca. "I'll be back as quick as I can."

Beca pulled Chloe in for a quick kiss; Chloe smiled and hurried out the door.

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

"Fat Amy!" Ashley's yell could be heard in the attic.

"I'm going to go see what's going on," Beca told Emily and Jessica. Beca started out the door when she heard a loud crash; she sprinted down the stairs and stopped short when she got to the bottom. "What the Hell?"

"Sorry, Beca," Ashley said, holding up a broken picture frame. "Fat Amy rushed in when I was going outside."

"Chloe's going to freak," Beca said, walking over and taking the frame from Ashley. "Her grandmother gave her that frame. It's an antique. And, that's the only photo Chloe has of her grandparents."

"I am really sorry," Ashley said. "I can fix this."

"How?" Beca asked, holding the pieces up to Ashley. "You know how Chloe is about using magic to fix things we break. Why do you think I had to wait for my insurance money to do anything about my car that Emily blew up? She doesn't want us to do anything that will bring unnecessary attention to us."

"I don't know how else to fix it," Ashley said. "Plus, it's for Chloe."

Beca sighed. "Fine, you can fix it with magic. But, I can't lie to Chloe; we'll have to tell her about this."

"I know," Ashley said, frowning. She mumbled an incantation and Beca was holding the "repaired" frame in her hands. "There. Just like new."

"Thanks!" Beca said. "I'll tell Chloe about this. You might want to put that pig somewhere out of her sight."

"On it," Ashley said, grabbing up Fat Amy before she could get away. "Come on you. If you don't want to become our dinner, you'd better steer clear of Chloe."

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

Beca was in the attic with Jessica and Emily, waiting for Chloe to return home.

"Beca? I'm home!" Beca heard Chloe calling from downstairs.

"Be right back," Beca told Jessica as she left the attic.

Beca jumped off the last three steps and hurried over to Chloe.

"Let me take those," Beca said, taking the bags from Chloe.

"Thanks, babe," Chloe said with a smile. She glanced over at the small table and picked up the framed photo of her grandparents. "Hmmm."

"Something wrong?" Beca asked.

"Did something happen to this while I was gone?" Chloe asked, looking at the framed photo.

"Ummm," Beca said."Yes, something did happen to it."

Chloe stared at her waiting for Beca to say more.

"Well?" Chloe prompted. "Care to tell me what happened?"

"Fat Amy knocked it off the table and broke it," Beca blurted out. "Ashley felt bad about it and fixed it using magic. We know how much you dislike us using magic to fix stuff, but she did it because she knew how much it meant to you. Plus, I told her it was okay."

"I'll have to thank Ashley for this," Chloe said, running her hand over the old photo. "It does mean a lot to me." Chloe set the picture on the table and looked at Beca. "Will you take those bags up to Jessica, and tell her I'll be up shortly?"

"What are you going to do?" Beca asked, looking at Chloe suspiciously..

"I suddenly have a craving for some bacon," Chloe said. "Or maybe some pork chops. Do you know where Fat Amy went?"

"No, Chloe!" Beca said, grabbing Chloe's arm to keep her from going in search of Fat Amy. "You can't do that. It looks as if Fat Amy is Ashley's familiar."

"Fine," Chloe said. "But Ashley had better keep a tight rein on that pig, or she will become breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

"Noted," Beca said. "Now, let's go get Emily back to normal size. I think Jess has everything all set up."

Chloe followed Beca up to the attic.

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

"Here you go, Jess," Beca said, holding out the bags Chloe gave her.

"Oh, good," Jessica said. "I have the spell written out already. Chloe, can you help me?"

"Sure," Chloe said. "What do you need?"

"Spread some of the bat's blood in a circle around the dollhouse," Jessica said.

"Hey, Emily," Chloe said when she was kneeling next to the dollhouse. "I'm going to pour the bat's blood around the dollhouse and then Jessica will say the spell. Okay?"

"Okay," Emily's voice called out so Chloe could hear her. "I'm ready when you are."

Chloe poured the bat's blood and recapped the bottle.

"All done, Jessica," Chloe said as she put the bottle of bat's blood on the shelf. "What do you need us to do?"

"Chloe, you stand here," Jessica said, using Chloe's arm to direct her to the correct position. "And, Beca, I need you to stand directly across from Chloe."

Beca moved into position and stood across from Chloe. Jessica stood near the end of the dollhouse and read the spell out loud.

Suddenly, the room shook and Emily was standing in the middle of the attic with the roof of the dollhouse on her head, and pieces of the dollhouse laying all around her on the floor.

"I guess we should have taken her out of the dollhouse before you said the spell," Beca said with a grin.

"You think?!" Emily angrily yelled, glaring at Beca.

"Don't get mad at us," Beca said. "Do we need to have another talk about not trying spells on your own?"

"NO!" Emily yelled. She took a deep breath and let it out before adding, "I'm good. I promise not to try a spell again without supervision."

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

Beca came out of her room to go to Chloe's when she heard Fat Amy's feet clicking down the hallway.

"You'd better go find Ashley, Fat Amy," Beca said when she saw the pig. "Chloe's still upset with you and is ready to turn you into bacon."

Fat Amy let out a squeal and a snort as she stopped and changed direction.

"And stay outside when Ashley puts you out there," Beca called after Fat Amy.

Beca waited until she heard Ashley speaking to Fat Amy before entering Chloe's room.

"What's up, Beca?" Chloe asked.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay," Beca said. "I know that photo of your grandparents means a lot to you."

Chloe patted the bed next to her and Beca walked over and sat down next to Chloe. Chloe kissed Beca's cheek.

"You're so sweet to be worried about me," Chloe said. "But, I'm fine. I promise."

"I'm glad to hear that," Beca said.

Both girls let out a yelp when an explosion was heard from the backyard. They both took off running. They met Jessica and Emily coming out of their rooms; the four girls ran downstairs together. They went through the dining room and were entering the kitchen when the back door opened and Ashley stumbled in.

"Ashley!" Jessica cried out. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Ashley said. "The tool shed didn't make it, though."

"What happened?" Chloe asked,

"Fat Amy happened," Ashley said with a frown. "I was putting her outside when a demon came out of nowhere. I went to vanquish him and Fat Amy charged at me and my shot went wild and blew up the shed. The demon disappeared. We'd better all sleep with one eye open tonight. I have a feeling he'll be back."

"Where is that pig?" Chloe growled, moving to go out the back door.

Beca grabbed Chloe. "Chloe, we talked about this," she said. "You can't hurt Ashley's spirit guide."

"She could have gotten Ashley killed," Chloe said, with tears in her eyes.

"But, she didn't," Beca said. "Come on, I'll take you upstairs and run a nice bath. That always calms you down."

"That's a great idea, Beca," Emily said. "We'll get Fat Amy and put her somewhere safe and out of the way."

"You're right," Chloe said. "I need to relax and a bath sounds heavenly."

Jessica looked at Beca and mouthed "thank you." Beca gave her a nod of acknowledgment.

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

Later, Beca and Chloe were cuddling in Chloe's bed.

"Thanks for the bath," Chloe said. "I do feel so much better."

"Is there anything else I can do to help you relax more?" Beca asked, kissing Chloe.

"Mmm, this is a good start," Chloe mumbled against Beca's lips.

"I'm here for you, Chloe," Beca said, leaning down to kiss Chloe again.

"God, I love you," Chloe said.

"I love you, too," Beca responded.

(^_^ ) Pitch Perfect Halloween Week 2020 - Day Two (^_^ )

The next morning, Beca woke up in Chloe's bed alone. She sat up in the bed and stretched. She suddenly sniffed.

"Mmmm, I smell bacon," Beca mumbled and then her eyes widened and she whisper-yelled. "Oh, shit!"

Beca jumped up and threw on her shirt and jeans and ran out of Chloe's room and down the stairs.

"Hey, Beca," Emily said as Beca came into the kitchen. "You're just in time. Chloe made us all breakfast."

Beca started looking around the kitchen.

"Bacon, Beca?" Chloe asked, holding out a platter of crispy bacon.

Beca stopped and stared at the platter. "Um, no thanks, Chloe. Has anyone seen Fat Amy?"

"Oh, my God, Beca," Chloe said, laughing as she set the bacon platter on the table. "This is not Fat Amy."

"Then where is she?" Beca asked, looking around again.

"Where's who?" Ashley asked as she came in the back door with Fat Amy on her heels.

"No one," Beca said, sounding relieved. She sat at the table and looked at Chloe. "Pass the bacon, please."

Fat Amy let out a squeal and started snorting in Beca's direction. Beca picked up a piece of bacon and took a big bite of it while staring right at Fat Amy.

________________________________________________________________

A/N: I know these stories so far have not been true scary stories. I hope the next one will give you a slight fright.

#HW202 #pitchhorrorweek #Beca Mitchell #Chloe Beale #Emily Junk #ashley jones #jessica smith

[dinoyoongi]

Cuddles & Kitty Cats

SYNOPSIS: After a night of drinking, you go to Yoongi’s dorm for some quality cuddles. Unfortunately, you’ve forgotten that you are currently giving him the silent treatment.

PAIRING: Yoongi x Reader

GENRE: Fluffy angst

WARNINGS: Language

WORD COUNT: 2292

AUTHOR’S NOTE: I have a million other things that I should be writing but this spontaneously jumped into my head. Nothing was planned, I just wrote whatever popped into my head. Hope you all enjoy!

_______________________________________

“Yoongi! Y/N is downstairs! Should security let her up or are you two still arguing?” Jin yells from the foyer of the apartment. Yoongi, who is currently slumped into the living room sofa and attempting to decode the obviously inebriated text messages you had just sent five minutes prior, lifts his head in confusion. He sighs heavily.

“I think she's drunk. Tell them to let her up.”

Your boyfriend and Jin idle by the door for what seems like fifteen minutes, waiting for the doorbell to sound. Yoongi is about to go search the floor for you when there's suddenly a loud banging on the door, followed by a pitiful whine. Jin yanks the door open quickly and both boys are startled when your body tumbles inside, crumpling to floor at their feet.

“Ow,” you half squeak, half hiccup. You slap the pristine, gleaming tiles with the palm of your hand. “Big Hit too cheap to spring for carpeting?”

“I don't think they anticipated drunk girls breaking their head open on our linoleum, Sweetheart,” Jin says, watching in amusement as Yoongi pulls you gently to your feet. He steadies you when you wobble, keeping one of you arms around his shoulder. Feeling his limbs against yours, you yank yourself away as if his skin is made of lava.

“I don't want to talk to you,” you say snottily, wrapping your arms around yourself. Yoongi snorts humorlessly, his eyes widening in disbelief.

“Then why the fuck did you get dropped off here?”

Jin has to stifle his laughter when you genuinely look confused – why did you instruct your taxi driver to take you here? It wasn't because you subconsciously wanted to make up with Yoongi and cuddle him all night. Nope. Absolutely not. No way. You were punishing him with the silent treatment and would continue to do so until he apologized for the things that he had said yesterday.

You hiccup again, your eyes moving toward the taller boy. He's surprised when you shove a finger in his direction. “Jin! I came to hang out with Jin. Jin is my best friend.”

Before Jin can even process what you've said, you have him by the elbow and you're dragging him into the living room, pulling him down to sit next to you on the sofa that Yoongi previously occupied. Yoongi leans against the wall of the entryway, already exhausted of your theatrics.

“So, Jin, how have you been lately? Tell me everything new that's going on!” you exclaim, kicking your leg up over your knee. Yoongi's eyes narrow at the expanse of skin that is suddenly revealed when your skirt shrinks in on itself with the movement.

“Uh,” a panicked Jin throws a worried glance at Yoongi, who motions with his hand and the rolling of his eyes to play along. “I've been … good. Things have been … good. Nothing new going on – just recording music and learning choreography and photoshoots … you know, BTS stuff ...”

You nod your head. “Of course. Sounds hectic.”

There's an uncomfortable silence. The weight of your expectant gaze targeted right at Jin is even more uncomfortable. He clears his throat. “And … yourself?”

By the way you perk up, shoulders squaring and posture suddenly proper, Jin can tell that you clearly didn't give any kind of shit about how he has been or what was new with him. He locks eyes with Yoongi again, both of them realizing what kind of game you were playing.

“I've been just peachy, Jin. Just peachy. I broke up with my neglectful boyfriend yesterday-”

Yoongi scoffs loudly. “We did not break up.”

“As I was saying,” you talk loudly over him with as much sass as you can muster, “I broke up with Yoongi and went to the bar tonight to find myself a new man who will actually remember my birthday and not call me immature for being upset about it.”

“You forgot her birthday?” Jin asks in incredulity, facing the younger boy with wide, disappointed eyes.

“I was only one week off!” Yoongi exclaims defensively. “I thought it was on the 18th instead of the 10th! I even had her present already bought and wrapped!”

“We've been together for three years, you asshat. And we've known each other for even longer than that. It is against the law for you to forget my birthday by now!”

Jin grimaces. “Err … that's not a law, Y/N.”

“Well it should be!”

“And this is why I called her immature. You're hammering the nails right into the coffin, Babe,” Yoongi drawls, shaking his head in amusement at your ridiculousness. The smug look on his face only enrages you further in your intoxicated state.

“And this is why I broke up with you! You are also hammering your -”

“You did not break up with me,” Yoongi interrupts, smirking when he sees your face flush red with anger.

“Shut up!” you screech, grabbing the first solid object that your fingers can reach and whipping it in his direction. Unfortunately for you, it was a stray sock and barely traveled halfway to where Yoongi stood. He stares at the piece of laundry for a few seconds before bursting into loud guffaws. Somewhere between throwing the sock and Yoongi laughing at you, your liquid courage dried up. A sudden wave of humiliation washes over you and you jump to your feet, ignoring the pain when your knee knocks into the coffee table hard as you run past Yoongi into the nearest bathroom.

Jin sighs, grabbing the edge of the coffee table to right it's position. “What I just witnessed was ridiculous. You know that, right? She's drunk. Why are you antagonizing her?”

“She came over here looking for an argument so I indulged her,” Yoongi shrugs. Something about Yoongi's nonchalant attitude sits wrong in Jin's stomach.

“Do you really think she came all the way over here to argue? She got drunk and probably missed you. And whether you'd like to admit it or not, you do owe her an apology for forgetting her birthday. That's kind of messed up.”

Yoongi sighs. “She understands. I forget important dates and anniversaries all the time and she always lets it go. I don't know why she's freaking out this time.”

“Do you ever forget my birthday? Namjoon? Jungkook? Any of the other members? Hell, you even remember to send some of management gift cards on their birthdays. Imagine how that must make her feel, Yoongi. She probably doesn't feel all that important to you.”

Yoongi's eyes fall to the sock on the floor by his feet. Jin was right – of course, he was right. When he forgot your birthday the first year, you were so calm and understanding. Yoongi had panicked and prepared for the worst but you soothed his worries and forgave him with no fuss. When he forgot your anniversary the next year, he could see that you were visibly upset but also let it go with a smile on your face. After that, it became routine. Yoongi didn't think these dates mattered to you all that much so he didn't put forth the effort to remember them. Has he been taking advantage of you and your feelings this entire time?

“You're right,” Yoongi sighs, rubbing the spot between his eyes with his thumb. “I really am an asshat.”

“I know you hate to do cheesy things, but I think you have to just suck it up this time. Go in there and apologize and be nice. And then bring her to bed because she seems on the brink of passing out. I'll make her a sandwich so she isn't so sick tomorrow.”

“Thanks, hyung,” Yoongi pats his elder on the shoulder before padding down the hallway to the first bathroom. He raises his fist to knock but leans his ear to the wood instead when he hears a faint whimpering from the other side. “Y/N? Jagi? Are you okay?”

When there's no answer, Yoongi turns the knob. Surprisingly, it opens. He finds you sprawled across the bathmat next to the shower, wet, mascara-streaked eyes trained on the screen of your phone. There's a faint melody of familiar music playing but he can't place a finger on what it is until you begin singing.

“It leaves me feeling seasick, baby ...” you half-sob, half-sing from your spot on the floor. Yoongi sighs, crouching down next to your body.

“Are you okay? Did you get sick?” he asks, lifting the toilet seat to check. The water is clear as crystal.

“No,” you whimper. The sight of your bottom lip quivering makes Yoongi's chest throb. “But I don't have any kitty cats for Jimin.”

Yoongi's eyebrows furrow in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

“The kitty cats!” you howl, sliding your phone aggressively to where Yoongi is crouched. He's overcome with a mixture of understanding and amusement when he sees the agency page of BTS World running on your phone. “Jimin is so sad but I don't have any kitty cats left to give to him.”

Yoongi hides his chuckles with his hand. Even sloppy drunk with smeared make-up, you still managed to be both infuriating and adorable at the same time. He picks your phone up off of the ground, sliding it into his back pocket before reaching down to gingerly lift you into his arms. Fortunately you don't fight him, choosing to instead wrap both arms around his neck for support. As Yoongi carries you out of the bathroom and into the hallway, you catch sight of Jimin leaving his bedroom.

“Jimin!” you wail. Your mouth is near Yoongi's ear and the volume makes him wince. It startles Jimin, too, who stumbles over his own feet. His eyes are wide as saucers as he stares at you; eyes puffy and red, makeup everywhere except where it should be. What a sight. “I'm so sorry that I couldn't give you the kitty cats. I tried so hard. All they gave me were the stupid flowers. I'm so sorry.”

Jin's laughter is high-pitched and loud from the kitchen. Jimin opens his mouth in confusion but Yoongi shakes his head, jerking his neck forward as if giving permission to carry on. He brings you into his bedroom, kicking the door closed behind him and lowering you softly onto his bed before heading into the bathroom for a damp washcloth. He sits down next to where you lay, dabbing and wiping gently at your ruined makeup.

“I hope you remember this in the morning because I'm terrible at this but … I'm sorry, Y/N. I'm sorry for not being attentive and forgetting so much that is important to you, to us. I'm sorry for being mean when you got upset. And I'm sorry for teasing you tonight. I'll be better, I promise.”

“And I'm sorry for throwing the sock at you. Violence is never the answer.”

A tired, amused smile stretches across your boyfriend's face. “That's right.”

“But Yoongi? Am I important to you?” you mumble pitifully. Yoongi's chest throbs harder.

“Of course you are, Jagi. You are the most important person in my life and I'm sorry for making you feel like you're not. Can you forgive me for being an asshat this whole time?”

You push down the queasiness in your stomach to roll onto your side, reaching out to grab his arm. He understands your motives and lays down next to you, tucking you into his side. You sigh in contentedness. This was what you wanted. This is what you came here for tonight. Yoongi cuddles were the best cuddles and you craved them even when you wanting nothing to do with him.

“I love you so I suppose I can forgive you,” your words are muffled by his shoulder. He chuckles. “Only if you make me something to eat, though.”

“Your best friend is in the kitchen making you a sandwich right now.”

“Oh? Why is she here? Did I bring her with me? Yoongi, she's a terrible cook. Can you ask Jin to make me something instead?”

All Yoongi can do is laugh. He reaches for the edge of the blanket and pulls it up over your body, knowing you enough to be prepared for the sudden slumber that you always fall into after you stop making sense. He watches your eyelids begin to droop.

“Jagi?” he asks, moving a strand of hair from your face. You hum in response. “You said you went to the bar to find a new man … you were joking, right?”

“He wanted to buy me french fries, Yoongi,” you mumble sleepily, your eyes never opening. “But I said no thank you, sir, I have a boyfriend.”

Yoongi's responding laugh is louder than he thought it would be. He slaps his hand over his mouth but the effort is wasted as you have already fallen asleep, your lips parted with soft snores. Still snickering, he leans down to kiss you lightly on the forehead before clicking the lights off and making his way back into the kitchen. Jin is already plating a large sandwich stacked with meats when Yoongi finds him. Jimin sits on a stool at the counter, flipping through the week's schedule.

“Might as well wrap it up and put it in the fridge. She's fallen asleep but I'll make her eat it for breakfast. Thanks, hyung.”

“Did you two work things out? No fighting?”

Yoongi smiles. “We're good. No fighting.”

“I'm really happy that you and Y/N are on good terms again but I have a question,” Jimin chimes in from his seat. Both boys turn to look at him. “What kitty cats and flowers was she talking about?!”

#bts fanfiction #btsboulangerie #bts fanfic #yoongi #min yoongi #suga #BTS suga #bts yoongi #yoongi fanfic #bts fic #suga fanfic #yoongi x reader #suga x reader #yoongi x you #suga x you #yoongi fluff #suga fluff #bts x reader #bts x you #bts #yoongi imagine #suga imagine #bts imagine #yoongi oneshot #suga oneshot #bts oneshot

[remys-lucky-franc]

Sick - Queen of Thieves Fic : Nikolai x MC (Daisy)

Pretty fluffy - no bad language or nsfw - no trigger warnings

Shout out to my friends @ispookyloaf and @stopforamoment as this was a product of a silly idea on one of our fun chats 💕

Word Count ~2200 (couldn’t resist the sneezing cat gif 😂)

[[MORE]]

Remy scuttled out of Nikolai’s room with a frown and a worry-line stretching the length of his forehead. He rounded the corner to the kitchen as he ran into Daisy. She stepped back looking surprised as he exclaimed,

“Ma Cherie, you’re back!”

Daisy nodded,

“Yeah, glad to be home, was a long couple of days. Leon’s just bringing the rest of the stuff up from the car. Worth it though, think we have the mark���s movements down to a tee... Remy are you ok?”

Remy raked a hand through his thick hair and sighed dramatically,

“Non. When was the last time you talked to Niko?”

Daisy looked puzzled, concern creeping into her voice,

“We haven’t talked on the phone, but we sent some text messages yesterday... Is he ok? What’s going on?”

Remy shook his head, looking towards the heavens,

“Did he tell you he is... Unwell?”

Daisy’s eyes widened, as she stared towards the closed bedroom door,

“He’s ill?! What?! Since when?!”

Remy sighed again,

“Since yesterday. Daisy, it’s not pretty...”

Daisy raised an eyebrow, starting towards their room,

“Not pretty? What the hell’s happened to him?!”

Remy reached out, catching her arm to stop her,

“He’s in bed, congested, running a temperature! He can’t taste his food, he has a disgusting cough, a sweaty sheen-“

Daisy held up her free hand to stop Remy in his tracks,

“Wait. Remy? Are you trying to tell me that ‘Master of the Impossible’, Nikolai Stirling, has taken to his bed with ‘man flu’??”

Remy covered his face with his hands,

“Go! See for yourself, but don’t say I didn’t warn you...”

Vivienne breezed past, pursing her lips and commenting,

“Are you heading in there, darling? Good luck! I wouldn’t dare! He’s foul when he’s poorly, the only person who would brave going in there is Remy!”

Remy shrugged, a sad look flitting across his face,

“I take him his favourite soup...”

Daisy noticed his expression, but only barely, as she shook her head at both of them,

“You two are exaggerating! He can’t be that bad - plus he’ll be happy to see me!”

Vivienne waved a dismissive, if perfectly manicured, hand at Daisy,

“If you want some advice? Let him be, darling! He’ll emerge like a beautiful butterfly from his chrysalis in a few days time!”

Daisy tutted as she headed towards the door, Remy and Vivienne exchanged an awkward grimace as she gently knocked, edging it open, with a half-whisper,

“Nikolai?”

He turned to face her and Daisy tried to stop automatic recoil as she caught sight of him: Remy was not exaggerating!

“Solnishko, you’re back.” A faint smile crossed Nikolai’s face as he watched her step inside, his usually sparkling blue eyes heavy and puffy-looking as he pushed his way up into a seated position against the plush cushions, “Things went well?”

Daisy nodded as she made her way across the room, Elizabeth twining around her feet and meowing as she went, eventually Daisy perched on the edge of the bed and pressed a soft kiss to the top of Nikolai’s head,

“I’m more concerned about what’s going on here? When did you start to feel like this?”

Nikolai waved away her concern, voice irritable but somewhat dulled and nasal,

“I’m fine, I had a particularly late night last night, that’s all.”

He tossed the covers back, readying himself to stand, only for Daisy to flip them back across his lap,

“Ohhhh no you don’t. You never sleep? You’re sick.”

Nikolai opened his mouth to protest, starting a second attempt to get out of bed but erupting into a kink of coughing as Daisy grabbed for a box of tissues from the bedside table. She smoothed his dampened hair back from his forehead easing him back into the soft pillows by his shoulders,

“Kotik, you’re sick. You don’t have to prove anything to me, please will you just relax?”

Slumping backwards into the soft bedding as Daisy kept a gentle pressure on his arms, Nikolai let out a frustrated groan,

“I can’t be ‘sick’. This is quite inconvenient, there’s still so much to do for the- ACHHOOOO!! Urgh. For the heist.”

Daisy tucked the duvet around his shivering form, smoothing his hair as she told him firmly but kindly,

“The heist is already ahead of schedule, I know you like to feel indispensable, but there’s literally nothing at this stage that the rest of us can’t do to keep ticking over for a few days until you’re feeling back to normal. Just please, stay there, let me look after you? Please?”

Nikolai didn’t vocalise his answer, he simply closed his eyes and relaxed his aching head against her hand, feeling too poorly to argue any longer.

Daisy murmured, “You’re burning up, just, stay put...” heading into the bathroom and swiftly returning with a cool face cloth, pressing it to his head as Nikolai hummed in appreciation.

“Did you take any medicine?”

“I don’t like to.”

Daisy frowned,

“You’re going to take two paracetamols. They’ll stop all this shivering. You’ll feel better.”

“But-“

“Nikolai.”

Nikolai attempted a sigh, that turned into another bout of coughing as Daisy headed back towards the kitchen, she was sure there was a collection of over-the-counter medicines in one of the drawers. Remy raised an eyebrow from his seat at the breakfast bar as she entered,

“Well, how is he?”

Daisy nodded firmly,

“He’ll survive. He just needs to rest for a couple of days.”

She rummaged around, locating the paracetamol, and pouring a tall glass of iced water, “And I’m going to look after him til he’s back on his feet.”

Remy shrugged his shoulders, smiling at her,

“Of course you will. That’s what you do. You’re his partner now, what’s that expression, ‘in sickness and in health’...”

Daisy swatted at Remy’s arm as she headed back towards Nikolai’s room,

“Firstly, that’s not an expression, it’s a ‘wedding vow’, and secondly, I don’t think when those were written they were intended to cover the common cold, Remy.”

Ducking out of her reach, Remy smirked, calling after her,

“Bonne chance!”

—-

Handing Nikolai the pills and the glass of water, she watched to make sure he actually swallowed them, before heading to the bathroom and returning with a vial of essential oils. Nikolai looked at her curiously as she dripped a few droplets onto his pillow. She took a deep breath in, wafting her hand, encouraging him to do the same,

“It’s menthol. It’ll help you breath.”

“I can’t smell it.”

“You will, eventually. In the meantime, here.” She pushed her iPad into his lap, “We are going to binge on Netflix until you feel better. None of your high-brow stuff, Nik. We’re going to watch something that you don’t even have to concentrate on. Easy watching, total trash. No arguments.”

Nikolai pulled a face as Daisy reiterated while she climbed onto the bed snuggling into his side, “No arguments. I’m in charge of getting you better, ok?” He stroked her cheek offering her a half smile as she pulled up the Menu.

___

Three episodes into Daisy’s TV trash of choice, Nikolai, despite himself had become quite captivated. He could feel his eyelids getting heavier, but was fighting the urge to close them, because he didn’t want to miss the drama unfolding onscreen...

Daisy could see him getting more and more tired,

“How about I switch this off and you doze for a little bit? I won’t let you dream.”

Nikolai forced his eyes wide, blinking,

“I’m fine, put another episode on, I want to see what happens to- Dear god what is happening to me?! Am I delirious?! Maybe I do need to sleep.”

Daisy smiled as she fluffed the pillows around him, dimming the lights, and in a hushed voice, she began,

“Soooft kitty, waaarm kitty, little ball offfff-“

Within seconds Nikolai’s eyes were wide again and staring in confusion,

“What is the meaning of this?”

Daisy shrugged,

“I thought you might like it?”

Nikolai closed his eyes, a perplexed wrinkle appearing in his forehead as he settled back down,

“You’re a very strange woman sometimes.”

Daisy squeezed his fingers,

“I mean, I don’t have to sing to you?”

Nikolai murmured, his eyes still closed, voice with a warmer edge to it than before,

“I don’t think anyone has ever sang me a lullaby before. I suppose it’s not completely terrible.”

Daisy beamed as she snuggled back into her snuffly partner, closing her own eyes and stroking his chest lightly as she hummed the rest of the tune.

—-

Daisy jolted awake, she wasn’t sure quite how much later, but quickly exhaled a sigh of relief when she realised that Nikolai was in a peaceful, even if he was softly snoring, sleep: there were no thrashing movements or strained facial expressions. He must really have needed the time to rest and heal his tired body. She touched his forehead - he felt decidedly less clammy than he had before. Grinning she decided that the paracetamol must have worked. Gently she ran her fingers over his cheek , murmuring his name softly until he started to stir. She’d promised not to let him dream, so she shouldn’t leave him asleep too much longer...

A faint smile crossed Nikolai’s face as he looked up at her,

“May I have my tea?”

Daisy’s jaw dropped, horrified,

“No, Nikolai! You can’t have your tea?! You’re not drinking poison while you’re taking paracetamol?! Absolutely not.”

Nikolai started at her indignantly,

“You’re being ridiculous. Anytime Remy’s looked after me, he’s brought me my tea.”

Daisy scoffed, one brow arched,

“I don’t believe that for a second! How about I call Remy in here and ask him?”

Nikolai opened his mouth to retort, but knowing her was beat he simply muttered about how ridiculous the situation was instead.

Daisy rolled her eyes, trying to change the subject,

“Hey, how about I get some more of the soup you love? I’m sure Remy would have made a whole vat of it. It’s funny, you know? I would have sworn you didn’t like mushrooms?”

Nikolai froze as Daisy looked at him curiously, confused.

He eventually broke the silence,

“Daisy, please don’t tell him, but I don’t. I’ve never had the heart to tell him when he’s been so kind as to make the soup for me. Remy is the only person who’s ever looked after me when I’ve been ill. Even as a child, my mother would ‘shoo’ me if I were poorly. My father would always say it was a sign of weakness and tell me to show some mettle.”

Daisy felt like her heart would break as she looked at him; the expression on his face looked like he was holding himself together, bracing himself against an unkind blow, but at the same time wanting to share something important to him. She reached out squeezing his hand, nodding in encouragement for him to keep talking.

Giving her a tight-lipped smile Nikolai continued,

“Remy has such a good heart. When I was first poorly, he asked me what my mother would make for me, back at home. When I said ‘nothing’ he was appalled. That’s when he started to make me chicken and mushroom soup, because that’s what his grandmother would make for him whenever he was unwell. I don’t like mushrooms, but I always finish the bowl.”

Daisy picked his hand up, kissing his knuckles,

“Even though you don’t like the taste it makes you feel better?”

Nikolai gave her a half-laugh,

“Exactly. Strange isn’t it?”

Daisy shrugged,

“Not so much. It’s not about the food, it’s about the feelings. That’s why they call it comfort food I guess? Do you want me to go get him to bring you some?”

Nikolai’s cheeks flushed as he nodded.

Daisy quickly smoothed his hair as she headed back to the kitchen,

“Remy?“

Remy lifted his head from a glossy magazine,

“How is the patient?”

Daisy, understanding that Remy had been looking after Nikolai for many years before either of them knew she existed, suspected that sharing the soup might warm Remy’s heart as much as being cared about warmed Nikolai’s,

“He’s ok. But I really think he needs another portion of chicken and mushroom?” She watched intently as Remy’s big green eyes lit up, grinning, “Maybe you could even teach me to make it some time?”

Remy enthused about his grandmother’s recipe as he busied around the kitchen of the penthouse heating a bowl for Nikolai, telling her the perfect type of mushrooms, which oil was best, how long to prepare the stock...

Daisy nodded as she repeated instructions and asked about ingredients, finally stopping and sighing,

“You’ve been making this so long, it could take years for mine to be as good as yours-“

Remy cut in, a look in his eye that said he knew exactly what she was doing, but choosing not to call her on it,

“Ma cherie, I’ll be here to help you! We can make it together! Or I can make the soup and you can snuggle with him until he feels better?”

Daisy beamed as she extended her right hand for Remy to shake on it,

“Deal! We’ll take care of him together. ”

Remy ushered Daisy back in the direction of Nikolai’s room as he placed the soup and a spoon on a tray, following closely behind her.

#lovestruck #queen of thieves #nikolai x mc #nikolai stirling #lovestruck fanfic

[writers-hes]

please don’t be in love with someone else. // angst + fluff

in which she finds a small note on her jacket pocket & he reminisces all the good times they’ve had together

part 1

word count; 1923

it’s been two weeks since japan. two weeks since that awkward flight back home. two weeks since the raging storm. two weeks. two fucking weeks since you last saw him.

// new york, months prior. //

you met up with your friend, eli. you met him in one of harry’s live shows. you were backstage, cheering on your boyfriend as you watched him grace the stage with his presence. eli came to you.

“so you’re harry’s girlfriend, huh?” he teased. you nodded absentmindedly and continued to watch harry on stage. you never really talked to to eli but you didn’t know that that was about to change. “you know, before i started to be his stylist, i was such a huge fan of harry that when i found out he had a girlfriend i was so mad.” he chuckled.

you smiled and said, “i’m lucky, aren’t i?” you and harry was so in love then, what happened?

 // new york, present day. //

 “eli!” you called as you knocked on the door of his studio apartment. you heard shuffling from the other side of the door and faint music. tonight, you and eli was about to have a movie night. it has been a while since you last had one, not since you and harry broke up, not since japan. your friend opens the door and immediately engulfs you into a hug.

“how have you been, doll? i heard about what happened.” he asks. he was worried about you. he could sense that you were starting to isolate yourself again, barely on social media, barely texting, barely talking.

“yeah, i’ll get over it. is it okay if we talk about some other stuff? i don’t really wanna talk about him right now.” you murmured. it’s been hard trying to accept that harry’s not there for you anymore. honeymoon season was over and so were you. you heard eli sigh, probably pitying your current state. you would never be seen outside without combing your hair. you always had your hair combed down or tied up.

“here, let me get you jacket and you can go to the kitchen and check on the popcorn in the microwave, okay?” your friend said. you nodded and padded your way into his studio apartment in brooklyn. as you arrive, you watch the bag inside the appliance move around. pop, pop, pop. the popping of the snack was ringing in your ears. harry, harry, harry. he was all you could think about. the close were closing in and you were heaving. harry…thud.

eli rushed over to your side upon hearing you fall to the ground. you were a sobbing mess in the kitchen floor and you heard him reassure you that everything’s going to be fine but you knew it wouldn’t. harry was your best friend before he was you boyfriend. “e-eli…all my f-fault we’re o-over…” you managed between deep breaths. you heard him say ‘no, it’s not’ repeatedly.

“c’mon, love. let me get you to the sofa and you can relax there, alright? i’ll take care of everything.” he said. he guided you to his couch and let you sit there. he breathed deeply, he didn’t know the break-up took a toll on you this badly.

// los angeles, so close, yet so far. //

           harry was cooped up in his l.a. home. he was in his bedroom floor, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes. he’s been sleeping since two weeks ago and it was his only way to cope. he’d rather escape from the truth instead of face it. he’d rather dream about you two together instead of waking up only to find himself all alone. his house was cold and it’s wasn’t even home anymore. you made it cosy, made sure that it felt home-y and warm. right now, all he sees is the harsh white and brown indoor design of his house. it used to be so warm in here but he regretted it now. he should’ve gotten a few more colours other than the plainness of white and brown.

           “harry…” mitch called. he was worried that harry wasn’t eating properly. your break-up took a toll on him emotionally and the both of you weren’t exactly sure on who to pinpoint the blame to so you just blamed yourselves. no matter how hard you try to figure it out, the both of you know that your significant other was too perfect and too kind to make a mistake. harry looked up to his friend with swollen eyes. he had been crying and mitch couldn’t help but be mad at you for breaking up with harry.

           “i miss her so much, mitch…” harry murmured. he knows you were in brooklyn with eli and he’s been trying to force his feelings down. he wanted to see you so badly and ask if you would take him back. he was willing to do anything and everything if it meant you’d take him back.

           “there’s nothing we could do about it, harry. she’s far away from you. what happened in japan anyway, if you don’t mind me asking? you were so happy when you left and you came back here and suddenly, the world is shit.” mitch asked. nobody knew what happened in japan that caused the break up between the both of you.

// japan, two weeks ago //

“isn’t tokyo so beautiful, harry?” you sighed. “i’ve been waiting all my life to see the cherry blossoms and it’s finally here—i’m finally here with you.” you were walking in a park in tokyo, sakura blossoms falling from the trees. it was your third day in japan and you couldn’t be happier. you were here with the love of your life, holding his hands tightly.

“you haven’t even been to the cat café, bub. i swear, harry is the cutest cat you’ll ever see. he has this cute bow-tie around his neck and his little paws!” he gushed. you chuckled. he’s been talking about the little munchkin cat that was named after him.

“i know but we’ll go there once we finish the cherry blossom trail, i promise.” your boyfriend smiled contently and put his hand around your waist. he pulled you closer. boyfriend, funny how that sounds. funny how that changes in a few hours.

it was already sunset and harry was taking you to the cat café to meet the smaller harry. you were in the cab, snuggling with harry whilst you watch the scenery from outside. japan was so beautiful. “are you excited?” he asked. you nodded. you were excited because something heavy was sitting in your bag. it was as if the small velvet box could melt your bag easily and escape. he didn’t know what the surprise was. in fact, he was just there to take you to little harry while you were surrounded by cats of many breeds.

you arrive at a low-rise building near shibuya crossing. surprisingly, the café wasn’t crowded, at all. this made you giddy. you and harry can have your time alone.

“harry, is this your fiancée?” one of the waitresses asked. she knew harry instantly because she was there when the munchkin cat was named after him. besides, who couldn’t forget such a pretty face?

harry immediately let go of your hand, as if he was disgusted by the thought of you possibly getting married. this hurt you and harry knew that it did but he wasn’t ready. he loved you and he really did it’s just that, for him, it wasn’t the time yet. he wasn’t ready yet.

tears prickled your eyes and you tried to blink them away. what you had in your bag was a promise ring. a promise that he will have you forever. it wasn’t an engagement ring yet but you wanted to let him know that he has you as long as he wants you. this was supposed to be the highlight of your trip, him having a tangible proof that you are his in his favourite place in all of tokyo. but that went down the drain the moment he let go of you, the moment he anxiously repeated the word that you didn’t want to hear.

 no.

you felt hurt for every no he said and you were so embarrassed, so sad that you didn’t care if he was calling out to you. you had to get out of there fast. you ran away from the building and what hurt most was that he didn’t bother to run after you.

// new york, present day //

“a promise ring?” eli asked. it was such a mess. you wanted him to have you and he didn’t want to be tied down with an engagement. you nodded and wiped your runny nose. eli cooed and thought that this could’ve been prevented if you just talked to him.

“i...booked an earlier flight back here in new york and changed hotels. i also changed my number in japan. i had to buy a new card. i was…so humiliated…” you sobbed. “from there, i just assumed that we were o-over…he never came in our shared apartment…not b-bothered to c-call me…”

“maybe it’s because you left so abruptly? he was probably hurt you left japan without telling him,” he says.

“i shouldn’t have a-ssumed th-that he wanted to be with me…what’s w-wrong with me?” your words pinched eli’s heart. he knew that harry would do anything and everything for you if you just asked. it was obvious that harry would want you. you were so smitten with each other—unconsciously touching each other, even if it’s just a hand on your lap. he loved you so much and so did you.

// los angeles, present day //

“fuck, harry. that probably offended her…” mitch said. “have you even talked to her or ran after her?”

“no…look, i was to embarrassed with what i did. i love her, mate. m’not sure why i reacted the way i did…obviously, i wanna be married to her one day…” harry slowly said. the thought of you happy with another man was making him sadder. “i wanna come see her…” with newfound determination, harry picked up his phone and opened his contacts. he looked for the person you were with at that very moment.

“hello?” eli greeted. eli was in in the bathroom, trying to hide the fact that he was talking to him.

“is…is she there, eli?” he croaked.

on the other end, eli was just sad for the both of you. “y-yeah. fuck! what’d you do, harry? poor thing looked like a mess when she arrived today. been crying since she arrived at my place. i don’t know how to handle this.” eli was curt wit harry. he may still believe that harry loved her but not checking up on you was fucked up.

tears fell down on harry’s cheeks. it was all his fault and he couldn’t do anything about it right now. “i’m coming there soon…i wanna see her. sorry, so sorry…” he hung up right after and looked for the soonest flight he could see.

“are you sure you wanna do this, mate?” mitch asked harry before parking in front of lax. harry nodded. he was going to see you and he couldn’t wait to do so.

---

my first ever fanfic!! this will be a mini series. will update you all soon.

#harry #styles #harrystyles #harry styles #fanfiction #fan fiction #fanfic #fan #fiction #romance #angst #fluff #sad #breakup #japan #new york #los angeles #imagine

[queenmuzz]

A little Christmas ficlet...

A little fic set post-DMC5

Julio looked disappointingly at both Kyle and Carlos, both passed out on their beds.  They'd all made a promise to stay up all night together, but they'd given up mere hours after their bedtime.  Ah well, they were younger than him, so they had more trouble staying awake.  And besides, if he could stay up just a few more hours, he'd be able to lord over them that he'd seen Santa.

It had started with a rumour at school that the jolly fat man didn't really exist, that Santa was just their parents that left out presents.  Julio and his roommates knew that was a lie, since they didn't have parents, just Miss Kyrie and Mr. Nero, and yet there was still presents under the tree.  So obviously it had to be Santa.  As a result, the three of them had agreed to stay up and catch Santa in the act, and when school came back the next year, they'd be able to tell all those kids that He did exist. Julio even had an old Polaroid camera he'd found in the closet, primed and ready to catch Him in the act.  

So now, he maintained his solo vigil at the bedroom window that faced the well lit front door, as the time went by, minute by minute, hour by hour.  Occasionally Kyle or Carlos would shift or mumble something incoherent, and Julio would spare them a side glance, before they'd fall back asleep.  This was a lot more boring than he thought it would be.

They'd left cookies and milk for Santa, as well as carrots for the reindeer, and asked that the front door could be left lit up.  Carlos had been a bit worried, since the house didn't have a chimney like the orphanage.  Miss Kyrie had cheerfully explained that Santa came through the front door when there was no opening to the roof.

And that's when Mr. Nero had scooped up all three of them, with his cool new shimmering blue wing arms, and as they screeched with joy and delight, he carried them all up the stairs at once to their shared bedroom.  And after getting a Christmas story,  and hugs, they wished the three of them goodnight.  Mr Nero had been a bit happier the past few months, ever since he came back from losing his arm.  He had a new normal looking arm, but he also now had these cool wings (which the kids were told not to talk to anyone about).  But even with that, he was happier about something else, something that he hadn't talked to the kids about, since he also seemed to be worried about it too. Julio might be just a kid, but he knew things.

It was almost midnight, and Julio's eyes were getting heavy.  Perhaps... perhaps this was a bad idea.  If he stayed awake much more, he'd sleep through the present opening.  Maybe he should just go to..

Wait!

There was movement in the front yard.  At first glance, Julio thought it might be a stray cat, but then a person strolled up the walkway.  He had white hair, a beard,  (not as long as he expected, but maybe Santa shaved?) and had a big grin on his face. And the kicker, He was wearing all red.  This man had to be Santa!   He began snapping photos, accumulating proof.  Odd, Santa didn't have a big sack of toys.  But maybe he had magic shrinking powers so he could carry all those presents.  And he didn't have any reindeer.  But Fortuna was pretty warm, probably too warm for reindeer.  And besides, Santa looked really dirty, like he'd been up and down a lot of chimneys and covered in that black stuff.  So it had to be Him! He almost came to the front door, but then he paused and turned back.

“You coming? He's gonna kill me if I don't bring you with me.”  

Out of the edge of light, a dark figure approached who looked like Santa with his white hair, but no beard.  He didn't wear red, he wore black...or was that really dark blue?  He looked kinda scary, and he had a weapon at his side.  Julio felt very nervous.  In class, he heard that in some countries, Santa came with a guy who would punish kids who were bad. And since Santa had no sack with him, maybe....

He thought back to all the bad things he had done that year.

Eating cookies from the cookie jar before dinner

Blaming Kyle for the broken vase he knocked over while running through the house

Getting into Miss Kyrie's makeup kit and painting his toenails

And he knew both Kyle and Carlos had done some bad stuff as well, so.. oh...no... were they all gonna get punished by the man in black?

“Do you think he would wish to see me?” the scary man asked, perplexing Julio on who he was talking about.

“He didn't kick both of our asses just to kick you to the curb, brother” Santa has a brother!? “Just give him a chance, like he gave you a chance.  He'll probably be pissed, but trust me, your kid has a good heart.”

“Still, the last time I was here, I vaguely recall...”

Santa seemed annoyed at his brother, “Uuuugh, just stop with your wiffling and grow a spine.” His brother grumbled something, but Julio couldn't make it out.  “Look, whatever happens, I'll be by your side.  You can't put this off forever.” He placed his hand on the shoulder of the man in black, and Julio took another Polaroid.

And with that, Santa went to go knock on the door. Santa knocks?  That's weird. But before he could rap his knuckles, the door was yanked open...

And then Mr. Nero stabbed Santa in the chest.

Julio almost dropped the camera in shock.  Mr. Nero had just killed Santa!  Why would he do that!?  All those kids who didn't get their toys!?  

“Nice to see you too, kid.” Santa wheezed, as he helped Mr. Nero pull the sword out of his chest. “You.... ass-holes” Mr. Nero hissed, using an adult word he and the other kids wasn't allowed to use.  What was weird was that he sounded like he was about to cry.  Apparently Santa wasn't too upset about having a sword shoved through him, or the swear word because he chuckled slightly as Red Queen was removed.  

“Hey there kid, long time no see.” Santa softly said, and the scary man in black came a little closer.

“You... left me.” Mr Nero was definitely crying.  “You never told me who I was, and then you tried to kill each other, and then.... you ass-holes left to go to god knows where!”

“Hey...hey...” Santa said, placing both his hands on his shoulders “We were gonna come back, it just...took a bit longer than I expected, and look!” he waved his hand to his brother “I even dragged your old man back, like I promised!” The scary man stiffened a bit, as if he was scared “Look, we're sorry, I'm sorry...I dunno what else I can do to make it up to you.”

“How about not running the fuck away again? Or trying to kill each other?  Both of you!” he hissed, pointing at them both, tears dribbling down his cheeks.  Mr. Nero never cried, even when his arm was ripped off by the monster, so this must mean he was really upset.

“Look kid, we're not going anywhere,” Santa assured him, “and we've had a good talk, we've hashed out our differences....mostly.  It's gonna take more time, and some more work, but your old man and I aren't going anywhere”

Mr. Nero looked like he was about to fall down, but Santa caught him in a hug, and with a jerk of his head towards his brother, he said softly “come on Verg, your kid needs you.”

Hesitatingly, the man in black and approached, before being pulled in by Santa,and gingerly placed one arm around Mr. Nero, and one arm around his brother.  And with the cool magic Mr. Nero had ever since he came back, his big bright blue wings appeared out of nowhere and and enveloped the both of them.  Julio took a lot of photos, and soon the Polaroids littered his bed.

After a few moments where he couldn't make out of what they were saying, Mr. Nero broke away, and as his wings vanished, he wiped his tears away.  “God, you guys stink.... get inside and get yourselves into the shower.” Santa chuckled as he pulled his brother inside. Nero continued “I'll tell Kyrie that we got extra people for Christmas dinner today, she'll probably make more than enough food”

“Ah crap, it's Christmas!?” Santa Swears!?  “We were gone a lot longer that I thought... I didn't even get you anything...”

As the door closed behind the group, he could just make out Mr. Nero, “I think this is a pretty good present...”

It only took a few minutes for an exhausted Julio to pass out afterwards with a big smile on his face, his pile of photos stacked on the nightstand.  He couldn't wait to show both Carlos and Kyle, and the fact that Santa was going to have dinner with them......

#devil may cry #dmc 5 #Dante #Vergil #Nero #Christmas fic #I love the fact Nero and Kyrie take care of kids. #Vergil and Eva would be proud

[statistically-unlikely-monster]

Secrets No More

Chapter 3: Trials and Tribulations

Poor Matt is just trying to be a good friend but Tom and Edd are acting weird. (Thank you to thelollipoper for the chapter name)

Edd slipped in the house just before 1:00 AM. All was quiet except for the sound of pittering paws against the floor. A purring ball of fluff rubbed itself against Edd’s leg, green eyes gleaming in the dark.

“Hey Ringo,” Edd whispered, patting the cat’s head, “Can’t play right now. I-” his sentence was cut off by his own yawn, “I need some sleep.”

He crept up the stairs, casting a quick glance at Tom’s door. It was opened just a crack, but he thought better of looking inside. Edd slipped into his own bedroom, hid his costume under the bed, and passed out before he could even cover himself up.

Not long after, Matt woke up, already energized and ready for the day, “Good morning beautiful,” he flirted with himself in the mirror, “Aren’t you the epitome of beaut- AHH!” He was cut off by Tom, who came in without him noticing somehow.

Tom was covered head to toe in twigs and mud. This was the second set of pajamas he destroyed. His old ASDFLand shirt had more holes than Swiss cheese, and his sleep pants were practically shorts. 

“What happened to you?!” Matt shouted.

“…Long night,” Tom muttered, rubbing his eyes, “Woke up in the backyard this time.”

“You and your furry friends need to calm down with the partying. You look awful” Matt commented, grabbing a hairbrush off his desk to comb out the twigs from Tom’s hair.

Tom was too tired to tell Matt to get off, so he just stood still and let it happen, “Gee, thanks.”

Matt chimed, “You know what, I need to make an update on my channel.” He gestured over at his desk. A webcam sat among several different bottles and tools that Tom was pretty sure were for torture despite Matt telling him they were for taking care of the skin, “How about I give you a makeover?”

“Polite pass.” Tom grumbled, pausing to think for a minute before speaking up,“There’s uh… there’s actually something else I was wondering about. Do you know any ways to keep calm?”

Matt’s face lit up in excitement, “Oh, that’s easy! You could do meditation, that’s a good go to. If you’re not into that you can use lavender incense or hemp oil. There’s also something I do as a quick fix. Just try saying the alphabet backwards. You’ll forget all about what’s stressing you out because you’re busy trying to say it.”

Tom nodded, surprised that what Matt said sounded actually helpful for what he was trying to do, “What about staying awake?”

“Like fighting off drowsiness? Usually just drink some coffee and energy drinks-” Matt chirped before interrupting his own train of thought, “Wait, does this have something to do with what’s been going on with you?”

“Sort of.” Tom yawned, rubbing his “eyes”, “Thanks for the tips, Matt” He walked off with a small wave.

“Wait, at least tell me what you’re doing!” Matt called him. He dropped off the hairbrush on his dresser and poked his head out of his room.

Tom shouted at him from the bottom of the stairs, “Nah!" 

Matt just sighed with a shake of his head. He slipped out of his room and went downstairs. Ringo weaved under his legs, almost tripping Matt on the last few steps.

"Whoa, watch where you’re going kitty,” Matt chuckled, reaching down to cradle Ringo in his arms, “What? Did Edd not feed you this morning?”

Ringo mewled as if saying yes, reaching little paws up to bop Matt on the nose.

“Alright, let’s go get you some food.” Matt chuckled, tickling Ringo’s soft belly. He waltzed into the kitchen holding the cat like his baby and froze. He felt a breeze brush past his face. He looked over and noticed that the backdoor was hanging wide open and letting the chilly fall air in,  “Oh Tom, you left the back door open.”

Tom shook his head as he tried to figure out how to fix the coffee maker, “Nope.”

“Wh- oh,” Matt rounded the counter and saw what he was talking about. The back door was technically still closed and locked, but someone busted in the glass to the point there was nothing but a pile of shards right in front of it. A single claw mark was scratched into the metal frame, “Huh…Edd’s not going to like that.”

Tom kept quiet as to how it broke, but he just shrugged and said, “Blame the neighbors?”

Matt nodded, “Blame the neighbors.”

A few hours later, Edd sat at his desk, looking over the fur he found at the scene. It was short and covered in a sticky substance that made it stay together in a spike. As far as he could tell, it was some sort of hair gel. 

Grabbing up his notepad, he took a quick sketch and made a list of what he found so far. 

“Weirdest animal I ever seen,” he muttered, doodling his best guess of what it was in the corner. It looked something like a spiky haired dog.

Just as he got done, he looked back at the fur and froze. The clump was changing color. Somehow it went from a deep, almost black shade of purple to a soft brown. “What in the-” Edd gasped, quickly grabbing his phone and recording the change, “That’s so cool.”

Suddenly he heard footsteps coming toward his room. In a panic he shoved the fur into a desk drawer and flipped his notebook to an empty page. Matt poked his head in without knocking and smiled, “Oh hey, you’re awake! For a second there I thought you were going to sleep all day,” he paused, noticing the nervous expression on Edd’s face, “Please don’t tell me you’re acting weird too.”

Edd shook his head, “No, no, you just surprised me, that’s all.” He hopped up from his desk, grabbed his bag from under the bed, and headed for the door, “Look at the time, I should’ve been up by now. I need to go do some errands. Think you can hold down the fort while I’m gone?”

Matt nodded, “Yeah, should be easy enough. Tom and I were talking about relaxation stuff, so I think he’s planning a spa day for us.”

“At least it isn’t vodka.” Edd commented, “Alright, I’m heading out.” He headed out the front door, grabbing the handles of his bag just to make sure it was still there.

He walked halfway to the police station, stopping in an alley to change and hide his normal clothes. Pocketing his phone, he flew over and stopped right at the door.

The police station was a small concrete building painted bright white. Small hedges lined the front, and around the side were all the squad cars. Poweredd stepped in, immediately greeted by a guard.

“Hello,” He greeted, “I’m here to talk to the police chief.”

The guard looked him over and wordlessly unlocked the main doors leading into the lobby, “Talk to the secretary for an appointment.” The guard stated flatly, waiting to lock the doors behind him.

Poweredd made his appointment, then awkwardly sat around in the waiting room for a bit. Everyone stared at him because of his costume, so he just looked down at his feet and tried to ignore them. He was still a very obscure hero, so except for the select few people that knew him, he was just some weird grown man in a halloween costume.

“Well, well, well, bit early to see you,” The police chief soon arrived, sipping on a cup of coffee, “Come with me.”

The chief led Poweredd into his office, motioning for him to sit in the chair in front of his desk, “Donut?” He offered, holding out the mostly empty box for Poweredd.

Poweredd shook his head, commenting as the chief set the box aside, “Bit stereotypical for a cop to have donuts, don’t you think?”

The chief chuckled, “If I had a dollar for every time I heard that. But aside from that, what made you poke your head out before dark?” 

Poweredd pulled out his phone and loaded up the video from before, “I think I found something important from last night. Here, look at this,” He handed the chief the phone and continued explaining, “I found this on the scene. It’s fur from something, definitely not an ordinary animal though. It’s color changing. Probably why we didn’t find any evidence or even catch the thing. It’s changing itself to blend in.”

The chief put down the phone and stroked his chin, “Well, that does explain quite a few things. But while we’re here exchanging clues, I found a little something while cleaning through the older files.” He reached down into his desk drawer and pulled out a thin file folder, “Call it a hunch, but I don’t think this is the first time that thing showed up.”

Poweredd opened up the folder to find several clippings of newspapers along with a single photo from a traffic cam. Suddenly it clicked as to why he was getting deja vu. Each piece showed the same thing; a large, hulking beast with a single empty socket in its head, two purple horns, and the same short spiky purple fur that he found at the scene, “Wait, that can’t be possible. Edu- I mean Numero Uno defeated that thing.”

The police chief shrugged, “From what I gathered, it disappeared that night without a trace. That thing was probably hiding under our noses this whole time. Why now of all times for it to come back, I don’t know, but it isn’t going to stop until someone stops it.” 

Poweredd nodded, tucking everything back into the folder before handing it back to the police chief, “So what should I do then?”

“Well obviously keep doing your normal work at night, but I think it may also be of benefit to go undercover. Investigate around during the day for any sort of suspicious behavior.” The chief scribbled down his phone number on a spare napkin and handed it to Poweredd, “Report back to me the minute you find anything.”

Poweredd nodded, “Thank you sir. I won’t let you down!”

#eddsworld #ew edd #ew tom #ew matt #ew poweredd #ew monster tom #eddsworld fanfic #secrets no more chapter 3 #this is a bit of a filler chapter #don't worry good stuff is coming next chapter

[thefandomlesbian]

Hey so I’m dropping this prompt here but PLEASE do NOT feel obligated to write it immediately. I just know I’ll forget I thought of it if I don’t leave it with you (I know many, including myself, are excited for TLAG so pleeeease just file this 1 away for another prompt fest): blind supreme AU: it’s their wedding day and misty is superstitious about seeing the bride before the wedding but Cordelia misses Misty. They make it work by blindfolding misty. Fluff for days. I appreciate your fics!!

This prompt has been sitting in my inbox for about a year now, and I sincerely apologize. 

I’ll be honest, wedding fics are really not my thing at all. But I ended up getting several more requests for the wedding attachment to the Blind Supreme AU, so I did my best to make it something that I was comfortable writing. It’s probably not as fluffy as you wanted, but I did try my best!

Read here on AO3!

Cordelia sighed as she sank down over her desk, burying her face into her hands. Her hair drifted down around her head. This can’t be happening. Even her eyes hurt, as if from strain, and she knew that was downright impossible. But she hadn’t had a break in three weeks, since the school released for the summer and most of the students headed back to their respective homes to share what they had learned with their families. She had hoped the lack of classes would give her and Misty more time, but instead, it had left her with piles of paperwork legitimizing them as an educational institute in Louisiana—without this, claimed the state, her students had no shot of getting into college because they wouldn’t have a high school diploma. I never should’ve done this. It’s too much work.

“Delia?” Misty called. “How long has it been since April was taken outside?” She knocked twice on the office door and stuck her head inside. “Boy, you look like something the cat dragged in. The Braille spells not working?”

“I wish they weren’t,” Cordelia breathed, lifting her head up from her desk. She blinked a few times. “Sorry, I’m just—I’m just frustrated. I don’t know, it’s been awhile, she was following me around whenever I got too close to the stairs. She needs her dinner, too.” I need my dinner. Cordelia swallowed. Her dry throat crackled. How long had it been since she had a drink of water? She couldn’t remember. She was exhausted and was no closer to legitimizing them as a high school in the state of Louisiana than she had been two hours ago.

Misty clicked her tongue, and April rose from under the desk and trotted over to her. “The girls are going out for the next couple of days. Florida, I think. Anyway, it’s just us over the weekend. Didn’t know if you wanted to make plans.”

“Blech. Plans. Whatever happened to spontaneity?”

Misty cackled. “That’s my girl.” She patted Cordelia on the shoulder and kissed the top of her head. “I’m taking April to potty. I’m locking you in so you don’t get lost and fall down the stairs.” Cordelia rolled her eyes, and she affectionately shooed Misty away, picking up her pen. I don’t know why I try. My handwriting has got to be complete garbage now. She could never tell how much space she was putting between the letters, no matter how much she tried.

The office door clicked closed and then locked as Misty and April headed downstairs; Cordelia could hear Misty’s soft, nearly silent footsteps on the staircase. Cordelia stacked her papers on top of one another and pushed them to the corner of her desk. We were supposed to get married this summer. But all of the planning had gotten pushed to the side before they had even found a venue or set a date. They had gotten a marriage license. They had purchased the rings. I don’t even remember where we put them. Cordelia sucked in her lower lip. Was she already a terrible wife? She was older now. She had more responsibilities on her plate. She was blind. Things took longer. Misty understood that. She had to give Misty that—Misty was understanding, where Hank would’ve lost his mind by now. Cordelia would’ve been bending over backward to please Hank; she didn’t have to worry about that with Misty. Maybe I should be worrying more. I need to try to make more time for her. Like setting a wedding date… It’s too late to try to host it this year, we should try to look for a date for next year.

She had a date book for the next year started. Of course, its contents pertained to the school, the coven, the counsel. It contained nothing personal, nothing about Misty. “God, I hate planning.” There was no way she could plan everything , and the coven had to take precedent. If it didn’t, she would have a whole clan of unhappy witches without high school diplomas unable to get into college, or worse, all of their parents angry with her for not giving their children an appropriate education. She licked around the corners of her mouth. “At this rate, we’re never going to be married.”

The thought landed on her mind, and then it latched on there, refusing to leave. She frowned. “Whatever happened to spontaneity?” she asked herself again, aloud. They had the marriage license. The courthouse took wedding parties. It would be cheap. It wouldn’t require any planning. And then it would be done! “And then it would be done?” she repeated aloud to herself, biting her inner cheek. “I don’t think that’s how we should start our marriage…” Didn’t she want a big party? She had wanted one with Hank. She had wanted to show everyone how normal they were… especially Fiona.

But Fiona was gone, and the world knew, now, exactly how not-normal she was. Misty had never wanted a big party in the first place; she never would have said so, but Cordelia could tell from her aloof, disinterested behavior that she had less invested in a huge wedding than she wanted to let on. It’s not like either of us has any family, and we see everyone else almost every day. No, she realized now, an ostentatious wedding would only waste time and money. They knew they loved each other, and so did the rest of the coven. Why put so much effort in a huge wedding to hear things they already knew? They could save that for their marriage, for the future of their relationship. She had saved nothing with Hank, because there had been nothing to save. She wanted the show because that was their relationship: a sensational theatrical performance.

There was nothing to perform with Misty, and Cordelia couldn’t say she wanted to be at the center of any more stages for the rest of her life, except for the love they shared for one another. “That’s it.” Cordelia pushed herself back from the desk. “We’re getting married.” She turned on her heel and found the doorknob… locked. “Damn. Misty! Misty, come let me out!” She rattled the door in its frame, but she didn’t dare try to open it with magic—if she fell down the stairs now, it would scare Misty. She had gone months without a fall, since they’d gotten April, and she couldn’t go back on that in her haste. “Misty!”

Misty’s footsteps struck the staircase again, firmer this time as she ascended in a hurry to reach her. “Cordelia?” She unlocked the door and opened it. “What’s wrong? We just came inside—I told you you were locked in.” April panted faintly. Misty paused. “You got a really bizarre look on your face, duckweed.”

“We’re getting married.” Cordelia blurted it out. Maybe I should’ve asked her first. But it was too late; the words had escaped.

Silence. Misty cocked her head. “Uh… yeah, we discussed it, but it’s not happening this year. What’s the matter? You figure you need an annulment or something?”

“I—what? No, why would I need an annulment?” Misty shrugged, making a vague, noncommittal noise. “No—we’re getting married. Let’s go do it. Right now.” She could feel the side-eyed look Misty gave her. “I said it, right? Planning sucks. I love you, you love me—I want you to be my wife, and I’m tired of all this other shit getting in the way!” She gesticulated ambiguously in the air. “The courthouse doesn’t close for two more hours. They’ve got walk-in weddings seven days a week. We have the marriage license! That’s all we really need.” She darted forward with her arms outstretched, stumbling over April and falling into Misty’s arms.

Misty spun her around and laughed in spite of herself, tilting Cordelia backward in a clumsy dance move. “What brought this on? I thought you wanted My Big Fat Witchy Wedding up in here!”

Cordelia flung her arms around Misty’s neck. “That’s not what I want! I don’t care! I already had the biggest wedding I could’ve dreamed of—and it sucked! It was terrible!” She was breathless. “And it’s not about me— you don’t want a wedding, either, do you?”

Another nonchalant noise followed from Misty. “I wasn’t sold on the idea, but I kinda figured the bodacious stuff was up your alley. You’re the bride, and I’m…” She drifted off. “I’m realizing I probably should’ve stopped calling myself the groom awhile ago.”

Cordelia froze. “You’ve been calling yourself my groom? ” she repeated, astonished.

“Well… yeah. I started calling you my bride, but I guess I ended up taking it a little too far.”

“To how many people?”

Misty snorted, a high-pitched, nervous chuckle attached to her voice. “All of them.” Cordelia’s face broke out into a grin, and she cackled, trying to muffle her laughter into Misty’s shoulder. “Oh, c’mon, it’s not that funny.” She held Cordelia back at arm’s length. “The point is, the wedding isn’t that important to me. I’m more concerned with what happens afterward.”

Cordelia paused. “The sex?”

Brow quirking, Misty said, “The marriage , you horn-dog.” She swatted Cordelia on the butt. “But I’m looking forward to the sex, too, I think.” She grinned, and she dipped down into a soft kiss.

Pressing her hands against Misty’s shoulders, Cordelia pushed her back. “So you don’t care about a wedding. I don’t care about a wedding. Why are we bothering with a wedding? Who are we really going to invite, anyway? Everyone here already knows. It’s not new to anybody by any means. Why would we waste that much time when we want to be wives?”

“Because,” Misty said quietly, “you wanted My Big Fat Witchy Wedding until about three minutes ago, and I don’t want you to marry me on some whim that you should be spontaneous.” A desperate frown sank onto Cordelia’s face. “You’re just bored of paperwork.”

Cordelia’s lip curled. She tried to stifle it. “I am not going to marry you just because I’m bored of paperwork! You and I both know that paperwork boredom is cured by good sex.” Misty snorted, nodding along in agreement. Cordelia could be candid, knowing the house was empty; she missed being able to be so frank . “No, I don’t want a party wedding. I want a marriage. I just had to realize that. And I’m not wasting another minute being your girlfriend when I want to be your wife. Let’s suit up and get to the courthouse!”

Misty was becoming more lenient, but she still wasn’t completely sold. “Are you sure this is what you want? A courthouse wedding? Don’t you think that’s a little tacky, even for us?”

“If I decide I hate it, we can always have a party to celebrate later. Lots of people do that.”

Listening closely, Cordelia could nearly hear the gears turning in Misty’s head. Say yes, say yes, say yes. Misty’s mouth opened. “I agree, but…”

“But?”

“I can see you.” Cordelia’s mouth opened, hanging there in confusion for a moment. “I’m not supposed to be able to see the bride before the wedding. At least, after you’ve gotten changed into wedding clothes.”

“What wedding clothes?”

“Whatever clothes you decide! I can’t see you in them until it’s time to get married. It’ll kill our relationship if I do.”

“Nothing is going to kill our relationship —I was just going to wear these clothes.”

“You can’t wear these clothes.”

“Why not? Because you saw them? I can’t even see them!”

“Well, yeah, but also because they really don’t match that well. I mean, they’re fine for paperwork at home, but probably not for our wedding.”

“So you can’t see the clothes until we’re at the altar, but you’re going to judge me based on how well they match?” Misty paused at Cordelia’s proposition. She was being thoughtful—dammit, she was so thoughtful, Cordelia rolled her eyes, laughing to herself. “C’mon. You can pick out the outfit. As long as it’s not on me, it doesn’t count, right?”

A quiet, satisfied noise left Misty’s nose. “I’m sure glad I’m marrying such a smart lady.” She put a hand on the small of Cordelia’s back. “It would’ve taken me a lot longer to come to that conclusion than it took you.” April followed them down the hall to their room. “What color do you want to wear? Nothing that could trip you up. Green?”

“Green,” Cordelia confirmed, not because she liked green, but because she knew Misty liked green. “What about that green turtleneck and some slacks?”

Misty hesitated. “Delia, I don’t know how to break this to you, but you don’t own a green turtleneck.” Dread pooled in the pit of Cordelia’s stomach. “I did think it was kinda odd that you were wearing that ugly Christmas sweater to meetings and stuff... Makes sense, you thought it was a turtleneck.”

“You let me wear an ugly Christmas sweater to meetings? ” Cordelia repeated, her voice jumping up the octave. “Misty! Why didn’t you ever think to ask me?”

“I thought you knew it was an ugly Christmas sweater!”

“You thought I would deliberately wear an ugly Christmas sweater to professional meetings? I’ve been representing us as an educational institution in front of state and national boards! No wonder they’ve got me jumping through so many hoops. They’ve got to think we’re completely off our rockers.”

Misty snickered. “Well, if they’re half-way decent educators, they’ll have taken enough classes to know better than to judge a blind lady over what she’s wearing. But, c’mon, Delia, the thing has bells on it. How didn’t you know? It made you jingle like a kitty-cat collar.”

She flushed. She has a point. I always wondered why that turtleneck gave me tinnitus. “I never really noticed. I was busy.” She sighed and took the turtleneck—the ugly Christmas sweater—out of the closet.  “Let’s just throw this away before I forget that it’s not my business sweater. Just pick something out!”

Poking around in the open closet with the doors wide open, Misty picked through. “What about your pretty summer dresses? I’ll wear one, too, so we’ll match. We’ve got a yellow polka dot one and a blue polka dot one.” Cordelia held out her hand to take it. The cloth fell out of her hand. “Alright, I’ll go downstairs and call a cab.”

“A cab? Why?”

“Well, I’m gonna have to be blindfolded, aren’t I? So I can’t see you. I can't drive with a blindfold.”

“You want to go through all of the admissions paperwork blindfolded ? Couldn’t you just not look at me?”

“Not worth risking it. You’re used to being blind, you can help me figure it out!” Misty dipped her down into a kiss. “I’ll be right back. You need help getting April ready to go before I get blind?”

It was silly. It was spontaneous. Whatever part of Cordelia was mildly annoyed at the inconvenience rapidly zipped away, replaced by mirth, humor at Misty’s antics and the unconcerned way she regarded her superstitions as casual fact. “I think I can handle April, babe.” She wrapped her arms around Misty, hugging her tightly, and she reached to kiss her once more. “When you see me the next time, we’ll be married.”

“I know.” Misty’s voice was faint as she realized it. “I can’t wait to be your wife.” She kissed the crown of Cordelia’s head and slipped their hands apart, heading out of the room and down the stairs with her dress in tow.

Cordelia rushed to prepare. She fumbled to suit up April with her harness and leash, and then she dressed herself in the modest summer dress and slipped into her flats, praying they were the same color she remembered. She found her cane and left the bedroom. Standing at the mouth of the stairs, she called down, “Misty? Are you ready?”

“How am I going to know when the cab gets here if I can’t see?”

“This is ridiculous! I only say that because I love you! You’re ridiculous!”

“I recognize your complaint, but I still have a perfectly valid question!”

Cordelia laughed. She took a step forward and sat down on the top stair. “I’ll stay up here, and when you see the cab, you tell me to come downstairs, okay?” April sat beside her and reached to lick her face. Cordelia giggled. “Good girl, April. Good girl.”

A few minutes passed. “Okay, he’s outside!” Cordelia stood and took April by the  harness, and together, they drummed down the stairs and met Misty, who waited by the front door. “The cab is going to think we’re insane.”

“The blind leading the blind,” Misty confirmed. Cordelia’s light criticism hadn’t changed her mind, so with the acknowledgment that Misty refused to budge on her conviction, Cordelia allowed Misty to take her arm and ordered April out of the house.

Misty kept stumbling and tripping over the sidewalk. Oh, this is going to take forever. Cordelia smirked. It was atypical for Misty to lack confidence—it was amusing in a way, if dangerous in several others. But Misty could take off the blindfold if she had to. What could happen? Cordelia opened the door to the cab and clocked Misty in the face with it. “Ouch! Delia!”

“Oh, god, Misty, I’m so sorry!” Cordelia fumbled for her hand. “This way, get into the car this way .” She sidled into the seat. April settled down on the floorboards of the car, lying down across Cordelia’s feet, and Misty stumbled in after her, hitting her head on the roof of the car.

The cab driver popped his gum. “What’s with the blindfold, miss?”

Some part of Cordelia wanted to lie, but she couldn’t come up with anything more plausible than the truth, which Misty provided without second-guessing herself. “We’re going to the courthouse to get married, but I can’t see the bride before the wedding!” The man’s mouth opened and closed and then opened again, sort of hanging there in the air, like he had a feeling to express but didn’t have the ability to put it to words. “We’ve got two good eyes between the three of us.”

“And they both belong to the dog?” the man asked, and Misty hummed along enthusiastically. None of this had robbed her of her zeal for life—if anything, the silliness had added to it. Cordelia giggled, shaking her head, leaning over to rest her cheek on Misty’s shoulder. “Good luck to the two of you, then. Congratulations.” He shifted the car into the gear and pulled back onto the street.

“We forgot the rings,” Misty said after a minute of silence.

“Eh, we’ll get them when we get home. We might lose them, since neither of us can see right now.”

“Well, only one of us can see usually.”

“And our track record of keeping up with things is not the best,” Cordelia pointed out. Misty acquiesced with a smile and kissed the crown of her head. She’s going to be my wife. Cordelia felt sick inside—a good kind of nervous, anticipatory sick. Why had they been putting this off for so long? They could’ve done this ages ago! She was ready from the moment Misty had mentioned them having a wedding together; she had known that. Why had she ever gotten hung up on the formalities? She had spent enough of her life doing things right . Doing things right had lost her Misty once. Cordelia had learned enough that following the rules often led her astray. Misty had taught her a lot of things. One of them: Rules were made to be broken. “Are you ready for this?” she whispered into Misty’s ear.

Stringing a warm arm around her neck, Misty’s voice cooed right against auricle of her ear. “I’ve been ready from the moment I woke up in your arms, duckweed.” Chills trickled up Cordelia’s spine. She closed her eyes, relishing in the moment. I may never see your face again, but I feel your love every moment we’re together, and that will last me a thousand lifetimes over. “Do we have to say vows or anything?”

“I dunno. I guess we’ll find out when we get in there.”

“What if I need to prepare?”

“I don’t think you need to prepare,” Cordelia teased gently.

The cab pulled off in front of the courthouse. “Congratulations, ladies. Do you need help getting up the steps?”

“No, thank you, sir.” Cordelia paid him, hoping the tip was generous enough, and she opened the door and slid out onto the sidewalk, April ready to work at her side. Misty tumbled out after her, nearly falling down, but Cordelia caught her by the elbow. “Okay, clumsy.”

“I’m not clumsy.”

“Right. Your middle name is Grace, that’s why you conked yourself in the head getting in and getting out,” Cordelia teased. She gave Misty her arm. “Let me tease. I’m rarely the more mobile of the two of us.” Maybe these stairs aren’t such a good idea. Misty clearly was not the best at judging distance without her eyes—why should she be? She wasn’t blind, and she didn’t exactly have a reason to regularly blindfold herself and practice for this insane wedding venture. “Let me help you.” Unlike Misty, Cordelia was quite practiced at the stairs, and with April’s help, she could go slowly and reach the top safely. “Forward up.” April started up the stairs, and the pressure guided Cordelia. “One step at a time. Stop trying to rush.”

“This is really hard.”

Cordelia laughed. “I know .” She gave Misty’s arm a gentle tug. “Are you okay?” Each step caused Misty to wobble, but she didn’t topple over. “It’s a lot easier with April.”

Misty gave a wheezy, breathless laugh, too nervous from the stairs directly beneath her to concentrate on anything else. At a platform, she sighed. “Was that it?”

“No, babe, there’s a whole flight left. That was halfway, though.” April kept going, and they proceeded to the top, Misty stumbling more than once. At the top, Cordelia gave a whimsical laugh. “I bet you’re glad you get to take that blindfold off for the way back down.”

“I’ll never complain about cutting a sandwich for you again.”

“You never did in the first place.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Taking care of my duckweed is something I enjoy.” Misty walked directly into the divider between the doors. “Jesus Christ, this world is a death trap.” Cordelia laughed again. I didn’t have this much fun at my first wedding, she realized, and it made her want to laugh more, that Misty with all of her free silliness blew away a wedding that had taken thousands of dollars to put together. “Which way?”

Finding the correct floor was half the battle, but fortunately, the courthouse had elevators. Cordelia held fast to Misty, afraid they’d get separated. They came out and got into a line leading up to a desk. “What’s with the blindfold?” asked a no-nonsense clerk, pushing some paperwork at them. She put her thumb next to the X for Cordelia to sign her name. “What kind of shenanigans are you trying to pull?”

“No shenanigans, ma’am. I can’t see the bride before the wedding.”

The clerk was silent, waiting for a punchline, but there wasn’t one. She took a deep breath and put her finger beside the X for Misty, too. “That’s a first for me,” she muttered under her breath, “even for crazytown.” Misty and Cordelia elected to ignore her as they signed. “Get in line for the chapel down the hall.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

It was another line. Cordelia couldn’t hold still; she was buzzing. “I can’t believe we’re really doing this.”

“Do you not want to do this?” Misty asked.

“More than anything,” Cordelia promised. “It’s so surreal—just an hour ago, I was miserable thinking we were never going to have time to get married! And now here we are.”

“You said it was time to be more spontaneous.”

Cordelia laughed. “The girls are going to tell us we’re crazy.”

“Oh, they’re going to be furious. ” Misty squeezed Cordelia’s hand. “Zoe and Queenie were waiting for me to take them shopping for bridesmaid dresses. But they hadn’t bought anything yet, so they ought to be glad, right?”

Shaking her head, Cordelia agreed. “Yeah… Right.”

The chapel doors swung open, and the line moved up ahead, the two of them clinging to each other a few couples back from the large wooden doors. “They’re moving them out fast,” Misty observed. “Like an assembly line. Just putting marriages together. Bam, splat, you get a wedding, and you get a wedding, and you get a wedding!”

Trying to disguise her grin, Cordelia bent her head forward toward the ground. “You’re going to make me laugh!” Were people staring at them? She didn’t know, couldn’t know, because Misty couldn’t see, either. As far as she was concerned, it was just the two of them in this huge, dark world, and April was their lighthouse, her tail wagging slowly back and forth. “I love you, Misty. Even if you are silly and ridiculous.”

“You love me because I’m silly and ridiculous.”

“Maybe that’s it.”

It was, indeed, like an assembly line, as couples came and went, and soon enough, Misty and Cordelia shuffled into the chapel after the officiant. “Are you meant to be blindfolded?” he asked, and Cordelia bit her lip to keep from laughing.

“I’m not allowed to see the bride before the wedding.” To her credit, Misty didn’t get impatient at explaining it over and over; she knew nobody else would understand at first glance that she had her own superstitious rules about their wedding. “But I’ll be able to take it off in a minute here, right?”

The man’s smile was evident in his voice. “Well, you might’ve just made my day.” He cleared his throat. “Yes. You actually can take it off now, if you like.”

Misty did so, the fabric slipping off of her face, and she balled it up into her fist. She tremored on the spot. “You’re so beautiful, Delia,” she whispered, and Cordelia’s whole face grew warm.

The man stood back. “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Cordelia Goode and Misty Day in holy matrimony.” He had the words memorized, barely glancing down at the podium before him. “Miss Day, if you’ll repeat after me.” Misty gnawed at the bit, straightening at the sound of her own name, and she repeated his words by rote, not too fast nor too slow.

“I, Misty Day, take thee, Cordelia Goode, as my wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish, til death do us part; and thereto, I pledge myself to you.”

They were such familiar words, ones Cordelia had heard dozens of times on the television and in weddings. Someone else might have heard them as empty words, but Cordelia didn’t; from Misty, all of her heart and her magic flowing into those words, Cordelia had never felt fuller. “Miss Goode?”

She felt like a little girl trying to recite the pledge of allegiance in front of the class as she repeated the words said aloud by the officiant. “I, Cordelia Goode, take thee, Misty Day, as my wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish; and thereto, I pledge myself to you.”

She didn’t stumble over any words, to her own surprise. Misty sniffled, and Cordelia realized she was crying. Her own eyes burned, but crying hurt too much for her to allow it of herself here.

“Misty Day, do you take Cordelia Goode to be your lawful wedded wife?”

Her voice was thick with emotion. A slight shiver was attached to her two, simple words, words which had never made Cordelia so happy before in her life. “I do.”

“Cordelia Goode, do you take Misty Day to be your lawful wedded wife?”

Cordelia cleared her throat. She suddenly had cottonmouth. “I do.” She sounded hoarse.

“Then, by the power vested in me by the state of Louisiana, I witness and affirm your union of love and now pronounce you wife and wife. You may kiss the bride.” Misty reached for her, guiding her into her arms. She was, once again, Cordelia’s eyes, just as she was meant to be. Their lips connected, and Cordelia made a happy, soft sound as she sank against Misty’s body, wholly supported hers.

Their kiss severed. Misty gave a throaty chuckle. “Ready to go home, Mrs. Day?”

Cordelia blinked. “Did we decide on your last name?”

“I was going to combine them, but I decided Mrs. Gay was a little too forward even for us.” Cordelia’s laughter floated them all the way out of the courthouse.

#foxxay #sarah paulson #lily rabe #misty day #cordelia goode #my writing

[izupie]

‘Cat Therapy’ - Kyoru Week Day 1 - [Stay]

(I made it! Day 1! On time!)

(Fluff, Kyo Swears A Lot, Character Study. Part 1 of 2)

@kyoruweek19

[AO3 Link]

Day 1 - Stay - ‘Cat Therapy’

The first few times Kyo heard her coughing he didn’t even really register it. She’d been cooking the evening meal for them all at the stove like always and it was just the occasional little sound that she muffled with her hand. Nothing to worry about, nothing to note. While they’d been eating, she’d covered it up so well he forgot he’d even heard her coughing at all.

The next day it got worse.

Kyo firmly told her to stay home from school the minute he saw her. She coughed even while she shook her head, but it had clearly kept her up all night, though she’d somehow masked it well enough that it hadn’t woken even him – and he was a notoriously light sleeper. (Probably a Cat thing.)

She looked at him with horror at his suggestion, but her usually bright brown eyes were glazed with the look of someone trying to mask their discomfort.

She’d had a cold recently, but it hadn’t seemed that bad because she’d still been making it to school, and she’d been straight on the cold remedies to treat the symptoms, instead of letting herself get as bad as last time. Nobody had expected her to get this kind of cough as an aftereffect. She’d probably kept so much of it inside instead of blowing her damn nose that she’d made her chest bad. As if on cue Tohru turned away to cough with a violence that shook her tiny frame and made him wince in sympathy.

Of course, Tohru had naturally tried to get dressed and go to school today, insisting she was fine, despite her weakness from all the coughing. Her cheeks looked pale and pasty from the lack of their usual pinkness and even her smile wobbled with the effort it took to put it there.

She looked like shit.

And yet… each time she broke into a coughing fit she’d turn away, like she was ashamed and embarrassed, clutching her chest with the effort of trying to repress it, and he’d feel his heart clench. His hands had balled into fists before he’d even registered it and he was yelling at her to stay at home before he could stop the words from tumbling out of his mouth.

He was powerless to help her from her own symptoms; from her pain, her discomfort, her guilt and embarrassment, and that pissed him off. Give him something to fight for her and he’d do it. Standing around and just ‘letting her get better’ was not his style.

Especially when she was so bad at looking after herself. She never seemed to give herself the consideration she gave everyone else.

When she coughed so hard for so long that she started gagging the three Sohmas had eventually persuaded her to get back into bed. Despite her loud and frantic denials. “Miss more school,” she’d said in a panic, “I-I can’t. I-I made a promise. I can- I can still go, I’m feeling better, I-”, but whatever she’d wanted to say after that got cut off by the painful sound of her coughing and wheezing.

He was glad when she’d gone back to bed and he didn’t have to look at her pathetic face anymore. Shigure had reassured them that he’d be staying at home all day writing, so he’d listen out for her in case she needed anything, and that he was going to call Hatori to see what he could do for her. It was a surprisingly emotional speech for someone who didn’t really care all that much either way. He just knew what retribution would be waiting for him from the rest of the family if he didn’t look like he was trying to help.

Kyo swore it was like she’d somehow earned the love of the whole damned messed up Zodiac.

School was a trial that day. Even more than usual. He alternated between glaring at people and glaring at the classroom clock. Neither did anything to help. His classmates were determined to know the source of his bad mood, bugging him relentlessly between classes, and that damn rat wouldn’t stop huffing at him with a feigned ignorance whenever he was asked about his ‘sour cousin’. And the clock refused to go faster.

He wasn’t sure why he was even that bothered about whether Tohru was well or not. She’d been sick before and he’d been angry about it before, but this time he was taking it even worse. He just knew while he was at school, he wasn’t at home, and that meant he had no idea how she was. Was she still trying to hide her coughs? Was she getting worse? Would she need to go to hospital? While the same knot of questions bounced endlessly around his head, he was continually denying the guilt settling in his stomach for not taking her seriously that first night. He hadn’t even really noticed. He hadn’t asked her if she was okay. That damn Yuki probably had while he’d been out of earshot – then why didn’t he do something about it then? He could have called Hatori over right away. Maybe that would have prevented how pathetic she looked this morning. The rat should have done something dammit. Isn’t that what he always did? Swooped in and saved the day?

Kyo’s mood darkened enough that his classmates finally seemed to sense that it would be best if he was left well alone.

He glared at Yuki instead. But he didn’t notice.

And then, finally, he was able to go home.

He took the long staircase back to Shigure’s house two at a time, easy with his long legs and supernatural balance – (good for sleeping in trees without falling out and for racing up ridiculously tall and narrow steps without falling over, he noted.) It was odd that he wasn’t even bothered that he hadn’t caught his breath back by the time he’d flung the door open and kicked his shoes off, so that his breathless question of, “How is she?”, came out as one word.

Shigure looked up from his newspaper and raised his eyebrows high. “Well, aren’t we the concerned one today? Did you race all the way back from school to find out how our poor Tohru is fairing?”

Kyo didn’t have time for Shigure’s shitty habit of answering questions with questions, but he gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to lose his temper – knowing that was exactly the reaction the damn dog was looking for.

Shigure laughed. “Oh, well now, that’s certainly a dark look. You’re so easy to tease Kyo, I’m always glad when you come home from school.” He wiped pretend tears from his eyes.

Kyo was one more comment away from telling him to piss off and just going up there himself, but Shigure’s expression finally became more serious as he pointed towards the ceiling.

“She’s resting. Hari gave her some medicine for her chesty cough, and it’s eased. He doesn’t think it’s a chest infection, but she needs to take the medicine twice a day to help it get better, so it doesn’t turn into one. So make sure she has it, Kyo.”

“What? Why me? I’m her friend, not her mo-” Kyo clamped his mouth shut. Bad choice of words. Bad choice of words.

Shigure said nothing but his eyebrows raised even further.

Gods what did she ever do that was bad enough for the universe to decide she deserved him as a friend?

Kyo heaved a breath, calming down after realising his shitty mood had made him say the wrong thing again, and was glad Tohru hadn’t heard him.

Shigure let the weight of Kyo’s cut off word hang in the air for a moment more, then he shook his newspaper taut in front of him, it stood straight with a satisfying snap, and let his eyes roam the pages as if he was reading – even though kyo knew he wasn’t.

“It’s a shame we don’t own a cat,” Shigure said.

“What?”

“A cat, Kyo. Don’t you know?” he went on in an innocent voice. “Cats are supposed to be good for relieving stress.” Shigure couldn’t quite stop the quirk of his mouth at the irony. “It says right here that something happens in your brain when you pet a cat. It makes you feel calm and it even helps with the healing process. If we had a cat Tohru could hold it in bed and feel much better,” he sighed, placing a palm to his cheek dramatically.

“Y’know what – I don’t have time for you today,” Kyo snapped, storming out of the room.

One quick google search later confirmed that Shigure hadn’t been lying through his teeth for once. There were different levels of evidence and success in the studies he looked at online, but it looked like there might actually be some science behind it. Kyo threw his phone onto the bed and dragged a hand over his face. He looked over at the door to his bedroom but stubbornly snapped his head away from it. No.

No. No. No.

No way.

But Yuki wasn’t home yet, so maybe he was stuck doing council stuff after school, and Shigure was reading downstairs…

Kyo shook his head, hating the burning sensation in his cheeks.

No. Way.

There was nothing he could do about the cat thing, he decided. But it wouldn’t hurt to check on her anyway.

When he knocked on her door softly, she answered straight away with a cheerful, “Come in!”.

Kyo entered to see Tohru in her pajamas, sat up under the covers of her bed with her hands folded in her lap. Her cheeks were much pinker than they’d been before school and she’d tied her hair into pigtails to keep it out of her face. The smile she flashed him made something warm spread through his chest.

“Kyo, welcome home! How was school?” Tohru chirped.

“U-Uh yeah. It was fine.”

Kyo was stood tense and rigid by her doorway, his arms folded, and her smile faltered a little in the face of his awkwardness. He hated that he was making her feel uncomfortable, but he just couldn’t stop thinking about what Shigure said.

He tried to cast it out of his mind as he approached her bedside slowly. “But how are you feeling now anyway?”

“Much better, thank you. Hatori gave me some medicine.” She enthusiastically gestured towards a clear bottle of green liquid on the side table next to her.

“And you have to drink that stuff?” Kyo scoffed, peering down at the gross looking liquid. “Looks nasty.”

Tohru giggled in response, the sound tingled straight down his spine, but the effort made her fall back into a small coughing fit. It didn’t have the intensity of what she’d been doing that morning though, so he was reassured that the nasty medicine was at least working.

He placed a soft hand on her shoulder, surprising himself by the way he was always seeking to use touch as a comfort for her, and she bent over low as she tried to suppress the coughing. Kyo’s hand slid to her back and rubbed in slow circles as her small body shook. “If you need to cough, do it as loud and as long as you want, ‘kay? Don’t hold it in, you’ll only make it worse.”

Tohru heaved in a breath and nodded, though she didn’t make any effort to sit back up, and Kyo didn’t stop his hand from circling over her back.

Finally, his hand stilled. “Tohru,” he said softly, unable to stop the soft question from tumbling from his mouth, though he could feel the tips of his ears beginning to burn, “c-can I… hug you?”

“E-Eh?” Tohru squeaked, sitting back up so quickly her pigtails whipped around her.

“I- uh- I heard that cats… make people feel better or something dumb like that. Agh, pretend I didn’t ask. That was a stupid thing to ask-”

“Y-Yes.”

“What?”

“Y-Yes. You c-can.”

Neither of them could seem to look the other in the eyes. Kyo sucked in a breath. He suddenly became unsure of how to actually, do the hugging. Should he just lean down? Put his arms around her? He felt like an idiot.

“S-Sorry,” Tohru suddenly whispered, hiding her face in her hands, “I-I shouldn’t have said yes. Please don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine, I don’t want to cause you any trouble, you should just go and I’ll be okay I-”

His arms went straight around her middle. She gasped as his chin briefly, oh-so briefly, rested on her shoulder and his body touched hers, but then the transformation tugged at that strange place in his stomach and his whole body went numb – always the worst part even though it lasted barely longer than a second. A cloud of orange sparkles cleared from his vision as he looked up at Tohru’s red face from among his clothes from his new position on the bed. 

“I’ll stay,” Kyo said with a flick of his tail.

#kyoru week 2019 #kyoru #kyo x tohru #fruits basket #fruits basket fanfiction #my fanfiction

[solastia]

The Dragon’s Lair

- A Special Edition Chapter -

This is the thirty day bonding period report of Kim Namjoon. I am writing this because Kim Heechul is a tyrant who threatened to make everything I eat taste like broccoli for an entire month if I missed even a single day. For my owner’s privacy, since I don’t know who all is going to see this, I won’t use her real name. Her aura has always reminded me of one of my favorite jewels in my collection, a star blue sapphire, so for this report her name will be recorded as Star. 

Day 1: Here we go, first entry. The house is incredible and I have my own room. It’s a charming farmhouse with tons of space and a bunch of land. There’s even a massive forest that apparently is part of her property as well. I’m looking forward to exploring it all later. I can’t help but wonder if Star’s been lonely out here by herself. There are tons of rooms in this house and everything sort of echos when it’s quiet. The thought of her sitting in here by herself is heartwrenching. If she adopted me because’s all alone, I hope I can make her happy. I should probably also report that my dumb biology has decided she’s a part of my hoard. I can’t sleep without her now. I normally would have wanted to wait until we were more comfortable, but she dealt with the situation with grace. 

Day 2: Not too much to report today. We spent most of the day buying more things for my bedroom. Since Star is a part of my hoard now, she insisted on buying an even bigger bed and stashed the old one in one of the other rooms. This one is something called an Eastern King sized bed and is the biggest mattress I’ve ever seen. I could fit so much on here. Put that eyebrow away, hyung. There is a room that she keeps locked and when I asked her about it she said it was just storage. Seems strange to have a whole room just to stash stuff. And why keep it locked it she was the only one living here?

Day 3: I may have made a mistake today. I’ve been so happy here that I wanted to thank her. I can hear you saying, “You gave her a jewel, right?” Well, I’m afraid I didn’t. I tried to make her breakfast. I KNOW, hyung. I learned that it’s possible to melt a pan and leave the meat inside of it raw. Who knew? Lucky for me, Star was too busy laughing about the pan to really get too mad at me. She gave me a hug before telling me I’m banned from the kitchen. 

Day 4: I spent the day scenting my territory. Every bit of this house (minus that locked room) and the land surrounding it are now marked. I even got away with subtly marking Star. This is feeling more like home every day. 

Day 5: I don’t want to hurt her feelings, so I’ve been eating everything she’s been making me. You’d be proud of me, I haven't complained once! Even when she gave me three scoops of broccoli. Although for broccoli, it wasn’t as bad as some I’ve had. She put garlic and stuff in it. Maybe soon I’ll be brave enough to tell her what kind of food I like. I don’t think she’d get mad, but you never know. 

Day 6: The new Marvel movie came out today. Star was so excited and I couldn’t help fall for her a bit more today. I admit I had a crush before, but she was just shining with happiness and every time she smiled at me my heart felt like it was going to burst. It doesn’t feel like a crush anymore. The theater was packed and we were pressed together like sardines, but neither of us seemed to mind. She even let me hold her hand. Could she ever return the feelings of someone that is basically an animal, though? Hyung, what do I do?

Day 7: Soonyoung and Jihoon came to hang out today. It was the first time anyone has come by since I’d marked it as my territory, and I think I did pretty well. Only growled a little bit, I promise. That was mostly because of Jihoon hogging Star. He was totally egging me on though, I swear. Smirking whenever he saw me watching. He’s known me too long and knows how to push my buttons. He made up for it by telling me everything he knew about Star. The way he talks it's like Soonyoung and Star are the best people on the planet...I think I’m starting to agree. 

Day 8: Star has to do some work tomorrow and won’t be able to spend much time with me, so she decided to spoil me today. She took me downtown and we hung out there almost all day. Ate at a cafe, spent hours in the bookstore, even stopped by the art museum. Then we walked next to the river and we just talked about everything. Hopes for the future, friends, books we like. Hyung, it felt like a date. I want it so bad it’s aching. Do dragons have mates? Like, soulmates? I think she might be mine. We need to research this. 

Day 9: Nothing much to report today. Star has been in her office all day. I don’t know if I’m allowed in there, but I’ve made her food (just sandwiches, don’t worry) a couple times and knocked to let her know it was there. I’ve mostly been in my room reading. I’m going to need cuddles like crazy tomorrow though. Don’t laugh, you like cuddles too. 

Day 10: We just stayed home today and it was great. We cuddled on the couch and watched a few movies, then went outside to work on her Grandma’s garden. She could remember when everything was planted and told me about them with a sad smile. It’s obvious that she loved her Grandparents and they loved her. While I’m sad that she lost them, I’m happy that it led her to me. I want to be the family she needs. I know I already need her. It’s so soon for that too. I’ve only known her a couple weeks, but it feels like a lifetime. I can only hope that she feels the same. 

Day 11: Star has been smelling a little different lately. Not a bad different, but...I don’t know. Maybe she’s getting sick. I spent most of today trailing after her like a dumbass trying to figure out what the smell was. My dragon was fighting me hard to surface like it wanted to protect. All I wanted to do was take her to my room and not let her leave the nest. (See? I’m calling it a nest. Isn’t that weird? Where did that come from). I’m trying to stay calm so I don’t scare her. I might call you later and have you send some medication she can take. 

Day 12: That smell is still there, but it’s even stronger today. I feel like I should know what it means, but I just can’t remember. She doesn’t look sick. In fact, she’s been eating more than usual. She went through three bags of chips today alone. I don’t know if I should be worried or not. I guess the best thing is just to wait for her to say something. 

Day 13: TODAY HAS BEEN HELL! HYUNG! She wasn’t sick, she was starting her cycle. As soon as we woke up I could smell it and my dragon nearly came through the surface. I had to make up some story about dragon digestive problems so I could lock her out of my room and try to get away from her. I was under so much stress my horns and talons were out for hours. All I wanted to do was run after her and CLAIM her. Pull her into our bed and protect her. Hyung, I think we have a pretty good answer to my mates question. There is no doubt in my mind that she is meant for me. 

Day 14: She slept in her room for the first time in forever last night because I kept telling her through the door I was having issues. I couldn’t sleep at all. My entire body was itching because she wasn’t in our nest. I didn’t want to scare her though, so I fought through it. I was scared to come out this morning, but I didn’t think I’d be able to pull off any more time without worrying her. Thankfully her scent was back to a level I could handle. She was asking about my stomach and babying me. I used the opportunity to blame the broccoli and she’s promised to never make me eat any again. At least something good came out of this ordeal. 

Day 15: We went ice skating today to celebrate the halfway point of our bonding period. Technically halfway was yesterday, but I was “recovering” so she saved it for today. She was so adorably bad and probably has a bruised behind from how often she fell. I’m always so clumsy everywhere else, but I was proud to be able to show her how good I am on the ice. She was impressed and my dragon was PREENING! I was actually purring like a damn cat. I feel like I’m supposed to be doing something to make her think of me as a mate, but I don’t know what. We need to find out if dragons have mating rituals. Hyung, time to hit the books again! Or at least wave your hands around. Honestly, what good is a Wizard if they can’t just tell you what you need to know? 

Day 16: Nothing to report today. Star worked in her office, although she kept the door open. She warned me that once she gets in art mode, she doesn't’ pay attention to anything around her and she didn’t want to hurt my feelings. I was fine though, I just like being near her. She has a recliner in there that's really comfy and I read and watched her work. She’s so talented and when she’s deep in her work she gets extremely focused. The house could have gone up in flames and she wouldn’t have noticed. I don’t know why that’s so attractive, but she had me hooked. 

Day 17: I made her cry today, hyung. I’m worried it might be my last day here. I was just trying to do something nice and I made her some tea, but when I tried to carry the tea set to the living room I slipped on the rug and spilled the tray. The entire set broke. I just stood there paralyzed because I couldn’t believe what I’d done and she came running from another room. When she saw what broke, she started sobbing. Not just crying, hyung. Wailing. I tried to help her pick the pieces up, but she just asked me to go to my room. I’m sitting here waiting for her to tell me to pack my things. I’m sorry, hyung. I tried. 

Day 18: I had gone to bed by myself last night, but Star ended up joining me. She didn’t say anything until this morning, but at least we both slept well. It turns out the tea set was one that she’d picked out piece by piece with her Grandma. As soon as I heard that I felt even worse for what I’d done, but she calmed me down when I tried to apologize. She said she knew it was a mistake and she was sorry if she scared me. She was sad but she wasn’t angry. I asked her if she wanted me to go back to the shelter, but that just made her cry again and hug me. She told me she couldn’t imagine life without me anymore. We spent the rest of the day quietly cuddling on the couch. I think we’re going to be okay. 

Day 19: I needed to let my scales through while I was showering today because I felt so itchy. I don’t know why it’s happening in the middle of winter, but I shed a whole handful of scales today. I was just going to give them to you for your supplies like usual, but the thought made chest burn. I felt like I needed to give them to Star. How odd is that? Why would Star need my scales? Maybe it’s a dragon thing? Back to the books with us. I wish I had a manual like the other hybrids. Life would be so much easier. 

Day 20: Star decided the 20th day we’ve been together is another milestone worthy of celebration. The zoo was is having some Christmas event for the month of December and the weather was decent enough that I wasn’t worried about her being in the cold that long, so that’s where we went. Soonyoung and Jihoon came along too. But get this hyung, she called it a double date! I don’t think she meant it in the way I want her to but...maybe? Maybe I’m growing on her at least.  Either way, we had fun. I liked the petting zoo the most. There was a little goat there that wouldn’t stop following me around and Star was laughing so hard. She said when it gets warmer we are definitely getting some goats for the farm. I tried to explain that dragons most likely used goats as their main source of food. She just laughed and made jokes for the rest of the day about me having a “kid.” If it makes her this happy, I’ll accept my future as a tamed dragon turned goat dad.  

Day 21: It’s been a long time since I’ve had one hyung, but I think I had a prophetic dream last night. I was here at home with Star, but the house was full of people. I think they were all men, but I couldn’t see their faces well. Everyone was happy and giggling cuddled in the living room and two little kids were running around playing. Even more amazing, Star was sitting next to me with a huge pregnant belly. In the dream, I felt proud and protective so I was sure it was mine. And she was wearing a necklace made of my scales, hyung! That’s how I knew it had to be prophetic. I’ve had no idea what to do with them, but seeing them around her neck felt right. I’m going to send them to you so we can make the necklace. I really hope that was a peek into my future. I’ve never felt such love and contentment in one room like that before. 

Day 22: Nothing to report today. We just did chores and hung out. I wandered around in the forest for a while and wrote for the first time since I’ve been here. You’d cringe if you saw how sappy some of them were. 

Day 23: I’ve never thought about keeping a journal before since I usually am content with using my music to let things out, but this report has kinda gotten me used to writing every day. I think the next time we’re in town I’ll buy a journal and keep this up. It’s nice to go back and remember. 

Day 24: Some days I have hope that I’m not the only one feeling more than owner and hybrid. There are times when I swear I catch a glint in her eye or scent her arousal and I wonder if she might have feelings for me too. Of course, the scent could be for any reason, but a dragon can hope. Still, I think I’m doing a good job at making Star happy and she cuddles with me all the time. She tells me she adores me, but she’s usually squeezing my cheeks like I’m a kid when she does, so I don’t think she means it that way. I just wish I could get my act together and let her know I am so in love with her. She is everything to me, the very air I breathe. She’s it for me, hyung. Even if this doesn’t work out and she sends me back like my last family, she’s it. My dragon has chosen its mate and so have I. 

Day 25: I gave her a hickey in my sleep. I apologized and asked if I did anything else but she laughed it off. I think I might do it often and she just keeps it to herself to spare my feelings. I am so screwed. I just wanted to give her more. 

Day 26: I’m realizing now that you’re going to be reading this and it’s going to sound like some angsty teenage drama. I know you’re going to bust my balls but you know what? I don’t even care. Make fun of me for being whipped. She’s worth it. 

Day 27: Star says she’s going to take me to the beach in the summer. I told her I’ve never been to the ocean and she threw a fit. I’m excited to see it, but I’m more happy that she’s making plans that far ahead. It means she’s expecting me to still be here then. She wants me to stay! 

Day 28: I have a confession. I haven’t been feeling the urge for more Ryan dolls in a long time. Instead, I’ve been basically snatching things. I’ve been keeping my secret hoard in a box under my bed because I’m a little embarrassed. So much of it could be considered trash or too sappy, but it makes me happy and it fulfills my urges. There are things like tickets from the zoo, a shiny rock that I picked up during our walk along the river, any little accessories she leaves laying around, notes she’s written me (one of them is just a damn shopping list). And for some reason, I can’t stop taking her hair ties. I don’t know. They carry her scent I guess? I wish I was a normal dragon that wanted mostly jewels and coins, but even then I’d probably find some way to make it about her. Oh wait, I kinda already did, didn’t I? I nearly forgot about where her name came from. God, I’m hopeless. 

Day 29: The bonding period is nearly over. While I’m anxious to get back to my classes and I miss my friends, I’ll miss being home with her all the time. I’m curious how I’ll feel when I have to be at the shelter when Star is home alone. Not good, I imagine. The urge to protect her and the den is already high enough. Oh well, something to work on. I bet you’re going to be excited to have me back to pawn all your paperwork on. I dread how high that pile has gotten. 

Day 30: Here it is, my final entry for the report. I’m going to be keeping a journal after this because I really liked going back to read how I felt. It put a lot into perspective. Although, those will be a bit more personal than this. There was a lot that I didn’t share with you, hyung, as I’m sure you know. Mostly just more feelings and personal memories I’d like to keep to myself. Things she’s said and done that make me feel like the most important person in the world. I couldn’t possibly explain in just a few journal entries the depth of emotion I feel and how complete she makes me. I’ve always felt like the odd one out; the dragon that no one understood or would want. She’s never made me feel that way and accepts me for the way I am. I am honored that she wants me, even if it’s just as her hybrid. I’m going to try though, hyung. I have the necklace we made all wrapped up and I’m going to confess on Christmas day. If she rejects me, I just hope she’ll let me stay with her anyway. Maybe you could make me a good luck charm. See you tomorrow! 

#bts #bts fanfic #bts scenario #namjoon #namjoon fanfic #namjoon scenario #hybrid #hybrid!bts #hybrid!namjoon #dragon hybrid #dragon!namjoon #the dragons lair #solastia

[racetrackhiggins]

Hanukkah Binch

This is from the rp that me and @alkimara did a while back, I actually looked at the date, and this segment in particular is from like a year ago, I went back and formatted it from discord and made a couple spelling error edits I noticed but there’s probably more. They requested I post it after seeing a post about there not being a lot of Hanukkah celebration fics and stuff

Disclaimer: neither of us are Jewish, all the information I wrote in here was honestly taken from hours of googling, but I might have still gotten some stuff wrong, but I hope it’s at least okay :) 

word count: 15433 ship: finch/buttons

-

Well, another year, another lonely Hanukkah. Finch had tried to remake his mom's challah, but it wasn't the same, and he'd let it sit too long in the oven. Might as well toss it. He wondered what his mom was doing... He wondered if she missed him as much as he sometimes missed her. But he couldn't go back, not with that monster of a stepdad living there. He'd probably end up dead if he ever stepped foot in there while having a boyfriend. 

He spun the little dreidel on the coffee table idly, watching as it landed on gimel. Whole pot. Had he been playing with someone. 

He sighed, looking at his phone again. Buttons' still hadn't responded to his text. He was probably having fun with his family, Finch couldn't blame him. Maybe he should just work on that animation, at least it would give him something to do…

Buttons saw Finch turned away, and was quiet, so so quiet... "Hey babe~," He giggled, wrapping his arms around Finch's waist. "How are you~?" He looked around, noticing immediately that Finch was alone here, and his heart broke slightly.

Finch nearly screamed, whipping around. "My god, you almost gave me a fucking heart attack!" He looked at Buttons with a disbelieving smile on his face. "What the fuck are you doing here, I thought you were with your family?"

"I heard you were here being alone and mopey," Buttons hummed, "Came to either give you company or invite you over. Or both." He looked over, "Can't play dreidel with a party of one. Well... You'd gotta teach me how to play.'

Finch was quiet for a moment. Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, don't- fuck. He covered his face so Buttons wouldn't see him crying.

"Wh-? Hey... Babe?" Buttons gently curled Finch closer, nuzzling close. "I got you..."

"S-sorry, just..." he couldn't finish the sentence, worming himself around to hug Buttons' neck tightly, burying his face into the crook of it.

"I got ya... You wanna come over? Bring some stuff? You'd probably be teaching us a lot," He chuckled. He moved to rub Finch's back, "Literally I've been trying to get them to let you come over since the break... Finally got 'em."

Finch nodded softly. It had been a long time since he'd been in a... family environment, unless you counted this as a family. Which he kinda did. "I-I'd like that," he said quietly.

"Alrighty, pack your things, and uh... We'll try not to break anything," Buttons hummed. "I may or may not have family in the car downstairs."

Finch laughed in disbelief. "I can't believe you..." But he got up, starting to pack his things, just kinda emptying out his bookbag and stuffing some clothes, his laptop, and some chargers into it. When he came back out with it on his shoulder, he glanced over at the stupid little plastic menorah. He didn't even consider himself a practicing Jew anymore, but... the dumb little fake flames made him feel connected to his mom, in a way. He looked away, clearing his throat. "Guess I'm ready."

"Clearly, you're not," Buttons hummed, going to pick up the menorah. He also picked up the dreidel, though that was more in secret. He handed the menorah to Finch with a small smile, because supportive boyfriends are supportive. "Now, is that everything?"

Finch gave him a small smile as he held onto the menorah's base. "Yeah..." He pressed a kiss to Buttons' cheek.

Buttons smiled, kissing Finch's forehead in return as he brought the other downstairs and to the car.

"So, you're Benny's boyfriend~?" An older girl asked with a smirk, an eyebrow raised. 

"Oh, here we go," Buttons mumbled.

Finch grinned, glancing at Buttons. "Yep," he said a little shyly. "I'm Finch."

"Good to meet you, Fin- aAH!!" 

A younger boy shot up from the passenger seat, "42 WALLABY WAY SYDNEY- Oh that was fast." He laughed as he got hit by the girl who was driving. 

Buttons sighed, opening the rear door, "My older brother and sister, Ed and Jan. Ed has narcolepsy."

Finch snickered, "Hi, nice Finding Nemo reference." He kinda fiddled with one of the unlit bulbs on the menorah, not really sure what to say. As an only child, he'd had no idea what to do with siblings in general.

"Welllll hop in!" Jan laughed. 

Ed beamed, "Why thank you." 

Buttons stepped to the side, helping Finch into the car before climbing in himself, being careful with Finch's stuff and especially the menorah. Ed looked over at it, eyes wide in curiosity, but he didn't comment, instead deciding to vibrate in place.

Finch very subtly took Buttons' hand when he got in, partially out of nerves. "So, uh, how old are you guys?" he asked to the two up front.

"25," Jan answered, starting to drive. 

"23," Ed said, blinking slowly, "Trying to get settled in my own place, but I'm not allowed to be alone, in case I fall and hurt myself."

"Versus I'm just working from home to help our parents pay for all of your colleges," Jan said again, glaring in the rear-view at Buttons, who shrugged. He gently intertwined his fingers with Finch's, trying to relax Finch by rubbing his thumb over his hand.

"Ah," Finch nodded. Um... "What about the others?" He knows Buttons had mentioned bits about them before but he couldn't for the life of him remember.

"Benny's 21, Amy's gonna graduate now at 18, Max is 17, and Junior is 12," Jan answered, squinting at the road. "Road work ahead," She muttered. 

"I sure hope it does," Ed smirked. 

"If I wasn't driving, I'd knock you into another coma," Jan growled. 

"I can do that myself, thank you very much," Ed winked.

"At least he's cultured," Finch snickered, maybe not so subtly leaning against Buttons. Boy was like a damn cat sometimes.

Buttons moved an arm around Finch, switching the hand he was holding Finch's hand with. He hummed, shifting to be comfortable, even with their seat belts on. 

"Cuddlebugs," Jan giggled. "But also- Ben? Mom was asking if you two wanted to share a room." 

"Ohoho??" Ed wiggled his eyebrows, grinning.

"I mean, we already share a room, so even if we weren't dating I wouldn't have a problem with it," Finch pointed out. "Plus, I'd hate ta steal someone else's room."

"Ed, knock it off," Buttons groaned. 

"I second that," Jan said, flicking Ed's forehead.

"I mean, he's got a point," Finch murmured with a grin to Buttons.

Buttons blushed a bit, murmuring back, "Yeah but they don't gotta know that." 

Ed had a giant smirk on his face.

"Alright, boys~ we're home~!" Jan announced as she pulled up to the house. "Please leave your limbs inside the vehicle until we've come to a full and complete st- eDWARD!" Ed had opened the door and hopped out of the car, racing to the front door. Jan groaned as she put the car in park and turned it off, getting out, "I have the keys you idiot!!" 

Buttons hummed, getting out of the car and helping Finch out with his stuff.

"I'm guessing it's always this chaotic?" Finch smiled, trying to pretend he wasn't nervous about meeting Finch's whole family. He'd already known that Buttons' family had inherited a nice house but like... this was 

 nice.

"Oh, it's worse inside," Buttons snickered. "Be careful with the twelve-year-old. We're trying to keep him from swearing," He hummed, moving to help the other inside. 

At the door was an older woman, standing inside the house with a kind smile. She was hugging each of her children and kissing their cheeks, and Buttons looked a little nervous. "Hey, mom," He smiled, going to hug her. "This is my boyfriend-" 

The woman turned to Finch, pulling him into a hug, "Hello! Welcome! What's your name??"

"Finch, nice ta meet you, ma'am," Finch said politely, a little surprised by the hug. Did he hug back??

A younger looking boy ran down the stairs. "OOOOO, BENNY'S BROUGHT HIS BOYFRIEND~!" he shouted for the whole house to hear. 

"June, 

," a mousy looking girl said, pushing his face as she passed him. 

"Hey! Mom! Amy pushed me!" Junior shouted as if she weren't right there. 

"Did not!" Amy argued. 

Finch just kinda glanced at Buttons as if to ask if this was normal for siblings.

Buttons just sighed in distress. His mom soon released Finch from the hug, "Finch. Ah- it's okay, I suppose you can share your real name when the family isn't all about. I've heard about your little code names." She smiled at Buttons, who glared and slowly narrowed his eyes. "Right, Button~?" God damn it. 

Buttons sighed, "I'll go set up my room. Where's Max?" 

"Practicing, I think," His mom answered. 

Buttons nodded, looking at Finch, "Well, c'mon. Let's get you settled."

Finch nodded, carrying his stuff and letting Buttons lead him. 

Junior was 

 following them, curious about the new boy and the weird candle thing he was holding.

"Junior, whatcha doin'?" Buttons hummed casually, opening the door to his room. He moved to help Finch set his stuff down, going to flop on his giant bed, making it pretty clear that they'd be sharing. He looked over at his little brother, an eyebrow raised.

"What's that thing?" Junior asked, pointing at the menorah. 

"It's a menorah, but like really shi- uh, not very well made. An actual one would have real candles," Finch explained, barely catching himself. 

"What's it for?" Junior asked. 

"It's, uh, well, it's a Jewish tradition to light them, one a night, to represent the eight nights oil stayed burning when it was only supposed to last two," Finch explained, a little happily. 

"Oh, its that Hanukkah thing! I've heard about those, I've never seen a real one." 

Finch snorted, "I'm not even sure this really counts, but it's all I could afford so..."

"I think it counts," Buttons said softly, putting an arm over Finch's shoulders. 

"Looks like you made it all by yourself~. You're more talented than just drawing, y'know," Buttons smiled. He looked at Junior, "Finch makes animations and drawings! Don'tcha, Finch?"

"Yeah," Finch said sheepishly. 

"Like Disney?!" Junior asked excitedly. 

"Like... well, I guess, but I'm certainly not good enough to make a whole animated film, maybe a short at most," Finch shrugged, scratching the back of his neck. 

"Woah..."

Buttons was beaming, "Yeah, I've got a pretty talented boyfriend, huh~?"

... And now there was a loud electric guitar coming from the next room. Buttons sighed. Max.

"No fair you have a cool boyfriend," Junior pouted, ignoring the guitar. 

Finch flushed a little at that. What, no, he wasn't cool! He looked up at the guitar, looking at Buttons as he sighed.

Buttons smirked, "'Course I do~." He looked over at Finch, "That's Max. They're. Uh. I don't know the term. Rock band. Very... metal."

"Sounds like 

 cool," Finch chuckled softly as Junior ran off. "I am certainly not the cool boyfriend. I'm just some animating nerd who showed up with a dumb handmade menorah." He flopped next to the bags, sighing softly as he set the thing down. The lights flickered for a second, and he tensed up for a moment before they went to normal. "Probably won't even last much longer if I don't change out the wires. Why bother though?" he murmured under his breath.

Buttons pouted, going over and flopping on top of Finch. "Because it looks like it means a lot to you," He said softly. "I don't know why, but it does. If you need help, we can fix it," He murmured, kissing Finch lightly.

Finch looked up at Buttons softly. "You know why I stay at the dorm instead of going home every year?" he asked quietly, knowing full well he hadn't told anyone about his family situation, not even Buttons.

"No," Buttons said softly, moving off of the other and sitting next to him, carefully holding Finch's hand.

"Cause I ran away from home when I was sixteen," Finch said, letting out a small, humorless laugh. "My stepdad nearly killed me when he found out I was gay, my mom never knew how he treated me when she wasn't looking... So I left."

Button's eyes widened, and he moved closer to Finch, looking at the other with an expression that could only be described as holding a lot of emotions.

Finch had to look away from him, running a hand through his hair. "My dad died when I was thirteen, and Aaron came in and 'saved' my grieving mother not long after." He sighed, holding onto the menorah and looking at it. "Guess this is me just trying to feel like I did in the past. Obviously, it's not the same. Can't even actually light this stupid thing." He sounded a little bitter about it. "But I couldn't use real candles in this or I'd just burn something down."

Buttons was biting his lip, thinking. He gently looked over, taking the menorah and turning it off. He set it to the side, standing and tugging Finch out of the room, heading out to the garage with the other, still quiet and thinking. He let go of the other, grabbing a stool and climbing on it, reaching for a large blue bin. He grabbed it, carefully pulling it down and setting it on the ground with a grunt. After digging around for a few seconds, he pulled out a 

 bag of clay, putting it on the metal table. He looked at Finch, "Bake-able clay. Will not melt from a candle. Well- not if we put in the little metal cups at the bottom." He dug around, pulling out the metal cups that were usually seen in tiny candles. Except there was no wax or wick. "Jan used to play around with candles," Buttons hummed, setting the metal pieces on the table as well. He looked at Finch, heading around the box and going to take the other's hands again. "It might not be the same, you might not be able to get to the past, but... There's nothing wrong with remembering how happy you were."

Finch watched with confusion until Buttons started explaining. He bit his lip, and god damn it, he was starting to tear up again. "Hah, we could make real dreidels with that too," he said, trying to blink away the wetness to not much avail.

Buttons saw the tearing up, "Oh. I did it again." He chuckled, gently offering his arms for a hug, "Also, 

 make the dreidels. Or you'd have to teach me how to help."

"I can help," Ed said, peeking in. Buttons glanced away, and Ed continued, 

 "Please?" Buttons said softly. 

"I didn't say no," Ed laughed, moving into the room.

"Sorry I'm coming in and Jewing everything up," Finch joked, wiping his eyes. "I really appreciate it, though..."

"Jesus was Jewish," Ed snorted softly, going to pat Finch's head before moving to pull the clay out of the bag. He blinked, going for his set of sculpting tools and setting them out before starting to play with different pieces of clay. "Plus we mostly celebrate Christmas for each other and presents," He chuckled.

"Very true. To be fair, most Jews believe that a guy named Jesus existed and was probably a cool dude... that's about the extent of it though," Finch grinned, feeling much better.

Buttons had moved to grab another piece of clay, playing around with it to warm it up. 

"Lit," Ed said with a grin.

Finch grabbed a piece, kneading it. "I've only made a dreidel once before, wonder if I could do it again. I'm still convinced my dad had switched it out with a better one so I wouldn't feel bad when it didn't spin right," Finch said, smiling softly... damn, it had been a long time since he'd thought of that.

"What's so hard about making a spin?" Ed grinned, grabbing the entire thing of clay- which was as big as a laptop -and just dumping it out, starting to knead it like a large piece of dough. "Shit, this is hard," He mumbled.

"I mean, I was also like six at the time," Finch grinned. "And my dad was a sculptor for a living." He snickered at Ed, "I don't think we're making bread, that's a whole other tradition. I do remember he said it should be about the size of the hole of your fingers," he said, holding his pointer and thumb together in a circle.

"Yeah, but I'm tryin to smooth this out for the uh... the candle stick... What's it called?" Ed tilted his head, curious. 

Buttons took a smaller piece of his big piece, holding it out, "Like this?"

"Menorah," Finch said, nodding in approval to Buttons. He was rolling the clay into a ball, starting to roll a point with his palm. For a moment, he could swear he felt his dad beside him, reminding him how to do it. There was a small smile on his face, perhaps bittersweet.

Buttons leaned over from his spot, watching, trying to follow as he did it. 

"Right," Ed hummed, still rolling out the clay. And then he hummed again. "Well. Maybe you'll need to do this alone." 

"Ed???" Buttons looked over. 

Ed gave a thumbs up, moving over to the hammock in the room, and barely managing to get on it before collapsing, snoring lightly. 

Buttons sighed.

Finch laughed softly. "I don't mind." He scooted closer to Buttons, letting him see exactly how he was doing it. 

 he heard in his head. Finch repeated it to Buttons, not realizing he'd copied his dad's Spanish accent, too focused on the actions of his fingers.

Buttons blushed a bit at the accent, but didn't dare break the spell that Finch was under, following along as best as he could.

"Could ya hand me the little... that thing with the string on it?" Finch asked in his normal accent, pointing in the direction of the tools.

"Yup," Buttons hummed, grabbing it and moving it over to Finch.

Finch took the string and used it to cut clean sides onto it, and suddenly it looked like a somewhat long dreidel. He set it on the ground, slicing it down to size before taking the extra and beginning to form it into a little rolled snaky piece for the top of the spinner to be cut out of.

"Ohh what the..." Buttons took the string piece, trying to copy what Finch had done. A little crooked, but it still looked like a dreidel. Mostly.

"Looks good!" Finch grinned proudly at him, kissing his cheek. He molded the snaky part to the top of his dreidel, smoothing it out so it looked nearly seamless, before pinching the extra off and molding it to be a neat top. "Do you have paint? It would be easier than trying to cut the symbols in."

Buttons was sticking his tongue out as he followed, "Yeah, more paint in the bin. There's also some teeeeeny tiny brushes." He was squinting, trying to focus, so happy that Finch said it looked good.

"Sweet, then this is done to bake," Finch smiled. He looked over at the menorah, thinking. If they were gonna make it candle-safe, then there would be no need for the wires.... He could just use the base and sculpt over it with clay, then- wait, no the plastic would probably melt in the oven. "I think we just start completely over," Finch murmured, setting the menorah down, using it as a visual example as he started rolling out a base from Ed's big ball.

"Alright," Buttons said after a moment, seeing no other way. "We can use the little metal bits as molds for where the candle will go?" He offered, using some wire to start planning out the structure. He ran into the house and back out again, having a roll of aluminum foil. He started rolling off large sheets, trying to build up the menorah’s main bulk.

Finch smiled, just looking at Buttons for a long moment as he worked. It was fitting, maybe. Finch had made his menorah years ago out of homesickness and sorrow, never quite content with it. Now Buttons was here, helping him build a new good memory to associate with Hanukkah. Not just the sad longing of the past.

Buttons caught the look, giggling softly. He moved over, gently kissing Finch, 'cause the other was just too damn cute. "Alright," He hummed, pushing the menorah forwards, "I did my very best~!"

"I love you so much," Finch said softly as he took the menorah base. He looked back up at Buttons with a small smile. "Thank you for doing this with me, and for not letting me be alone this year."

Buttons smiled softly, "'Course... I love you too, Finch. A lot. I'm glad you're here with me. Even if my family is uh... Crazy." He chuckled a bit, happy.

Finch laughed softly. "I certainly see why you seemed so used to the Newsies when we moved in." He had a long rope of clay at this point, and he put the end on the bottom of the base, starting to wind it around the foil, making sure there were no breaks in it.

"Yeah," Buttons giggled, watching the other.

Finch managed to get it halfway up before he needed to roll more. He quickly rolled it out, his tongue sticking out a little bit in focus as he did. He carefully molded it to the end of the previous one so you couldn't tell the end or start of either. He winded it up the rest of the way, nodding a little bit in satisfaction.

Buttons just watched, his elbows on the table. He was fascinated with how the other worked, and snorted softly, "Y'know I'm like. The only one in my family that doesn't have artistic talent? Ed can sculpt like a badass, Amy can paint, Max loves their guitar like it's their kid. Jan with watercolors is something extraterrestrial. We don't really know if Junior has anything, though." Buttons sunk, moving his face against the table, "Then there's me, who I guess can sew. And my artistic and talented as fuck boyfriend~."

"But you're cute as a button~" Finch teased, glancing up at him. "And at least you have a life skill," he said, nodding at him.

Buttons rolled his eyes, "My mom says that too much. Jack said my name in front of her and it was the death of me. I'm just a ghost." He giggled, and blinked. He gasped, offended, "Art is a life skill!! Look at this sculpting talent from a beautifully sculpted man! You could sell things online!!" He grinned at Finch, his voice loud and dramatic.

"Shh, you'll wake your brother up," Finch said, definitely not turning red at all.

Buttons giggled, "I could- and have -screamed into his ear. Doesn't do a thing."

Finch laughed softly, starting to wrap the clay in the same fashion around one of the prongs of the candleholders.

Buttons moved over, wrapping his arms around Finch's waist, nuzzling into his back, but not hindering the other from working. "I~ Love~ You~," Buttons hummed with a smile.

"I love you too~" Finch hummed, glancing at him for a moment, leaning his head against him.

Buttons moved to kiss the other happily. 

"Gay." 

Buttons sighed, pressing his head against Finch's shoulder, "Gotta love my family." 

Jan giggled, "Mom wanted me to let you know Dinner will be ready in around an hour." 

"Alright, thanks, Jan," Buttons said, still hiding his blush and cuddling with Finch.

"Sure, Jan," Finch said in an imitation of the meme with a small giggle as he worked. "Hopefully I'll at least be done with this part... yeah, no there's no way I will."

Jan rolled her eyes, heading off again. 

Buttons sighed, looking up, "I can help. Maybe. Yes?" He looked hopeful.

"You can go ahead a roll out more? That way when I run out, I have more ready," Finch suggested.

"Alrighty~!" Buttons beamed, moving away to go roll out more clay happily.

Finch smiled as he kept working, planning ahead in his mind, realizing that he was very much modeling it after the one his mother had. The twists were more like his dad, though. By the end of the hour, he'd finished one side of the menorah.

At some point during the hour, Ed had bolted awake. And then slapped himself to keep himself awake. "Fuckin'..." He sighed, waving to the two as he moved out of the room.

At the end of the hour, Buttons was beaming, "It looks great!" He looked excited, practically vibrating in place. "Alright, c'mon~," He giggled, gently moving the Menorah to the middle of the table where it would be safe. He smiled at Finch, leading the other to the kitchen happily.

Finch grinned back to him, following him. 

Buttons' dad was in the kitchen, totally not flirting teasingly with his wife. "Hey, Ben, how goes it?" he grinned, pulling away from her to ruffle Buttons' hair. "You must be Finch," he said in a friendly manner, shaking Finch's hand. "You can just call me Peter." 

"Nice to meet you, sir," Finch said a little sheepishly.

Buttons sighed, smiling a bit from his father's head-rub. "Hey, Dad," He chuckled, moving to help set the table. He smiled a but at Finch and his dad, confident that they'd get along okay.

Junior came bounding down the stairs, making web-slinging noises as he pretended to be swinging in like Spiderman. "I hear there is... dinner~" he said dramatically. He dropped it after a second, pouting, "Amy says she's not coming cause she has to write a paper." 

Peter sighed, glancing at his wife. "You want me to get her or just bring her a plate?" 

Finch sorta scooted a little closer to Buttons.

Buttons blinked, gently tugging Finch closer, "It's okay, no one's gonna eat you." He giggled a bit, kissing Finch's cheek. 

Max came downstairs with a sigh. They appeared completely androgynous, black hair and black and pale makeup over their face. They definitely stood out from the crowd with the black metal t-shirt and spiked bracelets, but they just hummed as they moved to help set everything up, nodding their head casually at Finch.

"You sure?" Finch asked quietly at Max's appearance, and he'd certainly be lying if he said he wasn't a little intimidated by them.

"Well, I might, but not now," Buttons snickered quietly. "Also, don't worry about Max. They're doing their thing, and we love them anyway," Buttons giggled, a little louder. 

Max gave a rock on symbol with their hand, smiling a bit.

.

Button's mother, Jess, sighed. "Go bring her down, she has the entire week and can take a 20 minute break for family." She pecked husband's lips, moving to bring things to the table.

Peter nodded, heading upstairs as Junior hung onto his mom's arm. "Gross, you gave Dad cooties~" 

Finch laughed softly, "Fair enough." He waited for Buttons to tell him where to go/what to do.

Jess hummed, "He already had cooties long before you were born." And she looked at Jan, the eldest. 

Ed hummed, moving to sit, and Buttons gently motioned for Finch to sit next to himself. Ed sat across from Finch, Max going to sit on the other side of Finch instead. Jan sat next to Ed, leaving the last spot for Amy, and the heads of the table for their parents.

"Ewww," Junior cried, running off to the table. He leaned close to Buttons, "Mom made a dirty joke," he said scandalously. 

Finch snorted, covering his mouth to try to disguise his laugh as a cough.

Jess rolled her eyes, smiling a bit as she moved to sit. She sighed, waiting for Peter and Amy.

Amy came down and sat down, sighing a little bit. Peter came and sat at the other end of the table. "Looks great, hun," he said, looking at the spread.

Jess smiled at that, "Had to work my best magic for our guest." 

The people at the table moved to hold hands, Max gently taking Finch's other to connect the circle. Hm. Black fingerless gloves. After quickly saying grace, Buttons, Jan, and Jess moved to serve the food. When that was done, they sat again, and started to eat.

Finch felt a sort of pang in his heart that he elected to ignore as he started to eat. "It's really good, ma'am," he said politely.

"Thank you," She hummed with a smile. "So, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?" Ah. The family interrogation. Buttons sighed, as if he was expecting this.

"Oh, um, well, I'm in my third year like Benny, and I'm going for an Animation major," Finch said.

"Oh, good luck," Jess said politely. "Sounds like a fun field, certainly a lot of work!" 

"Takes me forever for one sketch," Jan said with a bit of a laugh.

"Yeah, it can take me weeks to do a ten minute short, " Finch grinned. "I had to simplify my style a little to make even that."

"Wow," Jan laughed. 

"Big yikes," Ed nodded in agreement.

"Yeah... Ben's had to drag me away from my tablet at 3 am cause I was still working on a project," Finch chuckled, glancing at Buttons.

"At 3am you weren't even focusing," Buttons grinned. 

Jan chuckled, "Deadlines suck."

Finch nodded in agreement. 

"Could you draw Spiderman?" Junior asked, his eyes sparkling. 

"Yeah, sure!" Finch said. 

"I wanna be Spiderman, he's so cool, and he lives in New York, so I could be Spiderman," Junior said idly as he ate. 

Hm. Alright. Finch could do that, probably by the end of the week.

Ed giggled, "Just gotta find a radioactive spider." 

Jan flicked his arm.

Junior nodded, "Mhm." 

"Don't go around trying to get bit by spiders," Peter warned, glancing at Ed. 

Junior pouted a little, but simply kept eating. 

"I'm done, can I go work on my paper now?" Amy asked. 

"Sure, tell your little internet girlfriend we say hi," Peter teased. 

Amy blushed a little bit, but didn't respond to that as she took her plate to the kitchen.

Ed shrugged. 

"Good luck, Amy~!" Jan said cheerfully. 

Max kept eating, remembering something. Ah, they'd just bring it up when they needed to.

Once everyone was done eating, Junior ran to go play video games until his mom told him to get off of it, and Peter carried plates to the sink to wash them. 

Finch looked down at the table, murmuring a short and quick prayer, hoping no one noticed. He stood up. "Do we need to help..?" he asked Buttons.

Max had done the same without even asking, just staying by Finch. Seems someone was educated. Buttons was a bit confused but respectful, leaving his hands in his lap and waiting until Finch was done. "Nah, my dish day was yesterday," Buttons said with a smile, "We can probably just go up to the room." 

Max got up, moving to the kitchen, because today was their dish day.

"Would it be okay if I went and tried to finish the menorah first?" Finch asked softly.

"Shit, almost forgot," Buttons huffed. "Yeah, let's go." He smiled at the other, moving back to the garage.

And then Jan grabbed him. He squeaked, Jan holding him a chokehold as she said kindly, "You go on ahead, I'd like to talk to Ben for a second."

"O-okay," Finch said. "Please don't break my boyfriend." He waved to Buttons as he went back to the garage and got back to work.

"I'll do my best," Jan beamed. 

Ed moved back into the garage a few minutes later, getting some clay from the larger wad. He looked over at Finch's sculpture, "Looks nice." He started messing with the clay, working on his own thing.

-

 Buttons squeaked. 

"Why else would you bring him home?" Jan smirked. 

"Because?? He was at college all alone???" He answered, face bright red. "Okay- I- Jan- I know I love him- but like- we 

"Never too early or late to hop on the wedding train," Jan grinned. 

"Says you! Where's your marriage?" Buttons glared. 

Jan put a hand over her chest dramatically, "Across the seven seas in aromantic land, remember?" Buttons groaned, looking at her, and she giggled. "I just wanted to see what was up. Everyone seems to like him. Just putting a little~ thought~ into your head."

"Thanks," Finch said shyly, smiling softly at it. Maybe another hour at this pace and he could finish the wrappings. Then from there, the rest wouldn't be too hard.

Ed nodded. And then he felt something familiar. "Hm. I really hope I don't collapse," He muttered, pacing more to keep himself awake.

Finch looked up, setting the thing down. "Do-do I need to get anyone? Or catch you?"

"Uhhhh...." Ed shook his head, "No, lemme jus- siNKING SHIP-!!" 

As soon as he'd started yelling it, Max was under him, catching him as he fell over. Max sighed, helping the other over to the hammock, "Got him..." 

Jan appeared at the doorway, calm when she saw Max had their brother, and continuing to hold Buttons in a chokehold out of view. She moved away, casually continuing their conversation. 

Max sighed, "You worked another late night." Ed huffed something, trying to keep awake, but nope- he passed out. Max looked over, "Sorry about that."

"Ah, it's fine," Finch said a bit slowly. "That happen often?"

"Yeah. He's got narcolepsy with cataplexy- it's better on days where he actually gets sleep," Max said, moving over. "That's pretty," They hummed, looking at the menorah.

"Oh, thanks. My last one isn't so much, so Bu-Ben was helping me make a new one," Finch said, gesturing to the flickering fake candles on the plastic one. "I'm gonna make a little Star of David piece to put on top for the shamash to sit on once I'm done with this part."

"Nice," Max hummed. They looked around, pulling out a ninth metal cup, "Probably gonna need that one." They rolled their shoulders, tilting their head, "Also be careful that it's strong enough that you can drop it from an inch off the table and it won't break- that's usually a tell if it'll crack in the oven."

"Yeah, I figured I'd roll the wire into two triangles, put the clay on, then put them together and make sure they are really secure," Finch said, motioning with his hands.

Max gave a thumbs up, looking over at Ed. They sighed, playing with one of their rings, looking worried for their brother. He moved back to the hammock, bringing up a chair, carefully watching the other. "What was he doing before he passed out?"

"He was starting to do something with the clay, but he'd just started, so I'm not sure what," Finch said as he started working again.

"Alright, gonna need that to trigger his memory again so he doesn't pass out again," Max sighed.

"How's that work?" Finch asked curiously.

"So, from what the doctors say," Max hummed, trying to think, "Basically the cataplexy means he gets paralyzed. The narcolepsy actually makes him pass out, which becomes a lot easier when his muscle tension is basically zero. It's also 'cause he doesn't release wake-up chemicals, as the Doc called them. So when he's slept like shit, you can imagine how much easier that is. Usually it doesn't last very long- but it's disorienting, so it takes a while for him to remember what he was doing. The faster he remembers, the faster he can wake up." Max smiled a bit, happy they'd remembered all of that, and looked up. "I may or may not be interested in the medical field," They admitted.

"Oh... Huh. That's pretty cool," Finch said. "The medical field interest, not the... yeah." Stop talking now.

Max laughed a little, "No, it is all cool. It's just kinda shitty, too." 

Max pat Ed's forehead, and he shot up, blinking rapidly, "FUCK!" 

Max chuckled, "What were you sculpting, bro?" 

"A-a-auh...." He looked over, squinting at the clay, trying not to collapse again, "Uhm... Uh..." 

"Easy, focus. Kinda looks like a flower?" Max said, glancing over. 

"Oh. A rose. I was-" His face heated up, "-doING A THING FOR A FRIEND." He took a breath, because fuck he didn't want to pass out again.

Finch kinda watched as he worked, not wanting to disrupt or somehow make it worse.

Max gently pat Ed's head, "Let's bring it up to your room, yeah?" 

Ed sighed, waving Max off. He got up, moving over to the table (only slightly woozy). He waved to Finch awkwardly, then moved with Max out of the room. 

It was another half-hour before Buttons moved into the garage, "I'm freeeee~!"

Finch waved to them, going back to work. By the time Buttons came in, he was finishing the last one. "Jeez, she stole you for a while," he teased. "What were ya talkin' about?"

"Sibling stuff," Buttons murmured, blushing a little. "Wow, that looks nice~."

"As an only child, I have no idea what that means," Finch giggled, twirling the menorah in his hand. "Yeah, it's not bad, huh?" He beamed, setting it down carefully as he grabbed the wire again, cutting pieces out and forming them into the shape he wanted above the top to make sure the sizing was okay. Content, he took them back, forming them into two triangles before grabbing a piece of clay and rolling it.

Buttons watched with interest, recognizing the shape. "We could probably pop it in the oven and head up, Max doesn't know the definition of sleep. Ironically," He chuckled.

"Yeah, all I gotta do is make the Star and form it, and the cups, onto it and make sure they are all secure, make the bottom, unless you wanna do that. Just take a cup or a ball of some sort and form it around it, then cut it to be even," Finch said, focused as he stuck one of the wire pieces through it. "We could probably finish the whole thing within another hour, at most."

Buttons nodded, moving to help how Finch directed him.

Once they had put the final touches together and Finch had made sure everything was secure and wouldn't easily break off, he looked up at Buttons proudly. "I think it's done!" His eyes were shining in a way they usually didn't.

Buttons smiled happily at the shine, going, "Alright, let's put 'er in~!" Soon enough, they had the manorah in the oven, and Buttons was leading Finch upstairs again after Max swore to bring the item out of the oven when the timer went off.

Finch flopped onto the bed, sprawled across it, his eyes closed but a small smile on his face.

"Incoming," Buttons laughed, flopping next to Finch and nuzzling close. "Day 1. Status: Alive. Mostly."

"Day 1, didn't massively embarrass myself in front of your family. I hope," Finch giggled, wrapping around him like a koala.

"Nope," Buttons giggled, snuggling closer happily. "Are we showering or just sleeping?"

"I'm guessing we can't shower together without raising some eyebrows," Finch grinned, opening his eyes to look at him softly.

"I mean, we can, we just can't make noise," Buttons snorted softly. He curled into the bed and Finch more.

"Hm, tempting~" Finch grinned, not having much intention of leaving Buttons' arms at the moment. After a moment, he said quietly. "I want to make a quick animation for your brother, he seems to really like Spiderman, so I wanna do like... a shot of Spidey swinging into the frame and pulling off his mask and it's Junior. You think he'd like that?"

"I think he'd scream out of pure joy," Buttons chuckled. 

 He thought to himself, his ears going red again.

"Would you absolutely hate me if I started storyboarding it now?" Finch grinned. "I'll stay here and let you cuddle me if it helps~"

"As long as I get to cuddle you, I don't care," Buttons hummed happily.

Finch kissed him quickly before hopping down to grab his laptop and tablet, setting it up as he got back and settled against the pillows. He closed the latke recipe that was open when he opened his laptop; he'd considered trying to make them, but after the failed challah, decided not to. He woke up the tablet by wiggling the pen across it, opening Flash.

Buttons didn't notice (mostly cuz he didn't understand). "Hey, if you're interested in making any other stuff, we got plenty," Buttons giggled, cuddling up to Finch's back. He kept his arms around the other's waist, letting him work.

Finch shrugged, "I wouldn't want to make another mess. I tried to recreate my mom's challah- its a type a bread- and it turned out pretty horribly. I burned the hell outta it but somehow the inside was still raw. Guess I'm not a baker," he joked as he started sketching.

"Hmm~... If you want, we can try to make it tomorrow. We really don't celebrate a lot," Buttons admitted with a bit of a chuckled. "Our celebrating is chilling without school."

Finch was quiet for a moment, it seemed that maybe he didn't hear him? "I'd like that," he said after a moment, glancing at Buttons. "We could make latkes and doughnuts," he smiled softly. "And maybe retry the challah, possibly with some help."

"What's a latke?" Buttons asked curiously, nuzzling into Finch's neck and watching the other.

"Basically like a fried potato pancake," Finch explained. "Latkes and doughnuts are traditional, cause the whole oil thing, and you fry them in oil, ya know. They were my favorite part, but I haven't had them in years."

"Well... We got a frier..." Buttons looked extremely interested. "We can try it~!"

Finch butted his head lightly against Buttons'. He was so in love with this boy, and so so grateful for him and his family taking him in and letting him celebrate his own holiday.

Buttons laughed a little, placing kisses on Finch's cheek and neck happily. "I love you so much~," He hummed.

"I love 

 so much," Finch countered. "And... thanks. Seriously. I would be moping in my bed all alone right now had you not brought me in."

Buttons hummed again, "I couldn't let my boyfriend just be mopin'...." He smiled a little, "Plus, I get to cuddle you in my bed~." His voice dropped a little, "Get to be with you~ In my bed~." He was just teasing now, kissing Finch's neck again and letting the kiss linger.

"Oh, naughty naughty brat boy," Finch teased, trying to stay on focus with the sketching, as tempting as Buttons was.

"Hehe~," Buttons giggled, lightly nomming on Finch's neck. He settled down, though, wanting the other to focus, and hummed softly, just keeping close.

Finch rolled his eyes with a smile, leaning a little more against him. "By the time I finish the storyboarding, most of your family will probably be asleep," Finch said, just kinda throwing that out there.

"Not me~," Buttons smirked, "And my room is next to Ed's and Max's... Ed is a deep sleeper, and Max sleeps with music..." Just to say that. Y'know.

"Hm. Interesting." Finch said oh so casually, just sketching. No naughtiness happening here, so innocent~

Buttons hummed in response, teasingly nomming on Finch's neck again, and just resting there.

Finch laughed softly, resting his head against Buttons'. "Does your mama know you are trying to be naughty with your boyfriend under her roof~?" he teased.

"Considering I have five siblings, I don't think she can scold me," Buttons smirked.

"You know what... fair enough," Finch snickered. His hand moved fast, and the general motion of a figure swinging into the shot was clear.

Buttons got a little distracted, watching Finch draw quietly, just looking amazed. He relaxed against the other, almost hypnotized by Finch's movements.

By the time he was done, an hour and a half had passed. "How's that?" Finch asked, playing the simple animation back on a loop for him.

"Looks badass," Buttons hummed, eyes wide. "June's really gonna love it."

Finch grinned, saving it before closing his laptop and setting it on the ground beside him. He hummed, coming back up to kiss Buttons softly. "What now?" he asked teasingly.

Buttons felt a shiver move through him, glancing to make sure the laptop wasn't in the way. He shrugged, a bit mischievously, "I may or may not have supplies for some fun, if you're interested...~"

"Oh? What kind of fun?" Finch grinned teasingly.

Buttons hummed, curious, and he moved to kiss Finch gently, hugging the other a little closer, "Pretty sure you're aware of the kind of fun." He smirked a little, kissing the other again.

"I'm a good little Jewish boy, a man of God, I have no idea what you're talking about," Finch teased.

"Pfft," Buttons snickered, his voice dropping lower. "When we got together it's 'cause you were getting off on me in the shower~." He moved to kiss Finch's neck, lightly nipping on the skin.

"W-well, I'm also half Spanish, must be where my lack of shame comes from," he joked. Certainly untrue, told by the blush on his face.

Buttons snickered, "You wanna test that?" He shifted, nuzzling a little lower, scraping his teeth against what he knew was sensitive skin.

Finch made a small whine, leaning his head away a little to give him more room.

Buttons hummed, and... Gosh, he was in a playful mood. He blew a raspberry against the skin, giggling as he picked up Finch and turned, laying the other against the bed with quiet laughter.

"You dork," Finch giggled, holding onto Buttons' waist.

Buttons was beaming, snuggling closer, "Yep." He moved up to kiss Finch happily, "One happy dork that's happily in love." He moved his hands to either side of Finch's head, palms on the bed, "Also one happy dork that has his boyfriend pinned to a bed~."

"What's that make me, huh? Just a boyfriend pinned to a bed?" Finch winked, a grin on his face, looking just as taken with him.

"How about a cute, adorable, artistic and amazingly talented boyfriend that's pinned to a bed?" Buttons hummed.

"Unrealistic," Finch deadpanned, snorting softly.

"Very realistic," Buttons said with a smile, kissing Finch again. "I love you~."

"I love 

," Finch grinned happily, kissing him back sweetly.

"I love 

 Buttons giggled, kissing his nose. "I love you so so so so much~," Buttons hummed, shifting a bit to straddle the other.

"Stop takin' the words outta my mouth," Finch teased, pulling Buttons down to kiss him again. "It's rude~"

"It's not rude, it's mind-reading," Buttons giggled, leaning into the kiss, feeling so happy, his heart so full of love he was gonna explode.

"Well, ain't it lucky I love you so much~" Finch could say it all night, and it still wouldn't seem like enough.

Buttons gently pressed himself down against the other, his kisses lowering again to Finch's neck, nipping and nuzzling close, "And I love you tons~."

"I could say it a million times and it wouldn't be enough times to tell you how much I love you," Finch said, holding onto him, nuzzling his face against his hair.

"I could scream it to the world but I wouldn't be happy until every star heard me say I love you~," Buttons giggled.

"That's gay, Benny," Finch teased.

"We're gay, Patty," Buttons teased back, moving up to kiss Finch's lips. "Like, real gay."

"Thank god," Finch sighed. "I don't know what I'd do if we were straight. Die, probably."

"Probably," Buttons giggled, nuzzling closer. He was really teetering on the edge of being horny and just flopping on the other in cuddles. So he did just lay on the other in cuddles. For now~!

Finch squeezed his arms around him, kissing his forehead. "God, imagine telling that scared little boy running away from home that this is where he'd end up..." he said softly. "Holding the cutest boy in the world, so happy and full of love~"

Buttons squeaked like a squeak toy, giggling as he nuzzled closer. "Sometimes the bravest people get the nicest things~," He praised.

Finch wondered how he'd react if he knew exactly what he'd been through, and was almost tempted to tell him. He didn't want to ruin the moment though, and decided against it. "Yeah... I guess I'm just a lucky guy," he murmured, leaning forward to kiss Buttons softly.

Buttons noticed the look. "Hey, you wanna hear a secret?" He said softly.

"Sure, what is it?" Finch asked curiously.

"I lived in Cali, for like, a really long time~," Buttons giggled, mimicking a Cali girl's accent. He shifted, going to normal, "A fire ate our house. It was just me and Ed and Jan. We were homeless for a bit, then we inherited this place... Still poor, but not homeless." He smiled softly, "I barely remember it, but my family calls it the Dark Ages of our history."

"Damn, must've been scary... At least I didn't have to worry 'bout anyone but myself," Finch said, implying that he too had been homeless.

Buttons hugged Finch closer, "I'm just... Trying to say I know some of it. I clearly don't know everything and you don't gotta tell me everything. I love you, okay?"

"Yeah..." Finch pressed his forehead softly to Buttons. He sighed softly, working his hand into Buttons' hair. "And it's not that I don't wanna tell you, I just... it's not the funnest story, ya know? Don't wanna bring the mood down."

"Up to you. I think the mood right now is cuddles and love," Buttons hummed, relaxed on top of the other. He relaxed with the pets, keeping close.

"I will one day, alright?" Finch promised, kissing him softly.

"Alright," Buttons hummed, leaning into the kiss. He nuzzled close, wanting to comfort the other.

Finch closed his eyes with a soft sigh, happy to just be here with him. "You're warm," he mumbled.

"You're cozy," Buttons murmured, relaxing. "Get to cuddle a cute pretty boy in my bed," He hummed happily, eyes closing.

"You're the cute pretty boy," Finch murmured, snuggling him closer.

"No you are," Buttons hummed, kissing Finch's cheek.

"You are, no take backs," Finch giggled softly. He was already starting to doze off.

"Okay, but you are too," Buttons said, his words barely above a whisper. "G'night, babe..."

"G'nigh," Finch mumbled back, falling asleep in the warm coziness of his boyfriend.

-

Buttons woke up around 9:30, trying to ignore the sun in his eyes. He shifted very slightly, resting in the crook of Finch's neck, relaxed.

"Mornin'," Finch mumbled, having been stirring from sleep for the last few minutes.

Buttons just hummed in response, slowly curling his arms around Finch more. He realized why he'd felt so sluggish for the past few mornings- Finch wasn't there. He cuddled more into the other, happy that he was with Finch now.

Finch pressed a soft, sleepy kiss to his forehead. He had an idea of a cute animation bit of this- ohhh he had ideas for a few cute animations and he'd put so many hearts people would choke on it.

 Buttons smiled, blushing a little. He moved to kiss Finch's lips sleepily, imagining waking up like this every morning and just melting from that.

"What a lovely wake up call~" Finch teased, his voice a little rough from sleep, his hair sticking up in every direction messily.

Buttons hummed softly, "Mhm." He kissed Finch's cheek, moving off of/away from the other and sitting up, stretching and cracking his joints.

Finch tried to pat his bedhead down as he sat up, yawning. Uh oh, how'd he get here? He was now wrapped against Buttons' waist, his chin resting on his shoulder. Mmm, he didn't mind.

"Hum~?" Buttons moved an arm around Finch's shoulders, cuddling the other closer, "Why, hello." He gently kissed Finch's forehead, relaxed.

"Hi~" Finch smiled sleepily, blushing a little because he was just... very happy, very warm, very gay.

Buttons saw the blush, shifting to kiss Finch's lips happily. Very warm. Very gay. Much cuddle.

"Ugh, you're gonna kill me, I'm not emotionally ready for you to be kissing me so sweetly," Finch whined.

"Sh, let me revel in my morning breath not killing you," Buttons teased, going to kiss Finch again, tongue swiping against the other's lips.

"See, that's how much I love you, I don't even care that your breath stinks," Finch giggled.

Buttons laughed. "Well." He kissed Finch's nose, "Then let me go take care of that." He got up, getting a change of clothes, "Most of the rooms up here are bedrooms, first floor is anything you want it to be. Don't be afraid to come join me in the shower~." He winked, tiredly moving out of the room.

Finch sat there for about maybe half a second before getting his own change of clothes and followed him. I mean, what better way to wake up than a shower, and it would only be saving water!

Max was already downstairs, a bagel in the toaster. They looked over at Finch, rolling their eyes and shaking their head softly as they waited. Hm.

Hm. Finch just quietly leaned against the wall as he waited for Buttons, having a feeling Max knew what they'd been doing upstairs.

Yes. Max definitely knew. As they got their bagel, they looked at Finch with a raised eyebrow, "I'd appreciate it if you two left your orgasms away from where I shower." They snickered a bit, then paused- "Oh, the manorah. It's in the garage. Didn't crack at all, so it should be good for painting."

Finch flushed, giving him a small shamed salute, "Cool," he said in a small voice.

Max gave a thumbs up, taking a bite of the bagel- were those raisins? -and headed to the living room. 

Buttons hummed as he came downstairs, blinking when Max stopped him. He nodded, blushing a little, then moved over to Finch. "Well, we weren't quiet," He mumbled, a little embarrassed.

"I know, I thought we'd done at least a fairly good job," Finch blushed, putting his face in Buttons' neck. "Hopefully he's the only one who heard."

Buttons chuckled, keeping close, "Hopefully." He hummed, looking over, "What do you wanna eat~?" He was thinking about the different things they had, humming.

"Whatcha got?" Finch mumbled into his neck.

Buttons shifted, an arm around Finch's waist while the other opened the fridge, "Egg, bread, bacon... more bread in the form of bagel." He chuckled a bit.

"Bacon... Egg.. cheese... 

," Finch said slowly, rising from Buttons' chest dramatically slow.

Buttons snickered, kissing Finch's forehead again before going for the bagels, "Plain or cinnamon raisin?"

"Plain, please~" Finch said, leaning against the counter as he watched. It was cold... "Would you, 

, have hot chocolate we can make?"

Buttons let out a 

 hum, taking out two bagels. He took a breath to continue the hum as he put them into the toaster, going back and taking out the jug of milk. He finally broke the hum, "You want the weird powder stuff or actual chocolate syrup?"

"Hmmmmmm, weird powder stuff 

 chocolate syrup," Finch grinned, rubbing his gay little hands together.

Buttons gasped dramatically, "Oh, that's 

 He moved to get two mugs, pouring the milk into both. "Marshmallows or nah?" He put the milk back, going for the syrup and a packet of powder.

"What kind of man do you take me for, Benjamin. Of course marshmallows," Finch said dramatically

"I take you for a man who likes marshmallows, Patrick," Buttons answered, eyebrows raised as he moved to pour the cold milk from both mugs into a bigger cup, and put that in the microwave.

"Good," Finch grinned, draping himself over Button's shoulders, maybe needing to stand a little bit on his toes to do so.

Buttons crouched a little, giggling.

Finch stayed on him totally not dozing off again until the microwave went off. "Benny, the microwave went off," he said as if it weren't obvious, not moving a muscle.

"You koala," Buttons hummed happily, going to take out the milk. He poured it back into the mugs, putting the respective chocolates in the mugs and stirring. He went for the mallows, humming, "Careful~ It's hot~." He relaxed, happy with Finch.

Finch hummed happily, basking in the warmth of the mug, taking a small sip. "Ow." He blew on it a little and took another sip. Still hot.

"I said careful," Buttons giggled, kissing Finch's head. 

Buttons didn't notice how his mother was by the doorway, smiling softly and watching her son just being happy in love.

"But it's so good," Finch pouted, taking another sip and ignoring his burning taste buds, not noticing her either. He jumped a little bit as the toaster went off, but managed not to spill the hot chocolate. He pressed a kiss to Buttons' shoulder as he set the mug down to get them. Again, not caring about the hot.

"Babe!" Buttons squeaked, moving to grab Finch gently and pull him back. "Heat, love. 

"Hungry, babe. 

," Finch grinned. "Fire cannot kill a dragon~"

"You're a bird," Buttons snickered, carefully popping out the bagels onto a plate. "You want any butter or cream cheese?"

"Crem chez," Finch giggled, snuggling into his back. "And of course I'm a bird, thaz why dey calls me Finch~"

"I thouz dey callz ya Finch cuz you sing like a preddy birdie~," Buttons hummed, going to get the cream cheese and putting it carefully on the bagel. He perked up when his mom laughed softly, blushing. His mom hummed, going to make a mug of coffee.

Finch snorted at that, flushing a little when he realized she was there. "Good morning, ma'am," he said quietly, still a little shy around her.

The woman laughed a little, "Jess is fine, dear." 

Buttons handed Finch the bagel, kissing his forehead anyway. She seemed to soften at that, happy that her son was happy.

Finch nodded softly, taking the bagel happily, taking a bite.

She hummed, "I'm going out today with your father. Don't burn the house down." 

Jess moved to kiss Button's cheek, and he smiled a little, "Have fun." 

"Thanks," She hummed, getting the cup and moving off.

Finch waved, leaning back against Buttons as he ate his bagel. "We gonna have a cook day?" he asked.

"Yup," Buttons beamed. He put some cream cheese on his bagel, taking a bite and sipping happily from his mug. Hot chocolate and bagels.

Finch finished one half of the bagel when he remembered. "Oh, yeah!" He ran out to the garage with no further explanation. 

He picked up the menorah carefully, happily checking over it.

"Hum?" Buttons just let the other run off, continuing to eat his breakfast. He shifted to see what ingredients they had, a bit worried they might not have everything.

Finch was quite happy with it, and the dreidels had turned out pretty good as well. He left them there, already thinking of the colors he'd paint them. "They turned out great!" he said happily as he came back into the kitchen.

Buttons smiled, "That's good! So then maybe while things are cooking we can paint? Is there any baking involved?" He looked over, eyebrow raised.

"Latkes will be quick to make, I think it's literally just prep and mix the ingredients and then fry them. Donuts are a little longer to make the dough, but cook quickly once thats done. Overall, prolly would only take... two hours roughly? Well, actually less if we're workin' together and doing them at the same time." Finch explained, pulling up recipes on his phone. "Then we'd be done, and we can paint," he smiled happily.

"Alright... Frier." He reached down, pulling out the long rectangular frier. He set it on the counter, taking the basket out, and making sure it was clean before pouring in the oil. He hummed, plugging it in and covering it up so it would be ready to use later. "Alright, explain away~."

Finch nodded, reading over the instructions of both. "Yeah, we have to leave the dough out to rise for an hour, so it would be best to do that first."In a small bowl, combine the yeast, 1 tablespoon flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, and water. Mix well, cover, and allow to rest until the mixture becomes foamy," he read aloud. "In another large bowl, mix the remaining 3 cups of flour with the melted margarine, salt, remaining sugar, and the egg yolks."

Buttons was grabbing ingredients, putting them up, "Alright, uh... Do we need the same stuff for other things?"

"For the latkes, its shredded potatos, grated onion, eggs, flour, salt, and peanut oil," Finch read. "Oh, and jelly and powdered sugar for the donut filling and topping."

"Oh boy," Buttons laughed, looking around. "I'll do my best."

Finch grinned at him, "Do we need ta go to the store for anything?"

"Uhhhhh I don't 

 so...?" Buttons pulled out the potatoes and onions.

"Okay, cool," Finch beamed, rolling up his sleeves. He set the phone in between them on the counter, looking around. "Measuring cups..."

"Cabinet right of the oven," Buttons answered, bringing things over.

Finch went and grabbed the cups, getting a couple bowls down too. "Gotta melt the butter down," he said to Buttons. "A fourth of a cup." He started reading the directions again, following them as he measured out a small amount of flour and sugar, double checking this was right.  Yeah, the rest went in the other bowl.

Buttons went to cut the butter, putting it in a bowl and popping it in the microwave in intervals, not wanting it to explodé.

Finch stuck his tongue out a little in focus, making sure it was all measured and mixed right before he covered it to rest a little while he measured out the mixture for the larger bowl.

Buttons moved to bring the butter, helping measure and mix where he could. He was enjoying helping, following with a hum.

Finch smiled at him. This was nice, and quite peaceful. The house itself was quiet,  although he could hear some commotion that sounded like playing outside. He'd already managed to get flour on his shirt and a little on his face, but that was okay.

As they continued, Buttons noticed the flour on his love's face. He got a rag and licked it, and when Finch wasn't paying attention he moved to scrub the flour off before setting the rag down and continuing in what he was doing, humming softly.

"Gross, cooties," Finch teased jokingly, glancing at him as he whisked the mixture.

Buttons rolled his eyes, "Oh, yeah, 'course. You're infected now."

Finch giggled, huffing as he kept whisking. "You know, I just realized that this has to turn from a liquid to a solid."

"So how much mixing do we gotta go?" Buttons said with wide eyes.

Finch looked down at the bowl. "I realize now that usually a mixer would be used for this. Do you have one by any chance?"

"Uhhhhhhhhhh....." Buttons moved around, trying to find it, and he eventually did... Oh jeez. He started climbing the counter, standing on top as he got it, putting it on to the sink. He moved down carefully, but of course he slipped. He yelped, crashing to the floor, thankfully only falling on his side. "Ow..." He mumbled.

Finch yelped, quickly setting the bowl on the counter and kneeling beside him. "Are you okay??" he asked worriedly, carefully helping him sit up.

"Yeah, all good," He managed, laughing a little in disbelief. "Usually I don't fall over," He managed, rubbing his arm. "Oof..." He looked at Finch, "I'm good."

"Are you sure?" Finch asked, clearly disbelieving that he was really all okay.

"Yeah, yeah... Hold on." He gently nudged Finch away, stretching out his arm and rolling it around, then bending his joints, making sure his shoulder and elbow were okay. He nodded, "Yeah, all good, just sore." He chuckled, "Body fat really out here saving my bones." He gently moved closer to Finch again, "I'm good."

"Should I kiss it better?" Finch said a little cheekily after making sure he really was okay.

Buttons blinked. He held out his arm, "My bownes weally wurt, dey's needin' twu wuv's kiss."

Finch snorted, taking his wrist tenderly and pressing small kisses up his forearm before looking at him, still holding his wrist loosely. "Anywhere else?" he said with a cheeky grin that had his mother seen, would think he looked just like his father.

"How about here?" Buttons said softly, pointing at his lips.

"Oh, of course, it's dangerous to let those go unkissed~" Finch teased as he pulled Buttons forward a little while leaning in himself, kissing him tenderly.

Buttons hummed happily in the kiss, moving his arms around Finch's shoulders and pulling the other in for a bit of a longer kiss.

Finch hummed, leaning in a little more into him, deepening it a little. 

Junior just wanted a snack. Just a snack, not a scar for life. He ran into the kitchen, not expecting, of course, to see his older brother making out on the floor with his boyfriend. "Eeeewww, gross!" he shouted, covering his eyes maybe peeking. 

Amy snorted behind him, "Do I ever want to know how you two ended up there?" 

Finch had pulled away from him, flushing a little as he stood up quickly and helped Buttons up, "He, uh, he fell, I was helping him up." 

"I've never helped anyone up like that before," Amy chuckled, going to the fridge with raised eyebrows. 

"Do you guys always kiss?" Junior asked, wrinkling his nose.

Buttons 

 blushing bright red and still leaning into Finch. He managed to stand with the other, letting go carefully, and glaring a bit at Amy. He looked back at Junior, "Yeah. People kiss people that they love." He was calming down, trying to ignore his burning blush.

"Someone at my school got in trouble cause he was kissing a girl," Junior said, taking the applesauce Amy handed to him. 

You could almost see the struggle on Finch's face not to say "cause being straight is illegal" as a joke. Amy looked like she might be holding back a retort of her own.

"Well, that's not fair," Buttons answered, "Unless the guy or the girl were already with someone. Or they were supposed to be in class." He smiled a bit.

"He was playing a joke on her I think..." June looked confused for a second as he thought of something. "Wait, but I love Mom and Dad but I don't kiss them?"

"Well, you kiss their cheeks- but you save lip kisses for people you're thinking about marrying-" oh. "-I MEAN. AS IN. SPENDING YOUR LIFE WITH THEM- I MEAN... Yeah I'm not making this any better," He muttered, head down in defeat.

"Oooohhh, okay!" Junior seemed content with that. "I'm gonna play Sims now." He took his snack and walked out.

"Well, you two seem busy enough in here," Amy said, a knowing look on her face as she too walked out. 

Finch looked back at Buttons with raised eyebrows. "What was that you were saying?" he teased, leaning into him. "What, you havin' some ideas in that brain a your's?"

Buttons nodded, huffing at Amy, and then turning bright red. "I been having ideas, Finch. Don't get too excited about them, they ain't for a long while," He huffed, gently nudging the other, seriously trying to calm down his blush. He whined, putting his face in his hands. Stupid Jan.

Finch giggled, nudging one of Buttons' hands away with his nose to kiss his cheek. Weirdly enough, he wasn't bothered by the idea. The idea of spending the rest of his life like this... it was tempting, really.

Buttons blinked, shifting to kiss Finch gently. "One day," He murmured.

"I wouldn't mind that," Finch murmured softly back, staying where he was for a moment before kissing his cheek once more before going back to start the mixer up.

Buttons' eyes lit up at that, and smiled a bit as Finch moved off. He was just standing there stunned, watching the other happily. "Have I told you how much I love you?" He hummed, head tilting to the side.

"I believe you might have mentioned it once or twice," Finch giggled, glancing back at him. "I might need help figuring out how to use this, by the way."

"Oh fuck-" Buttons laughed, going over to set it up.

Finch helped the best he could, and after a... couple minutes, it was running smoothly and mixing the batter. And soon it was turning into a dough. "Had I done that by hand, I would have been absolutely jacked by the end," he giggled.

"Yeah, you could be using your hand for something else," He smirked.

"Gross, gutter-brain," Finch snickered, pushing him lightly. When the mixture was looking doughy, he got the dough off the whisk and covered it with a towel, setting it to the side to prove. "Well, that's there for about two hours, so wanna make the latkes?"

"Sure~," Buttons hummed, going to set up the next stuff.

"Potatos, eggs, flour, salt, mix em together and thats it, ya just just fry em after that."

"Alright," Buttons said, starting to pour things in.

Finch leaned against him, helping where he could but maybe just kinda cuddling him.

Buttons enjoyed the cuddles, blinking as he uncovered the frier. He put things in the basket, moving it into the frier and covering it again. "How long do we wait?"

"Doesn't say... Prolly gotta watch 'em, just said turn 'em when they're golden brown," Finch said.

"Alright... I guess," Buttons murmured. He took the basket out and turned things over before putting it back.

Finch nuzzled into him. watching and directing him to the shaping of them, happy and warm.

Buttons followed, humming along. By the end, they had a nice plate of them. "What should I do with these?" He hummed.

"Let 'em cool, nom nom yam-aka," Finch giggled.

He rolled his eyes, setting them in the microwave. "Y'think the dough's done? How long did that take?"

"Like... 30 minutes. So we got a while longer," Finch murmured, still nuzzling him.

Buttons turned, wrapping his arms around Finch and nuzzling him closer, humming softly.

"Wanna paints the dreidels?" Finch suggested.

"Alrighty," He murmured, kissing Finch's forehead, moving with the other but still keeping an arm around his waist.

Finch led him along to the garage. He took the slightly wonky one, hiding it in his hand and pushing the other (slightly better) one to Buttons. "See, they turned out great!" (Not pointing out that he'd given Buttons the one that he'd made, of course.)

"Finch," Buttons said, deadpan, "I'm not dumb. The one I made had an indent right there."

Finch clicked his tongue, putting Buttons' back on the table. "Yours is still good too," he said with a smile.

Buttons looked at his, beaming, "Fuck, it came out better than I thought it would." He went to try to spin it, and it was a little sloppy, but it worked!!

Finch beamed, going to find the paints. He did after a few moments, bringing the bin over and setting it down on the table between them.

"Alright, you gotta teach me what to paint," Buttons giggled.

"I can shows ya, but I'm gonna paint mine first~" Finch grabbed the blue, getting one of the brushes and starting to paint one side of it. "Once it dries, we can paint the symbols and the top on."

"Alright." Buttons copied, painting his as well.

Once he'd painted the sides, he watched Buttons, blowing on it to dry faster.

Buttons waved his gently in the air to dry it off, humming softly. He then went and painted a stripe of blue on Finch's cheek.

Finch squinted, slowly leaned in, took Buttons face... and he kissed him sweetly. Then while he was distracted, did a quick two dots and a curve to paint a smiley face on his cheek.

Buttons blinked, and then melted into the kiss a bit. He giggled, looking over in a mirror at the smiley. "Y'know what, that's fair," He laughed.

Finch laughed softly, grabbing his chin to turn his head a little, painting a little heart on his other cheek.

Buttons hummed, letting Finch do as he pleased. He looked in the mirror again, gasping. "Oh no. My reputation!!"

"Oh, and what reputation is that, hah?" Finch asked, kissing his lips softly since his cheeks now had paint on them.

"Me being a big tough button," Buttons pouted.

"Aw, poor babe," Finch giggled. "Everyone already knows you're a big softie~" He poked his cheek where it wasn't painted.

Buttons puffed out his cheeks, then giggled and went to normal, kissing Finch, "Whoopsies~."

Finch giggled, then turned his head back to the dreidel in his hand. He tested it, and the paint was dried. So he set it down to pull up the symbols on his phone, figuring he would go ahead and explain the game while they was painting, but he grabbed the silver paint first.

Buttons listened to the explanation, following along and asking questions where he was confused. He looked excited to be playing the new game, almost buzzing in place.

"Ya got the coins, or sometimes, like my family did it, we'd use some sorta candy like M&Ms or somethin', and ya give everyone an equal amount, we usually agreed on seven each," Finch explained as he found smaller brushes for them, handing one to Buttons. "This one," he gestured to the symbol on the phone as he started carefully painting it on one of the sides, "Is Nun. Easy 'nough to remember, nun does nothin', if ya roll it, you just pass to the next player."

Buttons quickly realized they were going to have to expose Finch to the Candy Shelf. He tried to hide the slight panic as he focused.

"Gimmel," Finch explained, too focused to notice, "means ya 'get'. Land on this and you take the whole middle pot, and everyone else has ta put two coins in to make a new pot."

Buttons nodded again, humming.

"Hey is half, so ya take half the pot." Finch paused to finish the symbol before continuing. "And Shin is share, so you'd put two coins in the pot."

"Alright, that all makes sense," Buttons hummed, trying to think. "Are you allergic to anything?"

"Nope," Finch said as he finished painting the top of the dreidel silver before blowing it.

"Phew," Buttons murmured, following all the symbols as he painted them on. "I may or may not have a sacred thing to show you in the kitchen."

Finch looked up at that, "And what's that?"

"It may or may not include something to play this game with," Buttons said casually, blowing on his dreidel to dry it off.

Finch was intrigued. He touched the paint, dry. He spun it, and it twirled for a good moment before it landed. "Gimmel, I take the pot~"

"If you eat all the candy, I think my family will throw me out of the house," Buttons giggled, kissing Finch's nose before motioning for the other to follow him back to the kitchen. He'd completely forgotten about the paint on his face.

Finch snickered, following him. "That's alright, I already took my prize this mornin'," he teased.

Buttons gasped, looking offended, "But don't you want it every morning??"

"Every mornin' sounds nice~" Finch grinned.

Buttons smiled, moving to kiss Finch gently before going to the cabinet. With a dramatic, shakey hand, he opened it and pointed to the top shelf. ... That's a lot of candy. Who needs that many different types of M&Ms???

“Oh my god,” Finch snickered. “It’s a whole treasure trove! Ya got that marked on a map somewhere?”

"Come over for Easter," Buttons answered ominously.

"What's Easter?" Finch joked, putting an arm around him. "I bet it's insane with all a that chocolate."

"Oh gosh it's fun," Buttons giggled.

"I just know that when the egg bunnies come out, means chocolate's on sale soon," Finch snickered.

"No, it means you get to run around collecting eggs and get 

 chocolate," Buttons clarified.

"I'm a Jew, this holiday isn't for me, therefore I gotta pay ta get in on it," Finch said, nudging him with a grin.

"Sh, I'll sneak you in," Buttons giggled, "Like sneaking people in the movie theater for a free movie."

Finch giggled, leaning into him. "Are there like... rules?" Cause like legitimately other than the commercialized stuff he wasn't sure how it was celebrated.

"Nah, just don't steal the little kid’s candy," Buttons hummed.

"Huh. There's like.. no rituals or nothin'?" Finch asked a little confused. "Ya don't go ta church?"

"Finch, we're not 'go to church every Sunday' Christians, in case you hadn't noticed," Buttons smirked.

"Well yeah, but like most Jewish holidays you'd go ta temple at least once ta pray," Finch said.

Buttons shrugged a bit, "Well, we don't usually go."

"Huh... alright," Finch shrugged. He looked at the time, at the bowl. "We still got a while before that's done so... We could start paintin' the menorah," he suggested.

"Alrighty~," Buttons hummed, following Finch back to the garage.

Finch started working on painting, not realizing he'd started humming softly as he made sure to get in the indents of the swirls.

Buttons watched, cuddled into Finch's back, watching and listening in a soft amazement.

"

" His voice was soft and sweet, his lips barely moving, still looking unaware of what he was doing as his hands moved. "

"

Buttons was melting. Buttons was so in love 

 He snuggled closer, quietly listening, not wanting to break the spell.

"

" Finch had starting riffing Zendaya's lines, realizing what he was doing. He blinked, looking at Buttons shyly. "S-sorry," he said sheepishly, a bit of a blush on his face.

"Don't gotta apologize," Buttons murmured, "Like I said; your voice is beautiful." He was loving listening to the other, snuggled close.

Finch's blush only grew at that, and he was too shy to continue, squirming a little bit in a little bit of embarrassment as if this didn't happen all the time.

Buttons laughed softly, nuzzling into Finch's neck. "C'mon, little bird... You can keep singing~."

Finch squeaked at the nickname, totally red now. "Noooo, it's embarrassing...."

"No it's not~," Buttons cooed, kissing Finch's neck. "It's adorable is what it is, birdie~."

"Stooooopp," Finch whined, getting even more flustered.

"Ooooh," Buttons smirked, kissing again, "I don't wanna stop, little birdie~."

"Anyone who says you're innocent obviously has never been in my position," Finch muttered, trying to paint even with the rising heat.

Buttons snickered, "I'm just a guy who sews." He shifted to actually lick Finch's neck slightly before moving away teasingly, going over to another box on the shelf. He brought it out, setting it on the table, "Speaking of..." He opened it, starting to shuffle through the stuff, curious.

Finch shivered at that, squirming in his seat, glancing at him with a pout before he started painted again.

Buttons froze when he found something. He slowly pulled out a tiny dress, looking at it a bit fondly. "Hey, Finch... When we get our own place, can we get a dog? Maybe a cat, too..." He smiled softly. It was definitely a dog dress.

"I never had a dog before, you'd hafta help me figure out how ta take care of it. But I don't mind," Finch said, looking up.

Buttons looked excited for that, buzzing a bit. "Either we get a dog, or kids." He snickered a bit at that, eyebrow raised towards Finch.

"Why not both?" Finch grinned. "Prolly would hafta wait a while for that one though...." he said a little more seriously. "I wouldn't wanna fuck up a kid..." He looked away, going back to his painting.

"We wouldn't fuck up a kid," Buttons said seriously, pausing in his little search. He looked at Finch, slight concern in his eyes. "'Course we'd wait, there's some stuff I gotta do first." He hid a smirk as he looked down again, "Oh- found it." He pulled out a bracelet from when he dabbled in jewelry. It was a silver band that had beads that looked like they were made from string. He set it on the table, humming as he slid it over to Finch.

Finch glanced up at it, a smile playing at his lips, "What's this?"

"A bracelet," Buttons said matter-of-factly.

"Well, duh, but why're ya givin' it to me?" Finch asked curiously.

"'Cause I want you to wear it," Buttons said softly.

Finch rolled his eyes a little, but slid it onto his wrist. "Happy, you dork?"

"Extremely," Buttons whispered, looking at Finch with a new smile, then covered up the box again and setting it away. He moved over, wrapping his arms around Finch's waist and and cuddling into his back, looking like a Soft Button™.

Finch sighed softly, looking back at him as he leaned back into him. He pressed a soft kiss to his lips, content and happy.

Buttons leaned into the kiss with a soft smile, nuzzling close. He looked over to the Menorah, "It's beautiful."

"Yeah?" Finch asked, looking over at it. "I'll paint the bottom and the Star gold, think it'll go pretty good with the blue and silver. I mean, ya know, Hanukkah colors," he smiled.

"It'll be amazing." He gently kissed Finch's cheek, "I'm gonna go try to bring down the candy and not fall over." He walked back into the house, looking relaxed. 

Jan walked in through the back door a few minutes later, "Oh, hey! Wow, that looks nice." She looked over, whistling. Her eyes went to the bracelet as she watched him paint, and breathed out a soft, "Oh wow... He gave you it..."

Finch looked up, following her gaze to the bracelet. "Yeah, he just slid it over, wouldn't tell me why."

Jan hummed at that, leaning over the table again, "When he was first getting into crafts, he made his own string wefts. He'd buy the little folded things, and wind them into a tight ball. He got the idea to make them into beads, even if it was a big waste of string. He was so proud of the bracelet 'cause it'd taken so long to make each bead." Her gaze fell, "He was in either elementary or middle school, on the edge there. He brought it to school, and someone stole it. Basically, that was his first fist fight. He was so ashamed when Mom came to get him out of detention, but he also realized that he needed to hide precious things. He started keeping a lot of secrets after that. We didn't realize he had a box of sewing things until he went to college." She added the last part with a chuckle, rubbing her legs together. "He hid it, and he swore that he'd never let it go and only let someone he truly loved even see it again. He of course showed us before he hid it away... I've seen him eye the box when he was in other relationships, but he never took the bracelet out for them."

Finch listened in interest, his mouth falling open a little at the last part. He blinked, looking down at the bracelet he wore, fiddling with the beads that baby Buttons had so painstakingly crafted.

Jan chuckled softly, watching. "Yeah... I never expected him to touch the thing, honestly... I thought he forgot about it." She chuckled softly, shifting and standing up again. "Anyways, I'll leave you to painting," She hummed softly, going inside.

Finch smiled softly, reaching his hand up and kissing the bracelet softly before he went back to painting. Within a few more minutes, he'd finished, setting it down and looking over it with a happy grin.

Buttons came back in, humming, the smiley face washed off but the heart still there. He moved over, gasping softly and putting an arm around Finch's waist. "When it dries, we'll light it. Where do you think we should put it?" He looked excited, kissing Finch's cheek before going to find some candles.

"Wherever your mom says is okay. Usually by a window, though," Finch beamed.

"Alright, I know just the spot then," Buttons giggled. He moved to put the metal cups into the slots, and then put the candles into those, not lighting them but letting them sit there. He moved to pick it up like it was glass, being extremely careful with it (and not touching the paint too much) as he brought it into the house. There was a nice high table next to a window with two shelves under it that had books, and there was a white tablecloth over it already. He carefully set it down, smiling a bit and showing Finch.

Finch smiled, his eyes soft as he looked at it. It was almost bittersweet to see something that reminded him so strongly of home. "We'll hafta light six of 'em now, then the seventh when it gets dark."

"Alright... Let's wait until the paint fully dries, I don't wanna mess it up." Buttons moved to Finch's side again, an arm around his love's waist as he kissed Finch's temple happily.

Finch turned, nuzzling into his neck. "I love you," he murmured.

"I love you, too," Buttons murmured just as softly, cuddling Finch close, happy with the other.

"Jan told me what this bracelet is, by the way," he said softly, kissing his neck just as lightly.

Buttons shifted, blushing a little, going, "Ah, well that takes away the mystery..." His voice was soft, and he shifted to nuzzle closer gently.

"Wish I had somethin' like that I could give you," Finch sighed, his grip squishing a little tighter on his boyfriend, his best friend, his lover. He wanted something he could give to him.

"You being here is more than enough, Patrick," Buttons said softly, shifting to look at the other, "You just letting me love you, loving me, that's more than I could ever ask for."

Finch couldn't bring himself to pretend he wasn't tearing up at that. He brought one of his hands to Buttons' cheek, holding him softly. "I used ta think I wouldn't find no one," he admitted softly. "That maybe I wasn't meant to have someone like that loving me... You sure proved me wrong."

Buttons smiled a little at that, moving to kiss Finch gently, "Glad I did." He kissed Finch again, holding the other closer, pressing their foreheads together lovingly.

Finch sat happily in his embrace, content to stay there like that forever.

"So, should we check on the dough, or just cuddle on the couch?" Buttons hummed, content in Finch's arms.

"Hmmmm, my heart says cuddle but my mind says check on the dough, otherwise we'll forget about it entirely," Finch murmured.

"Hmmmm what a dilemma," Buttons hummed, gently shifting to kiss Finch lightly. "Well, I feel like there'll be plenty of time for us to cuddle," He said softly, nuzzling against the other. He still couldn't bring himself to move, though.

"Mhm..." Finch hummed back, not moving a muscle and not really intending to.

"Oh jeez, we're gonna stay like this forever, huh?" Buttons mumbled tiredly, feeling warm and cozy even though they were standing. He took a few shuffled steps towards the couch, sitting and pulling Finch to sit on top of him, laying down and pulling Finch close.

"Oh no," Finch murmured, nuzzling into his neck happily.

"A tragedy," Buttons breathed softly, kissing Finch's forehead, "Stuck forever cuddling the love of my life."

"Mmm, doesn't sound too bad, when ya put it like that," Finch said softly, ignoring the way his heart skipped a beat when he called him the love of his life.

"No, it doesn't," Buttons murmured, nuzzling closer and his eyes closing.

Finch hummed happily, burrowing into the crook of love's neck and dozing off quickly. 

-

Amy came downstairs a little bit later to see them curled up. She shook her head softly, chuckling to herself as she took pictures for blackmail (or really cause she knew her mom would think they were cute) went into the kitchen, finding the mess they'd left and a proved dough ready to bake. Jesus, they'd even left the fryer on. She went over, inspecting the scene, and when she found the latkes in the microwave, she figured pretty easily they'd been making donuts. She rolled up her sleeves, going to work, I mean, she wasn't doing anything else anyways. 

Junior came in a little bit later, curious, and started helping, both being quiet as to not wake the sleeping two. When they were done, Amy covered the donuts in a cling film, presented nicely on a plate, before they cleaned up and went back to their rooms.

Buttons had woken up first, but was starting lovingly at Finch. He moved his hand to rub the other's back gently, just lost in thought about how much he loved the other. Having Finch come over had really slammed things into perspective, and he decided right there that he could genuinely spend the rest of his life with this man.

Finch hummed sorta how a cat does when you suddenly touch it while it's dozing, stirring at the movement. He sighed, cuddling deeper into him.

Buttons bit back a laugh, continuing to rub Finch's back softly. He was just laying there, soaking in the affection, loving having the other there with him.

"I wuv you~" Finch murmured happily into his neck, pressing a soft kiss there.

Buttons giggled softly, "I wuv you too~." He was just relaxed and happy, curling Finch a little closer. "I think we passed out," He said quietly, looking around tiredly.

"What time is it?" he asked. "Ah, the dough mighta been sittin' too long..."

"Y'wanna go check on it?" He hummed, gently nudging Finch to sit up.

Finch grumbled at the nudge, but got off of him. He went to the kitche- What. He blinked. Their mess was gone, and there was. The donuts??? All nicely arranged on a plate????? "Wh- did I go crazy or somethin', we didn't finish them, did we?"  he said, bewildered and not considering there were other people in the house.

Buttons got up, going over. "The Fae must'a come," He breathed, "Or my siblings." He snickered a bit, going over, kind of wanting one, but looking at Finch.

"Well....." Finch scooted over to the plate, sneaking one of the donut balls and biting into it. He squeaked as jelly almost dropped down his chin.

Buttons tried very hard. He was really trying. But he moved forwards, licking up Finch's chin. "Oh, that's good," He hummed, going to get a donut ball for himself and popping it into his mouth.

Finch giggled. "I think we did good~ Well, us and whoever finished 'em."

Buttons nodded happily, still chewing since he had literally shoved the whole thing in his mouth.

Finch popped the rest of his in his mouth, humming. He opened the microwave, getting one of the latkes to taste test it too. He nodded in approval with a grin, offering to Buttons.

Buttons made an 'ooo' sound, taking one of the latkes and eating it. "Wow, that's good," He said, doing a happy wiggle.

"Hey, and I bet the paint's dry, so we can light some of the candles now to get ready for when it's night," Finch said, nudging him.

Buttons perked up at that, looking around and grabbing a lighter. He handed it to Finch, nudging the other back, "C'mon, then~!"

Finch was excited, he hadn't been able to actually light a menorah in years. "Light the top candle, that's what we use to light the others."

Buttons blinked, and walked over with the other. He looked at the top candle, lighting it for Finch, looking excited.

Finch took the candle, carefully lighting six of them. "Usually, we'd light them one a night, but it's the seventh night, so when it gets dark we'll light the next one," he explained as he did, setting the candle back on the top. He stepped back and looked at it. Oh. There was a look in his eyes for a moment, of a deep sadness and longing, before he blinked and looked back at Buttons. "Pretty, ain't it?"

Buttons had seen it, and he carefully moved an arm around Finch, "Yeah, it is."

"Well, what trouble are we getting up to now in the meantime, hah?" Finch asked, poking his side.

Buttons looked over at a clock, shrugging, "Looks like it's only 3..." He looked at Finch, poking the other back.

"Hmmmmmmm....." Finch nuzzled back into him. "Then we got a while. Whatchu wanna do~?"

"I dunno, what do you wanna do~?" Buttons hummed, nuzzling back as he curled Finch closer, kissing the other's forehead happily.

Finch hummed. "Cuddle while I work on the animation?"

"Upstairs we go~," Buttons giggled, taking Finch's hand and moving back up to his room. He waited for Finch to settle down with the laptop and drawing tablet before going to settle behind the other again, cuddling into his back happily while scrolling through his phone.

Finch pressed a soft kiss to his forehead before settling down and starting to draw the base sketches.

Buttons was relaxed, just cuddling the other and looking through tumblr. He did make a post- "cuddling bf while he draws. never been more gay in my life."

Finch hummed softly, not thinking about it as he focused on the anatomy of the drawings.

Buttons snorted softly, going to reblog it and adding: 

Buttons smiled softly, kissing Finch's neck before going back to scrolling.

#Newsies #finch cortez #buttons davenport #finch newsies #buttons newsies #wow also looking back over it on my blog tumblr really just like murdered the formatting huh #oh well i dont really wanna look through all of it to fix it